Modular Dungeon Pieces?

 (picture from Hirst Arts website)

Been fooling around with plans for a modular dungeon piece set, and figured out what pieces would be a useful start. But before I begin, better think of the pro's and con's of such a task.

The major pro for dungeon pieces is that they provide a third dimension to the dungeons and ruins (or even space hulks) that the characters and players are exploring. It just looks better than the map drawn out on a dry-erase sheet, especially from a modeller's point of view. Some people I play with just do better with physical representations of combat and such, and an actually 3d representation of such environments is useful.

The two major drawbacks however is the lack of flexibility of pieces and the price tag. With only a set of pieces, you can only arrange the pieces a certain number of ways, or have rooms be only a certain size till you decide to make a new piece to meet the requirements you want. And second, the number of molds to make a plain set (like the picture above) is $80 plus the paints and base materials. To make a decent, and varied set of pieces, you will probably be spending $200 on molds plus all the base materials. Then, the time to cast all the blocks.

Building a dungeon piece set is a lengthen project, but can still merit a sense of accomplishment if done right. But till I can afford it, it's gonna be dry-erase grid sheets.

Encounter Testing

While getting use to the systems, and eager to test out a few random encounters I have. I made a trio of characters to test out things, a mix of everything (except brawn) and been playing though the early level encounters that can occur in the sewers.

The first was 4 dire rats, and it went as expected. Two of the three were diseased, but no real damage was done.

Shit hit the fan when I decide to test out the cockroaches. 6 giant cockroaches versus three adventures... and it was tough. Everyone was knocked down to 2-3 HP and the thief was unconscious. The big thing the cockroaches had on there side was each having 7+ HP and being Die Hard. They will always be at 0 before they die, and that gives each one a last attempt to attack before they die. And I fudge the Die Hard feat since it seems awkward (that is if I read it correctly)... I don't see a cockroach staggering till he reaches -18 HP. So, for creatures and encounters... I'll be treating Die Hard differently... with any blow taking the creature below 0, just takes it to 0 and staggers.

Also, another thing I learn is the cleric's Channel Energy ability. It affects everything within the area... be it friend or foe, living or dead. The user can declare if he/she is affected by it as well. Making my cleric's Channel Negative Energy ability a last ditch ability, unless she's separated from the party. This also makes the other channel feats (like Selective Channeling) pretty useful. But still... 1d6 damage to everything within 30' of a person is a nasty ability at first level.

Last, learning the importance of shakening enemies is important. Let alone, it stacks with frightening and panicking conditions. Plus, growing more familiar with the different conditions, and does make things a bit simpler.