Over the weekend I started a new campaign with a group of four teenagers, two of which have never before played Dungeons and Dragons (D&D). When looking for a campaign to run them through I wanted something that they could slide into easily and not be overwhelmed by, where they could achieve some success and be encouraged to continue and, most importantly, have some fun.
Curse of Strahd did not meet those requirements.
Dragon of Icespire Peak did.
This particular campaign centers around a dragon (it's right there in the name) that has come to roost in a nearby mountain top and wreck havoc along the countryside. For a Dungeons and Dragons campaign it's really nice to see that this one has both dungeons and dragons in it.
One of the more difficult parts of running a campaign with new players is encouraging them to actually roleplay and to take the part of their character, and not just expect to be told what their options are and then roll dice. What makes this particular campaign helpful is that it almost leads the group by hand when they begin; instead of just laying down a plot and expecting the characters to do something, there are literal quests for them to complete, such as "Go warn the dwarves that a dragon is in the area, then come back and get paid." It gives them an immediate goal and something to do. Further, at the completion of these early quests, the characters get to level up, too.
Two of the four players are new to the game, meaning that the other two were not. It took some gentle coaxing and direction, and by the end of our first session they were beginning to actually play their characters more than they were playing the game. The session was left on a cliffhanger:
The group of adventurers adventured to an old stone windmill to bring the midwife who lived there back to the village for safety. Upon arrival they happened upon a manticore attacking the windmill, and the lady screaming out of the second story window for help.
This group should have been decimated by the manticore, but I opted for a second approach. As they were attacking the creature I had him take to the sky (he has wings, and can fly) and ask the group just why they were attacking him. I portrayed him as suave with a smooth gentleman's accent, not something one would expect from a flesh eating monster who likes to eat his prey alive.
"Well, you're a monster!" said one.
"I think you are," the manticore replied.
"Well, you were attacking the ladies house!"
"Yes, I'm hungry!"
And so on. My goal was to get the players to think about solving problems without attacking them or rolling dice. Ultimately they were able to come to an agreement with the manticore who, having lost his prior home to the newly arrived dragon, agreed to help defeat the dragon in return for a steady supply of food.
One of the characters - a Neutral Evil hobgoblin - offered up the midwife. One of the others agreed. Two of them, both playing Lawful Good somethings-or-another, disagreed, and negotiations commenced.
I love this type of thing. It's completely off course from the adventure itself, but it is drawing the players into the game. Of course, if they do agree to let the manticore eat the woman I'll need examine their alignments and make some adjustments accordingly, but that will also be fun.
One of the characters is a forest gnome. His father was a magic user, and our fine gnome character inherited his father's spellbooks. His family did little more than live in some holes in the ground, so his clothing consists of leaves and twigs. And mud.
At one point in the adventure the gnome found a pendant that he wanted to keep. I asked him where he put it.
"In my pouch."
"Where is your pouch?"
-silence-
"Um... on a strap that is attached to a vine I'm wearing."
Riiiight.
Of course it got me thinking. And now I present to you a new 2nd level Gnome-only Sorcery spell.
Spell: Asshole of Holding
Level: 2
Casting Time: 1 round
Duration: Until emptied
Range: Touch
I'm not actually writing up the nitty gritty details. I figure those are ... ahem ... fluid enough to be modifiable campaign to campaign.
(c) All images and photographs, unless otherwise specified, are created and owned by me.
(c) Victor Wiebe
About Me
Sometimes photographer. Wannabe author. Game designer. Nerd.
General all around problem-solver and creative type.
Creator of What I Learned Today Hive community: https://peakd.com/c/hive-131257/created
Blind Skeleton
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Bwahahahaaa! The retentive bunghole got me rolling!