Introduction:

KJW - Since joining these boards I have seen numerous threads discussing and usually praising the
merits of solo campaigns. After contributing to many of these threads, I felt that one thread that truly
fleshed out solo campaigns would be of considerable use to many DMs. I contacted Illion the ed for
assistance, mainly because Illion!s contribution to previous threads discussing solo campaigns was always
phenomenal. "oth of us are fairly e#perienced DMs and run $roup %ampaigns, but we are also both
married and have run a staggering number of solo campaigns for our wives. &hus all that follows comes
from e#perience and a deep appreciation for the magic of solo campaigns.
Illion the Red ' As ()* mentioned, I too, have a passion for solo campaigns as well as a number of
years of e#perience with them. In fact, the homebrew world I am currently running for my $roup
campaign has the cities and regions developed from a myriad of solo campaigns dating bac+ as far as
,--.. I have found solo campaigns to be richly rewarding in roleplaying and nearly every other form of
gameplay. *hen ()* contacted me about this project, I jumped at the opportunity to collaborate with
someone who not only shares my passion for the topic, but also always managed to hit upon aspects of
solo campaigns that I had not considered or had neglected. I truly hope you find this guide as helpful as
wor+ing on it has been.
Why a Solo Campaign?
Solo campaigns arise from two situations ' desire or necessity. Desire usually is a result of having been
part of a solo campaign and wanting to once again enjoy the e#perience.
/ecessity often results from a DM having only one player or the DM needing to run a player separate from
the group for reasons important to the campaign. &hese reasons could include providing an introduction to
the campaign world or maybe to teach a new player the rules of the game. /ecessity will often lead to
desire as many players 0uic+ly become enamoured with solo campaigns.
A solo campaign is often 0uite different from other D1D campaigns. Solo campaigns tend to be more
intimate with far stronger character development, more comple# story lines, and incredible roleplaying
depth. &here are a number of factors that contribute to this, but the primary one is the simple fact that
everything revolves around a single character. 2nce freed from the constraints of a $roup %ampaign,
there is far more freedom for the DM and the Solo 3% to create something truly special.
"eyond the potential for great roleplaying opportunities, many DMs and players find that solo campaigns
are just plain fun. *ithout anyone to share the spotlight, a player will often find the ability to directly
influence the pace and style of play to significantly enhance the game beyond what a $roup %ampaign is
capable of achieving.
Solo campaigns provide a near perfect opportunity for both the DM and the player to try out new ideas
and e#plore options that may have not been e#plored previously. In short, it!s a time to ta+e some
chances and see what happens.
Character Creation:
*hen creating a character for a solo campaign, the DM should discuss the campaign world4idea with the
player and decide on a creation method. A creation method that allows for more powerful characters than
normal is recommended. &his is to compensate for the character having to essentially fill every role in the
party. Such methods can range from 567 point-buy, to ,87,d9 per ability, to ,9, ,., ,:,,;,,<,,5 array,
to arbitrarily selecting abilities.
Another option for increasing the power of a Solo 3% is to use the $estalt option in =nearthed Arcana
which ta+es the >best of two classes? and combines them into a single class. &his will give you a 3% that
covers more bases than the single-classed or multi-classed 3%.
@et another option is to have the player create, and run multiple characters simultaneously. &his is not the
recommended practice as one character inevitably becomes the primary character and the otherAsB
become little more than 3%-controlled /3%s.
A final option is to create a number of /3%s that will adventure with or support the 3% throughout the
campaign. Although this option can ma+e things easier for the 3% in terms of survival, it ma+es the DM!s
job significantly more comple#. &his leaves the DM in the position of balancing /3% +nowledge and
abilities with his own +nowledge and abilities. &he DM in this case often winds up metagaming with the
/3%s or underutiliCing their abilities significantly. &his is far from an ideal situation and may contribute to
dissatisfaction on behalf of the player, the DM, or both.
&he most important thing to consider however is the style of gameplay that the campaign will be centered
on. If the campaign is going to be combat-heavy, the 3% had better be able to fight. Similarly, if the
campaign is going to be a roleplaying-heavy affair, a character with social s+ills is pretty essential. As a
DM, it is critical to tailor your campaign to the 3% created.
&he player should be reminded that all essential s+ill chec+s will be made by his or her character, so s+ill
selection is important. A potential modification might be to ma+e certain s+ills class s+ills for all classes
such as Disten, Search, and Spot. Additionally, increasing the 3%s s+ill points per level is often a wise
move.
&he DM should weave plotlines throughout the campaign that interact with the 3%!s bac+ground and
facilitate development of the character. In order to achieve this, a richly detailed character bac+ground is
essential. emember, there is only one character in the story and, as such, the story should revolve
around that one character. &he details of the character!s bac+ground serve as a source of material for the
DM to draw upon and create plot hoo+s from. In a >normal? campaign with four characters, 5-; plot hoo+s
from each of those characters should be enough to fill the entire campaign. *ith one character, more
depth is needed to provide plot hoo+s that are relevant to the character.
Specialization & Attention:
ItEs a common thing for players to pic+ or create characters based on a concept that inspires and intrigues
them. &his ranges from wanting to play DriCCEt or Degolas to e#pressing interest in playing a ninja or even
a bard. *hen a player, for instance, proclaims that she wants to play an amphibious race, it suggests that
the player is interested in doing the +inds of things that amphibious humans Ain this caseB would do.
As the DM, it is easy for forget that such a player will often want to be given situations in which her
specialties are at a premium, in order to feel, well, special. F#cellent advice was given on focusing on the
culture of the aventi and ma+ing the player feel as though she is truly part of a non-human culture. At the
same time, it is 0uite possible that the player wants to feel uni0ue and special. In the case of a campaign
such as was described for the aventi character, with travels that ta+e her far Aeven through a desertB, an
amphibious humanoid will definitely be different. A&hough, admittedly, the Gorgotten ealms is a place
filled with eccentric beings...B
%atering to the talents, abilities, and specialiCations of the 3% in a solo campaign can greatly enhance the
feeling of satisfaction Aand funHB &his is true for all campaigns, but especially in a solo campaign, where a
considerable amount of time can be devoted to the central 3% without minimiCing the role of the other
players. I believe there are some passages about this in the DM$ II, but I have not read much of it. Grom
a solo perspective, it bears repeating and e#panding on.
$enerally spea+ing, it can be helpful to create plot hoo+s and opportunities to shine based on the
characterEs traits. &his is true even for a character that isnEt specialiCed in the true sense of the word.
Some e#amplesI
Tervinniar, the Draconean Scholar, is a sage who has spent decades of his precious time studying
draconic lore. As a result, he has mastered the language of dragons. One day, while visiting the Kingdom
of Nwashe, he grew weary of listening to his comrades debate strategies for toppling the Gallwood
Consortium, and went for a wal. !is feet brought him to the local library, where he happened to overhear
a conversation between several scholars who ept switching bac and forth between common and
draconic. "ntrigued, #ervinniar listened in on their conversation $which seemed to focus on a boo they
pored over%, and to his great dismay, he found that the neophytes were butchering the noble language of
dragons. &olitely, he pointed out the proper way to translate 'ruisumahere,' and was promptly invited to
(oin the stunned scholars. After a short conversation, it turns out that the scholars are in the employ of
the ing, and are attempting to translate an old tome written in draconic. #he scholars believe that the
contents of the boo hold the ey to renewing the ancient wards that fortify the mudflats beneath the
capital) nowledge that must be gained before they crumble, and the city sins. Naturally, they re*uest
#ervinniar's capable help...
Sorry, I love e#amples. Anyway, such plot hoo+s do not have to be the result of a specialiCed character.
Indeed, itEs enough that a character has, to use the e#ample above, s+ills in an uncommon language. If
the player has spent s+ill points on learning a language Aor been given it as part of her bac+ storyB, it
stands to reason that she wants these linguistic s+ills to be used at some point. In my D1D campaign, I
recently designed an adventure based around the idea that the player would get to use one of his less
common languages. AJe had previously communicated an interest in getting to use his languages, and I
personally love linguistics, so...B &he adventure doesnEt revolve around languageK itEs just what enables
him to parta+e of the activities at all, and ma+es him special. &hose craCy fey should learn common or
leave the countryH
Another, more commonly adaptable e#ampleI
Elia-Tera spent her sheltered childhood with the elves. !er father, a human e+patriate, taught the wilful
girl swordplay from a young age, despite her wavering interest. $#hose ids and their bardic music...% "n
later years, she has taen up the life of a wanderer, searching for clues about the malicious nature spirit
that has descended upon the elven forest and eeps its defenders occupied. ,hile searching for a
reclusive druid reportedly living in a hidden garden within the walls of the massive city of Karianimm, -lia.
#era visits a theater of some sort and is surprised to find the group on stage apparently performing the
ceremonial ata of her father's school of swordplay. -lated by this reminder of home, -lia.#era waled
onto the stage and (oins into the familiar patterns $which she repeats each morning as part of her
meditation%. As it turns out, the group is none too pleased, considering her intrusion onto the stage a
challenge. /efore she nows it, -lia.#era is forced to defend herself, and does so admirably. After forcing
the four rather clumsy practitioners to yield, she finds herself cheered on by an ecstatic crowd thirsty for
her sills with the blade.
In my humble opinion, showing up arrogant people is one of the staples of satisfaction. Fspecially if the
abashed Flia-&era blurts out L"'m sorry0 " didn't now you were beginners0L after the fight.
Gor closure, I should give an e#ample using the aventi. Det me ta+e a loo+ at my copy of Stormwrac+
before I mouth off about their abilities...
Sheresk is an aventi tutor from a medium.si1ed colony in the &earlescent 2eef. 3he would often regale
the children in her ward with tales of the great seas, and the lands above, while imprinting upon them the
nowledge of ancient Aventurnus. 3everal moons into the past, sahuagin slavers raided the &earlescent
2eef and captured several of the children under her care even as she stood petrified, too frightened to
help. ,raced with guilt, 3heres eventually left her home in order to appease her burning conscience by
rescuing the children from the predations of the vile sahuagin. !owever, after breaing into the sahuagin
settlement where the children were taen, she finds to her horror that several of the girls have been
traded to fiendish aboleths from the /rine 4lats, realm of the most heinous 5emon &rince 5emogorgon.
5etermined to bring them bac, 3heres set off on a (ourney. 5uring her travels across the parched lands,
she reaches the coastal town of Autrim, where apparently a great storm has recently sent a ship to the
bottom of the sea (ust a few miles out of the harbor. #he problem is that the ship carried the town's
annual tribute to the Council of 6ords in Abiarthet. 5uring the riots that occur in the city following this
awful event, 3heres convinces her traveling companions to help her ac*uire a small ship, and spends
several days hauling the gold and silver from the depths of the bay. 2eturning to the town with the
tribute, she is praised as a hero.
=gh, that introduction was much too long. SorryK I just canEt help itH /ot the coolest e#ample, but these
things do not always have to be, either. &here are more dramatic twists to the above e#ample for those
who are inclined. &he important thing, to me, is that she got to show off her amaCing amphibious s+ills in
a society dominated by humans.
&his type of plot hoo+ AFvent &rigger, reallyB can be used for even the smallest things. If the 3% is a
sorcerer who pic+s an uncommon spell, such as ventrilo*uism, the DM will do her game a favor by
catering to the selection by providing interesting opportunities to use the spell. &he player will often try to
direct play towards such situations, but itEs best to help her along the way. /o one needs an incentive to
pic+ fireball, but illusory script is a liability in most campaigns. &his is because the former spellEs utility is
built into the game Ait destroys things, and D1D has lots of rules on destroying thingsB while the latter
needs the DMEs cooperation to be useful.
Again, druids want to do druidic things and parley with fey, while a cleric with a penchant for oratory s+ills
will want to preach. 3layers will attempt to find such situations themselves, but the DM can do so much
more. "ac+ in high school, IEm sure that many of us have daydreamed about being thrown into a situation
where the girl we stammered around would get harassed while you were present, so that you could save
her. &his is the same thingI ItEs all about facilitating unli+ely scenarios that ma+e the player feel satisfied.
A3ardon the lac+ of a feminine variantK do girls dream about being +nights in shining armor...M I hope so.B
&his brings to mind one of the greatest moments of a campaign IEm currently playing in Anot a solo
campaign, but it has solo aspectsB. &here, I play onoc, a humble priest of a edan, Aa farmerEs god,
basicallyB from a small village. *hile delivering a religious icon to the priests of the faith in a larger town
nearby, he was robbed, and the icon was ta+en. &hrough the attempts to regain it, the house where it had
been ta+en was, ahem, unfortunately burnt to the ground. &he icon was destroyed. *hen onoc e#plained
this to the local priest, the latter was furious, and accused onoc of attempting to withhold the relic. &hen
and there, onoc, who had a much more lenient view of his godEs teachings, and cares little for icons and
material wealth, entered into an argument with the priest. *hile a small group of devout listened on, he
argued theology, and was 0uestioned by the throng of people after the priest left. &his was awesome fun.
Campaign & Story Development
Solo campaigns allow a 3% and DM to e#plore the campaign world in a depth not typically possible with
group campaigns. *ith only one 3%, the DM can tailor adventures directly to the interests of the player43%
which allows a brea+ from the more generic campaign arcs commonly found in group campaigns.
ame !alance & "#perimentation
As there is only one player, +eeping a balance between 3%s is an obviously unnecessary e#ercise.
Additionally, the focus of a solo campaign is usually more on roleplaying, so many of the mechanical
elements, such as combat, often fall to a secondary role. &his allows the DM to e#periment with the rules,
perhaps to give the Solo 3% abilities or resources that would not be wise within a party dynamic or to
playtest a house rule before the DM adds it to her group campaign.
Character Development v$ Story Development
$roup campaigns are typically story driven with character development as a secondary goal. *hile story is
an important element in a solo campaign, character development assumes primacy. *hereas a group will
usually amble along with a good story arc, a Solo 3% is more prone to refuse to follow a story arc that
does not mesh with their vision of their character. &his situation ties to the fact that neither the DM, nor
the player need be concerned with party cohesion or other players! enjoymentK thereby freeing the player
to directly pursue ideas and story arcs that mesh with the 3%s long-term goals and aspirations.
&he story needs to be tailored to the 3%, and this means tailoring the story to the goals of the 3%. &his is
usually an easy tas+, but the DM must be cogniCant that the story must be about the Solo 3% and not
necessary a brilliant campaign idea that would wor+ for a group.
reater Depth
$roup campaigns often fly through campaign worlds s+imming the surface, while solo campaigns usually
plunge deeply into the campaign world. "ecause there is no need to share game time with other players or
to reach a consensus on direction, the Solo 3% is wont to pursue their interests in far greater depth that
they ever could in a group campaign. &here are some advantages to this greater depth. Girstly, the 3% will
li+ely remain tied to a location far more readily than a group of 3%s would, thus the DM!s wor+ in
designing a city or other >base of operations? is far more li+ely to be used. Secondly, the solo campaign
will greatly increase the depth of a campaign world, far more than a group campaign as most /3%s will
have significant interaction with the 3% and need to be fleshed-out with history, goals, and objectives to
support lengthy conversations. )eCebel, the "armaid needs more than a name, a physical description, and
a menu of drin+s. &hirdly, the roleplaying opportunities for both DM and 3% are more numerous and
rewarding, which is one reason solo campaigns are so popular. &he DM in a solo campaign should e#pect
and, indeed, encourage e#tended roleplaying sessions to develop both the 3% and the world surrounding
him or her.
D% &ool: 'olitical Structure(
solo campaigns often thrive on politics and intrigue. &he DM should ta+e steps to ensure that there are
opportunities for these activities, which means a comple# political structure should be developed. &his is
not just for governments, but also for churches, guilds, and other organiCations. *hat follows are some
ideas and considerations for developing political structuresI
,B 3ower should be decentraliCed. Gor e#ample, while there may be a sovereign of a +ingdom, he should
be reliant on the trade guilds for revenue, on the churches to manage the courts and +eep the people
content, and the nobility to manage the +ingdom and lead his armies. &he more distributed and delegated
the power and authority, the more intrigue and politics. Another alternative is having a Monarch who must
answer to a council of /obles who ratify the Monarch!s decisions.
6B 3seudo-democratic institutions are e#cellent political structures. Gor e#ample, the thieves! guild is ruled
by a council of nine master thieves and re0uires majority vote for any decisions, there is political
manoeuvring and even assassinations to win votes. In any situation where votes are re0uired there will be
ample roleplaying opportunities.
5B &here should be a faction that the 3% will support. &his is important. &he DM should always try to
create a faction that the 3% will at least respect. &his provides the 3% with a discernable interest in the
political structure. &he faction could be in power if you have a 3% who thrives on loyalty and service to a
cause, or the faction could be out of power for an ambitious 3% who could lead the faction bac+ to power.
<B %onflicting loyalties create roleplaying opportunities. Gor e#ample, the 3% is a +night in service to the
+ing, but the 3%!s noble family is opposed to the +ing and the 3%!s secret faith is being persecuted by the
central church that is allied to the +ing.
;B Distrusted allies and respected opponents are a necessity. &he 3% needs friends she doesn!t trust and
enemies she can respect, this may seem li+e reverse logic, but it really adds to the 0uality and realism of
the campaign. Gor e#ample, the 3% rogue belongs to a thieves! guild populated with bac+stabbing and
ambitious individuals, but a paladin-constable opposed to the guild has wor+ed with her to oppose a
greater evil.
:B A crisis is needed. As crisis is essential to the conflict that will build the %haracter into an entity greater
than the paper it is written upon. &his is the heart of any campaign focusing on politics and intrigue, but,
in this case, the crisis should be specific to the Solo 3%. Gor e#ample, the +ing is planning on ceding
dominions to a neighbouring +ingdom as a result of defeat in war, and the Solo 3% is one of the lords of
these dominions, this is a massive crisis to the Solo 3%, but not necessarily the rest of the +ingdom. &he
level of the crisis should be tied to the abilities, stature, e#perience, and driving motivations of the Solo
3%.
'rologue(
&he first time I encountered the idea of the prologue was in the second campaign my friend DMed for me.
&his campaign, which he has titled Shrouded Stars, is a science fiction campaign initially based on the
premise of piloting gritty, LrealisticL-style mecha. In order to show my characterEs past, my character,
alward, was started off as a ,6 year old boy on a fairly recently coloniCed moon called Gallowmist.
In this campaign, set in a made up solar system, the science level isnEt outrageous, but rather a few
hundred years beyond our own. &hereEs no such thing as interstellar travel, and only a few planets have
been coloniCed. Gallowmist, a moon orbiting an inhospitable mining planet called "ane, has been largely
abandoned by the solar community, and had degenerated into a struggle between two armed factions that
dragged the entire moon into their conflict.
During the first session, alwardEs mother was accidentally +illed by a gunshot when a fight bro+e out
between thugs from the two factions in a roadside tavern. Gollowing this event, his father, previously an
optimistic colonist, became obsessed with getting off of Gallowmist with what remained of his family. In
order to do this, he needed a ride, and in order to get a ride, he needed to participate in the one feature
that made Gallowmist and its bac+wards LmistiesL famous on JomeworldI &he annual Motor$ames.
&he cru# was that the Motor$ames have no rules. @ouEre supposed to cross the finish line with a vehicle,
and thatEs it. alwardEs father spent years building a motorcycle he called the Dunar %omet, and finally
participate in the event. =nfortunately, 0uite near the finish line, as alward watched, a ruthless
participant named Jendar Lthe Jammer,L +noc+ed him off of his bi+e and got him +illed. /ot a great day
in a ,< year olds life, so alward got sad, and then he got mad. &he ambush that followed ended with
both of them believing that the other had died, which later led to the most awesome showdown IEve
played... but I digress.
Dater on, alward helped his employer prevent an act of terrorism against one of the moonEs Atmospheric
Gormatters Aa terraforming deviceB, but was pic+ed up by the Alliance military as he passed out, and was
ta+en into space. *a+ing up and staring out at the shrin+ing moon in the night s+y of space was 0uite a
roleplaying moment.
alward is 66 now, and Gallowmist seems a long time ago, but as player, IEll never remember what his life
was li+e bac+ and, and what his thoughts were. &his bac+ story could have been simply retold to me
before the first session, but the fact that it was played out added an immeasurable depth to my character.
&hese days, we almost always do some sort of prologue to our solo campaigns.
An effective prologue is as long as the player wants it to be. In the *heel of &ime campaign I mentioned
earlier, the prologue +ept getting longer as circumstances prompted more detail. &he difficult part is
+nowing where to start. Actually, IEve played a 6 year old once, and loved it
uiding v( Railroading
Jow do I discourage or prevent my 3% from ma+ing certain actions without ma+ing the game to
constrictingM
I li+e to have my game rather free and constricting my 3%Es actions doesnt really appeal to me, however,
there are some things that I would li+e to +eep the way they are without my 3% attempting to destroy a
certain important item, rubbing an /3% the wrong way and thwarting a 0uest I wanted to give them,
ma+ing trouble in villages Astealing important items, going on a rampage etc.B Gor e#ampleI in my current
game - the 3% ran into a woman who is the wielder of a mysterious sword Ait turns out that the sword is
an intelligent sword using the woman to convey its thirst for adventure and con0uestB. *hen faced with
meeting the couple, his first reaction was to ransac+ her shop Ashe owns an appraisal shop in the city he is
currently inB, stal+ her in hopes that he could steal the sword if she sets it down and generaly not wait
until he is offered an opportunity to adventure with them for a short while.
Jow would you suggest I could handle situations li+e this without being notoriously constricting and
ma+ing it seem li+e things are Lout of his graspLM
&he first thing you should do is as+ both yourself and your player if this campaign is going to be an evil
campaign. If the answer to the 0uestion is LyesL then you are going to have to rely on your player to show
enough maturity to not turn the campaign into a free-for-all.
Ma+e sure that you create reasonable conse0uences for the 3%Es actions. &he ransac+ed shop might spar+
a thorough investigation by the city guards. If the shop owner has any significant wealth, she would li+ely
hire a diviner to find out who did it - and since he is stal+ing her it shouldnEt bee all that hard to identify
him.
If he does manage to steal the sword, remember that the sword is intelligent and should be treated as an
/3% which could lead to all sorts of interesting situations.
%ertainly freedom to act is one of the hallmar+s of a good solo campaign, so you certainly have the right
spirit in not wanting to unreasonably restrict your player. Start off with the LevilL conversation and perhaps
move it into a Lwhat is funL conversation. &his should help you decide if you can modify the campaign to
fit the player or if Ait does happenB you simply are not compatible from a style standpoint.
@ou have a few problems here, first it seems li+e there is a lac+ of communication between you and the
player, second it sounds li+e you have a %/ 3%, and third you do not +now the secret of creating the
illusion of freedom. I will try to tac+le each of these in order and hopefully this will help.
@ou and your player need to tal+ about the 3% and his goals, a lot of times when the 3% is doing things
completely une#pected it is because either the DM does not understand the 3% or, just as li+ely, the player
has no vision for his 3%. =se the alignments, try to get the player to settle upon an alignment. Gind out
what the 3%Es longterm goal is. *ith alignment and goal it will be easier to DM the 3%, but do realiCe the
player may not be completely honest with you, because he may not really +now what he wants.
I find that lawful, good, and evil alignments are all fairly easy to predict and manipulate in game. *ith
lawful alignments you have some cause or order that allows you to guide a 3%, with good alignments you
have their conscience, and with evil alignments you have their greed and ambition. @ou can use the
alignments to guide the 3%, sometimes overtly sometimes secretly without their +nowledge. Gor e#ample,
if the 3% was a good alignment this female hero and her sword could have been under attac+ and the 3%
would li+ely rush in to help her. Instant bond and very unli+ely the 3% would ta+e any action against her. It
is always good to introduce a new /3% in a way that ma+es the 3% have to come to their aid or see+ their
assistance, some positive action that if the /3% responds positively will cement their relationship.
Fvil is a little harder, and your 3% seems borderline evil, but you can design the adventure for the female
hero to hire the 3% for a 0uest to a location with great wealth +nown only in her mind, so he has to tag
along for awhile. Also donEt forget a sense motive chec+ by the female hero and she will +now he is trying
to rob her, which may mean she ta+es action against him, either preemptive or an ambush. Ginally, what if
the sword doesnEt want him...because he is inferior to the female hero in some way, then even if he gets
the sword he is in trouble.
/ and %/ are wildcards and these are very difficult to predict, especially with a new 3% who you havenEt
DMed, players choose these alignments when they have no idea what they or their 3% believes in for the
campaign.
I am now going to give you one of my secrets of DMing these rudderless 3%s...instead of crafting the
campaign for the 3% craft the campaign for the player. @ou +now your player, so cheat and use this
+nowledge to your benefit. Gor e#ample, I have players who have wea+ness for women, respect,
admiration, power, and so forth, often things a little lac+ing in their real life. I use that wea+ness to
maneuver them in a campaign, carrot is always better than stic+, just ma+e sure you are using the right
carrot. DonEt abuse the 3%, but give them what they want if they ta+e the course you want.
/ow the above secret is part of creating the illusion of freedom, which is a necessity for any DM to be
successful. %omplete freedom is a disaster for most campaigns, so you have to create the illusion of
freedom. Jere are some random tipsI
,B Incorporate )ac*ground in+ormation into the campaign, this is important if they player feels li+e
you are using the playerEs ideas then the player will give you the benefit of the doubt. &his is true in group
campaigns and gospel in solo campaigns, demonstrate that it is a two-way street. I have found that no
matter how detailed the bac+ground is that I am given there is more than enough room for me to twea+ it
as desired for my story arcs, plus it gives you a foundation to build upon.
6B ive (everal via)le option(, this is +ey. Infinite choice is a disaster at the beginning of a campaign,
so is no choice, give the player 6-< routes that come up for them to choose. I do not start designing my
major story arcs until after the 5rd or <th session, which is when I have a good idea what the 3% is
shooting for. If the 3% has the freedom to ma+e a choice then that 3% will often stic+ to that choice. Do
not fully develop your 6-< choices, just a few sentences and a hoo+, once the player bites do a side
adventure or travel adventure that could wor+ for all choices. Gor e#ample, you give a player four choices
of adventure away from the town where you are starting, no matter which way he travels you will spring
the same random encounters and a situation with a witch burning in a small hamlet, which you can use to
introduce a /3% spellcaster once he saves her. @ou end the session and you have had a fun adventure,
introduced a /3%, and now +now what the 3% will want to do for the ne#t session. &rust me this wor+s
great for groups and solo campaigns.
5B Indulge the re)elliou( player, sometimes players li+e to test if they have freedom. &hey try to +ill
/3%s, wander in random directions, and do all the stuff they are not allowed to do in video games. Det
them, just give them conse0uences, and realiCe that after a little testing they will come to trust that you
as a DM will give them as much freedom as they desire.
<B Drop +ailed (tory arc(, yes, just drop the failed hoo+s and move on. A good DM +nows when a trac+
has failed and when it is time to change things up. *hen you feel the resistance of the player to the
current story arc, not just normal frustration born of a challenge, but a genuine unhappiness then you
should drop the story arc and go in a completely different direction. DMs sometimes get tied to their ideas,
in group campaigns this is alright as you are shooting for the mean, in solo campaigns your ideas need to
wor+ for your only player, if they donEt drop them and try again.
2emember a good campaign is one where the players now there is a coo, and a few assistants, woring
in the itchen of the inn, without the &Cs having to open the door to see it. #his also e+tends to freedom
of choice, as long as the players now that as a 57 you are giving them freedom, they are content to
follow the limited choices you give them. "n either situation it taes practice and trust, which taes time
and effort.
Solo Campaign( and "pic 'lay
2nce a solo campaign gets to the point where a character has entered the Fpic levels, the world changes
significantly. &here are few monsters that can challenge a single Fpic character once they get past about
level 6; that do not come down to a single initiative4save roll or will wipe out the poor 3% utterly.
So where do you go from hereM
In order to reach such an upper echelon of levels, the 3layer should have had a great deal of time and
effort in developing their character both mechanically and, more importantly, through roleplaying. &herein
lies the +ey to Fpic Solo %ampaigns ' roleplaying.
At this point in the game, the usual state is that the world has been saved at least once and the 3%!s name
is +nown to peasant and +ing ali+e. 3hysical challenges re0uire e0ually renowned individuals or creatures
' which can be obscenely difficult and unbalanced for a single 3%. oleplaying challenges, however, are
largely unlimited by such things.
=tiliCing the established networ+ of /3%s and organiCations, challenges can Aand willB arise that cannot be
solved through force of arms or force of magic. &hese are the challenges that remain for an Fpic Solo
%haracter. %ertainly, mi# in the occasional non-roleplaying encounter, but ta+e e#tra care to not overmatch
the 3% and remember that most Fpic foes were designed to be able to +ill a single member of a party in a
single round as spells li+e true resurrection are readily available in Fpic play.
,o- to Start a Solo ame:
*arningI Dong and somewhat rambily ... 4end disclaimer
Jey IEm going to be running a solo campaign soon, with the 3% being a 3aladin. /ow the twist is he too+ a
devil bloodline from =nearthed Arcana. So obviously heEs touched 4 tempted by evil. &he player has told
me he has absolutely no 0uams if the pally turns evil.
&he problem that im running into is how to get the whole ball rolling, iEve +ind of got the starting location
started and some small 0uests to get things started, but i really cant thin+ of anyway to bring contact with
devil and other evil people in without being too blatantly obvious about it. /ow weEre starting at lvl ,, and
the pally of course has no idea where heEs from Aorphaned on a church step of courseB so basically iEve got
a completely blan+ slate to wor+ with and thats the problem, i dont have any conte#t or starting point.
&he 3%Es goals right now are to find out more about his past and figure out why, despite the fact that he is
a force of righteousness and good, he has an undeniable urge to +ill everyone sometimes. &hats the sum
total of what I have to wor+ with.
I was thin+ing of having a noble come to the town to visit the temple elder, who is an old friend of this
noble, and also the 3%Es mentor. /ow i was thin+ing of either having the noble recogniCe the 3% Ahas a
very distinctive scar, his mar+ of being devil touchedB and denounce him as evil forcing him to prove
himself. And then he can travel with the noble for a while until some other big event happens Asomething
li+e an invasion by undead or evil outsidersB.
2n the other hand i was thin+ing having his mentor send him away for the e#act reason above, he +nows
that the noble will ta+e un+indly to his having sheltered and raised a person tainted with the touch of evil.
&his would force the 3% in a much more indepentant role, but would leave me with little to wor+ with.
I want this to be a really good campaign, because this is probably the most interesting character IEve ever
seen, li+e comeon a scyth wielding paladin that has a devilEs blood in themM &hats just as+ing for tons of
wonderful temptations.
So any help would be great.
And this threat roc+s.
*hat you have here is the classic internal struggle ta+en to a supernatural level. Jow far you want to ta+e
it is, of course, up to you.
Idea 2neI &he 3% hears voices telling him to commit escalating evil acts as he progresses through his
training. "eing in the church, the voices are very faint, but once he starts adventuring, the voices become
stronger and stronger. &he voices are, in fact, a devil trying to awa+en the devilish blood flowing in the 3%
veins. &his could lead down several different avenues with the 3% giving in, fighting it, or see+ing out the
devil to silence the voices of the damned once and for all.
Idea &woI &he 3% is sent to help a distant missionary for the church with a problem. After the adventure
to get there Athis could span many levels depending on preferenceB the 3% discovers the missionary beset
with the possessed or even devils themselves.
Idea &hreeI %an a paladin really remain a paladin with a bloodlust raging within himM /ot sure where you
could ta+e this one yet, but you might get somewhere.
2ne of the things that helps get me started is reading D1D Aand whatever other game system you have
access toB source boo+s. 3restige %lasses in D1D, for instance, often give me ideas for /3%s around which
I can build events and adventure arcs. As I might have insinuated before, I find that it helps to begin with
the smallest possible component and build from there.
Although this topic doesnEt necessarily pertain e#clusively to solo campaigns, I thin+ that it bears more
thought, and I will thin+ on it. I believe I have more to say if I dig deep.
Anyway, if I can help you with more or less specific ideas somehow, feel free to send me a 3M or point me
in the direction of a thread.
would advise patience. @ou do have a good 3% concept here, but you may want to ta+e some time building
things up. &a+e some time to develop the setting and the personality of the 3%.
2ff the top of my head here is a rough outline how I would try to tac+le thisI
,B Introduction .ue(tI Mentor sends 3% and /3% paladin on minor 0uest, the two are rivals, the /3%
has long believed something is wrong with the 3%. Gor e#ample, what if sometimes the 3% radiates evil
due to certain astrological phenomena affecting his devil blood, while he isnEt evil there is a a lingering
shadow upon him. &his will cause the /3% to be suspicious, and maybe also cause the 3% concern. &his
0uest could be a couple of adventures and should have nothing to do with the 3% and his bloodline.
3rotecting a border community, trac+ing down a murderer, settling a dispute, clearing out an evil forest,
and so forth would be good.
N"&* I li+e IllionEs idea of voices in the playerEs head...see below for more on this.O
6B &he "nemyI &he 3% and /3% have returned from their recent 0uest Amaybe closer to friends maybe
further to enemiesB to find that the temple has been attac+ed. &he Mentor and a few others survived and
say that some un+nown emeny attac+ed and was loo+ing for something. Je sends the 3% to consult with a
distant oracle and gives him an item to conceal his journey.
NOK here is where " am stealing from /uffy the 8ampire 3layer, the &C is a Key to some ritual of great
evil..." mean a paladin with devil blood that screams uber dar rite. Of course, the enemy thins it is an
item held by the 7entor and the &C has no clue that he is the 'item' they see. #he 7entor is (ust trying to
get the &C away from the area. About the voice in the head...maybe that is related to the rite, maybe
they are trying to bring bac a dead god and the &C is the ey and he is a talative sort. Now " am
thining about 3corpius in the mind of Crichton from 4arscape, basically use the ego from intelligent items
in the 57G, start wea and mae it become stronger as we get closer to the rite.O
5B &he 3% heads on his 0uest to the oracle and this is a journey of discovery where the 3% should find out
what he is, instrument of evil or good. &hough this may change shortly. Jere is where I would give the 3%
a few /3% allies and beef him up with P3 and magic items. Ma+e the 3% thin+ he is being followed, which
may lead him to ta+e a longer route to conceal his path.
<B &he oracle is really a friend of the Mentor who gives the 3% sanctuary and tells him the truth, what little
is +nown, which to be honest is mostly prophecies, weird results from divinations and the li+e. "ut on the
heels of the 3% come the enemy, which could be normal humans, half-fiends, or really scarry evil half-
celestials see+ing the end of the world. &his is the 3%s first loo+ as his enemy and should be a big battle,
but winnable by the 3% and his allies, though with some loses.
N"f you can build up a romantic attachment to the &C and have her illed by the enemy you can move him
toward evil. 9ust do better than Attac of the Clones with botched the whole transition to evil thing.
3eriously, if the &C has voices in the head and the enemy is pushing his buttons you have a great
situation for an evil &C. O
;B &he 3% still has 0uestions, at this point no one +nows AB what the ritual is supposed to do, "B who are
these enemies, and %B who was his father. &hey are all tied together and the 3% will have to tac+le them.
@ou could go a million ways with this.
I would ma+e the father mortal and the mother the devil and may a consort to one of the Dords of Jell. In
fact, the Mentor is really his father, but has +ept this secret for if it was learned he had been seduced by a
devil then he would be shamed from his place in the faith. Also maybe, the mother is evil, but why
shouldnEt she love her son, maybe she becomes an ally, well or more accurately, she appears to be an ally
until the advantageous moment.
As you see, I ta+e the obvious cliches and worn ideas and twist them just a little and then everything is
fresh and interesting. DonEt reinvent the wheel just paint it a different color and increase the air pressure.
!uilding an /rganization:
Solo campaigns are indeed great opportunities for a 3% to build something lasting, be it an organiCation or
a +ingdom. *hat follows are some thoughts and ideas about building organiCations in solo campaigns.
0$ 1i(ion
2rganiCations are founded on visions, not prophetic ones, but an idea that drives someone to ma+e
something that they hope will be lasting. &his is the beginning of the organiCation, maybe it is the 3%Es
idea, maybe the 3% inherits the idea from a /3%, regardless the 3% must embrace the vision. It is
important to ma+e sure both the 3% and DM understand this vision, confusion about the purpose of the
organiCation will cause difficulties.
"#$ 0I A cleric of the $od of the Dead wants to e#pand the worship of his deity to include not just the
dead, graves, tombs, and the li+e, but also wealth. &o accomplish this the cleric needs to form a society of
li+e-minded clerics to influence the hierarchy.
"#$ 2I A fighter has witnessed the destruction of the "one Jorde in several lands while adventuring and
realiCes that someone needs to stand against this undead threat. &o accomplish this he will need to build a
networ+ to organiCe resistance to the "one Jorde.
2$ 3oundation
&he foundation is important to organiCations, they need to have rules, financial support, bases, and a
membership. &his is the real challenge for a 3%, to secure the assets and resources needed to establish an
organiCation will be a campaign upon itself. If the 3% is building from an e#isting organiCation the tas+ is
easier, but more confined by the traditions of the e#isting organiCation. If the 3% is building from scratch
there is more freedom, but far fewer assets and more wor+.
"#$ 0I 2ur reformer cleric decides to join other societies within the %hurch of the Dead that are similarly
minded and begins trying to change those societies to match his vision. Je ma+es friends, but also
enemies from conservative elements, thus he decides to form his own society. &o be successful he must
recruit other powerful clerics, but if he does this he may lose control of his organiCation.
"#$ 2I &he fighter goes to +ingdoms still free from the "one Jorde and as+s for funds to fight this enemy,
he then goes to churches opposed to the "one Jorde, and then he recruits refugees from the lands
con0uered by the "one Jorde. *hile he has not been as successful as he hoped, he is laying the
groundwor+ for the organiCation. =nfortunately, the "one Jorde is signaling another invasion and his
patrons want his group to do something.
4$ 'eople
3eople are +ey, the 3% will need /3%s he can trust to handle his many tas+s and he will need to recruit
members. &he problem is that allies, patrons, and members may not all agree and the 3% will have to deal
with politics, perhaps far sooner than he e#pects. It is the managing of these /3%s that will define the
success of the organiCation.
"#$ 0I 2ur reformer cleric has a few allies in the faith, including a Jigh 3riest who desires to be the $rand
3riest for the +ingdom. More troublesome is conservative clerics trying to discredit him and the merchant
guilds who want divine favors from the church if they are to start patroniCing the %hurch of the Dead.
"#$ 2I &he fighter has a diverse group and while their motivations are un0uestioned there are some with
un0uestionable strategies. *hile the fighter tries to +eep his group united and has patrons applying
pressure for action against the "one Jorde, the Dich-(ing has ta+en notice of the group and dispatched
forces to crush it.
5$ Challenge(
@es, the whole process is a challenge, but the purpose of an organiCation is to face and overcome
challenges for which it was designed to address. &hese are adventures which showcase the organiCation
and are the whole point of the campaign.
"#$ 0I 2ur reformer cleric is trying to get the Jigh 3riest elected as $rand 3riest, but is also dealing with a
conservative sect which has actually mar+ed him for death. In addition there is a disease running through
the merchant class caused by another god who wants dominion over wealth. If this was not enough the
+ing is raising ta#es to strengthen defenses against the "one Jorde and the merchants want the cleric to
oppose this.
"#$ 2I &he fighter is desperately trying to +eep his group together against the many pressures against it,
worse of all the "one Jorde is not on the march to con0uer the rest of the world. &hings are blea+ and this
little organiCation may be the only hope to unite the free +ingdoms to win the war.
6$ Keep it 3re(h
Ginally, +eep it fresh, sometimes running an organiCation will get tedious. &o prevent this throw in
adventures that have nothing to do with the organiCation. Also donEt hesitate to do something
revolutionary.
"#$ 0I &he Society of the $olden %rypt is doing well, but needs funds so our cleric journeys off on a 0uest
to reclaim a lost tomb comple# and its wealth. *hile he is gone the Jigh 3riest is elected $rand 3riest and
incorporates wealth into the portfolio of the faith, the 0uestion now is what is the future of the Society of
the $olden %rypt.
"#$ 2I &he (nights of the Silver %ross are fighting the "one Jorde, when our fighter is called bac+ to his
home +ingdom to be +nighted and if he marries will inherit a dominion. *hen he returns the society
launches a bold attac+ that destroys the Dich-(ing for good, the 0uestion now is what is the future of the
(nights of the Silver %ross.
Gor some insight into designing organiCations go to ,57# :;< Create an Organi1ation that is in my
signature. &here are some nice e#amples, plenty of general tips, and a chec+list right before the final
scores.
&he /rganization Chec*li(t: Churche(
0$ 'urpo(eI A church has two purposes, secular and dogmatic. Gor the secular purpose as+ what the goal
of the church is in regards to its relation with the secular government and its congregation. Gor the
dogmatic purpose, as+ what the goal is for the souls of the members of its congregation.
2$ ,i(toryI *ho founded the church and whenM *hy was it foundedM *hat major events have shaped the
course of the churchM *hat is happening right now with the churchM
4$ ,ierarchyI *ho is in chargeM Jow is the leadership structuredM Jow does authority change handsM
*hat are the names of priests as well as any special titlesM Are there important orders within the church
that need to be mentionedM
5$ CongregationI *ho are the worshipersM Jow are they recruitedM Jow are they inductedM *hat must
the worshipers do to remain in the congregationM
6$ &eaching( and 'recept(I *hat are the special rules for the priests and worshipers of the churchM
*here do these rules come fromM Jow are the rules of the church enforcedM
7$ %eeting 'laceI Does the organiCation have a head0uarters, chapter houses, or other place for
meetingsM
8$ Re(ource(I *hat special resources, such as martial forces, does the church haveM Jow does the
church fund its operationsM
9$ %achination(I *hat are the secrets or plans of the organiCationM *hat is the current goal of the
organiCationM &his is also where you can discuss allies and enemies of the organiCation.
:$ ;'CI It is always a good idea to have a few /3%s for an church, ideally the leader and the /3% with
whom the 3%s are li+ely to interact with. =sually all you need is a level and class, alignment, and a few
sentences that answer the following 0uestionsI *hy is this /3% with the churchM *hat does this /3% do
for the churchM *hat is the current goals of the /3%M
0<$ Adventure ,oo*(I &his of course is the whole point of any organiCation, or church, and this should
be in the bac+ of your mind during the whole design period. A good adventure hoo+ should intersect the
goals of the church and the players to be effective, maybe in alliance, maybe in opposition, but they both
should be focused on the same object.
3ully Sel+ Reliant ame(:
Ra- 'o-er
In order to survive as a self-reliant %haracter, such Solo 3%s tend to be built and operate on a significantly
higher power scale than other 3%s. &his often includes increased ability scores, additional class features,
ma#imiCed Jit 3oints, or uni0ue powers. &he result of this is that the 3% is often able to handle encounters
that are only slightly wea+er than a group of the same level could handle. &his, of course, leads to the 3%
garnering treasure at a significantly greater rate than he or she would in an e0uivalent party.
&he first issue that arises in analyCing such an instance is game balance. &he 3% has significantly more
wealth and power than a 3% of his or her level normally should, creating an imbalance in the system.
My response to this issue is AbluntlyB so whatM &he only important %haracter in the entire world is
overpowered. &his is a good thing. $ame balance is irrelevant in this case as there is no other members of
the party to balance the 3% against. &he Lstar of the showL is larger than life and more capable than
anyone else around. &his is often the case in the classic fantasy novels and ma+es for a good model in this
case.
Another issue that arrises is providing a challenge for the 3% who is at such a high power level. &his may
be a significant challenge for an ine#perienced DM.
&he good news, however, is that as the 3%Es power grows, he or she can shift encounters to include
varying types of challenges. A group of creatures presents a significantly different challenge than a single
creature since the effects of flan+ing and Laid anotherL can really swing in the groupEs favor. In addition,
purely roleplaying encounters can, and should, be used to further the %haracter development without
regard to the 3%s combat capabilities.
Selling Stu++
Solo 3%s tend to accumulate a lot of stuff - a great deal of which is not directly useful to them. &he natural
tendency is for them to sell stuff off that they canEt use. In most normal group %ampaigns, such loot is
sold off at the recommended ;8Q of mar+et value as a matter of convenience and to +eep such events
from ta+ing up the totality of a session which generally ma+es the uninvolved parties rather bored and
frustrated.
2ne interesting aspect of selling items in a Solo %ampaign, is that the simple act of bartering and chatting
with an /3% merchant could ta+e up the totality of a game session without ta+ing away from the fun of
the game Aproviding the 3layer enjoys the interactionB. "ecause of this in-depth interaction, Solo 3%s tend
to get a much higher return on the items they sell to merchants - especially so, if the 3% is more socially
adept. &his has the net result of increasing the wealth of the 3%.
%a*ing Stu++
&his section mainly applies to spellcasters, but in some respects, it could apply to other %haracter types.
2ne of the things that prevents a significant amount of item creation in group campaigns is that the caster
has to spend the time to ma+e the items as well as spend the e#perience to do so. Meanwhile, the rest of
the group either ta+es significant downtime, or continues adventuring without the item ma+er. *hile this
may wor+ in some %ampaigns, it often is not a model that is either effective or practical as the Loutside
worldL continues to evolve while the 3%s are ta+ing their downtime.
In a Solo %ampaign, the entire %ampaign focuses around the single 3% and having that 3% ta+e the
downtime for item creation often isnEt a big deal, especially in more roleplaying-focused %ampaigns.
&herefore, the %haracter benefits by creating items for a fraction of their Lpurchase priceL as well as not
having to be concerned with falling behind the rest of the party in e#perience.
In the more mundane realm, I had a Solo Flven anger that I was DMing for spend months crafting a
Masterwor+ %omposite Dongbow with a 7; Strength rating to match her significant Strength. During this
time, she concentrated her time when not crafting on wor+ing with the leaders of the community in
strengthening their defenses and planning on pushing the steadily encroaching LinvadersL Aotherwise
+nown as settlersB bac+.
,andout( =;e-( & Rumor(>:
,hat follows is a handout from my group campaign. " do one of them every three months of game time,
one for each season. #hese are very broad and the party was given this handout when they were in a
ma(or city $Calagard%. 4or my solo campaigns " do the e*uivalent about every two.three wees of game
time and it is usually more focused on the &C and local events. 7y main solo campaign at the moment is
in 2ifts, so that handout is more stylistic, thus " decided to use the one from my group campaign. " posted
this as an e+ample to give depth to a campaign world with (ust a few sentences, many of the stories you
read are from continuing story arcs completely separated from the party. #his is also from a homebrew
campaign world so " apologi1e if a lot of it mae no sense.
Adventuring ;e-( ?Calagard@ %onth o+ Archon 009A
>&he Second Army of the Stardrop %rusade was ambushed at sea on their way to the Stardrop Islands by
a @uan-ti armada that destroyed most of the fleet transporting the Second Army. Dord 3atrian Suba0 the
commander of the Second %rusade and a famous "lue (night was lost in the battle. 3rince /eones of
Alphatia and the husband of the iver $oddess Alphatia had organiCed the Second Army to reinforce his
brother 3rince Sorian and the Girst Army currently defending the Stardrop Islands. &he destruction of the
Second Army is a serious blow to the defense of the Stardrop Islands and Jigh (ing Maevan II is
reportedly going to the %ouncil of 3rinces for permission to send aid to 3rince Sorian before the @uan-ti
ta+e over the Stardrop Islands.?
>&he (nights of the $lass Dragon under Sir Furid Debane has been accused by Rueen &ione of attempting
an assassination of )abaCon the Archmage of Ironfast in an attempt to overthrow the rule of Rueen &ione
of Maerithia. Rueen &ione has ordered the borders closed and has placed a ;8,888 gp reward for the head
of Sir Furid Debane. oyal %ommissioner Frias Jubas has not as of yet rescinded the charter of the
(nights of the $lass Dragon.?
>&he )ousting )esters have cleared out the &omb of evan in Anduran and have presented the ancient
$rim Stave of $rand Demarche evan /etherlord to their employer the Diocesan %ouncil of the *estern
(ingdom. It is believed that with this relic, Arch Demarche Devon $raveguide of Maerithia may be able to
win election as the $rand Demarche in two years when the position becomes open. Arch Demarche
$raveguide has been focused on ac0uiring relics and treasures for the dioceses of the *estern (ingdom,
which have greatly profited from his efforts over the last decade.?
>&he Sassals of the Drun+en "aron have uncovered an ancient elven ritual to create a companion spirit for
a group of people, in this case for adventuring companies. &he Sassals of the Drun+en "aron are sharing
the ritual with other adventuring companies and there is about a doCen that have now performed this
ritual. &he ritual channels the power of the group to create a spirit that can provide guidance, protection,
and magical augmentation to the group.? N%ompanion Spirits from DM$ II pg. ,-<-685O
>$anav Deonic, Jollis Mon, and @adira (ulona of the treacherous %ourageous %ompany were caught and
slain by the (nights of the Midnight Fclipse in a tremendous battle in Fgilstad in the (ingdom of &imbron.
&he %ourageous %ompany fell into a battle with the Dav-/air Merchant Jouse when it failed to pay them
for a contract, in the end the %ourageous %ompany destroyed three ships, two warehouses, and +illed
over fifty people belonging to Dav-/air. &hey escaped custody and have become brigands across /or-
(aeda for the last year until the (nights of the Midnight Fclipse finally caught up with them.?
>&he Ascendants and $lorious Destiny have merged their companies to form $lorious Ascent. &he
Ascendants are a magic heavy group while $lorious Destiny is mostly physical combatants, the new group
is more balanced and both groups hope will be more successful, though both groups have a good
reputation. &he two groups met during the oyal Adventurer!s &ournament and their leaderships develop
the plan for the union of the two groups.?
>&he Sons of Dady Almaan has slain the mercenary bandit $arlan Iron Jand and his band of cutthroats in
a battle in Anduran ending a major threat on the major trade roads through Anduran to %alagard. &he
3urple Dions have destroyed the Gist of &yranny which they stole from Archdu+e /evibaC of Jue!shalaK this
artifact has the power to suppress free thought in a community. Its destruction was a blow to Jue!shala
and has angered Fmperor $annon S. ?
Bittle 3ol* ;e-( ?Calagard@ Archon 008A
>Dord upi $lenwhistle, a "lue (night and paladin of Arvoreen, and Dady *isteria %learbroo+, a Dady-in-
*aiting to Rueen Aurine, have married at the oyal %astle in %alagard. Jigh Rueen Aurine and Jigh (ing
Maevan II were in attendance along with numerous dignitaries of Dorien and %alagard. Jigh (ing Maevan
II has rewarded Dord upi with dominion over the town of ose Stone in southern %alagard. Dord upi is
considered the greatest hero of the Dittle Gol+ and is famed for his slaying of the &hree Swamp Sisters and
the taming of the $host Jound of Tarae.?
>Girst Mayor )uliana &ealeaf has moved to restore %alagard!s faith in Dorien by eliminating traditions that
fostered the corruption scandals that led to the oyal %heese Affair under her predecessor!s rule. She has
instituted restrictions on gifts to officials and established familial limits in the granting of contracts. Girst
Mayor &ealeaf has also moved to reorganiCe the Dorien Militia, which was embarrassed when three
companies got lost in the "ard Moor loo+ing for a lost child, who was actually just visiting an aunt in Deer
Shire. &he liCardfol+ of "ardmoor feared a Dittle Gol+ invasion and prepared for war, Girst Mayor &ealeaf
personally went to DiCard (ing Ss!ro+ to apologiCe for the incident, which was settled with a few barrels of
spiced pic+led trout. egardless, Girst Mayor &ealeaf was not happy with the incident and has fired most of
the leaders of the Dorien Militia, but since this is well beyond her authority most are remaining in their
positions, though a few did leave and have been replaced.?
>&he Dittle (nights under Sir $ellen "riarwood have been hired by Girst Mayor &ealeaf to help her with
problems plaguing the Dittle Gol+. Sir $ellen "riarwood is considered the greatest hero of the Dittle Gol+ for
his solving of the iddle of the $oldern "roo+ %rossroads and the blinding of the $reen Dragon SeCbargul,
who +illed himself a few years latter when he fly into a mountain. &he Dittle (nights did very well in the
oyal Adventurer!s &ournament getting third place in two events and finishing in the top ten in all of the
events, there was much rejoicing in Dorien.?
>Girst 3riest "rudi of Arvoreen has announced a tournament to reward the Shield of Arvoreen to the most
dedicated and s+illed member of the faith. &he invitation has been e#tended to followers of Mithras, who is
a manifestation of Arvoreen.?
>Girst 3riestess &abana of "randoberis wishes to sponsor three Dittle Gol+ only adventuring companies and
is interviewing people for the three companies. emembering her days as an adventurer as well as a
dream she recently had, she felt the need for Dorien to field more than just the Dittle (nights as heroes to
the Dittle Gol+.?
>&here are reports that the spirit of Mayor *illa *indyhill who died last year is still lingering around the
town of Sunnybroo+. It is said that people have seen here whistling away her song Sunnybroo+ and
smiling at young children. Jundreds have been floc+ing to Sunnybroo+ to get a glimpse of the late Mayor
*illa *indyhill. &here is still a debate if she is a ghost or a town spirit and Sunnybroo+ has as+ed Girst
3riestess Sabani of @ondalla to come and determine the matter.?
>&he famed archer (elpi $oldfields, the giant-slayer DaCi Marigold, and the wiCard Minder osebloom have
survived the ambush of the Second Army and arrived in the Stardrop Islands with a hundred other Dittle
Gol+ who traveled on the Gloating "arrel. Sadly the legendary Apple "luewillow died in the ambush. Apple
"luewillow reportedly sun+ three @uan-ti ships before she went down as well, giving the Gloating "arrel
time to escape. *hile the ambush devastated the Second Army, a message from Minder osebloom says
that the @uan-ti have also lost a huge part of their fleet in the battle.?
%agic ;e-( ?Calagard@ Archon 008A
>Mystic (avara Morningstar of the %hurch of Miridum has as+ed all faithful to refuse to provide magic to
the states of the *estern (ingdom until Jigh oyal Magician "anthera the $rey ceases the registration
and ta#ation of arcane magic practitioners. &here is no registration for divine magic practitioners and the
%hurch of Archon has recently begun policing the new laws for the *estern (ingdom, and has already
collected thousands of mar+s in fines. &he new restrictive policies have caused concern across the *estern
(ingdom, especially in Maerithia and 3ailanus the two most magically reliant states.?
>Rueen &ione has created a new spell, which has become +nown as the 3lague Jerald. &he spell creates a
compulsion that causes those to hear the enchanted message to travel to find a crowd of people to deliver
the message. &hose in the crowd will also be compelled to carry forth the message. &he message will be
carried across /or-(aeda, and has been used by Rueen &ione several times, including recently to accuse
Sir Furid Debane and the (nights of the $lass Dragon for crimes against Maerithia.?
>3rince Damien SII of 3ailanus has ordered construction begun on a flying ship modeled on elven s+y
ships. &his fantastic project is costing a fortune and is employing doCens of wiCards and hundreds of
wor+ers. &here is an ancient law among the elves that no non-elves may have s+y ships it remains to be
seen if the elves will enforce their law against 3ailanus. umors are that Jue!shala not to be outdone by
3ailanus has launched their own s+y ship project. S+y ships could provide faster and safer transportation
of goods across /or-(aeda.?
>eports are that a group of adventurers slew two dragons under the control of Jue!shala along its
southern border with (ouen. &his was a blow against Jue!shala!s plans to build a great horde of dragons
under its commands as several dragons have abandoned Jue!shala as its promises of protection are not
that potent. Still the Imperial %ircle of the Arcane has made it clear that it will have two hundred true
dragons in service with Jue!shala within five yearsK this will be the largest force of true dragons in service
to a state outside of the Flven )ewels. &his does not include the estimated five hundred wyvern riders
employed by Jue!shala. *ith the collapse of the Fmpire of Sisantia many fear that Jue!shala is preparing
for e#pansion as it has no real rivals along its borders.?
>&ophanes Frashire (aedor the %hosen of Miridum has created a new spell +nown as Dife Gire, which
creates a fire of positive energy that can linger li+e a wild fire in an area. Je recently used it to great
effect against ghouls plaguing the ot Swamps in Dalbathon. Je also reportedly recently nailed the lich
"avdre+ the Miserable to the Moon, though this is li+ely e#aggeration. Jis new apprentice and lover Dady
owena Freolan recently slew $romon Se#al a member of the Imperial %ircle of the Arcane in (ithril in a
very public duel for his insulting of her masterK she reportedly cast a spell which rendered the member of
the Imperial %ircle from properly chanting his spells due to a massively swollen tongue. She then
proceeded to blast him with various offensive magic.?
>In Fsilaan all fire magic has ceased to function, it is un+nown the meaning of this though many believe it
is a sign from the *ater Dragon (ing that she will soon return to life. /o fire-based spell functions in the
land of Fsilaan on the Island of &hemele. &he 3antheon of *aters is in Fsilaan and is the largest temple to
the *D( +nown to still e#ist. &he complete cessation of fire magic is truly a miraculous event and the
people of Fsilaan have considered it a great portent. /eighboring &hemele a land dominated with fire
magic is said to fear that this is instead a new weapon of Fsilaan that will be used to con0uer its neighbor.
&here have been a few events li+e this before, but none within many centuries.?
,oly ;e-( ?Calagard@ Aeolan 008A
>3ontiff Frasmus IP, who was struc+ blind by his god, has renounced "alidan and declared himself the new
"lind $od of (nowledge in an act of apparent madness. &he %hurch of "alidan has tried to remove
Frasmus IP from the Jalls of (nowledge in Maerithia, but somehow the blind and reportedly powerless
Frasmus IP has used magic to seal the Jalls of (nowledge. &he clerics of the faith have been driven from
the grounds and have found no way to enter the temple, there is great fear for the largest and most
complete library in /or-(aeda. &he %hurch of "alidan is without a leader and many congregations are
establishing their own independence from Frasmus the Mad.?
>&he %hurch of Dendys has announced that the gods of %ardyCan, Dalorien, and Pimargon are now vassals
of Dendys and their faiths are being integrated into the %hurch of the Dead. %ardyCan is the new $od of
/ecromancy, Dalorien is the new $od of *ealth, and Pimargon is the new $od of Messengers. %ardyCan is
poised to be recogniCed in the *estern (ingdom, which could be the end of the faiths of 2rcus and
&hasmudyn. /one of these gods was that significant or even +nown before the announcement, Dalorien
was the $od of Sieges and Pimargon was a mortal given divinity to watch over doors. $rand Demarche
Soulguide is due to retire in 5 years and has made this bold realignment due to a vision from Dendys
according to reports.?
>&he %hurch of Suran has been roc+ed by a scandal as it has been discovered that the %hurch of Suran
uses summoned iron and stone for many of its projects. &he %hurch of Suran has admitted to this and
says that summoned iron and stone is better than that mined and they have the spells from their $od to
provide them with the best materials. &he Merchant!s %ongress and the various Mining $uilds and the
Dwarven (ingdoms have long argued that iron and stone well-mined is superior and safer than such
materials conjured by magic.?
>Jigh Druid Ajarion of the %ircle of the "lac+ Glame has ambushed and +illed the ancient $rand Druid
/elva and has called for all druids to rally in favor of the Many aces against the humans. &here is
numerous schisms among the druids because of this event, in fact the *estern (ingdom has allowed the
%ircle of the "lac+ Glame within its borders and will arrest any who pledge allegiance to this group.?
>Aiwe the Jealer has renounced (ing )ared III for his con0uest of Fridara and other neighboring states
and has been thrown into the oyal Dungeons of Agisdon. "efore this Aiwe was praised by (ing )ared III
for her wor+ in Fridara and provided her protection in those lands he con0uered, he was using her for
publicity and to show his compassion to those he con0uered. Aiwe gained a huge following in Fridara and
has become a spiritual leader in the name of the *ater Dragon (ing, but when she challenged (ing )ared
III she was captured and imprisoned.?
>&he faiths of %ybele and Silvestira have merged their faiths into the Gaith of the Moon 1 Stars and are
converting their temples to worship of both deities. &his move has strengthened both faiths across /or-
(aeda against a growing challenge by Aurora, Miridum, and others. &hese are two old faiths and have long
been need of a revival. &here are also rumors that they are also merging their holy boo+s, with the new
boo+ providing even greater insight into the mysteries of the world.?
>&he $rand Sentinel of Mithras is mobiliCing forces for the Stardrop %rusade to stop the @uan-ti before
they reach /or-(aeda. &he current $rand Sentinel has organiCed more crusades than the past three $rand
Sentinels combined and there is concerns she is stretching the faith too much and in too many directions.?
C/;S".C";C"S:
KJW already handled this admirably, but I will add something. Girstly, IEve mentioned before that I donEt
use 3% death. Fach campaign I build relies heavily upon a premise revolving around the main character,
just as 2eturn of the 9edi relies heavily on Du+e S+ywal+er. 2eturn of the 9edi could still be an entertaining
story if Du+e died at the hands of )abba the Jut, but a lot of potential would have been lost. In short, I
consider +illing off the solo 3% a waste of time. &herefore, to answer your secondary 0uestionK I create
new characters at level ,. Still, this relies on trust and reciprocity between the DM and player, and I realiCe
that not all campaigns wor+ this way.
%onse0uences were touched upon by KJW. &his is what I use most fre0uently. ather than end the
campaign, a character might be imprisoned, forced into servitude, thrown into a chasm with a narrow
survival, or, as KJW also mentioned, the afterlife might not be the end of the campaign.
Among others, IEm playing in a solo campaign where the DM +illed me off after about an hour of playing,
catching me by complete surprise. &he campaign then entered the true stageK an afterlife theme where
my character was sent to a city where the souls of people who died with grief were brought. In this place,
those with the worst fates have the most power, though Athan+fullyB few remember their lives before
death. My character remembers, but suffered a fairly light fate in comparison to, for instance, istin, the
oldest of the champions that defend the city Aand a very admirable woman.B Since arriving, I have risen to
ta+e up the vacant position of 3ossessorK a person who is sent to inhabit the bodies of the living in order
to try to change the outcome of their last moments in life, preventing crises that would swell the ran+s of
the city.
ItEs not always easy to come up with a reasoning for allowing a character to survive in the same manner
that a cartoon villain +eeps being let off the hoo+. Still, with enough ingenuity, 0uic+ thin+ing, and some
foresight, you can usually come up with a good e#planation. A person with power and +nowledge is
seldom useful dead to a smart villain.
Gear of death is a staple of LclassicL D1D, but there are other things to fearK conse0uences, as mentioned.
If the 3% is imprisoned or falls down a chasm, I would consider separating her from her e0uipment in the
meanwhile. $ive it to someone she hates, and ma+e her earn it. &his is a conse0uence that most players
would fear. 3hysically maiming someone in some fashion Ablindness, loss of an arm, for e#ampleB can lead
to a new se0uence of the campaign, where the 3% struggles to compensate for her handicap, and
ultimately con0uers it4is alleviated of it. &he best conse0uences, in my opinion, are the ones that lead to
new adventure arcs.
*hen the 3% fails to defeat the general of the besieging army and turn the tides of the battle, the whole
darn city she was trying to protect might very well be looted. Ma+e it clear that her failure meant that this
catastrophe was not averted. If the 3% is at all engaged in the plot, this should get her attention.
&he bottom line is, my suggestion is to find ways to give conse0uences for failure that enhance the fun of
the campaign rather than ending it. Death is fine now and then, especially if there are people in this world
who care enough about the 3% and have enough money to resurrect her. AMy campaigns are e#tremely
light on resurrection aside from necromancy.B &his idea comes to mindI
5uring Kerialda's early adventures, she happened to rescue a young priest of the death god from a rather
insistent succubus while thwarting a cultist attac on the ancient temple in Ceremian 4alls. 7uch later,
Kerialda died fighting the King's Champion of 6ourne, and the tides of darness descended upon her home
nation. 3truc with admiration for his savior, the priest, !raldon, fought on against the invaders. #hrough
great tribulations over the course of four years, he sought and found the means to resurrect Kerialda
through reincarnation, and she returned to life in a different body=incidentally, that of the King's
Champion's sister.
In game terms, the 3% dies, as they are wont to do, and you tell the player that you need some time to
prepare before running the ne#t session. *hen the campaign continues, you tell the 3% that she wa+es up
in a strange body, feeling as though no time had passed at all, even though years have gone by and the
face of the nation has been thoroughly rearranged. A&his assumes an afterlife without traditional
sentience.B Jer old nemesis survives, and the young priest she barely remembers has risen to nearly rival
her power.
DonEt plan for these things. *hen something happens, adjourn, and consider this 0uestionI ,hat would
be the coolest thing that could happen>
&o summariCe, I should clarify something. If the 3% does something incredibly dumb, I wonEt hesitate the
+ill her dead. Again, avoiding 3% mortality re0uires trust and reciprocity between DM and player Aand, to
be honest, house ruling of instant death spells.B (eeping the campaign going is a cooperative effort.
DMing Aand roleplayingB is a real challenge to do right, I consider myself pretty good at it due to the
response of my players over the years, but I was horrid when I started out. &he tric+ is two fold, playing
under a few good DMs, which I did in college, and to +eep tin+ering with your game.
3laying with a good DM can be a great e#perience, it can show you new tric+s and push you to do better.
My group had a player a few years ago who started his own campaign and he did pretty good and it was a
competition between us to ma+e our respective campaigns better. It reminded me of college over a
decade ago, when we had < DMs each running games and trying to show up one another, it was a great
e#perience to really learn how to DM. Most of my most successful DM tric+s I stole at that time.
&hese boards are a great way to tin+er with your game and +eep pushing it to improve. If you learn
something from every campaign you can get pretty good, I have run over ;87 campaigns, though the
vast majority were solo campaigns, and at this point I can run a good adventure on auto-pilot. @et, if I
want to run a great adventure I need to wor+ hard and really push myself, which means getting new ideas
and trying new things. &he neat thing is that if you raise your game a level then your players will too and
it can be awesome, put it is a lot of wor+.
Spea+ing of maintaining the fear of danger with the 3%, I as+ed my wife and she said that all I have to do
is hit her in the gut once every few campaigns and it lingers. A few campaigns bac+ AI thin+ I mentioned
this campaignB she player a cleric of my god of the dead, Demarche %amina $ravescribe. She had a mute
companion who had the gift of prophect, her name was Merise and she really was a ward of the cleric. I
played the /3% well with gestures and writing and she was both sarcastic and vulnerable at the same time
and the 3% adored her as a ward and assistant.
3rophets in my campaign are messengers of the gods and the god who sponsored Merise had a divine
enemy, suffice to say the enemy sent an assassin who +illed and decapitated Merise. &he 3% discovers this
in the morning when she goes to see why she hadnEt wo+e up yet. My god of the dead does not approve
resurrections and this was a crisis of faith as Demarche %amina considered ways to bring bac+ Merise, in
truth the 3% and player were thrown by this brutal death. *e ran a few adventures just dealing with the
death, eventually Demarche %amina buried Merise and left her soul in the afterlife having resolved her
conflict of faith. My wife says that this one incident has +ept her very nervous in the three campaigns that
have followed.
If someone could please answer this 0uestion to me. I have a problem. I canEt let my 3% die, I always end
up fudging the rolls so he doesnEt, I do that because if he dies it would be a &3( , and besides, I passed
some days creating this character with my friend .
&he problem is that, if the player doesnEt feel there is danger he will get bored, and so would I. Is there
any solution to this, and in what level will you create the new character.
Depends upon the player and the character but here are some suggestions....
U Kill the 'CI Seriously, I have +illed 3%s in solo campaigns. In some cases there is someone who can
rescue the 3% and have then raised, in others the solo 3% is dead and has to draw up a new character. &he
first time you +ill a 3% in a solo campaign, that player will always ta+e the ris+ seriously.
U A+terli+e AdventureI &he 3% dies and now you have a 3lanescape %ampaign, now being a petitioner
isnEt much of an adventure, nor is being a lesser outsider, but with a little wor+ this could be a cool
e#periment. 2r you can have the 3% sent bac+ by an angel or deity to complete some tas+.
U Kill a ;'CI Sometimes +illing a friend or companion of the 3% will send the message, especially when it
is the 3%Es ris+ ta+ing that leads to the death. &his only wor+s if the 3% cares about /3%s, which is a solo
campaign is li+ely a given. Do not overdo this or the 3% will not get close to /3%s, but it is a great
mechanism for roleplaying.
U %aim the 'CI "y this I mean you injure the 3%, not necessarily with a bodily injury, maybe he loses a
magic weapon or mount, but if the 3% is ta+ing unnecessary ris+s there should be conse0uences.
U Con(eDuence(I &he end result is conse0uences, yes, solo 3%s are the center of the campaign and you
need to give them some rope, but the conse0uences still need to be there. "ecause the 3% is the focus
their actions can be disastrous and the conse0uences should reflect this.
Ginally, maybe your player loves ta+ing ris+s there is nothing wrong with this, it is only a problem when
the player starts metagaming that since he +nows he canEt die he can do anything. &his can cause
boredom, but it also undermines the realism.
Romantic "ntanglement(
My wife is much the same, she loves the roleplaying and adventure, but it is often the romantic
entanglements that ma+e or brea+ a good solo campaign. *hat follows are some 0uestions and
suggestions for designing a good object of affection for the Solo 3%.
De(igning the Romantic Intere(t
,B ,hat are the strengths> &he romantic interest needs to be a compelling character, he should be
confident, humorous Athough it may be sarcasmB, and should have a presence to match that of the Solo
3%. emember the Solo 3% is often a near legendary character of great ability, connections, and ambition,
so her romantic interest must be impressive to catch their attention.
6B ,hat are the flaws> &he romantic interest M=S& have flaws. &his could be a lac+ of ambition, too
dedicated to their wor+, or some other element of their personality that is a genuine shortcoming. Glaws
are what ma+e great /3%s and when they can overcome these flaws they can become legends.
5B ,hat does he do> &he romantic interest should have a job or responsibility, perhaps they handle this
responsibility poorly, but they need something to help the Solo 3% and DM figure out his connection and
relationship with the Solo 3%.
<B ,hy is he interested in the 3olo &C> &his is a 0uestion the DM must as+. If it is beauty or other shallow
reasons then the relationship may 0uic+ly hit rough waters when the ambitions of the couple come into
conflict, if the romantic interest sees deeper then this will help the relationship in troubled times.
;B "s there a future in the relationship> Di+e in real life it may ta+e some time for the Solo 3% to find the
right person, the DM may well go through a few tragically flawed romantic interests, before the soul mate
is found. Additionally, they may be the perfect couple, but one has an arranged marriage or some other
obligation that may spell doom to the relationship. A good happy ending ta+es a lot of wor+.
&he Key !alance
As Ruar+stomper states, the difficult balance is between +eeping the Solo 3% in the spotlight and ma+ing
the romantic interest heroic. If a romantic interest becomes too subservient or less compelling then the
relationship with collapse, whereas if the romantic interest steals the spotlight then the relationship can
become patroniCing. &he best trac+ is to give them related but separate careers, where both can shine and
be as heroic as possible. Gor e#ample, the Solo 3% is an adventurer and the romantic interest is a
respected court magician, yes they can help one another, but they have separate responsibilities. &hey
both may serve the +ing and this is something that may unite them, but they wor+ separately. &hey need
to be separated physically and professionally to +eep the relationship thriving during the campaign. *hen
the Solo 3% and romantic interest are close together, li+e both are members of a party of adventurers then
things become more complicated.
D% &ool: 3riend( & 3amily
Sometimes the best way to sell a romantic interest is to have others sing his praises, this could be his
friends, family members, or even underlings. &hese conversations will also help evolve the romantic
interest. *hen a soldier under his command states Lthe $eneral is always with us in the field and he is
among the ran+s in battle, he is the best officer I have ever served with,L the Solo 3% now +nows the
$eneral is a loved and good leader and the DM +nows that the $eneral is very dedicated to his duties,
which could become a flaw in their relationship.
3reviously, KJW and Illion the Red have spo+en admirably on the subject of /3%s, but since some
0uestions on this topic have arisen Aand I see them 0uite often in other threadsB, I thin+ it can be useful
to tal+ about it some more.
;'C(@ D%'C(@ and Romance
Most people who have participated in a D1D campaign, and especially those who did so as teenagers, will
have run into the concept of the DM3% ADungeon Master 3layer %haracter--in itself an o#ymoronB. &he gist
of the concept is that the DM3% is an /3% that the DM is placing in the spotlight at the e+pense of the
players. 2ne classic e#ample of such a character is when the DM bases a campaign around accompanying
an epic fighter4sorcerer Adrow half-dragon, probablyB that is on a path bound for godhood.
Gew DMs want to ma+e a DM3%, but awareness on this matter has caused worry about doing it. ItEs rare to
go a wee+ without seeing a new post on these boards detailing some frustrated playerEs struggles with a
DM3%. &he 0ualities of a DM3% are inherent in the Lbig brotherL syndrome, in which another person
overshadows you utterly. As a side note, in real life, my elder brother and I have been born with
completely different sets of talents, and it has led me to love and admire my brother without ever feeling
inade0uate as the result of his success. I believe that this is +ey to defusing a potential DM3% situation.
0> /ver(hado-ing
My best friend once played in a campaign within which the basis of his character was that he was the only
+nown survivor of a race of, essentially, large, muscular humans 0uite s+illed at beating things. &hough I
do not specifically remember the name of the race, it went something li+e LGerengar.L Jis characterEs
name was Ger.
During his early adventures, Ger runs across another person who turns out to be another member of his
race. &his person is just li+e him, e#cept heEs stronger, bigger, and more mysterious. Jis name is Fngar.
&rue story.
&he point is that in order to be overshadowed, you have to first stand in someoneEs shadow. In a solo
campaign, this means that if the 3% is a wiCard, itEs AgenerallyB not a good idea to consistently put a
higher level wiCard /3% in the party. If you do, ma+e sure the 3% has s+ills that the higher level character
lac+s. &his also means that itEs not necessarily a bad idea to put a ,6th level rogue in a party where the
3% is a ,8th level fighter. In this e#ample, the fighter still has more "A" than the rogue Aand other
benefits.B
2> Re(pon(i)ility & Involvement
&his has been stated before, but itEs part of the e0uation. In a solo campaign, the 3% should generally be
the leader. &his doesnEt mean that thereEs no one out there with more authority than the 3%K it just means
that such people should stay away from the adventuring party. In -ye of the /eholder "", (helben
"lac+staff sent the party on a 0uest to e#plore, uh, something. A temple, I thin+. Anyway, the important
thing is that he did not come with the party. If youEd been running around in the dungeon with a 68th level
wiCard babysitting you, itEd have become boring 0uite rapidly.
Similarly, if you go before the +ing, and you have an /3% spea+ing to the +ing, leaving the 3% to listen and
react at best, that is a bad thing, because it lowers involvement and ma+es the player feel as though his
character doesnEt matter. In a solo campaign, this is especially bad. Some DMs with good intentions have
created an interesting story in which the scenes are scripted out, and the 3% doesnEt factor in too muchK
li+e a cut scene in a computer 3$. If, at any time, you have plans for an /3% to ta+e the spotlight during
a scene in which the 3% is present, you have to as+ yourself how this will add to the playerEs enjoyment. It
might, but howM AMore on this later...B
4> In+ormation & Deci(ion(
Another devastating type of DM3% is the &all Dar+ Stranger. In this case, the mysterious /3% might not be
more powerful than or in any other way overshadow the 3%, but he or she holds the +ey to the campaign.
Such characters are most often put into a campaign in order to provide vital information and ensure that
the 3%AsB ma+e the Lright decisions.L In a solo campaign, this can cause the player to become disillusioned
with his role in the story.
If you are consistently using ambiguous /3%s who are clearly withholding information on loose grounds
AL@ouEre not ready yet, grasshopper...LB, as+ yourself whether this is necessary. In many cases, s+ill or
ability chec+s, or satisfying investigations, can allow the 3% to reach the correct conclusions on his own. In
this manner, you can motivate and shape the LcorrectL decision rather than create a character that insists
upon it. "esides, itEs much more fun to investigate and find the hidden information than to have it handed
to you. &his is especially true when you can use the information to trump some arrogant people.
If youEre not ma+ing any of these three mista+es, donEt worry about DM3%s. A solo campaign doesnEt
necessitate /3%s that are wea+ in spirit or powersK the only thing that matters is that you +eep the
spotlight on the 3%.
2n the topic of romance, which as ()* mentioned earlier in the thread Lhas the potential to ma+e or
brea+ a solo campaignL Aagree ,88QB, /3% construction becomes a little tric+ier. Some e#cellent advice
has already been given on how to avoid the pitfalls. I will add that you shouldnEt be afraid to ma+e the
potential partner an awesome character. F0uals ma+e by far the best lovers, and a bit of friendly Aor
bitterHB rivalry can easily blossom into a satisfying romance. )ust remember where the 3%Es talents lie, and
+eep your player in the spotlight. ItEs alright to switch the spotlight for a short periods of time in order to
let an /3% show off, but only if it adds to the enjoyment of the player. *atching a romantic interest flip
out and win a duel with a +night to save herself from an arranged marriage can be 0uite satisfying as the
solo 3% Aspea+ing from e#perience.B
$enerally spea+ing, for a romantic interest in D1D, IEd ma+e her e0ual level Abut it depends on the
character conceptB, typically of another class than the 3% Aor an Fnchanter to the 3%Es Illusionist, or a
finesse fighter to the 3%Es sundering power attac+er, etcB. IEll have her offer her opinions, but let the 3%
ma+e most of the decisions. I have one caveatI Gor all /3%s, I have 0uir+s, flaws, traits, and behaviors
that ma+e them react strongly to various situations. &here are times when IEll have an /3% strongly
disagree with the 3%, or insist upon another course of action. Since the player is always in control of at
least the 3%, the occasional disagreement adds spice to the party dynamics. In the case of a romance
interest that isnEt a party member Awhich can be 0uite interesting, but I just love cooperative heroics too
much to do this oftenB, she doesnEt need to have class levels at all, but she needs to be an e0ual in some
fashion. Gor instance, a 0ueen or a high priestess Awithout cleric levelsB is the e0ual of a ,;th level fighter,
even if she canEt stand up to him in a fight.
*ith this in mind, donEt worry about DM3%s.
;'C CR"A&I/;
" do not use gestalt and " use N&Cs who adventure with the &C. &he tric+ with solo campaigns is to find
what style wor+s for your, our initial advice was somewhat negative toward using /3%s, this was because
handling party /3%s can be tric+y for many DMs. Some ma+e the /3%s too powerful that they overshadow
the 3% and others ma+e the /3%s too shallow to really contribute to the campaign. I +ind of regret ta+ing
an anti-party /3% position in our original posts, it is not how I do things. &hat though is the tric+ of
ma+ing something generic enough to be useful to as many people as possible. &here are many posts after
our initial EpublicationE that deal with using /3%s, after the blac+out I may do a inde# to all these various
posts, if I am so motivated.
3ome gamers prefer the group e+perience from solo campaigns than group campaigns. &his sounds weird,
but it is true. My wife ADa+iniB was really turned off on group campaigns and roleplaying when we started
dating, there was just not a mesh between my group and her. Fventually, I tal+ed her into trying a solo
campaign...it wor+ed li+e magic, she didnEt have to deal with the other idiot players and could have allies
A/3%sB who are actually reliable. I have seen the same thing with other players I have run in solo
campaigns, they love being in charge and having /3%s who loo+ to them for leadership. If you can run
/3%s well you can create a party environment that players will positively respond to. /ow that said, solo
campaigns can set a high standard for party dynamics, only with my current online group, which is about
as nice and team orientated group you can imagine, has she slid bac+ into traditional group campaigns.
!ere is some advice on creating a N&C party for the &C<
,B Girst, only introduce one /3% Amaybe twoB to begin with, this is usually the best friendAsB of the 3%.
&his is how I do things, I set up the campaign with the 3% having someone who either is a friend or will be
a friend to the 3%. &a+e some time for these /3%s to bond and find a good dynamic.
6B &his /3% should compliment the 3%. If your 3% is a spellcaster then the /3% should be a warrior-type,
they should not overlap in abilities. @es, the /3% should not surpass the 3%, but the /3% should be
effective and reliable. If the 3% wiCard and /3% fighter are ambushed by a doCen bandits, the /3% fighter
should be able to handle at least < of the bandits. =nli+e /3%s with parties in group campaigns, which
should be clearly secondary, in solo campaigns the /3%s need to sometimes step up just li+e a 3% would in
a group campaign. emember the 3% is the true hero of the story.
5B &he /3% because of the situation is deferential to the 3%. &here are great e#ample from literature,
movies, and television. Sam from D2&, Pander and *illow Abefore she got epic levelB from "uffy,
%hewbacca, %-532, and 6-D6 from Star *ars, most of the crew in the various Star &re+ incantations, and
so forth and so on. &hese are all support /3%s, who are fully developed, helpful, and yet deferential to the
EstarsE which represents the 3%s.
<B $ive the 3% the power to build her party, donEt force /3%s on her Abesides , or 6 in the beginningB, just
introduce /3%s or opportunites for the 3% to gain new /3%s. If the 3% ma+es the decision to hire a /3%
then the bond will be many times stronger than if you force another /3% on the 3%.
!ere is some advice on setting up a solo campaign<
,B @our strategy is great for getting your player to create a bac+ground, I would suggest though that you
let her ree#amine her bac+ground after 6 or 5 sessions. &his is a new tric+ I have been using and it wor+s
great, usually the playerEs vision of her character evolves after she begins roleplaying her, and this allows
the bac+ground to truly match the character.
6B &a+e it easy on mechanics, I have had entire sessions where maybe we roll a few s+ill chec+s and that
is it for the entire session. Slowly introduce the mechanics and donEt overwhelm your player, especially
when they are starting out. In time your player will understand the mechanics, but really it isnEt till you
have to DM that you are forced to master any mechanics.
Jope that helps, if not I will try again.
;'C Roleplaying )y the D%
&he s+ill of /3% oleplaying is one of the +eys to running a successful solo campaign. %ertainly, this is an
important part of any D1D campaign, but when there is only one 3% the demands upon the DM are
significantly greater. &here are three techni0ues that can be very useful in helping handle /3% oleplaying
for solo campaignsI Dearn to &al+ to @ourself, Develop Meaningful /3% elationships, and Stop and Smell
the oses.
Bearn to &al* to Eour(el+
&here is only one 3% and if all conversations are 3% to /3% then things will become very stilted and
unnatural, so the DM must learn to spea+ with herself. &his will feel very aw+ward at first, but with a little
practice it can be a very effective techni0ue. &o be able to do this a DM must ,B +now the personality of
the /3%s, 6B understand the relationship between the /3%s as well as their relationships to the 3%, and 5B
understand the conte#t of the conversation. *ith practice these steps can be internaliCed, but starting out
it is a good idea to have these elements written down in front of her as reminders. *hat follows is a
classic e#ample of a situation where the DM must tal+ to herself, the council meeting.
Running a Council %eeting
Sometimes the 3% must ta+e part in the classic council meeting, where a group of individuals gathers to
discuss in order to ma+e an important decision. &hese are the hardest /3% dialogues to successfully pull
off because often the DM will be handling an insane number of /3%s. *hile difficult, the council meeting
can be a useful device for analyCing a comple# campaign and to provide a course of action when the 3% is
faltering. %ouncil meetings can range from large conferences from numerous factions addressing
something of cosmic importance to a local lord calling in his advisors to discuss a proposal to raise the poll
ta# to an adventuring company discussing how to sac+ a dungeon. Jere are some useful tipsI
,B Someone is in %hargeI Someone needs to be running the council meeting, it is best when the 3% is in
charge, but often it will be a /3%. If a /3% is in charge, the 3% should have a relationship with the /3%
that allows the 3% to spea+ freely. If a decision needs to be made then there should be a mechanism for
ma+ing a decision, maybe a vote, maybe the person in charge just ma+es a decision.
6B Issues should be %learI &here is no reason for the DM to muddle the situation for the 3% and should
ma+e sure the issues and arguments are as clear as possible. %ertainly, people may be lying, but things
should be +ept focused.
5B Most 3articipants are SilentI As in real life, not everyone is a tal+erK even when dealing with a large
group of /3%s it is very li+ely that most of the /3%s will merely watch and listen. As DM it is important to
focus on the +ey /3%s, try to pic+ the e#treme views to highlight the differences of opinion.
<B Arguments are $oodI Arguments are great drama and +eeps things interesting, it may be difficult but if
the DM can run a realistic argument between two /3%s this will greatly increase the realism and
entertainment value of a council meeting. Also arguments are a good way to get to the heart of an issue
by highlighting major differences of opinion.
;B DiversionsI Sometimes diversions are good, maybe the participants ta+e a brea+ and an opportunity for
less intense roleplaying occurs, maybe the meeting is attac+ed, the DM should have a few ideas on things
to spice things up if the meeting gets bogged down.
:B Fnd the MeetingI At some point the meeting should be ended, if the 3% is in charge then it is up to the
3% to do this, otherwise it falls to the /3% in charge. A decision should be made, which may be a decision
for the 3% to go out and get more information, but a council meeting should give the 3% some immediate
focus to her efforts.
Develop %eaning+ul ;'C Relation(hip(
&here are many other sources for ideas of running effective /3%s, but in a solo campaign the +ey is not
just interesting personalities but that there are meaningful /3% relationships. =nderstanding these
relationships will help the DM run /3% to /3% and /3% to 3% conversations, which, indeed, are a necessity
for a successful solo campaign. &here are four primary relationships, there are others, but these four
define most relationships the 3% will have with /3%s. It is important to note that many /3%s may have
multiple relationships with the 3%.
3riendF3riend
In a group campaign the relationship between 3%s is typically that of friends, and few 3%s have genuine
/3% friends outside of the adventuring party. In a solo campaign all of the 3%!s friends will be /3%s and
they must be played as such for this relationship to e#ist. &here really is not a need to lay out the
relationship of friendsK it is usually based on trust, common interests, and a relative sense of e0uality.
%entorFStudent
It is often useful to give the 3% a mentor at the beginning of solo campaigns to give the 3% focus and
someone for them to model their behavior on. Some 3%s need e#tra help to get into character and find
their place in a solo campaign others li+e to have a mentor because they enjoy the roleplaying of being a
student and learning in a fantasy setting. &he reverse is also a great relationship when the 3% becomes
the mentor to a /3%, there is nothing li+e an apprentice, ward, or s0uire to provide a fun foil to a 3%.
Jere are some guidelines for this relationshipI
,B Mentors 3ushI If you give the 3% a mentor, remember that a good mentor will push her student, so the
mentor will li+ely give the 3% considerable autonomy to either succeed or fail. (eep a mentor in the
bac+ground, and only available for assistance if necessary.
6B Mentors 3rotectI Fven with autonomy, a 3% will have some protection from a mentor, which is 0uite
useful at the beginning of a campaign when the 3% is pretty vulnerable.
5B Mentors are esourcesI A Solo 3% will often need advice or counsel especially in a comple# campaign
and their mentors are great resources, even after the 3% ceases to be a student.
<B DineagesI *hile mentors provide 0uite a bit, they also carry a burden. &he 3% will by default inherit the
lineage of his mentor including enemies, rivals, and responsibilities. &hese can be great adventure hoo+s
and also can provide goals to the 3%.
;B Students $raduateI At some point the mentor will release the student, this can be a rite of passage, a
special ceremony depending upon the conte#t, but is definitely a turning point in the campaign.
Sometimes a mentor will die and thus end the relationship, but the ac+nowledgement of no longer being a
student by their mentor is a wonderful moment and reward for a 3%.
%a(terFServant
&his is a common relationship in D1D and represents many /3%s who interact with a 3% from the stable
boy to the mercenary hireling to the scribe to followers. %ohorts often fall into this relationship, but are
often also friends which help define their uni0ue relationship. Servants are usually obedient and loyal, as
long as well treated. Grom my e#perience 3%s will not tolerate incompetenceK in fact they are more willing
to tolerate an unruly servant than an incompetent one. Servants are usually best played as silent and
reliable as this is what is respected from this relationship.
SuperiorFIn+erior
&his is similar to the mentor-student and master-servant relationship, but is different in that the /3% and
3% are members of the same organiCation and this creates special rules based on the relationship. In this
situation the DM has to understand the organiCation and what it re0uires of its members. A tyrannical
organiCation probably re0uires inferiors to act closer to servants, while an order of healers may re0uire
inferiors and superiors to treat each other as friends. Superiors though are a great means of focusing a 3%
by assigning missions or in some cases being an obstacle. Additionally, 3%s often li+e to have inferiors to
command and these can also be successful /3%s.
"#ample
In the following e#ample the DM wishes to give a warning to the 3% about his plans to attac+ a dragon,
maybe the warning is a caution, maybe it is to highlight the tension, maybe the /3% is afraidK whatever
the reason, the DM wants to give a warning. &he relationship is the foundation for interaction and upon it
is laid the personality of the /3%.
4riendI >)ohn, I thin+ this may be folly, remember the last time we faced a dragon it did not go well.
3erhaps, we should reconsider our plan.?
3tudentI >Master, my study of dragons has been limited, butVit seems thatVwell, we might be in some
danger.?
3ervantI >@es, sir, off to face the dragon.? Mumbles that he should have been a bric+layer li+e his mother
wanted him to be.
"nferior $nightly order%I >My lord, I will follow you to battle and though we are li+ely all to die it will be for
a noble and just cause.?
Stop and Smell the Ro(e(
DMs should always ta+e their cue from the player as to length of conversations, sometimes the player will
want to fly through a conversation, but every now and then a player will really enjoy a conversation and
the DM should linger. &his is the same with romance, shopping, interviews, and other things which may be
secondary to the DM!s sense of story, but are more important to the 3%. $ive them what they want and
slow down if necessary, solo campaigns cover a lot of ground so there is no rush. Always +eep in mind that
there are no other players clamoring for attention. (eep the spotlight s0uarely on the 3% and his or her
interactions.
Challenge(
D1D is filled with various and sundry challenges. Some challenge the player!s reasoning ability, others
address tactical choices. In a solo campaign, it is important for the DM to select and scale challenges to
both the player!s and the %haracter!s abilities. *hereas a normal-siCed party can be reasonably e#pected
to overcome the vast majority of challenges placed before them, a solo-3% should not be held to a similar
standard.
&he +ey to not overta#ing the player!s abilities in this case is to +now the limits of the player!s ability as
well as the %haracter!s limits. &here is no substitute for past e#perience DMing for the player in this
regard, but a good DM can ratchet up the difficulty and comple#ity if the player seems to be easily
overcoming the challenges set before him or her.
oleplaying and other non-combat challenges are an essential element of running a successful single-3%
game. %ombat is ris+y ' a single well-rolled die can cause all manner of havoc to a character. &herefore,
emphasis should be placed on things that will steer away from such situations. %onversations,
investigations, puCCles, and other thought-provo+ing and reasoning challenges are highly recommended.
3olitical machinations can lead to some very rewarding situations that involve little to no combat yet offer
challenges to the player of significant comple#ity and difficulty.
%ombat, of course, is nearly inevitable in D1D and special care should be ta+en with these situations.
&here are several factors to consider such as %hallenge atings, Fffective Fncounter Devels, numbers of
enemies, 0uality of enemies, etc.
Challenge Rating(
D1D is designed around a <-character partyK therefore, a single-3% party has W of the resources, actions,
abilities, and e0uipment of a party that the % system was designed for. &here are a number of options for
addressing this, but primarily, a DM should consider using encounters of roughly three levels lower than
they normally would. &his is by no means an absolute ruleK however, it wor+s well as a rule of thumb.
What to Avoid
&a+e care when designing encounters not to overwhelm the single 3% with numbers. emember that there
is great strength in numbers. Si# +obolds can overcome a single <th level fighter if they are smart about it
and use clever tactics such as all of them aiding one to grapple and pin the fighter who now has no
de#terity bonus and an additional -; to A%. Fven more basically, flan+ing enemies can really ruin the
single 3%!s day.
Another thing to avoid is situations commonly referred to as >save or die.? Such situations e#ist when a
spell or ability can +ill the lone 3% on a poorly rolled saving throw and can end a solo campaign 0uite
prematurely AGinger of Death, "oda+!s $aCe Attac+, $orgon!s "reath, etc.B. Such an event would not be a
satisfying end for either the player or the DM.
&he 0uality of enemies is of e0ual importance to the 0uantity of enemies. A single enemy with multiple
class levels can be on overmatching challenge for a single 3% if the class levels are pointedly selected to
counter the 3%s strengths or e#ploit his or her wea+nesses. &he point of encounters in a solo-3% game
should not be for the 3% to be overmatched from the start.
,elp +or the 'C
/3%s can, and often should, be available to help the 3% out in various situations. &his can vary from an
/3% Jealer in the 3%!s base town4area of operations that is willing to provide discounted healing magic for
the 3% to mercenaries ready to hire out their swords or spells to assist the 3% in battle. &hese /3%s can be
a source of materials, information, or direct support. It is important to ensure that abilities the 3% does
not have access to through class features be available through such channels. Self-sufficiency can only
ta+e a 3% so far.
2rganiCations can also provide support and aid for the 3%. If the 3% is a member of an organiCation or is
in their employ, the organiCation should be willing to aid the 3% and perhaps fill many of the roles that the
/3%s suggested above would fill.
Re-ard(
In a solo campaign, the spectrum of rewards is often easier to manage than in a typical campaign. &his is
influenced by the ability of the DM to tailor rewards to the 3%s goals and aspirations. Gor e#ample, if the
3%!s ultimate goal is establishing a +ingdom of his or her own, then the DM can incrementally provide
rewards that lead towards that goal.
"#perience
&he primary source and measure of rewards for any 3% is e#perience. F#perience can be earned numerous
ways, with the most common being through combat. &his is, however, where many solo campaigns
diverge from the norm. F#perience point awards are often granted for action outside of combat, especially
if the campaign does not focus on combat.
%ombat e#perience in solo campaigns that focus on combat can lead to very rapid leveling of the 3% if the
DM doesn!t stic+ to lower %hallenge atings and fewer enemies. &his is a result of the fact that the chart
was designed with a four player party in mind. &he e#pectation is that the e#perience would be divided up
between all four players and not given to a single 3%. &he normal offsetting thought that there would be
less encounters as the 3% would need to rest often can hold true, but in combat-heavy solo campaigns,
downtime is only needed for a single 3% and therefore, tends to ta+e up less >real time? than it would for a
full party of adventurers. Gor these reasons, combat-heavy solo campaigns often rapidly lead to a higher
level 3% Aor a dead oneB.
oleplaying awards are very common in solo campaigns and serve as a means to advance a %haracter!s
power and ability without physically endangering the 3%. If a %haracter is heavily engaged in the political
machinations of a local court, there are ample opportunities for the %haracter to engage in opposed
roleplaying activity.
2pposed roleplaying activity presents challenges to the 3% that can be fairly easily e0uated to combat
challenges. =se a similar system of determining %hallenge atings for the opposed roleplaying challenges.
&he subtlety of such a system lies in the DM!s determination of how well or completely the 3% overcame
the challenge. A range from ,8Q to ,88Q of appropriate %hallenge ating e#perience is recommended for
these situations.
Another recommended roleplaying award is the spot award. Since solo campaigns involve a continual one-
on-one roleplaying e#perience, if the player can come up with something to enhance the e#perience for
both the player and the DM, a spot award would be appropriate. It is the DMs job to ma+e sure such
awards are scaled appropriately.
Wealth
&he second most important and common form of reward for a %haracter in a solo campaign is wealth.
*ealth is measured primarily in material goods, magic, and cold hard cash. %haracters in a solo campaign
often have a tendency to ac0uire wealth at a rate far e#ceeding that of a %haracter in a normal campaign.
&his should not be a cause for concern. emember that the 3% is the entire party in one individual and the
treasure tables are designed around a group of four %haracters. &here are several ways to address this.
3rimarily, the recommendation is to >do nothing.? A Solo 3% with the same wealth and items as a party of
the same level is significantly wea+er than the party. Fven though the wealth can be concentrated into a
smaller number of more powerful items, the lone 3% has only a fraction of the options or actions that the
full party has available.
Another option is to tailor the treasure, magic, and e0uipment available to the needs of the 3%. &his option
usually appears to be as contrived as it sounds and is hard to implement without a serious need for
suspension of disbelief.
&he opposite of the previous option is, of course, to tailor the treasure so that it is sub-optimal for the 3%
and the 3% will li+ely have to sell it at a discount to purchase e0uipment that is either more suited to his or
her s+ills. &he treasure in this option could consist of items that the 3% simply cannot utiliCe due to class
features or other similar restrictions.
As a Solo 3% is li+ely to gather significant wealth, it is incumbent on the DM to provide means for the 3%
to spend this wealth. &his could be anything from the ability to contract for customiCed magic items to
ostentatious clothing, buildings, or e0uipment. &he ability to convert large amounts of coinage into more
portable form is a near essential for a Solo 3%.
Girst of all, let me say, e#cellent article.
Jowever, I would li+e to e#pand on the L*ealthL subsection of the LewardsL section. Although a solo
character will generally gain more wealth than a single member of a party of e0uivalent level, they will not
gain as much treasure as the entire party. &he reason for this is that, while the character doesnEt have to
split their treasure with anyone Athus gaining four times the wealth from an encounter as a four-person
partyB, they also donEt have to split their e#perience with anybody Athus also gaining four times the P3B.
&herefore, given e0ual % encounters, they gain both e#perience and wealth at four times the rate of a
single member of a four-person party, and thus their wealth per level stays about the same given e0ual
% encounters.
"ut the solo character will get somewhat more wealth, and the reason is thisI gold rewards donEt increase
as 0uic+ly as P3 rewards. Increasing the % by 6 doubles the P3 reward, but the wealth reward only
increases by a factor of ,.. or so for that same increase. $iven that a solo character will li+ely be facing
wea+er % creatures than a full party, this results in more wealth per level for the solo character. If every
encounterEs % is dropped by 5 relative to a party of four, the solo character gains about 6.6 times the
wealth per level as a member of a partyK if the % is dropped by <, this increases to about 6.9 times as
much.
Jowever, this is only an analysis of flat wealth. Some of that wealth will be in the form of magical items,
and as we all +now, magical items are often 0uite class- and level-specific. Jere the solo character has a
disadvantage vis-a-vis a party of charactersI when a party finds a magical item, they are more li+ely to be
able to use it effectively since their are four possible people to give the item to. 2n the other hand, if an
item canEt be used effectively by the solo character, thereEs nobody else to give it to. Gurthermore, since
the solo character tends to fight wea+er % creatures, the items that they gain are li+ewise li+ely to be
wea+er and less effective for someone of the characterEs level. AAfter all, if you have a longsword ?;,
finding a longsword ?@ isnEt really that big a reward.B &hus, it is more often that the solo character is
forced to sell items at a discount.
%agic
Magic is the lifeblood of most D1D characters. *ithout magic items, most characters! power falls off
dramatically when compared to monsters of appropriate challenge ratings. &his is even more evident in a
solo campaign. 2nce again, the Solo 3% is forced to fulfill the role of an entire party and doing so without
magical assistance will significantly increase the difficulty of the tas+. =nless the campaign is specifically
designed to be low-magic, the 3% should have significant magical resources to draw upon. &hese
resources could be spells from class levels, magical items, /3%s, or even other sources such as racial or
other special abilities.
It is recommended to allow the Solo 3% to optimiCe their e0uipment if they so desire. In a normal game,
such things can lead to an imbalance in power between party members. In a solo campaign, there is only
one party member, so game balance is not an issue. &his is not to say that everything should be handed to
the character without effort ' everything should have a commensurate price whether it is gold,
e#perience, or the %haracter!s own lifeblood.
CniDue 'o-er(GSpecial A)ilitie(
A solo campaign revolves around a single character that has a disproportionate influence in the world
around him or her. 2ne way to enhance this feeling is to provide the 3% with abilities that go beyond the
norm. Such abilities can be a reward for e#ceptional roleplaying and achievement of goals or it could be
something that the 3% begins the campaign with. /o matter how the %haracter ac0uires them, special
abilities can be hallmar+s of memorable solo campaigns.
Special abilities should be scaled to both the world and to the %haracter involved. Such abilities should
enhance the uni0ueness and playability of a %haracter. Abilities can range from the minor Adar+vision,
bonus feats, minor class abilitiesB to the e#treme Aspell-li+e-abilities, planeshifting, major class abilitiesB.
%are must be ta+en not to be overly generous in granting such abilities. Such abilities are meant to be a
reward for the player, not a means to grant the %haracter the ability to shape reality at will.
Concern( and Caveat( Com+ort Bevel & Relation(hip
solo campaigns are far more personal than group campaigns. &he DM and player must find their comfort
level, and this usually reflects their relationship. Spouses who are a DM and a player will run a more
personal campaign than college roommates. /o matter the relationship, a solo campaign will always feel a
little aw+ward at first, the tric+ is to plow on and find the level of roleplaying that ma+es both DM and
player comfortable.
Scheduling
Dess people means easier to schedule. If the DM and player are spouses, roommates, or similar, then solo
campaigns can be run almost every night. &he +ey is to find a balance between the needs of the DM and
the player. &he DM will need time to do adventure design and to rejuvenate the creative juices. &hey
player also can get fatigued from continuous gaming, but the need for a brea+ is greater upon the DM.
%ommunication is necessary, as is being honest about your needs.
/ver-helming the 'C v$ Spotlight on the 'C
&here is a delicate balance between +eeping the 3% in the spotlight and overwhelming the player. It is
important to remember that while the spotlight is on the 3%, this does not mean she controls the
campaign world nor should the DM dump that responsibility upon the 3%. &he 3% may certainly influence
and change the world, but the scope of the 3%!s responsibilities must be limited. &he DM must remember
to not heap upon the 3% the responsibilities that would normally be heaped on an entire party, unless the
player is up to the challenge. *hat follows are some specific situations to watch for, as well as a few tric+s
for the DM to use this balance in adventure design.
&he 'C %icroF%anager v($ ;'C Delegation
&he 3% should delegate tas+s to /3%sK the 3% who wishes to micro-manage the entire campaign is
heading for burnout and probably failure. players who do this either wish to maintain control, do not have
the ability to prioritiCe, or do not trust /3%s. &he DM can correct this problem by providing reliable and
competent /3%s to handle tas+s or a trusted /3% who can give constructive advice to the 3%. &he DM
should also not hesitate to realistically play out scenarios where the player!s inability to delegate and
prioritiCe impairs his goals.
Adjudicating NPCs off StageI &he 3% sends a trusted /3% on a 0uest, does the /3% succeedM &his is
often a difficult decision for the DM to determine, usually it is best to be generous to encourage the 3% to
rely upon /3%s, but failure that results in the capture or death of an /3% can be 0uite effective in
advancing character development. &he best rule is to use common sense, for e#ample, sending two low-
level /3% halflings to destroy an artifact at the heart of an evil deity!s stronghold should result in the
death of the /3%s and the loss of the artifact, some things the 3% just needs to do herself.
&he Indeci(ive 'C v($ ;'C Authority
solo campaigns entail tremendous freedom and authority, but some players are indecisive and need
guidance. &his may be from ine#perience or personality, but the DM can assist these players with /3%s
who can provide orders and direction. &he DM should provide good leaders and not manipulate the 3%, the
indecisive player needs confidence before they can handle many of the challenges associated with solo
campaigns. %ertainly, the 3% should have autonomy, but providing them with orders and immediate goals
is often of great assistance to indecisive players. &he challenge for the DM is to increase the authority of
the 3% at a pace that both encourages them to be decisive and does not overwhelm them, a cautious
approach is advised till the DM +nows the player better.
D% &ool: &he Cltimate !!" Weapon H 'romotion
In intrigue or political heavy campaigns the opponents of the 3% may decide that the best way to distract
her is to give her more responsibilities. Gor e#ample, the 3% is closing in on a death cult hidden among the
nobility, when she is as+ed by the +ing to investigate rumors that a neighbouring +ingdom is threatening
invasion. 2f course, the +ing pic+ed the 3% based on the suggestion of members of the death cult, but no
matter the 3% has now been distracted.
D% &ool: &he Sacri+icial Deci(ion
If the 3% is over burdened with decisions, for e#ample the 3% controls a dominion and is also waging a war
against a death cult then the DM may want to set up a sacrificial decision. &his is when the 3% is faced
with a decision in which one goal must be sacrificed for another, perhaps the death cult is led by the +ing
and the 3% will lose his dominion and be e#iled unless he abandons his war against the death cult. *hen
the DM realiCes that the 3% is overburdened it may be time to force a sacrificial decision, which will ease
the 3%!s responsibilities and often provide a great roleplaying opportunity.
"nding a Solo Campaign
At some point a solo campaign should end. &here are three reasons to end a solo campaignI ,B either the
DM or player is bored or frustrated with the campaignK 6B the story is finishedK or 5B death or
incapacitation of the 3%.
In the first instance, there needs to be communication between the DM and player. 2ften one will want to
end the campaign while the other may be happy. Sometimes ending the campaign can be avoided by
changing the direction of the campaign or ta+ing a hiatus. If there is communication, the nature of any
problems can be found and a suitable change instituted. Gor e#ample, the player may be fatigued with
political intrigue and the DM can change the campaign by sending the 3% off to war. A hiatus often will
mean the end of a solo campaign, especially if it is replaced by a new campaign that is more enjoyable to
both DM and player, but sometimes a brea+ is needed to save a campaign. Sometimes the problems
cannot be solved and then the campaign should be ended. &his is often when the player!s character
concept simply does not wor+ for the campaign envisioned by the DM, and no compromise is readily
available. It is best to simply ac+nowledge the failure and start over on both counts.
In the second instance, the story has been told. &he 3% has van0uished her enemies, been crowned
Rueen, and is happily married with children on the way. /ow is the moment to let the character go and to
end the solo campaign. &he story may not always be epic, but at some point the 3% will have reached the
moment they long pursued. %ertainly, another story may present itself for the 3%, but it is often better to
end the solo campaign on a high note. @ou can always return to a favorite 3% when a great idea hits the
DM or player, but high-level play can often reach the ridiculous and completely overshadow the great story
which spawned the 3% in the first place. It can be hard, but letting go of a character at their moment of
triumph is often the best tribute to a great solo campaign.
In the third instance, either the DM or player seriously messed up. %ertainly, the 3% may have died the
ultimate in heroic deaths, but that would be an e#ample of the second instance of ending a campaign. In
this case the 3% is dead and the solo campaign is over, unless a reasonable solution is found. It may be
possible to raise a character through the heroic actions of /3%s or maybe the 3%!s deity sends her bac+ for
one last mission. It is also possible that the player draws up a new character to finish the wor+ of her first
character. As can be imagined these situations should be avoided and a good DM should always have an
emergency plan for such a situation.
Solo Adventure( +or roup Campaign(
*e have focused our discussion on solo campaigns as completely separate from group campaigns, but
sometimes a DM may want to run a solo adventure that is connected to a group campaign. *hat follows
are some guidelines and ideas about how to run these types of adventures. &here are two +ey concerns
for using solo adventures as part of a group campaignI
,B "alance.
6B &iming.
!alance
In most solo adventures advancement, wealth, and other rewards are accumulated considerably faster
than a typical group campaign, but this could be disruptive when the solo-3% returns to the party. *hile
the solo-3% should be rewarded for her efforts, the material rewards should not be out of balance to the
other 3%s in the group campaign. &herefore the DM should be more conservative in rewarding material
rewards. &here are some other rewards though that do not affect game balance, but are e#cellent rewards
for a solo-3%.
,B %haracter Development.
6B /ew /3% elationships.
5B Special (nowledge.
&iming
"efore I started my first group campaign in college, I wrote up a solo pre-adventures for all the 3%s that
would bring their characters to where the party was to come together. It did not wor+ out that way. I had
one 3% get +illed, another ended up joining a crusade, and the other two ended up on opposite sides of
the continent. Fventually, I was able to pull them together, but my original campaign idea had to be
scrapped. *hen you pull a 3% off for a solo adventure you have to pay special attention to the timing
aspect, especially as solo adventures can cover far more ground that a group adventure. Jere are a few
tipsI
,B (eep the solo adventure tightly designed, if it is too open-ended your solo-3% may never return to the
group campaign.
6B &ry to run solo adventures when the group campaign will be doing lots of down time or traveling as
opposed to intense adventuring li+e dungeons, which ta+es more game time for less time passage and can
result in a greater disconnect between the solo and group campaigns.
5B Gudge travel times to correct any time discrepancies between the solo adventure and the group
campaign.
&ype o+ Solo Adventure( lin*ed to roup Campaign(
'reFAdventure(
&hese are transition adventures designed for a 3% to bring them into a group campaign. &hey should be
tightly scripted and can be tailored as tutorials for new players. emember that you have to build up good
reasons for the 3% to be joining the group this can include having been ordered to do so or out of some
sort of necessity. 3re-adventures can also be used to provide each 3% with special information or goals for
the campaign. )ust remember these are preludes to the group campaign and should be +ept relatively
short at best ,-6 sessions.
Side Adventure(
&hese are solo adventures for a 3% that may be related to the group campaign, but are more li+ely for
character-development. ecently, I ran a side adventure for a halfling bard4ranger who wanted to get
married and who set of for the homeland to find the love of his life. /o matter what the reason the
previous warnings about balance and timing are the +eys for successfully reintegrating side adventures to
the group campaign. It is not a bad idea to have the missing 3% run a /3% while his character is off on her
side adventure.
Retirement Adventure(
Sometimes a 3% will retire a character and replace her with a new 3% in the group campaign, but would
really li+e one last adventure with her old character. &hese adventures really depend upon the 3% and can
range from a final glorious battle to running a few days in the life of a retired adventurer. &his is a great
tool for closure and it is a nice reward for a player who put a lot of effort into his character.
Dungeon(:
In the traditional D1D campaign, the dungeon is the focal challenge which drives the gameplay, and its
e#ploration is what separates the 3%s from the local grain merchants down at the mar+et. In present days,
the dungeon doesnEt always occupy the same central role in all campaigns Aespecially in non-D1D
settingsB, but it is none the less integral to the majority of group campaigns.
I thin+ itEs time to spea+ a little on how the solo campaign might handle dungeons. "efore I begin, I would
li+e to clarify that by dungeon, I mean any enclosed series of encounters that somehow resembles a
location within which the 3%s face a challenge. It can be the sewers, a dragonEs lair, or the catacombs of
3agan Abonus pointsH Uwin+UB just as well as it can be an office building or a cargo ship on stormy waters.
&hereEs no setting which doesnEt have the potential for dungeons. &heyEre just more or less common.
,o- I( a Dungeon 3un?
&here are many ways in which a dungeon crawl can appeal to players, but generally spea+ing, there are
three things I would highlightI %on0uest, e#ploration, and party mechanics. %on0uest is about bashing
down a door and stabbing an illithid, then ta+ing its treasure. &raditionally, many teenage players start
with this aspect and later come to enjoy others as well. A%on0uest is fun, but itEs not why I play D1D.
&here are better genres for that sort of thing, imho.B F#ploration is about finding out whatEs going onI ItEs
about solving the mystery of what is happening in the dungeon, and seeing whatEs behind the ne#t door. If
you rouse the playersE interest beforehand, it can be 0uite effective.
Dastly, party mechanics is about interaction between the 3%s, and how they cooperate Aor notB during the
challenges faced in the dungeon. Acting as a group during a dangerous dungeon run really helps to
develop personalities and relationships. 3ersonally, this is what I li+e most about the dungeon, and I thin+
a fair share of people will agree with me.
So, when you only have one 3%, how do you harness thisM *ell, this is why I throw in /3%s all over the
place. %urrently, IEm using a model that my friend developed for his latest D1D venture. /amely, each
time weEre getting involved in a dungeon, we run into some other people who are also about to enter the
dungeon. &hese people are more or less heroic, more or less intelligent, and more or less scrupulous. In
the end, this means three thingsI
0> 3action(
*eEre not just adventuring with our close companions, but also with complete strangers. Some of these
people turn out to be heroic, noble, and true, and we grow to li+e them and see+ their companionship in
the future. 2ther times, theyEre greedy, cowardly, and have a tendency to brag and ta+e credit. &his tends
to form factions even during the dungeon, which gives rise to a lot of interesting interactions. In any given
challenge, thereEs a chance that someone will betray you, just as there is a chance that someone you
thought was a jer+ will save your life. Arguments about how to proceed are had, friendships are formed,
emotions spar+, and so forth. ItEs a lot of fun. "n time, a true core adventuring group is formed, and
unlie one foisted together at the start of a campaign, it feels real.
2> Inve(tment & Worry
In a typical D1D campaign, your character runs the ris+ of dying. During our campaigns, we donEt use 3%
death as a tool, because it would waste far too much of our time spent evolving the plot and developing
the character... as well as ruining the romance. ItEs not worth it to us, since we donEt use resurrection at
all, in any campaign. AAs a side note, this re0uires trust in the playerI @ou have to trust him or her not to
do stupid things that would get the character +illed. *e just donEt +ill off the 3% because the dice say so.B
2n the other hand, /3%s can and will die. &his means that during a dungeon, if you want to see someone
survive, youEd better do well. During several dungeons, my greatest concern has been to +eep someone
alive, for instance. &his also leads me into the third pointI
4> "#penda)le Character(
/othing beats introducing a puCCle by having someone fall down a ,88 foot chasm, screaming, or be
captured in a raCor-edged steel cage. I find that this wor+s 0uite well. /3%s is a resource for the DM.
Crgency
As KJW put it, dungeons often don't wor in solo campaigns as well as they do in group campaigns. Gor
the typical dungeon, the appeal builds on a group of players socialiCing as they cooperate to beat the
haCards of the dungeon. In order to electrify a single player, you need something else. My suggestion is
that you create a sense of urgencyI Dungeons are fun, but the e#perience is greatly magnified if
something hinges on your speedy navigation of the challenges put before you.
In one dungeon I recently played, I went in to find and rescue a group of gnomes, one of which was a
friend to me Awhom I had met in a previous dungeon.B &he gnomes had wandered into this ancient
dungeon comple# after brea+ing through a wall underneath their home. During the entire dungeon, I +new
that, given a poor enough performance, the DM will +ill them off. &heyEre in there somewhere, and we
need to navigate these obstacles as 0uic+ly as possible to ensure that my friend survives.
&here are many other e#amples of how to create urgency during a dungeon, many of which feature
e#ternal events, such as Ltimers,L i.e. bad things that will occur if you donEt manage to solve the dungeon
within a certain time limit.
'er(onal Intere(t
A solo campaign tends to focus on the role of the 3% in the campaign. &herefore, it is natural that the 3%
should have a personal interest in the dungeons he or she e#plores. A good way to create a greater
degree of involvement during a dungeon crawl is to bait the player with information that he or she craves.
&his wor+s even better if you intimate that a good performance is li+ely to net more information, while a
poor performance runs the ris+ of losing the opportunity to gain that information.
My current D1D campaign revolves around a pervasive, supernatural disease +nown as the DemonEs
3lague. &he 3% is being hunted because he was unfortunate enough to share the attributes of a
prophesied figure said to be responsible for the plague. &herefore, he has ta+en a great interest in finding
out what is going on with the DemonEs 3lagueK he wants to figure out who he is, what the plague is, and
how AifB they are connected. /ot all dungeons will cater to this metaplot, but the one IEm about to run
does. &o put it simply, events surrounding the dungeon will draw him into it, not just because of his good
heart, but because he is interested to +now how it relates to the DemonEs 3lague. "y successfully
e#ploring the dungeon, he will gain some additional information about it.
'uzzle( & /)(tacle(
KJW made another e#cellent point in his last postI ItEs better not to plan a solution to a puCCle or
challenge. IEll give a few e#amples to this. &he first is a small event I ran as part of the information
gathering process before the dungeon IEm about to run. Jere, the player had to enter a burning house to
rescue the surviving inhabitants. I had absolutely no plans for what the house loo+ed li+e inside AI just
wing it with vague descriptions unless thereEs some reason to draw it upB, or how he was supposed to
survive the incursion. Je thought for a moment, then used floating dis as a shield over his head while he
duc+ed low through the smo+e. After reading the description of the spell and finding it to be a 0uite legit
manner of preventing falling debris from +noc+ing him unconscious, all I had to say was Lbonus e#p.L
&he second e#ample is one snatched from the etherI &he group, following one of the imps that dwell in the
dungeon, are lured into a room. &he chamber is ,8 by ,8 feet large, and ;8 feet tall. &he imp 0uic+ly
manages to escape through a duct in the wall, <8 feet up, while the other imps close and loc+ the door
behind the 3%s. &hey hear a clic+, and water begins to flow into the room. 3anic sets on when they hear
the rasp of metal above, and loo+ up to see an iron mesh separate the lower half of the room from the
upper. &he floor is filled with strange mesh steel cages, the edges of which are sharpened.
In such a situation, I wouldnEt bother to thin+ about how the 3% might solve the problem. IEm confident
that I have built the scene in such a manner that there are several logical alternatives, especially with
access to a variety of spells. Jowever, since the price of failure is death for all involved, I would, in this
case, ta+e a moment to thin+ about a plan that might bail at least the 3% out. &ypically, this plan would be
delivered by one of the /3%s, but not until the 3% has e#hausted his own ideas. elying on that plan would
mean that at least someone is li+ely to die before they clear the obstacle.
Reminder(
*al+ing down a dungeon corridor can be frightening, but itEs a lot li+e driving a car on the highway. 2nce
youEve gotten used to it, you repress thoughts about the dangers, but if you get into an accident, youEll
remember those dangers for the rest of your life. Similarly, once the person ne#t to you steps on the
wrong tile and triggers a nasty trap that s+ewers him, youEll ta+e it easy down the ne#t corridor.
eminders serve to enforce a feeling of danger in any given situation, but arenEt always the ideal method.
In most situations, I would call it the last resort to slow the player down.
Inherent A-e
Fveryone +nows that a dragon is dangerous. Fven in real life, we grow up with tales of the ferocity and
utter power of these amaCing creatures. ItEs similar to how hoc+ey aficionados who grew up during the
:8s and .8s viewed Soviet as an unstoppable machine. &o use a cheap analogy, the LMiracle on IceL was
nothing short of a dragon slaying. &hatEs why LMiracleL is a frea+ing awesome movie. Ahem. Sorry. IEll try
to steer clear of the hoc+ey references from now on...
&o put it simply, inherent awe is a tool for instilling fear in players. (nowing what theyEre going up against
can be as fun as it can be morally devastating.
%anu+actured A-e
I might as well stic+ with a consistent terminology. Manufactured awe is different from inherent awe,
because it doesnEt assume a pree#isting sense of doubt. In fact, it relies on its absence. Gor instance, an
impending showdown with a mysterious swordsman might feel uncertain and dangerous, but the player is
going to be a lot more on her toes if everyone she spea+s with +eeps telling her that the swordsman +eeps
winning duels, and that he seems to have a secret move that always +ills his opponent in a single, swift
stro+e. Since no one has survived, and no one has been 0uic+ enough to see the attac+, no one +nows
how he does it... but one thing is certainI JeEs deadly. *henever possible, building up fear of an
impending encounter can create a useful sense of trepidation.
;arrative
/ot to be confused with the concept of narrations as a vessel for plot, narrative is everything the DM does
that doesnEt involve physical objects. In any given situation, a s+illful and attentive Atowards the playerEs
emotions and tendenciesB DM can create a sense of dread in the player. Jowever, this is by far the most
difficult method I have outlined here. I donEt consider myself particularly s+illed at this, but itEs one of the
things IEve focused on improving. If reminders are the last resort, narrative is what you use when awe
Aand sometimes, common senseB fails. /arrative, in this conte#t, is about subtly telling the player that
what sheEs going up against is out of her league Aor in her league, in a different situation.B %ompare the
following two descriptions, for instanceI
As you enter the gallery of fluted columns, a woman stands before you. 3he wraps a dar cloa around
her lithe form, and holds the tip of a wand out from the cloth. 4rowning, she taes a single step forward.
A!alt and spea, or " will destroy you.A
As you enter the gallery of fluted columns, the shadows begin to bend and twist in the aisle. ,ith a
shuddered groan, a whisper of the night, the darness falters and breas to admit a woman clad in blac.
3he wraps a dar cloa around her lithe form, and holds the tip of a wand out from the cloth. #he air
seems to ripple and writhe around her face, obscuring her features. A!alt and spea, or " will destroy
you.A AIf youEve got a paladin or other servant of holiness, hereEs where you tell her that an overpowering
feeling of malevolence washes over her as the shadows brea+.B
!rea*ing Eour /-n Rule(
After reading 2rmissE additions to handling /3%s and reviewing what Illion and I have said, I started
laughing when I thought of the solo adventure I will be running this afternoon. &he truth is that I have
bro+en most of my own advice, but it is wor+ing for this solo campaign.
My 3% is "ert who is a halfling bard4ranger I posted about before, well he put his 0uest to defeat the
infernal "aron $af+e on hold and decided to join another adventuring group. 3art of this is to get the aid
of a more powerful group than his old group. Je sought out the most famous group of adventures in the
*estern (ingdom, the Knights of the Glass 5ragon. /ow I gave "ert some warnings about the high
casualties suffered by members of this group and the ego of its leader Sir Furid Debane, but he pushed on
and interviewed. /ow "ert is fairly wea+ for a ,8th level character, but he used craft Amusical compositionB
and his outrageous perform s+ills to get an invite to join the group.
=nli+e my group 3% party, this party is focused on wealth and glory. "ert now has groupies and is being
worshipped as a great hero, which he is loving. "ert is a minor, but well-li+ed, member of this group and
plays a supporting role to the ErealE heroes. Fveryone else has the spotlight and carries the battles with
"ert just providing a little support here and there, though his musical s+ills put him in charge of
propaganda. &his is wor+ing wonderfully and the solo 3% loves it, especially as there is high drama with
the members of the company, Sir FuridEs wife is having an affair, another member wants Sir Furid to
topple the high +ing to ma+e a stronger *estern (ingdom, and so forth.
&he point is that this solo campaign creates a situation where the solo 3% is secondary and all the horrid
/3% archetypes are in play. Gor now brea+ing the rules actually is the best way to run this campaign. &his
situation allows for the 3% to have character growth as he either embraces glory hunting or focuses on the
greater good, it also provides a wea+ character an opportunity to get better e0uipment and stronger
before becoming more independent. So there you go a situation where doing the EwrongE thing actually
may be the ErightE thing as long as you have good reasons for it.
3ailed Solo Campaign(
In the interests of full disclosure, I should mention that in addition to the doCens of
successful solo campaigns I have ran over the years, a number have been...a little less than successful.
My first foray into solo campaigns was in college years ago before my first major campaign, I designed
five pre-adventures for all of my 3%s to bring them together. Another DM had started the idea of pre-
adventures, but I always felt he was too much of a railroader. My campaign was set in the Gorgotten
ealms and I had a comple# plot involving events in Mulhorand, but my players had drawn up characters
with phenomenally diverse bac+grounds. I arrogantly assumed that with a little cunning I could tie them
all together, thus I ran a 3% paladin on a crusade against &hayan aggression, a Jalruaan wiCard, a ranger
from Silvery Moon, and two others that I forget, but I thin+ I had one from %hessenta and another from
the Dalelands. *ell my players loved the pre-adventures, each was a full campaign of sorts, but after the
first few sessions two 3%s were +illed and the remaining three had chosen paths far away from my original
plans. Fventually, I had to scrap the campaign and learned a valuable lesson about pre-adventures and
the difficulties of being too ambitious of a DM.
Sometimes when I develop an idea for a solo campaign with the player we are a little too ambitious or
unrealistic. 2ne that still holds in my mind was a d: Star *ars campaign in which the 3% Arun by my wifeB
started as an Imperial intelligence officer, well the first adventure immersed her into Imperial culture and
then the ebel Alliance seriously screwed up her operation and was on the verge of capturing her. *e
intended for the 3% to eventually leave the Fmpire, but at this moment my wife who was fully into
character decided that suicide was the only option. "y the end of the first adventure the 3% had
committed suicide and thus ended the campaign.
I recently gave Stormwrac+ to my wife to see if anything in that was interesting to her as I had some
cunning ideas, she decided to draw up a sea witch and wave+eeper druid who were sisters to play them at
the same time. &he setting was good and my wife loved the ideas we had come up with, what threw me
was having her play two 3%s which is something we almost never do. I was thrown by her having
conversations in character, as a DM I do this all the time, but for some reason it threw me to see the
player doing it. I desperately wanted to run one of them as a /3%. *e ran a few adventures and hit a few
other problems with the 3%s struggling for the spotlight of the campaign, we eventually shelved the
campaign with the intention to run one of the characters as a /3% ne#t time and to focus on one 3%.
2ften a campaign spirals out of control. *e have shelved spectacular solo campaigns when they get out of
control or beyond management, this is usually when things become epic in scale with massive armies and
+ingdoms in war or on the edge of destruction. *e have one of our best campaigns shelved during the
*ar of (ings as it became too much responsibility for the 3% to handle. &he comple#ity was truly
outrageous with probably a hundred important /3%s and at least a doCen subplots, my longer running
campaigns get out of hand 0uic+ly. /owadays, I prune my campaigns when they get a little overboard,
removing plots and /3%s. My wife once ruined a great long running solo campaign she DMed when she
+ept upping the opposition, an army of frost giants destroy my dominion because she wanted to challenge
me and this escalation leads to MAD in regards to campaigns.
&here have also been campaigns were the character concept was simply unplayable or the story too
outrageous or more often boring. &hese are when someone has an idea that simply wonEt mesh with the
other participant, this is when the player and DM are at a different place. If I feel li+e a military sci-fi
campaign and my player wants to play a druid in D1D then you usually need to find a compromise, such
as a colonist sent to an alien world to set up a new colony.
I figure probably about a 0uarter of my solo campaigns are complete duds, the tric+ is to realiCe this as
0uic+ly as possible and start over. DonEt hesitate to e#periment and if it doesnEt wor+ donEt worry about it,
just start over or ma+e some serious adjustments. &he lessons from failures really improve your abilities
as a DM and also a player in developing playable and fun characters and stories.
're 'u)li(hed Adventure(:
Any advice for converting published adventures for use in solo campaignsM Most of them are written for
the standard < party members, so how do you adjust them for only , 3%M
I have had very limited success in converting published adventures to solo adventures. &his is mostly due
to the focus of my solo campaigns rather than anything mechanical.
Mechanically, you need to either decrease the number and 0uality of oponnents or increase the power-levl
and support for the 3%. &here will li+ely be a disparity in the power-level that the adventure was designed
for and the power-level that a solo-3% can survive, even if the FDs are adjusted. &his will li+ely 0uic+ly
become an issue of resources as the 3% is very limited in his or her number of actions and options
available in comparison to the multiple oponents he or she is li+ely to face in such situations. I have not
been able to find the proper balance and either wind up with a dead 3% AwhereEs the fun in that oneB or a
3% who is wal+ing over the opposition.
If you can find a published adventure with a focus on more individual opponents, you will li+ely fare better
in converting it to solo use.
I completely agree with Illion, there is no such thing as a bad class as long as you can find a campaign
idea that ma+es it wor+. &he tric+ here is whether the DM and player can get on the same page, maybe
the DM canEt handle a campaign about bardic competitions, but that is not the fault of the class. It is a
tric+ sometimes to find a good mesh between player and DM, but it has nothing to do with classes and
more to do with finding a common ground between play styles. &his re0uires honest communication.
As for adjusting published adventures, my wife is running me in a solo campaign and is using published
adventures for a framewor+. I have no idea what she is using, because I am completely ignorant of
published adventures, but she has been thrilled to have something to wor+ with as she is often crunched
for time and ideas. Still she has admitted to needing to rewor+ the adventures as they just arenEt deep or
challenging enough for a solo campaign or are too deadly for a single player.
*e are moving towards the /3% route, which is how I do things, but she doesnEt li+e running that many
/3%s so it is tric+y. So to help out I got a cohort and am recruiting a balanced party, she is having me
draw up the /3%s as well to ma+e them as potent as possible. Jopefully, I should have a party of my 3%
and four /3%s Aone a cohort, one a s0uire for my 3%, and two party member /3%sB. It just ta+es practice
and e#perimentation to figure out what wor+s, err on the side of caution till you are more comfortable with
it.
DetEs tal+ about this Lcrunched for time and ideasL situation. I li+e using the published adventures as a
springboard for adventures that fit into my own campaign setting. *ithout that springboard, it ta+es me
forever to thin+ of4plan out adventures. 3erhaps some help on where other solo-campaign DMs are getting
adventure ideas from if youEre not using published adventures or plots from novels youEve readM
2(, letEs see what we can do
My primary themes4ideas for solo campaigns come from the 3%Es bac+ground and development. Also, I
listen carefully for any cues from the 3layer Aconscious or otherwiseB on where they want to ta+e their
character. A&his is just based on how my scatterred intellect wor+sB. If he or she latches onto a plot hoo+,
it spar+s me to thin+ of other possibilities that the 3layerEs course of action could generate.
F#ampleI A&his is all off the top-of my head so coherency is probably going to be a bit lac+ingB. If the 3% is
wandering through a city and I throw a random thief in trying to steal a beltpouch, the 3%Es reaction could
lead to numerous idea-branchs from catching the thief red-handed Ajust a little +id trying to survive since
3a got sic+ from eating the bad berries as he couldnEt get to the good berries with all of the bugbears out
thereB to the thief sealing the pouch and being pursued - possibly being caught later with something else
incriminating having been put into the 3%Es pouch to the theif completely getting away with the 3%Es bag
of holding - time to negotiate with4infiltrate4elimiate the local theives guild to get the contents bac+.
Simple events li+e this serve as a spar+ing point for me to build adventures. Mind you, the DM needs good
improvisation s+ills and it doesnEt hurt to have a stable of /3%s in the bac+ of your head to pull it off.
&han+s, Illion, itEs good advice. IEve always felt pretty self-conscious about my ability to improvise and so I
always want to try to plan for every eventuality - but thatEs just impossible and even trying chews up way
too much of the limited time I have for game design. I envy those of you who can do so much just off the
top of your head. IEve gotten better over time, but itEs still frustrating, especially as I am DMing a very
creative 3%.
I recogniCe myself in those wordsK conscious about lac+ing improvisational s+ills, and attempting to plan
every possible route. Det me first state that I am in no way LcuredL of this affliction. I am always trying to
improve my improvisational s+ills, simply because I have found that planning too much isnEt just difficult,
but also destructive to my creativity and confidence. Improvisational s+ills re0uire practice, more than
anything.
DMing for a creative player, you should +eep in mind to harness his or her creativity. In the vein of what
Illion the Red spo+e of just before, I sugges that you as+ your player to Lthin+ aloudL as much as
possible. It really helps anticipate what the player will li+e and want to do if she spea+s her mind about
the potential things that might happen. My own player will occasionally tell me about some potential event
he just spontaneously thought about in relation to the plot I just threw at him, that he thin+s would be
really cool. @ou wonEt always want to do what they say, since itEll ma+e the campaign predictable, but
often it can lead to similar, adapted ideas that fit with your overarching plot Aif any.B
Warning: ambling ahead.
As for general adventure ideas, I ta+e a cue from everything in life. "oo+s, movies, &S shows, songs,
mundane events in real life, and so on. If I had to throw together an adventure off the top of my head, IEd
start either with an adversary or a setting. If itEs a setting, IEd rather do something out of the ordinary,
li+e... a town built along the shores of a salty lagoon at the bottom of a great chasm. &hey probably
gather salt there, I guess, or thereEs some uncommon mineral in the roc+ walls surrounding the lagoon.
Fither way, the image of an ostentatiously clad woman appears in my head for some reason, so IEd ma+e
the villain a woman who has impersonated her dead twin sister in order to win the townEs annual beauty
pageant, the priCe of which is free passage to the top of the chasm AitEs an e#pensive ride on some sort of
mountaineous great liCards and lifts of plan+s, ropes, and pulleys...B 2nly, itEs actually a fighting
tournamentXthe strangest beauty pageant ever.
So, suppose the 3%s are citiCens of the glorious Rueendom of Darrah-Dimuan, maybe Rueen &arastua, in
an attempt to strengthen her popular support, commissions e#plorers to search for the Swallow Sword of
the Sapphire RueenK the +atana that belonged to the legendary first 0ueen of Darrah-Dimuan. Some
rumors say that itEs in Shara+C, but that place is not only difficult to reach, its citiCens are also remar+ably
grumpy towards outlanders, +ind of li+e Grance. Anyway, isnEt it a funny coincidence that the Swallow
Sword is rumored to be in a place where the citiCens have developed a traditional contest in which women
compete in beauty and swordsmanship...M Secret tunnels, monsters in the lagoon, insane swordswomen,
roc+ slides, the thugs of the Salt MerchantsE $uild, and the mysterious RueenEs Jand, elusive sage of
Shara+C.
)ust to put things in perspective, the most recent story idea I got was during a lecture on the Jistory of
Fconomics this morning. 2n the topic of the so called 3etrol Dollars, the idea of a region obtaining so
much outlander money that their own mar+et cannot sustain it, forcing foreign investment, struc+ me as
interesting in a fantasy environment. 2il could be replaced by something li+e *ot%Es incarnum, or dragon
eggs in a world where dragons are raised to function as industrial resources. A red dragon can breathe fire
every ,d< rounds, rightM &hatEs got to be useful, somehow.
&o put it simply, try to let your mind run free. &he only constraints I wor+ with when I weave an adventure
is to consider how it would be fun for the players involvedK how it would fit the 3%s. I try not to thin+ too
much about how they would solve the problems theyEre faced with. 3layers are resourceful and inventiveK
as the DM it is most often enough to formulate the problem, and allow them to go nuts trying to solve it.
&his holds true both for adventures in general, and for dungeons. In any situation where a solution is
necessary, I find that it is best to simply present the problem, and then throw in Lstuff.L If itEs a large
room, you can fill it with crates. I donEt +now what theyEd use the crates for, but crates are useful, rightM
IEm sure someone can thin+ of a way to use them. If you plan for solutions to problems Abattles,
diplomacy, puCCles, and so on,B you ris+ loc+ing the player into a situation where the solutions she can
thin+ of on her own wonEt wor+, trying to figure out the solutionAsB you had in mind. ItEs better, in my
opinion, to design all challenges with the feeling that Lthough I havenEt decided how to, I feel that itEs
possible to overcome this.L
I feel that I have rambled somewhat incoherently, so IEm not sure if this is any help at all. If you have
more details to share about what is a problem for you, IEll gladly try to give more poignant advice.
&his is why you are a master DM and IEm just entering the wyrmling trialsH Seriously, 2rmiss, while
EramblingE you were just able to throw together an entire campaign arc - very impressive and a bit beyond
my abilities at the moment. I thin+ you Aand Illion the edB are right about following the 3%Es lead
sometimes and focusing on planning problems, not solutions. And communication does help - my player
has a tendancy to broaden the scope of adventures more than IEm comfortable with, but weEve recently
tal+ed about that and he has been reigning himself in when I DM, which helps. Anyway, IEm going to +eep
plugging along at game design and will definately post again if I get stuc+ on a specific Athough it may
need to be in a different thread to avoid my player - yeah, you +now who you areHB.
Campaign "#ample I0:
*hat follows is a brief synopsis of a recent solo campaign I A()*B ran with my wife. &his was a successful
and enjoyable campaign and gives an idea of what is a typical solo campaign, though there really is no
such thing.
Solo 'CI %amina $ravescribe a cleric of my campaignEs %hurch of the Dead AD/ $reater DeityB, her
alignment was lawful good. *hen %aminaEs mother died her father gave her to the %hurch of the Dead as
payment for the funeral. %amina started off in a group campaign, that went disastrously as the party was
nearly &3(ed several times and my wife decided that %amina was done with the party and drew up a new
more combat orientated 3%. *e were considering starting up a new solo campaign and decided to spin off
%amina into her own campaign.
'remi(eI My %hurch of the Dead is a powerful faith that is focused on the burying of the dead and
protecting the remains of the dead, while their god judges and sends souls to their afterlives. It is also a
very comple# faith, it would ta+e many pages to describe the faith in detail, suffice to say that there are
many orders and factions within the faith and its political structure incorporates all of the elements listed
previously. *e decided that %amina would be assigned to supervise a few cemeteries and try to advance
up the faith.
&he ChallengeI Demarche %amina $ravescribe started with a number of obstacles. She was D$ in a D/
faith. She belonged to the holy surname of least status, $ravescribe. She was low-level, lac+ed political
connections, and was cash poor, which was almost a sin in her faith. &hrough the early part of the
campaign there was a Succession *ar running in the bac+ground that caused shortages, tremendous price
fluctuations, and all manner of difficulties for her holdings and her church. &here were also comple#
machinations occuring within her church that she was initially ignorant of, but would 0uic+ly become
embroiled in. &he main challenge, though, was her holdings.
&he Cu(todian o+ the Crypt( o+ Duche(( StreetI Demarche %amina was charged with running two
cemeteries and maintaining the family crypts of a poor and debauched noble family in Duchess Street.
&his neighborhood of the city of %albrien was poor, corruptly managed, overrun by the thievesE guild,
home to rundown and fiercely competing churches, plagued with lesser undead in the sewers, and home
to several cults including the %hurch of "ones ADF Intermediate Deity of /ecromancy and =ndeadB.
Demarche %amina was given a young $host (night Alow-level /3% fighterB and a few prayers of
encouragement and e#pected to probably be +illed li+e the last three young demarches sent to Duchess
Street.
!eginning Adventure(
Demarche %amina went to the other temples, include the %hurch of the Dawn A%$ intermediate deityB to
propose combining forces to battle undead, she was able to build a small party of clerics and faithful
warriors to slosh through the sewers. Demarche %amina too+ the bold step of contacting the Assembly
AthievesE guildB and as+ing them to stop dropping bodies in the sewers and to just chuc+ them over a wall
of one of her cemeteries and she would ta+e care of them. Demarche %amina too+ an even bolder step
when she made contact with %hurch of "ones and told them to stop ta+ing bodies from the cemeteries,
and if they did that, she would not delve too deeply into their activities. *ithin a few days, Demarche
%amina had aligned herself with the +ey powers of the district and protected herself from assassination.
Gor several adventures, Demarche %amina got to +now people across the district, fought undead, and built
up connections, but was still very isolated from the rest of her church. &his was part of her plan, because
she realiCed that many of her policies would not be seen positively by her faith.
Many of our adventures dealt with putting down undead, getting ghosts to pass to the ne#t life,
investigating special murders, handling estates, and trying to e#pand the faith. &here were also meetings
and discussions with other clerics of the faith and some of them are pretty theological in nature, as
Demarche %amina starts to seriously e#plore her faith. &here were also side plots, such as the Succession
*ar which was changing the +ingdom, but which Demarche %amina was happily uninvolved with,
additionally Demarche %amina had a mute prophet as her ward and was involved with various charitable
activities.
Campaign Inten(i+ie(
Demarche %amina is contacted by an Flder Demarche from a different region of the church to provide
intelligence on the %hurch of "ones as there would be a development to eliminate this rival to the faith.
Demarche %amina investigates, using her ties to the Assembly to learn that the Flder Demarche was
aligned with the %ult of 2rcus against the %hurch of "ones in a conflict +nown as the "one *ar, which was
being fought across the campaign world and in the outer planes and was coming to Duchess Street. &he
Flder Demarche tells Demarche %amina to ma+e sure she is not in the district one night, and Demarche
%amina decides a DF deity of necromancy is better than a %F deity of necromancy and gives a warning to
the %hurch of "ones and her other allies in the district. She stays that night and tries to protect the
cemeteries, undead enter the district and a grand battle is fought between the followers of 2rcus and the
followers of the %hurch of "ones, who are also indirectly aided by other factions. Demarche %amina and
her small group fight off undead trying to desecrate the cemeteries. *hen things 0uiet down, Demarche
%amina goes through the streets and sewers gathering bodies of the undead and their treasure and
bringing it bac+ to her cemetery for cremation. In the morning she sends all of the treasure to her church,
e#cept for scrolls, potions, and a few items for her own use.
During this time her ward, the mute prophet was assassinated as part of a side-plot and this was a major
turning point for %amina as she desperately wanted to raise her ward, but this was against the teachings
of her faith. She decides in the end to let her ward pass to the ne#t life and thus finally comes to embrace
the ways of her faith. She also starts to become a spiritual leader and having finally dealt with death is
able to better articulate her faith.
Campaign )ecome( ,ighFlevel
Demarche %amina becomes embroiled in the politics of her faith and Duchess Street. Due to her major
behests to the church she is given funds to build a crypt, ie. temple in Duchess Street. Due to her political
ascension she is given an additional cemetery to manage as well as /ovice Demarches and a few more
$host (nights. 2ne of the scrolls from the great battle, was a scroll of teleport circle that loo+ed to lead
bac+ to a temple of 2rcus. Demarche %amina +ept this for herself and recruited a group of high-level
adventurers, much higher-level than herself, to ta+e out this temple. &hey teleport in and fight a
tremendous battle, Demarche %amina +eeps in the bac+ dealing with lesser undead and providing support
to the high-level /3%s. After this mission, Demarche %amina is wealthy and a potent cleric and has
seriously crippled the %ult of 2rcus within the +ingdom.
&his is about when the campaign winded down and went on hiatus, Demarche %amina married a royal
magistrate, became an Flder Demarche, was named a teacher at the Seminary of the Dead, and became a
disciple of a epic-level spiritual leader of her faith. &here are many adventures waiting to be embar+ed
upon and my wife has hinted at returning to the campaign, but the story of %amina $ravescribe has
mostly been told and this is where we left it.
CA%'AI; "JA%'B" I 2
Adventure "#ample I0
*hat follows is a brief synopsis of a recent solo adventure I A()*B ran with one of my players as a side
adventure from the group campaign.
Solo 'CI "ert *oodshan+ a halfing ranger4bard with a chaotic good alignment. "ertEs player is one of my
best roleplayers, and "ert is his most cherished 3%. "ert is admittedly worthless in combat, but he is a
good scout and has endeared himself to the party by writing songs for all of the party members and the
groupEs adventures Ayes the player does indeed write songs for the groupB.
'remi(eI &he party rescued an ancient temple from evil and the &ear of the *ater Dragon (ing Awater
elemental weird, MMIIB granted the 3%s prophecies or answers to 0uestions. "ert as+s Ewho is the halfling
maiden he should marryE and is answered thusI L&hree fair maidens of the little fol+ outshine all the rest
for their beauty and charm and await the hand of a worthy suitor, such as you. In 3ailanus, there is a
beauty beyond compare named Addy "riarbroo+, but any suitor must overcome her stubborn father and
five jealous brothers. In the homeland, there is the lovely Madeline $reenhill, a lover of words and ideas
who is as cunning as she is beautiful, but the suitor who ta+es her hand should not e#pect a traditional
wife. Ginally, there is *isteria %learbroo+, who is the daughter of the Girst Mayor of Dorien and a lady-in-
waiting in attendance to the Jigh Rueen Aurine of the *estern (ingdom, and her laugh is li+e the singing
of stars, but she sought by the most heroic of the little fol+.L A few months later the party settled down
for some down time and "ert decided to pursue Madeline $reenhill, and thus began the solo adventure.
D%K( ;oteI So why did I give him three choicesM *ell, if the DM has the opportunity he should give the
3% choices such as this, poor "ert spent many sessions weighing each candidate and trying to decide who
he should marry. Also if the DM imposed his idea of an ideal wife upon the 3%, that would be an e#ample
of bad railroading. Still this is railroading as I in effect limited the 3% to three choices, but I thought they
were good choices for "ert.
&he ChallengeI "ert needed to travel bac+ to his homeland, get permission from his familyEs matriarch to
wed Madeline $reenhill, find Madeline $reenhill, court her successfully, and get bac+ to join the party
before its ne#t big adventure.
&he CaravanI "ert decided to find a caravan going to the homeland, he figured he could offer to perform,
scout, and help out to pay his way. "ert was a mid-level character and while not the best in combat, was
very s+illed. &o help him out I had him meet up with an old friend and fellow performed, $abby
$emspar+le a gnome rogue4illusionist. AI made up this character, introduced her as an old friend, and my
player ran with it creating a bac+ story as the adventure unfolded.B "ert and $abby join up with the
%aravan of Master Ansai, a massive caravan of cattle, horses, wagons, and pilgrims that traveled from a
major city to the grand capital and bac+ twice a year. &he caravan is li+e a moving town filled with
interesting people and activities. "ert and $abby are hired to perform and help out the caravan. "ert
performs well and ma+es friends with everyone in the caravan, and when cattle rustlers stri+e the caravan
at night it is "ert who is first on the scene, trac+s down the rustlers, and using hit and run tactics recovers
the cattle for the caravan. Master Ansai is impressed and gives "ert some more tas+s on the route, such
as negotiating with farmers and serving as a liaison with mercenaries as they cross a dangerous forested
area. *hile with the mercenaries, "ert is part of a battle with orcs and with music and sniping helps carry
the battle. *hen the caravan reaches the homeland, Master Ansai pays "ert a bonus of ;8gp, gives him
the pony he had been loaned by the caravan, and is offered employment with good pay for the return
journey, but he needs to be ready to go in 58 days. $abby says goodbye and wishes "ert good luc+, now
"ert is alone.
D%K( ;oteI "ert did very well with the caravan, and it gave me an opportunity to set a time limit for his
courting adventure. Master Ansai offered him a good job for the trip bac+, one that "ert would li+e to ta+e.
&iming is always a problem for solo adventures in reuniting the 3% and party, this employment offer
established a timeline to help bring everything together on time.
3amilyI "ert spends a little time with his family, and sees that some things have changed. Je feels a little
out of place among his +in and friends, but focuses on his tas+ and gets permission from the matriarch to
pursue Madeline $reenhill, who he learns is the daughter of the eccentric wiCard Alton $reenhill and lives
in the northern reach of the homeland.
D%K( ;oteI "ert provided me with a list of some of his family from his bac+ground and I filled in the rest.
It was a brief stay, but I wor+ed in the details from his bac+ground, but also changed details. Jis
liCardmen enemies had made peace with the halflings and unmarried relations were now engaged,
married, or married with +ids. "ac+grounds are great, but a good DM needs to ma+e them evolve to ma+e
them wor+.
3inding %adelineI "ert wanders across the homeland finding $reenhills and trac+ing down Madeline, he
eventually comes to the small town where she and her father lives. "ert learns that she is pursued by the
son of the major who is a big brute, and that her father has disappeared. "ert serenades her and almost is
blasted with magic missiles as Madeline is a low-level wiCard. "ert plies on the charm and eventually
learns from Madeline that her father has disappeared on a 0uest to find the Jouse of DuCen Springapple
the Mad, who was a great halfling wiCard who had a magical house lin+ed to multiple planes and was her
great-grandfather. "ert says he will help her find her father in e#change for her considering to marry him.
Madeline amused with her odd suitor agrees and they set off to find the Jouse of DuCen the Mad.
D%K( ;oteI 2( I admit I patterned Madeline and her situation on "elle from DisneyEs /eauty and the
/east, donEt judge me harshly, but it actually wor+ed very well. /ow as for MadelineEs personality, I have
the prophecy, "elle, and a some ideas. Madeline is of course beautiful, charisma ,9, but she is also bright
and a wiCard. Jer wisdom is a little on the low side, and physically she is a little wea+. She is assertive
and a little bossy Aonly childB, opinionated Awhen she eventually meets the party her little fol+ superiority
does come out from a number of humorous e#changes with the other 3%s who actually arenYt fond of herB,
and loves +nowledge, with Madeline I ma+e up tons of pointless trivial historical facts, she was on trac+ to
be the Doremaster prestige class
&he .ue(t +or 'apaI Madeline +nows where to go and she and "ert loot the grave of an ancient ancestor,
recover a magic +ey, find a secret door, and enter the Jouse of DuCen the Mad. Inside they find a female
Djinn who was an old friend of DuCen and now e#ecutor of his estate, she tells them the house will fall to
the relation who can bring a golden apple, feather of a phoeni#, and water from the celestial ocean to her.
*hen as+ed about Alton, she says he set off to get the items...but he went to Sigil first. &he Djinn advises
them to not go to Sigil as they are...well prime halflings...and a little naive at best, but Madeline and "ert
charge to the portal to Sigil in the upstairs attic of the house. *ell they come out in Sigil, totally out of
their element, and they don!t notice the ghoul-demon watching their portal. &he ghoul-demon leaps out
and tries to ta+e them prisoner, "ert tells Madeline to flee and he fights off the ghoul-demon. Madeline
escapes bac+ through the portal, "ert is captured. Je is ta+en to "aron $af+e an e#iled cambion who has
Alton in his dungeons and wishes the Soul Shard which was stolen from him by DuCen the Mad a centurty
ago. "aron $af+e gives "ert three years to find the Soul Shard, if he succeeds then Alton will be released,
if not then "aron $af+e will be coming to the homeland to find the Soul Shard. "ert is dumped by the
portal and returns to the house and then the homeland and finds Madeline.
D%L( ;ote(I I admit to being overly ambitious, the Jouse of DuCen the Mad is a wonderful site and a true
treasure if it can be reclaimed. Also I get to add a new ""F$ to the campaign and introduce some planar
elements. So many future adventure hoo+sH Jappy DMH
Return to the 'artyI Madeline agrees to follow "ert bac+ to his party to see if they can help rescue her
father and also agrees to marry him along the way as she has become impressed with the charm and
bravery of her suitor. Madeline ma+es a splash with the party and tries too hard to sell herself, she annoys
some of the 3%s, but as she is "ert!s betrothed they let her come with the party. After a few sessions,
Madeline is starting to fit in better, but is frustrated with the party!s obsession with completing their
current contract before deciding what to do with her father. &ragedy stri+esH During an attac+ by evil
druids opposed to the party, Madeline is +illed. She was far lower-level than the rest of the party, and "ert
blames himself for her death. After much indecision he decides to not raise her, but pledges himself to
rescue her father. "ert ac0uires e#treme hatred of druids. "ert struggles and slides from %$ to %/ and
eventually leaves the party after an argument with an /3%.
D%L( ;ote(I 2( I am not a mean DM, it was not my intention to +ill Madeline, plus resurrection was
possible, and the end result was "ert leaving the party. All of this was une#pected, but great for
roleplaying and my player loved the solo adventure and everything that happened. ight now "ert!s player
is waiting for our ne#t solo adventure as he decides what to do about "aron $af+e and Alton $reenhill.
3CR&,"R AD1";&CR"S /3 !"R&
In a previous post I discussed a side adventure I ran for a player for his character "ert *oodshan+ A%$
halfling bard ;4ranger ;B. *ell "ert!s girlfriend had been +illed while adventuring with him and he suffered
a tailspin that slid his alignment to %/ and led to him leaving the party. &he player drew up a new 3% for
the group campaign and as+ed me to run a solo campaign online for "ert, I said yes. As I mentioned
previously, I had him hoo+ up with a famous adventuring company, the Knights of the Glass 5ragon, and
for the first time e#perienced the life of a celebrity hero. Some sessions have transpired since then and
times have changedV.
*hile half the company went to the capital of %alagard to compete in the oyal Adventurers &ournament
Awhere my group campaign was as wellB, "ert and a few others set off to set up for the ne#t adventure of
the Knights of the Glass 5ragon. I sent to %alagard Sir "urid De)ane the leader of the party and a
legendary +night, Ca(tillan the party!s wiCard and sage, Kiran the Red a powerful priest of a dead $od
of *ar, and %a(tiro( an old e#perienced rogue. emoving the Ystars! of the party I give "ert a chance to
contribute and more importantly get to +now the other party members and e#perience the dynamic
without the Ystars.! In many ways his introduction to the party is to the more friendly members.
"ert is traveling with Bady !enova a half-elf arcane archer and wife to Sir Furid, !rugan Cadiran
another new hire and ranger, Do)ren %ur( a +night also new to the party, Aeroth the 3air a half-elf
cleric of the $od of (nowledge and brother to Dady "enova, and !angar Kaz a half-orc barbarian and
another new hire. &his group dresses as pilgrims and wanders through bandit infested area to reach the
town of Ironfast in the ruined epublic of Maerithia. &he plan is to lure bandits into attac+ing the group
and then for the party to defeat the bandits and trac+ a few fleeing survivors bac+ to their base.
"ert 0uic+ly respects Dady "enova as she is forceful, lethal in battle, and actually very nice to "ert. I had
thought that "rugan %adiran and "ert would hit it off, but "ert was friendlier towards "angar (aC so when
the party is attac+ed by bandits and chases the bandits to their base it is "angar (aC and "ert that wor+
together. "ert basically +eeps to the shadows sniping bandits, while "angar (aC runs all over the place
chasing bandits. &he battle is 0uic+ly over and the party loots the base and continues on to Ironfast. &o
complicate matters I ma+e it clear to "ert that Dady "enova and "rugan %adiran are having an affair
during this journey, "ert ta+es this in stride, but this is a foreshadowing of trouble to come.
Ironfast is a fortified city with walls of iron and stone in the Mistral Mountains that occupy the center of the
epublic of Maerithia. Maerithia is ruled by Rueen &ione a powerful wiCard of beauty and tyranny.
Maerithia was once a great land, but over a century ago during the $reat *ar it allied with the Dar+ $ods
and with their defeat has become a cursed land of unrest, monsters, treachery, and ruin. During their
travel through Maerithia which is not a happy land, Dobren Murs complains of the Sirgin *itch who is
Rueen of Maerithia and suggests that Sir Furid claim Maerithia and bring order to the land. Dady "enova
dismisses such ideas and says her husband has no such intention, but there is a little doubt in her
protests.
"ert and company reach Ironfast and begin hiring porters and other retainers for the real 0uest, the Spire
of %aCiral an ancient ruined tower further in the Mistral Mountains. I mention to "ert that Archmage
)aCabon a loyal agent of Rueen &ione rules Ironfast, but that is all he learns about )aCabon while in
Ironfast.
"ert is put in charge of hiring and the people he hires are fascinating, some players are great judges of
character some not so much, and others just hire the weirdest assortment of /3%s. I love hiring sessions,
because I get to do so many weird personalities and usually can get a few laughs and a few potential hires
the 3%s get very e#cited about. /eedless to say "ert pic+ed some of the worse of the batch and a few I
never thought would be hired. 3art of this is because the player has realiCed that the (nights of the $lass
Dragon, unli+e the party from the group campaign, will be using the retainers with little concern for
casualties.
At this point the whole party is reunited with those that went to the oyal Adventurer!s &ournament did
well winning several competitions. N&he group campaign did horribly at the tournament, but on the other
hand the group party is respected for their honor and bravery and service to the *estern (ingdom.O &he
(nights of the $lass Dragon march off to the Spire of %aCiral, supposedly see+ing the treasure of a
Shadow Dragon that lives in the chasm that drops down from the ruined base of the Spire of %aCiral. &hey
arrive and "ertVif placed in charge of guarding the horses with a few retainers. Je fortifies a cave and
fights off a band of wights, but otherwise twiddles his thumbs while the real adventure ta+es place in the
Spire of %aCiral.
&hen "ert starts getting jumpy, something is wrong as one of his retainers Aan adeptB starts spea+ing of a
nearby dar+ presence. In the distance he sees the rest of the (nights of the $lass Dragon Aminus "angar
(aC who fell in the Spire of %aCiralB approaching in the distance. In the cave appears a pit fiend who
vaporiCes the horses and retainers in the cave and tells "ert that he has been sent by Archmage )aCabon
to slay the (nights of the $lass Dragon. "ert flees towards the rest of the party in terror. Approaching is
Dady "enova and "rugan %adiran, "ert hastily tells them of danger when fire erupts among them. All three
are still standing and ma+e an attempt at fighting the 3it Giend, but to no avail. Dady "enova tells "rugan
and "ert to flee and she tries to hold bac+ the 3it Giend. She is subse0uently +illed by the 3it Giend.
&he others of the (nights of the $lass Dragon are beset by Archmage )aCabon who has caught them by
surprise and has several other summoned devils at his command. Aeroth the Gair falls from the initial
onslaught, but Sir Furid atop his dragon mount ta+es the fight to )aCabon. (iran the ed manages to
banish the 3it Giend and the battle 0uic+ly turns to the party!s favor. )aCabon flees bac+ to Ironfast and
surrenders the field.
&he party flees and go toV"ert!s hometown at his suggestion which is actually not that far away. &here the
party restores the fallen Ae#cept "angar (aC who was left in the Spire of %aCiralB and plans their ne#t
move. %astillan has concealed there location from scrying with spells, but Rueen &ione, who is li+ely
behind the attac+, has many spies. Sir Furid decides to fight bac+ and goes with (iran the ed to the
uins of Senubis to raise an army of mercenaries, he sends most of the party into Maerithia to gather
intelligence, but "ert, Dobren Murs, and Mastiros are sent to %alagard to convince the Jigh (ing to stay
neutral in the conflict between Sir Furid and Rueen &ione. "ert is put in charge of the mission as he is the
most diplomatic of that group. "ert recruits a cousin to help guide them to the capital and off they go.
At the capital, they discover that Rueen &ione has cast plague herald Amy own epic spellBK this spell
creates a contagious message that spreads across the continent. *hile in their inn, the group sees a man
run in and announceI >Sir Furid and the (nights of the $lass Dragon have attempted to assassinate
Archmage )aCabon in a bid to overthrow Maerithia. &hey are wanted criminals and Rueen &ione is offering
;8,888 gp for the head of Sir Furid.? "ert fails his will save and runs from the inn see+s out another crowd
and repeats the message. Rueen &ione has won the first move in the propaganda campaign.
&he ne#t day they meet Jigh (ing Maevan II who does not want a civil war in Maerithia, because that is
e#actly what the curse over that land causes. Mastiros is not at the meeting as he is off getting
intelligence. "ert learns that Jigh (ing Maevan II and Sir Furid are rivals, because Sir Furid believed he
should have been named the Jigh (ing of the *estern (ingdom, still the Jigh (ing wants the truth and
"ert and Dobren are 0uestioned about whether Sir Furid was secretly plotting to overthrow Maerithia, both
"ert and Dobren answer in the negative. Rueen &ione is +nown as being unstable so perhaps Sir Furid is
innocent of any wrongdoing. &he Jigh (ing tells "ert to tell Sir Furid to bring his grievance with Rueen
&ione to him and that any war will be opposed by the *estern (ingdom, but is vague about what this
opposition would entail. &his gives the (nights of the $lass Dragon some time and for the moment the
neutrality of the Jigh (ing.
Mastiros meets up with the "ert and Doben and they set off. Several days later they are beset by dar+
goblins on dar+ worgs, as they flee to a halfling village, "ert is dismounted as his pony is +illed. Dobren
and Mastiros return to get him and "ert and Mastiros flee, while Dobren holds off the dar+ goblins. Dobren
is engulfed in shadows and lost, "ert and Mastiros manage to get to the village and the dar+ goblins do
not approach. In the morning, Mastiros suggests they divide up and ta+e two different routes to the ne#t
major town. "ert is alone, but fortunately is in the halfling homeland. Je is met on the road by Rueen
&ioneV
Rueen &ione wants "ert to be her spy and tell her where the (nights of the $lass Dragon are based to
which he refuses. She tells him that obviously he was sent to the Jigh (ing because he really believes that
Sir Furid is innocent, because he +nows nothing. Je did spea+ the truth, but the truth that he has is lies.
She tells him that Sir Furid sought an artifact in the Spire of %aCiral of significance to Maerithia, she +nows
this because she lea+ed the information to him. She also tells him that Sir Furid has been recruiting allies
and agents in Maerithia and his army is already waiting for him at Senubis. She as+s again if he will help
and he again refuses and tosses in some witty banter. She gets angry, but then gets the information she
wants from her magic Aun+nown to "ertB and sighs and apologiCes for what she must do. She says he may
pass, but what happens now falls on his shoulders.
*ell that was the last session and tomorrow is the ne#t session, when things start to pic+ up. &he party
will come together in "ardmoor the hometown of "ert and Sir Furid!s army will be gathering there
concealed by magic. 2ur little bard4ranger is about to be in the middle of what surely will become a ballad,
and li+ely a tragic one at that.
" am loving reading all of these descriptions of solo campaigns, each of them has such great ideas. " am
having a blast with 5aini's solo campaign, in fact if she wasn't so busy " would as her to recount the
campaign so far...her player is brilliant. As for myself " have been running online a solo campaign for
one of my players $see below%, but have been taing a brea for a few wees from serious solo
campaigning to restore the creative energy. 3adly, " am prone to 57 burnout from time to time.
&he !attle o+ !ardmoor
*hen last we left "ert he was returning home from meeting with the Jigh (ing of the *estern (ingdom to
defend the accusations against his new adventuring party the Knights of the Glass 5ragon by Rueen &ione
of Maerithia. "ert returns to find his hometown of "ardmoor overrun with mercenaries hired by Sir Furid
the leader of the Knights of the Glass 5ragon, for a war against Maerithia. "ert is aghast that his town
could be the site of a battle and goes to Matriarch Inara of his clan to discuss the situation. Je learns that
no one is allowed to leave due to secrecy and security. "ert goes to Sir Furid who e#plains that he will
have the army enter Maerithia before battle and (iran the ed AclericB offers "ert command of a halfling
unit guarding the hamlet of %odyEs Garm along the $reat Moor. "ert accepts. 3ir -urid and Kiran the 2ed
wanted /ert away from the area, because they fear he is spying on behalf of Bueen #ione, perhaps
unnowingly. &lus they plan on fortifying /ardmoor for battle and do not want /ert to get angry and cause
problems with the locals. #hey need /ert as a symbol of their good intentions.
"ert reaches %odyEs Garm and has to deal with his lieutenants, which include a bullying cousin, a bandit, a
mercenary, and a local militia leader, a local Matriarch who invites "ert to dinner every night he is there to
EintroduceE him to her daughter in the hopes that the great hero ta+es an interest. *hile at %odyEs Garm,
"ert tries to send off messages to get help for "ardmoor from the Jigh (ing and the rest of the Jalfling
homeland, he also has to deal with the liCardfol+ Athe source of his favored enemyI reptilian humanoidsB
and actually negotiates with them to not attac+ %odyEs Garm. &he liCardfol+ have a recent peace
agreement with the halflings and believe the large mercenary army is being amassed to ta+e the $reat
Moor from them, but their local +ing gives the halflings three days to pull the mercenaries out.
Fventually, "ert and his men are called bac+ to "ardmoor as the enemy is coming. Archmage )aCabon and
his army is marching into "ardmoor. "ert is terrified for his homeland, family, and friends. Je tries to meet
with Sir Furid, but is denied entrance to the command center, he is ordered to get his troops in the
fortifications. "ertEs goal is to protect "ardmoor and try to get as many of his men to survive as possible.
Jis unit is nestled among mercenaries and behind crude fortifications, fortunately he is in the 5rd line of
fortifications. It is a night battle. *ith the sounds of fighting getting louder and coming closer, he notices
that the *ar %aptain is being attac+ed by something invisible..."ert, his men, and the other mercenaries
watch in horror as something +ills the *ar %aptain. Cnnown to /ert it is an invisible staler ordered to
ill all who wear the helms that signal them to be ,ar Captains. "ert is rattled as is everyone in the area,
a ed %leric of *ar comes forward and calms the area, but this is not a good sign. Fventually, the 5rd line
moves forward to engage humanoids. "ert is doing very well yelling orders, using his bardic abilities to
rally troops, sniping at goblins, and is +eeping his unit together. Jis forces ta+e the top of the 6nd
line...when hell hounds enter the battle, but after they are routed a cloudill spell appears and starts
moving across the battlefield from the 6nd line towards the 5rd line. ight behind the cloud+ill is an iron
golem and behind the iron golem, are the +nights, pi+emen, and crossbowmen that form the elite forces
of Maerithia. &he spellcasters of this unit begin spewing spells and "ert gets hit by a fireball, his bullying
cousin and lieutenant whose life he just saved from an ogre is +illed in the blast.
"ert withdraws his forces to the 5rd line avoiding the slow moving cloud and iron golem. "ert is at this
point just trying to +eep his men alive, by the time the iron golem hits the 5rd line, "ert is fleeing with his
men to the <th line which is in the heart of "ardmoor. Jere he sees Dady "enova who is leading the last
defense of "ardmoor, she seems sad and crushed, she tells "ert to get his people out of there the battle is
lost. Cnnown to /ert, lady benova's lover was illed in a suicide mission ordered by 6ady /enova's
husband, 3ir -urid. 4urthermore, she was ordered to hold the town and now she nows that her husband
e+pects her to die for cheating on him. "ert with his few remaining troops leaves and flees for Muddy
"roo+ the nearest town of any siCe and where most halflings have fled.
"ertEs men who remain are very loyal to him, he has done a good job leading them in a disastrous
situation, but when he arrives in Muddy "roo+ many other halflings blame him for bringing the (nights of
the $lass Dragon to "ardmoor. Matriarch Inara Awho is also his grandmother "&*B is despondent and
when they see the flames of "ardmoor in the distance they +now it has been destroyed.
"ert is stunned, upset, and confused. Dord upi $lenwhistle comes as an emissary of the Jigh (ing
loo+ing to bring Sir Furid and the (nights of the $lass Dragon bac+ to %alagard for trial as they started a
war with a member AMaerithiaB of the *estern (ingdom. At this point Mastiros the thief of the (nights of
the $lass Dragons arrives to ma+e an offer to "ert.
"ert is as+ed to join the inner circle of the new government of Maerithia which is ruled by (ing Furid. &he
battle was lost, but Rueen &ione was predictably watching the battle intently from her scrying chamber in
the &ower of Maerithia. Sir Furid and other members of the party ambushed Rueen &ione as she watched
the battle and have +illed her and ensured that she will not be resurrected. &hey have secured the &ower
of Maerithia and are wor+ing on controlling the city of Maerithia. @es, the "attle of "ardmoor was lost, but
the war has been won. "ert is offered to be oyal %omposer and a "aron of Maerithia and will now be part
of the Inner %ircle.
Dord upi is speechless and tells "ert he will not stop him from leaving...but if he stays he must come to
the Jigh (ing for judgment. Mastiros tells Dord upi that (ing Furid has withdrawn Maerithia from the
*estern (ingdom. "ert gets Mastiros to give him a hour to decide and he goes off to spea+ to Matriarch
Inara. &his is where we left off. I have no idea what "ert will decide to do, face the Jigh (ing or join (ing
Furid in Maerithia, he is %/A$B so it is hard to say for sure, but my player is doing a great job.
CAMPAIGN EXAMPLE #3
I have been inspired by 2rmiss to post an overview of my current solo campaign, which is not D1D.
Soledad Ca(tenada
*ell right now I am running a solo campaign with my wife in ifts that could be called *est *ingI ifts by
the way it is playing out. ifts is a post-apocalyptic setting where the Farth is overrun by beings and
demons that have come through the ifts. It is an outrageous setting with little game balance and I used
to have major problems with the mechanics, but a recent revision and my wifeEs enthusiasm for the
setting prompted me to try another ifts campaign.
*e started on the premise that my wife wanted to run a %oaltion Aevil human supremacist nation that is
anti-magic, but also the most advanced and safe nation in /orth AmericaB deserter who turns her fellow
deserters into a mercenary unit. *e ran one adventure and it felt stale and neither of us got into it as it
was pretty similar to solo campaigns we had run before. My wife li+ed her character a psychic named
Soledad %astenada...and she li+ed the idea of bounty hunting instead of being a mercenary, but I felt that
bounty hunting would get stale 0uic+. *e stepped away from the solo campaign for a few wee+s.
I retooled the campaign and had Soledad instead of being a deserter, she was e#iled from the %oalition for
investigating corruption too high up the chain of command. I was inspired by a series of mystery boo+s we
have been reading about a %hinese police officer sent to prison in &ibet for similar reasons and embraces
&ibetan "uddhism, then gets involved in murder investigations, and eventually released to wander &ibet.
Soledad is sent from the %oalition to be part of the e#odus program with which she will be given a senior
law enforcement position in an allied but separate mostly human +ingdom AManisti0ue ImperiumB with a
lu#ury apartment, high salary, and all manner of benefits. Although Soledad is being +ic+ed out of the
%oalition, she was a honest and brilliant investigator so her supporters made sure she would be ta+en care
of in e#ile.
*e began the campaign on the ship that too+ her to Manisti0ue and was sitting in the harbor, but while
the ship was traveling to Manisti0ue with trade goods and passengers the Imperium went through a civil
war and a change in government. Soledad helps with communications monitoring and waits on the ship for
6 wee+s, tensions rising on board, and confusion about what was happening on shore. Fventually, the
government sends out a delegation led by an alien to process visas, clearly the pro-human government
has been ousted. Soledad fears the worse and is confirmedI all the benefits she was promised have been
rescinded and she has no apartment or job waiting for her. Gortunately, the alien AMinister of Immigration
1 &ourismB gives her a few meal and hotel vouchers, lets her in the Imperium, and wishes her good luc+.
She goes to the oyal 3olice Service and presents herself for employment, ma+ing it clear she will ta+e
any wor+ and that as a former police lieutenant and psychic she is very 0ualified. She is accepted by the
Special %rimes "ureau as a detective Aa demotion from her previous position in the %oalitionB and
assigned to Sgt. aCEtorga+ "era+ a alien-bear magic user as her partner. She has to deal with all her
prejudices at once as it is clear that this is a test by her new superiors. She gets a rundown apartment
and a bicycle and is ready to wor+.
My wife is interesting as a roleplayerK her abilities do actually match the character. In my online group
campaign she is playing a half-ogre barbarian and she plays it well and thin+s li+e a half-ogreK in this
campaign she is playing a savant police investigator with psychic abilities and was truly phenomenal at
roleplaying out the police wor+. Soledad and Sgt. aC were one of the few paranormal teams in the oyal
3olice Service A3SB, so they were given lots of cases involving demonic cults, demons, wiCards gone mad,
psychic criminals, and the li+e.
Soledad grew frustrated with the ability of criminals to stri+e and then leave the Imperium and discovered
%A%&=S A%ooperative Apprehension of %riminals &reaty for =nifed SecurityB a little +nown agreement that
the Imperium belonged to that focused on bounty hunters and bringing to justice mobile criminals. *ith
her computer bac+ground she begins improving the program and championing for the Imperium to
become more involved with this agreement. N2( admittedly with two lawyers we get e#cited about
treaties, laws, jurisdiction, and all that nonsense.O
&he Rueen of the Imperium names a new head for the 3S, an alien from a advanced state +nown as
DaCloK his first action is to have all personnel ta+e a battery of tests, submit their resumes, and also any
ideas or suggestions they have. Soledad submits a very lenghty series of suggestions. &hen Minister AClan
eyn tells the officers of the 3S to dismiss ,8Q of their personnel. SoledadEs lieutenant fires her as she is
the least senior of the department and not even a citiCen. Soledad uses her computer s+ills to send her
resume directly to the new minister and then waits to see what happens. Minister eyn then gives Soledad
her lieutenantEs job and tells her to e#periment with a paranormal investigations department.
At this point the campaign is moving along pretty well and Soledad is also doing volunteer wor+ teaching
computer s+ills to EgiftedE children at an orphanage and school supported by her new church. She is trying
dating, but with limited results and is slowly coming to consider the Imperium home.
A major series of terrorist attac+s by enemies of the %oalition using magic and determined to punish the
Imperium for its economic alliance with the %oalition puts Dt. Soledad %astenada in the spotlight. 3ressure
is on, lives are on the line, and Dt. %astenada manages to thwart the terrorist cell, though several escape.
&his though gives her national attention. She goes on a delegation out *est to go to the annual %A%&=S
%onference and she ma+es friends with law enforcement personnel across the continent and also senior
leader of the Imperium, including the new Goreign Minister $wen 3atterson who is really the power behind
the new government. She comes home and is on the way up.
&hen one night the %oalition comes to her apartment and they have a deal,I she spies for them and in five
years she can come bac+ to the %oalition as a citiCen with a high position. &hey ma+e it clear that they can
ma+e her life more than difficult if she refuses, but they focus the discussion on the carrot. Soledad is
scared, but goes to the first alien she met, Minister $arCan &ripphas of Immigration 1 &ourism and as+s
for help. Je gets her to ta+e citiCenship and inform every +ey government official she +nows that she was
contacted by the %oalition. She has thrown her lot in with the Imperium and its new government.
&he campaign moves forward and Dt. %astenada eventually rises to %apt. and creates the Special &hreats
Department to deal with the most eggregious of threats, which in ifts is pretty outrageously e#treme.
She begins wor+ing with mercenaries though the Manisti0ue Imperium Mercenary $uild Aan institution of
my own invention and really coolBK she uses these mercenaries to stri+e terrorists and pirates outside of
the Imperium. She also recruits clairvoyants and they lead to the discovery of a pending coup against the
government in power that is supported by some high-ran+ing members of the government and also the
%oalition, which wants to anne# the Imperium. Minister eyn and Goreign Minister 3atterson are informed
by Soledad of the situation just a few days before the coup is plannedK comple# maneuvering, psychic and
magical interrogations concealed by mind wipes, and delicate planning allow the government to thwart the
coup with minimal loss of life. &he %oalition aborts its invasion plans against a prepared and ready
Imperium. %apt. Soledad %astenada is a hero.
2( as for campaign planning, we had gotten *est *ing Seasons , 1 6 as gifts over %hristmas and as we
have been watching and loving the series, I started thin+ing that this could be a cool approach for the
Soledad campaign. After the coup, the new relatively new monarch, Rueen Marie, has been pretty much a
figurehead in the Imperium and has been poorly informed about security issues though she is a +ey vote
on the ImperiumEs Security %ouncil. She recruits %aptain Soledad %astenada to serve as her oyal
%onservator. %aptain Soledad is now responsible for advising the Rueen on security and foreign policy
issues and has a office of loyal people that she has built throughout her time in the Imperium, Sgt. aC is
still with her as well, to assist her and carry out investigations on behalf of the Rueen. 2n her first wee+
on the job she initiated investigations into a distant civil war in a state that is believed to be secretly
controlled by androids, dispatched a recon team to determine the threat of a demon state to an allied
+ingdom, and began investigation a princess of the Imperium to see if she might be convinced to enter
into an arragned marriage with a +ing of a rising +ingdom. &he Rueen is thrilled to finally have someone
e#plaining her these issues and this has allowed her for the first time to ta+e control of a Security %ouncil
meeting. /ow the politics will begin as some of the government donEt li+e the idea of the Rueen being
assertive.
2( now for this campaign I created a very comple# government for the Imperium, there are four royal
families, a Senate, a %abinet Ministry with elected Ministers, a 3rivy %ouncil to advise the Rueen, the
oyal Services Awhich are the law enforcement and military branches of the governmentB, and seven Anow
si# following a merger of the two wea+estB political parties. In a few months I have created over 6887
/3%s of which about ;87 are recurring characters, though the story is about a core group of 68
characters. Soledad has finally starting dating a decent guy, unfortunately he is a mercenary leader and
his unit is away and in danger most of the time, which is the +ey flaw in their relationship that must be
addressed among others. Gor bac+ground materials I have EnewsE reports from Sundays that are about 5
pages of material Aconsisting of a highlight of +ey articles in major newspapers and a synopsis of a major
&S news program that Soledad watchesB. I have done about 58 of these so far so there is lots of depth to
the setting.
I will post later overviews of 6 old D1D campaigns, which share elements of this campaign and show how
to do some of the same things in a D1D setting.
CA%'AI; "JA%'B" I5
.ueen "leanor 'eridan Caldru
" had two &Cs brea off from one of my best group campaign and become two of my most epic solo
campaigns. 4irst, " will tell the story of 6ady -leanor &eridan a fighterDcavalier who would become the first
Bueen of the ,estern Kingdom.
Dady Fleanor was a +night from minor nobility in the +ingdom of &imbron who joined up with an
adventuring group that was see+ing the lost &omb of Fmperor "elagon, a great warlord who was the son
of the $od of *ar and who nearly con0uered the entire continent a millennium ago. Je was +illed by
elves, or actually by his wife on behalf of the elves, but his tomb was forever hidden. &his difficult 0uest
went across the continent and the party faced all manner of challenges from rival parties, a river god, to
finally the reborn Fmperor "elagon whom they awo+e when they discovered his tomb. Most of the party
survived this 0uest, but the party dissolved when its common purpose ended. Some became villains, some
tried to +eep the company going Aeventually the remnants of the entire party were decimated in a later
adventureB, but Dady Fleanor decided to find her own destiny.
In the party, Dady Fleanor was closest to Arendius, a old diviner4loremaster /3% who was a font of useful
and useless information, and was aided by her s0uire "runs+, who was a s0uire only in the most generous
sense and was mostly a glorified groom of pessimistic disposition and limited education. Dady Fleanor was
disappointed with most of the monarchs she had encountered in her travels including the less than
impressive +ing of &imbron and she dreamed of serving a great +ing.
Arendius came to her one day with information about &heus an ancient +ing who was elevated to
godhood, but who returned to the world to be reborn as a mortal +ing for the ages. Je unfortunately was
betrayed by dar+ gods, and his ancient +ingdom collapsed, but legends say that &heus continues to be
reborn with no memory of his e#istence, but waiting for his chance to rebuild his +ingdom. &he old party
had encountered the fabled *hite Armor of &heus and tangled for a time with its curse, before a party
member died and they were rid of it by giving it to the %hurch of Mithras Aa warrior god for +nights and
paladins and Dady FleanorEs faith of choiceB. Dady Fleanor and "runs+ began a 0uest to find the
reincarnation of &heus with Arendius providing research and occassionally joining in on the 0uest.
ASee &heus for a generic and slightly dummed-down version I used in Master DM %ompetitions Z,-.B
"runs+Es contribution was to taste various local fruit preserves on their travels as it was said that where
&heus lived the land would be bountiful, so "runs+ figured that the best preserves would lead them to
&heus. Dady Fleanor was more methodical and sought out to find any remnants of the "lue (nights an
ancient order of +nights dedicated to serving &heus. /either of them were overly successful, but Dady
Fleanor, who was a gifted warrior and very well-e0uipped, dispatched much evil in her travels. &hey were
joined by an elven ranger named Marinane who was saved by Dady Fleanor and in truth was curious about
the 0uest and figured a decade or two searching for a lost god-+ing would be an interesting e#perience.
&hey are also joined by /umestra ADady FleanorEs new cohortB who was a bard that wished to sing songs
about this legendary female +night and hero.
Dady Fleanor from her travels and discussions with sages and prophets came to fear that a great crisis was
on the horiCon and that only by finding &heus could this crisis be averted. Still she despaired, but one
night was visited by a young girl named Marie Ain reality this was Aurora a good god feared by my players
for her meddling and heavy handed approach to mortalsB who gave Fleanor a magical compass that would
lead to the birthplace of the current incarnation of &heus.
Dady Fleanor, Marinane, and "runs+ set off in pursuit and came to a village in Anduran and learned of a
young man named Micadus Jaeron who went to the 3rincipality of 3ailanus to study engineering and was
wor+ing on the $rand &emple of Dalicus A%/ $reater $od of the SeaB, which would be the largest temple
in the continent upon its completion. 3ailanus was a port city of great culture and justice, but Dady Fleanor
still feared for the safety of &heus, or Micadus, and tried her best to conceal her identity when she sought
him out for she was not an un+nown hero in these lands.
She 0uic+ly found Micadus who was a gifted young engineer wor+ing as a foreman for a pittance of a wage
on the $rand &emple of Dalicus. Je was a respected and well-li+ed leader and the wor+ers loo+ed to him
to settle their grievances, but he was not +ingly to the eye of Dady Fleanor, at least not yet. Dady Fleanor
eventually 0uietly introduced herself to him and e#plained his destiny, not surprisingly he rejected the idea
and thought Dady Fleanor a disturbed woman. She refuses to leave his side and stated that she would
protect him from harm, which was fortunate as a few days later a demon-assassin came after Micadus and
Dady Fleanor barely managed to fight him off. Jis identity revealed, the dar+ gods were already in pursuit.
Micadus was still in denial, when Marie showed up and told him to grow up and deal with it and advised
the two of them to leave 3ailanus now as "elagon was coming to invade the 3rincipality. Dady Fleanor
as+ed if "elagon sent the demon-assassin and Marie replied, no that was sent by Deho+ the $od of Gear
and &error whose tas+ it is to ensure that &heus does not ascend again as a god.
Dady Fleanor gathers her party and ta+es Micadus from 3ailanus just ahead of the floating citadel of
"elagon and an army of thousands of mercenaries and "elagonEs Stone Army, which is composed of one
thousand stone constructs inhabited by the souls of his best soldiers from a thousand years ago. &hey
await in the Farth until called forth by "elagon from any point in the world. 3ailanus is occupied and the
continent trembles in fear of another dar+ reign by Fmperor "elagon. *ord also spreads that &heus the
*hite (ing has returned to the land to bring peace, but in truth Micadus is confused and unable to process
all that is happening.
Dady Fleanor is joined by Arendius and they realiCe that they were part of the party that accidentally
restored "elagon to life so this crisis is their responsibility, but that the best they could do is organiCe a
common defense of the western +ingdoms with maybe Micadus as the central +ing or leader of the cause.
Marinane is sent to the Flven Dands to get help, while the rest of the party heads for Maerithia and
Alphatea the two most powerful +ingdoms in the west. "ehind them "elagon is 0uic+ly claiming territory
for his new +ingdom.
Gear is rampant, and many of the lands are afraid of opposing "elagon for the legends of his cruelty to
those who challenged him are many. &he wiCards of Maerithia decide to be neutral in the conflict and the
halfling shires follow this e#ample. In Alphatia, the party is welcomed by the aged (ing Sorian P who is a
man of faith and immediately accepts Micadus as &heus reborn and pledges the aid of his mighty +ingdom
in this cause. Je names his grandson 3rince %usarus to command his forces to face "elagonK immediately
3rince %usarus disli+es Micadus and the two of them are in constant arguments. 3rince %usarus is a +night
and military officer, while Micadus is of a more commoner, with a fle#ible nature. Micadus also becomes
smitten with 3rincess &ione, another grandchild of (ing Sorian P.
&he "elagon *ar begins in earnest with the +nights of Alphatea routing many of the mercenaries of
"elagon who lac+ the discipline and s+ill of his armies of ancient times. &he legendary Fmperor had been
too impatient and his invasion begins to crumble as it was not prepared for serious resistance. "elagon
orders boulders dropped from his floating citadel to devastate 3ailanus and sends word to this EMicadusE
that if his forces continue to advance he will completely destroy 3ailanusK he also releases the blac+
dragons he has under his command from an ancient accord with the "lac+ Dragon (ing.
&here is much debate among the leaders and Micadus suggests that the army hold position and stall, while
he tries to convince the elves to aid the cause. Dady Fleanor and Micadus go to the elves and find that
they are mobiliCing for war against their old enemy, they will throw their s+y ships and aerial cavalry
against the fortress and will provide archers to the army. &he decision is made and the army advances on
3ailanus riding through the night in hope of getting as close to 3ailanus as possible before discovery. At
this point several new heroes have joing the party including Gargain Ironshield of the dwarves and the
brother Sir Almayce and Sir &igris of Alphatea. Dady Fleanor ta+es the party to deal with the most
powerful of the blac+ dragons and by morning the fortress is in retreat with the elves suffering heavy
casualties but hounding "elagon in his withdrawal. Much of his Stone Army was lost and his mercenaries
totally routed, more importantly the invincible mysti0ue of the ancient Fmperor "elagon has been lost.
Dady Fleanor e#pects Micadus to ta+e the throne of 3ailanus and wor+ to unite the western +ingdoms, but
Micadus instead installs a survivor of the oyal Gamily of 3ailanus and ta+es but a small town as his
dominion. Je intends to unite the land with words and wisdom not with swords and braveryK Dady Fleanor
accepts this and ta+es charge of the newly formed "lue (nights., but she is unhappy with the passive
nature of her new liege and is drawn in many ways to the more direct and assertive 3rince %usarus.
&he "lue (nights under Dady Fleanor fight many evils including a great red dragon and the )abberwoc+,
from these battles many of the ancient artifacts are found including the %rown of &heus, which gives
Micadus memories of his godhood and re+indle some of his abilities, but he still refuses to become any
more than an advisor to other +ings. A suit of "lue Armor is also found and brought bac+ for a tournament
to be fought to see who should wear this armor from among the "lue (nights.
Dady Fleanor is nervous about this tournamentK she is the Girst of the "lue (nights and should win the
tournament and get the armor, but many years ago she was a disaster in tournaments. /ot surprisingly,
times have changed and Dady Fleanor easily wins the tournament against some of the best +nights of the
continent. Gor a time she and a band of "lue (nights travel to other tournaments to herald the wisdom
and glory of Micadus Jaeron. Dady Fleanor also becomes closer to 3rince %usarus as the two of them have
much in common and dream of a united *estern (ingdom. Dady Fleanor finds her relation with Micadus
distant as he turnes to 3rincess &ione and others for counsel, but no other warrior is as famous or feared
as Dady Fleanor and the %hurch of Mithras names her as their champion as well.
&hen the $odswar began.
Archon the (ing of the $ods is slain in treachery by the Dar+ $ods in the Sacred Jall where no god can
harm another, but the Dar+ $ods snea+ in powerful mortals with divine gifts to ambush and slay Archon. A
war erupts in the 2uter 3lanes that threatens to destroy the 3antheon, this causes ripples and fear in the
world and Micadus +nows what he must do for good to remain in control of the heavens and the world
Awhich is one of five worlds controlled by my pantheon, each world is different, but share similarities in
culture and traditionsB. Dady Fleanor is sent to recover an ancient +ey, which he will use to summon =
the over-power to issue a challenge on behalf of the gods of light. Micadus tal+s to = as a god and all the
gods are trapped on the world to fight till one god is selected as +ingK = also restores many dead gods to
life, including Archon.
Dady Fleanor is a little overwhelmed, but does her best and see+s counsel from Aurora who is in her full
form now and ready for combat against evil. Dady Fleanor is told to gather forces for battle as Maerithia
has joined with evil and Alphatea is where the $odswar will be fought and ended, she is also told to go to
the capital of Alphatea for (ing Sorian P has marched to aid another +ingdom and evil has found roost on
the throne. 2n the way Dady Fleanor tangles with lesser demigods and holds her own, but realiCes that
this fight is beyond her and only commits her party when absolutely necessary. She joins up with 3rince
%usarus and the two of them march on the throne where (arse the $od of Deception Aa minor demigod
but a real painB is posing as the Jigh 3riest of Archon and is serving as egent. &hey drive him out and
prepare for the onslaught as the dar+ gods are marching with their mortal followers towards Alphatea. &he
two of them provide heroic leadership to Alphatea during this crisis. &he "attle of %alagard is where it all
comes down, Dady Fleanor and 3rince %usarus ride out to meet (ing Sorian P and the gods of light to
battle the gods of dar+ness and their allies. Survival is the hope and the goal is to give the gods of light
any edge in this battle.
Dady Fleanor and her band plow through the mortal minions and even destroy a few minor divinities, but
they are +noc+ed around li+e playdolls by the more powerful dar+ gods. (ing Sorian P is +illed as are
many of the great heroes of the land. Archon is nearly destroyed again, but Mithras steps up and defeats
Tythgal the $od of Dar+ness. &he rest of the dar+ gods immediately surrender the challenge and Archon is
elevated again as the (ing of the $ods, though his faith is demoraliCed and wea+ened and in terms of
divine power both Aurora and Mithras are now greater.
&he We(tern Kingdom
Micadus Jaeron, the reborn &heus, refuses to become the ruler of the *estern (ingdom, but announces
his support for such an idea as long as all +ingdoms would be e0ual under its rule. 3rince %usarus marries
Dady Fleanor and they are selected as the first Jigh (ing and Jigh Rueen of the *estern (ingdom. A
%ouncil of 3rinces and the western +ingdoms are united and in time become the most dominant power of
the continent.
&his is where the campaign ended.
I switched my group campaigns to another of my Give *orlds for a time and then came bac+ to this world
about ,68 years in the future long after the death of Jigh Rueen Fleanor and Jigh (ing %usarus, but with
the *estern (ingdom still strong and just. Jonestly, we have yet to decide if they are really dead or now
minor divinities or angels, but for the mortal world they are dead. &his was one of my more epic
campaigns and my most epic in D1D. &here was some politics, but not much the real challenges were
tactical and in building something lasting. &his solo campaign also completely fleshed out my campaign
world.
" should also note that " trimmed out a lot from the adventures of 6ady -leanor, including an orc war, a
battle against the &rince of 8ampires, and numerous other hefty *uests. 6ady -leanor began the group
campaign at Eth level, started the solo campaign at @@th level and we ended the campaign at ;Fth level.
Campaign "#ample 6
/oteI I realiCe this is mostly a guide to running a solo campaign, and I thin+ it is a great one, but I
thought this might be pertinent as I am a player and a teacher right now. -- A)O
I am currently a player in a solo campaign that just started. $oing all the way bac+ to circa ,-.-, I have
been almost the sole DM for my group Aone of the current group is the friend I started DMing for way bac+
thenB. So as a player I have only really ta+en one character to the upper reaches of levels, and that was in
6nd edition AJalf-elf G4M4&B when we added a couple more players, and one who DMs luc+ily.
/ow, we have tal+ed two other players into trying their hands at DMing, one of them is my wife. AAlright,
my wife tal+ed the other player into running by promising to run a campaign of her own ' she has run a
very enjoyable %hangeling chronicle for a few years now, but mostly as note writing and not for the whole
group.B
If you followed that, then I now have three other D1D campaigns that I can run a character in Athe guy
who ran the G4M4& is running another now ' I!m a angerHB. Jowever, I freely admit that I am not 0uite
over the +ic+ in the door, lay some smac+down on the monster and ta+e its treasure mode of play. I don!t
mind some story and character development, but it should lead to some action. So rather than ta+e a
chance and screwing up a new DMs campaign, I approached my wife and since she needs to flesh out her
world some more and needs to learn how to be a DM, she agreed to run a solo.
It is still mostly note writing as we have two toddlers which leave little time for anything but a few notes
most nights.
Fnter &omas Sane+ Ayes, I stole the name from the "uffalo Sabre playerB, %leric of Sal+or, a Jeironeous-
li+e god who teaches that you should be as honorable as possible unless evil will get away with whatever it
is trying to do A/eutral $oodB. &omas is the second son and third child of a merchant family on the island
Aand townB of @arric+. I rolled his height and weight randomly on the charts in the 3Jb and Sane+ is a big
boy at :! ;? tall. $rowing up, he found himself always protecting the little guy from the bully, and when he
heard about Sal+or Anot the most worshipped god in the area ' that would be 2tori Nanother stolen
nameO, a trade goddessB it felt natural to worship him. Since his older brother was going to inherit the
family business, and &omas isn!t really good at accounting, his family was eventually understanding of his
calling.
&here was briefly a second player at first level and we went through >A Dar+ and Stormy /ight? Anice little
adventureB, but the other player for some reason made a character from a country that doesn!t thin+ so
highly of humans, so he was left to go his own way after the Stormpeace ended. Since Sane+ is a +ic+ in
the door, shout >Sillians I say to you now, (noc+ off all that FvilH?, lay some smac+down on those who
don!t and ta+e their treasure bac+ to Sal+or!s main AonlyB church, he headed down to the coastal city-state
of &arrish to sail home. Along the way he met up with a bard /3% by saving his horse from some wild
dogs. My wife runs him non-combat, I run him in combat.
In &arrish, we were set upon by rogues who set up a little play where one pretended to be getting
mugged, then they both turned on us. I am finding so far that a little Divine Gavor goes a long way. As we
tried to leave the inn to catch our ship, we ended up in another tangle with a couple of guys who were
apparently beating up the stable boy to find one of the guys that attac+ed us in the alley. After more
discussions with the city watch about the three +illings Sane+ was involved in, we finally caught our ship to
@arric+V
*here we were mista+enly identified as the two guys who we +illed in the stable at the inn. &urns out they
were from the Sind-hall, a loose organiCation where one can go to hire bounty hunters and bodyguards,
and this small young man needed some bodyguards.
At this point, I should e#plain that all the trade along the southern coast is controlled by the Jelveetian
Deague. If a ship without the proper seals tries to land at one of their ports, the cargo is seiCed. It!s not
0uite as bad as it sounds, because they actually want more traders because that increases the ta#
revenues, so they are 0uite fair in giving out the seals ' there is no overt tyranny about it or shunning of
merchants. &hey just want to ma+e sure they get paid. &his also sets up smuggling as a problem, and the
eastern coast cities are not part of the Deague, so there is no regulation there.
"ac+ to the small young man, who it seems got into a card game where he and his chief opponent were
cheating each other to win a nice pot. &he opponentI a customs official in &arrish. &he potI Si# ta# seals.
Sane+ liberated them from the annoying small young man and plans to turn in the customs official.
Meanwhile, the bard flirts with a married woman and the husband comes to Sane+ loo+ing for his wife and
the bard. And this after Sane+ warned (edmon that Sal+or does not protect from angry husbands. =nless
there!s weapons involved. Down where our horses are stalled, it sounds li+e the woman is being
entertained, the guy opens the latch, the bard!s horse is upset and when Sane+ tries to calm her, whamH
Je gets snea+ attac+ed. It was all a set up ' againH ' and the man and woman were sent by the customs
official to get the seals bac+. &he woman, a wiCard who apparently does not +now the strength of will of a
servant of Sal+or, tries to cast a couple spells on Sane+ while he fights the rogue. &he spells fiCCle, so too
does the rogue despite Sane+ not wearing his breastplate or shield, and once the wiCard was faced with a
rather bloodied mace, she surrendered.
&hat was last night and I just made 5rd level. *hoo-hooH
Campaign "#ample I7
As e0uested,
Jere is a 0uic+ run down of the adventure so far. "ut before I tell the story I feel that I must report that
my wife ran the adventure at the end of the dungeon crawl and did so well that she moved up a level with
her character. I realised it was not so much that my wife felt overwhelmed by the events that were placed
before her but it was my inability to describe the first area that she was entering. As she mentioned a little
too much video game and not enough reality.
So the adventure so far. My wife!s character entered Daggerford and was approached by a gentleman from
the L2rder of (nowledgeL. Jer first mission, a mission to not only remind her of the rules but also to help
her play a rogue, was to brea+ into the house of the street cleaner and retrieve a ring that he had found.
&old to be stealthful and not leave a mess she left all the other items that she found and only removed the
ring from its hiding place. She returned this to her contact to be as+ed to investigate the disappearance of
a boo+ believed to be held at the town library. *ith a little help from the /3% she discovered that the
owner of the library was recreating the te#ts of some of the boo+s, removing information such as maps
and +ey parts of history and then returning these replica boo+s to the shelves.
unning to meet her contact at the playhouse she found a number of men already there and her contact
being 0uestioned by a liCardman and a female drow sorcerer. After a well-fought battle and the drow
teleporting out of the area my wife was able to give the information to her contact before the warning
bells of the town rang out. A half hearted attac+ on the town by the liCardmen allowed a number of people
to infiltrate the town center, attac+ the library and remove a number of boo+s and scrolls from those that
were within. During the attac+ my wife watched one of the town fol+ be attac+ed by the liCardmen after he
had identified the person that the attac+ers were tal+ing to. &his /3% has remained unconscious until
+now but is ready to awa+e and pass on his information.
It has become apparent that there is a rival group and that they are more interested in finding out the
whereabouts of certain items and +eeping them for themselves but what are they e#actly loo+ing forM AI
+now but it still needs a little wor+ on my partB My wife then too+ a mission Athe dungeon crawlB to
retrieve some of the items ta+en but also to find the scrying device being used to eavesdrop upon the
plans of the L2rderL. &his was where the adventure went a little sour but my wife battled through it,
finding the items she was as+ed to retrieve and being teleported to the library of the 2rder. &his is where
we are about to restart allowing her some time to rest and discover the identities of the items that she
discovered in the last part of her adventure. She also found a few notes that may ID who is behind these
attac+s and orders.
&hen it is bac+ to Daggerford to tal+ to the /3% that was +noc+ed down by the liCardmen, and to discover
that not only are there a few that are impersonating our heroes but that a price has been laid upon their
heads. A run in with the local thieves guild is also in the wor+s as is the assassination of the one in town
who is wor+ing for the rival group.
As I stated, the problem with the dungeon crawl was my inability to describe what she was coming up
against and not her being scare of what was ahead. In fact she had me laughing so hard I could not
continue. *hen faced with the drow rogue who was to announce to her that her trip was a waste of time
and soon they would die, my wife started rolling a D68 halfway through her banter. *hen as+ed why she
replied LShe just insulted my traveling companion, and now she diesL. I was very impressed with the way
she handles the situations and the way that she used stealth and suprise to her advantage.
2n a side note, last wee+ my wife started DMing for me in a avenloft campaign. She did a fantastic job
and I see a lot of wonderful 3 in our futures. 2nce again than+s for a wonderful topic and the help that
you have provided for us all.
Campaign "#ample I8
first wanted to than+ you guys for this thread. Seems that it adresses most of the concerns I had about
runing a solo campaign. It is definitely going to stuc+ in my dmg for some time .
I have a few 0uestions though. ItEs in fact my first e#perience as a dm, and I have little e#perience as a
player AI started playing some time ago while abroad, when I came bac+ home I could not manage to find
a group thus I decided just to form mine, and try to dm. &urn out that IEm running a solo campaign with
my cousinEs boyfriend, who never roleplayed beforeB.
Je decided to be a druid, and I let him spea+ about his bac+ground AI planned to set up a story out of the
information he was giving.B. I just told me that as far as he remembered, he always lived in the forest.
JeEs got a very pale s+in and red eyes, but heEs human anyway. Je just want to leave the forest he +nows
well to e#plore the surroundings.
2ut of that, I decided he had been living in the forests north of archendale. I chose to use the forgotten
realms as bac+ground Adeities, countries, guilds, ...B, but I just follow the basic rules. &o e#plain his
strange features, IEm planning to ma+e him the son of a drow and a dragon Abtw, he incidentally chose to
be called darvin dundragon... and spea+ draconic. I suppose he wants his story to be related to
dragons...B. IEm not sure it is really valid since heEs human Amaybe a half-elf would be more accurate, if I
consider the dragon to ta+e a human formB. So my first 0uestion isI does this story ma+e senseM JeEs not
yet aware of anything related to his origin so I can change my story if needed.
*e havenEt been playing a lot yet, just a few sessions. Darvin Athe characterB encountered first a few
+obolds and then a party of commoners, led by the local militia warrior, caught him while he was about
heading to the forestEs edge. &he guys were patrolling the forest in search for some +obolds that had been
reported in the vicinity. &hey were e#tremelly nervous because of the drows living in that forest and,
seeing the strange loo+ of the adventurer, decided that he was some +ind of drow himself and beated him
and fastened his hands. &here idea was to drag him to the village and decide his fate later. &hey did not
find the +obolds but eventually met the dreaded drows who simply +illed them all. &he drow leader, after
some reflection on the adventurerEs loo+ Aman, itEs true this guy loo+s strangeB, just chose to stab him and
leave him dead there Aalthough not 0uite deadB.
After some time, Darvin wa+es up and sees in front of him a old bearded guy Ain fact SilvanusB with a
wolf. Silvanus as+s him if he was not happy in the forest, etc..., and finally says that if his will his to leave
the forest, he wonEt try to impeach it, but instead as+s him for some help, in return for the care after the
battle. Je as+s to steal some fire items for him ASilvanus hates fire itemsB. At the end Silvanus says that
he should go to Archenbridge and get in touch with a druid there. &o help him in those tas+s, he gives
Darvin a wolf AGenris...B AI li+ed the idea not just to start with a companion but to have +ind of story
related to itB.
&hen, my adventurer went along the road toward archenbridge, avoided a few adventure hoo+s ,
eventually met a would-be sorcerer Athat will certainly reappear at some pointB, met a chauntea cleric and
reached the clericEs village where people want to e#pell him because first of his wolf Aafter all, there is a
wolf pac+ attac+ing the floc+s every nightB and then because of his strange face Aseems that people are
0uite racist in this part of the worldB. JeEs about to run away when the cleric appears again, calm down
people saying that DarvinEs there to help them and ta+es the adventurer to his place. &here, he as+s for
the druidEs help in a case of water poisoning AIEm using a modified burning plague adventureEs nowB. &he
villagers come again and say that if Darvin does not try to protect the floc+s form the wolves, the will
e#pell him and slaughter Genris.
Darvin agrees to go to the fields during the night to see if something can be done. &here, a pac+ of wolf
eventually appears. Its leader feels the threat of a big wolf for his charge and attac+s. Genris manages to
+ill him and the pac+ somehow consider it as their new leader. *hen they head toward the village, the
whole pac+ seem to be reluctant to wal+ nearer and the run away, e#cept another wolf that just imitate
everything Genris is doing.
Ginally, in the last session Darvin undertoo+ the 0uest of the burning plague.
2222pff. Ruite a long story Asorry if a bit boringB. My second 0uestion is the followingI
Do you thin+ I could let Darvin have two animal companionsM I read itEd be o+ to have a character more
powerfull than in a normal campaign. In fact, Darvin is not really controlling the new wolf. &his one just
does whatever Genris is doing.
A 0uestion related to dm in generalI I have some ideas for a few plots involving guilds and +nightly orders,
especially one of paladins that could be somehow related to Darvin Ali+e one +night is his brother, etc...B.
Do I need to have a very definite idea of the guild, with leaders, etc... at this moment or IEll need to thin+
about it when he first meet one of those guysM
Ginally, I wonder if anyone has some nice house rules about supply. I donEt really want to bother about
food and ammunition AitEs already difficult enough for my poor dm e#perience to master all the restB but
neither do I want to have my adventurer spending two wee+s in a complete desert without being
concerned about food and water.
&han+s in advance for any suggestion.
$il$aer
Campaign Example #8
&his is very encouraging to read. IEve actually just started Dming...and IEm not confident enough to start
with anyone but my husband yet. IEve been struggling with trying to +eep it hard, but not mercilous. I
have been scatching my head, trying to figure out how to set up the proper cr for monsters, and am glad
you mentioned thatH So, IEll just share a little of my fledgling campaign. AGor your amuCementHB
Je told me to ma+e his bac+ground and heEd play whatever but he wants to play a bard. Je just doesnEt
want any /3%Es accompanying him. A*eEve played at too many sessions where our pcEs were completely
overshadowed by Supermen /3%Es and now that IEm attempting to DM, heEs nipping that in the budB. IEve
been reading a lot of Gorgotten ealms, and I have this lovely map that IEve been aching to play with...and
I thin+ heEs scared that IEm going to emulate one of our past dmEs and pull a DriCCt, Flminster or (helben
out of my hat.
/ow, I canEt stand starting off in a tavern. Gar too many adventures I have played in has started in a
tavern and I JA&F &JFM. I also detest starting in a store, buying e0uipment. I +now that eventually, he
will find his way into a store...and IEm prepared to deal with that, but after creating a character with s+ills
and a bac+ground, I donEt want to stand around as a bored general store attendant chewing on her hair
and giving the young thing a blan+ eyed stare as he attempts to buy all his items. "ut heEs given me free
reignH
So, giddy with the power to not start the adventure off in a conventional setting, I decided that our poor
hero begins his tale when the Thent caravan that was transporting the manacled slaves Aof which he is
oneB were attac+ed. &he order went up to +ill the slaves and his mentor Jradic AThent ogueB sapped him
instead, +illing everyone else. An hour later, he wa+es up, rolls escape artist rolls until successful, three
rolls, and is out of the Apretty looseB manacles. Je searches the bodies, all the other slaves are dead. Je
wal+es a short distance away, and found the clearing where the battle too+ place. &welve of Gifteen Thents
are dead and there is another ten bodies of other people. As three bodies are charred beyond recognition
and three bodies are either froCen ice statues or shattered bone and gore +ept cold by a gravel of ice, our
young hero +nows that magic was involved, but as he searches the bodies, he finds that many of them
have already been searched, and bags are still open from being riffled through. Still, whoever searched
everyone didnEt ta+e everything. Je also notices that the coinage on the dead attac+ers were more
consistantly from waterdeep and the nearby dale lands, while most of the currency on the Thents is from
Sembia. Je also noticed that most of the attac+ing party were +illed from behind with stab wounds. Je
gathered a lot of items from the bodies, but I was surprised that he didnEt get a sleeping bag or boots
from them. Je did, however, ta+e the robe from the dead mage and cut it off, tying scraps of it around his
feet and wearing the rest of it. Je also found a collection of five bells tied together. Je is s+illed with
performance stringed instruments, so that wasnEt very nice of me, but honestly I didnEt mean the bells to
be a performing instrument, he doesnEt +now they are gond bells. "ut, despite that, our brave hero set off
deeper into the forest.
Gor half an hour, he +ept hearing elusive giggling. &hen as it grew dar+, he heard music Afailed his
willsaveHB 3etals put him to sleep. &hey too+ all his clothes, stac+ed them neatly, and for good measure,
they cleaned and braided his hair. &he ne#t morning, he put his clothes bac+ on, and 0uic+ly went on his
way, trying to get out of the woods. =nfortunately for him, he was spotted by a number of pi#ies who
scared him into performing music for them...for many hours. Je began to be frightened they would ma+e
him sing until he starved to death, so he tal+ed his way out. AI put the pi#ies in to add a little humor after
the grim scene with the slaughtered forcesB. Je was reluctantly guided out of their forest... AI struggled
with the dmg, trying to figure out how to calculate monsters that wouldnEt +ill him but that he could hac+
and slash, so he didnEt thin+ I would only be parading him around and not letting him fight anythingB.
So, I introduced the burned out hul+ of what used to a be a farm. AAnd under it, what used to be the root
celler is now a goblin denB &he surrounding hills were overta+en by thorns and thic+ets. AI +now I
shouldnEt have done that, but I wanted a little more definition than just regular rolling hills of grass upon
grass..B So, he went to the ruin and found that there were ten pigs living in a pen that was fully nailed
shut and not in any way sanitary. A%rammed in thereB &heir pig trough was missing, but that was probably
because they didnEt have any room for it what with all ten pigs there. 2ur hero went on to slowly snipe
and slaughter fifteen goblins. &hey werenEt all in the same place...the two guards didnEt see him, and the
goblins had to climb up a ladder to get to the top, and he stood at the top and cut their heads off. I didnEt
see that coming, but in any event it only wor+ed on three goblins before they stopped sending goblins up
to chec+ and started hiding in shadowsH 2ne of the guards finally realiCed he was their and was trying to
snea+ up...but failed. Je turned around and rolled a critical hit.
So, to continue his terrifying the poor doomed goblins, he tossed the new body down into the dar+ness
too, on top of the pile. /ow, another thing I didnEt count on, but I had the means to solve immediately
came up. I had determined previously that the $oblins had the pig trough possitioned in such a way to
catch the drips when it rained and that they would fill two pails with water to drin+ and bath in the trough.
I determined that they used hay in the corner to sleep in and...and there was a smelly area in the hay.
Anyway...our young bard lit himself a torch...which you would thin+ would ma+e his position obvious to
the other guard...but he immediately dropped the torch down the hole, onto the piled bodies and my other
goblin once again failed his spot chec+ and listen chec+. &he bard shut the crate top they were using as a
door to the entrance and allowed the smo+e to fill the area....but my goblins dumped the nearest pale of
water over the fire, so, when he lifted it, e#pecting to be loo+ing at the bodies of smo+e +illed goblins,
instead, he saw a javilin absolutely fail to hit him. A@es, my rolls suc+ed badHB Je then proceeded to cast
dancing lights in the small enclosed area and then went down the ladder and slaughtered them. =tterly.
After he pillaged the meager treasure, he set fire to the hay and left the place to burn. AJe didnEt want it
to be full of something worse than goblins ne#t time.B It was then that he found and +illed my last goblin,
the second guard...the one that was not blind, but might be stoned for all the great rolls I failed to have
with him. &he young bard returned and freed the pigs. AI gave him e#tra #p for that, I +now several
people that would have left the poor pigs to suffer out of sheer forgetfulnessB.
At this moment, he only has the magic he can cast, and heEs level two. AI figure that even though his
attempt to smo+e his enemies to death failed, it still deserved e#tra points tooB.
/ow, IEve been trying to find him something more challenging than goblins, and I suspect orcs will be
more of the same for him. IEm probably going to pull out some liCardmen, but I donEt +now. I would
welcome suggestions.
I want him to go on some unrelated adventures for a while, and then have him bump into Jradic
somehow. Jow probably depends on where he goes with the other adventures. Maybe Jradic is
attempting to blend in somewhere as a spy...or maybe he is captured by something. 2r maybe he is sent
to recruit the pc...donno. I suspect that is ages away, however. Je may even be +illed for not +illing said
bard. IEm leaving it open for now. "ut, again, still open for any e#tra ideas to +ic+ around for it.
And once again, this thread is very useful, and itEs presence is encouraging, prior to finding this thread, I
was wondering if it was actually not intended, or dangerously unbalanced to run a solo campaign.
2+, this is long, but itEs a bac+story.
*ell, he Amy husband, the playerB wants to learn more about the world than he has in previous games. Je
e#pressed an interest in being a young boy bard Aliterally, a boy bandHB, li+e eight or something, and I
e#pressed that an eight year old would not be ta+en seriously and that heEd be grabbed up for the
orphanage the first town he came to. *e compromised by him being ,6, still younger than normal, still a
Lboy bandL but not nearly as outragously young. So, Mar+asE A,6 year old humanB bac+story isI
Je was born in *aterdeep. Fven though he has helped his father with carpentry, and understands the
basics of that trade, most of his young memories are of listening to the various gnomish4elven4human
bards at the pub as his father dran+, and the roaring dwarven drin+ing songs, and the rather biCarre jo+es
that he didnEt understand but always made the adults laugh really hard. 2ne of the gnomish bards there
showed him a few tric+s and heEs never fully forgotten the fun of seeing magic augmenting a story.
*hen he was nine turning ten, his family was moving from *aterdeep to "aldurEs gate. &hey had gone
with a trade caravan for safety. &he majority of the group, Aincluding his parentsB were slaughtered by
maurading orcs, and the panic+ed survivors fled in all directions. Je ended up dehydrated and a bit
delirious when he limped into Daggerford and told the first person he saw what had happened. &he old
farmer assured him that everything was going to be o+, cleaned him up, fed him and he collapsed in
e#haustion.
*hen he wo+e up, he was a manacled Thentarim slave, being told the rules and conse0uences.
Sometimes they were smuggled li+e cargo, sometimes, they were marched li+e cattle. Mar+as listened to
the Chents tal+. Je +new that heEd heard the language they were spea+ing in before, ADamaranB, but he
only +new what a few words meant. Je commited the words to memory. Along the way, the caravan was
attac+ed by orcs several times, and the Chents lost people, but overall, the orcs were slaughtered each
and every time. As they passed through towns, more Chents would join on their way bac+ to Thentil +eep.
2ne such spy on the way bac+ from an assignment was Jradic, though Mar+as canEt remember where he
joined up, just that he wasnEt there to begin with. 2ne evening, Jradic caught him studying their speech.
Jradic as+ed him a few 0uestions in common, then switched over to %hondathan, then switched over to
try several languages, curious how many the boy spo+e. Je was impressed by the boy being able to
answer in the different languages, but he was also impressed with the witty answers.
*hen it came time for dinner, Mar+as was brought to the Chent campfire area, where he told jo+es in
common and sang a few songs.
Jradic had a long tal+ with Mar+as one evening about how Mar+as had gotten caught and what Chents
were re0uired to do to escaped slaves. Jradic told him that he had no where to go so he might as well just
ma+e the best of it for now. Jradic had seen the inside of more than one orphanage, and heEd seen street
children, and heEd seen the options for wor+ available for orphans. Je said that overall, people ta+e better
care of a person theyEve bought than one that was just given to them.
Mar+as was brought out to attend dinner with the other Thents for entertainment from then on.
Sometimes, Mar+as would have to tell all the stories, and jo+es, because everyone was 0uiet and sullen.
Sometimes, heEd just have to tell one and it would start the others up with their own stories or jo+es. Je
learned several stories from them, and would occasionally retell them a story from a few months bac+
with changed details. &hey never got tired of him singing, but occassionally they would argue over what
they wanted to hear.
&his favoritism put him at odds with the other slaves. &hat made dinner pleasant compared to the rest of
the day. Mar+as turned ten tre+ing through the mountains. &he trip through the desert seemed
interminable. 2nce they made it through the desert, it seemed li+e the time flew by, until they were being
led into Thentil (eep. /o one had to tell him it was dangerous, he could just see the hungry loo+s on
peopleEs faces when loo+ing at him... *hile he was in Thentil (eep, he was +ept in JradicEs small living
0uarters. Je wasnEt sure if Jradic had made some special arrangements or bought him outright. Jradic
told him specifically to stay inside no matter who cried out what or demanded otherwise. Jradic also said
that if it loo+ed li+e the building was on fire, to chec+ if you could smell smo+e or feel heat before running
outside. Murders were about the tamest things Mar+as saw happening on the streets. Je learned to stop
watching. Jradic would appear for a while, bringing cheeCe, bread, carrots or meat jer+y and a jug of
water, give him a boo+ to read, or some tas+ to do, and then be gone again.
Jradic would come in some mornings loo+ing as if heEd been beaten senseless, and collapse on his cot.
2ne evening Jradic was passed out li+e this, three men bro+e down the door, all of them wild eyed and
jabbering about %yric, and Jradic barely survived the battle with them. Mar+as had never stabbed anyone
before, but he +new that the craCy men would have +illed them both, so he stabbed one of them in the
+nee with a +itchen +nife while Jradic was fighting the others. Jradic got rid of the bodies, and Mar+as
didnEt see him again until the ne#t day. Jradic spent the ne#t couple of months Awhen he was thereB
teaching Mar+as how to use common weapons. "y the time they left, he was so glad to be out of Thentil
+eep, he welcomed the manacles.
Jradic brought him along for the ne#t run on the caravan road as well, this time Jradic had been assigned
to the caravan specifically. Mar+as has spent the last two years on the blac+ road, as other slaves were
captured or just moved bac+ and forth, but he prefered this far more than stopping in Thentil (eep. &here
have been a few close calls, but heEd never heard one of the officers order the men to +ill all the slaves
before the border forest attac+.
Je couldnEt believe heEd heard it but he +new they couldnEt get away in time. Je heard Jradic mutter, Eplay
dead, +idE and was +noc+ed out. *hen he wo+e up, all the slaves were dead e#cept him.
&hatEs his history. @eah, he wants to get out of this region, but he +nows he doesnEt want to ris+ the desert
to the west, dagger falls is below a very long drop of a waterfall, so heEs not going there yet.
DolH @ouEre not going to believe this. IEm trying to leave a ton of adventuring possibilities around for this
campaign, because I donEt li+e being forced and I +now he doesnEt.
/ow, because the nearest town is Dagger Galls Abut heEd have to climb down the sheer waterfall to get
there, so IEm not encouraging itB, I decided that perhaps in the future, he might be there, and one of the
possible hoo+s at that time would be to send him as a sort of goodwill ambassadore to the newly reta+en
realm of &ethyamar, since the lord of Dagger Galls would want to be on good terms with the dwarves Aand
put their families blood fued behind themB, in order to +eep the town from falling into Thentarim rule
again. /ow, I thought it would be interesting to set up the situation so that he witnessed the dwarven
adventurers going off to reclaim &ethyamar. I figured he wouldnEt really interact with the dwarves, and I
hoped that he wouldnEt just blindly attac+ them. I gave him notice, he heard the clin+ing of armor and
too+ cover behind a bush. Je then heard in a firm female voice a string of cursing the hygene, ancestry,
and intelligence of the entire race of gnolls that would ma+e sailors blush. I had just started to describe
the dwarves to him, as he could now see them, even though they werenEt all that close yet.
Mar+as stood up from the bushes, and wal+ed towards them. L2h than+ %lagadinH Another dwarfHL Je
cried out in dwarven. I about fell out of my chair. &hey rolled a , on sense motive. Any fool can see that
heEs a human child, especially dwarves that have been around them...but they canEt tell that he doesnEt
believe heEs a dwarf. AAnd my husband is running with itH JeEs having fun playing alongHB *hy doesnEt he
remember his clanM Je was hit over the head and he canEt 0uite remember what happened before that,
but he was surrounded by dead humans when he came to but heEs very sure heEs a dwarf. *hy canEt he
swing an a#eM *ell, heEs not sure how long heEs been out here in these wilds and his arms loo+ a bit wea+.
*hy doesnEt he have a beardM &hose filthy humans must have shaved him while he was out.
Je joined them on their mission to reta+e &ethyamar. JeEs been singing dwarven drin+ing songs to them
while they hac+ up the gnolls. *hy canEt he see in the dar+ if heEs a dwarfM *ell, because when he first
opened his eyes, he loo+ed up at the sun by mista+e, and it must have damaged his eyes. AI canEt help
but laugh really hard at this situationB.
So, even though heEs accompanying /3%s after he told me he wasnEt interested, heEs probably not going
to go with them forever...after all, after they reta+e &ethyamar, theyEre going to have a realm to govern.
"ut I didnEt even have their names fully made up when he started tal+ing to them. &hat was funH *eEve
gone through the first room so far, and now I have to ma+e up a dungeonH
Campaign Example #9
&his campaign centered around a Jalfling ogue with three names. 3ortia Amareliss &horngage was the
first e#periment that the player and I tried with an evil D1D character.
"arly Campaign
Set in the seaport city of /atesh, our intrepid adventurer 0uic+ly ran afoul of the city!s thieves! guild with
her freelance wor+. She cased a number of houses and pic+ed various poc+ets while she waited for the
targets of the houses to be >away.? Gour houses fell to her s+ills before the &hieves! $uild too+ notice of
her, but when they didVthey did so 0uic+ly and with little leeway. She was given a simple choice ' join or
die. She chose >join? but harbored her resentment of their strong-arm methods for a later date.
2nce in the guild, her s+ills and talents proved to be superior to her peers and she 0uic+ly became in
demand by the various sub-leaders of the guild. 2ne, in particular too+ a very special interest in her.
Archie never seemed to leave the guild house or the comple# underneath it, but he always seemed to
+now what was going on outside the guild ' especially when it concerned the young Jalfling that had
ta+en to calling herself >Diss.?
As Archie demanded a far lesser cut of loot and allowed her more freedom in choosing her own
assignments, Diss gravitated to his employ, performing more and more jobs for him. She was having a
grand-olde-time increasing her standing and her secreted-away wealth.
Campaign Shi+t /ne
&hen came the day things changed for her. She received some special and odd instructions directly from
Archie which involved meeting him at a location well away from the guild once the job was done. She, of
course, immediately became very suspicious of the mission, especially since in involved the murder of a
local merchant. Still, her wor+ under Archie had been profitable and fun, so she decided to fulfill the
mission. She +illed the merchant and Aoutside of the mission descriptionB framed her chief rival in the
guild, ma+ing sure that he had no alibi for the crime.
Jer meeting with Archie afterwards was approached with care and suspicion. Grantically watching for traps
and double-crosses, she went to the designated meeting location and, surprisingly, Archie was there,
alone, and happy to see her. Je e#plained to her that her mission was actually a test of her true calling
and complimented her on her e#ecution of the mission, especially proud of her nuance in framing her rival.
She was welcomed into the ultra-secretive %rimson %law Assassins! $uild.
Diss continued her ways, accepting commissions for both thievery and assassinations with e0ual abandon
and glee. Jer reputation and prestige continued to grow in both of her disciplines until her >fame? began
to grate on the nerves of the upper leaders of the &hieves! $uild. &hey sought to rein her in. She had
other ideasV
Campaign Shi+t &-o
Diss played up the simpering reticent servant to her >masters? until they were satisfied that they had full
control over her. She then put into motion a bold plan she had formulated to ta+e control of the guild for
herself.
&hrough over a year of bribes, tips, and other means, she had Ain disguiseB gained the friendship and
loyalty of the captain of the city guard and a great number of the most effective amongst the guards!
ran+s. She used this friendship to set up a secret operation for the guards to wipe out the &hieves! $uild.
Simultaneously, she set about arranging a rare meeting of the full guild to discuss a >grave threat? she
had uncovered while snea+ing around the Du+e!s Mansion. During the meeting, she slipped out and
silently +illed the thieves watching the entrances to the guild. &he thieves were ta+en by surprise as the
best of the guards stormed into the guild from every secret entrance. /one of the guild leaders survivedV
and precious few of the thieves survived either. &he guild was destroyed and all thought +illed.
Diss began her new life as the leader of the few who survived the attac+. As the new leader of the &hieves!
$uild, her adventures continued, moving into a more political arena where manipulating others became
more important than accomplishing things herself.
&his campaign continued for some time after this clima#, hitting upon a number of additional high points,
but in the interest of space, I!ll end here.
Campaign Example #10
Interesting that you should mention that. Gor myself, although I spent my adolescence dreaming about
participating in the 0uintessential roleplaying campaign, the lionEs share of my e#perience as a player and
as a DM has come from solo campaigns played with my best friend. As a DM, however, IEve largely used
custom systems, rather than published ones. Jowever, I will ta+e the liberty of giving an e#ample that
would have wor+ed just as well in D1D.
&he Cardinal "dict
2ne of the great benefits of having but one player in a campaign is that youEre granted a great deal of
freedom in relation to the magnitude of the 3%. %onsider the "aldurEs $ate series A"$6 is most li+ely my
favorite game of all timeBK this premise would be almost impossible to play with a group, due to the
blinding spotlight on the Lmain character,L but functions very well as a solo campaign. During a discussion
one day, my player intimated that he li+ed the idea of playing a young, ine#perienced +ing who would
have to prove himself. LSweet, strategic army battles,L I thought, and merged the idea with a campaign
seed that had been ruminating in my mind for a time.
3rince AoCrayn of Frde (ahn, a relatively small nation on the sub-continent of FrC, is ,; years old, and the
campaign started with the ceremony that mar+ed his coming of age, and cemented his position as the heir
to the throne. &he royal ball that followed was spent introducing the player to his natural environment in
preparation for the coming events. &hrough conversation and interaction, he was introduced to his
bodyguard Athe 3rincess Serreia of /avasco, a neighboring nation famous for its blend of philosophy and
weapons mastery... I was typing away on an e#planation of /avasco here, but I realiCed itEs more than
needs to be saidB, his parents, and generally got a feel for his position as crown prince.
$enerally, itEs best to start a story with action, but a solo campaign often relies largely on deeper emotions
than a group campaign. &herefore, I felt it necessary to provide some time for the player to become
ac0uainted with his friends and family before I threw him into the thic+ of it. I wouldnEt say this is always
the best way to start a solo campaign, but considering what happened ne#t in this particular campaign, I
believe it was for the better.
During the festivities, a shadow organiCation calling themselves the %rimson Shield approached the +ing
and re0uested a private audience. &he prince participated in this meeting after the ball, and to ma+e a
long story short, the %rimson Shield agents presented the royal family with relatively convincing proof that
a demon incursion was about to occur in a neighboring country. &he %rimson Shield, purportedly a group
that e#ists to prevent such events, also claimed that the royal heirloom of Frde (ahn, the uby Sigil, was
one of the artifacts potent enough to prevent this particularly devastating incursion. &his gate, if opened,
would align the domain of the /ameless &error, the F#arch of (er-eguel, ealm of Gear, with FrC.
/ote that, as over the top as this is, this campaign setting is relatively low on magic. Jence, neither
AoCrayn nor his parents believeAdB that demons e#ist. Farlier in this thread, there were comments on
council meetings and the role of the 3% in such situations. Although AoCraynEs father was the natural
leader during that event, it had previously been established that his parents were grooming him for
leadership. Jence, the precocious prince was allowed to interject freely during the conversation, and his
parents often let him spea+ for them.
&hough unconvinced, the royal family decides to lend the uby Sigil to the %rimson Shield. Jowever, they
insist on accompanying the mon+s to the sealing, bringing a small retinue of their elite soldiers. Since
thereEs no time to arrange an overt reason to travel to the neighboring nation of )alunde, they travel
incognito and swiftly across the border.
After dispatching a group of bandits who, strangely, did not seem perturbed by the revelation that they
were attac+ing royalty, the group reaches the ritual grounds in the deep forest. &o ma+e another long
story short, it doesnEt go 0uite as they had e#pected A B, and the %rimson Shield mon+s are slain as
devils emerge from the burning portal, led by the hul+ing $ate %rusher. &heir last wordsM 3rotect the uby
Sigil... which is in 3rince AoCraynEs hands. =nder the s+illed guidance of (ing estefon, the +nights fight
valiantly to drive the devils bac+, but they are ultimately slain. AoCrayn, in a fit of terrified necessity,
manages to lure the $ate %rusher away by goading him with the uby Sigil. Fventually, the +ing is cloven
in twain by the $ate %rusherEs a#e, and the 0ueen is torn to shreds by a group of lesser devils as she tries
to protect Serreia. Jowever, just as AoCrayn stri+es out in fury and fear, the ritual, set in motion, is
completed... and the uby Sigil absorbs the emerging realm. &he devils are sent bac+ as the prince falls
unconscious.
*hen 3rince AoCrayn wa+es up, he and Serreia are the only survivors, and the uby Sigil has somehow
become grafted to his shoulder. &hus, the campaignEs prologue ends.
Intrigue
In order to ma+e this campaign interesting, I had decided to introduce a variety of semi-related plots that
would +eep twisting while the player does whatever he wants, each one capable of spinning out an
adventure arc now and then as I see fit. &here are several challenges facing 3rince AoCraynI
*hen AoCrayn returned to Frde (ahn, the border was closed. Je was then informed that the nation
was at warI Shortly following his parentsE death, the Rueen of (irCegoth had proclaimed that the
regent of Frde (ahn had willfully attac+ed the nation of )alunde, and declared war against the
smaller nation. All of Frde (ahnEs neighbors--with the notable e#ception of /avasco--allied
themselves with (irCegoth.
&he uby Sigil has apparently made AoCrayn the $uardian of (er-eguel, the realm he managed to
seal away. Although this enables him to decide who comes and goes from the realm, he cannot yet
control his power, and the incessant voices of the innumerable deniCens of (er-eguel crying for
release ma+e his life difficult. Since (er-eguel is apparently part of an elaborate afterlife, many of
the demons trapped within are willing to bargain for release...
During AoCraynEs absence, an impostor had ta+en his place and ruled the nation ruinously. &hough
AoCrayn slew this impostor--a shapeshifter from a demonic realm apparently engaged in war with
(er-eguel--his short rule had caused much damage. 2f course, the presence of such a demon in
FrC has some connection to the actions of the (irCegotian 0ueen...
Jis fatherEs leadership held Frde (ahn together. Although the people are royalistic, the young +ing
has much to prove. &his is my playerEs favorite part of the campaign, so I ma+e the most out of it.
&here are numerous people in positions of power in Frde (ahn that do not believe that the young
man has what it ta+es to run the nation, so he has to prove himself to these people while
simultaneously learning how to administer a comple# nation.
Gour nations are allied against the small nation of Frde (ahn, and their armies are marching
through their territory as we spea+. In order to protect his nation, AoCrayn must not only unite his
troops and learn to lead and inspire them, but also find alliances wherever he can. &here is ample
intrigue, as even his allies are hard pressed to remain on his side.
&hough AoCrayn does not +now it yet, the $ate %rusher has managed to breach the boundaries and
enter FrC. A&his was revealed in one of the short stories I occasionally write to e#pand on tangental
characters and events.B
/ot all deniCens of (er-eguel are hostileI Gor instance, Fch-SeCare, the 3atriarch of the Dar+
%loud %lan, has granted some assistance to AoCrayn, seemingly without interest for reciprocation.
A demoness named 2ysua seems to remain aloof of the demonic hierarchy, spending her turtuous
e#istence constantly running from her many enemies in order to remain independent.
&his type of situation allows for a varied campaignK rather than follow any one aspect, the player remains
free to concentrate on whatever he finds most intriguing at the moment. At the same time, the nature of
the events that surround the recently crowned +ing force him to ta+e action. As the DM, however, it
doesnEt matter to me what he decides to do, since the playing field is set up.
&he ,ou(e o+ 3eather(
&hereEs been one traditional dungeon so far. *hen AoCrayn returned to the capital, he dispatched the
impostor who had been ruling the nation in his name during his absence. Jowever, the plot of these
apparent shapeshifters ran deeperI *hen the nationEs most powerful du+e, a friend of the +ing who would
otherwise be AoCraynEs staunchest supporter, arrived at the royal palace, he accused the prince of
murdering his father, based on testimony he claimed to have received from the dying +ing. Fventually, in
order to prove his innocence, AoCrayn agreed to go through with a lost traditionK the rite of the Jouse of
Geathers, which was a test to ensure the capability of the crown prince in the past.
Along with his most trusted people, AoCrayn traveled to Mount Damai to the south in order to go through
the Jouse of Geathers and see+ the priestesses that dwell on the top. Jowever, upon entering the Jouse
of Geathers, having earlier received a cryptic Aand crudeB warning from the demoness 2ysuaB, he finds
that the uby Sigil reacts to the wards within, causing a rift in (er-eguel that promptly becomes a
battleground between devils that attempt to pass through the lethal rift.
Improvi(ation
2ne interesting thing about that dungeon was that the player chose who to bring with him before leaving
the palace. Aside from his trusted warriors, he also said that he wanted to bring two of the [,88 soldiers
that had accompanied him from the border to the capital, and had thus far proven their loyalty. Jis criteria
were simpleI Je wanted a sword user and a man with a polearm... so I came up with two names and
made up their personalities as we went along. Gollowing their actions in the Jouse of Geathers, both of
them had been developed to the point where they had become trusted and well-li+ed by the player.
&he point is that there are a lot of people in a world, and you donEt have time to describe them all. *hen
the playerAsB decides to tal+ to someone, it helps the suspension of disbelief if you learn to develop their
personality as you go along. &his way, it feels as though the character e#isted before he was introduced,
rather than being made up. Je just hadnEt been in the spotlight before. In general, improvisation, when
trained, can help you by filling in the blan+s as you go along rather than burning yourself out trying to
create an e#pansive list of geographical features, organiCations or /3%s.
Cooperation
More so than in a group campaign, a solo campaign is a cooperative effort between the DM and the player.
My player tends to be very proactive, and I indulge that. If heEs discussing something with a character, he
will often ma+e up things about their shared past or the world that I had previously not planned. In this
case, unless what he just said directly contradicts something important, I just accept it as the truth and
run with it.
%ompletely =nrelated F#ampleI
/3%I L,hat was that>0 Gods, these things vanish as *uicly as they strie... how can we stand against
this>L
3% L#his reminds me of that time we hunted gnolls through the barrow. !ow did we survive then>L A/ever
happened, but these two have adventured before, off the stage, so itEs reasonable enough.B
/3%I $rimaces. L3heer luc>L
3%I L,ell, that, and a couple of well.placed fireball spells...L $rins.
/3%I 3ales. LGou're not going to... Oh, gods...L
/ot all players are this proactive, and ma+ing this wor+ is a matter of getting to +now each otherEs
playstyles. Jowever, the important thing is to +eep in mind that unless what the player suggests is
contrary to something which will ultimately be more fun for him, itEs good to learn to roll with it.
&hat was too long, too detailed, and probably too boring... and still I feel as though I left out too many
important details.
AFmphasis mineB
&his is the single most important lesson for anyone who intends to create a setting, or a plot of any ind.
&his suspension of disbeliefK trust in the authorEs design, is what ma+es a good boo+ great, and a fun
campaign inspiring. Dearning to sound li+e you gave something a lot of thought even though you just
came up with it is a DM s+ill that builds great confidence, more than basically any other. "eing prepared is
good, but not nearly as useful as being able to seem li+e you were prepared.
KJWEs Lnews bulletinL is an e#cellent e#ampleK I ta+e great pleasure reading that sort of thing, because
hearing about all of these tidbits, large and small Asometimes, small is even more important, imoB ma+es
me believe in the world, and suspend my cynicism towards plot creation. &rust meK planning and
preparation will wear you out. DonEt set out to build a flowerK build a seed, and let it bloom. &a+e the
0uestions your players as+, and use them to provide answers for your world. &o this end, as KJW said, itEs
important to feel li+e you +now your worldK itEs important to have a vision in mindXan image of what the
big picture is. &he details are unimportant until they cause problems.
IEve spent years trying to plan and prepare the perfect plot or setting, and IEve learned that itEs a
destructive path, for two reasons. &he first is that eventually your ambition wears you out, in a crippling
fashion. &he second is that each void you fill leaves you less room for improvisation and change. I might
sound li+e a heretic now, but if you havenEt decided the identity of the mysterious Javoc Dance of
Aroushard, (iller of &ime Apun intended,B you have the opportunity to decide later and reap the ma#imum
potential. Maybe the player doesnEt seem to care about the long lost uncle you had envisioned for the
part, but he would be shoc+ed if it turned out to be his itinerant fianc\e. As long as the pieces fit the
puCCle, it doesnEt matter what you had planned.
During a conversation between the 3% in my current campaign, and his mother, she revealed that sheEd
spent some time as a soldier in a nation +nown as Dachus, serving with a regiment called the Silver
avens. AGor various reasons, she had been tight-lipped about her past during his childhood, and heEs
never as+ed.B /aturally, my player as+ed if his character +new anything about Dachus, and since I envision
it as being common +nowledge in the world, I said that it was La relatively small nation to the southwest.L
Anticipating more 0uestions in the future, I jotted down the following as referenceI
Bachu(
#his small nation borders to several states of similar si1e, and e+ists in the southwest of the continent.
#he nation is largely land.loced, e+cept for a coastal stretch along the western border. 6achus is
governed by a senate elected from its prominent citi1ens, nearly all of which are members of its trade and
craft guilds.
#he 3ilver 2avens, a regiment of irregular cavalry and infantry, is one of the military groups that serves
the 6achusian senate. 9illian apparently served with this company for some time.
Since this nation has no true meaning to the campaign Aas opposed to the setting,B I did not decide
anything else yet. Jowever, I got a good vision for what +ind of nation Dachus is, and if I spend a minute
thin+ing about it right now, I would describe it as... a small state built around commerce, with few natural
resources of note. &he senate probably has little political power, but ensures its sovereignty with coin and
goods. IEd say that Dachus e#ists as a buffer between several more aggressive, neighboring states. As long
as Dachus +eeps the goods flowing, the surrounding states would stand to lose too much by ma+ing war,
since the Dachusian trade routes supply and enrichen their lands. &o this end, the Dachusian senate spares
no effort propagating for free trade policy throughout the continent.
Frm, sorry. I get carried away. Anyway, I only plan what I feel li+e, and fill in the blan+s when it becomes
interesting. DonEt give away more information than is as+ed for, and youEll maintain a sense of mystery,
leaving yourself fle#ible. Another thing I li+e to do when possible is to ma+e something out of nothing.
%onsider this scenarioI &he wiCard enters a general store and loo+s for in+. Ginding none, he as+s around,
and the shop+eeper tells him, L2h, *e donEt sell in+. /ot since the 2re iot.L *hatEs the 2re iotM I donEt
+now. It sounds interesting, though. In fact, "'ll deny the player his precious in for no other reason than
to introduce this tidbit. *hat can you do about itM ItEs the 2re iot, after all. &hings just havenEt been the
same since.
Fven the most intelligent and perceptive of people want to believe you when you pretend to have it all
wor+ed out. &hen, when the players believe that the 2re iot is the adventure hoo+, you hit them with
half-dragon vampiric nin(as.
Campaign Example #11
&hi( i( a)(olutely per+ect$ And slightly ironic.
IEve recently been bit by the gaming bug...again. I played in an e#tensive campaign for roughly 9 years in
my college years and beyond. &imes have changed, however, and IEm now married, 6 +ids, and my group
has long since dis-banded. "ut, thereEs hope. My wife is very tollerant of me and my hobbies and she has
agreed to give this D1D thing a try. SheEs never gamed before so this could be interesting.
I came on these boards today to search and as+ if anyone had ever run a solo campaign. @ou can imagine
my delight when I found this thread. IEve read every post, and some of them twice, this morning. I
couldnEt have as+ed for a better resource. Much praise and +udos go out to all of you who have written
here, especially to ()* and Illion the ed for starting this incredible thread. @ou have my than+s.
So, since I have this treasure trove of +nowledge at my disposal, I will pic+ your collective brains. &his is
my first time running a solo campaign and my wifeEs first attempt at playing. I +now that I have to be
careful but I want to create the most enjoyable gaming e#perience I can to help foster that gaming bug in
my wife and ma+e her a gamer for life. JereEs a short rundown of my campaign. AI havenEt fleshed out
many of the smaller details yet so please bear with me.B
eneral /vervie-
My wife too+ a li+ing to the Aventi race found in Stormwrac+. Gor those of you unfamiliar, they are
essentially amphibian humans Athey are considered to be LhumansL for the sa+e of the game i.e. e#tra
feat at ,st level, etc.B. IEm running the campaign in the Gorgotten ealms and the Aventi civiliCation fits
perfectly. AAgain, for those who donEt have Stormwrac+, the Aventi civiliCation was much li+e AtlantisI an
ancient and powerful civiliCation that san+ to the bottom of the sea due to a cataclysmic magical disaster.
@ou can see how the Aventi and their history fit with Gorgotten ealms 0uite nicely.B
My wife also pic+ed Sorcerer as her class. I +now this is probably not the best class for a first-time player
but I wanted to give her as much freedom as possible and I decided not to Lguide her handL too much in
character creation. I wanted her to feel li+e she owned the character and that her Aventi Sorcerer, Mabryn,
was a creation of her design.
&he campaign is going to revolve around her civiliCation. &he first adventure will be a simple LfetchL
adventure where she will travel on-shore to retrieve an ancient scroll that is said to hold part of the
incantation that destroyed their entire island nation. &he Aventi are avid sea traders and have heard
rumors of a powerful wiCard in0uiring into the Aventi, their history, and especially into their lost, powerful
magics. &his simple LfetchL adventure, of course, will blossom into a far-reaching campaign that will ta+e
up from %ormyr Awhere the adventure startsB, through the Dales, around Thentil (eep, and probably up to
Anaroch and the city of Shade. My idea is that an Aventi wiCard once when to /etheril to study magic and
was there when the fall of /etheril occured. Je was ta+en to the plane of shadow along with the other
inhabitants and since they have returned, he wants some of the ancient Aventi magic bac+ for himself.
IEm going to get her a traveling companion, of sorts. A dwarf cleric named Jargred. Initially, they will be
loo+ing for the same /3% and the same Aventi scroll. &he intrigue would stem from L*hy would a dwarf
be interested in an old Aventi scrollML IEm hoping they form a bond and see each other as being on the
same path. "ut since IEm 3ing the dwarf, I guess that burden lies with me. And the actual details about
why the dwarf is interested in the scroll is one of those details I havenEt figured out yet. $o figure.
IEm going to try to +eep her dice-rolling to a minimum. Di+e I said, sheEs never gamed before...ever. She
often loo+s at her sheet and is overwhelmed by all the numbers, and graphs. "asically, IEm going to do as
much as I can to +eep her eyes off her sheet and on the tas+ at hand. I hope this tactic wor+s and that I
succeed in ma+ing this fun for her. I would love for my best friend to be my 3% for life.
,ereK( the part -here I a(* +or (ome help$
,B Am I doing the right thing by letting her play a sorcerer and not an LeasierL class. AI mean no offense
to any other classes...but managing a spell list, spell components, and other details re0uired of a sorcerer
can be challenging for a first-time player.B
6B Does the campaign sound interestingM I feel that I can provide motivation for her from her LtribeL bac+
home. Jer people need her to succeed and stop this menace. Also, some revenge motivators may come
into play from time to time. I considered having her village attac+ed but I donEt want to have that come of
as gratuitious Lplot-forcingL.
5B *hat other advice can you give for me both in regards to the campaign and running a solo-campaign
with a first-time playerM &his is probably the biggest 0uestion and the most challenging aspect of what IEm
up against.
Again, IEd li+e to say that this thread is priceless and my hat goes off to all of you that have posted and
contributed here.
*ow, &ras+i, those are some pretty intense bac+stories. Jas all of that ta+en place before the campaign
startedM *ow. See, IEm split on that. IEve always rewarded players with Le#trasL if they created a good
bac+story. "y Le#trasL, I mean a mundane, or only slightly magical item from their past4history. A good, in
depth history can give you plenty of ammunition for the campaig. "ut, then again, sometimes I feel that
the 3%s donEt have the growth potential when they have a detailed bac+story. Fither way wor+s, I guess it
all depends on what you do with it.
2+, now on to the matter at hand.
I (tarted the (olo campaign -ith my -i+e$
3o, here's the bacground and the first adventure. #ell me what you thin.
SheEs an Aventi Afrom Stormwrac+I basically an amphibious humanB named Maebryn. She decided to play
a Sorcerer. So, her history is fairly blan+. &he only outstanding features are that she started to display her
innate arcane abilities at a young age and was ta+en unter the tutelage of $insaria Aor $innyB, a village
elder who is a farily potent sorceress.
&he campaign arc goes li+e thisI It ta+es place in the Gorgotten ealms setting. Since the realms fit well
with LdestroyedL empires, the Aventi fit well Atheir civiliCation crashed beneath the waves for some
un+nown reason many generations agoB. "ut not all of the ancient power of the great Aventi +ingdom was
lost. Apparently there was an Aventi mage who travelled to /etheril and was ta+en to the 3lane of Shadow
in the city of Shade. Shade has re-emerged and this Aventi wiCard, now corrupted by shadowstuff, is
craving some of the lost, powerful magic of the Aventi. &here are items +nown as the Aventi Scrolls, that
contain instructions and incantations of some of the more powerful Aventi artifacts and spells. Fven the
spell that was rumored to have destroyed the entire Aventi +indgom.
&he appearance of Shade and rumors of a dar+ wiCards see+ing the fabled Aventi Scrolls, has $insaria
worried and she has as+ed the village council to allow Maebryn to assist in either finding the scrolls first or
in stopping the dar+ wiCard from finding them. H#here's a catch, here, though. #he council gave the AoA
but they only did it because Ginsaria is an elder. #hey sent their own party of warriors to find the scrolls.
7aebryn won't meet up with them until much much later...when she is probably *uite a capable
sorceress.I
Jer first tas+ was to travel to some of the ancient Aventi ruins and recover an item of great importance
and power. All Aventi +now the location of their sun+en empire...however, it has been overrun with
Sahaugin and other evil sea-fol+. So, MaebrynEs first challenge was to obtain a light mace from a statue of
Aventus Athe patron deity of the AventiI the one who made them amphibious and saved their civiliCationB.
She retrieved the mace but not without drawing the attention of a juvenile sahaugin scout. She handled it
0uite deftly Ashe rolls really well, btwB.
After returning with the mace, she was told that her 0uest would start. She would need to travel to a small
fishing town on the southern cost of %ormyr. &here she should find an old wiCard named DaCarius.
DaCarius, $insaria, and two others AwhoEve yet to be introducedB used to be in an adventuring party many
years ago. &hey, too, concerned themselves with the Aventi scrolls. *hen she reaches the shore, she
begins to as+ about DaCarius. She doesnEt get much help and she is almost robbed by a Lgood samaritanL
who +nows where the wiCard lives. She dispatches the would-be thief with little trouble but runs into
Jargred, a dwarf cleric, in the process. Strangely enough, he too is loo+ing for DaCarius. It seems his
mentor was one of the < adventuring party members.
&hey begin the short tre+ to DaCariusE cabin but find the surrounding woods filled with +obolds, goblins,
and the occasional gnoll. &hey reach the cabin and find DaCarius very much intact and 0uite pleased with
himself for scorching a few goblins on his yard. Je +nows why they are both there and why their 0uest is
so very important. Je is a little flighty since he is 0uite old now and he is in no shape to provide much
help beyond advice and guidance. "ut he will also ma+e a good instructor for Maebryn. Je guesses that
the recent humanoid incursion in the woods has to do with his ties to the Aventi and the Aventi scrolls.
&here is a tomb of a long-dead scholar-+ing in the woods. Je suspects that they are heading for the tomb
in hopes of finding some clues as to the whereabouts of the Aventi scrolls. It is unli+ely that any of the
artifacts or scrolls are actually there Asince he has studied the history of the tomb for some timeB but
some clues in the scholarEs writtings and boo+s might be useful.
,e have the dungeon crawl now.
Dong story short, they find the hobgoblin leader, +ill him and ta+e a small wooden bo# from the
mausoleum hidden within the tomb. &he bo# contains some old scrolls written in ancient script and old
Aventi. &he two return to DaCarius to find him sipping tea Aa handful of new scorch mar+s adorn his lawnB
and he sets to deciphering the scrolls.
F/D
So, in the end, she leveled up, got an /3% companion AJargredB, a new mentor4instructor ADaCariusB and
a base of operations Aso to spea+B for at least a little while.
2ne thing to remember...my wife had /FSF played D1D before this adventure. &he roleplaying was a
little off. She says sheEll have to get used to it. She got much much better with her abilities as the
adventure wore on. She +ept as+ing me L*hat should I doML and li+e any good $M, I said L*hatever you
want.L "ut I did give her plenty of assistance when she loo+ed li+e she needed it.
She says she enjoyed it but we havenEt had a chance to get to the ne#t adventure. IEm hoping to do that
this Sunday.
IEve subscribed to this thread and I read it religiously. &his is an incredible resource. &han+s again for all
the great postsH
Campaign Example #12
2+ay, hereEs the two 3% bac+stories in my two-way campaign Aclipped from their full depth with family
histories, etc.BI
%y 'C:
&haelaes uddiwyre is an acrobatic burglar Alevel 6 half-elf gestalt rogue4urban rangerB, who grew up in
her parentsE ba+ery in metropolitan Sharn. As a child, she climbed the city towers with her friends, always
the best at wal+ing narrow beams and jumping between buildings. She manifested an aberrant
dragonmar+ when she was thirteen, and it gave her use of the mage hand spell.
*hen she was fifteen, and apprenticed to an artificer, she met a &hranish half-elf lad who ran away from
his family to be a writer4playwright of comedic stories. She rather li+ed him, but not soon after she
e#pressed such, she discovered through her own means that he was a changeling. All in all, she was not
particularly put-off by this, but he bolted when she tried to e#plain it to him. &his left her depressed, and
she 0uit her apprenticeship Ashe didnEt li+e the artificer anywayB.
*ith no optimal direction to go, &haelaes too+ to wandering the lower parts of Sharn, e#ploring tougher
neighboorhoods than she would as a child. She befriended several homeless people, including two former
Morgrave professors, and she wor+ed as a small-time thief for several underworld organiCations.
In --<, after the Mourning mysteriously destroyed the entire nation of %yre, &haelaes noted the influ# of
%yran refugees to the city, and thought to use her e#tensive +nowledge of the city to help them find their
way Afor a fee, of courseB. She got a job with a guide company, and wor+ed there for four years,
occationally moonlighting as a thief, before the real campaign began.
,i( 'C:
"astian &ierandiel is a detective of the occult Alevel 5 half-elf gestalt rogue4sorcererB, who grew up in the
foggy city of (arrla+ton. Je was often in his familyEs library room, reading hefty boo+s even at a young
age. &hough he did have friends, many of the other children let him be, for he had a strangely off-putting
air, and the semi-unpredictable magics of a budding sorcerer.
*hen "astian was eight years old, biCarre creatures found his mind on the dream-plane Dal Ruor while he
was asleep, and they too+ his projected dream-self to Poriat, the 3lane of Madness. &here, they conducted
e#periments on his mind, cutting him open with impossibly comple# scalpel-li+e contraptions. Je awo+e in
his bed on Fberron, away from the creatures, but found his sheets covered in his own blood, and surgical
cuts covering his body. Fach night, the nightmares continued occuring, much to his and his familyEs
dismay. &he only solution they could find was the opiate drug Dreamlily, which put him in an
unperturbable calm. Dreamlily did not prevent the horrifying nightmares, but did prevent his painful
psychosomatic responses to them. Fven to this day, "astian is not entirely sure why he has the
nightmares.
At around si#teen years old, "astian went to *ynarn =niversity in Aundair, when (arrnath and Aundair
were allied, and he studied Mathematics, Dingustics, and %ryptography. /ot long after graduating, he was
snatched up by the Dar+ %abinet Athe (arrnathi intelligence agencyB, and de-coded encrypted messages
sent by "reland, Aundair and &hrane. Jis efforts to decypher the %yran system always fell short, for theirs
was highly advanced.
In --<, the Dar+ %abinet brought him along on a super-top-secret e#pedition to the Grostfell. &hey were
searching for an ancient eldritch machine that was created by the a+shasa hajas in the Age of Demons
Afrom ,88,888 to ,8,888,888 years agoB. Supposedly, it had the power to move planes. &hey found it, and
they needed a person with the right sort of mind to start it up. &hey had brought "astian for this purpose,
and put him into the machine. Jis mind was soon wrec+ed by the immeasurably potent magic of the
hajas, and he had no control over it. Gor a few seconds, manifest Cones appeared randomly around the
ruin site, dangerously mi#ing and jumbing the pure energies of the planes, until "astian fell unconcious. A
few of the e#peditionEs crew died, but the survivors managed to untangle "astian from the fiendish device,
and, eventually, return to (arrnath.
&he machine had imprinted instructions for its use in "astianEs mind, and the presense of these
instructions +ept him loc+ed in an insane state for an indeterminable time. &he Dar+ %abinet hid him away
in an asylum, all the while attempting to e#tract the instructions using psionic means. &he unsuccessful
psionic prodding did more to harm his already addled mind than it did to help the %abinet, wiping his
memory of the entire e#pedition. &hey let him go, to see if that would help at all.
Je returned to (arrla+ton, where he now has a private detective 4 occult investigator business going.
A( a D%:
%onsidering the craCiness in "astianEs bac+story, IEve got a lot to wor+ with. Also, the player has told me
what direction he would li+e his side of the campaign to go. Je wants a Dovecraftian theme, with
international intrigue, craCy cultists, and non-euclidean eeevil. JeEs also told me that he wants to ta+e
levels in truenamer relatively soon, so we have discussed the place of &ruename magic in our campaign.
*eEve decided to ma+e it very obscure, and closely connected to the Draconic 3rophecy -- in short, the
3rophecy is written in &ruespeech. My ne#t post will be about the actual campaign, but thatEs more writing
than I want to do today.
2+ay, IEve got some time again. IEll write about whatEs happened in the current adventure for "astian.
During this time, heEs level 6.
'reFame:
In his bac+story, "astian went to *ynarn =niversity. I invented one of his professors, Dr. 3ellini, and as+ed
the player for his approval on this addition. Je approved, and we discussed the relationship they had.
&hey were friends.
During the Dast *ar, the nation of %yre had the toughest encryptions, and no one had bro+en the code.
Fveryone thought %yre had a magic item aiding in the encryption process, and the theoriCed item became
+nown as the %yran 3erple#ing Device Athin+ $erman Fnigma MachineB. I had mentioned the idea to the
player in one of our many idle conversations. "astian was a cryptographer during the war, and he would
+now about it.
%athenby is a home-brew small city that was in northern %yre, right accross the river from (arrla+ton.
Di+e the rest of %yre, the city was warped and destroyed on the Day of Mourning.
&he SetFCp:
Dr. 3ellini sends "astian a letter, saying that his student, Ialyr, needs a boo+ that can only be found in
%athenby. 2btaining the boo+ is IalyrEs tic+et into Arcani#, arguably the best *iCardry school on the
contenant. &he boo+ is Syranian Architectural DesignI the Fffects of Structural Glow on 3eace of Mind.
3ellini and his student would be arriving in (arrla+ton soon, and the letter as+s "astian to find a guide for
the little e#pedition. It also as+s "astian to come along if he wants.
"astian hires a guide and a soldier from Denieth, the paladin4ranger %heron from %athenby, and the
fighter4mon+ warforged Dongjab. %heron was in %athenby on the Day of Mourning, and attempted to
evacuate as many people as possible.
3ellini and Ialyr arrive by lightning rail, and "astian shows them to his favorite coffeehouse. &here, the
professor and "astian catch up on old times, and Ialyr goes on about why she wants the boo+. SheEs an
artificer, interested in city planning, and curious about whether a well-designed city could improve its
citiCensE moods, reducing crime and so on. %heron meets them at the coffeehouse, and e#plains about the
logistics of the trip -- basicly a 0uic+ get-in-and-get-out plan. ItEs evening by then, so they all part and go
to bed.
&he &rip into the %ournland(:
&he ne#t day, everyone meets again at the doc+s. %heron has hired a fishing crew to ta+e them accross
the river to %athenby, and brought three horses along. 2nce over the river, they get on their horses, with
Ialyr and 3ellini sharing one A3ellini is a gnomeB, and the warforged, as the scout, with none. "astian
protests a little, having never ridden anything in his life, but he tries it anyway and doesnEt fall off.
&hey travel through the city for a while, and come to an elemental landcart that had crashed into a
fountain. &he (hyber shard that had held the cartEs earth elemental was bro+en into several pieces.
"astian was getting wary about that, and for good reason. A %haggrin Aearth grue -- %Ar, p. ,;5B burst
out from under the cobbled street, right underneath %heronEs horse. &he grue 0uic+ly eviscerates and +ills
the horse, and %heron ma+es his de# chec+ and hops off without getting crushed. "astian shoots at it with
a wand of magic missle, and gets in a good hit. %heron draws his two short swords and gets a suprisingly
good critical, lopping off the thingEs head in short order. Shorter than IEd e#pected, anyway. $rues
normally have spell objects that let a wiCard add a spell to his spellboo+, but I decided to ma+e it a
+nowstone instead. More useful for the 3% as a sorcerer, and not dissimilar to the default item.
&hey reach the place where the boo+ is held, an architectEs wor+shop near the center of town. A &opiary
Dion AMM5, p. ,.<B is guarding the front entrance, so they decide to go in the bac+ way. At the bac+ door,
"astian chec+s for traps, and I realiCe I forgot to put any inH 2h, well. IEm new at this, I can ma+e
mista+es, so long as I learn from them. Je pic+s the loc+ on the door, and they go in. &he main room is
filled with blueprints, to-scale models, and the li+e. &here is also a model tower, which had been built all
the way to the cieling, turns -8 degrees and continues to the wall, where it turns again and continues
about half-way down the wall, where a tiny construct is still wor+ing on it, having never recieved orders to
stop.
&he Real %y(tery !egin(:
&hey continue e#ploring the wor+shop, and find a dead body in the hallway Athe Mournlands are littered
with them, so itEs not unusualB. &hey find a small library room, and the boo+ theyEre loo+ing for is in there.
"astian notices a partly-open secret door in the wood paneling, and a drop of dried blood on the floor. Je
carefully opens the door, to see the body of the architect. =nli+e most of the dead bodies in the
Mournland, she has a clear cause of death -- a blow to the head. &he candlestic+ that +illed her is on the
floor, dried blood still on it. &he body is slumped over a des+, and sheEs holding a 0uill pen as though she
was writing when she died, but there is no paper on the des+. &he loc+s on the drawers of the des+ have
been melted away by acid.
A thurough search of the room Ahe ta+es 68 and has an insane modifierB, and he finds two incomplete
schema, one of illusory script, and the other of sending, and a creation pattern that can fit three schema.
NSchema fit into creation patterns, ma+ing blueprints for powerful magic items.O Je also finds a letter in
Dael+yr Athe language of creatures from the plane of madnessB, which e#plains a method for magically
altering space within cloc+wor+ devices, such that one could build a perpetually moving device with
minimal magical effort. &hese two clues are enough to ma+e "astian thin+ of the %yran 3erple#ing Device.
IEm proud of my player, heEs a smart one.
"astian decides to go out to the hallway to have a closer loo+ at the body there. It was a dwarven woman,
and there is dried blood on her right sleeve, and left shoulder Aindicating using a weapon in the right hand,
and blood splattering leftward. Je got it, tooH B. She died li+e most people who were caught in the
Mourning -- just falling over dead. She has identification papers, which state that she is a resident of
%athenbyK the third schema, one of hypnotismK $oggles of &rue eading, a magic item that lets one see
through illusory scriptK some architectural plans for a childrenEs hospitalK and a note in a simple Dar+
%abinet cypher, LImediately bring what you can to (arrla+ton.L After Identifying the goggles, "astian
wears them, and they start humming softly Aa drawbac+ that imparts -6 to hide and move silentlyB. Je
discovers that the plans arenEt for a childrenEs hospital after all, but for the %yran 3erple#ing Device.
After finding nothing else of interest in the wor+shop, the group heads bac+ to (arrla+ton. "astian gives
%heron the three incomplete schemas, and +eeps the plans for himself. ItEs evening again, and the group
parts ways.
&hatEs it, so far0
Campaign Example #13
2+, than+s.
So, here it goesI
*e created my friends character he is a $estalt %leric-"arbarian Ait means he ta+es the best things from
the two classesB.
I thought I would start in Gaerun because it was the less intensive wor+, and it is very clich\ type AI
wouldnEt of started in Fberron for e#ampleB.
Jis characters name is &horva+, when he only was ; days old his true parents abandoned him in the
ban+s of &he $leamril river, in Deepingdale, near the outpost of "lushdade.
"lushdade is a little almost independant outpost, it survives by fishing, ma+ing wood-based things and
brewing one very tasty ale.
"lushdade has 6,6 adults and ,9: Anon-adultsBK .6Q of witch are human, ,:Q are Jalf-Flven and ,6Q
are Flven.
&he political system in "lushdade is a Military uling, three Gighters rule "lushdadeI
-$romble Male Juman Gtr5
-Jelchos Male Juman Gtr5
-(alium Gemale Juman Gtr5
&horva+ was found and raised by a local guard named 2tilamin, 2tilamin trained him in the northern
forest, thats how &horva+ got in contact with animals and nature, and learned how to channel his inner
energy. So at ,9 years old he was ready and trained as a "arbarian.
&hen, very old 2tilamin decided that &horva+ should go to a convent of Durue to learn the art of Divine
magic.
So he did, &horva+, after very intensive wor+ graduated from that school at 65 years old, . days after
&horva+ graduating, 2tilamin died peacefully in his house by a strange disease.
6 days later his body was thrown into the $leamril river, was he as+ed in his &estament.
Jis &estament also said 2tilamin got the little bric+ red house beside the river, and gave all his possesions
to the &emple of Durue.
&hat was the day that &horva+ promised the training his adoptive father did, was not useless and he would
prove that to himself and to the world, just as he was e#iting his fathers funeral, $lenmer, his adoptive
fathers old friend as+ed him if he could help him with a giant insect plague in his basement.
)ust a very sound start to the enterprise of adventure.
%omments all accepted and encouraged.
&han+s.
$ood wor+H I li+e this for a lot of reasons.
Gor one your story is simple, yet filled with lots of little openings. Many times a DM Aor playerB creates a
very complicated story at the beginning and it really hurts more than helps. &he best stories are the
simple ones well told. /ow a good DM Aor playerB can create a bac+ground that is solid, but leaves
openings for future development. &he real comple#ity to a life story for a 3% should evolve in the
campaign. In this case, the story is about a boy raised by a loving and devout father who teaches him to
be a holy warrior, then father dies and son promises to live up to his fatherEs e#pectations. &his is a good
story that most players can wrap their heads around. /ow you have given a few twists to develop later,
the 3% was abandoned by his birth parents and his father died of a EstrangeE illness. Seriously, I would
consider this a paradigm for bac+grounds.
I also li+e the idea of a cleric dedicated to Durue, this is a great opening for countless adventure ideas. I
personally thin+ that clerics are one of the best solo 3% classes as it provides so many adventure hoo+s.
Durue is a good choice, nature faiths always have some crisis to deal with, plus you get unicorns. Also a
gestalt barbarian-cleric is very potent and gives the 3% freedom to act independently and also a reason
why the 3% will 0uic+ly come to prominence in the faith.
Ginally, I li+e how you gave &hora+ a residence in his home town AI assume you meant that 2tilamin left it
to &hora+ and not himself on death B and had a family connection provide him with his first adventure.
In an adventure or two, you should have &hora+ hoo+ed on "lushdade. Sery good, solo 3%s need
connections and already you are providing them.
Di+e I said very good start, please post updates if you li+e.