So, maybe not the best place for this post but I have a bit of a dilemma. I'm going to be running a new game for my girlfriend and her family and two of the players are brand new to the game and one is an older player that hasn't played in 20 years. I'm trying to appeal to all of them especially the mother who is an avid Christian* thus I need some help. Any ideas?
* also question can someone point me out where I can possibly make religions to help with the mother?
You can either avoid or embrace. Since you want to make religions to help with the mother, it looks like you're going with embrace, which I think is ambitious and admirable.
Here's an idea: Wrath of the Righteous is literally about the forces of good trying to close the gates of hell and redeem whoever they can. You could quite easily rebrand "good" as Christianity in this context, and make the good gods (like Sarenrae and Iomedae) angels (or elevated saints) without changing anything else about them.
Or if you want to avoid entirely, Reign of Winter is a fantastic story, but it's so focused on the fey and old magic side of things, that it just doesn't have much of anything to do with religion directly.
I like that concept about the gods being more like arc angels or saints so I think I might just go with that.
The problem I have with the adventure maps chosen though is that advanced for newer players, what was the mythic stuff and traveling through space and time. If I were in my old players through this and I have absolutely zero problem with those. My girlfriend is the only current recent player and even she is still new
Yeah, I'd go with something like Dragon's Demand for new players. It's got a classic story (save the town from the dragon and his minions) with a bit of a twist (the dragon is obsessed with extraterrestrial lifeforms), and is easy to run. It's got rapid leveling too, from 1 to 7, which helps demonstrate what the game has to offer as the players level up.
Dragon's Demand has no religious themes itself, which will probably help you, I think. It means you're free to address it however you choose. You're helping save a town from invading monsters, so the PCs are definitely on the side of good.
Re: Which AP to run...
Remember that a full AP takes the average gaming group 18 months to three years (real-world time) to complete. You might be better off with a module series. I will second the recommendation of The Dragon's Demand. It's a very good introductory module, and roughly the length of two volumes of an AP.
Re: Gaming for Christians...
Honestly, this isn't the 1980s anymore, and the whole "Satanic Panic" thing is pretty much a thing of the past. Give your girlfriend's mom the benefit of the doubt and play things straight: Keep the fictional deities in the game.
There's really no need to Christianize anything. Speaking as a Christian myself, I find attempting to put in-game stats around actual religious figures to be far more problematic than just letting Iomedae be Iomedae! You're playing wizards and elves: you're obviously in a fantasy world, and there's no need to bring in real-world religions. Any religious person who enjoys watching Star Wars gets the idea of a fictional time and place where the Christian religion simply does not come into play with the storyline... and by extension does not exist.
My only advice would be to keep to themes of the PCs being heroic good guys fighting obvious bad guys. And don't put in anything too disturbing. (Which is why I would probably advise against my favorite AP in this case... Rise of the Runelords.)
Re: Gampeopler Christians...
Honestly, this isn't the 1980s anymore, and the whole "Satanic Panic" thing is pretty much a thing of the past. Give your girlfriend's mom the benefit of the doubt and play things straight: Keep the fictional deities in the game.
There's really no need to Christianize anything. Speaking as a Christian myself, I find attempting to put in-game stats around actual religious figures to be far more problematic than just letting Iomedae be Iomedae! You're playing wizards and elves: you're obviously in a fantasy world, and there's no need to bring in real-world religions. Any religious person who enjoys watching Star Wars gets the idea of a fictional time and place where the Christian religion simply does not come into play with the storyline... and by extension does not exist.
My only advice would be to keep to themes of the PCs being heroic good guys fighting obvious bad guys. And don't put in anything too disturbing. (Which is why I would probably advise against my favorite AP in this case... Rise of the Runelords.)
The problem with that is that she IS kinda one of those Satanic Panic people. Or as close as possible to that. She is very against the idea of magic, other gods and even fighting, but is still interested in playing enough to work with it.
APs kinda presume plenty of magic, fighting, and so forth. If she's really not cool with that, then something else is probably in order.
The problem with that is that she IS kinda one of those Satanic Panic people. Or as close as possible to that. She is very against the idea of magic, other gods and even fighting, but is still interested in playing enough to work with it.Re: Gampeopler Christians...
Honestly, this isn't the 1980s anymore, and the whole "Satanic Panic" thing is pretty much a thing of the past. Give your girlfriend's mom the benefit of the doubt and play things straight: Keep the fictional deities in the game.
There's really no need to Christianize anything. Speaking as a Christian myself, I find attempting to put in-game stats around actual religious figures to be far more problematic than just letting Iomedae be Iomedae! You're playing wizards and elves: you're obviously in a fantasy world, and there's no need to bring in real-world religions. Any religious person who enjoys watching Star Wars gets the idea of a fictional time and place where the Christian religion simply does not come into play with the storyline... and by extension does not exist.
My only advice would be to keep to themes of the PCs being heroic good guys fighting obvious bad guys. And don't put in anything too disturbing. (Which is why I would probably advise against my favorite AP in this case... Rise of the Runelords.)
My grandma was of a similar mind when I started playing in highschool. She trusted me enough to buy me the AD&D 2E DragonLance boxed set for Christmas with the request that I sit with her and explain the game before leaving that Christmas Eve. 5 minutes in, she shook her head, smiled and said "Have fun!"
That being said, I also recommend the Dragon's Demand over an AP.
The problem with that is that she IS kinda one of those Satanic Panic people. Or as close as possible to that. She is very against the idea of magic, other gods and even fighting, but is still interested in playing enough to work with it.
Honestly, you are going to have trouble introducing her to gaming then. You have to get it into her head that this is FANTASY, and that means none of this is real or consequential as it is a GAME.
That said, I know that the Carrion Crown game features very clear cut good and bad guys (with the possible exception of Ashes at Dawn). Basically the whole premise is that you are chasing after some evil necromancers who want to resurrect an undead tyrant lich. If you pitch it as essentially a "monster of the week" sort of game where different beasties pop up and you slay them, you should be good.
Not pathfinder. Choose
A better introductory game
One with less contentious themes
How does she feel about
Zombies
James bond
Star wars
Etc
