Starting games

[Jorel]

Your in a bar...

[Killer Cyborg]

Does anyone else have a problem starting games? I can come up with a great idea for a game, but I always have a hard time trying to figure out how to start the PC's on the adventure. Any suggestions?

Roll for initiative.

[Vrykolas2k]

You die.
Let's go to the bar.

[Spinachcat]

In Media Res

Drop them in the middle of some action. It doesn't have to be combat. Have fun with flash backs, flash forwards, dream sequences and any technique you've enjoyed from a TV show.

In a Shadowrun game, I started the game with the "plan going badly" and the PCs having to make their escape. Then I flashbacked to their negotiation with the Mr. Johnson and they roleplayed that out...knowing how bad it would wind up eventually. Then we bounced back to "present time" of the escape.

[Severus Snape]

I like to use:

"You have been summoned to [insert specific location here] for the purpose of [insert the quest they have to undertake here]."

[dragonfett]

Have them wake up in a cage or something as prisoners of someone who is (or intending on) experimenting when they get distracted by an attack on their compound. (If anyone has Baldur's Gate II, they should recognize the scenario).

Or they could be prisoners for some reason, being released by order of the king or something to fulfill some prophecy (any Elder Scrolls fans here?)... This method is best for smaller parties, or as individual backgrounds.

[Colt47]

I prefer to roleplay how my character ends up in certain games, mostly because it lets the player flaunt their background a bit. For example, playing a paratrooper who's ride got shot down prematurely and being forced to parachute into the adventuring site. Parachute drop kick for the win people! It does Mega damage to the FACE!

[The Dark Elf]

I struggle with Heroes games that dont just rely on the players being involved by coincidence (ie you are in the wrong place at the right time) or "You hear on the news that...."

I welcome any ideas on this.

[Colt47]

I prefer to roleplay how my character ends up in certain games, mostly because it lets the player flaunt their background a bit. For example, playing a paratrooper who's ride got shot down prematurely and being forced to parachute into the adventuring site. Parachute drop kick for the win people! It does Mega damage to the FACE!

See that's the thing, I don't want to just say "You two are together for whatever reason and you are going to this place to do this." It makes me feel like I am railroading my PC's.

More Info: I have two PC's one is a Partial Conversion Cyborg Adventurer and the other is a Mercenary Grunt and I am going to be taking them into Madhaven.

Yeah I understand the concern about rail roading players into a situation. There probably isn't an easy answer to the issue as even pen and paper games tend to have their limits. Generally, when I run games I make the assumption that the player characters have a reason for going to the adventure site. For example, people going to a town because it happens to be a hub for work and it would make sense for the group to show up, or the group heard about some interesting rumor regarding a certain haunted forest that involves the words "Monsters scaring people" and "Treasure", so they end up traveling there. The fact is that as a GM you have to assume that the players characters WANT to be involved in the adventure. Otherwise it is time to start working on another adventure.

My first post was more so just for humors sake. If I were to RP that situation, it would just be a more humorous way to get to where he is going than successfully landing at some drop off point nearby and give the player a chance to use that parachuting skill he so loves. (Just hope he doesn't botch the roll or he is going to die within the first 10 minutes of game time.)

[Shorty Lickens]

Theres a bunch of RPG plot generators online, find one of them. Good times are sure to follow.

[dragonfett]

Yeah, but I haven't seen one that has any good ideas for starting a campaign if the group still isn't formed.

[Shorty Lickens]

Yeah, but I haven't seen one that has any good ideas for starting a campaign if the group still isn't formed.

Well, that goes back to standard new group procedure which says you should sit everyone down and decide what type of campaign and gaming session you want to run.
After you get some guidelines set, you need to make a campaign, which is really the hard part. Usually its best to do it like a good sci-fi or fantasy book. Start at the end and work backwards. Eventually you will get to a point where it seems appropriate to introduce the characters.
Look at Lord Of The Rings. They could have easily jumped further back in time to give Frodo a little more back story and character, or jumped forward in time to get closer to the action.

So you have to decide with your group what kind of campaign you are running. Do you wanna spend time building everyone up slowly, or jump into things? Sometimes I start my campaigns with the group already balls deep in trouble.

[dragonfett]

Except for the fact the you never know what the players are going to do. You could feed them a huge plot hook and they decide to go do something else.

[Shorty Lickens]

Except for the fact the you never know what the players are going to do. You could feed them a huge plot hook and they decide to go do something else.

Well, by then the game is already started. You dont need any help on how to start a campaign at that point.
Or am I missing something?

[crestfallen32]

Just thought I would add to this topic by telling of my last campaign start.

All the PC's where seated at a bar in the Burbs, I know, seems kinda lame, but wait for it. Each of them were there for different reasons. The head hunter was at her usual watering hole, a crazy was wasting his time with a can of beer or twelve, the juicer was spending some of his paid time off. A forth PC was outside casually walking by when everything changed. A platoon of ISS was surrounding said bar preparing to enter, guns drawn and orders issued.

Just as the 5th character, a dog boy, and his squad enter the bar tender disappears. The PC that were in the bar are unaware of any wrong doing so sit and watch with interest. The squad that entered the back of the building starts down a set of stairs to the basement. That's when the whole bar is vaporized. To be exact, it was the spell Annilate, twice actually.

With a huge crater left of the bar, the 4 PC's inside, 5 or 6 grunts and their officer outside, and the Techno-mage watching the whole thing across the street with binoculars (He's a great RPer!) are all disorientated. The PC's were left alive for a reason later revealed by carefully placing the spell sphere's away from them. The rest of the building was actually sucked into a rift that was opened for a quick get away by the badguys in the basement, but again, not that anyone would know.

The ISS assumes the PC's as the cause and go to arrest them just as a greater fire elemental is summoned in the center of the crater. All the PPE that was released by the mass death of the ISS in and around the building made it easier. The PC's that were inside and the ISS start battle with the Elemental.

The Techno Mage happens to notice a mage at the bottom of a hole in the crater doing "casty" things and crits a head shot on him. To bad it was after the elemental had taken out all the ISS present. But before the back up was on it's way.

All 5 of the PC's are accused of the incident and are going to be arrested and decide to run.

Nothing brings together an odd group, at least I thought so.

-Crestfallen32

[LostOne]

Depends on the game campaign for me usually. Maybe give a brief rundown of the adventure you have planned and I can give better suggestions.

Otherwise: "
You're all mercs and have been hired ... "

"You're in a bar" that leads to a bar fight from unknown assailants (minions of the future badguy) targeting the players, including pictures of the players in a folder.

"While having never worked together, you all are aware of each other, since you all are adventurers who call the small quiet town of <whatever> home. Over the years you have learned to respect each other as neighbors and potential sources for leads when someone shares information they don't have time to pursue."

[Jorel]

Let us know how you finally decide to start it off...please.

[LostOne]

I have two PC's one is a Partial Conversion Cyborg Adventurer and the other is a Mercenary Grunt and I am going to be taking them into Madhaven. They will be going there on the rumors of treasure.

Sounds like you already have the start of your game then. Unless you want to spice it up some. Have them in a bar, a mutual friend comes in, mortally wounded. He motions them over then dies trying to bequeath a treasure map to them. Then the guy(s) who shot him who want the map come bursting in.

[dragonfett]

They don't even have to know that they have a mutual friend.

[LostOne]

This topic got me thinking of one of the best game starts that I had.

Though this was in D&D and I'm not sure how well it would be able to be transferred to palladium setting.

At first level we started in various different home towns scattered throughout the world. We all had a run in with some old man under a mistaken identity situation. Then he fast forwarded a bit and proceeded to kill us all. I died to a meteor swarm watchin an impromptu mage duel, another by some ancient red dragon, one fell off a cliff....etc..etc. And we all woke up at the same time after having visions of the other players and how they died. Our new bodies being clones of the originals, and the visions caused us to think that we should stay together until we figured out what really happened...and other hooks placed along the way slowed down that progress or linked to other adventures...

That GM was damn good, best time I had RPing in a long time.

That sounds really cool. Mind sharing what the link was and the underlying plot was? PM if you don't want to do it publicly.

[Cinos]

I've always tried to work with the player's characters in developing their own back stories, and then use that to find a believable way to have the group either already knowing each other, or introduce them. Some times the plan black fires a bit, and I'm running 2-3 games divided among the players for a bit (as is currently the case, since they decided it would be amusing to make characters who hate each other).

[LostOne]

I'll see if I can get that info from him when I talk with him next....that is if he even remembers.

If you can't wait....

I already have a few preliminary ideas for it, that's a great start to a hook/line/sinker. But I would be very curious to hear what he had planned if he remembers. Maybe what he had would be better than what I had.

Please ask him next time you talk to him.

[dragonfett]

One of the players in my group is a Vagabond that I allowed him to get some powers from Heroes Unlimited (we rolled to see how many powers of each category he got). After his powers were chosen, I had told him that he wakes up with no memory of anything except for a basic knowledge of his skills and that was it, making him RP out figuring out that he had powers and what they did and all that.

[LostOne]

better? any other questions?

Good enough, thanks!

[LostOne]

If I don't have a good hook to bring them all together I often get the players to help out. "I need you guys to be in Tolkeen for the start of the game, write it into your history. Decide among yourselves if you know each other or not, how well, etc."

Most players I've played with don't mind a little railroading to get the group together, they just accept it as a way to start the game faster and then move on. If someone does have an issue with it, discuss with him out of character what you'd like to do, let him embellish it some to make him happier and then go with it.

It's a game, most people realize things won't always go their way but as long as it isn't something horrible for their character they can't avoid because the GM is railroading, they don't care or get over it quickly.

[Juce734]

This thread is perfect for what I am going to be dealing with very soon in an HU game.

PC's.
Female Alien Mutant - Aquatic World, Military education, Alter Physical Structure, and some other skills.

Female Mutant - Energy Expulsion: Electricity, Mechano Link, and possibly Alter Physical Structure: Electricity

Male Experiment - Military Education, Weapon limbs, Alter Physical Structure: (LIQUID METAL) unsure if this power is actually in the books or not. It's what one of my players wants to be though.

So how should I bring them together? Ideas I have so far...

Alien Crash Lands but is kept safe in a pod. Part of the aliens training is to destroy the crash site. Now the female alien mutant is on Earth with only a few weapons and such.

No idea where to go with this though. All 3 characters are from 3 different places.

Alien from Space
Experiment from Military
Mutant from the City

The military guy could be discharged and in a group with the mutant already. They get sent to the crash site and end up bringing back the alien who quickly is added to the group. Could add 3 NPC's to the group and call them the Super 6.

[LostOne]

Alien from Space
Experiment from Military
Mutant from the City

The military guy could be discharged and in a group with the mutant already. They get sent to the crash site and end up bringing back the alien who quickly is added to the group. Could add 3 NPC's to the group and call them the Super 6.

If the experiment and mutant are sent there, who sent them? Not sure the military would let a useful experiment be discharged. Maybe the mutant and experiment have been evading the authorities (some kind of anti-mutant branch) and recently teamed up. They get discovered and are on the run through the woods when they come upon the alien and the remains of the crash site, with bloodhounds hot on their trail.

Also something to figure out in advance, why was the alien crash landing on Earth in an escape pod? Ship destroyed by another? Is the alien part of an invasion force, or part of a force trying to prevent the invasion and protect earth? Earth is just in the area when the two ships meet and battle?

[Juce734]

I'm kinda new to this and still trying to figure part of character creation out.How do you determine how any skill points you have to start with.

You roll 3d6 for stats, and roll percentiles for education in most character classes. The education level plus IQ bonus will give you your skill percentage.

[Dlanaan]

I'm kinda new to this and still trying to figure part of character creation out.How do you determine how any skill points you have to start with.

You roll 3d6 for stats, and roll percentiles for education in most character classes. The education level plus IQ bonus will give you your skill percentage.

Yeah I'm not seeing a table or explanation of what percentiles mean what.

Education levels can be different for different games. Which one are you running?

Once you have your skills determined, the descriptions will have percentage chances of success. When you roll to see if a skill is successful, you roll percentile dice and if your roll is less than or equal to the percentage chance, you succeed at your skill. Some play it that the greater the difference between what you rolled and the max skill can increase the effect of the skill. For example, if you have a 50% climb skill, when you are climbing, you roll percentile. If you roll 50 or under, you successfully climb the number of feet as indicated in the skill. Some would say if you rolled below 10, you might even do better than that and can climb faster or don't suffer fatigue for that climb.

[Dlanaan]

I'm kinda new to this and still trying to figure part of character creation out.How do you determine how any skill points you have to start with.

You roll 3d6 for stats, and roll percentiles for education in most character classes. The education level plus IQ bonus will give you your skill percentage.

Yeah I'm not seeing a table or explanation of what percentiles mean what.

Education levels can be different for different games. Which one are you running?

Once you have your skills determined, the descriptions will have percentage chances of success. When you roll to see if a skill is successful, you roll percentile dice and if your roll is less than or equal to the percentage chance, you succeed at your skill. Some play it that the greater the difference between what you rolled and the max skill can increase the effect of the skill. For example, if you have a 50% climb skill, when you are climbing, you roll percentile. If you roll 50 or under, you successfully climb the number of feet as indicated in the skill. Some would say if you rolled below 10, you might even do better than that and can climb faster or don't suffer fatigue for that climb.

Nightbane.

Nightbane uses an OCC/RCC style for determining skills. After determining which class you will choose, there will be a list of OCC/RCC skills. Some of these will have percentage bonuses for them. For example, the Nightbane RCC under the Basic skill package has Basic Math (+10%). In the skills section, Basic Math has a Base Skill value of 45%+5%/level. Assuming the character does not have an IQ greater than 16, this means the character at first level would have a Basic Math skill of 55%. At second level, they will get a 5% bonus to this, making a skill of 60%. The description of Basic Math shows knowledge of basic math, including the ability to count, addition, etc. In a situation where this skill is necessary and assuming no bonuses or penalties (GMs can assign these situationally), at first level, the player will need to roll 55 or under on percentile. Otherwise they will fail the skill. This may result in a miscount, with how far away from 55 possibly showing how far off. A roll of 56-60 might be close, just wrong while a roll of 90-95 might give an answer that's not even close.

[Juce734]

This is how I am going to start my game on Saturday.

((You are all sitting in a living room that is really nice. Sorta like a doctors office with the painting on the wall. The other people in the room you don't know or recognize but you imagine they are here for the same reason.

In walks an older guy in a flannel shirt and blue jeans. A guy behind him is wearing black dockers and a white polo. They are talking about where to go for dinner and drinks tonight.

The older guy begins the speak. "Glad you all decided to be here. As I said before when I gave you my card this is an opportunity to make a difference. You are all gifted in your own ways. I have looked into all of you backgrounds and while I know a lot about you I also have a lot to learn. Chrome you were part of an organization that made you what you are. Bolt you began having problems in middle school and hurt kids on accident then. Then there is you... the fitness instructor that has no prior schooling, and I can't find any information about you. You don't file taxes or anything. You bought your house with cash somehow and have no family. I have watched you in particular and have found you too have abilities. That brings me to the reason you are all here. I want to offer you all the opportunity to correct this great city of Century Station. I will pay you to help me. I believe you will all see the upside in joining my colleague and I. Fortune, fame, and just doing the right thing are all what could be in store for you. Plus your opinions will be heard here. You won't be considered an outcast." BLAH BLAH BLAH slight backstory stuff. Wraps up saying you should all get aquainted. Tonight we can all go out to the bar and catch drinks. I then turn it to the players to get to know each other if they want. After they are done nothing strange happens and we go out for drinks. While out they hear sirens and see flashing lights fly just down the street. If the players decide to go check it out they find it's a biker bar that belongs to a biker gang. Most of the people there are dead except for the leader and a couple of his main lackeys.))

So yeah basically a mysterious mass killing spree happened and the players can try to figure it out.

[jedi078]

I started my New West Rifts game with the players actively responding to a wanted add seeking “Mercenaries, Psychics, and Practitioners of Magic to serve as security and protection for an excavation team headed into the Colorado Rockies.”

The first part of the game involved a few players being interviewed and then the group movinfg out the next day.

[MikelAmroni]

I'm personally a fan of the trope where I tell the PCs that they are all part of the same company, and they should figure out how they relate to each other, and quickly. All I ask for is cooperation - what you think of each other is completely up to you. This way I get a cohesive group that isn't backstabbing itself out of the story, and I can approach them as a single whole with a hook, or use the in the middle of the action hook and backstory it.

Or just run military games and say they are in the same unit - that works too!

[Severus Snape]

I started my PFRPG game with the players all being in a bar (cliche!), but they didn't know each other or know the others were even there. A fat guy walked in, talked to the bartender, and tacked up notices stating that so and so was hiring adventurers and to be at a specific place at noon the next day. The characters all read the notices, and then made up their minds if they wanted to be there or not.

Yes, it's cliche. Very. But the adventure started with the characters having some fun in a bar (drinking and talking to other patrons), and then they read the notice and decided to go to the spot to meet the dude hiring. They didn't know each other until they one by one decided that they wanted to be hired for this mission. And they are still getting to know each other (although they haven't done much yet as this is a PBP game), but it's been good so far.

The last HU campaign I was in (not GMing, but playing on a regular basis), the GM started it by saying "You wake up in prison, with no clothes on, and your head hurts..."

By the way, if you're reading this Solomon, I almost hate you for that. Take a guy dependent on his power armor and start the campaign with "You're naked and in pain". Nice.

[jedi078]

Or just run military games and say they are in the same unit - that works too!

Or have them report in to their new unit. Of course there is the one incident where I ended up killing another PC because he failed to follow orders 20 posts into a PBP game....

[Razzinold]

Our GM used the old reliable "you've worked together for years" way to start, it might be lame and boring, but as others have already posted it is a good way to prevent people from not wanting to work together right from the beginning of the game. As we found out after a couple of years of playing with the same group members it's also a GREAT way to have a spy in your group and not expect it.

One game we started everything the same, we were a team (merc, hero, whatever) but the GM spoke in secret to a couple people, one was to be a spy (didn't force them gave them the choice), one thought he was a spy (turns out we was starting to go insane) This was a lot of fun, especially when the character who was going insane thought his PC was responsible for some acts of sabotage to PC equipment. The way the spy passed on things to the GM was with notes, something everyone did so it didn't look suspicious to the others, or worked out before hand, so when we were playing and turns out the vehicle was sabotaged, the PC who thought he was a spy thought the GM did it on his own as part of the story as a hint for us to try and catch him.

But going back on topic, we recently played a game where everyone was thrown together by circumstance and it caused a lot of infighting, could be the way we started, or the fact there was clashing alignments or both.

[Illendaver]

I had a D&D campaign start in a memoral way that should be easy to adapt to any game setting.
We were standing in the middle of a warzone. Animated skeletons were trying their best to kill everything moving. Suddenly, a gruff human runs up to us and yells "ALLRIGHT TROOPS!!! Our orders are simple! We have to secure that hill (Points, FULL of ramshackle wooden battlements with a few enemy soldiers and animated dead) so that the catapults can move in range of that fortress (Points at gigantic black tower with green mist coming down from top) LETS MOVE OU-" (Human sarge catches a balista bolt in the back. Dead instantly.)
GM has one player turn to another and say "So..... what now?"

[The Dark Elf]

I normally start people off outside the locale, just arriving so they experience everything as if they were new to the town (they are). If they start in a bar then the can presume their characters knows various things about the town beforehand. I like them to role paly these discoveries. I find the menial quirks at the start of the game let them flesh out and get to know their character as well as let me get to know their desires without any story hooks. Helps me plan for the rest of the game and gauge their reactions as well as setting up little points were these character desire can be brought to life (ie if its a thief charatcer tand the first thing he does is try to burgle somewhere, I'll plan a heist later...)

[Damian Magecraft]

Does anyone else have a problem starting games? I can come up with a great idea for a game, but I always have a hard time trying to figure out how to start the PC's on the adventure. Any suggestions?

There have been many good examples offered up already...
One I have used (a few times) before is having the characters waking up in a cell together, with no memory (or vague ones) of how they came to find themselves incarcerated.

[Illendaver]

Interesting start. Run and be pursued maybe? Or go and fight? Simple but effective (affective? Damn those two words...)

The party chose to not go charging up the hill (we had no cleric only a bard for healing) We were branded deserters, traitors, and spys. After the big bad mage in the tower beat back the army, we had both the mage and the army after us for "questioning". Wound up with the bard taking charge and starting his own army. Pretty good campaign.

[Shorty Lickens]

Our GM used the old reliable "you've worked together for years" way to start, it might be lame and boring, but as others have already posted it is a good way to prevent people from not wanting to work together right from the beginning of the game. As we found out after a couple of years of playing with the same group members it's also a GREAT way to have a spy in your group and not expect it.

One game we started everything the same, we were a team (merc, hero, whatever) but the GM spoke in secret to a couple people, one was to be a spy (didn't force them gave them the choice), one thought he was a spy (turns out we was starting to go insane) This was a lot of fun, especially when the character who was going insane thought his PC was responsible for some acts of sabotage to PC equipment. The way the spy passed on things to the GM was with notes, something everyone did so it didn't look suspicious to the others, or worked out before hand, so when we were playing and turns out the vehicle was sabotaged, the PC who thought he was a spy thought the GM did it on his own as part of the story as a hint for us to try and catch him.

But going back on topic, we recently played a game where everyone was thrown together by circumstance and it caused a lot of infighting, could be the way we started, or the fact there was clashing alignments or both.

Thats not a bad start at all. Sometimes its fun to make conflict right at the beginning. Once I saw a DM make a game where one character was the royal princess and the rest were officers of the guard. Then the castle was attacked. She was quite upset to find herself not giving orders.

[Shorty Lickens]

Do you make your characters write backgrounds? I require a minimum of a one page background for all players and like the idea of incorporating backgrounds together and in tying in plot elements with character background. I started my most recent campaigns by having characters, individually, come upon a monster attacking a village; after defeating the monster and having a chance to see and talk to each other it was nice to see how their individual backgrounds shaped their relationships. My GM style stresses playing in character above all else.

Not set in stone but its usually a good idea to have them jot down some ideas about what their background could be. As the GM sees fit he/she could turn some of those ideas into catalyst for stories. A full history with loads of details can be too restrictive.

[Chronicle]

I find it easier when i make it to where the characters mostly know each other either in person or passing. Helps move the intro scen along, especially online.

[The Dark Elf]

Incidentally I'd never start the group in a bar. always outside a town or city heading in. Then there are no memories of various places seen. They discover everything for the first time in game.

[LostOne]

Incidentally I'd never start the group in a bar. always outside a town or city heading in. Then there are no memories of various places seen. They discover everything for the first time in game.

In our Rifts games that is typically a moot point. For the games that start in bars the inevitable bar fight with NPCs (traveling merc group, etc) usually causes enough damage that they are asked/begged to leave town (generally the group is powerful enough that the local law enforcement knows they are outmatched). This is generally smaller towns where the local law enforcement might be a few guys with hand-me-down MDC armor and a few Wilk's pistols and maybe a rifle or two. Farming town type places. Or in a bigger city they are forcibly removed and banished by the law enforcement if need be because the group has enough magical/psychic/supernatural abilities as to be too much trouble to risk imprisoning. In either case after the group meets they are on the road ready for random encounters and some time to get to know each other chatting while traveling. I always make sure one guy has a decent vehicle with room for passengers for all the party and I generally have them OOC all come up with a reason they are all heading the same direction or I provide one (they're recruited for a merc job in X city).

[psam_rage]

Im going to be starting a Dead Reign game up soon... but I have no idea where, when, or how to start it...

In the past I tried a Z-day scenario where everyone was civil servants (cop, firefighter, paramedic), and I've tried starting people in the middle Times Square after after detonating a ton of incendiary bombs spread about the area (I.E. Fireball a couple hundred zombies as you dive into a manhole, now what do you do?)...

But I'm stuck on this one... Im trying to free form it and not railroad them but with a good opening I don't know how to keep the party (notorious for killing each other in other games) together.

-----------
Side note:

Prisoners, meet in a bar, and THE "call to arms" origins are great for fantasy setting and even some moderns stuff... I can see all of those working with star wars... but games like Dead Reign and All Flesh(different zed-game) aren't conducive to those hooks.

[Looonatic]

Incidentally I'd never start the group in a bar. always outside a town or city heading in. Then there are no memories of various places seen. They discover everything for the first time in game.

I started a group in a bar once: Sort of. One of the PCs owned it and there was a gathering of mercenaries and adventurers from all over due to rumors of a powerful artifact. Then I blew up the bar.

The party were the survivors of the destroyed bar plus the now irate bar owner(who didn't know beforehand I intended to blow it up in the first 30 minutes of the adventure). None of the party members knew eachother before the explosion.

[Chronicle]

Im going to be starting a Dead Reign game up soon... but I have no idea where, when, or how to start it...

In the past I tried a Z-day scenario where everyone was civil servants (cop, firefighter, paramedic), and I've tried starting people in the middle Times Square after after detonating a ton of incendiary bombs spread about the area (I.E. Fireball a couple hundred zombies as you dive into a manhole, now what do you do?)...

But I'm stuck on this one... Im trying to free form it and not railroad them but with a good opening I don't know how to keep the party (notorious for killing each other in other games) together.

-----------
Side note:

Prisoners, meet in a bar, and THE "call to arms" origins are great for fantasy setting and even some moderns stuff... I can see all of those working with star wars... but games like Dead Reign and All Flesh(different zed-game) aren't conducive to those hooks.

With dead reign i find it extrememly fun to play our real life selves and how we would react. Since i am a cable guy i had plenty of things to assist me (up to and including a bucket truck)

[Noon]

Does anyone else have a problem starting games? I can come up with a great idea for a game, but I always have a hard time trying to figure out how to start the PC's on the adventure. Any suggestions?

You can ask your players what they are playing for, then tie it into that.

But beware those who say 'I play for story', because what you mean by story and what they mean by story can easily be entirely different. Press them to describe what they mean by story.

[Juce734]

What about starting a game out like the SAW movies? You awake in a room that is pitch black. Then a dim light turns on and a tape begins to play... "I want to play a game."