Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*TTRPGs General
Worlds of Design: The Core of the Adventure
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="collin" data-source="post: 7782583" data-attributes="member: 6757"><p>I think you have pretty well broken down the possible hooks or plot points/devices that provide the impetus for creating an adventure. I have used 1 or more of most of these ideas in the adventures that I have run or created for my players. Sometimes combining these elements makes for a good story - a new artifact or spell involving an NPC in a location as yet unknown to the players (ala, Raiders of the Lost Arc type of story). I tend to agree that play-testing "seems" to be less these days rather than more, but I think that is driven by the nature of the business. </p><p></p><p>I think another way to put it is you could start with 1 of the 7 basic story plots and go from there in a fantasy (or other) setting:</p><p>1. The Quest</p><p>2. Overcoming a monster/foe/rival</p><p>3. There and back again (voyage and return)</p><p>4. The Tragedy</p><p>5. The Comedy (always nice to have some elements even in a serious adventure)</p><p>6. Rebirth</p><p>7. Rags to riches/"Prince and the Pauper"</p><p></p><p>Of course, some of these plot points are easier to translate to a setting like D&D than others, but subplots can be incorporated that use more than 1 of them.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="collin, post: 7782583, member: 6757"] I think you have pretty well broken down the possible hooks or plot points/devices that provide the impetus for creating an adventure. I have used 1 or more of most of these ideas in the adventures that I have run or created for my players. Sometimes combining these elements makes for a good story - a new artifact or spell involving an NPC in a location as yet unknown to the players (ala, Raiders of the Lost Arc type of story). I tend to agree that play-testing "seems" to be less these days rather than more, but I think that is driven by the nature of the business. I think another way to put it is you could start with 1 of the 7 basic story plots and go from there in a fantasy (or other) setting: 1. The Quest 2. Overcoming a monster/foe/rival 3. There and back again (voyage and return) 4. The Tragedy 5. The Comedy (always nice to have some elements even in a serious adventure) 6. Rebirth 7. Rags to riches/"Prince and the Pauper" Of course, some of these plot points are easier to translate to a setting like D&D than others, but subplots can be incorporated that use more than 1 of them. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*TTRPGs General
Worlds of Design: The Core of the Adventure
Top