Barrel Full of One-Shots [Archive] - Wizards Community

Barrel Full of One-Shots [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Snake_Oil
12-08-07, 09:20 PM So my group wants to take a break from the main campaign for a while, and I don't blame them, We've been running the same game for almost a year now and while everyone is still having fun, everyone would also like a change of pace. Since the campaign is at a place where its fairly impossible to pull the characters away from the main story, we've all decided that they will roll up new characters for use in a bunch of simple one shot games.

Since our campaign is largly political and roleplaying intensive, I'd like to switch it up and have the new characters do some old fashioned dungeon crawling, monster slaying, and loot collecting. the character will start out in a small frontier town. I havn't fully developed the area yet so anything can be put in at a moments notice from other communities, to savage tribes, to ancient ruins, ect.

I'm looking for ideas for one shot adventures, preferably ones that focus on dungeon crawling, combat, and a general kick in the door style of play.

Any ideas are welcome. Thanks in advance :cool:
Pezz
12-09-07, 02:37 AM http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/oa/20030530b&page=1

that a large enough barrel for ya? ;)
Another_Poet
12-09-07, 02:54 AM I've done the same thing and had a lot of fun with this compilation from Dungeon Crawl Classics (http://paizo.com/store/downloads/goodmanGames/dungeonCrawlClassics/v5748btpy7s9z).

Just make sure you read through a given adventure before running. Although generally very high quality, I found one map error and the occasional overpowered loot or monsters.

Still, all around a great purchase that my group and I have enjoyed playing through.

ap
Snake_Oil
12-09-07, 09:14 AM Pezz: My group has already run through roughly 85% of those adventures in previouse sessions and campaigns.

Another_Poet: I simply don't have the money to purchase new source books right now.
Rood_Inverse
12-09-07, 09:30 AM Now... How about some one-shots for a evil PC group?

:fishing:
Snake_Oil
12-09-07, 09:55 AM Rood_Inverse: Are you honestly trying ti hijack my thread for yourself? :mad: Thats just rude.
Rood_Inverse
12-09-07, 10:02 AM Not hijack... just sidetrack. A link will do.

I didn't mean to make you sad. Let's be friends!

:hands you a :cookie: :

Sorry... Naruto moment, there... >_<
weasel0
12-09-07, 10:26 AM Well, if no source books.... was gonna suggest Iron Heros- very hack n' slash. Low magic(read it hurts to use)- and the power levels of the "heroes" is actully ... heroic!

SASUKE!!!
Snake_Oil
12-09-07, 06:39 PM Please! Someone help :( I just need a few rough ideas for inspiration. They can be for any level of character. If it helps at all I'll list my available sources:

Player's Handbook (3.5)
Dungeon Master's Guide (3.5)
Monster Manuel (3.0)
Tome of Magic
Heroes of Horror
Heroes of Battle
Miniatures Handbook
Psionics Handbook
Savage Species
Oriental Adventures
Arms and Equipment Guide
Libris Mortis
Drow of the Underdark
Draconomicon

I can get my hands on the 3.5 Monster Manuel is absolutely neccessary, but since it dosen't belong to me it could take some time and I'd rather use what I already have.

Pretty please, any help would be welcome.
Rood_Inverse
12-09-07, 10:43 PM How about... While driving a cart to their next job, the PCs (a fighter and a monk) run over a 8' tall asian man who is trying to fulfill a prophecy of immortality that requires a green-eyed asian girl, who happens to be an NPC travelling with the party...

When in doubt about plot hooks, steal directly from movies that your players may never have seen.

At worst pull all your evil PCs together for a group mission, because they are all being blackmailed by a faceless crimelord no one believes in, but everyone is afraid of. Of course... It ends in a TPK, except for the one "roleplaying" PC who took the crippled flaw.

:P
metalmayhem80110
12-09-07, 10:53 PM Here is one I plan on doing soon.

The party is a group of jewish people, who believe they have found santa's workshop! But santa, who was expecting this to happen, set his workshop up like a dungeon.

The group does a dungeon crawl through a x-mas themed workshop.
BruceLeeroy
12-09-07, 10:54 PM Pick up some old Dungeon magazine issues from your local games shop. great stuff in there.
kimura121
12-10-07, 01:31 AM after a random encounter the pcs uncover a magical talking beer mug that can make beer when it feels like it. the mug was a heirloom and traveling companion of a great dwarven hero but was recently stolen. the pcs embark on journey to uncover the mystery of the stolen mug and return him to his dwarven owners as they are stalked by a malicous group of villians hell bent on extracting his ancient knowelge about the wearabouts of a hidden treasure stash.

maybe they steal him back and the pcs follow them into the tomb, kill the robbers take some treasure and then return him to the dwarves who send them on yet another side quest :D
Another_Poet
12-10-07, 12:22 PM I see you have Heroes of Horror...

Has your group run through the sample adventure in HoH with the little old lady and the grey jester who are eating children? If not, use that one. Should keep the players' heads spinning for a couple of weeks.
Ecalsneerg
12-10-07, 02:40 PM A town of about 100 people. A natual lycanthrope who's good at concealing his movements and actions. Try and find him.

And when I say natual lycanthrope, I mean were-donkey :P
Snake_Oil
12-10-07, 04:02 PM Okay, forget it, no one wants to offer any real help. I get it. To the two of you who offered some real help, thank you for trying. To the rest of you, thanks for nothing.
celloshane
12-10-07, 06:11 PM I just now saw this thread, Snake Oil were you looking for links to premade adventures or just some concepts to base adventures around?

If you need concepts, Steal This Hook (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/archeb/sh) archive is pretty useful. Also there's this thread http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=867959&highlight=adventure+1001

If you want some premade adventures, I'm not sure where to send you for more free ones. I can send you my 3.5 version of Return to the Keep on the Borderlands, if you message me.
Petesand
12-10-07, 06:57 PM Oooh. One-shots, huh?

I think an evil adventure might be a rather fun change of pace. Let the party be a band of thieves carrying out a heist, or maybe a troupe of assassin-types who've been charged with taking out a key political figure. (Or high-ranked members of a cult, making the final preparations for a massive demonic summoning. ^^)

It might be nice for your guys to act outside the rules and in-game laws for once. :)

Edit: This should be pretty easy to do compared to a campaign, considering the relatively few repercussions.
lifeblender
12-10-07, 08:54 PM Here's the simple way that I started my longest-running campaign. It works just fine for a one-shot as well.

In the Eberron setting, war has ended in the last few years. That means that there are places that were abandoned during the war that people would want to reclaim. Even without Eberron itself, that situation doesn't sound too uncommon. A very simple adventure start (paraphrased) is:

"Hi, I'm a Cleric of such-and-such, and there's a temple/tomb/something that we want to begin using again. We sent some scouts, but they reported attacks by monsters/people/etc. I want to hire some PC class people to clear out the place and restore the glory of our god. We can pay, and if anyone has occupied the place, you can claim their goods as your own. The king/duke/whatever has been informed, and we want to send this low-level representative with you to examine any relics or records that may have survived."
KingOtyugh
01-09-08, 08:40 PM Okay, forget it, no one wants to offer any real help. I get it. To the two of you who offered some real help, thank you for trying. To the rest of you, thanks for nothing.

I am kind of lost here. I see all sorts of helpful advice here. Every TV show, movie, book and gazillions of stuff in other threads/posts on these forums offer SOMETHING that can give you inspriation. Even one verse of a song can give you an idea.
Snake Oil's campaign is heavy on politics and role-playing. It's just my opinion, but those elements are harder to induce than dungeon crawling/hack n' slash/looting.
Again, just MHO.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Snake_Oil 12-08-07, 09:20 PM	So my group wants to take a break from the main campaign for a while, and I don't blame them, We've been running the same game for almost a year now and while everyone is still having fun, everyone would also like a change of pace. Since the campaign is at a place where its fairly impossible to pull the characters away from the main story, we've all decided that they will roll up new characters for use in a bunch of simple one shot games. Since our campaign is largly political and roleplaying intensive, I'd like to switch it up and have the new characters do some old fashioned dungeon crawling, monster slaying, and loot collecting. the character will start out in a small frontier town. I havn't fully developed the area yet so anything can be put in at a moments notice from other communities, to savage tribes, to ancient ruins, ect. I'm looking for ideas for one shot adventures, preferably ones that focus on dungeon crawling, combat, and a general kick in the door style of play. Any ideas are welcome. Thanks in advance :cool:
Pezz 12-09-07, 02:37 AM	http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/oa/20030530b&page=1 that a large enough barrel for ya? ;)
Another_Poet 12-09-07, 02:54 AM	I've done the same thing and had a lot of fun with this compilation from Dungeon Crawl Classics (http://paizo.com/store/downloads/goodmanGames/dungeonCrawlClassics/v5748btpy7s9z). Just make sure you read through a given adventure before running. Although generally very high quality, I found one map error and the occasional overpowered loot or monsters. Still, all around a great purchase that my group and I have enjoyed playing through. ap
Snake_Oil 12-09-07, 09:14 AM	Pezz: My group has already run through roughly 85% of those adventures in previouse sessions and campaigns. Another_Poet: I simply don't have the money to purchase new source books right now.
Rood_Inverse 12-09-07, 09:30 AM	Now... How about some one-shots for a evil PC group? :fishing:
Snake_Oil 12-09-07, 09:55 AM	Rood_Inverse: Are you honestly trying ti hijack my thread for yourself? :mad: Thats just rude.
Rood_Inverse 12-09-07, 10:02 AM	Not hijack... just sidetrack. A link will do. I didn't mean to make you sad. Let's be friends! :hands you a :cookie: : Sorry... Naruto moment, there... >_<
weasel0 12-09-07, 10:26 AM	Well, if no source books.... was gonna suggest Iron Heros- very hack n' slash. Low magic(read it hurts to use)- and the power levels of the "heroes" is actully ... heroic! SASUKE!!!
Snake_Oil 12-09-07, 06:39 PM	Please! Someone help :( I just need a few rough ideas for inspiration. They can be for any level of character. If it helps at all I'll list my available sources: Player's Handbook (3.5) Dungeon Master's Guide (3.5) Monster Manuel (3.0) Tome of Magic Heroes of Horror Heroes of Battle Miniatures Handbook Psionics Handbook Savage Species Oriental Adventures Arms and Equipment Guide Libris Mortis Drow of the Underdark Draconomicon I can get my hands on the 3.5 Monster Manuel is absolutely neccessary, but since it dosen't belong to me it could take some time and I'd rather use what I already have. Pretty please, any help would be welcome.
Rood_Inverse 12-09-07, 10:43 PM	How about... While driving a cart to their next job, the PCs (a fighter and a monk) run over a 8' tall asian man who is trying to fulfill a prophecy of immortality that requires a green-eyed asian girl, who happens to be an NPC travelling with the party... When in doubt about plot hooks, steal directly from movies that your players may never have seen. At worst pull all your evil PCs together for a group mission, because they are all being blackmailed by a faceless crimelord no one believes in, but everyone is afraid of. Of course... It ends in a TPK, except for the one "roleplaying" PC who took the crippled flaw. :P
metalmayhem80110 12-09-07, 10:53 PM	Here is one I plan on doing soon. The party is a group of jewish people, who believe they have found santa's workshop! But santa, who was expecting this to happen, set his workshop up like a dungeon. The group does a dungeon crawl through a x-mas themed workshop.
BruceLeeroy 12-09-07, 10:54 PM	Pick up some old Dungeon magazine issues from your local games shop. great stuff in there.
kimura121 12-10-07, 01:31 AM	after a random encounter the pcs uncover a magical talking beer mug that can make beer when it feels like it. the mug was a heirloom and traveling companion of a great dwarven hero but was recently stolen. the pcs embark on journey to uncover the mystery of the stolen mug and return him to his dwarven owners as they are stalked by a malicous group of villians hell bent on extracting his ancient knowelge about the wearabouts of a hidden treasure stash. maybe they steal him back and the pcs follow them into the tomb, kill the robbers take some treasure and then return him to the dwarves who send them on yet another side quest :D
Another_Poet 12-10-07, 12:22 PM	I see you have Heroes of Horror... Has your group run through the sample adventure in HoH with the little old lady and the grey jester who are eating children? If not, use that one. Should keep the players' heads spinning for a couple of weeks.
Ecalsneerg 12-10-07, 02:40 PM	A town of about 100 people. A natual lycanthrope who's good at concealing his movements and actions. Try and find him. And when I say natual lycanthrope, I mean were-donkey :P
Snake_Oil 12-10-07, 04:02 PM	Okay, forget it, no one wants to offer any real help. I get it. To the two of you who offered some real help, thank you for trying. To the rest of you, thanks for nothing.
celloshane 12-10-07, 06:11 PM	I just now saw this thread, Snake Oil were you looking for links to premade adventures or just some concepts to base adventures around? If you need concepts, Steal This Hook (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/archeb/sh) archive is pretty useful. Also there's this thread http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=867959&highlight=adventure+1001 If you want some premade adventures, I'm not sure where to send you for more free ones. I can send you my 3.5 version of Return to the Keep on the Borderlands, if you message me.
Petesand 12-10-07, 06:57 PM	Oooh. One-shots, huh? I think an evil adventure might be a rather fun change of pace. Let the party be a band of thieves carrying out a heist, or maybe a troupe of assassin-types who've been charged with taking out a key political figure. (Or high-ranked members of a cult, making the final preparations for a massive demonic summoning. ^^) It might be nice for your guys to act outside the rules and in-game laws for once. :) Edit: This should be pretty easy to do compared to a campaign, considering the relatively few repercussions.
lifeblender 12-10-07, 08:54 PM	Here's the simple way that I started my longest-running campaign. It works just fine for a one-shot as well. In the Eberron setting, war has ended in the last few years. That means that there are places that were abandoned during the war that people would want to reclaim. Even without Eberron itself, that situation doesn't sound too uncommon. A very simple adventure start (paraphrased) is: "Hi, I'm a Cleric of such-and-such, and there's a temple/tomb/something that we want to begin using again. We sent some scouts, but they reported attacks by monsters/people/etc. I want to hire some PC class people to clear out the place and restore the glory of our god. We can pay, and if anyone has occupied the place, you can claim their goods as your own. The king/duke/whatever has been informed, and we want to send this low-level representative with you to examine any relics or records that may have survived."
KingOtyugh 01-09-08, 08:40 PM	Okay, forget it, no one wants to offer any real help. I get it. To the two of you who offered some real help, thank you for trying. To the rest of you, thanks for nothing. I am kind of lost here. I see all sorts of helpful advice here. Every TV show, movie, book and gazillions of stuff in other threads/posts on these forums offer SOMETHING that can give you inspriation. Even one verse of a song can give you an idea. Snake Oil's campaign is heavy on politics and role-playing. It's just my opinion, but those elements are harder to induce than dungeon crawling/hack n' slash/looting. Again, just MHO.