Creating a "module" based campaign

[Waylander the Slayer]

I have recently become a Lazy DM ( or always have been) and am thinking of a purely module based campaign.I am well aware of the adventure paths and "campaigns in a box" etc. but I do not want to create something more unique. What modules, or dungeon adventures that are NOT interrelated (like the old GDQ series) have/can be used to create a campaign. Feel free to use any sources for the adventures (3rd party publishers etc.). Thanks for all the help!

 

[howandwhy99]

What modules, or dungeon adventures that are NOT interrelated (like the old GDQ series) have/can be used to create a campaign.

Goodness! All of them I would think. I have about a 1000 or so available either in hardcopy or PDF. Only about 1/10th of those would I consider really well done. But people keep printing more. Learn how to modify to taste, place it in your world, write out the hints and potential random overland encounters, and drop it in your totebag. Nearby adventures would all need plots and NPC timelines developed, but once you know where your players are starting it's not too hard.

It is difficult to answer your question too, if we don't know what you have available.

 

[Montague68]

I'm not sure what you're asking here. Most modules in and of themselves are unrelated to each other, so you could simply grab three random modules and have them be different.

I run mostly modules, but I also run my own mini-adventures to set up and connect the modules into a coherent campaign (at least I think so, no complaints so far).

My advice would be to approach it from the other direction - come up with a basic premise and then pick and choose modules that would have some sort of connection to your premise and can then be modified easily to fit your campaign. In my newest campaign I created an introductory mini-adventure involving goblins, then searched around and found "The Goblin Cave" by PT Games, which I'm running now. Once the group gets through that and another original mini-adventure they'll then face the monumental task of conquering Rappan Athuk.

IME it's much easier to fit modules of your choosing into your campaign than to make your campaign fit a series of totally unrelated modules. But if totally unrelated modules are what you're after, just pick some. It would make for a very disjointed campaign I would think though.

 

[Rothe]

I like to string together the follwoing where all commercial modules are modified in monsters, treasure and setting to fit the campaign., e.g., replacing the Drow with another power:

JG's Caverns of Thracia -to- (homebrew) Caverns of the Alchemi -to- G1 -to- (homebrew) Tower of Spiders -to- G2 -to- (homebrew) Passage Under the Mountain -to- G3 -to- Halls of Beoll Dur.

This is just what I have ready with some connecting logic between them. I run a completely open campaign in what you can do and where you can go and have another dozen or so modules/adventures prepped here and there, not counting city and wilderness adventures.

 

[Waylander the Slayer]

I'm not sure what you're asking here. Most modules in and of themselves are unrelated to each other, so you could simply grab three random modules and have them be different.

To clarify- What modules or adventures which are not part of a series, in your experience, work well in conjuction?

 

[Treebore]

I ran a Necromancer modules based campaign. I used:


Wizards Amulet (An ENNIE winning free download from Necroamncer)

Crucible of Freya (I think this also won a ENNIE)

Morrick Mansion

Lost City of Barakus (Endhome, the city in the module is good)

Tomb of Abysthor

Rappan Athuk.

These were my "outline" and I fleshed out what teh party did that wasn't covered by the modules.

I also did half xp's.

We had a good time.

 

[Voadam]

Banewarrens to Nightfang Spire to Demon God's Fane to Lord of the Iron Fortress has worked well for the campaign I Co-DM. I've run the latter two and I'm in the middle of LotIF now. Banewarrens sets up a lot of other things with released bane possibilities. Other tie ins have been city of the spider queen and Standing Stones as well as homebrews for my solo PC when the other Co-DMs run.

Low Level Cloudlands, Return to the Keep on the Borderlands, and B1 In Search of Adventure worked well for the same area providing multiple options.

In the past I did B1 to Temple of Elemental Evil to Slavers to To Find a King, to Castle Greyhawk to City Greyhawk to Falcon trilogy to Feast of Goblyns to Short ravenloft ones from that crypt book to Dancing Hut of Baba Yaga to Ship of Horrors to the Rakshasa one.

Another campaign that went well was Night of the Living Dead to Touch of Death to the ghost dog one, to Feast of Goblyns with some short Crypt ones thrown in as filler (all ravenloft modules).

 

[Treebore]

I forgot to put Grey Citadel in my list.

 

[Baron Opal]

Some minor spoilers for Dungeon adventures

Well, a gadzillion of them, really. It depends on what you are looking for.

I like the Necromancer Game products for their flexibility. They are strong site-based adventures. There have been a number of good political / urban adventures in Dungeon Magazine in the past couple of years. Goodman Games modules have a good reputation, although I haven't purchased any of theirs.

Mad God's Key and Thirds of Purloined Vellum from Dungeon Magazine are, I find, excellent starting adventures that can have a good political aspect to them. The next time I start a campaign I am probably going to run...

Mad God's Key
Thirds of Purloined Vellum
(Serial Killer vs. Minor Nobles)
(Giant Bees vs. Halfling Village)
(Necromancers Wanting Serial Killer's Body)

...for the first five adventures. Sorry, I don't remember the names of all of the adventures. Adventures 1, 3 and 5 will be tied into the same sub-plot, although they are not intended to run together. Now, all of these are from Dungeon Magazine. It is a great value and there is usually something I can use or adapt from each adventure. It is a rare month where I can use little or nothing. And, I run exclusively my homebrew so I'm constantly tinkering.

I'm currently running a saga where I am heavily using the Age of Worms adventures with the worms stripped out. I used the first three adventures in the theme of the adventures stopping a demon-worshipping cult. Then I used the adventure where the party retrieves a fallen friend for the illithid tie-in. Which leads us back to the Age of Worms and the Hall of Harsh Reflections and the gladatorial adventure after that. Them, I'm going with homebrew stuff about the conflict between the illithids and the yuan-ti with the players in the middle.

So, I can't really tell you specific items that are good and have the reccommendation be meaningful. What kind of campaign do you want to run?

 

[Calico_Jack73]

Honestly, you need to get yourself a subscription to Dungeon Magazine and you'll never be short of adventures you can link into a campaign. I had a subscription for two years and have enough adventures that I've run campaigns for two groups with them and only used a couple for both (and only then because I really enjoyed running them for the first group).