The Organized Architecture and Layout of Dungeons, or lack thereof.

[Zogg]

Ok. I've viewed various maps of dungeons, etc. online and find myself wondering, "Who would build a dungeon like this?" To be specific, I'm talking about the evil temples, monasteries, libraries and even places like catacombs - I mean, there is NO sense of organization in the winding passageways of these structures. It's one thing if the place has been built by drow or barbaric humanoids, but a temple of Cyric should not look like a big cluster-**** of a maze....evil god of chaos or no. I envision initiate clerics getting completely lost in these places.

I know this thread is of marginal importance in the world of DnD, but has anyone else had this thought?

 

[Harlock]

Yes, and so did Mike Mearls when he wrote Dungeoncraft from Fantasy Flight Games as part of their Legends and Lairs series. In it he details a method of dungeon creation in which organization is created even if you randomly generate a dungeon. Pretty clever that Mr. Mearls is.

 

[Eye Tyrant]

Yeah, I often ask myself when looking at maps "Okay, where is the john, and where do these badguys eat?" Often times maps leave out some of the more mundane but much needed facilities.

 

[apocalypstick]

I know exactly what you mean... whenever I need a castle/temple/dungeon, I just hit my local library and photocopy floorplans of RL ones.

OTOH, most RL castles and the like weren't very large, and make for rather quick "dungeon crawls."

 

[ForceUser]

Ok. I've viewed various maps of dungeons, etc. online and find myself wondering, "Who would build a dungeon like this?" To be specific, I'm talking about the evil temples, monasteries, libraries and even places like catacombs - I mean, there is NO sense of organization in the winding passageways of these structures. It's one thing if the place has been built by drow or barbaric humanoids, but a temple of Cyric should not look like a big cluster-**** of a maze....evil god of chaos or no. I envision initiate clerics getting completely lost in these places.

I know this thread is of marginal importance in the world of DnD, but has anyone else had this thought?

I totally agree. You have to consider the ecology of a dungeon when you create it - who built it? Why did they build? What inhabits it now and why? These are important questions for maintaining versimilitude.

I build my dungeons around themes - crypt complex, abandoned fortress, forbidden temple, etc. - and then decide where it fits into the campaign backstory. There are no random dungeons in my campaign world, nor are there dungeons that exist without good reason. Once I decide on a theme it's a lot easier to design.

One thing I always hated about dungeons in my younger days was how there appeared to be no logic to them - why in the world would monsters stay in their own rooms and not investigate all the fighting? Why would a minotaur and a lich be neighbors?

 

[Zogg]

Harlok - Can you give a few more details about this article (or post a link to it)? I'm not familiar with Dungeoncraft.

ForceUser - Glad to hear as a DM you agree. I guess the DM in my group basically takes maps out of various resources and they don't seem to have any organization to them whatsoever. And it is funny thinking about a lich & a minotaur being "neighbors".

 

[ForceUser]

And it is funny thinking about a lich & a minotaur being "neighbors".

Somewhere in a random dungeon...

Minotaur: Hey man, did you hear something?

Lich: I heard some screaming. I think the kobolds just died.

Minotaur: Should we check it out?

Lich: Nah, I'm just gonna stay in my room and keep chanting this dark ritual. I'm sure whoever it is won't bother me.

Minotaur: Hmm, ok. I'm going to lock my door and take a nap then. Later.

Lich: Ciao.

 

[Harlock]

Harlok - Can you give a few more details about this article (or post a link to it)? I'm not familiar with Dungeoncraft.

ForceUser - Glad to hear as a DM you agree. I guess the DM in my group basically takes maps out of various resources and they don't seem to have any organization to them whatsoever. And it is funny thinking about a lich & a minotaur being "neighbors".

It's not an article, but a book. A pretty decent book at that. Here's a link to the book's homepage

 

[blackshirt5]

*Minotaur knocking on the lich-next-door's door* "Can I borrow a cup of sugared goblin eye, I'm all out."
*LND(Lich-Next-Door) pokes his head out* "Well I do need it for the potion I'm brewing, why do YOU need it?"
"I was gonna make some Orc&Pie."
"Can I have some?"
"SURE!"
*LND goes inside comes out with his last jar of Sugared Goblin Eye* "Those pesky adventurers can wait until another time to get my Potion of Uber-LichKilling Strength. I want pie!"

 

[Cecil]

One reason for a totally random sprawling dungeon (weak--but the best I can do).


In a magical environment, castles are not the strategic defensive positions that they were in medieval Europe. It is simply too easy to go over or through the walls.

As a result, many leaders desiring a stronghold have gone down. It is hard to fly over or otherwise gain a bird's-eye view of the defensive position. This makes it harder to teleport into, and virtually impossible to simply fly into a well-defended courtyard.

An enemy can still magically tunnel into the place--but if the stronghold is not built symetrically and takes a few other precautions, some of this can be defended against (at least a little).