and rhyme the thing up.
Maybe the Dungeon Master from the TSR cartoon show is doing it. That's what I think I'll go with.
I'll have the original keying in normal text, and my rhyming additions in italics.
BTW, This work is licensed under Creative Commons CC BY-NC-SA. You can share it for free, adapt it to your own system, edit it, print it and leave it in local game stores. You just can’t sell it for money, and you have to credit Skerples somewhere. Same goes for the art.
You may spot a few points where I changed Skerples's text a bit. I made a mummy a serpent-man mummy, for instance, and fixed some things I considered to be errors; the work was not perfect. I also made it more generic, stats/cash wise.
Anyhoo, if you want to PDFize this, there is a print button on the bottom each post of this blog.
1 ENTRANCE HALL
A corridor ushers your first steps into the gloom
You will come to discover two archways in each wall
White roots weed down from the ceiling of this decrepit tomb
Brushing your helms as you make way down the dim hall
12x1 – 120'x10'x10' Sunlight reaches the far end Smells like dust. Colder than outside Small roots in ceiling, crude stonework
A long corridor with four doorless rooms, two on either side. The hallway ends at a large, barred door made of stone, leading to 6: FALSE KING’S TOMB.
2 and 2 GUARD TOMBS
In this room and its twin, lie brothers in death
You may be able to get coffined gold
The trinkets, though small, that could steal your breath
Avarice is a sin that could make your heart cold 1x1 – 10'x10'x8' Smells like dust, old wood, Crude stone, murals of entwined snakes 1 wood coffin painted with battle scenes Anthropoid Sarcophagus – gold amulet, poison gas trap
These two small rooms are identical in size and content. They both contain a wooden coffin, inside of which is a clay Anthropoid Sarcophagus statue of a snake-man warrior. The statues are hollow. Each contains a gold amulet, a dried snake skeleton, and a cloud of damaging poison gas (can't dmg enough to actually kill, but may leave a PC at death's door).
3: SCHOLAR TOMB
A thin scholar awaits the aeons in his macabre chrysalis
His theorems are moot, his conclusions the same
All that has shape will end up like this
History repeats, you've only yourself to blame
2x1 – 20'x10'x8' Smells like dust, rotted fabric Crude stone, paintings of leaping snakes
1 wood coffin painted with abstract scene Anthropoid Sarcophagus – gold amulet, poison gas trap
Similar to 2: GUARD TOMBS, but inside the coffin is a clay statue of a thin and sly-looking snake-man scholar. Its scrolls have crumbled to dust. The statue contains the same amulet,
snake skeleton, and poison as the others.
4. SORCERER'S TOMB
An ophidian priest in robes of old
A silver secret he doth grip
Pry the ring from his frozen hold
Enjoy while the venom yet doth drip
2x1 – 20'x10'x8' Smells like dust, rotted fabric Crude stone, paintings of leaping snakes
1 wood coffin painted with dark scenes Anthropoid Sarcophagus – silver ring, poison gas trap
Similar to 2: GUARD TOMBS, but inside the coffin there is a clay statue of a robed snake-man sorcerer wearing a silver ring. If the PCs didn’t already learn that the other statues
were hollow, they’ll almost certainly try to pry the ring off, breaking the statue open and revealing the poison gas and amulet.
The ring is a magical, but also cursed. If worn on a finger or toe, a digit grows, the fingernail becomes long, bifurcated, and pointed like twin fangs. It can be used like a poison dagger (hit living targets must Save vs. Poison or take dmg), but each morning, the wearer must Save vs. Poison or take some damage. If they take max damage ring, their digit scurries off, turned into a snake.
5. DOOR/HAMMER TRAP
The Door to the next chamber is barred,
The way is to your fate is thru
Your Lofty ambitions are hard
But, lest you are humble, they will leave you black and blue Stone door, opens inwards, barred – trap
A large door, barred with a lengthy piece of stone hung on two iron pegs set into either side of the doorframe. Requires at least three PCs to lift (or, if the party is smaller, all PCs).
When the bar is lifted, the iron pegs begin to rise. When the bar is fully removed a trap is activated. A huge stone hammer swings down from the ceiling, aiming straight for the backs of the now-trapped PCs. It nearly fills the corridor, but there is a small gap on either side. The PCs can either try to dodge or use another PC as a springboard, giving a bonus to dodge but giving the shoved PC a penalty.
PCs hit by the hammer automatically die (or take serious damage). This trap can be identified by examining the door or pegs, by noticing that the iron pegs slowly rise as the bar is lifted, or by checking the ceiling. If the bar is quickly replaced, if the pegs are held down, or if the trap mechanism in the ceiling is damaged, the trap will not activate.
After firing, the hammer could be pushed back into the ceiling, then it could be reactivated by lifting up the iron pegs, either by hand or by a rope. Its first activation knocks open the stone doors leading to 6: FALSE KING’S TOMB.
6 FALSE KING’S TOMB
In the boreal direction lies a triple entombment
Would you disturb the slumber
O' the necrotic serpentine monument
Or would your rather be a austral plumber?
4x7 – 40'x70'x10' Smells like dust, bone, mildew Crude stone, crumbling paintings of landscapes Three wooden coffins along N wall, one larger than the others, painted with sleeping snake-men Coffins – 3 Skeletons
The burial chamber of a decoy snake-man king and his two brides. On the north wall are three wooden coffins painted with stylized sleeping snake-men. The coffin in the middle is larger and more ornate. Each coffin contains a monster-Skeleton (use claws) who will immediately attack if their rest is disturbed.
7: FALSE TEMPLE
The fane of a fallen people
A bloated deity sacred yet profane
Thanks to a steady trickle
You can see the true depth again
2x2 – 20'x20'x10' Smells strongly of mildew Trickle of water down wall Ugly stone idol – visible secret passage
This room contains a giant statue of a hideous snake-man god, resembling a cross between a toad, a heap of intestines, and a melted candle. Water leaking into the tomb has eroded
the floor, revealing a secret passage under the statue to LEVEL 2 of the dungeon.
8: SECRET PASSAGE
Damp and narrow, beneath the forgotten fane
The stone gives way out east to a wider hall
Follow the stream's inevitable path beyond the trickling rain
Past the giants against the wall
3x1 – 30'x10'x6' Smells strongly of mildew, slime, wet stone Neat stonework, with gaps caused by water Puddles of water on floor
This damp, narrow room lies directly below 7: FALSE TEMPLE. It is an alcove-like passage that widens to become 9: STATUE HALL.
9: STATUE HALL
Six looming, glaring statues, armor clad
Line the hall, on the northern side
To some assuring giants, to others bad
Twisted creation, you cannot hideA long, wide corridor. Six huge statues of heavily armed and armored snake-men loom over the hall, glaring at the party. One of the statues is twisted slightly out of alignment with the wall. It can be pivoted to reveal passage to 10: SECRET GUARDROOM.
10: SECRET GUARDROOM
Behind the statue, a dingy cul-de-sac
Where ancient assassins did abide
There are yet some arms near the back
And a scowling snake in the detritus doth hide3x2 – 30'x10'x10' At the end of a 30'x10' hallway Smells of rotting rags, rotting wood
2x hooked polearms, silver icon
This room was once a secret guardroom for temple assassins. Now it is empty and dark. The furniture has rotted to fragments. On the wall are two hooked polearms that are still usable,
along with a silver icon of a scowling snake-man king worth 5gp.
11: TOMB ATRIUM MUMMY POOL
An eight-sided hall where the stream ends and statues angrily stare
Bearing the tools of the field, of fighting, and of the rack
A Sickly sweet-smelling pool amidst the doors hides opaque fare
Where the handywork of the ancients may yet come back
The hallway opens into a large octagonal chamber, also ringed with swol, glaring snake-man statues. Some carry weapons, others carry implements of torture or agriculture.12, 13, 14, & 16: The doors to rooms 12–16 are made of heavy stone, but can be levered without much difficulty.
15 has an unlocked wooden door.
17 is just and archway
18 has a stone door, but it is much more ornately carved than the others.
There was once a pit in the center of the room, but water trickling from the surface (through rooms 7 and 9) has filled it to the brim with dark, oily water that smells like licorice. The pool is 10' deep. Inside the pool are 2 Mummy Claws (claw and strangle attacks). These rotting hands will jump out to attack anyone who comes within 5' of the pit.
Drinking the water or rubbing it into open wounds inflicts Mummy Rot, but touching it does not. If the party kills or disables both mummy claws and attempt to dredge or search the pool, it contains:
- a very angry and completely insane lizardman mummy’s head
- a heavy gold chain worth 35gp
- a magic silver ring. The silver ring is a ring of eyesight. While wearing it, one of the user's eyes pops out and becomes hard as glass. The eye still sees normally.
- a magic utility item of the GMs choice, or a randomly rolled magic item, or 2d10gp in jewelry
12: TOMB OF XISOR THE GREEN
A tang of ozone and the scent of interred deadWait behind stone where the green king would be laid
Spy well and flash of insight may yet come to your head Charon for once will make sure that you've paidDoor made of heavy stone, but can be levered without much difficulty. The passage into this tomb contains a pressure plate that triggers a lightning bolt spell, aimed straight down the hallway. It deals 4d6 damage (Save for half) and only activates once. The electrum disc it fires from is worth a bit. It is embedded in the wall at the end of the tomb’s entrance, and may be visible in torchlight when the PCs open the door. Xisor’s stone coffin is empty.
13: TOMB OF SPARAMUNTAR
Some treasures are buried in the black
Laborious digging and ominous bangs may keep you out
Spades aren't the only tool that doth hack
A rapping maddening enough to make one shout Door made of heavy stone, but can be levered without much difficulty. The passage to this tomb has collapsed. The blocks of the ceiling caved in. The PCs will hear Sparamuntar, a swoll snake-man Skeleton (HD 3, MORALE 12, ATK 1d8 [Greataxe]), lurching and thumping on the other side of the blocked passage, sensing the life of the PCs. He is not very subtle, and will try and strike the moment he can see the head of a living creature. His funeral trinkets are worth a bit of money.
14: TOMB OF FRANBINZAR
This chamber lacks the sophistication of earlier eras long-gone
They tried to make the final king rest, but something went wrong
He waits, bedecked as a king should be, in his box, but there is no lid upon
When they sing your epic, they'll probably leave the slime out of the songDoor made of heavy stone, but can be levered without much difficulty. This room is more primitive than the others. It contains one stone coffin with the badly mummified remains of Franbinzar, last ruler of the fortress. The mummification did not go
well. He counts as a Black Pudding and will lurch to attack anyone who opens the coffin. His grave goods are clay copies, but he has 2gp worth of rings embedded in him. If killed, he will regenerate in 1d20 hours unless burned. If he is free, add him to the Wandering Monster Table (p.10), replacing one of the Omen results.
Appearance: 200lbs of black slime, thick as treacle
Wants: food, cornered food, fears fire
Armour: leather
Hit Dice: 5
Move: ¼ normal
Morale: 12
Damage: 1d6. If prolonged contact (cornered or absorbed), 3d6 Takes no damage from bludgeoning weapons.
The black pudding can target any number of PCs adjacent to it each round, making a normal attack roll for each. If it corners a PC, it begins to absorb them, dealing 3d6 damage
per round. Metal or wooden weapons striking it have a 10% chance to dissolve.
15: PRIEST ROOM
Clergical types did once live amongst the dead
A tongue long forgotten contains mummified rants
A demon of desire might be found if here you did bed
Wisdom in the raving you could glance and keep it in your pantsHas an unlocked wooden door. This room was used by the priests of the upper tomb. It contains three beds, some rotten shelves, and a silver-and-emerald snake-god icon worth 20gp. The scrolls scattered around the room record the ravings of trapped mummies in a forgotten language. One of them contains the true name (Baltoplat) of the succubus in 32: SUMMONING ROOM.
16: UNFINISHED TOMB
Some things are not finished, no
And desire no deeper thought
Some doggerel is hollow
But welcome respite amidst the rotDoor made of heavy stone, but can be levered without much difficulty. This room is empty, except for some discarded carving tools rusting on the floor. It might make a nice bolthole in an emergency, or a place to stash supplies.
17: CLAY WARRIORS ROOM
Six snakes dutifully arrayed in three ranks
They guard the way, a ready army of terracotta
But rust has been their only thanks
Impotent to stop your impudent slaughterA group of eighteen clay statues of life-sized snake-men warriors, in three rows of six. Their swords are rusted to uselessness. Each statue is hollow, but contains nothing. The statue in the far south corner of the room sits on the trap door 39: SECRET PASSAGE to 38: BASILISK HALL.
18: STAIRS
The portal bears snakes from the heavens falling
Beyond, stairs go down into Stygian dark
What dooms await at the end of your crawling?
Each step another doomed tally markThis hallway is protected by a very ornate stone door, carved with images of snakes raining from the sky. Stairs descend downwards into darkness. A faint cold wind blows up the stairs. The third stair from the top is slightly loose and has left very faint scratches on the walls. If any weight is put on it, the stairs tip to become a smooth stone ramp. Spikes deploy from the floor at the bottom of the ramp when the trap is activated. The trap resets in about 30 seconds.
19: STONE COBRA GUARDIAN ARENA
The spoils of war are gathered here
Shields of tribes tread under the snake kings' feet
Lurking in the middle is something you should fear
A cobra of stone that will end those not fleetThis is a large, arena-like room, the walls and much of the floor completely covered in shields from man-tribes conquered by the snake-men. Some of the shields are rotted through, but at least five are still in usable condition. If laboriously scraped and disassembled, fragments of silver wire and gold leaf in the shields are worth a pittance. In the very center of the room stands a buff-ass humanoid, dressed as a knight, but with a stone head carved in the visage of a cobra. It attacks on sight. It cannot fit up the stairs. It has a sword, the ability to telekinetically summon shields, and multiple attacks. Badass.
Stats: As an ogre in heavy armor
Appearance: a stone cobra-headed knight clad in carved armour. It wields a huge dented sword in one hand. Its other hand is empty when combat begins.
Wants: to protect the rest of the Tomb of the Serpent Kings and kill any interlopers
Armor: as plate
Hit Dice: 6
Move: normal
Morale: 12
Damage: see Attacks below
The Stone Cobra Guardian cannot fit up the 18: STAIRS.
Attacks: Each round, the Stone Cobra Guardian can perform one of three attack patterns:
- Shield Draw. The Guardian calls to a shield attached to the wall of the arena. The shield deals d6 damage (Save to Dodge negates) to any creatures between it and the Guardian. The Guardian holds the shield in its empty hand, granting it +1 Defense. The shield can be sundered as normal (reducing incoming damage by 1d12 and destroying the shield).
- Leap and Slam. The Guardian leaps into the air and slams down 5'–20' away from its starting position. It will not land directly on creatures, but any adjacent creatures take 1d4 damage. Save negates. Creatures that take damage are knocked prone.
- Twin Slash. The Guardian swipes at two targets with its sword. The targets must be on the same facing (front, left side, right side, or rear) and must be adjacent to the Guardian. The Guardian rolls a normal attack against both targets separately, dealing 1d8+Strength bonus damage on a hit.
20: CHASM AND PATH
A narrow path abuts the breezy darkness
The way wide enough to march two abreast
The path, slippery with guano, is best tread with wariness
What the chasm east holds, your eyes can't guessA narrow path along a bottomless chasm. To the north, the path dead-ends (the map sucks here). To the south, the path leads to the rest of the tomb. The path is 10' wide and slightly slippery; running or leaping will require a fairly easy Save. The chasm is either too big to worry over or 60' wide if the GM expanded this module, and the opposite side isn’t visible unless the PCs use flaming arrows or a very powerful light source. If the PCs anger the fungus goblins, this path will be their preferred ambush spot. The goblins are sticky and disregard the slippery stone floor.
21: DUNGEON BARNACLES
The road here bears strange fruit
The bane of tunnels and tombs, dungeon barnacles
Do they bar the way to worthy loot
Wilt thou fall prey to cloying mollusk manacles?The path here is filled with dungeon barnacles. Prolly up the wall and over the cliff too, so PCs can’t climb around, unless the GM has something made for that direction; this is a dead end. These stone-covered mollusks devour any warm-blooded creatures that pass near them, reaching out with sticky, paralyzing tentacles. Characters who have spent time in tombs, caves, or tunnels will recognize and know to avoid these creatures. They are less like enemies and more like terrain. 5 hours with a hammer could clear a path, but there’s a very high risk of being paralyzed and devoured. Like I said, the GM prolly hasn’t prepared anything this way and can tell the players so. Telling the players is always legal.
There are four main zones to LEVEL 3.
Outer Halls (22–26) Dressed stone, slightly damp, mold and slime on the lower walls. The air is cold, especially close to the chasm. Some dry and dusty areas. Everything has carved or painted snakes on it.
Sacrifice Pit (27–30) Dressed stone with ancient crumbling mosaics. The air is warm and foul, and only gets worse as you approach 30: SACRIFICE PIT.
Xiximanter’s Lair (43–46) Finely cut stone, covered in dust and cobwebs. Purple lights and bubbling alchemical flasks. The glimmer of glass, and the clatter of bones.
Goblin Warren (47–52) Dug through collapsed tunnels and rooms, or through natural caves. Filthy. The floor is thick with guano, beetles, and rot. It is difficult for the PCs to tell if the chittering is beetles or goblins.
Goblin Stats: as goblins, but sticky
Appearance: Pale, stunted creatures with huge oval heads full of teeth and two tiny red eyes way too close together. Texture like baked potato mixed with white glue. They wear cutlery and desire food.
Wants: a king, food, shiny objects, more food
Armor: none
Hit Dice: 0 (1 HP)
Move: normal, climb at normal speed
Morale: 7
Damage: 1d6, via sword or teeth or claws or cutlery
The goblins aren’t hostile at first, and will try to crown someone as the Goblin King. They will follow their King loyally until the next full moon, and then swarm, drag the King to an
altar on a hill, and gut them. They speak a chattering and limited goblin dialect, and are easily bribed. They will warn the party about the Basilisk, but do not know about 39: SECRET
PASSAGE or anything about the upper levels of the dungeon. The Stone Cobra Guardian kept them out. The goblins use 41: STAIRCASE TO SURFACE to sneak to the surface at night.
If the party kills any of them or act in a hostile way, they flee, and begin preparing the first of many ambushes. They are cunning and patient. They can (slowly) climb the walls and ambush the party from above. They’ll use buckets of water to extinguish torches, ropes to entangle, and the dungeon’s existing traps to maim and isolate the party. They will also harass their camp at night, bite the legs off their horses, and steal shiny objects. Unless their brood at 48: GOBLIN
SPAWNING PIT are burned, the number of goblins in the dungeon will always be “too many goblins.” The fungus goblins are escaped experiments. While Xiximanter doesn’t mind having them returned, they aren’t much use to him.
22: STONE DOOR
You've got a sense of deja vu
A door with a bar in the way
When you dealt with this last time, what did you do?
With the bats at your back, make the right play
Recessed 5' into the wall and held closed by a heavy stone bar. The door is barred on the side facing the chasm. It contains the same type of hammer trap as 5: DOOR/HAMMER TRAP, but the hammer swings chasmward; any hit PCs must survive the damage and then save again or be flung into the chasm.
23: CEREMONIAL ROOM
A ponderous room, filled with low, contemplative benches
Arrases on the walls, a dead fountain gurgles nevermore
They came and dragged what was here back to their trenches
Track the little ones down to its new store
Smells of dried mushrooms and dust, Benches, wall hangings, dry fountain, fine carvings
Used by the snake-man priests to prepare and meditate. Contains several low benches, ancient wall hangings, and a dry fountain. Goblins pried a gold statue from the fountain and hid it in area 49: GOBLIN THRONE ROOM. A few scraps of gold leaf worth nothing and a primitive tool marks are all that remain.
24: HALLWAY
Long is the slide of aggression
That will consume those with this delving obsession
1x4 – 10'x40'x10' Smells faintly of acid Wet slapping noises. Slopes gently downward S Hallway – 1 Skeleton Jelly
A long, narrow hallway slopes downwards to the south. Contains 1
Skeleton Jelly that will move towards
noise.
Stats: as a weak skeleton that is completely invulnerable
Appearance: A skeleton covered in orange ooze. Immortal and nearly indestructible, but vulnerable to stoning-gaze. Any attack that would normally deal 4 or more damage just knock them back 5'.
Wants: to squish heads and make more skeleton jellies
Armor: as leather
Hit Dice: 2, but infinite HP. You cannot reduce their HP by damage, magic, fire, acid, prayer, cruel insults, or the touch of the grim reaper himself. They are too dumb to live and too stupid to die.
Move: ½ standard, but up walls too, if they get stuck
Morale: 12
Damage: 1d4, usually by grappling your head.
25: PIT TRAP
When they hunger as we all do
They feel it deep down in the pits of their stomachs
This space has room for a soul or two
The scales slough off the skeleton in the rocks
2x2 – 20'x20'x10' Cold air, chipped tiles on floor, one missing. Outer 1' of room's edge is safe Pit – mundane skeletons, ring [small value]
This room has a false floor made of thin stone tiles. A foot-wide ring around the walls is safe, but all other tiles are held up by sticks and thin metal bars. Any PC stepping into the center of the room must Save to Dodge or take dmg from the fall, and Save again or take further dmg from the spikes at the bottom. The false tiles are easy to spot: one is even missing. The pit contains several mundane human skeletons and a gold ring. The goblins use the pit to catch food, replacing the lost tiles every day.
26: HALLWAY
At a small passage's end, a locked door
You'll find it provides little barrier any more 1x2 – 10'x20'x10' Locked stone door, Lock is corroded into rust
A small passage branching off from the main hallway, leading to a locked door. The lock is incredibly rusted with age and the door opens easily enough.
27: SLAVE ROOM
The were kept here without freedom
Their captors hissed stern warning
Held in place by the serpent kingdom
Souls shackled from wandering
2x4 – 20'x40'x10' Warm, foul air. Constant hiss in SE Manacle trap on floor, Rusted manacles along walls, Bloodstains and chipped stone The air here is foul and warm, and there is a distinct hissing sound coming from the southwest door. This room was once used to keep slaves, and a pair of iron manacles still lie on the floor. The manacles are enchanted to lock around the legs of anyone who approaches within 1', but the rusted metal is weak and can be pried free with an easy Strength test
28: DOMED HALL
In this dome the four winds blow
To the south it would blow for fortune
If it were not stoppered so
Find the key and bring it back hereinAn elaborately carved domed hall with a locked iron door in the south wall. The key to the door is around the not-here-Basilisk’s neck. The door isn’t magical, but it would take a team of people hours or days to pry it open or crack its hinges. There is a broken stone door to the west. To the north are the flickering orange light of 30: THE SACRIFICE PIT and the hiss of the eternal flame.
29: TREASURE ROOM
This is the apex of your delves
be sure to get a little booty
whatever you can carry on your selves
there's no catch, probably
Hard to write a rhyme for a mystery room; you’d better come up with your own rap. This room contains... whatever it is you want to put in the bottom of your dungeon: a boss fight, a rare item, piles of gold, plot hooks, stairs to more dungeon levels.
30: SACRIFICE PIT
The flame has burned for millenia
dare you be one among countless
to try and grab treasure, stout fella?
I hope you thought of a way out of this.
4x3 – 40'x30'x20' Foul air, flickering flame, splutter of gas, Central is 20'x20' pit with a flame and bad air at the bottom – gems
An eternal flame burns in the center of a carved, 15' deep pit with sloped sides. The flame is fueled by natural gases, piped from a deep and ancient mine. There is a 2' wide walkway around the pit. Carbonized bones coat the bottom. While the air here is foul, it isn’t dangerous to anything outside the pit. Creatures inside the pit must Save each round or take temp stamina damage. Unconscious PCs slide down to the flame and take some fire damage each round.
There are runny streaks of gold around the flame, and a few carbon-coated gemstones glitter in the orange light. Not all the sacrifices were poor.
31: GUARDED HALL Statues you have seen before
Sad vigils at the bottom of the slope, practically maddening
In the corners there are a couple more
Well rended, super realistic, very enchanting
Two incredibly life-like snake-man statues stand in the bottom corners of this elaborately carved hall. The statues are much finer than any other carving in the tomb. They are, in fact, petrified snake-men, placed here as punishment. If de-petrified, they will fly into a murderous rage for 10 minutes, then slowly give in to despair. The statues are worth a fair bit each if sold in a major city, or 10x more to a wizard who recognizes their nature.
The author didn't bother to stat them out, so look in your monster manual, I guess.
32: SUMMONING ROOM Brick-a-brack, junk, things misplaced and forgotten
They wait among the refuse, a pitiable sight
They wish for you to cross the threshold besotten
A nameless one looking for a key to take flight
A long, narrow room with a huge pile of junk (broken shields, bent swords, candlesticks, branches) piled at the entrance. Clearing the pile takes thirty minutes, and makes a terrific racket. This room was once a summoning chamber. It contains a bound Succubus summoned by the snake-men to answer questions about the lower hells.
It appears as a young botanist in an ankle shackle, of the same race as the first PC it sees, and of an amenable gender to their preferences. It will claim to have been captured by the goblins. The shackle around its ankle is an illusion. All it needs is for someone to step across the (dust-covered and mostly obscured) circle binding it.
The room also contains a small altar, 2 gold bowls, a magic dagger, and a wavy stone snake, the bottom of which is broken off, that detects as magical, as it is used to open the door to 46: THRONE ROOM. The succubus isn’t hostile to the PCs, but will try to isolate and kiss one of them (Save vs Death, 1d6 permanent HP and Con damage if survived, age 1d10 years. +10 to Save if she likes you) so it can refuel and fly away.
Its true name (Baltoplat) is written on a scroll in 15: PRIEST ROOM. The goblins fear it. Xiximanter knows its true nature, and assumes the party knows it as well. It’s immune to petrification and very, very good at dodging. It will immediately flee from any conflict. If made to bargain, the demon can detect poison, reveal ancient secrets, or agree to kill any one mortal the PCs can name. It's patient and cunning, but true to its oaths.
Armour: as Plate+Shield
Hit Dice: 8
Move: Normal, can teleport 10' once per round
Will flee combat (doesn’t want to risk it) and not return.
33: SHRINE ALCOVESnakes, they worship strange gods
They prey for arms to be like men
Men, in turn wish for gold and rods
In the end, one will turn to sorrow again
An alcove containing a shrine to one of the many cobra-headed gods of the snake-men. The statue has two holes in the base large enough to fit a human arm. The statue can’t be lifted, but it rattles and it can be turned easily. Almost any effort, inspection, or action will turn it slightly. Turning it counter-clockwise 90° will release poison gas (dmg, no save, in a 30' cloud). Turning it clockwise 90° will cause a lot of gold (2d100+10 coins) to spill out, rolling onto the floor. Some pieces will roll into 35: BLADE TRAP HALLWAY.
34: PRIEST REST AREAI knew a hot snake lady once
What I took for chesticles seemed so magical
She cut me to like a pig for being a dunce
And revealed eggs; her shawl was just a vessel
Used by the snake-men priests to rest and meditate. The door rotted away centuries ago. It contains five blood-stained silk pillows, rotten and shredded, and three stone eggs. The eggs are magical. If coated in fresh mammalian blood, the eggs grow comfortably warm to the touch, and can be used as hot water bottles. A single coating keeps an egg warm for 8 hours. They can be wiped clean after the first application.
35: BLADE TRAP HALLWAY
In the milksnake’s maw we are
The ceiling is its ridged roof and throat
Think about how you move and how far
For this space is toothy and as a perilous moat
This hallway is trapped. The ceiling is ridged like the gullet of a snake: bands of tiles wind across two 10' squares. Stepping on any of the raised tiles will activate four swinging blades that slice down from the ceiling. PCs must Save to Dodge or take dmg. Any movement through the two 10' squares requires another Save to Dodge for three rounds after the trap activates. PCs who stand still don’t take any damage. If a PC fails their Save, they take some damage and don’t move that round. On the fourth round, the entire trap comes crashing down in a tangle of stone, blades, and springs, dealing double damage to anyone in the two 10' squares.
36: VESTIBULE
Alas, gone is the import of the arras
It did not stand the test of time
You can’t see them anymore, basking ass
Do the geometric patterns have any rhythm or rhyme?
Partially rotted wall hangings lie on the floor, which is carved into geometric stonework patterns. Anyone pressed against the west wall cannot be seen by the Basilisk. A hallway slopes down to 37: PIT TRAP.
37: PIT TRAPOh drat, not this again
This passage is the place is the pits for escaping slaves
Some guys will never win
Everybody remember our free days
A pit trap identical to 25: PIT TRAP. The snake-men really didn’t want their sacrifices escaping into the rest of the tomb. This pit contains nothing of value.
38: BASILISK HALLFreeze! Observe the stony, clinking menagerie
Amidst the pillars and snakes that yet stand, guano-patinated and ominous
Are broken statue bits of bats spiders, and goblins, like shards of porphyry
The tethered sculptor must by now be quite ravenous
A huge stone chamber filled with broken pillars (eight total, in two rows along each side of the hall). The ceiling is lost in darkness. Bats roost up there. The floor is littered with broken statue pieces, including incredibly lifelike carved stone bats, spiders, and goblins. The Basilisk lurks in the darkness. A thick iron chain links it to the ceiling. It cannot leave the hall. The giant door at the end of the Basilisk Hall to 46 is made of intertwined stone snakes, and one is missing.
Stats: as a wyrm or dinosaur
Appearance: a giant, gray, eight-legged lizard with a flat
crocodile head full of teeth. It has a visor made of brass
bolted to its head, and a collar around its neck, just in
front of the first set of legs.
Wants: food, warmth, to be free of the chain.
Armor: as plate
Hit Dice: 7
Move: 1.5 × normal
Morale: 8
Damage: see Attacks, right
The basilisk is chained to the ceiling. It can move around freely within the room but can’t leave it. There are 8 mostly broken pillars in the hall: they provide cover and can slow the basilisk down if its chain gets wrapped around them. The basilisk can only see straight ahead but it can smell very, very well. When the PCs first enter the hall it will wait, sniffing the air, and try to circle in the dark to get close to them. When it spots an isolated target it will stare at them for one round, and then charge.
39: SECRET PASSAGEAren't you a lucky lot
Time has revealed the door you sought
A secret passage leading from the statue room on LEVEL 2 to the Basilisk Hall. The door on the hall side would have been unnoticeable as originally built, but time has worn the mosaics away, revealing the door’s outline.
40: SECRET PASSAGENow this one is a little trickier
And the air is a bit more stinkier
This passage is hidden behind another secret door, but this one is intact and difficult to find. It’s on the exact opposite side of the Basilisk Hall from 39: SECRET PASSAGE, and in the same style, so clever players will locate it quickly. Though the walls are smooth and well-made, the floor is thick with goblin detritus and the air stinks.
41: STAIRCASE TO THE SURFACEDirt encrusted though it may be
If you have the gumption to squeak out
Freedom and fresh air you may see
Others emerge on moonless nights to rampage about
A dirt-encrusted staircase to the surface. It opens under the roots of tree. Human-sized creatures can crawl through, but a larger passage requires axes and time. The goblins use this route to raid the surface on moonless nights.
42: CYLINDER DOORTake a tumble with a friend
Widershins may not come back again
A rotating cylinder of stone with a carved chunk big enough for two people (imagine a dented barrel). Rotates in both directions if pushed. Turn it counter-clockwise 90° to activate a stabbing spear trap (1d6 damage/person/round until rotated to safety). Turn it clockwise 90° to reveal a stone idol with two golden bowls. Turn 180° to reach 47: GOBLIN WARRENS.
43: XIXIMANTER’S ENTRANCE HALLNot all the snake men know how to stay dead
And not all snakes are not adorned where they should be
But I'm being rude; I'll let him talk instead
I don't want to anger him; if you do, try to flee
A finely carved stone hall; ribbed like the inside of a creature’s gullet and lit by magic purple lights set into the walls. Xiximanter (pg. 18) is an ancient snake-man wizard, twisted but immortal. He looks like a dried human corpse (with fangs) fused to a snake tail at the waist. He wears tattered robes, and his eyes are red pinpricks. He is not unreasonable, and will greet the party with “Hello, bipeds,” as they enter his lair.
Xiximanter desires living creatures—preferably intelligent, ideally
wizards. He distills them to make his potions. While utterly amoral, he is neither rude nor murderous. He firmly believes that he is close to a breakthrough. He also believes that the snake-man empire still sits above him, that the tomb is full of priests, and that the party must be barbarian visitors on a tour. If shown evidence to the contrary, he will become enraged.
PCs will not be allowed past the Entrance Hall unless they agree to be Xiximanter’s apprentices (or victims). His most powerful potions take decades to brew. He will trade potions for living creatures, spells, rare ingredients, and apprentices. He will not accept coins or treasure. If the party is openly carrying looted items from the tomb, he will become suspicious and try to poison, capture, or manipulate them.
He is capable of attacking with fangs or claws, but he knows magic. When Xiximanter becomes enraged, his flare of magical power and ancient madness require observers to Save vs Fear or flee. Xiximanter casts as a horrendously powerful wizard. He has a 1-in-6 chance of ignoring any spell that targets him. He is immune to all mind-affecting spells. He can see through illusions, though he will be amused to pretend otherwise. If he ignores a spell, he also has a 50% chance of reflecting it back at its caster.
Typical Spells: wall of fire, animate dead, ray of enfeeblement, magic missile × 3, darkness, fog, finger of death × 2, sleep × 2. Add as many other horrific and unique spells as your system allows.
44: INGREDIENT STORAGE ROOMPotent potables ported and stored
Pitiable prisoners await their day of release
Perhaps a trade and passage can be made if of good accord
Possibly you will be next in the pots and your lives will cease
Barrels of ancient herbs and powders sit next to kegs of acid and stale water. One flask contains powdered saffron (200gp worth), while a tiny bottle contains 1d10 seeds of a
now-extinct plant (worth 30gp each to a collector or ambitious farmer). Xiximanter will not trade these unless he can get even more rare or valuable ingredients from the party. Nothing they find in the tomb is likely to pique his interest. This is also where Xiximanter keeps his victims. Six stone oubliettes with brass lids, like wine vats sunk into the ground, are scattered around the room. The pits currently contain 1d10 miserable Fungus Goblins (1 HP, MORALE 7, ATK 1d6 [Sword or Teeth]) crammed into the same pit. There is a secret passage here, behind a stack of empty crates, leading to a passage ends in the back of a rotted wall hanging. It leads to 46: THRONE ROOM. The passage is thick with dust. If the PCs use it, he will be surprised, and possibly enraged unless they think of a plausible excuse.
45: POTION BREWING ROOMNothing ventured nothing gained
Will you be a brave imbiber?
The drinks here within have dweomers contained
Did you really get the best of that viper?
Alchemical flasks, dusty instruments, and gleaming shelves full of beautiful flasks line the walls. Aside from an assortment of random potions (10+1d10 potions), his shelves always include:
- 2 potions of spell mutation
- 1 potion of moderate immortality (extra 20+1d100 years of natural life)
- 1 potion of undetectable poison (tastes like a random potion but kills, no Save, in 1 minute)
- 2 healing potions
46: THRONE ROOM
Read only if coming through the locked door:
This broken caduceus (☤; / kΙΛdjuΛΚΙs)if there is a detail you're missing, it's not gonna easily let you pass
A twisted riddle requires you look past the specious
Hey did you tap dat ass?
The giant door at the end of the Basilisk Hall is made of intertwined stone snakes. One snake is missing. It can be found in 32: SUMMONING ROOM. If replaced, the door will slither open, revealing a room made of red stone, gold, and mirrors. The eight palm-sized mirrors on wooden stands are worth 10gp each if sold in a major city. The throne is worth 250gp, but requires at least three people to lift. Anyone sitting in it must Save vs Mind Control or desire lordship and conquest.
Xiximanter has a secret passage from the throne room to his lair, but he hasn’t used it in centuries. The throne room passage to 44 is hidden behind a rotted wall hanging. The passage
is thick with dust. If the PCs use it, he will be surprised, and possibly enraged unless they think of a plausible excuse.
47: GOBLIN WARREN
O'er the ages, all falls to rotDug out by those made of fungal stuff
It's low in here, crouch to get through this spot
And dig through the muck it you are tough
This room is part of the Goblin Warren. It is a low cave (5' high). It’s clear that the rooms here collapsed centuries ago and were hollowed out by the goblins. They use this room to store feathers, rags, and bowls of grease. A thorough search of the muck and detritus on the floor coats a PC to the neck in guano and beetle shells and reveals 2d6 silver knives (treasure) and a dented brass bracelet (worthless).
48: GOBLIN SPAWNING PITSacks of crud and jugs of spit
Fungal babes find their wet genesis here
A failed experiment lacking wit
They will never stop coming is what we fear
The passage to this low and sunken room is only 2' high. It contains the goblin spawning pit: a hideous mash of fungus, dead animals, and bloated sacks of fluid. PCs must Save vs Nausea or flee in disgust. The pit reincarnates the souls of dead fungus goblins and is one of Xiximanter’s failed experiments in immortality. There is no treasure here, but unless this room is burned, the number of goblins in the
dungeon will always be “too many goblins.”
49: GOBLIN THRONE ROOMSee how they cavort cantankerously for their king
He is but a effigy of spineless shit and depravity
If he leaves them, a new idol’s praises they will sing
Do you think you got political backbone and gravity?
A goblin throne room. Most of the time, this room contains
1d6x1d6 Fungus Goblins eating bats, fighting, or worshiping
their current king. If they haven’t recently found a living
creature to crown, they’ll make an idol out of sticks and mud, so let’s say that is here too.
The goblin crown is made of bent cutlery and sticks. They
used to have a real crown but they lost it. The golden idol
from 23: CEREMONIAL ROOM is being used as a back-scratcher. It is worth quite a bit.
50: GOBLIN FARMS
What foolish farmers the goblins beYet not all their veggies are to be disregarded
Dig them up and you may see
How to make stone soup—serendipity!
The goblins plant anything to see if it grows. Sickly plants
rot in darkness, accompanied by buried fingers, weapons,
mushrooms, and gold. Dredging this room reveals 2d10gp, a
ruby, and the Crown of the Serpent Kings. The
crown is worth a lot for the materials and gems alone: it is
made of eight tiny entwined serpents of gold and platinum,
with emerald eyes and diamond teeth. The crown is also
magical. Anyone wearing it who is not a snake-man must
Save vs Fear. If they fail, they spend the next hour gibbering
and hooting in terror. If three consecutive hours are spent in
this state, the effects are permanent. The crown can be
removed by another person. If they Save, there is no effect.
Seasoned poisoners or wizards might recognize the blue
mushrooms here as dungeon cucumbers, capable of curing
petrification if sliced and rubbed on the skin. The person will
recover in 1d6 days.
51: GOBLIN RUMPUS ROOMSleeping goblin multitudes
At night they're groggy
Ever growing broods
In the day they’re many
This room serves no particular purpose to the goblins, but at
any given time
- during the night 1d6! (exploding on a 6) fungus goblins will be present
- during the day 3d6!+10 (exploding on
any 6s) will be around.
The goblins will be asleep in
either case, but will wake up two rounds after the PCs make
significant noise in any adjacent room. They are almost
invisible in the debris.
52: GOBLIN GUARD ROOMHere they keep the arms
What a pitiful expression of martial might
Creep soft to avoid shouting alarms
The custodian may yet take flight
A mostly-collapsed room used by the goblins to store weapons. It contains 2 pitchforks, a pile of silver cutlery (treasure) and dozens of sharpened sticks. One goblin is on sentry duty.
He wields a large broom, which he uses to push away the skeleton jellies. If the players enter from 28: DOMED HALL by opening a half-broken stone door, he pushes them back with the broom while protesting. If they enter from 51: GOBLIN
RUMPUS ROOM, he runs away screaming.
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Share good posts with good goblins.
Claytonian at the gmails.
