Its inevitable.
The only thing better than my current game is the next the game. Usually, I feel a bit guilty eyeing the next game while my current game is just getting its swing, but this time its different. StarGuard, my group’s Icons campaign, was always intended to be a brief stop over until the next big game.
A rebound campaign, if you will.
So, what am I planning after StarGuard? The answer is ‘Muerte Las Vegas!’ a Vampire: the Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition campaign set in 60s Vegas.
Mobsters, Casinos, Hustlers and Howard Hughes. I’m hoping for a ‘James Ellroy meets Casino by Night’ kind of feel, hopefully with a bit of a Pendragon mixed in as each adventure should be considered ‘the adventure’ for a whole year. The goal is to chart the rise, decline and rebirth of Las Vegas from the 60s through the 80s with the PCs at the center of it all.
But we shall see.
One element of my Runequest campaign that I would like to push is my pilfered port of the brilliant Smallville relationship map/character creation mechanic.
At this point, I’m thinking of something like the process below to balance group city creation while meaningfully reflecting the points players have spent on Backgrounds like Allies, Mentors, Contacts, Domain, etc.
To start, and unlike how I ran it for Runequest, I will likely throw up a few NPCs and Places (collectively ‘Non-Player Objects’ or NPOs) that I want to have in the Campaign. This will likely include the Prince of the City, two rival power brokers and the Shangri-La Hotel.
Once this is on the paper, the rest of the process will go like this:
Turn 1
1) Each PC contributes One of the following:
a. A Circle containing a group of people(can be used as minions, herd, connections)
b. A Square containing a Person of Influence (can be used as an Ally/Mentor/Prominent Connection)
c. A Triangle containing a Setting (Haven/Resource/Appropriate) Square
2) Each Player must then draw a line between one of the NPOs and their PC, loosely noting their relationship
3) Each Player must then connect any two NPOs to each other, loosely noting their relationship to each other
4) Players can then ‘spend’ one of their previously selected Background Points (or points if appropriate) to link transform an NPO that has been connected to their NPC into a Contact, Herd, Ally, Mentor, Domain or even Resource owned possession
Turn 2
1) Each Player creates a new NPO
2) Each Player then draws a connection between an NPO and a PC controlled by another Player, loosely noting their relationship (the recipient of this connection can object)
3) Each Player then has the option to spend a Background Point to make an NPO a Contact, Herd, Ally, Mentor, Domain or Resource
Turn 3
1) Each Player creates a new NPO
2) Each Player must then connect any two NPOs to each other, loosely noting their relationship to each other
3) Each Player must then draw a line between one of the NPOs and their PC, loosely noting their relationship
4) Each Player then has the option to spend a Background Point to make an NPO a Contact, Herd, Ally, Mentor, Domain or Resource
Turn 4
1) Each Player must connect any two NPOs to each other, loosely noting their relationship to each other
2) Draw a connection between an NPO and any PC
3) Each Player then has the option to spend a Background Point to make an NPO a Contact, Herd, Ally, Mentor, Domain or Resource
Turn 5
(Continued until all Contact, Herd, Ally, Mentor, and Domain dots have been accounted for)
1) Players with remaining Background Points may draw a new NPO and connect them to their character
2) Other Players must then draw a connection between either: any two NPOs or an NPO and any PC besides their PC or, if the NPO was created this turn, the PC belonging to the Player who created it
3) Each Player then has the option to spend a Background Point to make an NPO a Contact, Herd, Ally, Mentor, Domain or Resource
Hopefully, this will allow the Players to create an unholy mess of intrigue and connections that will form the meat of a rocking campaign.
