In the case of the adventure we’re going to create together, let’s set some guidelines. We need it to be playable in 4 hours, because we’re going to design it for a standard convention slot. (Designing adventures for organized play campaigns also brings this limitation to your design.) This means I need to be very deliberate in the number of encounters, where they take place, and how much time each should take to resolve at the table. (If you are writing an adventure for a home group with no time limit, you might not need to do this, but it is good practice to set some limits anyway to focus your design. You can always remove the limits if necessary.) SnobgoblinEU made the observation that in their experience it's better to evolve the story as the party progresses. Authors such as Michael Shae (Sly Flourish) and others have made the point of DM's falling into the trap of writing too far ahead, and the frustrations that can come when the party doesn't follow the DM's carefully planned-out story, and/or the material they feel they have to throw away as the party isn't going to use it (which can be reduced by recycling material, but that's another thread). Items currently discounted by other promotions are also not eligible for additional discounts via discount codes.

First, it would be useful to see the end product of these principles and ideas, like a couple of examples. Isle of Man, Isle of Wight, Northern Ireland and the Scottish Highlands) may take longer to reach you. For writing longer modules, there comes a point when you need to switch from Outline to something more like a Basean flow-chart (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bayesian_probability). Writing such a module still comes with the difficulty of requiring more possible solutions or work-arounds, the longer the story goes. Even following the new AL guidelines of a level gained for every 2 hours of table play, we're talking 11 sessions (22 hours) for a party to achieve level 11 and be near the end of the module. The number of decisions a party can make, which can throw the story completely off the written rails, increases with every session. Architect Louis Sullivan famously created the axiom: “form follows function.” Taken at its most basic level, this principle states that the form something takes is inherently informed by that thing’s purpose. Sullivan’s protégé, Frank Lloyd Wright, broadened that philosophy to explain the idea more clearly: “form and function are one.” I have noticed a distinct shift in the modules coming from WOTC. Descent into Avernus is a wonderful example. [Warning some spoilers] Being an adventure designed to progress PC's from level 1 to level 11, and transitioning across five major chapters (particularly chapter 3: Avernus, which could of used some sub-division), you have a choice as a module author/DM. Do I try to continuously branch out the major possibilities a party might go within the frame of the story, perhaps expecting the DM running things to ad hoc the elements I didn't write about; vs. railroading the story and removing player agency (which is one of my disappointments with Descent into Avernus).

For the adventure I plan to write over the course of this series of articles, this is my working introduction. It can obviously change if my design takes me in a different direction, but I can use it as my guiding star as I start my design: WizKids is releasing some new miniatures this March called Dungeons & Dragons Frameworks. These are a departure from what WizKids has produced in the past, and D&D is diving into the world of customizable sprue kits. D&D Frameworks offers a different miniature experience for those who like to paint minis but want more customization. Whatever you want to call them, these comprise the beating heart of your adventure. Many designers have a tendency, understandably so, to want to fully design here rather than outline. Perhaps, if you don’t have many parameters that you are designing for, you can do that. However, if you do have strictures on your play time and adventure scope, outlining first is important.

As you envision DMs running your adventure, consider what might be helpful or fun if it was represented visually in a handout for the players. Puzzles that have moving pieces or that are highly detailed can benefit from a handout. More importantly, providing handouts of letters or journals or other things the characters find can deepen the player’s experience, and also take some of the workload off the DM. To put this even more succinctly: where are the characters at the start of the adventure, where should they be at the end of the adventure, and what are some of the steps they might take on their journey from beginning to end. In our case, where we need to fill 4 hours. We can assume about 5-8 encounters within the understanding that some encounters might be skipped, or some encounters might be fairly short roleplaying or exploration encounters. Handouts, Maps, and AppendicesHave you ever outlined an adventure, or even run an adventure entirely from an outline? Let us know in the comments. Do any of your encounters contain elements better represented in a map rather than strictly described in the text? Most DMs and players appreciate maps, especially in areas with dungeons or other complex encounter areas. Whilst we will do everything we can to meet the delivery times above, there may be factors outside of our control and we cannot guarantee delivery within this time frame. What you are talking about is not a Danish phenomenon. Many American DMs (and others I know from all over the world) run their games with a more improvisational style. And that is perfectly fine. But I am focusing in my articles on a more formal style of adventure design, with an eye toward creating adventures that you might want to publish, so you have no idea who your players might be and what their desires might be. I hope that improvisational DMs can still take some pointers from these articles, but I am definitely not focused in that direction. High-falutin’ ideas aside, common sense dictates that adventures written for yourself to DM for only your home group in 6 hours will be different than one to be played in two hours at a convention and run by DMs you know, which will itself be designed differently than a 12-hour adventure that you are writing for publication in a hardcover book. Ponder the function, then you are ready to start outlining the form.