Keep Your Campaign on Track: Dead End Plots in D&D
A campaign in fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons, or any roleplaying game, turns on the words and deeds of the characters whose actions move the narrative forward – usually in ways the Game Master never expects. I’d say quite a few D&D adventures go in different directions almost immediately upon starting play. A GM can consider and plan for a million possibilities, and I’m never surprised when players do the million and first thing. Giving players agency in your game is vital, but what do you do when the adventurers venture far afield of the quests you prepared, or get stymied by obstacles, puzzles and other challenges impeding progress? Did the adventure hit a dead end?
Dealing with a campaign dead end
Absolutely not. In fact there’s no such thing as a dead end plot in D&D.
In one of the videos on the Nerdarchy YouTube channel, Nerdarchists Dave and Ted tackle a topic brought up on the D&D 5th edition Facebook group. A DM was at a loss what to do when their players encountered a door sealed by magical sigils, and solving a riddle was the only solution to proceed. Despite the best efforts, all attempts to get past the barrier failed and the plot stalled out there in the bowels of the temple they were exploring.
To me, the problem is right there in the question – there was only one solution.
As a GM, coming up with challenging obstacles is one of the best parts of the job. And if you’re running published adventures like Tomb of Annihilation or something you picked up from DriveThruRPG (using Nerdarchy’s exclusive DTRPG-Nerdarchy coupon code for 10 percent off an order of $10 or more, of course) the writers and designers include plenty of exciting challenges for adventurers for you. But if you approach your game with the perspective there’s only a single way to solve these puzzles and traps, the problem lies with you.
D&D is a game of collaboration between everyone at the table, and letting players exercise their creativity and imaginations is one of the most important duties a Dungeon Master holds. If the players come up with interesting ways to overcome obstacles – especially if the adventure requires overcoming them to proceed – just go with it.
A duergar, as seen in the fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual. [Image courtesy Wizards of the Coast]
Hell yes, he could! I thought this was a fantastic idea, something that never even crossed my mind and an incredibly inventive solution. Of course I turned it into a skill challenge for the warlock and the cleric, while the rest of the party fended off shadow demons. But it worked!
It’s easy for DM’s to fall into a linear pattern, with a single quest goal or puzzle solution in mind, leaving your players to play a guessing game with you until them stumble on the “right” path to take. There’s nothing stopping a DM from adding additional an additional layer of challenge while characters search for a solution like in the example above. When time is a factor and adventurers try to frantically find a way to proceed, throwing a little extra difficulty in the way can make for some memorable moments in your games.
No matter how much time you spent preparing and how clever your challenges are, a DM is just one person. A group of players has the benefit of multiple perspectives and even more, they know their characters’ capabilities better. They’ll find a way – maybe not the way the DM had in mind – but a way nonetheless.
The same principles can apply when you’re running a published adventure too. I’ve fallen into this trap myself more than once. An adventure like Curse of Strahd does a masterful job of presenting mysteries, puzzles and NPCs to guide a DM towards a great experience for their players. But even an award-winning adventure like this is completely open to change. Don’t be afraid to let the characters steer the ship and forge their own legends. This is actually one of the best things about published adventures, giving players opportunities to swap stories with each other about how they tackled the Amber Temple, or interacted with the Keepers of the Feather or whatever.
In a more sandbox approach, impassable challenges can take on an entirely different shape. This is where DMs can stretch their imaginations away from the gaming table. If the characters don’t find a clue or pick up on a plot, there’s a wonderful opportunity to build later adventures based on those things. One of the very first adventures my group had, they discovered a scrap of paper with a list of names on it, some of which were crossed off, in the trash heap lair of a ratfolk. They didn’t think much of it, and much later encountered a crime lord whose name was one of those on the paper. If they’d looked into the names way back when they might have uncovered an entirely different plot, altering the course of their adventures completely.
But as it stood, those people on the list had continued to evolve and change on their own. At the time I wondered what I’d do; in my mind that list of names was crucial to the plot. Instead of floundering, being heavy-handed or losing control of the campaign, I took a step back and let the players control the course of their characters’ adventuring career. The campaign is still going on today, growing organically into a great collaborative experience between me and the players.
Whether your D&D games are dungeon crawls, political intrigues or sprawling exploration adventures across the realm (or through space!) there’s always a chance for success, even if it’s delayed until later in the campaign. Characters can return to unsolved mysteries when they have more knowledge, power and preparation for what lies beyond. In between, a DM can use the time to expand on those plot ideas with fresh thoughts and perhaps even make them better by weaving in elements from people, places and things characters encountered along the way.
Before you’re ready to consider something a D&D dead end, give players a chance to exercise their creativity and allow them freedom to craft their own campaign stories. More often than not, they’ll surprise you with clever solutions and innovative approaches you might never have thought of, and that’s the best part about D&D – the stories that emerge at the gaming table belong to everyone.
What about you? Do you have any DM stories of times your players came up with amazing solutions to your puzzles, traps and encounters? I’m sure plenty of players have great tales to tell about times the party barely overcame an obstacle in time. Or do you have an of your own tips to share about keeping a campaign on track when faced with seemingly dead end situations? Please share your stories in the comments below and as always, until next time stay nerdy!
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