Showing posts sorted by relevance for query encounter deck. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query encounter deck. Sort by date Show all posts

Friday 28 February 2014

I know what you did last Summer!

Okay I admit it...

I was kindly asked by Joe Wetzel of Inkwell Ideas to contribute some random maps for his successful Creature and Encounter Decks Kickstarter project (I did the spaceship deck plans in Encounter Deck 2).  Joe sells these decks on his website which also contains some of the best RPG random generators the internet has to offer (like the amazing hexographer I reviewed in my mapping mini series) and comes highly recommended.

So What the Heck is an Encounter Deck?


Card #06 from Encounter Deck 2
(featuring map by me)
It's a deck of 56 cards containing ideas for DMs to use either during play to add a little randomness or spice to their game.  They can also be used during scenario or campaign preparation as a random idea generator.

Each card has on one side:
  • A Map - this could be a room, a building, an outdoor space, a map of a region or even a section of spaceship deck plan.
  • A Trap Idea - something to throw at your players in game if they're having it too easy.
  • A Twist - Something to stir up the plot
     
  • A Trivial item or Treasure - Something to reward your players with, it could be inconsequential or it could become the focus for an entire game.
and on the reverse side a generic scenario idea split into:
  • Title and Outline - A brief synopsis of the scenario with some keywords to get you thinking about where to take the plot.
  • Getting the PCs Involved - a couple of plot motives for your PCs.
  • Encounters - A bunch of potential encounters you might want to throw at your PCs in line with the overarching plot outlined above.
  • Conclusion - A couple of ideas on how the scenario might pan out for the players.

Example of their use as an Idea Generator


Here I've simply taken 7 different cards and selected one item from each category to use to generate my scenario.  I could have just used the entire scenario idea from the reverse of the same card, but my objective here is to generate something really random and get those creative juices flowing.  I've used cards from Encounter Deck 2 and referenced the card number next to each item for those of you who want to recreate my steps. 
  • #46 The Hunted - (Protection, Battlefield) - The refugees approach the city with tight lips and haunted eyes.  The lord cannot turn away his charges in their time of need, but what drove them from their homes may hunt them still.
  • #55 Getting the PCs Involved? - The PCs stumble across the gypsies at dusk.
  • #05 Encounters - The would-be interlopers (The PCs) are offered information by a diviner, but at a hefty price.
  • #16 Trap Idea -  The slime on the walls and floor of a corridor has been deliberately cultivated, conducting the energies of an attack spell throughout the area.
  • #32 Twist: A group of mercenaries mistake the party as searching for the same treasure that they are.
  • #56 Trivial? Treasure - A small one foot cubed metal box with a door on one side.  Inside the temperature is always just below freezing.
  • #47 Conclusion - With the troublesome cult revealed, the news must be spread and the panic halted.

My Adventure Outline (as outlined using the cards above)


An evil plague is spreading over the land, leading to an influx of refugees into the capital city.  This plague is a magical slime whose epicentre is a town some twenty leagues from the capital.  The PCs have been passing a steady stream of refugees all day as they head in the direction of the town.  That night as they search for a likely looking camp spot they encounter a band of Gypsies. 

The gypsies agree to let the PCs stay the night in their camp, which is unusually subdued, and during their conversations learn that the Gypsies have been blamed by the locals for the outbreak of this slime.  The Gypsies have nothing to do with it, but one of their number is a fortune teller who predicted that they would meet the PCs.  The Gypsies insist that one of the PCs must have their future foretold, during which they must forfeit some item of great value (or a lesser body part like a finger, toe or earlobe).

During the divination the gypsies reveal that they must retrieve the mystical cube from the shrine of St. Haute Pointe and take it to the slime infected town.  Once there, they will know what to do.

On the way to the shrine of St. Haute Pointe the PCs are ambushed by another adventuring party who are also heading to the shrine (but they are after a legendary chalice said to be able to restore missing minor body parts, observant PCs will notice that their leader has lost one of her ears).  There will most likely be a stand-off, a chase, another stand-off and the final realisation that the two parties are after entirely different things and either leave on good terms, or not.

After recovering the cube, the PCs finally arrive at the town.  From a hilltop vantage point they can see that the town is dotted with patches of this slime and overtime they will notice brown robed riders arrive in town on horseback and then leave shortly afterwards carrying a cylinder on their backs.

If they venture into town they will observe a cult of brown robed human monks congregating around the towns municipal water well.  They are decanting slime and something like frogspawn from the well into these cylinders and handing them to the dispatch riders who arrive in town.  All the while chanting some eldritch verse.

The solution to the PCs problem is to slay the monks and venture down the well where they discover some small innocuous looking creature the monks have chained up, laying its eggs.  If they capture one of the monks, preferably the leader, they can transport him and a frozen sample of the eggs back to the capital for the Lord's apothecaries to inspect.

To Adventure and Beyond 

Naturally, the Lord rewards the PCs for their heroism and then mention that he has another problem of a delicate nature.  He explains that as a young man he had an unfortunate hunting accident and now the kingdom (and his wife) is pressing him to sire an heir.  He's heard that there's a fabled chalice, located somewhere in the kingdom, that is rumoured to have the power to restore minor body parts...

Wednesday 15 October 2014

DIY Tournament Dungeon Boardgame

24 Cheap and easy 2.5D Dungeon Tiles
My RPG club, The Hobbit's Hole, runs an annual memorial tournament in honour of one of its founding members called the Manic Trophy.

This year it's my turn to host the game and I'll be putting on a simple dungeon crawl game.  I'm musing over the rules at the moment but here's my outline: 

PREMISE
My aim is to have a 3 to 5 player competitive dungeon crawl lasting no more than 45 minutes, in the style of the boardgame Dungeon Quest.  Players start on the same tile, like in Drakon, each time they move they reveal a new tile and orient it as they see fit discovering the dungeon as they go.  The final tile holds the great treasure and the Boss Monster.

I'm going to be using a version of the 9 inch cavern geomorph tiles as popularised by YouTubers TheDMGInfo / TheDM'sCraft / DM Kaydons Kastle, where each tile contains an encounter, be it a trap or a monster (or maybe both).  This also gives me a chance to use the cards from the Inkwell Ideas Creature Decks.  

I like the idea of having a finite number of "moves" to a game, everyone has an equal chance the player skill element comes from trying to push your luck or deciding to flee.  I've played  games like Lost Cities which use this sort of "push your luck" mechanic and enjoyed them immensely.

I need quick and dirty "trump" style resolution so I'm going to base everything around a regular deck of playing cards.  Players get to choose their card whereas the DM draws randomly from a deck.

To represent levels of the dungeon the DM deck is divided into 3 stacks; Level 1(cards numbered 2 to 6), Level 2 (cards 7 to J) and Level 3 cards (Q to A).  I have 24 tiles in the game so the first 10 tiles represent Level 1, the next 10 Level 2 and the last 4 are Level 3.

STATS & CHARACTER GENERATION

Looking at the card suit symbols we have:
  • HEARTS - Look like a heart so should represent life force or vitality, these cards are used for all tests of strength and stamina.
  • CLUBS - Look like a tree and sort of like a brain so these represent knowledge and intelligence.
  • DIAMONDS - Looks sharp like a sword so these cards are used to represent Melee combat ability.
     
  • SPADES - Look like an arrowhead so these cards are used for all Missile attacks and Dexterity based skill checks.
  • JOKERS - Each player gets one of these to use during the game to automatically succeed at a challenge or to inflict an instant kill.  However, Jokers cannot be used to defeat the BOSS MONSTER, unused jokers are worth 15 points at the end of the game.
Players get to choose their class and pick up the relevant 2 suits of cards as follows:
  • Warrior - (Strength) and (Melee)
  • Wizard - ♣ (Intelligence) and ♠ (Missile)
  • Thief - ♠ (Dexterity) and ♣ (Intelligence)
  • Ranger - ♠ (Missile) and (Melee)
  • Cleric - ♣ (Intelligence) and (Melee)
Additional Character Classes contributed by Stu Rat
  • Barbarian - (Strength) and ♠ (Dexterity)
  • Bandit - (Strength) and ♣ (Intelligence)
  • Monk - ♣ (Intelligence) and (Strength)
  • Archer -  ♠ (Missile) and (Strength)
  • Warlord - (Melee) and ♣ (Intelligence)
  • Gladiator - (Melee)  and (Strength)
  • Swashbuckler - (Melee) and ♠ (Dexterity)

The first suit is their PRIMARY stat, e.g. Warriors (Strength) and is used to break ties.
ENCOUNTERS

Each time players move onto a new tile they will encounter either a monster, a trap or need to search for a treasure.

MONSTER ENCOUNTER: Players may either FIGHT using (Melee) or ♠ (Missile) or EVADE using ♣ (Intelligence) or (Stamina).  If a player succeeds in a fight the monster is killed and a treasure awarded.  If a player succeeds in evading the player can move to the next tile but the monster remains and no treasure is awarded. 

TRAP ENCOUNTERS: Players may either DISABLE using ♣ (Intelligence) or ♠ (Dexterity) or EVADE using (Strength) or (Melee).  If a trap is disabled it is removed from the game and the player gets a reward otherwise the trap remains.

NO ENCOUNTER:  Empty tiles can be searched by any player using any card. So there is merit in just following the first player and scratching around in the room once they've defeated all the monsters.

As detailed above, players resolve encounters by choosing a card and comparing it with the DMs Card, whichever is higher wins.  Players who fail an encounter must discard an extra card at random from whichever suit they used in the encounter.  In the event of ties a player who used their primary stat always wins, if they used their secondary stat they always lose.
I'm going to decide monster or trap based on a coin flip.  Heads it's a Monster, tails its a Trap, but you could design specific traps for each tile design you have.

TREASURE

Treasures are awarded for defeating monsters, disabling traps or succeeding in search rolls.  They are either drawn randomly from a seperate deck or if you want the rewards to increase in level as the challenges increase you can just award the challenge card.

THE BOSS MONSTER

When the last tile is drawn, the players have reached the end of the dungeon.  Any players who can move their character onto this tile in their next turn can attempt to defeat the boss monster either collectively as a group or try it on their own.  Players are reminded that the boss monster is an instant kill event and failure will result in death.  There's no such thing as a dead Hero in this game.

In either case they choose a card as normal, excluding Jokers.  However, the boss monster gets to  shuffle all the remaining challenge decks together and draws 1 card plus 1 card for each party member in the combat and discards the lowest card.

Players are awarded 2 treasures each for defeating the boss monster.

FLEEING

Players can FLEE the dungeon before drawing a new tile and keep any treasure cards they have amassed so far.  If their route out of the dungeon is blocked by a monster they must discard a card at random as they flee.

TURN ORDER 

Players determine their Initiative order by choosing one card from their hand.  Highest goes first, in the event of ties the player who used a primary stat card wins, all others discard and redraw.

1.  FLEE - Players may decide to flee the dungeon or continue exploring.

2. MOVE - Move through an open exit and reveal the next tile.

3. ENCOUNTER - Each player resolves the encounter as outlined above.

4. NEXT TURN - Play moves to the player with the next highest initiative.

SCORING

Once the boss monster has been defeated (or all players have fled the dungeon) the game is over and scoring occurs.

1.  DEAD players score 1 point for each unused stat card in their hand (+ 15 points for an unused joker).

2.  SURVIVING players score 1 point for each secondary stat card (+ 15 points for an unused joker) + the face value of any primary stat cards remaining + the face value of any treasure rewarded.

3.  The winner is the player with the most points

Thursday 5 January 2017

The Tarot and its use in RPGs

As soon as I read the title of the Jan 2016 RPG Blog Carnival I knew I had to write something about my use of Tarot cards in my Fantasy RPGs over the years.

The Deck of Many Things (aka RPG History 101)

As many of you will know playing cards have been used as physical representations of the cards in the classic deck of many things since its inception.  The first published reference of the use of tarot dates back to 1983 where Michael J. Lowrey codified its use in AD&D in his article published in Dragon #77.  It's also in the D&D SRD so as far as I'm concerned it's cannon!!

Presenting your players with a tattered tarot deck lends an air of theatricality and mystique to your game which will not go unnoticed by your players.

Tarot as a Character Generation Tool

Surprisingly there was a time before the 5e Background Generator and some players always seem to have difficulty coming up with interesting motivations for their PCs.  I have often used a much simplified version of the Celtic Cross Spread to help them to generate their own ideas for their characters background and motivations.

A typical shortened "Celtic Cross" spread using only the 22 Major Arcana "Picture" cards

The first card laid is the "Significator" and describes the PCs current state.  In Tarot terms this is often described as the question that the appellant is asking of the cards.  For example a Fool in this position may indicate that the PC is a happy go lucky type of person blissfully ignorant of their place in the world or it could mean that they are quite literally the village idiot. 

The second card (The crossing) covers the first and identifies that which currently opposes the PC.  In other words the thing which must be overcome if the PC is to realise their goal.  This can often suggest some sort of personality or circumstance change which the PC must achieve.  For example a Tower in this position may mean that only by experiencing a disaster or tumultuous event will the PC be able to achieve their goal.  A devil on the other hand may signify the acquisition of power and wealth or the casting off of material possessions in order to fulfil ones potential.    

The third card represents the factors which are the foundation for the PCs current state these are considered to be the the things upon which the PC can rely upon such as their family or their own skills and strengths.  A "good" card such as The Emperor may mean that the PC has strength of focus or that they have an imposing father figure which they can rely upon.  A "bad" card such as the hanged man may signify that the PC holds an outdated opinion or principle or that they have had the strength to make a significant change in their life such as letting go of a previous life or relationship.   

The fourth card represents the PCs immediate past, events which may have happened very recently which have influenced the PCs current position.  A Tower in this position may signify a disaster from which the PC has fled with their life.  A Moon may signify that the PC has recently had an emotionally charged romantic relationship, also which they are fleeing or perhaps they are being chased by a lover (or more likely the lover's father).   

The fifth card signifies the PCs immediate future, that which may come to pass irrespective of the PCs actions within the next few days.  This is something of a gift for the DM and I often use it as a mechanism to gift the player a plot hook or some sort of advance knowledge which they can use in an upcoming encounter.  Of course to be really effective it should also be intentionally vague and mean little or nothing to the player initially.  Consider this to be the "you will meet a dark stranger" moment of the reading.

The sixth card represents the best possible outcome or as I like to think, the PCs ultimate goal or desire.  This card is probably the most important in the spread as it directly influences the PCs motivations.  A Judgement card in this position may well signify that the PC is mindful of their mortality and wishes to do good deeds to prepare for their own accounting before their chosen deity.  A Hermit in this position may mean that the PC seeks isolation, retrospection in the pursuit of the search for truth. 

As you can see from the example interpretations of the cards, they offer an almost infinite number (53,721,360 to be exact) of permutations and potential ideas for even the most jaded old school player who bears the scars of a thousand personalities.

Insta-Deck of Fate

There are those times in a game when the party are on their last legs and hope is something which has long since put on it skedaddle trousers and exited stage right.  This is when you ask one of their number to draw a card from the fate deck.

Use this as an opportunity to introduce a new game saving factor relevant to the card.  For example a prone hero about to be beheaded by a nefarious bad guy draws the Heirophant and the bad guy suddenly has a pang of conscience and decides to do the right thing and pauses… leaving them wide open for a killing blow.

My advice is to use this sparingly and only in dire circumstances to avoid a meaningless and game altering character death, otherwise the players may begin to consider their characters as somewhat immortal.

The Dream Sequence

I have also used tarot cards to project PC dreams, visions or hallucinations.  How the players interpret the cards is up to them, but at least it gives an player something to reflect on as the blood slowly drains from their PCs unconscious body.  Perhaps it includes some insight into their current predicament or some final sage advice about mending their ways should they be restored to health by their comrades, you choose what it really means.

The Story Generator

In much the same way as in the character generation above, the Tarot can be used during the plot generation process.  Draw a few cards to generate a handful of significant NPCs around which the plot revolves and then do Celtic Cross spreads for each of these.  The goals and obstacles that they must overcome will often suggest some sort of contested relationship in much the same way as players generate relationships, needs, objects and locations between each other during setup in a game of FIASCO.

For those readers who feel uncomfortable with using a Tarot, I can heartily recommend the use of Inkwell Ideas Encounter Decks which contain a wide variety of story ideas.  Vintage accessories such as the "Whimsy" or Story Path Cards also have potential for storyboarding your games.

Indie RPG fans may also be familiar with the innovative storytelling map drawing game, The Quiet Year, which uses a standard playing card deck to generate weekly events which shape a world and its inhabitants.  Many of these events can be lifted directly from the game to create world shaping events for your own campaign.

Interpreting the Cards

I recommend only using the 22 major arcana cards mostly because these are the pretty ones but also because it's a lot easier to just reference the 44 different meanings (each card has 2 orientations Upright and Reversed) rather than the 156 of a full deck.

The tarot card meanings are intentionally vague and are supposed to inspire associations in the mind of the appellant (the player) and the reader (the GM) is merely using it as a device to stimulate creativity.  Many of the meanings are allegorical based on the significance of the objects found in the images.  

For example the Fool is often depicted being followed by a dog which signifies unconditional love.  The hanged man is usually depicted tied by one leg which harks back to medieval punishment for traitors.  These symbols may of course mean something else to the appellant and cause them to imagine some other significance for their PC.  There are a plethora of resources for Tarot meanings including handy reference apps for the mobile gamer.

A Final Word about Death, Devils and Towers

The appearance of the Death card is often followed swiftly by a sharp intake of breath.  In tarot terms the Death card actually signifies the end of a phase of life and a transition to something new.  Interpreting this card as PC death, particularly if it appears in the fifth position of the spread described above should be avoided.

This should also be the case with the Devil and Tower cards which also signify disturbance or change rather than a career ending catastrophe.



Thanks of course go to Of Dice and Dragons for continuing to promote the RPG Blog Carnival.  This is my 5th entry and you can read the rest by clicking the RPG Blog Carnival tag below. 

Wednesday 7 March 2012

My response to 20 Quick Questions

My responses to the 20 Quick Questions posed by Brendan over at Untimateley

1.  Ability scores generation method? 

3d6 allocated as you wish (unmodified rolls below 7 are ignored as they're not heroic enough) if you don't meet a class minimum I'll allow a couple of points to be traded between stats.  If a modified score drops to 7 or below as a result of age or race modifiers then it stays.

2.  How are death and dying handled?

If a PC was trying to do something stupid or after repeated DM warnings then they'll most likely die.  If it was something heroic or their PC background compelled them then they'll probably live... Maybe.  As soon as you hit 0 HP you are considered incapacitated, go below that and you are dying of bloodloss at -1HP per turn until you hit -10 HP were you are dead.  A heal or a first aid can bring you back to 0 HP from where you can heal normally or magically.  Restoration of missing body parts can only be done through magical or divine means. 

3.  What about raising the dead?

Absolutely, but its hard, rare and usually against the law.  If it happens to a PC then then they will return with an extra quirk which, as the DM, I can use to compel the character.  After all, the Reaper must always be paid.

4.  How are replacement PCs handled?

I don't tend to kill off pcs (as a result of Q2) but if it happens then they will have to play an NPC until there's a suitable plot point to inject the character of their choice.  I will often suggest a class to play depending on the party dynamic/class mix or if the dead PCs player was actually trying to play a different class when their PC died.

5.  Initiative: individual, group, or something else?

I use record cards to track combat so every PC gets to roll their own initiative.  Major NPCs get their own individual cards but minion NPCs and monsters who attack in groups only get one card and therefore one initiative roll.  I allow PCs to hold their action, but their card (and consequently) will get placed back into the initiative stack in this new order and stays there unless they hold their action again until the beginning of the next combat round.  As a result they will effectively miss a combat action, but this effecitively models them "waiting for an opportunity" and is a suitable penalty for making me work harder.
 
6.  Are there critical hits and fumbles? How do they work?

Yes.  PCs get critical hits and fumbles on rolls of natural 20 and 1 respectively, Monsters and NPCs can never score critical hits, only fumbles.  I don't adjust these target values by weapon type but skills and abilities such as marksman or battlerage may lower the critical target to 19 or at very best 18, fumble targets only ever get raised above 1 if the PC is subject to a bad luck curse.  I use my Decision Deck to suggest a theatrical effect for both critical hit and fumble which I can modify depending on the weapon or attack used.  The decision deck effects are ranked in three grades minor, major and fatal and range from just missing an action or being stunned for a few rounds to losing a an eye, limb or being eviscerated on the spot.

7.  Do I get any benefits for wearing a helmet?

Yes, you get an armour bonus but there can be other non combat advantages such as disguise bonuses or if they are of horrific or terrible design, bonuses to intimidate or opposed morale checks when worn.

8.  Can I hurt my friends if I fire into melee or do something similarly silly?

You bet, but I will stop short of allowing your stupidity to kill another player, let's hope you don't fumble though.

9.  Will we need to run from some encounters, or will we be able to kill everything?

Most encounters are designed to be challenging for the players, but utimately achievable.  However, if the plot requires, for example, that they have a certain artifact in order to defeat the major boss then they'll have to run away.  I occassionally "steer" my players towards a solution by using an impending massively scaled threat, but these are few and far between.

10.  Level-draining monsters: yes or no?

To be fair I've not tried it so far as I've always thought it an administrative nightmare, but I liked Tim Brannan's recent article on the subject Undead: I don't like Level Drain and am itching to give his suggestions a go.

11.  Are there going to be cases where a failed save results in PC death?

No, partly as a result of observing the "rule of stupid" (see Q2) and partly because I hate entirely random deaths.  Anecdote Alert: I once played this sci-fi game where immediately after we had spent an hour rolling up characters we were began teleporting down to the surface of a planet.  The DM said that the teleporter was not 100% effective and lo and behold a PC fumbled their roll (which the DM actually rolled anyway) and they got turned inside out.  What the DM thought they were achieving by doing this is unknown, but what they actually achieved was a 20 minute lag for everyone whilst the unfortunate player rolled up another character.

12.  How strictly are encumbrance & resources tracked?

I have recently taken to using my Item Cards to track PCs equipment but this is mostly so that players manage the items that they've got in their hands, are wearing or have stowed in backpacks (or in their saddlebags which are on their horse which is outside the dungeon (or in the dragons belly!!)).  Each card has a relative encumberance value and from time to time I check the total encumberance and the number of cards.
   
13.  What's required when my PC gains a level? Training? Do I get new spells automatically? Can it happen in the middle of an adventure, or do I have to wait for down time?

I tend to award XP in the natural lulls between sections of a campaign.  Spellcasters will acquire new spells or prayers as and when they encounter other spellcasters or find tomes containing them.  These may be of a level above that which they can cast and they will only be able to add it to their spell or prayer book, casting will have to wait until they level up.  Similar things can happen for new feats or abilities for other classes.  Fighters and rogues may meet an NPC who teaches you a new combat move or a new technique for lock picking but you want be able to take advantage of this new found knowledge until you've levelled up.

14.  What do I get experience for?

Everything you do, I believe XP should not be awarded just for killing things, in fact there are times when penalties should be awarded for this.  If the plot demands that an NPC is captured alive rather than killed, I prefer to award full XP only if they achieve this, half or no XP will be awarded if they end up killing them.  "Roleplaying" awards are generally given for interesting or successful non combat encounters or for discovering clues and progressing the plot.  Making me laugh is a sure fire way to gain XP.

15.  How are traps located? Description, dice rolling, or some Combination? 

PCs make spot hidden object or search rolls. PCs can suggest the type of trap they are looking for and I modify the target number if they are warm or cold.

16.  Are retainers encouraged and how does morale work?

I don't encourage or discourage them.  They tend to be expendable level 0 NPCs which I control or if every party member has one I'll make sure that each player plays someone else's retainer.  Their Morale will be based on a D20 roll under their WISDOM score.

17.  How do I identify magic items?

This largely depends on your class.  Spellcasters can obviously use Detect Magic spell but rogues can use evaluate or local knowledge or rumor to research the history of an item which may reveal that it has some additional magical aspects.  In both cases you will never truly know what an item or artifact does until you try to use it

18.  Can I buy magic items? Oh, come on: how about just potions?

Absolutely, if you can find Ye Olde Magick Shoppe.  I prefer that some magical things are not solely the preserve of Mages, so Scribes, Apothecaries, Priests, Monks, Druids and Alchemists may also be able to knock up potions of healing, wards, scrolls or other such items.

19.  Can I create magic items? When and how?

Yes, if creation can easily be worked into the regular game sessions, otherwise it's reserved for non-game time between campaigns.  I'm happy for a player to retire their character in the middle of a campaign if they absolutely have to but they run the risk of the party never returning to that location again.  This has not happened to me so far.

20.  What about splitting the party?

All the time, I don't try to force party cohesion, some classes work best when they are working alone.  When in cities it is often necessary for you to investigate several leads at once.  If there's going to be a big battle then try to bring everyone together for the best chance of success. 

I am often reminded of the standard Dr. Who plot exposition which goes like this: Tardis lands on planet, Doctor and assistant get split up and each find a group of protagonists.  An event occurs and the Doctor and Assistant swap groups of protagonists.  Doctor reunites with assistant and they determine which group of protagonists are Good or Evil.  Doctor and Assistant side with Good protagonists and defeat evil or unite protagonist groups.