D&D Story Ideas : Tools for Writer's Block
- Irma Hoyt
- Dec 15
- 3 min read
High and dry on story ideas? Don't stress! Grab the sativa and let my guide help you find new ways to build your story, even if your brain’s stuck on airplane mode :)
Set the mood with music
Music is a DM's secret weapon. Search Spotify for ‘tabletop rpg music’ or ‘dnd background music’ to find playlists to inspire character motivations and enhance setting details.
Roleplay Encounter Idea: A street performer recognizes your party’s bard and, after hurling insults, challenges them to a BARD BATTLE. Roll performance checks and improvise lyrics or comebacks. Reward creative roleplay and witty lines with inspiration points :)
Check out Pinterest
Pinterest is perfect for visually brainstorming your fantasy setting! Once you’ve got your playlist put together and headphones on, you can start creating boards for magical locations, homebrew items, and even unique monsters on Pinterest. Try searching for ‘fantasy items’, ‘dnd locations’, or ‘folklore creatures’ for inspiration to start. The visual cues will boost your imagination when you’re describing scenes to your players.
Roleplay Encounter Idea: While shopping, players meet an eccentric vendor selling bizarre items (inspired by Pinterest images). Players must haggle, persuade, or charm the shopkeeper into revealing the secret origins of these magical oddity items.
Puff, puff, pass the plot (to the left hand side)
Still drawing a blank? Lightly baked brains love teamwork. Pass the plot around the table by having each player add one detail to the town, NPC, or quest. Before you know it, you've collaboratively built a unique, hilarious, or unexpectedly deep storyline (RIP Berblin).
Roleplay Encounter Idea: Your players overhear villagers sharing conflicting rumors about an upcoming festival. Each player adds a ridiculous or intriguing detail, encouraging everyone to roleplay investigative questioning or deception checks as they piece together the truth. Break out Ye Olde Burn Book and let your players’ inner Regina George shine!
Let the random word generator gods decide
When you're really feeling foggy, random word generators are your best friend. Pick 3-4 random words and weave them into an encounter or side quest. Give randomwordgenerator.com a try when you green out and need to quickly think of a name for that innkeeper NPC that your players have decided to adopt as their own. Did one of my players want to steal a goblin prisoner from Revel’s End? Yes. Was I high and named him ‘Berblin’? Also yes.
Roleplay Encounter Idea (Words generated: owl, key, whisper): During downtime at ‘The Whispering Owl Inn’, your players encounter an Owlin bartender who urges the party to find a lost magical key hidden within the tavern. Players engage in stealth, persuasion, or insight checks to quietly search the tavern without alarming other patrons.
Random encounter table for elevated roleplay
Roll a d6 whenever your downtime needs a little shaking up:
d6 | Random Shenanigans |
|---|---|
1 | A book that loudly narrates nearby events and any adventurers walking by |
2 | Players encounter a forgetful wandering wizard repeatedly asking directions |
3 | A hidden cave holds sleeping kobolds who awaken when startled, attacking in a panic |
4 | A pickpocket runs by pursued by guards, dropping stolen goods at players’ feet...and possibly stealing some of the party's items in the chaos |
5 | A magic portal spits out a confused dwarf barbarian from another plane demanding answers |
6 | Animated furniture from a wizard’s abandoned home attacks intruders (and maybe throw a mimic in there for higher stakes) |
