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The city I'm homebrewing does not hold executions or imprison criminals. Instead, criminals are sent to a large, windowless arcane research facility where the city's patriarch resides. Here, criminals are subject to spells, creatures, traps, and magical substances that the facility has developed or conducted research for. Though surprisingly humane to the test subjects, the facility assigns the most dangerous chambers to the worst criminals, which are not expected to survive. Wards and sigils loaded with spells handle much of the facility's automation and some sigils enable the administrators to scry on the progress of the tests.
Here's a few of my test chambers. Perhaps you can think of some as well?
Weighted Ooze Chamber
The chamber has a minor obstacle course where the party must deliver a beacon to the goal. However, weighted oozes drip from the ceiling, which try to adhere to the party. While the oozes are harmless, they weigh 30 pounds and encumber the PCs. PCs carrying more than a heavy load risk suffocation. The oozes dissolve after one hour or when the party completes the goal.
Shunting Chamber
When the party arrives to the center of this chamber, the floor elevates 30 feet. An enchanted cube teleports every round onto the space of the nearest party member, shunting them towards the edge of the platform and dealing 1d6 damage. The party advances if they manage to bull rush the cube off the ledge.
Gaseous Form Chamber
This chamber is designed to test the properties of a person while in gaseous form. Each subject is given a potion of gaseous form and must navigate through a maze of wind sigils that blow the subjects in given directions (similar to Team Rocket’s maze in Pokemon). The chamber has several hazards, including rotating blades and heat fields.
Mimic Shape Chamber
This chamber tests the effectiveness of a new spell: mimic shape, which grants the subjects the ability to use a mimic’s mimic object ability for 30 minutes. Each subject is given a potion of this spell and must navigate through a maze while a very dangerous and perceptive creature hunts them down.
I don't much like the looks of this, mate.
I don't much like the looks of this, mate.
And for your next test, we look into the effects of transferring the consciousness of an intelligent item into that of a rune-carved vegetable.
Nope! Nope! I've seen where this goes, it ends in babbling and lack of gravity! Nope!
Well I'm a fan of the cube series so, thumbs up on this.
5: Fire Ant Room
One end of this room has double doors that lock after the characters go through. The rest of the room has walls of fire that funnel the characters to the only exit door. They have to move single file to get out. The magical field causes all damage and baleful effects to happen to the attacker. Thus if you shove someone into a wall of fire, you get burned. The last in line gets a 4 dose bottle of cure light wounds potion.
Those lawful good people never give up trying to reform prisoners, do they?