This is regarding our Simple DnD Map v1 assignment, due on February 10th of 2021. Our assignment was to use the site Roll20 to create a small, simple map for an altered DnD gamemode. We were given stats and characters to place in our map as well as requirements for the map. Our main objective was to teach the player how to interact with the game and the level, without throwing them into too much confusion.
We ran a playtest in our group for each of our levels and found many critiques for each person's level. Mine has two main issues, one that it held too many enemies therefore taking too much time, and another was that it's structure was confusing.
This is a capture of the entire map I made for v1. The green represents the objective, the four characters at the top left are the players, and the orange represents lava, or spaces that can't be stepped on.
Initially the players were faced with a goblin which they defeated quickly, but just after that the lava made them feel as if they couldn't move on, even though they possessed a jump ability. They took the door underneath them which was meant to be a shortcut. This hallway was purposely congested and filled with enemies so that it was more difficult to traverse. It ultimately left the players damaged and unable to play properly. This was a bad idea on my part and should have been left out entirely, the shortcut had no purpose of being there for this activity.
This could be fixed by removing the shortcut and shortening the alternative route so that it is placed more in the middle of the map, this would decrease the distance needed to be covered by the players. It would also confuse the players left as there would be a linear progression to the objective. Although it might not be as fun, this level is meant to help teach the player how to move about, so a linear level would help ease the player into that gameplay.
The next issue was less catastrophic, but this map showed to have too many enemies, even when you don't include the ones in the shortcut route. This just ended up taking way too long for a tutorial-like level. I think this could have been laid out more well in the assignment description, as this issue was more a problem due to the playtest time provided. Nonetheless, this level can be improved by decreasing the amount of enemies and distance to be traversed to the boss and objective.
What did work in this playtest was my second set of lava pits. These provided an interesting set of decisions for the players to make. Although there was no reason to rush the level, some players chose to risk their HP and jump the leva pits instead of go around them, which definitely made the game more interesting and fun for them. I think the width of the pathway going past the lava pits can be extended to make this more interesting, as well as adding goblins along this pathway so that there is reward for jumping over the pits.
What also worked was the ease in difficulty of the enemies. While it seems obvious, the HP gradually increasing as players went on helped ease the players into thinking more about their decisions and placement to optimize their effectiveness in battle. This made for a fun experience for them as well as helped them understand their roles once they reached the boss. I learned a lot from this playtest and I have a good idea of which direction I should take this level in the future.
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