Bard's Gate / Rappan Athuk Reborn

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Omote
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Bard's Gate / Rappan Athuk Reborn

Post by Omote »

From 2007-2010 I ran a v3.5 game using Necromancer Games Rappan Athuk Reloaded. I expanded the material a great deal to encompass other classic NG adventure modules/supplements and formed a setting out of the material. This series of lossely connected modules is sometimes referred to as the "Necroworld."

With the recent release of Frog God Games (who now owns Necroamncer Games) updated mega-adventure, Rappan Athuk, past players have been coming to me asking to revisist the infamous Dungeon of Graves. At first I was hesitant. I'm not a fan of the v3.5 style of roleplaying anymore and didn't want to put in the time to convert this new material to the v3.5 rules set. I don't really play or want to run Pathfinder either. But I was quite surprised to hear that the players were not as interested in the hyper-complex rules systems, as they were in playing Rappan Athuk using Castles & Crusades!

I quickly became enthused at the chance to play C&C and in and around Rappan Athuk. I asked the players (the one's who played originally) why they wanted to revisit, and replay in this terrible dungeon, and I also liked the answers. First, they were all very happy with the last campaign. Second they all seemed to like the setting and in particular the mega-dungeon of Rappan Athuk. As fans of this sizable module, we were all aware that Frog God Games expanded the previous Rappan Athuk material even more; more wilderness areas, more adventuring locales, and even more levels added on to the already large grand daddy of dungeons. I wouldn't have thought of it, but the players wanted to go back and see the new material as well as traverse the depths that they missed on the first pass through.

So here we go again. From behind the legendary walls of the great City of Song (Bard's Gate), our heroes will once again set out to stopper the rush of darkness that exudes from the Dungeon of Graves... a place the dwarves call Rappan Athuk!

C&C style. Aww yeah!

~O
@-Duke Omote Landwehr, Holy Order of the FPQ ~ Prince of the Castles & Crusades Society-@
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Frost
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Re: Bard's Gate / Rappan Athuk Reborn

Post by Frost »

Nice! I'll be eager to hear how it goes.

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Relaxo
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Re: Bard's Gate / Rappan Athuk Reborn

Post by Relaxo »

Forget about hearing about it, I'll commute to Ohio to play at your table!
:D
Bill D.
Author: Yarr! Rules-Light Pirate RPG
BD Games - www.playBDgames.com
http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/browse.ph ... rs_id=5781

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Re: Bard's Gate / Rappan Athuk Reborn

Post by Omote »

Our campaign begins in the autumn months of the Grand Duchy of Waymarch. Cold waters have begun to rush down from the gathering snows of the Stoneheart Mountain ranges in the north. These cool waters race down the river through the heart of the Lyre Valley and through the City of Song, Bard’s Gate. When these cold waters lead to the fisherman changing to stone trout fishing, the year is quickly coming to an end. The merchants, aristocrats, and adventurers begin to move west to the more civilized kingdoms. Their journey is long, and this part of the year marks the perfect amount of time to return to manor or castle before the first snow land on the valley floor.

Bard’s Gate summer population begins to dwindle fast now with every passing day. Two such adventurers will be staying. Vincent Morris, son to Goddard Morris, makes his home in here throughout the year. Little do the foppish elite who leave know of how blessed Bard’s Gate is in the winter months. Those secrets stay with the people who know the city of song best. Vincent Morris’ friend, a grey elf merchant named Guy LePeers, has also decided to stay the colding months. While Guy is typical foreign merchant, his reasons for staying are not common.

The cool night air pushes the remaining adventurers into the Inn of the Six Candles. An extravagant inn, the Six Candles caters to wealthy adventuring clientele day and night. It is this one night that Vincent and Guy are deep into revelry at the Inn. Music, carousing, and the best ale money has to offer were being had in quantity. But all of that stopped in the instant the maitre d’ expressed his apology to the friends that the inns famous spiced apple ale supply was exhausted.

Vincent, at first thought nothing of the matter until the maitre d’ offered the ubiquitous Brin Zweischer ale; the most watered down and common ale of Bard’s Gate. Vincent began to sing a song and strum on his mandolin regarding how the Inn of the Six Candles serves cheap, common ale. The maitre d’ asked Guy to stop his friend from ruining his business, but all Guy could do is hold his cup up in the air in mocking pose that he wanted more of the spiced apple ale the inn was known for. The maitre d’ quickly pulled Guy aside and said that the fine ale wasn’t to be found in stock and they couldn’t get any until morning. Guy asked why, and much to the server’s chagrin, said that the ale was not actually made here.. Vincent hearing this shot up and explained that it wouldn’t be a problem for the adventurers to pick some up. The red-faced maitre d’ explained that the ale was stored in a brewery in the Canal District of Bard’s Gate. Vincent said no problem, just tell us where it is and we’ll bring it back for a glass or two in compensation. The maitre d’ said that the ale was actually purchased from a small, hole-in-the-wall tavern called the Gnoll’s Head tavern. “No problem. We’ll be right back,” Vincent quipped matter-of-factly. “Oh no, you don’t understand,” the maitre d’ said in a hushed tone, “the Canal District is no place for you at night. Think what it would do to our business should some of our finest clients end up gutted in the street.”

Vincent and Guy sipped the last couple of drops from their glasses, slammed them down on the lacquered table, and said, “we’ll be back.”
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Re: Bard's Gate / Rappan Athuk Reborn

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The canal district. This is a place not even the local constabulary, better known as Brown Coats, will go after dusk. The streets are narrow. The alleyways are clogged mortal debris as well as the crumbing remains of the district. There are numerous warehouses and one-story hovels strewn about the narrow area on this south-western side of Bard’s Gate. In the early days of city the canals ferried traffic into the deeper parts of the settlement. Now, the canals are nothing more than a river of sewage and a few areas where the locals fish from. On the extreme south point of the district is a mish-mash of piers and rickety wooden platforms that lead out into the Stoneheart River. Here, during the day, one can find a thousand fishing lines endlessly silhouetted against the backdrop of the wealthier parts of Bard’s Gate.

Vincent and Guy set out from the Inn of the Six Candles to find a place called the Gnoll’s Head tavern. There were few people about, and the ones that were seen were probably best not to be. It wasn’t that hard to find. The Gnoll’s Head signage was a stark white board with a crude painting of a severed, and bloody gnoll’s head, with its tongue stretched out. There were no windows on the old tar-covered wooden building. The thatch roof hadn’t been repaired in sometime. The pair of front double doors resembled those of a work house rather than a place where the finest ale served at Six Candles Inn was brewed.
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Re: Bard's Gate / Rappan Athuk Reborn

Post by Omote »

Inside the Gnoll's Head was a collection of poorly dressed locals, presumably fishermen. The whole of the central room smelled like river sludge cooking under a hot summer sun. There were only a few tables and a bench or two. Most of the stools here were actually barrels sawed in half. The back of the room saw a bar made of a few empty barrels and planks of wood for a counter top. The tavernkeeper was a short, but burly man with a long white beard and no hair up top. He was clearly in his mid-thirties, and a lifetime resident of these parts. He leaned on the bar exposed his muscular forearms which bore a tattoo of Bard's Gate's Monster Hunter's Guild.

The MHG was a pseudo military organization run by the former High Burgher of Bard's Gate, an adventurer who plumbed the depths of the dungeon of graves about 20 years past. However, this former High Burgher of Bard's Gate dissappeared about 5 years ago without much of a word. The MHG collapsed soon after.

As Guy and Vincent neared the back of the tavern the stink of the river gave way to the sweet smell of apples and brew. As one drew nearer to the tavernkeeper the unmistakable smell of cinnamon also graced their sniffers.

Vincent asked the man first for a barrel or two of his fine spiced apple ale. "Do you jest with me?" he said quite loudly. Guy followed up with "Your apple ale is certainly no joke. We'll take two." The tavern keep pointed to his back wall. There were some empty barrel racks underneath another white sign that said "No Riff-Raff Allowed" and not much else. "We've been out for two days! Some farging, no-good thief has stolen my entire batch for the past two weeks. Now all I have to serve is that fishwater, Brin Zweisher ale."

Vincent snorted and retorted that there are no windows to break in, and there is no damage to the timbers of the tavern. "Just how are they getting in and taking barrels of the delcious drink?"

The tavernkeep looked over the overdressed duo and said, "Tell you what. I'll give you two barrels of my brew, free of charge, if you can locate the thief and bring him back here for a little "Canal Justice'" The tavernkeep said this all the while smashing his meaty left fist into the palm of his right hand.
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