DUNGEONS
Hellooooooooo everyone it's Drowsy and I have not post nearly as much as I wanted to on here (or anywhere TBH) and I wanted to start off today by reinstating a favorite of mine-- what's that? You have no clue what I'm talking about. Oh, how sorry I am, let me backup, because today is--
Every(ish) Wednesday I like to try and do a thingy thing-- a worldbuilding thingy thing. And I haven't been doing that, which is so very sad. Which is also why I'm bringing it back!
Now for today I'm gonna be talking about something who is, I'd say, very past the cultural zeitgeist now (by a couple months) which is Dungeon Meshi, why? Because I only recently finished the series and it pertains to today's topic-- DUNGEONS.
Why Dungeons? Well 1.) because I feel like they can still serve a purpose in modern D&D/other TTRPGs, 2.) they don't get enough love (in my opinion), and 3.) I plan to use Dungeons (or rather one honkin' huge one) in my own project. Sound good? Awesome.
First what is a Dungeon? Merriam-Webster describes them as "a dark usually underground prison or vault." Which I like but we can do better.
For simplicity sake we are going to describe a dungeon as "an obscured, usually maze-like, structure which gives host to a particular adventure or set of adventures." Vague, but pointedly vague.
Now the thing about my style of game, whether or not it's D&D, is it's always always roleplay based, I've never been a big "Dungeon-Crawler" GM, but I used to be a big "Dungeon-Crawler" player, which comes with I think just the crowds I was playing with when I was first introduced to the game and the community (y'know, way back when). But there isn't anything wrong with playing dungeon crawls, I just like my game a bit more grounded in reality. That was until I discovered a world, or rather series that tackles that dungeon crawling in such a unique and interesting way, I am of course referring to--
Delicious in Dungeons otherwise known by it's far more popular name, Dungeon Meshi. This series has a real nostalgic vibe for me, like an old school game but played by a serious GM and party who want to push the boundaries of their game. That is of course thanks to the creator Ryoko Kui and her deep love of all things fantasy.
Well what makes it so fresh and new in the staple of an already heavy and preexisting genre of fantasy, well for starters, and the most obvious, is the cooking element. Each monster has its own unique worldbuilding, flavor, and unique ways to be vital to a single episode of the series. There is also the subtle worldbuilding and lore of the dungeon itself which defines the dungeon and gives it its own personality. There is also the use of fantasy staples (Halfling rogue, Human fighter, Elf who's good at magic, big strong Dwarf) and turning those tropes on their head (Halfling who's in his 40s, Human leader who isn't charismatic, Elf who isn't always good at magic, Dwarf who likes cooking). All of this combines to make a setting which feels uniquely its own.
Now, of course Dungeon Meshi is just one fine example of this worldbuilding but there are many more, each with their own unique styles, lore, creatures, treasures, etc. But how can we make *YOUR* dungeons more interesting?
The Flavor: well for any good Dungeon it should take on a sort of character of its own, you can make your dungeons unique by giving them their own character traits.
Think of unique descriptors or traits that would flavor your dungeon to have a specific pizzazz. For one of my settings "Carved from Ruin" dungeon delving is a key role in the story, so to distinguish them they each have their own flavors: one of them is buried deep in the dessert, washed away under a mountain of sand and acts more like a pyramid lost beneath the sands. Another one could be a necromancer's laboratory with a keen sense for undeath. Yet another could be trapped between dimensions and splits between the different realms of existence between layers.
Either way you go about it, each dungeon should feel uniquely its own. Think of different places, reasons, and types of dungeons that would be built.
The Monsters: now I don't suggest spending time developing what each and every monster tastes like (unless you're into that kind of thing) but give the dungeon unique monsters, not just your run of the mill goblins, ghouls, and other g-starting-words. Make them feel varied and like a orchestra of different beings.
I for one don't subscribe to the idea of "evil races" in any TTRPG, there are evil people who do evil things, but not every one of a group is evil. Goblins might rob you because they need money for their desolate villages to trade with their Dwarven neighbors, and skeletons might be able to reconnect to their souls from when they were alive. However, some animals or creatures may act on instinct, such as slimes may detect you as a food source and they need more nutrients than rat dung and bones. A pack of roaming basilisks may have set up nests in the depths of a dungeon for protection.
Each monster/animal/creature should have purpose, and purpose more than just "I'm evil!" Good storytelling comes when stories cross and blend into one or many different stories.
And finally, we have play with the status quo. The norm of the dungeon should not be the norm of the surface world, things get weird down here. I almost use Dungeons as the Wild Wests of my settings, where nearly everything is legal and laws go out the window.
Perhaps the nearby dungeon serves as the home of the town's Black Market, or rather its been taken over by turncoat Adventurers who have become more like poachers. Either way these Dungeons don't work well with the "status quo" of the above world.
Aaaaand yeah! I hope all those were helpful, and let me know if this is something you're interested in seeing in the future! I worked hard on this one and maybe later I'll talk about my own project. Any ways I hope to see you all again very very soon. And with that... *yawn* I'm... uh... Zzzz... Zzz... Drowsy... Zzzz...
