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CAMPAIGN CONTROL: KEEPING THEM ON A LEASH
Have you ever found yourself in the situation where the players decided
to take a trip out of the area that you’ve designed for your campaign?
In a situation where you had to say, “Sorry, but you can’t go there, I’m
not ready to let you go in that region” or in a situation that you had to
really improvise to avoid telling them that you’re not ready and had to
try to keep them not too far off the track of their current adventure? If it
has been the case, here are a few tips to avoid or help deal with the
situation. I will talk about border limits, both physical and psychological,
and then some ideas to buy you some time if they cross these barriers
or if you haven’t set them in the first place.
Having been a video game designer for many years, I often had to deal
with level limits and also noticed some good and bad ways to handle
them in my R&D. Of course, a video game isn’t the same, but many of
the same tricks can still apply.
Here’s a bad way: “Sorry guys, you can’t go there, I’m not prepared.”
Or. “Sorry, I don’t want you to go there. Your adventure lies in the
opposite direction.” In a video game, it would be like putting a 3 foot
high fence or a 2 foot deep pond, and preventing the player from
crossing it. It makes me mad every time I see it in a video game. Now,
here are some limits that you can create without looking like a fool…
PHYSICAL LIMITS: These limits are usually geological features or man-
made structures that physically block a player from reaching the other
side.
-Chasms: If the chasm is large and deep enough, as long as the player
don’t have access to fly spells or have high climbing skills, they will keep
your player from reaching the other side. If the chasm isn’t really large,
it will probably prevent most of the party from getting on the other side
unless a member has good jumping skills and a rope or if the party can
find something to bridge the gap like a tree trunk.
-Steep cliffs: These will prevent any cart, horses or any mount to go
on and may prove very difficult to most players who don’t have proper
climbing equipment and skills.
-Fortified wall: A fortified wall like the Great Wall of China will prevent
most players who don’t have climbing skills or equipment. Even if they
have a way to climb on it, if the wall well defended, it might prove very
difficult for the player to cross it.
-High Mountains: High mountains are another geological feature that
is really hard to cross and will involve a lot of skills on the part of the
players to be able to cross it. Avalanche, rockslides, cliffs and chasms
are parts of the challenges that await the players who wants to reach
the other side or its summit. Also, if high enough they will be very cold,
food will be hard to find and breathing gets more difficult.
-Seas and Oceans: Unless you can find a port and pay for a passage
on a ship, seas and oceans are almost impossible to cross, the smallest
boat doesn’t have much chance to cross it because of the treacherous
waves and storms that can form.
Have you ever found yourself in the situation where the players decided
to take a trip out of the area that you’ve designed for your campaign?
In a situation where you had to say, “Sorry, but you can’t go there, I’m
not ready to let you go in that region” or in a situation that you had to
really improvise to avoid telling them that you’re not ready and had to
try to keep them not too far off the track of their current adventure? If it
has been the case, here are a few tips to avoid or help deal with the
situation. I will talk about border limits, both physical and psychological,
and then some ideas to buy you some time if they cross these barriers
or if you haven’t set them in the first place.
Having been a video game designer for many years, I often had to deal
with level limits and also noticed some good and bad ways to handle
them in my R&D. Of course, a video game isn’t the same, but many of
the same tricks can still apply.
Here’s a bad way: “Sorry guys, you can’t go there, I’m not prepared.”
Or. “Sorry, I don’t want you to go there. Your adventure lies in the
opposite direction.” In a video game, it would be like putting a 3 foot
high fence or a 2 foot deep pond, and preventing the player from
crossing it. It makes me mad every time I see it in a video game. Now,
here are some limits that you can create without looking like a fool…
PHYSICAL LIMITS: These limits are usually geological features or man-
made structures that physically block a player from reaching the other
side.
-Chasms: If the chasm is large and deep enough, as long as the player
don’t have access to fly spells or have high climbing skills, they will keep
your player from reaching the other side. If the chasm isn’t really large,
it will probably prevent most of the party from getting on the other side
unless a member has good jumping skills and a rope or if the party can
find something to bridge the gap like a tree trunk.
-Steep cliffs: These will prevent any cart, horses or any mount to go
on and may prove very difficult to most players who don’t have proper
climbing equipment and skills.
-Fortified wall: A fortified wall like the Great Wall of China will prevent
most players who don’t have climbing skills or equipment. Even if they
have a way to climb on it, if the wall well defended, it might prove very
difficult for the player to cross it.
-High Mountains: High mountains are another geological feature that
is really hard to cross and will involve a lot of skills on the part of the
players to be able to cross it. Avalanche, rockslides, cliffs and chasms
are parts of the challenges that await the players who wants to reach
the other side or its summit. Also, if high enough they will be very cold,
food will be hard to find and breathing gets more difficult.
-Seas and Oceans: Unless you can find a port and pay for a passage
on a ship, seas and oceans are almost impossible to cross, the smallest
boat doesn’t have much chance to cross it because of the treacherous
waves and storms that can form.
