Pacing Long-Term Campaigns

Sessions 1-3: Establish Stakes

• Introduce settlements, factions, key NPCs
• Focus on simple missions (caravan escort, salvage, resource gathering)
• Let players experience core mechanics without overwhelming complications
• Build investment in community or faction

Sessions 4-6: Escalate Tension

• Introduce faction conflicts, political intrigue
• Increase environmental hazards (superstorms, predator attacks)
• Begin long-term mystery threads (ancient structures, psychic phenomena)
• Force difficult choices (rescue vs. profit, loyalty vs. ethics)

Sessions 7-10: Crisis Point

• Major catastrophe threatens settlement or region
• Multiple factions mobilize, players caught in middle
• Ancient mysteries begin revealing connections
• Resource scarcity reaches critical levels
• Boss encounters (rogue weatherworker, feral creature pack, corporate army)

Sessions 11+: Resolution and New Beginning

• Immediate crisis resolved but consequences remain
• Political landscape shifts based on player actions
• New threats emerge from resolved plots
• Players establish legacy (settlement founded, faction leadership, legendary status)