Dungeons & Dragons: Why Create your own Epic Adventures?

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Ever get tired of flipping through page after page of pre-scripted D&D Adventures?

I gave up on using the D&D adventures of others a long time ago (both the paid & free ones). I’ve never looked back. Creating my own Dungeons & Dragons adventures has been a significantly more enjoyable experience both for myself and for my players. Let’s talk about the biggest reasons why you should create your own adventures & campaigns…

You know your players better than anyone else

Every group of players is different. Some groups are all about the roleplay dialogue and could spend three hours shooting the breeze at the local tavern. You don’t need to plan an adventure those groups (they have no problem getting themselves into trouble anyway).

Some groups are in it for the hacking & the slashing. They don’t care why the floor is littered with chicken bones or why doors of the house are all boarded up. Sometimes they don’t even care what they are hacking down — they just want to slash at it, whatever “it” is.

Still other groups aren’t as big on the lengthy roleplay chatter or the combat encounters. Maybe it’s the puzzle solving that brings them back every Friday night or the gothic horror atmosphere that they really dig their teeth into. I don’t know — but here’s what I do know.

You know! So rather than leaving through internet reviews or traveling from one niche tabletop game store to the next — looking for that perfect adventure… Write it! You know what your people want and you know what you enjoy leading as the Dungeon Master — so make that.

You know your adventures better than anyone else

There are some good adventures out there (paid & free), but running one of those adventures means:

Studying & re-studying the adventure for hours beforehand to the point that you know it like the back of your hand.

Spending the entire adventure rifling through the pages of the adventure, while your players are snoring or picking fights with innocent bystanders in the local village.

So what’s the big advantage to writing your own adventure? You don’t have to study it or spend half of the adventure referencing it — because you know what you wrote! If you haven’t tried it before, then please do — it’s both liberating and slightly addicting.

The Beholder tumbles to the floor, defeated at last and… (everyone waits while you reference to the loot table or the plot consequence for situation A3…) *Epic moment ruined*

OR

The Beholder tumbles to the floor, defeated at last and… you notice a shadowed figure dart out of the corner of the room, heading for the exit! (You don’t have to look up what the figure is carrying — you know it. You don’t have to look up in what manner this figure would run out of the room or at what speed — you know it. Why is he running? Who is he? Where is he going? YOU KNOW ALL OF IT!)

You know yourself better than anyone else

What kind of Dungeon Master are you? What are your strengths, weaknesses & preferences as a DM? Are you better at playing comic relief buffoons or blood curling villains? Describing intricate scenes or creating fascinating monsters?

If you pick up an adventure off a shelf — you might be thrusting yourself into a role or roles that you don’t excel at, or that you simply don’t enjoy. The adventure might be too juvenile or too serious for your tastes & skillset. Why put yourself in those situations?

I hope that this article has helped you to see the merit & advantages to writing your own Dungeons & Dragons adventures. If you are intrigued by the premise, but just aren’t sure how to do so — then you can look forward to my next Dungeons & Dragons story (coming out soon):

Dungeons & Dragons: How to Create your Own Adventures

In the meantime, I hope you’ll enjoy some of my other D&D posts:

Dungeons & Dragons: 5 Tips for Players

Dungeons & Dragons: Find the Balance

Dungeons & Dragons: My Real Life Stats