Time of Crisis Help: First Chapter (Spoilers inside)

[AaronUnicorn]

I was just wondering if anyone else found the first chapter of ToC to be a little straight-forward and short. The other chapters have lots of stuff for the PCs to do, discover, etc., but Chapter 1 seems to be "Get the call, go to the Paradise, fight the villains, watch the world end."

Does anyone have any ideas for something to do to get the PCs to the Paradise without it being so straightforward? Or something for them to do beforehand?

[Novac]

Sure, run The Heist first, have Rant & Rave get away, head near the casino and go down into the sewers, they go in the sub-basement and the PCs follow.

[Inazuma]

Well, the first chapter is meant to be simple and quick. The real beef of the story is in the following chapters. Chapter 1 is just the set up.

But, you could have the heroes already at the casino, having some fun in their secret identities. This can lead to some interesting scenes as the heroes try to find a way to change identities after the baddies show up. There are cameras everywhere in a casino, after all.

[Luke de Sade]

I know what you mean, man. When I run this chapter (two weeks from now...playing Vampire today, finishing the M&M adventure we're in next weekend, and starting ToC the weekend after that), I'll have my players do stuff at the beginning. I always put a bit of roleplay into my M&M sessions. One of the guys is going out on a date with his character's girlfriend (Power Babe, now called Hyperion's Daughter) and he's gonna get attacked by The Beautiful People. The other one is flunking some of his classes at the Claremont Academy and they've told him if his grades don't pick up, they'll have to let him go. Stuff like that.

[Defender]

I liked Chapter One, but I decided that when I do run ToC I'm going to do it at the end of my upcoming storyline. The heroes will have just defeated my master villain's plan, have that well-deserved moment of triumph, when suddenly everything goes white. . .and the stakes are raised even higher. Heh heh heh.

-Defender.

[Luke de Sade]

Man, that is actually a very good idea!!! I'd do that, but the main baddie they're facing right now is Reverend Jeffrey Rose, the man behind an Aryan Power group responsible for the White Knight burning down a church in Downtown. They already defeated the White Knight (put him in a hospital), and they realized that the Aryan Power group has ties to the Tonifanis and the Crime Syndicate. So, I don't think I can use that one because after they aprehend Rev. Rose (who's on the run, and has no super-powers), that adventure is done. And it would be anti-climatic to do that after they apprehend Rose. Would be ultra cool if they were facing off against Lord Broka, took him down, and THEN the world goes white. That'd rule!

[spatulalad]

I'm going to kick off my run of Time of Crisis tomorrow night, and I'm with those that feel the first scene is a bit lacking. I suppose its meant to surprise the players with such a big switcheroo (everyday villain busting becomes EPIC COSMIC TRAGEDY) but it just doesn't seem to ramp up right for my taste. So, instead, I'm going to start with a session of a flashback to Omega's invasion in '93. The PCs'll play heroes at the scene, including Centurion, and get a first-hand witness of what they'll be up against.

It'll also nicely dovetail into an origin story for one of the player characters, which will then cut to the team responding to Maddick's call.

Looking forward to seeing how it pans out!

[Nightlynx]

Sure, run The Heist first, have Rant & Rave get away, head near the casino and go down into the sewers, they go in the sub-basement and the PCs follow.

I would go with the Heist first also - it allows for a nice intro adventure that could easily lead to the ToC.....

The two work very well together IMHO!

peace and good gaming

Nightlynx