As a way of staving off all-out combat to the death, ritualized dueling is sometimes used to settle disagreements. It might be that your player characters are threatened by an outnumbering enemy, and need to try for better terms that outright annihilation. If so, their enemy might offer an ancient trial by champions, in the Well of Death.
The Well of Death is perhaps twenty feet wide and thirty feet deep, and there are two stone pillars, perhaps three feet wide each, with a space of about five feet between them. Each challenger walks across from the rim of the well on a plank, which is drawn back once they have crossed the gap, which drops to a spike-lined floor below. Then, once the command is given, the two challengers begin combat, making an Acrobatics check each round. If they stand still and don't make any weapon attacks, the DC is 10. If they make a weapon attack on their opponent, the DC is 15. If they are hit by an enemy's attack, the DC is 20. If they do nothing but try to be stable, they gain advantage on the check. Failure means falling to the bottom, which inflicts 6d10 piercing damage, and also means they fail the challenge. On the rare occasion that both challengers fall, the parties above can come to an agreement, or offer more challengers. A challenger who falls is considered to have failed, but faces no further threat of death, and a rope or ladder is usually lowered to them if they survive. If you want to make this combat less challenging, you can lower all of the required DCs by 5, and lower the spike damage to 3d10. For a more dangerous combat, adding a dozen crocodiles or smaller lizards to the bottom can spice things up! How you can use the Well of Death in your game: - Adventurers might have to battle a band of rebels or bandits for a hostage they have, and rather than fighting them en masse, the adventurers could come to them with an offer. The suspicious chief of their opponents wants to test them in combat, and offers the Well of Death as an alternative that leaves less casualties on either side. - The Well of Death might have an important ritual and cultural role in a society- perhaps this is how all duels are settled. All towns might have a Well of Death, and they might even have further pillars, for those who prefer combat by archery or spells. - This might be a relic of a past culture, one long forgotten. A Well could be found in a ruin, and perhaps a battle with some kind of monster who does not obey the rules could gravely threaten adventurers who need to pass the area. Also posted on Game Masters Stash on 12 June 2020. Comments are closed.
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