How much of published modules do you change?

[Lanefan]

Depends on the module, and how much it expects to interact with the greater world...the more outside interaction it wants (e.g. assuming important module NPC's have previously met the party, etc.) the more tweaking have to do. But if it's a straight dungeon crawl, all I need to do is place it in the world somewhere and point the party at it, then if I want I can run it stock except for minor tweaks to make it fit our house rules.

The most common change I make is to beef up the opposition, particularly for climactic encounters.

That said, most often I'll just use one level or part of a canned module, and build my own adventure around it. Recently, for example, I took the map of part of U2 or U3 (I forget which) and turned it into a beholders' lair deep in a forest...the map was perfect for what I wanted for the entrance level, and I just tacked on some bits below it.

Lanefan

 

[GwydapLlew]

It varies from adventure to adventure. I frequently take a published adventure as a basis for the 'meat-and-potatoes' of a campaign's storyarc, but I change things around to fit.

My high-level campaign has had the following adventures inserted into it:

• The Sunless Citadel (modified the druid into a Blighter, added some portals to other adventure locations).
• The Forge of Fury (turned Durgeddin into a ghost, added a portal for the duergar to Acheron).
• Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil (stole the moathouse and modified it).
• The Speaker in Dreams (modified it - placed it in the town of Deadsnows in FR).
• Pool of Radiance: Myth Drannor (stole the inital hook and the polyandrium for maps and stats).
• Temple of Winds (modified it to being a drow masoleum).
• Nightfang Spire (added portal connecting Sunless Citadel, beefed up Aokhet and Gulthias, changed Gulthias' background).
• Queen of Lies (ripped out most of the plot, used the rest to connect the PCs to CotSQ).
• Spiral of Manzessine (modified this into a prison break adventure and left them stranded in the Underdark).
• City of the Spider-Queen (ignored the first third of the adventure, changed some NPC motivations and connections to fit the campaign)

This list doesn't include using bits and pieces of other adventures as needed, and several other adventures not listed (especially in the blue series from 3.0 and the mini-adventure locales in the FR books) have been mined for storyline purposes. The biggest change was turning Tharizdun into a child of Shar that she is attempting to have freed so that she can have more allies in her war against the other gods.

My Shackled City AP was converted to a FR setting and placed in the Vilhon Reach. Adimarchus was combined with Tharizdun (see last paragraph) and the motivations of the Cagewrights was modified accordingly. The Tree of Shackled Souls was connected to an ancient druidic order of blighters (connecting the campaign to my modified Sunless Citadel). I inserted a heavily-modified Red Hand of Doom into the middle of the campaign and altered the motivations of the Red Hand; the horde has been sent by Tiamat to disrupt the machinations of the Cagewrights and to prevent Tharizdun/Adimarchus from being released. In the AP itself, I altered some NPC motivations, made Vhalantru a sponsor of the party, changed the various deities to match FR, and altered the adventure hooks to fit the more mercenary party that I have as a group.

 

[Wik]

Well, I only recently started using modules again... with the Savage Tide arc. I find I was a bit wary to make changes at the start (I think I made two minor changes to the first episode, and one was cosmetic - the other consisted of adding a few rogues to the final fight, and giving a few rogues guns). By the second episode, I was adding sidequest encounters tailored to my group, dropping a few fights from the first dungeon, and adding a fun scene near the end involving a chase through a crowd.

For the upcoming third episode, I've already dropped two big encounters (mostly because they don't appeal to me), and using the extra XP that grants me to expand upon one of the dungeons (tamoachan) and buffing up one of the ship scenes. So, I do make minor changes, but I'm not a huge stat cannibal like some people - I don't eat up stats and spit out new ones.

I would like to add a spelltheif villain to the game, but this ain't the campaign for it - we don't have any real casters!

 

[kaomera]

Oh, and I'm going to start off my next campaign (a month or so from now) with that module! I'd be interested in hearing what changes you have planned.

Heh... OK, here you go: (Sorry, I don't know how to do that cut-out thing, so I'm just spoliering it all...)

Spoiler

*Set the adventure in western Thire.
*Replace the pre-gen PCs with my own pre-gens. Completely re-write the Adventure Prelude and starting equipment.
*Either Sir Galwaith has been chasing Toth-Ror, or he's been hanging out terrorizing the village, not both. I'm leaning twords the former. Possibly change Sir Galwaith from a Knight of the Sable March to one of the more honest and noble knights of the Imperial Army of Crieste.
*Ignore the scaling information for larger parties (I'm expecting up to 8 PCs), but probably increase the total number of kobolds (adding encounters, etc.).
*Ignore all the suggested hooks except for Sir Galwaith's Squire, if such a character is present. The PCs are out to find out what happened to the knight, if that doesn't lead to them completing the adventure, then they probably shouldn't be in my game anyway.
*Completely re-write the Order of the Beastmen story. Add in a local witch-woman (Druid, I have a bunch of ideas for her...) and probably a tie to a demonic pact.
Encounter Area 1
*Possibly remove the bloodthorn vines, but probably not.
*Wet ground does not provide circumstance bonus to Move Silently.
*Wild Dogs, even "feral" ones (like that's not redundant...) do not attack on sight or fight to the death.
Area 1-1: The dogs are in a clearing with a dead horse... No way are they "ferocious with hunger". Their motivation is to protect their food. If the Squire is not in the party then his body is nearby in the woods, strung up by the vines.
Area 1-2: No poison on the ravens' talons, nor will any attack immediately (they will follow the party, make a lot of noise, and harry them when they encounter the kobolds at 1-4). The one with the ring is the Witchdoctor's familiar.
Area 1-3: Delete this encounter.
Area 1-4: Kobolds here may be reinforced by others from elsewhere if the PCs take too long to reach this point.
Areas 1-5 to 1-7: move these encounters several miles north, and rewrite them a bit to make a bit of a sub-adventure for after the PCs have finished off Toth-Ror.
Area 1-8: No change.
Area 1-9: Some changes to the dogs' tactics and dispositions.
Encounter Area 2
*No wandering monsters
Area 2-1: Rewrite trap from portcullis to collapsing stairs. Kobolds roll flaming bundle of sticks / straw down at PCs and fire crossbows before running off...
Area 2-2: Two kobolds from 2-1 will regroup here, push the statue over onto investigating PCs, then flee.
Area 2-2A: The bars of the gate have been bent apart in places wide enough that Small creatures can squeeze through without difficulty...
Area 2-3: Replace weapons with more appropriate ones, good quality but not masterwork.
Area 2-4: Change Kih-Koth's tactics. He now leads off with Cause Fear, then moves behind the N gate (to 2-8, not the one to 2-6). He will flee twords the kobolds at 2-9, not die to the trap at 2-6A. Dancing Lights or Silent Image at 2-8 to distract pursuing PCs. None of the kobolds will fight to the death, given any other option. In fact, if they don't outnumber the PCs after the first round, they will probably just foot it straight off. Sir Galwaith's book is in plain text. Possible re-location point for the Ballista.
Area 2-5: Replace treasure with something mundane, possibly a gem of some sort.
Area 2-6: Replace (or just remove) the riddle-vision. Remove the tunnel to 2-11.
Area 2-6A: Replace the crossbow trap with an alarm bell to warn the Smith.
Area 2-7: Add several helpers for the Smith. Remove the magic shield, but increase the mundane treasures. Possible re-location point for the Ballista.
Area 2-8: Kih-Koth may use a spell to spark the PCs' interest in the W rubble. The E cave-in was caused by Toth-Ror to ensure his privacy, and is easily dug through.
Area 2-9: Expand this area into several rooms, 12 kobolds total, equal to those at 2-4. Move the guards to 2-10 with the Witchdoctor.
Area 2-10: No beast key, no magic on the totem. Not sure what to do about the river entrance / exit; probably leave it, maybe make it more obvious from outside the spire.
Area 2-11: Remove the spider. Kobolds fight the PCs at the foot of the stairs, Toth-Ror rests atop a throne on the upper landing. The kobolds will be fearless for two turns (thinking the minotaur is coming to their aid at any second...). Toth-Ror would prefer to scare the PCs off at first, then later (about a minute or so) re-thinks his plans and limps off after them...
Area 2-12: No webs near the floor of the cavern, dwarf is under a cave-in. Spider formerly from 2-11 lurks in webs 30' up, will not attack at first (used to dealing with kobolds and/or Toth-Ror, who know she's there...).
Areas 2-13 & 2-14: Empty rooms. Replace the decanter statue with a natural spring.
Encounter Area 3
Replace the whole thing with a second sub-adventure (PCs should be 1st level by now...), featuring the tomb of a demon-thrall knight or somesuch...
*In the aftermath of the adventure, knights from both the Imperial Army of Crieste and the Order of the Sable March show up. The PCs (probably) don't quite become embroiled in their conflict, but the Knight of the Sable March, impressed by their brave deeds, offers them a letter of introduction to an ally of his in Longdale who would (better) equip the party in exchange for their services...

That's just what I've got on one read-through, but I think thats all that I may change (I might leave some stuff rather than mess with it). Now I need to get together battlemaps and minis. Fortunately I think I still have at least a couple of months before I'd be running this...