Hey guys!
This is my interpretation of Ironspine Keep from the module, Hold Back the Dead, a free adventure offered by WOTC for the 50th Anniversary of D&D. The adventure has the players arriving to an old and dilapidated keep in the woods, where soldiers and laborers work to restore its defenses under an unnatural gloom.
The woods have been allowed to grow close, and the keep is in general disrepair. The adventure deals primarily with defending the battlements from an encroaching horde of undead minions and other creatures, so the building interiors are not included, nor is the lower half of the castle.
I've added the lower section of the castle map, as well as offered interiors from the small building in the north and southern yard, and the 1st level of the large central building, which is described as being nearly 40 ft. tall.
To download the Map Pack, please click on your Tier link below and the download URL will be listed there in map release order.
Tier 1 - https://www.patreon.com/posts/tier-1-dungeon-81146477
Tier 2 - https://www.patreon.com/posts/tier-2-world-map-81312503
Tier 3 - https://www.patreon.com/posts/tier-3-master-87793681
Tier 4 - https://www.patreon.com/posts/tier-4-master-87797001
Here is a concept image of the entry to the castle, which is in the queue to be completed by an artist with the full version.

Here is the base version of the map with interiors, and with the southern part of the castle that is not represented in the module map:

The northern building I designated as an Armory, with several spears, a few quivers, some swords, shields and armor represented.
The southern building I designated as a Stables, with some additional stalls to the right of the building that have long since lost their thatched roof, but can still be used for storing mounts, wagons and supplies.
The central building I designated as a multi-story building (which only one floor is represented) that serves a fairly large force to man this location. The interior includes a few different Barracks, Kitchen, Storage, Office, Visitor's Quarters, Council Room, Common Room and Leader's Quarters.
I also included a collapsed rooftop over a blacksmith's station on the west side of the keep, which isn't included in the base map.
Another part of the module are several siege engines mounted atop the walls for defense, which are supposed to rotate and potentially be damaged/destroyed, so I've included [4] PNG Tiles for these siege engines:

As with all of the more recent maps, we have a great sprite by Katsudon Art to pair along with the map of the halfling commander, Corlie Halvachar, who is the main point of contact for the players in the story and for whom there was no art as part of the module. She would be a great NPC in your own homebrew, or a nice token to use if you're running the module.

If you aren't running the module, this would make a great location in your homebrew of a ruined keep in need of repair. It could be the start of a campaign, a quest hub or a destination along the way where you have the players hold fast against an encroaching army.
I will likely create [2] additional versions of this map:
1. A completely ruined version of the keep where no one has lived there for quite some time that could serve more as a dungeon-style encounter.
2. A repaired and renovated keep leaning more toward its glory days, which would feature the additional floors of the central building and a repaired/improved yard.
I hope you enjoy it!
--
Ironspine Keep is unofficial Fan Content permitted under the Fan Content Policy. Not approved/endorsed by Wizards. Portions of the materials used are property of Wizards of the Coast. ©Wizards of the Coast LLC.
Jeff Todd
2025-04-07 05:32:40 +0000 UTCJames P
2025-04-07 05:01:25 +0000 UTC