Interesting Encounters - Interacting with the World

Lost in thought as she rode, thinking through the massive administration of the task ahead, Devora, priestess of Oghma, was roused from her reverie, not by any unusual noise this time, but by an absence of noise. The banter of her guard, the chatting of her entourage, all the sound of the caravan save for the horses’ hooves and wheels of the wagons had fallen silent. Only when she looked up did she realize where she was; the silence was in respect for the graves of the fallen. This was the site of the second battle of Shadowdale. They must never forget this: this was the cost of war.

Source: https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/eu-observes-24th-anniversary-of-srebrenica-genocide/1528757

So I thought I’d take a bit of a break from my usual educational articles and write something else D&D (or TTRPG) related. While I have a few articles half-written and in the pipeline, I haven’t been very productive during this lockdown, so I thought I’d write something quick, but hopefully useful. I’m sure that experienced Dungeon Masters probably do this anyway, or it might be a good reminder. Otherwise, this is something to inspire or steal ideas from.

As someone who has been a Dungeon Master for over three decades now, and dubbing myself the “Educational DM,” I get asked plenty of questions by new DMs about all sorts of things. One of the questions I get asked often is how I keep things fresh and different. How do I change things up from the usual dungeon delve: encounter, trap, or combat grind? Now, I use various things, which I may get around to writing about, but one of those is just to take a moment to inject a bit of scenery into your adventure. This is going to be especially important in travel. Otherwise, travel can be very dry and mechanical, or just interrupted by your usual goblin ambush, or a tavern along the road. So here’s my tip: inject a bit of scenery into your adventure. Something that may or may not need any interaction, but makes them stop and marvel at the world. It may mean that you get to relay some lore. Be careful not to make too much of a lore dump on those players who don’t enjoy that kind of thing.

Just to give you an idea of what I am talking about, there is that beautiful scene in The Fellowship of the Ring (first of The Lord of the Rings trilogy) when the Fellowship (party) are traveling by boat down the River Anduin and they pass by two giant statues. For those who know their Middle Earth lore, you will understand that these are the Argonauth, statues commemorating two great kings. They hark back to a time when the kingdoms of men were great and powerful, and it gives the reader of the books or viewer of the films a sense that they are part of a world with a rich history. It also sets up a comparison to the Gondor that some of the Fellowship go on to visit and shows that it has somehow lost some of the greatness it once knew.

It doesn’t even need to be a large man-made structure; it could be a magnificent forest, a giant roc, dragon or other wondrous creature that happens to be flying by in the distance, a stunning waterfall, or an unusual rock formation (e.g., Hopewell Rocks, see below). What I am trying to say is: instill some wonder of this fantastical, magical world that they are inhabiting. Not all encounters have to be interactive (most should be).

For inspiration, look no further than the world around you. I occasionally post on my Facebook page real-world inspirations (mostly of exotic creatures). I had never even heard of the Hopewell Rocks (pictured above) until I typed “interesting rock formations” into Google. I was expecting to post some of the impressive rock formations that you see in the Nevada desert, but this picture makes you wonder what might have created it? Who lives there? And what’s the story behind this twisted lone pillar?

I know that there are mixed feelings about Critical Role within the D&D community. I loved the first campaign, but have struggled to follow the second. One scene near the start of the second campaign struck me as a lovely narrative moment, however. During Caleb’s night watch, a herd of Buffalo type creatures passes by (episode 5). It inspired me to come up with my magical night encounter. The party was camped out in a small clearing in the woods by the side of the road. The lone character on watch sees a glow coming through the woods away from the road. When they go to investigate, they see that the woods ends after about 500 yards, and they look down into a valley of tall grass. Rising from the grass, like fireflies, is luminescent pollen. They are somewhat hypnotized by the beautiful scenery and sit down to watch. The rest of the party wake the next morning to find their fellow party member gone, but after following some reasonably clear tracks, they find them sitting staring into an empty grassy valley. In the back of my mind, I am imagining (and would if I could find the right tune) soft anime-style night scene music playing in the background. While any number of animes could have inspired it, I suppose I am particularly thinking about Grave of the Fireflies. (https://youtu.be/taZvug7hO3g?t=84).

Source: Grave of the Fireflies (1988), Studio Ghibli

Devora stopped the caravan, got out, and wandered amongst the graves. She stopped at the monument in the middle for some silent meditation. After prayer, she called the rest of her entourage to her and, rather than giving a sermon, spoke briefly and factually about the events leading up to battle and the fall-out. Faithful to Oghma, the god of knowledge and truth, she did her best to spell out the mistakes made on both sides of the war that led up to the conflict and ended with just a couple of warnings, lest such a loss of life happened again. 

As the carriage was pulling away, it struck her that she wished that some of the future leaders of the Realms had been with her to heed her warnings. Pulling out some parchment and a quill she always had to hand, Devora was soon working furiously on how to ensure that the education of the children of the Realms’ rulers could be put into place.

Cover Art Credit - WotC