The Bogeywoman's Cave

The Castle On Raven Hill In The Real World There is an actual hill in Raven Hill, confusingly also called Raven Hill. Atop this mound is a castle, once home to a local lord, but now long since abandoned. Sometimes teens explore the crumbling ruins, and legend has it that the ghosts of the castle's old guard still haunt its halls. In The Fogworld For the most part, the castle in the Fogworld is nearly identical to its real world counterpart, but there are a few key differences. For one, while its relatively easy to reach the castle in the real world, in the Fogworld there are countless obstacles preventing access, though these all can be broken through with effort. The second difference is the bell in the highest tower of the castle. In the real world, the bell has long since been removed and melted down, but in the Fogworld it still hangs, and tolls whenever the Fogworld transitions to the Otherworld and vice versa. In The Otherworld The castle is the center of th...

Below is an explanation of how I would go about running Dungeon Crawls in Raven Hill, my psychological horror mini-setting inspired by Ravenloft and Silent Hill, and first detailed in this post. I hope you enjoy! (From Bloodborne) Reasons For Exploring Such A Terrible Place Exploring an adventure site in most areas is done for the purpose of finding gold, or perhaps a magical artifact. In the cursed town of Raven Hill, however, entering a "dungeon" is usually done for very different reasons. Reason 1: Escaping The Town Most of the time, people enter Raven Hill's Fogworld by accident, and have no desire to stay there. Thus, exploring dungeons is usually done to find some kind of way out. The town's Fogworld version is generally impossible to escape through natural means, with  roads leading off into a void, endless forests that loop back around to where one started, and giant walls of iron. Finding a way to escape the town usually involves performing some kind...

The innocent are not drawn to the fog-shrouded streets of Raven Hill, and even if they did chance upon it, the land would appear normal. No, the evil town craves only the souls of those who are consumed by guilt and remorse. It is not necessarily "evil" that causes people to wander into town, for Raven Hill does not judge its visitors. A man who killed hundreds and believes his victims deserved what they got would never set foot in the Fogworld, but a man who failed to save his best friend's life and blames himself for their death would. It is guilt that the town craves, not sin. (From Silent Hill 4: The Room ) Below are 4 random tables, intended for use by players while making characters to explore Raven Hill. What is your sin? (d6) 1. You murdered somebody 2. Through your mistake, you let someone die 3. You betrayed someone close to you 4. You caused the corruption of something innocent 5. You disappointed the one you love most 6. You hid while something ...

(Image taken from The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey) Goblins are not native to Urth, they arrived on this planet with the coming of the faeries. They are creatures made from fey magic, born of slime and blood, specially created for the invasion of Urth after demons invaded the faeries' home plane. After this invasion failed, and that faeries were driven into the forests of Urth, the goblins escaped their servitude, and have become the dungeon-dwelling creatures we know today. Faeries are long lived and powerful, but don't have large populations. Even before the demonic invasion, the faerie population was quite small compared to humanity, and after their world was destroyed, their numbers dwindled even further. As a result of this, the foot soldiers of the faerie were made to reproduce quickly, trading quality of soldiers for quantity. All goblins are capable of giving birth, and do so without any form of sexual reproduction. Goblins are born in large litters, and are cap...

Horror is probably my favorite genre of fiction (as shown by my blog), and so I knew eventually I'd have to write up some form of system to do it justice. This system still needs some playtesting, but it seems okay so far. Here is the very early version of my survival horror house rules, I'd love feedback!

Designed for 4 1st level characters. Around a century ago, the great Barbarian warlord, Lucius Gelt, began to die of a strange wasting disease. In his final days, he instructed his followers to build a tomb for him in the hills, to contain his corpse and his gold. Gelt's tomb was trapped to prevent intruders from stealing his ill-gotten loot, and his warband's wizard created monstrous guardians, to ensure his eternal slumber is not disturbed. 1. The Scarecrow Standing outside of the entrance of the tomb is a crude scarecrow, with beady button eyes and sharp pieces of wood sticking out of its sleeves. The scarecrow is animate, and will attack as soon as the party turns their back on it. Scarecrow AC 11 HP 36 ATK 2 claws  (+3) DMG 2d4+1 + DC 11 WIS save or be frightened until end of next turn 200 XP Immune to poison Resistant to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from non-magical weapons Vulnerable to fire Terrifying Glare (alternative attack) One target w...

NOTE: The lore of the monsters, as described by me, is modified to be more setting neutral, and is not indicative of the actual backstory of these creatures in Dark Souls 3. All images are taken from the Dark Souls 3 and Dark Souls Fandom wikis. Man Grub HD 1 AC unarmored ATK 1 scratch DMG 1d3 HDE 1 There are some who obsess over their every imperfection until the very sight of their face drives them to rage. Some of these few become so desperate as to require rebirth, engaging in foul rituals to change their forms and be, quite literally, born again from the womb of a witch. However, this process sometimes goes wrong, and the resulting creatures are hideous and in constant pain. Ghru HD 2 AC unarmored or by armor worn ATK 2 claws or 1 weapon DMG 1d3 each or by weapon HDE 3 Special: Due to their corrupted and poisonous nature, any attack by a Ghru requires the victim to make a saving throw or take an additional 1d3 damage per attack. They say they were men, once, b...

The following dungeon is designed for 4-5 2nd level adventurers Background The castle above the dungeon was once home to the demon worshiper Baron Whately, who was burned at the stake, his castle destroyed with gunpowder. However, his dungeon was left intact, and the few who tried to plant gunpowder within to destroy it never came back. The site was deemed unholy by the church. However, for some reason or another, the PCs are in need of a foul book, known simply as the Art of Flesh. It is rumored that one of the few remaining copies of this vile tome lies waiting in the dungeons of Castle Whately... Room Key 1.  Piled up near the stairs are several barrels, with fuses connecting them all. Barrels full of gunpowder rigged to blow if lit, sealing off the dungeon. 2.  8 clattering skeletons stand here, armed with swords and wielding shields. The shields are emblazoned with the Whately family seal. 8 Skeletons, they attack when party enters the room. 3.  ...

[NOTE: Just a quick little post for today, tomorrow I might write up a dungeon!] So, Pathfinder has this thing where the spells are really long, so in order to make them easier to reference they have a list of spells with a 1 sentence summary of the effect. Using only those summaries, I converted the following spells from Pathfinder to my own house rules. Spells are taken from Ultimate Magic or the Advanced Player's Guide . 1st level Decompose Corpse The flesh of a corpse the caster touches dissolves, leaving behind a clean skeleton. Restore Corpse A skeleton or decomposing corpse the caster touches is restored to the state it was in immediately after death. Sanctify Corpse A corpse the caster touches cannot be raised as an undead creature. Bungle A target within line of sight must make a saving throw or fail whatever attack/action they make next. 2nd level Disfiguring Touch A creature the caster touches must make a saving throw or become hideously ugly, effe...

The PDF Here is a link to the current version of my house rules, feel free to steal and mess with as you will, preferably giving credit to me. Characters So, one of the main things I wanted to accomplish with my house rules was extremely fast character creation, something that I deem essential to a high mortality game. I stripped down as much as I could, while still leaving enough to allow for some player choice (admittedly, fighters kind of get the short end of the stick here, but they're powerful enough that that doesn't really matter). Characters in my house rules can be made in about 5-10 minutes, and here are two that I made for funsies. Heinrich the Norseman Species: Human Class: Fighter Level: 1 HP 8 AC Unarmored (Light Armor, -2 from DEX) STR 16 (+2) DEX 5 (-2) CON 9 INT 11 WIS 11 CHA 12 Attack(s) Greatsword, +3 to hit, 1d6+4 damage Inventory Leather armor Greatsword Backpack Lantern 3 oil flasks 7 coins Backstory -Left his village...

I recently rewatched the excellent Stuart Gordon film Re-Animator  (a loose adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft's "Herbert West - Reanimator"), and I immediately found myself wanting to write up the re-animation solution from the film as an item for OSR games. So here it is! (Jeffrey Combs as Herbert West) West's Reagent The re-animation solution created by Dr. Herbert West has a consistency similar to milk, and glows bright green. It is typically found in small, plastic or glass containers, holding 1d6 doses each. When injected into living tissue, it revitalizes and rejuvenates the user, causing them to regain 1d6+1 hit points and not need to sleep or eat for 24 hours. However, it is highly addictive, and after a week of consistent use, one must make a saving throw each day they do not take the reagent or take 1d3 damage and a -2 penalty to attack rolls for the day. This withdrawal lasts 1d3 weeks. However, the primary effect of the drug occurs when injected into co...

A hunched over, bearded figure in a brown cloak stumbles towards you in the dark, pitiful and weak looking. You sigh, wishing not to attack such a humble creature. He probably is just an old beggar, lost and cold. If you had your way, you'd let him into your master's house, but your orders are specific. "Halt!", you shout, "Turn back please, Master Smith is not accepting visitors at the moment". At this, the cloaked man stops his stumbling, and looks up at you. Though you can't see his face, you feel fear, as though the ragged old man in front of you is gazing into your very soul. Then, before your eyes, he begins to change.  He, no, it, begins to stand up, unfolding from its hunched position. As it straightens, the thing you once thought was only 5 feet tall at the most now stands nearly 7 feet in height. The worn, brown cloth gives way to hideous, wet looking black leather. The gray beard morphs into a mass of writhing, purple tendrils, dripping ...

NOTE: The following key requires the use of WGR1: Greyhawk Ruins to be used properly. In order to avoid infringing upon copyright and merely making a helpful tool for a game master, monster statistics and the map for the dungeon level have been purposefully omitted. The module can be purchased  here ANOTHER NOTE: This series of posts is going to be put on hiatus for a bit, as its starting to become a little tiring and monotonous to me. I am going to be coming back to this in time, but for now I'm going to be taking a little break. However, I might start work on my own megadungeon soon enough... (A hook horror, as drawn by Tony Diterlizzi) THE TOWER OF WAR (LEVEL 4) W401 Wooden semicircular domes beneath shafts leading upwards Rubble litters the floor W402 Corpses of 10 ogrillion and 12 orog, shredded by talons and teeth 250 coins in golden items and 120 coins lying around W403 Scrapes and scorch marks all over the walls, floor, and ceil...

NOTE: The following key requires the use of WGR1: Greyhawk Ruins to be used properly. In order to avoid infringing upon copyright and merely making a helpful tool for a game master, monster statistics and the map for the dungeon level have been purposefully omitted. The module can be purchased  here THE TOWER OF WAR (LEVEL 3) W301 4 ogrillions W302 Large table with parchment, quills, and ink The parchment on the table is an inventory of all the gold placed in this room A small chest, covered in dust and full of 16 crawling claws 1110 coins worth of gold items scattered about the room W303 Statue of the ogre demi-god Vaprak in the center of the room 5 orogs (15 coins each), 2 ogrillions (2 coins each), and 1 half-ogre cleric (level 5) Half-ogre carries a scroll of cure serious wounds, a key to W305, and 35 coins 4 barrels containing troglodyte sweat, anyone coated must save vs. poison or lose 1d12 STR for 12 rounds, and e...

Matango (also known as Attack of the Mushroom People), is a surprisingly good 1960s toho film that is loosely based on William H. Hodgson's "The Voice in the Night" (which, if you haven't read it, is also extremely good). In the film, a group of luckless vacationers are stranded on an island covered in mushrooms, and soon find that eating the fungus takes over your mind and eventually your body, until you become a horrifying humanoid mass of mushrooms! Placing some Matango fungus in your dungeon is a surefire way to cause fungal shenanigans, especially if the party is running low on food... Stage 1 Infection After consuming a portion of Matango fungus, one must make a saving throw versus poison. If they fail, they have entered Stage 1 of Matango infection. They will now encourage anyone they have contact with to consume the mushrooms as well, claiming that they are delicious and the best thing they've ever eaten. In addition, they are now considered to be ...