This is a solo playthrough of a well-known (but highly customised) OSR megadungeon using the dB/dX 1.8 ruleset, continuing from this post. Please see this post for an explanation of what I'm trying to achieve in so doing.
Turn 4 - Beetlemania
Val hestitates, axe poised for another strike at the iron-bound timbers of the door. A jagged splinter falls to the ground, exposing a small gap through which a lurid glimmer and strange clicking sounds eminate.
"What—?" he wonders aloud.
Something slams into the door from the other side, very hard.
"Everyone back!" Anton exclaims, shifting the pole to his off hand and drawing his sword.
Several blows in quick succession knock more splinters from the door. Hajni barely stifles a scream as a glistening set of serrated mandibles jab through the opening and pull away a chunk of wood.
Although they can't see them yet, it's clear to RAP#1 that a number of monstrous insects will shortly make an appearance. Do they (1-3) stay and fight or (4-6) run away? [1d6=2] They stand their ground!
As established, six giant fire beetles (Pyrophorus noctilucus gigas, hereafter GFB#1 through #6), each nearly 3 ft long, are trying to smash their way through a stuck door to attack the party. Their combat statistics are AC4 HD1+2 AT5-bite TH18 MV4 SV16 ML7. I think it's unlikely that they emerge at the same time. Do they? [2d6kl1={4,1}=1] No, and only one can fit at a time.
Round 1
With a strange jerking motion, GFB#1 pulls itself through the gap. The luminous organs either side of its head glow bright orange and its metallic carapice glitters in the torchlight.
- 👉 Yuuki [1 hp]: shoot.
- 🤜 Anton [1 hp], Leary [1 hp], and Hajni [1 hp]: strike.
- 🫱 Val [1 hp]: wield javelin.
- 🫸 Lyonors [1 hp]: hold.
- 🤜 GFB#1: strike.
- ✌️ GFB#2: manoeuvre.
- 🫱 GFB#3 through #6: break door.
[2d8={4,1}] Anton is quick, but the rest of RAP#1 are slow; all of the beetles are quick.
Quick phase
Anton attacks GFB#1. Does GFB#1 attack (1-3) Anton or (4-6) Leary? [1d6=1] It attacks Anton. Meanwhile, GFB#2 advances through the hole in the door (moving Near to the party).
Anton [1d20+4=11<19] misses and GFB#1's mandibles [1d20+9=14<18] scissor the air. (Anton and GFB#1 are now engaged in mêlée.)
I'll give the remaining beetles a 1-in-6 chance to make the hole wider such that two can pass through it at a time. [1d6=4] The hole remains about the same size for now.
Slow phase
Yuuki aims for GFB#2; Leary and Hanji attack GFB#1.
Yuuki's arrows [2d20+4={14,12}<17] can't penetrate GFB#2's shell (spending extra ammo to reroll didn't help). Leary chops at GFB#1 with his longsword [1d20+4=7<17] but misses. Hanji strikes from the second rank with her spear [1d20+4=15<18] but it's deflected! (Leary joins Anton in mêlée with GFB#1.)
Val carefully transfers his axe to his "off" hand and prepares to throw his javelin. (If he'd dropped his axe, I'd have said it's a free action, but he wants to keep it at the ready.)
Round 2
RAP#1 face two beetles now.
- 👉 Yuuki [1 hp]: shoot.
- 👉 Val [1 hp]: throw.
- 🤜 Anton [1 hp] and Leary [1 hp] (engaged with GFB#1): fight.
- 🤜 Hajni [1 hp]: strike.
- 🫸 Lyonors [1 hp]: hold.
- 🤜 GFB#1 (engaged with Anton and Leary): fight.
- 🤜 GFB#2: strike.
- ✌️ GFB#3: manoeuvre.
- 🫱 GFB#4 through #6: break door.
[2d8={6,1}] RAP#1 are all slow; the beetles are all quick.
Quick phase
GFB#1 [1d6=1] and #2 [1d6=2] attack Anton. GFB#3 advances through the hole to join its fellows.
GFB#1 [1d20+9=11<18] misses but #2 [1d20+9=23≥18] sinks its jaws into Anton for 5 hp!
GFB#4 through #6 [1d6=1] succeed in tearing another chunk out of the door, making the opening wide enough for two beetles to crawl through it during the next round.
Anton has sustained a total of 6 hp. Does he remain in the fight? [1d6+1=5<6] No! He collapses, dropping his sword and 10 ft pole, and will die by the end of [1d6+2=6] round 6 if he doesn't receive aid before then.
Slow phase
Yuuki aims at GFB#3; Val attacks GFB#2; Leary and Hajni attack GFB#1.
Yuuki [2d20+4={8,11}<17] burns through more arrows but can't score an effective hit. Val's javelin [1d20+4=15<18] glances off GFB#2's carapace. Leary [1d20=1] and Hajni [1d20=7] both miss! (Val is now engaged with GFB#2 and Leary is engaged with GFB#1.)
Round 3
The first of their number having fallen, RAP#1 make a morale check. [2d6=8] The shock of seeing Anton go down sends them reeling! Do they (1-3) flee or (4-6) force themselves to stay and fight? [1d6=6] They refuse to abandon him: each takes 1 hp from stress but they maintain their resolve.
- 👉 Yuuki [2 hp]: shoot.
- 🤜 Leary [2 hp] (engaged with GFB#1): fight.
- 🤜 Val [2 hp] (engaged with GFB#2): fight.
- 🤜 Hajni [2 hp]: strike.
- 🫱 Lyonors [2 hp]: aid.
- 🤜 GFB#1 (engaged with Leary): fight.
- 🤜 GFB#2 (engaged with Val): fight.
- 🤜 GFB#3: strike.
- ✌️ GFB#4 and #5: manoeuvre.
- 🫸 GFB#6: hold.
[2d8={5,3}] RAP#1, GFB#1, and GFB#2 are slow (movement rates are halved in mêlée unless retreating); the rest of the beetles are quick.
Quick phase
GFB#3 [1d6=4] attacks Leary. GFB#4 and #5 squeeze through the hole to join the others.
GFB#3 [1d20+6=23≥18] gets past Leary's shield and savages him with its jaws for 5 hp.
A total of 7 hp puts Leary over his maximum hit die roll. He falls prone, dropping his shield and longsword, and will die by the end of [1d6+3=8] round 8 if left unattended.
Slow phase
Yuuki attacks GFB#4; Val attacks GFB#2; Hajni attacks GFB#3; GFB#1 and #2 attack Val. Lyonors tries to aid Anton.
Yuuki [1d20=20] finally scores a hit, but he only inflicts 2 hp on GFB#4 (not enough to trigger a hit die roll). Val strikes with his axe [1d20=1] but misses completely. Hajni attacks with her spear [1d20+4=14<18] but it only glances off GFB#3's chitinous hide. (Hajni is now engaged with GFB#3.) GFB#1 and #2 [2d20={11,5}+6<18] both miss. (GFB#1 is now engaged with Val along with GFB#2.)
Lyonors drops the torch and drags Anton away from the fight. Frantically pulling bandages from her pack, she tries to staunch his bleeding. Is it enough? [1d20+4=17≥17] He's alive, but badly injured.
Round 4
Things aren't going well for RAP#1.
- 👉 Yuuki [2 hp]: shoot.
- 👉 Anton [6 hp, injured]: throw.
- 🤜 Val [2 hp] (engaged with GFB#1 and #2): fight.
- 🤜 Hajni [2 hp] (engaged with GFB#3): fight.
- 🫱 Lyonors [2 hp]: aid.
- 🤜 GFB#1 and #2 (engaged with Val): fight.
- 🤜 GFB#3 (engaged with Hajni): fight.
- 🤜 GFB#4 [2 hp] and #5: strike.
- ✌️ GFB#6: manoeuvre.
[2d8={1,2}] RAP#1 are quick except for Anton (his movement rate is reduced to 1 due to his injured condition) and Hajni (in mêlée); GFB#1 through #3 are slow (in mêlée); the rest of the beetles are quick.
Quick phase
Yuuki attacks GFB#4; Val attacks GFB#2; GFB#4 and #5 [2d6={4,5}] attack Hajni; GFB#6 moves through the hole. Lyonors tries to aid Leary.
Yuuki [2d20+4={12,7}<17] wastes yet more arrows. Val [1d20+4=6<18] fails to connect with his axe. GFB#4 [1d20=1] and #5 [1d20+5=8<18] both miss.
Lyonors scrambles to help Leary, dragging him over beside Anton and applying more bandages to him as well. [1d20+4=24≥16] He starts to come around, but his wounds are severe.
Slow phase
Anton draws his dagger and aims for GFB#4; Hajni attacks GFB#3; GFB#1 and #2 attack Val; GFB#3 attacks Hajni.
Anton's dagger [1d20+4=22≥19] hits GFB#4, inflicting 3 hp. Hajni [1d20=20] jabs GFB#3 with her spear for 3 hp. GFB#1 [1d20+7=24≥18] and #2 [1d20+7=22≥18] bite Val for 5 hp each. GFB#3 [1d20+5=20≥18] bites Hajni for 5 hp.
Val has a total of 12 hp, double his maximum: he drops his axe and falls unconscious. He will die by the end of [1d6+4=5] the next round if he doesn't receive aid before then. Hajni's total is 7 hp. She [1d6+1=6<7] drops her spear and collapses. Unaided, she'll expire by the end of [1d6+4=5] the next round, too. GFB#3 [1d6+2=4>3] is still in the fight. GFB#4 has sustained a total of 5 hp. It [1d6+2=5] rolls on its back, stunned, but will recover by the end of [2d6+4=10] round 10.
Round 5
I have a bad feeling about this.
Anton and Leary are injured, Val and Hajni are at death's door, and there are five beetles still in the fight. Technically, the beetles are due for a morale check following their first casualty, but it seems disingenuous to insist on that point since they clearly have the advantage. For this exercise to have its intended effect, at least one of the party should make it back to safety, if at all possible.
Yuuki flings his bow to the ground and fumbles for his staff as the oversized insects swarm toward him. Leary staggers to his feet and pulls a dagger from his belt, preparing to make a last stand.
Anton turns his face to Lyonors.
"Run!" he yells.
- 🤜 Yuuki [2 hp]: strike.
- 🤜 Leary [7 hp, injured]: strike.
- 🤜 Anton [6 hp, injured]: strike (barehanded).
- ✌️ Lyonors: manoeuvre.
- 🤜 GFB#1, #2, #3 [3 hp], #5, and #6: strike.
[2d8={8,7}] Everyone is slow.
(1-2) Yuuki, (3-4) Leary, and (5-6) Anton attack GFB#1, #2, and #3, respectively; GFB#1, #2, and #6 [3d6={4,3,3}] attack Leary; GFB#3 [1d6=1] attacks Yuuki; GFB#5 [1d6=6] attacks Anton.
Grasping the rope, Lyonor plunges into the pit, frantically feels her way along the bottom, and scrambles up the opposite side. (She is now Far from the fight.)
Yuuki [1d20+4=22≥17] strikes GFB#1, inflicting 2 hp. Leary [1d20+4=11<17] misses. Anton [1d20+4=14<19] misses. GFB#1 [1d20+9=15<18] misses, but GFB#2 [1d20+7+2=27≥18] and #6 [1d20+7+2=21≥18] bite Leary for another 5 hp each. GFB#3 [1d20+7=9<18] misses. (Yuuki is now engaged with GFB#1 and #3.) GFB#5 [1d20+9+2=22≥18] bites Anton for another 5 hp.
Anton and Leary are at 11 and 17 hp, respectively, well past their maximum hit die rolls. Succumbing to their injuries, they breath their last. Val and Hajni have also perished. GFB#1 is unfazed by the meagre 2 hp it sustained.
Round 6
Yuuki screams as the beetles dogpile onto him.
- 🤜 Yuuki [2 hp] (engaged with GFB#1 and #3): fight.
- 🫱 Lyonors: leave.
- 🤜 GFB#1 [2 hp] and #3 [3 hp] (engaged with Yuuki): fight.
- 🤜 GFB#2, #5, and #6: strike.
[2d8={1,1}] Everyone is quick, for what it's worth.
Yuuki attacks GFB#3. The beetles, of course, all attack him.
Yuuki [1d20+4=13<18] misses. GFB#1, #3, and #5 [3d20+4={1,7,7}+4<18] miss, but GFB#2 and #6 [2d20+4={20,24}≥18] inflict 5 hp each.
Groping about in the dark, Lyonors stumbles along the passage in the direction of the spiral staircase. She covers her ears, unable to bear the sounds carnage behind her.
Yuuki goes down with 12 hp. Nobody is coming to save him.
Turn 5 - Daylight
Legs burning, heart pounding, Lyonors emerges from the dungeon entrance and throws herself onto the soft turf of the russet meadow. Though it seems to her that many days have passed, in reality she was underground for barely an hour. Grief-stricken, she drags herself to her feet and stumbles toward the guardhouse. A cold wind begins to blow from the E; the overcast sky threatens rain.
From their hide in the copse, a group of brigands watch the pitiful figure. One reaches for an arrow, but a look from their swarthy leader stays his hand.
"Leave her," he commands. "Others will come. They always do."
Epilogue
Shortly before sunset, a bedraggled and rain-drenched woman staggers through the town gates. When confronted by the watchmen, she simply collapses, finally buckling under the shock of her recent experiences.
Some kindly townsfolk lead her to a public house, where a bowl of gruel and a crust of bread restore her spirits somewhat. In time, the warmth of a fire and a cup of ale coax her to tell the tale of her companions' tragic fate. Tears are shed, songs are sung, and the dungeon's reputation grows yet more fearsome.
Comments
Post a Comment