What DMs Want: Adventure and Intrigue
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This post spawned originally in a conversation here; if you don't have time to read the thread or want the short version-read on.
Many players want to accomplish things in game, make a lasting imprint on the module, achieve awesome goals, or gain wealth and fame. DMs want to help you do that, there's two ways you can pull this off typically, but when you need a DM--these are the only two ways. You can win over our attention by focusing on what we typically focus on.
The DMs are highly focused on Intrigue and Adventure on this roleplaying server. If you want to have more interactions with DMs, this is what attracts our attention.
By INTRIGUE we mean:
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Cults worshiping angelic beings hoping to elevate them as a new divinity intriguing to gain more worshipers and wealth for their cult.
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Mercenary Guilds seeking to seize power in the city, whereupon they'll implement a theocratic dictatorship of Lurue intriguing to build alliances to support their future government.
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Elves plotting to unleash a virulent plague to destroy humans intriguing to recruit other elves and those angered at the human dominated control of the city.
Intrigue will tend to be what makes your group or character interact with many other groups.
By ADVENTURE we mean:
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Wizards capturing rare beasts for experiments.
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Priests of Talos roaming into the highest mountains to battle powerful and rare monsters–collecting trophies to prove their skill.
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Halflings hunting down the remnants of orc bands who attacked a tribe they were friendly with.
Adventure will tend to get you, your allies, and potential recruits or dupes to your cause out exploring the module or doing scripted quests.
What we tend, as DMs to want to not see as often is CoA Sims.
By CoA Sims we mean:
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Dwarves wanting to make bricks to rebuild buildings.
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Cook outs and parties for drunk farmers.
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Refugee centers.
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Tree planting to make parks.
Now, I will point out for people who like CoA Sims kind of things. We are fine with people doing. However, most DMs won't gravitate to spend time helping you because we will focus on the stuff we're telling you we enjoy more. So if you want to accomplish goals this way, you can lure our attention with some ADVENTURE and INTRIGUE by doing something like:
I want to rebuild a ruined building.
I want to hold a Cook Out.
I want to build a park.
I REALLY want to build a refugee camp.
But doesn't ADVENTURE and INTRIGUE require a DM all the time?
You may notice some of these ideas involve seeking lost relics, old tombs, or fighting rare monsters. Sure, these things require a DM's help; but not much help. Shoot us an e-mail, a Private Forum Message, or talk to us in IRC, tell us your plan and ideas.Tell how how you'll involve other players in quests, adventures, and intrigues and how you plan to keep people involved in doing this even when DMs aren't online (often by looking creatively at quests–"Everyone, a man's gone missing in a cavern filled with slimes and oozes. I must rescue him!" and then leave out the fact you're collecting the slime and ooze to make a foul potion that will mutate the people in western Arabel into aboleths). In such a case, a DM would be happy to eventually let you find some rare relic you've sought for for years (although if it has any magic or powers-we'll decide), or we'll let you find a lost book that tells you the way to become a lich, or we'll let your mad cult gain the attention of a celestial being who wants to become a god.
Shouldn't DMs come up with the stories for players? Like in Pen and Paper Games?
For us, Arabel is much more entertaining when the story-telling is cooperative between players and DMs. Sure, we control the world, but we like to see player's ideas on how to influence it and tell new stories. If you pursue your idea as far as you can on your own through ADVENTURE and INTRIGUE, we're often happy to help out pushing it further.What if DMs don't see what I'm doing because of my time zone or play schedule?
Typically, if you're doing this and involving enough people, we'll hear about it sooner or later. Patience is always a virtue in everything, but again, we're only an e-mail, forum message, or IRC chat away too if you think we're missing things you're doing. In fact, its a GREAT idea to let us know what your goals are no matter how you want to achieve them, so we can weigh in and say "yes, that will work, or no, that's not going to work but you can try this". This is a game, and we want it fun, so we want to work with you to find fun ways you can make things happen--but also keep it fair to everyone so if you want to take over Volcano Castle by baking an apple pie for its demon overlord and another player wants to take over Iceberg Castle but we make him bake an apple pie, kill a dragon, stand on his head while reciting the life story of Kanthea Farelven after stealing St. Darmos' sacred plate armor from the crypts of Vairybadman---then things aren't fair. We want a level playing field for everyone!
What if I just want to roleplay or go on quests or a mix of those two, and this ADVENTURE and INTRIGUE doesn't seem for me?
Then don't do it! Just go have fun. We don't mandate this stuff by any means, and we still enjoy just seeing people out doing scripted quests for fun and roleplaying over ales with buddies in game. We just are sharing this to help player know what really gets us as DMs excited and focused on your character should you want that focus.This really doesn't create too much work for a DM? Why not, how exactly does this work again?
You create a Helmite character and want to go searching for ADVENTURE and INTRIGUE.Suppose your Helmite has spent weeks or even months going on quests looking for the Lost Sword of Helmy McHelmite. He regularly takes other players on adventures to seek it out while also trying to move them toward the faith of Helm (INTRIGUE), organizes trips to the Underdark/Stormhorns/Vast Swamp looking for it (ADVENTURE–even though you know ooc that its not actually out there when you leave but you're roleplaying the search and quest for it).
It is really EASY for you to send a DM Tell saying "Heading into the Vast Swamp looking for the Sword of Helmy McHelmite which is a relic my PC is searching for that probably doesn't exist" when you go out on these trips. Sometimes a DM won't be online, but you're alright with this because you realize a little patience goes a long way.
Now a DM seeing that and looking for something to do will go, GREAT! Then I'll spawn monsters, maybe spawn adventure and action for you, and maybe if I see you doing this long enough and I'm having lots of fun with your character-I'll spawn the Sword of Helmy McHelmite.
No application necessary. You were just doing awesome things getting people out to adventure and entertain them and me and so you gain my attention and a cool reward.
Now its feasible, you'll never find the Sword of Helmy McHelmite--but odds are you'll at the least get some attention. You may even earn the enmity of Mystran McMystie who wants the Sword of Helmy McHelmite to stay lost who will work against you as a player character to foil your searches and challenge you to duels and seek to undermine your followers (INTRIGUE created by Mystran PCs who come to oppose what you're doing).
Other Players don't like to go out to ADVENTURE with me and explore new places if they don't think a DM is on or its not a scripted quest though.
Luckily we've implemented a few things to make this kind of exploration more entertaining.
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1). Exploration XP; some dangerous locations in the game world grant Exploration XP when you find and interact with specific items-be they crystals, inscriptions, old trees, etc. The rewards vary but are usually between 150-500 experience points depending on the danger and risk involved in reaching the objects. This experience can only be gained once in your character's lifetime, but its still a bonus.
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2). Unique Treasure Chests; some locations also have unique treasure chests that create custom treasure based on the location you're exploring. Some of these chests also spawn very powerful treasures, but only once per lifetime of your character.
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3). Randomized Areas; currently the Haunted Halls of Eveningstar are have some limited randomized areas to explore. Everytime you return, you have a chance of locating one of several different 'dungeons' to explore. This area is in continual development to enhance this feature-many Exploration XP and Unique Treasure Chests can be found here.
Right, then I want to kill off certain NPCs to create some INTRIGUE.
That actually isn't something we encourage. We prefer you plot your intrigues against existing player-characters. Now if you want to see a certain NPC removed, perhaps because they're of an opposing faith, or occupy a position of authority you want removed or to gain for yourself–then you do have a good chance to turn this into a ADVENTURE and INTRIGUE moment in a few ways.
Start ADVENTURE by seeking out some powerful weapon/poison/tome/allies who help you face this NPC foe you want to stop.
Start INTRIGUES by gaining player-character alliances with players and other factions that either want to help remove that NPC as well, or whose support you will at least need after the NPC is removed to take his position of authority or even push forward another idea linked to this NPC's defeat.
The key here is that even to take out an NPC, we expect that you'll be doing plenty of ADVENTURES and INTRIGUES with a wide-range of fellow player-characters (not just one tightly knit group you quest with frequently) well before you make a move against that NPC.
If you've any questions, feel free to post them here.
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To help foster adventuring without a DM, we've added some new items to the game world. Specifically, these are extremely rare loot drops that can be found on some quests, or on certain rare spawns. There are books in game describing what these items are specifically.
Players who want to accomplish some ritual goal using powerful magic are encouraged to seek out these rare items, and use them as ingredients in their own customized rituals. Finding the items should be the result of many adventurers and quests, and considerable effort in exploring dangerous places and areas. You won't need a DM to find any of these items, but once you do-you can contact one of us about completing your ritual.
We'll look at what items you've found, the creativity of your ritual, how well you involve other people in what you've been doing, and try to determine your success based on a number of factors. The big guideline though is whether you're being creative and fun, and including lots of other people in what you've been doing to get the ritual started.
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To add:
When I get a DM tell saying "I wants Ritual" or "I wants to contact this awesome creature" or "I wants to impress this NPC"
I'll tell people to go looking for the above described book. It's a real chance to EiG (earn in game). If you pull it off, no one can deny you didn't work for it. It generates player plots.
Just don't forget to send us a PM once and a while keeping us updated.
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Putting this here, because this is an excellent post that gets right to the heart of what we like to see.
This is great way to concept your goals and your character. Always break it down to something manageable instead of aiming high without a plan and getting frustrated with no results. Little things build up to the big things.
@--lizard-man--:
Forget the DMs. I'll do something awesome without them and they'll be forced to take notice. It almost worked, right up until I realised that for at least a few DMs, this was exactly what they wanted.
So, the one thing I cannot suggest, underline, highlight and engrave deep enough into anyone who has ever asked me for advice on "achieving something in CoA", it's Do It Yourself.
Give yourself a direction and then keep breaking down your goals until you've got something that you can do without ANYONE but whoever happens to be on the server at the time, and is certainly not reliant on a DM to go ahead. Something like:
Cleric of Bane
Options
Need DM
Doesn't need DM
You should not rely on DMs, or even on other players unless you know them very well to play at the same times as you and share your interest. Whatever you do, there should only be one person stopping you from moving forwards: you. If that's not the case then you either need to re-asses your strategy or be prepared for some frustration as you try and cater to everyone who you need to be actively involved before it can go ahead.
If you build it, they will come.
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Bumping this again because last night I spent an hour or so explaining to three or four people how to earn perks/attention/powers/awesome stuff.
The bottom line of "adventure and intrigue" though is this–-are you doing stuff that keeps other players logged in and playing on CoA? Are you thinking like a storyteller?
Every time you make a quest sending and bring along a bunch of players you don't normally interact with and add flavor to a quest by saying "Well, Nada needs these bugs killed--but I wish to harvest their internal organs to study them and make weapon that is the Bug Bane that will slay all bugs because of my god's deep hatred for Talona!" or "we shall dive beneath the Wyvernwater and travel to Outset Island to seek weapons which are the bane of all insects!" or "I am hosting a contest today in which we shall pit the greatest warriors of Arabel against bugs to prove the superiority of human, elf, and dwarf against insects!" --you will be making DMs happy. You're helping us keep other players interested in the server, spreading stories and ideas and adventures.
We're continuing to add in rare spawns, rare items, unique places to explore so that you can always have a variety of things to look for, places to go.
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I thought I'd resurrect this to point something out.
While DMs want and reward ADVENTURE and INTRIGUE some players got it in their head we don't want Sims.
That's not true. If you enjoy roleplaying making bricks for orphanages, or gathering oak wood to distribute to peasants to make arrows to keep them safe from invading undead armies–go for it. If you're still involving a bunch of players and people are having fun, the DMs will still notice and maybe give you some fun roleplay scenes etc.
The whole point of this thread was to point out what DMs actively seek out and reward, what we as a group enjoy and like to see happening. Its not a condemnation of anyone else's playstyle, if you enjoy the Sims approach, good for you--we have done a TON to support this through the crafting system and bounty system. Put those occasio wood beams and stone harpy eggs and gorgon hides you can college to use making the most delicious stew ever and invite people over to your feast. The whole bottom line is still, will always be, HAVE FUN.
