PKMN Fantasy War RP [Tentative title: "Kingmakers"]

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. By the time I finish this post it will probably be morning, but no mind.

I'm back after a long while away with a new RP idea in mind (shocker, I know...) and I wanted to gauge how exactly people felt about a few ideas. Functionally, there's two splitting points around which the RP might become rather different but I'll start with what's the same.

This RP is set in the land of Mithrenvale, a low-fantasy world which has lived in a constant state of war for as long as most living memories. The main conflict is between the realm of Elathir, a kingdom that on the surface seems peaceful and even tranquil; but it's a well-known truth that beneath the surface lies a long history of machination and skullduggery, as many covet the fertile and bounteous lands as a kingdom for themselves; none less than their rivals in Aldathir, a harsh desert empire founded on absolute loyalty to its Emperor at all costs. Due to its lack of resources to call its own, it has many client lands it has captured and called its own - such as the mines in the frosted mountains of Xeo, or the gold that flows from illegal trade out of the port at Kenpo.

And this is where the minor factions of Mithrenvale come into play: They are not powerful, but they are powerful enough. With their support, willing or unwilling Aldathir or Elathir could once and for all crush and conquer their rival and end the war in Mithrenvale... so it comes to our heroes to decide to whom these Kingmakers sway...

Anyway, that's the basic gist in a few words. There's a few points I wanted to ask folks about first.

1) There are two ways I'm thinking of running with the inhabitants of this land. I'd either have them in the style of Pokémon Conquest where human(oid) warriors fight alongside their Pokémon; in this variant I'd allow sets of "standard fantasy humanoids" for player characters as well, so if you wanted to be an Elf, knock yourself out. Otherwise, I'd have them in the style of Pokémon Mystery Dungeon where the players and inhabitants of the land actually are sentient, sapient Pokémon, which certainly earns points for raw simplicity and immersion over the Conquest version.

2) I don't know if people would prefer to play it as a pseudo-political RP where folks are playing as people with some sway in major or minor factions and the plot is threaded on the conflict - in this variant I'd say the players would probably even be acting against each other in order to win, which I would apply some tabletop game mechanics to - although I'd keep their exact nature a secret to prevent metagaming. The other option would be to run it much closer to a traditional adventure, in which case it would be more cut-and-dry and players would probably all belong to or be aligned with only one of the major factions [probably Elathir], the focus of the RP being on winning for that side and having a hell of an adventure in the meanwhile.

Oh yes and anyone who didn't notice already, Dungeons and Dragons and Fire Emblem inspirations for me on this one. Heh.

I would adore some questions or some (constructive!) feedback/criticism, so go nuts.

I think that this would probably work better as a Mystery Dungeon-styled RP than a mashed up fantasy x conquest kind of a thing. It'd make it easier to work out mechanics etc I think and would make for a more unique experience since a more medieval PMD-style RP isn't something I think I've ever seen.

I'd say go fort he variety of letting the players choose to be from any of the factions though. In an open world it might make for more fun interactions and it will be interesting to see how the conflicting interests alter and direct the plot. You'd have to be on-the-ball as a GM there though. You don't want one group feeling favoured or anything.

I think actual proper competition between the players is inadvisable though. the few times I've seen RPs that have "winners" or other competitive elements they haven't done particularly well.

gimmepie said:

I think actual proper competition between the players is inadvisable though. the few times I've seen RPs that have "winners" or other competitive elements they haven't done particularly well.

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I think examples from those few times would be greatly appreciated here. Any comparisons and personal insight would be of great help to figure out what exactly makes these competitive elements ineffective.

Anyways, I think the dynamic of a more competitive setting using political analogies would actually make for an fascinating set-up that isn't common here. That said, I think you should really bear in mind about the scale and functionality of your world before deciding on any route. I feel many GMs fall into the trap of emphasizing way too much on splendor by making everything too grand. I always believed RP is a completely different medium compared to traditional literature so there are some disadvantages. And anytime I hear something as high-fantasy as Fire Emblem, I get worried that the entire cast will just split apart just so they can explore the "massive" landscapes and giant story arcs, and pairs will just expend most of their efforts elongating JPs to accommodate this.

Someone once said that simplicity is important to keep in mind when making and running a RP. I completely concur with this sentiment. I feel the most valuable aspect of a RP is how we as players influence the world a GM establishes.

This suggestion might be based on my own preference, but I think this RP would be more appealing and efficient if major factions were reduced to tribal clans fighting over the same territory. Alternatively, the only two factions you should focus on is Elathir and Aldathir, while everything else can be made up by the players for their own lore. As such, you should give both Elathir and Aldathir equal significance in the story; as of now, it feels like your attention and efforts seem to be fixated on Elathir though I suppose this is only because you have yet to flesh out everything else.

As for the Pokemon: I think it's quite jarring for this RP to have Pokemon at all. If you do plan to throw in those technicolor critters, all I ask is you don't just shoehorn them in just because we happen to be a Pokemon RP forum. Unless you have something specific you wish exploit from the lore behind the actual Pokemon species themselves, I think it's better just to make this RP an original piece since you already have a solid foundation.

People don't like to lose.
Main reason tbh.

I think that this would probably work better as a Mystery Dungeon-styled RP than a mashed up fantasy x conquest kind of a thing. It'd make it easier to work out mechanics etc I think and would make for a more unique experience since a more medieval PMD-style RP isn't something I think I've ever seen.

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I'm probably thinking more Rennaisance than Medieval, but to most the difference isn't really major enough to care about. xP

Ech said:

I think examples from those few times would be greatly appreciated here. Any comparisons and personal insight would be of great help to figure out what exactly makes these competitive elements ineffective.

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Mostly because of the below. I understand the risk.

People don't like to lose.
Main reason tbh.

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Basically, if we did go through with the pseudopolitic route, it would require a certain amount of maturity from the players involved for sure. This isn't to say you can't write a good story being on the losing side of things as it is... Still, it's not even that everyone has to lose. Hell, it's not out of the realm of possibility that players can craft an ending where nobody loses, although I'm going to stay tight-lipped about the ideas I've had that way...

Anyways, I think the dynamic of a more competitive setting using political analogies would actually make for an fascinating set-up that isn't common here. That said, I think you should really bear in mind about the scale and functionality of your world before deciding on any route. I feel many GMs fall into the trap of emphasizing way too much on splendor by making everything too grand. I always believed RP is a completely different medium compared to traditional literature so there are some disadvantages. And anytime I hear something as high-fantasy as Fire Emblem, I get worried that the entire cast will just split apart just so they can explore the "massive" landscapes and giant story arcs, and pairs will just expend most of their efforts elongating JPs to accommodate this.

Someone once said that simplicity is important to keep in mind when making and running a RP. I completely concur with this sentiment. I feel the most valuable aspect of a RP is how we as players influence the world a GM establishes.

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If I can expand on what I intend to do? I intend to keep things in the "local scale" so far as RPs go, by for the most part centering the action around the locale the players are at for assignment (and yes, they'll be in the same place, because otherwise there'd be no interaction, and no RP) and the effects and repurcussions of their actions on assignment would be felt once they returned to their hometown; however, with all that said...

This suggestion might be based on my own preference, but I think this RP would be more appealing and efficient if major factions were reduced to tribal clans fighting over the same territory. Alternatively, the only two factions you should focus on is Elathir and Aldathir, while everything else can be made up by the players for their own lore. As such, you should give both Elathir and Aldathir equal significance in the story; as of now, it feels like your attention and efforts seem to be fixated on Elathir though I suppose this is only because you have yet to flesh out everything else.

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I'm surely not averse to the idea of reducing the scale, if the players feel it might fit them. As for any percieved bias, I wouldn't worry about my bias too much - like you've postulated, I'm early enough in the planning for this to be asking questions that have such a wide-scale effect on the RP, so ultimately, not a lot is developed. That's why this thread exists really: So I can work out what way I should move about developing the world, the conflict between Elathir and Aldathir and how the RP should be run as an RP!

As for the Pokemon: I think it's quite jarring for this RP to have Pokemon at all. If you do plan to throw in those technicolor critters, all I ask is you don't just shoehorn them in just because we happen to be a Pokemon RP forum. Unless you have something specific you wish exploit from the lore behind the actual Pokemon species themselves, I think it's better just to make this RP an original piece since you already have a solid foundation.

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Bluntly this is mostly a Pokémon work due to stories such as Crimson Dawn and Odyssey that brought me into the site in the first place and that used similar setups of Pokémon in a war setting. I, for one certainly enjoyed taking Pokémon so far from its original concept. Beyond that I have to admit, Pokémon makes for a set of expectations we already know about and I'm not entirely sure in my abilities to create an original setting yet.

gimmepie said:

People don't like to lose.

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RIP, I was hoping for actual examples—i.e., the mechanics and set-up that enforce the competition. That statement makes it sound like the only merit you can gain out of a contest is victory. I feel that is undermining the potential behind a more engaging activity. Competition is not synonymous with contention; it's for fun. It provides a special kind of drive for participants to persevere and do their best. There's also a stronger incentive to read everyone's content since I'd imagine a player would like to see what they're up against. This is why I hope this RP takes a more competitive route, as it could generate a lot of activity among the players through friendly rivalries and hopefully prevent the RP from just dying or entering a state where it's barely alive.

Sure, I doubt anybody deliberately enjoys losing. But to assume that competition will automatically fail because people only care about winning is to assume a majority of our community is narrow-minded.

Plumbum said:

... (and yes, they'll be in the same place, because otherwise there'd be no interaction, and no RP) and the effects and repurcussions of their actions on assignment would be felt once they returned to their hometown

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It's great to see this intent to keep everything intact and organized, and I really appreciation your consideration of having each player's action influence. Though you should remember that player characters don't literally have interact with each other all the time, and keeping them locked together at all times might seem more contrived than efficient. On top of that, this might encourage "excessive" JPing where players potentially favor certain individuals out of everyone else. This ironically makes the player group more detached since we're just creating niches within what is already a niche.

Plumbum said:

I, for one certainly enjoyed taking Pokémon so far from its original concept. Beyond that I have to admit, Pokémon makes for a set of expectations we already know about and I'm not entirely sure in my abilities to create an original setting yet.

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Ah, I see. I want to clarify that I'm not against Pokemon, but I do think they should be utilized effectively. Simply ask yourself this: what's the difference between adding Pokemon and say other fictional creatures like mythical dragons?

I'm always interested in Fantasy things, especially tending towards politics. I think it could be a but of a hand full depending on the amount of freedom (then again, I shy away from total sandboxes as a personal thing), but allowing the option for diverse backgrounds in characters is always a plus.

Personally I'm more of a fan of Conquest style, but don't have an issue with being pokemon themselves. I'm also not a fan of the idea of gimping it away from politics and into PMD. To me it's more interesting as it stands, and PMD tends to evoke a specific style in my mind (playing as pokemon, being part of a guild, and most importantly the Mystery Dungeons themselves).

Also, I'd hope everyone can be mature enough when given warning that only one would win that they can respect the narrative over everything else. PC hasn't been tryhard-y about winning as a lot of other forums I've seen, and a compelling narrative is better than proclaiming yourself winner of something with basically no reward besides pride in a small group, but that's just me.