The rules for Bastion building and maintenance laid out here follow those in the Dungeon Master's Guide (2024), with significant additions and modifications to facilitate this campaign.

Gaining A Bastion

When the players reach level 5, their bastion will have completed construction. The collective Bastion starts with:

• Two bonus special facilities that don't count toward their facility limit: Lumber Mill and Quarry
• Starting Non-special facility: Hunting Lodge
• A starting Hireling Pool of 20 workers from the caravan settlers
• No Bastion Defenders initially (must recruit through Barracks)

These two resource-generating facilities are the main way players acquire gold (called Building Materials in this campaign). Some facilities require special materials gained from adventuring to be constructed.

Hireling Pool

The Hireling Pool represents the able-bodied workers available to staff facilities and perform bastion functions. This pool came from the original caravan of settlers who crossed the mountains with the party.

Hireling Pool Size

• Starting Pool: 20 Hirelings
• Current Available: Track separately from total pool
• Assigned Hirelings: When a facility requiring Hirelings is built, assign the required number from the available pool

Recruiting New Hirelings

To expand the Hireling Pool beyond its starting size, the party must:

1. Construct a Settlement Hall (see [[#Settlement Hall]] under Additional Facilities)
2. Use the Settlement Hall's recruitment order during Bastion turns

Note: If Hirelings die from attacks, disease, or other events, they return to the available pool for reassignment after 1d4 months (replacements come from the general population until the Settlement Hall is built).

Food Consumption

• Each Hireling consumes 1 food per month
• Track total food production vs. consumption
• Starvation Protocol: If the bastion runs a food deficit for 3 consecutive months, the Hireling Pool begins to shrink by 1d4 Hirelings per month until food production stabilizes or the pool is depleted

Bastion Defenders

Bastion Defenders are trained guards who protect the bastion from attack. Unlike regular Hirelings:

• They don't perform facility functions
• They're recruited specifically through the Barracks facility
• They have combat training and equipment
• They can die or be wounded during attacks

Starting Defenders: 0 (must build Barracks and recruit)

Bastion Turns

Unlike the Dungeon Master's Guide, a bastion turn takes place every month rather than every week. Players need not be physically present at the bastion at month's end—it's assumed they've left instructions or issued orders beforehand.

During each bastion turn:

1. Resolve Bastion Events (automatic, see below)
2. Start Construction (Construct however many buildings you wish)
3. Take Bastion orders (each player may make orders)
4. Update Resources (food, building materials, facility effects)
5. Adjust Assignments (reassign Hirelings between facilities if desired)

Bastion Events

A bastion event occurs every bastion turn automatically. Roll on the Bastion Events table from the DMG, with the following modification:

Attack Event (Modified)

When an Attack event is rolled, use the Bastion Siege system instead of the DMG's single roll:

Phase 1: Threat Assessment

Roll 2d6 to determine attack severity and attacker dice pool:

• 2-5 (Raid): Roll 3d6 for attackers (minor threat)
• 6-9 (Assault): Roll 5d6 for attackers (serious threat)
• 10-12 (Siege): Roll 8d6 for attackers (major threat)

Phase 2: Defense Roll

Defender Pool: Roll 1d6 for each Bastion Defender you have.
Attacker Pool: Roll the dice determined in Phase 1.

Compare Totals: Add up each pool separately.

• If Defenders' total ≥ Attackers' total: The attack is repelled! The bastion holds.
• If Attackers' total > Defenders' total: The bastion is breached. Proceed to Phase 3.

Individual Defender Casualties: Regardless of whether the bastion is breached, check each defender die:

• 1: The defender is killed (remove from roster permanently)
• 2-4: The defender is wounded (cannot defend next month, then recovers automatically)
• 5-6 The defender succeeds without complications.

Phase 3: Breach Consequences

If the attackers' total exceeded the defenders' total, calculate the margin of breach:

For every 5 points of breach margin (round down), roll once on the Breach Consequences table:

Example 1: An Assault (5d6) hits a bastion with 4 defenders (4d6).

• Attacker rolls: 4, 5, 2, 6, 3 = 20 total
• Defender rolls: 1, 4, 3, 5 = 13 total
• One defender rolled a 1 (killed), three rolled 2+ (wounded)
• Breach Margin: 20 - 13 = 7 → Roll once on consequences (7 ÷ 5 = 1.4, rounded down)
• Next month: 3 defenders available (1 dead, 3 recovering)

Example 2: A Siege (8d6) hits a bastion with 6 defenders (6d6).

• Attacker rolls: 3, 4, 6, 2, 5, 4, 6, 1 = 31 total
• Defender rolls: 6, 5, 4, 2, 3, 6 = 26 total
• No defenders died (no 1s rolled), all six are wounded
• Breach Margin: 31 - 26 = 5 → Roll once on consequences
• Next month: 0 defenders available (all 6 recovering), bastion is vulnerable!

Example 3: A Raid (3d6) hits a bastion with 8 defenders (8d6).

• Attacker rolls: 2, 4, 3 = 9 total
• Defender rolls: 5, 1, 3, 6, 4, 2, 5, 4 = 30 total
• Attack repelled! One defender died (rolled a 1), seven are wounded
• No breach, no consequences beyond the casualties

Other Events

All other Bastion Events from the DMG function normally unless noted otherwise in this document.

Constructing A Facility

Building a facility requires:

1. Available space (maximum facilities based on level, per DMG)
2. Building Materials (gold cost)
3. Special Materials (if required by the facility)
4. Construction Time (1 month per facility, unless noted)
5. Available Hirelings (if the facility requires staffing)

Construction Process

1. Declare Construction: At the start of a bastion turn before your orders, declare which facility you're building
2. Pay Costs: Spend the required building materials and special materials
3. Wait for Completion: The facility completes at the end of the bastion turn (1 month later)
4. Assign Hirelings: Once complete, assign the required Hirelings from your available pool

You can find the modified and additional facilities here:

• Modified Facilities
• Additional Facilities

Bastion orders

During each bastion turn, each player may make orders. Standard orders from the DMG apply, with additions:

Harvest (Modified)

Hirelings gather a resource produced in the special facility. During the time required to harvest a resource, the facility can't be used to harvest anything else, even if a special ability allows the facility to carry out two orders at once.

If you have resource-producing facilities (Lumber Mill, Quarry, Hunting Lodge, Agricultural Fields, etc.), you may personally oversee their operation. Make a relevant skill check (Survival for hunting/farming, Nature for resource extrorder, etc.) DC 15. On a success, that facility produces +25% resources this month.

Recruit (Modified)

If you have a Barracks or Settlement Hall, you may attempt to recruit. Make a Charisma (Persuasion) check:

• DC 12: Recruit 1 Bastion Defender (Barracks) or 1 Hireling (Settlement Hall, requires Clearing the Pass)
• DC 18: Recruit 2 Bastion Defenders or 2 Hirelings
• DC 25: Recruit 3 Bastion Defenders or 3 Hirelings

Recruiting costs 100 gp per defender/Hireling for training and equipment.

Resource Tracking

Building Materials (Gold)

• Starting Amount: 0 gp
• Gained From: Lumber Mill, Quarry, adventuring, selling items
• Spent On: Constructing facilities, recruiting, crafting, repairs

Food

• Starting Amount: 6 months stored (120 food)
  • The max amount is 200 food without any additional facilities or upgrades.
• Gained From: Hunting Lodge, Agricultural Fields, trade, etc.
• Consumed By: 1 food per Hireling per month

Starvation Track: Mark each month of deficit. After 3 consecutive deficit months, lose 1d4 Hirelings per month until food stabilizes.

Summary Tables

Monthly Cycle Checklist

1. Roll for Bastion Event
2. Resolve Attack (if occurs)
3. Calculate Food Consumption (1 per Hireling)
4. Calculate Production (all facilities)
5. Update Building Materials total
6. Construct facilities
7. Each player takes one Bastion order
8. Check for Starvation (if applicable)
9. Adjust Hireling assignments if desired

Starting Resources (Level 5)

• Facilities: Lumber Mill, Quarry, Hunting Lodge
• Hireling Pool: 20 (assign 3 to Lumber Mill, 4 to Quarry, 2 to Hunting Lodge, 1 Armory, 1 Portentorium, 1 Library, 1 Aviary, 2 Garden = 15 assigned, 5 available)
• Food: 6 months stored
• Food Production: 10/month (Hunting Lodge)
• Food Consumption: 20/month (20 Hirelings)
• Food Deficit: -10/month (will reach starvation in 6 months if not addressed!)
• Building Materials: 0 gp initially
• Building Materials Production: (2d6 × 25) + (2d6 × 25) gp per month
• Bastion Defenders: 0 (must recruit)

Production Summary