I’m happy to announce that my over-the-top, trap-laden killer-dungeon, The Barbican of Blood, was made a finalist in the second annual Adventure Site Competition by Coldlight Press. The collected eight finalists and winning dungeon have now been released as a PWYW document on drivethru RPG. You can click the image below to download it and bask in its dungeon crawling goodness.
Thanks to all the judges for their comments and feedback. My dungeon seemed to be divisive in the scoring, and that makes sense. It is baroque, linear, and wants player characters to die. It falls into the great tradition of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons killer modules; assholish, PC-slaying dungeons from back in the day. The kind spearheaded by the likes of Gary Gygax, then perfected by Rob Kuntz. It is also inspired by the ‘world first’ early modules of the Judges Guild – like Citadel of Fire – where an adventure location exists in a milieu; uncaring, brutal, and inflicting woe unto all who discover it.
I sat down to write the Barbican of Blood over two four hour sessions during the Christmas break 2024. I had recently re-read the three little brown books of the original game, and was wistfully day dreaming about the system’s untethered possibilities. Those who have read my ASC II entry and are familiar with the original edition will notice that the upper works use the castle encounters in 0e as their basis, where a Lord will ride out and challenge fighting-men to a joust. I settled on mixing this with a vampire lair as I’m a big Gothic fiction fanboy. I also wanted to use a monster with good reason to guard its lair with ridiculous traps. Vampires, being incredibly protective of their coffin (essentially the key to their immortality), was a perfect fit for the concept. A vampire’s charm ability allowed me the use of a Lord from 0e castle encounters, though transformed into a Renfieldesque slave.
The traps in the dungeon were something of a mental exercise. A test to see how far I was able push my creativity. I wanted to avoid traps like those found in later AD&D modules, and in supplements like Grimtooth. Instead I leaned towards the strange magical traps found in the labyrinths of the early Dungeon Game, circa 1976. I also enjoyed coming up with novel uses of standard spells in environmental traps. I recall the dungeon The Hyqueous Vault was very inspiring in this regard.
Restormel Castle. Basis of the Barbican.
My favourite trap in the Barbican is a cursed magical room. In it, all forms of melee will totally miss unless the character throwing the attacks calls out their own name. I had originally come up with this idea whilst rereading Elric of Melniboné by Micheal Moorcock. The impetus for this trap was the scene where Elric battles pig faced creatures, who can only speak a single word, ‘thing.’ In this scene Elric becomes enraged and suddenly starts yelling his own name whilst smighting the mutated chaotic creatures.
Hopefully you Dungeon Masters out there will find the elements of the dungeon useful. Even if you have to get Burroughsian and give it the cut-up treatment.
I will soon be taking the material and ideas from the Barbican of Blood and creating a less brutal, but larger module intended for tournament play.
Thanks to Attronarch and never_plays_elves for reading the dungeon in its early stages. Thanks also to Goldigger who ran a play test of the Barbican, his play report can be found here. The largest thanks goes to Gogon Velvet who illustrated the villain on the cover page, which you can see below.
There are still a few Easter eggs hidden in the text, which are as yet are undiscovered. Can you find them?
I’ve been rolling up some points of interest for my next campaign using a bunch of different resources. I usually start out with the fantastic Wilderness Hexsplore to get a general idea going, then pad out the details. I may post more of these in the future as I create more. Hopefully someone will find it useful for their OSR game, so feel free to grab it and plop it onto your own hexmap.
If you are one of my players please read no further! You may well encounter this!
The Ruin of Windrum Keep
Background.
Thirty years ago a powerful warrior had a keep built atop a local hill named Windy Bluff. The warrior was said to enjoy drinking, and so the Keep became known as Windrum Keep. Unfortunately, whilst deepening his dungeon, workers excavated a hive of driver ants. It didn’t take long for the ants to burrow upwards and slight one of the keep’s towers making the castle indefensible. So, not long after, it was abandoned, after a failed attempt at eradicating the colony.
Windrum ruin has been used as a lair many times over the years by bandits, rovers, and goblins, but never for any extended period because of the dangers in it’s lower level. Recently a dark lady has taken up residence in the ruin. She is said to demand tribute from all who pass by her ‘castle.’
Description
The keep is a fairly simple one. It would have once had four towers but the northern one has collapsed leaving a large opening in the wall. A mound of gritty earth is piled up against the northern wall, and this can be climbed to gain entry to the second floor. There is also a large stairway leading to a gatehouse (A). At the base of the mound of earth theres a deep spiralling tunnel (I), this drifts clockwise at a 15 degree pitch terminating in the dungeon (2).
Hex encounters
Whilst in this hex there is a 1:12 chance per watch of a random encounter. Roll 1d4.
1d4 wolves: hunting. Will flee after one kill and drag corpses to the ruin. Easy to track.
1d8+1 merchants. Battered after being robbed by Dimitri. 1:3 chance some of their family members were captured and are now held as prisoners (H). They will give reward if helped (Treasure Type C).
Dimitri and Emil in human form: they wear dirty rags and will demand tribute to the lady of the castle. Gold, weapons, or jewels will satisfy them.
Dimitri in Were-form. Will attack horses or beasts of burden for food. Otherwise make a reaction roll.
Windrum Ruin
Ruin L1-L3
Whilst in Levels L1-L3 check for wandering monsters every 2 turns, 1:6 chance of an encounter. Roll 1d4.
Dimitri in human form carrying a sack of 600sp (see entry G.)
Emil in human form, a twelve-year-old boy looking to play (see G.)
2d4 giant rats.
1d4 wolves.
A) Entrance hall.
The door is tied from the inside with a linen sheet painted with sigils. This was long ago installed as a trap. If the linen is cut or broken the sigils explode and all items, characters, and walls within thirty feet act as though they have the light spell cast upon them, including each character’s eyes. Save vs spells or blind. If the sheet is carefully untied and unwrapped the sheet is the same as a MU scroll with the light spell written on it 3d6 times.
B) Old Garrison room
Iron sconces line the walls, a soiled banner hangs from the wall. A large table is in the centre. Underneath the table is a giant Gecko, the pet of the Emil, a werewolf. The Gecko has a collar around its neck and a name-tag reading ‘Simon’. The collar is connected to a twenty-foot chain that is bolted to the floor. There is a copper bowl containing several human bones. There is a 1:6 chance that Emil is here playing with the poor creature in his were-form.
Giant Gecko: HD 3+1: AC 5: AL N: ML 7: Att 1 x bite (1d8) : XP 50. Special: can climb on walls. HP 10.
Emil: HD 4: AC 5 (10 in human): AL C: ML 8: Att 1 x bite (2d4) : XP 300 Special: normal damage immunity x silver. 2:6 Summon wolves. Infection. HP 12
C) Slighted Entrance
This part of the wall has fallen down and around it is a huge mound of grit and dirt, at the bottom of the mound is a tunnel going down (I). Inside this room are three wolves, summoned by the werewolf Dimitrie Nica. They wait here on guard.
Wolf: HD 2+2: AC 7: AL N: ML 6: Att 1 x bite (1d6) : XP 25 HP 6. 17. 8.
D) Sunken Room
This room’s floor is severely bowed, the floorboards are caving in and swollen. The bowing is being caused by four sacks of copper coins leaning against the Western wall. Each sack contains 600 copper pieces. There is a 1:6 chance every turn that the floor will cave in down to room 4 for 2d6 points of falling damage; for every PC that steps into the room there is a cumulative +1 on the odds.
E) Corridor
The north of this chamber is filled with the same gritty sand that is heaped up against the north of the keep. Partially buried in the sand a dead gnome, he is rotting and his wee red hat is tangled with worms. Clenched in his fist is a fine gold necklace (50gp). If the necklace is removed there is a 1:2 chance that the sand will shift and tumble in, save vs death or take 1d6 damage and be buried alive, suffocating in no. rounds equal to CON, unless they can wriggle free.
F) Overlook
The north wall is slighted and overlooks the mound below. This gap is not easily accessible by the mound, only by climbing the extra fifteen foot up the wall. There is a tripwire across the gap that rings a loop of bells attached to the Eastern wall, this alerts the dark lady in room G.
G) Throne Room
This room is decorated with stolen finery. Large quilts and silks are coiled around a wooden throne but now soiled and worthless, being coved in thick black hair and the stench of animal. A gold framed mirror (100gp) leans against the western wall. Crates of mercantile goods line the southern wall; horn (100gp), skins (20gp), and pepper (40gp).
Lady Nica, a werewolf, swans around this chamber in delusions of grandeur. She wears a swooshing white frock, amethyst gold necklace (250gp), and a beautiful platinum band with green garnet gemstone (850gp). When she contracted lycanthropy she became convinced that she could become a Queen, just as she’d always dreamed of. Her husband Dimitrie has been trying to fulfil this dream, which is why he brought her to live in this ‘castle.’ Lady Nica rarely takes her were-form unless provoked, she instead believes that all intruders have come to bask in her glory. She is prone to staring in the mirror and making pronouncements, “All would be lucky to bask in your radiance.”
The lady is susceptible to flattery, particularly if her delusions of ladyship are encouraged. If this is the case then award +2 to any reaction rolls, she may well dish out quests to kill her old enemies, or find her gowns befitting of her radiance. If interactions with the lady go well then award -2 to all reactions with her husband Dimitrie.
There is a 1:3 chance that Demitri and little Emil are here if not previously encountered, otherwise they are out in were-form hunting to bring the Lady supper and riches.
Lady Nica: HD 5: AC 5 (10 in human): AL C: ML 8: Att 1 x bite (2d4) : XP 300 Special: normal damage immunity x silver. 2:6 Summon wolves. Infection. HP 22
Dimitri: HD 4: AC 5 (10 in human): AL C: ML 8: Att 1 x bite (2d4) : XP 300 Special: normal damage immunity x silver. 2:6 Summon wolves. Infection. Key to Treasure room (H). HP 16
Emil: HD 4: AC 5 (10 in human): AL C: ML 8: Att 1 x bite (2d4) : XP 300 Special: normal damage immunity x silver. 2:6 Summon wolves. Infection. HP 12
H) Treasure Room
This room contains a pile of 4,000 silver pieces. The Nica’s have been hoarding it here, paranoid that silver could get into the hands of their enemies. The second door is locked, the key is around Dimitri’s neck.
I) Tunnel
There is a tunnel here in the mound of gritty earth that leads down into the cells (2).
D1 – Dungeon Level
There are no wandering monster checks for this level unless in the Ant Colony, East of room 3. In the colony there is a 1:6 chance every turn of encountering 1-3 Driver ants. Whilst in the ant colony there is a 1: 12 chance every turn that the current tunnel partially collapses for 1d6 damage, save vs breath for half damage.
Well.
This old chamber has a 10 foot wide well at its centre. It has no railing so it appears more like a pit. It descends for thirty feet. In the bottom, partially submerged, is the skeleton of a wizard. His spell book is rotten through, but his satchel has a potion of healing. A scroll case containing the scrolls of knock, clairvoyance, and telekinesis.
Cells.
This was once the keeps dungeon, but the ants dug up and out and slighted the keep. Ragga has installed a ten foot deep spiked pit trap at the bottom of the tunnel.
Ragga’s Chamber.
This shambolic room is the den of Claus Ragga. He has been secretly living down here for a while, trying to figure out how to sneak into the ant colony and recover gold nuggets. He has a little tent propped up in the SW corner. He has barricaded the door to the East with a bar. He will try to use PCs to recover the gold nuggets he knows are within the ant colony, but will be quick to betray them.
Claus Ragga: Fighter 2: Chain AC 5: AL C: ML 5: Att 1 x sword (1d8) : XP 20. HP 6.
Torture Chamber.
Old broken torture devices rot here. There are some chains, manacles and a knife that are usable. There is a secret door in the north clearly visible from this side.
Pool.
A shallow pool of water shimmers with oily residue. Skimming off the oily surface gives a liquid that can be used as lantern oil.
Waste Pile.
A huge pile of manure, dead driver ants and human corpses rot here into mulch; growing all over the pile is a fuzzy green mould and large mushrooms. Standing in this room for more than one turn requires a save vs poison or be paralysed for 1d6 turns.
Driver Ant Lair.
Four Driver Ants nest here guarding five translucent eggs and a hoard of gold nuggets (9,000 gp.)
Driver Ant: HD 4: AC 3: AL N: ML 7 (12 in melee): Att 1 x bite (2d6) : 125 XP. Special: Consume everything in their path when hungry. HP 10. 21. 19. 12.
Judges notes. Here are the details of what I rolled in making this location, it was made over a couple of lunch breaks.
Wilderness Hexsplore.
– A ruin > partially sunken > covered by sand > in a partially operational state > Guarded by Lycanthropes > Three werewolves rolled > ruin type – A keep and four towers.
Dreadlord Games 