So, my players want the NPCs to communicate with one another more, and I don't know how to handle that without taking spotlight away from the PCs… Anything I can do to compromise?
[RPG] NPC-only interactions by player request
gm-techniquesnarrationnpcroleplaying
Related Solutions
Cut Scene
If it is truely a detailed narrative, I consider it a "cut scene" - as made popular by video games - I:
- Pre-record it, sometimes using family members for other voices
- Include background music and sound effects
- Provide a written summary after playing the scene for the group
Interactive Fiction
If the scene is important has several NPCs and the party needs to be able to interact with them, it has to be performed live - so I recruit guest talent for 1 or more of the NPCs (this is one of the reasons I like co-DMing large campaigns). Surprising how much more interesting the extra voice is to a mostly-listening experience.
UPDATE: Here's an example from my Scion's of Punjar campaign - which included a flashback recorded by the character between sessions...
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/3838990/SFX/Tobin%27s%20Flashback.mp3
When this was played at the session, a small box sat in front of the paladin's player. When the "woosh" sound played, he lifted the box off to reveal this build:
I've been on the receiving end of a bunch of bad negotiations in RPGs. Real life negotiation training helps, but there's also some RPG specific aspects to keep in mind.
Often, the problem is that there's some adventure hook that requires the PCs to do something that's totally stupid. "Hi, you're level 10, would you like to go on a fetch quest for 100 gp?" Or the classic module Against the Giants, where the locals decide your high level party is guilty of unspecified crimes (vagrancy?) and must go kill 100 giants to atone. Even LG parties respond to that with "You're going to look mighty funny with that longsword sticking out of your ass." Your non-derogatory use of the term "railroad" (generally considered bad) leads me to believe this may be the case - if you expect the PCs to "take the adventure hook" you present them regardless of its desirability and they are trying to live in character and not go for some awful deal their characters at their current wealth and power level would never contemplate, you'll be disappointed.
Now assuming there's at least the makings of a deal, meaning each side has something the other person reasonably wants and might indeed exchange (goods, services, money, etc.) you need to remember that people want to make deals and that they can be win-win.
Allow me to use the framework presented in Getting to Yes, a book on negotiation everyone should read.
Separate the people from the problem. Put yourself in the PCs' shoes. Listen more than you talk. Get them involved. Help them save face at giving in on things. They should ideally be doing the same to the NPC.
Focus on interests behind positions. Ask "Why" and "Why not?" Be hard on the problem, soft on the people. How can everyone's goals be achieved? Don't attack the other person's position, look behind it. When they attack your ideas, ask for advice. Ask questions and pause. "How can we make this deal happen?"
Invent options for mutual gain. Generate a range of options, Use imaginative procedures. What other things does someone have that they'd be willing to do or give away that the other person might value more? It doesn't have to be a flea market "Five dollars! One! Four! Two! Three! Deal!". That's a one-dimensional negotiation. Timing, loot, favors, future goods are all possible. "What else can I throw in?"
Use independent standards. What is this really worth? If someone's being unreasonable, you can show what the item or job is "worth" to others. "These guys will do it for half the rate, but I want you to have the first crack at the loot..."
Develop a best alternative to a negotiated agreement. If one side has to have the deal or they're completely screwed, they are in a bad position. As a result most people have a plan B. As a DM, you need one too, besides "tell them out of character to take the bait." Maybe it's some kind of setup or extortion (e.g. the PCs' rooms get ransacked and a convenient clue is left behind pointing at the people the adventure hook is trying to sic them on. Of course the other negotiating party did it, but PCs are usually dumb and easily pointed in a direction.)
Of course, you can just let events transpire. In your example, the PCs got suspicious of the sage. So? Can they not get the information any other way? Are there no other people they can go to? Do they not plan to just stage a home invasion and interrogate him (normal PC response to something like this)? Your problem is less about negotiation and more about poor adventure design and railroading. Should there really only be one way to proceed in the plot? It's best if not; but if it is then the PCs will eventually have to give in or beat it out of him... I find you always get the best results from handling things in game, not with metagaming and railroading. It may seem expedient now but it's a long term poison for your game.
Related Topic
- [RPG] How to handle a PC – NPC
- [RPG] Will using NPCs as allies overshadow the PCs
- [RPG] How to create and use NPCs that actually matter
- [RPG] How to handle large conversations with multiple NPCs
- [RPG] A player always wants to recruit NPCs into the party. How to handle this
- [RPG] How to use powerful NPCs without overshadowing the player characters
- [RPG] How to make an NPC useful without overshadowing the player characters
Best Answer
NPCs can talk to each other without talking to each other.
I find it far easier to describe what a conversation is about than to actually come up with the content of the conversation, and honestly, describing what a conversation's about is probably going to save a lot of other people's time as well. For purposes of establishing scene texture and sketching out character, the words people say are very seldom as important as the way they say them.