Design Document

Tales from
Marco Polo
A
Rum Runners
MODULE
By Casey Ging
Tales from
W
Marco Polo
hile the travels of Marco Polo are well documented, he has
been quoted as saying on his deathbed “I did not tell half of what I
saw, for I knew I would not be believed.”
It is the year 1720, and the golden age of Piracy is
winding to a close. Rumors are abound about a great treasure
hidden somewhere within the Caribbean. While scuttling down a
few pints at the local bar, the bartender tells you that word on the
street is Marco Polo may have actually sailed to the Americas long
before Columbus and crew and hid his greatest wealth here. Aghast
by this revelation you ask how is that even possible. The Bartender
tells you that while serving them beverages, she overheard a group
of (based on the smell) what she assumed to be pirates, talking
about setting sail for the treasure at dawn. Always looking for
adventure you and your crew decide that the idea of Marco Polo’s
treasure is one worth pursuing and your quest begins.
A
Rum Runners
MODULE
By Casey Ging
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Jacques Bouchard
Many a young man looks up to Jacques Bouchard. He is the epitome of a swashbuckler. He spent his formative years
sailing the open caribbean under the late great Guy LeBeau. While chasing down various treasures and artifacts under the
orders of the French government, he became a well-rounded adventurer. Perhaps due to his devilish good looks, and lengthy
golden mane of hair, he is consistently able to sweet talk his way out of many threatening situations. Having travelled most of
the caribbean before, he is very familiar with many of the islands and the intricacies of sailing the seas.
Jacques would use no other weapon than a cutlass. While he carries a flintlock, he often likes to get up close and
personal with his foes in order to taunt them and show off his skills in melee combat. Not to mention he has immense pride
for his home country of France, and only uses French weapons.
Attributes
Speed: 20ft
HP: 11
AC: 13
Physical: 10
Mental: 8
Social: 16
Physical
Melee Combat
Unarmed Combat
Long-Range Combat
Combat Defense
Stealth
Swimming
Climbing
Skill Points
Actual Skill
4
1
1
0
1
0
0
4
1
1
0
1
0
0
3
5
0
0
1
3
-2
-2
1
0
0
2
0
2
7
6
6
8
6
8
Mental
Perception
Geography
Medicine
Crafting
Social Skills
Leadership
Performance
Intimidation
Sweet Talking
Style
Bluffing
Inventory
Two French Cutlasses, 1 Flintlock Pistol, Leather Pouch, Torch, 8 pieces of lead
shot.
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Shark Tooth Vinny
Old Vinny has seen a lot. He has been through many wars and even lost an eye. He may be old, but what he lacks in
youth he makes up for in age. While he never acknowledges it, legend goes that in a fist to fist battle with a great white, he
knocked out all but one of the sharks many teeth. As a result he gained his nickname. You would be hard pressed to find an
individual tougher and more athletic than this bulk of a man.
Attributes
Speed: 15ft
HP: 13
AC: 12
Physical: 15
Mental: 7
Social: 10
Physical
Melee Combat
Unarmed Combat
Long-Range Combat
Combat Defense
Stealth
Swimming
Climbing
Skill Points
Actual Skill
3
0
0
2
0
0
2
8
5
5
7
5
5
7
3
0
0
5
0
-3
-3
2
0
0
5
0
0
0
0
0
5
0
0
0
Mental
Perception
Geography
Medicine
Crafting
Social Skills
Leadership
Performance
Intimidation
Sweet Talking
Style
Bluffing
Inventory
One Scimitar, 1 wheel lock Pistol, Leather Pouch, Torch, 10 pieces of lead shot,
a grapple, tomahawk
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Anne Cutty
Anne has spent her life in the shadows. She is as sly as they come, and stealthy as a ghost. Realizing at a young age
that she was smaller than most, she used her lack of size to her advantage. While her family was by no means wealth, she
never went hungry, as she was able to steal herself whatever she needed. Cutty is not her last name but a name given to her in
the colonies, as she was arrested for cutting anyone who crossed her. She managed to escape prison and fled to the safety of
the caribbean and began her life as an adventurer. She refuses to be known as a pirate, as pirates are considered to be sloppy
and do their work with no style.
Attributes
Speed: 30ft
HP: 9
AC: 14
Physical: 13
Mental: 14
Social: 11
Physical
Melee Combat
Unarmed Combat
Long-Range Combat
Combat Defense
Stealth
Swimming
Climbing
Skill Points
Actual Skill
0
0
4
0
4
3
0
3
3
7
3
7
6
3
3
0
0
0
7
4
4
4
0
0
0
4
0
2
0
0
5
5
0
3
Mental
Perception
Geography
Medicine
Crafting
Social Skills
Leadership
Performance
Intimidation
Sweet Talking
Style
Bluffing
Inventory
1 Bow, 10 Arrows, 1 flintlock rifle, Leather Pouch, Torch, 5 pieces of lead shot, a
grapple, 2 daggers.
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TORTUGA BEACH
On the beach we see a small wooden bar with an attractive bar maid serving the various patrons. A flickering glow of
fire illuminates the landscape and the ocean glistens in the moonlight. The shadowy outline of your ship, The Croissant, is
visible at the end of the dock. A group of 3 men stand still facing the sea in the dark shadow of a nearby palm tree, but you
can make out the mugs of beer in their hands, and the swords at their hips.
Guests Talk to Bartender
She has no knowledge of where this treasure may be, though she does know that the men in the shadows have a map,
and they were discussing the treasure at the bar. She has served them several beers and a shot of Rum that they seemed to
thoroughly enjoy. She also noticed that the one in the hat seems to be the leader of the group, a group that consists of
potentially more than those three men. This is the man that was holding the map, and he seemed to place it in his left pocket.
Guests Talk to the Men
They are unreceptive to the idea of telling them where the treasure is but they seem to be approaching a warmly
drunk phase. Without more drinks they refuse to give more information.
Guests Fight the men
2 Buffoon Pirates - 6 HP
1 Pirate Captain - 10 HP
Guests Successfully get the Map
Sail to an uncharted island in the caribbean.
pirates
bar
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UNCHARTED ISLAND: BEACH
Your crew moores the ship off shore and rows to the island. Upon making land, you find there is an open beach
littered with bottles, but one seems to stand out, it is gold and gleaming in the sun. You also notice that there is a small
wooden crate turned into a bar with a female bartender upon closer examination you see that she has named the bar polO’s as
if its a clever play on the name. Two paths seem to be cut into the dense tropical forest.
Enemies:
none.
Traps:
none.
Rewards:
There is a message in a bottle that can be found that has a note reading “The power to harness the seas. - MP”
Perception Checks:
1- 5 this beach has sand
5-15 theres a bottle glistening in the sand
15+ footprints lead up to the wooden bar.
Speech Check at the Bar
1-5 the chest is locked and looks like it needs a key
10-15 the key hole looks vaguely familiar, you’ve seen this before on this very island
15+ It looks like a key you saw around the neck of the bartender on the beach. Also looks like the key to the outhouse.
to gator
swamp
to treasure
cove
bar
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UNCHARTED ISLAND: TREASURE COVE
You enter a circular void in the forest where the canopy branches high over your head to form an oculus like opening
in the trees. Light pours directly through the hole and onto a wooden chest with gold trim, the lower quarter stuck in a mound
of dense sand. In the left corner of this part of the map is a high sheer rock wall, but it looks climbable.
Enemies:
none.
Traps:
Quicksand, Trap doors slide open when you lift the ship in a bottle out of the chest.
Rewards:
Inside the chest is a Ship in a bottle. The bottle is mysteriously labeled “From Jason “ You also find a flask of quality rum.
Perception Checks:
Sand
1- 5 the sand appears to form a perfect circle around the chest
5-15 the sand looks loose and wet
15+ This is quicksand.
Chest
1-5 the chest is locked and looks like it needs a key
10-15 the key hole looks vaguely familiar, you’ve seen this before on this very island
15+ It looks like a key you saw around the neck of the bartender on the beach. Also looks like the key to the outhouse.
quicksand
from beach
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UNCHARTED ISLAND: GATOR SWAMP
You approach a swamp, the water is dark but judging by the debris does not look very deep. There are sticks jetting
from the water each continuously rising higher than the last as if they are platforms. Smaller more pointy spires flank these
larger ones, with skeletons that are face down toward the water with sticks impaling them. They look to be fragile held up by
vines tied around them as if they were bundled together. Up in the air you notice a wider platform with what appears to be a
shiny object.
Enemies:
8 Gators
Speed: 15ft
HP: 3
AC: 7
Traps:
Swinging Log Pendulums - When the group jumps on the second spire a log swings down and crosses over the one they just
leapt from.
Rewards:
At the top of the lookout is a skeleton. On him the adventurers will find 50 gold doubloons, a compass (detects evil), and a
PIECE OF FLEECE that glitters in the sunlight. Also a flask of quality rum.
Perception Checks:
Water
1- 5 looks like it is not very deep, perhaps 3-4 feet at its deepest.
5-10 It appears as if there is something moving in there.
10-20 It looks like there are at least 8 hungry gators in this swamp.
Sticks
1-10 they seem to have a vine tied to them that rises up into the tree
10-15 you notice a water line about a foot higher than where the water actually rests
15+ It looks like the vine is tied to a system of pulleys that rises into the canopy and triggers some type of trap.
ladder
dead man
to Mermaid Falls
treehouse
from beach
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UNCHARTED ISLAND: MERMAID FALLS
Around the bend you hear the light roar of a waterfall along with a high pitch singing. As you turn the corner you see
a young lady sitting on a rock in the middle of a grotto staring at the waterfall brushing her hair. The water surrounding the
rock appears to be deep and an array of rocks of different sizes litter the ground. The mermaid eventually reveals that she is
the “guardian of the entrance” and that none shall pass while she is at watch. Adventurers must find a way to defeat her and
take her trident. The trident is important to be able to defeat the serpent guarding the Argo.
Enemies:
1 Mermaid
Speed: 30ft
HP: 13
AC: 10
Traps:
none.
Rewards:
After defeating the mermaid, the adventurers are able to pick up her trident, and wield the power of the mermaids. This is
particularly powerful against lizards (+1D4). The mermaid also has a flask of quality VODKA.
Perception Checks:
Water
1- 5 looks very deep, the water is practically black with depth
5-10 there appears to be a heavy current.
10-15 the flow of the waterfall seems to be controlled by a dam located at the top of the cliff .
15-20 that damn is controlled by a wheel up the ramp path that runs around the grotto and under the waterfall
Area
1-10 rocks have fallen around the area, but they look like they have been blasted off the cliffs surrounding.
10+ There is a ramp that runs up the right side of the grotto and disappears behind the fall.
stone door to Skull Cave
dam gear
mermaid
From Mermaid Falls
waterfall is above the stone
door
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UNCHARTED ISLAND: SKULL CAVE
You enter through the cave entrance under the waterfall into a large cavernous rock corridor that fades into black. Thank god
its the first area without water. You notice the corridor has inscriptions on it and buttons that correspond. (see the Puzzle
piece of paper.) Once the code is cracked and the items are placed on the buttons a single light illuminates a fourth button in
the middle of the room, and one at a time torches light the way there. The adventurers reach the center platform and a loud
snake like whisper says “MARRRCOOOOO”, to which the group must respond “POOOLLLOO!” Once they respond torches
begin to light in sequence to reveal a winding serpentine path that culminates in the head of a snake with its mouth open.
Along the path inscribed in the ground is the legend of Jason and the Argonauts. The mouth reveals a door and you hear a
loud noise as if the door is unlocking. The adventurers move through it.
Puzzle
CRACK THE CODE AND SEE THE LIGHT
P
L
O
Code Wall
torch lights
from falls
to Argo Hold
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UNCHARTED ISLAND: THE ARGO HOLD
After entering the room you see a modest sized ship atop a sea of gold on an island surrounded by black water. At the
mast of the ship is a Golden Fleece.
Enemies:
Giant Serpent
Speed: 30ft
HP: 30
AC: 13
Traps:
none.
Rewards:
The Argo, the Golden Fleece, and all their loot.
from Skull Cave
to Caribbean
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Tales from
Marco Polo
A
Rum Runners
Analysis
By Casey Ging
Initial Brainstorm
I had never played a table top RPG before, but I
have extensive experience with various action
RPG’s on consoles. For this reason, I felt a little bit
of liberation in that I didn’t have to stick to normal
conventions and could take a few creative risks.
My group had no “expert” or even anyone who
had ever even played an RPG, so for this reason a
few of us got together and played a round of
Pathfinder lead by Anthony Scott, who is a
seasoned veteran of RPG’s. I noticed a few things
while playing that ultimately lead to the world I
wanted to create.
For me the most fun part was the
improvised
conversations,
explorations, and general out of
combat experience.
Combat was fun, but it felt like things
were left to chance a little.
Occasionally I felt like I had little to no
bearing on the outcome of the battle.
The fun of battle came in organizing a
strategy and executing it, however I
was removed from the experience at
times when we would work together to
have a well thought out plan and
someone would roll a 1 and everything
would come crashing down around us.
This would be something I wanted to
avoid.
Generally It was fun to not take
ourselves too seriously, maybe it was
because we were all playing for our
first time, but joking around and not
taking it too seriously was part of the
fun. We were constantly laughing at
each other and making up stories
surrounding the situation, and to me
that was what it was all about.
Generally It was fun to not take ourselves too
seriously, maybe it was because we were all playing
for our first time, but joking around and not taking it
too seriously was part of the fun. We were constantly
laughing at each other and making up stories
surrounding the situation, and to me that was what
it was all about. As a result of this first playthrough
my mission statement became clear to me.
Essentially in my mind, it didn’t necessarily matter if
they battled anyone, or even rolled a die the entire
game, as long as they had moments they will
remember.
Treasure:
To create an RPG that is
grounded in primarily puzzles
and exploration with combat
sprinkled in lightly. My goal is to
create a world that inspires
imaginative thinking allowing the
players to form a story and image
in their head that will be flexible
enough to allow the players fate
to not be tied to dice rolls.”
http://visualtrickster.tumblr.com
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Picking a Theme and Setting
In order to be able to create a world I could play in
with the guests, I wanted to pick something I was
familiar with and catered to my sensibilities. From
the get go I was thinking Pirates. I am immensely
familiar with this world and its rules, but more
specifically I wanted something I could craft a story
in and dabble in mythology, treasure, and discovery.
This is the perfect style world and the rules worked
well.
During our first play through of Pathfinder, I found
that people were often cracking jokes, dirty and
otherwise. I was not completely sure if this was due
to being uncomfortable playing something they
weren’t familiar with, or just because it was funny,
but either way I wanted to craft a world where guests
felt comfortable making jokes and being generally
funny and the pirate world fits that scenario well.
Crafting a Story
I made a lot of changes to the story before ever
committing it to paper. After considering the
characters for a lengthy amount of time, I decided
that it may not be best narratively to have them be
pirates. Pirates imply a level of backstabbing and
mutiny that I didn’t want my guests thinking about
during their playthrough. I wanted them more
focused on puzzles and adventure. Had I picked
pirates I think I would have had more combat than I
wanted, so I figured they could be present in the
world maybe as enemies or something but the
players would actually play people who didn’t like
pirates. I wanted this to be similar to the way
Indiana Jones hates Nazis.
I looked at the arc of Indiana Jones films as a
precedent for the style of story that I wanted to
create. I wanted to make isolated pieces of
gameplay whose outcome would form a larger
narrative arc. So I started looking into greek
mythology. This area is good for telling this type of
story. I chose to tell the story of Jason and the
Argonauts, due to its nautical theme and its various
pieces that are required for the whole story. My
main concern was that no one would know this
story, as it is not as popular as the Holy Grail or Ark
of the Covenant. The idea was that Marco Polo
found the ship “The Argo” and sailed it across the
Atlantic centuries before Columbus, and he was
using the Caribbean as a place to store his treasure.
The story seemed to work so I was eager to test it
out.
What my game should feel like.
1st Map Iteration
“Improved Map”
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The Puzzle
Originally I had one puzzle in the game, and the goal
of it was to ensure that the story came through, and
unlock the final boss. It occurred in the “Skull Cave”
environment and required guests to place three
objects they obtained over the course of the
adventure onto buttons on the ground in a
particular order. It was a combination of hangman
and Wheel of Fortune type word puzzles. The three
objects were a Ship, Vodka, and a piece of Fleece. I
thought that this puzzle might run a little difficult so
I had a series of hints in mind that would make it
easier. The adventurers seemed to figure out the
nature of the puzzle fairly quickly but were missing
that they had the objects in their possession. I
believe this to be due to the fact that some of the
objects could have had different names, for
example the Ship could be a Boat, and that would
have made the puzzle unsolvable.
Fortunately, I was able to get away with not saying
much because one of the adventurers figured out
that part of the puzzle fairly quickly. However it took
them a little longer to figure out they had to put the
pieces on the buttons, they originally thought they
had to stand on it. Once they figured that out the
final piece of the puzzle was revealed only this time
it was verbal. The had to proceed to a final larger
button where they infact had to stand on it. Then a
voice rang out from the silence saying
“MARCCCCOOO” they were taken aback for a
minute, before one of them excitedly yelled
“POOOLLLLOOO”. It was an interesting interaction
because they had spent the game solving puzzles
and traps, so when someone instinctively yelled out,
the other adventurers rushed to silence him in fear
of a trap, then none came. It was a good moment of
inverting expectations. The puzzle was successful
overall and despite my fear, it was solvable. Maybe
even too solvable.
Puzzle
CRACK THE CODE AND SEE THE LIGHT
S H I P V OD K A F L E E C E
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The Playthrough
Throughout the playtest I learned quite a bit. I think
one of the most important things I learned was how
intelligent the collective group was. Someone
always seemed to have an answer to one of the
problems. It was interesting to see who had what
solution. I initially underestimated just how much
the group could accomplish without assistance.
One player figured out pretty early that the story
may have to do with Jason and the Argonauts,
though he was not quite sure so he didn’t press it
too much. Another player seemed to be very good at
solving puzzles, so he was leading the charge on
that front. I think to a certain degree some of the
players roles were directly translated from their
characters description and abilities. While it
seemed weird at first to think that something I
wrote as a background was going to affect how the
person playing that character actually thought, I
think the players really took their roles seriously on
a more subconscious level.
The Interactive Experience
I noticed through the process that the players were
making jokes and enjoying the dialogue in the way I
intended. It was fun to see certain scenes break
down into pure improv conversations. It set the tone
for the world and lead to a different mode of
thinking for the puzzles. I think that the way you tell
the story changes the way that the user thinks when
interacting. By telling goofy jokes or setting up silly
plot points, the players expanded their minds in that
way and tried things that may not have been tried if
I had been conveying the story in a more serious
tone. It occurred to me that is how you know if you
are setting up a believable and inhabitable world. If
the guests are starting to try things that would only
work in the rules of your world then you can gauge if
the rules of your world are in fact working. On the
flip side of this assignment, I noticed that as a
player I want to be engaged with difficulty. I was
worried when designing my game that things would
be too easy. But as a player, I wanted things to be
new and difficult. I found that playing battle after
battle after battle gets to be boring. the characters
probably were not well balanced for the experience,
but it was my first RPG so I will let it slide.
The players should be thinking like Indiana Jones.
There is a golden ratio of dialogue, battles, and
puzzles that makes a game fun, and the mechanics
of that particular game decide what that ratio is. In
my world, the interest curves indicated that puzzles
and speech were the most intriguing parts.
Admittedly,
I also found throughout the process, that the
games that gave their characters backstories and
read them in character were the ones that became
most fun. Even if the game itself is not that fun, the
experience can be fun. This means going for
immersion, speak like the characters speak, give
the players artwork that sets the tone of the world
they are about to inhabit. These are in a lot of ways
more important than the gameplay itself. The nice
thing about RPG’s are that if the players are not
finding it fun, they will make it fun. Even if they are,
they will try and test the limits of the systems you
have set in place.
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Argo Hold
Skull Cave
Mermaid
Falls
Gator
Swamp
Treasure
Chest
Beach
First Bar
Argo Hold
Skull Cave
Mermaid
Falls
Gator
Swamp
Beach
Treasure
Chest
Beach
First Bar
My Curves
BEFORE
AFTER
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Argo Hold
My initial interest curve was a little more
traditional with a few good peaks and some valleys.
I thought that the final boss would be an
exclamation point on the experience, but I think it
was just too easy, and the battle did not have quite
enough variation so it kind of fell flat for all of us.
The most interesting part ended up being the “Gator
Swamp” area. This was an area that I had honestly
not fully fleshed out going into the game. It was a lot
of improvising and as a result I was able to free
myself from any preconceived story elements and
just let them have fun with the puzzle. At this point I
realized they would take every word I said and
everything I drew very seriously, so I ran with a few
things a little and it created an interesting
experience. One member of the adventure found
this area a little less exciting, and that was likely
due to his characters lack of athletic ability made it
not an easy experience for him. Based on the
interest curves it seems that every character found
the areas where their expertise was needed most,
to be the most fun. I think this is a fairly natural
occurrence and just means there needs enough
content for each player to feel important.
It is also important to my initial goal to note
that the interest curves show there doesn’t need to
be battle or rolling for the experience to be
enjoyable. The most successful areas of my map
were those that challenged the group mentally and
forced them to work together. These areas were
also the most fun for me as the Game Master, as I
was needing to think and work to keep them on
their toes. These areas are where the most
challenge and the most rewards happen.
Boss
Path
Serpent
Battle
Fleece and
Argo
Skull Cave
Story Road
Waterfall
Mermaid
Puzzle
Mermaid
Falls
Gator
Swamp
Swamp
Treehouse
Mermaid
Falls
Light
Puzzle
Compass
Sail Ship
2nd
Barmaid
Treasure
Chest
Barmaid getting
drunk
Gator
Swamp
Treehouse
Pirates
3 Shady Guys
Chest
First Bar
Second Bar
Get Key
Thoughts
Intro
Get Map
Treasure
Chest
Their Curves
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Lessons Learned
In this assignment, I set out to test the idea
that giving players a sandbox to play in and improv
together in, would be more effective that a series of
combat sequences. In my mind, this theory was
more or less true in that the areas that proved to be
most fun, were the ones that came about
organically between me, the game master, and the
players. Having the flexibility to let guests test the
rules of the world, rather than a rigid set of
parameters is the most fun for the players and it
allows for them to feel like their outcome is tied to
their creativity, not necessarily the roll of a die. This
means that the guests must be introduced into the
world in a way that gives them a sense of place and
who they are. The mission statements, area
descriptions, and character sheets are essential to
created a feeling of where they are. They act as the
opening scene and inciting incident in a film. If you
set the world up well, guests will feel comfortable in
what they can do, and will have a much more
enjoyable experience.
Art Credits
Character Art from:
http://jamesmcvann.blogspot.com/2010/06/pirat
e-concept-art.html
Cover Art from:
Monkey Island
I take no credit for the work.
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