Introducing new players in odd scenarios?

[jasonthelamb]

I was just wondering if any DMs had any tips for introducing characters in odd scenarios... mid dungeon crawl, or an an island only inhabited by monsters... do people make them wait until they're somewhere civilized? Or what sort of things would people do?

Just wondering, 'cause I have a feeling that may be coming up in my game.

[Rerednaw]

I don't have new players sit out entire game sessions while seeking my perfect story point to insert them. That's a good way to make sure they don't come back.

Easiest? Comic book retcon. They were always there acting as support.

Mid dungeon crawl is also pretty easy...lone scout or survivor of another adventuring party.

For an island of monsters, same as above, no reason why the main group is the ONLY adventurers who go there. I mean kind of sad if the monsters were on an adventurer-free diet before the PCs arrived.

[jasonthelamb]

Rerednaw wrote:

I don't have new players sit out entire game sessions while seeking my perfect story point to insert them. That's a good way to make sure they don't come back.

Easiest? Comic book retcon. They were always there acting as support.

Mid dungeon crawl is also pretty easy...lone scout or survivor of another adventuring party.

For an island of monsters, same as above, no reason why the main group is the ONLY adventurers who go there. I mean kind of sad if the monsters were on an adventurer-free diet before the PCs arrived.

That's what I was thinking - I would never want a person to just sit there and not be able to play... just looking at this module I plan to start tonight, it is going to be rough. I figured have a few PCs come out of the woodwork, to make things easier - I just know how some PCs like to interrogate new members to the group before they let them travel with them.

[ShroudedInLight]

Make sure your players know to have a backup character built.

If a player is going to die, they might as well have something fun to play post mortem

[Rerednaw]

jasonthelamb wrote:

...

That's what I was thinking - I would never want a person to just sit there and not be able to play... just looking at this module I plan to start tonight, it is going to be rough. I figured have a few PCs come out of the woodwork, to make things easier - I just know how some PCs like to interrogate new members to the group before they let them travel with them.

It is your game and your know your group. If the players want to play super-paranoid sociopaths who would rather kill every stranger instead of trusting them because they never want anyone else in their party...even if said new person is say a relative, friend they knew from the past/guild etc...that's how they are choosing to play and at that point let them have the game they asked for...and let them come up with the story...

[Bwang]

In 3.0, we had a dungeon stomp game tat generally had a PC death a session. Before we got to the Rez level, we also had a vicious rotation of new players and characters. The night I started with level 3 spells had 3 of seven players new or replacement characters. Of the other three, I had only played with two for more than two sessions, and one was on her third or fourth REPLACEMENT character (bad maneuver skills). I believe I had been in about half the games and was second or third highest number of games and the highest of any player with a single character all the way (Dwarf Cleric in 3.0 was the best).

The GM glossed over introductions, once collapsing a bridge under the characters from the previous game into an ambush the new characters had stumbled into. I guess fighting for survival forms bonds, even at the table. The rare sociopath outburst seemed to draw random monsters (She had pre-gen encounters in the wings). Needless to say, inter party feuds were poorly received.

[BornofHate]

Here is a clever way to incorporate PCs mid dungeon but it requires some GM setup at low levels:

Have the new character be turned to stone. As long as the PCs have a scroll or the ability to cast Stone to Flesh the new character will be in their debt and can easily serve as a quest giver/plot advancement tool.

[VRMH]

That does require the party to lug around one or more statues though.

[Mackenzie Kavanaugh]

"You seem trustworthy. Would you care to join us in our noble quest?"

[BornofHate]

VRMH wrote:

That does require the party to lug around one or more statues though.

pleeease tell me your joking.

[Ciaran Barnes]

Schrodinger's statue, kinda? The party just so happpens to find a statue shortly after the player's new character is ready. Touch it with a magic scepter of some kind, and bammo. Instant party member.

[StDrake]

Easy, cheap way - have a temporary portal appear out of nowhere and just spit the person out forcibly. That will end up in a "what the hay was that? Where am i? Who are you?" but its also a good excuse for the party to go "since youre already here how about tagging along? We'll all be safer in a group".
And reasons for that..might even be a door with a teleport trap, dabbling with some unknown magic item, anything adventurous can end you up being teleported to an unknown place.
Also - ask the joining player for help. He might Have an idea in his characters backstory that will do all the work for you, or at least make it easier to pick some lead.

[Mackenzie Kavanaugh]

Or, better yet, have the player tailor the new character's backstory so there's a reason to be there and work with the party. (Allowing that the party may be a bunch of rampaging murder-hobos or friendly hippies who are all too happy to be diplomatic with ogres. You should have a good idea of party playstyle and what sort of stranger they would allow top tag along.)

It's also helpful to have an NPC or two the party is friendly with but whose skillset is ill-defined. The player can simply take the NPC's name and make any character they like with very few limits.