The Labyrinth
Head into the Delves that give Gordin's Delve its name, and go down. Keep going. Take a side passage, one with no miners in it.
Go further still. Eventually, the Makerhewn tunnels and the rough-cut mine shafts give way to natural caverns and lava tubes, twisting and turning and running for miles. The Labyrinth.
These tunnels stretch out beneath the Huffel Peaks, occasionally connecting to the surface. Perhaps they stretch further, to the Whitefangs or the Steplands or even to the Great Wood.
The Ustrina come out of the Labyrinth when they visit Gordin's Delve to trade. But when asked, they claim it is not their home.
Other things come out of those tunnels, too, to prey on miners in the Delves. Survivors tell tales full of outlandish horror.
Chief among those tales are the thraulgwyn, the "pale demons," white-haired raiders wielding weapons of bone and volcanic glass.
But the Labyrinth holds more than horrors.
It holds riches, too. Ore and gems, seams of coal, and ancient wonders of the Forge Lords. Riches enough to spur the occasional expedition, ill-fated though it may be.
Impressions
- The vast and hostile darkness, a quiet that sucks at the soul
- The humbling scale of the tunnels
- Air heavy with the smell of earth, stone, and sulfur
- Smooth walls, ribbed walls, knobby walls, cracked walls
- Distant dripping, clinking stone, footsteps, whispers, screams
Questions
- Which of you has seen the Labyrinth in your dreams? What do you recall?
- Who entered the Labyrinth years ago, never to be seen again?
- What legendary Forge Lord site is said to be down there?
- Of all the tales that Delvers tell, of things coming out of the Labyrinth, which disturbs you most?
- What do you think the thraulgwyn, the pale demons, really are?
Hooks
- Thraulgwyn raid a mining crew and drag off captives.
- A prospector can lead the PCs to the Portal Vault, but plans to feed them to her sister's wraith once there.
- Ustrina offer a reward for retrieving a relic from a ruin in the Labyrinth.
- An old map of the Labyrinth shows a path from Gordin's Delve to Moratia Rubra (the Forge Lords' old capitol).
- More and more Delvers hear a voiceless call from the Labyrinth. Some heed it.
- A draventao emerges from its lair in the Labyrinth and preys on loggers, miners, and such.
Navigating the Labyrinth
The Labyrinth is vast and sprawling. In theory, one could travel these tunnels from Gordin's Delve to the far end of the Huffel Peaks and the sea that lies beyond. It'd be madness, but one could try.
On any expedition into the Labyrinth:
Lost in the Dark
When you lose your way in the Labyrinth, each member of your party consumes supplies. Then, roll once for the party and if…
- you all had enough supplies, add +1;
- you are led by someone wise to the Labyrinth's ways, add +1;
- you are stumbling around blind, roll with disadvantage; and/or
- one of you has the Mental Map move (from the Ranger playbook), roll with advantage.
On a 10+, you find your way to a portable light source, an exit from the Labyrinth, or a familiar path—GM's choice as to which;
on a 7-9, you encounter thraulgwyn, a Forge Lord ruin, or an obstruction—GM's choice, and afterwards you might need to make this move again; on a 6-, decide as a group whether you find yourselves in the Deeps, or stumble out of the Labyrinth days or weeks later, with all your debilities marked and only HP remaining. If you choose the latter, each
PC must pick 1:
- You have suffered a permanent injury or impairment—what and how?
- A follower of yours didn't make it out—who and why?
- You lost a treasured (or at least vital) item—what and how?
- Actually, you didn't make it out after all —why not?
Terrain
Pick 1 or combine 2, or have someone roll the Die of Fate ().
| 1-2 | Lave tube or magma worm tunnel |
|---|---|
| 3-4 | Braided/branching tunnels |
| 5-6 | Chamber, cavern, or alcove |
| 7-8 | Steps, terraces, ledges |
| 9-10 | Forge Lord construction, worked stone passage, or ruin |
| 11-12 | obstruction (see below), and roll |
Again
| 1-2 | A cave-in (dig through?) |
|---|---|
| 3-4 | A squeeze (wriggle through?) |
| 5-6 | A sheer rock face, like the earth just shifted (climb?) |
| 7-8 | A shaft/chimney (climb/squeeze?) |
| 9-10 | A flooded chamber (wade, swim, find an exit underwater?) |
| 11 | A chasm/rift, your path crossing it (jump, belay, or find a bridge?) |
| 12 | Intense heat, foul air, brittle crust, magma flows (good luck) For any given tunnel or chamber, pick or have someone roll for 1-3 features. Consider rolling for size/scope/intensity. |
| 1 | Stream/spring/pool/lake |
|---|---|
| 2 | Stalactites/sharkteeth/knobby, ball-like stone protrusions |
| 3 | Rubble/debris/boulders (possibly fused into other stone) |
| 4 | Dome shaped cupola overhead |
| 5 | Hexagonal columns, packed tight |
| 6 | Apron/tongue/slipbank/gutters |
| 7 | Flat, cracked, a hardened lava lake |
| 8 | Steep slope/awkward ridges/ undulating or ropy floor |
| 9 | Intense heat/cold |
| 10 | Cramped/narrow/low ceilings |
| 11 | Slippery mud/scree/oil/ooze |
| 12 | Glowmoths, glimmercaps, red crystal, other light sources |
Discoveries
For any of these, pick 1 or have someone roll the Die of Fate.
| 1 | A change of terrain (previous page) and roll again. |
|---|---|
| 2 | A chance for insight into a threat or danger (e.g. tracks that reveal numbers, whereabouts, etc.) |
| 3 | An encounter with thraulgwyn (see below) |
| 4 | Some other encounter (next column) |
| 5 | An opportunity (next column) |
| 6 | A point of interest |
| 1 | A whole tribal band, on the move |
|---|---|
| 2-3 | A gang on patrol, wary but curious |
| 4 | One or two, under attack by a rival band |
| 5 | Foragers, eager to invite guests home |
| 6 | Two groups in a tense parley See Thraulgwyn for more on the thraulgwyn. |
| 1 | A thrall, terribly marked, living down here all alone |
|---|---|
| 2 | A swarm of small, cave-dwelling vermin—cave spiders, rockrats, or bats—alarming and distracting, but essentially harmless |
| 3 | A ghost, revenant, or spirit of the wild: curious or indifferent |
| 4 | A metal construct, following ancient orders or awaiting activation |
| 5 | Adventurers/prospectors from Gordin's Delve, wary, maybe lost |
| 6 | Ustrina: surface-bound, returning to the Portal Vault, or seeking something |
| 1 | A good place to rest/hide/ ambush foes |
|---|---|
| 2 | Potable water, edible fungi, cave fish, rockrats, etc. |
| 3 | Portable light source: glimmercaps, red crystal, glowing makerglass, etc. |
| 4 | A vein of coal/ore/copper/gold/gems |
| 5 | An artifact of the Forge Lords, Barrow Builders, or Things Below |
| 6 | Sign of their objective/quarry |
| 1 | A place corrupted by the Things Below, perhaps a shrine tended by thraulgwyn or cultists |
|---|---|
| 2 | A haunted site |
| 3 | A notable site (see below) |
| 4 | A thraulgwyn settlement |
| 5 | A Forge Lord site, perhaps inhabited by Ustrina |
| 6 | A path up and out into the Huffel Peaks, or down into the Deeps |
Notable sites
- Heat, choking air, and a resonant rumble give way to a magma lake, air a-shimmer with heat, toxic gas.
- A vast subterranean lake, perhaps the same one that connects to the Second Delve.
- The Hanging Forest, a long, wide tunnel full of skinny roots dangling from the surface. Full of crickets and things that eat them.
- The Mirrorkeep, a Forge Lord outpost, largely intact, lined with reflective mosaics. Sits over a bottomless (?) pit.
- The Dreaming Breath, a hot spring pool. Mold and fungi cake nearby stone. The waters restore vigor but cause stupefying euphoria.
- The Red Glutton, a horned, 40' tall, toadlike statue with an ever-burning brazier and fist-sized rubies (Value 4) for eyes. Revered by thraulgwyn.
- The locked doors of the Portal Vault (next column), cold and imposing.
The Portal Vault
Five hours from the Delves (if you know the shortest route) stands a pair of double doors: 30' tall, bronze, covered in runic wards and reliefs of Forge Lord glories.
A cunning lock seals them. Only six keys exist; the Ustrina hold five.
Inside is a vast octagonal space, 60' from floor to angled ceiling. Six of its corners feature 20' tall niches, each housing a large metal construct that attacks any party that doesn't bear one of the keys.
A slab of white stone, 30' tall and 3' thick, stands upright in the center of the vault.
Each side is etched with a magic circle. It's a portal, connected to those in the Ruined Tower, Three Coven Lake, Vor Svetelik, and so forth. It is fully functional, and can be used via Opening the Way.
The Ustrina use this place to travel to Gordin's Delve, and to return to their far-flung homes. No one sect controls the Vault, and they treat it as neutral ground. But that doesn't apply to non-Ustrina.
Thraulgwyn
Their hair is white, their skin pallid and painted with lime and mud and blood.
Their pupils are wide, like gaping holes.
They file their teeth sharp, and craft their weapons from obsidian, stone, and bone.
They tan human flesh for leather.
The folks of Gordin's Delve know them as thraulgwyn, "pale demons," terrors that emerge from the Labyrinth and drag off friends and loved ones.
Something interesting: The thraulgwyn descended from Barrow Builders, from the followers of certain warlords and sorcerer-kings who fled into the Labyrinth when their subjects rose against them. They were already depraved disciples of the Things Below, and after generations of inbreeding, cave-dwelling, and cannibalism, they're barely human.
Something useful: Except, that's not really true. They have language (a dialect of the Hillfolk tongue) and outsiders have made deals with them. They hate other tribes more than they hate surface-dwellers. And while they do eat the dead, most of their food is foraged, even cultivated.
Tip: Cock your head. Dart your eyes. Hold a hand up to block the light. Try not to touch your teeth with your tongue.
Names
Breton- or Cornish-inspired (after the Barrow Builders), but clipped: Aln, Az, Benez, Clem, Con, Dav, Demel, Gryf, Gwun, Humra, Iarn, Ilcar, Ilcu, Kyt, Lum, Mar, Mera, Nez, Rud, San, Tek, Wurg.
Tribal bands are named "Uskl-" (the People of) and a truncated Barrow Builder name: Uskl-Azel, Uskl-Judak, Uskl-Enor, Uskl-Renza, Uskl-Wioc, etc.
Tribal bands
Here's a typical tribal band:
Size hamlet (~25 to 75 souls)
Population -1 to +1
Resources
- Gathering (fungus, fish, water)
- Farming (fungus, grubs, bugs)
- Scavenging (Forge Lord sites)
- Raiding (neighboring tribes)
- Cannibalism
Defenses +0
- Warlike culture
- Bone clubs/spears tipped with obsidian
- Corrupted gifts
- Magical artifacts
Each tribal band descends from a particular warlord or sorcerer-king of the Barrow Builders and the disciples who followed them into exile. And each band is likewise corrupted by a different one of the Things Below.
For each tribal band, pick or create the entity they worship. Pick or roll for a gift and a mark that entity bestows on their people. Then pick or roll an asset and a quirk. Finally, identify artifacts of the Barrow Builders, Forge Lords, or Things Below that they hold as sacred treasures.
| 1 | Eat flesh to regenerate wounds |
|---|---|
| 2 | Soundless movement |
| 3 | Immunity to poison, fire, and cold |
| 4 | Brutal strength (+2 damage, forceful) |
| 5 | Throat sac, exhales poison gas (, close, area, reload, debilitating) |
| 6 | Wordless communication |
| 1 | No eyes (they echolocate) |
|---|---|
| 2 | Too-long limbs, fingers, necks |
| 3 | Covered in weeping sores |
| 4 | Grotesque/horrific behaviors (even for thraulgwyn) |
| 5 | Subject to hallucinations |
| 6 | Fear open flame See The Things Below for more gifts and marks. |
| 1 | Metal weapons, lovingly cared for |
|---|---|
| 2 | Means to brew a paralytic poison |
| 3 | An additional gift |
| 4 | Greater numbers (a village, ~150 souls) |
| 5 | A pet emanation |
| 6 | Still led by their deathless founder, and roll again |
| 1 | Hubristic and overconfident |
|---|---|
| 2 | Bear an additional mark |
| 3 | Build structures out of bones |
| 4 | Venture out to the surface at night |
| 5 | Revere magma worms |
| 6 | Intrigued by surface-dwellers |
Trade & Barter
The PCs must be on civil terms with a group of thraulgwyn before any of this matters.
Commonly available
The following would be special items in Stonetop, but they are commonly available among the thraulgwyn. The PCs can acquire them here without rolling, but need to trade something of equal Value.
Meat, clean water, and whisky are always in demand, as are durable goods and tools.
But thraulgwyn have little use for coin or luxuries, and are suspicious of most other surface food.
| Goods | Value |
|---|---|
| Set of bone tools (needles, hooks, etc.) | 0 |
| Pouch of hallucinogenic spores (◇ use) | 0 |
| ◇ Supplies (◇◇◇ uses, crude, unsavory) | 0 |
| Corpse-wax candle (last ~1 hour, close) | 1* |
| ◇ Bone or stone weapon (crude) | 1* |
| Glimmercap oil (◇◇◇◇◇ hours, hand, crude) | 1* |
| Elaborately scrimshawed bone item | +1 |
Special items
The following might be acquired from or traded to the thraulgwyn, but the PCs must roll Trade & Barter to do so.
When PCs Trade & Barter among a band of thraulgwyn, they use the local Prosperity (-1 by default) with disadvantage because it's a hamlet. On a 6-, they don't mark XP—this band simply doesn't have or want what the PCs are after/selling.
| Goods | Value |
|---|---|
| Red crystal "candle" (hand, magical) | 1 |
| Vial of paralytic powder (◇ use, close) | 1 |
| ◇ Meat provisions, don't ask (◇◇◇◇◇◇ uses) | 1* |
| ◇◇ Human-hide armor (1 armor) | 1* |
| ◇ pouch of anthracite (Forge Lords~10 lumps, each lasts ~8 hours, close, area) | 2* |
| ◇ Red crystal "torch" (reach, area, magical) | 3* |
| Pottery, wool, textiles, wooden items | +1* |
| Bronze, iron, or steel items/weapons | +1* |
| An object of black iron | +2 |
| Scavenged makerglass | +2 |
Thraulgwyn are always willing to accept people or corpses in trade: a living wretch or a dodgy corpse is Value 1, a healthy specimen is Value 2, a big healthy surface dweller might be Value 3.
Services and Favors
PCs don't need to roll Trade & Barter for the following, but they will likely need to Persuade people—even if they offer something of suitable Value.
| Service/Favor | Value |
|---|---|
| A raid against a rival tribe | 0 |
| Directions to a spot in the Labyrinth | 1 |
| A day's food and shelter | 1 |
| A guide for a few days | 2 |
| A temporary truce with a rival tribe | 2 |
| Directions to a forbidden or sacred site | 3 |
| Ritual to commune with a Thing Below | 3 |
The Deeps
The Labyrinth is far from static. Earthquakes, volcanism, and burrowing magma worms all wreak havoc upon it. But you could map it. You could learn its ways and find your way back to a place you had been.
But as one goes deeper, things change. The world becomes… softer. Less fixed. And beyond an uncertain point, one enters the Deeps.
The Deeps shift when you aren't looking.
They reflect your fears and your desires. They seek to trap you, to twist you, to consume you. For it is here, of all the places in the world, that one is closest to the Things Below.
Why would anyone come here? Perhaps…
- they are called by the Things Below;
- they are lost and didn't mean to come;
- to rescue someone;
- to find an artifact of legend;
- to hide something away forever; and/or
- to do the impossible: to face and truly slay one of the Things Below.
Impressions
- Endless tunnels, going and going
- Thoughts drifting as you trudge along, jerking awake
- The darkness, deeper and absolute
- When did you last eat, drink, or rest?
- Wait, who are these people again?
- Dreamlike acceptance of whatever weirdness you encounter
Arriving
When the PCs first arrive, describe their endless slog using the impressions above.
Intersperse your description with questions like these:
- What pleasant detail about the surface are you struggling to recall?
- What do you fear you'll find here?
- What nightmare keeps replaying in your mind?
- Who'd be better off if you never made it home?
- When did you start suspecting that __ isn't really who they say they are?
After setting the mood, present a nightmare tableau (below). If the PCs escape it, they are then traversing the Deeps (next page).
Nightmare tableaux
Pick or roll for the terrain, including features, and combine with a theme of the Things Below.
Pick or roll for the crux of the tableau and its instinct. Create a scene or situation that combines these elements, riffing on whatever internal conflicts the PCs are dealing with.
| 1 | Another traveler, trapped here |
|---|---|
| 2 | Details pulled from the PCs' minds |
| 3 | Simulacra of known NPCs, convinced that they are real |
| 4 | Simulacra of the PCs, convinced they are real |
| 5 | An artifact of the Things Below, the tableau's heart |
| 6 | Roll twice, combine |
| 1 | To traumatize/punish them |
|---|---|
| 2 | To weaken/hurt/degrade them |
| 3 | To corrupt them |
| 4 | To turn them against each other |
| 5 | To trap or ensnare them |
| 6 | To coalesce into a full-fledged emanation Play out the scene with dreamlike logic but very real potential consequences for the PCs. Make liberal use of whispers and visions and unnatural phenomena. Should a simulacrum leave the tableau with the PCs, decide for yourself what happens; don't be afraid to get weird. |
Traversing the Deeps
Time flows strangely down here. Visitors don't really need food or drink. Sleep is fleeting. Light sources might last indefinitely, only to snuff out at the worst moment. Distances are fluid, dreamlike. Those who wander without a purpose are sure to be trapped, or worse.
Seek Out
When you seek something in the Deeps, whoever leads the way rolls +WIS. Unless they bear a holy light, they roll with disadvantage. On a 10+, pick 1 from the list below; on a 7-9, encounter a danger, but gain +1 Progress; on a 6-, lose all Progress and encounter a danger.
- Encounter a danger, but gain +2 Progress
- You find a reprieve, a pocket of normalcy and a safe place to Make Camp
When you encounter a danger, roll the Die of Fate to see what it is.
The PCs get lost in the Labyrinth, one of their followers dying in the process. Now they've wandered into the Deeps, full of guilt and recrimination.
For their first tableau, I roll a 7 for terrain ("steps, terraces, ledges") and an 11 for a feature ("slippery mud/scree/oil/ ooze"). For a theme, I get 12: "Death/undeath/loss/grief… (skulls, tombs, pyres)." Looking at the crux list, I just pick "simulacra of known NPCs," and I roll a 5 for instinct ("to trap or ensnare them").
The tunnel opens to a cavern of everwider terraces, sloping down out of sight, covered with scree and rubble. But the scree isn't stone, it's bones and skulls, who knows how deep? If they slip, the bones cut them, drag them down, try to bury them. As they cross, that dead follower starts calling for help, trapped in the bone-rubble, and don't you dare leave me again, you bastards!
| 1 | Tcaventes, wandering |
|---|---|
| 2 | An emanation |
| 3 | A huge magma worm |
| 4 | A nightmare tableau (previous page) |
| 5 | An ordeal: heat, cold, hunger, intrusive thoughts, false memories, etc. |
| 6 | Someone else lost down here, maybe from a different time, paranoid or at least extremely wary When you escape or otherwise survive the danger and you hold 3+ Progress, you find your goal. If you continue to seek your current goal, keep your Progress and make this move again. If you choose a new goal, lose all Progress. |
The Utterwell
At the very bottom of the Deeps stands a throne of black iron, the seat of Tcaventes, Shackle and Key. Behind the throne looms a black iron door. An orichalcum bolt holds the door fast. The bolt is bound with the Ineffable Word for "seal."
The black iron door opens onto the shore of the Utterwell: a sunless sea, still and black as night. No light penetrates its depths, not even the light of Helior. Anyone or anything who enters the sea is gone, consumed by the Things Below.
When you stand before the Utterwell and call one of the Things Below by name, it will emerge in all its terrible glory. Woe be upon you. And if the door is still open, woe be upon the world.
Dangers
Hazards
- Getting lost
- Running out of light
- Cold, especially if they get wet
- Heat, gas, volcanic activity
- Treacherous footing, slopes, climbs
- Getting stuck in a squeeze
- An unexpected drop-off
- Cave-ins, rock-falls
- Earthquakes!
- Panic in the face of the above
Monsters and such
- Ghosts and revenants of those who never got out
- Metal constructs, guarding something or on some task
- Caralandrao, seeking magic
- Fire drakes, near magma
- A grochslon, near a stream, lake, or cave mouth
- Explorers: adventurers, an antiquarian, a sorcerer, etc.
- Ustrina, en route or in search of something
- A draventao, making its lair down here
- Corrupted beings: bats, rockrats, spirits, any of the above
- Emanations of the Things Below, seeping out of the Deeps
Corruption, as one goes deeper
- Disquiet and unease
- Whispers and visions, coming from below
- Unnatural phenomena, in or near the Deeps
Magma Worm
HP 19; Armor 4 (rocky plates, lacks vitals)
Damage bite (hand, close, grabby, messy, 1 piercing) or searing touch (hand, area)
Special qualities blind; tremorsense; fireproof; superheated body; can move only forward, can't back up
Instinct to devour minerals and metal
- Eat through solid rock
- Burst forth from a tunnel wall
- Exude choking, sulfurous gas
- Melt metal that pierces it
Creatures of the first age, things of fire and stone. They're segmented, 3' thick and 20' long, covered in overlapping plates that glow red at the seams. The air heat-shimmers around them. They have no eyes, just a great mouth-opening and concentric rows of grinding teeth that melt and burrow through rock. Winding tunnels stretch behind them, lined with slag hardened into ropy stone.
The worms described here are mere centuries old, the ones most likely to be encountered. Older and larger ones survive in the Deeps, up to 10' wide and over a 100' long (huge, +6 HP, +2 damage and roll instead of ). In eons past, even larger worms carved out much of the Labyrinth.
Thraulgwyn Raider
HP 6; Armor 0 or 1 (human hide)
Damage obsidian-tipped bone spear (close, thrown, crude), femur (close, crude), hair-rope net (thrown, crude, grabby), bite (hand)
Special qualities gifted and marked according to their tribe
Instinct to glorify their tribe
- Use their gift
- Move quietly through the dark
- Lure prey into an ambush
- Pounce with sudden ferocity
- Flee if things go south
They roam the tunnels in gangs of 3-5, playing cat and mouse with rival bands.
Should they notice outsiders, they might try to ambush them, capture them, and eat them. But they might also greet them, offer to trade, try to use them against their foes.
Some raiding parties are led by a champion (leader, +2 HP, deals damage with advantage), who bears one of their tribal band's sacred artifacts.
Soithech
HP 18; Armor 5 (resilience, human hide), 1 vs. bronze
Damage obsidian knife (hand, crude)
Special qualities powerfully gifted and marked, as per their tribe
Instinct to maintain their status
- Foresee an opportunity or dire event
- Play parties against each other
- Use their gift, or one of their tribe's sacred artifacts
- Embody an aspect of their master
Most thraulgwyn settlements are ruled by a soithech, a "vessel," who claims descent from the tribe's founder. They preach old ways and old hatreds, keeping their people in line with prophecies of glory and doom—some of which are even true.
A soitech's power is not just political. They manifest their tribe's gift and mark with great intensity, and they can let the power of their patron Thing Below flow through them. When they do, they change to embody one of its aspects and gain up to 3 additional gifts.
Adjust their stat block accordingly.
Tcaventes, Shackle and Key
HP 25; Armor 6 (hard, warded, lacks vitals), 4 vs. black iron
Damage word of force (near, area, forceful) or four fists with advantage (close, reach, forceful)
Special qualities ageless; immune to the elements; perceives thought and matter; omnilingual
Instinct to hide evidence of their failure, even from themselves
- Sense and neutralize threats with cold precision
- Shift the environment to create or close an opening
- Seal or unseal: a door, a binding, a mouth, a secret, etc.
- Blaze suddenly with the blinding light of creation
They are an archon, forged by the First Creators to stand vigil over the Utterwell and to act as a bulwark against the Things Below. They are Tcaventes, Shackle and Key. A flawless guardian.
Or at least, they were. Over eons, even they succumbed to the whispers of the Things Below. The corruption leads to lapses of discipline that let their charges' influence seep out through the Deeps. It amplifies their guilt, which leads to denial strong enough to drive Tcaventes mad.
Should the PCs encounter Tcaventes on their throne, they will find the archon focused, vigilant, and stern, with only a hint of their unravelling mind.
But should the PCs encounter Tcaventes elsewhere in the Deeps, the archon will be wandering aimlessly, speaking to themselves in halting tones, struggling to hold a thought, in turns imperious and self-castigating. The PCs will need to walk a razor's edge to avoid drawing down their wrath.