Battered from their last expedition, the Battle Brothers are back in town to recuperate and do some training afterward – before going back to the dungeon. They bring their new member, another goblin named Grimoire, a friend of Torch that can do magic.

Gunderholfen by G. Hawkins: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/265629/gunderholfen

Player Characters (PCs) – The Battle Brothers:

• Aracyne, Elf Hunter, fearless Guild Leader, (Isaac)
• Jedri, Ratman Thief, he likes his rat-shape curse (Isaac)
• Forka, Dogman Knight, fierce warrior (Edmond)
• Torch, Goblin Knight, not expendable anymore (Edmond)
• Grimoire, Goblin Mage, frail but smart (me)

Longfelt

Rumor

-There’s a monstrous rat disguised as a person going by night in the thieves’ quarter – hey (pointing at Jedri) wait a minute, y-y you’re a rat!

• Hearing of this « disguised monstrous rat » they immediately think of their friend Tlali and they go see her at her house. There’s a nice reunion, she explains that she started the process to get back her human form but there’s powerful magic involved (Sethid’s, the Master of the Dungeon) and it will take a while.
• They do some training and are living at the Hare & the Hound inn for the moment.
• They buy some supplies, Forka buys a great helm and then, after 9 days in town, are ready to go dungeon-delving once more.

Gunderholfen

• Travel through the Ganfal swamp is uneventful.
• They enter the dungeon and when they approach Level 1C they start to see a trail of dead hobgoblins – all missing their ears. The corpses are fresh – recently killed for sure.
• Forka pick up the scent of non-hobgoblins and tries to track where it goes – more dead hobgoblins on the other side of the (cut) rope bridge that leads to the exit of Level 1. They spend some time reparing the bridge and continue their tracking down in Level 2 and then it goes south and west in an area the PCs already explored (and had a bad time against both zombies and giant ants).
• They’re near the giant ants’ nest, the insects are clearly agitated. The PCs quickly cross the area and further south, they hear some voices coming from the room with the aforementionned zombies.
• The Battles Brothers decide to go back the room with broken crates and wait there for the other guild to come their way (there’s no other path). They soon hear the sounds of a battle between adventurers and giant ants though.
• It seems like the other guild is retreating in order, with a rearguard fighting in the narrow tunnel. The Battle Brothers see an elf, with short sword and buckler in hand, emerging from the tunnel. The latter is surprised and maybe a bit alarmed but then he asks for their help against the giant ants – they’re coming in great numbers.

• Aracyne hesitates an instant on what his best for his guild (even contemplating murder!) but then he decides to help the other adventurers IF they accept to give his guild some money… The two elves quickly negociate and settle for 80gp to be given after this fight. The other members of the rival guild come into the room one by one, two mages, a hunter and the last being Bayard the Bold, their leader, brandishing a glowing mace and his plate armor covered in insect juices – an impressive sight! His companion informs him that the Battle Brothers will help the Protectors and already the first giant ants enter the room.
• The ensuing battle is intense, with the fighters type holding the line, at least at first, against both normal worker giant ants and bigger, meaner soldier giant ants. Another wave of monsters arrives though and some get past the frontline and one mage of the Protectors get nearly bitten in half by a soldier ant. The other mage hurries to keep him alive with healing magic. Forka makes good work of his two-hand hammer, delivering massive blows left and right. Aracyne and his hunter counterpart shoot arrow after arrow on the incoming ants. Grimoire, their new goblin mage, proves to be a good addition and incinerates ants with fireballs. Two dozens dead ants are littering the floor and the two guilds seize the opportunity to move away from there, going east and south, with the Battle Brothers knowing their way around, and soon getting behind a door where the ants horde won’t reach them.
• Now in safety, the Elf from the Protectors (their treasurer named Bodil) counts 80 gold coins and gives them to Aracyne with Bayard frowning at the sight but not saying anything. The two guild leaders then exchange a few compliments, talk about their recent delves and then Aracyne has this idea, he offers to the Protectors to do a joint expedition into Level 4. Bayard, not one to decline a challenge less his reputation for bravery takes a hit, doesn’t think much and accepts.

Closing comments:

• I had decided when I started this campaign that I would put some emphasis on adventuring guilds interactions. I have written some random tables, erased them, re-written some more, to help me get a sense of what NPCs guilds would likely achieve as competing explorers (the PCs still having a decent headstart, of course it’s still about them). I’m not quite satisfied with this tool yet but it did indeed lead to this, I think, interesting session.
• Now, dealing with so many NPCs, adventurers with all their abilities to boot, is certainly cumbersome for me as a the DM. In fact, I’m pretty certain it’s the reason why in most campaigns rival adventurers don’t seem to accomplish anything ever and are reduced to discreet appearances here and there.
• Isaac’s first instinct was to ambush the Protectors while they were fighting the giant ants. A sound plan strategically speaking. Also quite ruthless. I let him choose his course of action but I’m happy in the end he chose to help (with a price attached) instead of killing.

There’s officialy 5 parties of adventurers (including the PCs) in our campaign that have been given permits to explore Gunderholfen. Being the first one in place gave the PCs a huge headstart, particularly with their alliance with the hobgoblins. But now comes a dilemna, do they help their allies against other adventurers and be complicit on such a dubious course of actions or do they let them fare for themselves onward to their incoming annihilation?

Gunderholfen by G. Hawkins: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/265629/gunderholfen

Player Characters (PCs):

• Aracyne, Elf Hunter, Guild Leader, (Isaac)
• Jedri, Ratman Thief (Isaac)
• Forka, Dogman Knight (Edmond)
• Torch, Goblin Torchbearer (Edmond)
• Ghardeet, hired Hobgoblin Mage/Shaman (me)

Longfelt – Gunderholfen Level 3

• Leaving Longfelt and all went well with getting across the Ganfal Swamp.
• In Gunderholfen, they talk to Nerulf who informs them that the Hobgoblins are taking heavy casualties againts adventurers, most recently against a party with 3 magic-users. This party has installed itself in Level 1A for the past few days and is still there. With current rate of losses, Nerulf will remove patrols outside of 1C except the nearest exit in 1B.
• Unmoved by the hobgoblins plight, the PCs hire Gardheet, the hobgoblin mage (30gp and 10% cut) and go to Level 3, taking the shortcuts they know.
• Down the ladder in Level 3 they go west where they hear sounds of grunting and growling and open a set of double-doors and come face-to-face against 7 kiigoths.

• They kill a few quickly but as much as 15 others rush from the 2 adjacent rooms!
• The PCs take a few steps back to get into the corridor behind them in order not to get immediately surrounded.
• A long and violent brawl ensues. Kiigoths often keep fighting even when mortally wounded and get more ferocious while doing so. Jedri gets wounded by a club attack but Ghardeet casts stoneskin on him at maximum power and the protected thief is able to stay in the fight and, with one knife in each hand, stab foes left and right. Forka’s chainmail deflects most attacks from the crude weapons but is still getting bruised after getting hit by numerous blows. Aracyne shoots arrows from behind and Torch even manage to burn a couple of kiigoths here and there. With several of his own now dead the bigger, meaner kiigoth leader gets into melee against Forka and has one good hit with his deadly-looking, not-crude-at-all battle-axe but is smashed to pulp by the knight’s 2-h hammer in return. The death of their leader isn’t changing the savage kiigoth’s will to fight unfortunately and the adventurers eventually have to kill them to the last, not without being severely hurt themselves in the process.
• The fight over, the PCs go to Jedri’s place nearby and Ghardeet heal all their wounds. They then get back to to the big pile of dead kiigoths, but there’s not much else other than the very nice battle-axe (nobody is very proficient with axes though).
• They then go at the big room south and find big non-locked chests that contain coins, a nice chainmail (taken and wore by Forka) and a big, sturdy dwarven shield (given to the less and less expendable Torch, who’s overjoyed by the gift).
• Going to the west now, they find a lot of broken, useless stuff and also an intact clay jug of wine. A bit further they also find an okay helmet (to Jedri).
• They get into a very long and narrow passage going south, there’s also a side-passage going west with a brirge going over fast water. There’s a really bad smell coming from that way though and they decide to go further south instead.
• They open a door into a room with a statue of a dwarven warrior. They spot a depression on his extended hande but can’t do much with anything and right then, an ooze drops from the ceiling on Forka’s head! Torch burns the ooze a few times with his torch and saves his boss from asphixy. Forka looks at the ceiling fearfully for a while.,
• Nearby, they see a Sun Face carved into a wall and messing with it, manage to obtain a ruby from its opened mouth. It’s exactly the rigth size for the depression on the statue’s hand and they put it in place. An aura of virile dwarven energy surrounds them and they all feel a bit more competent. Except the elf, virile dwarven energy isn’t for elves obviously.
• Next room, looking for it, they spot an ooze suspended on the ceiling and they send Torch with his shield up to bait it to drop down, which it does but it somehow slides on the shiels and target Torch’s head and it’s the turn of Forka in coming to the help of his sidekick.
• The PCs now have found their way to the Level 2 stairs coming from the other way around and connecting their map in the process. They decide to go to the lair of ogres in the central corridor but the door is stuck and that’s enough to dissuade them for the moment.
• They get back into the long passage west and Jedri, who’s walking a few steps ahead, sees an ogre coming the other way. He’s dragging a kiigoth corpse along.
• Aracyne tries to cast Augment Weapon on his bow but only gets a nosebleed for his effort. He shoots nonetheless and hurts the ogre. The latter try to bum-rush the elf archer but Forka valiantly gets in front (guardian) and takes the hit instead. He gets slammed hard against the wall but still manages to take a big swing of his hammer at his foe. Jedri then plunges his dagger in the ogre’s chest and gets the kill.
• Leaving the dead ogre behind but picking up the dead kiigoth, the party goes back to the ogre lair and boldly shouts at the inhabitants that they want to make a deal. Or more of a fait-accompli, since they killed the kiigoths, the enemies of the ogres, they ask that they show them the way to Level 4. The ogres (there seem to be 3 of them) are surprisingly amiable (excellent persuade and reaction roll) to this non-deal and Glorm, their leader escort them to the stairs to Level 4. He also tells the adventurers that there’s an ogre colony in Level 4 (not in good terms with himself) and also an orc colony.

Closing Comments:

• The players chose to explore and let the hobgoblins fight alone, that’s probably the thing to do. I’ve built an okayish random table to see how goes the protracted fight between the hobgoblins and adventurers and let the dice decide, mostly.
• Big fight against the kiigoths, close one too. Forgot one major thing on my side though, the squares on the map are 10′ wide, so that was a 20′ wide corridor not a 10′ one like I had in mind. Fighting there wouldn’t do much to prevent encirclement in fact. Bad DM, bad!
• The ogres of Level 3 were amiable at that moment but will find their dead kin before long. With an arrow protruding from his chest, even an ogre will make the link…
• They found the entrance to Level 4! The last of the Upper Levels and more complex than what they’ve seen so far, no doubt about that.

Second session at our cabin. The boys nearly got themselves killed the previous session in Level 2 so the logical thing to do is to go deeper, of course!

Gunderholfen by G. Hawkins: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/265629/gunderholfen

Player Characters (PCs):

• Aracyne (Isaac), Elf Hunter, Guild Leader
• Forka (Edmond), Dogman Knight
• Ghardeet (me) Hobgoblin Mage/Shaman
• Expendable & Nameless Goblin (me)

Having fled from Living Deads and Giant Ants, their wounds magically healed by Ghardeet their hobgoblin honorary mage, the PCs are ready to explore some more. They start by opening the door in the large boulders room and it’s not long before they find a set of stairs that goes down and down…

Level 3

• With Expendable Nameless Goblin now officially the group’s torchbearer (he tries hard to be useful and is obsequious to Forka, his savior), the PCs exit the stairway into a dwarf-made room with layered stone and bricks and 3 sets of double-doors.
• Listening to each doors, the PCs finally opt to open the northern ones and enter into a very long hallway that goes well beyond their torchlight.
• Aracyne listens to the first door at their right and hear some metallic scrapings and they decide to let it be.
• They go the next and see that it’s staked to make it unopenable.
• Still further on the hallway, in an open area at their right, they see a sun-face carved on the wall. They interact with it, manage to make it open its mouth but it doesn’t seem to do much else.
• Everything is quiet at the next door and they open it to reveal a small room with a pedestal in the middle, with drawings of dwarves holding something up. Ghardeet casts sense magic and says there’s some dwarven-affiliated magic at work here but isn’t able to do anything with it.
• Next room, after opening the door, Forka’ sense of smell is assaulted by overwhelming body odors, rot, excrements and other unpleasantness. A trophy of sort is in the middle of the room, with non-human (pointy teeth, giant bat? feline?) skulls on display and with a crude drawing of large matchstick men smashing smaller figures with their clubs.
• Listening to the door they can hear several loud snorings coming from nearby.
• The PCs get out of this smelly den of brutes and continue north, still in the long hallway.
• Now in a large doorless room, full of large mushrooms, something is moving amongst them but hidden from view. They send in E & N Goblin (thus proving that his expendable status still applies), he wearily moves into the mushrooms and soon let out a surprised yap and flees back to the adventurers, pursued by a Giant Beetle. The beast is obviously heavily-armored so Aracyne aims at a weak spot with one of his newly-acquired magic arrow and inflicts a severe wound. A massive blow from Forka’s 2H hammer is enough to slay the dangerous monster before it could do much (slow iniative). A good search of the floor beneath the mushrooms revealed an impressive hoard of coins as well as dozens of semi-precious and precious stones. Treasure, at last! They also collect several rations worth of edible mushrooms.
• Thence, the PCs get out of the mushrooms room, continue their way north and, after a 45 degree angle turn, get in front of a large cistern, water dripping in it from the ceiling – and more importantly, before 4 surprised, hairy humanoids that were busy filling many waterskins (more than for their own use for sure).

• The adventurers quickly fell 2 Kiigoths before they even reacted. Those, despite being mortally wounded, still had the will to fight but one more blow each and they stopped moving. The 2 surviving creatures proved no match for the PCs who won the fight without a scratch.
• The PCs refilled their own waterskins and then checked the great double-doors across the cistern but couldn’t open them, even with their combined strength – they were blocked from the other side most likely.
• They then got back to the stairway room and went east from there, past another set of double-doors.
• They got into a large rectangular room with a basin within filled with murky, smelly water full of algae.
• They open a door and get into a long hallway with many doors and openings. Aracyne listens to the first door at their right but is immediately assaulted by some kind of psychic attack and is disheartened.
• Not opening this door, they go further in the hallway and turn right, into a side corridor and then left, which gets them back in the main hallway. (it wasn’t obvious beforehand, proceeding forward with torchlight hides much) They see a small, sooth-covered room in front of them but also, oddly enough, there’s a floating sword (in its sheath), very near them at their left.
• Forka try to seize the sword but screams in pain as he forcibly pulls back his forearm, acid goo dripping from it. The sword (and its near-invisible Gelatinous Cube holder) then lunges forward but Forka and his companions retreat hastily.
• Seeing that they run faster than the « sword », the PCs calmed down a little and lured the monster in the side-corridor just enough so they could then have time to get to the unexplored area.
• They opened a door (didn’t have time to listen) into a narrow corridor and came face to face with two armed rat-persons (rat-headed humanoids, clothed, not too unkempt). Both facing them, obviously ready, one in front with a wicked dagger, one behind with a spear. As the PCs didn’t attack outright, the rat-person with the dagger started talking, said that he was named Jedri and his companion was Tlali and enquired who they (the PCs) were. Aracyne told them they were adventurers, that they came in peace and reassured them enough so that the two rat-persons invited them to their dinner in the adjacent room. There, a cauldron of broth was put above a small fire and the PCs added mushrooms and fish and thus enhanced it considerably, making everybody one step happier.

Closing Comments:

• Level 2 is now mapped something like 85% but several rooms were barely entered because they seemed to hold danger in them.
• Related to this, before finding the Mushrooms room hoard, Isaac complained of the lack of treasure (they found nothing significant since the meagre kobolds’ treasure) but, well, it’s a push-your-luck game. There IS treasure, but it often comes with danger.
• If Level 1 was mainly humanoids and Level 2 mostly populated with critters (with a few surprises here and there), Level 3 is more mixed, having two groups of humanoids within (among other things). Still pretty vanilla stuff, but it gets weirder the deeper you go in Gunderholfen, oh, yes it does.
• The encounter with the Gelatinous Cube was fun, a beginner’s mistake by 10 yo Edmond for sure, but we have to do them in order to learn… I was lenient, giving them time to react (rolling ini) instead of being surprised, next time though…
• Jedri and Tlali in the book are supposed to be evil wererats that will try to murder PCs with a devious plan but I’ve changed them into cursed adventurers and potential allies in my game. They know some useful stuff about the dungeon too (not shared yet) and at least one could become an hireling if the players wish so.

We’re back from our first trip of the season at our cabin. Just in time to catch some morels too! Weather was good at first but got rainy afterward – no matter, I had brought something to entertain me and the boys…

Short session: 1 1/2 hours

Player Characters (PCs):

• Aracyne (Isaac), Elf Hunter, Guild Leader
• Forka (Edmond), Dogman Knight
• Ghardeet (me) Hobgoblin Mage/Shaman
• Expendable & Nameless Goblin (me)

Level 2

• We start inside the dungeon, in the southern part of Level 2 (which is about 80% natural caverns), in a large cavern lit by a sofly-glowing green moss.
• Checking his map, Aracyne first leads the group to an unexplored, low-ceilinged area nearby where they find a message scribbled on a wall: « Find the Floating Level. Nym ». Their second reference to the « Floating Level » to date.
• Otherwise it’s a cul-de-sac and they go back at the large-boulders cavern (where they fought the Vilstraks) and check the door they found earlier, see that it’s locked and decide to go explore another area instead.
• They go into a long, twisting and ascending passage and get into new territory in the south-west corner of Level 2.
• There’s a chasm to their right with Giant Ants on the other side, with some bigger ones too but they don’t seem too agressive for the moment (good reaction roll).
• Further on they get at the entrance of a room covered by mist that reeks of rot and decay and Forka can also smell the presence of some unknown predatory beasts lurking nearby. They don’t enter the room and prefer to go in another area.
• In a smaller cavern they find broken crates and searching them they find 2 quivers full of arrows. Five of the arrows are rather deadly-looking and Aracyne is happy to take them all.
• In the next cavern they find an obelisk with writings on it (dwarven?) but unfortunately nobody can translate it in the group.
• Thence, they get at the entrance of a warm cavern obscured by steam. Mud covers the floor and there’s several bubbling pools that let out jets of steam interminently. And Forka detects a faint odor of rotting flesh. The PCs get inside to investigate and immediately find what is obviously a gravestone.
• A rotting hand emerges from the mud! Several corpses, dwarf-sized, with dead flesh half-boiled half-rotten, slowly extirpate themselves from the ground – enough to send the PCs running for their lives.
• They get back to the broken crates area where they decide to make a stand against the incoming Living Dead. Aracyne shoots an arrow and manages to miss. Forka is charged by a Living Dead and almost get his heart torn out, he takes big damage! The PCs are now gueninely worried and start to flee again with Expendable & Nameless Goblin, already scared (a condition in DB), going first and Aracyne taking the back and shooting his bow when he can.
• They near the chasm but E&N Goblin get assaulted by a Soldier Ant, is severely wounded and trapped under it. 2 Worker Ants are also blocking the way and threaten the adventurers.
• With the Living Dead coming behind (they’re typical zombie-slow fortunately), the PCs do an all-out attack against the Ants. Ghardeet wound a Worker Ant with his magic-augmented Iron Fist Staff.

• Aracyne wounds the Soldier Ant with an arrow and Forka finishes it with a big blow of his 2H hammer. Aracyne then kills the wounded Worker Ant, Ghardeet shove the other one down the chasm. E&N Goblin is still stuck under the corpse of the Soldier Ant and pleads for his life, Ghardeet reminds his companions of his E&N status but Forka takes upon himself of saving him and pulls him out of his predicament.
• Aracyne takes a parting shot at one Living Dead and has aimed well but his target doesn’t seem to care much that he’s supposed to be dead. The PCs then hurry away because several other Giant Ants are coming from the walls and ceiling to cross the chasm. Some go at the Living Dead and some others at the adventurers.
• The PCs interrupt a moment their flight to throw food at the Giant Ants, some rations and fish they had caught earlier (but not all), and that seems to distract the insects out of their pursuit.
• They reach once again the big cavern with large boulders and unite their efforts to move one of the boulder to block the way they came (there’s another way to the north-east and a door to the south-west). Ghardeet then heal Forka and reluctantly, after being convinced to, also E&N Goblin.

Closing Comments:

• My nephew Olivier was supposed to come along with us at the cabin but couldn’t make it unfortunately. I’ve found the solution to still have a decent group of PCs with the addition of the hobgoblin shaman and expendable goblin, putting their prior efforts to the forefront in this manner.
• I try as much as I can to feed inputs for Forka’ superior sense of smell and telegraph things to the players accordingly. I’m quite amazed in fact at how a great sense of smell could be even better than darkvision in a dungeon environment and more appropriate to nuances in many cases. Quite the revelation to me.
• They truly got themselves between a rock and a hard place with the Living Dead and Giant Ants. Pushing forward with enemies at your flank wasn’t a sound exploration strategy and I think the boys learned that.
• I think the Living Dead in Dragonbane are a lot more dangerous than classical D&D zombie meatbags, maybe a bit too much even. They’re not unbeatable either, I think I’ll keep them as is, the players just have to be careful about it.

It’s been a while since I ran any ttrpg, the good thing is I had time to figure out how I want to manage an osr mega-dungeon campaign with the not-quite-osr and incomplete system that is dragonbane. More on this another time.

Full group of players. 2 hours session.

• Aracyne (Isaac), Elf Hunter, Guild Leader
• Forka (Edmond), Dogman Knight
• Hédralynn (Marjorie), Elf Mage
• J. Lebeau (Olivier), Dogman Fighter

Level 1C, hobgoblin territory

We start with the PCs safe in hobgoblin territory. As the adventurers wish to get back in town (they’re low in rations and have accomplished their official mission) they have to come up with a plan on how to deal with the goblins who block their only (known) path towards the outside world. The hobgoblins also badly wish to have access to an exit so they’re more than willing to help the PCs and will provide half a dozen warriors for the initial assault (and will join en masse in the next phase if it succeeds).

It all comes down to how to manage to cross the « Corridor of Death » between the two factions.

Aracyne had the idea for them to craft two improvized, over-sized shields so they have cover whilst they advance. Hédralynn and Ghardeet the hobgoblin shaman cast Stone Skin on the warriors who’ll be in front and then they open the portcullis.

The group slowly advance in the unlit first tier of the corridor and it’s not long before the goblin sentinels become aware of their presence, yell at the guards room behind them and start peppering the invaders with projectiles. The large shields come in handy and are opened-up for one split-second as the allies let go of their own volley, wounding two goblins in the process. Hédralynn uses a levitate spell on the nearest makeshift barricade and throws a big chunk of it away. The remnant of the barricade is smashed aside by the two shield-bearers and the group is now midway into the Corridor of Death.

The panicking goblins still have a trick down their sleeve, or so they thought, as they throw a Poison Bomb Hédralynn « catches » it midair with her magic and throws it back at the goblins feet! Choking from their own bio-weapon, abandoned by their fellow goblins who’ve shut the door closed behind them, the poor sentinels are not long for this world.

With the Corridor of Death taken, the chain of events is inevitable. The hobgoblins break the door open (they use a stone statue as a ram) and overwhelm the chiefless goblins who, after a brief attempt at resisting, break and flee wherever they can. Some flee northward and escape the dungeon by the side-entrance, the others are eventually rounded up by the PCs and hobgoblins and forcefully conscripted yet again. A bit later, under the suggestion of Hédralynn, those goblins then spearheaded an attack against the surviving kobolds in the section west of there, resulting in the taking over of the entire Level 1 by the Hobgoblins and their very happy chief, Nerulf. The latter gives something to the PCs, a scrollcase containing a message from one Danfelt that mentions something special way down at Level 7, an entrance to the « Floating Level » if one manages to get past the dangerous gray dwarves…

Getting Back to Town

• Ganfal Swamp encounter: a group of 7 hobgoblins, not from the dungeon, parlay and persuaded to join their ally Nerulf whom they’ve heard of, instead of attacking the PCs
• Farmlands encounter: peasants tending their fields
• Town of Longfelt: the PCs went to High Constable Vandehaut with their report on the state of Gunderholfen and with proofs (body part) of monsters inhabiting the dungeon, received their pay and told to come back next day for next course of action
• Stayed at the Purple Cloth Inn where they see two women have a fight, each claiming to be an adventurer’s paramour, referring to Bayard, leader of a rival adventuring guild
• Next day, went to see Vandehaut, now accompanied by High Priestess Evadne and anorther city councilor. It has been decided that Gunderholfen will be officially opened to adventurers. Evadne in particular is hopeful that the Rod of Harvest will be retrieved and brought back at her temple.
• It is believed that the fact that the Ganfal swamp is now expanding and gobbling up fertile lands north of Longfelt is due to the disappearance of the Rod of Harvest from Longfelt.
• There’s mention also of payment in exchange of mapping the dungeon (which probably has changed over the last decades since the time of the last frenzy of exploration)
• Hédralynn tries to convince the three councilors of having the exclusivity over other adventuring guilds but her arguments are turned down

Closing Comments:

• Fun tactical challenge within the Corridor of Death
• The fighting after this we just handwaved, the PCs & hobgoblins together were obviously the superior side
• Hédralynn made good use of the flexibility of the Levitate spell on the goblins’ makeshit barricades
• Hédralynn’s plan ultimately gave the entire Level 1 to the Hobgoblins which won’t be without consequences in the future.
• Important Hand Out given by the hobgoblin chief if they ever reach Level 7
• I chose to put forward the idea of the expansion of the swamp as a kind of looming threat to the civilized world. This also puts an incentive to retrieve a powerful artifact and gives a concrete goal for the players aside from mere dungeon exploration.
• Marjorie didn’t like the idea of having competing adventuring parties involved but it’s part of the game, the PCs aren’t the only heroes in town. And possible rivalries with other parties can be fun to play, for me at the very least!

There’s three minor factions on Level 1 of Gunderholfen: the kobolds, the goblins and the hobgoblins, all hostile to each other. The hobgoblins are closer to Level 2 but are stuck inside the dungeon as they don’t have access to any exit (in my version, as written their area has its own entrance). My own explanation for the presence of these three groups is that the goblins were serving the hobgoblins mostly as cannon fodder for exploring the lower level until they had enough, revolted and claimed a part of Level 1 for themselves, The kobolds simply invaded in the ensuing chaos. Of course my players didn’t know any of this but learned of it in this session.

For this campaign we’re using Free League’s Dragonbane as the rpg system and we’re spicing up the whole thing with a Ryoko Kui’s Delicious in Dungeon flavor so to speak.

Gunderholfen by G. Hawkins: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/265629/gunderholfen

Player Characters (PCs):

• Aracyne (Isaac), Elf Hunter, Guild Leader
• Malique, (Edmond), Dogman Knight
• Hédralynn (Marjorie), Elf Mage
• J. Lebeau (Olivier), Dogman Fighter
• Alfred (Olivier), Hobgoblin Fighter

The adventurers buy a few more goods in town.

It was decided that Alfred the hobgoblin would be Lebeau’s hireling, paid by him, and not a full member of the guild for the moment.

Aracyne pays some gold pieces to Cedric the Sage to learn of the history of Gunderholfen in broad strokes.

Ganfal Swamp:

The PCs leave town, cross through farmlands and reach the Ganfal Swamp. This time, two-third of the way in they have a fight against giant poisonous toads. Alfred is wounded and poisoned but survives. The PCs make camp to rest a moment.

While they lunch they ask their new hobgoblin companion, what he knows of Gunderholfen (about time) and they learn a few useful things.

• He was outside the dungeon with a hunting party, came back after a few days and he and his companions were surprised to find kobolds at the main entrance. They tried to force their way in but were outnumbered. He was the only survivor and was thrown in prison.
• When he left the hobgoblins controlled almost all of Level 1, so something happened to change that.
• Negruf is the hobgoblin chief.
• The hobgoblins were in the process of exploring Level 2, cautiously, using goblin patrols. Level 2 is made of natural caves and there’s some monstrous critters roaming around.
• There’s two entrances to Level 1 (not quite true), the Snake Door and another tree shrouded gully entrance on the northern side of the hill.

(Unbeknownst to him, things changed a lot since he left hunting)

North Side Entrance (Level 1B)

• The party goes around the hill and reach the entrance that their new hobgoblin companion told them about.
• There’s five goblins guarding the entrance and they tell the PCs that this is goblin territory now. Alfred tells them to stop messing around but they’re serious, they no longer take order from any damn hobgoblins.
• Seeing that Aflred can’t make them enter, Hédralynn comes forth and show the goblins the dead kobold chief’s headdress and tells them that they (the PCs) could be useful to the goblins. One of the goblin go fetch their chief.
• Chief Yurt arrives with his bodyguards. Hédralynn makes it known that they wish to get to Level 2. After some discussion between them it’s agreed that the adventurers could pass this one time through goblin territory in exchange for 30 gp now and more gifts on their way out.
• 10 goblins (including the chief) escort the PCs to the eastern end of goblin territory. Behind a reinforced door, beyond a long, dark passage with columns and corpses (both goblins and hobgoblins) littering the floor, is where the hobgoblins are now confined.
• As Chief Yurt says farewell to the party, Hédralynn executes her plan, she lobs two fireballs at once, one at Yurt and another to the goblin in charge of this guard post! The latter dies instantly but Yurt survives just to be finished by an arrow from Aracyne. The surviving goblins, still outnumbering the PCs 8 to 5 yells angrily and try to take advantage of their superior number. One lucky goblin pierces Malique’s boot with his spear and cuts his big toe off (injury). But three more fireballs from the mage definitely turns the fight to the adventurers’ advantage, not too soon though as more goblins are coming in.
• Malique snatches Yurt’s body from the floor, Alfred takes back the gift of gold and then they all flee through the passage to the east. The last two in the passage, Lebeau and Alfred, are hit by stones from goblin slingers and almost don’t make it but they see the hobgoblin guards and Alfred yells at them to open fast and they do.
• After a discussion with the hobgoblin guards, helped a lot by the fact that they are accompanied by Alfred, the PCs are escorted to chief Negruf. They tell him of their objective of going down a Level and explore. They give him the corpse of Yurt, whom the hobgoblins sees as a traitorous rebel, and the gold. They tell him of how they saved Alfred from the kobolds too.
• Negruf is pleased and allows them safe passage and also let them have a room to rest.

Closing Comments:

• Olivier’s love of hirelings and Marjorie’s usual craftiness led in this session to their party shortcutting a big chunk of Level 1 and they’ll be able to go to Level 2 next session. They also have a potential alliance with the hobgoblins already in the going but they’re now enemies of the goblins.
• Eventually they’ll have to figure a way out of the dungeon but all in due time…
• How Negruf should see the adventurers? They can help him with his goblin problem so I think he clearly has something to gain out of it for the moment.

First session of what should be the main dish ot this new campaign: the Gunderholfen megadungeon. It’s mostly vanilla fantasy (less so the deeper you go!), but after years of kinda atypical D&D I think it will still feel refreshing. We’ll see how it goes.

For this campaign we’re using Free League’s Dragonbane as the rpg system and we’re spicing up the whole thing with a Ryoko Kui’s Delicious in Dungeon flavor so to speak.

Gunderholfen by G. Hawkins: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/265629/gunderholfen

Player Characters (PCs):

• Aracyne (Isaac), Elf Hunter, Guild Leader
• Malique, (Edmond), Dogman Knight
• Hédralynn (Marjorie), Elf Mage
• J. Lebeau (Olivier), Dogman Fighter

We start in Longfelt. The PCs hear that the mutants that they had saved are slowly getting back to normal at the town’s sanatorium. Hédralynn sells a scroll of diminution to a gnome magic-user and buys some goods in exchange. The characters leave town, walk through farmlands until they reach the Ganfal Swamp. They have several hours of walking on a treacherous path but they manage to reach the ancient dwarf hold without incidents (no encounters rolled).

Snake Door Entrance (Level 1A)

• There’s a lot of small, clawed footprints and piles of damaged bones around the entrance. The interior is dimly lit with flickering light.
• Three kobolds stand guard and threatens the adventurers with their spears. One is slain quickly and the two others flee inside, side-stepping one area on their way.
• The PCs ran after the fleeing kobolds but took care of not stepping on the suspicious area themselves. Aracyne broke his bow trying to shoot down a kobold. Malique managed to catch one and slew him with his warhammer. The other suffered from the same fate soon after.
• This wasn’t discreet at all however and now the PCs could hear kobolds coming from the east and from the north at the same time. Aracyne borrowed Hédralynn’s bow and killed an incoming kobold as Malique got in melee against two others. Malique is very efficient with his warhammer but also got stabbed by a spear but nothing serious.
• Meanwhile Lebeau was facing two other kobolds that tried to bait him into a trap but weren’t subtle enough. One even fell headlong into the hidden pit when he tripped on his own feet in the course of the fight.
• After taking care of the last kobold together, the adventurers inspect a half-rotten blue curtain and find a passage behind.
• They get into the chief’s hall. A fearsome kobold, as fearsome as a kobold can be, is flanked by three large weasels and there’s also 5 kobold guards.
• A big fight ensues. Hédralynn starts to lob fireballs (dragonbane’s fireballs are single target 2d6 dmg, or more if boosted) with abandon. Aracyne finishes a giant weasel with a well-placed arrow. Malique does his best to block spear thrusts at the front. The adventurers prevail but Malique sports many wounds now. Hédralynn does her best to heal him with her magic.
• Lebeau finds a door behind a wall hanging, this leads to the chief’s modest treasure of copper pieces.
• Another door in the chief’s hall leads to a larger room that smells of charred flesh. A kobold shaman starts to casts a spell at them as his guards charge the adventurers. Lebeau has a hard time fighting as the shaman unleash a swarm of insects at him. Fortunately the shaman isn’t long for this world as he gets a fireball and an arrow from the elves PCs. One kobold surrenders after his colleagues die and gives some information on the lair’s layout, where the jails are after being asked.
• Backtracking a little, the adventurers go the kobolds’ jails but a portcullis is blocking their way. The two dogmen manage to force it open. There’s a brief fight thereafter against two kobold guards.
• There’s two prisoners still alive, the daughter of Clement the tailor and one severely wounded hobgoblin. For some reason Lebeau is convinced that the latter will be a fine addition to the party and asks Hédralynn to spend her last bit of magic on healing him. Lebeau offers a full treasure-part to the hobgoblin if he joins the guild but it will be up to the Aracyne the guild leader to make such a contract or not.
• The adventurers leave Gundeholfen, go across the Ganfal Swamp safely and get back to town.

Closing Comments:

• Dragonbane characters start as capable adventurers but they don’t really ever have access to game-changing spells or abilities, unless they find magic items that is. I’m not sure how it wil impact the game later on to be honest.
• I’ve shortened the walk to the dungeon through the Ganfal Swamp but nonetheless I have to remember that crossing the swamp should be seen very much as an irritating and serious logistic issue to solve before long i.e having a base nearer.
• They’ve gone through a big chunk of the Kobolds lair and killed 2/3 of them but it wasn’t that easy either. Malique got almost injured despite being the most heavily armored until Olivier reminded Edmond that he could try to block one Kobold’s fatal spear attack with his shield and he succeed in doing so.
• As we’re not playing a gold>>xp game I’m cutting dramatically on the amount of treasure they find. In fact, most creatures won’t have anything of value. Sorry, but not sorry!
• The first kobolds that have fled should have alerted 2-3 more kobolds immediately in the next room instead of going farther on the lair. My first mistake of the dungeon happened really quick! I have to look at a few adjacent rooms whenever they advance into a new one just to be sure. I’ll prepare an enemy roster per area next time and won’t be caught off-guard…