Dungeons of Banestorm

[LoneWolf23k]

Just wondering.. I'm working on a Dungeon-Delving style Banestorm campaign as an intro to the setting, and I started thinking about possible "dungeons" Yrth might have.

Here are some of the basic ideas I had:
-Elven ruins in the depths of some old forests. Possible threats: forest creatures, magically created guardians and powerful trap spells.

-Dwarven ruins in the other mountain ranges of Ytarria. Possible threats: mechanical and magical traps, earth elementals, orc tribes who've moved in.

-Old Banestorm-era ruins made by humans and possibly other races, like Autheuil. Possible threats: Undead, demons, magic.

-Abandonned Castles in human nations. Possible threat: Undead, bandits.

-The cavernous lairs of dragons and other monsters. Possible threats: said monsters.

-Old, primordial ruins seemingly predating the elves. Possible threat: crack open your copy of GURPS Cthulhupunk and pick something. >:)

So, what do you guys think?

[Paul]

* Elven structures in the Great Desert (How did they survive the backlash? Are they mana-pockets?) Dangers: no magic, dangerous environments, ghosts, lingering Banestorms.

[Captain-Captain]

Go a step further. In a section of Djinn tha tthe Djinni avoid, the Banestorm went into overdrive. Little dimensional overlaps, small pocket universes perhaps a couple of hundred miles across perhaps larger still have entrances.

You can put classic ancient dungeons in these other worldly locales. Heck in the smaller universes the Dungeon may BE the world! The way in is NOT the way out and even though they may be a few hundred feet from each other on Yrth they are not likely that close on the other side.

Envisoin a party that crossed the Great Desert and entered Djinn, all kitted out for desert heat and Djinni summer. Poof! they're in a Carpathian mountains in deep winter environment. And vampires and werewolves and gypsy witches and all the elements of Fantasy Horror in Transylvania are there for your "We're here to kick Orc ass!" players. ;)

[William]

p. 135 of Banestorm has "The Ruins of Autheuil." (I haven't actually read too much of it, since I hope to possibly be a player for it some day!)

Menelaus' Keep in Megalos is a semi-abandoned old keep in the middle of the city; it's used for civic government these days, but there might be bricked-up portions that no one has entered for a while, and forgotten why with the change of inhabitants.

More importantly, the sewers of Megalos have quite an extensive collection of add-ons, not all of them for sewage -- see p. 93 of Banestorm for this. The description's practically crying out to be used as a dungeon. :^)

[Leon]

Wou! To say goodbye to the second edition i ever played (only recently the fourth edition was translated in Brazil), i'm thinking in mastering, for a campaign that goes mainly in Eastern Tredroy, on an adventure that goes to Autheuil and where the PCs are hired at Gebel Thamad, like suggested by the GURPS Fantasy 2ed. I was thinking exactly about demons, zombies and an horrible dimensional pocket where players would be trapped after entering in Autheuil. A mix off all of your ideas (my idea was obvious or it was a great coincidence). All the dimension will be governed by a powerfull demon that will test the characters before they can go back to Yrth, passing through a magic pool, they will reappear in the northern orclands where i will have another adventure that will end in Sahud. Shure, the adventures will be conected in a major context, but write in English get me too tired to give more details xD

[SCAR]

You might want to look at Pyramid #3/22: Banestorm.
Specifically mentions support for DF, including:

Originally Posted by Pyramid #3/22:Banestorm - Preview

Near the Bronze Mountains lies Arvey: The City of Silver Hills. Though sometimes a place bitterly fought over, this metropolis has stillmanaged to shine.More importantly, the location of the city makes it a perfect starting point for GURPS Dungeon Fantasy-style adventures. It also includes full GURPS character stats for three of the city’s noteworthy names.

and

The dwarves have a secret place of great beauty and unusual flora and fauna. Explore The Crystal Wilds (on Yrth or under the volcano of your choice), and discover what delights it has for the eye and palate. Is it realistic or fantastic? Yes!

[Gold & Appel Inc]

The lost caches of magical gear in al-Wazif as described on p 131-132 seem like a pretty blatant dungeon suggestion. The PCs could be loyal swordsmen and mages (or disgruntled conscripts and their various eccentric hangers-on, if you want to do Kelly's Heroes) (Caliph's Heroes?) ordered to investigate rumors of a new sinkhole near a suspected cache site, or your more typical crew of DF homewreckers who stumbled across a very old map with a big, fat X, and unusually descriptive notes regarding content.

Potential Hazards: Lots of potential for some flashy magical traps here, but don't skimp on the mundane ones. Maybe swarms of rats or a large, burrowing monster have made a home here, unless the ferocious magical guardians are programmed to go after them, too.

Potential Rewards: Oodles and oodles of the sort of magical equipment that the Wazifi Army would find useful during a full-scale war. Rack upon rack of healing potions, regenerative ointments, and powerstones. Mass-produced weapons and armor for elite officers, mages and other strategically-important individuals, with big helmets that are Fortified and enchanted with spells like Great Voice featured prominently. Scrolls with everything from Communicate to Extraplanar Summons (Djinn). So much they could never carry it all!

[ham2anv]

Abydos has the Silent Maze: a lightless dungeon to which prisoners are sent naked and with their tongues removed, to starve to death, go mad, or be hunted by gangs of their fellow condemned. It comes complete with rat swarms, slimes, and secret passages leading to experiment chambers housing long-forgotten demons.

In addition, the entire city can be viewed as a large dungeon brimming with undead and evil necromancers, if you are sufficiently indoctrinated by the Megalan church. A party of adventurers got this idea in 1728, when they attempted to assassinate the ruler of Abydos. The survivors were sentenced to the Silent Maze.

[cybermancer2k1]

1) In addition to Autheuil, the text mentions that there are possibly many other Elven ruins around.
2) In addition to Megalos' sewers, I'd imagine that the oldest parts of the city might serve as a dungeon of sorts: maze-like, claustrophobic and populated by people and creatures from who-knows-where.
3) A small Banestorm could conceivably snatch up a dungeon in toto and drop it onto Yrth somewhere. A good way to introduce a new monster or race.
4) The Sahudese might run "dungeons" as a sort of test; for example, to judge one's fitness to have an audience with an official.