Hello fellow Game Masters!

I've been a Gamemaster for a long time and I just love putting emotional scenes in my role-playing games (be careful not to make them too melodramatic though!). Ways I have been able to do this is by using great music, good story telling and NPCs that PCs get attached and care about. Now, this have not been a problem in previous games I've gamemastered, such as Warhammer Fantasy and Dungeons and Dragons, but now I'm a bit at a loss.

Will my usual methods be enough to evokce emotions in a Space Marine game? Is it even possible? Do you have anything planned that you want to share, that relate to this? Valorous last stands, or themes about self sacrifice? This is an action game, no doubt, and we're all aware of that, but even then it would be totally awesome to get some really

Rage, hatred, self-doubt, and even fear (yeah, SMs feel fear a bit differently, but it's still there) can be good themes for Space Marines. Consider the emotional response of Leman Russ upon seeing the population of an Imperial world that had fought valiantly alongside his SWs purged by the Inquisition.

I find the themes of self-sacrifice and duty can be quite potent as well. I'm not one to see the marines as robots all programmed to kill the emperor's enemies, but men who have sacrificed their whole lives to defend humans, something that you could argue they're not even part of anymore. Much like a religious figure or holy knight- who gives up his life, his belongings, his desires, his dreams, all for the sake of protecting humanity.

Marines are also responsible in full or part for making life altering decisions for millions, even billions of innocent people (especially in DW), guilt could be a powerful emotion to evoke (much like HappyDaze suggests) after a kill team orders an exterminatus, or orders or participates in a purge. Brave face and stiff upper lip, but even the msot grizzled veterans can have some sort of emotion, buried deep within them perhaps...

What about love? While many will crap on that concept right out of the gate (please, I'm not trying to debate SM and their junk, reproduction, to chem geld or not, or anything like that), but I think if you look to some of the inspiration for Space Marines (knights of the round and all that) you could have some interesting concepts- love/lust/desire is one very basic human emotion, and stories surrounding control or repression of those base behaviors have some powerful themes that folks around the table can all likely relate to. What could happen if a SM started to have "feelings" for an Inquisitor they work for, or one of his/her acolytes. What if it's towards a fellow SM? Ripe for conflict, disapproval, self loathing, and fear of falling to the ruinous powers...

HappyDaze said:

Erm, you mean Logan Grimmnar, I think... First War of Armageddon if I recall; where he also had an entire company of Grey Knights up his sleeve to fight against the Dæmon-Primarch Angron and his Bloodthristers/letters (can never remember which is "bigger"). Oh, the rage and urge to kick some Inquisitorial arse...

Not that Russ wouldn't have been equally, if not more, furious...

-=Brother Praetus=-

Brother Praetus said:

Yeah, you're right. I was going off of memory and I haven't read any Space Wolves stuff in some time.

Read the books in the Horus Heresy . There are plenty of good examples of SMs having/displaying emotions in different situations.

The major issue to be aware of when dealing with emotions is how you feel about something might not be the way that your players will. An example might be where the players are trapped in nasty firefight when you "arrange" for a librarian to appear and smite their enemies. you may be looking to solicit the emotional response of reflief but player a dislikes psychics and player b dislikes npc getting the righteous kills. So the Librarian instead of being a hero the players will work with becomes someone neither of them will trust. its not enough to set the scene (props music etc) you need knowledge as well.

Reclusiarch said:

It's all a matter of story-telling. Take for example Oblivion's Edge. Easily overlooked, the arguably most dramatic moment of the scenario is the boarding of the hive ship. Properly fleshed out it can be used to create an emotional situation.

Maybe this text can give you an inspiration of what I mean (forgive me any spelling/grammar errors please, English is not my native language):

(Read aloud or even better paraphrase. Best to a suitable tune like Fortuna from Carmina Burana or Immediate Music's Lacrimosa.)

"The moment has come; the final act of your mission to save from Avalos what
still can be saved is drawing near. Since your transfer to the Blade Of Drusus,
your kill-team and Captain Grayson's 227th Stormtrooper Company have been
preparing busily for deployment in the ship's huge prow-side torpedo storage
docks. With your gear being readied, all holy blessings dispensed and all
prayers prayed, you cannot help but let your gaze wander over the rare,
awe-inspiring sight before your eyes: dozens and dozens of torpedoes that have
been lined up in multiple rows fill the ancient chamber and between them a small
army of technomats and simple serfs prepare the torpedoes and firing mechanisms,
tech-priests apply sacred machine oil to ensure the Omnissiah's blessing while a
group of old Clerics wander amidst the fray, kneeling down for prayer with
members of the elite stormtrooper detachment. And as if a constant
reminder of things to come, time and again the pillar-columned hall and the
frantic crowd within is cast in yellow and green and white light coming from the
opening salvos of the battle in the void where the 112th Calixian battlefleet is
heading its way slowly towards the Tyranid's deadly screen of escorts.

As your thinking gets interrupted by the ever more freqeuent sound of passing
Fury Interceptors, your gaze wanders on to that small gothic window right next
to you. At the other side of it, far out beyond you can make out a giant shape
at an angle to your point of view... an appalling shape ghoulishly lit from
below by the green-blue light cast off of Avalos' planetary body, you can make
out the hive ship organism that is your destination. Shrouded in a cloud of
spores and a multitude of drone ships, it seems to have taken a brief pause from
spewing death and destruction on Lordsholm. While staring at it through the
void you're once more mentally preparing yourself for boarding this... thing...
on the other side, a creature that is dwarfing easily the size of even the proud
Emperor's Wrath. You force yourself to push aside thoughts of entire armies of
tentacled, claw-studded, bony critters awaiting you within and return your focus
forcefully to the slow movement of the ship's gigantic tentacles as it - as if
in slow-motion - starts to turn to face Avalos again.

The shouts of Captain Grayson interrupt your thoughts; turning around you see
him walking through the lines, loudly raising the spirit of his soldier. You
feel that Grayson is certainly a good man and an able commander and his 227th
Stormtroopers are some of the finest Guards to be found. And yet you can see how
thoughts of the fate that awaits them are pushing the men to their limit.
Watching as if in trance you can make out some of the soldiers having gone
slightly pale, others are praying for the Emperor's mercy while yet others stare
blankly into nothingness, awaiting the final command to board the torpedoes to
come. Many of them surely have served the Emperor in many glorious battles
before but among the men of the 227th the belief has begone to spread that the
boarding of the hive ship is going to ask of them the ultimate service from
which there will be no coming back.

As you give Captain Grayson the signal to hand out the order to enter the
torpedoes, you can see in the eyes of some men that they are pinning any hopes
for their return on the mighty Deathwatch Astartes, the Angels of Death, the
protector's of Mankind and perhaps the saviours of Avalos."

I hope you guys get the basic idea.

Alex

Reclusiarch said:

I'm currently playing not runnign DW so I don't really have anything planned, I would like to share a link with you though; the below is some real world last stand examples. I mention that is real world as in the scope of the RP you should be able to do similar as a gm with the tools provided in game.

http://www.cracked.com/article/197_the-7-most-badass-last-stands-in-history-battle/

Also remember it doesn't neccesarily be a PC that goes through the above, you could get the same emotional impact if it's their watch commander or another NPC that they have close ties with that sacrifices himself to buy them time or aids their mission success in some way.

As far as actual source material goes read the first 3 Horus Heresy books (Horus Rising, False Gods and Galaxy in Flames), Rynn's World and Helsreach as these books present both emotional situations with brother marines and with citizens/guardsmen.

Space Marines are all brothers within their own chapter as far as they're concerned. They may not be best friends with each other but they would still fight across a hundred worlds to aid their brothers. How about introducing a crusade of space marines from the same chapter as one of the players as NPCs. They're operating in the same area of space yet aren't always together due to the independant nature of the Deathwatch but due to the nature of the crusade are near enough to encounter each other now and then. What if the players hear that marine group is holding out against a Tyranid invasion in an attempt to buy time for civillians to escape but are now cut off. If you present the players the choice of either helping to defend the space port and escaping transports or charging forth to help their brother marines pull out/save their geneseed from being taken by the Tyranids.

Before joining the DeathWatch, I had a mini-prelude with each player separately.

During that prelude, we would meander around what the character has experienced so far, what great stories he has lived through with his squad mates in his home chapter, and how the next juicy promotion was within reach.

Then, one day, during a morning prayer, the Chapter Master commanded all Marines of the character's Company to stand-to. Klaxons are sounding, giant gates are closing and silent serfs are ushered away from the Marines' quarters. Something is going to happen. Battle ready, tension building at the rare disturbance in routine. With a quick battle sign by the Master, the character is surrounded by men from his chapter and ordered to kneel.

The Chapter Master rises his voice :

"Brother (name) - It is my command that you remove yourself from our presence and relocate to the Jericho Reaches. You are assigned to the Deathwatch. You will submit to the Watch Commander at Watch Fortress Erioch and follow his orders as if they were mine. You are to take your personal weapons with you and I wish you to travel to the Reaches immediately, not stopping for friend or foe. Serve the Deathwatch faithfully, diligently and honourably.

You are hereby expelled from this order, and you are only welcome to return Dead or when, after many years of good and proper service, the Watch Commander of the DeathWatch choses to honourably release you from service. Leave now - Men of the (players Platoon), escort the expelled brother to the Gates of our Chapter and bid him a brotherly farewell."

Until now, all the players got goosebumps, and I had all the platoons give them a military salute or somesuch while they ferried away to their ships.

Ariolan said:

I always wanted to create this introductory scenario which begins with the new PC of a player (new player or the old PC got killed) arriving at Erioch and going through the entire initiation ritual which culminates in the marine symbollically taking the first stroke of black paint over his armour, followed up by his new brothers-in-arms all passing by, each likewise making one ritual stroke. (Chapter Serfs then proceed to finish the job.)

Never got to flesh it though.

Alex