Dungeoncrawling in Plunderer!
This is a preview of the sections on dungeoncrawling in Plunderer! Version 1.0, including some examples of how the dungeoncrawling procedures might be applied.
Rules
Examining an Area
PCs can examine an area equal to their speed x 10 in square feet; this means an unencumbered PC, who can traverse twelve 10' squares in 10 minutes, could instead search twelve 10' squares in 10 minutes. In the fiction, examining an area represents things like tapping the ground with a 10-foot pole, prodding walls for secret doors, etc. Examining an area doesn't trigger traps.
While the difficulty for finding hidden things is 10, each point above 10 reveals an additional hidden thing, up to however many hidden things are in the space the PC examined.
Moving
Once a PC decides to actually go through an area (especially hallways/corridors), they get a chance to passively detect any hidden things (like traps or secret doors) along the path, though this has a Very Hard difficulty of 12. Then, the party moves through the area, potentially triggering any traps or other mechanisms along the way. Note that most traps do not always trigger and PCs usually still get a chance to make a saving throw to avoid being harmed.
Other Activities
Each PC and Retainer in the party can act independently during a Turn. A party can divide a large area among themselves to examine, or have multiple PCs examining the same area. A PC can also spend the Turn attempting to pick a lock, listen at a door, etc. If one PC spends the Turn standing guard, there is no penalty to avoid being surprised by random encounters.
Wandering Monsters
At the end of every 10-minute Turn, the GM rolls to determine whether there is a random encounter with wandering monsters. The chance of this happening is usually 1-in-6, 1-in-12, or 1-in-18 each Turn based on the level of activity in the dungeon/where the party is inside it. One of the PCs must make a WIL test to see if the party is surprised: if the party is stationary there is a -2 penalty unless at least one PC has been standing guard.
Examples
Searching a Room
3 PCs enter a 40’ x 30’ square room: Elys the Elf, Daro the Dwarf, and Halla the Halfling. The room is represented as a 4 x 3 rectangle on their graph paper map and the PCs are all heavily encumbered, so they can each explore 6 of the 12 squares in the room per Turn.
GM: The room has a moldering bed on the west side, and a large chest on the east side. Some ivory figurines stand atop the mantel of an ancient fireplace up against the northern wall.
There are 3 hidden things in the room: a hidden stash of scrolls under the mattress, a button on an ivory figurine which opens a secret passageway, and an electricity spell set to go off if the chest is opened.
Halla: I can be the lookout while the others search.
Elys: I'll take the side with the bed, and Daro can take the side with the chest?
Daro: Sure.
Below are four different examples of how each search might go, based on whether the player specifies where and how they search and whether or not they succeed.
Elys' Search
| Targeted | Not Targeted |
|---|---|
| Elys: I want to check around the bed and peek under the mattress. | Elys: I'll look around the west side of the room, the side with the bed. |
| GM: *rolls a 10* Lifting up the mattress, you see a pile of scrolls. | GM: *rolls a 10* You see a scrap of paper sticking out from under the bed. |
| OR | OR |
| GM: *rolls a 6* Lifting up the mattress, you see a pile of scrolls. | GM: *rolls a 6* You don't notice anything amiss. |
| By specifying that she checks under the bed, Elys finds the scrolls even if they fail the search roll. | Without specifying, Elys only gets a clue to the scrolls' existence if they succeed at their roll. |
Daro's Search
| Targeted | Not Targeted |
|---|---|
| Daro: I want to check out the chest. I'm gonna run my hands over it to see if there's any needle traps or anything. | Daro: I want to look around the chest. |
| GM: *rolls a 10* No needle traps, but as you bring your hands close to the chest, you feel static electricity build up as you get closer to the clasp. | GM: *rolls a 10* You feel a soft buzzing around the chest accompanied by a burnt smell. |
| OR | OR |
| GM: *rolls a 6* You feel static building up around your hands as you probe the chest. | GM: *rolls a 6* You don't notice anything amiss. |
| By specifying how he examines the chest, Daro ensures he gets some information even if he doesn't succeed on his roll. | Without specifying, Daro only gets a clue to the trap's existence if he succeeds at his roll. |
Moving Down a Hallway
The party opens a door to find a 60' long, 10' wide corridor leading into another chamber.
GM: The hallway is unlit except by your torchlight, and is just as crumbling and dilapidated as the rest of the complex.
There are two trapdoors, one a third of the way down the hallway and another two thirds down.
Daro: Shall we? *other players nod* We advance down the hallway.
The GM rolls for passive perception and only Elys succeeds with a 12, enough to reveal one trapdoor but not the other.
GM: Elys, about a third of the way down the hallway, you see a 5' x 5' square in the floor that has less dust and rubble than the surrounding area.
Elys: Ahhh, probably cause it opened up the last time someone stepped on it. Don't step there, everyone.
Halla: Do we think there might be any more traps?
Daro: I don't think we have time, those goblins Elys put to sleep are gonna wake up any minute. I say we risk it.
The party goes ahead, avoiding the first trap but walking right over the second one. This trapdoor has a 2-in-6 chance of going off whenever it's stepped on, and ends up triggering while Daro walks over it.
GM: Daro, you feel the floor give way beneath you as you near the end of the corridor. Give me a DEX save, difficulty 6.
Daro: Damnit. *rolls a 4* Damnit.
GM: *sighs* Bye bye Daro.
Checklist
And here is a step-by-step guide for a typical Turn of dungeoncrawling:
Examining a Room
- The GM describes the area the party has entered.
- The party is staying in the area: decides what each PC and Retainer is doing and describes how.
- The GM makes the party's WIL tests for any searches and other investigations, and narrates the results.
- The GM rolls for Wandering Monsters.
- (if there are Wandering Monsters) One of the PCs tests to see if the party is surprised, -2 if there was no lookout.
- (if there are Wandering Monsters) The GM determines the monsters' reaction and distance.
Moving
- The GM describes the area the party has entered.
- The party is traversing the area: the players clarify the marching order if necessary.
- The GM makes the party's WIL tests for passive discoveries, and narrates the results.
- The GM rolls for Wandering Monsters.
- (if there are Wandering Monsters) One of the PCs tests to see if the party is surprised.
- (if there are Wandering Monsters) The GM determines the monsters' reaction and distance.