Adventure #297

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

Horror
This type of adventure is designed to scare both the characters and the players. Just having a monster attack is not
enough for a horror theme; the monster must first frighten the characters.
Gain Power
The heroes are on this adventure to gain personal or political power for themselves. They may be looking for an
artifact or weapon, or are performing a mission for someone who will reward them with political power (a higher
social rank or lands, for instance). If the characters are doing someone else's bidding, you might want to roll again
on this section to see what goal the patron will have assigned to the characters.
Old Enemy
This is a straightforward story hook; the hero learns that his oldest enemy is back and is very active in the
campaign, up to something. The hero will naturally want to investigate and will walk right into the story.
A-B-C Quest
This is an epic sort of plot. In it, the heros are given (or undertake) a task to perform: The taking of a city, the
rescue of an innocent, the destruction of a monster, the creation of a magical item, the defeat of a Master Villain,
etc. But the path to victory is not a simple one. To get to their goal, Event A, they find that they must first
accomplish some other task -- Event B. But when they undertake the task of accomplishing Event B, they find that
they must first accomplish Event C. This goes on for several encounters, until the heroes accomplish all the
obstacle events which prevent them from returning to Event A, their original goal.
Divine Retribution
Here, the heroes' goal has been to alert the gods that the Master Villain threatens them or their plans; in the last
scenes of the adventure, as our heroes face an overwhelming enemy force, the gods bring down their divine
retribution on the villain, causing a massive earthquake, tidal wave, lightning storm, or flood of monsters. This is
all well and good, but the heroes are too close and must escape the fringe effects of this awesome disaster. A
variant on this is the Natural Disaster. No gods are actually involved, but the Master Villain has been tampering
with the delicate forces of nature. He may, for instance, have been powering his master spell with the energies of a
volcano. When the heroes attack the scene of his spellcasting, the spell goes out of control and so does the volcano.
The villain is consumed in the eruption and the heroes must escape or be consumed themselves.
Under the Sea
This sort of high-fantasy adventure takes place in and under (not on top of) the sea. The heroes require access to
some sort of magic item or spell that allows them to breathe water for long stretches, and might adventure in the
uncharted depths or perhaps in a community of sea-breathers.
Military Encampment
This is best used in an episode involving warfare; it could be the good-guy army's encampment, from which the
heroes launch their adventures, or the villains' encampment, in which case the heroes might have to sneak in on a
mission or escape from it if they're captured.
Tavern/Inn
This is a classic fantasy setting, the residence of travelling heroes and the home of the tavern brawl.
Avenger
This villain seeks to avenge some wrong he thinks he's suffered. He may be right; he may have suffered a wrong,
and this makes him a little more sympathetic than villains who are purely evil. The Avenger uses his organization - thugs and bribed officials -- to get at the one who wronged him, and will want either to duel (singly) the one who
wronged him, or to put the wrongdoer in a deathtrap.
Lovable Rogue
This character is like the Master Villain of the same name, except that he has no minions of his own and serves at
someone else's bidding. However, he's very independent, not always working in his employer's best interests; he
often makes fun of the Master Villain's pretensions and may suffer that villain's retaliation because of it.
Inquisitor
This villain is the one who interrogates the heroes and NPCs captured by the villains. He accompanies the other
Minor Villain out into the field and works on anyone captured; he enjoys inflicting pain and suffering.
Inquisitive Chronicler
This character is a historian who wishes to accompany the heroes to record their exploits. He constantly pries into
the heroes' backgrounds, asking questions that are none of his business, as the adventure continues.
Ravager
This is another classic monster encounter; the monster which is bedeviling a community or local area and will
continue to do so unless the heroes destroy or defeat it. Yes, this is similar to the Master Villain of the same name,
but the Ravager usually has no master plan -- it just wants to kill, destroy, or eat.

Bandit Gang
When the heroes are en route from one place to another, have them run across one of the local bandit gangs. The
Character
bandits are faster and far more numerous than the heroes. But the bandits stay back. Basically, they're bandits who
Encounter
admire courage and prowess, and the bandit leader will challenge one or all of the heroes to a test of bravery or
ability -- such as a horserace, a duel, a wrestling match, a joust, an arm-wrestling match where scorpions sting the
loser, etc.
Rock and a Hard Place
This trap starts out as an Animal Pit, Pit and the Pendulum, or Tomb Deathtrap, but an obvious escape suggests
Deathtrap
itself very early on. Trouble is, it leads into even worse danger. The hole out of the animal pit may lead to the lair
of an even worse animal; it may lead through a succession of dangers (collapsing old catacombs, into an
underground river, into a den of zombies) before the heroes reach the light.
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.
Birthmark
Omen/Prophesy One of the heroes has a birthmark that pertains to the adventure in some way. He may have a birthmark identical to
some NPC -- for instance, some person endangered by the Master Villain. This mystery can give the hero his
reason to become involved. Alternatively, his birthmark may mark him as a hero fulfilling some ancient prophecy.
Love
The Master Villain possesses the "weakness" of genuine affection or love -- probably for some NPC, though it
Secret Weakness could be very intriguing if the object of his affections is a player-character. The heroes can then defeat the villain
by holding his loved one hostage, or proving that his loved one will be seriously harmed, betrayed, or killed if the
villain keeps up with his activity.
Time Limit
Finally, the most obvious condition to place on an adventure is to give it a time limit. If the Master Villain is going
Special
to conclude his evil spell in only three days, and his citadel is three hard days' riding away, then the heroes are
Condition
going to be on the go all throughout the adventure -- with little time to rest, plan, gather allies, or anything except
get to where they're going.
Respect Quandry
This is much like the Ally Quandry, only at a greater distance. The heroes have been utilizing the aid of two (or
Moral Quandry more) powerful NPC allies. Now, in the course of the adventure, the heroes come across a task which can be
accomplished in one of two ways -- say, through military intervention or by esoteric magic. The problem is, the
NPC allies are arguing for different choices, and the one whom the heores choose against will no longer aid them.
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.
Mission is a Ruse
Cruel Trick
In the course of their adventuring, the heroes discover they have been tricked into performing a mission which
helps the Master Villain.

Based on tables from the Dungeon Master's Design Kit by TSR, Inc.