[Homebrew] Cyclops Race-as-Class

Krull

    Inspired by one of my favorite science-fantasy movies, Krull, I decided to make my own cyclops class for B/X based off of the cyclops character Rell.  I used the BX Options Class Builder to determine the XP requirements and feel that it turned out pretty good, hopefully you think so too.

Rell the Cyclops

[Session Report 7 - 9/1/24] The Cave of the Owlbear

The party surrounds an owlbear.

    This was another shorter session with my cousin.  His party had heard some rumors from the local town guards about a tribe of goblins who were spotted nearby the northwestern portion of the Dragon Peaks.  The adventurers gathered themselves and set off on foot into the wilderness, hoping to slay some goblins and get some treasure in the process.

    It was the 11th of Second Seed when the party left town and almost immediately, they stumbled onto some ruins.  The party made a note of it in their map but pressed on towards the mountains.  After a few more days of travel, they finally found a cave entrance in the Dragon Peaks.  They searched around the entrance before descending and saw several tracks.  "This must be where the goblins live!" thought the party members.    They lit their torches and made their way down the natural steps of the cave.

    In the first room they entered, they saw some bloody remains and a blood trail that led to an eastward passage.  They followed the trail and tried to listen for anything or anyone that could still be inside the cave.  One of the adventurers thought that some kind of ogre or troll must lurk in these tunnels because of how gruesome the remains were.  The party heard heavy foot steps further down the passage but they kept going.

    They entered a room and were overwhelmed by the disgusting smell coming from a mound of dung.  The dwarf of the party decided to search it and one of the fighters in the group vomited from the sight and smells.  After about 30 minutes, the dwarf was actually able to find some treasure hidden in the dung.  "Whatever made this mess must've eaten some adventurers." said one of the party members.  The party kept going and entered another room that was a ways off.  Inside was an owlbear and it stood on its hind legs and yelled out a frightening roar.

    The party, getting the drop on it, quickly surrounded the beast and started attacking it.  The owlbear clawed and bit at their cleric, Fredrick, killing him.  The rest of the fighters continued to attack and finally slayed the monster.  The dwarf, Ermerer, took the valuables from Fredrick's bags before departing.  Now, the party was starting to worry.  They still haven't encountered any goblins yet and started to wonder if the owlbear had beaten them to the punch.  They double backed, wanting to explore other areas of the cave.  Unfortunately, they were not as cautious as before and fell into some pit traps.  One of the fighters, Kratos, died in one of the pits but fortunately they weren't spiked or else more could've died.  The other party members pulled Peter the Veteran up out of the pit and retrieved Kratos' body, only to immediately loot him for valuables too.

    Deciding that they had taken enough punishment, the party elected to leave the dungeon and return to Dragonwrath with the treasure they found.  It didn't take too long before they were back within the safe walls of the settlement where they could sell some of their loot and rest before their next adventure.

[Session Report 6 - 8/31/24] Wandering Around the Wilderness

Druid Circle of Standing Stones

    This session was quite a bit shorter than the previous ones but was still quite fun.  After celebrating the execution of the bandit leader, Dantar, the party decided to hang out in town for a few days to gather some intel.  They spent their time mostly in the tavern, inn, and market where juicy gossip was bound to be and were able to find several rumors regarding a recently discovered ziggurat located in the Swamp of Dread.  According to the locals, the ziggurat resembles a famous structure previously thought to be only a legend.  Upon hearing these rumors, the party elected to travel elsewhere in the hopes of encountering something that was a little less frightening.

    So, the party gathered their belongings and set out into the wilderness in the hopes of locating the lair of a goblin tribe that the local guards have been complaining about.  They knew from the rumors that the goblins were spotted near the Dragon Peaks, northwest of the town of Dragonwrath.  Unfortunately, they were unable to find it but did stumble upon a druidic circle of large standing stones.  They inspected the stones and saw strange markings on each one, and the clerics of the party were able to recall that the Highland Clans are known to sometimes use runes and other pagan symbols.  Our adventurers then realized that they needed to take a rest since they've been travelling for several days.  

Black Dougal's Bandit Keep

    On their day of rest, they spotted a gorgon about 160 yards away.  They tried to flee but were noticed by the metal bull and it kept chasing them.  Now the party was starting to worry, they weren't able to rest and now were being forced to continue running.  Eventually the monster lost sight of them and they tried to catch their rest but then a gang of 75 bandits saw them.  The bandits were immediately hostile, no doubt due to the party accidentally entering in their territory.  The party had tried to evade but failed and the pursuit was on!  After another day of chasing the party, the bandits decided that the party was a sufficient distance away from their bandit keep and ended their pursuit.  Now the party was really beat and weary but they knew that they could reach the safety of Dragonwrath in just another day of travel.  Not wanting to rest in the wilderness for 4 or 5 days to regain their stamina they forced themselves forward until they were greeted by the welcoming gates of Dragonwrath where they stayed at the Wayfarer's Inn and were able to rest without fear.

Discovered Hex Features

Hex Features

1: Bandit Keep

2: Druidic Standing Stones

3: Halls of Ghuldesh

4: Dragonwrath

5: Grujek the Cruel's Tower (Formerly Mezhag the Imposing's)

6: Bandit Hideout

7: Fenhor the Fearless' Stronghold