Game Night April 27 – DnD 5e and the Ruined Fortress of the Evil Overlord

Behold the power of the lava lamps

Even though one person had to cancel for work, even though we didn’t get started until way late and had to scramble for an ultimateley awesome meal of appetizers, even though we are still working our way through understanding the rules this iteration it was still a great night of gaming. The party bulldozed though almost half of the first level of the dungeon.

The night started where we left off. The party had just slain a pack of kobolds and were questioning the lone survivor. Its face and arms were painted with blue lightning bolts, and it spoke of its god who dwelt in the top of the ruined tower. The kobold agreed to tell them where the stairs leading up were in exchange for letting it live. The party agreed and the kobold pointed to a door in the north wall and mumbled something about being through there. He then pushed the door open which revealed a room epty except for a few coins and a chunk of questionable meat in the center of the room. The paladin and barbarian each rushed in of course, eager to grab the booty.

A perternatural sense of danger cause Glory the paladin to stop in place, while the barbarian, sensing victory rushed forward and fell through a trap-door covered pit. It was dark down there, and he took some falling damage, but sprang to his feet just in time to hear two shambling forms moving towards him from the shadows. The fightress was the first to arrive on the scene, shining her torch down into the pit to allow the barbarian to duke it out with the pair of famished zombies. A few arrows were launched from above, but they were ineffectual, and it was the barbarian’s orcish battle ax that quickly slew the monstrosities.

During this time, the kobold prisoner took the opportunity to escape, sticking his tongue out at his captor the wizardess, as he ran off laughing.

Doc piled the bodies to aid his climb to the surface, and while doing so, he noticed the skeleton of an elf, concealed by a grey cloak. The cloak turned out to be a Cloak of Elvenkind, which he lovingly draped over his crush, the wizard Reya’s shoulders.

Old school dungeon crawling at its finest

Moving on, they came to a long hallway with windows at the far eastern end, showing the afternoon sky. The drop was over five hundred feet to the valley floor below, and they could hear vultures screeching above. There were two passages and two sets of double doors out of this room, so they chose the nearest set of double doors and pushed through. The room was empty except for a pair of doors and an old tapestry on the wall. The ranger detected the tracks from many creatures in the chamber and bent down for closer inspection.

While searching the chamber, he oticed a large rack in the wall and heard the scurrying of a multitude of tiny clawed feet. A swarm of rats were about to charge from the hole. Thinking fast, he cast Expeditious retreat on himself, and ran towards the wall hanging, intending to stuff it in the crack. When he pulled down the hanging, it revealed a concealed door. In his hurry he did not notice the small hole drilled through the center of the room before a lightning bolt lanced out from it.

The bolt hit the far wall, and rebounded through the room, injuring the ranger, the fightress, and knocking out the wizardess Reya. Soon after, the party heard the “HAROOOO” of a horn blast from the other side of the door and beat a hasty retreat.

They paused to catch their breath in the long hall, while the cleric healed Reya, and once they were sure no one was coming after them from the recently vacated room, chose to explore in a different direction. The entered a chamber with a large black desk and some overturned cupboards. The ranger sent his ferret familiar into the chamber, which discovered a poisonous centipede just before it was bitten and died from he poison. The ferret, being magical, disappeared, and the centipede reared up, angry at being denied a meal. Its faceted eyes centered on the paladin Glory in the doorway, who glared back and charged. She was unlucky though, trying to charge through the obstacles, and when she brought down her orcish battle axe, it bit into her own foot instead of the vermin. It struck her, but the paladin shook off the affects of the poison and went on to slay the foul beast. The party spent the next ten minutes sacking the chamber but discovered nothing of interest.

A door led through the next chamber, and the paladin led the way, but was lucky for the second time, as she stopped in the middle of the chamber just before stepping onto another covered pit trap. This one opened to reveal a pool of green slime at its bottom.

They soon came to a door that seemed stuck, but the wizard showed a surprising amount of strength. The sleeves of her robe stretched as her muscled bulged, and she pushed open the door, pushing rubble aside to reveal a room whose north end was a collapsed heap of rubble, letting light of the early evening shine through cracks. They heard the rustling of bats in the ceiling, but quietly searched the chamber. The barbarian saw a severed skeletal wrist poking from the rubble, and uncovered an ancient human warrior. Most of his arms and armor were long rusted away except for a gold insignia ring and a ruby encrusted sword sheath which appeared to be magical. The fightress hung the empty sheath from her belt in hopes of soon filling it with something better than the looted orcish battle axes which she and most of the party were forced to wield. They managed to leave the room without waking the bats.

Soon they came to a bend in the hallway, which had a door on one side, and they discovered a secret door on the other. No amount of force they mustered could open the secret door, so they turned their attention to the other one which opened easily enough. It revealed an old cloak room with nothing of interest.

They were just deciding where to go next, and had re-entered the long hall, when a patrol of 7 orcs rounded a corner. Everyone was surprised, but the party recovered first, unleashing a hail of arrows and daggers and charging warriors at the orcs, before the wizardess strode forward with palms held outward. She unleashed a cone of fire that burnt 6 of the 7 orcs to a crisp. The last orc, turned tail and ran, but was unable to push open the door he sought to escape through. He was cut down from behind, and the session ended there.

Whew, we accomplished a lot in a short amount of time. The orc battle began when we were fifteen minutes over our regular end time, and was over less than five minutes later, thanks to the Burning Hands of Reya. Great game.

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Game Night April 19 – Playtestsing DnD5 and the Ruined Fortress of the Evil Overlord

There is a lot going on this week, what with trying to get my store front set up, and trying to finish up the next four installments of the Ruined Fortress of the Evil Overlord, so I am going to have to make this recap brief. Let me start by recounting the meal, which was made up of incredibly delicious grilled burgers and curly fries. I had two burgers, one with grilled onion, and the other california-style with guacamole. Oh yum it was good.

Last week saw the beginning of a new campaign, where the palyers were forced to play zero-level characters enslaved by orcs, forced to escape from a dungeon the night before their harvest. They survived, well some of them did, and made it to the nearest town, Deadrock, though half-starved wearing the bloody armor of their erstwhile captors. Along with this odiferous bunch were a pair of wood elves also on their way to infamous Deadrock, there to see their fortunes made. Greetings were held under the glare of the city guard preparing to open the town gates for another day of business in Deadrock.

A rough and tumble pioneer town, the party did not have much time to explore the sights. They rented rooms, bathed, and went out to by a set of clothes with the meager coin they had scavenged from the slave pens. The next day they were politely asked by representatives of the town concil to exit the town until such time as they could afford their own upkeep. This was mainly done because I wanted to get to the dungeon, and having a bunch of thugs wandering around without a copper to their name was bound to get ugly. Let’s fight monsters.

The party did not resist the nudge toward adventure and before you knew it they were walking the pillaged demesne of the evil overlord. Forgoing the ancient roads, the party struck a path straight across the valley towards the dark speck that was the ruined fortress. With incredible luck they managed to avoid any detection or random encounters along the way, ntil they arrived at the foot of the long stair that leads up the mountainside to the entrance of the ruins. Here they heard a loud buzzing, one might say a GIANT buzzing, and proceeded to build a ring of burning, smoking vegetation, into which they prepared to defend themselves against the rapidly approaching giant bees.

Nearly a dozen bees attacked, and even though the bees were disadvanteaged due to the smoke and fire, one of our new wood elves, a rogue, was struck with a deadly stinger and perished almost instantly from the poison. (I felt bad for the new player, being killed without having a chance, but I let him return the next round with the brother of the slain, who had been running after the party for two days and finally caught up just in time to witnsess his dead brother being carried away by giant bees.)

The party was able to kill or drive off the rest of the bees without further casualties, and made their way up the steps of the ruined fortress, with openings like eye sockets watching their approach. Scouting around the top, they opened a few doors, checked out the flag chamber, an empty office, then made their way to another chamber full of kobolds. Another battle broke out, and this time two characters went down, but were healed by the cleric. The other wood elf turned into a bear and mauled the kobolds savagely, while the human fightress waded through the chamber, and laid waste all around her.

They took one kobold catpive, searchd the room and found a lock box with 55 gold and two 50 gold piece pears, which one of the rogues tried to secretly pocket, but was discovered by the bear, who let out a warning growl. Don’t mess with the bear.

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The Ruined Fortress of the Evil Overlord is alive!

The Ruined Fortress of the Evil Overlord

This has been my project since the beginning of the new year and it is finally starting to spread its wings and fly. The concept is simple: a huge dungeon complex (of up to 99 levels) that can be plopped anywhere or used as a stand-alone campaign. The booklets contain one or more levels apiece, and can be used in conjunction, with plot hooks and other links between levels, or they can be used alone and placed practically anywhere.

The goal with these adventure modules is to create a lovingly hand-crafted printed product with usefulness at the gaming table being the paramount concern. To that end, the booklets are crafted using the finest paper with a thick detachable cover that contains the main maps (other maps will be included as a middle spread) and designed with a “generic d&d” ruleset intended to easily translate into most fantasy game systems. All dungeoneers should be able to find use for the Ruined Fortress of the Evil Overlord series, regardless of which edition or game system they use.

Just look at that hand drawn map!

I hope to offer these booklets for sale once I perfect the printing and publishing, and get a few more levels done. Pricing is still up in the air but with the time, effort, and high cost of quality paper, it is settling into the 5-8 dollar range, printed and shipped. I do not foresee making these available as pdf, since my main goal is to produce a hand crafted booklet for table use. (I also need to learn how to set up a storefront on worpress which might be the biggest hurdle.)

Snazzy interior design, with custom artwork, text boxes, and all the extras.

The first booklet weighs in at 28 pages, and is designed to be an introductory level for new or inexperienced characters. The booklet features new monsters and new magic items, wandering monster tables, and a complete dungeon with plot and story hooks, bosses both mini and mega, traps, hazards, and tons of opportunity for exploration, discovery, interaction, and epic battles in iconic locations. My philosophy is to remove the boring, and keep the awesome. The dungeons follow what some call Gygaxian naturalism, and are an attempt to make a funhouse gonzo dungeon that makes sense and could exist in a fantasy realm.

I am looking for volunteers who would like to playtest and review the product on their blog, message board, or website. If anyone is interested in doing that, I will be happy to send a complimentary copy for your perusal. Please drop me a line or make a comment. The next couple of weeks will be spent turning the prototype into a final draft, organizing the next three modules: level 0, level 1a, and 1b, and playtesting.

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Reaction and Morale Options

Reaction

Many monsters in the dungeon will automatically attack until destroyed. This includes all undead and most animals and monsters. Smarter, wilier creatures will often hesitate or wait for the characters to make the first move, or even plan an ambush. The dungeons of the evil overlord are a gathering place for the scum and villainy of the surrounding lands. It is not uncommon for traditional foes to tolerate one another in the monstrous mecca. Likewise, erstwhile allies often tear each other apart in this chaotic environ. Roll on the Reaction Table whenever the initial response to an unexpected meeting is in doubt. Roll a d20 and add any modifiers that may apply.

Reaction Table (d20)
1 Enraged charge attack
2-5 Hostile, prepares attack
6-10 Hostile, threatening
11-14 Uncertain, defensive
15-17 Neutral , confused, or uninterested
18-19 Timid or careful, friendly approach
20+ Enthusiastic camaraderie

Morale

It may become necessary to check the morale of a creature or group. Individual or solo creature morale checks are typically made at first blood and when the creature drops below one quarter of its maximum hit points. Group morale checks are made after the first fatality, when half the group is down, and when there is but one remaining. Typically rolls are made on a d20, with 10 or higher passing. On a 1-9 the creature or creatures retreat. Retreat can vary from orderly, to free-for-all route depending on the roll. Cowardly or weak creatures should have a -2 penalty, and strong or brutish creatures should grant a bonus. Other situational modifiers can affect the roll, at the dungeon master’s discretion.

This is an excerpt from the dungeon complex The Ruined Fortress of the Evil Overlord Level 1: The Main Storey.

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Wandering Monsters

Surprise!

An important aspect of fantasy spelunking is the unexpected danger of random encounters. Whenever a party is actively exploring, a wandering monster check should be made every 10 minutes, or in the event of an attention drawing spectacle. If the party is doing everything they can to elude detection, including using stealth to hide with little movement, muffling all sounds and dousing extraneous light, then wandering monster checks should be made every hour.

To check for wandering monsters, roll 1d8. If the result is an 8, roll again on the wandering monster table. This will direct you to the correct subtable for the encounter. Finally check for surprise by rolling 1d6, surprise on 1-2. Distance between sides should be based on the natural fit of the dungeon, with opposing sides being closer depending on the level of surprise; i.e. If both parties are surprised, the enemy should appear around the nearest corner or at the edge of the light source. in other cases, the monsters might tumble out of the very walls upon which the pc’s are leaning.

Wandering Monster Table Level 1
1-2 - Vermin
3-4 - Creature
5-6 - Humanoid
7 - Undead/fiends
8 - Special

Vermin Table (d8)
1 - Giant/dire rats (2-5)
2 - Rat Swarm (6-24)
3 - Giant/vampire Bats (3-18)
4 - Stirges (2-8)
5 - Carrion crawler
6 - Giant Spider
7 - Fire Beetles (2-7)
8 - Giant Centipedes (1-6)

Creature Table (d8)
1 - Giant Badger
2 - Rust monster
3 - Great Cat – Snow Tiger (1-2)
4 - Hell Hounds (1-4)
5 - Cave Bear
6 - Gelatinous Cube
7 - Ankheg
8 - Owlbear

Humanoid Table (d8)
1-2 - Orcs (3-12)
3-4 - Goblins (4-16)
5 - Kobolds (2-12)
6 - Gnolls (2-12)
7 - Human bandits (2-12)
8 - Adventuring party (2-5)

Undead/fiend table (d8)
1-2 - Skeletons (1-20)
3-4 - Zombies (1-12)
5 - Ghouls (1-8)
6 - Ghost
7 - Wight
8 - Devil: Imp

This is an excerpt from the dungeon complex The Ruined Fortress of the Evil Overlord Level 1: The Main Storey

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Art Question Aside – Plagairism or Honorable Imitation?

A famous work of art by artist Leonard Elmore graces the Basic d&D rulebook. Decades later, another person uses it as inspiration, or even blatant copy, of the art, in a far inferior style. Is it the finest form of flattery, or copyright infringement? You decide:

(I am making a booklet that I will give away or maybe even sell, and want to include art, but lack funds or means to produce actual art, thus these insane scribblings, which I am hoping produces a feeling of a well-meaning, nostalgic nod to past eforts in place of anything actually good.)

This is pretty much the same image just using my inferior skills. Too close to the original?

surprise 2

In an effort to really differentiate, I totally changed it up, losing the monster and just leaving the trap, and also he is a dwarf losing his helmet which cracked me up. Still too close? My judgmental daughter the artist looks at my futile attempts and sighs despairingly…

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Ruined Fortress of the Evil Overlord

There once was a rich valley protected by the embrace of the northern mountains. A single pass led into the northern wildlands and the folk of the valley, elves humans and dwarves, all worked together to build a fortress to guard them from the monstrous creatures who came down from the rough northern region. The valley grew ever richer in trade with the southern lands and the fortress grew ever more mighty. The goodness of the valley dwellers led them to build extensive prisons beneath the fortress where the pitiful creatures they captured could live out their natural lives. Even giants and dragons were brought to heel by this industrious folk.

Unbeknownst to the valley people, a war was brewing high above them in the astral sea. A demi-god fought for control of his realm against a usurper in an extra-planar battleship. The demi-god’s defense was successful and the battleship spun wildly through the dimensions to crash into the fortress, splitting the mountain open in its fiery descent and carving a hole into unknown depths. The fortress crumbled and the surviving monsters, humanoids, and fell beasts escaped from their prison cells, led by an orc called the War Duke.

The War Duke’s ever swelling army of evil descended upon the helpless valley and slew or enslaved all its people. from there, the Evil Overlord went on to threaten all the surrounding lands with unending bloodshed. The civilized world banded together and fought back over a war lasting many grueling years, until they finally beat War Duke back to his fortress, his prison. There he was slain, and the war brought to a close in a great bloody battle and the ruined fortress was ransacked and abandoned. Few people returned to the valley, and what survivors remained scratched out a meager existence.

Four great hordes, each led by an Evil Overlord, have erupted out of the northern mountains and claimed the ruined Fortress in the thousand years since the Valley Folk were defeated. Four times the world has teetered on the brink of unquenchable bloodshed.

Still the ruined fortress of the Evil overlord remains, a blight upon the world, as indestructible as the mountain itself. It is full of the wealth of a hundred plundered kingdoms, and vomits forth an endless stream of vile monstrosities.

Description: The low peak at the head of the mountain pass was carved into the shape of a helm, with the nose piece being long stairs leading to a three-tower castle built at its crown. Large open chambers like eye sockets, held siege engines overlooking the pass and stairs. The castle was composed of two smaller parapet topped towers leaning like wide shoulders against a tall central tower. When the demonic battleship crashed, it struck the mountain top at the base of the central tower, causing most of it to collapse into the hole the ship bore through the mountain. Over the years, the face of the mountain has been carved to more resemble the skull of an orc.

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Valley of the Dwarf Lords

First Valley of the Dwarf Lords

Far north in the lands of constant ice, deep in the mountains known as the Spurs of Creation, cleaves the Valley of the Dwarf Lords. Cutting the mountain range in two, the Valley spans the last habitable land before giving way to the cold north. To the north are the jagged upthrusts of the Snowy Peaks – half mountain, half glacier, and south of the valley, the Spurs of Creation continue as the Stony Peaks.

It is said that in days of old the first dwarves held back the approaching ice, and turned it aside into the Bay of the Grinding Ice. The bays distinguishing feature are the volcanic isles forever battling the encroaching ice bergs. To the east the the land ends in another long Bay, Neverwinter, so named for the volcanic reactions of Mount Hotenow, an extinct but still warm volcano. To this warm water bay a great city also named Neverwinter grew under the shadow of Hotenow, and the city became enriched by the Dwarvish Lords and traded often.

The war changed all that. The dwarf lords and their hosts were slain in battle with orcs and the noblest dwarf houses were wiped out with all thei vassals. Even then, the north was beset upon by evil erupting from the ice as monsters and fiendish humanoinds swept down on the undefended north. Each house fell in epic fashion, one by one, until only Thobost Gar, the Death Girder, remained standing. Here a great battle was waged as the Civil Malitia of besieged Neverwinter allied themselves with the First Dwarves, and would have won the day against the combined horde of orcs and goblins, if only the deceptive kobolds had not managed to slip past the the Death Girder, and cause havoc and mayhem in the dwarvish rear.

Even then, the knights of Neverwinter still might have carried the day and saved the dwarves in turn, if old Mt. Hotenow had not chosen that moment to tear the city on its banks asunder in a volcanic eruption. The war ended 100 years ago, and the city is slowly being rebuilt. The Dwarvish Halls however are not. Rather, the Dwarves of Second Home are collecting what they can of their cousins remains. One last time the Valley of the Dwarf Lords has begun to enrich a new Neverwinter, an outpost in a cold land of darkness and dread.

Seven Great mansions the Dwarf Lords built in the First Valley. It was said that Moradin with his own hand chopped the valley and planted the dwarves as seeds deep in the mountains, and each family could trace its days into utter antiquity.

The First Mansion is Thobost Gar. This Great Dwarven Fortress is known as the Death Girder and it spans and cliffs between the Stony and Snowy Mountain ranges at the mouth of the valley. The great wall between mountains is many hundreds of feet tall and just as wide. It is said that an entire army can be shaded at one time whilst passing through the yawning entrance. Their are no doors and no need, the walls themselves were the defense and were full of arrow slits, even the arching stone butresses 100 feet overhead. It was taken by kobolds who still infest the northern section.

Megadru the Hammered Pillar is the second great dwarf fortress, mightiest in wealth and oldest of the seven as well. It is a great pyramid rising out of the central highland plains of the valley, built of white marble. Under the pyramid is a second, inverted pyramid of open air descending deep into the earth, the terraces of Megadru were lit by green glass blocks set into the pyramid above. The Hammered Pillar was second to fall, after the Red Tower was overwhelmed by evil humanoids streaming out of the icy north.

Stasisgem is the third of the Great Houses. Though it claims to be the oldest, and traces its heritage back to a single mushroom seed, it is also the humblest. Nestled at the foot of a mountain of granite on a verdant plot of earth, Stasisgem boasts the greatest wealth of natural resources, both above the soil and under. Its mines are not expansive, but are said to run deep. Stasisgem fell by the plundering hordes, attacked from above and below.

Fourth is Minesport. It was once an elegant fortress built into a sheer cliff wall, and grew to become the fairest of all the fortresses to look upon. The entire cliff was carved and filigreed but it cold not save them from the tide of evil that slew them all. Giants tore down many of the richest balconies of Minesport, which now gape like howling maws into the biting winds.

The Red Tower, fifth, brightest, and youngest of the Great Houses once stood like a beacon of hope, rising from a flatened summit amongst the diamond glistening peaks of the Snowy Mountains. The fortress was also called Diamondvise in Dwarvish, and a silver bridge connected it to the nearest neighbor, and from their a narrow winding way led to the valley floor. The Red Tower fell too, though it fought tooth and nail. Betrayed from below, its silver bridge was averted, and rumors tell of pacts made with demonic forces are what led to its underworld breach.

The sixth house was ignobly named Tradescum, and it was a shallow digging into the soft sands on the shore of the Bay of Grinding Ice. Shallow coal was its claim to fame, that and what it could trade from the wild coastal peoples. Tradescum had no defense to speak of and was swept aside almost as soon as the valley was breached. Though ignoble and sand-scrabbling, it was Tradescum who gave rise to the greatest achievements of dwarfdom.

Coalminer’s Daughter was the name of the seventh colony built into one of the volcano-islands in the Bay of Greinding Ice. It was a rich environment of ore and surface magma, and the forges of Coalminer’s Daughter were accounted the greatest of all Dwarf Forges. It was not only the dwarves who laid claim to the magma of Coalminer’s Daughter, however, and Demons of the Abyss came bubbling out of the pools of liquid fire to slay the Coalminer’s daughter from within.

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Coming Down the Mountain – Isle of Dread Volcano Wandering Monster Encounters

After exploring the peak of the Isle of Dread’s mountain volcano, Teravaku, the heroes must eventually descend to the island at large. Game trails and natural stair-like formations offer four routes down the volcano, each corresponding to a cardinal direction. The northern and eastern descents are rough and rocky, with switch-backs and precipitous falls, while the southern and western pathways wind downward through heavily forested mountainside, with fast flowing brooks and small clearings marking the trails.

The surviving white apes of the mountain peak are unfriendly, and though they do not openly attack, they glare and will attempt to throw chunks of rock when they believe they are not being observed. If the party insists on camping anywhere near the peak of Teravaku, the apes will mount a night raid against the party. 12 great apes (XP value 2,100) will attack from stealth by throwing stones from maximum range (10 squares) as a surprise attack before charging in. if half their number are destroyed, the remaining apes will flee and no longer bother the party. The party begins the next day one healing surge down apiece, due to the nights excitement.

These apes are level 4 creatures, so it is likely they will not perform very well, and could result in a slaughter. That is ok, only poorly prepared parties will suffer the full brunt of the attack, mostly from the initial volley of stones, but also because their armor class will be reduced due to the lack of armor. Careless or imperceptive parties will be automatically surprised by the great ape attack. Otherwise any character asleep or with a passive perception of less than 20 will be surprised. Those actively guarding will be surprised on an active perception of 20 or less. Remember that PCs cannot sleep in armour heavier than cloth.

To the North – The Volcano drops precipitously down many hundreds of feet to the heaving waters of the Jade Sea. The north face of the island is almost all cliff, and the waves roil and splash against the isle, and through the maze of tiny islets and pillars of stone that jut out of the northern waters. Black shapes dart and fly amongst the spray, diving and swooping. There is a twisting, back-tracking route that leads downwards to the waters edge.

After an hour of travelling, the party is close enough that perceptive characters may be able to discern (DC 19 perception) that the flying creatures are in fact manticores who nest in shallow caves that dot the cliffs of the north face. The pathway they are on descends down to the level of one of these cliffs, but not all the way to the waters edge. If the party continues they will be discovered when they are within 100 feet of the cave unless the party takes care to conceal themselves – not likely while climbing down a cliff-side. A manticore will do a fly-by while out of range to determine who the interlopers are, and will then return with its pack-mates for an impromptu lunch.

Level 11 hard combat encounter 3000 xp
3 Manticore Spike Hurlers (2400)
1 Manticore Impaler (600 xp)

Tactics – The Manticore strikers will stay out of melee reach and bombard the party while trying to cover for the impaler to swoop in and pick off individual characters one by one before dropping them onto the rocky cliffs. If the manticores are winning the fight, the hurlers could land and vent their rage in melee, but they are not stupid and will use their natural flying advantage for all it is worth.

If a character is plucked off the cliff and dropped, or knocked off, they will fall onto the cliffs below. From the upper run of pathway, they will fall 40’ (8 squares) plus whatever height the impaler achieved before dropping the PC, and will land on the nearest square of lower path. If the character is dropped from the lower run of path, they will fall 1d10 x 10 feet (2 – 20 squares) before catching themselves on some outcropping. In either case the character will take the standard 1d10 per 10 feet of falling damage. Climbing back up to the fight requires a DC 14 athletics check each turn of movement, and every square upwards is considered difficult terrain for purposes of movement. Failing the roll means the character makes no upwards gain, and on a roll of natural 1, slips an additional 10 feet down (no damage).This means that a dropped character could have up to 20 squares of difficult terrain to navigate.

If a character is knocked out by the falling damage, they will slip down into the sea 200 feet below on their FIRST failed death save, practically insuring their permanent death. The unconscious character can be described as hanging by a thread, about to fall, to give the players a warning of what is about to befall. This is a dangerous fight.

Treasure – The shallow cavern contains a central area of rough bedding provided by all the uncured hides of the manticores victims. Perceptive characters can recognize the hides of gorillas, large reptiles, and horses (actually centaurs) as well as man-skin. 1d4+1 manticore eggs can also be gleaned from the cave, and their worth is estimated at 500-1,00 gold apiece, for the right buyer. They will hatch in 2 weeks.

Some players may want to continue exploring manticore caves to gather more eggs for instance. Allow at least one more cave within climbing distance, with a similar but slightly harder combat – subtract a spike hurler and add a second impaler and a Sky hunter to the next encounter, as the manticores call upon an alpha sky hunter to help defend the cave. The treasure is the same, or if the DM wishes, it could contain 1d4+1 newborn manticore cubs instead, for a little variety and hilarity of course.

To the East – The trail is rough and tumble. One minute you are skirting large rock formations, the next you are plunging through narrow canyons that wind ever downwards. While weaving through one such box canyon, the sun is blocked momentarily by large black shapes plunging out of the sky. With a sound somewhere between a screech and a lion’s roar, the manticores swoop in to attack.

Any character who rolls an ainitiative of 20 or less is surprised. The manticores get a single surprise action from their starting position just above the canyons edge, approximately 25 feet (5 squares) above. This gives them just enough room to charge or to hang back and use long range attacks. The canyon walls can be climbed with a DC 17 athletics check, and all 5 wall squares are considered difficult terrain for the purposes of climbing.

Level 12 combat encounter 3600 xp
Manticore Sky Hunter (800 xp)
3 Manticore Impalers (1800)
2 Manticore Strikers (1000 xp)

Tactics – This is a straight forward battle. The hunting squadron will deploy to maximum affect, with the impalers trying to pick up and drop PCs while the strikers stay back by perching on the canyon tops and firing down into the valley, while the Sky Hunter goes where he is neede most, not afraid to mix it up with melee.

The canyon walls are 30 feet high, are difficult terrain for climbing purposes, and require a DC 14 athletics check at the beginning of each turn for climbing. The manticores have little treasure other than a couple slaughtered deer which they drop onto the cliff-top before beginning battle. The Sky Hunter wears a gold armband around its front paw that acts as Bloodsoaked Bracers (giving the Sky Hunter +5 damage when bloodied.)

To the northwest is a narrow side-passage which leads to a sheltered area of the map, protected from above by a shelf of rock 15 feet up letting in only a sliver of light along one edge. The manticores will have to squeeze through the passageway to get to the party and will only do so if they are winning the fight. Otherwise the party has found a safe place for an extended rest. In additon, others have camped here before and buried under a large rock near the back wall (with a symbol for ‘gem’ scratched into the rockwall above DC 24 to spot.) The gem is an astral diamond worth 10,000 gold.

To the South or West – The narrow game trail jogs back and forth along the mountain wall as it descends. The jungle is lush with life and the scents and sounds are overpowering. The path crosses many cold flowing springs and through groves and clearings, until one such clearing seems especially inviting. The floor of the clearing is spongy moss and along iits edges a dark flower blooms. Occasionally it seems like you are being watched, and you catch emerald eyes staring between the leaves, but always they are gone before you can focus on them.

DC 21 Nature to reveal it is Black Lotus and will make a DC 10+lvl will attack to any who come within its aura or be forced to fall prone, save ends. On the first failed save, the traget falls into a magical slumber and must be awakened by another (as a minor action) or sleep for 1d6 hours. A character who makes their save can no longer be affected by the lotus.

The enemy in this encounter, the oblivikon moss mind master, or Ommm, has developed an especially nasty trick. It has spread out its form to be in the center 4×4 area of the tile, and those who are hit by the lotus will attack will sit on the lush moss. The combat will begiin as usual, and characters on the moss at the beginning of their turn take 5 acid damage as they sink into the acidic mossy flesh of the concealed mind master.

Level 11 hard combat encounter 3,700 xp
Oblivion Moss Mind Master (1,400 xp)
4(+) Mossling Hurler Minions (700 xp)
Displacer Beast Pack Lord (1,600 xp)

Tactics – The mind master has prepared the ambush in advance, and has four mossling hurlers prepared. THe master itself will form into its natural large shape as a move action, and then resume combat as normal, trying to create as many minions as possible. The displacer beast will spend the first round of combat invisible in the treeline off-map finding the best area to approach. it intends to target one character and cut them off from the rest. The panther may choose to escape if it becomes bloodied and the outlook of the battle is not favorable. In which case it will continue to hunt the party and spring another such ambush when the time seems right.

The treasure in this clearing is of unusual nature. Once the oblivion moss is dealt with, it will be found on a thorough search of the clearing (DC 24 Perception, DC 17 dungeoneering) that an outcropping of rock broken apart by a baobab tree root reveals a vein of gold. By careful mining operations up to 5,500 gold can be removed from the deep vein. Generally 100 gold per day per person involved is the rate of removal, without creative mining ideas. Alternatively, during an extended rest, each person could collect 1d100 gold worth of nuggets, for a simpler mining experience.

After the encounter - The sun is setting and night falls with surprising speed. Even as one edge of the sky is lit with brilliant crimson, the opposite side of the world goes to sleep under a purple starry night. The howls from the day walking beasts give way to the cries of the night hunters. Pacified, this area seems safe enough now that a camp might be safely made.

Thus ends the first day on the Isle of Dread.

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The Great White Apes of the Monastery of SU

The Great White Apes of the Monastery of SU

One instant you are in a lifeless void, the next you are thrust into a place of stunning vibrant sensation…

In ages before the lawful races of the world discovered the isle of dread, a cult of fish-men rose to power in the region and this volcano was their holiest site. They revered the elemental chaos, focusing on fire and water, and eventually fell sway to demonic overlords. They created the great white apes of SU during this time, and long after the mysterious fish-men vanished from the island, the evil ape guardians remain. Eventually a wizard attempted to create useful guardians out of them, and the six armed white ape was created, but it too was deemed a failure. The apes returned to their native volcano and now a rivalry exists between the original guardians and the new creation. While natural and mortal enemies, the apes all see the party as their fair game and will tolerate one another to destroy the party.

This introductory encounter is designed to throw the characters right into the middle of things on the Isle of Dread. This encounter works best if the adventure begins with the characters teleporting to the island blind, knowing only that there is a working teleportation circle still functioning on the island, but not where, or what they might face. This adventure works best as one of exploration and uncovering the mysteries of the island. The characters may or may not come prepared, depending on the backstory that leads to their sudden appearance on the balcony. If the characters are overly prepared, remember the lava down below. It tends to react poorly to consumable items.

The Monastery of SU
The air is thick with the mixed smells of jungle, sea, and sulfur. Your vision is obscured by the limbs, leaves, and vines of overhanging vegetation, and their swishing is loud in your ears, along with the buzzing of insects and the more distant shrieks and calls of the local fauna. You stand on the crumbling ruins of a platform jutting from halfway up the inside wall of a volcano. A circle, still faintly glowing blue, inscribes the cracked stone at your feet and a winding stair built into the wall leads to other platforms above and below. Further below the caldera of the volcano casts a sinister glow of lava. Broken columns on the edges of the platform are all that is left of the monastery that once straddled the crater.

Give the players just a moment to describe their characters initial actions. If the players do not speak up with immediate character actions, assume the characters are taking a moment to gain their bearings. If a player begins describing long or complicated maneuvers, pause them gently and ask them what is the first thing they do. Give them a minor actions worth of activity, including as many passive skill checks as they would like, before going on to the next section of text.

From above suddenly comes a sound like drumming followed by a loud feral scream. Suddenly the sound is repeated from below, and a huge, white, six armed ape seems to appear out of nowhere, beating his chest and replying in a loud feral scream of its own.

Upper Platform – This platform is shadowed by the hanging foliage from the jungle along the volcano rims cover. A short length of stone staircase surmounts the rim, and otherwise, the platform seems stripped bare of any adornment it once had. The floor of the platform is made up of large stone tiles, each of them carved to resemble images of fishy underwater subjects as well as fire and smoke.

The columns are carved to look like big-eyed fishy humanoids with little clothing and long claws. Each of them has a long thick vine extending across the volcano to the column at the upper rim. To slide down a vine is an Acrobatics check DC 12, or fall into the lava. To climb a vine up to the forested rim is a double move action and is an Athletics DC 14.

The lava is partially encrusted and only shows through its hardening surface in cracks and bubbling splatters. A creature takes 15 damage at the start of a turn on a square of lava, and an it increases by 10 for every round the creatures stays on the same square, as they sink into the molten rock.

Middle Platform – Along the inside rim of the Volcano are the stone ruins of what was once a crater-spanning monastery, but now only three platforms survive, held in place by stone shafts driven into the volcano wall, and linked by a crumbling spiral staircase that twines up the inside of the volcano all the way down to its lava bubbling cauldron. The remains of fluted columns can be seen, carved with images of fish and fire, and on the central platform a large magic circle is inscribed, still faintly glowing blue, though much of the stone is cracked and weathered. From the platform, one can look southeast, through a break in the volcano wall, to see the entire island spread out below. The jungle forest overhangs the rim and ropy vines trail down into the volcano, some of them wrapped around the columns to provide long looping strands thick enough to bear the weight of a person.

Lower platform – A concealed (by an outcropping of rock) cave entrance on this level leads to a long narrow cavern. A Su Alpha, and 30 minions lair in the cave. They will come out to do battle with the PCs but hate the Su monsters and can be tricked into fighting them instead. They will go no deeper into the volcano than their platform, and will chase no prey past the rim either, but are fiercely protective of their home. Nothing else of interest is on the platform except for a surfeit of banana peels, which require a DC 14 Acrobatics check any time a PC moves 3 or more squares.

Caldera – The sloping walls of the inside of the volcano means that any creature or object which falls off one of the platforms or rim will land in the lava. The exception to this is the small platform right at the lowest level. This leads to a narrow cave with an open stream of lava. Navigating this crack will cause 30 HP of fire damage, but a character as a double move action can retrieve a golden chest containing the artifacts of the old monastery. The chest itself is solid gold and worth 1500 gp. It also weighs 100 pounds. It is locked (DC 17) and trapped (DC 21) with a poison needle. If struck the creature must make a DC 19 Fortitude check or become very sick and lose 1 healing surge until remove disease or 1d3 days have passed. The character also needs to make frequent rests. The box contains a holy symbol +3, and 4 stone tablets with rituals incscribed upon them in primordial (as scrolls.)

The Monastery of SU battle map

Combat Encounter – 2400 -6700 Xp (Variable, hard encounter)
1 Girallon Marauder
4 Great Apes
1 SU Alpha
2-30 SU Ambushers

Tactics
The SU Alpha and 2 SU Ambushers begin their turn on the lower platform, and 2 additional Ambushers will enter the platform from a narrow cave entrance as a move action each round until the SU Alpha is slain, at which point the survivors will attepmt to retreat to the cave and the remaining Ambushers will cower inside. They will attack any who enter the cave. The SU Alphas will exit the volcano onto the forested rim under no circumstances.

The Girallon Marauder and the 4 Great Apes begin their turn on the Forested squares at the volcano’s rim. The girallon will charge down the stairs at the nearest PC while the 4 great apes will each hurl a chunk of stone (+9 vs Reflex, 2d6+6 damage and target is knocked prone) before moving or sliding down a vine onto one of the platforms. Neither the great apes nor the Girallon will enter the lower platform, and if they find themselves in the caldera below, will attempt to get up as quick as possible, using vines if they can.

The Girallon and he SU Alpha are natural enemies, and each of them claims the PCs as their prize. Crafty players might be able to turn this animosity and get the apes to attack their natural enemies. If a character finds themselves adjacent to an ape from each tribe, they can make a diplomacy or bluff check (DC 21) to move and force each ape to make an opportunity attack not against the PC, but against the other ape. A failed check results in opportunity attacks as normal. Moving at least 2 squares is required for this to work.

After the battle
The middle platform has become unstable due to the stresses of the recent teleportation, and a cursory examination (Dungeoneering DC 14) will raise concern that it could disintegrate if it is used again. The heroes will have to find a new way off the island. Additionally they may be able to tell that the island is in actuality in the feywild. This would be an Insight or Nature DC 14. Those who make an Insight check of DC 24 or higher may have a sketchy understanding of feeling trapped within the demi-plane. They will feel a cage surrounds the island and can see a strange mist which can only be glimpsed where the horizon is hidden by a silvery haze. 50 – 100 great apes continue to lurk in the slice of jungle on the north m of the volcano, and they beat their chests in rage but skitter away if approached.

The Pathways – The north face of the volcano rim features a fair sized area of light jungle where the Su Girallons make their homes. Tracks and other signs of the apes habitation are abundant, and the floor is littered with many chunks of broken stone from the collapsed monastery. From this summit, sketchy game trails weave through the trees to descend down the mountainside in all four directions. To the north, the path quickly ends at a rocky range of broken cliffs that descend all the way to the heaving sea hundreds of feet below. Natural stair-like formations make the journey northwards possible, and large flying creatures dart in and out of caves. The eastern and southern paths each lead to the regions in that direction. To the west, and visible from the summit (but not from any of the platforms) a campsite stands near the western path. Trees, vines, and other foliage cover the slopes of the volcano, with only the last 100 feet or so rising out of the green blanket

Campsite of Shalazar Shackleton
A small area of flat ground along the southern rim of the volcano has been used as a campsite at some point in the past. The jungle has started reclaiming the clearing, but it contains the remains of a teepee, a campfire circle of stones. A stake has been set into the ground near one edge of the camp, and atop it looks like the decayed head of a SU ape, little more than the skull and a few scraps of dried flesh and hair remains. The campfire is old, possibly months old, and little can be found but an old copper pot laying in the ashes.

The tent is made of leather stretched between 6 tent poles, and the leather has been torn in several places, though it still holds its shape. Inside the tent is a small cot, a trunk, and a rudely hewn wooden table chair. Draped over the back of the chair is a great silvery fur-skin. On the table, another piece of hide is stretched and tacked. It is a skillfully painted map of the island, as seen from atop the volcano. The cot contains nothing but moldering bedding, a sewn quilt patterned in silver swords and golden hourglasses. The trunk is locked, and shows signs of having been roughly battered, but is undamaged. (DC 24 thievery to unlock) It contains a silver lion helm, a scroll with a royal seal, an artists kit, and a bag with (10) 100 gp rubies. It also contains a battered, weather-beaten journal.

The letter was written on fine vellum and was from The queen of Shalazar, the nearest city on the mainland. It read:

By Writ of Her Highness the Immortal Queen of Shalazar

The bearer of this deed has been given the honors and rights to make an Expedition to the southern Isle commonly called the Isle of Dread on behalf of the people of Shalazar. The bearer is also entitled to demonstrate his prowess by bringing the following Fantastical creatures back to Shalazar. For a well-preserved head, the bearer is entitled to no less than 1,000 gold pieces, and for a still breathing specimen 3,000 gold. The creatures rumoured to make their habitation on the Mysterious Isle are thus:

Fang Titan Drake
Death Cattle
Displacer Panther Packlord
Radiant Serpent
Stone Eye Basilisk

The leather bound journal looked once waterlogged. The pages were rippled and torn, and the ink was smeared. Nonetheless, it is mostly legible. The first few pages of the journal detail the sea voyage from Shalazar, the southern-most city of the main continen to the Isle of Dread. At least 20 days are spent on the voyage. The ship becomes lost in a storm and is thrown up onto the southern beach of the Isle. Shalazar Shackleton is the only survivor. He made camp at the mountains peak after pacifying the white apes, and began preparations for his mission. The last few pages get harder to decipher until the last page, which is written in verse:

This I Know

The mists cannot be breached nor bypassed
Without the Black Pearl held fast
The Black Pearl cannot be found
Without first searching underground
The Black Pearl cannot be made
Without the natives aid
The broken planks cannot be fixed
Without master woodwork’d sticks

The Black Pearl floundered castaway
Pirates have their own Black Pearl
Wizard knows but will not say
Where to find the cauldrons boil
Hag has spell, witch has spell
Natives know where lay the purse
Fanaton hammer but fear the swell
Together they can break the curse

The last few pages of the journal are empty.

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