Into the Ruins is a sandbox adventure serialised in parts in the upcoming Fantastic Odysseys magazine. Issue one, in addition to introducing the ruined city, The Shambles, which is the main adventurer’s playground in a general introductory article, issue one also features part one of the sandbox write up of the adjacent adventure’s town, known as Tent Town. The write-up gives full stats for the main NPCs, their followers, typical townspeople, locations, treasures, and of course, a local rumours table. The following text is from the introduction, explaining how Tent Town develops over the saga’s timeline.
What is Tent Town?
This is a predominantly human settlement outside the walls of the Shambles proper. It’s built on the ruins of previous settlements that have grown up and then been wiped from the face of the earth by some force, such as raiders, plague, or even earthquakes of a magical origin. The cycle takes fifty years to repeat, with one hundred years between settlement periods.
Tent town is relatively new, being only five years old. It was founded when the Mound of Maia, a temple to the Earth Goddess, rose from the Earth, according to her followers. Cynics say it was just a case of treasure hunters rediscovering the temple and unearthing its’ entrance. Most of the homes are canvas tents, as the name implies. It’s a transient scavenger community, but a few wooden buildings serve as more permanent residences and places of business.
The town’s stability is currently threatened by Goblinoid raiders, known as the Children of the Wrym, from within the Shambles and internal struggles between the town’s religious and criminal elements. The Goblin raiders come from the adjacent Squares district within the city proper, just over the wall or through the gap (see page xx below). This area will be detailed in issue 2.
Tent Town after Year Five
Tent Town is a settlement during its early beginnings that will grow as the characters adventure in the Shambles.
Part of this is due to what is occurring naturally within the town as it gradually becomes more settled. As the tents are replaced with wooden buildings and Miko the Mason repairs ruined stone buildings. However, the characters’ actions here can profoundly affect the balance of power within the emerging town. Side with the Whitebanes, and one of their number will end up running the town. Conversely, the characters could be the force that, in a showdown with them, that will go down in history as a legend of the Founders that sees them wiped out in some mud-soaked fight outside their shop. Would Serevra Wellwish (of the Imperial faction see page xx) step up to fill the void and boldly proclaim the settlement part of the Empire, or would Miko the Mason quietly manipulate the town’s movers and shakers to rule from the shadows and give the illusion its all business as usual?
The town’s development and balance of power will also be affected as the characters go into the Shambles proper and bring back treasure that can be used to develop the town.
If nothing else, there is the question of the settlement’s proper name. Whitebane City, Serevaville, Miko Mansions or even named after the characters? Or is the town’s end, within the fifty year cycle (due to run out in forty five years) at the hands of some army or magical disaster an inevitability?
