RANDOM ENCOUNTER TABLES AS ADVENTURE RAM: Adding “Memory” To Encounter Checks

artist: Stefan Poag

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What if we design the random encounter table to function as computer RAM- to store short-term information/change without having to dig into the module or track on another sheet? This is a space for innovation given that the random encounter table is one of the three most DM-referenced tables in an adventure outside of the dungeon map and the room keys. 

Now let me back up a minute to explain how this arose. A dungeon I am working is a wizard’s home in a barrow that was subjected to a magical explosion. Some areas of the dungeon are cracked and falling, especially the entrance, which is cracked, slumped and in danger of collapse. Traditional ways of handling this might be:

1. The entrance is a trap. Rocks fall, hireling (or PC) dies- too cheap, too sudden

2. The entrance can collapse right when PCs enter the first room of the dungeon- eh, too haunted house

3. The entrance collapses after the first exit from the dungeon- too delayed requires remembering

Then I thought, “What if the entrance collapse is an event on the random encounter table?” That seems to have potential because it permanently changes the dungeon, but I don’t know it will occur. But this could also still invoke #2. Okay, so let’s put a countdown clock on the random encounter table. I can just check off circles until the entrance collapses until then its a free breather for the PCs. Again, the dungeon changes which is interesting, but I’m not having to track it or review it in the next session prep outside of what I’m already looking at at during play. Here’s a basic example:

BASIC (RAM)DOM ENCOUNTER TABLE: Crypt of the Orc Hole Level 1

1. 1d6+2 Skeleton Orcs

2. 1d6 Zombie Grave Makers

3. 1d6 Hobgoblin Desecrators

4. 2d8 Stirge Throat Lovers

5. 2d4 Robber Fly Defilers

6. Unstable Entrance in Rm #1 (_)(_)(collapse!)

But then I started to wonder if there was a place for factional activity, patrols, and/or other permanent states that operate in a local area (the dungeon). Or permanent events that impact during the shorter time frame the dungeon is played that are natural extensions of play and player choice? 

Let me explore this idea first before considering this “RAM” idea in light of the overloaded encounter die (i.e. “dungeon weather”) and faction turns which are two other popular ways of tracking change for dungeon campaigns. I will revamp the table above by adding another change in the dungeon (black) and adding a factional event in two places (gold):

EXPERT (RAM)DOM ENCOUNTER TABLE: Crypt of the Orc Hole Level 1

1. 1d6+2 Skeleton Orcs

2. 1d6 Zombie Grave Makers

3. 4 Hobgoblin Desecrators continue to loot crypts, increase #, & gain treasure:
   (_)+1, +150gp (_)+2, +300gp (_) +3, +600gp (_) leave Crypt

4. 2d8 Stirge Throat Lovers

5. 2d4 Robber Fly Defilers

6. Unstable Entrance in Rm #1 (_)(_)(collapse!)

7. Leaning Statue of Ishtar Rm #15 (_)(_)(falls! Bridge to Room #23)

8. 2d4 Kobold Sappers, mercenaries (_)(_)(_) creates additional hallways trap

Alright, so we have a more dynamic encounter table, but entries are a little ambiguous. Is the intent that a check-mark occurs AND an encounter in the case of factions (#3 & #8)? And does nothing happen on a roll of a dungeon event (#6 & #7)? Let’s move these events into the “Random Encounter Check” procedure in lieu of the precise “Random Encounter Table”. I don’t think you are really creating any more work for yourself and it is simple enough to have a column or sheet listing both. Rarely are random encounter tables so extensive they might preclude a modified check procedure. Here is our example reformatted a third time:

COMPANION (RAM)DOM ENCOUNTER TABLE: Crypt of the Orc Hole Level 1

Encounter Check

1. Encounter!

2. Spoor…

3. Hobgoblin Desecrators loot crypts: (_)+1, +150gp (_)+2, +300gp (_) +3, +600gp (_) leave Crypt

4. Kobold Sappers place additional hallway trap: (_)(_)(_)(_)Eat 3rd Breakfast in Room #7

5. Unstable Entrance in Rm #1 (_)(_)(collapse!)

6. Leaning Statue of Ishtar Rm #15 (_)(_)(falls! Bridge to Room #23)

Random Encounter Table

1. 1d6+2 Skeleton Orcs

2. 1d6 Zombie Grave Makers

3. 1d6 Hobgoblin Desecrators

4. 2d8 Stirge Throat Lovers

5. 2d4 Robber Fly Defilers

6. 1d6 Kobold Sappers

So how does this fit in the scene alongside of the overloaded encounter die, underclock, and overclock? In terms of the overloaded encounter die, the “COMPANION” table above quite similar, but the entries are endowed with “memory”. For instance, I could easily put “weather” events in there too: “SLIME BLOOMS: Green slime appears in the hallway outside the current room (_)(_)(_)”. For the overclock, there is a 6 x 6 grid that James uses to denote when a random encounter occurs, so one could easily place a mark for each faction or event in unused squares. Finally, in terms of the underclock, a “3” in this method causes a spoor or clue, similarly another number could be keyed to events so that when rolled or passed, a check is made on some event and the underclock ticks down.

What if I’m already using faction turns? Isn’t this the same thing? Faction turns are mostly an in-between session activity that is used to track campaign factions' operations on a world level. I view the mechanism here as more “faction actions”. Its a way to have different factions, here I mean relative to the dungeon and irrespective of the world, do things as the players are moving about. Returning to the central premise, it requires a memory of what the players are doing to employ effectively or generate real-time feed back. A more explicit example that could be added to the “COMPANION” table above could be: “* Special: Replace +2 with +4 to Skeleton Orcs if PC break 3 crypts open (_)(_)(_)”

In summary, I am not advocating here that designing the encounter tables with memory is superior to other methods of encounter table design, but more as an interesting alternative strategy. By endowing a table with memory I believe it can help increase the dynamism in a dungeon as well as provide feedback to players resulting from their actions inside the dungeon. This inturn helps create opportunity for more meaningful choices- the fuel for old-school play. As a reviewer pointed out, the method here provides an opportunity for story while other methods focus more on the “right now, in front of you”.

CAVE EVIL: Random Thoughts on Barrowmaze Campaign ft. PC as Cultists

 

S. Poag bringing it as always for the older BARROWMAZE cover

Despite running Archaia, I think Barrowmaze might be the stronger of the two modules. Here are just some random thoughts I had post-Christmas while flipping through my copy. Would it be more fun if players were either Acolytes of Orcus (clerics) or Necrolytes of Set (magic-users) instead of regular adventurers? 

• Mono-Faction Play With All PCs Would Be Part of One Faction: Sorta a Cave Evil vibe meets The Venture Brother's Monarch. Each group must be on the lookout for a specific set of magic items,  objectives, and the Tablet. And of course, kill the other guys.
• Different Classes for Each Faction: Maybe even different character classes for each faction, nothing too different, but more like a reskinning. Or maybe just use KNAVE.
• Hide From the Normies: Basically, you can shop in town, but don't let the law or the church find out what you are
• Carousing Ritual Table: Going with a baddies campaign, instead of a carousing table, characters must participate in a similar mechanism that gives them supplies, gear, and undead minions for the next session?
• Must do this at the end of every session-- draw upper-level cult leadership ire if you don't make it on time. Yes it sucks, but you're in a not nice cult.
• Have results ranging from "mildly useful" to "YOU are the sacrifice!"
• Spread the Faith: Using some bits from my "cleric campaign" maybe an objective would be to set up shrines to Nurgle and your faction to win favor. Add a sorta area control element to the greater dungeon. 
• Maybe have some Chainmail level dust-ups when things get slow. Just have the players fight a battle for some portion of the dungeon
• Dungeon Weather: I'd certainly want a Barrowmaze-specific Overloaded Encounter Die
• Undead Monster Parts: Maybe also each faction has a use for some pieces of undead they kill: salts, biles, and ectoplasm

Necrolytes of Set

Acolytes of Orcus

 

KNOCK! Vol 2: The Rot King's Sanctum Session 1

For KNOCK! Vol 2 I do have a much larger utilitarian review similar to my first one covering how to use all the bric-a-brac to spice up the Tonisborg dungeon. However, I've not had the energy lately to write that up, in part because I'd like to run at least the first two levels of Tonisborg with some "ZED" -made characters to get a feel for the dungeon itself.

I *did* have the energy to grab a buddy this week for a 1-on-1 BX dungeon crawl through Emiel Boven's very good The Rot King's Sanctum found on page 219 (and here on itch). So, meet our level 1 randomly generated characters (supplemented with a starting equipment table I made for an old campaign- hence the titles) :

• Grim the Dwarf Barbarian STR 16, CON 08
• Snorri the Halfing Tomb Robber DEX 11, STR 05
• Ambrose the Cleric Preacher WIS 16, INT 03
• Desdemona the MU Fortune Teller INT 13, DEX 06

While HP rolls were high, the equipment rolls were rather poor so few characters started with an AC of more than 12. But never the less, the "heroes" pressed on and found themselves in the sewers of Cliff's End because...

DM NOTE: Really nice to have a little table of hooks to the adventure going. Especially since hooks can provide objectives other than "kill everything". My player rolled a "2" on the hooks table.

...they were in possession of a map describing the lost tomb of one of the nine Tempest archmages buried under Cliff's End. Also on the map was a riddle: Only a key of copper lend you a hand in opening this tomb.

PCs at the start discussing the Cult of Nithis <(;)>

 

#1 ENTRANCE HALL: Grim steps up to listen at the door. Upon hearing nothing, he carefully pushes it in. The PCs investigated the first set of statues finding them somewhat hollow and having a small pipe protruding from their mouth. However, greed overcame caution, a pressure plate was triggered and it was only the demi-humans who were left standing. The next turns were eaten up by dragging the human MU and cleric to safety and avoiding a cult party.

DM NOTE: Snorri has an attribute bonus of -3. But those lower save throws are literal lifesavers.

The party returns to the ENTRANCE HALL, but this time it was Snorri the Halfing who crept in quietly and ran right into a cultist of Nithis (DM NOTE: both rolled surprise). A short fight ensued where the PCs got the upper hand quickly dispatched 3 of 4 cultists and fourth ran to raise the alarm. The PCs stayed to grab the emerald eyes from the statues. Grim the dwarf then was swarmed by rot flies. Requiring Ambrose to light some torches to burn them away (with a couple of precious HP lost).

DM NOTE: I really tried to use morale in this adventure to determine not only likely hood of the cultists running a way, but also their willingness to engage the PCs in ambushes. If they failed they were more likely to just track the PCs in pairs.

#CROSSROADS A: The PCs made their way through the north door to a crossroads in the hallway: north, a door but after listening nothing behind it; east, a door; west, a hallway that extends beyond their torchlight.

DM NOTE: I secretly rolled the cultist morale here for room #4. They passed, so I had them organize a ranged counter attack from the north and east.

Daggers fly from the north and east! Grim and the MU Desdemona take the brunt with thankfully little HP lost. Magic Missle takes out a cultist to the east as does Grim's two-handed sword to the north. Cultist break and withdraw but not without a warning from large black-furred shapes in room #4.

#PROCEED WEST TO CROSSROADS B: PCs have to choose again: north in the sound of rushing water; south-west where the air is damp and fetid; east toward another door; west down an open hallway where a door is inset. Still interested in the treasure map, Snorri pushes everyone north.

PCs push north to find an acrid green river- two guards argue orthodoxy

#8 CENTRAL HALL: Snorri performs recon moving in the shadows to try and creep by the first hanging bridge. He hangs close to the end, spotting a copper ring underneath the putrid river. The guards argue about Nithis orthodoxy and if followers of Kcyra should be converted then killed or killed outright. Meanwhile, Grim, Ambrose, and Desdemona have to contend with two shovel-wielding skeletons, covered in a velvety yellow mold, shambling into the edge of their torchlight. Ambrose has to hold it together as these desecrated bodies animated by the vile Nithis shamble by and into a door in the CENTRAL HALL.

DM NOTE: Rolled an encounter, but also a "friendly" result on the reaction table, so I decided to see what would happen if the skeletons were just walking by. A potential threat (or not) just to press the player. The skeletons are loaded with yellow mold so just hitting them can be bad news.

#7 CELLS: Not liking the skeletons creeping up behind the party withdraws from the CENTRAL HALL back south and then west. Grim kicks the door in surprising the cultist, Ambrose moved to attack! Desdemona launched another Magic Missle* but it was miscast, causing her to drop asleep. Not good as 2 cultists appeared from the south and east bent on capturing Desdemona for sacrifice. Snorri attacked the cultist trying to abscond with her, but his poor strength made little impact. Grim engaged two other cultists, slicing one in half (10 dmg against 4 hp) but fell to the wicked dagger of the other. In a stunning display of combat prowess, the remaining two PCs won initiative twice and killed two more cultists, causing the last one to run. Desdemona awakened at the shrill pleading the gnome merchant Melvin to hurry up and free him for a sizeable reward in addition to a secret way out! ~FIN, SESSION 1~

DM NOTE: I was using a house rule that MU can "risky" cast after they have used up their slots by making a Save vs. Spell modified by their INT bonus. If you fail, roll a 1d20 on a miscast table.

Grim's last stand. Desdemona is saved!

FINAL DM NOTES: I really like this adventure so far! A theme people immediately get: plague cult, rats, crows, mold, sewers. Great opening room with things to poke and prod, but a big risk and some reward. Small dungeon but a lot of good intersections that make it feel big because choice is always presented to the player.

But there are also a lot of great little extras. A hidden tomb that has nothing to do with the cult. The plague god here is a sibling of a healing god-- debate about who screwed over who. Reference to the city above Cliff's End. And three good hooks: missing person, secret treasure, or because god said so. A small scattered references to other things that a DM could build a campaign from.

All of the above required prep ~30 min before play. I didn't prep anything specific other than a hastely drawn small treasure map and make up a clue in case that hook was rolled. Otherwise I just made myself familar with the general layout. I would have liked to have prepared an Overloaded Encounter Die table for it and included some dungeon weather. And maybe trim the random encounter table a bit. Ten entries seems a lot for a 15 room dungeon. But maybe alterate to a progressive table is the alarm is raised.

CRAWL OF THE WILD II: Super Cleric Bros. Session 8

 

We return to the cleric campaign! Previously the PCs had negotiated some blue mushrooms for the return of an obedientary's soul.

THE CALL OF THE WILD

The map outlines their travel in the very nice Beyond the Borderlands 'zine. It took them two game days to go from the Sea Witch's shell (hex 3,5) to a hex with blue mushrooms (hex 3,1) and back again.

DM Note: This session was interesting for me because there was not really anything that stood out in terms of big moments, but more small little bits each hex. I do think I need to work on refining the procedures that I want for these hexes. The nice thing is that Beyond the Borderlands provides aspects from weather to hunting. But still I need better refine how I present choices to the players.

PCs set off under sunny skies to pick some wild blue mushrooms.

* 3,5: Back through the raided merchant's caravan where they had a prior run-in with a slaad

* 2,3: The PCs meet Herbert the watcher from Stronglaw Keep who they met previously. They got some information about the noble hunting camp. And further strengthened their relationship and support if they go to Stronglaw Keep.

* 2,2: The PCs encounter fields and fields of berry bushes and strange holes. Wary, they decide to move quickly through and consume rations later.

* 3,2: The PCs make it to the hunting grounds of the nobility. No encounters here save for the baying of hounds and the blowing of horns. Again, they decide to keep moving

* 3,1: The clerics find a cave open where they can see the blue mushrooms in the fading light of the afternoon sun. 

THE CAVE OF THE BLUE MUSHROOM

The clerics can detect a nauseatingly sweet odor coming from the cave and while they can see them, they will have to at least walk 40-50ft into the interior of the cave.

DM NOTE: So I wasn't just going to let them saunter in, grab the 'shrooms, and leave. So I set the mushrooms back in the cave and made sure they needed to make CON checks to maintain consciousness in the cave. Also rolled for encounters.

The cleric's first plan was to send in their two followers, Dorn or Varoris, to collect the mushrooms. But the followers weren't convinced it was their place to complete this task [DM NOTE: Both failed their morale check; both clerics also have a -1 on that due to CHA scores].

The cleric's second plan is to get Dorn (sailor background) to tie a rope around Brother Cadfael and send him into the cave to fetch mushrooms. The first attempt is somewhat successful, 3/4 of the mushrooms recovered. So, once more into the breach. 

In the second attempt, Brother Cadfael is surprised by a giant wolf-bat who flattens him to the ground and lays on a vicious bite (dmg 6). Screaming out, Brother Phellius and Dorn pull him out of the cave entrance [DM Note: PC HD roll vs. Giant Wolf Bat HD roll].

The giant wolf bat keeps to the cave, afraid of the light. This gives Brother Phellius an idea to light a torch and grab a bottle of lamp oil. A strong initiative roll later, Phellius has driven back the wolf-bat and not completely ruined all the remaining mushrooms.

BACK TO WHERE THEY STARTED

The return trip to the Sea Witch is less eventful owning to good encounter rolls. The hand over the basket and the witch hands them one infernal iron coin with which 1/6th the man's soul is encased. 

"Wait, why do we only have 1/6th his soul instead of the full third?" asked Brother Cadfael

"Oh, well I used it to make a compass that would point to the owner's true desire, and its powered by a bit of soul to give it reach into the ethereal and astral. A noble from the hunting camp wanted it." Answered the Sea Witch

"And is that noble a narcissist so it only points to himself?" grumped Cadfael.

"Ha! That would be good dear, but poor business." chuckled the Sea Witch

The night closed with Brother Cadfael *promising* to speak well of the Witch and that elicited a "deal" from her lips. She let them once again sleep in her domain.

DM Note: This was a good move by the player because that is what the witch wants, but it will draw mild rebuke from their god.

And that is where I ended the session.

CRAWL OF THE WILD: Super Cleric Bros. Session 7

 

Previously...

A IS FOR ABBEY AND WE BEGIN THERE

Back in the confines of the Abbey, Brother Cadfael and Phelius have enjoyed their minor celebrity. The abbey has continued to prosper with the completion of the Ossuary and even the Obedientary have taken note that the two might be able to help them with problems of a more personal nature.

But first, some procedure:

Both previous follower's Lunell and Gersia have decided to stick around [DM Notes: I did not roll a "1" for either indicating they are leaving the abby]. And are joined by two additional followers, Follower Dorn of St. Ulther and Follower Varoris, elf, of St. Nemo [DM Note: I rolled a "1" and "6" on the Ossuary Table].

Obedient Radclyf is the first to implore the aid to the clerics given the loss of his soul ("Tricked!") to a sea witch. The reason wanting the love of a woman in Miller's Village. 

DM Note: I think it would be easy to make all the problems associated with some grand thing-- "sold my soul to save another"-- but that is not how humans work. Humans do really stupid things. Humans, I think, would do further stupid things if interacting with beings who can give power/manifest wants and have a longer life view.

So the clerics are off on a hexcrawl to visit the Sea Witch in the Slugy Bog using Alex Damaceno's Beyond the Borderlands. So the clerics prayed at the Reliquary to gain some small boons on top of their daily spell selections: +1 to the 2d6 turn undead roll and re-roll first save-throw.

ON THE ROAD

The distance is fairly condensed, so 1 hour any direction to the next hex or 2 hours if they cut through a hex with forest. Alex has set up Beyond very nicely because we have different regions with unique encounter tables, a system for weather and each hex has something going on. Here is what the clerics encountered on the way to the Sea Witch:

• Start off following the river NE to hopefully reach the bog
• Become lost in some woods, and exit into an open field with a large ostentatious sign pointing towards (1) Miller's Village and (2) the Hunting Camp. Also meet Herbet, a devote of the Lion of Light, who offers to help them out next time they visit the gatehouse at Stronglaw Keep.
• Back into the woods, they try to seek out the cries for help that echo through the forest only to come upon a gleaming sword stuck into a rock. Suspicious, Brother Cadfael casts Detect Evil and learns the sword does have an aura not wholly good [DM Note: The sword is chaotic]. Follow Dorn on the other hand is very interested in that sword.
• Find their way back to the bog and the lost merchant train. Forced to stay the night due to a storm. But no rest was had as a slaad barged into their camp hunting a walking fish. Surprising both sides and forcing a terse stand-off that ended in no bloodshed.
• Finally, the next day, after skirting an abnormally large group of baby dragonflies, the cleric arrives at a large 3-story house made from a single giant shell-- the Sea Witch!

The results of the above. 

AT THE SEA WITCHE'S SHELL

Grandmother is of course delighted to have two strapping Lions of Light come and visit! What could such devout indviduals with a simple broker of broken souls and information need?

The clerics arrive and announce themselves in proper manner. They ask that their two followers stay in the periphery and ensure they are not murdered. Follower Dorn, devotee of St. Uthler who tried to control the sea, finds this whole business silly and they should slay with witch. Follower Varoris feels the witch is a meer broker in the old legalities and its not surprising humans, with their short lives, are hasty with the specifics of such deals.

Tea is served. Brother Cadfael having prepared Purify Food & Drink immediately employs this spell on the tea. Grandmother is agast and forces the cleric to drink least they further insult her: "Well?...Not poisoned eh? You just took all the beautiful flavor out of it!"

Brother Cadfael attempt to beg parden based on a weak stomach and unsophistocated tongue. The Sea Witch comments that perhaps he'd like to bargain with both as payment since he is clearly in no need for either given their weak state.

Negotiations begin in earnest over Radclyf's soul. With a lot of back and forth and attempts a securing the exact terms of the deal, the clerics agree to collect some blue mushrooms the Sea Witch so desires. And in return, they will get back the amount of Radclyf's soul that the Sea Witch possesses.

DM Note: This was actually difficult to role-play as one of the players is IRL professionally trained in contracts. I tried to handle this by letting the player provide some fiction for how supernatural contracts are done, but then answer with a slight variation. As a way to imulate that a Sea Witch knows a bit more than a cleric in these matters.

The clerics make camp near the Sea Witch who agrees they will be safe that night.

PIOUS HANDS MAKE FOR GOOD KNUCKLE BONES: Super Cleric Bros. Session 5

 

A return to the cleric campaign! Previous sessions here.

Try to add DM Notes like this.

The current state of the Ossuary. Each result is the mechanical class (in-game fiction/flavor):

Ossuary Pilgram Table (roll 1d6)
1 | MU (magicians), St. Ulther
2 | Fighter (sailors), St. Ulther
3 | Fighter (fanatics), St. Serene
4 | Cleric (zealots), St. Serene
5 | none
6 | none

DM Notes: So when I rolled 3d6, I got a 5,5,6 (3 actual weeks have passed since we last played) which means that no pilgrims show up to the abbey this time. And I roll 1d6 for each current pilgrim to see if anyone has left on a 1 or 2. None do.

As it stands two MU followers of St. Ulther remain at the abbey ready to embark on any adventure the PCs might have for them. 

I just generate the followers using the Old School Essentials NPC generator here (also good for characters). And Oblate Samuel shaken from the death of his friend Leo, is back to being somewhat normal.

Brother Cadfael from the Cadfael series one
of the clerics takes their name from (I need to watch it)

The clerics' first decision is what spells they will pray for today. The Reliquary allows a little extra bonus when they pray to various portions of it provide they have placed recovered monks' items there. The portion they have powered allows them 1 save throw re-roll (The BENEFICENCE of AZLEN).

The second decision is to return once more to Dyson's Tower to retrieve a third saint for the Ossuary rounding it out, which will allow a lot of pilgrims, and very much in the Abbot's wishes, who they like.

DM Notes: Since IRL weeks had passed, I allowed the clerics to at least have a standard pack of starting supplies, so they made one last stop to rally both Follower Lunell and Gersia. And after a passioned plea, collected Oblate Samuel.

DM Notes: Also they accused the Prior of being an agent of Orcus. Since time has passed, gossip as spread. The Prior is not too happy. They want to get the hell out of town. 

At the Goblin Camp

The approach to the camp is pretty standard now, they prefer the entrance to the south in order to sneak past the goblin camp. The clerics' aim was to return to the 1st Level and perhaps recover one more saint they sure were buried in the area with St. Serene and Ulther. 

DM Note: Because this area is almost always the start, I think its just better to sorta procedurize it. The PCs just have to have one method of surpassing the goblins on watch and we just make one check. In the furture I might try to alter the weather or add a patrol-- just to switch it up so the PCs never have *perfect* information about what's going to happen. 

The trip back to this location except for a bizarre ankle-deep fog covering the ground. They scrounge the scene of their last battle and fine a set of chainmail and the door leading to hopefully the last saint. But it was not, instead it was a crypt full of skeletons seemingly dumped without proper rites and full of spite for the living. This time, my players remembered their clerics could turn undead and short work was made of these skeletons. With the use of holy water, they scrub the floor clean of the mark of Orcus.

DM Notes: Maybe should have made the skeletons a bit harder to turn since they were in the radius of a mark of Orcus, but whatever. The PCs felt the threat.

Level 2

This level too is familiar ground to the PCs. They decide to bust up a goblin dice game in an attempt to find some information about the location of human saints. Brother Phellius offers up his newly won chain mail and dices against the goblins-- winning. The clerics learn another goblin, Snakesplitter, is being held on some charge and maybe the PCs could take them off the goblins' hands since no-one likes him. They were also warned to watch their back.

After leaving, the PCs asked Follower Lunell to Hold Portal the door.

DM Notes: I need a better quick dice game for D&D other than roll 2d6 who gets the highest. I bet Nate Treme has one.

A turn later they find the hastily assembled baracade Snakesplitter is barracaded in, but the four goblin guard want 100 coin as a "transfer fee". The clerics, being pious men rich in virture, are broke. So Redcap offers to make some new gambling dice out of their knucklebones. A fight begins and ends in the third round when Redcap is beaten by a Brother Cadfael's mace and moral breaks. The remain goblins just make new gambling dice out of his knucklebones.

Snakesplitter offers to come with them simply for beating Redcap to death. And gives them sass about first trying to convert him to being a monk.

Level 3

Snakesplitter leads them down a different set of stairs to Level 3 than before. But before realizing what is happening they are suprised by an ambush/gang/thieves guild of robber flies! Snakesplitter avoids the on slaught as does Follower Gersia, but Follower Lunell, Brother Cadfael, and Brother Pheallius are on the defensive taking hits each. But its poor Oblate Samuel that met his fate-- natural 20 and 5 on the damage roll. Robber fly basically ripped his arm off.

DM Notes: This encounter suprised me with how brutal it was. Also, I think I need to have some standard layouts ready for battle. I really like having tactile set up with objectives and "terrain". But maybe since I have 2 players, I should just got more free form.

DM Notes: Also this is the 2nd Oblate who died. They are supposed to be wards of the Abbey, so someone might come looking for them-- 1:6 they were connected to someone at Stronglaw Keep. 

After a few Cure Light Wounds, Snakeplitter showed the clerics a clue to what they came for-- a statue of the Saint of Sleep.

And because the DM, me, forgot the sheet with the riddle and we were at our 2 hour limit, that was game for the night!

DM Notes: If you get anything from this, then I hope its the idea that a good game of D&D can be done in 2 hours. Not need to pull out 6, 8, or 10 hour sessions. It just requires density of choice to be high. And that is what is nice about this "mini-megadungeon" format.

"KITCHEN SINK" RANDOM TABLES: Provide everything but context & description

Last time I wrote about the overloaded encounter die (OED) and "dungeon weather". Another reason I like the OED is that once a DM completely fleshes it out, you have a pretty good description of your adventure. Of course one of the biggest parts of the OED is the "Encounter!" result on a 1.

But as Delta points out in his very excellent post, the "random" in random encounter should mean "procedurally generated" and not "whatever". Delta outlines the mistake Gygax made in expanding the random encounter table from a terse 8-10 entries based on what you'd find in Greyhawk Castle in OD&D to every monster in the book in AD&D.

This is a problem because as Delta puts it:

The fundamental problem here is that the random monster tables have become disconnected from any specific adventuring environment, such as Castle Greyhawk. Rather, the tables' primary function has become an encyclopedic index to list every monster in the game (and also indicate their power level). Encountering a particular monster from these tables likely tells you nothing about the ecosystem around you; there's no reason to think an associated lair exists, and chances are basically negligible that you'll ever meet the same type a second time (so no preparation or strategic response will help you). If you were adventuring with these tables in use for wandering monsters, actually, yeah -- there would seem to be no rhyme nor reason to what was happening. 

I think understated by Delta is that: players no longer can use the knowledge gained from random encounters to learn about the environment, meditate risk, and plan optimal future incursions. It's just all risk- boring, potentially punishing, and unfun.

Let's make a random encounter table. Are 6-10 entries too small? I think no. Because once you throw in encounter reaction checks, morale rolls, and objectives other than kill everything, then you have a lot of variety. Let try an example:

I want to create a random encounter table for the bailey of The Black Keep. So levels 1-2. In my head, I picture it in a "vanilla" D&D setting as a gathering place for evil forces of Chaos. But let us see if we can keep it human-centric and limit it to 8"monsters" as per the original OD&D tables. Eight also lets us roll a 1d8 or 2d4 (but 7 entries).

Here is what the BX encounter table gets us:

So... yes to 1-3, but 4-8 I will remove because they are fairly standard. Keep 9, 11, & 16. Stirge is good but used a lot. Finally 20... naw, let's substitute with 13 because giant shrews are weird (and actually have a lot of cool abilities). So that gives us a total of 7- great 2d4 it is.

2 |  Acolyte           Lead by a cleric of higher level

3 | Bandit              Trickery

4 | Fire beetle        Underground, bite 2d4

5 | Killer bee         Poison, fly

6 | Giant Gecko    Cling

7 | Crab Spider      Poison, cling

8 | Giant Shrew    A bunch of things

The table needs to be re-ordered, but two groups brought together in The Black Keep bailey. One is insect cultists (Acolyte, beetle, bee, spider) and the other group is sorta bandit sappers who use giant shrews like war dogs? Maybe the gecko is odd man out or could be ridden by the leader of the bandits. With a little re-skinning, the shrews could become something else: "dwarven wolves".

But the point is now the encounters of the Keep have more focus because of this distillation.

DUNGEON WEATHER: For your overloaded encounter die

DiTerlizzi 

 

I really love the "overloaded encounter die" mechanic described by Necropraxis. 

When the party moves into a new area or spends time on an exploration activity, roll the encounter die and interpret the results as follows.

1. Encounter
2. Percept (clue, spoor)
3. Locality (context-dependent timer)
4. Exhaustion (rest or take penalties)
5. Lantern
6. Torch

In particular, I think the entry for "Locality" (if used in the outdoors "weather") is a great way to further add personality to a dungeon. But what would typical "vanilla D&D dungeon weather" be?

I say "vanilla" because I guess it helps me think about what are the typical environmental changes I would want in a dungeon and what are typical dungeon PC actions complicated by this change (or helping; after all some days are sunny). It also reinforces the idea of the mythic underworld; the dungeon as a being unto itself. Here is my list:

DUNGEON WEATHER (d10)

1 | SLAM! All doors slam shut; 3-in-6 if staked; all doors now a flat 1-in-6 to open
2 | FOG: A gray fog rises from the floor, ankle to knee height, obscuring the ground; -1 to detect traps
3 | SLIME BLOOMS: Green slime oozes from the ceiling on all hallways leading from the current room
4 | DUNGEON RIME: Armor ages unnaturally; -1 AC to non-magical armor & shields
5 | DARKNESS EXPANDS: All light operates at 1/2 strength
6 | SHADOW of DEATH: -1 to all Save rolls
7 | SPONTANEOUS GENERATION: Each PC roll d10; 5+ rations are spoiled by maggots
8 | ALTERED PERCEPTION: Secret doors +1 to locate
9 | EUPHORIC SPOOR RELEASE: +1 to all rxn encounter checks; divination/illusion spells enhanced
0 | TOO STILL: Dungeon weather effect ends

Of course, if your dungeon has a strong theme, I think it better to tailor the above list to fit the aesthetics.

A THIEF USES SKILL TO MANIPULATE THE PHYSICAL. A CLERIC USES SKILL TO MANIPULATE THE SPIRITUAL.

Sime

The ever-clever Scrap Princess has posted about mixing up the core four classes with each other- so the fighter learns spell-like fighting moves, while the wizard buys the halbard spell.

I really like her ideas about the cleric using the thief's percentage skill system to perform a limited set of magical tasks, spell-like abilities, and such. I also like it because it finally puts the cleric as a character class that is "skill" oriented like the thief more than the fighters "weapon" orientation and wizard's "magic" orientation.

This, in my mind, makes a good symmetry: The fighting-man uses physical weapons to defeat the opponents while the magic-user employs arcane weapons. The thief uses their skills to manipulate the physical realm for their betterment, while the cleric uses their skills to manipulate the spiritual realm for the greater betterment (of their god).

She lists the follows as short list of classic cleric abilities:
-banishing supernatural agents
-trapping said agents if they can tricked or convinced to enter a vessel
-casting out possession
-healing sickness, infertility, curses
-fertility (land /domestic animals/ people)
-weather prediction-dispelling illusions/detecting of supernatural influence
-protective wards against disaster or ill intend-assessing auspiciousness of dates , partnerships or signs-omens
-lay dead to rest/ placating angered ghost or spirit 

Of course, converting the thief abilities into spiritual ones could be fun:

Hide in shadows (of your god's glory): gain AC bonus (Lawful), attack bonus (Chaotic) or skill bonus (Neutral) as your god manifests through you
Move silently (and avoid the dead & fate): escape the notice of the dead or a failed saving throw (if you fail to, suffer twice the fate)
Find & Remove Traps (of the soul): remove curses, geas, alignment changes, & lycanthropy
Hear Noise (of the gods' whispers): with the appropriate sacrifice, you may attempt to prognosticate
Climb Sheer Surfaces (out of the grave): percentage chance you will arise provide your body is not eaten or desecrated
Open lock(ed hearts): Recruit folks to your cause provided they are of like alignment or neutral
Pick pockets (of those who should donate to your god): Gain funding from the common man for your pious quest from street preaching