A successful team of adventurers meet up in their place during a calmer period of their career. As a recognition of their deeds, they have recieved an invitation from the ruler to a trip through his collection of artifacts and relics, with a promise of ANY present of their choosing from it.
After a generic, "slice-of-life" day or two, they gather for a tour through a ruler's personal armory/museum. Along with The Man himself and his best court historican and artificer, they are through an exciting exposition dump/showcase of awesome things, many of which has time-related abilities, and any one of which may become theirs. They eventually reach the jewel of his collection - a "Disc of Time" - a palm-sized metallic-looking disc, ever-spinning on top of a meter-by-meter black box. The court artificer begins an exposition of cosmic importace of this disc... and something triggers a delayed hypnotic command in some of the adventurers, causing them to flip the fukk out and wreck havoc on surroundings. They don't kill their respected superiors or trusted comrades, but they do harm, ensnare, and distract them, which is followed by an almost immediate attack of the professional heist brigade which obviously have used the party's tour as an opportunity to attack the vault, and ambushed/hypnotized some members while they were outside a day earlier doing shopping or whatever, and used those hypnotized party members to siletntly bypass the defense systems of the vault.
During the ensuing battle, the Disc of Time's box gets hit by something., and the GM _ starts _ to _ physically _ slow _ down _ his _ narration _ as _ the _ disc _ "in _ unuverse" _ rotates _ s l o w e r _ a n d _ s l o w e r.
W h e n _ o n e _ o f _ t h e _ p l a y e r s _ w i l l _ a s k _ "Okay, GM, what the hell ? Is my characher noticing that something is wrong ? Is anyone here noticing that something is wrong ?!?!", G M _ w i l l _ s l o w l y _ e x p l a i n _ t h a t _ f o r _ t h e _ p l a y e r _ c h a r a c h t e r s _ n o t h i n g _ i s _ h a p p e n i n g _ w i t h _ t i m e, _ b u t "f r o m _ a n _ "o b j e c t i v e" _ p e r s p e c t i v e, _ t i m e _ i n _ t h i s _ u n i v e r s e
s l o w s
t o
a
h a l t.

J u s t
b e f o r e
t h e
d i s c
s t o p s
r o t a t i n g,
a n
a d v e n t u r e r
n o t i c e s
a n
i n s c r i p t i o n
o n
i t -
[the name of the game system you are playing in].

The GM then explains in a normally sounding voice, that, for all outsiders such as the players, the time in a PC's universe stopped. They now exist in a position of uncertainity - either this was the final moment of their universes' meaningful existence, or something will cause the disc to rotate again, and nobody involved will notice a thing.
First session ends.

During the second session, players create a new team - an amateur mercenary timeline-fixers. More ludicrous **** is allowed - some of the PCs may be: experienced wizards specializing in time, inventors with time-gizmosuits, interdimensional time police officers, 4-dimensional beings, 2-dimensional beings, 11-dimensional beings, friendly avatars of Yogg-Sothoth or Sheogorath, Homestuck charachers, or whatever. (Not super-mega-OP, but ludicrous. I'm sure they'll tell the difference.)
They are on their first mission, to restore time flow in a random universe which stuck in a moment.
For them, the "in universe time" is nonexistent - (almost) every object of the universe is frozen in time, and they themselves exist in a "meta-time". They need spells/gear/native abilities/whatever to breathe the time-frozen air and not be stuck in it; to be affected by the gravity in a one-sided way (they are attracted to the plantet, but the plantet is frozen in time and therefore cannot be attracted to them), and (optionally) to interact with timestuck objects in any way at all.
While the universes' "local time" is stopped, it's very easy for creatures living in "meta-time" to enter and do whatever they do. Moreover, time-related artifacts and powers flip the fukk out in those circumstances. And the ruler's private collection contained a ton of time-related artifacts, some of which were damaged during the fight. So, when time-fixer party will arrive at the town of the adventurer party (likely they'll dispatch near it), it will be infested with a legion of giant time-spiders.
In honour of the infamous Clock Spider meme, all wall clocks become potential spawning points for giant time-spiders. They apperar behing the clocks as small 2d beings, but become big and 3d as they crawl from behind them. The larger and the more accurate the clock is, the more spiders it can spawn. Broken and wildly inaccurate ones are safe, large and cared clocks in apaetments may pack a surprise, and clock towers + stuff in king's armory are infinite spawning points.
On a quest to clear up a legion of gross timarachnids, detect the source of the timestop and restore it (and, before that, to disarm all other potentially dangerous time artifacts near it, which would be necessary, but not obvious for PCs from the beginning.), our time-fixers may encounter:
NPCs with a rare natural ability to live in meta-time.
NPCs with an uncommon natural ability to think and see (but not anything else) in meta-time.
NPC time travellers that would go from past to more distant future, and would end up living in this frozen moment in meta-time, because the future doesn't exist yet. No time travellers from the future tho (guess why).
A prophet NPC, which doesn't exist or think in meta-time, but foresaw our squad and left hints and aid for them.
An aggressive interdimensional empire that uses universes like this as a resourse mine, and would hate the local time to be restarted.
Toys and/or statues and/or pictures that somehow came alive when time was stopped.
Competitor time-fixer party that plays more dirtily.
Calvin Broadus, in a different kind of a trip through time and realities.
Other time artifacts flipping the fukk out.
A wandering circle of interdimensional beings, having a wild party (a good, and sufficently weird, "village" for PCs).
Chrono-assassins.
Weird time carp.
Etc.

The final step of the mission would, of course, be a trip into the ruler's vault. Due to abundance of the time artifacts this should be quite a dungeon. An eldritch location, even. Shenanigans are aloof - number of dimensions is far from constant, "meta-time" is warped to the extreme, portals and storms of energy everywhere, gravity is all wrong, use your imagination. PCs may want to do something with some of the artifacts that produce this hideous rigmarole.
They'll need to figure out somehow how to restore time, they'll need to make that disc spin again.
And then, they'll attempt to "get dat disc". However (eldritch location, remember), as they'll approach it, the disc will seem bigger and bigger, and PCs will find themselves in a microscopic, yet immense, labyrinth of CD-disc caverns, turned into literal caverns. Players will find themselves in different sections of the disc, separated due to the transition's weird geometry. There, obviously, GM throws any kind of bullcrap on them. There, they will meet the members of the opposing time-fixer team one-by one. There, a climax battle of the campaign will occur - nearby the Disc's center of rotation. What this battle will be against, I have no idea. But it obviously must occur, or perhaps be resolved in a nonviolent way simehow, idk. There, with the collective effort, or by some abilities/shenanigans, PCs will restart the rotation of the disc, ending the current session.

However, even when the time-fixer party will finally restore the flow of time, the adventure is far from over.

The narrative swithces to the old team of heroes. They just were in the middle
o f
a
s l o w l y
n a r r a t e d
b a t t l e,
b u t _ d i s c _ s t a r t s _ t o _ s p i n _ faster _ and _ faster, _ eventually _ letting narration be not-that-irritating.
Then, suddenly, a lot of little things in the environment change - i.e. some artifacts may suddenly become broken, for no apparent reason.
Then, suddenly, a ton of people pops up out of nowhere. (They are time-travellers from the future, which now officially exists.) Then, from the disc, in the most impossible fashion possible, crawls a team of weirdos and horrors, claiming that "they did it", and, perhaps, immidiatly demanding payment from the ruler (or ALL rulers ?!?!) for saving their timeline. Then, an another team of who-knows-what does exactly the same thing. Everybody is too confused, and even the ongoing fight (between some of the original heroes/ruler/crew vs robbers) may pause. Except for brainwashed heroes, if they are still flipping out. Of course, it all might just result in an all-out brawl. Also, each player apparently controls two charachters now ?? Or maybe they have to pick one ??? Good luck resolving this salad, though.

You are an absolute maniac. I love it!

This is pretty great. Reminds me of something Arnold K would write. Actually, something specific he has written. Very good at messing with his player's heads, that one.

Why things flip out. Metachronal artifacts still put out effects but can't release it into their time-locked surroundings. The output (of energy/spiders/information/whatever) keeps building while time is stopped then appears to explode out when time restarts. Would be a great way to put time pressure on the PCs. If they let it build too long it could take out the whole town when it restarts. Move fast or you'll have to chuck the floating castle's power source out the window before completing your mission.
...I like where that went.

I especially like the aggressive interdimensional empire that uses universes like this as a resourse mine, and would hate the local time to be restarted.

"A prophet NPC, which doesn't exist or think in meta-time, but foresaw our squad and left hints and aid for them." - This reminds me of another GlOrIoUs Goblin Punch article.

Thanks !
Messing with heads was (obviously) a prioritized objective.


The artifact thing is OK. Kind of goes against the spirit of what I'm going for here - a mostly frozen, calm world in which no one in a particular hurry.And I like global timers and think they are underused in computer RPGs I've played. But here... IDK. If there absolutely needs to be a timer, another element of the picture might just go out of control - like that empire.

Arnold K looks fun. Although neither of those adventurers has quite the density of screwed worldbuilding, wheels withun wheels, meta crap, time crap, dead memes, and other things my obvious source of inspiration has.

Oh, and that dinosaur totally reminds me of one excellent host.

You would need a player group who was into the super weird science fantasy stuff. If they didn't immediately catch the feeling of the adventure it would probably fall flat very quickly. But if everyone involved geeks out and runs with it, it could be a lot of fun.

If it was me, I would make the two parts of the adventure in different game systems. Like, the original group is D&D, the time fixers are One Roll Engine or something. Drives home the idea that they are from different worlds. Will also make the final scene even more confusing. And if you have the right players, that will be seen as a plus.

There is little "science fantasy" about what I've described. More like... top-end meta chrono fantasy ? Sci-fi stuff is optional.

This idea about multiple systems crossed my mind, but I thought that this would cross the line. I feel that would be begging to be lynched drain the resolve out of half of the plyers when they'll realize the immenent mechanical complications.

It could work if b o t h systems are very simple, and even then, I'd be afraid for GM's life.

The disc with the game's name on it... obvious reference aside, that might have widely different effects. I mean, why would a time disc have "Dungeons & Dragons" on it? On the other hand, with games like "Fate" the effect for the players might get spoiled in an English-speaking group.

Also, do they need to repair the damaged disc?


How would that be known to players without telepathic powers? Or that's a thing that pops up when they make time spin again?


Yes! The possibilities to build a chrono-transverse setting that can (or wants to) only interact with normal timelines when they get damaged, stopped or broken are endless and the potential for awesome is certainly there. Time scavengers would kick ass (reminds me of PKNA a bit), and there's space (time?) to throw many time-related mindscrews from different authors, like Discworlds' rather fluid nature of time: pyramids, able to store time, would keep the surrounding time going by discharging, with the bafflement of the nearby people seeing the rest of the world freeze.

From a gaming perspective that would also invoke a trope I really like: when you go through an area that just screams weird-ass dungeon but you run around and nothing happens, until something big comes up and the other shoe drops, with the music changing into danger-mode and all kinds of hell pouring from the freakin' walls.

I think Fate would be a good system for this. It would be flexible enough to fit both versions of the setting, and I really think you need a narrative focused system to make this work.

Fate is kind of a jolly, can be adapted to anything and can be used to put in the same system laser blasters, kevlar armor and zweihanders handwaving most of the discrepancies since there is very little detail. Systems with a rigid turn structure as D&D (standard, move, swift action) might respond well to well-thought time powers, though, making them warp the number and kinds of action you're able to take each turn, but certainly need another kind of attention.

World of Darkness (or rather D10) allows for great flexibility too btw.