GM-SS One Shot Chapter 25: Gargantuan Gearworks

Artificers, arcanists and common tinkerers know the name of Aeron Thrand. Not only because of his generous patronage of their businesses, but also for his constant insistence, that current craftsmen were merely creating pale imitations of the “true arcane mechanics” achieved by cultures past. To prove this bold hypothesis, the self-proclaimed “inventor genius” had used his inherited wealth to found a town called “Aeoria” in the middle of nowhere. Although initially ridiculed as a rich man’s eccentric fantasy, the town soon attracted gifted craftsmen from all over the continent. This was of course due to the horrendous amount of money Thrand poured into the construction of workshops, but also due to his relaxed stance on research ethics. With him as mayor and sole authority, anybody not judged as worthy was forever exiled from the town. Despite or maybe because of his ruthlessness, weapons and mechanical wonders made in Aeoria were soon coveted goods amongst nobles and armies alike. Yet, Aeron Thrand was not satisfied. He spent his days creating digging machines in his remote open-air workshop, clearly looking for something specific. Each day, more tunnels were dug and Thrand’s temper grew darker. Finally, the digging noises stopped, and a single message was sent out through Thrand’s vast supply chain: “Looking for Heroes of the Realm, High Danger, Grandiose Reward”.

In this 4 to 8-hour one-shot adventure, a party of 6th level characters are hired by Thrand to retrieve an artifact from a recently unearthed ruin. Can the players navigate this ancient mechanical dungeon, or will they be crushed beneath its “Gargantuan Gearworks?”