This is an altered version of the Out of the Abyss module produced by Wizards of the Coast. In this module, the party works to escape the Underdark and stop the incursion of the demon lords on this plane.

Alien World

The Underdark is an alien world, and interacting with its harsh landscape has a special set of dangers.

Naked and Afraid

You'll start this campaign with no items, which will be a severe disadvantage for some classes. You will get items as the campaign progresses. Nobody will be screwed forever.

Resource Management

You will need to manage your resources and scavenge for more as you move throughout the Underdark. You will need to balance party size with NPCs you will be given and the resources you have available.

Sensitive Themes

This campaign contains themes that people may find offensive or uncomfortable, including insanity, starvation, cults, racism, genocide, ritual sacrifice, character death, and body horror.

Unfair

There is an element of unfairness present. There are things that will trip up the players that they couldn’t possibly anticipate, encounters that are impossible to win, and objectives that are impossible to complete may be present.

Many of these are normal rules that don’t often see use in play. Some are specific to the campaign. Some are just advice on how my world works. In any case, they’re here so you’re not blindsided.

Conditions

Exhaustion

Some special abilities and environmental hazards, such as starvation, dehydration, sleep deprivation, and the long-term effects of freezing or scorching temperatures, can lead to a special condition called exhaustion. Exhaustion is measured in six levels. An effect can give a creature one or more levels of exhaustion, as specified in the effect’s description.

Level Effect

1 Disadvantage on ability checks

2 Speed halved

3 Disadvantage on attack rolls and saving throws

4 Hit point maximum halved

5 Speed reduced to 0

6 Death

If an already exhausted creature suffers another effect that causes exhaustion, its current level of exhaustion increases by the amount specified in the effect’s description.

A creature suffers the effect of its current level of exhaustion as well as all lower levels. For example, a creature suffering level 2 exhaustion has its speed halved and has disadvantage on ability checks.

An effect that removes exhaustion reduces its level as specified in the effect’s description, with all exhaustion effects ending if a creature’s exhaustion level is reduced below 1.

Finishing a long rest reduces a creature’s exhaustion level by 1, provided that the creature has also ingested at least a pound of food and drink.

Hazards

Darkness

The Underdark is dark (go figure). This means even people with darkvision get the dim light disadvantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks from dim light. Having a light source can help you to see things, but as the only light in the darkness, it also makes you a target.

Disease

There are many diseases in the Underdark rarely seen on the surface. They can be acquired from detrimental fungi, eating tainted food, and contact with infected creatures. Diseases require many different saves.

Faerzress

An unusual magical energy called faerzress pervades and moves through the Underdark. It’s origin is unknown, and its effects are not well understood. Areas suffused with faerzress can be as small as a dozen feet or as large as several miles in diameter. Within areas of faerzress, uncontrollable chaotic magic reigns, causing spells to fail in spectacular fashion and unforeseen magical effects on any exposed to it. Faerzress’s possible presence makes magical travel in the Underdark ill-advised except in line-of-sight.

Fauna

Animals in the Underdark are a possible source of food. The table below shows the approximate amount of food that can be gained from a given animal. A successful Intelligence (Nature) check will tell the character if the animal is safe to eat (one check only for the party).

Size Pounds of Food Gained

Tiny 1

Small 4

Medium 16

Large 32

You are also a good source of food for animals in the Underdark. Many of them will try to eat you. Some may kill you just for fun. Knowing the motivation of the animal attacking (another successful Intelligence (Nature) check) can help you to know whether to drive it off or stand and fight, and how to do so.

Flora

Like the animals of the Underdark, some of the plants are good for eating or grant beneficial effects, while others are deadly or carry infectious and mind-altering substances. Some are even sentient. A successful nature check will help you determine which is which. Some fungi will attempt (contested by a Constitution Saving Throw) to affect the characters with beneficial or detrimental spores.

Madness

Whether the odd magic of the faerzress, the psionics of its denizens, or the crushing oppression of a land without sun, many in the Underdark find themselves going mad. For various reasons including but not limited to those listed above, you may be asked to make a saving throw against madness. The ability score for this saving throw will vary depending on the source, or may offer you a choice of ability scores. If you fail, you gain a level of madness (mark it on your sheet) and roll 1d10 and 1d100. You will be told what the effects of your madness are and for how long in private. Do not explicitly tell the party, though you are encouraged to roleplay it. Remember that your character truly believes whatever madness is affecting them and is not aware of anything wrong with whatever actions it causes them to take. Madness levels can be removed by powerful magic like Greater Restoration, but the effects of indefinite madness require a Wish spell to remove.

Natives

Many natives of the Underdark do not like outsiders, particularly those from the surface. They will likely attempt to kill or enslave you.

Poison

Poisons both natural and manmade are common in the Underdark, and many creatures there are resistant or immune to them. You are (probably) not. Make use of nature checks to avoid natural poisons from creatures and from eating tainted food. All poison gives the Poisoned condition, and many have secondary effects as well.

Needs

Characters who don’t eat or drink suffer the effects of exhaustion. Exhaustion caused by lack of food or water can’t be removed until the character eats and drinks the full required amount, including any deficit from missed days.

Food

A character needs two pounds of food per day.

When a character accumulates a full day without food, they gain a level of exhaustion.

Water

A character needs 1 gallon of water per day.

When a character accumulates a full day without water, they gain a level of exhaustion.

Sleep

A character needs 2 hours of rest per day to avoid exhaustion. Standard rules on lengths of rests and what you get at each of them are unchanged.

When a character accumulates a full day without rest, they gain a level of exhaustion.

Being carried is not restful, nor is being unconscious.

Pace

Travel pace in the Underdark is significantly slower than for overland travel. Not only are there tunnels and passages often difficult terrain with uneven surfaces, but routes in the Underdark are rarely direct, and the characters must follow available passages and their various twists and turns.

Pace Miles Per Day Effect

Fast 8 -5 penalty to passive Wisdom (Perception) scores, -5 bonus on Wisdom (Navigation) checks, no foraging

Normal 6

Slow 4 +5 bonus on Wisdom (Navigation) checks and either +5 to Wisdom (Survival) checks for Foraging or able to use stealth, not both.

Activities

Crafting

Characters can use travel time to craft equipment, provided they are proficient with and have the necessary tools or improvised substitutes. Talk to the DM about what you want to craft and how.

Foraging

A foraging character makes a Wisdom (Survival) check against the area’s DC (typically 15-20 for the Underdark). Characters that fail the check by a significant amount (typically more than 5) may produce tainted food or water which is added to the party’s supply, provoke creatures, leave an obvious trail, or cause other detriments. Characters that succeed gather 1d6 + the character’s Survival modifier divided as the character chooses among pounds of food and gallons of water. The food spoils after a single day if uneaten. Outlanders and Rangers with the related favored terrain have advantage on their rolls. They do not automatically find food. Outlanders add 1d4 to the amount of food found. Rangers add 1d6.

Mapping

A character can record the group’s progress through the Underdark and create a map of the route. Having a map allows the party to navigate those routes without any chances of becoming lost for as long as the map remains valid.

Navigating

Becoming lost is a serious risk in the twisting tunnels of the Underdark, and travelers can wander in circles without knowing it. Creatures unfamiliar with a given region of the Underdark are automatically lost.

Even creatures that know the routes of the Underdark aren’t immune. For every day of travel, and any time the characters set out again after finishing a short or long rest, the party’s navigator(s) makes a DC 15 Wisdom (Survival) check (DC may increase or decrease depending on area). A failed check means the characters become lost, wantering in a random direction determined by 1d8 for 1d6 hours before the navigator can make a new check to find the right path. Rangers with the related favored terrain have advantage on their rolls and produce. They do not automatically find their way.

Noticing Threats

The passive Wisdom (Perception) scores of characters in the party count toward noticing hidden threats only if both of the following conditions are met:

The characters are able to see the threat (due to illumination or darkvision) or otherwise perceive it.

The characters aren’t engaged in other activities, including navigating or foraging.

The DM might also decide that only characters in a particular rank of the marching order are able to notice a specific threat.

Surprise

The DM determines who might be surprised. If neither side tries to be stealthy, they automatically notice each other. Otherwise, the DM compares the Dexterity (Stealth) checks of anyone hiding with the passive Wisdom (Perception) score of each creature on the opposing side. Any character or monster that doesn’t notice a threat is surprised at the start of the encounter.

If you’re surprised, you can’t move or take an action on your first turn of the combat, and you can’t take a reaction until that turn ends. A member of a group can be surprised even if the other members aren’t.

The adventurers can achieve surprise only if all the following conditions are met:

The encounter occurs while the party is moving, not stopped or camped.

The party elected the stealth option while moving at a slow pace and succeeds on their Dexterity(Stealth) contests against Wisdom (Perception).

At least one party member is capable of noticing the threat and communicating it to the rest of the group and does so.

This is an altered version of the Princes of the Apocalypse module produced by Wizards of the Coast.

Sensitive Themes

This campaign contains themes that people may find offensive or uncomfortable, including slavery, brainwashing, terrorism, and identity loss.

This is a campaign inspired by the Elder Evils sourcebook created by Wizards of the Coast.

Sensitive Themes

This campaign contains themes that people may find offensive or uncomfortable, including insanity, starvation, cults, racism, genocide, ritual sacrifice, character death, and body horror.

Unfair

There is an element of unfairness present. There are things that will trip up the players that they couldn’t possibly anticipate, encounters that are impossible to win, and objectives that are impossible to complete may be present.

The campaign will be broken up into 3 parts, each of which is a campaign on its own. It is made up of Out of the Abyss, Princes of the Apocalypse, and Elder Evils

Choices Matter

Your choices in the earlier portions of the game will affect how the later portions can be completed. This can even result in the game being unwinnable, in the worst case scenario. If that happens I will inform you.

Houserules

I have a general set of houserules viewable here.

Objective-Based Sandbox

This is not a sandbox game. There are certain objectives that you must complete, but you can choose the order and manner in which to complete these objectives. You are given a great deal of leeway and thus responsibility in deciding how to complete those objectives. The answers will not always be obvious or straightforward. It may require work to uncover the path forward.

Rising Power

The characters that survive long stretches of this campaign will start to gain powerful cumulations of bonuses from the experiences they've had.

Technology

We will be using FoundryVTT and Discord to play. Both voice and video on discord are required. Your voice and the FoundryVTT session, but not video of you, will be recorded, both for my reference and for players that may miss or want to look back on a session.

Ticking Clock

There is an in-game clock that is started by certain events. It is possible to fail objectives, or even the campaign, based on not completing things in time. The time is designed to be sufficiently long that it should be no problem, but it is possible.

Time Investment

This campaign is long. Like 2+ years long. It’s a huge commitment of time. It will be happening Thursday evenings, with the exact time to-be-decided.