The Outsider’s Doom

Ben Gibson

An urban adventure for levels 1-5. Written for

5E with conversion notes for Pathfinder/OSR.
1 Ben Gibson 2021
Coldlight Press

Special thanks to play testers:

Andrew, Brett, Chris, Gabe, John, Karen, Mike, Ricky, and Thomas

This module is compliant with the Open Game License (OGL) and is suitable for use with the 5th edition of
the world’s oldest fantasy roleplaying game, with conversion notes for using it with The Pathfinder
Roleplaying Game. The OGL can be found below. Compatibility with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game
requires the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game from Paizo Inc.. See http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG for more
information on the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.

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Open Game License v 1.0a Copyright 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc. System Reference Document. Copyright 2000. Wizards of the Coast,
Inc; Authors: Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams, based on material by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson Pathfinder Roleplaying
Game Core Rulebook. Copyright 2009, Paizo Inc.; Author: Jason Bulmahn, based on material by Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, and Skip
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 The pounding surf sings, matching the pounding in my mind. 2
Hard to think, easy to feel, but the Horn in my hands longs for the Outsider’s song, urges me to call to the
deeps. The Doom waits, listens, hears. Soon, all within the hated city will feed the Doom and will dwell
within the Outsider’s embrace.
Soon.
Soon.
I set the horn to my lips and blow.

Adventure Introduction Some notes for the Game Master

The Outsider’s Doom is a dungeon and urban crawl
adventure written for levels 1-5. In it, the players’ initial
exploration of a desecrated dwarven tomb leads them to
the High City of Slatewall, where conflicts between the
city’s factions and riots that foreshadow an impending
blood feud mask a dark plot by the cult of the forbidden
Outsider to bring the entire city down into their god’s
dark depths.
The campaign is designed to mix dungeons with
investigatory social play as players unwrap deeper and
deeper layers of treachery within the outwardly coherent
society of the dwarves. However, individual sections of
this module can also be used as independent one-shots
telling a self-contained single-session story. The city of
Slatewall itself is a busy, bustling location full of random
encounters and multiple sites of interest and can be used
as a locale in most campaigns.
This adventure is designed first and foremost to help you,
the GM, to run it at a table setting. To this end the various
locations and adventure sites are designed in a modular
fashion. Most sessions should be run from two open
pages, with possible consultation of the tables in the
appendix to generate treasure and supplemental data.
You’ll also encounter the following notes:
NPCs are noted in key or page references, at times with a
range of different adjectives for personality. NPC stats are
called out on the map, generally in shorthand fashion.
Quick-and-dirty assumption for saves, initiatives,
perception scores, and other skills at =Hit Die won’t be
far off; the GM is welcome to adjust as seems reasonable
within the system of choice (for instance, the wizard in
Pathfinder will typically have a lower fortitude save and a
higher will save). A Bestiary on page 20 has slightly more
detail, and Pathfinder/OSR stats are found on page 21.

After the prequel introductory crawl, designed to bring
the party to second level, players will be given the
explicit goal of finding the thieves who have desecrated
the Radder Tomb within the city of Slatewall. The
implicit goal of the adventure is to thwart the cult of the
Outsider and save the city of Slatewall; direct
investigation toward the former should lead to the latter
as the cult is responsible for the tomb’s desecration and
the stolen skull of Krag Radder sits within their primary
lair. However, the game master should be encouraged to
foster links between the players and characters who make
the High City their home. Mercenary motives will suffice
at the outset, but if that is all that remains by the final
confrontation then extraordinary inducements from the
city’s leadership may be required.
By the end of the adventure players should be around
level 5 and respected by the people of the city as capable
heroes worthy of accolades and offers of employment.
There several suggested directions for further adventures
at the conclusion of this one.
Treasure is called out in a section in italics; page 22 has a
chart to roll on for a random selection of mundane
valuables. Values are given above standard 5th edition
wealth baselines, but this is a place to increase wealth
values in OSR games, multiplying values 5x. Pathfinder/
3.X will find values close to standard wealth by level.
Magic items are often called out in the adventure
specifically, but a chart is provided on page 22 for
random magical items as well. The players will be
encountering a slightly higher than usual number of
magical items within this adventure, but most will be of
creative/situational use. Additionally, two new special
materials, covered on page 22, are found over the course
of the adventure: Slateplate armor made from heavy stone
imposes heavy penalties due to its weight but reduces all
incoming damage. Blackbone weapons crafted from the
cursed gifts of the Outsider impose stiff penalties to their
victims.
This adventure is written for 5th edition but page 21 has a
few notes for conversion to both Pathfinder compatibility
and for OSR retroclones. At the tail end of the adventure
synopsis there are some notes about the setting
assumptions. GMs are invited to adjust to suit their own
setting or world.
 3
Adventure Synopsis
Doom to the High City
The dwarves of the clans that make up the Cliffrunner
Confederacy are by and large direct, conservative folk,
mainly interested in spinning goathair and mining slate.
The primary fractures of their society are economic, while
the great unifying force for them is their ancient religion,
dedicated to the Skyfather and the Earthmother. However,
another god lurks on the edges of their spirits and their
society: the Outsider, god of the deep sea. The seas-
shunning dwarves long ago made worship of the Outsider
anathema, but in so doing they also gave a common cause
for the lost and forgotten in their society to rally around.timeline (page 4) continues to tick down towards the
Now the cult of the Outsider is a growing force beneath
the surface of the smooth social order of the dwarves.
Under a new charismatic leader known only as Hush, the
cult plans to destroy the capital of the Cliffrunner
Confederacy, Slatewall.
Hush’s plans hinge on an artifact sacred to the Outsider,
the Horn of Storms. The horn was buried in the tomb of
Krag Radder, the progenitor of the Radder clan and a
former cultist of the Outsider. Giving the horn to the most water under the well is diverted, a subtle path to the
promising of his acolytes, Caller, to summon a creature of pillars of the city (page 18) is found. The Slatesmiths will
the greater deeps, Hush now prepares his followers for
their god’s vengeance upon the city. The cult’s theft of
the horn and desecration of the tomb sets the players on
the trail of the cult.
A simple diagram, provided below, shows how locations
described in this module relate to each other. The bulk of
the game will typically take place in the city: talking to
factions, uncovering rumors, and following random
events. In the end, however, the Doom is coming to the
city, and the city needs the players’ help if is has a hope
of surviving.
Ott Radder
sends the
players
Tomb of the
Slatewall, the High City
First Parents
pp 5-6
pp 7-11
Adventure Flow
The basic expected flow in The Outsider’s Doom is that
the players will begin with a the exploration of the tomb
of Clan Radder (pp 5-6), which will set the players on the
path towards Slatewall with a mission of investigation
and vengeance. The journey from the home of Ott Radder
to the city is assumed to take an uneventful day. Note the
timeline on the following page.
Within the city of Slatewall (pp 7-11), the players are set
loose to track down the tomb’s thieves, all while the
arrival of the Doom, a vast creature of the Outsider. The
cult of the Outsider are highly active in the city,
particularly in the slums (page 11), and while numerous
random events (page 8) give a chance to interact with the
cult, players are not dependent on stumbling upon cultists
and looking for trap-stained eyes (page 6). By day five,
the cultists’ activity in the western well (page 12) will
cause consternation, a faction of the city the players are
on good terms with can ask them to investigate. If the
grow nervous as time wears on, having sold the cult their
lair (pp 15-16). In the Slatesmiths’ vault (pp 13-14) the
lair’s location is found as well as a subtle cliff-path
leading to it.
All roads inevitably lead to the assault upon the city (pp
17-18), but how well the players manage the mystery and
coordinate the factions will determine if the final battle is
a hopeless last stand or an organized and competent
defense. With care, luck, or clever planning, the players
can save the High City from the cult’s assault.
Guildhall
leads to Slatesmith’s
Vault
pp 13-14
Climb cliffs near the city Cultist Lair
pp 15-16
Down Cave
well Well Diggings path
City Pillars
pg 12 pp 17-18
 TIMELINE OF EVENTS
4

Day -23: Cult of the Outsider, led by Hush, invade

the Radder Tomb, stealing the Horn of Storms.

Day -19: Cultist Caller uses the horn for

the first time, summoning narwhal pods.

Day -14: Caller and a handpicked set of acolytes

set off south to summon The Doom.

Day -5: Cultists begin to undermine the city,

disturbing sleeping tremorers sacred to the
Earthmother.
Adventure
Begins
Day 1: Ott Radder hires the party to investigate
Day 2: New of the desecration hits the Radder his grandparents’ tomb.
clanhold. Angry Radder toughs attack Cliffrunners
in the hold. First tremorer attack in the High City, Day 3: News of the tomb’s desecration reaches
killing several homeless in the slums. the High City. Radder there begin to grumble.
Day 4: Stormcrows are summoned by the priests Slum Mother asks a favor of someone (PCs if
of the Skyfather and begin to fly over the city. available) to investigate the tremorer attack.
Their patterns’ reaction to disruptions tips the
temple off to tremorer activity. Day 5: Outsider cultists start to break through the
central well wall, making it brackish.
Day 6: Radder partisans riot, taking over
the Temple of Earth and Sky.
Day 7: Mother, fed up with the council ignoring
the slum’s plight, tries to lead her people out.

Day 8: Heralds of The Doom appear and slam into

sea caves beneath the High City, making quakes.
Day 9: The Doom arrives with Caller riding it,
begins to destroy the foundations of the High City.
5
TOMB OF THE FIRST PARENTS
The ancient dwarf eyes you carefully, suspicious and careful. He smells of sandalwood and harsh soap, and his bald,
liver-spotted head trembles, but his eyes are clear and his voice is still impressively deep. “Thank you for coming, brave
ones. I have need of strong backs and sharp eyes, for my grandparents’ rest is in danger.”
To the Tomb of the Radder
The venerable dwarf Ott Radder hires the PCs to enter the
tomb of his grandparents, Krag and Nanda Radder, the
First Parents of the Radder clan. He witnessed an original
clan armband on a random dwarf in the high city; the
dwarf claimed he had bought it from a legitimate market.
Ott is worried for the sanctity of his grandparents’ tomb.
He authorizes the characters to go within his
grandparents’ tomb and to take all the grave goods
therein. He will pay full value for anything the party
finds, along with a 100 gp bonus for the safe remains of
his ancestors.
Krag Radder was a great herdsman, and along with his
wife Nanda, he founded the Radder Clan. However, he
was also a dwarf with grave secrets. In his shadowy
youth, Krag worshiped the Outsider and had possession
of the great Horn of Storms, which can summon vast
creatures of the deep. Disgust with the cult’s dark rites
eventually drove Krag away, but not before he sired an
illegitimate son with a fellow cultist, anathema to the
marriage-centered dwarves. The bastard, Yargdan, later
came to Krag and joined the new Radder Clan as a brave
but brutal warrior retainer. Through Yargdan, the cult
learned that the repentant patriarch still kept the artifact
horn. Reawakened under the prophet Hush, the cult has
raided the tomb of the first parents and reclaimed the
Horn of Storms, leaving Krag’s resting place despoiled.
Tomb Key
1. Tomb Entry: This simple stone door has a lever to open
it: An outstretched cupped hand stained with blood.
Above the door in runes is written “Life’s liquid, with
sorrow, opens the way”. Filling the hand with salt water
will trigger the mechanism and open the door without
triggering the trap. Triggering the lever with anything else
triggers an acidic cloud of toxic dust 15ft in radius that
does 2d4 acid damage and permanently stains the victims’
eyes yellow. DC13 CON save to halve damage and avoid
the staining. The door is pitted from a previous opening,
and blood stains the lever showing the wrong liquid being
used.
2. Hall of Memory: Two bone kelps hang in ambush on
the ceiling of this room, which has multiple runic texts
telling tales of the exploits of Krag and Nanda. Two crude
rune-etched statues of polished driftwood are on the floor.
The male statue has been smashed, its neck hacked on
both sides, and it was hollow inside. The intact female
statue has three treasures inside.
3. Shadowed Warrior Graves: The seven retainers
who fell before Krag and Nanda are interred in honor
here; each holds a treasure. Yargdan’s remains (and
treasure) were stolen without the thieves knowing
about the secret door, but water from the flooded
Honor Chamber indicates the passage. Taking a
treasure will anger the spirit of the given retainer,
who tries to possess the thief’s other party members,
one by one (DC11 CHA to resist). If successful the
spirit will attack the thief to return the grave goods.
4. Skyfather’s Passage: Cracked and faded pale blue
paint decorates this ceiling, with painted white clouds
forming runes to praise the Skyfather. Characters
reading the ceiling get disadvantage on their saves to
avoid the urchins (DC13 DEX). Hiding in the cracks
beyond the urchins are two bone kelps, who will leap
out to attack if a character gets poisoned.
5. Earthmother’s Passage: Fully flooded, the floor’s
runes of praise to the Earthmother are obscured by
silt. The two bone kelps in the passage will try to hide
in the silt until characters try to open the doors to the
Honor Chamber (a DC17 STR check), wedged by two
blackbone daggers.
6. Honor Chamber: This 20ft-high chamber is
decorated by staring faces that all look to the graves in
the center; the eyes of all the faces have been chiseled
out. The graves where Krag and Nanda lay are empty,
save for a few bone splinters left in the middle. The
whole floor is soaked from the opened underground
lake, and three bone kelps lurk inside the graves’
puddle.
7. Desecration Cavern: In the middle of the lake, a
twisted cross of two 20ft tall black bones rises 10ft
above the water, splayed upside down upon the bones
is Nanda’s corpse, its pelvis crushed and with Krag’s
cudgel Goatwill lodged deep in her chest cavity.
Below her on the bottom of the lake lies Krag,
decapitated and buried front-first in the chill mud. The
bone kelp mothermass hiding in ambush behind the
rock column has been adorned with the couple’s grave
goods, mostly rings, armbands, and hair clasps worth
400 gp to their grandson Ott, in addition to a random
magic item (see page 22).
Urchins of the Outsider
These dried-out spiny urchins are used by the Outsider
cult; being pricked by a spine makes a thick, cloying
mucus fill the victim’s throat; victim can no longer
breathe air for ten minutes, can only respirate water.
Bone Kelp Mothermass:
Large Plant, Move/Climb/
Swim 10ft, 75 hp, 15 AC,
Vulnerable Sashing, Saves
+3, Multiattack: Fronds (3)
+4 (1d6+2 plus bane
DC11, reach), Thermal
Vision
6
4
Urchins
3x -Bone Kelp
2x -Bone Kelp:
Small Plant, Move/Climb/Swim 20ft, 30 hp,
13 AC, Vulnerable Slashing, Save +2,
Multiattack: Fronds (3) +2 (1d4 plus bane
DC11 CHA), Thermal Vision, Stealth DC15
Continuation: Ott Radder is enraged by the desecration of
his grandparents’ tomb, although he honors his deal with
the party and pays them for all recovered goods and
remains. Unless convinced to approach with subtlety, Ott
will go directly to his clan hold and stir up all of Radder
into a blood feud. Eventually, they will even threaten to
break up the Cliffrunner Confederacy over the insult unless
the defilers are found. In either case, he will ask the party to
go to the High City a day away and seek the defilers to
recover his grandfather’s head; if one of the party agrees to
be his champion he will request that PC take Goatwill.
6
Goatwill
This ancient goatherd’s cudgel is
made of polished dark driftwood,
and acts as a +1 light mace.
Holding the cudgel gives the
bearer the ability to understand
the motives and thoughts of all
goats, and allows the bearer to
command a goat to do anything
the bearer is able to get the goat
to understand.
2x -Bone Kelp
5
2x -Bone Kelp
S
3
2
1
The cult’s raid on the tomb has left signs in the city;
two of the cultists show the yellowed eyes from the
door trap and observant PCs have a 1% chance per
hour to be in proximity of one of those while walking
the city streets. Yargdan’s remains were taken to the
cult lair and scrolls of Speak With Dead are used to
ask for the corpse for blessings and wisdom. Cultists
in turn will recognize Goatwill and immediately grasp
the implications if the PCs show the cudgel carelessly.
See the Timeline (page 4) for how events will unfold
without the players’ involvement.
7
SLATEWALL: THE HIGH CITY
Ascending the high road, the four towers of the great temple rear above the grey cliffs, which echo with the deep songs
of the dwarves of the High City. The wind carries their voices with exceptional clarity, along with the smell of salt. Here
is Slatewall, pressed hard up between earth and sky back up all too close to the stormy sea.
Slatewall: The High City of the Cliffrunners Rumors in the city
Slatewall, the High City of the Cliffrunner Confederacy, There are ten rumors (see table) actively being gossiped
is a hard, traditional city with rotten roots. The assorted about upon entry to the city.
clans of the confederacy are complacent, comfortable in
their static routines and stable politics, but shuffled into
the piled cliff-side slums more and more of the clanless
grumble and chafe. Whispers circle the market stalls
and among the goatherds, talk of a prophet named
Hush, who worships the forbidden Outsider and
promises to bring down the ruling clans.
The central city of the Cliffrunner Confederacy,
Slatewall is home to hundreds of skilled craftswomen,
goat cheese makers, and stonemasons. The famous
Slatesmiths practice their craft within the High City,
making their legendarily heavy slate armor for dwarves
and the rare mighty human. Perched on the high cliffs
with the sea-shunning dwarves turning their backs to
the fjord beneath, the city is a trade hub due to its
famous high roads, along which messenger cliff runners
ply their trade.

6 2
1

Slatewall
 8
City Gazetteer: Random Encounters:
1. Temple of Earth and Sky: This massive Every 4 hours the party is active around the city, roll a d6; a
complex is the center for worship of the Skyfather “1” on the die means a random encounter occurs. Random
and Earthmother. See page 10 for details. encounters should play up the roiling under-the-surface
2. Cliffrunner Confederacy Council: The council instability of the city, even if the encounter turns out to be
of the Cliffrunner Confederacy meets here non-hostile. If the party appears to be looking for trouble or is
regularly to discuss matters of trade, law, and causing a ruckus, an extra encounter d6 is rolled, and if there
external relations. Until the ground itself begins to is a resultant encounter the participants are extra suspicious of
shake, the conservative council take little notice of or hostile to the PCs if appropriate based on their behavior.
talk about Outsider cultists. However, even a hint
of rioting by the Radder Clan will focus the clan
heads on the issue of the desecrated tomb.
3. Guard Barracks: The contented company of
soldiers that make up the Slatewall Guard are well
trained but unused to having to bestir themselves to
great efforts in the generally peaceful city.
Although the guard will try to thwart active crimes,
they prefer to hire subcontractors for
investigations.
4. Market and Central Well: Traders and others
from foreign parts are most common within the
bustling market around the High City’s central
well. The central market is a prime place for
acquiring equipment, weapons, and rumors,
although buyers seeking shadier wares will have to
instead seek out the Salt Market (page 9).
5. Slatesmiths’ Guildhall: The venerable
Slatesmiths’ Guild work within an imposing stone
building, making their famous Slate Plate for rich
dwarves all around the realm. The hall is open for
any public customers, but the guild’s real secrets
are sequestered in their legendary vaults (page 11).
Captured cultists will point to the Slatesmiths as
sponsors (having sold the cult their lair) if pressed.
6. Cliffside Slums: The dwarves of Slatewall
would rather forget about the existence of the
slums looking to the sea, sweeping the
disenfranchised out of sight and out of mind. But
the slums still remain (page 9).

Help! They’re on a beeline!

Through random events or other interactions,
the party might come upon cultists of the
Outsider very early in their investigations, and
through interrogation or tracking may find a
location for the cult. If the party follows the
cultists at first they will lead to the well
diggings (page 12) over the main lair (page 16).
The cult only operates directly from their lair if
their well operation gets disrupted. If the party
proceeds directly from the well to the lair and
disrupts both, the riotous Radder Clan might
become the new drivers of events.
9 Factions of the High City
Clans of the Cliffrunner Confederacy:
Clan Hoarmak – The senior clan of the Cliffrunner
Confederacy, Hoarmak’s traditional clanhold formed the
nucleus for the High City. The Hoarmak Quarry provides
some of the highest-quality slate in the realm for tiles,
decoration, and roads. According to clan lore it was Ferria
Hoarmak who first developed the methods to calve off
slate precisely into the thin plates used by the Slatesmiths,
and the Hoarmak clan guards are famously all armored in
the legendary stoneplate. Hoarmak make up the largest
clan still in the High City and their clan representatives on
the confederacy council are proud of that.
Clan Leepsa – Southeast of Slatewall, the Leepsa clan
works its carefully husbanded hillside forests, providing
lumber for the entire region. Leepsa timber-watchers
wander the hills, carefully blazing and compressing
chosen trees to mold them into predetermined shapes
before being felled; Leepsa carve most of their wooden
product rather than assemble them. Within the High City,
most Leepsa are craftswomen, and their clan councilors
are aggressive about pushing for more alien traders to be
let in. Persistent rumors of Leepsa lumber being used by
shipwrights make clan leaders especially zealous in
persecuting dwarves suspected to be within the Outsider’s
cult.
Clan Radder – West of Slatewall, the Radder clan focus
primarily on goatherding, cheesemaking, and spinning, a
conservative people even for dwarves. As stubborn and
persistent as their beloved longhair goats, Radder are
famous grudge-holders, with their current clan hold built
on the ruins of the town of Javiris, destroyed when the
town fathers cheated a clan merchant out of payment for a
single cart of cheese. In the High City, the rough Radder
herdsmen account for the majority of Slatewall Guard’s
arrests, and the Radder council members are defensive of
their rustic reputation.
Clan Thuruk – Famous for their sages and seers, the
wandering Thuruk lack a single settled clan hold, instead
moving their camps from hunting ground to foraging
ground and back. More Cliffrunners come from the
Thuruk than any other clan in the confederacy. The
Thuruk who stay within the High City often chafe at their
sedentary lifestyle, and Thuruk councilors, while
respected, are disinterested in the day-to-day questions
the council typically considers.
Other Slatewall Factions:
The Cliffrunners – Young and athletic dwarves from
all clans in the confederacy compete for coveted spots
among the fabled Cliffrunners, messengers and small-
lot deliverymen who run on the high roads with an
endurance that outstrips even horsemen. In the High
City the Cliffrunners wear blue tabards, expecting
deference wherever they go. The First Runner has a
permanent non-voting seat on the council, and his
proxy is usually listened to despite the lack of vote.
Temple of Earth and Sky – The priests of the
Skyfather and the priestesses of the Earthmother work
closely in line with each other in Slatewall, with the
combined Temple of Earth and Sky welcoming
worshipers from all the clans, even the occasional
human or halfling convert. The egalitarian tendency
of the High City’s temple draws harsh criticism from
traditionalists; some dwarves refuse to acknowledge
the temple as legitimate.
Slatesmiths – Secretive about their art, the
Slatesmiths are masters of the ancient art of slate-
napping; strictly speaking they are more masons than
smiths, but nevertheless they are makers of impressive
armor famous throughout the realm. Although the
stony slate armor is unworkably heavy for all but the
strongest non-dwarves, sales of these beautiful pieces
make the Slatesmiths fantastically wealthy; their
wealth is conserved and used sparingly, always for the
purposes of the Slatesmiths’ own security and secrecy.
The Slatesmiths own several nearby prospecting sites,
and other factions are suspicious of them hiding some
force inimical to the city’s greater wellbeing.
Cult of the Outsider – The forbidden god of the seas,
the Outsider is anathema to all dwarves. So when a
dwarf loses his honor, her employment, or most awful
of all, falls in love with the sea, there lies the
Outsider, beckoning. Initiates to the Cult are given to
the pools, drowned multiple times and revived again
and again until their minds are damaged and their
breathing is labored. Survivors of initiation, necks
ritually scarred to resemble gills, are fanatical if often
confused and easily led.
The Slum Mother – Within the cliffside slums, the
shadowy Slum Mother and her agents, who bear the
clasped-hand symbol, help clanless dwarves down on
their luck, offering succor and opening a path to
employment. All Mother asks in return is a favor;
what form that favor takes is often simple, hire
another lost clanless, give a gift of food, run a quick
message…but every so often, it is a knife in the dark
or a fire in a shop. And nobody refuses Mother.
 TEMPLE OF EARTH AND SKY
At the apex of the High City flaps the blue Tapestry of the
Sky, suspended between the four temple towers; beneath
the Tapestry the Earthen Altar is attended by a priestess
anointing it with oil daily. Within the towers the priests of
the Skyfather educate the learned of the High City and
weigh criminal cases while the Earthmother’s priestesses
move among the city healing and judging civil disputes.
Temple Key:
Tower of the Sun: Carrying out the rites of the Skyfather,
the priests within the Tower of the Sun observe the flights
of birds and the movements of clouds, divining the
Skyfather’s will in weather and seasons.
Tower of Day: Priests here spend their days teaching
adolescents in law, traditions, languages, and history. In
the shadowed upper levels of the tower, more secretive
lessons in rune crafting are taught to the rare craftswomen
and artisans who are considered worthy (and talented)
enough to inscribe them.
10
Tower of Storms: Judging the rare criminal infarction
within the tower, the minimal judiciary of Slatewall are
all priests of the Skyfather. The guardsmen who billet at
the tower have no such standing with the temple, but
nonetheless work closely with the judges. All criminal
judgements within Slatewall are swift; the small jail is
only used to hold outsiders awaiting extradition.
Tower of Night: Living quarters for most of the married
priest/priestess couples are found in this tower; although
by tradition all of the temple clergy must be past the
child-rearing stage of life, practically the Tower of Night
almost always echoes with the shouts of children; the
grandchildren of the priesthood are always visiting.
Earthen Altar: By tradition, only priestesses of the
Earthmother are permitted down within the pit where the
single heavy stone etched with runes of power, the altar,
sacred to the Earthmother, is anointed by singing
priestesses who pray for the stability of the High City and
the health of its people every day at noon.
11
Cliffside Slums
All the lost and forgotten dwarves of the Cliffrunner Salt Market: If there is much activity in the slums, it is
Confederacy are swept carelessly towards the sea. The within the shadowed Salt Market. Although there are
shattered cliffs on the seaside of Slatewall, salt-stained shabby wares to be purchased in the brittle stalls,
and shunned by respectable dwarves, piled with shacks outsiders and unscrupulous clan dwarves trickle down for
and tents of the poor clanless, are quiet and dim. In the poisons, drugs, and scrolls of forbidden magic that are
shadow of the bustling energy of the High City, the hidden by the dishonored sellers.
clanless try to eke out a living by day-to-day scut work,
Mother’s Shack: Anonymous and dilapidated, nothing
black market trading, and pretty crimes.
indicates this shack is any different from those around it.
Lost Hope Tavern: Serving the clanless and the Occasionally, a nonchalant dwarf will wander by the
unwelcome among visitors and strangers, the Lost Hope shack a tap on the thin walls; listening back for a tapped
Tavern is a place for cheap barley beer, uncertain stews, reply. This agent of the Slum Mother will then walk
and lice-ridden beds. For all that, the building is the only onward with his or her orders. Inside the shack, sitting
two-story structure in the slum and is usually full of bored ensconced within hundreds of old blankets, the elderly
out-of-work clanless, secretive cultists, and always a Mother listens for news of her slum children.
watchful agent or two of Mother.

C
Clanless Hold: A hospice for the
lost and lonely, the clanless hold
is a simple stone structure where
newcomers
. to the slums huddle
for a few days or weeks before
getting their bearings and
moving out, usually into an
abandoned tent or drafty shack. Salt Market
The hold has no official manager
but Mother’s agents ensure that
no fights break out and no one is
victimized. It is from
observations in the hold that the
Slum Mother determines what Clanless
favor will be granted, and what Hold
will be asked, of a newcomer in
desperate need. Lost Hope Tavern
Exile Hovels: Even among the
forgotten, there are exiles. The
cold and drafty lower cliffs are
dotted with lean-tos made of
driftwood and rotting tents.
Going further down the cliffs
from the level of Mother’s Shack
is called “kneeling outside” by
the slum’s denizens, and is
typically accompanied by a Mother’s Shack
contemptuous spit. The cult of
the Outsider move freely among
the lowest hovels; the few exiles
not in sympathy with the cult are
cowed into sullen silence about
the blasphemers. Exile
Hovels
C

Well Diggings
Deep beneath Slatewall, an underground stream feeds the
city’s three wells before flowing out to the sea. The
Outsider’s cult, in their quest to weaken the foundations
of the city, now dig deeper in the channels within,
bringing the tides up to the western well and turning its
waters somewhat brackish during the high tide.
1. Brackish Cavern: Every high tide, a stream of seawater
comes trickling in to this large cave, driving the six
cheerful cultists who camp here into ecstatic singing. If
the cultists notice interlopers they’ll splash into the water
and attack with thrown daggers, and if more than half die
the survivors will flee to break the leaking undermine (3).
2. Abandoned Digging: This little side-tunnel is largely
abandoned. Four bone kelps have been placed here on a
rotting dwarf’s carcass. The dwarf is Bunnli Stricken, a
clanless vagrant who stumbled onto the cult’s operation.
An agent of Mother, he bears her clasped hand symbol.
To the
Pillars
12
3. Leaking Undermine: The rushing sounds of water
can be heard above and beyond the north wall of this
digging. A single strong stroke of a pickaxe could break
through the wall and unleash the underground stream in
a disastrous flood.
If a cultist in the cavern (1) escapes to break through
the wall (3), a sudden rush of water will smash through
the chalky stone in a chaotic flood that will sweep any
occupants of the tunnels before it. A few seconds of
high-pressure spray gives the players a single round to
prepare before a massive churn of stone and water
slams down the undermine (3) first down the
abandoned digging (2) before rebounding and flowing
out to sea, traveling 100ft per round. Individuals caught
in the flood suffer 3d6 bludgeoning damage (STR save
halves) and are pushed along with the flood, the save
advantaged depending on how the player has prepared.
6x- Cultists:
23 hp, 13 AC
(studded leather),
Save +2, Dagger +4
(1d4, sneak 1d6)
4x -Bone Kelp:
Small Plant, Move/Climb/Swim
20ft, 30 hp, 13 AC, Vulnerable
Slashing, Save +2, Multiattack:
Fronds (3) +2 (1d4 plus bane
DC11 CHA), Thermal Vision,
Stealth DC15
13
Slatesmiths’ VAULT
Located underneath the guild hall of the Slatesmiths, their
legendary vault is rumored to hold vast unimaginable
wealth. Although it is true that the smiths do hold gold
and silver in their vault, more important to the
organization are the numerous secrets and relics hidden
within. The vault is accessed by counterweighted heavy
stone elevator suspended by a tremendously thick rope,
which is designed to break if more than a thousand
pounds are placed upon it. No sign exists that the elevator
leads to the deeper second level beyond the rope being
long enough to descend past the first level.
Each room within the vault has a 15% chance of holding
two initiates (as Slatewall Warriors) at any given time;
roll to see if the guards are within a room upon entry, or
in adjoining rooms if the PCs do something particularly
noisy. Although well-armed and fantastically armored,
the initiates are not veteran fighters and are prone to panic
if injured.
A. Elevator Room (first level): This smoothly polished
room has four sets of double doors, each carefully etched
with intricate runes, clockwise from north to west:
“Memory”, “Training”, “Insight”, “Creativity”.
B. Innovation Room: In the center of this room is an
ancient, intricate set of antique slateplate (worth 1,500gp),
the first designed to interlock and support the wearer
despite the full 500lb weight. A grouchy old speaker
naps here. Behind each curtain are greaves, legplates, and
pauldrons (1d4 examples worth 5d20gp each) and plans
showing techniques that enable better movement.
C. Mistake Room: Behind each curtain stands badly built
suits of armor, unable to move (north), with wrong-
pointed joints (east), and poorly finished (southwest). The
poorly finished suit has helm and greaves pointed to the
secret door, opening the door leads to a chamber with a
heavy wheel. Turning the wheel opens the floor beneath
the elevator (A), allowing further descent (H).
D. Solving Room: In the center of this room is an intricate
goathair shirt cleverly sewn with slate plates (as a chain
shirt but weighs 40lbs, worth 400gp). The curtained
alcoves hold neatly displayed tools for slate-breaking and
shaping (worth 150gp per alcove).
E. Novice Room: In the center of this room sits a simple
wooden model of slate plate, marked with runic notation
and numbers (this model worth 5,000gp to someone
looking for Slatesmith secrets). Three studious initiates
are examining the model. Behind the curtains are the first
armors made by some of the greatest masters: Gerund and
Ojal (west), Varn and Laki (east), and unnamed (south,
made by fallen masters), with the unnamed masters’
armors pointing toward the secret door latch (G).
F. Master Room: This room has an example from each of
the great masters; Ojal’s Pumice Plate (north), Laki’s
Slateblade (east), Varn’s Shard Targe (southeast), and
Gerund’s Obsidian Flowmail (southwest). Touching any
-of the works invites the given master’s spirit in to
possess the toucher if within the vault (DC14 Cha to
resist). See page 22 for details of each artifact.
G. Fallen Room: The blasphemous works of the fallen
nameless masters are interred here. The two northern
alcoves have a suit of glyph-etched +1 slateplate and a
+1 slate breastplate, both items are cursed, impossible to
remove when donned. Farther south, the alcoves contain
unholy blackbone plate (nauseates if worn), a thin slate
kiyak, a random magic item (see page 22), and a twisted
suit of glyphed slateplate that acts as animated armor
and attacks if light is shone on it.
H. Elevator Room (second level): This room looks much
the one on the first level but to the north hangs a curtain,
behind which sits a primitive suit of slateplate with a
gold-gilt skeleton inside (gilding worth 1,000gp); this is
Ferria Hoarmak, the First Slatesmith. The doors, from
east to west are labeled: “Secrets”, “Wealth”, “Plans”.
I. Plot Room: This tiny room is packed with heavy boxes;
within the boxes are numerous letters, contracts, and
agreements made with clan heads, nearby human lords,
and other smith organizations. Each of them are sribed on
heavy (2lbs) tablets of slate, fifty tablets per box. Careful
perusal of the books show that a mysterious property was
sold to a redacted individual who is providing “rent”.
Correlating with property records allows a PC to devine
the location of the cult lair, but takes time; ten minutes to
get a DC100 on a d100; difficulty drops by 1 each
attempt. Sorting through the boxes is a noisy task.
J. Pattern Room: The curtained alcoves within this room
hold intricate slate-fracture patterns showing how to
break slate into armor sections and join them together.
K. Vault Room: Eight 3x3x3 vaults are all locked with
puzzle-locks; each vault holds 1,000gp worth of coins,
gems, and raw precious metal and 1d3 treasures. The
simple guard post to the west has a bored senior speaker
who carries an anomalous slate key on his person that
opens the secret door which leads to the most secret vault
room, where over time the Slatesmiths have accumulated
various deeds, blackmail documents, and human land
grants. Notably already pulled out is a document detailing
an abandoned slate mine on the cliffside (page 13) and
sold to a dwarf that the Slatesmiths are certain is Hush,
the rumored head of the local Outsider cult.
L. Guidance Room: This unfinished cave has a rough suit
of dusty slate armor in the center, with a candle burning
in the helm. Respectful Slatesmiths speak to the Great
Masters here; one of the spirits animates armor and
attacks any creature that enters the room without giving
the sign of the Slatesmiths. Extinguishing the candle
kicks out the spirit of a great master; it will rekindle itself
three times for all four great masters. If the armor is
defeated by four extinguishings, it will go dormant as a
set of +1 slateplate that imbues the wearer with a
permanent ant haul effect.
 2x- Initiates (15% chance per room):
23 hp, 16 AC (shale half plate),
Slatesmith Speaker
Saves +3, Warhammer +4 (1d8+1)

Level 1

Slatesmith Speaker:
6HD Dwarf, 120 hp,
16 AC, Saves +3,
Mace +5, (1d8+3),
Spells: Detect Magic, 3x- Initiates
Stabilize, Bane,
Protection from
Chaos, Bestow
Curse, Silence

Level 2

Animated
Armor

Animated Armor: 4HD Construct, 120 hp,

15 AC, resistant to all damage but acid, Saves
+2 (mindless), Slams (2) +5 (1d10+9)
15 Lair of the Outsider’s Chosen
Buried within an old exploratory dig that faces the sea, 8. Drowning Pool: This salty pool is used to drown
Hush and his cultists await the arrival of the Doom, initiates; a walrus lounges in the pool and is disinclined
initiating recruits and piling the unwilling into a huddled to move. Clearly visible are six massive pearls (worth
mass for sacrifice. Patrolling beneath the cliff is a 300 gp each) gleaming on the pool’s bottom. The walrus
Herald, an aggressive whale who will viciously charge is hostile to everyone but Hush, who uses the secret door
any creature who falls into the sea. in this crevice to enter and leave his chamber (10).
9. Sacrificial Rock: The sacrifice (Wal Radder) chained
Lair Key: to a driftwood cross here begins to yell hoarsely for help
1. Cliffside Path: The winding path that leads down to the if he hears any commotion up on the cliffside. His frantic
lair has numerous cracks and is slick with spray, giving yelling begins to agitate the Herald swimming nearby;
advantage to anyone attempting to knock an interloper off the whale begins to click damagingly and will start to
the cliff. leap up to attack Wal after three minutes of yelling.
2. Chamber of Welcome: This upper chamber is full of Marked by the Outsider, if Wal is cut down and led over
the cult’s equipment: mining tools, lifting ropes, the bridge back to the cliff the Herald will go berserk and
disguises, and boats. Five tired cultists watch over the attempt to knock him and his rescuers off the bridge with
chamber. The bulky equipment is worth 2,000gp if it is blow-hole blasts.
transported out the perilous path. 10. Prophet’s Chamber: Stoic leader Hush meditates
3. Dire Cracks: Within this shattered little section of the within his sacred chamber; the door is unlocked but
cliff wall, escaped prisoner Frippi Hoarmak hides. She coated with clear, thin, and practically invisible urchin
wants nothing more than to safely flee but is terrified of spines that poison any who grasp it. Hush will calmly
the cult. If asked, she’ll mention there were ten prisoners buff himself if he hears loud sounds of combat in 7 or 8.
counting herself (the two disguised cultists are replacing He will fight courageously but if he thinks he is about to
her and Wal Radder (9)). die he will flee by diving into the sea from his chamber.
4. Storage Tunnel: The tunnel here holds the cult’s ritual His spartan chamber is devoid of ornamentation but a
implements, including nine urchins (see page 5) and simple box next to his sleeping cot is filled with six
wicked fish bone knives. The bones of Yargdan lay in treasures taken from initiates for the cult’s war chest,
state with offerings of salt and bone in piles. Three scrolls along with Krag Radder’s skull and a random magic item
of Speak With Dead are nearby along with a scroll of (see page 22).
Animate Dead; if the bones are animated the malign spirit
of Yargdan controls them and fights as a skeletal Development
speaker. A ladder leads down to the Initiation Chamber
but the acoustics allow for conversion here without Most of the cultists in the lair are a little vague on Hush’s
detection. plan. If captured, they will gladly rant about how the city
5. Parapet of Glory: Basking in the sunlight, a walrus is doomed thanks to the Radder artifact, but know little
pair guard the lair with fierce loyalty toward the cultists. else beyond the well diggings (page 14). The prisoners
If peppered with arrows they will take cover, charging up know about the same as the common cultists. Hush and
the ramp to the Chamber of Welcome (2) to attack the Yargdan (if Speak With Dead is used) know exactly the
intruders. timeline of the Doom’s arrival as well as how the Horn of
6. Prisoner Nook: The raw stench of excrement clings to Storms is used to direct the creature. If the lair is not
this nook and the ten blindfolded and chained dwarves dealt with and Hush remains alive when the Doom
inside. Eight of them are prisoners, but two disguised arrives, he along with all his surviving cultists will be
cultists are chained up with them, and will try to harm the added to the fight among the pillars of the city (page 18).
PCs if the opportunity presents itself. If the players impressed Hush as being particularly
7. Initiation Chamber: Twelve strange driftwood ritual knowledgeable or threatening, he will attempt a careful
masks shaped like undersea creatures are arranged here in assassination of the party if the opportunity presents itself
a circle (worth 1,200gp to a collector of esoterica). Four before the Doom arrives.
nervous cultists are here; they won’t get near the
walruses (5) in their battle-rage, but depending on how
the PCs handle the aggressive pinnipeds the cultists might
join in the fight. If half the cultists die then the remaining
will flee to pound on the door (but not touch the handle)
of Hush’s chamber (10). He ignores them.
2x- Walrus: 16
105 hp, AC 12, Saves Prisoner
8x- Prisoners 5x- Cultists:
+2, Bite +7 (2d12) (escaped) 23 hp, 13 AC
2x- Cultists
(studded leather),
Save +2, Dagger +4
(1d4, sneak 1d6)

Herald of the Outsider:

165 hp, 15 AC, Saves +4,
Bite +8 (2d10+30) or
Steambreath +6 (1d10+15
plus push, 30ft range),
Special: Sonic click (3d8
sonic plus daze DC 13
CON, 15ft burst, 40ft range)

Walrus

Yargdan, Skeletal Speaker:

Hush: 120 hp, 16 AC, resistant to slashing,
135 hp, 15 AC, Saves +4, Multiattack: (2) blackbone dagger +6 4x- Cultists piercing, vulnerable to bludgeoning,
(1d4+5 plus bane DC12 CHA), Spells: Bodily Purge (3d8 Saves +3, Club +5 (1d6+3), Spells:
healing), Shield, Mind Thrust II (5d8, DC16 INT half), Slow Bane (DC14 WIS), Bestow Curse
(DC16 WIS), Expeditious Retreat, Silence (DC16 WIS) (DC14 WIS), Silence (DC15 WIS)
17
DooM Upon the Pillars
Arrival:
When the Caller arrives on the ninth day, she comes in
riding a narwhal within a vast bow wave, the Doom of the
Outsider, a vast midnight-black squid set to destroy the
High City by cracking its foundations, swims with
incredible speed towards Slatewall. Starting at dawn,
three signs of the Doom’s arrival break upon Slatewall’s
cliffs.
First Sign, Dawn: Gulls. An immense flock of seagulls
appears with the rising sun, sweeping into the city and
unnerving the locals. The Stormcrows of the Skyfather
fight the gulls in the air and drive them off, but the flock
can still be seen wheeling around in the sky.
Second Sign, Hour After Dawn: Sounds. Multiple
whale spouts appear out at sea, and a deep, almost
subsonic, thrum sounds from the ocean, causing a minor
earthquake. A tremorer awakes from the quake and
attacks at a random location in the city (roll 1d6 and
check against the key on page 8 for location of attack).
Third Sign, Two Hours After Dawn: Bow Wave. A
vast bow wave appears in the sea heading straight
towards Slatewall. Over the next ten minutes the wave
approaches at incredible speed, finally smashing into the
cliffs of the city, high enough to spray the slums
Why not meet them head on?
If the players have an idea of what’s coming, they
might choose to attempt to strike out and face the
Caller before she and the Doom reach Slatewall.
There are several difficulties with this, of course, most
prominently that the sea-adverse Cliffrunner Dwarves
don’t have any ships. However, if all issues can be
cleverly overcome the player initiative should be
encouraged. Rather than the large and complex set-
piece outlined here, feel free to have the players fight
the Caller at sea. The Doom will be immensely
dangerous to a ship, as shown here. The weak point is
still the Caller and her Horn of Storms. A climactic
battle at sea where players try desperately to capture
the Horn while the Doom toys with their ship can also
be a tremendously satisfying adventure’s end.
When the Doom reaches the cliffs of Slatewall, it
immediately begins to attack. There are three primary
arenas in which the city fights for its life: First, in the
Slums, a long tentacle wrecks buildings and smashes
people if the slums have not been evacuated. Second, in
the well diggings beneath the western well, a tentacle
attempts to snake up the channel to cause earthquakes and down the cliffs, while thwarting the tentacle in the well
destruction. Finally, in the cavern of the pillars of the city, diggings (either by destroying the tentacle or by thwarting
Caller directs multiple tentacles against the five pillars,
which if destroyed will send the entire city into the sea.
Arena One, The Slums: A long and lashing tentacle
attacks the exile hovels (page 11) first, snatching victims
and causing panic if the Slum Mother was not able to
effect an evacuation. Five cultists are scattered around
the slums, each one with a horn that they blow to direct
the tentacle to their locations, destroying each keyed
location in turn.
Arena Two, The Well Wedge: an exploratory tentacle
winds its way into the well diggings (page 12). If the
players successfully thwarted the undermining effort of
the cult, the tentacle will just thrash ineffectually, but if
the undermining worked then it will begin to worm its
way upstream to destabilize the city. If no guard was
posted in the diggings, nine cultists defend the tentacle.
Arena Three, The Pillars of Slatewall: The main fight
takes place among the pillars as a mighty tentacle wraps
around each one, making the cavern echo with grinding
cracks. Riding a narwhal (use walrus stats), the raving
cultist named Caller weaves above and below the waters,
always surfacing at least once every three rounds to blow
the Horn of Storms. Blowing the horn makes the Doom
convulse, each time constricting the pillars tighter. Five
groups of three cultists each watch in adulation, singing
praises to the Outsider even as they fight potential
interfering parties. When the players emerge to fight of
the assault, the Doom is driven to a frenzy, cracking the
remaining pillars at a rate of one per minute.
Cutting individual tentacles is possible; each tentacle
takes up a 5ft wide line with the tip able to grapple at a +8
doing 1d12 damage and other sections shoving at +5
doing 1d10 damage, and doing 100hp of damage to a
section severs the tentacle. Each tentacle destroyed saves
that particular pillar until another tentacle snakes in to the
arena. The Doom has ten tentacles of sufficient strength
to destroy the great pillars. The easiest method of dealing
with the Doom’s tentacles is to attack cultists bearing
horns. Blowing the Horn of Storms with intent to banish
the Doom of the Outsider will send the monster away.
Although the main threat to the city is in the third arena
among the pillars, helping the other arenas can still have
benefits. Spending time in either the slums or the well
diggings means one of the smaller pillars gets broken;
both are broken if both other attacks are solved. However,
saving the slums (either by fighting the tentacle or
evacuating all dwellers) gains the aid of four of Mother's
Men (use stats as cultists) in the fight below repelling
the earlier digging efforts) allows a pair of speakers to
come down the tunnel to help.
 Horn of Storms Caller: 18
135 hp, 15 AC, Saves +4, blackbone dagger
This twisted horn of ebony driftwood feels cold and wet to +6 (1d4+5 plus bane DC12 CHA)
the touch. Blowing the horn alerts any and all sea creatures Horn of Storms in hand, Spells: Bodily Purge
within earshot; most sea creatures flee its sound but any
(3d8 healing), Mind Thrust II (5d8 DC15 INT
animal sacred to the Outsider will immediately come to the
blower of the horn and receive a single direct instruction. half), Slow (DC15 WIS)
Narwhal:
To the Well 105 hp, AC 12, Saves +2 Gore +7 (2d12)
Diggings
3x- Cultists

-20ft

-40ft 3x- Cultists

3x- Cultists:
23 hp, 13 AC 3x- Cultists
(studded leather),
Save +2, Dagger +4
(1d4, sneak 1d6) -20ft

-20ft
5x- Tentacles:
100 hp, 10 AC
Grapple +8 (1d12) 3x- Cultists
Shove +5 (1d10) -40ft
19
Concluding the Adventure
Vengeance of the High City
Assuming the players thwart the attack and forestall the
Outsider’s Doom, the people of Slatewall will be looking
for revenge. The cult of the Outsider is largely destroyed
within the city, but of course worship of a god of the
exiled and forgotten will appear anywhere in almost any
setting. The clans will be in the mood for a crusade,
starting first with the exiles in their own slums.
Depending on the tone of the campaign or world,
immediately in the aftermath of the attack on the city a
purge in the slums is inevitable, something heroic players maimed in the chaotic attack. Many side plots can be
can prevent either working with the Clan Council
politically or with direct personal actions. If the tone of is designed to be an interesting place both before and after
the game is less inclined to ethnic cleansing, the council
itself can prevent direct retaliation upon the innocent, but relationships and plots developed over the course of the
the righteous anger of the entire Cliffrunner Confederacy adventure, this should be encouraged. Example new plots:
can provide any number of adventures in their quest to
hunt down and root out the cult. If the players have
formed attachments to the city, the cult of the Outsider
now aware of the vulnerability may attempt to undermine
and destroy the city yet again.
Whoever possesses the Horn of Storms attracts a great
deal of attention; being able to command dire creatures of
the deep isn’t particularly valuable in the middle of most
dungeons, but any king, city, or pirate warlord with a
navy would pay immense sums, or send assassins, for the
horn. If your campaign world has dark intelligences who
dwell beneath the waves, they would also clearly be
interested in a party who holds something that can
command creatures around them. If the players are
ambitious sorts, they themselves might wish to use the
horn to build their own power at sea.
Fall of the High City
The players are capable of failing to save Slatewall
without dying themselves in the process. If the pillars of
the city are destroyed the cavern ceiling will begin to
shatter, randomly sending rocks hurtling downward. The
next several minutes see the entire city fall in a massive
landslide into the seas. An individual strong swimmer
already at sea has a chance to survive, as would someone
taking refuge in the tunnel that leads to the pillars.
Surviving the fall of Slatewall would begin a quest of
vengeance, certainly upon the cult, possibly upon the
Outsider itself if that campaign is within scope. Angry
ghosts of the dead or battered living survivors can act as
hooks for the players if the group enjoy that style. The
constituent clans of the Cliffrunner Confederacy will be
wanting answers for why their capital city and the cream
of their society all died, and they will not be pleasant with
their questions.
Side Adventures in the High City
The random encounter table on page 8 has a few side-
plots not directly related to the assault of the Outsider
cult. Not only do these encounters provide a way to
personalize the city and its inhabitants, they can also
provide inspiration for additional side plots as the party
grows in power and influence within the city. The game
master should feel free to encourage these diversions
while still maintaining awareness of the timeline. When
the Doom reaches Slatewall, these connections made in
the process will be endangered, and can easily be killed or
resolved this way at the adventure’s climax, but Slatewall
the assault, and if players want to continue to pursue
 An entire nest of tremorers were awoken by the
ructions, and are now consuming houses wholesale.
 Clan Radder, ashamed of their ancestor’s perfidious
following of the Outsider, seek to destroy the Horn.
 Hrot Leepsa, priest of the Skyfather, goes mad after
the death of his wife and grandson in the attack, he
blames the players for their deaths.
Setting Assumptions
The basic setting assumptions of the Outsider’s Doom
should be broadly compatible with most published
settings. The dwarves of Slatewall aren’t underground
dwellers like is default in most settings, but having a cliff-
based high city is extremely compatible with the dwarven
aesthetic. If a preferred setting tends to have dwarves with
a more steampunk style, that would certainly influence
the rustic baseline of the Slatewall dwarves, but it
certainly won’t effect the essentials of the story.
Most setting pantheons, just as with most ancient real-
world polytheistic pantheons, have a central male sky
god, a maternal earth goddess, and a hostile sea god, so
finding appropriate parallels shouldn’t be difficult. The
module as written does not require the gods to be actually
active or provide cleric spells. The leaders of cult of the
Outsider can be gifted arcanists, psions, or psychics
instead of divine casters. The most essential part of the
story is the Outsider’s role as a dark god revered by
sailors and exiles. The priests of the Skyfather can be
rangers while the priestesses of the Earthmother are
herbalists or alchemists, if so desired. In standard 5th
Edition, the expected common domains of each god are:
 Skyfather -Light, Knowledge, Order
 Earthmother -Life, Forge, Grave
 Outsider -Tempest, Trickery, Death
 Bestiary and NPCs
Bone Kelp: 2HD Small Plant,
. Move/Climb/Swim 20ft, 30 hp, 13 AC,
Vulnerable Slashing, Save +2, Multiattack: Blackbone
Fronds (3) +2 (1d4 plus bane DC11 CHA), Thermal
Vision, Stealth DC15 (taking 10), vulnerable to fire,
tries to disarm any torches (+5).
Bone Kelp Mothermass: 4HD Large Plant, Move/
Climb/Swim 10ft, 75 hp, 15 AC, Vulnerable Sashing,
Save +3, Multiattack: Blackbone Fronds (3) +4
(1d6+2 plus bane DC11 CHA, reach), Thermal
Vision, vulnerable to fire, tries to disarm torches (+7).
Twisted Goat: 4HD Animal, 38 hp, 13 AC, Saves +2
Gore +4 (1d6+4 plus bane DC11 CHA)
Stormcrow Swarm: 4HD Tiny Animal Swarm, 90
hp, 15 AC, 2d6 damage (blind for 1 round DC10
DEX)
Slatewall Warrior: 3HD Dwarf, 23 hp, 16 AC (shale
half plate), Saves +3, Warhammer +4 (1d8+1) or
Sling +3 (1d4+1)
Slatewall Speaker: 6HD Dwarf, 120 hp, 16 AC
(shale breastplate), Saves +3, Club +5, [2x +7 with
spirit] (1d6+3), Spells: Detect Magic, Stabilize, Bane
(DC14 WIS), Protection from Chaos, Bestow Curse
(DC14 WIS), [Cure Wounds], [Silence (DC15 WIS)],
[Grease (DC15 DEX)], [Blindness (DC15 CON)] –
Spells or abilities in [brackets] are granted by random
attending spirits.
20
Animated Armor: 4HD Construct, 120 hp, 15 AC,
resistant to all damage but acid, Saves +2 (mindless),
Slams (2) +5 (1d10+9)
Outsider Cultist: 3HD Dwarf, 23 hp, 13 AC (studded
leather), Saves +2, Dagger +4 (1d4 plus sneak attack
1d6), Disguise DC15 (taking 10)
Walrus: 4HD Large Animal, Move 10ft, Swim 30ft, 105
hp, AC 12, Saves +2, Bite +7 (2d12)
Hush, the Outsider’s Chosen: 6HD Dwarf, 105(135*)
hp, 12(15*) AC, Saves +4, Multiattack: (2) +1 blackbone
dagger +6 (1d4+5 plus bane DC12 CHA), Spells: Bodily
Purge (3d8 healing), Haste*, False Life*, Mage Armor*,
Shield, Mind Thrust II (5d8 plus DC16 INT halves), Slow
(DC16 WIS), Expeditious Retreat, Silence (DC16 WIS).
Tremorer: 15HD Huge Beast, Move 10ft, Burrow(dirt)
50ft, Burrow(stone) 10ft, 180 hp, 17 AC, Saves +5,
Mutliattack: Tongues (3) +6 (1d6+6 plus grab, reach) or
Bite +8 (3d6+12), tremorsense
Herald of Doom (Twisted Whale): 10HD Gargantuan
Animal, Swim 40ft, 165 hp, 15 AC, Saves +4, Bite +8
(2d10+30) or Steambreath +6 (1d10+15 plus push, 30ft
range), Special: Sonic click (3d8 sonic plus daze DC 13
CON, 15ft burst, 40ft range), blindsense (sonar)
Doom of the Outsider: 100HD Colossal Aberration
(squid), Swim 40ft, 2,000 hp, 19 AC, Saves +10, Bite
+15 (5d12)
21
Pathfinder Bestiary
Bone Kelp: 2HD Small Plant, Move/Climb/Swim
20ft, 15 hp, 13 AC, DR2/slashing, Fort +6, Ref +6,
Will +0, Blackbone Fronds (3) +2 (1d4 plus sicken
DC12 Will), Thermal Vision, Stealth DC17 (taking
10), vulnerable to fire, tries to disarm any torches (+5
CMB).
Bone Kelp Mothermass: 4HD Large Plant, Move/
Climb/Swim 10ft, 38 hp, 18 AC, DR4/slashing, Fort
+7, Ref +1, Will +2, Blackbone Fronds (3) +5 (1d6+2
plus grab plus sicken DC12 Will, reach), Thermal
Vision, vulnerable to fire, tries to disarm any torches
(+7 CMB).
Twisted Goat: 4HD Animal, 30 hp, 16 AC, Fort +9,
Ref +5, Will +2, gore +7 (1d6+6 plus sicken DC12
Will)
Slatewall Warrior: Dwarf Warrior 3, 25 hp, 18 AC
(shale half plate), Fort +5, Ref +1, Will +3, greataxe
+6 (1d12+3) or sling +3 (1d4+2)
Slatewall Speaker: Dwarf Medium 6, 39 hp, 17 AC
(shale breastplate), Fort +4, Ref +3, Will +9, +1 club
+7, [2x +9 with spirit] (1d6+3), Spells: Detect Magic,
Stabilize, Oneiric Horror (DC15 Will), Protection
from Chaos, Ill Omen,, Bestow Curse (DC16 Will),
[Cure Light Wounds], [Silence (DC16 Will)], [Grease
(DC15 Reflex)], [Blindness (DC16 Fort)] –Spells or
abilities in [brackets] are granted by appropriate
random attending spirits.
. Expeditious Retreat, Monkeyfish, Silence
OSR Bestiary
Bone Kelp: AC 7 (13), HD 2, #AT 2, D 1-4,
infravision, climbs
Bone Kelp Mothermass: AC 5 (15), HD 4,
#AT 2, D 2-7, infravision, climbs
Twisted Goat: AC 6 (13), HD 3, #AT 1, D 3-8
Slatewall Warrior: AC 2 (17), HD 3, #AT 1,
D 3-10, infravision
Slatewall Speaker: AC 2 (18), HD 6, #AT 1,
D 4-9, infravision, spells: As cleric
Cultist: AC 7 (13), HD 2, #AT 1, D 2-5,
infravision
. .
Outsider Cultist: 3HD Dwarf, 19 hp, 15 AC (studded
leather), Fort +3, Ref +2, Will +3, dagger +5 (1d4+1 plus
sneak attack 1d6), Disguise DC15 (taking 10), Swim +10
Stormcrow Swarm: 4HD Tiny Animal Swarm, 19 hp,
14 AC, 1d6 damage (blind DC11, distraction DC13)
Animated Armor: 4HD Construct, 52 hp, 15 AC,
hardness 8, Fort +1, Ref 0, Will -4, Slams (2) +9 (1d6+9)
Tremorer: 15HD Huge Magical Beast, Move 10ft,
Burrow(dirt) 50ft, Burrow(stone) 10ft, 112 hp, 19 AC,
Fort +14, Ref +3, Will +10, Tongues (3) +15 (1d6+6 plus
grab, 15ft reach), Bite +21 (3d6+12), tremorsense
Walrus: 4HD Large Animal, Move 10ft, Swim 30ft, 39
hp, 18 AC, Fort +7, Ref +4, Will +2, bite +8 (1d8+7)
Herald of Doom (Twisted Whale): 10HD Gargantuan
Animal, Swim 40ft, 105 hp, 22 AC, Fort +12, Ref +7,
Will +6, bite +17 (2d8+26), steambreath +5 (1d10 plus
bull rush, 30ft range), Special: Sonic click (1d8 sonic plus
daze, DC 15 Fort, 15ft burst, 40ft range), blindsense
(sonar)
Hush, the Outsider’s Chosen: 6HD Dwarf, 48(72*) hp,
14 (23*) AC, Fort +7, Ref +5(6*), Will +12, +1 keen
blackbone dagger +5(6*) (1d4+2 plus sicken DC12 Will,
critical 17-20), Spells: Bodily Purge (3d8 healing),
Haste*, Bear’s Endurance*, Mage Armor*, Shield*,
Mind Thrust II (5d8 plus +2 AC to caster, DC15 Will
halves), Slow (DC16 Will), Shadow Trap (DC14 Will),
Stormcrow: AC 10, HD 0, #AT 1, D 1, appear
in groups 10-20
Animated Armor: AC 0 (18), HD 4, #AT 2,
D 3-9, immune to most spells
Tremorer: AC 2 (17), HD 15, #AT 1, D 5-25,
infravision, burrows, swallow whole
Walrus: AC 4 (15), HD 4, #AT 1, D 5-12
Herald of Doom (whale): AC 0 (18), HD 10,
#AT 1, D 9-29, sonar, can push with breath
Hush: AC 3 (16), HD 6, #AT 2, D 3-7,
infravision, spells: as magic user
 Treasure Tables
Special Materials
Slateplate
Slateplate is a specially crafted armor formed
from hard slate. Heavy and medium armor made
of slate costs +50% more and is twice as heavy,
with disadvantage on athletics, acrobatics, and
stealth, but halves all incoming physical damage.
Slatesmith Artifacts
Ojal’s Pumice Plate
This cleverly constructed suit of pumice acts as
+1 half-plate, as light as normal armor but has all
benefits of slateplate. It also grants a +5
circumstance bonus on all swim checks.
Gerund’s Obsidian Flowmail
This shining black +1 chain shirt was forged in an
active volcanic eruption; by spending a full round
feeling the shirt a wearer gains 60ft of
tremorsense if the wearer remains still.
22
Blackbone
Midnight-black protrusions found on animals and
plants sacred to the Outsider; it drinks in light and
weapons made from blackbone impose bane (-1d4
on all attack rolls) upon a successful hit, DC12
CHA to resist.
Laki’s Slateblade
This heavy rune-etched stone blade acts as a +1
longsword, which upon a critical hit dispels a
helpful spell cast upon the target.
Varn’s Shard Targe
This rune-shaped stone shield acts a +1 light
shield with 0 armor check penalty; any spell
targeting the wielder has a 50% chance to get
absorbed by the shield, adding 20lbs to the
shield’s weight per spell absorbed. Dropping the
shield releases the spell on the wielder.