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Your typical Dungeons & Dragons adventurer is hardened by the dangers of the world and toils endlessly to snuff out evil. But some learn the tools of the trade not on the open road but in the stuffy confines of a school of magic. There, you might not face down a troll but instead encounter angsty teenage mages and drama in the school’s hallways.
Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos is an upcoming D&D adventure set at a magical college. But you might make Strixhaven University a high school or middle school to emulate settings found in young adult novels like the Vampire Diaries. No matter how you choose to approach your game, you’ll find plenty of classic tropes in YA books that will have your players tearfully following the drama or rolling with laughter.
Below you’ll find five ways to bring classic tropes found in YA books to your table:
- The chosen one goes to school
- A case of the oblivious main character
- The brooding NPC reveals a soft side
- An unexpected bond between strangers
- The love triangle
Class is in session
Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos takes D&D players to Strixhaven University, the most famous magical college in the Magic: The Gathering multiverse. The campaign setting includes character options, monsters, story hooks, and more to live out your dreams of learning magic from the multiverse’s finest mages.
Preorder your copy on D&D Beyond to unlock new character sheet customization options and digital dice when the book launches. Master-tier subscribers can share books they’ve purchased with players in their campaigns.
1. The chosen one goes to school
“I was just a young orphan with golden eyes and a mysterious birthmark in the shape of an axe. I found out later that my dad was a demigod and my mom was a queen. Now I can control lightning and magic comes super easy to me. I was told that I am the only one who can stop an inevitable evil. Bummer! Anyway, do you have a pencil I could borrow?”
One of the most common tropes is “the chosen one.” These characters often come into incredible power and have some grand destiny. A shining example of this trope is found in Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson & the Olympians series, which follows a young boy who discovers he is a demigod. Characters who are near to the chosen one are either helping them fulfill their destiny, turning up dead, or just trying to get by in class while world-ending dangers bear down on the school.
Although you can make one of your player characters the chosen one, you might opt for a nonplayer character (NPC) instead. For the sake of an example, let’s say you’ve got your everyday Gary Sue. Last year, he nearly flunked out of PE. But this year, Gary is surprisingly good — at everything. He’s also rich and handsome. Weird. But all of the extra attention Gary is getting is making him uncomfortable. He just wants to live a normal life. That’s where your player characters come in.
Gary is drawn to those who won’t make a fuss over his new fame and talents on the battlefield. He’s still the shy kid who flunked PE last year, though few people see him that way anymore. As a friendly NPC to the party, danger would follow Gary everywhere he goes. It might not be entirely clear what Gary’s destiny is, but it should threaten the school, at the least. Lunch could be interrupted by an attack from plane-shifting zombies, for example. No matter the conflict, Gary doesn’t have a strong grasp of what is happening, though some mysterious tattoo or other marking on him could help your players begin to unravel the mysteries of Gary’s destiny.
Whatever way you approach this plot, keep your player characters at the center of the action. Gary should rely on them. The chosen one might have gumption in the face of danger but be totally clueless and terrible at connecting the dots.
Here is how things could work out with Gary Sue:
- He embraces his destiny and ventures off to fight in an intergalactic (or equally ridiculous) war.
- He rejects his destiny and picks a player character to become the new chosen one.
- He discovers that he is destined to become evil, and he embraces it.
2. A case of the oblivious main character
“I’m just your average, everyday water genasi. I often trip over myself, and my hair is always a tangled mess. Why does everyone always stare at me whenever I walk into a room? I’m so weird.”
Kind-hearted, talented, and jaw-droppingly beautiful is “the oblivious main character.” While the rest of the world can see their shining qualities, the oblivious main character just can’t see it. A prime example of a character who fits this trope is Alina Starkov, the main character of Leigh Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone trilogy. Alina thinks she is an ordinary girl, yet everyone else can clearly tell that she is all-powerful, beautiful, and either beloved or hated by others.
An easy way to bring the oblivious main character into your game is by having the party paired up with them for a school project. For your game, you could introduce the water genasi Jyn Lothook. They are shy and often stumble over their words, but if your player characters are friendly toward them, they will make an earnest effort to befriend them.
Little does the party know that Jyn is in a magical witness protection program. They are the child of a high-profile politician targeted by foreign entities. Despite the high levels of threat, Jyn largely lives their life without worry and is abnormally lucky enough to avoid harm. Unfortunately, that means the blowback always lands on the party. If Jyn has befriend the group, they will be marked as threats and attacked by assassins on occasion.
Here is how things could work out with Jyn:
- The party protects Jyn from these enemies. As thanks, Jyn offer the party a family heirloom that is actually a magic item.
- Jyn is captured, and the party is tasked with rescuing them from the clutches of a big baddie.
- Jyn asks the party for help in taking down the entity that is after her. Take your players on a standard dungeon crawl!
3. The brooding NPC reveals a soft side
“I am a hooligan with a six-pack, tattoos, and my favorite pastime is broodingly looking off into the distance. The only thing more complicated than my past is my hair routine. You better stay out of my way, otherwise I’ll beat you up or open up to you about my insecurities. I’m unpredictable like that!”
If the brooding NPC is in your game, the party will likely find them at school setting up a prank or ditching class. For your game, try introducing Ashawn Tornstar, a drow who dons black leather armor even outside of combat. He has a chip on his shoulder but is sure to bond with any player characters who like causing trouble. For however tough Ashawn acts, though, he’s caught in a dilemma that has him questioning his future at the school.
Ashawn’s father works for the infamous Jarlaxle Baenre and wants his son to pledge his loyalty to the Bregan D’aerthe by stealing books from the school’s restricted section. But Ashawn hopes to one day become a famed wizard, and stealing books would spell the end for his shaky apprenticeship under the school’s head mage. On the other hand, Ashawn fears his father will stop covering his education costs if he doesn’t follow through.
Whether the party breaks the drow out of detention or helps him with his homework, Ashawn is liable to have a moment of weakness. He’d ask the player characters for guidance, or to steal books on his behalf.
Here is how things could work out with Ashawn Tornstar:
- He stands up to his father, who cuts him off financially. Ashawn is later found working in the school cafeteria but has a newfound focus in his studies.
- He is caught stealing books from the restricted section and is expelled. Ashawn is later seen working for the Bregan D’aerthe.
- The party steals from the restricted section and is owed a debt by Ashawn. He works hard to excel in his studies.
4. An unexpected bond between strangers
“You bumped into me and wore a yellow shirt today. You fool! Now we must travel the world together in order to defeat a great evil that threatens both our lands! Despite our differences, we have no choice but to work together.”
One of my favorite tropes is the simple mistake that gets blown out of proportion or leads to other ridiculous ends. Thanks to the diversity found in fantasy, you can add “the unexpected ally” — someone who is the polar opposite to one of your player characters — to your game. This NPC could be antagonistic toward the party at first, though they might not be entirely considered evil.
In Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi, the main characters, Zélie and Amari, are children of warring factions. At the start of their difficult journey, they struggle to find common ground. But doing so is important if they have any hope of saving their people.
This kind of conflict could be reflected in your game by introducing the rose-toned tiefling bard Talisha Prat. She is said to be cold and a gossiper. She and a player character could bump into each other in the school’s hallway. In this seemingly innocuous moment, a scroll hanging out of Talisha’s bag could give the player character a paper cut. The scroll, however, is revealed to be an infernal contract — and with the player character’s blood upon it, it is considered signed by them.
Upset with the player character, Talisha might at first act out of anger. She could spread rumors or play pranks on the party. She would eventually open up, though. Her bardic studies have lead her to the College of Spirits — not because she has any real interest in necromancy, but because she wants to communicate with her late father on her upcoming birthday. Displeased with her progress in school, Talisha bargained with a devil for magic that would allow her to speak with her father. But with another person’s blood on the contract now, the terms of the agreement are uncertain.
Talisha now needs help nullifying the contract. She fears for what trouble could come to her and the party, and what the devil might do if it finds out someone else signed the agreement.
Here is how things could work out with Talisha Prat:
- She summons the devil who wrote the infernal contract. Together, she and the party dispose of them.
- She and the party bargain with the devil to nullify the contract and write up a new one.
- The party reports Talisha to the school administrators and she is expelled. What happens to the player character who accidentally signed the infernal contract remains to be seen.
5. The love triangle
“You have to choose: it’s either me or them. Who will it be? We both happen to be good-looking, talented, care about you, and have mysterious pasts. However, we also have polar opposite personalities.”
If there’s one thing YA novels are known for, it’s love triangles. But romance can be a no-go for many players. Before considering introducing any kind of romance into your game, talk to your players. Talk about soft and hard limits. Soft limits are lines you should be careful of crossing, because they can cause genuine anxiety or other negative emotions at your table. Hard limits are lines that should never be crossed. Establishing soft and hard limits is invaluable when planning the right adventure for your party.
If your table is comfortable with a love triangle, they can be easy to work into the game. You have plenty of books to draw inspiration from. One of the most famous modern love triangles is from Stephenie Meyer’s The Twilight Saga. In it, the main character, Bella, chooses between the sparkly yet brooding vampire Edward and the young, dreamy-eyed werewolf Jacob. (Editor’s note: They’re both garbage.) Edward and Jacob dislike one another intensely and vie for Bella’s attention in different ways.
For the sake of example for your game, let’s assume you have two NPCs interested in a player character: Chad Thunderjaw, a human and captain of the magical hockey team, and Janeen Firebrow, a fire genasi and president of the magical student council. The two are opposites of each other in every way. How the player character catches their attention is up to you. Perhaps the two see them in combat and are impressed?
Antics should follow as both Chad and Janeen try to impress their love interest and sabotage one another. Chad might find an embarrassing painting Janeen once made and put it on display in the school cafeteria. Janeen could reveal that Chad has smelly feet. How the player character of interest responds is entirely up to them. But these antics will lead up to a pivotal moment: when Chad and Janeen ask their love interest to a school dance.
Here is how things could work out with Chad and Janeen:
- The player character makes a hard choice between the two and loses contact with the other.
- The player character chooses neither of them. Over time, Chad and Janeen are open to being friends with the player character.
- Chad and Janeen discover that they enjoyed the silly pranks they played on each another, and they fall for each other.
Live your best angsty teenage life
Although it’s fun to roll our eyes at the works mentioned here, these tropes are classic for a reason. They can add drama or some needed comedic relief to your game. So, take what inspiration you like from your favorite YA novels and leave behind what you don’t! As the Dimension 20 crew behind Misfits and Magic has taught us, magical schools can be a great and hilarious setting for your players. So grab your favorite books and take notes!
Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos is an upcoming D&D release set in the Magic: The Gathering world of Strixhaven. Tune into D&D Live 2021 presented by G4 on July 16 and 17 for details including new character options, monsters, mechanics, story hooks, and more! And don’t forget: your Master-tier subscription to D&D Beyond allows you to share books you purchase with players in your campaigns!
DeAngelo Murillo (That_DeAngelo) is a fourth-generation Mexican-American who helps bring more representation to the geeky community through storytelling, journalism, interviewing creatives, and more on his Twitch channel. In his free time, he enjoys harassing his peers into participating in TTRPG charity events with him and also dies quite often in video games.
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