Chapter 18: Void - The Book of Many Things

Chapter 18: Void. The Void card is perhaps the most dreaded draw from a Deck of Many Things. The individual who draws this card is consigned to a terrible fate: their body collapses while their soul is imprisoned in a far-off object. This poses challenges for the DM, the party, and the imprisoned character's player. Where has the soul been taken? How does the party recover it? And what is the character's player to do while their character is inactive? This chapter presents the House of Cards, a dungeon in a remote demiplane created when the Void card is drawn. This is where the character's soul is used as bait to lure the rest of the characters to the lair of a predatory monster. This chapter begins with advice for DMs and players facing the challenges posed when a single character is separated from everyone else. This situation can be handled in many ways, and DMs can choose an approach that suits their players and their campaign. Drawing the Void Card When a character draws the Void card, the House of Cards is called into existence in its own demiplane. The character's soul is transported there, trapped inside a porcelain mask in the lair of a breath drinker, a monster presented in this chapter. If the characters can obtain the mask, they can reunite the soul of their fellow adventurer with that character's body. You don't have to use the House of Cards if you want the soul of the Void's victim to be trapped in a location that's part of your ongoing campaign. Regardless of where the soul is trapped, you should keep the character's player engaged until their character is rescued-which could take several sessions. One approach is for the player to play a temporary character. Many players are eager to try out new character ideas; if your player has a backup character in mind, the problem is solved. But some players are reluctant to swap characters. If they joined the game to play a particular character, they might not have fun playing a different one. Even if the...