Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Jacob Marley" data-source="post: 6236170" data-attributes="member: 89537">Over the years my methodology has evolved considerably in how I plan, build and referee campaigns; I expect it to continue to evolve going forward. That said, here is how I am currently prepping my campaign:The game is 3.5 D&D with influences from 1e and 2e source books. The campaign is set in and around Ratik and the Bone March, in the post-Wars era of Greyhawk; with a focus on wilderness exploration, political intrigue and large-scale military engagements. My primary tools for prepping and running the game are: the random encounter charts from the 1983 World of Greyhawk boxed set, the random encounter charts from the 1st Edition AD&D Dungeon Masters Guide, Mythic: Game Master Emulator, the 2nd Edition AD&D Monstrous Manual, and the various Core and Complete books from 3.5. I also use From the Ashes, The Marklands, and Iuz the Evil for flavor; and <a href="http://rpgcharacters.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Dyson's Dodecahedron</a> for quick dungeons (when I need them). Before play begins I write up a couple dozen NPCs. This includes stat blocks, personalities, agendas and motivations. Some of these come straight out of Greyhawk canon. I try not to think in terms of enemies and allies, however. Who the PCs ally with and who they oppose should be fluid and arise through play. I also draw out a hex map, including sub-maps, of the region. These maps include geographic formations and settlements, primarily. The maps are used for determining distance and travel time, as well as setting the predominant terrain (plains, scrub, forest, etc.) for random encounters.The first game session is handled differently than subsequent sessions. I like to start the game out in medias res. I find that starting a game with the phrase "Roll initiative!" gets the players interacting with each other better than any other method I've tried. This is typically a larger combat with a number of moving parts. After this combat, the players are free to do as they please - that is, I typically don't have anything prepared beyond that first encounter; I just react to what the players decide to do. Having access to random tables and Mythic: Game Master Emulator is a big help. Most of the guys I play with a fairly proactive and come into the game with goals that they wish to pursue. Those goals set forth the initial campaign threads. I make note of these and whoever the PCs interact with. At the end of the session I ask the players what they are planning to do next. Whatever they answer determines what I prep for the next adventure.For subsequent sessions, typically, I roll up anywhere from 3-5 random encounters, the nature of which is determined by the PCs previous actions, and the Event Focus and Event Meaning tables in Mythic: Game Master Emulator. These encounters are further defined by asking questions on the Fate Chart. Generally the PCs will interact with 2-3 of those encounters with the rest of the session's encounters coming about as a reaction to what the PCs do. Again, having access to the random encounter tables and Mythic: Game Master Emulator is helpful. I make detailed lists as the game progresses and finish each session asking the players what they plan on doing next. Ideally, the game should provide the players with maximum freedom to do as they wish.</blockquote>

Verification