This was originally made for my D&D games. It can be inserted for many other games though or at least most of it can.
- 3 main NPCs
- 7 enemies, 1 main antagonist, 2 lieutants. 2 other antagonists, separate, with 1 lieutenant each
- 24 NPCs with names, race (Or clan or culture or whatever depending on the game), and two to four traits.
- 4 traps
- 5 encounters
- 6 room descriptions
- 3 spell books (For fantasy games, other artifacts would do as well)
- 8 treasures
3 Main NPCs
Split the following six traits evenly between them:
• Boss (Has work)
• Magical Guide (Either arcane or divine)(Technology, fey, vampirism, etc would also work of course. Basically a sage)
• Merchant
• Land Guide
• Mystery
• Safe Place (Sleep store stuff etc.)
By giving each NPC 2 things they won't just be known for their one use to the party. These are often reoccurring NPCs who are willing to help the PCs for whatever reason. They may not be technical allies, but they shouldn't be working against the PCs either.
7 Enemies
You need 1 main antagonist who has two lieutenants. This will be the main plot line. Have a progression track ready for what the antagonist is trying to accomplish and how their lieutenants fit into it.
You'll need another antagonist with one lieutenant. This person will also need a progression track for what they're accomplishing and how their lieutenant fits in.
You'll then need a third antagonist with one lieutenant. This person will also need a progression track for what they're accomplishing and how their lieutenant fits in.
So, you'll technically be working on three separate plot lines that are all running down their own tracks. If the players don't stop them, then the antagonists achieve their goals. Make the progression slow though. Give the players time to do it all but also let the consequences occur. Have a list of consequences and slowly ramp things up so that their players feel the effect of the antagonists approaching their goals.
24 Spares
As I said above, you need: names, race, and two to four traits. These characters can be put anywhere. I have examples on previous comments, but the basic idea is that you just have a list in an excel spreadsheet that you print up. When they meet someone new just pick the next name on the list. Leave an open spot next to the name and fill in their position for future notes.
4 traps
If these come up, great. If not then you have them ready for a bit and can just level them up. You could also do puzzles or skill challenges in place of these. I personally love skill challenges as per Matt Colville's explaination.
5 Encounters
Create the encounters. Basically, plan out some attack, defense, and a few specials. Did they get hit by bandits? well just use these stats. Did they get hit by zombies? Same stats will work with very minor adjustments. and maybe a special undead with that special power. Generally refluffing the stats of an encounter isn't too difficult on the fly you could even make a template for how to refluff the stats based on which of the directions they go. Then you just make stats per level and refluff quickly using your template. Up HP, but lower AC for the zombies. maybe give them a resistance too.
6 room descriptions
Alot of rooms repeat. ex: You enter the dark room. The windows are mostly blocked with stacks of (Material or good) teetering on top of each other. The whole room smells slightly musty. You hear someone bumbling behind a large oak desk. (Some rooms will have NPCs associated with them). An object falls and catches your eye. It lands softly in a pile of (Something). It was just a (Blank)
Boom! Room description. Did they enter an alchemist shop? What about a blacksmith's? a General store? a Jewlers? Perhaps this is the offices of a Buearocrat? Could this be a thieves guild front? Fill in just a few objects and boom it fits many places and adds so much flavor to your world.
3 Spell books
You never know if you're going to need a wizard for them to meet, or an enemy to face, or whatever. I create 2 sometimes 3 spell books. The third is always divine oriented. This means I know the spells that will be found and thrown around in any given game. I don't have to look stuff up, because I have a few simple books already made. (Actual named bosses need their own stuff obviously, but they won't be appearing randomly)
8 Treasures
This is simple. Plan for treasures that your party will find and then roll for which one they get at any given time. Based on the encounter they face. Usually I create two sets 1 with simple stuff and 1 with good stuff. This is based on 2 treasures per player so that each set focuses just a bit on making one lucky player feel more special. If you have more players create more treasures.