Undefeated Dungeons

[DarrenGMiller]

"Lich Lords (by role aids)"

I haven't played much, mostly DM'ed, but a friend ran us through that once, or as much of it as we could survive. That was a tough one.

"Egg of the Phoenix"

I DM'ed that one back in about 1990 or so. The players had a tough time with it, but got through (the party was huge). I enjoyed that one immensely.

"Temple of Elemental Evil"

Re-running that one currently.

"Tomb of Abysthor"

Doing that one soon I hope.

DM

 

[chrisnd]

I once created my own dungeon on a whim, putting a very old, mean-as-potatos, grumpy red dragon at the end. He had lots of minions haning out in the rooms before his cavern, and so he was always aware of what was going on, and who was threatening him. He was NEVER complacent, was not the typical PRIDEFUL red dragon, and was as ornery as they come.

In the four times that I ran that one dungeon, a total of 33 PC's participated. Only one survived, and he only managed to get a few baubles and trinkets before running out of there like a bat out of Hades. Everyone else suffered an fateful demise at the hands (or should I say "breath") of one Flagratius Burnicus, Dragon of Lore!

 

[the Jester]

Well, the epic party imc has pretty much been overthrowing all the legendary ancient evils in my campaign world, but they're still terrified of Bile Mountain.

They cleaned it out except for the very top when they were prolly 12th-16th level or so... but they left the dreadful Bile Lords alive, and their Bile King has returned from a demiplane that they inadvertently freed him from. When the pcs returned to try to finish off the Bile Lords, the Bile King and his new betrothed, the Queen of Guts, and their servants killed the entire group.

Fortunately the epic level cleric's cohort, who hadn't been with them on the adventure, survived. Using an elixir of true resurrection he brought his master back. The cleric true rezzed the others, but now they're afraid to go back...

 

[Shemeska]

In my own campaign I created a labyrinth beneath the Palace of the Jester in Sigil. The PCs have scratched the surface of portions of it, however it apparently reshapes itself, changes configuration, has portions that don't exist within Sigil, etc and so it'd be unlikely that they'd ever fully plumb it depths. And considering their last, and only, real descent into it, they're in no rush to return.

I'd also created a group of labyrinths that existed within previously inaccessable portions of the towers that existed on the border of each of the 4 positive touched quasi-elemental planes and the positive energy plane (towers of Ice, Lead, etc). By their nature it's impossible to go back in them at this point in the campaign, and the PCs went from entrance to the top of each, but they didn't go through every single room I'd designed.

And of course next week two of the PCs have gotten it into their heads to go marching into a section of the Slags in Sigil with the express purpose of hunting down the Kadyx. I've given them some bits of history surrounding it, past tales of people claiming to see it, bodies of potential victims and where in the urban wasteland of the Slags they were found, etc. So they think they may have narrowed down where the thing tends to reside, and they want to go kill it. Centuries old ruins, abandoned and themselves built over centuries old ruins, all of which was runover in the past by a Tanar'ri army that left a whole bunch of crud behind, lovely place to go running around. Oh, and one of them may have cheesed it of, so this is will be ever so fun... they don't have a clue what it actually is, but they're going after it anyways.

 

[Hand of Evil]

Yes, The Ruins of the Barlark Wasteland - they have tried three different times and turned back. The ruins themselves are mid-level in difficulty CR 7-12, the problem is the getting there as the wastelands are very hostile, gaint scorpions, centipedes, snakes, and ethereal marauders that I run in packs, add to that poisious gases, it takes a lot of effort and resourses.

 

[diaglo]

never had a party complete any dungeon.

some of have come close, but they always miss one or two clues or secret passages/doors/traps/etc...

but i don't push them to go one way or the other... so when they feel like they are done... well they move on to something else.

even the current campaign is like that. B1 In Search of the Unknown is mostly completed... and B2 Keep on the Borderlands is not even touched practically.

and the 4 homebrewed sidetreks were also partially explored.

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

B2 Keep on the Borderlands is not even touched practically.

Man, you haven't lived to you've cleaned out the Caves. Just, you know, don't start with the minotaur.

What in the world is wrong with your players?

 

[diaglo]

Man, you haven't lived to you've cleaned out the Caves. Just, you know, don't start with the minotaur.

What in the world is wrong with your players?

too many options... easily distracted... deadly caves so they run... kill and grab and then go and spend their loot...

nothing wrong with them. they just know i don't pull any punches.

 

[maddman75]

My world doesn't have dungeons. I don't like them, my players don't like them, so why put them in the world?

There have been several BBEGs from past campaigns that are still floating around.

 

[MetalBard]

Believe it or not, the Twisted Tower of Ashaba adventure in the Forgotten Realms 2nd edition campaign setting. I think I've run four or five groups through that one, but no one has ever been able to get to that last room with the drow wizard responsible for all the troubles and flush him out. One group got close and they eventually knew of the drow wizard, but they never actually got to him or the source. That last group had to call it quits, retreat and leave markers for Shadowdale's finest under Mourngrym. They were the only ones to survive it and went on to a very long FR campaign afterwards.