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Trench of Darkness#

Seed the fact that they will be back.#

Doeable if they have some of the items from the lighthouse to move in water.

Locating it#

REQUIRES THEM SPOTTING THE GULL IN SAFE BY DAY
Read the text. They either need Find Familiar or Speak With Animals
virgil can then tell them where it is.

Alternatively, GooLock can cast Divination, Paladin can possibly also ask.
Survival check on Barb who's good at sea.
Gull can guide them to helmet that lets them speak with Animals?
INT20 history might also work...

Water#

Schools of fish on way down.
Dark Ambient Hour Meditations - Circumference (4 Hz Theta Binaural Ambience): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ch-HHGuzwRU
Remember pressure capsules (found on firewatch-island.)

If scouring floor:#

Other creatures. Schools of fish. 10 hunter sharks. 1 giant deus ex shark. Undead patrol eventually.
Or ancient warning: Slab with runes.

Pit of hatred#

2 miles out, gull virgil can guide them. 300ft deep
UNDERWATER COMBAT (disadv on melee weapon attack, can't ranged melee unless crossbow,net,or thrown like javelin (then only disadv))

Read BLURB. NOT ROTTING

  • (DC19 protected) hallow spell (5)
  • DC16 con save vs 4d8 cold dmg (half on save).
  • DC16 save vs vuln to necrotic on first enter.

Two groups of undead outside? Encourage stealth, or entering through the hole.

Ship Battle#

  • 3x drowned blades CR2
  • 1x drowned ascetic
  • 1x drowned assassin

(This is easy for lvl11, can bump a little, +2 AC on BLADES/ASCETICS, +5speed, +2 all dmg rolls)
(These come back on the way to the shore – attach as characters enter wreck – do not pursue).
THESE ARE ON PATROL AROUND THE SHIP. Likely battle but can steatlth in.

5,000 SP, 2,850 GP, 120 PP. 10 jade pieces (100gp) in CHEST.

CAVERN LEADS DOWN INTO A RIFT. LIGHTS.
READ BLURB. NOT FROM CAVERN, FURTHER INSIDE SHIP

Rift#

READ SYRGAUL BLURB FROM MONSTER PAGE (FIRST PARAGRAPH)
Drowned master CR9 Syrgaul + ⅔ assassins CR⅘
He needs minions if they are fighting him..
Syrgaul is using the power of the pit to help raise orcus.

The Ink (bluerot + 6d8 necro dmg is solid tho, but DC15..)
HE CAN ONESHOT PARTY MEMBERS WITH TENTACLE. DC15 CON save vs 2d6+3 necro.

We could just CR11 scale him with DMG.. (==25% more HP, +1 to hit/save dc/ac, extra sword attack, adv on wis saves, dex save prof) blue blood.

Or add 2 more blades..

Battle features#

Light from hole. Can be diminished with creativity? Will weaken

Treasure#

Head of Syrgaul (magic, locate nearest ship)

Lines#

  • Come back for more have you. Let's hope you can do better than last time.
  • You are not worthy of this power.

Sealing#

  • Need sovereign glue? WhereTF was this? Orolan's chamber say..
  • Stone shape can work.

HOOK#

They can also descend super carefully (but covered in water atm..) slow descend into illi colony that will lead to something for Izs.

Reward for Zed#

  • Boots of False Tracks (from Assassin)
  • +1 frostbrand greatsword

Future Signs#

The Pit of Hatred is but one example of the planar sigils that followers of Orcus can use to bolster their power. Off the coast, near heavily trafficked sea lanes, cultists of Orcus create a gateway on the seabed that links to the Abyss. The water above swirls and plunges downward, creating a whirlpool that devours ships and sea life. Living creatures pulled to the bottom of the whirlpool are slain, warped with Abyssal energy, and unleashed into the sea as undead creatures. Unless someone finds the gate, slips through it into the Abyss, and destroys the unhallowed site found on the other side, the whirlpool will unleash a horde of undead sailors and sea creatures that can transform the region around it into a dead zone.

EBA: Light passage#

Push themselves through, the light envelops you. As the light washes over you for a few seconds, the saturation of this light drops. You feel a sharp pain coming from the inside of your body. As you feel As this happens, you gain 1d6 temporary HP. Lower MAX HP.

Light source#

Spinning pentagonal ring in the wall, it's not rotating cleanly (Conjuration/Necromancy). Sticking half-way out of it is the figurehead of the Tammeraut.

  • Arcana 20: Anchor glyphs. Basis for many gates used for interdimensional travel. Many of the glyphs here confer magic that's typically used in illusion. Secret. Malfunctioning.
  • Perception 15: Glyphs etched into the walls here do not appear to be ovious. You get the sense that whatever's here is trying to stay hidden.
  • Investigation 15: Glyphs form a circle all around the spinning pentagon. You get the feeling they are connected.

Anchor glyphs for dimensional gates, abyssal.
Basis of these glyphs are Abyssal. Basis for larger gates. Permanent enchantments developed and designed to instill long term doorways between planes, realms. (You've read about how teleport or gate is meant to work so a lot of this strikes you with similarity, but this is on a larger scale).
"Not really a sentence, just letters and symbols."

Removing the Figurehead makes the thing operate cleanly. Water flushes out in a 10m radius around the gate. It powers up. Power indicators at max, slowly decreasing. 2 min deciding time. Can keep it open by infusing magic into it.

Defeating it#

Stopping the malfunction. Hopefully they are more interested in trying than stopping
Carving out the 4 other circles spin around it (protection barriers) or destroying the anchor glyphs would let them prevent entrance from there entirely.

Ignored#

Portugese Man o War#

Luring them. Uses light as cover.
Fight..
Reward: paralyzing poison..

Irae scries on them#

Well, while it's a shame the Prince of Undeath won't be able to roam the seas, you can only close so many of these. We have options.

  • Civilization: Giant turtle skeleton?
  • Something dead and ominous...
  • Skeletons of kua-toans + elves in the outskirts of flayers.
  • Kua toans guarding the entrance. Lifeless zombie versions.
  • Mind flayers