Hi, first time posting here.
I wanted to ask how everyone thinks would be best to GM a labyrinth environment, complete with minotaur. I’d like to use basically this sort of thing in a session I’ve got comping up in just over a week, and I’m not really sure how to actually manage the labyrinth. Would it be best to have a map constructed with index cards as they go? And to that extent, would it be best to have a preplanned maze? Or focus on the “leave blanks” and just sort of build it as they go?
I’m not planning on having numerous encounters in the labyrinth, I’m planning more on having just the minotaur (and maybe a few bats or other small threats), if that affects recommendations.
I’d just play with a small stack of the card version of these and (non-permanently) tag one as where the minotaur is.
http://dungeonmorphs.com/
The question I’d ask is ‘what dramatic purpose does the labyrinth serve?’
What does it do to the characters that makes it different to a regular dungeon? Then write dungeon moves that enable it to do that. Off the top of my head:
* Close off the easy option.
* Show them the path, then hide it.
* Offer them an exit, if they pay the price.
Also remember that one of your moves is ‘separate them’. Use it mercilessly.
I wouldn’t even bother with a map. Just a few ideas for encounters that the group hits in a more or less random order. You want them to be rolling so that you get to make moves, and then use those moves to highlight the danger of the labyrinth.
You could do something like this: http://randyoest.com/how-i-setup-a-junkyard-boss-fight-in-fate
Maybe you could use a Cretan labyrinth as a change from a maze? Check the Wikipedia page for ideas and historical examples.
Eric Duncan I was going to suggest something similar. The only thing I would add is to shuffle the tiles after marking the one containing the minotaur. Hold out the minotaur tile and insert it about two thirds into the shuffled stack.
What I would go for is a shifting dungeon/labyrinth. After placing the first tile from the shuffled stack, mark it as the entrance. So every time the players advance to a third tile, pick up the first of that set of three and put it in a discard pile. Once they meet the minotaur, shuffle the discard stack (that holds the tile marked as the entrance) and put it under any remaining tiles left from the original stack after the minotaur tile has been revealed.
You can play around with how big the labyrinth is by starting with more or fewer tiles. Because the labyrinth is shifting, even a small stack of eight to ten should offer some variability and challenge for a shorter run. Eighteen to twenty or more should offer a longer, more challenging, run.
On the other hand, I really like Chris Longhurst’s treatment as well.
Yeah I also really like Chris’s idea. and your suggestion for mine adds to the confused, shifting feel of a Minotaur labyrinth
These suggestions are PERFECT. I think I’m going to go with the shifting labyrinth. I probably don’t have time to order any tiles from Dungeonmorphs as the next session is pretty soon (and transatlantic shipping times tend to be pretty bad); does anyone know of anywhere that I could get similar printable tiles?
You could just make a d6 chart and roll on it
You could bust some out on index or playing card sized paper stock. They don’t need to be super polished just try and keep the off card links close to aligned.
Just for laughs, give your locations the same names as those in the Colossal Cave Adventure. 😉
As Eric Duncan said, use some index cards or cut some graph paper into smaller squares. Just make sure all the entrance and exits match up on each card/square.
What I did was come up with a list of area names. I let the player’s find by research of various types the names of some of the places in the maze. Then I used this move:
Navigate the Maze
When you lead the way to a specific location in the maze, roll + Int or Wis. On a 10+, you reach your destination in good time. On a 7-9, the GM chooses one from the list below. On a 6-, you wander the maze for a while and get turned around. Take -2 ongoing to navigate the maze until you return to a familiar location.
• You take a long time to reach the location.
• You are followed to your destination.
• You end up back in a place you have been before, but something has changed.
• You stumble upon a new area or location.
Then set a clock. As the clock ticks down they run closer to the Minotaur. Give each slice a grim portant that mixes with the current room. When it hits midnight, Minotaur!
Maybe hide the shifting nature from the players until they realise that mapping isn’t working or there re weird inconsistencies.
I’ve used minotaurs a couple of times in other games and my rule is that the presence of the minotaur magically turns any location into a labyrinth over time, shifting space, adding or removing rooms. The prey runs but the minotaur uses the trans-dimensional space as a hunting ground.
I like that idea Charlie Etheridge-Nunn! A minotaur’s presence physically altering an area it makes its lair. I can imagine a forest growing into a tangled grove of thick, thorny walls and clear paths between them. Then the thorns growing together and separating randomly to confuse people moving through it. Definitely stealing this idea!