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Nov 3rd The Lazy River Wayhouse EL 12

Marsh Troll Parents and the Abandoned Wayhouse – adept (cr 10) & hunter (cr 11) – EL 12

This is the house of the Marsh Troll family. The building was constructed several decades ago as a wayhouse for travelers going between Elsemere and Onuago. After the Lazy River shifted course and the monsters in the swamp became more numerous and aggressive, the inhabitants of the area relocated to the village and the port town. The wayhouse was abandoned, but not for long. The troll family has been living here for several years by the time the party arrives. The parents of the teen troll ranger and the troll children under the bridge are on the second floor of the wayhouse.

The road that connected Elsemere to Onuago is completely submerged by the south fork of the Lazy River here. Fortunately the water is only two feet deep. The party moves at 1/3 speed through this water to get to the mud island.

The Marsh Troll clan is not normally hostile, but they haven’t eaten well in recent months; the ecosystem is still in a period of flux and adjustment. They will do all they can to lure the party ashore for an ambush. They do this by using ghost sound to create shrieking as if a damsel in distress. The adept will create an illusion of a human female trapped behind the bars of one of the top floor windows to prey upon any good tendencies the party may have.

Areas

1) Outside

A two-story building sits atop an island of mud in the middle of the Lazy River. Here the river forks as it continues its course to the east. One fork flows north of the mud island and the other flows south of it. The two forks recombine 300 feet to the east of the island.

2) Inside the Wayhouse

The interior of this building is half covered in pools of murky water where the ground has been washed away. A dark gray stone hearth covered in moss stands cold and damp against the north wall. A sturdy wooden staircase, it’s bottom three steps rotted away, leads up along the west wall.

A DC 5 climb or jump check is required to begin ascent of the stairs.

Giant Constrictor Snake (HP 67): A giant constrictor snake hides in the pools of water in the center of the room. It will not attack unless attacked or if the pool it are in are disturbed (when a player is thrown down the stairs by the trolls above). A DC 25 spot check is required to spot the snake.

3) Upstairs in the Wayhouse

The second floor of this wayhouse was once divided into separate chambers. Portions of the interior walls still stand here and there, but are mostly rotten wooden rubble scattered around the large open room thus created.

A DC 10 search check will reveal a wooden trapdoor giving the access to the attic.

Troll Fighter and Adept: two trolls occupy this building. They will use ghost sound and minor image to create an image of a human female in distress, to lure passerby into the way house, and will hide.

Pappa Troll CR 11
chaotic evil male troll fighter 6
Large Giant
Init: +2
Senses: Darkvision 90 ft., low-light vision, scent
Listen +5 Spot +6
Languages: Giant, Common

AC: 20 (-1 size, +2 dex, +5 natural, +4 armor)
HP: 158 (HD 6d8 + 6d10 + 72)
Fort: +16 Ref: +6 Will: +5

MV: 20 ft Attack: +19 greatclub 2d8 + 11 or +14 greatclub 2d8 + 21 (powerattack for 5)
Full Attack: +17 / +12 / +7 greatclub 2d8 + 11 and +13 bite 1d6 + 3
Attack Options: rend
Space / Reach: 10 ft / 10 ft
Base Attack: +12 Grapple: +18

Abilities: Str: 25 Dex: 14 Con: 23 Int: 6 Wis: 9 Cha: 6
SQ: Darkvision 90 ft., low-light vision, regeneration 5, scent
SA: Rend
Feats: Alertness, Iron Will, Track, Power Attack, Improved Bull Rush, Awesome Blow, Improved Sunder, Weapon Focus (greatclub), Weapon Specilization (greatclub).
Skills: listen +5, spot +6

Posessions: hide armor, large greatclub.

Mamma Troll CR 10
chaotic evil female troll adept 6
Large Giant
Init: +2
Senses: Darkvision 90 ft., low-light vision, scent
Listen +5 Spot +6
Languages: Giant, Common

AC: 20 (-1 size, +2 dex, +5 natural, +4 armor)
HP: 103 (HD 6d8 + 6d6 + 60)
Fort: +13 Ref: +6 Will: +8

MV: 20 ft
Attack: +14 spear 2d6 + 7 or +9 spear 2d6 + 17 (power attack for 5)
Full Attack: +12 / +7 spear 2d6 + 7 and +9 bite 1d6 + 2
Attack Options: rend Space / Reach: 10 ft / 10 ft
Base Attack: +9
Grapple: +14

Abilities: Str: 20 Dex: 14 Con: 21 Int: 6 Wis: 14 Cha: 6
SQ: Darkvision 90 ft., low-light vision, regeneration 5, scent
SA: Rend
Feats: Alertness, Iron Will, Track, Lightning Reflexes, Power Attack
Skills: listen +5, spot +6, concentration +11

Adept Spells Prepared:
0th (3): ghost sound x2, touch of fatigue x2
1st (2): bless, minor image
2nd (1): resist energy

Possessions: hide armor, large spear, holy symbol of Vaparack.
Familiar: medium viper snake

Rend (Ex): If a troll hits with both claw attacks, it latches onto the opponent’s body and tears the flesh. This attack automatically deals an additional 2d6+9 points of damage.

Regeneration (Ex): Fire and acid deal normal damage to a troll. If a troll loses a limb or body part, the lost portion regrows in 3d6 minutes. The creature can reattach the severed member instantly by holding it to the stump.

Tactics: This pair of marsh trolls is very experienced working together and are quite cunning. Their preferred tactic is to begin with a preyer to Vaparack (bless) and then lure prey to them using ghost sound and minor image and then attack from hiding. When facing magic or fire-using opponents, the female will ward the male with resist energy (fire) before attacking.

In the way house they will hide and wait for someone to come upstairs to investigate the cries of distress. The female will stay behind the male and attack with her spear. The male will stand at the top of the stairs and use his greatclub with Awesome Blow and bull rush to knock attackers down the stairs where they will be attacked by the snake.

The trolls will fight to the death.

Treasure: 210 platinum, 3500 gold, 9000 silver and 15 gems can be found in purses and bags scattered amongst bones from humanoids and animals in the attic. In addition there are potions of aid, spider climb, and remove paralysis.

Ad Hoc XP Adjustment: +10%.

Oct 8th Location: Castle Stieglitz – 2nd and 3rd floors and Cellar

2nd floor:

1 Hallway
The light makes a shifting patchwork on the floor as the party passes through the broad halls.

2-7 Quarters
The quarters are full of eight slashed beds. It appears that anything of value has already been removed from these walls.

8 Petry’s Room
A single small window looks out to the grounds at the back of the Steiglitz property. Like all the other areas inside this castle, the room has been completely looted. The mattress of the bed has been slashed open and its innards lie strewn across the floor. A chair lies on its side and the desk has several deep gashes as if struck by a handaxe or other small chopping tool.

9 Yevgeny’s Room
This room contains a large bed which has been turned on its side. Dusty hay and down litter the corners of the room, which without exterior windows is cast in a deep earthen shadow.

10 Karl’s Room
This room contains a thrashed bed and some broken furniture. The small window has been smashed. A breeze blows into the room, bringing with it the smell of grass and cedar.

11 Anna’s Room
This windowless room has a single bed that has been gutted like the rest. A vanity and wardrobe shows signs of vandalism. Their contents have long since been looted. Someone with the initials “K.U.” has carved crude remarks about a woman named Anna and her questionable heritage into the wood grain of the furniture.

12 Baron’s Suite
The room has a distinctly foul odor to it. In the shadowy light that streams through the windows, a humanoid form with withered and whitened hair slithers from a throne, shakes his fists defiantly and charges up the iron spiral staircase at the far end of the room. A sitting table flanked by two chairs fills the north end of the room under the window, atop it an unlit candelabra. Three chests line the south wall, upon the center one rests a notebook and a silver pitcher.

When the party enters the baron’s suite, he will flee up the spiral staircase.

3rd floor:

1 Baron von Stieglitz’ Bedchambers
In this round chamber high above the valley, bright spotlights from the five circular windows illuminate silver cobwebs draped like tule about the five-poster bed in the center of the chamber. A small table leans against the west curved wall, and a dresser against the east curve. A spiral staicase at the south end of the room leads down into the darkness.

Beneath the cobwebs in the bed is a long-dead servant girl, the object of desire that drove the Baron into madness. (more description here, probably a read-aloud, something to the effect of)

Sinewy strands of flesh bind the woman’s mouth, and a festered and rotten slit is visible under her chin.

The windows offer views of the surrounding valley, making the tower a perfect lookout spot and the castle well-defended.

Creatures: Baron von Stieglitz, wight (CR12) who has likely fled to this location from the room below. In addition, many bats (20-40) live in the rafters beneath the tall ceilings of this tower. They will fight on the baron’s side.

If the party survives the fight, the Baron’s parting words:

I have failed you Katherine! I have failed you father, grandfather, uncle Jakob! I now know in death what you thought of me in life.

Soon after, the Stieglitz ghosts arrive and carry his body down to the mausoleum for burial. Then they sink back into their sarcophagi and disappear from sight.

An alternate ending is that the party parlays with the Baron and works with him to restore his name and honor.

Cellar:

Development: If the party heads down into the trapdoor, and they haven’t met the servants, the servants close the trapdoor and drag the table back atop it, trapping the party in the cellar. Cries for help will eventually bring the remaining servants to investigate. They will not open the trapdoor until they verify the party means them no harm, which may require the party disposing of the undead.

The party must succeed at a DC 25 strength check to lift the trap door open (5 round action) if the servants do not help. They can also cajole the servants to open the trap door. This requires a DC 25 Diplomacy check (10 round action) to change their initial attitude from Unfriendly to Friendly.

1 Food Storage
This 5’ x 10’ room is musty and ridden with cobwebs. Shelves that look as if they once held dry goods now only display rat droppings.

2 Equipment Storage
This is another 5’ x 10’ room that contains mops, brooms, balls of rags, buckets, feather dusters, and other custodial equipment. They have not seen use in quite some time.

A DC 5 Search check will allow to party to find 5 large bars of soap.

3 Wine Cellar (EL 8)
This unlit earthen room is filled with narrow rows of shelves, stocked with bottles of wine. Several dead men in mail lie on the ground amongst broken bottles of wine in the tight spaces between the shelves, weapons still in their rotting hands.

The spaces marked on the map as having broken glass should be treated as being laced with caltrops. Characters moving into or fighting in such areas receive and “attack” from the broken glass. This attack is at +0 attack bonus and is against the character’s touch AC (+2 if the character is wearing boots of other footwear). A successful attack deals 1 point of damage and reduces the character’s movement by half.

Most of the areas in this cellar are 2 1/2 feet wide, which means that medium sized creatures will have to squeeze to move through these areas. Squeezing characters move at half speed and receive -4 to their attack rolls and AC.

Violent activity while squeezing adjacent to the wine racks has a 50% chance of sending wine bottles crashing to the ground. This fills the space the character is in with glass-caltrops as above.

Creatures: Mohrg, HP: 85 and Zombies (3) HP: 15, 18, 15 AC: 16

Several months ago the kennel master, a cruel and coarse man, was caught by a servant girl getting drunk on the Baron’s wine here. Enraged, he slit her throat and drunkenly violated her. Shortly afterwards the Baron leapt upon him and slew him. The taint of his evil has lingered and now his body stalks the cellar as a Mohrg.

Afterwards, during the looting of the castle by the Baron’s factious underlings, several men-at-arms came to the basement to steal the wine. The mohrg slew them and they now serve him as zombies. The zombies will lie still on the ground until the mohrg begins it’s attack, at which point they will rise up and join the fray.

All of the undead, being dead and suffering no pain, are unaffected by the wine-caltrop effect.

Tactics: The Mohrg will attempt to hide until it can attack one of the party from such a position that they must face it one-on-one. The zombies will rise up to sew confusion once the attack has begun, grappling and slamming. The mohrg will tenaciously attack one foe until it is dead or paralyzed, then move on to the next, until it is slain or has slain everyone. If defeated it expels vile curses with it’s grotesque tongue as it falls, calling it’s defeaters mongrels and dogs in Wyndm.

Treasure: The three zombies are wearing serviceable suits of chain mail and their heavy maces lie on the ground. In addition, there is a large sack of loot they had taken before meeting their fate here. It contains 500 gold worth of accouterments including a candelabrum worth 100 gp, most of a 8 seating set of silverware worth 80gp and various other valuables. Finally, the wine on the racks amounts to 80 bottles of various quality and vintage. Their values range from 2 sp to 10 gp each, and average at 4 gp each. A DC 20 search check along with a DC 15 appraise check will allow characters to discover a 50 year old bottle of fine brandy worth 100 gold.

Development: If anyone moves the obstacles and enters the cellars without speaking with the remaining servants first, they will come and replace the obstacles at the first sound of battle, or before if they happen upon the open hatch. As noted above, opening the hatch with the table and rubble piled on it requires a DC 25 strength check, or convincing of the former servants that the trapped people mean them no harm via diplomacy or bluff.

Ad Hoc XP Adjustment: +10% XP for difficult terrain and zombies.

Sep 26th Location: Castle Stieglitz – Ground Floor

1 Driveway
a,b Brush Piles
2 Entry
3 Foyer
4 Dining Hall
5 Hallway
6 Storage
7 Kitchen
8 Pantry
9 Training Hall
10 Training Hall
11 Meeting Room
12 Trophy Room
13 Sitting Room
14 Mud Room
15 Back Patio
16 Stables
17 Shed
18 Mausoleum
19 Graveyard

Overview

Presented here is the first floor of the interior of Castle Stieglitz. Here characters will meet the Baron in the castle and learn his history, and what must be done to save him and restore glory to the castle which requires having him right his wrongs with the help of his disbanded men.

The castle has been looted by fleeing servents & factions, but the wine steward remains (who is aware of something creepy in the cellar!), as are two remaining servants, who spend their days foraging for food in and around the kitchen, and their evenings huddled for safety in the stables.

The mausoleum is full of ghosts who wander the graveyard wailing to the baron and who flee if attacked.

There are two routes for resolution:
1) diplomacy checks to convince the baron to hold the festival (atonement) and diplomacy checks or tasks to put the army back together
2) defeat the baron and the undead at the castle. Put Anna in as the new baroness (with the help of a local preist to make it official) and put down the other armies.

Additional Background: Several months ago the Baron Stieglitz witnessed the violent assault and murder of one of his servants by the drunken kennel master. Instead of stopping the crime he hid in the shadows and watched the whole scenario. When the vile kennel master tried to skulk away undetected the Baron stabbed him in the back. He then took the body of the servant girl to his room and locked himself in. Overcome with the guilt of experiencing pleasure at witnessing such a horrific event, he contemplated the monster he truly was. He shed tears over the girls bruised face and lay down beside her to join her in the afterlife. After several days with out food and water his vitality diminished and he closed his eyes for the sleep of eternity. But the Baron did not die. His body stirred again. His corrupted spirit lived beyond death and refused to give up it’s mortal host. The Baron Stieglitz had become a wight.

1 Driveway

This brick-inlaid driveway framed by diseased trees leads from the road to Castle von Stieglitz. The path is slightly overgrown with weeds, and large piles of brush decorate both halves of the front lawn. The castle rises in the distance, a wide stone structure with a central tower made from the grey granite of the surrounding mountains.

Creatures: Thousands of ravens inhabit the grounds, mostly living in the trees. They will follow the party as they make their way about the grounds.

1a,b Brush Piles

Piles of brush have been left here to rot, including entire branches of the shorn trees. Ravens circle in the sky above the piles.

Creatures: Dire Rats(6), detected with a listen check DC 15. In addition, brush mites may infest the characters’ equipment, making them itchy and generally uncomfortable during their stay in the castle.

Tactics: Unless detected earlier, the dire rats spring from the piles as the last character walks past attacking en masse!

2 Entry

The enormous Castle von Stieglitz offers an impressive counterpoint to the distant mountains surrounding this broad valley. Atop a slightly inclining hill, its stonework glows in the afternoon sun. Normally a festive occasion, the castle grounds are abnormally quiet for this St. Zyekni’s Day. The trees within the complex are early in their barrenness, despite the planned celebration of autumn harvest season. There is no welcoming party, save a flock of ravens perched by the hundreds in the defoiled arbors. Other ravens pirouette about the main steps, rending pieces of cloth from one another’s beaks.

Two heavy wooden doors adorned with the Stieglitz coat of arms – a ship above three coins in a chevron – are framed by an arch.

If the characters approach the ravens, they fly off, landing on the multi-stepped rooftops of the giant stone structure, calling out to their brethren. If the characters examine the cloth, they notice that it was once a tunic, but there is no sign of the disrobed. Once the characters approach the doors with the intent of opening them, a breeze picks up and the doors creak open slightly.

Creatures: Swarm of Ravens (hundreds), though they will not attack unless attacked themselves or the characters enter the castle.

Tactics: If attacked, the ravens swarm fiercely in groups of 30 or 40 per party member. When they enter the castle, the ravens swarm at them. Luckily they cannot open the castle doors. Unluckily, the wind may, if they are not properly fastened or barricaded.

3 Foyer

This open hall . The doors at the far end open and close in the breeze. Staircases rise on either hand before meeting in a landing on the south end of the hall. Orange light streams through a stained-glass window, illuminating the intricate marble floor now marred with scuffmarks from many heavy things being dragged across its surface. Archways open two to the east and two to the west.

4 Dining Hall

Light filters in through the dusty curtains covering the floor to ceiling windows in this once lavish dining room. Dust several layers thick covers the long wooden table that dominates this room. The tablecloth has been been partially removed and spills off one side of the table onto the floor. A couple of wilted floral arrangements that were once centerpieces have been knocked over and lie in disarray. There are cobwebs decorating the chandaliers, and chairs are conspicuously absent from the room. Clean patches of the floor and walls remain where once there were tapestries and rugs.

The door near the back wall is locked. If the PC’s manage to unlock it, they will discover that the door across the hall to the pantry is locked and also has a large pile of broken furniture covering the doorway.

Creatures: Rats (30).

Tactics: The rats scurry away from the party.

5 Hallway

This narrow hallway is dark, dusty, and filled with cobwebs. There are 2 doors along one wall, one open one not. Through the open door you can see the dining room. There are 3 doors running down the other side of the hallway, 2 are open, the third has a pile of broken furniture stacked up against it.

Treasure: Among the broken furniture, the party finds a few religious relics from local shrines and chapels.

6 Storage

The smell of spoiled food lingers in the air in this dark storage room. Vermin scurry into hiding in the darkness. This room contains pieces of broken furniture and filthy clothes lie in disarray on the floor.

7 Kitchen

The smell of a recently cooked meal permeates the air. The hearth gives off a welcome warmth. A dusting of flour on the floor reveals foot prints. There are some dirty pots on the washstand along the southern wall.

Creatures: The party may encounter one of the 3 remaining servants cooking a meal at the hearth. The servant flees when the party arrives. A DC 10 survival check reveals 3 different persons footprints in the flour.

8 Pantry
A table lies on its back in the center of the room, a stack of gravestones on top of it. A corner of a wooden trapdoor is visible along its edge.

Development: If the party heads down into the trapdoor, and they haven’t met the servants, the servants close the trapdoor and drag the table back atop it, trapping the party in the cellar. A DC 25 strength check is required to open the trapdoor. Cries for help will eventually bring the remaining servants to investigate. They will not open the trapdoor until they verify the party means them no harm, which may require the party disposing of the undead.

a. Cellar
b. Wine Cellar

9 Training Hall (there’s a door from here to 11 that’s not here yet)

Straw training dummies lie strewn about the room, the victims of some spontaneous pinata party. A large straw mat — nearly the size of the room — covers the center of the parquet floor. The room is otherwise completely spartan.

10 Training Hall

This room is completely empty, save random strands of straw that lead off in every direction along the parquet floor.

11 Meeting Room

A large table adorns the far corner of this room, over which is hung a map of the surrounding countryside. Pins mark regions close to the castle, including Onuago, the Swft River Crossing Inn and Talook. One region of the map — close to the eastern edge of the Old Bay — has been torn off.

The area that has been removed from the map is Harpy Point. Characters who make a Local Geography check DC15 will recognize this.

Treasure: The map may be worth something, especially since there are clues leading to a pirate treasure on the back side. Unfortunately, the missing area of the map contains one half of the riddles.

12 Trophy Room

The fireplace at the back end of this room signifies a space that once displayed hunting trophies. Wooden stands lie empty, pilfered of the furs and taxidermied animal corpses.

If the characters search the fireplace, they find the remains of burnt books with barely legible writing scribbled in the interior margins. One book appears to be a history of the once proud Stieglitz family, but there is not enough remaining text to tell any complete story. If the characters present these remains to the Stieglitz ghosts, they will tell more of their stories.

13 Sitting Room

This room is full of thrashed furniture with major pieces missing.

A few copper pieces are all that remain inside one of the cushions. All other treasures have been removed from the castle.

14 Mud Room

This tiny room serves as the space between the back west wing of the castle and the north side of the castle. A wooden door frame in search of a door provides a view of the back patio.

15 Back Patio

Rows of what were once poplars extend from the the back patio, extending along the border to the back of the estate. A plane of fitted stones once made for a cozy patio space, but they are now overgrown with lichen and moss has collected in the spaces in between. A brick-inlayed path leads north between the trees, making for a once formal garden. Gnarly bushes lines the walk, overgrown and under-foliated. The baying of wolves can be heard off in acres of forest behind the estate.

Creatures: If the characters wander too far into the woods, a pack of dire wolves are likely to descend upon them. Dire Wolves (8-10).

16 Stables

These stables no longer house horses or carts, both of which are long gone. The stables are relatively spartan, save a pair of hay bales set up as twin makeshift beds, covered with blankets and leather sacks.

Treasure: The sacks are filled with gold flakes and scraps of tapestries, linens and a few pieces of tarnished silverware.

17 Shed

A rickety old shed adorns the east end of the estate, its splintered wood a reminder of the eternal entropy at home in this place.

If the characters enter, they note various tools and a bale of hay in the center of the room. Rain water has made the hay soggy.

Creatures: A few rats have made their home in a bale of hay in the center of the shed. They scatter once the party opens the door to the shed.

18 Mausoleum

If the characters enter the mausoleum with a light source, read or paraphrase the following.

Behind the castle is an outbuilding that serves as a monument to the von Steiglitz family. Multiple generations are buried in the sacred chambers in the mausoleum and on sacred ground in the graveyard. Five sarcophagi line the outer walls of the mausoleum, one along the far wall, and two along each of the two side walls. The walls ooze with a murky jelly.

Unfortunately, the denizens of the graveyard are restless, and seek to haunt the Baron until he embraces the family law. These characters from the past will rise up to protect the Baron if the party attacks him. They should heed the warnings of the many generations of paintings on the walls of the castle.

19 Graveyard

An impressive stone edifice occupies a large part of the backyard. Rows of gravestones populate the grounds behind the mausoleum in three neat rows, framed by cherry trees. The carvings on the door of the stone mausoleum indicate a minor fortune spent to honor the dead. The door itself has been left slightly ajar.

The door is ajar because it’s been used by the Baron’s undead ancestors as they wander the castle grounds at night. They have been haunted by their faded family name, and have withered into wights like their corrupt descendant. If the party attacks the Baron, they will rise from their graves, along with the dead from the other graves and shamble to his defense.

Creatures: Wights (5). By night the wights from the mausoleum wander these grounds moaning remonstrations up at the barons window. “St. Zyekni! St. Zyekni!” they groan as clearly as their rotted tongues will allow.

Tactics: The wights are unfriendly to anyone entering and hiss from the shadows and from behind decayed trees, but will not attack unless themselves attacked. The undead family members will not be satisfied until the Baron returns the Castle von Steiglitz to honor. The celebration of St. Zyekni’s Day has never before been missed on the castle grounds.

Sep 25th Encounter: The Scholar Falkonne’s House (EL 7)

1) Outside The Scholar’s Home

113 Torrance Street. The house sags to the right as you stand before the mildewy wooden door, which hangs slightly ajar. Through the space between the row houses on either side, you can see the muddy banks of the Lazy River, its waters sliding past the foundation stones.

General description – A DC 5 Wilderness Lore check allows the players to see the boot prints of a humanoid walking towards and away from the house. They are also found around the front yard leading up to the door. All the bootprints are from the same person: the old scholar. The most recent ones are about two days old.

2) The Scholar’s Rooms

Upon entering the house, the players will smell the briny water of the Lazy River intermingled with a fouler stench coming from the basement—a combination of rotten eggs and decaying vegetables.

The first floor of the house is cluttered with stacks of papers, books, and various measuring instruments.

The kitchen is located in the back and a door leads out to what would have been a backyard in days past. Now it opens up to the muddy banks of the Lazy River. The kitchen sink still has dirty dishes in it. The coals from the stove are cold. There is a trap door to one side of the kitchen. It is open and stairs lead down into darkness. The smell of rotten vegetables and salt water is stronger here.

A DC 10 Search check will allow the players to find an old, but still serviceable spyglass in the closet/spare bedroom on the first floor. Most of the papers are written in the same handwriting (the scholar’s). Others are taken from various sources. The papers and books pertain to the history of this region, the Wyndm people and their culture (particularly their religious beliefs), and geographical surveys of the area.

The best source of information will be on the second floor loft, where the scholar’s opus magnum sits upon an unvarnished wooden desk with uneven legs. The book is entitled “On the Origin of the Children of the Sea” and is unfinished. The last sentence of the last page stops in mid-sentence (this is when the scholar went downstairs to investigate the noise from the basement). Cold coffee and half-eaten bread (covered with small cockroaches) are next to the book on the desk. The desk also has an inkpot, some pens. In one of the drawers, the party can find 10 silver and 35 copper pieces.

A bed with a sagging, stained mattress is directly opposite the desk. A wardrobe is next to the bed and contains a few articles of threadbare clothing.

Whenever the party spends a few minutes perusing the book, they discover the following things about the situation in Onuago and Elsemere:

3) Flooded Basement (EL 7)

This basement is severely flooded, half of it’s floor eroded and filled with dark water. At the base of the steep steps leading down an unlit lantern lies on it’s side, it’s glass broken.

Creatures: A Chuul (CR 7) has taken up residence in the washed-out and flooded basement, into which it dug a canal several days ago. Yesterday it had become hungry and restless. When the scholar entered the basement to investigate the sounds he quickly became it’s latest meal. It is now well-satiated, having eaten aproximately half of Falkonne’s body, and is content to lay concealed in the water in the basement unless it’s realm is entered or it’s kill is distrubed.

Chuul: HP 98 (Monster Manual)

Tactics: If the chull hears the party entering the house it will conceal itself in the water in the basement (Hide +13, +6 circumstance for water and +2 for darkness = +21). If anyone comes downstairs it will attempt to grab them with suprise and drag them into the deeper water with it to drown, parylized by it’s tentacles. Persistant attacks will cause it to resurface to grab the last attacker and submerge them.

Treasure: A thorough search of the basement (DC 20) reveals a small lock-box mostly buried in the mud. It contains the Falkonne family’s savings: 20 gold coins, 315 silver coins, and a rodochosterite worth 10 gold.

Development: The dead scholar is restful in the afterlife and will not return if raise dead or similar magic is cast on him.
If enterprising characters cast speak with dead on the body it reveals the information listed in the scholar’s journal.
Asking around (DC 10 gather information) revelas that the scholar has no next of kin, being befeft of his wife and recently his only child, who was apparently a disfigured shut-in.

Ad Hoc XP Adjustment: +10 % XP due to ambush situation.