The Klepto GM

By | Published June 7, 2010

It’s almost easier to ask which forms of outside media don’t inspire my gaming than those that do. I mean, in this blog, I’ve been encouraging people to steal from obscure 70s horror films, comic books, and some of my other favorites.

I’ve even written about my Punk and Prog inspired D&D campaign, which sadly died an ignominious death.RPG-Blog-Carnival-Logo

I think being inspired by outside sources is really a core element of the hobby. Be it the way that Appendix N listed the works that inspired the creation of D&D or licensed games literally wearing their inspiration on their sleeves, I’m hard pressed to find any games out there that don’t draw on a slew of outside sources.

And so should you.

Today, though, I’d like to talk about actually lifting ‘story’ the books, films, TV shows and comics you love. In a nutshell it’s to steal ‘plots’ and not ‘Plot.’

For instance, I heartily endorse lifting Wormtongue’s plot from Lord of the Rings.

It boils down to having a shifty minister poisoning the body and mind of a king who might otherwise be a potential ally of the PCs. From there it should play out however the PCs mangle it. Perhaps they will discover the Minister’s treachery and split him in two. Maybe they will leave the kingdom under the Minister’s subtle control.

For that matter, they may cut a deal with the Minister (and there by found the Wormtongue Dynasty) or seize the throne for themselves.

The important thing is not to force them to follow even roughly in the footsteps of the Plot you gleaned from the Lord of the Rings.

Taking the schemes, traps, and character plots you find strewn in popular culture and using them as hooks in a game is good. Forcing your PCs on a death march up Mount Doom when they’ve come up with their own solution to the ‘ring’ issue is bad.

But hey, your mileage may vary.

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Stuff to Steal From: Global Frequency

By | Published June 3, 2010

Anyone running a mission-based game should consider borrowing from Global Frequency. Be it a Delta Green/Call of Cthulhu campaign, a default Eclipse Phase game or even a Pulp Adventure or Supers campaign there is probably something you can use.

Regardless of genre, when plundering Global Frequency, I suggest looking to three areas: the set-up/premise, the supporting characters and the threats.

The Set-Up1401202748.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_

On the face of it, Global Frequency features your standard ‘your mission should you choose to accept it’ style of set-up. But there are differences. The first, and really the biggest tone center, is the urgency of the missions in a Global Frequency-style campaign.

In the comics, Global Frequency is called in either because a disaster is about to happen right now or they are called into look at the aftermath of a weird event. There is no middle ground; no slow investigative build-up to a near catastrophe. Either a rogue military satellite is going to thin out the human population in 2 hours or an entire village went mad three days ago, there is no in-between.

A great way to capture this feel would be to start all of the adventures in a Global Frequency-style campaign in media res. Each adventure would start with either the PCs frantically moving to deal with a disaster or looking at the aftermath of past catastrophe that could come again.

The Supporting Characters

Global Frequency offers you two supporting characters that are easy to re-skin as NPCs.

On the one hand, you’ve got Miranda Zero- the tough as nails, super-connected, and mysterious owner of the agency who will drop the PCs into the soup because, well, that’s why they’re there.

On the other, you’ve got Aleph- the tech genius/remote field support that the PCs should only ever met through mediated means (over the phone, video-briefings, etc). She should be a pain in the ass, but always providing field support and information to keep the plot going at a breakneck speed.

The Threats

Really, with a little re-skinning these can be stolen for nearly any modern-ish or future game. I’m particularly fond of some of the hostage set-ups and the ‘military experiments gone wrong’ used in the series. The real trick is sticking to the threats that lend themselves to being resolved by the mortal brains of your players and not the better informed experts of the comics.

So next time you are looking to breath some life into a mission based game, grab Global Frequency from your local comic book shop or library and take a few notes. You won’t regret it.

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Get on the Global Frequency!

By | Published June 2, 2010

There are 1,001 people on the Global Frequency, and in Warren Ellis’ comic series they’ve already saved your life.Globalfrequency01

Global Frequency is a 12 issue comic series published by DC/Wildstorm that’s available in two trade paperback volumes. The series follows the exploits of the mysterious Miranda Zero and her agency of exactly one thousand and one expert operatives. Scattered across the globe, each of her operatives lives a relatively ordinary life as an expert in their field waiting to be put ‘on the frequency’ and use their gifts for humanity.

In classic Ellis’ style, each issue chronicles the members of Global Frequency deal with gonzo near-future scientific threats ranging from a six-million dollar man to a memetic alien invasion.

Each story focuses on a different batch of operatives dealing with a unique threat. Beyond the agency’s head, Miranda Zero and her tech support Aleph there are no recurring characters, a choice that is reinforced by Ellis working with a different artist on each issue. As fresh as this keeps each story however, Global Frequency does have a slightly disappointing tendency to alternate between battling science gone wrong and die-hard like thrillers).

Overall though, if you are a lover of comics, sci-fi or James Bond-like espionage action, I recommend you give Global Frequency a chance. The only disappointment you’ll feel is when you realize that they aren’t putting out more issues!

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