December is upon us, and you know what that means...Christmas carols, holiday parties, travel to the old home...and the contest has begun. I'm already had one submission (remember, submit here), and dozens of others have already announced their plans to write something. Judges have gathered, our red fountain pens primed. I have started work on mapping for my own submission, which again cannot win but the other four judges will also be harshly ranking. Spread the news far and wide, and start your own scribblings...after all, the holidays are a great time to playtest with your unsuspecting friends and family. It won't take long, I promise. Yesterday, I whipped together a reference document for my co-GM in our long-running West Marches campaign, giving him notes on a little tomb the players are going to stumble upon soon. It's not what I'd call submission-ready, for one thing it uses a Dyson map that doesn't have a commercial license, for another it's very specific to our campaign. Still, I figured I could post it here as an example. Players in the Valley West Marches/Skyshadow Isles game, don't go below the break...otherwise, see below (my comments in italics). I started with the hex key, which again is very game-specific. Stats are for Pathfinding Light, my own personal 5-Torches-Deep-esque OSR 3.P hack. Level is around 4-6: (C36) Middle-aged hunter of the Trunkhome Clan, known as The Heretic, lives here on the low and thicket-covered Koms Island with his simple-minded sadistic son Gum. The Heretic, who wields a powerful old Lost Colony crossbow, wounded a thunder roc once and his clan (C35) will trade anything for him. Gum owns an ancient masterwork bronze longspear from the sepulcher, while the Heretic is armored in a +1 bronze chain shirt, jewelry. The hooks are obvious here..."tribal humans here equipped with ancient stuff beyond their tech level" is the direction I'd take this rumor/hook in a contest entry. I'm keeping this all to a single page for my co-GM, and this is what I've written. It's more than I'd do for myself, but less than I'd submit for judgement: The Rotting Sepulcher, squatting on a low pond in the middle of the island, forbidden by the Heretic to his looting son Gum (fetish of fear). Three Corvae adepts roost nearby, giving vile portents and inflicting curses if possible. Rot Zombie: 3HD Undead, Move 30ft, 19 hp, AC 17, Saves +1/1/3, DR5/s, Slam +5 (1d6+4 plus sicken), 5 wander the area. The wandering monster squad is a minimum for any tomb exploration, otherwise the site is far too static. Pressure from wanderers make exploration something where turns matter. 1.Soggy Myrrh: Water areas all difficult terrain. Funeral spices worth 950 soggy and mixed, can be purified, touch Fungal Ague. 2.Guardians: Rotted cairn champion in coffin (with 113pp under), will attack, deeper darkness (snuffs light and fire) on right side. 3.Shrine: On top enchanted candle dish (a candle within casts daylight), empty, asp under. Pass to 1. squeezes med, asp nesting. 4.Embalmery: Vile stench within, toxic black ooze. Gold tools lower left (360gp). 5.Final Charge: “Don’t let them consult Those Beyond” on wall, wanderers pause. 6.Failed Warriors: Stuck door (25 STR), 6 rot zombies clink with masterwork armor, attack ropes (7). 600gp in grave nooks. 7.Lesser Ring: Two rotting harrowers in coffins (with 2d20pp and keys under), attack if disturbed or 6 entered below. Doors lock. 8.Greater Ring: Echoes with five rot zombies’ patrol, rusting weapons in their nooks (plus fungus-mottled coins, 525gp but touch inflicts fungal ague). Intact coffin holds The Dissenter (cairn champion that talks, begging to bury the gate, during attack) 9.Mementoes: Tiny swollen boxes (locked) hold lockets, rings, and notes (worth 1,328gp in toto). False bottom in one has ring, AC +1 10.Trapped Connector: North center, three asps sleeping. Cross-shaped spin trap flip N-S or E-W into the flooded pit below (asps fall too). Triggered by over 100lbs of weight. 11.Rebels’ Saga: Alcoves tell of this small group of Old Man rebels who attempted to bury the Cairn of Night, how they fought and finally how they all died. 12.Champion’s Armory: Left side shows looted spaces (by Gum). Crumbled other sides, one shows crushed bronze armor (was +1, now just 19sp), buried +1 heavy bronze shield with two +1 Beyonder-bane arrows, and last has a +1 beyonder-bane longsword propping up roof (2d6 in area if removed). Removing any of the items causes distant screams and all undead in the sepulcher attack in a frenzy. So that's it. A couple traps, some poison threats, nasty treasure-but-also risk choices, and a "final boss" less in the sense of a single scary bad guy, more in the fact that the best loot available triggers an avalanche of undead. In Pathfinding Light magic items grant XP, or else I'd definitely have a lot more gold in a site this high level. The last thing I do is add my "bestiary", which are modifications of bad guys otherwise standard for the setting. Rotting Harrower: Skeletal warrior 4, Move 30ft, 22hp, AC 19, DR5/b, Saves +6/3/3, Masterwork Greataxe +7 (1d12+2 plus sicken), or Masterwork Shortbow +6 (1d6+2), Feats: Power Attack, Cleave. Rotting Cairn Champion: Skeletal warrior 13, Move 25ft, 84hp, AC 19, DR10/b, Saves +6/3/3, Masterwork Greataxe +19/14/9 (1d12+5 plus sicken), or Masterwork Shortbow +16/11/6 (1d6+5), Feats: Power Attack, Cleave, Lunge, Vital Strike Extra: masterwork breastplate. Fungal Ague: DC16 Fortitude or poisoned: As fungus erupts from skin, staggered and 1d3 CON damage per round. Save 1 cure It doesn't have to be complicated and I don't hold this up as a sterling example, but it is an adequate one, and it took me all of a couple hours at half attention. Surely you can do better, right?
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