Exploring dungeons is a long time staple of tabletop role-playing.
Naturally, it's been a staple of D&D for decades as well.
However, coming up with dungeons is a bit of an art. There are so
many elements to consider in designing a good one. On top of that,
sometimes things go off the rails. What do you do if your players
jump into catacombs before you had expected? The first thing that
comes to mind is to just make things up as we go along. However, due
to the complexity of the situation, this is easier said than done. It
is for this reason I hope to give my advice on the matter.
Word of Caution
What we are talking about here isn't an easy thing. The difficulty
also increases the larger a dungeon that we create. Typically if you
are in this situation, it's because things went off the rails. I'd
say that 9/10 times, having the dungeon prepared a head of time leads
to better results unless the Dungeon Master in question really knows
what they are doing.
A Bit of Cheating
I'd be very hesitant making up every element of a dungeon on the fly.
However, we don't have to. There are a myriad of techniques at our
disposal to make things easier. This means that a large portion of
the work will be done on the spot but many elements will be taken
ahead of time. Sometimes a bit of cheating like this is required. One
of the most effective cheats I've found is the use of dungeon tiles
or 3D printed terrain. Being able to grab pieces and put them
together on the fly like makes it far easier than coming up with
every bit of the area. Sometimes restrictions are a good thing for
creativity, and I'd argue that when doing things in a crunch like we
are in this situation, they are beneficial.
I'd also recommend some pre-made room designs for common uses. Bedrooms, hallways, halls, and chapels are some very commonly used elements that can easily be reused or combined. As you go through more campaigns and gain more experience as a Dungeon Master, you also naturally build a backlog of these things. Previous maps can be a great source for old parts that can be changed for new uses. This can be done both by changing the structural features (adding columns, increasing the room size, adding balconies) or by rearranging the furnishing inside.
Paralysis
If I start making things up on the spot with no foundation I find
myself in a kind of paralysis. Depending on how inspired I am, it can
last a few moments or minutes. However, I don't want to be stuck for
minutes trying to think of things when running a campaign. To make
matters worse, this kind of paralysis can return later in the session
when I've exhausted my previous inspiration. The thing that works
best for me in these situations it to ensure I have a place to draw
from. It can be a goal to work towards, a concept for an area, a
fragment of a story I want to tell, or a bunch of other things.
Themes and Ideas
I mentioned how I like a starting point to work from. I've also
written before about how I value themes for campaigns, and
locations/dungeons are no different. When coming up with a dungeon on
the spot, this is typically the hardest part for me. I want a good
theme or idea to work from. Otherwise I'll get into trouble later.
This is why I make myself a list just in case. That way I have a list
of ideas I feel are strong enough to make things up on the spot. I
typically aim for 3-5 of these on reserve at a time and sometimes
I'll think of a new list as an exercise. As an example, here was my
list from my last session:
- A dungeon where all of the traps have decayed into basically being useless and all of the real dangerous are coincidences caused by decay.
- A dungeon made by the followers of an insane god/demon. Probably includes many dead ends and insane things like a table attached to the ceiling.
- A dungeon heavily looted previously, but not completely. The best loot is still waiting to be discovered, though in the best hidden places.
- A castle that was the sight of a massive battle, resulting in the deaths of everyone when the wizard of the castle decided to take everyone with them. When entering parts of the battle are relived.
- An ancient dungeon expanded upon and expanded upon again over a thousand years of use.
Points of Interest
I tend to feel that every dungeon needs to have at least one point of
interest. It'll be that one element that is remembered later. It
could be related to a character. It could be related to an incredibly
inventive trap. It could be related to the location, or what the
whole dungeon implies. I also found that entire rooms work the best.
This way the whole point of interest can be easily encapsulated for
drop in use. I aim for between 1-3, depending on the size of the
dungeon. It's an easy way to add that special element to a dungeon
when being put on the spot. It also gives flexibility. If you have a
moment of inspiration for a point of interest that is even better
than your fall back list, you've won. If you need to use your
fallback list, you are still adding something special to the dungeon.
It also gives you a minimum level to fall back on for the dungeon,
just in case the inspiration doesn't hit. The rest of it can be more
easily thought up on the spot, though of course it will still be
challenging.
Random Generation Tools
There are different tools we can use to generate dungeons randomly.
From the classic use of tables to generate them (see the end of the
Dungeon Master's Guide), to online software, to randomly
picking up tiles, there are many ways to get the basic outline of a
dungeon. In general I would recommend doing this ahead of time and
tweaking things in order to refine it into a better product. When
doing it off the cuff, we don't have that luxury. In this case, I
find looking at the situation and choosing based on what I think best
fits is my first choice. After that, that's when I go to the random
options in order to not waste time and hopefully get me to the next
stage where I'll have my inspiration. Even so, I'll overrule or
adjust things as I see fit to fit my theme or concept from above.
This is why I find having a theme or concept is so important for me.
It gives me a good place to modify and create from instead of just
making everything up. The upside for me is less paralysis and that it
seems more consistent.
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