The D
The Dungeon Master Exper
This regular column is for Dungeon Masters who like to build world
as much as I do. Here I share my experiences as a DM through the
my Dungeons & Dragons® campaign world. Even though the cam
Edition rules, the topics covered here often transcend editions. Hope
articles will give you inspiration, ideas, and awesome new ways to m
in your home campaigns.
If you’re interested in learning more about the world of Iomandra, c
Christopher Perkins
Christopher Perkins joined Wizards of the Coast in 1997 as the editor of Dungeon® magaz
producer for the Dungeons & Dragons Roleplaying Game and leads the team of designers
who produce D&D RPG products. On Monday and Wednesday nights, he runs a D&D® cam
groups of players set in his homegrown world of Iomandra.
Dungeon Master Experience: Surprise! Epic Goblins!
rience Surprise!
Epic
ds and campaigns Goblins!
lens of Iomandra,
mpaign uses the 4th 2/17/2011
efully this series of
menace your players MONDAY NIGHT.
check out the wiki. The adventurers are 22nd level, and crewing a ship head-
ing west across the Dragon Sea.
—Dungeon Master for Life, The Maelstrom is a swift vessel powered by an elemental
Chris Perkins ring of water (an idea pilfered from the Eberron campaign
setting). One of the adventurers, a genasi swordmage, was
zine. Today, he’s the senior recently relieved as captain of the Maelstrom so that he
s, developers, and editors could lead a special ops mission for his mentor and bene-
mpaign for two different factor, Sea King Valkroi. (You might recall that the same
thing happened to Captain Picard in the ST:TNG episode,
Chain of Command.)
Three days ago, the Maelstrom survived a run-in with
three enemy ships sent by a rival Sea King. Having weath-
ered that storm, the Maelstrom has resumed its westward
trek toward the party’s ultimate objective.
En route, the adventurers catch sight of a lone vessel
heading in the opposite direction. Corpses are lashed to
the other ship’s hull, and its sails are stained crimson with
blood. The adventurers confronted a ship like this once long
before, during the heroic tier, when goblins raided their
island home. Clearly this blood-sailed vessel belongs to the
Kingdom of Sanghor, a savage island nation of goblins far
to the west.
That’s right. Goblins. At 22nd level, no less.
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 1
The D
Our heroes would’ve been inclined to leave goblin ship advantage presents a refres
alone but for two reasons. First, the party’s ranger spots a ticularly when they don’t se
cage being dragged alongside the goblin ship at sea level. away.
Within the cage, he sees a prisoner struggling to stay above All that being said, I still
water. Second, the ship is openly plying the trade lanes and store for them. They say goo
is clearly a threat to passing tradeships. The noble heroes so here we go:
decide to storm the ship and rescue the caged prisoner.
What ensues is a rollicking shipboard battle against an Surprise #1: Boom Goes
enemy the heroes never expected to fight at their level. lins filled their cargo ho
“black powder,” rigged to
Reasons for the went horribly awry. Afte
Encounter heave-ho, the goblins de
And they would’ve succe
This goblin ship encounter was meant to provide con- for the party’s pesky half
text for the larger campaign world. I created the side After the goblin demolit
trek to remind my players (and their characters) that off three powder kegs an
there’s far more going on in the world of Iomandra with blinding smoke (a t
than “the quest at hand.” The goblin ship’s ability to the imminent destructio
slip past Dragovar patrols tells the heroes something jumped into the smoke-f
meaningful about the world—that the Dragovar navy used his formidable Bluf
has lost control of the Dragon Sea. The war to the tain Mulk, telling the de
west (against a former imperial regency fallen under the black powder and ge
horrors from the Far Realm) has taken its toll on the deck (whereupon they w
imperial fleet, and the goblins of Sanghor are seizing
advantage of the situation. Surprise #2: Advantage,
But there was one more reason for the encounter. to make attack rolls for t
This one-night diversion was also crafted to remind were so many of them. B
the heroes how powerful they have become. The no effective attacks. In p
hobgoblin captain (Mulk, a level 8 soldier) was lit- goblin could deal 15 dam
erally a pushover—he got thrown off his ship by a enemy it had combat adv
magical whirlwind in the first round of combat. The the tactical combat more
goblin mage (Zazz, a level 7 controller) was snuffed the heroes to stay mobile
out before he could monologue. The bugbear shock- goblins.
troopers were swept aside like dust bunnies.
One might expect players to get bored fighting Surprise #3: Minions are
weak enemies and scores of minions—and yet this goblins’ propensity for al
became one of the campaign’s most memorable tion, it seemed perfectly
encounters. Like many DMs, I enjoy watching my Mulk would have a squa
players squirm and wrestle with conundrums, but tricked out with bandolie
giving the heroes an (occasional) overwhelming flasks. Any damage deal
minion would cause it to
1 centered on itself, deal
Dungeon Master Experience: Surprise! Epic Goblins!
shing change of pace, par- creatures in the burst . . . including other rigged
ee it coming from a mile goblins. Clearly the best tactic was to take out the
goblins from afar—but a tall order on the confined
l had some surprises in and crowded deck of a ship!
od things come in threes,
the Dynamite! The gob-
old with kegs of alchemical
o blow up the ship if things
er Captain Mulk got the
ecided the time was nigh.
eeded too—if it hadn’t been
fling rogue, Oleander.
tion squad inadvertently set
nd filled the lower decks
trick I used to foreshadow
on of the ship), Oleander
filled hold; once there, he
ff skill to impersonate Cap-
emolition squad to forgo
et their flea-bitten hides on
were promptly killed).
Goblins! I decided not
the goblins because there
Basically, the goblins had
place of an attack roll, a
mage automatically to one
vantage against. This made
e interesting and forced
e, and it also felt right for
e the BOMB! Given the
lchemical experimenta-
reasonable that Captain
ad of “exploding goblins”
ers of alchemical fire
lt to a tricked-out goblin
o explode in a close burst
ling 15 fire damage to all
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 2
The Dung
By the end of the session, the heroes had not only Previo
dispatched the goblins but also rescued the caged in Iom
prisoner who, it turns out, was first mate of another
ship that the goblins had attacked and plundered. 2/24/2011
Naturally, he presented the heroes with a quest—to
transport his ship’s stolen cargo safely back to the raft- WEDNESDAY
town of Anchordown—and thereby earn the favor of
another Sea King. It’s 6:15 PM. The players are
One can only speculate what might happen to the having just returned from pick
heroes in the course of completing this seemingly tomary with the group, one of
straightforward side quest…. dinner and delivers it with an
mean, “Here’s your dinner, Mi
Lessons Learned tonight.” I smile, say thank yo
that has served me well for yea
In any case, here’s what I learned from the goblins with you.
encounter: This ritual is neither arcan
something I learned from watc
✦ Never underestimate the appeal of kicking Many of the things that define
ass. Players need to feel powerful once in a watching lots of serialized TV.
while, particularly at high levels. Battlestar Galactica immedia
you’ll see me referring to them
✦ If you want your campaign world to feel like a column.
living, breathing place, let the players encoun- The ritual in question is ca
ter things below their level. always begins with the same th
✦ Even low-level monsters can surprise the P r e v iously
heroes with clever tactics and a never-say-die Iom a n dr a
attitude ( just consider the history of asym-
metrical warfare). Don’t be afraid to use them, You’ve seen this before: Pre
particularly as minions, and don’t be afraid to on Battlestar Galactica. Any
mess with their stats. ries the baggage of a comple
an ensemble cast needs this
Until the next encounter! ence how far their story’s co
audience is my gaming grou
geon Master Experience: Previously in Iomandra . . .
iously
mandra . . .
Y NIGHT. think that every one of my game sessions is unforget-
table, that simply isn’t true.
gathering around the table, The Campaign Recap ritual begins thus: At the
king up dinner. As is cus- top of a sheet of lined paper, I write today’s date and
f the players has bought my the name of tonight’s adventure (which I oftentimes
expression that I take to refer to as an episode) followed by a short list of bullet
ister DM Sir. Please be kind points. Each bullet point recounts, in the past tense,
ou, and begin casting a ritual something that occurred in a previous session (not
ars, and which I now share necessarily the last session) that might be significant
to tonight’s game. The bullet points are carefully
ne nor divine. In fact, it’s thought out, and I try to limit them to a handful.
ching episodic television. Sometimes in my haste to jot down these notes, I get
e my DMing style come from the order mixed up, so after writing down the bullet
. Shows such as Lost and points I number them in the order in which I intend
ately spring to mind, and to recount them.
m from time to time in this At this moment, the player characters are in the
middle of an adventure entitled “Death Incarnate,”
alled Campaign Recap, and it having found themselves in the city of Io’drothtor
hree words: searching for the lair of a dracolich named Icristus.
Icristus used to be the dragon overlord of the mas-
y in sive island upon which Io’drothtor is built. (In the
backstory of the campaign, Icristus was slain by a
eviously on Lost. Previously steel dragon named Krethmidion and his brood.) But
television show that car- enough history; let’s get back to the ritual at hand.
ex mythology and features At the end of last week’s session, the heroes fought
s ritual to remind the audi- their way into the dracolich’s lair; the session ended
ome. In this instance, the with Icristus rising from a pool of lightning-charged
up, and as much as I like to water to confront the interlopers. As the players
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 3
The Dung
devour their dinners and begin speculating on the
outcome of tonight’s session, here’s what I write down:
“Death Incarnate” As soon as I speak the word
(1/19/11) dra,” a hush falls over the ga
conversations end abruptly,
Previously in Iomandra . . . all ears. This happens every
✦ Alagon had the names of five blasphemous After speaking the word
together my bullet points in
undead creatures burned into the fingers of his whole recap usually takes a
trigger hand by an emissary of the Raven Queen. worry about adding detail b
In order to fulfill his epic destiny and take his players’ memories will begi
place by the RQ’s side, Alagon must track down matically. The recap simply
and eliminate all five targets, one of which is a and puts the players in the
dracolich named Icristus. start the session.
✦ The heroes learned that Icristus was brought Some DMs rely on their
back from the dead years ago by an arcane recap. Having tried it as a D
sect called the Kalak Shun: outcast dragonborn a player, I think that’s a mis
wizards who practice necromancy. They also devices, players will often fo
discovered that Icristus can control and com- or get the facts wrong, or ph
mand the otherwise benign ghosts that haunt that doesn’t reinforce the at
the streets of Io’drothtor, effectively using them evoke. The recap is the DM
as spies. sion started on the right foo
✦ The heroes confronted a high-ranking member in the moment.
of the Kalak Shun in his tower. After slaying the
necromancer and interrogating his apprentice,
the heroes activated a magical portal called the
Throat of Tharzuul, which led to Icristus’s secret
redoubt below the city.
✦ The heroes arrived at a subterranean elemental
node serving as Icristus’s lair, only to discover
that the dracolich was not alone! Attending
him were 4 Kalak Shun advisors mounted on
dracoliches that were once Huge steel dragons—
the slaughtered brood of Icristus’s hated rival,
Krethmidion.
geon Master Experience: Previously in Iomandra . . .
ds “Previously in Ioman- The recap focuses only on the details that are per-
aming table. The off-topic tinent to the story at hand. Most of the bullet points
y, and the players become in the example above tie to a specific player char-
y time, without fail. acter: Alagon, a revenant ranger played by Andrew
ds, I begin stringing Finch. The Wednesday group has eight players, each
nto a rough narrative. The with their own character arc, but it’s Alagon that’s
about a minute. I don’t really driving this particular session. The recap gives
because I trust that the the players a sense of what they can expect out of
in filling in the gaps auto- tonight’s game: a big fat fight against five dracoliches.
y sparks their memories For Alagon to achieve his epic destiny, Icristus must
right frame of mind to be destroyed. Simple as that.
While this particular session focuses on combat
players to provide the and one character’s arc, the adventure as a whole is
DM and experienced it as a tangled weave of many different plots, including
stake. Left to their own a story revolving around the party’s deva warpriest
ocus on the wrong details, discovering secrets from a past life, the search for a
hrase the recap in a way missing party member, and the theft of a mystical
tmosphere you’re trying to set of tomes that chronicle the rise and fall of a king-
M’s best tool to get the ses- dom wiped from history by Vecna. These are no less
ot, and to immerse players important to the players than Alagon’s quest to prove
himself to the Raven Queen, and next week’s recap
will probably include bullet points reminding the
players where things left off with these other facets of
the campaign.
One of the cool side benefits of this approach? If
and when you decide to chronicle the events of your
campaign, say, in a wiki, you need only refer to your
binder or notebook filled with page after page of
bullet points touching on the highlights. I’ve come to
rely on my own recaps for just this reason.
Lessons Learned
Recaps kick off 99% of my gaming sessions. How-
ever, I can think of plenty of good reasons not to
use recaps. The #1 reason is to intentionally jar or
disorient your players. I remember one session that
began with the words “Roll initiative!” It worked well
because the players weren’t expecting the sudden
springboard into combat. We had ended the previous
session at the beginning of a climactic encounter, the
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 4
The Dungeon Master Ex
players had the whole week to discuss tactics, and I I Don
could sense they were jazzed to start rolling dice. The It Me
recap wasn’t necessary, and frankly I wanted to keep But I
things moving at a breakneck pace.
Like all good rituals, mastery comes with repeti- 3/3/2011
tion. If the Campaign Recap is something you’d like
to experiment with, keep in mind the following: MONDAY NIG
✦ Begin each session jotting down bullet points The campaign has taken a dar
about “what’s gone before.” an island base belonging to the
Senestrago, the adventurers re
✦ The Campaign Recap sets the tone for the ses- spoils of victory. Yet upon their
sion. Present the Campaign Recap yourself, adrift, its crew gone.
and keep it short. Don’t worry about covering A thorough exploration su
all the bases. Hit the highlights, and let the been abducted. A strange send
players’ memories fill in the gaps. captain’s cabin confirms their
the heroes are contacted by an
Until the next encounter! who’s been shadowing their ve
offers the heroes a trade: Thei
for a powerful relic the heroes
item which the villain desires
wrong hands, could cause gre
will the heroes agree to this ex
rendering the item will have s
intriguing dilemma . . .
. . . but not the focus of this
You see, there’s also a “B
same time concerning Bru
a tief ling star pact warlock
eral sessions ago, a powerfu
Caiphon branded him with
xperience: I Don’t Know What It Means, But I Like It
n’t Know What
eans,
Like It
GHT. of a toothy black maw, slowly growing larger and
larger over the course of the campaign. And in this
rk turn. Having just attacked most recent session, Melech received a gift from yet
eir hated enemy, Sea King another star entity called Nihil, who imprinted upon
eturn to their ship with the Melech’s mind a powerful ritual allowing him to
r return, they find the ship summon “starspawn serpents” (inspired by the Mon-
ster Manual 3’s serpents of Nihil, page 186). Bruce
uggests that the crew has doesn’t understand why his character is receiving
ding stone discovered in the gifts from these star powers, or what he’s supposed
r fears—through this device, to do with them.
nother campaign villain And frankly, neither do I. Which brings us to the
essel, waiting to strike. He true subject of this article.
ir missing crew in exchange A good campaign, like a good stew, has many
s have sworn to protect, an ingredients. Some ingredients add flavor to the
above all and which, in the campaign, others give it texture. Sometimes the
eat calamity. The question is, ingredients are so subtle as to go unnoticed, and that’s
xchange, knowing that sur- fine. Not everything you throw into the campaign is
serious repercussions? An going to make a splash. The players will pick up on
some elements, while others are quickly forgotten.
particular article. Campaign building is an art, not a science. It all starts
B story” unfolding at the with ideas. I get ideas for my campaign all the time,
uce Cordell’s character, and the first question that comes to my mind once I
k named Melech. Sev- get an idea is: How can I fit this into the campaign?
ul star entity known as The answer is always the same: I just throw it in the
h a strange tattoo: that pot and see what happens. Which brings us back to
the title of this article:
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 5
The Dungeon Master Ex
I don’t know Tattoo of the Horizon
what it means,
but I like it. The mark of Caiphon, the hor
maw that widens and grows a
Whenever I get a cool idea that I think is worth doom.
exploring in my campaign, I throw it into the mix—
provided I can think of at least one character in the Lvl 20 125,000 gp
party whose story arc would benefit from its inclu- Wondrous Item
sion. By “benefit,” I don’t mean to suggest that the Requirement: You must have th
character necessarily becomes more powerful as a Property
result. The ultimate goal is to add stuff to the cam- When you spend an action poi
paign that makes the characters and their situations enemies in a close burst 5 cent
more interesting and fun to play. It’s also a great way damage and are blinded until t
to give your campaign extra layers or depth. Curse: When you fail a deat
Let’s consider Melech’s situation: Many months to your level.
ago, I had an idea based on the fairly common experi-
ence of someone waking up one morning to discover The curse is a nice touch, d
he or she had a tattoo, but no memory of how it got tattoo from being a simple p
there. (If that hasn’t happened to you personally, it’s the flavor of the idea, that “
probably happened to someone you know—just ask Melech a gift he can’t refuse
Alias, from Curse of the Azure Bonds) This was an idea At the time, I had no clu
I wanted to include in my game. At the time, Bruce’s or how it would factor into t
character was being overshadowed by the story arcs it simply because I liked the
of other characters, and I wanted to give Bruce some- later, I was thinking about o
thing to sink his teeth into while waiting for some of paign villains—an eladrin s
these other arcs to play out. So, without a lot of fore- on releasing a bunch of evil
thought, I gave Melech a magical tattoo that appeared celestial prisons. It occurre
out of nowhere. Here’s the actual tattoo, written up as evil powers might be secret
a magic item: acter, also a star pact warlo
destined for greatness. May
temptation. Maybe the star
villain and groom Bruce’s c
ment. At this point in the ca
exactly sure how it will all p
on Bruce and what happen
coming months. For now, th
sure is that evil star powers
. . . and that’s enough to kee
terrified.
xperience: I Don’t Know What It Means, But I Like It
Star Level 20
rizon star, resembles a toothy
as the wearer draws closer to his
he Fate of the Void pact boon.
int to take an extra action, all
tered on you take 10 radiant
the end of your next turn.
th save, you take damage equal
don’t you think? It keeps the
power-up. It also conveys
“an evil star power gives
e.”
ue what the tattoo meant
the campaign. I included
e idea. Several weeks
one of my major cam-
star pact warlock hell-bent
l star entities from their
ed to me that these same
tly courting Bruce’s char-
ock. Maybe they think he’s
ybe the gifts are a form of
r powers plan to devour my
character as his replace-
ampaign, I’m still not
play out; a lot of it depends
ns to his character in the
he only thing I know for
s have their eye on Melech
ep Bruce both excited and
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 6
The Dungeo
Lessons Learned My C
The T
As the DM, your biggest challenges are keeping the
players immersed in the story of your campaign, and 3/10/2011
making the campaign world a place the players like
to visit week after week (or however often you meet). WEDNESDAY
It’s also your job to surprise and delight them. One
ironclad way to accomplish these admirable goals is The party has reached the ape
to give players stuff to think about (and, by extension, paign entitled “Nythe-Saleme.
stuff for their characters to think about). If you have on an island ruled by the pair
an idea that fascinates you, don’t wait for the right Nythe and Saleme (hence the
opportunity to include it. Just include it, and let time episode)—but there’s more to th
and your players sort it out. sisters hold the answers to ma
whereabouts of the Dragovar e
If the idea ends up going nowhere, the players prob- ance is one of the biggest myst
ably won’t care (or even notice), but if it ends up going
somewhere, your players will look upon you as a Think of any serialized TV
storyt elling genius. decade that features a good
ters. If you’re stuck, I’ll nam
Here are the important takeaways: my head: Lost. Battlestar Ga
✦ Don’t squirrel away your ideas. Use them, Deadwood. True Blood. Mad
story characteristics those
even if you’re not sure how to get the most out with D&D campaigns you’
of them. ined creating. I’d contend
✦ Ultimately, it’s the players who decide what astonishing.
f lies and what doesn’t in your campaign. So The truth is, if I hadn’t w
look for a way to connect your cool idea to one gaming industry, I’d probab
or more of the characters, preferably in a way ing as a TV producer. I tend
that the player(s) might enjoy. campaign as a dramatic TV
reasons:
Until the next encounter!
on Master Experience: My Campaign: The TV Series
Campaign:
TV Series
Y NIGHT.
ex of an episode of the cam-
.” The adventure takes place
of purple dragon sisters,
name of the island and the
hem than meets the eye. The
any secrets, including the
emperor . . . whose disappear-
teries of the campaign.
V drama of the past
d-sized cast of charac-
me a few off the top of
alactica. The Sopranos.
d Men. Now think of all the
shows have in common
’ve created or imag-
that the similarities are
wormed my way into the
bly be most happy work-
d to think of my D&D
V series for the following
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 7
The Dungeo
✦ My campaign has an ensemble cast of Trick #1: K
characters.
running ep
✦ It has episodic adventures, some of which are
built around a larger mythology, while others guide.
have a more stand-alone feel.
Fans write episode guides f
✦ The episodes link together to form the “guts” the time. Why? Because it’s
of my campaign narrative, while simulta- chronicles all of the events
neously allowing for individual character thus far. As you begin assem
development and, when it happens, character episode guide, treat each ad
death. as a separate episode, give t
name, and write a short sum
In fact, the only real difference I can ascertain paragraph!) of what happen
between a D&D campaign and a serialized TV drama specific details of who-did-w
is that, unlike a TV show, a D&D campaign isn’t likely to end on a cliffhanger. And
to be televised. (Having said that, I dare someone to take a longer adventure and
prove me wrong. I will pay tribute and homage to episodes. (TV series do this
anyone who actually manages to turn his or her D&D “Episode, Part 1” and “Episo
campaign into a TV series.) Your episode guide can b
One of the payoffs for thinking about your cam- wikis are ideal for this sort
paign as a TV series is that you’ll have an easier time two separate campaigns in
remembering what’s important: the characters and separate wikis for my Mond
their ongoing development. That’s why the players night games.
play in your campaign. It’s what makes designing At the end of each one-p
adventures so much fun. It’s about the journey of the up, include a “Notes” sectio
characters and the bad things and hilarious s**t that miscellaneous information
happen along the way. I often use this space to me
Here are three tricks to help you get into the mind- by name, recount weird occ
set of treating your campaign as a TV series: actions that have little to do
wacky stuff.
In the right-hand colum
my Wednesday night episod
to make it comprehensible
the details of the Iomandra
on Master Experience: My Campaign: The TV Series
Keep a Episode 149: Caves of the
Kraken Cult, Part 1
pisode
Campaign Date: 10 Lendys 1475
for their favorite series all
s fun. The episode guide In the back of an underground warehouse, the
that have transpired heroes discover an illusory wall concealing a secret
mbling your campaign network of caves infested with aberrations. The
dventure or play session heroes make their way to a cavern occupied by
them a number and a half-mad kraken cultists guarded by hungry chuuls.
mmary (no more than one Deimos (played by Chris Youngs) insinuates himself
ned. It’s okay to leave out among the cultists and lures them into an ambush.
what-to-whom. It’s okay The party then confronts the chuuls and remain-
d it’s perfectly okay to ing members of the cult. After a pitched battle, the
d break it up into smaller heroes decide to withdraw and recuperate.
s all the time. It’s called
ode, Part 2.”) On their way out, they run afoul into a gang of
be any format, although Horned Alliance thugs led by Suffer, a tiefling
of thing. Because I run with a whale-sized attitude problem. The heroes
the same world, I keep flee back into the caves. There, they find another
day night and Wednesday exit connected to the Stone Rose Brothel in the
city’s dwarven district. Once back in the city, they
paragraph episode write- take refuge at the Temple of Bahamut—and come
on where you can dump face-to-face with the Horned Alliance’s second-in-
command, Prismeus, who makes them an offer they
worth keeping track of. can’t refuse.
ention important NPCs
currences and character Notes: Divin (played by Curt Gould) nearly dies after
o with the plot, and other falling into a watery vortex at the bottom of a deep
shaft. Divin calls to Melora for aid, and because he
mn a sample write-up from earlier placed some treasure on her altar, Melora
de guide, modified slightly answers his call, taking the form of a watery levia-
to those unfamiliar with than that lifts him up out of the vortex.
a campaign.
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 8
The Dungeo
Trick #2: Think of their shows; they identify th
and how best to develop the
your campaign in off ” audience expectations.
of the ensemble cast as the
terms of seasons. with the players as your aud
Here are some episode o
A season of a campaign might span any number of Wednesday game, many of
levels. My players have long-term commitments to the actions and ideas of my
my campaign, so I went with three seasons, each one
spanning a tier (heroic, paragon, epic). If that works The Red Shoals of Dkar
for you, steal the idea. If your game group is less (Armos episode) The hun
stable, consider making your seasons shorter. the heroes to an elementa
At the beginning of each season, I ask each player pirates and bloodthirsty p
to give me a list of three things he or she would like to was actually inspired by an
see happen during the season. These might be char- wrote for Dungeon, so pro
acter-specific, or might be larger in scale. When my
Wednesday group hit epic tier, I recalled that Rodney Master of the Maelstrom
Thompson had a couple memorable things on his list: (Deimos and Vargas episo
He wanted his character to transform from one race their nemesis, the pirate
into another, and he wanted the heroes to participate high seas.
in at least one full-scale naval battle. Stuff like this is
very helpful, once you begin using Trick #3. Impstinger Must Die
(Deimos episode) Sea King
Trick #3: Imagine launching a savage attack o
where your Defective
(Fleet episode) The chara
campaign is going, their warforged companio
different about him.
and concoct future
Constellation of Madness
episode ideas. A celestial event alters rea
the Monday campaign to i
Once your episode guide is up-to-date, start writing the Wednesday campaign
1-sentence descriptions for a bunch of episodes that
haven’t happened yet. This is what I call campaign I’ve fleshed out the first
projection; it’s an opportunity to imagine what might list in anticipation of actual
happen in the weeks and months ahead, based on adventures; the rest are hal
where the campaign’s heading and the likely out- or might not ever unfold. So
comes and consequences of the characters’ actions
up to this point. TV producers do something similar
when they sit down to plot out upcoming seasons of
on Master Experience: My Campaign: The TV Series
he stories they want to tell, natural steps forward, or sudden twists in the major
eir ensemble cast and “pay campaign arcs playing out this season; others are
. For your campaign, think stand-alone adventure ideas that will hopefully inject
characters in your game, some new villains and surprises into the campaign.
dience. Some of your ideas for future episodes will get
one-liners I wrote for the knocked off by better ideas. Others will die for rea-
which were inspired by sons beyond your control; for example, a player
y players: (around whose character the idea was based) might
drop out of the game. A few ideas might perish for
nt for Fathomreaver leads logistical reasons. I really like the “Constellation
al domain ruled by greedy of Madness” adventure idea; however, mixing and
politics. (Aside: This idea matching players from my two campaigns is a sched-
n article that Bruce Cordell uling nightmare. Consequently, as cool as this idea
ops to him!) sounds, it might not be as feasible as originally con-
ceived. That said, I love the title and will definitely
ode) The heroes confront find a way to use that, if nothing else.
warlord Vantajar, on the Don’t be afraid to include future episode one-
liners in your published campaign wiki. It’s okay for
g Impstinger is accused of the players to read them—desirable even. Here’s why:
on a Dragovar settlement. It’s fun to tease players with stuff that might happen,
and just like teasers for a TV show, it excites them to
acters are reunited with think about the possibilities. It’s worth noting that the
on, but there’s something ideas you flag as character-specific episodes shouldn’t
really focus on a single character; this should only
serve to remind you that certain episodes help to
advance specific character arcs. Show me a player
who hates it when the spotlight shines on his charac-
ter, and I’ll show you a tarrasque that can fly!
s
ality, allowing heroes from
interact with heroes from
n.
three one-liners on this
lly running them as
lf-baked ideas that might
ome of these represent
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 9
Lessons Learned Instan
Mons
To summarize: Imagine your D&D campaign as a
TV series, with the heroes as your ensemble cast and 3/17/2011
the players as your audience. As the producer of this
series, it’s your job to imagine where the campaign is
headed and what journey each character must make
toward the inevitable finale. Sometimes your cam-
paign will get cancelled prematurely, because it loses
its audience; there’s really nothing you can do about it
except start over (and maybe target a new audience).
Here are some things to keep in mind if you
decide to approach your campaign as a serialized TV
show:
✦ Think of your campaign in terms ofepisodes
and seasons.
✦ Create a campaign episode guide.
✦ Write one-liners for future episodes to help
you imagine where the campaign’s headed.
Until the next encounter!
The Dungeon Master Experience: Instant Monster
nt MONDAY NIGHT.
ster
Our heroes are 23rd level, fighting mind flayers aboard
an illithid vessel on the Dragon Sea. The mind flayers are
tied to one of the campaign’s big story arcs involving a war
between the almighty Dragovar Empire (ruled by dragon-
born) and the upstart Myrthon Regency, a vassal state of
the imperial commonwealth that has declared its indepen-
dence. It’s a familiar tale with a D&D twist.
Around 11th level, the heroes learned a major cam-
paign secret: The Myrthon Regency was being influenced
by mind f layers and other forces from the Far Realm.
Knowing that most mind flayers fall in the level 18–20
range (in 4th Edition), my players started getting ner-
vous by the time they reached 16th level. For my part, I’d
expected mind f layers to start showing up around 19th or
20th level. As it turns out, through no fault of the players,
the Monday night heroes really didn’t get around to fight-
ing their first mind f layers until now.
One of the dangers of running a complex campaign is
that it’s easy for the party to become involved in certain
unfolding stories and not others. By the time mind f layers
were back on the menu, the heroes had gained a bunch of
levels. Consequently, the monsters I’d planned for them to
fight were now several levels below the party average. Solv-
ing this problem demanded special DM ninja skills . . . and
took a lot less time than you might think.
Welcome to the microwave dinner approach to mon-
ster design! By the end of this column, you’ll have a
new DM superpower: The ability to create a monster
of any level “on the fly” in 2 minutes or less.
And by “create,” I mean “customize.” As much as
I love creating new monsters from scratch (my favor-
ite D&D activity, in fact, outside of actually running
a game), it’s usually unnecessary. Most players sit-
ting on the other side of the DM screen can’t tell the
difference between a monster you’ve created from
scratch and an existing monster that’s been modi-
fied to suit your needs—so you should only create
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 10
monsters from scratch when you have the time or Don’t bother adjusting the m
want to try something weird. modifier, skill modifiers,
This article presents two simple and effective ways fiers unless you’re a stickle
to customize a monster: changes have little discerni
combat performance (at lea
✦ Take a monster and adjust its level. of view). If the encounter w
✦ Turn a monster into another monster of the decrease these values by 1 f
add or subtract, and be don
same level. Here’s the dolgaunt mo
Campaign Guide, and the di
The Perkinsian version I used in the mind f
Approach to my players:
Adjusting a
Monster’s Level
My approach to adjusting a monster’s level isn’t math-
ematically perfect, but it serves the needs of most
DMs. The ultimate goal is to tweak a monster so that
it’s level appropriate and doesn’t cause players to
shout “WTF!” during the game. This approach has
three easy steps.
For each level you add or subtract:
✦ Increase or decrease the monster’s defenses
and attack bonuses by 1.
✦ Increase or decrease the monster’s hit points
by 10 (x2 for elites, x4 for solos). If you’re
feeling finicky, make that 6 for artillery and
lurkers, 8 for controllers, skirmishers, and
soldiers. Just remember, this exercise is about
easy math, not pinpoint accuracy.
✦ Increase or decrease the monster’s damage
by 1. If you’re making a minion, its damage
is usually around 4 + one-half the monster’s
level (minion brutes deal about 25% more
damage on top of that).
The Dungeon Master Experience: Instant Monster
monster’s initiative Dolgaunt Jailer
, or ability score modi-
er for detail; these sorts of (use Dolgaunt Monk, Eberron Campaign Guide p.203)
ible impact on a monster’s Level 21 Controller
ast, from the players’ point HP 216/108, AC 35, Fort 33, Ref 34, Will 33
warrants it, increase or +13 to attacks and damage rolls
for every two levels you
ne with it. The Perkinsian
onk from the Eberron Approach to
rt-simple level-adjusted Turning One
flayer adventure sprung on Monster Into
A not her
As Jack Burton—er, I mean—Chris Perkins always
says, you can’t judge a monster by its level. At least,
most players can’t. What makes a monster memo-
rable is its “shtick”—in other words, the one or two
powers and/or traits that truly define what the mon-
ster does. As long as you’re happy with the monster’s
attacks and powers, it doesn’t matter where the rest of
its stats came from.
First, find a monster of the role and level you
need—preferably one that has at least one attack
power or trait worth keeping—and do the following:
✦ Give the monster a new name.
✦ Ignore any of the monster’s powers or traits
that are inappropriate or undesirable.
✦ If you’re feeling creative (and only if you’re
feeling creative), give the monster a new trait
or power—and by “new” I mean something
you’ve invented on a whim or something lifted
from another critter.
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 11
Having trouble finding a monster of the appropriate Foulspawn T
role and level? Try surfing the “creatures by level” (use Infernal Girallon, Mon
Level 22 Brute
charts at the back of every 4th Edition monster book —Replace the burning soul
we’ve ever produced, or better yet, use the D&D Com- aura (deals psychic damag
pendium online tool. but otherwise identical).
—Replace the burning ichor
I’ll be the first to admit it: This approach to mon- power (deals psychic dama
but otherwise identical).
ster customization is the D&D equivalent of stealing —Delete the Combat Clim
someone else’s homework, erasing that person’s name The “Two-
Strike” of
and writing your name on it instead—appropriate Customiza
behavior for your home campaign only! If you feel like flexing your
Here’s the infernal girallon from the Monster both approaches on one mo
Manual 3, transformed into a foulspawn terrorhulk of a monster that I wanted t
flayer ship, but was the wro
for my Monday night campaign: plex for my tastes. A dolgrim
goblins fused together, and
be a minion with traits that
shtick. The traits I ultimate
“inspired” by the racial pow
The end result:
The Dungeon Master Experience: Instant Monster
Terrorhulk Dolgrim Pest
nster Manual 3 p.103) (use Dolgrim Warrior, Eberron Campaign Guide
p.203)
l aura with a psychic ooze Level 21 Minion Skirmisher
ge instead of fire damage, HP 1; AC 35, Fort 33, Ref 32, Will 33
+17 to attacks, 13 damage/attack
r power with a psychic ichor —Replace the Double Actions and Combat Advan-
age instead of fire damage, tage traits with:
mber trait. Weez Awesome: Whenever it makes an attack roll,
the dolgrim rolls twice and uses the higher result.
-Fa nged
f Monster Weez Still Alive! (immediate interrupt; at-will)
Trigger: An enemy hits the dolgrim with an attack.
ation Effect:The triggering enemy must reroll the attack against
the dolgrim and use the second roll, even if it’s lower.
DM ninja skills, try using
onster. Here’s an example
to include aboard my mind
ong level and a bit too com-
m warrior is basically two
I wanted my version to
t preserved the monster’s
ely gave the monster were
wers of elves and halflings.
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 12
Lessons Learned Point
Use your newfound DM superpower freely and often, 3/24/2011
until it becomes as easy as breathing. Mastery comes
quickly—in very little time, you’ll be able to customize WEDNESDAY
monsters “on the fly” while still keeping your players
on their toes. The truth is, you should never have to Three years ago. The Iomandr
create a monster stat block unless you really want to. underway. The characters hav
Don’t believe me? Take any monster stat block that’s small, politically insignificant
been published and do the following: the Dragon Sea… an island wi
✦ Write down the monster’s name and a page revealed.
Chris Youngs is playing a t
reference. Deimos, who was shipwrecked
✦ Make a “short list” of the custom changes you nearly two decades ago. Little
shipwreck was no accident, no
want to make to the monster. Dragovar Empire wants him d
✦ Run the monster using the old stat block and character know that Deimos w
an arcane experiment that tra
your “short list” of notes. dragon-sorcerer inside him—or
grandmother, the leader of a p
Your players will either believe that you’re running a called the Horned Alliance. Ov
monster right out of the book, or they’ll think they’re these secrets will come to light,
fighting something new. Either way, they’re over- Deimos came to the island wil
joyed—and you didn’t kill yourself in the process.
Every campaign starts some
Until the next encounter!
Waterdeep. An isolated vill
the shore of the Isle of Drea
against which we first meet
heroes of the campaign. At
world is a complete mystery
only things they can relate t
this reason alone, it behoov
take some time before the c
hooks that tether the heroe
stories that make the chara
world.
Once I’ve chosen a starti
but before play begins, I lik
The Dungeon Master Experience: Point of Origin
t of Origin
Y NIGHT. consider their characters’ origins… get them thinking
about where their characters came from. I’m less con-
ra campaign has just gotten cerned about how the characters found one another;
ve converged on Kheth: a that bit of artifice usually isn’t important, since most
t island in the middle of players are willing and eager to accept that fate or
ith many secrets yet to be circumstance has brought their characters together.
However, it’s been my experience that players have
tiefling warlock named trouble coming up with origin stories because their
d on the island as a child understanding of the world is so limited. (This is less
does Deimos know that the true if you’re running a campaign in a world with
or does he realize that the which the players are intimately familiar.)
dead. Neither Chris nor his All characters had lives before they became
was, as a child, subjected to adventurers—at least, that’s the underlying conceit of
apped the spirit of an ancient character themes (first introduced in the Dark Sun®
r that he was sold off by his Campaign Setting and carried forward in other 4th
powerful tiefling thieves’ guild Edition products published since). While character
ver the next several years, themes are terrific and I heartily encourage DMs to
, and the full story of how permit them in their campaigns, published themes
ll be known. can’t account for the specific stories you’re aiming
to tell in the course of your home campaign. Conse-
ewhere. A tavern in quently, I like to create origin stories that my players
lage. A ship wrecked upon can choose from, if they’re stuck for ideas.
ad. These are backdrops After I decided to start my campaign on a small
t the characters—the island, I spent a rainy Sunday afternoon writing up
this point, the campaign a bunch of different origin stories that my players
y to the players, and the could choose from. (It wasn’t required that they do
to are their characters. For so. In some cases, my players already had an origin
ves the Dungeon Master to story in mind and I just needed to figure out how to
campaign begins to create fit it in.) This activity turned out to be a great exercise,
es to the setting . . . origin because it forced me to think about different ways to
acters feel intrinsic to the bring characters together and connect them to events
that were about to unfold.
ing point for my campaign, Here’s what I gave to my players as they were cre-
ke to inspire my players to ating characters for the Iomandra campaign:
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 13
Your Origin Story friends never returned
refused to send a hunt
The campaign begins on the isle of Kheth, which
begs the question: Are you a native of the island, or You’re a Shipw
did events conspire to bring you here? Following are Orphan
some likely origin stories for your character. Once
you’ve chosen or concocted a story for your character, Nineteen years ago, a ship c
you can begin to hash out the details with the DM. crashed on the island of Kh
The only survivors were the
You’re Tyrak’n Born Denarion Morrow—and sev
self included. You were very
You are a native of Tyrak’n, the only settlement on years old then, making you
Kheth. Your family lives in town and either fishes, and you don’t remember an
forages, tends a modest garden, or runs a small busi- children were adopted by th
ness. You are friends with just about everyone in raised as natives. Although
town, although you’ve probably forged a very close figure, Captain Morrow has
bond with at least one local citizen. all these years, but still clai
anything that happened be
Racial Possibilities have no clue where you cam
parents are. You’re friends w
✦ If you are a half-elf between the ages of 17 in town, although you’ve pr
and 25, you may choose to be the son or bond with at least one local
daughter of Magistrate von Zarkyn, giving you Four years ago, three of y
a fair amount of local clout. Your father is a halfling boy named Jynt, a
shrewd leader and has taken great pains over Jesper, and a half-elf girl na
the years to appease the island’s green dragon explore Serpent Hill, even t
overlord and uphold his grandfather’s good forbidden to go there. They
name. Your mother is warm and funny in Morrow urged Magistrate v
private, but surprisingly aloof and formal in to locate them, but the mag
public. You fear that there’s something impor- men haven’t spoken since. J
tant she hasn’t told you or your father . . . a survivors of the Morrow’s Fo
secret she’s likely to carry to her grave. tain Morrow regrets not goi
✦ If you are a half ling between the ages of 17 You’re Forsake
and 25, you may have had a troubled older
or younger brother named Jynt who disap- You were born and raised e
peared four years ago. Jynt broke the law island of Kheth by ship, and
when he persuaded two other local youths (a behind. Hoping to find you
human boy named Jesper and a half-elf girl you’ve probably forged a clo
named Vazia) to join him on an expedition to of the local citizens.
the ruins atop Serpent Hill. No one is allowed
there by order of the magistrate. Jynt and his
The Dungeon Master Experience: Point of Origin
d, and the magistrate
ting party to find them.
wrecked
called the Morrow’s Folly Racial Possibilities
heth during a freak storm.
e captain—a half-elf named ✦ If you are a dragonborn, you may be the son
veral young children, your- or daughter of parents who were exiled from
y young at the time (2-5 Arkhosian soil. One or both of your parents
may have been pirates or outspoken oppo-
21–26 years old now), nents of the Dragovar monarchy. In either
nything. You and the other case, they probably figured you’d be safer on a
he local townsfolk and small, backwater island of little consequence
he’s not much of a father to the rest of the Dragovar empire.
s been watching over you
ms that he can’t remember
efore the shipwreck. You
me from, or who your real
with just about everyone
robably forged a very close
l citizen.
your friends (a troubled
curious human lad named
amed Vazia) left town to
though locals are strictly
never returned. Captain
von Zarkyn to send a patrol
gistrate refused. The two
Jesper and Vazia were also
olly shipwreck, and Cap-
ing after them himself.
en
elsewhere, brought to the
d, for whatever reason, left
ur place in the community,
ose bond with at least one
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 14
✦ If you are an elf between the ages of 24 and None of the Ab
30, you may choose to be the son or daughter
of Lady Thariel von Zarkyn from a previous Perhaps you’ve come to Khe
marriage. Your father is a wealthy ship cap- reasons. As a result, you ma
tain named Torel Winterleaf who recently strong ties with the commu
made some powerful enemies. Three weeks tions are listed below:
ago, you were spirited out of Io’calioth (the
Dragovar capital) by your father’s servants, ✦ Someone you care abo
smuggled aboard the tradeship Lantheon, and years ago by Dragovar
sent to stay with your mother for your own the prison island of M
safety. You never got a chance to say goodbye this person was impris
to your father, and your mother didn’t exactly the key to clearing his
welcome you with open arms. It’s been 23 with a missing sea cap
years after all, and your sudden arrival has Morrow . . . whom you
created unrest in Von Zarkyn Manor. For his the backwater town of
part, Magistrate von Zarkyn seems to be han- of Kheth.
dling the situation quite well, particularly
since your mother never told him she had a ✦ You swindled or doub
child with her previous husband. tain named Lydia Tara
afterward that she wa
✦ If you are a tief ling between the ages of 17 Senestrago. Upon lear
and 25, you may choose to be the niece or aboard the hammersh
nephew of Lucius Vezetus, the friendly propri- Tyrak’n. You’ve opted
etor of the Talisman. You were born and raised blow over. Hopefully b
in the slums of Io’calioth, and several years found some protection
ago your parents brought you to see “Uncle make amends.
Lucius” as a child and left you with him with-
out explanation. Although he makes you do ✦ The church of Avandra
chores around the tavern, your uncle has been to assist the local pries
very forgiving of your irksome adolescent specifically requested
antics. When asked about your parents, he an adventurous spirit.
merely frowns and grumbles in Supernal. certain townsfolk are
turous nature that wil
they need Avandra’s a
their travails. You are
hopes will help these o
“safely walk the dark p
✦ You had a vivid dream
It asked you to travel t
and locate a man nam
dragon in your dream
and also claimed that
success would be grea
The Dungeon Master Experience: Point of Origin
bove Lessons Learned
eth for entirely different One of the joys of running a campaign is watching
ay or may not have forged the players learn its mysteries. However, at the start
unity. Some brief sugges- of the campaign, everything is a mystery. One of the
ways you can tell the players a little bit about the
out was arrested ten world and build anticipation for what’s to come is to
r authorities and sent to give them origin story ideas that you can connect to
Mheletros. You believe some of the bigger stories of your campaign.
soned wrongfully, and Case in point, Chris Youngs was looking for a hook
s or her good name rests to tie his tiefling character to the world of Iomandra,
ptain named Denarion and he liked the “You’re a Shipwrecked Orphan” idea
u’ve finally tracked to quite a bit. He also liked the idea that Deimos would
f Tyrak’n on the island form a close bond with Lucius Vezetus, the tiefling
proprietor of the Talisman. They were, after all, the
ble-crossed a sea cap- only tieflings on the island.
alan, only to discover You only need a handful of origin stories, and the
as working for Sea King time you invest in their creation will pay off in spades
rning the truth, you f led over the course of the campaign. Here’s why I love
hip Lantheon, headed for creating them:
to lay low until things
by then, you’ll have ✦ Origin stories make the heroes feel like living,
n . . . or some way to breathing elements of your campaign world.
a has sent you to Tyrak’n ✦ Origin stories come with pre-built hooks for
st, Sister Alyson. She adventures. Let the events of the past inform
d “someone gifted with the events of the future.
.” Alyson believes that
blessed with an adven- Until the next encounter!
ll soon manifest, but
ssistance to survive
the one Sister Alyson
other adventurers
path.”
m about a silver dragon.
to the island of Kheth
med Johias Ilum. The
s sounded real enough,
the rewards for your
at.
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 15
The
A Moment in the
3/31/2011 they’re in a character-drive
episode. Sometimes these
MONDAY NIGHT. two things cross: When we
learn that Mulder’s sister
As happens from time to time, three of my eight players and Scully’s cancer are par
are absent, so this game session is a bit more intimate than of a worldwide conspiracy,
usual. The combats move quickly and seem a lot more dan- things get really twisted.
gerous, probably because I’m not the kind of merciful DM When the Battlestar Galac-
who adjusts encounters to account for absent players! tica crew is trying to escape
Fortunately, one of the attending players is Jeff Alvarez. from Cylon-occupied New
By day, Jeff is the VP of Operations at Paizo Publishing, Caprica, we’re talking plot,
but on Monday nights, he transforms into the elf ranger but we also have moments
Kithvolar: a whirling dervish of gut-spilling destruction in which different charac-
who deals obscene amounts of damage. Tonight is Kithvo- ter arcs are expanded: Saul
lar’s moment to shine—Jeff is about to learn that he’s not in Tigh’s discovery that his wi
complete control of his character, and that something vile is a Cylon collaborator, Kar
is living in his brain…. Thrace’s attempts to escape
imprisonment, Lee Adama’
A quick aside: This article was inspired by a ques- “battle of the bulge,” and so
on.
tion posed at a PAX East seminar called “The Rat I have three overarching
(i.e., world-shaping) plots
Bastard’s Guide to Running Long Campaigns.” Expe- that form the foundation of
my campaign. However, I’m
rienced DMs will find the point of this article rather always looking for opportun
to do “character episodes”—
obvious. If your reaction to the article is “No kidding,” individual quests that help
character arcs and give obje
then you’re well ahead of the curve. However, as with sonal. Again, TV series do t
Battlestar Galactica crew did
all things, that which is most obvious is often most after week, the series would
stop caring about the chara
ignored, and countless campaigns and players have to shove, it’s the heroes that
not convoluted plotlines or
suffered because experienced DMs have forgotten
what I’m about to share with you.
In an earlier article, I recommended treating your
campaign like a TV series. If you analyze some of the
best dramatic series in recent history, you’ll see that
individual episodes generally focus on plot, charac-
ter, or both. When Mulder and Scully are exposing
the government’s cover-up of alien-human hybridiza-
tion, they’re in a plot-driven episode of The X-Files.
When they’re investigating the abduction of Mulder’s
sister or dealing with the fact that Scully has cancer,
e Dungeon Master Experience: A Moment in the Sun
Sun
en
rt
e
l conundrums or “end of the world” tick-
fe ing clocks.
ra Which brings me to Kithvolar, the
e elf ranger. Early in the paragon tier, my
’s Monday night group opposed “kraken
o cultists” lurking underneath the city of
Io’galaroth. The adventure culminated in an encounter
g with some aberrant horrors, during which Kithvolar
fell unconscious. Amid the chaos—and unbeknownst to
f the players—a mind flayer implanted a critter in the elf
m ranger’s brain before slinking back to the Far Realm.
nities
—to present
advance certain
ectives that are per-
this all the time; if all the
d was fight Cylons week
d get tiresome, and we’d
acters. When push comes
t are most important,
crafty villains or ethical
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 16
T
Flash forward several game sessions: The heroes characters naturally becom
are in the creaking bowels of Anchordown (a float- campaign than others. How
ing “raft town”), assaulting a nest of aberrations. advice if you have underdev
Strangely, none of the creatures seem to be attacking the players to send you thre
Kithvolar, and the players have no idea why. Also, to see happen in the campa
Kithvolar sees disturbing things the other characters lists, take one idea from eac
don’t, such as tentacles crawling inside the walls. an upcoming adventure. Th
Flash forward several more game sessions: The might this affect that player
thing in Kithvolar’s brain has matured. It takes con-
trol of his mind and uses him to assassinate the Lessons Le
trusted adjutant of a Dragovar military general,
throwing the empire into chaos. A simple ritual is Static heroes do not a great
enough to remove the critter in his brain, but the want your D&D campaign
more interesting questions are how will Kithvolar to evolve. Your more sophis
react to being used as a pawn, and can he make demand it, but even players
amends? Jeff ’s character is standing at the epicenter investment in the game don
of the action, and Kithvolar will help set the tone and supporting characters or fif
direction of the campaign going forward. For me, the greatest chal
Every character deserves a moment in the sun. campaign is keeping all of t
Sometimes the moment comes unexpectedly when what’s happening. Toward t
a character does something particularly cool and following in mind:
memorable, or when something surprising happens to
that character. However, a good DM doesn’t wait for ✦ A campaign has an en
these moments. A good DM also prepares for them. As Make sure they all get
I prepare for a session, I ask myself, “Which character and keep the spotlight
is this ‘episode’ about?” It’s okay to be proven wrong—
after all, you can’t always predict what’ll happen ✦ Every character gets a
once the players convene and the dice start rolling! I player who doesn’t rea
remember planning an entire Monday game around
Bruce Cordell’s character . . . which was great, except Okay, enough about the her
that Bruce couldn’t make it. (That was the infamous embrace our “inner evil,” ta
session in which Bruce’s character was decapitated.) paign villains, and compare
Before you run your next game session, ask
yourself which character gets the spotlight . . . and Until the next encounter!
then see how right you are. Week after week, if you
discover that the answer is the same one or two char-
acters, consider that a warning sign: Not all of your
player characters are getting their moment in the sun.
Giving each character “equal time” isn’t easy.
It’s something I personally struggle with. Some
The Dungeon Master Experience: The Dastardly Duo
me more integral to the The
wever, here’s some good Dastardly
veloped characters: Ask Duo
ee things they would like
aign. Once you have their 4/7/2011
ch player and work it into
hen ask yourself, “How WEDNESDAY NIGHT.
r’s character?”
The characters, now 15th level, have reached the midpoint
earned of the campaign. To celebrate this achievement, I decided
to involve them in something truly world-shaking. The
campaign make. If you time had come to give them a f lavor of evil they’d never
to thrive, its heroes need tasted before.
sticated players will Enter Kharl Mystrum and Nemencia Xandros.
s with a relatively shallow
n’t like being treated as Kharl and Nemencia have three qualities that make
fth wheels for very long. them stand out: First, like all truly evil villains, they
llenge of running a long believe that their actions are justified. Second, they’re
the players invested in incredibly lucky. And third, like two sides of a coin,
that end, I try to keep the they can’t really exist without one another.
If Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the TV series, not the
nsemble cast of heroes. loathsome movie) taught me anything, it’s that two
t time in the spotlight, villains are better than one. It was proven in Season
t moving! 2 with the vampires Spike and Drusilla, reaffirmed
an arc, including the in Season 3 by Mayor Wilkins and Faith, and then
ally crave one. sorely missed in subsequent seasons. (If you want
to make a case for the “brilliant pairing” of Rutger
roes. Next week, let’s Hauer and Paul Reubens in the Buffy movie, knock
alk about amazing cam- yourself out. Preferably with a sledgehammer.)
e notes. Like Spike and Dru, the “dastardly duo” in my
Wednesday night campaign are lovers, which mostly
serves as a plot device to explain why they’re together
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 17
T
but also gives their relationship an added layer of It’s very easy to hate a pa
realism and complexity—particularly when the cracks want to trade their silver sp
start to form. They’re both human, born into noble blow obscene amounts of m
families suffering under the tyranny of the dragon- trodden upon.
born-dominated empire that rules most of Iomandra. The heroes first become
Determined to shatter the imperial hold over their they attend a secret auction
regency, Kharl and Nemencia have stolen their par- the last item up for grabs is
ents’ fortunes to spend on a massive elemental citadel here when the heroes meet
held aloft by a 1,000-foot-high cyclone of water. Once pretty harmless and out of h
they’ve obtained the citadel, Kharl and Nemencia bids 25 million gp on the ci
plan to wipe out the imperial fleet at Io’calioth and time, it’s not clear what her
run roughshod over the island city. It might seem ers are initially led to believ
crazy in your campaign, but it fits perfectly into mine. father, a powerful baron wi
At the conclusion of the
more than happy to offer th
citadel, convinced that they
the empire. However, it soo
intentions are far from nobl
to wrest the crown from he
into the sea. Using a talisma
campaign, the heroes trave
escaping a TPK. (Time trav
device that I hope to discus
heroes get a second shot, bu
Nemencia, they remain abo
for an opportunity to betray
Before the heroes can ac
second time, Kharl appears
realize they’re facing two vi
complication is that Kharl i
a flight of mercenary drago
the citadel. What to do? Th
the two lovers against one a
they try to convince the dra
the lovers, and very nearly s
finally becomes aware of th
joined! As the citadel cuts a
through Io’calioth’s harbor,
out for as long as possible b
The Dungeon Master Experience: The Dastardly Duo
air of spoiled rich kids who What makes Kharl and Nemencia especially
poons for platinum, and memorable (apart from their countless flaws), is
money because they feel their longevity. Since the first fateful meeting,
they’ve crossed paths with the heroes on three more
e involved with them when occasions:
n of elemental weaponry;
✦ Weakened and wounded from their ordeal
the elemental citadel. It’s aboard the citadel, Kharl and Nemencia are
t Nemencia, who seems captured by agents of the Dragovar empire.
her league . . . until she The heroes feel sorry enough for the lovers to
itadel in question. At that extricate them from their predicament. Once
r intentions are—the play- out of harm’s way, Kharl and Nemencia betray
ve she’s representing her the heroes and nearly get them killed before
ith a sterling reputation. escaping once again.
auction, Nemencia is
he heroes a tour of her new ✦ The heroes learn that the Dragovar empire
y share her disdain for has posted a 2,000,000 gp bounty for the
on becomes clear that her capture of Kharl and Nemencia. The heroes
le. When the heroes try finally catch them aboard Kharl’s ship, but
er, she crashes the citadel when the vessel is overrun by githyanki
an obtained earlier in the pirates, the heroes are forced to surrender the
el back in time, effectively lovers to save their own skins.
vel: a fun if tricky plot
ss in a future article.) The ✦ After their vessel is destroyed by a Far Realm
ut instead of turning on mine, the heroes seek another time-travel
oard the citadel and wait talisman to undo the sequence of events that
y her. caused their ship’s destruction. They discover
ct against Nemencia a a drow NPC who has what they need, and
s. That’s when the heroes also learn that the drow is conducting secret
illains, not one. The added business with githyanki pirates. Once they
is not alone: He’s joined by learn that the pirates have released Kharl
ons bribed into defending and Nemencia into the drow’s custody, the
he heroes first try to play vindictive (and somewhat more jaded) heroes
another; when that fails, hunt down and kill the two lovers out of spite,
agon mercenaries to betray forcing the drow to use his time-travel talis-
succeed. When Kharl man to undo the event. When they try again,
heir scheme, the battle’s the heroes discover that Kharl and Nemencia
a swath of destruction have been spirited away, and the talisman’s
, Kharl and Nemencia hold power has been spent. The heroes’ f leeting
before making their escape. victory turns to bitter irony as their thirst for
vengeance has cost them the very item they
sought.
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 18
Lessons Learned Regarding the second point
that comes with giving hero
The saga of Kharl and Nemencia isn’t something I carefully crafted villains. M
planned from the get-go. I fully expected them to villains will perish before a
be dead by now. Everything that’s happened so far infamy, but for every ninete
is the result of hundreds of decisions and dice rolls, time, there will be the twen
combined with calculated efforts on my part to have gods show favor, the villain
them resurface in unexpected ways. They’ve become survives long enough to ma
the archetypal two-headed villain of my Wednesday miserable.
night campaign. At some point, I’ll share with you Regarding the third poin
another villainous archetype that’s become the bane happen if my players sudde
of my Monday night group . . . but that’s another story! Nemencia had become hero
The theme of “dastardly duo” appears frequently of unity among humans fig
in literature, film, and TV. Partnered villains are against the “ruthless” Drago
better than singular villains for so many reasons: happen, I wonder, if the her
They act as mirrors for one another, they can be cold blood?
turned against one another, and they remind the
players that villains also have relationships that can Until the next encounter!
be explored and exploited. Perhaps most importantly,
if one of them dies, the other can carry the torch.
Kharl and Nemencia have taught me three other
important lessons worth mentioning here:
✦ The best villains are like the heroes: They
don’t know everything, they make mistakes,
and they have a knack for turning disadvan-
tage into advantage.
✦ The best villains are the ones the players can
interact with.
✦ If you want to keep your villains from getting
killed, try making them more valuable alive
than dead, or make the consequences of their
deaths severe and readily apparent.
The Dungeon Master Experience: She Eats Babies!
t, there’s an inherent risk She Eats
oes “face time” with your Babies!
More often than not, the
achieving any true level of 4/14/2011
een that die before their
ntieth villain in whom the MONDAY NIGHT.
n (or dastardly duo) that
ake the heroes’ lives truly The heroes are mid-paragon tier and enjoying a love/
hate relationship with a guild of tief ling thieves and cut-
nt, imagine what would throats called the Horned Alliance. Over the course of
enly learned that Kharl and several adventures, they’ve thwarted a major operation,
oes of the people—symbols killed several high-ranking members of the guild, and dealt
ghting for independence the guild a severe financial blow. Now they find them-
ovar empire? What would selves in the cellar of The Dead Crow, a tavern in Io’calioth
roes murdered them in that serves as a front for the Horned Alliance, standing
across the dining table from the guild’s supreme leader:
—Dungeon Master for Life, a grandmotherly tief ling named Dorethau Vadu. What
Chris Perkins better opportunity to bury the hatchet and let bygones be
bygones—the heroes have other fish to fry, and so does the
Horned Alliance. Enough blood has been shed, and neither
side is eager to escalate the violence. More importantly, the
heroes have information that Dorethau desires, and she
has information useful to them.
Both sides agree to an information exchange. How-
ever, before the exchange begins, a servant places a covered
platter in front of Dorethau. She rubs her fork and knife
together expectantly as the platter lid is removed . . . reveal-
ing a cooked dragonborn baby.
The Monday night group was horrified.
To understand the point of this article, one must
first understand the Horned Alliance. This tieflings-
only club of miscreants and malefactors operates
something like the Mafia—it wants to mind its own
business (however criminal) and be left alone. That
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 19
said, the tieflings in my campaign are a shattered The juxtaposition of the
race; their empire was wiped out by the dragonborn with the image of the cook
empire, and in Dragovar society, most tieflings are everything they needed to
regarded as third-class citizens. Vadu—and at this point, the
Over the course of several levels, the heroes over. The looks on my playe
crossed swords with a number of Horned Alli- There was no doing busine
ance tief lings. There was Suffer, the brutal tief ling she had to die.
thug who spoke with a Brooklyn accent; there was As a DM, I sometimes m
Zaidi Arychosa, the aria singer and wealthy dilet- relying too much on dialog
tante; there was Zaibon Krinvazh, who lived on a lains compelling, but playe
ship called the Hellstrike and collected the f layed evil monologues, insults, an
bones of his adversaries; and there was Prismeus, They’re just words, after al
Zaibon’s crafty tief ling lieutenant with the acid- remember about Dorethau
scarred face. that came out of her mouth
For the supreme leader of the Horned Alliance, I went into it.
needed someone more memorable than all of these Actions always speak lou
other tieflings combined—someone with the smarts,
the temperament, and the prescience to run a wide- Lessons Le
spread organization yet who also embodied the
Horned Alliance’s abject hatred toward the Dragovar I’m not suggesting that you
Empire. Dorethau Vadu is old, wise, and not about campaign as a means to sh
to pick a fight with a bunch of people who slay mon- worked for one villain in m
sters for a living. The Horned Alliance is her house, essarily translate to villain
its members are her children and grandchildren The dragonborn baby stun
(metaphorically speaking). She would be likeable and the heroes need to see the
admirable except for one thing. in order to appreciate what
She eats babies. Simply knowing the bad gu
This wasn’t some randomly assigned fetish. It enough.
makes perfect sense in the context of the campaign; There’s a throwaway line
one thing the heroes know is that the Horned Alli- Quantum of Solace to remind
ance detests the ruling dragonborn empire, so how part, are judged by the stren
do I embody this hatred in the guild’s leader? The (“They say you’re judged by
answer is perfect in its awesome evilness: Dorethau enemies”). Well, truth be to
Vadu employs thieves to kidnap dragonborn babies about creating villains I lea
and then eats them! When the idea came to me, I novels and films—and my v
was walking my dog in the woods. Reggie, my three- determined by the extent th
legged silky terrier, gave me a quizzical look when after they’re gone. For you,
I shouted “She eats babies!” and immediately sent who “brands” his captives, t
myself a text message so I wouldn’t forget. (Like I’d one of his own to save hims
forget something that cool!) wears a cloak made of the s
enemies.
The Dungeon Master Experience: She Eats Babies!
e grandmotherly figure
ked baby told the players
know about Dorethau
e negotiations were
ers’ faces said it all:
ess with this woman—
make the mistake of
gue to make my vil-
ers are quick to dismiss
nd hissed invectives.
ll. What my players
u Vadu aren’t the words
h, but the baby that
uder than words.
earned
u add infanticide to your
hock your players. What
my campaign won’t nec-
ns in your campaign.
nt merely illustrates that
villains do bad things
t they’re up against.
uy is evil isn’t thrilling
e spoken in the film
d us that heroes, in large
ngth of their enemies
y the strength of your
old, everything I know
arned from James Bond
villains’ “strength” is
hey’re remembered long
it might be the villain
the villain who betrayed
self, or the villain who
stitched faces of his slain
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 20
✦ A villain needs only one good gimmick Best V
to be even vaguely memorable—be it a
deformity, a white cat with a diamond collar, 4/21/2011
a razor-rimmed hat, or something equally
obvious. Normally I’d kick things of
ing event or happenstance f
✦ Villains are defined by their deeds and but we’re breaking format t
quirks. It only takes one deed or quirk to three winning entries from
make a lasting impression. test. Thanks to everyone wh
When I began analyzing
Next week I’ll present the winning entries from last ticular villains, I realized ea
week’s BEST VILLAIN EVER! contest, and then we’ll example of a villainous arch
leave villains alone for a while to talk about what lain born out of the heroes’
wonderful things can happen to a campaign when a hiding in the heroes’ midst,
player leaves the group. creature turned evil. Many
into one of these three class
Until the next encounter! there were other archetype
world-destroying super-vill
villain, and the benefactor-
name a few.
The Dungeon Master Experience: Best Villain Ever
Villain Ever
f by describing some thrill- Are these three truly the best villains ever? That’s
from my home campaign, ultimately for you to decide. I chose the villains
this week to bring you the that resonated with me personally; had you been
m the Best Villain Ever con- the judge, you might’ve gravitated toward differ-
ho submitted an entry! ent things. However, all of the submissions did have
g why I liked these par- one thing in common: Each villain was a deeply
ach one was a textbook embedded element of the campaign, not just some
hetype: There’s the vil- disposable bad guy.
backstory, the villain
, and the good-aligned Dragen Blackstone,
of the contest entries fell Warlock Knight of Vaasa
sic archetypes, though
es represented as well: the Here’s an example of a villain the heroes are
lain, the vengeance-driven expected to despise from the get-go. Dragen’s deeds
-turned-villain, just to are directly responsible for the situation in which
they find themselves, and their reasons for hating
him are hard-coded into their backgrounds.
I admire a DM who can pit the heroes against a
villain far too powerful for them, allow the villain
to prevail without ending the campaign, and offer
players the promise of sweet, sweet revenge. Dragen
doesn’t need a black hat or a white cat to get the
heroes’ attention. The day the heroes finally meet
Dragen on equal footing promises to be the high
point in the campaign!
Also, the Warlock Knights of Vaasa are just plain
cool.
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 21
Dragen Blackstone, The Porter
Warlock Knight Be K
of Vaasa
The best villain we ever h
My “Best Villain Ever” is from my home Forgotten porter for the party. He w
Realms campaign. He is a Warlock Knight of Vaasa who shared fatherly advi
named Dragen Blackstone. The players crafted back- around the campfire. The p
stories for their characters, and a couple of them night when the party unco
made up stories that involved their homes being they had retrieved from a
destroyed when they children—but they weren’t outside the dungeon imm
really specific about the regions they were from. I the darkest hour of night, o
decided to make them from the mountains surround- camp while the party sle
ing Vaasa and tied them together by the common killed the PC with the ar
thread that their villages were all destroyed by disappeared into the nigh
Dragen. Their first run-in with Dragen was while was that the old man was o
they were still very low level, and he knocked them been dethroned at a young
unconscious and left them for dead, lying in the dirt. to get back what once was
A wandering shaman (a new player joining the cam-
paign) discovered them and healed their wounds. The Porter Wh
The shaman was also very familiar with Dragen—his Be King
tribe was constantly avoiding the Warlock Knights.
My players will have many run-ins with Dragen’s “Curse your sudden but ine
henchmen before they are powerful enough to get The villain who lurks am
their revenge. premise... difficult to pull o
when executed well (no pun
The best twist of the campaign is that one of my play- betrayal comes out of left fie
ers thought he’d be clever and not create a backstory occurs to the DM late in the
for his character. He told me his character woke up in one was planned from the v
the mountains with amnesia and has no recollection some. Bravo!
of his past. As the story unfolds, he will learn that he I often tell new DMs not
used to be one of Dragen’s henchmen! “betrayal” well too often. Yo
ing the heroes at every turn;
—Bill Buchalter suspicious of everyone (best
Indianapolis, IN
The Dungeon Master Experience: Best Villain Ever
Who Might angry (worst-case scenario). I’m a big fan of the “vil-
King lain in our midst,” but if your players have been stung
in the past, it’s wise to drop a few clues before the big
had in a game was a hired reveal. That way, when the players think you’re screw-
was a kind, wiry old man ing them over, you can point back at the clues and say,
ice and told great stories “Au contraire!” (or whatever they say in South Dakota).
party loved him... until one
overed a powerful artifact Havok the Betrayer
lich and decided to camp
mediately afterwards. In I like challenging players’ expectations, and a clas-
offering to watch over the sic D&D example is the evil-aligned metallic dragon.
ept, the kindly old porter This isn’t a new idea, but it’s often overlooked. My
rtifact while he slept and campaign includes a polymorphing silver dragon
ht. What they didn’t know with evil ambitions; he’s not nearly as capable or
once a cruel king who had dangerous as Havok, and I confess that I’ve used him
ger age and now had a way as comic relief on occasion (I recall a time when the
s his. dragon—as he was taunting the heroes with a villain-
ous monologue—landed on a wooden platform that
—Aaron Scott couldn’t support his weight).
Sioux Falls, SD
Havok the Betrayer
ho Might
The best villain we ever had in a game was a hired
evitable betrayal!” porter for the party. He was a kind, wiry old man who
mong the heroes is a great shared fatherly advice and told great stories around
off but incredibly gratifying the campfire. The party loved him... until one night
n intended). Sometimes a when the party uncovered a powerful artifact they had
eld—usually when the idea retrieved from a lich and decided to camp outside the
e game—but I think this dungeon immediately afterwards. In the darkest hour
very start, and that’s awe- of night, offering to watch over the camp while the
party slept, the kindly old porter killed the PC with the
to drink from the artifact while he slept and disappeared into the night.
ou can’t have NPCs betray- What they didn’t know was that the old man was once
; it makes the players a cruel king who had been dethroned at a younger age
t-case scenario) or just plain and now had a way to get back what once was his.
—Aaron Scott
Sioux Falls, SD
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 22
Havok has the added virtue of being a monster as ✦ Villains (even smart o
opposed to a two-armed, two-legged villain. Monsters Sometimes that includ
are underused as major campaign villains, in my heroes when they have
humble opinion. If a gold dragon can hold the heroes’
interest for multiple levels or even tiers of play, imag- ✦ Not every villain need
ine what could be done with an evil treant hell-bent agenda to be cool.
on purging the natural world of civilization, an iron
golem imbued with the sentience and ambition of its ✦ Villains come in all sh
evil creator, or a beholder crime lord.
Havok the Betrayer rekindled my desire to flip It’s a bit of a digression, but
through the Monster Manual in search of the next big bad munity members) has som
guy in my campaign, and that’s why he made the cut. embedded in his forum sig
here: Dangle lots of plot hook
Lessons Learned Anything they do not bite can
later. I think the same advi
Would I pilfer these villains for my own campaign? villains. You never know w
You bet. A campaign can never have enough good vil- the players’ cages, so the tr
lains—I truly believe that. Aside from their admirable new ones.
characteristics, the Best Villain Ever contest winners
reminded me of three important things: Until the next encounter!
The Dungeon Master Experience: Man Down!
ones) make mistakes. Man
des not killing the Down!
e the chance!
ds a world-shaking 4/28/2011
hapes and sizes. WEDNESDAY NIGHT.
t Boraxe (one of our com- I was sad when Trevor Kidd, one of my players, told me he
me wonderful DM advice was leaving Wizards of the Coast—he was moving to Iowa
to be closer to his wife, attending med school. Trevor’s char-
g, which I’m paraphrasing acter, a dragonborn paladin named Rhasgar Vormund,
ks in front of your players. had an amazing story arc tied closely to the events of the
n come back and bite them campaign, and I had big plans for him. Now all of my
ice applies to campaign plans were suddenly dashed… which forced me to come up
which villains will rattle with a new, better plan that would allow Rhasgar to exit
rick is to keep inventing gracefully as well as propel the campaign and the other
characters forward.
Here’s everything you need to know about Rhasgar
to understand the point of this article: He was born into
the noble caste of Dragovar society, but his family was
disgraced by powerful rivals (House Irizaxes and House
Narakhty). Rhasgar ended up adopted by the Temple of
Bahamut, while his younger brother Naxagoras ended
up on the streets. Rhasgar became a dutiful servant of
Bahamut and a sworn defender of the faith, eventually
joining forces with the party in order to help the Dragovar
Empire find its missing Emperor (as well as protect it from
various looming threats). Once in a while, he crossed paths
with Naxagoras, who had fallen in with a bad crowd and
sworn a vow to Tiamat to avenge their family’s disgrace. On
multiple occasions, Naxagoras’s thirst for revenge placed
him and his brother in direct conflict with the two noble
families responsible for their father’s death and mother’s
suicide. Meanwhile, Rhasgar tried everything he could to
persuade Naxagoras to abandon his oath to Tiamat.
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 23
Over the course of several levels, Rhasgar obtained I wanted something
a solid lead concerning the Emperor’s whereabouts, but equally impactful. Due to
other quests (and his brother’s antics) continually got in the forces beyond my control,
way. Then a window of opportunity suddenly opened, and I had only one game ses-
Rhasgar persuaded his companions to accompany him sion to wrap up Rhasgar’s
to the island of Nythe-Saleme, where the wreckage of the story and plan a graceful
Emperor’s f lagship had been sighted. . . . exit. The day before the
game, I made a list of all
To the other players in the group, Trevor’s character of Rhasgar’s unresolved
was the “friendly face” of the Dragovar Empire—an plot hooks and quests:
honorable dragonborn through and through. He
reminded them that the empire wasn’t as corrupt as ✦ Find the Emperor
the DM sometimes made it out to be. Trevor’s depar- and return him
ture not only meant the group was shrinking (from safely to the throne.
8 to 7 players) but also that the party was losing its
moral compass. And I was losing not only a great role- ✦ Deal with House
player but also a character whose ties to the Dragovar Irizaxes and House
Empire fueled a lot of great storytelling. Narakhty.
When a player leaves the group on good terms, my
DM skills are put to their greatest test, for it’s my job ✦ Reconcile with
to make sure the departing player’s final session is an Naxagoras.
amazing, emotional experience for the whole group.
In a long-running campaign such as mine, every All three of these quests
player deserves an appropriately spectacular send- were originally meant to
off—to deny a glorious finale would’ve been negligent carry Rhasgar through the
and disappointing, and a good DM never leaves the epic tier, and I had spaced
players feeling disappointed. them out accordingly.
In January, I co-hosted a DM seminar at D&D I ended up discarding
Experience in Fort Wayne, IN. One of the seminar my original plans and inste
attendees shared an anecdote from his campaign in going to tie up Rhasgar’s sto
which he had one player leave the group and another time. Shortly before the gam
player join in the same session. In his final session, dued panic, I made a list of
the departing player sacrificed his character to save during this farewell session
the life of the new player’s character. This simple act
of heroism created a bond between the new charac- ✦ The heroes find and re
ter and the remaining party members, all of whom his entourage, who are
were touched by their comrade’s noble sacrifice. I the island of Nythe-Sa
practically wept at the ingenuity of it, even though the
outcome had been somewhat orchestrated by the DM ✦ The heroes escort the
and departing player. capital, and he reward
“princes of the empire
The Dungeon Master Experience: Man Down!
ead focused on how I was land. They witness firsthand the impact of the
ory in 4 hours of game Emperor’s sudden, glorious return.
me, in a moment of sub-
events that would happen ✦ Upon hearing of the wrongs inf licted upon
n: Rhasgar’s family, the Emperor awards Rhas-
gar the estates of his rivals and tasks him with
escue the Emperor and bringing the Irizaxes and Narakhty leaders
e trapped in stasis on to justice. Rhasgar and Naxagoras confront
aleme. their hated enemies, one of whom wields their
father’s sword. Retrieving the stolen sword is
Emperor back to the the symbolic gesture that finally unites the
ds them. They are named two brothers. Naxagoras’s bloodlust is satis-
e” and given parcels of fied, and Rhasgar gains a powerful friend in
the Emperor.
December 2011 | DU NGEON 197 24
Originally the Emperor wasn’t on the island. How- Rhasgar’s brother to score t
ever, I now decided to make him a prisoner of the evil dragonborn noble and
island’s overlords—a pair of wizards named Nythe As for Rhasgar, he decided
and Saleme who used magic to disguise themselves daughter, Taishan, and even
as purple dragons. The sisters’ political agenda is small portion of her father’s
pure contrivance and beyond the scope of this arti- act brilliantly improvised b
cle—what’s important is that they live inside a flying
citadel that, in the course of the evening, rose out of a Lessons Le
volcanic caldera, flew across Sometimes when a player le
the open water, and plunged The onus falls on the DM to
into the sea, nearly wiping reassure the remaining pla
out the entire party. (A mass will go on . . . and that it’s st
fly spell cast by Rodney As much as I’ll miss Trev
Thompson’s character saved already propelled the Wedn
the day.) What will happen now that
At 9 PM, three hours into returned, I wonder? Will K
the game, I realized there good on her threat to aveng
wasn’t enough time to run How will the other players
separate combat encoun- moral compass? I see dark t
ters with House Irizaxes will tell.
and House Narakhty, so Here’s what Trevor’s sud
I decided on a whim that
Kaphira Narakhty would ✦ Nothing’s more impor
execute her entire house- the stories of the playe
hold and take her own
life instead of allowing an ✦ Improvisation is the k
enemy to spill her blood. the DM and for the cam
Moreover, rather than allow
her family’s fortune to fall Next week I’ll talk about m
into Rhasgar’s hands, she share a few DM mapping tr
would use it to hire assas- Ever! contest was well recei
sins to avenge her death. the not-too-distant future a
(Instead of posthumously
hiring them, I suppose that Until the next encounter!
makes it prehumously; in
any case, how’s that for set-
ting up a future encounter?)
That left Tyzaro Irizaxes. I
don’t usually let NPCs steal
the limelight, but I did allow
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