Rpg Thoughts: "Urban Fantasy"

Urban fantasy has been a staple of fiction for an extremely long time. From Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter to the Dresden Files, monsters and creatures of fantasy have walked the streets of many modern day metropolises of the world. Many have even made the jump to television, and movies. However, what I’m here to talk about is urban fantasy in the table top roleplaying community. I am currently running a heavily modified version of Dungeons and Dragons, fifth edition, where the story takes place in an alternate history Los Angeles just after the second world war. The heroes in question work for a secret paranormal branch of the government and have been sent to try and find the Black Dahlia killer, who is believed to be a supernatural entity. I am borrowing from plenty of rpg systems, as well as other sources of fiction, to create the world for this game. In my acquisition of some of these materials and ideas to create my own setting, I got to thinking. What is important to think about when creating an urban fantasy adventure? I think I’ve narrowed it down to three major things.

A great example of urban fantasy in an rpg.

The Stars, as a game master, it is important to keep in mind your players. So before anything, make sure that your players are interested in playing in a more modern setting. If they say no, that’s okay it’s not your job to force them into a new thing. Don’t be afraid to approach other friends to play in a game like this.  In fact, I’ve learned that this type of setting can really be a great way to bring in new players, as it is a little more familiar to the everyday world. Once you have your players, sit down with them individually. Talk with them about their characters and what they want to play as. This is a general rule of thumb for rpgs in my opinion, but for urban fantasy settings it is dang near a must do. Try and get the players to come up with how their character has become what they are today. There are plenty of online questionnaires that you can use for helping a player come up with their character. I go for a more personal touch when I do this. I like to sit down with a player one to one, perhaps with a coffee or lunch, and just ask them a series of questions. Often times in going on this stream of consciousness style of questioning you get characters you’d never expect from players. More often than not, it becomes a character that the players actually get really attached to and will remember fondly. Plus, with this style of questioning, it often gives you an idea for more plot points that you can twist and weave into your group's narrative. Just remember, taking notes is a good thing.

Setting is my second major point. Out of setting, the three sub points I focus on are the When, the Where, and the Type. Before you even begin approaching players, having a handle on what kind of story you want to tell is important. For my urban fantasy game, I wanted to tell a post war detective drama set Los Angeles with elements of a hidden world of magic. That was all I knew going in. It was the When, post World War 2, the Where, Los Angeles, and the Type, detective drama. Try and nail down your concept into a sentence, then you can expand outward to a broader idea. This sentence is your hook to get players curious and asking about the game and eager to start playing. Once I knew I had people interested in the concept, I started looking more into the idea. I started thinking. What mysteries might be connected to the world of magic? How is magic involved in this place? Where does our world begin to blend with the other? It really depends on what you established in your sentence. Let's say you are playing a game in the American west with magic and it's a Indiana Jones esque relic hunt! First of all, awesome! Second of all, it’s now deeper question time. Is it post or presently the American Civil War? How do magical creatures and humanoids feel about westward expansion? What’s the Relic? Who or what made it? Who or what wants it? Is magic going to be absolutely everywhere, or is it more subtle?  The list goes on. I’d say answer those questions till you feel comfortable with how the world itself works. As game masters, it is important to ask: if the game goes off the main story, will it still work? If you feel the answer is yes, then congratulations you have an urban fantasy setting for your game, or any setting for a game really.

The final note that I have for anyone looking to run this type of game is to make sure you have a healthy set of character concepts ready. Having non-player characters at the ready to populate the newly created setting can really breathe a great amount of life into your game. Not all of these will be major npcs; but,  as they say, there are no small parts. Minor npcs you may only need a name, race, and occupation. For example, in my detective game the party needed weapons of a magical variety, I had written down Angus McCree, leprechaun, arms dealer. From there, a story began to form as to who he was. Now, with larger, more in depth characters I like to take time and really dive into their story, and drive. Much like I recommended earlier with your perspective players, ask yourself the questions you posed to your players. Answer how you best feel the npc would respond and you are well on your way to having a well- fleshed out character for your players interact with, be it in a positive or negative way.

With these three tools at your disposal, I certainly feel that anyone can act as a game master for a urban fantasy game, heck, for any tabletop rpg really. If you enjoyed this read feel free to keep your eyes peeled for more content coming on Saturdays, here on The Wanderer's Corner.