Imaculata
Hero
Fire and Water - Designing themed dungeons
Table of contents
1 - Dungeon theme basics
2 - Dungeon side views
3 - Narrative and enemies
4 - Boss battles
5 - Designing a boss room
6 - Player boss strategies
7 - Boss behavior
8 - Ending a dungeon
Other resources:
Quickleaf wrote this elaborate piece on dungeon design. This thread is basically a response to his, check it out:
The Shadow in the Flame: a workshop on designing dungeon, monsters and a villain
1 - Dungeon theme basics
One of the questions that often pops up on these forums, is "how do I design a dungeon, and how do I make my dungeon interesting?" I am a strong supporter of the idea that dungeons work best when supported by a strong theme. And in my current pirate campaign, that theme has always been water. Water can be used in many creative ways, and aquatic creatures often don't see that much use in D&D campaigns, which makes them perfect when you want to surprise your players.
My pirate campaign is moving towards a pretty climactic battle in the basement of a tower on the island of Salt. The tower was built by dwarven pirates, who call themselves the Oarsmen. They had big secret plans for the tower, but they never succeeded in finishing their work. That is why the basement of the tower, called the Underhaven, was never completed. It was supposed to be an underwater harbor, which makes perfect sense given the fact that the Oarsmen build lots of submarines. But the defenses of the harbor, and the harbor itself, were only partially constructed. As it just so happens, this provides my villains with a convenient weakness to exploit.
The Underhaven will be a dungeon. And in this thread I would like to share my steps towards designing a themed dungeon. Note that I'm running a 3.5 campaign, but I'm hopeful that the ideas I present are just as useful in any other editions of D&D. And feel free to also share your own ideas regarding this dungeon, and dungeon design in general. The players will be playing this dungeon next friday (11 Aug), so I might add any good suggestions that are made before that time.
I've used the theme of water in many ways before when designing my dungeons, because my players have been through lots of these water-themed dungeons already. Its a challenge to come up with a new way to use water every single time. I also want to make sure that I tick all the design boxes that I've set for myself:
-Water should be involved
-There should be secrets
-There should be skill challenges
-There should be branching paths
-There should be interesting combat encounters
-The lay out should make narrative sense
-Be cautious of square-room syndrome
-Use height differences
Water hazards
Since the tower is heated with steam, it's a logical step to also use steam as our main hazard. I'm thinking of obstacles where the players must turn off the steam that is blocking their path, or manipulate valves to unlock certain doors. Steam could also obscure enemies from sight. Some rooms may be flooded, forcing them to swim. And wet floors could force balance checks when they run, or make the use of electricity spells very dangerous. I want my players to think about their environment.
Secrets
One of my players plays an elf. And he loves finding secret doors. I think this is an excellent opportunity for me to provide optional roads for my players. They may be able to cut corners, and drop into rooms via maintenance shafts, thus circumventing some of my obstacles. One of my most important rules regarding secret doors, is that they can't be mandatory, and they preferably provide the players with some interesting choice. Just because you find a secret tunnel, does not mean you want to go in there. And what if the tunnel is really narrow, and only small characters can enter? Will they dare split up?
Skill challenges
A dungeon isn't just a long row of rooms with enemies in them. My players seem to have the most fun, when they get to use their skills and abilities in creative ways. And so I deliberately throw obstacles in their path that demand a skill check of some sort. Some times a choice of going left or right, is decided simply because the players fail to lift a door and open a path. But you want to be mindful that the players don't just get horribly stuck.
Branching paths
D&D is all about choices. If your dungeon is basically just one long corridor, then the players are not making any interesting choices when it comes to exploration. Likewise, if the dungeon is just a giant maze of empty rooms, then there is a lot of choice, but the choices are meaningless. I believe in meaningful content. There should be the occasional choice of going left or right, or maybe forward. But eventually it has to lead somewhere interesting. I don't just put dead ends in my dungeon, unless there is something of interest at the end of the corridor. And we'll get more into that in a bit when we start covering the lay out of my dungeon.
Interesting combat encounters
I hate it when a combat encounter is just a bunch of enemies standing in a square room. There needs to be suspense, and an interesting situation involved with the fight. I think the videogame Dark Souls is a great example of how to be creative in enemy placement. Don't just throw enemies about randomly, but create ambushes, flanking enemies, and enemies that attack from vantage points. For this reason I'm going to put some of the theme ideas to good use when setting up combat encounters in this dungeon.
The narrative
The story is equally important in a dungeon. The players are trying to uncover what is going on, and they will find various clues as they explore the dungeon. Not every path they take will lead to the finish line, but it could lead them to other clues they would otherwise miss. This form of storytelling is also an excellent way to foreshadow later hazards, or to teach the players how to use the theme of the dungeon to their advantage. The end goal is for the players to realize that the tower is a valuable war-asset, that must be defended from the enemy invaders at all costs. If they abandon it (which is an option), it will have dire consequences on their war against the big bad. They may end up losing a lot of allies unless they stop the invaders.
Square-room syndrome
One of the biggest dangers when designing a dungeon, is making every room or corridor just a simple square. Sure, its easy design-wise, but it is also terribly boring. Which is why I'll try to add at least a few rounded corridors and rooms to break up the monotony. Even minor indentations and extrusions can help turn a square room into something a little bit more interesting.
Height differences
While we tend to draw out our dungeons from a flat top down view, that does not mean our dungeons themselves are without depth. Dungeons have height differences. Staircases that go up and down, ladders, crawling spaces, balconies, underwater passages, etc. Height differences not only make your dungeon more interesting, but they provide interesting angles of attack for both the players and your baddies.
This is the first part of the Underhaven that I've come up with. I've deliberately kept the design simplistic, so that I can show this map to my players, and they won't be too distracted by details on the map itself. I want my storytelling to paint the picture, and the map to simply serve as a clarification for orientation and positioning. Most of the rooms in the dungeon will be wet and slippery, due to all the leaking steam. Running is discouraged, and will require balance checks for the players.
A - The entrance
The players enter by descending down a flight of stairs, and they arrive in a room with various pipes and dials, and a large stone tablet on the wall. The two floodgates to the east are open, and the players are free to continue into the next room. I added two side rooms for narrative reasons. An office, where the workers would be clocking in and out every day, and a dressing room, where the workers get their gear and store their belongings. The players may find loot here, if I so choose. I could drop an enemy in the dressing room, but I think I'll build up some suspense first, and leave the first two rooms free of enemies. The tablet on the wall will show the players that the defenses of the Underhaven were not completed, and is there just to give the players an obvious goal.
B - Junction
The players can hear loud hissing and steam eminating from the stairs to the north and south. The noise is almost deafening, and makes it impossible to carry a normal conversation. A hidden maitenance shaft on the east wall, leads to a hatch that drops into a corridor further in the complex. This is an excellent opportunity for an ambush, but more on that later.
C - Pressure regulation room
This is where steam pressure is distributed to seal off important flood gates. The room is filled with steam (thus obscuring monsters from sight), and several pipes have been slashed open. This room is perfect to have some of our horrible monsters appear from the steam. More on those later. Not all pipes are destroyed however. If the players don't use the secret maintenance shaft, they may need to take the pressure off of one of the doors, through violence, or by opening the valve with a high strength check. They may also need to have some knowledge of engineering to correctly operate the valves, which would also require a skill check.
D - Steam hazard room
In this room the road is blocked by hot steam, and the flood gate to the north is closed and sealed by steam pressure. The players could get creative with spells to overcome this obstacle, or go to the Furnace room in the north to turn off the heat. I may have some enemies drop from the ceiling to catch unweary adventurers here. The valve to open the north gate is broken, and the valve handle lies on the other side of the steam, in room H. If the players are creative, they may be able to acquire it.
E - Connecting corridor
The players can get to this room by depressuring the floodgate to the south, or using the secret maintenance shaft. Another floodgate leads north, but is partially closed. Small characters can pass underneath it, or they could lift it with a succesful strength check. To the east are the showers, which is a perfect spot for an ambush.
F - Showers
This room's main purpose is to allow an ambush in a tight space to occur. If the players used the secret maintenance shaft to drop into this corridor, they may be seperated from their party, and things could get dicy.
G - Furnace room
The players can turn off the heat here, to bypass the steam hazard in room D. I'll have a couple of enemies pop up from around the corners here. Maybe the players will use the furnace to their advantage during combat in some way. If the players cannot turn the handle with a succesful strength check, some cold or water spells will also suffice to turn the furnace off. This also means the steam in room I will no longer be a problem.
H - Staircase room
Once the players have found a way to bypass the steam hazard, they can continue down the stairs into room I.
I - Flooded room
This room has a walkway to the left, which is blocked by hot steam, and a flooded area to the right. The players may be able to turn off the steam with the valve, if they pass their strength check, or they can swim underneath the steam. The water provides a perfect opportunity for enemies from below the surface to amsbush the players. I may also have more enemies drop from the ceiling in this room. The room continues to the north, into the next area of the Underhaven, which we will cover next time.
Next time we will also look at some of the enemies I've selected for this dungeon, and how they'll be used.
Table of contents
1 - Dungeon theme basics
2 - Dungeon side views
3 - Narrative and enemies
4 - Boss battles
5 - Designing a boss room
6 - Player boss strategies
7 - Boss behavior
8 - Ending a dungeon
Other resources:
Quickleaf wrote this elaborate piece on dungeon design. This thread is basically a response to his, check it out:
The Shadow in the Flame: a workshop on designing dungeon, monsters and a villain
1 - Dungeon theme basics
One of the questions that often pops up on these forums, is "how do I design a dungeon, and how do I make my dungeon interesting?" I am a strong supporter of the idea that dungeons work best when supported by a strong theme. And in my current pirate campaign, that theme has always been water. Water can be used in many creative ways, and aquatic creatures often don't see that much use in D&D campaigns, which makes them perfect when you want to surprise your players.
My pirate campaign is moving towards a pretty climactic battle in the basement of a tower on the island of Salt. The tower was built by dwarven pirates, who call themselves the Oarsmen. They had big secret plans for the tower, but they never succeeded in finishing their work. That is why the basement of the tower, called the Underhaven, was never completed. It was supposed to be an underwater harbor, which makes perfect sense given the fact that the Oarsmen build lots of submarines. But the defenses of the harbor, and the harbor itself, were only partially constructed. As it just so happens, this provides my villains with a convenient weakness to exploit.
The Underhaven will be a dungeon. And in this thread I would like to share my steps towards designing a themed dungeon. Note that I'm running a 3.5 campaign, but I'm hopeful that the ideas I present are just as useful in any other editions of D&D. And feel free to also share your own ideas regarding this dungeon, and dungeon design in general. The players will be playing this dungeon next friday (11 Aug), so I might add any good suggestions that are made before that time.
I've used the theme of water in many ways before when designing my dungeons, because my players have been through lots of these water-themed dungeons already. Its a challenge to come up with a new way to use water every single time. I also want to make sure that I tick all the design boxes that I've set for myself:
-Water should be involved
-There should be secrets
-There should be skill challenges
-There should be branching paths
-There should be interesting combat encounters
-The lay out should make narrative sense
-Be cautious of square-room syndrome
-Use height differences
Water hazards
Since the tower is heated with steam, it's a logical step to also use steam as our main hazard. I'm thinking of obstacles where the players must turn off the steam that is blocking their path, or manipulate valves to unlock certain doors. Steam could also obscure enemies from sight. Some rooms may be flooded, forcing them to swim. And wet floors could force balance checks when they run, or make the use of electricity spells very dangerous. I want my players to think about their environment.
Secrets
One of my players plays an elf. And he loves finding secret doors. I think this is an excellent opportunity for me to provide optional roads for my players. They may be able to cut corners, and drop into rooms via maintenance shafts, thus circumventing some of my obstacles. One of my most important rules regarding secret doors, is that they can't be mandatory, and they preferably provide the players with some interesting choice. Just because you find a secret tunnel, does not mean you want to go in there. And what if the tunnel is really narrow, and only small characters can enter? Will they dare split up?
Skill challenges
A dungeon isn't just a long row of rooms with enemies in them. My players seem to have the most fun, when they get to use their skills and abilities in creative ways. And so I deliberately throw obstacles in their path that demand a skill check of some sort. Some times a choice of going left or right, is decided simply because the players fail to lift a door and open a path. But you want to be mindful that the players don't just get horribly stuck.
Branching paths
D&D is all about choices. If your dungeon is basically just one long corridor, then the players are not making any interesting choices when it comes to exploration. Likewise, if the dungeon is just a giant maze of empty rooms, then there is a lot of choice, but the choices are meaningless. I believe in meaningful content. There should be the occasional choice of going left or right, or maybe forward. But eventually it has to lead somewhere interesting. I don't just put dead ends in my dungeon, unless there is something of interest at the end of the corridor. And we'll get more into that in a bit when we start covering the lay out of my dungeon.
Interesting combat encounters
I hate it when a combat encounter is just a bunch of enemies standing in a square room. There needs to be suspense, and an interesting situation involved with the fight. I think the videogame Dark Souls is a great example of how to be creative in enemy placement. Don't just throw enemies about randomly, but create ambushes, flanking enemies, and enemies that attack from vantage points. For this reason I'm going to put some of the theme ideas to good use when setting up combat encounters in this dungeon.
The narrative
The story is equally important in a dungeon. The players are trying to uncover what is going on, and they will find various clues as they explore the dungeon. Not every path they take will lead to the finish line, but it could lead them to other clues they would otherwise miss. This form of storytelling is also an excellent way to foreshadow later hazards, or to teach the players how to use the theme of the dungeon to their advantage. The end goal is for the players to realize that the tower is a valuable war-asset, that must be defended from the enemy invaders at all costs. If they abandon it (which is an option), it will have dire consequences on their war against the big bad. They may end up losing a lot of allies unless they stop the invaders.
Square-room syndrome
One of the biggest dangers when designing a dungeon, is making every room or corridor just a simple square. Sure, its easy design-wise, but it is also terribly boring. Which is why I'll try to add at least a few rounded corridors and rooms to break up the monotony. Even minor indentations and extrusions can help turn a square room into something a little bit more interesting.
Height differences
While we tend to draw out our dungeons from a flat top down view, that does not mean our dungeons themselves are without depth. Dungeons have height differences. Staircases that go up and down, ladders, crawling spaces, balconies, underwater passages, etc. Height differences not only make your dungeon more interesting, but they provide interesting angles of attack for both the players and your baddies.
This is the first part of the Underhaven that I've come up with. I've deliberately kept the design simplistic, so that I can show this map to my players, and they won't be too distracted by details on the map itself. I want my storytelling to paint the picture, and the map to simply serve as a clarification for orientation and positioning. Most of the rooms in the dungeon will be wet and slippery, due to all the leaking steam. Running is discouraged, and will require balance checks for the players.
A - The entrance
The players enter by descending down a flight of stairs, and they arrive in a room with various pipes and dials, and a large stone tablet on the wall. The two floodgates to the east are open, and the players are free to continue into the next room. I added two side rooms for narrative reasons. An office, where the workers would be clocking in and out every day, and a dressing room, where the workers get their gear and store their belongings. The players may find loot here, if I so choose. I could drop an enemy in the dressing room, but I think I'll build up some suspense first, and leave the first two rooms free of enemies. The tablet on the wall will show the players that the defenses of the Underhaven were not completed, and is there just to give the players an obvious goal.
B - Junction
The players can hear loud hissing and steam eminating from the stairs to the north and south. The noise is almost deafening, and makes it impossible to carry a normal conversation. A hidden maitenance shaft on the east wall, leads to a hatch that drops into a corridor further in the complex. This is an excellent opportunity for an ambush, but more on that later.
C - Pressure regulation room
This is where steam pressure is distributed to seal off important flood gates. The room is filled with steam (thus obscuring monsters from sight), and several pipes have been slashed open. This room is perfect to have some of our horrible monsters appear from the steam. More on those later. Not all pipes are destroyed however. If the players don't use the secret maintenance shaft, they may need to take the pressure off of one of the doors, through violence, or by opening the valve with a high strength check. They may also need to have some knowledge of engineering to correctly operate the valves, which would also require a skill check.
D - Steam hazard room
In this room the road is blocked by hot steam, and the flood gate to the north is closed and sealed by steam pressure. The players could get creative with spells to overcome this obstacle, or go to the Furnace room in the north to turn off the heat. I may have some enemies drop from the ceiling to catch unweary adventurers here. The valve to open the north gate is broken, and the valve handle lies on the other side of the steam, in room H. If the players are creative, they may be able to acquire it.
E - Connecting corridor
The players can get to this room by depressuring the floodgate to the south, or using the secret maintenance shaft. Another floodgate leads north, but is partially closed. Small characters can pass underneath it, or they could lift it with a succesful strength check. To the east are the showers, which is a perfect spot for an ambush.
F - Showers
This room's main purpose is to allow an ambush in a tight space to occur. If the players used the secret maintenance shaft to drop into this corridor, they may be seperated from their party, and things could get dicy.
G - Furnace room
The players can turn off the heat here, to bypass the steam hazard in room D. I'll have a couple of enemies pop up from around the corners here. Maybe the players will use the furnace to their advantage during combat in some way. If the players cannot turn the handle with a succesful strength check, some cold or water spells will also suffice to turn the furnace off. This also means the steam in room I will no longer be a problem.
H - Staircase room
Once the players have found a way to bypass the steam hazard, they can continue down the stairs into room I.
I - Flooded room
This room has a walkway to the left, which is blocked by hot steam, and a flooded area to the right. The players may be able to turn off the steam with the valve, if they pass their strength check, or they can swim underneath the steam. The water provides a perfect opportunity for enemies from below the surface to amsbush the players. I may also have more enemies drop from the ceiling in this room. The room continues to the north, into the next area of the Underhaven, which we will cover next time.
Next time we will also look at some of the enemies I've selected for this dungeon, and how they'll be used.
Last edited:
I kid, because I LOVE AD&D, and fully acknowledge that dungeons that don't make sense but are around a theme are way more fun. And that's what's important--to have fun. So I'm not a huge stickler on all that. Speaking of water, a couple years ago I did release an adventure that is solely around water, including large portions of it that take place underwater. It's a neat theme to build on, and gives opportunity to create guidelines on how spells might work differently, etc.
