Physical Dungeon Features

[M.T. Black]

Is anyone aware of some good material regarding the physical features of a dungeon? For example, what are the options for wall materials? I can think of -

• Dirt
• Dirt reinforced with timber
• Undressed (raw) stone
• Dressed stone
• Brick

What sort of stone and brick make sense? And what other options are there? When is one preferred over the other? Same questions for floors?

A lot of dungeons seem to be cut through rock - what are the practicalities of that? I imagine there are some rocks that are easier to cut through than others, and there are some that are just not feasible to cut through. Which is which?

I imagine someone has done all of this work and published it in a sourcebook somewhere, but I'm struggling to find something relevant. Please let me know if you are aware of anything that would help answer such questions.

 

[le grand fromage]

I had this problem whilst running "the world's largest dungeon" - didn't want it uniform but developing fresh, new descriptions of tunnels became exhausting. I scavenged tables from various blogs to act as key word generators and free-wheeled from there...a simple field guide to rock types can also help, sedimentary vs igneous types for instance, there are dungeon construction guides too, but I can't think of one I particularly rely on for this type of question...in the end you'll always be wanting to break whatever rules they impose...oh and the Tabletop Adventurers "Bits of Darkness" I use those too for scene setting...

 

[LordEntrails]

I would look to mining references.

Things like granite are hard, but brittle. So, I think, that means they make relatively good tunnels, but have to be reinforced regularly. Stone like slate is relatively soft, but has good single direction strength so support is less often. Sandstone would be very difficult to dig because of collapse. So maybe magical means with arched bricking or 100% planked.

Dirt would need to be planked up, especially if there was any ground water. Brick would be used when the dirt removed was of a high enough clay content to allow the removed material to be turned into bricks. Works well for walls, but not ceilings as they would have to be arched, and then backfilled with dirt.

Floors are normally going to be whatever the material is. They would only be given flagstones, brick or tile flooring as part of a significant upgrade/improvement as part of a living space for a (rich) civilized race. If the environment is wet, planking would be the easiest/cheapest solution and would be easy to raise a few inches to allow for drainage/pooling.

Note, planking would only be likely when the entrance is near a wood source (forest).

This link provides some interesting examples of stone types that are mined and could be used as as wall examples (though here they are for sculpting); https://zimsculpt.com/about/stone/

This Google Search provides an interesting concept or inspiration for the Underdark.

You may find Wikipedia helpful; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mining

 

[Celebrim]

[*]Dirt
[*]Dirt reinforced with timber
[*]Undressed (raw) stone
[*]Dressed stone
[*]Brick
[/LIST]

Natural Passage (Dry)
Natural Passage (Stream)
Smoothed/Enlarged Natural Passage
Boulders, Slabs, Natural passage in Loose Breakdown
Cut Stone, Rough
Cut Stone, Smoothed
Cut Stone, Engraved
Cut Stone, Bas Relief
Stone Blocks, Rough
Stone Blocks, Smooth
Stone Blocks, Mortared
Stone Blocks, Freemasonry
Tiled & Mortared
Plastered
Plastered and Painted (Frescos)
Hardened Clay

What sort of stone and brick make sense?

Anything you darn well please. While it's not a bad idea to pay some attention to the economics of dungeon construction, it's more important to make the dungeon interesting.

When is one preferred over the other? Same questions for floors?

When considering these questions, you the DM are a painter. You're creating atmosphere. You are creating an immersive and diverse experience with an evocative setting that communicates something. It's hard to get more specific than that. Different sorts of decorations invoke different sorts of literary experience. If you have a dungeon made of stone covered in plaster which in turn is covered in painted hieroglyphics, then you'll draw on the lore of Egyptian tombs. If you have a dungeon of rough stone walls, sand covered floors, perhaps occasionally supported by wooden arches or vaults of dressed stone, that will invoke another experience.

A lot of dungeons seem to be cut through rock - what are the practicalities of that?

Horribly impractical for tons of reasons, especially in any kind of stone harder than pumice or gypsum. For this reason, it was almost never done in the real world (with a few important exceptions), and even when it was done the practicalities of living meant that it was usually done to quarry stone for use on the surface (as in for example Paris and elsewhere) rather than to carve living quarters themselves. But, this is fantasy. Your players probably care less about the economics of dungeon construction than not getting bored exploring one.

If I had to give you any advice, it would be avoid putting a lot of stuff that can burn in a dungeon. Fire is a headache, and players tend to be overly fond of it. Other than that, go big or go home.