Stalactites & Stalagmites: If you ever forget which is which, a good mnemonic (in English, at least) is the ‘c’ or ‘g’ in the middle of the two structures’ names. Stalactites hang from the ceiling, while stalagmites protrude from the ground.

Stalagmites are useful for cover, but could also be ripped out of the ground by larger monsters and used as weapons. Stalactites, being heavily-weighted, sharp spears hanging above the heads of the combatants, just beg to be dropped on them.

Water: Underground rivers are a staple of any genre which ventures beneath the ground, and can be used in the same way as above-ground rivers. In addition, there can be pools of standing water which might be natural hazards which spread disease. Another fun thing is that you can get a new angle on rivers when you’re underground… Imagine a large explosion busting a hole in a thin cave wall which has a river on the other side. Suddenly the combat has changed into a fleeing scene where all the characters madly try to escape the rushing waters flooding in.

Difficult Terrain: One of the downsides of caves is that they can be very small and cramped. However, by adding in lots of difficult terrain you virtually expand the size of the area, since you’re reducing how quickly all of the combatants can move.

Flora: Caves are damp and dark and the perfect breeding ground for various molds, slimes and spore-laden mushrooms. A sticky mold might immobilize foes, or beds of mushrooms release noxious spores when disturbed.

Darkness: PCs love to forget about light sources… Sometimes, it can be fun to make sure they don’t.

Unstable footing: Carpets of slippery mold; damp, slick rocks; and slopes of loose gravel are all opportunities for skill checks to avoid falling down.

Poor structural integrity: Falling rocks are always a hazard, but cave-ins and weak floors can separate and isolate people.

Lava: ‘Nuff said

Elevation: Caves give you an almost free playground for making weird elevations and ideal perches for snipers and other ranged attackers.

Oxygen: Most caves don’t come with built-in air purifiers. Without some good knowledge checks, a party might wander deep into a system of caves and have no idea how much danger they’re in until they start feeling short of breath…

Thorin is long dead, but the dogs have continued breeding and residing in the tower. Generations later, the descendants of the original dogs still have the same gifts. The dogs have an extremely limited vocabulary, with words such as ‘Good,’ ‘Bad,’ ‘Dog,’ ‘Cat,’ ‘Me,’ ‘You,’ etc.

Encounters at the Dog Tower

Local farmers complain that wolves have been killing their livestock. The PCs discover the dogs while searching for the wolves, and likely will believe the dogs to be the cause of the problem. The dogs don’t understand the situation and are not responsible for the killings, but their limited intelligence and vocabulary makes this non-obvious. They will not attack the PCs unless provoked, and might even be convinced to help.

The PCs are searching for Thorin’s tower to recover some ritual or artifact, and must convince the dogs to allow them entrance.

Description: The hive is an active* feature suitable for forests, plains, ruins, and other places a hive of bees or other insects might be found.

Setup: Try to place the hive somewhere which combatants are likely to pass near it, such as a natural choke point or a point of interest. This also works especially well with monsters which are vulnerable or resistant to the insects’ toxins.

Use: If any damage is dealt to the hive (including from area attacks), it falls to the ground, releasing a swarm of stinging bees. The bees immediately attack the closest creature, regardless of who attacked the hive, and hound that creature until it dies, disappears, or the swarm is defeated. Once one of those happens, the swarm disperses harmlessly.

Considerations: If the swarm attacks the PCs, they should probably get experience for defeating it; if the swarm attacks the enemies, no experience should be given, it’s just a case of the PCs using the terrain to their advantage to make the fight a bit easier.

Customization:

• Increase the number of swarms released, attacking the nearest n creatures.
• Change the nature of the bees, for example if you’re adventuring in hell make them Hellfire Hornets which are tougher and more dangerous than their mortal counterparts.
• Instead of dispersing, the swarm could continue attacking nearby creatures.

*An active feature is something which must be triggered before it “comes into play.” This is contrasted by a passive element, such as thick underbrush or a lava stream, which is indifferent to the actions of combatants. Look for a more in-depth explanation of active and passive features, and the Dynamic Domains series, this weekend.

The wood is guarded by a circle of druids known as the Falashere. The Falashere druids prevent anyone from cutting down even a single tree, and any who try to do so are put to death. For the most part they try to stay hidden and watch anyone who enters the forest from afar, only making themselves known if it seems like a tree is in danger.

The druids also have mastered a ritual using a combination of meditative techniques and magic which allows them to slow themselves down to the pace of the trees, allowing them to commune with them. A single conversation may takes months in real time, and during that time the druid is completely helpless, essentially a statue.

Encounters in The Dancing Wood

Someone bought a map of the woods from a disreputable merchant and became hopelessly lost. The PCs must find the lost person, likely encountering the Falashere druids.

The PCs hear a legend that a mountain used to be very different than it is today. The trees of The Dancing Wood could confirm the legend, and tell what them happened to the mountain.

Along the way, the PCs meet up with some German scientists with their own military escort who are bound for the same site. The commander of the US troops decides that it’s in their best interests to work with the Germans, and so the two groups go together to investigate.

When the source of the mysterious radio signals is finally located, it’s discovered to be an alien craft hidden in the heart of a pyramid. The following day, while the scientists are investigating it, the Germans betray the Americans and kill all of the troops. One of the soldiers manages to warn the PCs, but they’re now on their own and must make sure the technology doesn’t fall into German hands, not to mention escape with no military or survival training!

The elves are a warrior people, and fighting is very important to them. They practice a martial art of their own development called “capoeira*,” which emphasizes graceful mobility, dodges and kicks. Often times, the elves go into battle with small drums secured to their chests. Even as they lash out with their legs, their hands busily drum out a beat to demoralize their foes and bolster themselves.

Battle is a long, drawn out affair for the elves. Blades attached to the soles of their shoes deliver shallow cuts, slowly bleeding their enemies. This is in stark contrast to the human barbarians, which favor powerful blows which rarely connect, but often kill on the first hit.

The human barbarians actually enjoy fighting the elves, as they are a masochistic culture. To them, pain is strength. Most of their customs involve tests of endurance to see who can withstand the most pain for the longest. Their marriage ceremony culminates with the husband and wife choking each other until one passes out.

The most dedicated of their warriors undergo the ritual of Kardak, thrusting their left hand into a bear paw-shaped mold filled with molten iron. Afterwards, they are anointed as priests of Magdar, and adamantine claws are attached to the iron forever grafted to their hand.

*Capoeira is a Brazillian martial art. Go check out some youtube videos of it.

Encounters with the Barbarians of Mosh’tardin

One of the PCs gains the respect of an elder human barbarian. After several nights of revelry, the elder invites the PC to undergo the Kardak. Not accepting would be taken as an unrivaled insult to the barbarians.

The PCs are asked to capture one of the rare silver-pawed monkeys from the Mosh’tardin forest. Naturally, they run afoul of the elvish barbarians in attempting to do so.

Aside from making it difficult to remain silent, the spores of the sentry mushroom do not have any further effect. The hiccups tend to go away a few minutes after exposure to the mushrooms’ spores ends.

Animal
A bear OR
A wolf OR
A deer OR
etc …

Situation
The animal’s leg is caught in a hunter’s trap OR
The animal seems to be moving slowly and limping painfully OR
A large gash in the side of the animals chest bleeds freely

Reaction
The animal seems unaware of the PCs, possibly due to the pain OR
The animal looks at the PCs with sad eyes, beseeching aid from them OR
The animal tries to flee from the PCs, only hurting itself further OR
The animal tries to intimidate the PCs, but knows it’s in no shape for a fight and backs down if approached

The Truth
The animal is actually a were-beast OR
The animal is actually an intelligent beast of some sort OR
The animal is a trap set by enemies of the PCs OR
The animal is actually an enemy of the PCs

He’d run off to explore a cave as a teenager and become trapped in a cave-in. There he found an altar to a long-forgotten god, but paid little interest to it since it had long been picked over of valuables. A day and a half later he freed himself and returned to his village only to find every building razed; every crop burned; and every man, woman and child killed. The perpetrators were sloppy, and he easily tracked them down… a few dozen orcs. He desired vengeance greatly, but knew it would be suicide to confront them.

In his despair, Saursa ended up returning to the cave where he’d been trapped, and to the altar he’d found. He prayed to that forgotten god for the strength to exact his vengeance, and his prayers were answered. The next day, he tracked down the orcs as they marched and something amazing happened: he turned into a half-man, half-bear creature, like a werebear. Unlike a lycanthrope, though, his change was controlled not by lunar cycles but by his temper.

He slaughtered the orcs mercilessly, feasting on their carcasses. Though it was an epic fight, and he was quite badly wounded, his anger fueled him and fought off the wounds. He fought not as a man would fight, but as an animal: desperate, ruthless, without compassion. Before long, his grisly task was complete and every orc had been killed.

A few months later, he found himself living in a new village, and even had become engaged to be married. When another man flirted with his fiancée, he grew angry and again found himself changing into the bear-creature. When he regained his human form, he found himself drenched in blood– not just that of the flirt, but of his fiancée, of several children, and of the many men of the village who’d tried to fend him off.

Saursa realized that he would be forever condemned to live alone now, for being too close to other people could only lead to tragedy. Over the years, he’s learned to control himself to some extent even in the bear form, but he is never in complete control and it is always an effort to force himself to back down.

Encounters with The Ursine Hermit

The players stumble across Saursa’s crudely-built cottage deep in the woods. He is alarmed to see them and tries to shoo them off. If they will not relent, he will reluctantly accommodate them but try to hurry them along.

The PCs stumble upon Saursa, in bear form, attacking bandits who were raiding a caravan. Saursa accidentally discovered the commotion and the predatory bandits awoke his instinctual rage, forcing him to fight them off. After defeating the bandits, it’s clear that he’s conflicted and part of him wants to attack the PCs and the caravan itself, while part of him does not.

Ultimately, if the PCs find out his secret and are able to convince him that they can handle themselves around him, he will ask to accompany them in their journeys (avoiding villages and towns, of course), and he will be a staunch, if unpredictable, ally.

Ma Bartley herself is a grizzled pirate on the wrong side of 50. She’s racked up a reputation as the meanest pirate to sail the seas, seemingly intent on proving that she’s stronger and more ruthless than any man. Amusingly, when old sailors speak of her, they always mention that “she pisses standin’ up” as if to explain how macho she is.

Were that the whole story, Ma Bartley could probably be written off as an interesting, though perhaps forgettable, pirate. However, there is more to her story than meets the eye. You see, Ma Bartley’s real name is Willem Kent, and she is actually a he.

Kent was an able swordsman and an excellent navigator, but never seemed to have much luck crafting a reputation. Then one day he struck upon an idea: he needed a gimmick to really stick out. Thus, he first donned a dress and makeup, shaved himself clean, and Ma Bartley was born.

In recent years, Kent’s memory has started failing him, leading to some compromising situations. In particular, he once forgot to shave and his (former) first mate commented. Kent killed the man where he stood, and no one else said a thing, not really surprised that Ma was able to grow a few whiskers. The event rattled Kent, though, and he fears what would happen to him if anyone discovered his secret.

To that end, he’s been searching for a magical means to help him maintain his identity. He’s discovered the existence of a belt fabled to change its bearer’s gender, and now he combs the seas searching for it.

Encounters with Ma Bartley

Always on the lookout for a new lead, Ma Bartley’s now focusing on capturing and interrogating people rather than shooting first and pillaging later. She still pillages, and usually kills anyone she captures who doesn’t have a lead, but if the PCs could talk their way through things she’d be amenable to hiring them to find it.

Perhaps the PCs have half a map, which she recognizes, and she has the other half. The location, though, is too far in-land where she’d be killed on sight, so she needs someone to go and get it for her. She would, of course, never explain what the belt does nor why she wants it, which could lead to some amusing mishaps if the players try to double cross her.