Scenario #13: The Mammoth-Helm Clan

Introduction and Background

This is a B/X D&D adventure intended for a party of characters of about levels 7-9, higher level than most adventures detailed on this blog. It borrows some monsters described in an earlier blog post as well as some other monsters from Fighting Fantasty and AD&D. Also unlike most of my scenarios set in Norwold, this does not involve the Arvorians. 

North of the Great Bay of Norwold, where the Lothbarth Taiga meets the tundra the Mammoth-Helm clan of frost giants have made their lair. They are brutal and savage, and recently they have stepped up their raids on human and halfling settlements. It is also possible for them to join in large-scale giantish incursions into the Kingdom of Alpha (such as that described in CM1: Test of the Warlords). 

It may seem unusual for frost giants to live in a forest, but these ones describe themselves as Taiga frost giants, capable of enduring warmer climates than their high-arctic brethren who usually avoid areas above freezing. The Lothbarth Forest is as far north as coniferous forests can be, and it is frozen for more than half the year, so the taiga frost giants only need to cope with the short summer months. 

These giants have got complacent, and do not bother to hide the tracks to their lair, which is underground. The architecture of their underground lair is very neat and orthogonal, with lots of right-angles and smooth walls, implying that the frost giants did not make it themselves but took it over from previous occupants, or else they had magical help in excavating it. The one really convenient thing about this dungeon is that most of the rooms and chambers are 20ft tall, meaning the frost giants can walk around freely without stooping. 

Key to the map: 

1) Entrance Hall: A small white dragon guards the entrance here. It has been subdued and captured by the giants who are conveniently immune to its breath weapon. It will attack any creature other than frost giants unless restrained by a frost giant. The frost giants have allowed it a paltry hoard to satiate its desire for treasure, a pile of 2000sp and 5500cp.

White Dragon: AC 3, Mv 90ft/Fly 240ft, HD 6**, 28hp, THAC0 14, Att 2 claws/1 bite for 1d4/1d4/2d8 or breath weapon, Save F6, Ml 8, Align N, 725xp
Breath weapon: cone of frost 80ft long and 30ft wide at furthest, doing damage equal to dragon's current hit points. Save vs Dragons Breath for half damage

2) Frost giant guard post: A single frost giant (hp 40) here will investigate if the dragon in room #1 causes a disturbance. He has 2 throwing boulders to hand, and he may call on the ogres in room #15 to help if he realises he is in trouble.  

3) Empty apart from chewed bones of various species.

4) The Warriors Chamber: This large chamber has 4 large beds, an 8ft high table on which are 6 throwing boulders, and is home to 4 frost giants (3 male, 1 female, hp 37, 40, 44, 50) who will attack any intruders. 

5) First Family chamber: This chamber has 1 frost giant female and 4 juvenile frost giants. The juveniles will be reluctant to fight and will only do so if they have no choice. Note that the juveniles are small enough to fit into the 10ft high corridors used by the ogre servants. 

Juvenile frost giant: AC 7, Mv 90ft, HD 5+1, hp 25 average, THAC0 16, Att 1 club for 1d10, Spec Abil: Immune to cold damage, Save F5, Ml 5,  Align C, 225xp

6) Meat Storage: In here are the carcasses of various animals including carribou, giant elk, giant boar and musk-oxen, all hanging from hooks on the ceiling. The cold in here keeps them relatively fresh.  

7) Second Family Chamber: This contains 2 frost giant females and 3 juvenile frost giants. 

Juvenile frost giant: AC 7, Mv 90ft, HD 5+1, hp 25 average, THAC0 16, Att 1 club for 1d10, Spec Abil: Immune to cold damage, Save F5, Ml 5,  Align C, 225xp

8) The Wolf Pen: This chamber holds 4 dire wolves (hp 14, 20, 21, 23) and a white-furred wolf that seems odd. It is in fact a winter wolf, (borrowed from AD&D), much more intelligent and cruel and with a magical freezing breath. The winter wolf has become the alpha of this pack, although it submits to the superiority of the frost giants (who are immune to its breath weapon). 

Dire Wolf: AC 6, Mv 150ft, HD 4+1, THAC0 15, Att 1 bite for 2d4, Save F2, Ml 8, Align N, 125xp

Winter Wolf: AC 5, Mv 180ft, HD 6*, 30hp, THAC0 14, Att 1 bite for 2d4 or breath weapon, Save F6, Ml 9, Align C, 500xp
Breath weapon can be used once per turn and is a cone of frost, 10ft long, 10ft wide at furthest, causing  4d6 cold damage to all caught in the blast. Successful save vs Dragons Breath reduces it to half damage. 

9) The Wolf-master's quarter: These two frost giants (hp female 44, male 51)  both have whistles and can command the wolves and winter wolf in room #8. They are a mated pair and will not willingly abandon each other. The male has a sack on his belt with 2,400gp and 200pp. Near their beds are 4 throwing boulders.

10) The Frost Giant Chief's Den: This big chamber is home to the frost giant chief Mammoth-Helm himself, plus two female frost giants (his consorts, hp 40, 43). Next to his double bed there is a chest. On top of the chest are 3 throwing boulders, and inside is the clan's treasure: 24,000gp, 76,000sp, 1200pp and 10 items of jewelry worth a total of 11,000gp. Around Mammoth-Helm's neck is a Medallion of ESP which he has figured out how to use, and helps keep his underlings in line. He also wears a giant-sized helmet topped with the tips of a pair of mammoth tusks-viking style, and trimmed with silver, worth 500gp. 

Frost Giant Chief Mammoth-Helm (stats as Frost Giant Leader): AC 2, Mv 120ft, HD 12+5,70hp, THAC0 7, Att 1 giant axe for 4d6+2 or throw boulder (range 200ft) for 3d6, Spec Abil: Immune to cold damage, Save F12, Ml 11, Align C, 1100xp

11) The Armoury: Here is a frost giant bladesmith and 3 ogre servants. There is also a magical furnace in the centre of the room that stays hot without refueling, and on one side an oversized (6ft tall, 8ft long) anvil. Hanging on the walls are 5 suits of giant-sized chain mail (which is what most of the giants in this dungeon wear), 6 giant-sized battleaxes, and 3 giant-sized bastard swords. The bladesmith is respected for his ability to tolerate the heat from the magical furnace - other giants find room temperature difficult enough. As such he wears a golden circlet on his head with a large ruby embedded in it, worth 2000gp even though it is much too large for humans to wear. Also rather than throwing boulders, this frost giant instead has two human-sized battleaxes tucked in his belt that he uses as throwing axes for 1d8+2 damage. 

12) Chapel of the Frozen Lord: This grim place has four large columns of ice reaching all the way up to the ceiling (20ft high). Embedded in the ice are the severed heads of various humanoid victims - human, dwarf, elf, ogre, bugbear and even two frost giant heads. Against the south wall is a huge 20ft tall statue carved in bluish-grey stone reaching up to the ceiling portraying a bow-legged, bald frost giant wielding a massive hammer. At the base of the statue is a name in giantish runes: Kostchtchie. Although this place has no specific malevolent effects on trespassers, anyone using Detect Evil or Detect Chaos will sense something unpleasant and hateful. 

13) The Chamber of the Old One: In here is what seems to be an icy statue of a demon with treasure scattered around its base. It is in fact an Ice Demon and will attack once intruders get close enough. The ice demon has 7,300gp, 11,000sp and 6 gems worth 300gp each (large perfect amethysts) scattered on the floor. It is visiting the material plane to encourage these frost giants in their attacks on civilization. Despite the frost giants being immune to its breath weapon the ice demon can still intimidate all of the frost giants, including the chief and the shamans. 

Ice Demon: AC 2, Mv 120ft/Fly 180ft, HD 14+4*, 70hp, THAC0 5, Att 2 fists for 2d6/2d6+ stun or breath weapon, Spec Abil: Ice demons are immune to normal weapons and require +1 or better magic weapons to hit. . They are also immune to poison, disease and cold damage. Save: F15, Ml 12, Align C, XP 2300
Breath weapon: Every other round an ice demon may use its breath weapon, a cone of cold that extends from the ice demon's mouth out to 30' and is 20' wide at the end. Anyone in that area must save vs dragon breath or suffer 4d10 cold damage and be paralysed by cold for 1d4 rounds.
Ice demons, as summoned beings from another plane, can be kept at bay by Protection From Evil spells.

14) The  Shamans' Quarters. In here are two frost giant shamans, one male (55hp), one female (50hp). They both have a sack on their belts containing 1000gp each and platinum unholy symbols around their necks worth 500gp each. 
Frost Giant Shaman: AC 4, Mv 120ft, HD 11+3, THAC0 8, Att 1 axe for 4d6 or 1 spell, Save C11, Ml 10, Align C, 1900xp
Male shaman spells: Protection from Evil, Rage, Hold Person
Female shaman spells: Detect Magic, Cure Light Wounds, Aura of Shadows

The Ogre Quarters: The following rooms and corridors are only 10ft tall, and therefore the frost giants have great difficulty squeezing into them. The ogres within might find the rooms a bit cramped but recognise that  the frost giants cannot follow them in here, so they feel a bit safer and have a little more privacy. 

15) 3 ogres (hp 16, 14, 20) are here, with many fur blankets and badly tanned hides to keep them warm. They may assist the frost giant in room #2 if called on. 

16) The Ogre hearth. Here are 6 ogres (3 males hp 24, 24, 17, 3 females hp 28, 21, 18) and 6 juvenile ogres(hp 6, 9, 9, 10, 10, 12) . They are huddled around a fire pit that they keep burning. In one corner there is a pile of dead branches and relatively dry wood. 

Juvenile ogre: AC 6, Mv 90ft, HD 2+1, THAC0 17, Att 1 club for 1d8, Save F2, Ml 7, Align C, 25xp 

17) Rorg the Ogre Boss lives here. He has stayed leader of this band of ogres by strength, cunning and not picking fights with the frost giants (a fatal mistake as his deceased predecessor discovered…). It is possible if this dungeon is attacked by adventurers he will try to point out (either in giantish or broken common) that the ogres aren’t the real threat and they are being kept as unwilling servants by the giants (only partially true). Nonetheless if attacked he will defend himself. He has a sack of treasure that he has managed to keep out of the frost giants’ hands, and has told them the ogres have no treasure of their own. The sack contains 4500gp, 1100pp and an ornate golden crown with sapphires worth 2000gp. 

Rorg the Ogre Boss: AC 4, Mv 90ft, HD 6+2, hp 30, THAC0 13, Att 1 large morning star for 1d10+2, Save F6, Ml 10, Align C, 350xp

18) 1 tusked yeti is kept here by the frost giants. The ogres are supposed to look after it but they are actually quite scared of it. It will attack any humans or demihumans and can get aggressive with ogres, though it is submissive towards the frost giants. 

Tusked Yeti: AC 6, Mv 120ft, HD 10+10, THAC0 9, Att 2 claws/1 bite for 2d4/2d4/3d6, Spec Abil: Immune to Cold damage, Save F5, Ml  9, 900xp

19)  3 ogres (2 male, hp 22, 17, 1 female, hp 17)  are here, and are worried about the yeti next door, despite the frost giants insistence they should look after it. 

20) 4 ogres (hp 17, 19, 19, 20)  + 2 juvenile ogres (hp 8, 10) huddled around a fire pit with a butchered wild boar on a spit. 

Juvenile ogre: AC 6, Mv 90ft, HD 2+1, THAC0 17, Att 1 club for 1d8, Save F2, Ml 7, Align C, 25xp 

21) A minotaur has joined the frost giant clan and now acts as tracker, helping the frost giants find prey in the forest. It does not like the ogres but has to put up with them. The minotaur has accumulated a collection of ivory tusks from various creatures including mammoths, mastodon, giant boar and walruses. These include 6 large mammoth tusks worth 600gp each, 10 smaller mastodon tusks worth 400gp each and 6 walrus tusks worth 200gp each. The minotaur also has a sack with 3600sp and 600gp. Although the minotaur knows it cannot take on the tusked yeti in room #18, it notices the yeti has very fine tusks. 

Minotaur: AC 6, Mv 120ft, HD 6, 27hp, Att 1 gore/1 bite for 1d6/1d6, Save F6, Ml 12, Align C, 275xp

Commonly used stats:

Frost Giant: AC 4, Mv 120ft, HD 10+1 (46hp average),  THAC0 9, Att 1 giant weapon for 4d6 damage or 1 thrown boulder (range 200ft) for 3d6 damage, Spec Abil: Immune to Cold damage, Save F10, Ml 9, 900xp

Ogre: AC 5, Mv 90ft, HD 4+1 (19hp average), THAC0 15, Att 1 club for 1d10, Save F4, Ml 9, Align C, 125xp

Art by Sebastian Horoszko, source

Thoughts about Gaz7: The Northern Reaches

 

I like this one. It is in contrast in tone and adventure style to Gaz9: The Minrothad Guilds. Here it shows the brutal, perhaps bloodthirsty, streak in the culture of this land, with lots of opportunity for conflict and adventure, which seems to be in stark contrast to the rather peaceful and boring Minrothad islands.

I’ve gone through the player’s pull-out section. I like the descriptions of the land and the people, the laws and attitudes. The rules I take with a pinch of salt and I may not incorporate them all as written.

• The personality traits I think are interesting suggestions but I would more likely to use them as guidelines for the DM to roleplay NPCs, rather than as actual game mechanics. 
• The skills are something I have noticed in other gazetteers but not really paid much attention to. But it’s nice for rounding out a PC or NPC. 
• The list of Norse names is always useful. 
• The part on clerics and their rune magic is interesting and I would certainly use this for NPCs. In fact part of me wants to start creating new runes right away but I ought to see how the published runes work first. They are not just simple spells. However, I am also wary of game balance issues - the Know Runes spell does involve a ritual of considerable hardship and risk but after that the cleric with runes has power that clerics from other lands simply do not have access to.

One aspect that I noticed is the introduction of a pantheon of deities that many other gazetteers simply do not address.  This is the classic Norse pantheon, with Odin, Thor, Frey and Loki. My head goes off on different directions with this one. What about the other Norse deities, described in Deities and Demigods? Tyr, Balder, Frigga and Heimdall could all be brought in.  

But also how do these gods fit in with immortals that were previously mortals who found the path to immortality? My gut instinct is to put these ones in a different category: Elder Immortals, who were never human.  

Although not exactly the same pantheon, the category of Elder Immortal can also include Kagyar from the Dwarves of Rockhome and Apep from the Nithian (i.e. Egyptian) pantheon. In fact, if I am to take the Norse pantheon on board in this campaign it opens up the possibility of other pantheons in other nations and regions, which changes the focus away from Law vs Chaos that has been the predominant religious and metaphysical conflict so far in this campaign. Would these Norse immortals take sides in Law vs Chaos? Or do they ignore it, staying neutral in an uncaring way? Loki and Hel are chaotic, while Tyr is Lawful but even then that does not mean they are integrally tied to these cosmic forces but merely an indication of their behaviour and attitutes, like most mortals. 

The three nations of the Northern Reaches, old-fashioned and brutal Ostland, the more civilized Vestland and the fragmented and somewhat anarchic Soderfjord Jarldoms, offer three different environments in which to set adventure, but all of them seem to offer plenty of excitement and opportunities for brave heroes. The raiding culture and reliance on strength and combat prowess over law, trade and diplomacy, particularly in Ostland, makes for great human opponents who fight first and ask questions later. I would say in terms of alignment that even if the raiders think they are simply carrying on a tradition that they have held for centuries, to anyone else (especially those targeted by them) these norse raiders are no better than orcs, goblins or chaos warriors - indeed their actions are seen as chaotic at least in outcome if not in philosophy. This raises the question in my mind: were vikings the original murder-hobos? I’m sure the monks of Lindisfarne would say yes. 

And yet there is also opportunity for diplomacy, trade and perhaps espionage. The Ethengar Khanate, the Heldannic Knights and the Emirates of Ylaruam are all neighbours who at least want to keep an eye on the Northern Reaches, maybe do business with them and perhaps even influence the decisions of the leaders. Vestland is trying to shift from a raiding culture to a trading culture, and while not everyone in Vestland agrees with this change, it is perhaps safer to do business here than in either Ostland or the Jarldoms. Of course, a merchant may well hire adventurers to protect him and his interests from those who prefer the old ways. 

Trade links extend all over the Sea of Dawn and can take merchants and adventurers far afield, from Norwold to Thyatis, from Alphatia to the Pearl Islands. This reflects real-life vikings who found themselves in North Africa, Ireland, England, France, Sicily, Russia, Greenland, Byzantium and even Nova Scotia in North America, trading, plundering, colonising and fighting as mercenaries as the opportunities presented themselves. In some ways I see vikings as the ultimate opportunists, roaming around, judging situations and settlements and deciding what is best for themselves. 

The  non-human races of the Northern Reaches, particularly gnolls, trolls, kobolds, gnomes and dwarves, are all mentioned and briefly discussed. The first three (trolls, gnolls and kobolds) are perpetual foes of the humans, making the mountainous borderlands to the west and south very dangerous. Although expeditions against them might be a tad simplisitc, perhaps even hack and slash, it is at least straightforward and always available as a way of finding loot and action. 

The dwarves, including the Modrigswerg (moulder dwarves) and gnomes are a different matter, and although it is possible that some may be hostile, it is usually much more a matter of how the PCs approach them. Dwarves are much like those in Rockhome and many are descended from the dwarves of Rockhome. Gnomes are not given as much description having driven to near extinction by kobolds but I like to think of them as similar to rock gnomes found in Karameikos, with warriors and tricksters. I don't feel tinker gnomes fit this setting. They would be very rare, and perhaps not even having their own settlements, but as enclaves and refugees with dwarf clans. I suspect the author of Gaz7 (Ken Rolston) did not expect any gnomes to have survived. 

The Modrigswerg are a subrace of unpleasant, unhinged dwarves who are still remarkably skilled at creating powerful magic items. As a DM and creator of adventures I reckon they could fill a variety of roles from outright villains to someone the PCs need to negotiate or trade with, to a source of wondrous items that can become either plot McGuffins or rewards for successful quests. They are tricky and truculent, and difficult to work with, and often quite treacherous. Yet their crafting skills make them extremely useful. There is even a paragraph about their skill and imagination in creating dungeon traps - they could probably teach the goblins of Zugguth Peak about how to build really nasty traps.  In terms of AD&D & later editions they have elements of both duergar (their greed and brutality) and derro (their paranoia, mental instability and isolationism). I like them already....

A combination of various subterranean races means that the Northern Reaches, particularly the areas on the mainland, have substantial cave complexes and excavated lairs. Thus the Shadowdeep, Mystara’s underground realm, extends substantially under the mountainous parts of the Northern Reaches. 

At the end of the DM’s book there is a substantial adventure set in the Falun Caverns, formerly a gnome settlement, now overrun with kobolds.  I would be tempted to use my own rules for humanoid NPCs here, with kobold warriors and nobles having levels in the warrior class, and kobold wiccas being replaced by shamans, but to each their own. There are also shorter adventures including “The Defence of Otkel’s Stead” and “The Jarl’s Hall”. 

I can see myself using the Northern Reaches a lot on this blog. 

Tilphon's Journal of the Shadowdeep, part 1

From the Journal of Tilphon, Professor of Underground Geography at Shiell University, Alphatia

As you probably know, I was asked by the Shiell University to investigate the subterranean realms underneath the continent of Brun, particularly under the south-east quarter that holds such nations as Darokin, Alfheim, Rockhome and the Broken Lands. These underground expanses are often referred to by various names - the Underdark, the Lands Below and Darklands. However, they are most commonly referred to as the Shadowdeep, so that is the name I shall stick with for this journal. 

As one explorer I cannot comprehensively cover such a vast area on my own, so the reader will have to accept that these are simply my own observations - there may well be areas, features and species that I simply have not encountered. I suspect my journal will not be as famous or as studied as that of Prince Haldemmar of Haaken but I would like to think I can contribute something to the great libraries that are one of the greatest prides of our glorious Empire of Alphatia. 

My travels have led me to believe that there are specific realms that constitute the Shadowdeep, and though they are distinctive, they are also connected by tunnels. The realms that I am aware of include:

• Deep Nithia, including the now-sunken River Nithia underneath the deserts of the Emirates of Ylarum
• The Lower Broken Lands
• Realm of the Deep Glaurants under the Five Shires
• Realm of the Shadow Elves under Darokin, the Broken Lands and Alfheim

There are other minor areas of the Shadowdeep that connect to the greater whole but are not large enough to be considered proper Shadowdeep Realms, particularly

• The Tunnels under Thyatis City
• The Falun Caverns under Soderfjord
• Deep Dengar under the capital of Rockhome

And thus I set off. I decided it was best to travel solo, mainly to avoid logistical issues and also to keep the disturbance I might cause to a minimum. Thus with three Bags of Holding (rations and drink, spellbooks and writing equipment, camping and traveling equipment respectively) and my trusty Staff of the Magi doubling as a walking staff, I set off on my travels. I hitched a ride on skyship from Shiell, not sure if I would see my home city again, to the Isle of Dawn. I took the opportunity of the stay in East Portage to change from the traditional glyph-embroidered silk robes of a senior Alphatian wizard to something a little less attention-seeking - the rather more drab tunic and breeches of a small-time trader. Having been a well-to-do wizard of Alphatia with a good reputation and standing, it felt rather strange to become anonymous - both humbling but also a bit liberating. I took a horse to the border of the Thyatian territories and passed through unnoticed to West Portage, catching a sea vessel to Jaboor in Ylaruam. I forgot how seasick I get on the ocean waves and I was very glad to reach solid land again on 6th Sulamir 2001. 

Now my intended direction had become downwards rather than westwards, and I started searching for a suitable entrance to the Shadowdeep. This proved easier than expected: I was told that Jaboor's fresh water comes from wells going down into an underground river. Securing all my equipment and clothing, I dropped down the well using a Feather Fall spell and found myself waist deep in a cold underground watercourse, not too fast but definitely moving. I popped on my goggles of Infravision. The investigation had begun!

10th Sulamir 2001

My exact route is not certain but I am following this river course upstream. This water course is about 50ft wide, which is a lot smaller than I had expected the great river Nithia to be. I suspect this is a different underground river running parallel. I wonder if rather than one river system that all joins up to the Nithia there are numerous independent rivers that don't join until under the Sea of Dawn? The fact that I was able to get down into the river system deep beneath the Emirates almost as soon as I reached these shores indicates that these underground rivers are more widespread than I had expected. 

Various monstrous encounters on the way, but nothing I cannot handle.

Serpent folk - not well documented but clearly very intelligent and capable of magic use. They are hostile to most humans (including me!), which is a pity because as an academic I believe there is much the two species could learn from each other.  Just don't let them get close enough to bite! Chain Lightning spells disposed of them quickly enough. I have picked up one of their spellbooks, which will provide some interesting reading. 

Lizard Men - here they seem to be the footsoldiers and lackeys of the Serpent Folk. I should have brought a reference book about the long lost Mogreth civilization. I am sure that these lizard folk and serpent folk are connected to that period, and perhaps are the remnants of pre-human Nithia. These particular lizard folk are greyish of scaly skin and wield crude swords. 

Troglodytes - Filthy smelly creatures. So far I have encountered two groups of troglodytes in Deep Nithia - one seemed to be independent, the other allied with serpent folk. I am wondering how they fit into the ancient Mogreth civilization? 

13th Sulamir 2001

Travelling upstream has proven cold and tiring, although I should be thankful that the river is low enough for wading to be feasible and the air is breathable. There are side caverns where I have spent the rest periods. I want to call them nights but of course the sun is now irrelevant for timekeeping and I now rely on my gnomish chronographer on my wrist. Anyway, these side caverns are often havens of underground life, with various mushrooms and fungi growing from the rocky walls and floors.  I wish I had brought some way of talking to my peers at Shiell University as these fungi are quite unfamiliar to me, and I don't even know which might be safe to eat. Other creatures are definitely capable of eating them and during my rest periods in these fungal grottos I have seen several fungivorous species grazing. 

Giant Fire Beetles: Often encountered by novice adventurers. I believe they are actually omnivorous rather than purely fungivorous, sometimes scavenging on dead creatures, so I was careful not to get too close. Their characteristic fire glands mess up infravision but look impressive when I remove the goggles. In fact these beetles allowed me to see the fungal grotto lit up. 

Cave Locust: Almost as unpleasant as troglodytes. At least these are not malicious - just don't panic them, they are skittish. I had to use a Wall of Force to protect myself when a nearby swarm of twenty or so cave locusts were frightened by a giant gecko that attempted to catch one. They were bouncing of the Wall of Force and spitting horrible brown sludge at the gecko and at me. More than merely grazers, a swarm of cave locusts can strip a fungal cave down to the bare rock and then move on to the next meal. 

Cave Louse: These seem to be oversized (4ft long, 18 inches wide) woodlice that have adapted to the cave environment. They are pale grey, almost albino, and feed on the fungi found underground. They have hard chitinous shells on top that make it difficult for many predators to wound them, though if they can be flipped over they are very vulnerable. I took the time to sketch one of them. 

Cave Louse, sketched by Tilphon

[Combat stats: AC 2 on top, 7 underneath, Move 60ft, HD 1 (4hp), THAC0 20, Att 1 bite for 1d3, Save NM, Ml 6, Align Neutral, XP 10, TT none, Int 1 (Animal), Size/Type: Small Vermin]

It is clear that while green plants are the basis of ecologies on the surface in woods, plains and swamps, here it is the fungi that feed the fungivores that then are preyed on by more dangerous monsters. 

The Temple of Chaos Divided: Background and the Surface

The Temple of Chaos Divided is a megadungeon in Alphatia, created by the mad archmage Volsoon who revelled in the idea of Chaos and its worship. Volsoon was a nobleman and archmage in Shiell in northern Alphatia about 250 years ago who set up his tower and associated temple complex about 20 miles north of the city by the village of Lymewood. He attracted likeminded followers, including apprentice mages, chaotic clerics, fighters and thieves. He also became one of the most powerful Twisted Summoners of northern Alphatia. And in classic twisted summoner style he used kobold minions along with his own spells and the spells of his apprentices to gradually create a dungeon underneath. 

Generally he was quite low-profile in his chaos worship. But in AC 760 he unleashed hordes of monsters and chaos worshippers on the city of Shiell and Lymewood. The village residents fled to Shiell, and the attack on the city was repelled with powerful magic and Volsoon was quickly found to be behind the attack. The city authorities, supported by a number of civic-minded archmages, laid siege to Volsoon’s tower and temple. The surface structures were raided and left as burnt ruins and his magnificent wizard’s tower was toppled. But the dungeons underneath were a different prospect, mainly because of how extensive they were. So the village of Lymewood became the hub of efforts to contain the malevolent chaos of Volsoon’s dungeon, with Markalvion the Lawful mage establishing Lymewood Outpost, a school and residence for mages who oppose chaos.  Lymewood also has a recently-expanded church of Law, the Lymewood Bastion, previously just a chapel, now manned by a high-level cleric and his acolytes and junior clerics. 

Only the bottom third of Volsoon's tower now stands.  source

Temple Factions

Volsoon was fascinated by different aspects of Chaos and he created different temples deep under his tower:

• The Temple of Chaos Destructive (the Destroyers) are often brutish, seeking more power to crush their enemies and anyone else they come across. Moreso than other factions there is a belief among this group that might makes right or at least that might is much more important than right. 
• The Temple of Chaos Indulgent (the Indulgers) focus on the selfishness of Chaos and often follow their whims and feelings,  always looking after themselves. They are usually greedy for both food and treasure and enjoy various decadent pleasures. Life is short and pointless, so you might as well have some fun while you are here. 
• The Temple of Chaos Terrifying (the Terrors) see the world as being full of dangers. They both feel this fear themselves and also inflict the fear on those around them. They tend towards domination and control, using fear to keep underlings in line and can be quite hierarchical and tyrannical. 
• The Temple of Chaos Unpredictable (the Erratics) focus on the randomness of chaos and may emulate this in their behaviour. They can appear to be quite mad, talking gibberish and behaving bizarrely, and are great believers in luck and randomness. 
• The Temple of Chaos Entropic (the Entropists) understands that the Multiverse is heading towards entropy and that life is temporary and death is permanent. They embrace undeath, viewing it as the next stage after life. 
• The Temple of Chaos Malevolent (the Hateful) are the most unpleasant of a bad bunch, looking to inflict pain on those around them.
• The Temple of Chaos Grandiose (the Ambitious) seek to enhance their own power and are among the most duplicitous. They can be very well organised if they think it is in their own interests, but will stab each other in the back at the drop of a hat. 

These different factions within the dungeon do not usually get on with each other, and there are often struggles between these temples for supremacy, resources, ideology and good old fashioned vendettas. This could result in PC adventurers finding unlikely allies, particularly if members of a faction are in a tight spot and could do with any help they can get. That does not mean they are reliable or trustworthy allies - they are still thoroughly chaotic. 

The factions usually consist of a core of chaotic humans, mostly Alphatian in ethnicity with many being clerics and mages, and then their monstrous allies and auxilliaries who may not be interested in the faction's philosophy but will serve for food, money and their own need for allies. Volsoon himself, various apprentices and many of the human mages currently in the dungeon are Twisted Summoners and so a wide variety of monsters may be encountered, from the ubiquitous kobolds to much larger creatures including giants and dragons. The third and fourth levels are known to have much larger chambers and corridors (typically 20ft high x 20ft wide) to accomodate such creatures.

Physical Layout

There is one main entrance to the dungeons from the surface - the spiral staircase in the centre of Volsoon’s tower that used to lead upwards as well as down until the tower was toppled. However, there are rumours of magical portals within the dungeon that connect to corresponding portals elsewhere. While Volsoon was alive and active he would sometimes be seen in his tower and then less than twenty minutes later in the middle of Shiell. This could just be a teleport spell but those who knew him reckon there was at least one magic portal between the dungeon and the city. Then there is the village well in Lymewood which drops down about 100ft to the water surface. But those who have descended the well shaft say that the water is actually an underground lake in a huge cavern with tunnels leading off in the distance towards the dungeon.    

There are numerous levels, at least 10 have been described by captured cultists and more levels and sublevels are suspected. Each level has a similar pattern - a central hub, usually containing the stairs going up and down, and then sections radiating off from the central hub. These sections happen to be geomorphs, generally 190ft x 190ft with entrances and exits in the middle of each side. The baffling thing about this dungeon is that although the central hubs keep the same structure every time one enters, the geomorphic sections can sometimes change between visits. Nobody beyond Volsoon himself and maybe his most senior apprentices knows how this happens, but it must involve powerful magic. Nobody from the surface has witnessed this change so it is not clear whether the sections warp and morph into their new shapes or if entire sections of dungeon are somehow transported around and swapped with each other.

As with many dungeons there may be some static and irreplaceable encounters, while others are more fluid. Both recruits from outside and twisted summoners summoning new monsters can replenish areas that were cleared out by adventuring parties, or else creatures move in from other parts of the dungeon. Animated undead and even some of the simpler constructs may be replaced by the chaotic spellcasters from deep in the dungeon. The timescale this takes will vary (weeks? months?) but generally speaking rooms will not be repopulated within a single expedition. Unique NPCs generally stay dead unless the most powerful cult clerics deem them worth the effort of a Raise Dead spell.  

The Surface Ruins

0.1) The Tower Base. Although the upper storeys have collapsed (see 0.10), the first two storeys of Volsoon's tower are still relatively intact (though clearly in need of repair). The door to the tower is kept locked by the authorities at Limewood village but can be opened on request. There is a spiral staircase in the middle of the tower that leads down to the first level of the dungeon and up to the first floor. The ground floor is empty though there are some very old ashes and burnt remnants of furniture. Upstairs the ceiling has mostly rotted away leaving the first storey open to the sky. A giant robber fly (7hp) has made its home here on the upper floor and will attack if disturbed. It has no treasure. 

0.2) The Surface Temple. This edifice of Chaos has been gutted by fire, with the remnants of burnt pews, lecturns and banners in between the pillars. There is a black basalt altar at the north end. Careful observation will show there are dried blood stains on it. The altar will give off a Chaotic aura if any cleric uses a Detect Chaos spell but has no specific magical effects. 

0.3) The Cloister now holds 3 stirges (hp 5, 6, 2) that will attack anyone entering. There is the skeletal corpse of an adventuring cleric slumped in one corner. He still wears serviceable chain mail armour and has a mace, a holy symbol of a lawful saint, and 12sp & 15gp in his belt pouch. 

0.4) The Outhouse: This was used for ablutions and as a toilet. Now it is empty. 

0.5) First Stable: Empty

0.6) Second Stable: 1 giant crab spider (hp 7) crawls around the rafters. 

0.7) Servants Quarters. Empty

0.8) Servants Quarters. Empty apart from smashed and rotten furniture.

0.9) Servants Quarters. Among rotten furniture 3 giant rats (hp 2 each) live here. They are likely to flee to the rubble field (0.10) through a hole in the back wall. 

0.10) Rubble field. This is what remains of the upper storeys of the wizard's tower when it toppled. Grass and weeds have grown up around the large chunks of masonry. A pack of 6 giant rats (hp 2 each) have made their home here, and they have found crevices that only small creatures (giant rats, gnomes and halflings) can get into. If they fail their morale they will retreat back into these small lairs. In one of these crevices there is the rats' treasure: 1200sp and 4 pieces of clear quartz worth 30gp each. 

Expanding the City of Quagmire

This post is an expansion of a previous post about X6: Quagmire. This module tries to introduce a large geographic area (the Serpent Peninsula) and several cities (Quagmire itself, Thanopolis and the Sunken City) in a 32 page module - as such it had to shorten various things and leave other details out. This post was also prompted by a discussion in the Piazza here about the module. 

The City of Quagmire in the module is a single spiral building - personally I am not sure if this qualifies as a city. I would like to expand this so that the PCs are not completely underwhelmed when they arrive with the intention of saving the inhabitants of Quagmire: “42 humans? That’s what we’ve sailed across the Known World and Sea of Dread for?!” 

The spiral tower detailed in the module is still there, and indeed this distinct shell-like style of architecture is prevalent in Quagmire: you can reuse the map given in the module for the six different towers in Quagmire that protrude above the waves. The ground of the city is now 20ft under the waves. 

Named locations on the map

The Capital Tower: This was the centre of government for Quagmire and contains the survivors, monsters and treasure as the tower detailed in the module, including the king and 42 civilians (here civilians are all normal men, 0-level humans). 

The Generals Tower: This tower holds only 20 survivors. Half of them are soldiers, the others are civilians. There were more but they suffered casualties in battles with lizard men forces

• Captain Megrain (F5, Lawful, trying to maintain discipline)
• Sergeant Tullich (F3, Neutral, wants to go out fighting, often encourages forays and counter attacks)
• Sergeant Barnin (F3, mentally exhausted and does not know what to do, very unmotivated)
• 7 x Privates (F1)

The Magisters Tower. At the top are a cabal of 10 magic users. They are selfish and have refused sanctuary to civilians. Although they have slain the kna and lizardmen that invaded the lower levels, they still are not sure where to go from here without boats, and limited food and water. 

• Magister Olbadin (MU7, Chaotic, mentally unstable and a bit paranoid)
• Junior Magister Sterria (MU5, Neutral, dislikes Olbadin, regrets shunning civilians)
• Junior Magister Pattrovia (MU5, Neutral, just wants to get out of here alive)
• 7 x Apprentice Mages (MU2)

The Priests Tower: These 12 clerics are more generous than the magic users and have taken in 55 civilians. However, they are both paranoid about retaliation from Yavdlom and also very strict in their doctrine and discipline. The civilians with them in this tower have fallen in line with the clerics orders and believe everything the clerics say. There is some frustration that none of the clerics are powerful enough to access the Create Water or Create Food spells. 

• Curate Absalon (C5, Lawful but unstable, paranoid about Yavdlom agents, very strict)
• Priest Canthor (C3, Lawful, trusts Curate Absalon absolutely, assumes he is correct about Yavdlom agents)
• Priest Pelleni (C3, Lawful, not sure about Curate Absalon but cares about civilians and wants them to survive)
• Priest Gandian (C3, Lawful, lapsed into despair and depression, is sure the gods hate this city and its inhabitants are damned)
• 8 x Acolytes (C1)

Below the clerics in the bottom of the tower there are several marine monsters, including a giant octopus and 3 giant crabs. 

The Princes Tower: This used to be the centre of Quagmires merchants and traders but it has been completely overrun by monsters. There are no human survivors but there are 20 lizard men and a lizard man leader (see below). 

The Vindicators Tower: Home of Quagmire's scouts and investigators. This tower now holds 30 civilians and 6 vindicators (4 thieves, 1 fighter, 1 magic user). They are penned up here by 3 kna and 10 lizard men in the levels below them.

• Vindicator Melmor (MU4, Neutral, want to reconnect with the other towers, is sure there are other survivors)
• Vindicator Tewmon (F3, Lawful, pious and not sure why this has happened to Quagmire)
• Vindicator Pallasath (T4, Neutral, wants to escape with or without her friends, and either get back to Yavdlom or Ierendi)
• 3 x Junior Vindicators (T1)

This gives a total of 137 civilians + 38 with character class levels, so escorting them to safety could prove quite a logistical challenge. There may well be monsters such as lizard men on the bottom levels of the standing towers, keeping the humans trapped inside. If the DM feels that the single tower given in the module is quite sufficient (either in terms of monsters to fight or civilians to rescue) then the other towers are toppled and there are no human survivors in them. A combination of more foes to defeat and more civilians to rescue means that this could get overwhelming for a small adventuring party far from a home base. Multiple trips between Quagmire and the shoreline could be feasible if they have the time and other resources (food, water etc). This means that the adventure becomes quite different from the usual dungeon-crawl. 

One option is to use diplomacy to get the more powerful residents of the towers onto the PCs side - at least some of them will be reasonable and open to suggestions - others may be harder to persuade. If these NPCs are allies rather than foes then the combat strength of the party and survivors is greatly enhanced, and the PCs become more welcome for any transport, water and food that they bring rather than their spells and swords. 

The Warehouses: These are now home to a gang of 4 Kna (see AC9 Creature Catalogue). They are hired by the lizard men as mercenaries and will attack any human they see.

The Old Docks were in use while they were partly above the water. Now there is a giant octopus patroling the piers looking for an easy meal. 

The North Gatehouse now houses 3 giant crabs that are perpetually hungry

The South Gatehouse is empty

The Temple of the Waters holds 3 kna (see AC9 Creature Catalogue) who will assist the lizard men if called on.

The Arena has now become the lair of a Sea Dragon (see AC9 Creature Catalogue or Cook Expert Rules), Shishraa the Oceanic, that has started to gather a hoard of treasure from the underwater ruins. Shishraa has no interest in the human vs lizardman conflict but simply looks out for herself, particularly food and treasure. 

Marine Lizard Men

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These are a subrace of lizard men with faces reminiscent of marine iguanas found on the coastlines and small islands around the Serpent Peninsula. They usually mind their own business but recently they have been encouraged to attack the humans of Quagmire (possibly by the Cult of Chaos, or maybe the Serpent folk). 

In terms of combat they are exactly the same as normal lizard men, and they differ mainly in their appearance, habitats and culture. Marine lizard men can hold their breaths for up to an hour before needing to resurface, and they are excellent swimmers at ease in both salt and fresh water. Although called lizard men, a more apt name would be lizard-folk as the females are almost indistinguishable from the males and can fight along side the males just as well. 

Marine lizard men are omnivorous, capable of eating a wide range of foods including terrestrial vegetables, seaweed, fish, molluscs and mammalian flesh. The last one is proving to be particularly popular as the city of Quagmire sinks and provides plenty of floundering, drowning morsels. The lizard men are not particularly malicious - they just don't have any compassion or empathy for humans and have no problem treating them as food. 

Marine Lizard Man Leader: AC 5, Move 60ft/swim 120ft, HD 4+2 (20hp average), THAC0 15, Att 1 weapon for 1d6+2, Save F4, Ml 12, Align Neutral, XP 125

These leaders are often found in charge of bands of lizard men between 10 and 50 strong and may lead raiding parties. If the PCs encounter a raft manned by lizard men near Quagmire there may be a leader as the captain of the raft, particularly if there are more than 10 lizard men on the raft. 

Marine Lizard Man Warchief: AC 4, Move 60ft/swim 120ft, HD 8+4 (40hp average), THAC0 12, Att 1 weapon/1 tail for 1d6+3/1d4 + knock over, Save F8, Ml 12, Align Neutral, XP 650

Warchiefs are larger and meaner, standing perhaps 8ft tall. They can use their tails as a sweeping attack against their opponents legs - anyone hit by the warchief's tail takes 1d4 slam damage and must save vs paralysation or be knocked to the ground and must spend a round regaining their feet. Warchiefs are typically in charge of a tribe of over 50 lizard-folk with 2d4 marine lizard man leaders as lieutenants and bodyguards. In the X6 module there are 2 lizard man camps with 3d6x10 lizard men -  a warchief is in charge of each of these. They have survived for several decades and are wily and experienced enough not to get into unnecessary fights, typically only getting involved in critically important battles or when personally attacked. 

The Pearl Islands as Mystara’s Mythic Japan

This is a big deviation from the published canon of Mystara, perhaps more than what I have done with Ierendi. The Pearl Islands, as described in Dawn of the Emperors, are based on Polynesia and other south Pacific islands. This is nice but I find it not particularly inspiring - maybe this is a bit harsh. But there is also a longing in me for samurai, ninjas and fighting monks. The Pearl Islands seem like a suitable place to place these in Mystara. And with Ochalea being based on mythic China right next door the old rivalry and interaction between the two can be a source of tension and adventure. 

Political Overview

The Pearl Islands are still subjects of the Emperor of Thyatis and they contribute troops and money to their imperial overlord. There was originally an Emperor of the Pearl Islands but he was slain during an invasion by Thyatian troops. The Pearl Islands are now ruled by the Shogun, traditionally the second-in-command to the Emperor, and these days the governor of the Pearl Islands on behalf of the Emperor of Thyatis.

The Pearl Islands other major international relationship is with Ochalea to the west. The Pearl Islanders have a rivalry but also engage in trade, diplomacy and some cultural mixing. The Pearl Islanders sometimes view the Ochaleans as weak, cowardly and underhand while the Ochaleans view the Pearl Islanders as aggressive, arrogant pirates obsessed with so-called honour. 

The Pearl Islands are feudal and hierarchical, with the Shogun ruling over his senior nobles the Daimyo who in turn rule over the samurai, the Pearl Island equivalent of knights, The Pearl Islands is a militaristic nation, with great emphasis on loyalty, obedience, discipline and honour. This makes them perhaps similar to the Heldannic Order, very lawful but not always benevolent. Women will find the Pearl Islands to be quite male-dominated, with most positions of power held by men. Players are welcome to have female characters in the Pearl Islands - there are no specific rules to say otherwise but there may be a certain amount of prejudice and old-fashioned attitudes from NPCs.  

These daimyo do not always get on with each other, and even occasionally rise up against the Shogun if great grievances or great ambition come to the fore. Civil war and internal conflicts are almost regular occurrences in the Pearl islands, so every nobleman will hold both a fortress and a body of troops including an elite core of samurai to defend his lands.    

The Pearl Islands have their own language, Gengo, which they use when not dealing with outsiders. Many of the better educated residents have a good grasp of Thyatian Common, though the peasants usually just stick to Gengo. In Gengo the Pearl Islands are known as Paru-Shoto. 

Character Types in the Pearl Islands

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Samurai are the elite fighters of the Pearl Island nobility. They are famous for their Katanas (masterwork bastard swords) and their stylish lacquered armour (the equivalent of banded armour). Samurai place great store in honour, courage and loyalty. Those who fail these principles may become ronin, outcast samurai, left to find a living as mercenaries or bandits, or else commit ritual suicide. 

Bushi are the ordinary fighters, the rank and file warriors of the Pearl Islands. They still follow Bushido (Way of the Warrior) that Samurai follow, though perhaps with less fervour. 

Ninja are thieves that focus on stealth, surprise and subterfuge. They are famed and feared as assassins and commandos, dressed in their classic black garb with black hoods and masks to hide in the shadows as best as possible. 

Yakuza are thieves that function more as organised criminal groups, relying less on stealth and more on intimidation. Their code of honour is more similar to a mafia mobster than of a knight, with loyalty and respect being most prized.  

Sohei are the clerics of the Pearl Islands. They sometimes follow immortals but are more likely to follow the philosophies of Law, Chaos or Neutrality. 

Monks are based on the Mystic Class, wise philosophers and experts at unarmed combat. They are nearly always Lawful in alignment. 

Majutsu-shi are the mages of the Pearl Islands, often viewed with suspicion and not always welcome in society. 

There are very few demihumans native to the Pearl Islands - nearly all have travelled from overseas. 

At the moment I do not intend to have special rules for Pearl Island characters that might affect combat or level advancement - the differences are principally in attitude and appearance. 

Revised geography and map of Pearl Islands

Based on this map by Thorfin Tait on the Vaults of Pandius (which in turn is based on a map from the Dawn of the Emperors boxed set) I have revised the map to fit the new culture here. 

Note that in some cases the Thyatian names still remain but with the Gengo names underneath. 

This map shows the major cities but not minor settlements as there are too many to be clear on a map this scale. These large cities are the power bases of the most influential and powerful daimyo. The city of Kaiko, known to Thyatians as Seagirt, is the capital and the domain of the Shogun - it has a population of 20,000 in the city itself and another 60,000 in the surrounding countryside.  The map may also miss out on small islands less than a hex (24 miles) in size.

The Pearl Islands are generally subtropical in climate, with lush forests that can seem like jungles and fertile river plains. The main island Nuarito has a volcanically active mountain range which splits the island diagonally. Volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and tsunamis are all natural hazards here, and every few decades the lands are rocked by some sort of geological event that could be a disaster. 

Random thoughts on Lore and Canon

I’ve been thinking a bit about canon and lore. Not just Mystara but all sorts of fictional universes. And I feel the urge to ramble on about it, really for my own satifaction of getting it out of my head and onto a page, though other readers might find something here. 

One of the YouTube videos I’ve watched and enjoyed is Greyhawk Grognard talking about the World of Greyhawk showing vs telling. There he explains why he prefers the Greyhawk approach of seeing lore in practice in adventures rather than having it explained in a sourcebook like a Wikipedia article. It just so happens that Greyhawk has its own wiki, but I may be diverging from the point. I agree that if canon is stifling creativity then yes bare bones is better. But at least for a DM preparing for a game, sourcebooks and other forms of  published lore are all optional. If you feel it is stifling creativity, you are treating it with too much reverence. 

The overall approach I’ve taken is that in a D&D game lore and canon is fine as long as it helps rather than hinders the game at the table. The DM is free to take or leave whatever published or official setting material they want for the adventures they want to run. As you can tell by my blog, that includes ignoring, changing or adding to published worlds. I’ve taken Karameikos pretty well as published in Gaz1, then added some new stuff on top. Conversely with Ierendi I have only kept the map and Ierendi Island from Gaz4. Everything else has been overhauled for a completely different feel, shifting from Mystara’s Disney Land to Mystara’s Lankhmar. As for Norwold, I have kept the general situation but then added a whole new aspect to it (the Arvorians) that is a major new faction of bad guys with their own character classes and world-ending plans. And I have completely ignored Wrath of the Immortals, keeping the campaign set at AC 1000 (the same time the gazetteers are set), because I still want Alphatia to be a sprawling, dysfunctional empire of super-powerful archmages and not just a big gap in the ocean. 

Don’t get me wrong - sourcebooks are great. Campaign settings are great. The most obvious benefit is they present large chunks of adventure-related stuff (NPCs, maps, locations, groups, ideas for adventures, monsters etc) that save the DM a lot of time and effort in preparing for a game session.  Creating a world from scratch is a lot of time and effort. It can be done  - see my earlier incarnation of this blog, from 2011 to 2013 when I was detailing my homebrew world Kaelaross. But borrowing someone else's usually works just as well. 

There is a secondary benefit at least with some books, namely that they are fun to read in and of themselves. Many of the ideas need not be immediately applicable to your game table. I’m sure that a lot of RPG sourcebooks are bought because of this. This can also apply to homebrew worlds where a DM can easily get carried away with adding details, background and history without worrying whether it is relevant to the adventures they are running. This is absolutely fine, and for some would-be DMs, especially those who have trouble getting an acutal gaming group together, it is the main form their interest in D&D manifests. I have spent years in this “perpetual preparation” mode, or world-building for the fun of it. This is fine as long as there is an awareness that this is really just personal entertainment, and unlikely to become a major RPG product on Drivethru RPG. As it is, some of my previous perpetual preparation has actually been posted on this blog, which is better than being binned. 

In developing Mystara I still generally use the published books as the starting point, particularly the gazetteers, and if I have not described how I have changed or added to a particular realm (I have not really tackled Alfheim, Glantri, the Five Shires, Atruaghin Clans or the Northern Reaches), you can generally assume the gazetteer for it is still the default. And for a lot of the places I have focused on (Ylaruam, Karameikos, Darokin etc) most of the material in the gazetteers is still true - I have added to it rather than overwritten it. 

Even if I am not using a world as a whole, I can certainly borrow published stuff from it. I have borrowed the Eldreth Veluuthra from the Forgotten Realms to create the Elvish Truebloods in Karameikos. Warhammer Fantasy has heavily influenced the Cult of Chaos and Chaos Warriors, as well as Warpstone moprhing into Eldritch Crystals. And I have converted numerous monsters from the Fighting Fantasy books to Basic D&D stats for use in adventures in Mystara rather than Titan. Heck, I’ve got a number of RPG books on my shelf that I haven’t played but I’ll still flick through for ideas and inspiration (Earthdawn, Ars Magica, the Dying Earth, WHFRP and various GURPS books). 

Popular fictional universes, whether Star Wars, Star Trek or Lord of the Rings, have great fan followings. And because they are shared, they can be discussed, opined on and speculated about by fans, initially through face to face conversations or magazines, but more recently the internet and social media has given fandom whole new channels to connect. This is where canon becomes important - a shared understanding of what that universe is like, what are the major characters and events and locations are , becomes the starting point for fan discussions. Saying that in your version of Star Wars, Leia is not Luke’s sister and therefore the awkwardness of when they kiss (particularly on Hoth in Empire Strikes Back) is eliminated might be more comfortable to you, but other fans will point to canon (in this case Return of the Jedi) and say “No, you are wrong, this is what is said in the film.” In these circles fan-fic may make temporary changes within itself, but canon remains canon. At the game table I can be as cavalier as I like with published settings, but on the interwebs I am dealing with people who take this a lot more seriously. 

FOMO, Kudos and the shame of getting something wrong within these communities can all drive the urge to know as much about canon as possible. The more obscure the better as long as sources can be provided. Those who know all there is to know about Star Wars, or Tolkein’s Middle Earth are regarded (at least within the communities) as sages or scholars. 

In forums about RPG settings this difference between “fan-fic” (i.e. each GM’s version of a published setting) and “canon”, (such as the gazetteers and other Mystara material published by TSR) can cause friction if the distinction is not kept. I don’t think many on forums are so strict and rigid that they will object to DMs customising the setting to fit their game table, but when asked questions about the setting, most fans will look to canon and try to give the canonical answer. Giving a fan-fic answer is frowned on unless specifically asked for. The published material is still considered the shared universe, and therefore it gains a level of importance and perhaps reverence among fans that non-fans would find surprising. 

Then there is the matter of how much or how little is published. Forgotten Realms is the behemoth of D&D settings, from 1st Edition AD&D (remember the gray box?) through to the latest hardback 5E adventures set in the Realms that often include bits and pieces of lore (I’m currently running Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus, and about a quarter of the book is a guide to the city of Baldur’s Gate). I’m sure if you add the various sourcebooks, adventures and fiction for the Forgotten Realms together over the years you would have close to a thousand products. How the hell is a new DM supposed to deal with that? The simple answer is they are not supposed to deal with it all. They just start with what they need to run an adventure. My not-too-serious approach to published settings means I see a thousand published books of ideas, inspiration and help for running a game. All of those published Forgotten Realms items are entirely optional, never required reading. As with Mystara I take what I want, and change or ignore the rest. 

Going back to Greyhawk I know that a lot of people reckon that the World of Greyhawk boxed set (or even just the folio) was enough and that TSR/WotC should not have messed up Gary Gygax’s creation with the 2nd Edition From the Ashes boxed set or the 3rd Edition Living Greyhawk gazetteer. Perhaps they have a point and those later publications made changes that old fans deeply disapproved of. But it meant that players who started with 2nd and 3rd edition had a chance to start with the Greyhawk setting and reminded other more established players that Greyhawk was still active. If it had not been for these later versions of Greyhawk, there would be far fewer Greyhawk fans than there are today. TSR/WotC was never going to keep publishing the gold box for the next twenty years. And I understand that Greyhawk is back in the new 2025 DMG for 5.5E as an example setting. Do you have to buy it? No. But I am quietly pleased as I hope it will introduce a new generation of D&D players to Gary’s world, rich with the history of early D&D.  Some cynics may grumble at WotC putting out yet another sourcebook that may cover something that was looked at in only the previous edition. Guess what? You don’t have to buy it! I suppose one silver lining in releasing different versions of a single setting for each edition is that it keeps that setting in the awareness of players and DMs who keep an eye on the product schedule. Similarly it is quite reasonable to only focus on settings that you are actually interested in, regardless of hype from adverts, social media or friends at your table. I’ve never been too invested in Dragonlance, Al-Qadim or Birthright - I feel that Mystara, Greyhawk and Forgotten Realms cover all my gaming needs. FOMO and misplaced enthusiasm around newly released products is not as powerful as it used to be, though it still gives me the urge to buy new stuff. 

If a player at my table knows a lot about the Forgotten Realms, or Mystara or whatever world I’m using, they might say “No, this thing is not like that. I read it here that it should be like this.” Is the DM required to go along with the player who may be correct from a canonical point of view?  No. The straightforward answer is to tell the player that in this game the setting is a bit different. A more subtle, and perhaps diplomatic way, is to actually use the player as a source of ideas and world-building. I have no problem with players helping out with developing a setting in a game as long as they don’t bend things to give themselves unfair advantages or insider knowledge their characters should not know. Characters will know quite a lot about the world they live in and may well have a general knowledge that covers at least some of the topics in the campaign’s introductory sources (Greyhawk’s gold box, Forgotten Realms Grey Box, Mystara gazetteers’ players section). Players bouncing these bits of knowledge and ideas off you in a collaborative way can make the process more fun and easy. 

Thank you for letting me ramble on. Rant over.

Addendum: Jordan Sorcery has released a video that covers the same topic, and I agree with almost all of what he says. Like him I take a fairly relaxed view of canon. 

Castellan Valley: The Neighbourhood of Castellan Keep

In an earlier post I gave my views on the classic module B2: The Keep on the Borderlands. The module has a map of the nearby land shown here. 

This map shows the Keep and the nearby Caves of Chaos set in woods with river running through a cleared area. However, in Gaz1: The Grand Duchy of Karameikos the writers at TSR placed it up in the northeast of Karameikos in the mountains, where the Black Peaks range meets the Altan Tepes mountains. This is shown in the map I adapted for Tarrag Duun. I know here the Caves of Chaos are marked as being in the neighboring hex (not correct), but at the time I wanted the Caves to have their own mark on the map. 

Does this directly contradict the map in the module? Not completely but it requires a certain explanation, namely that each hex does not necessarily show all the terrains within it, only the dominant terrain type. So the hex that Castellan Keep is in is predominantly mountains but not necessarily only mountains. Thus in my previous post I postulated the idea that Castellan Keep sits in a river valley in the mountains. The fact that there is a nearby river in the mountains (the Castellan River) on the hex map supports this. 

And now I have put together a rough map to show this valley. The small grey-white rectangle in the middle is a shrunk-down version of the original outdoors map from B2, showing how it fits into the predominantly mountainous hex. I am naming this valley Castellan Valley. 

 B2 is a sandbox module where the PCs are not compelled to do any specific tasks or missions - the adventurers can wander and explore, and this expanded map will give them more to find and do. I have taken the opportunity to add a few new locations and encounters, similar in theme to the wilderness encounters described in the original module. Some of these are tougher - the Valley of the Wolves and the Ogre Den are both beyond the capabilities of a 1st level party, while others are a bit easier and more suitable for novice adventurers such as the goblins of Grayhammer Valley and the orcs of Cracked Skull Hold. 

1) Castellan Keep. This is the Keep on the Borderlands, detailed in the module

2) The Caves of Chaos - The main dungeon of B2, detailed in the module, home to several bands of humanoids temporarily brought together by the Cult of Chaos. 

3) The Cave of the Unknown. This has been left blank for DMs to develop for themselves. 

4) Torrag Sheddor. This is a small dwarf stronghold of 130 members who mostly keep to themselves. There are 3 main sites

    a) Torrag Sheddor Iron Mine

    b) Torrag Sheddor main hall

    c) Torrag Sheddor Copper Mine: This mine has been abandoned recently after the miners broke into an orc Shaman's Tomb and disturbed the undead creatures therein. 

5) The Sylvan Vale. This break in the mountains is densely forested. In here are several colonies of sprites and pixies as well as a trio of dryads and a centaur, Borrolloy, with the spellcasting ability of a 6th level druid. The residents will be initially cautious, observing humans while invisible, but then if they feel bolder playing tricks on the outsiders. They are not malicious unless they see wanton killing and destruction. It is possible, if the jokes and mischief can be endured, for the sylvan folk here to be allies, providing food and information and possibly minor magic. The pixies and sprites have no love of the humanoids of the Caves of Chaos and may help adventurers defeat them. 

6) Cracked Skull Hold. This used to be an outpost of 70 dwarves working a tin mine associated with Torrag Sheddor, but 40 years ago they were violently ousted by a warband of orcs. These orcs are aware of the Caves of Chaos but are not swayed by the offers from the Cult of Chaos. The surviving dwarves retreated first to Castellan Keep and then on to Torrag Sheddor. 

7) The Ruined Watchtower. Initially built during the same time as Castellan Keep, this watchtower was overrun enough times by various monsters and humanoids that civilized folks no longer claim it.  These days it is home to an evil sorcerer who has ties to the Cult of Chaos in the Caves of Chaos and the chaotic raiders described in the wilderness outside the keep. He has both human and hobgoblin underlings as guards and servants. 

8) Haagnel's Junction. This is a hamlet of 120 humans and 30 dwarves that provides some food and services to Castellan Keep. In return the residents will retreat eastwards to the keep if Haagnel's Junction is under serious attack. The centre of the hamlet has a pallisade containing a watchtower, the inn, the general store and the squire of the manor, though there are farms on the outside as well. The road north leads deeper into the mountains along the Tarrag River, eventually reaching the abandoned dwarf stronghold of Tarrag Duun. There are several sheep and goat farms in Haagnel's Junction and a number of vegetable patches near the river bank. The village sits next to a wooden bridge over the Castellan river which is vital for carts and wagons trying to reach Castellan Keep. 

9) Valley of the Wolves. This is the home territory of a population of wolves. There are 4 packs here, with 4d6 adult members and 2d4 pups each. The packs may roam the surrounding mountains for food but always return to their dens here. In the centre of this valley there is a lone lodge of a fur trapper Korlon,who will tell those he meets he has an understanding with the wolves and they leave him alone. He occasionally visits Castellan Keep to sell the pelts he gathers and buy provisions. What he will not reveal (until he has the element of surprise) is that he is a werewolf. Korlon is torn about his lycanthropy and part of him really does not want to hurt innocent people, hence he has isolated himself in this valley. But if people seek him out, then they kind of bring it on themselves, don't they? Asking to stay the night in his lodge is a really bad idea. 

10) Grayhammer Valley. This used to be a dwarf village associated with Tarrag Duun with various dwarf dwellings dug into the mountainside around this valley. However, since the fall of that mighty dwarven stronghold to goblins. Grayhammer Valley has become an outpost of goblins and hobgoblins, scattered in numerous small lairs among the dwarven ruins.  

11) The Brigands' Peak.  This mountain has an encampment of human brigands (chaotic bandits) who will sometimes send patrols or raiding parties down south into Karameikos to attack vulnerable farms. They stick to the west side of the Castellan River so as to avoid Drellid's Tower.  The soldiers at Castellan Keep have been asked to deal with these brigands by various authorities in Karameikos but they do not have enough soldiers to spare for an assault on the brigands while defending against humanoids of the Caves of Chaos. 

12) Drellid's Tower. This large stone watchtower is garrisoned by a platoon of 20 soldiers of the Karameikos Army, and they stay in communication with Castellan Keep where their commanding officer, the Captain of the Guard, is based. The tower watches over the river and road and acts as an outpost for the military force at the Keep. The commander here is Lieutenant Tallena (human female, 4th level fighter, align Lawful). Although they are not particularly welcoming, the soldiers will allow travellers to stay the night in Drellid's Tower in emergencies, though they are encouraged to move on as soon as possible. No bedding is provided for guests but at least they are surrounded by stone walls and can share the fire in the hearth. The soldiers here try to keep a good relationship with the villagers of Haagnel's Junction who may provide them with food and tidbits of information such as monster sightings. 

13) The Ogre Den. This is a natural cave in the side of a mountain that has become home to a band of fifteen ogres and an ogre leader. They are joined (at least for the moment) by a minor red ogre. There is some tension within the den as the leader wants to stay independent but the red ogre believes they should ally with the cult of chaos that now holds sway over the Caves of Chaos. 

The Gangs of Vlaad

Introduction

This post follows on from the earlier post with the map of Vlaad, the lawless pirate port on Fletcher Island in the Kingdom of Ierendi. Vlaad is effectively controlled by criminal gangs as there are no effective law enforcers to stop them. There are probably dozens of gangs at any one time in Vlaad, but some have become more important and longer lasting than others. Others are only a dozen members strong and have only lasted about a year - internal disputes are the most frequent reason for gangs disappearing though war with larger gang can also destroy small gangs. Although gangs can claim territories such as buildings, city blocks or even whole districts, the boundaries are so changeable as to be impossible to draw on a map with any certainty. The same could be said of their membership: recruitment, desertion, defections and deaths can all affect a gang's membership. Gang members switching from one gang to another can provoke anger and a feeling of betrayal but some gangs (such as the Wharf Rats) are more relaxed about this. Typically a gang will have a core membership of gangsters who are the enforcers of a gang (typically thieves and fighters). Then beyond that there will be various associates, often linked to how the gang makes its money. 

The groups listed here do not include organisations that are not considered criminal gangs. Most obviously the Grey Halberds (a force of mercenary fighters led by Turgon Menhir) but also merchant houses and churches and cults are all omitted from this post but may be covered later. 

The Most Prominent and Long-Lived Gangs of Vlaad

The Black Sharks are the main rivals to the Sail Street Syndicate and they control the Dockside Marketplace. All market stalls need to pay a fee to the Black Sharks for setting up each week. The Black Sharks keep this fee relatively low as they don't want to drive away their main source of money but woe betide any trader who tries to avoid this fee - a beating and losing goods and cash is the minimum punishment. The Black Sharks also have a sideline in fencing goods seized by pirates - these will often end up being sold in the Dockside Marketplace. Because of their connections with traders and pirates, the Black Sharks are often more aware of life beyond Vlaad. 
Leader: "Great White" Dorf (human male, 11th level fighter, align C)
Membership: 60 gang members + 100 associated merchants & fences

The Iron Talons control the old Town Hall and keep a certain level of civic maintainence going. However, they only get the work done when either they are being paid well or it is in their interest not to let a building or structure collapse. If people start building or modifying structures without the Iron Talons consent then the contruction project will run into difficulties - supplies will go missing, workers will be scared off, mysterious fires will cause damage and project leaders will be found floating dead in the harbour. The Iron Talons keep a tight grip on what they see as their niche. They have been known to get involved in other activities including more conventional protection rackets and they control a large chunk of the west of the city in this matter, occasionally clashing with the Sail Street Syndicate. The Sordid Rhinoceros is within the Iron Talons territory and the innkeeper Gaerloth pays them a regular fee. Two of the patrons of the Rhino, Malphorius and Durrunock, are sometimes hired as temporary enforcers for the Iron Talons.  
Leader: Grandma Zooni (human female, 10th level thief, align C)
Membership: 45 full time gangsters + 60 associates (including architects, engineers & workmen)

Image by Larry Elmore,
from D&D Expert Set

The Razors are involved in various forms of human trafficking, particularly slavery but also press gangs and prostitution. The Razors have arrangements with certain pirate captains including the slave-taking Vladivar Carriolis and a lady slave trader, Baronia the Shackler. The Razors also have contact with several different Chaos cults including one in a basement beneath a merchant house, and another that follows Jolgruul the Corruptor. The Razors are based mainly in the north of the city. 
Leader: Glump Shrizznak, (human male, 13th level thief, align C)
Membership: 30 gang members + 30 associated slave traders 

The Sail Street Syndicate is run by the notorious Nelth Varangus and specialises in running establishments of ill repute, favoured by sailors, pirates and those seeking sordid pleasures.The syndicate either owns or controls numerous bars, taverns, brothels and gambling houses in Vlaad, particularly around the docks (close to where newly paid sailors on shore leave are likely to disembark). They also run a number of extortion and protection rackets, with a number of smaller, mostly honest businesses, paying the Syndicate a monthly fee to be left in peace. If Nelth is in a generous mood (which is rare), the Syndicate may actually protect the businesses from other gangs. The Sail Street Syndicate has a sideline in narcotics and they sell these through some of their establishments.
Leader: Nelth Varangus, human male, 15th level thief, align C)
Membership: 50 gang members + 125 establishment staff

The Scorpions are the hired killers and assassins of Vlaad. Although expensive, they are very capable and deadly. They include a wide range of methods and classes though many are skilled as thieves but with improved backstabbing. They include several former members of the Holy Killers of the Eternal Secret from Ylaruam, several chaotic fighters and two renegade wizards of Alphatia who can use powerful spells to destroy opponents. The Scorpions are known to travel outside of Vlaad if paid enough and might be found in any nation of the Known World while on a mission. The Scorpions have a tendency to avoid gang wars, and will only accept contracts targetting gang members if it comes from within the same gang. Some refer to the Scorpions as the Assassins' Guild but they don't like that name.
Leader: Allinor the Pragmatic (human male, 17th level thief, align C) 
Membership: 34 members + 12 associates

The Spiders Guild are inspired by stories of classic Thieves Guilds and try to emulate this. They have several different teams, including one of burglars (the Wall Crawlers), one for confidence tricks (the Web Spinners), one for mugging (the Trapdoors) and one for pickpocketting (the Crab Spiders). They have had at least one gang war with the Black Sharks and the disappearance of several senior Black Shark members has raised the suspicion that there is a team in the Spiders Guild that includes some capable assassins (the Black Widows) but they only work for the Spiders Guild, never hired by outsiders.
Leader: Relgor the Karameikean (human male, 15th level thief, align C)
Membership: 35 full time thieves + 60 associates

The Wharf Rats are a team of beggars and urchins who still manage to make money in this cynical and brutal city. Although donated coins and the occasional theft bring in enough money to survive, the Wharf Rats have found that they can also make money as spies and information brokers as most people won't pay attention to a beggar slumped in the gutter or twelve-year olds kicking a can around. Although often considered the least of the major gangs, the Wharf Rats take a strange pride in being underestimated and ignored - that's how they operate.  Some former members have gone on to join other gangs but maintained ties or at least connections with the Wharf Rats, so these former members may contact the Rats for information. 
Leader: Sturnik Shortshanks (halfling male, 11th level halfling scout, align N)
Membership: 60 beggars + 70 urchins + 20 associates

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