Making a dungeon

[Heres_Beefy]

Golems lots of half finished suits of animated dwarven armour enchanted by the souls of the smiths that once forged them.
I think that would be pretty sweet, come up with a reason all the smths died perhaps a curse oooooor an ancient raid from a rival civilization? Maybe there questing to free the trapped souls ooor just to find the hidden treasure.

[pblackcrow]

Here is an idea...

Rumors have been going around that there is a local arms manufacturing operation making larger than normal weapons. After some investigation (which probably involves getting a hold of some of these weapons) it is discovered that these weapons are about wolfen-sized. It turns out that a small tribe of kobolds has moved in to the old dwarven forge and are using the facilities to produce weapons for the Wolfen Empire up north.

There are kobolds here, along with some coyles and a small cadre of skilled wolfen soldiers overseeing the whole operation.

Actually, I was going to suggest that and throw in some orcs as outside peremptory guards. With the same armor and stuff. And also you may want to have a wolfen summoner there to oversee things and teleport stuff and to bring in additional troops if needed.

[The Dark Elf]

Use the rune forge in LotD: 2.

Have it populated with tectonic entities and have them use the stuff forged (so armour and weapons). Have the big baddies use rune weapons/armour....

For living creatures have a maniacal necromancer who commands legion of undead (also in LotD:2). - yes ok this bit is obvious and old and not what was asked but they rock so screw it (I dont mean necrophilia btw, I mean the idea of not including them...)

[Hendrik]

Hi there,

intriguing!

When I make a dungeon it helps me to look at it historically:

- was there somebody before the dwarves?
- maybe an older sacred site?
- where the dwarves killed by an ancient evil from such site?
- what exactly did the dwarves do there: just forging or was there trade?
- what kind of trade (may tell you what is still lying around)?
- how large was the dwarven population (larger groups may need some amusement, so there may be an inn, a theatre, an arena, maybe some wild animals left)?
- why did the dwarves leave?
- who came then, who were the comers and goers, who is still there, what changes were made to the construction of the dungeon?
- who built which traps, some may be new and primitive, others may be old dwarven but dysfunctional now because of ropes rotting or metal corroding

Make the dungeon a living thing, logical.

- what changes happened because of earth slides, water break-ins?
- which passages are now inaccessible, which under water, without air, filled with fungi?

Kind regards
Hendrik

(EDITED 13th April 2012 because of horrible smart-phone editor use born spelling mistakes)

[Cinos]

I don't do dungeons that much (too much work) but Hendric's thankfully summed up how I go about it nicely, so +1 to that.

[t0m]

i have to agree with Hendrik. the more information you can come up with, the easier it is to make a layout and population. layout is just logic mostly, and a bit of creativity. where do the workers stay? in a nearby town or are there barracks for them? a kitchen to feed all the dwarves? storage areas (for all kinds of supplies like grain, textiles, maybe even livestock, tools etc)? are there mines or is it just a workshop? in a rune forge there would be a summoning area, probably some kind of holding cells for the creatures summoned, a forge to work the items, maybe a special rune forge for doing the magic part of the process etc.

another thing i always try to do is use that back story to make at least one unique creature to populate the dungeon with. if your dungeons is a dwarven rune forge (for example), maybe the workers all got killed trying to summon something too powerful to make a very special weapon. maybe the weapon or creature are still in there, tens of thousands of years later. that is a long time. maybe the demon used that time (and all the resources which must have been present in an operational rune forge) to make all the workers bodies into an ever-suffering flesh golem as punishment. as a legacy of his hate he corrupted the place beyond recognition before finally learning how to escape the magic that held him (or not maybe he is still there, or the sword with him in it etc). in the wake of this corruption, anything that dies inside is cursed to unlife...so the place is now also overrun with undead rock crawlers (or troglodytes, kobolds, tomb robbers, previous adventuring groups etc) who burrowed in at random over the last few hundred years.

suddenly this place is starting to get fleshed out and have a life of its own. its not anything amazing or award winning, but it represents a few minutes of brainstorming and letting ideas feed each other. i would be ready to draw a map now and roll up a flesh golem monster and a bunch of random undead...but the thing that ties it all up is your players. let them discover the story of the place and have some kind of effect on it (free the workers souls from the flesh golem or lift the undead curse or something) and they will remember it as something more than a grey, dark maze with monsters and loot in it. if they do, then you did it right.

[Hendrik]

As t0m said, undead are always nice. They don't grow stale, well not beyond usability.

Now for another creature concept:

... where do the workers stay? in a nearby town or are there barracks for them? a kitchen to feed all the dwarves? storage areas (for all kinds of supplies like grain, textiles, maybe even livestock, tools etc)? are there mines or is it just a workshop? in a rune forge there would be a summoning area, probably some kind of holding cells for the creatures summoned, a forge to work the items, maybe a special rune forge for doing the magic part of the process etc.

THE ELDER RUNIC WERERAT

Where there is a grain supply, there are usually rats. Let us now assume the dwarves left for some reason or were killed. The grain supply will go stale, the rats hungry. Hungry rats start to seach for food. Let us then assume that one of the rats walks into the rune forge area and is affected by the terrible and powerful magics (sounds cool) there. That could, inter alia, have increased its life span. Now because of same magic the rat grows bigger, too. Voilà, giant rat(s).

Let us then assume that the most magicked "rune" rat bites a [insert creature of your choice]. Voilà, a (special kind of) wererat.

Maybe, because of the runic magic, it is also nigh immortal and bides its time ... in terrible hunger ... and complete boredom as it cannot die. Now, what does a werebeast do in the inevitable moments of clarity when the lycanthropy does not take hold of it ... it is immortal as we just found out, so it has LOTS of time ... it will think ... it will roam the place. Maybe there is an old dwarven library there as well ... or it gets its grimy little hands on a spell book of a passing by adventurer spelunking on its turf. Voilà, a spell using werebeast.

Cheers
Hendrik

[pblackcrow]

The orcs would be a good idea outside and in the first few rooms if secrecy were to be involved ("Oh, that just looks like another orc-den..."). Of course, that is assuming that since it is a dwarf-forge, that it is located somewhere around the Old Kingdom Mountains. In other places, other sorts of humanoids might be more appropriate.

As for the summoner, I was taking the angle that magic is still fairly new to wolfen and wasn't making any specific suggestions as to whether a spellcaster would be present or not. Though me personally, if I was feeling particularly nasty, would make it an earth and/or fire warlock.

To each there own, mate...And it could always be a human or elven summoner from that one town/city up there.

Perhaps for the a subplot, a twisted noble who is being paid off to look the other way.

[pblackcrow]

Another idea is put it into a dormant volcano to vent smoke and act as cover.

[Hendrik]

Another idea is put it into a dormant volcano to vent smoke and act as cover.

... which could explode if the players prove too nosy.

Seriously, a volcano would be a great asset:

- It is a constant threat (you just need to mention volvano, rumble and uncanny heat in one sentence)
- It might be logical to provide the great heat I think is necessary for a rune weapon forge
- It provides said steam
- It provides for nice lava streams and "cool" lava pit traps
- It makes demons like the area
- It may make some areas of the mine inaccessable because of smoke or lava
- It may cause earthquakes or so, so may have destroyed parts of the dungeon.

Cheers
Hendrik

[pblackcrow]

Actually, I was thinking more of a dormant volcano, but you could use geothermal in heating water and stuff as well. Volcanic rock is a great insulator. Have a bathhouse on the lower level. I assume they would have an aquifer and reservoir. And permanent globes of daylight for plants and lighting.

[gaby]

The Alchemist,s tomb

A Group of Adventurers after defen a group of Bandits at ther camp,taking ther loot and they
Find a Map that was in a statue that was broken durring the fight.
the Map leds them,to the Tomb of a Alchemist that not only have Treasure and Magic items in it but a Book of the Alchemist,s knownage.
But they need to can pass the traps first.

[ZEN]

Tactical party composition is vital to designing the right terrain and environmental factors, to better challenge your players and engage them. An agile party which faces a lift platform, surrounded by a moat of upwelling oil from an underground depository, for instance, adds all kinds of interest.
The air is full of fumes, if it goes up in flames, it will probably explode and kill everyone.. do not stock the place with the undead unless you have a potent priest on hand, capable of taking out the undead quickly. Do not fill the place with fire elementals, unless the party includes a potent warlock with a knack for negotiation. Do not fill the place with flaming dart traps unless the party includes a more than capable burglar type.. give everyone a chance to shine for a moment.. give fighters something to kill, give mages something to overpower or out wit.. provide secret doors and color coded combination locks, consider the Dwarven love of geometric angles and subtle tricks of masonry, they venerate heroes and reward students of history.. knowing that a door can open if the statue is moved aside is one thing.. knowing that particular hero statue needs to be holding the spear mounted on the opposite wall because he carried it into battle is quite another thing.
Perhaps a trap can only be avoided by the strongest member of the party rolling an iron ball across a metal floor, to stop a powerful electric jolt from setting off the fuel oil fumes?
Perhaps the party archer needs to keep shooting animated braziers that run across a platform, trying to leap into the flammable moat?
Following a logical progression allows players to plan ahead.. if the next room features whirling cogs and pumping mechanisms, and they smell smoke and feel heat ahead, they have some expectations of what the terrain has in store for them.
Mixing oil, water, elevators, steam power, sliding stone construction and functional masonry artworks gives a very 'Dwarfy' feel to things.. that and the occasional low hanging ceiling beam..

[Gulzhad]

I can't remember what they are called, but there is a slime kind of thing in the Monsters book. I find it really nifty, and I also like scarecrows. You could have both running around, and you could have the main baddy have a couple of scarecrows

Another idea would be have a couple of Faceless guys running around. I don't remember what book they are from, but that would be pretty neat.

[Severus Snape]

SPOILER ALERT FOR ANY OF MY PLAYERS

One of my favorite things to do with dungeons and mine complexes is to use cave-ins and tremors. Players are walking along through the place, and a tremor happens, and now that door they wanted to use is buried so they'll have to find another way around.

Tremors and earthquakes are also good ways to drum up ideas about why a once-populated mine is now lifeless and empty.