This is one module that's based on the Conan stories as well as Fafherd and the Greymouser. And there is an Indiana Jones or Alan Quartermain element to it. It's a place that is dangerous: a prehistoric crocodile, tasloi, yuan-ti, aboleths, cave fishers, and giant snakes among others.
I have a few questions about this module.
a. Should I treat it as a mega-dungeon?
b. Can I add an element of horror to it? Today's gamer expects a walk in the park. However, I blame Wizards for that. D&D is supposed to be dangerous. I'd like my players to feel that they are walking into the unknown.
b. You can. However, I would not turn it into some grudge against players, play styles, and expectations. That would waste the very functional elements in the adventure, including:
1. Body Horror via the mongrelmen and yuan-ti
2. Civilization decline with the entire city and any underground expansion
3. Weird creatures from before time via the bullywugs
4. Survival horror at being trapped in a jungle far from civilization
5. Snakes and other creepy crawlie phobias
6. Bizarre magic because why not
7. Getting sacrificed by any and all of the above
c. Yes, though not with grand expansion like that.
For what it is worth, I ran this adventure and posted it here on Canonfire under Campaign Journals section. It is listed as Dwellers of the Forbidden City and Dwellers of the Forbidden City part two.
I did a variant of this, but unfortunately the game was waylaid by COVID.
I took the map of the city, and broke it into segments. Each segment was controlled by a different group, though I slanted a majority of them towards evil fey. The toughest one was going to be a corrupted treant (the PCs were level 4 going into this, I think). I was inspired by the original Pools of Radiance CRPG.
The hope was for some politicking and making allies so the PCs would not simply fight the entire city. They would be reporting to their superiors in the Duchy of Newland (composed of some of Furyondy and some of Veluna, as Thrommel and Jolene were married in this game and Newland was an early part of integration between the two nations).
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