I posted the first outline to the patron-locked section of the site this morning, sketching out the adventure parameters for the "Lost City." Today's outline was all about setting, really.

As part of my discussion of the design process, I mentioned the mythic models I use when considering place. Since any Lost City adventure is likely to be largely setting-driven, I considered riffs or combinations of places like Atlantis, El Dorado, the Anasazi cliff dwellings, Shangri-La, Mayan jungle ruins Stephens and Catherwood rediscovered, and the lost worlds of Edgar Rice Burroughs. Each of these brings certain assumptions to the adventure.

There's a quick explanation of why I choose the setting I did, and a sketch of where the adventure might go. As with all such outlines, it's just a hint of the design work to come; it has to offer some details, but it's really just a teasing preview (kind of like this one, actually). Monsters, encounter sequences, and backstory can all wait.

In any case, it's the start of revealing the bones of the design process to the patrons. Outlines for "Steam & Brass" and "Black Forest" will be up next. One is clue/mystery/event driven design, and the other is still a mystery, even to me.

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