What's the most critical piece of dungeoneering equipment?

[FireLance]

Oh yes, you have to have a potato. Or some other humorous vegetable. It's The Truth.

 

[rogueboy]

Shoes.

You can often find something to burn and improvise weapons but you can't ignore mildly and common sharp, pointy terrain without shoes.

Unless you're a halfling.

But they're short and can be overlooked.

This reminds me of one of my favorite stories from a (sadly) very short-lived campaign. The DM had decided to give each of us a magic item with some use. What he gave me was a magical bowler's hat: once per day, you can reach in and pull an item out. Actually, it was d100 of that item. You also got to feel the item before you pulled it out, which is great until you realize it's really hard to tell what you're pulling out when it's smaller than your fingernail (it then grew to normal size).

My 2 favorite pulls were the first one (70-some odd Tarrasques) and one a session or 2 later (40-some pairs of boots). First one: I had been tasked with destroying an evil rule. Pulled out the Tarrasques, realized it, and ran like hell while they ate the town and each other. The shoes I managed to use to track invisible floating platforms to escape a floating tower, at which point I made sure to keep them with me at all times. They also managed to defeat a creature-of-darkness (inspired by Order of the Stick's Creature in the Darkness). It turns out they were cursed boots of dancing (forcing anyone who put them on to dance incessantly) and the creature put them on inside a stone temple, which then collapsed on its head. No, there was no knowledge of the cursed nature until the DM explained it later, sad that I had never put them on.

And for bonus points, my character was a halfling.

But as for the most generally useful item? Gotta go with the 50-foot rope in my book.

 

[TarionzCousin]

No one mentioned a 'mirror' that I recall. I mean, I suppose it is not 'critical', but for me it was something I ALWAYS made sure I had, and it came in handy at times

I did in that other equipment thread. The little mirror on a stick, aka the "dental tool" is something one player always has--and he almost always plays the thief rogue, too.

 

[UngainlyTitan]

No one mentioned a 'mirror' that I recall. I mean, I suppose it is not 'critical', but for me it was something I ALWAYS made sure I had, and it came in handy at times

Mirror yes, preferably of polished steel so the RBDM could not easily find a way to break it.

Don't think that anyone mentioned caltrops, iron spikes and a hammer, time was when my characters never left home without them.

 

[Ashtagon]

Scrolls of tp can be pretty important for those times when you need to go in a hurry.

 

[Psychotic Jim]

I'm very tempted to say a light source, but it'll have to be a close second. No, the thing one needs most in the dungeon is an often underappreciated but nonetheless necessary commodity: the Henchman.

Like the light source, which comes in many forms,* depending on the genre, so does the Henchman.** What else be used so expendably to absorb wounds, hall around your loot, check for traps, or even shed a bit of wisdom on a disturbingly obvious yet not figured out puzzle? And of course, some people also like to get to know their minions and talk (!) with them, so I guess they can be good for a conversation if you’re actually into that!

*e.g. candle, torch, sunrod, flash light, burning effigy
**e.g. hireling, cohort, cultist, lackey, red shirt, burning effigy

 

[Silverblade The Ench]

Scrolls of tp can be pretty important for those times when you need to go in a hurry.

Yup, you can't beat Andrex for those "Kobold Curry Revenge" moments!

 

[karlindel]

A torch was my initial pick, but there are dungeons that have glowing moss, and there are other ways of getting a light source (party spellcaster, finding something else to burn).

I'll go with 50' of rope. Without a light source, the rope can serve to help you measure distances, check for some traps, climb up or down, and as a weapon.

 

[Dausuul]

50' of rope. Hands down, no question. I've gone on a thousand adventures with neither a mule nor a 10' pole and emerged unscathed; if you have darkvision, you can even do without a light source; but if you leave your rope at home you may as well bend over and kiss your *** goodbye.

Next time get yourself a Dungeon Cart the way Gygax intended.

I don't want to go on the cart! I think I'll go for a walk... I feel happy...

 

[TarionzCousin]

... but if you leave your rope at home you may as well bend over and kiss your *** goodbye.

Assuming you brought him into the dungeon with you....