Thursday 19 November 2015

Self Aware Dungeon Generation

I've spoken of sentient self aware dungeons before. Some are pocket universes and connect many dungeons on different planes. Many dungeon intelligence might partake of a greater force or a collective presence. Some dungeons will have smaller more local spirits. Even levels as spirits acting as factions.

These geniuses can be worshiped and can provide priests and shaman and sorcerers with power. Some dungeons might have enemy spirits from former occupants controlling a few rooms. This means you can inject a dungeon with strange powers, intelligent traps, local cults, shrines dedicated to the dungeon and many more things.

You could be a jerk and give items that only worked in that dungeon that are products of the spirit to attract adventurers. You can make dungeon seem haunted by many entities but really it is far worse. It could develop a avatar. Possibly a ghost or a spirit of a holy person or wizard could be come one.

d10 Number of Entities in Dungeon
1 One dungeon overmind
2 One mind but insane and fighting itself or a imaginary foe
3 One superior spirit but d6 lesser entities in hiding from the great one
4 Many minor ones ruling individual rooms 1in4 all from a formerly single mind now fragmented
5 One superior but each great gate house is a entity that makes passage difficult
6 One entity per level with some relationship d4 1=kin 2=enemies 3=strangers 4=friends
7 One entity per level plus a supreme leader, often ranked weakest down to the master
8 One  major entity with many lesser spirits some barley sentient forming an ecology
9 Several d6+1 entities in combat for control of dungeon and minions souls
10 The dungeon has many spirits locked in battle or taking turns but always in flux

d10 Entity Self Awareness
1 A collective organism consciousness like a coral reef, reacts rather than plans
2 A insect hive like response pattern mostly, notices territorial intruders
3 A cold blooded reptilian spirit coolly calculating and striking at threats
4 A mammalian flight or fight response, retreats for a bit then berserk to defend key locations
5 A clever animalistic intellect that learns quickly and innovates new responses
6 A fully sentient self aware entity that understand it's capabilities and will communicate
7 A secretive sentient self aware entity that spies on opponents and carefully rallies it's puppets
8 A aggressive sentient self aware entity actively expanding, looting and invading beyond domain
9 A curious sentient self aware entity seeks to learn about and experiment with strangers
10 A sadistic sentient self aware entity tormenting it's inhabitants

d10 Entity Observational Capacity
1 Statues and paintings eyes are domains eyes
2 Doorways and keholes are the domains eyes
3 Fire particularly torches and lanterns are the domains eyes
4 Eyes of vermin or magical spy critters are the are the domains eyes
5 Eyes of monsters are the domains eyes
6 Cracks in mortar and stonework are the domains eyes
7 Mirrors, pools or reflective surfaces are the are the domains eyes
8 Entity is fully clairvoyant and can see anything in domain
9 Entity is fully clairvoyant and can see or hear anything in domain
10 Entity is self aware of every atom and magical part of being

d10 Entity Intervention
1 Only intervenes when favorite creations harmed
2 Will aid creations with abilities in combat
3 Will seal intruders inside the domain
4 Will actively bait intruders with personal temptations
5 Will put dungeon on red alert and production when intruders discovered
6 Will test intruders and spy or scout on them
7 Will have puppets place sadistic traps when enemies intrude
8 Will fortify key locations and move valuables when enemies attack
9 Will spy on and prepare a secretive strategic defence or trap
10 Enjoys conflict and watches, encourages victors to remain

d10 Entity Power
1 Can use a d4 cantrips or zero level spells at will
2 Can animate traps and doors and locks and can appear haunted
3 Can empower low level (d4) priests or other magicians
4 Can spawn minor d4 HD of monsters every turn
5 Can communicate with its followers within it's domain
6 Can empower mid level (d4+3) priests or other magicians
7 Can spawn or animate a medium d4+4 HD monster every hour
8 Can create or change features like rooms or corridor every hour
9 Can manifest a avatar to act as a boss takes a week to pawn a new one
10 Has godlike power with it's domain, a pocket universe that exists on many planes

d10 Entity Power Origin
1 Ancestral spirit beings of the dawn times
2 Created by a god during the god wars
3 Created during the end of the necromancers reign
4 Another plane is using as incursion point to this world
5 Created as a bastion of good or law but subverted to wickedness
6 A great tragedy long ago made the spark of the entity
7 It was once a demigod of some tribe or race from long ago
8 It is fueled by fell cosmic powers that humankind is not fit to know
9 A god placed it here to persecute humankind for some great misdeed long ago
10 It has grown from the seeds a great saint or hero or magicians death long ago

d10 Expansive Policy
1 Has spies working local area and nearest big settlement
2 Monsters are raiding area and displacing bandits
3 Spread secret dungeon cult to local area and corrupt locals
4 Support local bandit gang or thieves or assassins guilds
5 Attract allegiances with spell users like priests or wizards
6 Has creatures scouting local area and local population
7 Has sent out magical agents to corrupt or dupe outside leaders
8 Media campaign of posters, bards, poets, gossips and graffiti to attract treasure hunting suckers
9 Dungeon monsters and agents set up a shanty town for murder hobos and scum nearby
10 Expanding tunnels into local settlements and basements

d10 Entity Additional Features
1 Monster generating machine, apparatus or netherworld pit
2 A planar gate where monsters come come from
3 Can summon additional monsters if under red alert condition
4 Can manifest personally as a monster once a week
5 Can manifest personally as a humanoid once a week
6 When the stars are right the dungeon can move to a new place or plane
7 Dungeon environment control d6 1=geothermal 2=cold 3=flood 4=gravity 5=time 6=space
8 All minions, slave races and thralls increasingly bare the dungeons mark
9 Minions monthly plant dungeon seeds which grow into lesser extensions of parent
10 Has access to money to equip minions and attract treasure hunting dupes to eat and rob

Entity Preferred Cult
1 A small cult with master and a few servants serving spirit
2 A coven of 13 in secret perform worship
3 A shaman and servants
4 A priest with many thralls donating cash to cause
5 A priest hood with major temple and many cultists
6 A sorcerer and their cult of drug and vice addicts
7 A warrior order of fanatic fighters and their servants
8 A cult with many minion members and a monastic order
9 A wizard and apprentices set up a school
10 A mad subterranean druidic sect worship the entity

d10 Additional Entity Alignment
1 Good - Light bringers of the overworld
2 Evil - Hungry shadows of the underworld
3 Lawful - Modronic demons of order
4 Chaotic - Crawling swarms of entropy
5 Neutral - Great lords of the spirit world
6 Balanced - Arkons keeping the universe in perpetual motion
7 Lawful Good - Angelic Force of the Seven Heavens
8 Lawful Evil - Diabolic Devilry of the Nine Hells
9 Chaotic Good - The beast lords of the Cosmic Tree
10 Chaotic Evil - Demonic Hordes of the Abyss

d10 Entity Avatars (can replace in a week if killed)
1 A shape shifting spy infiltrates locals and adventurers
2 A seemingly innocent attractive prisoner needing to be rescued
3 A adventurer lost and alone seeking a new party
4 A magician d4 1=wizard 2=sorcerer 3=priest 4=druid
5 A outer planar being appropriate to alignment
6 A sentient golem
7 A powerful spirit or non corporeal entity
8 A powerful elemental being
9 A lich or powerful undead
10 A horrendous unique magical beast

d10 Entity Ambition
1 Torment and torture anyone foolish enough to enter
2 Manipulate and spread influence beyond dungeon
3 To keep a great treasure from human kind
4 To attract and corrupt outsiders
5 To attract, devour and rob outsiders
6 Bastion of a species of monster
7 To release monsters to outside world
8 To grow and expand attracting monsters with homes
9 To accumulate and horde treasure
10 Spread terror and feed off mortals fear

d10 Dungeon Heart (always well hidden and guarded)
1 A huge glowing gem
2 A huge beating organic heart in a jar
3 A huge brain or severed head in a alchemical apparatus
4 A huge bubbling alchemical apparatus
5 A sinister statue or idol with jeweled eyes (1in4 a golem)
6 A strange carved monolith or altar worshiped since ancient times
7 A weird well connected to the underworld
8 An alien machine built by lost gods possibly tended by minions
9 A corpse in a crypt - might animate if in peril
10 A mass of glowing crystals

d10 Dungeon Bait (Sent by entity to lure adventurers)
1 Maps often wrong spread around country promising easy gold
2 Rumour campaign of wealthy adventures easy time in dungeon
3 Inspire bards with poems and songs about easy pickings
4 Reward posters offering cash to rescue someone or recover item in dungeon
5 Weak humanoids easy caught squeal about dungeon and unguarded entries
6 Fragments of adventurer journals found promising easy loot
7 Fragments of documents providing clues tailored to adventurers personal quest
8 An agent travels about telling adventurers of attractive prisoners in peril
9 Dead monster found with some attractive treasure and a map
10 A dungeon agent poses as a prophet or bard tells adventurers of fabled loot

d10 Dungeon Agents on the outside
1 Mayor of a shanty town where murder hobos gather to attack dungeon
2 Tavern keeper who tells stories of easy pickings
3 A thief who informs dungeon of adventures movements
4 A cultist who tries to join party as camp follower
5 A shop keeper who sells false clues of dungeon and buys dungeon items to return to dungeon
6 A bard who travels around county sings of the dungeon and spies on adventurers
7 A bandit gang leader who offers to join adventurers to betray them
8 A homeless idiot or drunk who spies on adventures and authorities
9 A prostitute or local who seduces adventurers and pumps them for information
10 Local sheriff secretly aids dungeon and gives it prisoners

6 comments:

  1. Of course dungeons are alive. The monsters and traps are their immune systems.

    ReplyDelete
  2. A meager Quadrillion poossible results...

    Just a few of yout random table posts could keep a game going for years.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Why does my auto-correct think poosible and yout are words?

      Delete

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