I would like to hear others take on the "brigand courier" courier that comes to hear the latest from the Traders Outpost and Zert at the Welcome Wench. There is already an agent spying on the construction site that reports to the Traders Outpost so figured it wouldn't be him. What have the rest of you done? Where does this courier come from and who does he report to specifically at the TOEE?
I would like to hear others take on the "brigand courier" courier that comes to hear the latest from the Traders Outpost and Zert at the Welcome Wench. There is already an agent spying on the construction site that reports to the Traders Outpost so figured it wouldn't be him. What have the rest of you done? Where does this courier come from and who does he report to specifically at the TOEE?
NPC name and stats would be great too.
I created names for everyone in Hommlet but never typed it up and put it online. I will probably need to re-do this.
I'd have him travelling between several villages with Verbobonc at the one end and Nulb at the other.
..
I looked at the Temple having two support networks that the characters would struggle against outside of the Temple:
1. Intelligence. This included the traders, the spy at the construction site, and courier, but included other villages in the area between Verbobonc and Dyvers. This was run out of the third dungeon level by Smigmal Redhand and Falrinth, rooms 336 and 337. The brigands were able to move about the most as they could blend in with the local population. The character would spend some of their time trying to defeat this network before finally destroying it on the third level of the temple.
2. Logistics. As you may have noted, there are lots of monsters, humans, and humanoids, and not a farm to be seen. They need some way of supplying themselves, and robbery only goes so far. I am still trying to figure out how goods are smuggled in, but the river pirates are a big part of the equation, as are disreputable, but not necessarily collaborating, merchants in Verbobonc and Dyvers. This is also the recruiting network for the main temple.
I looked at the ToEE as an insurgency in the area, and decided to run it as such; it is trying to subvert the loyalty of the populace, and even its initial spread is comparable to communist insurgency theory (not the ideals, but the methods).
I looked at the Temple having two support networks that the characters would struggle against outside of the Temple:
1. Intelligence. This included the traders, the spy at the construction site, and courier, but included other villages in the area between Verbobonc and Dyvers. This was run out of the third dungeon level by Smigmal Redhand and Falrinth, rooms 336 and 337. The brigands were able to move about the most as they could blend in with the local population. The character would spend some of their time trying to defeat this network before finally destroying it on the third level of the temple.
2. Logistics. As you may have noted, there are lots of monsters, humans, and humanoids, and not a farm to be seen. They need some way of supplying themselves, and robbery only goes so far. I am still trying to figure out how goods are smuggled in, but the river pirates are a big part of the equation, as are disreputable, but not necessarily collaborating, merchants in Verbobonc and Dyvers. This is also the recruiting network for the main temple.
I looked at the ToEE as an insurgency in the area, and decided to run it as such; it is trying to subvert the loyalty of the populace, and even its initial spread is comparable to communist insurgency theory in methods if not ideas.
Thanks Jason and tarelton. I knew some of you must have developed this. I poked around as much as I could before coming here to ask. Didn't find much. I have the logistics laid out for the Greater Temple so far. I pasted that below. As for the Fire, Water, Earth and Air temples, they have their own contacts and logistics.
(i found a contradiction in Jonathon Scott's guide to run the temple "On level 3, there are also two leaders for the troops located in the Broken Tower found on map 11 (the northeast corner). Smigmal Redhand and Falrinth.")
I did not connect Falrinth as leading anything. He is just an ally. In my write up I determined the following:
Quote:
Falrinth (Area 337) is relatively independent, neither an agent of one of the temples, nor an initiate and member of the Greater Temple, he is mostly an ally of Smigmal Redhandand and member of her bandit crew – although even there his loyalties are thin. Located at The Escape Tunnel – this passage is known of by the bandits loyal to Falrinth and Smigmal Redhand . This includes Commander Feldrin and his force.
Greater Temple: Feldrin, Commander of the Temple guard is responsible for providing prisoners and supplies to the greater temple. Lieutenant Brunk , a half-orc, hates Feldrin and desires his command but is in charge of the immediate temple guards. Lareth 's Lieutenant Gattas is in charge of staging and sending wagons at the High Road Bandit Camp (located off the High road near the swamp edge) to deliver prisoners and supplies from the merchants and farms they loot to Wade (pretends to be a hunter) at the Hunting Cabin which in turn is sent up the supply supply tunnel into the High Temple. The plunder and prisoners is examined and sorted to be sent on to the Greater Temple to be received by Feldrin 's men which includes Smigmal Redhand and his Tower Bandits.
I decided to add more entrances to the TOEE
Water Temple: is provided by Tolub the pirate leader thru pirate cavern/tunnel off the Emridy River.
Earth Temple: Cave/tunnel entrance west of TOEE.
Air Temple: side entrance/bandit tower
Fire Temple: side entrance/bandit tower
Quote:
4. ESCAPE TUNNEL
This five-foot-wide passage is hewn from
the bedrock underlying the Temple complex,
evidently following a natural fissure in
the limestone. It bears generally west,
though it has many curves. In places it is not
worked at all, and there the width varies
from four to eight feet. About 540 feet
along, it opens into a small natural cave.
The north wall of this 40' oval chamber is
marked by a three-foot wide opening. (A
secret entrance to Dungeon Level Three,
area 335, is concealed in the eastern portion
of the south wall by a balanced, pivoting
stone slab.
So I have the escape tunnel to a cottage and barn as described by the module. I just make the entire tunnel system a little wider for delivering of supplies. Used by Feldrin's bandits from the High Pass bandit camp. I have Wade and 4 Gnolls guarding this place.
Quote:
Near the tunnel exit are a deserted cottage
and a ramshackle barn. This whole area is
screened by surrounding trees. In the barn
are six light horses, which belong to the brigand
leaders. They are fed and exercised
each night in most cases
Back at the central circler cavern is another tunnel that the Earth Temple uses for supplies (or they could just simply use this one too)
Ok, I put out a lot of effort the last few days and created the Brigand Courier/TOEE priest. Published on World Anvil. But I copy/paste below. Unfortuntely I cant post photo's on this website. Unable to share my private world anvil campaign world unless people have an account and I invite them.
[/img]
Quote:
Lucius Graeme
Lines upon lines mar that bare head. Beady golden eyes, set a-symmetrically within their sockets, watch delightedly over tankards of ale for so long. Fallen debry left a mark reaching from the bottom of the left cheekbone , running towards the right side of his lips and ending above his left eye leaves a pleasant memory of his unfortunate past.
There's something intriguing about him, perhaps it's his suffering or perhaps it's simply his hatred. But nonetheless, people tend to take him seriously.
Description:
He wears a grey small hat and grey clothes. He is portly but not overly obese. His voice is smooth and creepy, always level, but somehow just slightly unnerving.
Personality:
He was once a vain and cruel human nobleman. He is intelligent and cunning, but he will too often allow his rage to get the better of him. He will lose his cool and rely on brute force to carry the day. He is a man who does what he needs to and will acquiesce to black mail and extortion to avoid trouble. He will use flattery and sarcasm to attack and weaken his opponents. He misses nothing and will find the narrative with the smallest details.
He is filled with cunning and likes to feign weakness letting people think he is weak. Spending most of his days drinking in the Inn, the rowdiest and most dangerous establishment in town. There he gambles, wrestles and listens to stories told by travelers.
History:
A Priest of Iuz and a leader of the Temple of Elemental Evil, Lucius was sent by Iuz to serve the supreme leader Hedrack, who was quickly subverted into following the Elder Elemental Eye. He serves as a courier for the Greater Temple for all the agents in Hommlet and the other elemental outposts. His network of agents are extensive and has the power and authority to make decisions and guide his agents efforts into misleading the Mounted Borders from Nulb and the elemental outposts. Ensuring the raids redirect attention to the gnomes in Tulvar.
Motivation:
Narcissistic and confident he believes that since he has an unerring perception of the future, he will always be victorious and invincible to the designs of his enemies. He believes true power comes from chaos.
He realizes that the elements that make up the world are indifferent to good or evil as mortals understand the concepts. But true primordial powers of the elemental plane are tainted with true evil. To be bargained with and controlled. Serve as sources of power to those who learn to draw on their might.
He delights in using primordial powers to destroy and nature and civilized communities. If he finds himself in a position of non-discovery and has the upper hand will attempt to ambush and attack anyone he thinks he can take on and try to knock them out with non-lethal damage. if successful, he will then take them to the Bandit camp on the high pass road to be delivered to the High Temple.
Nice analysis and tips.
Keep in mind the infighting amongst the factions in ToEE is what prevents them from doing anything meaningful like releasing Zuggtmoy, and essentially waiting there to be knocked off by the adventurers. As such I liked the idea of more entrances, as it allows the 4 factions to survive and keep arguing with each other.
I always found it a bit weird the Temple is chained up to keep Zuggtmoy in, but everyone else wanders in and out. But clearly the chains are there for her not flunkies.
One of the biggest challenges I find with dungeon crawl type modules is to my mind the areas need to function like ecosystems, and often they weren't written that way. So they need to be tweaked to work.
For example for me the Moathouse needed changing so the giant frogs, rats and spider (Latrek the Beautiful - cleric of Lolth!) were a guard system one one side that could chew up intruders, and the brigands operated out of the other with the tunnel.
I mean great if you have 4 red dragons making the adventure spicy, but they'll eat that area out of cattle and people in about a month ....
In the Moathouse, the giant rats eat the frogs, then get eaten by the giant spider, who also eats the brigands ....
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