A Night at the Chunker: Barkeep Jam 2024 Submission

Here's what I've submitted for the Barkeep Jam, sponsored by Prismatic Wasteland to support their really interesting "pubcrawl" adventure, Barkeep on the Borderlands.

[Update 8/15 - added the missing drinks menu.]

A Night at the Chunker

Pubcrawl Location Compatible with Barkeep on the Borderlands, 5e, and OSR

Contents

·       Using this Location

·       Pubcrawl Details

·       Zone Descriptions

·       Special Rules

·       Catalog of Creatures

·       Map of the Chunker

·       Legal

Using this Location

This location uses the Barkeep on the Borderlands pubcrawl rules in conjunction with your favorite 5e or OSR ruleset. You will need access to the Barkeep on the Borderlands rules to get the most out of this location.

Getting around in the Chunker presents its own set of challenges, apart from the basic challenges of a pubcrawl location. The location can be used on its own or as part of a larger pubcrawl, and it works best if the jolly crew has something they need to accomplish or an NPC they need to meet with in the pub.

The Chunker is written as a location in a mostly human settlement, but it’s easy to change it to suit other locales, including that of the Barkeep on the Borderlands adventure.

See the Special Rules section below for information on moving from zone to zone inside the Chunker. Some activities are possible only in certain zones. For example, you can buy drinks only in The Bar, and you can use the privy only in The Garden.

When a name or creature type is an ALL CAPITALS, see the Catalog of Creatures section for additional details.

When the jolly crew arrives at the Chunker, choose a starting Crowd Size or roll 1d10 on the table below:

1d10 Roll	Starting Crowd Size
1-2	Sparse
3-6	Crowded
7	Full
8	Tight
9	Packed
10	Bursting

Pubcrawl Details

Regulars

When the jolly crew enters the Chunker, roll 1d6 on the table below. If a character’s number is equal to or below the result, they are in the Chunker right now. Choose gender or roll randomly.

d6 Roll	Regular
1	The Musician. Hunter (male) or Heather (female). Claims to be an accomplished lutist, but has no instrument here now. Will force anyone into conversations about music and musicians, requiring a Charisma check (difficulty based on Crowd Size) to escape. Probably better at flirting than music.
2	The Nice Thug. Trent (male) or Tiffania (female). Muscular, imposing, dressed in leather. Will give axe-throwing, dancing, or card-playing lessons to anyone for free, any time. Definitely connected to local thieves and assassins, but not on duty right now.
3	The Scholar. Scotten (male) or Sheila (female). Skinny, messy hair. Good source of information on any general topic, but completely ignorant of local people and events.
4	The Flirt (male). Flirts with everyone but Fillis, and buys a drink for whoever he flirts with. Married to Fillis.
5	The Flirt (female). Fillis, flirts with everyone but Flander, never buys her own drinks. Married to Flander.
6	The Naturist. Norville (male) or Norvelle (female). Wearing a little less than everyone else would prefer they wear. Loves to talk about the affairs they had as a youth, and actually knows quite a bit about local history.

 

In addition to these regulars, 1d6 CHUNKERITES are in any area of the Chunker at any time, plus whoever constitutes the ever-increasing crowd (see Special Rules)

Risk Die

When the jolly crew is inside the Chunker, interpret Risk Die rolls as follows:

1               Setback and Increase Crowd

2               Setback

3               Drinking

4               Drinking

5               Mark Time and Increase Crowd

6               Mark Time

Setback. Roll a Situation if the jolly crew is inside the Chunker, or a Setback if they are on their way.

Increase Crowd. Increase the Crowd Size one step, unless it is already Bursting. See Special Rules.

Drinking. Each character finishes their drink and rolls their sobriety die, downgrading it on a 1, 2, or 3. If the result is 1, the character also needs the privy (see Special Rules). Characters need to go to The Bar to buy new drinks if they don’t have extras with them. A character who has no drink when Drinking is rolled counts as Not Drinking. A character who has been drinking water upgrades their sobriety die one step and counts as Not Drinking.

Sidetracks

If the Risk Die rolls a Setback while the jolly crew is approaching the Chunker, roll 1d6 on the table below.

1d6	Sidetrack
1	Where is it again? The pub isn’t where the crew thought it was. In addition to the lost time, increase the crowd size when they arrive by one step.
2	BEGGER BRIONY stops the party and spins a long story before finally getting to the point and asking for money.  ·       If no one pays, she will curse the party with crotch rash. There is a 1-in-10 chance the curse is real. If it is real, all characters must succeed on a saving throw (5e: DC 10 Constitutionl; OSR: save vs. spells with +2 bonus) or get an uncomfortable crotch rash that reduces their speed by 10’ per round. The rash lasts for a week or until removed via remove curse. ·       If anyone pays, she will bless the party. The percent chance the blessing is real is equal to the number of gold pieces given to the beggar. If it is real, recipients are under the effect of a bless spell for 24 hours.
3	DREAD DANIEL approaches the jolly crew and asks, “What you lookin’ for? I’ll hook you up. You want a date? Drinks? Herbs? Anything you want, I’ll hook you up.” Daniel has a stash of ale nearby, and he’ll sell drinks for 10 sp each. Whatever else the jolly crew asks for, Daniel will name a price of 1d100 sp, take their money, and say he’ll be right back. He won’t be right back.
4	Portia, a MANIC PIXIE, wants to hang out with the jolly crew. She’ll flirt with a random character, as well as anyone else who talks to her, and she’ll promise to buy anyone’s drinks if they’ll pay her entry fee. Once inside, Portia disappears.
5	Sorry, we’re full. There is a long queue, and the crew can’t make it to The Door this turn.
6	Gimme a Boost. Riker the CHUNKERITE isn’t allowed in the pub, so he asks the jolly crew to help him get over the back fence into  sThe Garden.

 

Drinks

The Chunker serves …

Price	Drink
1 cp	Elven Rations. Water with a mint leaf.
1 sp	Blue Ribbon Beer. Not first prize. Marked with a blue ribbon so everyone knows you’re too good for good beer.
2 sp	Second Best Ale. Almost as good as ale, for those who are watching their purses.
3 sp	Ale. The best-selling ale in the place. Everyone says they hate it.
5 sp	Dwarven Rations. Distilled spirits, always count as “drinking heavily,” except for dwarves. Counts as water for Dwarves.
1 gp	What she’s having. Secret recipe, possibly magical, definitely pleasant, even better with a friend.

 

 

Situations

When the Risk Die indicates a Setback inside the Chunker, roll 2d6 on the table below.

2d6	Situation
2	Axe-throwing gone wrong. A CHUNKERITE throwing axes misses the target, badly. The errant shot might deal 1d6 damage to a member of the jolly crew, or it might badly injure another CHUNKERITE. If it hits a CHUNKERITE, count the crowd in The Floor, The Back, and The Muddle as one step larger. Either way, HARRY THE HERO tries to take charge of the situation.
3	Gambling gone wrong. A CHUNKERITE in The Casino accuses someone of cheating. If any of the jolly crew are in that area, a random one of them is the target of the accusation.
4	FREDDIE wants trouble. A FREDDIE insults a random member of the jolly crew and issues a random challenge. Roll 1d6 for the challenge. 1-2: A drinking contest (first to black out loses); 3-4: A card game in The Casino; 5: Axe-throwing; 6: A fight in The Garden.
5	Axe-throwing tournament announced. Anyone in The Back can enter the axe-throwing tournament this turn and stay in it until either they miss or the Risk Die next rolls Mark Time. During the tournament, only those in the tournament can throw axes. Anyone who has not missed when the tournament ends receives 6 free ales.
6	Talent Show. A talent show starts. Characters can enter and compete. Each round requires succeeding on a Charisma check to advance to the next round. The difficulty starts at Very Easy and increases one step each round. A character who succeeds on the Very Hard check wins 6 free ales.
7	Don’t I know you? A CHUNKERITE approaches a random member of the jolly crew and starts flirting (see Special Rules), insisting that they’ve met before. Escaping the conversation (if desired) requires success on a Charisma check whose difficulty is set by the crowd size.
8	Local Musicians play in The Stage. Roll 1d6 for how good they are (1: terrible, 6: great), for how drunk they are (1: sober, 6: blackout), and 1d6 for how loud they are (1: very quiet, 6: conversation in The Floor, The Back, and The Bar is impossible).
9	Don’t you owe me? A CHUNKERITE approaches a random member of the jolly crew, quite drunk, and insisting that the crew member owes 4 sp “from last week.” If paid, the CHUNKERITE hangs around making conversation that requires a successful Charisma check to escape (difficulty depends on Crowd Size). If not paid, the CHUNKERITE gets belligerent until either paid or fended off with a Hard Charisma check.
10	Friend’s old flame. A CHUNKERITE approaches a random member of the jolly crew and claims to have had a romance with a friend of the crew member. The CHUNKERITE wants to talk about it. Escaping the conversation requires a Charisma check whose difficulty is set by the crowd size.
11	A MANIC PIXIE (but not Portia) flirts with a member of the jolly crew (see Special Rules). Until the crew member buys the MANIC PIXIE a drink, escaping the conversation requires a Hard Charisma check. The MANIC PIXIE disappears when bought a drink or the next time the Risk Die rolls Mark Time.
12	Well known traveling musicians play in The Stage. Roll 1d6 for how good they are (1: terrible, 6: great), for how drunk they are (1: sober, 6: blackout), and 1d6 for how loud they are (1: very quiet, 6: conversation in The Floor, The Back, and The Bar is impossible).

Zone Descriptions

In the zone descriptions below, anything in bold is immediately noticeable by characters in the area. Underlining indicates additional details are given in the entry. ALL CAPS direct you to the Catalog of Creatures section.

1.   The Door

Description

Giant bloodshot eye in the wall over wooden door (usually open). Four CHUNKERITES congregate, talking to an obese man (FRANCIS)on a stool.

·       Bloodshot eye. About 1’ across, watches over the entry area. Doesn’t care if anyone sneaks in, but responds to fighting in the area by shooting a stun bolt at a random combatant other than Francis each round. (5e: Ranged spell attack: +5; Hit: 11 (2d10) psychic damage. OSR: Target must succeed on a saving throw vs. death ray or be knocked unconscious for 1d4 turns.

·       Stool. An invisible bag of holding hangs under the seat, where Francis deposits the night’s entry fees. At any given time, it contains 1d6 x 100 sp, but only 1d6 x 10 sp can be accessed without speaking the command word: Ummagumma.

movement

To get into the Chunker, a PC must either sneak past FRANCIS, bluff their way in, or pay the entry fee.

·       Sneaking past Francis. Use the normal rules for your game system. In OSR, characters have a base 2-in-6 chance to sneak in successfully, with their Dexterity modifier added to their chances (minimum 1-in-6 chance). Thieves and Halflings have an additional +1 bonus to their chance of sneaking in.

o   Failure. Characters failing to sneak in are confronted by HARRY THE HERO just inside the door, who tries to force them back out.

·       Bluffing your way in requires success on Moderate Charisma check.

·       Paying. Francis makes up an entry fee for each character. The base fee is 1d10 – 1 sp. A character’s Charisma bonus is subtracted from the base to get the fee Francis wants. Francis’s fees are non-negotiable. Once the fee is paid, a character must succeed on a Very Easy Charisma check to stop chatting with Francis and move to The Casino.

2.   The Casino

Description

Three tables for gambling games, with a view of The Bar and The Muddle.

·       Tables. PCs can try to get into a card or dice game, with a Charisma check based on the crowd size. Use whatever rules you want for gambling, or have a character win 1d10 – 1d12 sp per turn spent gambling. Characters who cheat are confronted by their opponent and HARRY THE HERO (who says he saw the whole thing), and they may call on FRANCIS THE DOORMAN for additional help.

Movement

Characters can move from here to The Door, The Bar, or The Muddle.

3.   The Bar

Description

A long counter; tended by a green-haired elf (Mishal the bartender) who serves drinks.

·       This is the only area where drinks can be purchased.

·       Elf: Buying a drink requires success on a Charisma check (difficulty determined by crowd size) to get Mishal’s attention. Calling Mishal by name grants advantage on the check. Buying Mishal a drink makes the check unnecessary for the rest of the night. Mishal is chatty and happy to talk with anyone who succeeds on a Charisma check (difficulty based on crowd size).  

·       Counter: Behind the bar are the cashbox (a locked chest containing another bag of holding, this one with 2d6 x 1,000 sp) and the kegs from which drinks are being served.

Movement

At the end of the turn, any character here who did not spend the entire turn here must succeed on a Charisma check (difficulty based on crowd size) or be randomly moved to The Casino, The Floor, The Muddle, or The Garden.

Characters can move from here to The Casino, The Floor, The Muddle, or The Garden.

4.   The Muddle

Getting In

The crowd size always counts as one step larger for the purpose of entering this area. If the crowd is already Bursting, entering requires two successful Charisma checks.

Description

There’s nothing here except for the people in your way.

Movement

At the end of the turn, any character who spent the entire turn here is moved randomly to The Casino, The Bar, The Floor, The Back, or The Garden.

Characters can move from here to The Casino, The Bar, The Floor, The Back, or The Garden.

5.   The Floor

Description

Open area with murals on the walls and ceiling, a long bench, three small tables and a view of The Stage and The Back. There is a 1-in-20 chance for each member of the jolly crew who comes here that a CHUNKERITE will try to strike up a conversation about the mural on the ceiling.

·       Murals. Show scenes of well-known local citizens dancing with weird creatures (man-sized hydras, floating eyeballs, griffons with goatees, etc.)

·       Ceiling. Very famous painting depicting a naked, bearded woman with red skin, reclining on a cloud in the sky and a beardless, pale, naked man with a skull for a head and long whiskers on the sides of his face reclining on the ground. Both are reaching for a red cup that is falling through the air, spilling a green liquid.

o   Anyone looking at the painting must make a Wisdom saving throw (5e, DC 8) or a saving throw vs. Spells with a +4 bonus (OSR). On a failure, the character is compelled by the painting to stay in this area looking at it and talking to others about how great it is. A character can repeat this saving throw at the end of each turn.

Movement

Characters can move from here to The Muddle, The Stage, or The Back.

6.   The Stage

Description

A raised platform where performers stand and entertain the crowd in The Floor. If a member of the Jolly Crew tries come up here while someone else is performing, HARRY THE HERO follows them onto the stage and tries to pull them off.

Movement

Characters can move from here to The Floor or The Backstage. Moving to The Backstage will require either sneaking in (OSR: 2-in-6 chance, plus Dexterity modifier and +1 for thieves and halflings) or being noticed by Harry the Hero (see The Backstage).

7.   The Backstage

Description

Cramped with broken musical instruments, uncomfortable furniture, rusted construction tools, and stacks of boxes (containing rags and cups), and 12 kegs (4 are empty, the rest contain the drinks served in The Bar).

·       There’s a chest under a pile of wooden boxes here that contains a very fine dress (worth 600 gp), a bewelled necklace (worth 1,500 gp), and three emerald rings (worth 1,500 gp each). But the chest is also locked, animated, and grumpy. If anyone tries to open it, it grows tentacles and mouth and attacks. Use the statistics for a black bear. 

The jolly crew are not allowed here. If members of the crew make a lot of noise here, or if HARRY THE HERO noticed them coming in, HARRY THE HERO appears at the end of the turn and insists they leave.

Movement

Characters can move from here to The Stage.

8.   The Back

Description

Four axe-throwing targets line one wall, and chest-high rail runs parallel to them down the middle of the building. Under each target is a stump, where up to three hand axes are stored. Chunkerites have axe throwing competitions here.

·       Axe-throwing targets. A member of the jolly crew can enter an axe-throwing competition by succeeding on a Charisma check (difficulty depends on crowd size). If a character competes, the player makes a single ranged attack roll. The character wins a free ale (to be claimed in The Bar) if their attack roll hits AC 3 (OSR) or AC 17 (5e). If the crowd is Tight or bigger, characters have disadvantage on this attack roll.

o   In a head-to-head axe-throwing competition (as in response to the challenge of a FREDDIE), both sides make attack rolls, and the higher successful roll wins. Either side can cheat by attempting a Hard Charisma check. On a success, they manage to distract their opponent and give them disadvantage on their throw. If they fail by 5 or more, their attempt to cheat is detected for what it is.

Movement

Characters can move from here to The Floor. 

9.   The Garden

Description

Courtyard with buildings on three sides and an 8’ fence in the back. Four tables. Two outdoor privies.

·       Conversation is possible here even when the crowd is Tight or Packed. 

·       Privies. Using a privy requires a successful Charisma check with difficulty based on crowd size.

·       8’ fence. Easy to climb.

Movement

Characters can move from here to The Muddle or The Bar.

Special Rules

Drinking

In addition to the normal Barkeep on the Bordelands rules, these rules apply:

·       Starting Sobriety Die based on Constitution score. Characters with above-average Constitution start with a d12. Characters with average Constitution start with a d10. Characters with below-average Constitution start with d8.

·       See Barkeep on the Borderlands for additional details.

Needing the Privy

When a character’s sobriety dies comes up 1, they need the privy. A character who needs the privy has disadvantage on all rolls until they have used the privy (located in The Garden). If a character already needs the privy when their sobriety die comes up 1, they must succeed on a saving throw (5e: Constitution DC 10, OSR save vs. poison) or need the privy right away. Such characters must relieve themselves during the current turn no matter where they are, which could be embarrassing, but they will no longer need the privy.

Charisma Checks

If you are using 5e rules, the normal rules of Charisma checks apply, with DCs given on the chart below.

If you are using OSR rules, there are two ways to do Charisma checks: Roll-under and Roll-over.

For roll-under checks, the player rolls 1d20 and succeeds if the roll is equal to or less than a target number based on their Charisma score. A natural roll of 1 always succeeds, and a natural roll of 20 always fails The target numbers are given in the chart below.

For roll-over checks, the character rolls 1d20 plus the characters Charisma score, plus a bonus or penalty based on difficulty. The check succeeds if the result is 20 or higher. A natural 1 always fails and a natural 20 always succeeds.

When a difficulty is listed as “none,” no Charisma check is required.

Advantage and disadvantage apply as in the Barkeep on the Borderlands rules.

Difficulty	5e DC	Roll-under Target	Roll-over Modifier
Very Easy	5	CHA + 4	+3
Easy	10	CHA	+1
Moderate	15	CHA – 1	+0
Hard	20	CHA – 2	–1
Very Hard	25	CHA – 4	–3

 

Moving from Zone to Zone

Characters can move from zone to zone as many times as they like during a turn. At first, movement is automatic, but entering a new zone requires a successful Charisma check once the crowd picks up. When a character fails a Charisma check to move, they are stuck where they are for the rest of the turn. The Charisma check’s difficulty depends on Crowd Size.

Crowd Size

The Chunker is constantly getting more crowded. It does not get less crowded until closing time. The size of the crowd determines the difficulty of moving from zone to zone, and the difficulty of various activities in each zone.

Crowd Size	Difficulty
Sparse	None
Crowded	Very Easy
Full	Easy
Tight	Moderate
Packed	Hard
Bursting	Very Hard

 

Nonlethal Damage

Some OSR systems do not include nonlethal damage. If yours doesn’t, use this one. A character can deal nonlethal damage with unarmed strikes, blunt weapons, or thrown objects. When the amount of nonlethal damage a character has taken meets or exceeds their current hit points, they are knocked out. A character’s total nonlethal damage taken is reduced by 1 point for every turn they spend doing nothing more strenuous than sitting and talking (and drinking!).

Flirting

When someone flirts with a member of the jolly crew, it’s entirely up to the player how the crew member responds. You can roleplay the interaction or, if that’s uncomfortable, just roll 2d6 for how good a job the flirter does, with a 2 being utterly offensive and 12 being maximally appealing. But remember, it’s up to the player how their character responds. They might decide their character isn’t interested in even the most appealing possible effort to flirt with them.

For PCs who want to flirt with others in the pub, use a reaction roll (OSR) or Charisma (Persuasion) check (5e).

Catalog of Creatures

Beggar Briony

Description: Dressed in rags, mutters to herself constantly, usually invoking the gods to punish the people who have treated her unfairly. Sometimes they listen.

Statistics: As normal human or commoner. Her efforts to cast bless and bestow curse actually work 1 time in 10.

Chunkerites

Look like normal humans (or demihumans). Any given Chunkerite has a 10% chance of being a locally well-known (artist, musician, socialite, noble, etc.) and a 1% chance of being secretly very famous. In either of those cases, there is a 1-in-6 chance the person is tolerated because of their fame, even though people don’t like them very much.

Statistics: As commoner or normal human, possibly with class levels to match fame.

Dread Daniel

Description: Short human with long black hair, wears black leather armor and always has a short sword handy.

Statistics: As bandit.

Francis the Doorman

Description: Obese male human, scraggly brown beard, balding, in his 30s but looks to be about 45. Talks to everyone about anything, no matter how long the line to get into the Chunker is. 

Conversation: Escaping his conversation requires a Very Easy Charisma check.

Statistics: As grizzly bear.

Freddie

Description: Boisterous, arrogant young male humans, usually looking for trouble and trying to prove they are  better than everyone else. They aren’t.

Freddies love competition, and they often cheat. 

Statistics: As noble.

Harry the Hero

Description: Thin male human, wears worn-out clothes that used to be quite nice. If a fight breaks out anywhere, Harry shows up in the second round and tries to either break it up or eject the troublemakers. Harry does not work for the Chunker, but he considers himself the unofficial bouncer.

If Harry the Hero is in any fight, another Harry the Hero joins each round. No one knows where these guys come from.

Statistics: As black bear.

Manic Pixie

Description: Effortlessly good-looking pixie who is eager to talk to anyone, flirt with them, and encourage them to do something daring. Manic pixies tend to disappear abruptly, most often after making a promise or persuading someone to do something they wouldn’t ordinary do.

Statistics: As pixie.

Map of the Chunker

Dashed red lines connect areas it is possible to travel between. Area 4 is The Muddle.

Legal

This work is copyright 2024, Chase Wrenn. All rights reserved.

This work is compatible with Barkeep on the Borderlands (found at prismaticwasteland.com), written by W. F. Smith and published by Prismatic Wasteland LLC, pursuant to the Barkeep on the Borderlands Third Party License.

Dwarves - B/X Monster Tactics

Our tour of the monsters in Mentzer's Basic rulebook now brings us to the dwarves. Not only can PCs be dwarves, but NPCs can too. Dwarves hate goblins and will usually attack on them on sight. They are on friendly terms with gnomes and Neanderthals. In alignment, they might be Lawful or Neutral.

As happens with some other monster entries that are also PC options, some questions about the dwarven NPCs and PCs come up almost immediately, but their answers look easy:

How fast is a dwarf? The rules for PCs don't slow dwarves down for their small stature. An unladen dwarf moves 120' per round, as does an unladen human. But the monster entry lists 60' (20') as dwarf speed. That doesn't mean PC dwarves are automatically that slow, however. The entry also gives them AC 4, which is the equivalent of chain mail and a shield. And a character with chain mail and a shield does move at 60' (20'). So there's no contradiction.

How much damage do dwarves do? Unless variable weapon damage is used, all PCs deal 1d6 damage with weapon attacks. But the monster entry for dwarves lists their damage as "1-8 or weapon." Does that mean PC dwarves should deal 1d8 damage instead of 1d6?

I don't think so. Instead, I think it can be read in either of two ways. First, you might suppose that dwarves are typically stronger than average, as reflected in PC ability scores and in the bigger damage die for NPCs. If you use variable weapon damage (as just about everyone does), then you can just see that entry as pointing to the default weapons dwarves like to use: swords and battleaxes, which both deal 1d8 damage.

Do dwarf NPCs have all the special abilities of dwarven PCs? I see no reason why not. The monster entry is pretty clear that the dwarves it describes have at least one level of the Dwarf character class. The additional information there should be seen as adding to what else is said about dwarves elsewhere.

Dwarven War Parties

Most dwarf encounters are with clan groups, war parties, or mining expeditions. Encounters with any of those could happen in the wilderness or in the dungeon. In the dungeon, however, war parties and mining expeditions are likely the most common, with clan groups being encounter in or near their wilderness lairs.

Dwarves can be Lawful or Neutral. Their war parties will most often clash with goblins, whom they hate, but Dwarves do speak kobold and gnome as well as dwarven and goblin. It should not be unusual for dwarven war parties to assist gnomes in their ongoing struggles with kobolds.

But those are not at all the only enemies dwarven war parties might fight. Dwarven clans might clash with each other — especially if one clan is predominantly Lawful and the other is predominantly Neutral. And dwarves and humans might well find themselves at war over mineral resources or farmland. The monster entry doesn't mention dwarves farmers, but dwarves do need to eat. If they don't eat rocks in your setting, the dwarves need farms, tended by either the dwarves themselves or their vassals. A dwarven clan that is not in control of its food supply is in an intolerable condition of servitude and dependency to whoever does control their food.

Their stat block indicates that dwarves will typically have chain mail, a shield, and a sword or battle axe. The Expert Rulebook's description of dwarven mercenaries includes heavy foot equipped with swords, chain mail, and shields, along with two sorts of crossbowmen.

The basic crossbowman has chain mail and a heavy crossbow. But what's a heavy crossbow? I recommend ignoring it and just treating them as wielding normal crossbows. OD&D, Holmes Basic, and AD&D all distinguish "light" and "heavy" crossbows, as does BECMI starting with the Companion set. Unfortunately, as I hope to say more about in a later post, it's not all that clear how to translate any of those to B/X.

Mining Expeditions

The very idea of a "mining expedition" is a little weird. Mining isn't really an "expeditionary" type of activity, for many of the same reasons there aren't "farming expeditions." Mining requires staying in one place and extracting its mineral resources. So, what are you really encountering when you encounter a dwarven mining expedition?

One possibility is that it's really a scouting expedition, looking for promising locations for future mining. Scouting expeditions might be found in the wilderness. Another possibility is that the "mining expedition" is there to secure a location previously identified as worth mining. This might be the most common "mining expedition" found in a dungeon, and it will not be very different from a war party. It will be an organizes military force tasked with capturing and fortifying territory to be mined once the location is secure. Such expeditions are interested in clearing out monsters and any other dangers from the area.

Finally, there is the possibility of a mining camp. Not all places with rich mineral resources are suitable places for a settlement whose population consists of permanent residents. Some are too remote from other settlements, or in places where it is impractical to grow food. In such places, dwarves might set up encampments of miners, protected by soldiers, who live there for only a few months or years at a time. The permanent population might be quite small, with miners and defenders rotating in and out regularly. Such an encampment could occur in some kinds of dungeons, especially if they are very large. They are ore likely to be in the wilderness.

Clan Groups

The Basic Rulebook says that dwarves "often live underground" and that they are "expert miners." Their mining expertise is what enables them to detect slopes, traps, and shifting walls better than others. But notice that those are abilities of all dwarves—not just most dwarves or of stereotypical dwarves. We should assume, then, that all dwarves are expert miners.

And that raises its own question. If all dwarves are miners, who grows their food? Who processes the minerals they mine? Who sews their cloaks or cobbles their shoes? To answer those questions, a DM will need to make some decisions about how dwarven culture works. For example, as dwarves have such long lives anyway, you might suppose that no dwarf is considered fully adult until they have spent 25 years or more working as a miner. After that time, dwarves might develop other skills, such as farming, tailoring, cobbling, or whatever. But for the dwarves, the mines are their elementary school. (And since they are all about equal to first-level fighters, we might add that the militia is also their elementary school.)

The Expert Rulebook has more to say about dwarven clans. Each one lives under the protection of a dwarven lord, and it is rare for multiple clans to live amongst each other. It's left to the DM to decide exactly what a dwarven clan is. It's likely not simply a family group, as dwarven lords who establish strongholds can try to establish their own clans (presumably by attracting other dwarves to come live under under their protection).

The defining feature of a dwarven clan, it seems, is its living under the protection of a single lord. Although they "are generally friendly to each other and may join forces in times of need," each clan is likely independent from others politically. There is no King of the Dwarves.

So, what do PCs encounter when they encounter a dwarven clan group?

It'll depend on whether it's a lair or not, and whether it's an a dungeon or not. If it's a lair in the wilderness, it's a dwarven settlement, complete with underground stronghold, surface farms, and everything else you would expect from a settlement of a civilized group. Wandering clan groups in the wilderness are dwarves on pretty much any civilian mission you want, other than being a mining expedition. Often, they'll be merchants carrying goods between dwarven settlements or between dwarves and their main trading partners, the gnomes and humans (and Neanderthals, if they are in the area). B/X doesn't include Tolkien's rivalry between dwarves and elves, and it's likely that each has something the other needs. So, trade with the elves might not be uncommon either.

In the dungeon, there isn't much for dwarves to be doing if they aren't war parties or working on establishing a mine. Still, there might be cases in which a dungeon is home to some lost dwarven clan (who is, quite possibly, unable to get out because they are surrounded by hostile forces too strong for them to overcome). And dwarven traders, heavily armed, might delve into some dungeons to trade for the kinds of rarities that only dungeons tend to hold. In that last case, though, the "clan group" is likely to be a group of dwarven adventurers who happen to be from the same clan.

Dwarves in the Dungeon

Dwarves wander the first level of the dungeon in groups of 1-6, and their dungeon lairs will include 5-40 dwarves. For every 20 dwarves, there is a leader of levels 3-8. That leader is not a dwarven lord. The leader is a stronger, more experienced and capable dwarf who is part of a chain of command that ultimately answers to the clan lord.

Dungeon lairs are not clanholds, but they might be mining camps, military encampments, or even outposts guarding the underground approach to a clanhold. They have a lot of treasure — type G is second only to the dragon hoard type H in average value. Given that one would find the same treasure type in a wilderness dwarven clanhold of 25-200 dwarves, it's likely that the dungeon lair is involved in moving treasure in some way. Military and mining encampments need payroll, and the latter probably has mineral goods stockpiled for transport later. Dwarves aren't listed as carrying individual treasure apart from their leaders' chance to have magic items. Still, unless the dwarves in your campaign have a purely collectivist economic system, their hoard should be spread out amongst the private holding of those who live in the lair.

Dwarves in the Wilderness

The Expert rulebook includes dwarves as wandering monster encounters in the Barren/Mountain/Hills and City/Inhabited environments. They are just over 2% of wandering monster encounters in the former environment, and just over 1% of encounters in the latter. Neanderthals, surprisingly, are twice as common as dwarves in the Barren/Mountain/Hill environment!

Dwarven layers in the wilderness are always in hills or mountains, and they are protected by subterranean strongholds. That doesn't mean the lairs won't have above-ground components, though. The dwarves will have farms above ground to raise their food, and they are likely to have some industry above ground as well—particularly foundries, smithies, and anything else that requires a lot of heat and ventilation for smoke and fumes. If such industries are located below ground, the dwarves will certainly have built chimneys, smoke stacks, or special tunnels to handle the great quantities of smoke they produce. 

The wilderness lair includes 25-400 dwarves, which makes most dwarf lairs about the size of human villages. If, like humans, dwarves' rural population is about 80%, a typical lair might have about 40 farms (each home to five dwarves) with another 50 or so (10 families) in the central village and stronghold. The farms will most likely be in a valley protected by the hills or mountains that hold the main stronghold, and the central village will be near the public entry to the stronghold.

The purpose of a stronghold is protection. By locating their strongholds below ground, the dwarves protect themselves from aerial attack. However, dwarven bunkers are not ideal for protecting their above-ground assets. So, dwarves will want to build their strongholds in mountains and hills that overlook the surface farms and industries they protect. They will have strictly controlled (and probably secret) entrances. In case of attack from the surface, the dwarves on the surface will evacuate to the underground. While tunneling and mining are offensive tools in the siege of a castle, they are important defensive tools for the dwarves. If dwarves are besieged from the surface, they can put their mining expertise to work digging their way out of the stronghold, in a location unknown to their enemies, from which they can move to break the siege.

Many dwarven strongholds will have main entries that are not secret, used by visiting merchants and others in peacetime. Those entries may resemble the gatehouses of above-ground strongholds, or even castles with one or two curtain walls. In any case, the dwarves will have constructed heavy stone barriers that can seal these entries. They may even be prepared to collapse the tunnels to cut off entry to their stronghold.

Underground, the dwarven stronghold will still be built with defense and efficient construction in mind. Bearing in mind that goblins have better infravision than dwarves (90' vs. 60'), the dwarves will ensure that no tunnel goes more than 60' with changing direction (horizontally or vertically) to break goblin line of sight. Except for main access tunnels used to transport trade goods, tunnels will be just under 5' tall—forcing even elves to crouch or "duck walk" their way through them, while the dwarves can stand and fight upright. They will be about 10' wide, again so that the dwarves can use their size to their advantage and fight 3 across.

The tunnels may also empty into chambers 50' to 60' tall, with narrow exit into passages approaching the main stronghold. Near the top of these chambers, there will be ledges accessible by their own tunnels, where the dwarves can station crossbowmen to kill invaders from above.

Inside the stronghold, low ceilings will continue to be the rule. There may be some places that are intentionally built so that human-sized visitors will be comfortable, and there may be some that need high ceilings for other reasons. But dwarves build for dwarves, and dwarves are about 4' tall. A 5'4" ceiling is as high, proportionate to a 4' dwarf, as a 10' ceiling is to a 6' human. The same will hold for dwarven surface buildings. Unless they need high ceilings, or they want humans to be comfortable, dwarven buildings will be very cramped for most humans and even elves.

When PCs come upon a wilderness dwarf lair, they will probably first encounter the dwarves' surface constructions, or possibly patrols tasked with keeping the area clear of monsters or, failing that, alerting the central stronghold to possible dangers in the area. It is unlikely that anyone will just stumble onto the entrance to a dwarf lord's underground stronghold. The dwarves will have taken measures to prevent that.

Wandering dwarf encounters with the wilderness will be of the same sorts as encounters in dungeons, but they will be with larger groups of 5-40. War parties may be on the march, either heading to or from battle. Other groups are either on their way to other settlements for trade or on their way to places where the dwarves either have, or hope to have, mining or military outposts.

Dwarf Reactions

Dwarves might be Lawful or Neutral. Groups encountered might be alike in alignment, or they could be mixed. In any case, dwarves don't want to die, and they are smart enough to avoid fights they know they can't win. They are also smart enough to be decent judges of what fights they can't win. For example, they won't fight a group of archers in light armor in terrain that allows their enemies to skirmish and pick the dwarves off. Lawful dwarves (in the B/X alignment system), also won't attack humans or demihumans without reason to believe they are threatened.

When dwarves encounter goblins, though, they will be willing to take more risks to fight and kill them. If they don't attack immediately, the dwarves will identify the goblin threat and try to gather sufficient forces to meet them and win. For dwarves, any goblin is an emergency situation that must be dealt with and eliminated immediately. (It's up to the DM to decide why that's so. In my Blacknight campaign, it is because goblins are literally dwarf-hate walking around in humanoid form. See my post about goblins for more.)

If you need to determine dwarven reactions randomly, here are some suggestions:

• 2 Immediate Attack. Right or wrong, the dwarves think the PCs are their enemies—goblin allies, human invaders, or in some other way opposed to them. If the dwarves are Neutral, it could be as simple as the PCs' having something the dwarves think they can most easily get by force, and the dwarves' thinking they could win the fight. But if it looks like a potentially costly fight, the dwarves' "immediate attack" will be a matter of immediately leaving to gather enough reinforcement to win the fight.
• 3-5 Hostile, Possible Attack. The dwarves suspect the PCs are either enemies or (if the dwarves are Neutral) worth fighting. They will give the PCs one—and only one—chance to give them what they want. If the PCs don't comply, it'll be a fight unless the dwarves think they couldn't win. In that case, the dwarves will leave and try to fight the party later, in circumstances more to their advantage.
• 6-8 Uncertain or Curious. The dwarves don't know if the PCs are allies or enemies. They will be cautious as they try to find out.
• 9-11 No attack, monster consideres offers. The dwarves take a neutral stance toward the PCs. They will probably ignore the party and leave if they can, but they will negotiate or parley if the PCs want to talk.
• 12 Enthusiastic friendship. Right or wrong, the dwarves think the PCs are allies and will treat them as such. They may ask for or offer assistance.

Combat Tactics

Apart from their standard infravision—which dwarves share with almost all other monsters—dwarves don't have special abilities that are specifically geared to combat application. Their tactics will depend on how they are equipped and whether they have a leader present.

Equipment. Dwarves could have any armor and weapons (apart from two-handed swords and longbows), but they standardly have chain mail, a shield, and a sword. Their size means that they should be able to fight in ranks of three in a 10' wide passage, which gives them a slight advantage over larger enemies. But it is no help against most common enemies, goblins.

Organization. Dwarves will form orderly battle lines. They are likely to space themselves out so that that injured dwarves in the front rank can make fighting withdrawals and be replaced by fresh troops. Artillery support from crossbowmen is invaluable in protecting the dwarves from advancing troops, so they will try to position crossbowmen where they can protect and be protected by the foot soldiers.

If present, the dwarf leader will usually be on the flank, and it will typically be the right flank. The leader is much harder to kill than the other troops, and that position fortifies the flank significantly. Neutral dwarf leaders may sometimes instead lead from the center or even the rear, surrounding themselves with other dwarves to protect them. Those leaders, one must assume, have unusually high Charisma, which inspires their troops to protect them with astonishing doggedness (morale 10!).

How many troops? As a rule, dwarves are smart enough to avoid fights they don't have an advantage in. They'll avoid engaging faster, missile troops, unless they have crossbowmen in sufficient numbers to have the advantage. They might fight goblins or other lightly armored melee opponents without a numerical advantage, but they will generally prefer a 2:1 or 3:2 advantage going into a fight.

Morale. Dwarves have good morale even without the presence of a leader, but with a leade their morale is extremely high. Don't take this to mean that dwarves are likely to stupidly let themselves be slaughtered in a hopeless battle! Rather, especially when a leader is present, dwarves have a good sense of when things are going against them and might begin an orderly retreat or withdrawal before they fail a morale check. If the dwarves have taken losses of about 10%, and their losses are less than those of their enemy, or if they lose their numerical advantage, they will first attempt fighting withdrawals to see if their enemies let them disengage. If that doesn't work, the front ranks will continue to withdraw until the rear ranks have successfully fled. At that point, the front lines will retreat or, if successful retreat seems unlikely, surrender.

The Indefinite B/X Campaign, Part 1: Downtime in B/X and AD&D

There are a lot of rules differences between B/X and AD&D, but B/X Blackrazor has me persuaded that they aren't mere rules differences. The AD&D rules naturally lend themselves to an indefinite or open-ended campaign. The B/X rules allow for such a campaign, but it requires much more intentional effort from the DM and players.

The B/X rules support campaigns that work like series or collections of novellas or short stories with overlapping characters and settings. In the Basic rules, apart from possibly interviewing the retainers, nothing but dungeon adventuring happens "on screen." Everything else is background. There is almost no need to track campaign time. The rules do specify that characters recover 1d3 hit points per day of complete rest. However, the effect of that rule is mainly just to give dungeon denizens some time to reorganize and respond to PC incursions when the PCs leave to go heal up.

The Expert rules expand the games scope to include wilderness adventures and wilderness campaigns. 

Wilderness campaigns, as described on p. X19, begin much like dungeon adventures. The DM gives the players information about where they are, who the important NPCs are, and some rumors for the PCs to follow up on by traveling to locations in the wilderness nearby. The players then choose the goal of their adventure, equip themselves, and set out.

The game's focus remains squarely on adventuring, and the adventuring is described is still fairly episodic. Now, however, adventures don't have to end where they started. Exploring a wilderness area is an adventure. Traveling through the wilderness to get to a dungeon is an adventure. Traveling from city to city is an adventure. The PCs (or players) decide where they want to go and why they want to go there. Then you play out the journey, and the PCs' efforts to overcome its obstacles.

But the Expert rules also have this interesting passage (p. X4):

Most important, the characters in the wilderness campaign do not exist in a vacuum. The DM should have events going on elsewhere that may affect (or be affected by) the actions of the players. There may be any number of "plots" going on at once, and the DM should try to involve each player in some chain of events. These should develop logically from the actions of those involved. It is important not to force the action to a pre-determined conclusion. The plot lines can always be adjusted for the actions of the players.

Additionally, the Expert rules add magical research to recovering hit points as a time-consuming non-adventuring activity. They also mention various other things NPCs might do—such as building the PCs' stronghold or training animals. Those don't quite qualify as downtime activities, however, because PCs can adventure while they are happening.

Adventuring time is a resource PCs must husband at all levels. In the Basic levels, time spent uses up light sources and triggers checks for wandering monsters. Adventuring time at those levels is a matter of turns. Once wilderness adventuring begins, adventuring time also passes in days. Just as turns in the dungeon use up light and risk wandering monsters, days in the wilderness use up food and water and risk more wandering monsters. As the characters reach even higher levels, time and money become even more important resources for them. They have money to spend to on constructing strongholds, hiring specialists, and magical research. But construction, specialist activities, and magical research all take time. Adventuring takes time, and higher level characters can travel deeper and deeper into the dangerous wilderness. How the plots described on X4 evolve and develop can depend on how the PCs decide to spend their time.

If the "plots" put competing demands on the PCs' time, there will be reason for them to assign retainers to addressing some of those demands. There may also arise some cases in which a player's PC isn't available to adventure with some other PCs, but the player wants to play. Then it might be natural for a character stable to develop.

And now we come to that crucial difference between B/X and AD&D. B/X allows for an open-ended or indefinite campaign, but the DM has to take some special steps. In particular, the DM has to make sure that the evolving plots put potentially conflicting demands on PCs' non-adventuring time and create situations in which a PC is not available to adventure. The unavailability of PCs is essential, because it encourages the development of character stables and keeps the campaign from focusing on the stories of a particular set of PCs. 

AD&D 1e, on the other hand, has a variety of additional built-in mechanisms that take PCs out of play temporarily: such as training for levels, recovering from having been at 0 or fewer hit points, diseases and parasitic infestations. And those mechanisms are not voluntary. (Okay, training is technically voluntary, but everyone has to do it eventually.) If you have a PC, there will be times that PC is not available to adventure, but other PCs are available. And those other PCs might not want to wait around accumulating upkeep expenses for your PC to become available again. They will want to adventure and gain treasure while your PC is away. For a player to participate, they'll need to send a henchman to help or use a backup PC. The mandatory downtime generates character stables, which in turn help to drive the indefinite campaign. An AD&D campaign that doesn't ignore the rules for upkeep, training, disease, infestation, and recovery from injury can naturally evolve into an indefinite campaign. 

If you want an open-ended B/X campaign, then, you have a few options. One is to lean into those "plots" described on X4, make sure they put competing demands on all the PCs' time, and require or encourage your players to have character stables. Another is to import some or all of the AD&D mechanisms of forced downtime. For my Blacknight campaign, I've done the latter, but I admit that might be a mistake. There is something elegant about simply setting up the campaign so that characters naturally feel competing demands on their time, without having to force it mechanically. But that is certainly much easier said than done!

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