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I'm looking for help in expanding the encounter at the tower on the island in Candlemere lake. I've kind of built it up a bit as a significant threat, as a sort of red herring for my PCs, but they've really run with the idea and now, finally, after much preparation they're off to finally deal with the evil tower once and for all.
The problem is, I'm afraid the actual encounter on the island, as written in the AP, will be kind of a let-down for them, so I want to spice it up a bit. Does anyone know of a good module or PFS scenario I can work in here, or at least crib for ideas? The PCs are all 5th level, and are just finishing the second adventure in the AP.
Ideally, it would be something that would last for a game session or two, not so long as to derail the whole AP, but maybe a small dungeon or something? I can just whip up something from scratch if I have to, but I'd like to borrow from a published source if possible.
Thanks in advance for any ideas or suggestions.
I think I remember seeing someone suggest that there be a hive of mind flayers beneath the tower, but that's terribly mean.
I'd go with additional aberrations of various sorts, maybe even an Aberrant Blooded Sorcerer NPC cultist there as well.
Greetings, fellow travellers.
There was a discussion about expanding Candlemere Tower which has been moved to the Archives.
Also, I remember somebody dragging Foxglove Manor from RotRL to that spot.
Ruyan.
I've sketched out a Foxgolve manor style place that's built on a slightly more Lovecraftian theme. Basically, the encounters are mostly haunts (as per GMG/RotRL) though they feel a bit more alien rather than spirit-like. I've made it only 5 rooms and there's only one creature in the place and it's a gibbering mouther. I'm sure that with the encounters getting to and from the place with all of the will-o'-wisps in the area it'll take one whole session for me and hopefully creep out my players quite a bit.
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I found a great map that I thought would be perfect for expanding Candlemere tower.
Check it out HERE.
I added a ruined laboratory/summoning circle hidden beneath the tower. plus an encounter with a Hound of Tindalos and a copy of the Pnakotic manuscripts. I think the sanity loss from reading the book was more painful than dealing with a Hound.
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There are a number of threads of various designs GMs are using to flesh out Candlemere isle if you search this forum, anywhere from 13th lvl adventures to a series of haunts for 4-7th lvl characters.
I have planned to make Candlemere Isle the source of ongoing issue and mystery for my players, as a way primarily to give the Magister in my game something significant to focus on.
I grabbed the write up for Candlemere Haunts, and it has an excellently detailed write up, including a pit with a gibbering mouther in it. This got me thinking...
The oracle of life in my game reveres Sarenrae, so I decided to add the twist of a band of Rovagug followers trying to hatch a rough seed with the gibbering mouther.
Basically, a large group of lion riding Numerian barbarians, led by Rovagug worshipping lion-shamans, come south with a rough seed, attempting to hatch an emkrah by bringing it to the gibbering mouther on Candlemere Isle. This was foreseen by the shamans in a prophetic dream. This will cause an area of evil that will radiate out from there, very close to the center of the PCs kingdom, so there is strong incentive to stop this from happening.
While they are stopping the emkrah, they will discover a huge stone slab that seals off an underground complex, covered with Thassilonian runes and obviously very very old. They won't get to enter this till around 13th level. Since the last AP we played was RotRL, this should get the Magister's attention (conjuration wizard).
I have planted a series of underground Thassilonian complexes under the Stolen Lands, the first of which is detailed in a book found in the lair of the Dancing Lady. Each complex will lead to another of these remote outposts, as sort of a security check to get to the final giant underground complex. Each clue will require deciphering, meaning that the party will have to take some time in between each one.
The final complex is under the slab beneath Candlemere Isle, where a clone of the Runelord of Sloth rests in a re-skinned Mud Sorcerer's tomb. This was one of many ancient failsafes set in place by the Runelord long ago. Since he represents the conjuration school, that should give reason for having the denizens there for so many thousands of years. They won't be facing the clone, but the rest of the Tomb should be challenging enough.
This should keep the magister busy and happy through books 4-5.
So Candlemere isle to me is a holy war for my Oracle and a source of new and rare ancient conjuration magic for my wizard. Two for the price of one :)
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I found a great map that I thought would be perfect for expanding Candlemere tower.
Check it out HERE.
Love the map. Thanks. Will definitely use this
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I had a notion to slip an Elder Thing and a Flumph into the tower as researchers trying to find the source of the planar intrusion that plays such a significant role later. The tower, with its unearthly aura would seem a likely source for a breach between worlds, and having two friendly monsters wouldn't prevent security beasts like Shoggoths from tangling with a curious party...
I found a great map that I thought would be perfect for expanding Candlemere tower.
Check it out HERE.
Very cool! Is there an article that goes along with the map?
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Very cool! Is there an article that goes along with the map?I found a great map that I thought would be perfect for expanding Candlemere tower.
Check it out HERE.
I feel terrible, I just stumbled on this map randomly and can't remember the original blog address. It was an art blog, with lots of nifty maps and D&D doodles.
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I feel terrible, I just stumbled on this map randomly and can't remember the original blog address. It was an art blog, with lots of nifty maps and D&D doodles.Very cool! Is there an article that goes along with the map?I found a great map that I thought would be perfect for expanding Candlemere tower.
Check it out HERE.
FOUND IT!
Thanks!
FOUND IT!I feel terrible, I just stumbled on this map randomly and can't remember the original blog address. It was an art blog, with lots of nifty maps and D&D doodles.Very cool! Is there an article that goes along with the map?I found a great map that I thought would be perfect for expanding Candlemere tower.
Check it out HERE.
Here's the direct link:
Lonely Tower
My players haven't gotten to Candlemere yet, but I'm planning on expanding it slightly. Not so much as to b a whole dungeon, but enough to be more memorable than the stream of will-o'-the-wisps.
First, I'm replacing the wisps with Rorkoun (from the Rivers Run Red bestiary), the tentacle extensions of an insane god reaching up from a portal below the tower. They'll be attacked by only one pair of Rorkoun before the creature gives up on them, but any settlers to the region will also be attacked (no claiming the hex until the creature is dealt with).
Actually clearing the Old God's presence from the tower will require:
- Deciphering the writings inside the tower, then extrapolating how to reverse the portal (requiring a DC 30 Spellcraft check and a DC 30 Knowledge(religion, nature, or arcana) check). Old Beldame or a library back in Brevoy can help them with this check.
- Defeating Hargula and the enraged owlbear, the two insane connections the old god has in the region
- Actually performing the ritual in the center of Candlemere tower while enduring attacks from the tentacled creature
Currently I'm stuck on trying to figure out how to stat up the tentacled creature for the attack during the ritual. My initial thought was a kraken, but even with lax ideas about what CR of creatures the party can expect to face, that would mean they don't stand a chance of restoring the keep until the last adventure, if ever. Either a pair of (possibly mythic) yithians or a mythic hydra on the other hand, seem a little too easy.
(Sorry about the necro, but it seemed to make more sense than starting yet another Candlemere thread.)
After haunting the main area (and throwing in a very evil, intelligent sacrificial dagger), I expanded below the tower with a cyclopean planar research lab with rooms dedicated to the various planes. The nearby planes were closest to the surface followed by the aligned planes, and down at the bottom beyond adamantine doors and wall-of-force halls was a single door to the Dark Tapestry.
Just something to foreshadow the BBEG of the next book and establish the cyclops's ancient, highly magical empire's presence in the area.
FOUND IT!I feel terrible, I just stumbled on this map randomly and can't remember the original blog address. It was an art blog, with lots of nifty maps and D&D doodles.Very cool! Is there an article that goes along with the map?I found a great map that I thought would be perfect for expanding Candlemere tower.
Check it out HERE.
That's an awesome map. Thanks for posting it, Dudemeister!
Hi eakratz, since I have read your previous post about using Second Darkness #2 I started thinking about using something like this too.
I'll made the "Fall on Candelmere" a custom Kingdom Event for one of the next turns, and players will have to deal with the tsunami destruction on the shore of their Capital (former Staglord Fort) before being able to move to the isle.
About the factions:
One of the expedition will surely come from Pitax, another will be leaded by a Lodovka NPC (an Antipaladin of Goruum I made for mine "A deal with the devil"), but I'm not sure if the responsible for the star falling could be the latter or some Fey serving the BBEG Ny. herself.
I'm planning on adding Rappan Athuk to my KM campaign and so Candlemere seems like a great spot for one of the many entrances. Obviously that's not a "short" add on, but should be fun all the same.