D&D General Taking the "Dungeons" out of D&D

[Reynard]

One other point that occurs to me: neither the players nor the PCs know going in whether "the adventure" lies in the travel, the destination, or both; meaning where practical travel should probably be handled much the same way every time so as not to tip any info.

In a perfect world of limitless gaming time, sure, but as a practical matter it's perfectly reasonable for groups to prioritize the "fun" but (whatever that means to the group in question, which of course could be the travel). Also players aren't necessarily passive recipients of the DM's plans. Players are entitled to preferences, one of which could be "can we skip the travel?"

 

[Asisreo]

Alright, that's certainly a claim you can hold. To support that claim, you should now present an argument for how a warlock with two fireballs per short rest is balanced against a wizard with five fireballs per long rest, over the course of a single large encounter. If you can't, then that's pretty strong evidence that your claim isn't true.

I've finished my claim on a different thread. For those interested in specifically talking about the adventuring day, we can continue the conversation there.


Travel time is the same as downtime, imo. Now, I can make travel an adventure, but if I don't, this is the time for the players to start crafting magic items or other gear they may find useful.

 

[UngeheuerLich]

&D... Sounds strange...

... Missed that someone made that joke before me...

 

[Eyes of Nine]

Moria's not a great comparison to most "dungeon-delving" in D&D. The PCs (ie, the Fellowship) were trying to get through it not explore it. Totally different motivation for the party, feel of the adventure, and outcome.

Now, if they were dwarfs returning to Moria to try to reclaim it - then that would be a dungeon crawl.

I'll think more though on the intent of the OP around how to de-center dungeon-crawling. But then as said in a post right above, the game stops being D&D. Maybe change it to E&E - Ettins and Explorations. Or S&S - Slaads and Socializing.

 

[MichaelSomething]

Has anyone here considered offering their players the option of Double Dare style physical challenges in lue of rolling dice?

 

[Ancalagon]

In a perfect world of limitless gaming time, sure, but as a practical matter it's perfectly reasonable for groups to prioritize the "fun" but (whatever that means to the group in question, which of course could be the travel). Also players aren't necessarily passive recipients of the DM's plans. Players are entitled to preferences, one of which could be "can we skip the travel?"

D&D is, in part, a game about resource management - you manage your hp, your spell slots, your rations and healing potions...

But the most important resource is player time. So you are right - most of the game should be spent doing fun things.

 

[Ancalagon]

To go back on the OP...

What would a "dungeonless" game look like?

Well, you could play mercenaries and roll every adventure on this chart: OSR: 1d50 Missions for Small Groups of Medieval Mercenaries

In fact... that's my next campaign!

 

[ART!]

To go back on the OP...

What would a "dungeonless" game look like?

Well, you could play mercenaries and roll every adventure on this chart: OSR: 1d50 Missions for Small Groups of Medieval Mercenaries

In fact... that's my next campaign!

Wow, thank you for posting that! My next game will probably be something inspired by The Black Company novels, so I'm in search of mercenary side-missions.

 

[Bedrockgames]

Make everyone easier to kill (including PCs). You can't do extensive dungeon crawls if a single sword stroke can kill you. So don't increase HP for anyone, ever (except maybe a minor, minor boost if you want to reflect increasing toughness), and it will play more like game of thrones.

 

[Ancalagon]

Make everyone easier to kill (including PCs). You can't do extensive dungeon crawls if a single sword stroke can kill you. So don't increase HP for anyone, ever (except maybe a minor, minor boost if you want to reflect increasing toughness), and it will play more like game of thrones.

At this point.... play a different system. Warhammer 2nd ed is very good. Another good one which is closer to D&D would be the GLOG.