Most of us will have begun more than one Dungeons & Dragons adventure with a familiar scene: the party meets in a tavern, a mysterious stranger offers a quest, and the characters cautiously decide whether to accept. There is nothing wrong with this approach, in fact sometimes it can be a fun boost of nostalgia. However, there is another technique that can inject immediate energy into a game from the get go: starting in media res.
What is In Media Res?
The Latin phrase in media res translates to “into the middle of things.” Rather than beginning at the start of the story, the action begins while events are already underway. The characters are not discussing whether they should embark on an adventure. They are already in the thick of it and usually in immediate danger .
Imagine opening a session with:
“The wagon lurches violently as goblin arrows rain down from the trees. One horse collapses, screaming in terror. Smoke rises from the forest ahead. What are you going to do?”
The players immediately have questions. Why are they on this wagon? Where are they going? Who is attacking them? The answers can emerge naturally through play. The story begins with excitement rather than exposition.
For Dungeon Masters running convention games, conference one-shots, introductory sessions, or the opening of a new campaign, starting in media res can be an incredibly powerful way to engage the players straight away.
What Does In Media Res Look Like in D&D?
An in media res opening drops the players directly into a meaningful situation.
Some examples include:
- The party is halfway through a desperate escape from a collapsing dungeon, a dragon on their heels.
- The adventurers are defending a village that is already on fire and under attack.
- A negotiation with a crime lord has gone catastrophically wrong.
- The heroes awaken in chains aboard a slave ship and orc slavers are ready to throw them overboard.
- The group is hanging from a rope bridge while harpies circle overhead.
- A heist is underway, the alarm has just sounded and the vault door is closing.
In each case, the players are immediately making decisions rather than listening to explanations. The game starts with action.
Instant Engagement
One of the challenges facing any Dungeon Master, especially in one-shots, is getting players invested quickly. Traditional openings often require a period of scene setting, introductions, and explanation before players become fully engaged. In media res skips this entirely.
Of course, people naturally pay attention when something important is happening. A sword fight, a collapsing tunnel, a chase across rooftops, or a diplomatic disaster immediately focuses attention. Players begin asking questions, making decisions, and interacting with the world.
No need to earn engagement, you start with it.
Perfect for One-Shots
Convention and conference games live under a constant enemy: time. If you have a four-hour session, spending the first forty-five minutes introducing characters, explaining why they are together, and persuading them to pursue the adventure can feel wasteful. If you only have one or two hours this is an even bigger loss of time. Starting in media res allows you to get to the interesting part immediately.
Let’s consider two versions of the same adventure.
Traditional Opening
The players arrive in town. After talking to a few villagers they meet the mayor. They learn about the missing blacksmith. As a group the party moves from location to location gathering clues. Finally they decide to investigate the nearby ruins.
In Media Res Opening
The players are already inside the ruins. A dark ritual has begun led by a figure wearing a deer skull on its head. Distraught, the blacksmith hangs from chains above a blood stained sacrificial altar. Hooded cultists are chanting, working themselves into a frenzy. What do they do?
While of course I have gone a little over the top with these examples, which one has the most impact? With the second one I’m already picturing the scene and I’m thinking of ways to save the Blacksmith. And I’m not even playing the game.
For conference games, where players may never have met each other before and may only have a few hours available, this can dramatically improve the experience. In this case, every minute spent adventuring is a minute well spent.
Questions Instead Answers
As a Dungeon Master it’s easy to feel like you need to explain everything before play can begin. Give the players context to what is going on. Provide hints as to who the bad guys might be.
In reality though, curiosity is often more powerful than explanation. When players find themselves in the middle of a situation, they naturally want to understand how they got there. This encourages active engagement with the story.
Rather than saying:
“You are transporting the Holy Reliquary to the capital.”
You can begin with:
“The rune covered relic case slips from the back of the wagon and tumbles towards the cliff edge.”
The players immediately understand something important is happening. Details can emerge later through conversation, flashbacks, or discoveries.
Stronger Character Introductions
Many groups spend significant time introducing characters one at a time. I admit, I always make my players do this at the beginning of each campaign or one-shot. While this can work well, it often creates an awkward period where players describe their characters while everyone else waits.
An action-focused opening allows personalities to emerge through behaviour. You learn more about a character when:
- The paladin dives into danger to protect civilians.
- The rogue immediately looks for an escape route.
- The wizard casts fireball in the small room.
- The barbarian charges the enemy leader.
Players often discover who their characters truly are by playing them rather than describing them.
Building Momentum for a New Campaign
While in media res is excellent for one-shots, it can also be highly effective when launching a long-term campaign. Campaign openings carry a lot of responsibility. They must introduce the world, establish themes, and make players care about what happens next.
Starting with action provides immediate momentum. The opening scene becomes the spark that ignites the campaign. Perhaps the party survives a shipwreck that strands them on an unknown continent. Or they witness the assassination of a king. These events create shared experiences that bond the party together from the outset. Instead of beginning with a reason to adventure, the adventure itself creates the reason.
The Secret Advantage: Shared History
One challenge in roleplaying games is answering the question:
“Why are these characters working together?”
More often than not we hand wave this away. Or, create a convoluted reason for everyone to cooperate. An in media res opening can solve this problem elegantly.
Simply begin with the assumption that the characters have already accepted the mission. The details can be filled in later. This allows the group to establish a shared history almost immediately. After surviving a goblin ambush, escaping a prison, or stealing a magical artifact together, the party already has a common story. Nothing builds camaraderie like surviving a crisis.
A Useful Technique: Flashbacks
One concern DMs often have is that players may miss important background information. Flashbacks provide a simple solution.
Once the opening action has concluded, you can briefly jump backwards in time. Paint the Picture questions can really help with this.
“Three days earlier, how did each of you end up taking this job?”
“Before the heist began, what role did your character play in the planning?”
These short scenes allow players to contribute details to the story while preserving the excitement of the opening. You get all the benefits of backstory without sacrificing momentum.
A Word of Caution
Starting in media res works best when players still have meaningful choices. Avoid opening with long sequences where outcomes are predetermined.
For example:
“You are all captured. You cant escape. Now let me explain what happens next.”
This removes agency and can frustrate players. Railroading like this can really sour the game. Instead, place the characters in a difficult situation but allow their decisions to shape the outcome. The excitement comes from uncertainty.
Players should feel like protagonists, not passengers.
Final Thoughts
Starting a game in media res is one of the simplest ways to increase energy, engagement, and momentum at the table. For one-shots and convention games, it helps you make the most of limited time by getting players into the action immediately. For campaign launches, it creates memorable shared experiences that bind characters together and establish the tone of the adventure.
The next time you prepare a game, resist the temptation to begin with a lengthy briefing or a tavern conversation.
Instead, start with something exciting happening. Then look at your players and say the three words that every Dungeon Master loves to hear:
“What do you do?”