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Pluddon
Seeker
57 Posts |
 Posted - 25 Mar 2014 : 17:37:51
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I will be running for a group in the future and I want to do something different/memorable. All ideas are wanted and welcome. It will be more focused on combat rather than roleplay.
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xaeyruudh
Master of Realmslore
USA
1853 Posts |
Posted - 25 Mar 2014 : 19:37:21
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| By running you mean you're going to be DMing? |
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Pluddon
Seeker
57 Posts |
Posted - 25 Mar 2014 : 19:41:15
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| Yes |
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xaeyruudh
Master of Realmslore
USA
1853 Posts |
Posted - 25 Mar 2014 : 20:42:56
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1. It's definitely not a unique idea, but if I were DMing an adventure and planning on focusing on combat, I might go Full Munchkin with the NPCs. Roleplaying taking a back seat doesn't mean (for my games anyway) that the adventure will be simple hack and slash. We have mmorpgs for that. I want the players to have to think... and if I'm lowering the bar as far as roleplaying then I want to raise it in other areas. So maybe the players have to pick their battles, and strategize, and when all else fails toss their pride out the window and gang up on their enemies as ruthlessly as possible.
So maybe revisit "the kobold that wouldn't die" with a twist. A single kobold or goblin resisting the PCs' efforts to annihilate them doesn't raise eyebrows anymore; just a sigh or groan. So pick a different monster; something unexpected.
2. Which segues into a second idea. Pull out all the stops as far as monsters go. Use critters you haven't used before, or at least ones that don't appear often. Look into Creature Catalogs and other books by other publishers, and convert them (as loosely as you want) to whichever ruleset you're playing in. Or make up new monsters.
3. Time/planar travel is an option. It doesn't have to be cheesy; I would go for disorienting instead, but panic-inducing can work too.
In short, my aim would be to keep the players on their toes, unsure of who/what to expect around the next corner. In a combat-centered game, my players might be convinced that they're going to be dropping their character sheets in the recycle bin on the way out... but they're having a blast in the meantime. And in the end, their excitement hopefully contributes to the game, and maybe they get to keep their characters for next time. Or maybe not.  |
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The Arcanamach
Master of Realmslore
1883 Posts |
Posted - 26 Mar 2014 : 17:41:49
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| Try a creature that can't easily be killed by the PCs within a couple of rounds (say a strong vampire) with magic available to it that allows it to dimension door several times/day. It pops in, strikes hard, and pops back out. If played correctly, the group could start dropping like flies. That may be a bit harsh but I really hate it when creatures aren't played intelligently and to their full potential. Using the vampire idea, it could pop in on a PC whose alone, Charm them and pop back out. Use the party against itself that way. This happened to me once before, only one other party member survived by the time I was done killing them (I was the charmed PC). The last guy managed to kill me and then got gone fast. |
I have a dream that one day, all game worlds will exist as one. |
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xaeyruudh
Master of Realmslore
USA
1853 Posts |
Posted - 26 Mar 2014 : 21:39:52
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Jumping off from Arcanamach's charm idea, you could have each of the PCs charmed by opposing organizations... rival houses of a drow city, rival temples or noble families in any city, or even squabbling fey in a less-urban setting.
Each of the PCs is charged with spying on particular events (communicated to them in messages left with innkeepers, or by spells like whispering wind) but nobody knows who they're really spying for; all they know is the name and face of one employer apiece. Due to various spells and skills, this means they know nothing.
The level of roleplay is completely under the DM's control. Contact could consist simply of a few words, with only terse replies: the job is given, and a report is made; sometimes the next assignment is given immediately. Boredom can be kept at bay with near-constant battle, piles of XP and treasure (even relatively small amounts add up quickly), and always having 4 or 5 things on the to do list. Followup adventures, if you feel so inclined, might delve more into roleplaying by affording the PCs the opportunity to capitalize on the blackmail material they gathered during their spy phase.
Individual PCs should be unable to complete their missions solo. They will each need the whole party in order to get anything done. However, each job pays sufficiently that the PCs are making good money. Also, having the whole group together when each PC obtains the required information provides the necessary plot mechanic without extra effort on the DM's part.
The DM's work consists of coming up with snippets of information on each group and making them relevant to each other, so that when each employer asks "what did you find out" the PC is prompted to reply with more than simply what the PC observed during the spy mission they were personally assigned. If there are four PCs in the party, each PC gets an assignment to spy on one group, but they report on four groups because the information they obtained while accompanying their fellow party members is also relevant to their own assignment.
So as each PC makes their reports, their "handlers" realize that the PCs are spying on the handler's group as well as several rival groups. So the PCs should be getting good information, since this is their ticket to survival -- while many organizations might be inclined to kill such spies for knowing too much, the PCs are valuable enough that each group decides to keep using them "for just a little bit more."
Quickly, however, the rival groups (who are all getting revelations and confirmation of each other's plans and dirty secrets) are at war, not only trying to eliminate the rival they started out fighting, but also trying to capitalize on the weaknesses of three other groups. The PCs are in the middle of course, defending themselves from everyone -- each group wants to keep their own spy alive while killing off the rest of the party.
Huge frays are possible, with each PC defended by a handful of allies from the group that employs them, complicated by the city watch (if applicable) and various allies/contacts getting involved, each group clashing blades and spells with each other while each individual tries to keep its friends in the other groups alive while defending their spy and eliminating their enemies.
The potential for devolving into absurdity is high, and if your group is into that then of course you can go there. However, with the right ambiance and timing, you can also keep it tense and gripping and very stressful. Find a happy medium.
Those who survive should have a feeling of accomplishment, to say the least. |
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xaeyruudh
Master of Realmslore
USA
1853 Posts |
Posted - 26 Mar 2014 : 21:47:38
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Also, there are several collections of adventure leads published in various WotC sources.
Here's my summary. |
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Kyrel
Learned Scribe
151 Posts |
Posted - 27 Mar 2014 : 09:53:58
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| How about letting the players be involved in a war or possibly a siege (either side). |
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Gary Dallison
Great Reader
United Kingdom
6405 Posts |
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Diffan
Great Reader
USA
4471 Posts |
Posted - 08 Apr 2014 : 18:59:31
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quote:
Originally posted by Pluddon
I will be running for a group in the future and I want to do something different/memorable. All ideas are wanted and welcome. It will be more focused on combat rather than roleplay.
I just started DM'ing a new epic level 4E campaign called: Epic Campaign of Epicness. The entire campaign focuses on heroes from cartoons. Each player is to create their favorite hero/heroine from a popular cartoon. From there the barriers of reality start to break down, thrusting them into other realities of known realms of cartoons.
For the most part, heroes from modern-times know about each other characters because those cartoons were present in their reality. For others, is just crazy magic as usual. Right now we have 4 characters trying to figure out WHY it's happening and to whom. We have as PCs:
Snake-Eyes (GI Joe)- Human Scout/Samurai
Raven (Teen Titans)- Tiefling Warlock
She-Ra (She-Ra: Princess of Power) - Human Cavalier
Link (Legends of Zelda) - Elf Fighter (weaponmaster)
Now in this set up Raven knows about the other 3 characters because their cartoons are present in the DC universe. Snake-Eyes knows about the other 3 character for the same reason (though only through passing, not because he watched them at all). Link and She-Ra don't know anyone because they're not Earth-based.
So far it's been pretty combat heavy for the most part. Raven and Snake-Eyes got thrown into the land of Hyrule after Trigon created a portal which got disrupted and opened unexpectedly into another plane. From there they helped Link kill a legendary Pea-Hat monster and it's "spawn". Afterwards they discovered from the scientist in the shop by Lake Hyrule that the portals to Hyrule can be funneled into one spot (the Temple of Time) by collecting a few precious materials (sounds like a Zelda-game) and performing a Ritual. Of course Gannon wants to use the elements for himself to travel to other worlds and dominate them as well.
So they have to close the portals, save Princess Zelda (again) and defeat Gannon. Then they'll travel to Eternia and fight Hodak (She-Ra's nemesis) who's about to crush her rebellion in her absence. I haven't planned after that, but it'll probably involve some of She-Ra's allies, even a showing of He-Man then a portal opening to "GI Joe earth" to confront Cobra and some terrible terrorist threat. So it's mostly non-stop action Saturday-Morning cartoon epic-ness. And if a character dies, there's plenty of inspiration to grab in terms of heroes. |
Diffan's NPG Generator: FR NPC Generator |
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Unique game ideas
