After our Back to Basics session, I decided that we’ll keep playing some Basic D&D…albeit the Labyrinth Lord version…for a bit before getting back to Savage Worlds and Hellfrost. I picked up Stonehell Dungeon by Michael Curtis and that is what I’ll be running instead of Keep on the Borderlands…actually something of a combination of the two. For a couple of good reviews of Stonehell, check out the review at Grognardia and A Paladin in Citadel. I don’t recall any spoilers in either review but if you’re worried about such, don’t read ’em.
Potential Spoilers for Stonehell Dungeon below the break!
The first thing that I decided to do with Stonehell was to expand a bit on its history and create a shell (and a rather thin one at that) of a setting. I want to leave the setting pretty open and vague beyond what I felt was immediately needed for situating Stonehell. The players can have as much a hand in the setting that they want…quite a few have already established that their characters are from a kingdom called Yonder and a couple are from beyond even its borders. 😉
I shared with the players much of the history as published but departed from it regarding the downfall of the Potentate. When the Potentate was overthrown, he unleashed mighty magics that transformed his lands into a vast desert. The mountains in which the Stonehell Dungeon was dug lie between the Western Kingdoms and this Shining Desert. These mountains, the Brun Mountains, once marked the westernmost boundary of the Shining Potentate. Today, the lands to the east are a rugged desert populated primarily by manscorpions, gnolls, dune stalkers, and other monstrous creatures. The hobgoblins of the Karranogh Empire, far to the east, have recently occupied the harsh lands east of the Brun.
If it were not for a peculiar feature of the Brun, the large number of monstrous creatures and the arrival of hobgoblin forces might concern the Western Kingdoms. As it is, they are believed to be of little threat as the eastern edge of the mountains are sheer cliffs, hundreds of feet high. The curse of the Potentate that transformed his lands into the Bright Desert simply obliterated the Brun Mountains just as it did all other topography within the Potentate, leaving nothing but drifting and swirling sands. This cliff marks the edge of the Potentate’s borders and of the curse. Over time, a few switchback type trails have been carved into the cliffs but nothing that would allow a force large enough to threaten the Western Kingdoms to travel easily.
The lands on the western side of the mountains are sparsely populated. Rough, wild, and dangerous, the peoples of the Western Kingdoms have found it easier (and safer) to settle other areas rather than these borderlands. The creatures from the Bright Desert or those that venture forth from Stonehell may pose no significant threat to a well-manned and defensible fortification but they can be deadly to a small settlement or farmstead or even a lightly guarded caravan. Still, some folks have settled here and caravans are fairly common as the treasures brought from the Stonehell are too lucrative to pass up.
The Stonehell is not the only site of interest to “adventuring” types in the area. The Baleful Bogs are rumored to be home to a large tribe of Lizardmen as well as other creatures…possibly even an old and feeble Black Dragon. What treasures might lie within its hoard? The Fellgrim Forest is dark and foreboding and may be home to many secrets. A common rumor is that an old watchtower of the Shining Potentate still stands within those dark woods. (Didn’t want Stonehell to be the only option for the PCs to explore).
The Brun Mountains have numerous canyons and caves as well. While the Stonehell is believed to be home to various groups of humanoids battling for living space and control of its various levels, the rest of the Brun remains relatively unpopulated. In other regions of the world, such places would be ideally suited to be the homes of goblins, orcs, and their ilk. In the area around the Stonehell, such is not the case. Many adventurers new to the area have mistaken the mountains various canyons and caves for the Stonehell, only to find them largely unoccupied and, more importantly, rather lacking in fame and fortune. Only newcomers, the weakest (and poorest) of creatures or tribes, or the weakened (and destitute) survivors of the battles in the Stonehell occupy such places.
It is almost as though something–or perhaps someone–compels such creatures to be drawn to Stonehell…
Situated as it is at the far end of the Western Kingdoms, Stonehell Dungeon has remained isolated and has largely fallen from the concerns of the rulers of the the civilized lands. Their sole concession to the dangers that Stonehell represents was the erection of a large keep on the Kingdoms’ far borderlands. This keep was designed to provide an initial defense if the horrors of Stonehell ever belched forth from its depths. Located about a half-day’s travel from Stonehll, this keep–the Keep on the Borderlands–serves as a base of operations for the adventurers that plumb the dungeons depths and, sometimes, reemerge with great treasures.
So that’s pretty much the “backstory” of this campaign…that and the history of Stonehell.
Since we already played one session, I didn’t just want to start over or just ignore the fact that the PCs hadn’t seen a certain curtain wall when approaching Stonehell so I rationalized the bit about other caves in the area being largely empty. It also fits with a little something about Stonehell. 😉
I gave everyone the option to either keep their current character or roll up new ones. All of the survivors of the last session stuck with their characters. Charity (Rachel’s Dwarf), Bambi (Jamie’s Halfling), and Pedro (Thomas’ Fighter) were joined by Hope (Todd’s Cleric) and Noah (RJ’s Thief)…Todd’s character had died in the last session and RJ missed it. Hmm…with those names, it almost sounds like the cast of some reality television show. 😯
I think that covers it for now. We had another session this past weekend…session writeup coming soon.
