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All three sur vivors have been traumatized by the
recenc attacks. which were unknowingly triggered by
janore Stormswake's arrival at the hermitage.
A fourth hermit, Aaron Kelderman. also survived the
initial undead attack, but he was recently slain by Rasp
in the belfry (see area 24). Since Aaron has not returned
after leaving to scout the island, the other survivors have
been too terrified to leave this room.
S ickness in the B olt-Hole. The hermits init ially
remained hidden for fear that the si lence above was
a ploy by the lurking undead to draw them from their
hiding place. But it quickly became obvious that the
wounds Morley and Barret suffered have caused a horri-
ble disease.
Both Barret and Morley have contracted the disease
called bluerot from the drowned ones (see appendix C).
Barret is very ill and has lost 4 points of Constitution
and Charisma from the disease. Unless he is cured, one
hour after the characters discover him, Barret must suc-
ceed on a DC 12 Constitution saving throw or take^18
(4d8) necrotic damage. A failed save likely kills him.
Morley fared better and has lost only 1 point of Con-
stitution and Charisma. He must make his first DC 12
Constitution saving throw against the disease in roughly
20 hours. This means that he is alive for the drowned
ones' second assault.
Treasure. The dead chaplain wears a +l breastplate.
Developmen t. All three of the survivors are in shock
from their recent ordeal. and they are desperate to es-
cape the island. Unfortunately, Barret is in no condition
to travel.j anore Stormswake can give t he most detailed
account of recent events, but she asks first if the charac-
ters have seen Aaron. She can recount how he slipped
out from the bolt-hole to see if the fortress was safe, but
never returned. lf the characters haven't already discov-
ered Aaron's body,Janore tells of having heard the bell
ringing. then silence.
Survivors' Tale. janore relates that she was reading
in the library when a sudden premonition of danger
came to her from her god, Procan. She heard whispers
in her mind that led her to this place, and her intuition
told her that the skeleton found here was the remains of
a fellow priest of Procan. (The skeleton is indeed the re-
mains of the priest whose plea for help led to the sinking
of Tammeraut.)
Acting quickly. she found Aaron in the kitchen and
grabbed him just as he heard the dormitory door splin-
tering. Morley and Barrett staggered into the larder
soon after. wounded and in need of help.Janore says she
dragged them inside and was about to seal the entrance
when the larder door banged open:"I saw a corpse, dripping wet, shriveled and discolored
as if by long immersion in the sea. It stalked into the
room and began to search, so I sealed the door. Miracu-
lously. it missed our hiding place, though it kept scrab-
bling at the floor as if it could sense us below. But then
as the first glow of dawn showed at the cleft in the wall
there, it suddenly fled."- It\ f I( TA:\l~lfl<\l f 'i I \II
1
By peering through the crevice to the south, the survi-
vors witnessed the undead gathering the slain residents
into nets. The monsters walked back into the sea, drag-
ging several of the nets behind them. More than a dozen
corpses remain to be salvaged from the grotto. waiting
for the undead to return.
At dawn, Aaron went up and out to search for survi-
vors. Finding none. he remained outside to keep watch
for passing ships. He planned on ringing the bell to
draw their attention. In the meantime. he tried to fortify
the place as well as he could.
Having witnessed the undead at their work, the survi-
vors are convinced they will be back perhaps as early
as tonight, after the sun sets.
Drown ed Ones' Threat. I f the characters haven't
identified the ruined map found in area 13,Janore can
confirm that it shows Firewatch Island. the locaJ coast-
line, nearby settlements. and the invaders' plans for
an assault against those settlements. If the characters
haven't already done so, she guesses that the undead
are still following the orders they were under when
Tammeraut was sunk. They intend to seize the hermit-
age and destroy its last defenders, then use the island as
a staging ground for attacks against the settlements of
the coast.Last Stand
With both Morley and Barrett sickened,Janore doesn't
know what to do. Aaron was supposed to check on the
status of the boat kept in area 1 4, and since he failed to
return Janore has been afraid to investigate further. Un-
til the characters appeared. the survivors believed that
they had been abandoned, and that the only way off the
island is the ferry. But even if the characters have the
means of leaving the island immediately. or they can re-
pair the hermitage's boat with mending. the knowledge
that the drowned ones mean to use Firewatch Island as
a base from which to launch further mayhem across the
region should give them pause.
An undead assault against the coast could come at
any number of locations and be all but impossible to
defend against. Because the drowned ones are able to
add to their undead ranks, each successful attack would
increase the size of their army. But knowing that the un-
dead likely plan to return to Firewatch Island co destroy
its last survivors gives the characters a single chance for
a controlled fight. Destroying the drowned ones before
they capture the hermitage might be the only way to end
their threat.
If the characters decide to stay and await the fall of
night, Janore and the others insist on remaining in the
bolt-hole- it's been safe so far and they're not eager to
risk compromising their sanctuary. None of the survi-
vors know exactly how many drowned ones there are,
but they believe that securing all the entrances to the
hermitage would be beneficial. A character who suc-
ceeds on a DC 15 Charisma (Persuasion) check calms
the survivors enough that they agree to leave the bolt-
hole, and they can help the characters barricade the
hermitage. set up traps. and otherwise prepare to face
the undead.