I’m running Storm Kings Thunder and had some issues in chapter 1 switching from milestone experience to actual experience so I’ve ended up adding some extra content to get players to level 4/5 to start chapter 2.
One of the extra pieces of content I’ve come up with is rather than the Tower of Zephros sweep in and pick the PCs up once they leave Nightstone. They are going to free the tower which has been anchored/trapped in the Ardeep forest. Zephros himself has been in disguise in the town.
I’ve come up with a mini-dungeon that the PCs will need to get through to free the tower and each encounter (both non-combat and combat) will relate to one of the types of Giant (Hill, Frost, Fire, Cloud, Storm and Stone) it also introduces the Runes that relate to that type of Giant.
The Tower itself is buried in the earth, and the PCs will need to enter through the top and travel down, there isn’t anything here except cobwebs and bones.
Using the proper entrance on the ‘ground’ level exit into a polished black marble subterranean dungeon. I’ve made it polished black marble to emphasize its constructed nature.
The first section they come to will relate to Frost Giants. There is a sloping passageway that leads deeper into the each, on the walls are mosaics that depict the war between the Giants and Dragons. The dragon mosaic is a frost trap, when triggered numerous frost spikes appear along the passageway with extras growing out at the end of the slope. A gust of wind will also come from the dragon’s mouth to knock players off-balance. PCs get a CON check to avoid the initial cold damage and a DEX check to avoid being thrown down the passageway. The trap can be discovered and disabled by drawing the Frost rune onto the dragon’s mouth. If its triggered, then the same Frost rune will be glowing on the floor where the trap was triggered.
This then leads into a Room that has charred walls but is still the black marble construction. On the walls is the Fire rune. In the centre is a unlit brazier and a channel in the floor to the only other exit. The other exit can only be opened with a DC24 STR check (they’d have to roll a 20). The PCs need to attempt to light the brazier which will mean 6x Fire Snakes jump out of their next (the brazier) PCs will need to defeat the Fire Snakes and place their remains in the brazier, thus lighting the channel and opening the door.
Next up is the Hill Giant room. There a passageway with vents along the walls, the grates are the symbol for Hill Giants. There are boulders against the grates or fragments of boulders. There will be one large boulder off to one side. The PCs ears will pop once they enter the room and will take damage if they walk in front of the vents. The large boulder is on a large vent, moving the boulder will decrease the pressure enough from the PCs to walk through the room.
After the Hill Giant room is the Storm Giant room. This basically a tall tank (100ft tall). The only exit is a locked door on the roof. The room has cracks in the walls where seaweed and water are coming out off along with the smell of salt etc. The room will begin filling with water, 10ft a round, when the room is 20ft full 2x Water Weirds will attack the party. They will need to fend off the Water Weirds and have their rogue open the door in the roof, alternatively, a levitate spell will do wonders here.
The Stone Giant room. Currently this is what’s holding the Tower to the ground, I’ve already described over a couple of sessions that the mountain the Tower is wedged into seems to have grown around it. When the PCs arrive here they will see stone ‘tendrils’ reaching up into the ceiling, the room is also positioned underneath the tower. The rune for Stone is on the walls along with a riddle “I run smoother than any Rhyme; I love to fall but cannot climb” (Ans: Water). If the PCs put water on any of the tendrils then they will pull down from above and coalesce into 3x Gargoyles.
The Cloud Giant room; This one is TBC but I wanted to do something with vision or fog.
The rooms are currently arrayed in a linear fashion but I’m toying with the idea of arranging them in a circle with passageways crossing so feel they can be done in any order. I’m also thinking of adding a set of cracks in the walls that connect with spiders etc in there.
Any thoughts of how I can improve the above? Once the tower is free Zephros will turn up and take the PCs onto their next destination… Goldenfields, Triboar etc.
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I’m running Storm Kings Thunder and had some issues in chapter 1 switching from milestone experience to actual experience so I’ve ended up adding some extra content to get players to level 4/5 to start chapter 2.
One of the extra pieces of content I’ve come up with is rather than the Tower of Zephros sweep in and pick the PCs up once they leave Nightstone. They are going to free the tower which has been anchored/trapped in the Ardeep forest. Zephros himself has been in disguise in the town.
I’ve come up with a mini-dungeon that the PCs will need to get through to free the tower and each encounter (both non-combat and combat) will relate to one of the types of Giant (Hill, Frost, Fire, Cloud, Storm and Stone) it also introduces the Runes that relate to that type of Giant.
The Tower itself is buried in the earth, and the PCs will need to enter through the top and travel down, there isn’t anything here except cobwebs and bones.
Using the proper entrance on the ‘ground’ level exit into a polished black marble subterranean dungeon. I’ve made it polished black marble to emphasize its constructed nature.
The first section they come to will relate to Frost Giants. There is a sloping passageway that leads deeper into the each, on the walls are mosaics that depict the war between the Giants and Dragons. The dragon mosaic is a frost trap, when triggered numerous frost spikes appear along the passageway with extras growing out at the end of the slope. A gust of wind will also come from the dragon’s mouth to knock players off-balance. PCs get a CON check to avoid the initial cold damage and a DEX check to avoid being thrown down the passageway. The trap can be discovered and disabled by drawing the Frost rune onto the dragon’s mouth. If its triggered, then the same Frost rune will be glowing on the floor where the trap was triggered.
This then leads into a Room that has charred walls but is still the black marble construction. On the walls is the Fire rune. In the centre is a unlit brazier and a channel in the floor to the only other exit. The other exit can only be opened with a DC24 STR check (they’d have to roll a 20). The PCs need to attempt to light the brazier which will mean 6x Fire Snakes jump out of their next (the brazier) PCs will need to defeat the Fire Snakes and place their remains in the brazier, thus lighting the channel and opening the door.
Next up is the Hill Giant room. There a passageway with vents along the walls, the grates are the symbol for Hill Giants. There are boulders against the grates or fragments of boulders. There will be one large boulder off to one side. The PCs ears will pop once they enter the room and will take damage if they walk in front of the vents. The large boulder is on a large vent, moving the boulder will decrease the pressure enough from the PCs to walk through the room.
After the Hill Giant room is the Storm Giant room. This basically a tall tank (100ft tall). The only exit is a locked door on the roof. The room has cracks in the walls where seaweed and water are coming out off along with the smell of salt etc. The room will begin filling with water, 10ft a round, when the room is 20ft full 2x Water Weirds will attack the party. They will need to fend off the Water Weirds and have their rogue open the door in the roof, alternatively, a levitate spell will do wonders here.
The Stone Giant room. Currently this is what’s holding the Tower to the ground, I’ve already described over a couple of sessions that the mountain the Tower is wedged into seems to have grown around it. When the PCs arrive here they will see stone ‘tendrils’ reaching up into the ceiling, the room is also positioned underneath the tower. The rune for Stone is on the walls along with a riddle “I run smoother than any Rhyme; I love to fall but cannot climb” (Ans: Water). If the PCs put water on any of the tendrils then they will pull down from above and coalesce into 3x Gargoyles.
The Cloud Giant room; This one is TBC but I wanted to do something with vision or fog.
The rooms are currently arrayed in a linear fashion but I’m toying with the idea of arranging them in a circle with passageways crossing so feel they can be done in any order. I’m also thinking of adding a set of cracks in the walls that connect with spiders etc in there.
Any thoughts of how I can improve the above? Once the tower is free Zephros will turn up and take the PCs onto their next destination… Goldenfields, Triboar etc.