To me, Marvel's current Agatha series just screams D&D adventure. Each character seems to have such complex backstories/motivation, they all came together very quickly to face a common challenge, they have different sets of talents that are relevant at different points of the journey, and (spoiler for the show),
they even have a character death where said character is immediately replaced by a new witch filling the same role in the coven (party).
For anyone who has watched the show or run vaguely similar campaigns before, how would one make this concept work as an actual game? Conceptually it seems to just be a large and character-specific dungeon, or a series of small dungeons. It would probably be very character driven in terms of the inspiration behind the trials/challenges, so a lot of the planning would have to come after a party's characters were created, but mechanically:
Are there any unique/creative puzzles you might utilize (beyond DMG examples) so each trial isn't a different flavor of "fight this creature"?
Would it make sense to provide a more limited class/subclass list, or at least flavor/ability suggestions, to create the party dynamic of having a shields witch, green witch, potions witch, etc. as in the show? Or, what other "types" of witch might be present in a coven, and what would their corresponding element be (fire, water, earth, air, spirit)?
Would this work best as a one-shot/two-shot/etc.? A kick-off to a larger witch-y campaign? Could it potentially be enough content to form a short campaign in and of itself?
What level would you start characters at? Would they level up on the road? Would they just gain a level (or multiple) at the end of the road?
How would you handle resting on the road?
Is there another game system that might fit this idea better than D&D, or that would be good for borrowing mechanics to customize the experience while still largely basing it around D&D?
Or do you think the concept is too limiting/specific to actually interest people?
I think it could make for quite an interesting adventure (I have run a similar fey wild campaign based loosely on the Wizard of Oz) but how you go about it really depends on how much you want to lean in on the series. I think that because of the railroading nature of it, a short adventure would be best - but who knows right now - maybe the show will change direction.
Firstly, you could try and match the different categories of witch they use in the show but it could still be pretty diverse - (green = druid, clairvoyant = divination wizard, Agatha = warlock with the Darkhold as her patron(?), etc.) - this is if your party are happy with pre-gen characters. You could include non-casters as some sort of protector, but they might get less out of the experience. Or you could encourage the group to be casters but give them free rein on their choices and adapt any riddles or encounters to the party. Either way, coming up with a good backstory to link everyone will be key.
I, personally, would probably run it from lvl 3 (to 5 or 6, depending on how many encounters you include) so everybody has at least some of what makes them unique (but I can see an argument for running them at lvl 1 running to 3 and have this almost as an origin story but any riddles, puzzles and so on would have to be more generic). D&D would work well, but if you want to carry on the adventure, I would remove the modern elements so you can continue in the Forgotten Realms.
As far as encounters go I think you're right - it is essentially just a dungeon. The first room (the house from episode 3) would definitely be a puzzle or riddle. They become poisoned on entering, then need to solve a series of clues leading to ingredients that create the antidote (eg. Atop it springs life but under it death slumbers = dirt). Have the final clue be of use to a specific spell or skill one of your party has (Something silver must be used but no body's hand can stir it = they have to use mage hand or unseen servant). You could have the player who seems to match the room have more insight (advantage or extra clues) into solving the puzzle.
The second room might be a combat encounter - perhaps you personify the curse as a demon (from episode 4) but perhaps include some sort of advantage using performance? You could have the Seven Sisters (the undead witches that chased them into the door in episode 2) be recurring villains. The show lets them rest as long as they stay on the road (it could be fun to interrupt it with some crazy happening if they wander) and there is no obvious encounter - so let them rest when you feel your adventuring day is done.
I'm not sure how the series will play out, but you might want to include a few branches in the road - currently the show is literally railroading them and that can be a little frustrating in a game.
Anyway, just a few quick ideas - I hope it kinda helps.
Thanks for the input! I was definitely thinking level 3 at minimum, and might even consider 5-6 since it would likely be a shorter adventure and that would give the players more flavor-specific spells and subclass abilities (though it would require upping the difficulty on some trials for them to still feel difficult). I hadn't considered using premade characters, and that would definitely allow for more careful planning, though I worry about it taking away some of the fun. Perhaps there's a balance somewhere between fully premade characters, and just providing a starting point for a character like a specific class/subclass that still allows for some freedom in backstory creation, or vice-versa. A non-caster could also be a potential analog for someone in Jen's or Agatha's position where their magic has been bound or otherwise stolen, leaving them with only their knowledge.
My goal would also be to steer away from the specific challenges in the show as much as possible so that the whole thing wouldn't be spoiled for people who had watched it (since that's probably most of the hypothetical audience for this), but to still have the puzzles/challenges feel relevant and specific. Giving one character advantage on checks for each challenge is a good idea, I might even extend that and give them other benefits while in their challenge space like a free casting of a spell, quickened rituals, or other things along those lines to really make sure they feel powerful and qualified when they're "supposed to".
I would probably steer away from modern elements and run it more as a 1600s Salem version of the road that would more easily slot into a setting like the Forgotten Realms. Forks in the road is also an interesting concept that I'll have to think on. This is sort of by nature a more linear set of challenges, but it does take a specific type of player to not get frustrated by something like the house placing itself in their path regardless of where they go. Maybe that's just a conversation to have before the game to make sure everyone is okay with a linear dungeon ahead of time, and some thought will need to be put into adding more agency within each challenge if there's not much in between them.
I feel in love too, with the concept of the series and well, while I cannot actually suggest you more original ideas, I will talk about my... Sources to find inspiration.
First of all, the Test of High Sorcery, from Dragonlance. The sourcebook Towers of High Sorcery will help you devise one. When a wizard reaches level 5, to be allowed to learn spells of level 3 or higher they have to pass a test in which failure means death. Said test takes place in a tower of sorcery, where the wizard enters a special onirical dimension in which they have to overcome trials, challenges, enemies and supposed allies, by using all the spells they know and, also overcoming dangers that could not be passed with magic alone. The test is extremely dangerous and some who pass it find themselves changed in a way meant to teach them a lesson (a liar may find themselves with a literally forked tongue, for instance). The sourcebook even has a "map" for the typical test.
Another inspiration: the academy of Glantri, Mystara, in which to become an actual wizard you have to survive the dungeons of the college.
Another: the Harrowing, from Dragon Age. The wizard is "drugged" and shifted to the realm of dreams and spirits, in which they have to find a demon and defeat it, after overcoming the hallucinatory landscape and being careful around deceiving sights. If they take too long the guards will execute their mortal body.
Resting on the road could work as long as you are on the "main" road, the enchanted forest. No actual dangers, unless you decide to stray away from the path. A non-caster could be a... Figment of the friend of one of the witches. The friend wants to follow them, they think they do, but the road does not allow it and create a perfect duplicate for the coven, the only actually expendable one because their death will not be real.
To me, Marvel's current Agatha series just screams D&D adventure. Each character seems to have such complex backstories/motivation, they all came together very quickly to face a common challenge, they have different sets of talents that are relevant at different points of the journey, and (spoiler for the show),
they even have a character death where said character is immediately replaced by a new witch filling the same role in the coven (party).
For anyone who has watched the show or run vaguely similar campaigns before, how would one make this concept work as an actual game? Conceptually it seems to just be a large and character-specific dungeon, or a series of small dungeons. It would probably be very character driven in terms of the inspiration behind the trials/challenges, so a lot of the planning would have to come after a party's characters were created, but mechanically:
Or do you think the concept is too limiting/specific to actually interest people?
I think it could make for quite an interesting adventure (I have run a similar fey wild campaign based loosely on the Wizard of Oz) but how you go about it really depends on how much you want to lean in on the series. I think that because of the railroading nature of it, a short adventure would be best - but who knows right now - maybe the show will change direction.
Firstly, you could try and match the different categories of witch they use in the show but it could still be pretty diverse - (green = druid, clairvoyant = divination wizard, Agatha = warlock with the Darkhold as her patron(?), etc.) - this is if your party are happy with pre-gen characters. You could include non-casters as some sort of protector, but they might get less out of the experience. Or you could encourage the group to be casters but give them free rein on their choices and adapt any riddles or encounters to the party. Either way, coming up with a good backstory to link everyone will be key.
I, personally, would probably run it from lvl 3 (to 5 or 6, depending on how many encounters you include) so everybody has at least some of what makes them unique (but I can see an argument for running them at lvl 1 running to 3 and have this almost as an origin story but any riddles, puzzles and so on would have to be more generic). D&D would work well, but if you want to carry on the adventure, I would remove the modern elements so you can continue in the Forgotten Realms.
As far as encounters go I think you're right - it is essentially just a dungeon. The first room (the house from episode 3) would definitely be a puzzle or riddle. They become poisoned on entering, then need to solve a series of clues leading to ingredients that create the antidote (eg. Atop it springs life but under it death slumbers = dirt). Have the final clue be of use to a specific spell or skill one of your party has (Something silver must be used but no body's hand can stir it = they have to use mage hand or unseen servant). You could have the player who seems to match the room have more insight (advantage or extra clues) into solving the puzzle.
The second room might be a combat encounter - perhaps you personify the curse as a demon (from episode 4) but perhaps include some sort of advantage using performance? You could have the Seven Sisters (the undead witches that chased them into the door in episode 2) be recurring villains. The show lets them rest as long as they stay on the road (it could be fun to interrupt it with some crazy happening if they wander) and there is no obvious encounter - so let them rest when you feel your adventuring day is done.
I'm not sure how the series will play out, but you might want to include a few branches in the road - currently the show is literally railroading them and that can be a little frustrating in a game.
Anyway, just a few quick ideas - I hope it kinda helps.
Thanks for the input! I was definitely thinking level 3 at minimum, and might even consider 5-6 since it would likely be a shorter adventure and that would give the players more flavor-specific spells and subclass abilities (though it would require upping the difficulty on some trials for them to still feel difficult). I hadn't considered using premade characters, and that would definitely allow for more careful planning, though I worry about it taking away some of the fun. Perhaps there's a balance somewhere between fully premade characters, and just providing a starting point for a character like a specific class/subclass that still allows for some freedom in backstory creation, or vice-versa. A non-caster could also be a potential analog for someone in Jen's or Agatha's position where their magic has been bound or otherwise stolen, leaving them with only their knowledge.
My goal would also be to steer away from the specific challenges in the show as much as possible so that the whole thing wouldn't be spoiled for people who had watched it (since that's probably most of the hypothetical audience for this), but to still have the puzzles/challenges feel relevant and specific. Giving one character advantage on checks for each challenge is a good idea, I might even extend that and give them other benefits while in their challenge space like a free casting of a spell, quickened rituals, or other things along those lines to really make sure they feel powerful and qualified when they're "supposed to".
I would probably steer away from modern elements and run it more as a 1600s Salem version of the road that would more easily slot into a setting like the Forgotten Realms. Forks in the road is also an interesting concept that I'll have to think on. This is sort of by nature a more linear set of challenges, but it does take a specific type of player to not get frustrated by something like the house placing itself in their path regardless of where they go. Maybe that's just a conversation to have before the game to make sure everyone is okay with a linear dungeon ahead of time, and some thought will need to be put into adding more agency within each challenge if there's not much in between them.
I feel in love too, with the concept of the series and well, while I cannot actually suggest you more original ideas, I will talk about my... Sources to find inspiration.
First of all, the Test of High Sorcery, from Dragonlance. The sourcebook Towers of High Sorcery will help you devise one. When a wizard reaches level 5, to be allowed to learn spells of level 3 or higher they have to pass a test in which failure means death. Said test takes place in a tower of sorcery, where the wizard enters a special onirical dimension in which they have to overcome trials, challenges, enemies and supposed allies, by using all the spells they know and, also overcoming dangers that could not be passed with magic alone. The test is extremely dangerous and some who pass it find themselves changed in a way meant to teach them a lesson (a liar may find themselves with a literally forked tongue, for instance). The sourcebook even has a "map" for the typical test.
Another inspiration: the academy of Glantri, Mystara, in which to become an actual wizard you have to survive the dungeons of the college.
Another: the Harrowing, from Dragon Age. The wizard is "drugged" and shifted to the realm of dreams and spirits, in which they have to find a demon and defeat it, after overcoming the hallucinatory landscape and being careful around deceiving sights. If they take too long the guards will execute their mortal body.
Resting on the road could work as long as you are on the "main" road, the enchanted forest. No actual dangers, unless you decide to stray away from the path. A non-caster could be a... Figment of the friend of one of the witches. The friend wants to follow them, they think they do, but the road does not allow it and create a perfect duplicate for the coven, the only actually expendable one because their death will not be real.