4th edition random dungeon generation? (and solo play)

I remember fondly the days of running a few characters through the classic Random Dungeon Generator in the 1ed DMG where I didn't know what was around the corner, or what sort of loot I'd find.

OK, it wasn't really role-playing but it was roll-playing and, most importantly, it is fun. So, having not played D&D for about five years (just before 3.5 came out), and excited about the imminent arrival of my gift set from Amazon, and considering whether or not I have the time to get a campaign going, I thought a good (and enjoyable) way to learn the rules would be to do some random dungeon generation: create some characters, think up a basic setting and plot just to give myself context, and then send the party through a dungeon, generating it on the spot.

Any ideas? I was thinking of using the 1ed generator as a base, but was wondering if there was something more up-to-date or complete available, perhaps something from 3.x edition. And how could I generate encounters with 4ed monsters? Is there anyway to expand the random generation beyond the dungeon? One thought I had was using something like the Wilderlands of High Fantasy box set as a template.

Now I don't expect much more than pure hack-and-grab out of solo play, but I'd be interested in looking at random adventure generation that might work for what I'm looking for. I mean, is there any way to bring--or generate--plot into the mix without it being absolutely ridiculous?

Any ideas would be appreciated!

Uhhhh. There's a whole section on how to do it in the back of the DMG. There's even rules for how to work it so that everyone can play and no one has to DM.

helium3 said:

Uhhhh. There's a whole section on how to do it in the back of the DMG. There's even rules for how to work it so that everyone can play and no one has to DM.

Click to expand...

Watch the attitude, buddy--and I quote from my original post: "...excited about the imminent arrival of my gift set from Amazon..."

Imminent = soon-to-be, not already.

But thanks for letting me know

helium3 said:

There's a whole section on how to do it in the back of the DMG. There's even rules for how to work it so that everyone can play and no one has to DM.

Click to expand...

Heh. He said, "do it."

That's excellent news. I can't wait to try that out! Er... The random dungeon and solo gaming, that is.

Later
silver

When I saw that section I was overwhelmingly tempted to just create a "random dungeon" adventure on the EnWorld online games.

The compulsion ultimately missed my will defense, but it was a near thing.