Let's Not Be Heroes

[Leewei]

I'm looking for some ideas for a silly campaign I'd like to run in 4E.

But first, a regression. A frequent criticism of 4E is its similarity to MMORPGs. Rather than fight this criticism, I'm going to run with it.

That's right, fans of .HACK//Sign and SAO, this is a RPG about being trapped in an MMO.

It will also be downright silly. Dead PCs will not need to be raised; they will respawn. Teleports to various areas will be readily available, and inventory will be accessed with a minor action by punching buttons visible only to the PC.

Loot will be "farmed" after an encounter is defeated.

Also, each PC will have one craft skill that they have mastered. This goes with the background story:

The first time you get trapped in a Virtual Realm, it's very easy for panic to set in. After the 3rd time, it becomes a big grind. Some megalomaniac DM or deranged AI hijacks your consciousness, and it all turns into a big grind. May as well kick back and master baking while the noobs deal with the problem.

This time, though, they've gone and messed up. One of the final encounters may have killed them off for real (bleah), or maybe this is one of the games where the world doesn't reset like normal. Anyhow, it's now up to the craftspeople of the realm to gear up and win the game so everyone can go home and blog about it.

So now, I'd like to get some discussions about house rules, quest ideas, etc. Here's an example:

Rule 1: WBL is not even a guideline. Currency (1GP is a "zenny") is a number, only. A PC can spawn a bag of coins to trade or transfer. The bag is always the highest denomination of currency adding to the desired amount. PCs can grind out coin with a skill check, but doing so takes time -- which may or may not be a limiting factor in the game.

Rule 2: PCs communicate across unlimited distances with magic notes that take a standard action to create and send.

Quest idea: A rare ring item exists in the game which always drops in pairs (from A Deranged Impressive Clergyman). The rings have a minor game effect, and allow two PCs wearing them to share inventory. If these two PCs (regardless of sex) happen to go to a certain area (the Wood of Divine Consummation), and enter a cabin together, there is a knock on the door and a parcel will appear outside -- a child (50/50 boy or girl; clearly an AI) will appear and will claim both ring-wearers as parents. PCs will need to either care for their "child", or will need to hike over to an orphanage and perform another quest.

[is_Wayside]

I don't have much to say other than this sounds completely awesome - and that I totally would join.

What MMORPG's are you pulling inspiration from in general? Is there anything in particular you want to avoid?

My only current advice is if you can make the skills somehow trainable via grinding.

[Leewei]

I'm glad you like the idea!

I played EQ, AC, and ShadowBane back in the day. The game idea is drawn from the animes listed as well as the webcomic, The Guilded Age. Really, this is just a new spin on A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. Played for laughs with a fair amount of trope savvy, I expect this would be uproariously fun.

I'll mull it over a bit and post it in a week or two.