The map and key below were what I used during the playtest, and I made a variety of changes based on both the feedback I received and where I felt the adventure lacked clarity, punch or interactivity. The key takes up more room than in the finished dungeon, and the playtests I ran were integral in editing down the dungeon key as well as identifying what actually contributed to making it easier to run and more engaging for players.
Map
Map by Dyson Logos.
See icon key, by Dyson Logos.
Key
You’ll note that I hadn’t decided on the names for some characters or concepts in my key, and NAME# is used to signify different names that I went back in and changed as I came up with them. I have a tendency to get stuck on names when writing, so giving myself the freedom to just deal with it later is very helpful.
| 1 – Entrance Hall. Clinking of shackles echo throughout the hall. Grinning wight in frayed, vintage finery → seneschal of the ruined manor. Greets guests. Kills “thieves”. Slain by demon in (8) if released. Ghoul → former treasure hunter. Slain by wight. In blood-soaked leather armor. Three statues → plaques defaced. Broken statue → plaque reads, “NAME1 the Pious”. Western pool → shackled spirits endlessly surface & shuffle towards (6). |
| 2 – Statue Hall. Recessed rusted set of armor → appears carved into the wall. Heavily scratched floor. Statue can be dragged to the south to reveal a pathway to 13 – True Catacombs. |
| 3 – Family Ossuary. Choking smoke billows from the eastern wall. Five alcoves with coffins → plaques are defaced. Each coffin contains 2d6 grave goods, worth 25 gold each. Corpses blanched but undecomposed. Empty alcove → plaque reads, “NAME1 the Pious”. Eastern altar→ cloaked in smoke. Atop sits the Effluvium Brand, a gaseous sword attached by the hilt to a smoking censer. Intangible blade penetrates mundane armor with ease. |
| 4 – Patriarch’s Gallery. Brushstrokes can be heard coming from each wall. Enchanted tapestries on the west, north & east walls → each is 20 ft wide,10 ft tall. Depict the glories of house NAME2. Cumbersome. Worth 500 gold each, 100 gold if cut or damaged. Stone double doors → carved into writhing hands & attempts to seize living beings. Absorbs those grappled in seconds before melting away. |
| 5 – Patriarch’s Vault. Your breath becomes visible as the temperature plummets. Glass casket → perfectly preserved corpse of the founder of house NAME2. Plaque reads, “NAME3 the First”. Grips an ornate book, the Compendium of Curses & Cures, to his chest. Font of alchemical formulae & occult instruction. |
| 6 – Armory. The din of fighting resounds from further in. Broken weapon racks lining the walls → shades morosely select weapons before moving to (7). Intact weapons rack → mimic, will attack when touched. No shades select weapons from this rack. Will attempt to flee to (12) with its “food” if it kills anyone. |
| 7 – Blood Arena. The marching shades endlessly act out their deaths. Dullahan → blood seeps from neck. Wields Deathrattle, a greatsword carved out of black stone with rows of teeth set into the fuller. Sword eats the dead & grants the wielder the voice of those slain by it. Abandons pursuit beyond (6). |
| 8 – Summoning Circle. A low frequency buzzing noise lingers on the end of your perception. Glowing concentric circles → project aura preventing crossing. Hovering amalgamation of pallid limbs → Cottus, the Grasping Demon. Oozes black ichor. Trapped in magic circles. Despises wight in (1). Promises knowledge for freedom. Western frayed curtain → wooden door visible behind curtain, leads to (13). Rutted floor & grooved northern wall → leads to (14), can be moved but possesses no grip on this side. |
| 9 – Bleeding Statue. Air smells of heavy rust & tastes of iron. Inground dried up pool → bottom is stained reddish-brown. Six crimson splotches → scattered throughout pool. Animate as statue is approached. Duplicate through exsanguinating foes. Will not leave room. Giant veiled statue → flanked by basins on each pedestal. Gushes blood from face if fresh blood is poured into both bowls. Blood revives the dead but induces bloodlust. Drinkers compelled to kill before regaining lucidity. Dies if unable. |
| 10 – Hell’s Descent. Faint chanting can be heard that gets louder the closer one is to the chapel door. Northern corridor → sound of gurgling liquid heard coming from western wall. Dead end made of haphazardly placed cobblestone & smell of iron reeks from between stones. Leads to (9). |
| 11 – Silent Chapel. Nothing can be heard within except for the thumping of your own heartbeat. Seated bishop → robed figure is a banshee & faces away from the entrance. If disturbed, falls to the ground with a piercing wail. Listeners die next they sleep. Skeletons seated on pews → seated, heads down & hands clasped. Turn to dust if bishop is disturbed. Chanting in (10) will cease. Decorated onyx altar → atop tattered cloth lies a filigree prosthetic arm. When attached, Hand of St. Prima sanctifies water and dispels ghosts. Left-handed. |
| 12 – Feasting Hall. The air reeks of rotting flesh. Hallway & stairs → surviving treasure hunter cowers in first alcove. Too scared to run. Balcony → 20ft drop to (7). Tattered curtains & dais → leads to (8). Four empty basins on dais, dispels binding in (8) when filled with blood from (9). Emaciated man → seated at head of table. Masked above the mouth. Slashed throat. Wine seeps from neck as he drinks. Surrounded by piles of putrid plates & encrusted goblets. Cannot speak. Blood from (9) will restore to life. |
| 13 – False Catacombs. Three coffins → trapped with poison gas, inert from age. Fatigues instead of kills. Empty. Man face-down in pool of blood → former treasure hunter. Killed by skeletons. Two talking skeletons → decorated in jewelry. Kills “thieves”. Otherwise jovial. One lies, the other tells the truth. Neither remember which is which. |
| 14 – True Catacombs. A chalk-like cloud of heavy dust lingers in the air. Closed stone coffins → heavy lid, poison dart triggers when opened. Dart is badly rusted & sprays gas instead. Lethal. Each contain a lacerated skeleton clutching a single ruby. Faces faintly seen within when held to light. Worth 200 gold each. Open stone coffin → empty. Trap already triggered. Corpse → sprawled over the open coffin. Hands clutching throat. Ruby lies at feet. False door → Can be pushed, requires at least two strong individuals. Leads to (8). |
The Lady and Tiger 
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