I’ve been asking around in a few module forums, but I’m starting to hit decision paralysis with choosing my next campaign.
The main issue is that what I enjoy and what my players enjoy are a little different. I tend to lean toward heavier roleplay, NPC interaction, intrigue, and character-driven moments. My players enjoy roleplay too, but they definitely prefer having a good amount of combat and variety. I don’t want to force them into a campaign that feels too social/investigation-heavy, but I also don’t want to run something that is just dungeon crawl after dungeon crawl.
When I say they enjoy combat, I don’t just mean constant random encounters. They tend to like variety: big boss fights, ambushes, mob fights, and even “pseudo-combat” situations where there are clear stakes, pressure, and tactical choices without it always being a standard fight.
The two modules I’ve been looking at most are Tomb of Annihilation and Waterdeep: Dragon Heist.
Tomb of Annihilation seems like it could be fun. I mentioned it to one of my players, and they weren’t necessarily against the meat-grinder reputation, especially since it could mean they aren’t locked into playing the same class for the entire campaign if a character dies. My main hesitation is more about the long campaign commitment, the survival/hexcrawl structure, and whether the tone would be right after our current campaign.
Dragon Heist really interests me because a city campaign sounds exciting, and I think Waterdeep could give the players a lot of chances to connect with factions, NPCs, and a home base. I’ve also read through parts of the Alexandrian Remix, which seems to fix a lot of the original module’s issues. My worry is that, even with the remix, my players may eventually feel like there isn’t enough combat or dungeon-style adventuring.
Ideally, I’m looking for a module that doesn’t lean too hard in either direction. I’d like something that gives my players room to grow more comfortable with roleplay, but still gives them regular combat, exploration, danger, and tactical encounters.
Do you have any module recommendations that strike a good balance between roleplay and combat? I’d also appreciate small summaries of what each campaign is actually “about” in play, beyond just the back-cover description.