6-Room Dungeon goblin mine revision 2

My weekly Hawksmire Island D&D 5 game was particularly appalling this week. Ther dragon they were facing last time invited them to take one of three goblets to receive dark gifts or they would be eaten. So Glubglub got spirits and skills, Ratrump the halfling rogue and the new light cleric got mist abilities and Threekay the dwarf cleric got shadow powers. They returned home and worked on Bastions then set off again.

The party killed some orcs and came to city to explore. Found wanted posters for them. Glumpglump the musiacal barbarian tried to impress orcs by juggling heads of another tribe in front of them. The guards let them in without giving them rules in hope party would suffer. The party did some trade and signed up to join the Hunters guild so they could stay in the city. They went into the woods and killed some deer and were pleased they could join the guild. Found a cottage with a family and party a bit wary of some witch signs of sticks on house. So Glubglub invited the man to look in the barrel of his new gun axe and shot him. Party butchered werewolf parents while kids went inside. The new cleric went in to help the children and removed their curses. Glubglub wanted to get them but saw priest protecting them so backed off. Ratrum adopted the form of their dad (but only 3 foot tall) and said mean stuff to the kids to make them cry. Took kids to town and got their hunter's guild passes. Glubglub tried to show off "werewolf" heads that seemed like humans to most. Some guards backed off and secret police and divination teams were activated. The priest buried the heads with a proper funeral and cursed the heads. Threekay has been acting a bit more like a good cleric since he has competition. A messy session of bad behaviour. I'm fine with a new player resisting this.

Origional Series
1 Redbrick + Revision
2 Goblin Mine
3 Gothic Tomb
4 Magic Mansion
5 Glacial Chasm
6 Jungle Shrine
7 Underland Cavern
8 Auldwood Grove
9 Sunken City
10 Desert Ruin
11 Eldritch Monolith
12 Hell Gate

mapping your 6 room dungeon 

Environment 
Dungeon Defence Conditions

d12 Sounds & Smells

d12 Rumours

d12 Missions

d12 Factions
d12 Allies 
d12 Enemies
d12 Special Treasure

d12 Special Feature 

Environment
Rough cut stone mineworks, often with shafts up and down, ladders, scaffolding, rubble heaps and uneven slopes following veins of minerals. Wooden support beams will be in place some bent from the weight. There are a few wooden doors, but iron bar gates are more common. Some may be damp or dry. Will be dark, but lamps, torches, and candles might all be found.

Dungeon Defence Conditions
5 DEFCON Blue - Peace 1in12 encounters
-peaceful goblins working, mostly miners and labourers
4 DEFCON Green - Increased intelligence 2in12 encounters
-armour and weapons made ready and some regular patrols and guard posts
3 DEFCON Yellow - War Ready 3in12 encounters
-baricades, traps set, doors locked, hobgoblins appear in guards and patrols

2 DEFCON Red - Ready to deploy 4in12 encounters
-marching hobgoblin squads and sections, bugbear scouts, more traps and barricades

1 DEFCON White - Total war imminent 6in12 encounters

-bugbear squads, other goblin allies and exotic goblin kin come to help 

d12 Sounds & Smells

1 Stale air

2 Sulphur

3 Smoke

4 Gas

5 Distant clanking sounds

6 Sound of shaking and rubble

7 Rattling chains

8 Distant earthy thumping sounds

9 Cracking rock

10 Sound of tools

11 Horn or bell of some distant 

12 Earth shakes with a lesser tremor

d12 Rumours

1 Goblinoids are bad enough, so look out for anything that can surplant them

2 Some of these mines found strange long-lost horrors best forgotten
3 Goblins can be more civilised than you think and can be traded with
4 Goblin markets have extraordinary goods unheard of by mere humans

5 Goblins are often controlled by more powerful monsters or even elves

6 You can still find minerals in these deep, dark mines, they say

7 Spirits of dead miners may lurk in a mine and may need to be appeased with offerings

8 Old mining structures may be dangerously unstable and bent with age

9 Areas of mines can be flammable and burn for decades

10 Beware of valuables lying about, even dumbest monsters use bait

11 Traps are bad enough but often these tunnels are wildly unsafe

12 Goblins in times of war start practising cannibalism and mutate into other goblinoids

d12 Missions

1 Miners need equipment just lying abandoned in the goblin mine

2 Mining company has breached a goblin mine and needs adventurers to clear it out
3 Dwarves surrounded by goblin outpost mines who could actually be sappers

4 Abandoned tunnels under the village are making noises again, go see if its rats

5 Goblins took a silver mine needed to make weapons vs supernatural beings

6 Goblins in the area are trying to peddle their addictive food, kidnapping and selling cheap goods!
7 Goblins have a new leader, making them more aggressive and resentful

8 New goblin clan, more warlike with more bugbears, thouls, goblins and more

9 What are those goblins digging up or building?

10 Spore clouds from the deep have made humans feel odd. Go and see what's up

11 Aggressive savage goblinoids led by a druidic cult have infested a hill and are attacking the frontier industry

12 The old haunted mines have come to life again. Lights have been seen from the area

d12 Goblin Factions
1 Mountain Borers are dedicated to war with dwarves, gnomes, elves and any underlang folk. They have a ever expanding kingoms under a high king of the deep

2 Earth Kindred are druidic cults, each has a favoured mammal, reptile or amphibian pets. (d6 1=bats 2=wolves 3=lizards 4=frogs 5=rats 6=jackals). They hate civilisation

3 Stone Killers serve evil elemental earth, ever digging and waging war. While some operate forges, many are stone age, shunning metal goods and dwell in caves   

4 Royal Goblins are the most advanced and fancy. They are snooty, love guns and duels. Their palaces are ornate, and they will hire hobgoblins and bugbears and worse as guards

5 Chaos Cult are often mutants, and some devolve into formless horrors. They hate order and civilisation, preferring to fight as irregular mobs to glory and entropy!

6 Arcane Cult are wizard and alchemist goblins who seek spell knowledge above all, wear pointy wizard hats. They trade for spells or serve wizards to learn spells

7 Machine Cult are mechanical engineers who craft automatons and siege weapons. They steal technology from gnomes, dwarves or humans readily and may improve it

8 Invert Breeders are druidic tribes who keep giant bugs, spiders, scorpions, crabs, worms or other critters. They domesticate a favoured species as foor, mounts or herd beasts

9 Fungus Farmers are druidic tribes who cultivate fungus forests in the deep and sometimes the surface world. They have ambulant pets also. Vegetal and slime keepers exist too

10 Faerie Kindred serve elves and faeries, and often live on the borderlands to keep humans away. They also kidnap humans, especially children, as slaves in faerieland, often using addictive food 

11 Goblin Market clans are travelling merchants who operate seasonal markets selling weird goods from across the great world tree and other worlds. They are secretive to humans

12 Death Kindred serve the underworld gods and death. They dig up corpses of humans and make undead from them. They often work with necromancers, dark rulers and death cults

d12 Goblin Allies
1 Dark faerie such as brownies, sprites and dryads of underworld fungus  
2 Evil gnomes are sadistic enslavers with weird powers
3 Hobgoblin mercenaries might be called in but there is a risk they take over being more lawful

4 Bugbear mercenaries might be hired but they will start eating goblins if times are lean

5 Norkers are savage, tusked big cave goblins who shun tools non stone age tools

6 Gremlins, snyads or Mites are tiny goblinkin who infest areas and spread bad luck 

7 Nilbogs are contrarian chaos-touched goblin saints who may dress as jesters, things that harm normal people heal them and healing harms them

8 Barghests with own goblin followers and pets might come to help but are dangerous

9 Thouls are made by arcane goblin rituals where they mate ghouls, trolls and goblins to make these dangerous monstrosities. They often live alone or as bodyguards as more antisocial 

10 Kobolds are more orderly but respected crafters and builders, and are goblin kin

11 Dark Creepers and Stalkers, fey folk from the deep who hate surface folk

12 Trolls are dangerous to deal with and eat goblins but effective and work for food

d12 Goblin Enemies
1 Maezel humanoid hating loners, hunt other species and are widely hated, have a secret lair

2 Mimicks eat goblins and are disguised as treasure, ore carts, barrels and mining gear

3 Abhuman beast folk might enslave or eat goblins (d4 1=mole 2=lizard 3=toad 4=rat 5=bat 6=squid) 

4 Ogres and giants may eat or enslave goblins

5 Dwarves are age-old foes, even if they have similar alignment and cults

6 Elves of bright or shadow dwelling may enslave or wage war on goblins

7 Fish folk from deep flooded mines will eat and enslave goblins

8 Land Shark, a huge burrowing horror

9 Giant ant or termite colony

10 Giant bugs, spiders, scorpions, crabs, slugs, worms or other insect critters

11 Ochre Hulk will hunt and eat goblins

12 Xorn come to eat minerals, especially gems

d12 Special Treasure
1 Goblin Idol of stone, clay or woven fibre, holds a spirit that warns the local goblins if an intruder enters the goblins' area. Some may have wards or curses ready on them as traps too

2 Goblin Pick d6 ignites flamables with sparks if struck on stone or metal +1 lightning damage and makes a flash of light over a 3m circle. +2 to hit vs metal armour

3 Eggs that hatch creatures (d4 1=strange goblin dogs 2=spiders 3=slugs 4=giant beetle), in a box with a d6 and padding

4 Chaos Mushroom gives you a d4 minor mutation and a major mutation for one hour, for each mutation save or becomes permanant. Too many mutations can make you a chaos horror

5 Goblin Sacred Pole protects camps from petty spirits and wild animals over a 6m circle, unless you attack them first
6 Goblin Bone Flute if played, animates a skeleton as long as you play as a standard skeleton. It is obvious who is controlling it

7 Ancestral Mask +1 AC and +1 damage any weapon used if worn by a goblin, other users must save or be possessed by an ancestor spirit who will try to destroy the body to aid goblin kind

8 Goblin Ruff +1 Protection, fancy neck ruff that can shrink to a modest collar

9 Goblin Mace d6 +1 magic mace, if blocked by a near miss from a non magic sheild will shatter 

10 Goblin Cestus d4 damage, +1 Protection and +1 hit and damage, but you must wear the pair; if punched together, they produce sparks and a loud noise

11 Goblin Blade d4 damage and save or a d4 venom damage, handle can store 10 uses in a well

12 Goblin Fruit is very delicious and sweet to smell. Eat any save or crave more beyond reason, allowing goblins to lure you to faerieland. You get one more save to resist capture but you remain desperate and melancholic. Drinking lots and vice helps take away your loss. Removing the curse or cure poison may help

d12 Special Features
1 A pumphouse worked by machines or labour is required to keep water levels down 

2 Goblinoids are already on alert due to conflict with some invading enemy monsters

3 A spirit of mine aids the goblins with alerts, traps, and healing

4 Poor safety conditions, noise or explosions may cause cascading cave-ins and mini quakes. Perhaps complex has a timeline of minor events before a final collapse

5 The mine is hot and sweaty, making fatigue worse in heavy armour and you need more water

6 A strange mineral or gas poses additional risks (d4 1=corrosive 2=mutagen 3=poison 4=flamable)

7 Fungus has overgrown every surface and attracted giant critters

8 Haunted with undead miners and possibly any killed here arise occupied by evil spirits

9 An evil mine spirit bothers everyone here with pranks and worse but goblins are more prepared with holy symbols and their magicians have spells ready for it

10 A giant sleeping titan or kaiju has been partly exposed and in several chambers with valuable resources right against it or perhaps it is the resource

11 Damp and slimy mines slithering with gelatinous monsters and perhaps some giant bugs who eat them

12 Giant ants or termites or rats are always getting in and a pest for regular occupants and possibly a dramatic breakthrough might happen soon. Three-way combats or strange alliances might form in crisis

Is Ravenloft the Best official D&D5 Setting?

Yes it is. No doubt

Oh reasons....sure
Actually its like my Planet Psychon in some ways...

1 Ravenloft is Mostly One Way Entry
Domains connect to other domains. You can come from any setting to Ravenloft. Once in Ravenloft, getting out is harder. You dont need to worry about the rest of the multiverse much.

2 In Ravenloft everybody is damned
All those normal villagers in the land. They are all damned too. If they die here and dont get their souls eaten or turn into undead, they get reincarnated in another domain. There is no escape for most people. The land may snatch you back if you escape. If your a horrible person like a murder hobo adventurer its no wonder you're here now. If you were good, maybe some power is testing you or wants you to beat a domain lord.

3 Ravenloft is a Prison
The domain lords are prisoners to whos tragic circumstances are used to make them suffer. Adventurers may be brought in as a test or challenge or to frustrate the domain lords. The truly good may be brought here to frustrate to prisoners and to test their zeal with corrupting dark power. Some good might be sent by a good god to help free commoners from suffering. Maybe adventurers give false hope to locals to crush their spirits. You might be here to be corrupted or to make sport for a domain lord or perhaps to make a villain of the realm suffer.

4 You Will Never Escape!
The world seeks to make you its creature and may offer dark gifts to help bind you to the nightmare realm. Maybe the dark forces tease you with escape then brings you back just to show your never free. The uk 60s spyfi show "The Prisoner" is a good show with this struggle. You might come up with stories of escape that lead you to some disaster. Maybe if a pair of mist traveller holds hands with others in between they could all travel. Maybe The Dark Powers let you loose for a bit and trick you back. Perhaps a hunchbacked angel or a hermit might know some secret out but the information is flawed or has unforseen catches.

5 Dark Gifts are Shackles
I quite like various versions of dark gifts. A new version is out but I dont really know if very different. Im making a rare change to these rules for my own game. I presented choices of dark gifts as boblets of fuid or a black dragon would eat them. The dragon gets kickbacks for encouraging others to take dark gifts but has to let you live. So in the older Ravenloft 5th ed book I found the gifts not good value as feats. But as bonus setting abilities, they are fine.

I have rewritten 4 ive offered so far in game. Im keeping the core benefits of powers and diluting the weakness. I'm redefining the bad stuff as Quirks, which might just be cosmetic. The 1in20 roll activates problems, the mechanic isn't too awful as you only get this effect once per long rest. I'm using all the fluff tables and disadvantages for cosmetic drama fodder not just mechanical effects. I will be fine if some creepy features come up in some situation and they are great roleplaying fodder not mechanical and too punitive as in the official versions.

To me dark gifts are signs of corruption you willingly accept that help bing you to the realm. I might offer them more in-game but escape from the realm depends on purging them. Some expert or location will reveal the means. My take on them is to make characters bound to Ravenloft and introduce personal spooky fluff drama for a more psychological character development. The tables and penalties described in the text are now just for ideas. Id rather have more narrative cosmetic effects than mechanical nerfs. I think a 1in20 chance of activating a weird effect is more just a reminder to have a side effect used in play. It is fine like this, but it feels more punitive by book. A few new book reviewers are complaining about these like they are new. Im probably waiting till the book goes on sale. 

Living Shadow
Grasping Shadow. You learn the Mage Hand cantrip if you don't already know it, and require no components to cast it. The hand created by the spell is shadowy but is not bound to your actual shadow. Your spellcasting ability for this spell is Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma (your choice when you gain this Dark Gift).

Shadow Strike. When you make a melee attack roll, you can increase your reach for that attack by 10 feet. Your shadow stretches and delivers the attack as if it were you. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, and you regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.

Quirk: Your shadow does odd things and looks strange sometimes. They might activate on a roll of 1 in play once between long rests or other times

Mist Walker
Misty Step. You can cast the Misty Step spell, requiring no spell slot, and you must finish a long rest before you can cast it this way again. Your spellcasting ability for this spell is Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma (your choice when you gain this Dark Gift). If you have spell slots of 2nd level or higher, you can cast this spell with them.

Mist Traveller. When you enter the Mists, intent on reaching a specific domain, you are treated as if you possess a Mist talisman keyed to that domain. To use this trait, you must know the name of the domain you have chosen as your destination, but you don't need to have previously visited that land. This trait doesn't allow you to bypass domain borders closed by a Darklord's will.

Quirk. You feel more comfortable travelling than staying in one place. Its as if the land puts roots in you and drains your dreams. You recover fatigue half speed, if you remain a week or more in the same bed or comunity. Prison would be awful.

Borrowed Eye (in players case watched by ancestral spirits)
As an action, you can influence the presence guiding the watchers for 1 hour. For the duration, you gain advantage on Intelligence (Investigation) and Wisdom (Perception) checks, and you can't be blinded. Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Quirk. Spirits are attracted to you and gossip about you, divination attempts vs you have advantage or greater effect. Spirits might become visible on a roll of 1 in play once between long rests or other times

Soul Echoes (visions of past life or incarnation from spirits)
Channelled Prowess. You gain proficiency in two skills of your choice.
Inherent Tongue. You can speak, read, and write one additional language of your choice.
Quirk. You get flashbacks and echoes from the past from spirits on a roll of 1 in play once between long rests or other times.

6 A Domain of Your Own
You can make your own bampagn for one or two sessions or longer. You can try other domains and ditch them quick. There are tons old splatbooks from the past to get ideas from. Lots of old ones on Drivethrough POD. You dont need a huge campaign setting, and you can bring up any environment you please. Make a setting you like. A mini domain to sample any idea without going whole hog. Made a dud? Let it break up, and the dark powers recycle it. 

7 Variety
Horror sub-genres and various pseudo-historical inspired fantasy let you try a huge amount of campaign styles.  Also, a variety of social encounters and ultra violence can be found with villages, ruins and haunted places. All kinds of scenarios can be amped up to be horror domains.

8 Villains
They are jerks you can unrepentantly kill if you can. Recycle old, dead campagn villains. Maybe they still return if the dark powers support them. But don't overdo this. Maybe a shadow of them is just felt in paintings and clues of some new domain lord's realm. Maybe these could be a bridge for the lord to return. A minor haunting might be a fragment of the old domain lord grasping at existence.

-------------------

Finally, I think the new thing most in line I'm waiting for is a book with all the core wizards in one book with new spells. They really need a deity book with gods and domain clerics. Wizards and Priests have a huge effect on world-building and are essential for the campaign, and not just for character use.

I hope we dont get these subclasses in dribs and drabs and do get something like the 2nd ed brown books for major classes rather than leave as an implied big project that never finishes. Maybe could do cleric and paladin book, ranger and druid book, rogue and bard book. Making an edition with no effort to complete basic game features seems a bit broken. I think they prefer small doses so they can sell books to players with player options to sell books.

Imagine one book of d&d5 with content only up to 10th lv and basic content to start play from dmg and mm. Then you could worry about high-level later and not let it take up your headspace beyond that. Obviously, a later book with 11-20 would be a less-needed option for most players. 

Partly, I play by core books and limiting non core book content on request. Ravenloft and Theros campagns help me narrow lots of game content. I do like one bastion feature in the FR players book for theros letting you have a druidic woodland weird sylvan peoples are attracted to. Honestly Id like a Bastion book with mundane building cost and times and some domain tables to run yearly play turns where you spend a season at home. Im exited by prospects of getting haunted Bastions.

6-Room Dungeon redbrick revision 1

These are extra details for my 6-room dungeons
I think compiling all this in a PDF to be a manageable project
I see if i can set up as a charity thing in a way that doesnt go through me would be preferable

These will be compiled with earlier work and might need to be reworked if repeats too much
Origional Series
1 Redbrick
2 Goblin Mine
3 Gothic Tomb
4 Magic Mansion
5 Glacial Chasm
6 Jungle Shrine
7 Underland Cavern
8 Auldwood Grove
9 Sunken City
10 Desert Ruin
11 Eldritch Monolith
12 Hell Gate

mapping your 6 room dungeon

Revision series 

Environment 
Dungeon Defence Conditions

d12 Sounds & Smells

d12 Rumours

d12 Missions

d12 Factions
d12 Allies 
d12 Enemies
d12 Special Treasure

d12 Special Feature 

To date, I've had kobold slavery in my setting, so yes kobolds can be wageslaves in a contract, which can also be slavery with extra steps. Being lawful they might accept these conditions longer than neutrals and chaotics. Kobolds can also be outcast for antisocial behaviour and these eventually feel desperate for a hierarchy and may just start following humans home to work with them for food and board. They can if well treated, be fine fellows but have wicked spite to those who abuse their labour. Wild kobolds might shun kobolds raised in human lands. 

Redbrick Dungeon Environment

Walls and floor are brick, possibly worn in places and some etched graffiti. Floors are cobblestone but might if damp, grow some slime. Running water might wear grooves through bricks. Long used steps and paths may be worn smooth. Sometimes you get calcium formations like caves that grow and help you estimate age of the works. Doors are wood with locks and bolts or with bars. Some doors are reinforced with iron strips and studs with little spy hatches for guards at kobold height. Very uniform design as Kobolds let loose start making bricks and building these complexes by instinct.

Dungeon Defence Conditions
5 DEFCON Blue - Peace 1in12 encounters
-peaceful kobolds working, mostly civilians and occasionally see militia or hunters
4 DEFCON Green - Increased intelligence 2in12 encounters
-guard post checks, more patrols, scouts, alarms set, armour and weapons made ready
3 DEFCON Yellow - War Ready 3in12 encounters
-guards and patrols size increased, drills, recruiting, baricades, traps set, doors locked

2 DEFCON Red - Ready to deploy 4in12 encounters
-scouts and assault squads ready, hide loot, evacuate civilians, more traps and barricades

1 DEFCON White - Total war imminent 6in12 encounters

-frenzy inspired by leaders, seal sections with cave-ins or rubble, call allies and divine aid

d12 Sounds & Smells

1 Hear chiselling and hammering into rock or brickwork

2 Hear rattling chains

3 Hear rubble being dumped

4 Hear a drunk kobold singing or perhaps a group

5 Hear diggling kobold kids running

6 Clang of a dropped tool or weapon

7 Sulphurous odour of brimstone

8 Smell of earth or clay

9 Smell of acrid acid or urine

10 Smell of burned fuel

11 Smell of candles or torches

12 Smell of sewerage

d12 Rumours
1 Kobolds all know how to dig, make traps and bricks 

2 Kobolds build in a similar minimal brick style in many lands

3 Some cities are riddled with kobold tunnel infestations

4 Kobold dungeons are often hijacked by other stronger humanoids

5 Kobolds are long-lived and breed fast, but often are slaughtered

6 Redbrick dungeons are common on the frontier and even in rural districts

7 People may kidnap kobold young and sell them as servants

8 Some kobolds worship dragons and refuse to surrender to humans 

9 Kobolds like to party and drink and fornicate when at peace and well fed

10 Kobolds can be tamed with treats and coins and work as hard as a human

11 Kobolds used to live in many places and left many structures behind

12 Evil wizards and dark lords love to get kobold work crews on their dungeons

d12 Missions

1 kill king kobold!

2 How large is the Kobold Complex

3 Destroy all kobolds

4 Kidnap lots of kobolds for the market

5 Kobolds have seized valuable goods

6 New boss or spell user encouraging aggression, get them

7 Some wizard seems to be directing the kobolds so get them

8 Hellish cult working with evil kobolds

9 See if the kobolds have a dragon like they say

10 Go make a deal with kobolds and estimate their numbers

11 Kobolds are hiding a wanted bandit gang for some reason

12 Kobolds have kidnapped some well-liked gnomes

d12 Factions
1 Draconic clan kobolds, some with wings and elemental magic, might know a dragon for real

2 Miner kobold clan with little pointy caps who sing, often humans leave offerings

3 Hells kobold clan can't wait to go to hell and rank up, then get revenge on the world

4 Koboldi more goat-legged satyr-like hedonists into drink, dance and sex

5 Dog Clan are a yipping dog cult tribe who ride dogs and resembles small dog humanoids 

6 Royal Clan Kobolds have fancy armour, weapons and teamwork, ride goat chariots 

7 Arcane Kobolds use wizardry, alchemy, guns and dangerous trappers 

8 Kobold sappers mercenaries with expertise in digging, tunnel fighting and siege engineering

9 Flora cult clan related to growing life like cacti, turnips, mushrooms, pumpkins, apples, grass or more

10 Machine kobolds with spirit-powered mechanical machines like bikes, cars, moles, power armour or self-loading guns or crossbows

11 Hells kobolds seek to advance ranks in hell, weat devil symbols and we;; equipped

12 Necro kobolds employ undead, especially of enemies' corpses, at war with ghouls

d12 Allies
1 Dungeon spirits might aid and warn kobolds, some might be ancestors

2 Goblins may be allies or mercenaries who sometimes surplant kobolds

3 Orc mercenaries, but the risk is that they take over after winning

4 Tamed pack of wild dogs or baboons 

5 Giant rat colony for meat, leather, sinew, teeth and milk

6 Beast folk abhumans or smaller beastling folk, (rat, lizard, fox, jackal, hare, draconic)

7 Elemental familiars allies of various types   

8 Flora, including slime, plants or fungi. Some are even humanoids and might be allies

9 Giant insects, worms, arachnids or other invertebrates can be food  

10 Rust monsters can be lured around with copper coins and tricked into the adventurer's path 

11 Mimics  tamed guardians that the kobolds feed

12 Hell sends some imps or a hellhound to help on request 

d12 Enemies
1 Gnome invaders here to kill all kobolds and take their stuff, might be of any type

2 Goblinoid enemies who try and surplant kobolds

3 Orc bullies taking over, and plan to eat and enslave kobolds

4 Gremlins crawling all over the place like vermin, even worse now its boggles too!

5 Giant rat colony of pests stealing food, biting babies, chewing stuff and spreading disease

6 Beast folk abhumans or smaller beastling folk, (dog, goat, wolf, cat, rabbit, pig, badger)

7 Reptilian enemy abhumans or smaller beastlings include draconic, serpentine, saurian,lizards etc. Often have pets 

8 Flora based on plants or fungi, even humanoids

9 Giant insects, worms, arachnids or other invertebrates eat kobolds

10 Amphibian folk may redirect water and flood dungeons to invade them and eat kobolds whole. They also can breed fast but need lots of bugs, use slaves to make compost and grow bug food  

11 Mimics might invade to eat kobolds 

12 A human cult or wizard seeks to control the kobold lair for themselves. They will use kobolds to expand

d12 Special Feature 

1 Bats everywhere and kobolds know the sounds of bat panic. May swarm and cause confusion and block vision and sound

2 Kobold youth gangs painting unauthorised signs and murals to mark gang turf and slander enemies

3 Advanced plumbing with pipes, taps and flushing toilets, clean tiled surfaces

4 Invading larger humanoids, so kobolds are on extra high alert

5 Some species here to hunt and eat kobolds like giant lizards, toads or bugs

6 Slime, roots and flowing water over walls and floors, humid and some giant fungi 

7 Construction scaffolding and building materials stacked about

8 Sewer pipes suitable for kobold transport in emergencies with locked grates

9 Secret passage, kobold crawlspace under the dungeon for service and stealth

10 Spirit of fire worshipped here may light or snuff candles or lamps or torches

11 Earth spirit likes kobolds and will signal them with knocks on walls if danger close

12 Kobold ancestral petty spirit may set off traps and alert kobolds to peril

d12 Special Treasure

1 Trap kit packed in box with instructions ready to install

2 Box of six smoke bombs or grenades with long fuses

3 Box with four incendiary bombs - clay pots in urn with fuel and lard with cloth fuse

4 Copper hand axe +1 makes sparks when strikes rock or metal

5 Dagger +1 +d3 electrical damage vs taller enemies

6 Bundle of thunder rock slingstones, each explodes over a 10 ft circle for 2s4

7 Returning +1 javelin returns to hand at end of round if within 100ft

8 Idol with two ruby eyes worth 100gp each, removing or carrying them results in a curse

9 Dog figurine when name called becomes real, if killed returns to figure form and shatters

10 Bag of kobold bones with 2d4 bone chips, each can be dropped and becomes a kobold with a tiny bow or club. After the battle will wander off to join a kobold tribe 

11 Spirit rattle, irritates spirits in 10 foot who may manifest or give a sign of presence. Might initiate crude conversation or manifest if offered a bribe or insulted

12 Lucky Flint in pocket or in wrist band or necklace. +1 saving throw, or you can destroy it to stop you bleeding to death and be restored to 1hp, you can activate unconscious 

My One Stop How To Grapple Guide for d&d5.5/2024

I made this as all these rules are all over the book. This came about from an elemental monk player wanting to grab a trex or 10-ton bronze golem with every punch, kick and headbutt, then run. So I wrote this up. Sorry to anyone feeling targeted by this post. My first pure modern era d&d mechanics post. Yes, other abilities move ppl without consideration of size difference or mass.

How to Grapple D&D 2024

Obviously, some feats and abilities overcome these problems, but they need to state that they can alter grappling rules in the description, dont just assume they can. Temporary magic or unusual species extra hands that can only do damage or simple motor or manipulation tasks cannot grapple unless they specifically say they do. This took multiple sources from PHB2024 and reading some forums.

Take the Attack Action
🙌Declare an Unarmed Strike against a creature within your reach.
Choose the Grapple Option: Instead of dealing damage, you attempt to physically grab the target.
🙌Target Saves: The target chooses to make either a Strength or Dexterity saving throw.
🙌Determine Success: The Save DC is 8 + your Strength modifier + your Proficiency Bonus. If the target fails the save, they gain the Grappled condition

The Grappled condition
🙌Speed of 0: The target’s speed becomes 0 and cannot benefit from any speed bonuses.
🙌Disadvantage on Attacks: The creature has disadvantage on attack rolls against anyone except the grappler.

Releasing
🙌You can release the target at any time (requires no action).

Ending the Condition:
🙌If the attacker becomes incapacitated
🙌If the target uses its action to make a successful Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check against your escape DC
🙌If an effect pushes you or the target away from each other, the grapple ends

Restrictions & Limitations

Free Hand Requirement:
🙌You must have at least one free hand to initiate or maintain a grapple. So you can only grapple two targets if both hands are free.
🙌Some characters can make multiple unarmed attacks but you still require a free hand to grapple a target. You can grab and release a target then use that now free hand to grapple if you have an attack still.
🙌Because grappling occupies at least one hand, you cannot attack with two-handed weapons (like greatswords or heavy crossbows) while grappling.

Maintain Reach:
🙌The grappled target must remain within your reach.
🙌If an effect forces them outside your reach, the grapple immediately ends.

Your Movement:
🙌You can drag or carry the grappled target, but your speed is halved unless the creature is at least two sizes smaller than you while doing so. Weight can also affect your speed.

Size & Weight Limits:
🙌You can only grapple a target that is no more than one size larger than your character.
The target's weight counts against your carrying capacity.
🙌If the combined weight of your gear and the enemy exceeds your standard Carrying Capacity (but is under your Drag maximum), your speed is instantly reduced to a maximum of 5 feet total. If you choose to drag the grappled enemy along the ground rather than carrying them, your physical limits are doubled.

Tiny Size: Multiply your Strength score by 7.5 pounds or 15 if dragged
Small / Medium Size: Multiply your Strength score by 15 pounds or 30 if dragged
Large Size: Multiply your Strength score by 30 pounds or 60 of dragged

Recent Gaming

Anyone like any of the 12 dungeon zones in particular?
As I start a series of new tables for each type your suggestions might help.

Recent Stuff:
This year I've played more games than I have in a long time. Im running two d&d5 games. Theros is now Lv9 and a great game for battling mythic and huge monsters, and a weekly club game at Lv6. I'm playing an online Oldschool Esentials game where my elf in one year has reached 4th Lv. Casting spells in plate with a halberd ready is nice. I've been asked to run a romantasy Game for 9-12yo girls. I've not run anything old-school this year. But as we had stuff not ready for our big town battle for our spyfi UK60s marvel game we played with making some new characters and speed-playing some characters.

Playing new content in my homebrew to test stuff was approved. So Dallas made a Rover who grew up on frontier, where he learned from druids and joined the secret order of forest folk, bringing law and peace to the wilderness. As his main power he chose an ability that gives him +4 hide and sneak and pass without trace for several times a day. 

Richard made a Expert Class built around Bluff as his expert skill and based around performance skills intending to start a travelling theatre or bigger. The other class power for Experts is lots of followers. So the "Baroness" has a carny lady with a staff, an old merchant lady and an alert crossbowman all zero level women. Rolls on a recent table and turns out she was raised br mermaids and then lived inside a tree with goblins before returning to humanity with theatrical dreams.

Dallas not to be outdone took a follower using the default amount of one follower to be his student. As a secret forest cop he was happy for a humble frontier village life to grow up where he met druids. As we levelled up in a 9 hour-ish game, the Expert took a pony and, considering some kind of entertainer or crafter possibly a cook to sell food to show customers. By Lv 3 has 5x 1st lv flunkies vs the Rover whose original follower becomes 1st lv. I did have a kobold class once designed to give yo a follower per level. Even with regular followers a gang of maxxed our halfling rock specialists are dangerous.

So they had met in a tavern and were planning to go to Auldwood which had been the western part of the kingdom depopulated in the civil war. Arts and culture are thriving in towns, and people retiring from war want to reoccupy long-abandoned farms and villages in the north of Sour Hill and the West on the border of Auldwood. People say faeries and elves and monsters from the deeper wood have spread into human lands during the 40 year war. 

The Rover wanted to test his skills and bring peace between the old ways and the new. The Expert wanted to grow her show, travelling the newly opened region and find exciting stories he can make shows about and the weird carny folk she can recruit. A noblewoman gave them a coat of arms of her missing brother, who went for adventure in a wizard's tower. She gave them a gp and an offer of reward to help his recovery.

They marched into the lake country, and the Rover had been told to check out Marshton. I got to pull out a bunch of 3folds I had made and found piles of stuff I published and forgot about. They killed a local cannibal and managed to do quite well. In Marshton, they helped fight off pumpkin monsters sent by a chaos hag and made peace with the Toad king. No followers died as they were cautious and the party mostly fired missiles. The expert maxed out in throwing daggers. The Rover managed to sneak up on enemies with powers even when he didn't have proper stealth skills yet. His spells were also the team healing with good berries and later entangle. 

Quite pleased with new classes for momebrew and players enjoying possibilities. Will go back to modify the regeneration power to be simpler. Changed a few things and will change holy powers that duplicate existing spells.
https://elfmaidsandoctopi.blogspot.com/2026/01/holy-and-nature-miracles-religious.html

My Hawksmire Island game, I let our new player bring news party was actually in a Ravenloft game. Most of our players 30-60, but we have a teen girl join in. I didn't think she had a great time, but came back more assertive and had more fun. While 3 party members in a hotel were planning what to do about the friendly evil people, the 4th was outside planting magic beans. Got a tree of magic fruit worth 24 healing potions. Next, he grew a 60-foot-high pyramid, and a mummy lord came out, and they survived by smashing his canopic jars when down to 40hp. They have finally circumnavigated the island, also, and are curious about the Lady Chrysopasia, who rules the domain and her town, which they have not seen yet.

Upcoming Projects
I will be getting back to finishing off my basic players' book for classes, then revising skills, then spells. I did end up making more non-spell classes and semi-casters. I've considered going back to work on my monster manual, as I've been griping about monster stat blocks over editions and vs basic Wikipedia entries of critters. I like 5.5 less lore monster book vs the older book. I dont want all my monsters so interrelated to each other and various fiends. I like my lore more. Big lore dumps are inspiration, but lists of rumours would be better, which we have for some monsters now. 

Apologies for misgendering a player's character and confusing the player and the character's gender previously. 

6-Room Dungeon 12: Hell Gate

Coincidentally, some hellish stuff in my games.

My Theros party in a Clark Ashton Smith-inspired adventure in the floating ice skull island of a prehistoric wom wizard were considering fleeing and looked through one last door to see a puppy in a torture chamber with cells. A  dwarf lady with a beard, elf without arms and a cell of treasure.  So they went in and puppy laughed and it said mean stuff. Was an Ice devil. Bad news in 5th ed. Good warmup before the worm wizard.

My weekly D&D5 game party on an island of folk horror villages. Village one, they drove off fish folk and crashed the fishing economy. Party helping restore trade and so helping the brewing and farming industries. 

Next village, they tolerated the angler fish cult who hated the other fish folk so party tolerated them marrying men to their moronic fish goddess Lampgulp and fuse with her flesh until eternity. There was a village with weird memory loss patients in an asylum and lots of wizards. Then last session they found anti-mutant swamp folk. Party disgusted and went to look at freakshow to learn about mutants. Saw locals tormenting small muties in a drain and a party halfling offered to get them out but put them in his bag of holding. At the freakshow, they beat up the owner, killed him, set the mutants free. Then burned the tents. They escaped in a cave and saw a vast lake of filth, the God Abhoth spawning small mutants. They found a way out and the Mayor was waiting.  The mayor who hated the freakshow told them to leave before the mob found them. 

Next village the saw a rich green hilltop of nice houses around it all surrounded by a white fence. Everywhere else was filth with mine pits and dirty mounds and rude wooden shacks. So they went to see a witch and sold orc corpses to sea trolls and on way home late saw the posh villages are alight in green flame from a well. Naked and robed locals were pushing someone in a well. So party killed them all to save the stranger while the villagers watched in horror and fled. Three large angry mobs formed. One was smashing shops on the way, others beating drums and burning an effigy and another led by an insane opportunist. 

So party fled all night through a swamp. Had a rest before going to village in sight and 3 werewolves attacked. One got roasted by the rescued strangers' fireball and she saved the other two from death and they reverted to women. Had rest and tied resentful and silent women's arms. They arived in village that seemed into hunting and had lots of wolves. Sheriff and posse demanded women be freed, party hand over weapons and come to the courthouse for questioning. So party killed the cops and the women broke free and fled. 

The party spent another day and night crawling through swamps exhausted, they arrived in the friendly but decadent Pig Town where they were welcome. Even local pig orcs helped tell other orcs no homicidal strangers were in area. The corpulent hedonist nobles welcomed the party and invited them to feast tomorrow. Was very satisfying to exhaust and chase players for days. I thought they got along with some jerk villages pretty well before this. While resting Glub Glub the the singing barbarian was getting suspicious about this village. Priest detected the rich were evil supernatural beings. Party tried to get along with poor but because the halfling had a piglet in a fancy costume the commoners shunned them. Local priest of the Sun-Boar seemed to be pro light but was evil fat rich bastard too. While glub glub and priest and the rescued stranger a real priest of light discussed what to do the bored halfling instead played with magic beans. 

First grew a fabulous tree of magic fruit. The second a 60 foot high pyramid releasing a mummy lord. Others saw this and The barbarian jumped out the window berserk. Dwarf ran down stairs and buffed most of team. Priest upstairs was fireballing and zapping the mummy with spells. He kept uncursing and healing party. It was a way too hard battle where the halfling was knocked out. The huge broad-jowled sheriff joined in with a magic halberd. Lots of great teamwork and the barbarian went in the pyramid and smashed the mummy heart jar. I rewarded them with lots of loot and they all knew it was a near TPK. The light priest who was casting from the inn said the halfling deserved squat for playing with beans. The locals cheered the heroes who saved the village from the mysterious pyramid and all the local pigs squealed with delight. 

--------

This is the final in this set of tables, but I'm doing a second set to expand this series. I might combine and edit final set. Id consider making it for charitry on drive-through but id rather it go to charity as i have to do lots of paperwork on earnings and I can't be bothered. It seems a feasible product.

1 Redbrick
2 Goblin Mine
3 Gothic Tomb
4 Magic Mansion
5 Glacial Chasm
6 Jungle Shrine
7 Underland Cavern
8 Auldwood Grove
9 Sunken City
10 Desert Ruin
11 Eldritch Monolith
12 Hell Gate

This is for medieval-style portals to hell.
Its not fair or nice.

Im considering a game where dnd5 party get to plane travel by swaping with their local incarnations or past lives so each game they can respec their class/sill/feats/spells whatever on a new character sheet. We wou;d learn more about the game anmd people could try weird stuff. People can return to old worlds and update their character. Even if they died on the new plane they would have the skills of their local cosm or perhaps a player misfires and has a old buiold on the wrong world.

https://elfmaidsandoctopi.blogspot.com/2021/04/planar-emanations-influences.html
https://elfmaidsandoctopi.blogspot.com/2021/01/myriad-petty-planes-of-multiverse-pt1.html
https://elfmaidsandoctopi.blogspot.com/2021/02/myriad-petty-planes-of-multiverse-pt2.html

Do look at Bruegel's or Bosh landscapes of hell and other medieval images for ideas. 

The Netherworlds of the Seven Hells
Their are seven hells
-1 Underworld a gloomy miserable place for unclaimed souls, a gateway region with various old gods and titans and tiamat have been imprisoned in crumbling palaces and kingdoms. There are links to the void, nightmare realm and remnants of the ancient underworld of the Dawn age underworld before aeons of cosmic war. The rich who were buried well and keep getting sacrifices live better. Benevolent cthonic gods bring the fructifying powers of the underworld to the vegetation and fertility of the mortal world. The roots of the world tree are here gnawed by Nidhog the dragon of entropy. The first gate of hell is guarded the judges of the dead whe send the wicked beyond to the apocalypse. Their are many beings here not allied with hell like dragons, underworld spirits or imprisoned "dead" gods, dragons and giants of the ancients who all seek release but channel power to their cults. The great dragonspawning pits of the mortal realm connect to the great lair of Tiamat in her palace readying her army for the last battle  

-2 Apocalypse, an eternal plague wracked and war ravaged wasteland of walking dead. The dead here deal with sadistic inversions of the mortal realm lives. All have rotting flesh, disease, hunger, vermin and bodily torments. The dead here are slowly flensed of flesh but many carry their own hides and tie them like robes or belts or capes. The richer you were the worse your humiliation and attachment to mortality. The horizon has endless silhouettes of ruins with the burning walls of the inferno beyond. 
-3 Inferno a burning realm of torture with legions of devils with pitchforks. The last remnants of the body are purified by devils. Damned souls are kept in pits or cages or torture machines and tormentd by devils with pitchforks. Devils are rewarded for cruelty, domination and extracting new contracts from the damned. Some damned become larvae or mindless lemures, others become imps. Volcanoes, boiling lakes of blood anf burning jets og gas make travel dangerous off road. Hell tainted fire elementals visit here also 

-4 Virkan the hell bogs, a vast swampy jungle wetland with swarms, mutant dinosaurs, ruins of drowned civilisations. The damned here are infested with vermin like crabs, flies, worms or wasps gnawing on them constantly. They are feverish and often barely lucid. Prehuman snake, lizard and amphibian peoples serving hell live here and inhabit many of the ruins. This place is a paradise for them, and they use the damned as slaves or for food on their bug farms. Many rivers of the underworld flow here, including rivers of filth, hacked up corpses, zombies or edged weapons. Parts of the world tree grow here and green and black dragons dwell here. Devils here tend to be more scaly. Giant bugs thrive here. Corrupted naga, lamia, medusa, basilisks and other reptilian horrors live here too. The waters and mud are choked with rotting corpses and bones. You may uncover helpless, immobile, moaning bodies of the damed buried in muck or under waters. Undead may arise from the swamp anywhere and many protest their innocence as their bodies attack
-5 Kanos the ice hell a great glacier filled snowy wasteland. Damned here are frozen in stasis for future torments. Some can perceive the whole time and go mad. Devils and the inhabitants put on awful performances for them. They will saw open blocks to eat the flesh within delight. Yetis and elemental cold creatures dwell here. Damned frost giants, ogres, trolls and white dragons love it here, it is paradise. Various glaciers are rulled by local factions and the greatest is that of the ruler. Rivers of hell flow deep below  
-6 Mallus a dark bleak wastland of scarred rocks, ruins, thorn forests, burning trees and vast piles of bones. Fortified walls and roads cross the realm. Devils rule from ruined castles and towers where they torment damned and undead. They remove souls from bodies creating various non coporeal spiritual undead and the bodies are made coporeal undead. Their are rebel devils living alone ion caves and ruins who hope they will get their jobs back and may see outsiders as means to remove their replacements. Armies of hell march here exterminating vermin which might signify invasions of hell as this hell is one of the last defences. Great sentient seige engines wander about while not defending. Sometimes a demonic, elemental or angelic host enters here to battle and an awful war begins. Ruined factories and machines lie from an ade where hell was more automated and there are connections to the boiler room of hell. Lazy devils grew soft so the machine age was abandoned 

-7 Abadoth the city of the damned in a wasteland of fire and darkness with lakes of boiling blood. Most of hell is a single vast continent spanning city. Regions are ruined, many are horrendous ghettos with damed and devils cramped in squalor in crumbling apartments. Walls and gates divide the regions. Vast districts of record warehouses, treasuries and bureaucratic offices. Many inhabitants struggle to keep awful jobs, poor housing and face centuries of government red tape to improve their lot. There are links to hells sewers, boiler room and libraries. Many students of the black library live here outside school. Drink, vice, corruption, crime and worse are normal here. Devils are firmly in charge and imp spies are everywhere. The central palace of the ruler of hell towers over the city and they say it is possible to reach the mortal world.  

Other Netherworld Interplanar realms
There are sub planes linking hells you might try and travel through to avoid scrutiny of hell

-1 Hells Sewers are famous and they say link to many of the worlds cities if you go too deep. Damned, undead and rebel devils lurk here and other horrors
-2 Hells Boiler Room a series of industrial factory for soul processing, abandoned ages ago. People try to use it as a shortcut and regret it. Full of rusted machines, blood splatters and meat. Insane devils left here have gone mad and devolved into demons. Many are ogrish brutes with chains, surgical scars and cruel prosthetics. Many wear strange masks or clown faces. Nightmare entities and all kinds of corrupted planar beings might dwell here as their own kind would destroy them  
-3 The Black Library a tuition-fee-free magic school where anyone could learn wizardry! Students are recruited by imps and sign a contract. They are shown a portal through a mirror or artwork or secret door that was never there before so students can study unlawful spellcraft of witch cults. Most are wizards or sorcerers, some others learn just some petty magic and are guided in the ways of eternal law, wealth, power and domination for pleasure. Many of the wickedest people in history are said to have had secret lessons here. Students here are more likely to be guild or common class than the mortal world. You get taught by planar evil beings and have access to forbidden spells. Good for an evil magoic school campaign 
-4 The Dungeon Domain a sentient dimension with an infinite number of dungeon levels linking to many worlds. It is malicious and spreads hells power. By attracting adventurers and letting them anoint treasure in blood they bring home, the dungeon intrudes into a world more. Some dungeons have survivors of long gone worlds and all kinds of weird humanoids and monsters. Some levels even hav false suns and seem to be vast open spaces. Some levels are prisons for dead unwanted elder gods, titans, dragons and alien gods of the void. 
-5 Roots of The World Tree dwell goblioids, dark faerie, evil gnomes, dwarves and trolls. Many roots of the cosmic tree enter hell and can be used to escape or travel to other hells. Is it safe? Not really. Dark faerie beings desire mortal slaves. Good manners and gifts get you further than war. Whole kingdoms of veings were are ready to awarm against you and will take this grudge wherever you go  
-6 Nightmare Realm intersects the outer void and the dreamlands, but is more chaotic. Darkness and nightmare demons and hags dwell here also. Creatures from your own nightmares will visit you when you come here. The lords of this realm have created isolated fog shrouded realms of misery that dont even know they are not on the mortal world 
-7 Sargassum the seas of hell, which connect to the seven rivers of hell. It boders on other hells as as the sea. There are islands, reefs and ruins on the surface. Cursed huge ships, evil whales and sea monsters are common sights. Giant kelp forests choke regions andlift shipwrecks into the sky like forest trees above the waves. Once a larger landmass was here with civilisation but it was sunk by the lords of hell for arrogance. Most of the action happens underwater, where storms and icebergs are less of a problem. Undersea peoples and monsters are abundant, including dragons and fish folk. Some live in reef-shrouded ruins on the surface to deal with the surface. Many of the damned here toil as slaves or are gnawed by sea creatures. Shipwrecks are common on the sea floor and often occupied by monsters.  

d12 Rivers of Hell
1 Acheron the river of sorrow the main river used by ferry daemons to travel through hell. Dangerous live and aquatic daemons in it make crossing perilous

2 Cocytus the river of lamentations caries helpless, damned spirits and wails of the suffering
3 Lethe the river of forgetfulness, makes you forget your life story and loved ones, which helps you adjust to the afterlife or overcome troubling pasts. Some damned drink here as a final step before they advance to Elysian Fields or Arcadia

4 Phlegethon, the river of fire, a burning river of molten rock, used to punish the damned

5 Styx the river of hatred, used to make oaths to even gods abide by. Grants oath powers and assigns fates with deadly fates full of violence

6 Vaitarna the river of filth full or blood, sewerage and gore. Swarms of flies and diseased miasmas surround it

7 Gyull the freezing river full of dangerous, grinding ice and stabbing icicles. Frozen corpses are common 

8 Atos the river of swords, a flowing, grinding mass of bladed weapons, many rusted and bloodied. Any caught in it is sliced and ground into liquid and swept away

9 Yrgrr, the river of venom, crawling with snakes and a sticky green poison deadly to the touch. Bodies here are devoured by serpents

10 Zorbas, the devouring river, its acid dissolves away flesh and then slowly eats skeletons. Bones, horns and teeth cover the shores and are carried by the current. Slimy gelatinous horrors swim in it 

11 Magakos, the stone river can mineralise life in contact with it for too long and is poisoned with mineral salts anathema to life. Preserved bodies lay around the banks and under the surface. They could be unpetrified, then raised, but they may be ancient  

12 Orandor the river of dreams, delicious and addictive, its scent sraws people nearer. Those who touch it are charmed and drawn in to drown themselves in delight taking a d4 rounds. Content and peaceful bodies flow down the river, their spirits trapped in their own dreams. Devils often fish them out to torture or eat. Exotic lotus flowers, butterflies and sugary crystals  can be found on the banks  

d12 What can Hell do for me?
1 Find love perhaps by with potions or a charm, or hook up with cultists, witches, sylvan beings and supernatural humanoids. Hell's matchmakers will help you find a suitable mate, perhaps a magic one

2 Money is usually obtained by telling you where buried treasure is hidden, or might bring you coins minted in hell, which are addictive and illegal

3 Power through favours of rich patrons in league with hell, which can turn nasty

4 Magic items are often in proportion to your levels, or a sentient item that grows in power with you

5 Magical pets like a nightmare horse, a hellhound, a hellcat, an imp or maybe a baby dragon if you're lucky. They will serve you and destroy your enemies 

6 Diabolical counsellors who offer you schemes and information you need to overcome your enemies. Over time, they seem invaluable. If you can't cast a spell to contact or commune with them, they will visit you in your dreams, but often ask for some seemingly petty favour in return

7 Assign you minions of some non-human species or some human cultists; the higher your station, the more you rule

8 Buff your attributes, possibly if low level, a temporary potion or scroll. High-level souls are more valuable, and 10+ is worth a whole point at high level 10+

9 Improve your social status through support from hell cults, upscale your home and goods

10 Minor ability, lower levels might be able to cast a bonus low-level spell at higher level might be more permanant. 

11 Mutations that prove your dedication and may give you amazing powers if worthy, only fate can decide what powers you will get. You might have to go in hiding or cover your mutations

12 In time of need can summon protective devils. Low level might be a scroll or one use item but higher level may summon an imp or proper devils to your aid or othe creatures like hell hounds

d12 What might Hell do with me in a deal
1 Get you into performing small but escalating tasks like carrying notes or packages on your journey. At first, you won't see subtle effects of your actions, but escalate so it becomes obvious. Your messages might be for others obligated to hell and have horrible results. Will bother you less often we promise if you kill someone for us
2 Make you participate in some kind of secret hell cult or possibly lead or start one

3 Convince others to sell their souls, you can earn freedom or get more wishes as bonus commission

4 Encourage you to get public influence and power using the system, to do it with extra corruption and force. Other agents of hell will boost your message

5 Take this free imp familiar, just feed it a bit of your blood from this extra special nipple

6 Take some mutations to show you are strong and loyal

7 Prove loyalty to the cult by often performing ritual taboo acts like murder

8 Prove loyalty to the cult by often performing ritual taboo acts like murder

9 Adopt an imp, hellcat, fire toad or hellhound and care for it like your life depended on it

10 Aid in Hell's intrusions into this world by helping with summonings and portals 

11 Separate your spirit into various fragments; they can work in different forms, including shadows, lemures, larva, and other non-corporeal beings to increase your torment over potentially millennia. This is like banking for hell's currency backed by tormented souls
12 Get your corpse to work in mindless toil or war for eternity

d12 Hellgate Decor

1 Sulphurous imp turds

2 Unholy sigil or devil signature

3 Chains and manacles (1in6 with bodies)

4 Foul vapours often come from a vent or ornate carved face

5 Evil faces, murals, tiles, relief sculptures (d4 1=grins 2=open mouth 3=snarl 4=laughing)

6 Burning brazier, torches or iron lantern hanging from a chain

7 Torture apparatus (d4 1=iron maiden 2=wrack 3=small cage 4=stocks)

8 Blashphemous old book

9 Idol of a devil or small altar dedicated to a devil

10 Skulls and bones, possibly covering surfaces like an ossuary

11 Smoke, soot and ashes. On the ground, smeared around, drifting in air

12 Murals of frightening scenes (d4 1=torment of the damned 2=hell landscape 3=hells armies at war 4=prophecy with some familiar looking places and persons, possibly an illusion)

 d12 Hellgate Hazzards
1 Evil miasmas (d4 1=disease 2=stinking cloud 3=poison 4=hallucination)
2 Swarm of Vermin (d4 1=rats 2=snakes 3=flies 4=worms)
3 Pit trap with sealing lid, often with rotten corpses (d4 1=spikes 2=snakes 3=water 4=worms)

4 Barred and locked pit (d6 1=well 2=oubliette 3=crawlspace 4=undead 5=corpses 6=mutant) 

5 Lava pool or river, possibly with some kind of crossing or an island in the middle with a chest or altar 

6 Piles of red gold coins with a trident on one side and portraits of hell's nobles on the reverse, curses holders with greed, jealousy, and paranoia

7 Invisible imps or frolicking petty elementals

8 Bubbling pools or river, possibly with a crossing (d4 1=boiling 2=diseased 3=fire toads lair 4=full of snakes 5=undead 6=flammable oil)

9 Trapped chests will be locked with a basic trap and a magic trap like a curse. Some treasure within

10 Hellcat or whispering imp offer to serve you for a year and make your dreams come true if you join hell

11 Jets of flame 

12 Pool of acid

d12 Hell Gate Encounters
1 Hell cultists who meet here or on pilgrimage

2 Hell mercenary soldiers or evil orc warriors

3 Mischievous imps playing some grisly sport

4 Mindless lemures gibbering in a pool of bubbling muck

5 Hellhounds on patrol 1in6 with a cult or undead huntmaster with a horn

6 Shadows arise from the floor and walls or art

7 Ghouls led by a ghast or other 

8 Evil darkness templar priests

9 Diabolical wizard and kobold bodyguards

10 Undead led by (d4 1=priest 2=necromancer 3=undead knight 4=)

11 Hellish Gargoyles

12 Lesser Devil on several patrols

d12 Hell Gate Static Encounters
1 Camp of cultists with mercenaries led by wizards and/or a priests here to worship

2 Coven of witches with imp familiars and other diabolical pets like hell goats, cats or hounds
3 Hag is cooking up someone to feed her brood of larvae. She hangs here to trade these damned souls. She can be helpful if you're polite or give her a kiss or she can be dangerous 

4 Undead hell cultists and damned mercenaries. Led by a more powerful undead 

5 Hell-tainted gargoyles, ready to awake if disturbed, seem to be part of the architecture

6 Lesser devils torturing victims

7 Hell knights are camping with prisoners to sacrifice and treasure. Resting after robbing and murdering (sometimes they are undead or mutated)

8 Bronze bull gorgon ridden by a lesser devil

9 Devil swine in human form, having a magnificent feast served by slaves, happy to talk to strangers, but if angered, change to swine forms

10 Devil with imps playing infernal music with instruments formed or tormented damned souls that scream in pain as played

11 Devil with lesser devil guards or hellhounds, busy at a desk writing contracts. Will calmly offer wishes and diabolical pacts for power

12 Devil is here with job of portaling in other beings to and from hell or call a specific type of devil. May be willing to make a deal

d12 Hell Gate Entrance
1 Porculis gate made to resemble a huge devil face, may slam ot trap intruders. May be an actual living gate that might talk or require a password. The non-living one will have guards like imps or lesser devils or hellhounds who might operate the gate mechanism. A grim stone entry chamber has various passages. It might even talk and require convincing to let you in. It might ask for your willing consent to enter or require you to hail hell with chants and fist pumps

2 A sulphurous pit with a red glow. Climb down into a rough cave with a river of boiling sulfur with a rickety bone bridge. A cult wizard guards the bridge and will destroy it if needed. He will ask questions of intruders to see if they are evil enough to be allowed in. Past the bridge are passages beyond

3 A great bronze door with devil faces with knockers. It knocked a hatch open, and a lesser devil guard demands to know who is there. There may be two guards. Inside is a stone chamber and a wheel mechanism to open the gate, and a bar that the guards can seal the door 

4 An ancient crypt with stairs down to a chamber below. An undead guardian with lesser undead guards the chamber. Sealed stone doors lead beyond. There may be crypts of ancient cultists with treasure here

5 A perfect, carved 25 foot wide 18 foot tunnel mysteriously runs under a distant mountain, long ago. Metal rods on wooden sleepers on gravel are on the floors. After a short distance is a platform area with a ticket booth, guard station and service store room with stairs going beyond past turnstyles. Often held by cultists, lesser devils, shades or undead. Some have other booths selling diabolical scrolls and pamphlets or evil food items operated by imps 

6 A mirror with an ornate frame. With a secret word concealed in the frame, you may pass the surface into a chamber with barred gates leading to various passages. Often guarded by some kind of mirror monster, dopelgangers or evil clones of themselves who enter

7 A painting with an ornate frame. With a secret word concealed in the frame, you may pass the surface into a cavern with various passages. Devils, including imps and lemures, will be here tormenting intruders 

8 A spectacular cave grotto with bubbling pools, eerie vapours and beautiful sparkling mineral formations. Some of these look valuable but crumble if you break them off. The sensitive can see that the formations seem to have malicious smiling features. Many nooks and cavities make excellent hiding spaces for kobolds or even medium-sized creatures. Some of these are cramped passages to the rest of a cave system and may even be hidden among formations in the ceiling or down. Often guarded by hellish, mutated creatures or evil humanoid guards 

9 Volcanic vent with steam and smoke, into a chamber with boiling mud pools, venting steam and burning gas jets. Floor may be steeply angled and various tunnels lead out. Corrupted fire elemental creatures like fire salamanders might dwell here or lesser devils or just imps. Living creatures can't thrive here 

10 Cave chamber with a dark at least 25 foot wide river flowing through it. There are crumbling remains of buildings on both sides. The water is supernatural (d8 1=memory loss 2=drain levels 3=mutagenic 4=poison 5=acid 6=sewerage 7=gore 8=rusty bladed weapons). There may be some kind of crossing or you could get swept away downstream and arrive somewhere in hell. (d4 1=bridge possibly fallen column or giant sword 2=ferry dock 3=rowboats, canoes, raft or barge 4=broken walkway or natural stone arch but you can jump it). Some kind of guardian like a devil, hell knight, evil wizard or hooded cultists, will be here or a supernatural ferryman. Visitors may be challenged about why they are here

11 A great cave into a vast subterranean lake. A beach of unusual coloured sand has some bones and broken boats, and a rickety wooden or bone pier for a boat and a bell. When the bell is rung, a supernatural ferryman comes on a raft or gondola and will carry you down various underground canal paths. It always demands a gold coin but might object to returning you to the entrance if you carry away Hell's treasures. It might even take you to hell instead of out

12 A carved cliff temple with ornate carved rock relief art of cavorting devils. Inside is a chamber with a high ceiling, where the walls and ceiling have more obscene carvings. A diabolical statue of a lord of hell dominates the room with magic, ever-burning torches. At least a devil or several hell gargoyles will be guarding, but may be hidden among carvings or concealed with magic. Visitors may be challenged about why they are here

d12 Hell Gate Sub Rooms
1 Oubliette or cell with a prisoner or corpse
2 Piles of books and documents relating to soul contracts, corrupt nobility and hell's legions
3 Shrine and idol dedicated to a noble of hell
4 Hot cell with a prisoner or a desiccated corpse
5 Cold cell with a prisoner or a frozen corpse
6 Cauldron of boiling oil or stewed human bodies

7 Alchemists lab distiling ichor

8 Imprisoned shadows who attack

9 Imprisoned ghouls who attack

10 Chest with basic and a magic trap with treasure inside

11 Rack with a hellish weapon

12 Lesser devil imprisoned in (d4 1=ice 2=amber 3=coffin 4=bottle)

d12 Hell Gate Main Rooms
1 Room is a huge stomach chamber with a lake of mild acid. Their is a mass of shipwrecks inside and one has become a crude tavern for the damned with a walkway to the various exits. Various devils, imps, undead and cultists are here, possibly trapped somehow or off duty. A succubi, lamia, naga or hag might be here too. The mood is melancholy, and the barkeep offers Hell's Brew in exotic cups. Melancholia here can ensnare occupants in this timeless trap. Some creatures come and go and trade exotic goods like larvae from hell or drugs 
2 A great pit of lava here with hell-tainted fire beings frolicking with imps. Cultists, devils, efreeti or witches might be here relaxing in the glow while cooking and brewing

3 Great square used for drills. May be empty and quiet for a d6 turns. However, forces will arrive for a drill like hell's orcs, kobolds or mercenaries. A hell knight or templar will lead them with a whip

4 Mousoleum for past cultists with burial niches and stone sarcophagi. Undead are very likely, but also cultists might come here for perverse rituals or a necromancer

5 Boiler room, an iron-clad riveted room with rust and blood splatters. Strange machines, venting steam and clanking sounds make it a confusing place. There are large, dangerous-looking machines working without sensible safety rails. There may be chained prisoners working here or damned undead whose souls are in hell, so both pay their debts to Hell. Lesser devils or imps might be here as task masters. This taps into the boiler room of Hell, and all kinds of awful creatures lurk here (d4 1=ogres 2=lesser demons 3=trolls 4=flesh golems) with local flair  (d4 1=frightening clown makeup 2=hook hands 3=chains 4=stitches and mixed body parts) 

6 Forge Room, where slaves and imps craft tools of war, they supply some local factions doing Hell's work. The huge furnace and crucible make the room hot. Smoke and steam fill the room. Constant sounds of clanging metal. An overseer dominates a cadre of workers. Could be kobolds, orcs, humans, gnomes, dwarves or some exotic species. Could also be undead smiths working their eternal damnation. Creatures here are busy and dont sell, but they will trade exotic metals and other materials for basic magi arms and armour

7 Lemure pits either a natural cave pool of mud or a built sewer; there may be a crossing or a point you can jump. Devils and imps come here to torment them or take them away to become imps

8 Ice house, either a natural cave or a stone-cut chamber. Covered in ice and with dangerous icicles everywhere. An ice devil directs undead, hell yeti, and white winter wolves. Ice structures or even walls, walkways, and stairs might divide the room partially or may be used as barriers. Some even have snow or freezing water under the floor ice. This water might be home to more monsters or be dangerous to touch. The ice will have ancient humans and unfamiliar beasts. Yeti saw some blocks open to eat

9 Fire pit with larvae being tormented by several devils with pitchforks. Have a d4+1 barrels of foul things to throw in the pit. Orcs, cultists or kobolds may aid them and learn the lore of hell on the job. It can speed up your next few incarnations.

12 A lake of fire with a bridge to an island with an illusion of piles of coins and several chests. Hell-tainted salamanders guard the chest, led by a devil. The chests are locked, trapped and protected by a spell or curse

d12 Hellgate Feature

1 Inside the huge beating heart of a Devil guarded by golems or devils. If they die the devil appears here in person to kill those who risk its eternal destruction. If heart is damaged enough it stops pumping ichor and the complex shakes and possibly floods with gore. The devil also keeps treasures here but they will be magically trapped 
2 A great flaming chamber with a causeway through lava to an island with a hell monolith. By manipulating magic symbols on the altar you can open a portal to hell. A great flaming elemental or hell cultist fire giant guards the island
3 Throne chamber with elaborate relief rock carvings of devils that emphasise a raised floor area with a mighty noble chair. Cultists may be here to claim it or just pilgrims. They might use it in ceremonies anointing leaders. Sitting in the throne has various functions (d4 1=comune with Hell 2=Change alignment to LE 3=makes voice boom 4=cast command once per round with no visible evidence just a glance while seated). If there is no cult here they will leave a monster or devil to guard it  

4 Palace of death a vast hall in the ancient style but black stone. Statues dedicated to the old underworld or traitor gods surround a stone feast table. A great underwold feast here if eaten will trap you in the underworld. You can enter to underwold propper through an ornate altarpiece artwork but this room is partly on the border of that plane. Living statues or golems may be here to defend it or undead may be here. A petty underworld deity or gatekeeper may be here to guard or welcome 

5 Infernal Machine a great rotating metal spiked pit stories deep, occasionally starts up, grinding creatures trapped in the gore pool below into liquid that drains away. Occasionally, hacked-up bodies and living beings and undead fall through hatches in the roof. A narrow walkway over the pit has an iron control altar at the central axis. A devil usually supervises, and imps make repairs or a cult or might control it (d4 1=mutant clowns 2=flagellant berserkers 3=flesh golems with meathook hands 4=undead templars)  

6 Control room, an ironclad, rivited room with console banks around the room and various screens. Banks of cables and sockets alongside machines like player pianos running computational scrolls. This may be automated with guard automatons but it may me a semi-sentient machine. Undead, imps or undead may operate it with a supervisor of higher rank. It monitors dimensional portals to hell and sends devils to the required locations. Machines have keys with diabolical sigils on them that can dial up devils and locations. If anything goes wrong, other stations report it, and a greater devil is sent by management in hell through an elevator from below.

7 Black Library Chamber, connected to the planar library of hell. Librarian devils or undead wizards may be working here. Students wizards here for free tuition may be studying or passing through. Doors here lead to other dimensions via mirrors and paintings. Books of ancient lore used for spell research are often specialised here

8 Crumbling cavern with glowing fungus and an ancient ziggurat. Mutant creatures live in the bog around it, and the top has an altar and a devil. Offerings or sacrifices here call a greater devil, and quite often, a cult comes here with sacrifices and incense to deal with a devil. A single guardian monster or cult might be here

9 Huge salt cavern with giant crystal and desiccated corpses. Holy symbols radiate light in the vaulted ceiling. In the bottom of a vast pit is a bound greater devil. Magical wards keep evil out so devils and cultists come here to try and pass. A guardian may be here, possibly fighting the diabolical forces. The bindings of the devil in the pit require four cursed locks to be opened

10 A great bronze gate bound by giant chains held by a magic-sealed lock. Guardian gorgons, minotaurs and gargoyles defend the gate to hell this side; the other side has devils. Fountains of blood and unholy water shaped like devils decorate the room lit by burning braziers

11 A huge ornate hall with great summoning circles depicted on the floor and various devil sigils on the walls. Four great braziers on plinth light the room. You are quite likley to find cultists or a wizard with mercenaries here preparing to summon a devil for wishes. In a worse case they will summon a greater devil. They might have magical monster pets already. They often have cursed chests of treasure here also 

12 A huge hall with an arch at the end with a huge mural of Hell. By sacrificing a victim at a shrine touched in a corner the mural becomes a gate for ten minutes and wandering monsters of hell will enter and try to seize victims to open the gate longer. Damaging the altar shuts the portal. More powerful beings come if the gate is open fot 30 minutes 

There will be a second series adding details to this one