GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The party will be able to get a good look at their final destination before reaching it. A rough semi-circle of a walled city hugs the river shore. An island, surrounded by a red mist, sits just off the city in the middle of the river, connected by a bridge. The ancient city is massive, but in jungle-covered ruin. A few large buildings can be seen within. The city walls have fallen down in several places and are unguarded. Land entry will be unopposed. Airborne entry will attract the attention of the Thunderbird, described below.
Large, hungry-looking aquatic dinosaur-era creatures patrol this river. The group should be given a good look at them before trying any waterborne assault on the island, which they should conclude, is their final destination. The creatures should also attack anything lingering on shore too long.
CHARACTER GOALS
This is the remaining 13’s last stand. Distribute the remaining 13 amongst these four areas: the Museum, the Opera House, the Prison, and the Cathedral. Here they all fight to the death. The characters’ near suicidal motivation for fighting these creatures on their home turf are the keys that the 13 hold, which will allow the characters to get to the island and at Kurtz. Some of the keys are held and some are protected in the buildings. The group needs all four keys to open the gate on the bridge to the island.
HEMISPHERE
This is long lost proper name of the city. I’m using Paris as a model, though with extensive changes. Jungle has covered much of the city, with orchids growing everywhere. Except for the largest and sturdiest of structures, the rest is in ruins.
THE GRAND AVENUE
A single, broad street goes down the center of the city and is the only easily navigable path. It is also extensively watched by the city’s inhuman inhabitants. Each of the main sites of the city exists along either side of the road. (Obviously not like the real Champs Elysees in Paris.) The street terminates in a massive fallen arch and a nearly collapsed bridge leading to the island.
THE TOWER
This feature sits in the center of the city, in the middle of the Grand Avenue. It can be seen from anywhere inside the city (unlike the real Eiffel Tower). Unfortunately, what lives up there can do likewise and it has a good set of eyes. This is the nest of the Thunderbird, a very large man-eating avian. The group should get a glimpse of the creature feeding on pedestrians beforehand as a warning not to stray out in the open too long. Flying objects immediately attract its attention.
The Tower stands 1,063 ft high, about 81 building levels, as per Wikipedia. It is also encrusted in massive chunks of bird crap, which get thicker and fresher, the higher you go. A colony of giant beetles exists just off this fodder. There are three main levels, connected by a series of open stairs with step count on the side of the stairs. Narrow gangways cross the width with very impressive and relatively unobstructed downward views (in other words, big drops). A winding spiral stairwell comes to the top third level. Here is the Thunderbird’s nest, which is filled with human bones and shiny items like gold, gems, jewels, and even magic items.
THE SEWERS
"Sire," said the Minister of the Interior to Napoleon, "yesterday I saw
the most intrepid man in your Empire."
"What man is that?" said the Emperor brusquely, "and what has he done?"
"He wants to do something, Sire."
"What is it?"
"To visit the sewers of Paris."
Find Les Miserables by Victor Hugo online and start reading at Volume V/Book 2. The Intestine of the Leviathan/Chapter I. The Land Impoverished by the Sea. From there and into Book 3, you’ll find out everything you ever wanted to know about the sewers of Paris. I cower in embarrassment at my own feeble attempts to put this into an RPG adventure.
This isn’t exactly the safest way to get around Hemisphere, but it is an option. The sewer even has direct connections to the other major areas, allowing for some surprise entries by the characters. There should be a one large open crater on the Avenue that also provides direct access to it. Otherwise, there should be several other less conspicuous opportunities to gain entrance.
All the lines follow the streets above. There are signs at the intersections. The sewers are navigable by rafts and small boats, which are found in various states throughout the underground. Tributaries feed into to the large trunk sewer line, the Grand Sewer, which has walkways on either side. The trunk feeds into an enormous shaft 280 ft deep and into the river. Different sections of the sewer come from different ages and can vary remarkably in appearance. There are markings and even warnings everywhere from other expeditions. Lost treasures, jewels, and even a crown can be found here. Disturbing skeletons of animals, perhaps escaped from the zoo or elsewhere, also litter the sewers.
This isn’t a pleasant place, even beyond the garbage. There are explosive methane gas pockets, sinkholes, quicksand, mudslides, and flash floods of mud and garbage that can actually burst the tunnels. Massive fungus and mushroom growths populate the underground. Some of them are hazardous. The garbage heaps by the drains are filled with swarms of rats, giant rats, and even giant cockroaches. Crocodiles patrol the waterways. Giant spiders have spun traps down some of the tunnels. And be careful, the main sewer river outlet is a nesting ground for the river creatures.
The most intelligent creatures in the sewers are the Lizard Men. These creatures are the degenerate inbred cousins of the Serpent Men, who live on the island. The groups will have nothing to do with each other. The Lizard Men aren’t smart and are fearful of any surface dwellers, but are not automatically hostile if approached correctly. Treated and rewarded well (food) and they can be enticed to act as guides through the sewers. They also have a little information about the island. As an enemy, they can be deadly, as this is their home and they know it well.
THE MUSEUM
Reference the Louvre, which I’ve never gotten a good look at, so I’m going to be vague. There is an empty reflecting pool in front. The building has three wings with a pyramid structure at its hub. Different sections of the museum are dedicated to different foreign cultures and antiquities. Of course, anything that could easily be hauled away, has been. What’s left is what’s too heavy to move and things that have been lost, or are hidden, or are dangerous. It is an empty, desolate place.
This is a lair of the 13. The members that are here will be very dangerous and have a definite home field advantage. Other dangers include numerous sculptures that are actually golems, piles of dust that form into Sandmen, and even animated dinosaur skeletons. The key is kept in a painting. It is the only remaining painting in the hall, so it’s pretty conspicuous. The key is in the clutches of a monster (DM’s choice). The inscription reads, “Speak the name of the Master and enter.” The name is, of course, Kurtz. This instantly transports the speaker into the painting and into battle. Either the monster is defeated and character is transported out with the key, or the character is defeated and their body is transported out. Only one person can go in at a time.
THE PRISON
Essentially the Bastille. Entry is made via a drawbridge. The building is made up of eight close-packed towers, around 24 m (80 ft) high. Six of the towers form the outer courtyard and are filled with prison cells. The other two towers have a separate drawbridge and courtyard and are there for the jailers and the armory. Beneath the inner courtyard is the dungeon, which features the worst conditions in the prison, filled with slime, ooze, and vermin.
This is a lair of the 13. One of the four keys is worn on whoever is the Chief Jailer. The prison is filled with Orcs and Goblins. Think Tucker’s Kobolds. They have trapped this place to the hilt, but are numerous enough to make Banzai charges as well. The Jailer will move around to keep the traps and minions in between himself and the characters.
THE CATHEDRAL
Essentially Notre Dame, a giant Gothic cathedral. It has been extensively desecrated with graffiti and alterations to honor Kurtz. This is the home of one of Kurtz’s newest experiments: the laughing men, who are basically hyena men (Gnolls). If this helps to set the scene, they’ve all painted their faces up like clowns and are continually laughing hysterically. Think of the Joker. They’re not very intelligent, but are cunning on their home turf. Their leader is a hunchback called Hunch, who lives in the big bell tower.
This is a lair of the 13. There is a key around the neck of whoever is the Head Priest. It doesn’t look like a gate key, but is actually the key to the bell tower. The gate key is in the big bell. Hunch will sneak attack whoever goes in after it by ringing the bell. He is immune to the sonic effects, but the characters won’t be. Also of note here (I should die for that pun), is the gigantic house organ, which also functions as a sonic weapon. And what would a Gothic cathedral be without vicious Gargoyles all along the outside of the building?
THE OPERA HOUSE
From Wikipedia: In 1896, one of the counter-weights for the grand chandelier fell, killing one. This, as well as the underground lake, cellars and other elements of the Opera House, inspired Gaston Leroux in 1909 to write his classic Gothic novel, The Phantom of the Opera.
In keeping with the theme, this place has many phantoms, incorporeal undead. Fortunately for the characters, they are the ghosts of theater people. That is to say, they are very self-involved and only interested in each other’s affairs. There are a couple of belligerent ones, but unless interrupted or provoked, they will ignore the characters. Unfortunately, some will insist that the characters help them finish a scene, rehearse, or do an improv. (DM’s, you’ll know you’re playing this out correctly if the players say in exasperation, “Screw this! I draw my sword!”)
Members of the 13 here are all dressed alike, as the Phantom. Their goal is constant harassment and subterfuge. They will activate trap doors, snipe from the viewing boxes, and drop chandeliers. They have full knowledge of the building, all the hidden staircases, secret passages, and the 200 dressing rooms and instrument closets. The chase should go through the several sublevels of the opera house which house the cellars for food and barrels of wine, as well as the scenery, props, and wardrobe.
The finale leads to the underground lake with a jetty and a boat on the shore, and a small island with a home on it. The key is inside the house. It sits by itself in the middle of a room, and of course is some sort of fiendish trap.
THE GATE
There is a large, crumbling bridge that leads to the red misted island in the river. It is at the end of the Grand Avenue, just beyond the fallen arch monument. At the end of the bridge, is a large magic gate with slots for four keys. Basically, nothing can damage the gate. With all four keys in, it opens, but not for anything else (at least from the outside).
The red mist that surrounds the island is not immediately lethal, but will kill anything entering it within three rounds, regardless of any precautions. Flying and swimming will meet with same result and attract the attention of the Thunderbird or the “Loch Ness Monsters” in the river. Teleportation and such will not work. I suppose you could burrow down from the riverbank, go underneath the river, and then dig up to the island. This kind of “chunnel” project will require massive public works funds and intensive Congressional lobbying. Give the players some credit for trying though.
The players may well try the gates before going through any of the other city encounters. A taunting, clue-dropping attack by one of the 13 will probably be in order. After the gates are opened, Hellion and Satha will both be aware of it. A blast of dragonfire from up in the clouds will knockdown the gates, permanently fixing the opening. (Once open, the gates lose their protective enchantment.) Hellion will be waiting on the characters to soften things up, before he enters. Satha is too much of a coward to directly enter the fight. However, at the DM’s discretion, he may teleport a troop of fanatical native warriors in to assist the characters.
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