Corpse Fog (New Monster)

This is a new monster for Holmes Basic, one which is featured in Area 25 of The Forgotten Smugglers' Cave adventure (which is indexed here).

Corpse Fog

Move: 90 feet/turn
Hit Dice: 3
Armor Class: 5
Treasure Type: B

Alignment: neutral

Attacks: 1 touch
Damage: 0 plus energy drain

A body, when interred near the sea, may become possessed by a form of undead known as the corpse fog. If such a corpse or its burial possessions are disturbed, fog with a greenish cast will begin to issue from its mouth, coalescing in two rounds into a churning humanoid form that will advance on the nearest living creature in an attempt to drain it of its life energy (each hit will drain one life energy level).

Initially having three hit dice, a corpse fog will add one more for each level drained from a character, and this will also add to its hit points (roll randomly for each new hit die). 

The corpse fog is immune to normal weapons, and is turned as undead of equivalent hit dice (HD 3 = wight, HD 4 = wraith, etc). A successful result will send the fog back into its corpse. 

Destroying a corpse fog will result in a blast of mist that will do 2d6 damage to all within 50 feet (save for half), but will also restore any levels drained by the fog.

Agate-Eyed Skeleton (New Monster)

This is a new monster for Holmes Basic, one which is featured in Areas 20 and 24 of The Forgotten Smugglers' Cave adventure (which is indexed here).

Eye Agate. Image Source.

Agate-Eyed Skeleton

Move: 120 feet/turn
Hit Dice: 2
Armor Class: 7
Treasure Type: agate eyes (100 gp each)

Alignment: neutral

Attacks: 1 bony hands
Damage: 1d6

Agates are purported to promote restful sleep, and certain funerary practices incorporate this belief by burying the dead with such gemstones. Some secretive groups go even further, replacing the eyes of the deceased with eye agates, and if these are of sufficient value (100 gp per eye), the strange energies of the underworld may transform the thusly treated remains into an agate-eyed skeleton, an unusual variant of animated skeleton. 

The practices that produce such skeletons means that they are typically found in groups in burial chambers. If undisturbed, the skeletons will remain at rest, but anyone gazing upon their agate eyes must save versus magic or fall asleep for 1d6 turns. Unlike a Sleep spell, characters so affected cannot be awakened prior to this by any means short of a Dispel Magic.

Damaging Skeletons. Any attack that inflicts damage on a skeleton, and does not destroy it, will cause it to immediately animate and attack with its bony claws. Once arisen, characters viewing the eyes no longer need to save versus magic. Furthermore, even if the skeleton is destroyed, 1d6 other skeletons in the same area will animate each round until all in the area have joined in. The assault will continue until the intruders have been destroyed or have fled the area, although a successful turning (as a ghoul) by a cleric will send the skeletons back to their resting places and prevent any further ones from animating.

Moving Skeletons. Any attempt to move a skeleton will, after a one round delay, result in the same effect as damaging the skeleton. However, if during this round the bones are placed in a specially consecrated ossuary, which may or may not be located nearby (DM's discretion), the skeleton will not animate and both agates can be safely removed.

Removing Agates. If a character attempts to remove an agate without disturbing the skeleton, there is a small chance of success. The base chance is equal to the attempting character's dexterity (e.g., a 10% chance for a dexterity of 10). Thieves add their chance of removing traps to this (e.g. a thief with a 15 dexterity and a 15% chance of remove traps would have a 30% chance). If this roll is failed, the eye is removed but the skeleton then animates as if damaged and will incessantly attempt to retrieve its eye, to the point of relentlessly stalking the offending character. Removing a second eye agate from the same skeleton will automatically cause it to animate.

It is rumored that placing such gems in the eyes of skeletons before casting Animate Dead will also produce an agate-eyed skeleton.

Corpse Light (New Monster)

This is a new monster for Holmes Basic, one which is featured in the Random Encounters table of The Forgotten Smugglers' Cave adventure (which is indexed here). It originally appeared as part of my list of One Hit Point Monsters.

Corpse Light

Move: 120 feet/turn floating
Hit Dice: 1/8 (1 hit point)
Armor Class: 7
Treasure Type: nil

Alignment: neutral

Attacks: 1 hit
Damage: 1 point

These minor undead form from the spirits of torchbearers who have perished in the underworld or wilderness, and are said to be particularly motivated to enact vengeance on cruel or indifferent employers. Each one appears as a burning torch held aloft as if by an invisible hand. 

Seemingly drawn together, corpse lights are typically encountered in groups (3d4 would not be unusual). At a distance they appear as an approaching group of torch lights, but on drawing closer their chilling absence of bearers becomes apparent. The floating torches will begin circling, and muttered accusatory phrases may be heard, as they judge a party of travelers. They will never attack henchmen or other servants, and may depart without incident if a group contains well-treated members of this class.

If a group is found to be lacking, the corpse lights will begin swooping in and taking strikes at various members. Once they begin attacking, they can only be stopped through direct strikes of the torches or by clerical turning (as skeletons with a +2 on the roll).

The Forgotten Smugglers' Cave #25: Crypt of the Arch Smugglers

This is an installment of a new adventure for Holmes Basic D&D. You can find the Introduction to the dungeon here: Area 1.

Each entry includes part of a "pointcrawl" map showing the area & any exits, which include links allowing you to navigate the dungeon:

	25. CRYPT OF THE ARCH SMUGGLERS
	S H H H   Area 24	(H = ladder up)

25. CRYPT OF THE ARCH SMUGGLERS. This was the final resting place for the leaders of the smugglers. Major features include an entry ladder, a tunnel, a door, and a crypt chamber holding a sarcophagi.

Entrance. The only way in to Area 25 is via the ladder down from the hidden space in the central block in Area 24. The ladder consists of metal rungs anchored in stone. The vertical shaft is 3 feet wide, with the ladder on the west wall, and goes down 30 feet until it reaches the south end of a 10 foot wide tunnel. This tunnel extends north for 40 feet, with walls covered with the skulls of orcas and other toothed whale, each mounted in lime plaster. 

Whale Skull Door. At the north end of the tunnel is a stone door, on which is mounted the largest of the skulls, which is that of an enormous toothed whale. The walls adjacent to each side of the door are lined with orca skulls. 

The door is locked and heavy. Opening the lower jaw of the whale skull will reveal a stone trigger plate set in the middle of the door. However, pushing this trigger without first unlocking the door with the appropriate key (found in the desk in Area 25), will cause the jaws to snap shut, delivering 1d6 damage to anyone reaching in. 

The keyhole to unlock the door is within the mouth of the centermost orca skull to the right of the door. Keeping it unlocked requires holding it place once it is turned counterclockwise. 

Finally, pushing the door open will require a combined strength of 30. 

Thus, opening the door safely will require three or more individuals: one to hold the key in a turned position in the keyhole, one to push the trigger plate, and one or more others to add their strength in pushing the door open.

Crypt Chamber. Beyond the door is a room 30 feet wide and 60 feet long, with no other visible exits. Decorated bronze sarcophagi, each set upon a plinth, stand upright, anchored to the walls. There are 6 along the west wall, 3 along the north wall and 4 along the east wall. These run in order from oldest to the most recent arch smuggler, with the oldest being the southernmost one on the west wall, and the newest being the southernmost one on the east wall. This one contains the corpse of the most recently interred chief, Mot Daxor, who usurped Ness Sentra (see Area 13).

Sarcophagi. The front of each sarcophagus is tightly fitted to the body, but can be pried off with an iron spikes or crowbar.

Inside each stands a withered corpse, bound in place, and wearing decaying fine leather armor and a belt with a cutlass in a decorated scabbard. Nothing will happen unless the contents (corpse or cutlass) of a sarcophagus are disturbed, in which case a green smoke will begin issuing from the mouth of the corpse, coalescing in 2 rounds into a churning humanoid form that will advance on the nearest living creature in an attempt to drain its life force.

Corpse Fog (13): DX 9, AC 5, HD 3*, hp 8, AT 1 touch for 0 damage but energy drain (one level), SD immune to normal weapons, draining adds one HD; turning dependent on HD (3 HD = wight, 4 HD = wraith, etc). Successful turning will send the fog back into its corpse.

Each fog starts with two HD, but adds a HD for each level drained from a party member. Roll for the additional hit points gained. Destroying one will result in a blast of smoke that will do 1d6 damage to all in the chamber but will also restore any levels drained by that fog.

The corpses are otherwise safe to touch. Each scabbard and cutlass is worth at least 500 gp, and each cutlass has a 1 in 2 chance of being a magic weapon (roll again, 1-3 = +1, 4-5 = +2, 6 = +3).

If the Shade of Mot Daxor is defeated, and his remains replaced with those of Ness Sentra, the players will lift the curse and gain her treasure (Area 13). Sentra's ghost (a reinvigorating spirit) will appear here briefly and thank the players, restore up to four drained levels, and then fade away.

Chronologically on this blog, the previous installment described Area 24. 

HERE ENDS THE FORGOTTEN SMUGGLERS' CAVE

The Forgotten Smugglers' Cave #24: Smuggler Catacombs

This is an installment of a new adventure for Holmes Basic D&D. You can find the Introduction to the dungeon here: Area 1.

Each entry includes part of a "pointcrawl" map showing the area & any exits, which include links allowing you to navigate the dungeon:

	Area 25 H H H S	(H = ladder down)
	24. SMUGGLER CATACOMBS
	S ≡ ≡ S   Area 21

24. SMUGGLER CATACOMBS. This is where ordinary smugglers without families were once laid to rest. The area includes an entry stair, an antechamber, and four sets of tunnels leading to ossuary chambers.

Entrance. The only way into this area from the greater cave complex is via the secret door in the north wall of Area 23, which opens on to a 10 foot square landing. The north side of the landing opens onto a set of stone steps going down 20 feet to another landing of the same dimensions. 

Skull-Covered Door. Strikingly, the three walls of the lower landing are covered with a multitude of elongated, pointy-toothed skulls (from seals and sea lions), adhered to the walls with a shell-based lime plaster. The north wall of this area actually contains secret door, which can only be opened by depressing two catches, each inside the mouth of a different skull. This will require placing a hand inside each of the correct skulls and pushing hard (13 strength required). Once inside, the door will slowly swing shut again unless held or propped open.

Antechamber. Beyond the skull door is a square chamber, 50 feet to a side, with a large square stone block (10 by 10 feet, 4 feet high) in the center of the chamber and two doors on each of the east and west walls. 

In the southeast corner is a set of four shelves holding folded burial shrouds. Hidden in the folds of one shroud on the bottom shelf is a single green eye agate (100 gp value).

In the southwest corner is a tightly-lidded stone bin that is half-filled with lime, rock-hard with age. Completely embedded inside this is a silver ladle (worth 50 gp).

Resting Block. The large block, which is covered in polished marble tiles, is where the newly deceased were briefly left in repose prior to interment. The tiles are all smooth squares, large in size (2 by 2 feet), except for rectangular tiles encircling the top edge which are etched with a skull motif. On the north-facing side of the block, the center tile at floor level can be removed to reveal a space within the block with a ladder leading down to Area 25.

Doors. The four doors, two east and two west, are each made of bronze, and locked (there are two keys that can open these doors, one in Area 5 and one in Area 21). If opened and then left unattended, each door will slowly swing shut and re-lock.

Tunnels. Each door leads to a catacomb tunnel having the same dimensions: 10 feet wide, 10 feet high and 100 feet long, ending at another bronze door, also locked.

Resting Niches. Carved into the north and south walls of each tunnel are resting niches, where bodies were left for a longer period of time as they decomposed. These are placed every ten feet, for a total of twenty per tunnel. Each contains three shelves, of which 0-3 (1d4-1) are occupied by what appears to be body-shaped bundle, for a total of 20d4-20 bundles per tunnel. Each bundle is wrapped in a crusty, lime-coated shroud.

Skeletons. Removing the shroud from a bundle will reveal a skeleton with glittering green eyes, which is an agate-eyed skeleton. The skeleton will not animate unless further disturbed, but whoever removed the shroud or is within 5 feet must save versus magic to avoid falling asleep for 1d6 turns from gazing at the eyes, and cannot be awakened earlier short of Dispel Magic.

Each eye is actually a rare green eye agate from a far off land to the north, and worth 100 gp (and optionally will increase hit point recovery while sleeping; see Area 3). The agates were placed in the skeletons by the smugglers and the strange energies of the underworld endowed the skeletons with a form of self-protecting animation.

Damaging a skeleton will cause that skeleton, if not destroyed, to immediately animate and attack. Each round thereafter, 1d6 skeletons in the same tunnel will throw off their shrouds and animate, until all skeletons in that tunnel join in. Once animated, characters no longer need to save versus sleep. The skeletons will cease attacking if the characters leave the area.

If a skeleton is simply moved, it will not animate for one round, and if during this time it is placed in one of the ossuaries at the end of the tunnel, will not animate or cause the others to do so. Once placed in an ossuary, the agates can be safely removed.

If a character attempts to remove an agate without disturbing the skeleton, there is a small chance of success. The base chance is equal to the attempting character's dexterity (e.g., a 10% chance for a dexterity of 10). Thieves add their chance of removing traps to this (e.g. a thief with a 15 dexterity and a 15% chance of remove traps would have a 30% chance). If this roll is failed, the eye is removed but the skeleton then animates as if damaged and will incessantly attempt to retrieve its eye, to the point of relentlessly stalking the offending character. Removing a second eye agate from the same skeleton will automatically cause it to animate. If the eye(s) are returned it will stop stalking and return to its resting place.

Agate-Eyed Skeleton (20d4-20 per tunnel): DX 12, AC 7, HD 2, hp 9, AT 1 bony hands for 1d6, SD when at rest, gazing at eyes causes sleep (save versus magic); when animated, turned as a ghoul.

A full write-up of this new monster can be found here.

Ossuary Chambers. Each tunnel ends in a bronze door leading to a smaller square chamber, 20 feet to a side, which were the final resting places for the bones of deceased smugglers. 

The walls are also lined with shelves carved into the stone, but here the shelves hold ossuaries consisting of small coffin-like boxes made of stone, heavily lidded, and fixed in place on the shelves. If a lid is removed, the ossuary will either be found to contain old bones or be empty.

While many of the ossuaries are filled, in aggregate there is sufficient space to hold all of the bones of the skeletons remaining in each tunnel. As indicated above, if the bones of a skeleton are carried to a chamber and placed in an ossuary within one round of being disturbed, it will not animate and the agates in its skull can then be safely removed.

Chronologically on this blog, the previous installment described Area 23 and the next posted installment will be Area 25.