Dungeon23 has completed its first month. I’ve created maps on 31 consecutive days and collected them all here: https://wp.abfuning.de/category/english/ so that their frequency doesn’t overwhelm the other blog content.
I’m building my Dungeon23 project a bit like a campaign.
Each month there will be a character level. January was level 1. In this level the characters learned a bit about the town that will serve as the base for their expedition. They tidied up their own little headquarters and set off on an expedition into the wilderness, to a necropolis said to be hidden deep in the jungle, in search of the key to the lost city of Kythar Tahlketh.
By now, the characters should have gained enough experience to reach level 2. They should also have learned a little about the campaign’s theme: lost, forgotten, ancient ruins full of mystery and danger.
So what does Level 2 – February – involve?
The characters return to Freihafen (Freeport), where they can explore other parts of the city. They will use the key they found to determine the approximate location of the Lost City and plan and carry out an expedition there. In the end, they will find the entrance, but something will block their way. So far, my idea is that it will be a small gnoll camp in a cave, which is also the closest entrance to the city, but can only be used with the key.
Then they enter the Lost City for the first time. By then, the group should have enough experience points to advance to level 3. And that’s the end of February.
What is the Sealed City?
Kythar-Tahlketh was once the capital of one of the most powerful empires of the Second Age (see https://wp.abfuning.de/2021/10/12/eine-eigene-welt-erschaffen-von-gross-zu-klein-homebrewing-worldbuilding-fuer-dd-und-andere-rollenspiele/ for more world history ). – The Kytharian Empire. Situated in a lush green valley, it was the centre of magical development in this part of the world. It was a city full of magic, full of wonder, full of power. But also full of arrogance. An arrogance that made people forget the old gods, an arrogance that led to wars of expansion and brought disaster to neighbouring lands. And it was this arrogance that angered the gods. They had sacrificed themselves so that the people of Bentura would not be taken over by the corruption of the OTHERS, and so they repaid them? With blasphemy and the destruction of the world entrusted to them?
Kythar-Talketh was one of the cities to be made an example of.
The gods opened gates to the realms of Hell, the Abyss, and the demons beneath the city, and the cruel, terrible hosts overran the city. Few inhabitants managed to escape, many died horribly, others fought bravely.
To stop the demonic invasion and prevent the terrible demons from spreading to the rest of the land, the Archmage Trigalion the Cruel (actually the Wise, but his nickname was changed after subsequent events) devised a plan. A plan born of desperation.
He harnessed the power of creation, the power from the highest and most secret studies of the Kytharian Empire, and unleashed it to stop the invasion of Hell. He created a mountain over the city and magically sealed it underneath. He condemned the remaining inhabitants to helplessness against the demons, blocked all escape routes and imprisoned everything that was still in the city.
Although this act halted the demonic invasion of the Kytharian Empire, it also sealed its end. The highly centralised empire crumbled, its infrastructure withered, and without the support of the capital, many of its inhabitants left. Demons and other horrors unleashed by the Empire’s war on demons ravaged the continent.
In the thousand years since, the jungle has reclaimed the continent, and only a few small outposts that attempt to remain outside of law and order, such as the city of Freeport, remain as points of civilization in the wild territory of the former Empire.
From March to December
From March to December, the sealed city will be explored. It will be divided into ten „districts“ or „habitats“ that reflect its history. There will be more information on this in the coming months, as I am still trying to work out exactly what these look like. At the moment, everything is very vague.
If you have any suggestions, ideas or questions, please feel free to leave a comment.
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Yours truly
A.B. Funing