BF3 Strongholds of Sorcery

[Solomoriah]

Here's the treasure I've created, prior to distributing it about the castle:

1,722 cp, 715 sp, 7,057 gp, 1,713 pp
2 bloodstones (worth 50 gp each)
a large, irregular chunk of blue quartz (worth 20 gp)
a small, rounded piece of chrysoprase (worth 50 gp)
a bag of 7 pearls (worth 100 gp each)

an elven-made silver anklet (worth 1,000 gp)

a golden anklet set with small panels of jade (worth 1,400 gp)

a belt made of wide, flat links of platinum (worth 1,100 gp)

a ruby-encrusted silver belt buckle (worth 700 gp)

a pair of platinum shoe buckles set with emeralds (worth 2,100 gp as a set, or 800 gp each)

four heavy gold neck chains, linked in a helical pattern (worth 900 gp each)

a fancy silver comb with a dragons-head handle set with tiny diamonds as eyes (worth 1,500 gp)

a silver cup engraved with reliefs of dancing girls (worth 400 gp)

a pair of dangly gold earrings set with teardrop-shaped orange sapphires (worth 1,000 gp as a set, or 400 gp each)

a heavy gold flagon decorated with rope-patterned reliefs (worth 500 gp)

a pair of silver goblets with golden rims engraved with stars (worth 1,800 gp as a set or 800 gp each)

An engraved wooden box depicting a realistic heart; the box contains a pair of knives with silver blades and golden hilts. The blades have scalloped serrated edges, while the hilts are set with large blood-red rubies in the pommels and crossguards. Each knife is worth 900 gp each, and the box is worth 300 gp; all together as a boxed set, they are worth 2,800 gp.

an antique bronze medal depicting the stylized face of the ancient King Argo (worth 200 gp to a collector of antiquities)

a necklace of braided gold, silver, and copper chains, which show no signs of tarnish or verdigris (worth 600 gp)

a platinum pin in the shape of a rampant unicorn with a tiny sapphire for the eye (worth 1,100 gp)

A set of four statuettes made of gold and silver depicting the traditional knave, knight, queen, and king found in an Argossean deck of cards. The knave statuette is worth 400 gp, the knight 500 gp, the king 800 gp, and the queen is worth 1,200 gp. Careful examination of the figures by an expert will show that their faces are modelled after the faces of the king, queen, and crown prince of Glantra from over a century ago; the face of the knave also appears to be the face of some actual person, but who exactly it is, no one will know.

Flying Carpet
Longsword +1/+3 vs. Undead
Potion of Fire Resistance
Shield +2
Scroll of Five Magic-User Spells: Animate Dead, Fireball, Ice Storm, Magic Jar, Teleport
Scroll of One Magic-User Spell: Mirror Image

Now to find places for everything. This will not be one of those dungeons where everything is in one big chest in the middle of a 10'x10' room...

[Solomoriah]

Uploading R28 now. Most of the changes are in House of Coldarius, including the incorporation of some of Stuart's stuff from above as well as revisions of some of the rooms that were partially filled in. Also, floating at the end of the adventure is the list of treasure I posted above, amended to remove those items I've already distributed in the adventure.

[Solomoriah]

FYI, Chi, if you want to edit this one, don't bother with "Track Changes." I'm going to continue working on it, and I can use "Compare Document" to figure out what each of us has changed when I get around to integrating them.

[PapersAndPaychecks]

House of Coldarius, level 2, room 11.

11. GAME ROOM:
[box]
This room contains a square central table covered with green baize. Four chairs are pulled up to it, each with a slate and chalk for recording the score. A deck of playing "cards" made of stiffened vellum is on the table. On a side table is a set of cups and trophies and a crystal decanter containing a viscous crimson liquid.
[/box]

The crystal decanter radiates magic. It is enchanted so that any liquid kept within it remains fresh -- these decanters are designed for milk- or cream-based drinks, or egg nog. Predmore, of course, keeps blood in it. This particular blood belongs to an elven maiden who had had a few glasses of wine before she was bled, so drinking it will cause a vampire to become pleasantly intoxicated. (If a human or demi-human tries it, they will just vomit it up again.)

The decanter contains up to a pint of liquid and is worth 100gp. Also on the sideboard is a pair of silver goblets with golden rims engraved with stars (worth 1,800 gp as a set or 800 gp each) and a set of four statuettes made of gold and silver depicting the traditional knave, knight, queen, and king found in an Argossean deck of cards. The knave statuette is worth 400 gp, the knight 500 gp, the king 800 gp, and the queen is worth 1,200 gp. Careful examination of the figures by an expert will show that their faces are modelled after the faces of the king, queen, and crown prince of Glantra from over a century ago; the face of the knave also appears to be the face of some actual person, but who exactly it is, no one will know.

The cards are a special deck for the traditional game of Chase the Goblin. There are 52 of them, comprising 49 cards in 7 suits of 7 cards each (the cards are Chief, Shaman, Subchief, Guard, Lieutenant, Trooper and Whelp and the suits are Ogres, Bugbears, Gnolls, Hobgoblins, Orcs, Goblins and Kobolds) and three "special cards" (the knight, the priest and the wizard).

Treasure left to place (after this room)

758 cp, 346 sp, 6,937 gp, 1,713 pp
2 bloodstones (worth 50 gp each)
a large, irregular chunk of blue quartz (worth 20 gp)
a small, rounded piece of chrysoprase (worth 50 gp)
an elven-made silver anklet (worth 1,000 gp)
a golden anklet set with small panels of jade (worth 1,400 gp)
a belt made of wide, flat links of platinum (worth 1,100 gp)
a ruby-encrusted silver belt buckle (worth 700 gp)
a single platinum shoe buckle set with an emerald (worth 800 gp, or 2,100 gp as part of a set if the other buckle can be located)
four heavy gold neck chains, linked in a helical pattern (worth 900 gp each)
a pair of dangly gold earrings set with teardrop-shaped orange sapphires (worth 1,000 gp as a set, or 400 gp each)
a heavy gold flagon decorated with rope-patterned reliefs (worth 500 gp)
An engraved wooden box depicting a realistic heart; the box contains a pair of knives with silver blades and golden hilts. The blades have scalloped serrated edges, while the hilts are set with large blood-red rubies in the pommels and crossguards. Each knife is worth 900 gp each, and the box is worth 300 gp; all together as a boxed set, they are worth 2,800 gp.
an antique bronze medal depicting the stylized face of the ancient King Argo (worth 200 gp to a collector of antiquities)
a platinum pin in the shape of a rampant unicorn with a tiny sapphire for the eye (worth 1,100 gp)
Flying Carpet
Longsword +1/+3 vs. Undead
Potion of Fire Resistance
Shield +2
Scroll of Five Magic-User Spells: Animate Dead, Fireball, Ice Storm, Magic Jar, Teleport
Scroll of One Magic-User Spell: Mirror Image

[Solomoriah]

Ack. Just did the game room...

I'll review both versions and see what I can do to combine them.

[PapersAndPaychecks]

Drat, sorry. OK leaving you to it.

[Solomoriah]

Here's my version, from the R29 I'm working on:

11. GAME ROOM:

A round table stands just south of the center of this room, with six chairs arranged around it. Seated on one of the chairs is a slender, hooded man; he is facing away from you, and does not seem to have heard you enter.

The "man" is an animated skeleton in a hooded robe; it will leap up and attack as soon as any character approaches. The skeleton does not pose much of a threat, but it serves as an excellent distraction for the pair of giant crab spiders hiding in the northern part of the room; if no player indicates an intention to look around the room before someone approaches the skeleton, the crab spiders will surprise on 1-4 on 1d6.

On the table are a standard deck of Argossean playing cards; five cards lie in front of the hooded figure, face down. If turned over, they will be revealed as the knaves of cups, wands, and swords, and the ten of each of coins and cups.

There is a comfortable chair and side table in the northern part of the room; a book of elven poetry lies on the table. The entire book is, in fact, one poem extolling the virtues of a certain long-lost elven princess. The book is water-damaged and worm-eaten, and thus has little if any value. However, underneath the cushion of the chair is a scroll tube containing a Scroll of One Magic-User Spell: Mirror Image.

A fireplace is set into the section of wall between the center and northern windows. On the mantel is a set of four statuettes made of gold and silver depicting the traditional knave, knight, queen, and king found in an Argossean deck of cards. The knave statuette is worth 400 gp, the knight 500 gp, the king 800 gp, and the queen is worth 1,200 gp. Careful examination of the figures by an expert will show that their faces are modelled after the faces of the king, queen, and crown prince of Glantra from over a century ago; the face of the knave also appears to be the face of some actual person, but who exactly it is, no one will know. Bracketing the figurines are a pair of wax-encrusted brass candlesticks with only tiny stubs of candle remaining in them. The candlesticks are worth no more than 5 sp each.

Skeleton: AC 13 (half damage from edged weapons, one point only from arrows or bolts), HD 1, #At 1 sword, Dam 1d8, Mv 40', Sv F1, Ml 12, XP 25
HP 6

2 Giant Crab Spiders: AC 13, HD 2*, #At 1 bite, Dam 1d8 + poison, Mv 40', Sv F2, Ml 7, XP 100 ea.
HP 12, 13

[Solomoriah]

Omitting the monster stats, here's the combined version:

11. GAME ROOM:

A square table covered with green felt stands just south of the center of this room, with four chairs arranged around it. Seated on one of the chairs is a slender, hooded man; he is facing away from you, and does not seem to have heard you enter.

The "man" is an animated skeleton in a hooded robe; it will leap up and attack as soon as any character approaches. The skeleton does not pose much of a threat, but it serves as an excellent distraction for the pair of giant crab spiders hiding in the northern part of the room; if no player indicates an intention to look around the room before someone approaches the skeleton, the crab spiders will surprise on 1-4 on 1d6.

Once the combat is resolved, the adventurers will be able to examine the room further:

On the table near each of the chairs is a slate and chalk, possibly for recording the score of the ongoing game. A deck of playing cards made of stiffened vellum is in the center of the table, and five cards lie face down in front of the chair recently occupied by the skeleton.

A fireplace is set into the section of wall between the center and northern windows. On the somewhat crowded mantel is a pair of goblets, a crystal decanter containing a viscous crimson liquid, and four statuettes made of gold and silver.

There is a comfortable chair and side table in the northern part of the room; a book lies on the table.

The cards are a standard deck of Argossean playing cards; if turned over, the five cards will be revealed as the knaves of cups, wands, and swords, and the ten of each of coins and cups.

The figurines on the mantel depict the traditional knave, knight, queen, and king found in an Argossean deck of cards. The knave statuette is worth 400 gp, the knight 500 gp, the king 800 gp, and the queen is worth 1,200 gp. Careful examination of the figures by an expert will show that their faces are modeled after the faces of the king, queen, and crown prince of Glantra from over a century ago; the face of the knave also appears to be the face of some actual person, but who exactly it is, no one will know.

The crystal decanter radiates magic. It is enchanted so that any liquid kept within it remains fresh – these decanters are designed for drinks made with milk or cream, such as egg nog. Predmore, of course, keeps blood in it. This particular blood belongs to an elven maiden who had had a few glasses of wine before she was bled, so drinking it will cause a vampire to become pleasantly intoxicated. Any living character who tries it will likely just throw up. The decanter contains up to a pint of liquid and is worth 500 gp.

The two silver goblets have inlaid stars made of gold around their rims. They are worth 1,800 gp as a set or 800 gp each.

The book on the table beside the comfortable chair is a book of elven poetry. The entire book is, in fact, one poem extolling the virtues of a certain long-lost elven princess. The book is water-damaged and worm-eaten, and thus has little if any value. However, underneath the cushion of the chair is a scroll tube containing a Scroll of One Magic-User Spell: Mirror Image. This will be easily found if the chair is searched; if a character merely sits in the chair, the chance of discovery is 40%, plus 10% for each +1 Intelligence bonus (or minus 10% for each -1 Intelligence penalty).

[Solomoriah]

I think the combined game room is pretty cool, actually. I dropped only a little bit of your stuff, and replaced some of my bits with yours, and when it's all wrapped up together it's almost a full page of weirdness. I'm quite pleased... I hope it looks good to you too, P&P.

Uploading R29 now. The following rooms are not yet finished:

17. CORRIDOR
19. BROOM CLOSET
21. BATH
22. DRESSING ROOM
27. CORRIDOR: Has a monster but nothing else
28. LIBRARY: Room sketched but not filled in
30. SHRINE: Room sketched but not filled in
31. BEDROOM: Just needs boxed text
32. OFFICE: Almost nothing here
35. LABORATORY: This is where Predmore is making his sword
36. STUDY
38. LABORATORY
39. PARLOR

I'm liking the stuff you're coming up with, Stuart, and if you're game I'd like to keep on. So let's split this up so we don't step on each other again. I have to do room 35 myself, as it's the main scene of the adventure; room 31 is nearly done, and I've sketched the contents of 28 and 30. Why don't I go ahead and "claim" those rooms to work on, since I'm already started on all of them (except that laboratory, which I pretty much have to do anyway). This leaves a broad variety of other rooms for you to choose from, and I'll be happy to have your help on any of them.

The main thing is that not all of the rooms will be well maintained. Predmore was always somewhat self-absorbed, and after becoming a vampire he's only gotten worse. He rarely if ever "entertains," and probably doesn't use many of the rooms in the tower regularly anymore; Nerstly likewise probably isn't very interested in them. I'm going to say here that Predmore has not exactly gone out of his way to let Nerstly know about the treasures spread all over the tower, or the wererat would be searching for them every waking moment. His loyalty is bought, make no mistake, and he really doesn't care much about his master; but for the moment, his loyalty is paid in full and he will appear to be a devoted servant to the old wizard.

Also, let's consider the treasure items suggestions. We don't have to place every single one of them.

[PapersAndPaychecks]

17. CORRIDOR:
[box]
The door at the top of the staircase opens southwards onto an oak-paneled hall, 20ft east-west and 10ft north-south. In the north wall immediately to your left, there is another door resembling this one and you presume the staircase continues behind this door. There is a pair of double doors in the south wall opposite you and archways to the left and right.
[/box]

If the party investigates the oak paneling carefully, then they will discover that one of the panels is removable. Behind it is iron key with an amber stone set in the handle. There is nothing else of interest or value in this room.

19. BROOM CLOSET:
[box]
Ahead of you is a small cupboard containing two besoms, a hooped wooden bucket with a rope handle made of half a barrel, a mop, a scrubbing brush, several cakes of lye soap wrapped in pigskin, a broken lantern which is presumably awaiting repair, some long-disused jars and string which you recognise as the raw materials for making tallow candles, half a hide of leather, some linen twine, and a leather-sewing needle. A rolled up rug stands in one corner, tied with rope, and you can just see a closed wooden box behind it.
[/box]

The items stored here are regular household stuff except for the rug, which if unrolled will prove to have a pattern of lime green, terracotta orange and pale blue that's amazingly disharmonious with the decor in the castle. It is in fact a flying carpet. Unfortunately even Predmore does not know its command words (he keeps meaning to work out what they are) ---- discovering this information will involve a visit to a sage, who will pull his beard and ask for 2,000gp to fund the purchase of rare and recondite tomes from distant lands. These will not reveal the command words, and the sage will ask for another 2,000gp for the cost of further research. If this second 2,000gp is spent then the command words will be revealed.

The box is locked. It is in fact a trap which Predmore has set for Nerstly ---- if the key from corridor #17 is inserted into the lock and turned, then this will trigger a jolt of electricity inflicting 3d6 damage (save for half ---- unless the person turning the key is wearing leather gauntlets, in which case the damage is automatically halved, save for nil). Within the box are a few blocks of beeswax and a piece of cloth (total value: a few copper pieces). Nerstly has found the trap and wisely left the box undisturbed.

21. BATHROOM:
[box]
A patterned curtain hangs across the doorway. Moving this aside reveals a room containing a large barrel of clean rainwater, a copper bathtub and matching copper jug, a brazier full of charcoal, two towels of coarse linen and a loofah. The floor is beautifully tiled with a mosaic depicting a mermaid.
[/box]

These items are commonplace and of little value. Reddish-brown stains on one of the towels suggest that Predmore likes his guests to be nicely warm and relaxed when he feeds on them ---- their blood then contains compounds which help keep him calm and mellow.