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Eye on Cormyr
Issue #4
by
JEREMY E. GRENEMYER
COMMONPLACE PUBLISHING
A good game starts with a good story.
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FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR RESALE.
Thanks to @garethgarfoot for help with the collective noun
for the Darkenbeasts-turned-Wyvernbeasts.
Cover art photo © Warpedgalerie. Used under license.
ON THE COVER
Drarra Blackrune, leader of the Company of the Bottled
Fiend. For more about the adventures of the Bottled
Fiend, see Eye on Cormyr #1.
"When The Dragon Flies" by Jeremy E. Grenemyer; some
page backgrounds, maps, Thorass tracings by Jeremy E.
Grenemyer; © Jeremy E. Grenemyer. "Map of West-Central
Cormyr" by Ross Cody. Artwork © Jeremy E. Grenemyer.
Some page backgrounds by Darrin G. Scott (inspired by
Dungeons & Dragons products). Icons by Nathanaël Roux;
www.barkalotdesigns.com. Adventure maps courtesy of
Dyson Logos Commercial Maps. Some treasure parcels
inspired by Treasures & Trinkets for Tier 1 Adventures by
Troy Taylor. Some art and page backgrounds by Publisher’s
Choice Quality Stock Art © Rick Hershey / Fat Goblin
Games.
All other artwork and images by Adobe Stock. Used under
license: © ad_hominem, © artyme, © captblack76,
DutchScenery, © Effect of Darkness, © Elena Abramova, ©
jan stopka, © Mikesilent, © okalinichenko, © oldstores, ©
papi8888, © utah778, © Warpedgalerie, © Zdenek Sasek.
All other original material in this work is © 2015, 2016, 2017,
2018, 2019 Commonplace Publishing and published under
the Community Content Agreement for Dungeon Masters
Guild.
Volume 1, Article 4
OCTOBER 2019
/
“I believe we owe it to each other to tell stories. It's as close to a credo as I have or will, I suspect,
ever get.“
— Neil Gaiman
Fragile Things

When the dragon flies

it sees all
the hidden
Places
Hiding in plain sight
where we walk
each day
Unseeing
— Jeremy E. Grenemyer
When The Dragon Flies

/
 Features
Cormyrean Commentary
  Are we having fun yet?........................2
Background Assistance
  Two flavors for the Guild Artisan.......3
The DM's Workshop
  Mining for place names.......................5
Haunts and Horrors
  Lurking ghosts of the King's Forest.....8
Matters of Magic
  Tsharliira's Magical Creations..........11
The Purple Dragons
  Putting old dragons out to pasture....14
Words and Phrases
  Not all jacks are created equal..........14
Close Encounters
  Two lines to get you started..............15
Nobles of Cormyr
  The Knight of Owl Well (pt.2)...........18
Adventure Awaits
  "Dungeon Under the Tower Keep"
    a 1st Level adventure.......................21
  "Dungeon Under the Pond"
    a 1st Level adventure.......................31
  "Undercellars of the Dread
    Destination"
    a 1st Level adventure.......................38
Miscellany
  A look at "Elminster Must Die"..........47
Map of West Central Cormyr
  14,175 square miles of terrain............48
Map of West Central Cormyr
  6-mile hexes (kingdom scale).............49
Introduction
Well met!
And welcome. The spirit of Halloween permeates this, the
fourth installment of Eye on Cormyr. In this issue you will
find a host of brand new features. If you're running low on
encounter ideas, Close Encounters has thirteen suggestions
to surprise your players with. (Who knew skeletons could
lend adventurers a helping hand?) Check out Haunts and
Horrors for a taste of the many hauntings, ghostly
apparitions, and horrors lurking in the darkest corners of the
King's Forest. Not sure how to generate place names and
short but interesting descriptions for them to capture the
character's attention? The DM's Workshop shows you how to
do just that by mining book indexes, and provides ten
examples set in Cormyr. (Felsharp's Bonepile is my favorite.)
1 CONTENTS
 Curious to know what the Crown of Cormyr does with the
corpses of its soldiers? The Purple Dragons has the answers
to this question, and more. Matters of Magic rounds out this
month's new features with a look at the living legacy of
Tsharliira, wizard of Eveningstar, and exhibits a few items of
magic Tsharliira crafted late in life, such as her Wand of Spell
Parrying.
Several features from Issue #3 make a return appearance
this month. Background Assistance explains the differences
between Cormyrean High Guilds and Cormyrean Craft
Guilds, and lists 22 guild businesses for a character with the
Guild Artisan Background to choose from. The catalogue of
Lady Ruvelle Keskrel's watch in the Hermit's Wood continues
in part two of Nobles of Cormyr, which includes a map of the
Hermit's Woods and vicinity. Words and Phrases describes
the roles of the many Jacks of Cormyr, while Adventure
Awaits sends adventurers up a tower, down a pond, and off to
the fanged peaks of the Stormhorns. Miscellany caps this
issue's offerings with a useful breakdown of all the things you
didn't know you needed to know about "Elminster Must Die,"
a novel set in Cormyr
A friendly reminder: Letter and number combinations (e.g.,
"D19") are map coordinates for a specific hex on the map of
West-Central Cormyr found at the end of this issue.
Good gaming to you and yours. Thanks for reading!
—Jeremy E. Grenemyer
for Commonplace Publishing
Two Cormyr Maps
This article includes two versions of a map of West-Central
Cormyr drawn by the talented DMs Guild cartographer
Terrlen Darkseeker. I suspect you will find it quite useful.
A Free Cormyr Map
Wizards of the Coast has very kindly made Mike Schley's
formidable Cormyr map available for free as part of the
Backdrop: Cormyr article by Brian R. James in Dragon 365.
It's the best map of Cormyr ever made. Not to mention a
useful reference when reading the articles in this issue.
More Free Stuff
Dragon Dreams of the Forest Kingdom is a free series of
articles set in Cormyr. Each article focuses on the doings of a
dragon that lairs in the vicinity of Cormyr.
Dragon Dreams of the Forest Kingdom:
Dunshield’s Dilemma
Dragon Dreams of the Forest Kingdom:
Death In The Last Drop
USEFUL ABBREVIATIONS FOR THIS ISSUE:
PHB: Player's Handbook
DMG: Dungeon Master's Guide
MM:   Monster Manual
SCAG: Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide
VGtM: Volo's Guide to Monsters
/
Cormyrean Commentary: Per Fidem Amet
SOMETIMES IT'S FUN TO CHANGE THINGS UP, don't
you think? To imagine the Forest Kingdom as a land ruled not
by magic, but by steam. Or to wonder what might happen if
the Wizards of War were turned into a conquering army.
It's fun to think big. Sending a demonic legion from
Impiltur to invade Cormyr? Sounds fun! A mighty dragon
laying waste to the Forest Kingdom and turning the entire
place into a giant ruin to explore? Great D&D campaigns
have been built on ideas just like these.
Let's not get ahead of ourselves just yet. After all, there is a
chance, however slight, that this is your first taste of Cormyr.
If so, then Well Met! I'm glad you're here. First off, you should
know that 'Cormyr', "the Forest Kingdom", and 'the Land of
the Purple Dragon' all refer to the same place: a monarchy
tucked between mountains on three sides ruled by an
unbroken line of Kings and Queens for nearly fifteen
centuries. Second, that the 'Wizards of War', aka the
Brotherhood of the Wizards of War or simply the war
wizards, is a fraternity of Crownsworn mages committed to
the defense of Cormyr.
There's more to learn, but let's take it in small chunks, hey?
What's more important is that you are about to join an august
league of Dungeon Masters and players that have made the
Forest Kingdom their backdrop for countless adventures
across countless D&D campaigns.
If you are already familiar with Cormyr, then I say to you
Well Again! It's always a pleasure to be in good company.
Thinking about all the ways Cormyr can be shaped and
twisted is a fun activity. You don't even have to be a Dungeon
Master to do this. After all, Dungeons & Dragons is all about
having fun. The fun happens at the gaming table during play
of course, but it also happens when you're crafting
adventures, planning your D&D campaign or creating your
first D&D character.
The essential tool for making all these activities fun is your
imagination. To fortify your imagination, reading official
sourcebooks and DMs Guild products like this one are the
way to go. The more you know about a place like Cormyr, the
easier it is to imagine it, right?
The answer to that question is yes. But it's also no. That is,
don't go down the rabbit hole without a parachute. There
have been thousands and thousands of words written about
Cormyr. In novels, sourcebooks, and online (i.e., places like
the Candlekeep.com forums). It's impossible to read it all.
If you happen to be a Dungeon Master, then you'll need
more than just your imagination to run a campaign set in
Cormyr. In order to write fun adventures and roleplay
memorable NPCs, you'll need to be creative, because
creativity is the skill Dungeon Masters utilize to make playing
D&D fun for everyone. It's that purpose—figuring out what's
fun—that gives DMs creative license to add to, subtract from,
and change Cormyr. It gives DMs the power to pick the parts
of Cormyr that they want to use in their campaigns and to
ignore everything else written about the Forest Kingdom.
The only requirement to utilize your creative license is that
you be consistent within your campaign as it unfolds during
each play session.
 Dungeons and Dragons campaigns work best when they are
internally consistent. When I use Cormyr, for example, I
present the war wizards as horse-riding spell hurlers, a few of
which are always present among detachments of Purple
Dragons riding on patrol. Once an adventuring party learns
there is always at least one capable war wizard who is not
afraid to draw their wand and toss a Fireball or Lightning
Bolt if things get out of hand, then the adventurers are less
likely to fight Cormyr's law keepers in pursuit of their goals.
That, and characters who attempt to negotiate or explain
themselves to the authorities instead of fighting their way
through earn a measure of respect. This can translate into a
willingness by the authorities to look the other way in the
future, or to pass on adventuring opportunities. Better that
characters make acquaintances of the authorities than
enemies, am I right?
This way of using Cormyr stands in contrast to official
Wizards of the Coast products, which present the Wizards of
War as depending on their reputation as an all seeing, all
watching force of spies for the Crown to hide an
uncomfortable truth: In modern day Cormyr there are not
nearly enough war wizards to place one or two among every
Purple Dragon patrol. Their numbers are just too small. As
you might imagine, the Brotherhood of the Wizards of War is
keen to guard its reputation.
This reminds me: What a group of players comes to believe
about your campaign world is always more important that
what's written in an official sourcebook. A Dungeon Master
owes fidelity to the former, not the later. So I ignore the
published state of the War Wizards and proceed with my
campaign the best way I know how.
When you're consistent within your campaign, exceptions
to the norm stand out. This is a great way to grab player
attention and hook them into an encounter. If the characters
in one of my campaigns encountered a ride of Purple
Dragons and there were no war wizards present, they might
wonder where the mages are at. If the characters asked as
much but the Dragons were vague in their reply, then they
might think something is amiss. If further questions elicited
evasive responses or even threats, then they might conclude
these are not Cormyrean soldiers but really hardblade
mercenaries in stolen Purple Dragon uniforms about to do
something nefarious.
Ah, but I digress.
Now, about that steam-powered Cormyr idea: If you were to
decide Cormyrean forge masters have discovered the power
of steam, and that the Kingdom of Cormyr wants to keep the
secret of steam from spreading even as its best thinkers
(including the Wizards of War) figure out how to utilize this
new technology, then you would have the makings for a fun
campaign. One a group of players can easily find adventure in
as they try to thwart spies from other lands, figure out which
Cormyrean nobles want to use steam power to overthrow the
Obarskyr Royal Family, deal with zealous priests of Gond
come to see the newest inventions, travel far across the
Forgotten Realms to retrieve stolen steam technology, and
utilize (experimental) steam powered contraptions to battle
monsters or even dragons sent to destroy this new
technology before it usurps magic.
Sounds fun, doesn't it?
CORMYREAN COMMENTARY 2
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 Background Assistance: Guild Artisan
The Guild Artisan is a useful background for players who
want to equip their character with artisans tools and the
means to make a living between adventures. This utility
extends to Cormyr, where two varieties of guilds exist: High
Guilds and Craft Guilds.
With the permission of your DM, you may roll on one of the
two tables that follow to determine the type of guild business
you are proficient in and the scope of its territory in Cormyr.
Note: For purposes of downtime and paying for a lifestyle,
the territories of a guild listed on the following tables do not
limit your ability to make a living outside of those territories
by utilizing the trade you are proficient in.
Cormyrean High Guilds
d12   Guild Business
1   Armorers Guild
2   Brewers and Cheesemakers Guild
3   Guild of Carpenters and Joiners
4   Guild of Coachlars, Carriers, Waymen and Locksters
5   Guild of Naturalists
6   Roofers, Thatchers and Glaziers Guild
7   Sculptors and Masons Guild
8   Seafarers Guild
9   Tanners and Leatherers Guild
10   Truebreeds Guild
11   Vintners and Falconers Guild
12   Guild of Weavers and Coopers
To be a member of a High Guild is to work for an
organization formally recognized by the Crown of Cormyr. A
royal charter binds High Guilds to the Crown, with all the
heraldry, badges, yearly membership fees, guild bylaws,
edicts and colored wax seals one might expect.
The result is much pomp and circumstance, but also power
and influence. You know that High Guilds have the right to
set standards for the quality, shape, size, and ingredients
used in a wide swath of products crafted under their
collective rooves.
As well, you know that outlander merchants have come to
rely on these standards when they buy wares from
Cormyrean Craft Guilds with the intent of reselling them in
other ports on the Sea of Fallen Stars.
Territory
Even with the Crown's approval, the reach of the High Guilds
is limited to Suzail (map hex M40-41), all the lands north of
Suzail as far as Hilp (map hex R15), and east as far as the
walls of Marsember.
As such, you've seen firsthand the friction between the
High Guilds and Cormyr's many nobles, the later quietly but
actively resisting the influence of non-nobles in matters of
craftwork, trade and commerce as it is practiced in wider
Cormyr.
3 BACKGROUND ASSISTANCE
Cormyrean Craft Guilds
d12  Guild Business  Location
1  Benevolent Muster of Merchants  Eveningstar
2  Brotherhood of Bread and Wine  Monksblade
3  Devoted Assemblage of Waytraders  Waymoot
4  Dutiful Committee of Metalsmiths  Hillmarch
5  Fraternal Order of Thunder Runners  Thunderstone
6  Guild of Binders, Printers and  Arabel
 Copyists
7  Loyal Council of Coinfellows  Espar
8  Obedient Council of Barge Masters  Hultail
9  Self-Declared Masters of Wine  Bogbrook
10  Sisterhood of Sailmakers and  Moonever
 Weavers
11  Unselfish Assembly of Shopkeepers  Immersea
12  Wisened Order of Shipwreck  Marsember
 Salvagers
Whereas the High Guilds concern themselves with one
profession, Craft Guilds represent several skillsets. Craft
Guilds find common cause through proximity and mutual
economic protection. The strength of a Craft Guild is derived
from cooperation between like-minded shopkeepers, crafters
and traders.
You have seen firsthand how a properly formed Craft Guild
can exert influence on the nearest King's Lord to keep Crown
levies and fees low, negotiate with shippers and traders for
the lowest costs for raw materials and their transport, and
curtail the grasping reach of nobles who desire to control
trade and commerce in the parts of Cormyr where they live.
You know too that the power of Craft Guilds varies from
one to the next. Whereas the better Craft Guilds easily spot
swindlers and thieves and run them out of town, the worst
Craft Guilds do little more than waggle their tongues and
affect no worthwhile change for their members.
Territory
The reach of Craft Guilds is centered on the village or town
where the guild leaders gather to strategize, resolve disputes
and plan for the future. This reach is further modified by the
loyalties (or the lack thereof) among the guild membership
and the many non-guild members a Craft Guild must
necessarily interact with in order to do business.
Finally, the Cormyrean Craft Guilds Table lists only a
handful of the numerous Craft Guilds active in Cormyr. Your
Dungeon Master is free add or subtract from the list as they
see fit, and to move one or more craft guilds to different
locations.
/
 TOP: MAKING PAPER BY HAND
BOTTOM: GUILD SCROLLS, COFFERS
AND A GUILD SEAL (IN WAX) 4
/
 The DM's Workshop: Index Mining
The process of creating believable and interesting names for
inns, castles, dungeons and other fantasy locations can be a
speedbump you roll over or a wall you run into.
In order to spare you from crashing into a creative
roadblock and seeing your campaign prep grind to a halt, I
would like to share with you a favorite technique of mine for
generating place names: index mining.
The process is simple:
1. Find the index in a fantasy gaming sourcebook and write
down any words that sound interesting to you.
2. Start mashing the words together until you come up with
ten fun-sounding names.
3. Pick two or three names and give them the "2-4 line
treatment" by generating at least two descriptive
sentences, but not more than four, for each place name.
The trick is not to be picky. Don't worry if a name sounds
ludicrous or too silly to use; if it makes you laugh, makes you
smile or if the name sounds cool, use it. Same thing for the
two-line descriptions. Just bang them out like you're lifting
weights: you lift, quick rest, you lift again.
My all-time favorite sourcebooks for index mining are the
Volo's Guides. The indexes are broken down by categories
like Bands & Organizations; Temples & Sacred Sites; Shops;
Settlements; Homes; Inns & Rooming Houses, and so on,
which makes it easy to combine words and parts of names to
form something new. (And helps to remind me what sort of
locations I should be writing place names for.)
If you do this once a week, then you will have several handy
lists of places to pick from for your campaign (useful when
the players zig and you expected them to zag). Even better,
sometimes a place name you created demands more than
four lines. If this happens then go for it. Just keep writing.
Name Generation
Here are ten place names I came up with by mashing
together words found in the index for Volo's Guide to the
Dalelands .
1. Blackwater's Provisions
2. Felsharp's Bonepile
3. The Thirsty Death Knight
4. The Abbey of Dancing Fire
5. The Tower of the High Leaves
6. Stonebow, Stump and Redmark — Ferrymen
7. The Lion Bell
8. The Witch Barracks
9. Galath's Bellowing Werebat
10. Spindral's Hand In The Moon
5 DM'S WORKSHOP
2-4 Line Treatment
I have tailored these descriptions to Cormyr, but you can just
as easily place these locations anywhere in the Realms.
1. Blackwater's Provisions
Blackwater's is a roadside provider of traveler's goods (tack
and harness, wagon wheels and canvas, ale, water, biscuits
and other edibles) and repair services (replacing wagon
wheels, patching canvas, shoeing horses). It's also a moving
target: Blackwater's consists of no less than three enormous
wagons—and as many as six during harvest season—that
roam up and down the Thunder Way from the slowly
rebuilding city of Wheloon to the nominally independent
village of Highcastle in the Thunder Peaks.
Traders and travelers alike on the Way can easily spot the
Blackwater wagons for their black canvasses, and banners
raised on tentpoles (three white wagon wheels on a black
field) whenever the wagons are stopped on the side of the
road. By night the Blackwater wagons act as a temporary
waystop that accepts other travelers under its banner and
offers a safe encampment to rest at.
2. Felsharp's Bonepile
For all the work done by Suzail's Dung-and-Bone
Waggoneers to extract bones from the human waste, refuse
and animal carcasses they collect and cart out of the city
(Suzail lacks sewers), there remains a substantial amount of
bone to be had from the dumping ground of Wormpits (map
K42). Felsharp's Bonepile is located one gently rolling hill
east of Wormpits, and mercifully upwind from the stench.
Felsharp possesses an encyclopedic knowledge of his
collection and is rarely mistaken when it comes to a
particular bone's provenance.
Felsharp built his business by digging out and selling the
bones that even the dung collectors refused to keep for
themselves (including the bones of murder victims whose
killers wanted the corpses disappeared quietly), and it has
steadily grown to the point that some dung collectors earn
better coin by selling to Felsharp directly.
3. The Thirsty Death Knight
Once a playhouse, the Thirsty Death Knight serves as a
roofless, three-walled structure with its back to the
Dragonmere. The entrance consists of a total lack of wall on
one side, the interior walls painted over in flowing, albeit
faded, scenes depicting a once-popular play about an undead
knight from Monksblade that found peace by slaying the last
nefarious descendant of the knight's slayer and arch rival,
who'd come to live in Marsember (the noble slain at the end
of the play always belonged to whichever noble family was
currently the least popular in the City of Spices.)
Now the "Thirsty Knight," as locals call it, is a gathering
place where Marsembans of high and low station come to
mingle, share gossip, and discuss the popular subjects of the
day. The metallic pigments in the wall paintings glimmer and
sparkle whenever the sun peeks through Marsember's ever
present clouds to warm the structure.
/
4. The Abbey of Dancing Fire
An unusual collection of squat stone structures comprise this
abbey dedicated to the worship of Kossuth, Lord of Fire; no
two are alike, and the occupants come from all over the
continent of Faerûn.
The abbey's location along the eastern coast of the
Wyvernwater (halfway between Junirill and Hultail) has not
spared it the attention of the Crown; led by Swordcaptain
Hannifae Rowanmantle, and based out of Junirill, a ride of
forty mounted Purple Dragons visits the abbey once every
tenday.
The followers of the Lord of Flames cooperate with the
Dragons, and otherwise go about their business venerating
their deity. New followers from beyond Cormyr that seek the
Abbey are oft escorted by the Dragons to the location, and are
given a pointed lesson on Cormyr's laws and customs during
the ride.
5. The Tower of High Leaves
The Tower of High Leaves is fashioned out of an enormous
dead Ironwood tree that stands between the southern border
of the Hullack Forest and the northeastern coast of the
Wyvernwater. By means of careful architecture, the rooms
within the tower were not so much constructed as carved,
their placement meant to preserve the tree's stability.
The Tower of High Leaves is an important school of arcane
learning and forest lore. In the century since the Tower was
established, the bottom portion of the tree has been slowly
hollowed out and reinforced to allow for additional rooms for
students, as well as the completion of an inn for the exclusive
use of trusted friends and former students of the Tower.
6. Stonebow, Stump, and Redmark -
Bargemasters
The Thunderflow's name conjures up images of impossible
rapids and precipitous waterfalls—not the sort of river one
would expect to navigate on a barge. However, a great deal of
barge traffic flows along the Thunderflow from well up into
the Thunder Peaks (where the Thunderflow originates) all
the way down to Hultail where the river empties into the
eastern arm of the Wyvernwater.
The bargemasters Haverndask Stonebow, Rorbar Stump
and Doust Redmark formed a shipping cabal by pooling their
resources and purchasing additional barges, the better to
extend their collective reach past the Thunderflow and into
the Wyvernwater as far as Sunset Hill to the north and
Junirill to the south.
Business may be conducted with any one of the three
bargemasters, who are collectively known for charging fair
rates and for their no questions asked freight policy.
FELSHARP'S SKULLS FOR SALE 6
/
 7. The Lion Bell
One of a handful of new ale houses founded in the last
century in Thunderstone (itself one of the fastest growing
"fortress towns" on Cormyr's long border with Sembia), the
Lion Bell is a squat, single story building that appears far too
serious to be a drinking house, with a watch tower attached
to one side.
Visitors who notice the doorway leading from the low
building to the tower is walled off or that the tower windows
are sealed shut from the outside and thinks to ask why, will
be told "the ghosts of the tower are content to remain where
they lurk" by the owner of the Bell, Varimbra Sparrantar.
Varimbra claims the tower and barracks building are all
that remains of a keep that stood on one of the many rolling
hills that border Thunderstone. Her regulars insist the keep
was once an outpost for a realm that existed independently of
Cormyr many centuries in the past, such as Espar or even
fallen Orva.
7                         DM'S WORKSHOP
A native of Impiltur, Varimbra does not speak of her true
origins or how she came to Cormyr, insisting instead that she
is a native of the Forest Kingdom.
8. The Witch Barracks
An old name for the ale house known today as the Lion Bell.
The Witch Barracks was the less than affectionate name
given to the building that housed a garrison of Purple
Dragons near Thunderstone.
The Dragons never occupied the tower, though there stood
a pair of closed doors in the wall shared by the garrison and
the tower that led to the tower's ground floor and three flights
of rotted stares leading to the lookout. Instead, the Dragons
constructed a ladder on the face of the tower and used it to
climb to the roof where they kept watch.
The Witch Barracks was abandoned not long after it was
occupied, owing to nightmares suffered by the Dragons and
bouts of sleepwalking that sent them falling to their deaths
from the atop the watchtower.
9. Galath's Bellowing Werebat
Located south of the Way of the Manticore between
Dreamer's Rock and Monksblade, Galath's Bellowing
Werebat is not a place so much as an attraction—one of many
sprinkled along the farmer Galath's steading, itself situated
on the rolling countryside that separates the Way from the
northern shores of the Dragonmere.
Galath built his "werebat" on a discarded wagon chassis
(the better to house the bladders of air that feed the horns
which sound off when the wings move) to which he attached
overlarge wheels that allow his contraption to be towed
wherever he desires, and wings that when fully extended can
each shade a full-grown horse.
The bellowing werebat is the latest addition to Galath's
collection of "trail signals," each operated by a jack or lass
paid to sound off the contraption whenever "travelers become
trespassers," in Galath's words.
Just where the trail ends and his ancestral family lands
begin is a soon-to-be-loud debate old Galath is eager to have
with the many uninvited travelers that come to see his
creations.
10. Spindral's Hand On The Moon
The ranger Spindral established this minor altar to Selûne in
the lee of a pair of run down towers that stand side by side to
the west of the village of Monksblade and south of the Way of
the Manticore.
The towers were constructed in the days when knights and
priests of several deities banded together to scour the region
of roaming beasts and other fell threats. This era saw the rise
of Cormyr's reputation as a land filled with valiant knights
and bold warriors, and the construction of fortified temples,
towers and small "foursquare" keeps, several of which linger
on as unoccupied ruins in the vicinity of Monksblade.
Though Spindral is long dead and the altar has been
reduced to little more than a shrine, adventurers continue to
search the area for signs of her grave and the treasure
rumored to be buried with her.
/
Haunts and Horrors: The King's Forest
The roads that allow passage into and out of the King's A popular tale shared among residents of Waymoot claims
Forest hold no true waystops. That travelers must camp on every King of Cormyr secretly makes a trip to the woods soon
the side of the road without access to a nearby garrison of after ascending to the throne, with the purpose of meeting—
Purple Dragons is by design; the Crown of Cormyr has no and in some cases, confronting—the White Stags. Cormyr's
interest in encouraging travelers to tarry in the woods. newest crowned head is quietly judged by the silent stags.
When sunset approaches, caravan masters traveling on the Waymootans believe the stags telepathically impart words of
Starwater Road, the Way of the Dragon and the Ranger's Way advice to the monarch, then remind the Royal about their
dispatch outriders to secure a campsite. Abandoned sacred responsibility to maintain all the woods of the Forest
woodcutters' glades are preferred. Most of these stand just off Kingdom.
the road, near small winding streams a short walk into the
trees.
Nightfall heralds a count of heads, the watering of horses,
then campfires, cooking, quiet conversation and storytelling.
Travelers unused to the ways of the road might wonder aloud
why a tally of individuals is made. Experienced woodland
travelers wear grim smiles by way of reply.
Travelers' lore holds 'tis best to stay within the bounds of a
roadside campsite: Stay off the road to avoid getting runover
by errant wagons eking out one last mile before sunset; avoid
blundering off into the trees and becoming lost; never cross
to the other side of a forest stream just after sunset so the
hungry ghosts and haunts gathering in the trees on the other
side of the water don't get you.
Stories of the beneficial hauntings within the King's Forest
are saved for the next night, after listeners have spent the day
absorbing the lessons told the previous evening.
Among the haunts and horrors of the King's Forest are
stories of:
The White Stag
Stags of purest white, each as tall at the shoulders as a
covered wagon, with antlers like tree branches. Never less than
three appear, never more than five. From nose to tail they glow
no brighter than a candle, but are impossible to miss by night
among the trees. The stags move unhindered through the
forest, ripples of white light flowing through the leaves and
the ground in their wake.

Travelers’ lore holds that to sight an enormous spectral stag

is to behold a living manifestation of the King’s Forest—the
very spirit of the woodland come to life.
Half-elves believe the White Stags are lingering echoes of
an older time, when enormous varieties of the common
animals and beasts of Cormyr's forests lived and roamed
inside a single woodland that stretched unbroken from the
Stormhorns to the Thunder Peaks.
Among druids and rangers, the mere rumor of the
appearance of White Stags is treated as a call to travel to the
place the apparition is believed to have appeared. Upon their
arrival, the keepers of the forest search for clues to discover
what task the forest wishes to be done.

HAUNTS AND HORRORS 8

/
  
Battle Haunts
One must look with eyes unfocused towards the smoke
boiling out of the earth. Shouts of pain, the grunt of warriors
stabbed in the gut, swords crashing on shields, throats
choking on blood; the sounds of battle careen off the trees
and into your ears. The eye naturally follows movement, but if
this reflex can be overcome then a frightening scene unfolds.
The smoke stings your eyes while the din of conflict rings
louder. The armored warriors come closer, closer. Beware. If
the battle stops then run, don't look. To look into the empty
eyes of the warriors is to become part of the battle haunt.
The stuff of nightmares and sleepless nights, battle haunts
are common enough that if Forest locals hear talk of them by
anyone who appears unaccustomed to traveling in the King’s
Wood, they will interrupt to issue a firm warning: Don’t look.
Don’t Listen. Run away. Then: Did you lose anyone to the
haunt?
9 HAUNTS AND HORRORS
Some sages believe the warriors trapped within a battle
haunt were consumed by forest fire or swept away in titanic
waves of magic. Now their spirits are doomed to battle
endlessly in the darkest parts of the woods. With no hope of
eternal rest, only the attention of the living provides them
succor. To gather a living being and share their agony with it
grants the warriors a moment of respite. With each addition
the haunt grows larger.
Every few decades a Battlepriest of Tempus will journey to
the King's Forest and attempt to release the spirits caught in
a Battle Haunt. In the last century, no worshipper of the Lord
of Battles has succeeded in channeling sufficient divine
power to destroy a battle haunt. Today, anyone brave (or
foolish) enough to look into the smoke may glimpse the failed
priests among the spectral warriors battling endlessly in the
dark.
Harps of Silver and Blue
A harp of silver and blue floating on the road or trail and held
by no one. Of the kind that elves and half-elves once used to
play music in Cormyr when more of their kind lived among the
trees. It never approaches closer than a dagger can travel with
a good, hard throw.
Some of the most common apparitions sighted in the King's
Forest (and wider Cormyr), the silent manifestation of ghostly
harps are believed by travelers to be either: a sign of good
luck; a boon of protection; a signpost of sorts that indicates a
safe campsite or a trail cache of useful things is nearby.
Music emanating from a spectral harp is another matter.
Travelers are advised to listen closely, for the harp's song
gives clues as to why it has manifested. Funeral songs may
indicate the body of a fallen hero is nearby. Marching tunes
may warn of the approach of a small force of mercenaries or
brigands. Bards and those educated in music are a boon in
such circumstances.
The Night Rider Shining Bright
A blazing bright rider on horseback barrels down the road
towards whomever is foolish enough to travel the trails and
roads of the King’s Forest by night. Shouts and warnings do
nothing to avert its charge. Ghostly rider and horse burst into
a shower of cold blue sparks a moment before crashing into
the living. The mere touch of a spark sends a chill racing
through one’s body that goes right to the heart.
Cormyrean folklore is replete with tales of spectral riders
galloping through the night. In the King's Forest it’s widely
held that at least one ghost of a wayward noble—and his
favorite horse—lives on in undeath, not so much warning as
freezing on the spot travelers walking the roads and trails
when they are about to encounter lethal danger.
Cormyreans native to the King's Forest agree that to
encounter a spectral rider anywhere near Stagsteads means
one is either a traitor to the Crown, or one is in the company
of others who are.
/
The Dancing Blades
A pair of swords dueling, their wielders nowhere to be seen.
The spectral blades chase each other between the trees and
up into the boughs where the dance among the branches and
throw showers of blue sparks when they clash.
Between the settlements of the King’s Forest, fanciful stories
involving dueling elf princes run up against tales of magical
swords animated by unseen wizard masters, each tale teller
claiming to know the true origin of the Dancing Blades.
While bards duel with competing stories of the Dancing
Blades, Crown foresters tell only truth on the subject. Any
forester will tell you it’s best never to run away from the
Dancing Blades because they’ll chase a fleeing man or
woman even as they race after each other.
For a time the swords appeared nightly on the outskirts of
Waymoot—so much so that adventurers tried repeatedly to
put the haunts to rest permanently. All they succeeded in
doing was angering whatever sentience drives the swords to
appear and duel, such that the blades hounded the
adventurers nightly, forcing the local lord to expel the
adventurers out of concern for the town residents.
 The residents of Dhedluk tell the story of a famous ranger
who encountered the Dancing Blades on the outskirts of
town. Florin Falconhand wisely did not flee, but observed the
blades parry, thrust, counter and riposte for the better part of
a night, even following the spectral weapons as they moved
about.
When the first hints of sunlight touched the trees, the
blades paused in their duel and the ranger is said to have
exclaimed, “A fight most magnificent! What skill! What
daring!” The blades stood points up, tipped as one towards
the ranger in the manner of a proper salute, then returned to
their upright position before winking out of existence.
Not long after, when Florin was ambushed by agents of the
Zhentarim lurking in Dhedluk, a pair of translucent blades of
silver and blue materialized to either side of the ranger and
together they fought off the attackers.
The story of the wise ranger is always told with a measure
of pride. In the years following the incident in Dhedluk,
Florin Falconhand would come to save King Azoun IV from
another Zhentarim attack, this time in the company of his
adventuring companions, the Swords of Eveningstar.
HAUNTS AND HORRORS 10
/
 Matters of Magic: Tsharliira's Legacy
Cultured, possessed of superior manners and integrity,
intolerant of drunken behavior and relentless in the defense
of her home, the wizard Tsharliira of Blackthorne lived her
life not far from the farming village of Eveningstar. (Map: J3)
A meticulous crafter of magic items, Tsharliira spent her
days before the Devil Dragon War perfecting formulas for
wondrous items that could provide warmth and comfort to
everyday Cormyreans. Her skill at Art is reflected in her
Warming Chests, all but a handful willed away to the people
of Eveningstar after Tsharliira passed away. After the war, her
interest turned to wand magic. She crafted specialized wands
and wondrous items to draw on their power—power
Tsharliira used to fuel her own faltering spells, and to fuel yet
more magic items that she wore.
It was during the war that Tsharliira's formidable mansion
guarded Eveningstar's western flank from an onslaught of
orcs and goblins. So great was the slaughter inflicted by
Tsharliira's spells and her guardian wyverns that patches of
fleshwort (an herb that grows swiftly in the blood-soaked
earth of battlefields) can still be found in the gardens
surrounding Blackthorne one hundred and twenty years after
war's end.
The heroic death of Azoun IV left a black mark on
Tsharliira's heart. The king had been a friend and sometimes
visitor to Blackthorne in the company of outlander nobles.
His was the rare presence Tsharliira had welcomed into her
cloistered life. Dreams of bloodthirsty orcs, evil-eyed goblins
and magic drinking ghazneths came to menace her sleep.
The scars from wounds received in battle ached whenever
Tsharliira cast her spells. The relentless advance of time
eroded her spellcasting prowess. All this, while dark new
threats to Cormyr gathered beyond the Stonelands to the
north. Tsharliira’s home had changed from a safe place in
which to practice her Art into a prison defined by fear,
sadness, and pain.
In Suzail, within the Court of the Steel Regent, Tsharliira's
prolific creations were no secret. Nor the fact that she had no
apprentices and no appointed successor. Concern was voiced
over what might happen to Tsharliira's magical creations
should the wizard die. At the gentle suggestion of the Lady
Eveningspire, the Dowager Dragon Queen Filfaeril Selazair
Obarskyr agreed to approach Tsharliira unheralded and in
secret. The Dragon Queen apologized to Tsharliira for the
Crown's failure to renew the warm friendship her late
husband the king had kept with the wizard. As recompense,
the Crown offered to assist Tsharliira in securing her legacy.
It took more than one meeting before Tsharliira relented to
the Queen. Her permission given, the Dragon Queen called
upon certain trustworthy Cormyrean nobles, the Mage Royal
and Lady Eveningspire to transform Tsharliira's solitary
home into a finishing school for Cormyreans of high and low
station. For the rare student with an aptitude for the Art,
Tsharliira provided magical training.
Today, Tsharliira's successors honor her legacy by teaching
integrity, the skill of learning, and service to others. Students
with a talent for the Art that choose to join the Wizards of
War are sponsored by the Mistresses of Blackthorne.
11 MATTERS OF MAGIC
  Such sponsorship includes a carriage ride to Suzail,
spending coins, and a letter of introduction to the head of the
Council of Mages.
Tsharliira kept detailed notes for all of her magical
creations. Rumor among spellcasters holds the formulae are
somewhere within, or perhaps under, Blackthorne. Thieves
and bullyblades sent by wizards and worse occasionally try to
root out Tsharliira's notes. Their fresh corpses make a
healthy meal for the wyverns.
There is no grave for Tsharliira at Blackthorne. Her fate is
a subject not spoken of within its walls, nor by its occupants
when they travel outside of them. Some say Tsharliira gave
herself to the Wyverns—a final meal, just not for her. Others
say she cast one final spell that gave her essence to
Blackthorne, and that the Mistresses can call upon
Tsharliira's powers in time of need. Still others believe
Tsharliira died from doing what she did best: gifting
something of herself into every item of magic she crafted.
Thus, there was nothing left of her to bury.
Beast Lamp
Wondrous item, uncommon
When you light a candle and place it inside this iron candle
lamp, it protects you from creatures of the Beast type.
While you are holding the candle lamp, any creature of the
Beast type must make a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw each
time it attacks you. If the creature fails its saving throw, its
attack fails and it must spend the remainder of its turn
moving away from you at its normal movement speed.
Ring of Wand Leeching
Ring, uncommon (requires attunement)
While you wear this ring, any spell of 3rd level or lower that
you have prepared may be cast into the ring, simply by
touching the gem set into it when you cast the spell. If there is
already a spell stored in the ring, that spell is removed and
the spell you cast is stored in its place.
If you hold a wand you are attuned to while you wear this
ring, you can use an action to expend a number of charges
from the wand to cast the spell stored in the ring. The
number of charges you expend is equal to the level of the
spell stored in the ring. This removes the stored spell from
the ring. Your wand hand is considered to be free for
purposes of making somatic gestures during spellcasting.
Ring of Wand Shielding
Ring, rare
This ring attaches to any wand; it automatically resizes to fit
over the wand and then stays firmly in place. If you place the
ring on a wand you are attuned to, the wand loses its magical
properties except for its number of charges and the ability to
regain new charges daily at dawn.
While you hold the wand this ring is attached to, you may
use your reaction to expend 1 charge from the wand to gain
advantage on saving throws against spells until the start of
your next turn. Your wand hand is considered to be free for
purposes of making somatic gestures during spellcasting.
/
 

  If you lose attunement to the wand the ring is placed on, the
ring falls off. You may use an action to remove the ring. If you
expend the wand's last charge while the ring is attached to it,
the wand crumbles into ashes and is destroyed.
Wand of Spell Parrying
Wand, rare (requires attunement)
This wand has 7 charges. While holding it, you may use your
reaction to expend a number or charges to prevent any spell
of 3rd level or lower from affecting you. The number of
charges you expend is equal to the level of the spell you are
attempting to prevent.
If the spell you prevent targets more than one creature or
has an area of effect, only you are unaffected. If you attempt
to prevent a spell when the wand has insufficient charges
(e.g., attempting to prevent a 3rd level spell when the wand
has 1 charge remaining), the spell is prevented and the wand
is destroyed.
The wand regains 1d6 + 1 expended charges daily at dawn.
If you expend the wand's last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, the
wand crumbles into ashes and is destroyed.
Warming Chest
Wondrous item, common
This magical chest produces warmth equivalent to a simple
log fireplace whenever the lid of the chest is opened. Objects
placed inside the chest are unaffected by the warmth it
produces.
Once per month the chest must be placed next to a source
of heat (e.g., a fireplace, compost heap, forge, bonfire,
crowded room, etc.) for at least 1 hour. Otherwise the chest
loses its magical properties until it is placed next to a source
of heat for 1 hour.

MATTERS OF MAGIC 12
/
 A STUDENT OF BLACKTHORNE
CARRIES THE BEAST LAMP ON
13 A WALK THROUGH THE TREES
/
 The Purple Dragons
The Purple Dragons are Cormyr's first line of defense against
threats to its people and its crowned heads. Strife and
conflict are as much a part of Cormyr as anywhere else; it's
rare for someone other than a tabard-wearing Purple Dragon
to be first to draw steel and attempt to bring peace and order
to the fray.
Death in service to the Crown does not end Cormyr's
relationship with those who defend it. Nor does retirement
owing to old age, infirmity, or injury. The men and women of
the Purple Dragons are taken care of to the best of the
Crown's ability.
When Dragons Retire
Newly retired Purple Dragons are gifted a service dagger
upon their departure from service. Through a simple act
of will the Dragon may command their service dagger to
shed light equal to that of a candle, or to extinguish the
light.
Retired Dragons suffering from disease are given a
pension and a place to live out their days in Thulser's
Lodge, near Mouth O' Gargoyles, in the King's Forest
(border of hexes O19 and O20).
A Dragon too old or infirm to live on their own is given a
pension and housed at no personal cost within the
sprawling fortress farm of Daunthers (east of Gladehap
and north of Ongul's Water, just north of the Way of the
Manticore).
Words and Phrases: Know Your Jacks
anandjack
The head of a shift of doorjacks in a castle, palace or very
large mansion.
The chief doorjack in smaller buildings.
chamberjack
Typically found at small inns. An individual manservant
responsible for seeing to the all the needs of the
occupants staying at an inn, or for a group of rooms.
doorjack
A type of uniformed, domestic manservant.
Someone stationed next to the door of a chamber that is
responsible for delivering messages between rooms or
fetching small items.
flagonjack
Fetches and serves drinks to guests at an inn or club
housejack
The equivalent of a butler in a castle, palace, or a
mansion.
Retired Dragons in good health are given a pension and a
parcel of land on which to live out their remaining days.
When Dragons Die
The disposal of a Purple Dragon's remains depends on
burial instructions, if any, previously given by the Dragon.
If no instructions were given, then the Dragon's remains
are interred as ashes inside stone nameplate blocks
bearing the Dragon's name, rank, and dates of service.
Some blocks include a stylized carving of the company
badge the Dragon wore in life, and markers denoting
honors the Dragon earned in their time of service to the
Crown. The nameplate blocks are part of the walls that
separate the sprawling, tree-filled graveyard on the
northern side of Daunthers from the rolling farmland that
surrounds the retirement keep.
The bodies of some Dragons are buried in crypts beneath
the graveyard. Crypt access is found inside any of the
numerous stone houses around which trees, grass and
bushes grow, all of this protected by a select group of
guardians collectively known as "watchers" among the
residents of the retirement keep.
If burial instructions were left by a Dragon, then the
Crown does its best to honor them. Only impractical or
impossible instructions (e.g., bury me next to Cormyr's
crowned heads) are left unfulfilled.
jack
A male servant. In contrast to 'maid.'
jacks and lasses
Little boys and girls employed to fetch objects from the
attics and/or cellars of an inn, tavern or rooming house.
Young people that loiter near the entrances to inns,
taverns or other places that see lots of customers. They
hope to earn coins as message runners or as "guard and
warn" watchers over a traveler's horse or wagon.
Sometimes act as fetchers of goods, or of food and drink if
none is offered at an establishment.
nightjack
In the finest and largest inns may be found nightjacks
whose sole responsibility it is to retrieve chamber pots
and disposes of their contents. Known less formally as
potjacks.
warming jack
Manservants employed at inns of middle size. They fetch
or deliver chamber pots, ewers, wash water, drinking
water, towels and basins for guests.
14
/
 Close Encounters: Trouble In Two Lines
What follows are thirteen two-line encounter scenarios for
you to keep like an ace up your sleeve. Play them at the
gaming table to change things up or to surprise your players
when they least expect it.
Encounter #1
In the midst of a thunderstorm, while the characters are
resting between adventures at an inn located in the vicinity of
the Stormhorns or the Thunder Peaks, a shrieking bolt of
lightning hammers the building, shakes the place to its
foundations and gives everyone present a rude shock.
No sooner do the characters recover then several of the inn
staff and certain of its customers fall to the ground, the skin
of their faces melting away like hot wax to reveal a hollow
space filled with shining black spiders with blood red eyes
and razor sharp mandibles that swarm out onto the floor,
biting whatever living thing they can find.
Tip: Use the game statistics for the Swarm of Insects on
page 338 of the Monster Manual along with the Swarm of
Spiders variant rules found on the same page.
Encounter #2
During the character's search for an above ground ruin or the
hidden entrance to a dungeon in an out of the way part of
Cormyr, a pair of skeletons in moldering clothes tear
themselves out of the earth within sight of the characters.
If left unmolested, the skeletons will stand and face the
characters, bow, wave the characters forward, then shamble
off in the direction of the place the characters seek.
Encounter #3
Somewhere within the decrepit ruins of an abandoned
upland estate there hangs a grand painting of immense size
and unusual durability that depicts a variety of monsters
found all over the Forgotten Realms.
The only warning the characters receive before the Encounter #4
painting begins to disgorge trolls, nagas, beholderkin and A friendly NPC that the characters have interacted with
worse is the overwhelming smell of ozone tinged with several times before reveals itself to have been a
cinnamon that permeates air. doppelgänger all along.
Tip: Encounters 2 and 3 can be combined. Perhaps the The creature begs the party to stay their swords and spells,
skeletons are the first of several undead the characters might and offers them a bargain: Should the characters require it,
encounter, while the painting was a trap disguised as a the doppelgänger will impersonate anyone on their behalf
generous gift to the head of an extinct Cormyrean noble (except for a member of Cormyr's royal family), if the
family. characters will unmask and slay the mind flayers seeking to
The skeletons are all that is left of the servants and family control the doppelgänger and its resources in Cormyr.
that once lived in a mansion or keep that has since decayed Encounter #5
into ruin. These undead might appear at the last second if the
characters are about to be overwhelmed by the many After their return home through a portal leading from a
painting-spawned monsters that now roam the overgrown distant part of the Forgotten Realms to the ruins of a temple
gardens and outbuildings of the former estate. The undead overlooking Cormyr's southern coast, the characters travel a
are forbidden from entering the main building where the short distance to nearby Monksblade where they are greeted
painting hangs, but they can lead the characters to the front with shocked looks, dismay, weary blades half-drawn, and
door. possibly tears of joy if any important friends or family
Extinct noble families that might serve as candidates for members of the characters live in the village.
these paired encounters include the Houses of Bracebolt, They characters soon discover the people of Monksblade
Mallowbridge, or Tulwood. buried the characters' bodies not long after they left through
the magical portal in the temple ruin, because the characters
returned to Monksblade the very same day and then promptly
died in their sleep at the Firedagger Inn.

15 CLOSE ENCOUNTERS
/
Encounter #6
When the characters arrive at their village or town
destination, they discover every last inn and boarding house
has been rented out.
The characters soon discover all the occupants are all
female dwarves.
Encounter #7
Howling hobgoblins, ogres, goblins, or a little bit of
everything come boiling up over a nearby hill and run full
speed towards the characters as they are traveling on the
outskirts of Cormyrean territory.
The goblinkin keep right on running past the characters
(even if the characters stop to attack) because a huge, sickly
looking dragon with a broken wing, stump for a tail and green
ooze bubbling out of its mouth comes stumble-running up
and over the hill in pursuit of the terrified goblinkin.
Encounter #8
While the characters are enjoying their downtime at an inn,
club, tavern, or festhall, a trio of liquored up noble's sons
(easily identifiable by their clothing and the "yes milords"
uttered by the assorted hangers on following behind them)
stumble into the establishment.
The lordlings declare the best seats in the house are theirs
by right, and their lackeys would do well to secure the table(s)
the characters are sitting at—by force if necessary.
Encounter #9
1. A guide hired by the characters—perhaps one they have
employed before—does as promised and sees them safely
to the ruin (or other adventure location) they have been
searching for.
2. Once inside, the characters discover the ruin is in fact a
murder temple consecrated to Bhaal, while the guide
attempts to use its every trap, hanging spell, caged
monster and secret passage to harry, divide and ultimately
slay the characters one at a time in Bhaal's name.
Encounter #10
1. The characters walk through a magical portal somewhere
in the wider Realms, and arrive in an unlit maze of old
hallways covered in a blanket of dust and web covered,
ornate rooms.
2. Only after surviving one harrowing encounter after the
next, with the "sad queens" (the spirits of ladies in
waiting), zombie rotters (undead courtiers), cackling
skeletons (the bones of elderly war wizards) and other
horrors, do the characters discover they arrived in the
Haunted Wing of the Royal Palace in Suzail.
Encounter #11
1. No sooner do the characters escape from the Haunted
Wing in the Royal Palace, then they are set upon by a riot
of noise and revelry in the form of drunken Cormyrean
nobles, war wizards, famous bards, high priests and
priestesses, courtiers, social climbers, noteworthy heroes,
hot-headed Sembians, ambassadors from other lands and
wealthy merchants.
2. Between boasts, song, drunken death challenges and
spilled drinks, the characters may (or may not) discover
they have stumbled into the Open Feast, itself a
celebration held once a year in the Royal Palace absent
any members of the Royal Family.
Encounter #12
1. As the characters approach the building housing one of
their favorite shops in Cormyr, they find the entrance
locked, receive no response if they knock on doors, and
observe no one inside the bottom floor if they pry open
locked shutters.
2. Just as the characters are deciding what to do next, the
shutters of an upper floor window are thrown open, a
flying carpet unfurls out of it, and the bound and gagged
form of the shopkeeper is deposited by a pair of
kidnappers.
Encounter #13
1. The characters encounter a life size statue of a humanoid
with a black hood over its head.
2. If the hood is removed, the statue's flesh and blood eyes
open wide and anyone it makes eye contact with is turned
to stone, save for their own eyes.
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS 16
/
17 THE KNIGHT OF OWL WELL
/
Nobles of Cormyr:
The Knight of Owl Well - Part 2
 (See Eye on Cormyr #3 for Part 1.)
Inside the cottage, flames dance in the fireplace after Ruvelle
lights it. A bookshelf lists dangerously against one wall.
Narrow books fill the bottom two shelves; none have titles on
them. Games of strategy and lanceboards are stacked on the
third shelf. The top shelf is a mustering area for game pieces
carved from wood, ivory, and bone that are arranged in
consecutive ranks like a small army. The ranks guard an
upright book with its back against the wall. Ruvelle removes
the book and sits at a small table by the fireplace. Quill in
hand, she dips the tip into an inkwell and writes from
memory. Ruvelle records the names of foundlings and the
events since her last departure from Owl Well. A book, once
full, goes on the bottom shelf; it is replaced by an empty tome
from the second shelf. There are no bottles of wine or other
drinkables in the cottage. Nor are there cooking pots or
utensils. Ruvelle eats dried meats and raw vegetables stored
in the larder, and drinks well water. The only sounds are the
scratch of quill on parchment and the snap and pop of
burning wood. No foundling is allowed to stay longer than a
day and night, even if they are dying. When a foundling dies
Ruvelle hauls the corpse into the clearing, says a brief prayer
to Umberlee and dumps the corpse down the well.
Ruvelle’s skin is a deep bronze hue. Her irises are the color
of old gold; they sparkle in firelight. Her long hair runs down
to her sword belt. “The forest would not like it if I cut it. So I
don’t.” Except for a short brushing in the morning she leaves
it alone. Ruvelle’s voice is pitched low. She doesn’t make
conversation with the people she helps. When she does it is
to give orders. “Eat” or “Don’t leave the trail.” Sometimes,
“You won’t survive the night.”
Ruvelle is every inch a knight in the saddle. She wears a
breastplate, round besagews and gauntlets over a coat of
chain. Her gambeson is the color of dried blood in keeping
with her faith. If she is in the saddle then her longsword is
unsheathed. Her gauntlets are made to lock the sword hilt in
place so she can relax her sword hand. It is no challenge for a
brigand or a monster to spot Ruvelle in the forest; her armor
gleams under the sun, its light plays over the length of her
longsword. A curious innkeeper once asked Ruvelle how she
avoids danger. Her reply: “I do not hide. I am meant to be
found.” A pair of laces fasten a heavy black cloak to her armor.
Like a peace string, the knot can be released with a tug. Black
trousers and knee-high black boots gird her feet and legs. If
Ruvelle hears the call of an owl she considers it a warning.
Her face shows no hint of fear as she dons her helm and
guides her mount in a slow circle, looking for danger through
the eye slit in her helm.
Her horse is a magnificent chestnut gelding with a mane
and skirt of the same black color as Ruvelle's hair. Of the
seven horses Ruvelle has ridden since the start of her watch,
none were given names. She wears out a horse every two or
three years. One died of natural causes. Another was
butchered by goblins.
 Of the goblins Ruvelle says, “They venture further out from
the heart of the Woods every year. Once an emaciated pack of
them fell out of the trees like spiders. Some had three arms.
Others, four. They were so hungry they wouldn’t even defend
themselves. It was a simple matter to give them my horse. I
ran them through one at a time while they feasted.”
All of Ruvelle’s mounts are purchased by agents of her
family from the horse market at Jester’s Green (map: L37).
Ruvelle prefers horses bred in Waymoot (map: D19) because
they don’t panic when made to push through undergrowth or
to pass between close-growing trees. The gelding carries
Ruvelle’s armored weight for hours at a time. The coastal
storms that thrash the Hermit’s Woods are not enough to
stop her. She rides until stars are visible in the night sky.
When Selûne is full Ruvelle rides a few hours longer.
Among chapbook stories featuring the Hermit’s Woods,
tales of gallant knights battling monsters and rescuing
maidens from the clutches of hags are common. One trick of
the hags is to make the trees move so the forest trails won’t
take you to the same place twice. Another is to magically
move the hero after he falls asleep so he wakes up in another
part of the Woods. Readers take the moral to be that it’s easy
to get lost in the Hermit’s Woods. But according to Ruvelle
the stories are true, to an extent. “Imagine waking up to a
forest that is unrecognizable. You are in the same place you
fell asleep, but nothing is familiar. Worse, the trail you were
following might be gone.”
Ruvelle says the trees try to confuse travelers. “Every tree
remembers the voice of someone that spoke under its
branches. Go far enough into the Woods and the trees will
whisper your words back to you. The words sound real
enough, but it's all a trick of the mind. Go further and the
trees will recite conversations they have overheard to confuse
you or mumble like hungry goblins to scare you. I see it in the
wild eyes of foundlings on the trail.”
Ruvelle says the seasons are a factor, too. “The trees sleep
in the wintertime. If you avoid the heart of the Woods and
don’t exhaust yourself fighting off hungry wolves while you
march through hip-deep snow, you can travel from one end to
the other without getting lost. In the Summertime it is best
not to travel more than half a day into the Woods. Any further
and the trees will keep you.” Few of the villagers that liver
near the Hermit’s Woods venture into it. One exception is the
foresters of Blustich, who harvest wild cherries, tend nut
bearing trees and lay small traps to catch game. It’s taboo for
anyone in the village to venture so far that it becomes
impossible to reach Wood’s edge by nightfall. “The men of
Blustich are some of the angriest people I find. Their wives
and sisters will never allow them live down the
embarrassment of getting lost. They curse under their breath
all the way back home.” According to Ruvelle, the foresters
fall quiet once they reach the graveyard that divides the
farmland overlooking Blustich. Ruvelle leaves them at
graveyard’s edge to finish their walk alone.
THE KNIGHT OF OWL WELL 18
/
   Lighting a fire is one way to attract the attention of the trees,
says Ruvelle. Leaving the trails is another. The quickest way
to get lost is to carry magic into the Woods. “Adventurers die
here because their magic draws the attention of the trees. It’s
like banging a drum inside a dragon’s lair.” Worse, she says, is
the mistaken belief shared by adventurers that some great
treasure is hidden in the heart of the Woods. Ruvelle shakes
her head. “The trees of the Wood are not guardians, but
jailers. They keep you until you die.” The discovery of dead
adventurers spurs Ruvelle to move with haste. She alerts
innkeepers and travelers on the Wood’s edge trails of the
latest adventurer deaths. Unfortunately, this is not always
enough to keep other adventurers from looking for those who
never returned.
She rarely hears the trees in her mind. When she does, it’s
in the form of a song. “It’s beautiful. It feels like something
that was started and has not yet ended. Usually it means the
trees have caught someone.” Foundlings tell a different story.
They describe whispers, something heard behind your back
or from up in a tree. The voices multiply the deeper you
venture into the Woods; they become angry, they get louder,
they argue. Then the shouting starts. Next, the screaming.
What began as a distraction becomes an unavoidable
cacophony. The experience is maddening.
Ruvelle is not incapable of getting lost in the Woods. Her
strategy in such situations is to look for trees wrapped in
Duskrose vines. When Ruvelle finds one she dismounts and
squats at the base of the tree, her sword flat across her
knees. She removes gauntlets and gloves, then selects a
flower and inspects the leaves underneath until she discovers
a leaf with veins that curl and loop across its surface. She
traces the veins with a finger. When she finds an unbroken
line that runs from stem to tip, she memorizes it’s pattern by
speaking out loud. “Onward. Count three forks. Turn to the
sinister. Onward. Half-moon bend. Onward. Count two forks.
Turn to the dexter. Onward to Wood’s edge.” She doesn’t
pluck the leaf. Instead she pricks her finger on a vine thorn
and presses it into the soil at the base of the tree, then she
whispers a word of thanks and kisses the trunk. If the
Duskrose leaves are of no help, Ruvelle makes camp.
Ruvelle’s ancestors have a knack for not falling prey to the
trees. If you are in Marsember, watch for women (not men)
that are unusually tall, with piercing eyes and black hair worn
long. If you see someone like this, you are probably looking at
one of Ruvelle’s distant relatives. Among the Keskrels of
Marsember, knowledge of the Hermit's Wood is passed on by
word of mouth. “No single family in Marsember knows all the
lore of the Wood,” she says. "I would wager on the
Mallowbridges knowing more than anyone.”
Ruvelle considers anywhere on the trail to be a suitable
campsite. She draws feed and water for her gelding from
saddlebags hanging on the left side of her saddle. Food and
water for Ruvelle and her foundlings are in saddlebags on the
right. She never builds a campfire. If she is in the company of
a foundling, Ruvelle allows her cloak to be used as for a
blanket. Ruvelle lays on her back with her head resting in a
pool of black hair, one hand resting over sheathed daggers.

19 THE KNIGHT OF OWL WELL

/
Map of Hermit's Woods There are too many trails circumventing the Hermit's Woods
to list their names here. Each varies in size from a rutted
and Vicinity track suitable for wagon traffic to a footpath barely wide
enough for travelers to walk in a line. The paths of the most
Settlements commonly used trails (Nesmyth south to Bogbrook and then
Name Size (DMG p.16-17) Moonever; Moonever east to Blustich) are shown on the map.
Blustich Village The same is true of the many ruins inhabiting the Hermit's
Woods, both within its trees and underneath the Wood. Of
Bogbrook Village these, the recent discovery of a castle-like ruin on the
Marsember City northeastern edge of the forest has drawn the attention of
Moonever Village
adventurers and the Crown. Parts of the ruin shift in and out
of reality when certain spells are cast nearby. None as yet
Nesmyth Village have deduced what sequence of spells must be cast to realize
Ongul's Water Village the whole structure. See 'Spellcatch Ruin' on the map.
Wheloon Town

THE KNIGHT OF OWL WELL 20

/
 Dungeon Under The Tower Keep
A 1st Level Adventure
The ruins of buildings constructed by petty lords stand not
far from the roads used by modern-day Cormyreans to travel
through the King's Forest. Today, the trails to such ruins are
obscured by undergrowth, the ruins themselves hidden
behind ranks of trees.
Salvagers hunting for good stone and adventurers seeking
lost treasure flock to these ruins. Rangers and Crown
foresters make a point of checking on the ruins too.
Collapsed towers, exposed cellars, signs of monstrous activity
and fresh corpses are noted. If the dead are recognized, word
of their passing is relayed to the nearest settlement.
Unless a danger is sure to spread beyond a ruin, the Crown
does not attempt to eliminate the threat or prevent others
from exploring a ruin. (Though it will leave warnings in
settlements that "yon tower a half day's walk into the wood is
ready to collapse.") Rangers do the same, the better to
maintain balance between human activity and the wild
denizens of the forest that live in ruins. Rangers sometimes
leave trail runes on trees near ruins to indicate the presence
of a newly observed danger.
The Dungeon Under The Tower Keep is an example of one
such ruin within the King's Forest. It sports a decaying tower,
forgotten corpses, lesser beasts of the forest, and a newly
exposed (but not yet discovered) cellar entrance that leads to
an assemblage of horrors beneath the earth.
This ruin is located within a few hexes of Waymoot (map
D19), and a half day's forest walk from either the Way of the
Dragon or the Ranger's Way. Select a hex to place the ruin in
and record its map coordinates in your campaign notes.
STRUCTURE INFORMATION
Map Square 10 foot squares.
Arrowslits        Three-quarters cover (PHB p.196):
+5 AC and Dexterity saves.
Doors Stone slabs on hinges. Open inward. Fitted
with brackets for wooden bars. Strength
DC 15 to burst open barred doors.
Floors Cracked and broken flagstone. Cracks are
filled with moss, weeds and dirt.
Floors (tower) Thin flagstone over rotted wooden beams
Rubble Difficult terrain. +5 movement cost.
Roofs Shape: gabled. 15 feet high at eaves, 20
feet at ridge. Slate tiles over rotted wooden
beams.
Roof (tower) Shape: conical. 15 feet at eaves, 20 feet at
apex. Slate tiles over rotted wooden beams.
Stairs Worked stone steps over mortared stone.
Walls Mortared stone. 15 feet tall.
Strength (Athletics) DC 13 to climb.
21 DUNGEON UNDER THE TOWER KEEP
Ground Level
A 45 foot tall tower dominates this ruin, its out wall ringed
with arrow slits. An uneven wall made of poorly fitted stone
extends 50 feet south-southwest from the tower. The wall
makes a hard turn east, extending for nearly 100 before it
joins with the remnants of a gatehouse. There is no gate.
North of the gatehouse, a 50 foot long building runs east to
west. A single stone door marks the point where the building
and tower touch. The gabled roofs are weather damaged and
run through with holes. Some roofs have fallen in.
Area 1: Courtyard
The courtyard is paved moss covered cobblestones overrun
with wild grass and low bushes. There is no sign of foot
traffic or other recent activity within the courtyard. Up above,
a tattered black flag high up on the tower whips back and
forth in the wind.
Area 2: Empty Hall
There is no way to tell whether this 20 foot long by 60 foot
wide room was a grand hall, a barracks or both. There
remains no furniture, rugs, nor wall hangings to indicate the
room's purpose. Gaps in the north, east and south walls allow
creatures of Medium size or smaller to enter without
difficulty. The double doors in the west wall can be pushed
open from the inside or pulled open from the outside. The
iron brackets that once held a wooden beam that secured the
double doors have become rusted and pitted, the wooden
beam long since plundered. The bones of a roof frame are all
that remains of the ceiling.
A rectangular carve out in the southern wall is empty of the
bookcase that formerly stood within it. Any character with a
passive Perception score of 14 or higher that stands in the
square adjacent to the carve out will notice an iron panel
painted the same color as the stone. Characters that search
the carve out will discover the panel on a successful DC 12
Wisdom (Perception) check. The panel swings open like a
small door to reveal a hollowed out rectangular space. A
Helm of the Skull Lord is stored inside.
Area 3: North Gatehouse
The stone door in the north wall of this gatehouse is shut and
barred from the inside. If characters look through the arrow
slits in the east and south walls, they see a patches of floor
illuminated by sunlight passing through large gaps in the
roof. Characters with a passive Perception score of 12 or
higher notice a hole ringed by broken flagstone in the
northwest corner of the floor.
Characters may attempt to burst open the door to the
gatehouse or climb the outer wall and then either climb or
rappel into the room through the gaps in the roof.
There is little of anything inside this room beyond dust, bits
of broken rock, shattered slate ceiling tiles and sprinklings of
wood fibers. No birds nest in the rafters.
/
DUNGEON UNDER THE TOWER KEEP 22
/
 The square marked "F" indicates a jagged hole in the
flagstones. If the characters inspect the hole, they see the
remnants of wooden frames beneath the floor, each eaten
away by rot and mold. The flagstone covered frames
concealed a 10 foot wide shaft with stone rungs in its south
face, the rungs starting 3 feet down. The air in the shaft is
tainted by a damp mix of rot stench and fetid water. The
bottom of the shaft (60 feet below) is swallowed in darkness.
Characters that climb down the ladder arrive in Area 11.
Area 4: South Gatehouse
The western wall of this gatehouse is missing; a 10 foot wide
gap in the western wall allows for easy access. Arrow slits in
the north wall allowed for a lethal crossfire to be unleashed
when the north gatehouse was manned. There are more
arrow slits in the east and south walls. The roof is intact, the
chamber devoid of objects of interest.
Area 5: Cart Storage and Stables
This space once sheltered horses and a pair of small wooden
carts. All that remains is broken wall. There is no sign of the
roof. Rotted heaps of horse feed and ancient dung piles
grown over in red and brown mushrooms stand knee high in
the southwest corner. If the characters search the heaps, they
disturb a nest of harmless rats.
Area 6: Tower Ground Floor South
The door in the southern face of the tower is open. Inside, a
wedge-shaped chamber 20 feet long and 40 feet wide is
devoid of furniture or other objects. Overhead, wooden beams
that look precariously close to collapsing support 1 inch thick
flagstones that form the floor of the tower's second story. An
open door in the northwest corner leads to Area 7.
Area 7: Tower Ground Floor North
The northern half of the ground floor tower level holds a
stone staircase that rises counterclockwise to the tower's
second story. The stairs are water stained and covered in
dust.
Double doors in the east wall are closed and secured with
a thick beam of ironwood. The 10 foot long beam is heavy
(requires Strength 16 for one character to lift) and remains
sturdy after centuries spent in the iron door brackets.
Five arrow slits spaced like numbers on a clock face pierce
the tower wall. An arched path fashioned into the stone
beneath the stairs leads back to Area 6. The condition of the
ceiling in this room is identical to the ceiling in Area 6.
Area 8: Tower 2nd Floor West
Characters ascending from Area 7 arrive in a semicircle-
shaped chamber. Arrow slits and the opening in the roof
where the staircase ascends to Area 9 allow meager light
from outside to dimly illuminate this room. The flagstone
floor is covered in debris—mostly stone and bits of wood
from the roof 15 feet overhead. A door in the southeastern
wall is shut.
23 DUNGEON UNDER THE TOWER KEEP
The squares marked with a red 'X' indicate areas where the
floor is prone to collapse. Whenever a creature ends its turn
in a marked square, roll percentile dice: 1-50% the floor
holds; 51-100% the floor collapses and all creatures standing
on the square fall 15 feet to the lower level and take 1d6
bludgeoning damage. A successful DC 14 Dexterity saving
throw allows a character to leap to an adjacent square and
fall prone.
A successful DC 12 Intelligence (Investigation) check
identifies a square that will collapse. A check result of 14 or
higher informs the investigating character that such squares
can be safely crossed provided a character does not end their
movement on one. One 10 foot square may be inspected per
check. If characters think to inspect the roof below a square
before they investigate it (by descending to Areas 6 and 7 to
have a look at the ceiling), they gain advantage on their check.
Area 9: Stirge Nest
The eastern half of the tower's 2nd floor is home to a nest of
5 Stirges (MM p.284). The tiny beasts exit their nest by
means of man-sized gaps in the outer tower wall, and the
overhead space along the eastern wall where the ceiling has
fallen in, to hunt. The stirges will attack any creature entering
Area 9. The hungry beasts spread out their attacks between
all the characters they can see. A stirge that has drawn blood
from a character and is removed, as well as a stirge wounded
in combat, will attempt to fly out of the tower. Survivors
return once the characters are gone.
A victim of the stirges sits upright in the space marked "C",
where the outer wall joins the northern side of the wall
separating Area 8 and Area 9. Decay has reduced the corpse
to a gaunt, papery skinned skeleton encased in chainmail
rusted red and the remains of a tabard and breaches piled
over with black stirge droppings. A lump of coins encased in
a rotted leather pouch can be found under the skeleton if the
corpse is searched. It holds 10 cp, 10 sp, and 15 gp. A leather
backpack holds 6 iron spikes, a grappling hook and 20 feet of
steel chain (all in good condition).
The squares marked with a red X collapse like those in
Area 8.
Area 10: Tower 3rd Floor
Years of rain, snow and ice have reduced much of this floor to
rot and rubble. The easternmost portion of the outer wall, and
part of the floor, has fallen away. A precarious island of wall
stands alone beyond the broken edge of the floor. The conical
roof still stands, though numerous holes allow light and
precipitation in. Several support beams have fallen away on
its eastern side. Shattered slate tiles surround fallen roof on
the eastern side of the floor, the wood fibrous and chewed
through by wood worms visible to the naked eye. Wind
whistles through the holes in the roof and the gap in the wall.
Squares marked with a red X collapse like those in Area 8
and Area 9. Note that some marked squares in Area 10 are
over similarly marked squares in area 9. Allow characters to
make new saving throws to avoid falling twice.
If characters explore the eastern edge of the floor, they
have a chance of seeing a corpse half-hidden by a portion of
wall on the "island" beyond the floor's edge. See the space
marked "C."
/
    Another victim of the stirges, this corpse lays on its side
among the rubble. It faces east. The torso is obscured by the
remnants of the tower wall, but its legs and hips are visible. It
is clothed in rusted chainmail, a tattered black cape that
whips back and forth in the wind, and a rotted belt and boots.
Its backpack is obscured by the tower wall. A sheathed
longsword in a scabbard rests on the corpse's hip. Characters
standing on the southeastern edge of the floor with a passive
Perception score of 13 or higher notice the sword hilt is well
preserved.
Characters may attempt to retrieve the corpse by using
mundane or magical means, such as with the chain and
grappling hook found on the corpse in Area 9, or by using
Mage Hand to draw the sword from its sheath (it weighs less
than 10 pounds).
Alternately, characters may attempt to cross the space
between the floor and island by means of:
Climbing up the interior tower wall from Area 9 to Area
10. Requires one DC 13 Strength (Athletics) check.
Jumping across. Minimum Strength score of 12 required
to clear the gap with a 10 foot running start (no ability
check needed; PHB p.182) A DC 12 Dexterity (Acrobatics)
check is required to land among the rubble on the island
without falling prone. A result that is 1 to 4 less than the
DC means the character lands prone.
Characters that fail an Acrobatics or Climbing check with a
result that is 5 to 9 less than the DC will suffer a mishap. If
Acrobatics, the character lands on the island, slips and falls
over the edge, and ends up hanging from the edge of the
island and holding on for dear life. If Climbing, the character
accidentally collapses part of the tower wall holding up the
island. The island itself doesn't collapse, but the character
must immediately make a DC 12 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check
to leap to a safe part of the wall, or they will fall to the floor in
Area 9 and suffer 1d6 bludgeoning damage.
Characters that fail their Acrobatics or Climbing check by
10 or more suffer a major mishap: They fall to the ground in
Area l and taking 4d6 bludgeoning damage.
The corpse wears an enchanted longsword with the
Levitating minor property (see the Magic Items list at end of
this adventure). If the characters search the corpse, they
recover two Potions of Healing (DMG p.188) and a coin
purse with 35 sp and 10 gp from its backpack.
Dungeon Level
Cookie Tastiness
Map Square 10 Foot Squares.
Ceilings 10 foot high.
Doors Stone slabs on hinges. Open inward.
No bars or locks on the doors.
Floors Mostly level floor. Carved from bare rock.
Stairs Carved from bare rock.
Walls Carved from bare rock.
Area 11: Landing
60 feet below the floor of Area 3, the shaft opens into a 10
foot square space covered in wet, mildew and mold.
Fragments from the collapsed floor in Area 3 litter this space.
The walls and ceiling are uneven and appear to be hewn from
solid rock. Likewise the floor. Stairs on the northern edge of
the landing descend to a 30 foot long hallway.
When the characters first arrive on the landing, a narrow
sliver of yellow light can be seen to extend from the middle of
the eastern wall in the hallway past the stairs; it runs
diagonally across the floor. Starting at the stairs, the ceiling is
10 feet overhead. There are no racks on the walls to mount
torches, nor hooks to hang lamps from. Characters with light
sources can see a stone door set into the east wall of the
hallway, 10 feet past the bottom of the stairs. The door is
open a crack. A gap in the west wall is visible opposite the
open door.
Area 12: Corpse Under the Light
Everything is visible in this chamber thanks to a Glowing
Globe that lingers at head height over a corpse shrouded in
the remains of a heavy bath robe in the south end of the room
(see the square marked "C"). Ugly lumpen moldered heaps
are all that remains of the soft furniture that once decorated
the north, east and south walls of this chamber. The floor is
covered in a 1 inch layer of damp sand.
The corpse was the Lady of the Tower Keep. She became
infected by a single rot grub. That grub has since multiplied,
its descendants devouring every scrap of flesh from her
bones. The grub spawn, now mature, have become dormant
in the absence of fresh flesh to burrow into.
The rotted bathrobe begins to ripple and undulate one
round after a character enters the 10 foot square with the
corpse. Characters with a passive Perception score of 13 or
higher that are standing in the square with the corpse notice
the movement. Characters inspecting the corpse
automatically see the movement. Roll initiative. Any
characters that didn't notice the movement are surprised and
may not act on their turn. The Mature Swarm of Rot Grubs
erupts out of the corpse and attempts to bite the nearest
character(s).
If the characters search the corpse, a successful DC 14
Wisdom (Perception) check reveals a key made of fused bone
(finger bones and teeth). The key is not readily visible
because all that remains of the Lady of the Tower are her
bones picked clean by the rot grubs. The key opens the outer
door to Area 21.
DUNGEON UNDER THE TOWER KEEP 24
/
25 DUNGEON UNDER THE TOWER KEEP
/

Swarm of Mature
Rot Grubs
Medium swarm of tiny beasts, unaligned
Armor Class 8
Hit Points 22 (5d8)
Speed 5 ft., climb 5 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
4 (-3) 9 (-1) 10 (0) 1 (-5) 2 (-4) 1 (-5)
Damage Resistances piercing, slashing
Condition Immunities charmed, frightened,
grappled, paralyzed, petrified, prone, restrained
Senses blindsight 10 ft., tremorsense 5 ft., passive
Perception 6
Languages —
Challenge 1 (200 XP)
Swarm. The swarm can occupy another creature's
space and vice versa, and the swarm can move
through any opening large enough for a finger-sized
worm. The swarm can't regain hit points or gain
temporary hit points.
Burst of Motion. A mature swarm gathers its energy
to attack when senses one or more creatures with
its tremorsense. On its first turn at the start of
combat, a mature swarm of rot grubs moves at
double speed and makes three bite attacks.
Slow burrowers. An infested creature suffers terrible
agony while infested by a mature rot grub. On the
second and fourth rounds after a creature is
infested, it must make a DC 12 Constitution saving
throw or fall prone for 1 round.
Actions
Bite: +0 to hit, reach 0 ft., one creature in swarm's
space. Hit: The target is infested by 1 rot grub. At
the start of each of the target's turns, the target
takes 1d6 piercing damage per rot grub infesting it.
Applying fire to the bite wound before the end of
the target's next turn deals 1 fire damage to the
target and kills the rot grub.
A successful DC 12 Medicine check allows a
character to kill 1 infested rot grub with a melee
weapon, doing 1 hp damage to the infested target.
On a failed check, the infested target suffers 1 hp
damage and the rot grub advances closer to the
target's heart.
Any effect that cures disease will destroy infested
rot grubs. Poison that does at least 1 hp damage to
the target will kill infested rot grubs.
Five rounds after a rot grub infests a target, it
reaches the target's heart and the target is reduced
to 0 hp. If the rot grub is not removed before the
start of the 6th round, the target dies.
Area 13: Hot Springs Bath
Moisture collects on the walls of this irregular chamber,
making them appear to sweat. The floor is covered in a half-
inch thick layer of sand. The north end of the room hosts a
pile of moldering wood and shards of pottery mixed with
warped blocks of soap and rotted wool fabric.
If the characters search the pile, they risk disturbing a
patch of Yellow Mold (DMG p.105; see the 5 foot square
marked in yellow on the map), causing it to burst. Its spores
fill the 10 foot square the mold is located in. Because the
yellow mold is fully obscured by the sand and debris, only
characters that succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom (Perception)
check will notice the bright yellow mold in time to avoid
triggering its spores.
A short (2 foot tall) lip of stone in the middle of the
chamber forms one end of a natural pool that extends 30 feet
to the south wall. The water is hot to the touch, harmless if
consumed, and may be swam in. The bottom of the pool is
formed of a mix of natural grey and black stone. The pool is
10 feet deep for every 10 feet of horizontal space, and is 30
feet deep at the south end. The hot springs are fed by several
minute cracks in the bottom of the pool.
There are 20 platinum coins in the south end of the pool.
These were offerings to Tyche, a since-fallen goddess of good
and bad fortune. Retrieving the coins first requires a
character to discover them by carrying a waterproof light
source into the water or by using darkvision (10 foot radius
visibility in either case). Second, a character must search the
six 10 foot spaces that make up the bottom of the pool.
Swimming movement costs 2 feet of a character's speed per
foot of movement (PHB p.182). A character can search one
10 foot square per round, and may hold their breath a
number of rounds equal to 1 + their Constitution modifier
(PHB p.183).
This warm spring has overflowed several times down the
years, flooding this room, the hallway and the rooms as far as
Area 14 in mineral-rich water. The collapsed floor in Area 14
is a result of such flooding.
Area 14: Collapsed Floor
This 20 foot long by 50 foot wide chamber is devoid of
anything save for a wide gap in the northwest corner of the
floor. Water stains and sand cover the floor from the hallway
in the south wall to the hole in the floor, suggesting that water
has flowed over this area in the past. Characters that inspect
the floor see that it has collapsed 10 feet down into a rubble
and sand-strewn space. Characters can slide down the gap in
the floor to Area 22.
Climbing down the hole to Area 22 to can be accomplished
by any character. The distance is 10 feet. This costs 20 feet of
movement. Characters that drive spikes into the rock and
attach ropes to them can climb up or down the hole at
normal speed.
DUNGEON UNDER THE TOWER KEEP 26
/
 Tower Keep Guardian Area 15: Choose A Path
Medium undead, lawful evil A 20 foot long hallway leads from Area 14 to this irregular
chamber. It holds three exits, one each in the north, south,
Armor Class 16 (Breastplate + Dex) and west walls. The floor is mostly free of sand and water
Hit Points 15 (2d8 + 6) residue. The northern exit hosts one end of a 30 foot long
Speed 30ft. hallway leading to Area 16.
The western exit opens into a tunnel of natural stone that
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
bends southwest while slowly descending 5 feet over
roughhewn stairs. Characters that walk down the stairway
14 (+2) 14 (+2) 14 (+2) 6 (-2) 8 (-1) 5 (-3) discover that it bends south and descends another 5 feet. A
Gray Ooze (MM p.243) will attack any character within
Damage Vulnerabilities bludgeoning reach from its position within a gap in the northwest wall that
Damage Immunities poison flanks the stairway. While motionless, the ooze is impossible
Condition Immunities exhaustion, poison to notice. Several large rocks of dark grey and black stone fill
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 9 the space where the ooze is hiding.
Languages Common, can't speak
Challenge 1/2 (100 XP) Area 16: Guardian's Chamber
Actions A solitary skeleton (the Tower Keep Guardian) inhabits this
20 foot long by 40 foot wide chamber. Once a warrior tasked
Greatsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach with the defense of the Tower Keep, its remains have been
5ft., one target. Hit: 9 (2d6 + 2). charged with one last duty: to guard the entrance to Area 17
forever. The skeleton stands motionless in front of a closed
stone door in the north wall. The Tower Keep Guardian will
only attack characters that enter Area 16, even if ranged
attacks are used against it from the hallways.
To the west, an opening in the wall reveals a landing, and
stairs that descend 5 feet into darkness.
Standing motionless in a wall gap in the southeast corner
of this chamber is a second skeleton: the Tower Keep Lord.
The walking corpse of the former Lord of the Tower Keep
still wears the arrows in its back that slew it. Characters with
a passive Perception score of 15 or higher notice the skeleton
if they are capable of seeing into the 10 foot square it is
located in.
The Tower Keep Lord waits in the shadows for a creature
to open the door to Area 17 (barred from the inside; Burst
Tower Keep Lord DC 15). If the door is opened, the Tower Keep Lord
Medium undead, lawful evil approaches the nearest character and attacks from behind.
That character is surprised unless they have a passive
Armor Class 12 (Dex) Perception score of 13 or higher. If the characters notice it
Hit Points 18 (2d8 + 9) and attack first, the Tower Keep Lord fights until the
Speed 30ft. characters are slain or it is destroyed.
Much of the Tower Keep Lord's clothing has rotted away
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA during its long vigil; moldered black cloth having become a
solid crust in an irregular ring around the skeleton. If the
16 (+3) 14 (+2) 16 (+3) 6 (-2) 8 (-1) 5 (-3) characters search the space where the skeleton stood, they
discover the remnants of a belt, including a tarnished silver
Damage Vulnerabilities bludgeoning belt buckle and a small brass key that opens the locked chest
Damage Immunities poison in Area 18, and a Necklace of False Life.
Condition Immunities exhaustion, poison
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 9 Area 17: Portal Chamber
Languages Common, can't speak
Challenge 1/2 (100 XP) This 20 foot square chamber is empty save for a rectangle of
stone set in the north wall. A mirror-like object is set into the
Actions stone. If the door was burst open, the floor is littered with the
remnants of the wooden bar that kept the door shut. Ripples
Longsword (wielded two-handed). Melee Weapon play across the surface of the object if a character approaches
Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5ft., one target. Hit: 8
(1d10 + 3).
within 10 feet. A character that touches the portal is whisked
away to the portal nexus (Area B3) in the adventure
Undercellars of the Dread Destination.

27 DUNGEON UNDER THE TOWER KEEP

/
  
Area 18: A Test of Patience
Stairs beyond the landing in Area 16 descend 5 feet to a 60
foot long hallway. This portion of the dungeon is relatively dry
and free of the stench of mold. Five doors, two on the north
wall and three on the south wall, stand shut.
The door to Area 18 is unlocked. Inside, the characters see
a 10 foot square chamber that appears empty. In truth, the
north half of the room is empty, while the south half is
cloaked in a simple illusion that makes it appear to be empty
as well.
A character that enters either 10 foot square in the south
end of the room has a 50% chance per round of blundering
into one of the objects stored there, which dispels the entire
illusion: characters see a brief appearance of black smoke
that fades away to reveal what was hidden. The illusion
resets if the door to this room is closed.
Set into the southeast corner are three stone shelves on
triangle-shaped stone brackets. There is an assortment of
glass jars on each shelf. One chest sits in the middle of the
southeast 10 foot square.
Top Shelf: Two jars rest atop this shelf, each as large as a
handkeg and stoppered and sealed in black wax. A dark
green fluid fills the jars. Each holds a pair of objects that
looks like children's mittens, but made out of lizard skin,
with small, flexible, razor sharp spikes covering one side.
The severed hands from a choker, in fact, one pair in each
jar.
Middle Shelf: A single jar of transparent glass, no larger
than a closed fist, sits on this shelf. Its stopper has been
removed. The urn is empty of the rot grub it once held.
Bottom Shelf: Four jars are arranged on this shelf. Each
is sealed and stoppered, and contains pickling fluid
identical to that in the top shelf jars. There is one fist-
sized, grey organ that look like a leather sack covered in
warts inside each jar. If the organs are removed (or their
jars shattered), the organ emits a terrible stench in a 5 foot
radius (filling one 10 foot square). Any creature in the
radius must succeed on a DC 12 Constitution saving
throw or be poisoned until its next turn. A successful save
renders the creature immune to the scent for 1 hour.
These are troglodyte scent glands.
Chest: Closed and locked. Contains a mix of coins: 1,150
cp, 300 sp, 50 gp, and 5 pp. A successful DC 12 Dexterity
check using thieves' tools opens the lock.
Three wooden chests rest on the flagstones in the
southwest 10 foot square. Each is without locks and in good
condition. The symbol of Myrkul is painted on each lid.
Chest 1: Four long black robes lacking any sort of hood
are neatly folded within this chest. Each robe is made of
cotton thread dyed black. The material is soft to the touch
and wearable. Four skulls rest atop the robes. White
cotton thread binds each jaw to its matching skull.
Chest 2: A steel skull cap, a steel dagger in a red leather
sheath, three Potions of Healing and 20 steel-tipped
crossbow bolts are found in this chest.

DUNGEON UNDER THE TOWER KEEP 28

/
   Chest 3: This chest holds a single object: a foot long flute Top right: four black cowls (not magical) that may be worn
made of white bone (worth 35 gp). If played the flute emits during prayer services.
notes as expected, but the sound is twisted as though it Top left: eight small white pouches of powdered bone.
were made to pass through dead tree branches before
reaching a listener's ears. Bottom right: one necklace made of fine steel rings to
which an adamantine holy symbol of Myrkul is attached.
Area 19: Living Quarters
Bottom left: Empty.
A lonely wooden bunk lines the northern wall of this spartan
chamber. Dry rot has made the wood pliable: the bunk will If the characters open the skull's jaw, they release the spirit
bend if a character lays on it; it will collapse if a character of the Lady of the Keep in the form of a Specter (MM p.279)
stands on it. The bunk lacks sheets or mattress. stored inside the skull. (Myrkul answered the Lady's prayer as
A 5 foot long by 2 foot wide stone shelf lines the western she lay dying. The deity transformed her spirit into a specter
wall next to the bunk. A flat wooden dust pan sits on the and caused it to be stored within the marble skull without
ground next to a bent wooden broom, the later leaning suffering damage.)
against the stone shelf. A thin layer of dust covers the shelf
and cleaning implements.
Area 22: Sand Cavern
Area 20: Prayer Chamber The natural state of this cavern suggests it was found as is by
This rectangular chamber is empty save for a harmless whomever carved the dungeon out of the earth. The floor of
wooden stool (in good condition) concealed under a large, the cavern is covered in 6 inches of grey-black sand. The
diamond-shaped black cloth with a skeletal hand, fingers ceiling varies from 10 to fifteen feet in height. Two sets of
slightly curled save for the index finger, which points upward, rough stone stairs descend into the cavern, one from Area 15
embroidered in white thread in its center. The stool is located and one from the hallway in the northwest corner of the
in the middle of the northern 10 foot square. dungeon. A gap in the floor of Area 14 drops into this cavern
Feel free to play on the character's sense of danger when as well.
you describe this room and its contents to them. The black The same geological process that overflows the pool in
cloth is a Cowl of Deathly Contemplation. Area 13 has managed to push water through cracks in the
floor of Area 22. The flow is minor, but the effect over time
Area 21: Altar to The Lord of Bones has left a thick layer of sand on the floor that makes
movement difficult (double movement cost). The cracks in the
The door to this room consists of two parts: an outer door floor are visible if the sand is scooped away. These cracks are
made from black iron bars bent and shaped to create the what allowed the Gray Ooze (lurking near the stairs leading
form of a giant skull within the door, and an inner door made from Area 15) to find its way to the dungeon from the
of vertical wood planks banded over by two horizontal sheets Underdark.
of black iron.
The outer door sports a finger-width keyhole set in a disk
of black iron within the forehead of the skull. The door is Below: The living face of the Lord of the Tower Keep.
hinged into the stone of the hallway at two points on its left
side, and opens outward. Some of the iron bars disappear
into the rock framing the door. The lock can be picked with a
successful DC 14 Dexterity check using thieves' tools, which
causes the iron bars to retract out of the rock. The door
requires a successful DC 20 Strength check to burst open.
The inner door is not locked. It can be pushed open.
The chamber is identical in size to Area 19. The northern
10 foot square is tiled in black. It holds a barrel-sized skull
carved from white marble that rests atop a short (2 foot tall)
plinth of black granite. The 10 foot square between the
entrance and the marble skull is covered in smooth tiles that
depict the symbol of Myrkul, Lord of Bones: an inverted black
shield edged in white finger bones, with a white skull (face-on
towards the viewer) in its center. A thin layer of dust covers
the floor and the brow of the marble skull.
Characters that succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom (Perception)
check discover a notch beneath the chin of the stone skull.
When the notch is pulled, the jaw of the skull lowers to reveal
a square tray divided into four sections.

29 DUNGEON UNDER THE TOWER KEEP

/
XP and Treasure Summary Glowing Globe
Wondrous item; uncommon (requires attunement)
Because this adventure assumes the characters will not find This levitating 1 foot diameter sphere radiates magical
every piece of treasure, there is more than average treasure light. It can be grasped with two hands and moved to a new
available. This section omits mundane items the characters location by a creature with a Strength score of 6 or higher.
may find during the adventure unless the items are of If you are attuned to the globe, it follows you over either
significant value. shoulder (your choice) and moves at your speed. You may
Treasure
spend an action to command the globe to brighten, to dim, or
to go dark. When brightened, the globe radiates light
Area Coins/Gems Items equivalent to the Light spell. When dimmed, the globe sheds
2 N/A Skull Lord's Helm light equivalent to a candle. When made to go dark, the globe
9 10 cp, 10 sp, 15 gp N/A sheds no light.
Additionally, you may spend an action to command the
10 35 sp, 10 gp Levitating Longsword, globe to unleash a blinding flash. This effect emits blinding
2 Potions of Healing light in a 20 foot radius centered on you. Creatures in the
12 N/A Glowing Globe area that can see the light must make a DC 14 Constitution
13 20 pp N/A
saving throw. On a failed save, the creature is blinded for
1d6+1 rounds. When you use this effect, you must wait 24
16 N/A . Necklace of False Life hours before you can use it again.
18 1,150 cp, 300 sp, 3 Potions of Healing Roll percentile dice when a Glowing Globe is first
50 gp, 5 pp Bone Flute (35 gp value) encountered.
21 7 x 50 gp onyx Adamantine Holy Symbol 01-50%: The globe is brightened.
(350 gp value) (50 gp value) 51-80%: The globe is dimmed.
81-00%: The globe is darkened.
Helm of the Skull Lord
XP by Area Wondrous item; common
Area Creature (#) Monster XP Total Difficulty While you wear this war helm made of fused bones, it
9 Stirge (5) 25 XP 125 XP Medium* cloaks your head and neck in the illusion of a fearsome skull,
absent neck bones. The jaw of the skull moves whenever you
12 Sw. Rot Grubs (1) 200 XP 200 XP Medium speak.
15 Grey Ooze (1) 100 XP 100 XP Easy
16 Tower Skeleton (2) 100 XP 200 XP Medium Necklace of False Life
Wondrous item; common
21 Specter (1) 200 XP 200 XP Medium This necklace has 1d4 + 3 beads hanging from it. You can
TOTAL: 825 XP use an action to detach a bead to cast False Life.
* The stirge encounter difficulty is listed as Medium because Balancing the Adventure
of the additional risk of falling through the floor in Area 9.
This adventure is designed to challenge players of all skill
levels. Don't discourage novice players from daring to climb
New Magic Items up or down walls, or from making dangerous leaps,
Minor Properties swimming in the hot springs or bashing down doors. Let
them try everything. Likewise, allow experienced players to
Property Description overthink situations—if they avoid the hot springs believing it
Hovering  This item does not fall to the ground when let to be an obvious danger, don't hint there's something valuable
go. This property ceases to function whenever in its depths. Let them move on.
the item is touched, grasped, or manipulated by If you play through Dungeon Under the Pond and
a creature. When thrown, the item loses its Undercellars of the Dread Destination first, the characters
momentum and stops in midair in a space may arrive to Area 17 of this dungeon having already
adjacent to the creature that threw it. This item
can support up to 5 pounds of weight before it
advanced to 2nd level. You have the option to increase the
drifts to the ground. danger level, or you may leave the dungeon as is to give the
(presumably exhausted and wounded) characters a break.
If you decide to add encounters, a gelatinous cube could
Wondrous Items easily have found its way into in Area 22 from the Underdark,
Cowl of Deathly Contemplation as could a pair of mated Chokers who've since moved to Area
Wondrous item; common 11 or Area 13 to make a lair.
While you wear this diamond-shaped black cowl over your
head, you are blinded, deafened, and lose your sense of touch
except for the sensation of the cloak over your head.

DUNGEON UNDER THE TOWER KEEP 30

/
 Dungeon Under the Pond
A 1st Level Adventure
Narrow rivers snake their way between the trees and leap
down the sides of ravines in the King's Forest. Lost travelers
follow game trails in the hope of finding a rill or brook, and
water to drink. Rangers walk in the streams to mask their
scent and hide their backtrail. Predators sometimes lair near
the forest rivulets, the better to catch a meal.
In the vicinity of Waymoot (D19), a creek runs east and
then south, following the route of the Way of the Dragon. The
Dathyl is unremarkable as minor rivers go. It's deep enough
to sit in for a cold bath, brownfins can be caught from its
waters, and it flows near a handful of woodcutter's glades
that travelers on the Way use for campgrounds by night. The
Dathyl turns back into the forest to chart its own course
about a half day's ride south of Waymoot.
31
  Where the Dathyl makes its turn (hex C24), it curls around
a rise of land about a quarter mile across. In the middle of the
rise, in a clearing devoid of trees but crowded by mounds of
bush-covered earth, is a pond. Thorncanes and eelgrass line
the pond's edge. Thawing snow and spring rains overflow the
pond, the excess water flowing down the rise into the Dathyl.
Cuts in the rise reveal the paths the runoff takes between
the bushes. They also reveal stone blocks and the occasional
bit of finished wood or corroded iron half-buried in the earth.
A handful of blocks unearthed from the clearing have been
tossed into the pond. The ducks that make the pond their
home take flight each time something unseen lifts the blocks
out of the water and returns them to pond's edge.
/
DUNGEON INFORMATION
Map Square 10 foot squares.
Ceilings           10 feet high. Carved from bare rock.
Doors None.
Entrances Archways of carved stone. 8 feet wide at
and Exits ground level by 8 feet tall.
Floors 2 foot square flagstones, grey in color,
mortared together over bare rock.
(Most are cracked or have broken corners.)
Stairs Carved from bare rock.
Walls Carved from bare rock.

SPECIAL DUNGEON QUALITY: DRYNESS

The dungeon is empty of damp, humidity and moisture. Any
amount of water or other liquid (blood, sweat, skin oils, etc.)
that is exposed to the air of the dungeon for more than 1
round is magically levitated and born aloft at a speed of 10
feet per round to Area 1, where the liquid merges with the
water of the pond.

DUNGEON UNDER THE POND 32

/
    
Area 0 (not pictured):
Suspended Pond Area 2: The Long March
The pond is shaped like an irregular circle approximately 30 A 10 foot wide hallway runs 150 feet north from the archway
feet in diameter. Frogs and lizards hide at pond's edge, in Area 1. 40 feet short of the end of the hallway, an opening
waiting to catch a meal. Brownfins flash about below the in the west wall leads to Area 3. The archway at the end of
surface of the water. A raft of ducks float in the center of the the hallway opens into Area 4.
pond; they pluck insects out of the water with the speed of a Characters that walk at least 100 feet down the hallway
striking snake. experience the effects of the dungeon's Dryness special
Aside from the stone blocks, little remains of the structure quality. Exposed skin starts to dry and lips begin to crack.
that once stood atop the land rise . Tears formed to help moisten dry eyes are stolen away a
If characters toss an object into the water that can sink, few eyeblinks later. Mouths feel parched and throats itch.
that object will mysteriously return to water's edge before The dungeon's magic rides the air into the character's
sunrise of the next day. lungs and steals the moisture out of their bodies. Each
breath exhaled is filled with water vapor.
Water visibility is limited to 10 feet. At night, characters
must utilize a waterproof light source (such as the Light Characters will experience additional deleterious effects
spell) to see underwater. Darkvision is likewise limited to caused by the dryness, as specified in the description for
10 feet. each Area.
Approximately 5 feet underwater, the soil, roots and moss  
that line the edge of the pond give way to bare stone. The
stone forms a square-shaped shaft with rounded corners that
sinks an additional 25 feet below ground.
In the southwest corner of the pond wall, and just a few feet
below the surface of the pond, the first of several 1 foot wide
stone rungs descend to the bottom of the pond. The first and
second rungs are covered in black muck and are not readily
visible. The remaining rungs are visible to any character that
swims 5 feet underwater and within 10 feet of the southwest
corner of the pond.
Swimming: Swimming movement costs 2 feet of a
character's speed per foot of movement (PHB p.182). A
character can search one 10 foot cube per round while
swimming. Characters can hold their breath a number of
rounds equal to 1 + their Constitution modifier (PHB p.183).
Climbing: Characters can climb down the stone ladder
while holding their breath. This costs 2 feet of a character's
speed per foot of movement.
The bottom surface of the pond ends 10 feet above the Area 3: Flensing Chamber
floor of Area 1. A short hallway divided by an archway connects Area 2 with
Area 3. The flagstones in this 20 foot wide by 50 foot long
Area 1: A Dry Landing chamber are arranged in a checkerboard pattern of
The first character to descend to the bottom of the pond alternating white and black granite.
discovers that the water stops 10 feet above the surface of a The interiors of the three alcoves in the western wall are
30 foot square chamber dimly lit by wavering sunlight filtered decorated with humanoid bones that appear to be fused to
through the pond water. By night the chamber is pitch black. the natural stone of the walls. The bones are white and free
The air is dry and quite cold. Being upside down with one's of leftover flesh. The top third of each recess is formed into a
head out of the water is disorienting, but not dangerous. half-dome shape that merges with the ceiling of Area 3.
Characters that reach the bottom of the pond must spend Characters that observe a recess note there is only one
10 feet of movement per round to stay in the water. skull in each, and that each skull is set about 8 feet up so as
Otherwise they fall 10 feet to the floor and take 3 (1d6) to look down upon viewers.
bludgeoning damage. Two of the three alcoves are dormant (your choice). One
The ladder rungs descend a few feet below the bottom of alcove is active. This is a flensing alcove. When a character
the pond. The last rung is located 2 feet above a square stone ends their turn in the alcove's space or while standing in the
platform in the southwest corner. A ramp of stone on the 10 foot square adjacent to it, call for initiative rolls.
north side of the platform descends to the floor of Area 1. No one is surprised.
Characters that exit the water are of course soaked, but
one round later the water on their bodies begins to float away
and merge with the bottom of the pond. A character becomes
dry 1 minute after exiting the water.

33 DUNGEON UNDER THE POND

/

Skeletal Alcove
Large undead, lawful evil
Armor Class 12 (natural armor)
Hit Points 19 (3d8 + 6)
Speed 0ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
16 (+3) 1 (-5) 14 (+2) 6 (-2) 10 (+0) 0 (-5)
Damage Vulnerabilities bludgeoning
Damage Immunities poison
Condition Immunities exhaustion, poison, prone
Senses darkvision 10 ft., passive Perception 10
Languages none, can't speak
Challenge 1 (200 XP)
Dormancy. If a skeletal alcove is reduced to 0 hit
points, it becomes dormant. A dormant alcove
releases creatures it is grappling or restraining. The
alcove can be revived if 1 Medium skeleton is
commanded to step into the alcove's space. The
skeleton merges with the alcove, returning it to full
HP.
Flensing. The skeletal alcove removes one patch of
skin from a restrained creature, doing 2 hp slashing
damage and exposing the flesh underneath. A
Medium creature's skin is removed after 5 rounds
of flensing. A restrained creature is released by the
alcove one round after its skin is removed.
Disarticulation. The skeletal alcove removes bones
from a restrained creature, doing 4 hp piercing
damage and exposing the creature's deep muscle
and internal organs. A creature's bones are removed
after 10 rounds of disarticulation. A creature that
has all of its bones removed is reduced to 0 hp and
dies. The remains of a disarticulated creature are
released by the Skeletal Alcove one round after its
bones are removed.
Limited Reach. The skeletal alcove may only attack
creatures in its space and the 10 foot square
adjacent to it.
Actions
Limited Multiattack. The skeletal alcove makes two
Barbed Bone Tentacle attacks. Both attacks must
target the same creature.
Barbed Bone Tentacle. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to
hit, reach 10ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d4 + 3)
slashing and the skeletal alcove makes a grapple
check at +5. If the check succeeds, the target is
grappled. If the alcove hits a creature that it is
already grappling, the creature is restrained.
   A restrained creature can try to escape by taking
an action to make a DC 13 Strength check. On a
success, the creature escapes and enters a space
within 5 feet of the skeletal alcove.
  At the start of combat, the eyes of the skull in the active
alcove glow blood red and bathe its space and the 10 foot
square adjacent to it in sanguine light. The alcove wall
becomes soft and pliable, the bones in the wall slurping over
its surface and then plucking themselves out with a sickly
popping sound. They join together to form two grotesque
barbed bone tentacles. On the Alcove's turn, the tentacles
lash out to snare the nearest character in range.
One round after a creature is hit by a barbed bone tentacle,
blood lost through their wounds levitates into the air and
floats out of the room and back down the hallway to Area 1.
If the skeletal alcove fails its saving throw in response to a
turn undead attempt, it becomes dormant for 1 minute. This
effect ends if the turning cleric enters the alcove's space or it
takes damage.
Because the skeletal alcove uses its attacks to grapple and
restrain one creature at a time, it can't attack any other
creatures in range after it has successfully grappled or
restrained a target.
If a creature is flensed, then 10 unseen servants arrive one
minute later from Area 7. Of these, 8 attempt to collect the
body of the flensed character and carry it to Area 4 for
disarticulation. The 2 remaining servants attempt to collect
the flensed skin and deliver it to Area 8 for parchment
creation.
Area 4: Disarticulation Chamber
When the characters reach Area 4:
Each character gains 1 level of exhaustion due to
dehydration (PHB p.291).
Each character gains 1 level of exhaustion if they
participated in combat in Area 3.
Each character that suffered piercing or slashing damage
suffers 1 hp bleed damage, unless they are at maximum
hit points.
Characters can remove exhaustion levels by drinking
water: 1 level of exhaustion removed per pint of water
consumed (8 pints in a gallon).
The floor of this 60 foot wide by 20 foot long chamber is
covered in the same pattern of alternating black and white
granite flagstones found in Area 3. A wide but steep set of
stairs in the southeast corner of this chamber descends 5 feet
to Area 5.
Three alcoves, each decorated with a looming skull and
cloud-white bones, are set into the walls (two alcoves in the
north wall, one in the west wall). Two of the three are
disarticulation alcoves (your choice). One alcove is dormant.
If unseen servants collected a flensed character from Area
3, they will deposit the character (alive or dead) into the
nearest active alcove. When disarticulation is complete, 4 of
the unseen servants will dutifully carry the character's bones
to Area 5 for maceration. The remaining 4 unseen servants
march off to Area 8 with the character's brains, organs and
muscles. Fluids from a character's remains float away to
Area 1.
DUNGEON UNDER THE POND 34
/

Unseen Servant (24)
AC 10, 1 HP Speed 15 ft.
STR 2
Invisible.
Can't attack.
Strength In Numbers. The unseen servants work
together to lift objects and perform tasks a single
unseen servant would be incapable of doing alone.
   8 unseen servants can lift and carry corpses of
Medium size. 24 unseen servants can lift and carry
corpses of Large size.
Collective Intelligence. The unseen servants share a
common awareness and skill set, thanks to the
enchantments laid over the dungeon.
   The unseen servants work together to clean,
mend, build, and repair objects in the dungeon, and
to keep the dungeon clean, as specified in each
Area description.
Area 5: Maceration Chamber
When the characters reach Area 5:
Each character that suffered piercing or slashing damage
suffers 1 hp bleed damage, unless they are at maximum
hit points.
Each character gains 1 level of exhaustion if they
participated in combat in Area 4. Exhaustion levels can be
removed at the rate of 1 level per pint of water consumed.
This chamber is bracketed at top and bottom by ramps.
The ramp in the north end of the chamber rises 5 feet to Area
4. A second ramp caps the end of a 20 foot long hallway in
the south end of the room. This ramp descends 5 feet to
another hallway, the later running 50 feet to Area 6.
The enchantment laid over this chamber causes bones to
float a couple of feet over the ground. The dungeon slowly
sucks away the remaining moisture on and within each bone,
causing any leftover flesh to waste away. The unseen servants
judge when a bone has properly dried, at which point an
unseen servant whittles away whatever flesh remains.
If a character was disarticulated, their bones are left here
to dry.
Bones that have been macerated and cleaned are delivered
to Area 6.
Area 6: Hall of Sorting
When the characters reach Area 6:
Each character that suffered piercing or slashing damage
suffers 1 hp bleed damage, unless they are at maximum
hit points.
Each character gains 1 level of exhaustion from
dehydration. Exhaustion levels can be removed at the rate
of 1 level per pint of water consumed.
35 DUNGEON UNDER THE POND
  There are two exits leading away from this Hall: one in the
northeast corner and one in the western wall.
The unseen servants have arranged 80 complete humanoid
skeletons into neat piles, skull on top, in the southern half of
the Hall (8 piles per 10 foot square). Additional piles of bones
sorted by bone type (rib bones with rib bones, femurs with
femurs, etc.) are arranged near the northern wall. There is no
pile of skulls.
Area 7: Quarters of the Unseen
When the characters reach Area 7:
Each character that suffered piercing or slashing damage
suffers 1 hp bleed damage, unless they are at maximum
hit points.
A 50 foot long hallway runs west from Area 6 to a ramp
that ascends 5 feet to a second, smaller hallway. This hallway
runs an additional 20 feet west, then turns south to a ramp.
The ramp rises 5 feet to an archway that opens into Area 8.
Between the two ramps, an arched opening in the north
wall reveals a 10 foot square room. An obeisance of 20
unseen servants occupy this chamber, less any that are busy
somewhere else in the dungeon when the characters discover
this room.
The unseen servants perform a variety of specialized tasks,
from collecting and transporting corpses to sewing dried skin
into book bindings. If one or more unseen servants are
destroyed, the enchantments laid over the dungeon conjure
forth replacements at the rate of 2 unseen servants per day (1
per 12 hours).
Area 8: Assembly Chamber
When the characters reach Area 8:
Each character that suffered piercing or slashing damage
suffers 1 hp bleed damage, unless they are at maximum
hit points.
Each character gains 1 level of exhaustion from
dehydration. Exhaustion levels can be removed at the rate
of 1 level per pint of water consumed.
Empty frames, shelves, and racks—all made of stone—
cover the east, south and west walls of this 40 foot long by 30
foot wide chamber. The unseen servants assemble and store
objects made from dried humanoid skin, sinew, muscles,
organs, hair, and fat. There is no dust on anything, as the
unseen servants keep this chamber spotless.
An impressive yet macabre supply of parchment, cordage
(woven sinew thread), six-sided dice, pouches, rings, sacks,
dried rations (made of human muscle and organs), powders,
cups, baskets, bedrolls, blankets (of humanoid hair),
waterskins, musical instruments (wind and string) and more
can be found on the shelves.
If a character was flensed, then fresh skin has been hung
from one of the stone frames by a pair of unseen servants.
They are busy threading cordage between holes in the skin
and hooks on the frame to stretch it when the characters
arrive here.
/
  A pyramid of skulls, their jaws attached, is stacked six feet
high near the south wall. What purpose this serves is not
immediately clear.
Narrow entrances to two storage spaces flank the skull
pyramid. Each space is 3 feet wide, 10 feet deep, and holds a
pair of skeletons (MM p.272) dressed in black sleeveless
cowls that obscure their skulls. These are Cowls of Skeletal
Possession, each made from black cotton thread and in
perfect condition. If a cowl is removed from a skeleton, it
does nothing. No skeleton will attack unless it is attacked
first.
Should a character decide to place a cowl over their own
head, they experience a moment of disorientation and see a
brief (1 round long) vision of Area 8 from the point of view of
the skeleton that previously wore the cowl, then darkness.
(Characters must attune to a Cowl before they can control
the skeleton linked to it.)
Characters that watch while a cowl is donned briefly see
blood oozing from the face of the cowl that quickly resolves
itself into the shape of a skull surrounded by a circle of blood
drops. Clerics and paladins recognize this as the symbol of
Bhaal, Lord of Murder.
Area 9: Disposal Chamber
When the characters reach Area 9:
Each character that suffered piercing or slashing damage
suffers 1 hp bleed damage, unless they are at maximum
hit points.
Lowest in priority for the unseen servants is the disposal of
clothing, armor and personal items worn by creatures that
were flensed and disarticulated. Any unseen servants not
actively cleaning the dungeon or processing a corpse will
haul objects to Area 9. The objects are left on the floor in the
10 foot square marked with the number '9' on the dungeon
map, in the line of sight of the minotaur skeleton.
  A secret door is set into the eastern wall of this chamber. It
is made of stone and fits seamlessly into the wall. A character
with a passive Perception score of 15 or higher notices the
secret door if they are standing in the 10 foot square the door
is located in. Finding the secret door while searching
requires a successful DC 13 Wisdom (Perception) check. An
Intelligence (Investigation) check is not required to figure out
how to open the secret door; it simply swings open on
parallel stone pivots set into the top and bottom of the door.
Beyond the secret door, the flagstone floor and a solitary
stone shelf lining the eastern wall of this 10 foot square room
are covered in a thick layer of dust.
The shelf is 3 feet above the floor, and made of 1 inch thick
black granite set on stone brackets that join with the wall. A
large coin and a pouch of black cloth tied shut with white
cord are the only objects visible on the shelf. The coin is a
Coin of the Necromancer. The black pouch holds 6 Tokens of
Skeletal Sorting and 80 gp.
Area 10: Guardian's Stair
When the characters reach Area 10:
Each character that suffered piercing or slashing damage
suffers 1 hp bleed damage, unless they are at maximum
hit points.
Each character gains 1 level of exhaustion from
dehydration. Exhaustion levels can be removed at the rate
of 1 level per pint of water consumed.
A hulking minotaur skeleton (MM p.273) fills the hallway.
The creature stands 40 feet away from Area 9, and at the top
of a stairway. The stairs are pitched at a 45 degree angle and
descend 30 feet to a 10 foot square landing.
A large rectangle of stone set into the north end of the
hallway holds a mirror-like object. Ripples play across its
surface when a character steps onto the stairway landing.
Should a character touch the surface of the portal they are
whisked away to the portal nexus (Area B3) in the adventure
Undercellars of the Dread Destination.
XP and Treasure Summary
A breakdown of experience points and treasure by Area
follows. This section omits mundane items the characters
may find during the adventure unless the items are of
significant value.
XP by Area
Monster
Area Creature (#) XP Total Difficulty
3 Skeletal Alcove (1) 200 XP 200 XP Hard
4 Skeletal Alcove (2) 200 XP 400 XP Deadly*
8 Skeleton (4) 25 XP 100 XP Easy
10 Minotaur 200 XP 200 XP Deadly
Skeleton (1)
TOTAL: 900 XP  
* This should be considered a Medium encounter if the
characters fought the skeletal alcove in Area 3.
DUNGEON UNDER THE POND 36
/
 Treasure
Area Coins/Gems Items
9 80 gp Coin of the Necromancer
6 Tokens of Skeletal Sorting
New Magic Items
Wondrous Items
Coin of the Necromancer
Wondrous item; rare
This large coin is engraved with a rune for death on one
side, and a rune for undeath on the other. You may spend an
action to touch a creature or object with one side of the coin
in order to activate a rune.
If the rune of death touches a zombie, it automatically
reverts to a corpse. If the rune of death touches a skeleton, it
automatically reverts to a pile of bones. If you use the coin in
this way, you may not use this magical quality again until 24
hours have passed.
If the rune of undeath touches a corpse, it becomes a
zombie under your control for 1 hour. If the rune of undeath
is placed in a pile of bones, the pile becomes a skeleton. You
control the zombie or skeleton in the manner of Animate
Dead (PHB p.212). After 1 hour has passed, you lose control
of the zombie or skeleton unless you find another means of
controlling it. If you use the coin in this way, you may not use
this magical quality again until 24 hours have passed.
Cowl of Skeletal Possession
Wondrous item; uncommon (requires attunement)
While you wear this cowl over your head, your sense of
sight, hearing and touch is replaced by the senses of a
skeleton linked to the cowl. You may spend an action to
mentally command the skeleton in the manner of Animate
Dead (PHB p.212).
The cowl can be linked to one skeleton at a time. A link
may be established by placing the cowl over the head of a
skeleton for 1 hour. If another creature is controlling the
skeleton (such as with Animate Dead) when a link is
established, the creature loses control of the skeleton. If the
cowl and the skeleton are ever on different planes of
existence, the link is severed.
If no creature is attuned to the cowl when a link is
established, the linked skeleton takes no actions other than to
defend itself until the cowl is attuned. If a cleric attempts to
turn a linked skeleton while you are using its senses, you roll
the Wisdom saving throw using your Wisdom score. If you
fail, the link is severed and the undead attacks the nearest
creature on its turn.
Skeleton, PHB p.310.
Token of Skeletal Sorting
Wondrous item; common
You may spend an action to drop or throw this token into a
space within range. If you do so, the token unleashes a wave
of necromantic energy that causes all loose bones in a 5 foot
sphere to gather into discrete piles. Each pile consists only of
bones that came from the same creature. After its
necromantic energy is released, the token becomes a
mundane, non-magical object.
37 DUNGEON UNDER THE POND
Balancing the Adventure
The Dungeon Under the Pond is an adventure that deals in
extremes.
For novice players of Dungeons & Dragons, this adventure
may prove too lethal as written. Players might forget their
characters need water and food to survive and so omit water
on their character's equipment list. They may choose to
conserve healing resources early on, and so allow the
dungeon to bleed them further. Characters low on hit points
and suffering levels of exhaustion will surely be annihilated
by the minotaur skeleton.
For veteran players, this adventure may prove too easy.
Their characters will likely carry enough water to prevent
exhaustion, and they're sure to heal their characters to
maximum HP once they realize the dungeon is bleeding
them. After they've battled a skeletal alcove they could choose
to avoid other alcoves in the dungeon. When they reach Area
10 the minotaur will give them a good fight, but they'll win
that fight even if one or two characters drop.
This is where you come in.
Go easy on novice players once they realize they can save
their dehydrated characters by returning to Area 1 to gather
water from the pond. Don't penalize them for having their
characters drink the murky stuff—they've learned their
lesson and it's better to keep play going.
If the characters do make it to Area 10 exhausted and/or
bleeding, consider swapping out the minotaur skeleton for a
less challenging skeleton. The tower keep guardian from
page 27 is one alternative. Regardless, should the characters
manage to defeat the Area 10 guardian by the skin of their
teeth, consider placing a key on the guardian's belt and
making the secret door in Area 9 into a regular locked door.
Rewarding heroic perseverance is something Dungeon
Masters should learn to do, too. (Just don't tell the players
what you did. That's between you and your campaign notes.)
In order to give more experienced players a good
challenge, consider removing the Limited Reach of the
skeletal alcoves and replacing it with standard 10 foot reach.
Or give the alcoves two additional barbed bone tentacles and
a chance of surprising unwary characters. You may also
increase the dungeon's bleed rate to 2 hp.
Another option is to give the dungeon the ability to animate
4-8 bone piles in Area 6 each time the characters enter a
room beyond Area 2, and to send the newly animated
skeletons their way. Additional combat encounters will force
the characters to consume their water supply faster, because
they must rehydrate after every battle or gain 1 level of
exhaustion.
About the Treasure
This adventure has the potential to reward characters with
the ability to control one or more skeletons, and provides the
means to animate replacement skeletons. In your next
adventure, characters could potentially send a skeleton ahead
to set off traps or draw out hidden attackers.
And that's a good thing, because 1st level is dangerous.
Even experienced players can't overcome the fact that 1st-
level characters are as low powered as it gets in D&D.
If the characters find the treasure, then I hope you'll let
them have fun with it. :)
/
Undercellars of the Dread
Destination
A 1st Level Adventure
In the days when Cormyr was little more than a coastal
monarchy bordering miles of unclaimed woodland, followers
of Bane, the Black Hand, arrived by boat to Suzail. Some
remained in the capitol. Others spread like a virus into the This dungeon is divided into four Parts: A, B, C, and D. Each
trees. All had been granted visions of a future Cormyr ruled Part identifies a specific layer of the dungeon. The Area
by a succession of True Tyrants, each served body and soul by numbers start at 1 for each Part (e.g., Area A1, Area B1, etc.).
Unholy Champions and Dark Hands drawn from the ranks of
Cormyrean nobility. In feverish dreams Bane carried them up
into the heavens to behold Cormyr's armies spread out like Area A1: Cliff Ruin
fingers to grasp all the lands below. They saw kings and The only visible remains of the tower fortress atop the fang-
queens conquering and enslaving. When the fingers closed, shaped crag is a roofless, rubble-strewn, snow-covered
the armies returned triumphant. They saw Cormyr become ground floor room bordered on its north and south sides by
the blood red fist of Bane. broken down walls, and a lonely, snow-covered stairway that
As Bane foresaw, Cormyr conquered and absorbed the sinks into darkness. The north wall rises 10 feet at its
outlaw kingdoms his followers had covertly fostered. highest point, and appears to be made from black
Cormyr's kings wed outlaw queens. The remaining royals and stone blocks carved from the mountain.
nobles of the fallen realms were married into Cormyrean
noble families. But Cormyr's Crowned Heads never came to
embraced the teachings of the Black Hand. The outlaw
kingdoms are to blame for this, as most fought and slew
Banites wherever they found them.
The Banites of Suzail worked aggressively to encourage
trade and forge mercantile alliances. Coin and laborers
flowed into Suzail, the fresh converts to Bane's cause hidden
in plain sight. These followers disappeared soon after, that
the Dread Destination could be carved from a mountain in
the Stormhorns. The Banites had covertly pooled their
wealth and resources to construct a tower fortress that could
touch the sky. They had hoped to wrest control of the mighty
castles of the giants floating above the mountain peaks, for if
Cormyr would not follow Bane, then Cormyr would be
conquered from above.
But the grandest dreams of gods and mortals oft fail to
come true. The Dread Master of the tower fortress slew the
Dodkong of the giants easily enough, but the power to
summon the storm was not passed to her as foretold.
Indeed, the giant was the storm, a colossal maelstrom
that engulfed the Dread Destination. Its floors and
occupants were ripped apart and scattered for miles
in every direction.
Today, the remains of the crag from which the
tower fortress had been carved resembles
a broken fang. one that cuts the
storm clouds that smother the
mountain peaks. The wounded
clouds cry frozen tears. The
undercellars of the Dread
Destination are never
without snow.

38
/

   The remnants of the walls are scattered atop the cliff, their
presence betrayed by lumpen shapes rising out of the four
foot deep snow.
The wind moans like a wounded dragon as it winds its way
between the mountain crags. When the storm clouds part,
the view of the Stormhorns at this elevation is breathtaking—
literally: characters not equipped with cold weather gear,
characters not resistant or immune to cold damage, and
characters not naturally adapted to cold climates, must
succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving throw or become
stunned for 3 (1d6) rounds.
The stairway is covered in a 4 foot thick layer of snow, and
descends 10 feet at a sharp (45 degree) angle to a 10 foot
square landing. Stairs on the south side of the landing
descend another 10 feet. The hazardous stairway footing is
complicated by broken stone scattered among the stairs that
is hidden by the snow. The first time characters take the
stairs, they must succeed on a DC 12 Dexterity (Acrobatics)
check or fall prone. Characters that fail their check by 5 or
more fall onto the rubble or down the stairs, and take 1 (1d2)
hp bludgeoning damage.
39 DREAD DESTINATION
  Beyond the edge of the cliff, the mountain crag widens as it
descends, forming a steep, snow-covered slope. Starting 100
feet below the landing, enormous black lumpen shapes half
submerged in snow liter the mountainside.
Characters that attempt to climb down the mountain must
succeed on a DC 15 Strength (Athletics) check. Characters
that fail their check by 10 or more suffer a mishap: they fall
20 feet, suffer 7 (2d6) bludgeoning damage, and must
succeed on a DC 13 Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity
(Acrobatics) check to suspend their fall. On a failed check, the
character falls another 20 feet and suffers an additional 7 hp
bludgeoning damage. The checks repeat until the fall is
suspended or the character dies.
Characters that explore Area A1 after sunset risk being
attacked by 1 wyvernbeast from Area C2.
DUNGEON INFORMATION
Map Square 10 foot squares.
Ceilings           10 feet high. Smooth, finished stonework.
Doors Black granite mounted on stone sockets.
Brass pull rings. VERY noisy when opened.
Default: unlocked. Burst DC 25.
Dungeon 10,123 feet at Area C3.
Elevation
Floors 4 foot square flagstones, black in color,
mortared together over finished rock.
Stairs 45 degree angle. Double movement cost.
Alternating black and red granite steps laid
down over finished stonework.
Walls Smooth, finished stonework.
ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS (DMG p.110)
Type Effect
Extreme Cold: Daytime temperature: 20 degrees
Layer A Fahrenheit. Nighttime temperature: 0 to
-20 degrees Fahrenheit. Characters
without access to a constant source of
heat and cold weather gear gain no benefit
from short and long rests on this level.
High Altitude: Characters that are active* for more than 4
Layer A hours on this dungeon level must make a
Constitution saving throw. The DC is 10 +
1 for each hour past 4. On a failed save,
the character suffers 1 level of exhaustion.
Extreme Cold: The temperature remains a steady 40
Layers B, C, D degrees Fahrenheit. Characters must have
access to a constant source of heat or to
cold weather gear, or they gain no benefit
from short and long rests on this level.
High Altitude: Some of the portals circulate air from
Layers B, C, D lower elevations into the dungeon.
Characters that are active for more than 6
hours on these dungeon levels must make
a Constitution saving throw. The DC is 10
+ 1 for each hour past 6. On a failed save,
the character suffers 1 level of exhaustion.
[ * ] Characters that rest or perform non-strenuous activities
are not considered to be active.
/
Area B1: Entryway
Two featureless, lockless doors of black stone with brass pull
rings gone green from corrosion are set one each into the
south and east walls of this 30 foot wide by 20 foot long
chamber. The door in the eastern wall is open.
The flagstones are stained from decades of snowmelt.
Layers of mineral deposits spread out from the foot of the
stairs like frozen ripples in a pond. (Even at this elevation
snow can melt, which it has from time to time over the last
600 years).
A sound like growling earth elemental emanates from the
door in the south wall if it is opened. The noise is a feature of
the undercellars, not an error of architecture. Within the
coldly correct hierarchy of the Dark Destination, the Adjunct
to the Undercellars was master of everything in the
mountain. One could not simply walk about and open doors
at will unless they were a high priest or the Dread Master of
the tower. The adjunct kept a strict schedule of guard
rotations and assigned duties. The unscheduled sound of a
door being opened meant someone had failed to adhere. This
brought punishment of the kind the adjunct was only too
eager to mete out.
Area B2: Chamber of the Adjunct
A short hallway leads to a set of stairs that rise 10 feet up to a
20 foot square chamber. An archway in the north wall of the
chamber opens into a 20 foot long by 10 foot wide space.
The stairs served to catch the attention of visitors to the
adjunct, making it easy to miss the secret door set into the
south wall of the hallway. Characters with passive Perception
scores of 15 or higher will notice the outline of the secret
door. Characters that search the short hallway find the secret
door with a successful DC 13 Wisdom (Perception) check.
The door opens inward if pushed, and without noise thanks
to an ancient layer of grease applied to its stone sockets.
Within the adjunct's chambers, the south wall is equipped
with a 3 foot tall bookshelf, a long table and a sleeping bunk,
all carved from the same ironwood tree. The furniture is
aged, but sturdy. The east and north walls lack furnishings.
The bunk holds a shrunken mattress of burlap filled with
moldered straw. If characters search the bunk, they discover
a sheathed dagger fastened to the underside of one side rail
(no ability check required). The dagger is of dwarf make:
folded steel sharp as a dragon's claw, the blade oiled and free
of rust.
Among the items on the bookshelf are three matched
tomes, the black fist of Bane burned into their leather
bindings. If the characters inspect the tomes, they discover
the middle book is made from blank pages that have been
hollowed out. Within the hollow are two triangle shaped
black stones; these are ward tokens linked to the ward in
area B3. A character with the Sage background may be
interested to know two of the books contain writings by
Scyllua Darkhope (Rightful Champion of Bane), Aumarrath
the Tyrant-King (an early prophet of Bane), Zana'eesh Harper
Slayer, and other noteworthy Dark Hands.
A set of 10 flat tomes with spines of brass made to
unfasten so new sheets of parchment can be placed into them
are stacked on the bottom layer of the bookshelf. These were
the adjunct's logbooks.

DREAD DESTINATION 40
/
       A cold layer of dust blankets the table surface and the
objects atop it: a small iron key, a jar of dried black ink and a
shriveled feather quill.
The narrow chamber holds four sets of empty iron
manacles on the east wall. The adjunct personally dispensed
punishments to undercellar occupants that failed to heed his
orders. The key to the manacles rests on the table in this
room. It is a master key, and opens all the manacles in Layers
B and C of the undercellars.
Crazed Wizard
Medium humanoid (human), chaotic evil
Armor Class 14 (17 with mage armor)
Hit Points 32 (5d8 + 10)
Speed 30ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
10 (+0) 14 (+2) 14 (+2) 16 (+3) 13 (+1) 11 (+0)
Skills Arcana +5, Perception +3
Senses passive Perception 13
Languages Common, Chondathan
Challenge 1 (200 XP)
Unpredictable. The crazed wizard moves about
uncontrollably. +2 AC.
Spellcasting. The crazed wizard is a 4th-level
spellcaster. His spellcasting ability is Intelligence
(spell save DC 13, +5 to hit with spell attacks). He
has the following wizard spells prepared:
Cantrips (at will): burning hands, mage hand,
    prestidigitation, ray of frost
1st level (4 slots): disguise self, fog cloud, mage
   armor, witch bolt
2nd level (3 slots): gust of wind, Melf's acid arrow,
   misty step
Actions
Dagger. Melee Weapon Attack: +2 to hit, reach 5ft.,
one target. Hit 2 (1d4 + 0)
Area B3: Portal Nexus
NOTE: Characters traveling through the portals in Dungeon
Under the Tower Keep and Dungeon Under the Pond emerge
into this Area.
A hallway runs 60 feet south from the door to Area B1,
then turns east for an additional 30 feet. Alternating niches
set into the walls hold portals that shed dim light. The
inactive portals resemble lonely door frames absent a door.
Each portal is numbered in sequence on the dungeon map
for Layer B.
A stairway in the southeast corner of Area B3 descends 20
feet to a landing that turns west, where a second stairway
descends an additional 20 feet to an opening in the northeast
wall of Area B5.
41 DREAD DESTINATION
Portal Table
Number   Status Destination
1 Active Dungeon Under the Tower Keep
2 Inactive N/A
3 N/A Warded Secret Passage
4 Inactive N/A
5 Active Dungeon Under the Pond
6 Malfunctioning N/A
7 Inactive N/A
    Portal 3 is a false portal. A ward placed in the passage
connecting Area B3 to Area B4 mimics the appearance of the
other portals. Creatures that pass through the ward from
either side without carrying the proper ward token must
succeed on a DC 13 Constitution saving throw or become
paralyzed for 10 (2d10) rounds. Characters that succeed on
their saving throw are stunned for 1 round. The ward
prevents light and sound from passing between Area B3 and
Area B4.
Portal 6 appears active, but it has no destination. The last
creature to use the portal was a duty wizard of the
undercellars who'd disobeyed orders to remain at his post
when the fortress tower came under attack. He stole all he
could from the bunks of his fellow duty mages, then fled
through portal 6 at the same moment the link between the
portal and its destination was severed. For 600 long years the
wizard could see where he came from, but had not the means
to escape. He went insane a long, long time ago.
If a creature uses portal 6, it becomes trapped. While
trapped, a creature stops aging and has no need for food,
drink or sleep. If a creature is trapped inside portal 6 when
another creature uses it, the trapped creature is ejected into
the square adjacent to portal 6 and falls prone.
Upon his return, the crazed wizard ignores characters
that attempt to communicate with him or help him. Roll
initiative. On his turn, the duty wizard attempts to slay all
living creatures he can see. The wizard absolutely will not go
into another portal, even to save his own life.
Equipment: ward token, strongchest master key, large
wrought iron key, two spellbooks, one pouch (material
components), one arcane focus, three potions of healing, one
waterskin (full), 65 sp, and an explorer's pack (PHB p.151).
Spellbook 1 Contents
1st level - 8 spells (8 pages): Alarm, Fog Cloud, Identify,
Illusory Script, Jump, Sleep, Tasha's Hideous Laughter,
Unseen Servant.
2nd level - 6 spells (12 pages): Flaming Sphere, Hold Person,
Melf's Acid Arrow, Misty Step, Ray of Enfeeblement,
Scorching Ray.
3rd level - 2 spells (6 pages): Glyph of Warding, Sending.
(Formulae - 21 pages) Formula for crafting a Wand of Magic
Missile. 53 blank pages.
Spellbook 2 Contents
1st level - 5 spells (5 pages): Alarm, Disguise Self, Fog Cloud,
Mage Armor, Witch Bolt.
2nd level - 5 spells (10 pages): Gust of Wind, Knock, Melf's
Acid Arrow, Misty Step, Ray of Enfeeblement.
85 blank pages.
/
Area B4: Duty Wizards' Quarters
The secret door in the north wall, and the warded entrance in
the west wall, prevent light and sound from escaping this 40
foot wide by 30 foot deep chamber. There are no oil lamps,
torches or other obvious sources of light (or heat). Frayed
black curtains hang from brass rails attached to the ceiling in
the north and east walls. Behind the curtains, a wooden
bunk, strongbox (2 foot square by 1 foot deep lidded
container, with reinforced corners and lock), small table and
three-legged stool fill each of four 10 foot square bunkrooms.
The ironwood furniture is in disarray: bunks flipped over,
mattresses cut open, tables on their side, strongboxes
emptied. Characters that inspect the southeast bunkroom
notice its strongbox is closed; if turned right side up, its
contents shift and rattle. This strongbox is locked. A DC 13
Dexterity check using thieves' tools is required to pick the
lock.
When the strongbox is opened, the ringing sound of a hand
bell fills Area 4 for 10 seconds. Inside are one potion of
healing, one spellbook, a large and malformed brass key, a
carving knife, a small block of moldered cheese (perfectly
edible if the mold is cut away), and a pouch of ball bearings.
If the spellbook is opened, a Magic Mouth appears on the
cover. The cold, calculating voice of a woman is heard by all,
"Petty theft is beneath a servant of Bane. Your punishment
will be slow, agonizing and final."
Spellbook Contents
1st level - 6 spells (6 pages): Alarm, Comprehend Languages,
Feather Fall, Grease, Illusory Script, Identify.
2nd level - 2 spells (4 pages): Cloud of Daggers, Magic Mouth.
3rd level - 1 spell (3 pages): Fireball.
87 blank pages .
Area B5: Gate Hall
At the north end of the gate hall, the east and west walls turn
inward for 5 feet, each forming part of the north wall of a
gatehouse. A portcullis hangs half open in the gap between
the gatehouse walls. 20 feet beyond the portcullis, a second
portcullis prevents passage to the south end of the gate hall. .
Two identical stone doors face-off between the portcullises.
Each is closed.
The south end of the hall is formed of an intersection. To
the east, a 10 foot hallway leads to a shrine. To the west, a 20
foot long hallway ends at a stairwell that descends 30 feet to
Layer C. To the south, a pair of floor-to-ceiling, iron shod
stone doors with blood red fists painted on them suggest it is
easier to go in another direction.
Area B6: Gatehouse
Two stone doors, currently shut, open into identical
gatehouses that served double duty as guard barracks. Each
door opens inward to reveal a narrow ironwood table set
against the wall opposite the door. A bench beneath the table
sat six guards at a time. A wrought iron stand holding a glass
bowl filled with oil and a wick graces the table. The table
lamps are well preserved and shed light in a 15 foot radius if
lit. (15 gp each; bowl holds 4 pints of oil.) Triple-tiered bunks
line the north and south walls. A total of 24 soldiers lived and
slept here in shifts.
A thick iron hand crank is set into the wall near each door.
The hand crank in the eastern gatehouse operates the north
portcullis. The hand crank in the western gatehouse operates
the south portcullis
A large wrought iron key is secured to three pegs set into
the back of the door to the eastern barracks room. If the
characters compare this key to the one carried by the crazed
wizard from portal 6, they observe the keys are of the same
material and size, but the teeth of the keys differ.
Area B7: Armory
Blood red fists as tall as a human decorate the surface of the
two iron shod stone doors fronting this chamber. Two
different keys must be inserted one each into keyholes within
the red fists. The senior duty mage (trapped in portal 6)
carries the key for the east door. (A poorly made—but useable
—copy of the east door key is located in the locked strongbox
in Area B4.) The west door key is found in Area B6.
The locking mechanism is spread between both doors and
the interior of the stone monolith to which the doors are
attached (see map). Two characters using thieves' tools must
simultaneously succeed on a DC 20 Dexterity check to
unlock the doors. Burst DC 30. Opening either door sends a
rumble like the warning growl of an angry dragon throughout
Layer B that can be heard as far away as the adjunct's
chambers.
The interior walls of this 20 foot square chamber are
dominated by iron racks holding battleaxes, flails, serrated
daggers, spears, morningstars, crossbows, barb-tipped
crossbow bolts, warhammers with fist-shaped hammer
heads, spiked shields, and iron mannequins wearing suits of
chainmail and razor-edged plate armor.
In the center of the armory, a barrel-sized vat of black stone
is filled to the brim with a dung-brown fluid. Ripples flow like
time reversed over the liquid, each peak and trough forming
at the perimeter of the vat and then flowing inward to
oblivion. A 1 inch thick round lid of black stone rests against
the vat.
The vat holds pure liquid anathema to all giant kind:
Giantbane poison. Identify allows a character to determine
the nature and effect of the liquid. Priests of Bhaal (see Layer
D) worked for decades to procure and mix the ingredients
necessary to create the Giantbane. They filled the vat
infrequently, one cup at a time.
Area B8: Shrine to Bane
This 30 foot square chamber is dominated by a 20 foot tall
altar to Bane, the Black Hand. The high ceiling is domed; the
altar joins with the ceiling over the center of the chamber.
Two renderings of Bane are worked into the surface of each
side of the altar: Bane in all His brutal glory on the north side,
and Bane seated upon the Throne of the One True Tyrant on
the other. A niche in the south wall holds a smaller throne,
one reserved for the exalted backsides of priests from higher
up in the tower when they deigned to oversee worship in this
chamber. In the northeast corner, an opening in the wall
heralds a stairway that descends 30 feet to Layer D.
Daily worship of Bane was of course mandatory for the
occupants of the Dread Destination. The occupants of the
undercellars worshipped here in shifts.
DREAD DESTINATION 42
/
  
  Servants within the tower fortress hauled chamber pots
down into the undercellars and dumped them over holes
carved into the flagstones lining the floor on the north and
south walls of the privy. The servants' terrible aim while
emptying their burdens (and their bowels) in this room
served to remind the adjunct that not even he possessed the
authority to punish them.
The Banites kept slaves, captured enemies and kidnap
victims (mostly from Cormyr) manacled to the south and
west walls in the eastern half of Area C1. The restraints—still
in working order—hold no prisoners when the characters
first arrive here.
Instead, prisoner corpses litter the flagstone floor, their
arm and wrist bones having long ago failed to support the
dead weight. An iron hand crank forged like a ship's wheel is
set into the northeast wall. Turning the crank raises a
portcullis in the northeast wall.
Guards opened the portcullis and allowed one wyvernbeast
at a time inside to choose a non-spellcasting captive to stab.
The guards unlocked the dying captive and the wyvernbeast
hauled them back into C2 for a meal.

   A corpse sits on the lesser throne. It appears to have been

posed. Its clothes, armor, sword and hair are unusually well
preserved. A palpable aura of unholy power is felt by any
creature within 10 feet of the throne.
The severity of the attack on the Dread Destination left no
doubt in the adjunct's mind that it was doomed to
destruction. The adjunct had rushed to the shrine and
kneeled before the altar to offer his soul up to Bane that it be
used to prevent the tower fortress from being destroyed.
Bane accepted the sacrifice and made a shield from
adjunct's soul. The power of a soul freely given is
tremendous, but not infinite. The adjunct's devotion
preserved the undercellars, less the damage already done.
The tower above was not protected.
Bane's power carried the adjunct's lifeless corpse to the
small throne, and preserves it to this day. The adjunct's
corpse remains a silent testament to unswerving loyalty.
Characters that damage or deface the corpse reserve for
themselves the dark attention of Bane. Followers of the Black
Hand are sure to visit the offending characters at a most
inopportune time in the future.
Area C1: Food Storage
30 feet below Layer B, the stairs open into a short east-west
hallway. 20 feet to the east stands a 30 foot long by 15 foot
wide chamber. To the west, an archway fronts a privy.

43 DREAD DESTINATION
/

Wyvernbeast
Medium beast, neutral evil
Armor Class 12 (Dex)
Hit Points 9 (2d8 + 0)
Speed 10 ft., fly 50 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
10 (+0) 14 (+2) 10 (+0) 6 (-2) 12 (+1) 12 (+1)
Damage Resistances cold
Senses: darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 13
Languages: Can't speak.
Challenge: 1/2 (100 XP)
Keen Senses. The wyvernbeast has proficiency in the
Perception skill.
Innate Spellcasting. The wyvernbeast's innate
spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 11,
+3 to hit with spell attacks).
At will: booming blade, lightning lure (SCAG p.142,
143)
2 1st-level spells/day: spells vary by individual.
Sunlight Sensitivity - Moderate. While in sunlight, the
wyvernbeast has disadvantage on attack rolls and
ability checks.
Actions
Talon. Melee Weapon Attack: +2 to hit, reach 5 ft.,
one target. Hit: 2 (1d4) piercing damage.
Area C2: Aerie of the Wyvernbeasts
Absent a natural ability to fly or to move about by means of
magic, the Stormhorns cannot be easily explored. And while
giants were the ultimate target of the Dread Master, she was
not ignorant of the many dragons and other powerful
creatures lairing in the vicinity of the Dread Destination. She
ordered the winding cave comprising Area C2 to be set aside
for the creation and feeding of Wyvernbeasts, the later to be
used as unswervingly loyal scouts and lookouts.
Captives from Area C1 transformed into wyvernbeasts
were made to breed with the resident corruption in Area C2.
(Corruption is the collective noun for a group of
wyvernbeasts.) Since the fall of the tower fortress,
wyvernbeasts have multiplied and spread across the high
crags of the Stormhorns.
5 descendants of the original corruption still live in the
aerie. They have become resistant to cold, their wings larger,
their bodies lighter, their senses the equal of any aerial
predator. Unlike their ancestors, spells are not imprinted in
these wyvernbeasts. Rather, their spells manifest when they
reach maturity, the magic resembling that of a sorcerer and
not the arcane power of the duty wizards that first bred them.
The first of the five wyvernbeasts alights atop Area A1 after
sunset. It waits until its kin have flown far down the mountain
before it starts its own hunt.
Wyvernbeasts resemble shrunken wyverns papered over in
lizard skin. Though similar to the darkenbeasts utilized to
devastating effect by the Red Wizards of Thay, wyvernbeasts
are made from captive humanoid spellcasters and not
creatures of the Beast type.
Fully extended, a wyvernbeast's wings can reach from one
side to the other of a 10 foot square, each sporting one
dagger-length talon mounted on the first wing joint. A similar
talon grows from its tail. The skeleton of a wyvernbeast
(including talons, fangs and claws) glows in vivid hues of
purple, green, blue, and (rarely) silver when it casts spells, or
while in the presence of strong magic. This effect is visible
through its thin skin.
Wyvernbeasts are nocturnal hunters that fly down the
fangs of the Stormhorns to skewer unsuspecting creatures
with their talons. They return to their lairs well before
sunrise. They avoid sunlight at all costs.
Solitary Feeders. If a wyvernbeast drops a character to 0
hit points, it drags the fallen character to the part of the aerie
the wyvernbeast has claimed for itself.
Savvy Predators. Wyvernbeasts learn to use their spells to
assist with stalking and slaying prey. For example,
wyvernbeast #1 uses thunderwave to knock creatures off of
mountain crags, then it retrieves the corpse. Wyvernbeast #3
uses disguise self to appear like its prey in order to get close,
then attack.
Innate Spellcasters. Wyvernbeasts can cast two cantrips
at will, and up to two 1st level spells per day drawn from the
Sorcerer spell list. Cantrips are typically the same for each
wyvernbeast in a corruption, while 1st level spells vary by
individual. Their magic echoes the environment the
corruption lives in.
1st-level Spells by wyvernbeast (5):
1. Charm Person, Thunderwave
2. Magic Missile, Sleep
3. Disguise Self, Ray of Sickness
4. False Life, Fog Cloud
5. Burning Hands, Silent Image
Area D1: Special Punishment
The stairs here mirror those of Area C1. They descend 30
feet from Layer B to a T-shaped intersection. Through the
archway to the west is a privy. To the east, stairs descend 10
additional feet to a cross-shaped chamber. Manacles for neck,
hands and feet are set into the north, east and south walls.
The north wall is an illusion; the manacles within the wall are
real enough, but they are attached to a wrought iron rack
sporting two oiled wheels (not unlike a real world dolly or box
cart) hidden inside the illusion.
Priests of Bane are not above punishment. Within the
Dread Destination a priest's status afforded them their own
space in which to suffer. The first kind of suffering came from
elevation: imprisonment at the bottom of the undercellars
was akin to being lowest in rank—a position no sensible
Banite wanted to be in. The second kind occurred when a
Banite was sucked into the walls, manacles and all.
Observing one of their number howling for mercy as they
disappeared into oily black stone was usually all it took for
misbehaving Black Hands to amend their behavior.
DREAD DESTINATION 44
/

Area D2: Hidden Temple
Upon seeing this chamber, any hope of salvation a Banite
might have entertained evaporated the instant they realized
they were in the hands of the followers of Bhaal.
The temple is 40 long by 30 feet wide. There are no visible
exits, but for the stone door with a round brass ring handle in
the west wall. An alcove in the north wall is covered over in
smooth black tiles that glimmer in torchlight. The handles for
the iron prisoner rack extend into this room from the alcove
in the south wall, where the illusion cloaking the passage
between Area D1 and D2 is located.
The illusion is one part of the ward that fills the passage.
The passage is also warded by an effect that prevents sounds,
smells, sudden bursts of air, and light from crossing between
Area D1 and Area D2.
The iron prisoner rack is heavy. It required two of the six
Doombringers that worshipped here to move it, and any
prisoner manacled to it, about the temple space.
Characters that attempt to move the rack find it is silent
(bone grease on the rack's wheel axles still works).
45 DREAD DESTINATION
  If a creature offers prayers to Bhaal while occupying the
square adjacent to the alcove in the north wall, the spaces
between the tiles ooze blood that coalesces into several
thumb-sized drops that begin to turn counterclockwise. More
blood forms the outline of a humanoid skull within the
turning circle. This is the symbol of Bhaal, Lord of Murder. It
remains for 1 hour after prayers are rendered.
When Doombringers were not worshipping in this temple,
they taught the ways of murder to acolytes in training, and to
followers Bhaal brought here from all over Cormyr. The
captive priests of Bane were put to good use.
Area D3: Hidden Nexus
The door from Area D2 opens into a 10 foot square entryway.
Beyond the entry, a 20 foot square chamber hosts three
massive stone monoliths of black granite. Rippling blue fields
of magic that resemble suspended sheets of water play
across the face of two monoliths, bathing the nexus in a
muted blue radiance.
Portal Table
Number Status Destination
1 Active The Old Man
2 Inactive N/A
3 Active Trolldoom Manor
  The exits for portal 1 and portal 3 are blank walls. Neither
exit sports a frame, arch, or any other construction that
suggests a portal is present. To return to Area D3, one need
only square up with a given wall and walk into it.
Portal 1 exits into a cramped space accessible by a secret
door set into the back wall in the jakes of the Old Man. A
cozy, quiet tavern popular among retired Purple Dragons and
the elderly residents of Waymoot, and referred to by locals as
"the little labyrinth" for its many secret passages, the Old
Man's fireplaces are kept lit day and night. The tavern is filled
round the clock with guests that sip brandy distilled locally,
and trade stories of the many conflicts seen by the battle-
scarred shields that cover the tavern walls and the heroes
that once carried them.
Portal 3 exits from an interior wall in an outbuilding of
Trolldoom Manor, "Trolldoom" being the name given to the
ancestral family home of House Irlingstar by the founder of
that House. Any living Irlingstar will tell you the name is
more of a promise made than a fact of troll battles previously
fought and won in the vicinity of Waymoot.
The Irlingstars have no idea this portal exists, though it is
not the only portal to be found on their lands. The presence
of armed novice adventurers will elicit a swift armed
response should the characters be discovered. Some
measure of diplomacy is necessary if the characters wish to
avoid bloodshed and the earning of a new, powerful enemy.
/
       (Characters with the Noble background know that the Equipment of Interest
Irlingstars have a reputation as pleasure-seeking dandies that
avoid having to do much work, but they are capable of Giantbane
fighting as hard as any noble to protect what is theirs.) Giantbane only effects creatures of the Giant type. It readily
The Doombringers of Bhaal did not keep residences within clings to weapons, shields and armor, and may be delivered
the Dread Destination; they lived elsewhere in Cormyr. Most by contact or injury (poisons, DMG p.257). Exposure causes a
were foresters that raised large families, taught the Dark giant to suffer the poisoned condition (PHB p.292). Each
Lessons to their followers, and prayed daily to the Lord of round after exposure, a giant suffers damage equal to their
Murder for guidance in protecting the plants and creatures average hit points per hit die, plus Constitution modifier. E.g.,
living in the trees that the deity had commanded to be A storm giant suffers 6 + 5 = 11 hp poison damage per round,
preserved at all costs. They and their followers were Bhaal's starting one round after exposure.
eyes and ears in the Forest Kingdom. Through them, Bhaal Effects that remove conditions, neutralize poison or confer
came to see all of Cormyr for what it truly was—a garden that poison immunity have limited effect on Giantbane. If the
had gone to seed. Originally tended by the mighty dragon effect was a spell (including spells cast from magic items), the
Thauglor, the Land of the Purple Dragon had been sown effect provides a temporary respite for a number of rounds
from end to end with things useful to the dragon. Not merely equal to the level of the spell used to create the effect. Thus,
seeds, though there were plenty of those, but rare insects, the 2nd level spells Lesser Restoration and Protection from
beasts, monstrosities, and ancient forms of living magic. After Poisons remove the poisoned condition from a giant exposed
Thauglor's defeat, the elves of the Lithtlorn tended to the to Giantbane for two rounds.
forest, not realizing the hidden potential in all they had won If the effect was a magic item, such as the poison immunity
from the dragon. But Bhaal did. Soon after humans gained granted by a Periapt of Proof Against Poison (DMG p.184),
the power to rule Cormyr from the elves, the Lord of Murder the magic item confers only 1 hour of respite per day from
saw what the Purple Dragon of old had planned, and the god the deleterious effects of Giantbane.
smiled at the murders soon to come. A Wish, Miracle, or a blessing granted by a deity removes
Giantbane.
XP and Treasure Summary Ward Token
This section omits mundane items the characters may find This object is linked to a specific magical ward. Any creature
during the adventure unless the items are of significant value. that carries the token while passing through a ward's space is
unaffected by some or all of the ward's powers, as specified in
XP by Area the ward's description.
Area Creature (#) Monster XP Total Difficulty Both magical and non-magical objects can be linked to a
A1 Wyvernbeast (1) (Included (Included Easy ward. Most ward tokens are small, non-magical, and bear a
with C2) with C2) rune or other mark that indicates the ward token's purpose.
B3 Crazed Wizard (1) 200 XP 200 XP Medium
C2 Wyvernbeast (5) 100 XP 500 XP Deadly
Running the Adventure
TOTAL: 700 XP The encounters at A1 and B3 are designed to challenge
exhausted and/or wounded adventurers freshly arrived from
Treasure
another dungeon environment. If the characters are rested
Area    Coins/Gems Items
and at full hp when they arrive in the undercellars, feel free to
add an additional wyvernbeast to A1 (mayhap wyvernbeasts
B2 Masterwork dagger (30 gp value) hunt in pairs before they mate each year), or pack a trio of
Set of 3 tomes (10 gp value) guards (MM p.347) in with the trapped duty mage in portal 6.
B3 65 sp 3 potions of healing, 2 spellbooks The wyvernbeast encounter in Area C2 is designed to be
1 explorer's pack, 1 arcane focus (rod) run as a gauntlet. The wyvernbeasts attack in waves of one or
B4 1 potion of healing
two at a time, not en masse. Characters have the option to
1 spellbook retreat and close the portcullis between C1 and C2, so let
them battle as far into C2 as they dare to go.
B7 Giantbane [1] Because each wyvernbeast has claimed a space for itself
C2 50 cp, 550 Small hand mirror engraved with inside the winding cave, the treasure for Area C2 is spread
sp, 35 gp "Never Forget the Summer Court” on out, not lumped together in one spot.
its back (25 gp).

[1] Convincing anyone this is really Giantbane, much less
finding a buyer, is an adventure in its own right. The Crown of
Cormyr will of course investigate if word spreads that real
Giantbane is on the market. If the characters manage to sell a
quantity of Giantbane, the balance of power in Cormyr may
well shift if giants are poisoned with it. The surviving giants
will track down the source of the poison and make certain it
harms none of their kind again. Other giants may seek to
steal it for their own nefarious ends.
Further Adventures
The portals marked inactive in this adventure need not be. If
you want to link the Dread Destination to another adventure
you're planning to run in Cormyr or the wider Realms, then
by all means do so. Perhaps a special key in the form of a
mundane or magical object is required to awaken a
seemingly inactive portal.
DREAD DESTINATION 46
/
 Miscellany: "Elminster Must Die"
VITAL STATISTICS:
SOFTCOVER EDITION
Author.........................................................................Ed Greenwood
Publisher...............................................Wizards of the Coast LLC
Page Count....................................................................................342
Date of Publication...................................................................2011
Preceded By...................................................Elminster Ascending
Followed By...................................................Bury Elminster Deep
A ROSTER OF CHARACTERS
NAMES
Alassra, Alusair, Amaelia, Amarune, Ammarantus, Ammaura,
Amrathgus, Andram, Andrur, Arbrace, Arclath, Arkrashos,
Arlond, Arskrel, Asper, Asult, Athlar, Aumanus, Baerendrith,
Baerengard, Baerold, Baerovus, Belandroon, Belgryn, Belnar,
Belsarth, Beltar, Bereth, Broryn, Caladnei, Corleth,
Daeclander, Danthalus, Darantha, Darindral, Darlakan,
Darrake, Delasko, Delgar, Delnor, Denneth, Dhedluk, Dralkin,
Draskos, Durnan, Eldran, Elgorn, Elminster, Emmur, Emsra,
Emvar, Erzoured, Esheena, Eskrel, Essard, Ethena, Flamdar,
Flarm, Foril, Fzoul, Gaerond, Galaunt, Ganrahast, Gantharla,
Garangor, Gariskar, Gaskur, Glarasteer, Glathra, Haelana,
Halance, Harmond, Hawksar, Helharbras, Hondryn, Ilvellund,
Imbrel, Irlin, Irvel, Jalavarr, Jamaldro, Jhalikoe, Jharakphred,
Jusprar, Kathkote, Kelgantor, Khaladan, Khelben, Kreane,
Krimsal, Laeral, Laethla, Laramond, Leece, Lemmeth,
Lorton, Lothrae, Lune, Lylar, Malkym, Manshoon, Maraedra,
Marandur, Marantine, Mardrukh, Markuld, Marlazander,
Marlin, Mellast, Mereld, Merlar, Mhedarlakh, Mirt, Morlen,
Morthran, Mrarie, Murlanth, Myrkul, Nargreth, Narmitra,
Narnra, Narulph, Nelezmur, Nestrel, Nestur, Nethglas,
Orinskarr, Ormantor, Oskrul, Ospra, Ostramagarus, Paereth,
Paradur, Parandur, Parespur, Raedra, Raereene, Randelo,
Raoryndar, Rauleth, Relve, Rendarth, Rhigaerd, Rindlar,
Rondrand, Rondras, Rornagar, Rorskryn, Rorsorn, Rorstal,
Rorstil, Rothglar, Ruskar, Ruthgul, Ryaun, Sacrast,
Sammaster, Scorlound, Seszgar, Shuldroon, Skult, Solatha,
Storm, Stornald, Stornara, Symgharhl, Taerlene, Talane,
Tamyth, Tannath, Targrael, Tethlor, Thal, Therlon, Thirsty,
Thol, Tomarr, Tress, Treth, Trezmur, Ulth, Unseen, Vainrence,
Vandarl, Vangerdahast, Varimbra, Velyandra, Verrin,
Whelandrin, Yarauva, Yelada, Zorsin
SURNAMES
Amryntur, Anvilstone, Ardratha, Askalan, Barcantle,
Bloodbright, Blue Seer, Boldtree, Breakblade, Cobler,
Crownsilver, Dauntinghorn, Dawntard, Delcastle, Doomed
King, Erilogan, Fentable, Gaerld, Haeleth, Haelwing,
Hallowdant, Hallowstake, Halonger, Handragon, Harnwood,
Hawkblade, Hawklin, Hawksoun, Helhondreth, Huntcrown,
Illance, Ilmbrights, Ironstone, Jester, King Darkheart,
Kordran, Laklantur, Langral, Larandree, Lion-Tamer, Mage,
Maid, Mallowfaer, Manycoats, Meddanthyr, Merritree,
Mharrokh, Mhorauk, Morand, Mrelburn, Murandrake,
Murenstur, Noraeyn, Obarskyr, Old Warrior,
Ormblade, Ormkok, Reinlake, Rendarth, Rhardantan,
Rhauligan, Roray, Sage, Sandrael, Sentinel, Silverhand,
Sornstern, Stillsilver, Stonestable, Stormserpent,
Stormspells, Taelinth, Taerl, Tarandar, Treln, Vandurn,
Whitewave, Windstag
BALLADS EXCERPTED
A Little Dark Wisdom......................................Tamyth Larandree
                                                                Lady Minstrel of Mintarn
Another Bold Night in Brave Cormyr........Andrur Hallowstake
                                                                             Bard of Wheloon
My Dark Rune Gone Away..........................Laramond Stillsilver
                                                                   Lord Bard of Lalambril
Old Lord Raturburry.......................................Lalanth Tarntapple
                                                                 Bard Wayward of Suzail
The Dockhand's Lament...........Lune "Minstrelcloak" Ardratha
We Go On.................................Marandur Erilogan of Waterdeep
                                                                                                   Bard
Your Castle or Mine?....................................Rauleth "Rory" Treln
                                                          Minstrel of the Many Cloaks
Our Wizards of War...........................................................unknown
PLAYS QUOTED
Azuth Meets Magic........................................................anonymous
Darkheart's Fall, and the Price of It..................Amrathgus Taerl
                                                                               Bard of Daerlun
Defending the Dragon Throne....................................anonymous
Mad King Triumphant........................................Haelana Ormkok
                                                                                         Lady Bard
Mad Mrodran's Fate.....................................................anonymous
Old King Sorrowhelm.....................................Stornald Merritree
Roray's Old Plays........................................................Eldran Roray
                                                                                    of Waterdeep
The Fall of the Proud House...........................Darindral Haeleth
The Galloping Knight of Cormyr................................anonymous
The Harrowing of House Drauth...............................anonymous
The Shunned King's Doom.............................Morthran Taelinth
                                                                                                   Bard
Too Many Skulls Underfoot.........................................anonymous
War Comes to Spanglamar..............................Imbrel Hawksoun
EXCLAMATIONS UTTERED
By the Diligence of Torm! ● By the Dragon! ● Farruking
Tempus forfend! ● Felldragon forfend! ● Happy dancing
hobgoblins! ● May ye taste victory! ● Name of the Dragon!
● Watching Gods above!
WORDS OF MAGIC
Arruthro.
Tar lammitruh arondur halamoata.
Tan thom tanlartar.
Larasse larasse thulea.
/
/
/