Quantum Dungeons Preview 3A

Last time I ran characters from Stellagama Publishing’s upcoming Quantum Dungeons through an Old School Essentials adventure. This time I’ve chosen a longer adventure for Shadowdark.

Ragnar’s Crew

As a reminder, these are our six sample characters. I’m applying the “nerf” referred to in an alternate universe but not the wounds incurred in said universe. In other words, each character has one less Talent.

Mithrius’s Spells: Respite, Sleep

AC is the target number an attacker must roll to hit a character.

Stamina is the amount of damage a character can take before they are Wounded and effectively out of the fight.

Parry is the number of Parry Dice the character has, as a result of their Combat skill plus one for a Shield if they carry one. A character expends Parry Dice each round to meet or exceed an attacker’s roll in order to block.

Weapon damage is rated 1d6D (roll two dice and use the lower), 1d6, and 1d6A (roll two dice and use the higher).

Shadowdark Conversions

The next adventure I’ll use is for Shadowdark, which is a little different from other OSR titles. For one thing, it makes far heavier use of attribute checks: STRength, DEXterity, CONstitution, INTelligence, WISdom, and CHArisma. These don’t map easily to the six skills of Quantum Dungeons:

Likewise I need to convert DCs for each action:

And a similar scale for modifiers;

Every other conversion I’ll just do on the fly, as I encounter each creature or obstacle.

Playtest 2: Red Moon Harvest

This time I’m going to run them all the way through a Shadowdark one-shot titled “Red Moon Harvest”, from Adventure Anthology by Pickpocket Games. Steven J. Grodzicki originally wrote these adventures for his Low Fantasy Gaming RPG; William Murakami-Brundage converted them for Shadowdark.

The Situation

Frontier farmers are going missing on the southern borderlands of Crow’s Keep, but not in the usual way. Homes are left abandoned, open and unsecured, with unfinished meals still lying on tables. The tracks of the missing are also curious, trailing off into the Trackless Moors alone, with no sign of bloodshed or struggle. The guard want to know why and are willing to pay good coin to find out.

Rumour has it a ranger recently discovered a crumbling manor about two days trek into the Trackless Moors. Flickering torchlight within drew her attention, but as she approached, Beastmen appeared from the entrance, and Barbarians fired upon her from high windows. The prospect that halfmen and barbarians might have formed an alliance is unheard of, and extremely worrisome if true.

The rangers have hired Ragnar’s Crew to “investigate” the house (i.e. clear it out) and look for signs of the missing farmers.

Trekking through the Moors

First, however, the Crew have to navigate through the moors. I’m going to posit that the rangers sent a guide, Taran, who will escort them to the Moors and back but will not fight unless his own life is threatened.

Reaching the mansion will take two days, with a 33% chance of an encounter every eight hours. Busting out my polyhedral dice, I roll on the encounter table provided.

The Centipede

The first encounter is on the night of the first day. A single giant centipede crawls through the muck and mire. The party easily drive it off with torches.

The Fairy

The following morning, a small winged creature buzzes around the group, It is a Fairy that wants to play hide and seek with the group. Duri and Taran try to befriend it, while the others simply shoo it away. Eventually it gets bored and leaves.

The Moor Trolls

Aelfred sights a dozen Moor Trolls hibernating in a nearby bog. Taran advises them not to approach, so the party carefully avoids them.

Approaching the Manor

[It] sits on a low hill in one of the moor’s drier regions. Once a proud and imposing outpost on the borderlands, what remains is a silent ruin; dark stone walls worn and crumbling, evidenced by numerous piles of collapsed brick, fields and gardens completely overgrown with shrubs and weeds.

Taran points out the manor a little ways off, then sets up a small camp to wait for the Crew. It’s midday, and the house seems quiet. Humanoid tracks lead straight to the front door. Ragnar decides the front door is good enough for him, and he walks through the open doorway. The door is missing.

Inside the Manor

Reception Hall

After a short hallway the Crew reach an entrance hallway. Two stairwells rise behind them; the walls on each side have two exits, and a larger exit opens in the far side of the room. This room contains:

broken picture frames, toppled wooden plinths and mouldy carpet. Parts of the greenery from outside have made its way into the foyer, curling about sections of the stairways […]. Humanoid tracks lead in all directions from this room, and there are several smears of clear mucus.

The Crew decide not to pick through the detritus. After a brief discussion they decide to explore the near right-side doorway.

L-Shaped Room

They enter an L-shaped room, apparently a spare room, which is piled with skeletons of dead humans, many of whom still wear rotting clothes and other finery. Seven giant rats are skittering through the pile. Seven pairs of beady eyes stare at the Crew as they enter.

Ragnar sees no point in disturbing the rats, but the rats, with the prospect of fresh meat, immediately rush the crew.

Initiative

The rats roll a 7. Ragnar rolls 7, Duri rolls 10, Berthold 10, Mithrius 10, Giles 3, and Aelfred 8. So the initiative order is:

1. Berthold
2. Duri
3. Mithrius
4. Aelfred
5. Ragnar
6. the Giant Rats (7)
7. Giles

Round 1

• Berthold does 4 damage to Rat #1 with his main hammer, killing it, but misses with his off-hand hammer.
• Duri also misses.
• Mithrius casts Sleep on four of the remaining rats. In Shadowdark this would be based on CON, which for the hardy rats is +1; thus they’d need a 9 or higher on a d20, which works out to a 7 on 2d6. Only 2 of the rats succumb.
• Aelfred aims an arrow at a rat, which hits, doing only 2 damage.
• Ragnar strikes at Rat #4, and hits, doing 1 point of damage.
• The four remaining giant rats attack Berthold, Ragnar, Duri, and Aelfred. Berthold, Aelfred, and even Ragnar are bitten. They do one point each to Berthold and Ragnar, and two points to Aelfred, who isn’t looking good.
• Giles strikes Rat #4 with his machete, and hits finally killing it.

Round 2

• Berthold smashes a rat with each hammer, doing 5 damage to Rat #5 and 2 damage to Rat #6.
• Duri rolls a natural 2 and drops his hammer.
• Mithrius casts Respite on Aelfred, who is healed back to full health but may still have to contend with disease (which I’ll roll for later(.
• Aelfred looses an arrow at Rat #6. The dice indicate a miss, but Aelfred uses one of his Hero Points to reroll, hitting the rat or 5 damage.
• Ragnar spears the last one for 4 damage.

Just as the crew relaxes from that encounter, two berserkers wander into the room, chicken legs and bread rolls in their hands. They’re surprised to see six people (and seven dead rats). They drop their food and reach for their weapons, but the Crew react first.

Round 3

This is still a surprise round for the berserkers, so only the crew will attack.

• Berthold attacks one berserker with both hammers, missing with the first attack but hitting with the second. He does 6 points of damage.
• Duri’s blow glances off the berserker’s armor.
• Mithrius attempts the Sleep spell again and barely succeeds. The unwounded one slumps to the ground.
• Aelfred fires and hits the remaining berserker, who takes 5 damage. He slumps to the ground, wounded.

The Crew quickly tie up both berserkers and leave them in the room of bones. They then proceed straight (east) into the next room.

The Guard Room

This room used to be a sitting room, littered with the remains of fine furniture. Two beastmen wait here, with a glassy look in their eyes. Upon seeing the Crew they stand up and make a show of strength, breaking furniture further, flexing muscles, and hooting.

Initiative

1. Berthold (13)
2. Aelfred (8)
3. Ragnar (7, C 3)
4. Duri (7, C 1)
5. Mithrius (7, C 1)
6. Giles (7, C 1)
7. Beastmen (7, C 1, NPC)

Summary of Combat

The crew find nothing of value in this room, so they continue east, cutting across the hallway.

The Baths

The Crew peek into one room slightly north, and find a bloodstained bath with a skeleton in it. A quick search reveals a fine set of ivory game pieces worth about 25 gp.

They continue south down a hallway to a tower they saw from the front.

The East Tower

An iron door bars their way. Giles manages to pick the lock, and they enter.

The laboratory within consists of tables, glassware, drips, an iron stove/forge, flues, an anvil and fine metal working tools. Spread on the main table is a clockwork device that looks like a thick silvery bracelet.

Duri and Giles examine the bracelet, twisting knobs, pushing gears.

If a nodule on the band is pressed however, a shield fans out from one side (treat as a shield, doesn’t count as an item when retracted). The shield-band is worth 250 gp to a warrior or collector.

Giles, who lacks a shield, takes the bracelet.

Hallways and Rooms

The Crew check all the rooms and corridors on the southeast side, and come back to the main hallway. They decide to search west, and find only a pantry … and a room full of beastmen.

1. Aelfric (14)
2. Giles (13)
3. Ragnar (10)
4. Berthold (9)
5. Duri (8)
6. Mithrius (7)
7. six Beastmen (3)

The West Tower

The West Tower seems to have been converted into a makeshift barracks: ramshackle weapons rack, series of benches (some broken). There is a huge safe here, which Giles decides he’s going to crack. Stone steps lead upward and downward.

Giles cracks the safe. He finds a bunch of papers, a potion, and a suit of blackened steel plate mail.

Mithrius examines the potion. It is cold to the touch; inside is a swirling vortex, and it bubbles. Mithrius has no idea what it does.

After a brief discussion, the Crew decide to go search the rest of the ground floor.

The Spider

While traversing the hallways and checking rooms, Ragnar’s Crew discover a giant spider crawling on the ceiling. It freezes, but Ragnar spots it and his Crew ready for combat.

Initiative

1. Spider (13)
2. Ragnar (11)
3. Aelfred (11)
4. Berthold (10)
5. Duri (8)
6. Mithrius (8)
7. Giles (4)

The Crew continues on to the rearmost room in the northwest.

The Bear Cave

Amidst gardening tools and remnants of bunk beds, a Brown Bear rests on a bed of wadded sheets. When the Crew enters, it roars and attacks.

Initiative

1. Alaric (11)
2. Berthold (11)
3. Ragnar (10)
4. Bear (9)
5. Giles (8)
6. Duri (7)
7. Mithrius (7)

In the Bear Den the crew finds a chip of an emerald worth 10 gp and what Mithrius judges to be vial of anti-venom.

Encounter in a Long Hallway

The Crew exits the Bear Den and moves due East along a long corridor. While traveling that corridor they hear

A loud, discordant ringing noise echoes throughout the manor for a moment, setting everyone’s teeth on edge.

The noise seems to come from upstairs.

Kitchen

The Crew makes a left and looks through the first door to the left. They find a …

10 foot by 20 foot kitchen containing an iron stove, fireplace, broken benches and shelves. No food remains, but two human half skeletons are stuffed into the open oven.

Giles searches the remains and finds a small golden ring with a dove motif, probably worth 40 gp.

Dining Room

At the end of the hallway is a door to the dining room;

At the rear of the mansion is a 25 foot by 12-foot dining room, complete with a largely intact feasting table, and a series of broken chairs. Faded paintings and torn tapestries are hung on the walls. The northwestern corner of the room has a large hole in it, the floor cluttered with rock and scree.

From under the table skitter eight five-inch high creatures that look like eyeballs slung under the thorax of a long-legged spider. Ragnar grimaces and says, “What are you waiting for?”

Initiative

1. Giles (12)
2. Ragnar (11)
3. Duri (8)
4. Eyes (8)
5. Berthold (6)
6. Aelfric (5)
7. Mithrius (5)

While Giles, Berthold, and Aelfric pursue the stray eye creature, Mithrius, Duri, and Ragnar carefully search the room. Under the table they find a fibrous cocoon of eggs. Ragnar speculates that the eggs may be worth something, but Duri and Mithrius want to kill them with fire. Soon the table is burning merrily.

Ragnar, miffed, decides they’ve searched the downstairs well enough, and they make their way back to the front hall …

And that’s where we will leave them for now.

Experience

So far, the Crew has acquired the following treasure:

• A fine set of ivory game pieces (25 gp)
• A magic(?) shield bracelet.
• A suit of dark plate armor.
• A mysterious potion.
• A gold ring (40 gp).

They have defeated the following monsters:

• Seven giant rats (1 HD)
• Two berserkers (2 HD)
• Two beastmen (1 HD)
• One giant spider (3 HD)
• One brown bear (5 HD)
• Seven skitter-eyes (0 HD)

Further Comments

• Perhaps a 13-page adventure was too much to tackle by myself. Ideally I’d have six players over Discord so I can refer back to the logs when compiling this article.

• Shadowdark is perhaps the closest “OSR” system to D&D 5e. My translations of DCs and bonuses were based more on vibes than on any strictly mathematical analysis.

• Some parts of the Shadowdark experience are hard to translate. For example, this adventure suggests random encounters “every 30 minutes”. Unfortunately flipping between the adventure book, the Shadowdark core book, the dice, and my own previous notes, then writing down the results, probably takes more than 30 minutes in and of itself. The berserkers that showed up in the L-shaped room were the result of a 30-minute timer going off just as I’d worked out initiative for the rat fight.

Next Time

We will finish this adventure in a future post.