I'll Never Play Pulp

[Edsel]

I'll buy the book and probably enjoy reading it and wishing to play a game of Pulp Hero but I doubt that I will ever get a chance to play it. Our RPG group plays Hero System most of the time. DC and FH are our usual fare but we also venture into Champions, SH and other genre from time to time.

The problem is that I am the only one of us that seem to have any interest in that particular era. The group seems to have a dead-spot in history that none of them are interested in. This seems to extend from the dawn of firearms until the modern era. Anything before or after this time period is pretty much enjoyed by the whole group. Alas I majored in history in college and would love to play a Victorian-era or Pulp-era game someday.

Oh well, perhaps I can use some of the stuff from PH to run some non-traditional, modern-era, pulp-style games.

[Black Lotus]

Are you the gamemaster of your group?

If they're unwilling to play, that's up to them... you could possibly find another group of players to try a few sessions of Pulp HERO. That's assuming your regulars are mature enough not to get upset or feel put off by it.

I'm betting you can "swindle" them all into playing a few sessions, though. Be persuasive! Be underhanded!

[Lord Liaden]

Hmm... sounds like you should consider enticing your group with the wilder brands of pulp adventures. Mention some of the many notable characters from the era that they may have heard of, and how you can play games reminiscent of their adventures. For example, Dark Champions-style high powered vigilantes like the Spider or the Green Hornet; fantastical, borderline superhuman characters such as the Shadow, Doc Savage, and Tarzan; retro sci-fi in the vein of Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers, or even sci-fi swashbuckling like John Carter of Mars; lost-world romances full of dinosaurs and hidden cities from ancient civilizations (if you haven't got it yet, hunt down Lands of Mystery!)

Offer your players the chance to go up against the likes of Fu Manchu, La of Opar or Ming the Merciless, and see if their eyes don't light up.

[BigJackBrass]

No reason why Pulp shouldn't encroach onto your other games. Champions, Star HERO and even Fantasy HERO can be a simple portal into a Pulp game, even as a temporary one-shot to whet the appetites. Time travel, alternate dimensions, perhaps even a Lost World adventure where the Fantasy HERO characters are the ones who live in the hidden valley discovered by Pulp adventurers... If your players won't go to Pulp, then bring Pulp to your players.

[Hermit]

And while it does fall short compared to Face to Face table gaming (IMO) there is always HERO Central or PBEMs... you never know.

Have hope.

[Steve Long]

"There's no pessimism in Pulp Hero!"

Have faith, Edsel! I bet you can convince your group to play PH if you inspire them with a cool campaign descriptions and some helpful copies of the Pulp Hero genre book.

And if that don't work, pummel 'em into submission with the hand crank from a Ford Model T.

[AndyStaples]

Let me get this straight - you have players who DON'T want to be Indiana Jones*?

* Insert name of player's favourite pulp or pulpish character, from Sherlock Holmes, through Doc Savage and Richard Hannay to Lara Croft.

[Blue]

Bribery might work. Cash, or a promise of letting them into the legendary cache of doritos in the gaming safe.

[AndyStaples]

Mmmmm... Doritos!

[JTesla]

I’m probably like the members of your group, I don’t want to play in a real world setting of the 1920’s and 30’s. However, as BigJackBrass pointed out, it can encroach into other areas. A sci-fi pulp game would be ideal for me. Or, why not have a stereotypical pulp game with a few ancient or futuristic twists? Use the book to it’s fullest, but throw a few items in that give it a futuristic or ancient feel.

[Edsel]

I guess I could alway try something along the lines of the Rocketeer or Sky Captains and maybe get them to give it a try. I'll have to stay away from Lovecraft though, most of them are too frightened of the high mortality of that setting. (That may be what scared them away from the 20s-30s era in the first place). Perhaps the upcomming King Kong movie could move them.

[Lord Liaden]

I guess I could alway try something along the lines of the Rocketeer or Sky Captains and maybe get them to give it a try. I'll have to stay away from Lovecraft though, most of them are too frightened of the high mortality of that setting. (That may be what scared them away from the 20s-30s era in the first place). Perhaps the upcomming King Kong movie could move them.

I've always found The Empire Club website to be a great source of inspiration. It's derived from the organization of the same name in the classic Justice Incorporated boxed set. No game stats, but a host of fascinating NPCs, and the campaign logs are loaded with cool ideas. You could easily derive a whole batch of exotic adventures from them.

[BigJackBrass]

And if that don't work, pummel 'em into submission with the hand crank from a Ford Model T.

Just don't pummel anyone with the Pulp HERO book itself. Judging by the page count you'd have some fatalities on your hands.

[Black Lotus]

Just don't pummel anyone with the Pulp HERO book itself. Judging by the page count you'd have some fatalities on your hands.

[st barbara]

I am fearing the same thing myself a bit. However I have some players who have played "Adventure" only fairly recently and I think that "Pulp Hero" may be attractive to them. The guy who referees our "7th Sea" campaign certainly sounds interested in a"Pulp Hero" game !