The Ultraviolet Desert Part 3

This is part 3 of an attempt to make Acid Death Fantasy useful for an Ultraviolet Grasslands campaign. It turns Luke Gearing's mini-campaign book and bestiary for the Troika! system into 2 1/2 locations for an Ultraviolet Grasslands point-crawl. It assumes that characters are travelling from location to location as per the rules in Luka Rejec's Ultraviolet Grasslands.

This conversion/arrangement is skeletal and requires Acid Death Fantasy to use. Every mention of an enemy or non-player character refers back to ADF, numbers refer to the entry in the book under 'enemies', numbers appended with a 'b' refer to the entry in the book under 'backgrounds'. Names and terms from ADF are the intellectual property of Luke Gearing.

Parts 1 and 2 here.

The Incorrigible Dunes of the South West             

Setting out from either Alshgar or Januba, travelers might eventually reach the city of Shurupak.

 Misfortune in the pitiless wastes     

D20 plus Charisma          

1              Lost in a maze of shifting dunes (-1 week).

               

2              Fell into ennui contemplating the fallen works of the mighty.  Lone and level sands stretch far away (-2 Aura).

               

3-4          Dust storm approaches. Only drastic action can prevent loss of 1 animal, 1 sack of supplies and 1d6 life.

               

5-6          Fell into a sand sinkhole (-1d6 life).

               

7-8          Churned sand and distant rumbling ahead. Change route (-1d4 days) or 50% chance to encounter a Great Worm Young (24).

               

9-10       Dismembered bodies of 1. Warflock, 2. Hyenamen, 3. Musk-melon merchants, 4. Shepherds,  5. Canyon Crawlers, 6. Desert Mutants (46, 56, -, -, 54b, 52b).

               

11-12     Slough Lizardling (16) corpse garden. Limbs pinned to cacti. Disturbing.

               

13-17     Through the trackless waste of the dunes and across the dust flats, the journey is uneventful.

               

18-19     Awake to acid mana, a fine flake-like thing covering the ground like dew, in the shape of coriander seeds. Interesting effects if ingested.

               

20+         Moment of satori gazing up at the stars under the desert sky (+1 Thought).

 

Encounters (d8)
1	12	Glass Lizard
2	14b	Dune Rider
3	16	Slough Lizardling
4	16	Slough Lizardling
5	22	Soldier of the Divine
6	31	False Dune Snake
7	32	Dune Ghouls
8	35	Duneshark
9	43	Beaked Starfish
10	65	Guerrilla Droid

 

 Shurupak, First Among a Thousand

Lugal Garash, Many-Crowned Monarch, Gift to All Peoples presides over the greatest city among all the sultanates of the desert.

Satraps of the lugal and the oldest families of the city flaunt their wealth and power by binding powerful demons to their service. Surely, nothing could go wrong. Any connection with disturbances at nearby ruins and the disappearance of an increasing number of serfs from the city’s hinterland must be a coincidence.

Meanwhile, the School of Esteemed Acquisitions seeks to repurpose the wealth of the powerful to address the needs of the multitude.

Chance meetings and intrigue (d8)
1	14b	Dune Rider
2	32b	Hyenaman Scavenger
3	33b	Refugee of the Past
4	34b	Narrowman Nomad
5	36b	Sand-Sifter
6	41b	Sha'ir
7	45b	Technician of Esteemed Acquisitions
8	-	Escaped pet demon

Discoveries (1d6 days away)       

Titan Cult Site   

22           Soldier of the Divine

66           Titan

35b         Freshwater Grub Agent

               

Sandworm Rider Camp 

24           Great Worm Young

24b         Sandworm Rider

               

Nightbloom Oasis

Before discovering the oasis, explorers might encounter a dangerous mirage.             

45           Oasis Angler

44           Nightblooming Orchid Bees

               

Howling ruins    

                Wailing demon

25           Ruin Degenerates

63           Servitor Drones

33b         Refugee of the Past

The Ultraviolet Desert Part 2

This is part 2 of an attempt to make Acid Death Fantasy useful for an Ultraviolet Grasslands campaign. It turns Luke Gearing's mini-campaign book and bestiary for the Troika! system into 2 1/2 locations for an Ultraviolet Grasslands point-crawl. It assumes that characters are travelling from location to location as per the rules in Luka Rejec's Ultraviolet Grasslands.

This conversion/arrangement is skeletal and requires Acid Death Fantasy to use. Every mention of an enemy or non-player character refers back to ADF, numbers refer to the entry in the book under 'enemies', numbers appended with a 'b' refer to the entry in the book under 'backgrounds'. Names and terms from ADF are the intellectual property of Luke Gearing.

The idea of this post is that between the Northeast and the Southwest deserts, travelers pass through either Alshgar or Januba.

Parts 1 and 3 here.

The Blistering Oases of the Central Desert 

Travel between sultanates

Two minor sultantes separate Sayhad and Shurupak. The North West route passes through Alshgar, City of Shrines whilst the South West Route passes through Januba, of Twelve Markets. Travelers between the sultanates almost always rest at one of the oases or small settlements. When a caravan makes a journey through the central wastes, roll on the misfortune table, then on the settlements and oases table, and then on the encounters table in the last leg of the journey.

Misfortune among the doleful dwelling places of owls

d20 plus Charisma          

1-2          Desert twister! Roll a d4: 1. One sack lost 2. One animal lost 3. Both sack of supplies and animal lost 4. Character buried in sand.

               

3-4          Smoke on the horizon. The next friendly settlement encountered has been raided (but by who or what?). Opportunities for trade and resupply are fewer.

               

5-6          Arid terrain without an oasis or waterhole in sight. Each animal needs a sack of supplies.

               

7-8          The sun, the terrible sun. Beating down without mercy on a dying world (-1 Endurance).

               

9-10       Wind blows sharp fragments of… metal… glass? Painful in any case (-1d4 life)

               

11-12     A mild salt-storm turns into a torrent of briny sleet (-1 metal item, corroded and useless unless repaired).

               

13-17     Following a well-known trade route between the squabbling emirates, the journey is uneventful.

               

18-19     Pass by twitching, dying pool of nanite sand, rusting as it writhes. The next nanotech entity encountered is enervated (as slow).

               

20+         Discovered a new oasis with cool clear water and an abundance of dates. Merchants might pay for a reliable map.

 

Settlements and oases between cities (d6)
1	Despoiled Oasis
	56	Hyenamen
	42	Hiver Beetle
2	Sultanate of Rubble
	25b	Rubble Dweller
	65b	Deposed Sultan
	64b	Water-Witch
3	Hermitage atop an Alqai ruin-mine
	13b	Alqai
	46b	Hermit
4	Tortoise corpse village & truce camp
	55b	Tortoise Dweller Survivor
	23b	Life-Rider caravan
	23/34b	Narrowman Nomads
5	Desert brotherhood
	52b	Desert Mutant
	51b	Dosed Prophet
6	Eest-Wyst Canyon
	53b	Bat-Man
	54b	Canyon Crawler

 

Encounters (d8)
1	23b	Life-Rider caravan
2	33	Desert Roc
3	56b	Group of freshly assimilated Nanite-Sand Agents
4	51	Nanite Sands
5	54b	Canyon Crawler
6	56	Hyenamen
7	61	Sand Mantis
8	64	AI Tank

 

 

Alshgar, City of Shrines

The city is governed by Patesi Shabra, Crusher of Serpents, who is both serving high priest and chief administrator of the public grainhouses.

Members of the priestly caste compete to appear the most pious, giving out alms daily in the central square. Frugality is set aside, however, when it comes to demonstrating superior wealth and taste by parading exotic beasts.

Unfortunately, despite endless oblations to many and various divinities, doomsayers warn of a terrible prophecy nearing fulfilment.

Januba, of Twelve Markets

Malik Budaiwi, Thousand Stars is known as an indifferent and aloof ruler.

The nobles demonstrate their refinement by inviting the most esteemed guests, welcoming them into their saray and expecting them to join their entourage in their processions around the city’s many covered markets.

As is unfortunately so typical in this lawless era at the end of time, rogue wizards are attempting usurpation.

Chance meetings and intrigue for either minor city (d8)
1	16b	Sultanless Guard
2	22b	Eunuch
3	42b	Retired Gladiator
4	43b	Petty Priest
5	56b	Nanite-Sand Agent
6	62b	Titan AI Host
7	63b	Reptile Tamer
8	-	Doomsayer/scheming wizard (as appropriate)

The Ultraviolet Desert Part 1

 

This is an attempt to make Acid Death Fantasy useful for an Ultraviolet Grasslands campaign. It turns Luke Gearing's mini-campaign book and bestiary for the Troika! system into 2 1/2 locations for an Ultraviolet Grasslands point-crawl. It assumes that characters are travelling from location to location as per the rules in Luka Rejec's Ultraviolet Grasslands.

This conversion/arrangement is skeletal and requires Acid Death Fantasy to use. Every mention of an enemy or non-player character refers back to ADF, numbers refer to the entry in the book under 'enemies', numbers appended with a 'b' refer to the entry in the book under 'backgrounds'. Names and terms from ADF are the intellectual property of Luke Gearing.

Discoveries and the settlements between the sultanates jam together a couple of enemies or NPCs in a manner that seems thematic or interesting.

Assume a week's travel between each of the locations featured in parts 1, 2 and 3.

Parts 2 and 3 here.

The Jeweled Wastes of the Northeast

Misfortune at the gates of the great desert         

d20 plus Charisma          

1-2          Picked up some nasty ticks in the narrow swathe of grassland (-1 Endurance).

3-4          Wandered through a dry lake inhabited by anhydrous spirits who drained the water skins in their thirst (-1 sack).

5-6          The crisscrossing trails indicate that this is region is dangerous. Roll an extra encounter.

7-8          When it rains it pours. Flash floods  (-1d4 days).

9-10       Desert animals drink from iridescent pools, stretching their bodies into strange new shapes (see biomagical corruption page 145 UVG 1st ed.).

11-12     Corpses from a battle between 1. Warflock, 2. Hyenamen, 3.  Azure Apes, 4. Coated Men, 5. Canyon Crawlers, 6. Desert Mutants (D6 roll twice(46, 56, 36, 62, 54b, 52b)).

13-19     Tropical forest turns to open savannah, turns to the open expanse of the desert. The trip passes uneventfully.

20+         If any character possesses an oldtech device, it picks up an automated signal from a Fast Star transponder. Successfully triangulated, the transponder marks the location of an oldtech supply pod.

 

Encounters at the gate to the desert
D8	Entry
1	13	Scorpion
2	23b	Life-Rider caravan*
3	23/34b	Narrowman Nomads
4	36	Wandering Azure Ape
5	36	Migrating Azure Ape troop
6	41	Rock Borer
7	46	Rogue Warflock
8	52	The Hover Tank Hyperion
9	62	Coated Man
10	66b	Warflock Outcast

 

If Life-Riders are encountered, they are riding on:

 

Life-Riders on (d4)
1	11	Vomit Lizards
2	13	Scorpions
3	14	Sprinting Beasts
4	15	Dune Beetles

 

Sayhad, Entrepot of the Burning Sands

Governed by the sagacious Emir Badrud Duja, Of Supreme Wisdom, the capital of the emirate is known for its sponsorship of adventure. It’s merchant-lords compete with one another to be patrons of the most illustrious doers of daring deeds, and pay poets handsomely to immortalise their exploits. In recent months, however, the residents of Sayhad have been vexed by the disappearance of shoes from the city. However, the deeper problem for the emirate is that the water supply is secretly controlled by a Freshwater Grub crime lord (21).

Chance meetings and intrigue (d8)
1	11b	Wasteland Wanderer
2	13b	Alqai
3	15b	Rebel Azure Ape
4	23b	Bereaved, mount-less Life-Rider
5	26b/31b	Coated Man & Coated Squire
6	35b	Freshwater Grub Agent
7	61b	Companion Droid
8	66b	Warflock Outcast

 

Discoveries (1d6 days away)

The Plastic Sea 

62           Coated Man

               

Fast Star Relay  

36           Wandering Azure Ape

53           Kill-Sat Drop-Pod Bot

               

Desert Tomb     

12b         Shaved Bear treasure hunter

55           Burrowing Tomb Spiders

26           Glass Spirit

Part 2 will cover the minor settlements and sultanates of the central waste.