Arden Vul Campaign Report

Arden Vul Campaign Notes

After wrapping up the Hochheim campaign, a six-year AD&D megadungeon campaign, our table started fresh in The Halls of Arden Vul, using Dungeon World as the mechanical foundation, filtered through an OSR procedural lens.

This campaign sits at the intersection of a few interests I've been wrestling with for years:

• emergent exploration
• procedural dungeon play
• player-driven problem solving
• long-form campaign continuity
• and the tension between narrative-first and challenge-first play cultures

Rather than converting Arden Vul “faithfully” into Dungeon World, I'm treating the game as a toolkit: adapting procedures, pressure, danger, logistics, and information flow from old-school play into a PbtA structure.

The result has been less “heroic fantasy narrative” and more:

• dangerous expedition play,
• strange archaeological discovery,
• faction diplomacy under pressure,
• and a dungeon that feels ancient, layered, and partially alive.

The campaign has already produced:

• negotiations with beastman authorities,
• adopted goblin survivors, who were then slaughtered
• hostile architectural mysteries,
• lingering questions about forgotten gods,
• and several things the party has decided are better left unopened for now.

If this sounds interesting, I'm taking it all further in my game Beneath Ahknoor.

Current State of the Game:

A living snapshot, updated after each session. 

Last updated: Session 10, "Plumthorn's Going to Know."

• Party: Cedric, Iohannes, Lorez, Phlorian, Runner (The Ardent Fools) 
• Level: 
• Party - 2/3 
• Dungeon - The Halls of Thoth (3)
• Major factions:
•  The Beastman Precinct (conditional allies, Deino's word) 
• the Plumthorn Gang (newly aggressive, now operating beastman-adjacent)
• Gog (trading partner, status uncertain)
• the Varumani (unknown agenda)
• the Yellow Lady's Hunters 
• Open questions: 
• Who sent the halfling squad into the Beastmen's Halls, and what were they after? 
• What work does Deino have in mind for the party? 

Session Reports

I'm presenting player-facing session reports in a variety of styles. Some read like chronicles, some like field reports, and some like oral histories assembled after the fact. You can read them here:

• Session 1
• Session 2
• Session 3
• Session 4
• Session 5
• Session 6
• Session 7
• Session 8
• Session 9
• Session 10

The recaps above are generated by AI from my session notes and edited for accuracy and voice. The facts, factions, and consequences are mine; the prose is collaborative.

About Arden Vul

The Halls of Arden Vul is a massive megadungeon setting by Richard Barton. If you enjoy ancient ruins, layered faction play, exploration-driven campaigns, and deep environmental storytelling, it's one of the most ambitious megadungeons ever published.

Ongoing Notes

I'll collect major essays, experiments, and reflections from the campaign here as they develop.

• I wrote about using Kingdom to drive faction play in Arden Vul (and elsewhere)

Related Posts

You may also be interested in (links to come as I actually write things):

• a Hochheim campaign retrospective
• Beneath Ahknoor, my own magadungeon, using Carved from Brindlewood as the engine
• Fracture Radius, my Space Opera Campaign built on Stars Without Number

In the meantime, if you have questions about the campaign, procedures, conversions, or table practices, feel free to ask in the comments. I'd really love to read:

• Where you see conflict between Old School and Narrative play cropping up
• Where do you expect to see Dungeon World struggling with a megadungeon
• Which factions you'd try to negotiate with