d20 Emerald Press Campaign Options Mazes.pdf

Lorelied,

Dana R. Seilhan, Matt Williams, Kurt

Wimmer

A d20 Campaign Options Sourcebook

Playtester Credits: Derek Gerritsen, John

Dwyer, Kurt Wimmer

Written by Todd Crapper

Mazes

Editor: Duane Nutley

Special thanks to everyone who participated

in the Pick-A-Maze contest and gave their

input:

Interior and Cover Art: Benjamin D. Richards

A d20 Campaign

Options

SourceBbook

Cartography: Clayton Bunce

Anna Dobritt, Banantalis, Brenton Horrillo,

Dungannon, Foxx, Heimdall (our winner),

Cover Design: Sean C Frolich

Malicene, Richards, Ritchie, seeker95,

skade, storyguide3, Thanoss,

TheAuldGrump,

Layout: William T Blackburn

Celtic Knotwork Designs © David A. Hall

Trango, Trip, Wystan, and Zepherus.

Playtester Credits:

James Ade, William T Blackburn, Michele Langston, Vivien Lorelied, Dana R. Seilhan, Matt Williams, and Kurt Wimmer

Special thanks to everyone who participated in the Pick-A-Maze contest and gave their input:

Anna Dobritt, Banantalis, Brenton Horrillo, Dungannon, Foxx, Heimdall (our winner), Malicene, Richards, Ritchie, seeker95, skade, story-

guide3, Thanoss, TheAuldGrump, Trango, Trip, Wystan, and Zepherus.

Disclaimer: This sourcebook does not use English (U.S.)

This book is dedicated to Thet, who gave me the encouragement and incentive to write this book when she spoke those magic words: “Maybe

if you started writing it, I can get some sleep around here.”

Written by Todd Crapper

Disclaimer: This sourcebook does not use

English (U.S.)

Editor: Duane Nutley

Interior Artwork and Cover: Benjamin

D. Richards

This book is dedicated to Thet, who gave me

the encouragement and incentive to write this

book when she spoke those magic words:

“Maybe if you started writing it, I can get

some sleep around here.”

Cartography: Clayton Bunce

Layout: Shawn Sines

Sleep tight.

Playtester Credits: James Ade, William

Blackburn, Michele Langston, Vivien

The Layout of This Book

Mazes has been split into four sections: the first is an Introduction (which you are currently reading) to provide readers with a concept of these pages;

one is for the GMs (or “crafters”); another is for the players who will strive to complete the designated maze; and the last is an adventure utilising

many of the rules provided within this book. Both sections pertaining to GMs and players have been written in a separate format from each other and

are designed to be read by each exclusively. A rough listing of the contents is provided below.

Introduction:

• the purpose to building and exploring a maze

• three styles for running a maze

• “cheating” pros and cons

For the GMs (Chapters 1-3):

• building a maze from the ground up

• racial structures (i.e. a maze built by gnomes or dragons)

• maze locations (underground, exterior)

• maze components (corners, light, adjusting normal rules in a maze)

• random maze generator

• determining the Challenge Rating for a maze

• adding Maze Templates to enhance any maze

• new and common maze inhabitants

For the Players (Chapters 4-5):

• the Explorer core class

• four new prestige classes

• new feats and spells

It should be obvious that the entire book is accessible to GMs, while only the second half should be made available to players who are trapped within

a maze.

aspects that come with this kind of adventure design can all come with

practise – trust me on this one. The best resources for practise are to

play with mazes yourself and study them as you make your attempts

to escape. Once you understand how to get out, you will stand a

much better chance of putting one together.

A Note from the Author

I have never designed a maze in my life. There, I’ve said it. It’s out in

the open. So now the big question is why should you read a book

from a guy who has never designed a maze before he started writing

this book?

I would like to thank Shane for the opportunity to write this book and

paying me for having fun. Despite the long nights and anxious

moments that came with this assignment, it was a hard project to put

down when the time came. I would also like to thank everyone who

voted in the Pick-A-Maze event that was held at the Emerald Press

website and for all of your comments that came with your selections.

Because if I can learn how to design a maze, so can you. And that

makes this the best kind of how-to book in role-playing. And that

would turn this section into the infomercial to promote it.

Otherwise, I hope that all of you enjoy this sourcebook and find ways

to put it to good use. As for me, I’m signing off.

The idea came shortly after I started running the second game in my

Shadoworld campaign. I had downloaded the map of a tower (as a

shortcut in game designing) and had placed it underwater for the

characters to explore. Situated on the ground level of the tower (no

pun intended) was a small maze designed to confuse invaders and

repel them from discovering the stairs that lead further up. I liked this

idea and decided to take advantage of it. Then came the moment to

actually run the maze in game play. It only took the party five minutes

to give up and decide to climb up the outer wall of the tower instead to

the second level – they were bored with it. All of my planning and

anticipation climbed right out the window with them.

Todd Crapper

May 4, 2003

As much as mazes are a thrilling concept, they are a challenging

obstacle for any GM to master and that is why I have decided to write

this book. This idea actually started as an article submission to

Dragon Magazine but was turned down due to a large number of

“advice submissions,” as it was explained to me. The more I started

thinking of mazes – how to run them, what to put in them, new rules

for creating them – I knew that this one wasn’t going away and that

was when I discovered Emerald Press. If I remember correctly, it was

the day after Shane Garvey had formally announced the creation of

this new .pdf publisher and called out for submissions for his d20

Options line of sourcebooks (as they were called at the time – we

have since progressed to calling them “Campaign Options”). I sent a

proposal off to him that night. Unless you hang to the edge of your

chair in anticipation for what happened next, I think you all know

where it all leads to.

If there is anything that I hope you can gain from this book, it’s the will

to design a maze. Detail, structural content, and all of the other

Introduction

Markus threw down his backpack and growled.

get this far or no one else has been here in a

long time.”

“What a waste of my time!!!” He

shook his head and tried to take a second to

calm down. “How much further?”

Humanity has a fear of being lost. The lack

of control and bewildering confusion that

overbears our senses creates a heavy

burden on our psyches that is too much for

us to bear. We are an orderly society that

craves a level of stability and organization

that is taken from us when we are physically

lost. Perhaps that is why mazes intrigue us.

“We ain’t gettin’ any further, I know

that,” Grax the dwarf spoke up. “As soon as we

start getting’ closer to the centre, we turn back to

the outside. I can’t tell where we are right now.”

“I told you, I don’t know,” Garak spoke

up. The halfling was already skittering ahead,

darting around the rest of the party that had

stopped with Markus and leaned against the

enclosing walls. “It could be right around the

corner or it could be five more miles…”

“Well that’s just great,” Rolo started up

again. “We’ve been lost for hours, hit with pit

traps, spear traps, teleported right back to where

we started, I can’t see where I’m going in all this

darkness, and we’re still being stalked by that

minotaur in here. And I’m only getting paid

10%!”

A maze is defined as: a fully contained

structure with halls and passageways

that wrap around each other to form a

confusing pathway eventually leading to

an exit point . The key to this definition is

the word “eventually.” The concept of a

maze is both intimidating and inviting –

while it was designed to entrap its victims,

all those who enter know that an exit point

has been designed into its layout … or they

would hope so going in. No maze is ever

crafted works of art and mastery of the

mind, built for the single purpose of

preserving an artefact of high calibre for

only the chosen few to discover and claim

for their own. Those chosen to gain these

artefacts are those who have been clever

and sturdy enough to handle the challenge

of the maze and complete its puzzle.

“I think we’ve been here before,” Rolo

spoke up. His old bones were tired and his

throat was sore from constantly complaining.

“Can you sense anything, Kornan?”

Wessex cleared his throat and spoke

up again. “Perhaps we should put Chatterpaul

down and have some time to think of our next

course of action. Maybe even some sleep be-

fore we proceed any further.” As soon as his

words were finished, the paladin and Rolo set

down the makeshift gurney with the gnome’s

battered body lying underneath the blood

soaked blanket.

The elf kept himself back, still holding

his head in one hand while placing the other

against the wall for support. The veins along his

temple were thick and purple and sweat was

running down his brow. “No…” he finally replied,

cursing slightly in the elven tongue. “…this

place is still blocking my powers…”

“Do you need to rest?” Wessex the

paladin approached the elf and began to remove

his gloves.

“Yes, I must have some time to pre-

pare my spells,” Zelligar whispered.

No sooner had they begun to seat

themselves on the floor, the bells began to

chime again. Deep, resonating gongs of heavy

iron echoing throughout the maze, consuming all

other sounds that could have been heard.

“No.” Kornan waved the young human

away. “This maze will not offer any peace for

me until we have escaped.”

Not all mazes hold powerful items. Many

hold onto other kinds of lurid secrets like a

mother to her newborn child – the designs

of a mighty temple, unwanted experiments

that could bring a death sentence to its

creator, or the entrance to an even greater

dungeon. Some mazes are elaborate traps

built for one purpose: to imprison those

ignorant enough to enter them. There are

some planar mazes in which their victims

Everyone’s eyes looked towards the

front of the group as Garak returned from

around the corner, shaking his head. All heads

bowed down and Markus cursed out loud again.

“It appears someone doesn’t want to

give us the chance,” Kornan shouted, wincing in

pain.

“There’s another intersection going

four ways. And a set of stairs leading up. I can’t

see any signs of an exit nearby and there’s no

tracks anywhere. Either we’re the first ones to

Markus cursed out loud again. “This

blows.”

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