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AREA 1-18A – THE BROKEN CAGE
Twisted bars and shards of wrought iron lie scattered around this area. Several pieces of iron have been driven into the walls, sticking out at odd angles.
AREA 1-18B – ANCIENT CORPSES
Nearly a dozen horribly burnt and mutilated corpses lie in this room. Near the center of the room are the charcoaled remains of some enormous beast — nearly the size of an elephant.
GM Background: During the evacuation, this creature suddenly metamorphosed. Its cage (in Area 1-18A) exploded and it immolated not only itself but a dozen guards who tried to bring it back under control.
DOOR TO AREA 1-19: This is a glass-and-bronze door. It has been smashed open (by the goblins).
AREA 1-19 – ABOVE THE ARENA
A stone walkway surrounds a 30-foot deep pit in the center of the room. A metal walkway extends out over the bit in the shape of a cross with a rusty ladder suspended from it near the middle. Looking down into the pit you can see that the walls and floor below have been deeply stained with ancient, rust-colored blood. It seems as if ever surface was drenched in it. Several doors lead out from the bottom of the pit.
LADDER: The ladder originally had a release mechanism to lower it, but the mechanism has rusted over. (It could theoretically be broken loose from the mechanism and then lowered manually.)
BOTTOM OF THE PIT: See Area 2-21.
AREA 1-20 – WEAK FLOOR
Whatever furniture or items may have once been in this room have rotted away into utter ruin.
FLOOR: The floor here has been weakened due to the fissure-collapse below. If more than 100 pounds of weight is placed on the floor, it collapses into Area 2-23. Reflex save (DC 15) to avoid falling. 3d6 damage. Search DC 20, Disable Device 23.
GM Background: The seal on this storehouse (see Area 1-21) was broken by the damage done to the floor.
AREA 1-21 – STORAGE
These areas were storehouses of supplies for the activities here. They were sealed and protected in the fashion of Ghul’s warehouses. Their contents remain in perfect condition.
- AREA 1-21A – FOOD: Raw beef and mutton.
- AREA 1–21B – ALCHEMICAL SUPPLIES: These were valuable and removed. But removed quickly: Various crates lie smashed open, their contents scattered. Craft (Alchemy) (DC 10) allows one to assemble to complete alchemist’s labs (worth 500 gp each).
- AREA 21–C – MISC. SUPPLIES: Chains, ropes, and other miscellaneous supplies.
- ARAE 21–D – SADDLES AND TACK: Brands, bridles, feedbags, and whips. Many of the whips are viciously barbed. Some of the feedbags are bloodstained. A Handle Animal or Ride (DC 10) check can easily determine that many of the saddles have been custom-designed for creatures which apparently no longer exist (or may have never existed). There is one masterwork military saddle designed for a horse among the rest.
TOTAL VALUE: The total value of all the unusual and standard equipment is perhaps 4,000 gp if sold to the proper collectors, but the total weight is more than 1,000 pounds.
AREA 1-22 – AUTOPSY AND SURGERY
Several large racks of polished steel have been positioned throughout this room. Above them are large contraptions consisting of sawblades, syringes, and similar devices suspended on fully articulated metallic arms. The equipment is caked with old blood and pools of fresh blood lie glistening on the floor.
- GM Background: The blood is preserved by the same magic as the storehouses (Area 1-21).
KAOSTECH: An examination of the surgical tables will reveal that the sawblade-contraptions have no visible controls, but a plug-like device at the end of a long cord is attached to each of them.
- GM Background: These are kaostech-controlled devices.
RACK OF POTIONS: Still stored in syringes along one wall.
- 5 potions of cure light wounds
- 2 potions of cure moderate wounds
- 2 potions of lesser restoration
- 1 potion of restoration
- 2 samples of mixture A from Area 1-14
- 2 samples of mixture B from Area 1-14
- 2 samples of mixture C from Area 1-14
OTHER ITEMS:
- An iron collar of gentle repose hangs on the wall next to the rack of potions.
- Various herbs and the like are stored in a cabinet. A Heal check (DC 10) reveals these to be sufficient to stock 3 healer’s kits.
AREA 1-23 – BLOOD SAMPLES
The walls of these rooms are covered with shelves. And every shelf is crammed full of glass jars containing fresh blood.
- AREA 1-23A: Red blood.
- AREA 1–23B: Red blood.
- AREA 1-23C: Black blood.
- AREA 1-23D: Green ichor.
- AREA 1-23E: Blue blood. (What has blue blood? You dunno.)
KNOWLEDGE (ARCANA) / SPELLCRAFT (DC 23): You’ve heard of storage facilities like these. Before the development of the modern clone spell — a powerful magical rite — the archaic version of the spell was dangerous to both subject and spellcaster. However, the now largely forgotten blood clone spell was safer, although it was not as useful (the subject would awake an amnesiac). Most modern spellcasters consider blood clone to be only one step removed from raising the dead, since you are essentially capturing a soul which then loses its own identity.
AREA 1-24 – BROKEN BLACK CENTURION
A broken black centurion hangs from the its interface machinery. The machinery failed centuries ago and, without power from the pit of chaos located beneath the complex, the black centurion became inoperative.
The machinery is now ruined, but an inspection will notice a kaostech plug attached to the back of the black centurion’s skull.
REMOVING THE CENTURION: If it is removed from this area, the centurion destabilizes, sublimates into a cloud of caustic black vapor, and inflicts 5d6 acid damage on everyone within 30 feet.
AREA 1-25 – FOUNTAIN OF THE HOUNDS
What appears to have once been an extremely large fountain stands in the middle of the room. If there was once water here, it’s gone now — the fountain is dry.
On a pedestal in the center of the fountain are three statues, each depicting a wolf-like creature: One appears to be a wolf of prodigious size. Another gapes saber-like fangs and has bony protrusions which jut from its spine. The third appears almost pantherish, with tendrils emerging from its shoulders.
AREA 1-25A – BLOCKADE
Large chunks of rock, furniture, shelving, and the like have been stacked up in a great jumbled heap completely blocking the corridor.
GETTING THROUGH: Opening a crawlspace through the blockade takes 60 minutes of work. This is increased or decreased by the total Strength modifiers of the people working on it (minimum of 10 minutes).
- Move Silently checks are made at a -10 penalty due to the labor-intensive nature of the work. If the ghulworg skeleton in Area 1-34 hears them, it will carefully move to the small chamber just down the hallway. It will remain out of sight until they’ve cleared a path and entered its domain. Then it will attack.
AREA 1-26 – MIND-TRANSFERENCE DEVICE
A massive apparatus of machinery is built up in the center of the room. Nearly ten feet across, it extends from the floor to the ceiling. (And, in point of fact, burrows down and up ten feet beyond sight in either direction, as well.)
The far wall is inset with a large, ten-foot-wide sheet of smoky, opaque glass.
On opposite sides of the chamber, up short flight of stairs to both the left and right, are large, coffin-like boxes of metal lying on the floor. Flanking these boxes, to either side, thick, metallic rods stand upright from the floor with large, bulbous ends.
METAL COFFINS (A): The metal coffins are, in fact, split down the middle. Each half can be partially rotated back, revealing a cocoon-like depression. One cocoon appears to be shaped for a humanoid; the other for a large dog or wolf. Both are outfitted with manacles.
ACTIVATION CHAMBER (B): The glass partition is a one-way mirror. If you’re inside the room you can look into the outer chamber through the smoky glass (but not vice versa).
The north wall of this chamber is covered in a morass of machinery — wires, glass tubes partially filled with liquid, convoluted gearworks, and so forth.
GM Background: This is a kaostech device. In order to figure out how to activate it, a character must make a Craft Kaostech check (DC 20). (This check is 1d20 + Intelligence modifier + inverse Wisdom modifier + skill modifier.)
The entire room is, in fact, a mind-transference device (see below). Ghul’s researchers would use it to transplant the minds of orcs into the hounds of Ghul; particularly ghulworgs.
Mind-Transference Device: If either creature is unwilling, it gets a Will save (DC 20) to resist the transference. Even if both creatures are willing, they must both make a Will save (DC 20) to avoid suffering 1d6 points of damage to Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma during transference. (Thus, unwilling creatures make two saves.)
Transference is only one way, so if the target body still contains a functioning mind, there are suddenly two minds within the same body. They must make opposed Charisma checks each hour to determine who controls the body. More often, a mind is transferred into a mindless body.
A mind carries with it its Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma, skills, feats, spells, knowledge, or spell-like abilities. It can access natural abilities, extraordinary abilities, and supernatural abilities. The body retains its original Strength, Constitution, and Dexterity scores.
Taint: Anyone undergoing a mind-transference must make any immediate taint check. A room in which a mind-transference device has been used becomes a faintly tainted place.
Lever activation; Craft DC 50; Price 100,000 gp; Weight 14,000 lbs.
