The Sacrilegious Sage (OSR)

The Sacrilegious
Sage
A generic Tweak & Toss OSR

adventure seed.
www.frugalgm.com
FGM 041: The Sacrilegious Sage
GM note: There are no marked entrances from the surface world to “level 1” of the
cavern system. The GM can place entrances as needed. Each “level” of the cavern
has both uneven floors and ceilings with a difference in height of 5’-50’, but taken
as a whole each “level” is a similar depth underground. Tunnels between levels are
quite steep, with frequent drops of 25’-50’.
1) This level of caverns closest to the surface serve as the home for two large tribes
of orcs. Each tribe has a large number of half-orc and goblin slaves, but aside from
seasonal surface raids for fresh food and women, they are usually too pre-occupied
with warring with each other and fending off attacks from larger humanoids (Bug-
bears for the most part) that wish to move in.
2) Several varieties of bat (including giant and vampiric) inhabit this level. The
noise from these creatures can be deafening, but they are relatively harmless unless
disturbed. There is one notable exception: for an hour at dusk and dawn the bats
migrate up and out of the cave in huge swarms, making the tunnel from level 1 a
death-trap.
3) This level contains a large vein of precious gems which runs along the far end of
the cavern. This vein hasn’t been discovered by the Dwarves, yet....
4) There is a small band of Dwarven miners encamped on the lower edge near the
underground river. They have come up from Deep Dark on an expedition prospect-
ing for a new mine. They have established enough of a base camp that they could
act as a small trading post if the party is disparate for supplies.
5) This level is bisected by an underground river. The water is swift & shallow, but
there is little head-room above the waters. Those willing to brave the waters can find
a rich deposit of edible giant mushrooms in the dry caverns between the river bends.
6) This lowest level also contains a river, but this one is slow moving, deep, and has
plenty of room. The Western side of this cavern is inhabited by a race of Albino
Lizardmen. Unlike most of the other levels,
there is a rich abundance of flora and fauna,
all of it strange and unfamiliar. There are
wide swaths of giant mushrooms, more than
enough to construct a raft to float the river.
Downstream to the East (well off the map) is
a large Dwarven community that has it’s own
access back to the surface.
FGM 041: The Sacrilegious Sage

GM Note: This adventure seed is designed to act as a loose framework for you to
tweak & toss into your current campaign and everything listed here is a suggestion
for use only. Several details, especially those on this page, are deliberately vague in
order to make integration easier.
Basic Adventure Set-Up

Who: A sage eager to prove his basic theory on the origins of life.
What: An extensive foray into the nearby mountain caves & caverns in order to
study and catalogue the flora and fauna found within.
Where: Any small town in proximity to a large cave system.
When: Any time of the year, as the main action takes place underground.
Why: The sage has a working “Fertile Earth” theory that all life springs from the
earth itself. All surface creatures and plants stem from underground progenitors.
The sage needs to venture into the Deep Dark to gain additional proof for his
theory. The locals, at best, think the sage is crazy and at worst, sacriligeous, because
of his non-religious theories.
How much: The sage has a fair amount of coin to offer, but he insists that the real
treasure is knowledge....he doesn’t assume the party to be intellectually motivated,
but there should be (according to his theory) significant gemstones and valuable
ore that the party can haul back to the surface. The sage is willing to pay for all the
neccessary supplies, including some porters, for a three-week foray.
Notes: There are a number of ways this adventure could unfold, and it could serve
as an entry point to a Dark Deep campaign and there are both combat and role-play
opportunities. The GM may wish to use a different map and simply add some of the
encounter ideas to a larger underground campaign.
The map included is for reference only. A better map can be downloaded from
https://www.patreon.com/posts/free-map063-5104711
Credits
Art: SC Lauderback (Public Domain use from The Hermit by Thomas Parnell, 1870)
& Unknown (Public Domain use from The Travel-
ler’s Album and Hotel Guide by Cassell, Petter, &
Galpin, 1862)
Maps: Christopher Stogdill (www.frugalgm.com)

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The Sacrilegious

A generic Tweak & Toss OSR

FGM 041: The Sacrilegious Sage

Basic Adventure Set-Up

Where: Any small town in proximity to a large cave system.

Maps: Christopher Stogdill (www.frugalgm.com)

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