I previously had a Monster of the Month entry for suspense, but this Monster of the Monster builds on suspense and takes it to the next level – a murder mystery or whodunit

Monster of the Month #14 – Suspense – Blog of Holding

This Monster of the Month isn’t a monster at all, but it certainly is a challenge. For my session, I ran the Scarab of Death adventure and it did not disappoint.

A murder mystery or whodunit provides a challenge that is different than any your characters may have faced before. I found it was the perfect challenge for players with characters at high levels. All the weapons, armour, and magic items won’t be enough on their own. It is an excellent opportunity to let your players roleplay to try and solve a murder mystery.

The players are faced with a murder mystery needing to find clues, interview suspects, and solve puzzles. An excellent added twist is to place a time limit to add another level of urgency.

My players absolutely loved the adventure and were fine not attacking anything all session – although there were opportunities for battles that they chose to ignore. There is no reason why combat can’t be part of a whodunit adventure.

My only caveat is that this was probably one of the most challenging adventures I have ever run as the players decided to follow multiple leads I had not foreseen. This will require the Dungeon Master to read the adventure multiple times and be prepared for anything, and I mean anything, from the players.

That said, the whodunit adventures can be very challenging and fun. The Dungeon Master just needs to be aware and pivot very quickly when the players choose a line of investigation you never saw coming.

It also provides a unique break from the combat and dungeon crawling that many campaigns seem to be full of.