rpg adventures from scratch
TRANSCRIPT
quests from
scratch
topics
foundations
breaking up
exploration
let’s build!
reminders
add magic
talk it out
q&A?
foundation
My game
I’m running a multi-session, ongoing adventure with 8 players at once.
one overarching plot timeline
all players were forced to write a background
if they didn’t or were too vague, they’re at my mercy (bwa-ha-ha!)
what are you running?
A big, multi-session game like i am?
strung-together stories?
just getting into it?
no wrong answers here.
your game
taking a break
Sometimes it’s fun to break up the story with a side quest or 2
How?
go away from your main storyline in an obvious way
slip away by running your game so that there are always avenues for side quests
breaking up
not hard to do
find an idea for your side quest:
One of your pc’s backstories mentioned something you can delve into
you had a sudden rush of inspiration on the bus ride to work
you just get a rush of inspiration and have to figure out how to do it
watch a movie, read a book (meh…)
refining ideas
Begin to explore your idea and flesh out a quick base for the story
write a paragraph that describes “the main scene”
find some art that shows the item from your pc’s backstory
jot down a 1-sentence elevator pitch to describe it
the skeleton
Build a skeleton for the adventure by writing three key things down:
the start
The middle
The end
the start
The start is how you begin the game. this should be the only chance you have to be 100% rigid in how the adventure will work out.
you control every part of this phase.
make it an epic intro, about 1 paragraph in length (unless your players like narrative)
the middle
the middle of your adventure should be a series of bullet points:
the key location
some key events that will happen
the key npcs
a possible bestiary
reward loot
the end
DOn’t affix your end to any specific point in time. your players will arrive there most often in very interesting ways.
tip: the adventure shouldn’t end.
exploration
fleshing out
flesh out the beginning, middle, and end bullet points
for each key asset, write a paragraph (or a stat block, or…)
tip: never go too deep
I keep saying not to go too deep or invest much time in it. why?
because your players will change it. if you need them to rescue a king and they kill her, the rest of your story might fall apart because dialogue or plot devices might hinge on that npc.
why do i stop you?
if you design assets instead of the whole story, your adventure becomes modular.
adaptable to anything
you can ditch stuff you don’t need this way too.
design nimbly
no one but you knows if things change.
new dm/gms get hung up on the story getting away from them.
if you write in modules it won’t. all you need to do is work out how the pieces could go back together.
golden rule
let’s make an
adventure!
a small town depends on a nearby silver mine for its livelihood.
the mine has been taken over by earth elementals.
pcs figure out why, stop it, return mine to town.
that’s it
Example
that’s how i write 98% of my games. i get an idea, jot down the start, middle, and end, and toss in a monster type.
rather that writing all the connective tissue now, i flesh out each bullet.
let’s do that right now
yeah, that’s it
the town is called Hawklode
there are ~200 people living there
mayor is a quiet woman who has a stutter when she gets nervous (which she is because of the loss of $)
offer her favour as payment
the beginning
next, i’d draw up the mine/dungeon
using something like evernote and the pathfinder srd, record the stats for the earth elementals
do they find any cool loot in the mine? put it in evernote.
extra credit: why are the elementals doing this?
the middle
the players discover the elementals are sentient and were at one time used as slave labour by the town to dig out the mine.
they dug into an anti-magic pocket that put them into a deep sleep. now that the pocket is dissipating, they’re waking up and want revenge on the town.
Resolve that in town.
the end
reminders
quick list
don’t waste time writing the adventure absolutely
put down key points and flesh them out separately
write them so the pcs could approach them in any order
Don’t rely on pcs
don’t rely on specific pcs for and resolutions.
If they die and you need them for a puzzle, the whole thing can be ruined.
pcs are like cats. herding them to a goal is almost impossible.
modularity
Modular design lets you change the entire adventure immediately if need be.
be adaptable and relax if things “go wrong”
ie: the pcs don’t bother to find out that the elementals were slaves and just destroy them.
add magic
get crafty
you can add unexpected flavour to the adventure in a bunch of ways:
adopt the mayor’s nervous stutter when you talk to the pcs. don’t stop.
go to a craft shop and get some silver paint and paint some rocks and put them on the table prior to the session to set the mood.
get crafty
instead of drawing your mine out on a battle mat, take those same rocks and use them as key features in the dungeon (maybe a cave-in or a central spire in the middle of a large chamber)
serve silver candies
get crafty
adopt a gravelly voice for the earth elementals in case the pcs talk to them.
maybe one of the pcs’ backgrounds mentions silver. weave it into this story in a subtle way.
ie: their parents were silver traders who went missing. crates with the family biz logo on them are nearby.
linking pcs
each session should revolve around 1 or 2 different pcs than last time
plot
loot
don’t leave anyone behind over time
weaving magic
drop hints to pick up on later
use lots to keep them guessing
source (or create!) artwork, maps, props, letters, costumes, battle terrain, soundtracks and sound effects
one two skip a few
every few sessions, try to do something completely new
eG: wagon chase
talk it out
refinement
once you’ve got your modular pieces in place, refine them
intro the session aloud in the car on the way to work.
narrate the entire adventure/session as you would to the pcs
get a voice recorder if needed.
feedback
after each session, especially when you do something brand new or unique, ask the pcs what they thought.
mix up the challenges in your adventures. you don’t always need to fight things. consider a pulley system puzzle in a mine or a cave in (natural) trap to deal with.
q&A?
quests from
scratch
