Rappan Athuk: Tossed off the cloister wall

Session was played on 7/10

Nick, Fighter 7 (Me)
Borumar, Thief 9 (Josh) & Fido
Joho, Monk 7 (Chris)
Koltic, Cleric 6 (NPC)

Nick, still feeling drained from an undead encounter months before, uses a wish he’d been holding onto for years for ogre strength (18!).

Hoping Drucilla has some useful leads for them, they set off to find her. While wandering around they are stopped by a talking wolf who promises to relay their request for an audience. Turning north, they head for the cloister, talk to bill, get a map of the inner cloister, and head over to begin their investigation.

They move slowly and carefully, keeping to the walls to limit the avenues of attack. Investigating the tower to the northwest, they find a flour mill that has most recently been used to grind bones. Borumar digs through the hopper and finds 10gp. From there they head south to the walled garden. The plants animate when the party enters, so they pull back and toss in a bunch of oil, and light it up. While it burns they check out the North East tower, which had been the site of a fire. Nick gets konked by some falling stones while poking about inside.

South of that tower is a corner with some bushes, and after ensuring they aren’t going to attack, they find a torn apart body with a key ring with several keys on it. Back to the garden, they poke about the torched and still smoking remains, and find a little change in the fountain. Heading into the main building using the keys to unlock the doors, they find themselves in the kitchen & pantry. There they find a wrapped parcel with 3 potions and a note that the “cross was secured in the observatory with the unblessed skin.”

A ladder in the kitchen area went up, so Nick checked it out. Opening the hatch above, Nick gets a dresser thrown at him. Nick tries to hit whatever it was that attacked him, but hits nothing. Nick comes back down, and Morgana casts Detect Invisible, but sees nothing, even going back out to the courtyard.

Further exploration find several more bodies, and up on the 2nd floor, Nick steps out to a balcony/lookout wall, and gets tossed off of it by an invisible attacker. Luckily he’s tossed out on the swamp side, and while it hurts, there’s no permanent injury.


Gains: keys, note, potions
Kills:
Losses: Nick’s Dignity

#Dungeon23 #Doomgate #TheGarrison February & March Overview

Like The Core, I did the maps for The Garrison out of order. This wasn't an intentional choice exactly, just sort of the way it worked out as I was going. The Garrison is closer to the DoomGate and so shows more effects, and has a different population, although, as with The Core, the AI system is still active and attempting to keep things running as it was programmed to do. While working on this section I hit on the idea that in each facility there's a problem the AI needs fixed, and if the players help the AI, things will be a little easier for them in the next section, and if they don't things should be as I write them. If they actively piss off the AI, it will make their lives harder. 

Below are the levels in order, top to bottom, but not in the order I made them. 

The upper level of the Garrison has 2 exits onto the surface (imagined as a mountainous area) that has a troop of Hobgoblins that have recently moved in and started to make themselves at home (middle left side) a flooded area with various degenerate mutant creatures and natural hazards, and up top the lair of a young red dragon.   

The second level's largest feature is the zombie infested cryo lab and med bay. More otherworldly creatures lurk in this area.  

A small clan of Dark Dwarves have made there home here and the bottom level. The main computer core is here, and the dwarves have taken an important component. 

The final level of The Garrison has some warped architecture and weird effects resulting in part from a device taken from The Ark (October's section). I still need to ink this level.

Rappan Athuk: Frog God Cloister Basement

Session was played on 7/4

Nick, Fighter 7 (Me)
Borumar, Thief 9 (Josh)
Joho, Monk 7 (Chris)
Koltic, Cleric 6 (NPC)
Gimble, Fighter (NPC)
Mog & Gorf (Meatshields)

Heading toward the stairs the party is attacked by a wererat who tears apart Gorf with a glowing dagger, and then drops Mog before it’s cut down. Mog is healed.

Down the stairs, into a cool damp, moldy room with stacks of ancient wine barrels, and a long thing box. Joho takes the box. Back up the stairs to the next staircase down. At the bottom were 4 sets of rusty armor with a lantern with a magical flame lighting the room. As soon as the lantern was touched the room went dark.

Standing in the dark, 4 cultists with mops and brooms appear at the top of the stairs and call down. They invite us up to the temple to chat with the head of the order and get official permission to clean out the old dungeon areas. The party took them up on the offer, and they trooped up, chatting with Bill the Cultist along the way.

In the outer cloister the party mets with Abbot Grosso, get permission to delve the dungeons, and even the old inner cloister that has been taken over by invisible spirits. And should the party find the horn of flies, a mighty reward was offered. The party decides to head back to Nick’s castle and plan their next moves. Mog is cured of his lycanthropy, and decides that this life isn’t for him.


Gains: magic dagger,
Kills: wererat
Losses: Gorf

Trek Long Island

For the first time since COVID hit, I'm going to a convention. I can't even begin to tell you how thrilled I am to be doing this, especially as it's so close. Only for one day, but... I'm excited! Trek Long Island here I come! 

#Dungeon23 #DoomGate #TheCore - January overview

So I haven't posted about this since mid-January, but the project is ongoing! I haven't typed up many of the rooms, just a few along the way that have gotten posted to Twitter or Mastodon. I really want to have some time to sit down and type it all up. But until I do, I want to share what I've got so far, starting with the January maps!

January's maps are a self contained complex known as The Core that is connected to the 2 other subsections, and the main larger dungeon by way of a semi-functional underground monorail system. The Core houses the megadungeon's nuclear power plant. 

Map 1 is actually the 3rd level of The Core, but is the most easily accessed via the well that serves the settlement above. It's the home of a clan of roach-folk whose life centers around the pool containing the nuclear reactor, and the AI trying to keep things from literally melting down. The recently diverted river is messing that up. 

Map 2 is the 2nd level of the dungeon and home to the mutated descendants of the workers who were in The Core when the DemonGate opened and ended the old world. They're enemies both of the Roach-folk and the AI that maintains the Core. 

Map 3 is the uppermost level of the dungeon. The mutants are largely in control of this area as well. It also contains the motor pool/monorail stop for The Core.  

Map 4 is the lowest level of the dungeon, and contains a large number of radioactive undead, and some flooded areas that are causing the AI issues. 

Unmapped is a large crevice on the surface that is used as the Core's cooling system. The hot water is pumped to the lake at the bottom of the crevice, which causes it to be constantly full of warm steam that a small group of steamdrakes (as gargoyles) have made their home. 

#6MMPC 2023 Mid May Check In

I actually started this back in April, but in an attempt to actually keep up with Rule 4, I thought maybe posting about it here will help keep me motivated and on track.

Since it's been a while, here are the rules from the facebook group.

THE 6 Month Challenge runs from 01APR2023 to 01OCT2023.
1. No purchasing of new miniatures, EXCEPT if you use a joker. You get three jokers to use on a figure purchase. Could be a blister pack, an ebay bundle, or a single figure...you can't splurge. The only exception to this rule is if you need bitz or A FIGURE (Singular) to complete a unit/warband etc.
1.1 - There is an opportunity to "earn" additional jokers. If you complete an entire project (whole unit/army/warband etc.) with pictures of starting, WIP, and completion, you earn yourself a Joker.
2. Gifts do not count against you. Holidays, birthdays etc. Also, if you're given gift cards by your hobby illiterate family or friends, you can without penalty use them on anything you want miniatures wise.
3. Paints, terrain (or materials), and other hobby supplies do not apply to the no purchasing rule.
4. At least one hobby related blog post/Facebook Post in this group and/or Instagram update a week. If you use instagram, be sure to hashtag your pic with #6MMRPC
5. Zombtober or Orktober will be part of the 6 month challenge so Zombie or Ork related stuff during October is ENCOURAGED. Other theme suggestions are welcomed.
6. If you are participating, I will be pinning a post for everyone to put a comment in to keep a tally of painted figures and jokers used/earned. Please just edit your post as we go, don’t continue to add more.

And this is where things currently stand. Since the start of the challenge I have painted 9 minis, used 0 jokers, 1 gift card, and currently I am actively working on the minis in the pic below. My goal is to have them all done by the end of the month. 
 

Dark Dwarves

"Go no further!" the gravelly voice calls out from around the bend of the dungeon corridor. "You are not welcome." it continues in the oddly accented dwarvish.

Nimble pauses and looks back at his friends. "I guess we lost the element of surprise." he whispers.

"We really don't want to piss them off." Allianora warns. 

"You really don't" the voice calls from the dark in common.

"We need passage through these halls" Rathgar calls out. "We have no quarrel with you." He waves at Allianora and nods at her scowling. "We are happy to pay a toll"

The silence stretched on... 

"What do you offer?"

"4 fire opals, each as big as my thumb"

"Really?" Nimble hissed.

"We need to get... to where we're going, and this is the fastest way." Feris reminded him softly. 

Dark Dwarves

Armor Class: 2
Hit Dice: 3* (M)
Move: 60' (20')
Attacks: 1 weapon
Damage: 1d8+1
Number Appearing: 1d6 (5d8)
Save As: D3
Morale: 10
Treasure Type: (Q+S) G
Intelligence: 10
Alignment: Lawful
XP Value: 50

Monster Type: Demihuman (Uncommon)

Unlike their more common cousins, the dark dwarves haven't seen the light of the sun in generations. They are lead by religious fanatics worshiping the burning fires of the forge. Their dark god has granted them the ability to grow in size once per day after being injured. They grow to twice their normal size, doubling their movement speed and damage for up to 10 rounds. Their forge priests can trigger this ability on the dark dwarves around them (within 15') causing each of them 1d4 points of damage in the process, as a standard action. 

Dark Dwarven arms and armor are as finely crafted as any masterwork dwarven craft, but no surface dwarf will willingly claim and use them for the association with their dark god.  The heart of their compounds is the forges which are always in use. Their love of precious metals and gems exceeds even that of their cousins. 

Any group of 5+ dark dwarves will include 1 Dark Dwarf Forge Priest (count as clerics level 1d4+3). They can prepare Heat Metal, Produce Fire, and Resist Fire as a first level spells. Cure Light Wounds and Resist Cold count as second level spells. 

Reaper's Jolie the Scribe

This version of Jolie, Adventuring Scribe is from Reaper's new Bones USA line. It isn't as bendy as the traditional Bones or even Bones Black, but it holds detail better than either of them. 

One thing that didn't translate well as compared to the metal version is the book. The cover is ridiculously thick. I have to assume that that's a necessity of the casting process with this material. Other than that, it's a great mini and I really enjoyed painting her up. 

 

Rappan Athuk: Frog God's basement

Rappan Athuk play report from 6/27/22

Nick, Fighter 7 (Me)
Borumar, Thief 9 (Josh)
Joho, Monk 7 (Chris)
Koltic, Cleric 6 (NPC)
Gimble, Fighter (NPC)
Mog & Gorf (Meatshields)

The party does a bit of shopping at the friendly local necromancer’s shop, then head north to the ruins of the frog god’s monastery. It turned out to be less ruined than stories suggested, and the party avoided the inhabited sections, keeping to the more ruined section. There they found some basement entrances, and picked one at random.

The grape vines around it grabbed Borumar after he plucked a grape, but he slipped away thanks in large part to his bark armor. Heading into the cellar, the party encounters a mad hermit, and go off in the opposite direction, finding a large statue of a faun with gold and silver pipes. They loot the pipes.

Deeper in, 4 ghouls try to eat the party, but Koltic destroys 3, and Joho kills the last. In their nest is a bone wand, and 2 small rough carved frog statues. Then Borumar walks into a gelatinous cube. A magic dagger with an open eye-like gem in the pommel is recovered from the splattered bits of the slain cube.

Gains: magic dagger, golds and silver pipes, bone wand
Kills: gelatinous cube, ghouls,
Losses:

April ‘23 In Review

I’m back in my office! And bought more bookshelves so I can finally unpack the rest of my library. I was also away for a week and a half visiting family, so I haven't actually built the shelves... Need to get that done soon. 

Gaming

That 40 odd mile long underground tunnel included a damned talking cockroach innkeeper who did its best to kill all of us. Its head now is mounted over the bar of the inn.  And with that, the party is going to head back to Stonehell for a bit, and I’m going to swap back into the DMs chair for the first time this year! 

Once again, In spite of having my next Stargrave game set up and ready to play, I never found the 2 hours I need to play it. Need to correct that… but I can’t find my crew roster, and haven’t had the time/energy to rewrite it.

Miniatures

A whole troop of dark dwarves ended up being the bulk of my painting for the month. 

Media

Bad Batch
Mandalorian
Ghosts
Star Trek Picard
Ted Lasso

Goals for March

Continue #Dungeon23
Keep up with the session reports
Play the next scenario for Stargrave
Build the 3 bookshelves and get the books up on them

May the Fourth be with you!

On this May the Fourth, the feast day of St. Carrie, may the Blessed Rebel Queen shine her light down on you giving your enemies the middle finger, reminding you to take your meds and laugh it off.