Although it's referenced as one of the "three pillars" of D&D adventuring, there's really not much to mechanically encourage exploring. Experience is awarded for reaching milestones or beating enemies. And while you can give out XP for "finding" new locations or different regions of a dungeon like you're playing Fallout, this pretty much just ends up as a low-grade milestones for the dungeon. However, having just recently played the newer Dark Alliance game, it makes a point of having some big sweeping vistas where you can see other areas of the level stretching out nearby and get a hint of what you're likely to come up against, so here's a mechanic based on that.
Exploration Dice When you've progressed to an area where you can see what kinds of threats you might face, or take at least 1 hour during a short or long rest to study the region and what threats you might face there, you can gain 1 exploration die for the region, which is a d6. If you have proficiency in Survival or if this region is your favoured terrain, you instead gain 2 dice. This die can only be used in the specific area related to where it is gained (the Glengrave Foothills, the Caverns of the Magister - upper level, the Weeping Hollow, the Verdant Pit, and so on), and is lost if you take a long rest outside of the area or gain an exploration die for another region. You can spend 1 die as a reaction when a natural terrain effect forces you to make a saving throw, or when you make a check relating to knowing about the region or a Survival check. When you use an exploration die, roll the die, and add the number rolled to your ability check or saving throw. Once you have used an exploration die, you cannot gain any more exploration dice until at least a week has passed, unless you have an exploration die to 'trade in'. Important: To make this feel useful, it's important to not always give it away straight away. While resting at an overlook opposite a series of cliffside lairs might be useful in letting you be aware of the risks of falling, you might have to venture several rooms into an abandoned dwarven citadel with unstable stonework and slick, slimy floors before you've explored enough to be able to gain a familiarity die. The 'cooldown' period will also prevent your players just camping on every location to be able to bypass all the traps. So give it a try- get out there and explore! Also posted on Game Masters Stash on 10 September 2021. Comments are closed.
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AuthorI'm Luke. He/him pronouns. Archives
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