Into The Caverns of Thracia (Old School Nonlinear Megadungeon)
About the adventure
In the shadowy caves beneath the steaming jungles of Thracia, there lies a bizarre subterranean structure, home to occult worshippers and hostile beastfolk. The death-god Thanatos haunts the echoing halls of the darkened complex, whispering doom to any who dare delve deeper. Can you survive the multifarious dangers of the Caverns of Thracia? The Caverns of Thracia is a classic Judges’ Guild module written by Jennell Jaquays, made notable by the Alexandrian’s famous blog “Jaquaying the Dungeon.” Originally written in 1979, The Caverns of Thracia is a shining example of non-linear dungeon design that challenges the player to think in three dimensions. The dungeon contains warring factions of monsters who will respond to the party’s actions, creating a dynamic political situation that parallels the party’s exploration. Fundamentally open-ended and responsive in its design, it’s a style of dungeon that no video game has been able to duplicate. With four levels and over 100 rooms, this dungeon qualifies as a megadungeon for sure, but it’s not at the magnitude of Undermountain (Dungeon of the Mad Mage) or the Temple of Elemental Evil. It will likely take 2-3 months to play through. We’ll be playing Dungeons and Dragons 5e, and the adventure will range from level 1 to level 6. We’ll be using Foundry VTT to bring a modern level of polish to the experience, with full-color maps, music, and ambient sound. If you’re interested in joining, send me a message–be advised that it might take a little while to gather a full group for this niche experience.
Game themes
$30.00
/ Session
Details
Custom / Thursday – 11:00 PM UTC
2.5–3 Hour Duration
0 / 5 Seats Filled
GAME MASTER
Vincent Marocco
he/him
5.0
(36)
Schedule
Each player will be charged when a session starts.
Meet the Game Master
5.0
(36)
4 years on StartPlaying
171 games hosted
Highly rated for: World Builder, Creativity, Storytelling
About me
(Personal site at http://www.vincentmarocco.com) Dungeons and Dragons has been a lifelong hobby for me. I discovered the game when I was a child, and ran my first campaign when I was in middle school. I haven’t stopped playing since. In the 22 years that passed since I started, I’ve run thousands of games as a Dungeon Master. In high school I founded my school’s D&D club, and I started learning to draw so that I could portray the visions that came to me for my games. Later on, I fell in love with virtual tabletops, racking up over 5000 hours in Roll20 and over 1,500 hours in Foundry. And for the last two years, I’ve turned my hobby into a side hustle, becoming a pro dungeon master. I’ve carved out a place for myself as a small batch dungeon master. Instead of running ten games a week and priding myself on quantity, I run a handful of games and go for quality. Many dungeon masters like running published modules, but I always prefer running original material. For me being a dungeon master encompasses not only running the game, but designing it as well. My aim is to immerse the player in a Dungeons and Dragons experience that transcends the ordinary. Though I’ve spent a lifetime playing RPGs, D&D remains my favorite ttrpg and the one I know best. I also structure my games to accommodate the shifting schedules of adult life. I design my games around the attendance I’ve got, and you won’t be committing to anything you need to feel guilty about missing. I practice an open door policy. I’m happy to accommodate both the new and the experienced player, too. I tailor my games for the group I’ve got, and I love having fresh perspectives in the mix. I gladly walk new players through how to use the interface or understand the rules. I strive to be flexible, lenient, and fair. You can see that quite a few of the reviews on my profile are from clients who have played a lot of games with me. That is because I love to make them smile. I focus on providing the best experience for them. I tailor the scenarios to their whims. I get to know them, and encourage them to be themselves. I am always working to figure out to shock, thrill, intrigue, delight, perplex, and captivate them. If you’re looking for the classic dungeon crawling, monster slaying D&D experience, that’s what I’ve devoted myself to perfecting.
View Profile →Character creation
Creating your character
Characters start at level 1. You may use point buy or standard array, but for the sake of party balance I don’t allow rolling stats. You can use any ancestry and class combo from a published WOTC source (No Unearthed Arcana). The only categorically forbidden thing is the 1st-level wizard spell Silvery Barbs.
What to expect
Preparing for the session
You’ll need two programs to play: Discord and Firefox (or Chrome). We use will Discord for coordinating the group call and scheduling logistics. You will also need to have Firefox or Chrome installed to use Foundry VTT. Other browsers like Edge or Safari may not work. We will be playing this game in Foundry VTT, which runs in your browser. If you need a tutorial on using this program I’d be happy to walk you through everything you need to know, free of charge.
What Vincent Marocco brings to the table
🌋Immersive battlemaps with dynamic lighting. 👹Evocative token artwork for all fighting units. 🎶An expansive, emotive soundtrack, mixed live. I've spent over 7,000 hours running 5e online across different virtual tabletops. Besides that, I have a lifetime of experience running other editions of D&D, especially the old-school editions, which I almost exclusively played in the old days of 3e and 4e. I like to set up tactically challenging combats and open-ended scenarios, which invite a variety of approaches.
Platforms used
Safety
How Vincent Marocco creates a safe table
The usual D&D stuff. Fantasy violence, cackling cultists, dark rituals, uncouth beastfolk, and the occasional tropical disease. I try not to make things gratuitously shocking or disgusting.