Post date: Feb 22, 2010 9:14:31 PM
You know in every campaign there is a moment where the whole thing is about to turn a corner. Where it could easily be the end or a new beginning. And in my case both are about to come true. For Fallout: Radio-activity it is nearing the end, and for Fallout: Trail it is a new beginning.
When facing either of these situations you need to think differently about them.
For an ending, you want something that is satisfying that wraps up the majority of the loose threads and creates a sense of accomplishment for the players. You want an exciting end with explosions or a major twist or both. When the campaign has made that turn, it is your responsibility as the GM to see it and not let the campaign peter out as you drag the players along to whatever your goal is, instead recognize the signs of the need to bring it to an end.
Some Signs that the End is near/needed:
Spotty attendance.
Lack of interest or enthusiasm at the table.
Lack of focus on the game.
You planned it this way.
So what to do about it, well first do not introduce any more side threads or interesting NPCs, instead bring your GM focus on the task at hand (in my case find out what is causing the Radio transmissions and "deal" with it).
Then determine in as few steps as possible how to bring that task to a close.
Then raise the risk bar. Instead of just two Protectrons in a room, make them two Mr. Gutsy's (unless you had already planned for the ending).
Then plan the exit monologue, or Epilog. This is stealing straight from all the Fallout games, after doing the final whatever (kill the Master, blow up the Enclave, Activate the water purifier), there is a montage of scenes from the various places the players have been and had an impact on, for better or for worse. Try to give one mention to each player's choices and multiple it's impact at least 100 times more than what seems reasonable and go with that.
For the Radio-activity campaign its only been three places - the Vault, the Pass, and the Salt Lake City area in general, so think on their various actions - even minor ones and consider how that could cascade into something greater. (Example: With the recovery of additional junk, the Pass is able to provide additional protection with more Rock-it-Launchers and grows to become a major community in the region. With Brecht repairing the equipment in Deb' Diner a new culinary school of wasteland cooking evolves and instead of just burnt rat and gecko on a stick a whole new era of fine cuisine comes to be. )
Now in the other instance where it is a new beginning, there are very different tasks at hand.
So the players wrapped up a major campaign plot thread, and they want more. What to do?
First, as a GM you need to verify what you believe you are seeing with the players - that they want to continue the game, or do they want to take a break. Because you could have had the most awesome ending ever with explosions and a twist and everyone is talking about it, but they may want to try something else for a time.
Second, ask yourself as a GM are you wanting to continue, mmm, actually make this the first thing you do, but in any case, you need to be excited about what lays ahead as much, if not more so, than the players.
Now comes the hard part. During any game loose threads are bound to come up (that mysterious weapons dealer who is now dead, why?), now it is time to document all those loose threads because these are the things that you can dangle in front of your players and see which ones get their attention. It also gives you, as the GM some things where if you want to close some threads you can with simple rumors.
Another thing to do at this time is also document all the major NPCs that the players have interacted with or heard about up to this point. Now decide for about 25% of them a major life changing event (birth, death, marriage, kidnapping, etc.), some of these changes could involve the Players. Now you have some minor encounters ready to go.
Next is have a talk with the Players, make sure they are happy with their Characters. This is the perfect time for retirements and new blood to come into the game. In Savage Worlds there are hindrances and edges, sometimes players make choices based on what they thought could happen but never seem to come up (like taking Gambling and so far have not met anyone who was playing cards or dice - then again they may be just going to the wrong places) and missing out on things that come up all the time (like Notice). Let them rework their characters. This is something I actually like about DnD 4E, that at each level you can retrain either a power, skill or feat. So if WotC is doing it, I don't feel so much that I am going out on a limb to allow some rebuilding at the end of a major milestone.
Now you, and your players, are ready to tackle the next chapter of your campaign.
Going back to the Well of Inspiration
I recently had the pleasure of playing through Fallout 2 once more. I had not touched this game in over a Decade, but recently dusted off the CD, loaded it and patched it (essential if you want to actually play the game) and got down to some game play. Since I had forgotten as much as I had remembered I did cheat with an amazing walk through (http://user.tninet.se/~jyg699a/fallout2.html) and I had not realized some of the things I had missed, so it was a good refresher.
I had forgotten how much "science fiction" and "adult situations" had crept into Fallout 2, robotic dogs and drug use, space shuttles and prostitution, rebuilt communities and cheating spouses of crime bosses. Definitely if this game had come out today it would have gotten an M rating.
And while Fallout 2 is set 80 years after Fallout 1 comes to a close, I find myself more drawn to the harsh and less civilized world of Fallout 1 and 3 vs. the political mess that was going on in Fallout 2 with all the communities. In fact the first 1/3 of Fallout 2 was very much the same look and feel of Fallout 1 until you had to head to New Reno, then it all changed.
Still it was good to go back to the well of inspiration and see some excellent examples of NPC scripting and how they captured NPCs in one sentence descriptions. It also encouraged me to add some things to my game that are missing in Fallout 3 - Crowbars, Force Fields, and more but smaller Tribal groups that dot the maps unsettled areas. Now that I have solved the game I will definitely travel around the map some more and pick up on some additional things, but I am looking forward to bringing more Fallout 2 into my future games.