Lost Galmagia Week 4: Under the Ancestor’s Ward

One thing I’m loving about the B/X treasure tables is the inclusion of maps as a scroll. They immediately feed the PCs more information about things they might want to pursue, but unlike a grand quest they’re still a choice. This week’s set of rooms is built around that – the 1^st room provides a treasure map, and the 3^rd-7^th rooms are the treasure location, but due to the dungeon geography the PCs have to exit the dungeon, search the smashed cemetery of the Ancestors Ward for the entrance, and then overcome the obstacles for… even more scrolls! OK, a spellbook. But that’s gonna be a huge draw for any Magic-User PCs.

1.23: Invisible Statues and Water Stash
This hemisphere is a shrine to the Galmagian Noble ancestors. Since the Ancestors Ward was overrun with shantytowns, the noble houses re-interred their dead in the undercity, with a shrine here to propitiate unmoved remains. Central is a perpetually flowing/purified fountain that local monsters use as a water source (double random encounter chance), and a plaque with an accurate map of the Ancestor’s Ward. That plaque hangs loosely, as if someone tried to remove it (PCs can finish the job in 1 turn). In between the plaque and the fountain is an invisible statue of a woman in wizards robes, kneeling and pointing towards the fountain. Any search of the room has someone comedically bump into her, but she’s well braced and will only fall over with concerted effort. The PCs can sell it as an oddity for 100 GP or find someone to cast the Dispel Magic needed to breach a 3^rd level Invisibility and a 10^th level Petrification.

Stashed behind the waterfall is an oilcloth backpack with dungeoneering equipment and notebooks that have suffered some damage. One is a travelling spellbook; Read Magic spell reveals Hold Portal, Invisibility & Locate Object intact. The other? Journal of Jewel Neilsdottor, who learned how this plaque could reveal the resting place of T’tam the Bird, buried in the Ancestors Quarter… WITH HIS SPELLBOOKS… in his bird-carved coffin. Jewel planned to claim these alone (Wis 5) with her Invisibility & Locate Object; the guardians of T’Tam’s tomb relied on sight. What could go wrong…?

1.24: Branches to the Manor Houses
This space is notable for the three branches to the individual manor house basements.

1.25: Entrance to the Crypt of T’tam
The circular stairs down can be uncovered with 2d6 person-hours work (if the PCs can find it!). At the base of the stairs is a carved Paralysis rune that has a 4 in 6 chance of striking anyone who doesn’t leap from the bottom step into the room. The rune is permanent and doesn’t have recharge time. Once the rune triggers a Crystal Living Statue will activate in each of 1.26 and 1.27, but both of them are shattered and instead crystal limbs without hands and one head missing a nose and jaw crawl into the room to be completely ineffectual in combat.

1.26, 1.27: Mirrored chambers of the crypt:
Each of these rooms is partially collapsed but navigable. Each has the remains of three human-shaped living crystal statues in them, buried and shattered. Room 1.27 is the less stable of the pair, and part of its ceiling can be brought down with an Open Doors check, forcing everything in it to make a Petrification save or be buried under rubble.

1.28: The Central Dias
The bridge between the mirrored rooms is a two-step raised dais with a sarcophagus on it, surrounded by crystal statues of four giant lizards, the guardians of the underworld in human myth. Each is damaged by rockfall but functioning (1/2 HP and damage), and activate when they see anyone step on the dais. The secret door entrance is on the north stairs of the dais, which can be unlocked at the sarcophagus and folded down to meet lower stairs – the stairs need to be re-folded up to crawl over the lower stairs to reach the path to the true tomb. The sarcophagus holds a ‘cursed scroll’ spellbook that when opened turns the reader into the bird their personality most resembles (Save vs. Polymorph). There’s also a Potion of Gaseous Form (makes you a flock of hummingbirds), a Potion of Diminution (you take on a birdlike aspect), 10 Arrows +1 fletched with golden hawk feathers, and 2500 SP in gold and silver bird statuary.

1.29: The True Tomb of T’tam

The otherwise empty room holds the elaborately aviary-carved sarcophagus of T’tam, inside of which is his spellbook, the equivalent of 4 scrolls each holding 2-3 spells (determine if the players ever find them). 

Lost Galmagia: Monster Stat Blocks 2

There will likely be lots of Monster Stat Blocks in my future, but here goes

Skeletons (Level 1)
Number appearing: 3-12 (3-30 if in spawning point)
AC 12; HP 4; Move 40’ per round
Attacks are +0 to hit with weapon, damage 3 per hit.
Morale: 12
Specials: Turn as Skeletons; standard undead defenses (but see Drowned Ones, below)

Skeletons are either animated dead under the control of a Magic-User or Cleric – in which case they are mindless, programmed automatons with full Undead defenses – or are ‘Drowned Ones’ – those who died in water and were not recovered and given last rites. 1 in 10 such people will rise with parts of their personality intact and a deep burning anger at the living. These are still immune to sleep spells but have enough of a personality to be charmed. Skeletons arm themselves with weapons and shields, and their AC comes \ from their lack of vulnerable spots and their parrying speed.

Ogres (Level 4)
Number appearing: 1-6 (or 2-12 in lair)
AC 14; HP 17; Move 30’ per round
Attacks are +3 to hit with their clubs or axes; damage 12 per hit.
Morale: 10
Specials: On a roll of 18+ the target is also tossed back 5 or 10 feet. No extra damage done, but repositioning.
Specials: On a roll of 1-3, the target must save vs. Wands or take 1 pt damage from shrapnel caused by the miss.

Ogres stand 8-10 feet tall and are the age category between orc and Hill Giant. They have outgrown the perpetual anger of Orcs but replaced it with a ravenous hunger as they are growing rapidly. They have lost none of the weapons skills they learned as orcs, but their perpetual hunger makes them appear dim witted in anything other than ambushing food.

Pledged Dead (Level 2*)
Number appearing: 1-8
AC 11; HP 10; Move 40’ per round
Attacks are +1 to hit with their spectral swords or maces, damage 6 per hit.
Morale: 12
Specials: Require magic to hit (any enchanted item can strike them for 1 point of damage).
Specials: Turn as Zombies. Immediately dispelled if corpses disrupted. Must stay within 1000’ of place of death.
Specials: On a roll of 1-3, Target must save vs. Petrification or shy back 5’ feet from the ghostly presence.

Pledged Dead are servants of the Gods of Humanity, albeit limited ones. People who had pledged their loyalty to the church in life can have those pledged continued after death by a Cleric of 5^th level or greater placing a holy symbol on the chest of their corpse (which must still be roughly where it died). This releases a semi-corporeal spirit that will follow the orders of any cleric of the human gods who issues them tasks. Thy can’t leave the vicinity of their death.

Ogres (Level 4)
Number appearing: 1-6 (or 2-12 in lair)
AC 14; HP 17; Move 30’ per round
Attacks are +3 to hit with their clubs or axes; damage 12 per hit.
Morale: 10
Specials: On a roll of 18+ the target is also tossed back 5 or 10 feet. No extra damage done, but repositioning.
Specials: On a roll of 1-3, the target must save vs. Wands or take 1 pt damage from shrapnel caused by the miss.

Ogres stand 8-10 feet tall and are the age category between orc and Hill Giant. They have outgrown the perpetual anger

Lost Galmagia: Monster Stat Blocks

Since I’m making some new ones, I should stat them up; plus how do I plan to run this.

Monster Base Principles

I’m tying monsters to level more because that was always the discussion in D&D but the HD = Level doesn’t feel mechanically rigorous enough for me. There’s some real 13^th Age thinking in this,.

Monsters per level: 4.5 HP, +0.75 to hit (round down), 3 damage per level (+1 per attack if the damage is split across multiple attacks), AC is 8 at levels 0 and 1, 11 at levels 2-4, 14 at levels 5-8, and 18 and level 9 (reduce HP by 5% for every 1 pt. increase in AC). Save as Fighter at level. Special abilities usually activate on a to hit roll of 18+ or 15+, 6- or 3- and do not effect the Level of the monster; it just makes it meaner.

Soul Echoes (Level 0)
Number appearing: 1 Anywhere (2d4 at abandoned holy sites)
AC 8; HP 3; Move 20’ per round (floating)
Attacks are +0 to hit with touch, 0 damage per hit,
Morale: 12 (songs, palindromes, or collections of multi-colored sorting stones keep them away for 2d4 hours)
Specials: On an attack roll of 15+, drain 1 Constitution (usable once an hour, recovers after day in Place of Safety), Only hit by Magic Weapons, Turns as Skeleton (any turning destroys), bound to religious sites near their area of death

Notes: These translucent forms are just barely undead; not ghosts with personalities and grievances but echoes of spirits that were never laid to rest. Rarely they are found individually floating towards religious sites, where the local clergy can easily dispel them, or floating in numbers around abandoned holy sites. They prefer to attack at night when their insidious stealing of the targets breath can have maximum effect, but will attack if surprised at any time..

Prairie Rats (level 0)
Number appearing: 2-20 near where they’ve set up a burrow (5-50 in burrow)
AC 8; HP 1 per 2 rats; Move 20’ per round (swim 10)
Attacks are +0 to hit with bite, 1 damage on odd hit, 2 damage on even hit, and are made per group of 5-10 rats.
Morale: 5 (unless controlled)
Specials: On an attack roll of 18+, Target must save vs. poison or get sick in 24 hours. Constitution check of 3+ to avoid death in 1d6 days, otherwise sick for one month (Cure Disease immediately fixes, Clerical assistance gives +1 on check)
Specials: On an attack roll of 3-, the rats swarming over the target can overbalance it; save vs. Death or be knocked down and unable to attack until Death save made to regain feet or rats driven off

Notes: These are omnivorous menaces of the Tarmalanian plains; they are like normal rats in size, but burrow constantly, and will happily form packs to attack humans. Generally, they have to be smoked or burned out of places but once an infestation starts they’re very difficult to eradicate. They will quickly devour corpses left in areas they infest (Goblins hate them due to this tendency and usually attack them whenever they see them).

Fire Beetles (Level 1)
Number appearing: 1-8 in large radius of their pit (2-12 in pit)
AC 15; HP 4; Move 40’ per round
Attacks are +0 to hit with mandibles, damage 3 per hit.
Morale: 2 (if outside of pit area) or 9 (if inside pit and target restrained)
Specials: tremorsense, can walk over stagnant water or mud without restraint

Fire Beetles are yard long creatures found near swamps or mud pits. They have two glowing glands above their eyes and one at their tail (which they can close off to kill the light, and which glow for 1d6 days after their death) that light a 10’ radius. They never attack targets who are not in some way restrained – preferably in their swamps or mudpits – and those they attack viciously, killing the lights. They will drag off any corpses they come across, back to the pits.
If the target isn’t restrained, they quickly skuttle away from any attempt at violence against them.

Lost Galmagia Week 3: Under the Park Ward

 These rooms are those that were connected to the road network from the customs house and didn’t collapse. There are multiple dead end corridors (and one that is passible with excavation), but this space is a hub for this levels 1 and 2.

1.16 The Hub
This room had 6 exits;t 2 are now impassable. The Northeast passage terminates at a wall of amber that cannot be breached except by magic. There’s a blood trail running from the East passage that peters out heading down the South; evidence something bleeding was dragged. Searching shows lots of traffic through the room.

1.17a Something happened here….
This room has 3 locked doors, the Southeast has had its lock hacked through and is now ajar ( blood trail runs through that door). On the floor is a stone axe with a silver-inlaid head (50 sp), a small chest with 350sp of silver ingots (lock also broken), and in the corner a 3 day old cleanly severed hand clutching a ruby ring (300 gp value). Going through the broken door has standard chance of triggering a pit trap (Paralysis save or fall in) that drops the target 8’ down (no damage) and closes immediately – it won’t reopen for 6 hours. This pit connects to room 1.18

17b The almost collapsed passage
The door from 17a is locked but not trapped. The passage appears blocked but any Dwarf will see it can be cleared. The room has a passage east that was once hidden by a secret door(now visible due to the roof collapse) and two flights of down. Southbound flight has a grate over it through which anyone in 1.18’s pit can reach.

1.18 The Jewelers Guild Basements
This was once a sprawling place but eastbound passages collapsed; westbound is locked but poison trap now inert. Floor is ceramic tiles, some of which are broken, showing the metal grate and cage underneath. To south there’s signs of recent search that unearthed a chest (hacked open). Inside that was wadded cloth padding for another smaller chest (in 1.17) and a ring case (open and abandoned).

In the cage is a White Ape, now locked in for 3 days, weak and quite crazed. (It’s at half HP and -2 on all attacks and damage). It will reach up and grab anyone sticking anything through the holes into the cage, or smash some new ceramic to drag a limb down for a bite. It will also attack anyone in the pit, or anyone heading down the south stairs of 17a. There’s a small water source – a survival fountain for prisoners – and grates will need extraordinary measures to open (search over 17b stairs shows place that can be forced with an Open Doors test)

1.19 The Elevator Room
The Sculptors and Masons Guildhall rested over here; a section of their floor would descend, giving access to what is now dungeon levels 1-4. The floor currently rests 2.5 feet below the doorway, and the lever mechanism by the east door is snapped off but can be repaired. Adding 4 personweights unsticks floorm descend again down to floor 2, where it will stick for a minute before dropping further. The boxes in the room are full of stones and lead pipes.

1.20 Stairs down
This empty, well-travelled room contains two flights of stairs down, the lock on the door has been hacked open

1.21 Weaver’s Basement
Full of looms and thread-rolls that are all warped or moldering, this space contains nothing of value.

1.22 Funerary preparations
The center of this room is a crafted table just large enough to hold the goblin corpse that rests on it. Bustling around the room and the table are 5 still living goblins, and if observed through the slightly ajar door (this room too had its lock hacked off some time ago) are obviously engaging in some sort of ritual over the body. The goblins each have 7EP worth of personal trinkets, while the corpse is being set with 200 sp worth of torques and bracelets. Also in the room are two vials of Oil of Insect Summoning; these are over and above what has been applied to the exterior and eviscerated interior of the body. Three of the goblins are just standard Goblins, but one is a Goblin Acolyte and the other a Goblin Veteran.

Lost Galmagia: Athames and Runes

Memory activation: rereading the B/X rules for my #Dungeon23 work and was reminded that B/X magic users can only fight with a dagger. This prompted a crystal clear memory of reading the AD&D PHB, learning that magic-users now got staves and darts, and being thrilled for my 3rd level MU… in those days when teenagers mixed and matched every rules set without a care. But since we’re doing B/X, we’re going with dagger only.

Athame

“An athame or athamé is a ceremonial blade, generally with a black handle. It is the main ritual implement or magical tool among several used in ceremonial magic traditions…. A black-handled knife called an arthame appears in certain versions of the Key of Solomon, a grimoire dating to the Renaissance.The proper use of the tool was started by the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, in the early 20th century, for the use of banishing rituals.
Wikipedia

Every Magic-User has a stage midway through their apprenticeship when they craft their athame: a bone white blade made by mixing fire with earth, with a removable curved crystal pommel attached to a hollowed ebony-wood handle the length of the blade, inside which is held spell components such as black lotus extract, powdered mushrooms, rowan bark, ground silver, runestones, and whatever else the magic-user might need to ingest, inject or distribute in casting of their spells.

The Athame’s blade never needs honing, always as sharp as the finest dwarf-forged blade. Much lighter than steel with no cross-guard it is not a weapon for parrying, but any magic-user is so comfortable with his athame that they strike with it as proficiently as any veteran. There are small marks at the athames tip to indicate dosages of mind-expanding formulae or amounts of rowan bark to be stirred into fluids (water, tea, blood, etc.) the distribution of which can be used to divine the past or present. The pommel crystal is used in a variety of divinations.

An Athame is very difficult to destroy; strikes will snap the all but indestructible blade from the replaceable hilt. The blade is magically linked to its creator, and they can feel its direction and distance if separated from it. If a spell requires spell components, the caster’s Athame is the primary one. In non-magical terms, the blade is fired ceramic (which is why you don’t sharpen it), and the pommel is a lens that can be used to magnifying. Every magic-user knows “Create Athame” as a spell, but since it takes a month to cast and causes 1d4 HP damage it’s not part of the useful spell list. .

Runes

Magic-User also know Rune Magic; the ability to make their spells  permanent by binding magical runes into objects. (Light is the earliest Rune Magic, and Continual Light is the permanent, standardized, quick to cast version; Hold Portal and Wizard Lock are similar and it’s runes are called Wards). Runes can have a variety of different effects but require the caster to be 2-3 levels higher than the level of the spell it’s based on and to have a very clear idea of what they want to do. Creating a new Rune takes a month of time and does 1d4 damage to the caster, just like creating an Athame; common runes like the two mentioned above, have been refined over the centuries to be much easier.

Runes can be damaged by time, magical effort or extreme force, but any caster who knows the spell it was based on can repair a damaged ward. (This is in part to make Hold Portal more useful to PCs, as it can rebuild many of the damaged wards throughout the dungeon.)

In Lost Galmagia Hold Portal/Wizard Lock spells were made runes in a variety of ways, most often as ward to prevent loose water from entering places, or giving paper screens the strength of mortared brick to act as interior walls. Wards are also permanent illusions, places of continual light, or magical traps. I just want to provide a consistent explanation for these things that, as Ben Milton at Questing Beast recommends, lets the players get their hands into the guts of the setting and tear it apart from the inside.