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I often get a general idea of how I want my game to go, but don’t know how to get from point A to point B. Some of this is not just relating to story, but also to physical mechanics (battle maps, miniatures, props, etc.). So where does a GM who is homebrewing their game get these things? My favorite places to get resources are the internet and my local game store.
The local game store has books of campaigns (both long and short) and other resource books to garner ideas. These books may inspire your own creation, or you may be able to use part of it directly in your homebrew world. If it doesn’t fit “as is,” reskin it to fit. You can have it take place in a town the players have already been to, add an NPC they’ve already met, or have the adventure affect another plot within the original campaign. If you’re not quite finding the inspiration or adventures that work, you can also find plot hooks and prompts online. Putting those stories down in a physical sense takes a bit more digging. The internet has a universe full of information to fit any budget. There are lots of free maps, tokens, and adventure ideas, and even more options for a small subscription fee. If you are playing online, having a good virtual tabletop at the ready is helpful as well. There are free options of varying degrees of complexity, but I settled on a more simple program (it’s just easier with my group as we are at varying degrees of computer literacy). Unexpected resources are often found among used books and stories of others’ games. I enjoy listening to friends tell stories about the games they have been a part of, and often get ideas for what I could include in my own game. Props such as letters, puzzles, and pictures I try to make myself. Unfortunately, my game is online, so I have to send this through email and it is just not the same. Inspiration and resources come from everywhere. Anything that gives you an idea for the game, be it story or mechanic, is worth looking into and giving a try. Who knows what you may find.
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Ahhh! So you were the only one willing to run the game, taking the responsibility of the “Game Master,” but you really wanted to play. Easy fix, make a character to play along with the rest of the players. NO! Don’t do it! It is too easy to fall into this trap. Sure, it sounds like fun, but soon you are taking over everything, having all the answers, and making the rest of your players feel like supporting characters in your story.
Think of it this way…you do not need to be a member of the party when you are going to play all of the other people the party runs into. There are times where an NPC is needed to help the party reach a location or gather knowledge, but these characters need to come and go. If you find the party is lacking in a particular area, and will need a way to pick up the slack, you can add an NPC for a brief time, however, a better way to handle this is to have the party find magic items or be gifted boons. Occasionally, the story you are creating may require your players to protect an NPC. If this is the case, the NPC should not be able to stand on their own, but actually need the party to keep them alive and out of trouble. If the party is escorting a merchant (you know, becoming the ever dreaded hired guards for a caravan), the merchant and their underlings should present in a way that shows the party they would indeed die if your group was not there. This gives the players a sense of purpose, and drives their egos. If the story calls for a character to travel with the party for an extended time, let them sit back. Don’t allow them to drive where the players go or let their story take over. It’s not about the NPC reaching their goal unless they can achieve it while the PCs are accomplishing their own agenda. If the players do seem to get caught up in asking the NPC a lot of questions, it is okay that they do not have any answers. In general, when I add an extended NPC with the party, I place them on the back burner. They do not speak unless spoken to, and they are not a fount of information. If they enter combat, I have them do pretty minimal actions and always lose ties to players and enemies. Any NPC that must travel with the party is typically a “One Trick Pony,” and are there for a very specific purpose. I was chatting with a friend of mine one evening and we started talking about a certain deck of cards that causes much chaos. The bane of both players and GMs alike (though I’m down with the chaos that will ensue). We laughed and joked about what could happen if certain cards were drawn for nearly an hour then moved on in our conversation.
It hit me shortly after we got off the phone. What would it be like to actually have quests associated with certain cards? Well, being that this particular magic item causes my brain to hurt as a GM, I altered it of course. Instead of being associated with this item, I had it associated with a deck of tarot cards instead. From there, I had to decide what kind of world I wanted to play in. Looking at my shelf, I saw “Arcana of the Ancients” (which I had dabbled in, but not completely embraced) and decided I wanted it to be a magic + science type of world. I then bought the campaign setting for 5e, “Beneath the Monolith” which is designed to work with the other book. That was it, the missing piece! Based on what I was reading, the people of the world relied more on their machines and one particular group of people as their religious leaders. I thought…no gods? The light bulb turned on. In all the campaigns I’ve run, I pictured gods receiving power based on their followers (more followers = more power). What if the gods had diminished enough that they decided to take action to return? What if they had had enough of barely surviving and are ready to thrive once more? What would they do? And I was off, researching gods and setting up how they interacted with one another. Creating challenges to go with the cards that the gods had provided. All this while also trying to keep the evil deities under some kind of control. Once the ideas were in place, I opened up the world and let the players jump right in. The rest is yet to come. Note: “Arcana of the Ancients” and “Beneath the Monolith” are published by Monte Cook Games. I suck at them! This is an area I need to improve upon. As a GM, I am asked to do one shots frequently, and to come off poorly reflects on my GM-ing as well as the game itself. I need to present a full beginning, middle, and end all while allowing the players to still experience the full range of role play (exploration, social encounters, and battle).
I’m a long term gamer. I like to open the world before my players and let them explore. I could easily go two or three sessions without any battles, and let the characters interact with other non-player characters to learn more about the people, places, and histories of the world. I develop my overall plot line while we play, and generally use player conversations to guide it. But, in a one-shot, it needs to already be laid out…at least to some degree. It really comes down to time management. I start by asking myself a few questions. Is the one-shot going to take place in 3 hours, or 6? Will there be an extended break in the middle? How many players are going to be involved? These questions should aid in guiding the creation of the one-shot, and some answers directly affect others. I try to limit the number of players for a one-shot. Too many will bog down play time and create decision paralysis, and they can easily become distracted as they wait for others. Too few can cause holes in skills and abilities, leaving a section of your planned one-shot as a dead end. One of the ways to fix this is to have pre-generated characters. Not only will it save time, it will also ensure you have the required skills scattered among the players that are needed to complete this quest. Getting the players hooked is easily done through reward of money, or they get to keep any other loot they find. If you want to have more story, give one of the pre-generated characters some background that involves them in the plot (a nemesis or love interest, or they may be bound by an oath). Be careful on adding this though, as a new player may not be comfortable with playing out a backstory. A huge helpful tip that I once received is to be generous with information. Don’t be afraid to give your players the names of places or NPCs that they need to interact with right away. If you need them to investigate for information, have the minimum roll still provide enough to complete the quest and allow for your high rollers to gather “flavor text.” This will allow the players to still reach the satisfaction of a job well done, and provide a little spice along the way. Final thought: don’t be afraid of tropes. Meet in the bar, rescue the damsel in distress, get back the stolen item for the noble, rid the town of annoying goblins. It’s a one-shot! Having an expected plot line aids the players in knowing where to go and what to do, especially if you have first time players. |
AuthorJodie 
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April 2025
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