Surprise Your Players: Betrayal Twist Mad Lib For Your Encounters

You know I’m a huge fan of adventure plot twists. That’s what Room V is all about. But we should try to add encounter-level twists, as well. Then we get to surprise and delight our players several times during sessions!

Here is one of my favourite types of twists and d12 examples to help you twist your encounters next game.

The Betrayal Twist

An ally, enemy, or situation is not what it seems and the encounter suddenly turns against the party. Use deception, manipulation, and hidden agendas to create shock and disbelief.

A Betrayal Twist Mad Lib

The players thought they were [mission objective], but it turns out [mission objective] is actually [cover-up for something else] and they are now [new objective or situation].

1d12 The Betrayal Twist Examples

  1. The players thought they were retrieving a valuable artifact, but it turns out the artifact is a fake, and they are actually smuggling contraband through a border entry point.
  2. The players thought they were rescuing a kidnapped victim, but it turns out the victim is actually a dangerous criminal who commits an egregious crime in the middle of the encounter.
  3. The players thought they were investigating a mysterious illness in a village, but it turns out the illness is a cover-up for a sinister cult’s dark rituals. The next town hall meeting encounter is going to be a doozy.
  4. The characters are ambushed by a group of heavily armed soldiers while trying to infiltrate an enemy stronghold. They soon realize that the soldiers are actually rebels fighting against a corrupt government, and the party must decide whether to join the rebels or to continue their original mission.
  5. The players thought they were helping a noble house defeat a rival faction, but it turns out the house is actually a front for a powerful crime syndicate. During an encounter, the PCs are witness to an execution or get caught in the middle of a firefight.
  6. The players thought they were rescuing a damsel in distress, but it turns she is actually a powerful mage who turns on the party when they are weakened and resting. Using sleep spell or other means, she tries to steal the party’s best magic items.
  7. The players thought they were stealing a powerful artifact from a rival guild, but as the party makes their escape they encounter an NPC who reveals that the artifact is actually a powerful weapon the guild needs to defeat a greater threat. Will the characters now return the item and help the guild fight the threat?
  8. The players thought they were clearing a dungeon of dangerous denizens, but as the party enters a room filled with monsters, the creatures suddenly stop attacking and instead begin to back away, revealing a powerful magical item. The players soon realize that the monsters were actually protecting the item from a greater evil.
  9. The players thought they were investigating a string of robberies, but it turns out the robberies are a cover-up for a more sinister plot by an evil, secret society. The players track down the location of the latest robbery and find themselves in the middle of a secret society’s meeting. Can they to blend in to gather information about the society’s plot without alerting the members?
  10. The players thought they were escorting a powerful diplomat to a peace summit, but it turns out the diplomat is actually a dangerous criminal mastermind. During a secret meeting with a rival faction, the diplomat shares startling information that will aid the enemy faction. Will the players confront the diplomat or continue their mission while gathering information to expose the diplomat’s true nature?
  11. The players thought they were rescuing a kidnapped victim, but during a battle it’s revealed that the victim is actually a shapeshifter decoy whose purpose is to distract the PCs from a larger plot, and now party must uncover the true objective of their enemy.
  12. The players thought they were investigating a haunted mansion, but as they encounter a group of angry ghosts the party realizes the creatures are actually the results of the laboratory’s experiments. Can the players fight off the creatures and shut down the evil laboratory?

More Twist Resources