Underneath the Skin: Random Encounters for Gathoxan Dungeons

I'm generally one to make custom random encounter tables for each individual location - you can see examples of this in both the starter module in chapter 7 of GVS1 as well as in the tournament module GVS2. It makes sense - take only what you need for a customized location, stock it with a sensible array of likely culprits, and determine the frequency and odds of checks. Done and done.

However, I've been running a series of connected dungeons, including a megadungeon, in my home Gathox game for a number of years. I've got a bunch of screwy encounter tables from earlier iterations of these dungeons, and I've decided that enough's enough. No more mish-mash of incoherent and dubious rolls for these locations. I need a consistent master table of random encounters, and anyone who runs Gathox at home ought to have it as well. The master table is linked below along with a brief description of the design process.

The Master Dungeon Encounter Table

First, I categorized and grouped all the monsters in GVS1: Gathox Vertical Slum by their Hit Dice Equivalent (HDE) as determined in Chapter 8 of Swords & Wizardry White Box. Then I laid out the HDE spread for each of 6 dungeon levels like so:

Level 1: 1-4 HDE

Level 2: 1-5 HDE

Level 3: 2-6 HDE

Level 4: 2-7 HDE

Level 5: 3-8 HDE

Level 6: 3-9 HDE

This spread keeps the imbalances and variability of encounters intact without ridiculous results, like having 9 HD creatures roaming level 1 or half-HD creatures roaming levels 4-6. Monsters with HD ranges may be encountered on multiple levels with appropriate shifts in HD, and groups of lower level monsters increase their ranks the deeper they're encountered.

And at last we come to the master encounter table, which streamlines a lot of the mess I had made earlier and hopefully dispels future headaches. Enjoy!

***THE MASTER GATHOXAN SUBSURFACE ENCOUNTER TABLE***

Let me know if you find this useful. If you think it's too underpowered or that you'd like tables that extend deeper than 6 megadungeon levels, let me know. I'll be publishing this table in my upcoming 'zine, The Mutant Insurrectionist, so your feedback is always appreciated!

From the Mutant Insurrectionist: Interview with a Cosmic Doctor

So I'm starting a Gathox 'zine called The Mutant Insurrectionist, featuring news snippets, gang territories, new items/spells/classes/monsters, playable locations, and absurdist advertisements. Here's a news snippet from the monthly magazine for the rich part of town, which includes a custom 1st level Mentalist spell:

Excerpted from the Vaclavellian Digest for the Month of Morning Fog:

. . . and after bypassing the Riddle of Chitin in Cheery Orchard, our crew finally caught up with renowned Cosmic Doctor, Arimena the Parallelizer. What follows is a distillation of that momentous interview.

VD: My god, I've never even seen a Zhezhn before, let alone pass through an entire grotto of them . . .

AP: I'm sure you haven't!

VD: The thrumming down here is turning the stomachs of my crew, and one just had a seizure from the pulsing lights. Any way you could dismiss those . . . things?

(AP smiles wryly and emits a series of polyphonic grunts - the Zhezhn phase through the floors and our sickness subsides.)

AP: You're a daisy for coming down here. What can I do for you?

VD: We're writing a feature on the Deflector fad. The spell's being used for new toeball game variants, public duels, drinking contests - it's on fire! How did you develop your namesake spell?

AP: And here I was, thinking you wanted a sneak peek at my Doppleganger Invasion manuscript! (chuckles) So anyway, in my travels I noticed a trend - each technologically advanced species eventually develops 'lightbox' technology, and shortly thereafter devises games for lightboxes.

VD: You're talking about face-screens?

AP: That's what the Mokron call them, yeah. The true marker of an advanced civilization is developing a lightbox game wherein two opponents compete by passing a dot back and forth using lit up lines or paddles. If a player sends the dot across the box and their opponent does not return the dot with the paddle, they score a point. Each advanced civilization across this galaxy has developed this game independently. I don't even waste my time trying to communicate with species that haven't developed it somewhere in spacetime.

VD: So this lightbox game inspired the spell?

AP: Yes. The Deflector is a three dimensional representation of one of those paddles, useful for deflecting incoming attacks. It works even better than the game version, because it automatically rotates around the body to intercept strikes or missiles. I wanted to make sure that even the least experienced of Mentalists could access the spell.

VD: There's been a glut in the market recently, so many scrolls of Arimena's Deflector are available on the cheap. There are even variations with custom colors and pyrotechnics! Did you think you'd set off a sea change in the spell market?

AP: Well, if you can cast at all, folks on the surface take notice pretty quickly. If you don't seek the protection of a gang, and sometimes even if you do, as a Mentalist you have to watch your back at all times. The Deflector is a great way to put up real resistance against a team of ruffians trying to steal your wizard brain for their boss. It makes sense that the Deflector is making the rounds, and I'm just chuffed!

VD: You should be! We risked life and limb to get the scoop on the Deflector, because our audience loves the spell so deeply. We'll be offering a briefing on your Deflector alongside this interview in the next issue of the Vaclavellian Digest. I want to thank you so much for your time, Arimena!

AP: Thanks for the house call, Vaclav! Here's a Gate back to the surface . . .
(air ionizes, lights pulse rapidly)

VD: No, wait! Aaaagh!


Arimena's Deflector
Spell Level: M1
Range: 5' radius
Duration: 5 rounds

This spell conjures a rotating quarter-globe paddle of thin, crackling magical energy which can quickly move around the caster to intercept physical attacks. The Deflector can automatically intercept up to 3 +1/lvl attacks per round. The Deflector requires an opponent's attack to first overcome the Deflector's AC of 5 before rerolling a To-Hit caster’s AC. Lasts 5 rounds.