I'm going to DM a one on one game with a friend, and I'm looking for an adventure published by Paizo that fits my style of DMing. I prefer more linear games with clear goals for the players to work towards, rather than open sandbox ones. So far, my players have been having fun due to my ability to improvise and roleplay characters well, but the difficulty of running games is stressing me out.
So far I have DMed From Shore to Sea and the 1st level material of Rise of the Runelords. They were very difficult for me to DM well due to the haphazard layout of the events and the lack of detailed maps for most encounters. They provide large scale maps for the towns or islands that the games take place on, but very few small scale, tactical combat-sized maps. As far as I could tell, all I could do was show the players the map, ask them where they wanted to go on it without them having any knowledge of where they were going or what they were doing, and run whatever encounter happened to be in the area they selected, if there even was one. Dotted through the list of events are "random-ish" events that I guess I'm supposed to run if the players are twiddling their thumbs. The problem with those is that I never know when it's the proper time to insert them into the game.
I have also started DMing Way of the Wicked, which was not published by Paizo, but I've found it fits my DMing style much better than other things I've tried. Everything I've read seen so far has a clear goal and some sort of constraint to keep the players on the task, and there are highly detailed maps for nearly everything. I would really like to find more modules or adventure paths by Paizo that are similar to WotW's structure.
Short version:
- I'm good at improvisation, roleplaying NPCs, and running combat.
- I'm bad at creating cohesive storylines, maps, or encounters on my own.
- I prefer tactical scale maps and storylines that force players to keep their sights on the goal.
Does anyone have any modules or adventure paths to recommend that match my DMing style?
Honestly, for AP's, Shattered Star may very well be your best bet. It has a very clear, fairly linear path.
There are a few scenes where only having one PC might require a bit of re-writing on your part, but many of them actually also come with NPC's that can be talked into aiding your player as well.
I also know for a fact if your Player is the type to examine 'non-traditional' responses to encounters, it supports that fairly well also.
Modules...
I would say the Dragon's Demand may also serve you fairly well, although that one will probably require more in the way of adaptation for solo-play. The Emerald Spire Supermodule might also suit your needs, although I don't have a copy of it, so I haven't read it to be certain.
You might also look at some of the PFS Scenarios that are out. Those generally have fairly straightforward 'plotlines'. There are even quite a few free ones available for download that you could read through first while you were trying to decide.
Thank you very much, I will look into those =)
If anyone else has other suggestions, I'm all ears.
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Including a "guide" NPC who keeps the player aware of their goals might help. Curse of the Crimson Throne comes with one, and it wouldn't be too hard to add one to some others. Second Darkness could easily have an NPC added for this purpose as well. Note that both are 3.5, however, so you will need to do some updating of stats and such. You'll need to do some adjustments for a single player no matter what, though.
In the Pathfinder era, Council of Thieves could easily be tightened up to this standard. Jade Regent gives a number of important NPCs and a fairly straightforward narrative. Shattered Star comes with the Pathfinder Society to drive and motivate the player.
All that said? I would check out Reign of Winter. I've been playing through it, and it's a blast. Plus, I think it would be very interesting for a single player.
If any of these sound interesting, I could help you with whichever you're interested in. :)
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You might want to consider checking out The Emerald Spire. If you've got $80 to spare, you can even get all the maps you'd need.
Not sure how well this would work for a one-on-one, though. You'd need to either have your friend drive a few characters, or have some NPC companions that your friend brings along. (For years and years, all of my gaming was a one-on-one AD&D/1e campaign with a single friend, who ran three characters. Eventually one of them got killed, and he accreted a few other follower types who came along. It can work, if you and your player have the right dynamic.