Collaborative Cave!

In this thread Mark CMG has decided to take a hiatus from the "Cooperative Dungeon" project, and not to interfere with the name "Cooperative Dungeon" I'm going to tentatively call this "Collaborative Cave!".

So, I've created a map


Which we can use a starting point. I'm happy to reduce the number of encounter areas if people think there are too many.

I'd like to make this around a CR 8/9 dungeon, home of a green dragon.

Actually, what I was thinking was that it could be the home of TWO young green dragons. Let's face it, nothing will instill more fear and dread into the hearts of players when they step into the dragon's lair and find TWO of the beasts there.

I should add that I have personal reasons for wanting this. The players IMC have seen a green dragon, and know where his cave is, but couldn't get across the ravine I had placed there (area 3), so left. I figured I would go ahead and draw out the entire cavern complex, and then spotted the recent thread about the Cooperative project and submitted my map since I had just recently completed it.

That said, I'm open to suggestions, alterations, whatever. It's not set in stone. If we decide Black dragons are a better fit, we can go with black dragons. If we want to put the dragon's lair in area 11, and not area 17 (as someone suggested in the other thread), I'm cool with that too. The idea of a swimming dragon using the underground pools to sneak up behind a party I find particularly vicious and evil.

One could even easily modify the dungeon for higher levels, and place a very large dragon ni area 17, and that dragon's young children in the pool area around areas 6-11. That would be cruel and unusual.

But, for our purpose, I'd like to keep it simple, and stick with a "low-ish" CR of around 8-9 since the mid levels are more common than the high ones.

I welcome your input.


ROOM SIGN UP
Room 1 - der_kluge (EL 6/0) http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=2853575&postcount=145
Room 2 - Scribble. (EL n/a) http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=2844239&postcount=66
Room 2a - Elephant. (north passage, EL 5, south passage, EL 8) http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=2846124&postcount=95
Room 3 - Whizbang Dustyboots. http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=2859265&postcount=159
Room 4 - Ilium. http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=3036199&postcount=243
Room 5 - der_kluge (EL 6) http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=3033242&postcount=242
Room 6 - Raven Crowking http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=2854295&postcount=148
Room 7 - Elephant. (EL 6) http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=3055831&postcount=250
Room 8 - der_kluge (dragon's lair, EL 11). http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=2844714&postcount=84
Room 9 - der_kluge (EL 10) http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=2876968&postcount=202
Room 10 - der_kluge http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=3028248&postcount=238
Room 11 - Roger. (EL 9) http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=3071894&postcount=259
Room 12 - der_kluge (EL 6) http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=3076562&postcount=264


Change log:
5/19 - reduced the number of numbered rooms to 12, from 17.
5/23 - Expanded area 4 to partially be under area 3, increased the size of area 3. Widened some of the passageways. "flooded" the depression in area 12.
5/24 - Added a "2a" designation.

Oh, for those who might not be familiar with the "Cooperative Dungeon" projects, the premise is simple:

Start with a map, and then assign out individual rooms to contributors who spec out their chosen room.

During the process, room owners can collaborate with each other to ensure consistency. Once complete, the entire thing is compiled and published in some form.

Mark CMG has devoted his time to the previous Cooperative Dungeons, and they are freely available from his website, here:
http://www.creativemountaingames.com/modules.php?name=Downloads

In writing up a room description, each author gives it a boxed text, and provides all relevant stats and features of the area, including monster stats, traps, treasure found, or other pertinent information.

You gotta go with a (for the cave) high end NPC with the dragonkith prestige class who serves as the dragons' chief servant/liaison to the outside world. I'd make her a winged dragonwrought kobold (Races of the Dragon), but I mostly just think the prestige class is bitchin'.

Whizbang Dustyboots said:

You gotta go with a (for the cave) high end NPC with the dragonkith prestige class who serves as the dragons' chief servant/liaison to the outside world. I'd make her a winged dragonwrought kobold (Races of the Dragon), but I mostly just think the prestige class is bitchin'.

Click to expand...

Well, in order to be published, contents of said cave can only be culled from OGL sources. So, a winged dragonwrought kobold just wouldn't be an option.

der_kluge said:

Well, in order to be published, contents of said cave can only be culled from OGL sources. So, a winged dragonwrought kobold just wouldn't be an option.

Click to expand...

I'm going to have to ask you to leave logic out of this.

OK, a kobold major domo (probably with the dragon disciple PrC, just because) then.

That map is flippin' awesome. Great use of color.

For draconic variants, you've got the half-dragon template, the dragon-thingy prestige class and then using the open content from Unearthed Arcana the dragon bloodline stuff, so you aren't as limited as one might think. The hypertext SRD has the bloodline stuff.

Wycen said:

For draconic variants, you've got the half-dragon template, the dragon-thingy prestige class and then using the open content from Unearthed Arcana the dragon bloodline stuff, so you aren't as limited as one might think.

Click to expand...

I don't think he wants draconic variants added to the mix. It sounds like he's looking for a generally straightforward dragon encounter without too much added froo froo.

Still something else cohabitating in a symbiotic relationship would be cool. Carrion crawlers...or some other pack of beasties that the dragon(s) leaves alone since they do a good job of cleaning up "messes" and aren't a threat to it's (their) treasure...

Krieg said:

I don't think he wants draconic variants added to the mix. It sounds like he's looking for a generally straightforward dragon encounter without too much added froo froo.

Still something else cohabitating in a symbiotic relationship would be cool. Carrion crawlers...or some other pack of beasties that the dragon(s) leaves alone since they do a good job of cleaning up "messes" and aren't a threat to it's (their) treasure...

Click to expand...

Yes. Thank you. Let's keep it simple.

Krieg said:

I don't think he wants draconic variants added to the mix. It sounds like he's looking for a generally straightforward dragon encounter without too much added froo froo.

Still something else cohabitating in a symbiotic relationship would be cool. Carrion crawlers...or some other pack of beasties that the dragon(s) leaves alone since they do a good job of cleaning up "messes" and aren't a threat to it's (their) treasure...

Click to expand...

Green dragons enjoy lording it over other beings, though, so I'd think at least some of the dungeon would contain servants/slaves like the aforementioned kobold servant. Carrion crawlers are good, but don't they require more frequent feeding than a dragon is likely to provide them? Gelatinous cubes at the bottom of that ravine, though, and a kobold cleaning crew might keep things orderly.

Being as it's a cave system that requires swimming to penetrate, I couldn't see anything like bat swarms thriving after room #1.