I once ran an official adventure, and there was a small armory room. I did some rolls on a random weapon table. The resulting weapon was a major focus for the next TWO YEARS of real time. The players were really into it. I gave the magic weapon a backstory, and I developed it over time using input from the PCs' actions and questions. "This must be an evil sword that wants to take over the realms!" Yes, it is now. Two years.
To make players believe a scripted adventure is a sandbox
To make players believe a sandbox was scripted
or ...
To hear the lamentation of their women
What script? The only scripted things in my games are the land masses, town/city names. The npcs. The taverns and shops. The weather changes.
Yup. That's about it. Everything else is on the spot made up based on what the players are doing.
But does it feel made up, or when the twist comes, do your players say, "I can't stand it; I know you planned it"?
I once ran an official adventure, and there was a small armory room. I did some rolls on a random weapon table. The resulting weapon was a major focus for the next TWO YEARS of real time. The players were really into it. I gave the magic weapon a backstory, and I developed it over time using input from the PCs' actions and questions. "This must be an evil sword that wants to take over the realms!" Yes, it is now. Two years.