| JudasKilled |
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Here is a step by step process I use to create dungeons in my own style. Its worked for me over the years and hopefully it helps some newer DM's out and even a few of the old ones. Either way feel free to comment, add your own thoughts and own process's for your games or comment on mine.
I am in no way saying this is the only way, just my way of creating plausible and realistic dungeons. I do not run what most people call tailored games. I probably run a 10% tailored game, the rest is cause and effect and based on player choices. So with my style of DMing there is no such thing in my head as building based upon CR, party ability or anything else. The only thing I care about is making it realistic based upon what it is.
My players love the challenges, the fact they don't know if they are supposed to be able to defeat it, and they play with thought, foresight, and logic because they know if im going to put something in the dungeon it will make sense. ( if they knew everything I knew) Therefore they pay close attention, stay on there toes, and appreciate things more. This style I will be honest is for advanced players. Deaths do happen a bit more then average with players who don't think things through. Take what you like, leave what you don't, and post advice of your own.
This may take a bit. Example of dungeon creation included.
1) I figure out the history of the location. Was it a dwarven border stronghold until 400 years ago it was overrun? Is it the stronghold of a villain? Just caverns in which the local hobgoblings and goblins live in and raid from?
This is important because it gives you an idea of your resources, your flavor, and everything else.
In addition when plot-hooking the dungeon I often figure out what locals or npc's would know/think. If the pc's are just going to hear a rumor in the tavern to hook them I create a rumor table with generally 25% truths, 25% falsehoods and 50% partial truths. They can also maybe hear of this place with knowledge history of the area or if they have a dwarf in the party.
2) I create a random encounter table for travel within proximity to the dungeon which often gives hints to what to expect. Also when appropriate for the dungeon, i often use it if the pcs decide to sleep in the dungeon and could be randomly found.
3) I know look towards building the habitat and ecology. I will use the ancient dwarven stronghold as an example for the rest of this exercise.
The Lost hold of Clan Kadin'Mor:
Brief overview: Clan Kadin'Mor was a smaller clan of the dwarven nation who held one of the largest entrances to the underground tunnels of the mountain range of BLAH. The orcs in this time had a chieftain rise to promise and grow fighting the humans with fervor to the south. The dwarven clan sent aid to the humans to the south to only discovered days later the orcs had anticipated this and with some outside help surprise attacked the clan that was now at half strength. The clan was decimated with few escaping as they collapsed the entrance to the network of tunnels that lead to the highway of the dwarves.
Now we know, we have room for traps, tricks, some magic effects in a few key areas, and some really well made engineering. Now we have to consider what 400 years of wear and tear, abandonment and some orc occupation has caused.
So we build what a dwarven clan of X citizens would have had and needed prior to the fall. Lets say we say this clan settled in a large cavern about 120ft tall and 200 feet wide at first and begun sculpting and digging in from there and using resources from the taiga like land outside to survive as they went.
So we have a cavern, which was likely homes and a temple to morridin initially. Lets say as time progresses they grow, trade mining ores and turn the cavern into the public area for trade, homes, and in the center the high temple of moridin and seat of the clan leader.
I would also note at this point even after building what the dwarves had it would be fairly rare to find magic effects such as traps outside of the temple and the primary defenses which fell.
Now we have to consider what the dwarves' ate/drank. Lets say they mined a passage to the mountain face that allowed water to pour into a aqueduct from a stream. Lets say its a small chute that cuts through the cavern surface to the river that flows down the mountain. Lets assume the grate is underwater , covered in bars and magically warded.
Lets say the aqueduct is a fountain outside the temple and that the statue of morridin is enchanted to turn black if the water is not pure.
Lets assume for food they traded for some, grew mushrooms in a large dwarf-made cavern and hunted the area above.
Now based on those factors we can construct a list of what we will have in the dungeons maps.
1) We have a entrance from the surface, wide enough to allow carts through, so 10-20 feet wide.
2) We have a cavern and basic measurements for that cavern, we know there is a temple in the cavern and a aqueduct/fountain near it as well as some homes. The homes would be crafted and not cut from the rock face for the most part.
3) It would also be likely the Clans warforce would have been housed in this cavern based on closeness to important things and the entrance. I would say 60% were stationed here 30% by the collapsing underdark entrance and 10% elsewhere.
4) We can assume there would be a market square here for any traders as well as the citizens day to day activity.
We also know the rest of the dungeon will include a cavern that will be filled with mushrooms, growths, and will provide a interesting contrast to the rest of the dungeon.
We have the working area a bit off the beaten path of the central city that contains mine shafts, carts, etc.
We can assume that all the smiths, forges and metalworkers would be located near to the mine shafts so they could fix mining issues and use metals when needed with minimal transportation.
We also need a place for waste disposal, lets assume because they are dwarves they had toilets that had a light flow of water that lead to a disposal area. We can put this near the mushroom grove and say that the waste was drained off and a mesh grating separated the non liquid disposal matter to be used as fertilizer for the mushrooms.
I would then add in a ring around the central square well cut 10 foot passages that lead to the various homes of the dwarven people. I would do a set amount of sections or primary passages. Not near the shroom cavern or somewhat unstable mine area though.
Ok we have the habitat basics, logically what would be there, now we accelerate it by 400 years years and use our imagination.
We have multiple areas that all could almost be dungeons on there own if you wanted to go that route.
The three warrens of homes could easily be occupied by creatures.
The central cavern.
The mine area and shroom cavern.
The temple itself which likely held the vaults of the clan would be my most likely spot to include a additional dungeon. It could very easily have many rooms, defenses, and other stuff beneath it.
4) Ok fourth step, lets figure out what did actually happen after the fall of the clan.
Lets say the orcs were aided in defeating the dwarven defenses by a younger, crafty, and ambitious dragon. Lets say he was age category X now add 400 years and lets say he sleeps deep within the mines closest to his treasured veins of silver. Lets say the orcs served the dragons purposes for a time until it decided to remove them by whatever means.
This dragon could be, drow, duegar, or really anything, or it could just be the orcs themselves. Though i find the idea of mixing dwarven traps and higher level difficulty stuff with hordes of CR nothing creatures to be boring so ill skip that option.
5) Next try and find away to add potential for flavor and story. I like the idea of maybe a journal found with the fearful memories of a dwarf locked somewhere but unable to escape and running out of time. Maybe in the temple the dwarf lord fled to the vault after a valiant stand of his guards to await rescue until mad with grief and fear he died alone and lost. Either way come up with a way to make the dungeon memorable and put the pcs in the history of the place.
6) I am choosing to make the temple an entirely different dungeon albeit a small one. Lets say even the dragon was unable to break into the vault of the dwarves and over time made alliance with a necromancer of some skill who agreed to break into the vaults in exchange for whatever. The necromancer has made his home in the temple and after advancing in skill ceased working with the dragon but uses the temple as a stronghold and comes/goes through teleportation. Lets say he is at home 60% of the time and roll randomly when required per week. Lets say he is 11th level or so, build a sheet in case the players do bypass the temples outer defenses and he is needed.
Ok so lets take the main cavern and make a encounter table for the large open area and put undead onto it, skeletons, ghouls, and whatever else, maybe even a ghost or banshee as the top roll.
I would then do the 3 living areas. They could be some remaining orcs the dragon never bothered to kill with there small numbers, more undead, or maybe one of the warrens is the domain of a pack of displacer beasts.
The mines i would fill with kobolds, add some interesting traps, some major terrain obstacles and the dragon at the end.
The fungal garden could be filled with a plant monster, myconids or nothing but food.
ETC, take each room and figure out whats there, what it needs to survive and how it interacts with the surrounding environment.
7) We know whats where and why. Now roll treasure for each encounter or area, or where you think it likely and figure out if its a ring in the displacer beasts feces, a sword held by a skeleton or whatever. I ALWAYS preroll encounter treasures because many times the encounter would use what it is. The dragon can use items, if it owns them and knows your coming why the hell wouldn't it?
I also will usually put a placed item or two that was not rolled randomly somewhere in the dungeon, but usually it is very well concealed or would take alot of difficulty to get to, or just flat makes alot of sense for the encounter. Otherwise I do not believe in placed treasure, you wanted to play the weapon master with the falcuta? Ok well don't expect me to put one in the treasure of the dragon for you, Im just going to add it as a % roll on the appropriate table, guess you shoulda went straight fighter if you don't like it.
8) My finishing steps and touches, adding plot devices, other fluff and descriptions in written form I do next.
9) As I stated before I do not run tailored CR based games, so I then figure out in what ways if not through direct plot interaction the pcs could end up hear. Knowledge history check, rumor tables, randomly just deciding to head east and travelling up the mountain face because they found an ancient stone road? Whatever.
When I make my campaign start of point I usually build a 150 mile radius or basically what the pcs could conceivably approach and figure out whats there. IE the 1st level pcs will have any opportunity that the characters could have to hear of anything. I build X amount of danger spots, dwarven ruins , evil forest, the hobgoblins raiding caves, the hidden temple of the evil god blah. I right up a description of whats there, figure out a brief history, a encounter table and likely inhabitants and thats it.
If the pcs hear of the fallen clan stronghold and decide to go at 1st level so be it. The descriptions, the rumors of the farmers 15 miles away, and whatever research they do is all there going to get. Otherwise that first encounters going to involve running or party members dieing.
Well thats my style, its how I like to do it and some people hate it. Hopefully this helps a newer DM a bit. I just recently realized how little many players know about creating a dungeon or habitat as a newer GM and even some experienced ones. So heres some of my tips and perspective.
Good games!
| Cowjuicer |
Hey man, just wanted to say that this is really solid advice. Definitely saving this page to help make some dungeons in the future. Thanks!
| RegUS PatOff |
Excellent example of how an experienced GM/DM fleshes out an area. I recall a TSR 2e product that provided a template for plot based adventures - that included this type of approach to development of adventuring areas.
A google search hasn't popped up the exact product name on the product lists I reviewed, but I remember it as being one of the consistent best sellers when I worked for a game distributor.
Anyone else remember this? Produced in 1980s - TSR stock number in the 92xx range. I never purchased as I wasn't running games at that time, just playing in them.