What makes a great AP game?

[Khairn]

With so many Adventure Path adventures / campaigns available today (Shackled City, Age of Worms, War of the Burning Sky, Slavelords, Drow etc)... what are the elements that make a good AP into a "great" AP?

 

[Nightfall]

*never considered Slave lords or Drow series THAT great an AP honestly*

What makes the Dungeon stuff great is the tie ins to D&D history along with the fact they prove that people want something meaty with their modules.

 

[ShadowDenizen]

I think the AP stirs something in most gamers, as the Adventure Paths are truly epic in scale.

There's something superbly rewarding in playing a character from 1st to 20th level, watching them progress from fledgling adventure to world-renowned hero.

And the Paizo AP's, in particular are enjoyable, as Nightfall said, is the tanglible link and respect to D+D past. (In AoW, we get Kyuss and Dragotha, and in ST, we are getting Demogorgon; how cool is that?!)


Of the AP's, I love WotBS so far, love the Paizo AP's, and was somewhat disapppinted in the Mongoose offering (though I may be biased, since I don't care for Drow that much to start with.)

Edited because Nightfall is not actually history.

 

[Khairn]

A link to "History" helps with player recognition, but do you think it has that much of an impact on AP quality? Afterall, Burning Sky introduces a completely new setting, and reviews have been very positive for it.

I agree that a "meaty" series of adventures is a good selling point along with player advancement. So many campaigns never actually bring the player from 1 - 20 that I think it encourages both players and GM's to remain focused on the tale.

 

[Nightfall]

Shadow,

I'm a tangible link to history? Cool. Maybe now I can get some royalties.

 

[EyeontheMountain]

I think the adventure paths are great because they show powerful outsiders or even gods actively working behind the scenes to destroy the world, or at elast to change it in some way beneficial to them, with all the low-high level characters who are surrounding them and their plot.

Plus they give a good view of interesting parts of the world, and have a great opportunity to showcase different terrains, and different challanges within the scope of the AP.

Have a dungeon crawl, a diplomatic session, a survival from the elements session, and soon. Makes the characters deal with a well-rounded set of problems.

Plus you have good writers who use imaginative plot devices and backstories to keep the DM's interest, even if not much of it gets passed on to the players.

 

[RangerWickett]

I think the adventure paths are great because they show powerful outsiders or even gods actively working behind the scenes to destroy the world, or at elast to change it in some way beneficial to them, with all the low-high level characters who are surrounding them and their plot.

For War of the Burning Sky, I actually made a point of not involving powerful outsiders or gods. The conflict is solely a mortal one, albeit one of mythic proportions. Human beings (and similar races) are just much more compelling antagonists to me than extraplanar forces.

Plus they give a good view of interesting parts of the world, and have a great opportunity to showcase different terrains, and different challanges within the scope of the AP.

Have a dungeon crawl, a diplomatic session, a survival from the elements session, and soon. Makes the characters deal with a well-rounded set of problems.

Plus you have good writers who use imaginative plot devices and backstories to keep the DM's interest, even if not much of it gets passed on to the players.

I do hope we have this in WotBS, though. Only once in 12 adventures will we have two adventures in the same place, and travel is a key aspect of the plot. For one thing, it makes it easier for a GM to find an adventure he likes on its own even if he's not interested in the whole saga. For instance, have you ever adventured in a forest fire? Adventure 2 of the series, The Indomitable Fire Forest of Innenotdar, just came out, and has just that setting. I'm pretty sure it's unique among adventures.

We're working hard to keep things fresh, while still driving the plot of the war along. I hope you'll take a look.

 

[Nightfall]

I still wonder how I became a link in D&D history. I always thought I'd end up a boil on WotC behind.