Page 58 - Tales from the Yawning Portal

IDALLA'S STORY Foundry through the chasm there. The troglodytes fear
Idalia takes delight in misleading the characters. ~e ~ end and worship the dragon. The duergar have negotiated an
can impart the following bits of information: uneasy truce with Nightscale, paying her a modest trib-
ute to leave them alone.
• The wizard lives below this area. He wants to use dalla The following locations are identified on map 2.6.
for a study on prolonging life. (False.)
• The wizard told Idalia a bit of the history of Khundrukar 50. THE CASCADE
and the fate of Durgeddin, which she can pass on. (The
The stream in area 38 flows over the edge of the chasm
information is true, but the succubus learned history and pours down into a turbulent pool.
from reading the books here, not from the wizard.)
• A doppelganger lurks in the Glitterhame. (False.)
• A dead dwarf haunts the halls, reduced to a mad, gibber- A thundering spray of water fills this chamber, pooling
ing spirit. (True; this is the ghost of Arundil.)
and flowing out to join a larger river to the north. The
• An ancient dragon lairs below the Foundry. (Partly true;
Nightscale is a young dragon.) air is damp, and the roar of the waterfall is deafening. A
broad ledge heads north toward the river and then turns
Idalia takes the form of a human woman. When the out of sight to the east. The muddy bank of the pool
characters enter, the fiend jumps up and begs to be re-
looks disturbed by tracks of some kind.
;eased from imprisonment. Idalia tells the characters
that she is a captive of a wizard who resides below this
:eve!. The succubus plays the role to the hilt, trembling A character who makes a successful DC 10 Wisdom
and crying as it spins a tale of woe. It tries to split up (Survival) check identifies the tracks as those of a Large
the group, persuading one character to remain (using its reptilian creature with four feet and a long tail. The
Charm attack if necessary) while the others deal with tracks lead away from the hard stone of the ledge to the
he wizard. If they leave anyone alone with Idalia, the north (where they can't be seen) and into the water.
fiend attempts to kiss and drain the hapless dupe. The
succubus is an adept liar and mixes in just enough of the 51. DWARVEN BRIDGES
truth to be convincing; see the "Idalia's Story" sidebar. Durgeddin's followers built two stone bridges when they
If the characters attack, Idalla attempts to charm the started work on the escape route through this level. The
most dangerous-looking character and turn him or her chain ladder that drops from the north ledge of area 38
against the party while the fiend fades into the Ethereal. ends just above the ground in the area south of the west-
49a (Bedchamber). The adjoining room was the ern bridge.
-!eeping quarters of the dwarf scholar. It is moldy and If the characters reached this area by using the chain
:ery stuffy. Anyone who looks around the room finds a ladder or otherwise descending through the chasm,
secret compartment in one of the walls with a success- read or paraphrase the following text. Adjust the infor-
:ul DC 15 Wisdom (Perception) check. mation as needed if they arrive here by a different route.
Treasure. The dwarf scholar amassed a small amount
of treasure, which he kept in the secret compartment:
110 gp and a cat's-eye gem worth 70 gp. In the library, in A fast-moving underground river roars from east to west
addition to an extensive collection of dwarven lore, the under a stone bridge. The bottom of the chain ladder is
characters can find four spell scrolls (of alarm, disguise near the south bank of the river. On the north side of the
elf, enlarge/reduce, and shield). The shelves might bridge, a ledge continues to the east.
also include more scrolls, useful information tying in to
:uture adventures, items of value to a collector, or other
Jlteresting lore, as you see fit. If the characters go north and cross the bridge, read:
THE BLACK LAKE After a short distance, the ledge leading east bends to I
;he darkest and most remote corner of the Glitter- I
the south, and a second bridge surmounts the river.
hame's cavern system, the Black Lake is a large, wind-
;ng cavern filled with water that drains from the Dark
_.fore through a submerged siphon. From the lake, the The western bridge is safe, but the bridge to the east is
subterranean river flows west through the Sinkhole, not. It has settled considerably, some of its stone blocks
across the bottom of the chasm in area 3 of the Moun- leaning precariously. Also, the stone has a curiously
rain Door, and onward for about 5 miles until it emerges pitted appearance (which was caused by Nightscale's
at the surface. acid breath). A character who succeeds on a DC 10 In-
The dwarves of Khundrukar never settled these cav- telligence (Investigation) check can determine that the
erns, although Durgeddin had his followers begin work stone was affected by acid, although the source of the
on an escape route through the depths. acid isn't apparent.
The Black Lake is now the domain of Nightscale, a Hazard. The weakened bridge can't take much weight
young black dragon. Here she has built her hoard, hav- before it collapses. If more than one Small or larger
:...'lg slowly collected most of the remaining loot from creature is on the bridge at one time, or if a character in
Khundrukar. From the lake, Nightscale can swim to the heavy armor steps onto it, the arch fails. Any creature
-inkhole, climb up to the Glitterhame, or fly up to the on the span must succeed on a DC 10 Dexterity saving

CHAPTER 2 I THE FORGE OF FURY
57