I've been running games for almost two years now, but I still consider myself a Rookie Game Master. I've never been an actual player in DnD (or any other TTRPG) under the tutelage of a GM extrordinaire. Everything I know has been self taught from watching youtube channels, listening to game podcasts, and scouring the internet for blogs, tips, and general advice.
The next couple of posts will be for other Rookie GMs/DMs out there; if you are anything like me, you spent a majority of your time stressed, with no idea where to start prepping or how to homebrew material for your session. So you turned to premade modules for guidance, but found the length and plethora of information material overwhelming.
So I decided to put something together in a simple, easy to use, and comprehensive format to help ease the stress for fellow Rookie GMs, and to give you an idea of where to begin your prep. With lists of elements ready to go, you should be able to just roll a few d20s, and be ready to run a session in a half hour of prep.
I still use these generators to help me plan and stay focused, using them as a foundation, and over time I adjust and evolve ideas.
The first generator I'll post is for Quick Dungeons. The goal was to have a dungeon ready to play in just a few minutes, complete with a rough idea, inhabitants, and be stocked with treasure, contents, and traps.
My Quick Dungeon Generator includes:
- Dungeon Type (mine, ruin, sewer, tomb, etc)
- Dungeon Entrance
- Factions (monster type and specific creatures of that type)
- Faction Motifs/MacGuffins
- Dungeon Threats/Timers (optional to give players an impetus to accomplish their goal)
- Treasures (magic weapons, valuable items, etc)
- General Loot (rope, crowbar, etc)
- Scrolls, Potions, and Wands
- Special Rooms/encounters/hazards
- Traps/Tricks (a list of ready-to-place traps, and a list of general ideas to brainstorm your own)
- Empty Room Contents
- Terrain Pieces
- Battle Complications
Let's use this generator to create a quick dungeon together!
O) Map
If you don't want to draw your own dungeon map, find one online (Dyson has a plethora to choose from, and Donjon has a very simple generator). Your dungeon doesn't have to be a huge sprawling megaplex. 8-10 total rooms is sufficient for starters.
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| We'll use this one from Donjon |
I) Dungeon Type
Onto the first first step: decide what type of dungeon this is. Is it a Mine, a sunken city, or a Mad Wizard's Playground?
I rolled a 15 - Thief Guild.
II) What is the secret entrance?
I rolled a 6 - Mouth of a dark cave.
III) What factions/creatures are found here?
Well if it's a Thief Guild, then obviously there are thieves...but let's think outside the box. I rolled twice on the Faction/Creature chart, you can roll as many times as you'd like.
I got Fey and Lycanthrope. Hmm... Maybe it isn't a thief guild for masked cut-throats and black market dealers (which is what I immediately assumed too). Maybe the "thief guild" is actually a group of mischievous faeries stealing from a village. Let's keep generating ideas and see what we come up with.
IV and V) For a "dungeon goal" I like to use this phrase:
[Faction/Creatures] [does verb] to [Motif/MacGuffin] but is opposed by [Faction/Creatures].
What does that mean? Well, roll for a verb - I got Explores. Then roll for a Motif/MacGuffin - I got Rare Magic.
Let's put all our rolls into the phrase:
[Faeries] [Explores] [Rare Magic] but is opposed by [Lycanthropes].
Are the Faeries trying to uncover the secret magical ritual that turns men into Werewolves? Not a bad idea. But I do like our original idea of the Faeries being a "thief guild," so let's keep that. Always feel free to reroll anything on the chart if you aren't inspired by the result!
We'll say our thieving Faeries aren't just trying to explore/uncover the magic used by the Lycans - they want to take it. (For good intentions or malevolent? Decisions, decisions.)
Sidestep!) Wandering Monsters
While we have dungeon factions on our mind, let’s throw together a simple Wandering Monster Chart. I like to come up with 5 creatures that could inhabit my dungeon.
We’ve already rolled Fey and Lycanthrope, so let’s use Faeries and Werewolves. If it’s a cave, we need some cavern critters: How about dire rats, and a grey ooze. And I always assumed Faeries like plants, so let’s top it off with some Plant Elementals (maybe there’s a luscious grotto hidden in the back of the cave?).
There are countless ways to put it all into a Wandering Monster Chart, but for simplicity’s sake, we’ll just maybe it a d6 roll.
1: 2d4 Dire Rats. 2: Grey Ooze. 3: Plant Elemental. 4: 1d6 Werewolves. 5-6: 1d4+1 Faeries.
VI) (Optional) Threat or Timer.
If you want your players to feel a sense of urgency to clear the dungeon or accomplish its goal as soon as possible, consider a Timer.
I rolled a 1 - Return of Apex creature. Maybe the Faerie leader is returning to their cave guild in 2d6 turns...
VII) Room Stocking
Now onto the dungeon rooms themselves. Room stocking procedures are pretty standard for OSR. Roll a d6 for each individual room. The result will indicate whether that room will have a monster, trap, or "special" encounter within it, or if it will be empty. Also roll another d6 for treasure in the room as well.
As you continue using the generator for the contents of the rooms, you can either roll these going room by room, or roll for the entire dungeon contents and divvy it out as you see fit later on. I’ll do it room by room with you.
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| Stocking procedures let you know what each room contains. |
VIII) Roll for treasure!
If there is treasure, decide whether you want it to be unique items (worth a nice chunk of silver, or magical weapons, etc), scrolls/potions/wands, or just general loot. Roll on the d20 charts for each category as many times as you like.
For Room 1, I rolled an ornate carved pipe (worth 100sp), and a Scroll of Protection from the Unholy.
For Room 5, I rolled a Bonecrusher Mace +1/+2 vs Undead; and a giant red egg.
For Room 7, I rolled a crystal bowl (worth 200sp) and a spool of ribbon.
Treasure tables are easy to put together, and I recommend you keep a running list of interesting item ideas you find in movies, books, video games, etc. Throw a handful of them onto a table and reuse again and again for the rest of your DMing career!
IX) Traps/Tricks
If the stocking procedure indicated a trap, roll on the traps/tricks table. A trap isn't necessarily a swinging blade that deals 4d6 damage; they can also be one way doors, trap doors that dump players into subterranean lakes, or alarms that let all inhabitants in the dungeon know where you are. I've included a category of ready-made traps/tricks to choose from, and another category for Trap/Trick General Ideas to brainstorm your own.
For Room 1, I rolled: a bricked up door (forces the party to take an alternate route – maybe roll twice for a Wandering Monster in the alternate passage).
For Room 4, I rolled: something traps player within a Gem. A giant emerald is surely enticing to snatch from the cavern wall…but if the player’s look closely they will see a humanoid figure swirling within it…
X) Special Rooms
These can contain traps/tricks as well, but I prefer to use them as interesting encounters or hazards. These can be beneficial or harmful. For example, maybe there is a magic fountain that heals whoever drinks from it; or, there is a magic pedestal can transmute iron into silver; or the floor is lava and the party must figure out a way across. Special Rooms should give the players something to interact with and give them the opportunity for choices.
For Room 9, I rolled twice: an Item produces positive effect the first time and negative effect afterwards, and something that Heals. Perhaps there are magic flowers that grow in the Faerie’s garden. If eaten the first time, it heals 1d6 HP like a potion of healing; but if a player ingests more than one flower, it causes vivid hallucinations.
XI) Empty Rooms
These are not just empty 10x10 stone walls. Use them to add flavor to your dungeon. Perhaps it is a sleeping chamber, has murals of the long forgotten Elven king painted on the walls, or is covered in webs to give a hint of what monsters lurk in the next room...
For Room 2, I rolled: scorch marks caused by magic damage. This works perfectly, as Room 2 is located by an entrance “stairwell” to the cave, and sets the tone for the rest of the dungeon, alerting the players that Faeries possess dangerous magical abilities.
For Room 6, I rolled: food supplies. Simple enough, Faeries gotta eat too. There are enough grub worms and herbal-nectar-milkshakes to scavenge one day’s rations for a single person.
XII) Terrain Pieces
I've made a short list of terrain pieces to add more pizzazz to your rooms, if you need a quick idea for a centerpiece feature.
Let’s just roll one for Room 3 since it’s the largest chamber in the dungeon.
I rolled: Trees/plants. Well Room 3 is near our Faerie garden with the healing hallucination flowers. It would make sense that the entire nearby area is covered in trees and plants too. It just so happens we also rolled a monster encounter for Room 3, giving us a perfect opportunity to showcase a Plant Elemental acting as a guardian. Sometimes the dice love it when a plan comes together too.
XIII) Battle Complications
And finally, if you want to set a battle apart from the other skirmishes in the dungeon, consider using the battle complication chart.
We still need to decide what monster is in Room 8, so let’s make it interesting while we’re at it.
I rolled: insect swarms. Perhaps there are large hornet nests in the corners of the ceiling. If disturbed, the hornets will swarm on EVERYBODY in the room, PCs and enemies alike. This will disrupt magic casters and throw another variable into the battle that the players will have to decide how to overcome. Same goes for the DM - how will this affect your monsters' tactics?
For the actual monster encounter in Room 8, let’s throw in a werewolf scout searching for their stolen MacGuffin.
In Rooms 5 and 7, let’s have some Faeries hang out.
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| Everything put together! |
And done! In about 20 minutes I came up with a rough idea for this dungeon – who inhabits it, and what are they doing? Added a couple treasures, a couple traps or interesting encounters, and a dedicated “boss battle” if you want to call the Plant Elemental that.
Is this an award-winning dungeon? Absolutely not! But it was quick, simple, and built a foundation for me to improve upon. If I only had half an hour to prep before my players arrived for a session of DnD, I could definitely run this dungeon (of course, with a lot of improvisation – which is a good thing for DM/GMs to practice!). If I had a week to prepare, I could definitely transform this into a bigger and more detailed dungeon. But for now, I have a structured foundation of ideas.
I hope this Quick Dungeon Generator helps Rookie GMs feel less overwhelmed by the process of creating a dungeon. For more experienced GMs, this makes for great practice; use a few rolls and let your imagination run wild!
Please let me know what dungeons y’all come up with!
And stay tuned, my next posts will include Village Generators and Wilderness Encounter Generators!
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