4.2. Scripted Scenes

| Chapter 4: Time and Plot |

| 4.2. Scripted Scenes

Sometimes we want to arrange a scene in which something goes on in the background (as though it were a movie playing) while the player goes about his business; or where a series of things has to happen before the player gets to the end.

The simplest way to arrange background events for a scene is to write the sequence of events into a table and work our way through it, printing one line per turn, until the scene runs out. Day One does exactly this.

At other times, we want a scene to last as long as it takes the player to do something. Entrapment lets the player poke around and explore as much as he likes, but ends as soon as he has accomplished the scene's goal - which, unfortunately for him, is to get into an embarrassing situation so that another character can walk in and make fun of him. The Prague Job has a scene that requires the player to do a more specific set of tasks, but nags him and hurries him along until he's done.

Bowler Hats and Baby Geese assumes that our game is going to be assembled with a number of scenes, some of which will need to prevent the player from leaving the location until the scene is complete: it thus defines a "restricted" property for scenes, so that all such elements of the plot will work in the same way.

For more complex sorts of scripts and schedules, it may be worth consulting the extensions.

See Characters Following a Script for a character whose conversation with the player is scripted to follow a pattern and then conclude

159
| Example Day One A scene which plays through a series of events in order, then ends when the list of events is exhausted. |
WI

155
| Example Entrapment A scene in which the player is allowed to explore as much as he likes, but another character strolls in as soon as he has gotten himself into an awkward or embarrassing situation. |
WI

The power of scenes lies in their ability to watch for general conditions and move the narrative along whenever these are fulfilled. Instead of waiting for the player to do one specific thing, the game waits for the world to be in a certain condition, before moving to the next stage of the plot. For instance, suppose we have a story in which the player has been captured for doing something inappropriate at court and is brought in to await a meeting with a palace official. We want to give the player a few minutes to stew, and we want the scene to end with him doing something mildly peculiar or embarrassing, and the official catching him in the act. So we tempt him into trying any of a number of different kooky activities, and just wait until he falls into the trap... "Entrapment" Waiting Suite is a room. "You find yourself in a narrow room, more cozy than is really comfortable, with dark paneling on all the walls. Underfoot is a thick carpet the color of dried blood. The head of a dragon kit is mounted on the wall." The wood paneling is scenery in the Waiting Suite. The description is "Just the sort of ornate panels that might conceal a carved switch. You've heard all sorts of rumors about secret rooms and passages in the palace, some of which have not been opened in centuries because no one remembers how to get at them." Understand "panels" or "panel" or "panelling" as the paneling. Instead of switching on the paneling, say "First you'll have to locate any switches or catches with a careful search." The thick carpet is scenery in the Waiting Suite. Understand "red" or "blood" or "rug" as the carpet. The description is "A dull, unwelcoming weave, only a touch redder than the wood around you. You discern that it does not lie perfectly flat." Instead of touching the paneling for the first time: say "You run your hands over the paneling with a methodical touch, knowing exactly what you're looking for but never quite feeling anything that gives or twists; then thump lightly, looking for hollow spaces." Instead of touching the paneling for the second time: say "With increased vigor, you run your fingers along the borders between panels, then smack each panel sharply at the center. No luck yet, but if you keep at it, you're bound to turn up anything that's there to find." Instead of attacking the paneling: try touching the paneling. Instead of searching the paneling: try touching the paneling. Understand "knock on [something]" or "tap [something]" or "tap on [something]" as attacking. After touching the paneling when the player is not confident: say "Having polished off all the panels within easy reach, you now have to contort yourself around furniture here and crawl along the floorboards there, hitting each panel three times quite solidly before moving on."; now the player is embarrassed. Instead of looking under the carpet for the first time: say "You take a corner of the carpet and tug. The floor is sticky, so it doesn't come up on the first try." A small table is an enterable supporter in the Waiting Suite. On the table is a copy of Dragon Pursuit Today. The description of Dragon Pursuit Today is "Full of glossy illustrations of dragons in various stages of capture, captivity, and destruction. The back of the magazine contains small black-and-white advertisements for hunting kits and the like." Some advertisements and some illustrations are part of Dragon Pursuit Today. The description of the illustrations is "You have the misfortune to look first at the photographs accompanying 'Cleaning Dragon Splanchna', and feel quite unwell." The description of the advertisements is "Mostly terse ads and phone numbers." After looking under the table: say "It's quite a low table and you have to get down on your knees and poke your head underneath in order to get a good look." After looking under the carpet: say "You pull again at the carpet. There is a tug, then a tearing, as the ancient fabric struggles against the fabric glue. Some of the carpet winds up in your hand and some of it remains in patchy threads adhering to the floor." After entering the table: say "You climb onto the small table, noticing belatedly that you are leaving muddy footprints on its polished surface. Oh well: you can wipe them away again when you get down." The dragon head is scenery in the Waiting Suite. Understand "kit" or "mouth" as the dragon head. The description is "Its eyes are wide with bewildered surprise; its mouth gapes, its forked tongue protrudes indignantly. From down here it looks as though there's something shiny stuck in its mouth, though you can't tell for sure." The head contains a shiny thing. The description of the shiny thing is "Intriguing but impossible to see clearly." Instead of taking the shiny thing, try searching the dragon head. Before searching the dragon head: if the player is not on the table, try entering the table; if the player is not on the table, stop the action. After searching the dragon head: say "You have a good look inside the dragon's mouth. There's a ball of lucite inside, propping the jaw in display position." A person can be confident, nervous, or embarrassed. The player is confident. Touching the paneling is embarrassing behavior. Looking under the carpet is embarrassing behavior. Entering the table is embarrassing behavior. Looking under the table is embarrassing behavior. Instead of embarrassing behavior: if the player is nervous, now the player is embarrassed; if the player is confident: say "Before you can act, you hear movement from the inner office. You freeze, not quite ready to be discovered in this situation. But no one comes out, and you begin to breathe more easily."; now the player is nervous; otherwise: continue the action. Causing trouble is a scene. Causing trouble begins when play begins. Causing trouble ends when the player is embarrassed. When Causing trouble ends: say "Just at this inopportune moment, you hear a throat being cleared behind you. 'We can see you now within,' says a dry voice."; end the story saying "To be continued..." Test me with "switch paneling / touch paneling / g / g / g". Test more with "x dragon / x shiny / search head / g". ...and this scene might lead to another, and so on. The purpose of an open-ended scene like this might be puzzly or narrative: we might be waiting for the player to get a puzzle solved, or we might be waiting for him to fulfil some plot condition that must be met before we can go on.

162
| Example The Prague Job Scenes used to provide pacing while the player goes through his possessions. |
WI

160
| Example Bowler Hats and Baby Geese Creating a category of scenes that restrict the player's behavior. |
WI

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