D&D General One-shot idea, need feedback

[Zmajitamnica]

I'm looking to host a one-shot for a group of friends soon. We're all very good friends, some of us used to play dnd a few years ago but we're all a bit rusty now so we wanted to try a one-shot to get us back into it and introduce a few new players. In total there will be myself (as GM) and 5 other players, 3 guys and 2 girls.

In general we like roleplaying / politicking boardgames (like the Game of Thrones board game, or Twilight Imperium), but also with a dash of fun, lore-appropriate combat. So, without further ado, here's my idea - interested in hearing any thoughts you have on it:



Each party member is an ambassador / emissary from a neighbouring kingdom, sent to congratulate a new king on his coronation. Each one also has their own hidden motivations - some want to get a drop of the king's blood to allow for spying / tracking, some want to kill the king but make it look like a specific nation did it, some want to make sure everything goes smoothly as the king is already in debt to their nation and they want him on the throne, etc. All are told to keep appearances up and only act subtly so as not to draw attention to themselves, this is a diplomatic evening after all.

At one point in the evening, when the room is waiting for the new king to give a speech, the king is late. Observant players may notice that guard presence in the room has increased, and whispers start spreading that something has happened to the king. From there it's up to the players to investigate, mingle, and at one point defend against the guards' attack (who are actually assassins in disguise, and whose organisation has kidnapped the king). I'm assuming that, since none of the players' missions have been fulfilled so far, this will provide a natural incentive for them to band together and go and look for the king, which leads them through a winding chase up and down the castle halls, revealing several mysteries and combat encounters along the way.



I'm relatively happy with this story thread, but since the players (and myself) are either rusty or completely new, I'm a bit afraid they won't get the hints when e.g. they're supposed to go look for the king, and I won't be able to steer them in the right direction if they don't go "following" the story. Now I know you're not supposed to railroad your players etc., but as a relatively new GM, it's scary to have to improvise unexpected situations and I fear it won't be as fun if they force me into a corner I hadn't thought about. Appreciate any input

 

[Oofta]

I try to avoid any plot point where the PCs "must" do something in order for the adventure to proceed. I could see making an exception if you simply let them know out of context that they need to act, but that's not my preference. The PCs may take the bait, they may not. Also, is there a reason for them to work together at all?

An alternative may be to make them all suspects, have them escorted into a room, supposedly for their safety. Once in the room they find they are locked in. Probably at that point have a mysterious stranger break them loose and let them know the situation: they need to solve the mystery. If they don't, one or more of them will be accused of the crime whether they are guilty or not. The mysterious stranger could have any number of motivations, potentially lying but needing a way to fake their escape to truly disagree with framing the individuals.

In any case, good luck!

 

[Zmajitamnica]

I try to avoid any plot point where the PCs "must" do something in order for the adventure to proceed. I could see making an exception if you simply let them know out of context that they need to act, but that's not my preference. The PCs may take the bait, they may not. Also, is there a reason for them to work together at all?

An alternative may be to make them all suspects, have them escorted into a room, supposedly for their safety. Once in the room they find they are locked in. Probably at that point have a mysterious stranger break them loose and let them know the situation: they need to solve the mystery. If they don't, one or more of them will be accused of the crime whether they are guilty or not. The mysterious stranger could have any number of motivations, potentially lying but needing a way to fake their escape to truly disagree with framing the individuals.

In any case, good luck!

Hey thanks for the input. I generally also dislike giving PCs a "must-do", but how else can you incentivise them to do stuff in a one-off? It just seems like it lets you jump into the fun bits a bit faster if they know they are person X, here to do mission Y.

The reason for them working together is that none of their missions can really be completed with a missing king. That's why, I'm assuming, they'll at least try to work together to get the king back (even if it is just to kill him later, framing another nation's ambassador). But no plan survives contact with the enemy, so I don't know what weird and unexpected tangents the players might go off on, how they might interpret their mission's "success", etc., so I can't 100% guarantee it'll go like that and being a relatively new GM I'm kind of scared of having to improvise a reason for them to stick together if they don't naturally decide to do so!

The idea re being suspects is very interesting, if I go down that route (i.e. escape and clear your name), do you think I should still keep the secret missions? Or would that be a bit too much at that point?

 

[Oofta]

Hey thanks for the input. I generally also dislike giving PCs a "must-do", but how else can you incentivise them to do stuff in a one-off? It just seems like it lets you jump into the fun bits a bit faster if they know they are person X, here to do mission Y.

The reason for them working together is that none of their missions can really be completed with a missing king. That's why, I'm assuming, they'll at least try to work together to get the king back (even if it is just to kill him later, framing another nation's ambassador). But no plan survives contact with the enemy, so I don't know what weird and unexpected tangents the players might go off on, how they might interpret their mission's "success", etc., so I can't 100% guarantee it'll go like that and being a relatively new GM I'm kind of scared of having to improvise a reason for them to stick together if they don't naturally decide to do so!

The idea re being suspects is very interesting, if I go down that route (i.e. escape and clear your name), do you think I should still keep the secret missions? Or would that be a bit too much at that point?

I still like the secret missions, after all one of them may actually be the assassin. I would have mistrust be one of the reasons to keep the group together - your character doesn't trust anyone else so you want to keep track of them at all times.

Since it's a one-shot you can just give them a heads up that they need to act, probably just narrating the intro scenes. Or maybe have them overhear someone that they'll be jailed soon as suspects? Lots of options.

 

[Tonguez]

Each party member is an ambassador / emissary from a neighbouring kingdom, sent to congratulate a new king on his coronation. Each one also has their own hidden motivations - some want to get a drop of the king's blood to allow for spying / tracking, some want to kill the king but make it look like a specific nation did it, some want to make sure everything goes smoothly as the king is already in debt to their nation and they want him on the throne, etc. All are told to keep appearances up and only act subtly so as not to draw attention to themselves, this is a diplomatic evening after all.

as soon as I saw your premise I was reminded of Sword and Crown (2e) - Wizards of the Coast | AD&D 2nd Ed. | Birthright | AD&D 2nd Ed. | DriveThruRPG.com

rulers come from across the land to renew friendships, cement alliances, and provoke their enemies with poisoned words and sharpened swords. Wheels turn within wheels, and plots abound. It's politics as usual in Anuire.

 

[Scott Christian]

I'm looking to host a one-shot for a group of friends soon. We're all very good friends, some of us used to play dnd a few years ago but we're all a bit rusty now so we wanted to try a one-shot to get us back into it and introduce a few new players. In total there will be myself (as GM) and 5 other players, 3 guys and 2 girls.

In general we like roleplaying / politicking boardgames (like the Game of Thrones board game, or Twilight Imperium), but also with a dash of fun, lore-appropriate combat. So, without further ado, here's my idea - interested in hearing any thoughts you have on it:



Each party member is an ambassador / emissary from a neighbouring kingdom, sent to congratulate a new king on his coronation. Each one also has their own hidden motivations - some want to get a drop of the king's blood to allow for spying / tracking, some want to kill the king but make it look like a specific nation did it, some want to make sure everything goes smoothly as the king is already in debt to their nation and they want him on the throne, etc. All are told to keep appearances up and only act subtly so as not to draw attention to themselves, this is a diplomatic evening after all.

At one point in the evening, when the room is waiting for the new king to give a speech, the king is late. Observant players may notice that guard presence in the room has increased, and whispers start spreading that something has happened to the king. From there it's up to the players to investigate, mingle, and at one point defend against the guards' attack (who are actually assassins in disguise, and whose organisation has kidnapped the king). I'm assuming that, since none of the players' missions have been fulfilled so far, this will provide a natural incentive for them to band together and go and look for the king, which leads them through a winding chase up and down the castle halls, revealing several mysteries and combat encounters along the way.



I'm relatively happy with this story thread, but since the players (and myself) are either rusty or completely new, I'm a bit afraid they won't get the hints when e.g. they're supposed to go look for the king, and I won't be able to steer them in the right direction if they don't go "following" the story. Now I know you're not supposed to railroad your players etc., but as a relatively new GM, it's scary to have to improvise unexpected situations and I fear it won't be as fun if they force me into a corner I hadn't thought about. Appreciate any input

First, it's a one-shot, so you need to railroad a bit. There is nothing wrong with it at all. Second, the story idea sounds like fun. Are you going to have them create a short backstory on their kingdom? This might help define their class. Lastly, how many hours do you have? I have found one-shots need to be shorter as opposed to longer since the character investment is lower. So you may need to be a bit more concise on your scenarios. For example:

• Enter the ballroom (describe carriage ride and entrance and crowd)
• Meet guests (RP)
• King is late/guards increase (RP & skill checks (exploration)
• Guards attack (combat)

That is already one hour at a minimum, but probably closer to one and a half to two hours realistically. So depending on how many more scenarios (looking for clues, exploring, trapped rooms, fighting, interrogating, etc), you are looking at quite a lengthy adventure.

 

[Ancalagon]

First, it's a one-shot, so you need to railroad a bit. There is nothing wrong with it at all. Second, the story idea sounds like fun. Are you going to have them create a short backstory on their kingdom? This might help define their class. Lastly, how many hours do you have? I have found one-shots need to be shorter as opposed to longer since the character investment is lower. So you may need to be a bit more concise on your scenarios. For example:

• Enter the ballroom (describe carriage ride and entrance and crowd)
• Meet guests (RP)
• King is late/guards increase (RP & skill checks (exploration)
• Guards attack (combat)

That is already one hour at a minimum, but probably closer to one and a half to two hours realistically. So depending on how many more scenarios (looking for clues, exploring, trapped rooms, fighting, interrogating, etc), you are looking at quite a lengthy adventure.

I think it depends what is meant by "one-shot" - it used to mean a one session adventure, but I've seen it used for what are basically modules - something that is played for 2-4 sessions and then ends - an adventure without a campaign.

Because for the latter, this is good in scope. For a single session, I agree, it's too much.

 

[Ancalagon]

Something you could do is have all the PCs be loyal to the king. Maybe they have other missions - a loyal but paranoid subject might want to spy on the king anyway, for example, you can definitely keep the individual secret mission/objective angle. But by making it so that the PCs are "pro king" by design, it would remove some of the "stress/fragility" of the scenario.

 

[aco175]

I would be careful if some of the players are new to the game and you may want everyone to play a longer campaign where they work as a group sometime in the future. Having an intro to the game where everyone backstabs each other may screw up things in the future.

I might railroad the idea of having them work as a team to save the King before he is assassinated. They could be guards and servants or a group of secret service to the King's Minister of Secrets or such.

I like the idea but sounds like a lot going on and working things together while giving each player some shine time might be hard in a 1-shot.

 

[Zmajitamnica]

Hey, thanks for the comments so far! To address a few points raised:

- I don't think any of the players would mind if 1) it took a bit longer (some of us have played 8-hour dnd sessions before, and all of us have played 8-hour boardgame sessions before), and/or 2) it required more than one session to actually complete this "one-shot". Really this is supposed to be a no-commitment introduction / reintroduction to the world of dnd, and if we all like it we will, quite probably, continue playing dnd together (either continuing on with the story after the one-shot, or with completely new characters / plot).

- The players will create a bit of backstory on their characters, and I'll try to adapt the kingdoms they're from according to that. E.g. I know one player wants to play a goliath barbarian, so surely then she should come from a goliath nation and be their ambassador. I'll consult with the players about their backstories / their kingdoms' backstories in private before the game, so they all know what they should know about themselves and the wider world, but each player will also, naturally, know things that the others will not.

- Interesting ideas re the players having to work together from the outset (e.g. them being guards / loyal subjects). Thinking about it, I probably wouldn't want to take away their ambassador roles, just because I feel it gives them a lot of freedom to differentiate themselves (all coming from different kingdoms, probably different races / classes etc.), but I might consider toning down the obvious contrary secret quests. For example I'm thinking of maybe not having some players be pro-king surviving and some being pro-killing the king, but maybe just "subtler" things like getting a drop of his blood, putting a listening device in his bedroom, etc.

Finally, being an inexperienced GM, do you have any general tips on how to improvise in unexpected situations, which will inevitably arise at some point? I personally hate deus ex machinas in stories and I wouldn't want to rely on them if the PCs started doing something that completely went around what I had intended / expected. But what else can you do, how do you deal with such situations?