I've been running a game set in Tamriel for about 3 years now. Stealing from Oblivion, Skyrim, ESO. Sometimes I take whole dungeon designs. Honestly, its been a boatload of fun.
@@TangooseCarmike8205 that is 100% the reason I did the same! It’s much better for my overworld to know history, religion, politics as dressing … then hone in on an adventure and the players to complete the picture
By Azura, by Azura, by Azura- its really you, Bob the World Builder, with an Oblivion themed video! ( Massive Open World Games & old MMOs are a real treasure trove for dungeon maps. Especially like UESP has the % for encounters in those pages)
Not all of the levels are dungeons, but the first two Thief games - The Dark Project and The Metal Age - both contain phenomenal level design. The levels are expansive and detailed to every necessary end without being drawn out and boring; there are secrets and alternate passages abound, all the while making sense. I myself have taken great inspiration from those games and created some fun dungeons for my players.
This was a great demo. I tend to overcomplicate dungeon designs ad get really bogged down in the details. This is quick, concise, and still compelling. I love the moral quandary you got from just a meeting with an NPC adventurer.
I’m not a complete dungeon master but I made one for my group and I feel another cool thing to add would be making a bigger more open feel. Perhaps the seas rather than castles and rooms. It might be weird getting new mobs but the feel of having one in the desert or in the ocean is actually way more fun than what one might think
You made using dungeonscrawl look so easy! Will definitely have to give that a try. I've typically just done my maps by hand, but that method lacks quite a bit of polish (because I'm no artist haha). Thanks for walking us through on this!
That's interesting you can download it as a PDF to print out. And the dungeon drawer looks legit. I might have to try this one out as it looks like it'll speed things up
When exporting maps for printing from Dungeonscrawl, I recommend saving the map twice, once in landscape and once in portrait. Depending on your map it can easily save you a third of your pages (I recently made a map that was 6 pages printed landscape or 9 in portrait.
You my friend have got yourself a Subscription! 4 min and I am hooked on your style and your approachable demenor. As I am trying to make an open world game myself with old TSR moduals as a base this will especially help me in making the world come alive. Thanks for the hard work I will be binge watching to my hearts content.
This is an outstanding video. Lots of good info, a great pitch for three very useful tools, ano no dragging it out for 45 mins with filler that isn't relevant. Wish more creators did these. Bravo and thank you!
THANK YOU! The whole vid is excellent advice, but in particular the multiple page pdf feature in Dungeonscrawl is exactly what I've been looking for since I started DMing 8 months ago.
Thanks, Jason! Definitely Oblivion because it's the only one I really dove into. When Skyrim launched, I wasn't playing a lot of video games and was afraid of the hours I would spend on it. Thinking more and more about ES lately, I want to try it finally, but I still know it would be a big time sink
If y'all are looking for more retro dungeon influences which are also simplistic (sometimes), Secret of Evermore (for the Super Nintendo) has some interesting construction. On the unfortunate end, the dungeons don't always have a NPC to interact with, but Evermore has excellent "outdoor dungeons" and indoor dungeons which extend to external exploration to continue adventuring. Even though Zelda dungeons and Zelda dungeon adventures might feel a bit wonky and maguffin-specific, Link to the Past's Skull Woods has an interesting approach to dipping in and out of the dungeon in order to "untangle the labyrinth" as it were. Also, Secret of Evermore is a GM's goldmine from the retro era.
I’ve made an idea for a dungeon mechanic that’s in my homebrew they are called shifting dungeons and they are used for new adventures to see all types of terrain and monsters whenever a group enters the dungeon the dungeon shifts and changes to be balanced but also challenging for the group but it’s always different so you will never get the same dungeon. This might only work because I made it so that it’s used as a school class rather than the only dungeon. Just an idea if you want to use it
Oblivion dungeons are GREAT for designing D&D dungeons because of their general simplicity where the whole imagination thing in D&D can run wild. They are, however, not that great as far as video game dungeons go. I think this works really well for some small/side dungeons, but if you're looking to make some truly challenging and interesting dungeons that are maybe more integral to the story, check out the Boss Keys series by Game Maker's Toolkit. It is primarily about video games, but all the same design language can be applied to D&D as well.
I'd been messing with illwinter and campaign cartographer, and neither were really working for me - illwinter feels rough, and CC3+ is just too complex. Dungeon Scrawl is exactly what I've been looking for.
One problem with relying on oblivion maps and such is that all those resources are readily available and widely known. Should your players realise what your dungeon generation method is, dungeons could be easily spoiled. Or steamrolled by players that are metagaming (or cheating if you prefer).
It's so different looking at the birds eye view versus actually running around in the dungeon unable to see anything but the room you're in. I think your players are unlikely to make the connection unless the dungeon has a particularly unique storyline. It's a risk, but it's still a good tool to have in your arsenal. I generally think it's the GM's job to make sure their players can't metagame. Instead of copying the dungeon out, altering some hallways is easy.
That game is old enough that someone seeing a random dungeon map is extremely unlikely to recognize it. Even if they played the game recently, the experience is different enough that dungeons are not instantly recognizable.
There's certainly some potential for this, but I think it would be fairly unlikely for one of these caves. Definitely a higher chance of someone noticing if you went with a more notable location though
I dont get to play much TT or Video games but I've always been a fan of things spoiling/going bad, harvested incorrectly or being found broken, opening more hooks for adventure and research. Nothing says everything that's been written has to be how it's actually found.
Bob, I need your help, your my only hope. Can you make a video detailing how you would make a crafting system for your games? Seems to be the one thing my games all struggle with the most is players wanting to craft their own items from potions to weapons or various gadgets like smoke bombs or modifying existing magic items. Thanks for even just reading this if you do end up seeing it!
Kibblestasty crafting systems hands down. Alchemy. Enchanting. Blacksmithing. Leatherworking. Cooking. And monster looting mechanics. Literally everything you need for crafting
I would argue that dScryb is not free. Sure, it has free content, but in my (albeit limited) experience, that leads to more frustration than anything else. The boneyard description, for example, is not free.
That's a great point, another commenter said it would have been helpful if I had the "free scenes only" toggle on, and I will try to remember to do that next time I use it in a video
Oblivion did not have good dungeons, they were copypasta messes that make no sense in the world and have very little in terms of branching paths. Skyrim was even worse, as nearly all dunegons of all types were literal linear paths with a loop-back that is often really obvious or just dumps you out somewhere random expecting you to fast-travel back to town.
🌟 Map & quest have been archived!
💥 dScryb (affiliate): dscryb.com?aff=bobworldbuilder
nice
I've been running a game set in Tamriel for about 3 years now. Stealing from Oblivion, Skyrim, ESO. Sometimes I take whole dungeon designs. Honestly, its been a boatload of fun.
That's amazing!
Having you been running DND or another system?
D&D. I just knew the lore for Elder Scrolls better than Forgotten Realms. The hardest part has been outter plane based interactions.
@@TangooseCarmike8205 that is 100% the reason I did the same! It’s much better for my overworld to know history, religion, politics as dressing … then hone in on an adventure and the players to complete the picture
I"ve just started GMing a campaign heavily based on Morrowind using Savage Worlds. My players are loving how alien the world is so far
By Azura, by Azura, by Azura- its really you, Bob the World Builder, with an Oblivion themed video!
( Massive Open World Games & old MMOs are a real treasure trove for dungeon maps. Especially like UESP has the % for encounters in those pages)
Not all of the levels are dungeons, but the first two Thief games - The Dark Project and The Metal Age - both contain phenomenal level design. The levels are expansive and detailed to every necessary end without being drawn out and boring; there are secrets and alternate passages abound, all the while making sense. I myself have taken great inspiration from those games and created some fun dungeons for my players.
Dungeon Scrawl is such a solid tool. Love the Oblivion maps idea Bob!
Thanks! And yes it's easily one of my favs
112 days since icewind dale, excitedly waiting in anticipation xD
This was a great demo. I tend to overcomplicate dungeon designs ad get really bogged down in the details. This is quick, concise, and still compelling. I love the moral quandary you got from just a meeting with an NPC adventurer.
Thank you so much! Yep I used to (and still sometimes do) stress the details, but it's way more fun to design and play when you just go with your gut!
I’m not a complete dungeon master but I made one for my group and I feel another cool thing to add would be making a bigger more open feel. Perhaps the seas rather than castles and rooms. It might be weird getting new mobs but the feel of having one in the desert or in the ocean is actually way more fun than what one might think
You made using dungeonscrawl look so easy! Will definitely have to give that a try. I've typically just done my maps by hand, but that method lacks quite a bit of polish (because I'm no artist haha). Thanks for walking us through on this!
You can do it! I use it all the time
That's interesting you can download it as a PDF to print out. And the dungeon drawer looks legit. I might have to try this one out as it looks like it'll speed things up
When exporting maps for printing from Dungeonscrawl, I recommend saving the map twice, once in landscape and once in portrait. Depending on your map it can easily save you a third of your pages (I recently made a map that was 6 pages printed landscape or 9 in portrait.
For dungeons in D&D, I imagine that meme of the dude from Ancient Aliens saying, "ALIENS", but instead it's a level 1 fighter saying, "GOBLINS."
Too true.
Can't beat the classics!!
Will-o'-the-wisp have many names, Will-o'-wisps is one of them
I've been wanting to do this thanks for showing how
I loved Oblivion. One of the only Elder Scrolls games I started and eventually finished. Great game!
Same! But it took me forever to actually do the main quest. Think it was the LAST thing I did haha
You my friend have got yourself a Subscription! 4 min and I am hooked on your style and your approachable demenor. As I am trying to make an open world game myself with old TSR moduals as a base this will especially help me in making the world come alive. Thanks for the hard work I will be binge watching to my hearts content.
This is an outstanding video. Lots of good info, a great pitch for three very useful tools, ano no dragging it out for 45 mins with filler that isn't relevant. Wish more creators did these. Bravo and thank you!
i can’t stop liking this video!
Thank you! :D
Thanks Bob. This video was very helpful.
My pleasure, Mike!
THANK YOU! The whole vid is excellent advice, but in particular the multiple page pdf feature in Dungeonscrawl is exactly what I've been looking for since I started DMing 8 months ago.
Bob... after my long meeting today, this is exactly what I needed.
Question: What's your favorite Elder Scrolls?
Thanks, Jason! Definitely Oblivion because it's the only one I really dove into. When Skyrim launched, I wasn't playing a lot of video games and was afraid of the hours I would spend on it. Thinking more and more about ES lately, I want to try it finally, but I still know it would be a big time sink
Hey bob! Thank you for this video!
I've heard of Dungeon Scrawl but never used it before. It's a neat little tool I might try out with how you pulled some ideas from Oblivion. Neat!
Every time I watch one of your videos I smile.
That's super kind! Thank you!
Thanks for making these videos to point out these awesome tools.
My pleasure!
Dude - you are so great! Such great content and your demeanour is so kind and calm and approachable
Awesome Bob, love your world building videos and easy ways to help out DMs!
Glad you like them!
"If this video gets 1000 likes..." Haha jokes on you I was already going to Like it. You can't trick me Bob!!
I'll have to try something sneakier next time!! lol
I just found your videos and they are great!
Yay! Thank you!
Great video, as always Bob!
Thanks again! This was a fun experiment!
If y'all are looking for more retro dungeon influences which are also simplistic (sometimes), Secret of Evermore (for the Super Nintendo) has some interesting construction. On the unfortunate end, the dungeons don't always have a NPC to interact with, but Evermore has excellent "outdoor dungeons" and indoor dungeons which extend to external exploration to continue adventuring. Even though Zelda dungeons and Zelda dungeon adventures might feel a bit wonky and maguffin-specific, Link to the Past's Skull Woods has an interesting approach to dipping in and out of the dungeon in order to "untangle the labyrinth" as it were. Also, Secret of Evermore is a GM's goldmine from the retro era.
Thanks for the tips
My pleasure!
I’ve made an idea for a dungeon mechanic that’s in my homebrew they are called shifting dungeons and they are used for new adventures to see all types of terrain and monsters whenever a group enters the dungeon the dungeon shifts and changes to be balanced but also challenging for the group but it’s always different so you will never get the same dungeon. This might only work because I made it so that it’s used as a school class rather than the only dungeon. Just an idea if you want to use it
Oblivion dungeons are GREAT for designing D&D dungeons because of their general simplicity where the whole imagination thing in D&D can run wild. They are, however, not that great as far as video game dungeons go.
I think this works really well for some small/side dungeons, but if you're looking to make some truly challenging and interesting dungeons that are maybe more integral to the story, check out the Boss Keys series by Game Maker's Toolkit. It is primarily about video games, but all the same design language can be applied to D&D as well.
Morrowind was my first experience with a truly immersive computer RPG, very cool to see the Elder Scrolls world influence D&D like this.
Nice vid, but in your dScryb section you didn't have the Free Scenes Only toggle on, so it's unclear how useful the free version really is.
That's a really great point. It would have been a more fair challenge if that were on. Next time I use it in a video, I'll try to remember that
Great video
Thanks for commenting!
woah! nice vid!
I'm glad you like it!
This idea is clever. Bob for the win.
I'd been messing with illwinter and campaign cartographer, and neither were really working for me - illwinter feels rough, and CC3+ is just too complex. Dungeon Scrawl is exactly what I've been looking for.
That's awesome to hear! I really can't recommend it enough
hahaha I loved the "Juste happy accidents"
One problem with relying on oblivion maps and such is that all those resources are readily available and widely known. Should your players realise what your dungeon generation method is, dungeons could be easily spoiled. Or steamrolled by players that are metagaming (or cheating if you prefer).
It's so different looking at the birds eye view versus actually running around in the dungeon unable to see anything but the room you're in. I think your players are unlikely to make the connection unless the dungeon has a particularly unique storyline. It's a risk, but it's still a good tool to have in your arsenal. I generally think it's the GM's job to make sure their players can't metagame. Instead of copying the dungeon out, altering some hallways is easy.
That game is old enough that someone seeing a random dungeon map is extremely unlikely to recognize it. Even if they played the game recently, the experience is different enough that dungeons are not instantly recognizable.
There's certainly some potential for this, but I think it would be fairly unlikely for one of these caves. Definitely a higher chance of someone noticing if you went with a more notable location though
I dont get to play much TT or Video games but I've always been a fan of things spoiling/going bad, harvested incorrectly or being found broken, opening more hooks for adventure and research. Nothing says everything that's been written has to be how it's actually found.
Just use Fog of War appropriately. It should be enough of a preventative measure while keeping the players on their toes.
Oblivion you say? Take my like!
I just steal dungeons straight off inkarnate 😂
Thats gold Bob, gold!
Waiting for the next part! Brilliant sir. No words ♥ ♥ 2021-11-17 06h 09min:73
Engagement for the engagement god!
I love this video
Bob, I need your help, your my only hope. Can you make a video detailing how you would make a crafting system for your games? Seems to be the one thing my games all struggle with the most is players wanting to craft their own items from potions to weapons or various gadgets like smoke bombs or modifying existing magic items. Thanks for even just reading this if you do end up seeing it!
Look at apocalypse world. It has good crafting rules.
Kibblestasty crafting systems hands down. Alchemy. Enchanting. Blacksmithing. Leatherworking. Cooking. And monster looting mechanics. Literally everything you need for crafting
Wob out here with another W video
"Actually it's more like 10 years ago"
Bruh... hate to break it to you, but 2011 was Skyrim. Oblivion was fifteen years ago. ^^ We're old.
Lol yeah, when I was citing Oblivion in the final PDF of this map/quest, I realized it came out in like 2006 😅
Nice
Thanks for commenting!
I would argue that dScryb is not free. Sure, it has free content, but in my (albeit limited) experience, that leads to more frustration than anything else. The boneyard description, for example, is not free.
That's a great point, another commenter said it would have been helpful if I had the "free scenes only" toggle on, and I will try to remember to do that next time I use it in a video
God I really want to play a game set on Tamriel
The fact that smeagol rhymes with deagol and you forgot that, makes me sad lmaoo
You are the 3rd person today to say dScryb?
I think Morrowind would be perfect for a campaign!
10 years ago? Thats when Skyrim came out...
What's that sound? It's a hundred geeks shouting "Deagol! Smeagol's 'cousin is called Deagol!"
TL DR: Read an Elder Scrolls wikipedia.
Oblivion did not have good dungeons, they were copypasta messes that make no sense in the world and have very little in terms of branching paths. Skyrim was even worse, as nearly all dunegons of all types were literal linear paths with a loop-back that is often really obvious or just dumps you out somewhere random expecting you to fast-travel back to town.
Who built the 'dungeon,' and why? Almost all the time dungeons are stupid, unless it's a video game.
Oblivion? Morrowind was better