Uprisings are an excellent setpiece for a Dungeons & Dragons campaign. They situate the party as underdogs, give them a cause to champion, and supply access to plenty of storytelling options for a way and why they’re fighting. There are also plenty of things to maintain track of, since an rebellion is concurrently a political and military campaign.
Because the DM you’ll be wanting to think twice about the way you approach the subject, what influences you employ when writing the plot, and the opportunities for the players to specific their characters. Listed below are just a few ways you’ll be able to keep the campaign interesting.
Make An Enemy Price Opposing
An rebellion is defined just as much by what it opposes as by what it champions. You would like the entrenched power that the party is resisting to have meaningful flaws that the revolt seeks to deal with. At the identical time, you likely wish to avoid moustache-twirling villainy where the bad guys kick puppies for fun and are evil mostly out of obligation.
A crucial a part of that is to think in regards to the power structures. Does this empire oppress people? What lines does it draw for who’s given power and who’s forced to kneel? Concurrently, you ought to take a look at what hierarchies and systems have prevented them from already being overthrown.
A fantasy setting allows for plenty of options that differ from real-world history. A sorcerer king might actually be individually stronger than a national military. A Lich King shall be broadly resistant to assassination. Each will still need bureaucrats, tax collectors, and police, but military power could be rather more consolidated.
The way in which the empire enforces its will can change how the party approaches scenarios. The party may need to make use of different approaches when fighting mercenaries, peasant conscripts, or magical constructs.
Construct Unstable Alliances
Considered one of the massive opportunities that a revolt story can allow is exploring the networks of factions pursuing the identical ends with different goals and reasons. Each character can have their very own allegiances that allow for compelling story arcs, dramatic betrayals, and tense political drama.
A crucial point is that every group must have something they contribute that persuades or forces the others to work together. Listed below are just a few common factions that may function playmakers in almost any revolt plotline:
Faction | Contribution | Risk |
|---|---|---|
Ideologues | Believers in a cause are a classic component of each popular movement. These are also the group players are most certainly to trust. | Groups motivated by morals are liable to have schisms over differing opinions. They could have conflicting ideas about learn how to fight, who to trust, and what happens afterward. These groups are less prone to have a transparent hierarchy, slowing down decision-making. |
Organised Crime | Criminals could make an unsavoury but needed ally. They’ll know all the most effective routes for smuggling goods and folks and have access to resources that more ideological factions may struggle to muster. | They’re also prone to be swayed by money. Even when their leaderships are invested within the cause, their underlings are prone to sell one another out. |
Insiders | Individuals with positions of power are well-equipped to leak vital information for the party to utilize. | They’re also difficult to trust and are liable to have their very own motivations. Their position of influence makes it difficult to police their conduct. |
Downtrodden | The people most persecuted by the present system have probably the most to achieve from opposing it. | Other groups might struggle to trust them, especially in the event that they’re used to looking down at these people. |
External Powers | A revolt is capable of go rather a lot further with the support of a foreign power, whether a rival nation or organisation that operates across borders. | Outside groups are going to be detached from local consequences and their support is likely to be contingent on getting certain concessions. |
Topics like slavery and bigotry could be powerful tools for telling stories about overcoming evil empires. They’re also topics you’ll be wanting to run by your group in session zero and have safety tools for.
Use Asymmetrical Combat
A fantastic way of creating a resistance movement feel just like the underdogs is to emphasize the facility of their opposition. If the revolt has enough strength to win on a level playing field, they’ve already won.
There are just a few other ways to have enemies stronger than the players while still keeping combat balanced.
Combat Approach | Description | Method |
|---|---|---|
Alternate Objectives | Creating different scenarios for combat signifies that even a stronger opponent could be defeated by outmaneuvering them or stalling for time. | As a substitute of reducing all enemies to 0hp, you’ll be able to force them to carry a position for a certain amount of time, steal a protected item, or capture a hostage. After achieving their goals, provide a way for them to flee. |
Stronger Reinforcements Over Time | Having enemies respond with escalating force is technique to emphasize danger while keeping the party capable of fight. | You may have the initial enemies of an encounter be composed of enemies equal or lower level. If the party takes too long, step by step increase the CR to represent overwhelming numbers and elite forces being redeployed. This pairs well with alternate objectives for the reason that party doesn’t have to defeat all of the enemies to win. |
Targets Of Opportunity | Forcing the players to perform reconnaissance after which giving them the selection of several targets allows them to play strategically. A number of the targets is likely to be entirely non-viable, protected by enemies too strong for them to defeat or bypass. | Missions deemed too dangerous at lower levels develop into viable targets once the party becomes stronger. When you prepare an encounter the players aren’t ready for, you’ll be able to reuse it later. |
Require Planning | Have the players create their very own plans for learn how to approach these situations and evade the superior numbers and strength of their enemies. | They could devise a route that evades the majority of the enemy forces, or plan a diversion to delay a response. |
Consider Restricting Certain Character Options
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Some spells and talents that may be entirely mundane in a standard game are capable of greatly change the tone of an intrigue-focused campaign. Consider limiting player access to certain options and preparing countermeasures for others.
- Spells like Zone of Truth trivialize the technique of finding double agents. Abilities and items to negate this are either very expensive or high-level.
- Sending removes a lot of the spywork involved in sending coded messages or checking dead drops. The magical telephone even allows for instantaneous replies.
- Changelings and Disguise spells can fluster a DM not used to running intrigue. Have non-visual symbols of status and identity that prevent a level one bard from running amok.
- The antagonists must have enough wealth to maintain a everlasting non-detection spell, especially when having shady backroom meetings.
- Some backgrounds, reminiscent of Noble, may not fit the shared backstory of the player group. Work along with your players to see what character backstories are appropriate.
- If anyone within the setting has access to unlimited flight, secure buildings must have nets and guards should remember to look up occasionally.
Make Public Opinion Matter
The way in which the party acts should have an effect on the recognition of their cause. If the members are widely recognised for previous adventures, their fame could have people a minimum of willing to look the opposite way. Similarly, if their faces are well-known it might be harder for them to maneuver covertly.
Propaganda against the party generally is a strong narrative point, and it’s as much as you because the DM how that conflict plays out. The party is less liable to throw fireballs in public spaces in the event that they know they’ll be blamed for collateral damage and this adds more variety to how they fight.
Think About What Happens Afterwards
Most movies and books following a civil rebellion end not long after the civil war ends and a vaguely described provisional government steps in. It’d even end when the Good King replaces the Bad King. Most D&D campaigns follow a living setting where you’ll be wanting to proceed telling stories after this conflict is resolved, needing you to proceed writing past the epilogue of other stories.
A superb approach is creating recent threats that expand on previous events: Former allies scramble to fill an influence vacuum, loyalists try and reinstate surviving heirs, and neighbouring powers exploit the weakness for diplomacy or warfare.
All of those can tell interesting stories, and you’ll be able to have several of those events happening at the identical time to lift the stakes further than throughout the original conflict.
For writing beyond the ending, take a look at Lord of the Rings. The ultimate battle with Mordor and the confrontation at Mount Doom are followed by a complete act in regards to the Scouring Of The Shire.
