Curious to know how other GMs go about designing and filling out their campaigns with different material like items, NPCs, locations, etc. I’ve traditionally gone very deep and sometimes even granular (much to my own detriment because I bite off more than I can chew sometimes), and try to build out enough material to establish the setting and make everyone feel “unique” to the campaign setting.
What do you find works best for you? How deep do you like to go when building out the setting and materials? Are there any specific elements you focus more on as opposed to others?
To me, the ideal is as little as is necessary. If there’s an NPC, they have a name, face, personality and motivation, maybe a generic stat block. If there’s a foreign nation, then it has a name and a two line description at MOST. And if there’s something I find a need that I don’t have, I stall for time until I can fill the gap in properly.
But then, that’s just the ideal. I also go a bit nuts with it if left unattended too long.
This is honestly the approach that’s given me the most peace of mind as I’ve gotten more years of GMing under my belt. As little as possible, but at least something for everything, so I’m never truly caught of guard by player shenanigans.