Naming the Party

 

Everyone agrees a +1 sword—without anything more—is dull.

Everyone agrees a dungeon—without flavor—is boring.

So why does the Party not have a name?

Giving the Party a name is similar to wielding "The Sunblade" or delving into "The Tomb of the Serpent Kings." It contains a wow factor.

There are plenty of ttrpg groups that stream with party names.

• Critical Role has Vox Machina and The Mighty Nine
• Acquisitions Incorporated
• MCDM has The Chain, The Revenant Vow, The Shield of Gravesfold
• and there are many many more examples.

Naming the Party has some amazing benefits such as:

• Increased Group Unity (there is now a clearer defined "us")
• Ability to confer rewards that are unique to the Party (ex. +to charisma checks or bonuses to reaction rolls against those who have heard of the Party's accomplishments).
• Provide an easy in game reason for a new PC to seek the group out in the event of a player character death

Despite so many indications that there is power in a name, I don't think it is a prevailing part of gaming culture.

There is definitely pressure on a group to pick "the right name." A DM could also worry the players won't take the matter seriously and chose something like "Power Rangers" or "The Mighty Five." These types of names could ruin immersion in something other than a beer & pretzels style game. Fear over this does not mean you should instantly dismiss the concept. I think there are two strong starting options to guide towards a name—although I'm sure more are available to those with more creativity.

Team Unity 10/10 — Go go name the party! 

1. The Skyrim Cart

• Have the campaign begin by the characters selecting their name. They can be in a tavern if you like tradition. I've done this on a boat, sailing into the "starting city." Actually I've done this a few times starting on a boat . . . what can I say? If it works it works. The players are together for whatever reason you've determined in session 0. Maybe they are friends setting off for adventure! Maybe an organization? Maybe just a band of adventurers? Regardless, the populace is more apt to spread the word on whatever deeds the Party achieves if there is a name to associate them with. Regardless, once the name is selected—something should just HAPPEN. Orcs attack! A tavern brawl breaks out! The kraken surfaces and threatens to drag them down to the depths!  Reward the achievement of unity by having a big set piece. 

2. The Indiana Jones

• Start the players in a situation where the need to accomplish something before returning to town (or their safe haven).  It should be open ended enough where the players have a ton of freedom on how to respond with their starting goals.  This might be a good spot to introduce a secondary antagonist or the primary antagonist's lieutenant (maybe not in a combat encounter, just talking between the bars of a portcullis!).  The Party can then return to town successful (perhaps not 100% success, even Indy lost to Belloq) and a town guard could ask "Wow great work, what do you call yourselves?" The players now have an event to base their decision off of—something to help spark ideas.

Either way, the DM should give the players an opportunity to discuss things and even feel free to chime in and guide some discussion. If the DM hears a good idea—say so!  This can help the players feel reassured in their decision.  Additionally, the entire table should feel some degree of comfortableness (is this even a word?) with the name.  This includes the DM. 

The name should also be reinforced through repetition. NPC's should use the name. Comment on it. And love it.  The reinforcement should be that the name is good and that the name is important. This also goes for antagonists. I would not recommend "making fun of" the name—as you risk the players feeling like it was dumb to put themselves out there.  

Finally I want to comment on the idea that the players will not unify.  This is not a problem that results because you asked for a group namerom.  This may be a problem with the player's group dynamic.  Being able to see this and discuss solutions as soon as possible will result in less future problems.  If they players aren't going to play nice together, then perhaps a boardgame is a better option?  Or a different group? 

Having these discussions can also reveal characters that will not gel together.  This is probably a tangent for a session 0 blog, but simply giving the group a similar goal does not mean the characters will mesh.  Depending on the prevalence of inter-party roleplay, the conflict may not even arise until well into the game.  If they can't compromise on a name—they will not be able to compromise during any major point of tension.  And that is something I would want to know as soon as possible.

That's my thoughts, really trying to get back into blogging, not sure what topic I have in me next—maybe a reaction to a zine I recently read ("Barrow Keep") or discussing death at 0 hp and death saving throws.

The Usefulness of Narrow Hallways

Short blog post—having a lot of inspiration and want to keep the magic rolling! 

Today I want to highlight the usefulness of using hallways that are only five feet (one movemenet square) wide.

It is actually pretty telling how many iconic fight scenes take place in narrow hallways

The first time I built a dungeon that contained a long narrow hallway with a few attached rooms (ala The Raid), my more tactical players were very very frustrated. They didn't feel they had room to maneuver or make "interesting" combat decisions. Instead, they fought a mind flayer in an exceedingly awkward manner.  The door to a room was held by a corpse piloted by an intellect devoured corpse and the mind flayer comfortably stayed back—firing psychic blasts.  The Party was overwhelmingly melee based and were blocking each other from attacking anything.  It was chaos.

One character died and it was the closest I've even been to having a TPK.  

Afterwards, some of my players commented that they wished the hallways were simply 10 feet wide to allow them to have "options for tactics." Oh, and the doors should have been 10 feet wide. That way the Party could just pass through and hit the mind flayer.

I disagree.

Not every dungeon (read: space where combat could occur) was designed for combat. Think about how many narrow hallways some buildings have.  There are numerous reasons that those hallways were built that way. This should signal that this area is something different. Something that just doing the bog-standard attack action will place you at a disadvantage.  It is akin to fighting during inclement weather, in an anti-magic sphere location, or other obstacles that force a tactic change. The Party should never be able to use the same operating procedure in every fight.  There is no drama to be had there.

One way to prevent that—is to prevent their movement.

This fight is made much more tense because of the narrow cramped hallways!

Sometimes you want the Party to be cramped. Create the feeling that progressing forward means marching order matters.  Sure this can be handled through traps, but fights also spice things up. 

Monsters should also take advantage of this. After all, the dungeon is their home. It should reflect their lifestyle.  For example, a dragon whose breath comes in a line may have a hallway of similar dimensions to pre-attack the Party before they reach its lair. Just a opening salvo. To scare away (or potential kill) intruders.  Sure the Party could heal and recover from any damage taken.  But a message is sent.  The dungeon is hostile. 

All that said: use narrow hallways!  Make the dungeon space hostile to force tactic changes even if the players may initially feel frustrations thier standard operating procedure is disrupted.  Finally, keep in mind that whatever dwells in that space should use it to their advantage!

Make Experience Points Work for You

Best Advice Upfront: A DM should use an experience point system to incentivize the playstyle(s) they want to see in the game.

Experience points are a perfect carrot to guide players towards the DM's "favored" playstyle. The players always reflect their style by making choices and decisions while the DM can provides mechanical "rewards" for making those choices within a certain style. Viewed this way, it is a great way for a table to form a solid middle ground of how the game will be played.

I won't rant on why I dislike milestone leveling. I only mention it is because it rarely communicates to the players what playstyle will get rewarded. If the milestones are hidden behind the DM screen, players can begin to feel like they are trying to just guess at what the DM wants to happen.

A lot of OSR games do experience for gold. This is fine. It conveys the goal of the game is to go where there is gold and obtain it.  You probably won't have a high level of roleplaying (or at least—less) as it is not rewarded. Only pursuit of profit matters. 

[sidenote: "Only pursuit of profit matters" actually sounds like a fun style of game ala Acquisitions Incorporated]

That being said,  experience for gold doesn't do it for my OSR game.  I want to reward roleplay, making decisions in character, and the players preplanning the next session. I still want dungeons, so obtaining gold is also important.  But just recovering it isn't my main intention.

My DM, (@Painted_Squid on twitter, seriously check him out) began implementing the experience system from Mouse Guard in 5th Edition. Mouseguard gives experience for acting on your beliefs, acting on your trait, and accomplishing your goal. Over time he's made numerous adjustments to have it mesh with 5e and I hope at some point he publishes his trial-and-error thoughts because wow.

With all that in mind, here is my experience system using the mouseguard framework! Experience is calculated at the end of session, with achievement being a binary "if yes, then xp."

• 1 xp per 1 Gold Spent

  • I want the party to go to dangerous places were they can find gold. But I don't want it hoarded. Thus, make them spend the gold. All my players started in 5th Edition with milestone leveling. Specifically, the epic quest milestone system. They never focused on acquiring titles, improving property, or having hirelings to perform services. In a game where those assumptions are shared by all players, just xp for acquiring gold might be okay.

• 100 xp for Acting on Their Trait (once per session)

  • A characters should have a consistent and flavorful personality. This rewards players who embody their characters trait during the game.  I generally dislike someone who just RP's as the best version of themselves. I also want to draw players towards a better understanding of each others characters. If someone writes "bashful" as their trait, any RP done by that player will be more easily received as being "bashful" —without needing the skill required to audition for Critical Role. It also allows the table to reflect on choices and RP done by all players, as this review is performed at the end of a session. The constant session to session affirmation of a players personality is further reinforcement. I have another blog post in me re: traits, but I'll save that for another time.

• 100 xp for Accomplishing Their Goal

  • At the end of a session, I have my players fill out a single goal they would like to accomplish next session. It must have a "will they/won't they" element. I'm not always super strict on this because the true purpose of this is for me to vaguely plan next session without having feeling unprepared. This doesn't mean they are beholden to these goals & if something comes up that changes their direction I'm not upset. But I can at least know my pre-session prep is generally covering what they are intending to do, In a pure sandbox game with no "overarching plot," I would be nervous if I had little clue or insight into their plans, as games on VTT's come with certain expectations regarding battlemaps and other visual aids.

• 3 Awards, Each Worth 100 xp: Best RP/Overall RP/MVP

  • I don't want the number of awards to equal the player count. This is because they are not meant to be just divided equally. I want players to want these. If everyone gets them, then they are glossed over and have no impact. That being said, if the players tacitly (never said verbally) ensure no one gets two and the xp is usually divided around the players, I'm not stressed. The purpose of this is still fulfilled.
  • Lastly, It does favor some players over others initially. It is true that the more outgoing people are likely to get awards for RP. However, it can also be used to highlight players who display more subtle or unrecognized RP. Being rewards could even encourage that player to feel more comfortable occasionally RP'ing in more outgoing fashion.
  • People like awards and the feeling of being recognized. This gives players the opportunity to be recognized at the end of a session. It turns into a mini recap in a way of things the players found important. They are purposefully vague to allow the players to reward activity that they enjoy that other players did in the session. Sometimes, I also weigh in if I think a moment was subtle or particularly impactful to me. The term "MVP" may seem loaded, but it is intended to cover a player who "provides a critical contribution to allow the party to progress." My current players understand this terminology, but I could see the being a future point of change.

• 50 xp for Initiating a Chat Message to Another PC While In-Character (once per session)

  • This reward I'm not sold on yet—but it serves a small purpose. Part of why I love in-person games is the side conversations. It reduces pressure on me as a DM because I can resolve an individual's situation while other players plan or RP. Online games lack this mechanic unless you have breakout rooms—which are tedious and more work. For an in-person game this would be cut.

• 1 xp for a New Character per 1 Gold Spent on the Dead PC Funeral

  • Dying sucks. It can be dramatic, intense, and worthwhile. But at the end of the day—that player's progression is reset. This rule is intended to help with the suck. The other goal it accomplishes is to prevent the other players at the table from "moving on" quickly. Too often at the table I've seen a player die and then feel like their death had no meaning for the other players. I don't think anything will cause another player to feel the loss in the way the player whose character died wants them to feel. However, with a mechanic designed to honor the fallen, there can be a moment to talk about the fallen reverently knowing this will power up the new party member. 
  • It also makes sense in universe. More powerful people are going to want to work with/travel with those who honor their dead with opulence. It shows to the world that the Party is successful (acquiring lots of gold and not feeling financially insecure to spent it). It also provides an opportunity for the new character to be introduced. For example, "I'm sorry to hear about your friend, . . . are you looking for a hand to accomplish XYZ?"

This is a work-in-progress and likely will never be finished. But I hope it inspires others to try to tweak and experiment with experience points.