D&D 5E High level adventures in a constrained space

[jgsugden]

I'm juat looking to share ideas here: One of the big issues with high level adventures that I've seen raised is that high level PCs can't be constrained. They can trivially pass through barriers, teleport, planeshift, etc.... If you want to run a 'dungeon' style adventure at high levels (13+), what techniques do you like to use to keep the PCs within the complex without it feeling too forced? Afterall, it sucks to spend hours designing a dungeon only to have the PCs bypass it entirely.

Some examples from my repetoire:

1.) The MacGuffin that can't leave - The PCs locate a MacGuffin within the dungeon, but it can't be taken out of it and it can't teleport/go ethereal/change form. This is not a favorite because it does tend to feel forced unless you really set it up well.

2.) Too much to do - There is a lot for the PCs to do and too little time to get it done. While they can leave to go rest or move around the dungeon at will, they still have to visit a lot of places in the dungeon. As such, doing them 'out of order' doesn't really negate anything.

3.) Too intriguing - The situation itself is interesting enough to the PCs that it does not occur to them to leave or bypass anything. They want to see each room. The adventure tells a story that they want to follow and uncover.

 

[pogre]

A variation on the MacGuffin that cannot leave is the key that must be assembled from different locations.

 

[Stormonu]

One of the constraints D1-D3 used was that teleportation became unpredictable due to the "weird radiations of the underdark".

Overall, I think its better to design the adventure around knowledge the characters can get in/out/about easier than most - and perhaps incorporating and encouraging the use of those abilities in the first place. Look at the likes of Stardock for Undermountain - it opens the ability to incorporate space travel into the "megadungeon" experience.

Most of all, at those levels just realize that the adventure can't be confined to one dungeon/area and overall the experience should be over a wider area beyond a single structure - perhaps even extended to multiple planes and entrance/egress that would not be possible at lower levels (example, a dungeon with no door that has to be teleported into, or the demi-plane that can only be accessed by a plane shift). If there's worry the PCs might not have the appropriate ability, don't forget that at these levels PCs can acquire patrons, allies and even magic items that can get them where they need to go.

 

[Quickleaf]

I'm juat looking to share ideas here: One of the big issues with high level adventures that I've seen raised is that high level PCs can't be constrained. They can trivially pass through barriers, teleport, planeshift, etc.... If you want to run a 'dungeon' style adventure at high levels (13+), what techniques do you like to use to keep the PCs within the complex without it feeling too forced? Afterall, it sucks to spend hours designing a dungeon only to have the PCs bypass it entirely.

Some examples from my repetoire:

1.) The MacGuffin that can't leave - The PCs locate a MacGuffin within the dungeon, but it can't be taken out of it and it can't teleport/go ethereal/change form. This is not a favorite because it does tend to feel forced unless you really set it up well.

2.) Too much to do - There is a lot for the PCs to do and too little time to get it done. While they can leave to go rest or move around the dungeon at will, they still have to visit a lot of places in the dungeon. As such, doing them 'out of order' doesn't really negate anything.

3.) Too intriguing - The situation itself is interesting enough to the PCs that it does not occur to them to leave or bypass anything. They want to see each room. The adventure tells a story that they want to follow and uncover.

Had to take a long break from my efforts at high-level (~16th level) dungeon design (https://www.enworld.org/threads/the...gning-dungeons-monsters-and-a-villain.524536/) but I had a couple early stage ideas that addressed the issues you're raising...

A lot of these might be summarized as You Can...But It'll Cost You...

Shadow Rock: There is a McGuffin which is found in Area X but is most useful far away in Area Z. However, touching it or using passwall-type magic while in possession of it causes the McGuffin to spawn dangerous shadows of the PC.

Dual-Purpose Forbiddance: Modified version of forbiddance spell keeping celestials/teleporters out, but also keeping elemental seers trapped in. Lowering the spell – either through more powerful magic or a ritual within the dungeon – allows teleporting to more areas & celestial ally to marshal, BUT prevents accessing the elemental seers who can provide useful clues/info. It's a trade-off.

 

[Stalker0]

One of the things I did was have the players fight a high level devil (who could teleport at will). The idea was that the players had set up a teleport blocker around the complex, so the devil couldn't just teleport out. But of course, that means neither can they.

It worked well because the party was effectively "nerfing themselves" in order to trap their quarry.

 

[toucanbuzz]

1. The Kingmaker (Paizo) campaign that I ran for 5E had a finale in a demiplane that reset every 24 hours.

• Monsters would forget they were killed, walls would repair, loot would move itself back to the original position, etc. If the party took too long, the plane might reset on them!
• Plane shift didn't work, though you could teleport around the area
• You could enter the plane (and leave) by means of planar keys that expired in 100 days and were rough to get
• The PCs were aware, thanks to lore and research, of the reset

2. Not safe to port around. 3rd edition had a nasty spell called "teleport trap" that was the solution to folks scrying and teleporting in for the kill. The caster chose when placing the trap(s) where you went, making it a perilous proposition for folks to "pop in" to certain areas. I'd definitely make my players aware this exists if I'm using this, but it never made sense to me no one, in the history of 5E magic, would have a counter to teleporting creatures.

3. Time limit, multiple objectives. If all parts of a ritual aren't stopped, big bad happens.

4. Dynamic dungeons. One of my favorite Dungeon magazine dungeons was a 3-D cube on the Negative Plane. If a wall were breached, everyone inside dies instantly, and it made mapping insanely crazy (after awhile, a few INT checks revealed the DM wasn't crazy when he described the dungeon paths). The bad guy had a lot of surveillance options and security would react. You could plane shift out, but the bad guy (an atrophied lich in my setting, could be an atrophied demigod in another) was, hour by hour, regaining more of his former powers, including calling upon old pacts with demons, elemental portals, etc., to restock things. Once he was at full strength, he'd complete his plans (which were visible in some rooms, to create an insanely large sphere of annihilation and unleash it upon his foes, then steal some souls, the usual).

 

[Oofta]

The easiest way is to just ban teleportation.

If you don't want to do that Inner Sanctum and Forbiddance can stop teleportation and plane shift and can be made permanent. Most important buildings in my world are covered by one or the other. If you're building a castle, it's just part of the cost. While dispel magic can in theory get around that, it's not spelled out exactly how that would work. I rule that they are cast on a single point and have a radius around that point.

Of course there's always the simple "teleportation doesn't work here and you don't know why".

 

[Shiroiken]

This isn't just a high level issue, but one of dungeons in general. The players need a purpose for exploring the dungeon in the first place. It doesn't matter if the party can teleport if they have to keep coming back to it. I generally prefer to have multiple reasons, in case they achieve one too quickly.