Shore of Dreams
by Florian Emmerich and JVC Parry
Florian Emmerich and JVC Parry are the authors of Shore of Dreams, a hit one-shot adventure that has topped the Dungeon Masters Guild Most Popular list for several weeks and counting. Planar Shift spoke to Emmerich about the inspiration behind Shore of Dreams, which features a unique Japanese-inspired locale and no shortage of colorful NPCs and encounters.
What inspired this story?
Well, I always felt the need to create something and at that time I had bought the 5th edition rule set and was shopping drivethrurpg.com. I bought the print version of Claws of Madness from Loresmyth and I said to myself: I want to do that, too! So I mustered up the courage, cobbled together an elevator pitch, and contacted Chris van der Linden. He politely refused, though encouraged me to come back with more experience. He was polite, and I guess I was the 123rd something person to reach out to him.
While a little bit discouraged, I still wanted to tell my story. I explored many angles, but no story stuck. Sometimes I faced problems that I was not equipped to handle. Sometimes I did not feel the story was worth telling beyond two pages, and other times it just didn’t feel right.
I always felt the need to create something.
Fast forward two or three months and I went to this exhibition about Japanese food. There was this piece of art that told me a story about a patron unconcerned with other’s well-being. I admit, that I also was having fun with the idea of players not knowing that they would be already playing an adventure, until it hit them. The first half of Shore of Dreams feels like a set up. I wrote only the script of Shore of Dreams and rewrote parts of what I thought Parry altered too much or made no sense — asking, “Why would that be, other than being a mechanic” or “What is the purpose of this item?”, or details I thought would add a nice touch for players to explore. I made sure to add most of the sidebars.
How do you approach writing an RPG?
I think the first thing that you need to do — and I guess there is no wrong style here — is write down one or two sentences describing what this adventure is about. Do you want to explore a crashed pirate ship on the beach and find out what made sure the crew was dead on arrival? Write it down. After that, I suggest world building a bit. Hammer out the most interesting characters: the big bads, the oddities, the helpful people along the way.
After that I draw really crude maps of the essential maps. Not up to scale, just the outline, and label it. I don’t worry about getting it right in the first place. I just draw and overdraw or redraw.
Once finished with that, I write the script. A lot of what is in Shore of Dreams now was in the script already, about 80 percent. However, when writing the script, I try to not dictate the story too much. If I feel like there would be no sense that Person A would do B, I don’t write it.
Hammer out the most interesting characters: the big bads, the oddities, the helpful people along the way.
It is very hard to follow that rule. Sometimes I am looking for a specific scene, but the script would feel clunky or at odds if I write it that way, so the overall story and the characters action supersede my personal plan. I also question: such as “Why is a thing there?” There was a room in the Temple of Storms I completely rewrote there was a chest in there with riches. I always felt it was out of place to have a treasure chest in the center. So I moved it behind the reredos, with robes and some written stuff, that made sense to have there.
Also the script needs to leave wiggle room for quick changes, so I don’t go too overboard with how much detail I write. I also don’t get too attached to a passage. Breena, for example, came very late into the script of Shore of Dreams, but when she entered she took my heart by storm!
What tips do you have for inspiring writers?
Let the story tell itself.
Like really, let it just click. Don’t try to impose something. If you discover that the guard at the gate has a weakness for muffins— and not just any muffins, but those filled with blueberry, made by the nice dwarven lady down the street since she adds a little bit of cinnamon into them— let him have that flaw! Heck, the dwarven lady, going by Miranda, knows that his name is Jerry… Sorry, I got carried away!
What I am trying to say is give your creations a life of their own. If they don’t work with your plans for the fight scene at the gate, maybe it’s for the better that the players can now tease Jerry and eat the freshly baked batch of those blueberry muffins! He better hurry to look the other way… There are not a lot of those muffins left!
Give your creations a life of their own.
I also really want to highlight again, that while I came up with the story, it was all of my collaborators who made Shore of Dreams what it is now! Believe me, even the artists had great idea for some improvements. For example the food artwork. Initially it was going to be a (fake) treasure map, but artist Raluca Marinescu told me that food might be better — given that you spend half the adventure in a inn! JVC Parry elevated the script with some nice additions, like the Tempest Beasts backstory and his fancy words. Artist Dean Spencer brought a whole new level of cartography goodness! The editor made my text not so hard to read and the playtesters improved it by giving ample feedback and a cool suggestion here and there!
What’s coming up next for you?
I am actively writing the next script! I actually can’t spoil anything without ignoring my own advice, though the first outline has taken shape in my mind. Right now I find myself torn between different ideas, places to go and NPCs to meet. Some of them currently found a — still not-so-safe — place in the script, while others auditioned but probably will be met at another adventure… or they might pop up during a part I would not have expected to meet them!
