The Big Idea
Adjust Outcast so both those that play as Outcasts and those that play around them have a more organic time with the status than the status quo. The idea is to make it more interactive and encourage actual investigation as opposed to just clicking examine to read the funny text. As well as avoiding being a borderline meta-game encouraging system.
I will first take a look at what we presently have before diving into any proposed changes.
Status Quo
Outcasts have an invisible tag in their description which can only be seen by player characters that are citizens in a surface settlement. All it says is that they are an outcast, not who or why. While this is serviceable, over the years there have been more than a few clashes occurring as a result of it, ones that have left players on both sides feeling dissatisfied with how they came to be.
Such as a town guard patrolling around and happening upon someone who was shunned from his home for being a malformed abomination. Then stabbing him to death. Why? Because he’s an outcast.
At best this feels a bit stilted, and at worst it is a very artificial way of playing ‘find the bad guy’. It takes a lot of the interesting parts of what leads up to a manhunt and deprives everyone involved of an interesting/intriguing story. The current system removes nuance, and with the following proposal I'd like to inject some of it back into this never-ending conflict.
Proposition
I’ve come up with two options, one being significantly easier than the other.
Bin the outcast tags for everyone.
Maybe not Zhentarim or Harpers due to how they are established in the setting.
Would require players to actually launch investigations or discuss amongst themselves if someone is an outcast and for what reason.
Remove the outcast tags, and add a ‘wanted board’ system in its stead.
Elaboration is as follows.
What’s in a name?
Outcast players will have an option of their entries having a name or a pseudonym.
If they use a pseudonym, they have to actually go by it. Whether as a disguise or a moniker they use frequently for the sake of ‘’’fairness’’’. Or play about it in a way where it’s possible it may get found out. Or not.
Or, no name is known at the start. Instead have the players try and discover it themselves. All they will know is a ‘tip-off’ that someone banished from society has arrived on the isle. With a basic ‘suspect description’, not unlike preliminary descriptions for persons of interest in law enforcement.
What's he look like?
System would automatically go off of whatever colours and tattoos the player model has.
Mimic already established -investigate system.
Players will be able to add in additional details(ie piercings, eyepatches, prosthetics, etc)
Be On the Look-Out - Editable Entries
Settlements can edit their own entries and update them with their own information. It would be preferred that each of them be separate so each settlement can do as much or as little digging into a specific person as possible.
Guldorand might care a LOT about Arch Lich Baltazhar VI who is mucking about their sewers.
Cordor might take Helaynae the Bog Witch eating babies in the lowlands a bit more seriously.
Both would investigate these individuals but to different degrees due to differing priorities.
On the note of Harpers and Zhentarim, it would be my personal opinion that they need to put in the same amount of leg-work. But due to how they are set-up in the setting itself, it would make an amount of sense if they had more information off the bat. Or a more automated system.
'We're fugitives! From... Where?'
On character creation an Outcast may choose one settlement they have been barred from by default.
If another settlement would like it to be carried over, the original settlement has to pass along the relevant information. Or the Outcast will have to have committed an offense in that settlement. Something not disimilar to the pariah / exile system, perhaps more of an addition to it.
Have an opt out / custom location option as well for those who have committed heinous crimes overseas, or have become wanted by foreign nations.
Thank you for your time, and have a bureaucratic day.
