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I'm looking for some odd bit of help. I was trying to think up a campaign arc that, at least for the first part I want to have it have this dream-like feel to it. Not quite full-blown floating giant bananas and non-euclidean geometry. But traits that make everything seem just a bit off-kilter and are traits that are typical of actual dreams.
So far I'm incorporating:
>start in the middle
Players begin the adventure with stuff already happening with no memory of where they are, why they are at the place, what they were doing there, or how they Know the other PCs
>Dulled senses.
People often describe their dreams as having muted colors or no colors at all, this is included by having the area this part of the arc be in a place where lighting is poor and visibility is obstructed by fog so colors are going to be dulled and hard to define.
>set jumping
playing on the first point sometimes when the players will travel from one location to another they will have gaps in their memory so they won't actually remember the trip, just remember setting off to a location and then arriving at the destination with no memory of the time in-between.
Anything else I could include or should consider?
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>>54625145
bump
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>>54626001
OH Come on!
Doesn't anyone have any useful input?
Because I've tried looking online for more ideas and got no where with it, all search results tend to want to lean towards interpreting dreams not necessarily trends typical of dreams.
Or is this just such an uninteresting topic that no one really cares?
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>>54624369
look up some of the metaphysics behind Elder Scrolls first so you can get some background going on, then look at some D&D planar descriptions for some interesting shit.
>more in a few minutes, just basically bumping for now
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Writing not being the same when you look back to it.
When you think you're dreaming you're told to look for text changing when you look away, it's the 1st step to lucid dreaming!
So they see signs that change when they look back etc it's subtle and can be brushed off as magic, but adds to the ethereal feeling of a dream
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I'd say portraying being in a dream realistically would be quite a feat to pull off in a p&p game. The features you listed do not convey what I would typically associate with a dream: transmogrification of the events of the day, mish-mashed with passed experiences an deep-rooted fears into a bizarre yet strangely familiar and calming image. Your best bet would probably be your narration style. Look into expressionism.
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>>54627635
So there are two ways you can go with this. Subtle and intricate or Obvious and not quite as intricate. I'll start with obvious.
Your initial points sound easy enough. The players will recognize it well enough and will be able to function while learning the system. There should be areas where things are crazy, for certain, but most of the time it should pretty much act like reality to the point that, its tangible, if just a bit mutable. The ground should remain the ground, but it could be made of clouds or sheets of glass-like water. If you impose your will on it, you can change it, but this takes time and experience, the more of the latter you have, the faster it goes.
Add a cycle to it so there is a feel of a threat or scale of time in an otherwise timeless world. During the "daytime" it feels more airy and light and things are just a bit brighter and blurrier. at "night" everything becomes muted in color, once vibrant reds, greens and blues become grayish and much darker. Everything becomes sharper and there is a close feeling to the world, almost like its holding its breath, waiting for something to pass.
Take an inspiration from The Wheel of Time's Tel'aran'rhiod where its a reflection of the real world in general, but only things that have existed for a long time, like castles and forests and such, are truly present, everything else becomes more fleeting the more temporary it is. new furniture in an old house might not seem as solid. sometimes you can run into projections of people's nightmares or themselves, though both are fleeting, the nightmares should try to entrap you and fight you.
Also, have everything require some kind of will check, if you are a capable dreamer, you should have a strong, if not undefeatable sense of self. things that would normally hurt you bounce off your skin.
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>>54624369
Natural things appear to be a bit...off. Nothing harmful or helpful but things that aren't completely obvious and noticeable but just appear off.
Such as:
-Some animals could be a slightly different colour than they usually are or have different colour patterns (e.g. Most cows are white with black spots so they could be opposite)
-Same can apply for plants and trees
-Trees and plants grow differently than usual. instead of plant leaves going up and out from the stem they go down or tree leaves are shaped differently.
-Many other things you could do relating to this, just need some imagination.
Alternatively you could also introduce nightmare type things in suspenseful or fearful situations.
Such as:
-Seeing something terrifying and trying to run or move but no matter how much you will yourself, your legs won't move.
-The dream in a dream nightmare thing. Could allow for a multitude of different things if you have this. 1 or more PC's have a dream while in a that "dream world" (Dream X Dream = Nightmare)
Another thing you could do is to never describe the something the same way more than once, always describe it different every time. Whether it's how you word it or take it literally and the thing you describe is slightly different every time you describe it. This could include everything from a brick to a sword to a castle to the ocean to a person.
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>>54627853
For the subtle side, go for a very realistic world with strong questions about "what is reality".
gods are present and beings of great power exist. But, everything seems like an intricate mask. Some things are almost too certain, while others never seem to be pinned down to exactly what the hell is going on. choices sometimes result in multiple options being fufilled anyways, whereas things sometimes happen without there being a reason behind it. You might remember something completely different about the origins of something or how things were compared to someone else's. Eventually you feel the connection of your will to the world. Its quiet at first, subtle, but over time you find yourself in positions where your words and actions become law, not just in the temporary sense, but affect even people who couldn't have experienced your words and actions. Finally, you have enough self confidence and understanding after trials and tribulations aplenty that you realize the world is the dream, and you are its dreamer. you then either sum-zero out of existance or you become a god, able to bend all of reality at a whim.
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>>54627814
>>54627853
>>54627946
>>54627976
This is some cool shit here, I like it!
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one last bump to see what else /tg/ has to offer.
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