Steal This Hack: PC Connections

Connections to Adventure

One way to immerse your PCs to your campaign is to give them a connection at character creation, and make it important during the campaign. I’m going to use my adventure Pirates of Atlantis as an example, but you can steal this hack for your own campaign.

Pirates of Atlantis (for 5E D&D and 13th Age) is a 10 level campaign that features adventure on ships, the sea, other planes, and Atlantis. The story revolves around stopping Fangos, an evil pirate who wants to become a god. Every player character has a PC Connection to the adventure, which helps motivate PCs (and hopefully their players) to engage with the setting and NPCs.

The adventure supplies ten connections, and the GM is encouraged to make more if they wish. These can connect the PC to Mistport (the starting location), Atlantis, Fangos, parts of the setting, or just the spirit of adventure. Let’s pick the first connection and dig into it.

Example

1. I was a crewmember on the pirate ship Quicksilver. When the first mate, Fangos, mutinied, I was marooned on Earthforge Isle with the former captain, Captain Olos. The captain died of his wounds, but I survived and eventually found my way to Mistport.

This is a fine choice. It creates conflict with the main antagonist Fangos, and brings the PC to the starting location. It also foreshadows chapter 7: Earthforge Isle, allows the player to have knowledge of that isle, and brings in one of Fangos’ victims, Captain Olos.

In Chapter 6: Finding Atlantis, a PC with this connection to adventure will gain a personal quest to find the bones of Captain Olos and bury them. The reward is substantial, an ability score increase or a new feat.

Grand Theft Connecto

OK, great for Pirates of Atlantis, but how do you steal it? As an example, take our connection and make it generic.

1. I was a <member of an organization>. When the <main antagonist of the adventure>, <did something dramatic in that organization>, I was <punished> on/in/at <a location that will come into play later in this adventure> with <another victim>. The <other victim> died of their wounds, but I survived and eventually found my way to <the location where the campaign begins>.

Later, but before the party visits the foreshadowed location where the PC had been punished, give them a quest to <memorialize the other victim> for a big reward (like an ability score increase or a feat). When the PCs get to the location, allow the PC knowledge of that setting, maybe give them an informational handout and/or a map. Make sure they know they can ask questions about features of the location. They might not know everything, but they now a lot more than PCs who chose a different connection to adventure.

Hopefully you can see how this makes a player feel connected to your adventure, how it makes them useful to the party in a special way, and how it rewards them for interacting with the story of your adventure. That’s the goal. Each connection to adventure should do that.

Happy stealing!

John