Dorm Rooms as Bastions
Dorm Rooms at Neverwood Academy function as personal Bastions, using a modified version of the 2024 Bastion rules (5.5e). Each student’s dorm evolves over time, reflecting academic progression, magical training, and personal development.
Bastion activity is measured in tendays (10-day cycles)
.
Year 1: Level 1 to 3
All students begin with a Dorm Room consisting of:
- Roomy Bedroom (Basic Facility)
- Cramped Storage (Basic Facility)
These cannot be altered during Year 1. Focus on surviving classes!
Year 2: Starting at Level 4
At Level 4:
- You may resize your current facilities (e.g., upgrade from Cramped → Roomy → Grand) using Bastion rules.
- You may now add additional Basic Facilities to your dorm room by spending gold.
- There is no hard cap, but dorm space is limited—work with your DM to track space usage.
- Basic facilities must still follow Bastion rules from the 2024 DMG.
Special Facilities: Levels 5–8
Beginning in Year 2, your Dorm Room can support Special Facilities:
| Level | Special Facility Slots Gained | Total Special Facilities |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | +1 | 1 |
| 6 | +1 | 2 |
| 7 | +1 | 3 |
| 8 | +1 | 4 |
You may build any special facility from the list provided below
Each Special Facility takes up 1 slot.
Other Facilities
These do not count toward space or facility limits:
Closets & Washrooms
- Built into existing facilities
- Free of charge
- Do not increase facility size
Hallways, Stairs & Ramps
- Used to connect rooms
- Free and unlimited
Doors & Windows
- Standard feature of all facilities
- May be normal, locked, or secret (DM approval for secrets)
Adding Basic Facilities
From level 4 onward you can add additional basic facilities to your dorm room. These do not have any special functions but do have a cost to build.
Available Facilities
- Bedroom
- Dining Room
- Parlour
- Courtyard
- Kitchen
- Storage
| Facility Space | Maximum Size | Cost | Time required |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cramped | 4 Squares | 500 gp | 20 days |
| Roomy | 16 Squares | 1,000 gp | 45 days |
| Vast | 36 Squares | 3,000 gp | 125 days |
Enlarging Basic Facilities
| Space Increase | Cost | Time required |
|---|---|---|
| Cramped to Roomy | 500 gp | 25 days |
| Roomy to Vast | 2,000 gp | 80 days |
Special Facilities
From Level 5 your Dorm Room can support Special Facilities. The following special facilities are available to neverwood students (See Dorm Room - Special Facilities for more information) :
| Level | Special Facility | Prerequisite | Order |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Arcane Study | Ability to use an Arcane Focus or a tool as a Spellcasting Focus | Craft |
| 5 | Armory | None | Trade |
| 5 | Barrack | None | Recruit |
| 5 | Garden | None | Harvest |
| 5 | Library | None | Research |
| 6 | Sanctuary | Ability to use a Holy Symbol or Druidic Focus as a Spellcasting Focus | Craft |
| 6 | Smithy | None | Craft |
| 6 | Storehouse | None | Trade |
| 6 | Workshop | None | Craft |
| 7 | Gaming Hall | None | Trade |
| 7 | Greenhouse | None | Harvest |
| 7 | Laboratory | None* | Craft |
| 7 | Sacristy | Ability to use a Holy Symbol or Druidic Focus as a Spellcasting Focus | Craft |
| 7 | Scriptorium | None* | Craft |
| 8 | Stable | None | Trade |
| 8 | Teleportation Circle | None | Recruit |
| 8 | Theater | None | Empower |
| 8 | Training Area | None | Empower |
| 8 | Trophy Room | None | Research |
| (* Certain orders that can be issued to these facilities have additional prerequisites.) |
Bastion Turns
Dorm Bastions operate on a tenday cycle (10 days).
A Bastion Turn occurs every 10 in-game days, during which students may manage their Dorm Bastion.
On a Bastion Turn, you may:
- Issue Orders to Special Facilities
- Issue the Maintain Order to your entire Bastion
- Allow your Bastion to operate autonomously
- Maintain Order
When you issue Maintain, your Bastion runs itself for the next tenday.
- Hirelings handle upkeep and operations
- No new orders are issued during this time
- The DM immediately rolls for a Bastion Event
Bastion Events
After a Bastion enters Maintain, the DM rolls once on the Bastion Events table.
- One roll per Bastion per tenday
- Additional rolls if multiple Bastions are maintained separately
- Events occur even if the player is away
Bastion Events represent:
- Unexpected visitors
- Internal dorm developments
- Opportunities or crises
- Narrative downtime activity
Bastion Events Table
| 1d100 | Event |
|---|---|
| 01–50 | All Is Well |
| 51–55 | Attack |
| 56–58 | Criminal Hireling |
| 59–63 | Extraordinary Opportunity |
| 64–72 | Friendly Visitors |
| 73–76 | Guest |
| 77–79 | Lost Hirelings |
| 80–83 | Magical Discovery |
| 84–91 | Refugees |
| 92–98 | Request for Aid |
| 99–00 | Treasure |
Event Summaries
All Is Well
Nothing major happens. Minor flavour events may occur.
Attack
A hostile force targets the Bastion.
- Roll 6d6; each 1 = a Bastion Defender is lost
- If no defenders remain, a random Special Facility is damaged
- Damaged facilities shut down until next Bastion Turn, then auto-repair
Criminal Hireling
A hireling’s past catches up with them.
- Pay 1d6 × 100 gp to retain them
- Otherwise they are removed and replaced
Extraordinary Opportunity
A major event involving prestige or influence.
- Pay 500 gp to participate
- Triggers additional Bastion Event roll
- Declining has no penalty
Friendly Visitors
Visitors use a facility and pay for access.
- Gain 1d6 × 100 gp
- Does not interrupt facility operations
Guest
A notable individual stays at your Bastion.
May include:
- Renowned figures (prestige reward)
- Refuge seekers (gold reward)
- Mercenary ally (temporary defender)
- Friendly magical creature (defence support)
Lost Hirelings
A facility loses its staff.
- Facility inactive until next Bastion Turn
- Hirelings return or are replaced automatically
Magical Discovery
Hirelings create or uncover:
- 1 Uncommon magic item (Potion or Scroll)
Refugees
2d4 refugees arrive seeking shelter.
- May require space in facilities
- Offer 1d6 × 100 gp
- Remain until resolved or relocated
Request for Aid
Local authority requests assistance.
- Send Bastion Defenders
- Roll 1d6 per defender
- 10+ total = success + reward (1d6 × 100 gp)
- Failure = reduced reward + casualty
Treasure
The Bastion gains valuable items.
- Roll on DMG treasure tables
- Source is narratively determined