Making Good Rumors (And Later, Dungeons)

Long time, no see. I have been quite busy with life, so I apologize with the 2 year hiatus. I have recently been working on building a dungeon zine project and I have found it to be extraordinarily difficult to actually begin work on a dungeon and know if the concept is any good. I have tried a few methods and each time I find my ideas to be faulty in some way further down the line, or I lose faith in the concept because of a few messy details.

Not to get psychological, but I think this is because I struggle when participating in activities without much structure, like dungeon building. I personally like to make checklists for myself when I lack structure, although I have found that the art of dungeoncraft cannot really be put elegantly into a checklist.

So, I had to get unconventional. Instead of starting dungeons from some nebulous history, why not begin to generate ideas for dungeons by rumor tables, killing two birds with one stone. Basically, with each prompt/entry on the rumor table, a new concept of the dungeon is introduced. This way, with each rumor, the dungeon develops its own character and themes.

Of course, rumors need homes. Before starting the table below, be sure to have a dungeon entrance in mind, something that could reasonably breach the surface into the mythic underworld where all dungeons exist. The surface location could be anything, from a cave entrance to a ruined keep to a ruined spacecraft.

Art by Konstantin Vavilov

Before we get to the prompts to generate a dungeon, I feel that it is important to discuss what makes a good rumor. To me, good rumors are:

* Short and snappy (do not write paragraphs. Nobody speaks in paragraphs. Keep it to a single sentence and save the explanations for the GM if it is necessary, not the players)

* Able to pique player interest (typically by playing into their motivations, such as presenting an opportunity for treasure, knowledge, glory, secrets, a kickass vorpal sword, etc.)

* Strange and speculative (They change the image that the players initially had of the dungeon by introducing a weird concept. For example, "The prison used to hold criminals" is not a rumor, it states the obvious. "The prison used to hold animals who committed criminal offenses" is a rumor, because it fundamentally changes how the players view the dungeon by adding the concept of animals possibly living in the dungeon (even if this rumor is proven to be false, it will change the way they approach the dungeon))

Now, onto the table of rumor prompts:

1. A true rumor about what else lies below the surface of the entrance structure. Be general, give yourself some room to breathe. This is meant to add spatial complexity to a dungeon. For instance, a dungeon is boring if it is just a large set of caves with one theme, but caves with a secret lab as the 2nd level is cool.

2. A partially true rumor about another area that lies below the entrance structure. This is here to add more layers of complexity while giving yourself even more wiggle room. If you feel like adding more major locales to your dungeon, repeat these two prompts to your heart's content.

3. A true fact about the history of the dungeon below. Every dungeon has a history, even if that history is somewhat odd and disjointed as a result of being generated from a rumor table. It is a magical underground complex, go wild! Just remember not to ramble with your history, keeping it to one sentence.

4. A partially true fact about the history of the dungeon below. Adding more history, more wiggle room.

5. A true fact about what is currently going on in the dungeon. This is different from history, since the rumormongers may have to deal with these current events which are somehow related to the dungeon. This prompt is here to add a sense of livelihood to the dungeon. A set of ruins with just history feels like you are walking through something cool that you weren't there for, which often isn't much fun for players.

6. A partially true fact about what is currently going on in the dungeon. You know the drill.

7. A blatantly false and somewhat ridiculous sounding rumor. Now that you have a general idea of what is going on in the dungeon, it is time for you to have more fun. People like to lie and tell tall tales, and the players will joke about the fool who unironically told them this story, assuming they don't fall for it.

8. Roll 1d6. A (1: true, 2-3: partially true, 4-6: false) rumor about a specific treasure in the dungeon. All dungeons worth their salt have some legendary treasure. Whether it is Excalibur or a giant floating eyeball companion, the only rule here is that it should be cool and not mundane. Nobody is going to care that a +1 sword is in the dungeon, latch onto something that the players will immediately think of ways to use and abuse.

9. Roll 1d6. A (1: true, 2-3: partially true, 4-6: false) rumor about some of the flora/fauna in the dungeon. This could be useful for introducing possible recurring environmental hazards, which dungeons should have!

10. Roll 1d6. A (1: true, 2-3: partially true, 4-6: false) rumor about an NPC in the dungeon. This is a little strange, as you must be wise with who this NPC is. The average rumormonger will not know that "A giant beholder will offer you court if you present it a hearty meal", but maybe an adventurer would (and maybe they would like a favor for telling the rumor)

Before we get to an example I am using for my dungeon zine project, and before you get to writing your own tables, I find it important to know how to use these rumors for good setting building. After each rumor you should state in parentheses whether that rumor is true, false, or partially true for GM clarity. In these parentheses, you should explain what that rumor introduces to the dungeon. I find it useful to use improv guidelines as tools for riffing off these dungeon prompts. Simply put:

* If the rumor is true, say "yes, and..."

* If the rumor is partially true, say "yes, but..."

* If the rumor is false, say "no, but..."

With these principles in mind, here is the concept for the dungeon which will be in my zine:

Surface location: A ruined keep atop a flowery hill. Peaceful.

1. "A winding series of overgrown catacombs, filled with long lost treasure, lies beneath the ruined keep." (True. There are catacombs for a wizard and their followers, along with a grand tomb for the wizard's familiars)

2. "A wizard has constructed a lab in the dungeon, researching a powerful spell to take over the world!" (Partially true. There is a lab and a wizard, but he is researching methods to make an undead wife (with disastrous results))

3. "The dungeon used to hold the Punch Brothers, a gang that would rob the rich while disguised as jesters and bards." (True. The Punch Brothers used to be held here and their skeletons can still be found around the dungeon, sometimes animating to rob from treasure hunters!)

4. "The God of bees and nature used to live with his followers on the hill the dungeon was built on." (Partially true. The being living up there specialized in controlling nature and overgrowth, but it was a wizard and his followers that lived up there, not a God.)

5. "Newtling thieves have been spotted taking our art and retreating back to the dungeon!" (True. Newtlings are taking the surrounding villages beautiful works of art and putting it up in their caves to appease their Newtling God)

6. "Revolutionary bandits have been flocking to the dungeon because the outlaw Yaakov Yellowbones has returned from the dead!" (Partially true. Bandits are grouping up at the dungeon, but it is not because Yaakov is alive, rather an impersonator has very convincingly taken up the role of Yaakov)

7. "The dungeon is filled with mischievous cats and stalwart dogs who are in an eternal war lasting generations," (Blatantly false. There are no armies of cats and dogs, although there is a loose cat familiar called Magpie who steals from various dungeon inhabitants)

8. "A sword made of blackened bone, capable of raising an army of undead, is waiting to be wielded by the next adventurer who delves into the dungeon" (Rolled a 5, so this is false. The sword does not exist, however certain peculiar bones of blessed undead in the dungeon hold powers similar to this legendary sword.)

9. "Bring a pig with you, they will be able to scare off the many strange alchemical oozes in the dungeon and sniff out secret passages!" (Rolled a 6, so this is false. Pigs will not be able to scare off anything in the dungeon, however they may have a keen nose for several secret locations.)

10. "A garden-drake lives in the dungeon, and you can gain its friendship with exotic food (Rolled a 3, so this is partially true. The garden-drake is in the dungeon and is friendly, but it is not looking for food and will be offended if you bring it meat)

Additionally, there are some extra optional rules you can add to this procedure for generating a dungeon if you want more content outside of the dungeon. Namely, every rumor is reflective of the person or faction who is spouting that rumor. Inside each set of parentheses, include the name of the person or faction who is telling the party these rumors and what connection they have to the dungeon that is related to this rumor. This can be especially useful if you want to add some extra definition to a town close to the dungeon, and turn it from simply a place to restock to a place with factions that interact with the dungeon and may aid/harm the players with their interaction. For instance:

* "Revolutionary bandits have been flocking to the dungeon because the outlaw Yaakov Yellowbones has returned from the dead!" (Partially true. Bandits are grouping up at the dungeon, but it is not because Yaakov is alive, rather an impersonator has very convincingly taken up the role of Yaakov. Told by imperial soldiers, who are under orders to wait for reinforcements and storm the dungeon to capture any bandits and remaining prisoners)

* "A sword made of blackened bone, capable of raising an army of undead, is waiting to be wielded by the next adventurer who delves into the dungeon" (Rolled a 5, so this is false. The sword does not exist, however certain peculiar bones of blessed undead in the dungeon hold powers similar to this legendary sword. Told by twin necromancer adventurers, each controlling a rivalling adventuring party, looking for these necromantic spoils)

* "Bring a pig with you, they will be able to scare off the many strange alchemical oozes in the dungeon and sniff out secret passages!" (Rolled a 6, so this is false. Pigs will not be able to scare off anything in the dungeon, however they may have a keen nose for several secret locations. Told by Squaggus Blemishly, a town merchant who has recently set up shop outside the dungeon and is looking to nickel and dime adventurers)

The only caveat to this extra rule is that it may not work with some of the more general rumors, namely rumors 1 and 2, since these are made just to establish further structural complexity to the dungeon. The most plausible source of these more general rumors would be peasants and mouthy villagers who have not had any real personal experience with the dungeon. Additionally, this optional rule works best when you have a specific faction or NPC with some power telling them. For instance, the PCs will not see Richard Saint Jenkins, the town drunkard, as a potential player in the dungeon since he is a lone man without much power. However, if Richard Saint Jenkins makes it very obvious that he has either numbers (for instance, Richard is a member of the Littledale Keggers, a gang of town drunks who plan to storm to dungeon to get coveted Dungeon Ale) or power (Richard is a known business mogul, heavily investing in research into the dungeon for strange reasons) then this gives the PCs more to consider about Richard Saint Jenkins interest in the dungeon, and perhaps even give them more outlets to negotiate with this NPC for aid (or fail at negotiations and make a new enemy!) These rumors can also work well to establish rival adventuring parties and add more current events happening within the dungeon, transforming the dungeon from a series of dusty tunnels to a sandbox full of gunpowder, waiting to explode into factional chaos with player interaction.

And that concludes this post. I find that this method works for me because it is easier to a slightly disjointed list of exciting stuff that the players may enjoy rather than starting from a vague history and going from there. Of course, this is just a jumping-off point to make something bigger and more complex, a guide to get initial ideas before dungeon ecology, mapping, and etc. I hope you find this helpful!