Twenty-one eldritch dungeons...

I finally updated the list of dungeons I've written over the time. The tally is 21! That includes one-page dungeons, pocketmod-sized dungeons, 8-page booklet dungeons, a "megadungeon" (three levels so far...)... I've ran 10 out of the 21. What makes me particularly glad is that other people have used my dungeons in their games!

All of them are available on the blog as free PDFs.

You can always find the list here.

So, as of March 16, 2026, in chronological order:

• The Belly of Gargantuel (mini-dungeon inside the rotting carcass of a sea monster)
• The Chaldean Archives (30 minute dungeon, set in Assyrian ruins)
• The Golem Master's Workshop (30 minute dungeon, fun "haunted house")
• Temple of the Berserkers (minimalist OD&D fantasy adventure!)
• Outpost of Stone & Silver (OD&D/Delving Deeper science fantasy adventure!)
• Maze of Amazement & Death (minimalist OD&D/Delving Deeper dungeon, 61 rooms!)
• Bloodsoaked Gem Caverns (system-agnostic OSR dungeon, set in an abandoned mine!)
• Cave of Trials (a prehistoric initiatory dungeon for OSR games!)
• Nest of the Circuit Roaches (small system-agnostic OSR sci-fi horror dungeon!)
• Parallel Dungeons (a dimension-shifting OSR adventure, three dungeons in one!)
• Temple of the Forgotten God (16-room OSR dungeon, written as a 1-hour exercise)
• The Bleak Corridors (15-room OSR factory dungeon with a steampunk/victoriana vibe)
• Oracle of the Laughing Prophet (small 6-room lair)
• Delver's Delight (ongoing megadungeon thing, currently 3 levels completed)
• The Red Bastion (15-room OSR dungeon, the map from my GIMP mapping tutorial keyed)
• Hole of the Goblin King (hand-written one-page dungeon, OSR)
• The Dark Keep in the Snow (snowed-in yeti monastery, OSR dungeon)
• Secret Hide-Out of GLAXORZIS, that Sorcerous CREEP! (minimalist 3-level OSR dungeon that fits in a pocketmod)
• Underground Station, Long Abandoned (OSR science fantasy, post-apoc, abandoned subway hub station)
• Wreck Worship (a sea & salt themed cult dungeon, OSR)
• A Single Tomb, Unplundered... (Egyptian-style tomb adventure, for OSRIC)

Have fun! Let me know if you run something.

My phased combat sequence house rule

I LOVE PHASED COMBAT! Yes! Behold, my phased combat sequenced that I use in certain games. It's based on OD&D/Chainmail/Delving Deeper, but modified according to my experience of running phased combat in Mazes & Minotaurs.

COMBAT PROCEDURE

Each side rolls d6 for initiative, higher is better.

Each round, we go through the following steps:

1. Morale checks (for monsters & NPCs).

2. Declaration of intent, in reverse initiative order (so the faster side can react to the actions of the slower).

3. Action phases; all sides complete each phase in initiative order, Referee adjudicates sequence of actions as needed:

A) Missiles, Movement & Miscellaneous actions

• Stationary characters with ranged weapons at-the-ready can fire twice (or fire once and reload crossbow)
• Non-stationary characters with ranged weapons at-the-ready can fire once, with a -2 (elves ignore this penalty)
• Ducking in-and-out of cover counts as movement
• Firing into melee is allowed, attack rolls that miss their mark are checked against the nearest friendly participant of the melee
• Spell-casting starts in this phase; caster must remain stationary

B) Melee

• All in melee range (10’) can attack or be attacked; performance is determined with a single attack roll (against 1 (or less) HD enemies, fighters and monsters can opt to do multiple attacks [a number, equal to their HD])
• Sequence of attacks is determined by logic (e.g. longer weapons strike first on the first round, but last on subsequent rounds) or initiative
• Grappling/overbearing: each participant rolls their HD, higher wins; grappled character is immobile until held, or even knocked/choked unconscious (save against Paralysis applies)

C) Magic

• Spells begun in phase (A) go off
• If the caster took damage in the previous phases, they must save against Spells/Magic or the spell is interrupted and lost

 

Referee trying to adjudicate phased combat, by Francisco Goya

I'm too lazy to write up an example of play, but maaaybe in the future.

[Dungeon] Maze of Amazement ( & Death ), one-page adventure for OD&D/Delving Deeper

So, if keying the entirety of The Maddening Corridors of Nuclear Chaos is not really a viable option, what can we do with it?

Well, we can cut it up and use a part of it as a complete dungeon!

I divided up The Maddening Corridors map into 36 quadrants, took a random one (by rolling two six-siders), cut it into half, edited out some errant corridors and superfluous exits; and ended up with a 60-ish room dungeon.

The next step of the exercise was to key it. I followed the basic procedure of my two previous OD&D efforts (Temple of the Berserkers and Outpost of Stone & Silver): stocked it quickly using Delving Deeper (made even quicker through Inspiration Pad Pro automation), then edited as needed...

You can fit 61 rooms on a single page... Of course, the key becomes very minimal, but still, I think this is playable. See for yourselves:

Download PDF with map & key!

Enjoy!

UPDATE 2025: A Level 3 Dork turned this into The Lair of the Serpent Men! Compare & contrast to see how far a little re-skinning can take you in making a dungeon your own.

Automatic stronghold generation! [OD&D / Delving Deeper]

 

Let's bring together all my favorite things: random tables, automated through Inspiration Pad Pro, OD&D-style strongholds, and ancient history turned fantasy!

I put together a generator file for Strongholds:

Download the .ipt file*

* To run the generator, you need Inspiration Pad Pro 3.0 installed, then you have to copy the generator file (.ipt) into the folder with all the other generators. The software is free for Windows, but not free as a mobile app.

or,

use the online generator at perchance, created by ktrey/d4 Caltrops!

It's based upon:

1. The wilderness and treasure sections of Delving Deeper form the foundation (DD is one of the best OD&D clones out there!).
2. For the NPCs, I added the wonderful d4 Caltrops Vocations, Mannerisms & Pecularities!
3. For names, I loaded thousands of ancient Greek, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, Hittite names, sources from Kate Monk's Onomastikon.
4. And fleshed it out with some of my own work.
5. Also, for inspiration, read the collected "Implied OD&D setting" posts!

The file generates a hextype, a short stronghold history, details about the current resident and garrison, and also a magic artifact or item that can be found at the fortress. Named magic swords included!

A couple of examples:

· Plains hex
· The Stronghold is a centuries old fastness at a bridge. It was won at a game of chance by the current resident. Its condition is weak.
· The resident is Eurykratides the Barbarian, a level 10 Chaotic Magic-User (signature spell: Phantasm), Judgmental and Paranoid; with an entourage of Gargoyles. Attended by 2 Apprentices (level 3-6 Magic-Users).
· The resident's coat of arms is a Purple Flower against Black field.
· A force of 130 Berserkers is garrisoned in the Stronghold.
· No Specialist hireling is in the resident's personal employ.
· Some NPCs: Pushu-ken (Fastidious Caulker), Satyros (Egotistical Shrine Attendant) and Luga the Gray (Honest Furniture Maker).
· An artifact is hidden in the zoo: a Map leading to a magic item: a magic sword:

Teeth of Leontiades the Mad
Lawful Sword +2, Ego: 5 (+1 for each language or power), Intelligence: 5 (Unintelligent)
If both Intelligence and Ego are equal to or over 9, the sword's Purpose is to Slay fighters

 

· Mountains hex
· The Stronghold is a pre-human fort inside a volcano. It was created by the current resident. Its condition is serviceable.
· The resident is Duchess Oarizus, a level 11 Anti-Cleric (signature spell: Insect Plague), Impolite and Giggling; with an entourage of Vampires.
· The resident's coat of arms is a Black Gorgon against Silver field.
· A force of 100 Orcs is garrisoned in the Stronghold.
· No Specialist hireling is in the resident's personal employ.
· Some NPCs: Ahu-shina (Earnest Hawker), Maiandrios (Irrational Guardsman) and Pinotmou the Equine (Observant Jailor).
· An artifact is hidden in the bedchamber: Plate armor & shield +2.

 

Players' maps for the OD&D adventures (Temple of the Berserkers and Outpost of Stone & Silver)

I know a lot of people use virtual tabletops, especially in these quarantine days. Or just like to have something to show to the group. So I made players' maps for the two OD&D dungeons I published recently. These versions come without any text labels, and the traps and secret doors are masked. They probably don't line up perfectly with the 70px grids, but I'm sure you can get that to work... (oh, and the maps are on a 1 square = 10' scale).

You can get them here:

Players' maps & PDFs

[Dungeon] Outpost of Stone & Silver, science fantasy adventure for OD&D/Delving Deeper

Temple of the Berserkers received a very warm welcome, so here's a follow-up! Outpost of Stone & Silver is in the same format: dungeon map + keys that fit on one page (or two pages, if you want larger font). It's a science fantasy adventure, in the spirit of Gamma World or Carcosa. A mysterious science outpost/laboratory, built into a mountain - who knows what lies in its depths?

This time, instead of the OD&D booklets, I used the guidelines of Delving Deeper, a great iteration of the 0e rules.

To achieve the science fantasy feel, I re-skinned all fantasy regulars. Goblins became bug-eyed monsters, skeletons became flayed androids, giant snakes and spiders turned into robot arms and patrol drones*. I must admit that I'm kinda proud of turning the "Red Dragon, Hatchling" entry into a flamethrower turret... And if the dragon is asleep, then the turret is just "on hold"...

So yeah, I had a lot of fun. Aaaand I added a reference of something that'd made a big impression on me in my childhood. That's always nice.

Download PDF with map & key!*

* 2020.08.24 - now with a player map, with secret doors and labels hidden!

* Technically, Delving Deeper has stats and even descriptions for robots, cyborgs, etc. (unlike OD&D, where the "Robots, Golems, Androids" are "self-explanatory monsters which are totally subjective as far as characteristics are concerned"...). But those monsters are too strong, I wanted something weaker. + Re-skinning is more fun.

Have fun, and, as always, let me know what you think!