Identity

WML ID10_Sewer_of_Southbay
Next scenario11_Southbay_in_Winter
Map10_Sewer_of_Southbay.map, 37 × 27 hexes
Turns39 / 36 / 33
ScheduleUnderground
Automatic enemy victoryDisabled
ArchetypeShrouded escape / optional twin-boss hunt
Story importanceHigh
WML complexityModerate
AI complexityModerate, symmetric enemy sides
ExitHaldric reaches 1,7 or 1,8

Story & dialogue

The refugees enter Southbay through an abandoned underground riverbed converted into a sewer. The twin Red Wizards—Daellyn and Tinry—were banished below after the Wesfolk War and can sense the Ruby of Fire. Their sudden appearance continues the campaign’s pattern that powerful magical beings detect the artifact.

Jessene explicitly connects the Ancient Wose, Caror, and the twins through this magical sensitivity. The scenario’s story is otherwise environmental: refuse, blocked channels, rubble, spiders, bats, scorpions, shroud, and the narrow exit all turn a shortcut into a dangerous urban underworld.

Map description

The 37 × 27 underground map is horizontally oriented. Haldric begins on the eastern side and must reach the far-west Southbay exit. Cave walls, old river channels, sewer water, fungus, rubble, bridges, village chambers, and narrow corridors split the route around a blocked central streambed.

Map elementDesign role
ShroudMakes navigation and enemy location discovery part of play.
Two wizard keepsCreate mirrored optional boss fronts.
Blocked stream areaPrevents the apparent direct route and redirects movement.
West-edge exit at 1,7–8Allows escape without defeating both wizards.
Rubble and signpostsExplain route obstruction and mark the final direction.
Fixed spiders and scorpionsPopulate passages independently of recruitment.

Objectives and bonus logic

OutcomeRequirementBonus
Standard victoryPrince Haldric exits the sewer while one or both wizards remain.No
Bonus victoryDefeat both wizards, then Prince Haldric exits.Early-finish bonus
DefeatHaldric or Lady Jessene dies; turns expire.

The exit event checks whether either side-2 or side-3 leader still exists. The same physical exit therefore produces two reward states without separate destination hexes.

Sides and AI

SideLeader / rosterGold and incomeAI
1 — RefugeesHaldric; Jessene, Burin, and Edren recalled220 / 200 / 180Human controlled; shroud enabled
2 — Red WizardsDaellyn the Red, Arch Mage; Red Mage, Giant Scorpion, Vampire Bat, Blood Bat160 / 210 / 260; income 5 / 7 / 9NO_SCOUTS, aggression 0.75
3 — Red WizardsTinry the Red, Arch Mage; same roster160 / 210 / 260; income 5 / 7 / 9Symmetric with side 2

Twin-boss reinforcement pattern

Each wizard’s death event checks whether his brother is still alive:

FIRST TWIN DIES └── surviving brother says "Brother!" └── surviving side receives 120 gold SECOND TWIN DIES └── killer discovers a map and gold ├── player receives 50 gold └── large route area is unshrouded
Design effect. The first success makes the remaining boss stronger; the second success repays the player with information and resources.

Fixed creature scaling

DifficultyFixed Giant SpiderFixed Giant Scorpions
Easy13
Normal18
Hard19

These guardians use the campaign’s GUARD_UNIT macro, separating stationary encounter placement from the wizards’ recruited armies.

Special events

TriggerBehavior
prestartPlaces signposts and rubble, recalls Jessene/Burin/Edren, creates difficulty-scaled guardians, and installs objectives.
startIntroduces the sewer history and the Red Wizards’ Ruby obsession.
Turn 3Jessene connects the Ruby’s magical signature to earlier supernatural encounters.
First wizard diesSurviving twin receives 120 gold.
Second wizard diesPlayer receives 50 gold and a large route area is unshrouded.
Move into blocked stream regionExplains that the party must route around the obstruction.
Non-Haldric reaches exitExplains that Haldric must lead the party and permits undo.
Haldric reaches exitEnds with bonus determined by whether wizard leaders remain.
Time overThe wizards flood the sewer.
victoryHaldric announces the final approach to Southbay.

Difficulty scaling

ElementEasyNormalHard
Turns393633
Player gold220200180
Each wizard’s gold160210260
Each wizard’s income579
Fixed scorpions389

Assets and reuse

ResourceOriginUse
No story panelOpening narration occurs in-map.
portraits/daellyn.webp and portraits/tinry.webpCampaignTwin antagonist identity; Tinry is horizontally flipped
Burin expression portraitCampaignComic sewer reaction
Signposts and rubbleCore/sharedExit and obstruction presentation
underground.ogg, knalgan_theme.oggCore/sharedDungeon score
Arch Mage, Red Mage, bats, Giant Spider, Giant ScorpionCoreEntire enemy roster and fixed fauna

Scenario WML · Map source · Arc study

Lessons for campaign authors

PatternReuse lesson
Escape objective with optional bossesLet players choose safety or extra reward without branching the next scenario.
First boss death empowers the survivorPrevent a symmetric two-leader battle from collapsing after one victory.
Second boss death reveals navigationUse optional combat to reduce exploration uncertainty.
Same exit, conditional bonusKeep map language simple while varying reward logic in the exit event.
Fixed guardians plus recruited enemiesUse different systems for corridor encounters and strategic armies.