Editing Magipunk:Campaigns (section)

= The Protagonists =

A first big question is, who are the PC's?

Of course, the ultimate answer to that is "whomever the group decides on."  If you've got an idea for playing King Ropert V and the [[Magipunk:Organizations#The_Royal_Family|Royal Family]], go ahead and do it!  But the default answer to this question -- the thing that the game was designed for -- is that the PC's are people who are <b>lower-class</b>, <b>high-potential</b>, and <b>good at crime</b>.  To see why, start below:

=== Lower Class ===

Why are the PC's from the lower social classes?  There are two big reasons:

First, it gives them some built in motive.  The state of being poor in Atathorn is a pretty unpleasant one.  It's easy for the players to see that their characters are doomed to unpleasant, un-improving lives if they just sit around.  There are wonders to be had in the world of Magipunk, but the poor are generally cut off from them.  And it gives the GM a good way to start the group off -- they can be employed to do something.

Second, the powers-that-be in Atathorn are pretty scummy.  The Alliances combine the worst features of modern corporations and old-style aristocracy, and they're the upper classes.  Magipunk is a game where nobody's lily-white, in terms of morality, but the Alliances are darker than usual.  So by starting off seperate from them, you give the PC's a chance to become the heroes of the game -- or sell out and join the bad guys, if that's the kind of game that appeals to you.

=== High-Potential ===

In some ways, this is a nice way of saying, "Not really all that powerful... yet."

The PC's are usually going to be people who could someday become influential, rich, and powerful, but aren't yet.  That means that we aren't looking at just Joe Random off the street as a PC -- they may appear to be that to the casual observer, but they've got some kind of edge, something going for them.  Maybe it's just that they're smarter, faster, stronger, or all three than most folks, or maybe it's something else.

This gives the PC's a reason to believe that they can succeed in a setting that's pretty grim, starting from a position that a lot of people have failed at.

=== Good At Crime ===

The PC's may not be <i>criminals</i>, but they could be pretty darned competent ones if they tried.

Swords and sorcery gaming has traditionally focused on fighting people or monsters and finding cool items.  Cyberpunk gaming has traditionally focused on espionage or theft.  It's no surprise that Magipunk, being a fusion of cyberpunk and swords and sorcery, goes pretty similar routes.  The PC's should expect to engage in some illegal or quasi-legal activity (maybe for the nobles of causes!), and be able to excel at it.  Skills like breaking and entering, roughing people up, and fencing stolen goods are likely to come in handy.