Adventure #104

Theme

Goal

Story Hook

Plot

Climax

General Setting

Specific Setting
I
Specific Setting
II

Master Villain

Minor Villain I

Minor Villain II

Ally/Neutral

Comedy
This adventure is fun for fun's sake. Its basic purpose is to provide humorous entertainment with a
minimum of actual danger or tragedy.
Explore a New Area
The heroes are hired or convinced to enter an unmapped area and explore it. They may be making a
map; they may be trying to find someone who disappeared into this area in the past; they may be
following legends that tell of treasure in the unexplored interior.
Pressing Buttons
As a general story-hook approach, think about the player-character -- his personal goals and his personal
dislikes. If the hero is pursuing a specific goal, you have one of the minor villains, as a side-effect of the
villain's master plan, thwart the hero's latest step towards that goal. Alternatively, if there's something
the hero truly hates to see, have it happen -- and have the villains be responsible.
Geographic Progression
This is the simplest sort of adventure plot. The heroes have an area to investigate or travel through; they
have encounters based on where they are. For instance, the traditional dungeon, where monsters are tied
to specific rooms or areas. Or, if the heroes are travelling along a narrow valley or through an enchanted
forest, they might suffer ambushes and other encounters fixed to various points along their travel plan.
The plot, then, is getting to the villain by surviving the intervening obstacle encounters.
Prevented Deed
Here, the heroes have been defeated -- captured by the Master Villain, or so thoroughly cut up by his
minions that all believe them to be dead. And the heroes have learned, from the bragging of the villain,
loose talk of his minions, or examination of clues, what is the crucial event of his master plan. In any
case, the battered and bruised heroes must race to this site and have their final confrontation with the
villain, bursting in on him and his minions just as the knife or final word or key is poised, and prevent
the awful deed from taking place -- and, incidentally, defeat the master villain and minions who beat
them previously.
Under the Ground
In this variety of adventure, the heroes descend into vast cavern networks beneath the earth's crust.
There, they can encounter bizarre races and primitive tribes, hitherto-unknown monsters and strange
landscapes.
Craftsman's Quarter
This can occur in either the shop of the master craftsman of a palace or manor, or the guild-area of a
city.
Laboratory
This can be alchemical lab of a friendly wizard, or the horrible experimental chamber of the villain
where new monsters are created and relased upon the world.
Organizer
This Master Villain is the head of the local criminal syndicate -- the Thieve's Guild or slaver ring, for
instance. He's cold-hearted and unsympathetic, and human life means nothing to him. He employs
assassins and musclemen against the heroes, and can only be reasoned with when it's going to profit him
more to cooperate with the heroes than kill them.
Lovable Rogue
This character is like the Master Villain of the same name, except that he has no minions of his own and
serves at someone else's bidding. However, he's very independent, not always working in his employer's
best interests; he often makes fun of the Master Villain's pretensions and may suffer that villain's
retaliation because of it.
Coward
This character is an ordinary grunt minion of the Master Villain, but he's a coward. He's deathly afraid
of the Villain and the heroes. He's best used when you plan to have the heroes captured; by his
mannerisms, you can make it clear to them that this fellow is a coward and they will begin to work on
him psychologically.
Grumpy Old Professional
Again, the heroes need an expert in a certain field -- this time a craft or art, such as blacksmithing,

engineering, horse-training, or whatever. The only or best professional they can find is an aged expert.
He's grumpy, cranky, and sharp-tongued; he constantly complains about the food, the weather, his
companions, the decline in skill of his co-workers since he was a young man, the road conditions, the
rotten pay he's receiving, and so on.
Foreshadowing Monster
Monster
With this monster encounter, combat may not be necessary. This monster encounter exists to alert the
Encounter
characters to the fact that something unusual is going on, a foreshadowing of their upcoming conflicts
with the Master Villain.
Bandit Gang
When the heroes are en route from one place to another, have them run across one of the local bandit
Character
gangs. The bandits are faster and far more numerous than the heroes. But the bandits stay back.
Encounter
Basically, they're bandits who admire courage and prowess, and the bandit leader will challenge one or
all of the heroes to a test of bravery or ability -- such as a horserace, a duel, a wrestling match, a joust,
an arm-wrestling match where scorpions sting the loser, etc.
Rock and a Hard Place
This trap starts out as an Animal Pit, Pit and the Pendulum, or Tomb Deathtrap, but an obvious escape
Deathtrap
suggests itself very early on. Trouble is, it leads into even worse danger. The hole out of the animal pit
may lead to the lair of an even worse animal; it may lead through a succession of dangers (collapsing
old catacombs, into an underground river, into a den of zombies) before the heroes reach the light.
Horseback
Chase
This is a relatively short chase -- it only needs to go on for a mile or so before even the best horses are
winded. If it goes on longer than that, the horses may collapse and perhaps die.
Innocent Fulfills Prophecy
An
innocent could fulfill a prophecy -- one which endangers his/her life. This innocent might, for
Omen/Prophesy
instance, be the one who is supposed to slay the king, but is not a mighty adventurer able to protect
himself from the king; the heroes may find themselves sheltering and helping this poor dupe.
Lack of Familiarity
The Master Villain, if he comes from the past or another dimension, or belongs to an alien race, might
Secret Weakness be sufficiently unfamiliar with this world that he essentially defeats himself. How? By making incorrect
guesses about human behaviour. One classic error involves underestimating the human capacity for selfsacrifice.
Time Limit
Finally, the most obvious condition to place on an adventure is to give it a time limit. If the Master
Special
Villain is going to conclude his evil spell in only three days, and his citadel is three hard days' riding
Condition
away, then the heroes are going to be on the go all throughout the adventure -- with little time to rest,
plan, gather allies, or anything except get to where they're going.
Respect Quandry
This is much like the Ally Quandry, only at a greater distance. The heroes have been utilizing the aid of
Moral Quandry two (or more) powerful NPC allies. Now, in the course of the adventure, the heroes come across a task
which can be accomplished in one of two ways -- say, through military intervention or by esoteric
magic. The problem is, the NPC allies are arguing for different choices, and the one whom the heores
choose against will no longer aid them.
False Path to the Artifact
Once again, if the heroes have had too easy a time finding the artifact capable of destroying the villain,
Red Herring give them trouble this way: When they get to the place where the artifact is supposed to be contained,
they find the coffer or chamber or whatever empty, obviously looted by robbers, who have scrawled
such remarks as "Kelrog was here!" upon the walls.
Heroes Must Work with Villain
If they have to work for the villain, it's due to some hold he has over them -- probably, he's kidnapped
Cruel Trick one of their NPCs and will kill this person if his demands aren't met. Put the heroes through the
encounter where they have to do something they are loathe to do, such as sack and pillage a temple,
before they have the opportunity to retrieve their friend.