D&D: Five Ways To Make Your Campaign’s ‘Big Twist’ Pay Off
A huge part of the joy of D&D is the sheer terror that comes when confronted with a situation where you wonder, “Uh-oh, now what?”
One of the best feelings in D&D, as either a player or a DM, is when you don’t really know what’s going to happen next. When you are sitting around the table, wondering, “Oh man, how are we going to get out of this one,” on either side of the screen, that’s exactly the kind of deep delight that keeps people talking about an adventure/campaign for years to come.
Because we like to be surprised. And in those moments where nobody knows, where it’s sort of in the hands of the dice to turn the game, and the story feels like it’s somehow escaped control, we all get truly drawn in. So here are five things that monsters can do to help put you in those situations, though, no guarantees. Think of this as bottles that might help you catch some lightning. But only if it’s biting.
Carry Off A Straggling Party Member
There are many monsters in the Monster Manual that are perfectly capable of carrying off a party member or two. Especially if they’re not powerful enough to take on the whole party in a stand-up fight. But consider what happens when a stealthy yeti or a giant purple worm (for instance) gets hold of a party member on the edge of the rest of the party and then just carries them off before they can stop.
Usually, this is a monster that can burrow or fly and has some ability of movement that the player characters don’t have access to. So someone gets kidnapped or eaten or whatever, and then the monster goes off – and then what happens? How does the party get their friend back? Do they press on? Obviously, only give this one a try if you’re comfortable splitting your focus and the party.
Enthrall An Important NPC
Another of a DM’s delights can be what happens when they antagonize, not the party, but a beloved NPC. This is often best if you, the DM, are going after one of your favorite NPCs. Especially if they’re an NPC that’s important to the world. Imagine the wizard of prophecy or the friendly duke that has been aiding the PCs suddenly gets enthralled by a Mind Flayer or taken over by an eldritch parasite or some other thing that wrests control of the NPC into the hands of someone or something sinister. What happens next? How will the party react?
I guess it all depends on whether they have access to magic that can raise the dead. And if death will cure whatever ails the NPC.
Banish The Party To Another Plane Of Existence
A classic maneuver. A monster with spellcasting capabilities, or one that can just broach the planes, like a marauding band of Githyanki Dragon Riders, sweeps through the party and leaves them stranded elsewhere in the multiverse. This is usually best if you leave it all up to the dice to decide where people end up, that way it’s out of anyone’s hands.
Random portals. Monster maneuvers. Whatever the case, changing the location of the PCs is a fantastic way to set yourself up to be surprised by what comes next.
Turn The Party To Stone For An Unspecified Amount Of Time
If you really want to throw a wrench in things, consider the humble petrification gambit. Now, this one is really tricky to get to happen. PCs in D&D 5.5E are just sort of naturally resistant to being turned to stone. Because you typically have to fail two saving throws before you’re turned to stone. But with disadvantage or the right kind of debuff, it’s not out of the realm of possibility. Imagine a chance encounter with a basilisk or a gorgon, or an enemy ambush with a medusa and the party gets turned to stone.
You stay alive while you’re petrified. And here’s the thing, a lot of times, you can get unpetrified. Basilisks make an oil in their gullet that can unpetrify its victims. A medusa’s petrifying curse might be broken if it’s slain (or becomes subject to its own curse). Or just a magic user with a kind heart and access to the right spell (usually greater restoration) might come along and suddenly unpetrify the party. And then, in the blink of an eye, months, years, or even centuries might have gone by. How will the world have changed without its heroes? This can be a great setup for a whole second campaign!
Give The Party One Or More Wishes
Of course, the ultimate thing you can do to let chaos take the reign is give the party one or more Wishes. Maybe a genie owes them a favor. Or they find a luck blade. Or a ring of three wishes. Whatever the method, having access to a spell so powerful it can rewrite reality can do wonders to leave what happens next anyone’s guess.
How have you been surprised by your own campaigns before?
