In the world of Sword & Sorcery, treasure isn't just about "gold pieces." It’s about history, weight, and the lingering scent of ancient sorcery. Gold is heavy, cursed, or minted by kings long dead.
Here is a D100 table designed for the grit of a monolithic ruin.
The D100 Table of Ruins & Relics
| Roll (D100) | Item Category | Description |
| 01–20 | Currencies of the Dead | Stained silver dirhams, heavy gold ingots stamped with a serpent, or bags of polished obsidian shards used by prehistoric slave-lords. |
| 21–35 | Adornments & Baubles | An ivory comb carved from a mammoth tusk; a copper torque that feels unnaturally cold; or a necklace of finger bones dipped in gold. |
| 36–50 | Alchemical Oddities | A sealed clay jar containing "Black Lotus" dust; a vial of iridescent viper venom; or a porous stone that glows when blood is spilled. |
| 51–65 | Ancient Armaments | A bronze xiphos that never chips; a shield made from a giant tortoise shell bound in iron; or a quiver of arrows tipped with star-metal. |
| 66–80 | Forbidden Texts | Cylinders of lead etched with blasphemous star charts; a scroll made of human skin; or a stone tablet detailing the true name of a demon. |
| 81–95 | Sacred Idols | A heavy jade statuette of a bat-winged god; a silver sacrificial bowl with a permanent rust stain; or a fist-sized ruby known as "The Eye of Khon." |
| 96–00 | The True Relics | (See below for specific legendary items). |
Legendary Relics (The 96–00 Rolls)
If your players are lucky (or doomed) enough to roll at the top of the table, they find something that changes the campaign:
The Monolith Key: A heavy iron cube covered in shifting geometric patterns. It doesn't open a door; it "tunes" the monoliths, allowing the user to hear the whispers of the Old Ones or teleport across the wastes—at the cost of their sanity.
The Heart of the Sun-King: A grapefruit-sized amber orb containing a flickering flame. It provides warmth in the coldest tombs and can unleash a $2000 blast of solar fire once, before shattering.
The Scourge of Acheron: A whip made of vertebrae and wire. It deals standard damage to the living, but ignores the armor of any undead or summoned spirit.
The Mask of the Beast: A wooden mask that looks like a snarling hyena. When worn, the user gains incredible tracking senses and strength, but must pass a test of will to avoid turning on their companions in a feral rage.
A Note on "The Gritty Reality"
In this genre, everything has a price. If the players find a hoard, remember:
Weight Matters: 1,000 gold coins weigh as much as a small person. How are they getting it out of the jungle?
The Taint: Magic items in ruins often carry a "sorcerous residue." A sword might be $+1$, but it might also make the wielder's hair turn white or cause them to dream of the void.
In Sword & Sorcery, a "magic item" is rarely a gift; it’s usually a burden. These effects represent the price of meddling with artifacts left behind by pre-human civilizations or mad sorcerers.
When a player claims a relic from a monolith or ruin, roll a D20 or choose an effect that fits the item's origin.
The Cost of Power: Cursed Side Effects
Roll (D20) Effect Name The Manifestation 1-2 The Serpent’s Cold The wielder’s blood slows. They find it impossible to get warm, and their skin takes on a pale, bluish tint. 3-4 Phobic Resonance The item hates life. Small animals (birds, rodents, dogs) flee or die in the wielder’s presence. 5-6 Shadow Weight The item’s shadow is "wrong"—it points toward the nearest monolith rather than away from the light. 7-8 Whispers of the Void The wielder begins to understand the languages of insects and crawling things, but loses the ability to read human script. 9-10 Cannibal Hunger Normal food tastes like ash. The wielder only finds nourishment in raw, red meat. 11-12 Iron Weakness The relic’s energy rejects "modern" metals. The wielder's non-magical iron armor or weapons become brittle and shatter easily. 13-14 The Unblinking Eye The wielder can no longer close their eyes. They gain darkvision but suffer exhaustion as sleep becomes a waking nightmare. 15-16 Star-Taint Patches of the wielder's skin turn into translucent, glassy scales. They look increasingly alien to "civilized" folk. 17-18 Sympathetic Wounds Whenever the relic is used to kill, a small, non-lethal cut appears on the wielder’s own body. 19 Astral Anchor The wielder cannot travel more than 10 miles from the monolith where the item was found without suffering agonizing pain. 20 The Passenger A sentient, ancient consciousness resides in the item. It doesn't speak; it simply steers the wielder's hand during moments of high stress. Mechanics of the Taint
To keep the tension high, consider these three "Truths of the Ruin":
Delayed Onset: Don't tell the player the curse immediately. Let them enjoy the $+2$ bonus for a session before they notice the birds falling dead around them.
The Purge: Removing these curses shouldn't be as simple as a "Remove Curse" spell. It should require a pilgrimage, a sacrifice, or returning the item to its original plinth.
The Scale of Corruption: If you want a more mathematical approach, use a "Taint Score." Every time the relic is used, the player rolls a $d20$. If they roll under their total number of uses, the next stage of the curse manifests.
In a Sword & Sorcery setting, a ruin is never truly "empty." If the original inhabitants are gone, something else—something hungrier, older, or purely mechanical—has moved into the vacuum.
Use this table to determine what stands between your players and the relics they crave.
Guardians of the Monolith
Roll (D20) Guardian Type The Encounter 1–3 The Degenerate Tribe Inbred descendants of the original cult. They wear masks made of dried skin and use blowguns with paralytic toxins. They don't want to kill the players; they want to sacrifice them. 4–6 Animated Statuary A hulking figure of basalt or verdigris-covered bronze. It only moves when the players stop looking at it, or when they cross a specific threshold. 7–8 The Swarm of Ages Thousands of fist-sized scarabs or albino scorpions that pour out of the cracks in the masonry. They are driven by a hive mind linked to the monolith. 9–10 The Echo of Sorcery Not a physical being, but a "Living Spell." A shimmering distortion in the air that mimics the players' spells or attacks back at them with $1.5\times$ the intensity. 11–12 Ape-Men of the Wastes Gray-furred, four-armed primates that have claimed the ruin as their cathedral. They fight with primitive brutality and scavenged metal clubs. 13–14 The Slithering Shadow A giant serpent with human-like eyes. It speaks in a telepathic hiss, offering secrets in exchange for "the taste of a memory" (a permanent loss of a skill or level). 15–16 Wraiths of the Priesthood Weightless, translucent horrors that drain the heat from the air. They can only be harmed by silver, fire, or the very relics found in the ruin. 17–18 The Clockwork Sentinel A clicking, whirring nightmare of brass gears and pressurized steam. It was built to guard the vault and has been self-repairing for three thousand years. 19 The Chained Beast A massive, multi-eyed monstrosity (think Shoggoth-lite) chained to the floor. It is starving and will eat anything—including the masonry—to get to the players. 20 The Rival Expedition A high-level sorcerer and their band of mercenaries. They’ve already cleared the traps; now they’re just waiting for the players to find the treasure so they can take it. Environmental Complications
To make the guardian fight more "Sword & Sorcery," add a layer of environmental peril:
Shrinking Footing: The floor is a mosaic over a pit of vipers; every round a player misses an attack, a tile cracks and falls.
The Miasma: A thick, yellow fog rises from the floor. It’s highly flammable. One torch spark and the room becomes a $400^\circ\text{C}$ oven.
Acoustic Madness: The monolith hums at a frequency that causes nosebleeds and blurred vision. All physical actions are at a disadvantage unless the players plug their ears.
To crown your monolith crawl, let’s detail a boss that embodies the "Cosmic Horror meets Bronze Age Steel" vibe of the genre.
The Boss: Xul-Thal, The Hollow Hierophant
Xul-Thal was once the high priest of the monolith, but through a botched ritual of immortality, his soul was burned away, leaving behind a "Living Void" contained within his ceremonial golden armor.
The Visuals
The Armor: Ornate, dented bronze plate etched with weeping eye motifs.
The Void: There is no body inside. If a piece of armor is knocked off, you see only a swirling, star-filled nebula where flesh should be.
The Weapon: He wields a Sun-Shatter Flail—three heavy obsidian orbs linked by chains of pure blue light.
Stat Block & Attributes
Attribute Value Description Vitality High He doesn't "bleed," but his armor can be sundered. Movement Levitating He drifts inches off the ground, ignoring difficult terrain or floor traps. Resistances Magic/Cold Spells slide off him like water; cold only makes him stronger. Vulnerability High Noon Light Natural sunlight or extreme heat (magical fire) softens his bronze shell. Tactical Actions (The "Boss Beats")
1. Gravity Well (Passive)
The monolith pulses in rhythm with Xul-Thal. At the start of every round, all players must make a Strength check or be pulled $2\text{m}$ closer to him as the air itself is sucked into his hollow chest.
2. The Obsidian Lash (Standard Attack)
Xul-Thal swings his flail. It deals heavy physical damage, but on a critical hit, the "chains of light" pass through armor, dealing direct damage to the target's Will or Sanity instead of health.
3. Event Horizon (Recharge Action)
Xul-Thal opens his visor wide. A cone of absolute darkness erupts. Players caught in it aren't just blinded—they are "un-existed" for one round, disappearing into a pocket dimension of silence before being spat back out, prone and shivering.
4. Shatter-Shell (Reaction)
When reduced to 25% health, his armor explodes outward. He becomes a swirling Vortex of Ash. His defense drops to near zero, but his movement doubles and he deals automatic damage to anyone standing near him.
The Arena: The Resonance Chamber
The fight takes place at the top of the monolith on a circular platform under the open stars.
The Edge: There are no railings. A well-placed kick can end the fight—or a player's life.
The Pillars: Four smaller obelisks surround the altar. They beam energy into Xul-Thal. If the players spend an action to topple a pillar, Xul-Thal loses his Gravity Well ability for two rounds.
The Loot (The "Twist")
When defeated, the armor collapses into a pile of mundane scrap. Inside the helmet, however, lies a Single Flawless Diamond that contains the Hierophant’s last memory: a map to a hidden "City of Brass" across the desert.
Here is the atmospheric introduction to read to your players as they ascend the final cyclopean stairs and step onto the summit of the monolith.
The Ascent to the Void
"The air grows thin and tastes of ozone as you crest the final monolithic stair. Before you lies the Resonance Chamber—a wide, circular dais of obsidian polished to a mirror sheen, reflecting a sky thick with stars that shouldn't be visible at this hour.
At the center stands a suit of bronze plate, towering seven feet tall. It is motionless, draped in a tattered cape of heavy, moth-eaten velvet that smells of a thousand years of dust. There is no breath, no clatter of mail, only a low, rhythmic thrumming vibrating through the soles of your boots—the heartbeat of the stone itself.
As you approach, the suit’s visor tilts upward. You expect to see the withered face of a mummy or the gleam of a lich’s eyes. Instead, you see... nothing. A hollow, swirling darkness fills the helmet, deep and hungry, mirroring the cold void between the stars. With a sound like grinding tectonic plates, the figure heaves a heavy, obsidian-headed flail from the floor, and the gravity in the room shifts, dragging your weight toward the hollow center of the armor.
Xul-Thal has waited an eternity to be fed. And you have finally arrived with the meat."
Running the Moment
The Sound: If you have background music, cut it to a low, heavy drone or a heartbeat sound.
The Sensation: Tell the player with the highest Luck or Intuition that they feel their shadow stretching toward the boss, as if their very soul is trying to slide across the floor into that hollow armor.
The Initiative: Have Xul-Thal stand perfectly still until the first player speaks or draws a weapon. In Sword & Sorcery, the horror is often punctuated by a sudden, violent transition from silence to chaos.
To make this finale truly legendary, let's ramp up the environmental chaos. In Sword & Sorcery, the setting is as much an enemy as the villain. As the battle progresses, the monolith begins to "wake up," distorting the very laws of physics.
The Lair Actions: The Monolith Awakens
On Initiative Count 20 (losing ties), the monolith triggers one of the following effects. Roll a D4 or choose based on the party’s momentum:
Vertical Shift: The gravity on the dais flips 90 degrees. For one round, the "wall" becomes the "floor." Players must make a Dexterity check to grab a decorative carving or be flung toward the edge of the platform.
Chrono-Static: Time stutters. All players must re-roll their initiative. Those who roll lower than their current spot lose their "Reaction" for the round as they momentarily freeze in mid-swing.
The Bleeding Stone: The obsidian floor turns into a viscous, tar-like liquid. Movement is halved, and anyone standing still for more than one turn becomes "Restrained" as the stone hardens around their ankles.
Ancestral Static: The monolith broadcasts the dying screams of the civilization that built it. Every player must pass a Will/Sanity save or be "Deafened" and "Confused" by the psychic cacophony.
Stage 2: The Singularity (The Unveiling)
When Xul-Thal reaches 0 Vitality, don't let him fall. Instead, his armor shatters completely, falling away in a heap of useless bronze. The "Void" within is no longer contained.
The Form: He becomes a Medium-sized sphere of pure, crushing darkness—a miniature black hole hovering at eye level.
New Mechanics for Stage 2:
Aura of Spaghettification: Any melee attack made against the Singularity forces the attacker to roll a Strength check. On a failure, their weapon is sucked into the void and destroyed (or warped into a useless U-shape).
The Hunger: The Singularity no longer uses a flail. It moves by "blinking" (teleporting short distances). It attempts to move through players. If it passes through a player's space, they take massive necrotic damage as a portion of their life force is consumed.
The Final Collapse: When the Singularity is reduced to 0 HP in this form, it doesn't explode—it implodes. Everything within 10 meters is pulled toward the center. Players must sprint for the stairs or be dragged into the void, potentially losing a limb or a prized piece of gear to the closing rift.
In Sword & Sorcery, the "dungeon" rarely stays standing once the master is slain. The implosion of Xul-Thal has destabilized the ancient geometry of the ruin. The monolith is no longer anchored to this reality.
This isn't a combat encounter—it’s a Skill Challenge. The players have 5 Rounds to reach the base of the monolith before it "phases out," taking everything inside with it.
The Escape: The Descent into Madness
Round 1: The Shattered Mirror
The obsidian floor begins to spider-web. Shards of glass-like stone fly upward, defying gravity.
The Hazard: Shrapnel storms.
The Check: Dexterity/Acrobatics to dodge the flying shards.
The Consequence: Failure results in $1d6$ slashing damage and a penalty to movement next round as you pick glass from your armor.
Round 2: Geometric Collapse
The stairs are no longer stairs. The monolith is folding in on itself like a tesseract. A door that led to a hallway now leads to a $30\text{m}$ drop into the jungle canopy.
The Hazard: Disorienting architecture.
The Check: Intelligence/Intuition to navigate the folding rooms.
The Consequence: A wrong turn leads to a dead end; the player must spend their next turn backtracking or jump from a dangerous height.
Round 3: The Weight of History
The "Gravity Well" of the boss lingers, but it’s erratic. One moment you weigh $5\text{kg}$, the next you weigh $500\text{kg}$.
The Hazard: Crushing pressure.
The Check: Strength/Athletics to keep moving while your bones feel like lead.
The Consequence: Exhaustion. If a player fails, they must drop half their carried treasure to keep pace with the group.
Round 4: The Predator of the Threshold
The "Swarm of Ages" (from our guardian table) is fleeing the ruin too. Thousands of scorpions are pouring down the same exit corridor as the players.
The Hazard: A panicked tide of venom.
The Check: Willpower to push through the carpet of stinging insects without freezing in terror, or a Combat Roll to clear a path.
The Consequence: The player is "Poisoned," suffering a penalty to all checks until they find a healer in the outside world.
Round 5: The Final Leap
The base of the monolith is glowing with a blinding ultraviolet light. The entrance is shrinking.
The Hazard: The Closing Portal.
The Check: A flat Luck check or a final Sprint.
The Consequence: If they fail, they barely make it out, but the "Monolith Key" or the "Relic" they fought for is snatched away by the closing rift, lost to the void forever.
The Final Scene
As the last player tumbles onto the jungle floor or the desert sand, there is no sound of an explosion. There is only a sharp pop—like a bubble bursting. Where the massive, cyclopean spire stood for ten thousand years, there is now only a perfectly circular, glass-smooth crater.
The wind blows, and the jungle is silent. The players are alive, wealthy, and likely scarred for life.
In Sword & Sorcery, the city is often more dangerous than the dungeon. Bringing a relic from a monolith into a crowded bazaar is like bringing a lit torch into a granary. People don't just want your gold; they fear your soul—or want to own it.
Here are four Epilogue Hooks for when the players reach a center of "civilization" (like a decadent desert metropolis or a rain-slicked port city).
1. The Merchant’s Terror
The players attempt to sell a "minor" bauble or ivory carving to a reputable dealer.
The Hook: As soon as the dealer touches the item, their eyes roll back, and they begin speaking in the voice of Xul-Thal. They don't offer gold; they offer a Prophecy.
The Twist: The merchant dies of a heart attack seconds later. The city guard is already at the door. Now the players are "Cursed Murderers" with a relic no one will buy.
2. The Cult of the Obsidian Eye
Word travels fast in the underworld. A group of silk-clad zealots approaches the players at a tavern.
The Hook: They claim the relic is a holy fragment of their god and offer an outrageous sum of gold (far more than it’s worth).
The Twist: The "gold" is actually Glamoured Lead. By the time the illusion fades, the cult has used the relic to begin a ritual in the city’s sewers that mirrors the one the players just stopped at the monolith.
3. The Sorcerer’s Tax
The local Satrap or Warlord hears of the "Sun-Shatter" or the "Monolith Key."
The Hook: He summons the players to his palace, not to arrest them, but to "request" the item as a gift to the crown to ensure the city’s safety.
The Twist: The Warlord’s court sorcerer is actually a rival of Xul-Thal. He knows the item carries the Star-Taint and intends to use the players as "batteries" to power the relic, as their bodies are already acclimated to its frequency.
4. The Melancholy of Riches
The players successfully sell the treasure and spend a month in a blur of wine, silk, and lotus-smoke.
The Hook: One morning, they wake up to find that all the gold they earned has turned into smooth, black river stones.
The Twist: The "Gold" wasn't stolen; it simply reverted to its true form because the "Source" (the Monolith) was destroyed. The players are now broke, in debt to dangerous people, and the only way to get real coin is to find the next ruin on the map provided by Xul-Thal's diamond.
Final Table: Rumors in the Wine-Sink
If the players ask around about their relics, roll a D6:
| Roll | The Rumor |
| 1 | "That bronze? It’s not metal. It’s the frozen skin of a god that died before the sun was yellow." |
| 2 | "Keep that covered. The crows in this city are spies for a wizard who eats memories." |
| 3 | "I saw a man with a sword like that once. He grew a second mouth on his neck that screamed whenever he slept." |
| 4 | "The last person to bring a stone from that monolith here was burned alive... and the fire stayed blue for three days." |
| 5 | "There is a blind smith in the slums who can 'wash' the curse off that blade, but he charges in years of your life." |
| 6 | "You think you found that treasure? No, traveler. The treasure found you." |
In Sword & Sorcery, "leveling up" often looks more like "mutating upward." The Star-Taint is a mechanical track that represents the PC slowly becoming a conduit for the void.
Instead of a permanent debuff, think of this as a high-risk, high-reward overlay. The more the character leans into the power of the monolith, the less human they become.
The Star-Taint Progression Track
Every time a player uses a Relic’s power or spends a night dreaming of the monolith, have them make a Willpower/Sanity Save. On a failure, they gain +1 Taint Point.
| Taint Level | Title | Mechanical Benefit | The Physical Toll |
| 1–3 | The Touched | Cold Resistance: You no longer feel the bite of winter or supernatural frost. | Your eyes reflect starlight even in total darkness. Animals grow restless near you. |
| 4–6 | The Awakened | Void Sight: You can see through magical darkness and invisible spirits up to $20\text{m}$. | Your blood thickens and turns a dark, iridescent violet. Your skin feels like cold marble. |
| 7–9 | The Vessel | Spatial Step: Once per day, you can "blink" $10\text{m}$ through the void, ignoring all obstacles. | You no longer need to breathe. You gain a +2 bonus to Strength, but -4 to Charisma/Social checks. |
| 10+ | The Herald | Annihilation: Your melee attacks deal an extra $1d10$ necrotic damage as you "un-exist" your foes. | You are a walking breach. Food and drink turn to ash in your mouth. You are now an NPC in $1d6$ days. |
The "Burning Out" Mechanic
To represent the volatile nature of this power, players can voluntarily take Taint Points to succeed on a failed roll:
Strain the Void: If a player fails an attack or save, they can choose to succeed automatically. In exchange, they immediately gain 1D3 Taint Points and take $2d6$ psychic damage as their nervous system sizzles.
The Cleansing (The Only Way Back)
Taint cannot be rested away. To reduce your Taint Level, a character must perform an Act of Terrestrial Grounding:
The Iron Penance: Spend 24 hours submerged in a running river while clutching cold iron (Reduces Taint by 1).
The Blood Sacrifice: Transfer the Taint into a living creature (usually a sacrificial goat or, in darker campaigns, a rival). This is a chaotic evil act that likely carries its own narrative consequences.
Example Character Sheet Note
Name: Korgas the Reaver
Taint Level: 5 (Awakened)
Active Effect: Void Sight.
The Burden: Socially Pariah. (Disadvantage on all Persuasion/Seduction checks; NPCs instinctively grip their sword hilt when Korgas enters the room.)
In Sword & Sorcery, "leveling up" often looks more like "mutating upward." The Star-Taint is a mechanical track that represents the PC slowly becoming a conduit for the void.
Instead of a permanent debuff, think of this as a high-risk, high-reward overlay. The more the character leans into the power of the monolith, the less human they become.
The Star-Taint Progression Track
Every time a player uses a Relic’s power or spends a night dreaming of the monolith, have them make a Willpower/Sanity Save. On a failure, they gain +1 Taint Point.
| Taint Level | Title | Mechanical Benefit | The Physical Toll |
| 1–3 | The Touched | Cold Resistance: You no longer feel the bite of winter or supernatural frost. | Your eyes reflect starlight even in total darkness. Animals grow restless near you. |
| 4–6 | The Awakened | Void Sight: You can see through magical darkness and invisible spirits up to $20\text{m}$. | Your blood thickens and turns a dark, iridescent violet. Your skin feels like cold marble. |
| 7–9 | The Vessel | Spatial Step: Once per day, you can "blink" $10\text{m}$ through the void, ignoring all obstacles. | You no longer need to breathe. You gain a +2 bonus to Strength, but -4 to Charisma/Social checks. |
| 10+ | The Herald | Annihilation: Your melee attacks deal an extra $1d10$ necrotic damage as you "un-exist" your foes. | You are a walking breach. Food and drink turn to ash in your mouth. You are now an NPC in $1d6$ days. |
The "Burning Out" Mechanic
To represent the volatile nature of this power, players can voluntarily take Taint Points to succeed on a failed roll:
Strain the Void: If a player fails an attack or save, they can choose to succeed automatically. In exchange, they immediately gain 1D3 Taint Points and take $2d6$ psychic damage as their nervous system sizzles.
The Cleansing (The Only Way Back)
Taint cannot be rested away. To reduce your Taint Level, a character must perform an Act of Terrestrial Grounding:
The Iron Penance: Spend 24 hours submerged in a running river while clutching cold iron (Reduces Taint by 1).
The Blood Sacrifice: Transfer the Taint into a living creature (usually a sacrificial goat or, in darker campaigns, a rival). This is a chaotic evil act that likely carries its own narrative consequences.
Example Character Sheet Note
Name: Korgas the Reaver
Taint Level: 5 (Awakened)
Active Effect: Void Sight.
The Burden: Socially Pariah. (Disadvantage on all Persuasion/Seduction checks; NPCs instinctively grip their sword hilt when Korgas enters the room.)
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