Ad-Hoc Story Roles

Been having a rough week, so I drafted up a little thing you can put in your game of Pathfinder, Worlds Without Number, Into The Odd, or any other game that features dungeons and dragons.

Ad-Hoc Story Roles

Been thinking a lot about how, among my many issues with a lot of more traditional games, theu never really have support for modeling the kinds of dynamics in parties that often really grab me. I want to run fantasy games where the party feels like a set of integrated relationships, instead of allowing race and class to foreground so much of how people connect. So in the interest of modeling the kind of things I enjoy in a lot of story games, but in a way that lets anyone back-port it into any kind of OSR or traddish game, here's some rules for a System of Relations which one might expect to find in the sort of fantasy milieu stories that people love to draw on for inspiration.

To use these, have everyone pick a role that speaks to them, before they get into character creation. They each have a starting dynamic with each other characters, although these relationships are rooted in one's personal history, and doesn't reflect how you may feel about them (or what might happen during the campaign!)

The Story Roles

The Young Hero

Unfamiliar with the wider world, but capable of incredible feats of bravery. 

Tell the GM what sort of magic artifact you want to have to represent your destiny, then work together to figure out what it demands of you and what it can be used for.

• The True Ruler is intense — I can't tell if I'm in love or if I'm freaked out. Ask: What was the one time you made me smile?

• The Advisor is teaching me the secret history of the world, and what is expected of me. Ask: What do I believe, that you secretly know to be a lie?

• The Hermit is teaching me how to master the warring matters of my heart. Ask: How did you know I was going to be strong enough to be the destined hero?

• The Scoundrel is teaching me the dirty and unwelcome truth of the big world. Ask: In what area have I been trying to emulate you?

• The Hound and I are friends, and we have fun playing together. Ask: What do I understand about you that no one else really gets?

Whenever you travel somewhere new, you can ask the GM if word has yet reached this place that a hero has arrived to save this land. If the answer is yes, the GM also decides who is unhappy, afraid, or distressed at the changing world.

The True Ruler

Forced from your rightful place as leader, you've finally returned to claim the throne of your family. 

Tell the GM what sort of magical ability the true ruler of your nation you possess, then work together to figure out how your enemies seek it out and who still respects this power.

• The Young Hero is an idiotic child who is never going to be the person the Hermit says they'll be. Ask: How did you put my life in danger, and how did you end up saving me?

• The Advisor is your teacher, who raised you to be the person you are now. Ask: What is the one lesson I've never been able to grasp?

• The Hermit is an old fool who you only put up with due to your shared objective. Ask: Which of your eccentricities are most likely to get on my nerves?

• The Scoundrel thinks they've outwitted you, but unbeknownst to them, you've got the upper hand. Ask: What am I even paying you for?

• The Hound is a useful tool, although you have little regard for them. Ask: What law of etiquette hinders me the most out in the world?

Whenever you travel somewhere new, you can ask the GM if anyone here still respects your claim to the rule of this land. If the answer is yes, the GM also decides who here hopes to use you for their own gain.

The Advisor

While talented and respected in the great cities and among the wisest masters, unfortunate circumstances have forced you to muddy your feet with the practical world. 

Tell the GM what book of knowledge you brought with you about the upcoming quest, then work together to figure out what you had to betray to gain that knowledge and what lies within the book.

• The Young Hero is destined to save the world, but you're worried there must have been some mistake. Ask: How do you keep getting on my nerves?

• The True Ruler has been your student since they were young. Ask: What was I able to provide you with, that your parents never bothered to?

• The Hermit is an old fool who you only put up with due to your shared objective. Ask: What do you secretly appreciate about me?

• The Scoundrel is a horrible criminal and low-life bastard, who is a bad influence on the rest of the party. Ask: What piece of blackmail do I hold over you?

• The Hound scares you, and you can't be left in the same room together. Ask: Why do you resent me?

Whenever you travel somewhere new, you can ask the GM for a secret bit of lore about the history of this place. If the GM gives it to you, they also get to decide how times have changed since your books were recorded.

The Hermit

Isolated for many decades, having forsaken the tradition of your craft, you now return to help a new generation. 

Tell the GM what sort of personal relationship you want to possess with the dark forces working against the party, then work together to figure out why you'll never forgive yourself and how you can still leverage that relationship.

• The Young Hero is going to save us all, even if it costs them their innocence. Ask: What from your home have I insisted you safeguard?

• The True Ruler carries a tremendous burden, but is unaware of the monstrous toll power takes. Ask: What wisdom are you not yet ready to hear from me?

• The Advisor is a fellow teacher, but where you recognized the folly of the past, they chose to stay. Ask: What memory, from when we were both younger, do we share?

• The Scoundrel is a kind and caring person, although they have worked hard to keep it from everyone else. Ask: What unsettles you the most about me?

• The Hound is full of love, although it will take time for them to be able to share it. Ask: What secret moment of beauty do you appreciate when no one else is around?

Whenever you travel somewhere new, you can ask the GM if anyone here still remembers you, from when you were young. If the answer is yes, the GM also decides who here still fears you, and loathes you for what you did to them.

The Scoundrel

You're a bastard, and a low-down no-good criminal, and you're going to show these idealist fools how you have to be in order to survive in this world. 

Tell the GM what sort of special possessions and perks you've acquired from your underworld connections, then work together to figure out the fine print of their contracts and how the party's victory will help you out.

• The Young Hero is a dumb kid who has been fed a trumped up prophecy. Ask: What's the easiest way to make you do whatever I want?

• The True Ruler is a snooty pretentious swaddled fool, who you are fleecing for all they're worth. Ask: Why do you think you can trust me, even though I'm openly a scoundrel?

• The Advisor has leverage on you, and is more canny than they look. Ask: Why haven't you ratted me out to the rest of the party?

• The Hermit is a disgraced old weirdo, who talks a big game and has nothing to show for it. Ask: What did you do that I still have no comfortable explanation for? 

• The Hound is your best mate, strong enough to kick your ass but sweet enough to fall for you every time. Ask: When you get mad at me, how do I earn your favor again?

Whenever you travel somewhere new, you can ask the GM if there's a back door, secret passage, or alternate route into this new place. If the answer is yes, the GM also decides what else has learned of this route and is making use of it.

The Hound

You're a monster of some kind, but maybe that's just because everyone else seems to treat you that way. 

Tell the GM what makes you stronger, scarier, or more dangerous than everyone else, then work together to figure out why people hate you for it and why you're proud of it anyway.

• The Young Hero is a big sweetheart! Ask: What do we do when you want to feel like a normal kid again?

• The True Ruler is an uptight jerk who needs to let loose a little bit. Ask: What gifts do I keep bringing you?

• The Advisor is a twig who keeps pissing you off. Ask: What's stopping me from killing you?

• The Hermit is both scary and kind — the sort of person your mom taught you to stay away from. Ask: Why do we have more in common than anyone else realizes?

• The Hound is your best friend in the whole wide world. Ask: What con do we pull on people when we need a bit of extra coin?

Whenever you travel somewhere new, you can ask the GM if the people here hate you. If the answer is yes, the GM also must give you an unexpected gift, a new and compassionate friend, or other way to help.

When There's Not Enough

Most campaigns shouldn't have 6 players, so at least one or two of these Story Roles won't be used. When that happens, keep those character archetypes around as NPC travelers in the party, or as recently deceased or captured characters for the group to go and save. Theoretically any combination of roles will be enough to produce an interesting start to a campaign, especially with the knowledge that over time the group's internal dynamics will change dramatically.