How do you write campaigns (and game sessions)?


Pathfinder First Edition General Discussion


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Hello, everyone! How you all doing?

Awesome!

Today I am here to ask how you guys and gals go about writing homebrew campaigns. Do you write a timeline of events? Do you simply improvise game session after game session? What's your writing process for writing the overall story/narrative and how do you turn that into individual moments?

I like to begin by writing a series of events that will take place, unless disrupted by outer forces (i.e.: the PCs), then I give a few adventure hooks for the PCs to choose from and follow through that naturally lead into one or more of those events (although, players do occasionally decide to do something completely different and unexpected and I can only hope they will stumble into something plot-relevant again. :P)

I usually start with writing bullet points, then I develop them more as needed.

e.g.: Lord "X" is planning to do "Y". He attempts this plan around date "W", in location "Z". If nothing interrupts his plans, he succeeds, and as consequence, Baron "A" ends up in condition "B", but everyone blames it on Lady "C".

...Or something like that.

As of a few months ago, I started making detailed timelines of when notorious events have taken place... It helps me organize my mind. Future events aren't as precisely written because sooner or later, the PCs do something that delays, stops, changes or advances on them and then the dominoes start falling...

I find this entertaining because when a PC adds a bit of their backstory, I know what was happening when [piece of backstory] took place and can even tie it in with my storyline. In one of my games, this resulted in the long disappeared parents of one of the PCs visiting a notorious tavern at the day/night of its grand opening!

- - -

But forget my lovely self for a second (just a second!)... How do you do it, ladies and gentlemen? How do you write campaigns and/or game sessions?

Share your stories and advice!


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Well, I started by writing deeply detailed backstories, worlds, and characters, and dungeons. I used to spend weeks of time to prepare.

No one liked those games.

Then I just said "Eh, I'll wing it. Maybe rip off an anime or game they haven't seen."

Everyone liked those games.

I'm literally a case of the more I prepare, the less my players enjoy the game.


Illia- wrote:
I'm literally a case of the more I prepare, the less my players enjoy the game.

That's gotta be frustrating... And incredibly liberating as well. oO


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I have a few different approaches.

I had a session a month or so ago that I wrote from scratch 5 hours before I went to bed the day before I ran it. I just took one of the ideas I had about a story or scenario of a story, it wasn't developed enough to make a longer campaign anyway (this particular idea was to hold down a fort against invading orcs). What I did then was basically just to look up material and write down ~4 encounters. Some of them where tied to the original idea, some of the others spawned from a different approach of those encounters, etc.
It ran really well and my players liked it. But there are limitations to this method: I can't create an overarching story, lasting for more than one or so sessions with this. That would be too much to fix during that 5 hour period. It also helped a lot that I have a very good understanding of the overall system (to improvise where I forgot to prepared), that I know what my players like and what my players are like.

When I attempt at a longer campaign, the first thing I pick is a theme, either a starting setting or an objective. I like keeping things within Golarion, so I often have ideas keyed to locations or ideas that can be adjusted to Golarion.
Depending on if I have a starting idea or an ending idea, I work forward or backwards: "But what would happen next?" or "But how did this happen?". New ideas spawn and I develope those I like untill I have a plot that I like.
I prepare a few early adventure-triggering events, in theme with the plot, to start things. I also have a few others prepared that will eventually happen, much later (and I will make sure to use them), to keep my aim steady. From the first session, I'm quite able to see where things seems to be heading and I know where to adjust and put more emphasis to guide my players.
This takes much more time than the first method but still doesn't really allow for a sandbox game.

I always use everything that I prepare. Not for every session, but I will eventually use it (unless it stops being relevant). Otherwise it's no point in preparing it.


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I start with a city that I don't write, but has alot of ideas I can steal from. Absalom, Parsantium (great 3pp product), Dragon Kings setting, etc. The setting I leave pre-made.

Then I give them an opening scene or game. In one they were slaves on an illegal caravan and going to be sold by a cartel, gnolls attack and the caravan is thrown into chaos.

This leads to me listening to the players and seeing what they'd like to do and planning future sessions around that with only vague outlines of the npcs, and plots, that are happening.

If the pcs get close to an npc or plot I'll develop some ideas on the fly, and I try to leave the game on cliffhangers so I can more develop the plot they are in from there.


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I get inspiration from a large variety of sources, such as metal songs, movies, nature or history shows or articles, and other such things. My pregame notes sometimes take up 3 pages and up as I rehash and rewrite the ideas of things I'd like to have happen. Then once I've arrived at what I want to do I go to d20pfsrd.com and print off the monsters and treasure I want so I don't have to have stack of books for encounters and rewards.

I've run adventures with as few as 3 lines of notes before. I'm a very flexible GM, and if my players don't follow the plot lines I have set before them I can improvise pretty well and still have them encounter the NPCs and critters I want them to, just in a different location or time than I intended. And the beauty is they never know the difference.


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write? I don't understand the question...
Only kidding, but not by much. I wing it.
I have a general idea of what I want to do, usually a theme (such as my elemental church war). Sometimes I'll scribble a line or two down and promptly put it somewhere where I will find it 2 weeks after I needed it.
Other than that I have a couple of named NPCs statted out and bestiary page references and see what happens.

I haven't been lynched by my players yet, so they must be desperate enjoy themselves.


I usually think of a theme for the campaign. I'll think up a good first session to get the ball rolling. After that I will wing it almost entirely unless I want to try something different.

The first chase scene I prepared was more like a branching escape sequence. It took me a good bit to put together and didn't last very long. They had a blast though.


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Pathfinder Adventure, Adventure Path, Lost Omens, PF Special Edition, Starfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

First I get a general idea for the campaign (one or two words that encompass the general theme of what I'm going for). Then, I write down a very rough roadmap of plot points that I expect the PCs will go on, then when any session nears I flesh out more details for what exactly I plan on having happen that session. Sometimes the PCs completely throw me for a loop in which case things go off in new and exciting directions for a while, but I can steer those back to the main plot in due time (and from their perspective they never left it since my plots points are mostly just general framework that I can shift around as they do stuff). I generally don't fix dates because I'd end up having to change them all the time based on what the PCs do, so things in the background just happen at the speed of plot instead.

My campaign notes are still pretty sparse though (maybe half a page per 4-5 hour session), I'd say I spend a good half the time every session just winging things based on the general notes I've written down. Usually this works out fine and there's only a few times where I can't just think of an answer or response to something off the top of my head.


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I usually have a few plot hooks for the players to follow. Each plot hook will have its own either social or combat encounter planned.

This connects to a trail point that all of the plot hooks lead to. This save a lot of planning and the players think they had full choice when in fact they are on a loose rail.

So, here is an example of one I wrote:

Rough Outline

Plot point 1 - Encounter traveler under goblin Attack.

Plot point 2 - Players get macguffin.

Plot point 3 - Players travel from Sandpoint to Windsong Abby with macguffin.

-----

Then I'll come up with some basic plot hooks. One might be rumors of Goblin attacks along the main road with a small bit of gold offered per goblin killed. One might be a shopkeeper who's upset that a courier hasn't arrived and asks the PCs to look for him. One might be to deliver a package to a nearby outlying farm.

No matter which one they pick they're going to encounter the traveler. If they decide to not do anything then have someone run in at some point calling for help because goblins are attacking a man just outside of town. If THAT doesn't work then see plot point 2.

-----

Plot point 1 is straight forward. Goblins are attacking the traveler (Courier) and hopefully they intervene. If they do and save him cool, move to point 2. If they do and he dies, move to point 2. If they decide to be jerks and just walk away then move to point 2.

-----

Plot point 2 is simple. The traveller has an item that he wants the players to deliver for him to Windsong Abbey. If the traveler died, they can either find the item with its destination written on his corpse, he obviously died protecting it or someone in the city will ask the PCs to come look at the object that was found with the traveller's body. The note with the object also notes that the traveller will be paid on delivery.

9/10 groups are going to see the obvious plot hook and choose to deliver the macguffin. Though you will sometimes find that group that needs more incentive.

READ: Is trying to be a jerk.

In that case have words written on the macguffin that are in some rare language that some PC speaks that, when read, smacks the PC with a curse that can only be broken when the macguffin reaches its rightful resting place.

If none of that works calmly roll up your gaming stuff because the group doesn't feel like playing and are trolling you.

-----

Plot point 3 is the travel from Sandpoint to the Abbey. It will take X number of days by land, or Y number of days by sea. Have an encounter planned for both.

-----

You get detailed enough to be flexible, but not so much that you are struggling for something to do.


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I lay the tracks and keep the train running on schedule...I wish!

I run Sandbox and have since 1976. General plots are primarily based on table talk and on occasion get out of hand. This generally produces the best games where players can cut loose. I have much looser House Rules that allow players much greater flexibility, as I want them to entertain me.

The 'main story line' is generally well known to all and the Log (a role taken by a player) is responsible for the player end of advancing plot threads. This is kept in a loose leaf folder and each player draws that job, ensuring all have access to the past and responsibility for the job. On more than one occasion, a moldy old plot line has been dredged up from the dark past and pursued. The next Log Keeper is passed the tome and consults the rest as to the future game focuses. I get notified and work such into the next few games.

Rereading this, that last needs an explanation: a player inquires about X and forgets about it. The 'world' may note that X was of interest to that player (or not), and react. The Pally went on a tear looking for vampires a few games back, but found out there was a different scheme going on. Still, his behavior got around and the Dhampir community are worried he'll turn on them or there might be a real Vampire about. Now the Cleric has heard rumors of local vampires and has started looking for the undead in town, finding that there is a strange fellow working at the butcher shop. Dhampir? Next game, he wants to go roust the bloodsucker!

I use 3x5 index cards that state the thread and note my general thought. As it progresses, more lines are added and referenced to other cards through in game activity. Currently, the party is trying to find who is up to what necromantically in the area and one player owns the cooper shop where special kegs are being built on a contract. He's happy about the work his family is getting, but hasn't realized that these are the very kegs the Necromancers are using to transport raw materials in. This twist was inspired by a wife bringing her husband's books so he wouldn't have to go home. They sat on the kitchen counter for hours before he realized they were HIS! Both cards now have about 3 notes on them and references to the other.

When a card gets near full, I ponder another step in the thread or tying that one off. Colors along the top let me know which are 'dead' and numbers serve to refer to cards. Player generated thread possibilities are generated every session whether they know it or not. The real problem is my utter lack of being an anal retentive about getting this done after each session.

Grand Lodge

I remember the first few times I tried to host a table top game. I had a note book filled with maps, NPCs, a quest outline, the works! It was a disaster. Later I just started 'making things up as I go'. THAT ended up being rather fun for the group. They got to go on adventures, I wasn't "invested" in the party trying to follow this quest I had planned out. Everyone won! Plus I didn't have to spend a shit load of time trying to plan out crazy details.


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A few months ago I wrote a full depiction of the starting area (including economic and political atmosphere) and some detail of surrounding regions and larger world events. I had pre-set events that would happen at certain points with predetermined outcomes if the PCs chose to ignore the events (which could come back and bite them). I spent weeks selecting various monsters that could show up in certain areas and... I put a lot of work into is what i am saying.
Come time to start the game: only one player bothered reading any of it and even he only skimmed it. only one person read the houserules. And one player made it so clear that he didn't want to play (and I hadn't even invited him to begin with) that it killed the mood and ultimately the game. the trouble player then stated he was going to DM 5e, and almost everyone left except his wife, my wife, and me. he had the nerve to then ask why no one was showing up to the 5e game.

saltiness aside: I like to go super in depth in world and encounter building, open the world to the players, and then wing it when the unexpected happens. Lately I have had no reason to, as all of my fun players have been chased away and haven't returned.


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In the past I've often started out my homebrew adventures with too much focus on a small area like a town and the surrounding countryside. I then tended to let them wander too much until the crisscrossing plot lines and sidequests had thoroughly confused us all. Finally the whole thing would tend to run out of steam as the higher level sessions became too tough to consistently prepare during a week when I might unexpectedly need to work 60+ hours and play in another game or two.

One step I'm considering to remedy that would be to write the high level portion of the adventure first. I could also try to write the entire campaign in advance though I'm concerned that might make my adventure railroad a little too restrictive. Folks don't seem to mind with APs, but when they know it is homebrew I think they like to challenge the DM a little and poke around to see what you are or aren't prepped for. Another way to implement that might be to use an AP for the early part of an adventure and then cap it off with some homebrewed stuff or just bastardize an AP so that worst case you'll always have something to run when game time comes. I've had some experience with "winging it", but while it can sometimes be fun it can also easily go wrong.

We had one DM who would delay our progress with random wilderness encounters and then kind of apologize for it. The funny thing was that we actually enjoyed those mindless battles. Maybe they would have grown dull at some point, but it wasn't a bad way to spend a session once in a while.

@Bwang - I started an online project similar to your notes a while back for a campaign where the DM offered us way too many adventure hooks. The main document has grown to 17 pages and also uses color coding:
Blue = completed quest
Purple = quest which was started but not finished
Red = current quest
Fuschia = adventure hook we haven't investigated yet

When I arrived for the last session the other players had printed out the document and were poring over it to determine which quest the party should go on next. That made me feel like maybe it wasn't a wasted effort!


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I highly recommend Microsoft OneNote for managing campaigns from a narrative perspective. It allows you to easily organize and cross-reference notes in tabs. So you can organize by regions, cities, NPC, creatures, and quickly navigate through items.

Sometimes when running an AP, I will actually put notes into OneNote because it is just easier.

Liberty's Edge

I pick an Adventure to start with...(Last one was The Dragon's Demand) and buld from it.

and I use MyInfo for Campaign and Character Info


I use a program called Realm Works, by the same people who make Hero Lab. Among its many features is a storyboarding system where I can create events and link them together in the most relevant ways, and I find that having a flowchart for ideas REALLY helps with planning them. XD It also allows for easy things like adding multiple probable courses of action so the PCs aren't railroaded into just one thing.

For the main plot, I usually have a major idea of where I want to go, and I try to break that down into discrete chunks that I can write as individual adventures.


When I started writing the story events for my campaign world, I was still very much a novice GM, and mostly just kind of set things up so there was a minor thing going on that the party would be interested in looking into. From there I gave them a few options in decision making, and for the most part have been gauging their reactions and tendencies to figure out what they're more likely to do.

For the most part, my campaign world doesn't revolve around the PCs. They're a big part, certainly, but there's also events that occur because they didn't interfere in this or that, or didn't pick up on plot hooks. The players think I do a good job making the NPCs people they're interested in talking to/being around/protecting, and this has served to offer a large motivation for them.

Generally, I plan out what the party is most likely to do, and extrapolate from there. Then I determine what the second most likely thing they'll do would be, work from that, and so on.

The party leader and second-in-command ate both Lawful (and act it) so they haven't tried anything too bizarre, and tend to scold the other party members that do.

This will make things kind of interesting, since the planned party for one of my upcoming campaigns has much less semblance of order, but I've been planning out that campaign very far in advance; it's not likely to happen for two to three years, as I can only run one campaign at a time and there's a queued campaign in between that one and my current one.


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After inheriting a couple boxes of old and not-so-old gaming material a few years back I got started as a GM.

I pick a TSR module/WotC module/PF AP/3PP adventure/Dungeon Mag adventure or what have you; read it and make mental notes; think about it; skim it and make actual notes either on the publication or on post-it notes stuck at relevant places in the publication.

The actual notes include things like Stat Blocks (for conversion to 5E), treasure descriptions (particularly for magic items since I always have non-standard items {it makes the game more interesting}, and references to other notes or game material.

In addition, as I have time and creative flair, I create "handouts" of one sort or another. I put handouts in quotes because that category can include relevant jpg art from the Net shown on computer, replicas of things PCs may find (maps/letters/and other things), and other fun stuff I come across and find a way to work into the game.

There are aspects of the adventure that are in-universe (IU) for the PCs to interact with but, as needed, I also include out-of-universe (OoU) puzzles or other features that can keep the players interested outside of their PCs persona. In other words, I write aspects of my campaign (not just adventures) around both what the players want for their PCs IU and for what they want themselves. Note that these two things (IU and OoU) are not mutually exclusive.

Occasionally I write short dialogue/monologue material but try to avoid expository pontification because, well, it's hard not to be boring.

I use gaming miniatures. I use everyday kid's toys (Play-Doh* makes for awesome slimes/oozes/jellies; a trick I picked up from these forums btw).

I link stuff together (making my own APs if you will) but include all sorts of influences from anime to tv dramas to movies to books to stupid things players say while at the gaming table.

I'm okay with being blindsided by player ideas/PC actions/dice rolls but fun is the #1 goal. I use Rule 0 only in the service of fun.

I never retcon. If I can't come up with an interesting way out of a formerly great idea then I don't deserve to be GM.

TL/DR - pick up a copy of the Red Hand of Doom, read it, read the designer notes/sidebar material especially, and practice doing what they did.

*Brought to you by Hasbro! And endorsed by Drumpf


I think about a story and make a rough draft of it. Then I check over the gameworld where to fit it in and what existing modules can be adapted or cannibalized. Usually I have to do most stuff by myself, since few things will fit or are still unknown to the players.

High level stuff has to be written from start, because there is practically nothing usable out there. You have to give high levels a different kind of challenge, since many of the low-level problems are gone, like getting from A to B or opening trapped doors. Since I want high level abilities to work (instead of saying ability X or spell Y won't function in this adventure), I have to come up with stuff that takes them into account, even assumes that they will be present.

I make a rough timeline for myself when I write up the gameworld (unless I use an existing one). It gives me an overview of the workings of the world and if I overlooked something obvious. Later it is useful when players start questions or look for a historical detail (or try to speak to a 300 years dead king).

I write up the main NPCs for the adventure and what their resources are, since everything has to be consistent. If the bad guys have no wizard among them, arcane tricks won't happen, or at least not above what a hireling can provide. If they have the means to control monsters or create undead, then those will be around. If they are dwarves, expect traps, secrets and mechanical tricks and so on.

Then I do a red line how I imagine things will happen. They usually won't. So I have a large collection of bits and pieces which I can use as mini-adventures, extended encounters or special occasions when the players go off-rail. Again, this happens far more often the higher they get. "Say, isn't that over there the entrance to the legendary dungeon we were told about last year? Let's check it out!" - that can happen, if a campaign lasts a while and players take notes and keep maps.
Anyway, I draw up my hooks and what I can do to get them back on the road once they have left it and want to get back. This includes NPCs which can nudge them in the direction I would like them to go. Among my favorites was a djinni from a ring, who got almost the status of party member after a while.

Drawing maps and filling out dungeons, cities and wilderness is just work...takes a while and after doing a lot of it you learn where to cut corners. Placing treasure is always a chore, too. How much, what, how well hidden and where - and is the NPC there aware of and using it? Is anything special called for and what? Shall I do the obligatory new monster or not?

After doing story, all the NPCs and locations, including usable maps (I make a set for me and one as handout with less content) I go over the monsters and minor NPCs. The story and location gives me who or what lives there. Now to adjust for CR and maybe add a template here and a special build there, think out spell strategies and daily life in that place. Who will be where at noon? When will someone be in this or that room?

After all the preliminary work I see how it goes and wing it, when I have to. In low level games things tend to go according to plan, but later on not so much. Scry-and-die can be a thing, taking unplanned planar trips or going a completely different route (like influencing a city from the top, say charm/diplomatify the ruler or his bureaucracy, instead of crawling through the sewers themselves), for which low levels lack the means.
But doing all the work beforehand makes improvisation later on easy. I have already a grasp of the gameworld and can use whatever the players do. Sometimes when they go completely offroad it can happen that they "write" their own story with me reacting to their actions. Happens rarely, but it is very nice when it does, since the players are enjoying themselves.


I start with a rough overall plot that describes what they're up against. Then I come up with the initial plot hook, some places and specific things they'll do and the epic final. From there, I don't work more than 2 sessions in advance because they might mess up the plot. If they mess up the long term plot, I'll sit down and rethink it. The other reason not to work in advance is because some players don't tell me what their characters are going to be. I can make sure that they won't bypass anything easily and everyone will be involved and challenged. I will write NPC's at the start, because I can always use them for something else if they never come up and I like writing NPCs. It's like character creation which is a process I enjoy.

So, at any given moment I'll have:
A plot, with an overall goal for the villain that they have more than one way to stop
2 sessions worth of material written out, maps and stats copied into easily accessible word documents
A rough description of what they're doing at each level
A list of NPC personalities and stats

And that's all I need.


Pathfinder Lost Omens Subscriber
Illia- wrote:

Well, I started by writing deeply detailed backstories, worlds, and characters, and dungeons. I used to spend weeks of time to prepare.

No one liked those games.

Then I just said "Eh, I'll wing it. Maybe rip off an anime or game they haven't seen."

Everyone liked those games.

I'm literally a case of the more I prepare, the less my players enjoy the game.

this is so true it hurts, currently ripping off mass effect, games going wonderfully.


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My first DMing experience was Star Wars Saga. I was hesitant to DM anything in the traditional D&D family line as I didn't feel familiar enough with the base setting material, but luckily I had plenty of Star Wars knowledge from years of reading EU books and what not. Soooo I semi winged an alternate original trilogy timeline campaign that then branched into another more related campaign, technically still have the notes for a closing 3rd chapter.

I now do the same thing in Pathfinder but fake the setting too! I pick a theme and build a couple villians/major plots around them then wing everything in between. Sometimes jam it right into Golarion somewhere or just use most of the trapping but make a quick one off world. I'll do a quick major events/ecounters outline and then thumb through the MMs to bookmark monsters that fit appropriately for random events or w/e the PCs get stuck. After that it's just a matter of tricking errr I mean letting the players help flesh out all the details of getting from A to B by playing.

Grand Lodge RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32, RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32

I'm still working on this.

My first homebrew campaign, I had the general idea of the overarching plot figured out. I had heard the advice before that you shouldn't get too detailed because the PCs will mess stuff up anyway, so I just knew the basics, but still; I had the bird's-eye view of the general direction and endpoint of the campaign. But apparently I should have done more "infrastructure" work, because there was a rapidly widening gap between what the plot needed to have happen and what the PCs were capable of engaging. Campaign imploded.

Later I tried to go much more open-ended. I gave an opening scene, watched how the PCs reacted, and made up the details based on where they were looking. But as the campaign progressed, it got really hard to keep the party's actual goal(s) in clear view. The campaign technically finished, but it ended weaker than it began.

Then I tried converting an old D&D video game (Order of the Griffon) so that there would be some structure (both long-term in the general plot, and short-term in the individual dungeons) that I could cling to. We've just started the final battle with the BBEG. It's had some issues, but overall I think it's doing okay.

My next idea was that I'd try and hand some narrative agency to the players: I had a short introductory story arc to get the group together, with the intent that I would introduce several details that they might take an interest in and want to pursue, and toward the end of each "chapter" I'd come up with the next leg of the adventure based on what the players were interested in pursuing. Unfortunately, it seems like I've perhaps given too much freedom and they want a little more guidance. Plus, it now occurs to me that the campaign has no natural endpoint. So I'll probably have to come up with a BBEG or something to work toward.

I'd like to start another campaign this fall, and my thought is to design a small region (such as a town and the surrounding wilderness/landmarks) and come up with a short list of events that happen at certain times and NPCs that have certain goals that will influence how they react to those events (and to the actions of the PCs). Haven't actually sat down and done this yet, though.

I'll definitely be perusing this thread for ideas. :)


I make a good 20 ish "events" that don't have a set location but slot them into the map as the players find them. What they find is based on what would be fun for them to find, for them or me. If they search for and plan it firms out more, if they just March along it is more random.

I try to get a few scenarios that allow each character to shine. I also try to balance the rp vs combat based on party's likes and what fits in the world and their location.

This gives the illusion of choice but if I need them to get somewhere they will get there.


Just remembered something. Years ago, back in college, a friend of a friend found out I GMed games. He had an idea for a one shot and wanted to pass it by me.

He told me he wanted to turn an old sci-fi movie he had seen into a game. If I recall correctly it was "The Thing", a movie I had seen when I was fairly young. Turned out no one in his group had ever seen it and they had a blast. Just another example of where ripping off anime/movies/novels can turn out real well.


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If you've ever seen Disney's "Aladdin and The Midas Hand" (or something like that) it'd be a terrific adventure.

EDIT: The movie is "Aladdin and The King of Thieves". I'm serious. It'd be a great adventure.


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I make sure that everyone is pissed off.

In the game world, not at the table (although that does happen, but its a good sort of pissed).

Basically I make sure that every non-random encounter (frequently generated from the random encounter tables if I'm working in a published setting) and make sure the creature/npc in question is either the target or source of another conflict. This creates a web of angry people who start moving when one is killed off or plans foiled.

Examples from the new game I'll be running for some brand new players.

Players start as indentured mine workers with no memory of how they GOT in the mine! Automatically mad.

The BBEG Baron (a doppleganger) is skimming off the coal mine profits. He is pissed at a chupacabra thats been killing farm workers (told it to stick to animals, wont last long). He's using a goblin tribe as bait, pinning false charges on visiting adventurers then working them in the mines to death. Goblins get the bodies, as long as they don't do much beyond harass people and kill a few animals.

But!
A festrog has taken over the body dumping ground, so the goblins are pissed, think the Baron is betraying them.

The chupacabra is pissed as the baron for obvious reasons.

A cockatrice near the chupacabra is pissed because it wants the bloodsucker's lair.

The baron's old butler is pissed (drunk) because he thinks something has taken over his lord's body due to behavior changes.

Etc, etc.

My chain of angry creatures now gives me easy responses when something happens. Chupacabra dies? Cockatrice moves in, closer to town, starts attacking. Goblins left alone for two long? They tunnel into the mine and accidentally blow it up. Mine shut down? Festrog starts looking for new prey. And so on.

tldr: Roll up a bunch of monsters and npcs and start figuring out how to make a house of cards standoff between them for the PCs to blindly knock over. Your players are going to try to set the world on fire, why scramble for water when you can bring fireworks and popcorn?

PS Also, steal from everything liberally. Do it long enough and people start to not even notice. Had a half-orc brawler with a shield end up with a clockwork arm. Nobody even noticed he was Winter Soldier/Captain America in one until four sessions later.


Campaign design:
I try to keep the story-arc in perspective of how many levels the group will gain as they culminate the plot. 4 or 5 levels for example - I use story development level-ups, not XP. What ever the basic concept is going to be I can then start with a final BBEG CR level in mind and work backwards. I don't always even know what the real finale will be, since it allows PC actions that often give me inspiration for what's "really" at the end of the plot. I also look back over my notes from prior sessions for inspiration on mini-arcs, or how I can bring-back an NPC or minor villain from time to time to just add depth to the world (things happen while the PCs are doing what ever they're doing).

The current campaign idea was a group of black-marketers, who'd also corrupted some of the town guard, and culmination was going to be around 5th level when the PCs figured out where their "front" HQs was and cracked down on it (with or without help from town-guard based on how the group progressed through the story). At session 1 I didn't know where the front business was, how deep the guard corruption went, or much about the leader. One key feature of the crime group was they always wore disguise when meeting with each other and when out on business - nobody could rat-out anyone else since they didn't know what anyone else actually looked like. Beyond that, I wanted freedom to play off the PCs decisions to flesh out the BBEG and the organization as we advanced the story. But I did make a basic outline of key encounters I thought would fit in to work towards that last encounter at the HQs, but very vague.
1. Encounter with shop owner who sent them on wild goose chase. "should" learn he owes money to the Black Arrow (does he run first - maybe a chase scene). Should level up to 2 around here.
2. Encounter with BA thug pressing shop owners for $ (where?; combat or social - based on player actions)
3. Encounter with BA leader. (social - invites group for dinner to offer them to join his outfit - everyone including himself is eating poisoned food, but he has antedote vial; assuming they say no, encounter like the opening scene from Temple of Doom "the antidote for the poison you just drank Dr. Jones.." . Level up to 3 after this encounter.
4. Encounter with BA's family in street (the pet monkey from #3 is spotted with a girl and women. social encounter/BBEG character development - the BBEG has a wife and kid?)
5. Encounter that indicate corrupt guards. (unplanned - improv when it feels right or insert around other encounters).
6. Multiple encounters that give them ideas of where the HQs may be. (play this by ear based on things the PCs decide to do in town. Insert as needed). Level up to 4 and 5.
7. Encounters with non-corrupt guards and leaders. (group will get some info about BA, but little is known. Establishes a reputation in town with good and bad guards; and locals)
8. Group attacks or assists non-corrupt guards in taking down the HQ. Needs to be level 5 before this.

Between those were often a few game sessions of other things such as some small side quests, or doing things the PCs wanted for character development such as a trip to 2 of the PCs hometown for Maplefest. Those PC driven side quests and several randomly rolled encounters (which I use to open other short side-quests or link to the main story arc) allow me to keep the group leveling up w/o always having to be focused on the main plot, and is time when the group and the Black Arrow aren't directly interacting. Those time-gaps gives the BBEG options to react to the PCs interference from prior sessions.

Session Prep.
we play about 4hours every other week, so I have quite a bit of time to think about what happened previously, and what I think the PCs will do next session. We do a lot of RPing so I know in 4 hours I probably need about 4 "encounters", which will be combo of RPing, combat, or exploration. Essentially its another mini-outline of the session which is vague enough to allow for PC free-will.

I typically only have a few bullet points about each of those encounters based on the most probably PC action will be. I only make a few bullet points....because as we've all learned things often go awry and I want the flexibility to roll with the players choices.

I will stat out any monster/environment effects and rehearse how they work so I am ready to run them and keep those either opened on my phone or laptop, but beyond that I

As an example of how a session went based on the campaign outline above.
4. Group encounters BBEG's family.
I'd decided it would take place in open market area, and I figured it would be a social encounter. I had a few notes about the wife's dialogue, planning for her to be the oblivious Mob-wife who's husband just runs an import business. The group might learn a little more about where they were from (foreigners on a diplomatic mission), but this was really just to add depth to the BBEG - he's not just a pure evil maniac, he has a family.

As the group was moving through the market area, I tell them they notice a familiar monkey they'd fought when meeting Zadicus (the BBEG) for supper (and being poisoned) several sessions earlier. The monkey was holding hands with a little girl at a fruit-merchant about 30feet away in the crowded market and the little girl was holding hands with a woman next to her. I was just getting ready to describe the girl picking up the monkey, when the groups cleric/bard interrupts and yells, "I run toward them pulling out my wand of magic missiles and attack the monkey." I reiterate, as you're pulling out your wand you see the monkey climbing into the little girls arms; there are lots of people around including several between you and the girl. "That's fine, I'm not worried since MM can't hit her or them, only my target, the monkey. So I'm rolling for damage." Ok.

I had seriously never even considered this possibility, and improv on my part ensued. Ultimately, the crowd yelled for town guard, protected the girl and her mom who were screaming, the bard was arrested (which allowed me to set up follow-on sessions implicating those guards as being on the BA payroll); the rogue stealthly followed the lady, girl, and injured monkey to their gated mansion flying the foreign country's flag over its gate (allowing me to still demonstrate the leader wasn't from the same country).

About this time in the campaign I could see the end of the first big arc getting close, and I started thinking about "what's the BBEG's -real-" motive. Not just money, what is he doing all this for, and if we continue this campaign - what's next? Since I hadn't decided before the campaign started, I had a lot of freedom. I decided, the BBEG was -really- the wife, the husband was dead and had been for a while, and she had been disguising herself as him when running the Black Arrow. Her motivation is to get her husband raised from the dead, and she's in a deal with some entity back in her home country to do it.
So now we're just starting that story arc, and I'm figuring the group will hit level 10 culminating with them facing the entity she is in league with.
Bullets for this arc.
0. At end of original story arc, group finds tunnels under the front-HQ to catacombs and some kind of smuggling/mining of bones.
1. Shipping bones back to the homeland. (why? an undead link?) will level to 6 culminating in catacombs where they're mining the graves for bones.
2. BBEG is acting out of love to get her husband back. (evil just willing to do more than good to get the same result; when does group learn its the wife?)
3. Group will be traveling across sea and exploring a new part of the campaign world. (Follow the bones; Where? and What for?) will level 7 when they get to the new country.
4. Investigating where bones are going; insight as to why; Black-Arrows origins in Vesnia. Levels 8-9th
5. BBEG is double-crossed by the evil entity (does she try to work with PCs?)
6. There will be some kind of show-down with a CR10-12 monster and their minions in that foreign land. (jungle/volcano; disrupt creation of undead army). Should be level 10 before final battle.

7. Start thinking about level 10-15 so if we want to keep playing this campaign there is linkage to bigger arc; the entity she's sending bones to in return for her husband's soul has much bigger plans; and was just using her to fuel those plans. Be looking for linkages and possibilities based on things the players say at the table.

Whew - got long, but maybe this helps lay out how you can go relatively open ended with checkpoints along the way to give the players enough guidance to be able to advance the story, while having a lot of agency to get to the end point.


I write absolutely nothing whatsoever. Usually I GM odd the cuff spontaneously, at present I'm running an AP for the first time and it's been fun as well.

My prep for that game? Reading the material a few days before the session and mentally noting any changes to treasure my party requires.


I feel like this question is related enough to this thread that I should just ask it here. Anyway how do you guys go about planning and building cities?


*Holds up the Tome of Adventure Design* With dice. XD

That is, whenever I don't already have a solid idea in mind. When I do, it's usually pretty straightforward. I go for player-centric design, which really just means focusing on the one or two bits they're going to remember and not worrying too much about the rest.


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Artifix wrote:
I feel like this question is related enough to this thread that I should just ask it here. Anyway how do you guys go about planning and building cities?

Well, I'll double down on Rednal's advice, at least on the terms of, "focus on one or two bits they're going to remember". If the city is not the dungeon setting, you shouldn't put much effort into it, just set up a couple hats if you aren't confident making them up on the fly.

By hats, I mean interesting things that you can put on top of anything they decide to do.

Hat: Clockwork Man

So, if they go to the mayor to request assistance for dealing with a goblin menace? Have the mayors adjutant be a clockwork man.

One of the players wants a custom weapon mod or something? Tell him there's a clockwork mechanist/smith/alchemist/enchanter of great skill in the city who might be able to assist.

Visits the bar? Have there be an argument on the side where an arm-wrestling ring is arguing about whether a clockwork man can compete. Or he could be the bartender, or whatever.

Say you don't want clockwork man? Well, there are options like: Man with a funny accent, young lad with an impressive set of scars, lady with a baby pet owl on her shoulder, hybrid form lycanthrope, or whatever, ranging from mundane to zany, depending on the setting of the city. Hats can also be things like "this city is floating in the sky/water/lava/swamp" or "magic is super common here."

Just drop that in and give him, her, it, a line of dialogue or two that stands out (Or for something like the case of "this is magic city" make an off hand note of something normally done by hand be done by magic, like someone clapping their hands to open the door). If the players don't bite and start roleplaying into it, you haven't invested much, back off and don't pressure them. If they do bite, expand on it. The players will gladly listen to you flesh out characters and cities... if they're seeking it out. If you read them a page or even a couple sentences (depending on the group) of flavor text they didn't ask for, you can quickly get twiddling thumbs, nodding heads, and general "get on with it". You can't force them to be interested, but you can reward their interest if they show it.


If you just need a quick, reasonably complete city, you could nab something from the Homebrew Settlement Thread. Just, like, plop it down in your campaign world somewhere and roll with it. XD


Jiggy wrote:

I'm still working on this.

My first homebrew campaign, I had the general idea of the overarching plot figured out. I had heard the advice before that you shouldn't get too detailed because the PCs will mess stuff up anyway, so I just knew the basics, but still; I had the bird's-eye view of the general direction and endpoint of the campaign. But apparently I should have done more "infrastructure" work, because there was a rapidly widening gap between what the plot needed to have happen and what the PCs were capable of engaging. Campaign imploded.

Later I tried to go much more open-ended. I gave an opening scene, watched how the PCs reacted, and made up the details based on where they were looking. But as the campaign progressed, it got really hard to keep the party's actual goal(s) in clear view. The campaign technically finished, but it ended weaker than it began.

Then I tried converting an old D&D video game (Order of the Griffon) so that there would be some structure (both long-term in the general plot, and short-term in the individual dungeons) that I could cling to. We've just started the final battle with the BBEG. It's had some issues, but overall I think it's doing okay.

My next idea was that I'd try and hand some narrative agency to the players: I had a short introductory story arc to get the group together, with the intent that I would introduce several details that they might take an interest in and want to pursue, and toward the end of each "chapter" I'd come up with the next leg of the adventure based on what the players were interested in pursuing. Unfortunately, it seems like I've perhaps given too much freedom and they want a little more guidance. Plus, it now occurs to me that the campaign has no natural endpoint. So I'll probably have to come up with a BBEG or something to work toward.

I'd like to start another campaign this fall, and my thought is to design a small region (such as a town and the surrounding wilderness/landmarks) and come up with a short list of...

Jiggy, am I reading correctly that your recent PBPs have been some of your beginning forays into non-module DMing?


Pathfinder Lost Omens Subscriber
kyrt-ryder wrote:

I write absolutely nothing whatsoever. Usually I GM odd the cuff spontaneously, at present I'm running an AP for the first time and it's been fun as well.

My prep for that game? Reading the material a few days before the session and mentally noting any changes to treasure my party requires.

kek, I just wing the treasure I give out as well.

Gave my archer a composite-long/shortbow. has all the bonuses of a longbow but can be used any time a shortbow could. (note I use mojo system so I'm not really required to hand out items)

Grand Lodge RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32, RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32

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Steve Geddes wrote:
Jiggy, am I reading correctly that your recent PBPs have been some of your beginning forays into non-module DMing?

Pretty much.

Other than a disastrous 4E homebrew with my family years ago (making the phrase "orc cave" a bit of a taboo among them) my GMing experience has been entirely pre-written adventures up until I started GMing PbP games. That's why each campaign has been structured a bit differently than the last, in an attempt to find my groove.


Until relatively recently I would lay out index cards of events starting with whatever the starting condition of the adventure/campaign is. IE Sandpoint is attacked by goblins while players are at a festival. Then I add additional events leading towards the conclusion of the adventure/campaign.

Then I take different colored index cards and mark down paths that the players could take to get from one event to the other. IE: 1. Players search goblin bodies, find coins with mysterious symbols on them. 2. Players follow/track retreating goblins back to lair. 3. Players gather information in town and try to find out who might have a grudge against the town.

Then I would lay out all these connecting index cards between the event cards. Once I had that mapped out I would start writing encounters descriptions, detailing npcs.

Now adays I use software for creating flowcharts. WAAAY easier then using the index cards. Same idea though. I also follow the rule of 3. Always include at least 3 ways for players to find a vital piece of information. And if the players think of something I didn't, I can add it in, and figure out a way to map it back to the events that I wanted to happen. So maybe the players hunt for the goblins down by the docks instead of at the caverns under the mayors office. So I transplant the Mayors office encounter to the Docks on the fly where possible to keep things moving towards what I was working for.


Jiggy wrote:
Steve Geddes wrote:
Jiggy, am I reading correctly that your recent PBPs have been some of your beginning forays into non-module DMing?

Pretty much.

Other than a disastrous 4E homebrew with my family years ago (making the phrase "orc cave" a bit of a taboo among them) my GMing experience has been entirely pre-written adventures up until I started GMing PbP games. That's why each campaign has been structured a bit differently than the last, in an attempt to find my groove.

Well hats off to you then. You give the impression of a DM who has seen it all before and can create campaigns at the drop of a hat. I might have guessed you were new to PBP DMing but would never have thought you were giving home brew a try for the first time.


As a very new DM/GM, I've only written two short "modules". They were extremely thematic and linear with minimum detail. They proved pretty fun and didn't stretch my limited DMing skills.

1. Started with concepts to help build the PCs' character/stories such as discovering the whereabouts of one of the PC's father (which has been a running theme since that character's creation), etc.

2. Created the ending with those character concepts in mind and worked backwards (Final battle/discovery, events leading up, and hook).

3. Created a theme: Dinosaurs for the first module and Underwater for the second. Only about four sessions each.

4. Lots of role playing but kept each path/clue to a minimum. Definitely not a sandbox, but it was enjoyable. And as I gain more real life xp, I'll open up the adventures a bit.

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