D&D 5E Why does WotC put obviously bad or illogical elements in their adventures?

[neq.the.glockenspiel]

I won't defend WotC's stuff, partly because that's been done enough and partly because it's a matter of taste in part. I see the point that the noble art of Game Design may disapprove in 1000 ways too.

Recently I've actually gotten deeper into DMing and really appreciated having source material full of plot holes and blanks to fill in. I started off as a starry eyed DMling clutching a binder full of laminated stat block cards and time trackers, maps, fluff research and all, after a couple of sessions it's just me and the big overpriced book (I had to borrow dice) and I'm loving it. My "style" fluctuates wildly between "it's in the book, it's happening" and "whatever" depending on the players ability to take action and drive the story. Plot holes fit just fine into this.


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[GX.Sigma]

Hang on a tick. While WotC previously has been pretty hit or miss with their adventures, 5e has really seen a turn around on this.

I'll hold up Curse of Strahd to pretty much anything. Fantastic module.

I know this is all a matter of opinion, and everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but IN MY OPINION, Curse of Strahd was so bad that it made me want to never buy a WotC adventure ever again.

But I know most people around here don't share my opinions on such things. And when I say "bad," I just mean it doesn't work for me. Compared to other TSR/WotC adventures (and ignoring the fact that it's a remake), yes, it is fantastic.

I'm so sorry.

 

[Ovinomancer]

The obvious joke appears to be lost on you.

Well, Poe's Law does that.

 

[Tony Vargas]

Although, I'm kinda curious how you make money on producing bad modules.

You don't make money on modules, good or bad - you make money on bad player-facing supplements, 'splat-books,' WWGS proved that in the 90s.

Bad is key, though, if you want something to sell in the RPG community, it's gotta be bad. Good stuff wins a 'best new game' award and disappears into obscurity.

 

[ccs]

I started off as a starry eyed DMling clutching a binder full of laminated stat block cards and time trackers, maps, fluff research~~~

Eventually you'll realize that all you really need are 5 things:
1) The gist of the story/a rough idea of what you want to cover during the session,
2) A pile of dice,
3) A pen or pencil,
4) A notepad,
5) Booze.
And even two or three of these things are optional....

 

[Uchawi]

Did you complain when Gandalf so easily tricked the trolls?

How about when the orc taskmasters in Mordor didn't notice that two of their soldiers were, in fact, hobbits?

Personally I love elements like the dumb hill giants. It doesn't all have to push players to their limits; sometimes it's fun to just have some...well, fun.

How can you be disappointed besides you don't like the story Gandalf is in? D&D is a different creature and/or medium. It involves dice, tactics, and participation from each player. Add to that an adventure path where you are required at various points to discern the intent of the designer. It is an interactive novel with no concrete end.

Placing my previous comments to the side, anyone that buys an adventure is not going to find a perfect fit in regards to what they want. So change it. For instance, make the hill giants intelligent but arrogant. Create the stats for the sharks, etc.

If you don't want to do all the extra work, then I do not have a good answer.5E adventures like anything else draw heavily on what was done in the early days of D&D. They tend to be based on a sandbox and the assumption the DM is going to fill in the gaps.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

...make Left Shark & Right Shark into guards, and put the hill Giants in the aquarium.

 

[jgsugden]

D&D is a role playing game. The characters play a role in a story. You want to tell a good story as a DM for those characters to move forward. All of the examples you bring are opportunities for the DM to be creative in telling a good story.

Outsmarting the dumb hill giants to get to the leader - it can be funny, it can be heroic, and it can show something - perhaps the leader doesn't think he needs guards and they're there just to placate people that force him to be 'guarded'? Or they're there to eliminate the gnat like humans that are not worth his time?

Sharks behind a portcullis? Are there residents nearby that know about them and would released them? That is up to the DM!

A geyser that goes off every hour? Is it going to go off soon? Will it go off when a wandering monster happens to be there? Will enemies use it to trick the PCs into getting caught in it? Good story options.

 

[Nagol]

Hang on a tick. While WotC previously has been pretty hit or miss with their adventures, 5e has really seen a turn around on this.

I'll hold up Curse of Strahd to pretty much anything. Fantastic module.

Although, I'm kinda curious how you make money on producing bad modules.

On a serious note, quality assurance is time consuming and expensive. If you think a good product will sell 110% of the predicted sales of the current state product but will remove 30% of the expected profit per sale then, barring any ramifications to your brand, you ship the current product.

 

[practicalm]

For me the problem with Maelstrom is there isn't any clear way to exit. Sure the conch gets you there but nothing takes you back. Fine if the players wait until teleport is available but doesn't make sense for the giants without access to magic/teleport.

SKT definitely requires some playing around with it and a way for the players to get some understanding of what might be happening in the Storm King's Court. Without the ability to talk to someone in the Storm King's Court who isn't trying to kill them, players are going to have a hard time putting clues together.

Cleverly asked questions of the oracle can help. Villain monologging might help too.
Any interesting ideas to help clue the players in that there is a blue dragon in the court? This seems like a secret only 1 person knows and the players might not ask the oracle about the dragon.