[Twilight Time] Plot hooks by genre

[Heather Grove]

January 9, 2005 -- Plot Hooks by Genre
Volume 6, Issue 1

This is the Twilight Time zine, copyright 2005 by Burning Void  
Publishing and Heather Grove, except where noted otherwise. You may  
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Good morning!

Just a reminder that we now have an announcement list for those who  
wish to be kept up-to-date on new articles, reviews, and so on:

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We're doing a lot more with the web site now, in particular with  
reviews of all kinds! I'm currently receiving review copies of books  
from a good handful of publishers.

In the process of updating the site I was reminded of just how popular  
some of our "instant plot hook" articles have been, so today we're  
bringing you plot hooks-by-genre, just a little bit of fun to start off  
the new year with.

Have a great day!
Heather



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Instant Plot Hooks-by-Genre

Since our "instant plot hooks" (little things meant to take up a spare  
half-hour here and there in an emergency, and possibly to be expanded  
into full plots) are so popular, here are a bunch tailored for various  
genres. Adapt them to your game, or use them as inspiration to help you  
think up your own. It can be handy to have a handful of these next to  
you when you GM. You can use them to liven things up, to complicate a  
pre-existing plot, to fill in a gap when the player characters (PCs)  
short-circuit your plans, and so on. Or you can use them as inspiration  
for a full adventure.


Science Fiction

1. Introduce a new and dangerous frontier. A "new frontier" can be just  
about any new area open to exploration: a new area of science, a new  
planet, a new dimension, space travel in general. What makes it so  
dangerous?

2. A cure is found for a terrible disease or illness. But it introduces  
its own dark secret...

3. Someone has found a way to overcome hunger, disease, aging, or  
something similar. But there's a terrible price for those who wish to  
take advantage of this...



Fantasy

1. An ancient and long-thought-extinct race of creatures has merely  
been hidden away or "sleeping" all this time, and now they're  
returning. They want their rightful place back, and someone isn't going  
to want to give it to them...

2. A powerful and important artifact has been rescued from thieves or a  
villain. Everything seems all right, until someone tries to use the  
artifact's powers...

3. Both sides in a war have good reason to insist that the PCs should  
be on their side, and evidence why this should be so. How do the  
characters unravel the mystery? Can they stop the war, or must they  
choose a side--and how?


Spy/Military

1. The PCs are sent after a traitor who stole information to sell, only  
to be told when they catch up to him that he did it to lure the bad  
guys into a trap. Is he telling the truth? Do they believe him? What do  
they do?

2. Someone higher in rank than the PCs starts behaving a little  
oddly--he doesn't seem to remember little things that he should, or  
some of his orders don't entirely make sense. Is he a traitor? Has he  
been compromised, threatened, or replaced? Has someone drugged or  
poisoned him? Is he distracted by a family tragedy, or starting to go  
senile? Or is something stranger going on?

3. A reliable source tells the PCs that an invasion or attack is  
coming, but they can't find any evidence of one. Then that person  
disappears, and the trail of clues begins...


Superhero

1. A dead and defeated villain seems to have returned, but things  
aren't that simple. He's behaving oddly, or his memories aren't quite  
right. Is it really that villain? If so, what's changed? What's he up  
to now?

2. A villain comes to the PCs for help--someone he cares about is in  
danger, and he honestly believes what he's saying to them. Is it a trap  
set by someone else? Is the villain truly able to set aside his  
feelings about the PCs even under these circumstances? Who is the  
someone he cares about, and why should the PCs help them?

3. One of the PCs seems to have lost his powers, but then things get  
strange. He has odd dreams and hallucinations in which people ask him  
for help. What's suppressing or stealing his powers? Are the dreams or  
hallucinations messages? How are these things related?


Horror

1. One of the PCs (or a close friend or family member) starts to age at  
an unusual rate. What's going on, and can the PCs stop it in time?

2. One or more of the PCs start seeing an unusual animal wherever they  
go: a white cat, perhaps, a dark brown dog, or a raven. It's almost  
always sitting quietly and watching them intently. What is it really?  
Is it an enemy or a friend? Is it evaluating them for something? Is it  
spying on them?

3. One of the PCs starts to go blind, and doctors can't find anything  
wrong with him. Then the visions start...


Mystery

1. An item disappears from a museum, but it's one of the cheapest and  
most worthless items in the collection. Much more important and  
valuable items right next to it were left behind. Who stole it, and  
what made this piece worth more to them? What's its secret?

2. Children start disappearing from a local hospital and no one knows  
why. What's going on? Where have they gone? Are they all right? Is  
someone saving them or harming them?

3. Someone has kidnapped the sibling of a minor politician and is  
demanding the politician vote a certain way on a particular issue--but  
it's a minor and seemingly inconsequential issue. What makes it so  
important? Who's doing the kidnapping? What's really going on?


As usual, there are a few things to keep in mind when designing your  
own instant plot hooks.

Keep them simple: you need to be able to adapt them to the  
circumstances at the time when you decide to use them. Don't pin down  
too many details in advance.

Fill them with questions and unexplained events that the party can  
investigate and you can choose to expand upon.

Try to look for the unexpected in them. Where might your players expect  
such a plot hook to go? How can you take it in a different direction?

Try mixing an IPH with a tarot card or some song lyrics to help you  
expand on it in new and interesting ways.


What's Your Opinion?:

Comments on this issue's topic? Suggestions? Tips? Special topic  
requests? Drop me a line. If I pass any of your suggestions on (either  
through the newsletter or the RPG resources page), I'll attribute them  
to you. Be sure to tell me if you don't want me to use your name and/or  
comments!

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SITE UPDATE:

Burning Void: resources for roleplayers and writers
http://www.burningvoid.com/

I've worked many of the old Twilight Time articles (through part of  
2002 at this point) into the main part of the site. There are a bunch  
of new reviews, and the first site update can guide you to a number of  
other things:

http://seven.pairlist.net/pipermail/burningvoid-announce/2005/ 
000000.html


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