One-Page Dungeon Design: Creating Balanced Encounters for Beginner D&D Players
Last week, I showed you the map I drew for my 2018 dungeon contest entry. Good news: I finished it on time, and I will send it this Saturday after rechecking it.
This week, I wrote out all the fights and challenges for the dungeon.
Want to see it? Download my one-page dungeon called “Just Desserts” here!
What I Was Trying to Do
I wanted to make a short adventure that:
- Works for beginners (low-level characters)
- Can be finished in one game night
- Has a good variety of challenges
I nailed it! There are only five rooms total. Except for room 2, each room has something special about it or lets players solve it differently.
I kept the story descriptions basic on purpose. This way, the game master can add their story details and make it fit their game world. Since I only had one page to work with, I focused on making the actual gameplay fun instead of writing a lot of backstory.
The only thing missing is a trap. I didn’t add one because I ran out of space, and honestly, it wouldn’t make sense. Why wouldn’t the Fish-People, the players are chasing, warn their friends about a trap?
The Rooms Explained
I made this for a group of 4 beginning players. The contest rules said it had to work for any game system (not just D&D), which was more complicated than I thought, since I’m so used to D&D 5th edition. Still, I kept everything simple so any game master can easily adjust it for their game.
Important detail: The dungeon floor is covered in slippery mud, so the players move more slowly. This makes sense for the story, too – the Fish-People have webbed feet, so they can run on the mud just fine while the players struggle.
Room 1 – A Riddle to Solve
I wanted a puzzle, but needed it to be quick and easy. A riddle works perfectly! I picked one about food because the dungeon is called “Just Desserts,” but you could use any simple riddle or puzzle here.
Putting a puzzle right at the start tells the players: “Hey, you don’t have to fight everything!”
Room 2 – Fighting 6 Fish-People
This is a straightforward fight. The bad guys outnumber the players, so the team needs to work together and be smart! There are some small rocks the players might use during the battle.
There’s also a hidden entrance here. I originally made it a hallway, but my friend suggested making it a slide that drops you straight into room 4. If the players find and use this slide, they’ll skip ahead of 2 Fish-People carrying stolen food!
Room 3 – 3 Sleeping Fish-People
Three Fish-People, supposed to be on guard duty, fell asleep in a room full of stolen treasure. The players can sneak past them, knock them out quietly, or kill them. Again, I’m showing players they have choices.
This room is optional, but if they check it out, they’ll find some magic items and coins!
Room 4 – Fighting 4 or 6 Fish-People
This room is fun because what happens depends on how the players got here.
Normal entrance: They fight 4 Fish-People from across the room. This helps players with bows and spells. There are big rocks they can hide behind for protection.
Slide entrance: They start behind a big rock (good cover!) but now have to fight 6 Fish-People instead of 4. The upside? Those two extra Fish-People won’t be in the final boss fight.
I recently wrote about using cover in combat, and I used that idea here to make the fight more interesting.
Room 5 – The Boss Fight (1 Small Devil and Maybe 2 Fish-People)
Depending on what happened in Room 4, players fight just a small devil OR the devil plus 2 Fish-People. When I designed this, I was thinking of an Imp, but any small devil or demon works. There are cages and other objects they can use during the fight.
A big pot of boiling liquid is also under some human merchants hanging from ropes. The merchants are still alive and will reward the players if they’re saved.
The story: A weak devil took control of these Fish-People and forced them to do bad things. The story is left open so game masters can make it fit whatever campaign they’re running.
Final Thoughts
And that’s it! No matter how the contest goes, I’m happy with what I made. At the start of this month, I’d never made a one-page dungeon or even heard of this contest.
My dungeon is pretty simple, but I learned so much by jumping in and doing it. I’d be surprised if I even get an honourable mention, but that’s okay – I wasn’t trying to win, I was trying to learn and have fun. Mission accomplished! I can’t wait to see how much better I am at next year’s contest!
Big thanks to my friends Damon and Derek for reading my dungeon and giving me helpful feedback!
I said in my first post that this would only be a three-part series, but I might write one more entry after the contest ends. I want to talk about how I think I did and what I want to do better next year. Either way, I’m proud of what I created.