darkconspiracytherpg.info

This week I've read and interesting entry in one of the blogs I use to follow. The blog (written in Spanish) is: Play it again, Sam, and the entry contains an interesting link to an unofficial site about the Pyongyang Metro. As an introduction:

"Built to link secret underground military facilities, the Pyongyang Metro is nevertheless an important part of the transport infrastructure in the capital of North Korea (officially, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea or DPRK). There is evidence that it includes secret government-only lines, although the extent of these, if they exist, is unknown. Its station architecture is among the most attractive in the world. However, relatively little is known about the Metro outside the country, as few visitors are able to investigate the system. In recent years North Korea’s economic crisis has affected Metro operation, and service has apparently been reduced significantly."

The site is this: The Pyongyang metro. It seems to have enough information to build a nice background for a little DC campaign.

Very interesting! Thanks for posting this here

There seems to be more subterranean material than usual coming up in the DC forums and groups at the moment. Might just be the right time to write up the Dark Conspiracy version of a good old-fashioned "dungeon crawl"

Using this, the article about "hidden Moscow" from a while back, and the Mine Cruiser vehicle as inspirations, plus a large dose of Minions and beasties...hmmm

Well in that case, you would do well to read up on the "Shaver Mysteries"
Richard Shaver was either a hoaxster or suffering a mental illness but his lurid (for the 1940s) tales practically set the standard for other "tall tales" of alien visitors.
A brief introduction to Shaver can be found here http://science.howstuffworks.com/space/ ... shaver.htm

The following pages might offer some inspiration as well
http://www.bibliotecapleyades.net/tierr ... m#contents Very long!
http://www.phantomsandmonsters.com/2012 ... eries.html
http://thehollowearthinsider.com/archiv ... ean-worlds No underground mystery is complete without some reference to Hollow Earth but what about Hollow Mercury? Invaders from Mercury looking for a home in Hollow Earth?
http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/fo ... opic=43018 Some generalized underground mystery news

Morthrai wrote:Might just be the right time to write up the Dark Conspiracy version of a good old-fashioned "dungeon crawl"

The pyramid section from the Hellsgate adventure is worth a look if you like that sort of thing.

Linden wrote:The pyramid section from the Hellsgate adventure is worth a look if you like that sort of thing.

True of course! Realistically though, as a long time gamer it is very hard to think of subterranean adventuring without that "dungeon crawl" mentality creeping in. I was trying to think of ways in which one could break that stereotype and have a truly "Dark Conspiracy stylee" approach...

Morthrai wrote:I was trying to think of ways in which one could break that stereotype and have a truly "Dark Conspiracy stylee" approach...

Interesting idea although I can't really think how to make it work in practice. Hellsgate certainly doesn't escape the trap of just being a D&D dungeon with the logo scraped off.

Clearing storm drains and the like under a neighbor hood.

Phulish wrote:Clearing storm drains and the like under a neighbor hood.

Thinking about it, the Mall Rats scenario from Challenge 67 might also fit the bill. It's even got two levels: The ground floor of the shopping precinct with its shops and security measures, then the subterranean tunnel network where the minions live. It's a good scenario too; nice mixture of detective work, sneaking about and monster bashing. Something for everyone.

Phulish wrote:Clearing storm drains and the like under a neighbor hood.

That's exactly where operatives start out in SLA Industries, if they make it then promotion awaits...which isn't necessarily a good thing in that game.

"You know, fighting in a basement offers a lot of difficulties. Number one being, you're fighting in a basement." Lt. Aldo Raine

CoC offers a lot of good under ground adventures. Everything involving Ghouls can be used without much work. You can even replace the Ghouls with Morlocks if you don't want them in DC.

The main difference between my DC dungeons and those of HeroQuest or D&D is that I try to focus more on the horror. I think underground installations can be more like Vietnamese bunkers than D&D dungeons. Morlocks, Ghouls or Super Rats don't need torches every few meters. They get along very well with total darkness. I always try to make trips to the underworld as unpleasant and claustrophobic as possible.

One idea that always works to distinguish DC from D&D is to keep in mind that the monsters don't want to get killed. These dungeons are their home and they should not work to the PCs convenience. Tunnels should not be high enough to walk in. The PCs should crawl. They should not be able to use weapons exceeding BLK:2 or 3. If they fire unsupressed in the narrow space it should have some consequences. Generally the idea of using the same defense mechanisms as in the Vietnamese Underground Bunkers works very well. Corridors should be short so that grenades are useless and the PCs are afraid to crawl around the next corner.

Some very good ideas there Zvezda.