Sometimes it is tempting, for a variety of reasons, for a DM to want to roll the dice for the players.

Shocking?

Absurd?

A good idea?

In general players love to roll dice.  It is part of what makes the game fun.  Watching those little bits of plastic roll across the table give the game a tactile sensation that is just plain lacking in a computer RPG.  It really enhances the suspense.  Shaking those dice, hoping, wishing, praying that it isn’t a 1 or that you may get that desperately needed 20.

But then you have people cheating or completely incompetent or who just seem to never have their own dice.  It would be so much easier just to do it for them.

This is probably not a good idea.  Cheaters generally get caught by other players and players have ways of enforcing rules.  Those who lack the interest in the game to get (or remember) their own dice will eventually quit anyway.  Bide your time and they will disappear all on their own.

The one situation in which you may wish to consider rolling dice for players is when it doesn’t make sense for the character to know the result.  If they are searching, you may not want the players to know if anything can be found or not.  If a character rolls high and the search result is that they found nothing then they will quit because the player knows that a high roll means there was nothing to be found.  Likewise if they roll a 2 they may metagame a bit and decide to have thier buddy go over the area again because they know the die result.

You may wish to consider making a house rule to make these rolls yourself.  You may wish to consider search, listen and sneak attempts under these rules, but certainly nothing which has an obvious result like jumping or opening a door.  If you do decide to implement such a rule, be consistent.  Make the rolls all the time, not just when there is something to be found.

Like all house rules this is something to be implemented with care and thought or perhaps not implemented at all.

Have fun gaming!

Welcome back to Dungeons and Dragons Corner.

You can find Character Sheets Here.

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One of the things that can be frustrating to players is that they simply get stuff that they don’t need or want for their characters.  Either the magic items simply aren’t useful or they don’t have the right potions or they simply prefer using an axe to a magic sword.  By the same token as a DM it can be really frustrating when the players just don’t have what they need to perform well in the dungeon that you have spent forever planning.

Putting some time into the shops in your world can go a long way towards solving these problems, depending on your players.  If you play with the kind of folks who will kill anything they see that has anything of value then you can more or less ignore this entire article because the players will more than likely just try to steal everything rather than trade for it.

But, assuming that your players are willing to trade - you can add a shop just about anywhere in your game.  This can be as simply as a merchant who has stopped in town for a day to a halfling caravan along the road to an old man found in the woods who happens to have a solution to fire resistance but could really use a healing potion in exchange.

If you’ve been listening to the players’ gripes then you should have a pretty good idea what they want and what they have that they don’t want.  Often they will end up with gear that they don’t want but which they hesitate to sell at PHB prices because of the expense.  Allowing them to trade (sometimes) for an item of equal or lesser value can go a long way towards helping them get the equipment they need and want.

But this sort of thing has to have boundaries or it will get out of hand very fast.

1 - the items available must be specific.  You can’t have a merchant out there traveling around with all magic items levels 6 thru 10.  If there is that much variety available then use the standard pricing system and have the players trade in gold, and it should probably be an established shop with all the regular guards and precautions.

2 - limit the quantities.  Just like the selection the total number of items avaiable should be limited to one or two.  If a wandering druid just happens to have the eight items that the party wants it will seem strange at the very least and most likely the druid will be robbed and/or stabbed in his sleep.

3 - limit the amount of time the items are avaiable in the game.  Once that druid has moved out of sight of the party he should vanish from the game.  This keeps him safe from those characters who will want to circle back and slaughter him for the little gold he still has as well as make him avaialbe for future use.

Finally, I suggest re-using the same “shops” from time to time.  This will make it obvious to the players what you are trying to do without screwing with the suspension of disbelief too much.  If there is a clear signal of “trade with this guy” then the players will be more likely to trade and less likely to do anything else.

If you do include regular magic shops with a large selection of items, allowing the occaisional one for one trade without penalty can also be useful, but the same rules apply.  This should be for specific items in limited quantities and for a limited time.  The shop may be in dire need of a bag of holding and willing to trade that super special sword for it, but only just this once and only because they haven’t been able to sell that sword anyway.  If the players come back tomorrow they may just discover that someone else sold them a bag of holding and they don’t really need theirs so badly so the trade deal is off.

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Fundamentally all table top games are about interacting with other people.  It doesn’t matter if you are playing Monopoly, Magic The Gathering or Dungeons and Dragons.  Being able to understand what other people at the table are thinking is an invaluable skill in any game but can be especially useful in Dungeons and Dragons where player interaction has far fewer restrictions than most other games.

If you are running the game, being able to pull of a lie at a table full of savvy players can be really difficult but at the same time very important in order to maintain suspense.  When you know all the secrets it can be difficult to keep them hidden until just the right moment (or to encourage the players in just the right way to find them).

Here are some basics to keeping abreast of what is really going on at the table.

First, watch for moods.  If you have been playing with the same group for a while, then you will know that when Eddy is in a grumpy mood he will be thinking about smashing face a lot more than usual.  When Cindy is happy she gets creative and devious and may try to mess with the other players.  A general rule of thumb is that happier people do more while those who are feeling glum will do less.

Keep an eye on the time and the amount of caffeine consumed.  As players get tired their style of play generally changes.  If you have just found what you think is going to be a very tough fight but all of your party members are out of Mountain Dew and half asleep you may want to consider suggesting they tackle it another time.  A tactical error because someone is too tired to hold up their dice may not be a good idea, unless of course you are looking to sabotage the party, in which case this would be a good time to make your move.

Pay attention to sudden changes in behavior as well.  A player who is whispering to the guy next to him is up to something, but so is the guy who suddenly starts dancing on the tavern tables.  This could be a signal of a surprise attack or just that the player is bored.  Either way keep your eyes open and adjust your plans accordingly.

Learning to pass off a lie is extremely difficult, but perhaps the best tool is distraction.  Whether you are playing a devious NPC or just trying to keep a portion of the loot for yourself, getting the players to focus on something else is a good start.  Using out of game stuff like food, drink, their dice or what happened last week can all be useful.  Most of us can’t think about more than a few things at once and when we’re tired focusing on one thing can be a challenge.

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One lesson I’ve learned the hard way is to be careful what I say as a Dungeon Master.  Believe it or not the players listen.

Sometimes when describing a scene I will add a sentence or two of flavor just to make the scene stick a little bit.  The players take this added flavor text to heart and before long they are so focused on the color of the princess’ dress that they are completely overlooking the half burned letter from the evil overlord that she was attempting to destroy when they walked in.  Suddenly the color green is an omen for death at every step and they want to go out confiscating every bundle of green cloth in the country.

Okay, maybe a bit of exaggeration, but not a whole lot.  Usually it is something more like the quality of a chair or the sturdiness of a table or the location of a fur rug.  The players expect that there is something special about it.  Why?  Because I’m the DM and I wouldn’t be saying anything if it weren’t important.

The lesson is that I should keep my mouth shut unless I want the players to interact with it.  If it isn’t something that I as a DM really want to deal with then I should probably skip it.  Players will ask all sorts of questions and try all sorts of things without being handed a bag full of dead ends.

On the reverse side you can always add your own false leads here by putting a different inflection on your voice and adding emphasis perhaps where you shouldn’t.  But I recommend that you do this only sparingly because frankly it can lead to frustrated (or worse, bored) players.

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Okay, so you have an idea for a nifty new campaign that you want to run but you really don’t have the time to put it all together.  What do you do?

This can be a huge problem for a lot of dungeon masters, particularly those with a creative bent who aren’t thrilled with using someone else’s work.  All too often these folks turn into the guy (or gal) who is constantly “working on it” but who never actually ends up running a game because they never actually finish.

Here are some ideas:

1 – Create only what needs to be created for the campaign.  Don’t flesh out an entire world rolling up dozens of NPC’s if they will never be used.  Leave that kind of nonsense to the professionals they get paid to make up fluff you don’t.
2 – Set a deadline.  Write down the date that you will have it finished.  Mark it on your calendar and tell someone else.  That way they can chew you out if you don’t finish.
3 – Set aside a specific time of day when you will work on it.  Hint: the earlier in the day the more likely you will actually do it.  Stick to your time just as if you were attending an important class or going to work.
4 – Use random name generators.  There are tons of free ones on the web.  Save yourself time where you can.
5 – Make pre-made home-made.  Borrow from whatever sources you can, particularly maps.  Drawing out awesome maps is very, very time consuming and many of the maps in a campaign (particularly outdoor maps) end up being tossed aside very quickly.  Spend time only on the maps that the players really need.

I hope these tips help and enjoy your game!

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Finding and abusing game exploits is an important ability for pretty much anyone who plans to play a game for the long term.  I’m going to talk about some skills that can be applied in generic terms to just about any game out there, including Dungeons and Dragons.

Look for the infinite combo.  In other words, anything that adds a bonus but which doesn’t cost a resource, or which costs a resource which can be replenished.  In D&D the primary combat resource is actions.  There are only so many things that a character can do on his turn.  Once those actions are gone he has to end his turn.  Anything that allows more of the most crucial resource, or which bypasses that crucial resource can probably be abused.

Which brings us to the next point.  Identify the critical resource.  If you ask a newbie to D&D what the most important number on the character sheet is, a lot of them will look at one of two things, either hit points or damage.  The truth is that neither of these is really the critical resource when it comes to combat.  There are ways for each class to deal massive amounts of damage, and hit points only matter if you get hit.  How you play the game will overshadow both of these.  What then is the critical resource?  There are several, but the most important in my opinion would be the number actions a character can take and the character’s base ability scores.  Anything that modifies these resources is asking for trouble.

Now look for ways to modify the critical resource. Anything that adds to or takes away from the critical resource is powerful.  Potentially these things can be abused and badly.  In 3rd edition, for example, there were ways to raise base ability scores far beyond their intended levels.  This meant that characters could do ridiculous things far before they reached epic levels and after that it just got stupid.

Look for the rule-breakers and special circumstances.  A lot of D&D is about combat.  This means that taking a look at the areas of the game that “don’t have to do with combat” can often be the most devastating ways of breaking combat. One example from basic D&D would be the spell Phantasmal Force.  A basic second level spell that could quite literally end any encounter against any level of opponent in one round.  But a lot of people I played with didn’t figure it out until they saw me play a magic user, at which point the DM would ban the spell.  A lot of people would read the spell and see that it “never causes any real damage” and simply gloss it over, thinking it could only be used in marginal situations or for role-playing purposes.  Not realizing that if you put an army of orcs to sleep for 1d4 turns that you had won the fight.

Hope these tips help, and have fun breaking your game!

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When GM’ing a Dungeons and Dragons or RPG Game session nothing can bog down a campaign or the evening more than when a player who knows the rules to the letter better than the DM keeps trying to force the system and point out any errors the DM may make. One of the best things about a D20 system is its flexibility and a DM should vary from the rules to keep the game interesting and entertaining as long as the decisions made are fair and can be reproduced by everyone (players and DM alike).

When a DM varies from a rule in the player’s handbook or other guide, they DM should ask the player’s not to interrupt the campaign and argue about it, but all issues or concerns can be shelved for after the game. The DM can choose to permanently use the new rule or option that he introduced or if he agrees with the player, maybe some experience can be awarded for being so actively interested in keeping alignment with the structure of the rules.

When I used to DM I had a rules lawyer constantly challenge my variations early on, I made it clear that although my gaming was based on Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 Edition at the time, that I had taken the liberty of adapting some custom rules for my campaign. I had a clear published list of the various rules, and differences in my campaign, such as how I handled the healing and herbalism skills were very different than the core rulebook handles them.

I also did not hesitate to fudge a few die rolls for the effect of a story line, mostly these were in a players favor, I didn’t want a player killed by the enemy rolling a critical hit on the first round of combat, or I told a player that a saving throw was successful when the player really would have been a toasted marshmallow from the enemy wizards fireball.

All of this is to keep the game entertaining, interesting and keep your players coming back for more. In the end, the rules aren’t as important as keeping players and the game master happy and entertained for the few hours per week that they meet to game.

This guest post brought to you by Dragon Blogger.

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There are a lot of risks here as a DM.  What happens if they go where you haven’t planned?  What happens if they start a fight with someone you haven’t fleshed out?

Be warned, you are leaving things wide, wide open for the players.  This means that they will go and do things you are not prepared for.  What do you do?  You get prepared.

Prepare a few encounters.  The most likely that they will face.  Get some monster cards for some human guards.  Or if you are in elf land, some elves.  Make up a goblin encounter for when the party decides to sleep in the woods.  And then treat any “special” NPC’s just as you would any normal character in terms of game mechanics.  Just change the flavor a bit.

Finally, practice negotiating with the PC’s.  Just because they start a fight doesn’t mean you have to end it.  Sue for mercy.  Surrender.  Offer a compromise.  There is no need to flesh out combat stats for something that just lays down its weapons and sues for peace.  Either the characters will slaughter it outright or they will role-play, and trust me it isn’t very fun to just slaughter stuff, especially when the possibility of becoming discovered as murderers is real.

The big question on the backs of some (if not all) of your minds is what about XP and treasure?  Aren’t these fundamental to the system?

Of course they are.  So get together your little treasure packets.  Just like you would if you were having a normal combat game.  Hand out the treasures after the characters do something interesting.  They spend their time gambling, or working hard to win a chess tournament – very good.  Hand them out a couple of treasure packets and XP for beating a hard encounter.  If they fail, hand out less XP and less treasure.

If they find out where the Duke’s daughter is being held, let the Duke award them with a treasure packet.  Give them XP for their level.  If they get her back then give them another packet and more XP.  That nifty chart in the DMG that outlines the target XP awards for an encounter by level is ideal for this.

No go and play nice!

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Is there such a thing as too much realism in a fantasy game?  Most people that I have talked to would agree that yes there is a line that can be crossed where the game gets too real and it is no longer fun.

So where do you draw the line?  My simple answer is “when it isn’t fun anymore.”

Unfortunately in a game as dynamic as D&D, the definition of what is fun is as varied as the people who play it.  This means that the amount of realism that should be included in your game in order for it to be fun will also be different for each player.

Some players want the game to feel as real as anything.  They want the game to feel as close to real life as possible.  This could mean live action role-playing and speaking in character at all times or complex house rules to govern occasional situations that arise.  Grappling and disarm rules, for example, have evolved over the various editions of D&D.

Realism can also come in the form of the way that the game world evolves.  Treatment of social structures, businesses, commerce, family life, religion, and so forth can all be made more realistic – that is they can more closely mimic actual organizations or people, or they can draw closer to some fantasy ideal.  The level of realism again needs to reflect what is fun for the players.

Some players really want to be involved in a game that is totally foreign to their lives.  They want to imagine themselves doing and saying things completely different from what they live day to day.  Other players would rather play a game much closer to their lives.  They simply want to extend their imaginations to the point where they are the heroes in an existence that greatly mirrors their own.

As players it is important to understand where the expectations begin to impinge on the expectations of others.  If the degree of realism for one player is so diametrically opposed to another player’s then they may not be happy in the same group.  This means that they need to communicate with each other in order to find a compromise or agreement; even if the agreement is that one or the other leaves the group on peaceful terms.

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Local area encounters can be spiced up by using small variations in terrain.  Overland travel can become its own encounter by providing different types of terrain for the characters to traverse.

Overland travel can really make a session interesting.  Travelling through a desert where temperatures fluctuate throughout the day and night provides for unique challenges.  Combine that with a lack of water, food and other resources, and the characters will be in a position to do more than hack and slash at the nearest enemy.

Hurricanes, tornadoes, floods and forest fires can all also change up the scenario quite a bit.  Often these kinds of natural disasters are too much for low level parties to handle.  Mid-level parties generally have the resources to deal with these sorts of problems though they can be a test.  At higher levels, fighting dragons in hurricanes in swampland with danger from multiple sources makes things more interesting than yet another dungeon encounter.

Mix terrain with weather, disasters and clever monsters that use the terrain to their advantage and you have a recipe for something interesting and challenging.

Have fun with it!

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Okay, I know I’ve been promising forever, well finally its here.  The Keep On The Borderlands, updated, revised, edited and so forth for 4th edition.

Want the link?

The Keep On The Borderlands.

It is also available on the downloads page.

Now, before we all go getting horribly excited, I should mention that there are a few changes from the original.  Like the map of the caves of chaos, and the encounters are in no way suitable for a first level party.  I figure levels 3 through 5 will work.  However, I am promising to release a prequel (fully playable with this module) just as soon as I can.  Basically it will be a 1st to 2nd level dungeon crawl that takes place underneath the keep (you didn’t know there was a dungeon there did ya).

In other news, I included printable monster cards in the full .pdf version only for monsters that do not appear in the monster manual.  I’m trying to avoid legal issues here, so please just support what you have.  Someday the monster cards that are on this site currently will probably have to come down.  Let’s all hope that dark day never comes.

In yet other news I updated a bunch of the NPC’s, so if you happened to already download them you’ll  want to do it again.  Included in the module are abbreviated stats for all of the important ones.

If there are questions, my contact information is here and there on the site.  Naturally I will be happy to ignore questions until it is convenient for me.

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Okay, here it is the custom made battle map that I am using to run my Keep On The Borderlands – more specifically the Caves of Chaos.  It measures 55 inches by 73 inches, which is why my excel version of the Caves of Chaos map is a bit different from the original.

I’ll walk you through how I put it together, and then give a room by room tour (at least for some of the rooms).

Ok, let’s get started.

I started off with some upholstery fabric that I picked up at JoAnn’s Fabric and craft store. They were running a sale and I got it dirt cheap. Usually this stuff sells for $25.00 a yard and I got it for $3.00 a yard. 2 yards = 6 bucks for the base.

The material used for the walls I got a similar deal on, but I only need half as much (actually less than that, but half is a good starting point.

If you should attempt an insane project like this yourself, I recommend very much that you choose a fabric that has a pattern that lends itself to making the 1” grid. If possible, get fabric that already has a 1” grid on it, like a checkerboard or plaid. The lines on this particular fabric are spaced at ¼” so it was pretty simple to make my grid.

Okay, for the next step I started marking my grid and gluing down my walls. If I had it to do over again (which of course I do), I would recommend drawing out the grid in its entirety first. I used a green permanent fabric marker. They are machine washable and really do a very nice job. A word of warning here, though. You have to let the marker dry for a couple of hours before you expose it to steam.

Why is this important? Well mostly because I used a lot of steam.

In order to attach the walls I used fabric glue, which comes in little rolls. The rolls come in a variety of widths from 1/8” up to 2”. I chose the 1” width, but the 7/8” would work just as good, if not better. In order to stick the walls to the base you cut a strip of wall and a strip of glue and then place the wall on the base with the clue in between. Then put a damp cloth over the wall and apply a hot iron (set to wool) for about 20 seconds. The instructions on the glue say to keep it there for 10 seconds, but I found that keeping it there longer really helped, especially with some other types of fabric, like denim, which I used for the pool in area G.

Here we can see what the whole thing looked like with all the walls done but no trees, water, or furniture. At this point I was experimenting a bit with the fabric markers to see how they would look for drawing in furniture and stuff. I decided to go ahead and cut out shapes for most of the furniture like tables and chairs later on because they added more dimension to the dungeon. After finishing the walls I went ahead and glued down the trees, water, and major furniture elements like tables, chairs and altars.

After finishing all of the gluing I went back with a fabric marker and drew in the rest of the elements that I wanted including furniture, fireplaces, the kobold garden, and the magic runes in the temple of chaos.

All told the project took about 50 hours of work, but it is really a wonderful little blanket to have around. My kids just love it. And as for gaming, it really does bring a whole new dimension to the game experience.

Want a close up tour of some of the rooms? Let’s get started.

Area 1: Entrance. I don’t show the pit trap, but will place it down when the PC’s discover it. The red star represents the cave entrance. There are no furnishings in this area, so it is kind of boring visually. The kobolds get to use the narrow hallway to hold back the PC’s if they turn aggressive.

Area 2: Dump. I admit that I had a hard time drawing trash, so it looks a bit like scribbles. When the PC’s go poking around they will find the rats and scorpions waiting.

Area 3: Also visible in this picture is area 3, the Storage area. Crates, barrels and bags are all drawn out. Mixing colors with the fabric markers is a bit difficult, but they are outlined with black and then colored in with yellow and bronze. The yellow doesn’t show up too well in the photos.

Area 5: This is the kobold king’s lair. If you are paying close attention you will have noticed that I switched areas 6 and 5 on my final map. Why? Well because I screwed up and glued in the king’s throne here. Not a big deal I guarantee the players will not know the difference. I tried to get a bit creative with the fireplace, the lantern, and the little playing cards on the table.

Area 6: This is the kobold main living quarters. Notice the large fireplace and exposed rug. The kobolds like to lounge here next to the fire. They also have a couple of oversized sofas.

Area 4: If you’re wondering what happened to area 4 so am I. At the time of this writing I’m just noticing that area 4 got left out. I guess I’ll stick the guards in the hall somewhere.

Obviously this continues on for the rest of the caves.  If you want to see the whole thing then you’ll just have to download the entire module.  I’ll post links for that next week, I’m just putting on the finishing touches.

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Okay this isn’t actually my last post about the Keep On The Borderlands, but pretty close.  I’m going to go in depth on how I made my map of the keep and how I made my map of the Caves of Chaos, which I haven’t previewed yet.  Both are pretty spectacular, and I will begin those for next time.

Today I just wanted to go over what else is going on besides the keep and the caves.

First of all there is a small group of lizardmen who occupy a marshy area along the river.  They have no interest in the keep and so long as they are left alone they won’t bother anyone.  Eventually, however, Lord Drell will want to know what is going on in the marshes and will ask the PC’s to investigate.  Or they will go wandering around and find them.

There are no maps for these encounters in the original module and I haven’t made any either - so do your best.

Encounter groups in the marshes include:

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Not much else to say about that.  The other big group is the raiders that are working in conjunction with the temple of Cyric.  They hang out in the woods to the west of the keep and avoid the caves as much as possible.  To start with their group includes Tandoro and :

The raiders will attack pretty much anyone coming from the west or north.  They are avoiding the area around the caves of chaos on purpose.  Flin follows orders pretty well, but he is an opportunistic sort of fellow and will suggest that the PC’s speak with his boss, Simiobolt.  If the PC’s attack him he will look out for his own life before worrying about his troops.

Throughout the course of the adventure it is possible that the raider group will grow.  Chant Havelove will recruit kobolds, goblins, orcs, possibly even gnolls or bugbears.  If the raiders manage to get a large enough group, Chant will have them attack at night.  He and his followers will arrange to have the gate open.  If the raider group has 30 or more members the raid will be successful.  If there are between 20 and 30 members there is a 50% chance of success plus 5% for each member over 20.  If there are less than 20 members there will be no attack.

If the PC’s join the raiders, then success or failure will depend on their actions.

Okay, a quick preview of my map of the Caves of Chaos.  I’ll be explaining what it is and how I made it next time.

Just a link because it is a very large, non-optimized file.  Map-sample.

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This is the final installment of the Caves of Chaos section for my Keep On The Borderlands series.  Next time I will wrap it all up with notes about the raiders and other things outside of the keep.  Today, though it is all about gnolls and the Cult of Cyric.

At the end of this post is a list of all the treasures available.  As described in an earlier post, the dungeon is very open in its design, so just drop treasures of the appropriate levels when the characters earn them.  There are a couple of points that should definitely have treasures, like the orc chieftains and the minotaur, but otherwise there isn’t much set.  This also allows for greater flexibility in case the PC’s don’t end up fighting much of anything.

Cavern J: Gnolls

The immediate entrance to this cave is a natural, unworked cave that has nothing of note about it.  DC 19 perception will reveal the presence of footprints that have been concealed.  The guards are actively listening, however, and if the characters make much noise the guards will come to investigate.  When they see that there are intelligent creatures they will put away their weapons and offer to talk.

Lighting:  The entrance cave is always dark.  Other areas of the cave are dark during the day except for fires to keep the creatures warm.  These fires give off dim light.  At night the caves have bright light.

Terrain:  The entrance cave is difficult terrain.  Other areas of this complex are normal terrain except where there is furniture.  Furniture is difficult terrain.

The gnolls are much more powerful than a low level party can easily handle.  They are not immediately aggressive and will in-fact be friendly and approachable.  All of the gnolls speak common fluently.  If the PC’s start aggressive actions it would be wise to warn them that this does not look like a fight they can win.  Allowing a wisdom check DC 10 should allow them to feel that these are dangerous adversaries.

If provoked, the gnolls will fight.  They will fight to the death, however they will capture the PC’s if possible.  If they do capture the PC’s they will strip them naked and march them to the gates of the keep in broad daylight.  They will demand to speak with Lord Drell.  Drell will parley with them from the battlements.  The gnoll chief will demand to know the purpose of the intrusion on his home.  Drell will suggest that they speak together more comfortably.  Drell will hire the gnolls as guards to help build a town, lumber mill, and ferry near the river.  The PC’s should receive no XP for getting captured in this manner.

The gnolls only recently came to the caves after facing blizzard conditions and starvation.  They came begging for food and were turned down by everyone.  Eventually they moved into these caves, choosing to slaughter the little goblin tribe that lived here before them.  The keep was just beginning to become active again at that time and they didn’t like thier chances against the soldiers.  Since coming here the gnolls have discovered that they do not like the politics of the situation.  They cannot afford to lose any of their number and will not risk open conflict if they don’t have to.

Area 46: Guard Room

The gnolls are alert and actively guarding.  They will approach intelligent creatures peacefully, and invite them to talk rather than to fight.  They will invite the PC’s to talk come in and talk with their leader, but will agree to send a messenger and have him brought to the entrance chamber as well.

Area 47: Lounge

The gnolls here are the back ups for the guards in area 46.  If a fight breaks out they will immediately run to help.  Otherwise they pass the time here drinking and talking.

Area 48: Store

The gnolls keep a store here where they sell common items.  The store is locked during the day but open at night when the gnolls are active.  The chief has the key.  Items for sale include basic adventuring equipment, 2 suits of medium sized chainmail, and 3 longswords.

If the PC’s ask about food or lodging they will be directed to the bugbears.  If the bugbears are no longer available then they will allow them to sleep in the entrance area for 1sp each per night.

Area 49: Sleeping Chamber

The gnolls gather here when off duty or during times of council.  If the PC’s parley with the chief it will happen here.

If the PC’s somehow to get here without alerting everyone, there will be only one gnoll here tending to a pack of hyenas.

Area 50: Chief’s Chamber

The gnoll chief takes council here with his advisors.  He is an old, battle-scarred creature that is worried about the continued survival of his tribe.  Before the winter blizzards his folk numbered nearly a hundred, but they have come south from the drought and unkind lands of Netheril.  At first they sought refuge at the abbey, but were immediately attacked by undead and withdrew.

The gnolls can be convinced to speak with Lord Drell rather easily, however they will request to do so in person and at the keep.  If the PC’s ask to look around for mining possibilities, the gnolls will agree for 10gp.  There are no immediate indications that there is good ore on this side of the valley.

If the gnolls parley with Drell, he will hire them as described in the introduction.  The gnolls can only be hired as mercenaries if they are guaranteed a permanent residence as a reward.  The PC’s don’t really have this to offer.

If by some chance Chant Havelove or Simiobolt Hold gets a chance to negotiate with the gnolls they will agree to join the raiders because Chant will promise them the keep as a reward.

Area K: The Cult of Cyric

To quote original text “Red strata intertwines with bulging black veins running through the hewn rock walls beyond the entrance. The wide corridors and chambers are deathly still. A faint groaning sound, and a shrill piping may be occasionally heard, barely perceptible even if the party is absolutely silent and listening.”  This cave has clearly been worked, even to the casual observer.  In addition there is a faint smell of decay on the air, though it is by no means overpowering, and after a few moments inside the characters will get used to it.

The cult is here to regroup and then further its own plans.  At the moment thier primary objective is to figure out what to do about the keep.

If the PC’s attempt to negotiate, Simiobolt Hold will attempt to get them to join his side and lead the raiders against the keep.  As a reward they will be given control over the keep (the PC’s will have to work out their own deal with the gnolls if they also join).  He will also pay the PC’s up to 50 gold to spy for him at the keep, though he will not reveal Chant’s identity until he fully trusts the PC’s.  He will offer a reward of 100 gp for rescuing Deliria from the hobgoblins.  He will pay them to assassinate Drell’s officers and advisors for 50gp x the target’s level.  After the first assassination he will trust the PC’s fully and will reveal Chant’s identity and ask the PC’s for advice on how to proceed.

If the party is playing evil characters, and they are doing so from the start the GM may want to consider having Chant approach them openly and invite them to meet with Simiobolt early on.  If any of them have prior connections with the cult of Cyric (or if they would like to) they could come to the keep on false pretenses of helping Drell, but really be looking for Simiobolt.  Conquering the keep could be a fun adventure all its own.

For most games, however, the PC’s will see the undead guards and just start killing everything, which works just fine.

Lighting: All passages have bright light.  All rooms have bright light unless otherwise noted.

Terrain:  The terrain is normal except where there is furniture.  There is no risk of fire like other areas of the caves because the humans are smart enough to keep their fires in fireplaces or stoves.

Area 51: Boulder Filled Passage

This passage suffered a cave in.  It leads to the Caves of the Unknown, which is to say it leads to an adventure you will have to make yourself.  It will take a good team a month to dig it out.

Area 52: Hall of Skeletons

Evil energy fills this hall.  The power of undeath is almost tangible here.  The altar at the far end of the hall glows with a very, very faint purple light (dim light on the altar squares and for 1 square away from it).  Otherwise this room is completely dark.

A DC 18 religion or arcana check will tell the characters that the skeletons in this room draw their power from the altar.  Any undead within 10 squares of the altar receives resist 10 to radiant damage.  The altar can be disabled by a skill challenge DC 18 with 3 successful religion or aracana checks before 6 failures.

The undead will attack the PC’s unless they are accompanied by a member of the Cult (including Deliria).

Area 53: Guard Room

This room is always dark.  The undead will attack the PC’s unless they are accompanied by a member of the Cult (including Deliria).

Area 54: Acolyte’s Chamber

There are 2 Acolytes here.  They use the statistics for human mages, but they are wearing holy symbols and their powers are radiant rather than arcane.  They will act surprised and ask the PC’s what they are doing.  If they wish to negotiate, they will bring them to the guest room and ask them to wait.  Simiobolt will meet them there with his personal undead attendants as well as the acolytes and their guards.

If the PC’s can offer no reasonalbe explanation the acolytes will attack.  One of them will run to alert Simiobolt.

Area 55: Chapel of Evil Chaos

Okay this is a throwback to the original module and is pretty out of place in 4th edition.  If you want to play it nice and keep it 4th edition, just leave out the jewels and make the room essentially empty except for the altar.

From the original text: “This place is of red stone, the floor being a mosaic checkerboard of black and red.  The south wall is covered by a huge tapestry which depicts a black landscape, barren trees, and unidentifiable but horrible black shapes in silhouette - possibly demons of some sort - holding aloft a struggling human. A gray sky is torn by wisps of purple clouds, and a bloody moon with a skull-like face on it leers down upon the scene. Four black pillars support the domed ceiling some 25’ overhead. Between these columns, just in front of the tapestry, is a stone altar of red veined black rock, rough-hewn and stained brown with dried blood. Upon it are 4 ancient bronze vessels - a shallow bowl, a pair of goblets, and a ewer, a vase-shaped pitcher. They are also bloodstained but obviously worth a great deal of money. (The value is 1,000 g.p. for each cup, and 2,000 g.p. for each of the other items, but these are relics of evil, and any character possessing them will not part with them or sell them nor allow others to handle them.)

If a character picks up a relic, the relic makes an attack +14 vs. Will.  If it misses the character gets an immediate feeling of utter evil and can be allowed to put down the relic.  On a hit the character is immediately overcome with an obsession about the object.  Within 6 days the character will become a servant of chaos and will return and replace the relic and then stay to guard the altar forever.

If someone attempts to destroy the altar or the relics the bell in room 58 will sound.  All of the cult members and their guards will immediately come to this area to investigate.

Area 56: Adept’s chambers

The adepts will behave the same as the acolytes in room 54.

Area 57: Hall of Undead Warriors

From the original: “There are four files of the undead here, two of 10 skeletons each, two of 10 zombies
each. The former face south, the latter north.”

If the bell in room 58 is struck they will issue through the doors and attack anyone in the temple who is not a member of the cult.

Area 58: Temple of Evil Chaos

From the original: “This huge area has an arched ceiling some 30’ or more in height. The floor is of polished black stone which has swirling patterns of red veins through it. The walls behind the draperies, and the ceiling as well, are of dull black rock, while the west wall is of translucent red stone which is seemingly one piece, polished to mirror-like smoothness. A great bell of black iron stands near the entrance point, with a pair of mallets beside its supports. To the south are several long benches or pews. There are three stone altars to the west, the northernmost of pure black, the middle one of streaked red and black, the last of red with black flecks. At the western end of the temple area is a dais of black stone, with four lesser chairs on its lower tier and a great throne above. The chairs are of bone; the ivory throne is set with gold and adorned with gems of red and black (10 black stones each worth 100 gold pieces, 10 red stones each worth 500 gold pieces, and one large red stone worth 1,000 g.p.). The signs and sigils upon these seats are of pure chaos and evil. The other walls are covered by draperies of deep purple with embroidered symbols and evil sayings, done in scarlet and gold and black thread. As soon as the party enters the place, black candles in eight great candelabras on either side of the place will come alight magically, shooting forth a disgusting red radiance. Shapeless forms of purple, yellow and green will dance and sway on the western wall.”

If anyone looks at the shapes on the wall for more than a moment they will suffer an attack +12 vs. will.  On a hit they will “be mesmerized into chanting a hymn to chaotic evil.”  While chanting the character is able to perform other actions, but will not be able to leave the temple.  In addition they take a -4 penalty to insight and perception checks while the curse lasts.  The curse can be broken by Simiobolt.  It will also automatically be broken if the character is attacked by any of the residents of the temple.  An unaffected character may make3 successful DC 22 religion or arcana checks to disable the wall.

The relics in this area are not cursed, but anyone attempting to sell these items in civilized lands will have to explain their association with the cult of Cyric.  Lord Drell will demand that the characters destroy the items immediately or try them as cultists.  The characters will meet a similar fate in all good lands.

“Should three or more voices be so raised, the iron bell will sound automatically by magic, but even one such chant will alert the guards (in area 59).”  Even if the characters are quiet and avoid the trap, the guards from area 59 will arrive in 3 rounds.

Area 59: Chambers of the Evil Priest.

Simiobolt Hold is here.  If his guards are summoned to the chapel he will follow 10 squares behind them.  If the PC’s arrive here somehow without an invitation he will kill them without mercy.

Area 60: Guest Chamber

This is Chant Havelove’s room when he visits the temple.  It is plainly furnished and currently dark and empty.

Area 61: Torture Chamber

There is a rack and various items used for torturing people here.  The torturer is a rather unstable individual who will invite the players to voluntarily participate.  Failing that he and his assistants will attempt to coerce them, shouting “come play with me, we’ll have fun!” while he attacks.

Area 62: The Crypt

This is an ancient burial site.  The cultists do not come here.  It is always kept pitch black here.  There are 3 sarcophogi here, each requiring a DC 18 strength check to open.  1 of them is empty (optionally place a treasure in it).  The other two each contain a battle wight.  If one of the sarcophogi containing a wight is opened, the other wight will automatically awake and foce open it’s own sarcophogus the following round.  Both will attack any intruders, including cult members.

Area 63: Storage Chamber

This is a place where the cultusts have recently started storing stuff. They probably won’t be using it for long because a pair of gelatinous cubes have taken up residence here.  The cubes will attack and eat anything they can get their hands on.

Area 64: Cell

As the PC’s approach this area they will hear moans and angry hisses.  If the PC’s listen (perception DC 16) they will hear “die Simiobolt” and “release me” in very slurred, snakelike common.  The medusa was tricked and trapped here by Simiobolt.  He is simply waiting for her to starve to death.

The PC’s can negotiate with her through the door if they choose.  She will agree to help them kill Simiobolt.  A successful insight check, however, will reveal that she is lying - at least partially.

If the PC’s open the door, she will take them to the temple and will fight Simibolt with them.  Afterwards, however, she will turn and attempt to kill the PC’s as well.

If the PC’s just release her and don’t go with her to fight Simiobolt, she has a 50% chance of winning that fight.  If the PC’s come back and she was victorious, she will have turned the acolytes to stone and will have placed the statue of Simiobolt on one of his altars.  She will attack and turn to stone anyone entering her lair.

Okay folks, that’s it for the Caves of Chaos.  Really not much else to it except for a few things that can happen out of doors.  Except for the raiders these are essentially unecessary for the core of the adventure.  64 rooms to go through is an awful lot.  Doing this module will easily take the PC’s to level 4.  My suggestion for handing out treasures is to make sure that 2 or 3 are given out in each cave section, either one at a time or in bunches.  The first level treasure with lots of coins is intended to be handed out a few coins at a time as the players search bodies of dead guards.  But it could also be used as a treasure all on its own.

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If you’ve been following along, then you’ll know that this time I’ll be talking about the hobgoblins and bugbears found in the Caves of Chaos near Drell’s Keep.  This is an update to 4th edition for TSR’s Keep on The Borderlands module B2.

Cave F:

The initial entrance to this cave has been swept clean, except for some obvious blood stains on the ground.  A stout iron-reinforced door is here at the back of the cavern it is DC 20 to break through the door.  Over the door is a sign in goblin and common “Come in for dinner!”  The handwriting is very poor, and it appears to be written in blood.

Terrain: Movement here is normal.  The floors and walls have been worked and are kept clean and neat.  Squares with furniture in them should be considered difficult.

Lighting: Bright light at night time.  Dim light during the day.  The hobgoblins have lanterns spaced evenly to keep all areas lit.  They shutter the lanterns during the day when they sleep.

The hobgoblins have claimed this series of caverns as their own.  They have enslaved the goblins, and view the kobolds and bugbears as nothing more than servants.  In their opinion they already own all of Areas A, D, F and H.  They are aware of the cultists in area K and the gnolls in area J, but are ignoring them for the moment in hopes of conquering the orcs first.

If the PC’s attempt to negotiate with the hobgoblins, they must treat the hobgoblin king as they would any noble.  Derisive remarks or hints that they are not civilized or are less than human will be met with immediate and harsh violence.

A couple of notes on playing the caverns.  The hobgoblin quarters are cramped and crowded with furniture.  Everything is in neat and precise order as a good military installation should be, but the caverns restrict movement.  The PC’s should take this into consideration in thier tactics.  The hobgoblins are used to these quarters and will certainly us it to their advantage.

The PC’s should expect a long, drawn-out slugfest here as the hobgoblins all all fight to the death, attempting to amass as many of them together as possible and surround and cut down the PC’s if possible.

If the PC’s take the time to figure out if Drell can do any mining here they will not find any area that are good prospects.

Area 23: Common room.  This is where off duty hobgoblins rest.  There are females here and young (represented by the hobgoblin grunts) who will take up arms in defense of the king.

Area 24: Torture Chamber, Storage, Playroom

The hobgoblins here attack on site if they haven’t already been alerted.

There are six cells here, five of which hold prisoners, and one which is crammed full of food storage.

Cell 1: Flid Havrang a member of the lost patrol.  He is a 1st level fighter and will accompany and fight with the party if asked.  He will scavange weapons and armor from dead hobgoblins.  He will stay with the party until they return to Drell’s Keep.

Cell 2: An Orc.  He is very thin from starvation and more than half crazy.  If released he will immediately scavenge weapons and begin hunting hobgoblins.  He only speaks giant, but will respond only to offers of food, drink, or killing hobgoblins.  When he fights he will mutilate any hobgoblin corpses he finds, often cutting off ears or tongues as souveniers.

Cell 3: Deliria, a young woman.  She was brought here originally by Chant Havelove, and joined the cult of Cyric.  She is a 1st level cleric.  Since her capture by the hobgoblins and their horrible treatment of her, she has decided that she does not wish to remain in the wild lands, and she will kill Chant Havelove if it is the last thing she does.  If asked how she arrived here, she will explain that she is an adventurer and that her two companions were killed.

If somebody’s insight beats her bluff, then she can be confronted.  She will not betray the location of the cult or her involvement, but she will admit that she was brought to the area by Chant Havelove.  If further pressed she will explain that Chant betrayed and lied to her and that she wants him dead.  This could be confusing to the players because she will most likely come off as very deceptive and evil whereas hopefully Chant will not be quite as evil.

Cell 4: Bliss Hardblood a woman-at-arms and companion of Flid and the lost patrol.  She will likewise help out the party until they can get back to the keep.  Bliss is looking for adventure and will ask the party if she can join up with them.

Cell 5: An insane gnoll.  He speaks broken common, and complains constantly about the snow.  The gnolls finally kicked him out a few weeks ago and the hobgoblins captured him.  He is pretty much oblivous to what goes on and will simply go looking for food and a bed if freed.  He is unable to give clear answers to any questions, but can indicate that his brothers are nearby.

Area 25:

Another common living chamber.  See area 23.

Area 26: Guard room.

The guards will challenge the PC’s and threaten them.  If the PC’s choose to negotiate they will offer to accompany them before the king.  The PC’s will be taken to area 25 and asked to wait.  A messenger will go and get the king.  The party will be asked to wait in the center of the room while the hobgoblins will surround them.

If the PC’s do not negotiate or show signs of weakness or agression the guards will attack.  The first time one of them is bloodied, one of them will attempt to get away and alert the others.

Area 27: Armory

Anyone entering this area without authorization will be attacked immediately.

The racks hold 2 suits of chainmail, 5 longswords, 3 small shields, 3 longbows as well as arrows, spare parts for repairs, tools for sharpening, as well as a stock of oil.

Area 28:

This is a store room.  The guards attack all unauthorized visitors.

Area 29:

Another guard room.  See area 27.

Area 30: King’s chambers.

If he PC’s manage to get here without alerting them the will attack.

If the PC’s attempt to negotiate with the king, the hobgoblins will not agree to leave the caverns, but will rather suggest that Drell “return to the slums of Cormyr and build his huts in safety.”  The hobgoblin king will agree to hire the PC’s to exterminate the orcs, agreeing to pay the sum of 100 gp.  However he will double cross the PC’s after they have completed the task and attempt to take them prisoner or kill them.

If asked about prisoners he will admit that he has three human prisoners from Drell’s keep.  He will demand a ransom of 200gp for each prisoner.  The party should realize that only 2 members of the patrol are unaccounted for, but they may still be unsure.

If they offer to go and get the ransom he will request that they leave one member behind.  A successful diplomacy or bluff check will convince the king that it is an unecessary precaution.  If the party returns with the money, he will simply take the money and then try to kill or capture them.

Area 31: another guard room

See area 27

Cave H: The bugbears.

There are a hodgepodge of signs adorning this entrance in common, goblin, draconic, and giant.  All are very large with very large, neat lettering.  All of them say “Top wages!  Food and money!  Report to the first guard on the left!”

The bugbears can be extremely difficult opponents if brought into combat while the party is still low level.  If this happens the bugbears will attempt to capture them and then ransom them.  They will demand 50gp each, which Drell will pay, but he will then ask that they repay the amount.  If they don’t have the cash they can either complete their task for free or else “volunteer” for his army for 2 years.

The sign on the front door should indicate that these creatures would rather make money than fight.  The bugbears will make no hostile moves, but will rather say “put that away before somebody gets hurt.  I never met a face I couldn’t share a drink with.”

Area 35 Guard Room

The guards here are drinking and gambling.  Despite the party, they are alert for visitors, and will hear anyone approaching who does not pass a DC 19 stealth check.

They will offer the PC’s a drink and then ask their business in the caves.  If the PC’s want to talk to the person in charge the bugbear strangler will take them to see “the boss” in area 36.

If attacked the strangler will go and get the boss and then run and get the guards in areas 38 and 39.

Area 36: The boss

The boss, refers to herself as “Freya the Free Fighter” and will address herself using her name rather than saying I or me, i.e. “Freya thinks that is a bad move.”  She has a gangster mentality and should talk more or less like a mobster.  She is actually part demon and part goblinoid, but is not particularly evil or malicious. I’ve use the stats of an Oni Night Haunter to represent her, but suggest changing the alignment to unaligned.  The bugbear stranglers she keeps around as consorts.  She is hoping to raise her “family” and make them wealthy.

If the PC’s talk with Freya, she will offer them goods and services.  She runs a small store out of room 37, and offers all basic adventuring equipment as well as simple weapons.  In addition, if the PC’s need a place to sleep, she will allow them to sleep in area 38 for 5 cp per night per person, meals are complimentary.

If the PC’s ask about work, she will suggest that the hobgoblins are hiring to raid the orcs and the orcs are hiring to raid the hobgoblins, but will also suggest that the hobgoblins can’t be trusted.

Freya will tell about the “black and red robes” in area K.  She doesn’t know what they are up to, but they have been trading with her and they always pay in coin.  She has only dealt with 3 of them, and doesn’t know how many there are.

Freya knows about the raiders that camp near the keep.  She has dealt with them in the past, but isn’t sure how many there are.  She will freely admit that she would go to work with them if they offered enough money.

The PC’s can hire Freya’s gang for the price of 10gp per day per person, though she will not go herself.  The cash needs to be paid in advance so the party will need to come up with the 10 gold first and then the bugbear will work for the next 24 hours.

If the PC’s ask to look around for areas to mine, Freya will agree for 5 gp.  They will find that areas 40 and 41 are actually old mining starts and probably useful to lord Drell.

If the PC’s explain that Drell wants to mine in the caves, Freya will want to stay put, but will agree to move for 200gp.  If the hobgoblins are dead she will agree to move there for only 50gp.

When the PC’s mention Drell, she will want to speak with him in person and will ask them to take her there so that she can negotiate with him face to face.  Drell will agree to see her.  The PC’s will not be part of the negotiation process after that.  Freya will convince Drell to hire her gang as guardswhile his men start to build a little town near the river and to start construction on a ferry and a lumbermill.  Drell is perfectly willing to risk the bugbears’ lives out in the open.

If the PC’s ask about magic items or the like she will suggest that they explore the abbey across the river.  It is a place of powerful magic.  She will also suggest they find the gnolls and talk to them.  They run a competing trading post and may have what they need.

Area 37: Store room

Here Freya keeps the goods for her store.  The door is locked and she has the key.  See area 36 for what she has for sale.

Area 38 Bert’s Tavern.

There are signs over the entrance to this area labeled “Bert’s Tavern” in a variety of languages.  Bert, the bugbear warrior outlined below keeps his pets here.  He charges 5cp to stay the night and sells drinks and food.  Food is free with a night’s stay.

Meal 1 cp

Drink 2 cp

The drink is fermented beet whiskey.  It is very strong and tastes horrible.  A character will become drunk very quickly drinking this stuff.  There is also water to drink.  The food is a mixture of vegetables (mostly potatoes and cabbage) and bits of unidentified meat.

Area 39 Dirk’s Gambling Joint

This is ostentatiously a guard room to look out for the pens in area 40 and 41, but has recently been converted into a casino of types.

Dirk, the bugbear strangler is dealing blackjack for the two bugbear warriors.  They will suggest to the PC’s that there isn’t much to see here.

Area 40: Holding Cell

If there are prisoners they are kept here.  At the moment they don’t have any.

Area 41 - Bree’s Place

A big sign says Bree’s Place.  It is vacant.  If asked, the bugbears will explain that Bree used to be a prostitute that lived and worked there, but since she found her one true love a week or so ago she moved out and is staying with him.  They are looking for someone to start the business again if any of the PC’s are interested.

Bree is the ogress in cave E.

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