The Planar Project

I love the Outer Planes cosmology:

 

No the real Outer Planes cosmology: 

 

I mean the REAL Outer Planes cosmology: 

 

There we go much better. 

Planescape is rad and I desperately wish to run a plane hopping game one day. My one attempt at it by mixing the Planescape adventures with the Rods of Seven Parts was...too ambitious (shocker). We really didn't get a chance to really appreciate the Planescape part of it so maybe one day I'll return to it with a simpler more focused adventure. 

However, I did commission a bunch of art for each of the Planes. Maybe some people will find this useful. All of this is the work of the very talented Victor Sickman (here is their artist info). Are these accurate representations of the Planes? Absolutely. Probably? Enjoy the art and may it help you in your games and/or bring you some inspiration! 

Sigil (its Sidge'uL, not Sig'ill I don't care who says otherwise): 

The Abyss:

Aqueron: 

Arborea:

 

 Arcadia:

 

 

Avernus/The Nine Hells:

 

Beastlands:

 

 

Bytopia:

 

 

Carceri:

 

 

Elysium:

 

 

Gehenna:

 

 

Gray Wastes:

 

 

Limbo:

 

 

Outlands:

 

 

Pandemonium:

 

 

Mechanus:

Mount Celestia:

 

 

Ysgard:

 

Hexplore24: Catching Up (Week Six - Week Fourteen)

"The passing of the preceding age was marked with a contraction. As with all great machines, there comes a point where delivery of information from one end to the other takes such a prodigious time that it becomes nearly impossible to manage from one bureaucratic center. Where once the Administration maintained great authority over the details of its dominion, expansion of the domain necessitated greater and greater divestment of power into a class of subordinate ministers. Such a decision did not come lightly; the masters of the city knew even nominally granting power to those outside of their vested inner circle meant danger to their established order. Thus the choice was between being satisfied with the bounds of the city or relying on these ministers to maintain cohesion of the master's will. In a remarkable and unexpected decree, the master's declared the bounds of the city as marked by their current extent would become an immutable boundary. In this way the once ever growing needs of the city were truncated to a more predictable range and the ruling caste need not spread their control and political capital thin. However, in the game of empire, vultures begin to circle at the moment where growth ceases as if they sense the heart beat quieting..."

2/7 - 4/7 

Adran:  

Where to begin? I write in a corner of the ruins trying to keep the pages dry from the soft rain that has been pouring for days. The last months have been filled with peril, great challenges, and the foundation of new bonds. I recount the tale as thus: 

• We faced the black wyrm of the Glittering Isle (Ninondrilloth) who abducted the cleric Aran as a hostage threatening his death if we continue to build allies in the region. 
• A band of hobgoblin raiders terrorized the southern lands with Lord Cadebros (warden of Castle Kidwelly) only holding them back temporarily. 
• The Clerics of Bast in the Iron Temple of Bast faced a ghoul infestation threating to spill into the plains and beyond unless thwarted. 
• A purple wurm lairs just north of Castle Huntingdon; awakening the beast threatens Port Ensal. 
• And a green dragon took over the lair of a group of intelligent giant spiders in the northern swamp displacing them until it is driven off.  

Facing these challenges, we come up with a daring plan. We would first journey to the Iron Temple and parley with the large tribe of goblins present to use them as an army against the hobgoblins. For surely Ninondrilloth would never suspect goblins to be in the employ of our band. This alliance secured after performing a great deed for the goblin king, half our band set out with them to the aid of Lord Cadebros. We met the hobgoblins at their lair, where a pitched battle was waged. Hours later, the hobgoblins were either broken at our feet or fleeing into the hills. This battle won, we returned to Port Ensal for another round of planning where it was concluded we must once again divide our party; Mer-Me led a team into the wilderness searching for more allies and resources while I with a few companions scout the dragons lair (The Glittering Isle). 

Our objectives where the following: 

1. Locate the lair of the dragon
2. Determine its hunting patterns
3. Scout the island's geography
4. Locate other points of interest on the islan
5. Determine if any other factions or inhabitants of the island could be useful

We dared not light a fire for fear of attracting the beast's attention so the falling snow nearly killed us. A chance encounter with the wizard Ozidarin the Immortal proved auspicious; hearing of our noble quest he bestowed upon us the use of his Bronze Horn of Valhalla for temporary use in a dire situation. After many days, we accomplished each of these goals before returning to Port Ensal. Mer-Me was similarly successful, having secured the aid of Rowan Storm, a cheerful leader of a group of mercenaries laying claim to the ruins of Castle Yonago should we promise to aid them in clearing their territory once the beast is dead. We hatched a bold plan: Rowan's warriors on hippogryphs would draw the dragon out from its lair while our team and Rowan would sneak into the compound, slay any guards, and set up a deadly ambush within its own lair. The task proved as monumental as it was bold: the dragon kept a clan of Trolls as guards, deadly traps, and even powerful undead who cursed several of the group with unhealing wounds. We were however delighted to find Aran alive and well; his apparent connection the draconic god Tiamat affording him some measure of protection from the dragon so long as he proved useful translating a number of ancient texts. While it took nearly every bit of magic, resource, cunning, and plain luck, our ambush was a success and the dragon's blood ran in rivers from the mouth of the spring at the base of it's lair. 

Of some note, the text's that Aran has transcribed largely focus on an ancient city to the east supposedly of grandeur rivaling the palaces of the gods. If such a place really does exist, it would prove the discovery of an era. What is intriguing is that Mer-Me claims to have also heard stories of such a place from their people's oral history, though the connection is unclear. When time permits, we plan to investigate this further. (+1 Clue to the Golden City)

The dragon's hoard was great, but the Prince's gift of the island for our deed proved an unexpected boon. We plan to raise a keep there as a base of operations for our expeditions. In the meantime, we recalled our obligations to both the Clerics of Bast and to Rowan and after a suitable rest, we set out to accomplish both simultaneously. Using some of our treasure to employ a band of mercenaries known as the Circle of Regret, we set off for Castle Yanogo while Mer-Me's band visited the Iron Temple of Bast where it became necessary to slay our once allies who threatened to raid the lands should a tithe not be paid to them in perpetuity. The goblin king slain, the Clerics of Bast should have some breathing room although they did relate to us a concerning tale regarding the presence of a demon with the ruins that our actions may have provoked an interest...

At Castle Yanogo, we quickly make work of the more mundane issues plaguing the territory, but two main challenges remain. The first is the lair of yet another purple wurm while the seconds is the old dungeons of Castle Yanogo which seem teeming with monsters. For now, we plan to deal with the dungeon for who can sleep easily knowing such lies beneath their feet? Rowan and his band are just now removing the boulders sealing the entrance; let us see what lies in the depths...

New hexes explored:

•  A ton. Mostly eastward

Feature's found: 

• The Village of Updale 
• The Glittering Isle
• Castle Yonago
• The Ruined Shrine of Shaundakul
• The Ceremonial Scimitar
• Lair of the Chimeras
• Lair of the Giant Spiders
• Lair of the Purple Worm 
• Wren's Rock
• Sanctuary of the Seekers
• The Village of Runnimage 

Notable encounters:

• The Abudction of Aran, Cleric of Tiamat:
• The Battle of the Ruined Shrine:
• The Parting of the Company: 
• Ozidarin the Immortal:  
• Rowan Storm:  
• Ninondrilloth's Felling: 
• +1 Clue of the Golden City 
• Gained the Glittering Isle as a Steading 
• The Scouring of the Iron Citadel : 
• Answering Rowan's call: 

Ongoing Plots/Quests: 

• The Quest for the Golden City
• The Demon of the Iron Temple
• Displaced Spiders
• The Purple Wurms 
• Clearing Castle Yanogo 

Current party: 

• Adran, Lawful Human Ranger 4
• Dan of Caladan, Neutral Halfling Thief 5
• Douse, Lawful Human Monk 5
• Aran, Lawful Human Cleric of Tiamat 5
• Mer-Sit the IV, Chaotic Human Fighter 4
• Mer-Me of Ironbound Castle, Lawful Elven Thief 5
• Zer Esten, Neutral Human Magic-User 4
• Quasin the Uncanny, Neutral Human Cleric of Oghma 5
• Elsun the Heavy, Neutral Dwarven Fighter 5
• Tenspor of the Arid Wastes, Neutral Elven Cleric of Waukeen 5
• Berdpal Eth, Lawful Dwarven Fighter 5

The Circle of Regret: A mercenary band contracted to aid the party in clearing of castle Yonago in the service of their obligation to Rowan Storm. Their leader is Usaman Al-Bakr and they consist of 70 men (30 LF, 20 HF, 20 LH). Of their history, we learn of their great loss upon the walls of the fortress city Ebonfall, the betrayal of their once employer the Duke of Valspire, and their enemies chasing them to the sea forcing them to come to this new land. They have been paid 1400 GP for their services (deposit and monthly cost) and will cost 700 GP each month we employ them: currently until 4/24. 

Mudcore is rad

I have titled my newest campaign "Mudcore" as a tongue in cheek call back to an often disparaged style of game. In brief, Mudcore refers to a game where the player characters are frequently far from heroic and typically spend their short miserable lives wallowing in the filth of some dungeon that WILL kill you; its only a matter of how long until it does. I've seen the term used in conversations typically bashing the mythological "Old School" style of play as if most gaming tables in the halcyon days measured the life of their characters in hours and never saw level 3. The best they might do was scrounge some loose change on the floor before slinking away to the nearest bar sniveling and snorting. From my understanding this certainly was NOT the case but getting to the truth of the common original dungeons and dragons experience is of little use or interest to me. 

I am primarily interested in the mythology and, in this case, was curious what a game that took some of those premises and went with them would look like. 

Enter Mudcore. The year is 1865 and the president is dead. You are returning home to your small Pennsylvanian mining town like so many others at the conclusion of the Civil War. There, you find the dungeon. With nought but ingenuity and the resources you can find among the depths you'll seek to travel ever deeper in to the earth to solve the great mysteries of your hometown, possibly recover lost treasures, and confirm the veracity of the rumored Ring Of Wishes in the mine's depths. 

Death at 0 HP. ODND (Or well Swords and Wizardry), and starting at level 0. One to one time. The denizens of the dungeon are horrific, the traps are devious, and above all the dungeon is motivated to lure you in to your doom. 

 

Does that sound like fun at all?

 

My players certainly think so and most of them cut their teeth on DnD 5e, Pathfinder, and modern fantasy. We've been having a ton of fun as a departure from the more standard epic tales we've told as a group. This is about a small town, not saving the world. Its about the megadungeon, there is not much else to do but explore it. And its about the characters, will they make it out of this one alive? I think pitching the expectations of this game - its relatively high lethality and clear focus on dungeon exploration - was an essential element of getting this to work. I think the mythology of Mudcore games and the hated response/reputation arises not really from the conditions of the game, but rather an adversarial relationship between the DM and the players. I can easily imagine this being a terrible experience if sprung on unsuspecting players or if the DM goes on a power trip. I've learned from this in the dozen or so session so far that even in this very "limiting" experience, many players will thrive. I feel it analogous to improv: a completely blank page with no guidance is very hard to get into, but if you have an initial set of conditions that limit your options, it can be counterintuitively easier to be creative and have fun. 

Now for the negatives. Not all my players have enjoyed the transition. There is a subset that bounced off of the idea and only occasionally show up. And that is totally fine by me. I'd much rather run a focused game for a group of people that are really enjoying it, than a generalist style game that only kinda appeals to folks who spend half the time on their phones. Its been refreshing, I may template my games in the future on this idea (although I am blessed with a particularly large group of TTRPG enthusiast friends). 

In our games, characters die. They struggle with challenges trivial in other high fantasy role playing games (How do we even get down this 20 ft drop? Or did we come in from the right or left passage, are we lost?). And honestly progression (We use GP for XP) is comparatively slow. But my players (and I!) have really been enjoying the clear focus and a chance to slowly unwind the mysteries of a small region, get to know the local characters and environment, and take part in the small problems of the town. I've built in a few things to appeal to different types of players; an overarching mystery for the players invested in lore/world building, a megadungeon with lots of factions and history to explore for players who like exploration, and challenging encounters with bizarre/unusual monsters for players who like puzzles and violence. Does that make this no longer a Mudcore game? At least according to my definition it still is but argue however you want. In conclusion, I don't think running a game with high lethality with characters who are not epic heroes or even characters who are ratcatchers by day is somehow a negative. As long as you have buy in from your players and are clear about expectations, it can be a fun and rewarding experience (or even a palate cleanser between other types of games). 

I've also got great players so my experiment here should be taken with a grain of salt.  

Oh and I produced a trailer to get my players in the mood for the game as well as tease a few of the mysteries. If you are curious, here it is below: 

 

So I failed my hexploration challenge

 

Why? Life. Its always life. Just like what keeps you from being able to run those games you want to run or the root of scheduling issues, the final boss of the TTRPG hobby. Actually, it is more accurate to say my priorities shifted. I stopped blogging about it regularly sometime in Feb 2024 but kept playing through April. I think my project ended up being more ambitious than I expected (a running theme with my experience in this hobby).  

So why I am talking about it now? Because I still think about it. I see the notebook on my shelf right above my computer and open it every once in a while just to read a bit. I would like to return to it one day but I think its important to have a retrospective on why I stopped and what I can do to bring the project back to life in a more manageable way. More specifically, I'd like to return to it in a substantive way and continue to explore that world. By looking a bit closer at what my goals were, the processes I was using, and thinking a bit about why my priorities shifted I hope I can figure out what new form that exploration should take. There are probably some general lessons in here that may be useful to some folks or in the very least an interesting story.  

Solo gaming can be a very powerful creative tool that is both enriching to the general hobby experience and also a useful exercise in developing the creative muscles we use in the TTRPG hobby. So its both fun and also helpful for improving as a DM. If you are curious on the general details of solo gaming, here are a few resources I think that nicely describe the general idea and how you might get started: 

Bandit's Keep: A video on some of the reasons why you might want to do solo DND.

Tales of the Manticore: A great Solo DND podcast, see how it is done!

Just playing Solo: A relatively short video that covers some reasons why and just jumps right into the process of using some tools

So why was I doing this? My original goal was to take part in the Hexplore24 challenge  but also I had been inspired by watching Bandit's Keep's solo game using ODND (as an aside, highly recommend its good listening and very helpful for putting you to sleep). Lastly I had been thinking a lot about an old campaign I ran in college 100 years ago (or like 2017, which might as well have been 100 years ago). This game featured a large hexmap where the players were searching for a long lost city supposedly full of treasure and wonders. It was an amazing campaign I'll talk about one day but that is too long for here (It ended with the party on a bullet train after failing to stop the launch of nuclear missiles threatening to rain down on the major cities of the world and them realizing the only way to stop it was to use their one Wish spell to prevent their characters from ever meeting each other...Good shit). I had really enjoyed the campaign structure of hex crawling, delving into the ruins and meeting with the locals as they slowly made their way to the city. So I had a premise for the game and some random tables (this is a great resource for wilderness exploration, HIGHLY recommend you save a copy of it) and tools at my disposal to draft up pretty much anything I might have needed. 

The idea was to spend just a few minutes a day or maybe like an hour or so a week rolling up a hexmap, and then in my case moving around a small party of heroes as they explored the space. I would roll randomly for what they encountered (once two different green dragons in as many days!) and used some basic oracles to figure out what they characters might do. This worked really well actually and before long I was off on a grand adventure. There were some really amazing experiences, from the previously mentioned dragons, to discovering a temple under attack from feline demons, to banding together with some goblins to take on a large camp of hobgoblins besieging a castle. It is amazing what you can come up with with just a few random tables and saying yes and to the random encounters you roll. I started to notice a problem though. Even though I'd only explored a relatively small area in the grand scheme of things (I put the chance of finding the city in a given hex at 1/1000 or so to start), I quickly became enamored with this little corner of the world and the role my characters were starting to play in it. And "sessions" started taking longer and longer. I couldn't keep up posting about it so that fell to the way side and then eventually we started up a new home game, grad school got hectic, and I just put the notebook down. It became too much of a chore in a way; not that I didn't enjoy it but it just took up too much time in an already overloaded schedule. 

That is probably the thesis of this: scope creep in our hobbies (whether its solo DND or painting Warhammer figures) can quickly stop you from even taking part in the process. Being realistic with your time commitments and identifying when this scope creep happens is good practice for any project, hobby or otherwise. While its great to be excited about your new latest project or hobby you will almost certainly burn out if its not balanced and you might put it down never to pick it up again. It is also worth saying of course there is nothing wrong with not continuing a hobby, but sometimes we give up on hobbies and don't recognize its not because we don't enjoy it anymore, but rather we build up a mental block from over-eagerness. Recognizing when this might be happening and taking preemptive steps such as pumping the breaks, scheduling time for your hobby, and just being cognizant of burnout as it happens. It just might save your hobby time. 

But what if you just don't have the time? Like everything else in life, its not that you don't have time its just that it isn't a priority. If you'd really like to make it work even on a busy schedule, I'd recommend setting aside a single weeknight evening (weeknight because in my experience its more likely you won't have spontaneous plans come up) and just mark off an hour. 8 PM on Wednesday is Solo DnD night. Make yourself some tea, get a crumpet, whatever your local ritual is and just play/engage for an hour. And keep to it! Do that for a few months and quickly it will become a habit. Its a fairly low barrier to entry and for something fun it shouldn't be too onerous. 

I failed the challenge in the sense I didn't complete a full year of the game. But honestly, it was wildly successful by any other meaningful metric. Enough so I still want to return to it despite having other healthy games going and it having been more than a year since I last played. This time I wont have the pressure of the Hexplore24 challenge (it is certainly not going to happen every night) but instead schedule some time one weeknight, just for an hour, to open back up that small notebook and catch up with some old friends. Maybe they will reach the Golden City one day or maybe not. What is certain is that the next hex over the hill won't explore itself. 

 

 

 

 

Hexplore 24: Week Five

 

"A great feat of metallurgy was necessary to temper what moon-metal could be scavenged; and for that the underfolk served amicably. Despite having only recently journeyed in any great number above ground, they took to the task of manufacturing implements of the material as if the gods have given them the gift and not the lords of the city. In defiance of their best efforts however, frustratingly little of the pearly metal was ever found. Thus in total the few ingots worth the city had was stretched to maximum utility and a program for carefully recycling it once it had completed its purpose was instituted. Misuse of the god's metal constituted the death penalty. Still, where once a regiment could be outfitted with blades silvered with the alloy, the ravages of time had reduced its quality such that only a needle's worth of pure metal remained by the epoch's end. Rumors abound that ancient stockpiles of arms and armor laid ready for the cataclysm never materialized. But, even a needle's worth may have been enough to thwart the city's imminent devastation had they not been failed in so many other ways..." 

Adran:

    With heavy packs and heavier hearts we leave behind the hamlet of Carmsby; the simple folks' cries of thanks echoing along the hills. The days of fighting goblins and their beasts have exhausted much of our arms and armor and we must make haste back to Port Ensal. We made the decision to at least see if a pass across the lake existed as Athos had once suggested and to our amazement a narrow land crossing was possible. From our vantage, the mountainous terrain beautifully bisects two large crystal clear lakes; truly an impressive visage. We shoulder our burdens and trudge onwards; we can at least report such a passage to the prince which will undoubtedly intrigue their interest.

Mer-Me:

    I write quickly: the snores of the beast shake the trees as we shelter in place daring not to make even a fire. We should have noticed the gorges for what they were: worm tracks of the dreaded purple worm. Nearly falling upon the creature as we made our way back to Castle Huntingdon and Lord Tithot, we would almost certainly have perished if not for Elsun's quick hand and thinking. We have much to warn the greater powers of; the presence of a purple worm is only secondary to the threat of yet another dragon making its lair so close to town. Our visit to Lord Tithot now seems all the more prudent having negotiated his aid in dealing with the local hostile elements. We now wait until the relative safety of morning light; I am certain not one of us will sleep well by tonight's moon.

New Hexes Explored: 9

Features Found:

• 0415: The Colossal Harness: The moldering remains of an enormous harness for some sort of amphibious creature. Now covered only by dust and grime. Did a creature of such a size really exist?

Notable Encounters:

• The Scouring of the Goblin Warren: Following up on the rescuing of Carmsby, Adran and company delved into the Goblin's warren to rout out the remaining creatures so that they would never again threaten the town. A chance encounter with lizardfolk prisoners provided a decisive advantage and before long the creatures and their king were slain. The town rejoices as we emerge proclaiming vengeance for Athos.
• The Giant Spider's Request: A chance encounter with a group of intelligent giant spiders ousted from their lair in 0616 revealed the activity of a green dragon now residing there. They have asked us for aid which we declined presently but were encouraged to seek out others of strong arm and will to aid them. They promised a portion of their treasure if the dragon could be killed or driven off.
• The Slumbering Worm: On their return to Castle Huntingdon, Mer-Me encounters the lair of a purple worm who was thankfully sleeping. Such a beast had torn open the landscape making great gorges in the earth; it will certainly present an obstacle for any foolish adventurers to traverse the path north of Port Ensal.

Current Party:

• Adran, Lawful Human Ranger 2
• Dan of Caladan, Neutral Halfling Thief 3
• Douse, Lawful Human Monk 4
• Aran, Lawful Human Cleric of Tiamat 3
• Mer-Sit the IV, Chaotic Human Fighter 2

Adjunct Party:

• Mer-Me of Ironbound Castle, Lawful Elven Thief 4
• Zer Esten, Neutral Human Magic-User 3
• Quasin the Uncanny, Neutral Human Cleric of Oghma 4
• Elsun the Heavy, Neutral Dwarven Fighter 3
• Tenspor of the Arid Wastes, Neutral Elven Cleric of Waukeen 3
• Berdpal Eth, Lawful Dwarven Fighter 3

Hexplore 24: Week Four

"Most people had no idea time didn't always flow the same way in the city. Of course one would feel the changes in current; a certain ethereal quality that you couldn't describe or a vague sea-sickness like brought on and departing acutely. The effects were typically minor and, to the academics best modeling, completely random resulting in minimal perturbation to the cities temporal relationship with its surroundings. First-time visitors would often report the city's great tower clocks never being quite on time and would be understandably met with sighs from the tower wardens. Of course, being on time had no real meaning in such a place. Or at least it didn't..."

Adran:

Athos is dead. He died with a sleep spell still on his lips, a look of shock as the goblins black arrow found him behind Mer-Sit and Aran. It was an impossible shot but the gods can be cruel sometimes. The liberation of the town of Carmsby was luckily met without further tragedy, and we were met as heroes for breaking the yoke of the goblin raiders. But our task isn't done yet: the goblin's warren is still filled with the creatures and to ensure the villager's safety we will have to brave those depths. A thought we don't relish. Douse and Aran have sworn vengeance on the goblins and given the rest of us are unwilling to leave them behind, we make the decision to go together. Fortunately my companions are not foolhardy as we will engage the creatures on our terms. Carmsby is rich in oil flasks, a boon we intend to make great use of.

Mer-Me:

We found Port Ensal in chaos when we returned: the band of wereboars we found previously had invaded, taken over the Shrine of the Charter, and taken hostages of the clerics within. They demanded safe passage and a ship, something the merchant prince was loath to give them. And so we were quickly inducted into service, asked to render our services to save the clerics and kill the raiders. By an incredible string of luck, we had just acquired a bundle of silver arrows and daggers. We executed an ambush by using our scroll of magic mouth to distract the creatures while we kicked down the backdoor. A brutal fight took place as we evacuated the clerics before leading the boars outside to be assaulted by a fireball from the witch Morrigan. Unfortunately, it had little effect on the beasts and we had to use the last of our silver arrows putting them down. The prince rewarded us well, showering us in gold and cast off gear from the town's armory; a token to repay us for our expended arrows. We almost made it out without further consequence when Berdpal collapsed; one of the boar's tusks had driven into his shoulder and he developed a rapid fever. Fearing he was turning, the town had him locked away in a cell for the evening; truly an unjust treatment for their saviors.

Nonetheless, we consulted with the Sage Jaketta to learn of a cure for lycanthropy which sent us south to the Isle of the Anura to collect a rare magical herb. Along the way we encountered an under-construction castle and its beleaguered lord who begged us for assistance dealing with the band of hobgoblins squatting in the ruined Shrine of Shaundakul. We agreed to carry his plea to the prince in exchange for his retainer alchemist's aid in preparing a drought to restore Berdpal. One vial of holy water and other alchemical reagents later, Berdpal was cured but now entirely hairless; a fact by which he has sworn to kill the alchemist next time they meet!

New Hexes Explored: 12

Features Found:

• 1012: Carmsby. A small hamlet occupied by goblin raiders with a church dedicated to Titania, queen of the fey. A den of goblins lies in the surrounding hills.  
• 0421: Runnimage. A town of approximately 200 people led by a council and protected by a fourth level champion. The community has a master canoe and sailboat maker.
• 0523: Abandoned Hamlet. A ghost town populated only by a dozen ghouls in the plains near the Iron Temple.
• 0526: Castle Kidwelly. An under construction castle garrisoned by 30 shaky mercenaries and owned by a 6th level lawful illusionist. They keep an alchemist as a retainer (until Berdpal gets to them).

Notable Encounters:

• The Battle of Port Ensal. Conflict with six wereboars resulted in victory for the party of Mer-Me. The town owes them greatly for services rendered.
• The Battle of Carmsby. Originally a scouting and rescue operation, the fighting quickly intensified as the raiding goblins rallied. After the dust settled, forty goblins and many wolves were slain at the cost of the magic-user Athos' life. They are buried beneath the town's apple tree.

Current Party:

• Adran, Lawful Human Ranger 2
• Dan of Caladan, Neutral Halfling Thief 3
• Douse, Lawful Human Monk 4
• Aran, Lawful Human Cleric of Tiamat 3
• Mer-Sit the IV, Chaotic Human Fighter 2

Adjunct Party:

• Mer-Me of Ironbound Castle, Lawful Elven Thief 4
• Zer Esten, Neutral Human Magic-User 3
• Quasin the Uncanny, Neutral Human Cleric of Oghma 4
• Elsun the Heavy, Neutral Dwarven Fighter 3
• Tenspor of the Arid Wastes, Neutral Elven Cleric of Waukeen 3
• Berdpal Eth, Lawful Dwarven Fighter 3

Hexplore 24: Week Three

"As rumor had it, the sarcophagi of the saints were empty. It is now impossible to know who planted the idea within the mind of the public, but what is certain is the resulting fervor played a crucial role in the downfall of the old gods. The Night of Black Fire would see the temples burn with the ultimate irony being that the flame's color proved without a doubt of the authenticity of the bodies' divinity. Many point to the Night of Black Fire as the beginning of the end for the empire, but in truth the populace's broken covenant with their saints may have doomed them irrespective of such sacrilege."

    The father gives thanks to Bast as we drag ourselves back into the temple. Two days of adventure within the citadel proved the threat of Ghouls to unfortunately not be an exaggeration. Thankfully, the citadel is not empty of treasures and thus the band feels the venture wasn't wasted. We haven't lost anyone despite the tomb's best attempts although ambushes, a goblin warband, and devious traps made more than a few close calls. For now, we've explored two of the towers and found two previously unknown (and likely unlooted) sublevels, made a temporary alliance with a goblin tribe, and have greatly thinned the ghoul's numbers. We've apparently pleased Bast as that evening's dinner was much closer to a feast. After consulting the party, we've decided to divide and conquer our tasks. Mer-Me will return to Port Ensal to collect more weapons and consumables as the temple doesn't have much in the way of war supplies while we will continue our survey of the lands north of Port Ensal. We will reconvene in approximately a ten day to continue our delve.

    Our experience within the citadel and the temple have suggested something sinister may be happening. Some of the priests seem hesitant to assist us in any way and combined with the constant whispers behind our back there may be some element of their contingent less than excited for us to continue our exploration. If the corrupted acolyte we captured from the citadel is any indication, a break from the place may be wise. We can't know for sure, but we were ambushed by a group of skeletons on our second visit which seemed to know we were coming. An ulterior motive for sending Mer-Me back to Port Ensal is to alert the merchant prince of both our success, and our suspicions. The ever watchful eyes of Bast seem to follow us as we depart the Iron Temple; the morning light reflecting off them gives them the look of a stalking predator. An ill omen combined with the developing storms.

Hexes Explored: 22

Features Found:

• The Brass Temple of Shu. An aged temple to Shu, God of the Wind
• The Church of the Obol. An aged pyramid temple dedicated to Nephthys, protector of the dead and guardian of commerce
• Castle Raglan. A crumbling keep once built for a powerful sorcerer and their retainers but now occupied by giant rats.
• The Sanctuary of the Seekers. A hidden sanctuary devoted to Seker, God of Light and sanctifier of the dead. Built of Onyx and led by a powerful priest.

Notable Encounters:

• The Citadel of Bast: Spent two days exploring and cleaning the citadel of undead. Found significant treasure, a corrupted acolyte, and a goblin tribe squatting in the main keep.

Current Party:

• Adran, Lawful Human Ranger 2
• Dan of Caladan, Neutral Halfling Thief 3
• Douse, Lawful Human Monk 3
• Athos, Lawful Elven Magic-User 2
• Aran, Lawful Human Cleric of Tiamat 3
• Mer-Sit the IV, Chaotic Human Fighter 2

Adjust Party:

• Mer-Me of Ironbound Castle, Lawful Elven Thief 3
• Zer Esten, Neutral Human Magic-User 2
• Quasin the Uncanny, Neutral Human Cleric of Oghma 3
• Elsun the Heavy, Neutral Dwarven Fighter 3
• Tenspor of the Arid Wastes, Neutral Elven Cleric of Waukeen 2
• Berdpal Eth, Lawful Dwarven Fighter 3

Hexplore24: Week Two

"It was fashionable at the time to engage in the market of memories: an exchange where one's thoughts could be extracted and sold to others. The essence can be condensed into a tincture and then inhaled which imparts a vivid hallucination of the thoughts. Originally developed by the academy to compartmentalize and then transfer complex formulae, the potential for the service as a means to generate income was realized quite quickly by entrepreneurs and expanded as a popular extravagance for the nobility. Any warnings about the fugue state induced by repeated use of the tinctures were swiftly ignored. It is claimed that repository of vials containing the colleges forbidden spells lies gathering dust in the storerooms of the palace; held forever as both ransom and assurance for their compliance."

    It wasn't as easy to convince everyone to make another trek into the wilds so soon after our last venture. We scarcely had three moons rest before we were packing supplies onto the horses we bought and passing through the town's gates. A few near death experiences will sour any souls' wander lust, if only temporarily. The merchant prince paid well for news of our discoveries; most notably the overrun citadel near the Iron Temple and the lair of a dragon nearly within bowshot of the town. They agreed to sponsor further voyages including a reconnaissance of the northern shores, a visit to the Temple of Bast to render aid, and a more thorough study of the Isle of Glittering Stone and its resident draconic guardian. While we recuperated and gathered supplies, Another group made a short journey south to determine if any sites of interest lie between the ocean and the mountains. They reported little of value besides the presence of wereboars in the cliffs behind town. Given their eagerness to make their own coin, we agree to work together to aid the Temple of Bast in a few days time. Meanwhile, we set off north and scout another castle in the hills garrisoned by a small army and what appears to be hill giants by their size. The marsh lands spread out after the hills blocking further egress.

    The prince seems eager to establish a more sturdy foothold; I can't blame them given how little we know about our surroundings. Making an alliance with the local inhabitants seems a strong policy although I suspect the priests of Bast may be hesitant to cede some degree of ownership over the citadel in exchange for eradicating whatever evils lurk within. Regardless, they next few days will likely be trying as we plan to cut through the swamps and come around to the temple from its eastern side. No one among us envies a trudge through a mire and we all pray the ground is dry on the other side.

Hexes Explored: 20

Features Found: 

• 0623: Lair of the Cat Demons. A ruined keep with surrounding towers overrun with ghouls and two Rakshasha. Intriguing as it resides within the same hex as the Iron Temple of Bast who is the God of Felines
  
• 0522: A crossroad. Situated in a natural path between the topology, the road will likely prove useful in the future.
  
• 0322: The Island of Glittering Stone. An island in the middle of a river rich in rare metals and containing the lair of a black dragon.
  
• 0319: Castle Huntingdon. An occupied keep with a small militia and led by a 9th level thief. Two hill giants serve as retainers.
  

Notable Encounters:

• Three Lions got the jump as the party traversed the mountains. Quick thinking and a lucky strike from Dan and Douse likely saved their lives.
  

Current Party:

• Adran, Lawful Human Ranger 2
  

• Dan of Caladan, Neutral Halfling Thief 3
  

• Douse, Lawful Human Monk 3

• Athos, Lawful Elven Magic-User 2
  

• Aran, Lawful Human Cleric of Tiamat 3
  

• Mer-Sit the IV, Chaotic Human Fighter 2

Adjust Party:

• Mer-Me of Ironbound Castle, Lawful Elven Thief 3
  
• Zer Esten, Neutral Human Magic-User 1
• Quasin the Uncanny, Neutral Human Cleric of Oghma 3
• Elsun the Heavy, Neutral Dwarven Fighter 2
• Tenspor of the Arid Wastes, Neutral Elven Cleric of Waukeen 2
• Berdpal Eth, Lawful Dwarven Fighter 3

Hexplore24: Week One

 

"It is said that not even setting sun dimmed the amber glow of the city streets. Moth lanterns were changed each day at sundown; fed from a lunarium and a special breeding stock prized for the exceptional brightness. There was a certain poetry in the changing of the lights. Countless little lives burned through each night to prolong the radiance. Few considered this as they engaged in extravagant balls, opulent night markets, and the other luxuries of high society. The symbolism was, in retrospect, obvious."

    The temple bell calls the acolytes to their evening prayers as we settle into the comfortable quarters the servants of Sune provided. Despite Aran's grumbling, we've decided to take a much needed rest after a week of hard hiking in the wilds. As fortune would have it, the hills gave way to a large shrine manned by quite friendly priests, or friendly enough after an exchange of coin. Without belaboring the fine details of the journey, we've discovered rough terrain generally directly south of Port Ensal that may serve as a natural barrier for larger expeditions. Second, there is a large concentration of consecrated sites; a temple to the The Dancing Lady, a remote mountain stream sacred to the Anura, a ruined shrine to Shaundakul and now this temple to Sune. Finally, large bands of monsters are not uncommon: we met a band of giant spiders, a flock of cockatrices, and a troupe of hobgoblins. The archpriest was relieved when we showed proof of slaying three of the cockatrices. It may have proved the turning point in our negotiation. The folks we've met don't seem overtly hostile but are certainly hesitant to trust outsiders which seems a prudent policy. They also have little to provide about the Golden City besides general caution and a sense of anxiety when we probe deeper. Not wishing to overplay our welcome, we drop the issue. 

 

    We wonder at the proximity of so many shrines, perhaps the ancestors of these people were more zealous than their cousins in distant lands and that culture has survived to this age. What is clear is that while they have had contact with the wider world, most of the population seems to descend from the ancient lines of the Golden City. We know their Gods by seemingly different names, a curious observation we will have to ponder. Our stores of rations are good for about a ten-day but we quickly tire of our slow pace. Athos in particular complains at our lack of forethought in preparing horses for the journey. It seems returning to Port Ensal would be wise but I hope to convince the others to take a wider arch through the mountains to our east and spend a few more days covering new ground. If all goes well, we may enjoy the tavern's strong mead in a few days.

 

Hexes Explored: 18

 

Features Found:

• 0623: The Iron Temple of Bast
• 0427: The Isle of the Asura and the headwaters of a river
• 0328: The Ruined Shrine of Shaundakul
• 0627: The Sanctuary of Passion

Notable Encounters:

• Three Cockatrices, nearly ended in disaster as they closed the distance quickly. A few timely arrows and insane luck with Dan's backstab prevented anyone from falling to their talons.

Current Party:

• Adran, Lawful Human Ranger 1
• Dan of Caladan, Neutral Halfling Thief 1
• Douse, Lawful Human Monk 3
• Athos, Lawful Elven Magic-User 1
• Aran, Lawful Human Cleric of Tiamat 1
• Mer-Sit the IV, Chaotic Human Fighter 1
   
  

Hexplore24: A year of hexploration

    Over the last few months I've played around occasionally with solo adventuring as a fun exercise in between prepping for sessions in my current pathfinder game. I rolled up some characters using Swords and Wizardry, slapped down the hex map I had been using for my pathfinder game, and picked some spots as sites of small dungeon-crawling adventures that I could largely use the procedures in B/X, OD&D, or other OSR games to run solo. Having the procedures for dungeon crawling and exploration made the process relatively simple and meant I didn't have to use other more complex tools like Mythic or some other GM emulator (which I am not against but personally I find too obtuse for my uses). I bounced around the world and had quite a bit of fun journaling from the character's perspective, using tools like ChatGPT for random prompts, or getting to actually use the enormous pile of printed materials I've collected over the last few years. That's why I was excited to learn about hexplore24, a yearly challenge to run a hexploration game every day of 2024. 

    After mulling over some ideas, I decided to play through a similar scenario to one of the earliest campaigns I ran: the search for an ancient city deep in the wilderness. The original game I ran in college had my players moving through a pointcrawl style system deeper and deeper into an unexplored wilderness in pursuit of a legend of a metropolis from another age (an El Dorado of sorts). While that game had many memorable moments (including when they finally reached the place and found it not quite so abandoned...), due to some shenanigans the players essentially wished (as in used the spell) the events of the game never took place. So this completely unexplored place is still out there somewhere, a perfect motivation for a solo hexploration game! 

    I'll be making use of a variety of tools for the challenge including the fantastic Wilderness Hexplore Revised by Jed McClure, some of the procedures from Swords and Wizardry, OSE, and this neat weather table from the Wandering Gamist. Monsters and Mazes (who I first saw the idea from) has put together some other great resources as well as a summary of the hexplore24 idea. My goal is to really stick with this every day, so I need a straightforward and simple ruleset that I can reasonably expect to be able to keep up with which is where I fell apart with dungeon23. Tying each day to a "in world" day appeals to me and gives a sense of checking in with my party which is neat. I'll be using hex kit to make the actual map itself although I may keep a pen and paper map and update the hex kit map occasionally if it turns out that's my only digital resource. I'll also be keeping a journal of sorts which I can update each day with the events the party encounters. The hope is as we run into various terrain features we can organically create the same sorts of narrative story as in my previous game. The end goal is still going to be to locate the titular lost city which I will eventually place into the roll tables for the features or maybe triangulate it after finding various clues scattered around the hex map. I haven't decided yet but that is a later problem to resolve. Plenty of hexes to explore in the meantime! I'll update progress as we go along, maybe every week or so unless something really interesting happens.

     I rolled up a random town on the western coast, pulled my group of characters from my solo game and set off. Despite the ominous storm that blew through on the first day, the journey was quiet. I can already see some interesting terrain popping out of the random tables. No features yet (its only a 1/8 chance after all) and luckily no monsters. We'll see how long that holds.

 

 

An Epilogue

I started writing this not long after we finished up the final session but quickly lost interest. It's been a few months and now that I've had time to decompress it feels right to finish it up and tie it all off with the benefit of time massaging away the irrelevant moments. To get to it: 

So we had our final session. 

Dice were thrown, drinks were had, crazy burgers were made. It was an epic session; everyone was sweating and passed out by the end of it. Although, that may have been because our AirBNB's AC broke in the 90F heat. 

The multiverse was saved. In a way. And this is how it happened: 

They arrived at the Fortress of Conclusion, tentative and suspicious. The end was here and their quarry was no where to be seen. The great gates of the fortress stood open, a massive maw inviting disaster. An ill omen in the form of the tortured form of the wizard Desatysso was left to greet them. He craved death, they gave it to him. 

 And so they entered into the maw, I show the players this as they get their first look: 

  

Almost in unison my players all looked at me and said, "You bastard." The absolute highest praise for a dungeon master.

They'd already run through the tomb earlier as part of the adventure Return to the Tomb of Horrors so its been fresh in their memory. Burned even. They've also seen it a few other times, scattered one shots, etc. I'll make a post at some point about the apocryphal Tomb, it has some history in my games and I feel like I have a unique perspective on the thing from having run it so many times.

To make a much longer story somewhat shorter, the tomb was largely avoidable since they knew where all the traps were but they did notice a number of strange discrepancies. First was these strange black spikes hammered into the ceiling, usually above some particular object. The first was the shattered sentient bow of one of the characters that Acererak had yoinked during a previous combat. Other spikes pointed at the corpse of Acererak's servant Leon (a particularly loyal mortal servant slain by the party many sessions previously), the captured form of Acererak's Balor father, the ghost of his mother, his research thesis, and a particularly tasty cookie. Those sorts of things, you catch the drift. Reworked elements from the final dungeon in the Return to the Tomb of Horrors. 

Then they came into the columned hall and confronted the Arch-Lich himself. To their surprise, his phylactery was already dust on the floor; destroyed from their perspective by some outside force (the actions and sacrifice of my other group). He said he was tired and they are all going to die. They laughed at him. He brought forth his army. They quit laughing. 

What followed was nearly 12 hours of combat, blood shed on all sides. It was tense and to my credit, I kept it together for the most part.

If we were going to challenge a group of over a dozen 20th level characters, by god it would require something special. And so I dispensed with groups of pretty much every flavor of monster tribe; from a flight of each chromatic dragon to each of the demons and devils, to a host of mindflayers and other aberrations straight from the far realms. They did well enough, but understandably their resources started to dwindle. Spells were lost, consumables tossed, and rests were not possible. It didn't look good. Until they noticed the black spikes and yanked one out of the wall and the true situation revealed itself; the dungeon could be rearranged. 

The previous week I had found and downloaded a scale version of the tomb (https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/86168/Tomb-of-Horrors-Map-Set) and had cut it out. It was spread throughout three rooms in the lower level of the AirBNB. By pulling the spikes, they could pick up any room and move it such that its entrances matched up with another, i.e. swap rooms around. What was once a stressful but not terribly exciting series of combats immediately became a tactical opportunity, everyone bent on manipulating the geometry of the tomb to their advantage. Every trap, pit, and illusion could be flipped on their opponents. They could set up ambushes, split up groups of monsters, and make distractions. Play their opponents against each other (it wasn't an accident Acererak separated the Demons and Devils; little reenactment of the blood war anyone?). I don't think I've seen my group ever as engaged and a few hours later the dust settled and they found themselves again before Acererak, triumph in their eyes. They didn't see the Time Stop, Delayed Blast Fireball, Cloudkill coming...

A few of them went down straight away, obliterated by that combo. Their few NPC allies didn't stand a chance. They were furious. And Acererak just dropped another with a Power Word Kill before raising their dead allies to serve him. Again, it looked like the end was here. Except their wizard had saved his Wish. We all turned to him...

"I wish for us all to be restored to ..."

"Counterspell"

"What"

"He uses counterspell, at ninth level."

 

You could feel a pin drop as everyone looked around at each other. Panic and disgust. Of course he would.

 

"I can use my reaction during my turn too right?"

"I believe so yes."

"So I can counterspell the counterspell?"

"Normally easily, but for Acererak you'll still need to roll."

"What do I need?"

"You'll need a total of 23, it's nearly impossible with your bonus of +5."

"But it is possible, so I'll roll." 

 

Tension again, watching the dice slowly stop. It showed a 15. Not enough. Fear. It might as well have been over. They searched for any other advantage, trying anything they could. It didn't stick and they looked crestfallen.

 

"Hey, didn't I cast guidance on him a turn or two ago?" 

"You... did didn't you. And you haven't cast another concentration spell or take damage so its still up."

"We are at 20, he just needs a 3 or a 4."

They rolled a 4. Cheers, dancing, and jubilation resounded as their comrades returned. The rest of the fight wasn't easy, Acererak gave it everything but the tide turned. A few other tricks, a second stage, and a brutal smack down later it was over: Acererak was seemingly dead. It was already 1 in the morning, everyone was slumped over in their chairs exhausted but satisfied. And then I made a critical mistake; Acererak made a wish as well for them to see things from his perspective. They debated whether to counterspell it or not but ultimately decided they were curious enough to see what that meant. So we started up a game of 12 candles. 

Unfortunately it didn't go as planned. You can imagine the intended affect, they experience a game where they know they are going to lose from the beginning, they feel that gut punch reminder of life, and we leave it off with a bittersweet note (seriously check out ten candles, its a great game: https://cavalrygames.com/ten-candles). It would be a great tool to have them think about the perspective of the somewhat fourth wall breaking character that Acererak had become. But I was far too tired and it was my first time running the game. It went very poorly and we wrapped it up frustrated and disappointed.

My players were troopers and stuck it out another hour to do an epilogue scene with their characters which was amazing, tears were shed and their stories concluded. But I felt robbed as we could have used the time from ten-candles to have a more full complete ending for everyone to finish whatever business they had but that itself is life; You can't always get what you want. A teaching moment perhaps, know your limits and respect them. 

Everyone had a good time, maybe even a great one. The game ended and although I felt it could have gone better, after a few months to decompress and process not only the inevitable feeling of loss associated with completing something like this, but also my disappointment in how it ended, I feel at peace with the outcome. I've since started up a Pathfinder 2e game which has been very well received but I find my thoughts occasionally drifting back towards that low lying hill with three entrances. In some ways voices still echo within, torches casting light on mysterious murals and profane traps of devious design. Its magnetic attraction has me pondering hidden meanings, as if plumbing the depths myself for their secrets. Even in my games now my players still reference it; "But what color is it...?", "How many entrances!?", "Don't touch that fucking thing, it could be like that green maw...". And in that way the Arch-Lich triumphed beyond his wildest dreams: that place has left an indelible mark upon them. 

It also helps that their first wish in their new multiverse was to bring him back with a new chance at life. I play him as their mercenary companies chronicler, writing their stories into legend through the company newspaper and very occasionally delving into lost tombs from a forgotten age, torch in hand, ten-foot pole in the other. Certainly not Gary's intention, but much like his tomb he has become something else.

 

The legend of the Tomb of Horrors finally lives. 

     

-- Bing Image Creator Generated Image