From the ruins

I

 mentioned last week how I hated what I had created and how it affected my not being happy with my work. Instead of giving up, I changed course and rethought the first level. By doing this, I created something I like better. 

Sitting down and thinking about what I wanted to do before I did it, I realized that the first level of any dungeon needs to be the hook that sucks you in. Without that first level, you lack a clear idea of where you want things to go. Just randomly starting with a 10x10 square room and putting something in there does not give you an exciting dungeon.

My work on this project has one important rule:

Do not look at the past.

It looks pretty funny coming from the one who created Colonial Gothic. Yet I needed to set this in stone and keep it in mind. There are many, many, many, many, many megadungeons out there. The temptation exists to look at them and study the structure of the whole thing. This is dangerous.

Why? 

Simple, they influence you when designing. I've played and run The Temple of Elemental Evil a few times. I am going to need help remembering what I know. However, if I went back to reread it, I knew it would subconsciously affect my design.

Where does my project stand with all of that out of the way? Since blowing everything up, the first level begins in a keep held by bandits. Slowly developing, these bandits have tied some way into the plot surrounding the dungeon.

One surprising thing that surprised me is another group that is active in the dungeon appeared that I should have accounted for. I jotted down the notes for the three factions and knew they would be a significant subplot for the jail.