Creating adventures

So, I really love the challenge of creating a module and writing in general... 

One of the hardest challenges is to test your own Creativity and push it to the limits. Each module written for a convention was intended to be better, more creative than the previous one before it. I have created a few that were one adventure not designed to have a part 2 and then the really special ones decidedly got a part 2 and seldom a part 3. I also started the campaign module, designed for 8 hours of play and to have a new part at each Con I attended.

Ideas come from everywhere, I do not dismiss an Idea simply because it would be difficult

Here is a preview of one of my Convention games: AAAAHHHHH

Ideas could emerge form any where, and this one was really special. My Gaming group was watching Monty Python and the Holy Grail, specifically The Caves of Caerbannog scene.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEcvSq4SDkc

This game was inspired by Monty Python. The key is keeping everything hidden from the players and revealing it slowly so that at the end, they are surprised by the final hook


Songs, songs can inspire great games. I created one from a Queen Song "The Fairy Fellows Master Stroke"  That song was about the painting by Richard Dadd - see below

All of the Pre-generated characters and NPCs are taken from the song... as was the premise for the game.  While writing games, I always look up things to add and this was challenging as the setting was using names of Wisconsin counties so this ended up being a partially arctic based adventure 

Also, books are a great source for running adventures. I am pretty good at adapting anything to games. I took "The Sleeping Dragon"

The first book provided a great game for a convention. At conventions I was attending at the time, 8 was the max players and game masters were paid for each person at the table. This book had 7 in the main Persona list so I created an 8th character for the game and gave him a background. I will say I have never had to fudge a roll or force an action. 

For one game I ran at GaryCon, I took the idea from "The Lair of the White Worm" If you have not seen the movie, check it out.

For my own Campaigns, I use many different sources and have been known to recycle an idea or 2.   

In fact I keep a few note books of ideas for running games. Some of them have been done, some are still works in progress and some will make an appearance soon. 

• The Sun is dying, the players have to quest to figure out how to restart it
• An All Elven game
• Dwarven game involving Ale
• High Seas Pirate Game
• Political intrigue with an invasion from an advanced bipedal creature, featuring many side quests and challenges
• Adventure through Arctic Territory
• Working for a Crime Boss in a city
• Merchant adventures  
• Werewolf PC adventure world
• Develop a couple of my previous modules to Dragonscales 

• Game based on Karn Evil 9 (77 Lost Worlds)
• Game based on Logans Run
• Game based on Pirates of Dark Water
• Game where "Klaatu barada nikto" works everything

So, be ready and open to ideas that can come from anywhere, half the time I am just talking to people and an idea come up

We created the Arena of Chaos from one of those conversations..  it was a blast to run at conventions

It was a battle royal where people created  characters based on the guide lines given and then went at it on 4 boards until there was One... lots of prizes were given during the game.  

Sometimes just looking up something randomly on the internet will give an inspiration. 

DISCLAIMER: I do not subscribe to anyone telling anyone how to make a great adventure of how to write an adventure...

The best experience for writing any adventure is play in an adventure. There is an ART to writing an adventure and running an adventure. I urge you to discover your own voice and what works best for you. 

Three People can run a module and all three will have a different feel to them. It is not something you will find in a how to book. 

If you look for how to create adventures, go to....

APPENDIX A: RANDOM DUNGEON GENERATION