Toys for the Sandbox 49: The Salt Mine

A dwarven forge that long ago was lost at sea is buried now in the Shandilite Desert. Its position in the sand is just below salt mines owned by the God King. The mines are pits of misery from which the God King amasses huge and secret wealth. They’re prison mines and he uses them to punish those who have displeased him. Now something unusual is happening at the mines. Magic is leaking from the forge making the sand glow rosy red and plants of a kind never seen before are growing.  The God King thinks the red glow means great spiritual and temporal riches for him. But he might find instead his evil is going to be interfered with. He might find that his salt mines are going to begin broadcasting far and wide all the anguish of his slaves. Is there someone who will pick up these psychic messages? Will a rescue mission find the mines?

Toys for the Sandbox is not a module, it is not a campaign setting, instead it is a framework for GMs to use to reinforce their own imaginations. Sometimes players zig when you expect them to zag, other times they take your plot point into a back alley and leave it penniless and bleeding. Each week we present a new location with a map and some flavor text. In addition we add 4 NPCs with a bit of history and a few simple thoughts on how to stat them for whatever game you are playing. There are also 6 plot hooks each with 3 ways to twist them. Added to that there is usually a table or two filled with rumors and encounters.

Great for use with Legends of Anglerre, Strands of Fate, Dungeon World, Risus: The Anything RPG, FUDGE, Harnworld, and easily adaptable to Dungeons, and Dragons, Dungeon Crawl Classics, Pathfinder, Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, The One Ring, HERO, GURPS, BRP, and many others.