Gamemaster’s Guidepost: How I Designed An Adventure

Guest Post by Kalzazz

I came up with and ran an adventure last Monday, so here is how it went.

Around 6 PM identify that opportunity existed for game, ping potential players.

By 630 PM I had identified players were available so I requested characters.

By 7 had at least one character chosen, who was a fae gentleman swordsman from our Age of Sail Pirates of the Caribbean type campaign.

So at this point I know at least 1 character and I know the setting I am working in.  Port Royal, since it is used in the excellent Green Madonna of Port Royal and The Spanish Prisoner adventures is a place the characters could easily be located so okay, they will be there.  The most likely other PC was a human gentleman swashbuckler so I penciled him in as probable, if not, whatever, the other player submitted a character first so we would roll with that.

A very interesting forum thread was occurring at the time concerning a skill 27 peasant spearman who killed knights.  

That sounded like the sort of good idea I could work with.

Obviously for my 300+ point heroes with skill in the 20s I wasn’t going with a straight up all stats 10 peasant.  Oh hey, a sword spirit is good, we give it spear instead of sword and skill up to 27.  Sword spirits are even fae, my fae loving player should love that.

Alright, so a peasant decides he really doesn’t like gentleman . . . okay!  So actually he beat up a gentleman who was doing a BAD THING and being a peasant he was the one found guilty and got transported to Jamaica! (I’m not sure if penal transportation to Jamaica was a thing, but hey, it fits).  And the Fae were like ‘oh you want to get vengeance on gentlemen?  Let us HELP’, and poof, sword spirit time.  Let’s make him diffuse to non steel/iron so he can’t just get shot with lead.

Okay we got a background, we got a adversary.  Two solutions present themselves, either beat the guy in a fight (dangerous but doable, he has more skill, they have 2 PCs and a NPC helper) or somehow help the guy move on (possibly by avenging him on the noble?  Fast talking him into wanting to move on?) or the players can find a solution I didn’t even think of, the important thing is if I as the DM can think of multiple ways to solve the adventure I feel I am not going to leave the players lost in a corner somewhere.

I figure could encounter him on a road, but googling for Jungle type maps found a cool one with a crossroads, perfect, its awesome to encounter the fae on a crossroads.

Next step google for a peasant spearman, make a token.

Whip up some rumors to help lead the party on their way.

And by 7:30 PM rock and roll time!

Posted in Gamemaster's Guidepost and tagged , , , .

2 Comments

  1. As the above mentioned fae gentleman I must say I initially underestimated our opponent, however that wrong thinking was quickly rectified. A little luck, the right skills and favorable dice saw me to victory. Sadly my companion also underestimated our opponent and found his spear lodged deeply into his eye socket, in part the opening this created is what allowed me to emerge both alive and victorious.

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