D&D 5E Modules and lack of player engagement...

[overgeeked]

Due to my D&D group's generally busy adult lives our regular DMs simply don't have the time to create adventures so they typically just run canned modules, series, or adventure paths. This isn't a big deal, we all know what we're in for. But recently the DMs have started complaining a bit about a lack of player engagement in the modules. We play, we sometimes talk in character, we role-play our characters, and all that. After a bit of discussion on the topic the two regular DMs feel that the individual characters are not hooked into the story of the module enough. Whilst that's a fair complaint, it's also something of a given considering we're running through canned adventures with very little if any real changes made.

That last bit's the key. I think. The modules are being run straight out of the box and we're generally on rails as there's a section of the adventure the DM has prepped for and that's what we're expected to run through. Not strict or absurd or blatantly obvious rails, rather subtler though nonetheless ever-present.

Whilst the one-page backgrounds appendix in Hoard is a step in the right direction, and admittedly some of those hooks are rather neat, I think that approach is kind of backwards. There's really a simple and easy solution staring us in the face, especially with 5th Edition D&D... instead of specifically tailoring a character's background to the module, include open options within the modules for all the backgrounds. Just about every NPC is a hook waiting to happen.

Hey, WOTC... how about including at least one paragraph on each of the 13 standard backgrounds with some details about how a that background could plug into that specific adventure. Include a few extra lines with each significant NPC on how a few backgrounds could hook into that character. For example, some NPCs that could have fought with the Soldier (either alongside or against), some NPCs that could have been a target of the Charlatan or Criminal, some NPCs that could have helped or hindered the Urchin, some NPCs that could remember the Entertainer or Guild Craftsman for an excellent or shoddy performance / job. Hell, maybe a random d6 or d8 table with each of the significant NPCs and how two specific backgrounds would hook into that character.

 

[Tony Semana]

This is a great suggestion! In our game, I'll be starting a new group on LMoP and moving onto HotDQ, and will be using Backstory Cards method to build connections between the players, their backgrounds, and NPC's, places and events in both modules.

 

[Astrosicebear]

I am writing a large 5E module and I have done exactly that. Ive included a blurb for groups of backgrounds with hooks.

 

[Thank Dog]

I'm sorry but this is something that I really feel falls on the DM's shoulders. Modules work best when they're minimalist and straightforward. The worst modules are the ones that have so much information that they cause the DM to go apoplectic trying to sort through it all, or worse bore the DM so much in trying to memorise it all that they give up entirely. A good module is one that gives you enough information to build a story upon and it's up to the DM to weave that story with the PC's as threads. It's also up to the players to involve their PC's by engaging themselves and involving themselves in the story instead of doing everything they can to be a hindrance and obstacle.

If modules start filling up with what I consider to be extraneous information, I think you'll see far fewer people running them at all.

 

[Uchawi]

That is when you can create a player supplement for a module. Take some of the work off the DM.

 

[Blackbrrd]

I'm sorry but this is something that I really feel falls on the DM's shoulders. Modules work best when they're minimalist and straightforward. The worst modules are the ones that have so much information that they cause the DM to go apoplectic trying to sort through it all, or worse bore the DM so much in trying to memorise it all that they give up entirely. A good module is one that gives you enough information to build a story upon and it's up to the DM to weave that story with the PC's as threads. It's also up to the players to involve their PC's by engaging themselves and involving themselves in the story instead of doing everything they can to be a hindrance and obstacle.

If modules start filling up with what I consider to be extraneous information, I think you'll see far fewer people running them at all.

I usually run premade modules, and I think you are right. It's easier to add your own stuff if the module is easy to comprehend. I do think that some effort is needed outside normal gameplay, otherwise you very quickly end up in the position of the OP.