Tales of The Yawning Portal - The Sunless Citadel HELP WITH INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPGH

[Storyl]

Hey Yall,

As the title says I'm really struggling with trying to start this campaign as next weekend I'm planning on running The Sunless Citadel for a group of new players and some experienced ones.

I was reading through this campaign and decided that I liked the rescue party hook the most though I have no idea how to start this campaign.

If you have any ideas leave it below please or any scripted introductions that I could read.

[kebusmaximus]

Don't write out exactly what you're going to say beforehand. "Boxed text" is always awkward if it's longer than just a couple lines. Instead, try to learn the information and get comfortable improvising your exact wording, like a regular conversation.

I can think of two ways to start.

1. Tell the party they're on a rescue mission. Read them the party description and reward, then send them on their way. This is the fastest way to get to the dungeon delving.

2. The party gets together on the road, in town, or in the inn. There, the party can hear about the rescue mission and reward. The tavern keeper probably knows the details. This method is more organic, but takes longer and requires your players to bite the plot hook. That's not a problem if you're upfront about it being the game you're running.

[Storyl]

Don't write out exactly what you're going to say beforehand. "Boxed text" is always awkward if it's longer than just a couple lines. Instead, try to learn the information and get comfortable improvising your exact wording, like a regular conversation.

I can think of two ways to start.

1. Tell the party they're on a rescue mission. Read them the party description and reward, then send them on their way. This is the fastest way to get to the dungeon delving.

2. The party gets together on the road, in town, or in the inn. There, the party can hear about the rescue mission and reward. The tavern keeper probably knows the details. This method is more organic, but takes longer and requires your players to bite the plot hook. That's not a problem if you're upfront about it being the game you're running.

I tried doing this as I felt like it would be easier in time though I'm still struggling with it. Thanks for the help a lot though I'll attempt this.

[Segev]

Do you want to start the game with them at the first location in the dungeon description (atop the ravine, near the broken towers), or do you want to start them in town? (Oakhurst is the default provided, but you can use any you like; I used Port Nyanzaru and replaced the dead adventurer with Tiryiki, the son of Ekene-Afa, as a means of introducing the Death Curse when they brought his corpse back for resurrection.)

If you're starting in town, give each PC a written bullet-point list of rumors and such from the opening possibilities, and include that they've been gathered by the Hucrele matron to rescue her kid(s) in all of their messages. Open by having them meeting with her either in an inn or in her private abode. Let them discuss with her what she knows, let any side hooks in their bullet points direct some of their discussion and possible other people to talk to, send them for some last-minute shopping, and then get on the road.

If you're starting at the entrance to the dungeon, all you need to do is say, "You've all been hired by the Hucrele family to rescue an adventuring party including two of their scions: [insert their names, which I forget right now, here]. The rewards offered are [insert what rewards are offered for what actions]. You've spent all morning trudging from town, feeling like even the denuded shrubbery are watching you, and finally found the place the townsfolk described. [Read boxed text here.]"

Or some variant on that. Give yourself some simple bullets of info to get across rather than a flowery boxed text, in any event. You can read boxed text from the module if you like; the hamminess is part of the charm of the D&D experience. But don't force it on yourself if you can avoid it in your own introductions.

[Finback]

Ask if a player will let you use them as a keystone into the story, and then have them concerned that a good friend/mentor/ally/friendly rival went on an expedition, and has not come back within the allotted time frame.