--- title: "A campaign walkthrough in Storywright" description: "Follow an original example world from a few campaign notes to session prep, a player recap, and updated references. Includes product screenshots." last_updated: 2026-10-01 --- # A campaign walkthrough in Storywright Plain-text Markdown mirror of [https://storywright.io/guides/storywright-walkthrough](https://storywright.io/guides/storywright-walkthrough). Follow a small campaign from the notes you need tonight to the changes you want to remember next week. The example is Bellwater, a riverside town with one missing boat. **The short answer.** Start with the current problem, create a few useful world entries, and link them from your session notes. After play, write a recap for the players and update the entries that changed. The next session begins from that record, not from a search through every old recap. > Bellwater is a fictional example shown in the real Storywright interface. The screenshots use local demo data, not a customer’s campaign or evidence of time saved. Follow the steps with your own notes; Bellwater is not an installable template. ## Give the world a problem you can use tonight Bellwater depends on river traffic. Mira's boat disappeared from Reedbank Landing during a flood, and she wants it back before the next market tide. The players have offered to help. That is enough to begin: a place, a person, a problem, and a reason it matters now. Create a world for Bellwater. Add Mira as a person and Reedbank Landing as a location. Keep the descriptions short enough to consult during play. You can add the rest of the town when it becomes relevant. - **Mira.** Owns a narrow red skiff and runs small cargo between Bellwater and the upriver farms. Wants the stolen boat returned before the next market tide. - **Reedbank Landing.** Two days of rain have flooded the landing. The current is fast and the lower path is underwater. A torn length of red rope is caught on a post. - **GM-only note.** Mira recognizes the signal used by the smugglers. Keep that information in GM-only notes until the group learns it. ![Mira, the boat owner, shown as a Storywright world entry with notes about her missing boat.](/images/guides/walkthrough-mira.png) One entry holds the facts about Mira. The example data is fictional; the interface is Storywright. Create a Story Arc called "Recover Mira's boat" and add the immediate objective to its notes. Link Mira and Reedbank Landing to the arc. Keep it open until the group resolves the job. [A simple structure for campaign notes](/guides/organize-campaign-notes) ## Prepare the situation and the first choice Make a session called "The missing boat." In its GM notes, write a short "Current situation" and a "Next choice." Mention Mira and Reedbank Landing so you can return to their entries without copying their descriptions into every session. - **Current situation.** Two days of rain have flooded Reedbank Landing. The current is fast, the lower path is underwater, and Mira's red skiff is missing. - **Next choice.** Follow the red rope upriver before the water rises again, or question the night ferryman about the three-lantern signal. ![The missing boat session in Storywright, with GM notes headed Current situation and Next choice.](/images/guides/walkthrough-session.png) The session record keeps tonight's notes together. These are prepared possibilities, not events that have already happened. During play, jot down what the group actually does. Suppose they find the rope, learn that the boat went upriver, and promise to help Mira bring it home. Record those actions beside the session. Leave an unused idea marked as preparation rather than quietly turning it into campaign history. ## Write the player recap from what happened After the game, make a short player-facing record of what the group discovered and promised. Here is a completed recap for this example: > The party found a torn length of red rope caught on a post at Reedbank Landing. They learned Mira's stolen boat went upriver and promised to help her bring it home. ![A player-facing Bellwater recap in Storywright, describing the torn red rope and the promise to help Mira bring her boat home.](/images/guides/walkthrough-recap.png) The shared record contains the group's discoveries. Mira's unrevealed knowledge does not belong in this recap. Before sharing, check that the recap matches what happened and leaves out GM secrets. If you use an AI draft, compare its names and events with your notes and remove anything it invented. [Write a recap your players can use](/guides/session-recaps) ## Update only the entries that changed Mira now has a promise from the group. Her boat is still missing. Add that change to her current notes and keep the promise open in your job record. Link back to the session where the promise was made. The session preserves what happened; the entry tells you where things stand now. Next week, read the recap, check the open job, and open Mira's entry. You have the present situation, the reason it matters, and the last decision in front of you. When the boat comes back, record the outcome and close the job. Keep the earlier session as history instead of rewriting it to match the ending. [Track promises and unfinished quests across sessions](/guides/track-campaign-promises) ## Use the amount of structure your table needs For this game, two world entries, one Story Arc, and one session are a useful start. Storywright keeps the records together and makes them easier to revisit. You still decide what is true, what the players can see, and what needs updating. Keep your maps, rules, and character sheets in the tools you already use. [See the session workflow](/sessions) ## Related - [Organize campaign notes](/guides/organize-campaign-notes.md) - [Promises and unfinished quests](/guides/track-campaign-promises.md) - [Move existing notes](/guides/move-campaign-notes.md) - [Sessions](/sessions.md) - [Full site index](/sitemap.md)