The Well of Lost Things: A Very Non-Euclidean Dungeon

There is a small, abandoned stone well in an overgrown field. It looks old, ivy and creepers worked into the crumbling mortar. The rim of the well stands to about knee height, and the opening is wide enough for an adult human to comfortably climb down into. Looking down into the well does not reveal the expected interior, but rather a drop into a marble chamber.

The map of this dungeon is very easy, as every room has the same floorplan, a five-sided room with an arched doorway in each wall. Getting into the dungeon requires simply a rope, and getting out requires ascending the way you came. However, once the well is out of sight it will never be found again... or at least never in the same place.

The layout is easy as well. Do you have a d12? Of course you do. Well, do you have a d12 that you're not using? I joke of course, the d12 is never used! Anyway, joking aside, the way to keep a track of this map is that every room number corresponds to the side of the die with that value on it. You just need to have one in front of you and keep turning it to see where people end up.

A good way to ensure you are not getting turned around is to map a standard "room" template with each exit labelled as A-E. To orient the path through rooms without indicating the overall plan to the players, the door characters enter from is always A. If you keep a list of the numbers travelled through so far, you should be able to follow their path with ease (although the players may become quickly lost, that's sort of the point). It may also be an idea to blu-tack your d12 to the table on its current side to prevent accidental rolling.

Room Map

Room 1.
A character descending into the well would need to lower a rope, as the well goes down two meters before opening into a room three meters high. The room is luxuriously tiled in marble, but somewhat decayed. The air is cold and still, as if undisturbed for an age.

Room 2.
In this hall there are five empty plinths. Nothing happens to anything placed on these plinths... while observed. As soon as no one is observing an object on one of the plinths, it vanishes. If the owner of the object dives into the pool in Room 8 they will find this object (or all objects if multiple pieces were lost). If the objects are not recovered before the party leaves the well, they will end up in the world again as great treasures of antiquity.

Room 3.
There is a single five-sided pillar in the middle of the room, covered on all sides with clear mirrored glass. Any character reflected in the pillar seems off somehow, a little flatter and less realistic in some indefinable way. Any character that touches the surface of the mirror feels something pulled from them and into their reflection, the reflection subsequently seems more real and solid. Each side of the pillar takes a different attribute (randomly determined on the first instance of being touched).

1. The character loses all body heat, they no longer suffer ill effects from extreme cold (although can be frozen in ice if the moisture around them freezes) and will be invisible to anything that relies on heat to see.
2. The character no-longer casts a shadow or a reflection (with the exception of the reflection in the pillar) spells such as mirror image will no longer duplicate them.
3. The character no longer makes any noise with their footfalls, they can still use their voice, but this is the only noise they will be able to make. They will not be able to play an instrument (although they can still sing), clap their hands, or make noise by beating their shield. 
4. The character no longer has any scent. They cannot be tracked by smell, and neither will any ordure or perfume cling to them. 
5. The character no-longer leaves tracks, they do not leave footprints or broken twigs in their wake. Neither can they draw in the dirt or carve into stone, the material simply returns to its form once their eyes are no-longer on the surface. Objects can still be broken by them, but any attempt to leave a trail will automatically fail, be it breadcrumbs, chalk marks, or a skein of wool. They can still write in books, but notes left for others rather than given will blow away in the wind.

If a character touches all five sides, they are wholly consumed by the pillar and replaced by a doppelgänger who retains all their lost aspects but is their reflection come to life and retains none of their memories or attachments. Their sole drive will be to escape the Well of Lost Things as soon as possible. If the mirrored pillar is broken before the doppelgänger escapes the Well of Lost Things, the copy will melt into a pool of water and the original character will be found within the fluid filled centre of the pillar with all their attributes restored to them. The pillar's surface is as hard as diamond, so there would need to be something pretty special to break it. 

If the doppelgänger escapes, there is now an NPC copy of the former character running around the world without memories or attachments, but with all their skills and abilities. 

Room 4.
The room contains statues of all different figures all worked in the same marble as the floors and walls. They are unusual in that they do not appear to be gods, kings, or heroes but rather ragged dungeon crawling types. They are also posed in odd positions, as if looking at the room or inspecting the empty air in front of them. They are all incredibly detailed.

If the party leaves the room and returns, the next time they enter there will be statues of them. Their poses are almost a snapshot in time of them looking around the room. If, at any point, four statues are created of one character the oldest statue will have come to life and wandered from the room (a character will only ever see three statues of themselves; with the ones created earliest having disappeared). The living statues have one desire: to kill their double and steal their last breath so that they may become a living thing and flee the well. Any character that has lost their reflection to the mirrored pillar in Room 3 will no longer create statues of themselves if they pass through.

Once there is a living statue of a character, there is a 1 in 6 chance of encountering the living statue in any new room they enter. If the character makes a lot of noise (ie starts shouting) the living statue will arrive in that within one turn. 

The living statues are 4 HD creatures with AC as Plate, they have a human level intelligence and can communicate in the languages that their double knows. They will act reasonably with other characters and attempt to explain the necessity of killing the one that created them. If the creature does kill the character and steal their last breath, the stone of their form transmutes to the flesh of the character and they become a perfect copy along with copies of all the character's possessions. They retain the knowledge of the deceased character, but always remember that they are the superior stone copy.

It is the decision of the DM whether the duplicate is an NPC or given back to the player.

Room 5.
The room is cold, and frost rime is on the walls. There is a naked invisible ghost trapped in this room, it lacks form and substance but can communicate through whispers and writing in the frost. The ghost desperately wishes to leave, but you must be fully clothed to exit. If it can trick a character into disrobing it will steal their clothes and regain its form, passing its curse on to the naked character. The former ghost will immediately attempt to escape the Well of Lost Things.

Room 6.
A chest made of faint blue light floats suspended in the middle of the room. The chest is intangible, but the lock is obvious. If the key is found it will open easily. Inside there is what looks like a compass, but one that does not point north.

As soon as a character touches the compass roll on the table below (credit to Anxiety Wizard), the compass will unerringly point to that lost thing. Once that lost thing has been recovered, roll on the table again to determine what the compass points to next. The distance to the lost thing is up to the GM.

3d6

3-5: Something of only sentimental value: a letter in a dropped satchel, a lost toy beloved by a child, a locket containing a lock of hair, a valued love poem that fell behind a bureau.

6-8: A valuable but replaceable thing, something worth about one hundred money units such as a precious stone fallen from a piece of jewelry or a fine helmet that fell off a cart and into a deep ravine.

9-12: Something not really replaceable worth at least five hundred money units, a precious heirloom weapon, a golden signet ring of office, a large and well-cut gemstone. There should be at least a little risk in recovering it, it could be on a body at the bottom of a dangerous crevasse or lost in a bear's den.

13-15: Something that is not only valuable, but also important (if only locally). The lost deed to a manor house, the ancestral sword of a noble family, or a valuable reliquary. It would be worth at least one thousand money units as an object but may be even more valuable to the interested parties. It is also in a commensurately dangerous place, such as in a room in a dungeon.

16-17: Something valuable enough to have stories told about it in the area and is worth at least five thousand money units, although again it may be worth even more to interested parties. This should something that was given up on because it was very deliberately hidden and is very hard to get your hands on; or it was lost in such a treacherous place that no-one has dared to retrieve it. This is the level of magical swords, ancient tomes of wonder, and crowns of lost kingdoms. Whatever it is, it's an adventure to get to the place and grab it from where it fell, or to recover it from the heart of its trap-laden hiding place.  

18: Something that is very actually priceless, beyond wealth, beyond dreams, the sort of thing that lives have been given up for willingly. The Holy Grail, the Ark of the Covenant, the Flower of Immortality, all examples of this sort of thing. Finding this treasure should have world altering consequences, something Kings and Emperors have desired, something which slews of adventurers have dedicated their lives in vain to recovering. This is also the level of treasure that unrecovered items from the plinths in Room 2 become.

Room 7.
There is a chain slack against the floor attached to the central tile of the room. If the ceiling is inspected there in a ring through which the chain could pass through to create an elementary fulcrum. If this is done the central stone can be lifted out of the ground, revealing it to be a long block sunk into the ground measuring about two and a half meters in height/depth. Attached to the bottom of the block by a simple ring is the key to the chest in Room 6. However, due to the dimensions, it is impossible for a single person to lift the block and retrieve the key, a second person is necessary to take the key from the bottom of the block. The key is attached securely, but the ring has a latch which is easy enough to undo if you have time and two hands.

Room 8.
A large portion of the floor in this room has been shattered, as if a great impact had occurred. The flagstones are cracked and splintered around the edge of the great hole in the floor that covers one third of this room (spanning out from one of the corners). The hole is into the living rock, and it is clearly not worked stone but looks like a natural cave formation. The hole is filled to about thirty centimeters below the floor level with clear water. Looking down into the pool will reveal that it descends about three or four meters. There is the glint of something shiny at the bottom, and there are obviously some objects down there, but it is unclear what they are.

Any character that dives down to investigate will return with a lost thing. The first things to be found will be anything from the plinths in Room 2. Next, any object they have personally lost will be found. If there is nothing that they have lost or placed on the plinth, roll on the table below to see what they find.

1d12

1.  A small inconsequential item such as a toy, a needle, a piece of fabric sewn with ribbons, a bell or other small instrument. The sort of thing easily lost and easily replaced.
2.  Keys; could be someone's house keys, keys to a strongbox, keys to a fort or to an ancient tomb. There is no clue as to what they unlock, but they might unlock something eventually.
3.  Small change, a handful of coins from a variety of countries and time periods. Perhaps some of them would be worth a lot to an antiquarian or a numismatist. As coins they are about 2d6 copper pieces or equivalent.
4.  A small statue small enough to be held with one hand. A religious icon, a wonderful non-representational work of art, a bust of a great historical person, or maybe a lovely little kitty statue. The materials aren't valuable, but it is fine work, must be worth 50 money units at least.
5.  A single piece of fine jewelry worth around one hundred money units. A ring, a gold chain, a bejeweled necklace, or any other such thing.
6.  A small chest containing d1000 money units. 
7.  A precious gem worth 500 money units.
8.  A random Magic item, 1) Magic Ring, 2) Wand, 3) Gauntlet, 4) Demon Coin, 5) Cloak, 6) Crystal Cat Statuette 
9.  A very nice weapon. A jewel encrusted dagger, a sword with a hilt chased in gold, a ceremonial spear from a long-lost kingdom. Whatever it is, it is a mundane weapon of the finest quality and craft. Possibly made by the elves of Gondolin for the Goblin Wars, for Dragons and Goblins destroyed Gondolin long ago.
10.  A single piece of finely wrought armour. Could be a breastplate, or a helmet, a cuirass of bronze, or a hauberk of chainmail. Maybe it is a single lobstered gauntlet. One piece in any case, things tend not to get lost as a set.
11.  Valuable item that would fulfill a quest. A lost signet ring of a noble family, the final seal of a fallen Empire, the key to the locked chamber of great monument, the map to the Crypt of the New world. Something valuable beyond its monetary value. 
12.  Item of legendary value sought for across the world. One of the legendary lost tomes of Phandail, the subtle knife that can cut between worlds, the one ring, or similar treasure. Something that, if found, would literally change the world. 

Additionally, if a character who swims to the bottom of the pool has lost anything of their person through injury or illness (ie missing eye, hand, limb, etc.) the missing appendage will have been restored to them when they surface. Any character who has lost an aspect of themselves to the mirrored pillar of Room 3 has this aspect restored to them.

Room 9.
In this room there is a single small pedestal in the middle of the room, upon the pedestal is a red button. In a circle around the button is inscribed glyphs for the numbers 1-20. When the button is pressed, the portals to the chamber are suddenly sealed with pale, cloudy, and opaque walls of force. The glyphs around the button begin to glow with red light. Every three seconds one of the glyphs will wink out, counting down. Every time the button is pressed will cause the countdown to reset, also anything damaged, destroyed, or changed during the countdown will be restored. Wounds taken during the countdown will be healed, spell slots and mana expended will be restored, spilled liquids will be returned to containers. Once the countdown ends the walls of force vanish. There are no other effects.

What is happening is that every time the button is pressed, time resets within the room. No matter how many cycles of the reset within the room occur, from the outside it will only appear that the walls of force appear for a minute and then fall away.

Room 10.
There is a tree growing from a point in the floor. The paving around it has splintered, as if the tree erupted up through the floor with great force. The leaves of the tree are in shades of yellow, gold, orange and brown, as if it is autumn. The floor of the room is carpeted in a thick blanket of fallen leaves. If any of these leaves are inspected, it will be seen that each leaf bears writing upon it, in a scratchy alien hand. It is not inked upon the leaves, but rather grown into the pattern of the leaf itself.

Each of the leaves holds a secret that has been forgotten by every living soul in the world. The leaves on the tree hold no writing, but once they have fallen the writing appears to have always been there (the leaves only fall when the secret is truly forgotten). If characters go looking through for secrets, roll on the table below to see what they find (or think something up pertinent to your cosmology).

2d6

2. Local village gossip (Ronald the butcher has been rogering Gwenyth the fishwife all these years), very clear to what it relates to, but only of concern to inconsequential people long dead

3. The correct ritual responses for an ancient mystery cult long vanished from the world.

4. An important secret entrance to an ancient tomb. However where it could be located is not at all clear.

5. The true and terrifying secret of the nearby royal dynasty's origins, possibly something that could be used to blackmail a prince or bring down a dynasty.

6. The details of a now lost work of art. The melody of a forgotten song, the plot to a missing play by the greatest writer of the age, an epic poem in an ancient tongue

7. The location of a lost tomb, abandoned temple, or other dungeon-like location along with a clue about one of the puzzles, traps, or other perils involved there.

8. The lost history of a fallen empire, including the locations of some of the greatest and now lost cities.

9. A forgotten spell, once written but now lost to the sands of time.

10. The details of a great sunken continent, and the secret sciences that their ancient wizard priests knew of.

11. The true name of some great demon, lich, archangel, or other supernatural being. This secret is one of great power in the right hands.

12. A great cosmological secret of the world! The truth that the dragons sleep in the earth and will rise once more! The nature of gods and their purpose in the cosmos. The reason why the world is an Orrery!

Room 11.
This room contains the Kairophagus, the Time Sphynx. It looks like a Sphynx (the mythical kind, not the hairless cat; lion body, eagle wings, human chest and head), but its plumage and fur is between midnight black and beep blue, its eyes without iris or pupil are the color of the sky on a bright summer day. It wears a royal headdress and carries itself with a regal bearing. It is clearly far too large to move between rooms but does not seem overly concerned about its predicament.

The Sphynx is genial and polite but will demand tribute to let the adventurers pass through in peace. The Sphynx wishes to have secrets. It will accept any secrets provided and consume them. Any secret rendered to the Sphynx in this fashion (including any harvested from Room 10) will cease to be true, it will never have been true. Any tragic backstory will never have happened, secret crushes will evaporate like mist in the morning, former shameful crimes will be wiped from existence. Additionally, the Sphynx accepts lies, however if a character lies about a secret that secret then becomes true (as the Sphynx eats the falsehood of it). 

The creature is from outside time and thus incredibly dangerous however it will not attack unless the characters first offer violence. Even if a fight breaks out within its chamber (such as the arrival of a living statue) it will not attack unless someone attacks it first. It will appear threatening if needed in order to exact its tribute however. The Sphynx (HD 8, AC as Chain, Attack #3, Damage 1-8) is a large and scary monster in its own right, even beyond its special abilities.

Anything struck by the Sphynx's claws ceases to exist. If a character in armour is hit the armour is rent from existence. If a weapon or piece of equipment is attacked, that weapon is destroyed. If the Sphynx decides to eat a wizard's spellbook, all the spells within are unmade, and never existed in the world. All damage the Sphynx does is from permanent hitpoints and cannot be healed (that's just always the number of hitpoints you had). If the Sphynx licks its wounds it can eat the reality from them, instantly healing (it forfeits its attacks to give proper attention to grooming however). 

Room 12.
There is a well in the roof of this chamber, much like the well leading to the surface in Room 1. However the well in this chamber, it can be seen, leads to the roof of Room 1 (if a rope has been left dangling, it can be seen stretching upwards to the floor) the combined thickness of the roofs being about one meter. If a character were to climb through the well in the roof, they will find themselves in Room 1 (the gravity gradually and disconcertingly shifts part way between the two chambers). This character, looking back up through the well will now see Room 12. 

Any character that passes through this way is now trapped in the Well of Lost Things (having become a lost thing themselves). Even if they climb back through the well to Room 12, and walk back to Room 1, they will not see the way back to the surface, but the way back to Room 12 (characters who did not climb through the well in Room 12 see the way out).

If the trapped character dives into the pool in Room 8, they will see a passage in the floor of the pool visible only to them. Following this through they will find further down the bottom of the same pool (gravity having changed much like the link between Room 12 and Room 1) and the surface of the pool above them. Having swum through this, they will find the way out in Room 1 again.