From underground lairs to mighty castles, bastions are well-defended homes inhabited by creatures worried about attacks from the outside world. A bastion usually contains barracks, food preparation and storage areas, and a throne room or other command center.

Tiers. Tier 0 and 1 bastions are usually bandit lairs. Tier 2 and higher bastions are frequently the mighty castles of rulers and conquerors.

While horses are poorly suited to dungeons and caverns, dungeon denizens tame and ride many other creatures. Besides mules and mastiffs, which can thrive as underground mounts, the following creatures can be used as mounts by those who can tame them. Their riders gain the advantage of their different forms of movement.

Table: Mounts

Shadow elves often find themselves on the front lines against the undead who stalk the caverns of the world below, and have armed themselves accordingly. Against foes whose mere touch can paralyze or kill outright, mobility, protection, and the ability to keep enemies at bay are top priorities. To achieve these aims, the shadow elves turn to their bestial allies, the myriad of giant spiders living underground. Weaving armor from their silk and creating their own versions of the spiders’ webbing, shadow elves face their deathless foes not as quavering prey, but as apex predators.