I was listening to the following podcast from role playing public radio and they were presenting the premise of a shoggoth boss forcing their minions to setup an art gallery to unleash unspeakable horrors.
It then it hit me like a ton of bricks.
The bigger idiot and bumbling oaf I would be in such a game, the more likely I was to be successful.
This isn't the same of not being involved, but if your hit the right amount of incompetency, your more likely to succeed then a big damn hero whom goes in guns a blazing or is a professional.
This also is likely to twist your game into a comedy.
I'm calling this the Baldrick effect, after one of my most favourite examples of this troupe: Baldrick from Black Adder.
I personally love such goofy adventures. I think it's safe to assume that the Dark Revelations - The Role Playing Game at RPGlory has been silly not because of the mechanics, but because of the feel of the game.
Additionally games like HoL (Human occupied Landfill), Paranoa and Toon thrive on such antics.
Improvisation benefits greatly from comedy as it often creates a memory that you will remember as a group long after a game is done.
However, if your horror or drama game benefits from a fool being incompetent, expect to be bitterly disappointed by it.
So ask yourself. If the players twist it into a comedy sketch, will they be more likely to succeed?
If they are, you might want to double check your game's premise.
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