▶▶ Timecodes / chapters 02:26 - How Campaign Creator will work 04:04 - Todays start 07:20 - A name for your Campaign 09:20 - The Sentence 13:56 - Developing the Sentence 17:38 - Theme 21:43 - Combining theme into the Sentence 25:06 - Overcoming mental blocks 29:45 - Finish set-up of WA template
oh my god the best chase campaign! they steal the eggs from the protectors just as Jackar defeats them. now they run off with them and literally the whole world wants those eggs. they need to be careful whom do they give this immense power to or even try and hatch the eggs themsleves. the eggs switch owners multiple times and thats it - you have a hiest and chase campaign
"Nobody likes coming up with names!" *hiding my almost whole notebook full of made up words, names, and potential titles that are phonaesthetic to me, all done just for fun*
You know, you really should make an automatic "Somebody wants something badly by a specific time, and is having difficulty getting it using X because of Y" generator. It's not very difficult to make, and could really help people juggle ideas.
“Once men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free. But that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them.” ― Frank Herbert, Dune
@@nicholasrandall3507 yes, because creating a random generator to help with inspiration is definitely comparable to allowing machines to think for you.
The First time I did this step I got too set in stone in thinking ahead and establishing the sentence of the first ark of my campaign(Part of this is because I wasn't working for a blank canvas but rather an idea I wrote down a year ago) rather than a sentence for the campaign as a whole. Once I realized my mistake and got over that mental roadblock I tried it again from scratch I found what I created to be a much more effective encompassing Campaign Title/Sentence/Theme/Applied Sentence. Thanks for making this amazing series Guy as it has been immensely helpful in getting my Amateur GM ideas for a campaign written down and expanded upon.
So glad you're doing this! My players have challenged me to run an evil 5e campaign. I'm using this to build it. My sentence... "The war is over. The world of Beyazahn hasn't known peace for hundreds of years. For certain elves and dwarves, peace is a distant childhood memory. For everyone else, peace is a legend; a myth; a faerie tale. The people of Beyazahn want peace, now. They have won the war. It's over. The despots and dictators who have subjugated the good people of Beyazahn are defeated. Now that the evil has been purged, the arduous task of reclaiming and rebuilding their world begins. Evil persists. Evil survives. Evil can't be purged. The war is never over."
I like it. If the players want a more prominent role. They could be working for the secret leaders of one of the "good and peaceful" victors. Power corrupts and a human leader who defeated a tyrant is likely to become a tyrant. Though they might need to hide behind the appearance of good and peaceful. They might fund privateers (pirates targeting the other nations while secretly working for the corrupt leader. This way the players can do evil things but have to keep their actions secret and target specific things while not bringing harm to others.
This has helped alot, thanks you. It has helped to focus the NPCs goals, desires, motivations and streamlined the plot in many ways. I currently DM 2 campaigns and this has gone a long way to organize all the plots, of which there are many in my sandbox games. So thank you for this, even doing the thought process on video helped. Sentence: Beald wants the last 2 volumes of The Books of Ascension containing Elven High Magic Rituals, before the next lunar cycle convergence of the Material plane & fairie, but is having difficulty getting them, because they are under the care of powerful Elven Houses. Theme: -Self-worth and overcoming one's own doubts to forge their own fate -Love's Power to disrupt and destroy lives -Loves Power to overcome great obstacles -Doing the right thing, even when it isnt seen as such -The corruption of Power Themed Sentence: Beald wants The Books of Ascension because they will grant him Godhood and he will be free to be his own person, The Books of Ascension can only be read under the light of the moon during the convergence. With this new found power he can find Rowena, his love that was hidden away bby magical means, and grant her immortality so they may be together. Would love anyone input. thanks again.
Probably spent a bit longer than I should, but I'm happy with this! NAME: The Lost Prophecy SENTENCE: Rakshall wants to find the tomb of the Frozen Warrior by the next solstice, but his Orc war band is having difficulty finding it because the location of his final resting place has been lost to the ages. THEME: Prophecy is not set in stone. APPLIED: A prophecy has foretold that the Frozen Warrior can be reawakened once a century on the solstice, and Rakshall has been tasked by Ilneval to carry this out. If the tomb can be destroyed, the cycle of prophecy can be broken. Let's see where this goes! Never built a campaign before, so I'm looking forward to this.
I need help understanding the structure of "the Sentence". It always includes why the antagonist is failing. Why should the characters take action if the antagonist is failing to reach his goal?
The sentence is one of the best technics I have ever come across. It's worth noticing that it's always written from the perspective of the villein and it is not describing the narrative. That's what the PCs play out. The sentence is what drives the narrative forward.
Hi Guy, I've been trying to put together a world (or worlds) for my players for quite some time, with much giving up and being overwhelmed. This video (and I'm sure the rest of the series once I get round to it) gives a great focal point for starting - much appreciated!
SENTENCE: K'Suum the Everliving wants both the Echo of Nothing and the Lantern of Caspia by the next planetary alignment but is having difficulty finding them using the Order of the Wilted Rose and the Coven of the Undying because the artifacts are either well-hidden or lost to time.
Title: Ascension of the Adshar-Odain Theme: Perseverance is rewarded/Revenge begets destruction Sentence with theme: Baphomet wants to take over Lydus as revenge after the dwarves beat his minotaurs/centaurs in the war of the vale. He is having trouble doing so because during the fall of Khandrathord, he was trapped and is having trouble organizing his horde against the dwarves.
Working alongside this guide step-by-step for creating my campaign and I'm loving it so far. Thanks so much for making this series! I haven't DMed since college, and this series has be confident that I can do it. Looking forward to the rest!
Title: Ascension of the Adshar-Odain Theme: Perseverance is rewarded/Revenge begets destruction Sentence with theme: Baphomet wants to take over Lydus as revenge after the dwarves beat his minotaurs/centaurs in the war of the vale. He is having trouble doing so because during the fall of Khandrathord, he was trapped and is having trouble organizing his horde against the dwarves.
Name: Take Back the Streets: The crime boss known as "The Chairman" wants to bring the various street gangs of Paragon City under his control by the next Mayoral election, but is having difficulty acheiving it using his connections within the city government because of the efforts of intrepid reporter Jane Marie Woodward.
I'm so new tabletop and everything, but I've been really interested in writing my own campaign just because the creative process looks like a lot of fun. The timing on this couldn't have been better and I'm excited to see where this campaign I'm making up goes from here. Sentence: The Queen of Dark Narrows wants the shell of the ancient turtle by Dance of Moons, and is having trouble getting it with her mole scouts because of the light.
Just thought I'd add this little tidbit, but there are a TON of random name generators on the Internet that are so so useful for titles and whatnot. Mix that with whatever else you have in your noggin and you'll probably get something pretty rad. 😎👍
I had been fighting with a really cool idea - a Jedi Padawan turned force vampire by an accident - but have been struggling for a while now to give the concept a story. I think this might have set me on the right path! Here, by the way is my sentance: NAME: By Any Means Nessassary Jedi Master Valen Korr saw that the Jedi were losing the war, confirmed by his visions. He began experimenting with forbidden techniques - nightsister alchemy, sith teachings, the way of the Fananasi, anything he could get his hands on in the Jedi's Black Archive to win the war by any means necessary. But then the war was lost and the Jedi were destroyed. As far as he knows, he is the last Jedi. It falls on him to save the galaxy now. Using force nexus points - force ley lines - to take out Palpatine by taking out Coruscant.
Sounds like the premise of a great comic or novel. A few interesting ways for players to interact with the story come to mind. Though some require your sentence to be kept to yourself instead of sharing with the players.
Name: Whisperers Sentence: Madras Westborn wants to obtain the "Crown of the grove mother" before the kingdoms annual winter festival, but there are agents hunting both him and the crown. Theme: save the king, heroes rise up Sentence cont: Madras believes the king is not himself and is in fact under the sway of someone within the royal court, he has made a deal with a contact for information to the crown's whereabouts. The crown is said to reveal the true form of hidden creatures, Madras wants this because he has heard rumours that the king will declare war against the Wizards of the starfields coalition. Please judge kindly, I've never done this before....
It is an interesting setup. Especially if you think about the theme and the sentence cont... Pitching the players against the villain who turns out to be the good guy. Classic and if done well it makes for an incredible experience. There is however one pitfall I'd like to warn you: If I get this right, you want to pitch the players against the hidden good guy until you reveal the real bad guy later. Make sure it's the WORLD that tricks the CHARACTERS into thinking Madras is the bad guy. And NOT the DM tricking the players to do so. Maybe give them clues in advance that something is up. Maybe not revealing that the king is the bad guy - but that there might be more to Madras as seen on the first glance. This kind of twists can be a bit tricky - but as long as you keep in mind, that it's the world vs the characters and not YOU vs your players, you should be fine. But anyway - if you pull that off - your players will remember that campaign, that I grant you :D I like the idea.
@@robertnett9793 I think the general feel I was going for would be that Madras is one of the king's whisperer's, basically a spy. He has found clues about the king's strange behaviour and thinks someone in the court is disguised, but he can't just accuse anyone, so he wants the crown to help reveal their true form. The bad guy has realised what Madras is up to and has his own agents hunting both Madras and the crown. So the campaign would be Madras hiring adventurers to retrieve the crown, get to the king and stop the bad guy before his hold on the king becomes too strong? I've never done a homebrew campaign, just the mines of phandalin, so maybe I've made this too simple or railroad?
@@aidanthornton173 : I wouldn't say railroad per say. It is - as you describe it a shorter campaign most likely. But that's honestly the best way to start up. One of my main errors, is that I try much to convoluted and bloated complex campaigns, that don't go anywhere and just die at some point. (So don't ever take the advise from me to make it more complicated). You have actually three good steps - or acts. First the setup. The players have to learn about Madras and his goals. Second the quest for the crown and lastly confronting the traitor (which could be the king OR instead Madras, who just told the players the crown would reveal the traitor, but instead it has some powerful enchantment making the wearer king or whatever... No. Not going ahead of myself here.) It would be railroad if it was like this: 1st adventure; Madras hires the players; 2th adventure Madras sends the players off to dungeon X where the crown lies; 3rd adventure; the adventurers come back, Madras points to the potential traitor and they reveal them killing him later. But you don't do that. First your players should actually know, that the campaign invovles working for the kings Spymaster. You don't tell them that he IS the good guy, or that he hasn't his own plans. Let the characters guess. But make it clear to the players, that they will, at least initially work for the spymaster. Because when your players wait for 'normal dungeoneering and adventuring, they might not take the hook to work for the spymaster. Even this might work, then random questgivers WORKING for Madras would hire/send the characters on different adventures - this would however become more complicated. Let them experience the erratic decissions the king makes. Send armies off to kill random peasants or things like that. Making a deal with old (and not to be trusted) enemies of the realm. Visible mistakes, no one however would bring up in the kings presence. Show the players something with the king is wrong. If they then ask the spymaster, let him share the concerns. Let him come up with the idea that someone at the court might play a double game. You could directly tell them, that there are magical items - like the ancient crown - that might be able to uncover the traitor. Maybe like: "Oh yeah. Once I read in the temple of wisdom in an ancient book about this crown. Would be really good to have it. But alas... it's just a legend of olden times..." So the mage-character or the bard might look into it. Encourage the players if they ponder about this. Let them find out about the legends of the crown. Of different occasions, where the kings of old uncovered machinations and stuff. Hint in some of the texts clues for the whereabouts of the crown. Let some assassins attack the mage / bard player IN the library - so they know they are on to something. When they puzzle together where the crown might be hidden, let them prepare for the journey there. The dungeon itself - is a dungeon brawl - but ideally the players themselves choose to go to the dungeon in the first place. You can allow for investigations before they enter the dungeon. Local rumors about what kind of monsters and traps are hiding there and so on. When they have the crown someon tries to steal it. Make it either a rescue in the last second or a wild chase through the city sewers. Their journey home is less relaxed than the journey to the dungeon, because NOW they have the item and the bad guy does everything to stop them. When they then are back in the palace prepare for an epic showdown. Either confront the alleged bad guy in the throne room, where he then reveals to be a more capable enemy then expected (what about if they think he is just an agent of an enemy country, just to learn he is in fact a blood thirsting demon agent from an enemy plane of existence... Maybe it's a skinwalker who has literally a piece of the kings skin sewed in his cloak to 'become' the king, while the real one is hidden in a secret part of the palace dungeon (everyone knows, impersionation spells loos a lot of their power, when the person impersionated is dead - so alas you have to keep them alive...) Then don't forget you always can throw in one-shot adventures along the way. Maybe the players try to uncover the agent themselves. Let them even find someone - but not the main antagonist of course. Thinking they did it and then they learn, the king still works in mysterious ways :D And this here are really just tips. Simple ideas of the top of my head. Use, change or ignore as you please. :D
@@robertnett9793 I was thinking of doing a lord of the rings trick. The king is still the real king, but the queen has been kidnapped and a demon has taken her place and charmed the king like wormtongue in rohan. The demons goal is to cause as much death and chaos as possible by making the king clamp down on spellcasters, insult nearby allies and eventually openly attack a small independent country of mages. The campaign would start on a luxury riverboat where the players would meet madras but not know who he is or what he's after. The boat would come under attack by pirates, afterwards madras would reveal the pirate's to be cultists in disguise and that they were after him. The players would stay in a port town for a bit doing odds and ends before a wounded madras would ask them to help him find the crown.
My sentence: Kiranna wants to redeem herself before her son awakens, but is having trouble doing that, because no one would believe her yet. I've no idea what it all means, but I like it!
It sounds like quite a hook, I like it. Perhaps the son is in a magical sleep in this sleeping death like state due to a forbidden ritual that she was involved in.
@@kiyannareynard1850 Might work :-) But while I do like the sentence, I'm not entirely sure how it can help me build my campaign, world and all. Guess I'll find out more in a couple of weeks!
Colossal undead titans, ancient intelligent beings from the ancient past, risen...hmm...risen for...something momentous, I'm sure. Regardless of why it sounds like a great seed for a campaign. Perhaps they need giant bananas?
So I’m playing catch up on the series. But this is great. My brain scatters too much for writing a campaign. This has great tips and gives me a focus :)
This is awesome! I've been trying to come up with a campaign for a few months. It seemed so daunting at first because I always thought you had to start with the world. This makes it so much more manageable. "Ximena wants the Key of Avalon before the upcoming eclipse but is having difficulty because finding it with her army of demons and corrupted mages because only the KIngdom of Diomhair knows its location."
I came here after the master plot video I watched a while ago - my campaign idea has been stirring in the back of my mind ever since - thank you so much! These are the best and most helpful videos!
What a sentence :D Thank you for inspiering me to give an old campaing world new life ^^: *Ethos wants to corrupt all Elementals Guardians of this plane before the centurion clock completes a full rotation, but he is having difficulty corrupting them using the essence of his own soul, because the elemental guardians are protected by the Kingdom of Cherion*
oh man oh man this is an AWESOME way to start 2019!!! And right when I'm starting my new campaign!!! Can I hug you? I wanna hug you! Ah screw it, I'll just make a awesome campaign in your honor instead!!!
This method actually helped me a lot, I was having a lot of trouble with writer's block, but when I opened a google doc and started working things out like this the ideas just kept flowing even though I was half asleep! Thank you! My players are going to LOVE this!
Love this series idea! I think the time stamps are great and going through the steps in "real time" shows just how easy it is. Thank you! Name: The Last Hunt Sentence: Rosanna/Reizel (a dragon) wants a world where her people are not hunted by the time her nephew is born and is having trouble getting it using diplomacy and scheming because of politicians. She wants control of the laws about dragons. Theme: political - getting what you want through words and favours and deciding good or evil on your own terms
Guy, this is pure gold! The brainstorming technique REALLY worked for me and I now have the kernel of a campaign in hand. I am stoked to see how my idea develops as I watch the videos in this series!
I've been a pupil of your's for a while and have a half-baked world inside a general campaign outline. I'm looking forward to everything you have for us, so I can bring those to maturity. I just wish it wasn't going to take weekly episodes. Time to stall my PCs
I love the idea behind this series! I'm in the process of worldbuilding for my first attempt at DMing, and I'm excited to flesh out the campaign and shape the world around that! Cult of the Dragon Lord Sentence: Ursheth the Eldest wants the kingdom of Vileta before the next Awakening but is having difficulty gaining power because the dwarves in the mountains are systematically eradicating those of draconic blood. Theme: Determination and strength of will leads to power, forces are at work beyond the surface conflict of the Great War. Combining theme and sentence: Vileta has many secret draconic cults, and once every century at the Awakening, the strongest dragonborn leaders with devoted worshipers are ascended into full dragonhood. Ursheth wants to become a dragon and rule the nation fiercely as a god.
I'm currently in the works of creating a world/campaign using Dungeons and Dragons Fifth Edition, and I feel that this series will help me greatly in achieving an epic world and campaign that my players will want to keep talking about for years to come!! Great work :)
Guy your book is absolutely brilliant. Your writing is incredibly logical and easy to follow and the overall strategy you follow with regards to campaign building is excellent. This is a resource every DM needs on their bookshelf. Thank you!! Keep up the excellent work. Top shelf!!
I guess I'll try! Name: The Shattered Dream Sentence: The Cult of Shadows wants to awaken the Dreamer of All Things in order to end all of existence and is having difficulty doing so because awakening horrific eldritch beings is quite difficult Themes: existential horror and inevitable destruction, but at the end of the day, since everything is meaningless, one should strive to make their own meaning Theme applied: the cult of shadows has realised that life is utterly meaningless and that the world (worlds?) is simply the insane dream of an uncaring eldritch being, and will cease to exist and be forgotten if this being is awoken. The cult have, in short, given up on existing because they don't believe that it has any meaning. However, the PCs will be able to discover that despite all this, life DOES have meaning, because they can create meaning for themselves.
I like the title you did. You blatantly reveal the plot in this sentence, whithout giving away anything :D Kudos. Let me ask a question: Do we have a fellow Call of Cthulhu fan here? However, what I really like is the theme. I did, no I tried to pull something off like this. It was a Changeling campaign with an impending apocalypse theme. One of the old Titans was about to awake and the only way to stop it from freezing the world in everlasting perfection (which is as horrible than utter chaos I think) was to assemble the FOUR ARTIFACTS - The Sword, The Spear, The Stone and the Cauldron. Not any fancy legendary artifact - but the Ideas of those four things. I wanted the characters to loose those artifacts in the end to reveal, that it wasn't about finding said artifacts, but for the quest for them they themselves became the embodiments of the virtues of those things. Like said - it didn't work out (as they kept the items and fought with them, for a planning error on my side). So I really hope to get this idea of putting the characters themselves above magic artifacts and things great. It has this Neverending Story vibe. I really wish you the best of luck - blow them away :D
I've always been a bit shy of DMing. I love to play I'm just over whelmed by DMing, though I've run a few tiny adventures a bit here and there. I just finished Lost mine of Phandelver with some friends and really liked running it. Now I'm ready to start my owe deal from scratch. I've always loved the tips you've given but this series has been invaluable! The step by step has really helped me organize my post-it notes and napkin drawings into cogent thoughts. Thank you Guy, what a great resource!
I already had a sentence in mind, but this video was still very useful. Thank you for creating this content and sharing it. "Pirate Queen Hekabe wants to become tyrant with her fleet of triremes, but is having trouble getting there because the cult of Theia protects Tyrant Armedes VI"
Guy, I just love watching you work. I believe this type of video will be very helpful to many a GM out there. As it happens I'm starting a new campaign (probably in Feb) which I have been working on since (it seems) the dawn of time -- but I have finally found the time to bring it to fruition. So, while the vast majority of the work was done prior to my discovering your work, I'm using your work to go back, review, and see if there are glaring (or not so glaring) omissions and make repairs or adjustments as needed. So, Thank you sir. PS. You mentioned Alternity -- and the new version of Alternity is what I plan on using. New campaign, new system... I think I need new dice!
I've tried many times to write my own campaign for years now. Just following this has helped me feel that I actually have a direction and foundation to start real work. I will be binging this and working on making my first campaign ever. Thank you for the help!
Very grateful for this video as it helped me come up with a proper conflict summary and title for my (first) campaign in under half an hour when I've been struggling with it for several months now. Still only on video one thus far, but I'm leaps and bounds further than I was at the start of this: World of Lyceria: Eclipse Sentence: Ilvirna wants to gather several magical artifacts by the end of the decade but is having difficulty doing that using her legions of undead and 'indentured servants' because the gods keep getting in her way. Themes: Interpersonal bonds hold power even against the strongest of adversaries, even in the darkest of times. Avenging those that we've lost motivates us just as much as protecting those we have yet to lose. Duty, obligation and fate are powerful forces, but we have the power of choice, for good or for ill. Rising to meet your destiny when it is for the greater good is sometimes recommended, though you should still endeavor to retain your sense of self even as you fulfill some predestined role. Expanded Sentence: At the end of the decade there will be a double lunar eclipse that only happens about once every 100 years. It is said to increase the power of certain dark magic rituals, including some pertaining to necromancy (which is Ilvirna's primary school of magic). She intends to use the boost from the eclipse to infuse dark energy into the artifacts she's gathered and create several powerful magic weapons. Her next step would be to gift these weapons to her closest supporters in return for their assistance in ending slavery, discrimination, unlawful persecution, corruption, etc. all across the globe, though not everyone would agree with their methods (especially as she threatens to become so powerful as to strike the gods down from the heavens.) Something must be done about this threat, even if it calls for a bit of divine intervention.
Been a Dm for about 4 years now and most of my worldbuilding has been improvised. Thanks to just the first episode i feel a lot stronger about where my story is going. Thank you
Thank you! I find your videos (and materials) very useful. As a person who is minutia-tangent prone your methods have helped me stay on track and streamline the process (which is much needed). I'm looking forward to the 2nd Edition of Creating Epic Campaigns! Thanks again!
Please continue this series, I am finding it extremely beneficial! I am about to start a new Starfinder campaign. Up until now, all of my planning had been focused on setting up communities and characters that would be friendly to the player. This is really helping me think about who the antagonists might be and how they might influence the plot.
So here's what I came up with in this half-hour brainstorm (video was great!) SENTENCE: Heraklion wants to destroy Eos and everything important to him before he dies of disease and is having difficulty getting it being a god using legions of Under-Dark beings because entering the Material Plane turned him into a mortal. THEME: Anger is a powerful emotion that brings out the worst in people, only by learning how to control it can we reach our true potential. THEME APPLIED TO SENTENCE: Heraklion was angered by Eos who murdered Heraklion's evil sister. He now seeks to destroy Eos and will stop at nothing to see that happen, committing any atrocity to get what he wants. He has sworn revenge and his family will be disgraced if he cannot destroy Eos before he dies.
Love the format. Rambling just like I do. Time stamp could be useful but I always watch/in the car to your whole episodes. The sentence really really really helped! I was lost in a world of detailed cities and a trail of clues but no clear identity or purpose for a villian. You solved all that! Thank you!
the first story will be called "The Ides of Ruin" Ankara the local alchemist wants the sealed arcane power under the kingdom badly by her youngest sons seventh birthday and is having difficulty getting it using the local devil cult because of the crystal rose, paladins. Tor the head paladin wants the throne of the kingdom of Dyrossia before the promised return of the great devil but is having difficulty getting it using his church authority because of the propaganda of his peers is slandering both him and the legend that he fears. Enth, a were-tiger guild thief, wants to get revenge on the alchemist family that killed his brother in a cultish ritual by the Ides of Anzanthum, but is having difficulty getting it using his lycanthropic street connections because the current holy crusade is hunting them and him. if you can put two and two together all of these people have the exact same deadline. The theme for this one is "Is it worth it to get to know those you will ultimately need to stop?'" the devil that attacked the land so long ago left a curse that has divided the people for so long that they might not even be able to stay one kingdom once they start talking. the superficial truth kills so what does understanding the truth beneath even mean? the power sealed in the land is what lets the were-people turn into their fully human looking form and the devil wants it to pour more of his power and make every were-creature a devil spawn. the seal on the devil is kept in place by the crests of the paladin orders high office holders families and a few of them have fallen to a were-heir in the time between the sealing and now. the church wants to capture everything that the devil has influence over including the children of the night and make them their weapons against the other kingdoms and to expand their power.
I've been watching your videos for some time now and this series really has my attention. The video was perfect. I know you acknowledged that the video was long, but I kind of feel for this series longer videos will be better. My GF runs a dog training business and we put out as much if not more content than you. There are times for the videos to be really quick, simple tutorials, and then there are times when you need to take your viewer down the road of trouble shooting so they can see how you avoid the bumps in the road. I look forward to future videos.
As for the title “The last kingdom” it maybe used often but that is because it is great and inspiring. I took my own title straight out the history books and called it “The warring nations” As always your videos are great source of inspiration to me Guy. Thank you very much.
I absolutely love this series. I am fairly new to D&D and just started DMing a small campaign after a few months of being a player. Thank you for the work you do to bring more understanding and depth to this game.
Thank you so much enjoying this series already! I personally am so grateful you are inviting us into your creative process it's inspiring and encouraging! Still brewding on my sentence while at work though hopefully it'll break through my foggy mind soon🤔
First off, thanks for all you do on the channel. Your advice and tips have been priceless in becoming a better GM. I’m so glad that we are able to see your creative process.
I'm currently writing my first campaign (based in the world of Scarlett Heroes) and this set of videos is so helpful. I'm finding it keeps my on task and prevents the job from feeling too overwhelming. My sentence: Iynar wants the power to heal genetic disease before the death of his son, using the power of the Red Tide. He is having difficulty getting it because the creed's maji have safeguards in place.
Lovin' this! Sentence: The Space Dragon wants to create a Gate before resources run out by using the arcane magic of humanity and the magical expertise of the elven race but is having trouble because an evil god is trying to take the Gate over and the other Gods are using up the resources trying to take over the arcane power of humanity and creating demi planes for themselves. "Happy Building!"
Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou I am trying to write 4 interlocking campains right now and was needing help. This has let me look at this in a new light, and provided me more inspiration for how to make them interlocking at the end but still separate stories. cant wait to see what next week holds for this epic journey we've started.
Absolutely love the series so far! Definitely subbed for this and can't wait for more! Kinda wish I had more to say about the video itself, but since I don't I'll just say: I've been watching videos here and there from you for a while now and I definitely feel like the videos have improved quite a bit (and they weren't bad to start with either). Also gotta say that I love the new simplistic style of thumbnail. Super easy to read and immediately understand. The other kind was stylistic but when they're beside a bunch of other video thumbnails, the small amount of visual whitenoise from the amount of detail in it made it blur a bit into the surrounding videos, ironically making it stand out a lot less than the new simpler thumbnail. So great work on that, ma dude :3
I'm really looking forward to the next installment! The time stamps were good to review points while I created everything. Definitely keep these!: ) Keep up the great work and awesome content!! Title: Dibbik's Goblet Sentence: Lord Drakus wants the Chalice of Tor by the next full moon and is having difficulty getting it using packs of hell hounds because it is being guarded by the Order of the Knights of Tor. Theme: Good vs Evil. Selflessness and self sacrifice. Ultimate power.
The Chalice of Tor is a evil magical cup which will give he who possesses it command of the fiendish armies. Lord Drakus wants to command the fiendish armies to conquer the world
I've thoroughly enjoyed working on my Epic campaign since I purchased your book. I'm really looking forward to GMing for the first time this year (once my campaign as a player is concluded). So glad to see you get stuck into this using your bard skills though! Really looking forward to the journey!
I had such problems creating the theme and overaching plot of my world. But this video really helped me do it in only 30 minutes. I switched from Excel to world anvil too. Getting into it alone seamed quite hard but seeing how you do it is a real help!
Guy, This was amazing! You helped me flush out my campaign so well! I was only going to do an Arcade Adventure league with minimal RP until I found your videos. This series in particular. Thank you!
Brodthini is looking for the means to destroy his Realms god of Entropy but is having difficulty finding it because any Realm that he comes into contact with attracts the Entropic being which invariably leads to the destruction of that realm, forcing Brodthini to begin again elsewhere. Theme - The ends cannot justify the means. Time stamps were helpful because I'll get distracted and is easy to see I went off on a twenty minutes tangent and I know where to pick up. Great stuff I'll be here every week.
Super excited to have found this! nervous about the journey while seeing where it might go... Name - Birthright Sentence - Orgoth wants The Throne of Ulitesh by the next planetary alignment, and is having difficulty getting it using Political channels because of his questionable birth. Theme - Good and evil are a matter of perspective, what is good for Me is not always good for you. "good" does not always win. Brennard, King of Ulitesh, was Orgoths father but Orgoths' birth was never recognized, so his claim is weak at best. Not to mention the four heirs in front of him... Orgoth wants the Throne to prove he is worthy of his Fathers legacy.
Thank you very much for making this series. I almost give up on making cmy campaign because i was getting slowly frustrated. I didnt have any idea how to start, but this series is helping me a lot.
It's so great that the video is long - I'm able to observe your thinking process and it is hugely helpful! Timestamps are always good to have, they will be especially useful upon re-watching the video. This whole "Creating the Campaign" is great, weekly videos don't overwhelm as much as daily ones and allow to engage at our own pace(or day of chosing) SENTENCE: Grimohvey Toggl wants to use the weapon called Grumk Gnaadl during a millennium festival but is having difficulty finding it using his loyal assassins because Grumk Gnaadl laboratory is so mythic and well-hidden and because everyone wants to find it as well. THEME: Some secrets are better left uncovered. Many of us have dark secrets, some are useful to uncover and fix, while others must stay secrets forever. Grimohvey Toggl has found out a great secret about the Second Galactic Empire and he needs leverage to force Galactic government to admit it and fix the problems. So he digs out old documents with secret information about a laboratory that has created the strongest weapon that devastated the galaxy when it has backfired on its creators. Everybody chases that weapon and no one wants to share their knowledge. But if Grimohvey won't find the weapon in time the weapon won't have nearly the same effect on the Galactic government and the secret will remain hidden forever, devouring the galaxy inside out. P.S. Why did you write a sentence, theme, and everything else in the description of the world and not in the description of a campaign that is present in WorldAnvil.
awesome concept for a video!! loved all of it and also to see your thinking process please don’t cut those out! i’m definitely going to be creating a campaign with these videos! i’m excited!
Starting this series after the recent weekend event got my world going. It's wonderful to have this help in building the campaign: thanks. I {heart} the timestamps.
I love this, Im new to DMing and my group of friends is new to DnD so we are all learning together as we play. The campaign Im designing has quite a few plot points that Im trying to drive at but I keep finding myself getting confused between fitting all the pieces together and populating the world with enough fleshed out characters to make the pcs feel like it is a living world that they can explore at their leisure, rather than being railroaded onto a single path i set in front of them
Fantastic idea ! I've been watching some of your (great) videos from time to time, and this one finally put me to start properly create a campaign ! Thanks a lot ! It's really encouraging !
I really like this idea. It is a wonderful way to encourage creativity and this teaches a lot of great things and how to approach something that seems unsurmountable.
Absolutely love this series, I started it while I just passively watching things while I work on the more tedious portions of my homework, and now I am re-watching it with world anvil open and ready to go! EDIT - One thing I would love to see is links to the other mentioned great GM videos in the description of each of these campaign creator videos, would make hunting down all the relevant information as a new viewer so much easier and keep it nicely structured as well.
Am absolutely loving this series. I was already a few months into building my world but you literally gave me what i needed to find my big bad, what and why theyre doing what theyre doing. Thank you so much. Keep up the amazing work
Name: Norc's Dwellings Sentence: Nostu-in needs a medicine to heal the people of his land. However a specific and important part of the medicines recipe is a plant that only grows in Norc's dwellings. Nostu-in must have this medicine as soon as possible because his people are dying. Keep this up!
I know I am a bit late, but I am working through your system. So far, I thank it is awesome. Here is my sentence...“The Nightmare Demoness, Akuma wants to bring her army into the world of the living before the next solar eclipse and is having difficulty using her cult of followers, the Crimson Hand, because a group of hero’s keeps thwarting their plans.”
Great video! I'm an italian GM (in pause) and player and i love your videos, so much inspirated by you, thank you so much for all. My sentence, theme etc is in Italian, but i have put down below every paragraph a trad, sorry for any mistake! NAME: (IT) Lo Scultone del Golgo (EN) The Scultone of Golgo Sentence: (IT): La giudicessa di Grandulivo Ilean vuole il cristallo incastonato nella testa dello Scultone, bestia mitologica, e non è riuscita a prenderlo fino ad ora perché è introvabile e/o protetto dalle popolazioni interne barbare e “inferiori”, loro vedono questa bestia come una divinità, anche se non l’hanno praticamente mai vista nemmeno loro. Ad Ilian serve questo artefatto perché è ciò che le permetterà di sconfiggere Yarin, Giudice di Tormonto, ponendo così fine ad una guerra che dura ormai da tre generazioni, o almeno è quello che le ha assicurato la potente Araldica. (EN) The Judge of Grandulivo, Ilean wants the crystal set into the head of the mytological beast, the Scultone, until now she has not been able to take it until now because it is untraceable and protected from an internal barbarian and "inferior" population (for them is like a divinity, but actually virtually nobody has ever seen it) Ilian wants this artifact because it is what will allow her to defeat Yarin, Judge of Tormonto, thus putting an end to a war that has lasted for three generations, or at least it is that which has ensured the powerful Araldica.
Thank you for this lesson. I'm looking forward to creating my campaign. I've got my sentence fleshed out. With how useful I've been finding your videos, I'm thinking I'll have to buy your book.
This is my first time creating a campaign, and I’m super excited! My sentence: The evil King wants to bring an army of demons through the Grand Portal while he is still in power, but is having trouble as the elves have sealed their land in a crystal protection from the outside world.
I loved this video. I had this amazing idea for a campaign and I was writing some bullet point and ideas for it so I won't forget but I had difficulties putting it all together. Now with these videos it makes it so much easier, thank you very much and please continue doing what you doing
I cannot tell you how perfect the timing of this series of videos are for me. I'm in the midst of a homebrew campaign within Matt Mercer's Tal'Dorei campaign setting and was planning on doing Tomb of Annihilation after in order to give me time to make a new homebrew world for a campaign that I was inspired by the Trivium album Shogun. I can already tell this series is going to be MASSIVELY beneficial for me as I tend to have a really hard time figuring out stuff for one adventure, let alone for a whole campaign world. Anyways here goes. Name: Shogun Sentence: Shogun Karathax wants to conquer all the kingdoms of the continent of Zorak before the planar alignment but is having difficulty achieving it using vast demonic hordes because of Shiang Sien showing up out of nowhere to help defend the kingdoms. Theme: Selfishness is the downfall of man Being selfish may appear to be beneficial, but that which is beneficial to one, tends to be detrimental to many Around Zorak are 4 gateways to the outer planes. Upon their alignment within the cosmos, great power leeches into the world. 4 Kingdoms each control and protect one planar gateway. Shogun Karathax wants immortality and thinks he can use the Great Power to achieve that and believes he must control all 4 gateways to harness enough power.
I've always had a hard time starting a custom campaign. This has really helped me. Here is my sentence in case anyone wanted to read it. Sargonic wants the Sword of Daocon by the solar eclipse using a union of orc, goblin, and ogre forces, but is unable to get it because the guardians of Daocon's, Tomb are getting in his way.
I'm really enjoying this series. I'm currently working on a campaign for my best friends. I have dnd a few other systems but this will be my first campaign I've made for DnD. My sentence is as follows King Victor Hawthorne wants his crown before his life essence fades from his mortal coil. He is trying to use his various agents to retrieve the crown but they are unable to locate it due to a number of magical Crown's arising amid claims of rivals to the throne.
What I like with this is that just the sentence can become radically different kinds of campaigns. I could use your first title and the first version of the sentence associated with "scale" as a theme, and I think it actually would be pretty great... Title: Xelon's Folly Sentence: Xelon wants to conquer the Kingdom of Wullions before the next planetary alignment using his undead hordes, but Paladins protect Wullions and are too powerful. Theme: Scale. Depending on which scale you are looking at, things have different meanings. Xelon is the biological heir of the first King of Wullions, but over centuries political shenanigans made him only the count of a small province. A cosmic horror is coming on the planetary alignment to destroy everything and everyone and the only hope to face it is an ancient artifact buried under the castle of the capital of Wullions. Xelon wants to recover his family's title of kings of Wullions and pretends it is the only hope to activate the artifact. He also master the craft of creating undeads as did all his ancestors (most of them actually serve in his armies after their deaths). The Church, which nowadays have a bigger power than centuries ago, considers undeads as an abomination and refuses to let him access the throne. Battle ensues than weakens the troops of both side before the impending confrontation with the cosmic horror.
Great series so far. I have a sentence and have developed it (mostly)and have a theme. Name: The Wizards Covet sentence: A wizard, Zebarda wants an ancient tome by the next winter and is having difficulty getting it using other adventurers because _____________ (yet to work that out) Theme: Greed of Knowledge Developed: The ancient tome contains ____________ which Zebarda wants, but the tome is rumoured to disappear in winter because of the faye that created the tome were spring, summer, and Autumn sprites and is not to be found during the winter months.
First time, let's go! Name: Mercantile Affairs Sentence: The heads of a powerful trade alliance want to uncover an ancient artefact, but they're having difficulty getting it because it's in a temple of an active eldritch god with a big cult of various magic casters and bodyguards. Theme: Those who you trust in are not always righteous (Simple folk discovering the "behind the curtain" affairs of their alliance) Sentence continuation: The trade alliance wants the artefact of the eldritch god because they want to start a new, endless war that only two nations not in the alliance will fight in, with the help of the artefact; as they believe that trade thrives in wars. The public, however, believes it will grant them prosperity at no cost. The heads of the trade alliance don't care about others. If you have some constructive criticism I'll gladly take it.
I'm using this series to help write a better season 2 of my epic 3-20 campaign. There was a pretty big upset at the end of last season so now I'm writing a very new, almost disjointed campaign for this season. Here's my sentence: Arterix (and Mrs G) wants the vault to be reopened in a secure location within six months but is having difficulty because he is a locket with no ability to act. I did make the one with desires the quest giving good guy from last season, but it's a generally lighthearted story and the BBEG won't be showing up this season.
Thank you thank you thank you!!!! This video was so helpful. Im a DM and I have a brand new campaign starting in a few days and I was having problems coming up with an idea for a campaign. SO HELPFUL!!
▶▶ Timecodes / chapters
02:26 - How Campaign Creator will work
04:04 - Todays start
07:20 - A name for your Campaign
09:20 - The Sentence
13:56 - Developing the Sentence
17:38 - Theme
21:43 - Combining theme into the Sentence
25:06 - Overcoming mental blocks
29:45 - Finish set-up of WA template
I suggest that you keep it simple something like (As always happy gaming and keep a ear out for the goblin bell indicating more adventures to come)
Terrible that you cant draw maps on World Anvil.
Is there a way to get a hard copy of your book?
edit... nvm just found it.
oh my god the best chase campaign! they steal the eggs from the protectors just as Jackar defeats them. now they run off with them and literally the whole world wants those eggs. they need to be careful whom do they give this immense power to or even try and hatch the eggs themsleves. the eggs switch owners multiple times and thats it - you have a hiest and chase campaign
Srs question... are you Shadiversity's dad?????
The Dragons are all fantastic writers. New title Uther's Pen Dragons. I'll see myself out...
Any news from gaius
*magic noises* merlin
"Nobody likes coming up with names!"
*hiding my almost whole notebook full of made up words, names, and potential titles that are phonaesthetic to me, all done just for fun*
not to say youre nobody but i think you might be nobody
Yo, share a few?
That's a marketable skill.
Clearly he was referencing Odysseus
You're a rare being, bud.
You know, you really should make an automatic "Somebody wants something badly by a specific time, and is having difficulty getting it using X because of Y" generator. It's not very difficult to make, and could really help people juggle ideas.
“Once men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free. But that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them.”
― Frank Herbert, Dune
@@nicholasrandall3507 yes, because creating a random generator to help with inspiration is definitely comparable to allowing machines to think for you.
@@dustun9558 This is too good
@@nicholasrandall3507 "-other men- with machines to enslave them"
@@SorchaSublime I would definitely want to use one of these.
The First time I did this step I got too set in stone in thinking ahead and establishing the sentence of the first ark of my campaign(Part of this is because I wasn't working for a blank canvas but rather an idea I wrote down a year ago) rather than a sentence for the campaign as a whole. Once I realized my mistake and got over that mental roadblock I tried it again from scratch I found what I created to be a much more effective encompassing Campaign Title/Sentence/Theme/Applied Sentence.
Thanks for making this amazing series Guy as it has been immensely helpful in getting my Amateur GM ideas for a campaign written down and expanded upon.
"You Have Been Found Guilty, And I Hereby Sentence You To One Year Of Making A Campaign!"
rate eightx how’d it go
Oh no...Anyways...
An evil wizard is forced to make their own world to rule, and the Party gets to thwart them from the inside.
So glad you're doing this! My players have challenged me to run an evil 5e campaign. I'm using this to build it. My sentence...
"The war is over. The world of Beyazahn hasn't known peace for hundreds of years. For certain elves and dwarves, peace is a distant childhood memory. For everyone else, peace is a legend; a myth; a faerie tale. The people of Beyazahn want peace, now. They have won the war. It's over. The despots and dictators who have subjugated the good people of Beyazahn are defeated. Now that the evil has been purged, the arduous task of reclaiming and rebuilding their world begins. Evil persists. Evil survives. Evil can't be purged. The war is never over."
I like it. If the players want a more prominent role. They could be working for the secret leaders of one of the "good and peaceful" victors. Power corrupts and a human leader who defeated a tyrant is likely to become a tyrant. Though they might need to hide behind the appearance of good and peaceful.
They might fund privateers (pirates targeting the other nations while secretly working for the corrupt leader.
This way the players can do evil things but have to keep their actions secret and target specific things while not bringing harm to others.
This has helped alot, thanks you. It has helped to focus the NPCs goals, desires, motivations and streamlined the plot in many ways. I currently DM 2 campaigns and this has gone a long way to organize all the plots, of which there are many in my sandbox games. So thank you for this, even doing the thought process on video helped.
Sentence:
Beald wants the last 2 volumes of The Books of Ascension containing Elven High Magic Rituals, before the next lunar cycle convergence of the Material plane & fairie, but is having difficulty getting them, because they are under the care of powerful Elven Houses.
Theme:
-Self-worth and overcoming one's own doubts to forge their own fate
-Love's Power to disrupt and destroy lives
-Loves Power to overcome great obstacles
-Doing the right thing, even when it isnt seen as such
-The corruption of Power
Themed Sentence:
Beald wants The Books of Ascension because they will grant him Godhood and he will be free to be his own person, The Books of Ascension can only be read under the light of the moon during the convergence. With this new found power he can find Rowena, his love that was hidden away bby magical means, and grant her immortality so they may be together.
Would love anyone input. thanks again.
Probably spent a bit longer than I should, but I'm happy with this!
NAME:
The Lost Prophecy
SENTENCE:
Rakshall wants to find the tomb of the Frozen Warrior by the next solstice, but his Orc war band is having difficulty finding it because the location of his final resting place has been lost to the ages.
THEME:
Prophecy is not set in stone.
APPLIED:
A prophecy has foretold that the Frozen Warrior can be reawakened once a century on the solstice, and Rakshall has been tasked by Ilneval to carry this out. If the tomb can be destroyed, the cycle of prophecy can be broken.
Let's see where this goes! Never built a campaign before, so I'm looking forward to this.
Oh that's good. First thought I had about your stone/resting place/awakening theme: undoing the spell "Flesh to Stone"
@@TheAserghui Thanks, that's a neat thing to work in!
I need help understanding the structure of "the Sentence". It always includes why the antagonist is failing. Why should the characters take action if the antagonist is failing to reach his goal?
@@GattacaKain I probably should have put in something like 'but he's getting closer' tbf
@@mattball8622 I think the sentence should be, "He wants something, and is nearing his goal because X"
The sentence is one of the best technics I have ever come across.
It's worth noticing that it's always written from the perspective of the villein and it is not describing the narrative. That's what the PCs play out. The sentence is what drives the narrative forward.
Bout to have session 0 this Sunday! Wish me luck!
Sean McFarland oh you better bet I’m betting all the luck wishing for you man
Good luck and quick wits!
Good luck - and also have fun :D
glhf!
How did it go?
Hi Guy, I've been trying to put together a world (or worlds) for my players for quite some time, with much giving up and being overwhelmed. This video (and I'm sure the rest of the series once I get round to it) gives a great focal point for starting - much appreciated!
SENTENCE: K'Suum the Everliving wants both the Echo of Nothing and the Lantern of Caspia by the next planetary alignment but is having difficulty finding them using the Order of the Wilted Rose and the Coven of the Undying because the artifacts are either well-hidden or lost to time.
Title: Ascension of the Adshar-Odain
Theme: Perseverance is rewarded/Revenge begets destruction
Sentence with theme: Baphomet wants to take over Lydus as revenge after the dwarves beat his minotaurs/centaurs in the war of the vale. He is having trouble doing so because during the fall of Khandrathord, he was trapped and is having trouble organizing his horde against the dwarves.
Working alongside this guide step-by-step for creating my campaign and I'm loving it so far. Thanks so much for making this series! I haven't DMed since college, and this series has be confident that I can do it. Looking forward to the rest!
Title: Ascension of the Adshar-Odain
Theme: Perseverance is rewarded/Revenge begets destruction
Sentence with theme: Baphomet wants to take over Lydus as revenge after the dwarves beat his minotaurs/centaurs in the war of the vale. He is having trouble doing so because during the fall of Khandrathord, he was trapped and is having trouble organizing his horde against the dwarves.
Name: Take Back the Streets:
The crime boss known as "The Chairman" wants to bring the various street gangs of Paragon City under his control by the next Mayoral election, but is having difficulty acheiving it using his connections within the city government because of the efforts of intrepid reporter Jane Marie Woodward.
Let's take back the back street, boys!
did you run the campaign? sounds awesome
I'm so new tabletop and everything, but I've been really interested in writing my own campaign just because the creative process looks like a lot of fun. The timing on this couldn't have been better and I'm excited to see where this campaign I'm making up goes from here.
Sentence: The Queen of Dark Narrows wants the shell of the ancient turtle by Dance of Moons, and is having trouble getting it with her mole scouts because of the light.
Just thought I'd add this little tidbit, but there are a TON of random name generators on the Internet that are so so useful for titles and whatnot. Mix that with whatever else you have in your noggin and you'll probably get something pretty rad. 😎👍
Sprite Lady fantasynamegenerator has saved me so many headaches over creating names
I had been fighting with a really cool idea - a Jedi Padawan turned force vampire by an accident - but have been struggling for a while now to give the concept a story. I think this might have set me on the right path!
Here, by the way is my sentance:
NAME: By Any Means Nessassary
Jedi Master Valen Korr saw that the Jedi were losing the war, confirmed by his visions. He began experimenting with forbidden techniques - nightsister alchemy, sith teachings, the way of the Fananasi, anything he could get his hands on in the Jedi's Black Archive to win the war by any means necessary.
But then the war was lost and the Jedi were destroyed. As far as he knows, he is the last Jedi. It falls on him to save the galaxy now. Using force nexus points - force ley lines - to take out Palpatine by taking out Coruscant.
Sounds like the premise of a great comic or novel. A few interesting ways for players to interact with the story come to mind. Though some require your sentence to be kept to yourself instead of sharing with the players.
Name: Whisperers
Sentence: Madras Westborn wants to obtain the "Crown of the grove mother" before the kingdoms annual winter festival, but there are agents hunting both him and the crown.
Theme: save the king, heroes rise up
Sentence cont: Madras believes the king is not himself and is in fact under the sway of someone within the royal court, he has made a deal with a contact for information to the crown's whereabouts. The crown is said to reveal the true form of hidden creatures, Madras wants this because he has heard rumours that the king will declare war against the Wizards of the starfields coalition.
Please judge kindly, I've never done this before....
It is an interesting setup.
Especially if you think about the theme and the sentence cont...
Pitching the players against the villain who turns out to be the good guy. Classic and if done well it makes for an incredible experience.
There is however one pitfall I'd like to warn you: If I get this right, you want to pitch the players against the hidden good guy until you reveal the real bad guy later.
Make sure it's the WORLD that tricks the CHARACTERS into thinking Madras is the bad guy. And NOT the DM tricking the players to do so.
Maybe give them clues in advance that something is up. Maybe not revealing that the king is the bad guy - but that there might be more to Madras as seen on the first glance.
This kind of twists can be a bit tricky - but as long as you keep in mind, that it's the world vs the characters and not YOU vs your players, you should be fine.
But anyway - if you pull that off - your players will remember that campaign, that I grant you :D I like the idea.
@@robertnett9793 I think the general feel I was going for would be that Madras is one of the king's whisperer's, basically a spy. He has found clues about the king's strange behaviour and thinks someone in the court is disguised, but he can't just accuse anyone, so he wants the crown to help reveal their true form. The bad guy has realised what Madras is up to and has his own agents hunting both Madras and the crown.
So the campaign would be Madras hiring adventurers to retrieve the crown, get to the king and stop the bad guy before his hold on the king becomes too strong?
I've never done a homebrew campaign, just the mines of phandalin, so maybe I've made this too simple or railroad?
@@aidanthornton173 : I wouldn't say railroad per say. It is - as you describe it a shorter campaign most likely. But that's honestly the best way to start up.
One of my main errors, is that I try much to convoluted and bloated complex campaigns, that don't go anywhere and just die at some point. (So don't ever take the advise from me to make it more complicated).
You have actually three good steps - or acts. First the setup. The players have to learn about Madras and his goals. Second the quest for the crown and lastly confronting the traitor (which could be the king OR instead Madras, who just told the players the crown would reveal the traitor, but instead it has some powerful enchantment making the wearer king or whatever... No. Not going ahead of myself here.)
It would be railroad if it was like this: 1st adventure; Madras hires the players; 2th adventure Madras sends the players off to dungeon X where the crown lies; 3rd adventure; the adventurers come back, Madras points to the potential traitor and they reveal them killing him later.
But you don't do that. First your players should actually know, that the campaign invovles working for the kings Spymaster. You don't tell them that he IS the good guy, or that he hasn't his own plans. Let the characters guess. But make it clear to the players, that they will, at least initially work for the spymaster.
Because when your players wait for 'normal dungeoneering and adventuring, they might not take the hook to work for the spymaster. Even this might work, then random questgivers WORKING for Madras would hire/send the characters on different adventures - this would however become more complicated.
Let them experience the erratic decissions the king makes. Send armies off to kill random peasants or things like that. Making a deal with old (and not to be trusted) enemies of the realm. Visible mistakes, no one however would bring up in the kings presence. Show the players something with the king is wrong. If they then ask the spymaster, let him share the concerns.
Let him come up with the idea that someone at the court might play a double game.
You could directly tell them, that there are magical items - like the ancient crown - that might be able to uncover the traitor. Maybe like: "Oh yeah. Once I read in the temple of wisdom in an ancient book about this crown. Would be really good to have it. But alas... it's just a legend of olden times..."
So the mage-character or the bard might look into it. Encourage the players if they ponder about this.
Let them find out about the legends of the crown. Of different occasions, where the kings of old uncovered machinations and stuff. Hint in some of the texts clues for the whereabouts of the crown.
Let some assassins attack the mage / bard player IN the library - so they know they are on to something.
When they puzzle together where the crown might be hidden, let them prepare for the journey there.
The dungeon itself - is a dungeon brawl - but ideally the players themselves choose to go to the dungeon in the first place. You can allow for investigations before they enter the dungeon. Local rumors about what kind of monsters and traps are hiding there and so on.
When they have the crown someon tries to steal it. Make it either a rescue in the last second or a wild chase through the city sewers. Their journey home is less relaxed than the journey to the dungeon, because NOW they have the item and the bad guy does everything to stop them.
When they then are back in the palace prepare for an epic showdown. Either confront the alleged bad guy in the throne room, where he then reveals to be a more capable enemy then expected (what about if they think he is just an agent of an enemy country, just to learn he is in fact a blood thirsting demon agent from an enemy plane of existence...
Maybe it's a skinwalker who has literally a piece of the kings skin sewed in his cloak to 'become' the king, while the real one is hidden in a secret part of the palace dungeon (everyone knows, impersionation spells loos a lot of their power, when the person impersionated is dead - so alas you have to keep them alive...)
Then don't forget you always can throw in one-shot adventures along the way. Maybe the players try to uncover the agent themselves. Let them even find someone - but not the main antagonist of course. Thinking they did it and then they learn, the king still works in mysterious ways :D
And this here are really just tips. Simple ideas of the top of my head. Use, change or ignore as you please. :D
@@robertnett9793 I was thinking of doing a lord of the rings trick. The king is still the real king, but the queen has been kidnapped and a demon has taken her place and charmed the king like wormtongue in rohan.
The demons goal is to cause as much death and chaos as possible by making the king clamp down on spellcasters, insult nearby allies and eventually openly attack a small independent country of mages.
The campaign would start on a luxury riverboat where the players would meet madras but not know who he is or what he's after. The boat would come under attack by pirates, afterwards madras would reveal the pirate's to be cultists in disguise and that they were after him. The players would stay in a port town for a bit doing odds and ends before a wounded madras would ask them to help him find the crown.
@@aidanthornton173: Sounds also good to me. Will you use maps / imagery or do you prefer theater of mind?
My sentence: Kiranna wants to redeem herself before her son awakens, but is having trouble doing that, because no one would believe her yet. I've no idea what it all means, but I like it!
It sounds like quite a hook, I like it. Perhaps the son is in a magical sleep in this sleeping death like state due to a forbidden ritual that she was involved in.
@@kiyannareynard1850 Might work :-) But while I do like the sentence, I'm not entirely sure how it can help me build my campaign, world and all. Guess I'll find out more in a couple of weeks!
I went to Kiranna being evil, perhaps a demon. Perhaps "son" isn't the same meaning in her demon language as it does in the human realms.
"A mysterious, quickly-spreading slime is choking the life out of the forest, and one hunter seems to know more than he's letting on."
You could make the undead intelligent. This would completely change the dynamic.
Colossal undead titans, ancient intelligent beings from the ancient past, risen...hmm...risen for...something momentous, I'm sure. Regardless of why it sounds like a great seed for a campaign. Perhaps they need giant bananas?
You could make the undead the good guys, and the paladins unknowingly working for the real bad guy
Michael Guth do you mean Scooby Doo on zombie island?
So I’m playing catch up on the series. But this is great. My brain scatters too much for writing a campaign.
This has great tips and gives me a focus :)
This is awesome! I've been trying to come up with a campaign for a few months. It seemed so daunting at first because I always thought you had to start with the world. This makes it so much more manageable.
"Ximena wants the Key of Avalon before the upcoming eclipse but is having difficulty because finding it with her army of demons and corrupted mages because only the KIngdom of Diomhair knows its location."
Colville is rubbing off on people, you're the third person I've heard say dooblie-do.
didnt know guy was a nerdfighter
Wait I Thought Artifexian Was The First To Do That...
This should be your campaign sentence. :)
I heard mothers basment say it
Artifexian also says "in the doobly-doo", though I'm unsure who said it first, regardless, it's quite likely that they've thought of it by themselves.
I came here after the master plot video I watched a while ago - my campaign idea has been stirring in the back of my mind ever since - thank you so much! These are the best and most helpful videos!
What a sentence :D Thank you for inspiering me to give an old campaing world new life ^^:
*Ethos wants to corrupt all Elementals Guardians of this plane before the centurion clock completes a full rotation, but he is having difficulty corrupting them using the essence of his own soul, because the elemental guardians are protected by the Kingdom of Cherion*
oh man oh man this is an AWESOME way to start 2019!!! And right when I'm starting my new campaign!!! Can I hug you? I wanna hug you! Ah screw it, I'll just make a awesome campaign in your honor instead!!!
This method actually helped me a lot, I was having a lot of trouble with writer's block, but when I opened a google doc and started working things out like this the ideas just kept flowing even though I was half asleep! Thank you! My players are going to LOVE this!
Love this series idea! I think the time stamps are great and going through the steps in "real time" shows just how easy it is. Thank you!
Name: The Last Hunt
Sentence: Rosanna/Reizel (a dragon) wants a world where her people are not hunted by the time her nephew is born and is having trouble getting it using diplomacy and scheming because of politicians.
She wants control of the laws about dragons.
Theme: political - getting what you want through words and favours and deciding good or evil on your own terms
this almost sounds like the book Dragonwatch by Brandon mull
@@Somber_Knight I haven't heard of that series. Will have to take a look :D
Dragonwatch is a sequel sires to Fablehaven, if you are to reed in order. :D
@@Somber_Knight thank you! Looks like I have a new series to dive into.
your welcome
Guy, this is pure gold! The brainstorming technique REALLY worked for me and I now have the kernel of a campaign in hand. I am stoked to see how my idea develops as I watch the videos in this series!
I've been a pupil of your's for a while and have a half-baked world inside a general campaign outline. I'm looking forward to everything you have for us, so I can bring those to maturity. I just wish it wasn't going to take weekly episodes. Time to stall my PCs
I love the idea behind this series! I'm in the process of worldbuilding for my first attempt at DMing, and I'm excited to flesh out the campaign and shape the world around that!
Cult of the Dragon Lord
Sentence:
Ursheth the Eldest wants the kingdom of Vileta before the next Awakening but is having difficulty gaining power because the dwarves in the mountains are systematically eradicating those of draconic blood.
Theme:
Determination and strength of will leads to power, forces are at work beyond the surface conflict of the Great War.
Combining theme and sentence:
Vileta has many secret draconic cults, and once every century at the Awakening, the strongest dragonborn leaders with devoted worshipers are ascended into full dragonhood. Ursheth wants to become a dragon and rule the nation fiercely as a god.
I'm currently in the works of creating a world/campaign using Dungeons and Dragons Fifth Edition, and I feel that this series will help me greatly in achieving an epic world and campaign that my players will want to keep talking about for years to come!! Great work :)
Guy your book is absolutely brilliant. Your writing is incredibly logical and easy to follow and the overall strategy you follow with regards to campaign building is excellent. This is a resource every DM needs on their bookshelf. Thank you!! Keep up the excellent work. Top shelf!!
I guess I'll try!
Name: The Shattered Dream
Sentence: The Cult of Shadows wants to awaken the Dreamer of All Things in order to end all of existence and is having difficulty doing so because awakening horrific eldritch beings is quite difficult
Themes: existential horror and inevitable destruction, but at the end of the day, since everything is meaningless, one should strive to make their own meaning
Theme applied: the cult of shadows has realised that life is utterly meaningless and that the world (worlds?) is simply the insane dream of an uncaring eldritch being, and will cease to exist and be forgotten if this being is awoken. The cult have, in short, given up on existing because they don't believe that it has any meaning. However, the PCs will be able to discover that despite all this, life DOES have meaning, because they can create meaning for themselves.
I like the title you did. You blatantly reveal the plot in this sentence, whithout giving away anything :D Kudos.
Let me ask a question: Do we have a fellow Call of Cthulhu fan here?
However, what I really like is the theme. I did, no I tried to pull something off like this.
It was a Changeling campaign with an impending apocalypse theme. One of the old Titans was about to awake and the only way to stop it from freezing the world in everlasting perfection (which is as horrible than utter chaos I think) was to assemble the FOUR ARTIFACTS - The Sword, The Spear, The Stone and the Cauldron. Not any fancy legendary artifact - but the Ideas of those four things.
I wanted the characters to loose those artifacts in the end to reveal, that it wasn't about finding said artifacts, but for the quest for them they themselves became the embodiments of the virtues of those things.
Like said - it didn't work out (as they kept the items and fought with them, for a planning error on my side).
So I really hope to get this idea of putting the characters themselves above magic artifacts and things great. It has this Neverending Story vibe. I really wish you the best of luck - blow them away :D
I've always been a bit shy of DMing. I love to play I'm just over whelmed by DMing, though I've run a few tiny adventures a bit here and there. I just finished Lost mine of Phandelver with some friends and really liked running it. Now I'm ready to start my owe deal from scratch. I've always loved the tips you've given but this series has been invaluable! The step by step has really helped me organize my post-it notes and napkin drawings into cogent thoughts. Thank you Guy, what a great resource!
I already had a sentence in mind, but this video was still very useful. Thank you for creating this content and sharing it. "Pirate Queen Hekabe wants to become tyrant with her fleet of triremes, but is having trouble getting there because the cult of Theia protects Tyrant Armedes VI"
Guy, I just love watching you work. I believe this type of video will be very helpful to many a GM out there. As it happens I'm starting a new campaign (probably in Feb) which I have been working on since (it seems) the dawn of time -- but I have finally found the time to bring it to fruition. So, while the vast majority of the work was done prior to my discovering your work, I'm using your work to go back, review, and see if there are glaring (or not so glaring) omissions and make repairs or adjustments as needed. So, Thank you sir. PS. You mentioned Alternity -- and the new version of Alternity is what I plan on using. New campaign, new system... I think I need new dice!
I've tried many times to write my own campaign for years now. Just following this has helped me feel that I actually have a direction and foundation to start real work. I will be binging this and working on making my first campaign ever. Thank you for the help!
Very grateful for this video as it helped me come up with a proper conflict summary and title for my (first) campaign in under half an hour when I've been struggling with it for several months now. Still only on video one thus far, but I'm leaps and bounds further than I was at the start of this:
World of Lyceria: Eclipse
Sentence: Ilvirna wants to gather several magical artifacts by the end of the decade but is having difficulty doing that using her legions of undead and 'indentured servants' because the gods keep getting in her way.
Themes: Interpersonal bonds hold power even against the strongest of adversaries, even in the darkest of times. Avenging those that we've lost motivates us just as much as protecting those we have yet to lose. Duty, obligation and fate are powerful forces, but we have the power of choice, for good or for ill. Rising to meet your destiny when it is for the greater good is sometimes recommended, though you should still endeavor to retain your sense of self even as you fulfill some predestined role.
Expanded Sentence: At the end of the decade there will be a double lunar eclipse that only happens about once every 100 years. It is said to increase the power of certain dark magic rituals, including some pertaining to necromancy (which is Ilvirna's primary school of magic). She intends to use the boost from the eclipse to infuse dark energy into the artifacts she's gathered and create several powerful magic weapons. Her next step would be to gift these weapons to her closest supporters in return for their assistance in ending slavery, discrimination, unlawful persecution, corruption, etc. all across the globe, though not everyone would agree with their methods (especially as she threatens to become so powerful as to strike the gods down from the heavens.) Something must be done about this threat, even if it calls for a bit of divine intervention.
Been a Dm for about 4 years now and most of my worldbuilding has been improvised. Thanks to just the first episode i feel a lot stronger about where my story is going. Thank you
Thank you! I find your videos (and materials) very useful. As a person who is minutia-tangent prone your methods have helped me stay on track and streamline the process (which is much needed). I'm looking forward to the 2nd Edition of Creating Epic Campaigns! Thanks again!
Please continue this series, I am finding it extremely beneficial! I am about to start a new Starfinder campaign. Up until now, all of my planning had been focused on setting up communities and characters that would be friendly to the player. This is really helping me think about who the antagonists might be and how they might influence the plot.
Exactly the sort of clarity I needed to weed through and channel the strange fog of fantastical ideas! Thank you.
So here's what I came up with in this half-hour brainstorm (video was great!)
SENTENCE:
Heraklion wants to destroy Eos and everything important to him before he dies of disease and is having difficulty getting it being a god using legions of Under-Dark beings because entering the Material Plane turned him into a mortal.
THEME:
Anger is a powerful emotion that brings out the worst in people, only by learning how to control it can we reach our true potential.
THEME APPLIED TO SENTENCE:
Heraklion was angered by Eos who murdered Heraklion's evil sister. He now seeks to destroy Eos and will stop at nothing to see that happen, committing any atrocity to get what he wants. He has sworn revenge and his family will be disgraced if he cannot destroy Eos before he dies.
Love the format. Rambling just like I do. Time stamp could be useful but I always watch/in the car to your whole episodes. The sentence really really really helped! I was lost in a world of detailed cities and a trail of clues but no clear identity or purpose for a villian. You solved all that! Thank you!
the first story will be called "The Ides of Ruin"
Ankara the local alchemist wants the sealed arcane power under the kingdom badly by her youngest sons seventh birthday and is having difficulty getting it using the local devil cult because of the crystal rose, paladins.
Tor the head paladin wants the throne of the kingdom of Dyrossia before the promised return of the great devil but is having difficulty getting it using his church authority because of the propaganda of his peers is slandering both him and the legend that he fears.
Enth, a were-tiger guild thief, wants to get revenge on the alchemist family that killed his brother in a cultish ritual by the Ides of Anzanthum, but is having difficulty getting it using his lycanthropic street connections because the current holy crusade is hunting them and him.
if you can put two and two together all of these people have the exact same deadline.
The theme for this one is "Is it worth it to get to know those you will ultimately need to stop?'"
the devil that attacked the land so long ago left a curse that has divided the people for so long that they might not even be able to stay one kingdom once they start talking.
the superficial truth kills so what does understanding the truth beneath even mean? the power sealed in the land is what lets the were-people turn into their fully human looking form and the devil wants it to pour more of his power and make every were-creature a devil spawn. the seal on the devil is kept in place by the crests of the paladin orders high office holders families and a few of them have fallen to a were-heir in the time between the sealing and now. the church wants to capture everything that the devil has influence over including the children of the night and make them their weapons against the other kingdoms and to expand their power.
I've been watching your videos for some time now and this series really has my attention. The video was perfect. I know you acknowledged that the video was long, but I kind of feel for this series longer videos will be better. My GF runs a dog training business and we put out as much if not more content than you. There are times for the videos to be really quick, simple tutorials, and then there are times when you need to take your viewer down the road of trouble shooting so they can see how you avoid the bumps in the road. I look forward to future videos.
As for the title “The last kingdom” it maybe used often but that is because it is great and inspiring. I took my own title straight out the history books and called it “The warring nations”
As always your videos are great source of inspiration to me Guy.
Thank you very much.
I absolutely love this series. I am fairly new to D&D and just started DMing a small campaign after a few months of being a player. Thank you for the work you do to bring more understanding and depth to this game.
Thank you so much enjoying this series already! I personally am so grateful you are inviting us into your creative process it's inspiring and encouraging! Still brewding on my sentence while at work though hopefully it'll break through my foggy mind soon🤔
First off, thanks for all you do on the channel. Your advice and tips have been priceless in becoming a better GM. I’m so glad that we are able to see your creative process.
I'm currently writing my first campaign (based in the world of Scarlett Heroes) and this set of videos is so helpful. I'm finding it keeps my on task and prevents the job from feeling too overwhelming.
My sentence: Iynar wants the power to heal genetic disease before the death of his son, using the power of the Red Tide. He is having difficulty getting it because the creed's maji have safeguards in place.
Lovin' this!
Sentence:
The Space Dragon wants to create a Gate before resources run out by using the arcane magic of humanity and the magical expertise of the elven race but is having trouble because an evil god is trying to take the Gate over and the other Gods are using up the resources trying to take over the arcane power of humanity and creating demi planes for themselves.
"Happy Building!"
"The kingdom of Utah"
Currently at war with: wannabe romans after the nuclear war.
Holy shit is that a motherfucking canticle for leibowitz reference
Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou
I am trying to write 4 interlocking campains right now and was needing help. This has let me look at this in a new light, and provided me more inspiration for how to make them interlocking at the end but still separate stories. cant wait to see what next week holds for this epic journey we've started.
Thanks so much for all this help on campaigning! Just started last Saturday and I owe 80% of my knowledge to this channel!
Absolutely love the series so far! Definitely subbed for this and can't wait for more!
Kinda wish I had more to say about the video itself, but since I don't I'll just say:
I've been watching videos here and there from you for a while now and I definitely feel like the videos have improved quite a bit (and they weren't bad to start with either). Also gotta say that I love the new simplistic style of thumbnail. Super easy to read and immediately understand.
The other kind was stylistic but when they're beside a bunch of other video thumbnails, the small amount of visual whitenoise from the amount of detail in it made it blur a bit into the surrounding videos, ironically making it stand out a lot less than the new simpler thumbnail. So great work on that, ma dude :3
I found this to be INCREDIBLY useful setting up a campaign for my group. I'm new to this, and this was so so so helpful.
I'm really looking forward to the next installment! The time stamps were good to review points while I created everything. Definitely keep these!: ) Keep up the great work and awesome content!!
Title:
Dibbik's Goblet
Sentence:
Lord Drakus wants the Chalice of Tor by the next full moon and is having difficulty getting it using packs of hell hounds because it is being guarded by the Order of the Knights of Tor.
Theme:
Good vs Evil. Selflessness and self sacrifice. Ultimate power.
The Chalice of Tor is a evil magical cup which will give he who possesses it command of the fiendish armies. Lord Drakus wants to command the fiendish armies to conquer the world
I love seeing creation steps in use, especially how simply inserting a banana can get you out of a loop. Amazing to see the steps to n action!
I've thoroughly enjoyed working on my Epic campaign since I purchased your book. I'm really looking forward to GMing for the first time this year (once my campaign as a player is concluded). So glad to see you get stuck into this using your bard skills though! Really looking forward to the journey!
I had such problems creating the theme and overaching plot of my world. But this video really helped me do it in only 30 minutes. I switched from Excel to world anvil too. Getting into it alone seamed quite hard but seeing how you do it is a real help!
Guy, This was amazing! You helped me flush out my campaign so well! I was only going to do an Arcade Adventure league with minimal RP until I found your videos. This series in particular. Thank you!
Brodthini is looking for the means to destroy his Realms god of Entropy but is having difficulty finding it because any Realm that he comes into contact with attracts the Entropic being which invariably leads to the destruction of that realm, forcing Brodthini to begin again elsewhere.
Theme - The ends cannot justify the means.
Time stamps were helpful because I'll get distracted and is easy to see I went off on a twenty minutes tangent and I know where to pick up.
Great stuff I'll be here every week.
Super excited to have found this! nervous about the journey while seeing where it might go...
Name - Birthright
Sentence - Orgoth wants The Throne of Ulitesh by the next planetary alignment, and is having difficulty getting it using Political channels because of his questionable birth.
Theme - Good and evil are a matter of perspective, what is good for Me is not always good for you. "good" does not always win.
Brennard, King of Ulitesh, was Orgoths father but Orgoths' birth was never recognized, so his claim is weak at best. Not to mention the four heirs in front of him...
Orgoth wants the Throne to prove he is worthy of his Fathers legacy.
Thank you very much for making this series. I almost give up on making cmy campaign because i was getting slowly frustrated. I didnt have any idea how to start, but this series is helping me a lot.
It's so great that the video is long - I'm able to observe your thinking process and it is hugely helpful!
Timestamps are always good to have, they will be especially useful upon re-watching the video.
This whole "Creating the Campaign" is great, weekly videos don't overwhelm as much as daily ones and allow to engage at our own pace(or day of chosing)
SENTENCE:
Grimohvey Toggl wants to use the weapon called Grumk Gnaadl during a millennium festival but is having difficulty finding it using his loyal assassins because Grumk Gnaadl laboratory is so mythic and well-hidden and because everyone wants to find it as well.
THEME:
Some secrets are better left uncovered. Many of us have dark secrets, some are useful to uncover and fix, while others must stay secrets forever.
Grimohvey Toggl has found out a great secret about the Second Galactic Empire and he needs leverage to force Galactic government to admit it and fix the problems. So he digs out old documents with secret information about a laboratory that has created the strongest weapon that devastated the galaxy when it has backfired on its creators. Everybody chases that weapon and no one wants to share their knowledge. But if Grimohvey won't find the weapon in time the weapon won't have nearly the same effect on the Galactic government and the secret will remain hidden forever, devouring the galaxy inside out.
P.S. Why did you write a sentence, theme, and everything else in the description of the world and not in the description of a campaign that is present in WorldAnvil.
awesome concept for a video!! loved all of it and also to see your thinking process please don’t cut those out! i’m definitely going to be creating a campaign with these videos! i’m excited!
Starting this series after the recent weekend event got my world going. It's wonderful to have this help in building the campaign: thanks. I {heart} the timestamps.
My son Gideon and I are using your campaign creator video series as a basis for a homeschool curriculum ! Looking forward to working through these.
I love this, Im new to DMing and my group of friends is new to DnD so we are all learning together as we play. The campaign Im designing has quite a few plot points that Im trying to drive at but I keep finding myself getting confused between fitting all the pieces together and populating the world with enough fleshed out characters to make the pcs feel like it is a living world that they can explore at their leisure, rather than being railroaded onto a single path i set in front of them
Fantastic idea ! I've been watching some of your (great) videos from time to time, and this one finally put me to start properly create a campaign ! Thanks a lot ! It's really encouraging !
I really like this idea. It is a wonderful way to encourage creativity and this teaches a lot of great things and how to approach something that seems unsurmountable.
Absolutely love this series, I started it while I just passively watching things while I work on the more tedious portions of my homework, and now I am re-watching it with world anvil open and ready to go!
EDIT - One thing I would love to see is links to the other mentioned great GM videos in the description of each of these campaign creator videos, would make hunting down all the relevant information as a new viewer so much easier and keep it nicely structured as well.
Am absolutely loving this series. I was already a few months into building my world but you literally gave me what i needed to find my big bad, what and why theyre doing what theyre doing. Thank you so much. Keep up the amazing work
Name: Norc's Dwellings
Sentence: Nostu-in needs a medicine to heal the people of his land. However a specific and important part of the medicines recipe is a plant that only grows in Norc's dwellings. Nostu-in must have this medicine as soon as possible because his people are dying.
Keep this up!
This really helped me sharpen up my campaign! Thanks to this video I finally know who my Big Bad is, and what he wants.
I know I am a bit late, but I am working through your system. So far, I thank it is awesome. Here is my sentence...“The Nightmare Demoness, Akuma wants to bring her army into the world of the living before the next solar eclipse and is having difficulty using her cult of followers, the Crimson Hand, because a group of hero’s keeps thwarting their plans.”
I just bought the pdf. As a new GM I'm grateful for the resource! Awesome channel.
Great video! I'm an italian GM (in pause) and player and i love your videos, so much inspirated by you, thank you so much for all.
My sentence, theme etc is in Italian, but i have put down below every paragraph a trad, sorry for any mistake!
NAME:
(IT) Lo Scultone del Golgo
(EN) The Scultone of Golgo
Sentence:
(IT): La giudicessa di Grandulivo Ilean vuole il cristallo incastonato nella testa dello Scultone, bestia mitologica, e non è riuscita a prenderlo fino ad ora perché è introvabile e/o protetto dalle popolazioni interne barbare e “inferiori”, loro vedono questa bestia come una divinità, anche se non l’hanno praticamente mai vista nemmeno loro.
Ad Ilian serve questo artefatto perché è ciò che le permetterà di sconfiggere Yarin, Giudice di Tormonto, ponendo così fine ad una guerra che dura ormai da tre generazioni, o almeno è quello che le ha assicurato la potente Araldica.
(EN) The Judge of Grandulivo, Ilean wants the crystal set into the head of the mytological beast, the Scultone, until now she has not been able to take it until now because it is untraceable and protected from an internal barbarian and "inferior" population (for them is like a divinity, but actually virtually nobody has ever seen it)
Ilian wants this artifact because it is what will allow her to defeat Yarin, Judge of Tormonto, thus putting an end to a war that has lasted for three generations, or at least it is that which has ensured the powerful Araldica.
Oddly enough, your theme fits my campaign perfectly and actually gives me something to focus on.
Thank you for this lesson. I'm looking forward to creating my campaign. I've got my sentence fleshed out. With how useful I've been finding your videos, I'm thinking I'll have to buy your book.
This is my first time creating a campaign, and I’m super excited!
My sentence:
The evil King wants to bring an army of demons through the Grand Portal while he is still in power, but is having trouble as the elves have sealed their land in a crystal protection from the outside world.
This was so much fun to here your creativity. I do like the time stamps for when I need to come back another day.
I loved this video. I had this amazing idea for a campaign and I was writing some bullet point and ideas for it so I won't forget but I had difficulties putting it all together. Now with these videos it makes it so much easier, thank you very much and please continue doing what you doing
I cannot tell you how perfect the timing of this series of videos are for me. I'm in the midst of a homebrew campaign within Matt Mercer's Tal'Dorei campaign setting and was planning on doing Tomb of Annihilation after in order to give me time to make a new homebrew world for a campaign that I was inspired by the Trivium album Shogun. I can already tell this series is going to be MASSIVELY beneficial for me as I tend to have a really hard time figuring out stuff for one adventure, let alone for a whole campaign world. Anyways here goes.
Name:
Shogun
Sentence:
Shogun Karathax wants to conquer all the kingdoms of the continent of Zorak before the planar alignment but is having difficulty achieving it using vast demonic hordes because of Shiang Sien showing up out of nowhere to help defend the kingdoms.
Theme:
Selfishness is the downfall of man
Being selfish may appear to be beneficial, but that which is beneficial to one, tends to be detrimental to many
Around Zorak are 4 gateways to the outer planes. Upon their alignment within the cosmos, great power leeches into the world.
4 Kingdoms each control and protect one planar gateway.
Shogun Karathax wants immortality and thinks he can use the Great Power to achieve that and believes he must control all 4 gateways to harness enough power.
I've always had a hard time starting a custom campaign. This has really helped me. Here is my sentence in case anyone wanted to read it.
Sargonic wants the Sword of Daocon by the solar eclipse using a union of orc, goblin, and ogre forces, but is unable to get it because the guardians of Daocon's, Tomb are getting in his way.
I'm really enjoying this series. I'm currently working on a campaign for my best friends. I have dnd a few other systems but this will be my first campaign I've made for DnD.
My sentence is as follows
King Victor Hawthorne wants his crown before his life essence fades from his mortal coil. He is trying to use his various agents to retrieve the crown but they are unable to locate it due to a number of magical Crown's arising amid claims of rivals to the throne.
Just started watching this series and already loving it. Learned a lot already and can't wait to get on with it! Cheers!
What I like with this is that just the sentence can become radically different kinds of campaigns. I could use your first title and the first version of the sentence associated with "scale" as a theme, and I think it actually would be pretty great...
Title: Xelon's Folly
Sentence: Xelon wants to conquer the Kingdom of Wullions before the next planetary alignment using his undead hordes, but Paladins protect Wullions and are too powerful.
Theme: Scale. Depending on which scale you are looking at, things have different meanings.
Xelon is the biological heir of the first King of Wullions, but over centuries political shenanigans made him only the count of a small province. A cosmic horror is coming on the planetary alignment to destroy everything and everyone and the only hope to face it is an ancient artifact buried under the castle of the capital of Wullions.
Xelon wants to recover his family's title of kings of Wullions and pretends it is the only hope to activate the artifact. He also master the craft of creating undeads as did all his ancestors (most of them actually serve in his armies after their deaths). The Church, which nowadays have a bigger power than centuries ago, considers undeads as an abomination and refuses to let him access the throne. Battle ensues than weakens the troops of both side before the impending confrontation with the cosmic horror.
Great series so far.
I have a sentence and have developed it (mostly)and have a theme.
Name: The Wizards Covet
sentence:
A wizard, Zebarda wants an ancient tome by the next winter and is having difficulty getting it using other adventurers because _____________ (yet to work that out)
Theme: Greed of Knowledge
Developed:
The ancient tome contains ____________ which Zebarda wants, but the tome is rumoured to disappear in winter because of the faye that created the tome were spring, summer, and Autumn sprites and is not to be found during the winter months.
Moar plz!
I didn't think that it would be engaging to watch the brainstorming, but it was!
It's worth watching the video in full from start to finish.
Awesome video Guy! Can't wait to include all of the tools into my game! Thank you so much for all the hard work and dedication!
Just recently stumbled upon this playlist of incredible videos and I am sooo happy that I did! These are amazingly helpful. Thank you so much!
Just starting off on this adventure with you. Thanks for putting this playlist and content together!
First time, let's go!
Name: Mercantile Affairs
Sentence: The heads of a powerful trade alliance want to uncover an ancient artefact, but they're having difficulty getting it because it's in a temple of an active eldritch god with a big cult of various magic casters and bodyguards.
Theme: Those who you trust in are not always righteous (Simple folk discovering the "behind the curtain" affairs of their alliance)
Sentence continuation: The trade alliance wants the artefact of the eldritch god because they want to start a new, endless war that only two nations not in the alliance will fight in, with the help of the artefact; as they believe that trade thrives in wars. The public, however, believes it will grant them prosperity at no cost.
The heads of the trade alliance don't care about others.
If you have some constructive criticism I'll gladly take it.
I'm using this series to help write a better season 2 of my epic 3-20 campaign. There was a pretty big upset at the end of last season so now I'm writing a very new, almost disjointed campaign for this season. Here's my sentence:
Arterix (and Mrs G) wants the vault to be reopened in a secure location within six months but is having difficulty because he is a locket with no ability to act.
I did make the one with desires the quest giving good guy from last season, but it's a generally lighthearted story and the BBEG won't be showing up this season.
Thank you thank you thank you!!!! This video was so helpful. Im a DM and I have a brand new campaign starting in a few days and I was having problems coming up with an idea for a campaign. SO HELPFUL!!