Dungeonball
Dungeonball is a spectator sport played in many locations throughout Craedock. It involves the construction of an elaborate playing field usually consisting of rooms and hallways. The ceiling is excluded so that spectators in seating areas surrounding the field may observe the actions from above, but participants are enclosed in a labyrinth like environment. There is no standard orientation for the rooms or hallways and fields are often constructed so that they may be moved between games, creating a near infinite variety of play. The field is often littered with traps and monsters (trained or wild), and the objective is for the teams to find colored balls, usually locked in chests, and return them to a basket to score points.
Dungeonball is inspired by the lore of Craedock, filled with adventurous stories of heroes and travelers finding treacherous caverns and dangerous ruins, who explore these dungeons and fight the monsters within. Often contests are held between two teams, who may play on the field at the same time in a gladiator like contest, or will run the same dungeon at separate times and see who can score the most points. Objectives are also open ended, and can include finding balls in chests or held by monsters, stealing them from the opposing team, or delivering them to some location.
Less lethal versions are held as children's events, or adult games are sometimes peacebonded by magic that prevents the death of the players on the field, instead teleporting them off the field when they become too wounded. Other times the games are lethal, sometimes forcing slaves to play for the entertainment of the ruling class. Dungeonball's many varieties are as diverse as the cultures that embrace this fine sport in Craedock. One example exists in the Magocracy of Barkgull, where the game is played in contests between the various universities and academies devoted to the magical arts. The ruling wizard class gains renown by producing academically successful students from their home territories, and are quick to fund extravagant games and schools enjoy the income from hosting the events.
Given the expensive nature of either summoning or importing, as wells as training, monsters and constructing, mundane or magically, the arenas needed for an entertaining game of Dungeonball, it is often considered an upper class sport, and many common folk don't even know the game exists. In some places the local governments sponsor games, sometimes opening them to the public, while in others the game is held privately by nobles or wealthy families.
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