Campaign Chunks
For the game of D&D Fifth Edition that I run on Roll20 I have introduced the concept of chapters. A chapter consists of 3-5 sessions, and usually deals with a set section of plot, like exploring a new location. In game mechanics terms, the characters will not get the benefits of a long rest until the chapter ends, and they usually level up after a chapter. At the end of each session they get a short rest. They still deal with about 6-8 combat encounters between long rests, so I don't feel that they suffer because of the restrictions on resting.
So this lets me plan the next section of the story, without having to worry too much about the long term consequences. After a chapter is over we have a review, and they generally decide what they want to do next. I plan the next chapter and then we play through that and so on.
If a single session were a self contained story then I could think of it like a novel or a film, but our stories are spread out over several sessions. If I planned for about ten sessions at a time, then I'd think of that more like a season of a TV show, with each session as an episode. Some RPGs actually use this system, like Spycraft. I guess what I've realized is that calling my chunks of campaign 'chapters' isn't really accurate.
Maybe a 2-3 hour RPG session could contain as much plot as 2-3 episodes of a TV show, or maybe it's more like one episode. Or maybe the campaign is not like a film, TV show, or novel in the way it advances plot. Maybe trying to think of it along those lines isn't helpful to me.
Anyway, the DM of my Monday night game has adopted the Chapters system as well and I find that I like it. D&D Fifth Edition has been balanced so that a certain number of encounters happen between short rests and long rests, and we are now getting that number in without having to cram a lot of little fights into each session. Whether the Chapters system makes it any easier or harder to plan the campaign, I don't know yet. I do think that watching episodic TV shows is pretty common these days, and introducing an RPG campaign to a new player by comparing it to a TV show is a good idea. Whether there is any benefit to trying to structure the plot as a TV show is something I'll hopefully try out.
One way in which it is far easier for a GM than for a TV writer is that you don't expect to know what your own characters will actually do over the coming season. When it comes time to write the following season, you have to try to tie up plot points in a logical way, but nobody can blame you if it doesn't all work out perfectly.
So this lets me plan the next section of the story, without having to worry too much about the long term consequences. After a chapter is over we have a review, and they generally decide what they want to do next. I plan the next chapter and then we play through that and so on.
If a single session were a self contained story then I could think of it like a novel or a film, but our stories are spread out over several sessions. If I planned for about ten sessions at a time, then I'd think of that more like a season of a TV show, with each session as an episode. Some RPGs actually use this system, like Spycraft. I guess what I've realized is that calling my chunks of campaign 'chapters' isn't really accurate.
Maybe a 2-3 hour RPG session could contain as much plot as 2-3 episodes of a TV show, or maybe it's more like one episode. Or maybe the campaign is not like a film, TV show, or novel in the way it advances plot. Maybe trying to think of it along those lines isn't helpful to me.
Anyway, the DM of my Monday night game has adopted the Chapters system as well and I find that I like it. D&D Fifth Edition has been balanced so that a certain number of encounters happen between short rests and long rests, and we are now getting that number in without having to cram a lot of little fights into each session. Whether the Chapters system makes it any easier or harder to plan the campaign, I don't know yet. I do think that watching episodic TV shows is pretty common these days, and introducing an RPG campaign to a new player by comparing it to a TV show is a good idea. Whether there is any benefit to trying to structure the plot as a TV show is something I'll hopefully try out.
One way in which it is far easier for a GM than for a TV writer is that you don't expect to know what your own characters will actually do over the coming season. When it comes time to write the following season, you have to try to tie up plot points in a logical way, but nobody can blame you if it doesn't all work out perfectly.
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