Adventure #155

Theme

Goal

Story Hook

Plot

Climax

General Setting

Specific Setting
I

Specific Setting
II

Master Villain

Minor Villain I

Minor Villain II

Ally/Neutral

Monster
Encounter

Espionage
Espionage adventures are active, grim scenarios involving spying and perhaps other cloak-and-dagger deeds such as
assassination or rescue.
Explore a New Area
The heroes are hired or convinced to enter an unmapped area and explore it. They may be making a map; they may
be trying to find someone who disappeared into this area in the past; they may be following legends that tell of
treasure in the unexplored interior.
Dying Delivery
On some occassion when the hero is out wandering the streets or is otherwise all alone, a dying man bumbs into
him, hands him something, says a few words, and dies.
Geographic Progression
This is the simplest sort of adventure plot. The heroes have an area to investigate or travel through; they have
encounters based on where they are. For instance, the traditional dungeon, where monsters are tied to specific rooms
or areas. Or, if the heroes are travelling along a narrow valley or through an enchanted forest, they might suffer
ambushes and other encounters fixed to various points along their travel plan. The plot, then, is getting to the villain
by surviving the intervening obstacle encounters.
Prevented Deed
Here, the heroes have been defeated -- captured by the Master Villain, or so thoroughly cut up by his minions that
all believe them to be dead. And the heroes have learned, from the bragging of the villain, loose talk of his minions,
or examination of clues, what is the crucial event of his master plan. In any case, the battered and bruised heroes
must race to this site and have their final confrontation with the villain, bursting in on him and his minions just as
the knife or final word or key is poised, and prevent the awful deed from taking place -- and, incidentally, defeat the
master villain and minions who beat them previously.
On the Road
Most of the adventure takes place on the road, as the heroes are travelling from place to place. This is especially
good for adventures where heroes are investigating a wide-ranging mystery, are part of a caravan, or are being
pursued by loathesome villains.
Ruins
These can be the ruins of some ancient civilization, an abandoned temple or castle, incomprehensible blocks of
stone arranged by ancient gods, etc. They can be magical or normal, inhabited by normal animals or by monsters,
centers of magic or just tumbled-down buildings.
Ruins
These can be the ruins of some ancient civilization, an abandoned temple or castle, incomprehensible blocks of
stone arranged by ancient gods, etc. They can be magical or normal, inhabited by normal animals or by monsters,
centers of magic or just tumbled-down buildings.
Ravager
This Master Villain is like the Destroyer, except that he terrorizes a very limited area -- such as a village, island,
castle, or clan stronghold. (He may want to destroy the whole world but be trapped where he is; perhaps his efforts
to free himself constitute the adventure's plot.) He stays in his area and terrorizes whatever comes into it.
Single-Minded Soldier
This most trustworthy of villain minions is the experienced, competent, persistent soldier -- a field-trained officer
who serves the villain with military precision. He is usually encountered in the field as leader of the villain's field
operations. He is not encountered directly until the middle of or the latter part of the adventure; until then, the heroes
encounter only his subordinates.
Chief Assassin
The Chief Assassin is the favorite killer of the Master Villain. The Assassin works mostly in the field, first killing
witnesses who might prove harmful to his master, then zeroing in on the player-characters. He usually meets his end
before the adventure's climax, but he may taken one of the heroes down with him.
Arrogant Snob
For some reason, the heroes have to accompany or escort an arrogant nobleman or craftsmaster. They can't afford to
abandon or kill this person; he or she may be their employer, an expert on the place they're going to, one of their
relatives, or a relative of the royal family. And this person makes their life hell with sniping comments, haughtiness,
and other unbearable traits.
Stampede
Should the heroes ever cross plains or prairies, their villainous enemies may wish to stampede a herd of large
animals at them. Alternatively, beasts in the forest may be stampeded by fires set by the villains; in this case, it will
not be one sort of animal charging through, but a mixture of terrified forest animals, from the smallest fox-cub to the

largest bear.
Seducer
One of the characters is invited to a romantic liaison with an attractive local. This local can just be interested in a
Character
brief
tryst, could fall madly in love with the hero and follow the hero through the rest of the adventure, could be a
Encounter
Loving Deceiver monster encounter, could be a thief and rob the hero blind, or could be a spy or assassin working
for the Master Villain.
Animal Pit
This is a classic trap of the adventure genre: The heroes (perhaps just one hero) are dropped into a pit filled with
Deathtrap
dangerous animals -- snakes, lions, bears, whatever. They must either fight the beasts or delay them until they can
escape -- climb back out, open a secret door, break down a wall, have a rope lowered by friends above, etc.
Special Terrain
You can make any chase more memorable by having it take place in a setting to which it is utterly unsuited. For
Chase
instance, horse chases are fine and dramatic when they take place through the forest, out in the open plains, or along
a road -- but they become diabolical when they take place inside the Royal Palace or in dangerous, labrynthine,
treacherous catacombs.
Hero Fulfills Prophecy
Omen/Prophesy This is the most useful sort of prophecy. In the early part of the adventure, one of the heroes discovers that he fulfills
some ancient prophecy.
Lack of Familiarity
Secret Weakness The Master Villain, if he comes from the past or another dimension, or belongs to an alien race, might be
sufficiently unfamiliar with this world that he essentially defeats himself. How? By making incorrect guesses about
human behaviour. One classic error involves underestimating the human capacity for self-sacrifice.
Coping with a Curse
Special
The curse might be making the hero progressively uglier, might be draining out his life-force (he's losing experience
Condition
which will be retruned if he succeeds), or might be making him progressively insane. Each day, as he sees his
reflection in a mirror or pond or fountain, he'll know himself to be less than he used to be.
Honor Quandry
You want to use this on the character with the most strongly developed sense of personal honor -- someone who has
Moral Quandry lived all his life by a strict code. Toward the end of the adventure, this character realizes that the best way to defeat
the Master Villain is a violation of that code. For instance, the character might be a paladin, who discovers that the
only possible way for the heroes to defeat the Master Villain is to sneak up on him and stab him in the back.
Lying Rumor
Red Herring This is the worst and most useful type of red herring -- the interesting rumor which just happens to be false. In
adventures of this sort, the best Lying Rumor concerns the Master Villain; it gives the heroes some "important"
information about him which later turns out to be useless.
NPC Turns Traitor
Cruel Trick He may alert he enemy when the heroes are planning a raid; he may steal the artifact and take it to the villain; he
may stab a hero or important NPC in the back (literally) before departing.