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Help me grok mega-dungeons
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<blockquote data-quote="Greg Benage" data-source="post: 7129979" data-attributes="member: 93631"><p>* Good vehicle (massive constrained sandbox) for exploration-focused (rather than story-focused games).</p><p>* The "expedition" approach to D&D (rather than heroic questing).</p><p>* The joy of unscripted discovery that comes with the above two features (requires effective megadungeon design).</p><p>* Characters that typically start as sketches and develop in play (if they survive).</p><p>* Campaign continuity supported by The Expedition rather than individual characters.</p><p>* "Story" that is emergent, undetermined, not guaranteed, retrospective.</p><p>* Player challenge and sense of accomplishment that comes with a successful expedition.</p><p></p><p>I think this play style is much better suited to OD&D, B/X and (maybe) AD&D. My all-time favorite campaign was a megadungeon in college mid-80s in which none of the original characters made it to the end, and many of the original players didn't either. The dungeon had a "story" that we pieced together over time, and the expedition created its own continuity as survivors recruited new characters, were replaced in turn, players came and went, and despite all the deaths, departures and retirements, the expedition carried on and eventually reached a satisfying conclusion. At the end, you can see the campaign as a story, though it's a story about the expedition, with a huge cast of characters playing roles of varying importance. And even the minor characters can be extremely memorable, either for what they contributed (the thief who found that first nasty trap [RIP], or the wizard who never made it past 3rd level but had that <em>knock</em> spell that averted a TPK), or because of how they went out or because of something hilarious or awesome they did in the short time allotted to them.</p><p></p><p>I'm a fan, though I think most players were moving away from this style of play by the late 70s.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Greg Benage, post: 7129979, member: 93631"] * Good vehicle (massive constrained sandbox) for exploration-focused (rather than story-focused games). * The "expedition" approach to D&D (rather than heroic questing). * The joy of unscripted discovery that comes with the above two features (requires effective megadungeon design). * Characters that typically start as sketches and develop in play (if they survive). * Campaign continuity supported by The Expedition rather than individual characters. * "Story" that is emergent, undetermined, not guaranteed, retrospective. * Player challenge and sense of accomplishment that comes with a successful expedition. I think this play style is much better suited to OD&D, B/X and (maybe) AD&D. My all-time favorite campaign was a megadungeon in college mid-80s in which none of the original characters made it to the end, and many of the original players didn't either. The dungeon had a "story" that we pieced together over time, and the expedition created its own continuity as survivors recruited new characters, were replaced in turn, players came and went, and despite all the deaths, departures and retirements, the expedition carried on and eventually reached a satisfying conclusion. At the end, you can see the campaign as a story, though it's a story about the expedition, with a huge cast of characters playing roles of varying importance. And even the minor characters can be extremely memorable, either for what they contributed (the thief who found that first nasty trap [RIP], or the wizard who never made it past 3rd level but had that [I]knock[/I] spell that averted a TPK), or because of how they went out or because of something hilarious or awesome they did in the short time allotted to them. I'm a fan, though I think most players were moving away from this style of play by the late 70s. [/QUOTE]
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