I am planning a massive, 1-20 homebrew adventure. I have made a map and have a general idea of the master plot, but I am having a hard time fleshing out my cities quickly and making sure I have NPCs with quests (ones for the master plot and side quests), buildings of importance, and potential allies and enemies. Any advice for worldbuilding in terms of fleshing out cities and such? Also how to organize this information?
World building. That's a very high task to undertake. I'm doing the same as you are. I'm creating a campaign based 1-20 to get to the story ending.
With world building mistakes happen. I've made mistakes and learned from them.
Everything is in your head. The world is in your head. It's your imagination that the players are going to run through. Those players are basically a character inside your head. Those same players also have control over it. You don't.
Start simple. Close your eyes and imagine a village. Who are they? What do they do? What are the hardships of that village? Are some bamdits cutting off the trade route?
You have a master plot but the great thing is that players won't always do things that is along a plot line. Expect them to go way off your story. Plan for it as well. While you have a plot of doesn't mean that everything the players come across is related. Every village or town or whatever has their own problems.
If players are not hooked on a story they will make their own which is exactly what DND is all about. It's freedom and adventure. They are adventuring inside your mind.
Don't build a world for your players to explore. Build a village then a forest then a dungeon. In each of these places every player should have a place to shine with their skills and based on their backgrounds.
Start by writing a list of organisations/business’. Then maybe mark their frequency. Nearly every village has a blacksmith, but maybe only major cities have money lenders etc. that will help to populate your various locations. Have a look at some real world locations that you’re familiar with and the population of those cities to get an idea of how many people are in your cities and their area. Plot points (in my opinion) should stay flexible. Base them more on location than a particular NPC so that you can drop important information even if your players don’t talk to an NPC, or offend them, or of course, kill them.
What works for me is to take care of the background information: factions (goals, enemies, modus operandi, etc), major cities (city politics, major players, security/police level, crime/mob level, etc), and any other misc major NPC. From there I flesh out the starting area and keep enough ready-to-go for three sessions (current and next two). Have found players love taking that left at Albuquerque and throwing everything off. What I don't have fleshed out, I generally do have outlined. Yes, I have been forced to abandon all prepared material and work off the outline (left turn).
Generally, don't worry about having everything written out and set in stone because things will change, your ideas will evolve as the party starts adventuring through the world. Have a good foundation and be flexible with the rest. "Build a village, then a forest, then a dungeon" Know your towns. People are people, but each town is a bit different (why? what happened? how do they interact with others as a result?). Knowing the basics of what makes each area "tick" will feed quest ideas.
Edit: Organizing? I'm old school, so easier for me to work with paper. That said, Excel (different tabs for different main areas & links to other tabs/sheets) would probably be my choice for my next creation (but would probably still print it out). What works for you? You are the one who has to access the information.
When I create a new world, I start with a simple map. (usually randomly generated and then I start to come up with tales for these varied lands). My favorite creations have been ones where I envisioned a theme of the world. One world I based on the Reformation Era where there is a Schism between the accepted Gods and a second group with newer deities. Another I based on Feudal Japan.
It's a pretty good idea to know cultures as well. Usually (because I'm lazy and I really admire historical-themed stuff), I'll base my countries off of historical themes. I made a Roman-esque High Elf Empire, I made a Dwarven-dominated Republic based on 1850s America along with a recently split territory from them over the issue of slavery (the former supported it). How do various cultures treat races? Keeping this in mind makes it a lot more fun (and if the players are not "accepted" races, it gives another challenge to overcome), what is religion like, what does the government work like? If you have the DMG, there's a guide to governments. There's a whole chapter in there on worldbuilding. It'll give you a good start, though it won't cover as much as you're probably thinking.
Its also good to keep track of the various historical events. In my Feudal world, the Grand Emperor decreed that the only way to follow in his tread was to reconquer the land (which basically put all of his provinces at war with one another). In my Schism world, the Old Gods all fell after the Demons rose up out of the Abyss and ruled the Material Plane for several hundred years before the Saints appeared and drove them back into the Lower Planes.
Hopefully this stuff will help get you started. We worldbuilders have to stick together - how else are we supposed to plaigarize - I mean improve other people's ideas.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
At every session, I say, "Everyone's here, except Waluigi."
Osnil need not have lined that out. Steal from everywhere (a recent Todd Talks episode reinforces the idea). My favorite creation borrowed heavily from a Larry Niven short story "What Good Is A Glass Dagger?" I always flavor my areas with ideas from something I've read (even have a list of Shakespeare insults for vicious mockery).
Edit: Stealing this from another thread: DerficusRex, " Matt Colville's Running the Game videos are worth checking out too (including considerable worldbuilding advice if you do want to make your own big setting)."
(1) Steal from real historical cultures! Maybe one city is Viking-like, another is Ancient Greek, and another is Revolution-era France, all fantasy-ized. These settings usually inspire at least a couple landmarks (mead hall, amphitheatre, guillotine square, etc): plus, every good city has at least one noble's residence and one major temple!
(2) Go step by step. It's impossible to plan out every interaction and character all the way to level 20. I'd suggest going week by week, fleshing out maybe 5 NPCs for each place when the players decide to travel there. That way you'll neither have to improvise on the fly not plan everything now! Take it one game at a time and you'll be fine!
(3) Most importantly, remember your players probably don't care whether the city has cool buildings or how many NPCs there are to meet. They want to explore dungeons, get money, and kick some dragon butt. You're not a novelist an you don't have to be. Just focus on the game, and your players will love it!
I'm 3 years into a homebrew world/campaign and it's shown me so many things, I'll try to narrow it down:
1) Detail what your players see, have basic information for what they don't.
The starting location should have a list of who the important NPCs are, what buildings are for what, major/minor quests, a detailed map (if you use them), a list of random names for the "throw away NPCs", and any other details that are important to the location. Near by locations, ones they can reach in the session and quest locations, should have the same information. Any location that they cannot reach in one session does not need anything more than some bullet point notes that give an idea about the location. Name, distance, a major npc or three, political climate, and/or a few rumors is all you really need. As the players get closer to locations you haven't detailed, you can take the time between sessions to fill out the other information.
2) Write your plot(s) in such a way that they can continue no matter where the players go.
When writing your "BBEG is using the McGuffin of Doom" plot, don't write it with the actions of the players in mind. Write out major events that need to happen to get from "Villain's idea" to "Villain is successful". The villain needs to gather artifacts (idea), plot point 1, plot point 2, plot point 3, etc., villain assembles the artifacts (success). We'll say plot point 1 is gathering minions to his cause. The players may or may not be present when this happens, either way it still happens. If the players are present, then they could interfere with the plot point, they may not even learn about it, or they could become one of his minions! It all depends on the choices the players make, the plot point still happens. Let's say plot point 3 is the BBEG obtaining the last piece of the artifact. Depending on the choices the players have made they may be on the other side of the world when this is supposed to happen. Because you're only writing what is needed by the BBEG, you can have the party stumble across a group of the BBEG's minions and learn from them that the last artifact piece has been found. You may choose instead to have them stumble across the location of the last piece of the artifact, it doesn't matter because you only need to know that the BBEG needs that piece of the artifact.
3) You can put too much detail into world building.
The players are interested in their characters and the goals of their characters. Most of them won't care that there is spice and wool trade between the Milden and Herstin families due to the arranged marriage four generations back. If that arranged marriage had implications on one of the character's backstory, then they'll care. If that trade route has become rife with troubles and the party is acquired to help with the problem, that information may be helpful. If it's simply fluff information that doesn't impact the world, the characters, the plot, or a side quest, it's busy work that is probably never going to see the light of day.
4) For any information you're not sure about, use your players' characters for inspiration.
You'll most likely have the initial areas of the world well figured out by the time your players have their characters rolled up. If you don't have a pantheon figured out, let your cleric figure out their deity, then add the opposing deity and one that sits in between the two on the alignment scale. You have the start of a pantheon! If you only have a couple plots and you want to find something for them to do while time passes, look at one of their backgrounds and see how you can make a mini-arc based on that. Listen to their table talk, after game talk, and RP, you'd be surprised at the little gems you can find to make events happen that really engage them. Keep an open mind to what they want and see if there are ways to incorporate some of it into the world.
5) There is no source that is immune to the DM!
As has been said on many occasions, use every resource at your disposal to integrate into your game. Anime, movies, books, and video games are rife with material you can "borrow" from. Your players may recognize it, they may even call you out on it, but as long as you make it your own, make it fit your world, and make it unique to the characters, they will enjoy it. My world in influenced by the Seven Deadly Sins anime, Fairy Tale anime, Raphsody book series, Dragonlance book series, the Vlad Taltos series of books, World of Warcraft video game, and Guild Wars 2 video game. Imitation is the best form of flattery, go forth and use what you know, and proudly do so.
There's much more I've learned but most of it is limited to my table and group or learning how to be a better DM, my flaws and strengths.
I am planning a massive, 1-20 homebrew adventure. I have made a map and have a general idea of the master plot, but I am having a hard time fleshing out my cities quickly and making sure I have NPCs with quests (ones for the master plot and side quests), buildings of importance, and potential allies and enemies. Any advice for worldbuilding in terms of fleshing out cities and such? Also how to organize this information?
World building. That's a very high task to undertake. I'm doing the same as you are. I'm creating a campaign based 1-20 to get to the story ending.
With world building mistakes happen. I've made mistakes and learned from them.
Everything is in your head. The world is in your head. It's your imagination that the players are going to run through. Those players are basically a character inside your head. Those same players also have control over it. You don't.
Start simple. Close your eyes and imagine a village. Who are they? What do they do? What are the hardships of that village? Are some bamdits cutting off the trade route?
You have a master plot but the great thing is that players won't always do things that is along a plot line. Expect them to go way off your story. Plan for it as well. While you have a plot of doesn't mean that everything the players come across is related. Every village or town or whatever has their own problems.
If players are not hooked on a story they will make their own which is exactly what DND is all about. It's freedom and adventure. They are adventuring inside your mind.
Don't build a world for your players to explore. Build a village then a forest then a dungeon. In each of these places every player should have a place to shine with their skills and based on their backgrounds.
Have fun with it.
Start by writing a list of organisations/business’. Then maybe mark their frequency. Nearly every village has a blacksmith, but maybe only major cities have money lenders etc. that will help to populate your various locations. Have a look at some real world locations that you’re familiar with and the population of those cities to get an idea of how many people are in your cities and their area. Plot points (in my opinion) should stay flexible. Base them more on location than a particular NPC so that you can drop important information even if your players don’t talk to an NPC, or offend them, or of course, kill them.
Avohei gave some excellent advice.
What works for me is to take care of the background information: factions (goals, enemies, modus operandi, etc), major cities (city politics, major players, security/police level, crime/mob level, etc), and any other misc major NPC. From there I flesh out the starting area and keep enough ready-to-go for three sessions (current and next two). Have found players love taking that left at Albuquerque and throwing everything off. What I don't have fleshed out, I generally do have outlined. Yes, I have been forced to abandon all prepared material and work off the outline (left turn).
Generally, don't worry about having everything written out and set in stone because things will change, your ideas will evolve as the party starts adventuring through the world. Have a good foundation and be flexible with the rest. "Build a village, then a forest, then a dungeon" Know your towns. People are people, but each town is a bit different (why? what happened? how do they interact with others as a result?). Knowing the basics of what makes each area "tick" will feed quest ideas.
Edit: Organizing? I'm old school, so easier for me to work with paper. That said, Excel (different tabs for different main areas & links to other tabs/sheets) would probably be my choice for my next creation (but would probably still print it out). What works for you? You are the one who has to access the information.
When I create a new world, I start with a simple map. (usually randomly generated and then I start to come up with tales for these varied lands). My favorite creations have been ones where I envisioned a theme of the world. One world I based on the Reformation Era where there is a Schism between the accepted Gods and a second group with newer deities. Another I based on Feudal Japan.
It's a pretty good idea to know cultures as well. Usually (because I'm lazy and I really admire historical-themed stuff), I'll base my countries off of historical themes. I made a Roman-esque High Elf Empire, I made a Dwarven-dominated Republic based on 1850s America along with a recently split territory from them over the issue of slavery (the former supported it). How do various cultures treat races? Keeping this in mind makes it a lot more fun (and if the players are not "accepted" races, it gives another challenge to overcome), what is religion like, what does the government work like? If you have the DMG, there's a guide to governments. There's a whole chapter in there on worldbuilding. It'll give you a good start, though it won't cover as much as you're probably thinking.
Its also good to keep track of the various historical events. In my Feudal world, the Grand Emperor decreed that the only way to follow in his tread was to reconquer the land (which basically put all of his provinces at war with one another). In my Schism world, the Old Gods all fell after the Demons rose up out of the Abyss and ruled the Material Plane for several hundred years before the Saints appeared and drove them back into the Lower Planes.
Hopefully this stuff will help get you started. We worldbuilders have to stick together - how else are we supposed to
plaigarize- I mean improve other people's ideas.At every session, I say, "Everyone's here, except Waluigi."
Osnil need not have lined that out. Steal from everywhere (a recent Todd Talks episode reinforces the idea). My favorite creation borrowed heavily from a Larry Niven short story "What Good Is A Glass Dagger?" I always flavor my areas with ideas from something I've read (even have a list of Shakespeare insults for vicious mockery).
For those completely new to world building, I always try to reinforce the idea of "starting small." I admit a growing curiosity with DMSGuild.com and have recently read through CityScape. There's a lot of interesting information in the product. Yes, it was written for 3.5, but most of it applies to any edition.
Edit: Stealing this from another thread: DerficusRex, " Matt Colville's Running the Game videos are worth checking out too (including considerable worldbuilding advice if you do want to make your own big setting)."
(1) Steal from real historical cultures! Maybe one city is Viking-like, another is Ancient Greek, and another is Revolution-era France, all fantasy-ized. These settings usually inspire at least a couple landmarks (mead hall, amphitheatre, guillotine square, etc): plus, every good city has at least one noble's residence and one major temple!
(2) Go step by step. It's impossible to plan out every interaction and character all the way to level 20. I'd suggest going week by week, fleshing out maybe 5 NPCs for each place when the players decide to travel there. That way you'll neither have to improvise on the fly not plan everything now! Take it one game at a time and you'll be fine!
(3) Most importantly, remember your players probably don't care whether the city has cool buildings or how many NPCs there are to meet. They want to explore dungeons, get money, and kick some dragon butt. You're not a novelist an you don't have to be. Just focus on the game, and your players will love it!
Wizard (Gandalf) of the Tolkien Club
I'm 3 years into a homebrew world/campaign and it's shown me so many things, I'll try to narrow it down:
1) Detail what your players see, have basic information for what they don't.
The starting location should have a list of who the important NPCs are, what buildings are for what, major/minor quests, a detailed map (if you use them), a list of random names for the "throw away NPCs", and any other details that are important to the location. Near by locations, ones they can reach in the session and quest locations, should have the same information. Any location that they cannot reach in one session does not need anything more than some bullet point notes that give an idea about the location. Name, distance, a major npc or three, political climate, and/or a few rumors is all you really need. As the players get closer to locations you haven't detailed, you can take the time between sessions to fill out the other information.
2) Write your plot(s) in such a way that they can continue no matter where the players go.
When writing your "BBEG is using the McGuffin of Doom" plot, don't write it with the actions of the players in mind. Write out major events that need to happen to get from "Villain's idea" to "Villain is successful". The villain needs to gather artifacts (idea), plot point 1, plot point 2, plot point 3, etc., villain assembles the artifacts (success). We'll say plot point 1 is gathering minions to his cause. The players may or may not be present when this happens, either way it still happens. If the players are present, then they could interfere with the plot point, they may not even learn about it, or they could become one of his minions! It all depends on the choices the players make, the plot point still happens. Let's say plot point 3 is the BBEG obtaining the last piece of the artifact. Depending on the choices the players have made they may be on the other side of the world when this is supposed to happen. Because you're only writing what is needed by the BBEG, you can have the party stumble across a group of the BBEG's minions and learn from them that the last artifact piece has been found. You may choose instead to have them stumble across the location of the last piece of the artifact, it doesn't matter because you only need to know that the BBEG needs that piece of the artifact.
3) You can put too much detail into world building.
The players are interested in their characters and the goals of their characters. Most of them won't care that there is spice and wool trade between the Milden and Herstin families due to the arranged marriage four generations back. If that arranged marriage had implications on one of the character's backstory, then they'll care. If that trade route has become rife with troubles and the party is acquired to help with the problem, that information may be helpful. If it's simply fluff information that doesn't impact the world, the characters, the plot, or a side quest, it's busy work that is probably never going to see the light of day.
4) For any information you're not sure about, use your players' characters for inspiration.
You'll most likely have the initial areas of the world well figured out by the time your players have their characters rolled up. If you don't have a pantheon figured out, let your cleric figure out their deity, then add the opposing deity and one that sits in between the two on the alignment scale. You have the start of a pantheon! If you only have a couple plots and you want to find something for them to do while time passes, look at one of their backgrounds and see how you can make a mini-arc based on that. Listen to their table talk, after game talk, and RP, you'd be surprised at the little gems you can find to make events happen that really engage them. Keep an open mind to what they want and see if there are ways to incorporate some of it into the world.
5) There is no source that is immune to the DM!
As has been said on many occasions, use every resource at your disposal to integrate into your game. Anime, movies, books, and video games are rife with material you can "borrow" from. Your players may recognize it, they may even call you out on it, but as long as you make it your own, make it fit your world, and make it unique to the characters, they will enjoy it. My world in influenced by the Seven Deadly Sins anime, Fairy Tale anime, Raphsody book series, Dragonlance book series, the Vlad Taltos series of books, World of Warcraft video game, and Guild Wars 2 video game. Imitation is the best form of flattery, go forth and use what you know, and proudly do so.
There's much more I've learned but most of it is limited to my table and group or learning how to be a better DM, my flaws and strengths.
Some solid advice in this thread. I consider myself an experienced world builder and I am appreciating the advice I read here.
"Not all those who wander are lost"