The Chained God's Tabernacle

In a hidden oubliette layer of Star Trap, many levels down lies a temple to the Chained God. It sits suspended in a huge cave above a black sea. Vast taut chains keep the inverted pyramid held in place. A long straight passage leads to the cave and ends where one of the chains is fastened to the rock wall. The links are twenty feet wide and where the vertical meet horizontal links odd, oversized steps are etched into the cold metal. The upper surface of the stone pyramid is bare, save for a large circular plug that must lead to the interior.     

What's the Star Trap Dungeon?

Star Trap is my attempt at a old school megadungeon that is relatively cohesive for 4th Edition D&D.

Megadungeon means many things to many people, and has various subtle overtones. My straight up definition of a megadungeon is that it is...

• A large network of small scale locations. Technically underground, but that's not an absolute.
• A place large enough in scale and story to run a whole campaign within it.

 Star Trap adds a bunch of extra assumptions...

• Encounters are not linear in power.
• Areas can and should be devoid of hugely interesting features.
• Things that eat each other do not live next to each other.
• The party can find friends or at least temporary allies within the depths.
• Players should feel that death might lurk around the next corner.

I've also stolen a big fat leaf from Robin D. Laws Armitage Files sourcebook in that Star Trap details several ways of using foes, labelled Helpful, Harmful, Disdainful. Unlike the official 4e adventures Star Trap doesn't place foes on a battlemap for each encounter, although advice is given as to tactics on occasion. Dungeon Masters are better placed to decide on where monsters start than adventure writers and I've always find putting figures on a battle mat more time consuming when following someone else's plan. WotCs 4e strategy means that the online monster compendium means you don't have to list the stats of monster in every encounter either, allowing DMs to print out stat cards as they need.

Day Zero, basic map

Here is a map drawn in about 15 minutes using Campaign Cartographer 3 it shows in the simplest of terms of the Skyelund region and acts as the basic players map. Currently it displays the Old Road and the mysterious and cursed Isle Of Zyphan.

Dungeon Doodles, Vault of the petitioners

Day Zero, mythic places, the Old Road

A great forest runs north to south much of which acts as a border between the coastal kingdoms and the empire of the sun. Rumours that the forest is haunted, plagued by goblins, spiders or woodfolk are always leveled at it. Woodsmen steer clear of it'd depths and nobody can say of anyone who ever returned after venturing into it's interior.

The forest would cause anyone wishing to travel between the north and east to the south and west a huge inconvenience, adding months onto the journey time was it not for the Old Road that runs through it, linking east with west. The Old Road is not for the faint-hearted though, as it plunges straight into the deepest parts of the forest and travellers report of strange goings on and even attacks from monstrous forest beasts and unseen foes.

The road has been there for as long as records of the region can be found. It is a single lane track, never overgrown or muddy and it avoids all but the most minor hillocks and dells. All along the route are way stones, ancient and carved into the shape of forest creature both renown and unknown. The 3ft tall stones appear neither weathered or new and are placed about a fifty paces apart. In several places the road descends underground briefly, for no more than three or four hundred paces and an eerie luminescent green moss coats the ceilings of the tunnels. 

Experienced travellers sleep on the road itself, and the journey across is a week on foot. Guards should be posted and it is best to flee any attacks that might occur, as the fauna seem reluctant to travel along the road themselves. Some say that lone travellers are blessed by ancient spirit and need never fear the inhabitants of forest. Unfortunately robbers do sometimes pray on less guarded merchants and individuals.

Classic D&D monsters, Otherworld Orcs & Vrock

I've been slowly painting a whole bunch of really well designed pig-faced Orcs from Otherworld Miniatures as seen here. I've got another 20 to go. Behind them is a old Vrock I bought sometime ago and painted for my 4e Raiders Guild campaign.

WH40K Bilious Bile Brothers a Death Guard mercenary 2000pt Chaos warband

This is my 2000 point Nurgle CSM army which I put together for a team based weekend competition. I had a huge amount of fun, and even won a game (OK, I lost 4) with some of the most expensive troops in the 40K verse. The Plague Toads (back right) were stand ins for Obliterators. All troops where Deathguard and I even took the Mark Of Nurgle for the 5 Terminators that accompanied Typhus.

This year my friends and I are taking loyalists, and once again I've gone for expensive troops. My Brass Wardens are ultra secret Grey Knight offshoot that patrol the galactic fringe. In other words I like the GK miniatures but can't bare to paint them silver.

Dungeon Doodle, Birthing Pools

Dungeon Doodle, The hidden basement

Dungeon Doodles

Awhile back I was forced to spend several weeks without a laptop, in an environment that I couldn't read in and with just a notebook. Much of the time was very dull and so I ended up doodling dungeon floorplans in my dotted notebook, which in my opinion is better than squared paper for the task. I've scan these in and will post them.

Day Zero, Monsters out of time

Skyelund is home to various species of lizard-like reptiles known as drakes that range from tiny winged creatures to huge horned beasts that can carry a platform of warriors into battle. While knights prefer horses that are tamed easily and can be ridden into the cool evenings, some regiments use instead terrible teethed mounts called rage drakes. Many merchants will employ guard drakes instead of dogs to protect their property and more than one great hero is said to have flown on the backs of great winged serpents. Drakes seem to prefer warm climates and are far more common in the south, however packs of white furred wolf drakes are said to haunt the great forests of the north.

These creatures are said to have been spawned eons before man conquered the lands and are some how connected to dragons.

Day Zero, Bright Empire styles

The Bright Empire is a patchwork of countries brought together under a single ruler, and so the differing regions have retained something of their distinct styles. However the core military forces wear platemail armour of a banded form, metal skirts and greaves that allow warriors to operate in the hot lands of the south. This armour is often painted white or golden in reverence of Pelor.  Knights and cavaliers wear front to back plumed helms, often yellow or red. They carry rectangular shields with sun motifs. Warpriests of Pelor dress in a similar fashion although favour chainmail and some take to wearing golden masks. Other citizens dress often based on local norms, from the semi-naked tribes of the south west to the eastern magicans who traditionally wear many tiered hats and hoods with lavish silk robes. Nobles wear whatever the latest fashion is in the heartlands, although these styles can take some time to reach outward. Jade, often in the form of large flat necklaces, has been in fashion for some time though.

Architecturally the Bright Empire is also very varied, however the many temples to Pelor often take the form of great stepped pyramids sometimes with gold clad sides and are guarded vigorously. Defensive structures range from huge fortresses in the heartlands to little more than wooden barracks in the outlands. Notably the Empire is poor at defending it's outer regions, although it is rare than anyone challenges their authority in any real scale.  

Wizards, like their counterparts elsewhere, often build towers following the theory that earth magic interferes with rituals, however Bright Empire wizards build estates around the tower as a matter of prestige and often have large extended families working for them or of their own.

The great cities along the coast are huge sprawling affairs with both grand architectural marvels and overpopulated slums. White wash is used to keep the buildings cooler in the summer. Flat or near flat roofs double up as vegetable gardens, sun pools and lounges, with rope walk ways acting as secondary walkways between neighbours.  

Day Zero, The Coastal Kingdoms

The Coastal Kingdoms or Storm Kingdoms as the eastern region is known is a collection of feudal kingdoms of varying size. The kings, barons, dukes and other assorted rulers follow the god Kord who represents strength, competition, war, storms and honesty. This has led to a overarching society constantly in conflict with itself. War, while waged vigorously, follows agreed rules and is carried out in such a way means smaller nations are less disadvantaged. The peasants generally follow Kord but also a number of lesser gods and goddesses, mostly in relation to weather and agriculture.

Warpriests and cavaliers of Kord are a common sight in the halls of kings, advising but also riding out with the very many knights the kingdoms support. Scouts and hunters are valued too, although these coming for the peasantry they are held in high status, especially given the forests that dot the landscape. Mages often act in support of their lieges, although in the more remote regions they sometimes are found as rulers themselves or just hide themselves from sight.

The Coastal Kingdoms are bordered by the Brass Mountains to the north and the Old Forest to the west, and both come with fierce-some reputations. The Brass Mountains are said to be the home of giants and ogres, while any who forage to far into the Old Forest are never seen again. Hunters who range along the edges of the forest speak of beautiful fae folk who are at least as dangerous as the stunted goblins and other faeries who live there.