Weekend at Phorcys is a role playing game supplement written and published by M. C. Planck. The supplement is set in the author’s World of Prime novels and is intended for use with Heroes of Prime but is also suitable for Dungeons & Dragons 3.5. As such, it is covered by the Open Game License and some parts are considered to be Open Game Content as a result.
The supplement is available as a 14-page PDF for free from DriveThruRPG. One page is the front cover, one the Open Game License and front matter, one the Contents and one an ad.
Weekend at Phorcys explains that there is an underwater temple said to contain a rare incense. The characters may be sent to find this temple specifically for the incense, or they may encounter it as a random adventure. They will be greeted at the temple by Phorcys and his followers. It uses the rules from Heroes of Prime, Explorers of Prime, Merchants of Prime, Lords of Prime and Generals of Prime, but should work with D&D 3.5 without much trouble, and a sidebar explains the concept of “tael” which are tangible experience points.
Notes on Underwater Adventures has some details on handling this, and assumes that the characters have a means of surviving underwater.
The temple is described, including an altar that can allow characters to breathe water, but not air whilst its affect lasts. Phorcys will ask the characters to perform quest for him in order to receive the incense; this is incense of meditation, slightly different from the normal type, and it is described. The temple’s appearance does change, as everything is not what it seems.
Weekend at Phorcys in Review
The PDF lacks bookmarks and is long enough that these would have been useful. The Contents covers the major sections and is hyperlinked. Navigation is okay. The text maintains a two-column format and appeared to be free of errors. There are no illustrations. Presentation is adequate.
This is a short adventure with three main parts. On land, it would probably be simpler; adding the need to be able to survive underwater adds an extra degree of risk, as whatever means the characters are using will probably be time-limited. If they run out of a means of breathing, they will run into problems. The hidden factor adds another degree of risk. Adapting the adventure should be simple, and being a small, underwater location, it can be dropped into many settings without too much difficulty. Weekend at Phorcys is a decent little adventure with a twist and it can be downloaded for free by clicking here.
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