Building a Legend of Zelda style dungeon.

[Agrippa]

Taking inspiration from post 12 in the "Things I'm no longer allowed to do in Exalted" thread I'd like to ask something. How would you devise a Zelda game like dungeon for OSRIC, AD&D, AD&D 2nd Ed., LL or even Mutant Future? Complete with platforms to climb and jump as well weakened walls, ceilings and floors, ripe for the strategic deployment of explosives. Maybe even ways to make some of the boss monsters like Trinexx, Arrghus, the Helmasaur King, Kholdstare and Vitreous into more party suitible foes.

[Agrippa]

So is anyone else interested in Zelda-style dungeons? Or even in stating out some of the series' boss monsters?

[Dyson Logos]

This Zelda thing is just too new-school for me.

I stopped playing console games before Zelda came out.

[Agrippa]

This Zelda thing is just too new-school for me.

I stopped playing console games before Zelda came out.

Here are maps of LoZ: A Link to the Past's for your critique anyway.


Now here's room three.

[seneschal]

Good-looking map, complete with power-ups!

[Malcadon]

If I was to run a D&D-type game in the Hyrule setting, I would downplay a number of the gimmicky video game elements, and focus on a rich enviroment of strange creatures and cultures.

I did have an idea sometime back of a campaign sourcebook called The Unsung Heroes of Hyrule, were long after the events of Zelda II: Link's Adventures*, people are heading east to the uncharted waters beyond the Zelda II map on rumors of great treasures and powerful magic. Countless brave adventurers head out, but a luck few return rich... But many vanish into the great unknown! The players would encounter monsters that make-up the first few games and them some. They would be fleshed-out creatures with their own habits, customs (if Intelligent) and strange abilities and weaknesses (even if they would be made-up for the sake of this game). And much like the older game manuals and the Nintendo Player's Guide for Link to the Past (aka the best damn game guide ever), such a book would have little tidbits and art to help the players get the players better immersed in the world.

Much of the old legends (like would would have been recorded form the newer games**) have been lost, fragment and/or bastardized with time and untold conflicts. So, players cannot rely on the games for meta-gaming knowledge, thus adding mystery to otherwise established elements. For example, the players encounter some Gerudo men and one of the players says "Wait, I thought only one Gerudo male is born every one-hundred years?", then the men laughs and then one of them replies "Yes, we male Gerudos are not that common, but we are also not that rare ether. That is just an old Hyrulian myth." This needs not be the case, but the points is to have the players explore the world with a new-found sense of wonder.

I never got around to making it do to how my writing skills sucks, but it would be a different approach to all the other video game-based RPG adaptations out there.

*Placing it in The Decline of Hyrule and The Last Hero -- aka The Hero of Time Defeated -- part of the timeline.
**It should be noted that games like Majora's Mask, Twilight Princess, or anything looking like Wind Waker are not in this timeline.

[Agrippa]

I'm not talking about Hyrule as a D&D setting per say, just drawing inspiration from the Zelda series' dungeons. Though a setting conversion might be interesting too. But right now I'm mostly interested in dungeons monsters, the boss monsters to be precise.

[Malcadon]

I'm not talking about Hyrule as a D&D setting per say, just drawing inspiration from the Zelda series' dungeons. Though a setting conversion might be interesting too. But right now I'm mostly interested in dungeons monsters, the boss monsters to be precise.

Its not that hard. Many of the early monsters have D&D analogues like Moblin = Orc; Gleeok = Hydra; Lyonles = Wormics; etc. Falling rocks and Floor Traps (those things that like to slide on the ground you as you pass bay them) could be handled like a normal traps - save to take half-damage or avoid outright. The Underworld levels lend themselves nicely to D&D dungeons, and the Overworld map from Zelda II already has a "wilderness adventure" setup with wandering monsters and a sense of scale. The Zelda games also have a lot of puzzles (including methods to damage an otherwise indestructible monster), but they could be problematic for tabletop play. That is, many of them can be really tight or throw it on you with no clue on what you need to do. In a video game, you can die many times until you figure-out the puzzle or obstacle. On top of that, a number of puzzles and obstacles keep the players from progressing any further, and could take them a bit to figure-out. In RPGs, that could make for some really frustrating games, and most players hate loosing a PC to a puzzle-trap that is meant to eat many characters before they can figure-out ho to solve it. The best part about a tabletop RPG is that you can add better puzzles (and social encounters), as you are not limited by two-dimensional gaming technology.

[Agrippa]

My idea for puzzle monsters is that they have a few outright weak spots for full damage. However they can still be harmed if hit elsewhere, just for less damage. Same goes for traps. If you want to disintergrate, telekinetically manipulate or otherwise deal with a barrier or puzzle-triggered door or goody go a head and try it. It could work. I'd also try and fit in my stunt rule.