plot deconstruction
Aug. 16th, 2004 12:13 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
incandescensToday, a discussion of the Alabasta arc from One Piece, considered as a campaign arc for a group of (pirate) characters in some insane GM's game, with reference to bringing in plot strands and foreshadowing and involving PCs in events without having them scream too hard about railroading.
Beginning of plot:
Characters have just entered the Grand Line, and run into a giant whale. They encounter two Mysterious People who are attempting to steal/kill the whale. One humiliating beating later, said two Mysterious People (Miss Wednesday and Mr Nine) are requesting help in returning to their island, which just happens to be the next one along. Our heroes, being kindly people, give them a lift, though with a shading of suspicion.
(Possible plot derailments: Mr Nine and Miss Wednesday could have been killed, or might have had the lift refused. In that case, other characters could have been substituted to fill their places later on. Their important function here is to signal that there is some sort of weird organisation, that it has a base on the next island along, and that it has Big Plans.)
Next step:
Characters arrive at Next Island Along. (Miss Wednesday and Mr Nine leave the ship just before it reaches land.) They are received with a Grand Party and Lots Of Alcohol. Those of them remaining conscious discover that everyone there is part of a Big Conspiracy to catch any pirates arriving and sell them for the bounty. Cue Big Fight Scene, such as players love.
(Possible plot derailments; the players don't party and get happily drunk/etc. At least try to lure them off the ship, even if they insist on sticking to non-alcoholic drinks, sharing the same room at the local inn, etc.)
Optional Extra:
One character remembers a few details about this organisation, having been approached by it before. A good tie-in for the GM to use on any character whose backstory can be suitably worked in to it.
Next Step And Major Plot Development:
Two high-power NPCs arrive on the island. They're higher up in the Big Conspiracy, and they've been sent by Mr 0, the Big Boss, to dispose of Miss Wednesday and Mr 8 (the guy in charge of the island). It is revealed that Miss Wednesday and Mr 8 were actually infiltrating the organisation in order to protect their own island, Alabasta! Shock horror! And they have discovered Mr 0's identity, thus cannot be allowed to live. Our Heroes end up protecting Miss Wednesday, now revealed to be Princess Vivi of Alabasta, and agree to escort her on to Alabasta, on promise of payment later. They end up also knowing the identity of Mr 0, which means they are now Marked For Death as well.
(Possible plot derailments; if Miss Wednesday gets killed, substitute another female agent of the organisation. If the players are reluctant to protect her or take her on board, have her appeal to appropriate instincts on their part - money? ethics? protection? If the players are unwilling to get anywhere near this Big Conspiracy, and show a desire to sail off in the opposite direction, have agents from the Conspiracy come after them, being sure that they Know Too Much, and herd them towards Alabasta. Their only safety now lies in stopping Mr 0.)
Next step:
At least one encounter with Conspiracy agents sent out to stop/kill them. Further information about the Conspiracy can be dropped at this point, due to the agents gloating or accidentally saying too much.
News arrives about worrying developments in Alabasta, via the local newspaper, delivered by bird.
(Plot point; this provides a good opportunity to give the players a personal dislike of the Big Conspiracy, and a feeling of urgency.)
Next big step:
Arrival at Alabasta. Discovery of how bad the situation is; ie, rebel forces massing here, royal forces massing there, general drought, degree to which the royal family has been framed for malfeasance, oh, and Marines chasing the pirates because they're pirates, dammit. After a few nice brisk chase/fight scenes, location of Mr 0 (aka Captain Crocodile) discovered, and most of the cast promptly fall into a trap, allowing Captain Crocodile to explain all his plans while lounging around in a fur coat, before leaving them to be either drowned or eaten by his pet crocodiles. One daring rescue later (by those crew members not captured), everyone is speeding off to stop the forthcoming bloody battle between royal and rebel forces.
(Plot derailments; so maybe our heroes don't get captured. It can happen. Or they all get captured. If they don't get captured, then Crocodile can give his big speech from a convenient rooftop before being carried away in a convenient mode of transport that the players can't match, leaving them to race after him. If they all get captured, then leave some way for them to escape the deathtrap. If they don't want to go and stop the rebel/royal confrontation... okay, at that point you really do have problems. You can always have Crocodile's agents come and hunt them down later after he's got total control of the kingdom, forcing them to stage a daring coup d'etat, I suppose.)
Next step:
Actually, I'm in the middle of reading that. Big fight scenes, of course. Cool heroic moments. Mysterious behaviour by Crocodile's femme fatale subordinate, Miss AllSunday. Choice of Marines to side with pirates in an attempt to stop forthcoming massacre. Explanation of the real motivation behind Crocodile's actions; there's a superweapon buried beneath the kingdom that he wants to get his hands on.
---
The reason I've been babbling on like this is because this is a beautiful example of what I've heard described as the "onion skin" level of plot. First level, running into two weird people. Second level, arriving on island and discovery of Conspiracy. Third level, alliance with Princess and further investigation of Conspiracy. Fourth level, arriving at Alabasta and finding out real motivation behind Conspiracy. And it's all so nicely plotted out, with a minor antagonist at the beginning becoming a major NPC and ally of the protagonists by the end. Cool. Very cool. Good writing.
Beginning of plot:
Characters have just entered the Grand Line, and run into a giant whale. They encounter two Mysterious People who are attempting to steal/kill the whale. One humiliating beating later, said two Mysterious People (Miss Wednesday and Mr Nine) are requesting help in returning to their island, which just happens to be the next one along. Our heroes, being kindly people, give them a lift, though with a shading of suspicion.
(Possible plot derailments: Mr Nine and Miss Wednesday could have been killed, or might have had the lift refused. In that case, other characters could have been substituted to fill their places later on. Their important function here is to signal that there is some sort of weird organisation, that it has a base on the next island along, and that it has Big Plans.)
Next step:
Characters arrive at Next Island Along. (Miss Wednesday and Mr Nine leave the ship just before it reaches land.) They are received with a Grand Party and Lots Of Alcohol. Those of them remaining conscious discover that everyone there is part of a Big Conspiracy to catch any pirates arriving and sell them for the bounty. Cue Big Fight Scene, such as players love.
(Possible plot derailments; the players don't party and get happily drunk/etc. At least try to lure them off the ship, even if they insist on sticking to non-alcoholic drinks, sharing the same room at the local inn, etc.)
Optional Extra:
One character remembers a few details about this organisation, having been approached by it before. A good tie-in for the GM to use on any character whose backstory can be suitably worked in to it.
Next Step And Major Plot Development:
Two high-power NPCs arrive on the island. They're higher up in the Big Conspiracy, and they've been sent by Mr 0, the Big Boss, to dispose of Miss Wednesday and Mr 8 (the guy in charge of the island). It is revealed that Miss Wednesday and Mr 8 were actually infiltrating the organisation in order to protect their own island, Alabasta! Shock horror! And they have discovered Mr 0's identity, thus cannot be allowed to live. Our Heroes end up protecting Miss Wednesday, now revealed to be Princess Vivi of Alabasta, and agree to escort her on to Alabasta, on promise of payment later. They end up also knowing the identity of Mr 0, which means they are now Marked For Death as well.
(Possible plot derailments; if Miss Wednesday gets killed, substitute another female agent of the organisation. If the players are reluctant to protect her or take her on board, have her appeal to appropriate instincts on their part - money? ethics? protection? If the players are unwilling to get anywhere near this Big Conspiracy, and show a desire to sail off in the opposite direction, have agents from the Conspiracy come after them, being sure that they Know Too Much, and herd them towards Alabasta. Their only safety now lies in stopping Mr 0.)
Next step:
At least one encounter with Conspiracy agents sent out to stop/kill them. Further information about the Conspiracy can be dropped at this point, due to the agents gloating or accidentally saying too much.
News arrives about worrying developments in Alabasta, via the local newspaper, delivered by bird.
(Plot point; this provides a good opportunity to give the players a personal dislike of the Big Conspiracy, and a feeling of urgency.)
Next big step:
Arrival at Alabasta. Discovery of how bad the situation is; ie, rebel forces massing here, royal forces massing there, general drought, degree to which the royal family has been framed for malfeasance, oh, and Marines chasing the pirates because they're pirates, dammit. After a few nice brisk chase/fight scenes, location of Mr 0 (aka Captain Crocodile) discovered, and most of the cast promptly fall into a trap, allowing Captain Crocodile to explain all his plans while lounging around in a fur coat, before leaving them to be either drowned or eaten by his pet crocodiles. One daring rescue later (by those crew members not captured), everyone is speeding off to stop the forthcoming bloody battle between royal and rebel forces.
(Plot derailments; so maybe our heroes don't get captured. It can happen. Or they all get captured. If they don't get captured, then Crocodile can give his big speech from a convenient rooftop before being carried away in a convenient mode of transport that the players can't match, leaving them to race after him. If they all get captured, then leave some way for them to escape the deathtrap. If they don't want to go and stop the rebel/royal confrontation... okay, at that point you really do have problems. You can always have Crocodile's agents come and hunt them down later after he's got total control of the kingdom, forcing them to stage a daring coup d'etat, I suppose.)
Next step:
Actually, I'm in the middle of reading that. Big fight scenes, of course. Cool heroic moments. Mysterious behaviour by Crocodile's femme fatale subordinate, Miss AllSunday. Choice of Marines to side with pirates in an attempt to stop forthcoming massacre. Explanation of the real motivation behind Crocodile's actions; there's a superweapon buried beneath the kingdom that he wants to get his hands on.
---
The reason I've been babbling on like this is because this is a beautiful example of what I've heard described as the "onion skin" level of plot. First level, running into two weird people. Second level, arriving on island and discovery of Conspiracy. Third level, alliance with Princess and further investigation of Conspiracy. Fourth level, arriving at Alabasta and finding out real motivation behind Conspiracy. And it's all so nicely plotted out, with a minor antagonist at the beginning becoming a major NPC and ally of the protagonists by the end. Cool. Very cool. Good writing.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2004-08-16 12:09 am (UTC)I think, to make sure PCs decide to get involved, definitely have one of the princess or Mr 9 fall for a PC. (Everyone is a sucker for an NPC who flirts with them, at least in my experience, even if they KNOW it is just so that they can be manipulated.)
no subject
Date: 2004-08-16 08:24 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-08-16 03:56 am (UTC)Zoro's moment in the sun (er -- moonlight?) at Whiskey Peak was just marvellous, I must say. "What a waste of good sake."
Mr. Prince is my favourite part of the entire arc, however. I'm a sucker, I know. But he's incredibly cool.
no subject
Date: 2004-08-16 08:26 am (UTC)Plus, Sanji's cool. (And Usopp displays very quick wits re Mister 3 and the key.)
no subject
Date: 2004-08-16 11:02 am (UTC)Sanji is extremely cool. If I hadn't already had a crush on him, his performance in the basement there (the Kick!) would have done it for me ^_-
Usopp's a lot quicker than he's usually given credit for being. He's awfully well-rounded as a person and I look forward to his eventual fate =D
no subject
Date: 2004-08-16 12:24 pm (UTC)It's just a _damn_ good series. I wish more of it was out in English, so that I could push it on more of my friends. ;)
no subject
Date: 2004-08-17 03:08 am (UTC)How much of the series is out in English, by the by? I haven't read any of the translations (except for the odd pages that Oda added in to some of the manga, as a point of interest: this is what Zoro says in Japanese, this is how it's translated in English, here's how it looks in Portuguese, etc.). Is the anime being translated as well?
no subject
Date: 2004-08-17 01:11 pm (UTC)I understand 4Kids have got the rights to One Piece and will be running a dubbed/cut version on Saturday mornings. We can only hope for an acceptable subtitled DVD release, I suppose.
BTW, I'd be grateful for your opinion on http://homepages.tcp.co.uk/~maya/fanfic/opstupidity.html -- Miss AllSunday fanfic, these things do happen.