World Building for a Solo Campaign

[MelloHero]

As you may have read in another forum, I'm trying to get my fiancée into the hobby of gaming. She's not especially a fantasy type: her experience with the genre has been the Narnia series and seeing snippets of Fellowship of the Ring. She is quite the mild person (though I've heard they are always play the most dangerous characters), and enjoys the Nancy Drew games for PC. I am therefore thinking of a low-combat, perhaps urban setting, more based around roleplay and solving mysteries so she can get her feet wet and ease into the fantasy setting.

Thing is, not only am I very inexperienced at campaign building, I'm also entirely new to the idea of running a solo campaign. If anyone has ideas or suggestions for what would make an exciting time in a fantasy setting for a low-combat, mysteries-and-intrigue setting, or any tips or experience to share, it would all be greatly appreciated, as would ideas for world building.

[Iceforge]

There was a thread not long ago about being the guards/police of the fantasy setting city and possible encounters and things to do within that setting.

Maybe that sortof mix will help ease her into the fantasy setting, think New York City Blues meets DnD..

Can't find the threat right now, but shouldn't be too hard to find

[Shadowknight12]

I've done this exact thing for someone who was very much into fantasy, but was completely new to D&D. Depending, on the exact kind of advice you're after, I may be of great or absolutely no help.

[Quietus]

SOunds like you're on the right track so far, building for what she likes. I suggest planning around the one city, decide whp the big players there are, work out each of their basic motivations and personalities, then decide on what the plot is. From there it should be easy to decide how they respond to new situations, and you know what information each grup can give as she goes about collecting clues. Make sure to provide a reason her character would care, either by asking her to be a detective-type, or by putting her in the middle of it all.

[MelloHero]

Quick update, cracking open the PH, she's selected to play a male gnome (reading the second paragraph for gnomes in the 2e PH, she remarked, "That's me. That's exactly me!"), and has decided to name him Herman. She's going to leave it to me to help her with class choices and all that; I'm thinking Rogue (or is it Thief?), Bard, or Illusionist.

Having assumed she would play a human, I will have to reconsider my setting a little bit. I had started planning a big, bustling human city, capital of an empire, and now I may want to tweak it a little. Not sure how much gnomes are known for imperialism, though they certainly could do it with their mechanical prowess (AWESOME IDEA: Gnomes conquering the less-advanced lands with legions of Warforged), but I think they're supposed to be more jolly and interested in trade than conquest. Though a bigger empire allows more trade and more specialization within it and all that Economics 101 stuff....

Anyway, that's been a very helpful development. Your thoughts or ideas, audience?

[Ashtar]

I'd recommend a bard, it's a great solo class. Social skills, Spellcasting, access to healing and the possibility to inspire allies, too!

[MelloHero]

I was leaning that way myself. As for the 2e rules not permitting anyone but humans and half-elves to be bards... "Screw the rules; I have a relationship!"

Seriously. According to the description given in the PH of the gnome, Bard is like the perfect class, at least from a roleplay standpoint. I'm gonna leaf through my digital Complete Book of Gnomes and Halflings for ideas, and of course the 3e Quintessential Gnome. Interesting, she and I are the only people I know to have decided to play a gnome for anything more than a one-off!

[big teej]

http://community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/75882/19905354/Lessons_from_DMing_with_my_GF?pg=1

nearly everything you will ever need to know about dming for an opposite sex loved one.

[Human Paragon 3]

Teej, that thread is solid gold.

[MelloHero]

Thanks. That should help a whole lot.

More to the world-building aspect of this thread, what's everyone think of the gnome empire idea? What would THAT look like? I'm kind of falling in love with the warforged army idea, even if that were in the distant past, and the gnomes would have the skills and everything to maintain it and finance it... I can see it starting when the king of a minor nation of the folk was approached by a tinker eager to show his newest invention...