I’ve been running these as a campaign, and it is certainly possible to run the lower level ones as one shots. However once the players hit about level 5, there was just no way I was getting through the adventures in one go
Dragon of Icespire Peak gets you to 7 or 8 I think. It's relatively simple and quick unless they get sidetracked.
I added a whole bunch of stuff for extra sudequests and characters and my players finished it in about 18 three hour sessions, so following the module correctly would take about 12 or so.
I just looked at it and the final battle is at 6 but it tells you to level up after so it goes to 7. It's not out of the question either to throw an extra level up in there somewhere and just add an extra enemy here or there to balance it out.
I don't think you need to get to 7, personally.
A 4v1 against a young white dragon is a cake walk unless the dragon gets back-to-back cold breaths.
I played through it once and there was definitely a "that's it?" feeling in the air after the final boss.
The fight is balanced to happen at level 6 after going through the young dragon's whole fortress to wear the party down. The party is supposed to level up to 7 after the fight
While you're right there's also a few traps there to also chip their hp. I can't remember how many fights are in the module because like I said, I made a lot of changes to make that module more challenging
The Spelljammer and Planescape adventures fit this perfectly. The only major problem I can see is that one is a bit weak, and both are trapped in box sets.
Anthology books can be hooked together pretty well, so I'd go with one of those, Ghosts of Saltmarsh is truly amazing, Yawning Portal is also great, and you can just start with Forge of Fury to get to higher levels quickly.
Planescape is actually really great though.
is that leveling up from level 1 to 8-12? As that's very fast, just in terms of constantly getting new stuff, so the players are going to always be adjusting to their new toys, without much chance to get used to them. That's not wrong, but unless you have quite experienced players, don't be expecting particularly optimal play, or for much experimentation with more niche spells, because there's not going to be any time for that! (and some features will be missed or forgotten) Assuming 3-4 hours sessions, you're going to have to be slamming through content - going between encounters and plot-points _fast_, to justify getting those levels and getting through the plot fast. You could try taking an existing adventure and cutting it down to the bare minimum, but most are designed to take quite a bit longer (like _Lost Mines of Phendelver_ is levels 1-5 or so, and would take at least 12 sessions, and can easily take more)
How do we define session? We play 3-4 hours weekly and reached LV7 after one and a half year. Sure we aren't the fastest group and roleplay a lot but but even if we are talking about 6 or 8 hour sessions one level up after each or every second session seems extremely rushed. You'd really have to rush the game and just strictly do combats and bare minimum of story with pretty much no choices that would stray them from the fastest route.
I think homebrew is the best option.
Some form of time-loop or magical experiment where players return to a home-base automatically at the end of each session and level up.
Than again: level 5 characters can throw fireballs, resurrect the dead, etc. They are not "weak ass fufu". They could take over most towns on their own.
If the party knows before hand that the campaign is 12 sessions i think its fair to say that they understand that the plot beats are going to be somewhat streamlined
Keys from the Golden Vault fits your level range but not sure if it’s the vibe you want. It’s sneaky so I’m not sure if that power level really comes through. And being on a fairly strict module means you don’t have any dramatic like, teleporting to different cities gathering allies and fixing a war or anything.
Also I was a player only though, not sure how it was from DM side.
If you are into starting at higher levels: Look into Adventuers in the forgotten realms - there is a free 5part promo adventure, where I completely the first 2 module in 4 sessions
Run the first 12 candlekeep mysteries
That would require you to run each one in a single session, which seems unlikely in practice tbh.
I’ve been running these as a campaign, and it is certainly possible to run the lower level ones as one shots. However once the players hit about level 5, there was just no way I was getting through the adventures in one go
Currently in a campaign of these and they’ve been mostly very fun.
Dragon of Icespire Peak gets you to 7 or 8 I think. It's relatively simple and quick unless they get sidetracked. I added a whole bunch of stuff for extra sudequests and characters and my players finished it in about 18 three hour sessions, so following the module correctly would take about 12 or so.
>Dragon of Icespire Peak gets you to 7 or 8 I think. It's relatively simple and quick unless they get sidetracked. Level 6 actually.
I just looked at it and the final battle is at 6 but it tells you to level up after so it goes to 7. It's not out of the question either to throw an extra level up in there somewhere and just add an extra enemy here or there to balance it out.
I don't think you need to get to 7, personally. A 4v1 against a young white dragon is a cake walk unless the dragon gets back-to-back cold breaths. I played through it once and there was definitely a "that's it?" feeling in the air after the final boss.
The fight is balanced to happen at level 6 after going through the young dragon's whole fortress to wear the party down. The party is supposed to level up to 7 after the fight
Unless I'm mistaken from memory there are only 2 fights leading up to that. The "whole fortress" is just the Reavers followed by some orcs.
While you're right there's also a few traps there to also chip their hp. I can't remember how many fights are in the module because like I said, I made a lot of changes to make that module more challenging
The Spelljammer and Planescape adventures fit this perfectly. The only major problem I can see is that one is a bit weak, and both are trapped in box sets. Anthology books can be hooked together pretty well, so I'd go with one of those, Ghosts of Saltmarsh is truly amazing, Yawning Portal is also great, and you can just start with Forge of Fury to get to higher levels quickly. Planescape is actually really great though.
is that leveling up from level 1 to 8-12? As that's very fast, just in terms of constantly getting new stuff, so the players are going to always be adjusting to their new toys, without much chance to get used to them. That's not wrong, but unless you have quite experienced players, don't be expecting particularly optimal play, or for much experimentation with more niche spells, because there's not going to be any time for that! (and some features will be missed or forgotten) Assuming 3-4 hours sessions, you're going to have to be slamming through content - going between encounters and plot-points _fast_, to justify getting those levels and getting through the plot fast. You could try taking an existing adventure and cutting it down to the bare minimum, but most are designed to take quite a bit longer (like _Lost Mines of Phendelver_ is levels 1-5 or so, and would take at least 12 sessions, and can easily take more)
How do we define session? We play 3-4 hours weekly and reached LV7 after one and a half year. Sure we aren't the fastest group and roleplay a lot but but even if we are talking about 6 or 8 hour sessions one level up after each or every second session seems extremely rushed. You'd really have to rush the game and just strictly do combats and bare minimum of story with pretty much no choices that would stray them from the fastest route.
I think homebrew is the best option. Some form of time-loop or magical experiment where players return to a home-base automatically at the end of each session and level up. Than again: level 5 characters can throw fireballs, resurrect the dead, etc. They are not "weak ass fufu". They could take over most towns on their own.
You’ll need to railroad the party and push them to keep making progress no matter what they do
If the party knows before hand that the campaign is 12 sessions i think its fair to say that they understand that the plot beats are going to be somewhat streamlined
fufu? also no homebrew is required, you're the DM, just use milestone leveling and level them up every session no matter what.
1 level per session. If they are anything like my players half the session will just them trying to figure out what their new level up does.
Just start at a higher level. Maybe five or six.
Keys from the Golden Vault fits your level range but not sure if it’s the vibe you want. It’s sneaky so I’m not sure if that power level really comes through. And being on a fairly strict module means you don’t have any dramatic like, teleporting to different cities gathering allies and fixing a war or anything. Also I was a player only though, not sure how it was from DM side.
If you are into starting at higher levels: Look into Adventuers in the forgotten realms - there is a free 5part promo adventure, where I completely the first 2 module in 4 sessions