Philotomy Jurament
First Post
Nope. I don't think I would do that, although it might be possible (especially if you combined the "underground wilderness" approach of D1-3 with a campaign megadungeon beneath an underground city, or something like that).Anyone here run or play in an OD&D game where it took place entirely inside one massive dungeon?
My mythic underworld dungeon is a central feature of the campaign, but it's not the whole campaign. In fact, I've come to view the "campaign" as being more about playing the setting than just playing the dungeon. I view the setting as part of the "game board," rather than just a backdrop for adventures. You play the setting, just like you "play" a combat. The setting has set parameters and resources: local lords, populations, garrisons, incomes, replacement rates. The PCs' actions can make an actual and meaningful effect on those parameters. Reaching the "end game" around name level, where the PC becomes a power in his own right, maybe with a castle and such, is part of the game. (And one way to "win.") To become the Lord Wizard, or the Baron, or the High Patriarch, you need fortune and glory. The dungeon is an effective way to acquire both of those.
I also think the "end game" can begin very early. I don't mean the actual building of a castle, but maneuvering for the end game: learning the lay of the land, the personalities of the local lords, building relationships, et cetera.
I guess I still approach D&D with a lot of wargame concepts intact. A lot of those wargamey elements (orders of battle, domain resources and income, etc) won't come into full use until upper PC levels are reached, but they're always present in the game.