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Archives of Nethys

Archives of Nethys

Pathfinder RPG (1st Edition) Pathfinder RPG (2nd Edition) Starfinder RPG

Rules Index | GM Screen | Player's Guide
Battlecry! / Genres of War

War as a Backdrop

Source Battlecry! pg. 197
Sometimes, the protagonists don’t interact with the war directly in the story. Perhaps the war ended recently. The armistice was announced, the treaty was signed, and the armies returned home. The war remains a scar on society, the elephant in every room, but at least it’s over. Or perhaps the war is still raging, but it’s over there and the player characters are far from the battlefield. They’re on the home front, or even in a different country altogether, separate from all the fighting and violence.

This sort of war can still have an impact on the campaign, even if the player characters never see a battlefield. A war in the background can inspire character backstories and motivations, provide tone and atmosphere, and even define the core plot line for a campaign.

Characters: To begin with, a war provides an excellent excuse to have many characters running about who are skilled in the arts of violence. The specifics will differ, but a large war means a lot of people will have served in arms. Antagonists will have a steady supply of capable minions, and any unassuming character (like the PCs) might possess deadly skills.

War can also serve for character motivation and drama. The trope of a character haunted by their actions during a war, by violence done and friends lost, is an ancient and powerful one. Some people might return from war swearing that it must never happen again, while others become determined not to render their comrades’ sacrifices in vain. Vivid memories, sometimes seeming more real than the present, can haunt or inspire. And a few people will find that they thrive in war, whether from a love for violence or a fierce commitment to their cause.

Tone: In some stories, the war is ongoing but not shown directly. In those campaigns, the atmosphere is going to be one of tension. People will be afraid, angry, or grimly determined. Hatred of the enemy will be commonplace and tacitly or openly encouraged by the powers that be, possibly with grim consequences for citizens sharing a now-suspect origin. Fear will be equally widespread—fear for the country, but also fear for friends and family on the front lines. There will be dramatic displays of patriotism and conviction to hide the tense undercurrent.

In campaigns where the war has ended, the story takes on a more elegiac tone. The war is over, and victorious or defeated, there was suffering and loss. The dead are mourned. Farms lay fallow, businesses closed, and relationships were shattered. The living remain, but many are wounded in body or in spirit. If victorious, at least the winners can cling to what victory bought them—sometimes this is enough, for a noble cause. But the defeated can be bitter indeed, willing to believe anything to save their pride.

Plot: War is important for narrative. In a big war, governments will do anything to win, and that anything is just the kind of situation that calls for player characters. A government might invest in some secret project—a radical new technology, some long forgotten magic, or perhaps recruiting a dangerous and uncertain ally. “Old military project” is a common horror story origin for good reason. The need to win, the need to justify the loss of friends and comrades, can justify all kinds of very bad ideas.