Dungeon Dressing: Miscellaneous Dressings II
As well as including “large” pieces of dungeon dressing—statues, interesting pillars and so on—in your dungeon, smaller pieces of dressing can also tell an interesting story and help bring your creation alive in your players’ imaginations.
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Graffiti
A stylised swirl has been executed here in blood, all over the floor.
A stylised figure of a humanoid with the head of a donkey is painted on the wall.
A sun, moon and alchemical glyphs are drawn in what looks like red wine on the floor.
The image of a chalice, its contents burning, is executed in yellow and red paint.
All the walls in this chamber are covered by a complex mathematical—perhaps magical—formula. It would take hours to decipher it.
The figure of a cat is outlined in charcoal.
A crowned man sitting on a throne is shallowly engraved into the wall.
A fox wearing clothing and carrying a staff is drawn in black ink.
Elaborate spider webs are drawn in white chalk on the walls and ceiling.
A sun, moon and alchemical glyphs are drawn in what looks like red wine on the floor.
All the walls in this chamber are covered by a complex mathematical—perhaps magical—formula. It would take hours to decipher it.
The name “Felonious Trapp” is written in chalk, then crossed out.
An owlbear, created using a stencil and paint, decorates the floor.
A hand, index finger extended, in black tar marks the wall near a door.
Someone has doodled leaves and a bird on a branch–like crack in the wall.
A crudely executed ship is scratched into a wall.
A fleur-de-lys is carved into a wall.
A dragon is drawn in chalk, encircling a rose decorates the floor. The image is part-scuffed as if a careless explorer walked straight over it.
The image of a defecating ape is rendered in charcoal in front of another exit.
The wall has been painted over to efface some graffiti, but it is still faintly visible. Roll again on this table.
Locks
Scratches mar the lock. One, though masked in other marks, appears to be a crude and simple but incomplete map of the nearby passages.
An ornate panel with elaborate cast-iron wings around the keyhole proves to be instead a decoy for the simple latch it hides.
A rusted hexagonal panel. Close inspection reveals a lock pick broken off inside.
This steel panel has no keyhole; instead, an oddly-shaped indentation seems to call for a matching piece to unlock it.
This sliding bolt must navigate a complex miniature maze before it can be freed.
This padlock is shaped like a cello. The keyhole is beneath the base of the strings.
This puzzle mechanism depicts an ouroboros. To unlock it, the snake must devour itself.
Tiny rubies set in a golden panel hint at the riches hidden within.
The padlock is a decoy; the chain it hangs from is the actual lock, with a specific false link that can be opened with a tiny key.
This tarnished metal lock is marked with the infamous skull-and-crossbones of pirate treasure.
The lock requires two keys that must be turned in tandem, one to the left and one to the right.
Shaded in hues of copper and bronze, an etching of a phoenix soars around this keyhole.
The lock is concealed amidst iron ivy leaves that drape over the object.
The opening is false; rather, the hinges can be snapped free once the key is inserted.
Rusted to a grainy grey-brown, this ancient lock grinds with painful noise when operated.
An enormous knocker hangs around this stately old iron lock.
A masterpiece of ivory and gold, this elaborate lock might be worth more than what it protects.
Clockwork mechanisms are visible through glass panels in the front and back of this lock.
Splintered wood surrounds this lock’s iron base, where it has been half-torn from its charge.
A bust of a lion, its mane a knocker and keyhole in its mouth, protrudes from the surrounding frame.
Credit
This is a short system-neutral extract from GM’s Miscellany: Dungeon Dressing. The book is available in 5e, System Neutral and Pathfinder 1 editions. The OSR edition will be available in early 2023.
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