Adventure Modules featuring Metagaming

[JiffyPopTart]

As I was driving home from work today I was fondly remembering the old chestnut of the "Players have to cross a chessboard moving like the piece of the square they are on" room in Ghost Tower of Inverness.

It occurred to me that if role-played correctly, the party really should have no idea how to solve that puzzle without hamhandedly assuming that chess would also exist in their world with the exact same ruleset.

So I was wondering, what other fun adventure designs of old (or new I guess if you can come up with some) require severe metagaming on the part of the players?

DS

 

[el-remmen]

It occurred to me that if role-played correctly, the party really should have no idea how to solve that puzzle without hamhandedly assuming that chess would also exist in their world with the exact same ruleset.

Funny, I always just assumed chess did in most "generic" settings. I have it in my homebrew (though it is called "king's men").

As for meta-gamey modules, I find that as fond as I am at riddles, they really take you out of the "playing your role as character" because you are likely to never really be as smart as your 18 Int Wizard or (hopefully) as dumb as the 7 Int Barbarian.

 

[ExploderWizard]

I suppose any puzzle with a solution based in earth knowledge, mythology or folklore would qualify.

We had one of a different sort playing KOTS in 4E recently. There was a creature (Irontooth) that had an ability that didn't really come from anywhere that we could tell. The metagame approach came from the fact that, to be effective, a party had to approach the problem with meta-knowledge of video game boss "stages" to understand how to achieve victory.

That knowledge was only gained in-game by trying and failing, similar to failing at a level of Mario Bros. and realizing what needs to be done on the next run through.

The next group of characters was armed with this "knowledge" and the encounter went smoothly.

 

[T. Foster]

The "Alice in Wonderland" and "Skull Island" levels of Greyhawk Castle (i.e. AD&D modules EX1 & 2 and WG6) derive most of their enjoyability out of the players recognizing the source material and reacting appropriately -- not only will the adventures (especially EX1 & 2) make a lot less sense of the players don't catch the references, there are at least a few places where they're expected/required to know how the scene played out in the book in order to succeed (and a couple other places where if they attempt to follow the book too closely they'll wind up in even more trouble...).

Another favorite (though it's not actually in a module) is the description of Heward's Mystical Organ in the 1E DMG, which suggests that the players be required to hum various tunes (examples given include, IIRC, "That Old Black Magic," "Fly Me To The Moon," and "The Monster Mash") in order to activate the item's powers

EDIT" Another one (which I can't believe I forgot to mention it before, as it's my favorite D&D module): The Abduction of Good King Despot is based on the signs of the Zodiac, including gemstone and elemental associations (which isn't required for the players to realize, but they'll likely have a lot easier time if they do), includes a trick based on a deck of cards (which is the same logic as the chessboard), and another trick based on spelling out a particular word (which only makes sense if you assume that "common" = English).

 

[Dragonbait]

Tomb of Horrors. It was designed to challange the players, not the characters. I beieve that Gygax himself even commented on the fact that new adventures are trying to challange characters instead of players and that's where they fail (I won't put quotes in there because I don't remember the specific details).

A ring is given to the players and they have to figure out that the ring goes into the narrow metal slot against the far wall? I never knew Oerth had coin-ops

 

[howandwhy99]

Tons of the old adventures had references to real world knowledge. The Monster Manual was culled from adventure modules. But you don't have to use the same rules in the game. Vampires may be very different creatures, than players get to learn what vampires really are in your game. (psychogenic parasites from a self-digesting dimension of blood and darkness, perhaps?)

EDIT: Try EX1 and EX2

 

[Glyfair]

I suppose any puzzle with a solution based in earth knowledge, mythology or folklore would qualify.

Indeed, any word problem (even if it just depends on homonyms) would qualify, since it assumes use of the English language (or whatever language the players use).

In my opinion, this is far too nit-picky. It's just a few (large) steps away from creating the languages used in the word, and requiring players to use them so they are "in character." I like some immersion in games I play in, but there has to be some of these sort of bits or else the game just becomes one big discussion of what is appropriate or not.

 

[justanobody]

Ideas....

Chess could have existed, but how often do you roleplay playing chess in the game, or pay attention to those guys in the tavern playing it?

Also what is to say that knowledge in most adventures weren't that of something the PCs would have.

Now recent world events probably are too metagamey, but things that could exist as knowledge in your settings should not be seen so.

I have had many discussion to great lengths with people to explain why a puzzle involving Pi can fit into D&D. Some understood, and others did not.

There are hundreds of ways to use Pi in a D&D adventure and make it fit with the world and setting/time you are playing in.

The worst offender for me ever involving metagaming was Blackmoor and its alien technologies. Recond players and the like...

And Barrier peaks with its alien technologies.

Not too much else bothers me as metagame as long as the tech is kept to a minimum and black/gunpowder is kept as highly dangerous and risk involving. But that is the type of settings I run.

I often see advantages in using metagame information for things as it gives the players a better chance to understand things without having to teach them of the world they are playing in if they don't want to. For this I just alter facts to make those things even in adventures fit the world better.

Dungeonland was great.

 

[GrumpyOldMan]

That awful adventure in Dragon 100. Not a module and a truly awful scenario.

I’ve almost certainly complained about it before. I haven’t looked at it in many years, but it still annoys me. It’s set in ‘modern’ London. (Modern for the scenario being when – late seventies?) Written by an American with obviously little or no knowledge of the UK. It suggested several humorous occurrences, among which was the characters trying to hijack a car and discovering the steering wheel was on the wrong side!!! What? these are people who've never seen a car.

The entire adventure was predicated on the assumption that modern US players would metagame their way through it based on what they knew about ‘London, England.’ Unfortunately for us Brits it was still unplayable because even metagaming most of what it was assumed the players would know was wrong. Horrible. (And way to easy to access firearms too!)

 

[Raven Crowking]

Ideas....

Chess could have existed, but how often do you roleplay playing chess in the game, or pay attention to those guys in the tavern playing it?

In one 3e game, when the PCs wanted to get armour specially crafted and wait for it, I generated "events" that occurred during this down time. One was a game similar to chess growing into a fad. The PCs spent money on a nice set and learning how to play.

No in-game benefit (although I hoped to include one later), but lots of fun for all concerned.

There are hundreds of ways to use Pi in a D&D adventure and make it fit with the world and setting/time you are playing in.

Orc and Pi?

(It had to be said.)


RC