Recently I’ve been writing down potential ideas for a new campaign to run. The difficult part is deciding which idea I like the most. But why do we have to pick only one idea? We can combine different ideas to make something even more interesting.
Let’s take dungeons as an example. It’s easy to rattle off some typical dungeon locations: mines, caves, temples, crypts, a bandit stronghold, etc. On their own, each of those locations could be interesting, but what happens when we combine them together?
What if we have a temple built into a mountain with a hidden cave system for those brave enough to search? What if an abandoned library has been taken over by bandits and made into a stronghold? What if a foul monster has recently dug its lair in an old mine?
Now these locations have lots of history and hooks to draw on. Because they are multi-faceted they seem more real and dynamic. All together we have a much more memorable and unique location for our party to explore. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
This technique doesn’t only apply to dungeons. Ideas for campaigns, NPCs, cities, magic items, etc. can all be combined to create unique content.
Let me know what you think and what other ways you create interesting ideas!
This is where random tables are really helpful, throw some dice, make some notes and think about how the random bits and pieces come together in a coherent(ish) whole.
ReplyDeleteFor sure! Random tables and generators are great for finding ideas you never would have thought of otherwise.
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