Dungeons Deep & Caverns Old: Secrets of the Dark Waters

Secrets of the Dark Waters

A perilous expedition is being mounted across the Dark Lake, a vast subterranean sea of wrecks, raiders, and things that should not exist in the deep. Will your party keep the mission alive long enough to uncover what waits in the dark waters and return with proof before the expedition collapses from within? 

Players serve as clandestine agents aboard the famed steamship, the Lady of the Lake. Threats beneath the water are only part of the danger. Shifting loyalties, brutal  shoreline encounters, and rivalry among the expedition’s leaders make every decision matter. The adventure offers approximately three to six sessions of play, depending on playstyle and session length.

The Adventure

Each stage of the voyage forces the party to decide where to spend limited time, supplies, and trust. They will investigate wrecks, secure landing sites, confront threats along the shore, and navigate rival ambitions within the expedition. What they recover, whom they support, and what they awaken will determine the mission’s fate.

The Second Hall of Splendor

The 2nd Hall of Splendor is the beating heart of dwarven industry, where craftsdwarfs, traders, and opportunists refine, price, and sell the raw materials drawn from the Third Hall before they reach the elites of the First. Its forges, workshops, and ruthless marketplaces thrive amid clan rivalries and relentless competition. Along its eastern edge stretches the Dark Lake, a vast subterranean sea of wrecks, raiders, monsters, lost secrets, and black depths.

Adventures in the Second Hall can begin amid the ruthless bargaining of the Bazaar of Splendor, beneath the guarded wealth of the Mint, or along docks where fisherdwarfs, smugglers, treasure-seekers, and unofficial sailors trade rumors of the Dark Lake. Deep Wardens recruit crews and secure expeditions, merchant patrons bind retainers through contracts and obligations, and rival clans compete for wealth and glory. Beyond the docks, wrecks, raiders, and unexplored shores offer opportunities that can make a dwarf’s name or erase it completely.

During the adventure, players will:

• Conduct investigations aboard the Lady of the Lake;
• Explore wrecks and hostile shoreline locations;
• Confront raiders, monsters, and threats beneath the water;
• Uncover hidden agendas among the expedition’s leaders;
• Decide which discoveries and alliances are worth protecting;
• Shape the expedition’s survival and final outcome.

What's Inside

Secrets of the Dark Waters provides everything needed to run the expedition while expanding the Second Hall with new adversaries, rules, locations, maps, handouts, and material that can be used beyond the adventure.

Player's Guide

The Player’s Guide expands the setting with new lore, narrative background traits, and adventure hooks.

Learn about mushroom beer, cavecap cigars, gems, coinage, fighting pits, games, vocations, secret languages, and daily life throughout the Ten Halls of Splendor, along with much more.

GM's Guide

The GM’s Guide reveals the hidden dangers of the Halls, the schemes of the Deep Wardens, Librarians, ambitious clans, and the threats waiting beneath and beyond the Dark Lake.

The Adventure: Secrets of the Dark Waters

Secrets of the Dark Waters is an adventure set on Dark Lake, a vast subterranean sea whose depths and distant shores remain largely unexplored. Aboard the steamship Lady of the Lake, the PCs must navigate political turmoil, divided loyalties, and dangers beneath the water. They soon discover that the rumored sea monster said to swallow ships whole may be the least of the expedition’s problems.

New Rules

Secrets of the Dark Waters introduces new rules that expand Dungeons Deep and Caverns Old while remaining usable in any Heroes & Hardships campaign. These include geometric areas on a hex grid, hazard qualities, passive skill checks, new abilities, ancestry traits, flaws, equipment, and more.

Bestiary

The Bestiary presents 17+ new monsters and NPCs to challenge, aid, or complicate the PCs’ expedition. Among them are automatons, Squeezers, Stone Biters, Lake Hermits, the ship-swallowing Umbral Maw, Captain Kaarle Kinnunen, and Prince Lars Jorgensson of Clan Branvick. It also provides full vehicle statistics for the steamship, the Lady of the Lake.

Secrets of the Dark Waters features full-color maps,  character portraits, atmospheric scenes, and richly themed page designs throughout.

Free Downloads

Explore both Dungeons Deep and Caverns Old and Heroes & Hardships for free with more than 150 pages of downloadable content.

Rewards

Choose the reward that fits your table, from Secrets of the Dark Waters on its own to complete digital and print collections featuring Secrets of the Sacred Stone and Heroes & Hardships.

Early Bird Bonus

Early Bird backers receive a printed, saddle-stitched copy of Secrets of the Dverhold for free! This is included with any reward including a print version of Secrets of the Dark Waters.

• Backers are responsible for any additional shipping costs associated with the free book, if applicable.
• EU (and select ROW) backers may receive a softcover perfect bound version of the adventure instead.

Expand your Dungeons Deep collection with the Secrets of the Dark Waters PDF.

• Secrets of the Dark Waters

Get everything you need to play Dungeons Deep and Caverns Old.

• Secrets of the Dark Waters
• Secrets of the Sacred Stone
• Heroes & Hardships Core Rulebook

Dive deep into everything Heroes & Hardships with the Digital All-In tier.

• Secrets of the Dark Waters
• Secrets of the Sacred Stone
• Heroes & Hardships Core Rulebook

Additional Rules & Bestiaries:

• Heroes & Hardships GM's Guide Vol. 1
• Fantasy Adversaries Vol. 1
• Fantasy Arch-Enemies Vol. 1
• Rise of the Orc
• Sci-Fi Adversaries Vol. 1
• Vehicles Vol. 1
• Combat Action Cards
• Fargazer's Fabulous Fortunes Vol. 1
• Lone Hero

Adventures & Other Setting Supplements:

• 500 Paces
• A Witch's Desire
• Caesar
• D'ugax
• Fat of the Lamb
• Invasion Earth
• The Cook at the Crossroad
• The Darkling Legacy
• The Helm of Radiance
• Wallace
• Interstellar
• Mirror Image

Get Secrets of the Dark Waters in both hardcover and PDF format.

• Secrets of the Dark Waters (Hardcover Book and PDF)
• Eligible for Early Bird Special (Secrets of the Dverhold)

Stock your shelves with this high quality hardcover titles.

• Secrets of the Dark Waters (Hardcover and PDF)
• Secrets of the Sacred Stone (Hardcover and PDF)
• Heroes & Hardships Core Rulebook (Hardcover and PDF)
• Eligible for Early Bird Special (Secrets of the Dverhold)

Instantly finish your Heroes & Hardships collection with the Print All-In tier.

• Secrets of the Dark Waters (Hardcover and PDF)
• Secrets of the Sacred Stone (Hardcover and PDF)
• Heroes & Hardships Core Rulebook (Hardcover and PDF)
• Eligible for Early Bird Special (Secrets of the Dverhold)

Additional Rules & Bestiaries:

• Heroes & Hardships GM's Guide Vol. 1 (Softcover and PDF)
• Fantasy Adversaries Vol. 1
• Fantasy Arch-Enemies Vol. 1
• Rise of the Orc
• Sci-Fi Adversaries Vol. 1
• Vehicles Vol. 1
• Combat Action Cards
• Fargazer's Fabulous Fortunes Vol. 1
• Lone Hero

Adventures & Other Setting Supplements:

• 500 Paces
• A Witch's Desire
• Caesar
• D'ugax
• Fat of the Lamb
• Invasion Earth
• The Cook at the Crossroad
• The Darkling Legacy
• The Helm of Radiance
• Wallace
• Interstellar
• Mirror Image

Add-Ons

Customize your pledge and expand your Dungeons Deep and Caverns Old and Heroes & Hardships collections. Choose from the new Heroes & Hardships Core Rulebook Foundry VTT module, additional print books, and more.

New to Heroes & Hardships?

Any Setting!  Any Character!  Any Adventure! Anything you can imagine!

Heroes & Hardships is a universal roleplaying game that allows gamemasters to craft any story they desire. Heroes & Hardships contains many options to facilitate diverse styles and genres of play; GMs can easily create fantasy, sci-fi, modern, historical, and super hero games. And of course, feel free to readily mix and match all of these genres in any way you see fit.

Dice System

In Heroes & Hardships, the player rolls a number of 10-sided dice and tries to beat a difficulty number set by the GM.

Each character has an Attribute Score and a Skill Rank. Add them together to determine how many d10s to roll. Once you roll, you keep the highest results from a number of d10s equal to your Attribute Score. It's that simple!

Sometimes, rolling a 10 causes dice to explode, allowing you to roll again and add extra dice to your total.

Players familiar with games such as Legend of the Five Rings and 7th Sea will notice many similarities in the Heroes & Hardships' dice pool system.

Power Levels

Each game in Heroes & Hardships is assigned a Power Level. The Power Level represents how powerful characters are by granting them greater resources during character creation.

• PL 1: This Power Level simulates gritty and realistic campaigns, even with fantastical elements. PCs are a cut above the average person.
• PL 2: PCs possess significant abilities and can greatly influence their surroundings. They are vastly superior to the average person.
• PL 3: PCs are bestowed with immense power that utterly dwarfs lesser beings. The stakes are galactic and world-shattering.

Combat

Combat in Heroes & Hardships is tactical and fluid, using an Action Point (AP) system rather than traditional turns or rounds. Every action—whether attacking, moving, or defending—takes a set amount of time to complete. Faster actions allow for quicker responses, while more complex maneuvers take longer, making timing and strategy crucial. The Combat Track manages these actions, ensuring that battles feel dynamic and reactive.

Instead of relying on hit points, the game uses wounds and injuries to determine a character’s condition. Damage isn't just numbers—it leads to real consequences, like penalties from injuries or long-term impairments. Defense is just as important as offense, with options such as dodging, parrying, and countering giving players tactical choices beyond just attacking.

Melee and ranged combat are distinct, with range bands affecting accuracy and effectiveness, while melee fights involve hit locations that determine where an attack lands. There's also mental combat, where intimidation, fear, and psychological attacks can break an opponent just as effectively as physical damage.

With a wide variety of attack types, defensive moves, and environmental considerations, Heroes & Hardships offers a deep and flexible combat system. The level of realism and lethality can be adjusted to suit different playstyles, making it adaptable to everything from gritty realism to high-powered heroics.

• Action Point (AP) System – No turns or rounds; actions take time and resolve dynamically.
• Combat Track – Keeps battles fluid, allowing quick responses and strategic timing.
• Wounds & Injuries – No hit points; damage causes real consequences and lasting effects.
• Tactical Defenses – Dodging, parrying, and countering give players options beyond attacking.
• Melee & Ranged Combat – Similar yet distinct mechanics, including hit locations and range bands.
• Mental Combat – Psychological attacks can break an opponent’s resolve like physical wounds.
• Customizable Lethality – Adjust combat realism to suit your game’s tone and style.

System Video

Want a deep dive into Heroes & Hardships and the Foundry module? Check out the video below.

Use these timestamps to help navigate the video:

• Introduction: 0:00
• Foundry Details: 3:21
• Basic Task Resolution: 8:35
• Character Creation: 20:25
• Combat: 1:03:27
• Magic: 2:19:21 

Check out the free 18-page preview of the Heroes & Hardships Core Rulebook below.

Testimonials

Happy Customers (DTRPG & Social Media)

• "Great universal system. Very innovative initiative and dicepool checks. Beautiful art." - DTRPG Customer
• "The Heroes & Hardships core rulebook has exceeded my expectations. I've followed the project for some time and the finished product is the nicest I've seen from a small, independent publisher." - DTRPG Customer
• "There are some new and very playable and fun mechanics going on here in H&H. I was looking for an alternative to BRP or GURPS. I think I’ve found my choice." - DTRPG Customer
• "I backed it and was amazed at the level of care the publisher has taken in creating and producing it. I played it a couple of times to learn how it worked and was extremely impressed by some of the innovative approaches it took to solve common TTRPG problems; the action point system makes a lot of tactical problems just vanish, and allows players to remain engaged because things move so quickly. I am currently running a WH40K-adjacent campaign using it as the system and like it a lot more than Wrath & Glory or Dark Heresy 2e. I have also prepped a fantasy campaign using it." - Reddit r/rpg user.
• "Would highly recommend. I’ve run an entire campaign in H&H. Had a great time. Very positive feedback from players. It was a Middle-earth game set in the First Age and I had no problem reflecting what I wanted to reflect with the rules - and quickly. Once you get the core mechanic down and understand initiative and movement, the rest is very common sense and, even if you can’t remember a technicality, it’s very easy to make a ruling at the table that is reasonable. Though I played on Roll20, if (or more likely, when) I play again I’ll use the Foundry module. If you are concerned about ability to handle low fantasy, the answer is ABSOLUTELY it can. There are three power levels you can play the game at. At the lowest, it’s very deadly. Hope this helps and if you decide to play, let me know!" - Reddit r/rpg user.
• My group just recently switched to this RPG system and we love it! Heroes and Hardships is in-depth in all the right ways with a standardized approach to resolution that has plenty of ways to regulate built in or to customize. We're doing the Dungeons Deep and Caverns Old campaign and having a blast. I was running some Polygon stuff, but my friends like structure so I went with H&H instead and it's been awesome. Plus, if you join the discord and have any questions, the developer is super active and able to provide insight. Would highly recommend! - Reddit r/rpg user.

Fulfillment

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