Collaborative Cave!

[der_kluge]

I'll grab area 4 if that's OK.

I'm picturing that slope as being wet and extremely slippery, and living in area 4 are vast numbers of something tiny (or Diminutive) and hungry. Some kind of swarm that spends its days in here and goes outside through teeny cracks in the roof to feed at night. Bats, maybe.

OR it could be a swarm of rats that lives off the dragon's cast-offs. This could be the dragon's garbage dump. How much of a drop does each elevation line represent?

No definite on what the slope is. Probably not more a few feet. 5 feet at the most.

I'm thinking bats would be perfect. As I mentioned before, I could see spiders building webs in the chasm to catch bats. I could even see spider eaters flying in to eat the spiders.

I could see the dragon(s) leaving carcases behind, which rats could eat. I could see oozes feeding on the rats and the bones and the bats.

I could see rust monsters living in area 1, feeding off scrap metal the dragon(s) leave to them to protect the entranceway.

As I mentioned before, if we don't put the dragon in the pool, perhaps an aboleth lives there. Maybe a non-combat encounter at all, but perhaps a nymph? Lots of ideas.

We need to decide where we want the dragon.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I'd like to take area #3 as servant quarters, featuring a high(er) level kobold major domo and classed kobold servants. (Of course, the green dragons see them more like slaves, but why spoil the kobolds' dreams?) They'd be in charge, among other things, resetting any other traps in the complex, pushing debris into #4, doing fine sorting work for the dragons and any outside collection tasks too small for a dragon to be able to accomplish (or bother with).

 

[der_kluge]

Poll: Where do you want the dragon's lair to be?

Area 10, or area 12?

 

[der_kluge]

I'd like to take area #3 as servant quarters, featuring a high(er) level kobold major domo and classed kobold servants. (Of course, the green dragons see them more like slaves, but why spoil the kobolds' dreams?) They'd be in charge, among other things, resetting any other traps in the complex, pushing debris into #4, doing fine sorting work for the dragons and any outside collection tasks too small for a dragon to be able to accomplish (or bother with).

A kobold what? Major domo?

 

[der_kluge]

I widened a few of the passageways, and increased the size of areas 3 and 4, and moved 4 partially under 3. Area 3 now opens up into area 4.

Check the first post for the map.

I'll hold off on putting the tunnel between areas 8 and 12 until we know where the dragon will reside.

 

[Ilium]

I hate to be difficult, but what about area 8? It has plenty of water to hide in, plus a good sized dry area for PCs to fight from. AND it connects with area 9, which might be where the dragon keeps his choicest stuff. AND it has both a water and a land exit for quick getaways (though would a dragon plan for that?).

Barring that, I think area 10 is the most secure spot, but least fun to run a combat in. So I vote area 12. Tactically it has the advantage of 2 exits in case the fight goes badly. Granted the two exits join up immediately, but it's still better than the dead end of area 10.

 

[Elephant]

Don't forget he said Young green dragons. So they aren't very big. They might not be able to fly through the whole thing, but who cares. I'd think the dea would be deffense more then convinience.

Eh, I was thinking along the lines of a Young Adult (CR 11) dragon as the BBEG for this dungeon - the BBEG should always be a few CR higher than the baseline for a dungeon!

Of course, that depends on the person writing that encounter

I could see the dragon(s) leaving carcases behind, which rats could eat. I could see oozes feeding on the rats and the bones and the bats.

Ochre jellies are dangerous to pesky interlopers, dissolve flesh, and leave the gear alone. The dragon can then retrieve the gear fearlessly due to his acid immunity

Any other ooze eats some of the treasure.

We need to decide where we want the dragon.

I vote Room 8, with his treasure in the air pocket in Room 10. If you want to be truly nasty, he ambushes the party in 6, then swims away once they start to hurt him.

That said, my suggestion for an aerial tunnel between 8 and 12 stands - I'm sure the dragon has a reason to visit 12 even if his primary lair is 8!

 

[Scribble]

Eh, I was thinking along the lines of a Young Adult (CR 11) dragon as the BBEG for this dungeon - the BBEG should always be a few CR higher than the baseline for a dungeon!

Still, that's only a large creature, which could concievebly squeeze through... No one says it has to go into EVERY room.

Of course, that depends on the person writing that encounter

True that!

 

[der_kluge]

Eh, I was thinking along the lines of a Young Adult (CR 11) dragon as the BBEG for this dungeon - the BBEG should always be a few CR higher than the baseline for a dungeon!

Of course, that depends on the person writing that encounter

A CR 11 is "young adult" which is just size category Large.

Another option would be a CR 8 and a CR 5 pair of dragons (juvenile and young). I don't have any idea how old a dragon has to be before it mates, but a "young" dragon can still be up to 25 years old. That seems old enough to me to have found a mate. Besides, nothing would terrorize a party more than fighting TWO dragons at the same time. I know it would scare my group to death. It changes the breath attack to a 6d6 AND an 8d6 breath attack, versus just one 10d6 attack.

A mated pair could have a nesting area for eggs - which could reside in the chamber at area 10.

 

[Aeolius]

Perhaps the dragons squeezed into the cave when they were younger and got stuck inside. For a time, they relied upon their servants to provide food, treasure, and companionship. As the years passed, the servants became masters of the imprisoned dragons. Resenting their predicament, the dragons began to excavate a shaft large enough to allow for their escape.

Therefore, while the players have seen the green dragons in flight, the "servants" of the dragons have not. The dragons would not appreciate a party of adventurers sneaking into their lair to spoil the "surprise".