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Making Your Macguffin Matter Make It Personal Make It Metaphorical

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Making Your Macguffin Matter Make It Personal Make It Metaphorical Making Your Macguffin Matter Revenge is a great way to make your macguffin meaningful. In the Sting, the whole point of the Heist is to get revenge on both a corrupt policeman and crime boss who murdered When you plan a heist, as a player or a GM, there are a lot of things to consider: the move- Robert Redford’s friend, ex-partner. The same goes for needing it to prove your innocence ment of guards, the actions of the Crew, what could possibly go wrong, and most impor- of a crime you didn’t do--the only way you can prove you didn’t steal Lady Holliday’s tant of all, what you’re stealing. Because what’s the point of pulling a heist if you don’t have Necklace is to stop the Baseball Diamond from being stolen, and the only way you can do something cool to steal? that is by stealing it first. So let’s talk about how to make your macguffin matter. In storytelling a macguffin is just Or you need it to help someone you care about. In Supercrooks, the Loot matters because the thing that drives the story. It’s the Loot you’re there to steal. It doesn’t matter if it’s it is needed to pay off the debt of their mentor. Maybe your character needs the diamond a rare necklace, a stockpile of gold, plans on microfilm--it’s there so that other things to bail out a friend. (guards, security systems) can try to keep you from getting it. Finally, you can make it something personal but incredibly petty. This works best when You can find some amazing roleplaying opportunities if you take some time to make your there are a few other characters who have already established grandiose meanings, but if macguffin matter. It’s not just that you’re stealing the necklace, it’s that the necklace is the you’re the thief who just wants to make enough money to open a donut shop on the coast only thing you had left of your inheritance before your family was disgraced. Or the big di- of Miami and watch the sunrise while handing out delicious donuts--then it’s going to feel amond is your last chance to prove that you can still do the job. Or it’ll be enough to open so satisfying to get that. Again, the key is specificity. It’s not just that you want to open a up that quirky donut stand you always dreamed of. donut shop--you want to open the seaside donut shop and get away from the hustle and bustle. But now we’re drifting into metaphor territory, so let’s talk about that. When we know what the Loot means to our characters, suddenly the stakes are that much more personal. That’s where we want to be--because the heist itself? That’s just plot. That’ll Make it Metaphorical take care of itself, but what will make it stand out is when you can hang a good story on the frameworks we’re presenting here in the book. And the way you do that is by making it Another great technique is to think about what the macguffin represents. This kinda takes about characters, not the plot. away from the specificity of the Loot, but it still gives it a lot of meaning. Because it’s not just a ship you’re stealing--it’s freedom. It’s not just a diamond you’re stealing, it’s redemp- There are a few ways you can make your Loot all about your characters--you can make tion in the eyes of your mentor. It’s not just a pile of gold, it’s a slap in the face to every rich it personal, make it metaphorical, make it spectacular, make it dangerous--whatever you bastard putting his heel on the neck of hard-working crooks like you. domake it about your characters. You’ve probably seen this a million times in movies. The Loot matters to the character, but Make it Personal it’s all about what it symbolizes in their life. This can be something a character gains by stealing it: freedom, respect, redemption, mercy. Or it can be something a character loses This is one of the easiest things you can do as a GM or a Player. Make the Loot something or breaks through because of it: you finally have what you need to leave the criminal life personal to your characters. Think of the Heart of the Ocean in Titanic. The necklace is behind. Until the next “one last job” comes around. valuable, but its real value is to Rose. It’s emotionally priceless. This has the advantage of giving your character a unique point of view in the heist. Once There’s nothing stopping you from making the macguffin emotionally priceless in your you know that what you really want is to prove you’re the best--your goal in the heist own heist. The key is specificity and history. In Pulp Fiction, Bruce Willis’ gold watch is changes. Now you don’t just have a reason to be in on the heist, but you have a way to just a watch, but it’s emotionally priceless because of its history and connection. Because of inform your character’s actions. A character looking for respect might act differently than it, you understand both why he can’t leave it behind, and what it means to get it back. a character looking for freedom. Even if the object isn’t something you have a personal history with, you can still make Finding the metaphor in what you want is a great way to still feel like you win even if you something emotionally priceless by having a connection to the Loot. Or the people hold- don’t get the Loot itself. If you’re looking to play games where you’re the plucky crew who ing the loot. Instead of the necklace being the only thing you have left of your mother, it’s never actually walks away getting that payday, or who are kind of Happy-Go-Lucky thieves the most prized possession in the hands of your enemy. Sure, it’s worth a lot of money, like Lupin III in Castle of Caligiostro, then finding what you get out of every heist is im- but it’s also one of the few ways you can get to them. portant. It keeps you coming back because Heists aren’t about the money--they’re about Samplehappiness. Or the thrillfile of it. Again, this is less a loot specific thing, but once you have this, you can tie that metaphor to Stories work best when they’re driven by the characters in them. Making something Dan- the Loot and have a lot more fun trying to grab it. gerous or Spectacular can be tricky, because you can get caught up in the plot of it--but these are some fun and interesting ways to make the heist appealing to all kinds of players. Make it Spectacular The Real Loot Is The Friends We Made Along The Way One of the big things about a Heist is the spectacle of it. Why go through all the trouble to come up with a complex plan if you’re not also going to steal the statue of liberty. Go big. In the end, getting players and the GM all on the same page is what it’s all about. You’re Carmen San Diego big. Lupin III big.. If you’re running one of these Heists as a one shot, all there to tell the story you’re going to tell together, whether it’s through roleplaying or or are looking to really amp up the heist, make the Loot something spectacular. hardcore grinding of mechanics, you’re still figuring out what happens next. If you want to make it all about the characters, the biggest thing you can do is just come out and say why Make it something impossible to steal. This isn’t necessarily a great character motivation you want the thing you want. tool, but life doesn’t have to be all about internal drama. Sometimes you just want to drive a tank down a highway and ramp it off of something else--and if you want impossible It can be harder to do this in a roleplaying game where you can’t just script everything. But plans with impossible stunts, you need impossible loot. all you have to do is give yourself the opportunity to say what the Loot means to you. It might feel a little off to stop in the middle of talking about how you’re going to get past the The best part is you can still put a personal or metaphorical meaning on this, and then bank vault lasers, and instead say that the necklace you’re after is the only thing you have you’ll have to try and justify all of it. Loot like this sets the tone of your heist--which is the left of your family. Or that you want to get revenge on the owner of the diamond because other thing a good piece of Loot can do. they framed you and got you locked up for five years. The heist where you steal Big Ben should feel entirely different to the heist where you But heists are all about colorful characters. Whether you’re playing larger than life or not, break into a museum to steal a priceless diamond.
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