Design Guide for New Features

This is a brief write-up of the design philosophy of Eigengrau's Generator. Hopefully it will help you understand both how to get the best use out of it, and write content for it in a cohesive manner.

General Rules

• An entire scene should be set with the first paragraph, ideally described with E.A.S.E (the Event being left to the DM's discretion)
• Tone and layout should be consistent with the PHB and adventure modules.
• Interactivity should be self-evident.
• Information hierarchy should always be present.

Time

• A neutral, time-independent stance should be used wherever possible.
• The only dynamic things that should be able to change on navigation are events that would realistically change (i.e. rather than noticing a fly in the tavern, something else is going on.)
• There should be no difference in text upon revisit (i.e. no "Welcome back!" or "You remember how the road curves as you return back")

The Generator is not the DM

The Generator is purely a tool that a DM can use. It should not be used as a replacement for a brain, and is merely used to offload the gruntwork of street names, taverns, and other common fantasy tropes to give DMs more time for actual creative work.

• The DM's word is law, and all aspects of the Generator should be written in such a way that the DM can omit the detail without impact.
• The Generator excels at "little" creative moments; facets of towns that are unique and unexpected, that a Player would mistake for being pre-determined and created by the DM. "Big" creative things (like plot) should be left to the DM.

Squash bugs, not creativity

• It is okay to omit details.
• Assume the DM reads at least one sentence ahead.

Minimum Harm

Use of the Generator should not lead a DM into painting their players into any sort of corner, nor result in the PCs leading the DM into a game-breaking imbalance. This is a contingency policy to avoid DMs inadvertently including content that they do not want to include.

• Magic items are to only be presented in tables, rolls, and other formats that the DM can easily gloss over without any issue; there are no Legendary Battleaxes of +3 Awesomeness hanging above bars, and no wizards slinging scrolls for free buried in paragraphs.
• Items should cost too much rather than too little, except in the case of food and board.