Placing the World's Largest Dungeon in FR "Spoilers Possible" [Archive] - Wizards Community

Placing the World's Largest Dungeon in FR "Spoilers Possible" [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
DwarvinJedi
10-10-04, 12:11 AM I jsut bought the World's Largest Dungeon by Alderac Publishings, and wanted to put it in FR, so for any of you who have this, or just like the Realms, where could you put this.

**Spoilers Possible**

Basically the history is that it was built by celestials as a prison for evil things, then slowly dissolved into jsut a dungeon, there was a massive earthquake, which brought a lava flow, which allowed the dungeon to sustain life, so slowly things started coming, including derro, drow, lizardmen, etc.
And I just started reading the first Map Region, so any misnomers are not my fault.
Wil Harvey
10-10-04, 01:57 AM http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=319630

That's a thread about question regarding unmarked islands in Toril on the standard D&D forums. I think any one of these islands could make a perfect location.
Gray Richardson
10-10-04, 03:37 AM I think either somewhere in the Shaar or the Endless Wastes or the Tortured Lands or possibly even Anauroch would all be good candidates.

Possibly the Neverwinter Woods also up near Mount Hotenow or near the Fire Peaks in the Jungles of Jult if you want it next to a volcano.

All these places are relatively out of the way and might explain why the dungeon was undiscovered by humankind for so long.
Mirtek
10-10-04, 10:13 AM Just one question: Does the dungeon make any sense?

I can't imaginge a good reason for every SRD monster to be there.
DwarvinJedi
10-10-04, 10:29 AM Just one question: Does the dungeon make any sense?

I can't imaginge a good reason for every SRD monster to be there.
It makes some sense, and not EVERY monster is in, jsut every catetgory like sphinx, or chromatic dragon, or a demon, except that they wanted to include every demon, but I'm not sure they did, plus I don't think you fight most good-aligned monsters.
PLus they give you 20 empty rooms that you can fill with whatever you want, I think I am going to put at least a Mind Flayer in there.
And thanks for the replies
greaterbaatezu
10-10-04, 05:44 PM Couldn't you technically make it part of a deeper level of undermountain? Or maybe put the entrance to it in Skullport? I'm not familiar with the product, so forgive me if this idea sounds dumb or doesn't fit with the module... But the undermountain boxed set states that it's always changing, moving, things being added, removed and so on... Just a thought. :D
Hoondatha
10-13-04, 10:19 PM The first three levels of Undermountain are well-mapped in the first Undermountain box set, however the other six levels are not and have never been (barring a raid on Ed's basement). So you could concievably put it down there. However, I severely doubt that the product has the same insane feel as the rest of Undermountain, and you'd have to undertake MASSIVE rewrites.

My personal idea would be to make it the ruins of Dragonspear Castle, with a big gate to the Nine Hells in the center. Get a copy of the Ruins of Dragonspear Castle adventure and run it as an intro, then send your (hapless) PC's into the dungeon trying to knock out the portal and stop the invasion. It's been explicitly stated that the Castle's lower levels rival Undermountain (or at least a few levels of it), so a massive dungeon module would fit right in.
Aulnil
10-14-04, 04:12 PM So, is it worth the expense? It sounds incredible and I'm itching to buy it, but I need an honest opinion. As for location, how about taking the the 2ed version of the Great Glacier and popping it in there somewhere with maybe a dual adventure with high and low level characters simultaneously encountering Ixyachtl (the worshipper of Auril from the High level campaigns book) and using her castle as a passage into the dungeon.
nekrolog
10-15-04, 04:18 PM So, is it worth the expense? It sounds incredible and I'm itching to buy it, but I need an honest opinion.

I've got just the opinion for you...

I'm DM'ing the WLD in FR, going on session five or six now. Is it worth the expense? I'd probably say: not really. It does suffer from genericness. I bought it because my FLGS gave me over 30% off for it, and it seemed like a good idea at the time.

It's really big, and that's only because it's actually 14 different sort-of independent dungeons that just happen to connect. There is a loose backstory to it, and some themes, but it's just a dungeon crawl really.

To compare it with something recent like COtSQ for FR, at least that module can be run from start to finish with a plot that progresses as the players get further into it. In the WLD, every time you cross into a new map, it's just a new mini-dungeon that's not linked to the last.
ruleslawyer
10-15-04, 06:22 PM What about taking the dungeons apart and inserting (some or all of) them as separate main levels or sub-levels into Undermountain? It seems like the "Deepest Dungeon of All" would only have its diversity and wonder enhanced by a diverse array of dungeon environments. Or does it just have a "feel" that's too divorced from Realmslore to work in Undermountain?
nekrolog
10-15-04, 06:28 PM What about taking the dungeons apart and inserting (some or all of) them as separate main levels or sub-levels into Undermountain? It seems like the "Deepest Dungeon of All" would only have its diversity and wonder enhanced by a diverse array of dungeon environments. Or does it just have a "feel" that's too divorced from Realmslore to work in Undermountain?

It suffers from "Greyhawk Syndrome" IMO... it's just really generic and dry. I think some sections could work as undermountain levels with some realms-ification. It actually could be a decent skeleton of a realms campaign though, if anyone had the time to actually convert all 840 pages of it to the realms.
Aulnil
10-16-04, 08:32 AM Thanks for the insightful info. Necrolog. And, the other suggestions of splitting the layers up and tacking some on to Undermountain might work. I had a question though; is Ruins of Undermountain available anywhere as a free download yet? Or just the maps themselves?
DwarvinJedi
10-16-04, 10:03 AM Well, I'm going to start running it tommorrow, and I don't think I will place it in FR, since another person wnats to run a campaign with the charcters once they get out.
nekrolog
10-16-04, 03:34 PM Well, I'm going to start running it tommorrow, and I don't think I will place it in FR, since another person wnats to run a campaign with the charcters once they get out.

Let us know how session one goes... the entry doors caused a lot of laughter from our group. Actually, if you want to hear the story, it's here: Session One (http://mysite.verizon.net/res8j9i7/id3.html)
Faraer
10-16-04, 03:53 PM Anchorome?

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
DwarvinJedi 10-10-04, 12:11 AM	I jsut bought the World's Largest Dungeon by Alderac Publishings, and wanted to put it in FR, so for any of you who have this, or just like the Realms, where could you put this. Spoilers Possible Basically the history is that it was built by celestials as a prison for evil things, then slowly dissolved into jsut a dungeon, there was a massive earthquake, which brought a lava flow, which allowed the dungeon to sustain life, so slowly things started coming, including derro, drow, lizardmen, etc. And I just started reading the first Map Region, so any misnomers are not my fault.
Wil Harvey 10-10-04, 01:57 AM	http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=319630 That's a thread about question regarding unmarked islands in Toril on the standard D&D forums. I think any one of these islands could make a perfect location.
Gray Richardson 10-10-04, 03:37 AM	I think either somewhere in the Shaar or the Endless Wastes or the Tortured Lands or possibly even Anauroch would all be good candidates. Possibly the Neverwinter Woods also up near Mount Hotenow or near the Fire Peaks in the Jungles of Jult if you want it next to a volcano. All these places are relatively out of the way and might explain why the dungeon was undiscovered by humankind for so long.
Mirtek 10-10-04, 10:13 AM	Just one question: Does the dungeon make any sense? I can't imaginge a good reason for every SRD monster to be there.
DwarvinJedi 10-10-04, 10:29 AM	Just one question: Does the dungeon make any sense? I can't imaginge a good reason for every SRD monster to be there. It makes some sense, and not EVERY monster is in, jsut every catetgory like sphinx, or chromatic dragon, or a demon, except that they wanted to include every demon, but I'm not sure they did, plus I don't think you fight most good-aligned monsters. PLus they give you 20 empty rooms that you can fill with whatever you want, I think I am going to put at least a Mind Flayer in there. And thanks for the replies
greaterbaatezu 10-10-04, 05:44 PM	Couldn't you technically make it part of a deeper level of undermountain? Or maybe put the entrance to it in Skullport? I'm not familiar with the product, so forgive me if this idea sounds dumb or doesn't fit with the module... But the undermountain boxed set states that it's always changing, moving, things being added, removed and so on... Just a thought. :D
Hoondatha 10-13-04, 10:19 PM	The first three levels of Undermountain are well-mapped in the first Undermountain box set, however the other six levels are not and have never been (barring a raid on Ed's basement). So you could concievably put it down there. However, I severely doubt that the product has the same insane feel as the rest of Undermountain, and you'd have to undertake MASSIVE rewrites. My personal idea would be to make it the ruins of Dragonspear Castle, with a big gate to the Nine Hells in the center. Get a copy of the Ruins of Dragonspear Castle adventure and run it as an intro, then send your (hapless) PC's into the dungeon trying to knock out the portal and stop the invasion. It's been explicitly stated that the Castle's lower levels rival Undermountain (or at least a few levels of it), so a massive dungeon module would fit right in.
Aulnil 10-14-04, 04:12 PM	So, is it worth the expense? It sounds incredible and I'm itching to buy it, but I need an honest opinion. As for location, how about taking the the 2ed version of the Great Glacier and popping it in there somewhere with maybe a dual adventure with high and low level characters simultaneously encountering Ixyachtl (the worshipper of Auril from the High level campaigns book) and using her castle as a passage into the dungeon.
nekrolog 10-15-04, 04:18 PM	So, is it worth the expense? It sounds incredible and I'm itching to buy it, but I need an honest opinion. I've got just the opinion for you... I'm DM'ing the WLD in FR, going on session five or six now. Is it worth the expense? I'd probably say: not really. It does suffer from genericness. I bought it because my FLGS gave me over 30% off for it, and it seemed like a good idea at the time. It's really big, and that's only because it's actually 14 different sort-of independent dungeons that just happen to connect. There is a loose backstory to it, and some themes, but it's just a dungeon crawl really. To compare it with something recent like COtSQ for FR, at least that module can be run from start to finish with a plot that progresses as the players get further into it. In the WLD, every time you cross into a new map, it's just a new mini-dungeon that's not linked to the last.
ruleslawyer 10-15-04, 06:22 PM	What about taking the dungeons apart and inserting (some or all of) them as separate main levels or sub-levels into Undermountain? It seems like the "Deepest Dungeon of All" would only have its diversity and wonder enhanced by a diverse array of dungeon environments. Or does it just have a "feel" that's too divorced from Realmslore to work in Undermountain?
nekrolog 10-15-04, 06:28 PM	What about taking the dungeons apart and inserting (some or all of) them as separate main levels or sub-levels into Undermountain? It seems like the "Deepest Dungeon of All" would only have its diversity and wonder enhanced by a diverse array of dungeon environments. Or does it just have a "feel" that's too divorced from Realmslore to work in Undermountain? It suffers from "Greyhawk Syndrome" IMO... it's just really generic and dry. I think some sections could work as undermountain levels with some realms-ification. It actually could be a decent skeleton of a realms campaign though, if anyone had the time to actually convert all 840 pages of it to the realms.
Aulnil 10-16-04, 08:32 AM	Thanks for the insightful info. Necrolog. And, the other suggestions of splitting the layers up and tacking some on to Undermountain might work. I had a question though; is Ruins of Undermountain available anywhere as a free download yet? Or just the maps themselves?
DwarvinJedi 10-16-04, 10:03 AM	Well, I'm going to start running it tommorrow, and I don't think I will place it in FR, since another person wnats to run a campaign with the charcters once they get out.
nekrolog 10-16-04, 03:34 PM	Well, I'm going to start running it tommorrow, and I don't think I will place it in FR, since another person wnats to run a campaign with the charcters once they get out. Let us know how session one goes... the entry doors caused a lot of laughter from our group. Actually, if you want to hear the story, it's here: Session One (http://mysite.verizon.net/res8j9i7/id3.html)
Faraer 10-16-04, 03:53 PM	Anchorome?