have a person from another tower in a visible location, but still like, super far away, try to communicate with the party via mirror & heliographs.

If the town's burning should i leave my post or stay until my shift is over?

>>49546675
Flickering and unexplainable lights are always a good way to get a mystery started. Better if starts out as a little detail, and then gradually builds into something more noticeable.

>>49546675
The main problems I can see is that there always has to be someone manning the watchtower at all times. Given this fact, there will always be someone sitting around doing nothing while the rest of the party is out doing things. Perhaps consider having an NPC whose sole purpose is to man the tower while away, or use this as an excuse to explain away any players whose characters are not present for the session? That said:

Establish the watchtower as one in a chain of watchtowers, with its neighbors to the distant north and east, just barely within range of the lamps used to communicate. Go about doing several days of daily routines until the PCs get used to things. Then, without reminding your players of the surroundings of the watchtower, have them receive a morse coded distress signal, from the south. It's anything from a rival nation drawing away the watchtower's guard for a covert attack, to a wizard in peril actually sending out a distress signal to the towers he knows are near.

A ragged man arrives at their doorstep, clearly exhausted after days of running, begging aid as the nearby town is under attack from marauders before expiring. When they get to the town, everything is perfectly fine. It's fey trickery.

During the hottest summer in years, a forest fire has started not a league away from the tower! The party must hasten to fight the blaze before it spreads! This one is perfectly mundane.

A travelling salesman has turned up. What wares does he bring? Perhaps he sells mundane supplies, magical trinkets, or even a man's heart's desire? What will the characters seek off him, and what will they barter in return? This one's up to you.

Smoke pillars just far enough away to be hard to get to while fulfilling duties, but also not in the areas that the usual farmhouses are, indicating either a new building is being set up, or there is a camp there for some reason. Perhaps bandits?

Though it's harder to see from the ground, a careful eye has been able to track the movement of a hill rolling across the earth on it's own accord, trying to move closer to the road. This has been correlated with children disappearing from the area more often in the nights and early mornings. Could it be the fey?

Travelers of any stripe are good hooks for adventure or intrigue.
You might be under order to assist and offer limited hospitality to certain classes of travelers, which can lead to rubbing shoulders with all sorts of strange individuals for a night.

>>49546675
Several weeks in and multiple sessions in, the party finds a trapdoor under one of their beds.
The tower has a large basement level they had no idea about.
The dust shows that something has been using the trapdoor, moving in and out of the basement. Something has regularly been creeping under a party member's bed.

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>>49546675
>Known bandits who have been plaguing the area meekly approach, unarmed and injured. They tell you that someone did this to them in the night and turn to you for help. They also tell you that same someone has ate all their horses, leaving only bones.

>Someone from the nearby village comes by and complains that nobody has received the mail in many months. This is especially concerning, considering messengers on horseback have been passing through regularly.

>>49546675
A group of four to six well armed people arrive, claiming to be looking for a nearby gobkin warren. An odd array of races you rarely see in these lands, and are all armed with arms and armor of astounding quality and you suspect it be magic. Indeed, two of their number claim to be mages!
Perhaps most odd of all however they all have backpacks of immense size, yet only eat hardtack and pemmican. What could they be carrying so much of that is so important that they would not carry food? The way they refer to you all as enpeesees is a little annoying, not to mention that they insist in paying you with solid gold pieces which is only going to attract bandits.

By the time they leave, the player characters are a little wearisome of 'adventurers'.

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>>49546675
>A toll was recently instituted on the nearby road. At the end of each month a tax collector from the capital rides in to retrieve what you've collected. This month, however, multiple people have ridden in, each bearing the seal of the crown and demanding the money.

>Folks passing through have begun complaining of a massive tree growing in the middle of the road somewhere within your jurisdiction. Inspection finds no such tree. You do notice, however, that trees in your vicinity have begun disappearing, stumps and all.

>>49546675
>>49546845
>>49546909

this is a great fucking concept

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>>49546675
>It has recently been made public that a dangerous and illegal drug's primary ingredient is a flower that exclusively grows in your area. Possession and transportation of this flower is not technically illegal, but you've noticed that traffic passing through with the flowers has increased dramatically.

>Members of the local village begin coming to you complaining of missing dogs. This isn't particularly concerning until you begin to find wreathes of dog teeth nailed to trees along the road.

>>49546675

I did a similar arc in my WFRP campaign, thought it was a toll house rather than a watchtower.

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>>49546675
>>49546845
>>49546909
>>49546983
>A national holiday demands that you decorate your post appropriately. Not having the proper means to do so on-hand, the particularly festive local female residents drop by to aid your efforts. Of course, with the resident wives and daughters also comes a number of rowdy and grabby children.

>You begin finding small gifts in your packs or clothing as you wake. A coin. Beautiful carved figurines. Tiny pieces of parchment with limericks. Dolls made from hair. Whole eyes.

So Night Shift ala D&D?

>>49546746
LOL yeah right! Except with most players it would turn out like this:

>you see some lights flickering far away and then they disappear.
>we leave to check them out immediately
>err... You didn't see where they were.
>we saw the general direction?
>yes, but not the exact location...
>so we search for it!

And then there will be five sessions of pointlessly scouring the countryside.

>>49547143
>five sessions of pointlessly scouring

Then you're failing as GM. There's any number of breadcrumbs you could be dropping while the players are searching to lead them deeper into the intrigue.

>>49546675
This is absolutely beautiful. Any source for the artist? Google doesn't help.

>>49547167
The suggestion was to slowly build tension using for example flickering lights. What I pointed out was that that doesn't work, because anything the DM mentions will be a lead towards adventure, even if it is not supposed to be that right away. Standard horror movie tricks doesn't work.

>>49546675
My party is afraid of high places, so the entirety of the game would take place on the bottom floor of the tower, and would involve figuring out who must be sent up to the dreaded high watch area that day.

The party would always be split in a 1:4 grouping and content would have to be designed suitable for both 1 and 4 players, which as we all know is completely impossible. There is just no way to make a balanced encounter suitable for 4 players.

http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/30713493/

Mine this for inspiration.

>>49546793
>Perhaps consider having an NPC whose sole purpose is to man the tower while away...

This is a good solution to the problem. You could even have the NPC demand that they all draw straws each time to see who has to stay and man the tower, a test which by DM fiat the NPC will always lose. At least up until the point where the DM needs to seperate one of the PCs from the others for story reasons or if their player is absent like anon says. Also, it can be good to have an NPC handy if you need another actor on stage to help move to plot along or to suffer some horrible fate.

>One morning a dense fog bank rolls in over the hills and valleys, covering the countryside around the Watchtower in an impenetrable blank whiteness as far as the eye can see in every direction. Everything is calm. Everything is silent. It's almost peaceful, in an unsettling sort of way. At least it was, until the PCs start catching glimpses of titanic shapes and shadows swimming through the fog.

>On one particularly fine day, a large party of High Elves with all their riches and their finery makes its way over the hill and stops at the Watchtower. As it seems, the group has been on tour, taking in the natural wonders of the frontier, and has decided that the PCs' tower and bluff would make the perfect place for a picnic lunch. The PCs are, of course, welcome to partake.

>On one particularly boring afternoon, the PCs decide to poke around the immediate vicinity and discover to their disquiet that their Watchtower is surrounded by the ruins of a half-dozen older towers, each bearing evidence of destruction and violence.

>The daughter of a farmer from the nearby hamlet has been stopping by the Watchtower every other day to bring the Watchers fresh produce and dairy products, along with some conversation and companionship. After a few visits it becomes apparent to the PCs that she and the NPC Watcher would make a perfect couple and they decide to help make this happen.

>>49547386
>There is just no way to make a balanced encounter suitable for 4 players.

Is this true /tg/? I always wondered why I was recommended group sizes of 3, 5, or 6...

http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/1034444/

>>49547464
>After the PCsaccidentally disturb a small, ancient shrine along the roadside, the Watchtower falls under a very weak but very petulant local goddess' curse and is plagued with bad luck.

>>49547118
>So Night Shift ala D&D?

That would be an interesting idea.

>>49547469
No, it's not. It is, however, difficult to balance encounters for a variable party size, which is what I think he was getting at.
If the party has a mix of classes, then any obstacle that could conceivably be overcome alone by any given member is a trivial challenge for the four of them together, but an obstacle that requires a particular set of skills to overcome is effectively impossible for everyone BUT the play with those skills, who could overcome the problem alone while the other three together would still be stumped. And of course, any challenge designed for the whole party together is going to be impossible for only part of the party to handle.

My prefered solution is to simply redefine what "completing an encounter" means in the context of a given party composition. If everyone's together, then completion entails solving the problem entirely. If a player is alone, it might merely mean you've successfully identified the problem and escaped to report to the rest of the party, or perhaps you devised a method to contain or slow the progress of the problem until you can come back with the skills necessary to complete it entirely.

Example: a party of bandits have made camp. They're adept trackers and difficult to catch by surprise. The goal for the entire party is to kill, capture, or drive off the bandits. The goal for, say, the Ranger in the party alone might be to merely locate and report on their numbers, perhaps set traps to improve the party's odds when they come back together. The goal for another party member working alone might simply be escape or avoidance.

I kinda wanna play in a campaign like this.

>The PCs hear a beautiful but lonesome voice singing in the forest.

>The storm of the century rolls in, forcing the PCs to secure their tower.

>A necromancer has set up camp in a small graveyard just down the hill.

>A troupe of traveling acrobats performs for the PCs pocket money.

>Something keeps knocking on the door to the tower before vanishing.

>A map to bandit treasure is found in the journal of a former guardsman.

>Once a year a ghostly army marches along the road past the tower.

>A local farmer's daughter is lost in the woods and must be searched for.

>One night, the lights in town all go dark, as do the moon and stars after.

>The wandering peddler's face matches one on an old wanted poster.

>Something large and lumbering is making its way down the valley.

>A group of pilgrims accidentally leave a satchel of hilariously bawdy letters.

>A small dragon decides to make its new nest up in the tower's lookout.

>The PCs must arbitrate a dispute over a minor wagon accident.

>A chest full of old, exotic potions is discovered in the tower's basement.

>The PCs hold an impromptu archery competition.

>>49548386
There is something appealing about the idea. Almost cozy, in a way. I feel like the small scale of the setting and the happenings in it allows for a more intimate sort of game where the players can really get to know the watchtower and it's surroundings quite well, and take what happens to their characters a bit more personally.

>>49548904
>A little lost girl shows up at the tower and the PCs must care for her a while.

>Word is heard of a nasty conjuror hiding out in some nearby ruins.

>A small cadre of dwarves stop for a beer break and make minor repairs to the tower.

>>49547118
It's like Night Shift's optimistic little brother.
>Night Shift
>You have to work a shitty job in this tiny, spooky gas station, and sometimes ambiguously supernatural shit goes down and you're the one responsible for making sure the manager doesn't give you shit for it. Occasionally, time-travellers, shifty strangers, and rabid hobos will stop by
vs.
>Watchtower
>You work a cozy job in a tiny, cute watchtower, and sometimes ambiguously supernatural stuff goes down. Fortunately, this is what you're here for, and you're not bad at dealing with these sorts of things. Occasionally, farmers, caravans of elves, and rabid hobos/adventurers will stop by

>>49547118
>So Night Shift ala D&D?

I like this idea, but I think that this setting might be slightly lighter in tone. Scary and terrible things might happen to our watchers on ocassion, but things never quite reach the deepest levels of survival horror and gallows humor that the Night Shift achieves.

a cult of some kind cleared an area of forest and has been laying iron, copper, or some other pure metallic bars in strange patterns. this might not bode well...but they're never there to get caught.

>once a month the tower must test it's beacon signals. on the proscribed day it must watch for a signal from the nearest tower and reply by colored balloons/pennants and later by lighting a huck-huege bonfire.

in a box you found on your doorstep is a human head and a note "we found this dead guy, we didn't kill him" it's singned either "the local monster" or with a big monstery foot+claw print. later farmers come and say a headless body was delivered to their coffin maker by dead of night.

>as is in ships this MUST be recorded in triplicate in all of the logbooks

the village-side day-signaller is playing Thud! or Chess with someone in the village, signalling piece moves. He's very good, and then one day he isn't on the signals and nobody's seen him(possibly ever)

>>49551064
Exactly! I also imagine Watchtower as being a rather cozy sort of game that encourages the players to enjoy themselves as their characters explore the Watchtower and it's environs, uncovering mysteries and wonders as they go and dealing with various happenings and occurrences as they arise. Sometimes events are mundane in nature and sometimes they are magical, and ocassionally they can be frightening or inexplicable too, but the PCs oughtn't feel the same sense of dread and despair that the Night Shift's attendants do.

>someone is digging up the grave-yards, even the consecrated ones. later the bodies are found posed around the village in grisly tableaux or just outside doors set to stare face-to-face with whomever comes out the door.

GIANT ANGRY BIRDS

>GYPSIES

since it's in a ""frontier"" location you could also have.
migrant farmers looking for a place to steak their claim.
or
a local up-start leader deciding that they "don't need the sharp eyes of the government watching them so closely" and leading a faction to siege your tower.

>the annual craftsman visit to repair the tower featuring the eccentric wandering builder Leonardo Vitruvius

it's a market day and for a bit of mummery they would like to borrow the tower's light Ballista to fling rotten fruit at a mock castle; this is against protocol, but the old ladies in town bribe you HARD with the very best in pipping hot FRESH BLUEBERRY PIES.

>the annual inspection, some bean-counter with cheap glasses and a list of important criteria checks how shiny the shoes are, how well oiled the door-hinges are etc. and god help you if you've forgotten to grease the flagpole pulley.

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here, have a weird sort of tower...

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they could also be on fire-watch

spotting fires, locating them and directing help to the village people

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look for the lighthouse threads in warosu, you should find some neat ideas.

>>49546701
Or semaphores

>>49547469
No. 5 is pushing it for most DMs, and 6 is where the shitstorm begins. 3 or 4 players are the perfect group size IMO.

>>49549768
>The PCs get rip-roaringly drunk to celebrate an NPC's last day at the tower.

>A rough and tumble wheel-skeleton gang rolls in and picks a fight with the PCs.

>A Gnomish merchant and con-artist tries to sell her shoddy wares to a resting caravan.

>One particular hour in the late evening, just at sunset, keeps repeating itself.

>The PCs have the best view of the valley village's annual fireworks show.

>The ghost of a wandering duelist seeks one more fight before passing on.

>The PCs receive the supplies meant for another tower in addition to their own.

>A paranormal prankster makes a nuisance of itself to the PCs.

>A group of hunters stop at the tower looking for information on a rogue bear.

>A room's worth of enchanted furniture seeks refuge at the tower from their former owner.

well, I'm out of towers to post...

except lighthouses.

>bureaucratic error in your tower's favor included 20 spears and 12 crates of boots.

the tower has a secret basement hidden behind a wall in the known cellar in it is the opening to a tunnel, a cold draft blows from that tunnel. it leads downward and towards the nearest mountain.

>>49547143

>scouring the countryside

I would make it so they were given orders by a higher up that they are not to leave the tower at night or they must have at least two people at the tower at all times

Something to prevent them from leaving even as creepy, horrible things start happening in the town at night

I think it was called Sora no Woto

There was even an episode about moonshine and the mob

>>49546675
What is this from? I like it a lot

>>49546675
>One of the villagers gets pregnant and blames it on which ever PC seems most likely. Not many people believe her since they're so far away but her da' and brothers still come by to try and force the accused into a marriage.

>A local woman shows up at the tower in a panic because she found out her husband, a local and well-regarded farmer, is a werewolf. She has him locked up but doesn't know what to do. The full moon is only a few days away and the guards have to gather up enough silver to make a silvered weapon and kill him.

>The village headman shows up in rags and malnourished. He tells the guards that he was kidnapped and was left for dead in the wilds four months ago which is right when the village headman started acting weird! The current 'village headman' is a doppleganger and killed the real village headman. The other 'village headman' is also a doppleganger who found out about the ongoing scam and decided to steal it.

>The local fey show up and need an impartial third party to settle a dispute between two different factions. The dispute is something incredibly mundane and petty (something like who stole who's acorns) but is deadly serious to the fey.

>>49551973
>The PCs find a small box of valuables dropped down the tower well long ago.

>A young Druidess and a dryad in a wheelbarrow of dirt pass by on their travels.

>Spring has come and with it, the PCs are expected to clean the tower from top to bottom.

>The wild hunt has come to the high hills, trapping the PCs inside till dawn.

>A new NPC is assigned to the tower and the PCs must show them the ropes.

>The sad elven ghost in the watcher's armor on the tower's third floor will not leave.

>A small rockslide blocks part of the road and needs to be cleared quickly.

>>49552550
>>The local fey show up and need an impartial third party to settle a dispute between two different factions. The dispute is something incredibly mundane and petty (something like who stole who's acorns) but is deadly serious to the fey.

I really like this idea.

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>>49552863

>>49552651
>A new semaphor system that no one knows how to use is installed atop the tower.

>A shooting star falls to earth within walking distance and the PCs investigate.

>A traveling storyteller is willing to trade tall tales for a night's meal and lodging.

>Passersby report having seen a unicorn in the woods around the tower.

>The tower's flag has blown away somewhere in a gale and must be recovered.

>A group of local pixie sisters begin bickering over which PC is most attractive.

>After a group of travelers leave a trunk behind, the PCs establish a lost-and-found.

>One of the PCs finds a charm on the road that drastically improves their luck.

>A group of guardsmen on patrol stop at the tower to share gossip with the PCs.

>The PCs discover an ancient elven ruin in the forest filled with talking statues.

I actually had a game like this once, players weren't in a watchtower but rather started with a barebones camp and rather than being full-on Guards they were more like mercenaries in charge of watching the frontier border between two rival, but not at war (yet), nations.

Ultimately they were given free reign to do whatever they wanted as long as they kept an eye out and sent their weekly reports back. Eventually they started building up their modest camp with a few tents into some wood cabins with a makeshift watchtower out of a particularly big tree, a wooden wall around the camp, and some minor crops. Unfortunately the game ended due to half the players having real life obligations early, just as an actual plot was beginning to happen besides them playing "build a frontier town".

Everyone seemed to enjoy the game a lot though.

>>49547118
>>49551064
>>49551123
Wait, hol up a second. What is 'Night Shift'? I googled it and it just gives me some shitty TV medial sitcom or something

>>49554039
check 1d4chan

>>49554140
ah, thanks anon

Man I would love to play in a group running something like this. Its the right pace for my current schedule. Gives me a good excuse to play table top again.

>>49546835
Underrated post

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>>49554039
Night Shift is a homebrew setting /tg/ dreamed up in 2014, where the PCs are attendants working the night shift at a creepy old gas station on a lonely highway out in the middle of nowhere. These PCs have to do all the little crappy chores expected of gas station attendants: serving motorists that stop at the pumps and customers that come inside the little convenience store, mopping the floors, stocking the shelves and cleaning the restrooms. However, over the course of the night attendants may also have to deal with paranormal hassles and horrors like vengeful ghosts, rampaging monsters, lurking shadow people, abstract spatial anomalies and alien abductions. It plays as equal parts workplace sitcom and survival horror with a lot of dark humor and surreal horror, and has been the subject of a number of threads on /tg/ as well as having been pitched as a movie / TV show.

>>49547175
>>49552467
https://www.artstation.com/artwork/Gg48B

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Don't forget fa/tg/uys, ALL of this comfy stuff can happen with normal games, just let the PCs you have inherit, buy, win or conquer an old tower or mansion on a hill overlooking a fairly distant small village.

Owning property and building on it and all the little fun events like those mentioned here are great fun for most PCs between big crazy BBEG adventures.

bump

>>49546675
All I can think of is the creepy wall campaign or a groundhogs day type scenario.
Then again, I'm not an "ideas guy".

>>49557335
>The creepy wall campaign

It just hit me, when a couple of PCs die, this is their afterlife if they're gonna get resurrected. They guard the wall between Life and Death, but because of magical shenanigans and gods and shit, the position is irrelevant. But its been hardwired into creation.

Or its a bit like guarding Ra's boat each night.

This thread is making me itch to GM a game centered around a watchtower or something similar. Thanks OP and anons.

Just archived this on suptg for future reference

>>49558277
good.

it should even be on the front page of the archive for a while now that /qst/ is properly established

>>49558277
Nice. Thanks anon!

>>49553457
>A horse messenger stops at the tower, claiming he was attacked on the road.

>A large and particularly chatty crow offers unsolicited advice to the PCs and passersby.

>A small cask of a particularly fine wine is discovered amidst the junk in the tower's basement.

>A novice witch crashes into the side of the tower while trying to wrangle her first broom.

>With the help of local farmers, the PCs plant a vegetable garden at the base of their tower.

>The PCs receive disturbing messages from another tower by signal lamp late at night.

>The PCs receive a large and ornate grandfather clock as a gift from the town for their service.

>A mountain goat wearing a crude crown and followed by a "retinue" holds "court" on a bluff beside the road.

>A violent but inexperienced bandit gang attempts to hold the PCs up in their tower.

>A young and impressionable gnoll out to see the world seeks directions at the tower.

>>49561097
>The PCs are told that they may receive one additional luxury item from an approved list in their next resupply.

>A female giant seeks advice while fretting over her comically disastrous love life.

>A ragtag group of "adventurers" demands gold for completing some kind of "quest."

>>49553811
You know, after reading this post and seeif all the suggested happenings in this thread, it strikes me that this setting would be a pretty good fit for a "base-builder" style game. You start with just the Watchtower, the PCs and one handy NPC, and the choices that the players make will bring new characters and improvements to the local area. Helping out a group of migrant farmers might establish a small farming hamlet on the hilltop that improves the quality of food the PCs have access too. Aiding various traveling traders might set up a little marketplace rest stop around the base of the tower. Courting favor with a wealthier merchant might even get them a small inn or bar.

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>>49547109
>A local barkeep who has been good to you stops by and informs you that he'll waive your entire outstanding tab if you absolutely, positively do not let a particular man head into town. The man in question rides in the following morning, claiming to be hunting a dangerous fugitive.

>A strange ox with the head of a boar has been finding its way to your post every day for a week now. Attempts to find its owners have failed and local farms won't take it in.

Reading this thread has made me realise I'd read the shit out of a comic or mango with this premise. Fantasy themed slice of life

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>>49561575
>A local mother reports to you that her daughter has gone missing and nobody can find her. That night you find her hidden away within your tower. When questioned as to why she fled, she claims she found her parents bodies in their well.

>A new ordinance demanding that you take a sample of consumables that pass through the area happens to come during the annual pie fair.

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>>49561731
>You find an unfamiliar basket one night at the top of the tower. In it is a baby and a note reading only "It goes away."

>Three siblings ride to you, each claiming that the others left some family heirloom at your post for safekeeping. You have never met any of them.

>>49561731
>>A new ordinance demanding that you take a sample of consumables that pass through the area happens to come during the annual pie fair.

Or so the PCs claim. Oh, it's going to be a good day. It's going to be a very good day.

>>49561585
>Reading this thread has made me realise I'd read the shit out of a comic or mango with this premise. Fantasy themed slice of life

That does sound pretty appealing. Four or five guardsmen whiling away their days dealing with the weird, wonderful and sometimes worrying occurrences that happen upon their tower.

>>49561575
>>A local barkeep who has been good to you stops by and informs you that he'll waive your entire outstanding tab if you absolutely, positively do not let a particular man head into town. The man in question rides in the following morning, claiming to be hunting a dangerous fugitive.

Oh, this puts the PCs in a great little quandary, doesn't it. If the bounty hunter is legitimate then the guardsmen have a legal and moral obligation to point him in the right direction, but they have personal ties to the potential fugitive and were offered a bribe to turn the hunter away. Very nice.

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>>49561874
>A man armed and dressed in a uniform matching your own rides to your post one day. He promptly marches up and attempts to assume watch. When questioned, he responds in a language you do not understand.

>One night, all the fire in your camp burns blue. Everything from a match to a bonfire you start all burn that same color. Further inspection reveals a ring of salt drawn around your tower.

>>49561275
>No one passes by on the road all day and the PCs must find ways to amuse themselves.

>A stone golem wanders by, seeking purpose in its life after the death of its master.

>The daughter of the village baker wants to set up a snack stand at the base of the tower.

>A group of suspiciously giggly Druids offer the PCs a gift of some peculiar incense.

>A big faire has come to the valley town, bringing an unusual amount of traffic on the road.

>Waking up one morning, the PCs discover the tower and everything inside to be mirrored.

>A heavy grindstone breaks loose from its wagon and rolls downhill, causing destruction.

>Passersby report seeing black straw voodoo dolls nailed to trees along the roadside.

>The NPC guardsman tries to learn how to play the lute but does not have much success.

>The PCs begin receiving letters in which minor explosive runes have been hidden.

I started reading this a bit ago and came up with a basic schedule. Essentially there's a day team and a night team, the party would likely be the day team but you could mix it up and have them as the night team.

>Dawn: Night team wakes Day team, Day team is given an hour to wake up and have breakfast, Night team eats once Day team is finished. Before Night goes to sleep, all towers must alert all adjacent towers that morning meals have passed without incident.

>Noon: Half of Day team eats lunch, other half watches, switch afterwards. Alert all adjacent towers that lunch has passed without incident.

>Dusk: Day team wakes Night team, Night team is given an hour to wake up and have breakfast, Day team eats once Night team is finished. Before Day goes to sleep all towers must alert all adjacent towers that dinner has passed without incident.

There is a half hour leniency for the alerts, if one tower doesn't check in, all that didn't receive the okay signal are sent to investigate. Most of the time it's a case of the team taking too long to wake up or having a good time at their meals.

The official schedule doesn't specify a midnight meal but most teams do it anyway. If anyone comes approaching the tower with issues of national security, the currently active team is to wake half of the sleeping team and have them skeleton crew it while the active team handles the issue. This can happen for either the Day or Night teams if you want to make the job particularly annoying for your party by making them go their boring shift completely exhausted. Maybe have a little garden on site for the watchtower to grow their own food or require monthly trips to market, maybe if the PCs do a shitty job the merchants decide they don't wanna sell to them.

>>49562623
I hadn't even thought of dayguard versus nightguard dynamics. Interesting.

>>49563011
You could even 'pick' on a character that happens to have darksight or whatever it is and have him routinely woken up by the Night shift to get some conflict going. Maybe his shift 'forgets' to signal so the other towers come and ask the Night guys why the fuck they aren't doing their jobs.

>>49563043
>>49563011
>>49562623
>When the Dayguard wakes up, they discover that every member off he Nightguard appears to be missing. The PCs must piece together the available clues to determine what happened while they were asleep and to figure out how to find and rescue their comrades.

>>49563137
thats a realy solid one

>>49547480
>The tower includes a shrine to a long forgotten god/goddess of the people that originally built the tower (Before it was rebuilt, destroyed, rebuilt, destroyed, rebuilt, destroyed, rebuilt, destroyed and then rebuilt again), appease them in tiny ways or face their mild disgruntlement

>>49563315
There's always been a watchtower there of some kind, manned by a similar group of guards facing similar problems.

>>49563396
Such is the way in kingdoms with often moving borders really.

>>49563403
Essentially, yes, both Night Shift and "Watchtower" run on the same premise of putting a group of everyman PCs in a remote setting and throwing strange situations at them. The differences lie in the mood and intent with which the premise is presented. From all the suggestions in this thread, is feels like "Watchtower" is meant to be much more lighthearted than Night Shift, a fantastical slice-of-life style game with ocassional elements of horror woven in.

>>49563405
I've always appreciated settings and locales that have various layers of history stacked one stop the other, and I really like the idea that there's always been some type of watchtower or guard post at the spot our current tower sits on. It would also explain some of the points of interest in the tower hills like elven ruins, roadside shrines and the like.

>>49552550
>One of the villagers gets pregnant and blames it on which ever PC seems most likely.
Least likely. If available, one of the girls. Funnier that way.

>>49563762
>"It's that guard, Kells, what's put my poor lil' Petunia in such a delicate predicament!"

>"Do you... mean to tell us that GuardsWOMAN Kells got your daughter pregnant? Guardswoman SARA Kells?"

>"The... err... the, uh, very same! Yessir!"

Any suggestions for a system to run a game like this in?

>>49564032
I'd imagine something that gives social interactions a fair amount of consideration, given how many of the proposed happenings are non-combat encounters.

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I did something quite close to this. It was a warcamp setting with the players being a band of clerics owning a medical camp on the edge of a rather large battle field. Constant fighting and casualties, and they were respinsible for the healing. I made a requirement that everyone had to make a healer, and one of them choose paladin for some reason, and was hated by the rest because his lay-on-hands was shit compared to everyone elses powers. It essentially turned into midevial highfantasy M*A*S*H with the paladin being the frank burns. It was actually pretty great since they all got into it. We rolled for exhaustion and hilarious supply mishaps, as well as. The sadder part of casualties, like doing triage. The players had to make some tough choices, like who to resurrect, and who not, based on a lack of the proper spell components, as well as conflicting orders. They suprised me more than once, and by the end of it would do almost anything to get the diamonds for a resurection spell, including an instance of sexual favors, and another instance of threatening a superior officer who was greedy and kept them for himself. Very neat slice of life, but still interesting.

>>49564152

I was gonna run it in AD&D but you make a good point

Perhaps WoD or FATE?

>>49564305
That sound pretty damn interesting.

>>49563762
Maybe a girl that went Mulan for some reason. She could disprove the claim quickly but can't, but she can't go along either.

>>49564305
Ever read Sapkowski's Lady of the Lake?
"Stitch red to red, grey to grey and white to white and everything will be alright".

Still, I love that. This is the kind of shit I want to see more in table tops. Small, contained stories with focus on a strong theme and actual dilemas and struggles, with attention to detail and consistency, now and here.

Reminds me of a recent campaign that my friend ran that was entirely about an group of artist apprentices working for their master, and one of them being invited into the imperial palace to work on decorations in there. The problem, as it turned out, was that the imperial palace was jealously protected and those who entered generally weren't allowed to leave it, so they could not carry secrets out.
The whole sessions were about talking about art, about the untouchable dignity of the emperor, about what would be the appropriate hospitality to prepare of the imperial officer coming to bring the official invitation, and about the apprentices trying to figure out a plan how the one inside could communicate with them once he is locked inside. That was the entire content of that micro campaign, and it was glorious.

Oh god no.

Anyone have the copypasta of that campaign where the PC were guardsman on a wall distantly removed from civilisation, and everyone went fucking nuts, saw weird shit below the wall, timeloops and shit

It was like that martian labrynth horror game with the gas masks and in-game suicide in notoriety, just a few years before it.

>>49547228

Depends on the group, their experience, their interest, and whether the DM has succeeded in giving the world enough flavour and the party enough stuff to keep them interested that they don't go off chasing everything that comes out if the DMs mouth

And if they do grab the hook way before you expect, then you simply accelerate story. No need to have them wandering around aimlessly just because they haven't 'found it yet'

>>49547118
>>49554425
Wait, that was now actually produced in visual media? I heard one anon claiming that he got a media contract or something based on night shift, but have been skeptical about it.
Is it any good?

>>49564576
>copypasta
somebody posted the archived thread already

>>49564576
I think that two threads about that idea were linked earlier in this one, and I remember those threads well as being pretty unnerving. That sort of atmosphere is definitely one way this setting can be played, should the DM choose to emphasize the isolation of the characters in their tower:

>The tower seems to turning almost imperceptibly slowly, throwing the guards' sense of direction off a little more each day.

>Each day the little town in the valley seems to get further and further and further away as the frontier swallows them up.

>Resupply runs from the town become fewer and further between until they stop all together, leaving the guards to live off the land.

>The signal lights in the other towers along the border have gone dark some time ago, the fate of their guards unknown and unknowable.

>>49564624
Nothing's been produced yet, but as of an update a month or two ago there was supposedly some Hollywood types interested in the idea. A few weeks ago there was an Anon who also wanted to do some sort of comic series as well. The picture in that post is from one of the original threads.

>>49564770
Oh. Thanks for the clarification
>but as of an update a month or two ago there was supposedly some Hollywood types interested in the idea.
Yeah, that was pretty much the page I was on. So nothing has changed so far.

>>49552290
This is a pretty good idea.
An addition to it.
>if they don't leave the tower, horrible things happen and a villager blames them for not helping at all
>if they do leave the tower, they find that either nothing was wrong and it was a distraction to get them to leave, or they find their superior who is suddenly extremely fucking worried and kinda terrified at the thought of the watchtower being unmanned because of what is currently getting through

>>49564798
>So nothing has changed so far.

Right. To my knowledge, that's all the information that's available right now. I'm (perhaps foolishly) hoping we may see something come of the Night Shift sometime soon. Halloween is fast approaching and the one posting updates seemed enthusiastic about the idea's prospects.

>>49564858
>>49564798
>>49564770
Damn, I've had this idea for awhile since that is literally my job. If I wasn't shit at art, I'd be making a comic on it myself. Probably at work too. I really hope the project does well.

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So this thread is fantastic, especially as I've wanted to run a game almost exactly like this for ages

My question though: how do you keep the PCs in the Watchtower? How do you justify whatever rag-tag bunch of classes and races they always want to play?

Like I really support the idea that everyone should make their PCs at the same time and think about the composition of the group, the mood of the campaign, etc, but you also have to let people play the stuff they want to play

So how do you justify a wizard being assigned to a regular guard post? Or a Tiefling, or a knight in full plate or a dude with a bear or a gnome rogue or a fire elemental etc etc

And how do you continue justify it as the PCs level up? A soldier that can do cantrips is one thing but once he's casting fireballs the authorities that put him on the watch will probably want to reassign him...but they'll want to keep the archer there, etc.

>>49565068
An idea I have off the top of my head is the budget and manpower for the area is relatively low when it comes to guards. So whoever is in charge has decided to hire whoever is capable and isn't an outright bandit or obviously evil.

>>49565068
I'm sure I won't be the first to suggest that this is a game that it would be a bad idea to run using D&D. I just hope that whoever comes after me will suggest a good system to use for it.

>>49565068
They took up a contract to man it for a year for a reward, obviously. It's frontier territory - maybe there just isn't a reliable corps of guards or soldiers to do this out here. There shouldn't be a ton of organization.

>>49565068
Beyond the Wall would be a pretty good fit, it's all about making the settlement which also ties you to the tower.

>>49565068
I've actually decided running this sort of scenario on the side with my players as sort of a break from our campaign, I'm having them make new characters. I basically said no "Exotic" casters like warlocks or psions, and no evil characters. And no vampires or undead or anything like that. Since this is sort of just a side campaign for fun everyone was fine with it.

>>49565068
These are all good questions, and I think that they all could have reasonably fun answers.

Firstly, as far as keeping the characters in the Watchtower, the ideal would be to have players who are interested in the idea of playing a game in a small-scale setting. Aside or in conjunction with this, you should set the Watchtower up as a place that the PCs want or need to be. They're guardsmen and women, and they've been assigned to this specific watchtower so if they stray too far they'll be charged with leaving their post. The Tower is also likely fortified and well armed as well, acting as a small garrison in addition to being a lookout, making it the safest place to hole up or make a stand if something spooky happens. Besides all this, the PCs and players could also be given a little leeway to explore the Watchtower's surroundings and discover different points of interest in the immediate area.

As for the party's race and class composition, you could say that the county our Watchtower sits on the frontier of is a fairly cosmopolitan one that has many different races amongst its citizenry. Also, given how isolated these outposts are, you could make it a standard practice to man the towers with guardsmen and women possessing a wide variety of skills, powers and abilities.

Where leveling up is concerned, you could always make reassigning supremely skilled PCs into a plot point, something that the party tries to avoid. You could also make them local heroes and minor celebrities, which would make reassigning them an unpopular decision for the higher-ups.

>>49564501
>The girl in question has disguised herself as a man to join the guard.

>However, her acting is awful and the PCs see through her disguise instantly.

>They keep playing along because she's a decent guard and they find in hilarious.

>>49565264
Or better yet, have the PCs assigned as a local or regional governors over that remote part of the kingdom. As the PCs grow in levels, the King would receive reports of their actions/finding/adventures and be impressed with them (hopefully). In time allow the PCs to upgrade their tower into a bigger/better base of operations (and send building materials to make the upgrades). Maybe into a full blown castle in the end.

>>49565122
Bumping this.
What would be some good systems to run this in?

>>49565565
I will probably run something like that using The One Ring. Of course everything will turn to shit the second a certain cranky old wizard in a grey coat pass the gate in a hurry and asks for a tiny little service.

>>49565233
>>49565605
It would be fun to combine these two ideas. Have our wandering wizard sweep half the guards off on a grand adventure while the other half stays behind to watch the tower and town. Then, run the two games side by side or use the watchtower to provide fun and easy sessions as breaks between chapters of the primary story.

>>49565068

Soldiers usually go through training so the military training to justify magic users and the bunch here would be:

Weapons and armour training
Beginners magic course
Logistics duties (pick specializations)

And as for resins why higher level PCs work as guardsmen.
>They have been reassigned as punishment for fuckups.
>They are veterans sent to an area with lack of manpower.

Etc.

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>>49565122
>I'm sure I won't be the first to suggest that this is a game that it would be a bad idea to run using D&D.

I agree but I couldn't name a system that would be any better, either.

And then you have to convince your players to play that other system, and go through the occasional agony of them learning it (or commonly, promising to do so but doing no such thing)

Im running a similar game right now. I mean sort of. It's an escort the caravan deal, which is arguably the same as being stationary in a watchtower, depending on your frame of reference.

Anyway, lot's of fun fantastical encounters and junk just Ilike TT, but making the non-encounter downt-time parts good has been a struggle. In terms of game mechanics and roleplaying, what are you guys imaging the players doing in terms of performing routine duties around the tower?

I want to have days be able to pass without incident in order to create complacency/tension, but it's really hard to find a balance between literally nothing happening and a bunch of tedious, inconsequential dice rolling.

Think there's a PC game that's sorta along these lines. Fire starter? Firewatch? Can't remember. You're a park ranger in some remote watchtower, and all you've got for outside communication is your radio. Some lady in another tower is your friend, and that's pretty much it. Story is something about some teens reported missing, and maybe a slasher is our somewhere in this fuck huge national park and you're alone. Looked fun.

>>49561551
>>49565494
>Over the course of the game, what starts out as just a watchtower with a few guardsmen grows into a lively little hamlet with an inn and a marketplace and a few farms, populated by all the people the guardsmen have helped, Humans and Gnolls and Elves and Ghosts and Dwarves and Golems and even that giantess that almost toppled the tower that one time.

>Over the course of the game the guards have regularly been dispatching increasingly tough and organized bandits along their road, eventually culminating in a grand finale in which a small army of raiders beset watchtower hill. The difficulty of the ensuing battle will depend on how may people the guardsmen have helped, as each NPC joins the PCs in helping defend their home.

>>49565888
You're thinking of Firewatch, yeah. Having played it, I found the story pretty interesting and the setting rather beautiful, though it's one of those games that definitely won't appeal to everyone.

I think we're trying to capture a similar sense of wonderment and lonesomeness and intrigue here with Watchtower.

>>49548904
>the storm of the century rolls in

This actually sounds like an awesome 1-3 session adventure. Imagine all the fun you could have fighting the storm to keep the watchtower standing

>>49566107
Combine that with:

>A local farmer's daughter is lost in the woods and must be searched for.

And you have yourself a dramatic conclusion to your game.

>>49566160
Actually, a lot of these one-line events can probably be combined into a fuller narrative fit for a short, 1-3 session game.

>>49566160
I would throw in encounters like "one of the party members climbs to the top to repair a broken windowlock, and as they look out the window they can see lantern lights in the near distance and a caravan with people running about yelling; it looks as if they are about to be taken by the storm"

>>49566160
And just as the heros find the young girl, a monster and/or military forces ambush the heros and a life or death fight starts. Afterward if/when the heros pick over the aftermath. They find more questions than answers. Ominous Questions.

For a mass military variation. Say, have a the kingdom have the hoards of Orcs (or what ever) more or less locked out via a defense wall far to the north. With an impassable mountain range that is an effective wall to both the hoard and the kingdom. Our tower is far south of the line and ends with insight of the watch tower. The PCs befriend/pacify/make deals with the local civilians, elves, dwarfs, fae, bandits, others first before the worst happens. The Hoards found a hidden path/tunnel though the mountains to bypass the wall and invade the undefended belly of the kingdom. Will little time, the PCs need to gather up allies, train troops and prepare to hold off growing bands of scouting teams, raiders, and then full might of the Hoard until the Kingdom can move their army around in time to save the land. The kingdom might not even believe the PCs of the invasion at first to make things worse. The watch tower being not only the only real fortification in the region, but likely the best spot to watch where the Hoard forces is moving around.

>>49566571
That would work.

>>49565759
>armour training
you just wear it
>resins
"reasons"

>A damaged caravan stops in a field near the tower, you can see a dwarf mechanic and a sorcerer making repairs to many of the wagons. They send a small group to the tower, they claim that they were ambushed by -insert humanoid race here- and are being followed. They request the PCs assistance in protecting them from the ambushers. A sleek elf who is escorting the caravan claims that the ambushers will likely arrive in a day and a half.

>A group of adventurer's would like to trade some of their food for a few of your weapons. Ordinarily you'd decline since these are state issued weapons and bad things would happen if they turned up missing, however your latest supply shipment hasn't arrived. So you must decide whether to trade some weapons for precious food, but risk the kingdom finding out. Or decline the trade and find an alternative food source.

>While most of your crew is visiting the nearby town, someone you recognise as loyalty has recently passed by your tower. You would report this, however an unnaturally dense fog keeps you from communicating to other towers, and by law you are not allowed to leave the tower unoccupied.

>You find a crate of preserved jellies hidden underneath the floor boards.
Every jelly is unique, and many have odd labels.

>While searching the tower you find a letter addressed to yourself, it's written in your own handwriting. Yet you have no memory of writing it. Most of the letter is faded except for a few unimportant words.

>>49567071
Chainmail shirt is easy, Full Plate takes some work to fully get use too. That shit is heavy and the gauntlets are bulky.

>>49567109
>Full Plate takes some work to fully get use too
"getting used to wearing it" != training to use it. It's just metal clothing. The hardest thing about wearing it is putting it on, which most knights got help with anyway.

>>49562181
>A young man and woman stop to rest at the tower, having run away from home to elope.

>A glimmering white stag with an uncanny presence has been spotted in the forest.

>A distraught merchant returns to the tower looking for the coin purse he lost on the road.

>A befuddled wizard suddenly appears in the tower and knows not where he's teleported to.

>A cat has somehow found its way up from the town in the valley and attaches itself to the PCs.

>A woman selling various potions, elixirs and panceas drops in trying to sell her wares.

>>49567148
Full Plate is more than Metal clothing. It restricts your movement and dexterity. It's the trade off for the protection it gives.

>>49567106
A nice assortment. I think I like the jelly one the best because of its capability for absurd hijinks.

>>49567106
>>49567311
Thanks, I'm gonna think of some more and post them later.

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>>49567242
>It restricts your movement
No, it doesn't.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyCq9GLVZ2Q
>and dexterity
Depends on what you mean by "dexterity." If you mean in D&D terms, where "dexterity" is "manual dexterity," "speed," "acrobatic ability," and "physical coordination," then it's a vague enough term to be meaningless in the real world.
If you mean "dexterity" as in "manual dexterity," that would probably depend on the kind of gauntlets you're wearing. If you mean "dexterity" as in "speed," you would also be wrong: there's nothing about wearing armor that prevents one from running quickly, although they might tire faster. If you mean "acrobatic ability" or "physical coordination," again, this would be unimpaired insofar as you are essentially wearing very heavy clothing and would tire quickly. Metal armor is specifically articulated so as NOT to restrict movement: an armorer would have to be dazzlingly stupid to create a piece of armor that rendered its wearer vulnerable to falling down and getting stuck, because that would defeat the purpose of wearing armor in the first place.

Stop getting your information on history from RPG handbooks and vidya.

>>49567429
The guy in the gif actually has a tiny bit of trouble getting up after the roll in the complete video. That might be just him fumbling a bit though. But it's true, Plate doesn't seem to restrict movement nearly as much as people say it would.
Original video to the gif: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvCvOC2VwDc

In hopes of forestalling an argument, perhaps we can turn this discussion into a happening for the Watchtower:

>The PC guards and a group of traveling NPCs get engrossed in a discussion of arms, armor, and the training needed to wield and wear both.

>>49567429
I think that anon was talking about in game thinking, not IRL armor. Game balance for armor is a thing to keep in mind.

Anyway, This whole thread reminds me of Pathfinder's Kingmaker adventure path.

>>49567544
>Pathfinder's Kingmaker

Thank you! I've been trying to remember that that was called since the beginning of the thread!

>>49567499
>Two farmers approach the guards for help in settling a bet
>One says that armor is too heavy to run in because you'd get hot and give up, the other one insists that he saw part of a battle once and the fellows in suits were as nimble as you could see
>They ask to borrow a suit of armor from the guards' armory and help one of them try it on, so they can see who will win in a race
>once one of them is wearing the armor they start racing
>they don't stop running
>...
>it was a ruse to steal the armor, and you just fell for it. Better go catch them, find whoever they sell the armor to, or get enough money to buy a new one before the armorer comes by and finds out you lost it!

>>49567598
No problem. That adventure path had some great concepts and flaws as well. Still, it was fun as hell.

>>49567657
>local cat-burglar wishes to test his abilities and offers a bribe to the tower guards to let him climb the tower several times a day for a week

>>49567657
This is a really good one, and has a lot of potential as a game-starter. As the PCs are chasing down the thieves, they all stumble across a larger happening in progress or evidence of some mystery that will become more important as the game goes on.

>>49567693
>The PCs turn on cat-burgler and give him an offer he can't refuse. He either works for the PCs with their adventures or he goes to jail.

>>49567339

>An old Gnoll mystic is found sleeping in your makeshift stables.

>You've been doing your job at the tower for several months, recently your employer has gotten several new recruits and assigns a few to your station. You must teach them what to do. In addition, you can now explore the nearby area more freely, since you have less responsibilities.

>The town, having been happy with your assistance, decide to have their monthly festival near the tower as a way to say thanks.

>A tailor from the nearby village decides to make some basic tapestries for the PCs as a way to say thanks. They really help liven the place up.

>The PCs find an elderly man fishing in the nearby lake every few days. Eventually he'll teach the PCs how to fish and gift them some fishing poles.

A young courtier from the village visits all the nearby towers in case anyone wants to exchange messages that aren't just tower signals. He delivers messages to the PCs from the village and the other towers, commonly these are thank you letters, other times it's letters from the other towers asking about how things are going.

>While investigating the deep in the forest, the PCs find an few tipis around a single elegant treehouse. Upon closer inspection they learn that it's a druid camp, though the druids often shun the PCs, they aren't afraid to trade items or make small talk.

>>49567759

>There is a nice fire pit next to the tower, it's perfect for bonfires and cooking fires.
In addition, the NPC leader of the tower used to be a bard, and he'll play songs at night near the fire.

>The PCs are asked by their employer to fly the flag of their king/leader, unfortunately they have no flagpole, so they must spend time making one.

>A PC receives some chocolates from a "secret admirer", what's strange about this is that Cocoa is rather sparse in the local area, and too expensive for most of the townsfolk.

Been working on a similar idea to this, kind of ripping off Sora No Woto. It's a guard post on the border between two continental powers, a large empire and a small principality, in the pseudo-1930s. The characters would be soldiers in the border guard.

The watchtower is remote, five hours driving from the nearest small town, with a tiny village an hour in the other direction. There's a small river visible halfway to the horizon which is the actual border.

The tower itself is somewhat run down, though the radio in the command post is powerful enough to reach town, it only works half the time. There's a broken-down light tank in the garage, along with a jeep-like vehicle. There are maybe four guns in the whole tower, two bolt-action rifles, the Sergeant's pistol and one each light and medium machine guns.

The tower was built by a previous government, and was well constructed. There's a boiler for heat, a generator to power the radio and lights, and space for easily five times as many soldiers as currently occupy it. It was meant to have a squad of infantry and a tank available as a rapid-reaction force. Now, there's half a section, and the tank doesn't work.

If the players pick the right skillsets, they can o a lot with the place: get the tank running, fix the place up, prevent the next Great War, and so on. It's generally intended to be a cozy campaign.

I had a thought about why an entire garrison would have to be shipped out to a frontier outpost near a village, rather than simply filled by the locals.

It has already been several years--or, perhaps, it has only been several years--since the peace after a long war. Land neither lost nor taken, the kingdom's borders still remain near enough to this sleepy hamlet, but it is neither near enough nor at an important enough juncture to warrant a large garrison; a simple watchtower is all that is here for the conduct of war, if such a thing would even come to a small place like this. Still, war came here in other ways--nearly an entire generation of young people did not return to this hamlet, having fought and died at those borders. Thus those who make these kinds of decisions send a few soldiers out to this simple watchtower that the hamlet cannot garrison itself. Perhaps some of these soldiers are a green sort, having been too young to have fought in the war but now old enough to be called to 'peacetime' service. Or perhaps there are veterans among them who chose not to turn their swords in for ploughshares, whatever their reasons. Would some.of the villagers see these newcomers as surrogate children and siblings, having lost their own, and others see the soldiers as bitter reminders of what was lost? Could some feel both are once? And what of the rare one who returned by merit of being maimed before being killed, and Thu unfit to serve in the watchtower. How would they feel about the raw recruits who did not experience what they had, or of the veterans who did but came out comparatively unscathed--would they be a friend and mentor, or scornful?

>>49567902
>>49567759
I really like these, because I love giving PCs and their players rewards for the things they do beyond money and experience points. I feel like these sorts of rewards are the most meaningful for the PCs and memorable for their players, and are a good way to get the people in your group invested in their characters and the setting.

>>49568304
No problem, I really enjoy coming up with encounter ideas and what rewards players can receive. I'll post a few more in a bit.

>>49568482
Another advantage could be they if the PCs aid/save a group of prospectors a number of times, the better a find they will make near the tower. from a weak assistance, like coal, limestone or copper mine. mid level like Iron, silver, or Mithril. to high level like gold, gems, to adamantine mine.

>>49546892
This is hilarious

>>49568548
>>49568304
>>49567902
>>49567759
This all makes for an interesting alternative means of character and story progression, where it's not necessarily the PCs themselves getting more and more powerful on a personal basis, but their bonds of friendship and community growing stronger and therefore granting more boons and bonuses as they enrich the lives of the game's NPCs and improve their little watchtower town.

>>49546675
Fuck. I want to build a boss ass tower terrain piece and turn a game like this now.

>A huge military column marches northwards to pacify the border tribes
>During the following night, screams can be heard on the wind
>The cavalry detatchment rides back the following morning, blood streaked and their ranks sparse
>The army was slaughtered, they want to run but during the night (River flooded, Landslide, duststorm or other impeding factor)
>The party, whatever NPCs they can muster, the remnants of the cavalry regiment and the friends they have made in the course of the campaign must fight off the horde
Damn zulu was a good movie

>>49562623
I think you're more likely to have rotating shifts, with new members and ones on punishment getting the worse shifts. Like Day in high summer or night in the cold of winter.

It's even more reason to have players who can't make it just be sleeping/on a different shift.

>>49563934
>ARE YOU CALLING MY DAUGHTER A LIAR?!

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>>49546675
>The players see distant flames in the darkness, ones which are indicative of an army. This is the moment they have waited for, the moment they have trained for. They know they must investigate the army in order to send a dispatch rider to call for reinforcements
>The players approach in the dead of night, but notice that the flames, which are growing closer, are rather smaller than expected.
>The players arrive to find a full army... The tallest member of which is perhaps three or four inches tall. Tiny voices scream "Giants!"
>A hail of arrows flies up from the army... and fails to penetrate the party wizard's robes, let alone armor. The arrows are so tiny, fragile, and light that they can't even break the players' skin.
>A ballista shot flies out, striking a devestating blow.
>"Davin, you don't take any damage, but the ballista bolt, fired by the mighty army's artillery, jabs into your thigh maybe a quarter of an inch."
>The army begins to scream in terror before a tiny wizard approaches, awing the common soldiers.
>"The wizard will slay the giants with his mighty magic!" One of the soldiers squeaks.
"Foul creatures, fall before the might of my Chain Lightning!" The wizard cries.
>"Okay guys, you don't take any damage. It stings, sort of like you just shuffled across a carpet and touched the door handle."
>The army flees the mighty giants.

>>49564032
I know it's cliche, but I honestly think GURPS would be a great fit.

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>>49571588

>>49551371
I agree. Sort of Slice of Life using NPC classes. Maxium cozy. Maxium RP. Whole lotta laughs and critical thinking. Low risk missions, with more problem sloving than combat.

> something is scaring up flocks of birds on its trip through the woods. Its headed toward town.
In reality its a golem that lost its master and has to be guided away.
>PCs have to find out whats taking their chickens.
Just a fox
>a traveling merchant begins to sell his wares next to the tower, but doesnt pass since he doesnt have the correct paper work.
>while checking the wood supply you notice some simple upgrades could be done on the tower.
>a duke and his escort want to camp outside the tower during their hunt. They also request a guide.
>a old dungeon opens up and the PCs must shut it before any adventures terrorize the peaceful region.
>a small child has gone missing near the marsh. Though not far, the marsh gives countless horror stories for mothers to scare their kids with.
>religious pilgrims are headed the wrong way and believe they are headed toward a popular site
>FUCKING FESTIVALLLLLSSSSSS
FIREWORKS
FEASTS
FAIRS
FAIR MAIDENS
FOOD!!!

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>>49571793

>>49571961
Exactly my thinking.

This thread is fan-fucking-tastic. My god. I put the highlights that I plan on using into a 4-page word document. I feel as though I have to contribute.

>For my group in their base-town there is an older group of adventurers, they're missing a friend that was a paladin that turned oathbreaker when one of his actions caused a party member to lose their child.
>Oathbreaker takes up learning to avenge his actions in an old forgotten tower, where in the basement is an evil orb that was owned by the same powerful forgotten wizard that erected the tower long ago
>Duke asks group to clear out oathbreaker for him and his land
>Duke of land will offer them the chance of barony if they can clear orcs from the lands that were stolen and help extend the Duke's township from the newly liberated tower
>commence watch and building of society as a home base, where after awhile of bringing on recruits, adventurers are able to travel again and adventure after ~2-4 sessions of quick encounter resolutions

In this, there would be a progression of
>Deal with the evil orb that causes horror themes like specters, visions, etc.
>begin mapping the land and exploring, allowing them to create a map of their own
>begin clearing out orc establishments while duke checks in every now and then
>get warrant to begin building settlements for various reasons for the town
>recruit people to do watch as they clear more orcs and adventure more
>able to give friends chances to start businesses, as the land they're clearing was an old trade road to another kingdom seperate of the duke's alliance

Sorry about my massive GM boner. I want to see them build there happy towns then watch them turmoil over not being murder hobos and forgetting adventuring at times to keep their towns safe

>>49571588
Fukken beautiful. You know who makes the model?

Ideally I would want something i can open up and use the inside of to.

I was thinking maybe using some dwarves forge stuff for the tower. At least the first couple levels and the basement.

>>49564032
I'd probably run it in hero system.

Torchbearer might work to, it's pretty heavy on the social situations as combat thing.

I think i can somehow integrate this into my campaign.

My players are on the run from the law after being labelled criminals by the crown so a sympathetic Duke arranges it so that they'll man a watchtower near a remote border town in his domain while they wait for the fiasco to die down.

The tower would normally be manned by militia from said town but harvest season is approaching so the town will need all the manpower it needs. The border itself is peaceful and there aren't any (known) dungeons nearby so it'll be the last place the authorities will think to check when looking for a group of murderhobos.

The players get a relatively comfy and lowkey place to stay in and the Duke doesn't have to use up any gold hiring regular mercs.

I could probably spice it up with some of the weird shit here or a hidden dungeon mini-campaign, but it shouldn't last more than a couple of sessions.

>>49573457
Could have the guard duty be a part of sentencing if they're caught.

Knowing that the kingdom is in need of men at arms, some judges are willing to accept military service as a plea bargain, or as a way to help commute a sentence. I could see an overworked and disheveled public defender giving the party the "good news".

They can either try to get a cushy assignment, or someone like the Duke can pull strings.

It would mean forcing a CO on the party, until this service was up, or thirty situation changed. Probably a tough as nails vet, so they don't get the idea of murdering him and running off. Or maybe a less intimidating officer who just happens to have the command words for their explosive collars.

My current campaign is based out of a portal connected multi wing complex spread out over the entire planet. It was a functioning base in need of repair left over from an ancient ultra advanced civilization that had magi-tech.

In the end, It wound up functioning much like the watch tower, but had access to many different locations all over the world and beyond. For a higher powered game (in my case Mythical backed Pathfinder), this could work well. For an epic themed games where the tower is the access way to other locations for the PCs to complete their quests with out having to go long distances over land and sea. Or use of teleportation magic either.

>>49563405
>Watchtower used to be part of a bordering country you were at war with
>PC goes up to the top to take night watch
>Sees a ghost of a watchman
>Ghost freaks out and tries to light the signal fire
>Calls downstairs that (your country's) soldiers have invaded
>Other PC's wake up with ghosts in their beds
>Ghosts are just as panicked

>>49573783
>Players have to stop the ghosts from lighting the fire AND track down a lawyer to get the ghosts evicted.

>>49573847
>They get the ghosts evicted, but then they have to find a priest to exorcise the lawyer

>>49573867
>The lawyer turns out to be a real devil. Things get messier.

>>49574003
>After finally exercising the messy devil, the party must labor all night to put the plates back in order and wipe down the machines.

>>49574003
>priest can't has to go to town to replace his mace because his faith won't let him use a messer

>>49561882
also the fact it works well if say, a particular player cant make a session one week. easy to play off as "bob's gone to the village for supplies, wont be back till next week"

>>49562181
>No one passes by on the road all day and the PCs must find ways to amuse themselves.
Brilliant.

>>49563011
I would probably run it like a lot of players have run L5R, players taking turns on solo watch at night and creepy shit happening to them that the other players dont see.

>>49567106
>every jelly is unique and many have odd labels
I had a room like this in a dungeon once. It was like a chessboard except every tile did something random. Knives from the ceiling, bats attacking, water rising from the floor, one square just dropped a piece of cake the the players were so fucking paranoid it took them 30 minutes to decide if they wanted to eat it or not. (it was fine)

>>49567183
>ZAP
>THUNK
>hear a noise in the upstairs closet during a late night game of cards
>old dumbledore motherfucker just sitting there in Pvt. Jenkin's soiled codpiece hamper
>"oh, oh dear... oh where am I?"

>>49546675
>For the first few sessions the next tower in the line is visible
>Next tower out a ways fires its warning fire twice
>Only signaling for minor support and not to alert the next in the line
>PC's head out
>There is no tower where they expect one to be
>Come back and look over all their document
>There is no tower listed
>Each night after the tower gets closer
>Weird things happen on the tower
>One night it seems there is a fight
>Another the tower is a smoking husk
>There seems to be no rhyme or reason to it
>Finally the tower is close enough for the PC's to see the figures clearly
>Its them

At that point take it however you want but I would go with it being an "echo" of death closing in on them. Each vision was a way they are/were likely to die. Something is wrong in the tower and they have to figure out what before death closes in and claims them.

>>49567902
>>49568482
>>49569745

Here's one if the campaign goes on for a while.
>A trainer brings a bunch of recruits to the tower so the PCs can demonstrate how to properly run a guard tower.

>The PC spellcasters begin to detect something odd, the longer they ignore it the stronger the feeling gets. Eventually even non spellcasters begin to feel it.
This one ties in well with several other events, the more mysterious the better.

>A bunch of trained and equipped horses appear near the tower, yet their owners are nowhere to be found. They act friendly to the PCs.

>The local blacksmith and carpenter become interested in reinforcing the tower, and even building a small shack nearby. However they require the PCs to get some lumber for the project.

>A semi close town is known for it's fabulous bazaar, which features several stalls with various goods. After helping out the village with tracking down a lost supply shipment, they offer the PCs a few free gifts from the bazaar. This ranges from exotic spices, a crate of incorrectly made potions (which are labeled for what they "might" do), some well made shields, and a couple loafs of bread.

>The PCs wake up to find all their personal items to be in areas they shouldn't be. Yet nothing is actually missing.

>A guard from another tower begs for some of your supplies, apparently they were robbed and it's hard to contact your employer. He has the look of an official guard and when questioned, he has all the paperwork. Yet you've never heard of him, this is partially to not having visited some of the other towers, oddly he does know most of the PCs by name.

>>49574599
Here's another quick one.

>A PC with masculinity issues discovers his armor was swapped with that of the opposite gender. This is just a harmless prank. However in the aftermath, the pranker can't find the PCs old armor despite hiding it in a secure location. This raises several questions as far as where the armor is.

>>49546675
>One foggy morning, the PCs see a looming shape over their tower; as the day progresses, and the fog thins, they see it's their tower... upside-down, complete with an upside-down planet. Minor differences can be seen between the crew of that tower and the PCs. The next morning it's gone.
>A herd of geese has uncharacteristically stopped at your tower and blocked every entrance. Any attempt of shooing them off is met with geese violence.
>A mole dug into the basement while one of the PCs are there. A loud 'Ahoy!' can be heard, after which the mole retreats, leaving a sizable hole that the PCs can walk into.
>A little girl suddenly appears from thin air and mimics the PC's actions for one day. Any attempts of physical contact just results in the little girl disappearing, and reappearing somewhere else in the tower.
>It rains. And rains. And rains. Strangely, no water gets into the tower, even if it seems that the outside world has been drowned in rainwater.
>A Goblin Circus has set up camp in the tower, and just how they fit ten trained elephants and owlbears in the place boggles your mind; even more so the gigantic tent and stage they erected in the first floor. After the goblins pack up and exit into the cellar door, they pay you in exotic fruits that nobody can identify.
>Suddenly, one PC's facial hair grows to a magnificent volume and style, even though they aren't biologically or physically able to. Later in the evening, a wizard with scraggly beard flies in, sorry that he miscast his daily magnificent beard spell, and dispels the beard from the PC in question.

>>49574651
I should really name up.

>Strange moans can be heard at night, when investigated it seems that they come from the nearby well. During the day, the party sees nothing unusual or strange inside, however at night is a different story...

>An Airship (assuming your setting has them) stops close to the tower, a single dwarf knocks on the tower's door. The dwarf asks for their location. Apparently they're lost.

Will definitely post more I'm the morning, once I feel more creative.

>>49574804
Love the last one.

>>49574885
In the morning*
Silly auto correct.

>>49574885
>Airship
I've actually been thinking of doing a game involving PCs getting a small airship. Giving the party an airship once they've established themselves at their tower would let them go off on some actual adventures while tying them at least somewhat to the region since I don't like to say "no you're not allowed to go fly off into the sunset".

>>49546675
>An ominous skeletal spectre dressed in black robes and wielding a scythe knocks on the tower's door in the middle of the night. The ominous presence declares itself as death incarnate, and asks the PCs where Bob McNPC lives. He's late for their annual chess game.
>A divine trumpet sounds from high up above the tower, and a host of angels ride down from a ray of light. A deity rolls down in their chariot, and opens the door, asking for one of the PC's name. But when the PC in question is presented before them, the deity looks incredulous, and double-checks on their notebook, and then argues with an angel in divine tongue. "Oh sorry, wrong (PC's name). Here, have a boon in my name." The entire entourage then rides up the ray of light and disappears. Problem is, nobody knows just who the deity is.
>Someone who seems like they're of royal blood walks to the tower, barefoot, and demanding to be let in. Some time later an entourage of knights, serfs and other nobles arrive, and picks up the king, who had been de-horsed in a hunt.
>The PCs awake one morning to find their tower had turned into a mad wizard's laboratory, complete with a confused Igor. In fact, this is not their tower at all, even though it's supposed to be in the right place! The mad wizard runs in some time later, exclaiming that he's perfected the tower-teleportation spell!

>>49573382
Just found the model here:

http://www.tabletop-world.com/guardTower.php

It is beautiful, large and does seem to come apart so that you can look inside, but it also appears to be somewhat pricy. Then again, I don't know your budget or what's really considered "expensive" for a model of this size and detail.

>>49574952
>tying them at least somewhat to the region
The airship is an experimental project, requires refined fuel/charged crystals and the equipment needed to provide them is installed at the tower. An attempt to dismantle/move it carries a significant risk of fuckup. Bam, you have an airship that gives the PCs some freedom of movement but can't be moved out of the region easily.

>>49567183
>From their tower, the PCs can see a new town being established out on the frontier past their border.

>A talking dog claiming to be "Max the Miracle Mutt" shows up outside the tower, doing magic tricks for bones.

>A rival group of guardsmen ride up from town and attempt to hassle the PCs for spare rations and armaments.

>A tearful young Tiefling girl carrying a Human baby in her arms appears seeking shelter from the rain.

>The tower has accumulated too much junk over the years, so the PCs begin selling it off to passersby.

>A jolly group of huntsmen drop by one night to roast and eat their kill; a beast the PCs have never seen before.

>In celebration of a holy day, all the church bells the valley town have kept ringing distractingly.

>Over the course of a day, strangely beautiful flowers have begun to grow and bloom all across the hilltop.

>A traveling vintner stops by and offers the guardsman an extra wine barrel he's brought at a discount.

>A gelatinous cube has gotten into the basement storeroom and now fills the entire space.

>Due to a clerical error, the tower does not have quite enough lamp oil to last until the next resupply run.

>The PCs just start noticing the strange and ancient runes carved into the stones of their tower.

>A group of pious clergymen and women on a long journey stop for a break and recount stories of their youths.

>An adventurous old inventor accidentally crashes his clockwork flying machine into the side of the tower.

>An pushy traveling salesman drops by the tower to sell his wares and will not take no for an answer.

>>49575091
God damnit.
I can only assume this is a teen horror movie ala Jennifers Body and ask for sauce, google gives nothing.

>>49575747
>>A group of pious clergymen and women on a long journey stop for a break and recount stories of their youths.
Chaucer, stop pushing your tales here, man! Do it somewhere else, like, Canterbury! Nah yer good

>>49575643
You could also make the airship a small one, something cozy and comfortable but unsuitable for use as a mobile base. That way, the tower remains the PCs' home while the airship can be used for exploration.

>>49573783
>The watchtower is an ancient one that has changed hands many times over the centuries as the borders have been redrawn again and again and again. As a result, it is a mishmash of architectural styles from all the repairs and additions different nations, cultures and races have made while the tower was under their stewardship.

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>>49562003
>An old woman passing through offers to perform a tarot reading. As she packs up to leave, she looks through her deck and notices a card has gone missing: the tower.

>You spot a light not unlike torchlight up the road from your post one night. Upon seeing it, it begins to approach the watchtower at near blinding speeds. As it comes, it is joined by other lights who all charge towards you. Just as the figures carrying the torches would become visible, the lights immediately vanish.

>>49575770
>google gives nothing.
It's in the title. The movie is called "Rules of Attraction", actress is Jessica Biel, and you can watch the scene with sound here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRA5CU_eJ6Y
It's no horror, just another one of those stupid american movies about how everyone is a whore and a cunt and because cynicism fuck yeah. It's based on a book by the guy who also wrote original American Psycho. Go figure.

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>>49548904
>Something keeps knocking on the door to the tower before vanishing.

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>>49575941
>You occasionally hear scratching noises from what sounds like the walls of your tower. Inspection reveals fingernails lodged in the crevices.

>A boy wanders out of the nearby woods and runs to your post. He excitedly informs you that he's spotted a poacher and asks for your help apprehending him. He leads you through the forest to a corpse whose hands and feet have been severed.

>>49574952
Use it like the Wyvern Academy in Monster Hunter. Short range hot air ballon, able to post up next to a base camp, and used to sight large monsters or disturbances for adventurers.

>TFW this is the most comfy thread youve seen in a couple weeks.

>>49576549
>TFW this is the most comfy thread you've seen in a couple weeks.
I assume you've seen the previous lighthouse threads? If not, go read them. They're equally awesome (but with a large dose of requested creepy).

>>49574952
>since I don't like to say "no you're not allowed to go fly off into the sunset".

Easy. Make it not their airship. It belongs to the state and you can bet your ass they'll be hunting you down with much bigger airships or worse

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>>49576234
>The nails keep getting higher and higher every night. The knocking on the door gets louder and louder, starting to leave dents and bloodstains, accompanied by snapping noises.

>>49576549
>>TFW this is the most comfy thread youve seen in a couple weeks.

Our PCs here aren't a group of murderhoboes or big damn heroes scouring the globe for magical mcguffins or hunting down the BBEG to prevent the apocalypse because of some ancient prophecy.

Our PCs are guardsmen and women, comfortably stationed at a frontier watchtower, finding ways to amuse themselves between helping travelers on the road and dealing with the ocassional danger.

Watchtower is much more intimate and personal and comfy because its setting is so limited in scale and scope.

This thread has gotten my GM boner so goddamned hard.

>>49574885

>A large group of refugees pass by the tower.

>The village's huntsman hunts in the woods near your tower, he has no issues chatting for a bit with the PCs.

>A tired entourage of bards stop by the tower at night, they set up tents in the nearby field. They have a very nice bonfire and aren't afraid of sharing some stories with the PCs.

>A group of polite adventurer's request directions to the next city, they pay you with a bag filled with rare coins, several gold and platinum pieces, and a few gems.

>You find an old doll in the basement, there's some initials on the doll's left foot.

>You discover a magic device which plays a simple song, it helps pass the time.

>>49575747
>A night drinking the NPC guard's homebrewed beer gets the PCs blackout drunk and horribly hungover.

>A woman claiming to be the wife of an unmarried PC stops by the tower to dote on him and the other the guards.

>The PCs must intervene in a fight when a minor matter of regional politics brings a pair of travelers to blows.

>A strong wind picks up out of nowhere, bringing with it the sound of waves and the smell of a distant sea.

>An elven artist seeks the guards' permission to depict them, their tower and the hill in a new painting.

>The PCs suspect that the young guardswoman recruited for the tower's nightwatch may be a vampire.

>A local shepherd has lost three sheep from his flock and his sheepdog somewhere up on the hillside.

>The PCs discover a nearby cave system full of giant crystals that display their dreams and nightmares within.

>Four boys carrying bindle sticks make their way up the hill, seeking adventure after running away from home.

>A skeletal knight in shining armor rides by on a skeletal horse in brilliant barding, offering the guards a hearty greeting.

>>49574952
>The PC's awaken one morning to find a letter announcing some senior officers are coming for an inspection

I wanna combine this with some other ideas in the thread...

>Officers arrive
>reveal that they want the PC's to test a new airship prototype for a few weeks
>airship uses a new special kind of magic fuel that's very dangerous to handle
>fuel has to be stored carefully and safely in the tower (maybe they have to build something to store it in)

And then you could use the fuel as a way to keep them within a short distance of the tower without having to actually say it.

If they stray too far they run out of fuel, someone has to run back to the tower and bring more in the dark without dropping it.

>>49575747
>new town being established on the frontier
maximum comfort

bonus points if you have the village gradually expand during a long tower campaign.

>>49575747
>Due to a clerical error, the tower does not have quite enough lamp oil to last until the next resupply run.
Perfect. Long cold dark nights, noises and movement in the moonlit shadows.

>>49577639
>The guardsmen have a spyglass or telescope that they can use to watch the little frontier town grow up with.

>The things that they see through it can provide a whole new venue for heartwarming or weirdness.

>>49577587
>The PCs must intervene in a fight when a minor matter of regional politics brings a pair of travelers to blows.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEBdBLt0Sek

>>49577736
that telescope idea is perfect.

>NPC says he saw the silouette of a guy stabbing someone in the window of a house in the village
>PCs cant leave the tower to investigate, it's too far
>they go to get a carrier pidgeon only realise that Jimmy the Pidgeon has escaped
>they search the forest for hours
>hear a pidgeon's "coo coo"
>turn and see it sitting on top of a sleeping giant's head

>>49576717
I rarely play murderhobos in my games, I'm just surprised to see a thread dedicated about it with all the shitposting, complaining, and minmaxing threads lately. I'll have to check out the light house threads.

You guys bring me a warm, funny feeling.

>>49577802
It's real nice to have a thread like this when we can.

I am >>49577266
>>49577802
>>49577878
I'm trying my best to bump this thread up every few hours so more people can see it. A lot of the suggestions are really nice, and can often be used in games where PC movement isn't so strict. For example if the PCs are in a town for a while you can easily use most of the suggestions just to add a little flair to the adventure.

>>49546983
Bich you dont concern yourself with the death of dogs?

>>49577792
>A character develops a crush on the plump, redheaded baker's daughter down in the village after spying her through the telescope one day.

>Conspiring with the regional courier and various passers by, the PCs and NPCs of the watchtower work together to get the pair to begin exchanging letters.

>A relationship by post blossoms between them, and by the end of the game the two lovebirds get to meet for the first time there at the watchtower.

>>49577953
You're right in that a lot of these events and happenings can be used in a wide variety of settings. At the very least, I think brainstorming for a watchtower and guardsmen game like this has gotten us to think up some wonderfully simple and self-contained fantasy plot hooks in this thread.

>>49577953
Ive been adding mine as well but mine sound like a Dogs in the Vineyard setting.

>A caravan passes. It's a circus. They bring strange, exotic creatures, and liven up the place. Their spectacular tricks and illusions are quite incredible. The most exciting event is, however, the daring escape of a slave hidden in one of the wagons.

>Some strange objects can be seen falling out of the sky, coming towards your position. Screaming towards the earth at absolutely inane speeds, they lodge firmly into the ground just before your tower, in your nation's land. They are adventurers that managed to destroy some BBEG's magical airship, and boarded emergency escape pods. They chose a random place to land, and it just happened to be near you. They are also a bit hungry, and may or may not be slightly wounded.

>An invading army appears out of nowhere and attacks!... Another invading army. That comes out of nowhere. That attacks the first at the same time. While initially almost impossible, markings indicate that both of them belong to countries that are nowhere near your border. Or your nation. What the fuck.

>Flashes of light can be seen in the night, followed by sound. The morning after, you can spot, quite difficultly, little puddles of blood in the grass. It's a man with an AKM. He hunts local wildlife for food, and managed to use local resources to make his own parts and rounds. In a fantasy setting. On a related note, could a blacksmith circa 1300-1400 make casings and parts for the gun without getting stupidly expensive? We'll assume he knows exactly what to do, or that there's someone that does and tells him.

Fucking 2000 character limit.

>>49564770

There were never Hollywood types. Myself and TVanon went through various people we knew--some amateur filmmakers, some not--looking for interest.

Everything thus far has fallen through. My scripts remain in my GoogleDrive. C'est la vie.

>>49573783
>the ghosts are ghosts of the PCs

>>49578313
Love the idea of Nightwatch, hopefully you guys are able to produce something with the concept. I honestly wouldn't mind seeing a webcomic.

>>49578100
>NPC guard, drunk, drinks a strange potion he found in the basement one night when his bottle of whisky ran out
>he looks through spyglass
>falls in love
>PCs have to stop the NPC guard from leaving the tower to chase her because the love potion went bad from sitting in the basement too long

>>49578313
Ah, my misunderstanding then!

It's a real shame that thugs haven't gotten off the ground as we all would have liked, but your efforts have been appreciated by everyone who's worked on or played in the Night Shift setting over the years. I really enjoyed the scripts you'd shared with us, and something might come of them yet someday.

I think the best parts of this setting is the flexibility. If a player cant make it to the session one week you can just pass it off as their character on patrol or doing a supply run.

If someone leaves or joins the campaign halfway through then you can just pass it off as "oh we have a new recruit just got transferred in" and the veteran PCs have to show him the ropes.

>>49578233
>On a related note, could a blacksmith circa 1300-1400 make casings and parts for the gun without getting stupidly expensive? We'll assume he knows exactly what to do, or that there's someone that does and tells him.
I guess. The real humdinger is making proper gun powder.

>>49578416
"Dammit Jenkins you will not abandon your post!"
"But I love her!"
"YOU'VE NEVER MET HER!"

>>49578233
The only thing that might be hard in blacksmithing AKMs would be metal, not sure if medieval steel is good enough. Very high skill and a well outfitted specialized forge is also a must.

>>49578416
The guardsman could also fall in love with a tree or a chair or a deer, and the PCs must prevent him from doing something with the object of his affection that he'd regret sober.

Or not!

They could just let the potion and his passion run their course and hold whatever happens over the guardsman's head forever as blackmail material or an embarassing in-joke.

>>49578444
That's a good point. There really is a very pleasing simplicity to the whole concept.

>>49577587
>The proprietor of the worst tavern in town bribes the guards with booze to send travelers his way.

>A circle of ancient standing stones atop a nearby crag sing songs of strife and suffering when it storms.

>A neighbor's request for a quick hand with a few chores results in the PCs becoming farmers for the day.

>The guards while away an evening playing with an old wand a passing wizard threw away.

>A clock face, hands and mechanical innards are delivered for installation in the tower, but there are no instructions.

>>49578416
>>49578460
Or, you know, just romance by heliograph with a guard from the next tower.

If I ever run this I'll present it against a backdrop of looming war. This is a frontier after all, barely claimed territory. So it makes sense that the powers that be would have their defensive lines just a wee bit back from the actual border, with shoddy guardhouses like this occupying the countryside.

And so, the session would continue for many in game months, possibly even years. Seasonal events would be popular, with the weather in game matching the weather outside. But all the while there are news bulletins of the outside worlds goings on. Until finally, after building trust with the villagers and local spirits and such, after many little adventures, after building a small hamlet of their own around the watchtower, the guards would see an army with the enemy colors on the horizon. A few sessions of the army camping outside the border, us trying to communicate to no success etc. Followed by the battle of tower 53. While their defense was valiant, certainly more striking than an undermanned guard post had any right to be, the PCs are overwhelmed. This is in part due to convincing their friends in the surrounding village to stay at home, to not fight alongside them against this insurmountable force, for even if they win today, a larger army will wipe their tiny villages out. And so the PCs die, the tower is razed and the war properly commences over some far of king and the state of his far off throne. End of campaign.

>>49579584
In the end, all the PCs' adventures, their fun and their follies and their friendships mean naught in the face of such a war, and even their grand final battle against the enemy will be remembered only as a small footnote in history. That's beautifully tragic, and the kind of thing that gets players to both love and hate their DMs.

>>49579531
Two guards from different towers having a romance over semaphore or signal lamp would be a great little storyline to include.

>>49579824
>Two guards share a romance by signal light between two remote borderlands watchtowers.

>Their relationship flourishes while constant overtures of war rumble in the background.

>When the enemy's army finally attacks, the other tower is the one that gets attacked first.

>One last message is sent between the towers, to warn of the invasion and declare their love.

>The signal lamp is snuffed out before the message is finished.

>>49580029
I didnt need these feelings today, anon

>>49580029
Damn. Right in the feels.

>>49580029
Makes me think it's be fun to have a mini game where the GM uses the signals to spell out words and the players decode them a letter at a time. If for no other reason then to watch thier dawning horror.

>I

>L
>O
>V
>E

>Y
>-message ends

>>49580694
That is a wonderful and terrible idea. I love it.

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>>49552131
How can we come up with coast guard ideas without lighthouses?

>A dingy with rowed by an emancipated man carrying a fat sack hits the shore.

>A couple of kids are skipping stones at the beach, but the stones don't look ordinary.

>A wagon comes by driven by a woman, convinced she can ride atop the water.

>A harpy with seagull-like features perches on the lighthouse and declares it her new perch.

>Kids keep putting graffiti on the tower, and now they started turning out the light.

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>>49581229

>a team of architects come to develop land for the people the party helps around the watch tower. Their crooked and inept.

>the leaves from the trees in the nearby forest play a single note as they fall in autumn, a band of local bards tries to capture the songs

>a snowstorm has blocked the passage through to the watchtower. Worse still, the resupply caravan hasn't arrived on time and a flare has shot up in the direction they've come.

>the butchers daughter has ran off with the families prized sow because she is against the slaughter of her childhood friend. The butcher promises double meat rations for the guards for the safe return of both.

>>49581487
I know that place. It's in Armenia. It made me base an entire culture heavily on Armenia in my world building.

>>49580694
>H.E.Y. B.A.B.E. S.O.R.R.Y. G.H.O.S.T. P.R.O.B.L.E.M.S.

>............

>W.H.E.R.E. W.E.R.E. W.E. ?

>............
>O.H. Y.E.S.
>I. G.E.N.T.L.Y. C.A.R.E.S.S. Y.O.U.R...

>D.E.A.R.G.O.D.S.S.T.O.P.T.H.I.S.I.S.G.U.A.R.D.S.M.A.N.M.I.L.L.E.R.

>............

>G.U.A.R.D.S.W.O.M.A.N. B.E.C.K. H.A.D. T.O. S.T.E.P. O.U.T.
>W.O.U.N.D.E.D. F.A.R.M.E.R.

>............
>I.M. S.O. S.O.R.R.Y. A.B.O.U.T. T.H.A.T. J.U.S.T. N.O.W...

> the little old lady who brings the guardsmen pies every Sunday has been caused of witchcraft.

>The village mayor has asked the guardsmen to be impartial judges in the annual apple whiskey festival.

>The party awakens to a fire, a guard on the night shift fell asleep reading dirty comics by candlelight, and his precious collection is on fire.

>>49581636
I lol'd

If be fun for stuff like this to happen in game.
>Carefully transcribing code
> Half way through you realize it's another love note

>The players hear the ringing of church bells in a nearby town, at noon. They count the rings - one, two, all the way to eleven, twelve. The counting of a thirteenth ring is strange enough, but what is most intriguing is the massive carpet of rats, stretching almost a dozen meters back, all rushing down the road and heading for the nearby town...

>>49581768
There's something rather sweet about that. Another good application of signal transcription would be for rivalries and prank wars between towers.

>>49581808
I like this one. Your could do ask sorts of fable based things.

>A talking fox arrives at the watchtower. He won't shut up about how much he hates grapes.

>>49565068
I always am a fan of it's prison sentence for a crime you didn't commit.
other options
>you must reclaim honor
>you owe a lot of money to someone/thing and border posting in the gaurd is the perfect place to lie low/work off debt
>you used to be an adventurer too, untill you took an arrow in the knee

>>49581816
>Message from tower 46. They called us goat arse lickers, sir.
>This calls for drastic action.
>Bring me the plans for reprisal D.
>The ass shaped beacon, sir?
>That's the one.

>>49582071
There are a lot of reasons to become a guard.

>>49582530
Here's a few character ideas.

>Very Bitter Cleric who is tired of seeing the wounds of soldiers in the front line, was eventually able to convince their employer to sign them up for a watchtower job.

>Local Farmhand who wanted to repay the tower crew's generosity. He went through the basic academy and was able to join the guard. He often writes and visits his village whenever he has time.

>War veteran who was discharged from service, yet he still wants to help, so he signed up for guard duty.

>The Duke's daughter, not as cowardly as her father.

>Young wizard who grew up on stories of adventuring. Once he was old enough, he got a job working at the watchtower.

>A spy from a foreign kingdom, through a series of bad events he wound up several misfortunate events he ended up in the wrong kingdom. Unable to afford travel to his desired location, he decided to get a job at the watchtower in order to get the funds to get where he's supposed to.

>>49581589
>I know that place. It's in Armenia.

No, It's in Italy.
Santa maria della pietà, Rocca calascio, I've been there.

>>49566107
>storm of the century
>every one is 100 years older while the storm is going on

>>49582805
>The Duke's daughter
Why would a dukes daughter be a lowly guardsman?

>>49583063
Because muh strong wymin

>>49583289
I get that part. But couldn't she afford a commission? Or be trained enough to work up to officer?

>>49582805
>Local Farmhand
A FARMHAND that knows how to read and write and got himself through an "academy"?

>The Duke's daughter, not as cowardly as her father.
First of all, fuck off with the equality bullshit. Second of all:
Why the FUCK would Duke's damn daughter want or be allowed to work as a guard at a remote watch tower? And be the only woman there surrounded by lowlifes and lowborns?
I mean I guess that WOULD be brave, but also stupid and completely pointless and illogical.

>Once he was old enough, he got a job working at the watchtower.
What benefit does employing a wizard on a remote watch tower hold? Like: isn't there like a thousand posts where he could be more useful? Basically: any of them?

>>49583431
She wanted to work her way up from the bottom and earn her ranks legitimately. However, a general in the army with a grievance against her rather the Duke has stuck her as a guardswoman at a remote watchtower where there is very little opportunity for advancement.

>>49583063
To annoy him

>>49583554
>First of all, fuck off with the equality bullshit
...its okay anon, just breath in through the nose and out through the mouth

>>49575478
It looks great, but not quite perfect fit that price.

I think I might try a scratch build.

>>49583790
>Daddy issues
I like it.

>>49565122
>>49565806
Anons agree DnD is bad for this. Anon 2 can't name any good system implying every other system Anon 2 knows is also bad for this. So, why is DnD bad for this?

>>49584044
Dnd is very combat focused. Not to mention it pots ab emphasis on advancetv and accumulating treasure.

I think it'd use Torchbearer. It's not perfect, but it puts a lot of emphasis on non combat encounters and "social combat".

Mr Wrong of Wrongville Way, Wrongington writes in to say:
>>49567429

Try jumping in plate, you can't jump as high because your legs only develop a certain amount of power and the armour has substantial weight.

Same thing for running. You simply cannot run as fast in plate as when not in plate even if you are wearing the same kind of boot under your greaves and sabatons.

Try changing direction or slowing down or speeding up when running.

Presupposing you can do a hand stand when not in plate, try doing a hand stand in plate. Or a back flip. Or an instant stand.

Plate adds a lot of thickness to torso and limbs so range of movement is restricted. It's designed to restrict as little as possible while still affording protection but it's still restricted.

You were almost right when you wrote
>they might tire faster
but the fact is people do tire faster, not might, and
>"manual dexterity," that would probably depend on the kind of gauntlets
but it's not probably, it does. Any gauntlet lowers manual dexterity.

Stop getting your information on history from people who are just plain wrong. And it's ironic, that the first thing you did was appeal to vidya as evidence and the last thing was say not to use vidya.

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>>49567429
Nice try

>>49584506
Thanks anon. Makes a lot of sense.

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I think the thing I like the best about nearly all of these suggestions is they're all pretty normal day to day happenings in a realm. This is all the little shit that goes on while the heroes in normal campaigns are out in dungeons or fighting wars. Especially the ones like "old lady brings the guardsmen a pie every sunday".


>>49579531
yea but that's more of a long term kind of side story. I'm probably gunna run my Watchtower campaign as pretty episodic. Kind of like "Round the Twist", the classic 90's Aussie kid's show about a family living in a lighthouse.

>>49582130
>The ass shaped beacon, sir?
>That's the one.

>>49582530
Exactly

>not quite fit/strong/brave/smart/rich enough to earn a good posting in the military
>character is too attached to nearby family for distant adventures (either as a young lad or an older guy with a wife/kids in the village)
>the watch is desperate for new members so you quit the quiet life farming for a bit of extra gold and free mead.
>Comfy as fuck
>a bard joins the guard because he wants to meet travelers on the road to learn new songs and earn reputation but is too lazy to actually travel anywhere
>wizard flunks out of magic school for "accidentally exploding the classroom" during a written test somehow and looks for a new job
>a half-orc character who's too orcish to fit into the human towns but not orc enough to live in an orc camp.
I agree, it's not all punishment.

What if the PCs were actually already dead but didnt know it, and the tower was purgatory. Their actions in the tower decide if they go to heaven, hell, stay in purgatory if if they just become lost wandering spirits bound to that tower for eternity?

>>49584506
Are you sure you're not thinking of Burning Wheel, anon?

>>49583431
>>49583554
not everyone wants to be in a position of power. Lots of people are content with simple jobs, simple lives and not advancing up the ladder. Maybe she hates being a noble and ran away from the family because of those reasons or something more sinister?

>>49583554
>farmhand
He couldve been a 7'2" giant of a man with muscles for days. Saved a nearby patrol from being killed by werewolves or something and the watch decided to recruit him.

>wizard
He could just be a really shit wizard that THINKS he's the best and got tricked into signing a 1 year contract at the tower. Wizards arent well known for their common sense.

>>49566107
>>49566160
We had a mission like this in a Vietnam campaign I was in a few years back. There was a huge tropical cyclone coming in, but we got reports that an APC carrying some VIP broke down out in the jungle, so of course we had to go rescue the guy and escort him back to the firebase, racing against both the vietcong and the storm. It was a blast.

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>>49546675
>Please write my campaign for me thread
>291 replies

Not gonna lie OP I'm a bit jelly

>>49546793
Neat ideas.

I like the idea of a chain of watchtowers. You could have a tower give coded communication (have the players decipher the Morse/semaphore/smoke signals themselves), mostly mundane stuff to get them accustomed to it. Then one day have the signals abruptly stop.

Alternatively, a far-away tower that everyone knows as ruined/abandoned is lit up one night.

>>49584983
OP didn't just write his campaign, he got at least 43 other people interested in playing or DMing this too. I haven't played D&D in at least 3 years and this is the most excited I've been about it since.

Has anyone got the Lord of the Rings clip where the towers are being lit to call for help? if a webm wizard could convert that right now...

>>49584893
Never played. Couldn't say.
>>49584916
>Wizards arent well known for their common sense.

One year AND a FREE wizard tower! Sign me up!

>>49585070
>"Oh some ruffians? I've got this guys"
>Casts magic missle
>hits the tower
>"oops did I do dat again?"

>>49585092
>PC's have to babysit the grandson of the King's court Wizard for a few days for some reason
>baby grandson gets in a "Baby's Day Out" series of shenanigans combined with baby unable to control the strong magic it's inherited from his father.


"Sir I tried putting him to bed again but the cot vanished"
"U wot?"
baby is crawling on the 12ft high ceiling giggling
"Quick get a ladder! No wait, DONT get a ladder, get cushions!"

>baby sneaks out at night
>baby manages to break loose during a bad storm
>a large extended family of halfings on the road stops for the night for drinks songs and merriment. next morning after the halflings have moved on there's a young halfling asleep in the cot and baby is nowhere to be seen.
>baby gets into the potions box
>baby eats all the fucking food and PCs have to go hungry until next resupply