Dream Session
Most of us know the False Hydra monster. Because of all the DnD memes on my Insta feed, both my players and I already know about it, even though we’ve never actually played a False Hydra session. Still, I wanted to create something with a similar feeling for my campaign.
For context: my players have to defeat several bosses, each themed around one of the Seven Deadly Sins. For the sin of Sloth, I had the idea of making a dream-based “dungeon,” but I’m not entirely sure how to run this kind of session.
My main idea is that the players unknowingly switch between two planes whenever they take a short or long rest. Similar to a False Hydra, they slowly have to realize that something is wrong with both themselves and the world around them, and eventually figure out a way to escape.
The problem is that I don’t know how to give hints without making it either too obvious or impossible to notice. I want the clues to feel subtle and unsettling, but still fair.
Another issue is that I’m not sure what the actual goal inside the dream plane should be:
- A more straightforward “escape the dream world” session
- Or more of a detective/investigation session where clues from one plane help them discover the boss’s true location in the other
I’d also love suggestions for monsters that feel dreamlike or surreal, or ideas on how to modify normal monsters to fit a dream/horror theme. Maybe even lovecraftian. The Bossmonster is also not set in stone if you have a good idea for him.
And if any of you have run something similar before, I’d really like to hear how it went.