The Donkey Kong Island Hexcrawl - Introduction & Kongo Jungle

 

There's been plenty of good iterations of this place, 
but this version is the one that feels like home to me.

    Howdy, Farmhands   

    Five-ish years ago at the time of writing, I ran a TTRPG Actual Play for my Twitch audience titled "Escape from Kong Country." That AP took 6 or so months of planning and prep to even happen, and even then, that was after months of rolling the idea around in my head privately. What I'm trying to get at is that I've been thinking about roleplay games in the Donkey Kong world for a fairly long time. It wouldn't be until Josh McCrowell of Rise Up Comus began posting his own canon-adapting ttrpg project, "The Middle Earth Hexmap" that I decided to seriously take another whack at it. It helps that the immediate stumbling block I needed to pass was the question, "How do I even organize this thing?" Josh generously gave me permission to make use of his template. It's much easier to have a skeleton upon which to drape ideas than it is to stare at a blank page while those ideas wrestle in a cartoon dust cloud in your mind to decide which gets typed up first. It ALSO also helps that Josh has been forthcoming with his thought process on the project, how he approaches adapting works from beyond the original source material and filling in any gaps. Basically, I'd never have gotten my ass in gear for this without his work preceding me, so please go give his blog a good read. Buy his books maybe.

    Funnily enough, I've been sitting on what I've written for the last six months, so even this post is part of the process of dragging myself, kicking and screaming, towards the thing I desire. I briefly considered making this a daily excercise as Josh has,but I know that failing to keep up due to life or brain chemistry would simply upset me. Instead, I am posting this to introduce the project as a passive background activity, to fill in gaps where my other projects aren't ready for my loose self-assigned goal of "Posting Something Every Week." Might be a Comic page, might be a Livestream, but I have to post Something. Being able to sit down and knock out a hex or two is a good backup for when things go south. I've done it before with my contribution to the Rankin-Bass Christmas Hexcrawl.

    Similar to how that hexcrawl was made, I will be taking efforts to weave in connections between hexes. In the early days of this project, that will look like unfinished entries until I've gotten most of the adjacent locations written up as well. For this project, my primary sources will be Donkey Kong Country (SNES, 1994), Donkey Kong Land (GB, 1995), Donkey Kong 64 (N64, 1999), and Donkey Kong Returns (Wii, 2010). References and adaptions of stuff from other games that I feel fits within the main Donkey Kong Island will be dotted throughout, but the main goal is writing the island itself. I have split the place into chunks, each will have it's own regional encounter table atop individual hexes' encounters, in the cadence of Paper And Pencil's Structured Encounters. The hexes will remain unnumbered for the time being, as I'm still figuring out the exact form the final map will take. They will retain relative location to one another. Dungeons will have their own pages, and unfortunately that means a lot of empty spaces that amount to "add one of those here." It's a process.

     Quoting Josh on how to read the entries: 

HEX #

SITE NAME IN CAPITALS. The site name is mostly to help the GM remember the contents of the hex. The site description is given in Roman font. The type of terrain, which is needed for random sites or wandering encounters, is listed on the map. Particularly interesting sites where quests, rumors, random encounters, and interesting NPCs can be found are given in bold. Hidden features are given in italics.

HIDDEN SITE. Hidden features of the hex are presented in italics. These can only be found during certain times or by exploring the main feature of the hex.

! - QUEST NAME: Details a potential job for a burglar, if the players go sniffing around for work. 

✦ - OFTEN HERE: If the region is inhabited, a quick list of NPC names and descriptions for the GM to easily pull from. The number of NPCs is reflective of the size of the settlement, ranging between four and twelve. 

(d6): A special encounter could be here. Roll a d6. If the face equals the number shown, this event is currently occurring when the fellowship arrives, if it possibly makes sense.

       And for my own purposes, anything highlighted in Banana Yellow will link to it's own bespoke page once it's written, usually Dungeons. This is a Work In Progress, after all.

 REGION 1: KONGO JUNGLE

    Per MarioWiki: "The Kongo Jungle is a vast jungle found on Donkey Kong Island, at the foot of Monkey Mines. First appearing in Donkey Kong Country, Kongo Jungle is the place where DK's Tree House and the Banana Hoard is found; a distinction shared with the similar Jungle world in Donkey Kong Country Returns, which has been suggested to be the same location. It is known for its dense rainforests, including natural ranges of wild gorillas." 

     Kongo Jungle is split into two sections based on elevation, the lower jungle being where the majority of the Kong Clan live. The western half of the lower jungle is seperated from the east by upper jungle's cliffs, which extend to the ocean's edge, with a series of caves and tunnels allowing access to the east. A river coming down from the upper mountains empties into the ocean via the eastern half, and while bridges and rope swings have been installed to travel over, it still remains a danger. The eastern jungle grants access to the BEACH region, while the upper west jungle leads to the MONKEY MINES and CHIMP CAVERNS.

HEX: Jungle Japes Valley- A Hilly valley to the Northeast of Jungle Hijinks.

Jungle Pond: Surrounding a pond where vines grow, and caves are dotted along the cliff face. A cannon on the shore could be a shortcut to Ropey Rampage, if it were to be fixed by a mechanic.

(Players can spend a Watch to Explore the caves if they like. 1 – Encounter, 2-4 – Nothing, 5-6 Treasure)

Batface Cave-in (Dungeon)

A sinkhole reveals a lost temple to an unknown diety. The construction is of dirt and stone, far removed from the Kong temples of the island. Who left this?

- Tight walkways over deep pits

- A bat colony has taken refuge in here and dislikes light

- Giant bat head with a wide, gaping mouth. It’s eyes sparkle like jewels.

Shell Stage: A wide clearing around a raised stone platform. Multiple fallen logs have been arranged to form seating around it. There’s a massive conch shell sitting on the stage, with ominous buzzing noises coming from within.

! - The rainbow conch used to be used to perform music for the Banana Fairies, but a hive of Zingers took over and made blowing it… difficult. Relocating the hive and allowing the performances to continue will make the Fairies very happy.

Magic Conch Shell (Dungeon)

Objects entering it’s opening shrink to fit inside.

Zingers have created a nest inside and need to be removed

<> Advancement Opportunity: If the players perform for the Fairies after returning the conch, they will learn a Random Song as thanks

HEX: Jungle Japes Cliffside: Overlooks Jungle Japes. (Northwest?)

Snide’s H.Q: .A lopsided shack with a tin roof. A radio dish and tv sattelite have been haphazardly nailed on top, but appear functional. A hand painted sign reads “Snide’s HQ” Inside, a series of pulleys and levers connect to rube goldberg machines that seem to serve no purpose and are made of junk. Blueprints for various questionable constructs litter most spaces.

✦ - OFTEN HERE: SNIDE THE WEASEL (Snarky, Stingy, Sleezy) A reformed Kremling member, though his turn came from spite as opposed to a moral shift. Capable of building fantastical structures, but requires payment up front. Honors his deals to the letter, and frequent successful trades will warm him up to the party.

! - Bon Voyage, Blueprints: Someone broke into the H.Q. in the night, and scampered off with 9 of Snide’s Blueprints. He can replace them easily, but he worries what someone might do if the work was reverse-engineered. He’ll pay 5 Bananas per party member for each Blueprint returned. (Every Kremling Member henceforth has a 1 in 6 chance of having a Blueprint visibly on their person until all 9 are found)

Mountain Hideout (Dungeon)

A cavern repurposed by the Kremlings to store scavenged ammunitions (very unsafe)

HEX: Thunder Cove - A Sparse Jungle at the ocean’s edge with a clear view of the sky. Large knocked over logs form tunnels between locations. (East of Jungle Japes)

Sacred Tree: A tall and mighty trunk devoid of foliage. Multiple braided red ropes are strung around it, marking it as a place of power. Despite being completely hollow, the tree is alive and waiting. Locals place offerings of bananas in the hope of good things happening to the Island.

(d6) 1: Konfu Kong is giving an offering of (d6) Bananas. If any member of the party owns a Crest, he will challenge them to find his hidden training grounds and fight him in combat. Once the training ground is found, regardless of the result of the fight, he will have a 3 in 6 chance of appearing at the Sacred Tree from that point onward.

! - If the Party offers bananas totaling these amounts, events will trigger (These Amounts are based on the video game and will need to be adjusted)

• 1-399 : A Bronze Crest falls from the Tree,

• 400-799 : A Silver Crest falls from the Tree,

• 800-1,199 : A Gold Crest falls from the Tree,

• 1,200 or more: A Platinum Crest falls from the Tree,

Hidden Waterfall - A log tunnel embedded into the ground leads to an open cavern with a sturdy rope bridge crossing the gap. A large waterfall fills the cavern and the underground river below. Konfu Kong can be found training his heart and mind in the waters. If approached, he will request a spar. Any who take him down in honorable combat will be allowed to use the path. (Connects to-[Future Hex])

✦ - OFTEN HERE: KONFU KONG (Strict, Shrill, Snobbish) Martial Artist, previously of the Boss Kongs. Dislikes weaklings but respects those who respect nature. Will train warriors who have received the Sacred Tree’s Badges in combat techniques.

HEX: Jungle Hijinxs - A valley at the base of DK Mountain.

DK’s House: A wooden cabin with a thatch roof atop a tall tree. The inside is littered with whatever cool shit DK and Diddy found entertaining enough, along with probably too many banana peels.

✦ - OFTEN HERE: DONKEY KONG "DK" (Goofy, Childish, Kind) De Facto leader of the Kong Klan. His primary motivation is Bananas, though the safety of his island and it’s inhabitants come in a close second. Friendly to anyone who shows him the same. Not terribly bright.

Flat plain surrounded by trees

dense jungle nearby

rising hill underneath which is a banana hoard (one of many)

bashing into cliff reveals hidden valley?

Landmark:
Hidden:

Secret:
Encounters: Gnawty, Klump, Kritter, Necky

HEX: Ropey Rampage (Northeast of Jungle Hijinks, inaccessible from Lower Jungle Hexes)

A series of cliffs atop a raging river. Ropes have been placed all over for swinging to and from each side. Individiual areas jut out as islands above the perilous drop. (this level is interesting for being in the rain and dark, otherwise it’s just a more vertical jungle hijinx.) the river idea isn’t bad. Leap of faiths into barrels leading up to even higher treetops. Lots of butterflies once the rain stops

Landmark:
Hidden:

Secret:
Encounters: Army, Kritter, Zinger

HEX: Reptile Rumble (East of Jungle Hijinks, grants passage to Lower East Jungle Hexes)

A cave system connecting the jungle to the southern beach. Features high ceilings but deep snake pits and secret side caverns. Multi barrel puzzles shooting players all over the place? Tight squeezes between areas. A big pit with a floating platform and a tire to balance on. Multiple kritters jumping down an incline at the player. Should this be a Flux Space????

Cranky’s Hut

Landmark:
Hidden:

Secret:
Encounters: Kritter, Slippa, Zinger

HEX: Coral Capers (South/Southeast of Reptile Rumble)

An ocean inlet filled with piranhas and octopi. The emerald green coral hides secrets. Home of Enguarde. Wandering patrolling Sharks? Ocotopi chase you in circles. Coral patches reveal hidden items, air bubbles? Clams taking potshots from below? Why would the players come here? What’s down there worth getting?

Landmark:
Hidden:

Secret:
Encounters: Bitesize, Croctopus, Chomps, Clambo