%% date:: [[2023-01-02]] %% # [[Five-Room Dungeons]] The Five-Room Dungeon for [[Tabletop Roleplaying Games|TTRPGs]] is based on the idea that [[Being a Game Master|DMs]] can (and should!) reuse proven patterns to create engaging games. In some ways, it's the application of the [[Three-Act Structure]] to TTRPGs. Creating a dungeon with five rooms makes it easy to create and easy to drop into an existing campaign or use as a one-shot. According to the idea, the five rooms should consist of: ## Room 1: The Entrance and the Guardian - Introduce the world of the dungeon and show how different it is from the rest of the world. [^harry] - Introduce a guardian, who can be a foe or a friend, who can give them a bit more information about why they *shouldn't* enter the dungeon (and why they should...) ## Room 2: The Puzzle or NPC - Add a social encounter, trap, or some other environmental hazard ## Room 3: The Setback - Have something go wrong, or show the players that they may have underestimated the dungeon. - Add a twist just before the big fight. - Do something to remind the PCs not to get *too* comfortable. ## Room 4: The Climax: The final battle - Let the main villain do a villainous monologue before the fight, and when (if) the players defeat them, also let them do a final "you haven't heard the last of me!" empty threat. - Think of different types of encounters that don't just involve whittling the boss down to 0 HP. Maybe they have to stop a ritual? Save prisoners? Figure out how to break something that makes the boss vulnerable? - Change things up using the environment. Use lair actions, have the boss use their lair to their advantage. ## Room 5: The Reward and the Reveal [^four] - Give the players what they're here for... but also reveal why it's not what they thought. - Deliver on the promises of the adventure, but also throw in something unexpected that cast a different light on what they did in the dungeon. - Introduce a future quest (even in a one-shot) to show the significance of what they've done here. [^harry]: Harry. (2022). *A DM's guide to the 5 room dungeon.* Retrieved from: https://blackcitadelrpg.com/5-room-dungeon/ [^four]: Four, J. *The ultimate guide to 5 room dungeons.* Retrieved from: https://www.roleplayingtips.com/5-room-dungeons/