Premise
The players are all Tabaxi kittens (normal Tabaxi Race stats except they are 3 feet tall and classified as Small creatures). They have been placed in Baby Cat Jail for Baby Crimes. As hardened (or soft and fuzzy) criminals, they would like to break out and continue their devious ways! However, it looks like this jail was made to handle tiny terrors, and they will have to face puzzles, opponents, and challenges to escape the infamous Boxton City Dungeon.
Player Requirements:
- All characters must be a Tabaxi Kitten (Tabaxi Race in Volo's Guide to Monsters but around 3 feet tall and are classified as a Small creature) at Level 5
- Have a backstory of what Crimes you committed (basically why you are in jail)
- You can have 1 Uncommon item, or 2 Common items. (NOTE: since you are in jail, you have been frisked and all your items/weapons/arcane focuses/armor are gone in the beginning. But you can attempt to reacquire them throughout the game.)
"Well intrepid adventurers, let us begin.
Character 1
Your last known memory was something going terribly wrong after your latest crime. You remember being caught by an entire troupe of Boxton guards, they cornered you and managed to slap a pair of heavy handcuffs on your wrists. There was something off about those handcuffs, as you felt it almost sapping away your energy the moment it touched your skin. Before you knew it, you fell unconscious.
However, now you are groggily opening your eyes, and finding yourself in a very unfamiliar environment. Blinking your eyes and shaking your head a bit, you take in your immediate surroundings. Strangely, the first thing you notice is the sound of roaring water, like a waterfall. The air is humid and clean, with a slight breeze on your face.
You are in a barred prison cell. One side leans against a bricked wall, and the other three walls of the cell you are in are fashioned like a barred cage. The metal poles extend from top to bottom of your cell, and about the thickness of a cup. There is some gap between the poles, but you would not be able to fit your head through.
Looking behind yourself, you spot what appears to be a toilet opening of sorts, the sound of running water comes from inside. Also, you have a metal cot, and what appears to be a ball of yarn sitting on top.
Looking through the bars of your cell, you spot what appears to be a tiny river or stream. Water gushes from a pipe nearby and flows in a little pathway, before appearing to flow out of a grate in the wall to your left. This is where the waterfall noises are coming from. Also, you notice the room's walls have been coated with fresh paint, with rough drawings of clouds and suns, all in pastel colors.
Looking to your left, you notice you aren't alone, as another apparent prisoner seems to be waking up. Would ______ like to describe what _____ sees?
The player begin in Floor 9. The players will get to look around and investigate their cells right before the warden enters the room.
- Spectre (Jenielle): Endless Yarn
- Subaru (Lillian): Rat Bell Toy on a Fishing Pole
- Meow Zedong (Safah): Crate and Blanket
- Glob (Sonja): Cat Food Ball (Glue and Oil), and Weak Door
You guys are interrupted by the sound of keys jiggling in the doorway. The heavy metal door on the right side of the room, slams open, revealing a smartly dressed Tabaxi with a tuxedo type patterning on his fur, followed by two guards wearing bright blue armor, emblazoned with the Boxton Tower.
The first figure, looks around the room and and seems delighted that you are all awake.
"Well well well looks like our new guests are finally awake! My name is Warden Sauckes, welcome to the Boxton City Jail, also lovingly known as The Tower. You four have cause quite some trouble, and I imagine the Boxton nobles are quite pleased to hear you have been captured! With the messes you caused, I wouldn't hold out hope that you'll be out of here quickly." He trots around the room cockily, moving closer to each cell to get a closer look at each of you.
"How do you like your new home? Do you like how we decorated it? I must admit you were all much younger than we imagined when thinking of hardened criminals, so we tried to make sure things would be more age-appropriate for you here. I even so graciously included some toys to entertain your young active minds."
He kind of walks back to the door, and then turns around to looks at you. "Well, also as a usual precaution, don't even think of try to escape. This jail is ten stories high! And in the middle of a lake, so there's nowhere to run. The Tower is inescapable, no one has gotten out in the 50 years of its existence, and I won't let that record be broken. These two gentlemen (gestures to guards) will be watching guarding your room, and they won't let a single thing escape their watchful eye."
"Hahaha it was lovely to meet you, and again, welcome to jail." He exits the room and the guards follow him. The doors shut with a loud clang. The only sound for a while is the rushing of the waterfall.
General Description of the Boxton City Jail
The Boxton City jail is a relatively old jail, and known to be incredibly hard to escape. It is built in the old crumbling tower of the wizard Bingus Mingus. Since it's 50 year beginning, no one has ever escaped The Tower, which has led to everyone growing complacent.
Bingus Mingus is a Tabaxi Wizard, known for being a hairless Tabaxi, as he suffered arcane damage from a series of fireball incidents. He also has large glowing eyes like blue orbs, in which he was said to be able to see briefly into the future. Several decades ago, Bingus announced that he was leaving in search of proof that a certain linage of Tabaxi grew fur so thick that they would be able to survive the stomach acid of the Tarrasque. He never returned from his endeavor, and his tower was taken over by the city after a few decades. Since the tower was in such a weird location in the center of a lake, it was transformed to a high security prison.
Bingus had crafted a pipe system that pumped clean water from the lake up and out of the tower, creating a waterfall spewing from the top. This pipeline supplied clean water to all floors of the ten story high tower. There is also another large pipeline that dumps all of the dirty water back into a filter and then the lake.
These pipes magically in case the water and can be accessed on each floor via a hatch large enough for a small creature to squeeze in. When the hatch is opened, water does not spill out.
Tower
The Boxton City Jail, also known as the Tower, is a 10 story high tower with a pumped waterfall spewing out from one side. It is surrounded by four watch towers with torch and light systems the beam out search lights over Donut Lake. The watch tower have independent stairs so the guards can travel up the spiral staircase to get up to the Giant Crossbows.
There is 1 Giant Crossbow that is mounted to the top floor on each watch tower, as well as a Light Focus Device. The +1 Giant Crossbow does 2d10 damage and has a 500/1000 range.
Donut Lake
Donut Lake roughly has a 5000 foot radius. This means that a regular paddling boat traveling at 30 feet per 6 seconds would take ROUGHLY 20 minutes to paddle from the Tower to shore. At a rushed pace (dashing every round, it would take about 10 minutes to get to shore).
It is almost a perfect circle, and sits on the top of a dormant volcano. It is said that Bingus casted a Fireball so large that it destroyed the entire tip of the mountain, leaving behind a giant crater which eventually became his home.
Frosted Water Barrier
In the warden's room there is a control panel that freezes the water in a 500 foot radius away from the tower. The frozen water coalesces into a 50 foot wide wall of solidly frozen water extending up from the bottom of the lake about 5 feet above the water surface.
Surroundings
Boxton City sits to the East of the Tower. The city's farmland sits on the north of the lake, and the fishing village to the south. At the west, there is the Furwild Grove.
Floor 1 - The Boat Docks
Description
This Floor is the entrance for anyone visiting The Tower. This floor consists of four large sweeping arches under each side of the tower, providing support for the rest of the building. There is a large staircase to the left side leading to Floor 2. Two large pipes sit near the side of the docks.
There is two main stairs that lead upward to Floor 2, and the four watch towers have floors that lead up to the Floor 3 watchtower.
Floor 2 - Check In Lounge
Description
This Floor is the main welcome office and check-in floor. Entering in from the main stairs, you are immediately greeted with a wooden desk, with two guards seated behind a glass panel.
There is one set of stairs that lead upwards to Floor 3, and a ladder in the record room that leads upward to the second floor of records.
The main two stairs leads downward to the docks at Floor 1.
The cat scratch pole ends at this floor.
The Guard Weapon storage contains short swords, spears, heavy crossbows, and 3 Iron Bands of Binding.
The Warden's quarters contain the runestones that deactivate the Frosted Water Barrier, some clothes, and his bed.
The Record room leads to the next floor.
Floor 3 - Records and Admin
Description
Info
Puzzle - The Gentleman's Door
The Records Room is guarded by The Gentleman's Door. When players walk up to this door, they see a doorframe and a large mirror where the door would be. Their reflection is shown on the door, and it does everything they do. They cannot walk through because their reflection blocks them.
Solution: Either block all light to the Gentleman's door so they have no reflection, or politely say "You first" or etc. Their reflection will say "Oh no you first, please" and step out of the way.
Floor 4 - Guard's Quarters
Description
Info
Floor 5 - Magic Item Storage
Description
Info
Puzzle - Birds of Chaos
There is a large chest in the center of the room. The chest has four indents on the side, and appears that a bird shaped object can fit in it. Each indent has a picture right next to it. The pictures, from left to right include a rat, a snake, a wolf, and a parrot. To the left wall, there is four pedestals with bird figurines crafted out of glass. They are red, blue, yellow, and green. When touched, the birds stick onto the hand of the player and the effect takes action.
- Red - Wince whenever a sentence starts or ends with "s" - Rat
- Blue - Start and end each sentence with "s" - Snake
- Yellow - Talk only when others are talking - Wolf
- Green- Can only speak words that they hear first (starting now) - Parrot
Solution: Whenever someone else can describe the effect of the bird on the player, the bird unmelds and can be held regularly for an hour. The effect hints at correct placement on the chest (see above). When all birds are placed in the correct area, the chest opens.
Floor 6 - Regular Item Storage
Description
This room is known as the Litter Box, because the gelatinous cube, Jelly, eats everything. The hallway is empty besides a pinned parchment note near the metal door and a chained net that is abut 10 foot by 100 foot large. The note reads: She's fast! Keep your head cool and let the fire guide.
The door is unlocked and leads into the maze, which has large stone walls. There is a brazier on the far left with about a dozen torches, and a set of matches. There are also two levers.
Puzzle - Gelatinous Cube
The cube is attracted to heat, and it will chase a torch first, then a person. They can use the net or some other method to fish the items out of the cube. Or they can defeat the cube and then take the items.
Lever 1 opens and closes the gate to the gelatinous cube, the down position is closed, and the up position is open. Lever 2 opens and closes the small feeding hatch, about 1 foot by 1 foot large. The down is closed, up is open.
Floor 7 - Prison Cells
Description
Info
Clawdia = O'veo is actually in the corner cell next to the guard (Where her cell is in the pic,
Floor 8 - Prisoner Courtyard
Description
The courtyard is accessible to the prisoners during the day, and when there are enough guards to watch them move about.
Mini Quests
- Rigatoni - Wants his catnip back from Tiny, offers a two health potions and information in return. This can be bartered with Tiny, and Moose will suggest that they destroy their Records. Or it can be stolen off his belt.
- Tiny - Wants a bird, offers his Rubber Ducky (Foldable Boat) in return. He will accept a bird from Floor 5.
- O'veo - Wants a scrap/fight, offers a Wind Fan in return.
Floor 9 - Kitten Prison Cells
Description
This Floor has 1 main room and leads out into a hallway. The main room is where the kits are kept, and the hallway provides access to the Roof (Floor 10) and to the Courtyard (Floor 8). The ladder to the north leads to a unlocked wooden trap door to the roof.
Main Room
This pastel colored room, has new paint splattered on the walls, and childishly drawn smiley faces and suns and clouds. It is mostly a light blue sky, with soft nature scenery. The walls are made of brick, and the entrance is a heavy metal door to the east. This door is locked, and the guards outside carry keys to the door.
A system of pipes that carry water both down, and to the waterfall are situated in the room. The waterfall passes through a grate that has rusted metal pipes covering the hole. A inspection of the pipes shows that they are weak, and can be easily broken at the top and bottom. The water flows out from the red pipe into a channel, in which there is a sink to supply the blue pipe with downward moving water. The blue pipe's water flows through all four cells.
The waterfall shoots out 50 feet from the tower, propelling water spraying into Donut Lake. If players inspect the waterfall, they also notice what appears to be a 6 inch diameter pole that heads down, staying parallel with the side of the Tower, underneath the water. It is wrapped with twine for grip.
Each cell is a metal cage with a locked door. Players start off:
- Spectre (Jenielle): Endless Yarn
- Subaru (Lillian): Rat Bell Toy on a Fishing Pole
- Meow Zedong (Safah): Crate and Blanket
- Glob (Sonja): Cat Food Ball (Glue and Oil), and Weak Door
The guards are new at their job and constantly worried about anything. They can be easily fooled into worrying about the kittens. DC11 checks for them.
Floor 10 - Roof and Monster Pens
Description
The roof can be accessed through any four of the watchtowers and through the ladder-trapdoor from Floor 9. There are two large caged pends with open doors. The Chimera and Manticore live there, and if Warden Sauckes decides so, they can be caged back up. He gives out most of the commands to them, but they will generally listen to guards as well.
The watchtowers each contain a Giant Mounted Crossbow, which can be rotated. There is also a roof over the towers which holds a light beam device, where the light color can be swapped to alert the guards. Yellow is normal, red is Lockdown. This notifies the guards on the 4th floor to ring the alarm bells.
The chimera and manicure take turns flying around the castle 10 minutes at a time, with a 5 minute break in between. The manticore sleeps at night, and the chimera sleeps in the day. They take extended breaks of 15 mins for lunch, dinner, and breakfast.
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