How do you go about creating an adventure?

[Henry]

I'm interested in everything from designing plots, place and themes, to the mechanics of putting stats to monsters. It's one of the main jobs for DMs, there normally isn't much input from anyone but you, and it's not something there's much in the way of books or published advice on. I'd like to know how everyone else goes about it.

God, how I wish I'd kept a copy of a web page I'd seen one time: it had 100 tips for being a better DM, and had specific things like "read history texts" "ride on horseback at least once" etc. As well as some more practical advice about actual scenario design, etc.

But, since I don't:


#1: Buy this book and read it.

#2: designing plots: Draw inspiration from many sources that are available: Historical events, TV shows, movies, and fiction. Come up with the core elements of said inspiration, and flesh them out relative to the world it came from.
Examples: Dramatic political assassinations are fun. Read about the drama surrounding the assassinations of The Duke of Guise by Henry III, or the spectacular punishment of Rasputin's assassination. Read the travels of Lewis and Clark to get ideas about what a party would actually go through in a wilderness expedition. So much can be garnered from history and popular entertainment that you can steal for your games.

#3:Come up with at least one cool "hook" for each session: A situation, a scene, an event, that will get your players talking about the session, and introduce it in a way that will grab your players attention. An example I once read from another gamer basically said: A fight with a bunch of goblins in a 10' x 10' room is nothing special. But a fight with goblins on a log bridge over a 75 foot drop, in the pouring rain, with lightning lighting the sky, and with support goblins shooting at you from a higher ledge, is a scene your players will remember for a long, long time.

#4: Do two things with your monsters.
One, play them smartly. Why there aren't more kobolds with deadfall traps, airtight trap doors, and booby traps in their 2' high tunnels is beyond me. Why vampires aren't installing dumpable poison vats in their lairs, and why wizards aren't throwing fireballs on their meleeing iron golems at ground zero is bewildering to me. Your players will at first be taken aback by tactics from monsters if unused to them, but will actually find a greater sense of accomplishment if they come up with tactics to defeat them themselves.
Two, change them up. No matter how much you resist metagaming, players will often find it hard not to break out flaming oil on trolls, or mirrors on medusas. However, a troll without regeneration but possessing a gaze attack, or a medusa who doesn't petrify but who DOES possess a sonic voice attack, will throw your players for a loop. You don't have to do it all the time, but it will definitely cause them to skid to a halt the next time they see "just a troll."

#5: Use what god -- er, WotC gave you.

If you are ever stuck in a bind, recycle an old map from an old D&D product, or a d20 product that you SWORE you'd never use and wasted your money in buying. The minotaur's den from B2 Keep on the Borderlands makes a nice troglodyte warren in a pinch, or the Halls of an evil temple in a Dungeon magazine adventure makes a great Temple of Tyr.

For that matter, the freebie maps on WotC's website are a DM's godsend, as are the various random map generators all over the internet.

#6:Cater to your players.

Does one like strategy? Does one like puzzles? Do two of 'em live for combat, and sleep for everything else? Put a little of each each chance you get in an adventure. You don't have to give a puzzle-lover all puzzles, all the time: Just at least one good one to sink his teeth into will be enough to keep him happy the whole session; he contributed to the game. Likewise, one combat in a session proves those melee--masters that their feat choices were worth it. Cater to the players, in addition to yourself.

#7: Cater to yourself as well.

I most enjoy a setting that I enjoy running. I'll probably never run a Ravenloft or Planescape Campaign, because I wouldn't enjoy running it. A one- or two-shot is fine, but I'll run a boring Planescape game because I find too much Planescape boring. So be sure that your players have enough options to give them something fun to do, but at the same time, don't feel like you have to sacrifice your whole enjoyment just for them. (It's to me the one cardinal sin new 3E DM's engage in, to feel like they cheat their players if they limit any of the rule options, EVEN in core rules. It ain't so, and most players will understand that.)

Hoepfully, some of this is useful. I applaud you on the awesome thread idea, and can't wait to read the other responses.

 

[Wombat]

How do I create adventures?

How many are the ways?

I make up plots out of whole cloth; I also steal notions from books, movies, news items, and conversations with friends; I often combine these methods.

As for how closely I stat things out, I keep it minimal. Just as "No battle plan survives first contact with the enemy", there is no way to plan for all the different directions in which players can take a plot. I keep railroading to a dead minimum, create some handouts and clues, stat out major encounters and settings, but otherwise run vague, run general, reacting to the characters as they react to the setting.

I always make sure that I give my players loads of setting material before the campaign starts so they have a good feel for the world and the city/village/grove they start in -- names of gods, bits of history, people they know, customs and mores, styles of dress, well known foods and artifacts, etc. Deep background planning; generalized adventure planning.

Then again, I've always believed that rpgs work best as improv theatre. Others disagree heartily with me, but that is a matter of taste, both my own and others.

(added bit)

Oh, our last session was based entirely around one sentence I had written down for the last adventure set up -- the players got so fascinated with that single aspect that I ended up having to riff a four and a half hour session! Hey -- it fit with the world.

 

[Voadam]

to the mechanics of putting stats to monsters. It's one of the main jobs for DMs,

Mostly straight out of the book for monsters with a notepad at my side to track hit points. I try to limit myself to the MM and one other for at the table reference.

If I'm planning on using something specifically from a different sourcebook I'll usually print out the individual page entry from the pdf. I hate bringing tons of books to a game, a single page is much nicer.

If I am developing an NPC villain monster then I'll go full out with templates, advanced hit dice, character levels, feats, spell lists and equipment. I'll want to get quick stats for use in game including the AC numbers, the attacks, and damage, etc.

Usually this is only for major NPCs, and I'll wing advanced stats for some creatures as needed (lieutenants of a villainous but not adversarial NPC I didn't expect the party to jump, etc.) As long as you are reasonably close then it usually works out.

 

[Dark Dragon]

Well, first I create a plot, or in other words, use a plot found in a book, movie, or adventure. My last campaign used some ideas from the Stormbringer comic, Alien II, and the Shadowdale trilogy (Time of Troubles). Rarely I write the whole story down, only descriptions of important places are written in detail. The campaign fitted on 4 or 5 A4 pages, the rest was improvised.

These plots are changed more or less (depending on how much the players know about them) and linked together via small stories, persons or items. Sometimes the players recognise the main plot very late, sometimes it's quite clear.

Most work is fleshing out NPC friends and foes, drawing (small!!) dungeons and localities (cities, islands,...) and treasure design.

Important is to know the characters, their equipment, how the player plan their advance and so on.

Make clear what rules, spells, feats,... you intend to change when your first session starts.

Don't push the players, if the story runs without much DM help: fine.

Play monsters according to their intelligence, charisma and wisdom. Dragons aren't dumb creatures who await their death at the hands of some awful stupid paladin! A lich will plan revenge if defeated once. An escaped villain (even if it is not the BBEG, but one of his servants) may plot against the party while the story goes on. Use funny encounters as well as sad ones. Not all monsters will kill the PCs but try to charm them, sell them as slaves, store them as food...

 

[KnowTheToe]

I personally found this thread to be very helpful.

 

[BSF]

OK, I am finally feeling cognizant enough to post here. (So if my post is completely unintelligible, I will have failed, but think how bad it _could_ have been!)

How do I go about creating an adventure?
The short answer is: Anyway that comes to mind. But, that isn't very helpful!

Honestly, there has already been a lot of good advice here. I am probably being a bit redundant, but what the heck? (A lot of my advice is very similar to what has already been posted.)

First of all, I decide the scope of the "Adventure". There are the big "Adventures" that are long storylines and the "SubAdventures" which are generally the episodes of the larger "Adventure".

For my campaign, I actually try to run several plotlines. At the beginning of my current campaign, I had 3 major story arcs, and a few minor ones. This sounds complicated, but it really isn't. I don't begin developing the story arcs in detail until the characters begin to pursue one of them. As the campaign progresses, I may advance the story arcs that the PC's are not pursuing. Then, I will drop hints about what is going on with them in the game. This gives the game the feeling that other things are happening in the world around the PC's. They have "free choice" and my players really seem to be enjoying it. They have shutdown some story arcs early and they have assisted with others. Sometimes, a brand new story arc will pop up from their actions (or inactions).

So, for my initial story arcs, I have rough outlines of events. I do not fill in the details until the PC's begin to pursue one of those paths.

Once we start to get down to details, I try to stay a few sessions ahead of the PC's. I fill in more details for the "Subadventure" as we go. Generally speaking, I do not stat everything out at the same level as a published adventure. As I have filled in the details, I have a pretty good idea on how everything will probably proceed, if the PC's choose any particular path. Nowadays, I stat out the notable opponents if there is going to be a combat. Throwaway grunts are by the book. Otherwise, I tend to do a lot of "winging it" from scribbled notes and half formed ideas.

I also have smaller "Adventures" that are not part of a larger storyline. Those are generally a lot more like standard treasure hunting. They are fun in their own right, but for different reasons. I had one adventure where the group was trying to infiltrate a fort. They found a back entrance that lead into the catacombs below the basement of the fort. All of a sudden, the PC's were in a classic dungeoncrawl trying to get up to the basement so they could get into the fort. It was a fun diversion for a session and they ended up retreating and dealing with the fort in a completely different manner. So, it was an adventure that the only tie to a larger storyline was location. The PC's weren't seeking the catacombs and were surprised when they found them.

I used to do a lot of statting out things beforehand. If you have the time, I would suggest that you at least try it once. In my case, I found that if I put forth a lot of effort to detail out the "adventure", I end up with a vested interest in how I think the story should proceed. If I had that work prepped and the PC's decided to change a course of action, I would suddenly feel like my work was "wasted" and I would tend to try to railroad them "back on plan". I ruined a few games trying to do that. But, that certainly isn't something that will happen with everyone. So, give it a try once (to stat everything out in detail) and see if you are successful with it. If you find yourself too married to your vision of the storyline, cut back until you find yourself able to accomodate more PC actions without feeling like you have wasted your efforts.

So, that is how I do the work of the adventure. That isn't the fun part though! The fun part is getting the inspiration for any particular adventure. The inspiration can come from anywhere!

One of my personal favorites is cinematic scenes. I love to have a vision in my head that is cinematically stellar and then find a way to work that into the game. I have gone to great effort to do that. My players seem to really like it when it happens too!

Books, movies, comics, artwork, idle ponderings, wacky ideas, idea theft from others, player comments, all are valid elements to work an adventure around. If you have published adventures, use them. But be sure you modify them to make them relevant to your game. Don't be afraid to change NPC's around. Maybe that Evil High Priest is really a lackey of your recurring BBEG. Perhaps there is an alliance between the BBEG and the leader of the thieves guild run by wererats. Put ties into your campaign in the premade adventure. If you use multiple story arcs that are evolving through the efforts of other NPC's, you can even drop in secret plans that the NPC's need. The PC's can then help out the NPC's, or even take over that story arc! Remember, the world doesn't revolve around the PC's, but the game should!

Now, why are the PC's interested in the adventure? Well, TREASURE!! But, treasure doesn't always need to be standard gold and magic. Information is sometimes an even better reward. Or political favor, or contacts that can be used later. Again, it should be relevant to your campaign. Heck, even in the non-story related adventures, I try to put something of interest in there. In the above example, where the PC's ended up in the catacombs below the basement of the fort, the big treasure there was a broken sword. Yes, broken! But, the Bard recognized it as a distinctive, historic weapon. They learned a bit more about the history of the area and eventually sold the broken sword to a collector that was a history buff. Change up your rewards every so often so that it isn't always a bag of gold and gems.

No matter what methodology you use to create an adventure, make sure it is fun for your players and for you! If everyone is enjoying the adventures, you will find that it is easy to come up with the next one. Also, don't be afraid to listen to what your players are speculating about. If they just cleared out a small cult in the sewers of the city, they might discover that one of the cultists kept all of his treasure as small emeralds. Sure, maybe you just thought it was an interesting personality quirk of the guy. Your players may decide it has a "Special significance" and begin looking for it. If they come up with a plausible story, don't be afraid to take that idea and run with it. Of course, if you don't like the idea, don't be afraid to ignore their theories either.

I hope all of this helps!

 

[I'm A Banana]

Well, it usually begins with a stirring...deep within me. Call it inspiration, if you will.

Then, I head into the bathroom, drop my pants and sit on the bidet. Without much effort on my part (usually), out pops an adventure!

Uhmm.....even though that started as a joke, it's surprising me how similar those two things are, now.....maybe I should start taking the advice.

Given that, though, I usually start with a conflict, then think 'how do I get them here from where they are?' Also, I play a lot of videogames, which have a lot of built-in semi-plots that are quite delicious. Any excuse to jump into a dungeon works. Hell, if all else fails: Pay 'em to spelunk!

Hope it helpped.