Bergummo's Tower Playtest - Session 6

 As they put their heads together about what to do next, the party members realize they never fully searched the plinth room, so they return through the green mist to do so. They already know there are two secret doors in this room, one of which was opened by turning the dials on the plinth. They opened the second secret door from the other side, after descending the pit in the red mist, melting the grate with green slime, and ascending a subtly-sloping corridor. 

Bergummo's Tower Playtest - Session 5

Vic pokes his head into the 15x20 room and shines his candle around. Rotting velvet curtains line all four walls, save for the north corner of the west wall where a brightly-colored tapestry hangs. With his hand crossbow, Vic fires arrows at the sapphire floating slowly around the tip of a 6-ft. iron pole set into the middle of the floor. He hits the grape-sized gemstone several times, but fails to dislodge it from its orbit. Undeterred, he finally hits it with enough force to knock the sapphire loose. Its glow subsides as the jewel falls to the stone floor. Luckily, it is not damaged.

Bergummo's Tower Playtest - Session 4

With the party still working out the enigma of the bronze buttons emblazoned with sigils of the four seasons, Cane suggests correlating the mist colors to the seasons (red = Summer; blue = Winter; yellow = Fall; green = Spring). Vic presses this combination of buttons, but it only summons a pair of cockatrices to the south platform. After a brief fight, the party kills the horrid creatures.

Bergummo's Tower - Playtest Session 3

The spiral staircase descends 30 ft. below the cellar to a large, unlit room (the dwarves estimate the party is now 40-50 ft. beneath the surface). As Saynard’s bullseye lantern scans across the walls, the light reveals an octagonal-shaped chamber of finely-laid, dressed stone, with a 15-ft. high vaulted ceiling. A thick layer of dust covers the floor. In the center of the room, from floor to ceiling, stands a wide stone “column” within which the spiral staircase winds back up to the cellar.

Bergummo's Tower - Playtest Session 2

After hearing some movement downstairs (soft shuffling noises), Cane repositions himself, hiding behind some debris and taking a bead on the staircase doorway with his bow. Steeljaw drags Aerion’s and Saynard’s paralyzed forms over to the far wall, then hugs the wall next to the staircase doorway with his axe raised. Vic slides into the darkened bedchamber to the south and sets up an ambush. All three active party members now hear a gentle creaking as some creature carefully makes its way up the rickety stairs.

The Land of Remedios

When I began the D&D Next playtest, I wanted to create a different campaign world for my players. I'd been running a campaign for nearly 20 years, set in the Realm of the Wreath-King, a low-fantasy, pseudo-medieval European setting, infused with liberal doses of Arthurian legend, Celtic and pagan folklore, and tropey world-building.

I created a simple map and filled it with "new" classic ideas, trying to recreate the feel of my first campaign world when I started playing Basic in 81. I didn't intend to replace my old campaign world, but after one of my players passed away in real life, I shelved it and started running 5e in the new setting. I've since added lots of details to it and created many adventures in it. One campaign in particular lasted just over five years, ending in a satisfyingly epic way last August. 

Here's a brief introduction to the territory...

THE LAND OF REMEDIOS

This rolling coastal plain on the Eastern Ocean is nestled between two arms of the Ironblood Mountains. The change in elevation from northwest to southeast is dramatic, sloping sharply to the sea. The region is mostly wilderness, with just a few towns and isolated villages.  

Lord Manfred rules the region from the capital city, also called Remedios, roughly 75 miles inland from the sea. Though the territory is sheltered from attack by mountain ranges to the west and north, various humanoid tribes are a constant threat from the south. Fortunately, the savages spend much of their time fighting each other rather than Lord Manfred’s men. Pirate raiders are an occasional menace to the coastal villages as well.

To the far west, beyond the mountains, is the Freehold Kingdom of Leptos. The dwarf kingdom of Vorge lies within the mountains to the northwest. Farther to the northeast, beyond a wide expanse of mountains, is the elven realm of Mithmir. All three of these neighboring lands have friendly relations with Remedios (although the Mithmiri elves are more ambivalent to the humans than anything else). To the south, the Badlands are a rugged buffer between Remedios and the orcs of the Red Wastes.

The weather is generally temperate, although the drastic change in elevation creates lower temperatures in the northern regions. South of the river, warm winds from the Horse Plains keep the lowlands hot and dry during spring and summer.

Bergummo's Tower - Playtest Session 1

I finally started my playtest sessions for an upcoming publishing attempt. I'm mostly checking the adventure for balance issues, but I'm also test-driving a few house rules and ideas I have for improving my regular game. 

We're playing 5e on Roll20 every Wednesday night, and I estimate the adventure will take 4-5 sessions to complete. I like 5e's core mechanic, for the most part, but I prefer OSR adventure design principles. Hopefully, this is a decent blend of those factors.

Five of my Tuesday-night players rolled up (2) characters -- one primary and one replacement in case the primary dies, although I am letting them swap out characters (if they desire to) whenever the party returns to base camp. 

I gave them this brief adventure synopsis and then started them right at the dungeon... 

Your party came into possession of a map with directions to the abandoned tower of a long dead-wizard. The tower stands deep in a nearby forest, and whispered rumors tell of fantastic treasures kept within, waiting for those brave or foolish enough to enter.

You and your comrades decided to form an expedition to investigate the rumors, and your party followed the map to the area. It was a long, arduous journey to reach the site, so returning to town for rest and resupply would not be an easy undertaking. Your party establishes a base camp several miles from the tower site, and half your expedition prepares to make the first foray: Aerion, dwarf paladin; Cane, wood elf monk; Saynard, human bard; Steeljaw, dwarf barbarian; and Vic, halfling rogue.

After a restful night, your party sets off shortly after dawn. After traveling through thick woods for two hours, you arrive at the spot marked on the map at 9:00 AM. There, you find a modest structure—a crumbling, three-story stone tower with a conical, shingled roof—standing in the middle of a forest clearing.

Thick, leafy vines shroud parts of the exterior wall. Brickwork has fallen away in places, leaving gaps in the tower wall. Part of the tower roof sags and patches of shingles are missing. Narrow, darkened windows stare into the surrounding forest. The front door is gone and the doorway stands wide open.

The entire area has a strange atmosphere about it, almost “humming” with unseen energy that makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. As you approach the tower, the forest becomes noticeably quieter.

 Here is the session report...