Though Dungeons & Dragons is built to be the foundation for high-fantasy, swordplay, and sorcery adventures, some fans have experimented with the system. Tapping into almost any genre, these tabletop roleplaying enthusiasts adapt D&D to suit the story they want to tell.
However, since Dungeons & Dragons' system isn't equipped to handle all genres, Dungeon Masters and tables must make accommodations and adjustments to the rules if they hope to branch out. Some changes are as simple as integrating or leaning more heavily on extra rulebooks, while others may require them to integrate concepts from other games.
Update on June 13th, 2023 by Louis Kemner: Dungeons & Dragons isn't just a board game. It's a collaborative story that all players take part in, and that means using traditional storytelling genres and narrative elements — from "the hero's journey" to familiar genres like horror, comedy, and even science fiction. Any DM who wants to make a campaign feel like a movie can try those conventional dramas, or dive deeper and find more specialized genres to give their campaign a unique identity.
15 Other Forms Of Fantasy
The fantasy genre is a broad category with a vast breadth of subgenres. Examples include urban fantasy, cozy fantasy, and stories focusing on specific elements of fantasy stories, such as wizards, fairies, or knights.
The urban fantasy subgenre would require the Dungeon Master to either homebrew or source additional rulesets for modern concepts such as driving or using the internet. At the same time, the magical abilities and creatures could remain the same. Cozy fantasy, however, needs greater emphasis on roleplaying and character interactions, as opposed to how D&D typically centers on combat encounters.
14 Science Fiction
Though they are often portrayed as bitter rivals or polar opposites, there's less difference between fantasy and science fiction than it seems. They both involve immersing readers in a world packed with foreign and familiar elements to get to the heart of human stories.
One of the best resources for constructing a science-fiction Dungeons & Dragons campaign is the official Spelljammer sourcebooks. These allow players to board spacefaring ships and explore the stars. Dungeon Masters can supplement these official texts with homebrewed technology, locations, and races to create the perfect sci-fi adventure.
13 Horror
Like fantasy, the horror genre covers a lot of ground, from the supernatural influences of ghostly thrillers to the gory realism of slashers. Though some existing Dungeons & Dragons modules — like Curse of Strahd — play in the horror sandbox, the game can support even more frightening fun.
The most important aspect of crafting a horror campaign for D&D is for the Dungeon Master to know what their players fear. Not all tables or parties fear the same things. To create an atmosphere of dread that does the horror genre justice, the Dungeon Master must tailor their scares to the players and player-characters involved.
12 Mystery
While many sidequests require the players to solve a rudimentary mystery as part of their adventures, some tables want to dig deeper into one of literature's most beloved genres. Many adventurers yearn for a chance to play detective and use their deductive skills to put clues together.
Making a mystery the central aspect of a D&D campaign requires even more pre-planning on the Dungeon Master's part. They will need to devise many clues and suspects for their players to investigate so they don't reach the true culprit too quickly.
11 Western
At its heart, the western genre is less about where it takes place and more about its distinctive struggles — like cultures colliding in a harsh, unforgiving landscape. These themes and other traditional wild-west tropes can easily be explored in a Dungeons & Dragons game.
The wilderness is as much of a character in westerns as any protagonist. To properly set up for a wild west adventure, the Dungeon Master needs to have a massive, exposed land for their characters to explore. They also need to consider several integral details: what makes this place so harsh, why are the characters choosing to face it, and who's already living there.
10 Espionage
Espionage stories have a long and illustrious history. The luxurious aesthetics, dangerous missions, and eloquent competency of spies in stories have made the genre a staple of popular culture for hundreds of years.
Since stealth and subterfuge are a spy's bread and butter, a Dungeons & Dragons game in which the player-characters are spies would require an expansion of the existing stealth mechanic. Their ability to move unnoticed in secure spaces would need to carry more weight, leaving outright combat as a last resort.
9 Post-Apocalyptic
The end of the world is rarely an actual ending. Instead, it is the point at which individuals must carry on without the support of the society they've always known. Often this dilemma occurs after worldwide destruction or some dangerous threat.
A post-apocalyptic Dungeons & Dragons campaign could go in a variety of directions. Though the game could stick to an urban post-apocalypse. The Dungeon Master could even turn an apocalyptic event in the source for D&'D's mystical elements — leading players to discover evidence of the non-magical world that once was.
8 Comedy
D&D is an excellent tool for telling beautiful, heart-wrenching stories and exploring the depths of the players' characters and their relationships. However, gamers want to be silly sometimes. At times, the best thing a D&D table can do is lean into their impulsive instincts and enjoy the chaos that follows.
While a comedic campaign wouldn't require the Dungeon Master to alter any existing rulesets or gameplay systems, it requires tremendous patience. Players may veer off on riffs or bits for longer than expected or take the humor in a completely unforeseen direction. The Dungeon Master will have to be ready to deal with those situations.
7 Historical
Basing a Dungeons & Dragons adventure or campaign on a real-world historical event allows the players and the Dungeon Master to explore that event on a far more intimate level and see it through the perspective of someone experiencing it firsthand. Whether as an educational tool or just out of the party's shared interest, historical adventures can have significant value.
To truly replicate historical circumstances, the Dungeon Master would need to study the era and event in question in great detail, assuring that nothing in their game would cause an immersion-breaking anachronism. This could involve removing all magic from the game, carefully tailoring the weapons characters can use, and working with the players to ensure their characters' backstories are suitable.
6 Fan-Fiction
Nearly every fan of Dungeons & Dragons has looked at a favorite fictional character and asked themselves how that character could be built in D&D. Some tables even take this idea to its farthest logical conclusion and build entire campaigns set in their favorite fictional worlds.
Certain stories could fit into Dungeons & Dragons without almost any modifications, while others would require large portions of the game to be altered. Luckily, many homebrewed rulesets and stats can be found online for free, created by gamers with similar interests for this very purpose.
5 Heists
Heist movies, or caper movies, are popular. They depict a team of heroes or slick antiheroes who concoct a crafty plan to steal something. However, the plan will inevitably hit a snag when something goes wrong, leading to some action. Inception and The Usual Suspects are good examples of this.
A Dungeons & Dragons campaign adds serious fantasy flair to the heist genre, even if the party isn't entirely made up of sticky-fingered rogues. This game features all kinds of cool treasure that an evil king or lich might be hiding behind magical traps. Players can get cues not just from heist movies, but also the Keys to the Golden Vault book.
4 Going Into Another World
Some movies or animated features depict ordinary people getting themselves transported to a whole new world, and they might struggle to find a way back home. Alice in Wonderland is a classic example, hence "down the rabbit hole," along with The Wizard of Oz and The Chronicles of Narnia.
These are usually fantasy works, so they're perfect for Dungeons & Dragons. The players are already transporting themselves to another world, so if their characters do the same, that adds a whole new dimension to gameplay.
3 Crime Thrillers
The heist genre is just one form of the crime genre, and crime thrillers can be entirely different. Speaking more broadly, crime thrillers combine the energetic antics of thriller movies and the grim but interesting narratives of crime movies. They may even involve car chases, or shootouts with cops.
In Dungeons & Dragons, there are rogues and outlaws everywhere. Some of them may be strong enough or smart enough to take on the powers that be and win. The party may find themselves caught up in that, forced to choose between crooks and dirty cops fighting over the cobblestone streets.
2 Speculative Fiction
By nature, speculative fiction isn't easy to define or recognize at a glance, but it's a highly creative and substantial genre that many moviegoers and book fans underestimate. Speculative fiction is a blend of science fiction, fantasy, and much more.
Speculative fiction can involve practically anything in any combination. A D&D party who's tired of conventional genres would probably have a blast with speculative fiction. Such a campaign can turn some soft sci-fi, eldtritch horror storytelling, high fantasy, and abstract modernist ideas into a bizarre but engaging whole.
1 Romance
By nature, romance movies and literature focus on relationships and personal growth rather than action and adventure. However, incorporating great romance tropes can be useful for Dungeons & Dragons. The romance genre can play a part in the roleplaying, but it can also define the overall quest's storyline.
Plenty of Arthurian stories are based on a central love story, often forbidden love with serious consequences. Perhaps a smitten paladin NPC longs for the princess, and players can either help him get together with her and fight off the king's guards. Whatever the case, a well-crafted romance is sure to keep players engaged.