Players, do you prefer existing Monsters?

[ugavine]

One for the players.

Do you prefer existing Monsters?

Or do you like the GM to come up with something new and original?

Or a bit of both?

I only ask because as I plan my next three adventure story arc I realise I'm using two home-brew monsters with just a couple of existing ones.

At least it means the Players can't metagame about my monsters.

[Craig Oxbrow]

I'll ask, but I'll note some tendencies.

Players who aren't big fans tend to prefer new monsters, since it puts them even with fan players. This can be partially allayed by using existing monsters in a new way, which is what most writers try to do anyway.

Fan players are more likely to get a kick out of facing the classics. Fan players whose characters have a lot of knowledge of the universe might like the chance to show off in-character. (Of course they can do that with new monsters as well, as their characters could still know all about them, but this requires more prompting from the GM.)

However, both kinds of players generally like surprises. A new monster, a classic monster used in a new way

But if there's no Dalek episode in a whole series, fan players might feel shortchanged.

[ugavine]

Cheers for the reply. And fans will certainly want something recognisable.

Jan 25, 2011 18:46:43 GMT Craig Oxbrow said:

But if there's no Dalek episode in a whole series, fan players might feel shortchanged.

Quote from the gaming table, "Oh, I like the Daleks. I just don't like fighting them." ;D

[da professor]

Jan 25, 2011 22:42:31 GMT ugavine said:

Quote from the gaming table, "Oh, I like the Daleks. I just don't like fighting them." ;D

In which case RUN!!!

[Siskoid]

My own mix seems to go maybe half and half. Classic, then new, then human enemies, rince, repeat. My players seemed fine with it, though a little more excited by monsters they knew, and relatively cold to classic series monsters they didn't (like Osiran mummies). If you've never seen it, it's new to you.

Truth be told, my players were a lot more excited/not about time/locations than monsters, which encouraged me to skew things towards historical events and places at the expense of contemporary and future destinations.

[ugavine]

Jan 26, 2011 18:54:46 GMT Siskoid said:

Truth be told, my players were a lot more excited/not about time/locations than monsters, which encouraged me to skew things towards historical events and places at the expense of contemporary and future destinations.

When I bought this game I planned on having adventures across time and space. And now I've actually found myself as GM drawn more towards historicals on Earth. It's much more fun to play with history

[skagra]

Speaking as both a player and a GM:

The format we play by is an NPC Doctor and homemade companions for the players, most of the time the players working away from The Doctor. As such, it is nice to have something from the show to ground us in the Whoniverse and remind us we are plying DWAITAS, not just AITAS.

Using established Doctor Who monsters and characters is one way to accomplish this. When playing with homemade enemies, it's nice to have something else from the show. I ran an adventure where a (homemade) cyborg had salvaged an old type ten TARDIS, and was trying to repair it. I'm working on something now which takes place entirely in the rooms and corridors of the TARDIS (this also has a classic alien but may be unknown to the younger players mostly familiar with modern Who. I sent K9 with the party as an NPC once.

Essentially, I like new characters and aliens just fine, but prefer to have something from the series as a major part of each adventure.