Here's some advice on Inciting Incidents from the upcoming Ironsworn Chapter 7.
Here's some advice on Inciting Incidents from the upcoming Ironsworn Chapter 7. As noted in the character creation chapter, you'll start your adventures with a background vow and an inciting incident. The latter is what will drive your initial session(s) of play.
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An inciting incident is the problem which arrives at the beginning of a story, forcing the protagonist into action. Everything up to that point is backstory—the normal world which your character has become accustomed to. In Ironsworn, the inciting incident is the tipping point which forces you to undertake a life of perilous quests and adventure.
To start your character's story, envision an imminent threat or compelling need. You can use a a quest starter from the Ironsworn book, talk it out at the table, or Ask the Oracle. This problem will dictate what drives your first session and sets your character’s story in motion.
What makes a good inciting incident?
Make it personal. Why is this important to your character? Envision how this connects to your background or goals. If you don’t act, it’ll hurt.
Make it a problem that won’t go away on its own. The enemies or forces at the heart of this problem will see it through, even if you ignore them. If you don’t act, your fears will be realized.
Give it a ticking clock. The problem won’t wait for you. You need to get moving. If you don’t act, time will run out.
Make it universal. If you are playing with allies, make this a shared vow—important to each of you. This will create an opportunity to work together. If you are playing solo, make it a threat which will impact other people you care about. If you don’t act, all of you will pay the price.
Up the stakes. Envision complications which make your inciting incident even more dire for you, your family, or your community. If you don’t act, everything will fall apart.
Limit the scope. Unlike your background vow, this is a problem which you can (and must!) deal with now. In gameplay turns, you will Swear an Iron Vow and mark it as a troublesome or dangerous quest. If all goes well, it might be resolved in a session or two. If you don’t act, things will get worse.
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Once you've decided on an inciting incident, you'll set the scene either via a prologue (your character's normal world) or in media res. Chapter 7 will walk you through the process of setting up your campaign and heading off on your Ironsworn quest.
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An inciting incident is the problem which arrives at the beginning of a story, forcing the protagonist into action. Everything up to that point is backstory—the normal world which your character has become accustomed to. In Ironsworn, the inciting incident is the tipping point which forces you to undertake a life of perilous quests and adventure.
To start your character's story, envision an imminent threat or compelling need. You can use a a quest starter from the Ironsworn book, talk it out at the table, or Ask the Oracle. This problem will dictate what drives your first session and sets your character’s story in motion.
What makes a good inciting incident?
Make it personal. Why is this important to your character? Envision how this connects to your background or goals. If you don’t act, it’ll hurt.
Make it a problem that won’t go away on its own. The enemies or forces at the heart of this problem will see it through, even if you ignore them. If you don’t act, your fears will be realized.
Give it a ticking clock. The problem won’t wait for you. You need to get moving. If you don’t act, time will run out.
Make it universal. If you are playing with allies, make this a shared vow—important to each of you. This will create an opportunity to work together. If you are playing solo, make it a threat which will impact other people you care about. If you don’t act, all of you will pay the price.
Up the stakes. Envision complications which make your inciting incident even more dire for you, your family, or your community. If you don’t act, everything will fall apart.
Limit the scope. Unlike your background vow, this is a problem which you can (and must!) deal with now. In gameplay turns, you will Swear an Iron Vow and mark it as a troublesome or dangerous quest. If all goes well, it might be resolved in a session or two. If you don’t act, things will get worse.
--------------------
Once you've decided on an inciting incident, you'll set the scene either via a prologue (your character's normal world) or in media res. Chapter 7 will walk you through the process of setting up your campaign and heading off on your Ironsworn quest.
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