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What separates a sandbox adventure from an AP?
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<blockquote data-quote="goatunit" data-source="post: 6552420" data-attributes="member: 21379"><p>First, this series of articles is a great resource for anyone looking to run a sandbox, even if you don't want to dig into the mechanical bells and whistles of a hex crawl: <a href="http://thealexandrian.net/wordpress/17308/roleplaying-games/hexcrawl" target="_blank">http://thealexandrian.net/wordpress/17308/roleplaying-games/hexcrawl</a></p><p></p><p>Now, for answers to those specific questions:</p><p></p><p>Introduction - I recommend writing down three rumors per player on individual note cards, shuffling them, and passing them out before the game. Rumors can be about a local noble's infidelity, a tribe of kobolds in the sewers, a merchant trying to sell a torn treasure map, etc. Load them down with adventure hooks. Drown them in options, but make each option discreet and of a scope that is easy to gauge (ie. the cheating noble thing will be court intrigue; the kobolds in the sewers will be a quick hack-and-slash).</p><p></p><p>Player vs Monster Level - You're right about 4E not working for this. I'm not sure about 5E, as I haven't really tangled with anything outside of my pay grade yet. The idea, though, is that the world exists beyond the PCs. It doesn't adjust its difficulty to suit them. At early levels, be clear about the scope of the threat in a given area. Rumors aren't exclusively things to do--they're also valuable information about what to avoid. (There's a powerful red dragon in the hills nearby! There's a powerful lich in a crumbling tower in the bone swamp!) If they follow up on these rumors, then they should learn a quick and painful lesson in what sandbox games are about.</p><p></p><p>The Conclusion - Sandbox games are well-served by hex-based exploration (see the link above) with discreet adventure locales and organic plots. An organic plot is one that arises naturally from the setting and the players' interaction with it. For example, players who spend time in a particular six-hex area might quickly discover that the random encounter table for that region is heavy with a particular clan of raiding barbarians. Combined with some info from their rumors, just a touch of curiosity can lead them to wonder where the clan is based and possibly seek them out. If they discover which hex the barbarian camp is in, then they can attack or report it to the king, or go through the clan's mysterious rituals (which require a trip to the Cave of Destiny eight hexes away, which is within the borders of the expanding goblin kingdom! Oh, and they'll be passing through a space where trainable hippogriffs are on the random encounter chart! And who knows what ruins or other sites of interest hide in each of the hexes along the way?).</p><p></p><p>You can build traditional adventures, same as ever. You can build adventure paths and install themes and all the rest of it. The idea is just that you have a lot of it ready to go, and the players get to decide which threads to pull--sometimes changing their minds about what paths to go down as they encounter more unexpected twists and opportunities.</p><p></p><p>Player Paralysis - Start each session with new rumors. Give them a task that gets them out into the world (deliver a letter, find a thing) so they can run into random encounters and stumble onto adventure locations. Once you get them going, a well-built campaign will keep them almost too full of plans for future exploits.</p><p></p><p>Setting Material - Do it if you enjoy it, sure. I enjoy it myself. But if you want your players to interact with it, then you have to make it the problem rather than the solution. In other words, don't make a riddle puzzle that asks who the fifth king of your kingdom was, expecting the players to have cared enough to remember that. Instead, take a riddle they can figure out, and color it in with details from your setting. </p><p></p><p>Also, you should teach them that the world is alive. It will take them awhile to really grok it, but be consistent and they will eventually catch on. If the evil necromancer is using orc skeletons to terrorize local caravans, then there should be a half-empty orc burial mound in a hex adjacent to his tower. There should be a pissed off orc tribe that the PCs can put on his trail.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="goatunit, post: 6552420, member: 21379"] First, this series of articles is a great resource for anyone looking to run a sandbox, even if you don't want to dig into the mechanical bells and whistles of a hex crawl: [URL="http://thealexandrian.net/wordpress/17308/roleplaying-games/hexcrawl"]http://thealexandrian.net/wordpress/17308/roleplaying-games/hexcrawl[/URL] Now, for answers to those specific questions: Introduction - I recommend writing down three rumors per player on individual note cards, shuffling them, and passing them out before the game. Rumors can be about a local noble's infidelity, a tribe of kobolds in the sewers, a merchant trying to sell a torn treasure map, etc. Load them down with adventure hooks. Drown them in options, but make each option discreet and of a scope that is easy to gauge (ie. the cheating noble thing will be court intrigue; the kobolds in the sewers will be a quick hack-and-slash). Player vs Monster Level - You're right about 4E not working for this. I'm not sure about 5E, as I haven't really tangled with anything outside of my pay grade yet. The idea, though, is that the world exists beyond the PCs. It doesn't adjust its difficulty to suit them. At early levels, be clear about the scope of the threat in a given area. Rumors aren't exclusively things to do--they're also valuable information about what to avoid. (There's a powerful red dragon in the hills nearby! There's a powerful lich in a crumbling tower in the bone swamp!) If they follow up on these rumors, then they should learn a quick and painful lesson in what sandbox games are about. The Conclusion - Sandbox games are well-served by hex-based exploration (see the link above) with discreet adventure locales and organic plots. An organic plot is one that arises naturally from the setting and the players' interaction with it. For example, players who spend time in a particular six-hex area might quickly discover that the random encounter table for that region is heavy with a particular clan of raiding barbarians. Combined with some info from their rumors, just a touch of curiosity can lead them to wonder where the clan is based and possibly seek them out. If they discover which hex the barbarian camp is in, then they can attack or report it to the king, or go through the clan's mysterious rituals (which require a trip to the Cave of Destiny eight hexes away, which is within the borders of the expanding goblin kingdom! Oh, and they'll be passing through a space where trainable hippogriffs are on the random encounter chart! And who knows what ruins or other sites of interest hide in each of the hexes along the way?). You can build traditional adventures, same as ever. You can build adventure paths and install themes and all the rest of it. The idea is just that you have a lot of it ready to go, and the players get to decide which threads to pull--sometimes changing their minds about what paths to go down as they encounter more unexpected twists and opportunities. Player Paralysis - Start each session with new rumors. Give them a task that gets them out into the world (deliver a letter, find a thing) so they can run into random encounters and stumble onto adventure locations. Once you get them going, a well-built campaign will keep them almost too full of plans for future exploits. Setting Material - Do it if you enjoy it, sure. I enjoy it myself. But if you want your players to interact with it, then you have to make it the problem rather than the solution. In other words, don't make a riddle puzzle that asks who the fifth king of your kingdom was, expecting the players to have cared enough to remember that. Instead, take a riddle they can figure out, and color it in with details from your setting. Also, you should teach them that the world is alive. It will take them awhile to really grok it, but be consistent and they will eventually catch on. If the evil necromancer is using orc skeletons to terrorize local caravans, then there should be a half-empty orc burial mound in a hex adjacent to his tower. There should be a pissed off orc tribe that the PCs can put on his trail. [/QUOTE]
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