RPG Plotbackground Ideas

[Minion]

In a new RPG we're testing the player characters begin bound outside of a prison awaiting their official sentence before they are tossed in.

Aside from asking players to come up with their own reasons for being there, like committing a crime or being framed individually, I was hoping for more alternate ideas, preferably ones that not only explain why the PCs are about to become prisoners, but also something that binds them together in a way so they keep in touch inside, as there's going to be a lot of splitting up.

Any ideas?

[Merkuri]

Perhaps somehow they're all a member of a looked-down-on class of society, one that's often mistakenly arrested simply because they were there. It might take some work to find a group they can all be a member of (either willingly, like an anti-slavery "club," or unwillingly, like people with red hair), but you should be able to do it. It would be easier if they were all of the same race or similar races, but it's not impossible. Perhaps the "group" they're in is people who are different from the norm of the city, like a group of halflings and humans in a dwarven city where the dwarves are extremely predjudiced against anyone who is not a dwarf. Knowing they're all in the same group might make them stick together (especially if they're also getting predjudice from the other prisoners), and you can also throw them in there without them being guilty, perhaps they just witnessed an event but the local law won't believe them because of their group.

[Minion]

Very kewl I like that idea thanks. I'll have to rework it a tad as the only PC race in this game is human.

[Merkuri]

Oh, that makes it easier. Just look for real-world examples.