The Ziggurat in the Sand - Part 2

Continuing the delve that was started with Tuesday’s “The Ziggurat in the Sand” maps, we head inside the ziggurat today with the middle and lower levels of the structure (in two different maps, so head over to the blog post to see them both).

As much of the ziggurat is buried under the desert sands, many of the entrances to it are not only blocked off, but whole sections of the interior have been filled with sand where it has encroached within the structure, poured down stairs and even breached a secret exit. Some areas are indicated as being sandy, but others are completely filled with sand - requiring hours if not days of digging to clear, further complicated by deep stairwells that have filled with sand over the years.

To enter the two spires (that appear on the middle and upper level maps) requires finding the southern stairs on the lowest level. When designing the map, I envisioned the “main boss” to be in the eastern spire, with the western spire containing lost and forgotten traps and treasures. The design allows for a party to actually skip the vast majority of the map if they take the right path – entering in through the doorway on the west side of the middle level (which I would seal with a wizard lock, so the party is rewarded for preparing appropriate magics), down the ramp from the middle level to the lower level, immediately going to the east and then south along the wide passage leading directly to the spire stairs.

Of course, there are many other routings through the ziggurat, and I’m sure most adventurers will find themselves walking into trouble at any number of turns, dead ends, odd passages, and sandy chambers.

You can download the maps of the middle and lower level of the ziggurat (at 300dpi, both with and without grid) from the blog post at https://rpgcharacters.wordpress.com/2016/02/26/the-ziggurat-in-the-sand-part-2/