Friday Fantasy: Tower of the Black Pearl

Everyone along the coast knows the legend of the Tower of the Black Pearl. That it is reputed to be the final resting place of the fabled Black Pearl—an artefact said to bring doom upon all who dare to possess it. That it stands out sea, deep enough that none can reach. Except that once every ten years the tides of the Empyrean Ocean recede far enough for one night to reveal the very top of this mysterious undersea tower. Easily reached by rowing boat. And that night is tonight. As the Moon hangs low in the sky, the Player Characters, armed with rumours and perhaps a little knowledge, have hours get atop the tower and descend to its lower floors in the hope that the Black Pearl might still be there. And they can survive the curse. This is the simple set-up for what is a fairly straightforward and mostly linear scenario. It is also a scenario with a bit of history.

The set-up is for the Dungeon Crawl Classics 2018 Convention Module: Tower of the Black Pearl, a scenario for Dungeon Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game, published by Goodman Games. It is written for use with First Level Player Characters. It was originally published in 2006 as part of Dungeon Crawl Classics #29: The Adventure Begins anthology for use with Dungeons & Dragons, Third Edition and subsequently converted in 2008 for use Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, First Edition as TheGolden Auroch/Tower of the Black Pearl. This was followed by its first appearance in 2013 for Dungeon Crawl Classics as Dungeon Crawl Classics #79.5: Tower of the Black Pearl and then more recently, as Dungeon Crawl Classics 2018 Convention Module: Tower of the Black Pearl. The fact that it has been adapted into a convention scenario is indicative that scenario type that it is, that is, short, direct, but still challenging—and designed to be played in a single four hour session.

The scenario mixes pirates, magic, more than a few traps, and weird, fury crab monsters. The pirates provide the Judge with the scenario’s only real NPC, the nefarious Savage Quenn, courteous to a fault, smooth talking, and charming, but still a ruthless murderer! The Judge should have some fun portraying him, perhaps as a classic matinee movie villain idol! The tower also hides a big secret. In fact, it has two big secrets. It was once one of the eldritch fastnesses of Sezrekan the Elder. Today, he is renowned as the most wicked wizard ever to plague the Known World, but that does not stop many Wizards seeking him as their patron. In fact, the scenario will be that more interesting if the Wizard in the party does have Sezrekan the Elder as his Patron. The second secret is that the tower is effectively one big trap. If the Player Characters mange to get down far enough to get hold of the Black Pearl, its curse is that it causes the tower to rapidly flood. Which gives the Player Characters very little time to escape as the waters rise in rapid fashion…!

In terms of design, the tower itself is linear, although the Player Characters will find themselves returning to the Chamber of Portals to solve some simple puzzles to be able to teleport into lower areas and proceed with the adventure. This means that the adventure does not feel as linear. Beyond, there is a mini-River Styx, complete with Charon the Ferryman, and ultimately, the ‘Shrine of the Black Pearl’ which lies on the other side of a pool of black snakes. Getting across this pool without antagonising the snakes is going to be a problem for the Player Characters. Getting back across with the waters rising is an even bigger challenge. However, none of these encounters are the most interesting room in the tower. This is the ‘Hall of Mysteries’, the second encounter in the tower. It consists of a room containing a single book and a lot of candles. Each candle represents the life of a Lawful hero. Snuff it out and the hero dies. Relight it and the hero springs back to life. This applies to the Player Characters as much as it does any other hero. This gives the Player Characters the power of life and death—at least within this room—and potentially, if the Player Characters actually snuffed out every candle, they could change the fate of nations as without Lawful heroes, Chaos triumphs and civilisations collapse. Essentially, unwittingly, the Player Characters could destroy the world as they know it, and since the tower is only accessible for a few hours and then not again for a decade, only discover the consequences of their actions after they leave and be unable to reset if for a decade! This is such a deliciously tart outcome to the meeting, just plain evil. Dungeon Crawl Classics 2018 Convention Module: Tower of the Black Pearl even suggests that this could be beginning of a ‘Dark Age of Heroes’ campaign.

Physically, Dungeon Crawl Classics 2018 Convention Module: Tower of the Black Pearl is well presented. This is a much tidier and easier to use version of the scenario. The map is clearer and the handouts good. The artwork is good too.

Dungeon Crawl Classics 2018 Convention Module: Tower of the Black Pearl is easy to set up and run. It could be run as ‘Character Funnel’—the signature feature of the Dungeon Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game in which Zero Level Player Characters attempt to survive an scenario in the hope of gaining sufficient Experience Points to acquire a Level and be eligible to take up a Class and all of its features—but it feels just a bit too tough for that. It is potentially also a good adventure for a Wizard Player Character given the potential rewards, whilst its arcane, even arch nature mean that it could easily be run using the Dungeon Crawl Classics Lankhmar Boxed Set and Dungeon Crawl Classics Dying Earth without any difficulty. Overall, Dungeon Crawl Classics 2018 Convention Module: Tower of the Black Pearl is an entertainingly short, sharp, and sweet example of a low Level scenario for the Dungeon Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game.