PDF products I'd like to see

[Joe123]

You are asking for a book on "How to Create Art". Creating adventures whether published for the masses or by a DM with only one PC is artistry and I don't think a book can explain HOW to do that.

Yes a book can explain how to do that. There is one for what you call the `art' of adventure-creating in D&D and it's called the Dungeon Master's Guide. What I'm talking about is a more comprehensive book on adventure-creating. There are books for other kinds of `art', including painting and how to write, amongst a plethora of other topics. Surely the publishing houses considered them salable, or else they would not be in print. A book on adventure-creating for D&D would, I dare say, be desirable for many DMs. (Have a look at the numerous threads by DMs requesting adventure-creating advice and consider that players on the official WotC messageboards have requested such a product).

Wizards of the Coast will release their DMG II in June 2005, which includes advice on`Designing Adventures' and `Running Campaign Settings.' Although it does not focus entirely on `adventure-creating', which leaves the door open for another publisher to make such a product.

 

[DaveStebbins]

What I'm talking about is a more comprehensive book on adventure-creating.

Well there is Gary Gygax’s Insidiae: The Brainstormers Guide to Adventure Writing published by Troll Lord Games. I can't give you a review or recommendation (I haven't read it), but it is another option.

http://www.trolllord.com/insidiae.htm

 

[jmucchiello]

I hate when I'm misunderstood. Makes me question my ability to write.

Yes a book can explain how to do that. There is one for what you call the `art' of adventure-creating in D&D and it's called the Dungeon Master's Guide. What I'm talking about is a more comprehensive book on adventure-creating. There are books for other kinds of `art', including painting and how to write, amongst a plethora of other topics.

Yes, ther are many such books. I was talking about Art with a capital A though. Ask 100 songwriters how they write a song, and you'll get 100 answers. Ask 100 DMs how they create adventures and they'll give 100 answers. There is no one path to creating Art. All I was saying was that all publishers could write such a book and everyone of those books would be unique and valid explanations of how to create adventures.

However, only a few of those books would be what YOU need to help YOU create adventures. The others would contain hints and tips that don't help you. How would you find the book that meshed with your style? From my point of view this makes a book on adventure design a difficult proposition.

Again, I'm not saying there isn't a market for such a book. I just think it is a very fragmented market. Perhaps the niches that PDFs fill is appropriate for such a work. So far, no one has seen it that way.

OTOH, look at the Seeds books by Expeditious Retreat. Technically, they are examples of how to create adventures. They don't contain step by step guides, just seeds of plot ideas. Books on DMing NPCs are also examples of adventure design. While these are not as step by step as you are looking for, they have the benefit of existing (rather than being something you hope will be written someday).

And the reason I am so negative on the idea is that I think the only way to write a truly great adventure is write it with the 3-6 people who will play it in mind. Some playgroups liked Sunless Citadel, thought it was best adventure they went on in forever. Others found it boring or dull. The mix of people can affect your enjoyment. Playing it with A, B and C and you'll love it. Play it with D, E and F and you'll hate it. And ultimately, all of those players had a completely different experience compared to one another.

That is very hard to distill into a book.

 

[Cergorach]

That is very hard to distill into a book.

Sure it's hard, but that's why people would be willing to pay for it.

I've been thinking about something like that (and i'm not a pro writer), it's certainly more complex then writing a setting, feat, spell, monster, or prestige class. But if done properly it could be a great seller, especially if you get it printed and in stores. It wouldn't really need illustrations (maybe some diagrams). It should be like "Making Adventures for Dummies" or something...

 

[jmucchiello]

It should be like "Making Adventures for Dummies" or something...

Just using that title probably turns off more people than it turns on.

Good luck if you give it a go. If you write it well enough (or provide multiple methodologies in a manner that doesn't seem like multiple books shoved together), perhaps you can defragment the market for such a product.

 

[Cergorach]

Just using that title probably turns off more people than it turns on.

*grins* Yeah, that's true. But what i'm trying to drive at is that it should be more like a learning book then a conventional RPG supplement.

Good luck if you give it a go. If you write it well enough (or provide multiple methodologies in a manner that doesn't seem like multiple books shoved together), perhaps you can defragment the market for such a product.

For now it's nothing more then identifying the process, writing it down and looking at different possible choices in that process (writing some thing generic vs. player/group spesific, different player archtypes, different DM archtypes, etc.).

Some thing i'm wondering is whether something like that should be RPG generic or D&D (D20) specific. The first would be more usefull to more people (and possibly more systems for one person), on the other hand it might be to generic. The second would allow indept discussion of (for example) CRs, encounter balancing, etc. But would only be usefull to D&D DMs (and D20 like games).

 

[DMH]

Using something like this for guidelines:

http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/ml...75.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp

An indepth book on mongrelmen (since they are OGC with the TOH).

 

[MatthewJHanson]

It should be like "Making Adventures for Dummies" or something...

It's off topic, but I can't resist:


Dungeons and Dragons for Dummies

On a more on topic note, I agree that while it would be difficult to do, if done prperly a product like this would be worth doing.

I'd rather compare creating adventures to writing a story, because I think they're more similar, and because I know more about writing.

While there are many ways to write a good story, there are a lot more ways to write a bad story, and there a lot of guidlines that can be drawn that tend to make stories better.

I think the same sort of thing can be done for adventures.

 

[DaveStebbins]

I'd rather compare creating adventures to writing a story, because I think they're more similar, and because I know more about writing.

I'd rather compare adventure creation to writing HALF a story, realizing that the players and their PCs will fill in the other half.

 

[Bloodstone Press]

I think I could write a book on how to write adventures. Not necessarily how "I" do it, but how one should think about literary and game elements and use them in a game setting.

Although if you ask 100 artist how they create art, they will give you 100 answers, if you ask them How is art made they can tell you about color schemes, composition, media, hue, etc. They can't tell you how to use them to express your artistic feelings, that's for you (the artist) to do. But they CAN tell you about the basic formulas and "rules" that are involved in making a painting or a song.

I think I could surely write a book that covered:
Chapt 1. The basic plot variations
Chap 2. Preparing not planning
Chap 3. What is heroics
Chap. 4. the flow of information and the give and take of communication
Chap 5 Small group dynamics, group think, leadership etc.
Chap. 6.Dynamic Dming and the flow of time
Chapt 7. Designing encounters
Chapt. 8. etc.

I would also come to these boards and start a few discussions on the elements of good DMing and see what sort of input I could get from people.

I'd like to write a book like that actually, but I won't have a chance until next summer some time.

As for how to develop a good plot, the Book of Broken Dreams has a great system for doing just that. The best plots are character driven. With the personality rules in the BoBD, you can create a group of realistic and unique personalities and put them on a matrix that determines their interpersonal relationships. Once you do that, plots and subplots emerge faster than you can count.