Author: Tom Watkin

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Crafting Your First D&D Adventure: A Guide for New Dungeon Masters

Embarking on the journey of writing your first Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) adventure can be a little daunting. As a new Dungeon Master (DM), it’s important to remember that your adventure doesn’t need to be epic in scale. Running a hugely complicated world spanning odyssey can be incredibly taxing, especially for the inexperienced. Instead, I recommend creating a small, manageable, and fun experience for you and your players. Here’s how to get started:

Start Small

When designing your first adventure, it’s tempting to create a sprawling epic filled with intricate plots and vast landscapes. often, these try to emulate favorite books, movies and tv shows. Can you imagine the amount of work to recreate the intricacies of Game of Thrones or the epicness of Lord of the Rings. It’s exhausting just thinking about it! However, starting small can be more manageable and equally enjoyable. A single town, a mysterious forest, or a haunted mansion can provide ample opportunities for adventure without overwhelming you or your players.

Benefits of Starting Small:

  1. Manageable Preparation: A smaller scope means less prep work, allowing you to focus on quality over quantity.
  2. Player Engagement: It’s easier for players to get invested in a smaller, more intimate setting.
  3. Flexibility: Small adventures can adapt and expand based on player actions and interests. As such, they may turn into that huge sprawling epic that you’ve always imagined, over time.

Have a Clear Task

A clear, simple objective is key to a successful adventure. Your players should know what they need to accomplish and why. This doesn’t mean the adventure lacks depth, but rather that the core goal is straightforward.

Make sure the purpose or goal of your first adventure is really obvious.

Examples of Clear Tasks:

  • Retrieve a stolen artifact.
  • Rescue a kidnapped villager.
  • Investigate strange happenings in the local graveyard.

This lack of ambiguity helps keep the adventure focused and gives players a clear sense of purpose. It also makes it easier for you to guide the narrative and keep the story on track.

Introduce a Memorable Villain

A compelling villain can elevate your adventure and give your players a clear antagonist to rally against. Your villain doesn’t need to be a world-ending threat; a cunning bandit leader, corrupt town official, or rival adventuring party can be just as engaging.

Tips for Creating a Memorable Villain:

  • Distinct Personality: Give your villain unique traits and quirks that make them stand out. Perhaps they are overly polite even when doing the most terrible acts, or they are obsessed with cleanliness.
  • Clear Motivation: Understanding why your villain is doing what they do helps create a more believable and engaging antagonist. Perhaps the villain wants revenge, is power hungry, or following a misguided obsession.
  • Presence: Ensure your villain has a noticeable impact on the story, whether through direct confrontation or the consequences of their actions. A good way to do this is to present rumors to the players at the beginning of the game. Some true, some not, all alluding to the villainous nature of the enemy.

Professor Dungeon master has some great tips on making villains in this video. Definitely worth a quick watch.

Encourage Teamwork

D&D is a collaborative game, and encouraging teamwork among your players is crucial. Design encounters and challenges that require players to work together, leveraging each character’s strengths.

Ways to Encourage Teamwork:

  • Diverse Challenges: Include a variety of obstacles that cater to different skills (combat, puzzle-solving, diplomacy). To really ramp up the challenge why not combine two of these. Solving a puzzle during a combat creates time pressure that can really enhance the excitement of the session.
  • Shared Objectives: Ensure the task requires collective effort, making it difficult for any one player to succeed alone. Perhaps the fighters need to hold off the magical golem while the mage and rogue negotiate with the gnarled hermit to open the door to safety.
  • Reward Cooperation: Recognize and reward instances where players work together effectively. This can be as simple as calling out the group when they work well together, or rewarding them with in-game advantages as the gods smile at their cooperation.

Keep Your First Adventure Manageable

Remember, your adventure doesn’t need to be a grand epic to be enjoyable. A small, self-contained story can be incredibly satisfying and leave players eager for more.

Keeping Scope Manageable:

  • Limited Locations: Focus on a handful of key locations rather than an entire world.
  • Concise Story: Aim for a story that can be completed in one or two sessions.
  • Avoid Overcomplication: Keep plots and subplots simple and easy to follow. While you may think this is too simple, remember, players add their own layer of complication.

Final Thoughts on Writing your First Adventure

Writing your first D&D adventure is about creating a fun and engaging experience for you and your players. By starting small, introducing a memorable villain and giving the adventure a clear objective, you can craft an adventure that is both enjoyable and memorable!

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An Unexpected Lesson from Running Call of Cthulhu

As an avid tabletop RPG enthusiast I’ve enjoyed running various campaigns and oneshots over the years. Of course, there are always lessons to be learned from most sessions. However, one recent experience with my Call of Cthulhu campaign taught me more about teamwork and leadership than I ever expected.

The Game Begins

About a year ago our group, a tight-knit collection of friends, decided to embark on a Call of Cthulhu campaign. The game, known for its intense and often disturbing horror themes, seemed like an exciting challenge. something significantly different to the sprawling multi-year Dungeons & Dragons campaign I had been running. As the Game Master (GM), I was responsible for weaving a narrative that would keep everyone engaged and on the edge of their seats.

Initially, everything went smoothly. We had some incredible characters, backstories, and a dark, mysterious plot that promised endless thrills. I was excited to run “A Time to Harvest” a campaign designed for those new to Call of Cthulhu. Everything was set. However, what I didn’t anticipate was how the horror themes would affect each player differently.

A Surprising Revelation

While the campaign was moving along we had some amazing roleplaying, unsettling moments and that gradual decline of the characters that the game invokes. To my mind the campaign was going exactly as it was meant to. One morning, mid-campaign, one of our players messaged me privately. They confessed that the horror elements were not sitting well with them and that they were struggling to enjoy the sessions. This revelation came as a massive surprise. In my enthusiasm to create an immersive experience, I had overlooked the importance of checking in with my players to ensure everyone was comfortable with the content. this was particularly important given the horror themes explored in the game.

A Moment of Reevaluation

After the initial shock subsided I contacted the other players. This moment forced us as a group to reevaluate why we were playing. We realized that the core of our enjoyment came from playing together as a team, not necessarily from the specific themes of the game. It was very cleat that our primary goal was to have fun, build stories, and spend quality time together.

With this new understanding, we collectively decided to shift our campaign to something more suitable for everyone. The decision was unanimous and surprisingly easy to make. The group’s willingness to adapt and support each other made the outcome even sweeter. We transitioned to a different narrative, ensuring that all members were comfortable and engaged.

The Power of Regular Check-ins

Reflecting on this experience, I recognized a critical mistake I had made both as a leader and GM: I hadn’t conducted regular check-ins with my players. In the rush to progress the story, I neglected to pause and ask how everyone was feeling about the themes and direction of the game. This oversight highlighted the importance of regular feedback and communication, not just in gaming but in any team setting. I had written about this very subject in the past, but failed spectacularly to heed my own advice.

Lessons for Leadership

The parallels between running a roleplaying campaign and leading a team in the workforce are striking. In both scenarios, regular check-ins are crucial for maintaining a healthy, productive, and positive environment. This is something I do weekly with my direct team in my role of General Manager. Having a regular opportunity to catch up with your team and understand their needs is crucial. You can celebrate wins, discuss strategy and any issues in a timely manner. So it seems odd that I missed doing it at the gaming table. Here are a few key takeaways from my Call of Cthulhu experience:

  1. Prioritize Communication: Just as I should have checked in with my players, leaders should regularly communicate with their team members. This helps to identify any discomforts, misunderstandings, or issues early on.
  2. Adaptability is Key: Being willing to change course for the benefit of the group is essential. In our game, shifting the campaign’s theme ensured continued enjoyment. In the workplace, adapting strategies based on feedback can lead to higher employee satisfaction, engagement and productivity.
  3. Focus on Common Goals: Our group’s enjoyment stemmed from our camaraderie. Similarly, in a professional setting, understanding and focusing on shared goals can unify a team and drive collective success.
  4. Create a Safe Space for Feedback: Encouraging open and honest feedback without fear of reprisal is crucial. It allows team members to express their concerns and contribute to a more inclusive and supportive environment.

Final thoughts

This experience running a Call of Cthulhu campaign was a hard lesson in the importance of regular check-ins and adaptability in leadership. If we hadn’t adapted as a team, the group may not have survived! Whether you’re leading a group of adventurers through a fictional world or managing a team in the real world, the principles remain the same. Prioritize communication, be adaptable, focus on shared goals, and create a safe space for feedback. By doing so, you can ensure that everyone is comfortable, engaged, and working towards common success.