Can You Guys Give Me A Good Campaign Starter

[BigPixie]

I would love some sample adventure hooks. :smallcool:

[Son of A Lich!]

The players are asked to clean out rats in the cellar. It's actually a Cult Ambush, the Innkeeper is screening for people that aren't from around here and no one will ask questions.

The players are returning from cleaning out a goblin hovel, but the coastal town they returned too was reduced to rubble over night by something angry... angry... or hungry.

a priest is determined to find a cure for his sons deathly ailment; he sends the players to fetch things he needs for his rituals, only for the players to stumble upon a necromancer labratory just outside of town.

The Fey Wilds are in flux (Well, more flux then usual) causing the fey to war within themselves and each other circles. Chaos ensues.

A elder dragon is celebrating his first clutch of eggs hatching, Bringing in a wide number of people from numerous backgrounds. Chromatic or Metallic, they both have enemies and friends that are unnerved by this.

A Sphinx is opening a public Library but not all patrons seem to be leaving it.

[Lyracian]

More an adventure hook than campaign but

The Goblins Tunnel into the Inn while the players are there and the City Watch asked them to follow the tunnel and find where they came from.

A giant threatens to eat the people in a local local village unless they feed him all there livestock. the players have go get the retired giant slayer who lives in the woods to come back and help them or everyone will flee.

A charismatic Priest is collecting new followers in the poorer parts of town but some of the people miraculously healed have actually been turned into Undead!

A half-Elf needs help to get to another kingdom as his father the Elven (or Human) king has died and assassins are trying to kill him before he can be crowned.

An estate agent wants you to clear out a spooky house so he can sell it.

[Contrast]

Are you look for ideas on running your own game or suggestions for a pre-made adventure to run?

Lost Mines of Phandelver is the one that comes in the official starter box and is usually considered pretty good. Alternatively, have a look on DMs Guild (https://www.dmsguild.com/browse.php?&pwyw=true&filters=0_0_45393_0_0_0_0_0&pto=0&pfrom=0) - many adventures on there are free or pay what you want to download and have a look at - good for using or just taking ideas/segments.

I also think that many of the Adventures League games make good mini-adventures that you could tweak and weave into another narrative and could help spark some ideas.

[LaserFace]

just use this

https://donjon.bin.sh/fantasy/random/#type=quest

[Skylivedk]

Start in a burning prison. Preferably framed for killing the previous mayor/ruler.

[Waterdeep Merch]

As the last act of a dying god, a few people were put into a timeless sleep, hoping they would one day restore the world's light. Now, thousands of years later, the players awaken with the last dregs of an ancient people to find a chaotic world of endless darkness ruled by strength and cruelty, a veritable hell. There should be more of them, but there are demonically-infused goblins swarming where the other group should have awoken. It's up to the players to investigate.

[Tvtyrant]

See everything in the crazy mayor thread.

A mysterious ming was gifted to a local innkeeper by his uncle. When filled with wine a map appears, and the innkeeper wants you to follow it.

[Vogie]

When my party was starting Waterdeep: Dragon Heist, I gave Volo a younger sibling that was raised with the party back when they were kids (they're all new players so I didn't care about continuity with FR Lore). Everyone had gone their separate ways until they got Volo's missive that the sibling had passed away, and he invited them to meet him at the Yawning Portal to get the campaign started to reminisce about her.

I did this to make sure:

They were all there
In the same place
At around the same time
They all knew each other, but
Needed to learn about each other nonetheless.

[Yora]

Something I once read somewhere: "You are all in the prison of the evil tyrant, awaiting execution the next morning. How did you get here?"

What I am currently working at is to have the PCs having found a chest in a wrecked ship that has the seal of a great wizard and an arcane lock spell on it. The city in which the wizard lives is seven days away on the coastal road, five days if taking shortcuts through the forest. The game starts at the nearby trade post that sells supplies.
(I still need to put something interesting inside it, in case the players simply decide to destroy the chest with axes. Preferably something that looks like the wizard would give a reward for, but useless to most people.)

[Corsair14]

Finally got back to my computer with the file on it and finished my Black Crusade campaign start. Basically it follows the beginning of the novel Black Crusade and has the characters as no magic human crusaders at the fall of Jerusalem and all the madness that takes place because of the Grimoire. They run into the priest trying to find it and agree to help and they fight off the crazies in the city, hopefully keep their sanity, make it to the Grimoire after the priest who they find is actually a bad guy and during the BBEG fight get sucked into Ravenloft where it diverges from the novel and have to travel across the various dark lands to find the pages. They find this out when one of the more sane Dark Lords who is into necromancy figures out the Grimoire has secrets he doesn't know and since he cant leave himself to recover them he has the PCs do it and claims the book has the power to send them home. Makes sense since the book got them there as far as they know right? I will have it take place while Lord Soth is still in Sithicus and have him be a player in it also.

[Kurt Kurageous]

The graveyard in the city is absorbed by a massive sinkhole. Something or someone has undermined the crypts and stolen the remains as well as the wealth therein. Who could have done this? Why did they do it? Can you bring them to justice? The high priest of the death domain god approaches with a commission, resources, and wealth to send you on your way...

[Zaltman]

Campaign starter makes me think reason to be together to have their first encounter. With that POV:

The classic - bar. All the PCs just happen to be in the same bar when an NPC stumbles into the bar with a jeweled dagger sticking out of her back
Final training. As part of a cross class training exercise, PCs wake up without supplies in cave together and have to find/fight their way out
Job applicants. All the PCs show up at the adventure guild office interested in the same posted job
Case of mistaken identity. All the PCs are hauled into the local constables office as possible suspects to a crime they did not commit. They can either try to escape or work with the authorities to catch the bad guy/gals and prove their innocence
My favorite - ambush. All the PCs just happen to be in a stage coach, or part of a small caravan, headed to destination X for reason Y. Of course, they are ambushed on the way.

[Vogie]

My favorite - ambush. All the PCs just happen to be in a stage coach, or part of a small caravan, headed to destination X for reason Y. Of course, they are ambushed on the way.


Or there was a festival or similar event that was interrupted by a riot or brawl that caused a lockdown and mass arrests.

The PCs were just those who were sharing a cell while awaiting processing.

[jaappleton]

Flip everything on its head. That's how you make it memorable.

For example, so many games start out in a tavern. BORING! Its a trope. Flip it.

The game starts off with the players barricading the outside of the tavern, to trap everyone inside, as they set fire to it. Why? Hell if I know. Maybe they're brainwashed by a cult leader? Is the tavern full of zombies?

A favorite of mine is that they opening scene is a battle. They are facing off against ____ because ____. If there's a Paladin, its because someone in his Order was a traitor, and the lowly squire enlisted the aid of the rest of the party members. Maybe they're facing off against a corrupt captain of the guard, and he has the mayor hostage?

Make it memorable. That's how you do it. Heck, maybe they're all prisoners on a ship being brought to port to stand trial and PIRATES ATTACK AND THE SHIP SINKS. Make it a desperate situation.

[ChildofLuthic]

I started one campaign by having everyone in the marketplace (letting them talk to NPCs for a bit and buy anything they needed) before having a wizard run into the marketplace and yell, "Attention all adventurers! I have a quest! Meet me in the college in one hour." I had told them before the game that, whoever their character is, they need to be the kind of person that would respond to a wizard yelling "Attention all adventurers! I have a quest!"

I really wasn't trying to surprise anyone.

[Throne12]

They all got on to a air ship heading to a large city reasons for them to go this city are there own. Midway to the city the airship is attacked by a dragon. The ship captain gives a speech to her crew about how they need to just damage it just enough to make it flee. This is a clue to the players it's not a hopeless fight. So go through a few rounds fighting the dragon but it ends with the dragon destroying the ship. The party then wakes up to there hole bodies rattled with pain. They find them selfs among the wreckage of the airship. With nothing on them but there closes. They find out they are the only one's to survive. They have to loot the wreckage for any gear they can then find there way to civilization.

[Mercurias]

HEre's a link to a pretty good list of hooks.

http://dndspeak.com/2018/05/100-campaign-start-scenarios/

[Sigreid]

PCs have been hired to work security for a minor local festival. Good time was had by all until the cultists attacked.

[Urukubarr]

PC's are all passengers on a ship that gets overturned / destroyed / whatev at sea. they wake up on an island.

this was one I liked because any PC could have any reason to be a passenger on a ship, they can be grouped or not, some can be grouped and some can be alone, and they will all end up together, and have an instant common goal of figuring out where they are or how to get off the island. they will likely want to stick together after the fact (ala most D&D groups)

but yeah, pretty much just create a melting pot location where for whatever reason people of various reasons / backgrounds might be, have an event happen that would cause the PC's to work together for whatever reason, and tada, there you go.

[EggKookoo]

Flip everything on its head. That's how you make it memorable.

For example, so many games start out in a tavern. BORING! Its a trope. Flip it.

The game starts off with the players barricading the outside of the tavern, to trap everyone inside, as they set fire to it. Why? Hell if I know. Maybe they're brainwashed by a cult leader? Is the tavern full of zombies?

I'm planning to start my next campaign with the PCs all in a tavern -- as employees. I'll have them work out jobs. They can roll to be either the assistant cook or the privy janitor, or they can just be servers.

Then one of those damn "adventurer" groups shows up. They're always trouble...

[ImproperJustice]

PCs are having lunch on a clear summer day, when a man crosses the street and approaches carrying a large Woodsman’s axe. As he begins to bleed slightly from the eyes, he asks if any of the PCs have read “Sutter Kane”?

If the say yes, he laughs and asks the next person.

Someone is screaming in the distance from the direction he came from.

The first person who says no, or what, he proceeds to try and murder with the axe.

And yes, this is totally ripped from an excellent movie, and a cookie to whoever knows it.

[razorback]

PCs are having lunch on a clear summer day, when a man crosses the street and approaches carrying a large Woodsman’s axe. As he begins to bleed slightly from the eyes, he asks if any of the PCs have read “Sutter Kane”?

If the say yes, he laughs and asks the next person.

Someone is screaming in the distance from the direction he came from.

The first person who says no, or what, he proceeds to try and murder with the axe.

And yes, this is totally ripped from an excellent movie, and a cookie to whoever knows it.
In the Mouth of Madness.