Air themed dungeon [Archive] - Wizards Community

Air themed dungeon [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Woas
03-31-04, 11:31 AM I'm kinda upset cause the search function needs me to put in at least 4 letter words. I don't understand why... I tried to search for "air" but it won't let me. I feel bad if this has been brought up before but alas... I was not allowed to search for it.

Anyway, I was thinking of an "air" themed dungeon for my players to go through. Long story short: One of the players is dead. The other players technically do not know the character (he had missed two sessions and was starting late) and thus are not really morally obligated to raise him. The player with the dead character is going to play an interm character that will travel with the party to try and find a way to get him raised. They will discover a lost "temple" that was dedicated to Air creatures. At the end is a Djinn who will grant 1 last wish.

There are plenty of "themed" dungeons around. Fire, earth, underground, evil, undead, etc. Those all seem fairly straight foward in design. But I've been trying to think of an interesting theme and decor for an air themed dungeon, and have been coming up short. The monsters and encounters aren't really the problem. Air elements, mephits, arrowhawks, lesser djinns, air drakes, etc. I got plenty of them to go around. Its the physical place that I've having a hard time defining.

So I was wondering if anyone around here would be willing to help me out and give some examples, ideas or thoughts.

Heres some basic info:
-Characters:
Level 5 - Dwarven Fighter
Levle 6 - Human Swashbuckler (Shadowfoots version)
Level 5 - Elven Conjurer
Level 5 - Human Cleric of Ravaatra (homebrew god)
*Level 4 - Human Fighter (Archery themed. This is the intern character.

- High magic, high fantasy world. Anything can go really.

I already know how the characters will learn and locate the dungeons where abouts, so no worries there. I just need the meat of what an Air dungeon would be like.

The only thing I could think of was: Lots of floating platforms :D
Thanks a bunch.
nevick
03-31-04, 11:49 AM You could design the dungeon with air creatures in mind. as in designed by and for flying stuff. there's some problems right there for the PCs (if they dont have a flying carpet).

Lots of vertical shafts instead of stairs. very uneven floors. Huge rooms with ledges as "rooms". Wind traps?
Woas
03-31-04, 11:59 AM Definetly want wind traps.

Didn't think about the mode of transportation... most air creatures can fly or float. The floors would probably be just like a fourth "wall" to them...
krichaiushii
03-31-04, 12:03 PM Locate it either on a high mountain top, perhaps accessible only to flyers, or locate it on a floating cloud, similar to what cloud giants and some metallic dragons lair on. Either the cloud floats on the winds or it is anchored to a mountain top somehow (strong rope?).

Perhaps describing it as the Greek Parthenon (http://lilt.ilstu.edu/drjclassics/sites/acropolis/parthenon.shtm) might work - high ceilings, large rooms, lots of columns, maybe domes and vaulted ceilings are used, or even a large, open air ampitheter. These other ancient Greek sites (http://lilt.ilstu.edu/drjclassics/GreeceSites.shtm) may provide architectural inspiration.

Alternately, you might describe it like Stonehenge (http://www.paganfed.demon.co.uk/photogallery/stonehenge.html) is believed to be at its peak - a series of circles, made of menhirs and open to the sky in the center.

Regardless, it is likely to be cold, as well as noisy - wind whipping through the chambers - perhaps certain areas are effective wind tunnels, with permanent gust of wind effects.
Yoho1.5
03-31-04, 12:18 PM Lots of possiblities for setting: a floating cloud castle, an elemental node of air with floating Islands of earth that are small, no bigger than 50'x50', A cloud maze in the sky made of solid fog like the spell. My favorite setting idea for low level and more suited to your party would be a narrow valley filled with hoodoos and the home of very high winds, the source of the wind would be a riff to the elemental plane of air were your genie would live. The Hoodoos would make a maze/dungeon and the characters would have to move through it into the prevailing winds, like salmon swimming up stream. The DMG(3.5) has wind effects on pg 95, high wind effect missle fire and movement, some areas of the map could be areas of permant dust storms (pg94, CR3). The enterance to the valley could be light wind and the wind could get stronger as the party approached the riff. One of the last obsticales could be a channel of tornado strenght winds before the riff. Walking into 175-300 mph winds is impossible without magical help so it is a puzzel that needs be solved. Give the map a tunnel or some wind free way of getting close enough to the riff to see it then provide a solution, maybe a wand of dimension door, or a wall of force item with a few charges (the party lays down walls of force at angles to block the wind and allow them to walk up to the riff like a sailing ship tacking into the wind). I'd draw a maze and mark the passages with arrows to show the wind direction and strength. Good luck!
Woas
03-31-04, 12:35 PM I believe the floating cloud would be a very good idea. This is because I have a perticular mountain range, with a perticular mountain with a perticular ring of clouds about the peak that never goes away on my world map. I had no perticular plans on what it was or why it was there. I do that with a bunch of things as a "backdoor" incase I need to use some fantastical feature of the world on the fly.

Keep it coming though... its some great stuff.
VirgilCaine
03-31-04, 01:10 PM Like the others said--LARGE.

Large rooms, domed rooms, domed hallways, vertical shafts between levels, very hard to traverse without flying or levitating.

Maybe everything is in tones of blue and gray/white--imitating clouds/sky.
VirgilCaine
03-31-04, 01:10 PM Darn double posts.
Dareon
03-31-04, 01:28 PM Things would definitely either be wide open and relatively hard to navigate or very tight with high winds.

I had an idea for a puzzle in a tight portion, but it would really only work in a solid structure, probably not a cloud maze: The players enter a slightly larger room through a door which swings shut two rounds after it's opened. This is mostly to preserve the puzzle's integrity. High up on one wall is a flap that blows inward while the PCs are walking into the room. Have a fairly easy Spot check to notice the flap.

Lining the walls of the room are multiple other doors, except for one space, which is just blank stone. Opening the doors causes pressure to either increase or decrease in the main chamber, depending on the door. Enough air pressure lifts the flap and activates a mechanism (magicism?) that causes the blank section of wall to rotate like a revolving door.

Note that if the players get the idea fairly quickly and just try opening all the high-pressure doors, the stone door would spin really fast, dealing a good deal of crushing/bludgeoning damage to anyone trying to move through it. :angel:

It probably sounds more complicated than it is. It's a fairly standard puzzle often found in video games. The old "Match the pressure exactly" bit. Not enough pressure and the door won't move, too much and it goes too fast. To make it easier, you could have numbers (Probably in Auran) on the doors indicating how much pressure they add/subtract and a total number on the stone door.

Of course, if your players don't like puzzles, just put an air elemental in there.
Elessar
03-31-04, 01:45 PM "Legend of Zelda: the Wind Waker" had an Air dungeon that was really cool. It required you to use your Leaf (basically a magical parachute) a lot and also you needed Iron Boots for the areas with air gusts.

So why not have parts that are not only difficult to reach without flying, but also difficult to reach without being blown away?

Maybe have a room that is so filled with fog that you can't see the walls, cieling and floor? Only platforms and pillars.

If truly anything goes, you could have a sort of wind-tunnel system, like a pipe organ or one of those suction message systems like they have in big office buildings and some banks. In order to get around the dungeon, instead of having stairs, they would need to use empty shafts with stong updrafts (and down drafts). You would need to use some ingenuity just to get off at the right stop. (Perhaps a grappling hook and good timing).

EDIT: Also places with strong wind and invisible/concealed floors like in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
Zilred
03-31-04, 02:19 PM A connection to the Elemental Plane of Air would be a good idea, but instead of the dungeon being just a gateway to the plane, have parts of it in the plane. It would be really freaky to have the PC's look down and see sky, endless sky, and no land, or even to realize that normal gravity no longer applies while in certain parts of the dungeon (as you choose your own direction for down on the Plane of Air). Also, as one of your PC's is a conjurer, actually being on the Plane of Air will allow for the casting of more powerful air spells (elementals stay longer, wall of wind is larger), and perhaps have the PC use that to his/her advantage.

The maze of solid fog is a good idea, and to make it even more confusing would be to have some patches of actual cloud that can be passed through (hidden passages - or traps if its the floor).

As for scenery, aside from the open-air nature of classical architecture, try placing flags, pennants, or light tapestries around, having them constantly blowing in the wind. Other effects may include small musical items, like series of holes leading from outside into a statue's mouth to produce a flute-like (or other woodwind instrument) sound. Wind Chimes are also a simple addition. Birds, although living, can work too as decoration (and may make the PC's careful about where they're aiming their Fireballs).

And as a last note, try having the map cover a large area, long narrow bridges or platforms between two buildings floating high in the sky can greatly expose them to the feeling of being up in the air. Also, the sky is vast, so have these distances be accompanied by long-range combat. Have them appreciate the Far Shot feat, especially with the wind reducing accuracy in some places.
Krelios
03-31-04, 02:20 PM One of the players is dead. The other players technically do not know the character (he had missed two sessions and was starting late) and thus are not really morally obligated to raise him. The player with the dead character is going to play an interm character that will travel with the party to try and find a way to get him raised. They will discover a lost "temple" that was dedicated to Air creatures. At the end is a Djinn who will grant 1 last wish. Why would they waste a wish on someone they barely know?

Anyway, the idea that air creatures can almost all fly (I can't think of any that can't) and that many can become gaseous should be considered in your design. Rooms no longer need to be organized by "floors" but rather by function. That should make the feel very "airy" and alien.
Woas
03-31-04, 02:44 PM Well, the player with the dead character is using the interm character who is being sent to revive the dead character (the towns hero)

The others have agreed to accompany him after they got to a resting place and talked to him... they don't know that the wish is the grande finale.. they think theres other treasures and stuff involved.

I didn't mention this before, and it would probably have helped. But do to backstory, all planar travel has been sealed off indefinetly... its part of the campaign and eventually up to the players to figure out if they want to re-open access to other planes, or keep them closed... theres more to it than that... There are "backdoor" ways to get around it allowing Conjuration and what not that people don't fully understand yet. Although the idea of having a dungeon half in the material plane, half in the plane of air is a real cool idea though.

Yeah, I played Windwaker ;) That temple was a pain in the arse :D

All great ideas though.
mystic1110
03-31-04, 05:50 PM have a sort of "entrence" one one side of the valley and a "end" on the other make it a huge complicated riddle/puzzel about going on a flying carpet that only goes one direction and they have to jump to another on because when one reaches the end of its "line" it loses flying

p.s. i got this idea from mario 64 and if you played the game this is from that rainbow carpet level
Kolava
03-31-04, 07:36 PM Originally posted by mystic1110
have a sort of "entrence" one one side of the valley and a "end" on the other make it a huge complicated riddle/puzzel about going on a flying carpet that only goes one direction and they have to jump to another on because when one reaches the end of its "line" it loses flying

p.s. i got this idea from mario 64 and if you played the game this is from that rainbow carpet level

An interesting concept, but it is shot down by the single glaring fact that keeps D&D from being a platforming game: the fly spell. Sure, 3.5 nerfed its duration and the monk could probably survive without it, but it's not like the PCs enjoy making jump and balance checks every two steps anyway.
mystic1110
03-31-04, 07:40 PM in that case you could have platforms with diffrent air creatures on them in a row and the only way to get from place to place is airwalk or making a bridge to the floating platforms

just an idea
Laranis Callirr
03-31-04, 07:58 PM As others have pointed out, a large temple would fit best. Large rooms, long corridors, rising roofs and all that jazz.

It would also be rather nice if you would situate the temple on a cliffside or some other location where a large panorama is available. That way you could create entire rooms where large parts of the wall have been removed in order to let said room flood with light and have a magnificent vista to look out to. Somewhat like the Jedi Temple in Yavin in the Jedi Knight games. Really high cieling, big rooms, and entire chunks of the wall which have been simply removed in order to let the light flood into the halls. Not only would it be beautiful, but it would also help to add to the atmosphere of an air-themed temple. The clergy, after all, would want to stay close to the element they are associated with, without having pesky walls block their ways. Heck, you could even include a special room with 'diving boards' for those who enjoy fly spells. :angel:

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Woas 03-31-04, 11:31 AM	I'm kinda upset cause the search function needs me to put in at least 4 letter words. I don't understand why... I tried to search for "air" but it won't let me. I feel bad if this has been brought up before but alas... I was not allowed to search for it. Anyway, I was thinking of an "air" themed dungeon for my players to go through. Long story short: One of the players is dead. The other players technically do not know the character (he had missed two sessions and was starting late) and thus are not really morally obligated to raise him. The player with the dead character is going to play an interm character that will travel with the party to try and find a way to get him raised. They will discover a lost "temple" that was dedicated to Air creatures. At the end is a Djinn who will grant 1 last wish. There are plenty of "themed" dungeons around. Fire, earth, underground, evil, undead, etc. Those all seem fairly straight foward in design. But I've been trying to think of an interesting theme and decor for an air themed dungeon, and have been coming up short. The monsters and encounters aren't really the problem. Air elements, mephits, arrowhawks, lesser djinns, air drakes, etc. I got plenty of them to go around. Its the physical place that I've having a hard time defining. So I was wondering if anyone around here would be willing to help me out and give some examples, ideas or thoughts. Heres some basic info: -Characters: Level 5 - Dwarven Fighter Levle 6 - Human Swashbuckler (Shadowfoots version) Level 5 - Elven Conjurer Level 5 - Human Cleric of Ravaatra (homebrew god) *Level 4 - Human Fighter (Archery themed. This is the intern character. - High magic, high fantasy world. Anything can go really. I already know how the characters will learn and locate the dungeons where abouts, so no worries there. I just need the meat of what an Air dungeon would be like. The only thing I could think of was: Lots of floating platforms :D Thanks a bunch.
nevick 03-31-04, 11:49 AM	You could design the dungeon with air creatures in mind. as in designed by and for flying stuff. there's some problems right there for the PCs (if they dont have a flying carpet). Lots of vertical shafts instead of stairs. very uneven floors. Huge rooms with ledges as "rooms". Wind traps?
Woas 03-31-04, 11:59 AM	Definetly want wind traps. Didn't think about the mode of transportation... most air creatures can fly or float. The floors would probably be just like a fourth "wall" to them...
krichaiushii 03-31-04, 12:03 PM	Locate it either on a high mountain top, perhaps accessible only to flyers, or locate it on a floating cloud, similar to what cloud giants and some metallic dragons lair on. Either the cloud floats on the winds or it is anchored to a mountain top somehow (strong rope?). Perhaps describing it as the Greek Parthenon (http://lilt.ilstu.edu/drjclassics/sites/acropolis/parthenon.shtm) might work - high ceilings, large rooms, lots of columns, maybe domes and vaulted ceilings are used, or even a large, open air ampitheter. These other ancient Greek sites (http://lilt.ilstu.edu/drjclassics/GreeceSites.shtm) may provide architectural inspiration. Alternately, you might describe it like Stonehenge (http://www.paganfed.demon.co.uk/photogallery/stonehenge.html) is believed to be at its peak - a series of circles, made of menhirs and open to the sky in the center. Regardless, it is likely to be cold, as well as noisy - wind whipping through the chambers - perhaps certain areas are effective wind tunnels, with permanent gust of wind effects.
Yoho1.5 03-31-04, 12:18 PM	Lots of possiblities for setting: a floating cloud castle, an elemental node of air with floating Islands of earth that are small, no bigger than 50'x50', A cloud maze in the sky made of solid fog like the spell. My favorite setting idea for low level and more suited to your party would be a narrow valley filled with hoodoos and the home of very high winds, the source of the wind would be a riff to the elemental plane of air were your genie would live. The Hoodoos would make a maze/dungeon and the characters would have to move through it into the prevailing winds, like salmon swimming up stream. The DMG(3.5) has wind effects on pg 95, high wind effect missle fire and movement, some areas of the map could be areas of permant dust storms (pg94, CR3). The enterance to the valley could be light wind and the wind could get stronger as the party approached the riff. One of the last obsticales could be a channel of tornado strenght winds before the riff. Walking into 175-300 mph winds is impossible without magical help so it is a puzzel that needs be solved. Give the map a tunnel or some wind free way of getting close enough to the riff to see it then provide a solution, maybe a wand of dimension door, or a wall of force item with a few charges (the party lays down walls of force at angles to block the wind and allow them to walk up to the riff like a sailing ship tacking into the wind). I'd draw a maze and mark the passages with arrows to show the wind direction and strength. Good luck!
Woas 03-31-04, 12:35 PM	I believe the floating cloud would be a very good idea. This is because I have a perticular mountain range, with a perticular mountain with a perticular ring of clouds about the peak that never goes away on my world map. I had no perticular plans on what it was or why it was there. I do that with a bunch of things as a "backdoor" incase I need to use some fantastical feature of the world on the fly. Keep it coming though... its some great stuff.
VirgilCaine 03-31-04, 01:10 PM	Like the others said--LARGE. Large rooms, domed rooms, domed hallways, vertical shafts between levels, very hard to traverse without flying or levitating. Maybe everything is in tones of blue and gray/white--imitating clouds/sky.
VirgilCaine 03-31-04, 01:10 PM	Darn double posts.
Dareon 03-31-04, 01:28 PM	Things would definitely either be wide open and relatively hard to navigate or very tight with high winds. I had an idea for a puzzle in a tight portion, but it would really only work in a solid structure, probably not a cloud maze: The players enter a slightly larger room through a door which swings shut two rounds after it's opened. This is mostly to preserve the puzzle's integrity. High up on one wall is a flap that blows inward while the PCs are walking into the room. Have a fairly easy Spot check to notice the flap. Lining the walls of the room are multiple other doors, except for one space, which is just blank stone. Opening the doors causes pressure to either increase or decrease in the main chamber, depending on the door. Enough air pressure lifts the flap and activates a mechanism (magicism?) that causes the blank section of wall to rotate like a revolving door. Note that if the players get the idea fairly quickly and just try opening all the high-pressure doors, the stone door would spin really fast, dealing a good deal of crushing/bludgeoning damage to anyone trying to move through it. :angel: It probably sounds more complicated than it is. It's a fairly standard puzzle often found in video games. The old "Match the pressure exactly" bit. Not enough pressure and the door won't move, too much and it goes too fast. To make it easier, you could have numbers (Probably in Auran) on the doors indicating how much pressure they add/subtract and a total number on the stone door. Of course, if your players don't like puzzles, just put an air elemental in there.
Elessar 03-31-04, 01:45 PM	"Legend of Zelda: the Wind Waker" had an Air dungeon that was really cool. It required you to use your Leaf (basically a magical parachute) a lot and also you needed Iron Boots for the areas with air gusts. So why not have parts that are not only difficult to reach without flying, but also difficult to reach without being blown away? Maybe have a room that is so filled with fog that you can't see the walls, cieling and floor? Only platforms and pillars. If truly anything goes, you could have a sort of wind-tunnel system, like a pipe organ or one of those suction message systems like they have in big office buildings and some banks. In order to get around the dungeon, instead of having stairs, they would need to use empty shafts with stong updrafts (and down drafts). You would need to use some ingenuity just to get off at the right stop. (Perhaps a grappling hook and good timing). EDIT: Also places with strong wind and invisible/concealed floors like in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
Zilred 03-31-04, 02:19 PM	A connection to the Elemental Plane of Air would be a good idea, but instead of the dungeon being just a gateway to the plane, have parts of it in the plane. It would be really freaky to have the PC's look down and see sky, endless sky, and no land, or even to realize that normal gravity no longer applies while in certain parts of the dungeon (as you choose your own direction for down on the Plane of Air). Also, as one of your PC's is a conjurer, actually being on the Plane of Air will allow for the casting of more powerful air spells (elementals stay longer, wall of wind is larger), and perhaps have the PC use that to his/her advantage. The maze of solid fog is a good idea, and to make it even more confusing would be to have some patches of actual cloud that can be passed through (hidden passages - or traps if its the floor). As for scenery, aside from the open-air nature of classical architecture, try placing flags, pennants, or light tapestries around, having them constantly blowing in the wind. Other effects may include small musical items, like series of holes leading from outside into a statue's mouth to produce a flute-like (or other woodwind instrument) sound. Wind Chimes are also a simple addition. Birds, although living, can work too as decoration (and may make the PC's careful about where they're aiming their Fireballs). And as a last note, try having the map cover a large area, long narrow bridges or platforms between two buildings floating high in the sky can greatly expose them to the feeling of being up in the air. Also, the sky is vast, so have these distances be accompanied by long-range combat. Have them appreciate the Far Shot feat, especially with the wind reducing accuracy in some places.
Krelios 03-31-04, 02:20 PM	One of the players is dead. The other players technically do not know the character (he had missed two sessions and was starting late) and thus are not really morally obligated to raise him. The player with the dead character is going to play an interm character that will travel with the party to try and find a way to get him raised. They will discover a lost "temple" that was dedicated to Air creatures. At the end is a Djinn who will grant 1 last wish. Why would they waste a wish on someone they barely know? Anyway, the idea that air creatures can almost all fly (I can't think of any that can't) and that many can become gaseous should be considered in your design. Rooms no longer need to be organized by "floors" but rather by function. That should make the feel very "airy" and alien.
Woas 03-31-04, 02:44 PM	Well, the player with the dead character is using the interm character who is being sent to revive the dead character (the towns hero) The others have agreed to accompany him after they got to a resting place and talked to him... they don't know that the wish is the grande finale.. they think theres other treasures and stuff involved. I didn't mention this before, and it would probably have helped. But do to backstory, all planar travel has been sealed off indefinetly... its part of the campaign and eventually up to the players to figure out if they want to re-open access to other planes, or keep them closed... theres more to it than that... There are "backdoor" ways to get around it allowing Conjuration and what not that people don't fully understand yet. Although the idea of having a dungeon half in the material plane, half in the plane of air is a real cool idea though. Yeah, I played Windwaker ;) That temple was a pain in the arse :D All great ideas though.
mystic1110 03-31-04, 05:50 PM	have a sort of "entrence" one one side of the valley and a "end" on the other make it a huge complicated riddle/puzzel about going on a flying carpet that only goes one direction and they have to jump to another on because when one reaches the end of its "line" it loses flying p.s. i got this idea from mario 64 and if you played the game this is from that rainbow carpet level
Kolava 03-31-04, 07:36 PM	Originally posted by mystic1110 have a sort of "entrence" one one side of the valley and a "end" on the other make it a huge complicated riddle/puzzel about going on a flying carpet that only goes one direction and they have to jump to another on because when one reaches the end of its "line" it loses flying p.s. i got this idea from mario 64 and if you played the game this is from that rainbow carpet level An interesting concept, but it is shot down by the single glaring fact that keeps D&D from being a platforming game: the fly spell. Sure, 3.5 nerfed its duration and the monk could probably survive without it, but it's not like the PCs enjoy making jump and balance checks every two steps anyway.
mystic1110 03-31-04, 07:40 PM	in that case you could have platforms with diffrent air creatures on them in a row and the only way to get from place to place is airwalk or making a bridge to the floating platforms just an idea
Laranis Callirr 03-31-04, 07:58 PM	As others have pointed out, a large temple would fit best. Large rooms, long corridors, rising roofs and all that jazz. It would also be rather nice if you would situate the temple on a cliffside or some other location where a large panorama is available. That way you could create entire rooms where large parts of the wall have been removed in order to let said room flood with light and have a magnificent vista to look out to. Somewhat like the Jedi Temple in Yavin in the Jedi Knight games. Really high cieling, big rooms, and entire chunks of the wall which have been simply removed in order to let the light flood into the halls. Not only would it be beautiful, but it would also help to add to the atmosphere of an air-themed temple. The clergy, after all, would want to stay close to the element they are associated with, without having pesky walls block their ways. Heck, you could even include a special room with 'diving boards' for those who enjoy fly spells. :angel: