The Dungeon Masters
A guild of explorers driven by discovery rather than profit, named for the weathered cloaks they wear, dusted with the grit of forgotten places.
Ruinwatch Keep
Nestled in the Ruinshade district of Maneth, the island capital of Vildenlund, Ruinwatch Keep is fortress, archive, and staging ground in one. Its dark granite walls predate the city itself, and four uneven towers watch over the Obsidian Sea.
Inside, the Great Hall is strewn with maps and half-finished tankards. Above the hearth, carved into the mantle, are the words every Dustcloak knows by heart: “Seek the shadow, claim the light.”
When a merchant needs a lost caravan found or a noble seeks a relic from a cursed ruin, Ruinwatch's doors are the ones they knock on, and Eadric Vorn, the keep's gruff steward, pins the contract to the board.
The Dustcloak Code
Preserve
Historical sites are protected wherever possible.
Respect
The dead and their resting places are left their dignity.
Share
Knowledge is shared for the betterment of Vildenlund, not hoarded for gain.
— Council of Masters
Rank and insignia
Every Chronicle names the minimum rank for its contract, which maps to a level band. Loremasters and Master Explorers appear as mentors and quest-givers.
1
Levels 1–2
Newest recruits, learning the trade under a mentor.
A simple bronze clasp bearing the ancient key.
2
Levels 3–4
The backbone of the guild; they lead small, low-risk delves.
A silver clasp with motifs of ancient ruins.
3
Levels 5–8
Field commanders trusted with the guild's most perilous contracts.
A gold clasp engraved with paths and traps.
4
Guild sage
Scholars of the Archive who decipher what explorers bring home.
A platinum clasp set with a gemstone.
5
Council of Masters
Legends who set the guild's course.
A clasp made from rare materials, unique to its wearer.
Faces at the keep
Report to the steward first, always.
Steward of Ruinwatch Keep
A wiry dwarf Loremaster with a graying beard and a limp from a troll's club. Eadric keeps the ledgers of who is in and who is out on a job, and pins every contract to the board himself.
Cheap, not shoddy, and she'll tell you which is which.
Traveling merchant
A sun-kissed half-elf whose mule cart rolls into the courtyard every few weeks with rope, torches, chalk and the odd healing potion under the seat. Cheap, practical gear for Initiates on their first delve.
Buy the dust, though. It works.
Proprietor of Tilly's Trove
A retired gnome caver with a headlamp she never takes off. Her shop sells scavenged, repaired and home-built delving gear, from glowstone lanterns to collapsible poles, plus a story with every purchase.
The Kingdom of Vildenlund
High King Frederick Stahlwyrm rules Vildenlund from Maneth, a walled city on an island in the Obsidian Sea. Four duchies govern the realm in his name: the Kragmier, Orverdan, Kitalias and Reshima.
The Dustcloaks hold no royal charter. When a duke's soldiers are spread too thin, it is the guild they send for, because every town in Vildenlund knows a Dustcloak is no sellsword.
Running Chronicles with a changing table
Because every adventure begins at Ruinwatch Keep and ends with a Guild Debrief, players can join or skip any session without breaking the story. Regulars carry renown from one contract to the next; newcomers simply pull on a Dustcloak and pick up a torch.
The keep, the Code, the ranks, the traders, and a game master's guide are all in the free Guild Primer.
Find a contract