10 Reasons Why Adventures Don't Sell "Well"

[Dagger75]

My group is currently 4-5th level.

I do by modules based on level. I am one of those customers that read the back blurb of all the d20 stuff at the game store. I'll pick up stuff for any level. I basically buy for how easy it is to use it.

 

[Adlon]

Here is what I don't like in a module

A large black tower appears in the middle of the harbor of Waterdeep. Lightning shooting from a large glowing green orb at it top is sinking ships as they enter and leave the busy port city. This disrupts trade up and down the entire Sword Coast. Demons are seen flying from the tower at night and the Lords of Waterdeep are nowhere to be found. Its up to the adventures to solve this problem.

This seems like a good place to START a campaign. It might have cool pictures and be hardbound but I won't buy it even if I was running a Forgotten Realm game. This would seem like a pretty major event, not something for a module. It has world shattering consquences that change the whole tone of my game.

I want to go to my game store, pick up a module read through it once and play it that night.

Ohh one more thing, if there is encounter and says go to page xxx in the monster manual I will scream. Monster stat blocks are your friends, please use them.

I totally agree on the monster stat blocks, and most of your post. But looking at the example quote above, I too agree with the black tower issue in Waterdeep would be a big event, having run the FRCS for years on end. But, such a module, even if written for Waterdeep, can easily, and quickly be placed in Lantan, or possibly in the Moonshae's, Baldurs Gate, and the like. Change the politico's, a few NPC and POI names, and viola. Now, it's a hire job for the PC's, or whatever other hook you can create, to get them to said geographic location.

One last minor change to this idea, is that the tower, though very strange, and terrifying with aerial demons, is not so much disrupting the region other than it's existence, which in itself, is a definate issue that needs addressing. Who wants a demonicly infested tower in their harbor?

For a standard module, this should take about 10 mins to alter for a seasoned DM.
And you probably have not hamstringed your campaign in the least.

Also, too, Waterdeep, if you have ALL the original suppliments for it, has its good share of oddball events anyways.

Remember, though, that I see alot of versatility in most modules, unless so poorly written. I'm not a homebrewer per se, I'd rather spend the time on the sub plots, and intrigue lines in the campaign, and let others sweat out the details in delivering an adventure to my table, when possible.
Sure, I create my own adventures about 50% of the time anyways, but, the other half, I use someone else's sweat equity.

I commend you for having the time I wish I had in furthering my homebrew aspects.

 

[Celtavian]

re

I'll list some of they reasons why I don't buy adventures:

1. I usually only buy adventures with a well-written summary that attracts my attention. Even then, they must have received good word of mouth aka reviews.

2. Why hasn't someone set up an adventure review site by level? If it is out there, I haven't found it.

I like to be able to go to a place that sells or reviews adventures and just pick a level to get a list of adventures available for that level.

3. There are just too damn many adventures. I certainly can't be expected to buy a multitude of adventures given that I game maybe once or twice a week. I can finish a small module like Forge of Fury in 4 or 5 sessions over the course of 2 to 5 weeks. That is with everyone able to play consistently.

That means that under absolutely optimal conditions I can play 26 to 10 adventures the size of Forge of Fury a year. That is under completely optimal conditions which is not going to happen.

4. Dungeon is cheaper. Why should I spend the money on a module when I can get a magazine that gives me quite a few good adventures. Alot of the time, I will use a modified Dungeon adventure. No need to pay for a single adventure.

5. The Internet. There are plethora of free adventures on the internet. Now and then I go and grab one and modify it for my campaign.

6. My own material: I also like to create my own material quite often. There is just something satisfying about creating your own material.

7. Mega-modules: I love mega-modules as well. If I have the chance to buy a few regular adventures or a mega-module with a built in plot meant for long-term play, I'm all over the mega-module. They provide a great framework for a campaign. No need to buy adventures for a long, long time.

I don't look at adventures very often mostly for the above reasons. An adventure really has to have good word of mouth for me to buy it. Otherwise, I have no desire to waste my money on an adventure I may or may not want to use that may or may not be good.

 

[Ed Cha]

I'll list some of they reasons why I don't buy adventures:
1. I usually only buy adventures with a well-written summary that attracts my attention. Even then, they must have received good word of mouth aka reviews.

That's how I usually buy my adventures, too, but I also look at the cover and the subject matter. If it's an adventure dedicated entirely to dwarves, then it might be useful to have as a source of reference. I also appreciate good interior artwork and try to see if it's the style that I like. If it's too weird or dark, then I know the story and characters aren't going to interest me either.

2. Why hasn't someone set up an adventure review site by level? If it is out there, I haven't found it.

I like to be able to go to a place that sells or reviews adventures and just pick a level to get a list of adventures available for that level.

Every publisher uses different charcter level ranges. I go by 1-2, 3-5, 6-9, 10-14, and 15-20 when I write my adventures, but everyone is different. Some don't even put the level range on the cover or the inside introduction. There should at least be a suggestion range, in my opinion.

3. There are just too damn many adventures. I certainly can't be expected to buy a multitude of adventures given that I game maybe once or twice a week. I can finish a small module like Forge of Fury in 4 or 5 sessions over the course of 2 to 5 weeks. That is with everyone able to play consistently.

That means that under absolutely optimal conditions I can play 26 to 10 adventures the size of Forge of Fury a year. That is under completely optimal conditions which is not going to happen.

More choice is better, but I do agree there are a lot of adventures and many are not very good. You'll have to keep an eye out for good ones that do come out, especially from publishers you like.

4. Dungeon is cheaper. Why should I spend the money on a module when I can get a magazine that gives me quite a few good adventures. Alot of the time, I will use a modified Dungeon adventure. No need to pay for a single adventure.

Cheaper is not necessarily better. Also, you can't get detailed plotlines in a magazine adventure. They tend to be very short. Personally, I'm not really interested in running adventures with a beholder king who is the mastermind and owner of a bizarre bazaar. That's just me though.

5. The Internet. There are plethora of free adventures on the internet. Now and then I go and grab one and modify it for my campaign.

PDFs are great, but I also like print copies. Generally, published adventures use bigger budgets so they often have better art and content.

6. My own material: I also like to create my own material quite often. There is just something satisfying about creating your own material.

It's always fun to create your own material, but it's good to have resources as examples and reference points. I always like to see how other people handle a certain type of monster or trap and try to develop a better version. It does help to have a lot of adventures at hand.

7. Mega-modules: I love mega-modules as well. If I have the chance to buy a few regular adventures or a mega-module with a built in plot meant for long-term play, I'm all over the mega-module. They provide a great framework for a campaign. No need to buy adventures for a long, long time.

There's too much of a time commitment for me to enjoy mega-modules. I can't even finish reading most of them.

I don't look at adventures very often mostly for the above reasons. An adventure really has to have good word of mouth for me to buy it. Otherwise, I have no desire to waste my money on an adventure I may or may not want to use that may or may not be good.

You shouldn't waste any money on bad adventures, but I would encourage you to keep an eye out for good ones that do come out.

 

[Varianor Abroad]

Every publisher uses different charcter level ranges. I go by 1-2, 3-5, 6-9, 10-14, and 15-20 when I write my adventures, but everyone is different. Some don't even put the level range on the cover or the inside introduction. There should at least be a suggestion range, in my opinion.

Hey Ed, what do you think the range is going to be on Village of Omelet? Congrats on a SJG parody by the way. That is the big time!

 

[Wombat]

My biggest complaint against pre-written adventures is the basic one:

(warning: shouting about to commence)

THEY NEVER FIT MY WORLD

(sorry for the shouting...)

I don't run in FR, Greyhawk, or any other pre-established world. Don't like 'em. Don't fit my image of what I want to run. And since 90% of adventures are tied to some pre-existing world (or at least pre-existing world-notion) I have to do a lot of work to make them fit into my world. Motivations are off, distances are off, types of monsters and/or treasures are off, names are off, social structure is off, concepts of racial interactions are off, nothing really jives with the world I have put together.

Couple this with the fire-and-forget nature of most adventures (barring Paranoia adventures, which I read over and over again for sheer pleasure!), I see no reason to pick them up.

I would never run the same adventure for two different groups; the feeling would be so far different that ultimately it wouldn't even be the same adventure. I only recycled one adventure, and that was a disaster -- what worked fantastically with one group bombed with the other.

Anyway, individual worlds require individual adventures.

Just a personal take, YMMV, usw.

 

[Joshua Randall]

A lot of adventures say something like "this adventures is for 4-6 PCs of levels 3-5". But come on now: that's a ridiculous range of PC party power. Four level 3 PCs are in no way equivalent to six level 5 PCs.

So, what I'd like to see is the adventure telling you the ELs of all the major encounters. Something like: "Wandering monsers in the forest near the temple are EL 2-3. The guardians of the temple are EL 3-4. The boss monster is a CR 5 creature; if its minions are also present, this is an EL 6 encounter." There could also be a chart or table showing ELs by area.

And while I'm whining. Make the setup of your adventure simple. If I have to read more than one page of setup, you've lost me. Because the more setup, the more difficulty I will have adapting your adventure to my campaign world. Furthermore, the lengthy setups just delay the gratification I get from reading keyed encounters. So please: skip the wicked kewl 3,000-year history you came up with for your adventure background and just give me the basics.

 

[diaglo]

i have several criteria i use when buying adventures (modules)

1. game system or can i convert it to what i'm using.
2. quality. usually based on previous experience with the company or author. including editing. rehashing of old ideas. read my many rants about ToEE and RttToEE.
3. affordability. G1 Steading of the Hill Giant....i paid $4.50 for when it was released. check out the Story HOur in my sig. i bought Banewarrens, but i think it is too pricey.
4. reuse. b1 and b2 i ran over and over again. the latter part of 2ed i never even ran one of the adventures even though i bought them all.

 

[nikolai]

Retro-chic

I'm not sure if this is entirely relevant, but that's never stopped anyone in the past and it isn't going to stop me now.

A lot of the adventure stuff out there is very, very retro. There are companies which spend a lot of time aping 1st edition style. This is also very true for WotC stuff (see "Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil" and favourite 80s modules thread). Most stuff is heavily influenced by the old school style.

Perhaps this isn't the way to go. My favourite adventures are both 2nd edition TSR offerings: Castles Forlorn and Cities of Bone. I don't think either of them can be praised enough. They've both got a lot in common:

* They both flesh out a specific theme, and can be used as part of a broader (but loosely defined) campaign.
* Both are quite atmospheric, try to fill a distinct niche and do something different.
* There's a lot of associated material built around the adventure (in terms of rules and the wider settings).
* Both are boxed sets and have quite high production values.

nikolai.

 

[Ed Cha]

Hey Ed, what do you think the range is going to be on Village of Omelet? Congrats on a SJG parody by the way. That is the big time!

LOL! I never heard about a SJG product called that actually. Anyhow, I didn't intend to do any kind of a parody, but... thanks?