Minidungeon - The Golani's Gaol

Renate Löbbecke

In a valley north of the Bloody Glades, a benevolent nature spirit has doled out free healing and resurrections for generations. But after foreign plagues destablised the region, the medicine man was swarmed by hundreds of desperate pilgrims.

Sensing opportunity, the Druid Mafia militarised the shrine and imprisoned the Golani. They claim to be protecting the spirit and his patients, even as their violent excesses grow. Bribes, beatings and rape are commonplace. Their quarantine camps are overflowing with the sick, injured and mad. 

But who's gonna do anything about it?

THE VALLEY

This grassy hex raises from marshy lowlands into a wide glen. The valley eventually slopes up into rocky foothills, interspersed with dense brush and trickling brooks.

The area is filled with well-trod walking tracks, but construction has recently begun on a paved road of roughly hewn stone. All paths converge on the shrine, a corbelled dome built from uncut rocks and held together with a dense network of living roots.

Kosciuszko National Park

THE PATROLS
A party of Scorchlanders act as force projection for the mafia's operation. These 22 Nomads are mounted on Goliath Kangaroos (stats as Devil Monkeys, CC1) and stop anyone approaching the shrine. They're quick in resorting to threats or thrown rocks when cajoling people into quarantine camps. Ironically, the foederati are forbidden from entering the shrine unless ordered to.

The native police are led by 2nd level Ranger Murray. He and his men aren't sadists, but they're deathly paranoid after witnessing firsthand the horrors of viral pandemics. They've killed before, spearing sick pilgrims who didn't obey their commands. It's not something they're proud about.

Triage is performed by a trio of Straw Golems (CC2). These constructs are controlled by the garrison at THE SHRINE. They plod between camps to diagnose patients and prioritise who gets admitted. Any attacks on them result in vicious reprisals.

Illustrated London News 1863

THE CAMPS
After a series of crowd crushes and disease outbreaks, those seeking healing have been quarantined into camps dispersed throughout the hex. The mafia provides no protection or treatment. The healthiest pilgrims try their best to keep the sickest among them alive.

The longest waits are for those seeking resurrection. Smelling profit, 3rd level Necromancer Saltpork sells Gentle Reposes for 100 GP a casting. He does offer generous loans, but when impoverished families inevitably can't pay them back, he repossesses the corpses for his magical experiments. Because he's not doing anything illegal, the druids have left the sorcerer alone.

 Guy Marchant

THE SHRINE

An ancient structure laboriously constructed over centuries. If the Golani is killed the roots holding it together wither away, collapsing the building in D3+1 Turns. Anyone still inside is crushed.

The shrine is guarded by 15 Briarcoats, led by gleefully cruel 2nd level Barbarian Ducat and callous 6th level Druid Kohlenberger. The mafioso carries a Mask of Minions that induces a trance when donned, letting him remotely command his various elementals and golems. 

Each hex is 10 feet wide. Ceilings are 12 feet high. The doors are new additions to the shrine, made from reinforced timber and secured with identical locks. All Briarcoats carry a skeleton key.

S1: Shrine Entrance 
Left open to circulate air through the poorly ventilated shrine. The roots on either wall look unusually dense, hiding a dormant Root Elemental (CC2, 12 HD). If the alarm is raised, the elemental interlaces its fingers to block the entrance and entangles incoming attackers.

The alcove nearby is guarded by 2D4 Briarcoats, but at night there's a 3-in-6 chance all but one is sleeping. They use a wall-mounted Shofar (worth 500 GP) to raise the alarm if attacked, sending reverberations through the whole shrine. All defenders muster to repel attackers and Kohlenberger will don his mask, awakening the Root Elemental and recalling his Straw Golems.

S2: Boar Stables
The Briarcoats keep six Dragonboars (CC1) here as mounts, penned in by a thick steel gate. In desperate circumstances, a guard from S1 will rush to unlock the gate and unleash the raging swine against attackers.

One of the monstrosities is Ducat's personal mount. It's the only one with an intact breath weapon gland, muzzled with an acid-stained gag of lycanthrope leather.

Creature Compendium

S3: Guest Room
Intended to house visiting dignitaries, this disused bedroom is employed when the garrison extorts female pilgrims or their family members for sex. They claim it's in exchange for skipping forward in line, but rarely uphold their end of the bargain. Kohlenberger can't be bothered to stop the abuse. If asked, he mutters something about "keeping morale up".

There's a 2-in-6 chance that Ducat is in here with a desperate petitioner. 

Searching the sweaty cushions finds a bottle of unfinished Aqua Vitae worth 100 GP.

S4: Sanitation
This airlock houses buckets of water, cheap soap and coarse brushes. A permanent casting of Unseen Servant, unless ordered not to, attempts to strip and brusquely scrub anyone entering the room.

S5: Holding Area
Each of the six alcoves can be secured with an iron gate. Anyone on the shortlist, are left here awaiting their treatment. At any given time, D20 Normal Humans (OSE, but 1 HP each) are locked in here, nursing injuries and disease symptoms.

D4 Briarcoats guard the room. They're disgruntled and prone to violence, seeing this posting as a punishment detail. Another Shofar is mounted to the wall, also worth 500 GP.

S6: Stairwell
A simple stairwell of uncut rock leads 15 feet up to the second floor. 

S7: Inner Sanctum
A Golani (CC2) sits in a pool of pure water, bound with silver chains worth 2,000 GP. The old spirit is despondent, wanting nothing more than to heal all who come before him. He hates the druids for enslaving him, but begs would-be rescuers to leave him be; break his chains and his captors will return in greater force. He fears they'll stop pilgrims visiting him outright.

A persuasive character can try convincing the medicine man to escape. If successful, he hijacks Kohlenberger's Root Elemental and selectively collapses parts of the shrine to crush Briarcoats.

Creature Cache

S8: Barracks
Any remaining Briarcoats not rolled on keyed areas are here, cleaning weapons or sleeping. Searching their personal effects finds 750 GP worth of pilfered jewellery and coins.

S9: Checkpoint
Last line of defence for the Golani's sanctum. Guarded at all times by a Dwarf Clay Golem (CC2) that won't hesitate to beat interlopers to death. The stupid construct will never leave the door, even if the guards in S5 beg for help.

Being struck by ranged attacks confuses the golem for D3 rounds, before it eventually charges.

S10: Workshop
Used by Kohlenberger to craft and maintain his coterie of constructs. Stupidly, its also used by the Briarcoats to repair their equipment and store ammunition. 

Holds 4,500 GP in incredibly volatile materials, a mixture of enchanted straw, blackpowder and alchemical reagents. Fire-based attacks here will cause a terrific explosion, dealing damage as Fireball to anyone in S6, S8, S9 or S10, and collapsing the southern part of the shrine in D3+1 Turns.

S11: Altar Of Godlings
A plinth holds a wooden statuette of Mothermilk, along with a dozen minor gods worshipped by the ethnically diverse Briarcoats. Offerings of 102 GP and a Milk of Kindness (as Potion of Healing).

There's a 2-in-6 chance that Kohlenberger is here, meditating in front of the idol.

Providence Lithograph Company

S12: Storage
These alcoves hold misappropriated goods taken as bribes from pilgrims. The treasure horde contains 9,640 GP in amber, coinage, gems, jewellery and pelts. There's also a +1/+3 Sword of Changeling Bane (+3 versus shapeshifters, dispels illusions it touches) that Kohlenberger intends on gifting to Rion Bloodsmock in exchange for a promotion.

The metal among the treasure is trapped, adhering to anyone touching it and casting Heat Metal on itself. Prying the metal from your skin requires an Open Doors check. Dispel Magic or Remove Curse negates. Kohlenberger alone knows the command word to disable the trap.

S13: Battlements
This large opening looks directly onto S7. There's an equally-sized skylight in the ceiling, though it's recently been reinforced with a wooden grate. There's a small hatch and rope ladder, allowing Briarcoats to climb onto the roof of the shrine.

The battlements overlooking the Golani are lined with cauldrons of acid. In the event of a siege, the Briarcoats will upend them, filling S7 with corrosive fluid. Anyone inside must Save vs Breath Weapon or be melted into slurry. The chained Golani automatically fails its Save.

The Briarcoats claim this is merely a deterrent, to prevent bad actors from trying to kidnap the medicine man. They don't realise that killing the Golani will collapse the shrine on them. Out of hope he'll take the defenders down with him, the old spirit hasn't corrected them.

ADDENDA

WANDERING MONSTERS
Roll a D10:
1-2: Dragonboars equal to the number on the die, escaped from their enclosure.
3-4: A Straw Golem, returning with vellum patient records.
5-7: Briarcoats equal to the number on the die. 2-in-6 chance of D4 pilgrims accompanying them.
8: As below, but led by Ducat.
9: D4 pilgrims, having snuck into the shrine or escaped from S5.
10: Kohlenberger, moving about purposefully on some errand.

GOLD FOR MIRACLES
Most adventuring parties probably won't treat the shrine as a dungeon, but instead seek healing or resurrection services. The Druid Mafia technically keeps up the Golani's tradition of not charging for miracles, but the waitlist can be months long. Naturally, the Briarcoats accept bribes:

• Cure Light Wounds/Paralysis - 100 GP.
• Remove Poison - 500 GP.
• Cure Blindness/Disease - 1,500 GP.
• Regrow Limbs or Reverse Petrification - 3,000 GP.
• Resurrection - 5,000 GP.

THE MAKING OF

In my last scenario, the Serpentman's Sacrament, there was a group of mercenary clerics that sold clerical miracles. They saw a lot of use by my players, and I realised I didn't have an equivalent in Pelts for XP. After seeing the Golani in the Creature Cache, I knew they'd be perfect for the job.

The writer of Lorn Song of the Bachelor, Zedeck Siew, made a very good point about anti-colonialism in games. "If I offered a mechanical incentive for you to fight colonial invaders, you wouldn’t be making a moral decision, but a mercenary one."

I'm not here to moral grandstand, this game's about having fun and I'm only using the backdrop of colonial not-Australia because I think it's cool. That being said, I think it's a good idea to provide gameplay for my players if they do decide to fight the forces of Law. 

Besides, this scenario doesn't offer an easy solution. Sure, the garrison are abusive assholes, but wiping them out doesn't increase the miracles the Golani can dole out. The desperate pilgrims might end up killing each other in an orgy of fevered violence, fighting over who gets healed. If the players want a truly moral outcome, they need a better plan than just killing everyone. 

And once again, many thanks to Dyson Logos for providing the map.