The magic ofDungeons & Dragonsis the literally endless creative potential a game can have. The freedom to sculpt the world and experience is unmatched by digital media. There are no limits, no restrictions, and nothing you can’t do (assuming a consenting party, of course).
That said, not all D&D campaigns are good ideas. Some narrative ideas don’t meld nicely with the mechanical structure of the game, others are overly complicated, making them a chore, and some might be a good idea that has the potential to end terribly. But that doesn’t stop us! Here are some of the worst campaign ideas for your D&D game.
8Fantasy Players Isekai’d Into A Modern City
There is a laundry list of reasons why this would be a terrible game to run. D&D’s framework is based around a fantasy setting, replacing modern convenienceswith fantastical magics. Trying to run a D&D in a fully modern setting means having to homebrew countless mechanics to work in the concrete jungle.
Unless, of course, you don’t. Dropping traditional high fantasy characters into a realistic modern setting could make for a tremendously entertaining scramble for each character to try to adapt to a world they weren’t meant for, all while keeping it discreet enough to not draw unwanted attention. The cleric might get hired on to a mechanic shop because they can cast Mending when no one is looking, for example.
7Run A Non-Violent Adventure
Combat is a core component of a good TTRPG. A majority of the different things each class and subclass can do are based around improving combat performance. So what if you never had that? It’d probably be boring, but it might open a new way to play.
Let’s be real, most of you have never been in a real, genuine fight with someone, let alone in a battle for your life. And good! That’s a terrifying thing. What if you approached a D&D campaign the same way? Now things like which NPCs you befriend, how you make money, and what you’re skilled at are flipped on their head, forcing players to approach the game in a way they never have before.
6Have A Different DM Every Session
The rules are simple: every session, the DM running the game is one of the players, and everyone takes turns in order. No one willshare DM notes, and each one will have their own plot and plans. On paper, this sounds like a mess of conflicts and confusion. It’ll also have, in a sense, exponentially more work being put in overall.
The gold found here will be from the lack of communication. If you don’t know what the next DM is planning, and know that the next one won’t either, then you have to approach the story arcs you have planned in a more modular way. In an ideal outcome, you end up with multiple interwoven narratives in a shared world and a solution to the “forever DM” problem.
5NPCs Are As Chaotic (And Potentially Violent) As Players
It’s no secret that the player characters behave differently from everyone else in the world. Brazen, audacious, and often more willing to throw hands just for fun than the random merchants and peasants of the campaign, they stand out in a dangerous and unpredictable way. So what if everyone else was like that?
General Store owners will try to persuade them into taking a worse deal, skilled mercenaries will draw swords at minor altercations, and absolutely everyone will resort to theft as soon as it’s narratively convenient. This will keep the players either constantly annoyed, resorting to becoming hermits, or they’ll be enthralled at the dog-eat-dog landscape you’ve created.
4There Are No NPCs
The complete opposite of the previous entry, what if there were zero NPCs in the entire game? Maybe it’s set in a different plane, or deep in the wilderness, or in some far post-apocalyptic future.
This will cut out a massive aspect of roleplaying games. With no other characters, there’s little narrative drama, no villains or allies, and no one to get information from. It also removes all conveniences, so players will have to craft their weapons, armors, and hunt/forage/farm for food. It’ll be a terribly boring game for some, OR, it’ll really capture the Man VS Nature struggle in an interesting way.
3Run A Tax Auditor Adventure
Sounds exciting, doesn’t it? Imagine trying to get four more people to show up regularly for a game night, only for the ‘action’ to be organizing paperwork and calculating sales percentages. This would make for a terribly boring handful of sessions. And once the players are begging for something else, that’s when you flip the script. Use the tax auditing context to unearth a dramatic plot involving crime bosses and illicit money.
It doesn’t have to be taxes specifically. Honing in on any overly boring or arduous job and making an adventure out of that would work. Janitors could stumble across a trafficking ring, farmers could find themselves at odds with a fae intruder, and sewer cleaners could discover a cult to a demon of filth.
For maximum effect, never reveal that there’s a more exciting plot down the line. Let the players think this is all they get. Eventually, they’ll become so invested in the minutia of the setting that the dramatic twist will be mind-boggling.
2The Party Is Getting Older And Weaker
Everyone loves leveling up. Gaining new powers and becoming stronger is always fun, and every DM is familiar with their players asking “did we level up?” after each session. So why not do the exact opposite?
Instead of starting at level one, the party starts at level ten. Considered in their prime, but growing older, they will level down over time, removing the various benefits of that level under the premise of growing older. It will end with terribly unengaging character sheets and an extremely memorable adventure, as the elderly players need to find creative solutions to compensate for their weaker bodies.
1TPK At The End Of Every Session
Death is a real possibility in D&D, though it’s very forgiving. Most campaigns will run for years with only a small handful ofDeath Saving Throws, and one or two character deaths ever. Subvert that trend by killing off your party at the end of every session. This can be through natural forces like a magical explosion destroying the planet, solar flares, or some other unavoidable disaster.
Making a character is a lot of work and planning. Determining which stats, abilities, feats, and classes. Having to do that every session will be mentally exhausting and creatively draining, as your players struggle to keep it original by session seven. But maybe they’ll love getting to showcase all of their character backlog, and the “pave the way” aspect of the campaign would be one they’ll never forget.
Consider checking out the Glitch Characters section in the Turn Of Fortune’s Wheel adventure of Planescape: Adventures In The Multiverse. Or even better, run the adventure itself!
