Balance: The Story – NEWPROTEST Publishing

The Story

In Balance: The World of Isora, everything that happens is part of the Story that the Narrator shares with the players. For this reason, individual adventures or larger campaigns (referred to as Chapters) are built with a 3-act story in mind.

Because the Narrator is responsible for creating the environment and opportunities for conflict to move the plot forward, it may be helpful to follow some simple guidelines for building the Story.

Here are some examples of major themes and adventure hooks:

Theme of Balance and Imbalance

A series of strange occurrences are disrupting the farmlands, with crops withering and mutated creatures appearing.
The local temple of balance has been sabotaged, and the devotees are unable to perform their sacred rituals. The town’s economy is suffering, and the people wonder if there is a link.

Theme of Order and Chaos

A local city has descended into chaos as factions clash over differing interpretations of Balance, some favoring peace and harmony, while others embrace the chaos of storms. The party must choose a side or find a way to bring order to the conflicting factions before the city collapses.
A group of Disciples of Balance, who believe that chaos is also a form of Balance, are intentionally attempting to fray Sacred Lines in order to create a more “true” form of balance.
A valuable relic is sought by two factions, one group wants to destroy the relic, fearing its power, and another believes it’s the only way to save their town. The party must mediate.

Not every adventure hook needs to follow these themes. Consider the following:

An abandoned wagon is parked in front of the town’s well. There is a foul stench coming from the wagon, and an investigation reveals that the smell is coming from several empty barrels that held some unknown and faintly glowing substance.

Act 1

The first act is about introductions and an inciting event that kicks off the adventure. If this is the first adventure for the characters, this would be the time to introduce them to one another. However, it’s not necessary for characters to explain everything about themselves in this act. As the story unfolds, the players can reveal different motivations and aspects of their personality for their characters through their interactions with the world.

The Setting

The adventure can begin in any setting within Isora. Small fishing towns, a hillside temple, a major city involved in a trade war with its neighbor all serve as possible starting points. The characters can start out in a quiet tavern, or in a crowded outdoor theater, or on a merchant ship off the coast of a major seaport. Whatever starting point is chosen, the story should quickly bring the characters together so they can adventure together.

Gameplay note:

While stories rarely require every character to be present together at the beginning, TTRPGs can be boring for uninvolved players. A side-quest involving one character leaves the rest of the players with nothing to do, so Narrators should generally keep the characters together in the same scene. If multiple scenes are necessary for the adventure, alternating regularly between scenes is advised.

The State of Balance

The Narrator should be aware of the state of Balance (or Imbalance) of a setting. While a setting’s Balance doesn’t change anything mechanically (characters do not receive benefit nor bonuses), it does help shape the narrative mood. When an area is growing “out of balance,” the setting should be described in increasingly ominous terms.

The Inciting Event

Something has to happen for the adventure to begin. This is typically an external event, such as an explosion heard from across town, or news of a mysterious death in the local temple. Perhaps one of the characters discovers that important documents they were carrying have been stolen by a pickpocket in the crowd. Whatever the case, this event sets the adventure in motion. The Inciting Event can be one of the adventure hooks in the major themes listed above, or something entirely new.

The Inciting Event is often related to the overall Story, but it doesn’t have to be complicated. It could simply be a plot device meant to move characters from one setting to another. From the examples above, the explosion could have been caused by the antagonist that the characters will later confront. But it could have been a random occurrence that simply moves the characters out of the local tavern and into the street, where they hear about a merchant ship that is short on crew and willing to pay top coin to the next few individuals who come aboard.

The Inciting Event can include combat, or puzzles, or perhaps a lot of conversation with NPCs. The only real criteria is that it moves the adventure forward.

Act 2

The second act is where the adventure starts to get interesting. The characters face challenges that push them toward resolving the problem introduced in Act 1. For small adventures, this act should focus on one or two key moments or encounters.

Escalating Challenges

The party encounters their first major obstacle, which brings them closer to the heart of the conflict. This could be a confrontation with a minor antagonist, solving a puzzle, or navigating a tricky social situation. The goal here is to deepen the players’ understanding of the problem and give them a chance to make choices that shape how the story unfolds.

Examples of Escalating Challenges:

The characters follow a trail of strange footprints from the town square into the nearby woods, where they discover a mutated creature. Defeating it reveals a clue pointing to a larger problem.
After investigating the sabotaged temple, the characters learn that someone is smuggling ritual materials. A confrontation with the smugglers leads to a bigger question: who is behind this scheme?
The party discovers that the abandoned wagon’s mysterious glowing substance has contaminated the town’s well, and now children in town are behaving very strangely. They must decide whether to report the issue (risking panic) or quietly work to contain the contamination.

A Midpoint Twist

To keep the adventure engaging, introduce a small twist that complicates the characters’ task. This doesn’t have to be earth-shattering. It could be a new piece of information, a rival NPC entering the scene, or a time-sensitive problem that forces the players to act quickly.

Examples of Midpoint Twists:

The mutated creature in the woods isn’t acting randomly—it seems to be guarding something unnatural buried beneath the forest floor.
The smugglers reveal that they were hired by someone in town, but they don’t know who. Now the characters must figure out which townsfolk to trust.
The glowing substance turns out to be alchemical runoff from a nearby workshop. The workshop’s owner claims innocence, but the party isn’t sure whether to believe them.

Act 2 should end with the party feeling like they’ve made progress, but still needing to resolve the bigger conflict. This sets up the final act.

Act 3

The final act wraps up the adventure, providing a satisfying conclusion while keeping the scale appropriate for a small story.

The Climactic Moment

In Act 3, the characters confront the root of the problem introduced in Act 1. This should be the most challenging and exciting moment of the adventure.

Examples of Climactic Moments:

The characters confront the cause of the mutated creatures: an ancient relic buried in the woods. After coming up against the most difficult battle, they must decide whether to destroy relic, seal it away, or leave it alone.
After unmasking the saboteur in the temple, the party faces them in a dramatic showdown. This could involve combat, or the saboteur might try to convince the characters that their actions were justified.
The alchemical contamination is traced to a hidden laboratory. The party has to disable a dangerous contraption, but doing so will risk exposing themselves to the toxic substance.

The Climactic Moment should feel like everything has lead up to this specific moment. The narrator can use flashbacks or other narrative devices to set the tone and make every player feel like their character is an important part of the plot.

Resolving the Conflict

Once the climactic moment is resolved, describe the immediate outcome of the characters’ actions.

Examples of Resolution:

The relic in the woods is destroyed, but its destruction triggers a minor earthquake that leaves the area unstable. The characters save the town but leave behind a reminder of what was lost.
The saboteur is captured and brought to justice, restoring the temple’s balance. The townsfolk now view the party as heroes.
The laboratory is shut down, and the contamination stops spreading. However, the workshop’s owner flees, leaving questions unanswered for another adventure.

Wrapping Up the Chapter

After the climax, give the players a brief moment to reflect on what they’ve accomplished and tie up any loose ends. This could include small rewards like gratitude from NPCs, minor treasures, or the promise of future opportunities. This should also be an an opportunity for characters to gain a class level.

This framework should help Narrators come up with any number of adventures, filling them with quests and encounters with fantastic creatures.

[Table of Contents] [Narrator’s Guide]