Over the years I have had the privilege of being the DM for a group of players that have included several DM’s that play in other groups.  On many occasions they have asked me for input on their own campaigns; adventure hooks, player management issues, rules decisions, that sort of thing.  It’s from these conversations that I decided to start blogging (thanks again Sam for the opportunity).  Many of these topics are great subject matter for complete articles (and will be) but one that I’m frequently asked about is for ideas on creating a campaign.  Not so much the process for designing the entire campaign from start to finish, but just a little creative push start, a campaign primer if you will. 

It is with this in mind that I present Campaign Primer.  A series of articles, each featuring a different idea, designed to help inspire and motivate all of you Dungeon Masters out there.  It is my hope that these articles will help get your creative energy flowing and assist you in creating a great and truly memorable campaign.  Please feel free to ask questions or comment on each idea; the best ideas are always a collaborative effort. 

So without further delay, welcome to this, the inaugural installment of Campaign Primer.

The Campaign Hook

The campaign’s heroes are all part of a rebellion against a monolithic, tyrannical empire that is slowly conquering the world.  The empire strictly controls the practice of magic and has outlawed the worship of the deities.  Today the empire expands ever outward and although the government is harsh, some would even say draconic, the people’s under its beneficent rule are safe, secure, and prosperous.  The same can not be said for those who deny the emperor’s mandates.

The Back-story

More than a hundred years ago a powerful being rose up and defended a kingdom in its darkest hour.  Afterward this highly charismatic individual convinced the kingdom that its many woes were due to unchecked arcane powers and the kingdom’s foolish trust in an uncaring pantheon of gods.  After uniting the populace against their king the individual began a campaign of unifying the surrounding mortal kingdoms into a massive empire with himself as the emperor.

PC Roles & Concepts

The heroes begin the campaign as prisoners of the empire.  They come from different walks of life but they have all managed to make themselves enemies of the state.  Possible character hooks include:

• The last heir to the throne of a kingdom conquered by the empire.
• A member of an underground group of arcanists.
• A follower of one of the gods.
• A criminal, gladiator, or slave.
• A former military leader from a conquered nation.

Most of the PC’s have been prisoners for years and regardless of who they were in their former life they have all been reduced to mere prisoners, since it has been years since they were able to put their skills and abilities to use.  In fact a great way to go is have the characters make “0-level” characters as follows:

• Pick a race and select attributes as normal.
• Each character selects one martial 1^st level at-will attack power.
• Everyone gets 10 + Constitution score hit points.
• Everyone gets 5 + Constitution modifier healing surges.
• Everyone is proficient in simple weapons.
• Everyone may select one physical skill to be trained in. 

The Set-up

My thoughts for this campaign were to have the first few sessions tell the story of the heroes escape from incarceration.  But first let’s set the tone with some serious failure. 

After many months, or even years the heroes have been placed on an indentured work crew in one of the empire’s major cities.  Set up a great escape scene but ensure the heroes are all recaptured.  Ideally they will very nearly succeed only to be stopped just sort of freedom.  When the heroes awake they find they have been placed “in the hole” in one of the empire’s major prisons.  Tell them that their next opportunity comes “a few years later”.  This ought to have great impact on your players when you have them add a few years to their character’s ages. 

I would run this basic set-up at least twice for a couple of reasons.  First of all I really want to build up a hatred for the empire in the players minds and secondly to showcase some of the elements of the setting.  I want the characters to see some of the accomplishments of the empire, monument building, public works projects, and their extremely capable legions of soldiers. 

After setting the right tone, have the characters all transferred to a project on the fringes of the empire.  They travel across the sea arriving at the front lines where the empire is fighting a war against a foreign kingdom.  Here is where the heroes will finally make their escape.  Once free the heroes team up with the indigenous peoples and retreat into the wilds.  Flash forward the campaign a couple of months; the kingdom has finally succumbed to the empire, the heroes are living with the survivors of the war but have finally regained, or gained for the first time, their skills and abilities.  Have them all reengineer their characters as first level in the class of their choosing.

Heroic Tier

The heroes fight with the empire on the fringes of their lands.  Maybe they find some patrons to help or even ancient magic.  The tier revolves around the heroes eventually coming into contact with, and proving their loyalty to, the rebellion.

Paragon Tier

The heroes, along with the rebellion, actively fight the forces of the empire on the empire’s turf.  Along the way they discover the depth of the empire’s control and perhaps the secret of the emperor’s power.

Epic Tier

Depending on what has gone on before epic tier could be almost anything.  Perhaps in your campaign the gods have actually been imprisoned and the heroes must set them free.  Or maybe after freeing the world from the shackles of tyranny the heroes discover that the empire actually was protecting the world from some greater threat. 

Variations

A few questions to ask yourself about the campaign: 

Does the empire have any racial bias?  Does the empire simply outlaw magic or do they control it with the settings only sanctioned spell-casters?  When the heroes finally break free who are the people they join up with that the empire is conquering?  Perhaps they are goblinoids or some other “evil” race for a twist on a theme.  Is the empire anti-religion or do they have some sort of state religion?  Are the citizens of the empire generally content or are they looking for freedom also?  What is the truth behind the empire’s rise to power?  Infernal pacts?  A renegade deity?  Mind flayers and Far Realm influence? Who or what is the emperor? 

The answer to each of these questions, as well as dozens of others, will have heavy impact on the nature of the campaign. 

In closing this article is meant as a “campaign seed”, something to get your creative game-master juices flowing.  I am hoping to generate a lot of feedback on this idea, throw in your two cents worth and let’s see where this idea goes.

Until next time…