Demon Bone Sarcophagus (OSR) - PDFCOFFEE.COM (2024)

Agents of the Upper World THE 'LEAGUE OF THE KRAKEN'

THE FRICTIONLESS BLUE GLASS MERCHANT COMPANY

Four female thieves and adventureres.

Wealthy, powerful, discreet. The only source of “Frictionless Blue Glass”.

ANARACKET BONVIVE

Two are dead, see [M. LightningBlasted Woman] and [P. Female. Neat, professional clothes].

A traitor to ‘Blue Glass’. Currently roams the Tomb.

One- ‘Dog-Eater’, [V. The Crawling Woman] is close to death when the PCs encounter her.

She has ‘The Plans’ and is slowly being drawn into the influnce of the Ice Demons.

Their leader ‘Drusilla Machete’ survives and walks the Tomb.

THE "PROTECTION MEN" Ruthless Enforcers for ‘Blue Glass’. Sent to kill Bonvive and get ‘The Plans’.

WENSLEY SHRIVE A trader in ‘Glass Girls’ and would-be weapon smuggler. THE "MASKED MAROONS" Merciless foes of ‘Blue Glass’

He hid his convoy with the aid of the magical blue monacle, only that tool can easily find it.

They want Shrive's Weapons, that means they need Shrive. (only he can find his magically-hidden convoy)

Their leader Zomi mama Z’or, who roams the Tomb.

One survives and roams the tomb. SAPRECIEPT'S SECURITY SQUAD

Shrive roams the Tomb. SHRIVE'S ‘BACKUP BABOONS’.

Goons for Blue Glass.

Some died in the fiasco but one ‘Tooth-Tooth’, can be encountered at [U].

Two survive; Vaguebab Stiltverify, at A - The Hyper Sloth

Many Baboons roam the tomb, searching for Shrive but the whispers of the Ice Demons are slowly corrupting the innocent Apes.

Sergeant Sapreciept roams the Tomb. Sapreciept is Loyal to the Company but fears the ‘Protection Men’ and won’t let them kill the last of his men.

Two survive; M’ee Ze-La Z’or at [O]

They have no problem killing Sapreciept and his entire squad.

BENEATH THE EARTH IN THE FIRE QUEEN'S TOMB ‘Cornflower’

Navidorine

The Broken Heart

Reductor

Boreala

Sentinel’, a dangerous automata, essentially ‘in charge’ of the Guardians, now damaged and vulnerable.

Salt-Dryad Handmaiden to the Queen of Fire. Willing but tired and weary of her long service. Fears the escape of the Ice Demons.

A strange and wilful spirit, a form of Phylactery for part of the Fire Queen’s Soul. Wishes to return to her body.

An evil but efficient ghost. Defends the Queen’s Tomb as it also protects her from Hellfire.

Spirt of a forest wind. An unwilling guardian, she is bound to the Tomb by her lover, trapped in a bubble of time.

GGGMORE LIKE GUARDS

Mordant Kaust

The Ice Demons

An Acid Baron, imprisoned for an age and very willing to reform.

Utterly evil spirits. Their whispers fill the tomb, corrupting the unwary.

MORE LIKE PRISONERS

HHH

INTRODUCTION Socially Conscious Trilobite, page 2 Backstory Gastropod, page 3 Conventions of Play, page 6 What Happens in this Adventure?, page 7 Player Character Backgrounds, page 8

THE FIASCO

First Impression, page 11 Flashback – This is What Happened Here, page 11 Timeline of Events, page 12 Table of NPCs, page 13

THE BODY FIELD

What the PCs See, pages 14, 15 Body Group 1, Drama at the Sloth, pages 16, 17 Body Group 2, Around the Stone, page 18 Body Group 3, By the Pool, pages 19, 20 Body Group 4, Lightning-Blasted Woman, page 21 Body Group 5, The Distant Corpse, page 21

THE TOMB

Full Map, page 22 Map Key, page 23 Lower Level Map, page 24 Lower Level Tunnels, page 25 Darkness, Dimensions, Tears, page 26 The Wall Murals, page 27 Unlocked and Combination Doors, page 28 Locked Doors and Tomb Keys, page 29

ENCOUNTERS

Anaracket Bonvive, page 30 Backup Baboons, page 31 Boreala, page 32 The Broken Heart, page 33 Dancing Automata, page 34 Demons!, page 35 Demon-Posessed Baboons!, page 36 Demon Worshippers, page 37 Drusilla Machete, page 38 Flamethrower Skeleton, page 39 Navidorine, page 40 Obsidian Assassin, page 41 Protection Man, page 42 Pyroclastic Guardian, page 43 Quicksilver Statues, page 44 Reductor, page 45 Second Sloth!!!, page 46 Tooth-Tooth, page 47 Tiny Knights, page 48 Wensley Shrive, page 49 Zegzor Sapreciept, page 50 Zoetrope Men, page 51 Zomi ma-ma Z’or, page 52

TOMB ROOMS R41 to R44 - Dancers Halls R1 to R4 – Lower Floor R1 Delft-Sentinel Five, pages 54, 55 R2 Demon-Bone Sarcophagus, pages 56, 57, 58, 59 R3 Ash Jars, page 60 R4 Reverse Furnace, page 61

R5 to R8 - Halls of Salt R5 Helictite Boudoir, page 62 R6 Blood & Salt , page 63 R7 Fallen Doors, page 63 R8 Entry Hall, page 64

R9 to R12 - Halls of Ash R9 Ash Vizier, page 65 R10 Pit Trap, page 66 R11 Mirror Maze, page 67 R12 Pyroclastic Trap, pages 68, 69

R13 to R16 - Reductors Halls R13 Reductors Sarcophagus, pages 70, 71 R14 Lamp Trap, pages 72, 73 R15 Urns, page 74 R16 Cracked Wall, page 75

R17 to R20 - Ice Demons Prison R17 Warded Room, page 76 R18 Ice Demons, page 77 R19 Frozen Corpses, page 78 R20 Skeletal Mess, page 79

R21 to R24 - Acid Barons Cell R21 Mordant Kaust, pages 80, 81 R22 Urns of Salt, page 82 R23 Thorn Sky, page 82 R24 Fine Black Silk, page 83

R41 Red Clothes, page 102 R42 Aerial Rings, page 102 R43 Armoury of Chains, page 103 R44 Red Reflections, page 103

R45 to R48 - Artificers Rooms R45 Small Soldiers, page 104 R46 Blasted Tanks, page 105 R47 Dancing Automata, page 105 R48 Strange Apparatus, page 106

R49 to R52 - Fire-Queens Arms R49 Fire Queens Arms, page 106 R50 Wardrobe, page 107 R51 Bedchamber, page 107 R52 Shield Stacks, page 108

R53 to R56 – Rosetta Stone R53 Book of Sapphire Leaves, page 109 R54 Sloth Catastrophe, page 109 R55 Meditation Sphere, page 110 R56 Silent Glass, page 111

R57 to R60 - Library R57 Bonsai Explosions, page 112 R58 Library Of Fire, page 113 R59 Projection Room, page 114 R60 Quicksilver Masque, page 115

R61 to R64 – Lamp Philosopher R61 Flame Veils, page 116 R62 Sloth Wreck, page 116 R63 Burning Furniture, page 117 R64 Lamp Philosopher, page 118

R65 - Sloth Nest R65 Sloth Nest, page 119

R25 to R28 - Borealas Halls R25 Bronze Trees, page 84 R26 Dead Spiders, page 85 R27 Bird-Headed Man, page 86 R28 Shrike, page 87

R29 to R32 – Shadow Engine R29 Dragonbone Staff, page 88 R30 Black Bones, page 89 R31 Condensed Darkness, page 90 R32 Obsidian Mirrors, page 90

R33 to R36 – Spinster-Bone Cage R33 Spinster-Bone Cage, page 91 R34 Steel Garden, page 92, 93 R35 Cracked Map, page 94, 95 R36 Histories & Historians, page 96

APPENDICES

Appendix A - The Isopod Convoy, pages 120, 121 Appendix B - Treasure Totals, pages 122, 123 Appendix C - Item Rules, pages 124, 125 Appendix D - Contract and Company Law, pages 126, 127 The Torn Fragments, page 128 The Heist Plans, pages 130 to 133 Index, pages 134 to 136

R37 to R40 Gallery of Fire R37 Family Tree, page 97 R38 Flame Paintings, page 98, 99 R39 Flame Calligraphy, page 100 R40 Frieze of Fire, page 101

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Socially Conscious Trilobite Well hello there meatsacks! Yes, the world may be dying but here in the False Machine crypto-city uncounted miles beneath the surface of what you think of as “reality”, forms roughly analogous to “life”, prevail! At least for now.

Not the players though, they will be MYSTIFIED to the point of alienation, just as usual! We got that P Stuart involved again and you know what he’s like with conceptual opacity. Why does he write em like that? Who knows! Only him and he ain’t tellin’! Not only that, but right here is the only place we will be relating the whole Sad Tale up-front, giving you, the lucky reader, a great opportunity to gatekeep the hell out of anyone who read the other books (if they ever exist) but not this one.

And, oh boy, do we have a conceptuallyopaque, egodriven, over-ambitious, dangerously, insanely, overcomplex book to show you! Welcome to Broken Fire Regime Part One (of three!) – a little adventure we call DEMON-BONE SARCOPHAGUS! This here adventure is intended to be but the first of a trilogy, each different in structure, each (theoretically), playable on its own, yet all describing one gigantic arc! If we survive this one and get to make Number Two – ‘Frictionless Blue Glass’ then look out for that next! And if we survive that, we will finish the whole triad with ‘Palaces of Fire!’. Will we make it?!?!?! Will a society capable of playing D&D still exist if we do? Therein lies the excitement for YOU LUCKY PEOPLE. But why am I, your old pal Socially-Conscious Trilobite, here? Is it to remind you to be Socially-Conscious? Well yes, but mainly no. Instead, I got a question for you; What is it the pretentious post-OSR-diaspora nerd really wants from an adventure? What do they truly value? Of course, you, an entity of cuture, already know; EXTENSIVE BACKSTORY!!!

And by God, do we have an extremely detailed backstory for you! Not only that but most of it doesn’t even have much direct effect on events in this adventure! Though it will help the DM work out what a lot of this nonsense means.

Introduction

THEY AIN’T REAL FANS I TELLS YA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hmm, backstory though… I gotta say, I ain’t an expert in this field. What we’re lookin’ for here is more of an Ian McKellen vibe. Or at least one of those actors that intros an Elder Scrolls game. Need a sonorous tone… Ah ha! I know just the invertebrate! Gentle readers, valued marks and completely-valid parasocial relationships, allow me to introduce the guy(?) who is going to introduce the story which will introduce the adventure which introduces this series. I give you…… Backstory Gastropod!

BACKSTORY GASTROPOD

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb

Zor and Kalasp In the Solar City where our tale begins, rule diverse Houses, but our History speaks of two; Zor, the blue house, are the Air and the Stars. Old, cosmopolitan, civilised, distant and refined, with little time for, or interest in, the small, flickering Houses of terrestrial orbs. Kalasp, the red house, are our World, its molten core, its forests and volcanoes. Rustic and terrestrial, they are bound closely to nature and life. Kalasp was a rising power, bold and new, weaker than Zor, for now. Existing beneath the notice of all Fire Nobles were their arriviste ‘cousins’, the Acid Barons. A charmless, wet pseudo-aristocracy. Yet the Barons were also an Oxidising Line. As the Nobility of Fire ignored and condescended to them, wrath grew like a canker in the Barons' bitter hearts.

“Good day.... Behold!

The Meteor The Acid Barons, lowly as they were, knew much of lesser realms of which the Nobility cared little. In particular, a land which Ice held by the throat, a place ruled by freezing demons.

As I unveil before you the tapestry of time, for herein lies the history of an unfolding, yet un-concluded tragedy across two worlds.

In a moment which spanned realities, a meteor flashed from air to earth. Its incandescence annihilated the ice for miles around. In the depths of the Iron Maze, a spark, a spot of brief life was born, an island in the dark.

In this tale, wherein the gods of time and entropy pass each other like dancers grazing flesh, no precise dates can be given, yet the following events do at least take place in sequence.

Over ages the impact crater was colonised and a unique ecology arose, with a unique Fire Regime.

Let us begin with…

Against the parapets of the Solar City lean two young noblemen; Ignis Zor-Fyr, consort to the Lady of Zor, and the young Duke Kalasp. Speaking of this and that, they gaze outwards, into the black wilderness of the Iron Maze which surrounds their city on every side.

The Nobility of Fire Far from the realm you know, yet separated only by the thickness of a dream, lies the Iron Maze, a vast, black and lifeless labyrinth, boiling with cold magnetic winds. Dotted within this unending wilderness are Solar Cities, alike unto stars, separated by infinite space. In one such city rules the Nobility of Fire. The Fire Nobles exist as three genders; the Female; deadly and impassioned duellists and poets, the Male; strong and obsessive builders and devisers, and Solum; the carers and sustainers. Fire breeds anywhere it can, and the Nobility of Fire, hot tempered, passionate and fruitful, produce offspring with almost anything. Yet, in their eyes at least, to be born of fire is not enough to bestow true nobility. A noble line, and a Noble House, can only be created and sustained by a Trinary Marriage. A three-way union between Female, Male and Solum. Only this can produce young of all three genders, and the children of these marriages, and these marriages alone, carry the full name of and inheritance of their House. They are its blood and its life.

The Ice, and its Demons, was held, and then pushed back.

The Isle is Sighted

Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

Then, glimmering like a star in the blackness, a light, a pinprick of life and possibility. An island of wonders, a land of the Unknown.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

A deal is struck, Kalasp and Zor will work together to pierce the black magnetic winds and reach this distant Isle.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

An Army Is Devised To force a path through the Maze and reach the isle, Ignis Zor-Fyr and Duke Kalasp build an army of automata, the ‘Delft Sentinels’. Masters of these Golem-Legions, the two men lead their great and tireless ceramic army into the Maze, the unending will of their creations and sheer numbers aginst the nearinfinte paths and killing cold of the cosmic labyrinth. The journey almost kills them all. Thousands of Golem are lost to the Maze's dark ecology of entropy and ash.

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Yet, ultimately, and with great sacrifice, they reach the Isle. But who shall rule it?

Introduction

BACKSTORY GASTROPOD

The Friends At Odds Ignis claimed that he first saw the Isle, and had only been assisted by Kalasp. Kalasp claimed that he was first to spot the place and accepted only the assistance of Zor in reaching it. To resolve the dispute without death, Kalasp proposed a Contest of Art; whomever could adorn this Isle with the greatest, no, the most beautiful, palace, their House should rule it. In a fever of excitement, both begin to build. Each formed Palaces, sculpting them from time-slowed solar emissions, baking them from ceramic, casting them from steel and shaping them from frozen fire. Whatever Kalasp created, Zor would better and whatever Zor devised, Kalasp would exceed. Both were happier with the contest itself than either would be with its end, for their joy was in the act of creation itself, and so they both decided silently that their contest should never end, and so both peace and friendship be preserved. So ages passed in happy competition, whole new generations of Kalasp and Zor were born and lived upon the Isle and it was filled with architectural wonders, giving it the name it would forever bear – The Isle of Palaces.

The Annihilation Gate In the long ages of the unending competition, a young son of Zor born and raised amidst the ascending mansions, grew to manhood, and so he began to compose a strange imagining. This was Zenbestefunkh Zor, youngest, sixth and last child of the First Family of Zor, brilliant, addled and somewhat strange. Zenbestefunkh theorised that his realm brushed up against a “marginal reality”, a chaotic cosmic penumbra thick with entropy and racing time, patched together from opposing elements where no single principal could rule. An alien world holding unknown “multi-elemental” life.

A wild idea to be sure. Though his gabbled concepts and wild gesticuations drew little attention from his family, neither did they make any attempt to prevent the young man's strange experiments. And his experiments were strange indeed. Zenbestefunkh began to build apparatus which might accomplish in fact what others could not even imagine; safe transmission of living beings between Realities. In this odd project he had one friend: Kobi Kalasp, a Solum, youngest, sixth and last child of the First Family of Kalasp, was fascinated by the idea of Realms un-dreamed of, and joined Zenbestefunkh in his dangerous experiments and weird constructions. Ultimately, Zenbestefunkh's project came to fullfillment and both stood before his patchwork monstrosity, a gate of cosmic fire which he swore would disassemble, and then reassemble both of them in a completely alien reality, giving them forms fit to survive such an impossible place. Together, daring all, the two held hands, and stepped into the Annihlation Gate.

The Poly-Elemental Realm They emerged into Apocalyptic War. In a world of eternal winter, primal humanity battled the Ice and its Demons, pushing back the infinite cold and asserting the rule of hot, warm-blooded life. The two nobles found this Humanity a form of being like, yet strangely unlike, their own. Bound to entropy and

Introduction INTRODUCTION

composed of a crazed mosaic of elements and substances, these creatures lived and died at an accelerated rate, matching the relentless pulse of seasons which marked the mad race of time on their cold world. They were oddly captivating.. Then, they met Puh-Gna. This brilliant, charismatic, violent and extremely attractive hero/ monster/ruler of the Crater Tribes hewed surprisingly closely to the cultural pattern of a Fire Noble female. Like them she was imperious, poetic, sorrowful, ruthless, lethal and noble. Of a fascinating species, thought Zenbestefunkh and Kobi both, this is the quintessence. Puh-Gna returned their interest, equally fascinated by the timeless, ethereal, yet beautiful and dangerous strangers whom the Ice feared.

The Empire of Fire The relentless pulse of life and time within the Crater birthed a fire regime to which its ecology adapted, and came to need. Once a year, the crater burned. Old wood was reduced and new life engendered. Accompanied by a gigantic blaze of fire. Kobi and Zenbestefunkh recognised this fire as some distant expression or mirror to their own realm and found a way to use it to cross back and forth between the PolyElemental Realm and the Isle of Palaces. For a time, brief by the standards of the Nobility, but many years in the Material World, the cultures of the two Realms met. Through Puh-Gna Humanity learned the Culture of Fire and its mysteries while the horrors of the Ice were driven ever back. The Ice Demons, and their vile kin, suffered defeat after defeat.

The Resentment of the Weak Bitter with wrath at their loss of this land, the Ice Demons searched for allies. And found them. The Acid Barons. In the Realm of the Fire Nobles, the Barons were weak, but here, in the Poly-Elemental realms, they were strong. Not only strong, but valued, even respected, and while there was little the Barons could do openly against the Fire Nobles, allied with the Ice Demons and working in secret, they could finally humiliate the children of the Fire Nobility, shaming them in war, just as they had been shamed. The battle of Humanity against the Ice slowed, and then reversed under the influence of this new, hidden enemy. Even as they fought, the romance between Puh-Gna, Kobi and Zenbestefunkh proved fruitful. Twins were born, Zerutu a boy and Zara a girl. Though they were married by human custom, and the two Nobles gifted Puh-Gna with a ring of Fire, neither Zenbestefunkh or Kobi ever formally recognised their relationship with their own families. To the Nobility this mixed-flesh short-lived outlander would be an acceptable dalliance, but not a spouse. Not only that, but by entering an unplanned relationship with each other, Kobi and Zenbestefunkh had risked the balance of power between Kalasp and Zor. Better that this be kept quiet, and confined to another country than their own. Puh-Gna, born with an Imperial soul, misliked this much. Tensions rose between the three. On the Isle of Palaces, strife grew between Kalasp and Zor. Puh-Gna conceived again and a third child was born. Zemo, a Solum.

BACKSTORY GASTROPOD The Shameful Child Zenbestefunkh and Kobi realised they have made a terrible mistake. Solum can only be born from a Trinary Marriage of Male, Female and Solum, and only through this marriage can the name of a House descend. The three had accidently birthed an Heir to the Houses of Zor and Kalasp, and even worse, they were part.. something. Not Born of Fire at all. Both Nobles insisted that Zemo’s gender be hidden. Disguised as a male they could be regarded as nothing more than the product of a dalliance, of which the Nobility have many. Of the House, but not fully in it, and definitely not a threat to the current rulers, the intended line of descent or the delicate balance of power. Not the spark for a war. For it became more evident to Ignis Zor-Fyr and Duke Kalasp, that their great contest of Palace-Building was drawing to an inevitable close. There was simply no room for new palaces, unless they should interrupt the lines and setting of another and so create an overall loss. Here the Acid Barons, wearing thier Court-Forms and visting the Realm of the Iron Maze, whispered. As friends they warned Kalasp of the power of Zor and in secret conferences they warned Zor of the schemes and plots of Kalasp. Puh-Gna, now a Queen of Fire in her own world, most brilliant, imperious, proud and loving of mothers, would not accept the diminishment of her children in any realm. During the yearly burn, unknown to either Zenbestefunkh or Kobi, she crossed between Realms, bringing her children, her deepest friends and her most trusted advisors through Annihilation Gate and into the Isle of Palaces.

The Anarchy She emerged into a war. At that exact time, Kayenta Kalasp, the Solum-Spouse of Duke Kalasp, one third of the first family of Kalasp, was murdered, apparently by one of the Legion of DelftSentinels which had survived the crossing of the Iron Maze so long ago. The House of Kalasp began to annihilate all the surviving automata, but some said that these devices, mere machines, could do nothing on their own, they were tools after all... lements of Zor resisted the purge. Intra-Noble violence broke out. A chaotic swirl of duels, murders, battles and assasinations swept across the Isle of Palaces. Both Houses suffered losses. Kaibab Kalasp, the Sister-Wife of Duke Kalasp fought and killed, Ignis Zor-Fyr, beloved husband of Lady Zor. Kobi joined with their immediate siblings in an attempt to calm the war and stop the horror. In the midst of this anarchy, Puh-Gna found Zenbestefunkh Zor. She was carrying their child in her arms. Believing he was saving her life, and perhaps her culture, believing the solution would be temporary, Zenbestefunkh took Puh-Gna and raced with her to the Annihilation Gate. He forced Puh-Gna, and her entourage, through the gate and disabled it. In the chaos and confusion, Zemo, the Solum child, the pretended-male, remained with him. But the humans forced through the Gate returned to their realm too soon.

The Crater was still burning ,and they arrived in the centre of the fire, not at its edge. Puh-Gna was protected by the magic of her ring and her two half-mortal children half Fire-Noble, also suffered little. They pulled their mother from the fire before she suffocated. But all they could do was watch as unprotected friends burned to death around her, writhing in agony and turning to ash.

The Long Slow Fall In the Poly-Elemental Realm which is our world, Puh-Gna Zor, Empress of Fire, annihilator of the Ice Demons and saviour of humanity, brooded darkly on her Demon-Bone throne. She ordered that the Crater never burn again. The two Realms would remain separate, now, and forever. After a long life and strong rule, the Empress died in combat against the armies of the Ice Demons, dealing them their final defeat. In the world to come, Ice would have its times and its places, as treaty allowed, but no more. And acid, that most loathly, and lowly, of substances, would be locked to churn within stomachs and drip in the veins of the earth. Her tomb was delved where her body fell, and hidden, for the Fire Queen kept with her, her most dangerous foes, so that they might trouble the earth no more, guarded by her most loyal servants, to ensure they would never escape. Of the Nobility of Fire, the Iron Maze, the shameful child and the Palaces of Fire, all passed from memory, dissolved by time. While from the dark corners of the world the Acid Barons watched, and waited for the world to change….”

Note from Scrap - Regarding the Solum; the initial idea of 3 genders of fire comes from Patrick and an entry in The Psychoanalysis of Fire by Gaston Bachelard. I came up with some more detailed concepts which he then developed into the final result. The conceptual process first took common concepts of masculinity and femininity, removed some core elements, then swapped bits and pieces over, and then adjusted until it seemed like a gestalt coherent & loud enough for D&D. The Solum were then created to exist between these two gestalts. Fulfilling vital roles, but ones that neither a Male or a Female Fire Noble would tolerate themselves performing for long. The Solum should only be understood through the frame of. firstly; Dungeons & Dragons, and second; a fictional culture of magical fire people, and very much be understood as not a stand in for any particular culture's "third gender" nor as a stand in for the current contemporary use of "non-binary" as a gender. Introduction

Conventions of Play

GADVENTURE CONVENTIONSH Dual-Page View; This adventure is arranged by spread and not by page. It is designed for the book as it is held open before you. If you are using the PDF only then it’s best to use dual-page view. Some entries and elements cross over pages in a spread but none should cross between spreads. Read it first; You cannot run this out of the box. There are many possible paths in Demon-Bone Sarcophagus and a plethora of factions, NPCs and monsters. Every attempt has been made to make this information easy to absorb and remember. When you are dealing with any particular part then all the info you need should be easy to access, but you will still need a general global awareness of what is going on, so read it first.

GOSR CONVENTIONSH Armour; this is given as ‘as leather’or ‘as chain’. Many OSR systems have slightly different numbers for Armour Class and can work slightly differently. Check the system you are using for the equivalent Armour Class. To-Hit Bonus; The number added when something rolls to-hit is the same as its Hit Dice. A 5 HD creature adds +5 to its to-hit roll. A 1 HD creature adds +1. If this is not the case it will be specifically stated. Dual-Column Tables; If a table has two columns and asks you to roll “2d6” then roll one die for each column. The first die tells you the entry in the first column and the second tells you the entry in the second column. Then combine the results to discover the nature of the encounter. This is usually “This Creature” in Column 1, performing “This Action” in Column 2. The Standard Human; Non-specified creatures and people should be considered a “standard human”, Unarmoured, 1 Hit Die, 4 Hit Points, Standard Move, Damage d2 or by weapon if they have one and Morale 7.

IT’S IN A DRY AND DISTANT LAND This adventure; Demon-Bone Sarcophagus, and the second part; Frictionless Blue Glass take place not too far away from each other. Demon-Bone Sarcophagus should be at least a day away from the nearest settlement and Frictionless Blue Glass, which contains an area called ‘The Zone’ should be roughly a day's hard travel away from the scene of Demon-Bone Sarcophagus. Both adventures take place in an environment roughly equivalent to the American South-West. Baking sun, freezing nights, storms, lightning, few rivers and empty plains. They should be on the border of possible state control in a place, not necessarily consumed by anarchy, but hard to govern and little attended to. A place few people wish to go. The “Old West”, the Borderlands, The Badlands.

THE FRICTIONLESS BLUE GLASS MERCHANT COMPANY A primary element of both this adventure and the second is “The Frictionless Blue Glass Merchant Company”, a large and wealthy merchant combine with tendrils everywhere. It is secret(ish), has a very wide reach, many people are members though few know much about its workings.

THERE IS A WONDER SUBSTANCE Frictionless Blue Glass; very light, strong, translucent panes and shards, usually slightly rough on one side and utterly frictionless on the other. Not only useful, but in its rarity and for its other qualities a highly valuable form of currency. The source of the wealth of the Frictionless Blue Glass Merchant Company. They and they alone know the secret of its creation.

GSTATS, DETAILS, RANDOM ENCOUNTERS AND LAIRSH Almost all creatures in Demon-Bone Sarcophagus are mobile, or can become so depending on circumstances. Everything you need to run a creature as a Random Encounter, including its stats, is located under its main entry, listed alphabetically, under “Encounters”. If a creature has a “lair” its stats and a description will be there as well. More contextual information about the background of the creature can be found in some creatures' room descriptions.

GPLACING THIS ADVENTURE IN YOUR WORLDH

Introduction

THE LANGUAGE OF FIRE A truly ancient tongue from a longpassed primordial empire. It left few descendants and its written form is lost, known only through ancient references in magical and ritual texts to still-more ancient events. Many Historians think it's just a metaphor for something.

What Happens In This Adventure? GDEAD BODIES IN THE DESERT!H The adventure begins as the PCs discover a field of dead bodies in the desert. The battle that seeded this ground with blood ended only moments ago. The cause of the conflict was that two completely different conspiracies stumbled into each other in the same place, at the same time.

GSTRANGE HOLES IN THE EARTH!H What none of them knew; this disaster took place over a long buried tomb. The battle has collapsed holes in the roof of the tomb and several key figures from the clusterfuck on the surface have escaped into it, hiding from, or pursuing each other through its corridors.

GINVESTIGATE THE BODIESH The PCs investigate the scene, looking at the bodies, encountering survivors and piecing together what happened.

THE HEIST PLANS Anaracket Bonvive, a treasonous employee of the Frictionless Blue Glass Merchant Company has spent a year inside the company working out exactly how to rob them of their most valuable treasures. She has complied all this information into a single document, with the intention of selling it to a group of thieves. Now Assassins working for Frictionless Blue Glass, and the thieves, pursue her through the tunnels of the tomb, all seeking those plans.

THE WEAPON SMUGGLER A group of terrorists are meeting with the smuggler Wensley Shrive who is en-route with a cache of weapons for their cause. Hidden by magical means, only Shrive knows how to find the weapons. Now the terrorists and security forces pursue Shrive.

GENTER THE TOMB!H The PCs enter the Tomb. They may need information, treasure or just shelter but hopefully they will have some reason to jump down there.

DISCOVER ITS SECRETS; (And treasure). The PCs encounter survivors from the battle above along with traps, imprisoned horrors and protective guardians, all arranged around the titular “Demon-Bone Sarcophagus”, as well as a fair amount of treasure. It also contains, in various artefacts and records, a kind of history of the Queen of Fire.

MEET THE CONSPIRATORS Members of each faction chase each other through the corridors of the Tomb, each knows a fragment of what happened above and each has a different relatioship to the Frictionless Blue Glass Merchant Company.

ENCOUNTER THE GUARDIANS The Tomb is guarded by a variety of spirits and constructs bound there to keep its secrets safe, each has its own nature, history, powers and vulnerabilities.

FIND THE FIRE QUEEN'S SARCOPHAGUS

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls

This is the final resting place of Puh-Gna Zor the forgotten Empress of Fire, her Sarcophagus is Demon-Bone and holds not only her mortal remains, but strange treasures.

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

UNRAVEL THE THREAT OF THE ICE DEMONS

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

Too dangerous to destroy, too awful to free. Bound in secret at the Tomb's most northerly point along with many of their worshippers. Their whsipers call to the weakminded. “Set us free...”. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . All this, the motives of the conspirators, the company they work for and the secret history found within the tomb are all intended to link up into one grand adventure split into three parts. All of them together called “Broken Fire Regime”.

FUTURE PARTS

IN THE TRILOGY OF “BROKEN FIRE REGIME” Book One - Demon-Bone Sarcophagus. A dungeon crawl. This is that book. Book Two - Frictionless Blue Glass. A sandbox and a heist. The PCs go up against, or join with, the “Frictionless Blue Glass Merchant Company”, a primary, though distant, potential antagonist of this adventure. Though playable seperately, this adventure can lead on directly from ‘Demon-Bone Sarcophagus’. Book Three - Palaces of Fire. a courtly drama and possible Arthurian Tragedy in which the PCs reach the strange reality of the Plane of Fire. In the Tomb of Demon-Bone Sarcophagus there are many statues, memories and strange ancient histories? Well, to the Fire Nobles, very little time has passed, your ancient history is their family drama, and it's still going on!

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

The PCs can try to save the Culure of the Fire Nobles from its terrible destruction, aid its enemies in forcing its collapse, do neither and try to make bank of both sides or just try to escape with their lives.

Introduction

Player Character Backgrounds GORIGIN PATHH

EXAMPLE

With thanks to the Fantasy Flight Games 2009 Edition of the ‘Rogue Trader’ RPG. This is a simplified adventure-specific hack of the Character Generation Origin Path concept developed in that book and works much the same way.

Player O rolls a d6 and gets 2. They start with ‘Line of Explorers’. From there they connect to ‘The Kraken Gang’. This suggests someone whose life just keeps getting worse so they keep going down, connecting to ‘Skeleton in Disguise’. Then they ‘Lose It all to Frictionless Blue Glass’ and their final entry is ‘Looking for Work.

As they put it; “The chart ... helps to weave together the varied backgrounds of different characters ... giving them common ground and reasons to stand in defence of one another’s interests.” The basic principle is for each player to start on one side of the page and draw lines connecting one box in this column to one box in the next and so-on. This represents the lifepath of that character and their influences, all the way from birth to the point at which the adventure starts. Where the paths of different characters intersect that suggests events or situations they may share. Where possible this should be read as being an actual location incident or adventure which those characters experenced together so that as play begins they may recognise each other from those events. The Player can start on the left or right. The choices in the starting column are either open or random, but every choice after that one is limited by its placement on the chart. That is, each choice leads to the choice directly adjacent to it in the next column, or a choice one entry up or down.

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

This is a less hardcore version of the system used in ‘Rogue Trader’ so you should feel free to improvise with the rules if you desire.

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

There are a variety of ways you can choose to fill out the chart.

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

GA SIMPLE METHODH Give all the Players different coloured pens, or instruct them to write their character name, a number or a letter next to each line. Print out the chart and hand it round the players. The first player rolls a d6, giving them a starting position in Column One - Origins, then draws lines connecting boxto-box, right-to-left until they reach Column Fire - Why Here? Why Now? This gives them a rough “story of their life” up to this point. They then hand the chart over to the next player who does the same thing, connecting boxes with coloured lines. This process continues until everyone has filled in the chart. The DM and Players then look over the result, note where characters' lines intersect and discuss and decide on what events and situations the characters share. Then go round the table with everyone giving a brief “story of their life” and mentioning where and how they encountered each other (except for Column Three: Absurdist Interlude, the situations here are so ridiculous that Characters may be too embarrassed to mention them in public, though they still took place). Introduction

O must be someone born to a reasonably wealthy family, but their parents' disappearence, followed by the interruption of the Kraken Gang left them open to the deceptions of the ‘Skeleton in Disguise’ and the trauma from that strange incident lead to them losing whatever remained to the Frictionless Blue Glass Merchent Company. Now they are destitute and wandering the desert looking for rumours of work.

EXAMPLE INTERSECTIONS. Now Player X rolls and gets ‘Raised by Thieves’. They connect this right across to ‘Acid Attack’, suggesting they are scarred. Then they encounter the ‘Skeleton in Disguise’ an unusual incident in which they also met O. It may have been the ‘Skeleton in Disguise’ that gave them the ‘Strange Doom’ they currently labour under, one that looked like it was being fulfilled as they wandered ‘Lost in the Desert’ and desperate for water, when who should they bump into but ‘O’, someone they have not seen since that embarrassing incident with the Skeleton.

MIXING IT UP arately and each fill in a sheet sep ▪ Have the Players tered m where they encoun then the DM tells the each other. d down the ge of movement up an ▪ Allow a greater ran ke every ma or oice random rows. Make EVERY ch here. ryw eve g -za the lines zig choice a free one so . ng thi R like, it's an OS ▪ Do whatever you

T INST EAD-OF IN ADDITION-TO NO

OSR BX-style to supplement basic All of this is meant cters. for Level One Chara Character Generation t be for other a bother than it migh Equipment is less of on a bonanza s are about to come up adventures as the PC e and water, turing supplies like rop of “abandoned” adven al doo-dads weapons, some magic along with a variety of ly NPCs. and potentially-friend ro’ approach even try a ‘Level Ze If you wish you could s, a Name nothing but Hit Point with each PC having classes on ir chart and basing the and a History from the e in the hav be y ct with and how the whatever they intera opening scene.

HOOKS

s, try cutting s but not Background If you just want Hook . with those on the left out columns, starting

ONE -

TWO -

THREE -

FOUR -

MYSTERIOUS OR BORING ORIGIN

CALL TO ADVENTURE

ABSURDIST INTERLUDE

NEED AND DESIRE

Ancient Greatness Raised on rumours in a palace empty of everything but Peacocks, shadows and sloths.

Line of Explorers Parents dedicated to discovery and truth. They never returned from their greatest adventure.

Fire in the Blood Now and then, when cut you bleed small sparks of fire. Your ancestry is a mystery.

Raised by Thieves But not killers. There was a code. Keep moving and look after your own.

A God in the Glacier The Old Kin worshipped something ancient in the Ice, Now and then you hear a whisper...

Lowest of the Low No family, no home, no safety and no king, world's foot on your neck from day one.

Shadow Dragon song Rare and perfect performance of the ancient Ballad marked your break from a purposeless life.

Planar Gate Witness You saw a tear in reality itself, and within; a cosmos beyond your dreams.

The Kraken Gang A gang of young female thieves raced through your life and left it a wreck.

Acid Attack Left you alienated, facially scarred and fit for little.

Fire Gum Dream An “overdose” with the drug in its early years gave you visions of fire and altered your perception.

Brain Damaged Now quite impulsive. Can’t remember much. You were a worker in some industrial process?

Fruit Ball Decadent nobles > Travelling players > fruitthemed costume party > deadly fire. You posess a fruit-themed costume.

“I actually am made of gold.” (This guy was lying). You have a bag of iron pyrites or a promissory note.

Skeleton in Disguise. Everyone has one but this person was one. Bones make you anxious, even your own.

Pirate Captain. The hull of her superfast ship was sheathed in Frictionless Blue Glass. You have one shabby Pirate-souvenier.

Identical twins pretending to be the same person. Why do you keep falling for this? You keep careful track of where everyone is. You won’t get fooled again!

Gotta save the Orphanarium! You do-gooding son of a bitch, those kids/patients/ elders in that school/hospital/ orphanarium are counting on you!

BIG Ambitions. Your own merchant company! Your own Noble House! Your own nation!!!

Strange Doom. You should never have offended that entity. The doom placed upon you cannot be escaped, but with enough resources it might be put off…

FIVE -

Introduction

WHY HERE, WHY NOW? The Fiasco The Body Field

Local Mystery The Tomb People go missing Encounters and memories are lost in an icy fog, you Tomb Rooms promised to look R1-R4 into it.

Lower Floor R5-R8

Ancient Thieves Halls of Salt Reading (or R9-R12 pretending to) Halls of Ash ancient texts, you caught a fragment R13-R16 about ancient Reductors Halls tomb robbers who disappeared around R17-R20 here an age ago.Ice Demons' Prison

R21-R24

Blank spot Acid Baron's on map. Cell Oddly blank, R25-R28 as if even the Boreala's cartographer forgot Halls about it. Intriguing.

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

Lost in the Desert. R33-R36 SpinsterWater!!!

Bone Cage

Lost it all to Frictionless Blue Glass. You were this close to being out of the game! THIS CLOSE!

Exciting Level of Debt. By this stage even your pseudonyms are Wanted and your debts have debts. Creditors fight each other for prospective shares.

R37-R40

Looking Gallery of Fire for Work. You heard there was R41-R44 a plantation or a Dancers' factory or something Halls around here, hard R45-R48 work but good Artificer's money... Rooms

“Overheard” R49-R52 Scheme. Fire-Queen's Arms To get something called “The Plans” R53-R56 from someone called Rosetta “Bonvyf”. Big money. Stone Knife fight and R57-R60 arrests took Library everyone else R61-R64 from the picture. Lamp Philosopher

Fire Gum Addict You know you have a problem but you are managing it! Just need enough for rehab in a monastery or something..

R65 Contract to Kill. You “found” a Sloth Nest dead body holding Appendices acontract to kill someone called Wensley Shrive. It says Shrive will be somewhere around here soonish...

Introduction

Broken Fire Regime, Part 1

Scrap Princess

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

Patrick Stuart

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest

Demon-Bone Sarcophagus.

Design polish by Maria Ku. (she amended my crappy original so any mistakes are mine not hers). Proofread by Aaron Noble (again I fiddled with it quite a bit afterwards so mistakes are mine not his), Maps by Rachael Tew. Thanks to our Appendices playtesters Arnold K, Mateo Diaz, Nate Lumpkin, Alex Chalk, Brendan Strejcek, Sam Zeitlin and Peter(!) Webb. If there are flaws within this work it is only because we foolishly ignored the deep wisdom provided by this sagelike gathering.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. NO PART OF THIS PUBLICATION MAY BE REPRODUCED, DISTRIBUTED, OR TRANSMITTED IN ANY FORM OR BY ANY MEANS, INCLUDING PHOTOCOPYING, RECORDING, OR OTHER ELECTRONIC OR MECHANICAL METHODS, WITHOUT THE PRIOR WRITTEN PERMISSION OF THE PUBLISHER, EXCEPT IN THE CASE OF BRIEF QUOTATIONS EMBODIED IN CRITICAL REVIEWS AND CERTAIN OTHER NONCOMMERCIAL USES PERMITTED BY COPYRIGHT LAW. FOR PERMISSION REQUESTS, WRITE TO THE PUBLISHER AT [emailprotected] OR 5 NURSE ROAD, WIRRAL, CH61 7XH UNITED KINGDOM. DARK GODS AND COLD MORNINGS SHALL ATTEND THOSE WHO DEFY THIS RIGHTLY-WORDED AND MOST JUST CLAIM. COPYRIGHT © 2022 BY SCRAP PRINCESS & PATRICK STUART PUBLISHED BY FALSE MACHINE ISBN: 978-1-9993403-5-3

The Fiasco GFIRST IMPRESSIONH The road peters out. Landscape is a mess of fractured stone. A great mound in the distance. From behind it comes....

Shouting. The roaring of a beast. Sounds of battle. One crack of lightning (the sky is clear). Then silence.

A thick MIST flows outward. You move towards the mound. As the mist clears you see... ▪ A WHOLE LOT OF DEAD BODIES. ▪ A GIANT-SLOTH, riven with wounds and panting its last breaths. ▪ HOLES in the earth, like small sinkholes. ▪ A great mound caked in compressed ancient ash and clinker. The ash-cake cracks revealing the statue beneath; a woman kneeling, hand on sword, head bowed. ▪ Standing in the open is a naked girl of glass.

What happened here? In play, turn to ‘The Body Field’ page 14. If reading for the first time, or for reference, read on for this pseudo Coen-Brothers-style flashback which informs you, the DM, but not the players, of the tangled web of circumstance which lead the varied parties to this point.

Introduction The Fiasco

GFLASHBACK – THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED HERE;H Two completely different sets of conspirators ended up crossing paths. That’s two sets, meaning four groups of conspirators in total. They not only blew each other's cover wide open, but in addition each conspiracy was secretly being tracked by two different security forces, who also ended up getting involved. So thats four groups of conspirators, plus two different groups of security operatives, plus a giant sloth, plus now the PCs. Thankfully almost everyone is dead by the time the PCs arrive so the complexity is lessened.

‘CONSPIRACY ONE; THE SMUGGLER & THE MASKED MAROONS Four women of differing ethnic origin, each is uniquely armed and armoured, they all look like experienced adventurers (apart from Arkweld, the thief, who looks like no-one.)

CONSPIRACY TWO; THE TRAITOR & THE THIEVES Anaracket Bonvive is a high level clerk for the Frictionless Blue Glass Merchant Company. Driven by greed and resentment, she developed a plan to sell them out for a fat stack of cash. Working in secret, she mapped the Company's central area, assembling a precise description of its security and the secret to accessing its Vault, she also grabbed one of the two glass keys needed to open the Vault door, and put it all together in a single plan describing all the information needed to rob The Frictionless Blue Glass Merchant Company of everything they have. Bonvive is a coward. She had no intention of doing this herself. Enter the ‘League of the Kraken’, a band of deadly and experienced “adventurers” lead by Drusilla Machete. Bonvive intended to sell the the Plans and the Glass Key for a huge sum, then run for it. By the time the heist took place she would be long-gone. Bonvive came here to meet the thieves, exchange the plans and run for it, cash in hand. The ‘League of the Kraken’ intended to double-cross Bonvive, either killing her or bringing her under their control. Unknown to both groups, ‘Blue Glass’ was completely aware of Bonvive's disaffection, and her planned betrayal. The Company allowed her to proceed, watching and waiting to observe the full extent of the conspiracy before they took action.

The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Bovive is being followed by ‘Protection Men’, the Blue Glass Company's most ruthless and effective enforcers. Their orders are to wait for Bonvive to bring her contacts out into the open, then kill everyone and recover the plans.

The Fiasco

Timeline of Events/NPCs

GTIMELINE OF THE CLUSTERFUCKH 1. Shive's convoy hits a snag. Glass girls wander out into the rocky waste. 2. Bonvive waits at the assigned spot to meet the ‘Arms of the Kraken’. She fears she has been followed. 3. Naked Glass Girls wander in, surprising Bonvive. 4. Shrive blunders into the area after his Glass Girls and sees Bonvive, some random clerk, apparently hanging around in the wilderness. Bonvive wonders if this is her contact.. 5. The Masked Maroons follow Shrive, and see him ‘with’ Bonvive, clearly an employee of Blue Glass. They assume they have been betrayed. 6. The ‘Arms of the Kraken’ arrive and find Bonvive ‘with’ the Maroons and this trader. They assume they have been betrayed. 7. Zegzor Sapreciept sees his chance for glory and his team leap into the open! “Everyone here is under arrest!” 8. Now certain he has been sold out, Shrive cries for his Backup Baboons. “Tooth-Tooth! Get in here!” 9. Observing this strange assembly, the Protection Men decide they no longer care who is conspiring with who. 10. For an eerie moment, a hexagonal Mexican standoff holds. Six different groups of conspirators and trackers gaze at each other, murderous, yet confused. 11. Shrive's Baboons knock over a Glass Girl, who falls, cracks and melts a hole in the ground. 12. A RAGING HYPER SLOTH bursts up out of the earth! 13. Chaos erupts! - 14. The PCs arrive to find almost everyone dead or disappeared into the earth.

THEY WERE STANDING ON A BURIED TOMB!! The whole fiasco took place above a long-forgotten tomb holding the sarcophagus of an ancient queen (and since used as a nest for a near-extinct Hyper-Sloth).

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

Magical blasts, cracked glass girls and the Hyper-Sloth opened holes leading down into the tomb.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

Some of the conspirators fell or fled into the Tomb. Others followed in pursuit. Now the survivors of the fiasco chase each other through the unknown tunnels. On the surface, three still live. (Plus one Baboon),

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

The PCs of course, don’t know any of this. All they can see is The Aftermath…..

GPHYSICAL DESCRIPTIONS OF THE GROUPSH The following describes equipment, clothing, general ethnicity where relevant, etc.

The Fiasco

‘LEAGUE OF THE KRAKEN’ Four women of differing ethnic origin, each is uniquely armed and armoured, they all look like experienced adventurers (apart from Arkweld, the thief, who looks like no-one.)

MASKED MAROONS Tribal weirdoes wearing featureless masks of glittering blue crystal and light lamellar armour made from shards of resin, shell and dark, polished wood. They carry swords and javelins with blades shaped of resin and sharpened bone. None carry any metal. Healthy but hardy. Calloused hands. Scratches and scars. No tattoos. Underneath the masks they look broadly ethnically contiguous, members of the same tribe or extended family, through with some admixture. Some scars like blue droplets or as if spattered with irremovable resinous glue.

SAPRECIEPTS SECURITY SQUAD Around ten men ranging from late teens to early middle-age. They all wear uncomfortable hardwood armour and helmets tied with string and calf-length trousers and sandals. They carry simple crossbows, spears and round hardwood shields. The only metal they carry is the tips of their crossbow bolts and the heads of their spears. Thir bodies show lives of hard manual labour and periods of malnutrition, though all are reasonably well-fed now. Slightly more varied in origin than the Maroons. Though, if stripped down and swapped about, it would be hard to draw a hard line.

PROTECTION MEN Simple anonymous black clothes, leather armour, black hoods, good boots. No signs of make or ownership on anything. The Horror of the Protection Men; They wear occluding black hoods which wreath their features in unnatural shadow, even in death. Peeling back the hood (takes effort) reveals faces which are nothing but black scabs - the features excised, with red rust-stained teeth. Otherwise their bodies seem broadly similar to those of the Security Squad, similar mixed ethnoculture (so far as you can tell), and signs of work, mild scarring , perhaps some blue resin scars on their hands. These are all large, strong individuals in good health. Investigation; implanted in each Protection Man is a Caustic Heart - hard to notice unless a PC is looking for it, though it may still be clicking slightly.

Agents of the Upper World

Introduction The Fiasco

THE 'LEAGUE OF THE KRAKEN'

THE FRICTIONLESS BLUE GLASS MERCHANT COMPANY

Four female thieves and adventureres.

Wealthy, powerful, discreet. The only source of “Frictionless Blue Glass”.

The Body Field The Tomb Encounters

ANARACKET BONVIVE

Two are dead, see [M. LightningBlasted Woman] and [P. Female. Neat, professional clothes].

R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls

She has ‘The Plans’ and is slowly being drawn into the influnce of the Ice Demons.

Their leader ‘Drusilla Machete’ survives and walks the Tomb.

THE "PROTECTION MEN" Ruthless Enforcers for ‘Blue Glass’. Sent to kill Bonvive and get ‘The Plans’.

WENSLEY SHRIVE A trader in ‘Glass Girls’ and would-be weapon smuggler. THE "MASKED MAROONS" Merciless foes of ‘Blue Glass’

He hid his convoy with the aid of the magical blue monacle, only that tool can easily find it.

They want Shrive's Weapons, that means they need Shrive. (only he can find his magically-hidden convoy)

M’ee Ze-La Z’or at [O] Their leader Zomi mama Z’or, who roams the Tomb.

They have no problem killing Sapreciept and his entire squad. One survives and roams the tomb. SAPRECIEPT'S SECURITY SQUAD

Shrive roams the Tomb. SHRIVE'S ‘BACKUP BABOONS’.

Goons for Blue Glass.

Some died in the fiasco but one ‘Tooth-Tooth’, can be encountered at [U].

Two survive; Vaguebab Stiltverify, at A - The Hyper Sloth

Many Baboons roam the tomb, searching for Shrive but the whispers of the Ice Demons are slowly corrupting the innocent Apes.

Sergeant Sapreciept roams the Tomb. Sapreciept is Loyal to the Company but fears the ‘Protection Men’ and won’t let them kill the last of his men.

Two survive;

BENEATH THE EARTH IN THE FIRE QUEEN'S TOMB ‘Cornflower’

Navidorine

The Broken Heart

Sentinel’, a dangerous automata, essentially ‘in charge’ of the Guardians, now damaged and vulnerable.

Salt-Dryad Handmaiden to the Queen of Fire. Willing but tired and weary of her long service. Fears the escape of the Ice Demons.

A strange and wilful spirit, a form of Phylactery for part of the Fire Queen’s Soul. Wishes to return to her body.

GGGMORE LIKE GUARDS

R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt

A traitor to ‘Blue Glass’. Currently roams the Tomb.

One- ‘Dog-Eater’, [V. The Crawling Woman] is close to death when the PCs encounter her.

Tomb Rooms

Reductor

Boreala

An evil but efficient ghost. Defends the Queen’s Tomb as it also protects her from Hellfire.

Spirt of a forest wind. An unwilling guardian, she is bound to the Tomb by her lover, trapped in a bubble of time.

Mordant Kaust

The Ice Demons

An Acid Baron, imprisoned for an age and very willing to reform.

Utterly evil spirits. Their whispers fill the tomb, corrupting the unwary.

MORE LIKE PRISONERS

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

HHH The Fiasco

The Body-Field

GA FIELD SOWN WITH DEATHH The PCs see blood-soaked ground, churned-up earth, dead ranged everywhere, some trapped in the last moment of struggle.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

The Body Field

SOURCES OF MOVEMENT Naked Girls of Glass wander in the chaos, smiling absently at nothing at all. A Man Hangs in the Claws of the gigantic HYPER-SLOTH! He is alive. Eyes fixed on a woman, she has been eviscerated and drags her body across the ground smearing blood, holding an obsidian knife. She is CRAWLING TOWARDS the hanging man.

What the PCs See GTHE HOLES IN THE EARTHH Blue Downward Arrows on the map above. Most are melted into the earth by the fall of Glass Girls. Most are not immediately obvious.

GTHE GLASS GIRLSH Wandering around like coked-up supermodels after a shoot, the Glass Girls are unstable and Full of Deadly Acid! In theory it should be possible to use the Glass Girls to melt holes in the earth deliberately and so to gain access to different points of the Tomb. In practice, messing with them is insanely dangerous. They are utterly willful, sometimes it seems almost maliciously so.

Introduction The Fiasco

▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

A dust-storm. Nightfall. Wolves in the Night. Occlusion Field. - If PCstry to leave, the memory of the Tomb, of the incident and the entire area, starts to fade. First whomever is in the lead realises they don’t know where they have been. If they are carrying objects from the Body Field, they don’t know where they came from. Those behind them in marching order start to experience the same loss of memory, increasing the further they go from the tomb. ▪ This memory loss reduces if they return to the Tomb. (This is a result of the Occlusion Engine in [R29 Dragonbone Staff ]. If that engine is shut down, the effect dissipates.)

MANIPULATING THE GLASS GIRLS Make it clear to the players how obviously dangerous this seems.

DISTURBING INTERACTIONS OF THE GLASS GIRLS

Positioning and Smashing One Safely; three simultanous DEX tests, all from the same person. Plus a simultaneous STR test. If any test is failed; 5d10 damage, save for half. On the plus side, even if that PC dies, if they succeeded at two or more of their tests the resulting hole is melted in the earth roughly where they wanted it to go, giving a fresh access point to the Tomb.

A TICKING CLOCK In playtests, roughly half of players found investigating the bodies less interesting because of the lack of urgency.

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

THE SECTIONS A rough time budget has been included with each section so you can estimate the amount of time PCs use investigating and, if desired, present the resources and information acquired from each section as a fait accompli, in exchange for an expenditure of time.

For most characters, even a graze with this acid would be lethal or permanenlty disabling.

The Body Field

1. Stumbling towards you and standing way too close, teetering and tottering. 2. Reaching out to touch and carress you. 3. Breaking into a stumbling half-jog, coming right for you, arms extended like a blind man. 4. Performing some ultra-slow bizzaro semi-dance thing while walking slowly around you at a radius of a couple of meters. 5. Reaching out for your stuff. 6. Standing in a group and staring inanely at something on the ground, a bodypart, a mark, a curl of rope. 7. Walking right into a pool of blood and semi-stumbling. 8. Bowing and curtseying to you, each other, the sun, the stars...

If you think it warranted, here are several methods that might serve to add a time factor to their investigations. ▪ The Glass Girls become interested in the PCs and begin wandering towards them, trying to interact with them. ▪ Vultures wheel in the air & start to land.

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

The Body Field

Body Group 1

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field

A. THE HYPER-SLOTH

The Tomb

The Sloth burst up out of a large hole in the ground (clearly visible nearby), It wreaked havoc before it died.

Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

Embedded in its skull is a much-repaired two-handed hardwood macahuitl studded with teeth of various kinds.

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

A young man, armoured in hardwood, hangs helpless and bleeding in the Sloths dead claws.

R9-R12 Halls of Ash

“Help me!”

R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

GGROUP 1 – THE DRAMA AT THE SLOTHH Across the field of bodies, a little over 100 feet away a teenage male in wooden armour hangs helplessly from the claws of a dead gigantic sloth, calling for help. Crawling towards him, her intestines torn from her body, a bronzed, muscular woman in torn chainmail stabs the earth with a dagger and drags herself closer, clearly intent on murder.

INTERVENING IN THE MURDER If a PC runs full tilt from the assumed entry point they can reach the Hyper-Sloth within two rounds, before the crawling woman does any real damage. They will need to text DEX to avoid falling over in the churned-up and bloodstained ground, to avoid a Glass Girl and to leap over or move around [C. Two Linked by Spear].

INVESTIGATING THE BODIES Rapid Search Hardwood armour tied with hemp string, calf-length trousers, sandals, hardwood helmet, half-empty water-bag, iron rations in hemp sack, hemp rope, spear, foldable fly-lantern and small jar of fireflies, dead Baboon. Living NPCs The items on the living NPCs, given in detail in their entries. Time factor – Brief Conversations with the NPCs shouldn’t take more than 10 minutes and robbing the only other body takes but a moment.

The Body Field

Drama at the Sloth ‘Bird Killer’ neck tattoo.

The Fiasco

B. CRAWLING WOMAN

LIVING NPC

VAGUEBAB STILTVERIFY

Introduction

Gutted, dragging intestines and leaving a smear of blood, a bronzed, muscular woman in torn chainmail crawls towards the man hanging in the sloth's claws.

“Kill… You…..”

ON HIM; Hardwood armour tied with hemp string, calf-length trousers, sandals, hardwood helmet, halfempty water-bag, iron rations in hemp sack, hemp rope. Crossbow and quiver fallen out of reach.

It’s her macahuitl embedded in the sloth's skull. Its dying riposte opened her from neck to crotch and threw her several feet.

WANTS; Find Sgt Sapreciept (he went into the earth).

LIVING NPC

▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

Security Guard for the Blue Glass Co. Tracking Terrorists meeting a smuggler. Sergeant Sapreciept tried to arrest everyone. Huge animal came up out of the Ground! Big fight! Sgt Sapreciept used his Magic Ring (Company Property) to shoot lightning and make mist. ▪ The Smuggler and their contact disappeared into those holes. Sloth tunnels? ▪ Gotta find Sgt Sapreciept! Catch the terrorists! Get them back to Blue Glass Co. Big reward! Gonna be heroes! Can’t let the Sarge down! – What’s ‘Bird Killer’? – “Birds are terrible. Everyone knows that.” – Why is this woman trying to kill you? – “I don’t know!”

VAGUEBAB ON THE FACTIONS;

▪ Blue-Masked People – “The Masked Maroons! Terrorists who raid the company and kill innocents!” ▪ Apes – “Muscle for the smuggler.” ▪ Female Bodies – “Don’t know. Tough. Think one got away.” ▪ Black-Clad Bodies - Refuses to speak about them. Very scared. ▪ Glass Girls – “Careful! Full of Acid! Golems made for transport. Industrial chemical. Very rare. High technology!” INVESTIGATING THE SLOTH

Investigating the Sloth;

An ancient creature, grey and haggard with age. Shot with crossbow bolts, hit by Javelins, hacked with machetes and resin swords, stung by bees, stabbed by spears. Dying, eventually, of a Macahuitl to the brain.

On close examination; Jammed in the sloth's cuticles are tiny black shards. 1d6 tiny black diamonds and fragments of black scale, (it's dragonscale). Where did these come from? Perhaps embedded in the Sloths flesh as it clawed through the earth? WHAT’S IN THE HOLE? A large irregular cavern of packed earth. Strewn with written fragments. Lit by the candle-strength light of magical glyphs circling a space near the centre of the cavern. Leads to [R65 Sloth Nest].

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls

DOG-EATER

HIS STORY;

The Body Field

A topknot and scalp tattoos in an unknown language that look like the shapes fire makes as it burns.

ON HER;

water, dagger, bag of monkey teeth, golden monkey medallion.

WANTS;

For someone to use The Plans, even if she can’t. To fuck over Blue Glass.

HER STORY;

▪ Friends meeting someone here. ▪ Were betrayed somehow. ▪ Contact fell through the hole and Drusilla, her boss, followed her. - “Help us and we can team up. Money in it. A lot.” Why are you trying to kill this guy? – “Fucking Company! Fuck them! Fuck them all!”

DOG-EATERS ON THE FACTIONS;

▪ Wood-Armoured Men – “Dumb. Company security, couldn’t find their arse with both hands.” ▪ The Apes – “Dunno. Tough monkeys.” ▪ Two Dead Women – “Hinemoa and Em’a, my friends.” ▪ Black-Clad Men – “Operators, enforcers. Probably working for Blue Glass. One got away. As dangerous as us, and we are… we were, fucking dangerous.” ▪ The Masked Bodies - Silent on this. Seems shocked to see them.

SECRETS;

▪ Her head-tattoos read ‘GET OUT’ and ‘MONKEY THEFT’. ▪ Her group sometimes called ‘The League of the Kraken’, Some PCs may remember her face.

PLOT STUFF > (when desperate) “The. Deal.

Was. For. The Heist. Plans. She. Still. Has. Them!” … “The Clerk. Bonvive. Blue Sap down one face. She has the plans. Take the plans. Don’t let them...”

C. TWO LINKED BY SPEAR

Investigation; a baboon pierced by a spear has dragged itself along the shaft to bite off the face of the WoodArmoured man holding it. The man was Tatend Flygnite.

The Body Field

Introduction The Fiasco

Body Group 2 - Around the Stone

The Body Field

F. KNEELING UNINJURED WOMAN. GOLD COINS!

The Tomb Encounters

A nondescript woman (Himonea Arkweld, a member of the ‘League of the Kraken’) kneels before an open chest full of Gold Coins GOLD!

Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

The Leather Case; GOLD! 60 stacks of 200 gold coins. BUT - if examined; only the top surfaces of the top coins are coated with gold leaf. The rest are painted tin.

R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash

The Woman; Dead! Unarmoured, no particular identifying features. She is frozen, kneeling, in rigor mortis, holdin … Plot Stuff> a scrap of torn map. See page 128.

Examination – Her hand shows a drop of blood. A poison needle in the chest she failed to spot.

GGROUP 2 – AROUND THE GREAT STONEH A cluster of dead Masked Maroons who fell to the East of the battlefield in the general vicinity of a great stone. Gold glitters by one body! (Kneeling Woman at E) The most easterly body at H. Half a Dude, lies beside a hole melted in the earth. Rapid Search; Machete (high quality), steel dagger (high quality), bone & resin javelin x 1, bone and resin sword x 1. Mainly-Empty water-bags x3 (1 whole ration of water if combined.) Jerky-type meat x2, sandals x2, hemp bag x2 non-metal light lamellar x2. 3 distinct blue crystal masks. Searching the Kneeling Woman at E: distinct equipage noted in her description. Time Factor: 20 minutes for the general bodies, 10 minutes and care to search the Kneeling Woman at E.

D. PIERCED BABOON A Baboon killed by a thrown Machete! Investigation; throwing a machete hard and accurately enough to piece a Baboon is pretty hardcore. Hopefully whomever did this is dead, or at least no longer has a machete.

The Gold - of the 60 stacks of 200 gold coins only the top surfaces of the top coins are coated with gold leaf. The rest are painted tin.” On her; dagger, garrotte, thieves' tools, forgery tools, forged letter of authorisation from nearest authority structure, bottle with d4 knock-out drops (save vs poison or sleep), warrant for the arrest of Himonea Arkweld for fraud, murder, theft etc.

G. RAGDOLLED WOMAN A younger woman, (Nalla ma-de Ghoo), her Blue Mask pinned to her face by a steel dagger. Investigation; The dagger looks too good for the Wood-Armoured Men, likely one belonging to the Black-Clad Men. Possibly thrown, indicating both strength, and surprising skill.

H. HALF A DUDE A blue-masked figure, an older man (Z’oow mo-mo Ghoo), dissolved from the waist down, surrounded by melted earth and fragments of curved glass. He clearly died in agony, likely after he ran into/tripped over, a Glass Girl. The other half of his melted body slid into the Hole in the Ground created by the fallen girl.

E. BABOON HOLDING HEAD

LOOKING DOWN INTO THE DARKNESS

A huge Baboon bestrides the decapitated body of a middleaged blue-masked woman. It had successfully ripped the head from her neck, leaving a sting of dangling spine but at that point its guts were driven through by a thrown javelin and collapsed. (The head belonged to Nu’Gna ze-ze Va’ee, a middle-aged woman).

A triangular room holding a pattern or model, itself like a triangle made of triangles, with each individual triangle containing some individual pattern or mark. This pattern is shattered by a large crack and has been splattered with a mixture of corrosive acid, melted blody-flesh and soil. This hole leads down to [R35 Cracked Map].

The Body Field

Body Group 3 - By the Pool J. KNEELING MAN Wood-armoured man kneeling by dropped spear. Investigation; Armour torn open. He (Saess Rickretch), died trying to stuff his guts back in. One of his eyes is solidified into a shining resinous mass, looks pre-mortem, tears running from the other eye are still wet.

K. FOUR-BODY MESS A Black-Clad Man (scab face beneath occluding hood) surrounded by two dead Baboons and one Wood-Armoured Man (Uniave Bondfear) with a Crossbow. Investigation; It looks like the wounded Black-Clad Man pulled a crossbow bolt out of their own thigh and used it to kill the other three before dying of blood loss. The Wood-Armoured man has blue-stained teeth and a packet of bluish gum hidden on him. (Fire Gum, see Appendix B.)

GGROUP 3 – CARNAGE BY THE POOLH A brutal scene of sustained close combat. There is blood everywhere but here especially it pools and runs into a declivity in the earth, forming a slowly-rising sanguinary pond. Anyone investigating will end up covered in stinking blood and blood-black soil. A living NPC, M’ee ze-la Z’or, is unconscious in the centre of the pool. As more blood fills the declivity they may drown. Rapid Search; Hardwood armour x4 plus one too damaged to use. Hardwood helms x5. Simple Crossbow x2. 2d6 cheap crossbow bolts. Wooden shields x2. Spears x2. Crappy fibre rope x2. Partial water rations x7 (4 full rations if combined). An eye solidified into a shining resinous mass (if you want to prise it out of someone’s head). Foldable Fly Lanterns and Firefly jars x2, Resin and bone javelin. Bark-Mask of blue crystal, shaped for a particular face. Light lamellar bone & resin armour. Packet of Blue Blood Dust x1 (if it touches blood it becomes useless). HighQuality Machete/short sword x2. High-Quality Steel Knife x1. High-Quality short crossbow x1, 12 high quality steel crossbow bolts. Light-Snaps x 10, Ceramic Knife d4 damage, die explodes on a 4 & keeps exploding if you keep rolling 4s, fragile, shatters on a fumble. Hoods of dull grey silk, embroidered with a moon x2. Time Factor: Up to an hour due to the horrid conditions and number of bodies.

I. THROAT-SHOT BABOON AND HEAD-CRUSHED MAN Investigation; Looks like the Baboon crushed the head (and wooden helmet) of a man in his bare hands, but took a crossbow bolt in the throat from his victim, (possibly a reflex action) and bled out. The man (Empichoo Slothcred), was youngish, hardwood-armoured, wielding a crossbow (discharged).

L. MAN PINNED TO GROUND Lying on his back he grasps the hilt of a spear which has been bitten in half and driven into his chest through an armour gap, pinning him to the ground like a butterfly. The Body; Strange blue facial scars that look like dripped or splattered fluid. (This was Ktimote Smokedrink.)

M. TWO MEN HUG AND KNEEL TOGETHER One Black-Clad, (scab face beneath occluding hood), one Wood-Armoured, they grapple each other in death. Investigation; The Black-Clad Man took a brilliant, or lucky, cut to an artery. This did not stop him throttling his opponent to death. The Wood-Armoured Man, (Moman Spiderscrabble), stabbed his opponent in the guts and couldn’t pull the wooden shank out. Was strangled to death in return. The Black Clad Man has a packet of blue powder, unused and untouched by blood. A product of The Zone, the Blue Blood Dust can be used to heal trauma wounds. (See Appendix B.) If it touches blood it will instantly coagulate and become useless.

N. BODIES, BLOOD AND GUTS -Masked Man, Wood-Armoured Man and Baboon in the centre of the large pool of blood. Investigation; First, someone gutted the Baboon. Second, the Wood-Armoured Man, (Bachthanum Goadbust, late 30s, leg broken and re-set at some point.) tripped in its guts. Third, the BlueMasked Figure, (T’szo la-de Paan, younger male), took the wood-armoued man out with a javelin thrust. Finally the masked figure took an arterial cut from something and died trying to clamp it closed with one hand. It’s not clear who mostly-killed the Baboon but it took a while to expire.

O. FACE-DOWN FIGURE, DEAD BABOON

Investigation; the Baboon took the Blue-Masked Man’s knife in its crotch and bled out. The masked man is unconscious but alive.

The Body Field

Body Groups 3 & 4

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb

LIVING NPC

Encounters

M’EE ZE-LA Z’OR

Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

“Wha... who are you?”

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

Teenage male. Strong and fit. Mask gives him a face of featureless, glittering blue crystal. Only the eyes are visible.

R9-R12 Halls of Ash

ON HIM;

R13-R16 Reductors Halls

WANTS; Find

lamellar armour, sword of wood and bone, water, bolas, mask, wooden shank. any surviving Masked Maroons and get the weapons Shrive is smuggling!

HIS STORY; ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

Wait, who are you with? (Blue Glass? Shrive?) Fighting to free his people from ‘Blue Glass’. Arranged to buy weapons ‘for self defence’. Were tracking dealer. He veered off course. Found him here, with these women. Betrayed somehow, Blue Glass found us! Giant animal burst out of the ground! Fight broke out. Shrive, the dealer went down there. Our leader Zomi went in there to find him. Shrive hid his convoy with magic, only he has the means to find it. ▪ Help us! Join with us to fight Blue Glass and save our people! ▪ We need Shrive’s weapons and that means we need Shrive!

M’EE ON THE FACTIONS;

▪ Wood-Armoured Men – “Company Security. Slaves and fools.” ▪ Female Bodies – “Don’t know. Strangers. Heavily armed.” ▪ Apes – “Shrive’s Muscle.” ▪ Black-Clad Men - “’Protection Men’. Enforcers for Blue Glass. Very, very dangerous.” ▪ Glass Girls – “Acid golems, used by Blue Glass. Shrive has the means to control them.”

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

Bodies ranged over a wide area as the battle ranged back and forth. A Dead Mage at [S - Lightning-Blasted Woman], with her equipment on her. A LIVING NPC at [U - Spear-Pinned Baboon], hanging in a hard-to-see hole in the earth. Rapid Search; High-Quality Machete x1. High-Quality Knife x1, Weighted bolas x1, Compact crossbow x1, 6 Steel bolts. 1 White Bolt of Dispellment (see appendix), Hood of dull grey silk, embroidered with a moon. Light-Snaps x5. Strong black bag x1. Hardwood Armour & Helm x 1. Simple Crossbow x1, d4 cheap bolts. Bark-Mask of blue crystal. Fits one specific face only. Light lamellar armour of resin, shell and wood. Resin and bone sword. Fibre Woven Bag x1. Water x2. Rations x3. Necklace of large spider-heads.

P. BROKEN SKULL BABOON A baboon with a broken skull sits holding its head. Brains spill out. A grim end for a brave ape!

Q. DICED-UP BLACK-CLAD MAN A Black-Clad Man, (scab face beneath occluding hood), killed by about five cuts to arteries and tendons. Arterial spray lances out like modern art. Investigation; Hosepiped arterial splatter suggests all the cuts happened within a single moment. Perhaps delivered by the same individual, superhumanly fast.

R. VICTIM OF BEES Investigation; Male body, (Zoant Debtequity). Armour didn’t do him much good. Massive inflammation and the bodies of lots of dead bees, suggests he died of bee-stings. He wears a necklace made of what looks to be the dried heads of large spiders.

R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

GGROUP 4 SCATTERED SKIRMISHH

The Body Field

Body Groups 4 & 5

On Her; wavy dagger, water, rations, pen, ink, hourglass, lens, mirror, matches, phylactery (empty), star chart, beautiful snail shell. The Staff of Broken Dogs; a backbent crooked staff with a broken-legged dog at the top. The staff is broken. Magic or high skill could conceivably repair it. If fixed - The wielder of this staff may tap a single lame or crippled dog on the head, imbuing it with speech and fiendish intelligence. The dog will spot liars and lies, traps and hidden weaknesses but always tries to lead its master to a bad end. The enchantment ends with each dawn. Only one dog may be enchanted at a time. Spell Book; trapped. Musical notes around the border mark out the start of a once-popular tune. Humming out the tune to completion opens the book safely. Otherwise bursts into flame doing d6 damage. Recoverable Spells Within; Inversation (makes an object into a mirror image of itself). Encore (you applaud, object or creature keeps repeating its last action; duration: as long as you applaud). Snake Theft (teleports a small object into your stomach, 10’ range) (probably reversible). Doublespeak (you can say two things at once. You choose who hears which version.) (Thanks to Arnold K for Spells)

The Fiasco The Body Field

S. LIGHTNING-BLASTED WOMAN A dead Mage! Body somewhat charred. Dark skinned. Blue robes with sleeves rolled up. Broken staff. (This was Em’a Void, member of the ‘League of the Kraken’ and occasional lover of Drusilla Machete, (currently underground). She was killed though a lucky lightning blast from the magical ring of Sgt Zegzor Sapreciept, (also currently underground)).

Introduction

LIVING NPC

The Tomb

TOOTH-TOOTH

Encounters Tomb Rooms

Tooth-Tooth has the I.Q. of a seven year old and can talk a little. His name derives from the fact that he has a tooth growing on one of his teeth. Or has he puts it;

“Tooth-Tooth becau se Tooth.” >terrifying teeth displayVISIBLE DISTRESS< Black-Clad Men – “Strong Strong Bad! Black Men Strong!” ▪ Glass Girls – “Ungh”

T. COLLAPSED BLUE-MASKED WOMAN

A living Baboon hangs holding on to the blood-slicked hand of its dead comrade!

LOOKING DOWN INTO THE DARKNESS A traingular shelf-lined room. Old soil spread across the floor. Blood from the pierced Baboon. Smashed ceramic shards, fragments of glass and recent acid-scarring.

R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

U. SPEAR-PINNED BABOON

“Ugn. Pull. No fall.”

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

A young woman, (Nalla ma-de Ghoo), in a Blue Mask, collapsed on her side, staring down at the machete lodged between her ribs, protruding from her back. (It’s hard to pull those things out...)

A large black hole has been melted into the earth. Fragments of curved glass nearby. A dead baboon, pinned to the ground by a spear, hangs into the hole. A voice issues from the darkness!

R1-R4 Lower Floor

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

G5 -THE DISTANT CORPSEH V. HALF-DISSOLVED BABOON A hideously half-dissolved Baboon died trying to crawl out of the hole in the earth left by a smashed glass girl.

LOOKING DOWN INTO THE DARKNESS Fragments of tile, soil, glass and wet, colour-blanched baboon guts. Acid from the glass girl has burnt spots through the soil. Shards of ruby gleam like red stars in the mess.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

This hole leads down to [R62 Sloth Wreck]. (This hole leads down to [R58 Library of Fire].)

The Body Field

Main Level Map

Brown holes are entries to the sloth tunnels.

R57-R60 Library

Red triangles mark holes in the roof leading to the Body-Field.

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

Swirlies mark dimensional tears between rooms.

R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

The Tomb

Map Key

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field

Lower Level R1 Delft-Sentinel Five R2 Demon-Bone Sarcophagus R3 Ash Jars R4 Reverse Furnace

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

Halls of Salt R5 Helictite Boudoir R6 Blood & Salt R7 Fallen Doors R8 Entry Hall

R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls

Halls of Ash R9 Ash Vizier R10 Pit Trap R11 Mirror Maze R12 Pyroclastic Guardian

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

Reductors Halls R13 Reductor R14 Lamp Trap R15 Urns R16 Cracked Wall

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

Ice-Demons Prison R17 Warded Room R18 Ice Demons R19 Frozen Corpses R20 Skeletal Mess

SpinSter-Bone Cage R33 Spinster-Bone Cage R34 Steel Garden R35 Cracked Map R36 Histories & Historians

Cell of the Acid Baron R21 Mordant Kaust R22 Urns of Salt R23 Thorn Sky R24 Fine Black Silk

Gallery of Fire R37 Family Tree R38 Flame Paintings R39 Flame Calligraphy R40 Frieze of Fire

The Fire-Queens Arms R49 Fire Queens Arms R50 Wardrobe R51 Bedchamber R52 Shield Stacks

Library R57 Bonsai Explosions R58 Library Of Fire R59 Zoetrope Men R60 Quickilver Statues

Borealas Halls R25 Bronze Trees R26 Dead Spiders R27 Bird-Headed Man R28 Shrike

Dancers Rooms R41 Red Clothes R42 Aerial Rings R43 Armoury of Chains R44 Red Reflections

The Rosetta Stone R53 Book of Sapphire Leaves R54 Sloth Catastrophe R55 Meditation Sphere R56 Silent Glass

The Lamp Philosopher R61 Flame Veils R62 Sloth Wreck R63 Burning Furniture R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest

The Shadow Engine R29 Dragonbone Staff R30 Black Bones R31 Condensed Darkness R32 Obsidian Mirrors

Artificers Rooms R45 Small Soldiers R46 Blasted Tanks R47 Dancing Automata R48 Strange Apparatus

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

The Tomb

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Lower Level Map

GTRAP MAINTENANCE TUNNELSH Several of the Tomb Rooms contain complex mechanical traps. Underneath these rooms are low crawlspaces used to install and check the traps before the tomb was closed. These crawlspaces are interconnected to each other by a series of very narrow, very low passages. These form a small network accessible from a secret door in the north of room [R1 Delft-Sentinel Five]. Cunning PCs might also get into these tunnels by ripping up the trap mechanisms, and in some cases, through doors at the bottom of pits. There is one point, just north of [Room R1 DelftSentinel Five] where the trap-acess tunnels cross over the Sloth Tunnels. The edges of the trap tunnels are semicollapsed and should not be obvious to casual observers in the Sloth Tunnels.

The Tomb

Lower Level Tunnels

Introduction The Fiasco

GCORE ROOMSH

GSLOTH TUNNELSH

The central triangle of the tomb is built at a lower level than the rest. The walls between and around these rooms incoporated the raw granite foundations for the huge statue on the surface. They are extremely thick and strong.

The last (or is it?) of the Hyper-Sloths made its lair in and around the buried tomb.

The Sarcophagus itself can only be reached from [Room R1 Delft-Sentinel Five] which itself can only be accessed via stairways leading to two rooms, each of which contain deadly traps. [R3 Ash Jars] and [R4 Reverse Furnace], have no access to other rooms of the core. It might be possible to get through the walls but these are several feet of raw granite. Magic would almost certainly be required.

The tunnels are around six feet tall and three to five wide, walls and roofs covered with claw marks. They weave organically throughout the dry, packed earth beneath and around the tomb. They run between the foundations of the tomb rooms. At times they run parallel to the stone walls. In some places the edges of foundations and the brick and stonework of the tomb pokes into the tunnels. In others the Sloth tunnels narrow and loop around the spiral staircases, forming counter-spirals. Here the edges of walls or stairs might be visible from inside the Sloth Tunnel. As they weave around spiral stairs, it might be possible to force a stone stair up out of it setting and climb up into the starway. In some places weak points in the floors of the Tomb Rooms have been forced open and the rooms used to hold backfilled material. Though relatively stable, enmasse the sloth tunnels have caused widespread subsidence throughout the tomb. There are several places where the stone structures are ready to collapse into the tunnels, should enough of a shock or force be applied.

The Tomb

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash

Darkness, Dimensions, Tears GUNNATURAL DARKNESSH It's darker than it should be down there, as if the air itself draws in light, absorbing it. Magic-Users, and subtle thieves will quickly realise there is something liquid and unnatural about the darkness of the Tomb. It cannot be scryed. To magical senses and spells used to observe and detect, it’s as if the Tomb simply is not there.

R13-R16 Reductors Halls

[R65 Sloth Nest] shows up, but the rooms inside the Tomb do not.

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

Intelligent players may work out the following; ▪ This negation effect is centred in; [R29 Dragonbone Staff]. ▪ Its associated with primal kinds of Shadow Magic. ▪ Its not just a static effect, but is being sustained by something. • If its being sustained, it can be shut down. ▪ If that happens, the tomb can be scryed, both by the PCs, but also by others...

ROOMS AND PASSAGES ROOM SIZE:

Each room is a triangle with each side being 50 feet long.

The pattern of tears they made in their frantic and deluded journey through the tomb is still there. Reality has scarred over these wounds and they work quite differently depending on which way you want to go through the tear.

FORWARD TEARS A patch of torn, warped space. The smell and temperature of the destination ebb through. To use such a tear one must have skill and a dab of magic. A magic user finds it simple. Clever theives can try it. Either might fall through in error. Passage is like a dream of tripping, followed by a lurch.

Tiled in alternating squares of deep red and midnight blue in most rooms. Beneath the floor tiles in most rooms is a layer of brick. In trap rooms the tiles can be prised up to reveal the trap access crawlways.

PASSAGE SIZE:

Doors and the passages between rooms are just over two feet wide and about five feet high.

GDIMENSIONAL TEARSH Throughout the long ages of history, many diabolic forces have sought the tomb. They know that several potent demons of a forgotten eon were beaten, trapped and bound here, never returning to Hell, and therefore unable to wreak harm on any world. At some point, one demon at least, found it. Or at least, they found the Sloth Tunnels which weave around it. The Spectral Demon Uzziel Unanelad tore a hole in reality, arriving in [R65 Sloth Nest]. The ruined dimensional zone produced by this is still visible. Uzziel Unanelad then tried to tear their way through space into the Tomb itself.

The Tomb

BACKWARD TEARS

Harder to find and use. Reality has healed over. Thieves can find them but only Magic-Users or Clerics can utilise them and this requires a test of Intelligence. It is like using a crowbar to force a gossamer door, working only by touch. Passage causes trauma; migrane, a memory of screaming, and lost time; seconds, minutes or longer.

THE FLOOR:

They would have been more succesful if they had just clawed their way through rock and stone.

The Tomb's occluding magic caused their incursions to bounce around unpredictably, sending them from room to room until they entered [R1 Delft-Sentinel Five] and were smashed to bits, by Delft-Sentinel Five.

Going forwards is realtively easy, getting back is hard.

The Wall Murals

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field

GTHE WALLSH

The Tomb

Most walls in the tomb tiled in red ceramic which has been painted or etched to show repeated themes and images.

Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

In each triangular room, the same pattern repeats with each wall marked or illustrated with pictures, signs and symbols on a particular theme.

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

WALL ONE - LIGHTNING

R9-R12 Halls of Ash

Jagged bolts lancing down. Great pillars and arches of storm clouds riddled with lightning blasts as if they walked across the land on limbs of jagged light. Lighting strikes exploding trees, the crackling leap of divine energies in great mazes of lighning.

R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine

WALL THREE - TREES Tall forests of huge black-trunked trees bare of branches until their mighty crowns where huge fern-like limbs uncurl like tentacles to face the sun. Collonades of black trunks standing over palaces. Figures kneeling before gates of fire. Some wear part-face blue masks. Through the gates are glimpses of another world.

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

WALL TWO - WIND Blasts and whirls of wind sweeping through cloud. Great spirals and curlicues of symbolic typhoons. Forests blasted with hurricanes. Tornadoes marching like armies. Whirls of leaves and broken roofs.

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

The Tomb

Introduction The Fiasco

Unlocked & Combination Doors

GDOORSH

GAME DESIGNER'S INTENT

MATERIAL AND SETTING

The Combination locks are meant to slow down exploration, to prevent PCs simply “running for it" making it hard for PCs to act easily across multiple rooms and to provide both warning of oncoming foes and opportunity for slowing their pursuit.

The Tomb-doors are a form of super-hardened ceramic about the strength of oak but half as heavy. They are attached to the walls by hinges on the inner side, away from the room into which they face and are set within a ceramic frame of the same hardness. Doors swing both ways.

OPEN DOORS Doors without a handle, lock, tumbler or any other interruption, and which have not been jammed or blocked, will open easily, and quietly, with a push.

CLOSING DOORS Doors in the tomb are carefully weighted so that when let-slip they will slowly and silently close. In some cases subsidence and other forms of damage will prevent this.

THE COMBINATION There are four tumblers. Three are arranged in a triangle with the last in the centre. Each tumbler has six glyphs; 1. A tall tree. 2. A strange elephant. 3. Lightning. 4. A styllised gust of wind. 5. Stylised Fire. 6. A Human Figure. To open the door; Arrange the tumblers with Tree, Wind and the Lightning in the corners of the triangle (it doesn’t matter which corners), and fire in the centre.

When a Combination-Locked Door closes its tumbler spins and re-sets. This creates an audible clattering sound.

SECRET DOORS Some doors are hidden and the nature of this deception will be further described for each individual room.

GCOMBINATION-LOCKED DOORSH Many doors in the tomb are locked with a form of pictorial combination lock. These doors have handles on their corridor sides and combination-tumblers on their room-facing sides.

TOMB-DESIGNER'S INTENT These were made to prevent easy access by children, teens, foolish people and those not of the fire-culture during the tomb's construction and in its first years of existance. It was not intended as a difficult puzzle, or really as a puzzle at all, but as a simple protection agains accidental wanderings. The answer to the combination is one that would be immediately and intuatively obvious to any intelligent adult member of the Fire Culture.

The Tomb

When the door closes, the Tumblers spin once more.

GTHE MEANING OF THE MARKINGS ON THE WALLSH The wall markings of Lighting, Wind and Tree show a concept deeply familiar to anyone who knows fire well; the Fire Triangle. The combination of Ignition, Oxygen and Fuel which forms the cradle of any fire and decides its shape and quality. In nature, this triangle is most often fulfilled by the fuel of trees, the oxygen brought by wind and the ignition of lightning, leading to the common forest fire. These symbols, repeated on each wall, and this concept, are the solution to the puzzle of the combination locks; Fuel, Air and Ignition together make fire.

Locked Doors and Tomb Keys GSINGLE-KEY DOORSH

GTHE TOMB KEYSH

Like a normal handle door, these have a hole for a single Tomb Key.

About the size of a medieval gate key. Most Tomb Keys have a slender chain, almost as thin as cheese-wire and incredibly strong.

The locks can be picked, though it is difficult to do so, or the doors forced, though monstrous strength is required.

GTRISKELEON DOORSH These doors have no handle or tumbler but are marked with a Triskeleon of three interlocking cyclones. Right at the centre of each of the three cyclones is a keyhole. Three Tomb Keys must be inserted and turned simultaneously to open the doors Though each Tomb-Key lock is very difficult to pick, it is physically possible to do so. In a Triskeleon-Locked Door if any of the locks are picked, they must be picked simultaneously with each other or with the turning of the Tomb Keys if one or more is used. These doors require titanic strength to force open.

THE MAGIC OF THE KEYS

The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt

Tomb Keys are enchanted. If a Key is Given Willingly by its owner and placed around the neck of the recipient, for that person, it weighs no more than a normal, large, key. If stolen, taken by force or found, each key weighs 75 Kilograms, (about 160 pounds). The incredible weight and density of the keys and the difficulty of even picking one up are their chief defence against being stolen or taken by force. (Especially since most Tomb Guardians would find it hard to pick up even one.)

▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

Introduction

THERE ARE SIX TOMB KEYS. Reductor has one [R13 Reductor]. Zoldinar has one [R64 Lamp Philosopher]. One lies amidst the bones in [R28 Shrike]. Navidorine has one [R5 Helictite Boudoir]. The Broken Heart has one [R33 Spinster-Bone Cage]. Cornflower’ has one [R1 Delft-Sentinel Five].

Three Keys are needed to open the Triskeleon Doors, but any three keys will do, and it’s possible to pick at least some of the locks. Other magical seals, like the stasis bubble around Vector Zeph in [R27 Bird-Headed Man] or the locks of Mordant Kaust in [R21 Mordant Kaust] have a chance of breaking or damaging the key with use.

R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

The Tomb

Anaracket Bonvive

Armour: as Unarmoured Hit Dice: 2 Hit Points: 7 Damage: Ceramic Knife (1d4 exploding) Morale: 5 Stat as: low level thief Stealth: 3 in 6 Backstab: with ceramic knife, 2d4 damage,explodes if a 4 is rolled on either die and keeps exploding. Does full damage to fire-based creatures, breaks on a miss or fumble. Antimagic: her Endothermic Gem will nullify 20 levels of spellcraft aimed at her (see appendix).

FIRST GLANCE; a woman holds one hand high, shard of golden light glows in her grasp.

“Who be thee? Who leagues with thee?” .....(whispers)

“Can you hear that ?”

CLOSER LOOK; Middle-aged. Sweating. Stained by dust and dirt. Clothes of a high-status bourgeoise. Translucent blue spatter-mark down one side of her face. Clutches a document case to her chest. (The papers inside are travel guides. The Plans are folded and jammed into her belt round the back beneath her shirt.)

BACKGROUND; Rarely in life has any human being been more aware that they are fucked than Anaracket Bonvive is right now. Amoral, compromised and endlessly overlooked, Bonvive writhes with the cancerous wrath of a coward who realises they have sold their soul for nothing. She knows her only cards are The Plans and the name of whomever has the Glass Key. As soon as she loses those, she is worthless. Bonvive is being drawn towards the Ice Demons imprisoned in the tomb. You would have to be insane to listen to those whispers, but they are promising her safety....

WANTS; Her MONEY. A way out. To understand the whispering voices.

FEARS; Giving up the plans. Giving up the location of the Glass Key.

ON MEETING THE PCS She will Lie. She’s an innocent whistleblower who turned on Blue Glass for its cruelty and debt-slavery. Was trying to team up with outside actors to expose them.

Encounters

“I did this to save lives! "The conditions there.. you have no idea!” “I wish I knew I could trust you...” Will betray and backstab (literally) the PCs ASAP. Will flee towards the Ice Demons in the far north of the tomb. [R18].

IN HER BAG; Biscuits, ceramic knife, water canteen, compass, plain gold ring (5gp), 500 in Company Scrip (worthless here), Map of the Zone. Two Light Snaps. One Endothermic Gem* *Absorbs up to twenty spell levels, See Appendix B. The bitch is spellproof.

THE GLASS KEY She has no intention of being double-crossed and has left the glass key with someone in the Zone whose name she will not give up unless she is certain she is safe. d4

Who's got that glass key?

‘Clicker’

‘Granny’

‘Sir Snips-it-All’*

‘Fiddling Joe’**

* Name of a prize Centipede, the key is hidden in its hutch. ** The only ‘Fiddlin Joe is ‘Fiddlin Joe's Special reserve whiskey’, the only bottle of this is in the office of the head of Zone. The transparent key is in the translucent whiskey in the reflective bottle. [Note for the DM: if you roll a result on this, or better, have the PCs roll - WRITE IT DOWN. If you ever run the intended second part of this Trilogy; ‘Frictionless Blue Glass’, for the same group, this information will be IMPORTANT.]

Backup Baboons BACKUP BABOONS Armour: as Unarmoured Hit Dice: 1 Hit Points: 6 Damage: bite 1d6 Morale: 7 Stat as: Baboon Number Encountered: 1d4+1 Climbing: no roll required

SHADOW-SOAKED BACKUP BABOONS Armour: as chain (shadows) Hit Dice: 1 Hit Points: 6 Damage: bite 1d6 Morale: 7 Stat as: Baboon Number Encountered: 1d4+1 Climbing: no roll required Stealth: automatic in shade, visible in bright light > These Baboons have dipped themselves in liquid shadow from [R32 Condensed Darkness] and now look bloody terrifying. > The shadow can be washed off. > May leave liquid shadow tracks to [R32].

Introduction The Fiasco

CHAIN-WAVING BACKUP BABOONS! Armour: Unarmoured Hit Dice: 1 Hit Points: 6 Damage: bite 1d6 & Chain 1d4 entangle & 1ft range Morale: 7 Stat as: Baboon Number Encountered: 1d4+1 Climbing: no roll required Stealth: LOUD AS FUCK

The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls

> These baboons have armed themselves with fighting chains from [R43 Armoury of Chains] and are wielding them with surprising proficiency.

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

----------------------------------------------------------

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

Wensley Shrive's ape assistants. Not all died in the battle above, several fell, or leapt down into the tomb to follow their beloved (or tolerated) ‘Boss’, now they race about the place, experimenting with what they find and slowly succombing to the creepy whispers of the Ice Demons trapped within...

REACTIONS; If a Baboon runs into anyone from a faction that killed Baboons in the battle above (everyone but Shrive and Bonvive), they will take immediate vengeance. If the PCs accompany Wensley Shrive, the Baboons will (probably) follow and obey him.

Encounters

Boreala

PLUCKED INTO THE AIR: ▪ Target first any NPC with a desired item or knowledge ▪ Boreala cuts the straps of packs & armour, this takes a round. ▪ Boreala picks up the target and carries them away in a storm of metal leaves (locked & tumbler doors open for her). ▪ Smooth, dense targets can save to avoid being picked up. ▪ Boreala takes them to [R28 Shrike] and hangs them from her Iron Tree. ▪ They are incapacitated, semi conscious, and reduced to 1hp.

SOUND The tingling sound of hundreds of metallic leaves, endlessly falling. A voice like the scraping of a gate swinging in a storm.

“Foul demon worshippers s s s s s...” SIGHT A living storm or brass, bronze and Verdigris-stained copper leaves. . They roil in the darkness, momentarily shaping the form of a hooded woman before decaying into storm.

BACKGROUND Boreala is the spirit of a forest wind, bound within these brass leaves by a Seal of Glass, held in the hands of her beloved ‘Vector Zeph’. (Trapped in [R27 BirdHeaded Man]) Boreala took on this job willingly at first, thinking it a reasonable sacrifice to guard the Ice Demons, but she has been here much, much longer than she expected and has gone a little nuts. She keeps spiders as pets, picking up any she finds in the Tomb and taking them to [R26 Dead Spiders]. Boreala believes the key to release Vector Zeph, and hence break

Encounters

the seal, is held by the 'Cornflower' in [R1 Delft-Sentinel Five], but the Sentinel will not release the key as ‘The Ice Demons must be guarded! Boreala usually rests in [R25 Bronze Trees].

WANTS To be Free! She thinks this requires the Key held by DelftSentinel Five - but any Tomb Key would be sufficient.

FEARS Failing in duty, the prisoners getting out, going even more insane, being trapped here forever.

ON MEETING THE PCS Unless the PCs have what she wants, (spiders, a Tomb Key), Boreala is hard to persuade.

The Broken Heart Armour: as chain (dex) Hit Dice: 3 Hit Points: 20 Damage: d2 scratch & love bite Morale: 5 (easily distracted) Stat as: Elfin Cat Blink: as an action can ‘blink’ to anywhere within 30ft. Many-Angled: can walk up walls, ceiling, lounge in mid-air. Love Bite: The target falls in love with the next person they see. They can no longer gain XP unless they are actively pursuing, consummating or sustaining this relationship. After it bites one person, the Broken Heart will try to ‘even things out’ by biting the object of their affections so that pairs end up in love with each other. It is, however, quite fond of triangles.

FIRST GLANCE Crackling blue lightning and spatters of blue firelight, like a tesla coil and butane flame. A cracked cat with the features of a girl, burning with fire and electricity. Smiling.

Introduction The Fiasco

ON MEETING THE PCS Excited to meet them. Amused and interested. Wants to track them and enjoy their adventure in the tomb. Perhaps bite a few of them. It's essentially a magic cat so play it like one. On Their Person; Around their neck, a Tomb Key.

“Who/What Are You?” The Heart will only answer this question with a riddle (d12); 1. "I’ll make you sick..." 2. "If you pay for me in cash I disappear." 3. "I’ve burnt kingdoms, but I built this one." 4. "I’m extremely unfair but I don’t discriminate." 5. "Burn with me, yearn for me or freeze without me." 6. "Death hates me, but death can make me live forever." 7. "You have to hit a dog hard to knock me out of them." 8. "I'm the opposite of false but you’ll deceive everybody for me." 9. "I’m sometimes at weddings, often at funerals, mostly at births." 10. "While I live I cannot die, but you can kill me with a careless word." 11. "I’m responsible for a lot of failed marriages, and half the successful ones." 12. "If two both have me, they have everything. If one does, they don’t have much, but it’s better than nothing!"

“I am ex tremely sleepy. Yet where may I sleep?”

CLOSER LOOK A baby tiger with the head and the face of a twelve year old girl. Azure eyes. Coat striped in gold and burning copper. The Heart is broken, silver fracture lines run across her as if she were a carefully-repaired vase.

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

A shattered ring of blue fire rises over her head like a halo. Around her neck hangs a Tomb Key.

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

The Broken heart seems deeply, overwhelmingly tired.

BACKGROUND

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

The embodied spirit of the Heart of the Empress of Fire. She was replaced with a heart of Iron, whatever remained of the Fire Queen's passions went here, into this spirit which was locked in a spinster-bone cage and buried with her.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library

WANTS

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

To sleep. Which she can only do within the Fire Queen's chest. Also, to bite people cupid-style, to generally dick them about like a Cheshire cat.

R65 Sloth Nest

FEARS

Appendices

Being ignored. Being bored. Being trapped again in the Spinster-Bone Cage [R33]. If it leaves the PCs or is driven off it will be encountered again in [R2 Demon-Bone Sarcophagus].

Encounters

Dancing Automata

Armour: as chain & shield Hit Dice: 2 Hit Points: 10 Damage: 1pt bump, shove & shock Morale: Stat as: weak golem Endless Dance: whirls about in unending spasmodic movement, making it hard to interrupt. Shove: knocks someone d6 feet if it thumps into them. Shock: touching the Automata shocks for 1hp. A conductor, like water, increases this to 1d4. An insulating material negates the damage.

SOUND:

Sparks, crackles, electrical snaps, the whirr and buzzing of machinery and over it all a horrid staccato stepping and thudding, as if of a blind man dancing madly and careening off walls.

SIGHT:

An abstracted human form, like an artist's poseable model. Made from Verdigris-stained copper, corroded blue metal, ceramics and dried wood with strange bulbs of glass bulging from its back emitting irregular actinic light. The creature tries to dance, pirouette and spring, but the machines inside it grate and clatter horribly.

BACKGROUND:

A creation of better days with a finer cause. Zenbestefunkh Zor, one third of the tripartate marriage between the Queen of Fire and Kobi Kalasp, created the Automata as a gift, an attempt to amuse and perhaps to bridge the gap between Kobi and Himself. Kobi loved dance. The clothes, rings, mirrored room and fighting chains in the far west corner of the tomb are all memorials to Kobi, (the wierd blue metal device in the room of Red Reflections was another of Zenbestefunkh's creations). Though both Kobi and Zenbestefunkh were long, long gone before the Fire Queen grew old enough to begin making plans for her own tomb, their things and creations were buried with her, as if the memory of them followed her into death. The Automata are quite stupid and really not very good dancers at all, nor were then even when new. Hopefully it's the thought that counts.

Appendices

Encounters

SLIGHTLY ALIVE The Automata are not alive enough to be conscious or have souls but they are a bit more alive than is strictly necessary for a machine. The electical magics involved in their creation, along with residual energy from lighthing strikes on the surface above, and geneal ambient magic, means that one or two occasionally flicker to a state of semiactivation and dance around the Tomb before slumping to the earth. Hence they may be encountered by the PCs before they reach room [R47 Dancing Automata].

Demons!

▪ Can only perceive negative thoughts and urges. ▪ Bad liars. ▪ They are addicts. ▪ They hate each other. ▪ While still weak, they fear the sun. ▪ They are vulnerable to their own names.

The Tomb

With this army they will destroy everything and everyone in and around the Tomb

The Demons begin at 1hp. +1hp each minute they spend free in the tomb. Each hit against a fleshy foe transfers the hp to the Demon.

WEAKNESSES

The Body Field

The Demons will awaken and free their Worshippers (30 in total), this takes d4 turns. Then summon the Possessed Baboons (2d3 remain).

THEY GROW IN STRENGTH

Their Hit Dice grow in increments of 8 Hit Points. So a Demon with 1-8 Hit Points is a 1 HD creature, attacking with a +1 to-hit, one with 9-16 Hit Points is a 2HD creature attacking with a +2 to hit etc.

The Fiasco

THEIR AIM

Armour: as chain Hit Dice: see below Hit Points: see below Damage: 1d6 claw Morale: 7 Immune; Non-magical weapons, cold. Vulnerable; double damage from fire

HIT DICE

Introduction

Once this is done and they hit 80 hit points they will leave, teleporting direclty to Hell along with their worshipers.

DEFEATING THE DEMONS If the PCs act quickly and make use of allies, they may be able to defeat the Demons. If they are reduced to below Zero hp their masks remain. If the masks are smashed and/ or melted (the heat and light of the sun will do this), they are banished from this world and reincarnate in Hell where they must wait 99 years before returning to this reality. If the Demons are defeated the Demon-Posessed Baboons are returned to normal, but the DemonWorshippers remain.

ZERO TENTH-DECIMAL ENDLESS RECURSIONS Finds the pain of others hilarious and can gain pleasure no other way. Anyone who hears the demon's laughter must save vs magic or contract the same quality. Their laughter is also contagious.

TRIPLE-POINT STAR OF FEAR INACCESSIBLE

Can suck secret fears from people with a frozen kiss. The person thus affected then becomes an utterly sociopathic version of themselves, whose kiss has exactly the same effect.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library

HEXAFLORIC REPUGNANCE

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

Freezes children to death by looking at them. They rise as Zombie children under the demon's command, and also have the power to freeze children to death by looking at them.

R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Encounters

Demon-Possessed Baboons!

Armour: as chain Hit Dice: 3 Hit Points: 15 Damage: bite d8 Morale: Stat as: weakest demon Number Encountered: 1d3 Climbing: 3 in 6 (demons not skilled in this) Regenerates: 1d4 per round > Strong, fast, smart, sadistic and malicious

SOUND:

They whisper and titter, cackling and grunting at each other, weeping like beaten children and screeching like apes.

SIGHT:

Warped, bones and flesh distorted as if melted before swelling into taut asymmetrical muscle. Works of hideous and malicious art.

BACKGROUND: Some of the Baboons have become influenced by, the malicious intelligences bound in [R18 Ice Demons]. Wensley may be able to hold them back for a moment as the still-loyal Baboon soul writes within them.

Encounters

DEMON MANIPULATION:

If it looks like the Possessed Baboons are going to be killed, the Ice Demons will force the Baboons to whisper;

“No, you mu st not find the sacred blade!” or

“Only shattering the ma sk s can de stroy u s, you shall not reach them!” All just empty lies meant to draw the PCs to the Ice Demons.

Demon Worshippers DEMON WORSHIPPER

Introduction The Fiasco

UP & ABOUT: The disturbance of the Tomb has

Armour: unarmoured Hit Dice: 2 Hit Points: 10 Damage: 1d6 bite or strangle, soul-poison on a crit. Morale: 10 (see ‘Turning’) Speed; very slow. Stat as: Zombie Turning: Will not flee but can be held at the boundary of the Cleric's power.

awoken the Ice Demons who have mustered enough power to awaken one or two of their worshippers. They may be encountered wandering the tomb. There are no more than 30 Demon-Worshippers in total.

DEMON WORSHIPPER'S GHOST! Armour: unarmoured Hit Dice: 1 Hit Points: 1 Damage: age-touch 1d4 years Morale: 5 Stat as: weak ghost

SMELL:

Something ghastly and rotting, Like a barrel holding salted meat kept in the sun.

SOUND:

An uneven tapping, dragging and wet sliding, with a subvocal “guh … guh … guh”

SIGHT: A vile, mummified, mutilated, frozen corpse, torn

Intangible: Cannot be hurt by non-magical weapons.

ON DEATH:

Turning: no special rules.

1-4 Hell Dive, 5 Ghost Release, 6 Soul Poison.

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Bog mummy browned and hollowed. Famine corpse with sunken eyes. Slender, anguished prisoner.

Mutilation

R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

6. Soul Poison: The body falls and necrotises so quickly it bursts. Those within 6ft must save to leap aside or be cursed by the contact. Effects: 1d0; 1. Necrotic smell, 2. Cannibal desires, 3. Feet slowly mutate into hooves, 4. Loathing of sacred places & things, 5. Inverted pleasure/ disgust responses, 6. Worms germinate endlessly in sinuses, 7. Slowly grow misaligned, fucked-up looking horns, 8. Loathing of beauty & youth, arousal at the grotesque, 9. Physical retching disgust at human affection and care, 10. Hears constant crawling whisper, drugs and drink remove temporarily. Type

Tomb Rooms

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

5. Ghost Release: physical death has only released the creature's horrific soul as a spirit! (See ‘Demon-Worshiper's Ghost’.).

Encounters

R13-R16 Reductors Halls

Hell Dive: Visible to Magic-Users and cleric. The vile soul plunges like a bird into the earth in a comet-tail of sick iridescence. Far below, a spot of pale fire blooms in the deeps as hell opens its gates to recive them.

D10

The Tomb

R9-R12 Halls of Ash

Scary: Causes a morale test for NPCs each turn it is around.

free from some unknown fastening, moving and crawling as if still alive!!! The creature's flesh is thawing out! It leaves a terrible smear-trail of melted flesh! (See table below for details).

The Body Field

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

Body

Blinded with silver nails.

Child.

Blinded with ancient seals.

Pregnant woman.

Eyes stitched shut. Pierced lips locked together.

Woman carrying bundle of mummified children.

Jaws nailed shut.

Paired bodies tied together.

Head caged.

Paired bodies tied together.

Lungs removed through chest.

Adult male.

Voicebox removed through throat.

Adult male.

Tongue removed.

Adult female.

Lungs, throat and tongue removed.

Adult female.

R57-R60 Library

Cultural Background

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

Steppe Nomad tattooed with shapes of altered beasts.

R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

City dweller, wearing silk robes.

A cursed priest of Hell, blinded with silver pins, head caged, tongue removed!

Encounters

Drusilla Machete

Armour: as Chain & Shield Hit Dice: 7 Hit Points: 30 Damage: The Kraken's Arm 1d6+1, magical, four attack per round. Morale: 11 Stat as: adaptable Lvl 7 fighter/thief Extra Action: In the action economy, so long as it does no direct damage, Drusilla can perform one extra standard action. Expert Adventurer: 5 in 6. Drusilla can climb, notice disarm and rig traps, appraise items, pick locks, hide, manipulate the environment, hurl her grapple and perform other ‘classic’ adventuring actions in a highly effective manner.

FIRST GLANCE: Lantern hanging from a round shield. A Figure in shadow behind the shield. A bare blade gleams like a moon. Slight metal-squeaks as the lantern swings.

“Name yourself.” CLOSER LOOK:

A stocky, strong-looking woman. Beat-up clothes. Close helmet, breastplate and a broken nose. Drusilla looks like she should be throwing someone down some stairs. Her shield and breastplate are both marked with the sign of the Kraken, long faded and chipped with battle-scars.

BACKGROUND: A professional “adventurer” and hard-nosed combatant. Her day is not going well. The double-cross she planned went horribly wrong, all of her friends are dead and she is out for revenge. Flinty, driven, usually likeable and only mildly treacherous, Machete was very fond of Em’a Void and ambivalent about everyone else.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

WANTS: THE PLANS, (held by Bonvive). To kill Zegzor

R57-R60 Library

FEARS:

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

Sapreciept. To complete the Heist. Falling apart due to grief as the adrenaline

wears off.

R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Encounters

ON MEETING THE PCS Make them do what she wants, get them out of the way, or kill them. Drusilla is not subtle. Her method of getting people to do what she wants is to make them do what she wants. Since all of her friends are dead, she would not be above “recruiting” a new crew to complete the heist. And she would definitely regard it as her crew.

ON HER;

Grappling hook with 5 ft of chain followed by rope, grease, flour (invisible beings), ball bearings, caltrops, holy water X 2, oil, water, rations, shield, dagger, lantern, wooden metal-rimmed circular shield, The Kraken's Arm, small valueless locket with the face of Em’a Void.

THE KRAKEN’S ARM Short Sabre. Tentacle etched down blade on both sides. Made to seem single-edged but has a disguised second edge on the inside curve of the blade. Wielder has four attacks per round. Counts as magical.

Flamethrower Skeleton

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field

Armour: as plate Hit Dice: 1 Hit Points: 6 Damage: 1d6 hooks, 1d6 fire Morale: Stat as: armoured undead Guardian: can sense evil and will prioritise supernaturally evil creatures as targets, if present.

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash

SOUND: Slow regular near-military marching of bony feet. SIGHT:

R13-R16 Reductors Halls

An ancient fire-blackened skeleton wearing ritual hardwood armour caked with soot. Its mouth open as if screaming. Hooked blades strapped to each wrist. It lurches directly towards whatever living being it can sense! (Unless there is supernatural evil about).

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

BACKGROUND:Made from the strongest and bravest

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

of the Fire Queen's fallen soldiers in her Final Battle. They were intended to prevent any worshippers of the Ice Demons from reaching them, or should that fail, to impede the Ice Demons themselves in their escape. Their chemical flamethrower apparatus were devised specifically as a counter to that threat.

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine

The incursion of the Spectral Demon destroyed most of them before they could do anything. Ten remain sleeping in [R20 Skeletal Mess].

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

The breaching of the Tomb has half-woken the Ice Demons and so one or two Skeletons may have arisen in turn and may be encountered randomly. The rest will not wake unless something opens the door to the Ice Demons' prison, in which case all will awaken over roughly five minutes.

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

Though they will prioratise supernaturally evil creatures, the Skeletons will ultimately try to destroy anything they find invading the tomb, or trying to escape it.

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

EXAMINATION:

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

A tube or spout runs from each skeleton mouth down into their ribcage. Inside the ribs, two linked ceramic jars inside each skeleton chest. Breaking the seal between the jars allows the fluids to leak in which case they erupt as sticky napalm.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

MECHANICS:

This thing is designed to grab onto people with its hooked limbs and breath chemical fire directly into their faces.

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

It only has one burst of fire and after that is a relatively mediocre opponent, though its heavy armour gives it more protection than your average skeleton.

R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Encounters

Navidorine

Armour: as Plate & Shield Hit Dice: 2 Hit Points: 1 Damage: 1hp scratch & charm Morale: 7 Stat as: dryad Charm: target regards Navidorine as a close and valued friend.

BACKGROUND: This is Navidorine, a Salt Dryad,

CLOSER LOOK:Her eyes sparkle like broken geodes.

Handmaid of the Queen of Fire. She is patient, polite, judgemental and kind. Though she is scrupulously considerate she is much more likely to trust people who are; attractive, courteous and well-dressed. For every one of these things that they are not, PC’s will need to make an extra effort of persuasion in order to receive anything more than a polite but cold response.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

WANTS:

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

She cannot leave physically without her Black Diamond Heart and does not know where it is, though it must be hidden somewhere in the Tomb. (It is part of the Obsidian Assassin).

Appendices

She is more likely to be encountered in rooms R5 to R8, the ‘Halls of Salt’. In this area she can control the Salt-Ivy which encrusts this place.

“I do hope you will excu se me…”

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

R65 Sloth Nest

HER “BOUDOIR”:

of layered crystal stained with rose and burgundy, running with late-sunset shades like roses in half-darkness, formed into a female shape and lit by a necklace of phospherescent orbs.

She wears a necklace of burning phosphorous gems arranged around a Tomb Key, and a depleted uranium robe that curls around her like smooth silk.

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

Tomb Key, phosphorous necklace, uranium robe. Details on their nature and value in the Treasure Totals Appendix.

FIRST GLANCE: Soft colour gleams, spikes and shards

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

R57-R60 Library

ON HER;

On Death: all the Salt-Ivy will slowly crumble. This will release the huge stone hanging through the roof in [R6 Blood & Salt] and make all of the Ivy-infested areas unstable.

Curtseys –

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

An honourable way to leave the Tomb and return to the Veins of the Earth.

Navidorine is an ethical being, even should she posess the heart, she must believe that leaving is in some way justified and reasonable before she does so.

FEARS:

Being impolite. Tolerating riffraff. Letting the prisoners escape. Failing in her duty, but more than that, being seen to fail in her duty.

“I thought..”

but..

but then again..

I heard something in the library

you must be very... tired

perhaps you could aid me in leaving this place.

someone would be coming to get me eventually

you seem to be in some distress

dissolving is, of course, quite unpleasant but I am rather tired of the environment.

It had been a long while

perhaps you are friends of the Queen?

I myself am not a criminal, or a child of Drythelm, and have begun to regret my initial enthusiasm in coming here.

I heard a terrible noise above

it could be you are from the King?

what if that terrible ‘thing’ breaks through from the library?

One of those awful people had escaped

you have come about the poor child?

oh I could not stand to look upon her body again! Is it much changed?

The queen's husband had come

it is rather odd that you, an entirely living (I presume) person, be here in the, one might call it.. “tomb”. That you might be here in the “tomb” of a dead queen...

you do not intend to release that horrid Baron Kaust?

ON MEETING THE PCS: If the PCs played through Deep Carbon Observatory and encountered the Salt Dryads there, Navidorine will have heard of them and her response to the PCs will be based on their encounter with the Dryads previously.

Salt-Ivy: as an action Navidorine can cause the ivy to tangle or expose areas, lift or drop things etc, and animate the Ivy as up to to eight limbs, [1HD, 1hp, d3 damage, human strength]. The Ivy is slow, its effects come last in initiative.

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

Encounters

Obsidian Assassin Armour: as Chain Hit Dice: 3 Hit Points: 15 Damage: Obsidian Claws d6 Morale: 7 Stat as: stealthy golem Stealth: 5 in 6 Backstab: +10 to hit x3 damage. Climb: Moves across stone walls and ceilings as if they were the floor. Immunities: Half damage edged weapon, double damage blunt. Immune to any effect that damages flesh but not stone.

FORMS Can change between Stolen Image, Mirror Form and Man-of-Shards as a single action.

STOLEN IMAGE FIRST GLANCE;

a silent figure, gesturing. They may seem wounded. Looks like; Someone you were searching for or 1. Wensley Shrive, 2. Anaracket Bonvive, 3. Zegzor Sapreciept, 4. Drusilla Machete, 5-6. A Baboon.

SECOND LOOK; They make signs for silence, holding their finger to their lips and beckoning. They are not just quiet, they are completely soundless. They seem injured. They beckon you as if to reveal some secret.

Introduction The Fiasco

POWERS: The mirror can mimic the image of whomever has looked into its surface. This image is mute. Its fidelity is high. The Assassin is a good physical actor and can mimic the stance, walk, actions and attitude of its stolen image. They will seem exactly as they were when they looked into the mirror, and be holding whatever objects they were holding at that time.

TACTICS: It lies in wait as a mirror, hoping to catch the image of an invader. Once its target has passed on it will follow and observe, waiting until the group has separated and use one of its stolen images to lure someone away.

BACKGROUND:

FIRST GLANCE;

a constellation of gleaming black fragments drifting like smoke.

CLOSER LOOK;

A marionette of obsidian shards, matte black on one side, mirror on the obverse, each touching another, rotating smoothly and silently, weaving like shuffled cards. The hands fracture-open to razor obsidian claws.

R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

The heart of Navidorine, the Salt Dryad, is incorporated into the obsidian shards. It could be wrenched out or pickpocketed by a subtle hand.

R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

If the Assassin is destroyed the heart will fall to the ground with the obsidian shards. This may not be

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

MAN-OF-SHARDS is webbed with hairline cracks. They split like angular mouths. The image fractures, it was no more than a flat plane, then….

Tomb Rooms

THE BLACK DIAMOND HEART

A man-sized oval obsidian mirror set flat against the wall. (Was this here before?)

TRANSFORMATION: the silent image

Encounters

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

FIRST GLANCE;

For those who meet their own eyes in the reflection, their mirror-self seems to be a fraction of a second slower than it should be. The mirror has no frame. Very close inspection reveals almost indiscernible hairline cracks webbed across its surface.

The Tomb

An elemental bound as a guardian for the tomb. It will hunt and destroy any invaders. The spell defining and controlling it is beneath the pillow in [R2 Demon-Bone Sarcophagus].

MIRROR FORM

CLOSER LOOK;

The Body Field

entirely obvious; both are black and shiny and the tomb is dark. Thieves will spot it.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

Whomever holds the heart may command, or free, Navidorine.

R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Thieves & Observant PCs: one of these shards isn’t Obsidian at all, its some kind of black gem.

Encounters

Protection Men

Armour: as Plate (Dex) Hit Dice: 7 Hit Points: 21 Damage: Machete d6+2 Morale: 11 Stat as: Assassin Stealth: 5 in 6 Climb: 5 in 6 Backstab: x3 Resistances: illusion and magical deception. Block: 4 in 6 chance of blocking one closecombat blow per round. On a successful block immediately roll a standard attack against the blocked opponent and on a hit, select one of the following effects; Riposte - standard weapon damage. Disarm - opponent's weapon knocked away, or taken. Break - opponent's weapon destroyed. Throw - opponent grappled and thrown, usually into another opponent or a dangerous environmental element.

FIRST GLANCE: A black figure. Movement fast but

slightly off, staccato body rhythm, head movement looks like an afterthought.

CLOSER LOOK: Face invisible within the hood. Glimpses of red-stained teeth. Breath stinks of rust, face smells of iron.

VOICE: From throat not mouth, curl back your lips from your teeth to speak. Short abrupt sentences. Single words. No affirmations. No guarantees.

“..bRing. mE. bON-vIve. dhe. Key.” (Will never make an absolute contract, instead dealing in inference and non-specific threat. So not “I will kill you”, but “then you die here”.)

WANTS: The Heist Plans. The Glass Key. Kill Bonvive. Kill all witnesses. Kill anything that gets in the way.

TACTICS: Stay hidden, track the PCs till he knows what

they are doing. Use them to get close to or betray Bonvive. Offer alliance or safe passage. Kidnap a vulnerable member. Bribe with tomb treasures or other materiel. He can climb easily where walls meet, perching like a spider in the corner of the room.

ON HIM;

Machete, Knife, Crossbow, Bolas, 3 White Bolts of Dispellment, 1 Low-light hood. 1 Application of blue blood-dust. Water, 1 ration, flexible leather armour. Bonsai Explosion Six; an orb of light like the expanding wave front of a spherical shock blast frozen in the air and cool to the touch, is effectively a slow Phosphor Grenade, (see [R57 Bonsai Explosions]). In his chest; a Caustic Heart.

Encounters

THE SECRET OF THE PROTECTION MEN Few know who or what “Protection Men” are. Most assume them mercenaries made anonymous by their obscuring hoods. They are the product of the Company's “Night Shift”, a department which does high-skill, high-risk and highly secret work. Work so secret that those who do it give up any rights to their memories of what the work itself is. All they remember is entering a room, being given a drink and shown a pattern on the wall, then leaving to find time passed and their body worn. They are paid, either in company scrip, or debt reduction, and go about their day. What happens is this; after viewing the pattern they are strapped to a table, their face peeled off and preserved, while a hole is cut in their torso just under the ribs. Specialists reach into the chest cavity from below and rip out the heart, which is preserved. The subject usually dies for a minute or two while the new, artificial, heart is inserted and locates its attachments. The subject usually resists. Especially if this is not the first time they have worked the “Night Shift”. The Caustic Heart inserted into the chest cavity activates and revives the employee. The Heart, a device of steel, glass and alchemy, burbles and tics. It annihilates most of the recipient's higher emotions, though it leaves a capacity for some more useful negative states, like wrath. The employee's memories are retained, though these now mean nothing to them. They no longer feel stress or fear. They are entirely focused on whatever task is set before them. They become vectors for the Company'srightly-stated authority, its charter is inscribed upon their heart and provides their only, and absolute, value system. They are now a Protection Man. Protection Men have rust-red teeth and breath out an iron scent which can decay metal. Their faces are black scabs. The Caustic Heart makes them resistant to illusion and magical tricks. It increases their applied strength by removing the body's limits and their endurance by removing psychological restraint. It cannot create raw intelligence but does massively increase focus. The black hoods used by the Protection Men provide lowlight vision and wreath their faces in deep shadow. Their ruined features are revealed only to cause terror. Should the employee complete their contract to the Company's satisfaction, they will be returned to the chamber after their term is up. The process of re-attaching face and heart, and healing the subject are expensive, but a contract is a contract. Most subjects die again physically for a minute or so during this process. Once the subject's heart is replaced, and understanding of what they have done returns, they usually become resistant. Protection Men are on hand to ensure compliance. Once physically whole they are returned to the chamber, shown the pattern and administered the second drink. This annihilates any memories between the two near-identical events of pattern-showing. The subject leaves and is paid, commended on their good work and reminded of their contractual secrecy, unless they become aware of other potential “Night Shift” employees, in which case they may recommend the program to them.

Pyroclastic Guardian Armour: unarmoured (see ‘weaknesses’ below) Hit Dice: 5 Hit Points: 25 Damage: swallow & slow digestion Morale: 8

SWALLOW ATTACK A standard attack. 1hp damage per turn to any swallowed individual. Once the target is swallowed the Guardian will retreat to the ashes of the fire in [R12 Pyroclastic Trap], or if it is disturbed there, to [R2 Demon-Bone Sarcophagus]. (It takes the Guardian about a minute to swoop through the Tomb back to a resting place.) There it will settle to the ground like a pile of fat black stinking pigs and transform to acidic ash, digesting the swallowed individual, killing them slowly and transforming them into a Pompei-mummy.

Introduction The Fiasco

ENCOUNTERING THE PYROCLASTIC GUARDIAN

The Body Field The Tomb Encounters

Once active, the guardian appears on a number of Encounter Charts, or if you desire a greater challenge or are just frustrated that the players were dumb enough to trigger it, you can count down from its last swallowed meal. Once that individual is dead, the guardian begins to hunt again and heads straight for the nearest living thing so feel free to make it a non-random encounter.

BACKGROUND: A simple and predatory elemental spirit in the form of a huge and murderous cloud of boiling Ash, the Guardian just really enjoys hunting and digesting mortal flesh. Only setting off this trap will free and activate the Guardian. If it is rolled as a possible encounter but the trap has not been activated, then ignore.

Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

Once it settles and transforms; 2d6 damage per turn to a swallowed being.

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

Once an individual is dead, the Guardian will move from its resting place and begin hunting in the Tomb, moving directly towards whatever living thing is closest.

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

ABILITIES

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

▪ Tomb Doors Open for the Guardian ▪ Can fly ▪ Immune to non-magical weapons.

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

WEAKNESSES ▪ Cold. Will avoid & suffers d6 damage if forced to endure it.

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

▪ Basic antimagic.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

▪ Magical weapons. ▪ Wind. ▪ Dispersal. ▪ Separation by, for instance, snapping shut doors while it is half-way through.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

SMELL: A distinctive rotten egg acidic smell arrives a

R57-R60 Library

few seconds before it does and persists afterwards.

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

SOUND: Only a slight hissing, like white noise or tyres on tarmac.

R65 Sloth Nest

SIGHT:

A billowing black cloud of midnight horror with the idiot face of a gawping monster pressed into the shifting gas as if moulded awkwardly from clay. The moronic fearures seem happy, as if they are enjoying this.

Appendices

Encounters

Quicksilver Statues

Armour: as unarmoured Hit Dice: 1 Hit Points: 1 Damage: Morale: Stat as: clumsy golem These golem all belong in [R60 Quickilver Masque]. The opening of the tomb and half-awakening of the Ice Demons may have activated one or two of them, and set them wandering about the place. The statues are largely-harmless. Persistent and irritating, outside their masque they move like sleepwalkers or drugged actors playing nobles and feed off attention, following and gesturing at anyone who pays attention to them. Unless they tip and smash, emptying mercury they contain everywhere.

FIRST GLANCE: A silver person shining in the lamplight. CLOSER LOOK: Living mercury sliced into shards and arranged into a human shape. Near-abstract. (A modern mind would say they looked like deliberately jagged lowpoly digital sculpts).

SPECIFIC STATUES 1. A daring, beautiful, imperious young woman wearing a crown and armed with a macahuitl. 2. A near middle-aged man, cracks run though his flesh like the wood of fire-blackened trees. He uses a slender war hammer as a walking stick. 3. A slightly pompous, young man, half-face mask set around one eye, a circular sun in the centre of his chest, wearing jagged feathers. 4. No mask, indiscernible gender impudent face, light step and open manner. Halo like a candleflame.. 5. Teenage girl, half-face mask, hair worked into tight ropes. 6. Teenage girl, half-face demon mask lower body shifting as if she were billowing in an unseen wind. 7. Teenage girl, no mask, armed with a spear, confident princely stride and high head.

STATUES TIPPING The statues are unsteady and must move slowly. If they fall they will smash open, releasing the mercury within. ▪ All within 6ft or the direction of flow, test STR or fall... ▪ Test DEX to walk across the Quicksilver. ▪ The Quicksilver forms a mirror of rippling liquid. The effects of any light source will be increased. ▪ The Quicksilver seeps into any tunnels beneath the area. Mark this on your map.

Encounters

BACKGROUND: These are statues of the House of Zor, the family of Zenbestefunkh, Artificer and Spouse of the Queen of Fire, created by him from memory. If the PCs reach the ‘Palaces of Fire’ they will encounter some of these individual in the flesh.

Reductor

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

Armour: as unarmoured (see ‘immunities’) Hit Dice: 3 Hit Points: 12 Damage: 1d3 or ‘Soul Hook’ if both attacks hit. Morale: 7 Stat as: ghost or wraith Soul-Hooking Attack: She makes two attacks. If both hit, she hooks out the soul of her victim - dragged out like a ghost of fine fabric, balls it up like a spider and swings off with it, taking it to [R15 Urns].

R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

IMMUNITIES Can only be directly harmed by magical weapons, or magic itself. If reduced to zero hp she re-incorporates in her sarcophagus and must gather herself for an hour before she can emerge again.

VULNERABILITIES If her body is destroyed or if her ghost, or corpse touches the ground, she falls through it, down into a black pit which leads all the way to hell. Reductor can phase though floors and walls but she cannot float and must have a stable hold on a solid wall, ceiling, or something above the earth. The floor or walls must be architecturally stable for Reductor to risk her ‘Soul Hook’ attack. Around unstable structures she will hang by three limbs or even all four, to make certain she does not fall.

SOUND: ‘Plink plink plink’ and a slight tapping sound as her hooked limbs phase through and bite on to walls and ceilings.

HER WHISPERS:

Whispers in a ancient language, like someone making calming sounds for a nervous animal or someone about to perform an operation on a child;

“Now-now, it will all be over soon.” LANGUAGE If any party member can speak the Language of Fire, or the Language of the Dam-Builders, or has any artefacts of the Dam-Builders from DCO then Reductor will be much more interested in them and may even try to converse with them. (Though she still plans to prevent anyone leaving the tomb.)

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

FIRST GLANCE: A figure with hooked limbs and a black and silver face crawls along the ceiling, its long hair hanging down.

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

CLOSER LOOK: A ghost! A woman

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

curved by great age, a mask of silver and onyx, her hands and feet replaced by hooks. Around her neck she wears the medallion of a flensed face cut from red pearl. She climbs on ghost hooks across ceilings and walls, phasing through walls easily but always avoiding the floor.

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

TREASURE If Reductor's ghost is defeated then all her items seem to disappear with her. However, they can still be recovered from her body in [R13 Reductor]. If her spirit is destroyed then nothing will prevent the PCs taking what they wish from her corpse.

BACKGROUND: Her actual name is Rohtzukgambeh, (Roh-Tzuk-Gam-Beh), a sorceress from an ancient civilisation. An expert in mummification and various forms of necromancy, Roh-Tzuk-Gam-Beh was a complex women and briefly, the terror of the world. Her various crimes made the earth itself curse her. Should she ever touch it, it shall open up and drop her down to Hell. After her defeat by the Fire Queen, Roh-Tzuk-Gam-Beh made a deal that she should rest ever-suspended in a place hidden from all. She wants more than anything that her body be undisturbed forever, therefore no soul or being can be allowed to leave the Tomb to speak of it.

Encounters

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Second Sloth!!!

Armour: as Leather Hit Dice: 5 Hit Points: 30 Damage: d6/d6 claws Morale: 9 Stat as: cave bear

FILLS SLOTH TUNNELS It's exactly the size of the tunnels – there is no way around it.

HURLS TARGETS ABOUT On a successful hit the target will be hurled through the air.

BREAKS THROUGH WALLS AND FLOORS The Sloth is large enough to smash through walls that have already suffered damage and can burst up out of floors if there are tunnels below.

Encounters

FIRST GLANCE:

That’s weird, it looks like the wall

is moving…

CLOSER LOOK:

GASP! THERE WERE TWO HYPER-SLOTHS!! EVEN THOUGH THE EVIDENCE SUGGESTED THERE WAS ONLY ONE!!! THIS ONE ALSO LOOKS PRETTY PISSED OFF!! IS IT TIME FOR A HOLLYWOOD-SYLE SLOTH-BATTLE IN THE CLOSED CONFINES OF THE TOMB EVEN THOUGH ANIMAL BEHAVIOUR MIGHT SUGGEST IT TO BE UNLIKELY? I GUESS IT IS???!?!?!

WANTS: REVENGE!!!

Tooth-Tooth Armour: as Leather (dex) Hit Dice: 3 Hit Points: 15 Damage: bite 1d6 or weapon Morale: 10 Stat as: Baboon Climbing: no roll required

Introduction The Fiasco

BACKGROUND:

An Ape of accomplishment, focus and sheer fucking will, Tooth-Tooth is a simple creature with simple needs.

The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms

WANTS: FIND BOSS.

R1-R4 Lower Floor

FEARS: ???????

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

SMART

MEETING THE PCS

Speech, reasoning, and a sense of honour too! Does he not bleed?

Tooth-Tooth is not a complicated Ape. Not Boss? Where Boss? Follow.

FIRST GLANCE:

In darkness, a beast! A magnificent Baboon! Holy shit look at those teeth.

R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

“Bos s? No Bos s. Mu st. Find. Bos s.”

Encounters

Tiny Knights

Armour: as Leather Hit Dice: 1 HD per 100 Knights Hit Points: 5 or 1d8 per 100 Knights Damage: 1d4 (situational) Morale: 11 Stat as: ant swarm Ant Speed: Can only do damage if they are able to swarm up a body and commit a simultaneous attack. Resistant: 1/2 damage from edges, points. Vulnerable: area affect weapons. Climbing: no roll required, through they are slow. Carrying Capacity: equivalent to one human per 100. Fighting the Knights; Every 100 knights working in unison is equivalent to roughly a 1 HD creature. The main tactic of the Knights is to swarm up the legs and limbs of their assailant, covering them all over. They then give a great cry and drive in their swords.

FIRST GLANCE: CLOSER LOOK:

100 tiny toy-sized knights in close formation. Each lit from within like a small spark inside a tiny lantern. They move and shift, turn towards any nearby fire and reach for it with their small limbs.

BACKGROUND:

Toys of of Zenbestefunkh Zor, artificer and Spouse of the Queen of Fire, these were stored in [R45 Small Soldiers], and are usually activated only by fire. The half-awakening of the Ice Demons, or the presence of other Tomb Invaders, may have randomly awoken a small century of Tiny Knights who march and battle through the Tomb's corridors in a parody of the warfare they were made to simulate.

COMMUNICATION

A CHALLENGE! Made to simulate war, the Knights are likely to attack whatever “Giants” they find. Yet they are still honourable warriors and will give a great cry before they boldly charge forth!

The knights speak and understand the language of fire, though within that they comprehend only heroic cliches; “Forth my brothers!” “To death and damnation!” They will take honourable orders given by honourable individuals in that tongue.

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

1-3; Blue Knights Gunmetal-blue full plate with a face mask like the features of an ant.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library

4-6; Red Knights Dusky red plate with a simple abstracted faces.

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest

Blue knights will not work with red knights, or visa versa. They will gather in separate groups, must be ordered separately and will refuse to perform the same task in unison.

Appendices

Like a gridwork of embers cast

across the tiles.

Encounters

Wensley Shrive Armour: as Leather Hit Dice: 3 Hit Points: 24 (luck) Damage: d6 machete or dagger, or Wand of Bees! Morale: 7 Stat as: thief Lucky/Cunning: Wensley's high HP are a function of fortune and a ratlike survival capacity rather than physical toughness. Wand of Bees: Fires bees in a cone 10 feet long and three wide. 1d6 damage & targets takes 1hp damage per round while they run around and flail at the angry bees. Save vs breath each round, once three of these saves made the effect ends.

FIRST GLANCE:

The spot-light of a small bullseye lantern moves across the wall.

“Hold, ruffian! Step back! I wield a Wand of Bees!”

Introduction The Fiasco

FEARS:

Zegzor Sapreciept, the Security Team, and especially the Protection-Men. Wensley knows who ‘Protection’ are and what they do.

RULER OF BABOONS

R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

BACKGROUND:

Despite his decades of experience and sharp mind for figures, Wensley is surprisingly gauche. One of nature's eternal innocents he knows he is a dangerously average man, in way over his head. If able to calm down and think, he will work out that something other than the obvious has gone wrong here.

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

TALKS A lot about his “hidden convoy”. This is

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

deliberate, he wants people to know it exists. The nature of the magic protecting it means only those actively searching for it will be unable to find it so by encouraging others to search for it he is protecting it.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

WANTS:

Find “Tooth-Tooth”, get to the convoy and run. But if he realises there is treasure in the tomb he may change his ideas. He is quite greedy…. (Wensley will tend to approve of people who are good to ToothTooth, and disapprove of those who are not).

An Ape

“BABOONS”

Can talk to Apes, advantage on CHA rolls when doing so.

A CRAB

“ISOPODS”

Can talk to Isopods. Advantage on CHA rolls when doing so.

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

A travelworn man in a long coat. Machete on his belt. Lantern in one hand, wooden wand in the other. Three masks around his neck.

Can order the glass girls.

R13-R16 Reductors Halls

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

CLOSER LOOK:

“CARGO”

R1-R4 Lower Floor

R9-R12 Halls of Ash

Machete, dagger, water, basic rations, small bullseye lantern, oil, Blue Monocle, Wand of Bees, contract, three masks. Blue Monocle: If someone wearing this monocle hides an object in a reasonably sane hiding place, no-one deliberately looking for those kinds of objects will be able to find it. [Someone wearing ths will find his Convoy], Wand of Bees: plain wood with a small carved bee as the tip. d4 charges left.

You shall never find my hidden convoy!”

A King

Tomb Rooms

ON HIM;

“You shall not find it !

Power of the wearer

Encounters

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

for my hidden convoy hmmmmm?”

Writing

The Tomb

The more Backup Baboons they encounter, the more potent his forces will become, and the greater his ambitions…

“No doubt you have searched

Mask

The Body Field

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Encounters

Zegzor Sapreciept

Armour: as Plate Hit Dice: 2 Hit Points: 16 Damage: d6 club Morale: 9 Stat as: meat & potatoes fighting man TOUGH: Zegzor has survived The Zone (see next book) for his entire life. Though mildly stupid he is physically and mentally tougher than he looks. He is not smarter than he looks. In fact he is exactly as smart as he looks.

FIRST GLANCE: The golden shifting whirling glow of fireflies moving behind translucent paper. A lumpen man, firefly lantern in one hand, the other held out before him in a fist. That hand is bare but for a black Onyx ring.

“Freeze! Un safe and Unrea sonable! You’re under arre st !” (clearly terrified ) CLOSER LOOK:

A slightly pompous, cop-like middle aged man with faded debt-parole tattoos along his collarbone.

BACKGROUND:

After years as a Security Guard Zegzor has been promoted to Sergeant of his own Squad. As his first action he tracked a group of Maroons on some strange mission outside the Zone, an unusually subtle and imaginative act for a Patrol Sergeant. This has all gone terribly wrong.

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

WANTS: Find and arrest the Man with the Masks, and

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

If any of his squad still live, Sapreciept will try to protect them.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

If given time to think he will start to remember more; hmm there are empty ruins in the Zone a little like this. Any new discoveries should be reported immediately!

R57-R60 Library

ON HIM; Cloudgrave Club, hardwood armour & helm,

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

the Maroons.

water, rations, Firefly Lantern, Cyclone Ring. Pencil. Notebook with recent events (observing and chasing terrorists, use of cyclone ring 1 lightning, 1 fog, sad deaths of squad, names; Vaguebab Stiltverify, Tatend Flygnite, Empichoo Slothcred, Saess Rickretch, Uniave Bondfear, Ktimote Smokedrink, Moman Spiderscrabble, Bachthanum Goadbust, Zoant Debtequity,are struck out, "They died as heroes!", this page stained with tears.

Encounters

THE CYCLONE RING His has 15 charges left. Create Water = 1 charge. Make Fog = 1 + charges. Flight = 5+ charges. Lightning Bolt = 5 charges Create Water: Creates a powerful stream of water for one round. Range 20ft. Does d4 non-lethal damage and pushes the target back the same number of feet. If fired at an individual, it always hits, if fired at a closely-arranged group, each must save breath or suffer the full effect. Wall of Fog: Creates a volume of fog which obscures all vision in whatever shape the caster prefers. 6ft cube per charge used. Flight: 5 Charges per 30 seconds - The caster or target within 50ft is bourne upwards by raging winds. An unwilling target can save to avoid this. Lightning Bolt: A bolt of lightning leaps from the ring and travels until it hits something that will earth it. 5d8 damage.

Zoetrope Men Armour: unarmoured Hit Dice: 1 Hit Points: 1 Damage: 1d3 Morale: Stat as: illusion These creatures are projections created by the magical zoetrope in [R59 Projection Room]. They are a litle brighter than reality, totally silent and perform differing semi-automatic actions depending on which type of projection is encountered. If physically interacted with, they crack, blotch and stutter in and out of existence, mime terrible pain, as if someone noticing a missing limb for the first time, become horrified and disappear.

Introduction The Fiasco

ACTION - A graceful healer. The Courtesan will act with deep sympathy and care. She is the only projection that will actively reach out to touch the PCs. If she sees anyone wounded or hurt she acts with grave sincerity and goes to hold them. This restores 1hp. Then the same cracking, blotching, pain and disappearance takes place.

BACKGROUND: Originally part of a range of creations intended to show people from this reality glimpses of life on the Plain of Fire. The Ash Steward, Delft-Sentinel and Courtesan, all typical members of the “servile classes” of Fire Noble Culture, are all that remain semi-active.

RANDOM DISAPPEAREANCE: A Zoetrope Man has a 1 in 4 chance of disappearing each turn.

ONE - ASH STEWARD Something like a tall Secretary Bird, almost human-height, with a long, straight beak and expressive eyes. Grey in colour and of fuzzy substance. One leg crooks to work as a hand. (Like Dapfilier, if he has been encountered.)

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

ACTION - A friendly butler. If those present are obviously trying to accomlish something, the Steward will try to help them, indicating by mime, guiding them to where the knowledge they need may be, or if possible by any other purely-visual behviour.

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

TWO - DELFT-SENTINEL

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

A all androgynous woman dressed in a late Victorian style with blank and terrifyingly intense eyes, her clothes and flesh patterned in leaping tigers. A sheathed sword, her hand upon the pommel. (Like ‘Cornflower’.)

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

ACTION - A dangerous guard. The Sentinel will appear protecting or defending a door, passage or object. It doesn’t matter which one. She will gesture fiercely and give every appearance that she will defend this thing to the death.

R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

THREE - CANDLELIGHT COURTESAN A golden woman made of light, her eyes are like the dark core of a candleflame expanding in zero-gravity. Her body a moving latticework of golden light like the crossing bars of elegant lanterns.

Encounters

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Armour: as Plate (armour and DEX) Hit Dice: 5 Hit Points: 21 Damage: d8 Macahuitl, d6 Javelins Morale: 11 Stat as: acrobatic fighter & duellist Fast: If nothing interferes they will win initiative. Zomi can outrun most people. Athletic: Zomi has an extra movement action which they can use to leap, roll, tumble, dash etc. Honourable: Always honours a duel. Never lies or cheats. Is shocked and disgusted by those who do.

FIRST GLANCE:

Fire flickers. A pungent resinous smell. A lithe figure, masked in gleaming blue crystal, holds aloft a burning torch improvised from a slender javelin wrapped with resinous rags.

“Be ye company men? Be room in the ground for you yet.” CLOSER LOOK:

A powerful figure, poised and athletic. Lamellar armour gleams in the shifting torchlight. Masked with a curved, cracked maze of featureless blue crystals. They hold a Javelin ready in their second hand, and a fierce Macuahuitl hangs from their waist.

BACKGROUND:

Zomi is a highly capable hardass. Young, fierce and hopeful, adaptable to circumstance, with everything to prove. The Maroons lack deep knowledge of the culture from which they descend. Only fairytales and fractured legends . This tomb, discovered by chance, seems to echo some of those tales. The Tomb fascinates them.

WANTS: ▪ Shrive's cargo of metal weapons. ▪ The secrets of the Tomb. ▪ To hurt Blue Glass. They were crushed by the disaster on the karst and desperately want to make things right.

Encounters

FEARS: Returning to the Zone with nothing. The 'Protection Man' (but won't admit it).

MEETING THE PCS: Will try to confirm they are not agents of Blue Glass and, if sure they are not, will try to recruit them to the side of the Maroons.

ON THEM;

Two-handed Macuahuitl, Podocarp atlatal, 6 flint-tipped javelins, Cloudgrave mask, Lamellar armour, Water, basic rations

Delft-Sentinel Five

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field

THE CRYSTAL SHARDS

The Tomb

The floor is strewn with crystal, each shard black at its core and fading into crocus-yellow in the fracture zone. The shards are sharp, will cut bare feet and damage those who fall. (d2 to d4 damage depending on severity). Some shards usable as knives and count as magical if so used.

Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt

THE PORCELAIN WOMAN

R9-R12 Halls of Ash

Crystal shards scatter the floor making it a blinding starfield. A cracked porcelain woman sits upon a crystal demon skull.

▪ Her surface is white porcelain delicately painted in cornflower blue explosion patterns that radiate across her from head to toe. ▪ She is finished with a fine glaze. ▪ One foot is broken off. ▪ The ceramic sword was moulded as part of her hand. The hand has snapped off. The sword blade pierces the crystal skull, pinning it to the ground. ▪ A spiderweb of fine cracks spreads out from each shattered part. ▪ If you saw her in an antique shop you would be afraid to touch her. ▪ A Tomb Key hangs around her neck.

DOORS

This is Delft Sentinel Five also called ‘Cornflower’.

R1 DELFT-SENTINEL FIVE

▪ North - Secret Door. In the north of the room, close to the ceiling (at least 6 ft off the floor), is a dark gap, not obvious at first glance. This opens into the Trap Maintenance Tunnels (See page 24) ▪ West – Spiral stairway up to [R12 Pyroclastic Guardian], passage damaged, Strong pine and resin smell. ▪ East - Spiral stairway up to [R14 Lamp Trap] ▪ South- Metal double doors. Magical Access. (If active and currently digesting someone, the Pyroclastic Guardian may be laired through here.)

Another intelligent agent in the room could turn the situation into a web of alliances and promises between ‘Cornflower’, the Demon and the PCs.

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. Encounter

Action

Broken Heart

Talking to ‘Cornflower’

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Enters through secret/alt entrance

Wensley Shrive

Investigating the crystal shards

Boreala

Talking to the Demon

Protection Man

Threatening ‘Cornflower’

Drusilla Machete

Lying in wait.

Appendices

Cornflower is badly damaged. Even a flailing and incompetent blow will cause her to fall to the floor and shatter into a thousand pieces. The Tomb Key will SLAM to the ground, leaving a web of shatter-marks as if it had fallen from a great height.

ENCOUNTERS

2d6

‘Cornflower’ was badly fractured in her fight with the Spectral Demon and is unable to shape highly complex thoughts. She wasn’t designed to lie or deceive so will simply assert that the PCs should not access the Sarcophagus Room using the most straightforward statements.

THE CRYSTAL SKULL Huge, like that of a crocodile or dinosaur, leading to a spine like a hydra-knot of crystal snake skeletons and a fragment of shoulder and neck. All else has been smashed to splinters and now covers the floor. This is Uzziel Unanelad, a Spectral Demon who came to free the Ice Demons imprisoned here. He was defeated by Cornflower and his head pinned to the floor. In return he inflicted massive, near terminal damage on the ceramic construct. Uzziel is still conscious and will try to manipulate the PCs into freeing the Demons in the Tomb and either unpinning his head from the ground so he can re-form his body or smashing his head completely, allowing him to re-form in the bright hell from which he came. Thankfully he is an obviously-evil idiot who can has nothing but words with which to compel the PCs.

R1-R4: Lower Floor

Delft-Sentinel Five THE METAL SOUTHERN DOORS The doors to the South are graven with the image of an armoured woman, kneeling on one knee, her head bowed, sword vertical point down in the earth and both hands on the pommel. An echo of many images on the walls of the tomb and the giant statue on the surface.

"I t is.. wrong... and ev il... to disturb... the.... noble dead." "I.. am... still.. whole enough... to.... oppose.. you!"

Introduction The Fiasco

ACCESSING THE SOUTHERN DOOR As the PCs move into this passage, a mote of blue fire appears at the other end. As they move towards the fire it advances towards them at the same speed, quickly expanding to fill the entire passage with a roaring wall of impassable blue-white fire. If anyone entering the passage tries to run from the flame it follows them at speed, they must succeed on a DEX test or save in order to escape the tongues of fire exploding from the doorway doing d6 damage. Running into the fire does 10d6 damage. To pass; Approach calmly. Kneel on one knee directly before the fire. Bow your head. Offer the hilt of a sword or weapon. The fire will reach out to touch the hilt, then disappear, allowing you to access to the room beyond. If anyone is unable or unwilling to meet all the conditions to pass then the fire will slowly force them back down the corridor.

“Mmmyyy friend s s s s s, freeee mee fffroom this s s saaadd s s s state..”

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Uzziel is an unsubtle, and frankly, stupid, creature, making numerous threats and promises, none of which he can carry out.

R1-R4: lower r1-r4: Lower floor Floor

Introduction The Fiasco

R2 Demon-Bone Sarcophagus

R2 DEMON-BONE SARCOPHAGUS

THE SARCOPHAGUS

In the centre is a plinth bearing a sarcophagus of carbonised demon bones riveted with golden nails. Between gaps in the black bones something azure gleams and flickers like a pilot light.

The bones are huge and black and wrong. Heads crowned with irregular horns, spines spiked with hooked vertebrae, back-bent skeletal legs finishing in cloven hooves, hands crooked in chisel-fingered claws, fang-full distended jaws, femurs warped from muscle overload, asymmetric ribcages caught transitioning from beast to man and tortured burned-over skulls with ice-pick eyes.

DOOR

▪ North – To [R1 Delft-Sentinel Five]. Once passed the fire magic guarding this passage does not return.

All pinioned to each other with gleaming nails of gold.

ENCOUNTERS If unleashed, the Pyroclastic Guardian may be laired here. If still living, the Broken Heart will be waiting here, or will arrive soon. There should be no other random encounters.

THE WALLS The tiles of the walls are painted with scenes of a forest empire. Black cyclopean trees reach towards the sky unfolding gigantic fronds at their crowns. In the shaded boulevards between the trees are spiralling palaces of wood, timber bridges, tree-house temples, lush gardens and processions of colourfully-adorned people.

Appendices

R1-R4: Lower Floor

The lid of the sarcophagus is a fishbone pattern of scythetalon arms and the smashed occipital ridge of something very large indeed. It can be lifted easily by one person without removing any pins.

THE GOLDEN NAILS Each nail is slender, with a binding spell etched down its side. There are 5,000 nails, worth 1c each. When the nails are completely removed from each bone, that bone collapses into dust and ash. If all nails are removed then the Sarcophagus collapses, dumping the Mummy onto the ground. Every ten pins secure roughly 1 HD worth of Demon. If PCs take all the pins then roughly 500 HD worth of Demons will reincarnate in hell. Every demon will carry a specific memory of the PCs and will actively aim to involve the PCs in their future schemes. They will tell any other demonic entities they encounter about the nature of their escape and will tell any future mortal victims exactly who they have to thank for letting them out. If any demons are summoned or encountered in the future of the campaign, it will be one of these.

Introduction The Fiasco

Her head rests upon a pillow of blue glass beads.

The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt

The body of a woman, her mouth tightened, yet with the dim memory of her beauty still almost visible through the decay of age and the shining resin used to mummify her corpse.

She wears a necklace of translucent blue-white resin carved into a linked mazework.

R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

Her left hand curls into a fist over her heart, on the third finger is a ring of pure blue fire.

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

Her right hand is clenched on the black bones of the sarcophagus, as if holding them down, even in death.

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

To root around and DESECRATE this corpse, turn to the overleaf spread, pages 58 to 59.

R1-R4: Lower Floor

R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

The Mummy THE NECKLACE

THE BROKEN HEART APPEARS

Anyone with knowledge of Frictionless Blue Glass (i.e. anyone associated with the Blue Glass merchant company) will recognise this as something similar, yet not quite alike, as if that were a degraded, industrial version of this.

If it is still active in the tomb and not already accompanying the PCs, the Broken Heart will appear now, as the PCs examine the mummy.

The necklace is worth 3000c.

THE RING OF FIRE

The Broken Heart will scratch fruitlessly at the Fire Queen's chest, though will be unable to effect anything itself.

Taking the ring means breaking her fingers. The Ring of Fire is cool to the touch, like warm glass, but clearly also living, moving, pure blue flame. The ring can shape or produce or defend against fire.

The Broken Heart will try to persuade the PCs to open the mummy's chest, using whatever means are available to it.

OPENING THE MUMMY Pulling open the Fire Queen's robe reveals her ribcage definitely still has something inside it.

It can only perform one of these effects per round. If the bearer is producing or commanding fire they are not protected from fire, if they are protected from it, they cannot command it.

The skin of her chest shows signs of long-ago surgery. A huge scar down the centre, long healed.

PROTECTION FROM FIRE

If the PCs wrench open the mummy's chest, they will need to break the ancient skin and open the rib-cage like a door. Within, they will find the Heart of Black Iron.

The ring defaults to this purpose whenever the bearer is not concentrating on something else. The bearer cannot be harmed by fire. They can still suffocate from lack of oxygen.

THE HEART OF BLACK IRON

Requires an action and a WIS test. The bearer can produce fire equivalent to roughly d6 worth of damage per point of success and hurl it anywhere within 30ft as a normal missile.

It has not rusted. Originally tied to its valves with golden thread, the body has largely dried away and the iron heart can be lifted out, snapping the perished aorta like old twigs. The heart is heavy - as a lump of nearly solid iron would be. Though cold, it tremors slightly as if alive.

SHAPE FIRE

THE BROKEN HEART SLEEPS

Requires an action and a WIS test each round. The bearer can shape and command one HD of already existing fire for every round of concentration. This fire always forms a golem of flame in the shape of a woman and always burns blue-white. It must remain within bowshot and within line of sight. The bearer can keep adding HD of fire to their control either as separate fire-women or by combing them into one giant fire-woman, for as long as they concentrate and they have fire to command. If they lose concentration the fire reverts to its natural state and nature.

If a space is opened and the Black Iron Heart removed, the cat-girl spirit of the Broken Heart will yowl for joy.

PRODUCE FIRE

UNDERNEATH THE PILLOW An unmarked, black onyx scroll case; inside is the magical contract binding the Obsidian Assassin to the tomb. If the contract is destroyed the Assassin will collapse into a pile of broken rock.

R65 Sloth Nest

“Thank you! Thank you thank you thank you. Sleep. Time for sleep. Time… time for… z z z z z z z” Even as it speaks it leaps into the mummy's chest, prowls and circles like a cat in its bed and then nestles down, curling upon itself, with a look of complete satisfaction, peace and calm. The silver fracture lines of her face heal, the shattered halo of blue fire becomes whole, then, as her eyes close, it winks out. All of the effects of the Broken Heart's love bites wink out. The gold, copper, silver and fire of the Broken Heart begin to melt, to roll and mix gently together like metal in a forge. They glow a deep cherry red, merge, and melt into a ruby in the shape of a fat little genderless figure with an amusing face, curled up like a baby.

Appendices

“Open her heart." "Open the bone-hou se so I may re st….”

R1-R4: Lower Floor

The Broken Heart

THE BLOOD RED RUBY MAN

THE IRON HEART

Made from warm blood-red ruby is a fat little genderless figure with an amusing face. When looked at closely, slender networks of red fire can be seen running through it like light within a gem. If someone holds the figure it climbs clumsily onto their shoulder and sits there.

The material itself is unbreakable and immune to all magics and corruption. If carried between worlds and realities, dreams and visions, it remains unchanged.

If that person lacks a sense, if they are blind or deaf or lack a sense of smell then the figure will allow them access to that sense. If they are blind they can see through its eyes, if deaf they can hear through its ears, etc.

It can be implanted into a mortal chest. To work out how it might be done, a skilled doctor or a magician or cleric whose combined INT and Levels are 25 or above is required.

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls

The figure prefers people who need its help, especially children, and if allowed will usually crawl towards any person requiring its aid and sit on their shoulder, helping them.

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

Yet in general it will try to stay with the PCs and will resist being separated from them. Even escaping and finding its way back to them.

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

If on the shoulder of someone who requires no sensory aid it will aid their memory, allowing them to automatically recall one fact per day, this has to be something they have previously experienced while the figure was with them.

R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

Performing the operation itself requires a well-prepared operating theatre, a blood donor and absolute stability. Even with these the patient will certainly die for at least three or four seconds as the iron heart begins to work. Once implanted the patient must heal normally from the surgery, the flesh around the heart will resist magic. When fully active, the bearer of the iron heart is totally immune to all magical effects and powers of demons, devils and similar chaotic unnatural extra-material beings. The bearer will see, smell, hear and touch reality through all illusions and magical deceptions of any kind. The bearer's emotions, both for good and ill, will slowly start to die away over several weeks, lessening in power, ultimately becoming only memories of passions. Unintelligent and unwise bearers may not be able to go on without the spur of passion to goad them into action. Even very strong-willed beings must deliberately and relentlessly construct a mind state which provides a structure of meaning and intention. This done, they can go on with something like life, and are unrelentingly strong-willed in the pursuit of their aims, though with no joy at their accomplishments or sorrow at their losses.

R1-R4: Lower Floor

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Introduction The Fiasco

Ash Jars

The Body Field

R3 ASH JARS

THE JARS

Full of large stone jars. Room cracked and damaged by subsidence.

Twelve man-sized stone jars shaped like amphorae. Each has its own stand and could easily be knocked or rocked. Each is inscribed with either a glyph or words in the Language of Fire.

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

If they fall the jars will spill ash and roll about dangerously, possibly cracking the wall in the South-West corner.

R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash

If fed into the equipment in [R4 Reverse Furnace], each jar of ash will re-constitute into a particular range of materials as described below:

R13-R16 Reductors Halls

1. ‘Deceivers’; Shadow Puppets of demons.

2. ‘Harvest of Battle’; Piles of severed Goblin Hands. 3. ‘False Rule’; A shattered ebony throne with inlay of human bone.

DOORS

▪ West – Spiral stairs leading up to [R10 Pit-Trap], unstable. ▪ South – Spiral stairs leading up to [R6 Blood and Ivy], unstable, infested with salt-ivy.

5. ‘The End of their Kind’; Huge piles of Polar Bear teeth, much larger than those of normal bears.

DAMAGE The South-East corner of the room has webs of cracks. Strong force could collapse that corner, giving access to the sloth tunnel nexus just beyond. This might also weaken every other room with a corner close to that cavern. Both spiral stairways are unstable. The Sloth has tunnelled around them. Strong force will cause the stone steps to fall away into the sloth tunnels beneath. The South-East corner of the room has webs of cracks. Strong force could break through into the Sloth Tunnels. If the jars are set wildly rolling they might also do this.

ENCOUNTERS Foes may well try to knock down the jars, smashing them into the PCs.

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d8

Encounter

Action

Backup Baboons

Investigating environment

Broken Heart

Fighting with (roll again)

Drusilla Machete

Trapped by accident or wound

Navidorine

Lying in wait

Protection Man

Lost or wandering

Wensley Shrive

Just leaving as you enter

Zegzor Sapreciept

Sitting or paused in thought

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Enter as you do through alt entrance

R1-R4: Lower Floor

4. ‘That the Lands be made Safe'; Fifty heads of some huge, bug-eyed insectoid predator.

6. ‘So Fell the Tribes of Ice’; A pile of whalebone war-clubs, some set with shell, stone or sharp animal teeth. 7. ‘False Gods’; Sculptures and small altars of vile demonic forms carved from dense black wood. 8. ‘Beauty for Beauty, a Garland in the Afterworld’; A room full of living, long-extinct butterflies. They will seek the nearest exit to the open air. 9. ‘Princess’; A live Leopard with a magnificent collar. Sometimes obeys commands in the language of fire, if they come from imperious women. 10. ‘Those of shifting loyalty shall know no steady grave’; The body of a snow-witch in a coffin of roots which have grown into wards, the Witch is dead, if exposed to the air, her body will melt to gore. 11. ‘A Harvest of Crowns’; Rods, Sceptres and Staves carved with gaping mouths, wrapped with subjected beings suffering beneath giant crowned figures, chimeric monsters and the walking dead. 12. ‘Death to Her Foes’; A great pile of flags, banners, totem poles and wooden carnifex (long trumpets). All seem savage and vile, made of skin, carved with demon forms, bearing eye-watering glyphs of malign sensation.

The Reverse Furnace R4 REVERSE FURNACE Against the western wall is a huge device with a central maw. Pipe-tendrils fill the room and curl up the stairs like metal vines. There is writing on the walls in the language of Fire.

DOORS

▪ East – Spiral staircase up to [R16 Corroded Trap] ▪ South – Spiral staircase up to [R7 Fallen Doors], unsteady.

DAMAGE The stairs to the South are unsteady. The Sloth has wound its tunnels around them. At points the stairs or ceiling could be broken through. The South-East corner of the room has webs of cracks. Strong force could break through into the Sloth Tunnels.

ENCOUNTERS Should the PCs try to operate the Furnace, the worst time for an encounter would be as they are in the process of doing so. Use the table on the previous page for [R3 Ash Jars]

THE FURNACE An engine composed of cold blue steel, opalescent glass and fragments of something like amber.

1. ACTIVATION Ash is placed within the mouth of the furnace. Break the seal on the wheel and begin turning it. Two people of normal strength will be needed to get it going. As the wheel spins, it gets easier and easier to spin. After about a minute it become possible for one person to spin the wheel. A faint roaring sound comes from the tentacles and pylons. Locks snap shut across the maw. Electricity begins to crackle along the tentacles of the device, running towards the maw. The wheel gets easier and easier to spin. It begins to get colder in the room, breath mists in the air. The pylons crackle wildly with energy. The roaring seems to move inside the maw of the furnace, and becomes louder and louder. Delicate heat exchanges unfold from the tentacles like porcelain flowers. It becomes painfully cold. The wheel slips from your hands, turning faster and faster.

2. ENDOTHERMY STAGE ONE – FROST AND SNOW Snow condenses from the air around the furnace maw. The roaring becomes deafening. After d3 rounds, stage two begins.

STAGE TWO – COLD DAMAGE Everyone in the radius takes 1d4 cold damage. Then a further d4 of escalating damage each round they remain in the area. (So round two would be 2d4, round three 3d4 etc).

Bound steel staves with copper tips project up and out into the room from the tendrils of the machine. Rivets and hand-made bolts hold the individually-shaped elements together.

Still whole but clearly ancient, verdigris mixes with spiderweb hairline cracks which infiltrate the embossed maze-sigils and lightning bolts decorating its surface.

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

In the centre is a steel mouth and a strong lever with a simple catch-lock.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

Unlocking the lever and heaving open the mouth reveals a cold, gaping maw. Within the maw, an inverse space, bounded yet infinite, alike unto reflecting mirrors.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

A great vertical wheel with handles for turning connects to the machine via chains. The action of the wheel is stilled by an old wax-sealed rope.

3. COMPLETION

THE WRITING ON THE WALL

After 2d6 rounds at maximum extension, the roaring dies down, the frost, snow and cold damage fading away. The furnace stills.

In the Language of Fire; “Reverse Furnace. 1. Open maw. pour the ash within. 2. Lock maw. 3. Turn wheel to kickstart the exchange. 4. When exchange is self-sustaining RETREAT IMMEDIATELY TO A SAFE DISTANCE. 5. Endothermy will expand relative to the mass required.”

The maw opens and, if the ash placed into it was pure, complete and from only a single source, it is re-constituted into its original, whole, form.

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

There is a 1 in 3 chance that the Furnace will fall apart after any use.

R1-R4: Lower Floor

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt

THE HALLS OF SALT

R5 HELICTITE BOUDOIR

These three rooms, R5, R6 & R7 are the home of Navidorine. Her stats are included below for convenience but more details can be found on her Enconter Page.

Stained with mineral colour, glistering and glimmering, reflecting every ray of lamplight, the Ivy is a wonderland, shining like water over steel, rising in piles from the floor and hanging like vines from above.

The rooms are encrusted with Salt Ivy, for which rules are given below, and have the same encounter chart, present on this page.

R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

Helictite Boudoir

THE SALT-IVY BRITTLE, SHARP AND DANGEROUS Touching free tendrils too hard makes then snap off and shatter loudly on the floor. Pressing them with naked skin brings beads of blood, which drip and stain the salt red.

Moving through the Ivy requires half-walking speed and total uninterrupted attention.

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

Navidorine can move through the Salt-Ivy easily and without trouble, at normal speed.

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

DISSOLVES

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

▪ West – To [R6 Blood and Salt]. Clear space, easily opened. ▪ South – To [R8 Entry Hall]. Totally caked with Salt-Ivy. ▪ East – [R7 Fallen Doors]. Clear space around, easily opened.

DAMAGE ENCOUNTERS If Navidorine has not already been encountered, she will be met with here, sleeping. Unless PCs are very quiet, she will wake up as they enter. Otherwise, see encounter chart below. Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable.

VALUABLE

2d8

A foot of whole, undamaged, unstained, salt-ivy can be worth 100c if returned to civilisation. Difficult to do considering its brittleness, fragility and poor reaction to even small amounts of ambient moisture.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

R57-R60 Library

All are sets of double doors, larger than most in the tomb.

Most liquids, including blood, will rapidly dissolve the SaltIvy. Navidorine will be PISSED OFF about this.

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

DOORS

Slight subsidence and cracking in the northern corner. Falling into them unawares causes d3 damage.

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

Plantlike tendrils form a semi-enclosed globular bed, like a huge empty lantern, in the middle of the room.

Encounter

Action

Navidorine

Investigating Salt-Ivy

Broken Heart

Fighting with (roll again)

Drusilla Machete

Cut badly by by Salt-Ivy (if possible)

Boreala

Lying in wait

Quicksilver Statues

Talking with Navidorine (if possible)

Wensley Shrive

Just leaving as you enter

Zegzor Sapreciept

Sitting or paused in thought

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Crashing through Salt-Ivy

NAVIDORINES’ STATS Armour: as Plate & Shield Hit Dice: 2 Hit Points: 1 Damage: 1hp scratch & charm Morale: 7 Stat as: dryad Charm: target regards Navidorine as a close and valued friend. Salt-Ivy: as an action Navidorine can cause the ivy to tangle or expose areas, lift or drop things etc, and animate the Ivy as up to to eight limbs, [1HD, 1hp, d3 damage, human strength]. The Ivy is slow, its effects come last in initiative.

On Death: all the Salt-Ivy will slowly crumble. This will release the huge stone hanging through the roof in [R6 Blood & Salt] and make all of the Ivy-infested areas unstable.

FIRST GLANCE OF NAVIDORINE Soft colour gleams, spikes and shards of layered crystal stained with rose and burgundy, running with late-sunset shades like roses in half-darkness, formed into a female shape and lit by phospherescent orbs. Curtseys –

“I do hope you will excu se me…”

Turn to her Encounter Page on 40 for more.

R5-R8: Halls of Salt

Blood/Fallen Doors

R6-7

R6 BLOOD & SALT

R7 FALLEN DOORS

This room is cracked and unstable, held together by infiltrating Salt-Ivy. A faint grinding noise and a slow dripping. The ivy is dissolving.

Strange metallic growths mix with Salt-Ivy. A huge pair of half-collapsed doors impedes movement.

DOORS

▪ North – Combination door burst by metal growths. Unsteady spiral stairs to [R4 Reverse Furnace]. ▪ West - Double-doors to [R5 Helictite Boudoir] halffallen, held at an angle by the Salt-Ivy vines. ▪ East - z to [R58 Library of Fire].

▪ West – To [R45 Blasted Tanks]. ▪ North – Combination Lock. Still closed. Salt-Ivy has infiltrated the stairs beyond. Spiral stairs leading down to [R3 Ash Jars]. ▪ East -Double doors to [R5 Helictite Boudoir], larger than most in the tomb. Burst open by Salt-Ivy.

DOORS

DAMAGE Some cracking of southern wall and south-east corner.

DAMAGE The ceiling visibly bows in the centre. Listen in silence and a slight grinding is heard. Blood is dripping here and slowly dissolving the Salt. Cracks web out from this partly subsided North-West corner.

ENCOUNTERS If Navidorine has not already been encountered, she will be met with here. Otherwise, see encounter chart on previous page. Foes may try to rapidly accelerate the room's collapse, dropping it upon the PCs, or simply to block off pursuit. A dangerous place for a combat encounter regardless.

COLLAPSE! 5d6 damage to anyone inside. This room becomes very difficult ground and can only be squirmed and clambered through at very slow speed, and with some risk of further collapse. Parts of the scene above [F. Kneeling Woman, D Pierced Baboon and G Ragdolled Woman] will fall into the tomb, opening a possible route to the surface.

TIME TILL COLLAPSE? Blood from the battle above has seeped into the soil and pooled in the bowed roof. It drips down in the centre of the room.

ENCOUNTERS If Navidorine has not already been encountered, she will be met with here. Othereise, see encounter chart on previous page.

THE FALLEN DOORS The doors are tilted at a 45 degree angle, partially fallen into the room, covered with the Ivy. Going from this room to [R5 Helictite Boudoir] would mean climbing to the door-lips. The Salt-Ivy holding up each door will not sustain more than one person's weight at a time. If the Ivy collapses or dissolves, a door will SLAM to the ground, hurling any upon it into the Ivy-Strewn room, potentially trapping limbs beneath it, causing a huge noise throughout the Tomb and setting off further subsidence. Accessing this room from [R5 Helictite Boudoir] means walking up the Ivy-Encrusted surface of the doors and jumping down. Doable but slightly risky.

A blood pool spreads slowly, staining and dissolving the bases of the Salt-Ivy strands.

DM's choice but if a guide is required 2d4 turns after discovery the roof will collapse.

R65 Sloth Nest

Messing with the Ivy, adding more liquid or general PC shenanigans may shorten this time.

Appendices

R5-R8: Halls of Salt

Entry Hall

R8 ENTRY HALL

THE IMAGE ON THE DOOR Centrepiece; an armoured Queen, veiled and wearing a twisted crown set with gems. She battles surrounding horrors atop a pile of demon corpses. In one hand a curved sword cleaves demonic flesh, a tempest of fire whirls from the other hand and wraps around the teeming monsters like a flood.

Huge, ceramic double doors embossed and painted with an incredible image. Two statues. Blocked stone doors leading south. Half a Tomb-Robber's Skeleton.

DOORS

▪ North – Covered with a detailed image on this side. Salt-Ivy infiltrates the passage beyond and blocks the doors leading to [R5 Helictite Boudoir]. ▪ Southern Corner - Large stone doors with a stone bar across them. The Stone Bar requires two strong people to move. If opened; a wall of stone and soil. The passage has been backfilled. Investigation; the stone bar is partially counterweighted and was set in place by a longcorroded delayed release mechanism.) ▪ West - Hidden by a statue. To [R48 Strange Apparatus]. ▪ East - Hidden by a statue. To [R59 Projection Room].

DAMAGE Slight subsidence and cracking along the eastern wall.

ENCOUNTERS May wander in through one of the secret statue-doors, revealing their true nature. Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d12

Encounter

Action

Boreala

Lying in wait

Navidorine

Sleeping or sessile

Tooth-Tooth

Enter after the PCs

Zoetrope Men

Lost or wandering idly

Broken Heart

Investigating the image

Wensley Shrive

Fighting with (roll again)

Protection Man

Just leaving as you enter

Backup Baboons

Investigating the Skeleton

Drusilla Machete

Sitting or paused in thought

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Trapped by accident or wound

Zegzor Sapreciept

Enter as PCs do, alt entry point

Quicksilver Statues

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

R5-R8: Halls of Salt

Foreground; the Queen's most potent enemies are creatures of the ice and snow twisted unnaturally by some possessing force. Bears, wolves, sabre-toothed tigers, hairy elephants, bison, terror-birds and huge hawks are warped into pseudohuman forms with hands, bloated muscles and howling faces. Each bears a burning crown or a halo of power. Background; The Queen's army. Proud people in azureblue armour wielding strange weapons. The setting is a valley of cracked ice and shattered stone. The sun breaks through a fractured, blackened sky. Lightning strikes down from black clouds into the monstrous legions. A figure like a junkyard knight watches from a distant escarpment. Hordes of quailing, wailing goblins fill the remaining lower spaces.

STATUES West Statue - Painted in faded red, a girlish boy or boyish girl stands barefoot, balanced like a dancer. Cinnabar dreadlocks, wild red eyes. A long scaled coat, doublet, what might be a skirt or long pantaloons. They carry a nine-sectioned chain whip with the ends of the whip hanging from each outstretched hand. Investigation – the whip-ends move. Bending them towards each other makes the statue swing back like a door, revealing a path to [R48 Strange Apparatus]. East Statue - Painted in faded blue, a man in late 20s or early 30s, his hair is a jagged mohawk, he wears a part-mask with one blue circular eye, a scarf made from one gigantic feather over scale armour. Twin longswords are sculpted to lean against the rear of the sculpture but he carries only a hammer. Investigation - pressing the circular mask eye makes the statue swing back like a door, revealing a path to [R59 Zoetrope Men].

TOMB-ROBBER'S SKELETON Adjacent to the closed southern doors, the tile of the wall has broken away. A skeleton pokes from the collapsed pile of soil spreading from this gap. Nearby lies an old-style clay lamp and a deeply corroded iron pickaxe. Its not clear if they were tunnelling in or out but the tunnel collapsed upon them, trapping them in place. Speak With Dead – There is no soul in this skeleton, or even attached to it. It is as if the soul was stolen away. (One of an ancient demondriven gang of thieves, he was trying to tunnel out. His soul was taken by Reductor and the bodies of his allies hung upon Borealas’ Iron Tree.)

Ash Vizier R9 ASH VIZIER In the centre of this room is a cracked urn, four feet high, tilted onto its side. Ash spills from the urn and spreads across the white tiled floor in a pattern like widely spread wings.

DOORS

▪ West – Triskelion-Locked door to [R12 Pyroclastic Guardian]. (Door at the end of this passage activates a trap in that room.) Smell of Pine. ▪ East - Tumbler door to [R11 Mirror Maze]. ▪ South - Tumbler Door to [R10 Pit Trap].

DAMAGE No significant damage in this room.

THE URN Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d12

Encounter

Action

Boreala

Lying in wait

Reductor

Enter after the PCs

Navidorine

Just leaving as PCs enter

Tooth-Tooth

Investigating the Vase/Ash

Broken Heart

Fighting with (roll again)

Protection Man

Sitting or paused in thought

Wensley Shrive

Enter as PCs do, alt entry point

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Talking/negotiating with Dapfilier

Drusilla Machete

Wounded or impaired, moving through

Zegzor Sapreciept

Enter as you do through alt entrance

Chain-Waving Baboons

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Anaracket Bonvive (flees W or E)

Trying to awaken or kill Dapfilier

Pale blue ceramic marked with pictograms showing what look like large ash-grey Secretary Birds cleaning and repairing armour, arranging curtains and furnishings, addressing crowds of people, writing scrolls, dictating laws and receiving ambassadors.

THE VIZIER - DAPFILIER (daap-fill-eye-er)

These hop back and forth; curious and inquisitive things made entirely from soft grey ash. They call out “fire” in many languages. They are pretty cute. If more fire is presented; The ash awakens into a murmuration of starling-sized birds that spiral into and out of the fire. This ill condenses into the body of a large (human-height) Secretary Bird. This is Dapfilier, the Vizier.

The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters

Dapfilier stands close to whatever fire sustains him, as if he is very cold. The ash of his being runs into and out of his wings and the fire in twin Mobius Strips. He needs fire to live and exist. Without it, it is as if he was asleep or comatose. If the fire disappears, he collapses once more into cold ash. He is rather prissy, proper and polite. He will speak first in the language of fire but speaks and understands almost every language.

“Well, well well, what is this? How may I a s sist you?” He has the manner of a rather stuffy butler greeting perhaps-unwelcome guests in the most polite way possible. He seems helpful, in a vague way. He knows all the background to the tomb (as if he had read the backstory at the start of this book), and will give the PCs very general contextual information about the pace, and about Puh-Gna Zor the Empress of Fire and defeater of the Ice Demons.

“Plea se forgive me, my mind and memory are a little add led from remaining so long a s cold a sh” HIS TRUE AIM; Protect the Fire Queen's Body and make sure neither the Ice Demons, nor anyone else, escapes the tomb. He will be helpful until he gains the PC's trust and then guide them into the most dangerous trap or situation possible in the hope that it kills them.

Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

THE ASH It floats upward towards any source of flame or fire; tendrils of the ash drift through the flame, sputtering, throwing sparks which pop and drift down into the pile where each glint of fire births single small birds.

Introduction

R57-R60 Library

Some good options are the Pit Trap in R10, the Pyroclastic Guardian in R12, Boreala in R25 or Reductor in R13.

R9-R12: Halls of Ash

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms

R10 R10 PIT TRAP

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

The floor is covered with soft white ash, about two inches deep. A pit trap is hidden at the centre of the room.

R9-R12 Halls of Ash

DOORS

R1-R4 Lower Floor

R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

Pit Trap The ash is so light that any rapid movement causes it to puff up into the air in occluding clouds. This takes about a minute to settle.

THE TRAP

▪ North - Combination Door to [R9 Ash Vizier]. ▪ West – To [R40 Frieze of Fire]. ▪ East – Combination door to spiral stairs leading down to [R3 Ash Jars]. Unsteady.

The centre of the room is a pittrap the exact shape of the room. A four-foot radius around the edge of the room is solid floor. The Pit is floored with ceramic spikes.

FALLING IN

DAMAGE Southern Corner – Slight wall cracking along the East and West walls turns into severe cracking and subsidence at the southern corner. Strong force could break through into the Sloth Nexus below.

They will not suffer damage purely from the fall.

ENCOUNTERS An encounter may already be present in the room, having left tracks in the ash. They may be carefully edging around the pit, or about to fall right into it.

THE ASH

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d6

Encounter

Protection Man

Lying in wait

Wensley Shrive

Enter after the PCs

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Investigating the pit

Drusilla Machete

Fighting with (roll again)

Zegzor Sapreciept

Fallen in the pit! (Ash everywhere!)

Chain-Waving Baboons

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

The ceramic spikes at the bottom of the trap will inflict 2d6 damage and break off in the flesh causing 1hp damage per minute until they are removed and basic first aid is applied.

DISTURBING THE ASH The fall sends up plumes of choking, occluding ash into the air. It takes one minute to settle. Every violent or rapid movement in the room extends this time by one round (so, 6 seconds, meaning ten rapid movements results in another minute of chocking ash.) While the Ash is unsettled, everyone in the room is blind and must either cover their mouths in some way or save to avoid paralysing coughing. However, if the Ash fully settles over someone at the bottom of the pit, they will begin to suffocate from that point on, even if they are guarding their mouth.

GETTING OUT If the victim can move, and find their way, the trap is relatively easy to climb out of - its walls are slightly ragged due to the subsidence.

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest

There are also two crawl holes, in the West and East corners of the pit trap at the lowest level. A ceramic grating keeps these clear of ash but these can be tipped upwards. These lead to the Trap Maintenance Tunnels, see page 24.

Appendices

Action

R57-R60 Library

The feather-soft ash will not resist the weight of a human being. Anyone falling into the pit will fall through the ash, as if falling through dense cloud.

R9-R12: Halls of Ash

Mirror Maze

R11

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters

R11 MIRROR MAZE

Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

THE MIRRORS

A decayed mirror maze with corroded halfactivated slicing traps.

Tarnished and spotted after long ages, the mirrors are now blotched, stained and warped.

The floor of this room is scattered with traces and runnels of Ash which have crept in from [R9 Ash Vizier].

THE WALLS

DOORS

▪ North – to [R27 Bird-Headed Man]. ▪ West - Combination Door to [R38 Flame Paintings]. ▪ East – to [R9 Ash Vizier]. ▪ Below - Hidden. Tearing up the traps can give access to a crawlspace beneath the room which has open ways to the Trap Maintenance Tunnels, see page 24.

ENCOUNTERS Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d12

Encounter

Action

Boreala

Lying in wait

Reductor

Lying in wait

Protection Man

Investigating the traps

Wensley Shrive

Investigating the traps

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Fighting with (roll again)

Drusilla Machete

Wounded or impaired by trap

Anaracket Bonvive

Wounded or impaired by trap

Obsidian Assassin

Enter after the PCs same entry

Zegzor Sapreciept

Enter after the PCs same entry

Chain-Waving Baboons

Enter as you do through alt entrance

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Enter as you do through alt entrance

Flamethrower Skeleton

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

One layer of brick, clad with mirror on both sides, these could be smashed through with sufficient force.

HIDDEN INTERNAL DOORS Secret doors can be discovered via searching, pressing on the glass, looking for moredistorted sections or by observing the ash which does not pile against them as it does the true walls.

THE TRAPS Mirror-polished razor-thin blades which sweep up from a narrow gap in the ground. Each is nearly the size of the corridor.

R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

The traps have decayed over time. The three in the outer corridors have already sprung. They seem initially like mirrored walls. They do not entirely fill the corridor.

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

The six traps in the inner corridors have not yet been sprung.

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

ACTIVATING THE TRAPS Pressure tiles to each side should activate a trap once both have been pressed. However - the blades have jammed. The weight of a normal person will not be enough to activate them. The slam of something heavy, or a kinetic shock nearby, has a 3 in 4 chance of releasing a blade. The blades do 2d6 damage and then jam in the upward position.

FINDING THE TRAPS Anyone who has seen the already-activated blade traps and who is looking for more with time and attention to spare, will have no trouble locating the blade gaps for the inner traps.

R9-R12: Halls of Ash

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Introduction The Fiasco

R12

Pyroclastic Trap

The Body Field

THE PYRE

R12 PYROCLASTIC TRAP This room stinks of resin and old wood. A giant pyre occupies the centre. This room holds a mechanical trap connected to the North and West doors. Opening those doors will activate the trap.

▪ North - To [R28 Shrike] (trapped). ▪ West - To [R9 Ash Vizier] (trapped). ▪ East - Tumbler Lock. Spiral stairs leading down to [R1 Delft-Sentinel Five]. ▪ Dimensional Tear – a Backward Tear (hard to access) to [R27 Bird-Headed Man].

DAMAGE

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

ENCOUNTERS

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

THE JARS Fine porcelain, each large enough to hold a man. Filled with clinker and dark ash.

THE TRAP

DOORS

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

Pine logs, squared off and neatly latticestacked with air-flow gaps, all preserved in resin. The logs rest on a bed of pinecones, themselves individually preserved in resin. A great pine shaft, like a pillar, reaches from the centre of the pyre up to the roof where it is set into a wheel. Four great jars are placed in the pyre with the stack built around them.

Some cracking and subsidence Eastern Wall.

If the PCs avoid triggering the trap, a blundering stranger may (probably will) wander in and activate it regardless.

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of ingame time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 1d10

Enters/Activates Trap

Backup Baboons

Dancing Automata

Drusilla Machete

Flamethrower Skeleton

Very slender ceramic jeweller's chains lead from the North Door leading to [R28 Shrike] and the West Door leading to [R9 Ash Vizier]. If the doors are opened more than an inch, the chains pull tight. A snapping sound is heard. Then another, and another. A grinding sound begins.

THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE TRAP

▪ The top of the pine trunk is a wheel. ▪ Three loops of light chain lead from the wheel to counterweights in the three corners of the room. ▪ Each counterweight is held up by a lever. ▪ Each lever is held in place by a catch, restrained by a single bead of glass with a long tail. (A ‘Prince Rupert's Drop’). ▪ The tail of each glass bead is itself set with a tiny ceramic jeweller's chain leading through rings up to the ceiling and then to each other bead. ▪ Two of these chains lead to the North and West doors. ▪ If the doors are opened more than an inch, the chains pull the tails of the glass drops, which shatter and explode, releasing the levers which hold up the counterweights. ▪ If one drop shatters, the falling counterweight pulls on both other drops, causing them to shatter. When the three counterweights are all falling, the wheel in the centre spins the pine column fast enough to set the pinecones alight. ▪ The pinecones light the pyre and the heat from the pyre awakens the Pyroclastic Guardian.

Navidorine

Protection Man

Second Sloth

Wensley Shrive

ON ACTIVATION

Zegzor Sapreciept

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Two Rounds after the trap activates, the Pine Cones ignite. As soon as this happens the fire will be too hot to approach without taking damage. 2d3 Rounds after the Pine Cones ignite, the Pyroclastic Guardian awakens.

R9-R12: Halls of Ash

Pyroclastic Guardian THE PYROCLASTIC GUARDIAN The guardian emerges from all four jars as the fire burns, rising like black smoke and pooling in the roof, forming a cloud, then a spiral, then a serpentine body with a gawping leech-face. Armour: unarmoured Hit Dice: 5 Hit Points: 25 Damage: swallow & slow digestion Morale: 8 Stat as: honestly I have no idea

R12

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field

WEAKNESSES

▪ Cold. Will avoid & suffers d6 damage if forced to endure it. ▪ Basic antimagic. ▪ Magical weapons. ▪ Dispersal. ▪ Separation by, for instance, snapping shut doors while it is half-way through.

SMELL A distinctive rotten egg acidic smell arrives a few seconds before it does and persists afterwards.

SOUND Only a slight hissing, like white noise or tyres on tarmac.

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

SWALLOW ATTACK A standard attack. 1hp damage each turn to any swallowed individual.

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

This done it will retreat to the ashes of the fire in [R12 Pyroclastic Trap], or if it is disturbed there, to [R2 DemonBone Sarcophagus]. (It takes the Guardian about a minute to swoop through the Tomb back to a resting place.)

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine

There it will settle to the ground like a pile of fat black stinking pigs and transform to acidic ash, digesting the swallowed individual, killing them slowly and transforming them into a Pompei-mummy.

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

Once it settles and transforms; 2d6 damage each turn to a swallowed being.

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

Once an individual is dead, the Guardian will move from its resting place and begin hunting in the Tomb, moving directly towards whatever living thing is closest.

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

ABILITIES

▪ Tomb Doors Open for the Guardian ▪ Can fly ▪ Immune to non-magical weapons.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

R9-R12: Halls of Ash

R13 Reductor's Sarcophagus R13 REDUCTOR'S SARCOPHAGUS A sarcophagus hangs in the centre of the room suspended in the air by a web-work of hundreds of slender, hooked chains attached to brackets spread across every wall at every level.

Failing by ten or more means all of the above plus being entangled. The individual will need help or a Turn of careful work to untangle themselves.

DOORS

IF THE SARCOPHAGUS SHAKES

▪ West – Triskelion-Locked Door to [R14 Lamp Trap]. ▪ East – Combination door to [R15 Urns]. ▪ South - To [R16 Fallen Wall]. Corridor trapped. Trap will fail.

Encounter

Action

Boreala

Lying in wait

Navidorine

Trapped/Impaired

Tiny Knights

Paused in thought

Broken Heart

Enter after the PCs

Wensley Shrive

Just leaving as you enter

Protection Man

Investigating the Sarcophagus

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Investigating the Sarcophagus

Dancing Automata Investigating the Sarcophagus

Drusilla Machete

Investigating the Sarcophagus

Zegzor Sapreciept

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Enter as PCs do, alt entry point

Anaracket Bonvive – exiting to W or E as PCs enter

Anyone hiding in the web will be hard to reach. Anyone finding the PCs here may try to deliberately wake Reductor, or take advantage of the slow movement within.

CORRODED TRAP In the Southern corridor to [R16]. Stepping on the first floor tiles activates the trap. ▪ Circular blade emerges at head height and spins down the corridor. ▪ DEX test to leap or duck aside. ▪ Mechanism is corroded, blade itself is dull, the blade shudders to a halt half way. Inflicts d2 blunt damage to anyone it hits ▪ Can be re-set from the ratlines below.

MOVING IN THE ROOM Test DEX to move 6 ft in the room. If moving very slowly, calmly, and with clear light, then player may re-roll one failure a round until they succeed. (This models them projecting and discounting possible courses before they actually move.) Failing a DEX test means shaking the Sarcophagus.

Failing by five or more means shaking the Sarcophagus and being cut by the chains for 1hp damage.

R13-R16: Reductor's Halls

Every time the Sarcophagus shakes, there is a 3 in 6 chance that the ghost of ‘Reductor’ will awaken.

THE WALLS Paintings faded over time. Scenes from the life of a Sorceress in an ancient world. Raising the dead. Committing many evils, fire, murder, legions of victims etc. Demons reach from the earth, hungering for her. The Sorceress is carried by servants on a chair above the ground, the demon claws still reaching for her feet. The sorceress battles the Fire Queen. The Sorceress hangs in chains and submits to the Fire Queen.

CARVINGS ON THE SARCOPHAGUS Made of pumice inlaid with ivory panels carved with variations on the same scene; a woman hangs over flames from which claws reach to take her. She is weighted down by goblins and vile creatures chained to her. A Queen reaches down to aid the hanging woman.

IN THE SARCOPHAGUS The mummified corpse of Reductor. She is highly flammable. A Silver and Onyx funerary mask. Worth 500c. Reductor's Hooks; These are inscribed with glyphs of seizing in the language of the Dam-Builders, count as magical weapons. Worth 50c each. Jade and Ivory mummification tools. Worth 300c. The Red Pearl Flensed Face; The last relic of a forgotten mortuary cult. If worn, the gem transports the owner in dreams to a strange twilit temple full of necromantic beings in jewelled masks. Due to its disturbing nature and foreign language, this could be viewed as a kind of nightmare. This dream will persist each night so long as the wearer continues to wear the gem. The dream is contiguous, events and information persist within it, as if it were a small separate world. Though the process has no ill effect upon their recovery from tiredness. However, no-one in the dream has any interest in harming the wearer. These are the spirits of ancient priests who only wish to pass on their knowledge. If the wearer manages to learn the language being spoken to them, and can attend, they will slowly learn the practical skills of a mortuary cult, and be able to perform its services. It is as if they are going to school in their own dreams each night. Worth 300c.

Reductor's Sarcophagus R13 REDUCTOR'S GHOST (Details in her Encounter Page but repeated here for convenience.) Armour: as unarmoured (see ‘immunities’) Hit Dice: 3 Hit Points: 12 Damage: 1d3 or ‘Soul Hook’ if both attacks hit. Morale: 7 Stat as: ghost or wraith Soul-Hooking Attack: She makes two attacks. If both hit, she hooks out the soul of her victim - dragged out like a ghost of fine fabric, balls it up like a spider and swings off with it, taking it to [R15 Urns].

IMMUNITIES

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field

SOUND If she is disturbed in her Sarcophagus, a siblant screeching and maddened fearful ranting in the Language of Fire.

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms

FIRST GLANCE A figure with hooked limbs and a black and silver face crawls along the ceiling, its long hair hanging down.

R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt

CLOSER LOOK A ghost! A woman curved by great age, a mask of silver and onyx, her hands and feet replaced by hooks. Around her neck she wears the medallion of a flensed face cut from red pearl. She climbs on ghost hooks across ceilings and walls, phasing through walls easily but always avoiding the floor.

Can only be harmed by magical weapons, or magic itself. If reduced to zero hp she re-incorporates in her sarcophagus and must gather herself for an hour before she can emerge again.

VULNERABILITIES

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

If her body is destroyed or if her ghost, or corpse touches the ground, she falls through it, down into a black pit which leads all the way to hell.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library

Reductor can phase though floors and walls but she cannot float and must have a stable hold on a solid wall, ceiling, or something above the earth.

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest

The floor or walls must be architecturally stable for Reductor to risk her ‘Soul Hook’ attack. Around unstable structures she will hang by three limbs or even all four, to make certain she does not fall.

Appendices

R13-R16: Reductor's Halls

Introduction The Fiasco

R14

The Body Field

R14 LAMP TRAP

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Lamp Trap

The floor is set with blades. A strange iron tree in the centre. This room is a mechanically complex gas trap. It can be passed with simple patience and calm.

DOORS All doors are heavy, airtight superhard ceramic, the North and East doors both have wheels in their centre. Both North and East door are mechanically linked and will open, close, lock and unlock simultaneously. ▪ North - To [R31 Condensed Darkness]. Open. A wheel on the inside can lock it in place once closed. ▪ East – To [R13 Reductor]. Open. A wheel on the inside can lock it in place once closed. ▪ West - To [R1 Delft Sentinel Five]. Black Ceramic. No handle, no combination. A crystal window in the centre at head height. A lantern is burning in the centre of the door. Embossed onto the door on each side of the lamp are two noble figures, each kneels atop a wheel and bows, faces to the floor, with attitudes of patience and calm, their eyes closed. Very Close Observation Only - Right at the base of the door are a range of pin-prick holes, like those of a sieve. Secret - It’s a Carbide Lamp. If denied oxygen it will go out and the door will open.

Encounter

Action

Boreala

Lying in wait

Reductor

Lying in wait

Tooth-Tooth

Enter after the PCs

Broken Heart

Enter after the PCs

Second Sloth

Wounded or impaired

Zoetrope Men

Wounded or impaired

Backup Baboons

Hiding atop the Iron Tree

Protection Man

Hiding atop the Iron Tree

Wensley Shrive

Hiding atop the Iron Tree

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Just leaving as PCs enter

Dancing Automata

Just leaving as PCs enter

Drusilla Machete

Fighting with (roll again)

Zegzor Sapreciept

Fighting with (roll again)

Obsidian Assassin

Sitting or paused in thought

Quicksilver Statues

Sitting or paused in thought

Chain-Waving Baboons

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

Flamethrower Skeleton Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Trying to figure out how the room works

Pyroclastic Guardian (if active)

Trying to figure out how the room works

Anaracket Bonvive – exiting as PCs leave

R13-R16: Reductor's Halls

The only place to hide in this room is atop the iron tree, between it and the ceiling. Anyone up there will be the first to be knocked out by the gas. The doors won't open while the trap is running.

THE KNIVES IN THE FLOOR Each about a foot long, very sharp, set semi-randomly into the floor with about eight to ten inches between each blade. Walking through the knives requires half-walking speed, clear light and total uninterrupted attention. Should any of these be lacking, DEX tests must be made, with d3 damage on each fail.

THE IRON TREE Exact centre of the room. Branches only at its top, spread out like umbrella ribs or fern fronds. (A clockwork mechanism inside produces the Hydrogen gas which fills the room by dunking metal balls into acid.)

THE TRAP The black door to West, to [R1 Delft Sentinel Five] can be opened by denying it oxygen. Activating the gas trap and then remaining calm and patient, and kneeling carefully between the knives, face to the floor while gas fills the room, will do this. 1. If either North or Eastern doors are shut, (this will happen simultaneously as they are linked), the trap activates. 2. The wheels on those doors will spin automatically and lock them for the duration of the trap's cycle – two minutes. 3. A ticking and whirring emanates from inside the iron tree. Then, at exact intervals, a splash, followed by a hissing sound like bubbles. Then a hissing like breath being blown through pursed lips. 4. Hydrogen gas begins to fill the room from the top down. 5. The room has four ‘quarters’, from top to bottom. Hydrogen fills the room at the rate of one quarter per 30 seconds. After two minutes it fills the whole room, blocking the intake on the bottom of the sealed black door, deactivating the lantern and opening all doors in the room.

FIRE, LANTERNS AND THE TRAP When it meets naked flame, the Hydrogen sets on fire, burning up an equal amount of oxygen. The amount of fire damage people in the room take is 1d6 per-quarter of the room filled. So - if the room is half-way full of hydrogen after 60 seconds, and a flame hits it, the place erupts, everyone suffers 2d6 damage and all the remaining oxygen is removed, opening the lamp-lock. If the room is only one quarter full of hydrogen when a flame meets it, everyone takes 1d6 damage and a quarter's worth of oxygen is removed.

Lamp Trap

R14

WAYS TO SOLVE THE TRAP Be Humble - Hold your breath and wait quietly, kneeling or lying between the knives, waiting for the room to fill with hydrogen. This will quench the lamp-lock and the West door will open.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

Burn Everything! – allow a flame to meet the descending hydrogen, burning yourself but also removing the oxygen, quenching the lamp-lock.

R57-R60 Library

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

Block the Holes - Blocking the tiny holes in the bottom of the West door, this quenches the lamp.

R65 Sloth Nest

Smash! - Use magic or super-strength to smash the West door or the iron tree.

Appendices

R13-R16: Reductor's Halls

Introduction The Fiasco

R15

The Urns

The Body Field

R15 URNS

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

Each wall has many shelves upon which identical small stone urns are placed. Big stone amphorae are ranked in rows upon individual stands. Each large enough for a man to hide within.

DOORS

▪ North - To [R32 Obsidian Mirror], corridor trapped. See below. ▪ West - Combination door to [R13 Reductor]. ▪ East - To [R54 Sloth Catastrophe].

ENCOUNTERS There may be someone hiding in an Urn, or behind one, ready to push it over in a chain reaction. Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable.

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

2d20

R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

UNSTABLE URNS

Encounter

Action

Boreala

Lying in wait

Reductor

Lying in wait

Tooth-Tooth

Hiding in an Urn

Broken Heart

Hiding covered in Ash

Second Sloth

Enter after the PCs

Zoetrope Men

Enter after the PCs

Backup Baboons

Hiding behind an Urn

Protection Man

Wounded or impaired

Wensley Shrive

Wounded or impaired

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Just leaving as PCs enter

Dancing Automata

Just leaving as PCs enter

Drusilla Machete

Fighting with (roll again)

Zegzor Sapreciept

Fighting with (roll again)

Obsidi n Assassin

Sitting or paused in thought

Quicksilver Statues

Sitting or paused in thought

Chain-Waving Baboons

Sifting and examining the Ash

Flamethrower Skeleton

Sifting and examining the Ash

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

Pyroclastic Guardian (if active)

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Anaracket Bonvive – exiting as PCs leave

THE URNS There are souls in these jars, all kept here so they can never reach the afterlife and communicate their knowledge to either the living or the dead. The jars upon the shelves hold the souls of those who built the tomb. The larger Urns contain the souls, and sometimes the bones, of any who tried to rob it, placed here by Reductor. If Reductor steals the soul of anyone in the tomb, she will hide it here.

R13-R16: Reductor's Halls

Each of the Large Central Amphorae is on its own stand. Many stands are decayed and unstable. Shoving, or nudging the urn may cause it to topple and roll, dislodging more urns, doing d6 damage to anyone they hit, potentially pinning someone in place and spilling souls everywhere.

THE SOULS These are more tangible to those with magical senses. To most people they are like ghosts of spiderweb or shadowy mist-fine lace clumped into irregular balls. Treading on one as you hide within an urn is a bit like treading on cotton wool, except they might moan and groan a little. Souls released from their Urns will evaporate slowly over an hour or more. Faster in daylight. The Small Stone Urns – these hold the ancient souls of those who built the Tomb. Most are peacefully sleeping. The Larger Stone Urns hold the souls of Tomb-Robbers. These are all from very ancient cultures and most are common thieves or low-rent scoundrels who happened upon the Tomb by chance. 1 in 6 are the souls of Demon-Worshippers. The body of one of these is hanging in [R28 Shrike]. If spoken to via magic it will try to persuade the PCs to retrieve its body there, hoping they encounter the Iron Badge lying in the remains.

THE NORTH DOOR Slight trickles of blood from beneath this door. This door opens easily. In the middle of the corridor is what looks to be a squashed Baboon.

THE OBSIDIAN ASSASSIN If the PCs have not encountered the Obsidian Assassin yet, it will be at the corridor's end, having stolen the image of another tomb invader. Most likely they will see an image of Anaracket Bonvive standing silently at the corridor's end before the trap activates.

THE TRAP From this direction, stepping on any part of the corridor after the first six feet activates the trap. ▪ A cylindrical stone roller inscribed with anti-magic runes descends from the ceiling at the northern end. ▪ This roller fills the width of the corridor. ▪ The roller pauses for one second, then accelerates down the corridor ▪ As it passes the point just before the dead Baboon it makes a slight ‘clink’ as a large floor tile there shifts and tilts up under its weight. ▪ The roller moves to the southern end, squashing anything before it (5d6 damage), before retracting back into the roof.

Cracked Wall EVASION AND DEACTIVATION Dive back – a save or test should be required for a safe dive back into room [R15 Urns]. Notice the Tilting Flagstone and Dive Forward - If, as the roller sets down, in the one-second pause before it rolls forward, someone dives forward, over the dead Baboon, onto the large tilting tile, this will give way, dropping them into a pit beneath. The roller passes overhead. In the pit is a small sculpture of an armoured woman, head bowed, on one knee, sword held before her, tip-down. Examination or fiddling with the statue reveals the sword is a lever. Pulling the lever deactivates the trap and opens a hidden crawlway to the ratlines.

R16 CRACKED WALL The floor is strewn with rubble from the roof. Cracks lead to the eastern wall.

R16

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field

DOORS

▪ North - To [R13 Reductor]. Corridor trapped. Trap will fail. ▪ West – Combination Lock. Staircase Doors to [R4 Reverse Furnace] have been cracked open by the tendrils of the mechanism growing from within. ▪ East – Partially collapsed passage to [R55 Meditation Sphere], passage is clearly unstable.

DAMAGE The Eastern wall is badly subsided. Strong force might collapse it into the sloth tunnel below.

CORRODED TRAP In the Northern corridor to [R13 Reductor]. Stepping on the first floor tiles activates the trap. ▪ Circular blade emerges at head height and spins down the corridor. ▪ DEX test to leap or duck aside. ▪ Mechanism is corroded, blade itself is dull, the blade shudders to a halt half way. Inflicts d2 blunt damage to anyone it hits ▪ Can be re-set from the ratlines below.

Tendrils of a strange mechanism emerge from the western door and spread across the ceiling.

R13-R16: Reductor's Halls

R17

Warded Room

R17 WARDED ROOM Unnervingly silent, refrigerator-cold and coated with ice. Golden symbols glow beneath the frozen sheen. A Great Warded Door to the north. All magic quenched.

DOORS

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d4

▪ North – Triskelion-Locked, multiply-warded stone door to [R18 Ice Demons]. ▪ Sheened with ice, sealed with frozen wax. The ice must be melted or smashed (AC 12, 12 hp) to access the keyhole. Those with any magical knowledge will see very clear and explicit warning signs – "DO NOT OPEN". ▪ Opening this door activates the Skeletons in [R20 Skeletal Mess]. There are ten and they take five minutes to fully awaken. ▪ West - Combination door to [R19 Frozen Corpses]. ▪ East - To [R20 Skeletal Mess].

Encounter

Action

Anaracket Bonvive

Wounded or impaired

Protection Man

Fighting with (roll a d4)

Demon Worshippers

Opening the northern door!

Demon-Possessed Baboon

Talking/negotiating with (roll a d4)

These symbols cause the magical nullification effect in this room.

THE SILENCE

If the ice were removed, the more valuable parts of the symbols made of polished jasper, gold leaf and lapis-lazuli, could be carefully chipped away for a value of 500c.

The intense quiet is creepy and unnerving, anyone here alone can hear their joints working against each other and their scalp moving over their skull.

This would end the magical nullification effect and the madness and intrusive thoughts experienced in [R18 Ice Demons] would slowly expand throughout the tomb.

THE ICE Slender blades of icicles spear down from microcracks and nearly touch ice-spears rising from the floor below. The ice on the walls is at least an inch thick in most places. It could be melted off or possibly shattered by strong enough percussive force.

THE WARDED WALLS Beneath the ice in the walls and floor are interlaced hexagrams, heptagrams, pentangles, red fire symbols and bright gold suns. Those with magical knowledge will see warding and nullification signs of many kinds.

ANTI-MAGIC Magical effects cast in this room will either fail, rebound upon their wearer or bounce randomly between the walls, whichever the DM finds more entertaining. Magical effects brought into this room will be quenched, so characters who are cursed or charmed will be freed from those effects here. Demonic or extra-planar creatures will operate at half their potency while in this room, or simply fall asleep.

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

If the PCs have not encountered Anaracket Bonvive at length, she will be present here, in the act of opening the northern door.

R17-R20: Ice Demons' Prison

Ice Demons R18 ICE DEMONS This cold, lightless, desert-dry room holds madness, whispers, freezing temperatures and three cracked masks.

FIVE MINUTES TILL BLACK SKELETONS When the door to this room is opened, the Ten Black Skeletons in R20 will being to animate. They awaken in five minutes, and will then try to cleanse the tomb and close the door, locking the Ice Demons within. The marching of their bony feet will be audible, but might be confused with the Demon's illusions.

STRANGE SOUNDS 1. Someone is whispering, but you cannot be certain of who. 2. A ticking and scratching from behind the walls. 3. Distant sounds of alarm. 4. Footsteps of someone in the southern corridor.

WATER BOILS, BREATH MISTS Any held water begins to cold-boil, brimming out of its container, turning to a cold steam and visibly drifting towards the masks. Breath mists in the air and flows towards these masks where it accretes, like a slow 3D printer.

THE MASKS Three cracked masks. One in the northern corner and one each in the centre of the western and eastern wall.

EXPOSURE TIME

▪ 10 seconds - Feel strange, almost heady. ▪ 30 seconds – Any PC or NPC who has suffered a mental illness will feel their thoughts and perceptions altering. It is still possible for them to willingly leave the room. ▪ 60 seconds; (d3); 1. Intense anger at previous betrayals or the failures of others. PC must test or bring up this incident again. 2. Intense flashbacks to shameful memories. PC must test or be lost in memories, they are described by the DM as if they were taking place. 3. Feelings of worthlessness and suicidal ideation. PC must test or explain themselves to a parental figure, this individual is not visible or audible to others.

THE DEMONS SPEAK The Demons speak within the mind, pretending to be part of a character's own inner voice. They will promise, threaten, beg, offer secrets, spread mistrust, whatever they can. All the Demons need is for the PCs to just leave the stone door open. (Though also want water, for their mask to be worn, or freedom by some other method). They will do whatever they can to prevent the PCs from realising this.

▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

R18

THEIR WEAKNESSES Can only perceive negative thoughts and capacities. Bad liars. They are addicts. They hate each other.

With drives they will have trouble repressing even for a brief time; Hexafloric Repugnance; “Chiiildrenn, bring me chilldren pleasssssee.” Zero Tenth-Decimal Endless Recursions; “Pain he he ha, does it hurt does it HA HOO HOOO HAH, show me pain I beg thee.” Triple-Point Star Of Fear Inaccessible; “Art thou afeared, tis terrible, such a burden, let me take it, just a kiss, a little kiss, a blessing..”

MUTUAL HATRED

“No, no, NO! I MUST BE FREE! NOT THAT ONE! FREE ME! FREE MEEEE!! TRAITOR!!” COUNTDOWN TO REANIMATION As soon as moisture-laden air can enter they slowly reform gnarled bodies of Ice. The changes are visible. The whispers get louder. (If someone actually wears a mask, the Demon immediately possesses their body). Count Down from 1o. Mark; ▪ Every time a living being touches a mask. ▪ Every Minute that a breathing being stands in the room. ▪ Every Hour the stone door is left open. ▪ Every Week that the seal is broken. At Zero they Reanimate, their worshippers awaken and will be free in d4 turns. Further details in their Encounter Entry.

REINFORCED WALLS

The walls, floor and roof are granite blocks, stronger and thicker than the rest of the tomb. They are inscribed with runes of warding and stasis but magic is not blocked here as in the warding room.

R17-R20: Ice Demons' Prison

Introduction The Fiasco

R19

The Body Field

R19 FROZEN CORPSES

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

Frozen Corpses

This room is freezing cold and packed with thirty chained bodies. Passage from door to door is possible by turning side-on and edging between the bodies. They brush against whomever passes through. Frozen fingers twitch.

▪ East – Combination door to [R17 Warded Room]. ▪ South – To [R22 Urns of Salt], door at the end of this corridor is barred on the other side.

ENCOUNTERS A bold or intelligent foe might try to hide amongst the bodies. This may be foolish as, though bound, the bodies are still active. They will be given away by their breath. Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, = of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. Encounters

Action

Boreala

Lying in wait

Reductor

Enter after the PCs

Tooth-Tooth

Wounded or impaired

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

Broken Heart

Fighting with (roll again)

Protection Man

Just leaving as PCs enter

Wensley Shrive

Sitting or paused in thought

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Investigating the Bodies

Drusilla Machete

Enter as PCs do, alt entry point

Obsidian Assassin

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Anaracket Bonvive

Zegzor Sapreciept

Demon-Possessed Baboons

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

EXAMINING THE MUTILATIONS Careful examination reveals three distinct types;

DOORS

2d12

They range across ethnicities and cultures but the majority are clothed either as steppe nomads or as silk-wearing city people. The nomads are tattooed on visible skin with the shapes of altered beasts.

Talking/negotiating with the sibilant whispers of the Ice Demons!

THE BODIES 30 in total. Strung standing up with chains running from corner to corner, looping through manacles, wrapped and running through bodies, latched onto fetters or flesh piercings. A silent pandemonium of mutilation, mummification and freezing flesh. Except… not quite silent, and not quite still…

FIRST GLANCE

▪ All are chained ▪ The cold in this room emanates from them. ▪ They are undead. They twitch and shuffle. These creatures move, though only slightly. They are distantly aware, as if half-sleeping. There are souls bound to these things.

CLOSER LOOK Even frozen, the corpses have decayed less than they should have. They have aged less than the chains holding them. Some are like bog mummies, browned and hollowed, others like famine victims with sunken eyes and lips pulled back, one or two could almost be very thin, very anguished living people.

R17-R20: Ice Demons' Prison

Type One – Blinding. Done via a variety of methods, eyes excised, hammered with silver nails, blindfolded with ancient seals, eyes stitched shut etc. Most associated with children, women carrying mummified children and garlands of mummified babies and with pregnant women. Type Two - Muting. Associated with adults and with some paired or triple bodies locked in what seems like an embrace. Mouths warded with piercings and bindings on lips, spiked lips, jaws nailed shut, faces studded with outward spikes, heads caged. Type Three - Lung, throat and tongue excision. Wide association. Chests and throats opened and some variety of lung, throat, voicebox and tongue removal. Usually at least two of these, often all three.

BACKGROUND These are the most potent worshippers and thralls of the three Demons imprisoned in [R18 Ice Demons]. Their bodies are so rank with evil that even their physical destruction might cause their spirts to pollute the earth. If burnt the ash could poison wherever it lies. Destroying the bodies might also free these evil souls to live as immaterial horrors, or send them straight to their demonic masters, thusly empowering them.

IF THE DEMONS AWAKEN The bodies of their worshippers reanimate and start working on their chains which, after d4 turns, will start to fracture.

STATS (Given here for convenience. Further details on their Encounter Page) Armour: unarmoured Hit Dice: 2 Hit Points: 10 Damage: 1d6 bite or strangle, soul-poison on a crit. Morale: 10 (see ‘Turning’) Speed; very slow. Stat as: Zombie Turning: Will not flee but can be held at the boundary of the Clerics power. Smell; Something ghastly and rotting, Like a barrel holding salted meat kept in the sun. Sound; An uneven tapping, dragging and wet sliding, with a subvocal “guh … guh … guh” Sight; a vile, mummified, mutilated, frozen corpse, torn free from some unknown fastening, moving and crawling as if still alive!!! The creature's flesh is thawing out! It leaves a terrible smear-trail of melted flesh!

Skeletal Mess R20 SKELETAL MESS Freezing cold, black soot, scorched bone and the remains of armoured flamethrowing skeletons. Something has trampled, crushed and ruined everything. Bones and hardwood armour are splintered and scorched black.. Burn marks run up the walls and pool in the ceiling. Bone crunches underfoot.

DOORS

▪ West - To [R17 Warded Room]. ▪ South - To [R24 Fine Black Silk]. ▪ Dimensional Tear – A Backward Tear (hard to access) to [R31 Condensed Darkness]. ▪ Dimensional Tear – A Forward Tear (easy to access) to [R27 Bird-Headed Man]. Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d12

Encounters

Action

Boreala

Lying in wait

Reductor

Enter after the PCs

Tooth-Tooth

Wounded or impaired

Broken Heart

Fighting with (roll again)

Protection Man

Just leaving as PCs enter

Wensley Shrive

Sitting or paused in thought

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Investigating the Environment

Drusilla Machete

Enter as PCs do, alt entry point

Obsidian Assassin

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Anaracket Bonvive

Zegzor Sapreciept

Demon-Possessed Baboons

R20

Originally a pathway lead from each door and met in the centre of the room, with every other space filled with ranked skeletons. Now the place is ruined, one need only pick a way through the skeletal mess.

PREMPTIVE ACTIVATION The disturbance of the tomb has half-awoken the Ice Demons and so one or two of the Skeletons may have semiwoken in response and may be encountered wandering the tomb a little like aggressive sleepwalkers. For encountering the Black Skeletons when active, turn to their Encounter Page Stats given here for convenience. Armour: as plate Hit Dice: 1 Hit Points: 6 Damage: 1d6 hooks, 1d6 fire Morale: Stat as: armoured undead Guardian: can sense evil and will prioritise supernaturally evil creatures over the PCs, if present.

Talking/negotiating with the sibilant whispers of the Ice Demons!

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

TEN BLACK SKELETONS

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

Scorched, coated with black soot, tipped over in the chaos, they are hard to tell apart from the general chaos.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

Ten unbroken skeletons remain. Armoured in hardwood, armed with hooked blades attached to their forearms. Mouths all open as if screaming, a black space within.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

The Skeltons are somewhat self-aware but are “sleeping”, conserving their energy and will activate only if the door to [R18 Ice Demons] is opened. If this happens they will awaken slowly, like coma victims, and will try to lock the Ice Demons in their prison, hunting and destroying any alien entities in the tomb to prevent anything getting out.

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

BACKGROUND

R65 Sloth Nest

These Black Skeletal Guards were made from the bravest and most loyal soldiers of the Queen of Fire.

Appendices

The Spectral Demon Uzziel Unanelad crashed through dimensions here on their jounry bouncing around the tomb, before being crippled by ‘Cornflower’ the Delft Sentinel. The Crystal Demon tore apart most of the Black Skeletons without really understanding what they were and was gone within seconds, tearing another hole in space.

R17-R20: Ice Demons' Prison

Introduction The Fiasco

R21

The Body Field

R21 MORDANT KAUST

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

Breath frosts in plumes, the ceiling a nest of jagged icicles. In the centre, locked in four great chains of blue-white ice is a partly-flensed body made of dirty yellow-green snow. It is alive. In a voice like ancient bubbling corrosion, yet not without charm, it speaks;

“Ah. I thought I heard a noise. Greetings. I regret I cannot rise to welcome you...” DOORS All the doors are sheened with a centimetre of ice which must be melted or smashed (AC 5, hp 4) to access the locks. ▪ West - Ice-sheened combination door to [R22 Urns of Salt]. ▪ East – Ice-sheened combination door to [R24 Fine Black Silk]. ▪ South – Ice-sheened combination door to [R23 Thorn Sky].

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

DAMAGE

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

ENCOUNTERS

Mordant Kaust

Very slight cracking in the South-East corner.

Surrounded by trapped rooms and sheened with ice, the PCs are unlikely to find any random encounters waiting for them here.

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every 1/2 hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 1d6

Enter after PCs

Boreala

Demon-Possessed Baboons

Demon Worshippers

Flamethrower Skeleton

Obsidian Assassin

Reductor

KAUST'S APPEARANCE A junkyard knight, flesh of snow over colourless muscles and a skeleton like a broken bicycle frame, a face like a rotted mask with eyes like irradiated sapphires.

THE CHAINS Chains of ice, with a central lock of ice. Cold emanates from the locks. Prolonged contact causes instant frostburn. The lock is technically pickable, the major problem being the terrible cold which freezes flesh and makes metal tools as brittle as glass.

R21-R24: Acid Baron's Cell

SPEAKING WITH KAUST Kaust is reasonable and persuasive. He speaks the truth.

WHO ARE YOU?

▪ “I am Baron Mordant Kaust. A long-imprisoned foe of the Queen whose tomb this is.” ▪ “Though I think, since you are invading and robbing her tomb, you can hardly be friends of hers?”

WHERE FROM?

▪ “A land.. let us say an enzyme boundary, a process.. There is little way to explain it to one such as you. Let us say only that I was a ruler of a far-distant land. Very far distant.”

THE QUEEN? ▪

“Puh-Gna Zor, the “Queen of Fire”, who lived some eighty years but has managed to trap me here for... thousands? Hundreds? Who knows.”

WHY ARE YOU HERE?

▪ “I did give some offence, I leagued with her enemies against her, not out of love for them, or even truly hatred for her, but spite. I hated those who loved her, yet could not do them harm.” ▪ “As it happened, they did her more harm than I ever could. Such is love.” ▪ “Her greatest enemies, those Demons of Ice, some of whom may be imprisoned here, as I am, though I caution you not to set them free. They are not.. empathic to the flesh. Your souls are meat to them.” ▪ “Since it seems that information is all I have, it seems I should guard it carefully, yes?”

WHAT DO YOU WANT

▪ “I have had much time to dwell upon my deeds and reasons. Spite is too low motive on which to wager ones' life.” ▪ “I would leave. Go home, if they will have me. Find some other way to live.” ▪ “It seems I was likely to leave soon anyway. A few more centuries and natural action would likely have reduced all."

OTHERS IN THE TOMB

▪ “The remaining servants of the Fire Queen may seem servile, but their one aim is to prevent anyone leaving the tomb. Including you.”

THE ICE DEMONS

▪ “The Ice Demons are horrors, can deliver none of their promises and despise mankind. It would be better to leave them here.”

Mordant Kaust

R21

The Tomb

▪ “Some entity of great power broke into the Tomb, a cousin of the Ice Demons, though instead of freeing them, or me, it attempted to destroy the Tombs Guardians first, beginning with the strongest.”

Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

▪ “Recently some animal, some snuffling something, has been moving about around us.”

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

▪ (on being informed) “Oh, it was a sloth.”

R9-R12 Halls of Ash

HISTORY OF THE FIRE QUEEN

R13-R16 Reductors Halls

▪ “The Fire Queen was loved by those of another Realm. She married them and her children were partly of that nature.” ▪ “The Ice Demons were already battling humanity. When the Fire Queen's lovers became involved and aided her, and thence mankind, we leant our strength to the Demons, simply to oppose them.”

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

▪ “There was.. a rupture? Some kind of drama or fracture. I do not know, I have been imprisoned in one form or another since the Final Battle.”

RELEASING MORDANT KAUST

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

If we ever produce the final book of this Trilogy, ‘Palaces of Fire’, Kaust will return, and if the PCs did free him, he may prove a useful ally.

▪ Use Tomb Key ▪ Pick the Lock (without the pick shattering or your flesh freezing somehow).

The Fiasco The Body Field

OTHER VISITORS

▪ “They, the Nobility of Fire, would never have accepted her anyway, neither her nor her children. They never even accepted Us, the sneering condescending swine, and we are all oxidising agents are we not? I doubt they would see Her, or you, as anything more than flickering shades of their own oh-soperfect fire.”

Introduction

▪ Break the Chains (AC 20, 50 hp)

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library

As soon as he is free, Kaust will transform into a puddle of acid and hiss his way through cracks in the floor.

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

R21-R24: Acid Baron's Cell

Introduction The Fiasco

R22/23 Salt Urns/Thorn Sky

The Body Field

THE VOICE OF KAUST

R23 THORN SKY

All these rooms echoe with a deep voice, like fizzing or gurgling, yet not without charm.

Bronze and copper vines and roses adorning the walls and ceiling. The floor is nondescript grid of 64 triangular plates.

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls

Encounter

Action

Boreala

Lying in wait

Reductor

Wounded or impaired

Second Sloth!

Enter after the PCs

Broken Heart

Fighting with (roll again)

Protection Man

Investigating the Environment

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Enter as PCs do, alt entry point

Obsidian Assassin

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

Demon Worshippers

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Anaracket Bonvive

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Flamethrower Skeleton

Talking/negotiating with the Voice of Kaust

Pyroclastic Guardian

Talking/negotiating with the Voice of Kaust

Demon-Posessed Baboons

Talking/negotiating with the Voice of Kaust

R22 URNS OF SALT

This room holds a part-functioning pressure trap.

DOORS

▪ North – To [R21 Mordant Kaust]. Door at the end is locked and sheened with ice. ▪ West - To [R28 Shrike]. ▪ East - To [R31 Condensed Darkness] Observation – trickles of a denser darkness seep through. ▪ Below - Hidden. Worming through the traps can give access to a crawlspace which itself leads to the Trap Maintenance Tunnels, see page 24.

DAMAGE Subsidence and cracking, eastern wall. Very strong force might cause a partial collapse into the tunnel below.

ENCOUNTERS Intelligent opponents may trick or force the PCs into this room to activate the trap. Stupid or unlucky ones may stumble in themselves.

THORN TRAP Amongst the metal leaves and flowers the ceiling has a myriad of slender metal thorns that look barely attached.

This cold room contains several large but fragile salt urns. A large counterweight hangs in the middle. The northern door is trapped. A strange voice echoes.

One third of the triangle grids are trapped. Stepping on one with more than the weight of a dog activates the mechanism. d6;

DOORS

1-3 – Mechanism jams, propelling the victim half way to the roof before shuddering to a stop and freezing in place as a solid column in the room.

Each doorway in this room is flanked by two huge urns, one on each side. Set with their bases at waist height, these are tilted slightly so should they tip, each will fall towards the other. ▪ North - Barred (this side) door to [R19 Frozen Corpses]. Cold. Trapped. ▪ West - To [R26 Dead Spiders] (maybe a breeze). Cold. Trapped. ▪ East - To [R21 Mordant Kaust]. Door at the end is locked and sheened with ice.

TRAP A large counterweight hangs in the direct centre of the room. Set to fall if the door leading North to [R19 Frozen Corpses] is opened. This tips the urns flanking each door, causing them to tilt towards each other and crash, spreading salt across each boundary. This trap should do no serious damage to standard humans. The Frozen Corpses from R19 will be unable to cross it.

R21-R24: Acid Baron's Cell

4-6- Mechanism launches the victim into the thorns which despite appearance will remain firmly in place. D6 damage. It then smoothly retracts. Should the PC fall from the thorns, another d4 damage. The mechanism takes a few seconds to ratchet back into place and can be safely stepped on for up to a minute afterwards.

Fine Black Silk

R24

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms

R24 FINE BLACK SILK

BLOOD ON THE FLOOR Trickles and spatters of blood lead from the centre of the room. Following the blood leads to the longitudinally-bisected body of a formless, ultrablack goblin-like creature.

This room is cold, dark and hung with curtains of fine, black, rotten silk which blocks line of sight, wraps like spiderweb and burns inconsistently. The silk hides a mechanical trap. Pendulums winging from below will slice their targets in two.

DOORS

▪ North - To [R20 Skeletal Mess]. ▪ West - To [R21 Mordant Kaust]. Door at the end is locked and sheened with ice. ▪ East - To [R30 Black Bones]. Dense darkness oozes through this door. ▪ Below - Hidden. Worming through the traps can give access to a crawlspace which itself leads to the Trap Maintenance Tunnels, see page 24.

DAMAGE Eastern wall is cracked. Very strong force might collapse it into the tunnels below.

ENCOUNTERS Look if you can’t run an encounter in a room full of magical darkness, the voice of a distant prisoner and a bunch of hidden pendulum traps there is not much I can do to help you. Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d12

Encounter

Action

Boreala

Lying in wait

Reductor

Wounded or impaired

Second Sloth!

Enter after the PCs

Broken Heart

Fighting with (roll again)

Protection Man

Investigating the Environment

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Enter as PCs do, alt entry point

Obsidian Assassin

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Demon Worshippers

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Anaracket Bonvive

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Flamethrower Skeleton

Talking/negotiating with the Voice of Kaust

Pyroclastic Guardian

Talking/negotiating with the Voice of Kaust

Demon-Possessed Talking/negotiating Baboons with the Voice of Kaust

Those tracing the blood may activate the same trap which killed the beast. The Body - a Backup Baboon which has dipped itself in liquid shadow in order to stealthily search the dungeon. Washing or feeling the corpse will reveal this.

THE BLACK SILK Quarter-speed movement and probing ahead avoids one being wrapped in the silk. Being Wrapped in the Silk – ultra-fine, the silk takes d6 rounds of action to carefully un-pick. Until that is done the wrappee is impeded and partially blinded. Burning the Silk – fills the room and all adjacent rooms with stinking and incapacitating smoke. 1d8 damage to anyone in the silk, or wrapped in it.

THE PENDULUM TRAP There are three large pendulums located beneath the room. The triggers are floor sections parallel to the sweep of the blades. The floor sections can be jammed and the levers of the pendulums triggered and prevented from resetting. The weight of a dog or above activates the pendulum. They swing up with a noticeably loud SWISH. 2d6 damage to anything in its path. If killed, the target is bisected. The pendulum then resets with an audible THUNK. Due to the hanging silk, it may not be immediately obvious that these levers are swinging from below.

R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

R21-R24: Acid Baron's Cell

Introduction The Fiasco

R25

The Body Field

R25 BRONZE TREES

MOVING THROUGH THE ROOM

Sculpted bronze trees fill this room. If Boreala is present, the trees are set with brass, bronze and Verdigris-stained copper leaves.

The metal branches make movement slow and difficult, unless one crouches or crawls beneath them.

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

Bronze Trees

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

As Boreala sleeps, the leaves alight upon the trees. As she awakens when disturbed, the leaves begin to shiver and shake before whirling into the shape of the Fall Witch.

R9-R12 Halls of Ash

DOORS

▪ North - To [R26 Dead Spiders]. ▪ West - To [R27 Bird-Headed Man]. ▪ East - To [R28 Shrike]. (Loose flagstone. In the middle of the passage a flag can be leavered up and gives access to the Trap Maintenance Tunnels (See page 24)) ▪ Man-sized hole – Hard to spot. Hidden near the roof of the Northern Wall. This provides access for Boreala to reach [R26 Dead Spiders] without passing through the doors.

ENCOUNTERS If Boreala is alive and is not currently being encountered elsewhere in the maze, she will be here.

▪

▪ ▪

If further encounters are required, see below; ▪ Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d12

Encounter

Action

Reductor

Lying in wait

Tooth-Tooth

Creeping quietly

Broken Heart

Creeping quietly

Wensley Shrive

Fighting with Boreala

Protection Man

Fighting with Boreala

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Enters after the PCs, loudly

Drusilla Machete

Enters after the PCs, loudly

Zegzor Sapreciept

Quietly leaving as PCs enter

Obsidian Assassin

Trapped by accident or wound

Pyroclastic Guardian Talking/negotiating with Boreala

Flamethrower Skeleton

Anaracket Bonvive – escaping, heading north if possible.

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

BOREALA

R25-R28: Boreala's Halls

Armour: as chain (see immunities below) Hit Dice: 5 Hit Points: 17 Damage: d6 6ft area & can pluck into the air Morale: 9 Stat as: magical swarm Immunity: most normal attacks. Magic, damaging, or containing her leaves will harm her. Plucked Into the Air: Borala picks up a target and carries them away to [R28 Shrike] (locked & tumbler doors open for her,) and hangs them from her Iron Tree. Before hoisting the individual up, Boreala cuts the straps of heavy packs & smooth armour, this takes a round. Targets first any NPC with a desired item or knowledge. Smooth, dense targets can save to avoid being picked up. Once hung on the Iron Tree the target is incapacitated, semi conscious, and reduced to 1hp.

Dead Spiders R26 DEAD SPIDERS When depressed and sleepless Boreala roams the dungeon and collects spiders, dropping them in this room as a kind of petting zoo. The dense spiderwebs obscure a simple tripwire in the centre which seals the chamber.

DOORS

▪ South - To [R25 Bronze Trees]. ▪ East - To [R22 Urns of Salt]. ▪ Man-sized hole – Hard to spot. Hidden near the roof of the Southern Wall. This provides access for Boreala to reach [R25 Bronze Trees] without passing through the doors.

ENCOUNTERS If not currently being encountered elsewhere in the tomb, Boreala is next door in [R25 Bronze Trees] to the South. Noise or disturbance will draw her attention. If other NPCs are present, one may accidentally, or deliberately, set off the trap, locking the room.

R26

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d8

Encounter

Action

Reductor

Lying in wait

Backup Baboon

Creeping quietly

Protection Man

Sifting the spiders

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Fighting with Boreala

Drusilla Machete

Enters after the PCs, loudly

Obsidian Assassin

About to trigger the tripwire

Pyroclastic Guardian

On other side of door PCs just opened. Very surprised!

Anaracket Bonvive – escaping, heading north if possible.

WEBS The room is full of ancient webs. These cling around anyone passing through. The top two to three feet of the room space is open, Boreala circles here to observe her spiders. Naked flames will start an immediate fire. Burning the Webs – fills the room with smoke. Does 1d6 damage to anyone in the webs, or wrapped in them.

CRUNCHY FLOOR The floor is covered in the bodies of dead spiders. Anyone walking through will create a crunching sound unless they carefully move the spider bodies out of the way.

PORTCULLIS TRAP Both doors have an iron portcullis above them. Anyone carefully observing before entering may notice them. A copper tripwire directly across the centre of the room drops both portcullis. There is an over man-sized hole in the top of the southern wall. Boreala uses this to move in and out of the room. If she abducts someone from the room she will swoop in, pull them up and carry them to [R28 Shrike] where she will impale them before returning.

Appendices

R25-R28: Boreala's Halls

Introduction The Fiasco

R27

The Body Field

R27 BIRD-HEADED MAN

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms

Bird-Headed Man

On the western wall is a bird-headed statue surrounded by a floating halo of stone fragments and bronze leaves.

R1-R4 Lower Floor

In the eastern corner, the statue of a woman.

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

The floor is torn and scattered with strange debris. Strong pine and resin smell. (If the trap in [R12, Pyroclastic Guardian], has been activated, the pine and resin smell will be smoke, fire and heat).

DOORS

▪ East - To [R25 Bronze Trees] ▪ South - To [R11 Mirror Maze]. ▪ Dimensional Tear – A Forward Tear (easy to access) to [R12 Pyroclastic Guardian]. Pine smell. ▪ Dimensional Tear – A Backward Tear (hard to access) to [R20 Skeletal Mess]. Soot and burn marks.

DEBRIS

ENCOUNTERS Residents of the tomb will be careful of the stasis field around the statue of the Bird-Headed man. Visitors may not realise it is there. Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. Encounter

Action

Boreala

Talking with..

Reductor

Lying in wait

Broken Heart

Fighting (roll again)

Second Sloth

Examining stasis bubble

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Enters after PCs via alt door

Anaracket Bonvive - escaping through alt exit.

Flamethrower Skeleton - surprise entry through vortex to R20

Pyroclastic Guardian (if active) - surprise entry through vortex to R12

METAL FEMALE STATUE A woman in a dress of falling leaves, her arms raised above her head, holding a spiral of stone. In the centre of the spiral, eight feet off the ground, is a square black keyhole - (for a Tomb Key). The statue is badly scarred, worn and chipped. A Tomb Key in this lock will release the stasis field around the Bird-Headed Man. (Destroying the statue, or getting it out of this room, would also do it. Though it is very heavy.)

Releasing the stasis field frees the Bird-Headed Man. It also releases all the material and stuff in the stasis field at the original speed and direction of its entry. There will be a burst of chaotic movement. Zeph is the Life Partner of Boreala, the Fall Witch, held here with the Glass Seal which holds her in bondage. The first thing Zeph will do if freed is to immediately destroy the glass seal, smashing it upon the ground. This will free Boreala, allowing her to condense into her natural form. They will then both seek the open air and fly off into the sky, holding hands - a happy ending!

STATUE OF A BIRD-HEADED MAN STASIS LOCKED; Chips and fragments of stone and bronze leaves hang in the air around the statue. Prodding reveals a pocket of air like soft quick-setting glue around it to a radius of four feet. This radius marked by massive scarring and scratching of the stone, as if a million cats had prowled around it. Careful testing with flesh causes pain as the blood supply in that limb stills, and the limb or finger must be pulled out strongly. Shoving something, or someone, hard into the field, sticks them in place, frozen in time.

Austere. Cross-legged on the plinth. A cloak of falling feathers frozen in time, each layered in bright colours like a laminated slide. In his lap, a whirl of glass, like a small tornado held like a monarchs orb. Very-tiny leaves are visible inside.

VECTOR ZEPH

Something has torn up parts of the floor with huge claws. Fragments of stone, but also shards of old soot-blackened bone.

2d8

THE BIRD-HEADED MAN;

R25-R28: Boreala's Halls

(If we ever produce the third part in the 'Elemental Quartet;' Littoral Storm Corsairs, Vector Zeph may return.)

Shrike R28 SHRIKE In the centre is an iron thorn tree. Bones lie beneath. Desiccated bodies hang upon the thorns.

▪ West - To [R25 Bronze Trees]. (Loose flagstone. In the middle of the passage a flag can be leavered up and gives access to the Trap Maintenance Tunnels (See page 24)) ▪ East - To [R23 Thorn Sky]. ▪ South - To [R12 Pyroclastic Guardian].

Action

Navidorine

Lying in wait

Protection Man

Enter after PCs

Wensley Shrive

Wounded or impaired

Anaracket Bonvive

Already impaled on the tree

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Already impaled on the tree

Demon-Possessed Baboons

Enraptured/Drawn by the Iron Badge

DAMAGE Slight cracking, eastern corner.

ENCOUNTERS Boreala - if not currently being encountered elsewhere in the tomb, she is next door in [R25 Bronze Trees]. Noise or disturbance will draw her attention. Any beings recently taken by Boreala will be hanging on the Iron Tree in the centre of the room, they may still be alive.

THE IRON TREE Black Iron, nearly as tall as the room. Forged in perfect simulation of a crabbed, knotted, ancient stand of wood. Low, thick-trunked, with spiderous branches splintering from its crown and recurving like biting jaws. All jagged and studded with vile black iron thorns, each curved upwards to make certain nothing slips from their spike.

THE BODIES

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field

2d6

DOORS

R28

THE IRON BADGE A simple iron badge. On one side has been scratched a star bearing a certain number of points. On the obverse is something in the language of fire. Cold when held regardless of the temperature of the environment. It is impossible to count the number of points. And very hard to stop. Thoughts occur. Flashbacks to shameful memories. Anger. Suspicion of others. Anyone who began the count will not reveal the star to others - they will certainly try to steal it. But the owner knows the answer to the mystery is somewhere in this tomb, in the warded rooms in the northern point. (The reverse side writing in the Language of Fire is the True Name of ‘Zero-Point-Star of Fear Inacessble’.)

Stained black flags in the near-lightless room. Rags and tatters of parched leatherlike skin and fragments of ancient clothes drape from the iron branches. Bones pile beneath.

SEARCHING THE BONES An iron dagger, much pitted but still whole, A crowbar. A Tomb Key. (No-one can bestow this key. It weighs 75 kilos. Boreala could not pick it up, even if she knew it were here.) Just visible is the edge of an iron badge or medallion.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

R25-R28: Boreala's Halls

Introduction The Fiasco

R29

The Body Field

R29 DRAGONBONE STAFF

Dragonbone Staff

Magical darkness flows from this room like fog. In the centre is the Occlusion Engine from which it flows, powered by a Black Dragonbone Staff. Removing the staff collapses the engine, and opens the Tomb to magical searching, by the PCs, and others...

DOORS

▪ North - To [R30 Black Bones]. ▪ West - To [R31 Condensed Darkness]. ▪ East – To [R32 Obsidian Mirror].

DAMAGE

PULLING THE STAFF OUT A strong grip and a sharp yank will do it. (Magically-skilled or thiefy PCs will be able to intuit that pulling out the staff will shut down the rings, likely causing them to fall.) The Rings Collapse; “BOOM”

Some cracking and mild subsidence eastern corner.

In the centre of the rings, vertical and hovering, is a Black Dragonbone Staff. It’s possible to reach in and feel it gently turning.

Encounter

Action

Reductor

Stalking PCs

Protection Man

Enter after the PCs

Drusilla Machete

Fighting (roll again)

Obsidian Assassin

Investigating/ Searching

Demon Worshippers

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

THE DARKNESS

3d6 damage to anyone with their arm still sticking in there. Damage can be reduced if the player is willing to lose the arm. The Shadows Evaporate - The room, and all nearby rooms, become as clear as natural physics would allow. The Tomb's Invisibility to Magic Disappears - the PCs can now use magic to investigate the tomb, except for [R17 Warded Room]. So can anyone else, including the servants of the Ice Demons, the Blue Glass Merchant Company and general Tomb Robbers. (Effectively a magical Google Alert goes off).

It drips from the walls like condensing steam. The darkness almost has a sound, like a heartbeat deeper and slower than anything which can be heard or felt.

THE BLACK DRAGONBONE STAFF

Obviously magical, this darkness is the source of the tomb's invisibility to scrying and other magics of detection.

▪ Looks cool as shit, this is some top-tier wizard business. ▪ Can change its form and size into any common object of similar mass which can be grasped, though it will always be black. (Including any handheld solid weapon). ▪ While held it can cast an illusion that will cause its holder to look, smell and feel like any non-specific humanoid of similar mass. The illusion is never someone known to anyone else. They will be a stranger. The illusion may be cast or ended at will and may persist so long as the staff is held.

Lamps illuminate a three-foot radius. Shadow-fingers press in against that boundary. By the Occlusion Engine a lamp only shows a two-foot radius.

THE OCCLUSION ENGINE In the centre of the room; four heavy obsidian rings, stacked vertically, floating magically, each above the other, and counter-rotating. The shadow thrums, it’s almost tangible. The rings are etched with the runes and glyphs of spellcraft. They move like slow machine parts. The rings are HEAVY. Though they move slowly, reaching between them is like reaching into a slowly turning engine.

R29-R32: Shadow Engine

Black Bones

R30

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field

R30 BLACK BONES

THE BONES

Thick darkness flows from the south and winds through this room like skeins of black mist. The walls scratched and worn by giant claws. Giant, chewed and splintered matteblack bones fill the room like a collapsed play-park. The floor is a foot deep in boneshards and soil.

The bones are matte black, hard to see in the gloomy room. They are HUGE, scattered about like a giant chicken dinner in a bin. The ribs stick up and lean precipitously. Everything has been gnawed on.

Encounters

The huge ribcage, mammoth legs and leviathan spine form the centre of the field of obstructive detritus in the room centre.

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

Yet at points, the soil seems to glitter.

DOORS ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

West - To [R24 Fine Black Silk]. South - To [R29 Dragonbone Staff ]. South-East - Sloth hole. (Hard to spot). South-East Corner - Sloth Hole (Hard to spot).

These are the Bones of a Dragon. Or at least, most of its bones. The black Dragon Skull makes that clear.

DAMAGE

Beneath the Dragon's Skull is a small ebony chest. It has been broke and splintered by the sloth, its contents mixed with the soil and debris.

Subsidence – the western wall, northern corner and eastern corner are badly cracked.

A single black pearl remains rattling in the broken box.

There are two big holes leading to Sloth Tunnels. The Sloth has backfilled this room with tunnel-dirt, scratched the walls, chewed on the dragonbones and generally made a massive mess.

ENCOUNTERS Almost anything could be hiding in the darkness and chaos, though, unless it can see in the dark, it will find it hard to get around silently.

THE SOIL A mess of soil, stone, boneshards, ceramic fragments and ravenwing coloured dragonscales. The treasure in the ebony box; black diamonds and black pearls, has been mixed thoroughly with the soil. One item in the room, the Dragon's Eye, is pearly white, but it is hidden deep beneath the piled detritus. Hidden in the Soil are; ▪ 10 black diamonds worth 100 c each.

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d6

Encounter

Action

Reductor

Stalking PCs

Second Sloth!

Lying in wait

Protection Man

Enter after the PCs

Obsidian Assassin

Fighting (roll again)

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Investigating/Searching

Demon-Possessed Baboons

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

▪ 100 black pearls worth 5 c each ▪ 1,000 black dragonscales worth, on average, 1 c each. ▪ The Dragon's Eye - about the size of an apple, it glows with a feral grey opalescence. Holding it up to your eye and looking through it allows you to see through darkness, even magical or absolute darkness, as if it were day.

The Tomb

Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

R29-R32: Shadow Engine

Introduction The Fiasco

R31/32 Condensed Darkness

The Body Field

R31 CONDENSED DARKNESS

The corners of this room contain three gigantic snail shells upon stone stands. Deep scratches mark the floor, as if a wild beast roamed here once. A wisp of strange, intense cold.

DOORS ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

West – Combination door to [R23 Thorn Sky]. South – Combination door to [R14 Lamp Trap]. East – Combination door to [R29 Dragonbone Staff ]. Dimensional Tear – A Backward Tear (hard to access) to [R54 Sloth Catastrophe]. ▪ Dimensional Tear – A Forward Tear (easy to access) to [R27 Skeletal Mess].

DAMAGE Subsidence - cracking along the western wall

Encounter

Action

Demon-Possessed Baboons

Investigating/ Searching

Demon Worshippers

Stalking PCs

Drusilla Machete

Fighting (roll again)

Flamethrower Skeleton

Lying in wait

Obsidian Assassin

Lying in wait

Protection Man

Lying in wait

Pytroclastic Guardian

Lying in wait

Reductor

Lying in wait

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Lying in wait

9-12

THE SHELLS Fans of cold obsidian shards are placed above the open upward-turning shells. Raw darkness emanating from the Eastern door condenses here and drips down slowly into the shells. Each shell is scribed with spiralling lines of poetry in a strange tongue, following the natural contours. To read each line one would have to move the shell itself, or get behind it somehow.

TIPPING A SHELL The dense darkness in each shell weighs about half what water of the equivalent amount would, so they should be liftable by most beings. The sides are smooth, the bottoms curved and the contents slosh back and forth. Careful attention must be paid especially when placing them down. If a shell falls the liquid darkness runs out coating anyone holding the shell, sticking like oil and covering the floor, making it indiscernible. The darkness will run into [R29

R29-R32: Shadow Engine

Dragonbone Staff], [R14 Lamp Trap] and [R23 Thorn Sky] before slowly sinking and dripping down into the sloth tunnel beneath and between [R23 Thorn Sky] and this room.

THE STRANGE SCRIPT Any magic-user will be able to tell that this script is in the language of the Bog-Elves and that each shell holds one third of a poem which, if transcribed and united, describes the following spell;

SPELL - SELF-ECLIPSE The caster becomes their own shadow. They can exist only in places in which a shadow may be cast, i.e. with directional light and patches of darkness. If they move into a place where shadows cannot be cast or interact with a three-dimensional object they are forcibly returned to existence and must save or lose half their total hp value as dimensional damage. Interacting with a two-dimensional phenomena however, something written on a page, or the image of a painting, does not cause this affect. The spell ends after minutes equal to the caster's level but can be ended early by rolling below their level on a d10.

R32 OBSIDIAN MIRRORS Blackness seeps beneath the western door like gas. Dark reflections blaze across the walls like images of images floating on a sea of ink. Lamplight proliferates like stars in a dark nebulae. The room is lined with obsidian mirrors. Raw slices of the black stone have been polished flat and set against the walls. (One of these is the mirror of the Obsidian Assassin.)

DOORS

▪ West - To [R28 Black Dragonbone Staff ]. Darkness flows from this door like fog. ▪ South - To [R15 Urns]. Corridor trapped.– SQUASHED-ASS BABOON. (Hidden access to Trap Maintenance Tunnels.)

ENCOUNTERS If the Obsidian Assassin has not been encountered so far, it will be met with here, hidden amongst the many mirrors of this room. Otherwise use the table for [R31 Condensed Darkness].

THE MIRROR An oval obsidian mirror the size of a man set flat against the wall, almost indiscernible hairline cracks webbed across its surface. For those who meet their own eyes in the reflection, their mirror-self seems to be a fraction of a second slower than it should. The Assassin will wait for the PCs to leave or become vulnerabe before it activates. See its Encounter Page for details.

Spinster-Bone Cage

R33 THE CAGE

The cage is finely shaped, joints carved to lock together. It holds an ancient cushion and is closed by a simple barlock, also made of bone.

R33 SPINSTERBONE CAGE In the centre is a stone plinth bearing a cage of bone. In each room corner is a black jar containing incense. If the Broken Heart has not been encountered, it is sitting in the cage. A cat with the features of a girl, burning with fire and electricity, smiling, licking its paws. If the Broken Heart has been encountered, the cage is empty, the front swung open.

Anatomy-wise PCs; The cage is constructed largely of femur, fibula, tibia, humerus, ulna and radius bones. More bones than one person could provide. All female. All from older individuals. If the Broken Heart returns to the cage for any reason, and the door is locked, it will be unable to leave or to effect the cage in any way.

THE BLACK VASES

DOORS

▪ West - To [R34 Steel Garden]. ▪ South - To [R36 Histories & Historians]. ▪ East - To [R35 Cracked Map].

DAMAGE Slight cracking in the West and East corners.

ENCOUNTERS The Broken Heart, or Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d6

Encounter

Action

Drusilla Machete

Investigating the Cage

Navidorine

Fighting (roll again)

Wensley Shrive

Lying in Wait

Zegzor Sapreciept

Talking to the Broken Heart

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Talking to the Broken Heart

Tooth-Tooth

Talking to the Broken Heart

FIRST GLANCE OF THE BROKEN HEART Crackling blue lightning and spatters of blue firelight, like a tesla coil and butane flame. A cracked cat with the features of a girl, burning with fire and electricity. Smiling.

“I am ex tremely sleepy. Yet where may I sleep?” Go to the Broken Heart Encounter Entry for conversation, riddles, background and stats.

The incense emits a stinking black cloud which causes those who breath it to weep black tears and to drip black drops from their nose. These run down their faces and stain them like soot. The magical incense also creates an intense, cold, unempathic rationalism in those so effected. All magical empathic effects or illusions, like charm or love spells, or glamours, will be banished and will no-longer affect the target. The same individuals will develop a cold, uncaring and utilitarian attitude, even towards their own friends, partners and long-term allies, with a purely practical approach to the suffering of others. Magical effects are dispelled by the incense and do not return. The personality effects last as long as the incense burns and ten minutes after it is removed.

TREASURE Incense, Vases and the Bone Cage are all worth money, see Treasure Totals Appendix for details.

BROKEN HEART STATS Armour: as chain (dex) Hit Dice: 3 Hit Points: 20 Damage: d2 scratch & love bite Morale: 5 (easily distracted) Stat as: Elfin Cat Blink: as an action can ‘blink’ to anywhere within 30ft. Many-Angled: can walk up walls, ceiling, lounge in mid-air. Love Bite: The target falls in love with the next person they see. They can no longer gain XP unless they are actively pursuing, consummating or sustaining this relationship.

R33-R36: Spinster-Bone Cage

Introduction The Fiasco

R34

The Body Field

R34 STEEL GARDEN

THE TRAP AT THE NORTHERN DOOR

Two trees, one of iron, bearing silver fruit, one of bronze and spiked. In the centre of the room, in all three corners and climbing across its walls, are shimmering metallic flowers.

Metal Rhododendron climb up the wall to each side of the door. The heads of the metal flowers bend towards each other symmetrically across the doorway, each facing another across the upper half of the door.

(Deadly, but easily locatable trap at the northern door.)

Observation; No other doorway has flowers arranged in this way. Anyone proceeding carefully will definitely notice this.

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash

Steel Garden

DOORS

R13-R16 Reductors Halls

▪ North – Empty passage, no door to [R39 Flame Calligraphy]. (trapped) ▪ West - To [R42 Aerial Rings]. Passage bows slightly. ▪ East - To [R33 Spinster-Bone Cage].

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

DAMAGE

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

The west wall is badly cracked. The door in that section bows slightly.

ENCOUNTERS

The Arsenic flowers belch out blue fire, filling the upper half of the door with a horrific blaze. Anyone caught in it takes 3d6 damage. The bottom half of the doorway is left clear. Someone crouching or crawling across the boundary will not be burnt.

THE METAL PLANTS

Intelligent enemies may trick PCs into the trap or try to shove them into the metallic plants. Foolish ones might fall victim to the same tactics. Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d4

Encounter

Action

Dancing Automata

Enter after PCs

Quicksilver Statues

Enter as PCs do via alt door

Tiny Knights

Waiting/Hidden

Backup Baboons

In conflict with (roll again)

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Anyone passing between the flowers triggers the trap.

R33-R36: Spinster-Bone Cage

Plant Knowledge; Most beings will be able to tell that these plants are rare and strange. Those with specialist knowledge will realise that many are ferns grown to occupy the niche of common plants. In what strange environment might this occur? An island of some kind?

DETAILS OVERLEAF

Steel Garden NORTH - RHODODENDRON Along the northern wall; forms of Rhododendron plant, the flowers sagging on their sculpted stems. Close observation; large ceramic bees have been sculpted on some of the flowers. The stems of the Rhododendron plants lead into the wall and towards the northern door.

R34 THE TRAP

WEST VINES Greenish copper vines with small openings.

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

Close Observation; looking inside shows that the inner part of the vine has tiny sculpted shining flowers within.

CENTRE – TWO TREES BUSHES, SILVER FRUIT Two trees surrounded by bushes. One tree is iron, bearing silver fruit, the other bronze and spiked. The bushes are steel and glass. The Iron Tree; nearly as tall as the room. Thick-stemmed, sending out curls of upward-curling fern-fronds. Silver “fruit” glimmer at the centre of each outward-curling layer of fronds. Observation; the fronds have sharp cutting edges. Investigation; reaching the fruit through the bushes and cutting fronds would be hard. 1pt of damage for a small accident, 1d4 for a dangerous fall. There are 2d6 fruit, they are hollow silver spheres (10c each). The Bronze Tree; A fern tree that sends up thick spiked paddles, like a form of cacti. Visible spines form along the paddle edges. Tree Knowledge; if this mimics cacti of a similar shape, there is usually a hidden reservoir of water at the centre, often accessible to passing birds. Also; this tree may not be to scale, being simply a model for something much larger. Investigation; hidden in the centre of the tree up between the paddles is a hollow containing a cupful of tiny sapphires (100c in value).

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

EAST – STEEL GRASS Dense clumps of a tall visibly-sharp-edged flax grass. Being pushed into these will cause a serious wound. 1d6 damage. The large grass stems can be snapped off and used as weapons. They count as magical if so used.

THE STEEL AND GLASS BUSHES Similar to a rose bush, a stem with re-curved thorns and an orchid flower shaped like a human ear. Below the steel bloom of each flower is a pendulous glass bell. Plant Knowledge; this mimics the form of several “trap plants” which trick insects into falling into a reservoir of digestive juice. Careful Observation; tiny exquisitely shaped ceramic insects are shown clambering around the bell openings. The glass bells; these will crack under any impact, releasing caustic fluid for 1d3 damage.

R33-R36: Spinster-Bone Cage

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Introduction The Fiasco

R35

The Body Field

R35 CRACKED MAP

Cracked Map

Daylight lances down through a roof hole with melted edges and illuminates a huge model map of a triangular complex.

DOORS

▪ North – Combination door to [R40 Frieze of Fire]. ▪ West - To [R33 Spinster-Bone Cage]. ▪ East - To [R46 Blasted Tanks]. Buckled inwards by compressive force. Jammed. ▪ Roof-Hole - To [H. Half a Dude].

DAMAGE The crack runs from the partly-collapsed North East corner and cuts right down the map, combining with smaller cracks from the Eastern wall. Careful Investigation: slight air flow at the north-eastern corner. A slender being might climb down into the crack and worm through a black gap into the sloth nexus beyond.

2d10

Encounter

Action

Navidorine

Stalking PCs

Tooth-Tooth

Stalking PCs

Tiny Knights

Lying in wait

Zoetrope Man

Enter after the PCs

Broken Heart

Enter after the PCs

Backup Baboons

Fighting (roll again)

Wensley Shrive

Fighting (roll again)

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Investigating/Searching

Drusilla Machete

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Zegzor Sapreciept

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

THE MAP A huge floor crack has shattered the map and it has been splattered with a mixture of corrosive acid, melted bodyflesh and soil. The map shows what seems to be a triangular complex made up of equally sized triangular rooms arranged evenly, with connecting doors in the centre of each wall, linked by short corridors. The map is arranged point up, opposite the alignment of the room, with a small space between each of its corners and each door into the chamber.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable.

R33-R36: Spinster-Bone Cage

Wedged in the crack; a scuffed, ancient ivory tube case with decayed leather bag and decayed wooden scribe's palette. The reeds in the tube the palette and the paints are ruined, except for one jar of startling blue pigment made from ground Lapis Lazuli. The ivory tube is worth 50c and the blue paint 100c.

Cracked Map

R35

R33-R36: Spinster-Bone Cage

R36 Histories and Historians R36 HISTORIES & HISTORIANS This room is lined with thick clay jars, the floor coated with a fine layer of ash.

DOORS

▪ North – To [R33 Spinster-Bone Cage]. ▪ West – To [R44 Red Reflections]. Passage is visibly bowed. ▪ East – To [R47 Dancing Automata].

DAMAGE Cracking across the west and east walls. The Southern corner is severely subsided. Subsidence in this room, and possibly other movements through it, have caused many of the jars to tip, crack and spill their contents across the floor. Airflow, southern corner; squirming and worming through the cracks might grant access to the Sloth Tunnel beyond. Strong force might collapse it into the Sloth Tunnels, which might bring down the room.

ENCOUNTERS A stupid (or brilliant) opponent could definitely try hiding in the jars.

THE JARS Range in size from those as big as plant vases to others nearly the size of a child. A few are man-sized. All were once sealed with wax and string. This has decayed and seals have broken. It’s hard to tell if a jar has been opened. All hold ash. Some have fragments of tooth and bone.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

R33-R36: Spinster-Bone Cage

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d6

Encounter

Action

Backup Baboons

Enter after PCs

Broken Heart

Enter after PCs

Dancing Automata

Waiting/Hidden

Quicksilver Statues

Waiting/Hidden

Tiny Knights

Enter as PCs do via alt door

Zoetrope Men

Enter as PCs do via alt door

THE ASH Knowledge of the primordial Demon Wars is itself an information hazard. Learning of these events draws the attention of timeless powers. Studying them can reveal secrets of Demonology and induce the illusion that these powers can be controlled. The knowledge is toxic, but necessary. All of the Histories of the Demon Wars (the small jars) and all of the Historians of the Demon Wars (the large jars) were burnt (after death). Their spirits and natures were bound to the ash of their remains and stored. If the Historians in particular were allowed to fully die, they could be summoned by future mortals, or manipulated by abyssal powers, so they are kept here, not living, but not allowed to fully pass on.

Family Tree R37 FAMILY TREE Intermittent electrical sparks from an altar in the centre. Anthracite smell. Floor covered in old soil. Human shapes in the southern corner! (The southern corner holds a group of statues designed to be lit within by fire. The switch near them will activate this process but till then they loom strange and incoherent in the darkness.)

DOORS

▪ North - To [R38 Flame Paintings], jammed due to subsidence. ▪ North-West Corner - Sloth Hole. ▪ West - To [R39 Flame Calligraphy]. ▪ East - To [R40 Frieze of Fire]. ▪ North-East Corner - Sloth Hole.

DAMAGE The northern wall is cracked all along its length. The passage north visibly bows. The floor is packed with backfilled soil and debris.

GALLERY SECTION Always roll an encounter on first visit to this section.

R37

THE STATUES UNLIT A group of silent black figures. Closer; Three life-sized figures. Bronze, iron and steel gleaming in the dark. One carries a shrouded bundle. Two smaller creatures gathered before them. They stand on a bed of clinker and dry coals.

THE ALTAR Two anodes project from the floor, separated by a raised ceramic sheath held in place by a wooden lever. The spark comes from one of the anodes flickering into life, trying to connect. The lever is jammed with soil. If cleared it can be pulled.

2d6

Encounter

Boreala

Lying in wait

Second Sloth!

Enter after PCs

Backup Baboon

Looking at the Figures

Wensley Shrive

Hiding behind the figures

Drusilla Machete

Enter as PCs do via alt door

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

About to push the wooden lever!

Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

The shroud of fire dies back, revealing lantern-statues glowing with inner light. The figures are hollow metal paned in fine translucent slivers of stone, mica and painted glass, designed to be filled with fire.

Either an unusually pretty lithe young man or a boyish girl. Bare feet, they stand like a dancer. Eyes like crimson kaleidoscopes. Cinnabar dreadlocks. Body of stained glass and reflective red gold makes them seem composed of moving fire. ▪ Matches the Western statue in [R8 Entry Hall].

Action

The Tomb

A spark bursts into life between the anodes. Something crackles beneath the figures. The statues burn. Flames rush and spume. Fire fills and shrouds the shadowed forms.

▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable.

The Body Field

PULLING THE LEVER

RED FIGURE

Anyone hiding behind the statues may be shocked if they burst into flame.

The Fiasco

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

There are three adult figures gathered together, one red, one blue, one human-coloured, and two standing children.

ENCOUNTERS

Introduction

BLUE FIGURE ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

A smiling young man. A jagged blue mohawk made of azure glass. A blue ceramic part-face mask with a circular sapphire eye. He is holding a baby in his arms. Matches the Eastern statue in [R8 Entry Hall].

HUMAN FIGURE.

▪ A woman about 5’10 tall. ▪ Wearing lamellar armour made of triangles engraved with mazes. ▪ Has a sword sheathed ▪ Un-helmeted. ▪ Hand on the shoulder of the male child in front of her.

THE TWO CHILDREN.

▪ Male, about ten, goofy smile, model of a bridge in one hand. ▪ Female, about five years old, carries a toy sword, grave expression.

R37-R40: Gallery of Fire

Introduction The Fiasco

R38

The Body Field

R38 FLAME PAINTINGS

THE PAINTINGS

The walls are hung with incredible images of time-stilled fire.

Dioramas or flat scenes of carefully-arranged fuel fragments time-frozen in the process of combustion. The fire makes pictures and the nature of the fuels forms both the colour and the shape.

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls

Flame Paintings

(These images are trapped.)

DOORS

▪ South - To [R37 Family Tree], jammed due to subsidence, must be forced. ▪ East - To [R11 Mirror Maze].

DAMAGE Southern wall severely cracked across its length. Passage leading South visibly bowed.

ENCOUNTERS

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

Its bright in here due to the paintings, and empty of cover. The south wall is cracked and the paintings upon it are unstable. They could fall, perhaps into, or onto, those present. This would also set off the trap.

R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

Always roll when first visiting this section.

If the painting is moved and the leaf falls it causes a “ping” which echoes throughout the tomb and is heard by all beings within it.

MOVING THE PAINTINGS The paintings are heavy, unstable, and hard to move.

Always roll an encounter the first time PCs visit this group of rooms. After that, encounters on a 2 in 6, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d12

Encounters

Actions

Boreala

Lying in wait

Navidorine

Enter after the PCs

Tooth-Tooth

Lost or wandering idly

Zoetrope Men

Just leaving as you enter

Broken Heart

Fighting with (roll again)

Protection Man

Trapped by accident or wound

Wensley Shrive

Sitting or paused in thought

Dancing Automata

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

Drusilla Machete

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Investigating the art

Zegzor Sapreciept

Investigating the art

Quicksilver Statues

Investigating the art

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Between each painting and the wall is a single bronze leaf.

This sound summons Boreala, who arrives in 1d3 minutes.

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

THE PAINTINGS ARE TRAPPED

R37-R40: Gallery of Fire

If a painting falls and smashes open, the fire inside will burst out doing 1hp damage to everything in a 5 ft radius.

MEMORY FLAME If the fire escapes the painting and begins to burn something else, it will continue to attempt to burn its flame into the shape of the original painting. If the fire could somehow be transferred, live, from place to place, it could act almost as a tradeable or exchangeable art. If it were to, for instance, burn a city, it would do so producing that image with which it was originally shaped.

Flame Paintings

R38

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field

GALLERY SECTION

The Tomb

Always roll an encounter the first time the PCs enter this section, after that, encouters on a 3 in 6, if loud noise made or every 1/2 hour of in-game time. Use own judgements when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable.

Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt

WEST WALL ONE - WYRM WAR What look like shards and fragments of filigree and inscribed bone arranged so that their flames form an epic battle scene. A figure wielding a curved sword and wearing a twisted crown fights against a gigantic black wyrm.

TWO - PORTRAIT Fire engulfs half-burned knots, weaves and scarfs of silk. It forms the image of an imperious Queen. She wears a crown of twisted wood set with gems and carries a high-crested helm in one hand.

EAST WALL THREE - BLUE-SKINNED MAN The chemical fire from strips of rare metals forms the image of a man. Mid twenties, his hair is a jagged mohawk, he wears a part-mask with one blue circular eye. He looks sightly distracted.

FOUR - RED DANCER The warm red fire from ropes of braided hair forms the image of a dancer in mid-leap. Red-skinned, dreadlocks, barefoot, wearing a long scaled coat and surrounded by the loops of a chain or rope.

SOUTH WALL

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

This wall is cracked and the paintings upon it are unstable. If they are interfered with they may fall.

FIVE - CIVILISED LAND

SIX - TWO WORLDS.

A huge fern-like frond, its edges crystallised in blue, emits blue flame which forms the image of a peaceful land, a place of gentle colonnades between vast towering trees. Robed people walk between the trees on avenues of grass and cross bridges of rope which pass between the trunks.

Polished pyramidal coals produce a scene of two worlds in one. A forest fire engulfs an environment of huge and towering trees. Flames cascade down from the branches above and rise up around the imperishable trunks. In the midst of this, a gate or window opens in the fire. Within the gate is the image of another realm, bright and multicoloured like fireworks, beyond it a black maze rises up into the sky. Before the gate, the shadow of a warrior kneels upon one knee, their blade tipdown in the earth.

R37-R40: Gallery of Fire

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

R39

Flame Calligraphy

R39 FLAME CALLIGRAPHY

FLAME CALLIGRAPHY

This room is hung with banners marked with hypnotic shifting calligraphy.

Like paper letters falling through the air, curling salamandrine as they fall, burning as they curl, yet only the point of ignition can be seen. Hypnotic.

DOORS

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

▪ East - To [R37 Family Tree]. ▪ South – Empty passage, no door, to [R34 Steel Garden], trapped at far end.

R9-R12 Halls of Ash

DAMAGE

R13-R16 Reductors Halls

Slight cracking towards the north Corner

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

It would be simple to hide amongst the hanging banners and they would likely impede any violence.

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls R29-R32 Shadow Engine

ENCOUNTERS

Encounters Boreala

Lying in wait

Navidorine

Enter after the PCs

Tooth-Tooth

Lost or wandering idly

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

Zoetrope Men

Just leaving as you enter

Broken Heart

Fighting with (roll again)

Protection Man

Trapped by accident or wound

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

Wensley Shrive

Sitting or paused in thought

Dancing Automata

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

Drusilla Machete

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Investigating the art

Zegzor Sapreciept

Investigating the art

Quicksilver Statues

Investigating the art

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

GALLERY SECTION Always roll an encounter on first visit to this section.

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

100

1. Snakelike letters moving like a waterfall; “If you argue with an immortal love, don’t wait for their return.” 2. Mazelike letters moving in a vortex; “It’s sad giving your youngest child to another world.” 3. Lightning-shaped letters bursting like an igniting spark; “It’s hard to make a three-way marriage work.”

Actions

1 3

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

(Written in an elliptical and highly poetic style, these fragments of poetry are hauntingly beautiful in their original language. The translator will be deeply moved by their prescience and piercing emotion, but largely unable to convey this feeling to anyone else. Littérateur PCs should feel free to be extremely condescending to their more apelike colleagues should they fail to understand this.)

R37-R40: Gallery of Fire

4. Spiralling letters moving like falling leaves; “Life is like a (sky-grave?) tree. Curl up and hope you survive.” 5. Radiating spiked letters moving like a flag in the wind; “The Caustic Ones have always been (wankers?). Always.” 6. Bridged and looping letter moving like pulsing jellyfish; “Fighting monsters. Pretty great life. Ends violently.”

Frieze of Fire R40 FRIEZE OF FIRE This room is panelled in black wood carved into the scene of a burning forest. Lamplight catches a procession of carved scenes across the walls. Two statues kneel opposite each door.

DOORS

▪ West - To [R37 Family Tree]. ▪ East - To [R10 Pit Trap]. ▪ South – Combination door to [R35 Cracked Map].

DAMAGE Bad along eastern wall and south east corner. The Frieze there is cracked, see below.

ENCOUNTERS Always roll on 1st visit to this section. Always roll an encounter the first time PCs visit this group of rooms. After that, encounters on a 2 in 6, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d12

Encounters

Actions

Boreala

Lying in wait

Navidorine

Enter after the PCs

Tooth-Tooth

Lost or wandering idly

Zoetrope Men

Just leaving as you enter

Broken Heart

Fighting with (roll again)

Protection Man

Trapped by accident or wound

Wensley Shrive

Sitting or paused in thought

Dancing Automata

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

Drusilla Machete

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Investigating the art

Zegzor Sapreciept

Investigating the art

Quicksilver Statues

Investigating the art

THE STATUES Stone carvings. Each pair of statues is of two near-identical warriors kneeling, facing each other, across each doorway. Each pair of statues is subtly different.

THE FRIEZE Dense black hardwood, polished and carved. The motif is of a forest of great pillared trees engulfed in fire. In the centre of each wall the carved fire forms a gate which wraps around that doorway.

R40

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field

WEST Left of the door - A crowned woman clutches the hands of two small children, the three are unharmed but a crowd of nobles around them writhes in agony as the flames consume them. Right of the door - A noble male with a spiked mohawk and a part face mask holds a baby in their arms. Around them a scene of indistinct warfare made up largely of armed women fighting. Statues - Two people of indistinct gender, wearing light armour, both holding looped fighting chains which stretch down to the floor.

EAST Frieze is badly cracked, as is the wall beneath. The ceramic of the tomb shows through. Shocks may dislodge the cracked parts. Left of the door - The Queen stands proudly on a (conveniently placed) outcrop, gesturing with her sword across the doorway. Right of the door - Big chunks of this part have fallen to the ground. They must be carefully re-assembled to make out the image; a gigantic dragon looms above the fires of the burning forest facing the Queen. Statues - Two women in lamellar armour, both hold wicked macahuitls end-down in the manner of European knights.

SOUTH

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

Left of the door - The body of the queen is carried upon a bier, two young nobles, one male, one female, walk behind the bier as part of a mourning procession.

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

Right of the door - the body of the queen is opened and a woman whose hands are hooks and who herself hangs from bars above the ground, pulls out the queen's heart from her chest. The heart burns and a cage awaits. Statues - Two wide, strongly built very male figures in full gothic plate armour. Each carries a hammer, its head held down resting on the earth while they grasp the vertical shaft.

TREASURE A unique and remarkable work of art. Transporting the whole thing to a collector would net 10,000c. The size and weight of the pieces would make this a major operation though.

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest

This total is halved for each 10% missing or (further) damaged.

Appendices

R37-R40: Gallery of Fire

101

Incorporated into the general motif are images and scenes, different for each wall.

Introduction The Fiasco

R41/42

The Body Field

Red Clothes/Rings

R41 RED CLOTHES

R42 AERIAL RINGS

Dancing mannequins lining the three walls, and one hangs in the centre wearing a strange coat.

Hoops and handles hang from the ceiling of this room. The floor is rotten and half-collapsed!

DOORS

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

▪ North - To [R42 Aerial Rings]. ▪ West - To [R43 Armoury of Chains]. ▪ East - To [R44 Red Reflections].

R9-R12 Halls of Ash

DAMAGE

R13-R16 Reductors Halls

Slight cracking eastern corner.

Severe cracking along the eastern wall.

ENCOUNTERS

Anyone hiding from the PCs in this room could easily pretend to be a mannequin, at least for a short while, by wearing its clothes and assuming its frozen stance. They could hide behind the mannequins and push them over if discovered.

If you have any Baboons, throw them in here. Its just a great place to have a Baboon fight.

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

102

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d6

Encounter

Action

Wensley Shrive

Dancing

Dancing Automata

Dancing

Dancing Automata

Enter after PCs

Chain-Waving Baboons

Lying in wait

Chain-Waving Baboons

Enter as PCs do via alt door

Anaracket Bonvive – escaping as you enter, heading N if possible

THE MANNEQUINS

▪ East - To [R34 Steel Garden]. Passage bows slightly. Door Jammed. ▪ South - To [R41 Red Clothes].

THE HOOPS Various hoops and handles hang down upon ceramic chains. Most are either metal or hardened ceramic. All are arranged around a large central circular hoop. Those with a gymnastic or circus background, or knowledge thereof, will recognise these as tools for aerial performance. An athletic individual could probably cross this room without touching the floor. 1 in 6 chance any particular hoop breaks or falls out mid-swing.

THE FLOOR Wooden planks rotted and cracked.

Four mannequins line each wall. All are posed in a dynamic way, placed on stands or hanging from wires. They are arranged in the movements of a dancer, with the procession of an acrobatic series of dance movements moving around the room. They all wear dancing shoes, all worn through, and what look like either dancing costumes or very light armour, lots of scarfs, small jackets. The clothes on these mannequins, though very high quality, have decayed quite a lot and are largely irrecoverable.

THE CENTRAL MANNEQUIN The central mannequin hangs from wires held in a ballet grand jete and wears a long coat of salamander scales stitched onto soft stegosaur-belly hide with dried velociraptor tendon. Flame coloured pantaloons. The coat acts as functional light armour and causes no impediment to movement. The pantaloons draw energy from nearby tectonics and keep the wearer at a comfortable temperature. Though they will not work in a reality without tectonics. They also look very fancy.

R41-R44: Dancers' Halls

Careful movement; 1 in 6 chance of collapse, DEX test to avoid falling. Rapid Movement; 3 in 6 chance of collapse. No test to avoid. Falling; only a 3ft drop onto the stone foundation beneath. No damage but takes a climb action to clamber out.

Reflections/Armoury R43/44 R43 ARMOURY OF CHAINS The place is bestrewn with well-crafted fighting chains hanging like piled-up Christmas decorations.

DAMAGE The eastern wall is cracked, the mirrors here bent (see below).

▪ West - To [R41 Red Clothes].

ENCOUNTERS

It’s also very easy to sneak through this room.

2d6

Encounter

Action

Wensley Shrive

Dancing

Dancing Automata

Dancing

Dancing Automata

Enter after PCs

Chain-Waving Baboons Enter after PCs

Chain-Waving Baboons Lying in Wait

Anaracket Bonvive – escaping as you enter, heading N if possible

THE CHAINS The walls are hung evenly with weapons of a chain type made of a wide variety of materials. All weapons show a strong preference for ambidextrous or even-handed fighting involving whole-body movement and continual motion. None are easy to use without significant training and skill. They will also be very hard for anyone to use in the confines of the tomb. That will not stop any Baboons that get in here picking up some chains and having a try though. ▪ Kusari-Gama, sickle, chain and iron weight. ▪ Kusari-Fundo, same deal but with a weight instead of a sickle. ▪ Nine-Section Chain whip with dart and flag. ▪ Three-Section staffs. ▪ Meteor hammers, double headed and single headed. ▪ Flying Claws or Fei-Zhao. ▪ Spiked chains.

R44 RED REFLECTIONS This room is lined in red mirrors holding infinite flickering red reflections. Footfalls are quiet but voices ring clearly in its strange acoustics. There is a strange blue-metal device in the western corner.

The Tomb Encounters

ENCOUNTERS

DOORS

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable.

The Fiasco The Body Field

A violent encounter here will send a myriad of flickering images across all the walls. All fighters may have to roll to avoid becoming distracted by the incredible sights.

There’s only one way out! One of only three rooms in this dungeon with only one exit! Plus it's full of extremely inconvenient weapons! A great place to trap someone with a powerful foe.

Introduction

[See table above for R43 Armour of Chains].

FLOOR The floor is a wood-like material. It is slightly sprung, absorbing some of the force of each footfall. Footsteps in this room are unusually quiet.

MIRRORS The red reflections flicker between showing events in the room as they actually are, and showing the same image, but with every dynamic body movement ‘perfected’. If someone walks with a slump, the mirror will show that, then change to an image of the way they could walk, head back, shoulders up, moving smoothly. Then pulse regularly back and forth between the two. This happens for any dynamic body movement in the room. Jumps, kicks, and any combat movements, should combat take place here. Someone taking some time to practice their fighting here could improve considerably by observing and mimicking the ‘correct form’ shown in the red reflections.

EASTERN WALL The mirrors here have cracked due to the subsidence of that wall. The barre against them is bent. Instead of a perfect movement, each shard of each mirror shows a stumble, fall, waver or other slight imperfection of the same movement. Anyone trying to move while looking at this wall must make a test or trip, fall, stumble etc.

BARRE A metal bar runs along each mirrored wall at about hip height, breaking for each doorway.

BLUE-METAL DEVICE Badly (and perhaps thankfully) corroded by time, this bizarre implosion of keys and pipes emits LOUD STRANGULATED sounds in a synthetic voice when any of its keys or nodules are interfered with.

DOORS

▪ West - To [R41 Red Clothes]. ▪ East - To [R36 Histories & Historians]. Passage visibly bowed.

R41-R44: Dancers' Halls

103

Introduction The Fiasco

R45

The Body Field

R45 SMALL SOLDIERS

THE KNIGHTS ACTIVATE

Shattered glass-fronted shelves line the walls. A broken backed table scatters tiny model mountains into the soilstrewn floor which glimmers with broken glass shards.

There are about a thousand potentially active knights spread throughout the debris, 500 in either gunmetal-blue full plate with a face mask like the features of an ant, 500 in dusky red plate with a simple face and no mask.

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

Small Soldiers

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

If a naked flame is brought into the room, sparks of blue and red begin to glimmer in the soil and on the shelves. Tiny Knights!

R9-R12 Halls of Ash

DOORS

▪ North – Combination door to [R46 Blasted Tanks], door jammed, buckled in by compressive force. Can be kicked open. ▪ West - Door obstructed by sloth hole to [R47 Dancing Automata]. ▪ East – Door obstructed by sloth hole to [R48 Strange Apparatus].

The Knights burrow out of the soil like earthworms or seeds of scattered ember bursting into life.

DAMAGE

They only understand the Language of Fire, and even within that, only speak and understand Heroic Cliches.

Sloth dug under the east and west doors, obstructing them but leaving sloth tunnels between the rooms. Room is backfilled with soil and rock. Shelves and contents ruined. Walls scored with sloth claws. Extensive broken glass in the soil.

ENCOUNTERS A nightmare to get into or out of. If any faction of Tiny Knights has not been encountered so far, they will be met with here. Otherwise, roll below; Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d12

Encounters

Actions

Boreala

Fighting/Arguing with Small Soldiers

Reductor

Fighting/Arguing with Small Soldiers

Tiny Knights

Fighting/Arguing with Small Soldiers

Zoetrope Men

Fighting/Arguing with Small Soldiers

Backup Baboons

Fighting/Arguing with Small Soldiers

Protection Man

Fighting/Arguing with Small Soldiers

Dancing Automata Lying in wait

Obsidian Assassin

Quicksilver Statues Just leaving as you enter

Chain-Waving Baboons

Sitting or paused in thought

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Trapped by accident or wound

Pyroclastic Enter as PCs do through alt entrance Guardian (if already unleashed)

Enter after the PCs

THE TABLE Knocked over, broken and chewed through. Was a miniature landscape with some alpine features, a glacier, some tundra and some trees, all tipped over and trodden on. Fragments of mountain and tiny pine trees in the soil beneath.

104

As a naked flame is brought close to them, they activate, lighting like a small spark. The fire makes them move and shift, turn towards it and waggle their small limbs.

R45-R48: Artificer's Rooms

A CHALLENGE! Made to simulate war, the Knights are likely to attack whatever “Giants” they find. Yet they are still honourable warriors and will give a great cry before they boldly charge forth!

KNIGHT STATS Armour: as Leather Hit Dice: 1 HD per 100 Knights Hit Points: 5 or 1d8 per 100 Knights Damage: 1d4 (situational) Morale: 11 Stat as: ant swarm Ant Speed: Can only do damage if they are able to swarm up a body and commit a simultaneous attack. Resistant: 1/2 damage from edges, points. Vulnerable: area affect weapons. Climbing: no roll required, through they are slow. Carrying Capacity: equivalent to one human per 100. Fighting the Knights; Every 100 knights working in unison is equivalent to roughly a 1 HD creature. The main tactic of the Knights is to swarm up the legs and limbs of their assailant, covering them all over. They then give a great cry and drive in their swords.

THEY BATTLE EACH OTHER In the absence of any “Giants” the Blue Knights will attack the Red Knights and vise versa.

Tanks/Automata R46 BLASTED TANKS Room ringed with six heavy tanks made to hold some mighty force. All but one blasted open. Roof cracked, a shard of stone has broken through.

DOORS

▪ West - To [R6 Blood & Salt], buckled by compressive force. Jammed. ▪ East - To [R35 Cracked Map], blown open by compressive force. ▪ South - To [R45 Small Soldiers], blown half way down its passage by compressive force.

DAMAGE Severe subsidence in the North Corner and Western wall; cracks in the walls, floor and roof. Roof cracked in the centre, a shard of stone pokes through. All of the doors in are buckled, or broken open. This place is dangerous and could collapse at any moment. If it does this may trigger a similar collapse in [R6 Blood and Salt].

ENCOUNTERS

R46/47

Gleaming metal bodies hang in rows. Big Switch. Room ruined by Sloth action. Soil floor.

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable.

▪ West - To [R36 Histories & Historians]. Passage is visibly bowed. ▪ East – To [R45 small Soldiers], obstructed by sloth tunnel. ▪ East - Sloth tunnel to [R45 Small Soldiers]. ▪ South-West Corner - Sloth Tunnel (hard to see).

DAMAGE The Sloth has tunnelled up into this room, and then back out of it. The floor is two feet deep in backfilled soil and stone. Walls covered with sloth scratches. Western wall and south-west corner deeply cracked. The eastern door to R45 is hard to use without falling in the sloth tunnel entry before it.

Encounters

Actions

Second Sloth!

Dancing/Sleeping

Backup Baboons

About to flick the switch!

Small Soldiers

Talking with/at (roll again)

Dancing Automata

Fighting with (roll again)

Protection Man

Fighting with (roll again)

Wensley Shrive

Hiding within a Blasted Tank

Tooth-Tooth (or Baboon) Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

Drusilla Machete

Scratching at the Western door

Tooth-Tooth (or Baboon)

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

Strange translucent ghosts of alien fish, just chilling, floating

2d6

Encounters

Actions

THE BLASTED TANKS Ancient materials from a pre-industrial culture shaped with an improvisational. Scientifically minded or technologically advanced PCs will recognise the principals of binding something at a higher pressure than the surrounding environment. Investigation; Looks like all the tanks corroded slowly over time before one burst, which set off the other tanks. Not clear if the initial explosion was random or triggered by something. Inside; Skeletons of Heavy Metal Fish. Shards of strange metal in organic fragments. Piecing them together shows.... Fish Skeletons? Unknown breeds, unusual metals, very heavy.

The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters

DOORS

If a fight breaks out hopefully someone will hit the big switch.

The precarious nature of the room could be used as a weapon by, or against, the PCs.

Introduction

THE AUTOMATA Verdigris copper, corroded blue metal, ceramics and dried wood. Strange bulbs and capacitors protruding from backs. They hang from roof chains linked to shoulders, a little like hung bodies. For details on them once they start to move, and more background, see their Encounter Entry.

THE BIG SWITCH If the switch is thrown the electrical engines in the Automata spark, whirr and buzz. Faces and back-lamps light up. The chains rattle and grind as the automata descend. When they touch ground, the chains release and the Automata attempt to dance. The floor is uneven, higher than it should be and the Automata horribly decayed. The dance is a horrid parody as the engines spark, sputter and crack open, the Automata attempt to pirouette and spring but glitch, fail, whirr and finally collapse.

With a full search one full skeleton can be reassmbled. Weighs 6 kilos, fits in the palm of your hand. Worth 300c to any Alchemist.

R47 DANCING AUTOMATA

R45-R48: Artificer's Rooms

105

Introduction The Fiasco

R48/49

The Body Field

R48 STRANGE APPARATUS

R49 FIRE QUEENS ARMS

Sloth-ruined room holding huge, broken and inexplicable device.

Standing in the centre like a hollow ghost is an suit of highcrested armour which sparks and glitters like a dark-blue sea beneath cloud. By its side is a dark red sword.

Apparatus/Arms

DOORS

▪ West – To [R45 Small Soldiers] obstructed by Sloth Tunnel. ▪ East – Secret Door to [R8 Entry Hall], the door has discoloured over time and can be spotted under decent lighting. ▪ South - Sloth Tunnel to [R65 Sloth Nest].

DAMAGE The Sloth has tunnelled into, and out of, this room The floor is two feet deep in backfilled soil and stone. Walls covered with sloth scratches. The apparatus in the centre may have been damaged by the sloth, or might just be strangely made…

ENCOUNTERS

Encounters

Actions

Boreala

Hiding in the Mechanism

Reductor

Hiding in the Mechanism

Tiny Knights

Hiding in the Mechanism

Zoetrope Men

Hiding in the Mechanism

Backup Baboons

Hiding in the Mechanism

Protection Man

Hiding in the Mechanism

Dancing Automata

Fighting (roll again)

Obsidian Assassin

Enter after the PCs

Quicksilver Statues

Just leaving as you enter

Chain-Waving Baboons Sitting or paused in thought

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Trapped by accident or wound

Pyroclastic Guardian (if they unleashed it)

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

It’s possible to hide within or under the mechanism. The inside is coated with a fine black fungus. Anyone disturbing it and breathing it in suffers wracking, loud coughs for d4 minutes.

THE DEVICE Originally intended as a Fish-Driven Electro-Tank powered by electricity drawn from a turbine driven by steam created by extraplanar ultra high-pressure fish, the design intent on this device changed several times during development, and probably wasn’t a great idea to begin with. At some point a central monowheel and giant crab-claws were added. This creation might make no sense even if the PCs were capable of understanding it. It’s also not clear how they got this thing in here. Did they build the tomb around it?

106

▪ West – Locked door to [R50 Wardrobe]. Requires one Tomb Key. ▪ East – Locked door to [R51 Bedchamber]. Requires one Tomb Key. ▪ South – Locked to [R52 Shield Stacks]. Requires one Tomb Key.

DAMAGE Slight cracking and subsidence in the western corner. Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d4

DOORS

R45-R48: Artificer's Rooms

Encounters

Actions

Protection Man

About to take the sword!

Wensley Shrive

Fighting with (roll again)

Drusilla Machete

Trying to don the armour

Tooth-Tooth (or Baboon)

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

ARMOUR Lamellar of triangular lapis-lazuli, each triangle is engraved with a unique maze and all are linked by silver chains in the form of lightning bolts, over a blue-white fine-grained mail. For a humanoid of the right size (slim build, between 5’9 and 5’10), this armour protects as plate and encumbers as leather. For anyone else it protects as chain and encumbers as plate. Directed magical effects of demonic origin, whether spells or natural powers, will be nullified, split into parts and lost in the layered mazes of the lamellar shards.

HELM The steel strips of the closely-fitted helm are damascenepattern swords, broken and re-forged, over a crown of dense wood then riveted with tiny sapphires. A crest of peacock feathers rises from the top and cascades down the back. The helm has a steel veil-mask of ultra-light gunmetal-blue steel woven together in the shape of a maze.

THE SWORD A mixture of sabre and swept-hilt rapier, the blade formed from iron and red gold. The patterns of the cooling metals have formed the shapes of birds flocking in flight. The sword always does maximum damage, counts as magical and is unbreakable by anything less than divine power. It acts as a capacitor and can absorb up to 50 points of cold damage aimed at the wielder. The bird shapes in the blade will murmurate. This damage will be transformed into fire and added to the damage caused by the blade's next strike where it will burst out as blazing birds of fire.

Wardrobe/Bed

R50/51

R50 WARDROBE

R51 BEDCHAMBER

This room is full of human figures wearing ruined but stillopulent clothes.

This room is ringed with mighty marsupials mummified in azure resin. At its centre four marsupial apes stand heraldic, fierce and posed in the midst of a chest-beating threat display. They make up four corners of a wooden bed, which rests high above the ground, with one corner on each head.

DOORS

▪ North - To [R55 Meditation Sphere]. ▪ West - To [R58 Library of Fire]. ▪ East - To [R50 Fire Queens Arms] (door at the end is locked).

DAMAGE The western wall and north-west corner show signs of cracking due to subsidence.

▪ North - To [R56 Silent Glass], strange, dead silence in this direction, no half-sounds or semi-echoes. ▪ West - To [R49 Fire Queens Arms]. door at the end is locked. ▪ East - To [R62 Sloth Wreck].

ENCOUNTERS The safest place to hide is atop the bed, out of sight. The bed could tip in an affray. Of the adventure potential of numerous stuffed apes, I am sure I need not belabour you.

Encounters

Protection Man

Stalking the PCs

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d4

Encounters

Actions

Wensley Shrive

Pretending to be a mannequin!

Drusilla Machete

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

Boreala

Lying flat atop the bed!

Backup Baboon

Fighting/Negotiating with (roll again)

Zegzor Sapreciept

Fighting with (roll again)

Backup Baboon

Enters after the PCs

Obsidian Assassin

Fighting/Negotiating with (roll again)

THE FIGURES Arranged in rows so one might walk between them. Examination; they are exactly the same size and proportion. The body ratio suggests an athletic female between 5'9 and 5'10.

THE CLOTHES Feathered headdresses. Tall head-dresses with wafting veils. Many facial veils and a wide range of full and partial masks. Strings of glass, jade, gold and turquoise. Skirts of cotton, woven fibres and linen embroidered with incredible designs in multi-coloured thread, hummingbird feathers and what might have been some kind of paper. Fur-lined collars and the remains of vibrant furs from unknown animals. Boots, sandals and vertiginously-heeled shoes. Risqué costume or display armour beaten from paper-thin sheets of bluish metal. Though the majority are ruined by time, many remain intact and all show great opulence mixed with ancient savagery. These all seem to have been made for one woman, perhaps taking on a variety of high status roles. Certainly it would be difficult for any normal person to find use for the extraordinary fabulousness in daily life. Whomever they were, they were body-confident to say the least. 400c worth recoverable with an hour's work. [See Appendix “Fire Queen's Wardrobe.”]

The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt

DOORS

2d4

Actions

Introduction

THE MUMMIFIED APES These creatures have been expertly mummified with enormous care taken. Two set across each entry, making threat displays. More line each wall, these posed sitting as if pondering what they see. Blue, great heaped creatures, alike unto a silverback gorilla, with heavy brow ridge, dark recessed eyes and a wide snuffling mouth with square teeth, massive hands and forearms, a mighty round drum-tight belly, three-toed and four-fingered, fit to wrench a cartwheel off a cart. To face one would be a valorous act. Educated Examination; a marsupial, like a kangaroo or platypus, has a frontal pouch, largely hidden in these specimens. Further lookthinking suggests a peculiar chest and thorax; this animal may have been able to make a remarkable low-frequency sound. [Worth 20c each, see Appendix]. Tearing them open; stuffed with ancient straw dust and silken rags. Extremely dry. They would burn very well at the slightest flame.

THE BED

Hard to climb up to, but the corner apes have wooden columns hidden in their vertical axis to keep the thing steady. Long-rotted bedclothes and ancient silk. Still rather comfy. Someone lying flat on the bed will be hidden from most of the room.

R49-R52: Fire-Queen's Arms

107

Introduction The Fiasco

R52

The Body Field

R52 SHIELD STACKS

THE SKULL-BOSSED SHIELD

Stacks of shields from defeated foes, though most rusted or rotted into uselessness.

▪ North - To [R49 Fire Queens Arms], door at the end is locked. ▪ West - To [R60 Quicksilver Masque]. ▪ East - To [R63 Burning Furniture].

A strong, square black shield with silver scrollwork on its steel-edged rim. An ancient yellowed skull which collapses into dust when touched. A little too heavy to be easily wielded for a long amount of time. The skull was mounted on a vile, barbed upward-facing hook in the centre of the shield. Two chains reached down from the upper rim, silver hooks upon their ends were placed under the orbital ridges of the eyes.

DAMAGE

THE SILVER SCROLLWORK

The walls are cracked badly towards the southern corner due to Sloth Tunnels on both sides. Explosive force or great strength could collapse that part of the room, bringing down the roof and opening a route leading up and out.

Magically skilled characters will recognise this as a variant of an enochian or minor-divine language. Something to do with resurrection, control, language and service.

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

Shield Stacks

DOORS

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d8

Encounter

Action

Reductor

Enter after the PCs

Broken Heart

Lying in wait/Hiding

Protection Man

Grabbing the skull-bossed shield!

Protection Man

Just leaving as PCs enter

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Fighting with (roll again)

Demon Worshipper

Trapped by accident or wound

Quicksilver Statue

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Talking/Negotiating with (roll again)

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

THE SHIELDS Seem to come from a range of cultures and differing levels of technology. A large central mass of metal shields, with three smaller piles to each side. Shields attached to the walls have largely fallen down.

THE CENTRAL METAL PILE All rusted and decayed together into a mass. Disturbing twisted heraldry, images of white faces. White wyrms and twisted sigils.

THE THREE SMALLER PILES Mixed of bone, wood, bark and canvas shields. All colours long faded and all shields rotted into mere skeletons of form.

R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

108

R49-R52: Fire-Queen's Arms

THE MAGIC OF THE SHIELD If a severed head is mounted on the barbed hooks, the head animates and acts as a servant of the shield's most recent wielder. The head retains very general, misty knowledge of its old life but few secrets or details are recalled. It can speak whatever languages it once knew and translate them for its wielder, will obey their commands, can keep watch if placed on a pole and in short, perform all the actions of a head. Unless embalmed or otherwise preserved, the head will decay over time into a whispering skull, and its place on the boss of the shield means it usually suffers damage before that point.

Sapphire/Sloth

R53/54

R53 BOOK OF SAPPHIRE LEAVES

R54 SLOTH CATASTROPHE

In the centre of this room, on a plain stand of carved black hardwood, is a book which glows like an azure gem.

A shitty nexus, this room is a ruined wreck of soil, torn tiles, tracked wreckage and what may be ancient sloth vomit and what is definitely old Sloth Poop.

DOORS

▪ North - To [R54 Sloth Catastrophe], bent inwards, lock shattered, door jammed. ▪ West – To [R55 Meditation Sphere], locked. ▪ East – To [R56 Silent Glass], locked, silent in this direction, no half-sounds or semi-echoes.

Encounter

Action

It has many doors...

▪ West - To [R15 Urns]. ▪ East - Sloth Hole, (hard to see) tunnel immediately branches north and south. ▪ South - To [R53 Book of Sapphire Leaves], (burst open by sloth). ▪ South-West Corner – Sloth Hole, (hard to see). ▪ Dimensional Tear – A Backward Tear (hard to access) to [R65 Sloth Nest]. ▪ Dimensional Tear – A Forward Tear (easy to access) to [R27 Condensed Darkness].

Reductor

Lying in wait

Broken Heart

Enter after the PCs

Protection Man

Just leaving as PCs enter

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Fighting with (roll again)

Demon Worshipper Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

The detritus is unsteady underfoot.

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

ENCOUNTERS

THE BOOK The book is bound in electrum and has twenty pages of clear, smooth translucent blue quartz acid-etched in the Language of Fire. When held up to the light and gently turned the refraction through the burning words seems to fill the book with cold blue flame. On its first page the book has a dedication in three languages; the Language of Fire, an archaic version of the current ‘lingua-franca’ or common tongue and another to be decided by the DM. It reads thusly; “I, Puh-Gna Zor, wife of Zenbestefunkh and of Kobi, first Queen of the Kingdom of Fire in this world, know that Fire is the change and the life and that which alters must soon die.

DAMAGE The walls scarred with sloth sharpening clawmarks.

Just try to dump at least one person down a hole, or through a dimensional tear. Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d3

Encounter

Action

The Second Sloth!

Lying in wait

The Second Sloth!

Enter after the PCs

The Second Sloth!

Just leaving as PCs enter

Careful and intelligent examination may reveal baboon tracks leading to [R15 Urns].

Yet, being subject to time and to loss and not made up entirely of that ageless substance, and desiring some memory or record of the deeds and adventures of those of my family fated to die, I do here command to be set down a record of those deeds and the nature of their remembrance.”

Each attempt takes one hour of study. They must roll an INT test and note the degree by which they succeed. All attempts made add to the cumulative total.

The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

LEARNING THE LANGUAGE OF FIRE Anyone who has a high INT score, or who has good language skills, or who simply has an affinity with languages as part of their class can try to comprehend the written Language of Fire.

The Fiasco

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

DOORS

Talking/Negotiating with (roll again)

Introduction

Cumulative points of success: ▪ 5 Basic Comprehension of the written language. ▪ 10 Can read language. ▪ 15 Can write language. ▪ 20 Understands spoken language. ▪ 25 Can roughly speak language. ▪ 30 Can speak language well. ▪ 35 Highly Fluent.

R53-R56: Rosetta Stone

R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

109

Introduction The Fiasco

R55

The Body Field

R55 MEDITATION SPHERE

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

Meditation Sphere

The centre of this room is occupied by a frozen, spherical event horizon glowing blue-black, like radioactive glass. Waves of ultra-slow quantum energy run across the surface of the outer covering like ripples on the surface of a windblown bubble.

▪ West - Partially collapsed passage to [R16 Fallen Wall], passage is clearly unstable. ▪ East - To [R53 Book of Sapphire Leaves], (locked at far end). ▪ South – To [R50 Wardrobe].

Those inside will be calm; complex emotions resolve themselves down to primary causes, fear-based or atavistic emotional states are removed. It becomes easy to concentrate.

ENCOUNTERS

Those inside will learn quickly; new material can be learned quickly and easily and memories accessed more simply. The time taken to learn anything should be reduced by two orders of magnitude; minutes instead of days, hours instead of weeks, days instead of months, weeks instead of years etc.

The moment a valuable party member crawls inside the sphere and closes it is a good time for an encounter.

2d8

Encounter

Action

Reductor

Enter after the PCs

Broken Heart

Lying in wait/Hiding

Protection Man

Fighting with (roll again)

Protection Man

Just leaving as PCs enter

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Investigating Environment

Demon Worshipper

Trapped by accident or wound

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

Quicksilver Statue

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Talking/Negotiating with (roll again)

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

THE SPHERE The sphere stands on a copper lattice about three feet high. The lattice has a gap through which a person may crawl. At the bottom of the sphere is a slightly off-centre manholesized hole held open by a copper web. It’s easy to step up into the sphere through the slightly offcentre hole. The web-aperture can be closed from within easily with an intuitive wave of the hand.

R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

110

Magical or physical effects from outside the sphere will not penetrate its surface. No sound, scent, sight or signal will reach inside, until the aperture is opened again. (See getting out below).

Western wall is partially collapsed, the passage to [R16 Fallen Wall] could be walked through, with some risk. Very strong force might drop the wall down into the sloth tunnel below, possibly opening a route between the rooms.

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

Everything feels clear, and distinct, surrounded by the soft blue glow and waves of quantum energy.

Those inside will not have a clear sense of time.

DAMAGE

Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

A single, exceedingly old cushion. The sphere is opaque.

If the sphere is closed;

DOORS

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

INSIDE THE SPHERE

R53-R56: Rosetta Stone

GETTING OUT This requires a more complex arrangement of hand movements and thought forms. For most people inside the sphere, this will not be very difficult to work out. The naturally calming effect means they won’t, in fact, can’t, panic and the meditations required to divine the release concepts will be simple to comprehend in only a few turns of thought. (10 minutes x d4). It would take d4 days for someone outside the sphere to work out the same movements.

DISRUPTING THE SPHERE Smashing or destroying the copper webwork will cause the sphere to evaporate, expanding like an explosion but gusting through physical matter like the slightest ghostly wind, becoming more tenuous and vague as it flows away. Anyone inside will be dropped out uncomfortably, all of their emotions will return, with intensity.

Silent Glass R56 SILENT GLASS Walls of etched blue glass divide this room. The etching is a spell which causes magical silence. No noise will sound within or pass through this room.

DOORS

▪ West – To [R53 Book of Sapphire Leaves], locked at far end. ▪ South – To [R51 Bedchamber].

R56

The Tomb

Action

Reductor

Enter after the PCs

Broken Heart

Lying in wait/Hiding

3-4

The Fiasco The Body Field

ENCOUNTERS

2d8

Introduction

Protection Man

Fighting with (roll again)

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Investigating Environment

Demon Worshipper

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

Quicksilver Statue

Talking/Negotiating with (roll again)

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Talking/Negotiating with ( roll again)

THE GLASS CHAMBERS

Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

Each chamber holds an ancient hardwood desk and chair.

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

The glass doors open with a press and are slightly weighted, they will swing back into place.

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

SEEING THROUGH GLASS This etching opalises the glass. It is translucent. Anyone carrying a light, and the shadow of anyone backlit, can be seen through the glass. But the etching distorts the shape, making it indistinct. Like normal glass, if someone is carrying a light source inside a glass chamber and there is no equivalent light source on the other side, from within they will see only their own reflection in the glass, and they will be highly visible from the other side.

THE SILENCE Those with a magical capacity will recognise the nature of the etchings and, though they may not understand the writing, they will be able to understand that this etching creates the silence in this room.

SMASHING THE GLASS No stronger than ordinary window glass, any sufficiently strong blow may shatter it. Once two walls are broken the magical silence in the room will fully abate.

R53-R56: Rosetta Stone

111

Introduction The Fiasco

R57

The Body Field

R57 BONSAI EXPLOSIONS

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls

Bonsai Explosions

Room full of light. Six black hardwood stands holding five orbs around chest height. (One is empty).

DOORS

▪ North – Combination door to [R58 Library of Fire]. ▪ West – Combination door to [R59 Zoetrope Men]. ▪ East – Combination door to [R60 Quicksilver Statues].

5. Orb Five - Flame shows a fuel-full human heart going off like a grenade. Dark shows a male figure with a spiked mohawk and part-face mask in an extremely regal stance 6. Orb Six - (stand empty or currently being stolen by the Protection Man.) Flame shows the slowly-hurtling heat wave of an oval supernova. Dark shows a family scene, three adult figures gathered together, one red, one blue, one human-coloured, and two standing children. See [R37 Family Tree].

REMOVING THE ORBS

DAMAGE Slight cracking in the West and East corners.

ENCOUNTERS

The hardwood stands are slightly pyramidal and will not tilt easily, though they can be tipped over.

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

If the ‘Protection Man’ has not yet been encountered then he is present here, in the act of stealing the 6th Orb.

The orbs are set into concave dishes of cold lead at the top of the stands.

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

Otherwise;

They feel as heavy as solid glass and have the tactility of warm glass.

112

Encounters

Actions

Second Sloth!

Fighting with (roll again)

Quicksilver Statues

Fighting with (roll again)

Zoetrope Men

Fighting with (roll again)

Backup Baboons

Fighting with (roll again)

Tiny Knights

Fighting with (roll again)

Dancing Automata

Trapped by accident or wound

Boreala

Lying in wait

Boreala

Just leaving as PCs enter

Boreala

Examining the Environment

Pyroclastic Guardian Enter as PCs do through alt (if unleashed) entrance

Pyroclastic Guardian Enter after the PCs (if unleashed)

When exposed to the heat of a hand, soft tremors develop and the Orb shivers, vibrating noticeably in the hand and growing very slightly. If kept together they vibrate a lot and may activate.

ACTIVATING THE ORBS As well as being memento mori the Orbs are also effectively slow Phosphor Grenades; If they break, get too hot, or are left in contact with each other, they explode. The Orb blows up like a balloon being inflated by a cylinder. The images inside the orb begin to grow and distort horribly as they grow. The ‘explosion’ expands over a round.

RUNNING AWAY; INVESTIGATING THE ORBS Crafted slow explosions, orbs of light like the expanding wave front of a spherical shock blast, with curls of darkness at their hearts. Frozen in the air and cool to the touch. 1. Orb One - Flame shows the crown of a tree burning. Dark shows a Maze. 2. Orb Two - Flame shows fractal-wave surface of a sun's magnetosphere. Dark shows a male figure with a spiked mohawk and part-face mask in an open stance. (Same figure as [R8 Entry Hall] statue and [R37 Family Tree]). 3. Orb Three - Flame shows a fragmented human form expanding outwards in a wave. Dark shows a battle scene; army lead by woman fights demons. 4. Orb Four - Flame shows a girded lozenge of helium-bright light. Dark shows a duelling scene; armoured woman duels monster.

R57-R60: Library

The explosion is slow. Unless they are really not paying attention everyone nearby should be given one action to react. So long as their movement is human standard or above, and they are unimpeded and its possible to run directly away from the explosion, they should be able to stay ahead of the wave front.

DAMAGE Anything caught in the blast takes 3d6 heat and fire damage and is set on slow-burning fire which adheres to their flesh doing 1d6 damage per round. This fire burns in the distorted shape of the original orb-image.

Library of Fire

R58

R58 LIBRARY OF FIRE

THE SHELVES

Shelf-lined room. Floor a mess. Soil spread across the floor from the sloth hole. Blood from the pierced Baboon. One shelf fallen and smashed ceramic books piled onto the floor.

Hardwood shelves carrying huge books with ceramic pages and covers of a dense black hardwood carved into fine designs.

DOORS

These line each wall. A shelf to the north has been tipped over, spilling the books.

▪ West – Combination Door to [R7 Fallen Doors]. ▪ East – To [R50 Wardrobe]. ▪ South – Combination Door to [R57 Bonsai Explosions]. ▪ North – Sloth-Hole, leads to junction. (Hard to see). ▪ Roof Hole – To [U. Spear-Pinned Baboon].

The shelf legs have been gnawed tentatively by the Sloth. They could be unbalanced or smashed down with some effort. Perhaps by climbing and pushing with one's back against the wall.

DAMAGE A mess on every level. West and east walls cracked and subsided. Northern corner badly subsided, plus a huge hole in the floor. Roof fallen in. Floor packed with soil, stone, bits of old shelf and broken ceramic shards. Plus now acid scarring, glass fragments and baboon blood.

Encounter

Action

Boreala

Lying in wait

Reductor

Lying in wait

Tooth-Tooth

Hiding in an Urn

Broken Heart

Hiding covered in Ash

Second Sloth

Enter after the PCs

Zoetrope Men

Enter after the PCs

Backup Baboons

Hiding behind an Urn

Protection Man

Wounded or impaired

Wensley Shrive

Wounded or impaired

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Just leaving as PCs enter

Dancing Automata

Just leaving as PCs enter

Drusilla Machete

Fighting with (roll again)

Zegzor Sapreciept

Fighting with (roll again)

Obsidian Assassin

Sitting or paused in thought

Quicksilver Statues

Sitting or paused in thought

Chain-Waving Baboons

Sifting and examining the Ash

Flamethrower Skeleton

Sifting and examining the Ash

Shadow-Soaked Baboons

Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

Pyroclastic Guardian (if active)

Talking/negotiating with (roll again)

Anaracket Bonvive – exiting as PCs leave

The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

ENCOUNTERS If it hasn’t been too long, ‘Tooth-Tooth’ may still be hanging from the roof. Dropping him onto PCs might be fun. Dropping some tilted shelves onto people would also be a good deal.

Introduction

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

THE BOOKS Picking one up is like picking up a stack of delicate plates. Dropping one would be disastrous.

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

Written in the language of fire. When read the blue letters on the white ceramic move like fire and surrender multiple meanings as they shift. Most books are several volumes long. Getting them out would be a logistical challenge but anyone taking the long time required to read, understand and translate a book could start a mild renaissance in the subject in question.

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

1. Metallurgy. (12 books) 2. Ecology and Fire Regimes. (10 books) 3. Ceramic Armour. (Incomplete 3 books remain) 4. Ceramic Blades. (5 books remain) 5. A biography of Puh-Gna Zor, the Empress of Fire. Lots of battles. (Incomplete 15 books remain) 6. The Planning and Execution of Large-Scale Engineering Projects. (Incomplete 5 books remain) 7. ‘On Duelling’ - focuses on fighting lightly-armoured and mobile fighters whilst armoured. (Incomplete 3 books) 8. The Philosophy of Fire - tends to erase any doubt and focus the mind on the immediate moment. (Incomplete 3 books remain) 9. Radical stagecraft book - good if you are into stagecraft, the only remaining reference to a number of lost Fire Nation plays. (Incomplete 2 books) 10. ‘Leaves of Ash’ - not that good poetry but a deep reading reveals it as a prima-facie source for elemental politics of the deep past. (Incomplete 4 books remain) 1oc per ‘Book’ plus 1000c per volume if sold to dealer intact. All very heavy, very delicate, value not immeditely obvious and near-imporssible to tell what is what without understanding the Languange of Fire.

R57-R60: Library

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

113

Introduction The Fiasco

R59

The Body Field

R59 PROJECTION ROOM

Projection Room

A great apparatus made from loops of shining bronze occupies the centre of the room. A magical Zoetrope. The floor is scattered with broken multicoloured glass. The glass will cut bare feet and crunch audibly under shoes. (Apparatus is unstable and may fall.)

DOORS

▪ West –Secret door to [R8 Entry Hall], has discoloured over time. ▪ East – To [R57 Bonsai Explosions].

DAMAGE West wall cracked. Patterns and drifts of dust and soil fall from the bowed ceiling where the apparatus is attached by hooks.

ENCOUNTERS Any Zoetrope Man which has not been encountered so far will be met with here. As the Zoetrope man is projected, its image also appears directly in the centre of the strange apparatus in the middle of the room, as if both were exactly the same image. If further encounters are needed or desired, see below; Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d12

Encounters

Actions

1-3

Quicksilver Statues

Fighting (or miming fighting) with (roll again)

4-5

Zoetrope Men

Fighting (or miming fighting) with (roll again)

Backup Baboons

Fighting (or miming fighting) with (roll again)

Tiny Knights

Trapped by accident or wound

Dancing Automata

Lying in wait

Boreala

Just leaving as you enter

Boreala

Examining the Environment

Pyroclastic Guardian Enter as PCs do through alt (if unleashed) entrance

Pyroclastic Guardian Enter after the PCs (if unleashed)

THE MAGICAL ZOETROPE Multiple concentric loops of heavy shining bronze, each arranged with many shattered varicoloured lenses. At its centre a clear, white space which flickers slightly with projected light.

THE LENSES All are shattered, the broken glass is all over the floor. Shining a light through a fragment shows something like a tiny splinter of a projected image. It's impossible to make out what it may once have been.

THREE LENSES REMAIN Embedded in the structure of the Zoetrope are three

114

R57-R60: Library

surviving lenses, one for each Zoetrope Man. Grey for the Ash Steward, Orange for the Delft Sentinel and Gold for the Candlelight Courtesan. If removed from the Zoetrope a Magician could use a Light spell to re-create the projected image using the lens.

ACTIVATING THE ZOETROPE Requires an INT test. If succesful the user can project the image of something standing in the centre of the Zoetrope anywhere in a 500ft radius. If a person is standing in the centre of the Zoetrope they will see a grainy version of the world around the projection point, up to a 30ft radius from the place the projection is ‘standing’. If the user has a very clear idea of the geographic location they are projecting to, they can send the image straight there, if not they can “explore” at walking speed by slowly tracking the image around in three-dimensional space, seeing the world around it out to a radius of 30ft.

DANGER As well as being supported at its base the Zoetrope is attached to hooks in the ceiling. These are very clearly unstable. If anything impacts the Zoetrope it collapses on a 4 in 6. 2d6 damage to anyone inside and the room becomes difficult to cross.

Quicksilver Masque R60 QUICKILVER MASQUE Arranged around the room are silver statues of savage and beautiful semi-human nobles clad in incredible armours and wielding unique weapons. The home/stage/storage space for the Quicksilver Statues created by Zenbestefunkh Zor. Here, the statues wil perform slightly more complex behaviours than if they were encounterd randomly.

DOORS

▪ West – To [R57 Bonsai Explosions]. ▪ East – To [R52 Shield Stacks].

Statue 1

A daring, beautiful, imperious young woman wearing a crown and armed with a macahuitl. A near middle-aged man, cracks run though his flesh like the wood of fireblackened trees. He uses a slender war hammer as a walking stick. A slightly pompous, young man, half-face mask set around one eye, a circular sun in the centre of his chest, wearing jagged feathers.

Identity This is Lady Zor, the sculptor's mother, as seen through his eyes. Ignis Zor-Fyr, the sculptor's Father. He didn’t know him well. Zorast, the sculptor's oldest brother and heir to the family name.

R60 Behaviour A Queen, she expects submission, may hold out her hand to be kissed. All the sculpture performs is a slight smile and turn of the head. More like a real father, manly, friendly, slightly superior, a firm handshake and pat on the back. More of a mother than his actual mother. A wide smile. Sympathy. An open embrace. Watchful, calm, a little sad. Smiles slightly, hides her face

No mask, indiscernible gender impudent face, light step and open manner. Halo like a candleflame.

Zami, the sculptor's older Solum sibling.

Teenage girl, half-face mask, hair worked into tight ropes.

Zoe, the oldest of three sisters.

Teenage girl, half-face demon mask lower body shifting as if she were billowing in an unseen wind.

Zagaba, the middle sister.

Arch, a little manic, prods and pokes, laughing.

Teenage girl, no mask, armed with a spear, confident princely stride and high head.

Zarpinat, youngest sister.

Mimes uproarious laughter, gazes and glances knowingly, finds you amusing.

DAMAGE The floor is broken and cracked, with visible subsidence at the western wall.

ENCOUNTERS 2 in 6 chance a Baboon barges in.

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

STATUE COLLAPSE CASCADE

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

If one falls, it will smash, sending splinters of crystal everywhere and releasing the heavy mercury which will flow to the subsided eastern wall and begin seeping into the cracks, dripping into the tunnel below. 3 in 6 chance this triggers further falls.

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

If more than one statue falls, or if strong force hits the eastern wall:

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls

The tunnel below will collapse, filling with mercury and stone, (5d6 damage, trapped, drowning in mercury).

R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

The roof will collapse (1 round warning, 5d6 damage to those below.) This will open a new way out, a difficult climb to the surface.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

R57-R60: Library

115

Introduction The Fiasco

R61/62

The Body Field

R61 FLAME VEILS

R62 SLOTH WRECK

This room seems at first to be burning. Like a black forest of high-branched trees with liquid flame dripping from its branches, pouring like a torrent, surrounded by still, dead moths.

A room wrecked by time, Sloth and acid collapse. Red shards gleam and sparkle in the wreckage like bloody stars.

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls

Veils/Sloth Wreck

This is a momentary illusion, the flames are cloth, hanging like veils of fire from a copse of small iron trees set there for display.

DOORS

[Shared Encounter Table for this section. See opposite page.]

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

ENCOUNTERS

116

West – Combination door to [R51 Bedchamber]. West Corner - Sloth Hole, (hard to see). South - Combination door to [R61 Flame Veils]. West Centre Wall- Sloth Hole, (hard to see). Roof-Hole – To [V. Half-Dissolved Baboon].

ENCOUNTERS

▪ North – To [R62 Sloth Wreck]. ▪ West – To [R63 Burning Furniture]. ▪ East – To [R64 Lamp Philosopher].

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

The veils are translucent, any other room occupants can be half-seen. The dead moths glow on entry, see below.

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

DOORS

In a fight each person will be visually separated from the rest. [Shared Encounter Table. See opposite page.]

ON ENTERING THE ROOM As any new light enters the room, the desiccated shells of the moth's briefly incandesce, glowing with intense firelight, expanding wings of cold fire leaping and buzzing into the air, their empty shells clattering. This lasts only a moment before the moth-shells fall again to the earth, with a tapping sound like sycamore seeds.

NAVIGATING THE ROOM

INVESTIGATING THE ROOM The floor is a mess of wreckage, scraps of old parchment and broken ceramic, the ruins of shelves which have been torn to pieces and dirt back excavated from the sloth holes. Acid from the glass girls has burnt spots into the floor beneath the opening. Fragments of tile, soil, glass and wet, colour-blanched baboon guts lie beneath. All of it at least an inch deep. Shards of vertical ceramic stick up in the centre of the room.

PARCHMENT AND SHELVES All long decayed. Fragments of writing in the language of fire. Possibly poetry?

THE VERTICAL CERAMIC SHARDS

The veils glimmer with a kind of twilight and glow brightly in lamplight. Semi-transparent, the vague shadows and outlines of those on the other side can be seen through them.

The base of a ceramic statue. Looking for the pieces suggests something like a woman. Repair magic reveals a woman holding something but the parts have been tracked through the sloth holes over years and not all are present.

They hang around the edges of the room and across its middle, creating a kind of micro-maze, like washing hanging from lines.

RED GLIMMERS

THE CLOTH Red and blue-white, spotted with patches of darkness where moths have eaten away the cloth. Gossamer-soft, they can be easily brushed out of the way. They fall apart easily, waft and wrap around limbs before collapsing like spiderwebs.

THE TREES Black Iron, carefully sculpted and forged. Like trees with tall cylindrical rough trunks and branches only at their tops, which spread out in upward facing curls like the leaves of ferns or a little like the ribs of an umbrella. The veils have been hung from these branches.

R61-R64: Lamp Philosopher

Chips of ruby (10c each). Seem to be fragments of a large, flat, lozenge. 12 can be found but it takes an hour at least. The Ruby Lozenge - if reassembled and magically restored (i.e. by a mend spell) this is a kind of book. Staring through the gem at an active fire reveals words within the fire, poetry in the Language of Fire based on that fire's origins, fuel, circumstances and nature. 1000c to a collector. (Zoldinar from R64 Lamp Philospher, knows what this is.)

Burning Furniture R63 BURNING FURNITURE For a moment it seems this room is in the midst of conflagration. Waiting a moment shows that all the fire is still, lockd in time.

DOORS

surrounded by the stilled halo of exchange that makes up the fire is each one complete as intended.

BRINGING LIGHT INTO THE ROOM The furniture reflects light as brightly as a polished amber mirror and revealing layers of colour within its frozen fires.

West wall cracked.

ENCOUNTERS The strange shadows created by the furniture would be a good hiding place. [Shared Encounter Table for this section]

THE BURNING FURNITURE Around the three sides of this room and on stands running parallel to those sides are examples of wooden furniture drawn from many cultures, some known, some unknown. Each piece is in the midst of being consumed by fire, as if in a blazing house. The flames are still, paused like sculpted glass or some pinned translucent fabric. The pieces are all part-carbonised but the skeletal structure of the burnt parts hang in the air like a pencil sketch. Smoke flows away from the pieces like a windswept veil. The shapes of the furniture are magnificent, quixotic, containing inner complexities of form which could never be seen in the shape while whole. Weird extrusions and wild adornments flow and branch from the furniture. It is as if each was made to be burnt and that only in its burning, partly exposed, part consumed, frozen in time and

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters

The frozen fire glimmers like gemstones, emitting sparks and flickers of light but only very dimly illuminating the room. It gives off much less energy than a normal fire.

▪ West - To [R52 Shield Stacks]. ▪ East - To [R61 Flame Veils].

DAMAGE

R63

Exposing one piece to light causes it to glow, setting off another, which then triggers still more, glowing in the room like a sunset. The tendrils of smoke and crossing bars of the limbs of the furniture create complex weaves of shadow on the walls and in the corners of the room. Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d12

Encounters

Boreala

Reductor

Navidorine

Tooth-Tooth

Actions

R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

Examining environment/ talking to Zoldinor in R64 Lamp Philosopher

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

Examining environment/ talking to Zoldinor in R64 Lamp Philosopher

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

Wensley Shrive

Protection Man

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Lying in wait

Drusilla Machete

Enter after the PCs

Zegzor Sapreciept

Just leaving as you enter

Anaracket Bonvive Fighting with (roll again)

Pyroclastic Guardian (if unleashed)

Tomb Rooms

Trapped by accident or wound Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

R61-R64: Lamp Philosopher

117

Introduction The Fiasco

R64

The Body Field

R64 LAMP PHILOSOPHER

The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

Lamp Philosopher

The resting place of an aethereal philosopher born of mildly drugged gas. The eastern corner holds a large bound tank.

DOORS

▪ West – To [R61 Flame Veils].

ENCOUNTERS A wise foe might wait for the PCs to trip out on the gas before trying to attack, or to snatch the key. Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d12

Encounters

Boreala

Reductor

Actions Examining environment/talking to Zoldinor

Navidorine

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

Tooth-Tooth

Wensley Shrive

Protection Man

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Lying in wait

Drusilla Machete

Enter after the PCs

Zegzor Sapreciept

Just leaving as you enter

Anaracket Bonvive Fighting with (roll again)

Pyroclastic Guardian (if unleashed)

118

Examining environment/talking to Zoldinor

Trapped by accident or wound Enter as PCs do through alt entrance

THE GAS TANK A large lamp fitting projects from the front and a wheel allows the gas in the tank to be released. If the gas is released and lit, the fire burns in the shape of a butane-blue cloaked and ancient sage. This is Zoldinar. Whether the gas-lamp is lit or not, all present will begin to experience its effects (see below).

ZOLDINAR Truly ancient and very confused, Zoldinar is a big supporter of the Empress; “First Queen of Fire, Mother and Founder of the Empire of Fire, Opener of the Gate, Hammer of the Ice Demons, Subjector of the Acid Barons, Protector of Mankind etc etc."

R61-R64: Lamp Philosopher

He is happy to talk about her glories and her numerous victories though he is pretty vague about a lot of it. He is also a philosopher, he is locked in consideration of a complex issue;

“Is the es sence of all thing s… tran sformation? Or! Do all thing s tran sform into their es sence? The distinction is a subtle one is it not ? Around his neck he carries a Tomb Key. It is his purpose to guard they key and only release it to “the wise”, so he has come up with some two riddles; “I find your way, but never you. What am I?” (A map.). “Death of each day’s life. What am I?” (Sleep.) If someone can answer either riddle correctly Zoldinar will hand them the key which will become solid in their hand. Zoldinar cannot be damaged. If his flame is put out he will simply disappear and the key with him.

THE GAS EFFECTS Exposure induces mild hallucinations and an altered mental state. The following visions take place in sequence and compile upon one another, lasting for double the period of exposure; 1. Blue flame runs along your flesh. This causes no pain and is fascinating to look at. You may function entirely normally with only a small effort. 2. Numbness of the skin. 3. The reverie of staring into a fire, except the fire is yourself and the shapes you see are your inner self. You remain calm and compulsively eat small pieces of wood. 4. The euphoria that comes to burn victims when their skin has been baked and nervous system boiled, liquefied and dumped into their bloodstream.

Sloth Nest

R65

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field

R65 SLOTH NEST

THE CRAP ON THE FLOOR

A Large cavern of packed earth, strewn with written fragments, lit by the candle-strength light of magical glyphs circling a space near the centre of the cavern and by sunlight from the tunnel rapidly dug out to the surface by the Hyper-Sloth.

A hibernation nest made from chewed up, torn and ruined parchment, papyrus, paper, vellum, strips of silk and bamboo, ceramic shards, glass fragments, chunks of tile, old bones, dirt, dry soil and indefinable muck.

Encounters

There is writing on a lot of these fragments.

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

Small drops of blood begin to seep and drip slowly from the ceiling.

DOORS

▪ Tunnel Up – To [A. The Hyper Sloth!], more a bank of broken earth leading to a burst-open hole. No rope required. ▪ North-West – Sloth Tunnel. ▪ North-East – Sloth Tunnel. ▪ Dimensional Tear – A Forward Tear (easy to access) to [R54 Sloth Catastrophe]. ▪ Dimensional Tear – An Ancient Backward Tear (hard to access) to HELL!

ENCOUNTERS

If PCs get highly creative and use a combination of intelligence, spellcraft or brute force to re-assemble some of these records, give them a few fragments of history or information about the Fire Culture from the backstory at the start of the book.

THE TEAR An ovoid circled by faded glyphs which glow like candles. Space is distorted and shattered. Time stutters here, those moving in or out may gain or lose a second before they synch up with reality again. “You fools! Knowledge itself is treasure!”

If early in the game; no encounter. Magic Users studying the glyphs will work out the following; If the PCs reach this area later in the game; Encounter on a 2 in 6. Roll when entering, if loud noise made, every ½ hour of in-game time. Use own judgement when incorporating agents and actions to scene. Forgo roll if you think reasonable. 2d6

Encounter

Action

Anaracket Bonvive

Fighting with (roll again)

Second Sloth!

Fighting with (roll again)

Protection Man

Fighting with (roll again)

Zomi ma-ma Z’or

Fighting with (roll again)

Pyroclastic Guardian

Lying in wait

Demon-Possessed Baboons

Lying in wait

▪ The glyphs are a natural expression of reality trying to heal around a wound. ▪ Something powerful smashed its way into this reality here. ▪ It moved on.. could there be a second, less visible tear around here? (There is, the ‘Forward Tear’ to R54.) ▪ It would be supremely hard to force this larger entry rift open. It also reeks of demonic energy. (This clearly leads to Hell. Don’t use it!) ▪ These glyphs could be used to close other less powerful (i.e. short distance) tears. (The magic user could do this, after study.)

The Tomb

Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor

R65: Sloth Nest

119

Appendix A: The Isopod Convoy THE ISOPOD CONVOY

INVESTIGATING THE CONVOY

Hidden nearby via magical means is the Convoy of Wensley Shrive, a linked series of waggons driven by giant pillbugs.

THE WAGGONS

The convoy is full of resources, information and hooks. Almost all the factions and individuals in the adventure will wish to locate it.

FINDING THE CONVOY; HOW TO FIND IT ▪ Magic-Users who examine Shrive's Blue Monocle will intuit that it is the key to both hiding and locating the convoy. ▪ Sending agents ‘vaguely in search’ who definitely do not know what they are looking for. ▪ Random idiots wandering around without a thought in their heads. But if they find it once and leave it, they won't be able to find it again, as that time they will actually be looking for it.

FAILED SEARCHES ▪ Going in circles. ▪ Memory blanks.

The Rear Wheels of each Waggon are like big hamsterwheels with giant (dog-sized) Pillbugs inside them. The roofs are covered with scratch-tents which the Baboons live inside. The fourth car has tipped over and cars two and three are tilting to compensate. A number of pine boxes have slipped out. All are carefully padded with straw and currently empty.

THE LEAD CAR In the chest: in the lid a poisoned punch dagger (3d6 rounds paralysis, 2hp damage each round save for half, one use), Shrive's contract with Blue Glass (see appendix.) Secret Compartment in the base a compartment holding a secret message.

▪ NPC’s will rationalise incoherent searching behaviours. ▪ Magic-Users find spells identifying pebbles, shadows and dust instead of the convoy. The more clearly they define the target, the wilder the responses become.

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

The Secret Message : an agreement to deliver the arms hidden in the back cars to several rebel groups within the Crater Zone. This includes details of how Shrive should fake an accident with his convoy at a certain point within the zone, where the arms will be unloaded and he will be paid. In the roof beams above the drivers position: a dual-firing heavy crossbow.

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

120

Four Waggons, each about ten feet long and five wide. Each waggon is linked to the one in front.

Appendices

Appendix A: The Isopod Convoy

THE REAR THREE CARS They are full of pine boxes. Each box is 6 feet long, 3 feet wide and 2 feet high. Several have fallen from the rear and eleven have been opened from the inside. Each box is very carefully padded with straw and each closed box holds one glass girl. The remaining space is filled with dried and preserved foodstuffs. Anyone wearing the blue monocle can find tarpaulin sacks hidden in the roofs of these cars. Inside are bowstaves, bowstrings, arrows, swords, machetes, axes and pole-arm heads.

DRIVING THE WAGGON Needs relatively firm and unobstructed ground. Can move at human walking speed, the Pillbugs will require at least eight hours of rest a day. Giving an average of about 64 miles of travel per day, assuming no breaks and half-decent roads. The Pillbugs feed largely on rotting or half-decayed vegetation. Much of this can be drawn from the steady use of supplies by the convoys occupants.

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Appendices

121

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters Tomb Rooms R1-R4 Lower Floor R5-R8 Halls of Salt R9-R12 Halls of Ash R13-R16 Reductors Halls

Appendix B: Treasure Totals C = one unit of standard currency. In most games this will be one gold piece.

Black Diamond Heart of Navidorine the Salt Dryad - 500c to a Mage or Collector. If Navidorine included, 5,000c but this guy seems like a massive perv. Black diamonds, 10 in total = 100c each.

Fire Queen's sword - 500c Fire Queen's Wardrobe-400c worth recoverable with an hour's work. Largely due to decay, fragility and lack of complete sets. Might be worth much more with magical reconstruction.

Black dragonscales, 1,000 in total worth, on average, 1c each. Flame Calligraphy Banners - 300c each to a collector. Black pearls, 100 in total = 5c each Black Vases (from R33) - 5c each, x5 if sold with the Rational Incense within.

Flame Painting, big heavy and dangerous - 1,000c each to a collector.

Blue Blood Powder - 5c. Agents of Blue Glass Co. will note this sale and try to trace the sellers.

Frieze of Fire, big, several parts, hard to transport - 5000c for 100% of the Freize to a collector. Total halved for each 10% missing.

Blue Monacle - 200c.

Giant Snail Shells - 20c each to collectors.

Blue-Blood Dust - 10c.

Golden Monkey Medallion - 5c.

Books, Ceramic - From the Library of Fire. 1oc per ‘Book’ plus 1000c per volume if sold to dealer intact. All very heavy, very delicate, value not immeditely obvious and near-impossible to tell what is what without understanding the Languange of Fire.

Golden Nails, 1c each, 5,000 in total.

R29-R32 Shadow Engine

Book of Sapphire Leaves - 7,000c to a Mage, Academic or Collector.

Light Snaps - 1c each.

R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage

Borealas Leaves - 1c per 10% recovered and if sold to a Mage, Academic or Collector.

Long coat of salamander scales - 200c.

R37-R40 Gallery of Fire

Bottle with d4 knock-out drops - 20c.

Macuahuitl - 5c.

Buring Furniture - roughly 100c per piece

Masks of the Masked Maroons - 1c each. Agents of Blue Glass Co. will note this sale and try to trace the sellers.

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

Lamellar armour, of the Masked Maroons - 5c. Agents of Blue Glass Co. will note this sale and try to trace the sellers.

Liquid shadow - 5c per pint.

Ceramic Knife - 5c. Damage explodes. Knife always breaks on a fumble, and on a miss against an armoured opponent.

Moon Hood - 100c. Agents of Blue Glass Co. will note this sale and try to trace the sellers.

Command Masks, belonging to Wensley Shrive - 50c each. Monkey Teeth, Bag of - 1c. Caustic Hearts - 1000c to sketchy and criminal collectors, they will be found dead a week after purchase the Blue Glass will begin to trace the sale bacn to the PCs Cyclone Ring - buyers won’t accept as they know Blue Glass Co. will regard it as their property.

Mummified Marsupial Apes - 20c each to collectors. Necklace of ancient frictionless blue glass - 3000c. Agents of Blue Glass Co. will note this sale and try to trace the sellers. Necklace of Burning Phosphorous - intenesly toxic and dangerous but if you can find a way to make safe, 3,000c.

R57-R60 Library

Depleted Uranium Robe - insanely heavy and mildly toxic, 1,000c

R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher

Dispel Bolt - 50c. Agents of Blue Glass Co. will note this sale and try to trace the sellers.

Nullification Wards from the Warded Room WHY WOULD YOU REMOVE THESE WHAT THE FUCK?? 1000c per percentage of the Wards removed, so 10,000c for the whole thing.

Fire Gum - 1c. Illiegal in most polities. Urban theives will regonise this as a newish hallucanagentic street drug, currently growing in popularity.

Phylactery - 750c to a Mage or Collector.

R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

122

Fire Queen's Armour - 500c

Protection Man Compact Crossbow - 50c. Agents of Blue Glass Co. will note this sale and try to trace the sellers.

Fire Queen's Helm - 500c

Pyroclastic Guardian Jars - 10c each to collectors.

Fire Queen's Ring - 10,000 if you are willing to sell...

Rare Fighting Chains - 5c each to collectors.

Appendices

Appendix B: Treasure Totals Rational Incense (from R33) - 10c each, x5 if sold in original Black Vase.

Silver Nails in the Eyes of the Frozen Demon Worshippers DONT PULL THEM OUT!! - 0.5c per nail.

Reconstituted Ash; A great pile of flags, banners, totem poles and wooden carnifex (long trumpets) - 500c.

Skull-Bossed Shield - 350c.

Introduction The Fiasco The Body Field The Tomb Encounters

Reconstituted Ash; Rods, Sceptres and Staves carved with gaping mouths - 500c. Reconstituted Ash; A coffin of roots which have grown into wards - 500c to a collector, 1,000 to 2,000 to a Druid if you can find one. Reconstituted Ash; A pile of whalebone war-clubs, some set with shell, stone or sharp animal teeth - 500c to academics or museum curators. Reconstituted Ash; A shattered ebony throne with inlay of human bone - 4,000c. Reconstituted Ash; Fifty heads of some huge, bug-eyed insectoid predator, - 1c each unless you can find a Zoologist. They will pay 50c just for one. Reconstituted Ash; Huge piles of Polar Bear teeth, much larger than those of normal bears - 50c as a job lot.

Tomb Rooms

Sloth Parts - 1c per percentage of total sloth recovered and sold to Academic or Collector. Souls - only dark market trades with eldritch figures, traded only for services and secrets. WOULD’S THOU SURRENDER THINE OWN SOUL IN THYS FOUL TRADE? Skeleton of a Heavy Metal Fish -From R40. Weighs 6 kilos, fits in the palm of your hand. Worth 300c to any Alchemist. Spell Book of Em’a Void - if whole and unlocked, 1,000c.

R21-R24 Acid Baron's Cell

Staff of Broken Dogs - 300c. Steel Garden's silver spherical fruit - 10c each.

Reconstituted Ash; ‘Princess’ A live Leopard with a magnificent collar - 200c.

The Blood-Red Ruby Man - 500 to Mage or Collector, but it will resist this sale.

Reconstituted Ash; Sculptures and small altars of vile demonic forms carved from dense black wood - 3,000c but the buyer wears a black cloak, a mask and has no shadow.

The Crystal Shards of Uzziel Unanelad - the only buyer is a skinless Capuchin monkey half of whom’s body is glass who appears in a nightmare and promises ‘a service’ in return for the shards. No-one else will touch them.

R29-R32 Shadow Engine R33-R36 SpinsterBone Cage R37-R40 Gallery of Fire R41-R44 Dancers' Halls R45-R48 Artificer's Rooms

The Dragon's Eye - a feral grey opalescent gem. 5,000c to Mage or Collector

R49-R52 Fire-Queen's Arms

The Iron Heart - 500c, to Mage, Collector or Doctor, its nature hard to divine even for the august.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone

Reductor's Silver & Onyx Mask - 500c. The Kraken's Arm - 5,000c.

Salt-Ivy - A foot of whole, undamaged, unstained, salt-ivy can be worth 100c if returned to civilisation. Difficult to do considering its brittleness, fragility and poor reaction to even small amounts of ambient moisture.

R25-R28 Boreala's Halls

The Dragon's Black Bones - 5,000c if 100% sold to collector. Very large, difficult to move.

Reductor's Hooks 50c each.

Ruby Lozenge - From R62. If reassembled and magically restored (i.e. by a mend spell), this is a kind of book. Staring through the gem at an active fire reveals words within the fire, poetry in the Language of Fire based on that fires origins, fuel, circumstances and nature. 1000c to a collector. (Zoldinar from R64 Lamp Philospher, knows what this is.)

R13-R16 Reductors Halls

Spinster-Bone Cage - 200c if sold to the crazed lady surrounded by cats who comes calling in the night.

The Black Dragonbone Staff - 5,000c to a mage or collector.

Reductor's Red Pearl Flensed Face - 300c

R9-R12 Halls of Ash

Spiders, - of value only to Boreala really.

Reconstituted Ash; Piles of severed Goblin Hands, - no cash value.

Reductor's Jade and Ivory mummification tools - 300c.

R5-R8 Halls of Salt

R17-R20 Ice Demons' Prison

Steel Garden's Tiny hidden sapphires - 100c

Reconstituted Ash; Shadow Puppets of demons - 300c to a collector but they seem like a cackling maniac.

R1-R4 Lower Floor

The Small Soldiers - they will resist being exchanged for money. Tomb Keys - if at maximum weight, 100c to a collector or Mage as a curiosity. If the charm unbroken and carriable, 1c only. Wand of BEEEEEEES - 10c if charges unknown, if they can check charges then 10c per charge remaining.

R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

Wensley Shrive's Command Masks - 50c each. Security Guard's Hardwood Armour & Helms - 5c per set. Agents of Blue Glass Co. will note this sale and try to trace the sellers.

Appendices

123

Appendix C: Item Rules

124

CYCLONE RING

CAUSTIC HEARTS

Black onyx with a jagged silver spiral on its face. Blue Glass Co gives these to the heads of its Security Teams. They are badges of office and symbols of Authority. Only the company can re-charge each ring and no-one knows how they do it. Each comes with a note book and the holder is expected to record every usage.

Implanted in the bodies of “Protection Men” to make them pure and remorseless agents of Corporate Power. Strange alchemical machines that seem to weep a caustic bile. They click, slosh and are engraved with some systematic law in an enocian script. (Its the charter of the Frictionless Blue Glass Merchent Company).

A full-capacity ring carries 25 charges. Create Water = 1 charge Make Fog = 1+ charges Flight = 5+ charges Lightning Bolt = 5 charges ▪ Create Water: Creates a powerful stream of water for one round. Range 20ft. Does d4 non-lethal damage and pushes the target back the same number of feet. If fired at an individual, it always hits, if fired at a closelyarranged group, each must save breath or suffer the full effect. ▪ Wall of Fog: Creates a volume of fog which obscures all vision in whatever shape the caster prefers. Volume 6 foot by 6 foot cube per charge. ▪ Flight: 5 Charges per 30 seconds - The caster or target within 50ft is bourne upwards by raging winds. An unwilling target can save to avoid this. ▪ Lightning Bolt: 5 Charges - A bolt of lightning leaps from the ring and travels until it hits something that will earth it. 5d8 damage.

CERAMIC KNIVES

WHITE BOLTS OF DISPELLMENT

Small fingertip sized gems like three-dimensional snowflakes that shine and glimmer like blue stars. They are delicate and very cold.

These crossbow bolts of white wood each dispel any single spell effect they encounter. If multiple spell effects are encountered at the same time they will dispel the highest level effect. To dispel an effect bound to a particular person, they must be wounded by the bolt but if they encounter a magical shield or protection around that person, that will be dispelled. Each of these costs the company 5,000gp. Each use must be signed for and investigated by company clerks, if the use was not in the company's interests then the user will be held liable for the cost.

BLUE BLOOD-DUST Product of the Refinery Process and primary export of the Zone, some of this is diverted for company use, and an even smaller amount ‘liberated’ by Spiderheads and sold. Use; A sky-blue powder. When mixed with water and applied directly to a wound it gives all the benefits of rapid cauterisation with no risk of infection and tissue damage and no pain. It forms a distinctive azure scar. Heals 3d6 hp of trauma damage immediately and stops all blood loss. If accidentally breathed in it can scar the lungs permanently and kill. On inhalation does 2d6 damage to lungs and 1d3 damage to Con that cannot be healed without magic.

Appendices

Refinery hands in hall three use these ceramic knives to work their product. They are not meant to be allowed out of that hall but are sometimes found in the hands of criminals or Profit Protection teams. 2d4 damage, explodes if a 4 is rolled on either die and keeps exploding. Does full damage to fire-based creatures, breaks on a miss or fumble.

CLOUDGRAVE CLUB D4 damage. The Zone produces a wide variety of this extremely-simple wooden club carved from black Cloudgrave wood. They come in a wide variety of designs and differing levels of elaboration, from the simple knotted sticks used by Spiderheads to the elaborately-carved ritual weapons used by some Masked Maroons. In some cases part of a frond will have been used and the crystallisation left in place as decoration or even as an abrasive edge.

ENDOTHERMIC GEMS

As soon as they dry they are encased in settings of frictionless glass which insulate and hold back their temperature, allowing them to be worn next to the skin. An Endothermic Gem will absorb and nullify twenty spell levels directed at the possessor, then collapse to dust. (i.e. one level 20 spell, two level 10 spells, four level 5 spells etc) If applied directly to the skin of a Fire Noble, an Endothermic Gem will do 5d8 damage. If a Fire Noble swallows one for any reason they must save vs death or die, on a save they suffer 5d8 damage. VALUE – 20,000 gp

FIRE GUM A blue resin. Roll a d6 for each dose of gum and add the totals. Taking four or more doses can be lethal. The first four effects each compile upon the other. If you suffer effect 4, you also suffer 1, 2 and 3. Other effects are experienced separately.

1. Blue flame runs along your flesh. This causes no pain and is fascinating to look at. You may function entirely normally with only a small effort. 2. Numbness of the skin. 3. The reverie of staring into a fire, except the fire is yourself and the shapes you see are your inner self. You remain calm and compulsively eat small pieces of wood. 4. The euphoria that comes to burn victims when their skin has been baked and nervous system boiled, liquefied and dumped into their bloodstream.

Appendix C: Item Rules 5. You smell yourself cooking, though painless this is a deeply disturbing and unpleasant experience. You must communicate your deep distress at this sensation. 6. You are running between the branches of the Cloudgrave trees like a quickening fire, leaping from branch to branch as you race ahead of a surging wind. (This is not too dangerous so long as you are not actually in the branches of the Cloudgrave trees.) 7. You are a being of fire and have been formally challenged in very serious circumstances. You must respond in dignified verse of some kind to anyone that speaks to you or lose face to a terrible extent. 8. You are being forged. Pounded by gigantic weights wielded by enormous giants, heated until you nearly die and plunged into freezing water. You may cry out to the giants, cringe from the blows or beg for water to ease the heat of the flames or something warm to ease the cold of the water. In its final stages this dream is pleasing and addictive. You feel you have been made harder, stronger, alloyed and changed but emerging more resistant to the world and ready to do work. 9. You are being made alchemically pure. Every bad thing inside you is being slowly burnt away, isolated and controlled by an endless series of fine reactions and alterations leaving you physically and morally pure. Though each particular process can be unpleasant, as each one ends you feel more and more pure. This is a powerful and addictive dream. 10. You are a being of fire fighting a gigantic and terrible war in the depth of a cosmic winter against the Ice Giants who wish to freeze the core of the world and destroy all life forever. The tragedy and horror are beyond any human imagining. Only the most total commitment and absolute sacrifice will save the world. The people around you are now Ice Giants and you must battle them, especially if they try to hold you down. 11. You are a flower of expanding fire, opening, you reveal rows of white petals, each petal generates more petals, which generate more petals in an expanding chain reaction. The petals grow whiter and whiter and whiter. This is pleasurable and frightening at the same time. You are about to change everything. Time is very slow here. 12. 12. You are very heavy and made of liquid iron. You need to curl up into a very tight ball and sleep. It’s very cold outside. You can feel your iron blood moving around your iron bones. You can’t move or uncurl from your tight ball except maybe you can roll slowly in a circle around a central point. Also if anyone interrupts you can spit molten metal at them. 13. You are lightning. The world unfolds in a mosaic of frozen instants. No time passes for you but you appear, sometimes between boiling clouds, sometimes within clouds, seeing their gigantic spiralling inner structure. Sometimes poised hanging between the sky and the earth. In your moments of existence you bridge gigantic spaces. The rest of the time you simply wait, turning slowly and building charge. You are only the moment of the leap. 14. You are eating cities like cakes. The cakes are about the relative size of a normal cake to a human being, but you can clearly see that you are gigantic and that the cake is an individual city with tiny buildings, streets, temples and towers. As you press your hands around the city-cake, it bursts into flames where your fingertips touch. Tiny little people go running in gigantic crowds giving tiny little screams. They fall from the edges of the cake enmasse, burning as they fall like little droplets of fire. It’s like cream bursting from a bun. You have to eat and eat and eat. 15. You are a spark falling from a whetstone or a flint. You exist only at a moment of impact and then fall slowly to your death, cooling and fading as you go, only to be reborn. You dance beautifully as you die. This is sorrowful but your rebirths are constant and repetitive 16. Your spirit is immortal, like the Phoenix your body dies, falls to ashes and your immortal spirit escapes and is reborn in new flesh. You feel your body decay around and this is thrilling as you realise your soul is becoming more free. You gain awareness of your previous selves, all the people and animals your soul inhabited in former lives and you can converse with them as long as the vision lasts. 17. There are tiny helixes spread throughout your body like grains of sand drifting through an ocean and they are on fire. They glow like motes of light in the sunbeams of a shaded room, or like sparks raining from a crucible. As these tiny spirals burn you can hear them singing a complex song of pure high notes. You know that if you listened to them carefully enough and understood them then you might be able to re-make your body into whatever you wanted, or even travel to other realities. 18. You are a gigantic source of death and life. Wherever you look, ice melts, cold is dispelled and if you look at something long enough, life is kindled. You are responsible for all life. But if you look at something too closely or too long then you can reduce it to desert and desiccate it. You should move slowly, rotate continually and be careful about looking at things too quickly or too long. Really, people should be worshiping you. 19. You have just woken up and you need to eat the world. The whole thing is going to have to go. You must race from place to place consuming things. You feel fierce, powerful and absolute. No force can compel or overwhelm you. Really you should consume the whole world down to the bare rock. (This is a potentially dangerous Tree Dream but since the subject does not care *what* they eat, they can usually be distracted with sticks, tree bark and old rope.)

Introduction The Fiasco

20. The world flips like a coin, becoming its other self. You see the Palaces of Fire, a huge complex like a noble castle, palace or country house, spread over gardens and grottoes. All of this is made of living fire and smoke. The grass and the trees and the leaves are fire. The bricks and tiles are like glowing crystals of quartz containing their own fire. There are people here and they are beautiful and wonderful beings of fire going about their own complex and courtly lives. 21. You are a coronal cage-crown of fire and magnetic force cradling a star. You surround and encompass the star, dancing and forming huge arches of force and fire, plasmic architecture bigger than worlds. But the star is about to collapse and you must race away from it dancing at the speed of light or be caught within its chains as it dies and reduced to a dull black cinder. You will destroy whatever you touch as you race away but there is no time to worry about that. 22. You are blind, parched, ancient and dying and being held down by some kind of octopid creature that has penetrated your body and is sucking the remaining blood of your life. As if you were held prisoner, blindfolded, on a salt flats under a baking sun. You can feel your skin crack and peel under the hot glare but some sourceless and indistinct form binds you. You cry out for aid but no help comes. This is a Bad Trip. 23. You feel as if you need to burn and will do whatever you can to make this happen. You will set fires and jump into them, cover yourself in flammable liquid and try to find a light, or any other method you can think of in order to transmute yourself to fire right here, right now, in the real world. You must be physically restrained to prevent you from doing this. 24. As per 23, you will try to set yourself on fire, but you will also try to set pretty much everything you can find on fire if at all possible. Everything must be converted into fire. Everything must burn.

FLY LANTERNS For those who need to work at night, or who intend to travel in the dark, the company provides paper lanterns lit by fireflies. Users are held liable for any loss or damage to the flies at the price of 1gp per fly. Most lanterns contain 30 flies and provide clear light in a 30ft radius. Folds down neatly to a flat pack.

FRICTIONLESS GLASS A product of the Refinery Process and primary export of the Zone, more commonly used as currency and jewellery than as a material (many banks and trading houses carry part of their liquidity in it). It is said a Pirate Queen of the Southern Seas has the hull of her vessel plated with this glass.

LIGHT SNAPS A product of the Refinery Process and primary export of the Zone, these are never sold legally in the Zone but are sometimes gifted to employees for specific purposes. Each is a regular violent shard of amber-like resin with a breakchannel down the centre where it can be easily snapped. If broken in two, each half of the snap will produce a beautiful golden lantern-strength light for roughly 1 hour.

MOON HOODS Low-Light Hoods are hoods of dull grey silk, each one embroidered with a small silver moon. The moon embroidered on the hood waxes and wanes with the movements of the moon in the sky. Anyone wearing such a hood has their face deeply shadowed and at night can see in the low light provided by the moon and stars as if it were day. The enchantment on the hoods lasts for one lunar month.

RUBY GEM If recovered anyone viewing a fire through the gem should be able to divine aspects of its nature and origin in a somewhat vague, perhaps elliptical, way.

Appendices

125

Appendix D: Contract & Company Law SHRIVE'S CONTRACT In summary; Contract between The Frictionless Blue Glass Merchant Company and Wensley Shrive for Delivery of 54 Glassware Items to Director of Operations : Crater Zone. On or before a date three days hence. If the items are delivered whole and unmarked by the given date the holder shall recieve 50c for each. Form of Payment shall be in Frictionless Blue Glass, or other materials and coinage if agreed to by both parties. Blue Glass Merchant Company not responsible for any damage or accident etc etc. Lateness shall mean a reduction in the price per item of 5c per day down to a minimum of 25c each. Agent is reminded to use only the reinforced bridges in the crater zone as others may not take the waggon's weight, this may require a circuitous route.

COMPANY LAW ARTICLE 1: DEFINITIONS 1. The area referred to as the ‘Zone’ shall be defined and considered as that area occupied by, and within which, the rules and arrangements of the Company are considered to be in force. 2. The grouping, agency, organisation and identity referred to as ‘the Company’ shall be that organisation with the right and effective control of the area referred to as the ‘Zone’. 3. The definitions of the ‘Zone’ and ‘Company’ shall at all times be decided by the Company in accordance with its laws, by-laws and policies and by no other grouping, agency or organisation. 4. Any attempt to re-define or otherwise alter the nature, existence or interrelationship of the ‘Company’ and the ‘Zone’ shall be considered Unsafe and Unreasonable conduct and prosecuted accordingly by the Company and its agents in accordance with the articles below.

R53-R56 Rosetta Stone R57-R60 Library R61-R64 Lamp Philosopher R65 Sloth Nest Appendices

126

Appendices

ARTICLE 2: FIRE 1. No fire, flame, burn, spark, emission, explosion, heat-excession, conflagration, combustion, incandescence or suspicious warmth is permitted in any place at any time except for those arrangements or processes activated, monitored by and under the supervision and direct and absolute control of verified Company personnel acting under the clear and immediate guidance of Company Policy as decided and promulgated by the Company and by and for no other authority or purpose whatsoeverfor it be and this law shall apply to all beings, living and un-living, conscious and non-conscious, real and un-real, located within the area called the ‘Zone’ and shall be applied equally and absolutely to all parties thereof regardless of rank, position, identity, constitution and personhood, both assumed and un-assumed. a. Furthermore; pursuant to the above article, any Company personnel, whether specifically mandated or not, are required and instructed to take part in and uphold the enforcement of the above article on any being, living or un-living, conscious or nonconscious which they may observe or, in any way come into contact with in the area called the ‘Zone’ and are instructed to make use of any degree of force and compellment in order to ensure its absolute obedience in all cases.

ARTICLE 3: CREDIT 1. All credits owed to and regulated by the Company must be cleared, repaid and voided in full according to the offices and appointees of said Company acting within and in service of the laws, bylaws and clearly-stated mandate of the Company before any employee, debtor, associate or contractor shall be permitted to leave the service of, or break contract with, the Company in any way. 2. Furthermore, the nature of this repayment, whether it be in cash monies, services, or in some other form, whatsoever it be, shall be decided only and entirely by the Company and by no other agent or power. 3. Pursuant to the above, it is the responsibility and duty of the Company to communicate the size, value, nature and amount of any such repayment to the Employee or Contractor in question within a reasonable frame of time after such information being requested. 4. Any attempt by any person or agent whomsoever or whatsoever they be, to escape, evade, elude, avoid, ignore or disobey the above article shall be considered by the Company both Unsafe Conduct and the person engaging in this conduct to be both a source and example of Unsafe and Unreasonable conduct of the most egregious kind and the Company shall be permitted to engage whatever elements, actions, forces, deeds, or agents it thinks reasonable in order to prevent, apprehend, reverse or cease both the Unsafe and Unreasonable conduct itself and any source or origin of such conduct. 5. The Company shall at all times have the responsibility of defining and deciding the nature of conduct, whether it be Safe, Reasonable, Unsafe, Unreasonable or any combination or arrangement of such kinds.

Appendix D: Contract & Company Law ARTICLE 4: AGENTS

ARTICLE 6: EXCHANGE

1. The Company is commanded and authorised to employ and sustain agents and forces whose purpose shall be the advancement of Safe and Reasonable conduct and the suppression and removal of Unsafe and Unreasonable conduct. 2. In all cases shall the agents so appointed and sustained by the Company be treated with the respect and service owed to the Company. They shall be regarded in all parts and circumstances as limbs or extensions of the Company itself. a. Pursuant to the above, the Company is requested to employ and sustain such agents as are required to preserve the health, safety and existence of Company resources, processes and personnel, should they be threatened by any groups or individuals embarked on terminally and deliberately Unsafe and Unreasonable conduct.

1. In order to preserve and promulgate the safety, security and stability of Company operations and Personnel, any economic exchange carried out with or by Company personnel or taking place within the area defined as the ‘Zone’ shall be made entirely and only in the currency of the Company itself and through no other medium, mate-

ARTICLE 5: SAFETY 1. It is the solemn and serious duty of all Company personnel, at all times and in all situations, to maintain and ensure both their own safety and the safety of any individuals with which they may be in temporary or permanent association. a. Pursuant to the above article all Company personnel are required at all times to ensure the following; i. All persons to be properly equipped for the task at hand. ii. All equipment to be fully checked and in good repair. iii. All equipment must be employed for the task for which it is clearly intended or designed and for no other task. iv. All equipment or materials in use must be those purchased from, rented from, leant from or cleared by, the Company and its correctly appointed agents. v. No excessive or unreasonable risk or danger may be engaged in. vi. All tasks and programmes of work to be accomplished in a timely and efficient manner so as not to expose any personnel to unnecessary environmental dangers. vii. There shall be no wandering in the Zone. a. The definition of ‘wanderer’ shall be any person whose purpose, actions or intentions are unclear or unreasonable as decided by the Company and its properly appointed agents. 2. The Company and its appointed Agents shall at all times be the definer and decider of what is ‘Clear’ or ‘Unclear’ and of what is ‘Safe’ or ‘Unsafe’.

rial or act. a. Pursuant to the above article, the Company shall make available to all persons entering the Zone an immediate exchange of whatever currency and material they possess into the preferred currency of the Company for the ease and sustainment of such individuals. b. An exchange of the above kind will be offered once and only once per individual, regardless of circumstance or condition. 2. On leaving the service or employment of the Company, any such individual may request and require an exchange of any Company currency or scrip in their possession into valid materials and currencies provided either in the form of precious metals, common currencies and Company Products with the exact proportion of the above being decided by the Company itself with the value being equivalent to the scrip exchanged. a. Pursuant to the above article, if the individual in question should owe any debt or service to the Company then this debt or service must be voided and cleared as stated in previous articles before any such exchange may take place. b. Furthermore, such an exchange shall be offered only once per individual, regardless of circumstance or condition.

ARTICLE 7: HOOK BIRDS 1. The avians known colloquially as ‘Hook Birds’ shall be regarded by the Company, its agents, employees and associates at all times as permanently Unsafe and Unreasonable and all agents, employees and associates are required and encouraged at all times and whenever and however possible to engage in the suppression, dispersal, destruction, removal and elimination of these extremely Unsafe and Unreasonable birds. Pursuant to the above, the Company hereby classifies any collection, organisation, grouping or association of Unsafe or Unreasonable individuals, as defined by the above articles, within the area referred to as the ‘Zone’ to be legally and effectively equivalent to the aforementioned creatures and, like them, and without any care or favour, to be supressed, dispersed, destroyed, removed and eliminated in like kind.

Appendices

127

Front of Torn Fragment

Fiddlehead Spiders – fear always that there be two of are great masquers of shape and their bite do rot the flesh. Put noth down on the ground and if thee doo, mark it well. Yet this be not all for by night stranger things are – the Moo wheeping from the boles of trees. Move not by night for the w a maze in the day, are sure madness in dar Maroons Foul killers are Maroons - beware their tricks. At times they come in masks of blue, at others in the skins of ani Savages from the forest, ‘Granny Town’ is their home yet none m it though all search. A myth perhaps. Despoilers and ruiners of all the company's works yet they have mercy nor constancy for any other, being a plague Any-one can wear a mask. The Maroons are amo words!

Back of Torn Fragment

ember rightly. And then a corridor with I think eight ading off. I thing these passages not deep but could only bout slightly on one occasion which was all the time accounted

nd power of the Frictionless Blue Glass Merchant Company Held ied here, in the passages to each side, piled at the end and even overflowing, great mounds of treasure. any Scrip, which I think worthless and of little account. Then s and rolls of Frictionless Blue Glass of the highest grades. Gold stored here also, for the merchants who bring food and tools Chests and boxes here also, containing I know not what but I ems or things of high value. Document chests and rolls – I know t of but likely promises, debts, truths and legal powers – to those these may be worth much but perhaps not to thee ou retrieve any and the time of the action be long d I should be glad to look at them for you, according only a inal fee). re of weapons I saw here also, and miscellaneous smaller d curio’s put here I think by various Heads of Zone. ue Glass contracts with other Trading Companies - if yed this will cripple the Blue Glass Merchant Company – Doubtless ye know your own business as to what to take..

Index

Acid Barons, the "Bad Guys". But are they not also an Oxidising Line? Hints of their story at page 3, 4 & 5 Mordant Kaust One of those very same Barons, now a prisoner in the Tomb, find him at R21, pages 80, 81 Anaracket Bonvive, a traitor to Frictionless Blue Glass. Has the Heist Plans and knows the location of the Glass Key. Her story at 11, more details at 30, Armour , as a game concept at 6, a dionsaur scale coat at 103 provides light armour, the FIre Queens Armour at 106, each group of NPCs is armoured differently. Arsenic Flower Trap, described at 92. See alsoTraps Ash, a great deal of it in this adventure, strange treasures at 60, a real Ash Steward at 65, a pit full of it at 66, drifts of it in 67, in the jars of the Pyroclastic Tap at 68, Historians in Jars in 96 Ash Jars, treasures at 60, Historians in jars at 96 Ash Steward, A "real" one at 65, simulated at 114, See alsoZoetrope Men; See alsoAsh Vizier Ash Vizier, Dapfilier, a Steward of the Fire Queen, sleeps in ash at 65 Atlatal a spear-throwing device, found at 52. See alsoZomi ma-ma Z’or

B Baboons, the only real heroes here, mentioned at 11, 12 & 13, living example at 21, basic permutations at 31, evil versions at 36, Tooth-Tooth at 47 Chain-Waving at 31, Demon-Possessed Baboons at 36 Shadow-Soaked at 31 Bachthanum Goadbust, Security Guard, dead at 19 Backstory Gastropod, snail and False Machine Employee, bestower of contextual truths at pages 1 to 5. Black Diamond Heart, every Salt Dryad has one, the Dryad at 40, the posessor of the Heart at 41, Treasure details at 122. Hearts seem to be an emergent theme in this book. See alsoHearts Black Dragonbone Staff, finally a chance to look like a real fucking wizard. The staff at 88, its cost at 123 Black Fungus, only mention of this singular irritant at 106 Black Vases, contain dubiously-useful magical psychoactive incense at 91, prices at 122 Blasted Tanks, failed containers for extradimensioal fish, details at 105, this knowledge will not aid you in any way Blood-Red Ruby Man, born from the sleep of the Fire Queens Broken Heart at 59, its price, for the callous, at 123 Blue Blood-Dust, strange product of the Blue Glass process, can be discovered at 19 M, more details at 124 Blue-Metal Device, what the hell was Zenbestefunkh thinking? At least he meant well. Described at 103 Blue Monocle, One way to find the Isopod Convoy, and things hidden within it, See Wensley Shrive at 49. Bonsai Explosions, timeslowed reality grenades, though in effect little more than phosphor bombs, the Protection Man at 42 may have one, the rest are at R57 page 112 Book of Sapphire Leaves, a valuable treasure and the best means to learn the Language of Fire, the book itself at R53 p109, its value at 122 Boreala, a guardian and a prisoner, details at 32, her lair at rooms R25 to R28 pages 84 to 87, the sale price of her Leaves at 123 Broken Fire Regime, the name of the meta-series you are reading now! Decription at 7, also what happens if you fuck about with an environment that already has a meta-stable burning cycle. Hello

134

INDEX

Califorina. Frictionless Blue Glass (Adventure) the second book in the series, we haven't even made it yet Palaces of Fire (adventure) the third and final book in BFR Broken Heart, avatar of the Fire Queens romatic failure, also a magic cat, description at 33, her quest can be resolved at R2 p 58 & 59, her cage at R33 p91 Bronze Tree, two places have Bronze Trees. Boreala rests in a forest of Bronze Trees in R25, p84. Singular; stands in the centre of R34 p93, there is treasure hidden within Burning Furniture, several examples of this strange interaction between fire and time at R63, p117, cost and price at p122

C Calligraphy , most notable the 'Flame Calligraphy at R38 p100, is sale price at p122, but all of the written Language of Fire could be said to be calligraphy Candlelight Courtesan, servile class of the Nobility of Fire, only a simulated version in this adventure, described at 51, generated at R59 p114. See alsoZoetrope Men Caustic Heart, implanted organs of the Protection Men, brief mention at p12, full description at p42, probably a metaphor for capitalism or something giving midwits something to talk about instead of just playing the adventure Ceramic Knife, rare, dangerous but fragile tool of the FBGMC, found on a body of the Black-Clad Protecion Men at 19, Bonvive has one at 30 & will backstab the PCs with it, sale price 122 Clothing, obviously almost everyone is wearing clothes but I am not putting in individual references for everyone who isn't naked. Fire Queens Clothes, her wardrobe at R50 p107 Clothes of Kobi Kalasp, the 'Red Dancer' at R41 p102 Conceptual Opacity, pages 2 to136, see also reviews of this book online Contract(s) Binding the Obsidian Assassin to the tomb, hidden beneath the Fire Queens pillow on p58 Of the Protection Men, arguably enscribed on their Custic Hearts, see either entry for details Wensley Shrives with Blue Glass, I wrote out a version of this but it was long and dull, summarised at p126 Conventions, stressful busy places full of networking and sweat, I like them not, more functional versions decribed on p6 Cornflower, name of the particular Delft Sentinel guarding the tomb described at R1 p55 & 55 Corroded Trap, a circular blade between R13 and R16, found on pages 70 & 75 Coutdown to Reanimation, described on p77. See also'Ice Demons' Crystal Shards, pieces of the Demon Uzziel Unanelad, p54, price on p123. Crystal Skull, active remains of the Spectral Demon, p54. See alsoUzziel Unanelad Cyclone Ring, magical tool of Blue Glass, also a symbol of authority and power Zegzor has one on p50, selling one on p122, extended rules on p124.

D Dancing Automata, timeworn and glitchy examples of Znebestefunkhs weird science, details on p34, room of them at R47 p105 Dapfilier. R9 p65, see alsoAsh Vizier Delft Sentinel, automata-guardians of the Nobility of Fire, their genesis on p3, 'Cornflower' mentioned on p13, details at p55 & 55 , projections of one at 51 &114 See alsoZoetrope Men,Tomb Guardians, Cornflower Demon-Bone Sarcophagus (adventure) this is that book Demon-Bone Sarcophagus (The Actual Sarcophagus) R2 pages 56 to 59 Demon-Posessed Baboons, baboons, yet somehow worse, described on p36 Demon Worshippers, only corpses yet thick with evil, full description on p37, room full of them at R19 p78, the Silver Nails in some eyes mentioned on p122. Diamonds, precious few in this adventure. Tinly black ones embedded in the sloths cuticles at p17, more of them at R30 p89, Navidorine has a Black Diamond Heart currently incorporated into the Obsidian Assassin at p41, values for all on p122

DOG-EATER, her name says it all, dies (probably) on p17 Dragonscales, fragments in the Sloths cuticles on p17 strewn throughout R30 p89, values on 122 Drusilla Machete, leader and last Survivor of the 'League of the Kraken', occasional lover of Em'a Void, some background on p11, more on 12 & 13, full details on 38, see alsoLeague of the Kraken Duke Kalasp, first of the House of Kalasp, you may meet him in Book Three, some background on p3 to 5. See alsoKalasp

E Em’a Void, 'League of the Kraken' member, occasional lover of Drusilla Machete, possible systemic harmer of animals, now dead, body andd stuff on p21, locket bearing her face on p38, sale price of her stuff on p123 Empichoo Slothcred, one of Sapreciepts Security Squad, now dead, his head crushed on p19 Empire of Fire, in years to come you can debate the pros and cons, but remember the reason you are not being skullfucked by an Ice Demon right now is because someone did a little genocide, see p4 Endothermic Gem, rare but very potent product of the Blue Glass processs, only Bonvie has one, mentioned on p30, detailed on p124

F False Machine, a doomed schtizoidal enterprise, dogged by madness and breakdowns from its very birth. Crypto-city, a labyrinth of dreams and nightmares touching on twilit penumbra of many realms, most long lost to time, please don't forget where you parked, p2, see also'False Machine Employees' Employees Backstory Gastropod, beloved racounteur and basically the quest-giver guy, p1 Meatsacks!, you, our beloved and ever-cherished supporters. see p2 and also any reflective surface Socially Conscious Trilobite, fungible Isopod now destined to never fulfill his initial purpose, but released into a stranger fate p1 Fat Little Ruby Figure, final form of the Fire Queens broken heart, see p59, alsoQueen of Fire; See alsoHeart of Black Iron Firefly Lantern, main means of lighting in the Zone, see Fly Lanterns for main entry Fire Gum, curious drug an product of the Blue Glass process, possible PC addiction at p9, on the body of Uniave Bondfear p19, detailed rules on 124 & 125 Fire Nobles, the cause and origin of the whole adventure. Split into houses Zor and Kalasp. (other houses exist but play little part in these events) See 'Kobi Kalasp', 'Zenbestefunkh Zor' and many others. Some of their history and nature in pages 3 to 5 Fire Queens Armour, R49 p106, nice but specific fit, price on p122 Fire Queens Clothes, R50 107, price on p122, see alsoClothes Fire Queens Helm, R49 p106, price on p122 Fire Queens Sword, R49 p106, good if you are fighting ice creatures, which largely do not occour in this trilogy, price on p122 Fish-Driven Electro-Tank, what on earth was he thinking? And where did he get the fish? R48 p106 Flamethrower Skeleton, you might not like it but this is what peak performance looks like, main page is 39, located in R20 p79 Flame Veils, dramatially revealed at R61 p116 Fly Lanterns, combustion-free and silent lights, recovered from bodies on p16 & p19, Zegzor has one on p50, usage described on p125 Frictionless Blue Glass (adventure), putatative second part in the 'Broken Fire Regime' Trilogy, see p6, p7 Frictionless Blue Glass Merchant Company, arguably the 'Main Villians' of Broken Fire Regime, though mostly they show up in part 2, we learn little of them here, spokeon of on p6, 7 & 11, Company Law on 126, Bonvive, the Protection Men and Sapreciepts Security Squad are all employees Frictionless Blue Glass (substance), a wonder substance, though the glass itself shows up rarely in this adventure, described on p6 and the necklace worn by the Fire Queen on p58 also seems to be a version of it...

G Glass Key, two are needed to access the vault of the Frictionless Blue Glass merchant Company, Bonvive has stolen one and hidden it away, her scheme on p11, its location on p30 Glyphs, designing an adventure? Jam some glyphs in, you can never have too many, visible through a hole on p17, part of the combination locks on p28, malign on p60, inscribed in hooks on p70, etched on stone rings on p88 and the same ones visible from the hole on p17 can be encountered directly oribiting a dimensional tear on p119, glyphs! Gold, less mention of it than you would think for a D&D adventure, a man claimed to be made of it on page 9, Dog-Eater had a gold medallion on p17, Himonea Arkweld had a case of false gold coins on p18, Bonvive has a plain gold ring on p30, the Fire Queens Sarcophagi is pinned with golden nails at p56 and her black heart tied with golden thread at p58, the Ice Demons prison is warded with golden symbols on p76, there is red gold incpororated into the statues on p97, the Fire Queen sword on p106 and her clothes on p107, various prices are given on p122 and its mentioned in the torn fragment on p129, ok so actually there are quite a lot of mentions

H Heart of Black Iron p58. See alsoHearts; See alsoQueen of Fire Hearts, whole bunch of these, see; 'Broken Heart' 'Caustic Heart' 'Heart of Black Iron' Heist Plans, playtesters were indifferent to my grand vision, well fuck 'em you are getting it! The conspiracy on p11, a scrap of them at p18 F, closeup of those fragments p128 & 129 Bonvive on p30 has the actual plans, the plans in full p130 to 133 Hexafloric Repugnance, child-freezing Demon, details on p35, imprisoned R18 p77 Himonea Arkweld, thief and member of the 'League of the Kraken', she slipped up, her body at F p18 Historians, (particulate) p96 Hit Dice, described somewhat on p6Conventions but if you don't know what these are you are in the wrong place son Hook Birds, truly awful creatures, thankfully none in this adventure but Blue Glass company law has a whole section on them on p127 Hooks for PCs on p8 & p9, Reductors on p70 & 122 Hoops, all over p102 and seemingly nowhere else

I Ice Demons, a serious but largely voluntary threat for this adventure, all you need to do is leave them alone, background on p3, 4, 5, our boys on p35, posesig baboons on p36, their worshippers on p37,their prison at R18 p77, many other references, really they are the main interest of most tomb guardians Ignis Zor-Fyr, consort to the House of Zor, with Duke Kalasp he braved the Iron Maze, pages 3 to 5, a sculpture of him at p115. Iron Heart, see 'Heart of Black Iron' Iron Maze, waste between the Solar Cities on the Plain of Fire, see pages 3 to 5 Iron Tree, there are two; Boralas Body-Hanger at R28 p87. Lamp Trap Tree at R14 p72 & 73 Isopod Convoy, Shrives curious transport, described in detail at p120 & 121

K Kalasp, a great house of the Nobility of Fire, Red in colour, their fire is the earths, background on pages 3, 4, 5 Kneeling before the fire, a theme repeated quite a lot in this adventure, its almost like we are trying to tell you something, statue on p15, to access the southern door at R1 p55, can be useful at R14 p72, kneeling statues at R40 p101 Kraken's Arm , The, notable sword of Drusilla Machete, description at p38, value at p123

Kobi Kalasp, secret Solum spouse of Puh-Gna and Zenbestifunkh Zor, quite literal co-parent of their children, the 'Red Dancer', their story at p4 & 5, image at R37 p97, statue at R8 p34, the 'Dancers Rooms' are theirs. Ktimote Smokedrink, one of Saprecipets boys, dead at p19, pinned to the earth like a bug

L Lamp Trap, be patient and humable, R14 P72, 73, 90. See alsoTraps Language of Fire, not many ways to learn this, I hope someone spammed the language skills or started with a high INT, Reductor at p45 speaks it, writtin on the jars on p60, the walls at p61, on the Iron Badge at p87, the calligraphy at p100, the Tiny Knights at p48 & 104, speak it, but only in Heroic Cliches 109, fragments at p116, many more, for you best chance of learning it see 'Book of Sapphire Leaves' Language of the Bog-Elves, seen only at p90, yet may be encountered again in later adventures Language of the Dam-Builders, Reductor at p45 speaks it, and if they played DCO possibly so do the PCs. League of the Kraken, they don't even call themselves that, prequel series coming to you soon on Amazon Prime Dog-Eater, bleeds out (probably) on p17 Drusilla Machete , they named the group after her sword, not that she gives a shit, background on p11, more on p12 & p13, full details on p38 Em’a Void, 'questionable sorceress, now dead, body on p21, price of her stuff on p123 Himonea Arkweld, nondescript thief, dead at F p18 Library Of Fire, R58 p113, heavy ceramic books in an unknown language, a bad bet for theft

M Macahuitl, a word which has never been spelled correctly and probably still isn't here, one embedded in a Sloths skull on p16 & 17, mercury statue of one on p44 & 115 Mannequin, several, wearing red clothes in R41 p102, fine ones in R50 p107 Masked Maroons, inveterate enemies of 'Blue Glass' mentioned p11, 12 & 13 M’ee ze-la Z’or, unconcious but alive at O p20 Nalla ma-de Ghoo, dead to a dagger at G p18 Nu’Gna ze-ze Va’ee, head torn off at E p18 T’szo la-de Paan, dead at M p19 Zomi ma-ma Z'or, roams the tomb, p52 Z’oow mo-mo Ghoo, dead, at H p18 Masks, plenty, thats how you know this shit is intellectual, Wensley Shrive carries 3 p49, the Masked Maroons wear theirs (see 'Masked Maroons'), the 'Protection Men' weare faecdarkening hoods, see (Protection Men), the Ice Demons p35 are bound by their masks R18 p77, many Fire Nobles, especially of House Zor (see 'Zor') wear them Meatsacks! See'False Machine Employees ' Meditation Sphere, I wish I had one, but I probably wouldn't use it, R55 p110 M’ee ze-la Z’or, a Masked Maroon, unconcious but alive at O p20 Memory Flame, R38 p98 Mercury, filling statues at p 44, and p115, see alsoQuicksilver Mighty Marsupials, stuffed Slumber Monkeys at R51 p107, PCs may encounter the living versions in book two Mirror-Blade Traps, R11 p67. See also'Traps' Mirror Maze, R11 67, the Crystal Maze was a great show Mirrors, plenty, as per masks the indicate supreme pretension Mirror Maze , R11 67 Obsidian Mirror Man p41 Obsidian Mirrors hide him R32 p90 Red Mirrors, perfect movment R44 p103 Moman Spiderscrabble, one of Zegzors Squad, strangeld at M p19, still he managed to kill a Protection Man Moon Hoods , used by Protection Men p125, distressingly tacky on the inside Mordant Kaust, reasonable man R21 p80 & 81 Mummified Apes, see 'Mighty Marsupials'

N Nalla ma-de Ghoo, Masked Maroon, younger woman, dagger pinned to face at G p18, likely a relative of Z’oow mo-mo Ghoo Navidorine, a Salt Dryad, one of few callbacks to DCO, described at p40, her Boudoir at R5 p62 and surrounding rooms, she has a Tomb Key Necklace,; of Spider-Heads at p20, belonged to Zoant Debtequity, may signify many things, Navidorine wears one of Phospherous Gems at p40, the Fire Queen wears one of Frictionless Blue Glass at p58 Nobility of Fire, most details from Backstory Gastropod from p3 to 5, see also'Fire Nobles', 'Zor', 'Kalasp'. Nu’Gna ze-ze Va’ee, Masked Maroon, head torn off at E p18

O Obsidian Assassin, elemental murderer and Tomb Guardian, described at p41, Obsidian Mirrors hide him in R32 p90, his binding beneath the Fire Queens pillow on p58, has Navidorines heart, of all Tomb Guardians he may have the highest job satisfaction, though no-one has asked

P Paintings, most of the tomb walls are painted, described on p27, also Flame Paintings at R38 p97 - 98 Palaces of Fire (adventure), the third and last planned for the Broken Fire Regime arc, see p 7 PCs, the Player Characters, possible backgrounds for these on p8 Pendulum Trap, hidden by black silk on R24 p83. See alsoTraps Phosphorous Gems, see'Navidorine', she has a necklace of these Pit Trap, full of soft choking ash at R10 p66, See alsoTraps Protection Man, something of a 'bad egg', some info on p12-13, full details on p42 Puh-Gna, the Queen of Fire, also called the Empress of Fire, see 'Queen of Fire' below Pyroclastic Guardian, another tomb guardian whos just here to have fun, details on p43, if currently digesting someone may be in R2 p56-57, the trap which releases it in R12 p68-69, 72, 74, 75 Pyroclastic Trap, R12 p68-69, 72, see alsoTraps, Pyroclastic Guardian

Q Queen of Fire, Puh-Gna Zor, her-monster of the Crater Tribes, one part of a three-part marriage with Kobi Kalasp and Zenbestefunkh Zor, also called 'Empress of Fire', demon-killer, empire builder, she ended an ice age, some background on p5-7, her body at R2 p56-57, her Arms in R49, Clothes in R50 bed in R51, pretty much everything in the Tomb is to do with her, see also'Puh-Gna', and 'Empire of Fire' Her Heart of Black Iron, p58 Her fighting a dragon at p99 Wyrm War Her fighting Ice-Demons at R8 p64 Quicksilver, see 'mercury' or 'Quicksilver Statues' directly below Quicksilver Statues, Zenbestefunkhs Creations, images of his immediate family, from his point of view, safty hazards, as encounters on p44, their storage room at R60 p155

R Rational Incense, there to ameliorate the sexy and dramatic powers of the Broken Heart in R33 p91, see alsoBlack Vases Red Mirrors, enchanted reflections aid in dancing, R44 p103. See alsoMirrors Red Pearl Flensed Face, one of Redcutors accessories, magical and surprisingly not really cursed p70, see alsoReductor

INDEX

135

Reductor, "Rohtzukgambeh", spirit of an evil sorceress and necromancer tangentally connected to the Culture of the Dam Builders from DCO, details on p45, her mortal remains at R13 p70-71, she cannot touch the ground, has a Tomb Key, Reverse Furnace, likely to cause a titanic number of game design problems in playthroughs, thankfully it breaks quickly, R4 p61 Rhododendron, metal ones to the north of R34 p93 Ring of Fire, the wedding ring of Puh-Gna Zor, also a potent item, R2 958 Rohtzukgambeh, see'Reductor' above Ruby Lozenge, odd but potentially situationally very useful magical gem, recoverable at p116

S Saess Rickretch, on of Sg Sarecipets boys, died with his guts in his hands at p19, odd eye Salt-Ivy, grows under Navidorines influence, she controlls it like Dok Ock, though its not that dangerous, brules for in on p62, big effect on the environment R5-R7, p62-63, sale price p122 Sapreceipts Security Squad, Vaguebab Stiltverify alive in the arms of a sloth at p16, the rest, Bachthanum Goadbust, Empichoo Slothcred, Ktimote Smokedrink, Moman Spiderscrabble, Saess Rickretch, Tatend Flygnite, Uniave Bondfear and Zoant Debtequity, all dead Sarcophagi, there are two in this adventure, the titular Demon-Bone Sarcophagus at p56 and Reductor's Sarcophagus at p70-71 Scribes Case (ancient), dab of opening treasure, first ones free, presumably left by ancient tomb robbers p94 Silent Glass, R56 p111, artificially silenced study area, good place for a multi-agent encounter Silver Fruit, mere onaments, potentially dangerous to retrieve, largely there to encourage an investigatory mindset Silver & Onyx Mask, see 'Reductors Sarcophagus' Skull-Bossed Shield, R52 p108, an artefact that may command at least part of the dead Sloth Tunnels, wind there way throughout the tomb, noted nearly everywhere really, map p24, details p25 Socially Conscious Trilobite, by this stage, basically the False Machine mascot and spokesman, waiting for his inevitable cancellation, p1 & 2. See alsoFalse Machine Employees Solum, the Fire Noble 'third gender', though really neither their 'male' or 'female' are precisely like our versions, Kobi Kalasp was one, background 3, 4, 5, offhand mention on p115 Souls, perhaps the darkest of trades , part of the Tombs design is that not even the souls of invaders should escape, preventing even the dea from knowing its location, Urns of souls at R15 p74, their value at p122 Spiders, boreala is fond of these, the carpet the floor at R26 85 but don't show up in the rest of the adventure at all Spinster-Bone Cage, the only prison for a broken heart, R33 p91, selling on at p123 Staff of Broken Dogs, formerly property of Em’a Void, a rather evil instrument, itself now broken, perhaps for the best, staff at S p21, price at p123 Statue, surely so many it would tire the tongue to tell of it, what is a dungeon without statues? A huge one in the body field at p15, two hiding secret doors in R8 p64, a metal woman in R27 86 forms the lock to Vector Zephs imprisonment, of Puh-Gnas family see p97, for moving mercury sculptures see 'Quicksilver Statues'

T Tatend Flygnite, one of Sapreciepts Squad, face bitten off at C p17 Tears (Dimensional), the result of Uzziel Unanelads blind dash through the tomb, described on p26, map of them on p23 The Dragon's Eye, curious treasure, unclear if it is actually 'the dragons eye', or simply named so, R30 p89, p123 for its value The Isle of Palaces. See alsoPalaces of Fire

136

INDEX

Zone, The, hidden power centre of the FBGMC, not actually that far from this dungeon, see p6, p11, p19, p50 Thieves, many in this book, maybe almost everyone in it, but a few mentions of the more formally defined sort, Himonea Arkweld dead at F p18, the semimagical capacities of subtle thieves at p26 Thorn Trap, semi-broken pressure plate deal at R23 p82, see also 'Traps' Tiny Knights, Zenbestefunkh liked Warhammer, described in full p48, buried in the dirt in R45 p104 Tomb Guardians, many of these, though the gap between Guardian and Prisoner is a bit fuzzy, listed in the infographic on p13, see also 'Ash Vizier', 'Boreala', 'Cornflower', 'Navidorine', 'Reductor', Tiny Knights' 'Zoldinar' Tomb Key, several doors require one or more, though there are only six keys in total, they do not wear out, the keys described and holders listed on p29 Tomb Prisoners, as with guardians, their nature a little relative depending on what you intend to do, listed in the infographic on p13, see also, 'Boreala', 'Broken Heart', 'Demon Worshippers', 'Mordant Kaust', 'Reductor' and 'Vector Zeph' Tooth-Tooth 1, 12, 13, 21, 47, 49, 64, 65, 72, 74, 75, 78, 79, 84, 91, 94, 98, 100, 101, 105, 106, 113, 117, 118 Trapped Paintings, R38 p98-99, really just a noise trap but it still counts 98. See alsoTraps Traps, we got plenty! Most even make some degree of sense. See 'Arsenic Flower Trap', 'Corroded Trap', 'Lamp Trap', 'Mirror-Blade Traps', 'Pendulum Trap', 'Pit Trap', 'Pyroclastic Trap', 'Thorn Trap' Trap Maintenance Tunnels, described and mapped on p24 Triple-Point Star Of Fear Inaccessible, kiss-dispensing nightmare, breeder of sociopaths, see p35, imprisoned in R18 p77 T’szo la-de Paan. a 'Masked Maroon', dead from an arterial bleed at N p19

U Uniave Bondfear, one of Sapreceipts Squad, fire-gum addict, (he had some on him), underestimated a Protection Man and died at k p19 Urns, you really wouldn't think there would be this many Urns in one adventure, the Ash Vizier in R9 p65 occupies one, Reductor stores hooked souls in those at R15 p74, Urons of Salt in R22 p82 can be tipped to bar the path of the Demon Worshippers should they reanimate, those containing dead Historians in R36 p96 are really more like 'jars', as are the combusted treasures in R3 p60, goddamn book should be called UrnQuest 1 Uzziel Unanelad, Spectral Demon, though effectively crystaline in form, may well be related to 'Urizen' the Spectral Demon bound within the Maze of Glass Rooks in 'Silent Titans', who was himself brother to the Archangel Uriel. This one is more of a dingus, broke into the Tomb and bounced around like a maniac tearing holes in space and time which, as it happened, turnoued out to be quite useful from a design perspective. After scouting various locations it was a key element in False Machine Co choosing this particular dungeon, the Tears described on p26 , remains of the Demon himself at R1 p54-55, selling his shards at p123. See 'Crystal Shards', 'Crystal Skull'

V Vector Zeph, a bird-headed man and Borealas True Love, held in a bubble of stasis at R27 p86, can be released by a Tomb Key, if so he and Boreala will leave the tomb. May be encountered again in 'Littoral Storm Corsairs' if we ever make it. Voice of Kaust, The, said to be 'not without charm', echoes in rooms R21 to R24. See 'Mordant Kaust'

W Wand of Bees, play Wu-Tang Clan & get ready for some Bee-puns, the Colt 45 of a fantasy world and desired travelling companion of a man of the road, described at p49. See alsoWensley Shrive

Wards, golden ones embedded into the walls at R17 p76, you should really avoid picking those out, if you do though, sale price at p122 Wensley Shrive, the man with many masks, master of Baboons and would-be smuggler, probably True Neutral, bit of background p11, image and description p49, Isopod Convoy, Shrives way out, described at p120, even without his monacle you might still stumble into it, its only hidden if you are looking for it Whispers, there are no examples of positive whispering in this book, which probably makes sense contextually, the Acid Barons whispers on p5 helped to kick off the whole plot, a Glacier God on p9 may have whispered to a PC before the game even starts , Reductor whispers at p45, the Ice Demons whisper in their prison at R18 p77, the Skull-Bossed Shield at p108 can produce a whispering skull, the lesson here is; Siblant Whispers - Just Say No White Bolt, of Dispellment, tool of the FBGMC in combating wizardry, only one example on the body of a Protection Man at Q p20, but the living Protection Man at p42 has three more

Z Zegzor Sapreciept, a cop on the edge, betrayed by his company and just lost his squad, now played by Pete Postlethwaite, was just trying to catch some bad guys but ran into something way over his head, some background on p11 full description on p50, carries a Cyclone Ring Zemo Zor, last child of the trinary marriage between PuhGna, Kobi and Zenbestefunkh, last seen in this story as a baby in Zenbestefunkhs arms on the Plane of Fire several thousand years ago... p4-5 Zenbestefunkh Zor, one third of the Trinary Marriage between him, Kobi Kalasp and Puh-Gna, background on p4-5, his nerdy crap collected all over the dungeon, the Dancing Automata at p34 & Tiny Knights at p48, unstable interdimesional Fishtanks at R46 p105, his attempt at a FishDriven Electro Tank at R48 p106, the Blue Metal Device on p103 was one of his, god knows what else was, probably the REverse Furnace at R4 p61, his image as a statue at R8 p64, again at family Tree R37 p97 and in the flame painting 'Blue Skinned Man' at R38 p99, father to Zerutu and Zara, both dead for many thousands of years, does he know? Father also to Zemo Zor, Zero Tenth-Decimal Endless Recursions, Ice Demon and walking Pain Disease, described in p35, imprisoned at R18 p77, may be related to the Iron Badge at R28 p87 Zoant Debtequity, a Security Squad member in good standing, stung to death at R p20, wore a neckalce of Spiderheads which, as you may one day find out, is a bit of a bad sign Zoetrope Men, mere automatic projections of a broken ancient technology, though it may take PCs a while to work that out, have a bit of a Star Trek TNG feel to them, described on p51, the projection room is R59 p114 Zoldinar, a likeable dude made of gas, has a Tomb Key 29, over in the far coner at R64 p118 Zomi ma-ma Z’or, a group leader of the Masked Maroons and something of a hardass, background on p11 encounter page on p52, so most people their gender would be hard to make out, even after sustained contact. See alsoMasked Maroons Z’oow mo-mo Ghoo, Masked Maroon, older man melted in half at G p18, likely a relative of Nalla ma-de Ghoo), Zor, the House of Zor, blue in colour, theirs are the celestial fires, lightning, the air and the start, background on p3-7, 34, the House of Zenbestefunkh Zor and, arguably, of Puh-Gna and her children, though she would probably argue that she was her own House and that Zor had joned it. Also the house of Ignis Zor-Fyr, though he himself married in, the head of the house being his wife Lady Zor, See alsoFire Nobles