As I am in the very early stages of planning a campaign myself, I am eager to see your next post. I tend to just "mash" together ideas that sort of follow a theme. I mean, my campaigns turn out decent - but they could definitely use some improvement. Having some sort of formula, etc to use can really improve my campaigns overall. I will try to ponder one of my own and compare it to yours.
I tend to think of this less as a formula and more as a series of ... wow, I almost said goals. Duh. But anyway, that's really what they are. What do you want to accomplish in your game? By setting a few goals for yourself, you can make sure that you're getting there. The "Do something I've never done before" goal was the one that really got me thinking and coming up with crazy ideas that then got sent through the filters that are the other goals.
That's good that you were able to get diversity. Last time I introduced a group to DnD, we had 3 strikers, a leader, and a defender. One of the strikers ended up being a striker/controller hybrid of sorts, so it worked out. I think coming up with the character backgrounds is my favorite part about the (pre)game.
I really enjoyed taking the opportunity to work on character concepts together. I definitely made the point that we'd need one of each role (at least) and that if we were to "double up" on any role, it should be the striker. We did a few experiments that I adapted from somewhere: each hero had a positive relationship with one other hero, a negative relationship with one other hero, and got to invent one NPC in the village that they were friendly with. This lead to a few really neat situations...
View full commentI really enjoyed taking the opportunity to work on character concepts together. I definitely made the point that we'd need one of each role (at least) and that if we were to "double up" on any role, it should be the striker. We did a few experiments that I adapted from somewhere: each hero had a positive relationship with one other hero, a negative relationship with one other hero, and got to invent one NPC in the village that they were friendly with. This lead to a few really neat situations such as the unlikely pairing of the (naive) paladin of Ioun and the (selfish and evil) warlock to uncover forgotten knowledge (without the paladin realizing that the warlock was going to keep it for himself). In the meantime, the warlock had had a bad run in with the group's deva wizard (and, strangely, the two of them are now in cahoots on the secret-keeping front) over too many pints. The warlock has a shadowy patron (as yet unidentified) who's put the 'lock on the scent of some long-lost treasure in the area. What's really fun about all this is that the rest of the players know all these details.
That is a very fantastic idea. I may even try something similar when I can finally get my group together. It should most definitely promote synergy. Perhaps you could award additional xp when they successfully perform a skill combo: slide thunder damage, etc. Or even just a verbal kudos.
View full commentThat is a very fantastic idea. I may even try something similar when I can finally get my group together. It should most definitely promote synergy.
Perhaps you could award additional xp when they successfully perform a skill combo: slide thunder damage, etc. Or even just a verbal kudos.
Thanks for the kind words! I had originally thought about trying to figure out "combo" tutorial cards, but realized that for a first round of tutorial quests, it would make sense if I kept it simple. The first round of tutorial quests should be easily attainable by each individual PC without any aid. The second round, though, is anybody's guess. I'd like to identify key pairs of combos (wizard pushes creatures toward the barbarian so her Thundering Wrath can hit more of them, etc.) and use the...
View full commentThanks for the kind words! I had originally thought about trying to figure out "combo" tutorial cards, but realized that for a first round of tutorial quests, it would make sense if I kept it simple. The first round of tutorial quests should be easily attainable by each individual PC without any aid. The second round, though, is anybody's guess. I'd like to identify key pairs of combos (wizard pushes creatures toward the barbarian so her Thundering Wrath can hit more of them, etc.) and use the second round to encourage those. Come to think of it, you could encourage "combo building" in the group if you start with an effect that one character can pull off (like the barbarian's Thundering Wrath) and give the group the minor quest, rather than just the character; this would give the other players encouragement to help the barbarian get her Wrath to hit the most enemies possible.