Recreating the feeling of actually being in a Labyrinth

[Salad Shooter]

I'd like to throw a maze/labyrinth at my players. However, if we're drawing out maps as we go along, it's pretty easy for them to backtrack to rooms by pointing, or just looking at the map and following the pretty picture to where they want to be.

How do I get them lost? Failing that, how do I make them work hard to NOT be lost?

 

[Janx]

One old school method is that the GM does not draw the map for the players.

He describes the coridor length at each intersection (perhaps not giving distances in numbers). and lets the players decide to map it or not.

try to develop a consistent description style for each intersection type and length of hall. The idea being, you want to be clear, and to let any mistakes that happen be the players fault, not your own.

If your players are good at mapping, then they won't get lost because their map will match yours as far as turns go.

If they don't map it, you can declare them lost. Or make them recall their steps, as you move their actual marker on your map, per those steps. It's really as simple as "we want to go back to Room 1", and you say "ok, what direction do turn at the intersection" and so on.


Bear in mind, this kind of mapping can drag the game out. Make sure it's going to be fun/worth it for the time expense.

 

[Stoat]

Janx has nailed down the old skool way to do it.

"The corridor goes 30' and terminates in a T intersection. At the intersection, the corridor to your right goes 40' and turns 90 degrees to the right. The corridor to your left goes on as far as you can see, but there is opening on the left wall 30' from the intersection."

I've run labyrinths this way, and I don't like. IMO, it's tedious, it takes a long time at the table, and it requires a level of clear communication between the players and the DM that is quite difficult to achieve. If you plan to run this way, I suggest using a very simple maze.

I've toyed around with the idea of a more abstract labyrinth that just uses group skill checks to navigate, but I've never put it in practice.

Edit: Another option is to use a VTT or other electronic interface with a fog of war feature. Only reveal the area that the PC's can see, and hide areas after the PC's pass through them.

 

[Janx]

yet another way, is to follow the style of the Mines of Moria in the LotR movie/books.

Namely, you don't describe all the twists and turns. Only the the key rooms.

that way, you don't have the detail, so you can then say they got lost.

I'm not wholly sold on this, as it can feel a bit railroady. If as GM you can't prove the player could not have remembered his route (which there arre people with quite good direction sense and location memory), then you're going to get an argument.

You might be better off dropping the PCs into a new region of the dungeon. They haven't seen it, and thus are inherently lost, in relation to how to return to a known location or to get out.

But ultimately, a player's response to being lost is about the same as their response to entering a new level of the dungeon. Look around and try to find something useful or another exit.

 

[Wednesday Boy]

I've run labyrinths this way, and I don't like. IMO, it's tedious, it takes a long time at the table, and it requires a level of clear communication between the players and the DM that is quite difficult to achieve.

Likewise. My group tried this once in 2nd Ed. and the communication was off enough that our map and the GM's map looked nothing alike. It felt tedious and frustrating but we never got the sense of being lost like a labyrinth should project.

 

[TheYeti1775]

Actually it can be handled just as Janx said.

Describe the corridor with abouts and looks likes.

A bit of clear communication prior is important.

Also one of the best traps is an one way teleport circle trap. Large enough say 20-30ft to snag an entire party and put them in another similar looking area.

Reward the players who are taking notes.
Reward the players who are searching for traps.

The best part is even drawing on the mat you only need corners; t-sections; intersections really and they are interchangable pretty much.

 

[delericho]

"The corridor goes 30' and terminates in a T intersection. At the intersection, the corridor to your right goes 40' and turns 90 degrees to the right. The corridor to your left goes on as far as you can see, but there is opening on the left wall 30' from the intersection."

Unless the PCs specifically take steps to do so, why would they be aware of exact distances?

How do I get them lost?

Don't draw a map out, except where you need one for the tactical situation. What's more, unless they have the supplies with them and nominate a mapper, don't let them create a map, either.

Include teleport traps, weird architecture, and other such traps to throw off their mapping efforts (you should provide some sort of clues as to what's going on, so clever players can spot it). Put them in situations where mapping is difficult - they have to flee from a monster and don't have time to count distances, they're about the be flooded out, they have to crawl through lots of infuriatingly narrow and winding tunnels (that all look alike). That sort of thing.

Failing that, how do I make them work hard to NOT be lost?

A better way is probably to use a Skill Challenge. If they have a particular objective in the maze, require them to roll a number of successes to find it. Failure gets them lost.

Then, another Skill Challenge to get out.

If they fail the challenges, put them in some room containing a tactical challenge (monsters or a trap), and have them deal with that. Then have them spend the next {time period} and let them try again. (The time period should depend on what resources they have. If they're using torches, it should be the duration of one such torch. If they're instead using an everburning torch or similar, make it day - and keep track of rations. And if neither of those work, deduct a Healing Surge.)

If they specified that they were keeping a map, that's good for at least one automatic success. If they specified that they were pacing things out, that's good for another one. And, if they've been diligent in keeping maps even when they get lost, grant them an extra auto success each time they fail the challenge (as the map gets better as they go).

Bear in mind, this kind of mapping can drag the game out. Make sure it's going to be fun/worth it for the time expense.

This is so very, very true.

 

[David Howery]

make the players wear blinders so they can only see directly ahead of them and turn off the lights?

 

[Twichyboy]

a map cannot help them if the maze is SELF AWARE!

every time they head back to the start the maze shifts! hahaha! take that jerks!

course that could get annoying for the players, and would require several drawn sets of mazes,

Could make a pretty awesome timed scenario, where the maze shifts every five minutes and that's how long they have to get through it or risk getting crushed/split up

Other then that i would recommend just making them map the area themselves, and don't mention how long the hallways go on for unless they specifically ask and their chars take the time to figure it out, so even if they took several turns they could be right back where they started and not even know

 

[Salad Shooter]

Cool ideas to work off of, thanks.

I'll try and avoid dragging the dungeon down, we're doing a series of 1 off, short dungeons - should be fun, not painful. Maybe some combination of the above...