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Message: <blockquote data-quote="RCanine" data-source="post: 6748797" data-attributes="member: 85040">There are essentially three types of structures you can divide adventures into:* Linear (one encounter after another, PCs go from beginning to end)* Non-linear (where PCs can choose any number of encounters in almost any order, until they find/choose the final one)* Branching (which is a linear adventure with decision points that alter what the next encounter will be)Personally, I think the branching structure works best. Non-linear adventures feel fine, but they heavily incentivize a rushed playstyle because the assumption is that there are more encounters than time. Linear adventures are fine for one playthrough, but lack replayability and their win condition is usually binary (win/lose). A branching structure works well because those decisions points are also character building points, RP points, and can make an adventure incredibly replayable. It can also create varying "shades" of victory -- e.g. choosing a winning faction, winning at great cost, etc. Plus they're easy to limit the total number of encounters you can face, so that fits well into OP timelines.There are also some encounter types I think are fun but don't work well for OP:* Puzzles that rely on OOC knowledge/logic these tend to be played as either "did you play D&D 10 years ago?" or "everyone check their phones while player X hogs the one printout".* Traps. These tend to play as "did you optimize perception?" "Let's spend an hour taking 5-ft steps until someone rolls above a 15 searching"* Ambushes and secret doors. See the above for traps.* Interview/Interrogation Encounters ("everyone check their phones while the bard rolls a bunch of charisma checks"* Combats in close/cramped quarters (less of a problem in 5E, which usually boils down to a D20-off of basic attacks anyway)... now, I've seen exceptions to all of these, but they are the common traps that 5E designers fall into. Some of the others are:* PCs not getting clues/progressing toward a solution* PCs not having a clear understanding of where they are/what their goal is* The optimal strategy just to kill everything dead* Requiring too many of the same skill / ability checks in order to get/find something</blockquote>

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