Best use of Romance in a Trav campaign

[Liam Devlin]

Okay here's my part two, to the first scenario-roleplayers, GMs, I wanna know , what was the best scenario using "romance" YOU encountered/ utilized in your weeks/ months/ years/ dacades of gaming. Don't be shy, I have my own examples too.
And watch the explicit stuff, the moderator likes to keep it clean, 'kay?

 

[Maspy]

I open the door and waiting outside is an eager lisagb.
Dressed to play with her bag of gamin’ books slung over her shoulder. She starts to speak, but quickly I press my finger to her lovely lips. “Shhhh, don’t speak.” I say as I slide her burden from her bare shoulder and lead her into my loft.
The only light is from the silvery moonbeams sneaking through the balcony door and the wafting flames of dozens of candles circling the room. The deep tones of Barry White float melodiously through the air.
I guide her to the Couch of Infinite Relaxation, on the table a bowl full of chocolate dipped strawberries and a chilled bottle of sparkling wine.
She tilts her head and looks seductively at me. “Just what game did you invite me over to play?”
Sitting on the couch next to her I…

Oh wait. You wanted romance in an actual scenario… Sorry, I was looking into my future real life…

 

[Liam Devlin]

Okay, I asked for it! But hey, in meant in "role-playing terms", not RL, Maspy. You devil.(grins)!

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"I guide her to the Couch of Infinite Relaxation, on the table a bowl full of chocolate dipped strawberries and a chilled bottle of sparkling wine.
She tilts her head and looks seductively at me. “Just what game did you invite me over to play?”
Sitting on the couch next to her I…"
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Ahem, well, er yes...chocolate dipped strawberries? That's another board (best use of chocolate or sommat.
Not being THAT omniscient...yer chances with that set up are as good as any. O course, th' lady may have other ideas herself!

 

[lisagb]

maspy!!!!

ya cheeky sod! In ya dreams buddy....oh yeah they were. Mind you chocolate dipped stawberries do sound nice
I dunno honestly what yow like?

 

[Liam Devlin]

stealing from one of my own posts-"The BIg Rock Candy Mountain as SS TeBiRoCaMon, with an all female crew-of various sophonts: A pair of Invitro twins (The Skipper and ChiefEngineer--one red haired (skipper) and one ash blonde (CHief engineer); four Aslan Ladies (two merchants, one astrogator, one sensors officer);4 Aquan-Scanians-a minor human race of Gushmege(the gunners); a Tapmazali-human Steward/Dr.; 2 Vargr "ladies",(1 mechanic, one merchant); and a Dolphin(female) Chief astrogator-Co-pilot.
It was a Free Trader ship, with the tradition of an all female crew. Men could be passengers only (bio-freight)."
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Now this ship of mavens and vixens imtu was probably carying some of the most attractive members of their genotypes/species.
Their secret( at least the humans) was they were GenAssist escapees).
The Chief Engineer married off the ship, and is now working at a B-class starport as a ship's architect for a LASH building corporation in TNE. She married one of the PC's who got really clobbered (but managed to live despite limb loss).
The Red-head is still leading the ship, and being pursued by many Free trader skippers as a match for their sons, nephews, not to mention the stray adventurer. Alas, there's this scruffy-Nerf-herder fella named Branu Stigmann that's caught her eye as "her unicorn" to catch!
The Aslan & Vargr ladies have spouses back at Sufren. The Aquan-Scanians have no vocal chords, so any bloke without sign language is gonna be fair meat for them to tangle with.! As for geting the Tapmazali--he'd better be a Doctor who likes to cook! And the Dolphin well, she keeps her thoughts to herself, and the Aquans aren't giving her secrets away!

 

[Liam Devlin]

Good heavens, do you mean to tell me the most powerful emotion known to man hasn't ever crossed the table in roleplaying to flesh out (no pun intended to anyone with the Michelin tire complex) the adventure, or was central to it?
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Hmmmmm, is it Liam carry the water time? 'Kay. Fair enough if yer shy n all that...
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Example Two (beckons back to garf's post in "Best Femme fatale", but it happened to MY PC (Nope, I wasn't the Gm this time!).
Martin Francis Rourke, my cashiered Scout turned spy, had this anti-Zho thing from his near death experience in the 5th Frontier war (part of Character generation-backtracked and filled in by GM off stage/ between sessions). Step to the "future" a bit, on Warinir, rebellion/HT era, the Arrival Vengeance arives in 1126.
He falls in love with his ex-partner's former lover (Avraam got greased by those trying to kill Duke Craig & blame the Denebian delegation mission--the rest of the Pcs),Megan Janvis (who is also IRIS, "retired" if you can call it retirement!
They meet at all things, a rainy funeral. Next thing they know, the badies suspect Rourke might know where the stolen data Avraam discovered is hidden, and they're thrwon together in a series of mini episodes ducking bullets and gauss rds (all quite illegal to be firing in public places on Warinir), and getting the better of the 2nd grade-class thugs sent after two experienced spooks.(Painting the two head thugs blue after the bar fight in the toilet once they were tranqqued was My idea -"Woad to the wicked!"
---Skip to near the end, the baddies capture em with an offplanet section from Strike section, and the thugs get short shrifted by the "Hit squad" from putting screws to Rourke. Thug #2 rapes Janvis. The Denebians sweep in like the cavalry, mop up, and Rourke gets loose to catch and scrag Thug #2 (over the sea, battle for the gauss pistol in the G-carrier on auto pilot, open troop hatch, moving at several hundred kph.
Shot the bugger out the door with the back up gun, the fish did the rest.
-----Als well that ends well, we left there and went to Margaret's Domain (with a few choice stops here an there, not to mention seeing the "doomed trade" up close and nasty).
The gm drops the other shoe when Janvis shows up on Zukhimie, and Head IRIS honcho Garran trainor Hughes calls her "in for a briefing". Then he doesn't relase her when he says he will.
Rourke has to go to IRIS HQ, and get her out. (again, with some assist from the ship's PCs as back-up).
Bravado aside, we get her out of there, and Hughes drops her secret files into Martin's hands with a cruel smile.
---Megan is an orphan, true. Her real parents were killed crossing the Frontier of the Marches near Esalain (Papa was a Zho Consular navy man, and noble, who'd done poorly by the State's definition of things in the 4th frontier war, and was trying to get his family to safety when their ship was fired upon before they could make their ID known (those trigger happy fellas in the 212th of Jewell strike again!).
Megan was the only survivor. Martin is astounded. He hates Zhos. The woman he intends to marry is one. And she doesn't know it herself...
made fer interesting roleplaying.
(He did reconcile the facts later, and did marry her. Btw, he did smack the Director general one across the chops with his pistole too, just fer good measure. He wasn't allowed off the ship the rest of the tour on Zukhimie for his own good, had the rest of the crew mighty mad at him).

 

[Liam Devlin]

Maspy? You write a good fantasy spin there (with apologies to LisaGB--coulda been worse, he could've been eating the chocolate dipped stawberris off of you!)..lest here it. Fess up. I KNOW you can do it.

LisaGB... you've hinted, hemmed and hawed lass. Time to get out and use the oars a bit.

TJ...I KNow you've been round the Marches a time or twenty...(when profits aren't getting in the way. Btw, is it true Harry Mudd is your father? Just askin!)

 

[T. Foster]

My campaigns were always notoriously free of romantic subplots, despite the constant efforts of my players. Female NPCs were almost invariably frigid ice-queens or raging psychotics -- frequently both. A few characters maintained healthy offstage romantic relationships, there were occasional impersonal sexual liaisons with whores and/or barmaids, and there was that bizarre PC-on-PC consensual sodomy incident, but if the scene didn't end with a discreet fade-to-black that was an almost certain guarantee that things were going to end very badly for the PC involved (lots of vampires/lycanthropes, fronts for robber-bands, assassins, abduction attempts, angry jilted boyfriends/husbands, etc. etc.). It got so bad that in the latter days of my RQ campaign when the Princess of Elkoi (from Griffin Mountain) began to hit on one of the PCs, his response was a resigned "why should I even bother; I know she's just gonna end up trying to kill me." Of course he was a good sport, so he went along, but then again he was also right (well, would've been -- the campaign ended before she could use him in the intended demoniac sacrifice ritual).

Part of that surely stems from Uncle Bob's aforementioned reluctance for a bunch of ~20 year old males to play romantic scenes off one another, and the TFOS no-sex rule (sexual frustration is funnier than sexual success) was definitely a factor well before I even knew it existed, but perhaps the biggest motivation was GM-fiat punishment for players sidetracking my games -- if I went to the trouble to come up with good plots and interesting NPCs I'd be damned if I was gonna drop all that to dwell on their adolescent softcore fantasies! It became my own version of slasher-movie morality -- keep it zipped, keep the plot moving, and you might just live to see the end of the session.

 

[siefertma2]

Originally posted by T. Foster:
Female NPCs were almost invariably frigid ice-queens or raging psychotics -- frequently both.

I didn't know you knew my ex-girlfriend.

What? I can't be jovial? I've got a shrink gun! Back off, or I'll make you "fun sized."

...there were occasional impersonal sexual liaisons with whores and/or barmaids.

Here's what qualifies as "romance" in my gaming group: A night at the local "House of Swell Repute" where the PCs engage in all sorts of debautchery with an obligatory special guest appearance by Francis, The Sexual Mule.

Don't ask...

Later,
Mark A. Siefert

 

[lisagb]

Originally posted by Liam Devlin:
Maspy? You write a good fantasy spin there (with apologies to LisaGB--coulda been worse, he could've been eating the chocolate dipped stawberris off of you!)..lest here it. Fess up. I KNOW you can do it.

LisaGB... you've hinted, hemmed and hawed lass. Time to get out and use the oars a bit.

Mr devlin I'm not sure i quite follow your thread here, what exactly do u mean sir?

 

[DrSkull]

Romance in games is icky.

 

[lisagb]

Dave ya old misery! I got friends like u. Buy their gfs tool sets for birthdays an such like.
Buck up man.

 

[Liam Devlin]

LisaGB-"Mr devlin I'm not sure i quite follow your thread here, what exactly do u mean sir?'
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My dear LisaGb, call me Liam. please. Formality here?
Now to the thread...barring the tasteless details that tend to drag down a session and may divert the group from its intended goal, you have mentioned in the Femme Fatale post of mine there was this player who's PC always courted yours, no matter the gender you played -PC wise. Is that the only example you've encountered?
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Mr T. Foster-"Part of that surely stems from Uncle Bob's aforementioned reluctance for a bunch of ~20 year old males to play romantic scenes off one another, and the TFOS no-sex rule (sexual frustration is funnier than sexual success) was definitely a factor well before I even knew it existed, but perhaps the biggest motivation was GM-fiat punishment for players sidetracking my games -- if I went to the trouble to come up with good plots and interesting NPCs I'd be damned if I was gonna drop all that to dwell on their adolescent softcore fantasies! It became my own version of slasher-movie morality -- keep it zipped, keep the plot moving, and you might just live to see the end of the session."
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TFOS-no sex rule isn't "romance", milord Foster. And I suppose the maturity of players too must be taken into question. And if you had better things to do, like "move your plot along", I understand.
One works with whom he/she games with.
And slasher movies are dreary things, but not the topic of this post.
In the exmple of Femme Fatale' post, the "rescue of Honshu Praetoria ended up in a "liaison", but I gave no detailsin the session (The gamers could fantasize without my help!). One can do this tastefully..they did awake to find themselves drugged (in the after affects) and their ship stolen.
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Dr Skull said-"Romance in games is icky"
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I disagree, Dr Skull. An RPG is role playing, all facets of the human condition are then subject to be called into play. Okay, I'm learning stuff here, this is good.
UNcle BOB MENTIONED THE HOMOPHOBIC THING. Thats all right, But "icky"??

. But RPG's gaming deals with the age old damsels in distress (true or otherwise-see Femme fatale!) as a matter of course. The easy road is avoiding them all together, as it seems many here are doing. What a shame. -I cannot for the life of me see running a game without some sort of angle into this topic.
why limit your PC to a 2d kick-the-door-open, kill-it,what-do-we-get 2D piece of paper. Is it the emotional attachment to do so is too strong? Or the RL fear of being a failure even in an RPG is too great to bear?
Sorry, I'm trying to do my best not to psychoanalayze, but get to the answers, raised by your responses.
I do feel that just as "Smash N Grab" Missions can burn out even the most heavily armed band of gamers in a campaign, the reverse is also true--too much "romance" (or the sexual misadventures at houses of ill repute) of any one thing keeps the GM's plot line from going where it needs to go.
But romance does occur. gamers players age, "retire", and eventually become NPCs (should they survive), I feel in a properly run RPG universe. Or pass away, and another PC emerges.
we are keepers of the Flame of the never ending stories, gentlemen, lady. I cannot fathom creating a new gimmick, widget for the PCs to go after session after session without unbalancing the game eventually. But the "romance" tool" of a GM, is something that has been with storytellers since their were storytellers, in the pre-RPG days.

 

[T. Foster]

Another reason I never emphasized in-game romance/seductions is that, barring Stranger in a Strange Land, it's pretty much a one-on-one situation. One, maybe two, players are having all the fun while everybody else is sitting around waiting. I had 2-3 players that tended to dominate sessions just fine on their own without me abetting them by actually structuring the games that way.

So, unless the encounter was actually going to become germane to the plot (the woman was going to become a patron or an enemy or provide some crucial info or something) I'd rather the player just tell me between-sessions "I want my character to marry the local blacksmith's daughter" than use up valuable play-time acting out their entire dating/courtship process while the other five players sit idly and watch.

 

[Maspy]

Originally posted by Liam Devlin:
Maspy? You write a good fantasy spin there (with apologies to LisaGB--coulda been worse, he could've been eating the chocolate dipped stawberris off of you!)..

Liam,
I may be a cheeky sod, but I like to get to know a girl better, before I take e-flirting across that line.

AND, what do you mean "...coulda been worse.." ???

I don't know the reactions you get by devouring natural chocolate covered goodness off of natural feminine goodness, but she couldn't be so lucky. Well actually she could - Priceline.com..... Now where is that frippin passport?

 

[Maspy]

Originally posted by Liam Devlin:
[QB] I wanna know , what was the best scenario using "romance" YOU encountered/ utilized in your weeks/ months/ years/ dacades of gaming. Don't be shy, I have my own examples too.
QB]

OK, RPG Romance... I have had a few good GM's, but can't really recall going down Romantic Lane. Here is the closest I can recall... *Brushes aside cobwebs in brain*
GURPS Fantasy- I as playing a young human battle mage type, part of a militia on the fringes of a large baronny. To get extra character creation points, as everyone knows, you take on some disadvantages...(not to the extremes as Dave and Bob in KODT) To explain some of them, I sat with ye ol GM and created this histoire. Felix was from a small out of the way village, orphaned as a young'en, he was fostered by many of the local families. They basically saw him as free labor. The other youth, shunned him, all but an ugly duckling of a lass. The daughter of the village poorest farmer, who never was even given the opportunity to use young Felix as free labor. A freak accident by nearby mining dwarves diverted a river, and changed the fortune of this poor farmer. How does this affect our fine young hero? Sit tight... and read on.
The village became the center for trade with the neighboring dwaves and since the farmer had become one of the richest men around, eyes turned to him...and previously mentioned daughter. The friendship between her and young Felix had grown to love and as with other ugly ducklings, Anna had grown into a hotty... I picture her to be similar to lisa ( )
A prize catch for all the foppish noble's in the land. and there were many. Seeing the writing on the wall, looking art his own low class self and throw in a couple of those miss-understandings you see in really bad movies or modern American sit-coms, Felix felt he was no longer wanted and ran away. Away from his true love.
Well, I got all that by the GM and I was gald he bought it and let me keep the disads'. Thought it was all behind me. Well, My GM is nasty.
In heroic fantasy, the PC's are heros... are little band of adventurers was being thanked at court for bravery and saving royalty and all that hoohaa. There was maidens and ribbons and feasting and "Roll perception. You see a familiar face among the croud. A couple years older, but that is definately her." Panic... Felix wasn't ready to confront his love who he thinks jilted him. I wasn't ready to look into the face of my GM and pretend he was a the woman of my dreams... Eeewwwww

I pleaded, "It's been several years, Felix is older, cleaner and in better shape than when he left. She can't recognize me, can she?" Blind die rolls suck.
On the safe side, Felix ducked out of the feasting hall, and through dice and drank mead with the kitchen staff until he was poured into his bunk. On the good side, in his druken stupor he was visited by a dead Baroness who gave him the next clue in an ongoing mystery, which luckily enough took the whole party to the fartest reaches of the kingdom... I just knew he was going to keep throwing Anna back at Felix, I'm sorry the campaign stopped, I wanted to see how...
Moral, good GM's will always use your character's history against you...

 

[Liam Devlin]

Maspy wrote-"Liam,
I may be a cheeky sod, but I like to get to know a girl better, before I take e-flirting across that line.

AND, what do you mean "...coulda been worse.." ???

I don't know the reactions you get by devouring natural chocolate covered goodness off of natural feminine goodness, but she couldn't be so lucky. Well actually she could - Priceline.com..... Now where is that frippin passport?'
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Ever seen "9 &1/2 Weeks?" The refrigerator scene...comes to mind. The rest I leave to you.
As for my reactions to eating chocolate covered goodness off a lady..a gentleman doesn't kiss n tell.

And the lady called you a cheeky sod, not I. I prefer to remain above that sort of flame. Forward, that be what I'd call you if such was proposed to me. Perhaps cheeky is better. Chutzpah also comes to mind, but Thats a matter of taste.(pun intended!)

 

[Liam Devlin]

Mr T. Foster wrote-"So, unless the encounter was actually going to become germane to the plot (the woman was going to become a patron or an enemy or provide some crucial info or something) I'd rather the player just tell me between-sessions "I want my character to marry the local blacksmith's daughter" than use up valuable play-time acting out their entire dating/courtship process while the other five players sit idly and watch. "
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See, this is more towards what the thread is headed to. Excellent reply Mr Foster. In the case of leaving 2-3 players in the lead, and ditching the rest for the session, you found a way to deal with it, in an offstage manner. Kudos! Thats better.
Next!

 

[Liam Devlin]

Maspy also wrote:"GURPS Fantasy- I as playing a young human battle mage type, part of a militia on the fringes of a large baronny. To get extra character creation points, as everyone knows, you take on some disadvantages...(not to the extremes as Dave and Bob in KODT) To explain some of them, I sat with ye ol GM and created this histoire. Felix was from a small out of the way village, orphaned as a young'en, he was fostered by many of the local families. They basically saw him as free labor. The other youth, shunned him, all but an ugly duckling of a lass. The daughter of the village poorest farmer, who never was even given the opportunity to use young Felix as free labor. A freak accident by nearby mining dwarves diverted a river, and changed the fortune of this poor farmer. How does this affect our fine young hero? Sit tight... and read on.
The village became the center for trade with the neighboring dwaves and since the farmer had become one of the richest men around, eyes turned to him...and previously mentioned daughter. The friendship between her and young Felix had grown to love and as with other ugly ducklings, Anna had grown into a hotty... I picture her to be similar to lisa ( )
A prize catch for all the foppish noble's in the land. and there were many. Seeing the writing on the wall, looking art his own low class self and throw in a couple of those miss-understandings you see in really bad movies or modern American sit-coms, Felix felt he was no longer wanted and ran away. Away from his true love.
Well, I got all that by the GM and I was gald he bought it and let me keep the disads'. Thought it was all behind me. Well, My GM is nasty.
In heroic fantasy, the PC's are heros... are little band of adventurers was being thanked at court for bravery and saving royalty and all that hoohaa. There was maidens and ribbons and feasting and "Roll perception. You see a familiar face among the croud. A couple years older, but that is definately her." Panic... Felix wasn't ready to confront his love who he thinks jilted him. I wasn't ready to look into the face of my GM and pretend he was a the woman of my dreams... Eeewwwww I pleaded, "It's been several years, Felix is older, cleaner and in better shape than when he left. She can't recognize me, can she?" Blind die rolls suck.
On the safe side, Felix ducked out of the feasting hall, and through dice and drank mead with the kitchen staff until he was poured into his bunk. On the good side, in his druken stupor he was visited by a dead Baroness who gave him the next clue in an ongoing mystery, which luckily enough took the whole party to the fartest reaches of the kingdom... I just knew he was going to keep throwing Anna back at Felix, I'm sorry the campaign stopped, I wanted to see how...
Moral, good GM's will always use your character's history against you...
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Indeed, GM's tend to use a PC's histoire as incentive to motivate/ reward, or remind players of their place in the "never-ending storylines." Good example Maspy. Thank you!

 

[PapaGolfWhiskey]

Hmmm...
Romance. In an RPG. What concept...

Actually as a player I'm what one Ref used to define as a 'romantic', That is, I was a player more interested in his character's interactions with other characters than amassing power or defeating the plot obstacles.

One such character springs to mind. Back when West End Game's Star Wars was in it's First Edition, I was in a GREAT campaign. It was set roughly concurrent with Ep. IV. Our third adventure had us as part of the chain of couriers who passed on plans for a radical Battle Station while Vader pursued. Somewhere around the middle of the campaign we learned that imperial forces were amassing to assualt Dantoine. And the end of the semester finale had us as a special infiltration team with the job of making sure the various reactor overides weren't activated when a certain torpedoe dropped down a certain exhaust shaft.

My character was based on the 'Gambler' template but he was, in fact, more of conman. Always playing an angle, or acheiving his goals through a deception. Although, he was also strangely virtuous (he began aspiring to be a jedi during the course of the campaign.)

He also fancied himself a ladies man. He managed often to schmooze his way into some women's bed offscreen. However, one time...

After working particularly hard to impress a lady (cheating a bunch of card cheats and returning a valuable ring to her) He finds himself ushered in to the very fortress he was -SUPPOSED- to be helping the party penetrate. Unfortunately when the offscreen fun was over the 'lady' picks up a comlink and says "I'm done with him. Take him away." --Thus, My character had to find way back into the the fortress proper from an Imperial Stormtrooper guarded dungeon....

well. it was funny at the time. The rest of the party laughed their rears off.