If you’ve yet to read the wonderful series of essays at The Alexandrian called Jacquaying the Dungeon, you should line that up. Its findings aren’t mindblowing, but the clarity of dungeon design logic contained within is not to be missed.

One of the key tenets of that series is that the best dungeons have multiple paths through the space in order to reward exploration.

This is an attempt at inverting that truth.

The Hook

Heading directly into the mists off the lower coasts, there exists a pier. No-one has gotten to the end of it.

How does it work?

There are a number of truths about the pier. For the first time they are encountered, they are true. For each subsequent time the players venture along the pier, whether or not they are true is a matter of luck — a roll of 1-3 means truth; 4-6 gives the players a respite.

Before venturing onto the pier, players can spend time and effort collecting rumours about the pier. Make a WIL save — unsuccessful rolls mean players only receive the first truth; success means players receive another random fact.

You can’t look back. Looking back to the shore means you teleport back to the start of the pier.

Looking back to the shore means you teleport back to the start of the pier. Bottled water turns brackish. You can’t take short rests.

You can’t take short rests. It’s impossible to catch up with the pier train.

The train doesn’t take you to the end.

The third rail is alive. (Third Rail: STR19, Armour 2, d4 coil & throw; driven to keep people off the pier; if it causes Critical Damage, it throws the target off the pier.)

The pier is cloaked in mist. It’s only possible to see 50′ in all directions.

If a player falls into the water, the wash up on the shore a week later with an oddity.

Reaching the end

To reach the end of the pier, each of the following events must have been encountered. With the exception of #1, each encounter is unique — if you’d encounter the same result twice, instead move up to the next undiscovered entry.

CRAB BATTLE! d8 crabs scuttle up from the underside of the pier. They are armed with knives and like to move to the shoreside side of the players. (Crab: STR8, 8hp, d4 weapon / d8 claw; so long as they are armed, all attacks against them are Impaired; driven to collect small weapons.) A 20′ section of the pier is missing. There are still handrails. The train tracks have vanished. There are two women at the edge of the pier. One of them is crabbing, the other sells candy-floss. At the edge of the mist, floating above the sea is a firm wooden door. One of the passengers of the train offers the players a ticket stub. For as long as it is dry, it negates any one of the pier truths. There are names engraved on the planks of the pier. For each name that is read, that person appears from the mist and attacks the players. The second named folk to appear begins to read the names from the planks. (Named folk: STR12, 0hp, d10 unwieldy ghost field weapons; driven to add names to the roster {by killing people here}.)

The end of the pier

Once all of the entries have been met, it’s possible to get to the end of the pier. This is expedited by players asking “are we there yet?”

Inside a small amusements arcade, there are a number of shove ha’penny machines. They are rigged to never pay out. The machines are very easy to smash open.

There’s a lady here who will sell you a suit of crabmail — name your fee.

There’s also a mystic in a polythene tent. She invites one player to name a truth about the world. From this point onwards, it has always been true.