One-Shot Suggestions?

[DiscipleofBob]

I'm looking to start running a 5e game over Roll20, which I've only gotten to use from the players' side. Before I commit to running a full campaign I want one or two practice runs with the program.

Any suggestions for good and memorable one-shot sessions? Or on running a 5e one shot in general?

[CrusaderJoe]

I'm looking to start running a 5e game over Roll20, which I've only gotten to use from the players' side. Before I commit to running a full campaign I want one or two practice runs with the program.

Any suggestions for good and memorable one-shot sessions? Or on running a 5e one shot in general?

The PCs wake up on a ship that is falling though the sky (normal water ship) and they go up on deck to see a *insert bad guy and minions* screwing up the ship. The captain and crew are tied up (though passengers are below).

Objectives

Protect crew, some minions will go after them)

Figure out why they are falling for so long (hint, plane of air)

While battling, figure out the obviously evil dude's plan (steering ship through plane of air into another portal in order to drop said ship into a political figure and their city)

Defeat the bad guys and somehow not do the above.

Also, don't be afraid of the PCs failing. Just cause they get two out of three doesn't mean they win. If they run out of time, a city gets a huge ship dropped on them and a politician is assasinated.

Note: I just woke up so any plot holes would need to be filled.

[Thisguy_]

PCs are goblins/kobolds. PCs are sent on a mission to do something evil/mischievous by the leader of the band/tribe. Stole that right from Pathfinder.

[Biggstick]

The best one shot I ever participated in had the PC's going to clear out a basement full of rats. It was the standard trope of low levels pc's completing a quest for a small amount of coin. Our DM did a good job of having us notice a creepy mansion that was next door to the house prior to our going in. Once we got through the basement and cleared out the rats, the dm had one of the more observant members within the group "notice" a hole in the wall. This hole was obviously how the rats got into the basement. Use whatever hook you feel appropriate to have the party crawl through the hole and end up in the next door mansion's basement. Within the basement we found out that a little girl had died there (The dm had us find a journal that actually spoke to whoever read it). All of a sudden this one shot to clear out a basement led us on an adventure to investigate this creepy haunted mansion and figure out how this little girl died. After our investigations we ended up back in the basement to prevent the summoning of a demon by some baddie who was in the mansion.

It was an extremely fun one shot that allowed the DM to make each person in the party feel useful. It was very easy for the DM to provide RP elements and combat elements as well as everything in between for each type of gamer.

[eastmabl]

Minor spoilers lie ahead, but:

The first part of the Lost Mines of Phandelver is a great one session adventure. It gives you a variety of encounters, although there are a lot of goblins involved. What I like best about it is that it's a great introduction to the mechanics of 5e, which is even good for experienced players/DMs taking a trial run on some new software.

[RickAllison]

I was in a one-shot where the players were all goblins engaging in a skirmish war with neighboring kobolds. Started out in a deserted human town that we lit on fire using supplies from the tavern to take out emplaced archers, then moved to infiltrating their mountain hideout. My character was a rogue who infiltrated the place while wearing the skin of a kobold he killed, so it got a little out of hand.

[SpawnOfMorbo]

PCs are goblins/kobolds. PCs are sent on a mission to do something evil/mischievous by the leader of the band/tribe. Stole that right from Pathfinder.

Don't feel too bad about stealing that from pathfinder as they weren't the first to have an adventure do that.

Evil campaigns have been around since *at least* the 90's. Even as goblins, kobolds, and orcs.