Story Idea from new DM

[Jguy]

I have just started DMing for the first time with my group. I've played with them for over a year now and have got a good grasp on the rules and their play styles. The DM of our current campaign has mentioned that he'd like to sit on the other side for awhile so I volunteered to DM and come up with my own campaign.

The basis of it is this. We all made ourselves. I told everyone we'd be starting at level 1 and to make your character as if you were your D&D self. We have a wizard (me, guy who would geek out over having magic) a Factotum (dude who has a vast amount of fairly pointless knowledge that can be useful at times) a cleric of open mindedness (total pot head. Character has an endless bag 'o weed) a crusader of doing whatever he wants (that is totally his personality) a druid (she is a nature/spiritual person) and a rogue (dude's kinda a sneaky jerk).

First two play sessions went great. The town (aka the trailer park they live in) was invaded by hobgoblins and goblins and ogres (oh my!). I've hinted at why it was being invaded through a very vague and open ended note. I racked my brain as to why this little town is important besides just the normal raping/pillaging shtick. Everyone in our group likes to feel special and important in some way, so I was brainstorming ideas. Prophecy, used but a classic. Some weapon or device in town, possible but could lead to problems down the line, and then I read two books back to back by coincidence and came up with this idea. Races of Destiny and Unearthed Arcana.

I have always been a humanist when I comes to playing D&D. I like humans mostly b/c my group seems to like everything else. Humans have got the whole 'adaptability' thing going for them so I tried to play that up. I've always been interested in the bloodlines levels but didn't want to force invisible levels onto them but I knew they'd like them if they made them feel special. Here was my idea.

Essentially (in the next play session) I'll be gestalting them major bloodlines based on their characters and personalities. My idea was that the town was being invaded because some high priest (thinking orc of gruumesh) found that these humans could breed with anything (like normal. Humans are the whores of the world) but -stay- human. When they have kids, the kids will be humans and inherit the bloodlines from both parents and so on and so forth. I've already come up with an idea as to why the town didnt know they were all halfbreeds or whatnot. I've thought on how the church of Zarus might take this finding. Prove that humans are superior or be aghast at the halfbreeds.

Any thoughts or points I should consider or just ideas to improve my game?

[Pteryx]

The basis of it is this. We all made ourselves. I told everyone we'd be starting at level 1 and to make your character as if you were your D&D self.

Be careful with this.  Even with the best of intentions, that sort of thinning and blurring of the line between IC and OOC can lead to disaster.  From personal experience concerning playing in a D&D-derived game in which we played ourselves with powerups, I have three more specific warnings to give:

1) Remember that players are likely to take things that happen to their characters more personally -- and not purely due to failure to separate IC and OOC.  If someone's upset about the events of the game, don't just act like they're whining about something that's only a game -- listen.

2) Don't go too dark and gritty.  That can get traumatic.  Especially don't center a game on the players'/characters' darkest aspects.

3) Don't get too high-concept.  IC and OOC will be harder to keep seperate.  Changeling fantasy like you seem to be doing is cool.  Centering a game on deep self-exploration... not so much.

Keep players-as-themselves games light and fluffy and you're good.  Self-insertion Evangeleon is bad.  -- Pteryx

[Vinom]

We have a wizard (me, guy who would geek out over having magic)

If I'm reading this right then you are DMing and have a PC 

[Jguy]

Yes, I do have a DMPC but I make a point to not give myself any advantage or act with unknown knowledge. Enemies go for me if I am the most available target and I suffer consequence for dumb moves on my part.

Anyway, I introduced the whole Bloodlines thing. Everyone loved what I gave them and agreed with my interpretation of them in assigning them the bloodline. We've had loads of fun and some quite unique experiences (mostly on how critical misses end up and a misspoken sentence turns into a great joke)

[Halloween]

Repeat after me: DMPCs are a bad idea.

DMPCs are a BAD IDEA.

They're bad for your players and they're bad for you.

When you GM something, your role is to provide the world for your players to interact with through the agency of their characters. You are the enabler that helps their stories happen. You cannot do that if you are preoccupied with trying to tell a story about your own character.

None of your players will be interested in any attempt by you to make an interesting story for your character, because they have no investment in it, and you already control the entire world. The story you tell about your own character is masturbation, and should be written as a story and not inflicted upon your players.

In the event that you do not attempt to create a story for your character, there is no reason for you to even have one in the first place.

It is a bad policy.

You might be having fun, but it is still a bad policy.

If being the GM alone isn't something that interests you, you should let someone else take on that role.

[woodenbandman]

It can be helpful though if the party doesn't have, say, a healbot. If the party needs a healbot, the DM can play a healbot. The DM shouldn't be taking roles away from the PCs, though. It's not necessary or fun.

[veekie]

It can be helpful though if the party doesn't have, say, a healbot. If the party needs a healbot, the DM can play a healbot. The DM shouldn't be taking roles away from the PCs, though. It's not necessary or fun.

Pretty much, I like a bard or cloistered cleric heal/exposition bot, especially for newbie DMs.

[Halloween]

Even then, I'd hand the mechanic balancing character to one of the players as a second PC, rather then have the GM play it.

Anyone who is "in the party" as an equal character should be a PC.

[woodenbandman]

That's a fine idea. Have the players vote on what the guy should do.

[Pteryx]

I've seen GMPCs run fine.  I've also seen them run nightmarishly badly.  I've told a few tales about 'em recently.  Basically, the more powerful and active in the party a GMPC is, the higher the risk gets.  -- Pteryx