Background: This is my first time DMing. We've had about a dozen games so far. My little goblins have encountered:
Murlocs, gnolls, a benevolent dragon, orcs (peons, chief, and orogs), a werewolf, hell hounds, a helmed horror, harpies, and a carrion feeder. So far they encountered a lot of kidnapped children. A lot. This has to do with the story arc and I want it to occur enough that my goblins are going wtf, why is this happening everywhere, but I am also concerned that they are getting bored with it. Also, as my first time DMing, I have been using it as a crutch when I get stuck on "what happens next." I have a few more arcs that need fleshing out, but my goblins keep choosing to go to places that don't make sense for them to encounter story arc pieces there. So they run into the kidnapped children line. Again.
I'd like to throw some other things at them and have been haunting the forums looking for ideas. I totally stole the idea of finding them a pet that they 'saved' from a 'tree' for a little girl. But I am concerned that the story may get lost if I just go off on a bunch of side quests. Do you have any tips about making a story cohesive with side quests (quests which I'm hoping will gently guide them to one of the places they should go.) Or am I trying to control too much and should just relax?
It depends on what your end-goal is. If you don't have a firm goal in mind, it becomes hard to steer your players towards where you need them to be. If your players are finding a lot of missing children, do you have a pay-off planned? If so, are you sprinkling clues into those side quests to nudge them to where that pay-off can be found. Maybe a mysterious map or cryptic missive?
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"The mongoose blew out its candle and was asleep in bed before the room went dark." —Llanowar fable
I have a few more arcs that need fleshing out, but my goblins keep choosing to go to places that don't make sense for them to encounter story arc pieces there. So they run into the kidnapped children line. Again.
This right here is the crux of the issue, and a fairly easy one to solve.
The only reason it's not working is because you don't let it. It sounds kinda goofy but follow me.
An idea involves finding a lost mcguffin in an abandoned mine to the west. Your players wander off to the plains in the east. Darn, can't use that arc....or can you? So, the group is wandering off into the plains, only to find the emaciated body of a miner. It's nothing but leather and buzzard food by the time they show up, but there are also personal effects around the corpse. Inside a satchel is a missive that is addressed to someone in a nearby town. The seal on the letter is broken, so the players can read it without worry, and it's the last words of a dying man who speaks of great evils and riches in the mines to the west. You've effectively given your players a gigantic neon sign that says "PLOT HOOK" but it's done in a way that feels like it's part of the world. No matter if they go to the near by town to find the recipient of the letter or head straight toward the mines, they are now engaged in the plot hook.
I know this isn't a side-quest answer, but I think it may provide you a tool for exploring your other creations.
Background: This is my first time DMing. We've had about a dozen games so far. My little goblins have encountered:
Murlocs, gnolls, a benevolent dragon, orcs (peons, chief, and orogs), a werewolf, hell hounds, a helmed horror, harpies, and a carrion feeder. So far they encountered a lot of kidnapped children. A lot. This has to do with the story arc and I want it to occur enough that my goblins are going wtf, why is this happening everywhere, but I am also concerned that they are getting bored with it. Also, as my first time DMing, I have been using it as a crutch when I get stuck on "what happens next." I have a few more arcs that need fleshing out, but my goblins keep choosing to go to places that don't make sense for them to encounter story arc pieces there. So they run into the kidnapped children line. Again.
I'd like to throw some other things at them and have been haunting the forums looking for ideas. I totally stole the idea of finding them a pet that they 'saved' from a 'tree' for a little girl. But I am concerned that the story may get lost if I just go off on a bunch of side quests. Do you have any tips about making a story cohesive with side quests (quests which I'm hoping will gently guide them to one of the places they should go.) Or am I trying to control too much and should just relax?
Thanks.
It depends on what your end-goal is. If you don't have a firm goal in mind, it becomes hard to steer your players towards where you need them to be. If your players are finding a lot of missing children, do you have a pay-off planned? If so, are you sprinkling clues into those side quests to nudge them to where that pay-off can be found. Maybe a mysterious map or cryptic missive?