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Mission Impossible?
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Mamatried
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PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2018 12:02 pm    Post subject: Mission Impossible? Reply with quote

As GM I came up with an assassination attempt against ol' Plapy.
Now the mission was never meant to succeed but as why the group of Imperials now is on the run.
The players were the trigger men, acting on superior's orders, but the plot was found out and they had to flee.

My question is this: Have you ever given players a mission that was never meant to be a success or even completed?

Any thoughts on doing this, as part of a campaign, maybe as a start?
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Wajeb Deb Kaadeb
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PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2018 12:32 pm    Post subject: Re: Mission Impossible? Reply with quote

Mamatried wrote:
My question is this: Have you ever given players a mission that was never meant to be a success or even completed?


I have, in a different game. And, it backfired on me. If I had been the type of GM to fudge things behind the screen, I could have, of course, made it so the players were not successful. But, all you've got to do is get caught doing that one time, and your players will not trust you.

So, even though I control the game world, I try to play "fair", even behind the screen when nobody is looking.

In doing that, the players pulled it off, in spite of huge odds against them. They had some great ideas, and some critical dice rolls that went their way.



For Star Wars, my suggestion is to let them win, if they play well in spite of everything that you have stacked against them. If they retreat, let that be their decision--avoid them getting the feeling that they're being railroaded. Players should feel that their actions in the game matter--that they are masters of their own destinies (even if this is, in reality, an illusion).

If they do, in fact, kill old Pappy, then pull out the Script Immunity Rule, page 90, 1E Core Rulebook. The players think that they killed Palpatine, but they find out later that....it was just one of his substitute clones.

Don't make it easy. Palpatine is extremely powerful. If you play that NPC properly, and throw him some help (when is Palpatine going to be alone? He should have at least six Royal Guards around him), then he should be near impossible to kill.

Have a last ditch escape plan for him. Maybe a speeder zooms in overhead to collect Palpy as the Royal Guards sacrifice themselves holding off the PCs.

You can even make up a Force Power that will save Palpy's life.

There's lots of ways to save the old coot.





....And...what if, in your campaign, Palpy really does die? Your players would probably love that. You allow them to re-write what is in the films and have their own Star Wars universe!

Vader takes over the throne!

You could pull out the Zahn Trilogy book and have Grand Admiral Thrawn as Vader's second in command.

Or, make up a new apprentice for Vader--possibly re-work the DarkStryder campaign a bit to do this.

Going down this road could be quite fun! It could be an exciting, fresh version of Star Wars for your players!
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Mamatried
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PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2018 12:43 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I was thinking they would sort of succeed, Palpy have been "injured" and even almost killed a few times, the ghost prison incident and the trachta coup attempt stands out.

I really hadn't contemplated Palpy to die, but mention this it could actually be quite cool.


I don't think I would give another impossible mission in the future though, but it has "worked" as I as GM intended more or less ( with the less being cool player made "fluff")

Though suicide missions that that are actually possible to survive is fun from time to time though.


The players were able to actually wound him, I actually had to be quite creative in how to actually have them able to survive, as the old fart would have killed them with ease, even wounded ( by lobbing a Thermal Detonator into his shuttle)
I had the players being blown of a building by the shock of the explosion and this is how they survived to flee.
They are not however so far come to find my "join the rebels hook" but I hope they do.


On That note, how would in your opinion palpy have rewarded the players if they in stead of being the assassins, saved the old fart?
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garhkal
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PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2018 2:31 pm    Post subject: Re: Mission Impossible? Reply with quote

Mamatried wrote:
As GM I came up with an assassination attempt against ol' Plapy.
Now the mission was never meant to succeed but as why the group of Imperials now is on the run.
The players were the trigger men, acting on superior's orders, but the plot was found out and they had to flee.

My question is this: Have you ever given players a mission that was never meant to be a success or even completed?

Any thoughts on doing this, as part of a campaign, maybe as a start?


I've wanted to, but often i get told by other, "you can't do that, PC's are heroes and should never have an auto failure"..
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Dredwulf60
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PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2018 5:22 pm    Post subject: Re: Mission Impossible? Reply with quote

garhkal wrote:
Mamatried wrote:
As GM I came up with an assassination attempt against ol' Plapy.
Now the mission was never meant to succeed but as why the group of Imperials now is on the run.
The players were the trigger men, acting on superior's orders, but the plot was found out and they had to flee.

My question is this: Have you ever given players a mission that was never meant to be a success or even completed?

Any thoughts on doing this, as part of a campaign, maybe as a start?


I've wanted to, but often i get told by other, "you can't do that, PC's are heroes and should never have an auto failure"..


Bah!

There are different styles of games. If you are running a pure sandbox, then sure. Let the chips fall where they may. Players can do anything within the crafted world, but they must be prepared for the consequences of their actions...good or bad, heroic or not.

But if you are going to have a heroic game, that comes with a fair bit of storytelling and narrative crafting.

There are many, many examples of heroes who are doomed to fail an early task...if only to set up the next act or to get them into proper starting positions for the 'real' event.

That is part of crafting an interactive story and building tension.

Can't have it both ways in my opinion.
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Wajeb Deb Kaadeb
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PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2018 5:53 pm    Post subject: Re: Mission Impossible? Reply with quote

Dredwulf60 wrote:
Can't have it both ways in my opinion.


I see your point, but I totally disagree.

It's just a matter of play style. When I GM, I may stack the deck in order to try to achieve a certain result, but I won't make that result happen no matter what.

For example, if I set up a situation where the Rebels had a chance at Palpatine, I'd probably set it up so that it was damn near impossible.

But, if the PCs pull it off, in spite of the odds I set up against them, then I don't make Palpy live. If they kill him, then they kill him. I deal with it, and the story moves on--in a different direction.

I don't ever want my players feeling like their actions don't matter.

And, if they do pull off something like this--and I put them through hell doing it--then they feel like real HEROES because they did, in fact, pull off the impossible.
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Whill
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PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2018 10:23 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

In a campaign that diverged from sequel film continuity, the final adventure's climax was 6 non-Force-sensitive PCs vs. Palpatine (Luke had gone with them but he took on Vader and separated them from the group). Playing it by the book, the PCs would have all been toast but they had previously acquired a Force artifact that ended up giving them a fighting chance. In the end, 3 PCs were dead and Palpatine's soul was trapped in the body of the Gamorrean PC (without powers since the Gamorrean was not Force-sensitive). So we considered it 2 PCs surviving the battle and Palpatine defeated.
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Wajeb Deb Kaadeb
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PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2018 10:29 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Whill wrote:
So we considered it 2 PCs surviving the battle and Palpatine defeated.


Cut to the Gamorrean. "Heh hee-hee-heeee-hheeeee (snort) heeee."
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Whill
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PostPosted: Fri May 18, 2018 10:49 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Wajeb Deb Kaadeb wrote:
Whill wrote:
Palpatine's soul was trapped in the body of the Gamorrean PC (without powers since the Gamorrean was not Force-sensitive).

Cut to the Gamorrean. "Heh hee-hee-heeee-hheeeee (snort) heeee."

Ha. I portrayed him in a complete rage with yellow eyes and constant angry unintelligible squealing and snorting. But Palpapig's body was double-wounded and one of the two surviving PCs was a Wookiee, so they subdued him.
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Mamatried
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PostPosted: Sat May 19, 2018 6:34 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

That was sort of evil.

Turning Palpy into a pig face....oink oink.

Poor palpy
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