EOTB
So ... slow work day? Every day?
Squeen, I love what you've done to the place! Absolutely: fold, spindle, rework - use as how it makes your campaign fly. This is part of a slow-burning project to flesh out the OSRIC system's free resources for starting DMs. The game, a supplemental monster book (Monsters of Myth), and a low-level module (The Hyqueous Vaults) have all been completed for some time by others; I'm trying to finish out this town and the 1st level of a megadungeon so that someone who wants to ref 1E can play for quite some time without any cash outlay of their own if they're willing to use PDFs, and then expand however they wish when comfortable with the feel of the rule set. So what you're doing is what I hoped people would do with it - take it and make it work for them.
"Gaol" is the origin of the word "Jail", so that's the town prison, which doubles as the defensive fortress protecting the south gate. The lack of such structures to the west is the reason for the double wall/murderer's row there. Cliffs protect the north and the stream serves as a moat on the east.
"Acater" is the town provisioner; mainly for caravans but also for people such as adventurers that travel in groups. If you want to outfit for an expedition you visit the acater (who is also a very useful informant as he knows who's stocking up when, and often where they're going). PCs who do not purchase the acater's discretion may find others are quite aware of where they're going before they leave. (edit - this last bit I picked up from Tao of D&D's blog so h/t to him. He takes the realism-simulation farther than I prefer, but that's one tidbit he said that stuck with me.)
Ironically my players almost refuse to engage with the place; specifying that they keep their profile low, rest up, pay extra for anonymity with their innkeeper, and get back out of town. The wizard in the tower as I use it is a woman named Cynwise, who is lazily evil and founded the town before becoming bored with governing it. But she has her quirks, and is tied in with said dungeon by maintaining a 4-room complex (unknown in the town) for some bizarre longevity rituals. Long story short, the party had previously made contact with her in a "striped mage" capacity, and were in the habit of going to her for identification and sales of certain loot. But they ran into this complex while she was away, which had no useful treasure, but did have some of her favorite scented soaps - which they took in an effort to gain her favor! She was of course very angry but wasn't about to connect herself to the complex, declining the soaps but using her powers to steal them back while they slept. The details made the players suspicious of her, which is one reason for their newfound secrecy.
This works against them as they found a magic sword that is the lost, last blade in a set by a famous maker, that is worth 15,000 GP and agents for competing collectors are desperately trying to find them but they cannot. All this while the party is desperately in need of more funds to advance. Player agency works both ways!
I can't recommend Matt Finch's Tome of Adventure Design enough. I use it constantly in coming up with adventure themes. My brain works in set patterns and inspirations, and I've found unless I use these types of products to start from premises I'd not come up with, things become too same-y.
I logged out of K&KA to see if that forum required membership and it doesn't seem to. If you still have problems let me know and I can PM the tables to you. They're just raw text files but should be legible.
I agree on the top-down not being used actively against PCs. I look at it as "what happens without them". Of course, movers and shakers recognize others with the same qualities. So as PCs ripple through an area they may be approached or otherwise find themselves caught up in events. But my cardinal rule is that PCs engage or not mostly on their own desire. That doesn't mean if they walk down a street I know will riot that evening, that they won't be caught up in it. But presuming they can escape it, the riot wasn't put there because they're supposed to. Likewise, someone may desperately want their involvement whether they care or not because it's clear they're an x-factor. They may be pressured; that pressure may be effective. But the events are not generated to snare them. The question is always: to what degree can the party maintain their own agenda in the face of circumstances? (And they may become intrigued and jump in with both feet.)
"Gaol" is the origin of the word "Jail", so that's the town prison, which doubles as the defensive fortress protecting the south gate. The lack of such structures to the west is the reason for the double wall/murderer's row there. Cliffs protect the north and the stream serves as a moat on the east.
"Acater" is the town provisioner; mainly for caravans but also for people such as adventurers that travel in groups. If you want to outfit for an expedition you visit the acater (who is also a very useful informant as he knows who's stocking up when, and often where they're going). PCs who do not purchase the acater's discretion may find others are quite aware of where they're going before they leave. (edit - this last bit I picked up from Tao of D&D's blog so h/t to him. He takes the realism-simulation farther than I prefer, but that's one tidbit he said that stuck with me.)
Ironically my players almost refuse to engage with the place; specifying that they keep their profile low, rest up, pay extra for anonymity with their innkeeper, and get back out of town. The wizard in the tower as I use it is a woman named Cynwise, who is lazily evil and founded the town before becoming bored with governing it. But she has her quirks, and is tied in with said dungeon by maintaining a 4-room complex (unknown in the town) for some bizarre longevity rituals. Long story short, the party had previously made contact with her in a "striped mage" capacity, and were in the habit of going to her for identification and sales of certain loot. But they ran into this complex while she was away, which had no useful treasure, but did have some of her favorite scented soaps - which they took in an effort to gain her favor! She was of course very angry but wasn't about to connect herself to the complex, declining the soaps but using her powers to steal them back while they slept. The details made the players suspicious of her, which is one reason for their newfound secrecy.
This works against them as they found a magic sword that is the lost, last blade in a set by a famous maker, that is worth 15,000 GP and agents for competing collectors are desperately trying to find them but they cannot. All this while the party is desperately in need of more funds to advance. Player agency works both ways!
I can't recommend Matt Finch's Tome of Adventure Design enough. I use it constantly in coming up with adventure themes. My brain works in set patterns and inspirations, and I've found unless I use these types of products to start from premises I'd not come up with, things become too same-y.
I logged out of K&KA to see if that forum required membership and it doesn't seem to. If you still have problems let me know and I can PM the tables to you. They're just raw text files but should be legible.
I agree on the top-down not being used actively against PCs. I look at it as "what happens without them". Of course, movers and shakers recognize others with the same qualities. So as PCs ripple through an area they may be approached or otherwise find themselves caught up in events. But my cardinal rule is that PCs engage or not mostly on their own desire. That doesn't mean if they walk down a street I know will riot that evening, that they won't be caught up in it. But presuming they can escape it, the riot wasn't put there because they're supposed to. Likewise, someone may desperately want their involvement whether they care or not because it's clear they're an x-factor. They may be pressured; that pressure may be effective. But the events are not generated to snare them. The question is always: to what degree can the party maintain their own agenda in the face of circumstances? (And they may become intrigued and jump in with both feet.)
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