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<blockquote data-quote="Dausuul" data-source="post: 6617013" data-attributes="member: 58197"><p>First thing: Everything will take longer than you think it will. I have learned that plotting one-shots requires me to keep the adventure tight. No side quests, no subplots, no B-plots. Give the party a well-defined goal and lay out a straight, clear road from start to finish. Also, I <em>strongly</em> recommend establishing the mission before the game begins; tell everybody, "Okay, you're going to be playing adventurers on a quest to slay the evil necromancer who's been raising zombies to overrun the kingdom." Then you don't have to spend the first hour mucking around in a tavern trying to convince everybody to go on the quest. Plan a few combats and a few social encounters, and be ready to cut some on the fly if you're short on time.</p><p></p><p>Second thing: Players being what they are, no matter how straight and clear a road you lay out, they may decide to go haring off in the opposite direction. Whatever they do, roll with it. This may entail junking your carefully honed plot and spending the whole night roleplaying the consequences of somebody setting fire to the inn. That's cool! The freedom to go where you want and do what you want is the heart of what makes RPGs fun. Just keep the action coming fast and don't get hung up on the rules.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Dausuul, post: 6617013, member: 58197"] First thing: Everything will take longer than you think it will. I have learned that plotting one-shots requires me to keep the adventure tight. No side quests, no subplots, no B-plots. Give the party a well-defined goal and lay out a straight, clear road from start to finish. Also, I [I]strongly[/I] recommend establishing the mission before the game begins; tell everybody, "Okay, you're going to be playing adventurers on a quest to slay the evil necromancer who's been raising zombies to overrun the kingdom." Then you don't have to spend the first hour mucking around in a tavern trying to convince everybody to go on the quest. Plan a few combats and a few social encounters, and be ready to cut some on the fly if you're short on time. Second thing: Players being what they are, no matter how straight and clear a road you lay out, they may decide to go haring off in the opposite direction. Whatever they do, roll with it. This may entail junking your carefully honed plot and spending the whole night roleplaying the consequences of somebody setting fire to the inn. That's cool! The freedom to go where you want and do what you want is the heart of what makes RPGs fun. Just keep the action coming fast and don't get hung up on the rules. [/QUOTE]
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