What do you always use?

[Rechan]

Is there anything that you always (or just about) implement in every single one of your campaigns/adventures/characters?

For me...

Adventures

Any chance I am in a group that a mystery would mesh with, I run this adventure involving the murder of a noblewoman's lesbian lover.

Situations

I have a big habit of using monstrous NPCs that try to negotiate, play politics, offer alliances, or act harmless. And paint certain monsters with a sympathetic or favorable light (such as kobolds).

Monsters

Ghouls. I love ghouls. They pop up at least once a campaign, with some sort of adventure hook attached. Also ghosts in more of a sympathetic "release me" vein.

Encounters

There's one encounter I generally try to work into every campaign at least once. It involves the PCs vomiting gallons of black sludge, and then the sludge congealing and attacking them.


How about you?

 

[MatthewJHanson]

Villains
I always have an evil wizard named Bargle. It is a different person every time, but with the same name and same job.

 

[Haltherrion]

How about you?

Aha! Now we know your secrets if we play in one of your PBEM games!

But to answer your question, I don't generally repeat specific plots or such but you do find a large number of:

• Ghosts who reveal a plot, mystery or seek release (sounds similar to your use of them)
• Flying mounts, always had a thing for those
• Elves and fey, another favorite of mine
• Undead. Won't say I love them but they are just too handy a monster for putting in a place that is closed off from the world. No food, no light for 1000 years? No problem for your undead critter! Too useful not use.
• Exotic settings- my worlds don't tend to be spherical, or at least still spherical with all their bits still on the surface

 

[weem]

"Shades of Gray"

There is very rarely a strictly good and strictly evil.

 

[Olaf the Stout]

Is there anything that you always (or just about) implement in every single one of your campaigns/adventures/characters?

For me...

Adventures
Any chance I am in a group that a mystery would mesh with, I run this adventure involving the murder of a noblewoman's lesbian lover.

Let me get this straight, you include a noblewoman with a lesbian lover in every mystery adventure you run?

Olaf the Stout

 

[Rechan]

Let me get this straight, you include a noblewoman with a lesbian lover in every mystery adventure you run?

No.

I've run the same adventure (right down to the NPC names) for different groups. I run it for every group that are the type receptive to 1) murder mysteries and 2) urban settings.

 

[Quantarum]

A lovable NPC who follows the group around to give them a little kick in the pants or mess up the perfect plan or get captured, kidnapped, cursed etc. It's always a good hook for sidetracks. Of course they have to have some affection for the NPC or they might just leave it to rot -Q.

 

[Theo R Cwithin]

Locales:
an abandoned boat/ship in the desert.
craters (either as specific sites, or defining huge chunks of geography).

NPCs:
a good aligned cleric (always the same surname) with anger management issues

Monsters:
plenty of fungus, sentient or otherwise.

 

[Olaf the Stout]

No.

I've run the same adventure (right down to the NPC names) for different groups. I run it for every group that are the type receptive to 1) murder mysteries and 2) urban settings.

Ok, that's a little less weird. You must go through a lot of different groups because if my groups change there is still generally enough overlap that I wouldn't be able to run the same adventure more than once.

Olaf the Stout

 

[Lanefan]

Giants If I'm DMing and the party is higher than about 2nd level (or even if it isn't), sooner or later Giants are going to show up and kick some donkey. If I'm really lucky like in my last campaign I'll be able to have a whole nation of 'em show up!

Liches If I need a behind-the-scenes mastermind, chances are it's gonna be a Lich. Or two. Or (as in my current campaign) several, with an arch-Vampire thrown in for good measure.

Norse No matter what setting I'm using or how much shoe-horning I have to do to fit 'em in, if it ain't got Norse, it ain't D+D.

Pantheon I've been working on my homebrew version of a universal pantheon structure (incorporating some well-known deities and able to handle pretty much anything) for a very long time, and will probably use it in every campaign I run from here on.

Meddling Gods Gods in my games will on a whim stick their noses into any situation. It remains an open question whether this is ultimately to the PCs' benefit or not... They also often try to steal souls from each other; so just because you're a Thor worshipper when alive doesn't automatically mean you'll end up in Valhalla when you're dead.

Adventures There's one or two or three adventures I try to work into every campaign - Forgotten Temple of Tharizdun is one - just because they're so much fun to run.

Lan-"now how can I get the Giants working *for* the Liches?"-efan