Nikolaj noticed that my descriptions of a certain girl in his scenario seemed designed to appeal to him, and then in the ensuing discussion he commented about The Dancing Princess, in that it appears to him that that scenario is designed to perhaps seduce or at least induce the player character into falling in love with one of the fictional girls.
On the one hand, I categorically deny that I ever plot to have player characters fall in love with specific non-player characters. Well, no, that's not one hundred percent true--it is part of the plot in Prisoner of Zenda that the verser falls in love with the princess (or in Ahmetia's case, the prince); but that is an unattainable love, as the princess will almost certainly do the "right thing" in the end and marry the king, not the "play actor" as Rupert of Hentzau will call him (her). The love for the princess becomes a very complicating factor, because the character is faced with the conflict that doing the right thing will result in not getting the desired reward, but doing the wrong thing will mean having to keep the secret for a very long time.
However, The Dancing Princess does indeed present the character with three girls (I started running it gender-reversed once, but don't remember what happened to that one), and offers the character the opportunity to marry the one of his choice (and to receive all the benefits of being the king's son-in-law). It thus appears that I am attempting to hook the player into falling in love with one of the characters.
In one sense, I am. But the very design of the scenario means I actually am not. What I have done in that scenario is create the basics of three female characters, each of whom would appeal to certain kinds of men, and then let the players discover them.
- Margaret, the eldest, is the girl who is proper and dignified, almost unapproachable in her regal splendor. She appeals to the part of a man for whom a bride is something to be achieved or earned, that is, whose own worth is at stake in the measure of the woman he marries. He will be the king, eventually, if he marries her; meanwhile, he will be the prince royal, and the woman on his arm will make him look good. (I actually made that sound more appealing than it does to me; but that's part of trying to run effective non-player characters.)
- Nerene, the overshadowed second child, is the quite withdrawn type who seems so sweet and so unknowable. She virtually screams for someone to protect and hold her, and in so doing she appeals to that man who would be the protector, who wants the admiration and adoration of one woman who thinks him everything in the universe. He volunteers to be her hero, and she accepts him as such. (And maybe this is the one that most appeals to me.)
- Olivia is the fun-loving youngest, a bit impish, a bit of a tomboy, loves the outdoors, loves games and play, probably loves pillow fights and snowball fights and sneaking out at night, riding full-gallop across the open countryside, tumbling down a hillside into a lake. She excites the adventurous man, who wants to go along for the game, and so enjoys her company that he wants to be with her forever. (Interestingly, this is the girl most of my players choose; I do not know whether I play her best or they are mostly interested in that type.)
Since the three girls are sketched not more fully than that (and that might actually be a more detailed sketch of their personalities and certainly of their appeal than the book offers), they are somewhat fluid. I do not find this unreasonable; after all, I think that when people are attracted to each other, they do become somewhat fluid, each trying to be what the other hopes and trying to accept what the other is. Thus if a player character starts exploring some aspect of one of the girls that I had not considered (Does Margaret read novels? Does Nerene bake cookies? Does Olivia know how to fence?) I usually ask myself which would more appeal to the player, and then consider whether that's how I want to play it. After all, it might be that it's more interesting and more enticing to have the characters learn something together, or have the player character teach the non-player character; or it might be better to have the non-player character already excel at something in which the player character has some interest and experience. I'm reminded of a Leverage episode in which Elliot (the muscle) faces off against a very capable female Russian fighter, and after dealing each other a few bruises they become quite attracted to each other. On the other hand, quite a few girls have managed to snuggle up to a desired guy by displaying (sometimes feigning) ignorance of something he could teach her, providing the excuse for the context in which they can spend time together.
I'm not sure where this thread is going. I'm somehow pretty certain that Eric is going to have something really useful to say about all this, and maybe we can hear from David (who fell for one of my werewolf girls), Adam (who married a girl created in a moment of necessity), Shawn (who carefully surveyed the available girls in the Ruritanian noble households before courting one), Graeme (who has had good relationships with several girls but never closed any into a romance), and John 2 (who ducked the princesses entirely and saved the day because it needed saving, not because of the suggested reward). What causes a player character to fall in love with a non-player character? Where do you cross the line between facilitating and scheming--and when if ever should you? Does that kind of story interest you, or would you rather simply avoid it? (Another Game Ideas Unlimited article comes to mind, Game Ideas Unlimited: Embraces, so obviously I've addressed this before.)
--M. J. Young
