Thomas Percy
First Post
XV. Rivergate District
Just another small mundane ward of the town.
I like Well of The Shadow Eyes classical idea of secret door in the well, and its inhabitant, who can be named third criminal guildmaster in Ptolus, or just silent partner of one of them. Anyway, its the NPC with interesting portrait, and background.
XVI. South Market
Just another small mundane ward of the town.
Here, in the Blackstock Printing, we meet a few NPCs related (in very interesting way) to above mentioned The Shadow Eyes. Besides Blackstock has begun printing „books” for one of the main troublemakers in the city.
Korben Trollone’s Office is a place similiar to „Baldur’s Gate 2: Shadows of Amn” Cooper Cornet Tavern, with cool underground level floor-plan.
The Wandering Smith is another interesting NPC. He has extraordinary portrait, the same background (especially for simple smith), and nice stats.
XVII. Temple District
At the begening I found useful imho table for (some kind of) generation „what the PCs see when they enter a temple?”. Good for fleshing out the campaing, make it colorfull, not uneventful.
I like House of the Sacred Heat idea – it’s a place where the clerics maintain eternal holy flame which can heal your wound. It’s a painful process, and you can find there a few interesting NPCs.
Priory of Introspection are headquarters of the Sisterhood of Silence, so floor-plan of this monastery and the description of it is must-be for eveeryone who will use it in his campaign. Especially, there are some new strange things such as screen in the audience chamber.
Temple of the Ebon Hand is complete rather-low-level dungeon crawl adventure with floor-plan, all stats, a few pictures (with a little old Freeport adventure’s feel), and cool table of cultists’ deformities.
A digression about „what makes dungeon crawl adventure” cool for me, and „why I fall asleep over 95% of them?”. Let me take „Temple of the Ebon Hand”, Ptolus, XVII, p. 379 as an example of one of these 5% interesting dun-crawls imho. Why?
My private answer is: because there are several new ideas, or even old ideas but composed in new interesting way. The logic is no answer, the „realism” is no answer, and all these monsters (and most of their tactics) and treasures mean nothing for me, because I can use them anywhere.
So… ideas. Let’s look into Temple of the Ebon Hand to see what ideas definitely.
# The cultist revere mutation and deformity, some of them are deformed naturally (eg. they are crippled), some of them are mutated by cult’s rituals. It leads to two curiosities: First; it creates motivations for a lot of cultist – they are handicaps, they are baned from medieval society, and they’re looking for a place where they can meet other cripples and feel… normal. Second; it creates additional impediment (encumbrance) for the PCs – they cannot simple hack and slash everyone in this temple.
# The Cult is kidnaping young people and transforms them into… enough spoilers! – so the PCs have evident, not forced (railroading-like) hook to go there and investigate, especially if among the kidnaped are their relatives, cohorts etc.
# The Cult have original symbols, rituals. A few excelent pictures is enough to catch the feel of this dungeon. The rituals are interesting, because Monte creates a rolling list (a table) full of these deformations, which look good (I mean ugly and every NPC marked with them has distincitive traits) and they (the deformations) have sipmle but powerful D&D system effects. I can’t say how this mutation takes place because of spoilers, but this is very, very interesting process – I can call a mutation chamber an adventure inside the adventure.
# The cultist are quick to flee, what is not surprising among crippled Com1 – but it creates another interesting impediment (encumbrance) for the PCs: most of the cultist will run away, while some elite clerics, guard and monsters will fight the PCs. It explains why there will be no single mass battle (CR overpowered!) in the first chamber and a lot of exploration of empty rooms next, which should be logical extrapolation of every dungeon crawl adventure full of monster waiting in their treasure-rooms for the PCs.
# The adventure is open ended, most of the enemies have way to escape. All dungeon is connected with another low-level dungon below Ptolus.
# It’s short! Six pages with all needed stats and floor-plans.
Well… that’s not all advantages of „Temple of the Ebon Hand”, but that’s imho enough to explain, why I will DM this dungoen crawl and will not DM 95% other dun-crawls.
End of digression.
In the Temple of Gaen we can find fine stats of CR20 good NPCs: cleric and paladin with full and uncommon equipmement and a portrait. Useful thing.
Temple Observatory of the Watcher of the Skies is a HQ of announced a lot of times in my review the NPC Helmut Itlenstein, who is one of the main bad guys (or good guy, because he’s pivolat as a lot of ptolus material). He has connection with republican movement, he’s astrologer in the worst type of mad astrologers, he has artifacts from deep high-level Ptolus’ past), he can be connected to crime lords.
Temple of the Rat God is another complete rather-low-level dungeon crawl adventure with floor-plan, a map, all stats, and a few pictures.
XVIII. Warrens
A slums of Ptolus is a place where most of crime lords mysteries is resolved (or started) thanks to some floor-plans (assassins’ guild, drows’ hideout), stat-blocks (wizards’ for hire, actually hired by the crime syndicate), street gang description (young guns!) with the stats of their mysterious leader.
If you like a scenario containing The Swords of Ptolus artifacts, everything can starts here.
Just another small mundane ward of the town.
I like Well of The Shadow Eyes classical idea of secret door in the well, and its inhabitant, who can be named third criminal guildmaster in Ptolus, or just silent partner of one of them. Anyway, its the NPC with interesting portrait, and background.
XVI. South Market
Just another small mundane ward of the town.
Here, in the Blackstock Printing, we meet a few NPCs related (in very interesting way) to above mentioned The Shadow Eyes. Besides Blackstock has begun printing „books” for one of the main troublemakers in the city.
Korben Trollone’s Office is a place similiar to „Baldur’s Gate 2: Shadows of Amn” Cooper Cornet Tavern, with cool underground level floor-plan.
The Wandering Smith is another interesting NPC. He has extraordinary portrait, the same background (especially for simple smith), and nice stats.
XVII. Temple District
At the begening I found useful imho table for (some kind of) generation „what the PCs see when they enter a temple?”. Good for fleshing out the campaing, make it colorfull, not uneventful.
I like House of the Sacred Heat idea – it’s a place where the clerics maintain eternal holy flame which can heal your wound. It’s a painful process, and you can find there a few interesting NPCs.
Priory of Introspection are headquarters of the Sisterhood of Silence, so floor-plan of this monastery and the description of it is must-be for eveeryone who will use it in his campaign. Especially, there are some new strange things such as screen in the audience chamber.
Temple of the Ebon Hand is complete rather-low-level dungeon crawl adventure with floor-plan, all stats, a few pictures (with a little old Freeport adventure’s feel), and cool table of cultists’ deformities.
A digression about „what makes dungeon crawl adventure” cool for me, and „why I fall asleep over 95% of them?”. Let me take „Temple of the Ebon Hand”, Ptolus, XVII, p. 379 as an example of one of these 5% interesting dun-crawls imho. Why?
My private answer is: because there are several new ideas, or even old ideas but composed in new interesting way. The logic is no answer, the „realism” is no answer, and all these monsters (and most of their tactics) and treasures mean nothing for me, because I can use them anywhere.
So… ideas. Let’s look into Temple of the Ebon Hand to see what ideas definitely.
# The cultist revere mutation and deformity, some of them are deformed naturally (eg. they are crippled), some of them are mutated by cult’s rituals. It leads to two curiosities: First; it creates motivations for a lot of cultist – they are handicaps, they are baned from medieval society, and they’re looking for a place where they can meet other cripples and feel… normal. Second; it creates additional impediment (encumbrance) for the PCs – they cannot simple hack and slash everyone in this temple.
# The Cult is kidnaping young people and transforms them into… enough spoilers! – so the PCs have evident, not forced (railroading-like) hook to go there and investigate, especially if among the kidnaped are their relatives, cohorts etc.
# The Cult have original symbols, rituals. A few excelent pictures is enough to catch the feel of this dungeon. The rituals are interesting, because Monte creates a rolling list (a table) full of these deformations, which look good (I mean ugly and every NPC marked with them has distincitive traits) and they (the deformations) have sipmle but powerful D&D system effects. I can’t say how this mutation takes place because of spoilers, but this is very, very interesting process – I can call a mutation chamber an adventure inside the adventure.
# The cultist are quick to flee, what is not surprising among crippled Com1 – but it creates another interesting impediment (encumbrance) for the PCs: most of the cultist will run away, while some elite clerics, guard and monsters will fight the PCs. It explains why there will be no single mass battle (CR overpowered!) in the first chamber and a lot of exploration of empty rooms next, which should be logical extrapolation of every dungeon crawl adventure full of monster waiting in their treasure-rooms for the PCs.
# The adventure is open ended, most of the enemies have way to escape. All dungeon is connected with another low-level dungon below Ptolus.
# It’s short! Six pages with all needed stats and floor-plans.
Well… that’s not all advantages of „Temple of the Ebon Hand”, but that’s imho enough to explain, why I will DM this dungoen crawl and will not DM 95% other dun-crawls.
End of digression.
In the Temple of Gaen we can find fine stats of CR20 good NPCs: cleric and paladin with full and uncommon equipmement and a portrait. Useful thing.
Temple Observatory of the Watcher of the Skies is a HQ of announced a lot of times in my review the NPC Helmut Itlenstein, who is one of the main bad guys (or good guy, because he’s pivolat as a lot of ptolus material). He has connection with republican movement, he’s astrologer in the worst type of mad astrologers, he has artifacts from deep high-level Ptolus’ past), he can be connected to crime lords.
Temple of the Rat God is another complete rather-low-level dungeon crawl adventure with floor-plan, a map, all stats, and a few pictures.
XVIII. Warrens
A slums of Ptolus is a place where most of crime lords mysteries is resolved (or started) thanks to some floor-plans (assassins’ guild, drows’ hideout), stat-blocks (wizards’ for hire, actually hired by the crime syndicate), street gang description (young guns!) with the stats of their mysterious leader.
If you like a scenario containing The Swords of Ptolus artifacts, everything can starts here.
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