'The

Li htless
epths
eep beneath the Isle of Dread , in a place forgotte n by th e world ofl ight, an anci en t,

D unfathom able evil festers. With in the d esiccated ru in known as Golismorga, the
de based kopru servant s ofDemogorgon work foul rites, steeping immature shadow
pearls in pits of liq uid in san ity. None from the world above have yet fatho me d wha t ter rors
lurk ben eath the lsle of D read , nor what m ad scheme roil s to profan e life deep within the
city's gangrenous corpse.
"Th e Light less Depths" is the sixt h chapte r of the Savage T ide Adven tu re Path, a com plete
cam paign consisting of 1 2 advent u res appear ing in D UNG EO N m agazine. For ad d itio na l aid
in run ning this cam paign, ch eck out D R_4 G O N magazine's m ont hlyvSavage Tid in gs" art icles,
a series tha t helps players and OMs prepare for an d expand u pon the cam paign . D RAGON
#353 feature s ways to improve the pes' vessel, the Sea Wyvern, as th ey take their adventu r es
back to the seas.
T he pe s shou ld he n th level when they hegin "T he Ligh tless Dep th s/' Th ey shoo ld gain
enough experience to advance to rath by the time th ey reach Golismo rga, an d to i jth by the
end ofthe advent ure .

e BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAM ES LAFOND SUDER

<3 BY BEN WOODEN AND WARREN MAHY
® BY ROBERT LAZZAR EDI
ADVENTURE PATH ! MID LEVEL (6T H-12TH) II UNDERDARK AND DUNGEON CRAWL!

MARCH 20 07 DUNGEON 29
 THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS
Adventure Backgroond
Ages ago, the Olman empire span ned
vast reaches of the voh oun Ocean and
the contine nts to eithe r side. Per hap s
their greates t achievement was the city
ofThanaclan , a masterpiece oflakes an d
stone ziggurats built high on a remote
islan d's cent ral mesa. The y were a wise
and powerfu l peo ple, with abili tie s far
beyond their current descendan ts.
Ye t even before the Olmans arriv ed,
the island was home to an empire olde r
an d greater than their own. Far below
the surface, in dark places uns een by
hum an eyes, a su bme rged men ace
woke to their pr esen ce. In the city of
Golismorga, the aboleth took affront to
the human enc roac hment above , and
sent an ens laved army up th rough the
tun nels and waterways in to the he art of
Thanaclan itself Contact, when it came,
was swift and blood y, but though the
Olm an s were in itiall y taken by surp rise,
they were not defeated . Fightin g for thei r
lives, every man and child took up arms
again st waves ofskum that em erged from
below, sta unch ing the flow wh erever
it em erged.
For all th eir resilience, the Olman
leaders kn ew that they co uld n't ho ld
ou t fore ver. Unlike the abolet hs, with
their seem ingly inexhau stib le sup ply of
30 DUNGEON MARCH 2007
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUTTER
ens laved shoc k troops harvested from
the depths belo w the isle, th e Olmans
need ed time to harvest, hunt, and replen-
ish th eir numbers. A war of attrition was
one they would event ually lose. To pre-
vent this , they gathered their most pow-
erful spellcasters and set them to work
creat ing a weapon capable of ending the
assaul t in a singfe decisive blo w. After
weeks of franti c research, they created
some thing th ey could use against their
insc ru table enemies- TIaloc'sTea r.
Their cre ation came not a moment
too soon. The Olma ns gathered a group
of th eir fin est warri ors and prie sts and
sent them with TIaloe's Tear into alien
Goli srno rga . where the wrat h of the
rain god would d rive from the abo leth
city the on e thing th ey cou ld not live
withou t -water . All kn ew it to be a
suicide mi ssion, and the fero city of this
fina l pus h surprised the aboleths long
en ough for th e few survivi ng Olman s
to reach th e sub merged city and tri gger
the Tear. In an instant, the device tore a
ho le be tween the Material Plane and the
Olm an afterli fe, releasin g the raw energy
ofcenturies ofangry spirits and infusing
them with T laloc's wrath . Th e result ing
explo sion pu she d all th e water from
the city, laying waste to buildi ng s and
abolet h alike. When the wave reach ed
its apex it froze, holding back the sea
and leaving Colismorga bone-dry. The
su rviving abo leth . h elple ss ou tside of
their element and unwilling to further
test the limits of th e rain god's power,
aband oned Golismorga and returned to
the dep th s of the sea.
Over th e cent urie s, the surface world
forgot the slumbering menace. Stories of
the great aboleth war were superceded by
legend s ofthe island's savage transfo nna-
tion as an entirely separate catastrophe
stru ck Thanaclan. In the silent subterra-
nean city, the kop rus ofthe surroun ding
ocean mo ved in and capitalized on the
aboleth's mi sfortune, att em pting with
lim ited success to extract the city's alien
secre ts for their own aggrandizeme nt.
Now, after cent u ries offailed attem pts to
contac t th e unknowable abo leth patrons ,
ent iti es known as the Elde r Evils, the
ko prus ha ve fina lly ma de progres s,
thanks to the patronage of Dem ogor-
I
gon. Th ro ugh the m, the dem on prince
can harnes s the power of the Elder Evils,
using it to fortifyand strengthen his seeds
ofdestru ction.
Adventure Synopsis
After lear ning th at th e Crimson Fleet
has been purchasin g shadow pearls from
troglodyte s on the north sho re of the Isle
of Dread, the PCs venture forth to put
an end to the shadolv pearl pr oduction .
Upon arrivi ng , they d iscover that the
tro glod ytes are merely a front for more
sinister subterran ean forces. Venturing
bel ow with the help of a rel uctant tro g-
lodyte guide, th e characters pass through
the ancient Olman ward known as the
Cer ulean Curtain, designed to hold back
th e water th at would rel ease th e abo-
leth s from hib ernatio n. From th ere, the
par ty takes its ease in a town of inbred
mongrelfolk befor e j ourneying farther,
making the ir first contact with an abo-
leth in a long- forgott en Olman temple.
Im prisoned b y the kopru in a pool of
co nj ured water, thi s abo leth in form s
them that the only way to sto p the shadow
pearl op er ation is to destroy th e Ceru -
lean Curtain, flood ing Golismorga and
freeing the aboleth to take revenge on
th eir usurpers. To do so the party m ust
pus h fur the r, int o the very heart of the
enemy city. Th ere, th ey m ust distract the
kopru guard ians by destroyin g TIaloc's
Tear, flood ing th e city and allowing the m
to assault th e kopru lead er at the seat of
his power.
Adventure Hooks
Working off of intelli gence gained from
shi p logs and pirates captured in the final
attack on the colony.the PCs learn that th e
Crimso n Fleet has been bu ying shadow
pearls from a m ysterious group called the
"Lord s of Dread." This group is located
in a secluded bay on the north shore of
the island. Natu rally concerned about the
thre at ofthese artifacts, Lavinia urges the
PCs to contact these "Lord s of Dread ,"
determine their role in the produ ction
of the shadow pearls, and. if possible, end
the production ofthe dangerous weapons
once and for all.
If you're no t ru nn ing th is adventure as
part of the Savage Tide Advent ure Path ,
 there are still several ways to involve your
pes in the action. Instead of a demonic
plot, the shadow pearls mig ht be par t of a
kopru plan to wipe the island's surface
clean ofsentien t races, or a sacrifice nec-
essary to gain th e favor ofthe Elder Evi ls.
Even if you wish to avoid the shadow
pearls altogether, th e in herent lure of a
lost subte rra nean city filled with ancient
an d alien secret s might be enough to
per suade PCs to venture below.
Finally, keep in mind tha t although this
adven ture appears chro nologically before
"City of Broken Idols" in the Savage T ide
Adventu re Path , there's no reason the pes
need to tackle the alien dep ths below the
Isle of Dread before they travel to the
central plateau and explore the ruin s of
Thanaclan . Pr od uction of the shad01v
pearls occurs at both sites, and in orde r to
permanently shu t them down, both need
to be disru pted. Ofcourse, the challenges
that await th e PCs in th e City of Broken
Excerpt from the Brine Harlot's Log-
Idols are deadlier than tho se waiting for
th em in the aboleth ruins ofGolismorga.
so you sho uld do your best to subt ly
encourage the PCs to head down before
they head up.
PART ONE: NEGOTIATING
WITH MONSTERS
Having survived the wrath of the Crim-
son Fleet, the peopl e of Farshore are
slowly putting their lives back together.
Th e pe s can take this oppo rtunity to
ind ulge in some well-deserved rest, do
some magical craft ing, ingratiate them-
selves with the locals by helping in the
colony's reconstruction , or perhaps even
take on a side quest or two. D UNGEO N # 143
details n umerous possibili ties for adven-
ture in and around the Isle ofDread, and
any enco unt ers left unu sed from "Tides
of Dread" are a good place to start. The
advent ure tim eline is fluid at this point;
give the PCs as long as they need to settle
in to life at Farshore.
In the wake of the
Crimson Flee t assault,
n umerous rumors have
sp read th rough Far -
sh ore. The de ath of
Lavini a vanderboren's
brother Vanthu s, hi s
invol vem ent with the
Crimson Fleet, and his
demonic natu re are all
tales th at has been told
and exaggerated again
and again. In th e wake
of the se sto ries, so me
ha ve co m e to q ues-
tio n Lavinia 's right to
lead the people of the
colony, and whi sp ers
of a hidden fiendi sh
taint in her soul and
t ies to the Crimson
Flee t g row stro ng er
every week.Thi s slan-
der is fueled in large
part by no t-so-se cret
whi sp er s from the
Meravan chi s, yet it
still ero des Lavinia's
(and by extension,
the PCs') autho rity
in Earshore. It isn 't
long before Lavinia hears th e tales her -
self and requests the PCs join her for a
morning meal.
vanderbo ren Manor is one ofthe larg-
est an d mos t lavishl y appo inted homes
in Farshore. Rivaled onl y by Lord Mera-
vanchi's Estate , the whitewashe d man -
sion's two-story height is crowned by a
small dome set with stained-glass win -
dows that depi ct sailing ships and fair
seas. Within, much of the h ouse re mains
unu sed, d usty gray sheets covering fine
furniture and artwork in all the rooms
except the kitchen , d ining hall, Lavinia's
qu arters, and the room s she's invited the
PCs to occup y. Having taken up the reins
as Farsho re's leader, Lavini a has spent
litt le tim e seeing to her personal affairs.
Reali zing th e impact the colon ists'
unease might have on her control over
Far sh o re, Lavini a has no in tention of
letti ng th e people dwell on fancifu l con -
spi racies and rumored faul ts. To th at
end , she has a sim ple breakfast of toast,
coffee, and boiled turtle eggs prepare d,
over which she descri bes her latest mis-
sio n to the PCs.
"In the past hours I'vediscovered that Far-
shore wasn't the only victim of the pirates'
attac k-it seems that my personal repu-
tat ion also took a bit of fire. The people
of Earshore have see n too much panic
and death und er my leade rship, and the
appearance of the pirates and Van- ,"
Lavinia chokes on the name, and takes a
moment to steady herself before ccnt inu-
ing, "-the pirates and my brother startled
them. Nowsome of the colonists claim that
my family is cursed, while ot hers whisper
that I somehow orchest rated the attack."
Lavinia takes a sip of her tea, then con-
tin ues. "Although it aggr avates me after
all we've been t hrough , I won't allow
a few rumors to discourage me from
my work here. Part of me even unde r-
sta nds t he peop le's conce rns, and I'd
like to do what I can to d issuad e their
fears. This would be where you come in."
"Along the no rth coast of the isle, a
d ragon turt le of giga ntic proport ions
makes his home . The beast calls himself
Emraag. but the locals know him as 'The
Glutto n.' Ifwe're to believe the rumors, it's
a miracle that any of us are sitting here
MARCH 2007 DUNGEON 31
 THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS
now, as the Glutton supposedly has a
taste for ships and sailors. Yet apparently
the t hing's vices aren 't limited to swa llow-
jng d own who le crews. The Crimso n Fleet
mad e a dea l with the creature, bribing it
to leave th eir s hips intact o n t he ir visits to
Gallivant Cove. Lord Merivanchi, however,
has refused to 'negotiate with mo nste rs'-
appa rent ly preferring that our supply
shi ps be eaten and our people go hungry.
"Therefore, my thought to ease the con-
ce rns of the colo nists is to appease the
bea st that's alrea dy ca use d t hem so much
hardship. I'd like you to sail to the isle's
nort hern sho res and seek out Emraag t he
Gl utto n. I'll provide you with a cache of
treasures to bribe the brute-a down pay-
ment on Farshore's "tribute" to him, offered
for the ass urance that he leaves vessels fly-
ing my family's colors be. If an agree ment
can be met , excellent. If not.. . well, I trust
in your abilityto conque r tha t arena as well.
"More to the point, there's the matter
of t he Crimson Fleet's interest in Gallivant
Cove. According to logs and papers we've
recovered from my brother's ship, the Brine
Harlot, they've made several visits to a beach
on th e southern sho re of the cove to meet
with a group they call the ' Lords of Dread.'
Accord ing to th ese notes, they've been
pu rchasing large quantities of what they' re
calling 'sha dow pearls.' 1 believe you've had
some experience with these things before,
as one of them was appare ntly the cause of
the trouble at xraken's Cove some mo nths
32 DUNGEON MARCH 2007
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUDER
ago, ju st before you r visit the re. The
tho ug ht of doze ns of shadow pearls in the
possess ion of the Crimso n Fleet is chilling."
Putt ing her cup down, Lavinia looks to
you each in turn . " I know it's dangerous,
dealing with such a beast, but if you can
convince Emraag to accept our offer, you
might even be able to learn a few th ings
from him. In 'any event , secu ring the
dr agon turtl e's goo dwill should allow free
access to the l ords of Dread. And it'd be a
huge step in tur ning this colony from an
isolate d backwater into a destinat ion for
me rchants from the world over. Therefore,
I ask you this not just for myself, but on
beha lf of all the peop le of Farshore. Will
you help?"
Aft er m akin g h er o fTer , La vin ia
welcomes q u es tion s fro m th e p e s.
Some of th e m ost li kely on es fo llow,
along with her res ponses.
"How much ar e we bei ng paid to
negotiate with a monster?" Lavinia offers
each ofthe party members 1,0 0 0 gp , but
hone stly h opes that b y th is time , th e PCs
don't ask for ad ditional payment.
"What do you pl an to bribe Emraag
with?" Lavini a's par en ts exp ected to
even tu all y re tu rn to Farshore, and left
a mo d est a mo u n t of wea lt h (m os tly
jewelry and a rtwork) a t th ei r man or.
Lavinia wan t s to u se thi s trea sur e-
so me with co n side rab le sen ti m e ntal
value-to bar ter with the drago n tu r tle.
She tru st s th e PCs not to squan de r or
abscon d with it.
" D o }'ou know wh ere the dra gon
turtle lives?" Natives have war ned colo -
ni sts away from the in let whe re Emraa g
makes h is lair. It 's a siz ab le ba y that
b ecame know n as Gall ivant Cove after
an in famou s sh ip bea ring tha t n a m e
san k in its wate rs .
" H ow do we contact th e beast on ce
we're in th e right pla ce?" Lavin ia h as
alr ea dy bartered for a strange na ti ve
inst ru m en t th e coloni st s h ave dubbed
a "sea ski rl." Th es e sets o f long r eed
p ipes a r e u sed b y th e O lm an s to
attrac t sea cre atu res, b u t al so p roduce
a stran ge kind of drowned mu sic if th e
pipes a re played u nd erwate r. Em raag
sh ou ld hear and r es p ond with i n a n
h our o f the se p ip es bein g sou n d ed .
I
"When should we leave?" Lavinia h as
alre ady made arrange m en ts to have h er
brib e for Emraag collected and loa ded
abo ard the SeaWy vcfIl . Everyth ing sh ou ld
be in order for the PCs to depart as soon
as th e following morning.
" Why don't we j us t kill Em raag ?"
Lavin ia hesitant ly agrees th at th is wo uld
indeed be th e bes t solu tion, but po ints
out that if the dragon turtle's reputation
is even half-deserved , he m ay well be a
foe beyond the capabili ties of even suc h
great he ro es as the PCs. Lavin ia urges
caution ifth c p e s seem eager to take thi s
rou te.
While there's no great ru sh for th e
PCs to get their voyage n o rth un derwa y,
Lavin ia urge s them to set sail as soon as
the Sea Wyvern is properly provisi oned
and pre pa re d . Soon afte r he r discussio n
with the p ar ty, several workers loa d
Bm raag's b ribe into th e Sea Wy vern's
hold. This cargo cons ists of four large
woo den ch ests, an impressive, 8-foot-tall
statue ofVen tru e Vanderboren (a fam ed
exp lorer an d privat eer ), and th e sea skir l.
The ches ts con tai n jewel ry, coins , and
waterp roof a rtwork with a total valu e of
16,0 0 0 gp , with the statu e wor th 4,000
gp alo ne. Afte r loading t he bribe into
the Sea Wy vern, one of Lavi ni a's workers
p rovide s th e PCs with a set of brass keys
to the ches ts be fore de parting.
To Gallivant Cove
The j ou r n ey to Gallivant Cove covers
about 350 miles-assuming normal wind
spee d, th is voyage takes the Sea Wy vertl
just under five days. Th e checks to set
cou rse to Galli vant Cove and to p ilot
the ship are low enough that, as long as
the sh ip h ug s the coast, th er e's no real
ch ance of becom ing lost un less no one
on board h as a ny ranks in Knowl edg e
(geograph y). If no PC has thi s skill, the
gnome Ural Forol gladly accompanies
th em to aid in navigation. The journey
nor th can be as d etailed or as brie f as
you wish . Issue # 144 of D UN G EON pro -
vid es a deta iled wan de ring mon ster
ch a rt for the wate rs off th e coast of th e
Isle of Dread. Alternately, you can use
any of the follo wing en coun ter id eas to
liven up th e j ou rn ey no rth. O f co urse,
parti es with po werful m ag ic or m ethod s
 of transpo rting large qu anti ties of trea-
sure (such as telep ortation and portable
lloles) may be able to avoid taking the Sea
\\y vern entirely, altho ugh this adventure
assumes that the y do.
Shipwre ck /Ruin : Nume rous
Emraag Diplomacy Modifiers
Presenting the bribe to Emraag. +10
Refer ring to the bribe as "tribute." +5
Flattering Emraag, referri ng to his dom inance over the area. +4
Continuing to play the sea skirl with at least a DC 24 result. +2
Adding tribute in addition to Lavinia's offer (per 5,000 gp value). +1

shi pwrecks an d half-submerged Olman Referring to any creature as being more powerful tha n Emraag. -8
rui ns dot the isle's treach ero us coast. Referri ng to Lavinia's offer as a bribe. -s
During the ir travels , the PCs sp ot such Continuingto play the sea skirl with a result less than DC 24. -2
a rui n, either th e weathered timbers of Each previous check. -4 cumulative
a sha tte red galley o r eroded ob sidi an
columns and statues jutt ing from the vessel th at gives the bay its nam e is territory, he must be made helpfu l. If
surf 1ft he PCs choo se to investiga te the merely one ofthe Glutton's mos t rece nt he's pleased by the sea slid' s soun d when
remains the y discover froll idas (1) 750 gp and memo rable victim s. Its splintered he arrives, he gives the PCs 1d3 minutes
worth ofsupplies or ancient artifacts.u )« wreck m arks th e ent rance to Emraag's to pre sent their case befo re he grows
pair ofghostly sailor s or Oltnan warriors den, a deep sea cave filled with the cargo imp atien t, allowing one Diplomacycheck
(ghost gtb-level fight ers, Mom/a Manual of a hund red sh ips and the tr easure of per min ute, Ifh c's hostile,he onlygives the
117), (3) un stable structure s resu lt ing dozens of costa l Olman ru ins. Em raag PCs 1d6 rounds (remember, Diplomacy
in falling timbers or rock dealing Sd6 sty les himself the lo rd of th e seas checks suffer a - 10 penal ty if rushed as a
point sof damage (Reflex save for half), surrounding th e Isle of Dread, although full-round action).
or (4) a random minor mag ic weapon hi s claim is larg ely ho llow, The aboleth In th is en cou nter, allow the player s
or wand guarded by a giant octopus that dwell in th e deepe r waters give the to prese n t their cas e to the d rago n
(Monster Manua/ 276). Glutton a wide be rth, not int erfer ing turtle , T h e PC tha t d oes the most
Roc: Acurious roc (Monster Manua121S) with his endless rampage and preferring talking durin g this en coun ter is the
dives low to investigate th e Sea Wyvern. to let air -b reather s believe tha t an on e who rolls th e primary Diplomac y
Seein g the ship's d raconi c figur ehead ar rogan t dragon turtle is th e greatest che ck to influ ence Emraag's attitud e;
alar ms the gigantic bird, inciti ng it to threat that lurks beneath the waves. all othe r PCs may att empt to aid th e
make several low swoops as it pu zzles out Th e sea ski d Lavinia loaded onto p rimary ch eck by m aking a DC 10
what manner of creature the Sea \\)'vcm the sh ip along with he r bribe proves Diplom acy check. The PCs may att empt
is.The roc makes for a startling sight , bu t the simplest me tho d of contacting th e as ma ny ch ecks as th ey have time for.
ultimately poses no threat, flying offafter drago n turtl e. Like a long, complica ted Modi fy the results or each check if the
a minute or so. Th e beast onl y attacks if set of pan pipe s or di dg eri do os. on e PCs bring up any of th e topics in th e
members of the crew attack it first. end of th e sea skid dip s into th e water , sidebar above.
Feeding Frenzy: The water chums in allowi ng a mu sic ian to create a variety If made friend ly, Emraag agrees to let
a bloody frenzy where a schoo l of six of bu bbling noises. The strange m usic th e Sea Wy vern pa ss th rough Galliva nt
great white sha rks (Huge sharks, Monster coaxes Emraag from hi s lair within in Cove for the span of a week. If made
"fo. fanual 279) fight over th e carcass of a 2d6 mi nute s. How he respo nds to the helpful, he extends this exception to
jo-foot-long giant squid. Hidd en below noise depends o n the skill of th e sea all shi ps flying the flag of Farsho re for
the chaos circles a scarred old dire shark skirt's player. With a DC 20 Per fo rm the spa n of a yea r, wit h th e optio n to
(MonsterManual 64),waiting for additional (wind instruments) check, the dragon extend safe passage for anot her year
pre y att racted to th e kill. Interfering turtle is int rigu ed by the musi c and with furt he r t ribute. In either cas e,
pes make j ust the sort of meal the dire his in itial att itude is indi fferenl as he Emraa g rem ain s in th e a rea lon g
shark craves. rises ne xt to the ship to discover its en ou gh to entertain any ques t ions
Pl esiosaur: A h ung ry ple siosau r source. If the check pro duces a lowe r the pe s mi gh t have for him. While
(Stornnvrack 1.46) raises its head from the re su lt, Emraag is annoyed to find a he know s no thing of shadow prarls, the
waves and attem pts to grab a PC or crew- noisy hu man sh ip distu rbing his rest savage tide , o r the Lords of D read , he
man fro m the deck of the Sea Wy venJ. and em erges near th e Sea Wyvern with a docs know th at the Cri mson Fleet paid
The gigantic reptil e has no in ter est in hostile att itu de. him a fortune in gold and exotic goods to
a prolonged fight and, o pon grabbing a After attr acting Brnraag's att ention, the meet with a tribe of degenerate troglodytes
victim, dives under water to dr own and PCs must negotiate with the capricious living near th e sout hern most shores of
cons ume its meal. creature. In orde r to get Emraag to grant Gallivant Cove. With his directions, it's a
the Sea \Vy vern permission to ply the se simple matt er to find this cove. Emraag's
Indul ging the Glullon (EL 16) waters,he must be made friendly;to secure patience doesn' t last forever, and a few
Emraag the Glutt on dwells be nea th the perm ission from him to allow Farshore's minutes later he retires to his lair with
m u rky waters of Gallivan t Cove. Th e ships unrest ricted passage thro ugh his the tribute. Any attempt to draw him to

MARCH 200 7 DUNGEON 33

THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS
th e surface again annoys him , de crea sing
his att itude one step.
If the PCs fail to placate th e Glu tton,
h e roa rs in rage and bl asts the Sea
Wyvern wi th his breat h weapon. He th en
submerges, on ly to rise again 1d3 ro unds
lat er in an attempt to caps ize th e Sea
\\)'vern. lfth e PCs escap e an d the dragon
turtle st ill lives, they may h ave to sn eak
into Galli vant Cove. Em raa g watc he s
for th e sh ip during dayligh t h ou rs for
th e n ext week, immed iately attacking if
th e PCs re tu rn . During the night an d
aft er a week 's ti m e, h owever, th e dragon
tu rt le grows lax an d th e party mi gh t
slip by. Upon heari ng tbat th e PCs were
unsu ccessfu l in their m ission, Lavinia is
visibly disap pointed with th em-dou b ly
so ifth ey gave the d ragon tu rt le h er b ri be
an d still failed . lfth e PCs m an aged to
kill th e Glutt on, sh e gives th em each a
500 gp bonu s. This bonu s increases to
1,000 gp if they managed to re tai n he r
fam ily's wealth.
EMRA AG THE GLUTTON CR 16
Male advanced dragon tu rtle
NEGargantuan dragon (aquatic)
Monster Manua/88
Init +0; Senses darkvision 60 fl., low-light
vision, scent: Listen +29, Spot +29
Languages Aquan, Common, Draconic
AC 27, touch 6, flat-footed 27
hp 337 (25 H D)
Immune fire, sleep, paralysis
Fort +21, Ref+14, Will+15
Spd 20 ft., swim 30 ft.
Melee* bite +25(6d6+24) and
2 claws +20 (3d8+l7)
Space 20 ft.; Reach 15 ft.
Base Atk +25: Grp +51
Atk Option s Awesome Blow, Improved Bull
Rush, Powe r Attack,Snatch
Special Actions breath weapon (20-ft. by
25-ft. by 50-ft. cloud: 12d6 fire: DC 29),
capsize (20% chance vs. Sea \\yvern)
*10-point Power Attack
Abilities Str 38, Dex 10, Con 25, Int 12, Wis
13. Cha 12
Feats Aweso me Blow, Bli nd-Fight, Cleave,
Great Cleave, Improved Bull Ru sh,
Improved Natural Attack (bite, claw),
PowerAttack, Snatch
Skills Diplomacy +3, Hide +16 (+24 when
subme rged), Intimidate +29, Listen +29,
OUNCEON MA RCH 2007
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUITER I
Search +19, Sense Motive +19, Spot +29, something forces the Sea Wy vcrn agai nst
Swim +50 th e cliffs edging th e bay. the party sho uld
Develo p me n t : If t he P Cs d e fe at have litt le trouble navigating its waters.
Emraag a n d seek ou t his t reasu re, you T he j ourn ey into th e caverns below
ca n de velop h is su b m e rge d lair in to a the Isle of Dread is perilous , ult imatel y
m em o rab le sid e-quest by p opula ting leadi ng to th e ruin ed aboleth city of
it wit h a few aq u atic p et s the d ra gon Golisrn orga, near ly 2 miles below sea
turtl e keeps. H is treas u re sho uld b e level. Th is far below the su rface of the
sig n ifi ca nt, worth a to tal o f 90,000 gp , ear th, th e en vironm ent is stra nge and
alth ougb n o mor e tha n ha tf sh o uld b e alien. The route from Gallivant Cove to
in p or tab le magic i tems. Golismorg a is shown on th e map of the
Ad - H oc Ex pe r ie nc e Award : If th e Underdark below the Isle of Dread. For
PCs secu re safe p assage from Em ra ag, the sake of clarity. the vertica l scale of
give th e m a CR 16 awa rd . this map is distorted. Actual d istances
traveled between each locati on listed are
PART TWO: DREAD DESCENT given in the adve nt ure text.
Aller dealing with Em raag the Glutton ,the While the ir abundance oflife suggests
PCs arc free to invest igate Gallivant Cove tha t they may once have been connected
and searc h for th e source of the Cri mson to fu r th er ne two rk s, t h e tunnel s a nd
Fleet's shadow pearls. Th e waters of Galli- ca vern s b en eat h th e Isl e o f Dre ad
vant Cove are uni formly deep and, unless differ co ns ide rably from th e sta n d a rd
01-02 1 b eholder 13 Monster Manual 26
03-05 1 purple worm 12 Monster Manual 211
06--081 roper 12 l\fonster Manual 215
09=11 Id S spect res 11 Monster MmJUal 232
12- 131 retr iever 11 Monster Manual 46
14- 18Zd4 wraith s 10 Monster Manual 258
lC)-231 chasm spid er 10 Monster Manual 288
(Gargantuan sp ider)
24- 25 1 bebelith 10 Monst r MaUl/a t ~ 2
26-29 Id4 dest rachans 10 Monster Manual 49
30 -33 rdi z centipede swarm s 9 Monster Manual 238
34-37 Id4 umb er hulks 9 Monster Manual 249
3&=41 Id8 blackfan g rnagooessas 9 Page 53
42- 46 1d4+2 t roglodyte lepe rs 9 Page 38
47--5 0 Id6 hook norrors 9 Page 45
51--5 6 Id6 kopru s 9 Page 54
57- 61 1 dark n aga 8 Monster Manual 191
62-66 1d4+1 p hase sp iders 8 Monster Manua l Z07
67-1 0 1 ghos tbelly spi de r 8 Monster Manual 289
(Gar gan tuan spider)
7 -73 Id 6 cloak ers 8 MonsterManual 36
'
74-7 6 1 black l' u dding 7 Monster MatlUal 201
77--82 1 pit sco rp io n 7 Monster Manual z87
(H uge scorpion)
83- 86 Id6 carrion crawlers 7 MonsterMamla130
87- 9 2 1 h ornba ck centipede 6 Monster Manual 286
(Gargant uan cen tip ede)
93 5 1 gibbering mouther 5 MonsterManllal 126
96--00 1 ribbo nweb spi der 5 MonsterManual 289
(H uge spide r)
Un derda r k envi ro n m en t. Missing
from these caver ns are m ost of th e
the classic underd ark races-no d row,
d uergar, or mind flayers dwell un der the
Isle of Dread . Unless otherwise no ted,
floors, ceili ngs, and walls are all mad e
of natural ston e, carved by water and
volcan ic activ ity from the foundation
of th e isle itself Ot he r th an wha t
illu min atio n the cha racters and oth er
creatures br in g with them, the passages
are completely light less.
Th e tunne ls sh own on th e map
represent the large st an d m ost stable
rout es through th e Dread Underdark.
Th ese tun nels range from 'ten to th ir ty
feel in widt h. and are generally as tall
as the y are wide. Countless othe r routes
exist, secondary passages tha t are ra rely
more than ten feet wide. These rout es
are untru stworth y at best, openi ng and
clo si ng wit h the Dread Unde rda rk's
tec ton ic shifts. If you wish to expand
th e enco u nte rs in thi s adventure , o r
extend the adventure int o the numerou s
o the r regio ns hinted at on th e map, the
Underdark sou rcebook provides a wealth
of ideas.
Several set enco un ter locations await
th e PCs along th eir j ourney. Check for
random encounters four tim es a day;
once at mo rning, once at noon, once at
dusk, and once at midnight.The chance of
a wandering m~ n st e r encou nter is 12 % in
th e upper cavern s. Inside ofthe Cerulean
Curtain (areas E-J), the scarcity of water
m akes for more spars ely-pop ulated
tunnels; the chance ofan encoun ter here
is only 6%.
A: Entrance Caverns
Th e shores of Gallivant Cove are sheer
cliffs that plunge directly into the watery
depths below. yet near the bay's farthest
inland point. a cru de pier of rocks and
yellowed bones extend s from the maw
of a treacherous-looking sea cave. Twin
rows of hollow, yellowed skulls bum with
an eerie green fire dayand night, making
the ramshackle dock easy to locate. This
morbid pier is where th e diseased trog-
lodyt es kno wn as Laogzed's Redeemed
meet every few months to deliver ship-
ment s of SJJadOlV pearls to th e pirates of
the Crimson Fleet. Vanthus Vander boren
paid these troglodytes a visit on his way
to Farsho re- the shadow pearl he tried to
trigger at th e end of "Tides ofDread" was
the Fleet's most recent acqui sition.
Th e troglodytes ofLaogzed's Redeemed
sh are o n e un fortu n ate tr ai t- th ey
are plague carriers. Nearly all of th em
suffer from a rare and hideo us disease
called vile rig idity. While it's actually a
side effect of extended exposu re to th e
freshly created shadow pearls they've been
provid in g th e Crimson Fleet pirates, th e
troglod ytes of Laogzed's Redeemed have
interp reted th e plague as a blessing from
their deit y. Th ey refer to it as "Laogzed's
Embrace" and welcome it, piling their
dead in a charn el pit at the comm unity's
cen ter an d encouraging th e affliction 's
constant spread.
Vile rigidit y at fir st seems li ke a
boon. One day afte r faili n g a DC 19
For ti tude save to 're sist in fection , th e
victi m's skin tou gh ens, g ran ting hi m a
MARCH 2007 DUNCEON 35
 THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUTIER I

+1 na tural armo r bon us. On the second

failed sa ve, th is beco m es a +2 bon us.
On th e th ir d failed save, th e n atu ral
armor b o nu s im prov es to +3, b ut the
vict im takes a -2 pen al ty to De xterit y.
Each d ay thereafter tha t h e fails h is
save, th e vict im's skin becomes thi cker,
addin g a cum u lative +1 natura l armor
b onus an d a - 2 p ena lty to De xt eri ty.
T hi s lasts unt il the victim's Dexterity
reach es 0 , ind icat in g tha t hi s ever -
thickening fles h h as en trappe d him.
So o n there aft er , th e vict i m d ie s
of suffocation.
The tr og lod yte s have I dev elo ped
a foul- sme llin g t re at m en t fo r th e
d ise ase 10 p reven t it fro m linge ring
long enough to cause su ffocation. Th is
treatm e n t is known as black pulp pOfdtice
(see sidebar).

Al. Putrid Pier

Seemingl y held togethe r by brine an d

urchi ns, th is ricket y pier of rotted woo d
and gigantic bones looks as much a scav-
enger-picked corpse as a derelict berth.
Twin rows of skulls impaled upon spears
line th e pier, thei r eye sockets flicke ring
with ot herworld ly green flames and vent-
ing sickly vapor s. This unnatu ral ligh t
illuminates an eerie path into the dark -
ness of a yawni ng cave entrance fiftee n
feet above the su rf below.
Constructed of bones and driftwood,
thi s pier juts 30 feet into the m urky green
waters of Gallivant Cove. While the surf is
mild ,th e water is 15feet deep,forcing those
who Iall in to make DC 10 Swim checks.
Th e pier's pilings rise 15 feet above the surf
at high tide, requiring a DC 20 Clim b check
to ascend,altho ugh a slippery ladder at the
end ofthe pier can be ascended with a DC
10 Climb check.. It's only a DC 15 Climb
check to ascend the ragged cliffside from
the su rf up to the caveen trance above.
The spears alon g th e pier 's edges dis -
play human and troglodyte sku lls. Set
10 feel apart, thes e m or bid to rch es bur n
a mixture of rare m old s, swam p pl ants,
and the p reserved m usk glands o f dead
troglodyt es. T his concoc t io n causes
revolti ng smo ke to sp ill from the sku lls '
mout h s and eye soc kets. Any creatur e
with in 15 feet of one of these skulls
m ust make a DC 16 For ti tud e sa ve or
be n au seated for as long as the y remain
in the area an d 2d6 round s th ereafte r.
Tr eat th is effect as an inh aled po ison.
A2. Sea Cave (EL 7)
Soggy plan ks asce nd the sloped floor of
this salt-encrusted grotto . Refuse and bro-
ken crustacean s hells litter several shallow
pools near the walls, making easy meals for
a small flock of sickly gulls roost ing in th e
cracked walls. A ten-foot-wide opening in
the southern wall has been d osed off by a
rusty iron gate.
A natural staging place for mee tin gs
b etween the Crimson Fleet and Laog-
zed's Rede em ed (whic h th e pirates call
"canke r skin ks"). a DC 21 Survival check
in the ar ea by some one with the Tra ck
feat reveals a large number of footprints
in th is cha mber, so m e booted (pirates),
so me ba re (slaves given to th e troglo-
dyt es as partial paym en t for th e shadow
pearls), an d so m e repti lian (troglodytes).
Th e tr oglodyt es built a cru de gra te of
cro oke d bars to p reven t int ruders from
wanderi ng in to their caves. While sim ply
mad e, the grate is quite h eavy-it's a full-
rou nd action to ope n or close it.
Iro n Grate: 1 in. thi ck; Har dness 10; hp
JO; Break DC 25.
Creat u re: Th e t roglo dyt es keep a
guardian an d p et in this roo m , an
immense and ca n tankerous re ptile
known as a d im etrodo n. Th e mo ns ter
looks li ke a sh ort-sn outed , IS-foot- Iong
lizard , but he r m ost di stinctive featu re
is the 8-foo t-tall sail -li ke fin that ri ses
from her back. Name d ve th vusk (after

36 DUNGEON MARCH 2007

o f o n e o f Lao gzed's man y festering
co nsorts), t hi s d im etr o d o n is in fected
wit h vil e r ig id ity-her fle sh is thick
and crus ty , a n d la rge s h in g les o f
e xce ss g rowt h h a ng from her sa il.
Th e t roglo dy tes treat h e r wit h black
pulp poulJices to m it ig ate th e wo rst o f
her conditio n.
Whe n she no tices the PCs, Vet h vusk
immediately begins barling an d roar-
ing. The noise is ce rtain to alert the trog-
lo dy tes in area A3, who come t o i nves -
tigate i n Id 3 ro unds . Veth vu sk ha s bee n
tra in ed to attack o nly in sel f-d efens e o r
if a n on-tro glodyte att em p ts to m ove
m o re than 10 feet int o th is roo m. If
the PCs provoke the dime trodon, sh e
attacks immed ia tel y, purs u ing fo es in t o
th e wate rs o f Galli van t Co ve for u p to
200 feet before giving up and ret u r ning
to her lair h ere. Vethvu sk fight s to the
de ath once her blood is up.
V ETH VUS K CR 7
Advanced elite dimet rodo n
N Large animal
DRA GO N #3 18 64
Init +1; Senses low-light vision, scent; Li sten
+3, Spot +18
AC 16, touch 6, flat-footed 16
hp 162 (12 HD)
Fort +16, Ref +5, Will +7
Spd 10 ft. , swim 10 ft.; burst of speed
Melee bite +18 (2d6+15)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft.
Base Atk +9; Grp +23
Abilities Str 31, Dex 5, Ca n 26, Int 2. Wis 12,
Cha 6
SQ vile rigidity
Feats Alertness, Improved Initiative.
Improved Natural Attack (bite), Improved
Toughness (+l hp/ HD), Iro n Will
Skills Listen +3, Spot +18, Swim +14
Burst of Speed (Ex) Up to th ree times per
hour, Vethvusk can increase her land
speed to 60 feet for one round as a free
action. During this round, she gains a +2
dodge bonus to her armor class.
Vi le Rigidity (EX) vethvusk suffers from vile
rigidity; her toughe ned skin improves her
nat ural armor bonus by +3, but penalizes
her Dexterity by- 2. Daily applications
of black pulp poultices stave off furt her
developme nts of her sickness. A remove
disease spell removes the adjust me nts to
her natural armor and Dexterity, adju sting
her AC to 14.
Developmen t: As Van th us has j ust
recen t ly pi cked u p the latest shadow
pf'£l rl fro m the troglodyt es, they aren't
expecting a visit from th e Crimson Fleet
fo r so me tim e. Nevertheless , the s heltered
t ro g lodytes have g rea t d ifficul ty telling
one fle shy hu m ano id from an ot he r,
an d unless th e pe s im mediat ely attack
them, th ey are likely to mi stake the
pa rty fo r age nts of the Crims on Fleet.
Assuming th e PCs haven't attacked the
dimetrod on b y the ti me the tr ogl o dytes
arrive t o in vest igate her barking, t h e
lead tro glodyt e approaches and ra sps
a g re eti ng in Com mon : "May Laog zed
gnaw you slo wly." Th eir initial att itu d e is
indiffe ren t- th ey view thei r interact ion s
with th e Crimson Fleet as a n ecessar y
evil in spread ing the influence of the ir
dei ty b y trad ing shadow pearls for slave s
and tre asu re.
The rept ilian savag es s n arl an d
complain abo u t the PCs' unu su ally ea rly
a rriva l. point in g o u t that th ey've just
han d ed over th ei r latest shadowpearl and
that ma rc aren't expected to be read y for
month s. As long as the PCs d on't reveal Ofcourse, the pirates know be tter than
thei r true identi ties (such as by m aki ng a to attack t h e t ro glodyte's dimet rodon
poor Bluffche ck), the troglo dytes rem ain gua rd- if the PCs have kill ed Vethvu sk,
rel ativel y ca lm , but once th ey re alize any tr oglodyte s that respond to th e sound
so m et h ing st ra nge is go ing on t he y ofcomba t and find th e PCs quickly realize
ret reat to area A3 to prepare a d efense. that they're not members o f the Crimson
If the pe s m anage t o converse with Fleet. They retr eat to area A3 to prepa re a
th e trog lo d ytes o n civi l terms, they can defen se of th e caves.
draw o ut so m e informa tion fr o m the
d im -wi tt ed crea tu res. Th e trog lodyte s A3. Emissaries' nen (EL 8)
have been trading shadow pea rls to th e
pi rat es fo r nearl y two ye ars n o w, in The ste nch of waste and d ecay lingers in
exc ha nge for large n u mbe rs of slav es the br iny air. Two alcoves form t his claus -
an d s h ipme nts o f drug s an d t rinkets. t rophobic g rott o. To the north , t hree piles
If asked abo u t t h ese payments, the of matted and moldering palm fronds
trog lod yt es ad mi t t hat w h ile t hey ge t cluste r arou nd a mound of ash and dying
to ke ep all th e drug s and trinket s, t h ey embers. Opposite them rest several mis-
are on ly a llowed to kee p a few sla ves shapen clayjars, a rack on which hang dead
as sacr ifices. T h e bu lk of t h es e slaves octopi and cave lizard s, and a rickety cart
are le d de ep below, t o be given t o the filled with large black rocks that g listen
Lords o f D read in re tu rn for more ofthe wetl y. A low passage in t he weste rn wall
slJa clolV pearls at a meeting place called d escend s stee ply into da rkness.
the Temple o f t he An cient Ones. Asking
too many que st ion s eventually makes C rea t u r es: Four troglod yte le p er s
th e troglo d yte s s us p ic io us, l eading linger h ere, gua rd ing the en trance to t he
t hem to q ue st ion the PCs in retu r n and lower cavern s and patie ntly awaiting the
po ss ibly at tack . n ext sch ed u led visit from the Crim son
MARCH 2007 DUNGEON 37
 THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS
Fle et in seve ral month s' time. These
tr oglodytes are all afflicted wit h vile
rigidi ty, which infests their flesh with
hard tumor s and ever-thickening layers
of dry skin. To ease their su fferi ng , th e
lepers wrap th em selves in bandages
soa ked in numbi ng salves and black
pilip pOllltices. Despite the pa in , they
fanatically view their affliction as a d ivin e
ble ssin g sent by thei r god , Laog zed.
Th ey grow the ir na ils in cred ibly long
and co..n stant ly scrape at th eir dead
flesh , tran sforming the ir claws in to
cruelly dis eased weapons.
Un less th ey hear a commo ti on
in ar ea A2 and go to inve st igate,
the tro glod ytes lie on filt h y piles of
sea weed, me dita tin g on th eir pain .
If the p e s mana ge to reach thi s are a
un detected , th ey sta rtle the troglodyt es,
wh o cl amber to thei r feet an d hiss in
s urpri se. Ca n n y PC s m ay be ab le to
convince th e savages they are membe rs
of the Crimso n Fleet (see area Az). If
not , t he tro g lod yt e s see t he pa rt y's
intr u si o n as a bla s ph e m y agai nst
La o gzed and att ack .
38 DUNGEON MARCH 2007
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUTTER
T RO G O DYTE LEPERS (4) CR 4
Troglodyte rogue I/deric 3 (Laogzed)
CE Medium humanoid (reptilian)
Mon ster Manual 246
Init - l ; Sen ses darkvisic n 90 ft.; listen +6,
Spo( +1
All" stench (30 ft., DC 16)
Languages Co mmo n. Draconic
AC 19, touc h 9, flat-footed 19
hp 56 (6 HD)
Fort +11, Ref+2, Will +4
Spd 30 ft.
Melee 2 claws +6 (l d6+2 plus disease) and
bite +3 (1d4+l)
Base At k +3; Grp +S
AtkOptions smite l /day (+4 att ack, +3
damage), sneak attack +l d6
Special Ad ions death touch IJday (3d6),
rebuke undead 2/d,y (- I , 2d6+2)
Comba t Gear potionof cure moderate wounds
Clerie Spells Prepared (CL 3rd)
2nd- hold person(DC 13), shott, r' (DC 13)
rst-c-btess, causefearO (DC 12), doom (DC
12), divinefavor
o-create water, cure minor wounds, detect
moyie,guidance
o domain spell; Domains Death, Destruction
Abilities Str 14, Dex 8, Can 20, Int 8, Wis 13,
Ch. 8
SQ sponta neo us casting (inflict spells),
trapfinding, vile rigidity
Feat s Brew Potion, Improved Natural Attack
(claw), Multiattack, Weapon Focus (claw)
Skills Hide +8 (+12 in rocky or unde rground
areas), Knowledge (religion) +1, li sten +6,
Sense Motive +3, Spellcraft +0
Posses sion s bracers of armor +1, black pulp
poultice(Ida doses)
Disease (Ex) Any crea ture damaged by a
tro glodyte lepe r's claws mus t ma ke a
DC 19 Fortit ude save to avoid catc hing
vile rigidity.
Vile Rigid ity (Ex)The troglodytes suffer
from vile rigidity; their toughened skin
improves their natur al armor bonus by
+3, but penalizes their Dexterity by-2.
Daily applicatio ns of black pulp poultices
stave off furthe r developments of the
sickness. A remove disease spe ll removes
the adjustm ent s to the ir natural armo r
and Dexterity.
Tactics: 1\\10 of the troglodyt e le pers
ru sh forward to engage in tru d ers while
their allies hang back to su pport the fight-
ers with spells. Should th e battle obvi-
J
ously turn against the mel ee att acke rs,
however, those stayin g back flee down the
ha ll through ar ea A4 to warn their people
in Laogr oat ofthe attack.
The clay j ug near est th e grate leading
to area Az is filled wit h g ree n slime- the
troglodyte s u se it to di spose o f waste . On
th e seco n d round of bat tl e, one of the
lepers casts shatter on the jar, causing the
sli m e to sp ill ou t over everyt h ing wit h in
5 feet. Creatures in th at area must m ake a
DC 12 Reflex save to avoid bein g spattered
with slim e (sec p age 76 of the Dunncon
Master's Gilide for de tails on green sli me).
Tr ea sure: 1\vo of the three j ars al o ng
the wall co n t ai n three d o ses o f blackpulp
poultice. The large black roc ks are geod es
co mpri sed of sh arp bl ack crystals and a
sickly black ooze- the se st on es arc the
remain s o f p ro tective bilest one shells
(see sidebar}-conta iners used to tra ns -
port shadow pearls from Holashn er's
Ziggurat (area Q). A DC 16 Knowled ge
(nature) chec k r eveals that th ese sto nes
are mere sh ells a n d t hat so m et h ing
sp h erical was once suspen d ed inside. A
DC 30 Knowl ed ge (arca na ) check re cog·
nize s the ro ck as bi lestone: fortunately,
there 's not eno ugh of the fou l stuffhe re
to i m pact the minds ofn earby n o n-aber-
rations. There ar e 12 fr actured bilestone
geodes in all , ea ch weighing 10 po unds
an d wo rt h 50 gp apiece .
A4. Hall of Visions
Fou l-sm elling dyes and flakin g pigm e nts
cove r th e cracked st o ne walls of thi s slo p-
ing passage. Decaying orga ns-pe rhaps
t he mo rbid palett es of th e walls' brut ish
artists- lie in reeking heaps on th e grou nd .
Between t he p rimi tive m arkin g s a nd
blo od y claw - p rints , a le ng t hy se ries of
crude pictogram s exte nds down t he ha ll.
While ma ny are fad ed and ob scured ,
t h ree sta nd o ut clearly. In th e first , s pea r·
bearin g rep tiles wand er a maze of ever -
de sce nding t u nnels. In th e next, a large
liza rd like creature exalt s am id columned
ru ins, holdin g a black circle above its head
as sma ller crea t ures bow and a re st ricken
dead . In th e final secti o n, a re ptilian skull
s u rrou nde d by a smo ky m ass of s piraling
tent acles rai ns black sphe res upon a crack-
ing , smoki ng islan d.
 Painted by clerics of Laogzed, these
walls dep ict the trog lodytes' misle d
visio n of the cr eation and pu rp ose of
the shadow pearls. Th ere are n o words
on the walls and nothing spec ific can be
d eciphered. If the PCs have cap tured a
troglodyte, it m ight be able to interpret
that these images show member s oftheir
tribe t raveli ng deep to gath er th e shadow
pearls, a priest ofLaogzed claiming one
ofthe pearl s at the Tem ple ofthe Ancient
Ones, and Laogzed himself creating the
shadow pearls to sow d estruction upon
his people's en em ies.

R Laogroat
Elevat ion: 18 0 feet below sea level
Dis tance from Entrance Cave r ns :
4 m iles
The caver n-village of Laogroa t is dying.
Thi s wret che d commu nity of over 50
troglodytes is prim it ive even by th eir
stan dards . The village cons is ts of a
do zen cru de mu d and stone h uts, each
b uil t. at a re spectful distance fr om a
eo-foot-tall statue of Laogzed. Th is
im age ofthe tr oglodyte god , ho wever, is
significantly warpe d from the standard
in terpretatio n, reflecting the corru ption
o f their faith b y the Demogo rgon -
wors hiping koprus. A DC 25 Kno wledge
(r eligion) check correctly id en tifies the
sym bolisim of the change.
Thre e passages con nect to th e cavern
housin g Laog roat. The two eastern on es th is ch am be r. A character who leaves damp dwelling reeks of rottin g meat, rep-
are secur ed by iron grates , and while they the cavern for at least te n m inutes tile, and pungent herbs. Crude paintings
are kep t unlocked, they're awkward and may atte mpt to re- ent er, m aki ng a on the wall depict all mann er of reptilian
difficult to move witho ut a grea t deal of new For titude save to avoid becoming creatures feast ing on hum anoid shapes .
noise (see area Az). The no rthern tunnel n auseate d again . Many of these reptiles have two heads.
leads back to area A, while the southern Th e troglod yte s o f Laogro at are
one quickly tu rn s int o a warren ofnarrow se de n tary and d o n ot expec t vis itors Creatures: Within each warr en dwell
tunnels that eventually conn ects to othe r unless a troglodyte from area A mad e it four troglodytes deep in the ecstatic throes
trog lod yte lairs an d exit s in to the j un gles here to warn them . Unless the PCs are of vile rigi dity. The tr oglodyte lep ers
of the Isle ofDread above. The third exit particularly loud or carry br ight lig h ts, tend to the se suffering , linen-wrapped
fro m th is cavern is at area B6, and lead s the lep ers in area BS don't no tice the ir creatures , usi ng hlack pulppoultices to keep
fur th er down. A DC 10 Survival check is arrival in the caver n. If the y d o, the y them on the verge of death , where their
enough to note a path th at has been worn qui ckly mo ve to intercept the intruders, m inds can be m ore open to visions from
from th e northern passageway in to the d ealing with th em as det aile d in th eir god. The diseased tro glodytes aren't
cavern toward B6, and tha t the entrance ar ea B5. quite helpl ess, but fight onl y to defend
to th e souther n pa ssageway appears th eir particular hovels and do notj oin in a
relatively untraveled. Bl. Trog lodyre Hove ls defense ofth e cavern proper. Killing th em
Th e horrific reek tha t fills th is cavern is almo st a m ercy.
force s an y n on -troglo d yte to ma ke a Cobbled domes of rock and mud cover Diseased Troglodytes (44): AC' 7, touch
DC 14 For tit ude save to avoid being shallow pits in th is large cavern. Ente red 5,flat-footed ' 7; lnit -S; Ref-S; h p 1) each;
naus eated as long as th ey rem ain in throug h holes in th e sto ne roofs, each Dex 1; Monster Manual 246.

MA RCH 2007 DUNGEON 39

 THE L1GHT LESS DEPTHS
B2. Blessing Cages (EL 7)
A pair of large cages with woo de n bars sits
p reca rious ly at t he edge of a t h irty-foot -
wide charnel pit in t he ce nte r of th is cav-
ern. Each cage co ntains two d ead reptilian
hu man oids, th eir bod ies twisted masses of
t u mors and s hing les of u n necessary skin.
Laogz ed's Red eem ed have take n to
rai ding n earby tr oglodyte an d lizar d -
folk tr ibes livin g to the so uth an d on
the island sur face ab ove. The y imprison
their cap tives he re, allowin g them to
con trac t (and the n die from ) vi le rigid-
ity. Capture d PCs likel y en d up he re as
well, facing the sam e fate.
40 DUNGEON MARCH 200 7
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUTTER
Creatures: The village's on ly h eret ic
lan gu ish es among the dea d with in one
of the cages, slumpe d on his side and
app earing as dead as hi s cellmat e. lrgzid
Uzeye was once a member of th e tribe's
pri est caste an d on e ofthe first servants
of Laogzed to accept the b lessed shadow
pearls in th e Temple ofthe Ancient On es.
Yet, wh ile hi ~ bre th ren were blessed
with Laogzcd's Embrace soon after, due
to som e ser en dipitous resilien ce Irgzid
ne ver d evelo p ed signs of th e di sease.
Fearin g what thi s suggested, lrgzid fol-
lowed the oth er pri ests' lead, growin g his
claws to a wicked length and wrapping
h is body in rags. Over th e course of sev-
eral vis its to th e Temple of the Ancient
Ones, Ir gzid watche d in silent d espair
as hi s tribe gre w more and more sic kly,
an d as his fellow prie sts seem ed to drift
further astray from the proper teachin gs
of Laogzed. Whe n the ot h er priests took
to addin g a second h ead to the statue
of Laogzed in area B4, Irgz id re alized
some th in g horribl e was happening to
hi s p eopl e, an d decid ed to do so m e-
thi ng about it.
The n ext time th e troglodytes
traveled to the Temple of the
Ancie nt Ones to re ceive a
sh ipm en t of shadow pearls,
Irgz id gave his d im-witted
kin th e sli p an d sn uck
b ac k into the floo d ed
chambe r aft er th e
m eeti ng . He hoped to
cross to the oth er side
and explore the t u n n el
from which th e kop rus eme rged, to find
ou t what th ey were doin g to h is people,
but he ne ver quite made it across. For
imp risoned with in th e waters of thi s
sunken ch amb er was an an cient an d
tor m en ted aboleth named N'gloth n or u,
a creatu re that had b een held capt ive by
th e koprus for centur ies. With n o koprus
pr esent to pu ni sh it, th e abol cth seized
the opp ortun ity and sur faced to speak
with Irgzid as he en tere d th e tem ple
alone. Un able to enslave the tro glodyte
du e to a IJ ly ph of .~upp re ss i on placed in
the chambe r long ago by th e kop ru s,
N'glothnoru was forced to use subtl ety.
Using veil to assu me the form of a ghostly
tr oglodyt e priest, he th en projecte d an
image into th e room above to spea k
to Irgzid, foo lin g th e troglo dyte in to
belie ving he was spe aking to an an cestor
gh ost of a b ygo ne age.
N'glothnoru reali zed Irgzid was not
afflicted as hi s broth ers and preyed on the
trog lodyte's fears. Thre atenin g to re veal
that th e troglodyte was n ot "bles sed" by
th eir god, the aboleth also hi nted th at
th e secre t truth s th e kop rus were telli ng
h is p eop le wer e lies and th at Laogzed's
Em brace was actua lly a di sease sp read by
th e Lords of Dread . N'glothnoru offered
to keep the troglod yte's secret an d free
his people if he re tu rne d ho m e and
gathered warriors cap abl e of slaying th e
ab oleth's captors .
Up on retu rn in g to Laogro at , lrgzid
tr ied to rally the stro n gest amo ng hi s
p eop le to hi s ca use . His coup quickly
backfir ed with th e u ni nt end ed rev ela-
tio n of hi s h ealt h. Unwilling to murder
one ofth clr own, th e lepers caged Irg zid,
alon g with the corpses of several wh o
had died of the ir afflicti on, ho ping th at
force d proximity would break thro ugh
hi s immun ity.
Irg zid has spen t the p ast several
m onths im prison ed h er e, with lep er s
visitin g h im dail y to preach to h im of
th e sins of h ealth. The prie sts hope th at
Irgzi d will con tract Laogzed's Em br ace,
so tha t he may again walk am ong his
pe opl e. Irgzid clings to N'glothnoru 's
wor ds , however, and dail y seeks ways to
escap e an d fulfill hi s prom ise to the abo-
leth. Wit h th e PCs' coming, h e mig ht j us t
find a way to do both.
 Sm all for h is rac e and te rribly
em aciated, Irg zid is swad dl ed in filthy rags
an d sa lve-soa ked ba n da ges. Cu rre nt ly,
lrgzid h udd les withi n' a large red cloak,
whic h he stole from on e of the co rpses
placed wi thin his cage. As soo n as he
not ices the PCs, he calls out to th em , first
in D raco n ic, th en in Co m m o n. He begs
them to set him free, offeri ng the wealth
and magic ofthe tribe's lep ers [little more
than the id ol s an d fetis hes in the pri ests'
wa rre n). If that doesn't work, he offers
the m his aid in obtaini n g whatever they
ca me for. Should th e party m en tion th at
they seek th e sou rce ofth e shadowpearls,
Irgzid grows excited an d e.~c1a im s th at
h e knows wh er e they' re from and, if the
PCs free him, he promises to lead them
t her e. At th is po int, Irgzid should m ake
an o p pos ed Bluff check agai nst th e PCs.
lfhe fails, it's obvious that th e tro glod yte
is hi ding someth ing. If pr essed on t his
m att er, Irgzid ad m its that he bel ieves th e
Lords of Dread have led h is peopl e away
fro m t he tru t h of Laogzed's wo rsh ip
and infected them wit h th e disease they
su ffer from. Short of be ing tortured or
m ag ically compelled , Irgzid doe s not
me ntio n N'glo thno ru o r hi s deal with
the abolet h . Once freed, the t roglod yte
leads the pe s to area B6, alt hough, this
probably att ract s the atte ntion of th e
lep er s in area BS.
Irgzid isn 't th e o nl y pr iso n e r kept
h ere. On a recen t raid above , th e lepe rs
cap t u re d a ra re prize-a n Olma n
wa r rio r. The y've left him i n a cag e here ,
an d o n ce he's d ee p in t he clutches of
vile r igid it y, they pl an on sacrific ing
h im to Laogzed.
This man is named [akara. a member of
a select gr oup ofOl mans who rely u po n
to tems to aid them in the ir lifelong quests
to rid th e Isle of Dread from it s dem o ni c
in flu en ces. [akara recently encountered
a Pel ori an missio n ary n am ed No lt us
l n n ersol who was sp read ing the word
of hi s go d to the m o re savage t rib es of
h umanoids dw elling in the isle's in teri or.
Noltus was im pressed with [akar a's skills
and devotion to the sla ught er ofdemons,
a nd convinced the totemic dem o nslaye r
to tra vel to Far sh ore to sho w Vesserin
Cat he rly (the co lo ny's residen t cle ric) h is
m et hod s an d gifts.
Unfort u na tely, [akara ne ver made it to
Ears hore. He was attacke d no t lo ng aft er
he left Nol tus's compan y by a group of
ski nwa lkers (feral half-dem on Olmans in
th rall to th e current lo rd of Than aclan).
H e d efeated th em , bu t not b efo re one
of the ir sorc erers managed tofteblemincl
h im . Reduced. to littl e m ore th an a n
animal, h e wan dered t he jungles for
several days before be ing cap ture d by a
group of tro glo dy te lepers and bro ught
back he re.
Sin ce his cap t ure, [aka ra h as also
cont racted vile rigidi ty. This, pl u s h is
fee ble min de d state have left h im in
a n ea r catatonic sta te. If cu red of hi s
m alad ies, he t hanks the PCs gracio us ly
a nd ferven tly,but is eager to return to the
wo rl d abov e and co nti nue o n hi s t rek to
Far sh o re. Ift he PCs ment ion th ey come
fro m th ere , [akara p ro mi ses to sp eak
wit h t he m more when they return from
their cu rren t m issio n .
Th e inform ation [ ak a ra has can
serve as an ad ven ture h oo k fo r th e
next i n stall me n t in t he Savage Tid e
Advent u re Path . In add ition, h e may
be willin g to tea ch hi s method s of
co m ba tti ng demons to a PC he deems
worthy. Further detail s on [akara m ay
be foun d in the ne xt adve ntur e, "C ity
o f Broken Id ols," and in DRA.CO:S # 354'S
in stallment of Savage Tid ings.
IRGZI D U ZE YE CR7
Male trog lodyte rogue 3jderic 4
CE Medium hu manoid (reptilian)
Monster Manua/2 46
fnit +4; Senses darkvision 90 ft.; listen +7,
Spot +2
Aura stench (30 ft.. DC 16)
languages Common , Draconic
AC 16, touch i o, flat-footed 16
hp 82 (9 HD)
Immun e disease
Fo rt +13, Ref +4"Will +7; evasion
Spd 30 ft.
Melee 2 claws +6 (l d6-1) and
bite +3(. d4- ')
Base Atk +6; Grp +S
Atk Options smite l /day(+4 attack, +4
damage), sneak attack +2d6
Special Actions death touch l /day(4d6),
rebuke undead 3/day (+0, 2d6+4)
Cleric Spells Prepa red (CL4th)
znd-c-becr 's endurance, cure moderate
wounds, death kne! P (DC 14), sound
bu" t (DC ' 4)
1st-bless, cause!earO (DC 13), command
(DC 13), curelight wounds, obscuring mist
o-create water, cure minor wounds, detect
magic, detect poison , resistance
D domain spell; Domains Death, Destruction
Abilities Str 8, Dex 10, Con 20, Int 11, Wis
I S, Cha 10
SQ spontaneous casting (inflict spells),
t rapfinding, t rap sense +1
Feats Brew Potion, lmproved Initiative,
Improved Natu ral Attack (claws),
Multiattack,Weapon Focus (claw)
Skills Balance +2, Bluff+3, Concentration
+9, Hide +9 (+13 in rockyor underg round
areas), Intim idate +3,Jump +6,
Knowled ge (religion) +2, Listen +7, Move
Silently+3, Sleight of Hand +5,Tumble +7
jakara of the T iger Clan: h p 97; cur-
ren tly su ffering fromftcblemind an d late
stage vile rigidity; DRA CO N #354.
B3. Charnel Pit
This te n-foot -deep, t hirty-foot -wide sl nk-
hole is rim med wit h woode n stakes. Dis-
t urbin g fetishes and bits of bone hang from
these rotti ng lengths of wood . Withi n the
pit, dozens of reptil ian bodies lie heaped
in various stages of decay. The bodies are
strangelyd ry, the ir skin flaking off t he bone
in brittle sheets and cance rous hunks.
Dozen s of t ro glodyt es have die d as
a resu lt of Laogzed 's Emb race, sm ot h-
ered by th eir own scales. To show th eir
dev o ti on to th e ir god an d hi s fatal boo n,
Laogzed's Redeemed have dug this 10-
foo t-d eep pit that serves as an ope n-a ir
g rave. Any cr eatu re that falls in to the pit
m us t m ake a DC 12 Fo r tit ude sa ve to
resist catchi ng filt h fever, a nd a seco nd
DC 19 Fortitude save to resi st con tract-
i ng vile ri gid ity.
B4. Laogzed's Altar (EL 9)
An im mense sta tue of a rearing lizard like
beast crouches against the wall here . A sec-
ond visage, t hat of a crudely carved fange d
toad, j uts from its exposed sto mach, its
maw parti ally o pe n before a bloodstained
alta r sto ne.
MA RCH 2007 DUNGEON 41
THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS BY F, WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUDER

This statue and altar arc the spir itual

cen ter of Laogr oat . Vill age meetings.
daily prayers, and sac rifices to Laogzed
are cond ucted here. Desp it e be ing a
fanatically devout community, the vision
Laogzed's Red eem ed have ofthe ir de ity
is unlike that held by the majo rit y of
the ir race. This du al-h eade d in terpreta-
tion of Laogzed st ems from the influ -
ence of the Lords of Dr ead . Throu gh
con tin ued con tact and increasi ng influ-
ence , the kcprus hope to gradu ally con-
vcrt Laogzed's Redeem ed to the wo rshi p
of Dem ogorgo n.
Crea tu r es: Asid e from ,th e statue,
two large pil es of swam p , plants and
m ud flank th e alt a r. These ' m asses
ar e ut il ized b y the troglo dyte lepers
as places to fixate o n their pain and
Laogzed's will. Of th e 1 2 troglod yte
lepers that d well in thi s caver n, s ix
ar e gene ra ll y fo un d h er e, de ep in
me di ta tion an d prayer. T he y ri se
qu ic kly t o defend any in t r us i o n ,
fightin g to the death . On ce comba t
be gins he re, th e remain in g lepers in
area B5 arrive in Id 3 roun d s.
Troglodyte Lepers (6): hp 56 each; see
page 38.

BT, Priest,' Warren (EL 9)

This mud and stone hut is festoo ned with

cha ins of he rbs, dr ied animal parts, an d
nasty-looking fungi. Between these deco-
rat ion s, ima ges of fan ged . two - heade d
reptiles have bee n painted on t he stone
in blood . South of the hut, seve ral bloated
reptilian bodies float within three stinking
pools of briny flu id.
T hi s hut is the dwellin g place oft he
tr oglodyte lepe rs. Within, the hu t is a
cra mp ed chambe r th at allows up to a
do zen lepe rs to sleep at the sam e tim e.
The cleric s of Laogzed use the n earby
pools to bre w th eir black pulp poultice.
s har in g it fi rs t amo ng th ems elves
an d di st rib ut ing th e re m ain d er to
th eir people.
Creat ures: Within the warren , sever al
of the tr ibe 's oldes t clerics lie im m o-
bilized on leafy pallets, the ir bod ies
trap ped under the weight of Laogzed 's
Embra ce. Fending otfdeath throu gh th e
use of black pulp poultice, these clerics
drift in and out ofpain -filled consc ious-
ness. These elde rs have the sam e stats
as tr oglodyte lep er s, bu t are so d isease -
add led that they do n't per ceive the PCs
as th reat s. The s ix le pe rs th at att end
to th e elder s, how ever, att ack the party
on sigh t.
Troglodyte Lep ers (6): h p 56 each; see
page )8.
Treasu re: A DC 2 0 Search of the filth
with in the priests' warr en reveals a shed
tcoglodyte skin parti ally filled with shiny
rocks, h u nks of glass, bits of me tal, and
chips of gold and silver. The skin's con-
ten ts are worth 450 gold.
Again st o n e wall of the ch amber
are do zens of vials of a st ran ge blu ish
li q u id. This st ufT is san n is h , a d ru g
pop ul ar in Scu tt leco ve fo r the eup ho ri a
it in d uces in it s users. Although the
drug also n umb s pain , and would wo rk
wond er s fo r th e troglodyte's suffering,
the tr oglod yt es view their pain as a
gift from Lao gzed an d to use the d r ug
to le ssen it wo uld be b las phemous. In
fact , san n ish is a primary ingre d ien t in
the crafling of the black pull>poultices
th ey const an t ly brew. T her e are 11 0
dose s o f the d ru g h er e--each d o se
is wo rt h 15 gp on the black m arket.
Ad d iti on al in form ation on san nis h
(as well as rule s for add ict ion ) can be
found on pages 4'- 43 of the Book oj
Vile Darkness.
Out si de the warren, the three pools
contai n nearly com plete bre ws of black
pulp poultice. Any chara cter who makes a
DC 2 0 Spelleraft check or a DC 25 Heal
che ck can dr aw eigh tee n do ses of black
pulp poultice fr om th e po ols, given an
ho ur of nauseating toil.

DUNCEON M ARCH 2007

B6. The Black Way
A deep crevice yawns in th e sto ne he re,
dropping away into the inkydark below. A
rickety wooden lift. desce nd s into the da rk-
ness, raised and lowered bya primitive pul-
ley system of frayed ropes.
This shaft serves as a passage into th e
Iightless reaches below the Isle ofDread .
and ult im atel y the ruined aboleth city of
Golis mo rga. The lift can be operated by
hand from abo ve or on the lift itself. If
m ore than 4 0 0 pounds is placed u pon
th e lift, th e whole thing plummets into
the cavern 60 feet below. :
A DC 10 Survival check is enough to
no te tha t the re's been a lot of activity
around the edge of this pit, and that a
path has been worn between th e pit's
edge and the northern passageway to th e
cast. If Irgzid is with the part y, he tells
them the sou rce of the shadow pearls is
down th is shaft, and warns the PCs of
th e lift's maxim um weight.
C. The Burning Pools (EL 13 )
Eleva tion: 510 feet belo w sea level
Distan ce from Laogro at: 2 miles
Trickles of water emerge from a crack in the
ceiling of this cavern, splitting into num er-
ous rivulets that roll slowlydown stalactites
and drip off into the deep, milky pools that
dot the floor of this chamber.
The liquid in this chamber ma y look
like mu rky water, but is in fact highly
acidic . Each pool is 40 feet de ep, follow-
ing a twisted cou rse through soft er veins
of m etal th at have long sin ce eroded
away, leaving behind polished stone walls
the liquid can not consu me. A splash of
th is stuff d eals 1d6 acid dam age, while
tot al im m ersion deal s rode acid damage.
Worse, the fume s rising from th e acid fill
th is cavern with toxins, constituting an
inhaled poison (Fort itude DC 13, 1 Con
damage/i da Con da mage).
If Irgzid is guid ing the PCs, he stop s
th em before ente ring thi s cavern and
warn s them ofthe burning pools and th at
th ey m ust hurry th roug h the cave while
holdi ng their br eath to avoid breathing
the toxic air. Unfort unately, he doesn't
know abou t the amorphous predat or th at
has moved in to the cavern .
Crea tu re: An elder black p ud d in g
seeped up from th e d ept hs below to
claim this cavern as its lair a few days ago.
Immune to poison but no t acid , the ooze
has learn ed to avoid the pools ofcaust ic
liquid on the Iloor, spending most of its
time h eap ed agains t the southeastern
wall by the passageway leading down.
It swiftly m oves to atta ck anything that
int ru des in to the room.
Elder Black Pudding: hp 290; Monsler
Manual zOl.
D. The Hanging Forest (EL 12)
Elevatio n: 960 feet belo w sea level
Di s tan ce fro m the Burning Pools:
8 m iles
This seventy-foot-wide cavern drops away
into a blackgulf below. A forest of stalactites
hangs from the ceiling, some dropping away
out of sight into the darkness. A ledge, its
surface glistening with moisture and mold,
winds down the inner wall of the cavern, a
descending path of dubious safety.
On ce a volcanic shaft, this cavernous
chasm dr op s 400 feet into a rubble-
strewn field of petri fied trees ofall sizes,
subsumed by th e earth in some geol ogic
up he aval and su bs eq uen tly pe trified .
Chu n ks of shattered branches litter the
floor, bu t a nu m ber of the logs are st ill
su rp risingly lifelike.
The led ge leading do wn the walls of
th e shaft is slip pery but safe as long as it
is na vigated at no faster than a creature's
base speed. A creature th at take s faster
action on thi s ledge (such as fighting or
a double move) mu st mak e a DC 12 Bal-
ance chec k. Failu re by 5 or more indi -
cates a fall off the ledge.
Crea tu re: This vertiginous cavern has
lon g been the lair of a cantankerou s
ro per. Th e creatu re feeds on vermin and
othe r creatures tha t wan der thr ou gh th e
cave, bu t allo ws the diseased troglod ytes
to pass through on th eir voyages to and
from th e dept hs below for two reasons :
the trogl od ytes never fail to o ffer it
one of the slaves they're transport ing
bel ow, and t he ro per's foun d th at
d isea se d troglo dytes are parti cularl y
u nap petizing. It has no qu alms abo ut
eat ing PCs, of cou rs e, and once they
com e with in 60 feet of the floor of this
cave, it attacks with its stra nds.
If Irgzid is with the part y, he warns
th em of the rop er 's p rese nce but is at
a loss on ho w it mi ght react to the pes;
he knows on ly th at whe n th e t roglodytes
pass through here , th ey offer it a prisoner
as a snack.
Rop er: hp 85; Monster .Ma nua121S.
Treasure: The roper has 43 pp and 5
garnet s (each worth 100 gp) in side it s
gut. Oth er tr easur es can be found among
the h u nd reds of bo nes th at lie scattered
across the floor ofthis cave. With a DC 20
Search check , ten m inutes of searching
turns up one of the following: a silver
and ivor y scepter worth 1,200 gp, a +l
disruptionjl ail, a cloak oj protfction +3. or a
slaffrffrost with Z4 charges rem ain ing.
Developmen t: T he rop er 's initial
att itude is h ostil e, bu t if th e PCs call ou t
to it befor e th ey come withi n reach, the y
m ay be able to sec ure it s cooperation
(at least temporari ly) with Diplomacy or
Int im idate. If ma de fr iend ly, the roper
lets the PCs pass if th ey offer it a live
snack or at least 1,000 gp in gems . If
m ad e hel pful, the roper let s th em pass
wit hout an offeri ng .
E. The Cerulean Curtain
Elevation: 1,800 feet below sea level
Dist an ce fro m the Han gi ng For est:
16 mil es
The tu nnel wide ns into a large cavern
nea rly two h und red feet in diamete r.
A shi mmerin g cu rtain of rippling blue
light bisects th is cavern from left to right
and floor to ceiling. The light rese mbles
a t ranslucen t membr ane that swirls and
sparkles like th e surface of a pond. The
cavern on the othe r side is visible thro ugh
t his sheen, and t he tu nn el proceeds
around a corner at the far end. Shapes and
figu res seem to ripple an d writhe along
this curtain of cerulean light, and now and
then these sha pes pass by slowly enough
to be identi fied as Olma n warriors in full
battle regalia, th eir mouth s open in silent
screams. A low whispering fills th e room ,
but th e cave is ot herwise s ilent.
MARCH 2007 DUNGEON 43
 THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS
111is stra nge wall oflight is th e bou nd -
ary of th e Cerulean Curtain, ;1 she ll of
ene rgy miles acr oss th at enci rcl es the
ancient aboleth cit y of Goli sm o rga like
a bu bb le, its edges passing har ml essly
th rough air and sto ne alike. Cre ate d
ages ago whe n a group of Olman war-
riors trigge red Tle ioc's Tear at the end
of th e abol eth war, the Cerulean Cur-
tain has two effects. First, th e curtain is
a poten t ward against th e influence of
aberran t thoughts and magic. The cur-
tain automatically d ispels any ongoi ng
m ind -affecting effect on any cre atu re
that passes th rough it. Likewise, mi nd -
affecting effects canno t target creatu res
on the opposite side ofthe curtain fro m
the so u rce. In this way the Olm ans
en sured th at th e abo leth would not be
able to sim ply send hordes of en slaved
minions after them or the ir d evice.
Th e Curtain 's seco nd effect is that
it blocks the waters of the sub me rge d
ocean from flooding th e caverns within.
Whil e water in contain ers or as part of
a creatu re can pass through with case,
freely flowing water can no t. H er e and
the re, small flaws in the curtain allow
water to tri ckle in, p revent in g the cavern s
wi th in from becom in g comp letel y
lifeless. These narrow streams po ol and
see p th ro ug h the caves to eventua lly
collect in Golism orga and ot he r caverns,
fanning sma ll pool s of wate r tha t se rve
to keep tho se wh o live in thi s regi on
alive. Yet fo r the aboleths, such trace
amo un ts of water are little more tha n
a tease.
Seen in small sections , the Cer ulean
Curtain ap pears as a flat blu e me mb ran e
that's easily pene trated and cool to th e
to uch. The spirits of coun tless Olrn an
war riors who died d uring the aboleth war
inh abi t th e Cu rta in- these spiri ts are
peri od ically visible to an yon e observin g
th e Curtain's face. Tho ugh incapable of
tak ing direct action on their own , it is
these spirits who infuse the shield with
its power. Their whispe rs per m eate
th e Cer ulea n Cur tain, occ as ion ally
reso lving in to snatche s o f th e Ol m an
lan guage. With in 30 feet of th e cu rtain,
th ese wh is pers are unmistakab le,
bu t beyon d thi s ran ge they are mu ch
m ore subd ued.
44 DUNGEON MA RCH 2007
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUTTER
As a crea tu re passes thro ugh th e
Curtain, this Whispering rises sharply to
an alm ost painful roar, as ofa thousan d
people sho u t ing as m an y d iffer ent
phrases, th en fall s quiet again j ust as
quick ly whe n th e tr avel er emer ges
from the other side. From that mom ent
on, those wit hin th e sp he re fin d
the m selves subj ect to random bursts of
di sconcert ing muttcrin gs, pa rticularly at
tim es o f grea t st ress.
T ho ugh the Olman spi rits have
no powe r to d irec tly affect the pe s,
occasional spa tes of gh ostly wh ispers
are an excellent way to d rive home the
creepy atm osphere oft his adventu re. An
atte m pt to comprehen d these whispe rs
requir es a DC 15 Listen ch eck and
th e ab ili ty to un derstand the Olman
lang uage. Whil e th e conte nt o f th ese
ot herworld ly di atribes is left up to you,
consider using them to for es ha d ow
co m ing events , d ro p ping hin ts li ke
"two faces watch the ti de" or "the m aw
flows for th to bit e" between inco he r en t
ravin gs. T he wh ispers sho uld be at
the ir st ronges t near places of Olm an
sig nificance, suc h as th e ru in ed te m ple
in area I or the crat er at area P.
T he Cerulean Cu rta in funct io ns at
caste r level zoth, but as long as TIaloc's
Tear still exis ts in area P, no fo rm o f
m ortal magic can di sp el or suppress
this field .
F. The Way 10 Barbas
Elevation: 2 ,100 feet bel ow sea level
D istance from the Cerulean Cur ta in:
1 mile
T he p rima ry t unnel br anche s one mi le
from the Ceru lean Cur tain cavern . One
yo-foo t-wid e tun nel cont inu es sou th ,
while a ao -fc ot -widc cavern angles off
to the west . A DC 20 Survival ch eck
m ade by a cha ract er with Trac k is
eno ugh to in di cate th at the amou n t of
t raffic h ead ing d own the ao -fco t-wid e
tunn el is m uch mo re than the t rick le
he ad ing wes t.
If Ir gzid is with the PCs, he pauses
at th is in terse cti on, explaini ng tha t the
sou thern rout e lead s on to whe re the
troglo dytes have me t with the Lo rd s of
Dread. He the n grows thought ul, tellin g
the pe s th at the western route leads to
a tang led m aze of chambers, bu t at the
far end is a secluded settlement called
Barbas. lrgzi d has been to Barb as only
once as a chi ld -before th e troglodytes
of Laogroat forge d th eir allianc e wit h
the Lords of Dre ad and fell victim to
th e sickness, they often trad ed with the
town. Now, thou gh , the Barbans have
clo sed their bo rd er s to the t rog lodytes,
having lit tle desire to acce pt their pes-
tilen ce wit hin th eir walls. Barb as is
lik ely to b e the only place whe re the
PCs will fin d safety an d she lter in the
light less dep ths. and further. the y m ay
know m o re about the shadoUJ j,w rls and
the m ysteriou s kop rus. A visit to Barbas
shouldn't ta ke too long, and whil e he is
rel uc tant to acco m pany the PCs, Irgzid
encourage s th em to d o so.
Fl. The Maze (EL 7)
Between th is in t er sect ion and the
village of Bar bas is a large b ut low-
ceiling ed cavern called the m aze. This
ar ea is little m ore than a t o-foot-hi gh
hor izonta l crac k in the eart h, 200 yard s
wid e and covered with scree an d gravel.
as well as larger boulders torn loose
fro m the ceiling. Du e to the density
of these scatt ered mon oliths, vis ibili ty
is red uced t o a max im u m of 30 feet
in any d irection. Between the stones,
patches of color hint at plant life,
su ggesti ng a subter ranean past u re o f
epic pr op o rtions. T he temperature in
thi s vast vault is not iceably lower tha n
elsewhere in the tu n nels.
To protec t th em selves against
wan der ing m on s ters an d oth e r
un welcome visitors, the cit izens o f
Barb as hav e ca refully cultiv ate d th e
fu ngus in this chamber to h id e a d eadly
secre t. The fungus is laced with patc hes
of yellow and b rown mold (bot h detailed
on page 76 of the Dun.9corl Master's
Guide), leaving a si ng le windin g trail of
safety from one end to the ot he r. Th e
to -foot-wide trail through the Maze
winds ro ughly a tho usand feet in al l.
Anyone who doesn't know the safe rou te
can navi gate it b y m aki ng five DC 25
Su rvival che cks to avoid the dangerous
mold. Each failure exposes the group to
bo th patch es of mo ld. Any the source
br oug h t int o th e m aze im m edia tel y
tri ggers a nearby pat ch of b ro wn mold,
causing it to expan d in to a ten- foot
square con tai n ing th e offen di ng PC,
po ten ti all y covering that sec tion of
the path.
Ad-Hoc Experien ce Award : Ift h e pes
m ake it across the m aze succ essfully,give
th em a CR 7 award.

F2. The Killing Field (EL 11)

Here the ceiling rises t.o twenty feet and the

vast plain of moldy gravel parts, giving way
to a large hemisphere of bare stone dotted
with short pillars. Ahead, makeshift walls
, .
of wood and stone surround a sprawling
shantytown.

Creatures: Fo r t h os e in vad er s,
monstrous or othe rwise, who manage to
make it th ro ugh th e maze an d approach
Barb as's gates, one final defen se awaits.
In th e cleare d field befor e its gates, six
hook h orrors prowl th e gro un ds. The
hook horro rs ar e fed an d cared for by
th e citizens of Barba s, an d the beetle -
like crea tu~es quickly ra lly in a line in
fron t of th e gates to Barbas ifthey notice
anyone emerging fr om the maze, h owling
an alar m an d clash ing their h ooklike
arms toge ther in a th reaten ing di splay
intended to scare off intruders and aler t
their ma ster s.
A hook horror is a o-foot-tall insectoid
hu m anoid cre ature , wit h a vu ltu relike
head and two powerful arms th at end in Abilitie s Str 24, Dex 17, Co n 14, Int 7, Wis that comes to th eir vill age th ese days is
im m ens e curved ho oks. 12, Ch a 9 an enemy. When the h ook horrors raise
Feat s Cleave, Improv ed Bull Rush , Imp roved the alarm, do zen s of Barbas's deformed
HOOK HORROR S (6) CR6 Trip, Power Atta ck, Skill Focu s (l iste n) citiz ens clam ber up ont o the walls to
N l arge abe rrat ion Skills Climb +15, Hide +3 (+11 in watch the hook horror s defend th e city.
Monster Manual II 126 subterranean areas), listen +17 As long as the pes do n't intru de m ore
lnit +3; Senses blindse nse 60 fl., darkvision light Se ns it ivity (Ex) Expos ure to brig ht light tha n 5 feet from th e ma ze into th e killing
60 ft.: liste n +17, Spot +1 im poses a -2 pe nalty o n a hook ho rror's field, th e h ook h orrors don't att ack. This
l an gu age s Unde rcommo n att ack rolls. sh ould give th e pe s a chance to sh out ou t
AC 22, touch 12, flat-footed 19 Powe r Sun de r (Ex) A hoo k ho rro r tha t gre etin gs to th e village of Barb as. Assume
hp 65 (10 HD) attempts to sun de r does not provo ke th e village's initia l attitud e is unfriendly.
Fort +S, Ref +6, Will +8 atta cks of o pportu nity an d inflicts doub le If th e PCs can convince Barba s of their
Wea kne ss lig ht se ns itivity da mage to any obj ect struck. pe acefu l int en tions by adj us tin g this
Spd 20 n., climb 20 ft. Rending Bite (Ex) If a hoo k ho rror win s a attitude to helpful, the guards call d O\\TI
Mele e 2 claws +13 (l d6+7) and g ra pp le chec k, it automatically hits with comman ds to th e ho ok ho rrors to stand
bite +8 (2d6+J) its rend ing bite atta ck on the same round aside and allow the PCs en try.
Space 10 fl.; Reach 10 ft. (t his repl aces its nor ma l bite attac k fo r O therwise, an y atte m p t lo ap pr oach
Ba se Atk +7; Grp +18 that rou nd ). Barbas results in the hook horror s attac k-
At k O ptio ns im proved gra b (both claws), Tactics: Th e citizens of Barba s are in g. The ce ili ng is on ly 2 0 feet hig h over
power sunder, re nd ing bite (3d6+10) isolationists,and gener ally assume anyone the killing field s, so even flyin g p e s are

MARCH 2007 DUNGEON 45

 THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS
st ill in reach ofthe hook horrors' attacks.
Ifdefeated, the citizens panic and ret reat
to their homes,leaving the gates to Bar-
bas u nd efende d.
Ad-Hoc Expe rience Award: If lhe pe s
tal k their way past th e ho ok h orrors,
award them experience as if they had
defea ted them in combat.
G. Bar bas
Elevatio n: 1 ,6 0 0 feet below sea level
Dis tance fr o m the Way to Barbas:
1fz mile
The town of Barbas squats in a dead -end
cavern, the ceili ng of which r~re ly rises
above thirty feet and in many 'places
dips down as low as te n feet, creating a
claust roph o bic shantytown. The town's
struct ures appear makesh ift at best and
nearing collapse at worst, their walls built
from rubble, moldy wood , caked mud , and
bone. Atepid pond shimme rs in the center
of town, fed by a trickle of water from th e
wester n cave wall. A haze hangs in the air,
a mixture of smoke, spores, and stink lit by
dozens of feebly burning torches mounted
on stalactites or facades. The only areas not
claimed by crumbling buildings are the
crooked streets and several farms of faintly
glowing fungi and pallid mush rooms th e
size of men .
After the Olm ans activated TIaloc's Tear
and drove the waters fr om Golismorga,
th e survivin g aboleth caugh t outside th e
Ceru lean Cu rtai n attempted to reclaim
thei r city b y sending wave after wave
of enslaved m inions into the caverns,
• ho ping that at least a few would manage
to rea ch Golismo rga and dest roy th e
Tea r. Passing through the Curta in freed
the slaves. however, and they fled to th e
darkest come rs within to escape their
horri fic captors. Over the course ofseveral
years, th ese freed Olrn an s, lizard fol k.
rakasta, pha na to ns. bullywugs, an d other
humanoids gath ered together for safety in
this dead -en d cavern, in side the Ceru lean
Curtain yet far from th e haunted city of
Golismo rga. Over dozen s of generations,
inb reed ing an d inters pecies affection saw
som eth ing ofa homogenization of the se
folk, and in time they grew mo re alike
tha n not.
DUNGEON MARCH 2007
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUDER
Agai ns t a ll o d ds , Barb as h a s
pe rsevered . Its citi zens have mas tered
the art offarming fung i and lichen and
keep sub te rranean ver m in lik e giant
beetles as livest ock. Sto ne and ore p ried
fr o m th e cave rn walls provid e th eir
smiths and cra ftsmen with ad equate
materi als , while gems harvested in
b ulk fro m cer tain volcanic caves allow
the m to tra d e fo r woo d an d ot he r
m u ch-need ed su rface supp lies wit h
the occasiona l troglod yte merchant.
Tho ugh a few of the humanoid races,
such as lizar d folk an d t ro glod yt es,
have arr ived in s u ffici ent numb ers
to b reed tru e, the average r esid ent is
h um anoi d in basic frame on ly. Squ at,
pale, and sporti ng a m yri ad of bi zarre
de fo rmat ions, these are mongrelfo lk ,
and tales of the su r face worl d are
t old a s le gends t o th eir twitc hi ng,
ma lforme d ch ild r en .
In addition to their strange
appearances, m ongr elfolk can em ula te
any rac e for the pu rpo ses of usin g
racia lly-s pecific m agi c items, and can
mimic any voice or so und th ey've
heard-a trait that may unne rve PCs as
the naturally cu r ious reside nts begin
aping their speech and man neri sm s.The
resid ents o f Barb as go out of their way
to avoid co nflict with the PCs-they've
lived this long thanks to a healthy dose
of cowa r dice and self-loathi ng. As a
re su lt , no stat ist ics are p rovid ed fo r
m on grelfolk, but if require d, the y m ay
be fou nd on page 12 5 of th e Fiend Folio.
Barba s (Ha mle t): Conventional; AL
LN; Populatio n 147; 1 0 0 gp limi t; Assets
735 gp; Iso lated (132 m on grelfolk, 8
tro glodyte s, 7 Iizar dfolk).
Authority Fi,gure: Hea dma n Vertr am
Xapa ta lo (m ale mongrelfolk expert
3/wizard 2).
G1. Town Hall
The lar gest buildi ng in Barbas, and
certainly th e most well-made , is the town
hall. This area is described in "Visiting
Barb as" be low.
G'2. Store
Ru n by a one-armed and th r ice-tongued
freak nam ed Shifred Ogs mo th (m ale
m ongrelfolk expe rt 3), "Sto re" rem ains
the first and only establis h me nt of its
kind in Barb as. Most of the re sidents
prefe r to barter with each other in the
streets, a pr acti ce that Shifred doe sn't
m ind, as it all ows h im to snap up
bar gains and sell th em back to th e
pu blic as ne ed demand s. In side the
shop, cu stomers are confronted with a
wide variety of goods an d knick-knacks,
fr o m swords an d alchem ical gea r to
fodd er and j ewelry-and of cour se, th e
bo ist erous proprie to r himself
Gl Shrinc to Micrlantecuhtli
While th e isolation of Barbas's residents
has ero de d all but the m ost cur so ry
knowledge of religion and history, th e
need for som e sort ofspirituality has led
them to worship an ancient ston e statu e
in the center of the settleme n t, a cru de
depiction of a skeletal figure wrappe d in
a large python. While the villagers know
their god only as the "Snake Father,"a DC
20 Knowledge (religion) check is enough
to identi fy the id ol as be longing to
Mictlantecuhtli , th e Olm an god of death.
This sam e check reveals that the rituals
su rrou nding his worship her e are entirely
the residen ts' inve ntion, and in some
cases go di rectly against Olman canon ,
th ough the few clerics who keep this
shrine happily use the ir healing spells on
reside nt s and travelers in exchange for
the bare necess ities. Whether it's actually
Mictlan tecu htli granting these powers is
anyone's guess.
G4. Ganfer', Wallow
Rebuilt numerous tim es over the town's
history and m aintained as a grou p effort,
the stru ctu re kn own as Gan fer's Wallow
is a public hall used for everything from
wedd ings to funera ls. Ganfer (m ale liz-
ardfolk expert 2), the gruff an d aging liz-
ard folk in charge of the establishmen t,
m akes hi s livin g as a professional host
and m aster of ceremo nies. Th ough a
cre ature of few wo rd s, Ganter's ha lting
Com m on belies th e razor wit th at's kept
him the town's r esid ent en tertainer for
so lon g.
GS'. The Nurscry
The children ofBarbas are too pre cious a
com mo dit y to be left in the care ofthe ir
pa ren ts. As soo n as a child is born , it is
taken into the cu stody of the n ur sery
staff, whe re mongrelfolk mi dwi ves an d
tut ors educate an d care for the you ng
u ntil the age of fourt een, at whi ch point
they're considere d ad ults and sent ou t
to work in the profe ssion most befi tt ing
the ir skills. As a result , Barbas's citizens
regard numerous folk in the village as
their pare nts, referrin g to all olde r resi-
dents as "Mother" an d "Father."
G6. The Furnace
Du e to the short su pply of fuel in th e
caves, blacksmith ing is an expensive
an d exacting pr ofession. ~ n order to
help mi tigate this, Barbas's sm iths sha re
a co mmu na l fo rge . Situated directl y
be nea th a narrow chimney in the vault's
ceili ng, th e r esulting sm oke is qui ckly
d rawn upward and out of the cavern by
a cons tan t draft.
G7. Stoneweep
Altho ugh th e st ream that fee d s th e
cen tral pond in Barba s looks na tu ra l,
it is in fact ar tificial. Perh ap s the m ost
important dut y ofBarbas's p ries ts is the
d aily ritual in which they cast seve ral
create lva ter sp ells to re plenish the su pp ly
ofwater here. Ove rflow drifts to the west
along an anci ent creek bed , evapo rati ng
before accumulating enough to bur st its
me ager ba nks.
Visiting Barbas
If the PCs enter the town afte r defeating
the hook horrors, they are subj ected to
the nervous stares ofresid en ts who peer,
awed and anxious, from part ially dosed
ho vel doors.
After a few mo me nts, a tall albino
mongrel folk ma le, far less d eformed
than the othe rs (to the extent that he
almost looks human),st eps forward an d
ad dresses the party. The crowd grow s
quiet as he speaks. lfthe PCs und erstand
Olmnn, read the m th e followi ng.
"Greetings, travelers. My name is ve rt ram,
and 1 am th e head man here. I apologize
for th e... inconveniences... you have faced
with our guardians, but the tunnels in this
region become more dangerous with each
year. Regard less, our city is open to you.
Please put awayyour weapons, and be wet-
come in Barbas."
If the PCs make no aggressive m oves,
Vertram nods slightly,and the party sud-
den ly finds itself swarme d by children
and other residents, curiously pr odding
an d examining both their gear an d their
bod ies. After a ' moment Vert ram ste ps
forward and leads the party thro ugh the
narrow streets to the town hall, asking
que stions and pointing out various land -
marks. Once there, he in vites the PCs to
st ay with him in th e hall, an d immedi -
ate ly orders the p reparation ofa feast. If
Irgzid is still with th e party, Vertram is a
littl e suspicious of the troglod yte, but as
lo ng as th e PCs vouch for him , he treats
him as a gues t as well.
The town hall itself is two stori es tall
and significa ntly larger tha n the other
structures, though bu ilt of th e sam e
sc ra ps and d etritus. In side, Ver tr am
d irects the PCs to several guest room s
with exactly en ough bed s to go aro und,
m att resses pile d high with strange but
soft anim al pelt s, before leading them to
a large chambe r used for town m eetin gs.
The feast is attend ed by himself and the
PCs only, and cons ists of a bland di n-
ncr ofm ushro oms and tough , salty m eat
fro m a monstr ous centiped e.
Vert ram (m ale mo n grelfolk expert
3/wiz.1fd 2) is an ano maly among the
citi zens of Barbas. Despite generations
of in cest an d int erbreed in g, his Olman
bloo d has remaine d dominant. While
st ill a mong relfo lk, he co uld pass as
h um an. That said. life in the caves has
still left its mark-s-in addition to h is red
eyes and albino skin, vert ram's left cheek
bears a swi rling, puckered scar that pu lls
th at side of his face into a permanent
sm irk, and shoulder-length hair does not
quite h id e the fact that he 's com ple tely
mis sing his right car.
Vert ram en cou rages th e party to rest
an d recoup, bar tering with th e locals for
an ything th ey m ight need and shari ng
stories oCthe su rface world. After they've
eaten and taken care of an y imm ed iate
bu sin ess, however, he sits the party down
and con fesses to th em that he fears for the
safety ofhis people. For manygenerations,
the y've lived in relative peace with the
troglod ytes of the uppe r caverns . Yet
recently.one tribe in particular has becom e
more aggressive, and mo re warlike. Th e
maze and the ho ok horrors have don e
well enough to keep these troglodytes
from directl y assaulting Barbas, but for
the past several years it's been mu ch m ore
da ngerous than anyone can remember to
travel the outer caverns.
Vertra m belie ves that change is
coming to Barbas. He's hear d wh ispers
in th e air warning of d ire events, of
so met hi ng sti rri ng d eep below . The
citize ns of Bar bas know of t he kop ru
of Goli smorga on ly as vague stories of
m onst ers th at d well in the forbid den
caverns, and whil e Vert ram knows little
m or e tha n that , he does belie ve that
these creatures, kn own as th e Lor ds
o f Dread, have beco me more active. In
th ese wh ispers an d in h is dreams, he' s
seen im ages of "m en and women from
the land of ligh t" who com e to Barbas
to d eliver h er from these dark times.
H e does not go as far to say th at the PCs
are th e ones he's dr eam ed of, bu t h is
exp ress io n says enough.
Unfo rt unately, Vertr am kn ows littl e
m ore abo ut what awaits the PCs. He can
relate the legend s and h isto ry of Barbas,
of ho w the an cest ors of the su r face
waged war with a city ofdemon fish deep
below, and o f how they d rew tha t war to
an end by cas ting down the tear of the
god of rain and storms in to the depths .
This tear bu rst, and dr ove the waters of
th e floode d caverns away, and th e spi rits
of the fallen ancie n ts now gua rd th is
regi on . Their presence holds the waters
at bay, and as long as they pers ist, the
demon fish can not re tu rn. Yet Vertram
believes that something else has filled
the void left by the expulsion ofthe fish.
He fears th at wha tever has mov ed into
th e ruins ofGolismo rga may be seeking
th e vile secrets of th e demon fish, and
th at if they di scover th ese secrets th ey
may beco me an even greater threat to
the world.
Vert ra m is pr ep ar ed to let the pe s
stay in Barbas as long as they wish, b ut
on ce th ey speak of a n eed to leave, he
asks if they wou ld like to see on e of the
d em on fish . If the PCs would, he smiles
cryp tically, gathers severa l m ong relfolk
MARCH 20 07 DUNGEON 47
 THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS
gu ard s, and leads th em back t hrou gh t he
maze and do wn to area H .
As the p e s leave Barbas, th ey n otice
its resid ent s silently packing th eir few
belon gin gs, an d no te many exp ress ions
of sadness and fear. Ifthcy ask Ve rtram,
h e exp lain s that h is visions ha ve wa rn ed
h im that the doom tha t comes to Barb as
can not be diverted. After he returns
from gui d ing the pa rty to the Cavern
of the Sleeping Go d, h e in tend s to
lead his people up to h ighe r caves, o r
perh aps even th e su rface. Barb as's time
has come an d gon e. If the p e s return
h er e late r in t he advent ure, th ey find th e
place deser ted .
H , Cavern of the Sleeping God
Eleva tion: 2 0300 feet below sea level
Distan ce from the Way to Barb as: 2 mi les
48 DUNGEON MARCH2007
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUDER
O n t he far side of th is large cave rn, a
shimmering blue wall extends all the
way to t he sixty-foot -high ceiling . Across
its s u rface, ghos tly Olman wa rrio rs
shi m mer an d nic ker. J us t beyo nd it,
t he occas iona l bub ble o r flas h of sc ales
revea ls t he presence of t ho usa nds of
ga llons of wate r, their awesome weight
he ld at ba y by the shell of ene rgy.
On the floor in the cente r of the cave is
a st range-looking mo und of sto ne shaped
like an e normo us, pet rified fish.
Though aboleth s are cap able of leaving
th e water an d dragging thems elves along
th e ground with t heir tent acles when
necessary. their m ucous-like skin dries out
qu ickly, eventually ha rdening to a shell so
st iff th at they find th emselves unable to
move at all. In this situation , the effectively
im m o rtal crea tu res do no t die, but in stead
ent er a state o f hibern ati on known as
"th e Long Dr eaming" until im mer sed in
water. at which point th ey return to their
no rmal state in a matter of mi nutes. While
petrifi ed, an abolcth rem ains awake and
awa re of its surround ings, but is unabl e
to take any actions, even purely m ental
one s. Over time, th is ho rrific state dri ves
most aboleths mad ,and th is particular on e
(caug ht over a th ousan d years ago by th e
detonation ofT1aloc'sTear) is no exception .
lfthe PCs were led here by Vert ra rn, he
unveils his pri ze with considerable pri de
and po mp. Though the citizens of Barbas
di scover ed the creatu re lon g ago, few have
been bra ve eno ug h to place an ear to its
side and hear the sloshing, rhythmi c thud
of th e creature's inn er organs, an d fewer
st ill have be en granted permission by th e
headma n to study it, lest they somehow
awaken the sleeping giant. That, h owever,
is exactly what he recommends the party
do, urging th em to "open it up"and learn as
m uch as th ey can from th e creature before
continuing on to Golismor ga.
PCs who ap proach and exa m in e th e
hibern ating h orror ca n m ake a DC 17
Kn owledge (d u ngeo n ee ring) check to
recognize th e petr ified fish as an abo leth.
A DC 17 Heal check made while examining
it reveals that th e aboleth is still alive, but
in som e form of hibe mation that renders
it immob ile, even whe n att acked. The
leathe ry, dried husk grants the aboleth a
+6 bonu s on its natural armor (offsetting
the penalty for being reduced to a Dexterity
of 0 ) and damage red uction sfadamantine.
Nonetheless, since the aboleth is unable to
defend itself, th e pe s gain no experience
for killing it.
I. Temple of the Ancient Ones (EL 8)
Eleva tio n: 4 ,0 0 0 feet belo w sea level
D is tanc e fro m the Way to Barb as:
20 miles
Di stan ce from th e Cavern of th e Sleep.
ing God: 16 mil es
The t unn el walls here cha nge sudde nly
from ro ug h natu ral sto ne to an int ricately
carved corrido r bearing glyphs and mosaics
of Olman desig n,just before they open into
an im men se flooded chamber. The walls
of the sq ua re cha mber rise up in steps,
formi ng an inve rted zigg urat with an apex
forty feet above the da rk wate rs th at flood
t he roo m to j ust be low t he edge of the
en tra nce. The floor is a ruin of smas hed
pillars and sma ll islands const ructed in t he
sa me ro ugh ly pyramidal fas hio n. In t he
ce nter, a line of destroyed colum ns and
altars protr udes a few feet above the sur;
face, creating a makesh ift br idge that d ips
briefly into the water before reachin g t he
cont inuing passage o n t he far side .
T h is cha mber i s whe re t h e
t ro glo dytes m eet wit h the kopru s to
rec eive shadolV pearls. This close to
h is abol eth pa tro n, Irgzid grows more
and more excit ed, bu t do es h is bes t
t o ma intai n his co mp os ure. Any PC
tha t spea ks with lr gzid with in a mil e
of thi s locati on ca n ma ke a Sen se
Motive che ck op pose d by l rgzid 's Blu ff
che ck to rea lize the troglo dyte is just
barel y re strainin g hi s excitemen t. If
questi on ed, Irgzid adm its that th ey're
com ing clo se t o wher e the troglo dytes
receive sh ipme n ts of shadow pearls
from th e Lord s of Dread. Only if
m agi call y co m pelle d o r th rea tene d
with a s uccessful In ti mid at e check
does he re vea l the pr es ence of the
abo leth N'glot hnoru, at whic h point he
begs th e pe s to speak to th e cre ature
for fear of the im plied reper cussions
for hi s tribe.
The water in th is chamb er varies fro m
10 to 50 fee t in depth , and is thick with
dark , foul-smelling algae and ribb on s
of slime from the lon g confinement of
its prisone r.
The tro gl od yt e s arr ive at th e
no r ther n la ndin g o n th e day of th e
mee ti ng and wait for th e ko pr us
to arrive at th e souther n ent ranc e.
Whe n the ko prus arr ive, on e swims
across th e roo m whil e th e othe rs
sta nd gua rd, pr ep ar ed to le ap in to
th e wate r to punish thei r p riso ner
(see Crea ture, b elow) if i t caus es any
problems. Em erg ing at th e trogl od yte
en d of th e roo m, he unfold s a portable
hole th at co n ta ins the latest s hip men t
of Id 4 shadow pearls, st ill crad led in
t he ir bilesto ne she lls; th e tro gl od yte s
ta ke the pearls and loa d th em on to
a p alanqui n m ad e of b o n es and
leath er, ha n ding th e li stl ess, dru gged
slaves p ro vid ed by t h eir Cr imso n
Fleet con tacts ove r to the kop rus in
paym ent. Th e slaves are loaded into
the portable hole an d th e ko pr u returns
with his kin to Golis m or ga, wh ile th e
t roglodytes retu rn to Laogr oat to crack
open th e bil estone she lls, re move th e
MARCH 2007 DUNGEON 49
 THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS
shadow pearls, an d wait for th e next
vis it fro m Scuttl ecove to begin t h e
process anew.
Creatu re:Th e aboleth N'gloth noru was
tra ppe d in th is cavern wh en TIa/oc's Tear
drove th e water from th ese caves. Quickly
s uccumbing to the Long Dream in g,
th e stranded abolet h was the first one
di scover ed by the Olman s who came
down to inve stigate the results the ir
work , and it becam e a sym bol for the
triu mph over Golis morga. The Olmans
erect ed a templ e around the d reamin g
aboleth, carving away at the cavern walls
to surround their captu red foe with th e
marks of their own civilization.
Afte r th e Olma n em pire collapsed,
N'glothnoru spen t several h und red
yea rs alo ne in th is iso la ted cave rn .
Not lon g after th e kopru s d iscover ed
the rui ns of Golismo rga, a band of
scouts cam e across th is cave rn and
were bem used by th e abol eth 's plight.
SO DUNGEON MARCH 2007
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUITER
T hey 'd seen ot he r petrifie d abo leths
else where, b ut th is one's obvio us
to r m ent amused the m . Using abolet h
gly ph magic th ey'd d isco vered an d
m as ter ed in Go li smo rg a , kopr u
pri est s ins cribed an inverted E'yph of
extension, t rans forming it into a .9l)'P"
ofsuppression that blocks N'glo th no ru 's
en slave ability.Th eythen us ed a deca nter
of endless woter to fill th e bott om half
oft he chambe r, awakeni ng th e ab oleth
into its new prison.
The aboleth has bee n tort ured an d
tormented by the kop ru s for h undreds
of years now. Indeed, mu ch of what th e
koprus know now about Golismorga's
secrets was pried from N'glothno ru . Yet
desp it e the peri od of Long Dreami ng
and the followi ng centuri es of equ ally
frus trat ing to rme nt, N'glothno ru has
re tain ed a good portion ofits cogn ition.
Wh ile it knows that it sta nds a good
chance of over powering its oppressors
and esca ping the cham ber, it h ~s no
ide a h ow far it is to ope n water and
doesn't relish the idea of en teri ng the
excruciating Long Dreaming agai n. For
centuries , it has been cont en t to wait and
see what happen s.
Nglothn oru remains ever vigilant, and
as soon as it no tices the PCs' arrival in the
cave, it uses veil on itself to assume the
shape of a gho stly troglodyte high pri est,
the n uses proj ect ima,ge to manifest an
image of its di sguise ato p the eastern
balcony. Even if the PCs are stealthy
about the ir en trance, if Irgzid is with
th em , the troglodyte moves ahead of th e
PCs into the roo m to loudly an nounce
himself, saying, "I have brought you the
h eroe s you ask ed for, Fath er! What do
you wish ofthem?"
Through the proj ected ima.ge of hi s
t roglodyte priest -gho st, N'gloth no ru
add resses the PCs (and Irgzid, if h e's
the re), telling them it is a manifesta tio n
of th e to rmente d spirits ofthi s realm. It
speaks in Draconi c at first, but due to its
Memo ry Eater feat, it can easily switch
to any other language to comm unicate if
it wishes.
N'glothnoru wants on e thing, and one
thi ng on ly:the dest ruction ofthe Cerulean
Cu rtain. It knows that some thing in
Golism orga is su staini ng th e barr ier,
and glad ly relates thi s informa tion ,
telling the PCs that the Curta in's anchor
lies withi n the ruins of Golismo rga, and
that it is somehow connected to the
Oiman god of rain, T laloc. In add ition,
being presen t for coun tless shadowpearl
han d-ofTs has given it a vague outline
of th e related plot, though it remains
ignorant of the plot's tr ue mastermind.
As soon as th e PCs arr ive, the aboleth
realizes that its salvatio n is at hand-if
it plays its cards right. In talking with
the PCs, it uses any means necessary to
convin ce the charac ter s to contin ue on
to Golism o rga to break the Curtain, lying
or telling the tru th with equa l ease and
relying on its power fu l alien m ind to
shield its true moti ves. For some parti es,
it m ight offer a portion of the tru th-
tha t dest royin g the Cerulean Curtain
and floodi ng Golism orga is th e best
way to take out the koprus' shadow pearl
op eration completely- tho ugh whethe r
it states this as itselfor in the guise ofthe
troglodyte sp irit de pends on the party.
It migh t even att em pt blatant brib ery or
suggest that th e koprus are prepared to
launch an all-out shadow pearl attack on
th e su rface world . Whatever the story,
N'glot hno ru tries to ens ure that th e
party comes away from the conversation
with two key pieces of in for mat ion :
that th e Ceru lean Curtain is genera ted
from somewh ere in Go lismorga, and
th at destroyin g it is the only way to
permanently disru pt the shadow pearl
creation pr ocess.
N'g lo thn oru has n o int ere st in
co mba t, but if attacked it uses its
proj ected ima,g c t o creat e hy pnotic
patterns and illu sion s to try to tri ck the
PCs int o ent eri ng th e wate r below so
it can att ack th em ph ysically. If al so
tri es to tri ck the par ty into des t roying
the ,gly ph of suppress ion on th e ceili ng
above , per haps clai m ing th at it is the
o nly th in g th at keeps the water in this
cham ber fro m van ishing.
N 'GLOT H N OR U e R8
Elit e aboleth
LE Garg ant uan aberrat ion (aquat ic)
M onster M anual 9
lnl t +2; Senses darkvision 60 fl.: List en +13,
Spot +13
Aura mucus cloud (l -ft., Fort DC 21)
Languages all
AC 17, touch 9, flat-footed 15
hp 92 (8 HD)
Fort +9, Ref +4, Will +8
Spd 10 ft., swim 60 ft.
Melee 4 tentacles +13 (l d8+9 plus slime,
DC 21)
Space 15 ft.; Reach 10 ft.
Base Atk +6; Grp +23
Special Actions enslave(DC 19, cannot use
in this encounter)
Psionics (CL16th)
At will-hypnotic pattern (DC 17), illusory
LVall (DC 19), mirage arcana (DC 20),
persistent image (DC 20), programmed
image (DC 21), proj ect imag e (QC 22), lieU
(DC 21)
J/day-q uickened illusory",all (DC 19)
Abilities Str 29, Dex14, Con 24,Int 15,Wis
14, Cha 21
Feats Improved Natural Attack (tentacle),
Memory Eater,Quicken Spell-like Ability
(illusory"'0'0
Skills Concentration +18, Knowledge (arcana)
+13, li sten +13,Spot +13, Swim +17
Memory Eater This feat (Lords of Madness
22) allows N'glothno ru to retain all of the
memories of any eaten creature, granting
it the ability to make untrained skill
checks in any skill and the ability to speak
all languages.
Ad-Ho c Expe rience Award: If the PCS
avo id combat wit h N'gloth no ru and learn
abo ut T1aloc'sTearand the koprus from it,
give them a CR 9 experience award.
of whispe ring wells up from below, and t he tering swar m s of g rubs, wh ite spid ers,
J. Hall of the Dreamers (EL 12) ground looks almost like it's moving. wh ip scor pions , cen tip edes, a nd othe r
Elevation: 7,00 0 feet below sea level ver m in. Although horrifying to observe,
D istance from th e Temple ofth e Ancient The na tu ral stone bridges are wide bu t this immense swarm is physically ha rm-
Ones: 17 miles sm ooth and slippery, 'wi th edges that slope less to larger creatu res. Nonetheless, any
away dramati cally from a fairly narrow crea tu re stan ding on th e ground in the
The passageway opens into a rough ly band of level gro und down the center of pit is quickly swar med by the crea tu res,
circular cavern. A ten-foot-wide ledge runs the bridge. A cha racter who runs or fights a nd m ust m ake a DC 14 Fortitud e save
across the nort hern and sout hern faces of on a bridge m ust make a DC 12 Balan ce eac h round or be nau seat ed for 1 ro un d.
the room, with a passage leading away from check. Failure by 5 or more indi cates a slip The larger ve rmin that dwell in th is cav-
each. Graceful arcs of natural stone bridge and ao-fbct -fall int o the rubble below. ern are not so hindered by the swarms.
the two ledges in three places, although the The six fishlike shapes are aboleth that Creat ur es : While t he majo rity of the
easte rnmost bridge has collapsed in the ha ve succu mbed to th e Lon g Dreaming. in sect s swarming in the pit are ha rm less
cente r, leaving a five-foot-wide gap. Above, Th e y've lain in cl ose proximi ty for verm in , th e th ree ho rse-sized arach n ids
the ceiling rises up to a height of nearly forty centuries, un able to make contact wit h th at clam ber abou t on t he walls a re no t.
feet, while below the ground drops away an each other or affect their surround ings. These monste rs are blackfan g rhagodes-
equal distance into a rubble-strewn gulf. Yet they are not a lo ne . sa s, sp id e r- li ke creatures with dark
What appear to be six immense petrified The whispering sound an d strangely b rown and yellow striped bod ies. The
fish lie on the floor of the crevice.The sou nd moving grou n d are the res u lt of ch it- fro nt pa ir of thei r ten spin d ly legs en d

MARCH 2007 DUNGEON Sl

 THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUTTER

52 DUNGEON MARCH 2007

in terrible discs st u dde d with d ozens of
h ooked sucke rs. Even more h orr ifying
a re th eir o ver sized head s do mi nate d by
twi n pairs of vertica lly sna p pin g b lack
ma nd ibles t he size of scim itars. Cha rac-
ters may recognize t he genera l sh ape of
the se m on sters from their first encoun-
ter ab oard th e Blue Nixie so lo n g ago, yet
th ese cr eat u res ar e nearly three tim es
th e size of t he rh agodessas t hey fought
in Sasserin e.
T he blaekfang rhagodessas quickly
clamber up t he walls to att ack anyo ne
who enters, an d pursue as lo ng as the y
can to complete th eir m eals.
Bl.ACKFANG RHAGODESSAS (3) CR 9
Advanced rhagodessa
N La rge vermin
D U N GEO N #13 9 46
Init +0; Senses darkvisio n 60 ft.; listen +2,
Spot +2
AC 14, touch 9, flat-footed 14
hp 102 (12 HD)
Immune vermin traits
Fort +12, Ref+4, Will +6
Spd 40 fl., climb 40 fl.
Melee 2 pedipalps +17 (0 damage) and
bite +lS(2d6+l3)
Space 10 ft.: Reach 5 ft.
Base Atlt +9; Grp +26
Atk Options Spring Attack, improved grab
(pedi palp), powe rful bite
Abilities Str 28, Dex 10, Con 18, Int - , Wis
14, Cha 6
Feats Multiattack, Spring Attack
Improved Grab (Ex) To use this ability,a
rhagodessa must hit a creature of its
size o r sm aller with a pedipalp attack. It
can the n attempt to start a grapple as a
free action withou t provoki ng an attack
of opportunity. If it establishes a hold, it
can make a bite attack as a free action,
gaining a +4 bonus on its attack roll
with this attack. The hooks and suckers
the rhagodessa uses to clutch prey tear
flesh if a grapple creature escapes with
an opposed grapple check, causing
Id6 points of damage to the escaping
creature. Acreature that escapes with
Escape Artist does not suffer this damage.
A rhagodessa has a +4 racial bonus o n
grapple checks.
Powerful Bite (Ex)Arhagodessa's bite
is always a secondary attack, yet t he
powerful muscles in its jaws allow it to
apply 1.S times its Strength modifier to
damage rolls with it.
Feats A rhagodessa gains Multiattack and
Spring Attack as bonu s feats.
Tr easure: A D C 25 Search check uncov-
er s the skeletal body ofa long-dead kuo -
toa exp lo rer, obscure d by the SWJrm of
vermin (ift he ver mi n ar e di sposed of, the
body is a uto matically di scovered). Mo st
ofthe kuo-to a's gea r ha s rotted away, but
glittering on o ne ofi ts skeletal finge rs is
a coral ringoJevasion.
PART THREE: CITY OF
MADNESS
Mile s beneath th e Isle of Dread's cen t ral
mesa and th e ru in s of an cien t Thanaclan
festers a cavity in the endless rock There,
over th e cours e ofeons, the aboleths rai sed
their pr ofan e, half-living city: Golismorga.
For un countable centuries they worked
their foul plots, lit only by the unhealth y
violet light of the Pillars ofY'c bak, until
th e Olm an pe ople came to the land above.
And with th e aid of their god of rain , th ey
d ro ve th e wate r fro m the city.
For cent u r ies , Go li smorga lay
unclaimed , until the koprus, led through
the lab yrinthine darkness by the whispers
of the ir un h oly m aster Demogorgon,
discovered the dried and gas ping ru ins. In
th at p it ofinsan ity, the Prince ofDem on s
taugh t h is favored priests how to utilize
th e foul crea tions oft he ab oleth s an d work
bilest one, the secretion of unfath omab le
b eings known as Elde r Evils. Koprus have
h au nted Go lis morga's ruins ever since,
wor king the w ill of their demon m aster,
th ough ha rassed by seem ingly end less
abom inable remnants of t he abo leths '
an cien t ru le.
Golismorga
Golismorga occu pies a ma ssive, 300 -
foo t- hi gh caver n n ea rly 2 ,000 fed across
an d ove r 3,0 0 0 feet wide, su rro un d ed
by num ero us adjoi ning caves. On ce
filled com pletely with wate r, the abo leth
metro poli s contains st ru ctures of ro ck,
hardened mucu s, livin g flesh , an d ot h er
even m ore ali en material s. Wh en the
ancient Olman s u nleas hed TIaloc's Tear
u pon the city, the ban ish ed waters no t
o n ly drove o ut t he abo leth s but ruined
m any ofthe city's st ru ctu res, which used
th e wate r fo r su pport. Stone b uildin gs
have par tiall y colla psed, and organ ic ed i-
fices have gasped , rotted, and suffered
cen t ur ies -lon g decli n es, growing t hick
with m ol d and infectio n .
Golismo rga is a terrible ru in of sto n e
rubble , ram pant fungi , a nd gr ea t hunks
of bl ack, flesh y res in too fou l to d ecay.
After their en counter wit h N'g lot h noru
or the u se of d ivination spe lls, th e PCs
likel y hav e o n e of two obje cti ve s in
min d- an assa ul t on t he kopru -he ld
sect io n of the ru in s, or a seek -a n d -
dest roy m ission to l 1aloc's Tear. While
bot h locati o n s are re lat ively close by,
t he mazelike na ture ofth e ru ins m eans
that m a kin g the se t reks by foo t take s
three times as long. Flight makes tra vel
only slightly easi er, as th e city's g narle d
spi r es a n d fleshy a pp en dages twis t at
impo ssible an gles as th ey cla w to ward
th e cavern ceiling.
K. Entrance to Golismorga
Elevatio n: 10 ,500 feet b elow sea level
Di stance from th e H all ofth e Dr eamers:
6 m iles
Within th is immense cavern broods a realm
of gigantic polyps and int ricate fungi so
large and elaborate t hat the y seem almost
to compli me nt th e twisted towers, te m ples,
t he myriad const ructio ns of an insa ne city.
Rui ned citad els of cyclop ean g randeu r
tan gle amid spires t hat look to have been
g rown rat her th an built- hom es for beings
with unsp eakable forms. Sense less bridges
reach to su icide heig hts , dropping away
into squamous slums and melte d ghettoes.
Seemingly accide nta l avenues and inacces -
sible alleys form an un fat ho mab le maze,
a labyrint h th at str etches to the su bte rra-
nean horizon. Across it all bulge imag es of
g narled, te ntacled t hings and red dom es
that glisten like un blinking, dem oniac eyes.
The already stale air has grown foul and
close in t his place, as if the sme ll of rot was
someh ow trying to crowd ou t th e final gas p
offreshness reaching these forsaken de pths.
Bursting from the demented cityscape,
three titanic colu mns of unearth ly violet
flame churn sile ntly like t he pillars of so me
giga nt ic te mp le, bath ing t he ent ire cavern
in a nauseati ng violet lig ht- a light that
MA RCH 2007 DUN GEON 53
 T H E L1GHTLESS DEPTHS
seems so me how mo re ho rrib le th a n th e
dar kness tha t lu rks at t he edges of this
nightma re grotto.
Th e cavernous ledge is approximately
200 feet fro m the cavern floor. Eroded
smooth, the walls are difficult to climb,
req uiring a DC 27 Clim b chec k to tra-
verse without aid.
L . Secondary Entrances
Four add itional entrances exist in to Gel -
ismo rga at each location mar ked "L" on
the m ap. These tunnels eventually lead
back to the Ceru lean Curtain , arriving
at poi nts wh ere th e caves 'are flood ed .
Little but m onstr ous vermin. dwell in
these tunnels.
M . Deep Entrances
These four lower passageways con nect to
Golismo rga via deep rents in th e cavern
floor (area N). Th ese passageways lead
even dee per into the Unde rda rk, often
leading to sma ller abandone d abole th
ou tpo sts similar to (bu t smaller th an )
Golis m o rga. These passages become
flood ed once they reach the Cer ulea n
Cu rtai n, and lead on from there to
und ersea exits.
N. Chasms
Four deep chas ms dr op away fr om the
cave floor in Golismorga. These ch asms
vary from on e hu ndr ed to th ree h undred
feet dee p, an d allow access to the dee p
en trance s to th e cavern. Ropers, mon-
strous ver m in , and clim bing oozes arc
comm on in thes e foul dep th s.
O. Pillars of Y'cha'
Fou r violet colu m ns of churning fire
lig ht Golismorga (a lth ou gh th e fou rt h
is set in a side cavern to the northwest).
These magical pillars offire are an cient
aboleth creations th at survived the deto-
nation of TIntoe's Tear, and still provid e
an un earthly light. These eldritch col -
umns of fire are m onumen ts to one o f
th e Elde r Evils. an entity calle d Y'cha k
who, un like the majo rity of Elde r Evils,
takes an active in terest in the ru in of
civiliza tion. The fact tha t thes e m onu-
me n ts survived th e ruin of Golis mo rga
is no t coinc iden tal.
54 DUNGEON MARCH 2007
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUTTER
'Ole pilla rs of Y'chak radiate a cold,
n au seatin g aura. An y creatu re that
appro ach es within 50 feet ofone of th ese
pillars m ust mak e a DC 30 Fortitude save
to res ist beco ming na useated for 2d6
rounds. A creatu re that ente rs one ofthe
pillars must mak e a DC 30 Fortitude save
each round to avoid being destroyed; a
creature slain by th e fires of'Y 'ch ak can
on ly be rest or ed to life by miracle, true
resurrection, or wisIJ. The denizen s of
Goli smorga have long since learned to
avoid the pillars.
P. Tlaloc's Crater
Th is ar ea is detailed in Part Fou r.
Q..HoIa!lhner's Ziggurat
This area is det ailed in Part Five.
Other Encounters in Golismorga
The ruins of Golismorga are exten sive,
and far fro m safe. Rather than detail
numerous keyed en cou n ter locations,
th is sect ion provides several enco unters
that could occur anywhe re in the ruin s.
These en counters have been left. fairly
un detail ed , so you can expand upon
them as you wis h, tailoring them to
your campaign. The PCs should have at
least one enc o unter befo re th ey reach
eith er destination ift hey head direct ly to
T laloc's Crater or Hclashner's Ziggu rat.
Evidence of Life
As the PCs explore, they witness ever
more evidence of Golismorga's op pid an
d em en tia. While not immediately dan -
gerous, the party rand om lyfroll rdq }sees
one of the followi ng: (1) A mon strous
to ng ue, split in a trip le fork, rolls from
a stru cture's flesh y absce ss, licks the red
do m es up on its surface, then recoils; (2)a
great pill ar of violet flam e nearly 60 feet
high app ear s in th e PCs' pat h, burns for
3 roun ds, then vanis hes; (3) a two-s tory -
tall lu ng heaves on th e side of a stru c-
ture. ga sping irregularly; (4) the wa lls of
a building are alive wit h cilia that retract
if the PCs touch th em , causi ng the build-
ing to growl.
Kopru Seouts (EL 10)
The kop ru s dwellin g near Holashner's
Ziggura t regu lar ly send gr oup s in to the
I
su rr ound ing ruins , both to patrol for
in truder s and to seek ancient ma gic.
Each of these scouting parties cons ists
of fo ur kop ru s an d eigh t do mi nated
troglodyte slaves. Each pair ofslaves bear
a single kopru on a leath ery palen qui n.
If the se sco u ts de tect the PCs, th ey
att em p t to domina te th em and br ing
them before their leader for question ing.
Alterna tively, if the PCs are stea lthy, th ey
m igh t follow the kopr us back to their
redoubt at Holash ner 's Ziggu rat. In all,
there are two ba nds of kopr u scou ts
active in Goli smorga; once the y are
de feated , the PCs face no more kopru s
until th ey near Holashner 's Ziggu rat.
A ko p ru is on ly human oid fro m
the torso up. It's lower bod y is ecllike.
with a tail cons isting of three powerfu l
flu kes, each end ing in a crue l hook. The
creature's talo ned h and s are web be d ,
and it s h ead is that of a h o rr ib le
large-eyed fish wit h fac ial tenta cles
su rr ou ndi n g a pu cker-like m aw filled
with tiny shar p teeth.
KO .RUS (4) CR 6
CE Medi u m m on strous huma no id
Monster Manual" 134
Init +2; Senses da rkvisio n 60 ft.; li st en +1,
Spot +1
languages Aquan , Olman
AC I S. touch 12. flat-footed 13
hp 36 (8 H D)
Fort +2, Ref +8, Will +9
Spd 5 ft., swim 40 ft.
Melee tail slap +10 (l d6+2) and
2 claws +8 (ld4+l) and
bite +8 (l d 4+1)
Bas e Atk +8; Grp +17
Atk Options con strict 3d6+3, imp roved grab
(tail slap)
Spe cial Action s dominate person (DC 16)
Ab ilities Str I S, Dex 14 , Con 11, Int 11, Wis
12, Cha 10
SQ amphibiou s
Feats Ability Focu s (d o m inate per son ), Iro n
Will, Mu ltiaUack
Skills Concent ration +8, Escap e Artist +8,
Move Silently +6, Sea rch +4, Swim +10
Po sse ss io n s co ral ho ly sym bo l of
De m ogorgon wo rth SO gp
Do m inat e Person (Su) A kopru ca n att empt
to domi nate pe rson o nce pe r da y, as the
s pe ll (CL 10t h), save tha t the range is 180
 feet and the dur ation is eight days. A DC
16 Will save resists the dom ination. The
save DC is Charisma-based.
Im proved Grab (Ex) If a kopru hits a target
its own size or smalle r with a tail slap, it
can attempt to start a g rap ple as a free
action that does not provoke an att ack of
opportun ity. lfit esta blishes a hold, it can
constrict. A kopru has a +7 racial bonu s
on gra pple checks .
Troglodyt es (8): hp 13 each; Monster
Manual 246.
Scholarly Devourer (EL 11)
An ancien t devourer named Rakis-Ka
came to Golismorga several :month s ago
and became fascinated by the ruin s. He is
particularly interested in the lore of the
Elder Evils, and hopes to discover a way
to feed upon and draw pmver from the
end less essences ofthese godlike beings.
It's likelyhe notices the PCs' entrance into
Golismo rga and seeks them out to dis-
cover what they know of the Elder Evils
an d arrogan tly converse about what he
has learn ed (little more than the beings'
names and what structures the aboleth
built to honor them, see page 27 of Lords cif
Ma dTJ{~ss). You can use an encounter with
Rakis-Ka to help guide th e PCs toward
Holashn er's Ziggurat or Tlaloc's Crater if
they need some direction but regardless
of how amenably the PCs condu ct them-
selves, the devourer is tempted by the
part y's essences and stalks them not long
after they part ways, int ent on consum ing
at least one of the ir souls.
Rakis- Ka, devourer : hp 78; Monster
Manila/ 58.
Screaming Buildings
A blood -curdling screa m rises from
so me di stant place wit hin th e city. A
moment lat er, the sound echoes back,
alth ough slightly distor ted. Then again
it echoes, though taking on a gurgling
tone , and again , closer, even m ore dis-
torted. Any PC that makes a DC 18 lis-
ten check perceives that the "echoes" are
actually coming from the fleshy build-
ings the mselves.
Shaboath Pools (EL 1'1.)
Th e PCs come to an area decorated with
a pair of shallow pools of dark wate r.
Damaged stone statues oft entacled eyes
devouring stars and suns coil out of each
pool. Th e pools arc still filled with what
looks like br ackish wate r,but a character
may make a DC 2 0 Knowledge (arcana)
check to notice th at there is som e-
th ing fund amentally wrong with the
fluid. Th ese waters are actu ally ancient
construct s lefl behind by the aboleths,
guard ians crafted from the ir own slimy
extru sion s known as sha boath golem s.
A sha peless mass of semi-transparent
sludge and water, a shaboath creates four
large tenta cles to cru sh its victims on ce
it attacks. Largelyind istingui shable from
water when at rest, th e con stru cts lay in
amb ush and do no t attack until a non -
aboleth comes with in ten feet of a pool's
edge. Onc e one activates, the other does
as well, and bot h fight unt il destroyed.
SHABOATHS (2) ·CR 10
N cons truct (cold)
Lords of Madness 166
Init - l ; Sen se s da rkvision 60 ft., low-light
vision; Li ste n +0, Spot +0 minute as a sta nda rd action tha t does not
AC 20, tou ch 8, flat-footed 20 pro voke an atta ck of opportunity.
hp 60 (II HD): DR 10/- Wate ry Conc ealm ent (Ex) An u nde rwate r
Immun e add , cold shabcath is difficult to see, and gains
Fort +3, Ref +2, Will +3 conceal men t (50% m iss chance).
Weakne ss vuln erable to fire
Spd 20 fl., swim 30 ft. Sloughed Skin (EL 9)
Melee 4 sla ms +14 (2d l 0+7) Th e vibr ation s of the party's passage dis-
Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft. ru pt the husk of a nearby rott ing build-
Base Atk +8; Grp +19 in g, triggin g an avalanc he of decaying
Atk Option s improved grab flesh like resin . T he resultin g slide is 80
Special Act ions eng ulf, wall of ice feet wide with a ao-foot bu ry zone in th e
Abilitie s Str 25, Dex 9, Con - , Int - , Wis cent er and a ao-foot slide zone on eith er
II , Cha 1 side. Treat th is as a normal avalanche,
SQ watery concealm ent as det ailed on page 90 of the Dun,gcon
Engulf (Ex) A sh aboath can attempt to Master's Guide, bu t any creatu re dam -
engulf a grappled op pone nt of its size or aged by the mas sive amount ofdecaying
smaller by making a successful grapple flesh mu st make a DC 15 For titu de save
check. Once inside, a victim takes or contr act red ach e (Durl,geon Master's
2dl 0+l 0 points of crushing da mage per Cnide,page 292).
rou nd. If th e oppo nent ca nnot breathe
water, it m ust hold its breath or begin to Wandering Brain Collector (EL 7)
drow n. An engulfed creature can escape Wh en TIal oc's Tear deton at ed , th e
by mak ing a successful grapp le check resulting storm of Olma n ma gic and
or Escape Artist check. A sha boath can failing aboleth incant ation s caus ed a
engulf 1 Large, 2 Medium, 4 Small, 8 mom entary ri ppl e in reali ty. In that
Tiny, 16 Diminutive, or 32 Fine creatu res in sta nt, a powerful cre ature fro m th e
at one time. Far Realm , a hid eous monster called a
Wall of Ice (Su) A shabcath can gen e rate a neh -th alggu (brain collec tor ) was drawn
wall of ice (as t he spe ll, CL 20t h) once pe r into the worl d. Th e otherworldly thing
MARCH 2007 DUNGEON 55
 THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS
lin gere d in Go lism org a fo r a ti m e,
feast ing on the abo let hs' terri fied skum
servan ts and even t u all y s pawn in g
cou nt less young. The or ig inal n eh-
thal ggu h ad lon g si nc e d epa rted
Go lis morga even befor e the ko pru s
sett led he re , bu t its spawn have lin gered
in th e city over th e cen tu ri es, seeking
brai n s even as they desire to stay n ear
T1afoc's Tear. hopi n g it m ight aga in op en
a way to thei r terrifyi ng h om e.
Brain Collector: hp 85; sec Appen d ix.
Worm Food (EL 12)
A d u ll grin di n g no ise reson ate s from
aro und a corner. In vestigation reveals
the bod y o f a giga ntic pu rp le.worm, it s
bod y pinned to the ground by a terr ible
buildin g with a b ulbous b lack exte rior
ridd led with gill-like gashe s. The bu ild-
ing seem s to have par tially collapsed on
th e m assive predator, but the way rows
ofpale, cart ilagi no us steeples have fallen
make it look mor e like the structure bi t
down on the worm as it slith ered by.
Una ble to escape an d slowly bleedin g to
dea th, the worm ven ts its p rimal rage on
any creature tha t comes with in its reach.
Alth ou gh it can not move , th e pu r pl e
wor m can make fu ll U St of its attacks
up on anyth ing tha t st um bles in reach of
its bite or stin g.
Wou nded Purp le Worm: hp 2 0 0 (cu r-
rently 120 ); Monster Manua1 211 .
PART FOUR: TLALOC'S
CRATER
A wide crater in the shatte red cavern floor
has become an abscess for all the pungent
fluids that seep and bleed from the alien
city. Rent as if by some great impact , the
cracked depr ession blosso ms with sickly
molds and tumid blue and white mush-
rooms several heads taller tha n a full-
grown man. Languid veins of muc us trickle
down the sides of the crater to pool at the
basin's floor, leaving only a sma ll patch of
fractured ea rth undespoi led. Atthe crater's
botto m sits the ten-foot-wide stone head
of a reptilian creature with bulging eyes, a
forked ton gue, and a headdress offea thers
and spikes. The stone head is cracked and
damaged , and as the black sludge pools
aro und the stump of its neck it sizzles and
56 DUNGEO N MARCH 2007
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUDER
evaporates into swirling blue-green wisps
of vapor.
Wh en t h e p ries ts of Th anacla n
soug ht to pu rge Go lism orga, th ey use d
th eir great magic to bore a shaft d irect ly
from their cit y into th e abo leth s' realm
b el ow, pu n cturing th e ro of o f th e
cavern dir ectly ab ove th is poi nt. The y
th en se n t TIaloc's Tear hurt ling in to th e
dep th s, accom pan ied b y their grea te st
war riors an d p r ie s ts. Moving into
po si tion over th e cent er of th e d read
city, the terr ib le weap on of th e god o f
rain wo rked it s poten t m agic, d riving
all t he wate r fr om Go li sm orga an d
h ol ding it back in defin itely. It s in itial
purpose ful filled, th e ar ti fact s p ira led
int o th e collapsi n g city bel ow, st ri kin g
th e t re m b l in g caver n floor wi t h the
force o f its d eific creator's m igh t an d
openi n g a sizable crat er u po n im pac t.
T laloc's Tear h as rema ine d th e re
fo r cen tu ri es.
Ttal oc's cr ate r is 1 5 0 feet across
and 50 feet de ep. It s sides an gle at a
45° slo p e, r equ ir in g a D C 1 0 Cli m b
che ck to tra verse. The cra t er flo or
is strewn with r ub b le a nd coun ts as
di fficul t terrain. T he fun g i an d bilious
se cret io ns th at tr ick le d own th e walls
of t h e crate r he re ar e as d an ge rous
as the y are di sgu stin g. The p atch es
of mold , desp ite th eir n oxious gre en
h u e, r eact to m otio n as yellow mold
(D u nn eon Master's G u id e 76 ). T h e
r ivule ts o f corrupt io n ar e r ip e wi th
d isease- an yon e who t ou ches th e stuff
m ust m ake a DC 14 Fortitude sa ve or
con t ract slimy d oom (Dunn eo" Master's
Gu ide 29 2). Th e p ool o fi n fectio us ooze
at the cr ater 's ba se is five feet d ee p.
Th e sto ne hea d at the cen ter of th e
cr ater can be id ent ified wit h a DC 25
Kn owled ge (religion) ch eck as th e h ead
ofTl al oc, th e Olman god of rain.
Creatu re s: The kop rus kn ow of th is
site an d the stra n ge m agic that lingers
with in , b u t h ave be en de terred fro m
in vest igati ng it m or e tho rough ly by a
horror b eyon d rea son in g tha t dwe lls
wit hin . Th is is an im m en se n eh -
t ha lgg u, on e o f the o ri ginal spawn of
th e alien th at visited thi s site ov er ten
cent u ri es ag o. Afie r a mi llenn ium o f
stu d ying th e ripp les of m agic ene rgy
a ro u n d Tl alur's Tear, thi s g ig an t ic
brain coll ecto r b elie ves th at, gi ven a
few m ore sho rt d ecade s, it will ha ve
determin ed th e m et ho d o f awak in g th e
an cien t ar tifact to ren d tim e and space
again, allo wing it to re tu r n to it s tru e
h ome and com p lete its tr an sform ation
in to a mo nster of ep ic po tent ial.
Unt il t h at p oin t, th e n eh -t hal ggu
g ua r ds t his si te wi t h a ho rrifi c
te na city.
NE H ~T H A LGGU SCION CR 14
Advanced brain collector loremaster 4
CE Huge aberration
Dungeon Masters Guide 191, Page 64
Init +1; Senses d arkvislo n 60 ft.; Listen +22,
Spot +2
Languages Aboleth, Neh-thalggu: telepathy
60 fl .
AC 21, touch 10, flat-footed 20
hp 242 (257 with false lift. 20 HD); DR5/m .g;c
Immune critical hits, disease, pois ok
Fort + 14, Ref +7, W ill +17
Spd 60 ft.
M e le ~ bite +25 (4d8+18)
Space 15 ft.; Reach 10 ft.
Base Atk +14: Grp +34
Special Actio ns extract brain, metamagic
Spells Prepared (CL10th, +25 touch, + 14
ranged touch)
5th (5/d. y)--cone of rold (DC 25). hold
monster (DC 2S). telekinesis (DC 2S)
ath (7/day)--bestaw curse (DC 24),
dimension door, confusion (DC 24).
greater invisibility
j rd (7/day)--dispel mag;c,JlY, haste,
tongues, vompiric touch
and (8/d. y)--detect thaughts (DC n ).Jalse
life, 9houl touch(DC 22), mirror imoge,
resist energy, see inlJisibility, web(DC 22)
1St (9/day}-comprehend languages,
expeditious retreat, 9rease(DC 21), mage
armor, magic missile, ray of enfeeblement,
shield, true strike
o (6/day}---acid splash, dancin9 lights,
detect magic, ghost sound (DC 20 ), m0ge
hand, message, prestidi9itotion, read
moyie, touch offatigue (DC 20)
Abilities Str 35, Dex: 12, Con 26 , Int 20, Wi s
16, Cha 30
SQ otherworldly physiology, no breath,
lcremaster lore +9, loremaster secrets
(weapon trick, dodge trick)
Fe at s Eschew Mater ials, Extend Spell,
Improved Initiative, Improved Nat ural
Att ack (bite), Maximize Spell, Skill Focus
(Knowledge [arcanaj), Widen Spell
Skills Conc e ntration +27, Hide +12,Jump
+43, Knowl ed ge (a rcana) +27, Kno wled ge
(the planes) +24, Listen +22, Spellc raft +26
Tactics:The ne h-thalggu scion spe nds
most of its time at the bottom of the
cra ter, endlessly studying TIaloc's Tear.
It emerges on ly to de fend its territory
or to seek out new b rain s, ho ping that
one ofi ts meals mi ght som e day posses s
useful knowledg e for how the art ifact
work s. T he cre ature starts each day by
cas ting extende d maEe ar~nor and false
life spells on itsel f, and ifit has a chance
to prepare for com bat , also cast s !]reater
invisibility, see invisibility,fly, shield, haste,
an d mirror ima,ge.
The aber ration knows th at the ooze
and fu ngi in its crater are dangerou s
to ot h er crea tures, and .often move s
th r ough the m old patches to trigger
explos ions of spores, or uses telek i ne .~ i .~
to hu rl foes into the di seased ooze . The
brain collector doe sn 't pause to ext ract
b rain s unless it can do so safely or if it
de speratel y needs a ne w spell to handle
an unexpected situa tion; the monster's
ability to effectively relearn spells on th e
fly by absor bing br ains gives it a u nique
degre e of m agical diversity.
In any event, the neh-t halggu has little
in terest in perishing when it's only a few
perce ived decades away from ascensi on.
lfbrought below 40 hit point s, it attem pts unto the enemy,an d thence Tlaloc would The head is cracked in some places and
to flee via dimensioll door, returning in Id4 speak to them. appea rs to be crumbling away to dust in
hours to check on th e sit uation in the 11aloc's Tear is thi s head , a sto ne others. Once ind est ru ctib le, 11a/or's Tear
crater. Ifi t realizes the pe s wish to destr oy rep resen tation of'Tlaloc's reptilian visage is n ow p racti call y beggin g fo r release
Tllll oc ~~ Tear, though, it fights to the death upon wh ich seem to swirl all th e color s from its ancient du ty. The head can be
to protect wha t it believes to be the key to of th e rai n an d sea. The artifact's sole de stroyed b y enough p h ysic al d am age,
its apotheosis. p urpose was th e creation ofthe Ceru lean and has no particular p rotection against
Cu rtai n th at d rove the waters fro m spells li ke sroue shape. As a re sult,
Destroying Tlaloc's Tear Golismorga and disrupted the mental de stroying the Ceru lean Curt ain's anchor
While few would mi stake the Olman god co n t rol the abole th s had oyer their is surprisingly sim ple.
of rain and fer tili ty for a sympathetic enslaved arm ies. Today, the Tear serves As soon as 11aloc's Tear is de st royed ,
deity, T'laloc is feroc ious in p rotect - only as an anch or for the curta in , and the ever -present wh ispers sud denly ri se
in g h is wor shi p pers. When T ha nac lan as long as th e Ceru lean Cu rtain exist s, to a cresce ndo and the n f.111 silent as the
offere d prayer and boun tiful sacrifi ce to it also ancho rs n oloc's Tear. It cannot Ceru lean Cur tai n parts and an en tire
their gods for a soluti on to the threat of he moved. physically or magically, from ocean of wate r is releas ed from a mill -
Golism orga. Tlaloc answered by speak- this location. meum-long rest raint. Walls of seawater
ing to hi s high priest through the hea d Yet time and the eldritch influence cascade down through the tunnel s, dis-
of one of his statue s. He told th is p riest of th e brood ing alien city aro un d it cernable at first as a distan t rum bli ng
he mu st take th is head an d d eliver it have wor n upon its visage an d strength. with a DC 20 Listen check . For the next

MARCH 2007 DUNGEON 57

 THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS
th ree hours, eart h tremors increasingly
shake the city of Goli smorga (Reflex DC
12 to avoid being knocked prone) as thi s
low rumbling inc reases in volu me un til
finally th e four upper en tra nces (area K).
transform into tum ult uous waterfa lls.
While the pes might fear that they mu st
n ow ru sh to com pl ete any remaining
objectives. this is something ofa miscon-
cep tio n. Entire mazes mu st refill below
Golismorga before it becomes a drowned
city on ce again . Fro m the poin t at which
TIaloc's Tear is destroyed , th e pe s h ave
appro xim ately ~6 h ours to escape the city
before being forced to deal with dan ger-
ou sly rising waters.
A great er p otentia l th reat lie s in th e
reawakening of the dozens of slu mber-
ing aboleths in the caverns surround-
in g Golismorga. Within minutes of the
waters rus h ing over their dried bod-
ies, they awaken fro m th eir long sleep.
Lethargic an d wit h only en ou gh water to
make th e barest moveme nt s, by the time
Golismorga is once again flooded, th e
aboleth have already begun the grim task
of reclaim in g th eir an cient home. Th ey
m ay recognize tha t th ey h ave th e pes to
th ank for thei r salvation, or they may
no t-in either even t, the se h ateful alien
fish see any in truders in Goli smorga
(PCs inclu ded) as fit for slavery at best.
Tlaloc 's Tear: 5 ft. thi ck; Hardn ess 8;
h p 450.
Ad- H oc Expe ri enc e Award: Fo r
destroying TIoloc'sTear and flooding Gol-
ism orga, give th e PCs a CR 12 experienc e
award .
PART FIVE: THE HEART OF
MADNESS
The ko pr us h ave carved ou t a sm all
d emesne of th eir own along th e east-
ern wall of Golismorga. centered on an
anc ien t abolet h ziggu rat first Viewed by
their relig ious leaders in visions granted
th em by Demogorgon. The b ulk of the
fra gm ented kopru empire is no t to be
foun d he re, no r in th e ruins ofThan ac-
lan o n Tabo o Island above (see "City
of Brok en Id ols" in th e ne xt issue of
DUNCEo N}--th ey dwell in flood ed cav-
erns elsewh er e under the Isle of Dread,
close enoug h to the surface th at they can
visit as n eeded.
58 DUNGEON MARCH 2007
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUTTER
Holash ner's Ziggurat is a rqo-Ioot-wide
ziggu rat. It was h ere, long ago, that the
aboleth kept reposit ories of bilestone to
hon or Holashner, one of th e Elder Evils.
This bilest on c, tr ansformed back into
its liqu id stat e by an ancie n t abomona-
tion create d by the aboleth lon g ago for
expr ess ly th is .pu rp ose, was precisel y
wha t Demogorgon needed to com pl ete
th e creation of the shadow pearls.
Very few kop ru s are allowe d int o the
zigg ura t. Cu rre nt ly, 38 no r mal koprus.
16 h ulking kopru beh emoth s, 10 d ark
nagas the kop rus h ave alli ed 'with, and 70
ens laved tro glod ytes dwell in the ru ins
immed iate ly surrounding th e aigg u -
rat . The koprus ha ve created nu me rous
poo ls of water (using a decanter qf endless
water) to serve them as shelters where
the y ca n dwell comfortably outsid e
th eir prefe rre d aquati c enviro n me nt.
Th ey fin d th e su r rou n di ng arch it ec-
ture of Goli smorga strang ely soot h ing ,
yet have n ot done much to explo re the
ruin s. Dem ogorgon's will brought th em
to the ziggurat, but th ey dare n ot stray
far (wi th the exception of the two sco ut-
ing pa rtie s detailed in Part Three). As a
resu lt, it's difficult for the pe s to whittle
away at th e creatures' ranks. Any alarm
quickly rouses all the inhabitan ts of th e
commu nity, and while th e normal kop ru
an d h alf the b eh em oth s m ove to en gage
th e invaders, the remaining beh emoths
ru sh to reinforce th ose already statio ned
at Hol ashner's Ziggurat. Ulioth eme rges
from within th e ziggurat quic kly to j oin
th e batt le.
An easier way to infiltrate Hol ashn er's
Zigg urat is t o cr eat e a ma s si ve
distraction-such as that suggested b y
N'glothno ru. The destruc tion of TIaloc 's
Tear sends th e kopru into a panic. Ulioth
immed iately sen ds all the behemoths
(except th ose guarding the ziggurat) to
areas whe re they know drie d ab ol eth
li n ger , ho ping to kill th e abe rrations
before the coming wate rs waken them .
The rest ofthe koprus an d all ofthe dar k
nagas are sen t into the ruins an d the
su rroun di ng cavern s on a multitude of
tasks in hopes of discovering the reason
for th e flooding and stemming it. A sma ll
contingent is even ordered to report the
flooding to the kopru's masters on the
plateau above . When the PCs arrive in
th is vicinity after de stro yin g Tlaloc's Tear,
th ey find th e place unguarded save for
what few b ehe m oths wait for th em on
and in the ziggurat itsel f
Koprus ( 8): h p )6 each: See page 54.
Kopru Beh emoths (16): h p 10 2 each ;
see page 60.
Dark Nagas (to): hp 58 each; Monstcr
Ma1Juall 91.
Troglodytes (70): h p I ) each; Monster
Manual 246.
Holuhnec's Ziggurat
A parasite gnawing th rough the vitals of
th e wor ld, th e Elde r Evil Holashner; the
Hunger Below, en dlessly feeds its cos-
mic hunger in the unfathom able dep th s
below th e Underdark. Where th is god-
th in g passes, it excre tes a flu id foulness
known as the black bile of the world.Ter-
rible be yond m ortal under standing an d
pro fane beyond the capacity of m ost dei-
ties , Holash ner is hel d in high regard by
the abolet hs, who de dicate gr eat mo nu-
ments to hi s n ame. Holashner's Ziggurat
is one such monu me nt.
Once a h alf-living towe r of purple
fles h oozin g black bile of the world. the
kop rus h ave p ervert ed the ziggu rat to
Demogorgon's ne ed s, covering it with
stone q uar ried from the su rr ou n d in g
caves and etchi ng it with unholy ru nes.
Th e p lace is now a do ub ly profane
monument d ed icat ed to The H un ger
Below an d the Prince of Demon s.
Q1 Ziggurat Esterlcr (EL 13 )
Amid ruin ed tower s of melted sto ne
and malls of qu ivering ooze, a wide area
lies clear of rub ble and less wholesome
debr is. From these clea red acres rises a
sto ne pyramid that looks out of place from
the surrounding madn ess, its d imensions
having the look of lucid design and bearing
com forting right an gles of masonry. The
sides of th e ziggur at are festooned with
detailed carvings of reptilian and simian
monsters wrapped and cradled in end less
coils of tent acles. Steep steps rise into the
darken ed, noxious cavern air to a sim ple
platform at the zigg ura t's summit. Not
all see ms right, th ou gh, as several cracks
mar th e pyramid 's masonry, revealing
. se ct io ns of diseased purp le flesh wit hin.
In add itio n, two sides of t he pyramid loo k
to be part ially ove rgrown, covered in putri d
swat hs of pale g ree n mold . In places,
great slicks of tacky, d ried blood stain t he
zigg urat's sides.
A DC 25Knowledge (the planes) check
identifies the mo nster an d tentacle
motifs tha t deco ra te the ziggu rat as
ass ociated with Dem ogorgon. At the
su m m it, it becomes evident that the
koprus have not finis hed their work of
en casin g the orig inal organic structu re
in sto ne, as bruised, purple flesh qu ivers
beneath gaps in the sto newo rk . The
blood stains th at mar the ziggu ra t's side s
are all that remains of the co untless
slaves th e kopru s have collected from
the tro glody tes in exchange for th e
shadow pearls. Sacrificed atop the ziggu rat
to Dem ogorgon , th eir mo rtal rem ains
have been eaten.
Th ose who exa m ine the st ep pe d
pyram id clo sely quickly notice th at the
stru cture is no mere building, but a shell
of ma sonry over a sem i-livin g aboleth
cr eat ion. Th e flesh y int eri or building
po sses ses an anima listic form of in tel-
ligen ce, fun ctioni n g mo re in terms of
ins tinct th an th ough t. T he bu ilding
even has a system of b rainlike organ s
tha t ar e sus cep tible to mi nd-affecting
spe lls and effects, allowing its ma st ers
to ma ke demand s of th e place directly.
Sharing a simila r power to an abo leths'
en slave abili ty, the koprus found them -
selves uniquely suited to usu r p th eir
prede cessor 's cont rol.Th is control is far
fro m pe rfect, bu t it's enough that th is
bui ldi ng has finally accepted the kopru s
as in ha bita n ts, even if the mold an d the
city itself have not.
Foul gree n mold grows over m uc h of
the so u thwestern side of the zigg u rat.
Not seen anywhere else in the city, this
m old has th e sam e pr op erti es as green
s lim e, di ssolving an y organ ic ma ter ial
it touches, wit h the exce p tion of the
flesh y res in o fab ole th b uildings. Even
st on e s low ly succ u mbs to the o oz e,
beco m in g pockmarked and me lte d as
it d issol ves at a nea r geological r ate.
T h e koprus have no explan atio n fo r
the pre se nce o f thi s mo ld , yet many
fear that the city itsel f gr ows tire d of
th eir in t ru sion . A DC 30 Kno wledge
(natu re ) check is enough to r eveal th at
the mold is u nli ke any other k nown
fu ng us, an d th at it is closely rel ate d
to g reen slime. Crea t u res that en ter
a sq ua re covered in this mold are
affe cted as if th ey ente red a squa re of
green slime (see page 76 of the Dungeon
Master's Gu ide). Despite the strangeness
of the mo ld , however, it can be affe cted
by di minish plants and remove disease,
wh ich destroys S feet of th e mo ld per
caster level. Fir e also swiftly cons u m es
the m ol d , wit h 5 po ints o f fire dam age
d est roying a 5-foo t sq ua re.
In scaling the pyramid , the PCs are
likely to come acro ss several areas whe re
the m ason ry ofthe ziggu rat's exter ior is
inco m plete or has cra cked an d fallen
away. Th ro ugh the th ick layer of stone
twitch es th e live, plum-colo red flesh of
the true stru cture beneath, a living incu-
bator for black bile of the world. PCs tha t
investi gate such a crac k are likely to see
parti ally expose d gills, bla ck animalistic
MA RCH 2007 DUNGEON 59
 T HE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS
eyes. slits lik e wide, toothless mouths,
and st ranger featu res. Every square foot
of exposed flesh has hardness 2 an d 10
h it poi nts, but heals at an incred ible rate,
as ifit had fast heali ng 'i- Dam agin g the
flesh caus es th e en tire stru cture to quiver
(not so much as to throw on e off balance)
an d causes a m uffled. unsettling wh ining
to issue fro m som eplace dee p within the
str ucture's in nard s. Th e bar rier of flesh
between the struc ture's interio r and the
outsid e is 8 feet thi ck.
At the ap ex ofth e pyrami d waits the
ent ra nce to the ch ambers within-a
d om elike bulge of constricte d , br u ise-
co lored mu scle. Sligh tl y to ug h e r tha n
th e su rro un d in g flesh (h a rd n ess 4
and IS hit poi nts per foot) and with
the sa m e f.1.5 1 healing , t h e b a r rier is
d iffi cu lt to breac h . T he entrance is
ai r- t igh t when cl o s ed , p reve nt ing
en try via ,.gaseous fo rm. There ar e
se ve ral ways to o pe n t he passag e. An y
compu ls ion m in d -affe ctin g e ffec t ,
such as SUMcstion o r dominate person,
t h at ta rget s the b arrie r ca n comm and
it to o pen (la n g uage is n ot a fac to r
i n t hi s u sag e). T h e passage rem ai ns
open unt il it is ord e red to close in th e
sam e wa y.
Al te rn a tely , a DC 24 Search ch ec k
re veal s four deep ci r cu lar fissures tha t
bre a k th e su rfa ce of t h e flesh arou n d
the ba rrie r. These sicke ni n g, wou n d like
rent s prote ct mu scled pad s. If a ll
four a re depressed at th e sa m e time,
t h e o rg an ic "d oo r" refl e xi ve ly snaps
ope n . T he fou rt h of the se fissures is
o bsc ure d b y gree n m old, wh ich mu st
b e des t royed if the PCs a rc to safely
emp lo y i t.
Fi na lly , t h e o r gani c d oo r ha s a
St rengt h score of 36. A c rea tu re th at
succee ds on an o p p osed St re ngt h
c he ck again st the d o o r ca n force i t
o p e n as a fu ll- ro u nd action .
O nce t h e door is op en , its a Is-foot
dro p to t he floo r of area Q2. belo w.
C re a t u r e s: Ulio th h a s sta t io ne d
t h ree p o we r ful ko p ru behemo th s a t
the ziggu rat's p ea k as gua rds . Th ey
have o r d e rs to k ee p wat ch o ver the
ziggu rat a nd prevent all crea tu res from
d isturbi n g t h e ir mas te r's wo rk, a nd
unlike t he ot h e r kop ru , re m ai n h ere
60 DUNCiEON MARCH 2007
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUDER
even i f th e cavern begi n s floodi ng aft e r
t h e de stru ction ofT1a loc's Tear.
KOPR U B EHE M OTH S (3) CR 10
CE La rge monstrous humanoid
Mo n~ter Manual II 134
Init +2; Sens es darkvision 60 ft.; Listen +0,
Spot +0
languages Aqua n, Olman
AC 22, touch 11, fl at-footed 20
hp 102 (12 HD)
Fort +8, Ref +10, Will +10
Spd 5 fl., swim 40 ft.
Melee* tail slap +15 (l d8+14) and
2 claws +13 (l d6+9)and
bite +lJ (,d6+9)
Base Atk +12; Grp +32
At k Opt ions const rict 3d8+13, improved
grab (tail slap)
Special Actions dominate person
Combat Gear potion ofJly (J)
*5-point Power Attack
Abilities Str 28, Dex I S, Con 18, tnt 10, Wis
10. Cha 12
SQ amphibious
Feats Ability Focus (dominate person),
Improved Bull Rush, Iron Will,
Multiattack, Power Attack
Skills Escape Artist +17, Move Silently +17,
Swim +17
Possessions combat gear, +3 studded leather
armor,coral holy symbol of Demogorgon
worth 50 gp
Dominate Person (Su) Akopru can atte mpt
to dom inate person once per day,as the
spell (CL 10th), save that t he range is 180
feet and the du ration is eight days. A DC
17 Will save resists the domination. The
save DC is Charisma-based.
Improved Grab (Ex) If a kopru hits a target
its own size or small er with a tail slap, it
can attem pt to start a grapple as a free
action that does not provokean attack of
opportun ity. If it establishes a hold. it can
constrict. Akopru has a +7 racial bonus
on grapple checks.
Tactics: If en e m ies attempt to climb
the py rami d, th e beh e m ot h s drink
potions of fly and m ove to en gage the
PCs in me lee . A favo red tactic aga inst
clim bin g in tru d er s is u sing Im pro ved
Bull Rush to forc e th em in to t h e
gree n mold.
Devel opment: The cave rn ceiling 200
feet ab ove the zigg u ra t ha s been shaped
via a stone shape spel l. A DC 30 Search
ch eck of thi s section of cei l ing re veals
a t o-foot-sq uare area with a strangely
sm oo t h surface. A D C 25 Spe llcraf]
ch eck revea ls t ha t th is area was created
by wall of stone. T h is wall of stone is 15
feet th ick, an d pl ugs the ent rance to a
vertical shaft th at even tually connec ts to
th e same sha ft the an cient Olm ans used
to d eli ver 11aloc's Tear so lo ng ago. After
th ey d id , the Olmans sealed bo th end s of
th e sha ft , bu t the ko pru above an d below
reopened th e m to allow delivery of par-
tially co mpleted slwdolV pearls from th e
City of Broken Ido ls above down to Gol-
ism orga below. Ulio th uses stone shalJc
to open an d clos e th is p lu g as nec ess ary
whe ne ver th e ko p ru from above a rr ive
with a ne w sh ip m en t of h alf-fin ish ed
shadow pearls.
It 's unlikely that th e PCs discover thi s
rout e into T han acla n at th is ti m e, bu t
if they d o, re fer to the ne xt adve nture
in t he Savage T id e Adventu re Pat h to
determ in e what th ey en co un te r alon g
th e way.
~ The Room That Watches
This room is alive. The bru ised pu rple
walls pulse and q uiver, heaving irregu larly
like the breath of a dying thing. Growths
ju t from the walls-exposed, fleshy things
like black lungs, giant ma ny-chambe red
and inside-ou t hearts , rolling milky white
eyes, an d ot he r o rga ns with no hum anoid
ana log . Unfinished sto newo rk covers
patches of the floor, as if some optim istic
architect hoped to merely brick over the
room 's o bsce ne nature. An o pen chute
with a str ange ladd er, its rungs curved and
awkwardly placed, o pens th rou gh part of
the masonry floor, desce nding deeper into
t he st ructure's de pt hs.
T hi s room is bo th g ua rd post and
gu ardi an. Several of the eyes position ed
th ro ughou t the r oo m watc h all who
ente r. Un less t he PCs are in visib le
o r o the rwise disgui se th eir entry, th e
struct u re becom es awar e of intruders
an d re po rts th e in tru sion to Uli ot h in
a rea Q3 below, at whic h poin t he begi ns
casting spells to p rep are himself for any
comin g conflict. The ladder is o ptom ized
for a snake like crea ture like a kopru.
Humanoid creat ures m ust mak e a DC 10
Climb check to navigate it.

Z3. Corrupted Shrine (EL H)

The ziggurat's organs continue to twitch,

roil, and watch. The half-laid stonework
glistens amid pools of water. To the east
looms a huge bust of a demonic counte-
nance with twin baboonlike heads set in a
fearsome double roar sprouting from its
over-muscled chest. Acrossthe ground lie
hunks of shatte red black resin and, near
the stat ue, a black tu mor grows from the
fl eshy fl oor, its sizeand s ha p~ reminiscent
of some grotesq ue divan.

Th e re lig ious leade r of the

Golismorga koprus , Ulioth, oversees
the final stage of the creatio n of shadow
pearls from th is room, spend ing muc h
of h is time offe ri ng pra yer to h is
dem onic overl o rd or to iling on his
lates t proj ect , a half-complet ed strand
of praye r beads.
A stone trapdoor wit h a broad iro n
rin g is se t in the mas onry of t~e
floo r ne ar the sta tue of Dem ogor gon ,
openin g into area Q4 belo w.
Creat ure: Ulio th , the leader of the
koprus in Golismorga ,spends much ofhis
time med itating on Demogorgon's will,
receiving visions and direction from the
Prince ofDemons himself lf the pe s have
manage d to reach th is area und etected,
they find Ulioth restin g upon his th rone Ulioth
oftumors . More likely, though, the kopru
cleri c knows of the pe s' in trus ion and
has already prepared for their ar rival as
detailed in Tactics below.
ta il sla p +20 (1d 6+2) and (DC 21), spell resistance, wallof stone
ULIOTH CR 14 bite +20 (1d4+2) 4th - a ir walk, control water, cure critical
Ma le kopru cler ic 8/t hra ll of Demogorgon 4 Base At k +18; Grp +28 wounds, dimensional anchorD, sending
CE Med iu m monstrou s h u m anoid (aquatic) Atk O pti o ns igno re ha rd ness l/d ay, 3rd-bestow curse (DC 19), contagionD (DC
Monster Manual II 134, Book of Vile Darkness 66 reachi ng tou ch 3/day 19), cure serious wounds, dispel mag;c,
Init +5; Se n se s darkvision 60 ft.; Liste n +4 , Specia l Acti ons dominate pe rson , hyp nosis protectionfrom energy
Spot +4 l /day, rebuke undead 5/d ay (+2, 2d6+10), 2nd-blindnessfdeafn essD (DC 18), bull's
Lan g uag e s Aboleth , Abyssal, Aquan, Ol ma n to uch offear 3/d ay strength, cure moderate wounds (2), death
AC 27 , touch 14 , fl at-footed 26 Co m bat Gea r potion of b/ur, potion of knell (DC 18), shatter(DC 18), silence
hp 170 (20 HD) res ist acid 10, wand of cure moderate (DC 18)
Fort +1 5, Ref +10 , Will +19 wounds (12 charges) 1st- command (DC 17), cure light wounds,
Spd 5 fl.. swim 40 fl . Spells Prepa red (CL 10t h , +21 touc h , +19 diuine[aver, doomD (DC 17), entrapic
Me lee +2 anarch ic spear+23/+18/+13/+8 ra n ged touch) shield, protectionfrom good, sanctuary
(l d8+6/19-20/x3) and sth-feeblemincP (DC 21), greater command (DC 17)

MARCH 2007 DUNGEON 61

 THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS
o-c-crecte water(3), cure moderate wounds,
guidance, light
o domain spell; Domains Corruption,
Dem on ic
Abilit ies Str 16, Dex 12. Con 16,I nt 10 , Wis
23, Cha 14
SQ amphibious, dual actions 2/da y,
spontaneous casting (inflict spells)
Fe ats Craft Wond rous Ite m , Imp rove d
Critical (spear), Improved Initiative,
Improved Toughness (+1 hpfHD),
Multiattack, Thrall to Demon
(Demogorgon), Will ing Deformity
Skills Concentration +14, Escape Artist +11,
Intimi dat e +12, Knowled ge (arca na) +6,
Knowledge (religion) +8, Knowledge (the
planes) +6
Possessions +4 chain shirt, +2 anarchic
spear, periapt ofWisdom +4, riny of
protection +3, bracers of health +2 (as
amulet of health +2), partable hole filled
with cold, brackish water, gold unholy
symbol of Demogorgon wo rth SOD gp
Domin ate Pe rso n (Su) A kopru can attemp t
to dominate person once per day, as the
spell(CL 10th), save that the range is 180
feet and th e duration is eight days. A DC
16 Will save resists the dom ination. The
save DC is Charisma-based.
Dual Actions (Su) Twice per day, Ulioth can
take two full rounds' worth of actions in
th e same round.
Hypnosis (Su) Once per day, Ulioth can
produce an effect identical to that of the
hypnotism spell, except that it functio ns
as a gaze attack with a range of 30 feet.
A DC 16 Will save negates t his effect; the
save DC is Charisma-based.
Improved Grab (Ex) If Ulioth hits a target
its own size or smaller with a tail slap, he
can attempt to start a grapple as a free
action that does not provoke an attack of
oppo rtunity. If he establishes a hold, he
can const rict. Ulioth has a +7 racial bonus
on grapple checks.
Reachin g Touch (Su) Three times a day, as a
free action, Ulioth can cause his arms to
st retch unnatu rally, increasing his reach
by 5 feet for 1 round.
Touch of Fear (Su) Three times per day,
Ulioth can cause a creature he st rikes
with a touch attack to become frightened
for Id4 rounds. A DC 16 Will save means
t he creature touc hed is me rely shaken for
1 round. The save DC is Charisma-based.
62 DUNGEON MARCH 2007
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUTTER
Domains The Co rruption doma in allows
Ulioth to ignore a struck object's
hardn ess once per day. The Demonic
domain grants him a +1 profane bonus
o n attac k rolls and damage rolls with
una rm ed strikes and natu ral weapon s.
Feats Thrall to Demon allows Ulioth to gain
a +1 luck bonus on any attac k roll once
per day when performing an evil act.
Willing Deformity grants a +2 deformity
bonus on Intimidate checks.
Tactics: As soon as Ulio th realize s
the PCs are drawing n ear, h e cas ts the
followi ng spells on h imself: $pell resistance,
air walk, protection ftom enerlJ)' (fire), and
bull's stren,gth. Once thi s is d one (or on the
fir st rou nd of combat, if the PCs rea ch
him earlier) h e u ses controlwater to raise
the pools of water on th e floor up to the
zo-foot-high ceili ng, flood ing the room
..vith water so that he's m ore m obile wh ile
hopefully the PCs are hindered.
In combat, Uli oth prefe rs op eni n g
with h is dual actio ns, making full attack
ac tio ns wh ile also m ovin g away t o cas t a
spell o r u si ng do m inate pe r son at range.
If a battle t ur ns against hi m , he ret r ea ts
to ar ea Q4. O n ce there, he u ses his potion
of resist acid 10 , all owi ng h im to swim
in the p oo ls of bl ack bil e unh armed
whil e h e heals hi s wou nds an d re ad ies
to d efen d the denizen of that chamber
fro m th e invad ers.
T reasu re : An y character wh o makes
a DC 18 Search check of the tumorous
"th ro n e" in this room find s seve ral o f
Ulioth 's most p rized t reasures hidden
am id its folds. These incl u de a strangely
sh ap ed go ld a n d ivory t iara of coiling
sn akes and sh ri eking monkeys worth
2,400 gp, a ruby rin9 cfwizardry(II),a neck-
lace (if adalJtation, an d a decanter of endless
water.
In add itio n, th e four eyes in the b ust of
Demogorgo n arc black pearls worth 500
gp each .
Q! Hola shner's Honer (E L 13)
The stic ky heat and pulsing walls of th is
doying room augment perfect lythe revolt-
ing st ink of bile mixed with crude oil. Fo ur
poo ls of putr id black muck bub ble a nd
s purt in the floor, their edges determ ined
by eit he r rigid sto ne blocks o r d imp les in
the flesh y ground . Four pillars separate the
pools and hold the sagging flesh of the ceil-
ing aloft. With in the basin s of roiling foul-
ness float pristine black orb s, each the size
of a man's head and shimmering with an
unsettli ng inne r light.
T he con stru ctio n of a shadow pearl is
a lo ng and in volved pro cess that begins
in the ruins ofTh an aclan on the pla tea u
high above. By th e time th ey're sh ipp ed
down t o Goli sm orga , th ey've alread y
u n d ergon e a months-long creat io n
process, yet wh en they fin ally reach this
cha m ber th ey st ill have m onths to go. At
thi s point, the shadowpearls are allo wed to
stee p in the pits ofblack b ile,building up
a shell of hardened bil eston e wh ile they
absorb the inherent m adness feste ring in
th e leavings of an Elde r Evil.
The four bubbling blac k pools are each
20 feet deep an d filled wit h black bile of
th e world, th e liq u id state of bile stone.
All four of t h e pool s are con nected by
wide pa ssages und e rg rou n d , allowing
so m eth in g th at di ves int o on e to rise
from ano th er-s hou ld it sur vive. The
effect s of b lack bile of the world are
detaile d in the sidebar o n page 64.
Currently, a to tal of eig ht unfini shed
shadow pearls float in th e fou r pools. They
still ne ed at lea st a m onth of steeping in
the bile before their bilestone sh ells can
be cracked open and the shadow pearls
within are ready to release a savage tide.
Crea tu re: A livi ng m onument to the
Elder Evil known as a b ilewre tch of
Holashner lurks in this cha m be r. Without
this creature's presence, th e bile pits wo uld
soo n ha rd en in to bilestone and th u s
become u seless for the fin ish ing stage of
.~hadow pearl creation. The monster has
befriended Ulioth , an d the ko pru priest
is th us th e o nly cre at ure th e bilewr etc h
suffers in this ro om- all o ther intrude rs
are att acked at once.
Bilewre tch of Ho la shner: hp 18 9;
see App endix.
Tacti cs: Knowing the effects ofbilcstone
on fleshy creatures, the b ilewretch stays
with in o r above th e poo ls ofblack b ile in
the room, making use ofits breath weap on
liberally an d then ret reating beneath th e
surface of a pool to emer ge from anothe r
pool one or two ro und s later. Should the
bilewretch be forced into melee it attempts
to grapple whenever possible. Using its
breath weapon on grapple d oppo nents,
the aber ration also atte mpt s to dive into
the nearest pool while grapp ling a foe,
relying on the disgusting fluid to d rown
or dissolve its victim.
Development: By destroying the bile-
wretch, the PCs can effectively disrupt the
creation of shadow pearls. Within a day,
th ese poo ls hard en int o bilestonc and
any un finish ed pearls still \..rithin crack as
their latent magic fades away in a no xious
green puff.
CONCLUDING THE
ADVENTURE
In ord er to disrupt the use ofGolismorga
as a place to fini sh the creatio n of
slwdOlv pearls, the PCs must bot h destroy
the bilewretch and flood the cavern by
destroying TIaloe 's Tear. This on e-two
punch throws the kopru s offfor months,
bu t there remains much to doin the world
above. Ift he PCs don't continue the fight
and confront the demoni c resident s of
Th anaclan, the powerful forces there are
certain to tum their resources elsewhe re.
The first batt le against th e Lord s of
Dread may be won, but the ir demoni c
lo rd still dwells in the City of Broken
Idols abo ve.
Th ou gh it takes tim e for the water to
completely reclaim Golismorga an d the
surrounding caverns, the effects of this
delu ge should be immediately apparent
an d give the PCs a sens e of urgency.
While many players undou btedly pr efer
ma gical m eans such as teleport, th e rou te
th e PCs used to reach Golismorga in the
first place is the last tunnel to flood. Th e
rising waters eventually reach sea level,
flooding most of th e caverns below the
Isle of Dread once again . The refugees
of Barba s were wise to flee to the uppe r
caver ns when th ey did.
The abo let hs, free d fro m the ir
lon g sleep, are te mporarily conten t to
reclaim th eir former real m, repairing
the damage that tim e and ignorant races
have don e to their magni ficent edifices.
These alien creat ures exist on time scales
unfathomable to mort als, and it ma y
be dec ades or even cen turies before
the y again turn th eir attentions to the
world above.
APPENDIX: NEW MONSTERS
Brain Collector (Neh-thalggu)
A 1wn!Jry poly p upon twelve itlsectoid leBs
skitters madly across tliefloor. i arEer than
a horse, the thin!J 's tumid mass writlles WiOl
MARCH 2007 DUNGEON 63
 THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUTTER
hp 85 (10 HD); DR 5/mag ic
Immu ne critical hits, disease, poison
Fort +7 , Ref +6, Will +11
5pd 60 ft.
Melee bite +13 (2d8+10)
Space. I n fl.; Reach 5 ft.
Base At k +7; Grp +18
Special Actions extract brain, metamagic
Sorcerer Spells Khown (CL6th, +13 touch,
+9 ranged touch)
j rd (4!day}-dispcl magic. displacement. fly,
haste, vampiric touch
and (y/day}-detect thoughts (DC 18), ghoul
touch (DC 18), invisibility , mirror image,
resist energy, see invisibility
1St (8/day}-expeditious retreat,featherf all,
greose(DC 11), magearmor, magic missile,
ray of enf eeblement, shield, true strike
o (6/day}-dancifl9 lights, detect magic,
ghost sound (DC 16), mage hand,
prestidig itation, read magic, tauch of
fatigue (DC . 6)
Abilities Str 24, Dex 11, Con 18, lnt 20, Wis
IS . Cha 22
SQ othe rworldly physiology
Feats Empower Spell, Eschew Materials,
Improved Initiative, Iron Will
Skills Concentration +17, Hide +12,Jump +32,
Knowledge (arcana)+18, Knowledge (any
one other) +18, listen +15, Spellcrafl +20
Environm ent any
Organizatio n solitary
Treasure double standard
Advancemenl ll-1 4 (Large), 15-30 (Huge)
Extract Brain (Ex) Using its claws with the
precision of surgical tools, a brain collector
can remove the brainof a helpless opponent
in reach as a full-round action.This action
provokes an attackof opportunity, and
stunted. whippin.CJ tentacles. A lipless mouth immediatelyslaysthe target at the end of
heavy wilh protrudin,g rows of daw er-length the round. Thispower is uselessagainst
teeth, and a ricl.gc offO!lr bul.ginE eyesElares constructs, elementals, oozes, plants,and
fr om above tlds nightmare ,gasll. A cluster undead, and is not instantly fatal to foeswith
of twelve knots crown the ab omination's multiple heads,such as ettins and hydras.
misslwpen fo rm, the ,gray wrinkles of Onceextracted, the neh-thalggu canswallow
brains trapped witJl in pressed Qna inst the the brain as a free action, storing it in one of
semi-transparent membranes. its twelve brainsacs.
Metamagic (Su) A brain collector can absorb
B RAI N CO LLECTO R ( N EH - T H ALG G U) CR 7 a captured brain to enhance the effects
Usually e N, NEt or CE la rge aberration of its spellcasting. While these effects
Init +3; Se ns es dark vision 60 ft.; Liste n +15 , resemble meta magic feats, they do not
Spot +2 raise the effective level of the spell being
Langu ag e s Neh-t halggu; te lepath y 60 ft. cast, nor do they increase the casting time
AC 20. touch 12, flat-footed 17 (- 1 size, +3 of spells that are spontaneously cast. Note
Dex, +8 nat u ral) that each brain absorbed removes the
64 DUNGEON MARCH 2007
I
spell being cast from the brain collecto r's
list of spells known-i n order to "relearn"
that spell, it must collect a replacement
brain. When a brain collector absorbs a
brain to enhance a spell, it may apply one
of t he following th ree effects to the spell
being cast:
• It may cast the spell without using verbal
or somatic components.
• It may cast a spell that normally has a
range of touch at any distance up to
30 feet (t he spell effectively becomes a
ray, so the brain collector must succeed
on a ranged touch attack to bestow the
spell upon t he recipient).
• As part of a bite attack, the brain collector
may cast any spell that targets a
single creature (other than a spellthat
targets itself only). If the bite attack is
successful, the spell affects the creature
bitte n. Casting a spell in t his manner is
an immediate action (allowing the brain
collector to cast a spell like this as part
of an attack of opportunity), and counts
as a quickened spell for determining
how many spells you can cast in a
round. Casting a spell in this manner
does not provokeattacks of opportunity.
If the bite attack fails, the spell is lost.
Oth erworldly Physiology (Ex) A brain
collector does not have fixed organs
as most organisms do. As such, it is
immune to critical hits, death from
massiv e dam age, sneak attack, and coup
de grace attacks. Their alien bodies are
also immune to disease and poison.
Brain collectors do not age and, barring
violence, can live forever.
SpellsAbrain collector casts spellsas a 6th-
level sorcerer. A brain collector can store
additional spellsknown in its collected
brains, increasing the total number of spells
it knowsand can cast. lfit absorbs a brai n,
it loses one of its known spells. When it
collects a new brain to replace an absorbed
brain. it mayselecta new spellto replace the
spell lost. Abrain collector mayknowany
number of spellsin this manner, although
the number of spells known of any particular
level cannot equal or exceed the number of
spells known of a lower level. The stat block
aboveassumes a braincollector with a full
complement of 12 brains.
Den izen s of the m ad n ess t hat lu rks
beh ind re ali t y, b ra in collecto rs (n eh -
tha lggu in th eir own insane langu age)
en croac h on t he Materia l Plane from
the incon ceivable Far Realm in wha t is
actually their larval stage.Terri ble bei ngs
of unspeakab le and unwholesome
desi res, these monsters are driven to
collect brains, and use the kn owledg e
locked within these organs to further
their own transformation into be ings
of god like power (Epic Level Handbook
207) . Un carin g of th e empty h usk s
cast aside by their feeding , th ese alien
preda tor s u se the ir fleshy meals to
generate great bursts of arca ne energy.
While even the weakest are capable of
devouri ng the sen t ience from who le
reg ions, a fully ascended ne h- thalgg u
rivals even the eldest d ragons and
som e demon lo rds in ferocity and
arcane might.
Bilewretch of Holashner
Many -juinted leE~ and squirmin,g ten-
tacles cloak thi.~ horror in a haze of repul-
sive motion. A thinE half-centipede and
half-squid, a sin,g/e alien, black eye stares
fa thomlessly f rom an octopoid· head.
Curled upon itself like a titanic shrimp, the
thinB ,glistens like a scarab's shell even as
it bathes itself in an endless flow of oily
black drool.
BIL.EWRETCH OF HOLA SHNER CR 13
Always CE Huge aberrat ion
Init +9; Se nse s darkvision 60 ft.: Listen +8,
Spot +8
languages Aboleth (ca nnot speak)
AC 29, to uch 13, flat-footed 24 (- 2 size, +S
Dex, +16 natural )
hp 189 (18 HD)
Immun e acid , fire, inha led toxins, mind -
affecti ng, suffocatio n
5R 21
Fort +12, Ref +13, Will +12
Spd 40 ft., swim 40 ft.; air walk
Melee 4 ten ta cles +19 (ld8+8jI 9-20 plus
1d6 add ) and
tail +14 (, d8+4)
Space 15 ft.: Reach 10 ft.
Base Atk +13; Grp +29
Atk O ptio ns Co m bat Reflexes, Blind -Fight,
black bile, con st rict 2d8+4, improved grab
Special Action s bre ath weapon
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 12t h)
3/day-confusion (DC 14), empowered
poison (DC 16), deeper darkness
Abilitie s Str 27, Dex 20, Con 22, Int S, Wis
13, Cha 10
SQ black bile affin ity, no brea th
Feat s Ability Focus (poison spell-like ability),
Combat Reflexes, Blind-Fight, Empower
Spell-Like Ability (poison), lm proved
Critica l (te ntacle), Im proved Initiative,
Lightning Reflexes
Skills Li st en +8, Move Silently +12, Spot +8
Environment u nde rgr o u nd (nea r
bilestone depos its)
Or ganization so litary, pa ir, or nest (3- 8)
Tre asure none
Advancement 19- 27 H D (H uge), 28-40 H D
(Gar gantuan), 41- 54 H D (Colossal)
AirWalk (Su) A bilewretc h may move through
the air as if unde r the effects of an ajr walk
s pell. This effect cannot be d isp elled.
Black Bile (Su) A bilew retch's tenta cle s
co ns ta nt ly se e p black bile of t he wo rld.
Any creature st ruck by a tentacl e
t akes a n add it ional Id6 po int s of
ac id damage, and t hen a n add it io na l
Id6 poi nt s of acid damage the next
ro und befo re t he bile from that att ac k
bec omes ine rt . Creat ure s with t he lawful
MARCH 2007 DUNGEON 65
 THE L1GHTLESS DEPTHS
subtype take double acid damage from
this attack.
Black BileAffi nity (Ex) As a full-round action,
a bilewretch can transform a 5-foot block
of bilestone into black bile of the world.
A bilewretch a n swim th rough black
bile unimp eded, and may see t hrough it
as if it were clear. While at least partially
submerged in black bile, a bilewretch
gains fast healing IS.
Breath Weapon (Su) Once every Id 4 ~ou nds,
a bilewretch can expel a 30-foot-long line
of black bile of the world t hat deals 6d6
poi nts of acid damage to every creature
in the area. If this bile is exposed to air, it
also ign ites, inflicting an add ition al6d6
points of fire damage. Creatures with the
lawful subtype take double damage from
the acid portion of this attack. A DC 25
Reflex save halves both the acid and fire
66 DUNGEON MARCH 2007
BY F. WESLEY SCHNEIDER AND JAMES LAFOND SUTTER
damage. On the round after suffering Mt.lo~on
damag e from a bllewretch's breath
weapon. a creature takes an additio nal GALEENA. HON EY?
3d6 acid damag e (6d6 for creatures DON'T BE UPSE T . BUT
wit h the lawful subtype) and 3d6 fire I H AVE NEVER HEARD
MUSHROOM
damage (Reflex DC 25 negates) as the
SPE AK.
st uff clings and continues to burn, unless
the victim takes a full- round action to
wash or scrape off the bile. If it chooses, a
bilewretch may use its breath weapo n on
a single creature it is currently grappling.
To do so, it must grapple the foe with at
least two tentacles. If successful, it heaves
bile upon the victim, inflicting damage as
detailed above(no save). The save DC is
Constitution-based.
Constr ict (Ex) A ~ Iewretch deals autom atic
tail dama ge on a successful grapple check
with its tail.
Improved Grab (Ex) To use this ability.t he
bilewretch must hit with a tent acle or a
tail attack. It can then attempt to start a
grapple as a free action without provoking
an attack of opp ortunity.lfit establishes
a hold with its tail. it can const rict. If
it establishes a hold with at least two
tentacles, it can use its breath weapon
against that foe as detailed above.
No Breath (Ex) Abilewretch does not need
to breathe.
Monstrous aberrat ions sculpted from
unkn owable samples harvested eons
ago from Holashner itself, bilewretches
exist to perpetuate the transform ation
of black bile of the world into bilestone
and then back again. Like an intelligent
foun tai n, these monsters live only to
e n d~es s l y break down bilestone an d
excrete it as liquid madn ess, protecting
tha t whi ch the y have reform ed. Often
orde re d by th eir masters to gu ard
sites ho no ring th e Elder Evils, th ese
aberrationslimited intellects myopi cally
focus on their ins tru ction s. devising and
honing the most effective method s of
protecting that which they were created
tn honor. iiJ
An Associate Editor of DR AGO N ma,gazinc,
F. Wesley Schneider believes tile shorter tile
author bio, the- .
You 1V0uid think tlwt. as a u Assistant Editor
for D U NGE ON, it lVould be easyfo r James
Laf ond SuttertolVriteatl autllOrbio.You lVould
be Ivron,g.
III TON Y M OSELEY ZOCOONI A.COM
 The Lightless
depths
by F. Wesley Schneider and James
Lafond Sutter
When the PCs journey deep under
the Isle of Dread to find the source
of the shadow pearls, they discover
horrors beyond imagining in a
haunted underground city perched
on sanity’s razored edge. A Savage
Tide Adventure Path scenario for
11th-level characters.

Ben Wootten

Dungeon #144 Map & Handout Supplement © 2007 Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
8 DUNGEON 144 Supplement Permission to photocopy for personal use only. All rights reserved.
 ine Harlot’s Log—
Excerpt From the Br
th no inci-
llivant Cove wi
We reached Ga il yuan-ti
the Seventh Co
dent, although sh or e leave. I
mands for
renewed their de them all
ain, promising
denied them ag my sister’s
uld want once
the leave they co t to the Glut-
mine. Paymen
little project is eth would
ly (that beast’s te
ton went smooth rso na lly led a
ies!), and I pe
Irgzid Uzeye make fine troph gs looked
the caves. The tro
group of five to so rt of malady
stank—some
worse than they s of Dread?
r certain. Lord
afflicts them fo pa ym ents and
took our
Hardly. Yet they
ough.
slaves readily en ady for
e shadow pearl re
There was on only
but the sim-
my displeasure,
us. I made clear they were
nvinced me that
pering lepers co d se ve ral more
and promise
being truthful, to avoid
s’ time. I’ve tried
in a few month Its depths
pearl overmuch.
staring at the mber one of
ter seeing the nu
are hypnotic. Af en’s Cove, I
ties did on Krak
these little beau container
ep it in a padded
make sure to ke
at all times. ing into
n’t just toss the th
It’s too bad we ca them kill
catapult and let
Farshore with a one to tell
t I’ll not be the
each other off, bu eir toys!
oke another of th
command we br

Warren Mahy

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9 DUNGEON 144 Supplement Permission to photocopy for personal use only. All rights reserved.
 Robert Lazzaretti

Beneath the Isle of Dread

A
B
C D
G F E H
I
J

Golismorga

Caverns/Dungeons
Underground Rivers/Lakes
Route to Golismorga
Cerulean Curtain

Robert Lazzaretti

Dungeon #144 Map & Handout Supplement © 2007 Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
10 DUNGEON 144 Supplement Permission to photocopy for personal use only. All rights reserved.
 Robert Lazzaretti
Robert Lazzaretti
A4
A. Entrance Caverns

A3
A1

A2

One square = 5 feet

E
ne

se
N

S
sw
nw

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11 DUNGEON 144 Supplement Permission to photocopy for personal use only. All rights reserved.
 Robert Lazzaretti
Robert Lazzaretti
B1

B2

One square = 10 feet

B6
B. Laogroat

B3
B5

B4

E
ne

se
N

S
nw

sw
W

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12 DUNGEON 144 Supplement Permission to photocopy for personal use only. All rights reserved.
 Robert Lazzaretti
Robert Lazzaretti
One square = 5 feet
up
C. The Burning Pools

E
ne
down

se
N

S
nw

sw
W

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13 DUNGEON 144 Supplement Permission to photocopy for personal use only. All rights reserved.
 14
up
G. Barbas G1. Town Hall
G2. Store
G3. Shrine to Mictlantecuhtli

DUNGEON 144 Supplement

G4. Ganfer’s Wallow
G5. The Nursery
G6. The Furnace
G7. Stonesweep
G3

G4

G7
G1
G2

G6 G5

N
nw ne

W E
sw se
S
One square = 50 feet
Robert Lazzaretti Robert Lazzaretti

Permission to photocopy for personal use only. All rights reserved.

Dungeon #144 Map & Handout Supplement © 2007 Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
 Robert Lazzaretti
Robert Lazzaretti
E
ne

se
N

S
sw
nw

W
I. Temple of the
Ancient Ones

up
down
5’

5’

One square = 10 feet

5’
10’

Dungeon #144 Map & Handout Supplement © 2007 Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
15 DUNGEON 144 Supplement Permission to photocopy for personal use only. All rights reserved.
 Ben Wootten

Dungeon #144 Map & Handout Supplement © 2007 Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
16 DUNGEON 144 Supplement Permission to photocopy for personal use only. All rights reserved.
 Robert Lazzaretti
Robert Lazzaretti
One square = 5 feet
J. Hall of the Dreamers

down
up

E
ne

se
N

S
nw

sw
W

Dungeon #144 Map & Handout Supplement © 2007 Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
17 DUNGEON 144 Supplement Permission to photocopy for personal use only. All rights reserved.
 Robert Lazzaretti

Dungeon #144 Map & Handout Supplement © 2007 Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
18 DUNGEON 144 Supplement Permission to photocopy for personal use only. All rights reserved.
 Golismorga
L
M

N L
nw ne
N
W E
sw se
O
S K

M Q

P
O

O
N
N

M
L
L
0 700
feet
Robert Lazzaretti

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19 DUNGEON 144 Supplement Permission to photocopy for personal use only. All rights reserved.
 Robert Lazzaretti
Robert Lazzaretti
One square = 10 feet
P. Tlaloc’s Crater

E
ne

se
N

S
nw

sw
W

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 Robert Lazzaretti

Q. Holashner’s Ziggurat

Q1

Q2

Liquid Bilestone
Q4
Rubbery Fleshlike Resin

Stony Fleshlike Resin Q3

Mold
nw
N ne

W E
sw se
S
One square = 20 feet One square = 5 feet

Robert Lazzaretti

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21 DUNGEON 144 Supplement Permission to photocopy for personal use only. All rights reserved.
 Ben Wootten

Warren Mahy

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 Ulioth

Ben Wootten

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23 DUNGEON 144 Supplement Permission to photocopy for personal use only. All rights reserved.