Hexplorations: Wizard’s Tower
Below is a multi-column chart for the details of a wizard’s tower–our third “hexploration.” This matches up with this month’s Patreon of map icons for creating your own maps. (Each month we’re creating 15+ icons for each of 4 styles: world/kingdom isometric, world/kingdom flat/classic, city/village, and dungeon/battlemat scale.) This month’s Patreon theme is wizard towers.
Back to the main subject, to use this chart simply roll for each column or look at the options for inspiration or use a combination of the two approaches. For example, you may roll 4-2-6-1-2 resulting in an old but restored tower with a young, brilliant wizard who has a handful of apprentices of about the same age. They are creating an artifact. The library is infested with book-eating creatures and the tower has special protections against all energy types.
| d6 | Age/ Condition | Main Inhabitant(s) | Focus | Secret 1 | Secret 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New | Recently (mostly) retired adventurer wizard and one apprentice | Researching new spells (randomly roll a school of magic) | A section of the library is infested with book-eating creatures | Tower is located on a Ley line or magic font which makes magic easier/more powerful |
| 2 | Recent, in great condition | Young but brilliant research wizard and a handful of apprentices almost the same age | Researching unusual beasts and always has a few live specimens caged | Wizard has blackmail on nearby leaders and is using it | Tower has special protections against all types of energies (fire, cold, lightning, etc.) |
| 3 | Recent, but badly damaged. | Older retired wizard passing his knowledge on to several apprentices and even more students. | Wizard is the best known teacher of a particular specialty | The tower is one of several located at key points around the world that form a protective shield | Tower has spells and items that mimic modern conveniences (central heat/AC, lighting, plumbing, clothes washing, etc.) |
| 4 | Old, but fully restored | Older recluse wizard with a sole apprentice–the only person who can work with the wizard | Focuses on teaching and benefiting the magic community and nearby non-magic community | Tower contains a magical gate that connects with gates in other towers | Wizard is from another time or place and therefore has a lot of additional knowledge |
| 5 | Old, intact but showing signs of wear | Council of three wizards and their apprentices | Wizard specializes in potions and has unusual/unique potions | A powerful extra-planar creature is magically “bound” here–actually it is observing | Tower has been cursed and the wizard(s) and apprentice(s) are working to undo it |
| 6 | Old and badly damaged. | Spellcasting creature: Dragon (assumes human form), Genie, Lich, Mummy Lord, Spinx, Vampire | Wizard is creating an artifact | Tower has a special scrying artifact (orb, pool, etc.) that makes related spells more effective. | The wizard is being controlled (magically, via a device or organism attached, or simply blackmailed) to sabotage a major effort |