In desperate need for help for my D&D campaign.

[Tom Clarke]

Hey guys. Me and my mates have recently started a D&D campaign with me being the DM (this being my first time as DM). The first session didn't go so well thanks to my word doc disappearing and some friends mucking about. It ended with the party killing a pack of giant spiders under the control of a powerful archmage in the forest they are travelling through. The players need to pass through the forest, which is partly cursed by the archmage, to progress into the main part of the story.

What my problem is that I need help with coming up with some combat and non-combat encounters that can take place in the forest that dont seem to boring or common. Some real original encounters. Any help would be greatly appreciated. :)

[Eisenheim]

why not just skip to the main plot? A couple sentences and maybe a skill check can get you through the haunted forest if there's nothing important there for the story.

[Tom Clarke]

The death of the archmage matters to the story but just going straight to him wouldnt fit my groups play style. Theres needs to be some thing to happen before the boss fight.

[INDYSTAR188]

What if the players draw the attention of a young/adult green dragon who is a rival of the wizard? Perhaps the wizard has an item the dragon wants/needs (spider staff from Lost Mines Of Phandelver)? Maybe while travelling the party meets an awakened owl thats really a polymorphed npc who crossed paths w the wizard?

Quick ideas:
-encounter a still, quiet pool
~when moonlight hits the water players. can see reflection of fey dancing
~entering pool transports players to the feywild

-mysterious forest temple overgrown with fungus... what treasures are inside?

-a group of evil cultists begin a ritual hunt w the pc's as prey

[Iguanodon]

This is where the internet is your friend. Sites like this one (http://donjon.bin.sh/fantasy/random/#type=encounter;enc-type=Wilderness) have all sorts of random generators for hooks and combat encounters. Of course, if you go this route, you only get a general framework to build from. As an example, I got: "The ruined village of Bawold. The village is occupied by a horde of ogres."

My advice is to pick and choose a couple and customize them a bit before playing instead of rolling on a table in the middle of the session. It's easier to make them fit better into your setting this way, and you seem more prepared. But that's just my opinion; a lot of people like the improv of rolling everything randomly at game time.

The site I linked also has random combat encounter generators, but to be honest without plot hooks these tend to be less useful. There are a lot of websites for this, though, and some are a lot better than others, so be careful.

One last piece of advice: Encounters are just events the PCs find on their travels, not challenges to be beaten. The really memorable encounters are the ones which raise mysteries and increase player immersion. Try shaking up the encounter=combat paradigm! Maybe there's a battle at a distance, and it's over by the time the players get there, for example.

I hope this helps! I was in your shoes just a little while ago, and this is really the hardest thing to get right.

[ravenkith]

Hey guys. Me and my mates have recently started a D&D campaign with me being the DM (this being my first time as DM). The first session didn't go so well thanks to my word doc disappearing and some friends mucking about. It ended with the party killing a pack of giant spiders under the control of a powerful archmage in the forest they are travelling through. The players need to pass through the forest, which is partly cursed by the archmage, to progress into the main part of the story.

What my problem is that I need help with coming up with some combat and non-combat encounters that can take place in the forest that dont seem to boring or common. Some real original encounters. Any help would be greatly appreciated. :)

When it comes to DMing, try to think about your world as a natural, existing place.

Everywhere you go, for instance, there is a food chain.

These giant spiders, despite being under control of this archmage, were living creatures. They had to eat something. Perhaps something ate them.

Were the spiders recent additions to the area, or have they been there a while?

If the spiders are recent additions, perhaps there is a set of predator animals that they had displaced that will attempt to take back the top spot now that the web spinners have been removed?

Perhaps the spiders were repressing a population of dryads and nymphs for a long time, who are now coming out of hiding, looking for the new mates that they have been denied for so long...

Maybe a druid has come to look into the unusual behavior of the spiders, and runs into the party <shrug>.

Alternatively, perhaps the wizard had his spiders weave webs (see the spell) throughout the forest, and now that his minions are dead, will set fire to the web, causing a massive forest fire that the PCs (and all the other inhabitants of the wood) must now escape....

Finally, perhaps the spiders were nothing more than living tripwires, designed to alert the archmage when something that might be a true threat moves in his direction, and following their deaths, he decides to send out a more powerful minion or two to attempt to deal with the problem (go BIG, here - sudden giants, for instance are almost always a crowd pleaser).

Try to think about each encounter as a tiny part of a bigger universe, and always remember the magic words:

"I meant to do that."

-and-

"You just thought you were winning,"

-and-

"Sorry, but your princess enemy is in another castle"

[Tom Clarke]

Cheers guys, this has been great help.

[CovertCobalt]

I have players who love to "muck about" as well, and their love of exploring and getting "off-track" can be excellent way to enrich the plot you're crafting and to make your world a more interesting and believable setting. Plus, side-quest hijinks can lead to absolute hilarity! :smallbiggrin: I'll give some non-combat encounters, some of which could possibly lead to fights, depending on how your party operates.

Non-Combat

1. Close to dusk, the party comes across a seemingly-abandoned caravan, surrounded by oddly-intact skeletons wearing full sets of clothing; a few of them are wearing armor and carrying weapons. Although there are large amounts of chests inside, clearly filled with interesting stuff, they can't quite get them open. When the sun sets, the skeletons come to life, but don't become hostile! They explain that they're humble merchants, cursed to live half-lives as undead until all of their wares have been purchased. (Great way to get them some cool magic items, and maybe your archmage was responsible for their curse!)

2. The party stumbles across a cute little hut, occupied by a wizened Gnome Druid. S/He is friendly, if somewhat eccentric, and will make tea and cookies for the entire party. S/he will express concern about how the forest has seemed differently lately, and how s/he hasn't seen his/her beloved giant spiders in long while. The Druid will likely get violent if the party isn't diplomatic about explaining their murdering of the giant spiders from earlier!

3. The party encounters a rival adventuring party that is ALSO on its way to exterminate the evil archmage. For maximum hilarity, I'd recommend making them exaggerated counterparts of the members of your own PC party (Think the Linear Guild!) This other party could either be competitive and competent, making them true rivals, or could be laughably incompetent. With the latter, their offscreen deaths at the hand of some horror in the forest could make for some great mood-setting. (Think finding parts of their mangled bodies nailed to trees by insane, cackling Goblins, or something)

Hopefully one of these ideas helps!

[gfishfunk]

More spiders. You already established that they are his minions, that works. Also, if this is your first time DMing, don't worry too much and request feedback. You aren't going to be great at it instantly, its a skill to develop and all your players should understand that.

1. Interesting encounters have more to do with interesting terrain set-up and an interaction of monster abilities (and player abilities) with that terrain. Create an interesting map (even on the fly if you don't like hammering out details ahead of time) by positioning some trees in close clusters (about 3 squares apart) and covering those areas with webs that the spiders are able to cross without difficulty.

Boring encounters usually are a result of boring terrain: a 7' by 12 ' rectangle. The floor is stone. The walls are, ah, stone. The ceiling is stone. Etc.

Provide some perches (different elevations) for some of the other spiders to shoot out webs at folks (more annoyance than damage) as ranged attacks. If the Monster Manuel does not have that as an ability - no worries! It is now! Its a (say) Agility 12 save or the target is immobile until they make a Strength 12 save at the end of their turn!

2. Also: take a look at your player's abilities and see if there is anything cool that they can do and prepare for it. Webs go up in flames, right? That would be sweet for the players to ignite the spider's webs using some fire spells.

The beginning of building an encounter should start with the PCs: what do they do? What can you throw in that will get decimated by their abilities? Throw it in so that they can do that! What can you add that won't get decimated so as to challenge your PCs? Throw in a little of that, like a little bit of salt. If all of your enemies negate the PCs abilities, it trivializes the PC's choices and powers.

3. Add setting flavor and let the players improvise with it. If you add too much that is just there for mechanical purposes, it gets hard to track, so add purely non-mechanical flourishes. On the other hand, if a player latches on to something that you intended to be pure flavor, let them do something mechanical with it - your player has just invested in the encounter and the scene, which makes for a fun encounter.

For example, You are not just in a forest, but its misty, the rocks have moss on it. One of the players asks if they can hide behind one of the rocks. YES, they now get that mechanical benefit that you did not intend. They want to climb the rock. COOL. They want to climb the vines to get up to the spider perches. YES!

4. For beginning DMs, I do not recommend trying to create challenging encounters as much as I recommend FUN encounters. Things will naturally get challenging accidentally as dice go one way or another, and an encounter that looks moderately challenging to you can easily turn deadly as it can turn easy with the slightest miscalculation or a single critical hit on a PC (or monster).

[Laserlight]

1. Interesting encounters have more to do with interesting terrain set-up and an interaction of monster abilities (and player abilities) with that terrain. Create an interesting map (even on the fly if you don't like hammering out details ahead of time) by positioning some trees in close clusters (about 3 squares apart) and covering those areas with webs that the spiders are able to cross without difficulty.

Boring encounters usually are a result of boring terrain: a 7' by 12 ' rectangle. The floor is stone. The walls are, ah, stone. The ceiling is stone. Etc.

Truth.

I usually think about:
1. What needs to happen next, to progress the story?
2. What sort of conflict can I use?
3. Is there an interesting monster, terrain type or trope that I want to use?

1. In my group, the fighter and rogue are multiclassing into cleric and paladin, and I've been building up to them getting consecrated by the ghost of a martyred bishop in a ruined church. Nice impact on those two players; dull for the other two if all they can do is stand and watch.
2. So...near the end of the ritual, they're attacked by something wants to interrupt the ritual. But the monsters have to fight to the death, because if one retreats and runs back to Monster HQ, the players will have 200 hobgoblins to deal with and the church will be destroyed.
3a. They've been fighting hordes lately, so let's use a solo or something close. So....Darci and Jesse are the ones who'll be standing around, and they both hate deathbats, so I'll give them a deathbat. But I need to crank it up a little, so I'll have the deathbat have double HP. And it's a servant of the Lords of Death, so it'll convert some of the church's skeleton guard into ogre zombies.
3b. Kris and Tom will need to stay there...kneeling...backs to the foe, as the demon gets into the church and closer...closer...but I also want them to have something to do. I'll give them control over two of the skeleton guards that don't get coopted into the zomb-ogres. They'll get to take a test drive with Battlemaster mechanics.
3c. It's next to a church so let's add a graveyard. Some ruined houses. If they can push the fight outside, the druid can use some of her storm spells.

[raspin]

The PCS heard combat off the road in the swamp. They investigated and saw a few lizardfolk fighting with a giant frog. The frog swallowed one whole then spat it out. The war cleric pc waded in and attacked the frog. The lizardfolk turned on the pcs. The pcs eventually killed the lizardfolk and then the war cleric finished off the frog as it tried to flee.

Sometime later a town mayor type told the pcs about his town suffering regular lizardfolk attacks. Morale was low and there was growing concern for the local children's harmless, beloved favourite freddie the giant frog..

Have a ruck where the pcs aren't sure who to help, if anyone, and make them decide quickly. Then mess with them based on their choice.

[Ronnocius]

Perhaps an encounter with ettercaps.

Example (assuming the party didn't kill all of the giant spiders): an ettercap, finding the bodies of the dead spiders, brings a few other ettercaps and giant spiders, either as mounts or just as fighters. The ettercaps are sent by the archmage, who enchanted the ettercaps too, to track the players and distract them/lead them off course. The party can then fight the ettercaps (or you can save them for late) and are lost, having to fight off the local wildlife (bears, giant spiders, etc.)

[Kurt Kurageous]

Perhaps an encounter with ettercaps.

Example (assuming the party didn't kill all of the giant spiders): an ettercap, finding the bodies of the dead spiders, brings a few other ettercaps and giant spiders, either as mounts or just as fighters. The ettercaps are sent by the archmage, who enchanted the ettercaps too, to track the players and distract them/lead them off course. The party can then fight the ettercaps (or you can save them for late) and are lost, having to fight off the local wildlife (bears, giant spiders, etc.)

Great idea, Ron'!

Alternately The ettercap(s) is/are upset that you killed their spiders! They stalk you, trying to find out if they can take you out. They follow until you leave the woods or they attack after recruiting less powerful but more common giant wolf spiders.

The predators displaced by the spiders return. The fey are grateful and try to approach you. Encounter with dryads can be confusing. You get too fresh? Becomes a (nonlethal) encounter with sprites.

[Kurt Kurageous]

growing concern for the local children's harmless, beloved favourite freddie the giant frog..

Have a ruck where the pcs aren't sure who to help, if anyone, and make them decide quickly. Then mess with them based on their choice.

Excellent suggestion here. Any situation where the party can effect the world but gets dmned if they do or don't is a winner. How fun/awkward would it be if the town rewarded them with a feast in their honor and a honorary title such as "Co-Presidents of the Friends of Freddie Club"?

[Dimcair]

Perhaps an encounter with ettercaps.


You have been waylaid by enemies and must defend yourself!

God I hated them....


So many good suggestions already, take your pick!

Maybe a ruined castle does the trick as well? There was an adventure where the 7 sins and 7 virtues were a theme through 14 rooms. To escape each room you had to complete a challenge that wasn't obvious at first. Anyone remember it?

[Fatty Tosscoble]

What my problem is that I need help with coming up with some combat and non-combat encounters that can take place in the forest that dont seem to boring or common. Some real original encounters. Any help would be greatly appreciated. :)[/QUOTE]

I will just list some ideas, some new, and some from my own campaigns.

1. A crazy druid is pulling a cart through the forest, and stops the players to sell them goods (mostly rat tails, jars of dirty, water that sort of thing), this could just be a social encounter, but if the players insult his supplies he will flip out and attack.

2. A women runs up to the party screaming about her husband and sons, and if the player press her on the topic she will calm down and ask the players to save her family who have been captured by hobgoblins, and are currently being held at the family cabin occupied by the hobgoblins.

3. The players come a across an old bar with moss growing all over it and a tree jutting out from the roof. It's just a normal bar, but you could occupy it with regular people, enemies, lots of druids, or when the players walk in they find themselves in the middle of a giant spider nest/wolf layer.

4. A very young looking man (maybe a bard) tries to sell the players small vials of poisons that he has collected such as hemlock or spider venom.

5. The players come across a cabin, and if they walk in or knock they will find a carver were they can buy what else but wood works. Special clubs, chests containers, really just wood crap.

6. A hoard of Goblins are surrounding the path in makeshift forest camo (they are covered in leaves, mud and wield wooden shields, bows, and clubs.

7. In a hollowed out tree (with a door, not bigger than a broom closet) the players find a dead mage(long dead) stuffed in side with a book of spells and potions with pages torn out, which were critical in summoning demons/devils.

They will later find a cultists terrorizing a town or occupying a dungeon summoning demons/devils in order to gain power, or grow his cult.

The pages they take off the cultist will have instructions written by the dead mage to return them to the mage collage, without a map or instructions on how to get there.

8. A mad (crazy) Kenku jumps out of the shrubs loudly declares war on the players and attacks by releasing lost of badgers from a bag he holds. (He only fires a bow from where he is and will flee when the battle inevitably does not go as planed).

If the Kenku escapes he can be a recurring character that is always after them with insane gadgets, animals, and will always speak in a 60's super-villain manner.


Let me know if you liked any of these, or are planning on using them. I like the feedback good or bad.

[raspin]

In the forest.....the players have a sense of foreboding and feel like they are being followed (they are). After a while they hear screaming for help. They come across a clearing in the woods. If they are like my pcs they will have approached with caution. They see a beautiful young woman seemingly tied to a tree. She is dressed in a white dress; wholly inappropriate for the woods. She doesn't appear to see them and continues to cry for help.

When approached she pleads to be freed and urges them to act quickly. A man called Jacob has kept her prisoner. He wants her for his bride. He captured her as she worked in the fields and forced her to wear the dress. He is said to be totally mad.

As the pcs, probably suspicious, decide what to do, and before they actually free her, she suddenly screams as an old woodsman enters the clearing with his trusty pet boar. He demands the pcs get away from his beloved. The weird thing is that as much as she protests about going with him, he seems to be reassuring her she will be safe and he will protect her from the pcs. He is charmed somehow and hears her words differently, My pcs saw this disconnect as evidence of his insanity. He will not yield and eventually he forces the issue. He and the boar are easily dispatched.

It's only as his corpse hits the ground that the pcs hear a loud cackling laugh. <insert short evil speech about poor Jacob only seeking to protect her and they killed him; and how delicious it was>. The woman has ended the illusion on her, freed herself, and can now be seen to be a green hag. As the pcs realise what has transpired she blinks invisible. My pcs thought she had gone. She appeared behind one a minute or so later and tore into him with her claws. As they closed on her she disappeared again. She hit and run like this using invisibility and vicious mockery, wearing them down, for some rounds until the dwarf managed to reach and grapple her allowing everyone to wail on her.

It worked really well, one of the pcs was downed but didn't die, and they tried varying tactics to locate her between attacks before eventually killing her.

You could just have easily have her disappear after she reveals herself and have her pop up again later on.

[Ronnocius]

8. A mad (crazy) Kenku jumps out of the shrubs loudly declares war on the players and attacks by releasing lost of badgers from a bag he holds. (He only fires a bow from where he is and will flee when the battle inevitably does not go as planed).

If the Kenku escapes he can be a recurring character that is always after them with insane gadgets, animals, and will always speak in a 60's super-villain manner.


Let me know if you liked any of these, or are planning on using them. I like the feedback good or bad.


Kenku can't speak......

[Fatty Tosscoble]

Kenku can't speak......

I never said he declared war by speaking a language (mainly common), I meant he pointed at them squawked and released the badgers, but the DM and make it clear he's after them

[MBControl]

- Similar to the woman tied to the tree, you encounter a person trapped and injured in a pit trap. Is this an ambush, or ally?

- I've always liked hidden treetop villages, maybe Elves. They may attack your group, but are doing so only to protect their territory, and could become friendly. Or they're pirates that drop from the sky.

- They could unknowingly walk into an enchanted area that messes with their sense of direction, and the group ends up wandering in circles for hours. Maybe some sort of magic is feeding off their confusion.

- This one isn't really anything important, but it's easy, and usually causes a lot of role play and discussion. Have a small animal start following the group, at first stealthily, then more in the open from a safe distance. This animal doesn't have to do anything else. Some will want to tame it, some will try to kill it, others will try to speak with it (though for some reason they aren't able to). And just let him follow them for days, weeks, whatever. In time you'll be able to do something very fun with it.