Page 88 - Waterdeep - Dungeon of the Mad Mage_Neat

If the hand of a living or dead dwarf king is pressed • The gate opens for 1 minute when an invisible crea-
against either door, both doors swing slowly inward, ture stands directly in front of the mirror.
revealing area 16 beyond. (The characters can find such • Characters must be 11th level or higher to pass
an appendage in King Melair's true tomb, area 29f.) ff through this gate (see "Jhesiyra Kestellharp," page
the doors are touched by anything other than the hand 10). The first creature to pass through the gate trig-
of a dwarf king, the symbol of Dumathoin above the dou- gers an elder rune (see "Elder Runes," page 12).
ble doors casts a Bigby's hand spell. • A creature that passes through the gate appears in
The shimmering hand created by the spell has 80 area 4b on level 10, in the closest unoccupied space
hit points and a +6 bonus to initiative. (See the spell next to the identical gate located there.
description for the hand's other statistics.) On each of
its turns, this hand flies up to 60 feet and makes one 17. PRIESTS' STUDY
clenched fist attack against a random creature on the This room was once a quiet study space for deacons of
dais. The spell has a duration of 1 minute. It can be trig- the temple, but it has been ransacked by the duergar.
gered repeatedly, though a new hand can't come forth This area contains the following features:
until an existing one is gone.
Toppled Statuary. Statuettes that once stood in shallow
16. HEART OF THE MOUNTAIN niches along the walls lie toppled and shattered on
the floor.
The Melairkyn dwarves carved this 20-foot-high room Smashed Diorama. An alabaster diorama that de-
out of the rock at the point they believed was the heart of picted a meeting between elves and dwarves has
their subterranean realm. The features of this room are been smashed to pieces, along with the stone table on
as follows: which it once rested.
Door Handles. The black basalt doors leading to the Broken Desk. A stone desk has been broken in two, its
dais (area lSb) have handles on this side and are eas- chair knocked over and cracked.
ily pulled open from within.
Mithral Veins. Thin veins of mithral spread across the 18. HEMISPHERE OF HORRORS
hewn walls, looking like gleaming cracks in the stone. This hemispherical chamber has a 30-foot-high domed
Tapestry. A huge tapestry depicting a dwarven kingdom ceiling and contains the following:
under a mountain hangs from an iron rail and spans
the south wall. The tapestry is so old that it begins to Guardians. Two helmed horrors of dwarven stature
crumble if any attempt is made to handle or move it. wield battleaxes instead of longswords and stand in
Mirror. A tall oval mirror is mounted on the east wall. front of the doors to area 19.
Carved into its stone frame are dozens of lidless eyes Quartz Pillars. The room is brightly lit by four
and the following phrase in Common: "The gate can- quartz pillars.
not hide from those it cannot see." The helmed horrors won't attack dwarves, including
While in this room, dwarf characters can sense the duergar, except in self-defense. They stand aside when
immense weight of the mountain gently pressing down approached by any dwarf, allowing those creatures to
on them and realize subconsciously that they can attune enter area 19 freely. Other creatures that approach the
to this room as though it were a magic item. A legend helmed horrors are attacked. The helmed horrors un-
lore spell or similar magic reveals that this room sits derstand Dwarvish but can't speak.
at the heart of the mountain and that the Melairkyn 19. MOUNTAIN SHRINE
dwarves came here to learn secrets and receive di- ~~~~~~~-
vine guidance. Statues. Four statues representing the dwarven deities
While attuned to the room and inside it, a dwarf can Moradin (god of creation), Berronar Truesilver (god of
cast the divination spell at will. Answers provided by hearth and home), Clangeddin Silverbeard (god of bat-
the spell come from an unknown source (perhaps the tle), and Marthammor Duin (god of exploration) stand
Keeper of Secrets under the Mountain, perhaps the in niches at the corners of this room.
mountain itself). Too many castings of the spell in a Mouthpiece. Lying at the foot of Clangeddin Silver-
short amount of time can lead to false readings, as noted beard's statue is a tiny, tapered cylinder of worked
in the spell's description. brass-the mouthpiece for the tuba in area 40.
Creatures that finish a short or long rest in this cham-
ber absorb some of the strength of the mountain around 20. WALL OF GEMSTONES
them and gain 10 temporary hit points, or 20 temporary Carved into the northeast wall is a fresco that depicts
hit points if the creature is a dwarf. Once a creature dwarves tossing gems into the mouth of a giant xorn.
gains this benefit, it can't do so again until the next
dawn, and then only after finishing a short or long rest. "Th.EASURE
The gemstones in the fresco are real and can be pried
MIRROR G ATE TO LEVEL 10 from the wall with a knife or similar tool. Six banded
The mirror is one of Halaster's gates (see "Gates," page agates (10 gp each), nine moss agates (10 gp each), four
12). Its rules are as follows: carnelians (SO gp each), three citrines (50 gp each), and
an amethyst (100 gp) can be acquired.

LEVEL 6 I LOST LEVEL