Dungeon ‘23 - Week 21
Zone E is complete! I had originally thought that wrapping up this level would be more difficult, but everything came together very nicely. I was able to introduce a few more NPCs for the PCs to interact with (hopefully in a non-”I stab ‘em” way… at least initially) and I had a few opportunities to add some more treasure to the dungeon, which is always welcome by players at any table. It’s half the reason they adventure, after all (the other half is, of course, the friends they make along the way).
I’d say that “seeding” treasure throughout the dungeon has been my biggest struggle, especially as the PCs get further along. T. Thomas Giant’s As Above, So Below, is a ten level system and I figured with twelve “zones” in the dungeon the Castle of the Mad Sorcerer Ossifrage could easily serve as a full-length campaign. With that in mind I tried to make sure each Zone has enough treasure to award a level (ex. Zone A has enough treasure to get a party of four from 1st level to 2nd level). Fortunately I have two extra zones so if the PCs miss out on some treasure in one area they can make up for it elsewhere.
I’m excited for Zone F - The Keep, 2nd Floor, although I already dread trying to figure out how to “trace” the first floor so that everything lines up. I guess we’ll see how everything pans out.
E22 - The Kitchen
Contains a roaring fireplace with spit, several ovens, a wash station, and a midden where food waste is dumped. Several shelves packed with an assortment of herbs, spices, and dried goods.
The midden is backing up since normally the Gardener collects it for compost, but with the feud no one has come to collect it in weeks.
The kitchen is staffed by three prisoners on “work release”: Tuntle the Ogress, the head chef; Wifling the One-Eyed Halfling, her assistant and primary dishwasher; and Bogill the Bugbear, the meal expediter who works with the servants to send meals out to the Great Hall.
The three are well-liked by the guards and servants and can often be heard swapping crass jokes while they cook and serve up the food.
They are all very protective of Cuprum the Copperthrice. If the PCs are friendly, they may ask them to take their pet and give the creature a better life away from the castle.
Tuntle’s pantry is running low on some items. If the PCs are friendly she may ask them to do a supply run and mentions there used to be a kitchen in Zone B - The Furnace or they can try to nick some things from the Keep’s kitchens.
A very skilled cook, Tuntle is happy to prepare meals for friends and allies. With the right ingredients she could wind up creating potent and beneficial effects (or it could end up being terrible tasting trash, who knows?).
If asked about Cookie, Tuntle the Ogress mentions that he taught her how to cook and asks how he’s doing. Thinks of him fondly.
Wifling the One-Eyed Halfling is often tinkering around and trying to “improve” the kitchen tools - much to the chagrin of Tuntle.
Clearly has a mind for machines and a desire to follow this passion.
E23 - The Keg Room
Walls and stone are made from large stone blocks, no mortar. Stray has been scattered across the floor. The room is chilly, like a late autumnal morning.
A large quartz (heavy, worth 500 gp) is suspended from the ceiling. The air is much colder the closer one gets to the mineral.
If the quartz is removed from the chamber the enchantment slowly fades over the course of 24 hours. If returned, it gradually grows colder over another 24 hours.
Several large kegs line the walls, stacked two rows high, labeled to indicate contents and origins. Several similarly marked smaller barrels are tucked away in the spare corners.
E24 - Tuntle’s Pantry
Pantry is disorganized and filled with crates and shelves and barrels.
A chicken-like creature (the Cuprum the Copperthrice, see below) has made a nest from scrap metal on one of the shelves.
It is an angry, aggressive creature but can be pacified by feeding it a copper coin. A sign bearing its name is nailed to the shelf just under its nest.
Cuprum is a former experiment created in Skiron’s Tower.
Rickety stairs lead down to C30 - Kitchen Cellar.
Cuprum the Copperthrice
A strange looking… chicken… thing. This creature subsists on metal and if it is fed a copper coin it will lay an egg containing a gold coin after 1d4 hours. If the Copperthrice is fed more than three copper coins in a day it starts getting sick. If fed more than nine copper coins in a day it dies. The Copperthrice hates silver and if forced to eat it will violently vomit up an acidic spray that will melt through just about any mundane material.
E25 - Servant’s Corridor, North
A corridor flanking the Antechamber and Great Hall that allows servants to move about unseen by important guests in the Keep.
12 portraits all depict the castle’s many castellans and marshals that oversaw the castle’s defense for centuries.
Most are self-serious, observing and speaking with one another and the guards and servants politely, albeit somewhat icily.
Keep a close watch on the locked door, ready to shout out warnings if anyone suspicious comes through - no doubt worried they’re escaped prisoners.
An enclosed staircase, barred by a locked door, descends down to C26 - The Keep Entrance in Zone C - The Castle Dungeons.
A pair of Beastfolk Knights is posted at these doors at all times, rotating out every 6 hours.
Servants from the kitchen go down three times a day (dawn, midday, and dusk) to take meals to the prisoners.
E26 - Servant Mess Hall
Long, narrow room dominated by a pair of tables. 1d4 servants can be found relaxing and eating at any given time.
Doors connect to the rest of the Servant’s Tower, the Servant’s Corridor (North), and the Courtyard. A portcullis can be raised and lowered over the ironbound door leading to the courtyard.
Shelves line the walls, mostly filled with books and various knicknacks. Blank spaces along the walls are covered in tapestries of Ossifrage and his family.
Many of the books detail the history of the castle.
Door leads to a garderobe. Stinks.
E27 - Servant Storage
Filled with crates and barrels that contain various dried goods and sundries used to keep the castle running.
Stairs lead up to the second floor of the Servants’ Tower, into Zone F - The Keep, 2nd Floor.
A keen-eyed observer might notice scrape marks along the flagstones beneath the stairs.
One of the stones hides a cubby wherein lies a locked chest, a small satchel, and a long item wrapped in oiled cloth.
The chest is lined with silk and upon three cushions rest a trio of intricate, platinum masks (1,000 gp each), on which are carved delicate runes of an ancient language. The flowing script is reminiscent of Elvish.
The satchel contains 750 gp in various coinage.
The oiled cloth hides a magnificent bow made from polished hickory. Intricate filigree carvings with pearl inlay surround the grip and arrow shelf. The string appears to be made of a silvery material.
There is a 1-in-6 chance that a ferret-headed “servant” named Hillard (one of Taragon’s many thieves operating as a castle servant) is offloading ill-gotten gains into the cubbyhole.
Paraselene the Moon Herald - d8+2 (Superior, Martial)
An exquisitely crafted bow made from hickory with a string of solidified moonlight. Arrows nocked upon the string glow with the light of a full moon. When loosed, the arrow continues to glow for up to 10 minutes. Over time the wielder of the bow begins to shun sunlight, finding the bright yellow beams blinding and uncomfortable.
E28 - Servant Dormitory, 1st Floor
A spacious room filled with beds. Most servants sleep here, with more veteran servants and the personal attendants to castle guests have a room on the second floor of the tower.
Nine beds, each with simple dresser drawers (locked) beneath them where personal effects are stored.
Each dresser has a pouch with 5d6 gp, 1d4 trinkets, and four sets of simple clothing.
An old, wrought-iron lantern hangs from a hook by the door (see below).
The Lantern of True Light - 3 Charges
A simple, wrought-iron lantern whose only adornment are shutters with imagery of moons and stars. The handle is wrapped with old, cracked leather. When filled with oil and lit, the light cuts through any illusions, disguises, and secret doors. However, the lantern does not indicate if something is hidden or disguised - everything appears simply as if the person or object were out in the open. To recharge, the lantern must sit in the darkness of a new moon’s night.
E29 - The Great Hall
A large feasting hall filled with nine long tables and many seats. Along the northernmost wall are a pair of tables each with five seats, flanking a statue that doubles as a throne. Ornate chandeliers hang from the ceiling, magical flames casting both light and a comfortable heat.
The two tables appear largely unused, save the leftmost seat of the left table (this is where the castellan sits during meals).
A Beastfolk Paladin, an elite knight in service of the castle, stands at the end of each table.
The throne is carved from marble and designed in the likeness of the Four Guardian Beasts - Kaikias, Euros, Lips, and Skiron. Resting on the seat of the throne is an ornate crown of red-gold metal (those familiar recognize it as orichalcum) with nine inset rubies. The metal is worth 2,000 gp and each ruby is worth 1,000 gp (11,000 gp total).
Two Beastfolk Paladins flank the throne at all times, protecting it and keeping an eye on Ossifrage’s crown. Those who linger by the throne for too long are warned, then dealt with.
Knights, nobles, and guests fill the seven tables in the center of the room.
Dinners and special feasts are the only times when the room is filled, otherwise 2d4 beastfolk knights and 1d12 guests can typically be seen picking away at meals or chatting with one another.
Syr Waltheof FitzAllen, Lord Vember, and Lady Gadfly can be found in the Great Hall during dinner, but otherwise spend most of their time in the war room on the second floor.
Portraits and tapestries of Ossifrage, the Lady Vivien, their sons, and heroes of the castle hang from the walls. A statue of Ossifrage stands in the northwest corner.
A raised dais in the southeast corner holds a band of animated instruments - violins, upright basses, horns, lutes, harps, bagpipes etc. They play rousing songs but at a fairly low volume so as not to disturb the knights and nobles at the tables.
During the day the easternmost table is occupied by members of the Court of Faerie and their attendants.
Lady Sawfly, Faerie Courtier - A willowy, coy woman with skin like river stones. A great butterfly rests on her face, blocking her features with its patterned wings. She wears a gossamer dress covered with glittering gold dust. The wife of Lord Pril.
Lord Pril, Faerie Courtier - A bulky, boisterous man with the verdant skin of a newly grown plant. A great moth shields his face with its striated wings. His chest is bare and painted in swirling blue patterns. His vambraces and greaves are made from iridescent beetle shells and a cloak of dragonfly wings rests on his shoulders. In his hands are a knotted spear with an obsidian tip and a shield from the shell of a giant ladybug. The husband of Lady Sawfly.
Lord Pril considers himself to be a master huntsman and will happily join the PCs on a hunt outside of the castle, although he makes it clear that they must return before midnight (“For it is during the witching hour that our host’s home moves.”).
If impressed during a hunt or some other contest of strength, Lord Pril will pledge friendship and loyalty to the PCs, claiming that he will stand at their backs when called upon. He may even be convinced to give them his spear.
The Lady Sawfly pretends at shyness, but in truth is a cunning and calculating woman who observes much before acting. She has grown fond of the castle, despite its status as a gilded cage, and hopes to depose Ossifrage and bring the castle to the Realm of Faerie where she can grow her power and influence using the sorcerer’s magical contraptions and servants.
Pril, Lord of the Realm of Faerie - STR 14, DEX 11, WIL 9 - HP 8
Obsidian Spear (d8+2, Reach), Shield (1)
- Fearless and reckless in battle. Attacks made by and against him have advantage and ignore Hit Protection (see below).
- Constantly on the move, keeps his opponents at bay with thrusts of the spear.
- Vulnerable to iron weapons. Immune to enchantments that charm, confuse, or lull to sleep.
Obsidian Spear - d8+2 (Superior, Martial, Reach)
A gnarled haft with an obsidian blade affixed to the end. Feathers and bits of bone hang from the end on leather cords. Attacks by and against the spear’s wielder ignore Hit Protection.
Animated Instruments - STR 7, DEX 7, WIL 4 - HP 2
Assorted Points, Edges, etc. (d4), No Armor
- Swarms when able, flees when injured or clearly outmatched.
- Tries to dizzy and disorient foes with sudden bursts of loud music.
- Becomes a mundane (if not high-quality) tool when killed.
Beastfolk Paladin - STR 15, DEX 10, WIL 14 - HP 8
Greatsword (d6+2, reach), Plate (2)
- Archaic speech peppered with animal sounds. Most have the heads of wolves, bears, or boars.
- Finely crafted but antique armor with an ornate tabard.
- Fights with honor, but more than willing to drop the facade when dealing with a true enemy to their master, the Sorcerer Ossifrage.
E30 - Antechamber
A long chamber connects to the Great Hall, the Servant’s Corridor (East), and a spiral staircase leading to the second floor.
Massive, ironbound doors separate the keep from the courtyard. In emergencies a portcullis can be lowered to prevent ingress.
Several benches for guests waiting to enter the Great Hall.
9 portraits all depict the castle’s various nobles and favored servants.
Most are outgoing and courteous, speaking with guests and “politely” giving direction to servants going about keeping the castle clean and orderly.
Happy to offer directions and recommendations, but prone to gossip and inconsiderate of everyone’s time.
E31 - Spiral Staircase
A simple staircase that climbs up from the antechamber into the second level of the keep.
