Several More Assorted Chambers in the Found Tombs of Arvakaten

Steps Going Down (#24/365)

"The corridor you have been following stops abruptly at a set of stone steps, cut into the rock, leading downwards, deeper into the tombs. Dare you venture downwards?"

Contents: These steps lead down to level 2 of the Found Tombs of Arvakaten. The fifth step is trapped; anyone stepping on it must Test their Luck to avoid a rusty bronze axe that swings out from the wall on a pendulum chain, causing the same damage as a Battle Axe (an Armour Roll is allowed). Once sprung, the trap will not reset, unless the Heroes do so (requires a successful Trap Knowledge Special Skill roll to reset the trap).

Bare Room (#25/365)

"This square chamber appears empty for the most part, though some dust and debris cover the floor."

Contents: If the Heroes search the rubble they will find two unlit torches, a pile of rags, and a tin mug.

Pit of Serpents (#26/365)

"This small chamber is devoid of decoration and contents. A single exit leads away from the wall opposite you."

Contents: The floor is trapped; anyone walking across it causes it collapse on hinges into a shallow pit full of a colony of Tomb Vipers - this requires a Test for Luck to avoid for everyone in the room. After one hour, the floor resets itself; sealing anything in the pit until the trap is triggered again. The snakes have small tunnels they can slither down that connect to a larger colony further underground.

Stats:

7 TOMB VIPERS, SKILL 11, STAMINA 14, Attacks: 7, Small Bite, Light Armour. (See Return to the Pit, pp. 205-206). Each successful hit of 2 STAMINA damage kills 1 Tomb Viper, reducing the overall SKILL and Attack scores by 1.

Scattered across the floor are several skeletons, 2-12 SP, and a rusty iron sword.

Shrine of the Sand God (#27/365)

"The floor of this small chamber is covered in sand; coarse, orange, and heaped here and there in ripples and miniature dunes. At the far end of the chamber is what looks like a simple altar; a plinth of stone upon which rests a bare alabaster goblet. The walls are covered in hieroglyphs, and, behind the altar, a depiction of a regal, bare-chested, bearded man, clad in a waist-cloth and wearing a tall nine-banded cylindrical crown, with a long staff in one hand."

Contents: This is a simple shrine to Assamarra, the Djaratian God of the Desert, and the hieroglyphics engraved into the walls reveal as much. Anyone who places a pinch of sand into the goblet on the altar and murmurs the appropriate words of religious respect will be blessed by Assamarra; the next time they venture into the desert they may ignore the first major hardship they face (this could range from heatstroke, sunstroke, or a lack of water, to a major sandstorm or the attack of a Giant Sandworm). 

Anyone foolish enough to touch or take the goblet will summon the shrine's guardian, a SAND DEVIL, which will attack immediately, unless one of the Heroes is a Desert Elf or Nomad Sufi and can placate it accordingly.

Stats:

1 SAND DEVIL, SKILL 10, STAMINA 7, Attacks: 1, Sandstorm (as per Large Claw), All hits only cause the Sand Devil 1 STAMINA damage, but water splashed on it will kill it instantly. (see Out of the Pit, p. 99-100)

The alabaster goblet is worth 20GP.

False Tomb (#28/365)

"This small octagonal chamber contains a Djaratian ceremonial sarcophagus, carved with hieroglyphs, and depicting a lord of some sort. A heap of grave goods lies moldering in a corner, covered in dust and cobwebs."

Contents: This is a false tomb; the grave goods are sticks of wicker furniture, empty pots and urns, and fraying sacks of containing sand and gravel. Anyone opening the sarcophagus by sliding the lid off the top of the tomb, reveals its occupant, a MUMMY, that will clamber out and attack the looters. In the tomb are two ancient Djaratian gold coins; these may be worth 10GP each to a collector.

Stats:

1 MUMMY, SKILL 9, STAMINA 12, Attacks: 2, Small Claw (see Out of the Pit, pp. 85-86). The Mummy is immune to all attacks, and will reanimate 20 minutes after being 'slain' and hunt its attackers down. It can only be permanently killed by fire or magical weapons or spells.

Gnoll Chief's Lair (#23/365)

Gnoll Chief's Lair (#23/365)

"This large cavern is adorned with numerous grisly skulls nailed to the walls. Amidst the squalor of several straw pallets and a low table strewn with rotting food, three Gnolls are playing a game that involves throwing daggers at an Orc prisoner chained to a stake embedded in the floor. As you enter, the largest Gnoll turns to face you, dagger held in their raised hand. Behind them, the Orc, already wounded, whimpers piteously.

'By the stench of the Pit, who the hell are you lot?' the Gnoll snarls."

Contents: This is the chamber of Snannab the Surly, chieftain of the Gnolls of the Tusk-Gnasher tribe, and his two loyal bodyguards, currently playing a game of 'Hit or Miss' using throwing daggers and a captured Orc prisoner.

Aggressive Heroes will be attacked immediately; however, if the battle is going badly, the Gnolls will flee and organize a resistance from Gnollish survivors to hunt them down. Powerful-looking Heroes or those that speak Gnollish may be offered terms of parley, along the lines of 'Give us more meat/Kill more Orcs and we won't attack you'. An alternative would be for Snannab to give the Heroes his Bronze Key and tell them a great treasure lies behind the bronze doors at #11 and the key is needed to open them.

The food on the table is the rotting remains of a Dwarf prospector that was ambushed in the gullies around the Found Tombs several weeks previously. It has badly decayed - any non-Orc or Gnoll eating it must lose 1-3 STAMINA points.

Hidden under one of the straw pallets is a locked wooden casket, opened with a Tiny Copper Key in Snannab's possession. The key won't disarm the trap (a Poison Needle, Test for Luck to avoid or suffer 6 STAMINA points damage from Black Rose poison). Inside the casket are the treasures of the tribe:

• 76GP in a sack
• 2 bottles of white wine (Shazaar Whitefire, see Encyclopedia Arcana: Volume 1, p. 55)
  
• 3 yellow Topaz jewels mounted in silver (10GP each)
  
• Gold torc engraved with a Phoenix (from Vatos; 30gp)
  
• Potion of Fire Water (see Encyclopedia Arcana: Volume 1, p. 106)

Smashing the casket destroys the wine and the potion which combust to explode in a fiery blast; causing 2-12 STAMINA damage to everyone in the vicinity.

Stats:

Snannab the Surly, GNOLL Chieftain, (see Return to the Pit, p. 94)

SKILL: 10

STAMINA: 16

Attacks: 1

Weapons: Throwing Dagger, Battleaxe

Armour: Chainmall Cuirass

Notes: Has 2-12 GP, a Bronze Key, a Tiny Copper Key, and a Bone Monkey Charm (see Encyclopedia Arcana: Volume 1, p. 99; Snannab will use this as a last resort if he needs to escape).

2 GNOLL Bodyguards: SKILL 9, STAMINA 7, Battleaxe and Throwing Dagger, Light Armour (Leather scraps)

Both Gnolls have 1-6 GP. One has 3 chunks of charcoal, the other a Whip, that they will use to try and ensare Heroes in combat.

1 ORC Prisoner: SKILL 6, STAMINA 2 (was 5)

The Orc has nothing and just wants to return to the Bronze Serpent Mercenary Company. He will speak highly of the Heroes to his fellow Orcs if they help escort him back to the Orc mercenaries' chambers.

Ye Olde Underground Magick Shoppe (#22/365)

Ye Olde Underground Magick Shoppe (#22/365)

The door to this room is magically locked and can only be opened by an appropriate Wizardry, Sorcery or Demi-Sorcery spell.

"This dark dingy room is piled high with shelves full of bric-a-brac and useless junk. Piles of cooking-ware, dusty and cobwebbed boxes, sacks and other receptacles overflow across the floor. A dim glow emanates from a green crystal upon the ceiling."

Contents: This is the emporium of the dungeoneering merchant and demi-sorcerer Shang Monua, currently being imprisoned by the Gnolls of the Tusk-Gnasher tribe in their larder (see room #10). 

Anyone randomly breaking into this room and searching it, must make a Test for Luck to discover anything useful from the below list of Shang's most valuable items. If Shang is freed, he will return here, and offer the Heroes two free items from the list below. Otherwise, everything is available at the price listed:

• 1 Scroll of Weakness 50GP (See Encyclopedia Arcana: Volume 1, p. 98)
• 2 vials of White Lotus Oil 4GP (See Encyclopedia Arcana: Volume 1, p. 119)
• 1 Bronze Scorpion Brooch 10GP (See Encyclopedia Arcana: Volume 1, p. 122)
• 1 Mask of the Mountebank 150GP (See Heroes Companion, p14)
• 1 Chalice of Mystery 110GP (See Encyclopedia Arcana: Volume 1, p. 130)

The secret door leads to a small chamber where Shang sleeps. It has a hammock, a lantern, 1-6 Provisions worth of hard ship's biscuits, a jug of fresh water, and a lurid book entitled 'Confessions of a Rat-Catcher' by Bransell Ralliwell (see Encyclopedia Arcana: Volume 1, p. 50)

Inner Sanctum (Sphinx Lair - #21/365)

Inner Sanctum (Sphinx Lair - #21/365)

This chamber can only be opened with a Bronze Key inserted into the bronze doors in room #11.

"The doors creak slowly open and you step forth into a large square chamber, decorated with ancient carvings and hieroglyphs. Pillars support a high ceiling, from which a beam of sunlight comes down from a skylight far overhead, illuminating what looks like a raised tomb on a dais. Everywhere are scattered bones and skeletons, clawed and destroyed by some great beast. And then you hear a snuffling noise, and an immense shaggy form, like a gigantic lion but with the head of a wild-eyed madman and a mouth full of sharp fangs, shambles up, over the dais, and pads towards you on enormous taloned paws. It opens its mouth and speaks to you in a deep, rumbling voice, using a language you cannot understand."

Contents: The creature is the Sphinx Maisramafooz, imprisoned here by an ancient Djaratian Archmage, to watch over the entrance to the lower crypts. Maisramafooz is extremely bored and will use the languages it knows (see list below) to attempt to find a common tongue with which to communicate with the Heroes, assuming they are not foolish enough to attack immediately.

If a common tongue can be found, Maisramafooz will explain that it grants access to the lower crypts if the Heroes can answer three riddles (plenty of online riddle generators will help out here to construct a list of riddles). If the Heroes answer all three riddles correctly, the Sphinx will remove the top slab from the tomb, revealing a tight circular staircase leading down to level 2 of this dungeon. If the Heroes cannot answer the riddles, Maisramafooz will tell them to leave this chamber, and not to return until they know the answers. The Sphinx can be bribed with roast or barbecued meat; two provisions' worth will reduce the number of riddles to one.

Wubutu the Genie is a big help here, assuming he is not drunk or psychotic, because he can speak with the Sphinx in many languages and also help the Heroes if they are stuck on a particular riddle. He will reluctantly fight the Sphinx if ordered, but both creatures will break off the fight when their STAMINA scores are reduced to half; the Sphinx to lick its wounds in a corner of the crypt, the Genie to retire to its lamp.

If the Heroes attack the Sphinx, ignore it, start searching the chamber, or refuse to leave, it will attack with all fury.

Stats:

Maisramafooz, a SPHINX: SKILL 12, STAMINA 24, Attacks 2, Very Large Claws, Light Armour, +2 to Damage Roll, only harmed by magic weapons and spells. See Return to the Pit (p. 176) for more details.

Maisramafooz speaks the following languages: Djaratian (4), Vatosian (4), Hamakei (4), Elvish (Desert dialect) (4), Ancient Allansian (3), Desert Nomad (2), Caarth (3), Gnollish (1), Orcish (1)

Maisramafooz cares nothing for treasure and scattered about the chamber are various trinkets belonging to some of the unfortunates that the Sphinx has dismembered and devoured over the years: 14GP, a handaxe, a set of lockpicks, a gold pendant set with a large sapphire (worth 40GP), and a purple crystalline Jewel of Sleep (see Encyclopedia Arcana: Volume 1, p. 122).

Orc Watchpost (#20/365)

 Orc Watchpost (#20/365)

"The corridor opens into a sunlit cave, whose low entrance is screened by a wall of strategically placed thornbushes and clumps of tumbleweed. A lone Orc stands guard on sentry duty; on seeing you they sigh, and say 'Alright, what do you lot want then?'"

Contents: This is the entrance the Orcs of the Bronze Serpent Mercenary Company use to enter the Found Tombs of Arvakaten. The tumbleweed can be rolled aside to reveal that the cave opens out on the side of a tall hill. In the distance, beyond several other hills, can be seen a blue smudge on the horizon that is the Western Ocean where it washes upon the higher reaches of the Pirate Coast. A trail runs from this cave, across the valley below, and through the hills, to a secluded cove where the Orcs make contact with various pirate bands as needed. At the cove is a cairn of rocks with a signal pyre that is lit by either the Orcs or the Pirates when they need a rendezvous.

The Orc is extremely bored and happy to let the Heroes in or out of the cave for a small bribe of 1GP, on condition they leave the other Orcs alone. If a Hero is friendly and speaks Orcish, the guard will happily reveal much of the information above in exchange for another gold piece.

If the Heroes are aggressive, or look like they have already been fighting Orcs (green Orcish blood on their weapons and armour, for example), then the guard will sound the Warning Horn, alerting all Orcs in this area, and attack.

Stats: 

ORC: SKILL 6, STAMINA 5, Bow and Sword, Light Armour (leather scraps), Warning Horn (old coiled ram's horn that blows a sonorous note)

The Orc has 1d6 GP on them.

 

Gnoll Storeroom (#19/365)

 Gnoll Storeroom (#19/365)

"This roughly-hewn square stone chamber is packed with crates, sacks and boxes. In front of the packing is a random assortment of personal belongings, dumped carelessly on the ground. A GNOLL guard was dozing on a low stool, but jumps up as you enter.

'''Ere, what do you lot think you're doing then, hey?" it yells at you.

Contents: This room stores the booty acquired by the Tusk-Gnasher Gnolls from caravan raids and attacks on smaller hamlets, before it is transported to Dust Town to be sold. Currently, stored here are the following:

• 2 crates of iron bars (worth 35GP per crate; each crate is so heavy it takes up 4 Encumbrance slots.
• a full lead-lined barrel of Guursh (Orc Ale; see Encyclopedia Arcana, pp. 57-58); worth 30GP but takes up 10 Encumbrance slots
  
• 10 boxes of copper nuggets (worth 10GP per box; each box is one Encumbrance slot)
  
• 3 sacks of leather gloves (worth 30GP per sack; each sack is one Encumbrance slot)
  
• 4 bales of wool (worth 30GP per bale; each bale is 2 Encumbrance slots)

The personal belongings are the possessions of Shang Monua (see #10), and other unfortunate travellers who have been captured by the Gnolls. They include ('S' indicates it belongs to Shang):

• Staff (S)
• Demi-Sorcery Spellbook (S); spells are Detect Trap (2), E.S.P. (2), Light (2), Open Door (2), Truce (2), Create Water (1), Creature Sleep (1), Fool's Gold (1), Language (1), Read Symbols (1), Shielding (1)
• Backpack (S)
• Lantern and flask of Oil (S)
• Potion of MAGIC (S)
  
• Bronze Key
• Silver Dagger
• Stoppered Jug of Weak Acid
  

The Gnoll guard is not too smart. Heroes who speak Gnollish may convince him to let them inspect the supplies on orders of the chief. Failed attempts to con the Gnoll will cause it to attack, but it will surrender if wounded twice and still alive.

Stats:

1 GNOLL: SKILL 8, STAMINA 5, Spear, Small Shield, Light Armour (leather scraps)

The Gnoll guard has 1-6 SP and a bunch of the herb Serpentbane (when eaten, negates the effect of snake venom for one bite; see The Titan Herbal, p. 59).

Gnoll Guardpost/Exit (#18/365)

 Gnoll Guardpost/Exit (#18/365)

"The corridor ascends and opens up into a small cave with a view over a nearby valley."

If the Heroes have been quiet:

"You see a bored Gnoll guard slumped behind a rock, bow held loosely in one hand, occasionally looking up to scan the terrain outside."

If the Heroes have been noisy:

"An angry Gnoll guard stands before you, hunched behind a rock, with an arrow drawn on the shortbow he holds with both paws, pointed straight you.

'Who the hell are you!' he barks. 'Explain yourself!'"

Contents: This is the Gnolls' entrance to the Found Tombs of Arvakaten. It overlooks the top of a small side valley to the main tributary-source of the river Murab. At the bottom of the valley is a stream (little more than a muddy rivulet of water), choked with bones and debris that the Gnolls toss out of their guardpost.

Anyone drinking the stream water has a 1-in-6 chance of contracting Baddu-Belly (see Citadel of Chaos, p. 25).  

The Gnoll is part of the Tusk-Gnasher tribe and has been perturbed by the presence of the recently-arrived Orc mercenaries. Their main interests are getting rid of the Orcs, and food, especially meat and how to prepare it. All Gnolls are cannibals and anyone slain by them will be eaten.

Obviously, if the Heroes are attempting to enter this chamber from the outside, then the description and circumstances will need to be changed.

Stats:

1 GNOLL: SKILL 8, STAMINA 5, Short Bow and Club, Light Armour (leather scraps) 

The Gnoll guard has  1-6 SP and a haunch of badly cooked camel meat (deduct 1-3 STAMINA points if eaten).

Gnoll Lair (#17/365)

Gnoll Lair (#17/365)

"This long chamber is full of straw pallets and strong with a mixed odor of wood-smoke and large animals. At one end is a scratched wooden bench that serves as a table, surrounded by several large rocks that are used as seats. Next to it is a cooking pit with two holding stakes and a central rotating spit."

Roll a die. On a 1-2:

"Snoring atop several of the pallets are some scruffy Gnolls, fast asleep, with their armour and weapons dumped in heaps next to each sleeping creature."

On a 3-6: 

"Standing around the smoking pit are several Gnolls, roasting an unidentifiable shank of meat. Smoke rises up through a hole in the ceiling. On seeing you, they curse and grab for their weapons." 

Contents: If the Gnolls are sleeping, the Heroes may attempt to sneak through the chamber, but attempting to murder the Gnolls in their sleep will wake at least one of them up, who will raise the alarm.

The Gnolls are part of the Tusk-Gnasher tribe and have been perturbed by the presence of the recently-arrived Orc mercenaries. Their main interests are getting rid of the Orcs, and food, especially meat and how to prepare it. All Gnolls are cannibals and anyone slain by them will be eaten.

Stashed behind the table are some bits and pieces including a Large Backpack (see Encyclopedia Arcana: Volume 1, p. 48), a Pineapple and a gourd of dried fish (both +1-3 STAMINA if eaten).

Stats:

4 GNOLLS: SKILL 8, STAMINA 5, Club, Light Armour (leather scraps). One of the Gnolls has a Net, with which it will attempt to ensnare several Heroes (see Encyclopedia Arcana: Volume 1, pp. 46-47).

Each Gnoll has 1-6SP. The meat on the spit is roasted camel and surprisingly edible, restoring 1-3 STAMINA points to anyone who consumes it. The straw pallets are empty but anyone searching through them has a 4 in 6 chance of contracting fleas (-1 SKILL due to itchy bites until they next take a full bath).

Descrated Spring (#16/365)

Desecrated Spring (#16/365)

"The corridor descends slightly and opens out into a wide natural cavern, worked with ancient carvings and engravings, and then defaced with crude graffiti, scratches and burn-marks. There is a large pool of black water that reeks with a horrific stench, and next to it, a pile of bones and other refuse."

Contents: This was formerly a natural spring and shrine to Cracca, the Djaratian equivalent of Aqualis, god of rivers and fresh water (the Djaratian carvings indicate as much, before being covered in Gnollish graffiti). It is now used as a latrine and garbage dump by the Gnolls of the Tusk-Gnasher tribe and there is a 1 in 6 chance a random GNOLL will be here performing their ablutions.

Anyone foolish enough to drink the water must immediate lose 1-6 STAMINA points by retching copiously and they immediately contract the disease Baddu-Belly (see Citadel of Chaos, p. 25).

The pile of bones and refuse have been picked clean by Gnolls and other scavengers, and even smashed open to extract the bone-marrow within. However, if a Hero diligently searches the trash pile, with a 1-in-6 chance of contracting Baddu-Belly, they will find a rusted iron bracelet and a string of knucklebones on a length of twine (this functions as a Bracelet of Bones for the Sorcery KID spell (see Sorcery Spellbook p. 78).

If a good Priest reconsecrates the shrine to Aqualis/Cracca and purifies the spring, Aqualis will reward them with a blessing - for one month they may add a +1 bonus to all their Swim and River Lore Special Skill rolls.

Stats:

GNOLL: SKILL 8, STAMINA 5, Short Bow and Club, Light Armour (leather scraps) 

The Gnoll has  1-6 SP.

Three Rooms (#13, 14, 15/365)

Trapped Sidechamber (#13/365)

"This large square chamber has several exits. Piles of rubble, broken tiles, and clumps of rotting plaster are strewn across the floor."

Contents: The Gnolls of the Tusk-Gnasher tribe have set a trap in this room, near one of the exit corridors. A victim entering or leaving the room must Test their Skill or be strung upside down into the air by a rope noose around their foot. At the same time, a nail-studded plank will whip out and smash into the dangling victim, causing 2-7 STAMINA points of damage. Lastly, an alarm consisting of strips of metal attached to the rope, will clang together noisily, alerting any GNOLLS in the immediate vicinity.

The Room of Dust (#14/365)

"This small square low-ceiling chamber is covered in piles of fine white dust that lie scattered about in heaps everywhere. Disturbing a pile causes a cloud of motes to float about in the air. You feel a sneeze coming on..."

Contents: The dust is harmless, and simply the residue and detritus of millenia reduced to a fine white powder. It can be used as a component for the ROK spell, though it needs to be treated magically first.

There is nothing else in the room, however should the Heroes conduct a fight in this room, perhaps with a wandering monster, then all living combatants must deduct 2 from their Attack Strength due to the clouds of dust that they stir up, causing much coughing and sneezing. Non-living combatants, such as Undead or Constructs, are unaffected, as is anyone wearing nose plugs or nose filters.

Fungus Chamber (#15/365)

"The floor of this stone-walled chamber is infested with large globular fungi a deep purple in color. Walking across the floor without disturbing the fungi may be difficult..."

Contents: This is Purple Globe Fungus (see The Titan Herbal, p. 54). If disturbed, such as a failed Skill Test to cross the floor of this room, the fungi will explode with a dull popping sound, filling the air with fungal spores. The spores are poisonous, and anyone in the room will suffer from uncontrollable retching and gagging, and must lose 1-6 STAMINA points.

Haunted Sidechamber (#12/365)

Haunted Sidechamber (#12/365)

"This small side chamber is stacked with piles of terracotta tiles. Even as you gaze upon their umber ranks, one of the tiles levitates off from the stacks and hurtles through the air towards you, smashing into the wall in a cloud of clay shards and dust, accompanied by an unearthly howling scream!"

Contents: This spiritual manifestation is a POLTERGEIST, which is the ghost of a murdered builder, slain and sealed within the tomb-complex. It will fling terracotta tiles at the Heroes for as long as they remain in this room.

Under the pile of terracotta tiles is the crushed skeleton of the builder. If the Poltergeist is Banished or Warded off by a Priest, or even if a Priest simply says a few short words of peace for the skeleton/victim, the Poltergeist will vanish. Among the bones of the skeleton is a Bronze Key.

Stats:

1 POLTERGEIST, SKILL 9, STAMINA 0, Attacks: 1 per Hero, Flings terracotta tiles (1 STAMINA damage), does not take damage. Disappears if successfully Warded or Banished  by a Priest.

Outer Sanctum, Zone Three (#11/365)

Outer Sanctum, Zone Three (#11/365)

"You are at the end of an enormous vaulted hall, and ahead of your are an immense pair of bronze doors, stained green with verdigris. Great pillars support a high ceiling, everywhere is cyclopean stonework adorned with peeling plaster and carved engravings, all defaced by more recent graffiti in Orcish and Gnollish languages. There are a multitude of bones all over the floor, that crunch under your feet as you walk, most apparently belonging to various great mythological beasts - a manticore, a chimera, a hydra. Even as you watch in horror, the bones start rising, forming gradually into two immense monstrous skeletons, jaws clacking together and huge clawed talons stretching forwards towards you, angry at your intrusion!"

Contents: The bones will animate into 2 undead CHIMERICAL BONEBEASTS after 1-6 minutes and attack the Heroes until slain. 

Amid the bones and debris, a search will reveal 2GP and a ceramic jar full of salt.

The great bronze door is covered in faint Djaratian hieroglyphs detailing the journey of a dead soul into the underworld. Various hideous Djaratian monsters of myth and legend are depicted harassing the unfortunate soul on its lonely quest.

The door is magically locked and can only be opened by a magic spell or the use of a Bronze Key. 

Stats: 

2 CHIMERICAL BONEBEASTS

SKILL 9, STAMINA 11, 2 Attacks, Very Large Claw, Light Armour (bony plates), +2 to the Damage Roll

Blade and piercing weapons do 1 STAMINA damage, Blunt and crushing weapons do normal damage.

Gnoll Larder (#10/365)

Gnoll Larder (#10/365)

"This room is a site of horror. The walls are liberally splashed with blood, much of it fresh, and various appendages and pieces of meat, taken from humans, Orcs, and others, hung up from the low ceiling on long hooks. Flies and maggots are everywhere - the stench is indescribable. Chained to one wall is a filthy humanoid in dirty rags, upon seeing you, he begins to plead: 'Help me, by the gods, please help me!"

Contents: The prisoner, scheduled to be eaten soon by the Gnolls, is Shang Monua, a Demi-Sorcerer and Dungeoneer (a merchant specializing in trading in underground places, acting as an intermediary between dungeon creatures and above-ground trade routes).

Shang was captured by the Gnolls while journeying between the city of Pellod and his dungeon shop (to be described in a further room). If freed, he will reward the Heroes with two free items from his magically-locked shop. To free Shang requires a successful Strength Skill test to snap the chain that binds him. His equipment is stashed in the Gnoll's Storeroom (to be described).

The rest of the room is full of shanks of rotting meat. Anyone searching has a 2-in-6 chance every minute of disturbing a nest of 3-18 FLESH GRUBS (see Out of the Pit, p. 53). These will immediately leap on their victim and begin burrowing into their flesh!

Stats: Below are the scores for Shang Monua. They can be used as an Extra who just wants freedom and to return to their dungeon shop, or as an extra Hero to replace one who has died. They are slightly more experienced than a beginning Hero.

Shang Monua, Human Male Dungeoneer/Demi-Sorcerer, 32 years old

SKILL: 7
STAMINA: 14 (currently 8)
LUCK: 9
MAGIC: 5 (Magic Points: 14)
Talents: Arcane
Special Skills: Common Speech (Allansian) 4, Magic-Demi-Sorcery 3, Bargain 2, Con 2, Evaluate 2, City Lore 1, Locks 1, Magic Lore 1, Religion Lore 1, Second Sight 1, Sleight of Hand 1, Staves 1, Trap Knowledge 1, Underground Lore 1, World Lore 1
Spells: Detect Trap (2), E.S.P. (2), Light (2), Open Door (2), Truce (2), Create Water (1), Creature Sleep (1), Fool's Gold (1), Language (1), Read Symbols (1), Shielding (1)

Outer Sanctum, Zone Two (#9/365)

Outer Sanctum, Zone Two (#9/365)

"You are in the middle of an enormous vaulted hall, you cannot tell how much further back it must extend both behind and in front of you. Great pillars support a high ceiling, everywhere is cyclopean stonework adorned with peeling plaster and carved engravings, all defaced by more recent graffiti in Orcish and Gnollish languages. There are a multitude of bones all over the floor, that crunch under your feet as you walk, most belonging to humanoids and apparently the site of a battle, for there are also rusty swords and shields scattered about as well. Even as you watch in horror, the bones start rising, forming gradually into the skeletons of warriors, jaws clacking together and bony hands clutching tarnished blades, angry at your intrusion!"

Contents: The bones will animate in SKELETON WARRIORS after 1-6 minutes and attack the Heroes until slain. 

Amid the bones and debris, a search will reveal the body of a dead adventurer, who is carrying 1GP and a bandolier with 5 throwing daggers.

The swords and shields (which feature a barely visible phoenix design), are battered and rusty but of ancient Vatosian origin. They may be worth something to a collector of Vatosian curios, if the Heroes can be bothered carrying them all out of the dungeon.

Stats: 

4 SKELETON WARRIORS

SKILL 8, STAMINA 6, Rusty Sword, Small Shield

Blade and piercing weapons do 1 STAMINA damage, Blunt and crushing weapons do normal damage.

Orc Latrine (#8/365)

Orc Latrine (#8/365)

"This is a small room of near indescribable stench and filth. There is a hole in the floor from which the smell appears to be emanating, while the walls are covered in crude Orcish graffiti. A ratskin is nailed to the wall, next to the hole."

Contents: This is the latrine of the Orcs of the Bronze Serpent Mercenary Company. Anyone searching this room, or touching the ratskin on the wall, automatically catches the disease Baddu-Belly (see Citadel of Chaos, p. 25), otherwise anyone spending any time in here has a 1-in-6 chance of catching Baddu-Belly every five minutes.

Anyone fighting here, perhaps because they have encountered a Wandering Monster, must do so at a -2 penalty to their Attack Strength due to the smell, unless they are wearing nose plugs or nose filters.

Orcs are immune to all the effects of this room.

Gnoll Trip Trap (#7/365)

 Gnoll Trip Trap (#7/365)

"The floor of this large chamber is covered in rubble and bones. There is an exit directly ahead of you, and another exit to the east, which lies behind several tall piles of crumbling stone."

Contents: Both north and south exits, as well as the centre of the chamber, are , under a cover of dust and small stones, trapped with rope noose traps (Test versus Skill to avoid, or be hoisted into the air by your ankle.).

Behind the piles are 3 GNOLLS who will take pot shots at any adventurers not trapped, starting with the weakest looking ones first, and flee east if badly outnumbered to raise the alarm.

Stats:

3 GNOLLS: SKILL 8, STAMINA 5,  Shortbow and Club, Light armour (leather scraps)

All Gnolls have 1-6 SP. One wears a leather eyepatch studded with tiny obsidian beads worth 6GP. Another has a jar of dried tongues (type unknown).

Outer Sanctum, Zone One (#6/365)

 

Outer Sanctum, Zone One (#6/365)

 

“You have entered an enormous vaulted hall, you cannot tell how much further back it must extend. Great pillars support a high ceiling, everywhere is cyclopean stonework adorned with peeling plaster and carved engravings, all defaced by more recent graffiti in Orcish and Gnollish languages. There are a multitude of bones all over the floor, that crunch under your feet as you walk, some possible belonging to humanoids, but most apparently belonging to smaller animals. Even as you watch in horror, the bones start rising, forming gradually into the skeletons of beasts, jaws clacking together and claws scratching the stone floor, angry at your intrusion!"

 

Contents: The bones will animate in ANIMAL SKELETONS after 1-6 minutes and attack the Heroes until slain.

Amid the bones and debris a search will reveal 2GP and a small rusty iron box full of human teeth.

 

Stats:

ANIMAL SKELETONS (1 per Hero) (Wild dog, desert cat, jackal, sand fox, etc.)

SKILL 5, STAMINA 4, Small Claw

Blade and piercing weapons do 1 STAMINA damage, Blunt and crushing weapons do normal damage.

Orc Barracks (#5/365)

 Orc Barracks (#5/365)

"This room is a barracks of some sort and reeks with the rank stench of rotten meat and stale sweat. Half of the room is given over to bunks with mouldy blankets, the other half has a circular table, a couple of benches and a keg with a steady drip (there are dead flies in the puddle beneath it)."

Roll a die. On a 1-2:

"Sleeping in the bunks are half a dozen Orcs, snoring their heads off and dead to the world. Their weapons and armour are dumped on the floor next to each bed."

On a 3-6:

"Seated at the table are half a dozen Orcs, drinking ale from tankards and playing a game of Pinfinger using an old dagger. They look up at your approach."

Contents:  These Orcs are all rank and file troopers from the Bronze Serpent Mercenary Company, using their down time to either sleep off a Guursh-cursed hangover, or gamble on a game of Pinfinger.

If the Heroes are being escorted by Gurthak Dead-Eye to see the captain, they will be jeered on the way there, and invited to play a game of Pinfinger (see Titan, p. 126) on the way back. The stake is 1GP per game.

If the Heroes are obviously hostile intruders, the Orcs will attack, but more polite Heroes, or those who speak Orcish, may be able to bargain for passage with a hefty bribe or a game of Pinfinger or two.

If the Orcs are sleeping, the Heroes may attempt to sneak through the chamber, but attempting to murder the Orcs in their sleep will wake at least one of them up, who will raise the alarm.

Stats:

5 ORCS: SKILL 6, STAMINA 5, Sword, Dagger, Light Armour (leather scraps) 

Each Orc has 1-6GP. There are a couple of bone dice, a bunch of pewter tankards, and a spare dagger (stained with green Orc blood) on the table. Also on the table is a haunch of roast Bristlebeast. Unfortunately it is infested with maggots and will cause 1-3 STAMINA damage to anyone who eats it, unless they are an Orc or Gnoll (with the respectively strong digestive system).

Next to the table is half a keg of Guursh (Orc Ale; see Encyclopedia Arcana, pp. 57-58). The bunks are empty but anyone searching through them has a 4 in 6 chance of contracting fleas (-1 SKILL due to itchy bites until they next take a full bath).

Gnoll Guardpost (#4/365)

 Gnoll Guardpost (#4/365)

"This large square chamber has another exit directly opposite you, leading away deeper into the tombs. The floor is covered in rubble, bones, and what look like dried bloodstains. There is another exit to the east, but it is barricaded behind two high piles of rubble. You are not sure, but you think you hear a sniggering sound coming from behind one of the piles."

Contents:  Behind the piles are two GNOLL guards ready to fire arrows at the Heroes when they enter the chamber. The Gnolls will aim for the lightest-armoured Hero first. If needed, one Gnoll will flee to alert the rest of the tribe.

The Gnolls are part of the Tusk-Gnasher tribe and have been perturbed by the presence of the recently-arrived Orc mercenaries. Their main interests are getting rid of the Orcs, and food, especially meat and how to prepare it. All Gnolls are cannibals and anyone slain by them will be eaten.

Stats:

2 GNOLLS: SKILL 8, STAMINA 5, Short Bow and Club, Light Armour (leather scraps) 

Both Gnolls have  1-6 SP; one has a joint of roast Aardwolf wrapped in greasy paper (+1-3 STAMINA points if eaten); the other has a patch of Anaesthetic Moss in a pouch (+4 STAMINA when applied to a wound; see The Titan Herbal, p. 17).

Antechamber (#3/365)

Antechamber (#3/365)

"This is another filth-caked room, with a floor covered in debris, and another exit leading north. There is bat guano everywhere, and it seems fresh. You look up...

A host of chittering BATS hang from the ceiling, glaring at you with beady eyes."

 Contents: The BATS will only attack if the Heroes disturb them in some way; simply passing through the room or searching the debris carefully will not set the bats off. There is nothing of value in the rubble, but anyone searching, or who is bitten by a bat, has a 1 in 6 chance of contracting the Red Plague (see Advanced Fighting Fantasy, p. 54).

Stats:

BATS

SKILL: 4

STAMINA: 4

Attacks: 1 for every Hero

Small Bite damage.

Reducing the BATS' STAMINA to 0 indicates they have been driven off.

 

Orc Guardpost (#2/365)

 Orc Guardpost (#2/365)

 

“This diamond-shaped chamber is 20’ across and has been stripped bare of fittings. A rough entrance lies unguarded to the north-east, while a similar north-western entrance is barricaded behind a palisade of stakes and sharpened poles.”

 

If the Heroes have been making a lot of noise: 

 

“As you enter the chamber, an arrow is fired from a slit in the palisade, and lands at your feet. A rough voice rings out:

'That was just a warning shot my friends! Come any closer and we pepper your guts with arrows!’”

 

If not: 

 

“From behind the palisade you can hear the sounds of loud snoring from several creatures.”

 

Contents: Behind the palisade are three Orcs from the Bronze Serpent Mercenary Company; Gurthak Dead-Eye, the mercenaries’ sergeant, and 2 regular troopers. All are currently on down-time after a successful joint-mission with pirate raiders from the Skull Coast. Depending on how noisy the Heroes have been, they will either be asleep or alert.

 

Polite Heroes, or those that speak Orcish, may be able to negotiate safe passage through the room for a bribe of 10GP (and 5GP for a return trip). A bribe of 20GP may even allow an escort to visit the leader of the mercenaries, Shaisak Camel-Smiter, but all weapons must be left in this room.

 

Rude or aggressive Heroes will cause the Orcs to rain down arrows, crossbow bolts and even a Green Spikeball cacti as an improvised grenade (all within 6’ of impact have -1 to their Attack Strength for the next turn due to water splash, pulp spray, spines and other debris).

 

The palisade is 7’ high and stoutly constructed, with several openings to allow for arrow fire. It will take 20 points of STAMINA damage before collapsing, but it is flammable. It has a bolted hatch that can only be opened from the inside.

 

Stats:

Gurthak Dead-Eye, GREAT ORC Mercenary (Out of the Pit, pp. 90-91)

SKILL: 8

STAMINA: 10

Attacks: 1

Weapon: Crossbow, Sword

Armour: Medium (chainmail scraps), Large Shield

Notes: Has a pipe and pouch of Old Trollborn Smoking Weed (see Encyclopedia Arcana, p. 49)

 

2 ORCS: SKILL 6, STAMINA 5, Bow and Sword, Light Armour (leather scraps)

 

All Orcs have 1d6 GP on them. One has a hipflask of Seaman’s Grog he won off a pirate (see Encyclopedia Arcana, p. 59), the other has a Green Spikeball cacti (see The Titan Herbal, p. 36).