INTRODUCTION PLAYER SCRIPT: WALSTEIN - TALK OF THE RUINS

PLAYER 1: “Do you know what troubles me about Walstein? They say you can still make out the houses. Blackened walls, moss in the stone, windows opening onto nothing. Rubble from the shattered buildings lies through the streets. A whole city burned during the Gods’ End, and enough of it left standing to remind you that people lived there.”

PLAYER 3: “Norden mages burned it in Ulmyr’s name and the Empire still points to Walstein whenever it needs a reason to put another restriction on magic. There’s a persuasive argument: all those empty houses.”

PLAYER 2: “Persuasive enough to keep the mages away? Apparently not. Scholars from the Erlefurt Colleges go there to practise their magecraft. Prestigious institutions, by all accounts. Their forebears are said to have helped burn the city, and now they’re back among the ruins with their books. What can they learn there that they can’t learn somewhere with a roof?”

PLAYER 4: “What their magic can do to people, perhaps. Some students are sent there for just that reason. A pilgrimage, they call it. Let them stand in those streets before anyone trusts them with real power. Though I’ve heard the scholars do more than teach. They seem to be searching for something. What it is, they keep to themselves.”

PLAYER 2: “Well, they’ve plenty of company in the searching. Treasure hunters pick through the ruins, and merchants buy what comes out. The Grey Market, they call it. Temporary stalls and bits of ruined buildings pressed into service as shops, all gathered at the city’s edge. They sell equipment, rumours, and plunder, with swindlers enough to make you wary of all three. Would you buy a silver cup from a burned house without wondering who last drank from it?”

PLAYER 3: “Would you ask before paying, or would that depend on the price?”

PLAYER 2: “I might ask why you’re so determined to put me off owning a decent cup. But yes, I’d ask. Anything carried out of Walstein ought to come with an explanation. Whether I’d believe the seller is another matter.”

PLAYER 1: “I’d wonder who went hungry enough to fetch it. The people living there now make their homes outside the old city, in ramshackle dwellings patched together from salvaged materials. Vagrants and criminals camp at the edges too, with nowhere else to go. Some want to keep clear of the soldiers as much as the creatures. Imagine choosing where to sleep with monsters behind you and the wilderness ahead. We can talk about cursed silver over a meal. Someone trying to get through another night there may have more pressing worries than who once owned the cup.”

PLAYER 4: “And the soldiers can hardly promise them safety. The Imperial army keeps a garrison there, but too few soldiers to enforce the Emperor’s laws properly. They kill what comes out of the ruins and keep the brigands from growing too bold. Recruits are sent there for drills, too. Young soldiers learning their trade against things most people only hear about in frightened whispers. I wonder how much drilling they get before something comes crawling out to test them.”

PLAYER 3: “And the creatures that get past them stray into the countryside. That’s why the mercenaries and monster hunters come. There’s good money in the work, and apparently no end to it. Some hunting guilds have taken over old buildings as strongholds. I suppose thick stone is thick stone, whatever happened inside it. Still, I wouldn’t envy the first watch on a night like that.”

PLAYER 1: “Neither would I. Especially after hearing what people say about the Great Beast. There’s a rumour that Walstein’s destruction was its first visitation. I don’t know how that fits with the mages and the burning. Perhaps no one does. But with those horrors still coming out of the city, I can understand why people keep telling the story.”

PLAYER 4: “So can I. But I’d want more than a tale told over ale before I put the Beast there. The burning and the monsters are terrible enough without deciding we know what connects them.”

PLAYER 1: “No, we don’t. But what about that pulse the spellcasters speak of? They say it comes from somewhere near the centre of the ruins, reverberating like a heartbeat. Every mage and spellcaster in the vicinity can feel it: a dark whisper at the back of their minds. Imagine standing among those empty houses and feeling that, knowing the others who wield magic feel it too. I can’t tell you what it means. But I’d find that harder to shrug off than a tale told over ale.”

PLAYER 4: “So would I. Feeling something and knowing what it is are different matters, though. Some suspect that magic is the source of the mutated creatures crawling and slithering through the cracked stone and toppled buildings. If they’re right, the soldiers could keep killing those things and never reach what’s making them. That may be why the Erlefurt scholars keep returning. I’d be more reassured if they seemed willing to talk about what they’ve found.”

PLAYER 3: “Or perhaps they ought to leave it alone. There’s another explanation for that pulse: the spirits of the citizens, soldiers, and mages who died fighting there during the Gods’ End. I couldn’t tell you which story to believe. But if something of those people remains, how would they look on strangers searching their houses for anything worth carrying away? You needn’t believe in hauntings to find that an ugly business.”

PLAYER 2: “No. And you’ve rather spoiled that silver cup for me. Though you’re right about the hungry people, too. I doubt everyone in that market has the luxury of choosing clean work. If we hear someone talking about a find, I’d like to hear them out. Preferably in a tavern, with a drink in front of us. That journey’s left my throat full of dust, and all this talk of ashes hasn’t helped. Come on, let’s find one. I’ll settle for a wooden cup.”

PART 1: MISSING, PRESUMED ALIVE

INTRODUCTION

An apprentice wizard disappears into the ruins of Walstein, prompting an investigation. After learning his likely location, the characters must brave the haunted ruins. They come to learn that it's very likely that the missing wizard is a danger rather than is in danger.

WALSTEIN

Shattered stone litters the old city's streets. Outside the ruins, ramshackle dwellings built from salvaged materials shelter the present-day residents. At the city's edge, temporary market stalls stand beside ruined buildings pressed back into use.

ENCOUNTER 1: A WAYWARD APPRENTICE (10 mins)

DM Notes:

• Professor Cecilia Vultze (suh-SEEL-yuh VUHLTZ)
  • Lawful neutral elf and a teaching wizard at the Magister College in Erlefurt. She oversees a small cohort of apprentices studying in Walstein.
  • She suspects Lukas has got himself into danger and wants to hire people capable of bringing him back.
  • She has already asked about Lukas at the Grey Market. She considers herself and her apprentices scholars, not warriors, and dislikes wielding magic as a weapon.

INTERACTION: PROFESSOR VULTZE

A robed elf looks up as you approach. Her gaze passes over each of you, lingering briefly as though weighing your suitability for the task. She furrows her brow, then addresses you with the measured clarity of someone accustomed to commanding a classroom.

“Thank you for answering my call. I am Professor Cecilia Vultze, of the Magister College in Erlefurt. I oversee the apprentices studying here.

One of them, Lukas Berhard, has been missing since yesterday morning. I sent him to the Grey Market to purchase supplies. He should have returned within an hour or two.

His peers say they have neither seen nor heard from him.

I need someone capable of finding him - and bringing him back if he has got himself into trouble. You will, of course, be compensated.”

DM Notes: Vultze suspects the apprentices are withholding information, but she does not know what happened to Lukas.

WHAT WAS LUKAS BUYING?

• “Spell components. Nothing rare, dangerous, or particularly valuable. It should have been a simple errand.”
• “He had no reason to be away this long.”

WHO MIGHT KNOW MORE?

• “I suspect the other apprentices know more than they’ve told me. Start with Aidah Winnthorpe, a young halfling.”
• “Lukas mostly kept to himself, but he spoke with her. If he confided in anyone, she is the person I would ask.”
• “You’ll find the students at the nearby study pavilion. They’re preparing for an examination later today.”

DM Notes: Aidah was the only apprentice Lukas interacted with. Vultze suspects she knows more, not that she helped him disappear.

WHAT HAVE YOU TRIED?

• "I've already asked after him at the Grey Market. I still haven't found him. His fellow apprentices may be able to tell you more."

WHY NOT GO YOURSELF?

• "My apprentices and I are scholars. I have little taste for wielding magic as a weapon. If Lukas has found trouble in those ruins, I want someone who can fight their way back with him."

PAYMENT AND RETURNING LUKAS

• “I can give each of you five gold pieces now, and another five each when you bring Lukas back.”
• “If you find that he’s dead… please bring back his remains. He deserves a burial.”

DM Notes: Give each character 5 GP immediately and another 5 GP on successful completion: 10 GP each in total, as recorded in the Adventure Diary.

MOVING ON

• “Speak with Aidah first. Find out what Lukas told her before he went missing.”

DM Notes: Proceed to ENCOUNTER 2: PEER REVIEW when the characters head to the study pavilion.

ENCOUNTER 2: PEER REVIEW (15 mins)

DM Notes:

• Aidah Winnthorpe (AY-duh WIN-thorp)
  • Neutral good halfling and a reluctant wizard's apprentice.
  • Her parents sent her to the Erlefurt Colleges to escape the attention of the Arcanist Inquisition in their Castinellan homeland.
  • She tries to stay out of trouble and fears what her magic might do to herself or others.

LOCATION: THE STUDY PAVILION

Beneath a hastily constructed pavilion, twenty robed figures sit surrounded by stacks of tomes. Pages turn, and most of the students barely glance up at your approach.

A young halfling woman seems to be finding it hard to concentrate. Her attention wanders from her book to the people around her. When you approach, her fingers worry the edge of a page she has yet to turn.

DM Notes: The students are studying magical philosophy for Professor Vultze's examination later today.

INTERACTION: THE OTHER STUDENTS

• “I'm sorry. I don't know where Lukas is. We have an examination today, and I really must get back to this.”
• “I can't tell you anything about him. Have you spoken with the professor?”

DM Notes: Students other than Aidah politely but firmly say they know nothing about Lukas or his whereabouts.

INTERACTION: AIDAH

At Lukas's name, the halfling stops turning the page. She looks down at the open book, then back at you. “I'm Aidah. Aidah Winnthorpe. Yes, Lukas spoke to me. I didn't think he was actually going to do it.”

DM Notes: Aidah is anxious because Lukas may have entered the ruins alone.

WHAT WAS LUKAS LIKE?

• “He mostly kept to himself. But he would talk to me. I think it helped that I wasn't trying to compete with him.”
• “The others are so driven. Lukas was too, but it was the power he wanted. What magic could give him.”
• “I'm just trying to get through my studies without something going wrong. I don't think he ever understood being afraid of what magic could do.”

DM Notes: Aidah believes Lukas liked her because she wasn't competing with him.

WHAT WAS HE PLANNING?

• “He talked about searching the ruins for an alchemist's shop. It was destroyed during the Gods' End, along with the rest of the city.”
• “He thought there might be a secret basement underneath it. Somewhere with magical writings or objects still inside.”
• “I thought he was only talking. Now he's missing, and I'm afraid he went in there alone.”

DM Notes: Aidah knows Lukas's plans, not what he has found. The secret basement and its contents are his expectations.

HOW WAS HE GOING TO FIND THE SHOP?

• “He didn't seem to know exactly where it was. But he mentioned a merchant called Damon, at the Grey Market.”
• “Damon sells old maps of Walstein. Lukas thought one might help him find the right place.”
• “Be careful how you ask. Selling maps of the ruins is illegal. I wouldn't announce what you're looking for to the whole market.”

DM Notes: Aidah does not know whether Lukas bought a map. Damon confirms the purchase later.

MOVING ON

• “That's all I know. Please speak with Damon. If Lukas went looking for that shop, perhaps he can tell you where to start.”

DM Notes: Aidah knows little else. Proceed to ENCOUNTER 3: SHADES OF GREY MARKET when the characters follow the lead.

ENCOUNTER 3: SHADES OF GREY MARKET

DM Notes:

• Damon
  • Chaotic neutral human; greedy, unscrupulous, and concerned with preserving his own skin.
  • He buys salvage cheaply and sells it as treasure, leaving the dangerous recovery work to others.
• Copperchain
  • Chaotic evil dwarf and an Ebon Syndicate Enforcer; use her stat block in Appendix A.
  • She enjoys violence but avoids killing in public because military authorities are nearby.

INTERACTION: DAMON AND COPPERCHAIN

Asking for Damon brings directions to a short, stocky human with long grey hair. He is already occupied with a shorter, stockier dwarf woman. A dark bruise marks her right side, and a heavy copper chain hangs from her hand.

Damon speaks in soothing tones. The dwarf jabs a finger at him, her voice low and furious.

“Fraud! If this were anywhere else, they'd be pulling my chain out of your arse right now.”

She shakes the chain in his face. Damon spots you and turns with sudden interest.

“Ah, I see I might have some customers. What can I help you with?”

DM Notes: Copperchain is demanding a refund for a fraudulent magical pendant.

WHAT HAPPENED?

COPPERCHAIN

• “He sold me a feather pendant. Said it would slow a fall. Forty gold pieces for a charm that would let me climb without breaking my neck.”
• “I tested it. Twenty feet down, and I hit the ground just as hard as anyone else would.”
• “Now I want my forty gold back. He can keep his worthless pendant.”

DM Notes: Damon cheated Copperchain. She needed the pendant for work involving climbing walls, but it failed to protect her from the fall that caused her bruises.

DAMON DRAWS THE PARTY IN

DAMON

• “I'm sure we can settle this without making a scene. You look like reasonable people.”
• “If you want my help, I need yours first. Help me settle this business with her, and then we can discuss what you've come for.”

DM Notes:

• Damon insists the characters help resolve the dispute before he assists them. If they refuse, use REFUSING TO INTERVENE below.
• He avoids risking his own life for profit.

PAYING COPPERCHAIN

COPPERCHAIN

• “Forty gold. I don't care whose purse it comes from, so long as I get it.”

DM Notes:

• If the characters pay 40 GP, Copperchain leaves.
• Damon then offers his map and information for 10 GP, with the opportunity to negotiate that fee below.

NEGOTIATING COPPERCHAIN'S REFUND

• Persuasion Check (15): “Thirty, then. Hand it over, and we're finished.”
• Intimidation Check (15): “Fine. Thirty. But I'll remember how you chose to settle this.”

DM Notes:

• DC 15 Charisma (Persuasion or Intimidation): Success reduces her demand to 30 GP, which must still be paid. On failure, she demands 40 GP.
• Using Intimidation carries ENMITY OF THE EBON SYNDICATE.

REFUSING TO INTERVENE

Damon looks from you to Copperchain, then reluctantly counts out her money.

“There. Your refund. Now, about your questions…”

DAMON

• “The map and the information will cost you fifty gold pieces. I've already lost enough on this business.”

DM Notes: If the characters refuse to help, Damon eventually pays Copperchain himself and charges the party 50 GP for the map and information.

COMBAT: IF THE DISPUTE BECOMES A FIGHT

Copperchain tightens her grip on the heavy chain.

“You want to make this your quarrel? Come on, then.”

DM Notes:

• Copperchain attacks enthusiastically but does not strike lethal blows. A character she reduces to 0 Hit Points is Unconscious and Stable.
• She stops fighting when she becomes Bloodied.
• Attacking her incurs ENMITY OF THE EBON SYNDICATE.
• Killing her also triggers the investigation and CHARGED WITH MANSLAUGHTER award described below.

DAMON'S PRICE AFTER THE PARTY HELPS

DAMON

• “Now we can do business. The map and what I know - ten gold pieces.”

DM Notes: After the party resolves Damon's problem through payment, persuasion, or combat, he charges 10 GP for the map and information. This is a party fee, separate from any refund paid to Copperchain.

NEGOTIATING DAMON'S FEE

• Persuasion Check (10): “Yes, you have done me a service. Very well. The map is yours, and I'll tell you what I know.”
• Intimidation Check (10): “All right. Keep your gold. Take the map, and I'll answer your questions.”

DM Notes:

• After resolving Damon's problem, a successful DC 10 Charisma (Persuasion or Intimidation) check obtains the map and information for free. Without success, the stated fee is 10 GP.

DID LUKAS BUY A MAP?

DAMON

• “Lukas Berhard? Yes. I sold him a map. I can provide you a copy of the same one.”
• “Old Walstein, before the destruction during the Gods' End. He was interested in a particular part of the city.”

DM Notes:

• Give the following information once the map-and-information arrangement is settled.
• Most of Damon's maps are genuine, but each copy he makes for resale introduces more distortion.

WHERE DOES THE MAP LEAD?

DAMON

• “This area, near the centre of the city. Smiths, tradesfolk, medical experts - all sorts of specialised work.”
• “It was one of the places hit hardest by whatever catastrophe destroyed Walstein.”

WHICH BUILDING INTERESTED LUKAS?

DAMON

• “An alchemist's shop. That's what he was particularly interested in.”
• “The buildings have abbreviations beside them. See this one? ALCH.”

DM Notes:

• The map marks a building with ALCH and points the characters toward the shop.
• Damon knows Lukas's interest, not his current whereabouts or what is inside the basement.

WHAT ELSE HAS DAMON HEARD?

DAMON

• “Maps aren't my only business. I hear things - from scholars, sages, people who like to talk.”
• “One of the buildings in that area was supposedly a cover for a magical laboratory. Experiments. Procedures that weren't meant to appear in anyone's records.”
• “Whatever they were doing, it was outside the jurisdiction of the Erlefurt Colleges. That's the story, anyway.”

DM Notes: The laboratory is a rumor. Damon cannot confirm that it and the marked alchemist's shop are the same building.

REWARDS: STORY AWARDS

DM Notes:

• ENMITY OF THE EBON SYNDICATE: Award if the characters attack Copperchain, keep her from receiving the refund she demands, or use Intimidation against her.
• CHARGED WITH MANSLAUGHTER: If the characters kill Copperchain, the local constabulary eventually learns what happened and investigates. Characters who took part in the fight receive a heavy fine handled through this Story Award.

MOVING ON

DM Notes: Damon's map and the information from him and Aidah point toward the alchemist's shop. Proceed to PART 2 when the characters head into the ruins.

IDENTIFYING THE CREATURES

• Perception Check (10) - Fighting chain: "She carries that chain as a weapon, ready to catch a limb as well as strike. Keep clear of its loops."
• Insight Check (15) - Fighting method: "Once she catches someone, she can keep the chain tight and attack again. She means to hold an opponent close and punish them there."

DM Notes: Suggested checks cost an action during combat. Each success reveals one unrevealed fact for the skill used.

COMBAT STATS: COPPERCHAIN

DM Notes: Copperchain uses the Ebon Syndicate Enforcer stat block (Appendix A, p. 15). Copperchain is chaotic evil; the generic stat block lists neutral.

• Medium or Small Humanoid | AC 15 | HP 52 (8d8 + 16) | Speed 30 ft. | Initiative +3 (13) | CR 2 (XP 450; PB +2)
• STR 15 (+2; save +4) | DEX 16 (+3; save +5) | CON 14 (+2; save +2) | INT 10 (+0; save +0) | WIS 12 (+1; save +1) | CHA 12 (+1; save +1)
• Skills: Athletics +4, Stealth +5. Gear: Dagger, Fighting Chain, Studded Leather Armor. Senses: Passive Perception 11. Languages: Thieves' Cant, plus three other languages.
• Multiattack: Two attacks using Dagger and Fighting Chain in any combination.
• Dagger: Melee or Ranged Attack Roll +5; reach 5 ft. or range 20/60 ft. Hit: 5 (1d4 + 3) Piercing damage.
• Fighting Chain: Melee Attack Roll +5; reach 5 ft. Hit: 6 (1d6 + 3) Bludgeoning damage; target is Grappled (escape DC 12). The enforcer can grapple only one creature with the chain.
• Strangle (Bonus Action): Deal 4 (1d4 + 2) Bludgeoning damage to a target Grappled by the Fighting Chain. The target cannot speak until the start of the enforcer's next turn or until no longer Grappled.
• Encounter behavior: Copperchain does not strike lethal blows. A character reduced to 0 Hit Points is Unconscious and Stable. She stops fighting when Bloodied.

COMBAT TACTICS

DM Notes: Suggested play for Copperchain: hurt someone enough to end the argument, without killing them in front of witnesses.

• Round 1 - Catch and squeeze: Close with the character who challenged her. Use Fighting Chain first; if it hits, follow with a Dagger attack and Strangle as a Bonus Action. If the chain misses, try it again with her second attack, then Strangle if that hits.
• Round 2 - Keep hold: Keep attacking the held character with her two attacks and use Strangle again. If they escaped, try to catch them again. The chain holds only one creature; she cannot pin the whole party down.
• Round 3 onward - Answer the threat: If someone nearby has visibly started casting spells, catching them and using Strangle prevents speech, interfering with spells that require verbal components. Otherwise, stick with the opponent she can reach rather than running through the party to chase an archer.
• Positioning: Keep a stall or ruined wall at her back when the actual layout allows it, limiting how many characters can crowd around her. Her chain has 5-foot reach, not 10 feet. Grappled does not mean Restrained and grants no automatic Advantage on her attacks.
• Stop at 26 HP: As soon as she becomes Bloodied, she stops fighting. She does not finish the round or take one last swing. Anyone she drops to 0 HP is Unconscious and Stable; she leaves fallen opponents alone.

PART 2: INTO THE RUINS

ENCOUNTER 4: A DOG AND HIS MAN

DM Notes:

• Metrius Schnell (MEE-tree-us SCHNEHL)
  • A neutral good human hermit who searches the ruins for treasures to sell in the Grey Market.
  • His spirit now occupies his spaniel's body. He understands what is happening but cannot speak.
• Lillia (LILL-ee-uh)
  • Metrius's neutral good spaniel, now inhabiting his human body.
  • She can speak only simple, doglike thoughts and is intent on catching the moles beneath the rubble.

LOCATION: THE BROKEN WALLS

Little remains standing this close to the heart of the destruction. Broken masonry lies in heaps, with dust and rotting refuse caught in the gaps. The air smells of old decay.

A man in tattered clothes sits on a pile of bricks, urgently pulling stones aside. Beside him, a spaniel raises its head and watches you with keen interest. The man scarcely seems to notice your approach.

The spaniel looks from you to the man, then gives a short bark. The man keeps digging, scattering loose stones with both hands.

"Moles. Here. Moles!"

DM Notes: Lillia is speaking from the man's body. Metrius can bark, gesture with his paws, and try to direct the party's attention. Let the characters work out how to communicate with them.

EXAMINING THE SCENE

• Animal Handling Check (10): "The man's attention is fixed on the moles. His digging and short, eager calls are strikingly like a dog hunting beneath the stones."
• Insight Check (15): "The spaniel follows your conversation and deliberately tries to direct your attention. There seems to be understanding behind those gestures, not merely training."
• Perception Check - Look (10): "A few mirror shards glint among the rubble near the man and spaniel."
• Investigation Check - Examine Shards (10): "A thin smear of dried blood clings to one jagged edge."
• Medicine Check - Examine Injuries (10): "The man and spaniel both have small cuts consistent with broken glass."
• Arcana Check - Connect the Clues (15): "You've heard accounts of magic that displaces a creature's spirit. The man's doglike behavior and the spaniel's apparent understanding suggest their minds may have exchanged places."
• Detect Magic: "A faint aura of necromancy clings to the broken glass."
• Arcana Check - Interpret the Aura (15): "Necromancy does more than raise the dead. You've heard of spirits bound inside objects, or forced from one body into another. That might explain the strange behavior of this pair."

DM Notes:

• If the characters ask whether the glass caused this, Metrius can look toward the shards and nod from the spaniel's body. He cannot explain Persippa or the full magical sequence. See WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM?

HAVE YOU SEEN A YOUNG MAN IN ROBES?

LILLIA

• "Yes. Boy."
• "There. Down."

The spaniel turns toward the rubble and paws at it, then looks back at you.

DM Notes: Use these responses once the characters get the pair's attention. Both saw Lukas enter a tunnel beneath the rubble toward the alchemist's shop. Their directions grant Advantage on the search in INVESTIGATION: FINDING THE TUNNEL.

WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM?

DM Notes: Metrius found a mirror fragment containing Persippa, one of Dyana's assistants. He cut himself and dropped it onto Lillia, nicking her too. Persippa entered Metrius, Metrius entered Lillia, and the magical confusion ended with the human and spaniel exchanging bodies. Persippa's spirit vanished when the glass broke. The fragment came from the laboratory and used the same magic as Dyana's mirror.

DO THEY WANT HELP?

LILLIA

• "Good. Stay. Moles."

The spaniel settles beside the man, apparently content to remain with him.

DM Notes: Both are happy with their new arrangement. Restoring their original bodies requires magic beyond the characters' current abilities.

INVESTIGATION: FINDING THE TUNNEL

• Perception, Survival, or Investigation Check - Assess the Rubble (10): "These stones are barely holding together. Someone light on their feet might pick through them without bringing the pile down."

"Who searches, and how are the others helping?"

• Perception Check - Find the Tunnel (20): "Behind a bank of loose stone, you spot a narrow opening descending beneath the ruins. Someone has recently pushed the debris aside."

DM Notes:

• Directions from Metrius and Lillia grant Advantage on the DC 20 Wisdom (Perception) check. Another character can also grant Advantage by helping watch for shifting stones or pointing out gaps; these benefits do not stack.
• On a failed search, rubble shifts beneath the searcher: DC 12 Dexterity saving throw. Failure deals 1d4 Bludgeoning damage per character level; success avoids damage.

MOVING ON

A steep passage descends beneath the shattered foundations, out of sight of the ruined streets.

DM Notes: Continue to ENCOUNTER 5: TWO RITES MAKE A WRONG when the party descends.

ENCOUNTER 5: TWO RITES MAKE A WRONG

LOCATION: DOWN INTO THE BASEMENT

The passage slopes steeply beneath the ruined buildings and opens into a broad basement. Much of the foundation has held, leaving tables and chairs standing amid the wreckage.

Smashed ink jars, melted candles, and overturned chalk boxes litter the floor. At the far end, a collapsed wall opens onto a tunnel choked with rubble.

EXAMINING THE SCENE

• Arcana Check (10): "Ink, chalk, tallow - these are familiar materials for magical work. This wreckage includes a supply of spell components."

DM Notes: Suggested check from the entrance; crossing the room triggers the attack.

COMBAT: THE COMPONENTS STIR

DM Notes: If the characters look for Lukas's route before entering, use the clear footprints under MOVING ON wherever their view permits. Following them toward the broken wall still triggers the attack when they cross the room. Let them choose their approach; the debris stays still until that trigger.

As you cross the room, lumps of candle wax begin to gather themselves together. Small, squat creatures pull free of the tallow, their mouths glowing with fire. Nearby, chalk dust rises in twisting columns, squealing as it spins toward you.

DM Notes: Crossing the room triggers the attack. Uncontrolled magic forms 3 Tallow Toads and 2 Chalk Chatterlings, which immediately attack.

IDENTIFYING THE CREATURES

DM Notes: Suggested checks cost an action during combat. Resolve highest rolls first; each success reveals one unrevealed fact at that DC or lower.

• Arcana Check (10) - Both: "You recognize the workings of animation: magic moving matter without giving it life. Poison will do nothing to these bodies."
• Arcana Check (10) - Tallow Toad: "That burning wax will keep hurting you while it clings. Scrape it off before it burns deeper."
• Arcana Check (15) - Both: "You recall hearing about an apprentice chasing animated components around a workshop with a bucket. A good dousing broke their bodies apart. Water can hurt these things."
• Arcana Check (15) - Chalk Chatterling: "A warning about chatterlings comes back to you: their babbling tangles the thoughts needed to shape a spell. Within earshot, a caster can lose concentration or find they cannot cast at all."
• Arcana Check (20) - Both: "An old workshop warning comes to mind: 'When the components start walking, fetch the wash bucket.' Water harms them, but soapy water breaks them apart even more effectively."
• Arcana Check (20) - Tallow Toad: "You remember a cautionary tale about someone who stamped on a tallow toad and lost their boots to the flames. These creatures burst when they die. Finish one from a distance."
• Arcana Check (20) - Chalk Chatterling: "There is another danger in that whirling dust. When the magic holding it together fails, it bursts outward, blinding anyone caught close enough. Stand back before the killing blow."

ADJUSTING THE FIGHT

DM Notes: Baseline is five level 2 characters. Use the module's party-strength category:

• Very Weak: 1 Tallow Toad and 1 Chalk Chatterling.
• Weak: 2 Tallow Toads and 1 Chalk Chatterling.
• Standard: 3 Tallow Toads and 2 Chalk Chatterlings.
• Strong: 4 Tallow Toads and 3 Chalk Chatterlings.
• Very Strong: 5 Tallow Toads and 4 Chalk Chatterlings.

DM Notes: Appendix A defines Very Weak as fewer than five characters and average level below 3; Weak as fewer than five characters or average level below 3; Strong as more than five characters or average level above 3; Very Strong as more than five characters and average level above 3. Apply the chosen category to the later fights as well.

SALVAGE: SEARCHING THE ROOM

Among the smashed containers, some jars and pieces of equipment remain intact. Enough ink has survived to be worth carrying out.

DM Notes: Looting the ink and intact supplies earns 5 GP per character, recorded for Encounter 5 in the Adventure Diary.

MOVING ON

A clear trail of footprints crosses the basement and continues through the broken wall into the passage beyond.

DM Notes: These are Lukas's footprints. Follow them to ENCOUNTER 6: HIVEWOLF LAIR.

COMBAT STATS: TALLOW TOAD

• Tiny Construct, Unaligned | AC 12 | HP 17 (5d4 + 5) | Initiative +2 (12) | Speed 25 ft. | CR 1/4 (XP 50; PB +2)
• STR 8 (-1) | DEX 14 (+2) | CON 12 (+1) | INT 2 (-4) | WIS 9 (-1) | CHA 5 (-3). Saving throws equal these modifiers.
• Resistance: Cold. Immunities: Poison damage; Charmed, Exhaustion, Poisoned. Senses: Darkvision 60 ft.; Passive Perception 9. Languages: None.
• Death Burst: When it dies, each creature within a 5-foot Emanation makes a DC 11 Dexterity save. Failure: 3 (1d6) Fire damage.
• Illumination: Sheds Dim Light in a 10-foot radius.
• Water Weakness: Dousing it with water or ending its turn submerged deals 3 (1d6) Acid damage, or 6 Acid damage if the water is soapy.
• Tongue of Flame: Melee attack +4, reach 5 ft.; 5 (1d6 + 2) Fire damage.
• Spit: Ranged attack +4, range 20/60 ft.; 5 (1d6 + 2) Fire damage. At the end of the target's next turn, it takes half the original damage again unless a creature first uses an action to remove the hot wax.

COMBAT STATS: CHALK CHATTERLING

• Small Construct, Unaligned | AC 12 | HP 22 (5d6 + 5) | Initiative +2 (12) | Speed 25 ft., Fly 25 ft. | CR 1/2 (XP 100; PB +2)
• STR 5 (-3) | DEX 15 (+2) | CON 12 (+1) | INT 4 (-3) | WIS 10 (+0) | CHA 7 (-2). Saving throws equal these modifiers.
• Immunities: Poison damage; Charmed, Exhaustion, Grappled, Paralyzed, Petrified, Poisoned, Prone, Restrained. Senses: Darkvision 60 ft.; Passive Perception 10. Languages: None; its apparent speech is gibberish.
• Death Burst: When it dies, each creature within a 5-foot Emanation makes a DC 11 Constitution save. Failure: Blinded until the end of its next turn.
• Distracting Chatter: A creature starting its turn within 30 feet that can hear the chatterling makes a DC 11 Wisdom save. Failure: it cannot cast spells or maintain Concentration until the start of its next turn. Constructs are immune.
• Water Weakness: Dousing it with water or ending its turn submerged deals 3 (1d6) Acid damage, or 6 Acid damage if the water is soapy.
• Dust Whip: Melee attack +4, reach 5 ft.; 7 (2d4 + 2) Slashing damage.
• Maddening Chatter (Recharge 6): Each creature within 30 feet that can hear it makes a DC 11 Wisdom save. Failure: 5 (2d4) Psychic damage and no Reactions until the end of the Chatterling's next turn. Success: half damage. Constructs are immune.

COMBAT TACTICS

DM Notes: Suggested play: the Toads spit burning wax while the Chatterlings fill the room with noise. Their low Intelligence favors simple, repeated attacks, not elaborate traps.

• Round 1 - Wax and chatter: Toads use Spit against nearby characters within 20 feet. A Toad already in melee uses Tongue of Flame instead. Chatterlings move within 30 feet of several characters and use Maddening Chatter; it does not affect their Construct allies. Resolve Distracting Chatter at the start of each affected character's turn, separately from that action.
• Round 2 - Press the opening: Toads keep spitting from behind the melee. Mark each wax hit for its delayed damage at the end of the target's next turn; removing it costs an action. Chatterlings use Dust Whip against reachable opponents while their area chatter continues. Roll recharge before deciding whether to use Maddening Chatter again.
• Round 3 onward - Keep the pressure local: A Chatterling can fly around furniture to keep several characters within its chatter, or move away from someone who lost their Reactions to Maddening Chatter. Other nearby opponents may still make opportunity attacks. Toads attack whoever remains close enough; they do not identify classes or plan around unseen spell lists.
• When one dies: Resolve its 5-foot Death Burst immediately. A Toad's fire can hurt nearby allies as well as PCs; neither creature is immune to Fire. A Chatterling's burst can blind other Constructs too. Spread them out enough that one death does not catch the entire group, without inventing new starting positions after combat begins.
• If the party uses water: Apply Water Weakness when a creature is doused. Describe wax breaking apart or chalk washing into slurry so the players can see their idea working. Do not give these creatures a new resistance or a coordinated countermeasure.

ENCOUNTER 6: HIVEWOLF LAIR

LOCATION: THE PULPY NEST

Fallen stone covers the floor of this broad chamber. In its center stands a massive nest of pulpy material. The main passage continues on the opposite side. Bloody footprints lead from the center of the room toward that exit.

DM Notes: The main route runs northwest to southeast. A Hivewolf Matriarch and 2 Hivewolves are concealed in the central nest.

EXAMINING THE SCENE

• Nature or Survival Check (15): "You've heard adventurers tell of nests like this, built from pulpy material and fiercely defended by hivewolves. This fits their descriptions. Their matriarch is out of sight; moving quietly might let you pass before anything stirs."
• Perception Check - Listen (10): "You distinguish scratching and chittering from within the pulpy nest."
• Perception Check - Listen (15): "Other chittering answers from farther away. The sounds echo through the side passages, making it impossible to tell which tunnels they come from."
• Perception Check - Look (15): "Beyond the bloody trail, you see a heap of bodies at the far passage. You can make out legs and armored shells among the fallen shapes."
• Perception Check - Look (20): "The shells are blackened and scorched. Whatever killed those creatures struck near the passage the bloody footprints lead into."

DM Notes: Look checks require a clear view of the exit, with sufficient light or Darkvision reaching that far. Follow these clues to FOLLOWING THE BLOOD and SPOTTING THE WARDS below.

ACTION: SNEAKING THROUGH

DM Notes: Every character makes DC 14 Dexterity (Stealth). If everyone succeeds, the party crosses without disturbing the Matriarch. If exactly one character fails, only the 2 regular Hivewolves emerge to investigate during the first two rounds.

COMBAT: WHEN THE HIVE IS ALERTED

Claws scrape inside the nest. Armored shapes push through its pulpy walls, wolfish jaws opening between sharp mandibles. Answering barks come from the side passages.

DM Notes: The standard fight begins with 1 Matriarch and 2 Hivewolves. Once alerted, 1 additional Hivewolf arrives from a random side passage at the start of every round. Reinforcements stop when the Matriarch is killed.

IDENTIFYING THE CREATURES

• Nature Check (10): "You've heard travelers describe ant-wolves that leave scarcely anything edible behind. Hivewolves eat plants as well as prey, stripping the country around their nests."
• Nature Check (15): "A hunter's account comes back to you: one hivewolf spotted the hunters, and others nearby knew before a warning was heard. Their awareness passes through the colony."
• Nature Check (20): "You recall an account of a hivewolf nest built around its matriarch. The colony defends her together; she is the creature they gather to protect."

DM Notes: Recalling lore costs an action during combat (suggested).

ADDITIONAL DISCOVERIES

• Nature Check (10) - Pack hunters: "A hunter's warning comes to mind: 'Watch the second wolf.' They strike more effectively when a packmate is already beside their prey. Keep them apart if you can."
• Nature Check (15) - Matriarch: "You've heard a grim tale of hunters standing shoulder to shoulder before a hivewolf queen. Her acid spray caught several at once."
• Arcana Check (20) - Hive connection: "Their shared awareness cannot pass through thick stone or metal. Even a thin sheet of lead blocks it - but separating them will not erase what they already know."

DM Notes: Suggested additions: each successful Nature lore roll also reveals one unrevealed Nature fact below, at that DC or lower. Arcana reveals the connection fact instead of Nature lore. Resolve highest rolls first.

ADJUSTING THE FIGHT

• Very Weak: Matriarch has 20 HP and deals half normal attack damage. Reinforcements arrive at the start of odd-numbered rounds only.
• Weak: Matriarch has 40 HP and deals half normal attack damage. Reinforcements arrive at the start of odd-numbered rounds only.
• Standard: Matriarch has 45 HP, with 2 Hivewolves initially and one reinforcement each round.
• Strong: Start with 5 Hivewolves plus the Matriarch; normal reinforcements.
• Very Strong: Start with 7 Hivewolves plus the Matriarch; normal reinforcements.

INVESTIGATION: FOLLOWING THE BLOOD

The bloody prints cross the chamber and continue into the southeast passage. At its mouth lies a heap of ant-wolf bodies, their shells blackened by fire.

• Medicine (10) or Perception (20) Check: "Several of these creatures died within the last day or so. Beneath them lie older remains, flesh long rotted away beneath scorched shells. These deaths did not all happen together."
• Perception Check - Examine the Blood (15): "Dark red drops mark the stones beside the burned bodies. Beyond them, the bloody footprints continue into the passage."

DM Notes:

• Examine the bodies at the exit. Adjust the recent deaths' age if the party delayed its search. Follow the recurring danger to SPOTTING THE WARDS.
• Lukas was bitten while trying to sneak through. He escaped by temporarily suppressing the wards at the exit. The pursuing Hivewolves were burned by the wards.

INVESTIGATION: SPOTTING THE WARDS

• Perception Check - Find Sigils (10): "Small arcane sigils mark the edges of the tunnel entrance, just beyond the burned bodies."
• Investigation Check - Examine Sigils (10): "Dust has settled deep in the worn cuts of the sigils. These marks have been here a long time, much longer than the fresh bodies at your feet."
• Arcana Check - Recognize Wards (15): "You recall descriptions of warding used before Walstein fell. These sigils follow that old pattern. The magic guarding this passage has outlasted the city above."

DM Notes: Examine the sigils' age after finding them. The trapped area is the first 5 feet of the exit passage, adjacent to the hive chamber. To interfere with the magic, see SUPPRESSING THE WARDS.

ACTION: SUPPRESSING THE WARDS

• Arcana Check (10): "You unravel the ward's pattern. The light in the sigils fades. For the moment, the passage is safe."
• Perception Check (20): "You notice the light passing from symbol to symbol, always in the same order. One small sigil flashes just before the pattern begins again."

DM Notes:

• The Arcana route requires a Magic action; suppression lasts 1 minute. The same check can reactivate the wards.
• The key sigil is within reach from outside the trapped area. Covering it with an opaque object interrupts the pattern and suppresses the wards for 1 minute, providing an alternative to the Arcana check.

ACTION: CROSSING ACTIVE WARDS

Fire flashes across the tunnel entrance. An unseen force throws you back into the chamber.

DM Notes:

• A character entering the trapped area while the wards are active makes a DC 10 Dexterity save. Failure: 1d4 Fire damage per character level. Success: half damage.
• Regardless of the save, any creature attempting to cross is pushed back to the nearest unoccupied space on its approach side, outside the trapped area. It cannot cross while the wards remain active; this also repels the Hivewolves.
• SUPPRESSING THE WARDS allows passage. Other bypasses must avoid the warded entrance entirely, such as suitable teleportation with a valid destination beyond the trapped area.

SALVAGE

DM Notes: Someone proficient with Smith's Tools can fashion the Matriarch's mandibles into a Caustic Rapier with 5 days' work and 200 GP in materials. The weapon must receive Acid Arrow once during crafting or Acid Splash each day. This is a crafting opportunity, separate from the Adventure Diary rewards. See REWARD SHEET: CAUSTIC RAPIER for the crafting requirements and finished weapon.

MOVING ON

Beyond the wards, the passage continues toward the hidden laboratory.

DM Notes: Continue to PART 3 and ENCOUNTER 7: POSSESSED OR DISPOSSESSED?.

COMBAT STATS: HIVEWOLF

• Medium Monstrosity, Unaligned | AC 12 | HP 11 (2d8 + 2) | Initiative +2 (12) | Speed 40 ft., Climb 40 ft. | CR 1/4 (XP 50; PB +2)
• STR 11 (+0) | DEX 15 (+2) | CON 13 (+1) | INT 2 (-4) | WIS 14 (+2) | CHA 4 (-3). Saving throws equal these modifiers.
• Skills: Perception +4. Senses: Blindsight 10 ft., Darkvision 60 ft.; Passive Perception 14. Languages: None.
• Hive Connection: Shares information with Hivewolves within 120 feet. If it knows of a threat, all Hivewolves in range know. Blocked by 2 feet of rock, 2 inches of metal other than lead, a thin sheet of lead, or a barrier of force.
• Pack Tactics: Advantage on attacks against a creature when at least one ally is within 5 feet of the target and is not Incapacitated.
• Bite: Melee attack +4, reach 5 ft.; 5 (1d6 + 2) Slashing damage.

COMBAT STATS: HIVEWOLF MATRIARCH

• Large Monstrosity, Unaligned | AC 14 | HP 45 (6d10 + 12) | Initiative -1 (9) | Speed 20 ft. | CR 2 (XP 450; PB +2)
• STR 16 (+3) | DEX 9 (-1) | CON 15 (+2) | INT 3 (-4) | WIS 15 (+2) | CHA 7 (-2). Saving throws equal these modifiers.
• Skills: Perception +4. Senses: Blindsight 30 ft., Darkvision 120 ft.; Passive Perception 14. Languages: None.
• Hive Connection: Shares information with Hivewolves within 300 feet. If she knows of a threat, all Hivewolves in range know. Blocked by 2 feet of rock, 2 inches of metal other than lead, a thin sheet of lead, or a barrier of force.
• Pack Tactics: Advantage on attacks against a creature when at least one ally is within 5 feet of the target and is not Incapacitated.
• Bite: Melee attack +5, reach 5 ft.; 10 (2d6 + 3) Slashing damage plus 3 (1d6) Acid damage.
• Acid Spray (Recharge 5-6): Each creature in a 15-foot Cone makes a DC 12 Dexterity save. Failure: 10 (3d6) Acid damage. Success: half damage.

COMBAT TACTICS

DM Notes: Suggested play: the colony crowds intruders away from its Matriarch. Use the selected party-strength adjustments. The opening below assumes the standard alerted fight.

• Round 1 - Fight together: Move regular Hivewolves onto the same reachable opponent so Pack Tactics applies once an ally is within 5 feet of that target. The first wolf to arrive may have to attack without Advantage. Keep another wolf beside anyone approaching the Matriarch, allowing her Bite to benefit too.
• Matriarch's opening: Use Acid Spray if she can catch two or more PCs in its 15-foot Cone without spraying her own wolves. Otherwise Bite an adjacent target, preferably one already engaged by a wolf. She has 20-foot Speed and no Multiattack: choose Bite or Acid Spray, not both.
• Round 2 - Reinforce the pack: Bring the next wolf from a random side passage on the prescribed schedule. Its 40-foot Speed and Climb Speed can help it reach an ally's target around the existing rubble. Use climbable surfaces shown or described in the chamber; it cannot burrow or automatically cling upside down.
• Round 3 onward - Protect the queen: Wolves converge on anyone attacking the Matriarch rather than all pursuing a fleeing character. She Bites while her spray recharges, using the cone again when the party bunches up. Hive Connection shares awareness, not extra actions or knowledge of the PCs' hidden abilities.
• If the party holds a narrow passage: Wolves press the front character and take alternate routes only where the map permits. Do not squeeze extra attackers into occupied spaces just to grant Pack Tactics. Let the bottleneck help the party.
• If the party makes for the wards: Let them try to suppress or use the exit wards while under pressure. Do not give the wolves immunity to the fire or knowledge of the suppression check. When the Matriarch dies, stop new reinforcements; surviving wolves do not automatically die or flee.

PART 3: REPOSSESSION

ENCOUNTER 7: POSSESSED OR DISPOSSESSED?

DM Notes:

• Lukas Berhard (LOU-cuss BEHR-hard)
  • Neutral evil human apprentice.
  • Ambitious and impatient for power, he sees Dyana's offer as an extraordinary opportunity and willingly accepts the danger.
• Dyana (DEE-ah-nuh)
  • Neutral human wizard whose spirit has been trapped since Gods' End.
  • She is selfish and desperate. She promises to share Lukas's body but hopes to overwhelm his spirit and control it.
• The stone chamber has plastered walls, a 10-foot ceiling, and threadbare carpets. Runes provide Dim Light. Nonmagical Bright Light becomes Dim Light; the radius of magical Bright Light is halved.

LOCATION: THE HIDDEN LABORATORY

Glowing runes cast a dim light across plastered stone walls. Workbenches and tables stand among ruined instruments. Broken mirrors glitter on the threadbare carpet, between scattered human bones.

A young man in dirty robes stands before an upright mirror. Blood runs from a cut on his face. He is speaking to the glass with such concentration that, for a moment, everything else seems forgotten.

EXAMINING THE SCENE

• Arcana Check (15): "The light itself is being weakened here. An ordinary flame cannot drive back this gloom, and even magical light reaches less far than it should."

DM Notes: Suggested check after a familiar bright light visibly dims in the chamber; costs an action during combat.

INTERACTION: THE WOMAN IN THE MIRROR

DM Notes: Follow the characters' investigation. Moving into view of the mirror reveals the woman below; questions about the bones lead to HOW DID YOU BECOME TRAPPED? The remains and dimmed light give them reasons to question WILL LUKAS BE SAFE?, not proof of Dyana's intentions. Allow those questions before the ritual decision.

The reflection belongs to a middle-aged woman in robes. Dust and pieces of plaster cling to her greying hair. Her mouth moves, and her voice sounds inside your head.

"Please. Help this brave young man free me. Just a drop of blood is all we require."

LUKAS, THE PROFESSOR SENT US

LUKAS

• "The professor? Yes, I know I've been gone too long. But look at what I've found."
• "Her name is Dyana. She was here when Walstein fell. Think of what she knows - everything that was lost above us."
• "She's willing to share that with me. I want to do this."

DM Notes: Lukas is willing to host Dyana. His hunger for magical power makes him dismiss the risk. Neither Lukas nor Dyana can help the characters in the coming fight.

HOW DID YOU BECOME TRAPPED?

DYANA

• "Magic was raining down on the city. I could feel it through the walls. I thought the workshop would bury us."
• "I tried to take myself and my apprentices into the mirrors, where the collapse could not reach us. Something changed the spell. Our spirits entered the glass. Our bodies fell where we stood."
• "My body is long gone. But my memories are here. My knowledge is here. Surely something can be saved."

• Insight Check (10): "Her frustration sounds genuine, but she tells you little about her own part in what happened. She may be shortening a painful story - or leaving out something out?"

DM Notes: This is Dyana's account. Her true nature and the circumstances of her imprisonment remain uncertain. The bones and ruined laboratory do not prove every claim she makes.

WHAT DOES THE RITUAL NEED?

DYANA

• "Everything is ready. There is only one thing left: blood from another person, touched to the mirror. A small cut is enough."

LUKAS

• "I'll be her host. You only have to finish the ritual."

DM Notes: A willing character cuts themselves for 1 Slashing damage and dabs their blood on the mirror. Dyana leaves the mirror and enters Lukas; the glass shatters, releasing the creatures described below.

WILL LUKAS BE SAFE?

DYANA

• "He will not be harmed. His spirit will remain his own. We will share one body."

LUKAS

• "You heard her. I understand what I'm agreeing to."

• Insight Check (15): "Her certainty falters when you press her about Lukas's safety. She may be concealing a risk - or simply unable to promise what you're asking. After so long trapped here, hope and certainty might be difficult for her to separate."
• Insight Check (20): "When she speaks of sharing Lukas's body, she dwells on the life she could have again. His future receives less attention. You suspect she wants more than an equal share - though whether that means taking control or bargaining for it remains unclear."

DM Notes: Dyana does not know that the process is safe. She hopes to overpower Lukas's spirit and live through his body with her own abilities. She seeks escape and control, without a larger scheme.

WHY SHOULD WE HELP YOU?

DYANA

• "There is great magic in this city. More than before, and it grows by the hour. I can feel it even here."
• "If something is coming, my knowledge may help you face it. Leave me in this glass, and that knowledge dies with me."

• Insight Check (10): "Her confidence changes when she speaks of magic. This sounds less like a plea and more like someone discussing work she knows well. Whatever her intentions, she seems to have far more experience than Lukas."
• Insight Check (15): "She genuinely believes her knowledge could help you confront what is growing beneath Walstein. That offer may have real value. The uncertainty is not whether she wants to survive, but what she would do with her freedom - and how much of Lukas would remain."

DM Notes: Dyana sincerely believes her magical knowledge could help against the growing threat. That belief does not make her promises about Lukas trustworthy.

COULD YOU USE ANOTHER BODY OR WAIT?

DYANA

• "The mirror is failing. We have no time to begin again. Lukas is willing, and we are ready."

• Insight Check (15): "Her fear of running out of time seems real. Yet she dismisses another host almost before the suggestion is finished. That could be desperation to use the willing volunteer she has - or a reason she has not shared."
• Insight Check (20): "She speaks of Lukas's willingness as though it settles every objection. You suspect his readiness to trust her matters more than she admits. He may simply be her surest chance of escape - or someone she expects will offer little resistance afterward."

DM Notes: The mirror is degrading rapidly. Dyana refuses another host because she believes Lukas's spirit will be easy to overwhelm. Let the players discuss their choice, then resolve whether they complete the ritual or refuse.

IF THE CHARACTERS COMPLETE THE RITUAL

The blood touches the glass. Dyana's image draws toward the surface, then disappears. The mirror shatters across the floor.

Lukas stands amid the falling fragments. Dark shapes spill out around him and move toward you.

DM Notes: 5 Oblivion Leapers emerge. After the fight, Lukas appears unharmed and leaves with the characters. Award LUKAS AND DYANA ARE ONE.

IF THE CHARACTERS REFUSE

The woman's pleading expression hardens.

"You would leave me here? After all this time?"

Darkness tears free of the mirror. The glass bursts apart, and Dyana's image vanishes among the fragments.

DM Notes: Dyana hurls 5 Oblivion Leapers out of the mirror in anger. The mirror shatters and her spirit is lost. Lukas is inconsolable over the opportunity he believes the characters have destroyed. Award LUKAS IS ALONE.

COMBAT: THE LEAPERS ATTACK

DM Notes: Dyana made these creatures from the spirits of her assistants but cannot control them outside the mirror. They try to kill living creatures and exploit the chamber's Dim Light to teleport and hide. Lukas and Dyana do not assist in combat.

IDENTIFYING THE CREATURES

DM Notes: Suggested checks cost an action during combat. Resolve highest rolls first; each success reveals one unrevealed fact for the chosen skill at that DC or lower.

• Religion Check (10): "You recognize these spirits from accounts of the restless dead. Poison has no purchase on them, and necrotic power cannot wound them either."
• Arcana Check (10): "A tale of creatures vanishing between torch-shadows suddenly seems less fanciful. These things slip between patches of gloom; dim light serves them as well as darkness."
• Religion Check (15): "You recall a priest's warning about such spirits, and the weapon urged against them: radiant power. It tears into them far more deeply than an ordinary wound."
• Arcana Check (15): "Their leaps must begin and end in gloom. A patch of truly bright light denies them a place to vanish or reappear."
• Religion Check (20): "An account of survivors comes back to you: their wounds were slight beside the exhaustion that followed. These spirits drain the reserves that let you recover. Repeated touches can leave you senseless."
• Arcana Check (20): "Sunlight weakens them beyond merely closing their shadow paths. Ordinary bright light does not have that same effect."

ADJUSTING THE FIGHT

• Very Weak: 3 Oblivion Leapers.
• Weak: 4 Oblivion Leapers.
• Standard: 5 Oblivion Leapers.
• Strong: 6 Oblivion Leapers.
• Very Strong: 7 Oblivion Leapers.

IF A LEAPER KILLS A CHARACTER

DM Notes: In this encounter, a Leaper whose attack kills a character reverts to its former spirit and enters that character's body. The character is Unconscious at 0 HP but Stable, and gains SHARED SPIRIT. This replaces the usual loss of the soul when killed without Hit Dice; it is not triggered merely by being reduced to 0 HP.

SHARED SPIRIT

DM Notes: Roll 1d4 for the personality of the new passenger and record the Story Award:

• 1 - Overly Dramatic: Prone to drama, overreaction, and hyperbole; Advantage on Charisma (Performance) checks.
• 2 - Cautious: Advantage on Wisdom (Insight) checks, but the character can never act first in combat. If initiative would put them first, they act second.
• 3 - Know-it-All: Once per adventure, reroll an Intelligence-based ability check. If both attempts fail, the character insists that the incorrect information is right.
• 4 - Animal Lover: Advantage on Wisdom (Animal Handling) checks, but Disadvantage on the first attack against a Beast in each combat.

SALVAGE: SEARCHING THE WORKSHOP

Among the wreckage are instruments worth salvaging, a few intact magical items, and a small vial of red and white liquid. In the broken mirror lies something quite different: a vertebra made of gold.

DM Notes: Each character can record 10 GP for looting Encounter 7 and the Divine Remnant: golden vertebra. Each chooses one additional Adventure Diary reward:

• 20 GP, or
• A Potion of Healing and a Flammable Tincture, or
• A Ring of Radiation.

DM Notes: The golden vertebra is a fragment of a dead Seraph's golden skeleton, left at the epicenter of Walstein's destruction during Gods' End. These Divine Remnants play a pivotal role in the Season 1 finale against the threat of the Great Beast.

AFTERMATH: RETURNING TO PROFESSOR VULTZE

Vultze looks first at Lukas, then at the rest of you. Her eyes linger on the blood and torn clothing before she speaks.

"You found him. Thank you. I believe we have rather a great deal to discuss."

VULTZE

• "You have earned the rest of your payment."
• "Tell me what happened down there."

IF TOLD ABOUT DYANA

• "A spirit within him? I see. I will keep a close watch on him."

DM Notes: Use the payment arrangement already established in Encounter 1: 5 GP paid in advance and 5 GP on completion, 10 GP total per character. Vultze promises to watch Lukas for problems if told what happened, especially if Dyana entered him.

REWARDS: COMPLETING THE ADVENTURE

DM Notes: Complete the Adventure Diary with rewards earned and applicable Story Awards. A character gains one level for completing the adventure. They may decline the level; if they do, they can still record Story Awards but receive no rewards or immediate benefits from Story Awards.

MAGIC ITEM REFERENCE

• Flammable Tincture (Uncommon potion): Use a Utilize action to throw the vial at a target within 30 feet. The target makes a DC 10 Dexterity save. Failure: Vulnerable to Fire damage for 1 minute, overriding Fire Immunity or Resistance.
• Potion of Healing (Common potion): Drinking it restores 2d4 + 2 HP.
• Ring of Radiation (Uncommon ring): While worn, it doubles the range of a spell or ability you use that deals Cold, Fire, or Lightning damage.

COMBAT STATS: OBLIVION LEAPER

• Small Undead, Neutral Evil | AC 13 | HP 14 (4d6) | Initiative +3 (13) | Speed 30 ft. | CR 1 (XP 200; PB +2)
• STR 10 (+0) | DEX 16 (+3) | CON 11 (+0) | INT 10 (+0) | WIS 10 (+0) | CHA 8 (-1). Saving throws equal these modifiers.
• Skills: Stealth +7. Resistance: Cold. Vulnerability: Radiant. Immunities: Necrotic and Poison damage; Exhaustion, Frightened, Grappled, Paralyzed, Petrified, Poisoned, Prone, Restrained. Senses: Darkvision 60 ft.; Passive Perception 10. Languages: None.
• Shadow Leap: While in Dim Light or Darkness, it can teleport using its movement to another space in Dim Light or Darkness. Each foot teleported costs 1 foot of movement.
• Sunlight Weakness: Disadvantage on D20 Tests while in sunlight.
• Soul Drain: Melee attack +5, reach 5 ft.; 8 (2d4 + 3) Necrotic damage. A living target makes a DC 11 Constitution save. Failure: loses 1 Hit Point Die. Lost dice return at the end of a Short Rest and can be spent to regain HP during that rest.
• If Soul Drain reduces available Hit Point Dice to fewer than 0, the target is Unconscious. It repeats the save at the end of each turn, awakening on a success.
• Ordinarily, a creature killed by an Oblivion Stalker while it has no Hit Dice loses its soul and requires mighty magic such as Wish or divine intervention to revive. In this encounter, use the Shared Spirit replacement above when a Leaper's attack kills a character.
• Shadow Stealth (Bonus Action): In Dim Light or Darkness, take the Hide action as a Bonus Action.

COMBAT TACTICS

DM Notes: Suggested play: the Leapers strike from the dim parts of the laboratory, then reposition before the party can surround them. They are intelligent enough to exploit an isolated or visibly weakened opponent.

• Round 1 - Break past the front line: Use Shadow Leap to reach a character who is separated from their companions, provided both departure and destination are in Dim Light or Darkness. Use Soul Drain once. Budget the full turn's movement: teleporting in and out still shares the same 30 feet.
• Round 2 - Strike and vanish: Attack, then spend remaining movement to teleport to another legal dim space. Teleportation does not provoke opportunity attacks. Use Shadow Stealth as a Bonus Action when the Hide requirements are met; dim light alone does not make a Leaper invisible to someone watching it. Workbenches may help only if they actually provide enough cover.
• Round 3 onward - Follow weakness: Two Leapers can pressure the same exposed target while the others threaten different approaches. A Leaper that successfully hid can attack from hiding on its next turn, then seek another hiding place. If it cannot hide, it can still attack and reposition; do not award automatic Advantage just for teleporting.
• If the party brings bright light: Nonmagical Bright Light becomes Dim Light here; magical Bright Light has half its normal radius. Keep Leapers outside the remaining bright area when possible. Inside it, they cannot begin Shadow Leap or use Shadow Stealth. Ordinary bright light does not cause Sunlight Weakness, and Radiant damage remains a separate Vulnerability.
• Track the drain: Record each character's available Hit Point Dice. Reaching exactly 0 dice is not enough to cause Soul Drain's Unconscious effect; the attack must reduce the total below 0. Make the end-of-turn saves for an affected character.
• If a character is killed: Apply this encounter's SHARED SPIRIT replacement only when a Leaper's attack kills the character, not merely when it drops them to 0 HP. That Leaper becomes the possessing spirit and leaves the fight. Lukas and Dyana do not join either side of the combat.

REWARD SHEETS

REWARD SHEET: CAUSTIC RAPIER

Weapon (Rapier), Rare (Requires Attunement)

This strange weapon is fashioned from the mandible of a Hivewolf.

MAGIC ITEM DETAILS

• Magic weapon: You gain a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with this weapon.
• Caustic strike: When you roll a 19 or 20 on your attack roll with this weapon, that attack deals an additional 7 (2d6) Acid damage.
• Acid protection: You have Immunity to Acid damage while wielding the weapon.

SALVAGE AND CRAFTING

• Salvage: The Hivewolf Matriarch's mandibles, recovered in ENCOUNTER 6: HIVEWOLF LAIR.
• Craftsperson: Someone proficient with Smith's Tools.
• Time and materials: 5 days of work and 200 GP in materials.
• Required magic: Someone must cast Acid Arrow on the weapon once during crafting, or Acid Splash on it every day during its creation.

DM Notes: This is a crafting opportunity, separate from the Adventure Diary rewards. Recovering the mandibles does not grant the finished weapon.

BOOK REFERENCES

• Campaign Guide: Item artwork, p. 259 (PDF p. 263); magic item details, p. 260 (PDF p. 264).
• Monster Grimoire: Hivewolf salvage, p. 155 (PDF p. 159); magic item details, p. 412 (PDF p. 416).