The Unusual Predicament of Sophie De Murtas

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PapersAndPaychecks
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Re: The Unusual Predicament of Sophie De Murtas

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Edits:

16.8.16:
  • Added what happens if you try speak with dead on Lafayette's body.
  • Numbered the map ready for keying.
17.8.16:
  • Added a paragraph about the journey to the tomb.
27.8.16:
  • Tweaks to room #2.
Last edited by PapersAndPaychecks on Sat Aug 27, 2016 7:42 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: The Unusual Predicament of Sophie De Murtas

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The Tomb of Eight: Environment

The Tomb scale is 10ft to a square. Corridors are trapezoidal in shape -- 20ft wide at the base, 15ft wide at the top, and 30ft tall. Doors are also trapezoidal, 8ft wide at the base, 6ft wide at the top, and 24ft high. The doors do not have handles----they are operated by pedals near the base of each door, on the left. When the pedal is operated the door silently sinks into a slot in the floor. Pressing it again causes the door to rise back into position, again silently. All the doors in the dungeon have pedals on both sides, and they are easy to operate. The walls and floors are dressed with flagstones. All the flagstones are cut into rhombus-shapes, to form a rhombille tiling pattern.

If there is a dwarf in the party, the dwarf character will observe that the flagstones which dress the tomb are unlike the local rock. The nearest source for flagstone of this kind is more than 300 miles away and even then, over a mile below ground.

The tomb is noticeably damper than the outside environment, and has a vaguely musty aroma. if the party have encountered Nazgorians before (see the BFRPG Field Guide), they may recognise the faintest whiff of Nazgor.

The walls of the tomb are inscribed with graffiti using an unfamiliar alphabet. This has not been chiselled into the rock, but eaten into it with some kind of acid. It looks like the Voynich Manuscript. In fact this is one of several languages used by Nazgorian frogmen. It can be deciphered using the Read Languages spell, but reading it is a bad idea. If the caster of the Read Languages spell has a Wisdom score of 14 or more, then he or she will sense something wrong with the writing, and the GM should ask the player whether they want to abort the spell's casting (in which case they will suffer no ill effects). Otherwise, reading the writings will fill the reader's mind with alien thoughts.

An affected reader is entitled to a saving throw vs magic. If the saving throw is passed, then the only ill effect is a little dullness of mind for a while ---- simulated in game terms by a -1 penalty to initiative rolls for 2d4 game turns. If the saving throw is failed, then the GM should cause them to lose a randomly-determined spell slot. Roll 1d6 to determine the level of the spell slot lost (re-rolling if the dice show spells of a level the character cannot cast). If the character now has too many spells memorised of that level, then the player may choose which spell vanishes from his or her memory.

The loss of the spell slot persists until the casting character receives a remove curse.

There is graffiti of this kind in patches pretty much throughout the tomb, except at area 1a where the Sapient Glyph is.
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Re: The Unusual Predicament of Sophie De Murtas

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1a. Sapient Glyph:

[box]
Marked on the wall here is a strange image:- a few, quick brush strokes in some kind of black, tarry substance illustrate a four-armed humanoid prostrate on the floor, its head separated from its body. Beneath this, in the same tarry substance, are marked a series of symbols in another unfamiliar alphabet --- different from the symbols that adorn the walls elsewhere in the tomb.
[/box]

This is a Sapient Glyph (stats at the bottom of this page) for suicide and self-mutilation. It is marked in another of the Nazgorian languages. A character affected will attempt self-harm in the most drastic way possible. If they survive this, they will try to incite the other player characters to suicide.

1b. The Hungry Ones

Listening at this door is unhelpful, as the creatures beyond are remaining quiet. When and if a party member opens the door:-

[box]
Four hideous monsters leap out and attack!
[/box]

These are four Nazgorian Digesters (see the Field Guide, page 50):-

AC 17, HD 12, hp 59, 54, 48, 45, #AT1, dam 1d8 or 8d8 acid spray, Mv 60 ft, ML 7, XP 1,975 each:-

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The Digesters will all try to spray acid in the first round, before the party can get in among them. (Note that the acid is capable of erasing the Sapient Glyph if it is within the area of effect.)

The Digesters' lair is here, and they are quite capable of operating the door with the foot pedal. If the party bypasses their room without opening the door, then the Digesters will lurk in wait for them until they come past again (presumably on leaving the dungeon), at which time they will attack.

Within the lair is a metal box which is locked and trapped to spray an extract from the glands of a giant skunk all over someone who opens it without the key. The skunk juice causes a stench which is extremely hard to eradicate; an affected person immediately loses six points of charisma. They can regain two points by changing their clothing, and two points by washing thoroughly. The remaining two points will not come back until the stench wears off 1d6 days later.

Inside the box is a suit of leather armour +3 and Vellen's Bracelet, which is made of fine bronze inset with three small emeralds. If Vellen's Bracelet is worn by a magic-user, then each time the magic-user is surprised at the start of the combat, it casts mirror image on him or her. This effect is instantaneous, automatic and intrinsic to the bracelet (i.e. the character does not need to know the spell and if they do know it, it is not discharged from their memory). One of the emeralds will then shatter into dust. Once all the emeralds are gone, the bracelet loses its enchantment. A very skilled jeweller can replace one of the emeralds; the jeweller will require to be paid 200gp as his or her fee, and must be supplied with an emerald worth at least 500gp. If this is done, there is a 5% chance that some tiny error in the cutting will make that emerald a "dud" that shatters without effect.
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Re: The Unusual Predicament of Sophie De Murtas

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2. The Enchanted Font

[box]
The room contains a large, stone basin atop a low pillar, about the right size for a toddler's bathtub. The basin is empty.
[/box]

A detect magic spell will, of course, reveal that the font strongly radiates magic. It can be activated by pouring in at least a gallon of any liquid. The effect varies according to the substance poured inside:-
  • Fresh water -- The water surface becomes mirror-like, then clouds, and then reveals a place. The place first revealed is somewhere in the palace in Vallerin. If the characters touch the water, they will find that by dragging their fingers through it, they can shift the view to another location (i.e. dragging from west to east moves the view eastwards, etc.) The vision shown is at the present time, and it does transmit sound as well. The effect lasts for 1d6 turns, and then the water magically evaporates.
  • Salt water -- The water is imbued with the spirit of a small water elemental (like the one conjured by a staff, but only inflicts 1d6 damage in combat and only has 4HD). It will serve for 1d6 turns and then depart, leaving the basin empty.
  • Foul water, urine, or vomit -- The substance is magically transformed into 1d4 ochre jellies, which will attack the party.
  • Ale -- Lafayette and his unsavoury pals didn't try this; it never occurred to them. If it occurs to your players, then they'll discover that the ale vanishes. The first time this is tried, when the ale disappears, an obsidian warhammer will be left behind. This magical weapon weapon is heavy and hard to wield, and has a -1 penalty on "to hit" rolls. It inflicts 4d4 points of damage on a successful hit.
  • Wine -- If drunk directly from the font, the wine is treated as a potion of healing (a gallon of wine creates the equivalent of 100 doses). If the wine is removed from the font, whether in a cup, chalice, stoppered flask, or container of any other kind, it turns back to wine. All the wine vanishes in 1d6 turns whether used or not.
  • Holy water -- In the event that the party has an actual gallon of holy water on them and they decide to pour it in the font, then any corpse immersed in the basin will be resurrected. The holy water vanishes immediately a corpse is resurrected, or after 1d6 turns in any case. This effect works a maximum of three times.
  • Unholy water -- Any corpse immersed in the font is dissolved, and a spectre emerges instead. The unholy water vanishes immediately a spectre is produced, or after 1d6 turns in any case. This effect works a maximum of three times.
  • Blood -- This reveals the same location as the clean water does, but twenty-two days, four hours and nine minutes in the future. (If you're following closely, you might spot a three minute discrepancy with an earlier plot point. This is because it takes about three minutes to empty the basin of water and fill it up with blood.) The blood-view does not move, so in order to look at a new place, it's necessary to fill the basin back up with water. All the blood vanishes in 1d6 turns.
Note that it is not possible to move the font. It is magically anchored into place and moving it would require immense force. If the party does employ immense force, they will break the basin, thereby destroying its power.
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Re: The Unusual Predicament of Sophie De Murtas

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3. The Sacrifices

Sketch, for later expansion. These will be the (involuntary) future blood donors for the basin, kept chained to the wall. They are a couple of animals and a traumatised human. There's some way of keeping the Nazgorians out of here or they'd feed on the donors... who will tell their stories if asked, and the things they've heard may help clever players to work out how the basin works.
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Re: The Unusual Predicament of Sophie De Murtas

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4. Chamber of Eight

[box]
The stairs lead up into the centre of an octagonal chamber, about ninety feet across, with walls thirty feet on a side. In the centre of each side wall is one of the characteristic pedal-operated doors in this complex, so there are eight doors in total.
[/box]

The player characters can't see the two Thulids near the top of the stairs, because they are invisible. These creatures will be assessing the party via ESP, identifying any spell casters, noting magic items in use and listening to any command words employed. They will be aware of Venomax, if he has not yet been killed or driven off, and would prefer to wait until he arrives and attacks before fighting the party. However, the Thulids are not in league with Venomax, and he will need to kill them before he can achieve his own objectives within the tomb. Parties who play particularly cleverly may be able to get Venomax and the Thulids to fight each other.

Thulids, AC 15, HD8, hp 32, 29, #AT1, dam 1d4 dagger, Mv 40ft, Save as M-U 8, ML 7, XPV 945, 1015
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The 29-hp Thulid has the powers of an 8th level magic user. Spells:-
  • Level 1: Charm Person, Magic Missile, Shield
  • Level 2: Detect Invisible, Invisibility (x2) (already cast),
  • Level 3: Lightning Bolt, Slow
  • Level 4: Dimension Door, Wall of Fire
The 32-hp Thulid has 830gp and wears the Siphon Ring. This device is usable once per day. When activated, the next time the wearer touches a living creature, it steals 3d6 of their hp. The GM should roll 3d6, deduct this number of hp from the target and add the same number to the wearer's hp total. If the roll is exactly "13", then the Siphon Ring crumbles to dust in the same instant as the hp have been transferred.

The 29-hp Thulid has 744gp, wears the Crown of Pure Thought and carries three potions of blistering acid. The Crown of Pure Thought raises the wearer's effective Intelligence by one point (maximum 18) and causes the wearer to be treated as if they had a Wisdom of 18 when rolling saving throws against any attack or spell affecting the mind, will, or sanity. Each potion of blistering acid is in a glass phial which may be hurled with an accurate range of up to 20 ft (requiring a "to hit" roll against AC 10, as armour does not protect against this effect). Anyone struck with the blistering acid takes 2d8hp of damage.

If some whiny player asks for a saving throw against this effect, the GM should allow them a saving throw vs death magic for half damage but if they fail, 50% of the equipment they are carrying will be left corroded and useless (roll for each item). Items made of glass are immune. Stoical players who do not ask for saving throws lose full hp but get to keep their gear.

The Thulid carries these phials in a leather bag slung over its shoulder, and if it is struck on the back with force, shoved into the wall, etc., then the phials will break, doing full damage to the creature.

The blistering acid has no effect on the enchanted basin and cannot corrode the blade of eight (q.v.). These are items of near-artifact status that can shrug off a mere potion.
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Re: The Unusual Predicament of Sophie De Murtas

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5a-h. Tombs of Eight

[box]
You apply the pedal and the door glides out of the way to reveal a small chamber, roughly oblong in shape with curved corners. It contains a coffin-shaped stone block on the floor, before stands a wooden casket.
[/box]

Each casket is locked. The lock can be picked by a thief, forced by strength, or ensorcelled by a knock spell; only the knock spell is guaranteed to work. In the worst case the party may need to memorise more knock spells before all the caskets can be opened. In this event there should still be sufficient time to complete the mission if the party has not tarried on the way.

On opening each casket the GM should roll 1d8 on the following table to learn what the party has discovered. Strike each result as it appears, and if it is rolled again, re-roll; thus a party that opens every casket is guaranteed to find each thing.

1d8 -- Result
1 -- Has a pottery jar full of Red Hornets in the lid. Opening the chest by force, or by picking the lock without disarming the trap, breaks the jar and releases the Red Hornets. These horrendous little creatures are native to the Abyss, where they are used in torments. Their sting causes a horrible, incapacitating pain that lasts for 1d6 days, saving throw -vs- poison to avoid. Despite their name they are not, technically speaking, insects, and not subject to spells or powers that summon and control insects—each one counts as a kind of minor demon. They are immune to fire and smoke. The prime material plane is uncomfortably cold and damp for them, so they will merely spend one round thoroughly stinging the person who released them and then return to their home plane.
2 -- A kidskin pouch containing a small fortune in tourmalines and peridots ("fancy stones", in BFRPG argot: base value 100gp each). There are 6d20 such gems.
3 -- A block of ice containing nine large eyeballs. If removed from the casket the eyeballs will begin to thaw, a process which takes approximately an hour. Once fully thawed out each eyeball will regenerate into am adult troll; this takes a further 2d6 rounds.
4 -- Contains 1d6 random potions in glass phials, unless the chest has been opened by force, in which case it contains 4d100 smithereens of glass and a sticky residue.
5 -- A wizardly treatise on the Elemental Plane of Water. It contains the text of the low level magic-user spells Buoyancy, Breath of Life, and Swim (see this page).
6 -- A pouch of sweet-smelling herbs, carefully wrapped to preserve them. This is Mellow Murgatroyd, a perennial favourite of tobacco connoisseurs, and would be worth as much as 200gp to the right purchaser.
7 -- A bag of holding full of arrows of various kinds. There are nearly 1,000 non-magical arrows; 6 fireball arrows (explode as a 5-dice fireball on hitting their target); 12 spellthief arrows (if fired at a spellcaster they steal 1 randomly-determined spell from the caster's memory, as well as doing normal damage). It also contains a largish (1ft tall) obsidian statue of a woman with a tail (value: 200gp).
8 -- The Blade of Eight (q.v.)
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Re: The Unusual Predicament of Sophie De Murtas

Post by Mister Rab »

This is great! Lots of player thought required and some properly gribbly encounters. If nothing else, I'm stealing the idea of frozen troll eyes that can regenerate into the full creature when defrosted - what a thing to send to a rival guild/secret society as a letterbox "bomb". I can imagine all sorts of weirdness leading up to it with ice being stolen or the like.

Starts plotting... :twisted:
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Re: The Unusual Predicament of Sophie De Murtas

Post by Solomoriah »

I'm thinking we need to sweep this up and add it to AA2. I assume that's okay with you, P&P?
My personal site: www.gonnerman.org
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Re: The Unusual Predicament of Sophie De Murtas

Post by PapersAndPaychecks »

It is, but I'd be very grateful for a little more time to finish it, as it doesn't make much sense at the moment! Need to put in the mechanics for how you use the Blade of Eight to commit a murder across a gulf of time and space.
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