SPOILER ALERT TO MY ADVENTURERS! The following post contains spoilers for the up and coming campaign. You may want to avoid this post and join me in a future one.
Despite the next session of our D&D campaign still some distant time in 2021, session planning is still happening. Just without the immediate time pressure.
I’ve already discussed in a previous post as part of the belated #RPGaDAY2020 some of the plans for the session.
Luckily my friend Duncan very kindly said he would print some 3D models for me to make up a gift box of 3D stuff as a Christmas present for me.
Using a shared Dropbox folder I shared the 3D models for Duncan to use.
I tried to pick models that could be used in the next session and also in other encounters. So I went for statues, pillars, stairs, doors, oozes, and other bits.
That gift box of 3D models arrived this morning.
As you can see Nan enjoyed seeing what Duncan had printed for me. Although Nico wasn’t as impressed.
Now the priming starts as does perfecting painting stone.
Below is an annotated version of the players map for the Dwarven Excavation scenario from The Essentials Kit. Basically I’m using this to help myself work out and keep track about what scenery I need to bring the map alive on the table.
I did also stumble on the fact that Games Workshop sell some Middle Earth terrain that is not only affordable but perfect for what I need. So that has ended up in my grubby mitts.
Once I’m ready I’ll start sharing some test mock ups.
A big thank you to Duncan for such a generous gift.
And I’m back with the second example of generating ideas for an adventure using random content from tables using dice rolls.
For this example I will be using the Tome of Adventure Design (ToAD), and following the steps used by Kelsey of The Arcane Library and the enewsletter that you can subscribe to.
Like the previous example using the DMG I will not be creating the map for the adventure idea. That’s beyond the scope of this little exercise.
Right let’s get started on generating this adventure idea.
First up I need a location.
For this I am going to use the locations table 1-1A from ToAD. It’s a d100 table. I roll four times against this table, once for each column. I rolled 18, 72, 85, and 63.
Which gave me the following location name “The Coiled Manse of the Secret King“.
I’m big enough to admit that I had to google the meaning of manse. It was a “what the heck is that?” moment. Well a manse is a person’s house or home, or a clergy’s home, or a large imposing residence. That fits really nicely with the secret king part of the name.
If I look up the meaning of coiled I get the definition of “arranged in a series of circles, one above or inside the other.” I had thought that this was going to be a word I rerolled. But with that definition I’m getting an image of this large circular house that has inner circles for the rest of the building. I like that. It could almost be a maze of some sort!
Using table 1-6: Location-Based Missions I will generate an adventure hook for this great location “The Coiled Manse of the Secret King“. Just like the locations table this is a d100. I roll a 38. This gives me “Find or locate“.
I like this. I like this a lot. I’m going to have the adventurers venture into the coiled manse to find the Secret King.
There needs to be a reason why the adventurers have to do this. Like Kelsey I will go with a time pressure event. The adventurers need to find the Secret King and return them to claim the throne before the false heir to the throne is crowned in two days time.
Time to use table 3-6: Big-Picture Backstories to get a reason to get an idea for why the adventurers need to find the Secret King. Once again this is another d100 table. I rolled 80. Which gave me “A cataclysm or natural disaster took place.” This didn’t click with me. I just wasn’t feeling it. But looking at the Big-Picture Backstories table the entry for 91-95 is “Leaders were slain or imprisoned.” This did inspire me. Remember you don’t have to go with the entry you roll if it doesn’t work for you. You can reroll or as I have just done pick one from the table that does inspire.
So the Secret King has been imprisoned by the false heir for years, long thought dead by the population. The false heir has now made their move and slain the King and about to claim the crown as their own.
I think that’s it.
“The Coiled Manse of the Secret King
Our adventurers hear rumours of a mysterious person thought to be the true heir to the thrown being held prisoner in a nearby location known as the Coiled Manse.
News of the death of the King spreads through out the kingdom. Along with the news that the false heir has declared themselves King and will be crowned in two days time. There is also a decree that the people will have to pay more taxes to pay for the coronation celebrations. Soldiers start raiding homes to collect those taxes.
The adventurers decide to investigate and free this mystery prisoner and help them claim the vacant throne before the false heir is coronated.”
I can even think of inspiration for the story. Such as Robin Hood, The Man in the Iron Mask. And I might watch the movies for some more ideas.
Yesterday I wrote briefly and poorly about my fascination with random generated stuff within D&D.
I also threatened to do a couple of examples.
And I’m a man of my word.
If I make a threat I like to keep it.
You know or how else will people know to take me seriously?
Ok this first example will be using the Dungeon Master’s Guide (DMG) to create/inspire a location-based adventure. The tables being used can be found on pages 72-75 in Chapter 3: Creating Adventures.
The first decision I need to make is whether this adventure is wilderness or dungeon focused. For this example I am going to generate a dungeon. I will look at wilderness adventures in another post.
Next I need to provide a goal that gives the adventurers a reason to enter the dungeon.
For this I roll a d20 against the Dungeon Goals table. I rolled a 3. Which gives me the goal of “Destroy a magical threat inside the dungeon.”
Already this is sparking ideas for what the magical threat could be. The magical threat could be a magic user of some sort threatening to cast some spell to destroy a town or open a portal to another dimension. It could be a magic item of some sort leaking magic into the surrounding area corrupting all that get close to it.
Next up is identifying important NPCs.
So who will be our villain for the adventurers to go up against? I rolled low again and got a 6. This gave me “Undead with any agenda.” On the Adventure Villians Table.
This fits very nicely with one of the ideas I had above. I’m going to run with that.
I’ve been looking for an excuse to run the Undead Monster Mambo by Jim Murphy (YouTube video below).
This is looks like the perfect opportunity to use this. Finally I can use the small skeleton horde I have built. There was a reason I pointed 15 odd skeletons, 2 minotaur skeletons and the dragon skeleton (I do want to add other creatures to this horde at some point). This is it.
So what is the lich doing?
Ok I’ll come back to that for the lich motivations and cunning plan.
I do feel that the adventurers might need an npc ally or two for this adventurer underground.
For this I have to roll a d12 on the Adventure Allies Table. I rolled a 12! That gives me “Villian posing as an ally.”
I like that. It gives a nice plot twist. Could also set up the next adventure. But I’m going to have this npc acting as an agent for the lich, who is luring unsuspecting victims to their masters dungeon to die and become part of the lich’ s army of undead.
I did say two allies. So lets give them another ally. This time I rolled a 3. So ally number 2 will be an “enthusiastic commoner.” The commoner will be some-one that the other npc has managed to convince to join them on stopping the lich.
Let’s give the adventurers a patron. So back to the d20 and rolling a natural 1! Against Adventure Patrons Table. This gets the adventurers a “retired adventurer.” As their patron.
The next step has me jumping to chapter 5 pages 99 – 101 for building the dungeon.
Our dungeon needs a location. Which is a d100 against the Dungeon Location Table. A 53 gives me “In a gorge.”
But who created this dungeon? I’m not going to roll on this one. We already have our dungeon creator with the lich.
However I do need a purpose for the dungeon. I rolled a 3 on the Dungeon Purpose Table. This means the dungeon is a “Lair“. It fits in nicely with the plot that is developing.
I don’t think I need to give the dungeon a history considering that the creator is still in the dungeon.
Back to the earlier tables and using the Adventure Introduction Table and a d12. I rolled an 8. So “An NPC the characters care about needs them to go to the adventure location.” I like this as I think this ties in nicely with the patron rolled above.
Finally I’m rolling a d12 against the Adventure Climax Table. A 5 gets me “The villain and two or three lieutenants perform separate rites in a large room. The adventurers must disrupt all the rites at the same time.” Nice. This can be the magical threat
So this is what I come up with when I tie it all together.
“Our party of adventurers get asked by an old friend (a retired adventurer) who has been hired to recruit adventurers, to help stop a lich opening up a portal to the Shadowfell Plane to unleash a massive army of the undead at the next full moon in 8 days time.
They are told that the only way to stop this from happening is to disrupt the lich and his lieutenants as the same time as they perform the rites to open the portal. This is when they will be at their most vulnerable.
The old friend has already recruited two others to help them (the enthusiastic commoner and the villain posing as an ally). The reward for stopping the lich is a treasure chest of gold.
The old friend gives the adventurers a map showing the location of the lich’s liar at the end of a gorge in a nearby mountain range that is a weeks travel away from their present location. The adventurers are given supplies, healing potions and some scrolls that will give their weapons a temporary magical bonus.”
So there you have it a dungeon adventure created inspired by using the tables in the DMG.
As for a dungeon map. I’d first look at Dyson Logos for something that might be suitable. I’d then just have to populate it. Otherwise I could use Appendix A to randomly generate one (I can do that another day) or just use the decks I have.
Phew! I needed that two day break from blogging after doing the rather late #RPGaDAY2020. It didn’t seem like a marathon while doing it, but now, afterwards. It sure does.
During this mini break the idea for this post started to kick around.
I think it’s fair to assume that some may have noticed from the random dungeon and random character posts (these will return btw), and the recent #RPGaDAY2020 Day 19 post, that I like randomly generated stuff.
What you won’t know, unless you really really know me, is that I’m a big fan of video games that use procedurally generated content. Be that the old school Nethack and Rogue, to the more modern Spelunky, Diablo, The Binding of Isaac, or Minecraft to name a few examples.
It’s not just the game play experience I like, but also the algorithms that lie behind it all. After all I am still a programmer as well as a gamer (both video and boardgame). I’m fascinated by the theory and application.
Within D&D and other RPGs this randomness is recreated by using dice and numerous tables.
But for this post I’m going to focus on D&D and what I use to create random content for my campaign and some of the posts here.
Let’s start with the good old Dungeon Master’s Guide (DMG). It’s something every DM will have.
The most obvious random content that I would guess 100% of DMs have used at least once are the tables for random encounters on page 85. But there are many official and unofficial random encounter tables. These tables cover any situation that a DM could possibly imagine or need. Sly Flourish and his patreon is a good source for tables, as is the DM’s Guild.
How about creating a dungeon?
Well on page 99 of the DMG we get tables to roll against to define the location of the dungeon, who created the dungeon and why. But my favourite part of the DMG is Appendix A: Random Dungeons. This appendix is chock full of tables to generate a random dungeon.
Another source of great tables that combine both those sections from the DMG is the Tome of Adventure Design. I’ve mentioned this before in that Day 19 post (link above).
I think by the random dungeon posts you know I am a fan of the Map & Dice Playing Cards, and the Deck of Many Dungeons for creating a random dungeon. Like any good procedurally generated content there are rules to follow while creating the random dungeon using them. These rules govern how to start and exit the dungeon. But they allow you to create a dungeon on the fly during a session, or act as inspiration during session planning.
Thanks to the Kelsey of The Arcane Library and her rather wonderful YouTube video about her minimalist DM kit I got put onto Jade Gaming Character dice. I can roll these and create a npc on the fly. Combine this with a handy table of names to use, and away you go.
The thing I like about the above is they are a tool to use to inspire during session planning. If you don’t like what you roll, just roll again. Or maybe there is something on the table you are currently using that sparks the imagination, so you just go with that instead.
I think the next post or two should be some examples of me going through the process of using these tables.
While listening to the latest episode of The Tome Show podcast that took an initial look at Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything, I had an idea to write this post.
A post that will look at the official WotC D&D 5e books that I own, and answering the question why did I buy that book? What do they bring to the table for me?
I’m not going to talk about the “holy trinity” of books that should be on every DM’s book shelf, the Dungeon Master’s Guide, Player’s Handbook, and Monster Manual.
Those are a given, and shouldn’t need explaining.
I’m also going to assume it’s a given that each book gives new monsters, spells, and magical items. And they were not bought because of this. But that this is a nice bonus to the main reason the book was bought.
So here are the official D&D 5e books I own and why.
Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes was bought for the extra depth it gives on some of the races such as halflings and gnomes. It covers their beliefs, societies etc. Very useful indeed for inspiring player backstories, or adventure ideas. I’ve used what the halflings believe about death and the afterlife to describe what Dram experienced whilst he was temporarily dead before being resurrected.
Volo’s Guide to Monsters was bought for the monster lore chapter. The nine monsters covered there not only add more depth to them but also have maps for a liar. These are basically instant mini adventures that could be used at the drop of a hat during a session or planned into a campaign. Very useful to have.
Xanathar’s Guide to Everything this is full of optional rules to use along side the core rule books. So far the revisited rules for Traps have been of use, along with the rules for levelling up from Appendix A shared campaigns. Appendix B is also very handy with its lists of character names.
Both Guildmasters’ Guide to Ravnica and Mythic Odysseys of Theros are firstly source books bringing the world of Magic the Gathering (MtG) to D&D. Being a MtG player this mash up appealed to me. So it was a given I’d get the source books that will allow me to play in the MtG sandpit.
I don’t (at the moment, nor have I) run a published adventure. So why do I currently own six of them?
Ghosts of Saltmarsh was bought for the rules it brings to the table that cover sea travel, ships, underwater encounters, and the many tables it has to roll against.
Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus was purchased for it’s Appendix A: Diabolical Deals. I plan to use these within my campaign (once we can get back to playing safely as a group). I just love the idea of one of the characters making “a deal with the devil” as a story plot.
I bought Tales from the Yawning Portal because it was full of examples that would be classed as death trap dungeons (I think that would be the correct term to describe them). They have a high mortality rate. Plus lots of examples of different types of traps and puzzles.
An element I’d like to try to bring to my campaign is horror. The nice thing about my campaign is that it allows for me to try different genres/themes very easily. Although it is true to say that I have not started down that route yet.
However for examples of writing horror themed adventures WotC have now kindly provided two different examples and styles of this genre. Curse of Strahd is the gothic horror of the classics such as Dracula and Frankenstein. Whilst Icewind Dale Rime of the Frost Maiden is inspired more by The Thing. Plus it has some rules for wilderness travel in extreme cold. Which could be handy.
Tomb of Annihilation is an example of a hex crawler. And it was for it’s rules on this that I bought the book. I have used these rules as the basis for sea travel within my campaign.
These final three books are like the MtG books above, settings books. Books that inspire.
My first campaign is set in the Forgotten Realm, and to the Moonshae Isles which are to the west of the Sword Coast. So it was obvious to get the Sword Coast Adventurers Guide that provided some background information for the area.
Eberron: Rising from the Last War was bought because I liked the sound of the setting. Steampunk meets fantasy. Throw in adventure, pulp and noir themes, and it sounds a blast. Plus Halflings with dinosaur pets!
I’m not a fan of streamed D&D sessions. I find them boring to watch, and an inaccurate depiction of a D&D session. How many D&D groups are made up entirely of actors and comedians? I feel these streamed shows are more about improve acting and showcasing what these actors/comedians can do.
So it’s fair to say I am not a fan of the Acquisitions Inc streamed show. So why is the Acquisitions Incorporated source book in my collection? It’s for it’s franchise rules. The running a corporate organisation, such as a heroes for hire, or whatever other business the players might think up. Not sure if we will use these. But it’s there if the thought comes to the players.
So there we have it a brief explanation why each of the official D&D books that I own are in the collection. How many do you own and why did you buy them?
Not quite Cyberpunk Red (the pdf has just been released, with the physical dropping very soon now). But Humble Bundle have teamed up with the publishers of the Cyberpunk RPG R. Talsorian to offer a shit load of Cyberpunk goodies for charity.
Highlights include the Cyberpunk 2020 rules, the Cyberpunk Red Jump Start Kit, plus a load of adventures and source books.
Even with the new updated rule book now available, these allow you to either try the system before getting the latest rules. Or they can still be used with the new rules and instantly give you a tonne of stuff to use in your games.
With a stomach bug taking me out of action for a day or three, I’m slowly getting back to the new normal.
Which means I’ve been doing a bit of research that I should have been doing a while back.
Earlier in the year I was watching the Gen Con YouTube channel and their three streamed Alien RPG sessions for the Chariot of the Gods cinematic scenario (these are one shot adventures, that use precon characters and have a high body count!). During the start of the first session the GM quickly runs through what amounts to a session zero. It was when he stated that he was a fan of body horror, and he will be describing things in detail.
That left me a bit confused. What was body horror? It’s not a term I was familiar with. I knew slasher flicks (Friday 13th, Halloween etc), video nasties (hey that was my teenage years in the 80’s, although I pretty sure the majority were banned for the shit acting), and torture porn (Hostel).
But body horror? Nope not heard of it.
Then again it didn’t surprise me, these days I rarely watch any horror movies. I suppose I could have asked my friend James. He’s a massive horror fan. Boy does he watch some obscure stuff. But I never got round to it.
Over the months afterwards I got the rulebook for the Alien RPG, I already had the D&D Curse of Strahd (CoS) adventure, and the desire to run a horror based game of some sort buried itself away in the back of my brain.
With the recent release of another D&D horror inspired adventure, Icewind Dale Rime of the Frostmaiden (IDRotF) that desire to run a horror based game floated to the forefront once more.
But what information was out there to help run such a game?
Well within the pages of CoS we are given page 7 Marks of Horror. Which is a page of tips for running horror. Whilst in IDRotF all we get is a breakout box warning about the content (see image below).
But this fails for me as a warning. You actually have to go to D&D Beyond to get an idea about the content and some great advice for running horror in D&D in the post Creating Terror without Being a Jerk.
But none of this stuff told me what body horror was.
Then I remembered that the Pathfinder RPG had a horror adventure book. What did that have inside?
In Chapter 6 – Running Horror Adventures it defined body horror as…
“This visceral subgenre concerns itself with the organic terror of the flesh, including disease, physical corruption, and transformation. At its basest level, body horror is the revulsion felt upon hearing a bone break or seeing a joint violently bend in the wrong direction. Elaborated upon, it’s the terror of becoming physically monstrous and the awfulness that might hide within.”
Cool I was a lot wiser now.
I can see how that would fit in with the Alien RPG and the cinematic scenarios. Although I feel that the Alien RPG would be more cosmic horror with some body horror moments (facehuggers, chestbursters). The Pathfinder book has some pretty cool stuff in there that is of use for other systems.
In my internet journeys I stumbled across a quote by Stephen King (see below) and his book of essays about writing and horror Danse Macabre. It’s a bit old now.
But going by that quote still relevant. So I picked up the audible version of the book.
There is a little but brief information within the Alien RPG about running a horror session. Shockingly light really. There is also a section on Horror as a tone within the Genesys RPG core rulebook.
That’s been the disappointing bit with D&D and the Alien RPG. The brevity or lack of information.
But I feel between King and the Pathfinder book I now have enough to equip myself with running a horror based RPG session. But more importantly use the correct language whilst talking with the players, and be comfortable knowing where the lines should be based on the players feedback. Which is where I should be when using a pre-written adventure/scenario.
I’d like to think that once I’ve finished King and the Pathfinder chapter I’ll have basic tools and knowledge to create my own horror one-shot. Whether it’s a cinematic scenario for the Alien RPG (I do love the Alien universe), uses the Genesys system (ideally with the Android setting), Cyberpunk Red, D&D or Judge Dredd/Strontium Dog.
Thought I’d capture on here one or two DM tips that I decided to capture for future reference.
Hopefully I’ll remember these once we start our campaign back up.
I don’t think any of the spellslingers in our campaign currently have counterspell as something they can cast. But it’s handy to bear this in mind.
One thing I do need to improve are my descriptions of locations. But I agree with the tip below. So I need to get the balance right.
I think I’ve shared this one before. But better save than sorry.
The nice thing about this one is that you can create tables before hand to roll against, or buy one of the many pdfs that have such tables to save the effort of creating your own. Although I do like the personal touch of creating my own.
With a stomach bug taking me out of action for a day or three, I’m slowly getting back to the new normal.
