As far as actually making NPCs memorable. I do often have NPCs based on quirky characters from real life or sometimes from fiction. When fiction, it helps to mostly use side characters from a different genre - not popular in-genre characters.

I also agree with others that not every NPC needs to be memorable. I usually just have a few notes on a given NPC, and I see which ones they react to.

Quote from: Kyle Aaron;1106333Mostly I just try to make the NPCs annoying or stupid, especially their allies and friends. This helps keep things moving.

This connects to an important point that isn't often done by GMs. Too often NPCs are mouthpieces for the GM -- i.e. they're information sources to give the PCs clues, quests, etc. It helps the PCs to think of the NPCs as real people if they do things that are ignorant and/or stupid.

I often aim to make sure that the PCs are at least as well-informed as any of the major NPCs. A given NPC might know more than the PCs on one topic, but they'll be ill-informed on other topics.

Quote from: jhkim;1106426As far as actually making NPCs memorable. I do often have NPCs based on quirky characters from real life or sometimes from fiction. When fiction, it helps to mostly use side characters from a different genre - not popular in-genre characters.

I also agree with others that not every NPC needs to be memorable. I usually just have a few notes on a given NPC, and I see which ones they react to.



This connects to an important point that isn't often done by GMs. Too often NPCs are mouthpieces for the GM -- i.e. they're information sources to give the PCs clues, quests, etc. It helps the PCs to think of the NPCs as real people if they do things that are ignorant and/or stupid.

I find these can be the most loved NPCs, too. Eg my Wilderlands players loved the fake Archmage who was actually a commoner in a pointy hat. I think because of the tendency to trust NPCs, it took a while for them to cotton on when he kept coming up with new reasons why he wasn't casting any spells...

Part of the video was about how that DM uses some NPCs to communicate to the PCs how the world views them over time.

So for example a guard NPC in a town might be skeptical of adventurers at first, thinking of them as something that will make that guards life more difficult. However, after the PCs rescue a kidnapped child from the town, or kill the local werewolf plaguing the town, or whatever, then the guard's attitude is very positive towards the PCs, showing them the impact they've made on the setting from their actions.

Trash talking NPCs who the PCs shouldn't kill (note I didn't say "can't kill") are also great fun.

I love court jesters. Even if the lord honors the heroes, I have the court jester razz them. During the course of one T&T campaign, the jester even had custom puppets of the heroes made and he did creepy messed up shows about them.

The PCs did whack him though. Then they had a sad lord on their hands who begged them to either find or avenge his beloved jester...and soon thereafter, the lord began to suspect who whacked his buddy...and the PCs murdered to lord, the entire court, much of the town and the campaign ended in a psycho-bloodbath.

And the players blamed me because that damn ungrateful jester didn't respect their heroics! I was hysterical because the lord and a dozen other NPCs in town had nothing but admiration for the PCs, but hot damn, that ONE jester was too much!