Post/Author/DateTime	Post
DolArrah 03-19-05, 10:40 AM	Here is a new adventure by me. It isn't quite finished, as I have a maze or two in there and my scanner isn't working. . . Anyway, thanks in advance for any feedback. Into the Crypts IntroductionThis adventure sends a party of four 8th level characters on a mission filled with danger and intrigue. When a Brelish spymaster asks the PCs to rob a Karn Crypt, life gets dangerous. To find the body, or therein not find it, it will take everything the characters have got. To get the most out of this adventure, you need the following D&D books: The Players Handbook, The Dungeons Master Guide, The Monster Manual, The Ebberon Campaign, and The Monster Manual III. Also, you should have played Whispers of the Vampire's Blade. Adventure Background The end of the Last War hasn’t brought an end to the intrigue. Previously, the PCs went on an adventure for the Brelish king. Now they are needed again. Ever since Kiaus I came back as Kiaus III, people have been noticing how strange he is. After the spy network’s last involvement with a vampire, they are suspicious. Since Kiaus III has some of the same traits as Lucan did when he was a vampire, they want their former vampire catchers to find out more about this undead ruler. To do this, and not end up with another Last War, they want the PC’s to infiltrate the Royal Crypts, and find if there is a corpse in the casket under Kiaus I’s tomb. Part One: Job Offer This adventure begins at a Sharn tavern, or wherever the PCs like to hang out. It is a chill wintry day in Sharn. You and your companions have just received soup from the waitress, and you settle back to enjoy your just reward. Again, a courier comes to your table, dressed in blue and silver livery. He says, “Message for you, from the same person as it was last time.” You look at his face and realize that it is the same courier as before. He drops a letter on the table, and looks at you expectantly. He stands there, waiting for his tip again. The letter contains only a letter, no platinum peaces. In the same cramped style, a few sentences have been scribbled. “I have need of your services again. Come again to the northeast stairs of Myriad Tower, upper city, at sunset. Come and give this parchment to the same guard at the stairs.” The note is signed with a V beside a black lantern. They will probably go to stock up on items, as it is only 4:00 and sundown isn’t until 5:30. Tell them the Iron Gate encounter in the WOTVB. When they get inside read them the following, You see Viorr sitting at the table in his Greenhouse. He must have seen your odd looks because he says, “There is no audition this time. I know that you are capable, after you retrieved the vampire. I have another quest for you. If you succeed at this one, you might just be offered a place in the Dark Lanterns.” “As you undoubtedly know, there have rumors about how Kiaus the third is. . . strange. After your report about Lucan’s magical healing ability, we think that Kiaus the third is magically sustaining his life. We want you to go into his tomb and retrieve his body, or, barring that, cast as many spells as you can on it to determine the person. Although that may sound easy, it isn’t. There will be traps everywhere and, because no one knows how long the King and Queen of Karnnath will live, they are constructing tombs for them. We want you to get in without anyone noticing you. They will have undead labor, so there might be construction in the night, although I doubt it: the controllers of the undead have to sleep. We will pay you 10,000 gold if you return to us without anyone knowing that you have come. You may take any treasure that you find. How does that sit with you?” Viorr points to papers on the table he is sitting at after the PCs say yes. “We have passes on lightning rails for you to get to Karnnath very fast. When you arrive at your destination, there will be magebred horses and a guide waiting for you. On the table is a letter of credit and a map, just in case you forget the way back. Again, don’t spend King Boronel’s gold frivolously. Any questions?” When the adventurers have asked all of the questions they can think of, although I think that there will be few of them, move on two Part Two. Part Two: The Royal Crypts The PCs will take a Lightning rail to Karrnath, then ride horses to the Crypts, located near Korth. As you step onto the lightning rail, an usher guides you to a back car. There, a lavish room has been set up, with wine, food, and comfy chairs. The usher says, “Here is where you will be staying for the three day ride. I hope you find it acceptable. If you need anything, pull on the cord in the right” you look and see a cord “and one of us will come.” He gives a knowing wink and leaves the car. On his way out, he drops a piece of paper. He is part of the Brelish spy agency, and when he says us, he means one of the undercover spies sent to help. As they pick up the note, read: “I am going to help you. We are part of the Dark Lanterns. We have any information you need, and can help you with anything but the mission.” It says in small, but easily legible, letters. The trip passes without incident. Let them do whatever they want. There are history books about Karrnath in the back, and cards in a pile on a table. When they arrive at Korth, read the following. You see a bustling metropolis, filled with people running back and forth. A man with insert party number +1horses stands waiting. He spots you and says, “Come, it will be a little while before we get to the Cry. . . to your destination. Come along.” He turns away into the crowd. The man is a Brelish agent, and will not speak of this to anyone. When they follow him, read the following. The man leads you right out of the front gates and into the wilderness. He mounts his horse and gives the rest to each of you. He goes along at a slow walk and says, “Now that we are out of there, we can talk freely. Do you have anymore questions? It will be a few days of riding before we get to the Crypts. I have enough food to last each of us 6 days. Do you know how to disguise yourselves? If you don’t you will have a hard time getting out, because it will probably take some time to find, or not find, the corpse of Kiaus I.” He waits for an answer. If they don’t know how too, give each of them a + circumstance bonus on Disguise, as he teaches them the basics. He also gives each of them a disguise kit, saying: ‘That should come in handy.’ On the second day, read the following. ‘As you set up camp, you here a rustling. Then, two huge, grey, malicious wolves come out of the bushes.’ A pair of worgs are attacking them. Worgs: MM pg 256 and 257, HP 27 and 32. Nothing else happens, although you could give them a wilderness encounter. They reach the crypts at noon on the third day. The guide leaves them with a; “Fare thee well.” Read the following. You see many people working on two crypts, next to 4 other crypts. With flowing doorways and majestic roofs, you can see the prosperity of Karrnath. A wall surrounds the tombs, and two gates bar the entrances.” There are 10 level 2 warriors here as guards. Guards: Level 2 Warriors DMG hp 7, 8, 10, 9, 12, 11, 7, 6, 8, and 6. There are two entrances into the crypts: one on each thin side. They have locked adamantine doors, with an arcane lock spell, and a Great Lock. There is also a small metal grate on the east side. With a strength check, DC 15, you could pull of the grate. The area is about 3 ft. by 3 ft. When they get inside the walls, read the following. Inside, there is massive construction. People are scurrying around, carrying papers and gems. Some carried holy symbols and were commanding the undead task force. There are six crypts, although two are under construction. There are no signs announcing the name of the deceased, and they are all built to look very like each other. Getting past the builders will be hard, but since there are only the guards on the outside wall and new clerics to command the undead at night, it will be far easier in the nighttime hours. If they want to get by now, they can use their disguise skill to impersonate a worker, or try to sneak by. In the general chaos, the Disguise check is DC 15 to impersonate a worker, as long as you are a human male. The other modifiers apply, like if you are a female or a non-human race. In the noise, the listeners gain a -6 circumstance modifier on their opposed listen check. What the PCs don’t know is that there are rogues stationed in front of each crypt in the day, to insure that no one tries to sneak by. Male and Female lvl 1 rogues: 6, 7, 5, 6, 5, and 6. The doors on the crypts are open, but heavy, requiring a Strength check, DC 20 to open. KIAUS 1 CRYPT When they enter the real crypt, read the following: An eye stares down on you from above. A corridor barely lit by the outside lights stretches out from you, its smooth stone walls carved in an ornate pattern. As you explore further, your lights flickering, a rumble shatters the quiets. Marble shatters on the floor, hitting everywhere. An eerie voice calls out “To those who would defile the tome, Young and old alike are doomed, King Kiaus the first, His will everlasting, Bringeth disaster, And a break from his fasting, A curse on you, Your family and all, You and your love ones, Ohhh, they shall fall.” A Bestow Curse spell targets everyone in the area of the falling brick trap present in this corridor. It also effects the direct blood relatives of the target, and this curse becomes a trait that is passed through out the family for ever, unless the original person to get it (in this case the adventurers) becomes cured. The same curse is passed throughout the family, not rolling for each person. This curse has a DC of 24. A remove curse of break enchantment spell ends it. Falling Brick Trap (Marble): page 71 DMG. The falling marble also causes “a slab of marble” to fall in front of the pit trap, but behind the bricks, effectively blocking the way. In reality, this is an illusion (DC 19 to resist). Behind this is a pit trap that stops the adventurers from getting past. Pit Trap: pg 72 DMG They may not wish to continue after the rhyme above, as it says King Kiaus the first. After they get through these obstacles, read the following, The first thing that draws your eyes is the startling silver casket in the center of the room, as it is the only silver thing in the whole room. Heaps of gold lie everywhere, their sheen not at all diminished in the years they remained down here. On the casket, there is a plaque that reads, “Here lies King Kiaus the First, and you are worthy of his wealth.” About 900,000 copper coins (9,000 gold) lies here, but it appears gold as it is under an illusion. After two rounds, it transmutes back to its original coppery appearance. THE WIVES TOMBS As, I am assuming, this is a very sexist country, the wives were unimportant (from a political view), so I made their tombs all the same. King Kiaus III is the only one to appreciate his wife, and his is the only unique one. There are two of these tombs. The doors are the same as King Kiaus the first. When they get inside, read the following, “These karsites must have loved gold because everything in this corridor shines gold. The arches have fine gold leaf, the pillars ornate. When you step forward, a voice speaks out, high and feminine, but with malice, “Defilers, We have been angered by thee, At your touch shall flowers wilt, Hideous that you be, Animals shall be afeared, As you have forced our hand, You shall find your self, In hatred and greed” This curse affects all of them. Their Charisma goes down by 4 permanently. Also, a special form of the Blight spell effects everyone. Every time the targets touch a plant, it is affected by Blight and animals run from the cursed as if they were a spectre. The Charisma penalty stacks each time. This has a DC of 24. A remove curse spell or a break enchantment spell removes this. Nothing else bars the way, and there is a casket identical to Kin Kiaus’ in here, only it is gold and there are piles of silver coins. There are only 100 gold pieces (10,000 of the silver illusion coins). KING KIAUS II TOMB King Kiaus the second has the same doors as the others. Once inside, read the following, “This is another magestic gold tomb, with pillars and all. However, it also has silver filigree. When you walk ahead, you see an eye that was obscured previously. It blinks once as you start falling into the depths. Words ring in your mind, “Fool, Your time has come, Celibate you shall be, King Kiaus the second so decrees, So robber, Is it worth your suffering, Your pain, Your agony, All for simple wealth?” As the song says, the adventurers lose the ability to have children. This curse also affects any children they might already have, and can be removed with a Remove Curse spell. Also, they are falling into a pit 100 ft. deep. They also set of an Ungol Dust Vapor Trap, pg 72 of the DMG. LEVEL A A1 A corridor veers of to the left, with a closed but unlocked door. Read the following when they open it, This room is less elegant than the others, with torn bodies layering the small room. Cramped as it is, it would have a certain homelyness, nice and comfortable, other than for the dead strewn about. A trip wire is on the floor. When you step into the room, your feet catch on something and you fall flat on your face (or you manage to keep your balance). Two hidden doors open and you see a malevolent red light pierce through the darkness in each room. A pit opens in the floor and two more climb out and advance. Skeletons (12 HD): 41, 37, 65, 19. These skeletons are weakened from other creatures and have orders to attack anyone who enters this room. Another effect of the trip wire is to open up room A2 A2 This wide expansive room wasn’t there a second ago, but you see a small amount of gold in the corner. Two wraiths and a shadow occupy this room, and attack anyone who comes in. There is 300 gold in the corner. A3 doesn’t open until the three undead are killed. A3 A3 only has a portal to room B1, nothing else. B1 When the get into this room, they fall into a wet 50x50x50 foot pit filled with 10 sharks. There is a switch that can be found with a Search check DC 20. A secret door can be found with a search check DC 25. There is a maze, which will be posted eventually. When I can get my scanner to work, I will get you B and C. D1 "After that disorienting fall, you find yourself in a room with an elegant casket and piles upon piles of gold. There is no inscription on this casket however." All illusion. A secret door to there right will lead out of here, which they will eventually have to get into to leave. The DC is 10. B2 In this room, two Arrow Demons and a Dust Wight, both in MMIII, are positioned in this room. B3 The real crypt has the following, “This room is decadent, full of rich and splendid items, a casket, and a sign. The sign reads, ‘Heroes who broke into these halls, beware the repercussions. You have been cursed many times over. A knife in your back, or maybe something more sinister, is your fate, your lives have been decided.’ When they read that, they can do whatever they want, but when they open the casket, read the following, ‘You see a shriveled corpse, with blood still on it. It has blond hair and blue eyes, not at all decomposed. If they suceed at a spot chec, DC 20, they see the following. The skull is smashed in, and the neck is punctured. You can see signs of struggle, but the clothes it wears into death are magnificent. It’s expression is that of terror.’ When they touch the corpse, they get teleported back to the gate of this tomb. They can leave without incident, if they are lucky, or they might have to fight against the people stated above. They will return in the lightning rail, and you may insert a wilderness encounter. Viorr will not remove their curses. They are stuck with them unless they remove them themselves. Viorr will want them to work with him in the future, and they recieve their full payment.
Isran_Imrador 03-19-05, 11:50 AM	Hey didnt get to Email you back, But i was going to say that it was looking good! :) Fun with all the Curses! And i would like to have a follow up! :D Isran.
DolArrah 03-19-05, 08:36 PM	Will no one esle reply?
dmsyberpanther 03-19-05, 09:30 PM	looks very nice. would you mind if i used it? that fits in nicely after the WotVB adventure. Good tie in. It looks like it's ready to go into a magazine. you might want to suggest options for scaling the adventure. unless you did and i just didn't see it.
DolArrah 03-20-05, 09:02 AM	I havn't quite fiished yet. Mondern technology gets worse every year. My scanner isn't letting me put in the maps that you need for areas B and C, but go ahead and use it. I am not very good at discerning the level the PC's should be, and I expect that most people will be level 8 when they come out of WotVB. Thanks for the compliment,
KP91 03-20-05, 10:30 AM	I like it, but what does the first curse do?
chimpman 03-20-05, 01:23 PM	I do like this adventure, and I think I've gotten a handle on it although I do have a few (hopefully constructive) comments. 1) The beginning was a little confusing. I understand that the Dark Lanterns want the PCs to investigate Kiaus III on suspicion of being a vampire. That's fine. However the logic takes a small dive for me thereafter. It is totally possible that if Kiaus III is a vampire, that it is Kiaus III and not a predicessor. In that case there would be no crypt with a fake body. So... how and why do the Dark Lanterns suspect that Kiaus III is not actually Kiaus III (and is in fact Kiaus I or II)? I think for me (as a player) this would have to be answered. 2) I like the curses. Nice touch. This is just what an Eberron/Karrnathi king would do to protect his grave site. 3) When the PCs finally do find a body in the crypt of Kiaus I (and I suppose there should be a fake body in the crypt of Kiaus II as well), make them work for the payoff. There should be some kind of Search/Investigate DC in order fo rthem to find the bite marks on the neck. In other words there should be a chance for them to get things wrong and think they have found the real body of Kiaus I (or II) in the proper crypt. I think the vampire should be given at least that much credit. Hmmm... after writing the above I can see another possibility for the PCs to mess up. Since (I'm assuming) Kiaus also played the part of Kiaus II, there would be a fake body in that crypt as well. It is possible that the PCs stumble upon the crypt of KII, find the fake body and assume that Kiaus III is in actuality KiausII (and not the original Kiaus I). If they went back to Breland at this point (and they may want to) they would only be getting it half right.
Saurenda 03-20-05, 02:10 PM	Did V mean 1000 gold or 10,000 gold pieces? This does not feel as though it was meant to be a stand alone adventure. What's more why would the dark lantern rehire the Pcs if they had failed the WOTVB scenario? You should add to get the most out of this adventure: Have completed the WOTVB module. Also what would a paladin have to say about grave robbing? Or a good aligned Cleric, or even a party member from Karnath? You haven't given answers to problems and questions that typically arise when when a hook is presented to a group of varying adventurers. Also it mentions King Kaus the third is magically sustaining his life. How do the pcs confirm or deny this? Also it is presented that they should searc the tomb of King Kaus the third. I think you wanted it to be Kaus the First that they are searching the tomb for. How did V manage to get this information in the first place? If he reufuses to answer I know a majority of my more intelligent Pcs will decline this mission. First of all it looks like it has been desgined to aggitate a unstable peace treaty, and break out full war of Breland and Karnnath. What sort of self respecting player character with good alignment would break into hallowed(or rather unhallowed?) ground of a neighboring country that will cause stirring up of trouble. Also it mentions thatey make take any treasure they find. What right does V have to offer that? And once a PC takes a treasure form a familiar ancestral vault in Karrnath do they expect to keep it from scrying, or object reading to know who's hands it passed through? Again how will this sit with good aligned characters who are loyal to Karnath or otherwise affliated with not disturbing the rest of others. There is no proof on V's part to warrant that Kaus is a vampire possing as Kaus the third in what you mentioned.
DolArrah 03-20-05, 06:13 PM	1) The beginning was a little confusing. I understand that the Dark Lanterns want the PCs to investigate Kiaus III on suspicion of being a vampire. That's fine. However the logic takes a small dive for me thereafter. It is totally possible that if Kiaus III is a vampire, that it is Kiaus III and not a predicessor. In that case there would be no crypt with a fake body. So... how and why do the Dark Lanterns suspect that Kiaus III is not actually Kiaus III (and is in fact Kiaus I or II)? I think for me (as a player) this would have to be answered. I don't know. I didn't think that threw . . . err, divination spells? They are level 8 or 9 by now, so they are capable of discerning who this is, especially if they have an artificer in the party. 3) When the PCs finally do find a body in the crypt of Kiaus I (and I suppose there should be a fake body in the crypt of Kiaus II as well), make them work for the payoff. There should be some kind of Search/Investigate DC in order fo rthem to find the bite marks on the neck. In other words there should be a chance for them to get things wrong and think they have found the real body of Kiaus I (or II) in the proper crypt. I think the vampire should be given at least that much credit. Changed.
DolArrah 03-20-05, 06:45 PM	Did V mean 1000 gold or 10,000 gold pieces? This does not feel as though it was meant to be a stand alone adventure. What's more why would the dark lantern rehire the Pcs if they had failed the WOTVB scenario? 10,000, and fixed. Thx I like it, but what does the first curse do? The targets are effected by a Bestow Curse spell. The same curse effects all their blood relatives. (I become blind, so does my mother, my dad, my sister, etc.) It also effects their children or their blood relatives children, and becomes passed down through the line as a genetic trait (I am blind. So is my grandson and his son and his daughter and her sisters child, etc.).
dmsyberpanther 03-21-05, 04:31 PM	Kiaus III is Kiaus I. Kiaus II was actually a grandson or nephew of Kiaus I. He became a vampire to preserve himself and keep ruling. He is a Good vampire, but a vampire none the less. He's not like Vol. He's also not ruining the rest of the country or anything. According to the ESB, Karrnath has a lot of undead. They use skeletons and zombies because they are cheap to make in large numbers and are completely controllable. They all work for the country. I would think that they would be checking the tomb of Kiaus I to figure out the problem. :)
chimpman 03-21-05, 04:38 PM	I would think that they would be checking the tomb of Kiaus I to figure out the problem. :) Right... You and I know this, but what I was trying to get at before is that none of this common knowledge. The question then becomes how do the PCs know that Kiaus III is in actuality Kiaus I (and therefore that they need to search the tomb of Kiaus I)? For all the PCs know he could be Karrn I. Or Galifar V. Or Joe Schmoe from down the street. Or Kiaus III. The fact that they suspect Kiaus III of being a vampire does not automatically suggest that he is also an imposter. That is something that they should discover during their investigation.