Surviving the Crazy Times: Beginning Again

So we're finally getting boxes unpacked, stuff put away and generally settling into life in Colorado.  I've been working on setting up the smallest bedroom as an office/library, which has lead me to the realization that I have a lot of books.  The disappointing thing is that after unpacking the obvious boxes, I still have gaps on the bookcases where I various books are missing.  Ah, well, they'll turn it eventually.

Beginning Again

Dante is coordinating with some of his new co-workers on getting a group together.  It's been a long time since I've sat down at the gaming table with my books and my dice spread out before me, so I'm pretty excited to get the new group together and see how well we all play together.

Of course, this is the "beginning again": finding a group, getting to know new people and figuring out how to play in a the group.  Prior to this, I have always been part of a group where I knew at least one person (other than Dante).  This will be the first time I'll be in a group composed of people I've only met once or twice at after-work get-togethers where spouses were invited.

Hello, My Name Is

So, how do you integrate a bunch of individuals into a group?  I figure we will need to start out getting to know each other a little bit before we try to get a game going.  To me, roleplaying seems to be a more natural process when you're not facing a bunch of strangers.  Of course, that may be partly due to the fact that I'm a little shy.  Just like your characters need to meet each other before setting out to save the world, you need to know your fellow players before you begin playing those characters.

Behind the Screen: What comes first?

As I begin the process of designing my next campaign, I found myself inspired in a different way than I am used to. Normally, I tend to generate my campaigns based on two major factors: what classes that my players have selected and cues from the backstory of my campaign setting.

This time it's all about me.

Well, maybe not about me explicitly... but about my NPCs. As I was driving across the frozen plains of Nebraska *shudder*, I came up with some very vivid ideas for some NPCs. In the past, I have stuck to major archetypes for my main characters and improvised many of my lesser NPCs.

A sidenote: often my improvised NPCs are the more memorable ones. Anything born from spur of the moment roleplaying and the influences of sugarfied Vanir is bound to be somewhat memorable.

Anyway, back to the point... the NPCs that I stitched together in my mind varied wildly in character class and background, which left me with another quandary: how do I integrate all of these guys together within one storyline?

Essentially, that's where I am at now... I'm trying to generate an underlying plot that will span disparate cultures in a meaningful way. I suspect I will create several plot episodes that patchwork these characters together, with a common plot backing material and stuffed with the warm cotton batting of interesting roleplaying.

That's it for a strange quilt metaphor now, and I'm off to put a log on the fire because the cold is apparently getting to me! Game Masters, how do you generate your storylines? NPCs first? Characters first? Plot first? Let's hear it!