Maps: The Known Dungeon of Montporte After 60 Sessions

Elementalist Monastery Level 1

Elementalist Monastery Sub-Level 1

Elementalist Monastery Level 2

Elementalist Monastery Level 3

Elementalist Monastery Level 4

The Deep Dark - 21 Miles Down Level A

The Deep Dark - 21 Miles Down Level B

The Deep Dark - 28 Miles Down (Goblin Way Station)

The Deep Dark - 42 Miles Down (Gnome Kingdom/Stone Giant Forest)

Toagmadath (Fey)--Montporte Dungeon Campaign Critter

TOAGMADATH
Armor Class: 3 [16]
Hit Dice: 5
Attacks: 1 Bite (1d6); 2 Claws (1d4 each)
Saving Throw: 11
Special: Attack Bonus; Darkvision; Find the Path; Invisibility; Telepathy
Move: 7
Challenge Level/XP: 8/800

The toagmadath (singular and plural) is a fey giant badger. It is belongs to the Summer Court of the fey and typically lives in remote forests near the border of the Summer and Winter Courts. The toagmadath is a fierce guardian, attacking any encroaching Winter Court creatures. It usually lives alone in fortified tunnels, but there are some tunnel complexes where the badgers live in small communities. There is a small minority of toagmadath that are pacifists. They are allowed to quietly leave Umírající, the plane of the fey, for other lands. This is done so that other toagmadath are not influenced by their philosophy and beliefs.

COMBAT: The toagmadath are dangerous foes in combat and are excellent at small group tactics.

ATTACK BONUS: Toagmadath gain a +1 attack bonus for every toagmadath attacking a single opponent in the same round, up to four toagmadath (maximum +4 attack bonus). If one toagmadath attacks an opponent, it has a +1 bonus to its attack roll. If two toagmadath attack a single opponent, each gains a +2 bonus for each attack roll. Three toagmadath gain a +3 attack bonus.

DARKVISION: The toagmadath can see up to 60' in total darkness.

FIND THE PATH: The toagmadath can cast Find the Path once per week. It lasts 2 hours below ground and a full day above ground. The toagmadath must rest for 24 hours afterwards. During this rest period, it has a -2 penalty to attack and is not able to use its attack bonus.

INVISIBILITY: The toagmadath can make itself invisible once per day and this invisibility will last for up to 12 hours. It is negated by actions, such as attacking a foe or casting Find the Path.

TELEPATHY: The toagmadath can project simple thoughts into the minds of others up to 30' three times per day.

Montporte Dungeon Campaign 2.0 Session 8 Notes (Montporte 54)

Cast of Characters
Alaric: Human Cleric (PC-Main Character)
Alicia: Human Footman (NPC Henchwoman)
Carlos: Human Footman (NPC Henchman)
Fishdore: Koblold (NPC)
Huthul: Orc (NPC)
Jim Bob: Ogre (NPC)
Lord Jim: Human Fighter (PC-Sidekick)
Magnus: Human Magic-User (PC-Sidekick)
Maydor: Orc (NPC)
Merv: Human Torchbearer (NPC Henchman)
Septimus: Human Fighter (PC-Main Character)
Ummerokhan: Uyoga (NPC)
Zug: Orc (NPC)

The Session
The brave adventurers, having their first dungeon-based trade agreement in hand (negotiated in the previous session), were heading back to the town of Montporte to load up on weapons to sell to the Community.

They made their way from the second level, back to the first, and were heading toward the dungeon entrance when they encountered a group of large spiders. There were two bright red spiders and three dull gray spiders. The gray spiders were larger and more aggressive than the red spiders. The gray spiders moved towards the party, along the walls of the room, while the red spiders held their ground in the middle.

The party, sensing that they were the prey in this encounter, put their best fighters out front and closed the gap. The gray spiders turned out to be poisonous, with the poison causing paralysis on a failed saving throw. The red spiders were not poisonous, but they provided the party with a special surprise. When the party killed one of the red spiders, a half dozen smaller black spiders emerged from the slain spider and swarmed over the party. This created a fair amount of anxiety for the party members fighting the second red spider. It, too, spewed out a half dozen smaller black spiders out of its broken corpse.

A few party members suffered paralysis and Maydor the orc was killed, but eventually the party overcame the spiders. The group had just experienced their first encounter with cardinal spiders, nomadic predators feared by dwarfs and orcs alike.

Our session started later that usual. We ended here for the night.

Scroll of the Dead
Horace NPC Footman, Session 48
Pulvarti PC Magic-User, Session 49
Alicia, NPC Footman, Session 50
Diana, NPC Torchbearer, Session 52
Maydor, NPC, Orc, Session 54

Montporte Dungeon Campaign 2.0 Session 7 Notes (Montporte 53)

Cast of Characters
Alaric: Human Cleric (PC-Main Character)
Allidore: Kobold (NPC)
Alicia: Human Footman (NPC Henchwoman)
Bildar: Kobold (NPC)
Carlos: Human Footman (NPC Henchman)
Enzore: Kobold (NPC)
Fishdore: Koblold (NPC)
Huthul: Orc (NPC)
Jim Bob: Ogre (NPC)
Lord Jim: Human Fighter (PC-Sidekick)
Magnus: Human Magic-User (PC-Sidekick)
Maydor: Orc (NPC)
Merv: Human Torchbearer (NPC Henchman)
Ooga: Arbold (NPC)
Septimus: Human Fighter (PC-Main Character)
Ummerokhan: Uyoga (NPC)
Zug: Orc (NPC)

The Session
After adding 3 orcs and an ogre to their party at the end of Session 6 (Montporte 52), the adventurers and their large party continued to move carefully through level 2. Only a short distance from where the party killed the 4 thuragians in the last session, the party encountered 2 short, stocky hideous robed and hooded humanoids. This would be the party's first encountered with the 'oxkarrotous. The 'oxkarrotous had a string of humans, kobolds, and gnomes in tow, all chained together.

Alaric and Septimus decided that these two 'oxkarrotous were up to no good and, when the chained prisoners, cried out for help, the party attacked. The 'oxkarrotous were tough customers and were able to keep the main body of the party at bay. Unfortunately for the 'oxkarrotous, the room had multiple doors. The 3 orcs and the ogre looped around and attacked the the 'oxkarrotous on the flank through a side door. This turned the tide of the battle. The 'oxkarrotous finally went down. The adventurers suffered many wounds, but no one was killed out of the party.

The adventurers freed those who were chained and learned that the thuragians, the crab people encountered in the previous session, had settled nearby on level 2. From this base, they ventured forth and captured humanoids from nearby areas of the dungeon. The humanoid captives were sold to the 'oxkarrotous to be used as sacrifices in their demonic rituals.

As the party began to move on from this area, they encountered a group of mixed humanoids, led by a kobold named Larramore. Larramore turned out to be Little Larry, the faithful companion to Septimus' uncle, Adzeer Mattai. Little Larry's party was searching for the captives that had been freed by the adventurers.

Little Larry was now the troop commander for "the Community," a collective of idealistic property-sharing individuals living in the former gnome farming areas of levels 2 and 4. Daria was their leader. The Community's trade coordinator, Darius Pincushion (a gnome), negotiated a trade deal with Septimus and Alaric. The adventurers would bring a variety of weapons from Montporte to the Community and sell them at a profit. In return, the Community would sell the adventurers mushroom cubes that could be sold at a profit in Montporte.

Before departing, Ummerokhan, an Uyoga (mushroom person), joined the adventurers to serve as a guide who knew the path to the Community. The adventurers' 3 kobolds and the arbold left the adventurers to join Little Larry and the Community.

Scroll of the Dead
Horace NPC Footman, Session 48
Pulvarti PC Magic-User, Session 49
Alicia, NPC Footman, Session 50
Diana, NPC Torchbearer, Session 52

The Death of Diana, My Longest Running NPC

In Session 1 of the Montporte Dungeon campaigns, Diana was rescued from a nk-ha (an aberration). The adventurers managed to bring her out of her coma. The adventurers rescued other humans held prisoner in the dungeon over the next few sessions and returned them to their homes. Diana, however, stayed on with the adventurers as the cave goat driver.

Diana stayed with the adventurers until Session 37. The party had to cross a chasm and decided to leave some of their NPCs behind, along with the cave goats. Diana remained with the NPCs and did not cross the chasm with the player characters.

When the second campaign started with Session 47, she joined the new team of adventurers as a torchbearer. When the adventurers acquired their own little herd of cave goats, she managed them while still carrying a torch for the party. Diana finally met her untimely end in Session 52 as the result of a "brain blast from" some mysterious frogs.

Despite being present with two different adventuring parties over the course of 43 sessions, Diana was a woman of mystery. By Session 37, it appeared that she might be pregnant. The adventurers also noticed that her eyes were turning black, as if they had become pupils only. At the start of Session 47 (a year later), she was not pregnant and her eyes had returned to normal. Diana's short life is over, but her story may continue.

Cardinal Spider--Montporte Dungeon Campaign Critter

CARDINAL SPIDER
Cardinal spiders travel in small roving bands made up of 2-8 males and 2-4 females. The males are the smaller of two (about 60 pounds in weight) and are deep red in color. The males also carry the baby spiders inside their bodies, once the eggs are fertilized. The male must die in order for the 4d4 baby cardinal spiders to leave his body. The females are larger (about 120 pounds in weight) and dull gray in color, with hints of red around the head and legs. They are more aggressive than the males in hunting and in combat. Baby cardinal spiders are black in color and about 1' in diameter.

FEMALE CARDINAL SPIDER
Armor Class: 2 [17]
Hit Dice: 2
Attacks: 1 Bite (1d6)
Saving Throw: 16
Special: Poison
Move: 14
Challenge Level/XP: 3/60

COMBAT: Female cardinal spiders are smart and aggressive hunters, using stealth and camouflage to gain an advantage over prey. They are tough foes in combat as they seek to shield the smaller males from harm, even at the cost of their own lives.

POISON: When an opponent suffers a bite from a female cardinal spider, the opponent must make a saving throw or be paralyzed for 1d6 turns.

MALE CARDINAL SPIDER
Armor Class: 4 [15]
Hit Dice: 1
Attacks: Bite (1d4)
Saving Throw: 17
Special: Live Baby Spiders
Move: 10
Challenge Level/XP: 2/30

COMBAT: Male cardinal spiders only attack when attacked or cornered. They will otherwise attempt to flee.

LIVE BABY SPIDERS: When the male cardinal spider dies, its exoskeleton splits and 4d4 baby cardinal spiders scramble out of the male's body the next round.

BABY CARDINAL SPIDER
Armor Class: 7 [12]
Hit Dice: 1 hit point
Attacks: Bite (1 point)
Saving Throw: 18
Special: Nonw
Move: 6
Challenge Level/XP: 0/5

COMBAT: Baby cardinal spiders swarm any warm blooded creature within 20' of them after leaving the male's body.

Montporte Dungeon Campaign 2.0 Session 6 Notes (Montporte 52)

Cast of Characters
Alaric: Human Cleric (PC-Main Character)
Allidore: Kobold (NPC)
Alicia: Human Footman (NPC Henchwoman)
Bildar: Kobold (NPC)
Carlos: Human Footman (NPC Henchman)
Diana: Human Torchbearer (NPC Henchwoman)
Enzore: Kobold (NPC)
Fishdore: Koblold (NPC)
Huthul: Orc (NPC)
Jim Bob: Ogre (NPC)
Lord Jim: Human Fighter (PC-Sidekick)
Magnus: Human Magic-User (PC-Sidekick)
Maydor: Orc (NPC)
Merv: Human Torchbearer (NPC Henchman)
Ooga: Arbold (NPC)
Septimus: Human Fighter (PC-Main Character)
Zug: Orc (NPC)

The Session
This session began where the last session left off, with the adventurers using three small boats to explore a newly discovered lake at the south end of Level 1 of the Montporte Dungeon. The adventurers had returned to the landing that was serving as their home base. They decided to journey out again, following the north shore and moving east.

They found an area that looked like a small landing. The cave wall had been smoothed and there was a small circular indention, but no amount of pushing and prodding produced any results. About then, the three giant frogs from the last session reappeared (each frog looked like it weighed 60 pounds). The frogs surfaced about 20 feet from the boats.

As the frogs stared at the adventurers, three of the adventurers--Alaric, Carlos and Diana--felt pressure welling up inside their skulls. Alaric and Carlos were able to fend off whatever was causing the pressure, but Diana was not. She slumped over in her boat, blood dripping from her eyes, nose and ears. She was dead. At the same moment, the heads of each of the three frogs exploded, spreading gore over the surface of the water. At the same time, their bodies vanished.

With the three frogs gone, the adventurers pressed on to the east. They found the eastern end of the subterranean lake. In the southeastern portion of the lake, they found a landing and brought their boats to shore. As they did so, three frogs appeared. The three giant frogs kept their distance and did not make eye contact. Instead, they began doing intricate acrobatics, both above and below the surface of the lake.

The adventurers dragged their boats onto the landing. Once ashore, the adventurers found that there were two tunnels leading away from the landing, one north and one south. As the adventurers moved away from the lake, the frogs came ashore. The frogs kept their distance and continued their tumbling antics.

The party moved north and found the northern tunnel to be a dead end. The frogs moved into the southern tunnel. The party drew their weapons, moving into the southern tunnel, which also proved to be a dead end. The party could see and feel an unsettling shift of the dimensions of the tunnel as the frogs hopped, skipped and cartwheeled towards the blank wall at the end of the tunnel. The frogs jumped into the dead end wall and disappeared. The tunnel subtly shifted back to a normal appearance.

The party moved west and explored further. They discovered the lake was continued west for quite a ways. At this point, the adventures decided to go back to their launch point and continue with their original two-fold mission of finding trading partners for the town of Montporte and searching for an ancient dwarven city rumored to be somewhere underneath the Montporte Dungeon.

The adventurers moved north on the first level away from the subterranean lake. They met up with Cassius, Montporte's former caretaker and current resident ghost. Despite his addled memory, Cassius did report that a small group of surly pig-faced men were guests at Montporte. They were accompanied by a very large clumsy guy. They had moved in the direction of the spiral staircase to the second level.

The adventurers moved in the same direction, descending the 100 feet to level 2. The party moved through several rooms into a huge room with a set of 2 metal rails running down the middle, north to south. This room was occupied by four thuragians (crab folk). The thuragians did not respond favorable and a nasty melee ensued. Thuragians are tough customers but the overwhelming number of adventurers made for a short fight.

In the very next room, the adventurers found a party of 3 orcs, accompanied by an ogre. Wary, but surprisingly not aggressive, the orcs agreed to join the adventurers on their quest for profit. It turned out that Maydor, Huthul, and Zug were deserters. They wanted gold and fresh meat, not a way to the fourth level. The adventurers knew that this was the main goal of the other orcs they had encountered (Session 47). Jim Bob, the ogre, was along for the violence and vittles.

This is where our session ended.

Scroll of the Dead
Horace NPC Footman, Session 48
Pulvarti PC Magic-User, Session 49
Alicia, NPC Footman, Session 50
Diana, NPC Torchbearer, Session 52

Montporte Dungeon Campaign 2.0 Session 5 Notes (Montporte 51)

Cast of Characters
Alaric: Human Cleric (PC-Main Character)
Allidore: Kobold (NPC)
Alicia: Human Footman (NPC Henchwoman)
Bildar: Kobold (NPC)
Carlos: Human Footman (NPC Henchman)
Diana: Human Torchbearer (NPC Henchwoman)
Enzore: Kobold (NPC)
Fishdore: Koblold (NPC)
Lord Jim: Human Fighter (PC-Sidekick)
Magnus: Human Magic-User (PC-Sidekick)
Merv: Human Torchbearer (NPC Henchman)
Ooga: Arbold (NPC)
Septimus: Human Fighter (PC-Main Character)

The Session
This session started at the northern end of the elementalists' monastery on Level 1, where the last session ended. The adventurers had defeated a squad of kobolds, confiscated their boats, and decided to spend the night in the room. They secured the single door with spikes and set a watch schedule.

At the end of the third watch, there was yelling and pounding on the other side of the spiked door. The yelling was in kobold and the tone was frantic and commanding. "That's Andimore, one of Degmar's true believers," whispered Enzore, one of the party's kobold captives. "He's not going to be happy with what you have done. I am sure he is wondering why our squad didn't complete our tasks."

The intensity of the pounding on the door increased, turning to smashing. The party arrayed themselves into their fighting formation, as two arbolds crashed through the door, followed by three kobolds, including the sword wielding fanatic, Andimore.

The battle was fierce but short. The arbolds went down, along with Andimore. The two remaining kobolds, Fishdore and Bildar, dropped their spears and surrendered. The adventurers now had 4 kobolds and 1 arbold as prisoners.

The captives agreed to thrown in their lot with the adventurers, stating that following the deluded Degmar proved to be pointless and dangerous. With the captives becoming comrades, at least for the moment, the party decided to head south to the opposite end of the first level of the Montporte Dungeon. They dragged their three small boats along with them.

Along the way, the party encountered two dwarves, Aldo and Nova. The dwarves were guarding an entrance to their mining area on the first level of the dungeon. The dwarves cast a wary eye at the kobolds and arbold. The conversation was not tense, but the dwarves were not in a chatty mood. The adventurers did promise to come back and have a conversation about trade.

The adventurers moved south into unexplored territory. Here they discovered what proved to be a subterranean lake. As bodies of water go, it seemed small, but it proved to be the largest body of water so far discovered in Montporte Dungeon.

Not everyone in the party could fit into the boats, so the party split, with a larger group taking the boats and the remainder securing the landing area. As soon as the boats left the shore, the adventurers in the boats could see three very large frogs swimming around and under the boats. Each frog looked to weigh about 60 pounds.

The party explored a bit of the cave wall along the edge of the lake east of the landing. In the meantime, the three frogs drew closer and eventually surfaced next to the boats. A loaf of bread appeared the paws of each frog and they tossed the loaves into the boats.

Shaken, the adventurers paddled the boats back to the landing and then ripped the bread into little pieces, searching for poison or a trap or some other life-threatening item. All they discovered was that the bread was still warm and smelled mighty yummy.

With the destruction of the bread complete, we ended the session.

Scroll of the Dead
Horace NPC Footman, Session 48
Pulvarti PC Magic-User, Session 49
Alicia, NPC Footman, Session 50

'Oxkarrotous--Montporte Dungeon Campaign Critter

'OXKARROTOUS 
Armor Class: 2 [17]
Hit Dice: 5
Attacks: By weapon (2 attacks per round)
Saving Throw: 12
Special: Saving Throw Bonus Versus Magic; Limited Teleport
Move: 6
Challenge Level/XP: 5/250

'Oxkarrotous are short, stocky demon-worshiping humanoids.  They typically wear heavy leather cloaks with hoods. Underneath their cloaks, they wear chainmail armor of the finest craftsmanship.

'Oxkarrotous make their homes in remote areas of the Deep Dark, coming near to the earth's surface only to capture humanoids of every variety for slaves and sacrifice. It is rumored that the more powerful 'oxkarrotous can perform the most foul sorcery, summoning and controlling demons to the darkest ends. Some sages have suggested that 'oxkarrotous started as dwarves, whose greed led them to demon worship and the demonic arts.

COMBAT: 'Oxkarrotous often avoid combat by the use of minions, slaves, or even the occasional demon. However, they are capable melee fighters with two attacks per round. Once engaged in combat, they rarely surrender.

SAVING THROW BONUS: 'Oxkarrotous gain a +4 bonus to saving throws versus magic.

LIMITED TELEPORT: 'Oxkarrotous are able to teleport up to 60' twice per day.

Montporte Dungeon Campaign 2.0 Session 4 Notes (Montporte 50)

Cast of Characters
Alaric: Human Cleric (PC-Main Character)
Allidore: Kobold (NPC)
Alicia: Human Footman (NPC Henchwoman)
Carlos: Human Footman (NPC Henchman)
Diana: Human Torchbearer (NPC Henchwoman)
Enzore: Kobold (NPC)
Lord Jim: Human Fighter (PC-Sidekick)
Magnus: Human Magic-User (PC-Sidekick)
Merv: Human Torchbearer (NPC Henchman)
Ooga: Arbold (NPC)
Septimus: Human Fighter (PC-Main Character)

The Session
At the conclusion of the previous session, the adventurers were moving north on the first level of the Montporte Dungeon into unexplored territory. The adventurers suspected that this area was teeming with kobolds.

As the adventuring party continued their exploration, they began to find signs that confirmed the presence of kobolds--clever traps on doors, small footprints in the dust, and the sound of light footsteps beyond torch range.

Eventually, the party reached the northern end of the first level of the Elementalists' Monastery. Here they found a small group of heavily armed kobolds, accompanied by two arbolds. A nasty little melee battle ensued that resulted in the death of Alicia, party henchwoman and footman. Despite their tragic loss, the adventurers killed the kobolds and one of the arbolds. The remaining arbold, named "Ooga," surrendered.

The party then moved into the next room containing four more kobolds. The party killed two of the kobolds and the other two surrendered. There names were Allidore and Enzore. There also three small boats in the room. Two of the boats were very small and the third boat, a little larger, had a heavy crossbow mounted on the bow.

One of the kobolds had written orders from Degmar, the leader of the kobolds in the region. Degmar is known to be both charismatic and unstable. He had brought the kobolds to Montporte to search for some sort of legendary magic item or location (read Little Larry's story for more info). Some of the kobolds proved to be as fanatical as Degmar. Others followed out of a sense of kobold honor. And others went along, quietly grumbling and hoping for better leadership to come along. The two kobolds captured by the party fell into the third group and were happy to be out from under Degmar's scaly thumb.

Degmar's written orders described a three pronged movement of kobolds, moving from north to south. The easternmost group would move to secure the kobolds' left (east) flank from dwarves and orcs. The party realized that they had met and defeated this group in their second session (Montporte Session 48).

A second group, the most heavily armed, would sweep south and west through the ant caves on the first level of the dungeon. They would push back the ants, hold the right (west) flank and also serve as a diversion.

The third group would move south quickly with three boats, dragged by arbolds. The boats would be put into the lake at the south end of the first level. This was the western access to the lake. The east access had been tried but proved to be too hazardous for exploration, due to orcs and hazards in the water. The adventurers had unwittingly destroyed Degmar's operations by destroying two out of three groups of kobolds.

Having convinced the arbold and kobolds to become members of their party, the adventurers decided to secure the room and get a good night's rest. The session ended here.

Scroll of the Dead
Horace NPC Footman, Session 48
Pulvarti PC Magic-User, Session 49
Alicia, NPC Footman, Session 50

Montporte Dungeon Campaign 2.0 Session 3 Notes (Montporte 49)

Cast of Characters
Alaric: Human Cleric (PC-Main Character)
Alicia: Human Footman (NPC Henchwoman)
Carlos: Human Footman (NPC Henchman)
Diana: Human Torchbearer (NPC Henchwoman)
Magnus: Human Magic-User (PC-Sidekick)
Merv: Human Torchbearer (NPC Henchman)
Pulvarti: Human Magic-User (PC-Sidekick)
Septimus: Human Fighter (PC-Main Character)

The Session
This session started in the town of Montporte, with the party healing up, getting supplies and searching for a replacement for the late footman, Horace. Carlos was added to the group and the adventurers headed back to the dungeon, this time with a plan to explore some new territory on the first level.

Once inside the dungeon, the adventurers moved north and entered a dining hall of the Elementalist Monastery. The Elementalist Monastery forms the core of the upper of levels of the Montporte Dungeon. In the dining hall, they found several strange large lizard creature (flying cubic lizard). The lizards had no legs and possessed cube-shaped bodies, with a neck and head at one end and a tail at the other. Along each side of the lizard's cubic body was a human face. The lizards moved by floating from one place to another.

The lizards turned out to be hungry and aggressive. While the lizards were not particularly fearsome, they had the ability to float over the defensive line of fighters and footman. One of them did just that, attacking and killing the vulnerable magic-user, Pulvarti. The rest of the party was able to defeat the lizards but the victory offered no hope for the fallen mage.

Despite mourning the loss of their friend, the party pressed on to the north, discovering some new territory. This included finding a room with a pool. In the pool were several moderately sized sharks circling towards the bottom of the pool. At the bottom of the pool, the adventurers could clearly see a trap door. Not having a means to descend and explore the door, the party moved on.

The party also discovered a room with a large sandbox area, similar to a pool of water, but containing soil and rocks. The soil and rocks began to vibrate a move about a bit as they entered the room. The adventurers knew there was a similar area just south, only it contained a pool of water that rippled. Occasionally, the pool unleashed some water elementals. There was a locked steel door on the western side of the room. Magnus was unable to pick the lock. Fearing an unwelcome appearance by some earth elementals, the party exited the room.

After a bit more exploration, the session ended for the evening.

Scroll of the Dead
Horace NPC Footman, Session 48
Pulvarti PC Magic-User, Session 49

Montporte Dungeon Campaign 2.0 Session 2 Notes (Montporte 48)

Cast of Characters
Alaric: Human Cleric (PC-Main Character)
Alicia: Human Footman (NPC Henchwoman)
Diana: Human Torchbearer (NPC Henchwoman)
Horace: Human Footman (NPC Henchman)
Magnus: Human Magic-User (PC-Sidekick)
Merv: Human Torchbearer (NPC Henchman)
Pulvarti: Human Magic-User (PC-Sidekick)
Septimus: Human Fighter (PC-Main Character)

The Session
The second session of the Montporte Dungeon Campaign 2.0 (Montporte Session 48) picked up where the last session left off. The adventurers left the safety and comfort of the town of Montporte and returned to the dungeon.

The adventurers checked out the area just inside the entrance, looking for signs of orcs. While they did not see any living orcs, the adventurers notices that the orc bodies left from the previous sessions had been moved into a side room. Here they were organized and laid to rest. They found other evidence of recent orc activity, such as a partially eaten dwarf and a few mostly eaten kobolds.

The party continued east. At this point, a sporadic sprinkle of arrows came at them from two different directions. The adventurers did a tactical retreat and then secured one door while Septimus shot arrows north, into the dark. He heard a kobold scream and then the sound of a body hit the floor...a clear sign that his shot in the dark was not in vain.

The party advanced north, following a trail of blood from a second kobold. After much winding around and searching, the party stumbled on a larger group of kobolds. Two of the kobolds were mounted on giant spotted spiky spiders.

The kobolds were easy pickings, but the spiders proved tougher. One of the spiders bit Horace and died from the poison damage. When the last of the kobolds were killed, the two spiders retreated to the east, leaving a trail of spider blood and goo behind.

The adventurers gathered up the weapons, a smattering of gold, a few semiprecious gems, and a vial of magical foot fungus cure. At this point, the party thought it best to leave the dungeon, heal up, and then return.

The Scroll of the Dead
Horace NPC - Session 48

What Worked
Giving the kobolds a knowledge of the dungeon, a mind for small unit tactics, and a desire to keep their enemies out of melee range worked well. This is where restricting PCs to humans only put the party at a (fun) disadvantage, despite their clear superiority to the kobolds. Torches and lanterns make for great arrow targets. The tactical movement and darkvision of the kobolds turned a run-of-the-mill melee into a sprawling challenge for the players.

I am really digging Bloody Basic, our rule set. Simple yet robust, with its comprehensive d20 mechanics.

Giant Spotted Spiky Spider--Montporte Dungeon Campaign Critter

GIANT SPOTTED SPIKY SPIDER
Armor Class: 4 [15]
Hit Dice: 3
Attacks: Bite (1d4); 2 Spikes (1d6)
Saving Throw: 14
Special: Poison; Charge; Trainable
Move: 15
Challenge Level/XP: 4/120

The giant spotted spiky spider is a fierce predatory spider that uses its muted coloring and spots to blend into the subterranean environment in order to catch its prey unaware.

POISON: The bite of the giant spotted spiky spider is moderately poisonous. When a bite is successfully inflicted on a target, the target must immediately make a saving throw or suffer 1d6 in poison damage (in addition to the 1d4 damage from the bite itself). Each round thereafter, the victim attempts a saving through. A successful save means that no damage is suffered that round and the victim is now safe from further poison damage (this is true for the round that bite is suffered as well).

CHARGE: The giant spotted spiky spider can charge opponents in one of three directions (left side, right side, or rear). One or two opponents may be attacked by the spikes of the spider during the charge, with each spike inflicting 1d6 in damage on a successful attack. The spider may not bite and charge in the same round.

TRAINABLE: Giant spotted spiky spiders are more intelligent than most spiders and can be trained if the training begins at the time they are hatched. They are often used for hunting, guard animals, and as mounts by smaller humanoids. Kobolds, in particularly, use giant spotted spiky spiders in all of these roles.

Montporte Dungeon Campaign 2.0 Session 1 Notes (Montporte Session 47)

Cast of Characters
Alaric: Human Cleric (PC-Main Character)
Alicia: Human Footman (NPC Henchwoman)
Diana: Human Torchbearer (NPC Henchwoman)
Horace: Human Footman (NPC Henchman)
Magnus: Human Magic-User (PC-Sidekick)
Merv: Human Torchbearer (NPC Henchman)
Pulvarti: Human Magic-User (PC-Sidekick)
Septimus: Human Fighter (PC-Main Character)

The Session
The session started in the town of Montporte. The town's business and political leaders, led by Rindolph (Count's Steward/Mayor) and Gunderson (Master Guildmaster), had a two-fold mission for Alaric and Septimus:

1. Find potential trade partners for the town of Montporte who are living in the Montporte dungeon.
2. Search for a an abandoned dwarven city, rumored to be somewhere beneath the Montporte dungeon.

The party was armed with a bit of gold, a few healing potions, and some dungeon maps recently purchased by town leaders.

About a year had elapsed between the first Montporte Dungeon Campaign and this session, which is the start of the second Montporte Dungeon Campaign. At the beginning of the first campaign, a band of orcs had moved some stones and found an opening into the Montporte Dungeon. For centuries, the dungeon had remained unknown in the remote mountain wilderness north of the isolated town of Montporte.

With the dungeon's discovery, dwarves had reinhabited ancient mines, orcs continued to explore and homestead, and humans began poking around for treasure and knowledge. Montporte's town mothers and fathers wanted to cash in on this newly uncovered subterranean world. Alaric and Septimus were asked to lead the charge.

After getting a bit of information, some supplies and a team of henchman, the party descended into the first level of Montporte. Their careful scouting discovered an orc archer, slouched and asleep behind an arrow slit in the first room. Septimus quietly ended his slumber and his life with a well-placed arrow.

The party moved east through a doorway and met a few more orcs. Melee ensued and soon orcs were pouring into the room from several doorways. The party was surprised at how organized and tactically sound the orcs were. The party would have been hard pressed, were it not for a well timed sleep spell that stopped almost a dozen orcs in their tracks. The party kept one orc alive, tied him up, and dispatched the rest.

The captive orc revealed the following information after a bit of questioning:

• The orcs were in the dungeon, searching for a tunnel that would lead them deep underneath their current lair, located about 15 miles to the northeast. 
• Underneath their lair were a nest of antmen. They wanted to find a tunnel that would lead them underneath the antmen so that they could attack the antmen from above and below.
• The orcs believed that there was a hidden tunnel on Montporte's fourth level that would connect to their lair from below.
• The orcs are led by a powerful mage who is neither orc nor human.

The party decided to let their captive live. The explored the surrounding area and found the orcs' food (nasty), beds, and cooking area.

Deciding not to push their luck, the party returned to the town of Montporte. There they discovered, much to their delight, that a live orc was worth a bounty of 50 gold pieces.

Montporte Dungeon Campaign 2.0--Campaign Reboot

We are six sessions into the second Montporte Dungeon campaign. I will try to catch up with some gaming session notes in the upcoming week before I get too far behind and I lose track of what happened in each session. Sadly, because of my work schedule, the gaming session notes will be less detailed and will have fewer maps.

Here are some random details for the Montporte reboot:

Bloody Basic: We are using John Stater's Bloody Basic: Classic Edition for our rule set, with the following modifications:

• Player characters are limited to humans only.
• Clerics, fighters, and magic-users are the three classes. Most of the thief skills that are useful in the dungeon have been allocated to these three classes.
• Player characters have additional hit points at first level--Clerics have an additional 6 hit points, fighters have an additional 8 hit points, and magic-users have 4 hit points. These points are in addition to the hit point die roll at first level for each character.
• Clerics can lay on hands for some additional healing, fighters have a weapon specialization, and magic-users automatically read magic.

Bloody Basic tops out at sixth level, which is fine by us. We plan on using something similar to the E6 variant of Dungeons & Dragons. We do not have all of the details I worked out, but there is a lot to draw on from Blood & Treasure (e.g. feats and additional spells) as well as other resources.

Heroes and Sidekicks: Each player has two characters. One character is their "main" character and the other is the "sidekick." The main character is the default for role-playing and decision-making, unless there is a specific reason for the sidekick to be involved (knowledge of a language, class-based conversation, use of a skill, etc). Main characters earn two shares of experience at the end of each session while sidekicks earn one.

Resource and Time Management: We are keeping more careful track of resources, such as food, torches, and arrows. We are also tracking encumbrance. We are working to streamline the process for the former while relying on the simple and elegant system in Bloody Basic for the latter.

Economics, Exploration, and Experience: In additional to the usual ways to gain experience points, the party gains experience with successful conversations and negotiations, exploration of new areas of the dungeon, and making a profit off of trade. The party was commission at the start of Session 1 to establish trade relationships in the recently discovered dungeon and Deep Dark, as well as to seek out a mythical subterranean ancient dwarven city.

Campaign and Continuity: One of the challenges for a dungeon-based campaign is maintaining momentum and continuity. We lost a lot of that in the final dozen sessions of our last Montporte campaign. We changed rule sets, lost players, added players, and the main threads of the campaign were lost in all of it. This time around, we are starting with a couple of goals (explore, establish trade relationships, and find a dwarven city), using a simple rule set, and playing with a smaller group (and only playing when everyone is present).

A key to the campaign working so far is the players themselves--they are keeping notes, making decisions, and determining the direction of play within the parameters we had agreed upon prior to playing.

So far, so good.

Arbold--Montporte Dungeon Campaign Critter

ARBOLD
Armor Class: 3 [16]
Hit Dice: 3
Attacks: 1 Punch (1d4) or by weapon +2
Saving Throw: 14
Special: None
Move: 12
Challenge Level/XP: 3/60

Arbolds are close relatives of kobolds and are often found in their company. They stand about 7' tall and are of extremely low intelligence. They are generally amiable but have a mean streak and enjoy melee combat.

COMBAT: Unlike kobolds, who avoid melee combat whenever possible, arbolds enjoy close quarter combat and inflicting violence on their foes. They can attack with their fists, but most often use a spear or a trident.

Churrelloth (Demon)--Montporte Dungeon Campaign Critter

CHURRELLOTH
Armor Class: 2 [17]
Hit Dice: 5
Attacks: 2 Punches (1d6+1 each)
Saving Throw: 12
Special: Magic Resistance; Stunning Blow
Move: 12
Challenge Level/XP: 6/400

The churrelloth (plural churrellothii) is a very minor demon inhabiting the plane of Syvyys, where the churrellothii often form vast hordes under the control of more powerful demons. The churrelloth is a small almost featureless bipedal demon, about 3' in height. It has pale gray translucent skin and human-like eyes with black pupils.

COMBAT: The churrelloth knows no fear in combat and will fight until it dies or is commanded to stop by an overlord. It is surprisingly quick and strong, enabling it to strike twice during each round of combat with its fists.

MAGIC RESISTANCE: Like all demons, the churrelloth is resistant to magic. It gains a +2 to its saving throw against arcane magic and a +1 to saving throws versus divine magic.

STUNNING BLOW: When the churrelloth successfully strikes an opponent with its fists, the opponent must successfully make a saving throw or be slightly stunned. The opponent attacks with a -1 penalty for the following 1d4 rounds.

Monday Moodsetter 79

RPG Rorschach: What's the first gaming thought that pops into your head?

Mazzik (Demon)--Montporte Dungeon Campaign Critter

MAZZIK

The mazzik (plural mazzikii) is a human who has been tainted by the demonic. This usually happens when a human spends its childhood in close proximity to demons and the demonic. A mazzik lives a Jekyll & Hyde existence, living among humans in its human form but occasionally becoming monstrous and demonic.  A mazzik will position itself so that it can prey upon humans, usually by putting itself in a position of trust and leadership in a community.

The mazzik can go for several years with its demonic form in dormant state. The demonic form, when it comes forth, usually creates a feeding frenzy over the course of several days or weeks. The mazzik only has partial control of itself, with the changing to the demonic happening when it is least likely to be observed.

LESSER MAZZIK
Armor Class: 4 [15]
Hit Dice: 6
Attacks: 2 fists (1d4 each) or by weapon type (1 attack)
Saving Throw: 11
Special: Magic Resistance; Move Silently; Hide in Shadows
Move: 12
Challenge Level/XP: 7/600

The lesser mazzik lives hidden with human communities and preys upon humans, lapsing into feeding frenzies. During each feeding frenzy, the lesser mazzik will consume 3-6 humans.

COMBAT: The lesser mazzik will avoid combat unless it is clear that it has superior odds. In combat, it attacks fiercely but will also seek to escape if it looks like it may be killed.

MAGIC RESISTANCE: The lesser mazzik has a +2 to its saving throws versus magic.

MOVE SILENTLY: The lesser mazzik can move silently at will with no chance of failure.

HIDE IN SHADOWS: The lesser mazzik can hide in shadows as if it were an 8th level thief.

GREATER MAZZIK
Armor Class: 2 [17]
Hit Dice: 9
Attacks: 2 fists (1d8 each) or by weapon type (2 attacks)
Saving Throw: 6
Special: Magic Resistance; Move Silently; Hide in Shadows
Move: 14
Challenge Level/XP: 10/1,400

The greater mazzik lives hidden with human communities and preys upon humans, lapsing into feeding frenzies. During each feeding frenzy, the greater mazzik will consume 7-12 humans.

COMBAT: The greater mazzik will avoid combat unless it is clear that it has superior odds. In combat, it attacks fiercely but will also seek to escape if it looks like it may be killed.

MAGIC RESISTANCE: The greater mazzik has a +2 to its saving throws versus magic.

MOVE SILENTLY: The greater mazzik can move silently at will with no chance of failure.

HIDE IN SHADOWS: The greater mazzik can hide in shadows as if it were an 11th level thief.

Shared GMing

+Tim Shorts, +Chris C. and I have been doing some round-robin GMing with a shared world. It has been a good time. Here is a bit more about what have been doing in bullet point form:

• Using a Simple Rule Set: We are using Pits & Perils and it has been serving us well.
• Keeping the Group Small: This was a hard one for us, but we had decided to restrict our group to just the three of us. We had been talking about this style of play for several months and decided that it would work best with the three of us. As far as gaming goes, it was the right decision. Personally and socially, it was difficult thing to do.
• Short Adventure Arcs: We have been rotating the GMing duties every 2-4 sessions. Each time, whoever is GMing starts a new arc for the next 2-4 sessions.
• Not Quite a Sandbox: Each adventure arc has started with a specific problem to solve or task to complete. Rather than spending time with the players figuring out what the characters are going to do, each arc has started a bit more railroady. Sometimes it is as simple as an NPC asking for help (we have all used this at least once). Other times, the PCs travel into a village with a major problem to be solved. We made a conscious decision to start off each adventure arc with a specific task or goal. 
• Not Much World Building: We have not done much world building, except what was needed to support each adventure arc. The minimal world building was not intentional but I think it has worked fine so far.
• Same Characters: Each of has been using the same player character throughout. When one of us is GMing, the GM's character simply sits out those sessions.