Is it Issue#3 already? Yes, which is why you're here, (unless you're lost), so lets talk about it.
Call of The Catacombs is a mini dungeon crawl with as many cat references as I can squeeze in. Sometimes an adventure is an effort to capture some elusive concept or set of ideas and sometimes it's just a response to the question - What if some kobolds started worshiping a magical cat? I try and bury the lead a bit so the players can have an, "Ah-ha", moment whilst exploring the 'Cat'acombs.
Links to Previous Adventures
Here are some options to link Call of The Catacombs to previous Pocket Sized Perils adventures.
- Under Siege
This city is a stronghold for the rebellion mentioned in Issue#1 and is currently besieged by the Baron's army. It wont last long if the supply of fresh water isn't restored. - A Gesture of Good Will
The city has yet to take a side in the rebellion. Dealing with this issue might win the town council to your side? - Trail of the Masked Wizard.
The Baron is clearly allied with dark forces. Tracing these occult machinations has lead you beneath the city. Perhaps the masked wizard from Issue#1 came through here either before or after encountering the PC's. - Reckless Archeology
The shrine under Bleakmarsh, (Issue#2), was opened by an archeologist who passed through. Afterwards they took a boat downriver mentioning something about a, "promising lead in the city". You should catch up to them before they dig up more trouble.
Whether you use one of these hooks, one of your own or run the adventure as a one shot; we begin in media res with the PC's sloshing through the catacombs under the city.
Below is a breakdown of the Zine. It doesn't have one big map with all the rooms arranged in relation to each other so, for context, here is that map.
Pages One and Two - Entering The Dungeon
These pages answer the question 'Why are the players here?' (ie to deal with the contaminated water the city wells are currently pumping) and then ask another...
'How do the players get into the dungeon?'
I like it when problems have more than one solution. Ideally players should be able to improvise solutions that the game master hasn't anticipated. This page presents two paths, 'Go downstream' or 'Try and find the entrance'.
The first prevents the session getting stuck if the players can't locate the door. The second throws a few more possibilities at them. They can negotiate with Skrip or the Guard, locate and force open the secret door, or come up with something unique.
I like it when problems have more than one solution. Ideally players should be able to improvise solutions that the game master hasn't anticipated. This page presents two paths, 'Go downstream' or 'Try and find the entrance'.
The first prevents the session getting stuck if the players can't locate the door. The second throws a few more possibilities at them. They can negotiate with Skrip or the Guard, locate and force open the secret door, or come up with something unique.
For example, I put a pipe in the picture the guard can use to drop 'Furballs' on unwelcome guests. Where does that pipe go? I don't know but maybe it goes to the tunnels on page 3?
If a player proposes something interesting go with it because that's the game you want to play, (not the one where they have to guess what you decided before hand).
There's also Kobolds here...
Skrip is a handy tool to help the player's find a way in and give a few clues about what's going on.
My instinct for the motivations of the other kobolds, (including the guard), is that violence isn't their first choice but it's definitely an option.
Page 3 - The Tunnels
D&D lore associates Kobolds with elaborate underground tunnel systems. That sounds fun to me but mapping out a really complex tunnel network and constantly asking the players if they go left or right doesn't.
The random table on page 3 is my way of invoking the sense of a labyrinth without bogging the game down in minutiae.
The random table on page 3 is my way of invoking the sense of a labyrinth without bogging the game down in minutiae.
There's a chance the dice will get the players 'lost' here. That's ok, we wanted to convey that this environment is tricky to navigate. Treat it as another open ended puzzle to which the players can provide a creative solution. Ask them what their character does to help the group find a way out. Clever ideas could give them advantage or negate the need for a roll entirely.
Page 4 - The Canal
If the players go downstream from the start this is where they'll come out, (taking some damage in the process). You can describe the sound of rushing water and start calling for strength checks against the current to give them a chance to back out.
This space offers a lead on what's contaminating the city wells with kobolds periodically dumping waste from the overhead bridge.
Anyone who's paying attention may be wondering, "Hang on is this the sewers or the city's water supply? Good point. I envisage these catacombs as a kind of watery Rube Goldberg Machine, with the kobolds engineering all sorts of alterations on the original architecture. From The City's perspective that's fine as long as the water out of the pumps is drinkable. Perhaps the pump station's original purpose was filtration? If players demand a blueprint of the entire network including inflows and outflows... I'm sorry, I don't know how those are supposed to look and, chances are, neither do most characters in this fantasy world.
This space offers a lead on what's contaminating the city wells with kobolds periodically dumping waste from the overhead bridge.
Anyone who's paying attention may be wondering, "Hang on is this the sewers or the city's water supply? Good point. I envisage these catacombs as a kind of watery Rube Goldberg Machine, with the kobolds engineering all sorts of alterations on the original architecture. From The City's perspective that's fine as long as the water out of the pumps is drinkable. Perhaps the pump station's original purpose was filtration? If players demand a blueprint of the entire network including inflows and outflows... I'm sorry, I don't know how those are supposed to look and, chances are, neither do most characters in this fantasy world.
Speaking of the role of water in this dungeon brings me to...
"Toxodiabolous"
I've drawn on a few cat themed influences to build the dungeon. Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic disease that rats get from cat faeces. Essentially it makes them lose their fear of cats and associate the scent of one with that of a potential mate.
The weird, 'demonic influence', potential here is immediately obvious.
I couldn't fit them into the zine itself but some playable mechanics could add to the game so here they are:
