d20 4e Expeditious Retreat Press Lands of Darkness 2 Cesspools of Arnac.pdf

Lands of Darkness

The Cesspools of Arnac

An adventure setting for 5 players levels 3-5

Authors: Suzi Yee and Joseph Browning

Cartographer: Joseph Browning

Cover Artist: Joan Guardiet

Credits

Internal Artists: Jeremy McHugh, Scott Purdy

Editor: Joseph Browning

Layout: Suzi Yee

Table of Contents

Introduction..........................................................................2

1. The Grand Flow...............................................................4

2. The Grand Flow Northwest.............................................5

3. The Foetid Falls...............................................................6

4. Crickey!............................................................................8

5. The Skittering Larder.......................................................9

6. The Lord of Filth............................................................10

7. The Builders...................................................................12

8. The Refugees.................................................................13

9. 12 Feet Under.................................................................14

10. The Forgotten Room....................................................16

11. Brigands’ Lair...............................................................18

12. The Stagnant Pool........................................................20

Player Handouts.................................................................21

Introduction

Lands of Darkness #2: The Cesspools of Arnac is designed

for parties Levels 3-5. While this work details 12 encounters,

this vast sewage system is quite large. GM’s are encouraged

to drag and drop this location in their campaign and create

more encounters for party exploration or future story arcs.

However, a general history and adventure hooks are provided

for GM’s on the go.

• The local constable has caught wind of a brigand hideout

located beneath the city, and has a hunch it may be in the

sewers. Severely understaffed and underfunded, he can only

offer a modest reward, but the party is welcome to it (and

anything they ind on the scoundrels) if they bring proof that

they have disbanded the brigands.

• A strange old woman seeks out the party’s help to acquire a

rare ingredient for her ungents and brews. There are rumors of

a foul beast living below the city, ilthy, bloated and tentacled

with a single eyestalk. Should the party retrieve the eye of the

beast, the old woman will reward them handsomely.

How to Use Lands of Darkness

Lands of Darkness have encounters within a larger area. They

are easily dropped into a pre-existing campaign with plenty of

room for GMs to expand more detail speciic to their world

and story arcs.

Encounters are tailored for each level within range. For

example, The Cesspools of Arnac is designed for parties

Levels 3-5, so each encounter will have monsters, treasures,

quests, and starting position map for a party level 3, party

level 4, and party level 5. If a party completes each encounter,

they should have acquired enough experience to gain 1 level.

GMs should take note of which monsters are in the area,

as the monster lists and starting locations are dependent on

party level. For example in area 4, the juvenile cesspool

crocodile is only present for Party Level 3, while the young

cesspool crocodile is only present for Party Level 4. Also note

the addition of more monsters of the same type. For example

in area 7, Party Level 5 encounter 6 Restless Dead denoted on

the maps as R, R 4 , and R 5 .

Features

Disease: Something foul resides in the cesspool besides

the excrement: Arnac’s Revenge! Said to originate and take

refuge in the sewers after the last rightful ruler of Arnac was

usurped and his body beheaded, drawn, quartered, and tossed

into the waste water. Creatures of the cesspools are generally

immune to its effects, and some are even carriers, spreading

Arnac’s Revenge to others.

Arnac’s Revenge

Level 5 Disease

Found lurking in the sewer waters and bites of the creatures

that make the cesspools their home, this disease attacks its

victims’ virility, leaving the body drained and dazed.

Attack: + 7 vs. Fortitude.

Endurance: improve DC 22, maintain DC 17, worse DC

16 or lower

The target is cured.

History

6 Initial Effect: Target loses 1 healing surge.

6 The target takes a -4 penalty to AC and Fortitude

The city of Arnac is a once-thriving city that has come on

hard times. The vast sewers beneath the city are a testament

to grander days, when crews of civic workers kept the bad

waters lowing out. Times are different now and the cesspools

have become home to feral, twisted and diseased creatures

that shun the upper world.

defense.

Final State: The target takes a -4 penalty to AC

and Fortitude defense. Target is dazed.

Hooks

Entrance: At the entrance of the cesspools is a locked

grate. Small creatures can squeeze through the grate with

little dificulty, but Medium creatures must make a Dexterity

Check DC 15 to squeeze through the bars. Alternately, a

Thievery Check DC 18 will unlock the grate. No one is quite

sure whether the locks are there to keep people out of the

sewers or keep something inside.

Lighting: While much of the sewers are dark, there are

occasional pockets (noted in features of the area) of Arnac’s

Lantern, a phospherescent mushroom that thrives in rich

organic material. When present, it provides enough light for

low-light vision to see. However, those foolish enough to

ingest the budding fruit in the sewers are exposed to Arnac’s

Revenge.

If the party needs some incentive to explore the Cesspools of

Arnac, here are three potential adventure hooks. If used, they

are treated as Quests with token treasure if they are successful.

(Level 3-150 Experience, 75 gp; Level 4-175 Experience, 85

gp; Level 5-200 Experience, 100gp).

• A merchant’s daughter went missing two weeks ago, and

last she was seen heading toward the sewers. The merchant

hires the party to venture into the cesspools and return his

daughter or word of her fate (describing a locket she always

wore).

Natural Caves: While most of the cesspools are

manmade, the engineers used a natural cave system as part

of the sewer network when possible to cut costs. Some of the

detailed areas in Cesspools of Arnac are natural caves, but

GMs are encouraged to add more to their liking.

Spillways: Throughout the sewers are spillways, rooms

where pipes from all over the city converge and empty the

waste which eventually make its way to a main water channel.

The loors have recessed areas to direct the low, but in times

of great use, the ilth exceeds the channels, covering the loors

and making them slippery and hard to maneuver (Acrobatics

Check DC 15 to keep your balance unless noted otherwise in

the area’s features). Some of the detailed areas in Cesspools

of Arnac are spillways, but GMs are encouraged to add more

to their liking.

Storage Rooms: Through the cesspools are storage

rooms, areas where supplies were tucked away for workers.

However, these areas make ideal nesting sites, surreptitious

meeting rooms, and hide outs. Some of the detailed areas

in Cesspools of Arnac are storage rooms, but GMs are

encouraged to add more to their liking.

Water Channel: The main water channels are manmade

with walkways on either side of the water and occasional

bridges spanning the water. The water channel is generally 10

feet deep (unless otherwise noted).

Overview Map of the

Cesspools of Arnac

Random Encounters

The party may encounter monsters while wandering the

Cesspools of Arnac. Roll randomly on the table every 4 hours

while in the cesspools.

Random Encounters (1d6)

1 4 Dire Cesspool Rats

2 2 Cesspool Crocodiles

3 3 Restless Dead

4 2 Footpads

5 No Encounters

6 No Encounters

Scale=250 feet

illed in gray. GM’s are encouraged to adapt the map to suit

their needs and create more encounters or branches of the

sewer to suit their particular campaigns and story arcs.

While the work concentrates on the sewers beneath the city,

there are a few detailed areas that delineate the city above.

Using This Map

The cesspools are a branching network of channels leading

out to the main low that exits to the south through a locked

grate. The areas that are detailed within Cesspools of Arnac

are white and labeled with numbers, while other areas are

• Above Area 6 is the butchery.

• Above Area 9 is a cemetery.

• Area 10 leads to the surface via trap door.

• Area 11 leads to the surface via trap door.

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Compatibility Logo, D&D, PLAYER’S HANDBOOK,

DUNGEON MASTER’S GUIDE, and MONSTER MANUAL are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. in the USA and

other countries and are used with permission. Certain materials, including 4E References in this publication, D&D core rules

mechanics, and all D&D characters and their distinctive likenesses, are property of Wizards of the Coast, Inc., and are used with

permission under the Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition Game System License. All 4E References are listed in the 4E System

Reference Document, available at www.wizards.com/d20.

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS 4th Edition PLAYER’S HANDBOOK, written by Rob Heinsoo, Andy Collins, and James Wyatt;

DUNGEON MASTER’S GUIDE, written by James Wyatt; and MONSTER MANUAL, written by Mike Mearls, Stephen

1. The Grand Flow

The grand low is the main waterway where all the smaller

branches converge into a one thick slow-moving body of

waste. The cesspool rats have carved out a nice home near the

entrance of the sewers, having both the advantages of surface

life and life underground.

S 4

Monsters

Party Level 3 (500 XP)

7 Cesspool Rats (25 XP each) ( C )

2 Dire Cesspool Rats (100 XP) ( D )

1 Cesspool Rat Swarms (125 XP) ( S )

-10

C 5

D 5

Party Level 4 (625 XP)

7 Cesspool Rats (25 XP each) ( C )

2 Dire Cesspool Rats (100 XP) ( D )

2 Cesspool Rat Swarms (125 XP) ( S ) ( S 4 )

Party Level 5 (750 XP)

8 Cesspool Rats (25 XP each) ( C ) ( C 5 )

3 Dire Cesspool Rats (100 XP) ( D ) ( D 5 )

2 Cesspool Rat Swarms (125 XP) ( S ) ( S 4 )

Features

Bridge: The bridge arches across the water and is +5 feet at

its center.

Lighting: Patches of Arnac’s Lanterns line the edge of

the waterway, giving a faint phospherescent glow.

Rat Nest: A Perception Check DC 12 spots the small

entrance to the rat’s nest in the northeast corner. The rat’s nest

is where the listed treasure is located. Riling through the rat’s

nest exposes a person to Arnac’s Revenge.

Waterway: The waterway is 10 ft. deep and illed with sludge.

Cesspool Rat

Level 1 Minion

Small natural beast

XP 25

Initiative +2 Senses Perception +4; low-light vision

HP 1; a missed attack never damages a minion.

AC 15; Fortitude 13, Relex 15, Will 12

Immune Arnac’s Revenge

Speed 5, climb 2

M Bite (standard; at-will)

+7 vs. AC; 4 damage.

Alignment Unaligned Languages –

Skills Swim +5

Str 13 (+1) Dex 16 (+3) Wis 11 (+0)

Con 13 (+1) Int 2 (-4) Cha 7 (-2)

Tactics

The cesspool rats are feeding and foraging. Their nest is in the

northeast corner of the map, and they are iercely territorial,

attacking when anyone other than other cesspool rats that

approach.

Dire Cesspool Rat Level 1 Brute

Medium natural beast XP 100

Initiative +1 Senses Perception +4; low-light vision

HP 38; Bloodied 19

AC 15; Fortitude 15, Relex 13, Will 11

Immune Arnac’s Revenge

Speed 5, climb 2

M Bite (standard; at-will) • Disease

+5 vs. AC; 1d6 + 1 damage, and the target contracts

Arnac’s Revenge.

Alignment Unaligned Languages –

Skills Stealth +8, Swim +5

Str 15 (+2) Dex 14 (+2) Wis 11 (+0)

Con 19 (+4) Int 3 (-4) Cha 7 (-2)

Treasure

Party Level 3

Broken earring (10gp), copper necklace (5gp), copper ring

(1gp), gold bracelet (14gp), gold earring (20gp), and silver

ring (10gp)

Party Level 4

Broken earring (10gp), copper necklace (5gp), copper ring

(1gp), ine silver ring (20gp), gold bracelet (14gp), and gold

earring (30gp)

Party Level 5

Broken earring (10gp), copper necklace (5gp), copper ring

(1gp), lawed amethyst (20gp), ine silver ring (20gp), gold

bracelet (14gp), and gold earring (30gp)

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