A bit of Advice

Cornelius · 01-18-2010, 03:34 PM

I’ve been recently asked by a friend to run a game ( a brief campaign actually) for him and his pals. The guys asked me to use D&D initially, but after my refusal (I wouldn’t touch that system with a nine foot pole), they have agreed to try Gurps. This put me in a bit of a quandary, since I haven’t had new players in a while; in the last years in fact I mostly played Gurps with my own group and I’m afraid to have lost the “touch” necessary to enthrall new players to Gurps.

So I’m here asking for a bit of advice.

Preparation
I’m going to print at least another copy of Gurps Lite and I’ll prepare a couple of sheets with a redux of combat and the other main rules. Should I prepare anything else (a part from the usual set: maps, handout, pictures etc...)

Characters
Since they know nothing about the game, I’ve decided to keep things simple and create the characters using just the basic book, avoiding any supernatural power and ability. Mundane characters. Many new players are actually scared by the sheer amount of possibilities offered by Gurps and mine are accustomed to D&D and his “precooked” approach.

Campaign
Deciding what kind of adventure to run has been difficult. Consider that they have played only “high fantasy”, a genre that, after so many years of role-playing, I’ve come to hate with passion (really, I could do pretty nasty things to any bloody elf). This rule out most of fantasy and DF.
They don’t seem to follow science-fiction a lot and running a SF campaign without a common milieu is a recipe for disaster. Historical campaigns require dedicated players.

In the end I’ve restricted the choice to three campaigns I had hidden in the depths of my PC:

1) An Horror Campaign. The players are policeman that will have to face a foolish medium, the ghost of a former SS captain killed in the last days of the war, his not-dead-enough soldiers and possibly his demonic master. Setting: North Italy.

2) A Pulp Campaign. The players are WW1 veterans sent in the Far East in search of the fabled treasure of the Tsar. White Russians expatriates, bolshevik spies, femmes fatale, diabolical chinese crime lords and the baron von Urgern Sternberg will appear during the play.

3) The Age of Reason. The players are brought by a banestorm event in a world similar to our 18th century where magic albeit erratically works. After being “spontaneously” enlisted in the Prussian army (the seven year war is in full swing) the players discover that they have become pawns in a power struggle between two powerful warlocks. The campaign will be more a “light steampunk” with ritual magic and a lot of swashbuckling adventure than “High Fantasy”.

So what campaign should I run? And how many points should I concede? Are there any other problem should I be aware?

Thanks in advance.

01-18-2010, 03:34 PM	#1
Cornelius Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: I'd like to know too...	A bit of Advice I’ve been recently asked by a friend to run a game ( a brief campaign actually) for him and his pals. The guys asked me to use D&D initially, but after my refusal (I wouldn’t touch that system with a nine foot pole), they have agreed to try Gurps. This put me in a bit of a quandary, since I haven’t had new players in a while; in the last years in fact I mostly played Gurps with my own group and I’m afraid to have lost the “touch” necessary to enthrall new players to Gurps. So I’m here asking for a bit of advice. Preparation I’m going to print at least another copy of Gurps Lite and I’ll prepare a couple of sheets with a redux of combat and the other main rules. Should I prepare anything else (a part from the usual set: maps, handout, pictures etc...) Characters Since they know nothing about the game, I’ve decided to keep things simple and create the characters using just the basic book, avoiding any supernatural power and ability. Mundane characters. Many new players are actually scared by the sheer amount of possibilities offered by Gurps and mine are accustomed to D&D and his “precooked” approach. Campaign Deciding what kind of adventure to run has been difficult. Consider that they have played only “high fantasy”, a genre that, after so many years of role-playing, I’ve come to hate with passion (really, I could do pretty nasty things to any bloody elf). This rule out most of fantasy and DF. They don’t seem to follow science-fiction a lot and running a SF campaign without a common milieu is a recipe for disaster. Historical campaigns require dedicated players. In the end I’ve restricted the choice to three campaigns I had hidden in the depths of my PC: 1) An Horror Campaign. The players are policeman that will have to face a foolish medium, the ghost of a former SS captain killed in the last days of the war, his not-dead-enough soldiers and possibly his demonic master. Setting: North Italy. 2) A Pulp Campaign. The players are WW1 veterans sent in the Far East in search of the fabled treasure of the Tsar. White Russians expatriates, bolshevik spies, femmes fatale, diabolical chinese crime lords and the baron von Urgern Sternberg will appear during the play. 3) The Age of Reason. The players are brought by a banestorm event in a world similar to our 18th century where magic albeit erratically works. After being “spontaneously” enlisted in the Prussian army (the seven year war is in full swing) the players discover that they have become pawns in a power struggle between two powerful warlocks. The campaign will be more a “light steampunk” with ritual magic and a lot of swashbuckling adventure than “High Fantasy”. So what campaign should I run? And how many points should I concede? Are there any other problem should I be aware? Thanks in advance.