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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Quickleaf" data-source="post: 7023411" data-attributes="member: 20323">[MENTION=6801286]Imaculata[/MENTION] Thanks for taking the time to explain your design thinking – that's exactly the sort of stuff I was hoping to engender discussion of. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /> Great map design too!Actually, in your layout I didn't see many empty rooms, just the one at the beginning. I guess I think of "empty room" as meaning "room with nothing for the players to interact with that's meaningful to the overall adventure/campaign." So, traps/tricks, monsters, puzzles, and interaction encounters definitely fill a room. But so can a lot of the exploration stuff you've included like your levers/wheels and the campaign-relevant map; for example, maybe a player casts an unseen servant or similar spell to wait by a lever until he/she gives the command so they can test out gates in real-time rather than backtracking? That's a meaningful choice.And maybe that's hinting at some principles of dungeon design? [SECTION]1. Use the first room as a threshold to build suspense, which may or may not mean it's empty, but any built-in action here should be softer/lesser than that found in the rest of the dungeon. Anything you put in this room, keep it simple to just one thing.2. Fill rooms in a variety of ways to allow for good pacing to emerge through play.Maybe?[/SECTION]The only question I have about your dungeon are the three blocked off water-filled rooms to the east. There are no labels on your map, but since it looks hard to access I'd assume you'd either want to put a treasure/secret here or use passing through the rooms to build tension to some hidden monster/threat?-----Now, that idea of the first room being less intense / emptier than subsequent rooms is great in a dungeon with one entry/egress. What about when there are several possible entry points?This is very work-in-progress, but the arrows indicate possible entry points...<img src="http://i.imgur.com/D13aPew.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " data-size="" style="" />None of these really strikes me as an "empty" space, and some definitely aren't simple thresholds...Bridge of the Asuras. Definitely has a guardian & some sort of test meant to insure only Brotherhood members use it.Gate of Mysteries. Definitely has two guardians. Also is used regularly by slave mining labor & mamluks doing drills/patrols, as well as by new initiates being welcomed and the rare caravan.Glassteel Cavern. Actively mined for obsidian, with magical brass gongs protecting from incursions from worms below.Infernal Hall. So much happening here, as it is the Bonfire's (BBEG) throne room / audience hall with bodyguards, pets, an artifact throne, and the golden mirror used to scry/gate.Portal of Fire. Definitely has guardians, but also used for initiation rituals sending initiates out, exploration parties, and receiving efreeti ambassadors.Teleportation Circle. Definitely is spell-trapped/warded. May have other defensive measures.</blockquote>

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