Sunday, January 5, 2020

An Incomplete Dungeon

So a while back I decided to give solo dungeoneering a go, and also attempted to make a megadungeon by delving through it and generating the dungeon as I went. This eventually petered out, but I still got a good 21 decently developed rooms out of it. I'm planning on attempting to make a dungeon using this method again, but perhaps setting my sights a little lower, perhaps a 1-2 level dungeon instead. Regardless, I hope you enjoy this first, incomplete level of...

The Tomb of Unrelenting Hatred

Background
Originally built over 2000 years ago by the pre-Imperial kingdom of Moskaj, this subterranean complex was built to house the corpses of the kingdom’s warriors who were slain in battle. 1500 years ago, Moskaj warred with the nearby kingdom of Segik, a country ruled by the necromancer Sigbind Gnarlwood. Segik was conquered, its undead armies destroyed, and the peasants who toiled under Gnarwood’s reign were free. However, with his last breath, Sigbind cursed Moskaj, saying that their dead would never rest, and that they are doomed to suffer eternally after death. After this proclamation, the countless dead of Moskaj rose as vile abominations to slaughter and maim. The survivors of the initial massacre pushed back the creatures into the tomb, where they still wander to this very day. Any who die in this unholy place cannot rest, for Sigbind’s curse still lingers in these ruins, turning the dead into monsters.

Roll
Floor 1 Monsters
Floor 2 Monsters
Floor 3 Monsters
Floor 4 Monsters
1
1d6 animated skeletons






2
1d3 zombies






3
1 ghoul






4
1d3 bloater zombies






5
1d3 ecorche zombies






6
2d6 giant rats









Floor 1 Key
1. Special with 100 coins
  • A stone sarcophagus against the western wall, with a jewel embedded in it worth 100 coins
  • Inside the sarcophagus is a perfectly preserved corpse of an old woman, but it will rot rapidly into nothingness if taken out
2. Empty with 600 coins
  • A small chamber, mostly filled with clay pots and urns
  • Small chest in corner containing 600 ancient coins, each stamped with a skull symbol
3. Combat with 400 coins
  • A ravenous ghoul (HD 2, HP 12, AC light (12), ATK 2 claws, DMG 1d6+save or 1d6 rounds paralysis) wearing a golden deer-like mask worth 400 coins, crouching among moldering bones
4. Combat
  • A zombie (HD 2, HP 4, AC unarmored (10), ATK 1, DMG 1d6) and 2 skeletons (HD 1, HP 4,1, AC light (12), ATK 1 sword, DMG 1d6) lie on the ground, disguised as long-dead corpses, but will attack when anyone gets close enough
5. Combat
  • A horde of 8 giant rats (HD ½, HP 1x3,2x4,3x1, AC unarmored (10), ATK 1 bite, DMG 1d6-1) and many non-combatant normal rats, lurking among piles of bones.
6. Combat
  • A single regenerator zombie (HD 2, HP 8, AC light (12), ATK 1 punch, DMG 1d6) stands in the center of the room, staring blankly. The room is dusty and unused, and it seems like this creature has been standing her for a long time.
  • Regenerators regain 1d3 HP each round, even if reduced to 0 HP. Each time the Regenerator regains HP, roll a d6 and apply the mutation from the table below:
    1-2. New Limb: Gains an additional attack that deals 1d6 damage. 3. Carapace: The Regenerator's AC goes up by one category (light -> light with shield, light with shield -> medium, etc.) 4. Cancerous Mass: The Regenerator's maximum HP is increased by 1d6. 5-6. Poisonous Gas: Anyone near the Regenerator as it regenerates this round must make a saving throw or take 1d6 damage.
  • Regenerators can only be killed/damaged without regenerating by burning them or dissolving them in acid.
7. NPC with 200 coins worth of treasure
  • An old man who calls himself Graham Pillghast crouches in the corner, surrounded by shredded canvases and splattered paint. On the far wall is a beautiful yet terrible painting of dancing corpses, worth 200 coins if taken to the right market.
  • He is desperate for friendship, being so alone in this horrific dungeon. Unknown to him, he is actually dead, his spirit bound to the dungeon, and that is why the undead don’t hurt him. His bones lay under a pile of refuse and rags beneath the painting.
8. Special with magic item as treasure
  • Room is full of a glowing green light, emanating from a one eyed skull on a pedestal in the center of the room. The one eyed skull is a Lantern of Ghost Seeing, and will reveal any spirits within its light.
  • If Graham Pillghast from Room 7 enters the room, he will turn translucent and glow green, revealing he is a ghost (albeit a weak one). When this happens, he will fly into a horrified rage and attack the party. His stats are (HD 2, HP 12, AC light+shield (13), ATK 2 ghostly claws, DMG 1d6+1). Pillghast cannot be harmed by ordinary means, and is only affected by enchanted weapons, holy water, and spells.
9. Empty
  • Room is bare save for the rotten pieces of an old coffin lying in the corner, empty.
10. Empty with 300 coins worth of treasure
  • Empty grave niches in walls.
  • A corpse with its skull smashed in lays on the floor, it has a gold necklace worth 300 coins around its neck.
11. Trap
  • Room mostly empty, save for a rug with imagery of skulls and bones and an empty coffin.
  • Pit trap covered by rug, anyone who steps on the rug falls and takes 1d6 damage. A saving throw can be made to avoid falling down.
12. Empty
  • Shattered remains of old urns, ashes scattered about the room.
13. Special with 200 coins worth of treasure
  • Strange archway in center of room. Anyone who walks through it must make a saving throw or briefly become possessed by the ghost of an ancient warrior. While possessed, the character will be unable to speak the common tongue, act incredibly confused and frightened, and may attack if provoked.
  • A small chest in the corner contains 150 coins and a jeweled brooch worth 50 coins.
14. Combat encounter
  • 4 skeletons, 2 are armed with bows, the other 2 are armed with spears. (HD 1, HP 2x1, 4x3, AC light (12), ATK 1 spear or bow, DMG 1d6+1)
  • There is a coffin that has been overturned and will be used as cover by the skeletal archers.
15. Combat with 1000 coins worth of treasure
  • A toddler-sized golden statue with emeralds for eyes, worth 1000 coins, rests on a pedestal on far wall. It depicts a woman in battle armor wielding a greatsword.
  • 4 ecorche zombies prostrate themselves before the statue, but will get up and attempt to rip to shreds anyone who enters the room. (HD 1, HP 2x1, 3x3, AC unarmored (10), ATK 2 claws, DMG 1d6-1 each, they can move twice as far each round as normal humans can)
16. Combat with 1000 coins worth of treasure
  • 3 bloated zombies (HD 1, HP 4, 3, 6, AC light+shield (13), ATK 1 punch, DMG 1d6) standing in a puddle of fetid water
  • Anyone near the zombie when it dies must make a saving throw or take 2d6 damage from its explosive acidic innards
  • There is a sack nearby, filled with 1000 coins
17. Combat with 300 coins
  • 2 animated skeletons with plate armor and greatswords (HD 1, HP 4,5, AC heavy (16), ATK 1 greatsword, DMG 1d6+2)
  • Some chairs and a lectern, a golden holy symbol worth 300 coins sits on the lectern
18. Trap with magic item as treasure
  • At the end of the room is an altar, atop which sits a Vampire Knife
  • There is a pressure plate in front of the altar, if stepped on a trapdoor opens, leading to a pit with envenomed spikes on the bottom requiring a saving throw to avoid, dealing 1d6 damage. Survivors of this fall must make an additional saving throw to resist the poison on the spikes to avoid taking 3d6 more damage
  • The Vampire Knife is a wickedly curved knife (light melee weapon, 1d6-1 damage) was made from the bones of an elder vampire. Once per day, anyone who deals damage with this knife may choose to regain HP equal to the damage they dealt.
19. Empty
  • The walls are covered with strange graffiti that appears to have been drawn in blood, along with scratch marks
20. Empty
  • A human skeleton with a bashed in skull lies against the wall, clutching a sword in one hand and a shield in the other
21. Trap with 100 coins
  • The room is filled with poisonous gas emitted by fungi, visible as greenish fog
  • Anyone who enters the room must make a saving throw each round while in the room or fall unconscious for 1d6 hours
  • The corpses of several giant rats who succumbed to the sleep litter the floor
  • There is an amulet worth 100 coins lying on the floor
22. Empty
23. NPC with magic item as treasure
24. Empty
25. NPC with 1000 coins of treasure
26. Empty
27. NPC
28. Combat
29. Empty with 1000 coins
30. Combat with 1000 coins

2 comments:

  1. I love the tone: weirdness and menace. Nice zombie variants. Where are you randomly generating contents from?

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    Replies
    1. Thank you! And to be honest, I've always found purely generated dungeons to be a little underwhelming. All I did for randomly generating the contents was to have a d66 table of prompts, and then came up with something on the fly. Its impossible to surprise a solo player anyway, so I might as well get creative with things and come up with my own rooms.

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