What makes a good adventure for DM's?
- Thread starter Emirikol
- Start date
John Q. Mayhem
Explorer
A good module is one that makes my players say, "I know that smile..."
I like what Dungeon's been doing lately with some of there adventures (most notably the adventure path).
At the beginning of each room/encounter/etc., there's a listing that includes: lighting, sounds, reaction, and auras. They're incredibly useful. The only real negative that I see is that they take up a little more space in the module (but most 3rd party stuff that I've seen has white space to spare... they should be able to squeeze it in with no trouble).
At the beginning of each room/encounter/etc., there's a listing that includes: lighting, sounds, reaction, and auras. They're incredibly useful. The only real negative that I see is that they take up a little more space in the module (but most 3rd party stuff that I've seen has white space to spare... they should be able to squeeze it in with no trouble).
Guillaume
Julie and I miss her
For me, two things spring to mind : a good story and good layout. The story has to pique my interest. It has to have elements that will make me go : OOOH I want to try this ! It's not that it has to be completely new, but it has to have enough of a story with enough twist to make it fresh.
On the second aspect, it's more a practical one. The technical information has to be readily available and easily accessible. The thing that annoys me the most is when I have to spend hours looking up stuff either in the adventure text itself or some manual. It's even more frustrating when it refers to rules/spells/magic items/etc. that are not in the core rules and in a thrid party book I do not own. There goes some more time in adapting the adventure. It's just annoying.
My 2 cents.
On the second aspect, it's more a practical one. The technical information has to be readily available and easily accessible. The thing that annoys me the most is when I have to spend hours looking up stuff either in the adventure text itself or some manual. It's even more frustrating when it refers to rules/spells/magic items/etc. that are not in the core rules and in a thrid party book I do not own. There goes some more time in adapting the adventure. It's just annoying.
My 2 cents.
Turanil
First Post
Ease of use
I agree with that. Of the many modules I bought in the past for ADD 2e, almost all of them were flooded under fluffy text. You had to read everything to understand what was going on exactly, it's really annoying, and the main reason why I don't use pre-made modules anymore.
I am also for something really simple. First a short and very clear explanation of the general plot. Then, an extremely clear and short description of the contents of each room, encounter, etc. Likewise, stat blocks of creatures included. I would also say that I much prefer to see a good illustration that conveys the ambiance of the adventure that fluffy text that only the GM is supposed to read (especially when it doesn't fit his own campaign setting, i.e.: 90% of the time).
I agree with that. Of the many modules I bought in the past for ADD 2e, almost all of them were flooded under fluffy text. You had to read everything to understand what was going on exactly, it's really annoying, and the main reason why I don't use pre-made modules anymore.
I am also for something really simple. First a short and very clear explanation of the general plot. Then, an extremely clear and short description of the contents of each room, encounter, etc. Likewise, stat blocks of creatures included. I would also say that I much prefer to see a good illustration that conveys the ambiance of the adventure that fluffy text that only the GM is supposed to read (especially when it doesn't fit his own campaign setting, i.e.: 90% of the time).
Psion
Adventurer
For me:
- Adaptability - Too many adventures are inflexible and put all the onus on the DM to hammer it into his own world. Well written adventures should make the structure of involved organizations, locales, etc., obvious and portable so the DM can swap out relevant details easily. Banewarrens does a class job here.
- Originality - To me, the beleagured village you must save from the mage/demon/undead/humanoids that are oppressing/threatening them have become also as cliche as the hooded stranger in the bar. Gimme something more than a dungeon full of baddies to hack.
- Plans for the PCs abilities, instead of simply blocking them or (worse) ignoring them - Things like scrying and teleporting should be beneficial but not make the game trivial.
- No plot bottlenecks - Don't make adventures with crucial junctures with only one possible solution that is difficult to complete.
- Be clear and summarize all important plot information - I don't want some crucial plot point burried in a peripheral note in the back of the book. Tell me up front all of the crucial details about the situation.
Herpes Cineplex
First Post
I like Psion's list, because it saved me the trouble of having to think up all those really good answers. Give me a module that does those things, and I'll be pretty much drooling to run it.
Add in Easy-to-use NPC descriptions, and I'm completely sold. Don't just give me a solid eight-line block of stuff like AC and attack bonus and leave it at that; put it in a format where I can almost immediately pick out all the important combat stats, the last-minute stuff you don't think about until you need it like grapple or trip bonuses, and what spells or spell-like abilities they have available without having to scan desperately for 'em in the middle of the fight. And if you really want to impress me, suggest what their strategy might be, so I don't suddenly realize four rounds in that the guy would've cast three defensive spells before entering the room, or that he would've plane shifted out after he got nailed by the fighter for over half his hit points. I'll nearly always embellish and improvise on what I'm given, but being given more up front makes that so much easier and is really cool.
I'll also add that Psion's right when he praises the Banewarrens for adaptability; our GM is currently running our Scarred Lands party through it, and has commented more than once how easy it was to make it fit into that setting.
--
so, basically, what i'm trying to say here is that psion wins
ryan
Add in Easy-to-use NPC descriptions, and I'm completely sold. Don't just give me a solid eight-line block of stuff like AC and attack bonus and leave it at that; put it in a format where I can almost immediately pick out all the important combat stats, the last-minute stuff you don't think about until you need it like grapple or trip bonuses, and what spells or spell-like abilities they have available without having to scan desperately for 'em in the middle of the fight. And if you really want to impress me, suggest what their strategy might be, so I don't suddenly realize four rounds in that the guy would've cast three defensive spells before entering the room, or that he would've plane shifted out after he got nailed by the fighter for over half his hit points. I'll nearly always embellish and improvise on what I'm given, but being given more up front makes that so much easier and is really cool.
I'll also add that Psion's right when he praises the Banewarrens for adaptability; our GM is currently running our Scarred Lands party through it, and has commented more than once how easy it was to make it fit into that setting.
--
so, basically, what i'm trying to say here is that psion wins
ryan
Inconsequenti-AL
Breaks Games
Like others said: Adventures that are clearly laid out, interesting and lack bottlenecks or really railroady stuff. I particularly don't like the - 'Take them alive and imprison them' railroads. I've seen a number with no 'what if they escape' option. IME, smart players nearly always get away from them! Especially at higher levels.
Interesting ideas that I can steal, if I don't want to use the entire adventure - that wins serious brownie points...
If they can make me look good without trying too hard then even better!
What I would like to see is someone pick up the style Shadowrun adventures used to be published in. The module would be chopped up into scenes. Each would start with ways of getting to the scene, what was going on, who was involved. Then it would have a number of the ways they thought it most likely for the scene to resolve and what the GM could do next - which scenes might logically follow. At the back of the book, there was some overall information about the plot and blocks for the major NPCs - with where they might pop up and some background. They were great - the good ones made it really easy to run non linear games.
Interesting ideas that I can steal, if I don't want to use the entire adventure - that wins serious brownie points...
If they can make me look good without trying too hard then even better!
What I would like to see is someone pick up the style Shadowrun adventures used to be published in. The module would be chopped up into scenes. Each would start with ways of getting to the scene, what was going on, who was involved. Then it would have a number of the ways they thought it most likely for the scene to resolve and what the GM could do next - which scenes might logically follow. At the back of the book, there was some overall information about the plot and blocks for the major NPCs - with where they might pop up and some background. They were great - the good ones made it really easy to run non linear games.
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