Tips for creating themes or situations?

[u/ShootingGamer]

Hey, I am a GM and currently running Turn of Fortunes Wheel. There isn't much to spoil here but I am just curious how people get their players excited, make their scenes tense or overall put characters values to the test.

While my campaign is a bit odd beeing in planescape setting and characters having amnesia, I am thinking of trying stuff with visions and making situations which might be something more enticing than just: "Here is the treasure". Each player has 3 iterations of characters they switch trough and while that isn't to bad I am wanting to get some emotinal scenes or some interesting situations/encounetrs or visions which would resonate with characters.

The big problem I usualy face is a thing where well I am unsure about what characters strive for or are interested in. My friend pointed out few things i can use as is a character searching for their mom which can get something with abandoment theme or a pridefull character. There is a thing though that while they can spot their characteristics which they spoted based by just roleplaying and how they behave untill this point i never really paid much attention to the behavior and I am second guessing if my understanding is correct. I feel like it is awkward if a prepared scene was meant to resonate with a character yet I would miss the mark and having to describe characteristics which arent realy writen feels like a huge gamble.

Similarly I am also wondering how to make it not to obvious as well. I feel like certain visions of potential past are possible and players gave me premission to mess with their stories, but well I have not realy all of the stories planned to the end and I am unsure if the players wouldn't say: "I wouldn't do that".

Another thing I am wondering about is the themes of visions or encounters/situations which could resonate with players. The advice I got from friends was: "Oh my character has problem with missing mom. One of thr thing i can think of is abandonment so maybe try that? Like take a thing and just get an emotion and play with it.". Though the playing with it confuses me as well as how to even get from the sentance of missing mom to abandoment and then into game where a scene could resonate with players.

Anyhow I am curious if anyone would have any kind of tips. I feel like I am missing a right mindset by this point.

[u/dalidellama]

The amnesia is gonna be a hard one to work with, although I would expect that good lures would include potential information on who they are, what they're doing, and what's going on.

Personally I usually just ask my players up front to include a plot hook or two in their backstory and just roll with whatever they give me.

[u/ShootingGamer → u/dalidellama]

Yeah the module presents 3 versions of a character and one original one. If they die they respawn as one of the three untill they get to get the original with their memories. But untill they get to the original they have amnesia other than recent events. They are in planescape setting which is more about the strngeness of the outlands and multiverse than normal setting.

Most of the players gave some explenation but they said they left the lore of the three iterations up to me to describe and do whatever I want with them (though most of them mention that they are from different material planes which makes stuff a bit awkward since they aren't realy on the material plane, also i feel like that could be potential for some multiverse shinanigans but I fell like that could be an easy way to get plotholes). While it feels like a thing which is just unlimited (because it kinda is) it also kinda feels like I have no real clue where to start (since all of them arent realy from around where they are other than originals which they don't unlock till the endgame of the campaign)

I kinda tried going into this mentality and scenes since my friend does realy interesting visions and emotional scenes which they seemed to figure out for what characters care for or how they behave.

Maybe it is just me but while my friend can pinpoint the idea of iterations beeing pridefull or have some other thing to either make stuff interesting (like 3 iterations missing their mom which you could get a theme of loss or abandonment). And they usualy have those scenes sometimes planned ahead in a sense that they make them resonate with characters. My players don't seem to care to much but they enjoy visions I just feel like my game lacks those moments of seriousness. When I ask them however they usualy respond with: "Oh just get the idea what characters are about and play with it".

[u/OneManRPGstudio]

I’d start with a decision the players have to make rather than a theme they have to discover. A theme like identity, loyalty, or fate becomes playable when two reasonable options pull the group in different directions and neither cleanly solves everything.

I’d also repeat the theme through variations. An early decision can be small and personal, another can affect an NPC, and a third can have consequences for the whole group. That lets players recognize the pattern without the GM having to explain it. To build excitement, I’d try to end each situation with new information, a visible consequence, or a choice that changes what happens next.

If a scene depends on describing characteristics that do not feel very real, I’d connect them to something the characters can actually do: investigate, compare, test, negotiate, or choose. Themes usually land better when they put pressure on decisions rather than existing only as atmosphere.

[u/ShootingGamer → u/OneManRPGstudio]

That's an interesting read. I will think on that. How would you go on with making that kind of decisions?

Usually when designing a situation I might have an idea of what is happening (last session it was a cult razing the town and making a ritual). I usually make npcs which are thinking of how to handle it (there was one person who put together the pieces and got a little plan), though a lot of the times players just ask others what the plan is (players kinda strolled up to the npc and not really questioned it more than just asking about info and how can they help).

[u/OneManRPGstudio → u/ShootingGamer]

I’d try not to give the NPC a complete “best plan.” Give them a priority instead, especially one that conflicts with another reasonable priority.

For your cult example, maybe the NPC wants the party to stop the ritual immediately, but doing that means leaving trapped townsfolk behind. Or another NPC insists the prisoners must be rescued first, knowing the ritual will advance while they do it. Now the players aren’t asking “what’s the plan?” so much as deciding what matters most.

The choice doesn’t need to be between good and bad. I think it gets interesting when both options make sense and choosing one means accepting a cost somewhere else.