ZUGGTMOY's

CAVERN

A puzzle to drive you mad.

"Up-Down-Down-Up. Hmm, nope. That
doesn't work. How about we try Up-Up-
Down Down. Still not right."
- Thwarted Adventurer
Zuggtmoy's Cavern is a small dungeon
encounter that can be added to almost
any ruin.
Originally written as a side quest during
an Out of the Abyss campaign for 5th
level adventurers. The puzzle corridor
and cavern may be plugged in at any
level, in almost any setting.
Adventure Background :
The cavern dedicated to Zuggtmoy; Lady
of Rot and Decay has lain undisturbed
for many years.
Whilst the passage leading to the cavern
may be known. No one has solved the
puzzle and witnessed the hallowed altar
since the Cult of Zuggtmoy were driven
from the realm over two hundred years
ago.
Adventure Synopsis :
The adventure starts with the PCs
entering a subterranean chamber with
the puzzle corridor ahead of them.
Included are schematics of the
mechanism, as well as templates for
players to take notes.
The PCs then descend into the sacred
cavern and encounter an isolated colony
of Vegepygmy (Volo's Guide To
Monsters page 196) They have been
driven mad through long exposure to
the "hallowed" demonic site.
Finally, the PCs may search the altar and
unleash a demonic guardian.
Starting the Adventure :
The opportunities to get the PCs into the
corridor are nearly endless;
 maybe this is just another room
on a longer dungeon crawl
 maybe the PCs have heard of this
"impossible" puzzle, and taken
on the challenge.
 maybe there are stories of
ancient treasure or magic tomes
within; or
 maybe they just happen across a
secret door in the basement of a
manor house.
The Ante Chamber :
The chamber is a mere 15 ft in each
dimension. The high quality
masonry shows little sign of its age.
The room is unlit.
Six imposing marble statues line the
left and right walls of the room.
Each depicts a humanoid in an
agitated state: anger, sorrow,
torment, fatigue, frustration and
fear.
There is a narrow opening on the
wall ahead of you, merely 2 ft wide,
and 5 ft tall. There are also 4 heavy
metal levers on the wall.
The statues are exactly that. The focus
on this chamber is a place to stop safely
and study the puzzle. (For a longer
adventure, or higher level PCs you may
wish to insert constructs, or animated the lever, platform and spear gate is as
armor in place of the statues) follows:

The Corridor and Pit :

The corridor ahead is blocked by a
forest of spears, and a series of
large metal platforms. There are 5
rows of spears and 5 platforms.
All but the lowest lever are in an
upward position. The closest and
farthest platforms are folded
against the wall, and the third row
of spears retracted into the ceiling.
A deep pit is visible below the
platforms. The pit is flooded, and
spikes rise out of the water.
If the PCs question the possibility of the
The puzzle consists of four levers which
mechanism being seized up due to rust,
each raise a set of spears, and lower a
you can explain that grease can be seen
platform. Each platform is only large
in the lever housing, therefore coating
enough for one medium sized creature.
the chain, hinges and cogs to prevent
Any PC that is on a platform when it is rust.
triggered falls into the pit and is impaled
To successfully pass through the puzzle,
on 1d4 + 4 spikes (1d8 damage each),
one PC must activate the levers, whilst
and is immobilised. The PC then slides
another skips from platform to platform
down the spears, lubricated by his own
until they reach the other side.
blood, and sinks below the putrid water
in the bottom of the pit. The PC is then To assist yourself and the players
very likely to drown unless saved decode the puzzle, advise the players to
somehow by the rest of the party. label the levers A through D:
(You may elect to give the PC a chance
to avoid one or two spikes, and a slim C
chance of not being immobilised,
therefore potentially able to haul
B D
themselves up off the spikes).
Passage

A
The Mechanism :
The mechanism for the levers, platforms
and spears are hidden within the
masonry. The mechanism connecting
The platform and spears are connected
to each lever as follows:
If all levers are set "down" then all the
platforms are down, and the spears up.
If all levers are "up" the spears are
down, and the platforms are up.
Remember:
 Lever Up, Platform Up, Spear Down.
 Lever Down, Platform Down, Spear Up.
The Solution :
One solution is to only lower one lever
at a time in the following order:
B, D, A, C, B
Alternatively, lowering two levers at a
time will be slightly faster:
BD, AD, AC, BC.
Attached is a sheet with various lever
position combinations, and schematics
of the corresponding platform / spear
arrangement. This ought to help you
answer the PCs probing questions.
Also provided is a blank sheet which the
players may use to jot down the
arrangements as they try and work out
solution.
Receiving Chamber :
Once a PC reaches the far end of the
corridor, they enter another statue lined
chamber. However, there are only two
levers on the wall.
The chamber is similar to the one
you just left. It is also unlit. The
statues against the walls exhibit:
joy, ecstasy, love, happiness and
contentment.
There are two levers on the wall
in a downward position. There is
also an iron door on the far right
wall.
The successful PC should try out each of
the levers. One triggers all the
platforms to raise, the other triggers all
the spears to raise.
Each lever remains in the "up" position
for only 1d4 rounds. While the lever is
in an "up" position, a loud mechanical
clunking sound echoes through the
corridor. This is the noise of the release
mechanism, as a ratchet clicks over an
unwinding cog.
The trailing PCs have a few rounds to
clamber through the corridor before the
mechanism resets all 4 levers to the
down position. (Platforms Down, Spears
Up).
Any PC in the corridor when the lever
resets will fall into the pit.
The Iron Door :
The Iron door is locked. Thieves Tools
DC15 to unpick the lock, or Athletics
DC25 to break it down.
(This can be as hard or easy as your PCs
can manage depending on their level).
 Beyond the iron door, the passage is
rough hewn into the surrounding
rock. The path winds steeply
downward.
The steep decline is damp, and slippery
(Acrobatics DC15) to balance, else the
PCs will slide down, making a bit of a
racket.
Zuggtmoy's Cavern : (encounter CR 8)
At the bottom of the decline, the
passage opens up into a natural
cave.
The cavern is immense.
Stalagmites and stalactites form
occasional columns which create
the appearance of a grand vaulted
ceiling.
The walls are covered with
phosphorescent lichen which
provide a soft light. Hundreds of
different fungi litter the floor in a
myriad of colours.
Near the back of the cavern there is
a raised dais with an imposing
circular stone altar.
The clatter of a slipping PC should alert
the Vegepygmy (Volo's Guide to
Monsters page 196) to the arrival of
visitors. If not, there is a Shrieker
(Monster Manual page 138) positioned
near the entrance.
The small tribe of Vegepygmy include :
 Vegepygmy Chief,
 10 Vegepygmy, and
 2 Thorny.
The vegepygmy are all mad, infected by
generations of exposure to the
"hallowed" effects laid down by the long
departed Cult of Zuggtmoy.
The pair of thorny, two warriors and the
chief confront the PCs, while the rest of
the tribe hide amongst the fungi. The
hidden vegepygmy use their plant
camouflage ability (Stealth +4 with
advantage).
The chief demands that the party make
a sacrifice to Zuggtmoy. He speaks
vegepygmy which sounds like a hissing,
spitting and coughing; whilst making
vigorous hand gestures. It is unlikely
any PCs will understand them, and this
should result in battle when the
vegepygmy start herding one of the
players toward the altar.
Once the leadership group are engaged
in combat, the hidden vegepygmy
warriors will surprise the PCs from
behind.
Option - Let's Talk Nicely :
There is a chance the party will be able
to communicate with the vegepygmy.
The chief's name is "Hiss, click, click"
said whilst tugging on your ear lobe.
He and his kin are determined to make a
blood sacrifice to Zuggtmoy. If the
players agree to make a sacrifice, they
will trigger the glyph on the altar (refer
below), and the vegepygmy will assist in
defeating the demon.
Who knows, they may become friends?
The Altar : (encounter CR 7)
Once the vegepygmy are dispatched, the
PCs have time to explore the cavern
properly.
 The 2 ft. high dais is covered with  Roll 1d4 times on Magic Item Table F.
fungi, but the altar stands clear. (Dungeon Masters Guide page 146).
It is a massive circular stone, the Alternatively, create a treasure hoard to
surface carved with a pentagram. suit your players.
The likeness of Zuggtmoy and her
demonic attendants are etched into Conjure Barlgura
the sides of the stone. 4th level conjuration
Casting Time: 1 action
There is a glyph of warding on the altar,
Range: 60 feet
which is triggered as soon as a PC
Components: V, S
touches the stone (likely if they are
Duration: Up to 10 minutes
searching for hidden compartments /
secret doors, or studying the carvings). You summon a barlgura that appears in
an unoccupied space you can see within
The glyph has been set with the Conjour
range. The barlgura disappears when it
Barlgura spell from Unearthed Arcana -
drops to 0 hit points or when the spell
That Old Black Magic (spell description
ends.
reproduced below).
The barlgura is hostile to all non-demons.
There is a 50% chance that a Vargouille
Roll initiative for the barlgura, which has
(Volo's Guide to Monsters page 195)
its own turns. At the start of its turn, it
slips in with the Barlgura (Monster
moves toward and attacks the nearest
Manual page 56).
non-demon it can perceive. If two or
Once the demons are taken care of, the more creatures are equally near, it picks
secret compartment under the alter can one at random. If it cannot see any
be opened (Investigation DC15 to find, potential enemies, the barlgura moves in
Thieves Tools DC15 to unlock, or a random direction in search of foes.
Athletics DC15 to pry open)
As part of casting the spell, you can scribe
a circle on the ground using the blood of
Treasure: an intelligent humanoid slain within the
past 24 hours. The circle is large enough
This is the only reward for the whole
to encompass your space. The summoned
ordeal, puzzle corridor, vegepygmy and
barlgura cannot cross the circle or target
demons.
anyone in it while the spell lasts.
 6d6 100gp gems (Coral, Amber & Pearl).
 Roll 1d4 times on Magic Item Table C.

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Corridor Puzzle one step at a time:
B, D, A, C, B

all UP all down B down D down A down C down B down

floor door floor door floor door floor door floor door floor door floor door

A B
A B
A B
A B
A B
A B
A B

D C
D C
D C
D C
D C
D C
D C

B A
B A
B A
B A
B A
B A
B A

C D
C D
C D
C D
C D
C D
C D

A B
A B
A B
A B
A B
A B
A B

A up/closed A down/open A up/closed A up/closed A down/open A up/closed A up/closed

B up/closed B down/open B down/open B up/closed B up/closed B up/closed B down/open
C up/closed C down/open C up/closed C up/closed C up/closed C down/open C up/closed
D up/closed D down/open D up/closed D down/open D up/closed D up/closed D up/closed

two steps at a time

BD, AD, AC, BC

B and D down A and D down A and C down B and d sown

floor door floor door floor door floor door

A B A B
A B
A B

D C
D C
D C D C

B A
B A B A B A

C D C D C D
C D

A B A B
A B
A B

A up/closed A down/open A down A up/closed

B down/open B up/closed B up/closed B down/open
C up/closed C up/closed C down C up/closed
D down/open D down/open D up/closed D down/open
Corridor Puzzle
Blank sheet for notes by players

floor door floor door floor door floor door floor door floor door floor door

A B
A B
A B
A B
A B
A B
A B

D C
D C
D C
D C
D C
D C
D C

B A
B A
B A
B A
B A
B A
B A

C D
C D
C D
C D
C D
C D
C D

A B
A B
A B
A B
A B
A B
A B

A A A A A A A
B B B B B B B
C C C C C C C
D D D D D D D

floor door floor door floor door floor door floor door floor door floor door

A B
A B
A B
A B
A B
A B
A B

D C
D C
D C
D C
D C
D C
D C

B A
B A
B A
B A
B A
B A
B A

C D
C D
C D
C D
C D
C D
C D

A B
A B
A B
A B
A B
A B
A B

A A A A A A A
B B B B B B B
C C C C C C C
D D D D D D D