Adventure Design

[ravencrowking]

I am coming at the game from a D&D background, and even the Arrowdown adventure seems extremely sketchy to me. I would love to read the transcripts from an online game using one of the included adventures, or hear how they were developed prior to play.

Thanks!

RC

[renegadetimelord]

I would be interested in understanding what level of detail you would expect from an adventure - because I personally perceive 'Arrowdown' as a fair shape for an adventure, with all the general detail sketched out, but without slathering on layer after layer of staging, maps and scripting. I haven't run the game yet, but all I think I need is to visualise the setting and I'm off (I already have a seaside town in mind as a point of reference... Somewhere I went in Cornwall a couple of times).

[ravencrowking]

That's why I mentioned coming from D&D.

My D&D pre-prep is a lot more prepped than this. I usually know, for example, how many monsters occur within a given encounter. I have some idea beforehand what sorts of rolls the players will have to make if they wish to accomplish specific tasks, and I have some fair idea what tasks those are likely to be.

All of this is probably not as germaine to DW:AT&S.

I am not exactly sure what I should be looking for, and would love to see someone else run the game, or have a full example of play to reference.

[Curufea]

It is a rules-light system, so the adventures written for it also tend to be details-light. The nature of the genre for Doctor Who really encourages an "adlib" attitude from players and the GM.

Some kind of cheat sheet that fills in the details to an existing adventure would be a good idea for players with D&D (or other highly structered RPG system) knowledge, possibly just sidebars including setting details, suggestions and a list of probable skill resolutions to use (e.g. "in this case you could use Awareness + Technology vs a difficulty of 12")

[Siskoid]

And as for the "number of monsters", I think that's deliberately left vague in adventures like this because it really depends on the size of a group and/or their competence. Torchwood can take care of a horde of Weevils, for example, but the Doctor and Rose might have trouble with just one.

Keeping it vague allows the GM to tailor the encounter to the group, not the other way around.

[damocles]

I come from a D and D background too and the first thing I did was ignore that system as the two are completely different. As it's so easy to make up content on the fly in this game you simple follow what the players want to do. With Arrowdown I simply listed the few 'must happen' events and made sure the players did not stray too far. I also made sure that no matter what I introduced there was an internal consistency so the players don't think I am making the whole thing up (even though I am)

I think of last night's adventure about 20% was from the module but the module was very important to set the framework of the story. This framework is crucial to keep sense of it but within that anything goes. I also adjusted the adventure to suit the players as I know they like mysteries and spooky stuff. So when the players decided to visit a ship (which I had not prepared for at all) I made it seem haunted and very eerie, all fluff but the players enjoyed it. The great thing about this system is it worked flawlessly with no effort and I threw a clue in as a bonus for them.

I suggest you try the Judoon adventure first, that was great for me to get the feel of how the game works and what the players like.

I find the game a lot easier than D and D to run and its a lot more free form.

Anyway best of luck.


EDIT: As for rolls just go with the standard 12 difficulty unless you have a good reason not to. You can fine tune if you want and the details for that are listed in the GM book but to be honest I didn't bother as it was never needed. Of course rolls against an NPC will be different, as explained in the GM book. I found the skills/abilities to use mainly common sense (and a few are listed in the GM book) and they are not set in stone anyway. They have story points to avoid any major issues anyway. Just avoid excessive rolling though. No need to check to see if a player can open a door that's unlocked:)

[kalan]

I think the best way to go would be - tailor the encounter to suit the story, rather than tailor it for the group.

Remember that combat is not as important in DW:AITAS than in other systems, it is conflict that is important. If you want your characters to face down a horde of Cybermen, and it suits the story, so be it. It will force them to think more in line with the show/universe of the Doctor (and more likely to run away), than to have them physically confront them. If they choose to fight their way out of that situation, then they deserve whatever fate they get.

[ugavine]

Most D&D adventures are pretty detailed with precise maps and dungeon plans. I feel that Doctor Who prefers to keep things slightly more abstract and easy going. That's not to say you can't have rigid maps, just that you should take a more relaxed approach to them.

Encounters rely more on the story-telling and character interaction. Monsters are defeating by out-witting them [spending story points], not by beating them to a bloody pulp - although as a D&D player I must admit that is the joy of that game

[JohnK]

Hullo, Kalan,

Feb 3, 2010 13:08:31 GMT kalan said:

I think the best way to go would be - tailor the encounter to suit the story, rather than tailor it for the group.

Remember that combat is not as important in DW:AITAS than in other systems, it is conflict that is important. If you want your characters to face down a horde of Cybermen, and it suits the story, so be it. It will force them to think more in line with the show/universe of the Doctor (and more likely to run away), than to have them physically confront them. If they choose to fight their way out of that situation, then they deserve whatever fate they get.

Encounters should always be tailored to the story that you're trying to tell and not to the characters in the gaming group, per se. One of the strengths of Doctor Who over the years has been the fact that the characters, including the Doctor, triumph against the odds because of their wit, not because of their combat strengths, although one could argue that the UNIT and military oriented stories have been the exception to this rule.

While combat is not important in DW: AiTaS as it is in most rpgs, it does have its place in the stories that one tells in the system. Conflict is the more important thing to remember, but at the same time, the threat of physical violence is a powerful motivator and story incentive at times.

[elbarre]

You just got to use this stuff as a beginning really im doing the 3 part adventures featuring the quick, just think of how the show works you know, in the beginning i too found it hard to build adventures but with this game you really have to roleplay rather than hack and slash through a dungeon. for me I find it a wonderful challenge to break away from super uber characters and really just bring it down to good roleplaying, like a character that is just a normal joe becomes just as intresting as say the doctor in a game like this.

[knasser]

Jan 19, 2010 17:43:59 GMT ravencrowking said:

I am coming at the game from a D&D background, and even the Arrowdown adventure seems extremely sketchy to me. I would love to read the transcripts from an online game using one of the included adventures, or hear how they were developed prior to play.

Thanks!

RC

I too find the attitude adjustment a bit of a leap, though in my case I'm coming from Shadowrun rather than D&D so you might have it even worse than I do. I think the only way to make the jump is to not even try to emulate the D&D approach. If you want to put lots of prep time in, don't spend it doing maps and balancing encounters, put some of the same amount of time into NPCs and descriptions. That way, you're going to end up with some very rich characters and snappy atmosphere but you'll still have the hand-holding of being well-prepared. At least, that's what I'm doing. The horror of DMing a D&D game without having worked out the balance of encounters is gone in DW:AITS. If you want to scare the players, send lots of aliens at them (or a Dalek - is there anything in the game that can damage one of those things?). If you want them to defeat the aliens in battle (or chase them away), send few aliens. It's an entirely different approach that doesn't depend on balanced encounters at all. Ditto for detailed plans.

Perhaps the best advice that can be given, is to have fun. You can't GM this game if you're weighed down by heavy responsibility or worry about what will or wont work, because it's a game that has a lot of ad-libbing and improvisation in it and you need to be light and enthusiastic to do that. So my advice: chill, don't be afraid to make things up as you go along. If it all goes horribly wrong, have them rescued by a time agent with a vortex manipulator and work out why it happened later. It'll be fine.

[Stormcrow]

Feb 15, 2010 19:59:20 GMT knasser said:

The horror of DMing a D&D game without having worked out the balance of encounters is gone in DW:AITS. If you want to scare the players, send lots of aliens at them (or a Dalek - is there anything in the game that can damage one of those things?). If you want them to defeat the aliens in battle (or chase them away), send few aliens. It's an entirely different approach that doesn't depend on balanced encounters at all.

Indeed. Consider the "balance" in the following two potential combat encounters:

ENCOUNTER 1: The companions encounter a baby Adipose trying to give them a hug.

Talkers:

Adipose: "Hi!"

Companions: "Waitwaitwait!! Before you do anything stupid, may I just say... RUN!!!"

Runners: Run away quickly.

ENCOUNTER 2: The companions encounter an army of Daleks.

Talkers:

Daleks: "EXTERMINATE!"

Companions: "Waitwaitwait!! Before you do anything stupid, may I just say... RUN!!!"

Runners: Run away quickly.


See? It's not about combat strength if you don't want it to be. And even if you do find yourself being shot at by an army of hysterical Daleks, you just have to spend a few Story Points to escape unharmed.

[Curufea]

... or to be captured and tied to a chair while they try to get the Master to build them an Etheric Beam Locator.

[knasser]

Feb 16, 2010 6:29:04 GMT Curufea said:

... or to be captured and tied to a chair while they try to get the Master to build them an Etheric Beam Locator.

Companion: "Doctor, why are there chairs on a Dalek spaceship?
Doctor: ...I'll explain later.

;D

[JohnK]

Hullo, knasser,

Feb 15, 2010 19:59:20 GMT knasser said:

I too find the attitude adjustment a bit of a leap, though in my case I'm coming from Shadowrun rather than D&D so you might have it even worse than I do. I think the only way to make the jump is to not even try to emulate the D&D approach.

I suspect that gamers coming from any other game system, with the possible exception of several games that deal with a more heroic, pulp-ish feel, will have adjustment problems with DW: AiTaS. The interactivity of the game between the GM and players is one of the tougher elements to deal with for GMs, because traditional rpgs don't have a GM/player cooperative element that sometimes changes the scenario and the storyline. Not to mention the complications and the possible derailment of the scenario if the players choose to spend Story Points on that element and the GM allows it.

Feb 15, 2010 19:59:20 GMT knasser said:

If you want to put lots of prep time in, don't spend it doing maps and balancing encounters, put some of the same amount of time into NPCs and descriptions. That way, you're going to end up with some very rich characters and snappy atmosphere but you'll still have the hand-holding of being well-prepared. At least, that's what I'm doing.

This is pretty much the best suggestion that I've heard about running DW: AiTaS to this point. Maps and stuff are fine for the GM to know where the player characters are (when on a ship, for example, or in underground lairs), but it's the amount of detail in the NPCs and their personalities, and the use of the five senses to describe the world around the player characters that is truly the strength of DW: AiTaS.

One of the real keys is that the players need to get into a storytelling frame of mind, with the give and take between the players and the GM. Some GMs will have to adapt to this as well, of course, depending on their gaming background.

Feb 15, 2010 19:59:20 GMT knasser said:

The horror of DMing a D&D game without having worked out the balance of encounters is gone in DW:AITS. If you want to scare the players, send lots of aliens at them (or a Dalek - is there anything in the game that can damage one of those things?). If you want them to defeat the aliens in battle (or chase them away), send few aliens. It's an entirely different approach that doesn't depend on balanced encounters at all. Ditto for detailed plans.

Personally, I think this is the wrong approach to take. The DW: AiTaS combat system isn't oriented around combat, it's oriented around *conflict*, and that doesn't necessarily take the form of physical combat. The order in which characters go in a combat/conflict sequence is tough for some players and GMs to get used to, because it is so atypical of most rpgs out there these days - but the key is that it *fits* the Doctor Who mindset, and hence the game, perfectly. And bear in mind that spending Story Points can change the outcome of a conflict, both in terms of damage and other elements, so the Dalek army isn't necessarily going to be that overwhelming if the players can "think" in the right terms. But that does take time and experience with the game to get used to.

Feb 15, 2010 19:59:20 GMT knasser said:

Perhaps the best advice that can be given, is to have fun. You can't GM this game if you're weighed down by heavy responsibility or worry about what will or wont work, because it's a game that has a lot of ad-libbing and improvisation in it and you need to be light and enthusiastic to do that. So my advice: chill, don't be afraid to make things up as you go along. If it all goes horribly wrong, have them rescued by a time agent with a vortex manipulator and work out why it happened later. It'll be fine.

Having fun is always the best advice and the paramount matter when gaming. As I've discovered running DW: AiTaS (and other DW stuff over the years), improvisation and thinking on one's feet is the most challenging element in rpging that I've had in years.

[hogscape]

Thanks for all of those excellent ideas and comments folks and thanks to RavenCrowKing for asking the question that I wanted to ask... ;D

[ilyia]

I'm another one of those who come from a D&D background; however, I'm one of those who likes to play the supportive roles (trapmonkey rogues, bards, healers, etc.) so the transition isn't necessarily difficult. I'm what I'd guess you call an 'instinctive roleplayer' more or less meaning that the game isnt fun unless I can feel like I'm putting myself in it. It's all in the imagination, and I think that sincere fans of Doctor Who have daydreamed about life in the blue box enough to make the game fun even if the system is different.