One-shot adventure restrictions

[Mabbly]

Hi! I'm writing a one-shot adventure but in order to make the concept work, the DM would have to impose restrictions on players. it's meant to be a spooky but cheesy adventure where oblexes attempt to eat the minds of graduate students gathered at a magic academy's reunion party. To get the most out of the experience players would need to be former students, restricting them to arcane spellcaster classes. They could choose to be someone's date instead but would lose out on the role playing aspect I've set up where players are encouraged to use the situation to get back at old bullies or show up old rivals or impress an old flame.

I know my players won't mind the restrictions but I was thinking of posting the adventure on DMsguild for community critique. Is this...not really how one-shots are done? Especially since I'm going to let my players start at level 3 to reasonably take on an adult oblex? Thanks for any advice you all have!

[JackPhoenix]

Sounds like fine idea for one-shot.

Also, I've had 3 level 2 characters kill adult oblex (though one with 60 hp max), although the RNG favored them heavily. Still, 1 of them went down (but not died) in the fight, and another got very close.

4 level 3 characters should be fine, if they know what they're doing. Especially with full-caster party, as they're likely to have source of fire damage, and proficiency in Wis saves. Plus all the spells that can be used.

[Keravath]

This sounds to me like an ideal setup to provide a set of pre-generated characters with the old grudges built into their backgrounds. Trying to add all of the background to characters that folks create just for the one shot would probably not work very well.

Alternatively, provide a set of backgrounds - assign them randomly - and make it a masquerade party - so that individuals won't be recognized unless they want to be and the option to pretend to be someone else can add to the confusion.

In addition, you could make it a starting academy ... where the people went to learn their initial skills. Maybe it was a boarding school. However, after graduation it might well be that some decided that the study of magic wasn't for them or it was only a side line. Eldritch knight, arcane trickster rogue ... or even classes without any magic at all could be justified if someone just didn't take to the magical learning or decided it wasn't for them. It could be that everyone pretends to be some sort of magic user just to show up their former classmates but maybe they made other career choices :) ... which might become evident from the conflicts that develop.

[Mabbly]

Sounds like fine idea for one-shot.

Also, I've had 3 level 2 characters kill adult oblex (though one with 60 hp max), although the RNG favored them heavily. Still, 1 of them went down (but not died) in the fight, and another got very close.

4 level 3 characters should be fine, if they know what they're doing. Especially with full-caster party, as they're likely to have source of fire damage, and proficiency in Wis saves. Plus all the spells that can be used.

Thank you! I'm really excited to test it out. that's good to know, I've always had trouble balancing encounters especially with spellcasters in the mix.


This sounds to me like an ideal setup to provide a set of pre-generated characters with the old grudges built into their backgrounds. Trying to add all of the background to characters that folks create just for the one shot would probably not work very well.

Alternatively, provide a set of backgrounds - assign them randomly - and make it a masquerade party - so that individuals won't be recognized unless they want to be and the option to pretend to be someone else can add to the confusion.

In addition, you could make it a starting academy ... where the people went to learn their initial skills. Maybe it was a boarding school. However, after graduation it might well be that some decided that the study of magic wasn't for them or it was only a side line. Eldritch knight, arcane trickster rogue ... or even classes without any magic at all could be justified if someone just didn't take to the magical learning or decided it wasn't for them. It could be that everyone pretends to be some sort of magic user just to show up their former classmates but maybe they made other career choices :) ... which might become evident from the conflicts that develop.

Those are a lot of really great ideas. what I went with was giving players a pool of 5 NPCs they had to pick 1 out of to have a pre-existing relationship with. I kept the descriptions light so they could fill in the blanks if they wished, or not, and told them if this doesn't at all work with the character they have in mind they can just ignore it.

and I took your advice for class options--it is a *ten year* reunion after all, they've had plenty of time to make career changing choices.

Thank you both for your help!

[Aussiehams]

Maybe give non spell casters the Magic initiate feat, and something equivalent for the spell casters.