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Campaign prep · NPCs · Factions · Clues

TTRPG relationship map maker

Turn scattered session notes into a living map of who wants what, who owes whom, and which NPC can move the next scene.

Make an NPC mapOpen the campaign template
THE PARTYBROKERGUILDWITNESSRIVALHIDDEN ORDER
A campaign map should help answer “who reacts next?” after the players change the situation.

Prep relationships instead of scripts

Players rarely follow the route a game master expects. Relationship prep survives that freedom. If you know what each NPC wants, who they rely on, and who they fear, you can respond without forcing the group back onto a predetermined scene.

The map is especially useful when a campaign includes several factions or recurring locations. It keeps a minor NPC from becoming a disconnected name and makes consequences easier to carry from one session to the next.

What belongs on the campaign map

NPC motives

Use relationship labels that contain action: “needs protection from,” “plans to expose,” “is paid by,” or “mistakes for an ally.” These give you a next move when the players interfere.

Faction leverage

Show what a faction controls and which named people let it act. A faction node without human connections rarely helps at the table.

Clues and information

Connect a secret to the person who knows it, the person who wants it, and the person harmed if it spreads. That turns lore into playable pressure.

Update it after every session

  1. Add only NPCs who became relevant.
    Do not preload a hundred names. A map is a play aid, not the campaign encyclopaedia.
  2. Rewrite labels after player choices.
    “Suspicious of” may become “owes their life to.” The changed line is the campaign state.
  3. Mark who heard about the event.
    Consequences feel fair when information travels through visible relationships.
  4. Choose the next likely reaction.
    Before the next session, find one NPC whose goal is now blocked and decide what they do about it.

Keep player and GM views separate

The working GM map can contain hidden loyalties, disguises, and future threats. If you share a chart with players, make a second version containing only relationships their characters currently understand. The difference between those maps is useful prep: it shows where discovery scenes can happen.

Export a snapshot before a major arc changes. Comparing old and new maps gives the campaign a visible history without requiring a full written recap.