The Emperor is building a new canal. Maybe it's going to be full of his favorite fish; a pond next to his new palace. Or perhaps it's a massive rice farm, or maybe it's a network for fast travel and commerce within the heart of the empire. For whatever reason, a massive pit is being dug and slowly lined with wet stones. To accomplish this huge undertaking, hundreds of strong farmers, random criminals, and outlaws were shoved into this huge pit to finish the work. The pit is a straight drop, far too tall to climb out, with guards stationed every so often to make sure nobody is trying to escape. They are paid in sweet wine and bread, but at least they were promised a satchel of silver each when they were done. There's no telling if this will ever materialize, but at least it helps with the morale.
You are not one of them. You're down their drain.
Chain Gang's Main Drain
The center of the massive drained canal is a ditch that leads to a hole. The hole is many meters deep, only letting in enough light to barely illuminate the bottom. This is a drainage ditch and well dug to keep the canal from flooding too quickly, but the earth was too soft and it broke into a space beneath. The walls are way too wet to climb, and even getting a ladder down the tight hole would be difficult, if the chain gang even had one. You're stuck down here.
The Chain Gang has no way to get you out, but they still have need of you. Partially, just to have someone to look down on. The guards are lorded over by the Emperor, they chain gang are lorded over by the gaurds, and you're lorded over by them. Fair?
For doing tasks for them, the Chain Gangers can give you food, usually just scraps, and precious wine, which is one of your only ways of getting clean drinking water. They can also spare some of their tools, pickaxes to move stones and shovels to sift dirt, which you can use as weapons; but if too many goes missing or lost the guards will likely punish the Chain Gang very harshly, so they'll want them back for each inspection. They accomplish this by sending down a bucket on a string, along with other supplies, but it's too small and weak to send one of you back up, of course. Being down the drain does have its advantages though; the guards don't know you exist, and as such, you aren't getting beaten or forced to work. But where as the chain gang are going to be brought out of the pit when the job is done, and they swear they'll try to get you out, the architects overseeing the project have no obligation to figure out a solution to your problem, and the dig is on a tight schedule as is...
The Chain Gang's Quests
Every three days, the Chain Gangers will collectively have a task for you to complete. Their attitude is cordial, but they aren't going to share their rations if you don't help them, and they know you can't do much about it if they do stiff you your reward. The reward will be;
- Exactly enough rations for everyone down the hole, with no extra for lunch breaks, healing (well fed bonuses), or monster bait, for the next three days. If the Chain Gang had a few bad days, assume a few smaller or missing rations this time.
- One tool. This can be a rough shovel (1d3 blunt), a trowel (1d2, but can be used in grapple or sneak attacks like a dagger), a sharpened pickaxe (two handed, 1d6 piercing), or a long pole used for moving stones (1d4 quarterstaff, attack at disadvantage in cramped space, could be made into a spear or broken apart for a few torches). If it's a bad day, you get a random one instead of the tool you wanted.
- Two pieces of driftwood and soiled linens that can be used as a torch OR a few leather straps that broke off from from scaffold or from moving heavy stones. (Two or more straps can be used to make basic armor as leather, or wrapped around your arms and legs for +1 temporary AC) If you don't ask for one in particular, they'll just give you a random choice.
- One wineskin. The Chain Gang all get one every other three days, so they rotate who gives it up for you. First thing to go during bad days.
The wine is enough to get one person drunk or can be shared among three people.
It's enough to wet your tongue enough to cast spells or can restore one Hit-Point if you chug the whole thing like a health potion. If anything bad happens on the
surface (somebody escaped & the guards crack down, it rains, it's a
church day and everyone is still forced to work, a mason loses their
tools and the chain gangers are searched for contraband, etc.) then the
wine always goes.
If you do a task for them, they'll give you all of the above as your reward. If
you do an extra task or a really good job, they'll give you an extra pick of anything on the list;
except for the wine.
There is also a one in six chance each day the Chain Gang steals something from a higher up like a mason (an actual valuable worker) or an architect who had to step into the pit for a moment. The Chain Gang is spiteful enough to want to pawn these off on you in lieu of one of your normal rewards just to inconvenience those above them, but will never send you down anything actually valuable like coin or a proper weapon. This special reward can only be taken on these days, and is randomly;
- Length of rope or small bit of iron chain (1d3 improvised weapon). You can also break down the bucket for this if you really need it, but then you'll have no way to trade for items.
- Mason chisel (1d4 improvised dagger) OR Mason's chalk
- Parchment and paper taken from architects or stolen letters (you can use these to draw a map)
- Axe Head that fell from a woodcutter and was lost in the mud when they were clearing space for the canal. (No handle, but could be made into a d6 axe)
- Animal fat and grease from the kitchen tents (can be used as fuel, ointment, or smeared over something to make it bait for a monster). If you're a weirdo you can ask for specific organs or animal bones instead; like if you need them to cast a spell or something.
- Guard's Cuirass (as chainmail). They would 100% keep this themselves but is too hard to hide and anyone caught with it would 100% be killed. Expect the next three days in a row to be 'bad days', since a guard either died or just got demoted.
In order to determine what task the Chain Gangers give you, roll on this table. If you roll a 11 or 12, then this is a bonus task that is secretly given by someone among the Chain Gang, whispered down and separate from the rest of the group. Roll again. They can drop something on the reward table extra; but it's rarely worth the added risk.
Chain Gang Task Table - Roll 1d12
[1] Teach us a new song, funny hole people! (Entertain them and humiliate yourself, 1d2 chance they get drunk and forget to give you your reward later)
[2] Stop the weird spiders that come up the hole from drinking our blood when we sleep.
[3] One of us dropped a silver wedding ring down the hole a few days ago, find it and bring it back up! And don't you dare keep it for yourself! It couldn't have gone far... right?
[4] The men are starved for something besides crusty stale bread. We want
you to bring us an animal that we can eat from below; nothing unsavory or rotten, no nasty bugs, ye shits.
[5] We want to get high. Go bring us those little mushrooms, with the black
caps and yellow spot? They only grow down below. The smaller and
brighter the spots, the stronger.
[6] Our camp has a pet, a funny little monkey. He got loose from his rope and climbed down the hole; please bring him back! ALIVE!
[7] Bring us the precious ore; silver or gold! We can hide it from the guard.
[8] One of the architects said the canal floor is unstable. Go down there
and put up some supports or whatever and prevent the next sinkhole!
[9] Don't you hear that horrible, stinking sobbing? There's a ghost down
there of someone who fell in and died. Go get their remains so we can
put them to rest and end the haunting.
[10] We heard there are Orcs down there. Please make sure there aren't any orcs down there. If there are any, can you like, make them go away? Please no Orcs.
[11] I am a worshiper of the ones beneath. Take this (cursed) talisman to the deepest place in that well; I will know when your task is complete. He will speak to me in my dreams.
[12] I was an apprentice alchemist before I was press-ganged. I have no interest in slaving away in this hole; especially how dangerous it is. Send me up a bucket full of the fulminate, those dull gray stones? And I'll reward you. (He will die in the escape attempt, one bad week after. But after this happens, you learn of their explosive properties).
This setup allows you to do a few interesting things. The core idea is that the players are trapped in an unequal relationship with people who are also trapped, and yet somehow a bunch of indentured servants are better off and better equipped then you are. I imagine this would probably work better as a level 0 funnel or a starter "dungeon" adventure. It also allows new characters and hirelings to literally be dropped in on your head; anyone who falls down the pit isn't going to get back up very easily, and the Chain Gang doesn't want to tell anyone in authority about the pit because it could be a method for them to escape their work, so anyone who falls down is stuck with you. I like the idea of an especially annoying guy accidentally falling down the pit while piss drunk and now having to work with the people whose hole he was just pissing down a few minutes ago.
With the canal eventually being finished and later flooded, there is also an implied time pressure. I don't have an exact time scale thought out for this, but it should be at least a few weeks, but probably less then a month. The idea here is the players need to find a way to escape in addition to keeping themselves alive and exploring the dangerous "drain". It's a classic overarching goal to their short term goals of survival and getting along with the workers above. You could probably shorten this down to a single session or two, but I like the idea of amassing a bunch of adventuring gear from scraps and trash; which is an element you lose if this is just the classic "party captured and has to escape with limited resources vibe"
The Drain
[1] The Hole
You're at the bottom of this. It's about as tight as a generic well, but opens up greatly near the bottom, where it broke into some natural underground area. Water trickles here constantly, but the sunlight and noise from the chain gang above keep most of the creatures at bay. Somehow smells worse then the deeper parts of the drain. While here and during the day make no wandering monster checks, at night, roll only a 1d4 on the wandering monsters table if you camp here.
The Hole has a tunnel that leads to two places, the tunnels at [2] and Cragger's Drog at [5], which is the reason exploration is so perilous.
[2] Mud Tunnels
Soft walls, damp, water is ankle high. Confusing mess of corridors that mostly lead to dead ends, except for the path to [3] & [4]. The first time you travel through this area, lose an exploration turn from navigation.
[3] The Descent
Steep rocky slope leading downwards. Slippery when wet; if you're encumbered and have a negative dexterity modifier, you will slip and fall back down, needing either a rope or less weight to make your way back up. Creatures from the deeper levels will not chase you past this point.
[4] The High Point
Circular chamber that's located somewhere in the cliffs and normal flat ground above the canal. The air here feels fresher and less heavy, indicated some air flow (it's coming in through the soil). Dwarves can easily tell this area is above the rest of the Drain in altitude. Only one way in and out, so it's probably the safest place to sleep.
[5] Cragger's Drop
The drain slopes down from the entrance to this point; there is a constant sound of crashing water. Hard but not impossible to safely climb down without tools. Two pickaxes and a strong arm (+1) Strength could get up and down pretty easily. If you have a negative Constitution modifier, the cold water will exhaust you too much to climb the rough edges.
The bottom of the drop is a bit of mostly safe and flat ground surrounding [6], with branching paths leading off to the other areas.
[6] Sharp & Pointy Pit
The place where all the metal weapons and tools flowed last time it rained heavy. Acts like a pit trap if you fall in (probably instant death), but you could lure a monster to fall in here instead. You can also search this place all you want, you won't find the wedding ring here. You can also dig out a sword (1d6) or spear (1d6) out of the crack if you spend an hour, have some rope, and have at least one character risk falling in to reach for it.
There is also a precarious small sack hanging from the tip of an upturned spear, half ripped, just barely hanging on until it falls into the irretrievable abyss below. Mage Hand could pull it up but that's boring; make someone risk their life for the husk of a bread loaf (inedible) and 1d6 silver coins within.
If you throw the (cursed) talisman down this hole the man who gave you the tasked would be pleased and give you a reward; but over the next three nights you are plagued by nightmares and end up permanently cursed; feeling as though the deep longs for your destruction. (-1 to AC and Saving Throws whenever you're underground. Only people who directly voted for or had a hand in throwing the amulet down here end up cursed, and you could break the curse by retrieving it (lol) and putting it in the Deep Place [20] where it belongs.
[7] Trembler's Nest
Weird little bipedal, subterranean
owls. They can only shake and huddle together in a corner for defense.
Scrawny but can be consumed for food. Their legs and lower body are absolutely hideously scarred with tiny bite marks from their blood being drained over and over.
Their eggs are a dull green and
vibrate worryingly when you hold them. If you throw them they explode
like a grenade and deal 1d3 damage in an acidic yolk explosion. 1d6
Tremblers and 1d6 eggs can be found here. They aren't smart enough to
leave if you come back, so you can find another egg every week or so if
you don't eat them.
[8] Giant's Hand
There is a giant hand poking out of the wall lengthwise along this tunnel. You can squeeze past it easily as long as you aren't carrying something really big or have way too many weapons that might scratch it. No amount of noise will "wake" it up. However touching or attacking it will, causing it to lash out. It's stuck in the wall and can only attack by a big sweep (10 damage but spread evenly among all characters in the tunnel) or by grabbing and crushing someone it can feel (save and be grabbed, everyone has to attack it to let go, one round later it crushes dealing 2d6 unavoidable damage). It has 6 HD.
Also after killing the hand or if you dig the wall nearby you'll find it isn't actually attached to a giant and just kinda grew here attached to a wall with flesh colored webbing.
You can also totally chop up the hand if you have an axe and feed it to the Chain-Gangers but after one day they'll get sick and blame you for it (three bad days after).
[9] Moss Chamber
Large open space with shaggy moss that crunches like grass underneath. At exactly midnight, the Tremblers from [7] come here to forage for tiny worms and scrabbling cave-crabs. You could try harvesting the moss for something to burn or trade but it's too wet down here and would never dry properly. Underneath a shelf of discolored moss is a vein of fulminate, which you can extract. The moss acts as an excellent cushion to avoid flaming sparks from igniting the vein and also an excellent sound absorber for when you accidentally make it explode and kill everyone in the party.
An Elf or Druid could tell that the discolored moss must be growing on an unusual mineral. Otherwise you'd just have to investigate until you learn that's where it is.
[10] Blood Pool
Mysterious cave side chamber with a floor that funnels inwards to a pool of still blood. Along the outside edges are the desiccated corpses of several lanky owls, some worms, and a pixie. Vampires or weirdos could drink it and tell there is some human in it, but it's probably a mix of multiple. Actually where the blood drinking spiders lay their eggs. If you cause any ripples in the blood pool they hatch early in anticipation of their next meal.
Stat as a 2 HD Swarm (takes only 1 damage maximum from attacks, takes normal damage from AoE or fire). Deals 1d8 damage per round and always automatically hit without needing an attack roll (they crawl under your armor). The adult spiders are significantly less aggressive then this honestly, at least they wait until you're asleep.
[11] Roid Rat Feeding Ground
Weird rust-colored smears against a smooth rock floor. Little black turds indicate this is a place rats cross often from burrows and cracks in the walls. You could try to hunt these, but it's not worth it. There is a 1 in 3 chance any given hour 1d2 rats come out from their hiding places here.
Look like little albino kangaroo rats. They seem strangely docile, even when approached or after being caught in a trap. The moment they are cornered or handled however, they freak out, turn red, and triple in size. Like a goblin but with Strength modifier of +3. Attack by stomping your toes into paste; if you try to grab one it's thrashing can break your fingers. 1+1 HD creature with decent mobility since they jump around (eye level height). They always fight to death, and the meat is especially gamey and shitty like they burnt out everything they had just to spite you in their rage.
[12] Mysterious Tunnels
Winding upward tunnels carved into the stone, too smooth for tools. Could be a giant worm, but feels too intentional. Just big enough for a man to crawl through on hands and knees, half movement speed. Sharp rocks scraps your hands and knees unless if you have good quality clothes or leather straps to protect yourselves with (deals 1 nonlethal damage for a full journey up).
Follow the tunnels is painstakingly slow and takes at least two hours to crawl up them, but when you do you'll find a secret passage to [2]. It's significantly slower then taking the other path down, but large creatures certainly could not follow you up.
[13] Clutch Roots
Roots from some mysterious plant far above poke through the roof here. If touched directly (any character with a big hat or anyone really tall), the roots suddenly extend downward and try to wrap around and squeeze whatever touched them, needing an axe to be cut free. Using any improvised tool will dull it or have other roots grab it as well just to make things worse. As long as only one person gets trapped at a time, it's manageable.
Roots chopped down still retain the ability to squeeze but less aggressively. If fed with water they could be kept alive longer and made more docile; clever parties could wrap a fighter in these for some decent armor (as chainmail, but inflexible so treat your Dex as -1 while wearing). They only live for a week with constant watering, but if brought into the sunlight they sprout new small shoots and become living armor you can keep for as long as you want, immune to rust monsters, and grows back any damage it sustains. If the character wearing the armor dies from Dragonbreath or a Fire Spell however then the armor dies for good.
If you hold up a torch or lantern to look above at the roots and get a better look, you'll see the ceiling sparkle. There is a vein of gold from the rock the roots hang down from. Fire would work but the smoke would fill up this and surrounding chambers and be lethal.
[14] Mimic
Small side chamber which has a totally normal, clean treasure chest sitting in the corner. It's not dirty or rotten from the moisture at all. It is obviously a mimic. There are bones next to it for fucks sake. Stats as mimic. If you kill the mimic, you'll find a very traumatized monkey inside clutching a silver key belonging to the foreman above. (It opens the Chain-Gang's chains).
Also if you avoid the mimic entirely or come back here after dealing with it you'll notice a single mushroom leading you to the mushroom patch [15] in case you missed it. The mushroom is random and if plucked gives one dose, roll 1d6 on the Mushroom table below.
[15] Mushroom Patch
Cute little mushroom patch in the corner of this cavern, fed by a trickling of stalactites above. There seems to be a small glow around the shrooms even though none of them seem to be enchanting; it's actually the water that seems very lightly magical. There is enough mushrooms of each kind for a group (party sized) of people to be able to use them.
These are the Mushrooms you can find in the patch and their effects (Roll 1d6 for random)
- White with Yellow Spots- Constipation for one day, then painful excretion.
- All White- Edible and quite good (enough for 6-8 rations but don't grow back if they're all plucked)
- White with Red Spots- Poison. Can be smeared on a weapon to deal +1 damage for a day, if eaten deals 1d6 damage instead.
- Black with Red Spots- No noticeable effects. Vampires think you taste funny.
- All Black- Giga Poison, but thankfully taste horrendous (you can't stomach eating one, but would be lethal if you did)
- Black with Yellow Spots- Gets you high. As long as one party member remains sober, they can keep everyone in line. If everyone in the party tries one, you all black out in bliss and then wake up in a random place in the Drain (roll 1d20). There's one really small and brightly colored one hiding among the stalks, which only the party member most likely to want to stay sober will see.
Also, a Pixie lives here, making a living off some ambient dumb fae magic. There's a little house you can only see if you have Mage Sight (or are a Gnome). If you knock on the door and are polite the pixie will come out and ask you if you've seen its mother/daughter/significant other/whatever relationships pixies have. If you confirm the dead Pixie in the blood pool spider nest [10] then the Pixie here will be sad but will offer to enchant a weapon (+1) or a party member (+1 max HP). That's about the limit of her powers unfortunately.
[16] Tar Pits
Most of this chamber is dominated by large sloped pits with bubbling tar from deep beneath the earth. Anyone who is thrown into one will almost certainly get sucked in and drown. The air here smells terrible. You could use the tar as a glue or throw in trash to get rid of it but that about is the limit of its usefulness.
Halfway slid down a tar pit; you'll find a small, humble silver wedding
ring here. If you touch the tar trying to grab the ring directly it will
take a turn for someone to pull you out and a lot of cussing and noise (random encounter roll). If you fail any roll associated with getting the ring, it slides into the tar and is lost forever.
[17] Carved Dinosaur Skull
Huge open-mouth dinosaur skull acts as a cool entrance to the remaining areas [18], [19], and [20]. If you strike the cracked tooth with a blunt weapon the skull will snap shut blocked off access to the deepest areas (or trapping you inside). Digging around the skull would be almost as hard as trying to chip your way through it.
If a Necromancer or sufficiently skilled Magic-User inspects the carvings they can learn a random 1st or 2nd level Necromancy spell. If you use a different magic system, +1 to Dinosaur spells or whatever.
[18] Sad Little Corner
There's a sad little dead body in the corner of a stone chamber, desiccated to bones and tatters. Just looking at it makes you feel sad. If you get close, you must make a morale check or start openly weeping, which gives you -2 to your attack rolls if you get into a fight right after this. Somebody has to succeed a morale check to inspect or move the body. The body contains a small silver blade carved with a moon crest; increase your damage with offensive spells by +1.
If you pick up the body and give it a proper burial somewhere nice (The Moss Chamber or the Mushroom Patch), you'll put the spirit to rest. All Wandering Encounter rolls of 1 are treated as safe instead. If you dispose of the body somewhere shitty like the tar pits or loot it without a burial you'll enrage the spirit instead.
[19] Rubble Ditch
Shallow incline that leads to a wall completely caved in and filled with rubble. Nearby on flat stone ground are the signs of weapons being sharpened, some casually tossed aside bones, and some smashed gambling dice after a losing game. All sure signs of Orcs. They seem to be gone now; back to the subterranean kingdoms from whence they came when there was nothing to plunder and no reason to guard this hole when a cave-in would suffice.
[20] The Black Altar
At the deepest point in the Drain is a black altar coated with slime and moss, hanging from the sides, black tar seeping in from the ceiling in slow droplets, black water bubbles around its base. All light sources are dimmer and darker in this room; torches become candles and candles become matchsticks. If you took the amulet from the cultist Chain-Ganger, you can put it here to properly complete their request and please their Gods. If you are suffering from a Curse, you get an extra saving throw to break it.
You can also drink from the black water below the Altar to pledge yourself to the Ones Beneath. From then on, you will feel a calling to the dark places of the world, and feel uncomfortable in the sunlight. If you choose to follow these new Gods and their whisperings you could unlock new powers stemming from the dark and cthonic, but your alignment shifts towards Chaos. Pledging yourself to these Gods allows you to drink this water as a healing tonic like a health potion. For Clerics of existing Gods or lawful character; this water burns their skin like Unholy Water. The bubbling water loses all special properties when taken above ground.
If you disrespect or desecrate this altar in some way, you will anger the Ones Beneath. Add +1 to all wandering encounter rolls while you remain in the Drain.
Wandering Encounters (Roll 1d6)
[1] Crying Ghost Girl (1 HD, +4 AC, Ethereal, Undead)
Doesn't attack and has no morale. You see the girl as a translucent blue-colored specter holding her face in her hands floating along, quietly sobbing. It's a ghost so she can't be hurt by normal weapons. Anyone who hears the ghost directly feels sad, and receives a negative -1 to their next Saving Throw or until they are cheered up. Any Turn Undead action causes her to disappear.
If you anger the spirit of the girl, the ghost will instead appear with a red color and the spirit attacks with tears streaming down its face. It gains +1 HD and deals 1d8+1 damage with her incorporeal hands, which cause lacerations to appear on your flesh as if from nothing. She will also give off a banshee scream once per time she is encountered where all your party members are stunned for one round and have to make another Wandering Monster encounter roll to see what the noise brought.
[2] Blood Drinking Spiders (1 HD, +2 AC, Bloodsucking attack 1d4+1)
Morale: 8
Number Appearing: 2d4+1
The adult version of the Blood Drinking Spiders, about as big as a housecat. They aren't especially aggressive, especially after feeding. After making a successful attack, the individual spider makes a morale check to run away and go spit the blood up in their blood pool spawning nest at [10]. The spiders heal 1 hit point each time they successfully drink blood from someone. They aren't very smart and will bite straight into metal shin guards or boots if you have them, causing their mouthparts to break and making them totally harmless.
[3] Roid Rat (1+1 HD, +2 AC, Stomp Attack 1d6 damage)
Morale: 7 or Fight Until Death
Number Appearing: 1d2
Strangely calm and docile albino cave dwelling rat. Doesn't have any interest in fighting and will run away if you make loud noise, but corner one or grab one and prepare for it to roid out and attack. Described in more detail at [11].
[4] Long Man (3 HD, +2 AC, Stomp Attack 1d6+1, Bite Attack 1d10+1 casts Web when at half HP)
Morale: 14
Number Appearing: Just one
Looks like a pale creepily elongated human man with no genitals. You get the feeling its something nameless and promethean. It doesn't bleed, and instead has some strange skin-colored goo inside of its body that leaks out in sticky strands. When it takes enough damage this spurts out over everyone close enough covering them in it and slowing their movement. Prefers to attack with legs that are as long as you are tall even though it has to unnaturally crouch down in these tunnels given its too tall for them.
It can also unhinge its jaw and open its mouth very wide to bite with big flat teeth; but it only does this against someone totally immobilized by its Webbing or something trying to grapple it up close. The first one of these you encounter will be missing a hand.
[5] Giant Mud Wasp (2 HD, +6 AC, Stinger Attack 1d6+1, Mild Poison causes nausea, calls reinforcements)
Morale: 16
Number Appearing: 1d2 and then way more
They can't see you and get disadvantage to attack you if you're covered in a good amount of mud or tar, but seriously, don't fight these. Won't chase you down since they're too busy scrapping in the mud to build a nest or whatever it is they do.
[6] Chain-Ghoul (2+1 HD, +4 AC, Chain whip attack 1d4+1, Chain wrapped claws at 1d6, Undead)
Morale: N/A
Number Appearing: 1d4
Body of a Chain-Ganger executed or fallen into the well and left to rot. Their corpse is puppeted by animated chains they are still bound by; they move around like Doctor Octopus from Spiderman. They attack with broken bits of chain and smack you with their claws that are wrapped in chains for more impact and are fierce. If multiple Chain-Ghouls are encountered at once, they are encountered chained together, and get slower for each one felled as the others have to drag its corpse around.
While I don't use Ghoul to mean D&Dism Ghoul Ghouls if you insist on giving them the D&D Ghoul paralysis thing then make it wrap people hit by it in chains if they fail the save instead since it's cooler.
If you spend a combat round unlocking their manacle using the Foreman's silver key [14] the ghouls instantly go limp and cease their undeath as their spirits are free. This roll requires you to either keep the ghouls still for one round, or have someone use a Slight-Of-Hand or Rogue skill to actually get the key in there.
[7] Dark Dwellers (5 HD, +4 AC, +2 To-Hit, 2d6 tentacle attack which entangle on any roll of 6, corrosive blood returns 1d2 damage blunt weapon attacks, pass thru matter, light sensitivity)
Morale: 17
Number Appearing: 2d4
Hulking and misshapen black figures from the unnamed places beneath the earth. Seem to be made of black tar and shadow. Attack with tentacles that spawn from random places on their body making their attacks difficult to deflect or dodge. When hit with blunt weapons or fists the struck body part bubbles up and then pops, releasing bubbling black water that burns (identical to [20]) your skin from its heat and corrosive shadow. Whenever their tentacles deal a maximum damage roll on either die, they entangle them in some tentacles. If one die rolls 6, they are partially entangled and can't move but can still fight back, if both roll a 6, they are totally entangled and can't do anything unless cut free.
The Dark Dwellers are agents of the Ones Beneath and have no interest in feeding or killing the party members for sport. Instead, they will attempt to kill whoever desecrated the sacred altar, or those aligned with the forces of the Sky or Light (Clerics of Sky Gods are hated almost as much as those who desecrate the altar). They're clever and won't fight endlessly; instead trying to wrap the offender up in their tentacles and then sink into the floor with them in tow never to be heard from again.
While extremely strong, the Dark Dwellers are weak to light. Torches and lanterns cause them to flinch back and attack at -2 to whoever holds them. Anything that produces light (glowing sword, firefly lantern, torch, etc.) deals damage either equal to a 1d6 sword OR deals +1 bonus damage, whichever is stronger. Intended to be a party wipe unless you have some amazing light sources (like a Light spell, or Flare, or a flask of sunlight or something) to even the odds.
Possible Outcomes
Because there is no direct end goal the main driving force for the party will be to find a way to escape the drain while playing nice with their unreliable and unhelpful superiors in the form of the chain-gangers, who are in turn enslaved by someone above them.
Possible methods to escape the Drain as written here are;
- Do enough favors to be lifted out of the hole by the Chain-Gang (only works for small characters; maybe the pixie can shrink you?) You'd still have to escape the ditch and guards afterwards
- Intentionally cause a cave-in which could open a way out onto the surface. Obviously, this has its own risks. I like to imagine monster hunters and the guards will come out to any open sink holes to make sure nothing crawled out to stalk the King's woods; would include outlaws like you or maybe they assume you're escaped Chain-Gangers.
- Survive in the drain long enough for the work to be completed and the water let into the canal. If this happens you'll be swept away into the great below and die unless you set up camp in the high point [4]. It will take at least a few days for the water to settle, and then you can swim up out of the hole if you can hold your breath long enough and remember the way. There won't be any guards waiting for you because nobody is expecting a bunch of outlaws to surface in a giant farming irrigation canal.
- Break open the rock wall at [19] and enter the Underdark. Not technically escaping to the surface but you're bound to find another way back up eventually. This would either take explosives (the fulminate) or several days of hard labor. You'd still need to supply this work with food from the Chain-Gangers and new tools. Assume 1d2 tools break per day while digging through the stone, everyone working on it needs double rations, and it takes ~250 man hours to complete (three strong men working twelve hours a day a week could clear it, add an extra hour of work completed per strength modifier or if you have extra tools)
- Align yourself with the Ones Beneath. While this would help you survive or do do other tasks or missions, I imagine having enough favor with them or one night before the whole cave floods you get a premonition that you can safely enter the tar pits at [16] to be sucked away to some other subterranean realm or the Underdark. If you haven't pledged your soul to the Ones Beneath and are just tagging along to the party then make a save or die. I think the idea of one party member being the chosen mud messiah only for half of party to die when they try their stupid plan to trust the dark gods who hate the sun.
Note: Only after writing this did I realize that I wrote a similar set up for the Massacre at Slave Creek which featured similar factions. I actually think this works out better because this adventure almost perfectly fits into the next if the Chain-Gang manages to escape or rise up against their captors, or if the players exacerbating the tensions so badly the guards begin a massacre to kick off those events.
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