Peek: Life in a Dungeon

Through the dungeon of Thedeim, most delvers notice the efforts of the scions or the dungeon himself, but there is so much more going on than those dozen-and-change beings.  The will of the scions and Thedeim shapes the behavior of the denizens and how they interact with the delvers and invaders.

Here, for example, we have one of the more ordinary spider denizens, weaving a web like any ordinary orbweaver.  but where a normal spider will simply make their web and hope, this one is driven by the will of the dungeon.  The will desires all flies to be captured, so the spider has been looking for the small places they could slip in.  This one has a rather out-of-the-way placement, which is why the flies have been managing to sneak in.

One of the roof shingles has come loose, and though the outside temperature has lessened the number of fly invaders, they are not gone, so the spider must be vigilant.  This little gap could let the flies through, and so the little spider weaves its web.  And we see it's chosen a good spot, as a fly invader squeezes through the small gap, and immediately stumbles into the sticky webbing.

But stopping invaders is not all the denizens do.  Here we have a fruitbat, just returned from an expedition.  While ordinary fruitbats would never dare to enter the volcanic area far below the main manor, the denizen bats are made of sterner stuff.  Their dungeon is always hungry for new herbalism nodes, and the fruitbats are more than happy to oblige.  This one has a special prize: a large seed, almost a pit, that looks very much like a raw gemstone.  A simple inspect shows why the bat would be interested, and also raises the question of how they came to acquire it.

It's a gemtrap seed, which will grow a carnivorous plant.  It draws and crystalizes minerals to form rough gems nestled in hinged leaves.  When something is drawn by the sparkle, the trap snaps shut, and the plant has a meal to help it grow in harsh environments.  The dungeon will have to decide what to do with it later.  For now, the fruitbat carries it to the warehouse, rather than the garden in the bellfry.  Such a rare seed deserves special attention.

Elsewhere in the dungeon, under the cemetery and in the catacombs of the crypt complex, the denizens prepare to do battle with the delvers!  Here is where the dungeon's influence is the most telling.  The undead could easily swarm and bury the delvers in numbers and strength, but their dungeon forbids it.  Instead, they are to challenge, not kill.  So the denizens must observe.

The crawling hands are the first line in encountering the delvers.  They watch from shortcuts or from cracks and crevices, noting numbers and group composition.  This group is a small one, and they appear to be rather new as well.  Their equipment is worn and simple, looking to be hand-me-downs from the church.  While they all carry shields, only the one at the front looks prepared to use it as defense.  One seems to be using it to store a myriad of throwing knives on the back side, while the third looks to be armed with nothing else.  This one is most likely their caster, some variety of priest.

The hand signals to others, the hands forming a chain to bring the report back to the main spawning area: newbies, three.  A simple missive, but that's enough.  A skeleton, a zombie, and a single arcane hand move into a shortcut to intercept the inexperienced group.  The mixed encounter will test if the delvers can handle unexpected challenges.  The zombie is tough, but not especially threatening.  The skeleton is more brittle, but also more nimble.  Additionally, thrown weapons like the daggers one of the delvers is carrying will have a hard time finding any purchase.  The hand is the real threat, this one actually having arcane affinity, and so can cast a wide variety of weaker spells.  If the delvers wish to be victorious, they will need to identify the hand and deal with it swiftly.

The delvers take some wounds before realizing the hand is the culprit, but they do eventually learn and coordinate to remove the hand.  From there, it's a simple enough for the delvers to eliminate the denizens, earning experience for themselves and mana for the dungeon.

And so the circle of-

"Boss?"

Huh?!  Oh, Teemo.

"What're you doing?  Why are you thinking in that weird accent?  How are you thinking in that weird accent?"

Oh, uh... you know.  Just documenting nature.

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Inspired by Alex Turf, who wanted a perspective of how denizens do what they do.