We had a second session in the Dungeons of Thaarl on Saturday night. At the end of the session the players almost immediately proposed (as I am on holiday) to meet again. Last night was a hugely entertaining further exploration of the Ziggurat of Thaarl, the half-buried structure that leads into the Underdark.

We’ve been playing with GURPS Third Edition, enjoying our Simple Dungeon GURPS Basic Level adaptation powered by GURPS Lite (2003). Last night, we stepped into the GURPS Basic Set (Third Edition Revised) because we felt ready to expand our horizons. All the players, while not new to GURPS, are inexperienced with the older edition but appear to be having a good time.

My joy has been in seeing the players explore the various chambers and passageways, heading down deeper into the structure. The player maps (above) are a delightful representation of their progress and it’s inspiring that even the humble dungeon exploration is the subject of such pleasurable tension for them.

Thanks are due to the half-a-dozen players who have so far delved the dungeon. I have no doubt that, over time, more will join the fray. The best thing for me is re-discovering how relatively easy it is to host a session of dungeoneering, even on short notice. Once the dungeons are built and stocked, it’s low pressure and easy to get things ready for a follow-up run.

Here’s hoping we can keep the momentum going for the weeks and months ahead. I’m certainly enjoying playing an older edition ruleset with a classic game structure in an interesting world.

Game on!