The Perfect Dungeon

Last week, I was running a game of Fourth Edition D&D.  It was a pretty basic adventure, really, a sort of filler piece that I had concocted to get the PCs at the next level and to get them back into the plot of the game before they made their way into the Feywild. 

To do it, I took my copy of Dungeon Delve, and threw out the map.  I then connected those combat encounters with new passageways, with the rule that "each passageway has to be an interesting encounter or role-playing event".  Whether this was an interaction with an NPC, an "exploration" encounter, a skill check, or just some random piece of dungeon dressing that the PCs could ponder and interact with, I wanted there to be something to connect those combats.

The more I play 4e, the more I realize this is necessary.  4E is not really one of those games that limits roleplaying (not as much as some detractors will declare on message boards, at least), but I find one of the things that can get in the way is the sheer length of combats.  What this means is, in a four hour session with three combats, you can easily expect three of those hours to consist of fighting.

The dungeon I ran was fun, but here was the thing that really caught my eye - the most enjoyable part of the adventure was not the combat challenges.  It was not the weird puzzle-like door I put in (though that was fun).  It was not the exploration of rooms, or the sneaking up on guards.  All of those were fun (and, really, more fun than anything that came in the original delve book - that's not slamming the book, either).  No, the most fun part of the session that night was when I put a treasure chest in an empty room.

The PCs knew the treasure belonged to the buried dead.  They knew these people had lived good lives.  So, there was a moral quandary, and half the group felt looting the dead was a bad idea... the other half thought it'd be fine.  There was the possibility that the chest was trapped (it was, and the rogues loved this).  And, when the bodies were inevitably looted, there was the fact that the two rogues stole some minor trinkets off the bodies without the rest of the party knowing (out of character, everyone was having fun, too).  I was told later that it was a "classic D&D experience", and the second I heard it, I knew it was true.

This all got me thinking about the perfect dungeon for 4e.  The sort of adventure that really involves the party.  And the more I thought about it, the more I realized that combat should play a very small part in that. I started thinking about the fairly well-known five room dungeon model, a model I've used in many, many dungeon adventures over the years.  Using that as a base, I've put together the following - some advice on how to run the perfect dungeon.  Or, more accurately, a template of encounters your short dungeon should possess. 

A few tips before we get started, though.  In brief, your dungeon should be:

• Small.  It can be as large physically as you like (hell, it could even be a whole plane), but it should be small enough in encounter terms that your party can explore the whole thing without having to take an extended rest.  I see this as being about three average-strength combats, and one hard combat.  Or, better yet, two average combats, one hard combats, and a few easy combats. 
• Dynamic.  In other words, not a railroad.  Encounter A should not lead only to Encounter B.  There should be multiple pathways for PCs to choose from - and hints available to foreshadow what's ahead.  If the PCs see a trail of rest in the passageway heading north, and that the stones in the western passageway are polished smoothly, then at least they could have a chance of learning beforehand that there is a rust monster to the north, and an ooze of some sort to the west.  By the way, if you haven't read it yet, check out this thread.  It's all about dungeon layout, and it is amazing advice that changed how I game. 
• Thematic.  If it's a dwarven stronghold, stick to that theme - don't put a cave in there, even if it'd be cool.  If it's an orc dungeon, there probably shouldn't be an ooze in there.  Kobold sewer lairs should have tight tunnels, traps, and lots of weak monsters.  This is an important one, and an easy one.  Whenever I design a dungeon, I write down the dungeon's theme in big letters on the top of my map.  And I write down a list of things that relate to this theme - descriptive text, room ideas, monsters that tie in, everything.  If something doesn't make sense for the theme, it doesn't get in.  It can be rough, but it's worth it - players tend to notice when things don't "fit", and it takes them out of the mood. 

So, we've got that out of the way.  Now, it's template time. 

1.  The Entrance

Your entrance to the dungeon has to be exciting.  It can't just be a hole in a wall.  The entrance is the PCs first impression of your dungeon, so it has to be impressive.  A lot of adventures will do this with a combat... I'm not sure that's the way to go.  Because combats tend to devolve into mechanics pretty quickly, and when you introduce your dungeon, you mostly want to be setting up the theme of things.  So, take a few objects that relate to your dungeon's theme, and introduce them here. 

Avoid it just being description, too.  Whether PCs move through a sewer grate or a yawning fire chasm means very little to them if it's just "we step through it into the dungeon".  PCs have to interact with your entrance in some way.  And that interaction should relate back to the dungeon's theme. 

Losing you?  Don't worry, it's easy.

Let's say my example dungeon is a sewer complex, turned into a hiding place for rogues.  These rogues are lead by a power-hungry wizard.  They're not stupid rogues, and they've managed to divert some of the tunnels of waste so that at least a few tunnels (as well as the maintenance hallways) are somewhat livable.  That's my basic dungeon theme.

The PCs get to the dungeon by following various sewer passages.  What's the main entrance?  Well, the villains here are rogues and a wizard - which means the main entrance should be a trap, and probably an arcane one.  We'll set this up as two tunnels, one a bear skin stretched over a hole in the wall, the other filled with muck and slime.  There is a body by the bear skin, or maybe just a skeleton.  PCs might think the bear skin is trapped, and so take the slimy way in - when in reality, the trap is in the water, and the bear skin is actually the safe entrance.  The trap itself is just a clamp trap - and when it slams shut, some magical aquatic creatures are summoned in the water to chew on the poor sod caught in the jaws.

2.  Hallways

In this context, "hallways" are any means of connecting one encounter to another.  They often explain why monsters in room 2 don't come running when room 1 is attacked.  DMs often make the mistake of leaving hallways at that, rarely putting encounters there. 

In your perfect dungeon, every hallway should have something unique about it.  Make there be a point where your players have to ask a question.  Remember, if a Player is asking a question, he's involved in the game.  The more questions he's asking, the more interested he is. 

Also, try to use your characters' skills, if at all possible.  If you can get Players to utilize their non-combat abilities, they'll love you for it.  Don't cater the adventure to their abilities, though - they'll pick up on it if, everytime they come across something requiring a skill or a language, one of them have it.  Sometimes, just leave the PCs in the dark (it's too bad none of them speak Abyssal!)

With that in mind, think of objects that mesh with your theme that will prompt PC interaction.  This doesn't have to be a trap, or a wandering guard (although those certainly work).  It could be something as simple as a strange breeze whistling down the hallway, or a hint about the room ahead. 

In our example dungeon, the first hallway should show signs of rogue passage.  Maybe a set of hooks on the wall, with the rogues' cloaks hanging.  This could give PCs an idea of how many rogues are in the dungeon.  Later hallways will include a little-used hallway that is trapped, a hallway that is still a sewer drainage canal (with wooden planks over the canals for the inhabitants to use), and a hallway that is beginning to crumble from improper rain drainage.  Throughout the hallways, there will be a lot of graffitti written in chalk and pain - there are a few artists among the rogues, it seems.  Much of this graffitti will be slang or improper jokes, but some will also be in various languages.  Each hallway will give curious PCs something to read - if you want, you can even foreshadow future events with hallway graffitti.

Okay.  That's it for now.  Next time we'll cover the combat encounters of the perfect dungeon, and how each encounter should progress the storyline.  Take care, and keep gaming.