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[Piratecat]

The whole "thing, emotion and goal" is a little bit of a red herring. I design MUCH better when I have a basis to work off of. It means that I don't suffer from analysis paralysis, and can focus on twisting the plot elements into something fun. I picked "thing, emotion and goal" above because it's enough detail to plant some plot seeds without actually constraining you.

When you do this, especially to jump-start a campaign, think macro instead of micro; think big. Don't even consider the PCs at first. You want an event that is going to cause ripples, and then those ripples cause ripples, and that's what the PCs are going to deal with at first. In this case, it's the economic, political and military chaos caused by the string of plague-ridden cities up the coast. That would cause a ton of ripples and adventures which on the surface have nothing to do with the root cause of the problem.

Extrapolate. Ask yourself: if my bad guy does this, what is the natural result? Then plot out the result of the bad guy's actions, and let that be your hook. Ask yourself what the bad guy's rivals are doing about this as well. Do they want to stop him or help him, and will they intersect with the PCs? Using a temporarily allied bad guy as an adventure hook works really well.

When given a choice, select a plot that lets your PCs be famous and successful heroes who have made a real difference in their world. Then let people recognize this if they do a good job, or blame them if they don't. Let the heroes' anonymity be an enemy to be defeated.

When you're plotting think stylish and think cinematic - I love the idea of statues of Blibdoolpoolp linking together human harbors, or a squad of disguised kuo-toa slinking through plague-ridden streets. Think of a scene or an image that would make great cover art for your module, then work backwards when plotting to figure out how to get there. Use nifty old-school references that make you happy anywhere you have the opportunity. That's why I chose kuo-toa (and their lobster-headed goddess) instead of something dorky like the old 1e crabmen when I was given crustacean as a plot element.

That's actually a good example of the rule "never make your bad guys boring." The prime movers should have names, unique physical characteristics, and memorable personalities. For instance, don't have a goblin shaman if you can have an insane goblin shaman who argues with invisible ghosts.

And remember, not every one of these is going to be a gem; the sword/loyalty/heir piece up there certainly isn't. Don't be afraid to scrap your ideas and try from a different tack.

So, long story short:

1. Get a handful of plot elements. These are your puzzle pieces.
2. Shift them around to get the biggest, most audacious scheme you can think of for a bad guy.
3. Think about how this scheme affects the world around it.
4. Think about how which of those ripples will first impact the PCs.
5. Add cool, memorable NPCs as your prime movers.
6. Elaborate. Build off of what you have, adding complexity and twists.