D&D General Sandbox style: Rumors say a +1 sword is in a cave nearby. Go get it?

[EzekielRaiden]

Given the stupidly high lethality of low-level OSR-type D&D? Absolutely the hell not. Chasing rumors of incredible awesomeness is what gets you killed dead, dead, dead. Careful, methodical planning, thoroughly casing the joint, digging up every scrap of information, spending literal hours just hashing out your plans and back-up plans and fallback plans and (etc., etc.) is pretty much mandatory if you don't want to die....and even if you do do all of that you might still get screwed by two unlucky rolls and die anyway.

 

[Bill Zebub]

The only thing more feared than the dreaded Gazebo is the vile Hyperbole.

 

[rmcoen]

In my current "sandbox-y" campaign, the starting map of the area featured a red dragon in the SW corner - not as a decoration, but as an honest and accurate "A red dragon lives here and terrorizes that area." The party is now 9th-ish, and haven't even stepped a foot in that direction.

When they were around 6th level, they acquired "The Shield of the Guardian". It's a +1 magic shield, that can glow with a soft light (candle, 5' bright, plus 5' more dim). It was carried by a knight that protected the refugees on a decade-long flight to safety. No one recalls his name, just that he was always the one riding to the rescue of the civilians when ambushed or flanked, prioritizing their safety over his own. And eventually, he fell in battle, saving those civilians; the shield was lost for centuries, but his story lived on. Until the PCs found the shield, hung over a mantle in a hobgoblin barracks, as a war trophy! (Mechanically, when the shield is glowing, it slightly incentivizes "random target" situations to pick the wielder. Like "1 to 5, the ogre attacks the knight, 6 to 10, he attacks the rogue" becomes "1 to 6, knight; 7 to 10, rogue". All from belief in the story of the Guardian Knight.) The PC knight who carries the Shield now had a brief side-encounter with a dwarven historian that recognized the crest, earning a small boon from the scholar because "the Shield wouldn't allow a bad sort to wield it" [not true!], which cemented some of the story. The party tank has carried that shield ever since.

In a previous 2e campaign, the 0th-level characters acquired "the Sword of Othalgar" - from the ruins of Othalgar Keep - which was a +2 magical longsword that would return to your grasp when summoned. [And yes, the paladin did dispatch a BBEG later in the game by punching him in the stomach with her empty hand... and summoning the sword! with a nat20, no less!] The point here being "wow, powerful sword" but also it was a well-known sword. Multiple plot impacts happened from them visibly carrying and using the sword, from theft and assassination attempts, to purchase / inheritance claims, to back-taxes, and (by the end of the campaign), two of the PCs becoming the new Lord and Lady Othalgar. (Inheriting the Keep, and the border responsibilities that came with it.)

So "is a +1 sword enough of a hook"? As so many have responded across 13 pages already: depends on the players, and depends on the sword! What's the STORY that supports the HOOK? The "+1"-y-ness is just the loot!

 

[Lanefan]

Given the stupidly high lethality of low-level OSR-type D&D? Absolutely the hell not. Chasing rumors of incredible awesomeness is what gets you killed dead, dead, dead. Careful, methodical planning, thoroughly casing the joint, digging up every scrap of information, spending literal hours just hashing out your plans and back-up plans and fallback plans and (etc., etc.) is pretty much mandatory if you don't want to die....and even if you do do all of that you might still get screwed by two unlucky rolls and die anyway.

So?

In old-school D&D it doesn't take long to roll up a new one; and ideally you'd be playing two at once anyway so that when one dies you've still got the other to run.

 

[overgeeked]

So?

In old-school D&D it doesn't take long to roll up a new one; and ideally you'd be playing two at once anyway so that when one dies you've still got the other to run.

Or you promote a hireling, or you find your new character in the next room, or...

The only reason a player sits on their hands between characters in an old-school game is because the referee wants them to.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Look, strange women lying in ponds, distributing swords is no basis for a system of government.

But it might make the basis of a neat adventure.

 

[TaranTheWanderer]

But it might make the basis of a neat adventure.

A Quest, perhaps?

 

[Lanefan]

Or you promote a hireling, or you find your new character in the next room, or...

The only reason a player sits on their hands between characters in an old-school game is because the referee wants them to.

Or because the player for some reason wants to.

Rarely in-fiction circumstances make immediate replacement impossible, and to me that's fair; but most of the time what you say is true.

 

[Quickleaf]

You are fresh level 1 characters. You are playing in a sandbox style game. You have many options to explore. Caves and temples and whatever. Riches and glory and treasure no matter where you go.

One rumor says a cave full of monsters has a magic (+1) sword hidden somewhere inside. Is it worth it to you to seek out this sword? You are level 1 and have no magic items. Plus, who knows what's in the other areas to explore. It's JUST a +1 sword after all.

Would it make a difference if it was AD&D/OSR/Shadowdark etc?

Basically: Is it worth going out of the parties way to get JUST a +1 sword?

Good sandboxes use overlapping adventure hooks in intelligent and sometimes unexpected ways.

An example of how I'd present your "+1 sword in a monster cave" hook:

When the dwarves retreated to the foothills, they sought refuge in a cliffside cavern where they were attacked by winged monsters. In their flight, the magic sword Vlangblaud was lost, clattering into the darkness. As one of the magic swords crafted to open the impenetrable adamantine gates to the Dwarven Kingdom of old, Vlangblaud is a cherished treasure many a dwarven thane dreams of reclaiming.
GM Notes: Vlangblaud is a +1 longsword with Dwarvish runes along its blade reading "Hark the song of the deep, I tread reverently where ancestors sleep." It has the (DMG) trait of being a key that opens the doors to the Dwarven Kingdom.
Twist: The cave is occupied by sentient giant vampiric bats who've recently become led by a werebat (The Missing Baron's Son) who lurks in darkness ashamed of his condition and afraid of bringing harm to his fiance who he can never see again. If befriended/pacified/parlayed by PCs, he might reveal a secret vertical passage leading to Saint Elaesin's Hidden Vale.