Dungeon of the Day: Manor Cambio

The Imperial Prefect of the region has imprisoned a local dissident in his dungeon, slated for execution in three days. The dissident’s family has hired you to extract him. Find a way into the Prefect’s lavish manor and through his well-guarded dungeons to save the young would-be rebel from his fate.

Manor Cambio is a level 1-3 dungeon heist for your favorite dungeon-crawling roleplaying game. The manor makes an excellent first adventure site for new players, emphasizing careful planning and rewarding imaginative play over brute force combat solutions. Veteran parties should find the manor more than sufficiently challenging if they press on to uncover its deepest secrets.

A few extra details not found on the map sketches (unnecessary, but they add some flavor):

• A young woman named Eurenia has hired the party to rescue her brother from Cambio, the town Prefect who imprisoned Taimon in his manor dungeon for dissent and subversion. Taimon is to be executed in the town’s center square three days from now. If the party rescues him they’ll receive 1,200 coins Eurenia and Taimon’s family managed to pool together from the village resources. This would also gain the party the attention of local insurgents.
• The manor is a lavish wood-and-mortar mansion in a gaudy mix of the Imperial and local style. It lies a few miles outside a small town called Loknam, the seat of what the Empire calls a “backwater” colonial region, surrounded by dense rainforest.
• Also surrounding the manor: 5’ walls with inlaid iron fencing rising 10’ high.
• The manor is heavily patrolled by guards — some disciplined Imperials, most local mercenaries — bearing halberds and flintlocks. Frontal assault on the manor gates would be suicide.
• There’s a rumored secret entrance to the north side of the dungeon level concealed by illusory vegetation. Cambio uses this entrance to smuggle in goods and guests to his private fight ring.
• The under-butler is a friend of Eurenia’s and might be willing to provide the party with information — such as that opening Cambio’s secret vault requires the keyvine growing in Mistress Cambio’s conservatory (13). 
• Mistress Cambio (3 in 6 chance present). Bored, cruel, vindictive, and self-amusing. 
• The garden is her one love. She’ll gladly help the party make life miserable for Cambio, but might just as easily decide to torment them. 
• Freely shares location of keyvine (which might be concealed behind her entrance to the Gardens of Ynn).
• Will not warn the party about the dangerous bloodroot in her garden (but can be convinced to tell them how to remove the cursed weapon once it attaches to a party member). 
• Vault treasures: Eye Cage (hidden, over-butler is spying on party), 2,800 in coins and jewels, coded binder of war correspondences (including the location of an imperial weapons testing facility), infant basilisk in cage (covered by a weighted tarp, coiled and asleep, save against petrification if it’s uncovered and awakened).

Full-sized maps:

Manor Cambio (0F, Dungeon Level)

Manor Cambio (1F, Ground Level)