Depthcrawl Structure

Abstract

A depthcrawl is an exploration structure where location content is generated from a single table using a die roll modified by a running Depth counter. Each new location entered increases Depth by one; going backward decreases it. The result: earlier portions of the space are mundane, and deeper portions are progressively stranger, rarer, and more dangerous — without requiring the referee to map a fixed space.

Originated by Cavegirl in Gardens of Ynn (2018).

Core Mechanic

Roll d[X] + current Depth → consult Environment table → describe location
Each turn spent in a location: roll encounter table separately (not modified by Depth)
Moving forward: Depth +1
Moving backward: Depth -1
Moving laterally: Depth unchanged, new location

Table size determines minimum and maximum encounter counts:

Depthcrawl Size	Environment Table	Roll	Min Locations	Max Locations
Short	8 entries	d4	5	8
Medium	15 entries	d6	10	15
Large	35 entries (Gardens of Ynn scale)	d20	15	35

The final table entry is written as X+ (e.g., 8+ for a short crawl) — any result at or above the maximum resolves as that entry.

Design Template

Every depthcrawl needs three defined elements:

Aesthetic (Where)

The visual/sensory identity of the space. Not just "dungeon" — a consistent atmosphere that implies its origin and nature. - Gardens of Ynn: Alice-in-Wonderland-corrupted garden - Stygian Library: infinite repository of books - A good Aesthetic should suggest what the mundane and extreme ends of the table might look like

Threat (What Hunts)

Something specific to this space, not generic monsters-as-written. Can be: - Environmental (the Idea of Thorns in Ynn — a corrosive conceptual force) - A dominant faction (the librarian orders of the Stygian Library) - A status track that escalates as players delve (corruption, sinfulness, madness)

The Threat should interact with the location in ways that create choices beyond "fight or flee."

Goal (Why Go Deep)

The thing at the highest depth — the reason to push further. Should be unobtainable anywhere outside this depthcrawl. Not just a pile of gold. Options: - A unique piece of knowledge or insight - An entity that grants something impossible elsewhere - A transformative experience tied to the space's nature

Filling the Tables

Environment table construction: - Low entries: mundane versions of the Aesthetic (a room of stone hands grasping each other) - Mid entries: interesting variations with mechanics attached (the lungs, slowly expanding with hallucinogenic incense) - High entries: dangerous, strange, or puzzle-dense (the living room of hands that grasps anything it touches) - X+ entry: something climactic or transformative (the brain/goal, behind a barrier tied to accumulated status)

Encounter table: Same size as environment table; unaffected by Depth. Should be driven by the Threat — monsters, environmental events, and status-inflicting encounters.

Additional tables (optional): A Detail table for dressing each location independently of its definition (a rotting banner, a smear of something, a pool of reflected light). Kept Depth-independent.

Worked Example: The Hundred Hands

A short depthcrawl (8-entry environment, d4 roll).

Aesthetic: Winding tunnels of stone hands. Clusters of other stone organs — eyes, stomachs.
Threat: The Embodied Sins — stone and ghost monsters that inflict Sinfulness, a status track tracking moral corruption. At 2 Sinfulness: Wisdom save each hour or act on dominant sin. At 4: save or be fully dominated. Past 5: cannot reach the Goal.
Goal: The Ascended's brain — grants the path to transcendence, but requires Sinfulness ≤ 5 to touch.

The Sinfulness track is the design pivot — it creates an internal meta-goal (keep Sinfulness low), gives the Threat concrete mechanical stakes, and ties all encounters back to the Goal.

Variations

The problem: Vanilla depthcrawls can feel like "just go," with little player agency — linear pull toward the bottom. Solutions:

Branching Pointcrawl (simple variant):
Each step, roll 1d4 locations (not 1). Show players the results. When they pick one, resolve detail and encounters for that location. This creates genuine route choice — players may recognize a safer entry based on description.

Morgan's Complex Variants:
Multiple elaborations addressing: player choice at each step, time cost variation, parallel tracks through the space, and automated area generation with rich detail tables. (Reference: Morgan's public design documents.)

Best Environments for Depthcrawls

Depthcrawls shine in spaces that are either: - Fluid/mutable — alternate planes, dream spaces, faerie demesnes where reality shifts - Vast and ambient — abandoned cities, cave systems, space stations large enough to warrant wandering rather than fixed-map navigation

They are less suited to small tactical dungeons where player routing choice on a fixed map matters, or spaces where encounter context requires specific geography.

Sources

https://archons-court.blogspot.com/2020/10/on-depthcrawls-hundred-hands-depthcrawl.html