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The Generative GM Method + Example (Part 3)

So far we've learned about the Generative GM Method and its steps. We've also explored some examples on how to find information about the location for the adventure and its plot hooks. Now, for the last part of the planning, I'm going to focus on the characters I'll be playing with. 

When it comes to solo RPGing and player characters, there are two main schools of thought from what I've learned so far (here's an interesting example that explains some popular methods briefly): 
  • You play your PCs as you normally would in a cooperative RPG session, consciously separating their actions and knowledge from those you have as GM. (the PC/GM-in-one approach)
  • You emulate the PCs with the use of tools to keep the randomness of actual player decisions while focusing on GMing play as you would in a cooperative RPG session. (the PC-as-NPCs approach)
I've played as the PC/GM-in-one approach before, and even though it's interesting, I wanted some randomness for this session. Therefore, I went with the PC-as-NPC approach. This was perfect because it allowed me to get authentic responses to the questions I was going to ask my characters.

I'm playing with Eryssel, Jarmyel, Daud, and Gunnar. They are my default character party, like the protagonists of the story I want to explore (there's more info about them here and here).
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I've had a vague idea of their personalities for a while, but I noticed that after playing with these initial questions, some things became truly obvious, and others I had never considered before came into play.

For a bit of background info on the characters, I'm going to share with you a short bio of each:

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Eryssel: A half-elf ranger that was born among humans in a small fishing town. She lost both her parents when she was very little and was later abandoned by her human relatives near a dense forest due to her fay blood. She was found by an Elven hunting party and taken to the Elven kingdom of Argellond, where she was adopted and raised by Erdhil, notorious ranger among his people. She has always carried with her a small silver trinket in the shape of a raven, given to her by her mother after she was born. Her personal quest is to find more information about her trinket because it holds the secret of her elven lineage, and possibly the truth to what happened to her parents.

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Daud (Caleb): A human fighter from the coastal city of Hostifell. His parents own a tavern frequented by pirates and other rough patrons. He used to travel the seas on board of the Dancing Hell Hound, a merchant ship under the rule of Captain Zirazir. However, he was betrayed and abandoned by the captain and his crew after one of their excursions. It took him months to reach the continent of Hilonde, but he couldn't go directly to his city of origin because Zirazir is known to control its port. Daud thus moved to Balirne in search of a new life, and in search of help because he wants to take revenge on the Dancing Hell Hound and its crew. 

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Jarmyel: A human monk that was abandoned, at a very young age, by her mother in the temple of Misini, in Aldara. She found a mysterious book while still a child, which narrates the story of an unknown hero. However, some pages of the book are blank and nothing can be written on them. After completing her training as a monk, she was given the choice to stay in the temple and become her teacher's successor or to leave the temple and explore the world. She chose the latter, motivated to find a scribe capable of solving the mystery behind her enchanted tome. 

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Gunnar: Human thief residing in Balirne. Despite his current condition, he was born in a noble family, to the Archduke of Finne in Vandessa, bicapital of Hilonde. However, at around eight suns of age, he had to escape after his whole family was murdered by Geoffrey Folcey (a cunning and ambitious man with an astonishing similarity to the form and physique of Gunnar's father, the Archduke). The impostor took the mantle of Archduke for himself and killed all those that knew or suspected what he had done. Gunnar spent the rest of childhood learning how to survive in the slums and on the streets, making a reputation for himself as a thief. The only trinket he has that could prove one day he is the heir to Finne's duchy is an old chess piece made of glass, part of a commemorative treasure given to his father by the king at Elessa, Hilonde's other bicapital. For now, all Gunnar can do is wait.

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I know that the story will start in Balirne (i.e. the city I've chosen in the previous steps) and that it fits nicely with both Daud and Gunnar's background. I'm not sure why Eryssel and Jarmyel are there, but the idea is to be able to find it out! To answer the questions, I'm using the Mythic GM Emulator chart (just the chart; I'm not taking into account the Chaos factor), the GM's Apprentice Fantasy deck, some dice (d4, d6, d8, etc.) and my characters' background info.

(To Daud): You are looking for help to elaborate a plan to take vengeance on Captain Zirazir. Who has agreed to help you, and why?
  • To answer this question, I've used a d6 to determine the character that has agreed to help Daud (1-2 Eryssel, 3-4 Jarmyel, 5-6 Gunnar). The result was a 5, so it's Gunnar.
  • To answer the why, I took a random card from the GMA Fantasy deck and looked at some of the suggested icons: heart, sword, sun. I interpreted this as Gunnar having lived something similar in his past (he was betrayed too, which cost him his family), considering himself a fighter of sorts, and wanting to go on an adventure.
(To Gunnar): You've met Daud before this adventure started. Where did you meet him and how?
  • Similarly to how I did before, I took another card and had a look at the location printed on it. It said "market", so I connected this with one of Balirne's markets. There are 3 markets in the city, 1 black market, 1 bazaar, and 1 luxury bazaar. I discarded the bazaars because I connect them more to food stands.  I also discarded normal markets because if Gunnar is a thief, and Daud has recently arrived at the city after a betrayal, it's very probable they are in the slums. So, that means Gunnar must've met him at the black market.
  • The "how" part of the question was interesting because the first card I took said "Child's toy". I wasn't sure, so I took a second card and it said: "Writing project". After giving it a bit of thought, I guessed that maybe it had to do with a book for children. It then made sense: Daud was reading a children's book while at the market, and it was about pirates! (that way the object connected to his bg) Of course, it is uncommon for an adult to read such basic books... unless they're not proficient readers (and this probably indicated that Daud's intelligence score was low, or below average). It's the trope of the strong but dumb guy. It made sense.
  • As a last detail, I checked what else could the cards suggest, and I found that both gave "Honesty" as a virtue. I took this as Gunnar approaching Daud (a burly ex-sailor reading a kid's book is probably an uncommon sight) and asking him about what he was doing. Daud answered honestly and told Gunnar about what had happened to him, and how the book reminded him of his former life. This connected to the previous answer of what had led Gunnar to help Daud. Additionally, this made me realize that Gunnar must have high charisma because otherwise, he wouldn't have decided to talk to a complete stranger on the street (it's also very probable that Daud had no idea he was at a black market in the worst part of town thanks to him not being that bright or perceptive).
(To Daud and Gunnar): Where are you right now?
  • It occurred to me that maybe they had gone somewhere else, hence the question. I took a card that said "Temple", so they were inside a temple. It makes sense considering there are two temples near the black market.
(To Daud and Gunnar): What are you doing?
  •  I took another card, and it said "Weather gear", so it had to do with clothes. I connected this with the fact that the church of Evett's Saints is known for helping those in need. It's probable that Gunnar (a long-time inhabitant of the city) knew they were giving away free clothes at the temple, so he asked Daud to come along. He could really use fresh garments.
How Daud and Gunnar met is clear, but what about Jarmyel and Eryssel? The questions I asked next were focused on them. I rolled a d6 (1-3 Eryssel, 4-6 Jarmyel) and got a 2. It was Eryssel's turn to enter the story, and I wanted it to connect her to the events right away. Maybe she knew Gunnar?

(To Eryssel): You are looking for Gunnar and finally find him at the temple. What did he do for you to go after him?
  • The card I took had a catalyst that suggested "Pickpocketed!" Easy. Gunnar stole from her! To make it even more dramatic (and a real reason for her to chase him down) I decided he had stolen her silver raven trinket, which she carried in her belt's pouch. She obviously wanted it back. Gunnar might be in trouble.
Because Daud is also at the temple and I'd like to check his reaction to sudden situations, I focused the next question on him.

(To Daud): How do you react to this situation?
  • The card had the virtue "Loyalty", which I interpret as Daud defending Gunnar from the accusations. However, his argument must've been simple because of his low intelligence. Probably, he chose to defend Gunnar because he considers him a good person and a friend now that he has taken him to get free clothes, and promised him to help him plan his revenge.
(To Eryssel): How do you react?
  • I took a new card and it said "Honesty". Eryssel decided to tell the truth and explain that Gunnar is a thief and stole from her a family heirloom that has huge sentimental value for her. Gunnar thus learns that the object he stole is probably worth nothing.
(To Gunnar): How do you handle the situation?
  • New card. It said "Charity", but below it put "Wrath". Ok, so he probably cursed out loud upon his realization, but then handed back the item to Eryssel trying to sell the idea that the holiness of the temple made him change his ways.
I ask Mythic if Jarmyel is around, and I get a Yes. So, I'll focus on her now.

(To Jarmyel): You enter the temple after matters have been settled. You know one of the other PCs. Who is it that you know? 
  • I checked 1d6, 1-2 Eryssel, 3-4 Daud, 5-6 Gunnar. I get a 1. Jarmyel knows Eryssel.
(To Jarmyel) How do you know Eryssel?:
  • I took a card and it said "Unusual inheritance" as a catalyst. It also added other details such as "Shipyard" as location, and "Snacks". I pondered about it and then realized that they probably met some time ago, near a city port. They both come from the continent of Aldara, so they definitely traveled by water at some point in the past. They could've met while on a ship, during lunchtime. Also, the "unusual inheritance" is definitely connected to their personal trinkets: the silver raven icon and the mysterious book. Maybe the book says something about Eryssel's silver raven icon? If that's the case, it makes sense they decided to journey together. What I imagine is that Eryssel was wearing her trinket around her neck, and Jarmyel was passing by. However, she noticed the figurine and remembered the book had a picture that was very similar to it. So, she decided to talk to Eryssel and ask her about the origin of her trinket. Eryssel answered she's on a quest to find information about it, and long story short, they ended up working together as allies because Jarmyel's quest is similar.
(To Jarmyel) What do you do now that you've found Eryssel?
  •  New card. It said "Courage" and "Wrath". She probably greeted her and realized she'd found the thief. However, Daud was around too, so it's a weird situation with two guys facing Eryssel. Not wanting to have her ally be harmed, Jarmyel decided to get ready to fight.
(To Gunnar) What do you do?:
  • Another card. This one had lots of interesting elements that fit together nicely. "Treats", "Followed in the street", "Gather new tourist", "Fear", "Charity".  Ok, maybe Gunnar felt afraid of Jarmyel's reaction and tried to soften things up by extending a friendly invitation to all of them to solve the misunderstanding. They could go and eat something nice at a nearby location (I'd guess, the bazaar because it's not that far away on the map).
And, I felt satisfied with how the adventure was ready to start because there's a plot hook waiting at the bazaar.

I liked how the questions worked. I know I could've limited myself to mere 4 questions, one per character, but because it's a solo game I'm running here, I wanted something cohesive. Like, a solid background story for how the group met. In a sense, they all met thanks to Gunnar, and the development of the different details involved gave me a much more interesting story than a simple: You all find yourselves in a tavern when suddenly a brawl ensues.

I'm not going to exemplify the part about planning a journey from town A to town B because I'm not there yet in the story. Nonetheless, there's a chance I'll add an entry on it in the future. So, in that case, stay tuned!
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