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Message: <blockquote data-quote="ThirdWizard" data-source="post: 6226037" data-attributes="member: 12037">Dungeon World is very much about improvisation. This is both on the part of the GM and the players. So, I prepared only the bare bones of an adventure before starting. Much of the detail would come about during play. Starting out, I had a list of prepared questions to ask that would help the player inform me, the GM, of the world we were playing in. I'd take that and, hopefully, use it to enhance the scenario. All I knew was that there was going to be some kind of cult that the player was after, they were in some inhospitable area a few days from a city, and some notes on possible monsters to use. That's it! So, I started asking questions.You are in pursuit of evil cultists. <ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Why are you after them? I was hired to go after them.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Who do they worship? They worship the Gates of Hell</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">What will you do when you find them? They are attempting to perform a ritual that I must stop.</li> </ul>Fairly standard stuff ther- Gates of Hell??? Awesome! So these cultists worship the Gates of Hell, and Nohnee has been hired to track them down and stop the ritual they're trying to perform. I can work with that. Maybe throw some undead in, seeing as how the gates would allow the cultists to break down the barriers between the living and the dead. So some more questions.You’ve been following them for days. This land is particularly rough to travel over.<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Where has it taken you? A tangled forest.</li> </ul>That one's fairly standard, but we decided to make it extremely overgrown, with vines snaking everywhere and no straight paths available. I also decided to emphasize the elven nature of our protagonist. She would be able to traverse through the forest fairly easily, while her hireling had more trouble. Ah, yes, she has a hireling.You have a guide to take you through this area. There were lots of guides to choose from in the city you came from, but you chose Malrock. <ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">What made him stand out? His good looks.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">What skill or background does he have that none of the other guides had? He was quieter than the others, who boasted of their abilities to no end. Something about his nature stood out, and I could tell that he had seen more than his fair share of battles.</li> </ul>Based on this, I created her hirling. She started in a large city, so I had pre-determined that Malrock would have 6 points to distribute. Loyalty was first, and I put 3 points into that. Since she hired him because she recognized his skill, I decided that he recognized her skill as well, and a mutual respect would be part of the dynamic, thus a high loyalty. She emphasized that he was a stoic warrior, but also that he was likable. We decided to make him the strong silent type, but very charismatic all the same. I gave him the Warrior skill at +2 and the Minstrel skill at +1. I wouldn't play up the fact that he's a "minstrel" just use that skill as a shorthand for him getting along with people. He's the tall, handsome, and brooding figure that people tend to be drawn to. He's quite a guy!There are many dangers in this land.<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">What are you most worried about? Evil spirits who possess intruders.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">What danger scares your guide but doesn’t worry you at all? The many four legged predatory animals. Wolves, cougars, and other hunters.</li> </ul>So the forest is haunted. That gives it another bit of feeling that I hadn't considered. That would also explain why the cultists who worship the Gates of Hell, and thus have some sway over the undead, would be willing to travel through such a dangerous area. And, the spirits aren't just ghosts who wander the forest. They possess intruders! You might find yourself unable to control your own actions, or your allies might turn on you.Overall, I was really intrigued with the answers, and we moved onto the starting scene of the adventure.</blockquote>

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