Do your NPC's talk to each other?

[Leon The Lion]

Not a purely SW question, rather a general RPG one.

Today, thanks to another RPG forum, I've had yet another: "So the way I've been running my games for the past 8 years is really bad and wrong. Thank you Internet!" moment. And out of morbid curiosity I'd like to hear what the community here thinks about the issue.

So, do they? Do your NPC's have "in character" dialogues among themselves when "on camera"? Not long, show-stealing discussions where the GM, pardon the expression, plays with himself, and the players and their PC's are forced to sit quietly and listen, don't interrupt and be bored. Even just quick exchanges in reaction to each other's actions, short talks about their lives or interests the PC's can overhear, whatever. Or do you just summarize any such exchanges, if they even happen at all?

I've always thought such talks helped flesh out the NPC's in the players' mind, serve to better highlight their characters, show that the NPC's are in fact living, breathing people with real personalities and opinions, instead of just game pieces. I'd think it helps in immertion. I know as a player I'd feel somewhat wierd in a game where the NPC's didn't really talk to each other.

So, what do you think?
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[Praxian]

Important NPC's talk to subordinates briefly (less than a minute) OR my chars get that on occasion when the two guards, commanders, whatever, are sharing important information of some sort with the PC's who are hiding.

Basically, if it moves the story along, do it. Otherwise I'd say save the RP for when the Players are with the NPC you want to build up.

[Grimace]

I don't know if I'd call it "really bad and wrong", it's just different.

I might have several NPCs provide brief input. Or, as others have mentioned, if the players are within earshot and there's important info being said I might have a short dialogue between a couple of NPCs. For the most part, though, having NPCs getting involved in lengthy dialogue with each other is going to be rather boring and unentertaining to the players. While some of it might be informative, that same information can be given as comments made by the NPC to the PCs. But to have more than a couple sentence exchange between NPCs tends to take the wind out of the sails of the players a bit. They could feel like they're in the back seat, just watching instead of doing.

So it's not a terrible thing, by any means, it's just not real common. The couple times I've found myself in a situation where two or more NPCs would be having a dialogue about something, I simply summarize what was said. To talk it all out not only feels a little funny to me, but also takes up a lot more time compared to summaries.

[garhkal]

[Urban Spaceman]

I'd probably go with the original language, then the translation, for the first few sentences, just to give the PC's an idea of how the language sounds.

My NPC's tend to talk to each other, both on-camera and off.
Sometimes the PC's will hear the end of a conversation as they approach, and sometimes an NPC will make a comment afterwards as the player leaves. Just to add something to the NPC's really.
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[mdlake]

As a general rule, short exchanges are fine. There's no reason, for example, not to speak in character when your PCs overhear an officer telling a trooper, "Take these prisoners to cell 485. And be careful with the Wookiee; he bites." Or letting a barfly speak a little too freely, only to be cut off by the bartender: "Keep your trap shut, Mort!" before turning to add, "Sorry, gentlemen, Mort tends to tell tales when he's had a few. Don't pay him no mind. We ain't had pirates in this system for this eight year or more."

As long as it's only a sentence or two, no problem. Anything over a short paragraph should be summarized third-person unless (1) you've got a really good reason, and (2) you're CERTAIN you can keep your players engaged.

[Esoomian]

Yes, yes they do. I used to be able to just some up what they were saying but after some creative cybernetic enhancement one of the NPCs now has a speach impediment so my players take great joy in attempting to make make long speaches.
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[jmanski]

That's funny
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[Hellcat]

You can ask Esoomian, I certainly have. I think the worst part for the players is having the NPCs speaking in a different language which the PCs don't know. Of course one of the PCs has the Translation Force power which allows them to know what's being said and all the players can see it if they do a little highlighting, but in character only one actually knows.

Sometimes I think you have to have NPCs talk to each other as sometimes the players may try to do a little eaves dropping. Other times I use it to try and get the players to say whats going on. And then there are times I'm waiting for the players to do something so the NPCs talk to each other while waiting.
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[Esoomian]

Yes I quite enjoy Hellcat's NPC conversations, they often contain useful information.
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Simply stand closer to the object you wish to view.

[Bren]

I will have NPC to NPC conversations in Cutaway scenes that the audience can see but that the PCs cannot. These scenes are used to convey foreshadowing or tone and may provide some metagame information to the players. Except for these cutaways, unless a PC is part of the discussion, I tend more towards summarizing NPC to NPC conversation. I tend to see the PCs as the stars of a series so conversation tends to focus on them. That being said, I can recall a very memorable scene that my co-GM ran that was just NPCs. It was very interesting in fleshing out what the NPCs thought about some of the PCs.

Of course what I or the rest of us think is somewhat irrelevant unless your are the GM in a game we play in. If you are concerned about your style, ask your players what they would prefer.

[Raven Redstar]

[garhkal]

we do that in the Sparks universe. WE have 3 grades.

Commercials - Funny things that advertise equipment, ships, droids, adventures, cruises etc.
ALL see it (pc, player, audience)

Cut-aways or Interludes (called different by different judges). Stuff that happens "Off screen" that the characters don't know but the players/audience sees (eg the imp officer giving orders to his people, etc.

Force Sidebars. These "visions" from the force go to force users/sensitives only. They may or may not have something specific to do with that module they are playing.

Now, the FS and interludes are supposed to be either one has an impact for the module, the other can be foreshadowing another.
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[Raven Redstar]

Some of my cut scenes are more like aftermath, things that happen after the players leave. Like having their crime lord contact and his entire crew getting wiped out by a giant droid, just after they leave planet and are in hyperspace on to the next world, or something of that nature.

[Hellcat]