ZyYMORVEN HALL Perched atop a crag overlooking the Rauvin Road, with a clear view of the Evermoors to the south and the Moonwood to the north, is a keep of mortared stone with a high-pitched roof that has wooden statues of bay- ing wolves rising from its peaks. A branch in the road winds up to the keep's gatehouse and bailey. From the keep, the Zymorven family of Silverymoon has watched over the surrounding lands for four generations. Lord Harthos Zymorven (CG male Chondathan hu- man knight) commands Zymorven Hall, which appears to have no guards to defend it. Many of the hallways and. rooms, however, have suits of armor standing in dark corners, swords mounted on oak-paneled walls, and dusty carpets spread across stone floors. These are ac- tually suits of animated armor, flying swords, and rugs of smothering that obey Lord Zymorven’s commands. Lord Zymorven retains the services of a scribe, a stable- hand, a cook, and a musician (all commoners), as well as an old witch (use the druid statistics) who is skilled atmakingherbal remedies and poultices. Lord Zymorven's duty is to be vigilant and watch for trouble, which could come from any direction. Soldiers patrolling the Rauvin Road on horseback are welcome touse the keep as a place where they can rest as well as obtain food, drink, and lodging for their horses. Charac- ters who take up Urgala Meltimer's quest (see chapter 2) ‘might have cause to pay a visit to Zymorven Hall FEATURED ENCOUNTERS The following encounters work best if they occur before the characters are ready to move on to chapter 4, "The Chosen Path.” Some of the special quests given out in chapter 2 might blaze a trail that leads to one of these encounters; the same can be said for a few of the sug- gested encounters presented earlier in this chapter, OLp TowER You can use this encounter any time the characters are traveling overland. The location isn't important, but ‘somewhere in the Dessarin Valley would be ideal ‘You spot a crumbling tower atop a hill less than a quarter, rmile away. Parts ofits conical roof and outer shell have fallen inward, leaving a gaping hole above which four hawks circle, Ifthe characters approach within a few hundred feet of, the tower (see map 3.14), add: Alarge boulder blocks the tower's ground-floor en- trance, and a horrible noise comes from within —a deep, guttural, dirge pouring from the lips of something big and awful. ‘A female hill giant named Moog has barricaded herself in this lonely tower so that she can wallow in self-pity CHAPTER 3 | THE SAVAGE FRONTIER undisturbed. Chief Guh has taken Moog's husband, Hruk, as her own, leaving Moog with no one to abuse on a daily basis. Moog is singing a mournful tune, which is amplified by the acoustics of the tower Moog sits on the upper level ofthe tower (area 2), her calves and bare feet dangling through a hole inthe floor. From this position, she can see anyone that enters the tower through the front door, the hole in the upstairs wall, or the window above the doorway. She has her back tothe upstairs window that faces east, and can't ‘see anyone approaching from that direction. Her inces- sant singingis so loud that she can't hear anything but the loudest noises outside the tower. The hawks circling above the tower are four blood hawks. Any character who pays attention to the hawks, can discern their crimson feathers with a successful DC 10 Wisdom (Perception) check or recall their aggressive nature with a successful DC 10 Intelligence (Nature) check. The blood hawks attack any creature that tries twenter the tower through the broken wall or the roof, but otherwise they keep their distance. Once the hawks attack, Moog can’t be surprised 1. Lower Lever. Moog has parked a large boulder infront ofthe door- way. A Small character can squeeze through a narrow opening to enter the tower. Otherwise, the boulder can, be rolled aside with a successful DC 25 Strength (Ath- leties) check. A stone staircase hugs the inside wall, spiraling upward in a clockwise direction and forming landings at various points. Situated next to each land- ing is a 9foot-all arrow slit that tapers to a width of Sinches. Much of the tower floor and the staircase is strewn with rubble—stone from the crumbling walls and wood from the partially collapsed roof. The rubble counts as difficult terrain, Treasure. Any character who searches through the rubble finds a cracked floor tile with what appears to be a compartment underneath it. Years ago, a haling adventurer named Keltar Dardragon buried a treasure chest under the floor here, and he never had a chance to reclaim it before he died. Moog hasn't noticed the chest, Which is locked but in poor condition. A character can easily break or pick the lock (no ability check required). The chest holds 300 sp and two magic items, deter- mined by rolling on Magic Item Table B in chapter 7 of the Dungeon Master's Guide. 2. Upper Lever "Nothing of value is to be found on this level ofthe tower except a large sack lying on the floor. Determine its con- tents by rolling three times on the Items in a Giant's Bag table inthe introduction. Moog is here unless she has been lured elsewhere. If the characters wait her out, Moog gets hungry and stops: her mournful singing after 2420 minutes. The hungry giant leaps down to the ground floor, pushes the boulder aside, and exits the tower in search of food. Ifthe char- acters hide and let her go, she returns to the tower 3410 hours later with a squealing boar tucked under one arm. Moog has had some bad experiences with small folk in the past. Her inclination is o attack if confronted.