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    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    yougi's Avatar

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    Default PCs adopted a 6 year old orphan

    I've started a game where the PCs are a gang of smugglers with a heart of gold (like in Firefly) in the WH40k universe. On their first job, they carried a bunch of travelers with them, including a woman and her 6 year old son who got away from their abusive father. In the ensuing trouble, the mother passed away, leaving the 6 year old an orphan. As such, the PCs decided to adopt the kid.

    Now, I'm fine with that decision, and although I didn't think about the possibility, it seems to be one of the few logical reactions in a universe as crappy as WH40k's. However, I want to make sure that decision matters in the long run, and I'm not exactly sure how. I am thinking of giving them a few longer jobs, with large flash-forwards (probably establishing a colony), so that the kid can grow up. I see a lot of potential for interesting RP in there, as the PCs will take parenting roles.

    Any ideas on interesting situations this could bring up?
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    Titan in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: PCs adopted a 6 year old orphan

    "Please do not take these items?" It's the first thing that came to mind.
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    Librarian in the Playground Moderator
     
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    Default Re: PCs adopted a 6 year old orphan

    Well, a few thoughts:

    1) Determine which way the kid's interests lie. He's likely going to primarily learn from a single crew member, so figure out the role he's going to grow into.

    2) You might adopt something like Hackmaster's protege system for his development. In Hackmaster, you designate a protege and give them XP in short training sessions, helping them develop as characters at the cost of a slow-down in your own development. Now, I'm not familiar with WH40Ks advancement system, but I think having the PCs devote a small amount of their XP to "quality time with Junior", giving Junior more XP to work with, is a good way to make sure that the choice to have a child around is impactful in the game, and help guide his development. Someone doesn't want to donate XP to Junior? No problem, but it means they're not spending much time with the kid, and going to impact their relationship with Junior.

    3) Remember: This kid is the Dependent flaw made large. He's a target. He's a hostage. He's a loving child who may bond with the characters, but he might also wind up as leverage in some of the ****tier things that go on in WH40k. Consider how nasty you want things to get surrounding the child, and what your players will be comfortable with.
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    Halfling in the Playground
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    Default Re: PCs adopted a 6 year old orphan

    Make sure doing the right thing is harder (the kid disturbing whoever has sentry duty because they can't sleep and wants a bedtime story, contacts criticising what they view as sentimentality when the kid interrupts negotiations obliviously) but also more rewarding, affirming who they are and lightening up the grimdark (finding drawings, possibly with IRL versions as props, pinned to walls of the ship, have the kid gradually start thinking of the entire crew as his extended family).
    As a roleplaying opportunity, it's incredible! What about when the kid's caught playing with a gun someone left lying around, prompting firearm safety to be improved, or poking around some drugs, leading the owner to try and give up their habit? Who's going to teach them, and what? Even when there isn't a decision to be made, the players could still build off events if they want to, such as talking to the kid and helping them deal with their first crush they have to leave behind in port. Eventually, as they get older, you can start making them more useful, ferrying ammo or patching up the engines, while also harder to deal with as they have teen angst and rebellious phases. Finally, when they reach 18 or so, depending on how the crew dealt with them, you can have them either officially join the ship as a crewmember rather than as a dependent, or leave to strike out on their own, perhaps joining the navy?
    I'm tempted to give my players a similar chance, although they may be less charitable.

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    Firbolg in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: PCs adopted a 6 year old orphan

    PCs + Orphans = Its going to end badly for the Orphan
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    Titan in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: PCs adopted a 6 year old orphan

    By any chance is there a Daemon prince of parental love and/or general warm-and-fuzziness?
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    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    ElfPirate

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    Default Re: PCs adopted a 6 year old orphan

    Hmm, seem to have left the last letter out of my name I wonder if I can change that somehow...

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    Dwarf in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: PCs adopted a 6 year old orphan

    Have them use the kid like the bomb squad, disarming traps etc....or if you're feeling like a real bastard, have it turn out to be the physical guise of one of the tricksy chaos gods (slaanesh or tzeentch) who subtly tries to use the party to do its dirty work

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    Default Re: PCs adopted a 6 year old orphan

    Let's start with just basic things, in-universe of course.

    - The Child could be a Psyker, making every warp trip dangerous and spooky things happen frequently.
    - The Father could be a powerful figure in the sector/Imperial Guard, bringing unwanted heat onto the group.
    - The Child has had it's life ripped away and their mother killed all in a very short timescale, hello mental issues and freakouts!
    - The Boy has to grow up. Make them RP the talk. If you do, please please make a record of it and share it here.

    Other than that I agree with Laughingmanlol. Do not let the child become a background image. Don't make them a JarJar level of annoying, but just make them a kid on a spaceship who has had a pretty bad hand dealt to them. Nightmares would be my first thought. Every night. For months.

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    Dwarf in the Playground
     
    Valefor Rathan's Avatar

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    Default Re: PCs adopted a 6 year old orphan

    Quote Originally Posted by EnglishKitsune View Post
    ...but just make them a kid on a spaceship who has had a pretty bad hand dealt to them. Nightmares would be my first thought. Every night. For months.
    Sounds like easy daemon bait in the Warp to me...Poltergeist-type problems could happen and the PCs need to get the Evil out of Junior - but will the Inquisition help them save the child's soul or just kill him?

    And man, there's the evil father - a crazed Inquisitor-type. Have fun dodging that one PCs...
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    Flumph

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    Default Re: PCs adopted a 6 year old orphan

    Quote Originally Posted by EnglishKitsune View Post
    - The Child could be a Psyker, making every warp trip dangerous and spooky things happen frequently.
    - The Father could be a powerful figure in the sector/Imperial Guard, bringing unwanted heat onto the group.
    - The Child has had it's life ripped away and their mother killed all in a very short timescale, hello mental issues and freakouts!
    - The Boy has to grow up. Make them RP the talk. If you do, please please make a record of it and share it here.
    - All of the above.

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    Ettin in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: PCs adopted a 6 year old orphan

    Quote Originally Posted by EnglishKitsune View Post
    - The Boy has to grow up. Make them RP the talk.
    This is just begging for an Embarrassing Walk-in.
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