The Culture: The Clubhouse Campaign

Since we're talking about returning to past, let's talk about how a clubhouse can have a massive campaign without a single Referee calling all the shots.

Every clubhouse needs a war room.

One War, Many Theaters

As I mentioned yesterday, the idea is that the entire campaign runs using one game played exactly as-written. Each member running a table handles a specific area on the map. Players' characters can--and, inevitably, will--move between those locations and thus between tables. That, alone, necessitates uniform rules.

The map need not be fleshed out. Folks running tables merely pick a hex (or equivalent) on the blank map and goes on from there; that's why the only products worth having are those that have functional content-creation tools so they don't need to keep forking out cash to a publisher for playable content.

Each table runs a separate game, meeting at a separate time, in coordination with the campaign Referee (to account for cross-table transit, events, etc.) but what goes on at one table can--and inevitably will--effect the play of other tables.

Eventually threads arising from gameplay will create conflicts that build pressure, pressure that has to explode sooner or later in resolution, and that means that the two tiers of play (ordinary adventuring and macro-level play) combine in a frantic mass participation event.

The Big Loop

We now have a campaign-scale gameplay loop.

Players playing adventuring characters pursuing their own objectives create ongoing threads in the campaign. These players can, and will, act at cross-purposes which generates conflict.

Those conflicts build over time, as the parties manuever to achieve a winning position. One party decides to initiate battle, forcing the battle session that resolves the conflict.

The consequences of the conflict's resolution change the situation and opens heretofore unseen opportunities for characters to exploit in pursuit of their own objectives.

Lather, rinse, repeat until someone wins.

The Key Element

Players must drive conflict. Individual characters and macro-level play alike thrives under PVP conditions, so players are expected to pursue objectives that involve taking on (and eliminating) threats to their agenda.

This does not mean that collaboration is off the table, but--like the wargames they come from--a proper fantastic adventure campaign has one winner and it is in the way that characters and factions ally and cross swords that makes pursuit of that winning objective interesting and worthwhile to play out.

But, once there is an uncontested (and uncontestable) winner that campaign is over. Mark final positions on the map, publish post-mortems, and say "Good Game".

Then get ready to do it all again.

That's the last thing missing from the hobby: campaigns must not only being, but end- either someone wins, or everyone loses. A game that can't do this is unfit for purpose, which is over 90% of products on the shelf- maybe 99%.