The person with the two opposing assassin guilds quest. I've finished making both guilds, motivation, members, methods, etc. but i have no idea how to keep the plot going. This is supposed to be longer and scary, but murder mystery plots are not my forte. I really want to do it right though, and I want to learn how to do this because I have built a lot on the further plot on this arc. Any ideas on how to a plot like this, what I can do and stuff?
Successfully Running Mystery Campaigns
Mystery plots are super fun, but many people find them difficult.Ā I myself have struggled to make mysteries enjoyable in the past, but in the last couple years Iāve gotten better at it.Ā Here are some tips Iāve learned from personal experience to make your mystery based plots as fun as possible.
1) Make a lot of clues, and be flexible about where/how players can find them.
The biggest problem DMs usually have with mysteries is that they sprinkle a few clues around their world, but then the players canāt find them and they get stuck.Ā Thatās no fun for anyone!Ā So I suggest you come up with ideas for lots of different kinds of clues.Ā And when I say different kinds of clues, I mean you want to make sure there are plenty of different things your players can try to get information.Ā For example:
Clues they can get through traditional examination of an environment (perception)
Clues they can get using social skills to gather information, such as diplomacy and intimidation
Clues they can get using survival skills such as tracking
Clues they can get through more technical skills, such as using appraise or linguistics to detect forgeries, or using hacking/computers in a modern setting
Clues they can get using specific knowledge checks.
Clues they can get in exchange for doing favors for NPCs (sidequests!)
The more variety of clues you create, the more opportunites you make for every character to be able to contribute meaningfully to the investigation.Ā Also, the less likely theyāll get stuck.
After coming up with a bunch of clues, make sure you donāt plant them all in specific places in your world.Ā Keep a bunch of clues up your sleeve to use them when you need them. Basically, as long as your players are trying interesting and logical things, find ways to reward them with more information to keep the investigation going.Ā
2) Be upfront with your players about what kind of game this will be before they build their characters
This really goes for any kind of campaign youāre running, but itās especially true for a campaign based on mystery.Ā D&D type games give pretty much every kind of character build something meaningful to contribute to combat situations, but the same can not be said for investigative challenges.Ā Let your players know what theyāre getting into so they can make characters that will be fun to play in situations other than just combat.
3) Give your players a concrete goal to work towards
Mystery plots can get complicated, and itās hard for players to get engaged with complex plots.Ā So very early on in your campaign (first session, ideally) give your players a very simple over-arching goal to focus on.Ā Something likeĀ āWe need to find and collect 7 MacGuffinsā orĀ āWe need to uncover and defeat 5 different cells of cultistsā orĀ āWe need to find and explore 4 different mystical towersā orĀ āWe need to uncover every level of the heirarchy in this conspiracyā.
Having an over-arching goal like this will help keep your players motivated and will help you as a DM pace yourself.Ā You can have a lot of stuff going on in your story, as long as it all somehow contributes to the over-arching goal.Ā Ā
4) Let your players know whatās at stake
Your players need a reason for their characters to want to investigate.Ā Make sure they know what will happen if they donāt!Ā For example:
If they donāt uncover the mystery in [x amount of time], [y disastrous occurence] will happen!
Give them a rival who is also investigating. If the players donāt figure it out, someone else is going to beat them to it, and then do bad things.
Make it personal.Ā If the PCs have been wronged, than a thirst for justice or revenge will motivate them
OR Make it professional.Ā Give the PCs an official role as investigators.Ā They have to do this because itās their job.Ā Their honor and livlihoods are at stake!
5) Donāt expect your players to take perfect notes
Some people might disagree with me on this, but I think youāre setting your players up for frustration and failure if you expect them to write down/remember everything you tell them.Ā A really simple thing you can do is highlite the information your players have uncovered in your own notes as you go.Ā That way you can easily keep track of what your players have already discovered and what they still can find out.Ā From time to time, remind your players of information theyāve already found.Ā This helps to inspire and prompt them as to what they might try next.
6) Use red herrings, but donāt go crazy
Red herrings are clues that donāt actually have anything to do with the mystery.Ā Itās good to have a few of these to keep your players guessing and force them to use their critical thinking skills about what might be relevant to their investigation.Ā But if your players start going down a dead end, donāt let them get too far down the rabbit hole before finding a way to let them know they need to try something else.Ā You only have yourself to blame if they spend 3 sessions in a row chasing an irelevent lead!
7) Donāt forget the action!
Plots like these generally donāt have as much combat as normal D&D type campaigns, but you can still think of ways to get your players into fights!Ā They might want to just for a pleasant change of pace from time to time.Ā And you might want them to because combat is a wonderful way to extend playtime so you donāt whip through your prepared content too quickly.
Ā Anyway, I hope you find something useful in this long ass post Iāve written.Ā Good luck with your campaign, and have fun making mysteries!
