To Do:

How to build a dungeon

Monsters
Items
Zones

Basic Tenets:

Don’t force the video-game stuff

Don’t make the world function like a video game unless you’re looking to play something that feels
like a parody. This means that even though something may function a particular way in the games, be
willing to let it go for the sake of keeping the table-top world consistent. For instance:

● A locked door should be able to be picked, not just opened with a key.
● A flask of oil should solve a rusted switch just as easily the goron hammer.
● Enemies probably don’t drop hearts.

The bottom line is let players solve problems in their own way rather than requiring one particular
input to move forward (even though “That’s how it works in the games.”) Coming up with clever solutions
to complex problems is where a good portion the fun of a tabletop game comes from.

Settle on a Tone
The Zelda games cover a huge swath of tones from cartoony and comic to dark and brooding.
Talk with your players about which of the games is their favorite and why. See if you can settle on a “look”
for your game. Perhaps you want it to be the muted pallet and brooding world of Twilight Princess. Or it
could be the saturated colors and cartoony look of Wind Waker. Perhaps it is the ethereal watercolors of
Katsuya Terada’s Zelda 2 and Link’s awakening artwork.
Once you’ve settled on a particular aesthetic, find some concept art (or even screen shots) and
print them out, in color if you can, and put them in the center of the table every time you play.

Themes

Zelda has some common themes that occur in most of the games. Try using at least one of these.

The Shadow World

Be it the Twilght Realm, The Dark World, Lorule or Termina the concept that there is a separate, often
hungry and dangerous, universe that exists layered beneath the normal one is a constant theme
throughout Zelda games. Here are some options. Try combing a couple.
● It’s an invading force (Who is leading the invasion? What do they want?).
● It’s a prison (Who was trapped there? Why?).
● It’s a strange Wonderland-esque bizzaro world (What do these reflections want?).
● It’s another time-line (What caused the split? What’s causing the times to merge?)
● It’s a dream of a sleeping god (Which God? What happens when they wake?)

Time
Another common thread throughout the series is that there are huge swaths to time between the
various entries (even different time-lines). Sometimes the name of an ancient sage becomes the name of
a town. Perhaps an entire race disappears. There is even time-travel. Consider some of the following:
● Something is drastically changed about Hyrule (A great flood, a new era of technology, etc)
● The players are the most recent in a series of incarnations each with a fraction of the Triforce,
● Take an old race and evolve it into something new (Zora to Rito, Gerudo/Sheikah to Twili).
● Change some ancient part of the main history (The sleeping Zelda was woken, Ganon won the
war, etc)
The End of the World
Regardless of what you set in motion the scope should be big. Zelda games are about the end of
an era. Each game is the culmination of many centuries of plans laid by villains and gods. If you’re
players are tough as nails sell-swords and adventure seekers taking any dirty job for a handful of rupees
they will, very soon, find themselves entangled with a series of events that will shake the world to it’s
foundations. They should be ready and willing to embrace that, not resist it.

Magic:

The standard World of Dungeon system of magic can be used when playing in Hyrule. Spirits are
common in the Zelda games. Often they are nature based. Entities like The Great Deku Tree or The Wind
Fish might function as Gods while the ghosts of ancestors, ancient wizards, and lesser elemental entities
make good candidates for sprits players can summon. Consider these:
● A poe kept in bottle (Darkness and Whispers)
● A Zora sage from before the flood (Water and Secrets)
● The ghost of an ancient warrior (Dust and Ashes)
● The sentience bound in an ancient sword (Pain and Metal)
● A strange mask salesman (Faces and Lies)

Rarely do spirits in Zelda games ever have an agenda other than to assist the player. They are never
power hungry or evil. Feel free to change this as it will make for much more interesting results.

Finally, if you want something a little closer to the games you can let player’s master domains of
magic themselves and use the following move and a pool of Magic Points (starting points equal to Int+1).
Use the space with the magic bottle on the character sheet to track MP.

Cast a Spell:
When you channel arcane energies tied to one of the domains you know you may gamble Magic Points
and roll + Magic points bet (You may bet 0). On a 12+ all 3. On a 10 or 11, pick 2. On a 7-9 pick 1.
● The effect you desire comes to pass.
● You maintain control.
● You don’t lose the Magic Points

Example Schools of Magic:

Arcane: Magic of the natural elements. Used by most common wizards (Domains: Water, Forest, Fire,
etc).

Divine: Magic tied to the Goddesses. Used by the sages of long ago to against the forces of darkness.
(Domains: Light, Time, Space, Mass, etc)

Twilight: Strange magic that harness the power of the shadow world. Dangerous and toxic it allows
access to places and powers that most fear to tamper with. (Domains: Pain, Shadow, Blood, Reflections,
Dreams etc)

Heritage

Hyrule is populated by a wide variety of strange races. Plane of Dungeons’ heritage move offers an
excellent tool for representing this variety. Below are some options for some of the various peoples of
Hyrule.

Calatian

Calatia is a marvel of modern technology. The power of clockwork and magic has pushed their empire to
the dominant force in Hyrule today. It is the Calatian mastery of meta-clockwork that has enabled them to
take control of large portions of the content and push into the depths of the fog-lands, forests, and deserts
that lie to the south of their industrious empire. Airships, auto-abicai, and automata are the hallmarks of
their continent spanning empire.

Example Calatian Moves

● Repair a something in record time.
● Predict the logical outcome
● Push technology to its unstable limits.
● Hack a machine to do something it wasn’t supposed to.
● Build a tool that solves the problem, given time and resources.

Deku:

Deku rarely leave their forest homes and are often seen as insular and suspicious of outsiders. They
prefer to remain hidden and have many abilities for stunning your foes and escaping danger. Deku who
visit the outside world are often merchants selling strange and mysterious herbs and potions from the
deep forrest.

Example Deku Moves:

● Skip across the surface of small bodies of water.

● Shape wood with song.
● Speak with the spirits of the forest.
● Blind enemies with an explosive nut.
● Burrow into the earth and re-appear unexpectedly.

Gorons:
Gorons are a hardy people living high in the mountains and deep in the heart of volcanos. They are
known for their gregarious personalities, endurance, and craftsmanship. Goron traders range far and wide
across Hyrule, trading goods and gossip.

Example Goron Moves:

● Gain sustenance through eating stone.

● Ignore extreme heat
● Spot flaws in non-Goron craftsmanship.
● Find friendship and welcome among strangers.
● Roll swiftly across flat terrain crashing through obstacles and enemies.

Hylians

Hylians were the ancient people who ruled the lands to the south before fall of their empire. In ages past
their inventions allowed them to harness the power of The Goddesses. But, that was long ago. Most of
their marvels now lie in ruin. Those descended from the Old Blood are marked by their pointed ears. It is
said that this allows them to hear the voices of the Goddesses.

Example Hylian Moves:

● Hear the voice of your patron Goddess.

● Communicate telepathically with those you are bonded to.
● Recall a secret from ages past.
● Draw arcane power from your ancient blood.
● Speak with the spirits contained in your people’s ancient marvels.
Interlopers:

Interlopers are rare people from outside the lands of Hyrule. They may be one of the ancient and
mysterious Sheikah, the alien Twili, the cunning Gerudo, or something else entirely. Interlopers are often
looked upon with suspicion. Some may even have to hide their true nature.

Example Interloper Moves:

● Blend into a crowd.

● Step, briefly, painfully into the other world
● Perform an act of inhuman grace.
● Know someone’s secret.
● See the unseen.

Moblin:

Stories tell that generations ago Ganon led armies of moblins to war against the lands of Hyrule. Though
those wars are long past, people generally distrust moblins. Moblins, in turn, do not trust most of the
people of Hyrule and live a wild existence deep in the border lands. Still, there are a few individuals who
manage to find a place in both worlds.

Example Moblin Moves:

● Track with scent

● Draw strength from fury and pain
● Speak the dark tongue
● Use massive strength to bend, lift, or break
● Ignore pain or exhaustion

Zora:

Zora are mysterious aquatic people who make their homes in and along the water ways of Hyrule. Proud
and disdainful of outsiders they see their watery domain as a world apart and have little use for the
outside world. Zora are known to travel on dry land, but prefer not to and must drink copious amounts of
water if they stay away from rivers and lakes for extended periods of time.

Example Zora Moves:

● Move effortlessly through water.

● Generate an electric field to stun.
● Charm, dazzle, or confuse with music.
● Envenom an object or weapon.
● See the echoes of sound.

Dungeons

To create a dungeon in the style of Zelda

Dungeons are giant magical conduits.

Dungeons in Hyrule have dual purposes. On one hand they are temples. In the distant past someone
built them as places of worship on holy sites. They collected power and glorified one of the sacred
elements (Wood, Time, Spirit, etc). Being temples they functioned as centers of learning, sorcery, and
even war. This means they had altars, kitchens, libraries, armories, etc.
 On the other hand, Temples served some functional role as well. They may have been a prison, a
mining rig, a fortress, or something else entirely. The magical power that they collected was put to work to
make Hyrule a better place.

When you design your dungeon combine elements from both roles. Give each room a purpose. Ask
were people slept, cooked, and ate. Where did the guards do their training? Where did the sages work
their magic? Where did the artificers fix the machinery? Answer each of these questions with a room in
your dungeon.

The dungeon’s has been corrupted.

At some point in the past the temple was invaded by evil forces and overthrown. Ganon’s minions
then proceeded to corrupt it and turn it to their own ends. This corruption can be seen in the structure
today. Statues have been thrown down and new blasphemous ones have been erected in their place.
Carvings are defaced and covered over with Ganon’s symbol. Altars are broken and desecrated. Once
sacred rooms have been perverted into mockeries of their original purpose. The Temple has become a
Dungeon.

The Dungeon is constantly watching for unwelcome intruders. The hollow eyes of statues, the
wandering mummified corpses of high priests, and the blank stare of eye shaped locks on the doors. All
are alert for the first sign of invasion.

The ancient defense mechanisms of the temple have been twisted to serve their new masters. The
bones of the temples guardians have been animated into un-life and set to their ancient task once more.
The ancient golems have been re-programed. The traps have been reset. These natural defenses are
supplemented by a band of moblins or bandits. They may be worshipers of Ganon or simply have fallen
under the temple’s influence and become enthralled.

The dungeon is constantly evolving. It will throw up new dangers to match the heroes as they
progress through it. It will re-lock doors. It will spawn new enemies. It watches. Waits. Learns. It creates
custom threats to match the heroes. Learns their strengths. Hits them where they are weak. Heroes who
spend too long in a Dungeon may start to encounter shadow version of themselves. These twisted
mockeries of the heroes cannot rest until they have murdered, and replaced, their counterparts. At first
these are crude and basic. The longer the heroes remain in the dungeon the more disturbingly accurate
they will become.

The heroes are troubleshooters whose job is to reboot the system.

The temple’s original purpose has been suppressed, but cannot be destroyed entirely. The
invaders must leave some part of the its inner workings intact so that it can continue to function as a
conduit of power that they can feed off of.

In the video games, the player is often required to solve puzzles before can proceed through the
dungeon.

In your tabletop game these puzzles are the relics of ancient rituals that were once performed in
the Temple. When the players are asked to move a sacred relic from the east wing library to the high altar
they are recreating a ritual that the temple’s new masters have buried, but can never destroy.

In the video games each dungeon has a special tool hidden deep within the labyrinth. This is
crucial for overcoming the dungeon’s hazards.

In your tabletop game this item is the manifestation of the temple’s resistance to the corruption.
The temple remembers its original purpose and, though it has been overcome, it is fighting the infection. It
has created a weapon against the infection and is waiting for the right person to step in and complete the
process.

Once the temple is clear, the work continues.

The boss is beaten. The treasure collected. The temple healed. In the video games this is where
things end. But in your tabletop adventures when the heroes have purged the temple’s system of
corruption the next step is going to be rebuilding. This will often mean re-establishing the cult that once
lived in the temple. Perhaps finding an ancient text that was spirited away, tracking down the ashes of an
ancient sage, or even escorting pilgrims to the temple to help re-build. Every temple should be a source of
continued adventures long after it has been cleared of monsters.

Likewise, Ganon won’t just sit idly by and let the players undo all his work. Enemy forces will be
sent against cleared temples, attempting to re-take them for the enemy.

Temple:

● What aspect was worshiped here?

● What was the sacred ritual?
● What is the enemy doing with the power they’re harvesting from this sacred place?

Temple Rooms
Vestibule Massive doors on broken hinges, shattered icons, cracked fountain.
Main Hall Rows of pews, defaced bas reliefs, crumbled statues.
Saint’s Chapel Votive lined walls, massive cracked statue, stained prayer mats, broken bells.
Kitchens Soot stained hearth, iron cauldrons, scattered crockery, remains of food.
Store Room Crushed amphorae of oil, crumbling documents, moldering incense, empty cistern.
Crypt Smashed tombs, scattered bones, funereal amulets, prayer inscribed tablets.
Vault Soured casks of wine, scattered rupees, broken artefacts, torn robes, empty niche.
Ritual Chamber Stained floor tiles, scattered bones, shattered tablets, desecrated altar.
Scriptorium Piles of ash, charred desks, scraps of text, swaths of long dried ink.
Workshop Tools, cold forge, unfinished works, scraps of leather, broken glass.
Rectory Small private bed, scattered texts, hidden compartment, personal altar.
Dormitory Rows of empty beds, baths, defaced icons, empty dining hall.
Gardens Overgrown vegetable beds, abandoned tool shed, shallow graves.

Keep

● What was this place built to protect or seal?

● Who was it built to keep out or in?
● Why was it built here?

Keep Rooms
Arena
War Room
Armory
Training Yard
Court
Execution
Chamber
Prison
Works

● What was created or harvested here (tools, power, clean water, magical ores, etc)?
● What drove this place to ruin?
● What happened to their greatest work?

Works Rooms
Arena
War Room
Armory
Training Yard
Court
Execution
Chamber
Prison

Academy

● What great secret were they trying to uncover?

● Why was this place built here?
● What discovery were they on the verge of discovering?

Academy Rooms
Arena
War Room
Armory
Training Yard
Court
Execution
Chamber
Prison

So, when you’re building your dungeon, how do you do it?

Build a series of control nodes within the dungeon, each with a purpose.

Solving puzzles and finding treasure weakens the boss.

Puzzles as various known types of processes: Escort, collection, take and hold. How do you get them, not
where are they.

Give the dungeon a purpose. Since it has fallen into corruption, what do the bad guys do with it? Do they
attack the countryside? Advance their evil sciences? Free the ghosts of evil sorcerers from the prison
world?

Key here is to make the distinction between the temple’s original purpose and its fallen state clear to
the players. To do this give the corruption a separate set of aesthetic cues when you describe it to your
players:

● If the infection is a Gohma and its larva then the locks and chains that bar the doors will be made
of the Gohma’s webbing.
● Perhaps it is an army of sorcerous Poe’s and their mystic paintings. In this case the traps may be
painted on to the walls and floors.
● An invasion of Lizalfos and Dodongo can be seen in patches of bomb-flowers and traps and locks
made of bones.
**** Scrapheap ****

Damage:
When you resist you may spend Hearts. Roll + Hearts spent. On a 12+ all 4. On a 10 or 11, pick 3. On a
7-9 pick 2.
● You aren't weakened, slowed down, or otherwise hampered by the wound.
● The wound won't need special treatment (medical care, anti-venom, a week of bed-rest, etc)
● You don't lose anything important (position, gear, advantage, etc)
● You aren't stunned or shaken. 

Sages get Lore.

● Ritual (you may perform occult rituals—detailed in ancient tomes and scrolls—and begin with two
known rituals).
● Bless (with holy water, you can anoint items so they are considered holy and magical—+3
damage vs. evil—for a short time)
● Cure (you can attempt to neutralize poisons, remove curses, or heal wounds with a touch)
 ● Turn (you can attempt to hold undead at bay with the power of your faith and a holy symbol)

Power

When you use violence, intimidation, or brute force roll + Power and pick options. On a 12+, three. On a
10 or 11, two. On a 7-9, one.

● You inflict great harm.

● You suffer little harm in return.
● You drive them back, seize something, or create an opportunity.

Wisdom

When you employ quick thinking, long study, or guile roll+ Wisdom and pick options. On a 12+, three. On
a 10 or 11, two. On a 7-9, one.

● You learn/remember something specific and valuable about your situation.

● They aren’t aware of your study or deception.
● You don't lose anything in the process (valuable time, expensive tools, the upper hand)

When face a challenge with willpower, charm, or social grace roll+ Courage….

When you employ willpower, charm, or social grace roll + Courage and pick options. On a 12+, three. On
a 10 or 11, two. On a 7-9, one.

● You get what you want

● There are no strings attached, compromises, or costs.
● You get it right now