vagabundo
Adventurer
You know it took me god-damn years to learn this, YEARS...
I was always holding off the beholder or the dragon or hiding the real BBEG.
I only really got IT last year. All that wasted time.
Last edited:
I love it when a Campaign Arc comes together
- Thread starter Rechan
- Start date
You know it took me god-damn years to learn this, YEARS...
I was always holding off the beholder or the dragon or hiding the real BBEG.
I only really got IT last year. All that wasted time.
Barastrondo
First Post
The way I do it is like so:
Introduce as many storylines and plots as I feel inspired to run with.
Then, see what the players react best to. As they get involved with their favorite plot, let them discover more and more about how it's more dangerous and far-reaching than they'd initially expected, and then let them take the hammer to it.
If there are plotlines they utterly discard, that's fine. I'm lazy. Those plotlines are unlikely to become too significant, or the PCs will run into ways to get NPCs to handle the stuff they don't want to do for them. I'm a firm believer in there being consequences for player choices, but I'm also a firm believer that the choice of what sounds most or least interesting is exempt. Players should never be punished for ignoring a plot thread because it didn't sound like it would be their kind of fun.
On top of this, when running D&D usually I plan no more than five levels out at a time. (In other games, I might think in terms of "seasons", if the inspiration is a TV show structure, for instance.) Start at 1st level, think about a potential dramatic culmination at 5th, and be ready to pull it off earlier if the campaign has to finish earlier. If the players get to 5th, see if they want to go to 10th, and start anew. There are a lot of games to play out there, so I don't want to commit to anything particularly lengthy at once. The players will let me know if continuing the game is their first preference.
Introduce as many storylines and plots as I feel inspired to run with.
Then, see what the players react best to. As they get involved with their favorite plot, let them discover more and more about how it's more dangerous and far-reaching than they'd initially expected, and then let them take the hammer to it.
If there are plotlines they utterly discard, that's fine. I'm lazy. Those plotlines are unlikely to become too significant, or the PCs will run into ways to get NPCs to handle the stuff they don't want to do for them. I'm a firm believer in there being consequences for player choices, but I'm also a firm believer that the choice of what sounds most or least interesting is exempt. Players should never be punished for ignoring a plot thread because it didn't sound like it would be their kind of fun.
On top of this, when running D&D usually I plan no more than five levels out at a time. (In other games, I might think in terms of "seasons", if the inspiration is a TV show structure, for instance.) Start at 1st level, think about a potential dramatic culmination at 5th, and be ready to pull it off earlier if the campaign has to finish earlier. If the players get to 5th, see if they want to go to 10th, and start anew. There are a lot of games to play out there, so I don't want to commit to anything particularly lengthy at once. The players will let me know if continuing the game is their first preference.
Woas
First Post
5 years?!?! 
I assume my game will not last past the next hour. On top of that I don't think I'd want a game to last that long.
I'm not really sure what your getting at with level advancement. Can you further extrapolate that?
What are things? Twenty whats? Twenty 'plots'? Twenty cool magic items? Twenty NPCs you've created?
I assume my game will not last past the next hour. On top of that I don't think I'd want a game to last that long.I'm not really sure what your getting at with level advancement. Can you further extrapolate that?
Lanefan said:
What are things? Twenty whats? Twenty 'plots'? Twenty cool magic items? Twenty NPCs you've created?
Rechan said:
RodneyThompson
Explorer
I had a revelation about, oh, two years ago when working on my Star Wars Saga Edition campaign. At first, I planned it like I always had, meticulously preparing for events to come to fruition far into the future, plotting and finding places to drop hints earlier, etc. Then I realized that the game might not last long enough to get through all of my cool scenes I had planned.
So I stopped saving things for later. I took on a new philosophy. If something sounded cool, I found a way to integrate it into the adventure immediately. I had an idea for a chase scene involving a rancor; rather than saving it for later, I went ahead and threw it into the game, and found a way to make it work. And it did, and my players had a ton of fun.
The thing I realized is that you will always have more good ideas. I know I was always afraid to give away the cool too soon, for fear that I'd have nothing left for later. Forget that. Most campaigns DON'T last long enough to plan too far ahead. It's OK to have a sketch of an outline for a campaign, but when you have neat ideas, use them. Don't keep things in your pocket.
When I started running my current Forgotten Realms campaign, I chose to do the same, and when I had an idea I just put it out there in the game. So far, it's been very fulfilling. You'll always come up with more ideas for fun scenes/adventures, and most of the time your players will help inspire you to create new things.
(I learned this lesson in a particularly rough way when I planned out the introduction and evolution of the campaign's main villain well in advance. Yet the players were "meh" on that villain, and instead became fixated on the villain that was supposed to be a one-off baddie because he beat them a couple of times. This taught me that there's a great value in letting things develop organically, rather than trying to plan everything out...another good argument for not keeping the good stuff in your back pocket.)
Ktulu
First Post
I did a quick mock-up, covering about 12 sessions, give or take, depending on how long any given idea in the listed "sessions" would take, going along with your plot point presented. This is sort of how I'd see a general outline going, then making changes where the PC's went in different directions. Remember, it can't be set in stone, the plot has to be dynamic, allowing for PC actions to determine the course of the story:
Sessions:
1. If you have a ranger/druid/bbn/shaman in the group (or someone else with an unnaturally high nature check) they notice some oddities on their first outing. Nothing too weird, but maybe they see some birds flying south/north (opposite direction for the weather). At first, they might think this is some sort of danger coming in that direction, and when the check it out, they come to a clearing and see nothing out of the ordinary.
a. Possible additions in this might be some rumors in the tavern – maybe some of the farmers have noticed a distinct drop in produce quality and they’re blaming that retired adventurer that lives outside town. “She’s one’o them tyflungs, you know..”
b. The PC’s move along what story you want to weave around this….
2. In the following sessions, it’s very apparent she had nothing to do with this, and it may just be a random occurrence, but they get wrapped up in some other sort of more pressing issue…. Orcs. The weather is affecting their way of life, too. What little farming they do has failed, causing them to begin raiding again…something that hasn’t happened in many years. The party will have to stop this incursion.
3. The PC’s will probably level sometime around this point, from fighting orcs. Don’t directly point out that the raids are due to the weather until their final encounter with them. Have them beat back a number of attacks, save a town or two, and maybe help funnel some supplies to a neighboring town. For a late summer wind, it seems to be chill, the previous nature person, or someone with high religion could assume this is an omen for bad things to come… Definitely throw in an ambush or attack to back this up.
4. Once the heroes take the fight to the orcs, they’ll come across the orcish lands. Being that they don’t revere Melora at all, they were the first to suffer. The land is dry and arid, and animals are emaciated and dying. Here a primal character could possibly perform some rituals to help them, (I believe there’s a really good druid one that causes instant growth) and might be able to avoid future fighting in lieu of helping the orcs.
5. Now, the PC’s are definitely aware something is going on with the weather. They don’t know what, so they’ll need to investigate. If the party has a wizard/invoker/bard or any other class that may have a quorum, they should consider going to speak with their master/teacher/study group. They would likely find that monsters are encroaching ever-closer to towns/cities along the way. These creatures should be weaker than normal, as they’re starving, cold, etc… Unfortunately, so are the townsfolk, so they still require aid of the heroes.
6. Once they have time to do some investigation, break it down according to knowledge type. If it’s a cleric/invoker, they should get a cryptic message or prophecy, talking about hunting, etc.. (I would really draw on the story of Ceryneian Hind for this, but keep it vague). They should get information that doesn’t really make sense, but may give them a clue where to go next. If it’s arcane, maybe they summon a devil to get the information, and the devil’s all too excited about this mess… This information could lead them in the proper direction, or along another plot-point you wish to pursue.
7. By this time, the party should be close to leveling again, and are now seeing clear signs of abnormal weather (maybe a tornado where it cannot exist, the prey/predator issue above, or high temperature days in late fall/winter, followed by snow, followed by a gross vegetation growth, with plants/food springing up and rotting in the course of hours/days.) The party, after gaining further information has learned they should seek out the Fey Court, home of the Eladrin, to see what they know of the disaster. Unfortunately, finding access to the Feywild during the wild hunt proves to be challenging (probably met with Eladrin opposition at the easiest entrances).
8. Once within the Feywild, they should find the weather to be quite reasonable for the plane. After all, Corellon protects this realm and is outside Melora’s direct influence. Gaining audience with the fey court should be near impossible. They’re focused on the wild hunt and are reeling from the primal euphoria they gain during this time. This would be a perfect time for the Formorians (or a weaker opponent) to strike. The most powerful Eladrin are off on the hunt and cannot protect their realm. The heroes step in and defeat the would-be assailants, which in turn, grants them audience with the Court.
9. With the defeat of the formorians, leveling is probably likely, and they’ll be coming close to either getting their paragon path, one of the last powers, or reeling close to their epic destiny. This should begin to show in the players and how the NPC’s act and talk to them. The fey court should be divided on the issue with Melora. Some might believe the wild hunt should be halted to help the heroes, where others won’t have it. The skill challenge here should represent what the ultimate outcome is, as it has serious repercussions.
a. If the Fey court choose to forestall the wild hunt, it could anger the gods, primal spirits, or prove to be some massive undoing in the eladrin (I always like the idea that the wild hunt is some way they keep their very primal nature in check, and remain themselves. Choosing to ignore it may cause the eladrin to revert to a more primal state, or become something else, entirely…) Of course, I am assuming this is done by an outside source wanting to kill Melora, not sure what your plans are… With the wild hunt on hold, the true culprit may make a move against the party, showing his hand. This could be another god, though I think it makes more sense to be a primordial, or a powerful demon, etc… not really a deity.
b. If the wild hunt continues, then possibly an urging from one of Melora’s exarch’s, weakened by her goddesses state could begin to point them in the right direction. They have little time, and they need to find a way to free Melora, stop the hunt, and defeat the badguy…
10. With the true culprit identified, the party must act swiftly, as either option above leaves them with little time to save the eladrin or Melora. [[[It seems as though the Drow would probably make a good supreme villain here. They benefit from either outcome, as they’d defeat their hated enemies the Eladrin, or with Melora’s death, they cause endless destruction to the material plane, all without being discovered as the primary villain.]]]
a. What to do? To save Melora, they need to figure out how she was polymorphed, and they can’t just ask her, as the demiplane she is on is in a constant state of extreme weather flux (making that wild hunt all the more enticing) So they’ll have to take on the drow (at this point, it should be at least clear who might be the one behind it) and get them to undo the spell.
11. I like the idea of the drow pulling strings, if it’s a high level game, she should be hanging out in the demonweb, protected by Yochlols and other minions of Lolth. IF it’s a lower level game, then a high priestess who uncovered an artifact that caused this. Regardless, the party will need to confront her, and that won’t be easy. Either option requires them to leave the Feywild and focus on another enemy quickly, before Melora or the Eladrin fall.
12. Once they’ve successfully made the journey, they can take on the drow and her minions, retrieve said macguffin, and make their way back to the Feywild. They’ll probably have leveled around this point.
13. Getting into the feywild now, is even harder.
a. If the Eladrin continued the wild hunt, they’re not about to let the heroes in to interfere again, meaning the party would have to get quite crafty. If the game is high enough level, I like the idea that the heroes bargain with Avandra, or one of her exarchs, to grant them passage.
b. If they held off on the hunt, the feywild should be looking very bleak right now. With the constant strain coming from the demiplane Melora is on, and the fact that the eladrin, especially the court, are suffering from their decision, they’ll likely have to contend with a very dangerous realm. Possibly making the Eladrin some sort of monster would be a good choice, giving them a “zombie” like battle through the dying forest-plane.
c. Finally, they’ll have to confront the court one final time, requesting admittance to the demi-plane. This place should look like a mini elemental chaos: Blizzards, rain, winds, snow, ice, hail, you name it. Traversing through this place should be a nightmare, and they still have to “catch” Melora. She is still a goddess, just in animal form. Battling back hordes of animals protecting her, along with trying to catch a creature that can outrun arrows. If they succeed, the wild hunt can continue, and hopefully the PC’s can be involved in some way.
14. If they continued the hunt, the heroes will have to find another means of accessing the demi-plane, (possibly through a portal, or disguise, what-have you) and will have to interfere with the hunt. They’ll be forced to battle with the Fey Court and their champions, while trying to save Melora. This could be one epic battle. If the heroes succeed, they also become champions of the wild hunt.
15. Regardless, they will eventually save Melora. Once they do, they can perform the ritual and free her from her prison. Upon doing so, she escapes the plane and returns to the material plane to begin setting nature right.
1. If you have a ranger/druid/bbn/shaman in the group (or someone else with an unnaturally high nature check) they notice some oddities on their first outing. Nothing too weird, but maybe they see some birds flying south/north (opposite direction for the weather). At first, they might think this is some sort of danger coming in that direction, and when the check it out, they come to a clearing and see nothing out of the ordinary.
a. Possible additions in this might be some rumors in the tavern – maybe some of the farmers have noticed a distinct drop in produce quality and they’re blaming that retired adventurer that lives outside town. “She’s one’o them tyflungs, you know..”
b. The PC’s move along what story you want to weave around this….
2. In the following sessions, it’s very apparent she had nothing to do with this, and it may just be a random occurrence, but they get wrapped up in some other sort of more pressing issue…. Orcs. The weather is affecting their way of life, too. What little farming they do has failed, causing them to begin raiding again…something that hasn’t happened in many years. The party will have to stop this incursion.
3. The PC’s will probably level sometime around this point, from fighting orcs. Don’t directly point out that the raids are due to the weather until their final encounter with them. Have them beat back a number of attacks, save a town or two, and maybe help funnel some supplies to a neighboring town. For a late summer wind, it seems to be chill, the previous nature person, or someone with high religion could assume this is an omen for bad things to come… Definitely throw in an ambush or attack to back this up.
4. Once the heroes take the fight to the orcs, they’ll come across the orcish lands. Being that they don’t revere Melora at all, they were the first to suffer. The land is dry and arid, and animals are emaciated and dying. Here a primal character could possibly perform some rituals to help them, (I believe there’s a really good druid one that causes instant growth) and might be able to avoid future fighting in lieu of helping the orcs.
5. Now, the PC’s are definitely aware something is going on with the weather. They don’t know what, so they’ll need to investigate. If the party has a wizard/invoker/bard or any other class that may have a quorum, they should consider going to speak with their master/teacher/study group. They would likely find that monsters are encroaching ever-closer to towns/cities along the way. These creatures should be weaker than normal, as they’re starving, cold, etc… Unfortunately, so are the townsfolk, so they still require aid of the heroes.
6. Once they have time to do some investigation, break it down according to knowledge type. If it’s a cleric/invoker, they should get a cryptic message or prophecy, talking about hunting, etc.. (I would really draw on the story of Ceryneian Hind for this, but keep it vague). They should get information that doesn’t really make sense, but may give them a clue where to go next. If it’s arcane, maybe they summon a devil to get the information, and the devil’s all too excited about this mess… This information could lead them in the proper direction, or along another plot-point you wish to pursue.
7. By this time, the party should be close to leveling again, and are now seeing clear signs of abnormal weather (maybe a tornado where it cannot exist, the prey/predator issue above, or high temperature days in late fall/winter, followed by snow, followed by a gross vegetation growth, with plants/food springing up and rotting in the course of hours/days.) The party, after gaining further information has learned they should seek out the Fey Court, home of the Eladrin, to see what they know of the disaster. Unfortunately, finding access to the Feywild during the wild hunt proves to be challenging (probably met with Eladrin opposition at the easiest entrances).
8. Once within the Feywild, they should find the weather to be quite reasonable for the plane. After all, Corellon protects this realm and is outside Melora’s direct influence. Gaining audience with the fey court should be near impossible. They’re focused on the wild hunt and are reeling from the primal euphoria they gain during this time. This would be a perfect time for the Formorians (or a weaker opponent) to strike. The most powerful Eladrin are off on the hunt and cannot protect their realm. The heroes step in and defeat the would-be assailants, which in turn, grants them audience with the Court.
9. With the defeat of the formorians, leveling is probably likely, and they’ll be coming close to either getting their paragon path, one of the last powers, or reeling close to their epic destiny. This should begin to show in the players and how the NPC’s act and talk to them. The fey court should be divided on the issue with Melora. Some might believe the wild hunt should be halted to help the heroes, where others won’t have it. The skill challenge here should represent what the ultimate outcome is, as it has serious repercussions.
a. If the Fey court choose to forestall the wild hunt, it could anger the gods, primal spirits, or prove to be some massive undoing in the eladrin (I always like the idea that the wild hunt is some way they keep their very primal nature in check, and remain themselves. Choosing to ignore it may cause the eladrin to revert to a more primal state, or become something else, entirely…) Of course, I am assuming this is done by an outside source wanting to kill Melora, not sure what your plans are… With the wild hunt on hold, the true culprit may make a move against the party, showing his hand. This could be another god, though I think it makes more sense to be a primordial, or a powerful demon, etc… not really a deity.
b. If the wild hunt continues, then possibly an urging from one of Melora’s exarch’s, weakened by her goddesses state could begin to point them in the right direction. They have little time, and they need to find a way to free Melora, stop the hunt, and defeat the badguy…
10. With the true culprit identified, the party must act swiftly, as either option above leaves them with little time to save the eladrin or Melora. [[[It seems as though the Drow would probably make a good supreme villain here. They benefit from either outcome, as they’d defeat their hated enemies the Eladrin, or with Melora’s death, they cause endless destruction to the material plane, all without being discovered as the primary villain.]]]
a. What to do? To save Melora, they need to figure out how she was polymorphed, and they can’t just ask her, as the demiplane she is on is in a constant state of extreme weather flux (making that wild hunt all the more enticing) So they’ll have to take on the drow (at this point, it should be at least clear who might be the one behind it) and get them to undo the spell.
11. I like the idea of the drow pulling strings, if it’s a high level game, she should be hanging out in the demonweb, protected by Yochlols and other minions of Lolth. IF it’s a lower level game, then a high priestess who uncovered an artifact that caused this. Regardless, the party will need to confront her, and that won’t be easy. Either option requires them to leave the Feywild and focus on another enemy quickly, before Melora or the Eladrin fall.
12. Once they’ve successfully made the journey, they can take on the drow and her minions, retrieve said macguffin, and make their way back to the Feywild. They’ll probably have leveled around this point.
13. Getting into the feywild now, is even harder.
a. If the Eladrin continued the wild hunt, they’re not about to let the heroes in to interfere again, meaning the party would have to get quite crafty. If the game is high enough level, I like the idea that the heroes bargain with Avandra, or one of her exarchs, to grant them passage.
b. If they held off on the hunt, the feywild should be looking very bleak right now. With the constant strain coming from the demiplane Melora is on, and the fact that the eladrin, especially the court, are suffering from their decision, they’ll likely have to contend with a very dangerous realm. Possibly making the Eladrin some sort of monster would be a good choice, giving them a “zombie” like battle through the dying forest-plane.
c. Finally, they’ll have to confront the court one final time, requesting admittance to the demi-plane. This place should look like a mini elemental chaos: Blizzards, rain, winds, snow, ice, hail, you name it. Traversing through this place should be a nightmare, and they still have to “catch” Melora. She is still a goddess, just in animal form. Battling back hordes of animals protecting her, along with trying to catch a creature that can outrun arrows. If they succeed, the wild hunt can continue, and hopefully the PC’s can be involved in some way.
14. If they continued the hunt, the heroes will have to find another means of accessing the demi-plane, (possibly through a portal, or disguise, what-have you) and will have to interfere with the hunt. They’ll be forced to battle with the Fey Court and their champions, while trying to save Melora. This could be one epic battle. If the heroes succeed, they also become champions of the wild hunt.
15. Regardless, they will eventually save Melora. Once they do, they can perform the ritual and free her from her prison. Upon doing so, she escapes the plane and returns to the material plane to begin setting nature right.
jbear
First Post
I would be somewhere in between hitting them over the head with the clues I want my PCs to sit up and notice and eeking them out drop by drop in no related fashion.
My group is about to hit level 5 and they are still to complete the initial quest the campaign began with. They've had plenty of sidetreks along the way, some unrelated some loosely related. Sometimes they forget what they were doing, where they were going and why. I decided to tie some unrelated stuff that they had decided to pursue into the 'big picture' that was rumbling away silently (and largely unnoticed) in the background.
They ideas I had were very loose to begin with, so this was easy, and proved a very good idea. When they took that side trek, it grew into something quite dramatic and important for the group. In the end, and to my surprise, each of the pc's individually made a dark pact with an evil god they had unwittingly helped (even the good dwarven cleric!!!). In exchange for the power he has offered them, they have agreed to perform an unknown task at the god's bidding in the future, of course, with the assurance it will be a task that he considers key in the struggle against an evil far greater than he... which would be the 'big picture' villain (but these things are never black and white are they, so much is a question of one's point of view...hehehehe!)
So with all these ploot hooks awaiting them in the future, plus the 5 or 6 'big', yet unrelated, plot hooks that had arisen during their journey to the place where the initial quest can be completed, I decided to put down the accelerator as far as advancing the 'big picture'.
I wanted to do that because they had reached a big crossroad in the story as far as I was concerned. I hadn't prepared anything beyond that point, and wasn't prepared to do so until I knew where they were going to go. That's what I told my group, asking them to make a decision upon which story they were most interested in pursuing, and in which direction they intended to pursue it.
Since the picture has begun to come together, in large due to the increased flow of clues and access to important background information, and my players have started throwing around theories that come pretty darn close to the mark, I can see they suddenly have a sense that they are connected to a story of 'great importance'. I think they have a feeling of unity and purpose for the first time (something that has been quite a struggle with two leaders whose ideas are day and night tugging the group this way and that).
And the best thing is that they are beating at the door, turning themselves inside out to organise the next game session. Yep, they are totally hooked.
Which is why I wonder at myself, as I tie back in another 'unrelated' story, a loose end the PCs left behind during one of their early blunders, and has been patiently awaiting their arrival ever since. Considering this blunder involves a relentless band of terrifying assassins that not even 'the Paladins of Elturguard' were prepared to challenge, what awaits them is lethal to say the least. And they have walked right into the set up without even asking for an Intuition check when dealing with the bait. A deadly halfling assassin posing as a homeless street urchin, selling fruit from a wheelbarrow in the town market, a very helpful contact, given all sorts of useful information, on the condition they tutor him in the arts of adventuring. Swallowed hook, line and sinker. I'm fairly sure they are going to allow this rascal to lead them right into the trap, without any qualms... Considering the lethality of the encounter, rather than death, the consequences will be an exotic journey towards the harsh deserts of Calisham to die (or live) as slaves in the gladiator arenas. This is all linked to my Genasí swordmages back story as an escaped slave that lead a successful revolt... nothing to do with the big picture however.
So with all that work done, painstaking hours preparing the path they have chosen... and a few steps down it they run a grave risk of being whisked away to the far reaches of the continent, on an entirely different adventure all together.
I hope they can find their way out of this one!!!
So, yeah, basically, I know where you're coming from Rechan, in so far as having too many contrary things you want to get into the same game. But I'm enjoying watching it evolve in its own way. It makes it exciting for me too. Yep, I'm hooked!
My group is about to hit level 5 and they are still to complete the initial quest the campaign began with. They've had plenty of sidetreks along the way, some unrelated some loosely related. Sometimes they forget what they were doing, where they were going and why. I decided to tie some unrelated stuff that they had decided to pursue into the 'big picture' that was rumbling away silently (and largely unnoticed) in the background.
They ideas I had were very loose to begin with, so this was easy, and proved a very good idea. When they took that side trek, it grew into something quite dramatic and important for the group. In the end, and to my surprise, each of the pc's individually made a dark pact with an evil god they had unwittingly helped (even the good dwarven cleric!!!). In exchange for the power he has offered them, they have agreed to perform an unknown task at the god's bidding in the future, of course, with the assurance it will be a task that he considers key in the struggle against an evil far greater than he... which would be the 'big picture' villain (but these things are never black and white are they, so much is a question of one's point of view...hehehehe!)
So with all these ploot hooks awaiting them in the future, plus the 5 or 6 'big', yet unrelated, plot hooks that had arisen during their journey to the place where the initial quest can be completed, I decided to put down the accelerator as far as advancing the 'big picture'.
I wanted to do that because they had reached a big crossroad in the story as far as I was concerned. I hadn't prepared anything beyond that point, and wasn't prepared to do so until I knew where they were going to go. That's what I told my group, asking them to make a decision upon which story they were most interested in pursuing, and in which direction they intended to pursue it.
Since the picture has begun to come together, in large due to the increased flow of clues and access to important background information, and my players have started throwing around theories that come pretty darn close to the mark, I can see they suddenly have a sense that they are connected to a story of 'great importance'. I think they have a feeling of unity and purpose for the first time (something that has been quite a struggle with two leaders whose ideas are day and night tugging the group this way and that).
And the best thing is that they are beating at the door, turning themselves inside out to organise the next game session. Yep, they are totally hooked.
Which is why I wonder at myself, as I tie back in another 'unrelated' story, a loose end the PCs left behind during one of their early blunders, and has been patiently awaiting their arrival ever since. Considering this blunder involves a relentless band of terrifying assassins that not even 'the Paladins of Elturguard' were prepared to challenge, what awaits them is lethal to say the least. And they have walked right into the set up without even asking for an Intuition check when dealing with the bait. A deadly halfling assassin posing as a homeless street urchin, selling fruit from a wheelbarrow in the town market, a very helpful contact, given all sorts of useful information, on the condition they tutor him in the arts of adventuring. Swallowed hook, line and sinker. I'm fairly sure they are going to allow this rascal to lead them right into the trap, without any qualms... Considering the lethality of the encounter, rather than death, the consequences will be an exotic journey towards the harsh deserts of Calisham to die (or live) as slaves in the gladiator arenas. This is all linked to my Genasí swordmages back story as an escaped slave that lead a successful revolt... nothing to do with the big picture however.
So with all that work done, painstaking hours preparing the path they have chosen... and a few steps down it they run a grave risk of being whisked away to the far reaches of the continent, on an entirely different adventure all together.
I hope they can find their way out of this one!!!
So, yeah, basically, I know where you're coming from Rechan, in so far as having too many contrary things you want to get into the same game. But I'm enjoying watching it evolve in its own way. It makes it exciting for me too. Yep, I'm hooked!
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My current (3e) campaign enters its sixth year now. The end is nigh, though. 'Elder Evils' gave me lots of good ideas on how to structure the campaign and keeping the players interested.5 years?!?!
It's the first campaign that went this long and might be the first to reach its natural conclusion. My previous campaigns all fizzled after an average of two years.
Still, it is way too long for my taste. The problem was thus: I had a very clear picture of what I wanted to do at the campaign's climax and it involved some very high CR creatures. Since the campaign started at level 1, that's a lot of ground I had to cover first.
For my 4e campaign I'm going to do things differently, e.g. I'll stop tracking xp. If a character dies, the next one will start at exactly the same level. I'll also only think about the heroic tier at first. Most monsters are no longer tied to a certain level range, so there's more freedom compared to 3e and it's super easy to adjust monster levels.
If I was to play a 3e campaign again, I'd just use an adventure path and fast-forward through it: concentrate on the encounters that matter for the story and let the pcs level up when it makes sense story-wise.
Lanefan
Victoria Rules
The two campaigns I've run start-to-finish went 10.5 and 11.8 years respectively. The third one is a puppy, being now a mere 1.75 years in.
First off, you twice mention "online" above: are you playing online, or around a table? (hint: "table" is 5/6 of "stable"...
)Second, you're assuming the players are going to stay the same all the way through - which is not always the case. In my first campaign, 3 of the 6 players who started the campaign finished it, and a total of 19 players were in at some point or other (and by "in", I mean they had at least one character of their own). My second campaign was similar; 2 of the 3 starting players were around for the end, while a total of 21 players got their names in the game log by playing at least one character.
You always need to keep an eye out for new blood. If you know ahead of time one of your players is leaving, start recruiting a replacement!
Lanefan
Lanefan
Victoria Rules
All editions of D+D essentially break down at a certain level. In 1e it's usually somewhere in the low teens. I think 2e is similar but am not sure, having never really played it. 3e was designed to go from 1-20 and despite some attempts to extend that range it seems to break down somewhere in the 20's. 4e is designed to go from 1-30 and it's not yet clear how far (if any) beyond that range it remains playable. The so-called "sweet spot", where the game plays best, is in all cases a subset of the listed range.
Now, if you use ExP-for-treasure in 1e, or play 3e or 4e by the book, you're probably going to cover that playable range in a frighteningly short time - two years, tops. 3e and 4e were in fact specifically designed to do this. And that two years might represent maybe 8-15 adventures, depending on your/your group's style.
Is that enough time to spin several long multi-adventure story arcs? No.
So how to counteract this? Slow down the level advancement, so as to keep your game within the "playable" level range (if not always the actual sweet spot) long enough for you to mine your setting/world/whatever for all the story potential it might offer. Then, once that potential is exhausted (which, in a rich setting, can take many years if not a lifetime), move on to the next campaign.
Though I'm not the person you're directly asking, I'd guess what's meant is 20 story or plot ideas.
Lanefan
I agree with Piratecat - throw in the cool stuff right away. You can always make more cool stuff later. For most people, RPG campaigns are like TV shows, you never know when you'll get cancelled. What's the point of a cool finale if you never get to it? Do what Buffy, Andromeda, new Galactica, The Sopranos et al did - throw in the best stuff right up. A good ending is nice, but a good start is better.
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