Griffon Riders of Dun Thale - Illustrated Scene

Illustration by Patrick Zapata

Each month, I try and pass along the generosity you show me by employing other artists to create a variety of illustrations, portraits, magical items and other works of art that can be used in your games at home, whether they be homebrew or official modules.

This month, I wanted to highlight one of those pieces -- the Griffon Riders of Thale - Dwarven Outpost with art by Patrick Zapata.

The Dwarven Outpost of Dun Thale is home to the Thalian Griffon Riders, a small detachment of specialized dwarven cavalry that train and work from griffon-back.

The outpost exists within the small cap of a mountain range, neighboring an icy lake and a sheer dropoff to the east, allowing for the riders to easily launch and return from one of the [2] circular towers known as Rooks.

So, how I can use this location?

Travel Location - if the party needs to fly somewhere difficult to reach by land, or more quickly than they could reach by land or sea, this location would be a great place for the party to visit. Coming here may require making some contacts, making a payment or providing some kind of the service to the dwarves here.

Player Rescue - sometimes the party bites off more than it can chew and you need an out. Perhaps they could be found and rescued by a patrol of griffon riders and returned to the outpost to be treated and healed.

Dwarven Background Story - one of your players may want to have their character come from this location, or have a contact located here they could visit to request a service.

Underdark Access - The Deep Shaft Elevator allows travel to and from the Underdark, which would let players coming from the Underdark arrive at this location, should you wish, or allow players that can get to this location to make their way down, if that is where the campaign is taking them.

Here's the original Dun Thale Outpost map:

I had actually had quite a bit of art created for this location, including this illustration of one of the Thalian Griffon Riders, by Clark Ocleasa:

In addition to the illustration, there were several dwarven-themed items illustrated to go along with this location, including dwarven skylances, some themed glider backpacks and other great pieces, by Steven Bell.

I hope you enjoy the piece and seeing where some of your support goes!

If you're not yet a Patron, consider joining to help support other talented artists! =)

Best,

Jeff @ Morvold