PDA

View Full Version : How big should a level 1-2 adventure be?



Zovc
2009-09-24, 09:07 AM
This is going to by my first serious attempt at DMming, and I'm going to start my players at level 1.

Should the players already get involved in a bigger plot? Should there be a bad guy they're trying to take down? Should the bad guy they're trying to take down be a part of something bigger?

What level should the bad guy be? Is it more interesting for a early-game "boss" to be crafty, or just tough (I.E. Raging Barbarian)?

Pharaoh's Fist
2009-09-24, 09:15 AM
Keep in mind at level 1-2, you're pretty small potatoes. Adjust adventure accordingly.

pasko77
2009-09-24, 09:20 AM
At this level, usually you give a glimpse of the main plot.
For instance, the PC defeat a minor lackey of the BBEG, preventing a minor achievement of the main plan.
In the following, the BBEG will start to notice that his plans are hampered by minor inconvenience and will send his trusted lieutnant to fix it. This should be the BBEG around level 5/10 (depending on the final level you want to reach). At this point, the defeat of this intermediate BBEG discovers the main plot and you can put in stage the real BBEG.

This is quite standard, I'd say.

valadil
2009-09-24, 09:28 AM
I agree that there should be glimpses of plot. They should have met NPCs who will be involved in plot, but the plot doesn't need to be revealed just yet.

My bad guys are almost always part of something bigger, but I run games with overly complicated plots. Sometimes it's nice to just close the chapter and let the PCs feel accomplished.

Crafty or badass, either works for a boss. Don't worry about his level yet. When the plot has reached a point where the players can confront him, stat him up appropriately.

Lapak
2009-09-24, 09:50 AM
I disagree that they need to have glimpses of 'MAIN PLOT' at this point. Even tiny ones. Levels 1 and 2 let the players hash out who their characters really are, what they want from the world, and so on, without bringing the context of 'the world at large' into the picture. I like to use them to let the players settle in and let the characters develop their own plans - then, if there is an overarching plot, it collides with the players and they don't just get exposed to it, they have to figure out how (and if!) it interferes with their own goals and intentions.

Keshay
2009-09-24, 09:52 AM
Ah lvl 1 games, they are the most fun.
Awhile back my group's first adventure at level 1 was capped off with a fight against two juvenile owlbears, then a race to run away from their mother.

Good times.

As for what you want to do, do you have a story arc already planned for the campaign? If you do, sure intorduce a really minor peon of the BBEG for the players to defeat/interact with. Since its your first attempt at DMing, you could wait on advancing the plot until you're comfortable with all the new complexitites you're unaccustomed to.

potatocubed
2009-09-24, 09:55 AM
Conversely to the above, I just throw random interesting baddies at the PCs. I sometimes tie them in to the over-plot later on, so to the players it looks like cunning foreshadowing, but really I just make it all up as I go along.

ericgrau
2009-09-24, 11:18 AM
At level 1-2 you are on pair with well-trained, but still inexperienced soldier. IIRC Keep on the Borderlands involved simply defending a keep against invasion and was for low levels.

Or in OotS terms you're fresh out of fighter college and need some entry level work like goblin hunting. Jumping into an overarching plot, even if it exists, is probably not an option yet.

Zovc
2009-09-24, 12:02 PM
Is there such a thing as a plot driven by Law or Chaos?

I don't have any ideas for story, really. It would be nice to present a few unconventinal encounters (I.E. a fight on a raft).

Is it important for me to "act out" every NPC, or is it okay for me to "narrate" most of them? ("I need you to find some spaghetti." vs "He tells you that you need to go find some spaghetti.")

Thrawn183
2009-09-24, 12:12 PM
Really it depends on whether or not a choice needs to be made.

If a PC is asking for directions to the mayor's house... "a guy on the street tells you where you need to go" is probably sufficient. If the PC's are trying to convince a guard to abandon his post in exchange for shinies... might want to talk that one out.

Yakk
2009-09-24, 12:12 PM
Be aware that your group might not make it out of level 1-2. So don't 'hold the cards back' too much.

It also depends on the world. In some worlds, a level 1 or 2 character is far beyond the citizenry, capable of doing things that nobody else could imagine. In others, the lazy ass town guard is level 10, and level 1 or 2 characters are barely more competent than the average farmer.

I'd place players in an area where they can have significant impact, and give them challenges that make them shine. Have them solve a problem for people that the people cannot solve themselves (and not because they don't feel like it). Give them an opportunity to generate a positive effect on the game world fiction.

bosssmiley
2009-09-24, 12:19 PM
Is there such a thing as a plot driven by ... Chaos?

Yes. Destiny by Dice (http://grognardia.blogspot.com/2008/04/on-oracular-power-of-dice.html)

And, in answer to the OP's question: roughly 10 levels deep, although you only need to fill in the first three to begin with. :smallamused:

Zovc
2009-09-24, 12:30 PM
What're the most interesting encounters for level 1 players?

I mean, I'm sure the players expect to fight four goblins/kobolds, but what other "spicy" encounters are there? What spells should casters use? I don't want a NPC wizard to use sleep and TPK, I'm skeptical of Burning Hands and Magic Missile, to be honest.

Should I give the players extra hit points to equal to their constitution so that I can hold back less?