Welcome to Fill in The Gap, a column devoted to individual, "one-off" scenarios, that any GM can run for his/her group.
This month's scenario breaks form a little bit. Instead of an RPG scenario, it talks about how you can work RP-style gameplay into another type of game - wargames.
If you need to know more about the FITG(Fill in The Gap) system/column, please check out the first (and second) of these monthly columns. Without further ado, I bring you today's scenario:
No worries about spoilers today - just read and enjoy!
Quick disclaimer: RPing during a non-RPG is only recommended when everyone's doing it.
The Premise
RPing in wargames can be a bit of a sensitive subject with some of the old-school wargamers, nonetheless, it can be very fulfilling.
RPing in a wargame is all about creating a narrative for the characters on the field. All wargames have some underlying setting in the battles they represent, be they historical or fantastic. Since battles are just larger-scale conflicts (the very element of drama that gives RP its fun), you can take on the role (or roles) of the leaders of your troops and expand upon the sides of the conflict and their motives (historical or fantastical) by the way you play the game.
Most wargames have some abstract elements, such as turns, small groups of miniatures representing larger groups of troops, etc.. The abstract elements in a wargame are just like the abstract elements in an RPG - they simulate the reality of the situation while structuring the game in such a way that the players have fun. Using these abstract elements to the advantage of your role-playing is the key to having fun RPing a wargame.
How does this all come together? In the Characters section, I'll describe the way you can develop and portray the motivations of your men on the field. In the Setting section, I'll talk about how you can use your game's theme and setting and terrain rules to help benefit your RP experience. And finally, in the events section, I'll detail some specific steps you can take to setup your experience.
The Characters
Every army has a leader - and that leader is a man, woman, or... thing... with a story. The first step in figuring out how you and your opponent are going to add a narrative to your wargame, is to figure out your army's leader's story, and his motivation for leading his men on the field.
Some wargames are entirely representational, with no individual characters represented, only groups or units of men. In others, the heroes and leaders of your army are like whole batyalions onto themselves, easily turning the tide of the battles they fight in - however big or small, keep track of where your principal characters (your army's leader, and anyone else you specify) is on the field at all times.
When role-playing your leader on the field of battle, think of the type of character he is. Is he pompous or arrogant? Brave? A cunning tactician? Reckless? Decide these traits about them, and work them into your decisions. This means sometimes you might not make the most tactically sound move - but if you're RPing your wargame, it's less about winning by the numbers and more about creating an interesting story and taking on the role of the character in that story.
To reiterate the basics - determine the individuals who make the decisions in your army, decide their history, connection to your opponent, and their personality, and lead the armies as if it was them leading them.
The Setting
Many wargames have rules for scenarios, terrain, and locations to further help bring to life the battles they're supposed to represent. These can be to your advantage in a Role-play situation. All you need to do is determine, based on your army and your opponent's army, as well as your characters and your opponent's character where and what they'd be fighting over. At that point you get to choose the scenario and terrain that is most representational of the story you've cooked up.
Another common wargame rule is balanced forces. Generally they try to make it so that you and your opponent have an equal chance of winning - historically however some of the most interesting battles in history were quite one-sided. Feel free to bend the scenario rules if it fits your story - just don't break the game, and do it for the purpose of telling a better story.
So, starting at the top - first things first, pick a wargame and find an opponent who wants to play it like a role-playing game. A game with a historical or fantastical setting you know well will be the most likely to succeed, as you can always tell a better story when you know the setting well.
Next step, invent the characters. Your general, his lieutenants (or heroes) - the principal characters. Agree upon a backstory or historically significant battle. Think about the personalities of your characters, and try to play them up both during the setup, and during the actual battle itself.
After that, build or select a scenario and terrain for your battle that represents the story you've invented. Think about your characters when you devise this story, and intentionally try to work with your opponent to build a joint scenario that represents you both well.
Next - fight the battle! During the fight, think of the story being told on the field. Where is your general? Does he do battle directly? Is he killed? A hero? Think about it as you fight, and choose your battlefield moves based on the individuals your men represent.
Afterwards, work with your opponent to write a narrative tale of what occurred on the battlefield - maybe set up another battle as the aftermath of the game, or continue it into a campaign, the conflict between the characters you're each representing escalating with each battle.
Let me know what you thought of this column by E-mailing me at Msturnbull@comcast.net
See you next month!
