I have a group of 4 running through Rise of the Runelords. Two were previous friends, one of which had previous tabletop experience. The other two are unacquainted veteran players.
I was considering having them walk into a spell or ward that made their characters switch bodies; ie still playing the same soul but having the PCs switch character sheets.
We are level 3, almost level 4 (medium track). I've got a halfling rogue, half-orc warrior, human cleric, and half-elven sorceror.
Has anyone ever tried something like this?
My aim is to increase party morale, and also to increase communication. I'm hoping that if certain players get another's character sheet, it might open up different ways for the characters to be played.
What do you think?
CHAAAAAANNNNNNNNGGGGGE PLACES!
It is all fun and games until the secret yet hideous self-mutilations of another PC's body begin. In a less twisted group perhaps it would just be embarrassing tattoos. Honestly it might work out fine, but some players don't like having their PC changed or controlled by somebody else.
Is there something wrong with the way the PCs are being played now? Have you considered putting them into a few roleplaying situations and encouraging them to talk "in character"? Some players find that sort of stuff quite boring, but others love it.
Another less disruptive idea might be to have the players control a group of allied NPCs on a mission. The NPCs could be crafted to emphasize certain abilities you think the players might find useful or interesting for their own PCs.
This is gold. *eyes his players maliciously* My group would think this is hilarious though, and all sorts of hijinks would occur.
Do the players keep their own minds, memories and experiences? Or are the players just expected to play the other players characters?
If they maintain their own minds and personalities in the new body, how would they even be able to take advantage of the other character's abilities? The rogue in the sorcerors body isnt going to know what to do with their inate magic, and the sorceror in the half orc body wont have that much of an idea of what to do with an axe.
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Because I have a large gaming group, I had an event occur where more than one player were in the same body. There was a mechanic to tag in and out so both players had to work together to decide who would be best to tackle the next obstacle. It worked pretty well to get a few people talking and working together who tend to ignore each other at the gaming table and it was a fun gimmick which only went on for a short time. It also helped players get to know each others' abilities better.
I'd advise caution. It has been my experience that some players won't find it very "funny" or enjoyable due to the effort, perceived or real, that they put into their characters.
I suggest asking the players if they're fine with it first, as well as expressing during this discussion whether it is permanent or reversible.
Ultimately, each GM knows his group best. Hope this helps.
Increase it by having out of combat roleplaying moments maybe? Have to do something while shopping in town or setting up camp. I've always found that to work out well for shaping characters and goals.
The results would vary greatly with the players, I know guys who would love to do this and think it would be pretty awesome. I myself, sit down to play my character and am usually on the far side of chaotic so someone taking my body or me using theirs would feel grossly violating as a player and character.
Do the players keep their own minds, memories and experiences? Or are the players just expected to play the other players characters?
If they maintain their own minds and personalities in the new body, how would they even be able to take advantage of the other character's abilities? The rogue in the sorcerors body isnt going to know what to do with their inate magic, and the sorceror in the half orc body wont have that much of an idea of what to do with an axe.
Yes, they are the same character, in another characters body. So, our half-orc is in the halflings body. I would say that they would have all the abilities the halfling had, but with the memories of the half-orc. The Halfling/PC who controlled him would have to walk the half-orc through how to use the rogue abilities, etc.
Our game is played pretty loose with an emphasis on fun and jokes... ie the Half-Orc's name btw is Ba-orc Orc-bama, his backstory is President Obama got transported to a different realm and fell in love with a female Orc, and he's his son.
It's mostly to try to ingratiate each others' characters to the other characters, right now they're still wary of each other and there is a little sense of competition.
Thanks for the input, everyone!
DON'T DO IT! {pardon the yelling}
Unless you're going to ask the party first, I highly suggest not doing this. A friend of mine tried doing this for a one-shot game, and even that went really horribly wrong.
The biggest problem: how can I be "me", but not have any of my abilities?
This sort of works for mundane settings (e.g. Buffy), but why would the Sorcerer in the halflings body not be able to cast spells? And where would this sudden ability to find people's vital organs come from?
If you want to have them switch characters, just have them switch characters. Don't try the in-game switcheroo - it just doesn't work.