VASPAR (REAL TITLE UNKOWN)
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Weary from travel and miserable from a cold downpour, you and your companions come across a little village set in a clearing in the forest.  Surrounded by wet fields, are the grey outlines of buildings.  A warm glow comes from the largest building in the town.

You make your way through the sodden streets up to the stone porch of a country inn.  A creaky wooden sign over your heads reads "The Vaspar Inn: Haven for lost souls." Shrugging off your wet overcoats, you enter the building. The warmth of the room pleasantly warms your cold bodies. The innkeeper, a plump, short man wearing a simple apron, produces a warm mug of ale for each of you.  You notice that you are the only people in the inn proper.

"Not often we get travellers through these parts. Especially on nights like this."

The wind seems to pick up and lightening crashes outside as if to provide significance to his words.

"You look like honest folk, so you can pay when you decide to leave.  I'll have my son warm up a some rooms for you."

About an hour later, you decide to turn in for the night.  The beds are comfortable and the room is a warm shield from the howling storm.

In the early hours of the morning, you are awakened by a high pitched scream coming from the village common.  You rush to the window to see what's going on and see a young man, about 14 or 15, trying to club a huge crawfish, close to 9' long, away from a wounded older man.  About 15' away is a plain woman, about the age of the older man, screaming and grasping at the air as if to draw the two to her.  It is obvious that the boy is outclasses and will soon have to retreat and leave the elder to his fate.

     Giant Crayfish Int:Low; Al:N; Ac:4; 24hp; Thac0:15; Att:2; Dmg:2-12/2-12;
     Size:L; Ml:13; Xp:125.

The Giant Crayfish had its lair in a tunnel under the city.  The great storm causes a flood of water to collapse its tunnel and forced it into the well.  It left the well in search of food and happened upon a family coming into town early in the morning.  The old man is a farmer, Arlas Treylor, the young man is his son, Glenn, and the woman is his wife Arleen.  Since this is a small town, their rescue will be seen as greatly heroic and will make the PC's accepted into everyone's home.

The Crayfish will fight until it is down to one-third of its hitpoints, and then it will attempt to flee backwards down the well.  It will fight to the death if it is cornered.  Upon looking down the well, the PC's can clearly see a stone archway half covered in water.  It looks as if the archway had been covered filled with recently washed away mud.


1.   The bottom of the well has about 3' of dark muddy water in it.  The archway leads into a hallway about 40 feet long which ends in a large, rusty iron door.  There is a small current in the water, but not enough to cause alarm.

The door is jammed shut by rust and years of neglect. It takes a bend bars roll to open it.  There is a base 15% chance of a PC hearing the squeaking and scuttling of the rats on the other side.  A thief adds 15 to his hear noise roll.


2.   Upon opening the iron door, a strong sewer smell knocks you back.  Large baleful, red eyes stare a you and evil hisses fill the air.  You can see the bodies of rats as big as cats scuttling through debris.  A gnawed skeleton lies sprawled on the remains of a wooden couch with seams to serve as a lair for the rodents.  There are the rotten remains of a backpack on the skeleton.

     Giant Rat Int:Semi; Al:N(E); Ac:7; 1,1,2,3,3,1,2,4,4,1,4,4,3,2,4,4,4,4,1,1,
     1,1 hp; Thac0:19; Att:1; Dmg:1-6; SA 5% chance of disease; Size:T; Ml:12;
     Xp:65.

If the door is opened before the water is emptied from the well, the water rushes into the room.  The rats will seek shelter on floating bits of debris.  They will attack the characters as soon as possible because they have been forced into a cannibalistic society because of the desolation in the ruins.  If the couch is fire-bombed, the PC's will kill 7 of the pests.  In the rat-chewed backpack is a poor quality composite shortbow with an onyx grip (112gp), piece of the backpack with the word 'Aeri' on it, a holy symbol made of gold and platinum (32gp), a battered great helm, a flint and steel, a 30' length of rotten rope, 4 torches, and 30gp.


3.   This long hallway has the remains of shredded tapestries hanging from the walls and the floors are covered in rat droppings.  A set of iron doors close off the far end of the hall.

The iron doors are locked with average locks.  This offers no bonuses to thieves.  To break down the doors requires a bend bars roll at -5%.  The doors can take 50hp of damage before the will break open.  Blade weapons used to break the door require a save vs. crushing blow, or they'll break.


4.   This is a room about 60' long and 20' feet wide.  The floor is covered in the rotten remains of books.  There are a few leather covers still around, but the pages have long since disintegrated.  A wooden door is closed at the far end of the room.  Around the remains of an old table are the skeletons of 9 humans in clerical trappings.  Each has an old rusty mace in his hand.

     Skeleton Int:Non; Al:N; Ac:7; 2,3,5,4,3,7,4,5,2 hp; Thac0: 19; Att:1;
     Dmg:1-6; Size:M; Ml:NA; Xp:65.

The skeletons are the remains of 9 clerics who were in the temple when it was struck down.  They have been ordered to attack all who enter.  This leaves their souls in agony since they were of a peaceful order.  The maces are in very poor condition, but are worth about 3gp each.


5.   Two large beetles with red eyes are moving slowly down the hall towards you.  The hall is about 30' long and ends in a door that is open.  You can see the walls of a room beyond the door.

     Fire Beetle Int:Non; Al:N; Ac:4; 6,9hp; Thac0:19; Att:1; Dmg:2-8;
     Size:T(2'); Ml:12; Xp:35.

The fire beetles are not aggressive and will leave the characters alone unless frightened or attacked.  The will then try to run away.  When cornered, the beetles will turn and charge.  Do not reward good or neutral characters for blindly attacking them.


6.   The remnants of fine silk tapestries lie in dust on the floor of this 30' by 20' room.  Two old wooden doors provide exits from the room to the north and west.  A stone archway leads into darkness towards the south.  On the floor is a thick worn rug covered in dust.

Under the rug is a 10' deep pit trap.  Characters walking across the rug have a 25% chance of avoiding it. The damage is 1d6.  Characters listening to the east door have a 20% chance of hearing the sound of scuttling wood. There are also quick, soft barking noises coming from the room.  Characters who know Kobold will recognize it as one kobold ordering the others to "Search everything real good we don't wanna upset Slash."


7.   When you opened the wooden door, a loud yip comes from the far end of the room.  You see a couple of short goblinoids scurrying around.  There are overturned tables in two rows of three down the middle of the room.  Towards the far end is a metal door.  The farthest two tables are set on their sides and provide cover for the creatures.

     Kobold Int:9; Al:LE; Ac:7; 4,1,4,3,1,4,4,4 hp; Thac0:20; Att:1; Dmg:1-4
     (claw) or by weapon; Size:S; Ml:9; Xp:7;  each has a spiked club (1d6+1)
     and 2 javelins (1d6).

The kobolds are really as scared of the Pc's as anything.  They will fight is attacked or it they think they can overpower the Pc's.  The overturned tables provide them with hard cover and concealment (-2 Ac and +2 to hit).  Each kobold also has 2d6 copper pieces each on him.


8.   As you swing the door open, you see the remains of an ancient kitchen.  Old iron pots and pans lie scattered on the floor.  The dust in the room is stirred up and Kobold prints are all over the place.  Other than the dust and kitchen utensils, the room appears empty.


9.   The hallway extends for about 90' to the south before it turns to the east.  It then runs about 50' to a door on the south side of the hall, and then terminates another 30' east of the door.  In the middle of the hall, about 15' from the door to the west, are the bodies of two kobolds and the body of a large beetle.


10.  This 20' by 20' room is padded by a thick layer of rugs and tapestries on the walls and floors.  They seem to be in good condition despite the years.  Not the sort of thing to put in a home, but surprisingly intact.  Two bronze doors, each on the south wall, are shut.

     Stabber (Kobold)  Int:12; Al:LE; Ac:7; 6hp; Thac0:19; Att:1; Dmg:1-4 or by
     weapon; SA:Thief abilities; Size:S; Ml:10; Xp:20;  x2 damage backstab;
     MS:30% HS:30% PP:45%; he is armed with a shortsword(1d6) and javelin(1d6).

Behind on particularly large tapestry is a kobold called 'Stabber' in his native language.  He is an up and coming kobold captain, quite aware that stealth and secrecy can kill the enemy more than bluff and bravo.  He is also aware that it might be necessary to run to save his life.  He will surrender before he dies only if allowed to retain hold of his weapon as he leaves.  He will keep his word that he'll leave the Pc's alone if he gives it.


11.  When you open the door, you have to push the splintered remains of a large couch.  A desk in the southwestern corner of the room has been battered into shards of wood.  The gouges in the desk are fresh.  Two doors, 10' apart, are on the eastern wall.  A bronze door opens to the north.


12.  A soft click-clack comes from the dark east end of this long room.  You estimated its length around 90' though you can only see the first 40' clearly.  Busted up on the ground are close to a dozen ancient paintings.  The walls are bare except for some strands of hanging wire.  A couple of dark shapes stop and run into the gloom.  The clicking noise speeds up as they run, obviously from claws on their feet.

     Kobold Int:Average; Al:LE; Ac:7; 2,3 hp; Thac0:20; Att:1; Dmg:1-4 or by
     weapon; Size:S; Ml:10; Xp:7; armed with spiked clubs(1d6+1) and a
     javelin(1d6).


13.  You opened the door into an unfurnished, small room, about 20' by 20'.  The stone walls, floor, and ceiling are all completely bare execpt for the doors on each of the compass points.

Before any real action can be taken, a loud thunk followed by a shriek comes from behind the eastern door. The Pc's notice the blackened tip of a spear poking from the door.  The tip is blackened by blood which is now running down the door.


14.  You wrench the door open, and the dead body of an impaled kobold slides off the door.  Looking down the hall, you see four other kobolds lying bleeding on the floor.  40' down the hall, where it turns to the south, four other kobolds are staring at their fallen brethren.  Upon seeing you, one reaches forward with his spiked club.  You notice a pressure plate on the floor smeared with blood.

     Kobold Int:Average; Al:LE; Ac:7; 1,5,3,4 hp; Thac0:20; Att:1; Dmg:1-4(claw)
     or 1d6+1(spiked club) or 1d6(javelin).

The character's must think fast to keep the kobold from triggering the trap again.  If he does trigger the trap, a spear shoots out of the wall towards the characters.  The first three characters must make a save vs. paralyzation to avoid it.  There is enough force behind the spear to penetrate any non-magical armor.  Magic armor adds its pluses to the save.  A failed save results in 2d4 points of damage.


15.  The door creaks as you open.  The room is very dusty. The remains of a once sturdy oak table lie on top of a crushed pair of chairs.  A faded tapestry on the south wall depicts a robed man wearing a large gem in an amulet pointing out a surprised assassin drawing a dagger in a crowd.


16.  You open the door on four short humanoids in the process of sifting through scraps of wood and cloth.  Two are wearing thick leather gloves and carry leather bags at their sides.  They immediately turn to see who their aggravate are.

     Kobold Int:Average; Al:LE; Ac:7; 4,2,4,4 hp; Thac0:20; Att:1;
     Dmg:1-4(claw), spiked clubs (1d6+1), or javelin(1d6); Size:S; Ml:10; Xp:7.

     Huge Centipede Int:Non; Al:N; Ac:9; 1,1 hp; Thac0:20; Att:1; Dmg:Nil;
     SA: Poison (paralyzed 1d6 hours, +4 to save); Size:T(6"); Ml:6; Xp:35.

The two with leather bags, will reach into their bags and toss a huge centipede into the party, hoping the distraction or poisoning will give them an upper hand. There is nothing the pile of debris, and the kobolds have no treasure on them.


17.  The dust from the floor swirls around your feet as you move into this room.  The remains of mats and rugs lie rotting on the floor.  A door further down the north wall is made of iron and has a keyhole on it.  The other, on the east wall, has what appears to be a protection glyph in ivory on it.  It also is metal and has a keyhole.

The glyph is an ancient symbol of protection from evil.  It is non-magical in nature.  Probably, it was put up for good-luck.


18.  This room is full of broken wooden beds, and is covered in dust.  The grisly remains of about six men all lie on the useless beds.  Each has a rusty mace hanging from his age-cracked belt.  While you watch, a bony hand moves and unhooks his mace.  The skeletons begin to stand and move towards you.

     Skeleton Int:Non; Al:N; Ac:7; 2,7,7,3,2,8,7 hp; Att:1; Dmg:1-6; Xp:65.


19.  This room has large square pieces of slate on each of the walls.  It is a light grey in color.  The one on the western wall is cracked, and pieces of it lie on the floor. A set of broken chairs lie on the floor.


20.  A large wooden alter dominates the room.  The charred words 'Look to God for you protection' drip black soot from their indentions like blood.  There is dust in the shape of a body on the ground in front of it.  Surprisingly, the alter seems untouched by age.

This is the Alter of Bloodshed.  It was created by a diety's curse on his followers after they lost faith in their god and trusted their own strength.  Any attempt to gain favor from this alter will result in a monster summoning II spell being cast against the offender.


21.  The smell of mud and wet leaves is the first indication of another entrance to this underground crypt.  You see a giant pit created by a giant trees torn up roots.  The pit is about 40' to the surface.  On the edges at the top of the chasm, you can see the armored bodies of about six kobolds. They don't seem to be paying attention to activity at the bottom of the pit.  You do notice that they are heavily armed for the average kobold.

     Kobold Int:Average; Al:LE; Ac:4; 5,6,4,5,5,7 hp; Thac0:19; Att:1;
     Dmg:1-4(claw) or 1-8(battle-axe) or 1d3(dart); SA: +1 to hit with darts;
     Size:S; Ml:13; Xp:15.

These kobolds are part of the elite assault force of their tribe.  They are trained in close combat and in ranged combat with the dart.  They have hide armor and shields.  Each has 9 darts and 1d6 silver pieces.


22.  You pass through the open doorway and find yourself at the entrance to a large cavern.  The air is humid, probably from the pool in the center of the place.  There seem to be a pile of bodies in the pool, and a human's severed hand lays next to a large smear of blood.

Closer inspection of the pool reveals the bodies of five kobolds, and two humans dressed in the forest colors of rangers.  One of the human's hands is missing.  One of the kobold bodies is dressed in hide armor like the others outside the pit.  The bodies have been pilfered.  There seem to be no other exits, but close inspection of the walls will reveal dry spots on the wall where the surrounding surface is wet.


23.  The walls of this small cavern seem to have been worked by tools.  Rough stone shelves lie empty of their stores. Busted cases lie in shambles next to the walls, all that is except on case under a stone shelf.

The intact case hold three fifths of an ancient elfin wine worth about 500gp to a connoisseur.  Otherwise, its just good drinking.


24.  Several oil soaked bundles lie on the floor of this small, round room.  The cracked remains of 4 suits of leather armor lie in a rack on the wall.  They are probably useless.

Inside the bundles are the protected weapons of old. The inventory includes: 1 longsword, 2 shortswords, and 8 daggers; A fine shortbow and quiver with 20 sheaf arrows; and a glittering suit of chainmail.  The door to this room is locked with an exceptional lock that give a -20% of being picked.


25.  This small cavern has a clear pool of water bubbling up in a depression in the floor.


26.  You get the impression that this was an old audience hall because there are a double row of columns leading up to two thrones.  On the columns are fine carvings of the adventures of a great king.  Your eyes revert back to the thrones where you see a skeleton in fine robes with a crown on its head, and another body, not completely decomposed, in the smaller of the two thrones.  The smaller has a gold pendant around his neck.  As you watch in horror, the un- decomposed body stands and points an accusing finger at you. "Assassins M'Lord," it screams in a dry voice, "I'll save you my king!"  With this he begins to move his hands in complex gestures.

     Alamek (Zombie) Int:High; Al:CN; Ac:8; 12hp; Thac0:19; Att:1; Dmg:1-8;
     SA:Spells; Xp:100; Spells: Magic Missile x2, Acid Arrow.

This the king's faithful advisor Alamek, who was a great magician of the time before he was cursed with undeath.  His pendant is missing the gem that is depicted in the tapestry.  Yes, he does resemble the man in robes. It is supposed to hold a gem of seeing, but Alamek left the gem in his Lord's castle further in the woods.  The treasure here consists of the following: crown of gold (250gp), a gold pendant for the gem (50gp without the gem), and 36 gold pieces in loose change.

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Note:  This dungeon was meant to be the starting off point of a campaign in a low-magic world.  In other words, the characters are supposed to rely on more than muscle to overcome their obstacles.  Magic in the form of items is supposed to be rare and any items are usually hoarded. Missile weapons are outlawed because of an on-going war with an evil northern nation, and other weapons are frowned upon in towns and cities.  "What would you need a weapon for if you weren't a trouble-maker?"  This adventure was designed to allow many secondary stories to follow.  The Pc's become the protectors of this village on the outskirts of the civilized world, they search for the missing gem, or they can look into why the kobolds were tearing the place down (were they looking for the amulet to begin with?).

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Brad Caldwell
st28669@latech.edu

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This document has been edited for legibility purposes by

   OLIK  /  Ole A. Ringdal
   olear@online.no  /  http://home.sol.no/olear
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