In this series of articles, I will guide you through the process of designing a sandbox hexcrawl, illustrating each step with Chardauka, one of the continents of my world. Throughout these articles, I will cover both adventure content creation to populate the hexes and the worldbuilding elements that bring the setting to life.
The Challenge of the Frog Idol is an adventure for Labyrinth Lord, written and illustrated by the talented Dyson Logos. It was published in 2011, is completely free, and you can download it here.This is a well-designed module, full of intriguing ideas, and described in a concise yet evocative style. Its modular design offers great flexibility, allowing DMs to incorporate all or parts of the material into their campaigns with ease. Furthermore, the action takes place in a swamp, which fits perfectly with this initial phase of developing the Chardaukan Hexcrawl, where I am creating content for a swamp. In this series, I will use this adventure as a practical example to show how I use commercial modules to populate my hex map and how I adapt them to fit my world and specific needs.
The main ideas of the module are as follows:
- Giants have destroyed the dwarven citadel of Kuln, leaving its ruins as a potential (mega)dungeon. Kuln itself is not described in the module; instead, the author suggests introducing a megadungeon of your choice (it reminds me of Moria from MERP or Dwarrowdeep) or breaking it into smaller dungeons, such as The Barracks and Fortress on the Ironflow.
- The fall of Kuln directly affects Coruvon, an adventurer hub city. With the dwarves out of the picture, merchants lose interest in the area, but the city begins to attract treasure hunters seeking relics left by dwarves and giants. Coruvon stands out for its gladiator arena.
- Located near Coruvon, the Black Mire was formed when humans opened a portal to a water dimension during their rebellion against the elves. This portal allowed the arrival of three deities clearly inspired by Lovecraftian Great Old Ones, whose influence has waned over time.
- A series of enchanted pathways run through the Black Mire, their power fading with the diminishing influence of these gods. These pathways allowed travelers to cross the swamp relatively safely, shielding them from monsters. However, these same pathways harm elves.
- Dyson suggests that the giants remaining in Kuln are too powerful for low-level characters, so PCs should explore the Black Mire first. There, they can search for an amulet that renders them invisible to giants. This hook is developed in Coruvon’s temple, where a prophetess (a sentient statue) points them in the right direction. The quest ties directly to one of the swamp’s gods, the Frog God, who hates the giants. The Frog God offers his help in exchange for the collection of three key items. This “plot coupon” structure leads the PCs across the entire Black Mire before they are prepared to face Kuln.
There is much more to discuss about this module. Let’s first dive into the main ideas and the setting's background before reviewing specific adventure locations.
Structure
I will completely abandon the module’s linear structure: visiting the frog god’s effigy → collecting plot coupons → exploring Kuln. Instead, I will use the background, general ideas, maps, and specific locations to integrate them organically into my sandbox. I find the idea of the prophetess statue being the Frog God’s wife amusing and will keep it to develop a potential future quest.
The Fall of Kuln
I’m not sure the fall of Kuln is necessary in my hexcrawl, but if I decide to include it, I’m certain it won’t be a megadungeon. I’ve already explained in a previous article why I believe a megadungeon structure doesn’t work well in a hexcrawl, and besides, I did something similar in another project years ago, so I’d rather explore a different approach.
Kuln could become a fortress of the Blazing Pact or a small citadel built near the spring that feeds the Forest Stream. The invaders won’t be giants; I’m considering Chardaukan raiders led by a renegade wizard or perhaps elephant-headed ogres, like those inhabiting Chardauka. The fall will be less dramatic: while Kuln might attract adventurers, it won’t diminish the merchants’ interest in Garampur. Perhaps Kuln is located near the Sacred Volcanoes, and Garampur’s inhabitants only learn of its fall months after the campaign begins, due to seasonal dangers blocking the path through the Flaming Jungle. This illustrates that, when incorporating new elements into our campaign, we can’t always decide immediately what to do with them. In such cases, it’s wise to jot down ideas and revisit the decision later.
Kuln could become a fortress of the Blazing Pact or a small citadel built near the spring that feeds the Forest Stream. The invaders won’t be giants; I’m considering Chardaukan raiders led by a renegade wizard or perhaps elephant-headed ogres, like those inhabiting Chardauka. The fall will be less dramatic: while Kuln might attract adventurers, it won’t diminish the merchants’ interest in Garampur. Perhaps Kuln is located near the Sacred Volcanoes, and Garampur’s inhabitants only learn of its fall months after the campaign begins, due to seasonal dangers blocking the path through the Flaming Jungle. This illustrates that, when incorporating new elements into our campaign, we can’t always decide immediately what to do with them. In such cases, it’s wise to jot down ideas and revisit the decision later.
The Black Mire
This is the module’s most usable element for me. In my version, the swamp formed after an amphibian faction launched a hydromantic attack against humans during Chardauka’s war of liberation, over four thousand years ago. This attack flooded the region, possibly through a portal to the ocean floor that poured salt water like a large-scale Decanter of Endless Water.
The gods still maintaining a faint presence in the area would belong to the Scaled Pantheon, worshiped by amphibian species inhabiting the northwestern latitudes of the Sulfurous Marsh. This allows me to include the aquatic ruins I was looking for, perhaps built around the original portal, with the potential to develop a plot about reactivating it.
As for the enchanted pathways, I’ll link them to the transportation system of Chardauka’s ancient Solar and Lunar Empire. This system might combine the the Ways from The Wheel of Time with the eluvian from Dragon Age: a network of portals connected to an interstitial space now corrupted and monster-infested after the Scaled Ones’ attack over a thousand years ago. These routes allowed the Chardaukan Empire to establish a more efficient transportation network in the region. The anti-elf defenses, in my case, were constructed by the Chardaukans to protect themselves against the demons of Ignia during a planar invasion. These defenses only partially affect other Pact races, especially the Tieva (Tieflings). If my players originate from Garampur, this will invert the purpose of the pathways in Dyson's module: in my version, they will not be safe routes but rather dangerous ones, with potential rewards such as Chardaukan military armaments that the PCs can loot.
I’m also aware that Dyson added a couple of additional locations to the Black Mire on his blog, such as the Vault of the Ghost King or Assamvar Ruins, which I can explore to add more content.
The gods still maintaining a faint presence in the area would belong to the Scaled Pantheon, worshiped by amphibian species inhabiting the northwestern latitudes of the Sulfurous Marsh. This allows me to include the aquatic ruins I was looking for, perhaps built around the original portal, with the potential to develop a plot about reactivating it.
As for the enchanted pathways, I’ll link them to the transportation system of Chardauka’s ancient Solar and Lunar Empire. This system might combine the the Ways from The Wheel of Time with the eluvian from Dragon Age: a network of portals connected to an interstitial space now corrupted and monster-infested after the Scaled Ones’ attack over a thousand years ago. These routes allowed the Chardaukan Empire to establish a more efficient transportation network in the region. The anti-elf defenses, in my case, were constructed by the Chardaukans to protect themselves against the demons of Ignia during a planar invasion. These defenses only partially affect other Pact races, especially the Tieva (Tieflings). If my players originate from Garampur, this will invert the purpose of the pathways in Dyson's module: in my version, they will not be safe routes but rather dangerous ones, with potential rewards such as Chardaukan military armaments that the PCs can loot.
I’m also aware that Dyson added a couple of additional locations to the Black Mire on his blog, such as the Vault of the Ghost King or Assamvar Ruins, which I can explore to add more content.
Garampur
As I mentioned in a previous article, I already have a strong vision for my adventurer hub city and a reference point that is closer to what I have in mind than Coruvon. However, there are interesting details that I can adapt. For example, the idea of a sentient statue as a prophetess appeals to me, and I could transform it into a bronze statue animated by steam, given that Sulayra, Garampur's patron goddess, is associated with such constructs. Dyson also wrote about Coruvon’s Great Library, which I could reinterpret as a repository of technical knowledge about Sulayra’s steam constructs. I imagine volumes made of engraved copper tablets, designed to withstand the high-temperature conditions of workshops.
Additionally, I might keep the gladiator arena as a central element of the city, but adapt it to include battles between steam constructs, in the style of Real Steel. This would add an interesting dynamic, with teams of artificers competing against each other, reflecting Sulayra's influence on Garampur. Alternatively, I could opt for a more traditional arena and introduce a second relevant deity, such as Kragor, the warrior god associated with fire giants, or Kael'tar, tied to firenewts.
Lastly, I’m intrigued by the idea of a powerful faction of courtesans controlling the black market, which would allow me to explore how the Tieva, despite being second-class citizens in the Blazing Pact, are gaining influence in Garampur society through this network.
Additionally, I might keep the gladiator arena as a central element of the city, but adapt it to include battles between steam constructs, in the style of Real Steel. This would add an interesting dynamic, with teams of artificers competing against each other, reflecting Sulayra's influence on Garampur. Alternatively, I could opt for a more traditional arena and introduce a second relevant deity, such as Kragor, the warrior god associated with fire giants, or Kael'tar, tied to firenewts.
Lastly, I’m intrigued by the idea of a powerful faction of courtesans controlling the black market, which would allow me to explore how the Tieva, despite being second-class citizens in the Blazing Pact, are gaining influence in Garampur society through this network.
In upcoming articles, I’ll delve into the specific locations from The Challenge of the Frog Idol, how they fit into my map, and what adjustments I’ll make to fully integrate them into my world’s narrative. We’ll continue with this exercise of reimagining commercial content to seamlessly integrate it into the creative machinery of the sandbox. See you in the next article!
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