Saturday 4 November 2017

The Manse of Xu Zang of the Silver Waters

My last post detailed how I generated a wizardly estate suburb for my ongoing suburb crawl campaign. This post zooms in to one of the specific wizard manses on the estate to illustrate some of the random dungeon creation tools I shared in the following post: http://lizardmandiaries.blogspot.com.au/2017/09/random-dungeon-creation-kit.html.

I've used the following tools to generate "The Manse of Xu Zang of the Silver Water":

  • Dungeon map
  • Dungeon danger
  • Dungeon room stocking
  • Dungeon trap
  • Dungeon treasure
  • Dungeon monster



Xu Zang, of the Silver Waters is a wizard who focuses on the creation and manipulation of quicksilver golems. Xu himself has begun to take on the dripping, formless and flowing aspect of his chosen work material. (Secret: Xu Zang's apparent form is in actual fact the only golem. Xu's consciousness was long ago dispersed into the great globular fountain that is his quick silver supply. Xu's golems are actually Xu himself, divided infinitely as needed. The man shaped thing that calls itself Xu Zang is nothing more than a decoy.) (This "twist"/secret was derived from Xu Zang having the Modus Operandi of "Work is the inverse or inside out of expertise" derived from the following "Guild Generator": http://lizardmandiaries.blogspot.com.au/2017/06/the-guild-dogs-guild-generator.html).

Dungeon Map Result: 





Dungeon Danger Result: "Location and inhabitants  are too beautiful, innocent, or otherwise lovely to harm or aggress." (Xu Zang's creations are so painfully scintillating and fascinating as to be difficult to attack).

Dungeon Room Stocking, Trap, Treasure and Monsters are as follows: 

(Bold text is the result from the above random tables).

Note: As Xu Zang's consciousness now inhabits all of the swirling mass of quicksilver in his manse he will be aware of the actions and words of all those that enter his abode. If he is interested by those that enter his domain he will whisper at them through any of his quicksilver creations. The whisper sounds like droplets of water splashing softly into a tin glass. 

1) A writhing, reflective garden of quicksilver plants and flowers. Silver veins grasp the domed stone manse. The eastern dome is squat and single storied, the eastern domes are narrow, tall and two storied. A sludgy waterfall of quicksilver topples into a pool in the SouthWest corner (7). d6 Silky cat like forms of quicksilver stalk from the SouthWest pool into the main dome (2). The forms melt slowly into the ground and dissipate completely before reforming moments later (melting in reverse).  The catlike forms endlessly dive into quicksilver basin in (9) to reform (7) pool.

Quicksilver cats: HD: d6, AC: 16, d6 damage (bite), test CON if bitten or suffer quicksilver poisoning (d6 damage per round until successful CON save). Quicksilver cats can dissipate and reform at will.

(Foe, using device to conduct relatively mundane activity.)
(Random visual beast result:
)
2) Interior of stone dome,  quicksilver vines coil from the ceiling. Circular stone stairs down.
(Empty, place of growing.)

3) Interior of stone dome. A miasma of quicksilver fog sucks all light, literally no light can emit in this room - it is "eaten" by quicksilver fog (this process can be witnessed briefly). There is thigh deep basins of quicksilver in the darkness that give quicksilver poisoning (d6 damage per round until successful CON save)
(Trap, natural hazard inherent in environment. Random trap result:Thighs by Darkness, shadows, loss)

4) Interior of stone dome, stairs up to higher stone domes. d6 psychedelic sworls twined into arches stand over stairs.  They allow the passage of quicksilver cats but will collapase onto any interlopers and attack.

Quicksilver archtrap: HD:2, AC: 14, 1d4 damage (sworl punch) or d6 choke. Swirling patterns of quicksilver twined into arches that collapse on those that walk through them (test DEX or take d4 damage per round until pass DEX test or kill quicksilver arch). Arch grapples about victims body and chokes. If not currently choking any victim will swirl into vauge man shape and attack with spikey twine of quicksilver.
(Foe, hidden and watching.)
(Random visual beast result:
)

5)
Thin decorative pools  of quicksilver line this bridging corridor. They are inhabited by d8 quicksilver polyps who will launch themselves and explode at intruders.

Quicksilver Polyp: HD: 2 AC: 12, d12 + remaining hitpoints damage (self destruct exploding damage, attacks all nearby non quicksilver targets - do individual attack rolls). Quivering blobs of quicksilver that haunt quicksilver pools. Hop into life at the arrival of non quicksilver interlopers whom they promptly launch themselves at and explode).
(Foe, sleeping or resting.
(Random visual beast result:
)

6) A central bubbling quicksilver fountain made of ornate marble. Marble framed mirrors line the circular wall. The reflection in the mirrors is slodgy and warped as the mirror surface is quicksilver. Any non quicksilver being whose reflection is caught in the mirrors must make a CHA test. If failure quicksilver belches from the mirror to attempt to coat the targets head and shoulders. DEX test at disadvantage to dodge the initial torrent. Take d8 damage, then d4 damage per round until a successful DEX test to remove quicksilver. Any one who survives this ordeal will find d100 silver coins formed from the quicksilver at their feet. The coins has their face engraved upon it.
(Trap, hidden and deadly. Random trap result: Shoulders by Value, gems, gold)

7) Quicksilver tumbles from tower of wizard manse. Gushing into bubbling pool. Quicksilver laps and spills over the side of the pool. D12 dried rods of quicksilver have formed from this escaped quicksilver. They will be worth several hundred gold each to the right buyer.

(Treasure, subsumed in location. Random treasure result: d12 x small trade good)

8) Wall of circular tower is covered in quicksilver vines and enormous flowers. Faint outlines of corpses can be made vaguely in the mass of silver vegetation. d6 clouds of silver spores hover near the flowers, docile and inactive unless disturbed by interlopers.

Cloud of putrefying flower spores: HD: 2 AC: 20 with conventional weapons(12 if attacking with breath/flame/etc weapon), any being who comes in contact with a spore cloud must test CON or start growing quicksilver flowers across body - the roots of these flowers slowly fill the body with quicksilver causing d8 damage per round, test CON each round to see if infestation passes. Shimmering clouds of semi sentient quicksilver mist. Seek to propagate the creation of quicksilver by infecting flesh with quicksilver flowers. Any being killed by flower infection will rot and melt way into a puddle of quicksilver that will flow away to the nearest body of the stuff.

(Foe, sleeping or resting.)
(Random visual beast result:
)

9)
Quicksilver flows down wall, magically pumped from the seething quicksilver vegetation of the main garden and adjacent room. Quicksilver flows into a great basin, swirling like a maelstrom. The quicksilver thunders down towards the waterfall/pond at (7) . STR test required to stand against the flow, those pulled under the current will take d6 damage a round untill they can pass a STR test or are saved. A grill catches all non liquid material. d12 potions of quicksilver repellent are caught in the grill (negate all negative effects of quicksilver for 24 hours) Potions were provided to some unwary client of Xu Zang who ultimately putrefied, the effect of the potion itself the only reason the receptacle itself hasn't melted away to nothingness. 

(Treasure, hidden. Random treasure result: d12 x useful thing)
10) Quicksilver flows from a myriad of fountains and wall fonts, splashing from pursed lips of melted cherubs and gargoyles. d6 Quicksilver polyps hide under the surface of a dark quicksilver pond in the north. Will explode when an interlopers steps foot near the pond.

Quicksilver Polyp: HD: 2 AC: 12, d12 + remaining hitpoints damage (self destruct exploding damage, attacks all nearby non quicksilver targets - do individual attack rolls). Quivering blobs of quicksilver that haunt quicksilver pools. Hop into life at the arrival of non quicksilver interlopers whom they promptly launch themselves at and explode).
(Foe, using traps to their advantage against interlopers. Random trap result: Feet by Ethereal, wispy, ghostly.)
(Random visual beast result:
)

11)
Old chemical work benches and metal casting molds. Abandoned and ruined. Clues of a time when Xu Zang had a more conventional practice before his consciousness was lost into the liquid mass of quicksilver. Diaries, diagrams and the like.

(Device external and unusual to environment, out of place sourced from elsewhere.)

12) Hardened quicksilver molds of the various creatures in the manse line the walls. There is a number of molds of a oddly liquid wizard like figure (Xu Zang molds).

(Empty, place of ritual and worship.)

13) The form of Xu Zang sits crossed legged in the middle of a completely empty room, lightness room. He is turbaned, robed, and has a beard of bubbling quicksilver. His form shimmers and shines liquidity. He sips a never ending pool of water cupped in his hands.  If watched for long enough he will melt into a puddle then reform.

Xu Zang will not acknowledge any one's presence unless directly addressed at a very close distance. Then he will talk in a robotic and stilted manner, exhibiting a vast lack of understanding and knowledge of the world about him. His voice sounds like a bubbling brook and is relatively hypnotic save for the vapidness of his words. 

If attacked Xu Zang is a HD1 creature that will not raise a hand against his attackers. If Xu Zang is killed his form will shortly reform elsewhere in his manse. Once an interloper has attacked any of Xu Zang's forms they will be haunted by clouds of putrefying flower spores until they perish or leave the manse. 

Cloud of putrefying flower spores: HD: 2 AC: 20 with conventional weapons(12 if attacking with breath/flame/etc weapon), any being who comes in contact with a spore cloud must test CON or start growing quicksilver flowers across body - the roots of these flowers slowly fill the body with quicksilver causing d8 damage per round, test CON each round to see if infestation passes. Shimmering clouds of semi sentient quicksilver mist. Seek to propagate the creation of quicksilver by infecting flesh with quicksilver flowers. Any being killed by flower infection will rot and melt way into a puddle of quicksilver that will flow away to the nearest body of the stuff.

(Foe, eating or drinking.)


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