PAX Prime 2011 DM's Challenge - Saturday 8/27 - 7pm

PAX_RPGA_Coordinator

2011 PAX Prime DM’s Challenge: Neverwinter!

Participation Details
DMs must create an adventure suitable for five 3rd-level characters (actual group size may vary from 4-6 players) using the D&D 4th Edition rules, with a spotlight on themes, organizations, and foes featured in the Neverwinter Campaign Setting.

The adventure should play in about 4-5 hours, including time for the players to review characters. You should write approximately 3 tactical encounters for your adventure; you must write at least 2 tactical encounters, but no more than 4. Tactical encounters can be fights or other deadly challenges (like traps). Levels for the encounters should not be lower than 2 or higher than 5; you should endeavor to write a total of about 10 levels' worth of tactical encounters (that would parse out into two 3rd-level fights and one 4th-level fight).

Your adventure should be set somewhere in or around the city of Neverwinter, as described in the Gazetteer section of the Neverwinter Campaign Setting, and should feature one or more factions as described in that book. You can develop any story you’d like, but you should use monsters and foes from both Monster Vault books and the Neverwinter Campaign Setting. Add exploration and roleplaying encounters to your adventure to really make it come to life beyond the tactical encounters. 

Materials
You are expected to provide Neverwinter-themed player characters for players to use for your adventure. The characters should all be 3rd level, and you should bring 6 different characters. Make sure to account for a play group of 4, 5, or 6 characters when you write your characters and the adventure.

You are required to bring all materials with you that you'll need to run your adventure - maps/tiles, minis/tokens, player character sheets, etc. If you’d like to use D&D Fortune Cards, you can bring cards and develop a use for them in-game (draw from a central deck, integrate them as boons earned during the adventure, etc.).

Judging
Each player at your table will be given a form to complete after they finish playing. On the form, they'll be asked to rate you on the following categories:

Presentation 
Story
Challenges
Characters
Fun Factor

Rewards
All DMs participating will receive a bit of swag from D&D HQ. The top scoring DMs will receive sweet prizes, and the acknowledgement that they run a truly awesome game of D&D!

To compete, ask questions, or for any additional info you need email me comixguru (at) yahoo (dot) com

PAX_RPGA_Coordinator

The event will be held in the lower level (basement) or the Annex/Conference Center. We'll need tons of players to help make the event go off, so feel free to show up just to play and rate the judges!

Creamsteak

So what's the motivation for this exactly? Also you should specify 4e, not just D&D.

Personally I'm not a fan of this format or the way you're scoring. Maybe if the prizes are super awesome.

PAX_RPGA_Coordinator

We provide every DM with something, usually a Wizards of the Coast book or something similar. The winner last year received a pile of Wizards product, probably $300+ worth of stuff.

Matev

Never tried Forgotten Realms before, that was my dad's setting, oh well, nothing ventured...!

susan

PAX_RPGA_Coordinator wrote:

We provide every DM with something, usually a Wizards of the Coast book or something similar. The winner last year received a pile of Wizards product, probably $300+ worth of stuff.

It was easily $300 worth of stuff, probably closer to $400. Every DM who participated received a copy of the Rules Compendium, which is quite nice. It was wonderfully fun last year, and I would be all over this again if I wasn't otherwise committed that Sunday evening. Highly recommended.

Matev

but Susan, it's Saturday evening...?

susan

Right, I meant Saturday. But who knows, I may just throw my hat into this one too in an attempt to defend my title...

kropotkin

I've prepared an outline of my scenario already, just need the Neverwinter campaign guidenance text before finishing it all off. I'm really looking forward to this

PAX_RPGA_Coordinator

There's still some spots left in the DMs Challenge. We had one person last year who actually put together a dungeon onsite and had a blast... so there's plenty of time left.

There's this cool thing comic book creators do called a 24 Hour Comic. It might be cool to do something like that next year, but 24 hours may not be enough time. Hmmm. Maybe a 72 Hour Dungeon. We'll announce the details at 7PM Wednesday, and run the event at 7PM on Saturday night. That would be something else.

Check out all the D&D Event info at:
http://sites.google.com/site/ddatpaxprime/

Ghola Duncan

PAX_RPGA_Coordinator wrote:

There's still some spots left in the DMs Challenge. We had one person last year who actually put together a dungeon onsite and had a blast... so there's plenty of time left.

There's this cool thing comic book creators do called a 24 Hour Comic. It might be cool to do something like that next year, but 24 hours may not be enough time. Hmmm. Maybe a 72 Hour Dungeon. We'll announce the details at 7PM Wednesday, and run the event at 7PM on Saturday night. That would be something else.

Check out all the D&D Event info at:
http://sites.google.com/site/ddatpaxprime/

I didn't know we signed up before hand. Where do I go to do this?