So, I am putting together a D&D campaign for some friends and family, and thought I would ask around here for some inspiration. I know some of you are nerds and most of you are twisted. :)
I plan to steal a few ideas from favorite video games and such, but am also looking for interesting plot hooks, surprising traps and items, shit that definitely turns out to not be what it first appears, etc.
Any helpful ideas or advice? Thanks in advance!
plan NPCs with motivations instead of plotlines
that way when the PCs don't follow the plot it is easier to ad lib how the people around them react
what system are you using?
are you using any of the settings? Dark Sun, Ravenloft, Sword Coast, Eberon...
Start a campaign where they raid an Orc village that has been raiding their town, and then come back to villagers protesting them and spitting on them holding signs that say "Orc Lives Matter"
And in the conversation if they use a pronoun like Mr./Mrs/etc, have the NPC's lose their shit about assuming pronouns and genders and turn the entire campaign into a gender identity clusterfuck.
Toss in a few things like a wizards school where they stopped learning spells and concentrate entirely on social issues and they hold protests to end the monarchy, instead supporting a marxist/agrarian collective.
Probably 3.5, most of my source books are either 3.0 or 3.5 and the players are mostlly 3.5 familiar.
Always sound advice.
Make them fight a dragon in a dungeon.
Nope, I am building out a world from scratch, inspired (loosely) by the old Gazetteer series.
Actually, I was planning to have a prominent Orc presence, but as a sad social commentary on the plight of Native Americans. Once proud warriors, now they are relegated to reservations and pander to the "more advanced" races who come only to indulge their vices.
Use 5.0 it's more dm friendly amd easier to make shit up on the go. I allow my pc fags to play homebrew classes and races also. Wanna do something surprising? Introduce some dragon riders or make an Nov a reborn god. Always makes for a good time
>Probably 3.5
if you can afford the core books
I strongly recommend using Pathfinder
it starts with 3.5 ruleset and changes some things that:
>make paperwork easier
>characters more customizable
>better multiclassing options
>a usable social encounter system
>an amazing organization/kingdom building system
and there are rules for converting from 3.5 to Pathfinder so you can use any D&D setting instead of Paizo's setting
Npc's*
Include characters from things they like
>have solaire and praise the motherfucking sun
Make them meet bureaucratic dwarves. And I mean hardcore bureaucratic. think central bureaucracy from futurama. Design an entire adventure around obtaining some weird kind of approved, standard-compliant, dwarf-certified mcguffin. Play it straight, no obvious comedy. Walk away from established DnD background, confront them with the unknown. Bonus points if you can make them feel like they're being stalled for time by some unseen antagonist.
Make them sidetrack while a very real danger gains power
Works every time players want just to dick around and don't expect getting fucking murdered
if anything in your setting that would be common knowledge but breaks from published material
you need to go out of your way to make sure the players know what your canon is
Ok, so there's this guy who's going to become a wizard. He's 29 and only 10 days away from turning 30.
His freinds decide to go all in on not letting that happen. So they start by taking him into a tavern to get him loaded up before plan on rolling to see what kind of whores are in town at the Temple of Gygax.
And it really works, soon they are back at the tavern, hookers and all, and are getting ready for some action. Only the guy who's trying to be a wizard, user the Magnifico really is hesitant.
Turns out the hooker his friends got him is his step-sister and she shot down all of his attempts at wincest over a decade ago when he had no desire to learn magics and wizardry.
She's been on her own and had no contact, and is doing some serious Demogorgon Drop, which is an opioid in the campaign, and does not think he recognizes her. So she's planning on doing this and taking the cash to score again.
Which leaves user in a really awkward space. He either bangs his addicted step-sister in the name of wincest, or he backs off and becomes a Wizard. One of the White Faced. Those who Dwell Below. Aspirants of the Mountain of Dewey mornings.
A few more drinks and he's like "Fuck it I'm going for it bro" and grabs his step-sister by the arm headed toward the rooms in the back of the tavern. No eldritch power for this user, he's going to score!
Just then a man in gleaming plate armor enters the tavern. "Ho there, and HO THERE!" he says, recognizing user's step-sister from his visit to town last week. "Do you even know me dude?" He says to user, taking her arm harshly. "She's mine. I'll wreck you you little white faced finger wiggler!"
"Lord Chad!" his retainer cries out. "You did train in the King's most elite forces, but the last time you acted this way it nearly cost you your title.
"Shut it faggot." SIr Chad was having none of this. "I'll see black tears tonight, or I'm killing all these faggots."
Before he could say or do anyhing more, a bunch of niggers...
Sure. Also, my favorite kind of opponent is one that begins the story with the characters, i.e. someone they fight who escapes, or the brother of a slain foe... Nothing better than seeing a good hard grudge come to fruition.
One idea I am noodling with involves a setting where (at least locally) undead are very rare - perhaps due to systematic persecution of all things necromancy. NPC (perhaps the prince or some noble they are guarding) has a sword that steals life as it wounds, healing the wielder.
In the big encounter, of course, the undead make a surprise appearance - and if the sword is used against them, the wielder becomes infected. Long story short: the infected can become an intelligent enemy, the family might blame the heroes for the mishap, perhaps the players will try to find a cure... Many paths.
No dude. Make them niggers. And then you can have a bunch of village girls who bring home orcs to dinner and they shit out a bunch of half orc's that get shot with crossbows by the city guard when they steal apples from the shopkeeper.
Also name the orc Village D'Troyt
An armored man turns out to be body controlling slime without a body to controll instead
Pirates riding dragons terrorize the world, led by the Pirate king dragon beard, who has the equivalent of Medusa's hair for a beard. That or something something something save four crystals that represent the elements to bring balance to the kingdom blah blah blah
the best main villain I faced was a character that started as part of the party
there was a disagreement on ideology (neutral aligned NPC vs very good aligned PCs)
the NPC left the party but kept pursuing the same plot the PCs were after
so there were several more social encounters with him
and we got to see the NPC's decent towards evil because the good characters refused to compromise with a neutral morality
eventually the encounters escalated to combat, usually a 3-way combat between the PCs, the former party member NPC and his minions, and the NPCs involved in the main plot
at the end of the campaign the PCs had defeated the main bad guy, but had left most of the main bad guy's organization in tact
the former party member had worked it so that the evil organization would work for him if their boss was murdered by some one else
so when the PCs killed the main bad guy, the former party member showed up with an army of henchmen calling for vengeance
the final combat ended with the former party member NPC and all the PCs except the bard dead
and the bard escaped instead of fighting to the death bc some one needed to tell this story of betrayal and decent to madness, oh and probably warn people about this massive enraged army
>Any helpful ideas or advice?
Yes, ask /tg/
>Also name the orc Village D'Troyt
found in the south-central portion of the plains of D'si
Another idea I like involves borrowing a concept from Path of Exile (MMORPG). POE has Vaal Gems, that are basically spell crystals that charge up as you kill enemies, and when you have killed enough of them you can cast the spell. This seems like a wonderful game mechanic for a magical sword or weapon, and one I absolutely intend to steal.
I've had a concept for a campaign centered around an intelligent item that is really some ancient evil trapped in the item that is trying to manipulate the party into freeing him so that he can finish his evil plan
Not bad, Intelligent items are underrated. Also fun us not just a nefarious weapon, but a lying one. Which way? Why, left, of course! Yes, I'm sure! Left is definitely the way! OK, now sneak up on that guy and stab him! Quickly, it's the wizard in disguise, trust me! -- Only, the sword is just batshit crazy, chaotic neutral, or what have you. Good times...
What about a zombie dragon at a fairy carnival that is actually ran by kobalds.
Why is the guard of that sword a prostate massager.
it is for the "Fighter and a Lover" fighter variant
Don't judge. :3
To please him on and off of the battlefield.
Steal the demon doors from fable to create weird social challenges