Locations

Memorable settings that include mysterious and fantastical locations for players to visit can elicit the players' curiosity. Exploring each location should be a treat in itself, not just a chore the players must complete to get from one fight to the next. As you create a locale, picture it in your mind's eye and write down minor details you can include as you narrate the game. Describing decorations, landmarks, wildlife, peculiar smells, and even temperature changes make a place feel more real. See Sidebar: Quick Environmental Details for some ideas.

Beyond monsters and loot, your locations can include environment-based challenges, from environmental conditions like blizzards to puzzles, traps, or other hazards. These challenges should suit your adventure's location: barrels of radioactive waste in an old power plant, clouds of acidic gas on an alien planet, or high-tech defenses left armed aboard an abandoned starship.

Additional Guidance: building your own hazards, environments, hazards