In room #25 the other exit (not the one that leads to Room #26) is a locked door. The corridor leads a square room.
Inside this room are two War Pigs. These are Orcs infected with the Devil Swine lycanthropy. When they see the party, they transform into large boars and attack the party.
They were part of a larger group coming up from the lower levels.
These creatures have 3x Treasure Type C, looted from their previous companions.
A secret door on the far wall of Room #26 opens to a very tight tunnel (party can only go single file at 1/2 speed). It opens to a room with the same dimensions and general layout as Room #23.
The opening into this room is also a hidden door.
Once the party enters this room 1d4+1 Wraiths will appear.
The wraiths will attack. They each have treasure type E.
This room also has another secret door that leads back to Room #20.
There are two exits in Room #25. One to the right as the party came in an one straight ahead. The exit straight ahead leads to Room #26.
Room #26 is a very rough-cut room. Little more than a cave that has been cleared out.
Inside this room are several (5) Ochre Jellies. But these are bright purple in color. There are others here that are smaller and do not attack.
These Purple Jellies are Ochre Jellies that have been subjected to necromantic magics. Thus they have a bonus +4 to all saves vs. any type of magic.
They have no treasure but if they can be collected in a glass vial they will fetch 50 gp per standard oil flask/holy water flask size to an alchemist or other arcane researcher.
This tunnel leads off of room #24. This room (Room #25) appears to be a natural cavern that had been carved to appear more finished.
If the characters have been to Room #23 then this room looks like it was being carved to look like that.
There are no creatures in this room, but there are still some cutting tools that would work as weapons. Two pick axes that do 1d6 hp damage per attack.
Going all the way back to Room #17 the other exit on the far side of the cave. This winding tunnel opens up to a semi-finsihed cave system.
This cave is the home to a small family of Owl Bears. There is a male, his mate, their "chub" and an adolescent male.
If the party does not attack the owl bears they will also not attack in return. They are hungry, but wary of others. If the party tosses them some meat the owl bears will lead them to a small stash of treasure they have discovered (but have no use for) Treasure type C x5.
If the party attacks the oldest three will attack.
Note: It has become generally accepted that a baby Owl Bear is called a "Chub."
A secret door in room #22 leads to a hallway of cut stone and not a cave passage. It opens up to a perfectly square room. There are four statues in each corner of demonic women standing 7 ft tall. Each holds a sword. There is a fifth statue in the center of the room holding a staff.
The statues are really Caryatid Columns.
They will only attack people if they attempt to go throw the door straight ahead.
Whenever a character strikes a caryatid column with a weapon (magical or nonmagical), the weapon takes 3d6 points of damage. Apply the weapon’s hardness normally. Weapons that take any amount of damage in excess of their hardness gain the broken condition.
The caryatid columns do not have treasures, but their swords can be used. Each Caryatid Column has two masterwork swords they wield. These swords require an 18 strength to use but are treated as a +2 weapon that does 1d10 hp damage.
Adapted from Pathfinder.
This rough-cut hall straight on from rooms 18 and 20 leads to a room that is half natural cave and the rest is cut and shaped walls.
This room is full of crystal balls. They show scenes from different parts of the dungeon and different worlds, but it is difficult to tell what is what.
Many are broken and dark. All are too massive to carry and will not fit into a bag of holding. The crystal balls can be destroyed, but each one requires 340 hp of blunt damage. Every hit with a weapon has a 50% chance of that weapon being broken.
There are no creatures here, but many gems are embedded in the various stands for the crystal balls. Each (20) grants Treause Type L.
Going to the right in Room 20 leads to a small tunnel that opens into a huge cave. The cave is bright with eldritch light. But that is not all that is strange about this room.
The walls are covered in thousands of eyes. All sorts of eyes. Human eyes, demon eyes, elf eyes, dragon eyes.
The eyes watch all movement in the room and follow the party as they walk through. If any of the eyes are stabbed, then they bleed. At some point, all the eyes will shut and the cave will go completely dark.
If the characters spend more than a turn in this room they need to make a save vs. Petrification. A failed save means the character will try to get out of the room as quickly as they can.
There is no monsters or treasure in this room.
I was going through all my notes for my 1979 Campaign centered around the Keep on the Borderlands as a Pathfinder-like adventure path.
I have found that there are a lot of people out there who are equally fascinated with the B1 and B2 adventures, that this is something I spend a long time doing. I would not even have to add anything else to it all.
So, of course, what am I doing? Adding something else to it.
I noticed I did not have a copy of B5 Horror on the Hill. I always kind of wanted it since I knew a little bit about it and it was from the "Golden Age" of D&D. I had never bought a copy because by 1983 (when it was published) I had moved on to AD&D instead. More folly for me I guess. The recent GM's Day Sale at DriveThru had it on sale, so I grabbed the PDF and Print on Demand versions. While waiting for the print I read through it a bit and found it would make a great addition to the surrounding of Keep. In fact, I think I would merge Guido's Fort and the Keep into one place. I am certainly not the first to think this or try this.
I was reading through the rumor table and saw this:
I don't think you quite get the thrill I get when I am reading an older D&D product and there are witches in it! It is not something I am going to get to experience much more of, but it is always special.
So B5, Horror on the Hill has a rumor about an evil witch, and it is marked as TRUE? Hell yeah!
At least it is encounter #13.
I am fine with them not being evil, but a cleric and a magic user? Must be something in the water around here that they all decide to live together. But I also know an opportunity when I see it.
We have two elderly women, Rosabella, 5th level and Rosalinda, 6th level, living near an area where there are ghouls, hobgoblins, rumors of a dragon, and more? In a cabin that is bigger on the inside?
Yeah, they are certainly witches. But what kind?
Since this is overtly a BECMI product and from 1983 no less, I think my earliest OSR Witch book would be best suited for these two. I also could not help but think of the sisters Ada Brook and Agnes van Rhijn in The Gilded Age on HBO played by Cynthia Nixon and Christine Baranski, as Rosabella and Rosalinda, respectively.
Rosabella & Rosalinda, The Rose Sisters
How these two witches came to live on the Hill is something lost to time out of mind. It is known that they are the last of the Rose Witch Coven that had operated in the area for many years and they inherited their magic home from their mother.
Both sisters are Family Tradition witches, with their knowledge of witchcraft handed down throughout the ages. Rosalinda had a son, but he seems to have had no intention of marrying and has so far not produced any female heirs to their family's tradition.
They now live in this cabin/mansion and barter and trade with the local Keep when possible and with the various demi-humans who fear them.
Rosabella
5th level Witch, Family Tradition
Neutral
S: 12 I: 13 W: 14 D: 12 C: 13 Ch: 17
AC: 6 (Ring of Protection +3)
HP: 20
Attack: 1, by spell
Occult Powers: Familar (Spirit of a long-dead ancestor)
Spells
Cantrips: (5) Alarm Ward, Clean, Detect Curse, Mend Minor Wounds, Quick Sleeping
First Level: (2) Detect Invisible, Magic Circle vs. Evil
Second Level: (2) Hold Person, Scare
Third Level: (1) Stop Thief
Rosalinda
6th level Witch, Family Tradition
Neutral
S: 10 I: 13 W: 12 D: 10 C: 10 Ch: 15
AC: 9
HP: 17
Attack: 1, by spell
Occult Powers: Familar (Spirit of a long-dead ancestor)
Spells
Cantrips: (4) Arcane Mark, Daze, Mend, Spark
First Level: (3) Cause Fear, Sleep, Spirit Dart
Second Level: (2) Minor Image, Phantasmal Spirit
Third Level: (2) Fly, Mirror Image
Pretty good if you ask me. They are high-level to characters of the 1st to 3rd level to be sure. Though I think they should be higher to keep the various monsters at bay. Mind you they have desire to fight them, just scare them a little.
And like all proper witches, they have a Tea Ritual. They are not above adding a sleeping draught to the tea of rude guests and sending them on their way.
Looking forward to seeing what else I can do with this adventure!
Moving on to Room #20 these tunnels seem to have a more "finished" or carved feel to them.
In this cave are three very large Cave Bears.
The eldritch glow of these caves is much stronger here and it is reflected in these bears' eyes.
They look like they could be sick, but in reality, it is just the necromantic energies feeding on them; they are every bit as strong, fierce, and angry as their normal counterparts. Because of the necromantic energies, these bears are starving and only living blood will satisfy them. For this reason, their morale is set to 12.
These bears have no treasure and have wandered into this cave from other parts of this level.
The secret door, really just a hidden one, is to the right from the perspective of heading toward Room 20. There are a few stones to move (combined strength of 20 required, up to three characters) the biggest obstacle is the dark.
This appears to be the Grimlock's larder. In here are four Trolls. They are tied up and their limbs have been hacked off. The grimlocks have captured them and are keeping them near death as a regenerating food source. Their limbs are growing back at odd angles and lots of mutations.
Each troll only has 1d4 HP each. They can be easily killed but only give 10 XP each.
There are a few magic items here too. One is a sword +1/+3 vs. trolls. It glows in the present of trolls. When the trolls are dead the glow will stop. The trolls were afraid of it, and the grimlocks hated the light.
There is a wand of magic missiles here as well. It has 2d6+4 charges remaining.
Going left in Cave #17 takes the party through a short narrow tunnel (only single file here) it opens to a large, and mostly dark cave.
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| Photo by Christina Petsos |
The grimlocks are blind, but they can sense the party. Two of these creatures are larger with 3 HD and there one leader of 4 HD. The leader also has a +1 sword. The sword does not glow. All the grimlocks are combative, even the youths will kill, and eat, anything they do not recognize.
There is Treasure Types E and J found here, mostly from other creatures the grimlocks have killed in the past.
There is an exit straight ahead from the entrance (to Room 20) and a hidden exit (secret door) to the right as the party came in (Room 19).
The hallway leads down to another cave.
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| Photo by Kevin Burnell: https://www.pexels.com/photo/grayscale-photo-of-a-cave-13049146/ |
This cave is vast with a diffuse eldritch glow. There are regular bats, blind moles and other normal inhabitants, but no other creatures.
There are two exits. One on the far side of the cave and another to the left.
Going back down the hallway from Room #15 the party will see a bit of light coming from the wall on the right. There is a secret opening that is easier to find here.
Inside this small room is a Grey Ooze.
There is no treasure here.
This tunnel in the back and to the right of Room 14 leads to long hallway. This goes some 50' and then splits to the left and to the right.
Going right, the corridor straightens out and opens to a carved out room glowing with eldritch light.
Inside are Seven (7) Ghouls. The ghouls appear to be orc-like in appearance.
These ghouls are worshiping around a giant idol of a demon. When the party enters, the ghouls will stop their chanting. At this point it will come down to initiative.
The Ghouls have 3* HD instead of the normal 2 HD. In fact, they are not even aware they are ghouls; they still think of themselves as living orcs. The paralysis WILL affect elves.
These orc-ghouls have an extra Treasure Type C as a group.
There is a secret door underneath the idol that leads to Level 5.
(I will detail that next month)
The tunnel in the back of Room 13 leads down to another cave. This one features the bones of a great beast embedded in the walls.
The bones are the fossilized remains of some ancient beast. They were part of the walls when the Necromancers got here. Repeated unsuccessful necromantic magics have left this cave magically charged.
If the party remains more than 3 turns they must make a saving throw vs. Paralysis or take 1d4 hp of damage. The energies are draining the very life from the characters.
The bones are difficult to remove from the walls, the easy ones were removed a long time ago, but if they somehow manage (dealing 24 hp of damage to the bones will break off a chip), then they can be sold to a wizard or necromancer for 50gp each. But while the characters possess these bones, they will not heal any wounds, either by normal or magical means.
Going back to Room #9 and hitting the other tunnel, straight ahead, leads to another cave. Though this cave is not the home to some creature, it is a tomb.
Inside this room are 5 Wights. Their ancient tattered uniforms gives the characters the idea that these had been guards at some point. Their magically compelled orders said they could not leave this room and that compulsion remained after their deaths.
They will attack on sight.
There are the remains of other humans and humanoids here. So in addition to their treasure, (B x5) there is type C, D, and T.
Going all the way back to Room 9 there were two tunnels, left and right. Choosing the left tunnel (previously the right) takes the party on a twisty path that almost doubles back to a small cave.
This cave is swarming with 6 Rhagodessa. These giant spider-like monsters feed on the victims the trolls didn't finish off. Due to the influence of the chaos stone, these creatures are now Chaotic.
They have collected treasure (U x6) in a small pile.
A small passageway in the back of Room #10 leads down to a rough-cut cave.
A small glowing stone is stuck into a small pedestal in the middle of the cave. There is plenty of track around the stone, wearing out the stone ground. The area 5' radius around the stone is untouched.
The stone is a Chaos Stone, one of the artifacts of the mages. It is made of pure chaos and its effects are random.
Any character touching the stone rolls a 2d6 and consults the table below.
A character can only touch the stone once for effect. Unless noted, the effects last 1d6+6 turns.
The stone is fixed to the pedestal. Any attempts to remove it will cause it to shatter. If the shards are collected they could be sold to a high level magic-user or alchemist for 20-50 gp (1d4+1 x10).
Behind the secret door (in reality a "Troll Hole") is Room 10.
Inside are a group of other (4) Trolls.
This cave and Room 9 are actually just one cave. The trolls that live here have built a partition to hide room 10.
Inside this cave is all the Troll's treasure (D x4) is here.
