You know, a story like this one has been congealing in the back of my mind for some time now, waiting to be written. But since this place is still trying to get off its feet, I’ll offer it up to you all as mental fodder. Perhaps it will encourage some original characters.
Just as a note, I don’t really want to start this one immediately. In fact, I don’t know much if I myself want to go through the work involved in managing a game with the potential complexity and dead-endness that this sort of game has. Rather, I wanted to throw this idea out into the collective consciousness and see where it goes. If you guys happen to approve the idea any time soon, I can wait on actually making a discussion thread, right?
Kudos to AimMan for thinking up the first pirate-centered story though... The man read my mind. I was hoping one like that would come out quick.
Title:Art of the Double-Cross. Tentative. Don’t know if that’s been used somewhere before, but man does it sound sharp.
Basic Plot Summary/Outline:Pirates are cool. This is the general consensus that has been reached by the public. The culmination of years of classy ships, snappy dressings, plenty of large explosions and a great lack of moral fiber. Because everyone knows a lack of moral fiber is cool. You wouldn’t want to meet one of these guys in public or private at any time ever, but they sure are dashing.
Unbeknownst to most, however, is the work involved behind the veil of fancy getaways and the assortment of variously sized explosions. The planning and meticulous calculation that goes into simply not being captured or shot dead on every job is mind-boggling. And once you are captured or shot dead once, you very rarely get another swing at it.
The interconnected underworld of Terra understands this very well, more so in some circles than in others. They understand that there is a certain mindset that must be achieved. A skill to be obtained. An art that must be mastered. The ability to get away.
One particular person who understands this happens to be exceptionally wealthy because of it. Himself recognized as one of the greatest pirates of any kind on Terra, he is more than willing to share his great fortune with the rest of the thieving world.
Every now and then, more or less often depending on the circumstances, this man, simply referred to as “Boss”, holds a private competition, open only to those who receive a personal invitation. Or, of course, those good enough to steal one. The goal of these competitions normally being the lifting of a particularly well-guarded or difficult to transport object, and the safe transport of said object to the Boss’s location, as specified in the issued invitations.
Show up within three days of a specified starting date with the object and an invitation in hand (not necessarily your own, mind you), and you win. Show up being trailed by authorities, and you lose. Get caught, and you lose. Get killed, and you lose. And it’s all in good fun.
Other than that, no specific rules have ever been specified, and competitors have free reign of whatever underhanded tactics they prefer. Those with the resources can feel free to blackmail, bribe, purchase complex gadgets, hire small armies, and so on. Those without had best be creative. Gather data, infiltrate, plan ahead, anticipate your enemies, manipulate the helpless NPCs, and even team up if you like, but only a single person will walk away with the prize.
What is the prize? Well, you normally don’t find out until the end, but it will probably be something absurdly expensive. And if not, there will certainly be the prestige.
Of course, international authorities, as much as the criminal communities, are quite keen to keep up with when these competitions might take place, but save in events where competitors intentionally decide to make a spectacle of it, both parties tend to get left in the dark until long after the contest ends.
As for this competition, the invitations have been sent, the setup completed, and all there is left to do is kick back and wait for the winner.
Setting/Time:Irrelevant. Time should not be too much of an issue. And if it is, we have ways of fixing that.
Fan Characters:Yes. Make them. Lots. For the sake of allowing maximum freedom without having to worry about cannon, I’d say drop in-game characters completely. We’re talking an all-but-one total villain cast. And keep in mind that you don’t have to be an air pirate. Any kind of robber or thief will do.
Character Limit:Anything within reason. If you do plan on hiring that army to give you a hand, or if you plan on doing anything else that will give you a huge workforce to work with, bear in mind that they will not always be under your complete control at every moment. Keep the main characters that you personally control down to just a few, just to keep things simpler.
Character List:One person will play an officer, who will basically be in charge of learning what he can about the situation from wherever he/she can, and then making everything as difficult as possible for the rest of the players (for example, by predicting a certain escape route and barricading a port, beefing up security at a suspect location, etc.). Not impossible mind you, just difficult. But hey, plots can change, so don’t feel restricted. An original character will work fine here, and you’ll have command of a gargantuan crew of police officers and vehicles to work under you. Hekuva lot of fun to be in this position, I’m sure.
Additional Rules:Tons, and yet none.
No rules in particular. The format will be very loose, yet very structured, if that makes sense. Only a few characters should actually receive an invitation; others can find out about the competition by other means, and just make a point of stealing an invitation along the way. Consider them a commodity. Planning and setup for grand schemes against one another is encouraged, but keep your own character’s financial and mental state in mind. If he/she wouldn’t think of or wouldn’t be able to afford doing something, try to stay away from it unless you can justify it. Understand that some things must be balanced while the rest may be chaos. Also keep in mind that being caught or killed disqualifies you.
And don't forget to eat and such. Performing such menial tasks can be vital in the long run. If the enemy can logically justify a fault of yours, such as being weak from hunger, it's your loss. Also consider things such as how many supplies you’ll be needing to carry with you at any given time. Traveling light or having the supplies you need can make all the difference.
I haven’t gotten a specific scenario planned out yet, but the geography, economy, and location of the island will all be deciding factors as to planning your strategy. Yes, I’m talking THAT in-depth. The geography will determine the location of ports, shipping docks, decent hiding places, weather, and so on. The location and weather will affect the economy of the island(s) this is taking place on, and thus will affect the services you will have at your disposal, and the effect that utilizing them in different situations would have. And things will basically go on like that.
The guy managing this thing will need to keep all of this in mind and develop the setting himself. A topographic map would be quite good here, actually.
Time is also a factor. You have three days, so the guy in charge will need to determine how much time will pass when so as to keep everything moving without depriving anyone of precious posts. And of course, the players will need to keep in mind how long their own strategies will take to implement, the efficiency of their mode of transportation, and so forth. Time will pass uniformly as per the RP controller’s discretion. The controller will also have to make some calls as to any manipulation of NPCs that they think may be unfair. They are not human, but they're not idiots; if an enemy officer is guarding a door somewhere and you want to get through, you'd best have a good bluff in mind.
Ultimately, more than one controller may be needed to keep everything in order.
Within these constraints, however, feel free to do as you wish. Gathering data and having a plan will be crucial in most cases. Deception can also play a large part; what will your opponent think if you do one thing? What if you do something else? Decoys, disguises, and good acting can all amount to victory. You can say one thing to make it seem like something is happening (such as, “I walked onto the ship carrying a shady briefcase”), and make something decidedly different occur (“He may have stolen my briefcase, but the gem was under my hat!”). Just be sure you discuss it with an RP manager first, so that he/she/they know you’re not just making everything up as you go along. Imply things and predict the outcome. Gambling is always fun.
Or, inversely, if your opponent has the object you need and is trying to make an escape to the goal, what do you think will be his/her/their next move? Predict them. Cut them off. Ambush them. Expound on your problems in a letter and mail it to them. Something.
Of course, let’s keep things a bit varied. Weapons and battles may play a part as well, and you have to keep in mind your own resources, your location, and how everything will affect the surroundings. Thinking about what you do where should be a consideration. The police will gather what evidence they can that something is happening, do searches, make deductions, and, ultimately, you will hate them. I'll be sure to get someone really hard-nosed for the job too. The less they know, the better for you. In fact, the general idea is to keep things as low-profile and quiet as possible, though it isn't a requirement.
Killing is allowed. If you let yourself get into a position where you can easily get killed, you probably deserved it. The whole idea is to play dirty anyway. I wouldn’t encourage any killing sprees, per se, but keep it in mind as an option, okay?
And if you do get killed, don’t worry about it too much. Not like it’ll hinder your characters from being used anywhere else.
Trust me, it is all much simpler than in sounds. Mostly, it just involves planning ahead and thinking sneaky thoughts. Most of the work would probably land with whoever is keeping tabs on this whole thing.
There is probably more, but this should cover the general idea and emphasize all the right parts.