What to prep

If you know that an upcoming session will involve the homefront, there's plenty that you can prepare in advance.

If the PCs are heading home, review the Aftermath section Aftermath. Take some time to think through:

• What's happened while the PCs were gone?
• How is the village likely to respond to their return?
• How will specific NPCs respond to their return?
• What scenes or situations are likely to follow, including at least one with each PC and their family?

Make note of any outstanding player moves that you need to resolve before the PCs get home (like a Pull Together that they triggered before they left). Maybe ask the player to roll the move between sessions so that you can work the results into your prep.

If you're heading into a stretch of downtime, then review the "Downtime" section Downtime. Try to identify:

• Logistics that need to be dealt with
• Moves that the players have said they want to make
• Projects you expect the PCs to undertake

If your group is amenable, try to hash these things out between sessions. Like, message everyone and remind them to Level Up if they can, or ask what they want to get up to in the next session. Maybe have the players resolve certain moves between sessions (like Trade & Barter or even Seasons Change), if the results of that move would impact your prep.

If the PCs intend to pursue a long-term project (like a steading improvement, unlocking an arcanum, etc.), then look over the requirements. If any of them seem unclear, Make a Plan in advance, drafting up a list of requirements.

If you owe the players something from the Seasons Change move, like a threat making itself known or some interesting news, then figure out the specifics and think about how you'll introduce them in play. If you expect this to prompt an expedition, then prep for that (see What to prep) or at least as much of it as you expect to use in the next session.

Look over your threats and update them if needed Updating. Ask yourself:

• Do any of them have stakes that you can/want to try to resolve? How could you put that in play?
• Have any of their grim portents come to pass while the PCs were focused elsewhere? How will you reveal that in play?
• Are there any GM moves you want to make with these threats? What would that look like in play?

Review your End of Session notes, particularly the wishes each player made.

Flip through the "village of Stonetop" entry. Pick a few impressions or other details you want to feature, and/or some questions you want to ask.

Consider writing love letters to kick off the session and quickly establish things that have happened since the last session.

Use all of the above to create a "to-do list" for the next session, including:

• Player moves that need to be resolved (including any love letters)
• Decisions the players need to make
• Questions you want to ask the PCs
• Details that you want to establish
• Scenes you want to frame
• GM moves you'd like to make

Put these items in roughly the order you expect them to come up, grouped however makes sense to you. Put tick boxes next to each item. During play, tick off the items as you introduce them. But stay loose! You might not get to them all, and some might cease to be relevant as the session plays out.

For any scenes or situations you expect to frame, write down the details you think will help during play: when and where, activities, impressions, questions, GM moves, lines of dialogue, etc.

Think about how you can involve PCs in each others' scenes, or create interesting PC-PC-NPC triangles.

If you plan to introduce any new NPCs, create them now to whatever level of detail you find valuable Creating NPCs.

If you expect the next session to feature any established NPCs, review your notes on them or just think about how you portray them. Think about how they'll act in the upcoming session. Add details to their description if needed, or change established details if it feels right. Maybe stat them up as monsters, as threats, and/or as followers.

The first adventure is over! The PCs have killed the swyn, driven off the crinwin, and rescued the kids. At the end of the last session, they decided to head home. We'll play out their return in this coming session.

They'll get home five days after they left. Folks have been worried, right on the edge of despair, but they've also been getting on with spring chores. There are no outstanding player moves to resolve, and no threats that advanced while the PCs were gone.

The PCs will Return Triumphant, but two of the kids have been touched by their time with the swyn. I imagine a general celebration, with Glenys and Owain quickly souring about their kids being "not right."

Thinking about follow-up scenes, I'm spoiled for choice with Caradoc (flirting with Morwenna, working with Sawyl, visiting grandma). Same with Blodwen (talking to Gwendyl and Seren, checking up on Pryder, dealing with Tegwen). Rhianna has deep ties to the village but not much close kin left, so I imagine that her crew serves as family (and she'll want to build up some Loyalty with them anyhow). Vahid, I'm realizing, doesn't have any close NPCs, so I think I need to work on fleshing that out.

I don't expect the next session to have much downtime. If we do have some, I'll just zoom out, ask folks about the shift back to "normal" life, and then have the Seasons Change to summer. They can Level Up between sessions.

I don't expect the PCs to undertake any long-term projects before the Seasons Change, and I don't owe them anything from last season.

I update my threats and look over the ones that remain. Tegwen (Blodwen's mother, a wildcard*) might try to put Blodwen in her place and insist that she start thinking about a husband ("Old Garet certainly seems interested"). I think that "Distrust of the PCs," an* affliction*, is likely to come up and I think its stakes ("Can Rhianna regain Owain and Glenys's respect?" and "Will Glenys ever forgive Caradoc?") would be fun to try and answer. But maybe not this session?*

At the end of the last session, Caradoc wanted to see how he chafed at going back to his mundane life after this big adventure. Rhianna wanted to flesh out her crew and their families. Vahid wanted to commune with the Mindgem about the Green Lords tomb and all that they've learned. Blodwen (a glutton for punishment) wanted to deal with her mom, but also to explore that whole "Pryder is beloved of Danu" thing.

I look through the "Stonetop" entry in Book II*, and pick out some impressions and activities for spring. I also note some good questions to ask as the PCs settle back into daily life, like, "What about this place makes it feel like home?" or, "What game or pastime is unique to Stonetop?"*

I ponder a bit and make a rough to-do list for the session: