Further Fiendish Chambers

The Pottery Barn (#5/31; #217/365)

"This chamber smells like a barn, which is reinforced by the dried straw, or is it some kind of dried yellow fungus, that covers the floor. In one corner, a Fiend feeds meat from a wooden bucket to a terrifying creature, a black scaly horse with wings like a bat, that breathes fire and smoke, slapping it on the flanks and saying, 'Whoa there, settle down Foul Terror!

In the other corner sits a Fiend on stool, apparently making clay vials on a pottery wheel, which are then laid to dry on a nearby table. The pottery wheel is powered by a rotary contraption, inside which is a scaly red rat that occasionally burps fire. The Fiend making pottery looks at you and says 'Can we help you?'"

Contents: This is the personal chamber of Khorthax, leader of the Fiend workers who maintain the Road to Bisu, and his right-hand Fiend Vengorfing. Khorthax is a surprisingly conscientious leader, who has also discovered a love of pottery. This is why he crafts the ceramic vials that contain the Potions of Noise the Fiends use as alarm signals and to confuse and terrify some of the more dangerous creatures within the Road to Bisu.

The horse-creature may appear to be a Night-mare, but it is actually a Chaos Steed, used by Khorthax for rapid transit, such as setting up negotiations with various peoples of the Down Below to buy excess meat and offal, in exchange for Potions of Noise, or trinkets won off adventurers.

Khorthax will advise Heroes they must take the Road to Bisu, it represents the only way onwards in these dungeons. If they don't have a Bronze Key, he will tell them the Sphinx Maisramafooz definitely has one, and to tell the Sphinx that Khorthax sent them. Khorthax will also advise it is advantageous, if not imperative, that they have read the Djaratian Book of the Dead, and visited the Map Room of Ymhu-Tepris.

The creatures of this room will all defend themselves if attacked, but Khorthax would prefer to sit down, drink grog and exchange information. He cannot be bribed to allow alternative access to the Road to Bisu; to be a true Hero you must do things exactly by the Book (of the Dead), he believes.

Stats:

Khorthax, FIEND Leader, SKILL 9, STAMINA 16, Battleaxe or Small Claw, Light Armour. Breathes Fire: hits on a 1-2 on one die for 1 STAMINA damage. Khorthax has 4-24 GP, ear plugs, and a Potion of Noise. 

The table has a single draw containing a ring of all the keys to all the grilles in the Feeding Corridors, a hipflask of Spleen Eleven, and a battered and fire-blackened copy of 'Gone to Pot: the Life and Times of Mayrek the Clayworker' (which contains a Conjuration Ritual for creating Clay Golems).

On the table are 4-24 finished clay vials ready to contain Potions of Noise, and a clay jug of Shroomshine Grog and two clay tumblers. On a wall by the door is a slate with chalk on a string, depicting the current feeding rotation of Beastkeepers among the chambers of the Road to Bisu.

Vengorfing FIEND Stablehand, SKILL 8, STAMINA 12, Spear or Small Claw, Light Armour. Breathes Fire: hits on a 1-2 on one die for 1 STAMINA damage. Vengorthing has 3-18 GP, ear plugs, and a Potion of Noise.

CHAOS STEED, SKILL 7 STAMINA 10, Hooves, Medium Armour, can Fly. Roll a die each Attack Round; on a 1 or 2 the CHAOS STEED breathes fire on their opponent for 1 STAMINA damage.

HELLRAT, SKILL 5 STAMINA 5, Small Bite, Light Armour. Roll a die each Attack Round; on a 1 or 2 the HELLRAT breathes fire on their opponent for 1 STAMINA damage.

Feeding Corridors (#6/31; #218/365) <All the same>

"This long dank corridor finishes at a dead end. On the ground is a large locked grille, below which is a darkened chamber. From the chamber below comes a rank stench of a large animal, offal, and decay."

Contents: The iron grille allow access for the Fiends to feed the creatures inhabiting the chambers of the Road to Bisu. The grille is locked - regular patrols of Fiend Beastkeepers have keys to all the grilles on their feeding rotation. The drop from the grille to the floor in each of these chambers in the Road to Bisu is around four metres, and unless care is taken, the inhabitants below will also be alerted.

There is a 2 in 6 chance that a given corridor has a team of two Fiend Beastkeepers. These Beastkeepers will be pushing a small bloodstained wooden cart, and depending on the stage of their rotation, the cart may be empty, half-full, or full of chunks of bloody meat and offal from the Food Preparation Chamber.

Beastkeepers are happy to allow adventurers access to the chambers via unlocking the grille in exchange for a bribe of 4-24GP each. These may seem high, but the Beastkeepers point out they are breaking the tenets of the Road to Bisu, and as such require compensation to assuage their conscience. The Beastkeepers will also point out that access is one way only, and they are not responsible for anything that may happen.

Stats:  

2 FIEND Beastkeepers: SKILL 6, STAMINA 8, Spear or Small Claw, Light Armour. Breathes Fire: hits on a 1-2 on one die for 1 STAMINA damage. The Beastkeepers have 1-6 GP, ear plugs, and a Potion of Noise each. One of them has keys to all the grilles on their feeding rotation.