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Finding the "push" in a fantasy game
Jul. 22nd, 2023 09:49 pmThere is a standard campaign model that involves the Push, Pull, Gimmick (or MacGuffin), and the Enigma. For most fantasy TTRPGs, the "pull" is obvious - riches, magic, growing in power, and skill. But what's the push?
The Push – The Push (in my interpretation) is the initial motivation the PCs have to leave or escape their current situation and venture into a new one. It may not be something the PCs especially like, but it is the first reason for being there. The push can be relatively simple, like getting away or the need of money, or relatively complex, like a nefarious group or race intent on conquering the universe. There can be multiple pushes, some large and some small. Pushes also benefit the GM – they can come into play when the GM wants to further motivate the PCs. If the group is wasting time in some place and the action should really move on, then over the hill comes a horde of barbarians, the same ones that have been following the group for weeks, whom everyone knows are bloodthirsty killers. “Quick,” the group says, “let’s move on!”
When I write the Push, it is primarily why the PCs initially get involved with the adventure and any information supporting that.
The Pull – The Pull is what draws the PCs along the path to the final goal: the paths and their rewards along the way. A pull is a motivation that attracts adventurers through the various stepping stones of the adventure. It can be as simple as a fabled mineral deposit on a distant world or as complex as a secret formula that will keep the sun from going nova – to be found within a certain time limit. They are also the stepping stones to get to that goal – the encounters along the way.
Pulls need a lot of thought and often must be tailored to characters in the campaign. When one character is an anthropologist and is interested in primitive cultures, the pull can be the secret of some race on a far-off world, one which allows the player to use his talents to puzzle it out after long expeditions. If a player tends to be a violence-prone soldier, then the pull may be a long-sought bit of training from a military society, available only after he has proven his worth.
Often, a campaign can do with two pulls. One may be major, and the other minor, but a multiplicity of pulls allows one to be important while the other lies dormant until needed. Shifting emphasis can make the total campaign realistic; a realistic course for the action is rarely a straightforward path directly to the adventurers' seeming goal.
I treat this as the core of the adventure – the series of encounters and sub-adventures that lead the PCs through the adventure or campaign.
The Gimmick – Any campaign needs gimmicks to appeal to the players. Early on, they have no idea what is important in a grand sense and will be self-centered to a certain extent. Gimmicks are designed to appeal to the players, enabling them to search for obviously valuable items while they also learn about their universe. Gimmicks (some say the word is an approximate anagram of magic) are things that players want: things they are fascinated with. In some cases, they could rank above money or ordinary ships; they may represent some advantage, such as high technology or special talents.
Gimmicks are things that cannot be bought – they must be earned through hard work, clever planning, and good fortune. Keep in mind that gimmicks are things that are acquired early by the players and then serve the person (and the group) for the rest of the campaign.
The Gimmick to me is what the players discover by the end of the adventure and the true story behind it. It can also be a unique item or spell that is key to finishing the campaign.
The Enigma – Motivation or story behind the story. Something the players may or may not learn at the end of the adventure but can grow into something larger. Or there is a mystery to be solved or an ancient secret to be uncovered.
The existence of The Enigma should be tied into the push or pull and motivate the players to keep working towards uncovering the secret.
The push is generally the hardest part of this to define. Why are the characters out wandering through monster-infested ruins and ancient roads plagued by bandits? Why not sign on with some petty king and get a nice warm barracks and two meals daily? (Medieval standard: big breakfasts and big suppers.)
That's the push. The reason why they cannot stop and set down roots until late in the campaign. Note that some reasons for wandering are actually pulls. A journeyman Shek-Pvar on Hârn has to complete a journey of at least a year and a day while finding three examples of specific things. That's a pull.
A push is something that makes you keep adventuring. It's a threat, a ticking bomb, or a standing danger. It is a threat if you stop. Finding who has managed to unite the orcs into a great army before these orcs eat the civilized lands is a push. Then there's the entire genre of "hero on the run" from television from the 1960s (The Fugitive) through the 1980s (The A-Team). Take the voice-over for The A-Team, as an example:
Now apply this to a fantasy setting. Wrongly accused of treason or heresy (or both!) and other crimes, the characters escape. The pull is to prove their innocence. The push is they are outlaws pursued by bounty hunters. The Gimmick/MacGuffin might be anything, like a witness who can prove their innocence - if that person can be found. The Enigma is who orchestrated their false trials.
This would be a fine episodic campaign with a more swashbuckling feel. Each new town brings a new situation for the heroes to address, with a dramatic escape from their chief pursuer in the end. The campaign would work toward a suitably dramatic conclusion. It seems to me this kind of thing is tailor-made for 13th Sea.
But pay attention to the Push. It's what drives movement in your campaigns.
The Push – The Push (in my interpretation) is the initial motivation the PCs have to leave or escape their current situation and venture into a new one. It may not be something the PCs especially like, but it is the first reason for being there. The push can be relatively simple, like getting away or the need of money, or relatively complex, like a nefarious group or race intent on conquering the universe. There can be multiple pushes, some large and some small. Pushes also benefit the GM – they can come into play when the GM wants to further motivate the PCs. If the group is wasting time in some place and the action should really move on, then over the hill comes a horde of barbarians, the same ones that have been following the group for weeks, whom everyone knows are bloodthirsty killers. “Quick,” the group says, “let’s move on!”
When I write the Push, it is primarily why the PCs initially get involved with the adventure and any information supporting that.
The Pull – The Pull is what draws the PCs along the path to the final goal: the paths and their rewards along the way. A pull is a motivation that attracts adventurers through the various stepping stones of the adventure. It can be as simple as a fabled mineral deposit on a distant world or as complex as a secret formula that will keep the sun from going nova – to be found within a certain time limit. They are also the stepping stones to get to that goal – the encounters along the way.
Pulls need a lot of thought and often must be tailored to characters in the campaign. When one character is an anthropologist and is interested in primitive cultures, the pull can be the secret of some race on a far-off world, one which allows the player to use his talents to puzzle it out after long expeditions. If a player tends to be a violence-prone soldier, then the pull may be a long-sought bit of training from a military society, available only after he has proven his worth.
Often, a campaign can do with two pulls. One may be major, and the other minor, but a multiplicity of pulls allows one to be important while the other lies dormant until needed. Shifting emphasis can make the total campaign realistic; a realistic course for the action is rarely a straightforward path directly to the adventurers' seeming goal.
I treat this as the core of the adventure – the series of encounters and sub-adventures that lead the PCs through the adventure or campaign.
The Gimmick – Any campaign needs gimmicks to appeal to the players. Early on, they have no idea what is important in a grand sense and will be self-centered to a certain extent. Gimmicks are designed to appeal to the players, enabling them to search for obviously valuable items while they also learn about their universe. Gimmicks (some say the word is an approximate anagram of magic) are things that players want: things they are fascinated with. In some cases, they could rank above money or ordinary ships; they may represent some advantage, such as high technology or special talents.
Gimmicks are things that cannot be bought – they must be earned through hard work, clever planning, and good fortune. Keep in mind that gimmicks are things that are acquired early by the players and then serve the person (and the group) for the rest of the campaign.
The Gimmick to me is what the players discover by the end of the adventure and the true story behind it. It can also be a unique item or spell that is key to finishing the campaign.
The Enigma – Motivation or story behind the story. Something the players may or may not learn at the end of the adventure but can grow into something larger. Or there is a mystery to be solved or an ancient secret to be uncovered.
The existence of The Enigma should be tied into the push or pull and motivate the players to keep working towards uncovering the secret.
The push is generally the hardest part of this to define. Why are the characters out wandering through monster-infested ruins and ancient roads plagued by bandits? Why not sign on with some petty king and get a nice warm barracks and two meals daily? (Medieval standard: big breakfasts and big suppers.)
That's the push. The reason why they cannot stop and set down roots until late in the campaign. Note that some reasons for wandering are actually pulls. A journeyman Shek-Pvar on Hârn has to complete a journey of at least a year and a day while finding three examples of specific things. That's a pull.
A push is something that makes you keep adventuring. It's a threat, a ticking bomb, or a standing danger. It is a threat if you stop. Finding who has managed to unite the orcs into a great army before these orcs eat the civilized lands is a push. Then there's the entire genre of "hero on the run" from television from the 1960s (The Fugitive) through the 1980s (The A-Team). Take the voice-over for The A-Team, as an example:
In 1972, a crack commando unit was sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didn’t commit. These men promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles underground. Today, still wanted by the government, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire:
The A-Team.
Now apply this to a fantasy setting. Wrongly accused of treason or heresy (or both!) and other crimes, the characters escape. The pull is to prove their innocence. The push is they are outlaws pursued by bounty hunters. The Gimmick/MacGuffin might be anything, like a witness who can prove their innocence - if that person can be found. The Enigma is who orchestrated their false trials.
This would be a fine episodic campaign with a more swashbuckling feel. Each new town brings a new situation for the heroes to address, with a dramatic escape from their chief pursuer in the end. The campaign would work toward a suitably dramatic conclusion. It seems to me this kind of thing is tailor-made for 13th Sea.
But pay attention to the Push. It's what drives movement in your campaigns.