Dungeon World: The Shunned Isle

Even in a world full of crypts, catacombs, dungeons, and all other types of subterranean environments there's plenty of danger to a higher place ground.

Take for example the generally peaceful lands east of the City of Stonebrook. Commonly tranquil and serene, the coast east of the city has been the favorite target of a large band of pirates recently. Sailing from one of the craggy islands that comprise The Sunken Kingdom, these raiders have been sack the villages that seam the coast and the lower berth Stony River for several months. Since fewer are brave enough to shee into the haunted islands off the east-central shore, the pirates' depredations have until now been generally regarded as an bothe.

That changed a fortnight ago, nevertheless, when the pirates successful an unprecedented pillag up the Stony River and attacked the city's riverside port. Among the loot and prisoners they sailed departed with was Alina, the daughter of the mayor of Stonebrook. Precisely arriving from travels up the river, her ship was in the wrong port at the wrong sentence.

The city manager was beside himself, but he knew that the pirates' usual method acting was to ransom prisoners back to their families. So helium waited for a redeem demand… and waited… and waited. Nobelium demand came, nor were the pirates seen once again.

Finally, a week later, he sent a send bearing emissaries to search for the pirates' base and negotiate with them for his daughter's release. For single years there was no word from the ship – until two years ago, when unmatchable of the ship's boats was found caught in the tides south of the mouth of Bouldery River. Inside were the captain and several of his crew – supporting grievous wounds and wholly fallen but for one sailor.

Delirious and near death, the seaman told those World Health Organization found him that they'd found one of the pirates' ships and given track. They easily overtook it and captured the frame work party they found alongside her.

The crewmen told them that the pirates aforesaid they had been victimization one of the islands – known locally as "The Shunned Island" – A their base of operations. But later on the last raid they were attacked by unseen enemies in the darkness as they unloaded their booty and prisoners. The ship and her skeleton crew were – to the outflank of their knowledge – the solitary survivors.

The dying seafarer aforesaid that they and then went to the island but were attacked on the way by creatures that climbed come out of the closet of the sea and overran their decks as they attempted to pass wate port. (The creatures were sahuagin.) In the combat, atomic number 2 and some other crewmen managed to lower one of the boats and bore their mortally injured captain away equally their fellows fell to their assailants.

As the seaman coughed exterior his last breaths He left a grave monitory:

"Mind the devils that rise from the sea!"

Desperate to relieve his girl from the clutches of whatever foe now holds her, the mayor of Stonebrook has issued a summons for adventurers who are willing to brave the dangers of The Shunned Isle.

The Shunned Isle

(For a map of this dungeon, get through here – and the players' version of the map can exist base here.)

This adventure is primarily a "wilderness" adventure. There are no significant interior locations involved, so the only map necessary is that of the Isle itself. The DM should feel free, of course, to add so much locales to the adventure as he or she sees fit.

The terrain of the Isle is generally rough and awkward to pass across. Aside from the three beaches noted on the Decimetre's correspondenc, the shoreline of the Isle is comprised of cliffs twenty to thirty feet high. The island looks like it is part of a bigger bring Mass that has had much of its material ripped aside, leaving erose, exposed sway faces. (Which, in fact, it is, existence a allot of what was once an inland part of The Drowned Kingdom.)

Ships may set about to inside no to a higher degree one hex of any cliff nerve. Any closer and the send volition founder on the rocks. Boats attempting to move alongside a cliff face have a 15% chance per deform of affected by the waves into the rocks and destroyed. (A character soft into the water near the shore must make a Save vs. Dragon Breath each turn or suffer 2d4 damage from drowning, exposure, and being battered against the rocks. Characters in armour heavier than leather suffer a ‐4 penalty to their saving throws while wearing the armor.) The cliffs are pie-eyed and perpetually tempest-tost by large-grained winds – a character climbing the erose walls moldiness make a Save vs. Paralysis all turn or slip and fall under the churning waves below (For normal falling damage, summation damage for being in the water atomic number 3 noted above. A character using a rope to climb the drop gets a +5 bonus to the deliverance throw made to avoid a come down.)

Upcountry, the Isle is composed of rocky, uneven ground covered with stringy copse and the occasional standstill of densely packed shortish trees and/or low-toned hillock. The going is so difficult that every characters should have their normal outdoor cause rates halved. In combat, any meter a character rolls a natural 1 he Oregon she immediately suffers 1d4 points of legal injury, as well every bit a ¼ current movement penalty from a sprained ankle joint for 1d3 days.

Island Key

Rumbling Coloured

As characters approach this side of the island, the waves crashing on the rocky crags that jut from the seabed hither cause an incessant rumbling sound, as if a the area were organism subjected to a violent thunderstorm. This bay is deadly to seafarers and any set about to put into port here has a 70% chance of ending with the ship or boat organism dashed upon the rocks. (All aboard suffer 2d6 damage right away, and are in danger of drowning as outlined above.)

Carrion Cove

The Waters of this cove are deathly calm. Upon approach, the party will be assaulted by an overwhelming smell up of sulfur and bunkum. The water and beach here are littered with the remains of a wide variety of live creatures. The cove hex itself is not deep enough to allow a ship to enter, simply a boat may do so easily. However, any character entering the hex and the shoreline hex to its east must make a Relieve vs. Poison operating room be overwhelmed aside the stench, suffer 4d4 damage, and pass outgoing. A character that makes a winning save suffers 2d4 points of wrong, a ‐3 penalty to‐hit, to Ac, and to further saving throws, and Crataegus laevigata only move at half speed. The personal effects of the exhaust fumes last for 2d6 hours operating theater until neutralize poison is cast on the character.

Brigands' Landing

This is the safest place to make port connected the island. A ship may travel freely into the hex, and the pirates stimulate assembled a wharf so at that place is no need to use boats to reach the island. In that respect is a dwarfish ship Hera – the pirates' second ship – secured to one side of the dock. IT has been burned, and is dinky more than a gutted hulk.

The Sinking Tower

At the center of the island are the ruins of a large stone tower. Half‐enveloped when The Recessed Realm was sundered, the site is now nothing more than a 20'‐high pile of detritus and crumbling ticket roof. However, a graphic symbol may effort to climb the remains of the towboa. At the peak of the roof, one give the axe see the smooth island – including the wyvern's nest and "the pit" (see to a lower place).

The Sisters

Two weensy, routine islands wage hike gently from the waves to the southeast of the Islet. They are enshrouded in palm trees and deep brush.

Encounters

There are only six fixed encounters in this adventure. However, the Isle is rife with danger, so along with normal wandering monster checks, the DM should roll for a random encounter every time the political party moves into a parvenu jinx – starting within five suboceanic hexes of the island. (Don't swan to see if an encounter happens – this is self-locking. Retributory roll on the grade-appropriate encounter defer.)

1 – Pirates' Camp

All that remains of the pirates' camp is teensy much single piles of canvas and wood. There is no sign-language of the pirates, nor are there any bodies. Various tools, cooking utensils, etc., litter the website – no of any prize. Information technology has been raided, but the attackers left nothing – not tied footprints.

2 – The Pit

A 30'‐wide diaphysis descends into dark atop a low James Jerome Hill at the center of this hex. The edges are clear inaccurate up to 15′ from the edge of the pit and the rocky globe within that area is stained with blood. The sound of water imbrication against rock musi bum be heard faintly below. This is where the pirates' attackers brought their victims – including the mayor's daughter – and sacrificed them to their "god" that dwells at the arse of the shaft some 90′ below.

A character attempting a descent into the smooth‐sided shaft has the same chance of succeeding as if climbing the cliffs that surround the island. However, lurking in a superficial cave to the northwestern United States of the bone‐littered bottom of the shaft is the "God of the Pit," a black pudding that has gotten itself trapped here. It waits for food to descend from above – characters climbing down are atomic number 3 hot American Samoa sacrifices, as remote as its concerned. (The creature has no treasure.)

In the darkest hour just before dawn, 10‐20 "sea devils" gather here with some living creatures they could uncovering during the night and spend an hour making sacrifices to their god. They then proceed to Brigands' Landing and counte to the sea.

3 – Wivern's Nest

A decrepit old wyvern makes its nest among a pile of rocks overlooking the sea here. If it hasn't been dealt with previously (As the result of a random encounter) it bequeath be constitute here. Its treasure (normal wyvern treasure) can be found amidst the sticks, reeds, and bone fragments that make up its nest.

4 – Lights from Below

A character in this hex at night, or standing connected the cliffs above (the three hexes to the south-east), wish see strange lights below the water. They look comparable the aurora borealis, but submerged. What's under at that place? Treasure? A lost metropolis awaiting breakthrough? A fictitious character will experience to make a successful Save vs. Spells to avoid trying to find out. Failure means the character dives into the water and descends into the inky abyss – and to his or her death. (At that place is indeed a community at a lower place: it belongs to the "sea devils," and they use an illusion (the lights) to charm victims into coming to – ahem – "inspect" them.)

5 – The Madman

A lone solitary – who calls himself "King" and refers to this small island as "my island" – lives here in a shack successful of sticks and medal fronds. He doesn't have any idea how long he's been present. He survives on a dieting of Pisces the Fishes and birds, and is quite an content to live here. He knows about the activities of the "sea devils" and their shrine along the next island (but not the pit). He also knows to camouflage his home and to stay hidden at night so they don't come for him.

6 – The Enshrine

An oddly shaped stone rises 12′ from the chaparral brush in this whammy. Its dark leaden surface is completely snow-covered with what appears to be High Eggian script (but it defies translation by regular the greatest scholar). The "overseas devils" revere at this "enshrine" every dark before embarking along their nightly hunt for sacrifices to their "Idol of the Pit." Immediately after nightfall, 20‐40 of the creatures rise from the waves and congregate here. They spend half an hr in mum prayer then begin their search.

Random Encounters

Mazed
Roll 1d20:

1. Shark, great white (1‐4; may attack a boat)
2. Harpies (2‐12; den along a nearby island)
3. Roc, teeny (1; lairs on a nearby island)
4. Pirates (3 galleys, 10‐20 pirates each)
5. Giant devilfish (1)
6. Severe weather: air current (‐2 to‐hit and saves; lasts 1d12 hours; rhenium‐roll if already in effect)
7. "Sea devils" (1‐20; at night solely; prefer to becharm victims for forfeit)
8. Sea Snake (1)
9. Giant gar (1‐6)
10. Dolphins (2‐20)
11. Mermen (1‐20; know of and are enemies of the "seafaring devils")
12. Architeuthis (1)
13. Dragon, untested red (1; lairs on a nearby island)
14. Severe weather: rain down (‐2 to‐tally and saves, ½ movement, no non‐magical fires; lasts 1d12 hours;
re‐twine if already in effect)
15. Strangulate grass (3‐12)
16. Pirates (1 war vessel, 30‐50 pirates)
17. Stern weather condition: giant wave (15% chance of sinking a ship; 65% chance of sinking a boat)
18. Hippocampus (2‐8)
19. Giant Lusitanian man‐of‐war (1‐10)
20. Dragon turtle (1; just passing aside unless the party harasses information technology)

Inland, Neighbouring the Shore (the hex includes shoreline)
Roll 1d20:

1. Harpies (2‐12; lair on a nearby island)
2. Sea hags (1‐4; in a hutch they call forth "home")
3. Giant wasp (1‐20)
4. Roc, small (1; lairs on a nearby island)
5. Nymphs (1‐4; den in a nearby cave)
6. Pirates (1‐10; "refugees" from pirate refugee camp)
7. Severe weather: wind (‐2 to‐slay and saves; lasts 1d12 hours; Ra‐wave if already in effect)
8. Ghouls (2‐16)
9. "Sea devils" (1‐20; at nighttime only when; opt to capture victims for forfeit)
10. Dragon, young cerise (1; lairs on a nearby island)
11. Violet fungi (1‐4)
12. Severe weather: rain down (‐2 to‐hit and saves, ½ movement, no not‐magical fires; lasts 1d12 hours;
re‐roll if already in effect)
13. Ghast (1‐6)
14. Lacedon (2‐16)
15. Giant toads (1‐4)
6
16. Giant crabs (2‐12)
17. Will‐o‐wisp (1; at night only; wish try to lure victims off cliff)
18. Zombies (3‐24)
19. Ghostwrite (1)
20. Wyvern (1; see "Wyvern's Nest" above)

Inland
Swan 1d20:

1. Harpies (2‐12; lair happening a nigh island)
2. Giant rats (5‐50)
3. Ax beak (1‐6)
4. Whale scorpions (1‐4)
5. Skeletons (3‐30)
6. Giant wasp (1‐20)
7. Wights (2‐16)
8. "Sea devils" (1‐20; at night only; prefer to capture victims for sacrifice)
9. Giant toads (1‐4)
10. Zombies (3‐24)
11. Giant ants (1‐100)
12. Nonindulgent weather: wind (‐2 to‐hit and saves; lasts 1d12 hours; ray‐rolling if already in effect)
13. Wraith (1)
14. Violet fungi (1‐4)
15. Ghouls (2‐16)
16. Pirates (10‐20; "refugees" from plagiarizer ingroup)
17. Giant covert widow spiders (1‐3)
18. Ghast (1‐6)
19. Hard weather: rain (‐2 to‐hit and saves, ½ movement, no non‐magical fires; lasts 1d12 hours;
re‐roll if already in effect)
20. Wyvern (1; see "Wyvern's Snuggle" above)

The correspondenc of the dungeon privy be plant here (with the Players' map out found here), and this dungeon can be downloaded in .PDF form here.

Chris Brackett is a entanglement monkey aside trade, but in real life helium's a veteran gamer and author of several tabletop miniatures games. He spends far also much of his time working on his RPG‐focused game blog, A Rust Monster Ate My Steel.

https://www.escapistmagazine.com/dungeon-world-the-shunned-isle/

Source: https://www.escapistmagazine.com/dungeon-world-the-shunned-isle/

Share this post