This is a report that I originally published at the Trollbridge, which I am reposting here for my archives. This post contains spoilers, but as you’ll see, the players were timid and didn’t uncover much!

On Tenkar’s recommendation, I recently bought the PDF of James Raggi’s Tower of the Stargazer, an adventure for Old School D&D and its simulacra.

So, my nephew came over for the weekend and we had a chance to play some Tunnels & Trolls. Last time we played, the party was on the way to Millet’s Crossing to assist the town against a spate of recent goblin raids. When we started playing this time, I asked them if they’d rather explore the Skolari Vaults or the Tower of the Stargazer, and they picked the Tower.

My daughter had two characters and my nephew had two, but my wife joined us and took over one of my daughter’s characters. So the company consisted of the following:

• Gibious “Gibby” Gibbson Galfred Jr: Level 3 Human Warrior, Marshal of Northmarch, and survivor of both Naked Doom (which included a short DED run) by Ken St. Andre and the “Ice Caverns of Seralind” by A.R. Holmes.
• Link: Level 2 Human Warrior with a ratling tail, survivor of Dungeon of the Rat by Mike Hill.
• Severus Davey Havock: Level 2 Changeling Wizard, a Druid with a Goth affectation. This journey to Millet’s Crossing is his first adventure.
• Ron Shadow: Level 1 Changeling Rogue. This is his first adventure too.

As the party crossed the wild lands of Northmarch, their food supplies began to dwindle and they realized they would need to find a food cache, and that’s when they saw the tower in the distance. “Great,” said my wife.

As they approached the tower, they were stunned by the otherworldly atmostphere: the circle of steel lightning rods, the blasted moon-like landscape within, and the constant crashes of lightning. As they crossed the circle toward the great iron doors, they noticed a the corpse of a master burglar famous for staging impossible break-ins.

When they reached the door, they argued about whether or not to use the knocker until one of the characters knocked, sending a resounding BONG echoing across the hills. The doors opened of their own accord into a dark foyer. After lighting a torch (they also had the light of Gibby’s crystal hand), they proceeded into a spotless room, with two coffee tables and some adjacent chairs. They peeked into a coat closet and then proceeded into what appeared to be a dining hall.

There they saw a great table, a statue, a flight of stairs going up, and a china cabinet. They realized that a stack of crates was a facade, but they decided not to move it. Ron inspected the china cabinet and found a few wine bottles.

That’s when they decided to high-tail it, taking only the wine! They were so creeped out by the absence of obvious threats, like monsters and such, that they just took off! They literally left after exploring one and a half rooms! I was stunned. They picked their way back across the blasted hilltop, and chose to contend with the threat of starvation instead of exploring an abandoned tower. Guided by the Druid, they foraged for roots and berries, and made it to Millet’s Crossing.

My wife explained her choice saying that she usually plays warriors, but this time she was playing Severus, and she was put off by the wizard’s negative Combat Adds. She figured there was too much risk sticking around such a strange and lonely place.

I was totally shocked by this turn of events, but I’ve been looking forward to running the Skolari Vaults for a long time, which we got started with while Little Nephew is still here. I’ll keep Tower of the Stargazer for another time. ;)