Most pirates spend their treasure as soon as they reach shore. Some hide a portion of it away for future hard times. A few go to great lengths to keep their treasure safe and secret. Then there was Red Jenkins. Red Jenkins hired a wizard to create a magical sandcastle that only appeared at the lowest tide of the year, that was guarded by undead crabs, and is only the size of an average bucket. The intent was to create a fall back position for Red Jenkins to rebuild and rearm.
Through means far or foul, these adventurers are now treasure seekers, having found a map and tide table that has led them to this beach on this evening. What follows is a small quest in a tiny dungeon, set up for Dungeon Crawl Classic characters of levels 2 to 3.
The Beach
This patch of sand is so generic and nondescript that it doesn’t have a name. It’s a band of dusty yellow grains of stone and coral debris at the head of a small cove on an island too rocky and small for anyone to have bothered colonising. It’s sheltered from the prevailing wind by the island and the waves are damped by the mild reef that partially endangers the approach to the cove. Today’s low tide is just after sunset and will be the lowest of the year. As the sun descends and the tide recedes, the sandcastle is revealed in a sparkle of sunlight and magic. It sits in a depression amongst some rocks, so that only the lowest tide would sap the water enough to reveal it. It will take some time after the tide turns for the water to reach high enough to refill and reflood the castle, at most 3 hours.
The Castle
The castle consists of a central keep with a walled courtyard around it. The keep is 20cm tall and 20cm by 20 cm at its base. The walls sit 20cm from the keep and are 15cm tall, with an entrance on the east side. There is a small entrance in the keep on the west side but no windows. 6 tiny undead crabs will exit from the sandcastle and take up guard positions outside the walls. Stamping on them when full size will instantly kill them, but 5 minutes later a replacement will exit from the sandcastle. Stamping on the sandcastle will cause it to collapse into a pile of sand and not return until the next lowest tide. Sieving or slicing the sandcastle results in only finding sand, such is the magic of the enchantment. Attempting to make the sandcastle full size will cause physics to take notice, resulting in a 20m tall pile of sand. Perhaps the party should not stand close if they wish to attempt this…
The Approach
The party has a very limited supply of refined shrinking potion. It will reduce a person to 1% of their original size and lasts for one hundred and twenty five minutes. If the party did not drink the potion next to the sand castle, they will have to traverse across the sand at a height of 1%. Have them roll 4d14 and remove that from the time they have available before the potion wears off and the castle is flooded by the tide. The tiny undead crabs patrol around the castle walls in pairs, with two always guarding the entrance. If any pair is engaged, they make loud whistling noises that bring all the other crabs to them.
Tiny Undead Crabs
Init +2, Atk Claws +2 (2d4), AC 10, HP: 20, MV 8, Act 1d20, SV Fort +4, Ref +0 Will +0 AL Lawful. When a tiny undead crab is killed, a replacement will emerge from the keep after 5 minutes.
The Courtyard
The keep stands on wet slippery rock and this is the flooring for the courtyard.
The Keep: Ground Floor
The interior of the keep is sand, tightly packed together by magic and a little bit of water. Arranged evenly across the room are six crystal plinths, on which fresh tiny undead crabs are being spun into existence. The plinths are easy to smash and disable.
There’s a tiny illusional octopus sitting on a rock with 8 clamshells. If the party can guess under which shell in the pearl, the octopus will open the magic portal upstairs. The price to play the game is 3 copper pieces. The octopus is an expert conman and talks constantly about very little to keep the characters’ focus away from its rapidly moving arms. Any attacks pass through its incorporeal form. A DC 22 result is needed, with the nature attempt up the common sense of the GM. The octopus may be bribed with sums greater than 20 gold pieces.
The Way Up
A round hole opens in the ceiling and a column of light blue glowing light appears through it. Anything that touches the column that weighs less than 2kg when full size gently floats up through the hole. Anything that touches the column that is more than 2kg when full size rapidly accelerates upwards. A reflex check of DC 12 is needed to avoid hitting the rim of the ceiling hole for 2d4 damage and a reflex check of DC 15 is needed to avoid 2d7 damage from the spikes on the ceiling of the upper room. Objects of exactly 2kg hover and float. A dispel magic check of DC 15 is needed to dispel the gravity zone.
The Keep: Upper floor
The only thing on the upper floor is a skeleton, its clothing long since rotted away by the ocean. A few rusted rings adorn its fingers and it has a silver tooth. It floats up from the floor and a mad yellow glow fills the eye sockets of the skull. It makes no sound and immediately begins attacking the party.
Mad Wizard Ghost
Init +2, Atk Boney Hands -1 (1d4), AC 16, HP: 40, MV 10 (flight), Act 1d20+1d4, SV Fort +4, Ref +0, Will +4, AL Neutral. Possibly the remnants of the wizard Red Jenkins hired and then betrayed. The remnant know the following spells: Dispel Magic, Fireball, Lightning Bolt, Slow. Keeps itself at a distance as best it can and relentlessly concentrates its attacks on a single target.
On destruction, there’s the sound of an old man laughing with relief and the skeleton is consumed with green fire. The same green fire appears in 7 spots around the top floor, revealing seven large treasure chests. Should the characters attempt to carry off the chests, they may do so if they are strong enough to carry the 7 kg of chest and its contents. The chests and their contents remain at 1% size until returned to normal size.
- Chest 1: A fine coat of adamantine mail. A steel helmet of protected senses – +2 to resistance to attempts to blind, deafen, or sicken via smell. A cutlass, made of blood steel. When it is cleaned with the blood of its wielder, it grants an additional +d6 when rolling on the critical hit table.
- Chest 2: A magic ring of +2 when trying to determine the source of a movement. A headband of communication, damaged – the wearing now understands and can write two languages (chosen at random at dawn) when wearing the headband. A safety flagon – any liquid that is poured into it is turned into pure water when the lid is closed.
- Chest 3: The highest quality ship’s rope. About 200 metres worth.
- Chest 4: Full of sawdust. In the middle of the sawdust is a hand sized model of a 4 deck warship. It is completely missing the four magical gems needed to return it to full size.
- Chest 5: 25 bottles of Macham’s Number 7 Rum.
- Chest 6: 14 sets of women’s silk pyjamas. All identical in size (medium) and floral pattern.
- Chest 7: A single huge ruby worth 100,000g. It weighs 15kg.
The party have until the tide returns or the shrinking spell wears off. Best be quick.
Image Credit – Waves Destroying Sand Castle by Ginko Shi