The Mind of a Sad and Wiry Man

I've been in a weird place lately. Sadly, this weird place didn't leave much space for dungeons. Let's just make that place a dungeon, yeah? Yeah. Much inspiration from here.


Hook:
Everyone knows that a person's mind is a personal, deeply important thing. Most people don't know that everyone's mind is also a place you can travel to with the proper means. A young man has put out ads, requesting adventurers to enter his mind through a key he found to purge him of his deepest problems and regrets. He'll pay them every penny he has, and they can keep whatever seems useful! He's desperate.

Background:
To modern players, its pretty clear this guy has crippling anxiety. He's made some decisions in life he can't really understand. He doesn't know if they were right or smart, or just fueled by his condition. So, he's paying to delete his flaws and his worst memories! He'll do his best to outline to the players what all he wants gone and what he wants to keep. Every room besides the entrance is kind of cracked, dusty, stained white stone. There are hallways connecting these rooms in random ways, and these hallways move and change. There are also intermittent scrolls with notes on this man's memories in vellum scattered in piles, nailed to walls, etc. This man is kind of scatterbrained, with poor memory and mental discipline.

Entrance [Empty]:
The keyhole they enter in from opens out to a pristine and shiny room of white stone. Kind of like a museum, but the display pedestals are empty. The next room is veiled by a dark curtain. This man is open to most people to a certain degree, but has been closed off and keeping to himself lately. Placing things in here from the dungeon will make him talk about them much more openly.

Guard Dogs [Combat]:
Past the curtain, there are 6 guard dogs (as hell hounds) that resemble huge rottweilers with heron beaks and beady glass eyes. They are grey, but their eyes are deep yellow. They'll latch on as stirges and maul as hell hounds. They breathe sleep gas, as well. No joke. Each will scatter to another room if seriously wounded, attempting an ambush later. This guy is completely incapacitated by anxiety. It drains his energy, his will, his life. It won't even let other people in. Killing all these hounds will ease his anxiety.

Intersection [Trap]:
Next is a Y intersection, but the point where the split occurs is an illusory floor, beneath which leads to the Water Pit. To the left is the Nice Man and to the right is the Abandoned Mansion. Decisions terrify this man. Patching over this pit will ease his decision making process.

Water Pit [Combat]:
At the bottom of this pit is an infinitely tentacled monster with goat eyes and snapping beaks (as any really big aquatic monster). It shouts insults and tries to drown and eat anyone who falls in. The water extends infinitely into the dark. This man is prone to self defeating spirals and depression. Killing this monster will make him less self-depreciating.

Nice Man [NPC]:
Bound in chains and gagged is a brightly colored, cartoonish version of the man. He gives nothing but genuine and kind complements to people who talk to him. He knows his way around the place. This guy tries his best to be good to people, but he seems prone to be overruled. If Nice Man is killed or removed, he will become less kind. If freed and let roam, he will get much kinder.

Happy Hallway [Empty]:
This hallway and small room past the nice man is lined with what look like really pleasant memories and kind notes, but they have been shredded and torn away. Chairs are toppled and broken, and a tea set is smashed on the ground beside a table. The set would be valuable if repaired. Something has been damaging this man's best memories and coping mechanism. Restoring this hallway will make him indescribably grateful to the party, if they can think of some way to repair it at all.

Abandoned Mansion [Trap]:
This room is like the grand entrance to an old style mansion-home, made from white stone and covered in cobwebs. It is fairly large, with a balcony and staircases, doors to nowhere, portraits of people in the man's life. Staying in this place gradually erodes any desire to continue on. After a few failed saves, the victims will need dragged away. Covering your eyes prevents this. This man is often sucked into nostalgia and idealizing the past. Destroying this room will help him focus on the present and the future.

Old Mistakes [Combat]:
The room beyond the Mansion is occupied by only a tar-black, liquid humanoid. It can shift between a giant form (as an ogre) and a swarm of smaller creatures (swarm of goblins). Its touch reminds of past errors and failings, and people touching it via exposed skin must save vs stun. This man is often hung up on past mistakes and the ways he wishes he could change his history. Killing this monster will help him accept the past for what it is.

Glittering Tunnel [Empty]:
This tunnel upwards allows anyone in it to float at will. Hovering in places throughout the tunnel are golden orbs, which contain all the best ideas and memories this guy has had. On the top of some are notes that dismiss them as silly. This guy doubts his worth and competency. Removing the notes will make him just a little more confident. Removing the orbs will make him forget whatever they represent. The orbs are extremely valuable to Magic Users and as ideas. Go crazy with what these orbs actually represent. They are a good opportunity for more hooks!

Imagination Drive [Weird]:
At the top of this tunnel is a glowing prismatic disc, which will create anything that a person touching it imagines. There are two catches; they are illusory, and will pop like bubbles if told this or if touched too stiffly, and they will tangent into different things based on what happens around them. A child will grow, a tree will wilt or grow in silly shapes or stand up and attack. They are very impressionable and strange. Treat them like a thought in this way. This man spends a lot of time creating, or trying to. Removing the disc will make him much less creative.

At the end of the dungeon, the man will give the party the key they used to enter. They can enter other people's minds with it, but unwilling people get a save. They will have dungeons similar to this one.

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