The sealed vaults under the 16th century Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Kerala have yielded a major hall of GP, as described in these article excerpts:
"A court-ordered search of vaults beneath a south Indian temple has unearthed gold, jewels and statues worth an estimated $22 billion, government officials said Monday... Searchers have found bags of gold coins, diamonds and other jewels and solid-gold statues of gods and goddesses. On Monday, searchers started to unseal “Section B” of the vaults, a large space that was expected to reveal another sizable collection, said P. T. Chacko, the spokesman for the chief minister of Kerala, Oommen Chandy."
The temple looks suitably awesome too. It even has a "Cloak Room" at the entrance!
But where were the wandering monsters?? Thanks for the post. It was a fun read.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCrDyOKPB2c
ReplyDeleteThis is the coolest article I have seen in years. Thank you for sharing!!
ReplyDelete'On Monday, searchers started to unseal “Section B” of the vaults...'
ReplyDeleteI think they mean "Appendix B."
Wandering Monsters = tourists with deadly flash cameras.
ReplyDeletethe trouble is hardly any players are willing to take a step outside pseudo-Europe. Dudes, it's fished out. India's where the gonzo action is, always has been.
ReplyDeleteI almost wanted to read how the explorers had to fight off a band of orcs to get to Section B. And what better thing in a cloak room than a cloaker.
ReplyDeleteIf I ever run a campaign set in ancient Rome, aside from centering around the Conspiracy of Catiline (and it's attendant accusations of witchcraft and worship of dark gods), it would include a delve into the tomb of the Scipios and the Cloaca Maxima.
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomb_of_the_Scipios
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloaca_maxima
In addition, the Egyptian Valley of the Kings and the Pyramids are obvious sources of inspiration for dungeons. And the massive troves taken from the Valley of the Kings are well-documented.
@Richard: The problem with stepping out of pseudo-Europe is that the players need to be able to roleplay being of a different culture well. And the DM has to have a good handle on that culture. That is, if you're really after a different experience. It is possible to just go with the flow and wing a game in ancient India (or a setting inspired by it), but it would just really be pseudo-Europe with different gods, temples, clothes, weapons, and skin-colors.