Dungeon23 Week 2

Well this feels like a double success for me: I have managed to keep up my attempt at Dungeon23 for 2 weeks solid without issue, and I have managed 2 blog posts in 2 weeks as well. It is no coincidence that one is very definitely feeding into the other. So, this week I am going to give a bit of detail on the rooms that I have come up with, as well as talk about the effect that the challenge is having on my mindset as a dungeon master.

As things stand after 2 weeks

 The Rooms

I wrote last week about the general theme for level 1 and that was of an abandoned temple complex and observatory built into a hill, which has now been occupied by an orc tribe who are busy exploring it and using it as a base of operations. This has been the basis that I have worked to over the past 2 weeks, theming the rooms around how the orcs are now using them, whilst also working in their previous purpose. Whilst much of this previous purpose is removed and has been detailed much in the short room descriptions, I intend to add some of it back in when at the table through the use of environmental storytelling and incidental flavour.

The Crevasse (9)

The first place I added detail to this week was the crevasse which I mentioned last week. I already knew this existed and wanted it to add verticality to the dungeon, as well as an additional way to travel between levels of the dungeon. To this, I defined the depth this week, briefly described a rickety bridge across it that the orcs have added to enable them to control the far side more easily. Added that there are caves at the bottom of the crevasse, foreshadowing a future level of the dungeon to be done later in the year (without actually committing to where these caves exactly are, to give myself flexibility).

Kennels (10)

Decided that the orcs would have their own sizeable dogs that they keep as guard animals and to aid them in battle. This adds some variety to the orcs, as well as humanizing them somewhat. They keep their dogs in a kennel room, converted from its previous purpose by removing all of the previous furnishings, and adding a crude wooden fence to make a kennel area, which is covered in straw and has water and food for the dogs. The orcs care about these dogs, and have slaves take care of this area. In their carelessness in converting this room, the orcs have missed a hidden cache of treasure which is now beneath the straw, but maybe PCs will find it?

Garbage Pit (11)

Next door to the kennels is where the orcs get rid of their rubbish, whether that is food waste or bodies. This area of the complex lies close to the crevasse, and suffered damage during the upheaval. This becomes very clear here as the floor has collapsed into a sink hole, accessing a cavern on the level below which is home to a grey ooze. This creature has been trapped and simply exists in the watery cavern 15ft beneath the floor of the garbage room. This room has a foul stench, mainly emanating from the pit, and the floor here can be slippery, presenting a hazard to quick moving creatures.

Torture Chamber (12)

To complete the trio of potentially unpleasant rooms in a row, the orcs have also set up a chamber which is the home of their torturer, Nogugh. This orc is unpopular with the majority of his tribe, because of his interest in hurting other sentient beings for pleasure and religious expression. This chamber is his world, with an area sectioned off for his bed and belongings and the rest of the room is dedicated to the tools of his trade, including a full sized and working stretching table. The room also includes a small altar that allows Nogugh to make dedications to his obscure deity. Finally, there is a cage here, allowing a prisoner or too to be kept here so they are on hand for Nogugh.

Guard Room (13)

This large room is in the centre of the complex, and can be accessed from several chambers. It serves as a main throughfare to go from level one down to the 2nd level by a stone staircase. The orcs have started to explore the next level down and realised that it is dangerous so they permanently station guards in this room, as well as place a barrier across the stairs unless they are using them. Again this room contains a cage to keep prisoners in, although this has not been used so far. There are several tables and chairs here, plus a weapon rack allowing the guards to snatch up their weapons quickly, and one orc always has an alarm whistle to alert the rest of the tribe.

The Vampire's Quarters (14)

This hidden chamber serves as the home of the orc's nemesis, the vampire Moldun. There are two entrances to this room, both secret doors that remain undiscovered by the orcs. There are small holes in each door allowing the vampire to travel through them in mist form, enabling him to return to his casket without being easily discovered. The central chamber between the two hidden doors contains Moldun's casket, as well as his treasures and furniture to make this a comfortable place for him to rest and reside. Previously this room was a secure chamber that allowed the temple's senior staff to retreat to should there ever be the need, in effect a panic room.

Zhark's Chamber (15)

Just south of the orcs barracks (room 6b) is the room occupied by Zhark, a bugbear mercenary hired to act as a scout and assassin for the orcs. This room was formerly a priest's cell, so was stark and barren. Now however, it has been decorated to suit Zhark's tastes, with a pile of furs in one corner, a trapped chest containing his treasures, a table with bottles of strong liquor covering it, and some lewd tapestries hanging on the walls. The room has a strong scent of incense which Zhark burns habitually in his room.

The Effects of Dungeon23

I have noticed that by pushing myself to write something every day, I am finding my ability to write is enhanced. Now I am sure this isn't a revelation to most, but it certainly feels like it to me. For many years I have struggled to sustain writing for games, which has been a bit of a problem, as I am my groups forever games master. There have been several times of the past 8 years where I know I have run poor games, where I have done very little preparation and simply winged it on the night. Just this week I got some unsolicited feedback about a game I ran several weeks ago, and it proved invaluable, because it showed that I wasn't necessarily getting away with my lack of prep. Since I left teaching in the autumn of 2022, I have found that my motivation for prepping games, as well as my mental energy have been slowly returning. As this returns I find myself pushing to do more, and Dungeon23 has shown that by doing a small amount every day, I find more ideas coming to mind, and more motivation to get these things down on paper. There have been several days so far that I have added more than one room to the map, and the actual map has more rooms on it than write ups, allowing me to think ahead for what I am going to write over the next few days. 

In addition to still being full of enthusiasm for Dungeon23, I have also managed to produce a couple of one page dungeons, with differing amounts of detail on each one. I intend to go into more detail about these in future articles, but for now here are some previews of them:

The Isolated Cistern

The Hidden Cache

Both of these are for part of an ongoing campaign, but they are exactly the kind of thing I would have created last minute, with little thought and not enough detail to really be useful. Now I already know what they look like ahead of time, long before players go there. Again this is hardly revolutionary for anyone running RPGs, but it feels so good to actually be ready ahead of time, adding maps that appeal to me and also with enough detail that I can focus on adding flavour at the table, not having to worry about what the rooms look like, or adding environmental factors.

Looking Ahead

So going into next week, I can already see where the rest of level one of the megadungeon will go, and have been looking to fill in a wandering monster table for this level that ties in to the map. I will look to finish the table this week, as well as finishing the rooms that are already on the map. This will take me up to around the 21st of the month and leave me 10 rooms for the other section to this level. Then it is on to level 2!