The Wreaking Crypt

[Jack7]

For a long time I've wanted to create a Dungeon which is basically equivalent in value to the Tomb of Horrors (my favorite commercially produced dungeon adventure/module).

I think I may now have had an idea that could work out that way.

It involves what appears to be an old hill that the natives always considered to have been haunted and built by a race of giants "from before." The hill lies at the edge of the frontier area near a rather large village. Most people won't go there though because it is at the frontier's limit of enemy lands. But after several children disappear in that area, and evidence points to the hill, locals ask for the Team (player characters) to go investigate.

When the team gets there they discover the hill is not really a hill but a very large and oddly shaped barrow mound covered by centuries of vegetation. They uncover parts of the hill but can't find an entrance.

One night though a "Glammor Door" appears in the solid stone and they gain entrance. Unknown to the party the mound has been infiltrated by a powerful Warlock hoping to use the ancient rumors about the place to uncover a way to become immortal.

What the Warlock actually discovers is a large series of unusual tombs and crypts and catacombs all of which contain unusually conducted burials and bizarrely desecrated graves. The Warlock has disturbed a couple of these graves and discovered their secrets, but barely escaped with his life.

Therefore he has been luring others to the Barrow to entice them to explore the graves and see what happens.

Finally, with the party he hopes to have victims who are powerful enough to achieve his aims and allow him to discover the artifacts and relics he thinks are buried there to promote his immortality and rise in power.


The barrow was actually built nearly a millennia before by a group of powerful Clerics. These Clerics and their spiritual allies, like Angels and other Beings and creatures, had built the barrow as a trap for an place of entombment for the most powerful Undead creatures in the world (at that time).

Once built the clerics sent out teams to lure the most powerful Undead creatures known of to the barrow, to lure them inside, where their physical forms wee killed, and then the remains desecrated and arranged and patterned in such a way as to make it impossible for them to assume new physical forms. All that then remained of the various Undead were their "Shades" which continued to haunt the barrow, usually near their remains.

Shades remain of the world's most powerful Vampire, Ghoul, Spectre, Mummy, etc. There will be the "shades" 13 Undead creatures in all. And one Ghost who can haunt any area in the Barrow and one Demon who became entrapped there who the Clerics though they destroyed but actually had originally appeared as a shapeshifting Witch. The Clerics thought they had killed the Witch but the demon survived and can still take a number of different forms.

When the party members explore the various graves, if they do certain things, then it is possible for one of the Undead "Shades" to possess one of the party members, in effect making them into temporary version of whatever possesses them. The possessor may then immediately attack the party (the player becoming the New Mummy or Vampire, or whatever it is, with the monster's former abilities plus some unique ones due to the fact that they were formerly the most powerful version of that monster in the world), disguise itself and keep it's agenda secret, or the Shade may seek to escape the Barrow so that it can summon aid or eventually take on a new physical form.

The party will be unaware of all of this at first and have to figure out what is really going on as events develop.

The Barrow itself is also full of a number of traps, devices, lures, machines, mazes, and puzzles - some magical, many supernatural, designed to isolate and forever entrap the Undead interred there. Each gravesite will be different and each gravesite will give some clues about the former occupant, but not what they were or what they could do. Each Undead Shade and his powers will differ (at least to some degree) from standard game version of the monsters. Many of the Undead Shades will be able to directly or indirectly influence the minds and behavior of the living. In addition some will have magical powers, some supernatural powers, and some psionic powers. Or combinations thereof.

The Warlock, having been possessed by two of the Shades, and barely escaping with his life and mind intact, now understands the situation and so has lured the party to take the risks of "possession" and the risks of the Barrow itself. He also hopes to use the party to distract the Demon (who is desperate to escape) and the Ghost (no one is sure who the Ghost is, or why he is there, or if he is haunting the place, or Guarding it), and so keep those off of him.

Also if necessary the Warlock can summon a powerful Crone to fight the party but the Crone will only be under his power for 24 hours, until she is killed, or until she kills a party member and drinks some of their blood. Then the Crone is released.

The Warlock though also has another agenda. He knows of legends of an Artifact, or possibly a Relic, called "The Wreaking." Rumors swirl about who built the Wreaking or even what it is. Btu supposedly by possessing it one can gain some form of immortality, and supposedly one of the Shades knew what it was (it had been used to lure that shade to the Barrow), as did the Clerics who buried it there. Thus I call the Dungeon, The Wreaking Crypt.

There are a few other things going on that no-one knows of, such as the Barrow itself is rotating, and the barrow stones are actually built of bones, some of magical and supernatural creatures, some of the stones having been built of the bones of the Clerics or famous Saints and those who helped build the place. If the party discovers these things then they can potentially use that to their advantage. There is also a "Barrow-Shade" that they can summon at certain locales who will give them clues in rhymed verse about what is really going on. And finally some of the "Undead" physical remains can be consumed and this will temporarily give the eater some of the powers of the former Undead creature to use as they wish, however it also makes the chance of possession that much greater.

Some of the treasure will be very unusual, and some of it will be the former possessions of the Undead buried there. Much of that treasure will be secretly cursed.

This adventure/dungeon is obviously for high-level party members.

 

[Aberzanzorax]

I am trying hard not to be a jerk, but I do want to share a criticism.


I have always enjoyed your posts. You have a lot of interesting things to say, they're usually a bit long (but not wordy...and I'm not saying they're TOO long...they're long because you have plenty of really powerful and interesting things to say that I enjoy reading).


But DAMN, I hate the font.


As my eyes get older, trying to read it becomes harder and harder. I know I'm likely to enjoy reading your post. Even if I have nothing to say, I'll probably get something of value out of reading it.

You make lots of good posts.



This is why I dare say what I'm saying and also why I bother to say it (and put myself out there potentially looking pretty jerky).

Please use the standard font. I really do want to read your posts. I just find it very hard to do so. I don't know if you always use this font, or if it is a recent thing (I was excited to see a post by you in another thread, and didn't remember seeing you in a while, but I didn't read it because of this font.)

Or feel free to use a different expressive font. I don't mean to try to quash creativity, but I just can't get through your post. I tried. I read a paragraph or two, and that was it. This font hurts my eyes to read.


Again, hopefully non-jerky, and intended to be gentle, feedback on how one poster experiences the medium you chose. I'm not critiquing your writing or ideas (in fact, I think they are usually pretty darn good).


Take care, and enjoy your gaming.
Please take this post in the most positive way possible. It's meant to be positive.

 

[Jack7]

Alright, and I'm not taking it as you being a jerk, but what is the normal font here? Or the one most people prefer. I'll try and remember to change my posts to that font.

The reason I always use Dark Courier is that I'm a writer and inventor and almost every program I use is set to automatically open in that font. Because so many of my publishers and clients want paper submissions in that font. So I'm gonna keep it that way because it's so convenient for me. If I write a longer post I just write it in Word then copy and paste. (Yeah, I'd dump Word in a second too if I could get most of my clients and publishers to as well.)

But somebody tell me what the normal font is and when I make a longer post I'll try and remember to change over.

You're not the first to say this so it doesn't bother me, it's just I'm old too and set in my formatting ways cause I don't wanna hav'ta reformat differently for the internet than for my work.

But you're not the first to notice that Dark Courier here doesn't format well as a cross over from my programs. Don't know why but it looks terrible and awful small here compared to how easy it is to read on paper.

So although I don't wanna go through the hassle, yeah I get your points.
They're legitimate. So I'll try and fix it.

 

[Aberzanzorax]

Thanks for the change in font, and openness to ideas. I'm always hesitant to critique font or grammar. I believe the regular font is Verdana.


To your actual adventure: it seems fun.

A few questions:
*What motivates the players to be there in the first place?

*Are the traps meant for undead effective against the living? I can imagine traps that are totally ineffectual, incredibly deadly (especially so against the living), just the same (like a disintegration or blade trap), or even ones that might HEAL the living (e.g. a positive energy trap).

*I worry about the glammor door. I don't know about your group, but if there is not a strong incentive to get into a crypt/dungeon/etc. and even if there is, there might be some reticence to camping there for a while until a glamour door appears. Your mileage may vary, of course, but my group would likely leave, impatient, in search of adventure....but of course, patience has its virtues.

*I like the mystery of different, and unique undead...I also like that they are the most powerful to have existed (in their time....who knows what has happened since the creation of the crypt) but they are weakened into the form of "shades". Were I a player in this adventure, I'd like to see/learn a pattern of shades, on general things that could hurt them and general things that might not work (even though they might ordinarily)....e.g. all shades are incorporeal, so vampires and mummies are especially complicated. I think a "template" which I put in quotes because I don't mean a real template in 3e terminology, could work. If you came up with a set of descriptions about what happens when an undead becomes a shade, that might benefit the adventure. I also think the ghost and demon should NOT have this template. It's a question of providing problem solving, discovery, mystery investigation, etc. along the lines of the major undead, but also having 2 wildcards in the adventure... along with the third major wildcard of the Warlock-pulling the strings.

*I'd like to hear more about the warlock. Is he pulling strings? How does he observe? How does he influence? In what ways is he exactly invested? Might he just reveal all and actually help the players out, assuming he can get his one specific coveted treasure? Is he evil/an antagonist or might he be an ally?

*I'm getting you're looking for deadly traps and fun undead, along with a few random encounters (as per tomb of horrors). Is this correct? Assuming it is, have you looked into traps that are "dynamic" as opposed to "roll a die to find it; roll a die to disarm or set it off"?

*Mapping. I think the whole project might do well with a map. Sharing it with us could be helpful for critique, but, in general, I think it might help to solidify your "zones" for each undead, as well as "safe areas" for the warlock, ghost, and demon.

*Unforseen consequences: These are the MOST powerful undead. That's a heavy weight. What are the possibilities of releasing them, not as shades, but as full borne evil? What might that entail? Also, here's a fun one, what if players can destroy all of 2 types of undead permanently (e.g. NEVER will there be another new mummy or ghoul) but to do so, they must unleash a single undead paragon upon the world (e.g. free the most powerful vampire or lich in the world, kept as a shade in this crypt).

 

[Jack7]

After sketching out my ideas I've decided this will actually be a set of 3 adventures. If players survive the first one they move on progressively. The first will be the Wreaking Crypt. The second will be The Dwarves, the Giants, and the Folly Men. And the last will be called Wreaking Havoc.

*I like the mystery of different, and unique undead...I also like that they are the most powerful to have existed (in their time....who knows what has happened since the creation of the crypt) but they are weakened into the form of "shades". Were I a player in this adventure, I'd like to see/learn a pattern of shades, on general things that could hurt them and general things that might not work (even though they might ordinarily)....e.g. all shades are incorporeal, so vampires and mummies are especially complicated. I think a "template" which I put in quotes because I don't mean a real template in 3e terminology, could work. If you came up with a set of descriptions about what happens when an undead becomes a shade, that might benefit the adventure. I also think the ghost and demon should NOT have this template. It's a question of providing problem solving, discovery, mystery investigation, etc. along the lines of the major undead, but also having 2 wildcards in the adventure... along with the third major wildcard of the Warlock-pulling the strings.

I don't wanna give it all away but every Undead will have some powers normally associated with the type (but in my setting there are usually just one or a few of each type of monster) and also a number of powers and abilities completely unique to it as an individual. Certain things can hurt most of the Undead, like silver, but has random effects on the Shades, because the Shades are now weekend or transformed spirits, not Undead as they were formerly. (One has even transformed in nature into something else entirely.) The Shades also have different effects upon each player they possess, which will be a sort of amalgam effect of the possessors former capabilities, and the individual capabilities of the character being possessed. Therefore a Holy symbol might help drive out or exorcise one possessor in one character but have no effect upon another character. And the Mummy Shade possessing one character will not necessarily behave or have the same capabilities as if it possessed another character. Each Undead shade will have it's own agenda as well. As well as a basic history of when it was both alive and Undead that will affect what it can do or will do.

Each Undead will also have different types of remains. For instance all that is left of the Vampire is a shadow imprinted upon a huge crystal mirror of where the Vampire's body was destroyed. All that is left of the Ghoul is ashes in an urn. And a heart that still beats. But the Mummy's body has been transformed into a huge, rock hard chunk of salt.

The ghost and demon will also not be ordinary "Types" but will have their own agendas and unique abilities.

*I worry about the glammor door. I don't know about your group, but if there is not a strong incentive to get into a crypt/dungeon/etc. and even if there is, there might be some reticence to camping there for a while until a glamour door appears. Your mileage may vary, of course, but my group would likely leave, impatient, in search of adventure....but of course, patience has its virtues.

The Glammor Door first appears in a dream on the first night in the area to one of the party members. The dream even provides a vision of where it can be found. Upon investigation they find the Glammor Door but every time they approach it it shifts position before they can see inside it. The next night it appears near the party on the Barrow and when approached rapidly detaches itself from the wall and runs at and engulfs one of the party members. Then disappears. The next night it appears on the Barrow surface and is stable and can be entered by all of the other party members. The Glammor door is actually being manipulated by the Warlock so as to entice and lure the party members into the crypt for his own reasons. He wants them to take it. And with my party there is no way they will desert the party member swallowed by the door.

*I'd like to hear more about the warlock. Is he pulling strings? How does he observe? How does he influence? In what ways is he exactly invested? Might he just reveal all and actually help the players out, assuming he can get his one specific coveted treasure? Is he evil/an antagonist or might he be an ally?

The Warlock uses magic to observe the party. And sometimes to manipulate them to various crypts, but he doesn't know where all the crypts are or which Undead shade might know about the Wreak. He has not discovered the Barrow Shade, or as it calls itself, the Barrow Wight (The Buried Man). The warlock does try to pull strings, he has some power to influence dreams and visions and he uses misdirection. As to how he reacts to the party and how he uses them and to whether and to what extent he is evil the party will have to figure that out as they go along. The Warlock is absolutely committed to finding the Wreak and to using it to gain power and perhaps immortality.

*Are the traps meant for undead effective against the living? I can imagine traps that are totally ineffectual, incredibly deadly (especially so against the living), just the same (like a disintegration or blade trap), or even ones that might HEAL the living (e.g. a positive energy trap).

Some of them are. You've got some good ideas there and I like where you're going. Some of the traps can also exorcise possession by trapping a Shade but can also be dangerous in other ways (to player abilities, physically dangerous, to experience level, to the mind or soul, etc.).

*I'm getting you're looking for deadly traps and fun undead, along with a few random encounters (as per tomb of horrors). Is this correct? Assuming it is, have you looked into traps that are "dynamic" as opposed to "roll a die to find it; roll a die to disarm or set it off"?

I don't handle much of anything by die-roll. Often we don't even use dice for combat. I've got a set of three systems we use to handle various situations. One uses die-rolls, one does not, and one is a sort of hybrid. the players get to choose how they handle a game or even specific encounters. Most satiations I'll describe or provide illustrations and then they tell me what they do. If they trip something by their actions the traps spring. If not, they won't. Same for the way they handle Undead remains and most everything else. It'll be their choice how we play it.

*Mapping. I think the whole project might do well with a map. Sharing it with us could be helpful for critique, but, in general, I think it might help to solidify your "zones" for each undead, as well as "safe areas" for the warlock, ghost, and demon.

The whole place is both a Maze and a Map, if the players can figure out how to read it. If they do then the architecture itself will provide the map. If they don't understand what they're seeing then they'll have to play it out the old fashioned "mapping as they go route." Like Tomb of Horrors there will also be teleport areas. Btu also areas where solid walls can be walked through and some areas in which you can step into the wall and the wall itself will push you along it like a river current.

The Warlock is not allied to either the Demon or the Ghost. The Warlock is scared to go most places because he's already been almost killed by being possessed by 2 or the Undead (before he figured out what was really going on). The Demon and the Ghost do not work with each other. The Demon is trapped there but can't penetrate certain areas. The Demon is hardly averse to killing and will make every attempt to do so. The Ghost can kill just by being in its presence, regardless of its intentions. The Ghost can apparently go anywhere in the Barrow but no one is sure who he is, why he is there, or what his real purpose is.

The Barrow Wight is another Wild Card. As are the Undead remains, and their treasure, as are their Shades, and the Barrow itself. The Barrow is constructed of huge blacks that are the retransformed bones of others that have been petrified. If the party figures this out (or if the Warlock observes the party doing this) then either or both can use the structure itself to do very unique and weird things, some magical, some supernatural, some even miraculous.

The Wreak is not what the Warlock thinks it is. And unless the party captures or interrogates or gets the Warlock to confess they won't even know about the Wreak until after the entire adventure is concluded.

I'll put up the other adventures in the series later. Hitting the hay for now.

*I like the mystery of different, and unique undead...I also like that they are the most powerful to have existed (in their time....who knows what has happened since the creation of the crypt) but they are weakened into the form of "shades".

There will be something very important about that, if either the players or the Warlock can figure it out. If they can't figure it out then the Wreak escapes. If they do figure it out then the Wreak possesses the Warlock and transforms the Warlock into something very peculiar. And dangerous.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

The normal font is "don't set a font, let it go to the default." All of the font choices are pretty hideous, for whatever reason.

 

[Jack7]

The trouble is WD that whenever I copy and paste longer posts it posts them automatically on this site in my default font, which is Dark Courier (or maybe this site just uses Courier). Which as several others have pointed out is a bad font for this site. I'm not sure what the default font is here, on this site, but Verdana does seem better than Dark Courier.

 

[Jack7]

The Dwarves, the Giants, and the Folly Men

The Dwarves, the Giants, and the Folly Men - this adventure is a follow on to the Wreaking Crypt. Part 2 you might say.

While the party is inside the Barrow of the Undead a group of 12 men (no one knows who they are or where they come from, but they speak the local language - Greek in this case - in a strange dialect and accent) move into the local area and start buying up materials. At first they appear to be miners or builders.

They then set up a large Tent City not far from the Barrow, along the bald rock face of a frontier's mountain range, and declare that they intend to populate their tent city with clans of local Dwarves and a group of Giants. The locals know that these Dwarves and Giants are hostile towards one another and would never work together and so they take to calling this expedition of men the "Folly Men."

The Folly Men persist in their claims however and within a week a large group of Giants appear, about 200 (ranging in height from between 12 and 15 feet tall) and shortly after they arrive clans of Dwarves arrive. The local population is terrified of the Giants but the Folly Men insist they are not hostile, but there to work. And soon they do just that.

The Dwarves and Giants set out on the rock face and apparently start to carve it into a huge Face, but not one anyone locally recognizes. The Dwarves do the fine work, the Giants most of the heavy labor, and apparently the Folly Men are handling the engineering and design. At first the locals are very afraid, then suspicious, and then eventually warm to the expedition as it spends a lot of money in the local economy, and people start to visit the tent city to provide food and goods to the expedition. The Dwarves and Giants seem to get along peaceably, and all of the groups seem to respect local laws and customs and to behave well.

Seen from a distance the face is very impressive, but as one approaches it seems to move or shift position depending upon how one is looking at it. It also seems to glow weirdly at night sometimes and observers at nightfall and dawn swear they can sometimes hear it speaking, but not in any recognizable language. As it is being built and properly shaped the Giants and Dwarves also appear to be painting it in bright, sometimes glittering colors.

As it further develops (far too rapidly it seems) the locals begin to have odd dreams and some people see weird or even terrifying visions. Most disturbing of all important men in the nearby areas - political leaders, military men, tradesmen and merchants, religious elders, and wealthy men begin disappearing. One moment they appear to be normal, the next they vanish. After 13 such men vanish, the local population, in a state of panic, forms a group of representatives, accompanied by a local militia and some professional garrison troops, to go speak to the expedition about these matters. When the representatives and the soldiers arrive at the tent city they find it completely deserted. Stripped clean except for the tents and camp debris.

The face appears to have been completed (far to quickly in the short span of time it was worked upon) but now it is chalk white and there is no paint or color on it at all, yet the whole rock face appears to shimmer and glow at times.

If any party members survive the Wreaking Crypt (the party members think they have been gone a very short period of time, in actuality they have been missing for months) then on the way back to the local village they hear the reports and history about what has happened to the rock face on the mountain and about the expedition of the Dwarves and the Giants.

When the party reaches the village both the citizens there and the local government want to hire them to go and investigate the abandoned Tent City and the carved Rock Face.

When the party reprovisions and goes to the Tent City it is already in ruins. Only tatters remain and left over debris. Beneath the rock Face is a large work area with tools built for both Giants and Dwarves. But there is no other sign of either.

When the party climbs the carving area and actually reaches the Rock Face they discover that the Face is not a carving at all, the Face had apparently been some sort of illusion, visible only at a distance. The "Face" is actually a series of caves. 12 of the caves go back no farther than 20 feet into the rock and all contain the body of a man. Each body looks as if it were actually ripped apart, the limbs and head having been torn from the corpses, and then the remains apparently ritually arranged in a pattern. (If the players make sketches of the corpses they will discover that each set of remains are arranged in such a way as to form letters or possibly glyphs of some kind).

There is a 13th cave which recedes deep into the mountain. The sides of the cave are well constructed and intricately ornamented. Small holes are drilled at weird angles in the cave walls, floor, and ceiling, and some of the walls contain small tubes sticking out from them. It seems very unlikely that it could have possibly been built while the party was away in the Wreaking Crypt.

Whenever a breeze passes through this cave, from either outside, or from deeper down the passage, the air passing through the holes or the tubes/pipes causes what sound like voices to be heard, and sometimes actual words and phrases to be spoken. These sounds are apparently in an unknown language however and no-one can recognize exactly what is being said.

Down the passage of the 13th Cave will be the actual adventure itself. And facing them will be Dwarves, Giants, the traps and ambushes they have set, the constructions they have created, the vengeance of the Folly Men, and several other things that have been set loose or set in motion by the events surrounding the Wreaking Crypt.

 

[Jack7]

Wreaking Havoc

Wreaking Havoc - The third installment of the set of adventures dealing with the Wreak.

If the party survives the adventure of the Folly Men then they will have by this point gathered at least some information about what is possibly going on surrounding the Wreak.

First of all they will know that there are likely 3 Wreaks, or at least 3 different parts or segments of the same Wreak.

Secondly they will know that the Wreaks they have seen, although appearing to be devices, also seem to be alive, or to at least house a Living or Living entities.

Thirdly that the Wreak or Wreaks are somehow connected to the Undead.

Fourth, that someone of something is affecting the minds and behavior of others, including Dwarves, Giants, and Men. But whether that power or force is of or is connected to the Wreak, the Undead, the Folly Men, or some as yet unknown source is not yet known.

What the party members have yet to discover is the fact that the Wreak is indeed both a device and a living Entity, that it was accidentally split and scattered when it came to investigate the Barrow that the Clerics had built to entrap the Greatest Undead of their Age, that the Folly Men are the potential "rescuers" of the Undead Shades (the Umbrae), and they have yet to meet Kelbrane.

Kelbrane is a being of unknown origin, who appears humanoid but whose skin is covered in transparent platelets which seem to resonate when he walks or moves. At times he seems to ring like softly chiming bells, at other times he sounds like metal scraping against metal when in motion. His eyes appear almost crystalline and are similarly transparent, but when looking into his eyes rather than seeing reflected light one can see various scenes of unknown places and beings.

Kelbrane does not speak but rather he when he wishes to communicate his skin vibrates and shimmers softly which produces various sounds, some of them like music. Although no known words or languages are transmitted by these sounds anyone listening can "know" what he said. Kelbrane can also influence the mind, mood, and behavior of others when he is "speaking," causing them to see vivid and realistic visions.

Kelbrane has an agenda towards the Undead and possibly towards the Wreak as well.

As the adventure of Wreaking Havoc continues the players should come to understand these possibilities for Kelbrane's involvement and behavior. Some of these ideas are planted in the minds of various party members by Kelbrane himself, but different party members seem to get different impressions of Kelbrane's true intentions and purposes.

1. Kelbrane intends to free all of the Barrow Shades, housing all of these various shades in his own body, and thereby gain all of the abilities of the Shades he houses

2. Kelbrane can control all of the Shades he houses

3. Kelbrane cannot control all of the Shades he houses and will become possessed by them

4. Kelbrane is an Undead Being himself and by housing all of the Undead Shades in his own body intends to become the Greatest Undead of his age

5. The Undead Shades eagerly await being freed by Kelbrane and intend to assist him

6. The Undead Shades fear or despise (or both) Kelbrane and intend to fight him

7. Kelbrane and the Wreak are somehow associated and both intend to obliterate all Undead in the World forever, somehow using the Shades as their means

Other rumors surrounding Kelbrane will be discovered as the adventure proceeds.


Rumors surrounding the Folly Men are as follows:

1. the Folly Men are enslaved servants of the Undead Shades and are trying to rescue them from their prison

2. The Folly Men are Undead themselves

3. The Folly Men are to be the new bodies for the Undead Shades

4. The Folly Men are the Original Clerics who entrapped the Shades and intend to destroy them once and for all


The Undead Shades have an agenda of their own, but not all have the same agenda. A couple want to die forever. One intends to gain his freedom and then seek some way to atone for his previous evil deeds. Most want simply to escape. A few want to take possession of new bodies. And three want to somehow regain use of their former bodies, though this now seems impossible.

The Shades seem to have an uneasy relationship with the Wreak (or at least that part of the Wreak they are familiar with) and some are repelled by it and a few seem frightened of it. A couple seem fascinated by it and a few suspect it may be a means of escape from the Barrow.

All of these various agendas will play themselves out if the Shades encounter the party members, take possession of some of the party members, or manage to escape the Barrow (by whatever means possible). So it will be impossible for the party members to develop a single, unified strategy for dealing with the Undead Shades. Most every Shade will have to be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.

The actual adventure of Wreaking Havoc will begin as the party exits the mountain. At that point they will discover signs of widespread destruction throughout the region. When they return to the Village that hired them they will discover the entire Village population has been brutally massacred, and not by weapons, but apparently by having been literally torn apart. Corpses will be scattered everywhere, though it does appear some people may have escaped. Homes and buildings will have been burned and razed, and some looting will have apparently occurred. The scene is horrific.

If the party stays the night in the area then at night a grisly replay of the Village massacre will recur as a sort of visual and auditory after-Image. The party will be able to dimly see re-enactments of the massacre and hear screams and cries for help as the villagers are torn to pieces. But there will be no images or sound impressions of the attackers, instead in their place will be a sort of wavering image, like waves of heat rising from an intensely hot fire. The attackers cannot be seen or heard, only the victims. However the party will see that some of the attackers apparently rise from the ground at certain points throughout the village and the area. (If the party has decided to camp for the night anywhere in the area except within the Barrow or the Mountain itself then they will see the same replay of the Village massacre.) After midnight on the first night if the party has not either buried or burned the corpses of the Villagers then the remains of their bodies will animate and rise from the dead.

If they decide to investigate the areas where the attackers seem to have arisen from the ground they will discover holes which lead into caverns and rooms underground. At this point it becomes apparent that the Village was built over the buried remains of a much older town or settlement. Parts of this town or settlement are still in existence having been preserved by being buried and covered over.

Within these ruins will be found the third part of the Wreak, and a long dried underground waterway that may lead all the way back to the Barrow and another arm of which seems to lead under the Mountain, those responsible for the Village massacre, and the Folly Men (who have apparently inhabited part of the Underground Ruins as a temporary base of operations).

In addition, under the old ruins themselves, and at the triune fork of the dried, underground waterway system is what appears to be a passage leading downwards into an even older set of ruins, though what these ruins or structures were used for is unknown.

In this last adventure the Wreak, The Undead Shades, the Folly Men, the Barrow Demon, and the Warlock will all play their own parts in the plot. (Assuming they have all survived.) In addition the Barrow Wight, the Ghost, and Kelbrane will all figure prominently as well, and will all affect how events proceed.

I've decided that all three of these adventures (The Wreaking Crypt, The Dwarves, the Giants, and the Folly Men - aka The Wreak under the Mountain, and Wreaking Havoc), taken together and as a set, will be called, The Last of the Dead-Men.

 

[jefgorbach]

The trouble is WD that whenever I copy and paste longer posts it posts them automatically on this site in my default font, which is Dark Courier (or maybe this site just uses Courier). Which as several others have pointed out is a bad font for this site. I'm not sure what the default font is here, on this site, but Verdana does seem better than Dark Courier.

maybe write in Word/whatever for ease and spell-checking then cut/paste to Notepad to strip font before cut/paste to Enworld??