I've had this idea bouncing about in my head for a few years now. I've run a nonlinear storyline loosely based on it as an on-and-off thing on a Neverwinter Nights server. But now I'm unemployed and sitting at home bored and want something to do with my time, and think this might be a good way to kill some of that.
Basically I want to write a campaign guide. Starting from 1st level, extending somewhere into the teens or perhaps even all the way to 20. Understandably this is a very ambitious project and I'm somewhat unsure where exactly to start. So I throw myself to the wolves for some basic advice. What necessities I need, some resources that might be helpful, or perhaps "We don't know what the frak you want, give us more information".
Who knows, if it doesn't end up looking like crap when I'm done with it I might do something with it....
Being completely ignorant of NWN (never played), isn't the World of Avlis anyway related to that?
Being completely ignorant of NWN (never played), isn't the World of Avlis anyway related to that?
From a Google search Avlis appears to be a NWN server, yes. Not the one I play/DM for (past nor present tense) though.
Sounds more like a campaign than a campaign guide, Orthos. ^_^
- Choose the campaign world. If you're not using a published setting, you kinda need the campaign setting/world first.
- Check your home-brewed proper names via search engines. Be a shame to name a bunch of bad-arse BBEGs ... only to find you subconsciously named them after the Mouseketeers.
- Do the 'outline' thing, roughing out the campaign.
- Resources needed will be tailored to your campaign. The farther-ranging you go in geographical terms, the wider the variety of stuff you may need.
- Choose 'power level' for the player characters. This will have a direct impact on how you write your campaign.
Go from there!
Sounds more like a campaign than a campaign guide, Orthos. ^_^
Further proof that I don't know what I'm talking about :P
1. World: I have a basic idea of how it could be run in its own homebrew campaign (one that I've used some in my own games) and how it could be adapted with minor changes for some of the more popular settings (FR, Golarion, Greyhawk; don't know enough about Eberron so I'll probably need to ask for help on that when I get to that point). Providing info on the homebrew setting should be pretty simple.
2. Names are clear, I've used them before and didn't come up with anything. Any new names I come up with for minions or flunkies I'll keep that in mind for, that would be awkward ;)
3. That'll kill a few days, but good suggestion, I can get a skeleton out of that I think. More below.
4. Actually thinking of it being fairly limited in scope, not world-spanning travel or lots of planehopping - maybe a bit, but not like say Savage Tide where half the campaign is off the Prime - so that helps.
5. This'll need some tweaking with, but it's a point I hadn't thought about. Good catch :)
Regarding point three, my main issue is I'm not exactly sure where to start. I have pretty good ideas where I want the middle and ending of the story to go, but low level stuff I've never really been great with. Any resources that might be recommended? At the moment I'm looking at my mental map and scanning the bestiary for inspiration :P
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Sounds familiar! I did the same thing. Got about 3/4 or more done and was looking forward to publishing it online and got a job! No time to finish the bugger! lol go figure!
I started with the stuff you are discussing now, then eventually sat down and drew up an outline of the plot.
Writing an adventure is not unlike writing a novel. You need plot, characters, locations, etc.
You need a convincing plot that will drive the action. Break the plot down into components and figure out logical events that derive from it. Then briefly describe the action from those events. Is it exciting enough for encounters? Are there enough events to drive progression through the levels you want?
Are the characters in your story/adventure convincing? Is the BBEG truly motivated by something to drive the adventure? Are there sympathetic characters scattered about to aid the PCs?
A major point in writing a novel is that action is actually generated from character development. That is, your characters will have to make choices and those choices are sometimes hard to make and lead to action. In this case your characters are PCs. Is there sufficient information and motivation for the PCs to develop and grow and to make those hard decisions?
Best advice I can give when writing a campaign is start small. Not literally but figuratively. If you have a general homebrew world or established world you want to use. Pick a place/region for the game to be primarily set in. Start adding things (or identifying existing things you like in the case of established settings). Noble families, racial tentions, ancient philosophies, religious beliefs. Find/Create details that excite your imagination.
Because once you have created the Noble family with a rich history of dabling in necromancy, including the underachieving 5th born son that has recently uncovered an ancient tomb containing a way to channel the negative energy plane and it's denizens, the campaign will practically write itself.
You can just pick pieces of maps from other campaign worlds, cut out the pieces you want then make it your own.
add some features, change the names, remove some features, pretty soon you end up with your own campaign setting.
start with a map on a relatively small scale, and a basic idea what is further out there.
think of some compelling history, at least immediate history your players would be aware off, it can be nice to have your players create characters that are an actual part of that.
maybe add some local feats they can pick from to motivate them in that direction, some helpful npc's that grab their attention and guide them along the way.
Discuss things with your pc's they might have some interesting ideas to implement their characters better into your world and think of a common background.
Best advice I can give when writing a campaign is start small. Not literally but figuratively. If you have a general homebrew world or established world you want to use. Pick a place/region for the game to be primarily set in. Start adding things (or identifying existing things you like in the case of established settings). Noble families, racial tentions, ancient philosophies, religious beliefs. Find/Create details that excite your imagination.
Good suggestion. The idea is pretty narrow in locale, as stated above, just needs that area to be fleshed out a bit.
Because once you have created the Noble family with a rich history of dabling in necromancy, including the underachieving 5th born son that has recently uncovered an ancient tomb containing a way to channel the negative energy plane and it's denizens, the campaign will practically write itself.
Thanks, I think I can follow that :)
You can just pick pieces of maps from other campaign worlds, cut out the pieces you want then make it your own.
add some features, change the names, remove some features, pretty soon you end up with your own campaign setting.
Our setting was made about a year ago, so that's all done. I just need to make a more detailed map of the specific area where I want the story to unfold. I'd rather not span the whole world with it ;)
start with a map on a relatively small scale, and a basic idea what is further out there.
think of some compelling history, at least immediate history your players would be aware off, it can be nice to have your players create characters that are an actual part of that.
Sounds like a good start, perhaps provide some sort of pre-campaign guide?
maybe add some local feats they can pick from to motivate them in that direction,
I'd mused on that. Haven't come up with anything set in stone yet. Also had ideas for a new Cleric Domain and new Sorcerer Bloodline to suit the setting slightly. Amazing what kind of brainstorming you can get taking an hour long walk every morning :)
... some helpful npc's that grab their attention and guide them along the way.
Working on that is probably going to be the hardest part of setting up the starting location :)
Discuss things with your pc's they might have some interesting ideas to implement their characters better into your world and think of a common background.
Will do, thanks for the suggestion!
Thanks all, keep 'em coming. Once I get a bit of this on paper I'll post it for review. If it's not a complete piece of junk, then who knows what'll happen next. :D
Without question come up with a pre-campaign guide. Formal or informal.... DO THIS... Never ever ever fail to give your players an idea of what you want to do with the campaign. Because undoubtedly you will end up with an over Zealous Paladin in a gritty, walk the grey line campaign, or a cleptomaniac Rogue when your primary employer is a Gold Dragon. Not to mention consider your hooks. As an example if you look at the Council of Thieves Adventure Path, the party is basically going to be working either For the People of the City, or Against the Government...either way there are lots of characters I have made and seen played that would lack motivation there.
So give your player ideas on how and why to make characters that fit your game. Not to mention rangers for instance need some clue as to what to pick for favored enemy and terrain, players with pets should be warned if the game is going to take place in tight spaces or open ground. If its an outdoor adventure, a cavalier would get to shine rather well often times, but if you are going to be in sewers, and tight dungeons...a large or bigger mount/pet/eidolon will be a problem.
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Your wording is a bit confusing to me, though that might just mean I'm not sufficiently awake. Are you wanting to create a campaign, a campaign WORLD or something else entirely?
A world is an ambitious undertaking indeed, though I have written up two in the past and am just about to hit go on the one that's been my work in process for about 4 months now.
Things that you need to consider when worldbuilding:
1) Races. Are the standard core races there? If so, are they exactly as they appear in the book? How did they get there? How do they interact with each other? What kind of history and racial identity do they have?
2) Geography. What continents are there? Mountain ranges, oceans, habitable zones.
3) Weather.
4) History of the world. In my experience, you don't need to nail it ALL down up front, just nail down the big brush strokes of major events. Wars, migrations, founding of major cities, that sort of thing. This can include major personalities, both historic and contemporary.
5) Adventuring areas. Dungeons, wilderness areas, ruins, major settlements also falls into this category, etc.
6) Technology.
7) Magic.
These are the big points for world building, though I'm sure there's more that can be included.
Interesting. Good luck with this, Orthos.
Just a note off advice;
it sound like you're willing to put a, let's say 'decent', amount of time in this project.
And as a player mostly unfamiliar with NWN, I'd like to make a suggestion.
1- Get you're campaign clearly divided in big 'LvL X-Y sessions.
2- Make those sessions playable on their own.
3- Share.
Ok, maybe you're not into it, but If I would put that much effort in a project, I'd wouldn't want to see it wasted on 4 pretzel munching Beer goggling players.
And this should not impose limits, not to much anyway, on the project.
Just ad a 'Red Line' section in each of them.
Got that BBeG, place clues to a certain cult, needing an artifact to destroy a demon, ...
All in a box mate. With a little extra work, that cult can be a beautiful LvL 11-15 campaign or that artifact can suit any purpose.
On the other hand, you could work the other way around. Write to please yourself, to please your players, and when it’s done, put a hatchet in it and divide it up in perfect (and hopefully loved) online adventures.
Anyway, good luck.
Back up a bit from the details and come up with a theme summary.
Imagine someone is explaining an idea to you and they say, 'There's this country over here with this king and then there's a dragon that lives there too, but then there's a city over here and Lord BBEG controls it...' and there's no reason to hear them drone on and nothing to hold that campaign together but loose ideas that may or may not be cool.
Someone says, 'It's classic fantasy with a shady, gangster twist,' or, 'Gothic horror,' or even, 'Professional adventurers raid dungeons for mad loot and compete with other members of the Adventure Guild,' then you actually have something that sells you on hearing about all the geography and politics. That gives you a base idea for all your design too.
My only advice would be to split the adventure into smaller story-arcs. Plot out the basics of each story arc and then look at ways to link them together.
For example you may have an Undead part based in a dungeon or a "plot and intrigue" part set in a town/city ward, I'm sure you get the idea.
I've always wanted to convert the basic story of Diablo II into a longish adventure, but alas, the amount of time required makes that but a pipe dream!
Hey I have made more than a few campaigns in my time and I would like to offer some hard earned advice.
Your going to put alot of work into the campaign you put in to much work it leads to burn out and you don't want that.
I do not mean the undead kind...
A skeleton is a something without a lot of detail for example.
Marcó
Marcó is a small town with roughly 2000 people living in the settlement.
It was born from the remnants of soilders and sailor whom washed ashore from a great naval battle.
From those lines people pick up alot of detail.
Now they fly right by, you don't get steamed because there it's a whole three lines of text not alot of effort to put out.
But they want to stay there you, add a place to stay, what the people are like whatever.
Some players are different to others, some maybe very interested in clothes and styles.
Others may not care so they will be more interested in whats the weapon of choice and how do they fight.
It sounds like you have some technical prowess so you will do better than me streight up.
But here is why you want one.
You can have everything linked, wtf are McGoons?! oh I will click here, ohhh thats what a McGoon is we fought them last adventure.
An image mapped map (though I can't get that to work...)
It allows everyone access to your infomation.
A book is fine, hey look at my campagin guide, sitting at home on my shelf...
Also this allowes players to add detail to the world.
Don't thwart their efforts ethier because, it shows you what there interested in.
For example, you maybe running a swords and sorcery style game with not nessarily dungeon crawls but backdrop crawl.
Ok your making your way through the jungle ecta.
And then you discover there writing about the personalities and what they did their possiable agendas stuff like that.
You realise they want an intense poltical campagin.
Vice versa or something even more on a tangent.
Follow the players lead, they want the candle maker to be some cool, mob boss who quitely plots from candle store let it be that way.
Honestly your mob guy had a whole family, family thing like literally everyone who worked for him was related to him and he sold people on the black market.
Guess what the candle making mobbester sells people on the black market.
All by themselevs those players discover this amazing hidden world in your campaign.
I am not saying let them run over you but what I am saying is give them alot of lee way.
That off hand comment should get them arrested?
"Those northners sure are dandy folk"
"Ah ah ha ha ha heh he, dandy folk, I get it nice joke, I love dead pan comdey"
They don't know that it should get them arrested.
Whats your story about?
Pathfinder and D&D is about being heroic.
Thats why we have criticals and why the system runs on a D20 because 5% of the time you get to do something funky also known as 1 in 20.
The whole system is a slave to this heroic style of feel.
Your mechanics should also repesent this.
If you have Poltical style campaign have a debts and favour style system.
Ok you owe this many debts to this organization, alright wile performing this task you get a bonus cause your doing soemthing to work off your debt.
Oh then roll your favour verse his influance.
(Keep in mind I am just saying stuff of the top of my head I have no Debt/Favour/Infulance chart worked out)
Even desperation can be fun.
They just defeated X dudes evil cult and have to rest for the night they wake up and he has won the local election in X town where they get Y resource.
But whatever you do, don't change things for the sake of changing them.
That makes people pissed.
People thought they knew something about the world they were getting a handle on things and now you go and change it up.
So if you are to change things have a damn good reason.
Well thats about it but I think, or at least I would like to think I have some soild advice in there.
Good Luck man all the best.
I've always wanted to convert the basic story of Diablo II into a longish adventure, but alas, the amount of time required makes that but a pipe dream!
That's already been done. There was a 2nd Ed version of Diablo and a 3.0 version of Diablo II, both by TSR/WotC.
I've always wanted to convert the basic story of Diablo II into a longish adventure, but alas, the amount of time required makes that but a pipe dream!That's already been done. There was a 2nd Ed version of Diablo and a 3.0 version of Diablo II, both by TSR/WotC.
ok, do you know what they were called?
[Edit] scrap that, I found them.
Diablo II is awful!
Diablo II: The Awakening is the 2nd Ed version, Diablo II: Diablerie is the 3.0 player's guide and Diablo II: To Hell and Back is the D2 campaign.
Wow lots of replies :)
Kolo: Will keep that in mind, thanks!
Mikhaila: The world is already built. That's pretty much done with. What I'm wanting to do is write a campaign, a story spanning from level 1 to level 20 if possible.
Krome: :D
Sharoth: Thanks! Watch this space for further news ;)
Wim: That was kind of the plan, to break it into Chapters and provide hooks to bring players into later chapters if they weren't playing straight through... inspired mostly by the adventure paths, Shackled City, Savage Tide, Age of Worms, thought they did a very good job with those and kind of taking that as inspiration.
Laddie: Got it :) Don't want to spoil it yet, but I have it :)
Stuart: Same thing I said to Wim, pretty much applies here, but thanks regardless :D
Caladors: Nice tips, will keep those in mind, thanks muchly!!
Many home-brew settings address a different magic "amplitude" than the default high-fantasy assumption of the rules as written.
If that is the case, you may want to ponder on how this higher or lower level of magic will affect the world at large, the elite of the society and the PCs (and with whom they interact).
'findel