Carapace

Labyrinths | Procedural Navigation | Adventure

Goblin’s Henchman

2018

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Contents Adventure Background .......................................................................................................................... 1

PC level ............................................................................................................................................ 1

Town ............................................................................................................................................... 1

Three Procedural Ant Colonies ....................................................................................................... 1

In Medias Res .................................................................................................................................. 2

PC - NPCs entanglements ................................................................................................................ 2

NPCs and plot hooks ....................................................................................................................... 2

A. Point Crawl ......................................................................................................................................... 4

Template ............................................................................................................................................. 4

Method ............................................................................................................................................... 5

Suggestions ......................................................................................................................................... 5

Example 1 – Riverbank Giant Ant Colony (top-down view): ........................................................... 6

Example 2 – Mound Ant Colony (sectional view) ............................................................................ 6

Example 3 – Giant Wasp Nest (cross-section) ................................................................................. 6

B. Labyrinth Move (map-less ‘dungeon’ and its navigation) ................................................................. 7

C. Hex-Flower (map-less ‘dungeon’ and its navigation) ......................................................................... 8

Appendix 1 – Encounter Engine ............................................................................................................ 10

Appendix 2 – Environmental Dressing .................................................................................................. 11

Appendix 3 – Monster Block Summaries .............................................................................................. 12

Appendix 4 - Area surrounding the Hive .............................................................................................. 13

Links:

Home: https://goblinshenchman.wordpress.com | Drivethru: https://tinyurl.com/y7ehtgeq

Overview

This document is split into three main parts. The first part provides a setup for an

adventure. The second part provides three procedural ways to generate/navigate a giant

insect colony (Point Crawl, Labyrinth Move and Hex-Flower methods). The third part

provides random tables for generating encounters and some ‘dungeon dressing’.

The procedural methods have been applied to the exploration of a maze-like giant insect

colony. That said, it doesn’t take a genius to realize that these methods could easily be

retrofitted to any maze-like setup, e.g. patchwork of islets in the Bonesuck Swamp, glades in

an impenetrable wood, goblins caves, an overland trade route, an archipelago of mysterious

islands in a pirate romp, or rooms in an abandoned space station.

This document can be conveniently printed using the ‘booklet’ option on printers that can

print on both sides of the paper. Folding gives an A5 booklet.

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Adventure Background

PC level

This adventure is aimed at PCs of about 3rd to 6th level. The monsters are reference

with respect to the AD&D Monster Manual.

Town

The remote town of Tnat’naig is located near a giant ant colony, known locally as

‘The Hive'. The Hive is a hill-sized mound of earth. It rises a few hundred feet, and

like an iceberg, much more lurks below. Visually, the Hive is reminiscent of an

inselberg.

There are various interests in Tnat’naig that want the Hive destroyed. A decade ago

a determined attempt was made to eradicate the Hive. This raid cost the lives of

many young townsfolk. The raid was thought to have succeeded in killing the

Queen. Unfortunately, the loss of young life has caused the town to stagnate. This

has led to an underlying sense of resentment, particularly towards outsiders and the

wider governance of the region: “Who should have fixed this problem years ago”.

This raid had another unforeseen consequence. With the decline of the ants, a band

of hobgoblins with their carnivorous ape minions moved into the Hive. They then

began raiding the surrounding countryside. Whenever threaten, the hobgoblins took

shelter deep within the Hive and could not be found. The hobgoblins were later

driven out. This happened from within, when the ant colony began to reassert itself.

The carnivorous apes, now feral, are rumoured to live in an area surrounding the

Hive. Sometimes Hobgoblin horns can be heard faintly in Tnat’naig.

The Hive has hundreds of cave like-entrances. The inside of the Hive is a veritable

labyrinth of tunnels and chambers. The tunnels weave, undulate and double back on

themselves in a way not comprehensible to the non-formic mind. Dead ends and

empty chambers are also quite common. Some invasive species have made their

home in the Hive. They live in the spaces not reoccupied by the giant ants. Nothing

is static in the Hive, creatures are continuously on the move.

Three Procedural Ant Colonies

To make/navigate the Hive please use one of the procedural Methods A, B or C

detailed later. Method A gives a more traditional map. Methods B and C are more

conceptual, more maze like, and do not use a traditional map. Method B is simpler

than Method C, but Method C includes a chase mechanic.

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In Medias Res

D6 - [result if PCs fail to intervene]:

1. Giant Stag Beetle MM 9 batters the town gate [the town guard will eventually see it off

with pikes and buckets of peppered horse urine]

2 Ankheg MM 6 erupts and takes a horse [leery townsfolk are used to this sort of thing]

3 Giant Wasps MM 99 sweep through the town, mistaking halflings for their

favourite prey, giant caterpillars [when the wasp-claxon sounds, halflings be scarce]

4 A pair of Hill Giant brothers MM 45 stomp past [while Gus and Gilly are a menace,

they are well-known here, and normally leave the town alone]

5. Two NPCs (see below) argue in the street [one blames the PCs]

6. An Enemy has employed an assassin, who hidden, shoots a poisonous bolt at the

PCs

PC - NPCs entanglements

Roll three D12 and consult the NPCs listed below; that NPC:

1st wants help from the PCs (e.g. on day 1).

2nd resents the PCs, and wishes them harm (prefers the PCs to come to them).

3rd has a connection to one of the PCs. The connection may or may not be

friendly, it may even be mundane. Perhaps the player decides the

connection.

Depending on the vagaries of the dice, the above could be in three NPCs or just one.

NPCs and plot hooks

The following NPC live in Tnat’naig and have an interest in the Hive:

1) Bulla (town smith) – retired town guard who took a mandible to the knee. He

hates the ants, and will do repairs for free if he thinks it will harm the Hive.

Quirk - is hard of hearing and is a gleeful pessimist.

2) Clypeus (leader of the Formic Widows and Widowers) – his group wants to

avenge the deaths of the townsfolk lost a generation ago. They have a generous

fund set aside for this purpose and will pay a good sum for the Hive Queen's

head. Quirk – is always nibbling on something.

3) El’bidnam (Druid) – wants his apprentice (Antinhim) found; he is believed to

have entered the Hive. The apprentice has an unnatural interest in these giant

insects. Quirk - owns three rodents, Snitch, Plumy and Lycan, which seem to live

about his person. Wears a heavy silver torc.

4) Emmet (Mayor) – wants to quash the rumours that hobgoblins have

domesticated the giant ants and are planning to attack the town. He will pay an

adequate sum for each hobgoblin ear returned to him. Quirk - asks prying and

personal questions, but is not at all reciprocal.

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5) Eatna (townsperson of low status) - wants his daughter's body recovered from

the Hive. She was in the militia that raided the Hive and never returned. She

had an amber broach in the shape of a beetle. For help, he will swear fealty to

the God of any PC promising to help him. Quirk - blasphemes often, but retracts if

challenged. Is superstitious about odd things.

6) Gaster (bored city merchant and purveyor of exotic foods) - giant ant larvae are

a local delicacy, and are known as 'dirt lobsters'. In the big cities these larvae

command eye-watering prices. Gaster will pay adequately for any giant ant

larvae. The larvae do not need to be alive, but they cannot be spoilt. Quirk -

tends to leave uncomfortable silences to trap people into saying too much.

7) Nemodba (beast-master) – will pay handsomely for any living giant ant

larvae. The giant ant larvae must be kept warm and humid if they are to

survive and hatch. For a captured Queen the beast-master will pay nearly any

sum. Quirk – often bleeding, sometimes profusely, from a bite, gore or scratch.

8) Occiput (healer) – wants the stinger glands from giant warrior ants, and will

promise to heal anyone in return for these. Occiput is really an agent working

for Liches Leah Cim (see '& Magazine', Issue 11, pages 58-71). Quirk - has a

reptilian quality. Hisses if interrupted.

9) Petiole (thief) – has an ancient map tattooed on what appears to be a red Giant

Toad skin. The map indicates the Hive is located over an abandoned temple

complex. She wants someone to clear a path through the Hive for her, so she

can find the Temple entrance (and the riches within). She is cunning and may

offer to guide the PCs to the Hive for a little coin. She will slip away in the Hive

when it suits her. Quirk - is a charming bully and is magically immune to alcohol.

10) Tarsus (tavern owner) – wants ant trophies (mandibles, heads, legs etc.) to

embellish his inn. He will pay a little coin for these trophies, but prefers to

barter lodging in exchange. Quirk - often gets peoples' names wrong. Will blame

something/someone if called on it. Serving boy gets cuffed a lot.

11) Tergite (head of the town guard) – thinks the ants should be left alone. Doesn’t

like troublemakers. Outsiders are usually troublemakers. Quirk - bad habit of

picking his nose and/or poking people. Remembers things differently.

12) Xaroht (Hill Dwarf entrepreneur and middleman) - has bought (on the cheap)

the land upon which the Hive resides (ostensibly to exploit local mineral

deposits). This has made him a laughingstock in the town, and is often referred

to as 'The Ant King'. His grand (and secret) plan is to somehow kill the Queen

ant, and then sell the vacated living space to his Hill Dwarf kindred. If he can

achieve his goal, he would become very rich indeed. His funds are limited, but

his promises are large. Quirk - rubs knees or elbows when discussing money. Spits if

he doesn't like something.

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A. Point Crawl

The chambers and passages in this point crawl can be envisaged as being any shape

or size, they may go up, down or undulate. The interplay of the zones will be much

more complicated in three dimensions than set out in the template (think London

Tube map verses reality). The resultant point crawl can be imagined as seen from

top-down (e.g. Example 1; a traditional map) or from side-on (e.g. Example 2; a cross

section). The point crawl represents the ‘interesting’ chambers in the maze-like

colony. The mundane chambers/passages are simply not ‘captured’ in the point

crawl.

Template

Rule

O O

Entrance

Level

D2

chambers

O O O O O O O O O O Zone 1

D8+2

chambers

O O O O O Zone 2

D4+1

chambers

O O O Zones 3

D3

chambers

O Zone 4

Boss

chamber

No. of passages = {No. of chambers} + D5 D12 – 10 passages have concealed entrances

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Method

It is hoped the template is self-explanatory, but for the sake of completeness, a brief

explanation of the method is provided below:

(i) Template

Start with the template. The colony consists of an entrance level + Zones 1 to 4, with

Zone 4 being the most remote from the entrance. The idea being that the monsters

get tougher in the later zones.

(ii) Number of Chambers

Roll the number of chambers in each Zone. The template states the number of

possible chambers in each Zone.

(iii) Number of Passages

Roll the number of passages in the colony, i.e. = No. of chambers + D5. These

passages connect the chambers together.

(iv) Number of Concealed Entrances

Roll the number of passageway entrances that are concealed (D12-10, i.e. this occurs

uncommonly).

(v) Join up the Dots

Join up the chambers using the passages. Simples.

Suggestions

• Don’t get too hung up on the procedural ‘rules’, nothing will get broken

• Start by making a path from the entrance to the Queen

• Don’t make a path to the Queen that is a straight line (… a bit dull!)

• Don’t make it necessary to pass through every room to get to the Queen (…

could be a bit tedious)

• Ensure there is more than one path that leads to the Queen (… more interesting)

• Ensure the shortest path to the queen is not too long or too short – aim for 5 to 7

chambers

Appendix 1 provides random encounters, and Appendix 2 gives ‘environmental

dressing’. For procedural efficiency, and indeed fun, it is suggested the DM roll the

encounters and the players roll the ‘environmental dressing’.

Some examples of the completed template are given next:

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Example 1 – Riverbank Giant Ant Colony (top-down view):

Example 2 – Mound Ant Colony (sectional view)

Example 2 is the same as Example 1, but showing

a different arrangement of the passages

Example 3 – Giant Wasp Nest (cross-section)

Note – In this example there were fewer chambers and

hence fewer passages were generated as compared to

Example 1. It also has a concealed entrance (shown as

the green dashed passage)

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B. Labyrinth Move (map-less ‘dungeon’ and its navigation)

• The Queen/boss/objective is in Zone 4 of the labyrinth-like maze of tunnels and

chambers. The PCs start at one of the entrances of the maze, i.e. Zone 0.

• Presumably the PCs are trying to navigate the maze to find the Queen in Zone 4.

• Players state a navigation action, which essentially boils down to going deeper

into the maze e.g. “We try to find the Queen”, or the opposite “We try to escape”.

• Roll and Sum 2D10 and consult the table below to see if progress has been made

in that turn (i.e. the turn represents the result of about 10 minutes of exploring).

The table also indicates if a monster was encountered (or not).

For example, if the PCs are in Zone 2 and rolled a 15, they’d progress a zone. So,

if the PCs wanted to go deeper, they’d end up in Zone 3. However, if they were

trying to leave the maze, they’d end up in Zone 1. A roll of 15 also gives an

encounter.

• Leaving the colony is easier than finding the Queen, so add +1 to the roll.

Labyrinth Move Navigation Table

+ Navigation & Encounters

Roll Encounter? Progress

2 Encounter

3 No -1 Zones

4 Encounter

5 No

6 Encounter

7 No

8 Encounter No progress

9 No

10-16 Encounter +1 Zones

17 No +2 Zones 18-20 Encounter

This idea was adapted from Jason Cordova’s ‘Labyrinth Move’ for Dungeon World

• DMs should resist Player ‘gamesmanship’ designed to break this navigation

mechanic. Rather, cleverness, race ability, learning and/or magic, etc. should give

+1, +2 or +3 to the navigation 2D10 roll. Bear in mind +3 is a massive bonus in this

probability weighted mechanic.

Appendix 1 provides random encounters, and Appendix 2 gives ‘environmental

dressing’. For procedural efficiency, and indeed fun, it is suggested the DM roll the

encounters and the players roll the ‘environmental dressing’.

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C. Hex-Flower (map-less ‘dungeon’ and its navigation)

For more information on 2D6 19-Hex Power Flowers as a useful game tool, please see:

https://goblinshenchman.wordpress.com/2018/10/25/2d6-hex-power-flower

Special Custom, Special

1 Healing flora 1.

2 Safe haven 2.

3 Abandoned treasure 3.

4 Discovery 4.

5 Intelligent life 5.

6 Trap like natural formation 6.

7 Unstable floor/wall/ceiling 7.

8 Boiling mud 8.

9 Sinkholes 9.

10 Quicksand 10.

Insight ○○○

Reconnaissance ○○○

Clue ○○○

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Navigation Method

• The Hex-Flower is not a map, it is an ‘engine’ to simulate navigation of a maze

• The Queen/boss is in Zone 4 of the labyrinth-like maze of tunnels and chambers

• Presumably the PCs are trying to navigate the maze to find the Queen

• The colony has a security system; effectively ‘looking’ for intruders (i.e. ‘Hunter’)

• The PCs start at one of the exit/entrances of the colony, i.e. the bottom-most Hex

• The ‘Hunter’ starts at the top-most Hex

• PCs & ‘Hunter’ take turns to roll & sum 2D6 to navigate the Maze (see Nav. Hex)

• Navigating ‘off’ the Hex-Flower: go to the Hex indicated on that Hex face

• If the ‘Hunter’ lands on the same Hex as PCs, the colony is mobilised (trouble!)

• Encounters happen in Zones 1 to 3 when the 2D6 navigation roll is even

• Exiting maze is easier; spend 1 free wildcard point per turn, non-accumulating

Point Spend

Spending points tactically can be decisive in successfully navigating the maze:

• If the PCs research/prepare before entering the maze, they may start with 1 point

in each of Insight, Reconnaissance and/or Clue

• As the PCs navigate the maze, they may gain points (in Insight; Clue & Recon),

up to 3 points in each category; or they can lose points (but never below zero)

• PCs may spend any points on their turn to change the face of the Hex they exit

from. One point per Hex face shifted. For example, if the PCs roll and get the

bottom face of the hex (e.g. they rolled 7) and spend 3 points they can exit from

the top face of the Hex (equating to a roll of 12)

• On the ‘Hunter’s’ turn the PCs can spend Insight points (only) to change the face

of the Hex the Hunter exits from. Therefore, Insight points are more useful than

Reconnaissance and Clue points

• Spending any 2 points evades encounters; Spending any 3 points evades ‘Hunter’

Appendix 1 provides random encounters, and Appendix 2 gives ‘environmental

dressing’. For procedural efficiency, and indeed fun, it is suggested the DM roll the

encounters and the players roll the ‘environmental dressing’.

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Appendix 1 – Encounter Engine

The Zone No. influences the D20s and rule:

Zone No. of D20s to roll Rule

1 Re-roll 19 or 20

2 Select Lowest

3 Select Highest

4 Select Highest

Sample Encounters

Monster Type Monster Type (cont.)

Roll Result Ref.: SW 1e 5e Roll Result

1 1 Worker ant MM 18 2D4+2 Warrior ants

2-4 D4+1 Worker ants 19* 1 False Queen; 5-6 2D4+2 Worker ants; 3D4+3 Worker ants;

1 Warrior ant per 5 workers 271 7 1 Warrior ant per 5 workers; 7 D4+1 Giant fire beetles 273 9 235 10 Larva per worker ant 8 D3+1 Carrion crawlers 276 13 37 * = or NPC/adventure objective

9 D6+3 Giant centipedes 277 14 323 20** 1 Queen; 10 D2 Slithering trackers 311 88 4D4+4 Worker ants; 11 1 Giant assassin spider (see Appendix 3) 1 Warrior ant per 4 workers;

12-14 1 Warrior ant 10 Larva per worker ant 15-17 D4+1 Warrior ants ** = Re-roll if already killed

Custom Encounters (populate yourself)

Monster Type Monster Type (cont.)

Roll Result Ref. Roll Result Ref. 1 18

2-4 19

5-6

7

8

9 20

10

11

12-14

15-17

Monster grades: 1-6 = plebe ; 7 to 11 = wildcard ; 12-18 = elite ; 19-20 = bosss

(table makes use of a weighted probability curve)

Monster's disposition

Roll Result Roll Result

1 tactical disadvantage

7 hiding

2 resting 8 responsive

3 eating 9 alert

4 building 10 aggressive

5 cleaning 11 ambush-ready

6 curious 12 tactical advantage D20 result

DM

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Appendix 2 – Environmental Dressing

Chamber size

Roll Result

1 small

2 medium

3 large

4 corridor

Notable feature

D20 & D8 1 - Temperature 2- Smell 3 - Taste 4 - Noise

1 freezing alchemists waiting room acidic buzzing

2 very cold bad eggs bilious chinking

3 very cold blooming orchard bitter clicking

4 icy clean dressing burning/biting cracking

5 uncomfortably cold

corrupted wounds buttery creaking

6 cool cutgrass fiery crumping

7 cool Dead/feral animal fishy grating

8 cool dry summer greasy hissing

9 hot and cold drying vomit herbal humming

10 hot and cold fishmonger's hands lemony jingling

11 hot and cold hung meat meaty rustling

12 hot and cold Leaf mulch metallic scraping

13 hot old ladies' linen oniony scratching

14 hot pine forest peppery screeching

15 uncomfortably hot potato peels perfumie scuttling

16 blistering saw house salty shaking

17 scorching swept stables sour slithering

18 very hot tarred rigging spicy squeaking

19 very hot teahouse mint sweet tapping

20 extremely hot wet leather vinegary thumping

… 5 – Geo/Bio 6 – Air Currents 7- Humidity 8 – Light

1 bats air totally still bone dry central localized glow

2 blind fish in pools buffeting wind bone dry coloured auroral-like smoke

3 caustic pools cold current of air very dry dimly lit

4 columns cross-breeze very dry flame spouting tar pits

5 crystals downdraft very dry fluorescent minerals

6 deflected stalactite dry current of air dry glow bugs

7 lily pads/ shelfstones gentle breeze dry glowing algae

8 low ceiling headwind dry highly reflective pools of mercury

9 mounds light breeze sticky humid iridescent surfaces

10 mushrooms local downdraft sticky humid pearlescent mist

11 pits local updraft light mist phosphorescence pools

12 rodents mini-cyclone misty prisms of light diffract from crystals

13 roots pulsing air currents foggy rainbows in the mist

14 slippery surfaces strong wind unpleasantly humid shafts of natural looking light

15 sloped floor swirling breeze unpleasantly humid slot-like ceiling illuminations

16 splattermite tailwind armpit humid static sparks earth to metal

17 stalactites updraft very humid strange hovering ribbons of light

18 stalagmites strong air current very humid tapetum lucidum - (eyes reflecting)

19 veins of minerals wet current of air very humid UV emitting mushrooms

20 very muddy windy extremely humid well lit

Chamber shape

Roll Result

1 amorphous (easy going)

2 Amorphous (some obstacles)

3 amorphous (hard going)

4 amorphous (partly flooded)

5 spheroidal (round or oval)

6 polygonal (e.g. hexagonal, etc.)

Players

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Appendix 3 – Monster Block Summaries

AD&D Monster Manual Monsters:

Ref. AC Mv “ HD NOA / DA Size’ XP Notes

Ankheg 6 2* 12(6) 3-8 1 / 3D6 (+D4) 10-20

390+1HP * AC 4 underbelly; every 6hrs acid squirt 30’; 8D4 (save for half)

Ant, giant worker 7 3 18 2 1 / D6 3 20+2HP - Ant, giant warrior 7 3 18 3 1 / D6 3 30+3HP If hits tries to sting (D4; or 3D4 if

save fails) Ant, giant Queen 7 3 - 10 - 10 20+3HP Treasure Q (×3), S Ape, carnivorous 7 6 12 5 3 / D4, D4, D8 7 170+5HP If hit with both hands, rend for extra

D8; surprised on 1

Bear, black 9 7 12 3+3 3 / D3, D3, D6 6 85+4HP Hit on 18+ does hug damage 2D4 Beetle, giant fire 9 4 12 1+2 1 / 2D4 2.5 Red glowing glands Beetle, giant stag 9 3 6 7 3 / 4D4, D10,

D10 10 400+8HP

Carrion crawler 13 3* 8 / ** 540+4HP * = head; body AC 7; ** Save vs paralysis

Centipede, giant 14 9 15 0.25 1 / * 1 30+1HP **save vs poison at +4 Crab, giant 15 3 9 3 2 / 2D4, 2D4 4’ 35+3HP Surprise on 1-4

Crocodile 15 5 6//12 3 2 / 2D4, D12 8-15 60+4HP Surprises 1-3 Crocodile, giant 15 4 6//12 7 2 / 3D6, 2D10 21-

30 400+HP Surprises 1-3

Frog, giant 41 7 3//9 1-3 1/ D3, D6, 2D8 S/M 45+3HP Surprises 1-4, leap 18’, long tongue +4 hit, hit roll 20 swallows

Giant, hill 45 4 12 8 1 / 2D8 10.5 1400+12HP

Hurls boulders 20’ / 2D8

Hippopotamus 52 6 9//12 8 1 / 2D6 or 3D6 L 375+6HP 50% will flip passing canoe Hobgoblin 57 5 9 1+1 1 / D8 6.5 20+2HP

Leopard 60 6 12 3+2 3 / D3, D3, D6 M 150+4HP Surprises 1-3; leap 20’, two hits then 2 rear claws attacks D4, D4

Slithering tracker 88 5 12 5 0 / * 2.5 280+5HP * 5% to spot; track victim; attacks when sleeping; paralysis + digestion 6 turns

Scorpion, giant 85 3 15 5+5 3 / D10, D10, D4*

M 650+6HP * if both claws hit, will try to sting; save vs poison or die

Snake, constrictor 88 5 9 6+1 2 / D4, D8* L 225+8HP * constricting damage Toad, giant 95 6 6 2+4 1, 2D4 M 50+3HP Hop for 6” Wasp, giant 99 4 6/21 4 2 / 2D4, D4* M 320+4HP * sting; save vs paralysis

New Monster:

Spider, giant assassin 4 12 4+4 1 / 2D4* 10’ 650+5HP * special biting attack (see below)

The Assassin Spider is a voracious ground hunter. It has an unusually long neck,

which extends upwards about 6 feet and has two massive six foot long mandibles.

On a successful hit, it grabs and lifts its prey 6 feet into the air, holding them at bay.

In this predicament, the victim’s AC is reduced by 4 (or by one class criteria, e.g.

plate to chain, etc.). Generally, the victim is also unable to hit with hand weapons. A

successful bend bars/lift gates roll will break the victim free.

The next round, the great mandibles begin their deadly work, pinching together like

a pneumatic press. Each time a successful to hit roll is made the victim’s effective AC

is reduced by another 4 units (or by one further armour class type), and one extra

damage die is added, e.g. 2D4 (1st hit), 4D4 (2nd hit), 6D4 (3rd hit), etc. The next hit

after the victim is at 0 HPs, results in the victim being pinched in half (the Assassin

Spider’s goal), the mandibles meeting like a pair of giant chitinous secateurs.

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Appendix 4 - Area surrounding the Hive A hill sized pile of packed

earth and sticks stands within

a mile-wide clearing filled

with scrub grass and bare

ground. A reasonably sized

river flows through the Hive.

The river can be forded at F.

Currents are strong and

swimming dangerous.

Start location – D12 using a

clock face: i.e. 12 is North, 6

South, 9 West, and 3 East etc.

A - Carnivorous apes MM 7 live

in forest near the waterfall;

often hunt giant frogs (W), and

using frog bones as weapons.

C - the river flows down into a cave-like mouth at the Hive base. D4+1 man-sized

Giant Crabs MM 15 lurk in the river boulders.

E1 - This opening under a large lonely dead tree is a false entrance to the Hive. 25%

of the time it contains a random outdoor encounter, e.g. 1) D3 Carnivorous apes MM 7, 2) Bear, black MM 9, 3) Beetle, giant stag MM 9, 4) D8 Hobgoblins MM 52,

5) Leopard MM 60, 6) Scorpion, giant MM 85, 7) Snake, giant constricting MM 88, 8) D10

Toads, giant MM 95, 9) Wasp, giant MM 99, or 10) a pair of Hill Giant brothers MM 45.

E2 - Giant ants tend to commute in/out at dusk/dawn, so the well-worn entrances to

the Hive are normally unguarded during the day. E2 is the main entrance, but many

smaller man-sized entrance caves pepper the Hive (not shown).

E3 - Giant wasps MM 99 regularly enter their nest at the Hive summit, carrying in

giant forest caterpillars. Curious about shiny things, there is a good chance they will

investigate PC movement around the Hive. Mistake Halflings for giant caterpillars.

F - 30% chance of D6 Crocodiles MM 15; or D2 Giant crocodiles MM 15 will be waiting at

any ford; add +10% for each turn spent tarrying there.

H – D4+1 Hippopotami MM 52 wallow almost invisible in long river grass.

T - the river exits as a high-pressure torrent through a crack in the Hive.

W - D6+1 Giant frogs MM 41 inhabit the misty falls. They are hungry, loud, aggressive,

and hard to see.

A

W

T

E3 E1

E2

C

H

F River F

:: :: :: :: :: = sheer face

::

::

:: :: :: :: :: :: ::

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