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THE DREAM MACHINE

The dream machine allows multiple subjects to be strapped into it and share the dreams of the primary subject. Lulu is the primary subject here, and the dream machine should allow her to dive into and recover memories that she has lost. Mad Maggie will encourage as many PCs as possible to join Lulu in the machine so that they can help her in recovering her lost memories.

Once everyone is attached to the machine, Mad Maggie will activate it (and will continue monitoring its activity from outside the shared dreamscape) while promising to pull them out if things get too rough.

SNIPPET – TUNING INTO LULU’S DREAMS: There’s a strange rushing sensation and/or sound (it’s difficult to differentiate one sense from another for a moment) and then all of the PCs open their eyes to find themselves with Lulu in an infinite, featureless white void.

• A moment of double vision: The PCs realize that they are looking out of each other’s eyes. (So PC 1 is looking out of PC 2’s eyes and is seeing themselves, for example.)
• They hear Mad Maggie’s voice cackling out of the white void all around them: “That’s odd! One moment!”
• There’s a high-pitched squeal, everyone’s vision blurs, and then they’re all looking out of the correct sets of eyes.
• Mad Maggie says: “That’s better! Now, give me just a moment to synchronize your soul-streams with the heartstone. [PC’s name] seems a little choleric.”
• As Mad Maggie adjusts the machinery, the white void slowly morphs or shifts or phases in and out of a sickeningly pink and fluffy landscape that slowly comes more and more into focus until it finally solidifies around the PCs… this is the inside of Lulu’s mind.
• Mad Maggie: “You should all be on the same beam now. This may hurt a little. I’m going to adjust the machine to harmonize with her Styx-tainted memories.”
• The fluffy pink landscape begins to undulate precipitously. It seems to accelerate unevenly in semi-random directions, rushing past the PCs and Lulu in a dizzying display. Then pieces of the pink fluff seem to either desiccate or decay; turning into faded brown patches or, in some cases, a dripping black sludge.
• The effect accelerates — more and more of the pink fluff turning into a sickening morass that swirls about the PCs in a whirl of multi-shaded black. PCs need to make a DC 13 Dexterity or Wisdom check to avoid having this black muck cling and stick to them. On a failure, they will suffer disadvantage on their first check in the vision.

VISION – THIRD VISIT TO IDYLLGLEN: The black sludge sloughs away to reveal a field of battle. It’s chaotic. The battle lines of Zarielite crusaders have met a ravening mass of gnolls and the front lines are a frantic melee. [PC’s name] is just dragging their sword free from the dead body of a gnoll.

• Lulu is nearby and Zariel is mounted atop her. But even in that moment of respite, Zariel cries out, “Lulu! Help hold the line here! I’m going to get a lay of the land!”
• As Zariel shoots straight up into the air, another clot of gnolls comes rushing down the hill.

Encounter: Zariel can be seen circling above. You might describe her occasionally diving down towards some distant part of the battlefield, only to reappear above on the next round.

• 4 gnoll fangs of Yeenoghu (MM, p. 163)
• 7 gnoll pack lords (MM, p. 163)
• 16 gnolls (MM, p. 162)

Second Round: A “gnoll” archmage strides to the top of the hill about 250 feet away. There’s only a 50% chance per round that it focuses its spellcasting on the PCs’ section of the battle. (You can describe other spells zipping off to blast away NPCs fighting to either side.)

• Use stats for archmage (MM, p. 343), with following changes.
• Damage Resistance cold, fire, lightning; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical weapons.
• Damage Immunities poison
• Condition Immunities poison
• Senses truesight 120 ft., passive Perception 12

Wrap Up: At a time of your choosing (probably when the PCs are finishing off the gnolls in their immediate vicinity and/or when they’ve credibly threatened the archmage), there is a terrible trumpeting sound that echoes across the field of battle.

• It’s followed by a monstrous voice echoing through a bullhorn. It speaks Abyssal: “Cast off! Cast off! Demons of the Abyss, to arms! To arms! We ride for the flag of Yael! At Yael we strike!”
• On its next action, the skin of the “gnoll” archmage sloughs off, revealing a chitinous, winged, demonic form that takes to the air and flies towards the bullhorn’s command.
• “To Yael! To Yael we ride!”

SNIPPET – SECOND VISIT TO IDYLLGLEN: Just as the demon’s gnoll-skin sloughed away, the fields of Idyllglen begin to decay once more into that thick, black sludge.

• The PCs can hear the sound of something metallic being struck repeatedly; like a cheap gong.
• Mad Maggie’s voice from a distance: “Worthless junk! Worthless! Align you thrice-cursed pile of barlgura dung! Align, damn you!”
• The black sludge churns for a moment longer and then grows still. Just a black void that seems to press in on the PCs from all sides.
• Out of the darkness: “You’re no ogres! Identify yourselves!”
• There’s a blazing golden light: Lulu! Lit up as if golden flames danced through her fur! Zariel is astride her. The sudden light also reveals a small band of irregularly outfitted soldiers, led by a woman with long black hair. [Yael]
• Zariel says, “Know ye that I am Zariel! By the compact of old and in heed of your call, I return to you in your hour of need!”
• The woman smiles, walking forward: “I am Yael of Idyllglen. And we are sore pressed, milady.”
• Zariel dismounts and extends her hand, clasping Yael’s: “I am glad to you meet you, Yael of Idyllglen.”

Montage of Lost Conversations. There’s a horrible screech and the vision flies apart in tatters.

• Mad Maggie: “Hold on in there! One of the bile ducts has gotten wedged open!”

What follows are just fragments of conversation (the PCs may not even see all the speakers, who are indicated in brackets for the DM’s elucidation):

• “Yeenoghu has returned! He razes the settlements of the Winding Water!” [a messenger to Zariel and the Three Generals, precipitating the Third Visit to Idyllglen]
• Zariel: “Chazaqiel has betrayed all we believe in. You must see that! To Hell with her if that is what she wants, but we would break our oath to follow her!” [Zariel rallying those loyal to Heaven before her Long March during the Averniad]
• “Which of us do you think sees more clearly?” [Asmodeus, tempting Zariel to her fall]
• Zariel: “The demon lord flees before our wrath! And he has taken one our own! To rescue and salvation! Charge!” [Zariel unwittingly leading the Three Armies through the portal to Avernus]
• “My friend, you will find the aid of the Emporium to be all that you will ever wish.” [Mahadi, shortly before he splashes Lulu with water from the Styx]
• Zariel: “It may be madness. But will you join me?” Yael: “Aye. Let’s dream a little bigger.” [Yael and Zariel forming the Zarielite Crusade]

VISION – LAST STAND ON THE STYX: They hear Yael’s voice continuing to speak, but now it’s some sort of eldritch chant. It seems to pulling at them. Their vision begins to clear. They find themselves surrounded by a gentle undulation. Like the surface of a scrying pool, it shows them:

• Yael and Lulu onboard an infernal ferry sailing down a river [the Styx].
• The ferry has been hulled and is slewed to one side; it’s slowly sinking.
• They’re surrounded by demons. Lulu has just gored two of them with her tusks and, with a shake of her head, hurls them overboard.
• Yael is casting a spell. Her chanting voice is literally drawing the PCs towards it. They can resist this effect with a DC 14 Wisdom save if they choose to (in which case they remain in the undulating space for what follows, but can choose to leap through at any time).

Yael is casting a summon celestial spell (see Tasha’s Cauldron, p. 110). PCs who are drawn through the undulating surface of the vision actually become the Celestial Spirits she summoned that day. Yael says, “Well… it seems the gods can still hear us, even here.”

• Let the players choose whether they wish to be Avengers or Defenders (Tasha’s Cauldron, p. 110).
• Although they have the stat block of a Celestial Spirit, they use their own normal attack bonuses and have their own physical appearance, but with golden, glowing skin and hair that seems to be made from pure light.
• If Lulu is a PC, she’ll assume the role of her former self.

Shortly after the Celestial Spirits arrive, Yael calls out to Lulu: They’re losing the ship! They need to flee back into Avernus to escape the demons tracking them from the Abyss! Yael flies off on Lulu’s back, leaving the Celestial Spirits to cover their retreat.

Encounter. This is not an encounter designed for the PCs to win. (If they do, great. End it there.)

• 2 shadow demons (MM, p. 64) + 4 barlgura (MM, p. 56) on the ferry
• 8 barlgura on the shore; 1d4 leap onto the boat each round
• 4 glabrezu (MM, p. 58) on the shore, shouting orders to the barlgura (they’ll come across at an opportune time)
• A flock of 8 vrock (MM, p. 64) on the shore next to the glabrezu, some of whom take off and pursue Lulu and Yael (send all of them if Lulu is player-controlled) while the rest continue assaulting the boat

Wrapping Up. This vision ends when the Celestial Spirits have been overwhelmed or, against all odds, destroyed the demonic war party.

SNIPPET – LULU CROSSING AVERNUS: As the PCs return to the undulating place, they see Lulu and Yael flying low across the Avernian wastelands.

There’s a kind of “glitch” and then it’s just Lulu flying by herself. The glitch repeats, and Lulu the War Mammoth is replaced by Lulu the Cute Little Elephant. Another glitch and now it’s Yael walking alongside the Cute Little Elephant.

DM Note: Lulu’s many, fractured memories of wandering Avernus are getting mixed up.

VISION – LULU & ZARIEL IN MERCURIA: There’s a final glitch as they see Lulu the Cute Elephant again, flying across the red sands of Avernus. The hue of the sands slowly shifts to a silverish color as the skies above darken and fill with a cascade of diamond-like stars shining bright.

The vision of Lulu fades away and they find themselves on a beach, the wine-dark waves gently lapping a beach of gleaming silver sand.

Arranged on the beach are eight pairs of frozen figures: Each pair is the same two figures in different positions and poses. Lulu (in her “fuzzy war mammoth” form) and Zariel, talking to each other.

Vignettes. The pairs of figures remain frozen until one of them is touched. Touching a frozen vignette causes it to come to life, playing out a brief snippet of the long-ago conversation between the two friends.

DM Tip: If Lulu is a player character, you could give her the script for each vignette to play out her historical part with Zariel.

Vignette #1 – Planning to Return: Zariel is standing, staring up at the stars. Lulu is curled around her feet.

• Zariel: I look out across the vast gulfs of the multiverse, and I am the sick for the need of change.
• Lulu: If change is what you’re looking for, then you’ll need to look somewhere new to find it.
• Zariel: It’s these mortals. Speaking with them – feeling the heat and fleeting speed of their passion – has aroused in me the truth. We may be eternal, but they are not. And if we fail them, our eternity makes the failure even greater.
• Lulu: Could mortals truly make such a difference in your heart?

Vignette #2 – The Disaffected Angels: Zariel wading through the waves.

• Lulu: And when the infinite forces of the Abyss sweep down upon us?
• Zariel: Then we will fight! [she laughs] But, no. Once a beachhead exists, others will flock to our cause. I am not the only disaffected angel! Give them but a chance, and they will seize it!

Vignette #3 – Dream a Little Bigger: Lulu and Zariel standing side by side, looking up at the stars.

• Lulu: From the Powers of Heaven? You’re certainly following her advice! Your dream is impossibly large!
• Zariel: Perhaps. But we’ll dream it together?
• Lulu: Forever.

Vignette #4 – What Army? Zariel and Lulu sitting on the beach facing each other.

• Lulu: You already have an army!
• Zariel: [after a moment’s confusion] You mean Yael?
• Lulu: And her militia. Yes!
• Zariel: That’s a force for bandit ogres, not demonwars!
• Lulu: But it could be!

Vignette #5 – Secrets from Heaven: Lulu and Zariel sitting on a log side by side.

• Zariel: They will not appreciate having their hand forced.
• Lulu: Then we must keep it a secret.
• Zariel: For as long as we are able.

Vignette #6 – Mortal Army: Zariel petting the top of Lulu’s head.

• Lulu: Then it will be a crusade.
• Zariel: A crusade of the valiant, whose courage shall never be broken!

Vignette #7 – Giving the Mortals a Chance: Zariel hovering a few feet off the ground, her wings spread wide. Laughing. Lulu looking up at her.

• Zariel: They have! They have made all the difference! … And perhaps that is the key. From eternity nothing can change, but if the mortals are given a chance…
• Lulu: What sort of chance?
• Zariel: To fight! To take up swords and say that their destiny is their own! That they’re no longer children! That they will no longer stand idly by while gods and godlings waste eternity!

Vignette #8 – The Second Front: Zariel is sketching something in the silver sand with her finger; Lulu is hovering in the air, looking down over her shoulder.

• Lulu: But to what end?
• Zariel: To disrupt the balance! Demons vs. devils. Heaven vs. Hell. The Great Wheel is a trap. It turns, but never ends. We will break the wheel.
• Lulu: How? Where?
• Zariel: The Blood War. The Powers of Heaven refuse to intervene – to break an eternal cycle endlessly consuming mortal souls. But if we created a second front – if we broke the balance – that might be all it would take.

SNIPPET – JANDER’S BETRAYAL: Zariel is astride Lulu and General Yael is beside them on her black charger. The battle flags of Yael’s crusaders are nearby. They stand atop a small rise on the Avernian plains surrounded by a vast array of soldiers.

Zariel: The demon army is buckling under Olanthius’ assault. I think Haruman may be able to catch them in a pincer and end Yeenoghu’s terror for all time.

Yael: I agree. As long as my army holds strong, we can keep the devil army engaged until their bloody work is done.

At that moment, a desperate trumpet sounds out across the battlefield. Zariel, Yael, and Lulu jerk their heads around.

Yael: I gave no order!

Lulu: What’s happening?

Yael grabs ahold of Lulu’s fur and shouts, “Fly! We need to see!”

Lulu launches into the sky, carrying both Yael and Zariel into a formation of pegasus-riding Crusaders.

Yael: Report!

Pegasus Rider: Sunstar’s platoon has sounded a retreat!

Yael: What?

Pegasus Rider: The call is spreading!

Looking down, they can see that a huge section of Yael’s army is peeling away towards the large portal through which Yeenoghu led the Crusaders to Avernus. Small units from other sections of the army – including some from Haruman’s and Olanthius’ armies – are following.

Zariel: What has he done?

Insight (DC 12): Zariel is in despair. She’s lost. Uncertain. Doesn’t know what to do. Her hope is breaking.

Another Pegasus Rider: What should we do?

Insight (DC 12): Yael sees Zariel’s despair and for a moment it washes over her. She, too, is losing hope. And then a steely strength seems to enter her eyes; her back straightens.

Yael: Send a messenger. Order Jander to turn back. Then rally the rest of the reserve! We’re going to charge the devil army! We have to keep them off Haruman’s back!

The doubt vanishes from Zariel’s eyes.

Zariel: The rest of you form up on me! We’ll need to intercept those flying devils! Keep them off the riders below!

Yael lets go of Lulu and plunges back towards the army waiting below.

Mad Maggie can be heard again: “What was that? One moment, the cogbox is rattling up a storm.”

Following Zariel’s orders, the pegasi begin gathering into a three-dimensional formation above the battle.

Mad Maggie: “The cogbox is resonating with something in there! A powerful memory! Hang on! I’ve got a shifter around here somewhere!”

There are rattling noises. The sound of metallic items being thrown around.

The pegasi are now in formation. Zariel’s eyes drift to the portal, where Jander Sunstar and the Hellriders are fleeing back to the mortal plane.

They aren’t turning back.

The portal snaps shut.

Zariel orders the charge.

Mad Maggie: “I’ve got it!” A screeching sound of metal on metal.

SNIPPET – THE BLOODY CYST: The memories glitch. You’re back a few moments earlier. Yael is still clinging to the side of Lulu. “We’re going to charge the devil army!!”

The memory glitches. Repeats. Yael is clinging to Lulu’s fur. “We’re going to—”

Mad Maggie: “Turn you bastard!”

The memory glitches. Repeats. She lets go and begins to fall… and fall… and fall…

Mad Maggie: “There it is!” The sound of a clutch box screeching, and then gears slamming into place.

The battlefield melts away beneath Yael. The memory reshapes itself.

Yael stands next to Lulu in the Avernian wastelands. They’re alone. Yael slumps against Lulu’s side, clutching her fur to stay on her feet. She’s looking toward the horizon: There’s a huge cloud of dust. Some massive force is approaching.

She turns and looks in the opposite direction. A cluster of black spots can be seen in the distance. They’re far away, but Lulu’s sharp eyes can see them: Demons. And they’re getting nearer.

Yael: It’s done. There’s no place left to run.

Lulu: There has to be something we can do!

Yael: There is… Do you trust me, Lulu?

Lulu: To the very end.

Yael draws the Sword of Zariel. It bursts with golden, divine light. A beacon which seems to call out a challenge to the approaching forces of evil.

Yael raises the Sword high above her head. “To all the Gods of the Seven Heavens, I plead for your aid! In the name of Zariel, Solar of Celestia. In the name of Yael of Idyllglen. In the name of the mortal souls who have died in this noble cause! I beg a boon to fulfill the final wish of a dying angel! I beg you not to forsake the greatest and most daring of your warriors!”

Lulu rears back on her hind legs, raises her trunk, and trumpets. The sound is deafening, yet simultaneously soothing. You can feel the hollyphant pouring her own celestial essence into Yael’s call, the sympathetic resonance of her trumpet echoing across the Avernian plains as she drives Yael’s plea across the planes.

And there was an answer.

Not a voice perhaps. But a presence. Riding Lulu’s trumpet back across the planar boundaries.

“Lathander…” Yael murmurs. “Thank you.” And then she plunges the sword down into the rocky surface of the Avernian wastelands. There’s a huge burst of holy light.

Lulu cries out. “Yael! No!” She can feel Yael poruing her own life force into the gift Lathander had offered.

Yael looks up at Lulu and smiles. “All that’s left now is the dream.”

The light intensifies. It’s a blinding blast that never seems to end.

But then it does. Rising from the ground – from the confluence of holy might and mortal sacrifice – is an alabaster fortress. Here the Sword will be protected. Here the Sword will be safe.

But the skein of Avernus itself rebels at this holy touch. The wastelands seethe and boil in a pustulential eruption. A cancerous, bloody cyst surges upwards, engulfing the fortress, Yael, and Lulu herself.

Note: This final vision reveals the location of the Sword of Zariel to the PCs, which is within the Bloody Cyst (Hex F4).

It is very likely that the PCs will have seen the Bloody Cyst before this: It’s positioned in Hex F4 because (a) characters crossing the bridge in Hex G5a will likely run into it and (b) this also makes it a convenient landmark for NPCs to use while giving directions. (One of my patrons also recommended that Mahadi’s Emporium could be camped out at the base of the Bloody Cyst at some point.)

So the intention here is that the players will be able to say: “Holy crap! The Cyst? We know where that is! We’ve walked past it like a dozen times!”

If not, that’s okay: Lots of people in this area of Avernus know the location of the Bloody Cyst and can point the PCs to it if they start describing it and asking for directions.

Part 6D-J: Claiming the Sword

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In the Remix, there are four “memory dives”:

• The Vision From Torm
• The Dream Machine
• Claiming the Sword
• Zariel’s Spark

In each case, the players are given the opportunity to play through the events of the past. In some of the memory dives, the players will take on the roles of NPCs in those scenes. In others, it will seem as if the PCs themselves are part of the memory (as if they had been somehow transported into the past). Regardless of method or methodology, we’ll refer to this as the dreamscape. While in the dreamscape:

• PCs cannot be killed. Characters taking damage in the dreamscape suffer psychic damage and if reduced to 0 hp are rendered unconscious but stable.
• The past cannot actually be changed: These are morphable (and, it should be noted, therefore unreliable) visions of what happened. The PCs are not actually travelling through time. The dreamscape experiences are strongly guided and, if the players deviate too far from the course of history, it’s likely that the dreamscape will adjust itself. (Alternatively, the memory dive might end abruptly and need to be restarted.)

GM Note: Although the past cannot be changed by the PCs, it’s up to you how much the players can non-diegetically define what “really” happened. If it doesn’t contradict something previously established in the campaign and/or alter essential continuity, there’s no reason not to assume that how things play out at the table is how those things happened in the past. (For example, one of the players might improvise a battle cry during a memory dive, and then, later, one of the former Hellriders might make the same battle cry or talk about hearing it on the field of battle that day.

THE VISION FROM TORM

When a PC puts on the Helm of Torm’s Sight in the Grand Cemetery of Elturel (see Part 5D), they’ll enter a comatose state until someone, most likely Pherria Jynks, performs a ritual to free them. As that ritual completes, flashback to the moment of them putting on the Helm and then play through the visions they’re shown.

If the players make note of the gauntlet imagery found throughout these visions, they can make a skill check:

• Religion (DC 12): A right-handed gauntlet, held upright, is Torm’s holy symbol.

Snippets are non-interactive. Visions are interactive, as noted.

SNIPPET – THE BEGINNING OF ZARIEL’S FALL. There is a kind of inky darkness; a nauseous veil of swirling shadows. Then a beam of golden light. The light slowly grows in intensity and the shadows are ripped apart, like a caul parting before your eyes. At the point where the light is almost blinding, it turns reddish and becomes hot. Dry and hot. A dry, hot wind.

As your vision clears, you’re standing on a field of battle beneath the blood red sky of Avernus. A huge mound of devils lies dead. Other devils, still living, are hauling bodies off the mound, chittering amongst themselves.

All the way at the bottom of the mound, as one last corpse is pinioned on a pitchfork and flung to one side, the body of an angel is revealed. Her skin is porcelain white. Her hair the golden light of an evening sun. Her wings bloodstained ivory.

The devils draw back. Some of them are cackling, but then one glances back over their shoulder and suddenly drops prostrate to the ground. Others, too, following the first’s gaze, throw themselves to the ground.

A tall devil with skin of maroon and crimson, dressed in robes of black and gold, strides in amongst the scattered corpses. He is possessed of a leonid beauty, with two almost impossibly long, dark horns curving gracefully from his forehead.

The devil’s eyes smolder as he looks down at the angel. As he pulls off a gauntlet-like glove from his left hand, revealing the talons beneath, he turns and asks, in a smooth voice of elegance and grace, “Where is her Sword?”

The caul of gilded night sweeps over your vision.

VISION – THE THREE GENERALS. You are standing at attention in some sort of ceremonial uniform in a small group of similarly dressed knights. Each has a small badge on their left shoulder, depicting a pair of twin suns. Before you, on a grassy field, are arrayed three riders wearing identical badges: A woman with dark hair upon a black charger. A bearded man on a white horse. And the angel you saw lying beneath the mound of corpses riding a golden-furred, winged mammoth. Approaching from across the field is another mounted man, this one flanked by an honor guard.

GM Note: This is an interactive vision, but it’s designed to introduce the concept. If the player says they want to take an action, let them. Otherwise, the vision just plays out.

As the man draws near the trio before you, he brings his horse to a stop and then dismounts. The trio does likewise. A herald steps forward and announces, “Haruman, Lord Knight of the Far Hills greets Lord Olanthius.”

The beaded man smiles. “Hail to you, Lord Haruman. And welcome to Elturel. I am pleased to introduce you to Lady Yael of Idyllglen and Zariel, solar of Celestia.”

“And I’m Lulu!” trumpets the mammoth.

Haruman removes his left gauntlet and extends his hand, shaking each of the others in turn — and also, with a laugh, Lulu’s trunk! Escorted by Lord Olanthius, he proceeds down the line. In a few moments he stops before you and extends his hand. What do you do?

(As they grip Haruman’s hand or within a few moments either way, the vision shifts again.)

SNIPPET – ZARIEL’S REQUEST. The red heat of Avernus sweeps over you. So do the sounds of battle, but only at a distance. There is a trumpeting and the shadows are swept away like mist in a strong wind, you see the angel Zariel kneeling in the dust. Lady Yael, arrayed for battle in battered, bloody, and dust-covered armor kneels on the ground next to her. Zariel is pushing her glowing sword into Lady Yael’s hands.

GM Note: The trumpeting is Lulu stomping some devils a little distance away.

Yael: I refuse. Do not ask me of this.

Zariel (smiling sadly): I must. I do. Look beyond this forsaken day. One last time, I need you to dream a little bigger.

Yael weeps and then, unable to speak, nods, taking Zariel’s sword.

There’s another trumpet and Zariel’s golden mammoth comes charging up. “I drove them off, but there’s another group drawing near.”

Zariel pulls off her left gauntlet and buries her hand in the mammoth’s fur, taking a moment of comfort. “My old friend. Goodbye. Perhaps we shall meet again, but I do not think so. I need you to go with Yael. Help her make certain my Sword is not captured by the forces of Hell. Let it become a symbol of everything we have fought for. Even if it has ended in folly, let our deeds have meaning.”

As the veil formed from shadows of gold wraps itself around you again, slowly blotting out everything except the sword still glowing in Yael’s hand, Zariel’s voice continues: “This is the last thing I will ever ask of you. Protect Yael.”

VISION – YEENOGHU’S GAMBIT. Through the shadows, the sounds of battle intensify. Your vision clears to reveal yourself riding on horseback at a full gallop. The sun hanging high in the blue sky momentarily blinds you. Your companions are with you: [insert PC names]  Ahead of you, on the back of a golden mammoth and leading your charge, is the angelic Zariel. You’re surrounded by a massive battle – an army of mostly human knights are fighting a horde of gnolls.

[Call for initiative checks.]

A wall of black-furred gnolls come loping up over the top of the hill in front of you. Dozens of them. Maybe hundreds. Zariel calls back over her shoulder: “Guard the flanks! I’ll cut us a path through!” Then she spurs her mount to an even higher speed; the mammoth’s feet actually glide off the ground.

[Collect initiative scores and start combat.]

Combat Encounter: As Zariel instructs, she’s got the gnolls in front. (If one of the PCs is playing Lulu, give them the Hollyphant Elder stat block from Lulu’s Guide to Hollyphants. They can help Zariel on the front lines, probably attacking gnoll pack lords. Alternatively, have Zariel order her to help guard the flanks and add an extra Fang and four gnolls to the fight.)

• Left Flank: Gnoll Fang of Yeenoghu, Gnoll Pack Lord, 8 Gnolls
• Right Flank: 2 Gnoll Pack Lords, 8 Gnolls

At some point during this, Zariel will almost certainly refer to Lulu by name and the penny will drop (if it hasn’t already).

After Combat: After the fight, the PCs can rally to Zariel and ride up over the top of the hill. From there they can look out over farm fields churned and ruined by the battle, sowed with a carpet of the dead. Off to their left is a small village. Some of the buildings are on fire.

A few hundred yards away across a field stands a twelve-foot-tall demon gnoll. It holds aloft a dark-haired woman — Lady Yael – by the neck. Seeing Zariel across the field of battle, it turns and with a slash of its claws rends a purple, roiling gash in the air. With a hyena-like cackle which crackles across the field like black lightning, it leaps through the portal with Lady Yael still clutched in its gauntleted right hand.

SNIPPET – ZARIEL’S COURT. As the demon vanishes, the energy of the portal turns red and then seems to turn into swirls of shadow and gold. Through the darkness you hear two voices.

The first voice, as if played from a cracked record, asks, “Where is the Sword?”

And the second voice, weak and disoriented, replies, “I don’t know… I don’t… I used to know, but I don’t any more. I don’t.”

SNIPPET – MESSAGE FROM TORM. A hand — or, rather, a gauntlet — reaches through the shadows and sweeps them away. An immense light which seems as if it should be blinding in its intensity but which is instead a soothing comfort to your eyes emanates from the gauntlet… or perhaps from a point behind the gauntlet.

A booming voice emanates seemingly from all directions: “Seek ye Zariel’s blade. It is the key to her heart and her greatest desire. With it, Elturel’s chains can be severed.”

The gauntlet clenches into a fist as the voice speaks. Then it opens and, upon the palm of the gauntlet, a tiny golden elephant — Lulu — is flying in miniature. “Even from my sight is the Sword hidden. There is only one who knows and she knows not.”

The gauntlet closes again, then opens to reveal two black-feathered, birdlike humanoids standing next to a strange vehicle of blackened iron. “She must seek the kenku. In her memory they speak.”

The gauntlet closes for a third time. You hear a different voice chanting as if from a great distance.

[This is the voice of whoever is casting the spell. The PC might recognize this voice.]

The booming voice speaks again, but it, too, seems to come from a distance now as the other voice grows stronger: “Seek the kenku!”

The light now truly becomes blinding and—

[The PC wakes up.]

Note: As per p. 72 of Descent Into Avernus, when the PC who received the vision tells Lulu what they saw, it will trigger a memory of meeting two kenku at a place called Fort Knucklebones. Realizing it was near the Dock of Fallen Cities, she’ll swoop up into the sky and then return, declaring that it’s only a dozen miles off and she can lead the PCs there.

If Lulu is a PC in your campaign, you might want to prep a brief handout describing the kenku and Fort Knucklebones, and also telling Lulu’s player that she knows how to get there across the Avernian plains.

If it WAS Lulu who put on the Helm, modify Torm’s final vision. He’ll say something like, “Among all living creatures, only you know where it was hidden.” He might also show her Fort Knucklebones in miniature, triggering her memory of the kenku there.

Go to Part 6D-I: The Dream Machine

Go to Table of Contents

Design Note: This post contains the revelation lists associated with Lulu’s Memory Mystery, including a lot of material that the PCs discover while exploring Avernus in Part 7 of the Remix. See Using Revelation Lists, for tips and tricks on how to make best use of these lists.

REVELATION LIST – ESSENTIAL

This revelation list features revelations I’ve deemed “essential” for the players to (a) have a comprehensive picture of Lulu’s missing memories and (b) fully comprehend and appreciate Zariel’s story (particularly any path through the Avernian Quest which includes returning or using Zariel’s Sword).

LULU MEETS ZARIEL:

• Triggered Memory: Hearing Zariel’s Name
• Zariel’s Bridge (Hex G5)
• Questioning Mahadi

TRIAL OF ASMODEUS

• Triggered Memory: Heated Argument With a Devil
• Adjunct Court of Hell (Hex G1)
• Asmodean Pillars (Hex A3)

FOUNDING THE CRUSADE

• Questioning the Hellriders
• Triggered Memory: A Gathering of Forces
• Memory Dive: The Dream Machine

THE THREE GENERALS: YAEL

• Questioning the Hellriders
• Triggered Memory: Downed PC / Companion/ Ally
• Memory Dive: The Dream Machine
• Memory Dive: Vision From Torm
• Questioning Lux Arakxis (Hex F2)

THE THREE GENERALS: OLANTHIUS

• Questioning the Hellriders
• Triggered Memory: Lulu Comes to High Hall
• Memory Dive: Vision From Torm

THE THREE GENERALS: HARUMAN

• Questioning the Hellriders
• Memory Dive: Vision From Torm
• Zariel’s Bridge (Hex G5a)

CHARGE OF THE HELLRIDERS: THIRD VISIT TO IDYLLGLEN

• Questioning the Hellriders
• Triggered Memory: A Magic Portal
• Memory Dive: The Dream Machine
• Memory Dive: Vision From Torm
• Questioning Lux Arakxis (Hex F2)

CHARGE OF THE HELLRIDERS: BATTLE OF AVERNUS

• Questioning the Hellriders
• Triggered Memory: Downed PC / Companion / Ally
• Memory Dive: The Dream Machine
• Questioning Lux Arakxis (Hex F2)

ZARIEL FELL AFTER THE BATTLE OF AVERNUS

• Memory Dive: Claiming the Sword / Vision From Torm
• Questioning Haruman / Olanthius
• Mirror of Mephistar (Hex I1)

LULU & YAEL SENT TO HIDE ZARIEL’S SWORD

• Triggered Memory: Seeing the Styx
• Triggered Memory: Yael’s Last Words
• Memory Dive: Vision of Torm / The Dream Machine
• Questioning Yael

LULU WANDERING: THE WANDERING EMPORIUM

• Triggered Memory: Seeing Zariel’s Flying Fortress
• Memory Dive: The Dream Machine
• Questioning Agamemnova Hex (Hex F2)

LULU WANDERING: AT ZARIEL’S COURT

• Triggered Memory: Seeing Zariel’s Flying Fortress
• Questioning Haruman
• Questioning Mahadi

LULU WANDERING: L’ZETH’S AMBUSH

• Triggered Memory: Meeting Bitter Breath
• Questioning Bitter Breath

Homework: In her wanderings in Avernus, Lulu could have visited any or many other locations in Avernus. You can add these to the revelation list (perhaps including triggered memories) to further flesh out Lulu’s back story, provide useful lore, or both.

REVELATION LIST – COOL STUFF

These additional revelations cover material from the Zariel/Lulu backstory that are significant, but not required for the Avernian Quest to make sense. Mostly I’ve created this list to properly distribute this lore throughout the campaign. Because these are non-essential elements, it’s not strictly necessary to follow the Three Clue Rule. (Although I generally have because it’s just good praxis.)

AVERNIAD

• Memory Dive: Claiming the Sword
• Sibriex (Hex E5)
• Zariel’s Bridge (Hex G5)

ZARIEL’S LONG MARCH

• Memory Dive: Claiming the Sword
• Questioning Haruman
• Sibriex (Hex E5)

FIRST VISIT TO IDYLLGLEN

• Memory Dive: Claiming the Sword
• Questioning Olanthius
• Questioning Yael

SECOND VISIT TO IDYLLGLEN

• Memory Dive: The Dream Machine
• Questioning Olanthius / Yael
• Random Encounter: Allip’s Secret

“DREAM A LITTLE BIGGER”

• Memory Dive: Vision from Torm
• Memory Dive: The Dream Machine
• Questioning Olanthius / Yael

THE RECKONING: SIEGE OF DIS

• Questioning Haruman
• Mirror of Mephistar (Hex I1)
• Random Encounter: Escort to Dis

THE RECKONING: ZARIEL’S IMPRISONMENT

• Questioning Haruman
• Mirror of Mephistar (Hex I1)
• Zariel’s Bridge (Hex G5)

THE RIFT WAR

• Questioning Haruman
• Baron Barur Tolmanen (Hex F2)
• The Rift Mound (Hex C2)

THE RIFT WAR: ZARIEL’S SECOND AVERNIAN MARCH

• Questioning Haruman
• Baron Barur Tolmanen (Hex F2)
• Zariel’s Bridge (Hex G5)

THE RIFT WAR: ZARIEL BECOMES ARCHDUCHESS

• Questioning Haruman
• Baron Barur Tolmanen (Hex F2)
• Zariel’s Bridge (Hex G5)

Go to Part 6D-H: Lulu’s Memories (The Four Memory Dives)

Go to Table of Contents

These memories — identified by the associated trigger condition that prompts Lulu to remember them — are presented in no particular order. Be flexible with what will and will not trigger a memory: if it seems close enough that you can draw a clear parallel between what Lulu is currently experiencing and her memory, lean into that.

You might also decide that some other circumstance — something like significant trauma or just every time Lulu levels up — might be an appropriate trigger for a random memory. To that effect, I’ve included a random die roll on the trigger reference table below if you want to select the triggered memory randomly.

It’s not necessary for Lulu to recover all of these triggered memories. Don’t feel like you need to force them into play. In fact, triggering all of them might be overkill.

If you miss a trigger, it’s fine to just wait for the trigger to occur again. If the trigger would definitely not occur again, then it’s okay to just skip it. Memory is, after all, a fickle thing. (You might also flag such a “missed” memory to be used for a randomly triggered memory if you’re doing that.)

SHARING LULU’S MEMORIES

If Lulu is a PC, then implementing these triggered memories is relatively easy. (The only decision you need to make is whether to describe them openly at the table or just privately share them with Lulu’s player so that they can roleplay how they tell the other PCs about it.)

But what if Lulu’s an NPC?

The most direct solution is for her to simply describe the memories as she regains them. If you want to more directly describe them to the players as something experienced directly by their characters, there are a couple of options:

First, during the Vision from Torm, the god can — while impressing the import of Lulu and her lost memories — forge a connection between the PCs and Lulu. When a memory gets triggered, both Lulu and the PCs experience it. (This link might be between Lulu and the entire group, or it might only be between Lulu and the PC who put on the helmet and received the Vision from Torm.)

Second, Lulu is telepathic and abruptly recovering these memories is a traumatic mental experience. When a memory is triggered, she might involuntarily broadcast it. You might limit this broadcast to the PCs (i.e., she’s broadcasting to those she trusts and is friends with) or it might just be an open blast to anyone nearby (which could result in any number of unforeseen consequences depending on which NPCs happen to be within range at the time).

MEMORY TRIGGERS

Hearing Zariel’s Name: “Zariel! That was the name of my angel!” Lulu remembers that the name of the warrior angel who was her friend was Zariel. She has a flash of Zariel’s beatific face smiling in dappled, silvery moonlight. “Fair met, Lulu. I am Zariel, solar of Celestia.”

Heated Argument With a Devil: Zariel is being held by a phalanx of winged angels, she is screaming at someone. Zariel wants to… testify? Someone is on trial. Zariel feels that justice isn’t being done. “Your betrayal, Ashmedai, cost us everything! No matter what this farce of justice ordains! No matter what Primus lets you get away with! I will speak my truth!”

Lulu Comes to the High Hall: Double vision of the High Hall and the old citadel that once stood atop the tor. When she passes through the doors, the vision will intensify and she will see Yael kneeling before Olanthius. Olanthius reaches down and offers Yael his hand, saying, “Speak to me of your Crusade, milady.” Yael responds, “Thank you, Lord Olanthius.”

Downed PC / Companion / Ally (someone Lulu has formed a meaningful connection with): Lulu remembers flying above a blasted wasteland of black rock and red sands. There was a woman on her back softly weeping. Below them a vast sea of devils surges in the opposite direction. She tries to fly even faster. Looking back, at the center of the converging mass of fiends she sees a beam of golden light shooting into the air. And at the center of the beam a beautiful, angelic women with white, bloodstained wings struggles against the mass that slowly overwhelms and quenches her light. The woman on Lulu’s back swallows her tears and says, “Turn and face what is to come and not what is behind. We must fly fast, my friend. We have far to go.” Yael… That was the woman’s name. Yael.

Design Note: If appropriate, this memory could be progressively triggered. For example, only the second time it’s triggered does Lulu remember that there was a woman on her back. And only on the third time does she remember the woman’s name.

Seeing Zariel’s Flying Fortress: Lulu has a double vision of seeing the flying fortress from a different angle (and possibly at a much closer distance). From this other angle, she’s been leashed with a length of grey, woven rope and is surrounded by a small band of people: A woman dressed entirely in animated, mulit-colored silk cloths that drift around her body. A pair of horned devils with pitch-black skin. Several scampering imps. A smiling, bearded man in silk robes with a jambiya blade thrust into a sash around his waist.

As the group approaches the fortress, a semi-circular silver platform slowly levitates to the ground. It appears to be operated by a bearded devil who stands near a copper pedestal. Lulu and her group board the platform and it begins to ascend back towards the fortress…

DM Note: This group is the entourage Mahadi led to gift Lulu to Zariel. (Note that in the Remix, Mahadi gifted Lulu himself, rather than merely selling her to anonymous devils.)

Meeting Bitter Breath: Lulu is being escorted by half a dozen devils across the red sands of Avernus. Zariel’s flying fortress hangs in the sky behind them. Lulu feels… drunk? Concussed? Confused, certainly. Like she’s viewing the world through a grey veil or haze. Time seems to rush by; or perhaps turgidly skips about. The flying fortress is gone now. But then, suddenly, there’s an explosion of black energy that utterly consumes one of the devils escorting Lulu. Over a reddish dune ahead of them, a pack of infernal war machines churns into view. An arcanist hangs precariously off the side of one of them slinging spells. The devils with Lulu are thrown into confusion, but try to take up some form of defensive position. One of them is run over by a war machine; smashed flat into the red dust in a smear of black ichor. A horned devil leaps from one of the vehicles and lands in a confused cluster of devils. Her tail whips out, tripping one of the devils and sending them crashing into the dust. She spears another on the end of her trident and laughs with joyful rage. “Tell Zariel that not one of her servants is safe from the vengeance of Bitter Breath!”

Seeing the Styx: A flash of memory. Lulu is riding on some sort of ferry steered by a dark-haired women. The woman has a large sword strapped to her back that glows softly with a golden light. They’re heading down river. The banks of the river are quite high, blocking Lulu’s view of the surrounding landscape. But from one bank comes a demonic howl. And then another. The howls are getting closer…

Yael’s Last Words: Yael’s last words to Lulu, as she sacrificed herself to raise the alabaster fortress, were, “All that’s left now is the dream.” If Lulu hears someone say something similar to that – e.g., “all we need now is the dream machine” or “all that’s left to do now is killing that devil” — she might have a very brief flash to a dark-haired woman saying, “All that’s left now is the dream,” before being swallowed up by an impossibly bright light that emanates from something held between her hands.

A Gathering of Forces / The Refugee Caravan: Lulu is in the form of a giant, golden-furred mammoth. Her angel is riding upon her back. They are at the head of a huge column of mounted soldiers, riding out of the gates of a city. The riders all wear a badge depicting twin suns — one larger than the other.

Name or Holy Symbol of Lathander: Lulu hears an impossibly loud trumpeting noise (that no other character can hear).

DM Note: Lulu is literally “hearing” the memory of her own trumpet, as she called out across the planes and had her prayer answered by Lathander. This effect might repeat upon repeated exposures to Lathander’s iconography, perhaps with the sound growing dimmer upon each repetition until it fades away.

Being Imprisoned: Lulu flashes back to the sensation of being entombed in a warm, spongy, moist substance. A reddish light slowly suffuses her surroundings. There’s a sense of pressure coupled to a desperate need to escape. Her limbs are lethargic, but she begins weakly thrusting against the pulpy mass which imprisons her. There’s a tearing sensation followed by a hot blast of dry wind. There’s something wrong with her vision… as if a red caul had been pulled across her eyes. But the light… the light is so bright…

A Magic Portal: Zariel is mounted upon Lulu in front of a swirling portal of red energies. They stand in a green field stained with blood. The portal is almost hypnotic. Lulu can’t pull her eyes away from it. Zariel cries out to someone that Lulu can’t see in the memory — shadowy shapes that are lost to her damaged mind. “He has taken one of our own! To rescue and to salvation! Charge!” Lulu leaps through the crimson portal…

DM: Not simply ANY dimensional travel, but specifically a portal. (This is not, therefore, triggered when the PCs are plane shifted to Avernus. But it’s likely to happen in the Grand Cemetery.)

Go to Part 6D-G: Lulu’s Memories (Memory Revelations)

Go to Part 1

We’re continuing our series of capsule reviews of Descent Into Avernus-related material on the Dungeon Masters Guild, giving a very high overview of my thoughts/impressions of each book. Unless otherwise noted, the material has not been playtested.

You may also want to review this Guide to Grades at the Alexandrian. The short version: My general philosophy is that 90% of everything is crap, and crap gets an F. I’m primarily interested in grading the 10% of the pile that’s potentially worth your time. Anything from A+ to C- is, honestly, worth checking out if the material sounds interesting to you. If I give something a D it’s pretty shaky. F, in my opinion, should be avoided entirely.

A LIGHT IN THE DARK: A Light in the Dark bills itself as tying into the continuity of Descent Into Avernus, but it’s set in Baldur’s Gate while having a suggested level at which PCs in the campaign will have long since left Baldur’s Gate behind. Its purpose, therefore, is somewhat confusing.

The maps are nice and the concept is fine, but the adventure itself is virtually unplayable. It’s more or less written as a Choose Your Own Adventure novel, consisting of literally just pages and pages (and pages!) of horribly executed boxed text. Often this boxed text is outlining literal A or B choices. It repeatedly ends with the refrain, “What do you want to do?” literally scripted in. And it is constantly either telling the players what their characters do or simply leaving them helplessly standing by while entire scenes play out without their input.

Perhaps the most egregious example of this comes when the PCs confront the villain. While the PCs stand unable to act (because the DM is reading), the boxed text has:

• The villain order a zombie girl to go punish her parents.
• The zombie girl leave the room.
• The girl’s parents scream and beg for mercy from the neighboring room.
• The sound of thumping that turns to screams of pain.
• “The noises they make will stay with you for a long time.”

This is one of those times where I wish I had more nice things to say about an adventure. But I don’t.

• Grade: F

BALDUR’S GATE – THE STRUGGLES OF STELMANE: This is another adventure which presents itself as being something you can incorporate into a Descent Into Avernus campaign, but which is nevertheless set in Baldur’s Gate with a suggested level too high to be used in the campaign. (What gives, folks?)

The Struggles of Stelmane is a fairly simple adventure: A mind flayer is attempting to take control of Duke Stelmane. The PCs are told by the Duke’s assistant to investigate some caves. They do so and find a tunnel that leads to Stelmane’s manor. (Which – pet peeve alert! – is incorrectly referred to as a villa.) The mind flayer is in the manor. The PCs kill it.

Unfortunately, the adventure spends a great deal of time spinning its wheels. (It’s about 5 pages of content in a 20 page PDF.) And when it’s not spinning its wheels, it frequently just doesn’t make sense: The mind flayer telepathically read Stelmane’s mind and for some reason this is causing Stelmane’s physical health to deteriorate. The duke’s assistant requests a meeting with the PCs, but the only thing he asks them to do is investigate a murder that doesn’t happen until the PCs show up to meet him. The adventure frequently talks about “following a series of clues,” but there are no clues to follow. And so forth.

• Grade: D-

DANCE OF DEATHLESS FROST: Dylan Ramsey delivers a clever little expansion of Descent Into Avernus, giving the PCs an opportunity to track down the mysterious phylactery of deathless frost. With it they can either control the demon lord Kostchtchie or destroy it and turn him mortal.

My one quibble with the adventure is that it suffers a little from what I call “idea guy syndrome.” A common variant is, “Wouldn’t this encounter be cool?” This often takes the form of the bad guys sending minions to attack the PCs… but the encounter isn’t actually statted up (e.g., “She could send fiendish assassins or a simulacrum to try to steal the phylactery from the characters.”) But you also get stuff like, “It feels like the NPC’s lair should have fiendishly clever defenses… but I couldn’t figure out how to do it, so here’s a couple of vague ideas.”

So, basically, you’re going to have to put some elbow-grease into Dance of Deathless Frost if you want to use it. Nevertheless, Ramsey delivers some cool ideas, memorable locales, and nifty ideas, so it’s probably worth the effort. (I will most likely be incorporating this scenario into the Remix.)

• Grade: C-

FORGES OF AVERNUS: The central conceit of Forges of Avernus is that each Warlord of Avernus maintains their own forge to outfit their warriors, and each of these forges is skilled in the creation of special, themed weapons. I like this a lot: One of the big shortcomings in Descent Into Avernus is that it details the warlords, but not their warbands. I wanted to supplement that lack, and Forges of Avernus does a lot of heavy lifting for me. Not only will the unique weapons make for distinct combat encounters with each warband, but the supplement also details the NPC forge masters (adding extra roleplaying opportunities).

The only drawback here is that the mechanical mastery of 5^th Edition is a little shaky. For example, there are several effects triggered “on a critical failure,” but there are no critical failures in 5^th Edition. This doesn’t appear to be a crippling problem, but when you see a weak grasp of mechanical fundamentals it erodes trust in the rest of the mechanical implementation, so you’ll probably want to double-check these elements as you add them to your campaign.

• Grade: B-

BITTER RIVALS: Bitter Rivals is a slick, professional-grade adventure designed to be seamlessly slotted into Descent Into Avernus. It adds a ton of lore to the warlord Bitter Breath and completely details their warcamp as part of a raid scenario. This is a no-brainer for any GM planning to run Descent Into Avernus, with or without the Remix.

The organization and level of detail, in particular, are fantastic. One example is the formatting of the mission briefing given in the scenario hook. Rather than using traditional boxed text, J.A. Valeur of Eventyr Games uses in-line headings to identify the major bullet points of the briefing while providing the written dialogue associated with that bullet point in plain text behind the in-line heading. I hadn’t seen this technique previously, but it’s best-of-both-worlds stuff.

There’s also a really nifty DM’s Cheat Sheet section of the adventure, which basically presents the entire adventure a second time but with only the essential elements (like encounter rosters, the bullet point version of the mission briefing, etc.). Stripped of the surrounding explanatory text, this is a great document for efficiently running the adventure without flipping back and forth through multiple pages.

• Grade: B

INFERNAL BOUNTY: Another Descent Into Avernus supplement from Eventyr Games, this short 2-page PDF is basically just a random encounter with a pair of bounty hunter devils (using some very lightly customized stat blocks) for $0.50. In addition to being a random encounter, the fiend duo can make a decent response team that can be flexibly deployed at need. But I just don’t see a lot of value in Infernal Bounty even at the fairly cheap price point.

• Grade: D

ENHANCED DEVILS: Another Eventyr supplement, Enhanced Devils looks at a dozen or so devils from the Monster Manual and soups up their stat blocks, giving them extra abilities that don’t necessarily make them more powerful, but do give them more options in combat so that multiple encounters with them stay fresh.

I haven’t playtested these yet, but they look balanced and useful. The important thing here, though, is the word “yet.” I’ve talked in the past about how 4^th Edition’s design philosophy of reducing the breadth of abilities possessed by monsters (which has carried through, albeit to a lesser extent, in 5^th Edition) on the theory that the typical monster only lasts for 3-5 rounds is fundamentally flawed (because, if nothing else, when you build an encounter with 5 of those monsters, the stat block immediately has 15-25 rounds of actions), so it’s probably not surprising to discover that I like what this supplement is doing and I like these stat blocks. I’ll be using them to help keep encounters in Avernus fresh and interesting.

• Grade: C

TEMPLE OF THE BROKEN PRINCE: Yet another adventure that sells itself as a plug-and-play side quest for Descent Into Avernus, but isn’t actually designed to work that way. This time, the adventure is set on Avernus, but the recommended level is too low.

In actual practice, the location is not really designed for Avernus. But it IS a fairly nice location-crawl that could easily be slotted into any traditional D&D setting. (If you still wanted to use Temple of the Broken Prince as part of the Remix, it might work well as the mission that sends the PCs out of Elturel just in time for the whole city to get sucked into Hell.) A demonic temple turned into a demonic sepulcher, the rooms are weird, sinister, and drenched with dread. There’s also a couple new monsters that look like creepy fun.

• Grade: C+

More DMs Guild Capsule Reviews – Go to the Avernus Remix