Week #1

Monster stat blocks will be compiled in an appendix for each island. A GM map is shown below. Players will be given a map that does not show the paths. Given the rugged terrain, surface exploration will be by "point crawl".

1 North Beach

A black sand beach. Driftwood includes old, burnt ship timbers. Bleached bones (human) are easily visible, half buried in the dark sand.

2 West Beach

An 8-oar longboat is pulled up on the black sand beach. Four sailors sit nearby around a campfire. They are relaxed, cooking and conversing.

They are part of a pirate crew, sent ashore to recapture a wealthy prisoner who escaped while the pirates were anchored to refresh their water casks. Four comrades pursued the escapee inland while these fellows guard the longboat. The pirate vessel is expected to return in three days to retrieve them all.

If players engage in parlay, the pirates will reveal their purpose, but not their identity. They describe the escapee as a “treacherous thief” and claim their ship will return “very soon, at any time now”.

3 South Beach

Swarms of small brown crabs move across the black sand beach. A large, weathered spar rises from the sand, evidence of an old shipwreck. The remnants of several old campfires are visible above the hightide line.

4 East Beach

A black sand beach. Old campfire rings, surrounded by small piles of fish bones and shells. Further down the beach, a single curving whale rib protrudes above the sand.

The “whale rib” is actually the horn of a giant, carnivorous rhinoceros beetle laying in ambush beneath the sand. It will attack if approached.

5 Ruins with Pod Droppers

Small clearing, light falls on white marble ruins, no intact structures.

Perception (Searching) 10 reveals: (1) skeletal remains (maybe a year old) of two treasure hunters. (2) a rotten leather sack with 80 copper and 11 silver pieces.

While searching, three large objects drop from trees at the edge of the ruins. The Pod Droppers attack mindlessly.

6 Ruins with Owl and Leopard

A snarling leopard paces back and forth, hunting a large owl, perched atop a smooth, marble column. Perception (Seeing) 18 to notice that the large owl has human eyes.

The Leopard is distracted so party might be able to sneak past Dexterity (Stealth) 10. Otherwise roll reaction for the leopard. The owl will fly off if any combat ensues.

This area has numerous surface ruins in white marble. Among them is a cistern, 10 feet in diameter and open to the sky. It contains clean rain water. The cistern is engraved in an ancient language, Intelligence (Cryptography) 15, that reads “Blessed are the gifts of the sky.”

The owl is actually the Wizard of January Isle, Ibab Kornitz, although he has no awareness of this fact. His only means of surviving the war was to transform himself into an animal and purge his own memory. Much of his original personality remains, if not his human intellect. Ibab is friendly and curious. During the day, he might be seen in the distance watching the party. He will fly away if the party appears hostile.

7 Eastern Castle

This hilltop is crowned with the ruins of a castle that was composed of polished white limestone blocks. Not a single structure is intact or roofed, but the architecture seems fair and dignified. Similar ruins can be seen to the west (location 8). Separating the two ruined castles is a wide chasm with no visible bottom. It extends for miles to the north and south. A delicate stone bridge once spanned the chasm, but it has collapsed in the center, leaving an 80 ft gap. Any fall into the chasm would be fatal.

Perception (Hearing) 15 will bring the sound of voices from across the chasm. These are the pirates at location 8, but they will not be visible from here.

Within these ruins is a flight of steps leading downward into the darkness. The upper steps are covered in old dirt and fallen leaves, undisturbed by tracks or footprints. The air within is cool and musty. This entrance leads to room 11 of the dungeon below.