Campaign preparation checklist [Archive] - Wizards Community

Campaign preparation checklist [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
DrakathTheRatling
10-11-03, 06:08 AM What do you like to have prepared before you start a campaign?
I'll offer some things I WISH I had prepared in advance:

2 inns/taverns with floorplans

2 cities/towns/villages outside the starting location

1 random traveling encounter

1 "random" encounter that ties in with main plot line

10 interesting rumors
Ack'noth Necrom
10-11-03, 06:12 AM PC Back grounds
PC goals
What city/town the PCs want to start in
What Nation the PCs want to start in

Um i think thats it, then i run a generic Level 1 adventure for the day and during the week i begin brainstorming a plot. By the next session i have a new adventure and begining plot hooks.
Ack'noth Necrom
10-11-03, 06:13 AM OH and LOADS of Mountain dew or Corona if were gaming late!
MinusInnocence
10-11-03, 06:20 AM Incidentally, I answered your question over in Kismet's thread, before you even asked it! My response can be found here (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=112987).

To clarify, I don't use a main storyline; I despise those words. I pretty much base the entire game off of "interesting rumors"; I don't have 10 prepared before the campaign starts though, I just throw them in three or five at a time, every session.

I draw a map of the campaign's starting region, as well as any notable locations that are relatively far away. I detail these as much as I can, and everything that appears on the map deserves an explanation. As far as floorplans to taverns go, that's a good idea, but it's probably better to get some generic maps (the Map-A-Week feature of the WotC website is invaluable in this regard) and plop them down whenever you need them. It can be a tavern, or the first floor of a small outpost, or whatever.

Random encounter charts, lists of randomly rolled treasures for every CR, random weather charts and a list of about a hundred names are about as good as it gets. These can bail you out in quite a hurry... if you're good at thinking off the top of your head, an entire session can be spent tracking down the orc brigands through the mud and rain across the hilly terrain, back to their lair (this was an interesting, not-so-random encounter, but I recall it as one of my fondest moments in a game).

I'd also like to make a note on Ack'noth's list: PC backgrounds are a MUST-HAVE. What happened to someone in the past and what motivates them to succeed in the future are inexorably linked, and there doesn't even really need to be a "main plot" in your campaign if you pay close enough attention to what your PCs want. This actually ties in very closely with what I have taken as my DMing philosophy; "It's not the main storyline if the PCs don't bite the first hook."
krichaiushii
10-11-03, 07:02 AM Lists of standard first and last names for geographical areas and races.

I generally use about 20 common male and 20 common female names and go from there.

I've found it keeps the concept of different countries more on peoples minds as they travel about the world.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
DrakathTheRatling 10-11-03, 06:08 AM	What do you like to have prepared before you start a campaign? I'll offer some things I WISH I had prepared in advance: 2 inns/taverns with floorplans 2 cities/towns/villages outside the starting location 1 random traveling encounter 1 "random" encounter that ties in with main plot line 10 interesting rumors
Ack'noth Necrom 10-11-03, 06:12 AM	PC Back grounds PC goals What city/town the PCs want to start in What Nation the PCs want to start in Um i think thats it, then i run a generic Level 1 adventure for the day and during the week i begin brainstorming a plot. By the next session i have a new adventure and begining plot hooks.
Ack'noth Necrom 10-11-03, 06:13 AM	OH and LOADS of Mountain dew or Corona if were gaming late!
MinusInnocence 10-11-03, 06:20 AM	Incidentally, I answered your question over in Kismet's thread, before you even asked it! My response can be found here (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=112987). To clarify, I don't use a main storyline; I despise those words. I pretty much base the entire game off of "interesting rumors"; I don't have 10 prepared before the campaign starts though, I just throw them in three or five at a time, every session. I draw a map of the campaign's starting region, as well as any notable locations that are relatively far away. I detail these as much as I can, and everything that appears on the map deserves an explanation. As far as floorplans to taverns go, that's a good idea, but it's probably better to get some generic maps (the Map-A-Week feature of the WotC website is invaluable in this regard) and plop them down whenever you need them. It can be a tavern, or the first floor of a small outpost, or whatever. Random encounter charts, lists of randomly rolled treasures for every CR, random weather charts and a list of about a hundred names are about as good as it gets. These can bail you out in quite a hurry... if you're good at thinking off the top of your head, an entire session can be spent tracking down the orc brigands through the mud and rain across the hilly terrain, back to their lair (this was an interesting, not-so-random encounter, but I recall it as one of my fondest moments in a game). I'd also like to make a note on Ack'noth's list: PC backgrounds are a MUST-HAVE. What happened to someone in the past and what motivates them to succeed in the future are inexorably linked, and there doesn't even really need to be a "main plot" in your campaign if you pay close enough attention to what your PCs want. This actually ties in very closely with what I have taken as my DMing philosophy; "It's not the main storyline if the PCs don't bite the first hook."
krichaiushii 10-11-03, 07:02 AM	Lists of standard first and last names for geographical areas and races. I generally use about 20 common male and 20 common female names and go from there. I've found it keeps the concept of different countries more on peoples minds as they travel about the world.