The Environment of Adventure

Adventure Biz
After much dicking around in the Lost Catacombs of St. Brigit, including

• finding her sundered-yet-alive-yet-dead body being tortured by weird energy
• meeting 2 of the 4 "deacons", killing 1 of them
• discovering that deacon Wentworth has left the dungeon (uh oh)
• free the four sister-queens of Elesia (imprisoned by Wentworth)
• and defeating a summoned monster that was way too tough for them

the party has returned to Haven in the middle of the Jubilation celebration, during which, on midsummer, the Dome shall be re-cast.  It has been fun and they've got a lot left to do back down in the Underworld, but what I want to talk about is that last bullet and how they did it and why it is important (at least to me, and possibly other GMs)

Killing the Demon
The crew was trapped in the underworld by a demon summoned in the entrance by some bad guys (details irrelevant for this discussion but worth another post some time later because it is all about conspiracies in the urban adventures!). This particular entry way was trapped with mondo-destructo lasers, the trap triggered in a specific and repeatable manner.

The players decided to use this trap to their advantage. That is the important part. The dungeon environment needs to have things to interact with. Not just traps that stab a few points of END/HP away from the characters or inconvenience them (stupid pit traps); more than drink from this fountain and gain/lose a stat; things to fiddle with. Things that are memorable. Things to play with!

This particular trap was one of those things. They knew it was a trap. They knew there was a way around it. A character died trying to get by it, but everyone knew what was happening. They didn't bypass it with a die roll, they figured it out through play. Some will argue that this is boring - and for some stuff it is. The "i search the door" thing gets old, and if the GM dings you with a poison needle because you "didn't search the hinges where the poison needle was" is extra lame. By interacting with this trap and figuring it out the players not only remembered it, but later on decided to use it.

Through some clever spell use - Edward the Wizard carved his mandala of Barrier of Steel into one of the gravehounds that he had charmed and sent it running into the room. It exploded into s a huge steel wall. While the demon bashed at the wall (after his sweet TPK-level breath weapon was deflected) another character ran into the room and triggered the trap. 10d6 of laser damage. Not enough?  they did it again! The players used not just their character's bits and bobs, but clever planning and role playing (the guy who is without fear was the one who ran in) to bypass a challenge, but use the dungeon itself. I was so happy.

This demon should have FUCKED UP the party. If they would have faced it directly I expect at least 3/5 characters would have died. This was brilliant. Another awesome GM monster defeated because the players are treating big-ass monsters like this as challenges, not as fights. It was great!

Summary

• Give the players things to play with in the dungeon environment
• Monsters are challenges, not all of which need to be fought to defeat

Class Groups
When a character chooses a class, they also roll 1d6 to determine which group/organization within that class they belong to. These have no mechanical effect, but give the player some jazz to role play with.

1d6	Explorer	Paladin	Scoundrel	Templar	Warrior	Wizard
Type	Club	Creed	Ring	Order	School	Lineage
1	Tusk's Historians	Golden Vanguard	Alabaster and Wine	of St. Bjern	Charidemuth	Bringers of Storm
2	Tomb Raiders	Knights of Valor	Murder Hobos, Inc.	of St. Blün	Blade and Board	Dusk-bound
3	Eagle and Shark	Knights of Scions	Night Carolers	of St. Brigit	Children of Krom	Promaethean
4	League of Toth	Silver Legion	Secret Mouse	of St. Lith	Munkhousun Society	Skyward Watchers
5	Devil's Horns	Black Sentinels	Red Ghosts	of St. Osgüd	Brotherhood of Blood	Unseen Servants
6	Your Betters	Iron Brigade	The Viscounts	of St. Raster	Sisters of Battle	Patchwork Knights

A few selections ...

Devils’ Horns
Thrill seekers of the highest order. The Devil’s horns have an extravagant clubhouse where they regularly throw wild parties. New discoveries are always an excuse for a party, but so is simple survival. More than one Devil’s party has been broken up by the Hammers when some of their more esoteric guests have gotten out of control. They have a reputation for ignoring the conventions of society and walking the edge of heresy.

Black Sentinels
The Black Sentinels hide their faces from society under black hoods to avoid the complications of their sworn duty - to root out witches and sorcerers. They are the oldest of the creeds and can trace their origins to the founding of the Chancery. Each member of this creed must be blooded in a witch hunt, suffering hexes and curses to protect their fellows. Their true identities are rarely known outside of the Chancery.

Murder Hobos, Incorporated
Their name causes most to look on them disdainfully, but as the Murder Hobos take nothing seriously they find the sour looks quite amusing. This ring helps perpetuate the stereotype that adventurers, particularly members of the GDD, are awful morally bankrupt folks. They think this is hilarious.

Unseen Servants
Where most wizards are ostentatious in their dress and manner, the Unseen Servants prefer subtlety, quiet reflection, and deep contemplation.  Many have taken a vow of silence except when casting spells. Unseen Servants are preferred advisors to the noble houses because of their nature.