Descent into Avernus

(Jeff_L) #1

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duke needs his help to ascertain the magical properties


of the celestial shield, which her family "acquired" from


a crypt under the city. Despite being a practiced liar,

Thavius has no lie to explain his diabolical shadow.


If she's with the party, Reya Mantlemorn is awestruck
in the presence of the high overseer, and won't allow

the characters to harm Thavius as long as she believes


he's innoce nt of wrongdoing. His altered shadow is


not damning enough evidence. Convincing Reya that


Thavius is corrupt can be accomplished by forcing a


confession out of him with a successful DC 15 Cha-


risma (Intimidation) check, or by proving that he has


Jost his spellcasting abilities. If the characters kill


Thavius, they can encounter him again in chapter 3,


after his soul is turned into a devil.
Shield of the Hidden Lord. The devil Gargauth is
bound into the Shield of the Hidden Lord and wants to

escape from it. The fiend believes it can break out once


the shield is taken to the Nine Hells- and it needs the


characters' help to get there.

Gargauth senses the presence of the characters when


they enter the room and telepathically contacts one of


them at random. Referring to itself as the Hidden Lord,


the devil claims to be a celestial being and vows to help
the characters rescue Elturel, provided they take the

shield with them into the Nine Hells. The Hidden Lord


also warns that a secret society is after the shield, and


that it's only a matte r of time before its evil members


find it. Gargauth claims that this secret society doesn't


want the shield's powers to be used for good, which is
the truth.

Duke Vanthampur and Thavius Kreeg have promised


to help Gargauth break out of the shield, provided the


fiend spreads corruption throughout the city by uniting

the patriars behind the duke-and, by extension, behind


the archdevil Zariel. Only then can Baldur's Gate suffer


the same fate as Elturel. However, Gargauth is happy to


take advantage of a more expedient means of re turning

to the Nine Hells if the characters offer it one. The Hid-


den Lord has no loyalty to anyone but itself.


TuAVIUS KREEG
Medium humanoid (human), lawful evil

Armor Class 10
Hit Points 40 (9d8)
Speed 30 ft.

STR
12 (+l)

DEX
10 (+O)

CON
11 (+O)

INT
15 (+2)

WIS
18 (+4)

CHA
16 (+3)

Skills Deception +S, Medicine +6, Persuasion +S, Religion +4
Senses passive Perception 14
Languages Abyssal, Common, Infernal
Challenge 1/2 (100 XP)

Shadow of Guilt. Thavius's shadow is that of a pudgy, horned
devil with small wings.

ACTIO NS
Mace. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target.
Hit: 4 (ld6 + 1) bludgeoning damage.

CHAPTER l I A TALE OF TWO ClTrES

Treasure. The eight coffers are unlocked and contain


money belonging to the Vanthampur family, as well as


treasure stolen from Tiamat's hoard on Avernus. Duke

Vanthampur plans to use this combined treasure to


bribe the city's patriars and government officials into


supporting her bid to become the new grand duke.


Coffer 1 contains 30 electrum ingots (10 gp each)


belonging to the Vanthampur family.

Coffers 2, 3, and 4 each contain 100 gp belonging to


the Vanthampur family.
Coffe r 5 contains two pieces of a broken ceremonial
dagger stolen from Tiamat's hoard: a curved ivory blade

bearing Dracooic runes that spell out "Fang," along with


a bone hilt wrapped in leather strips and studded with


gemstones. A mending cantrip can make the nonmagi-


cal dagger whole again, restoring its value (250 gp).

Coffers 6 and 7 each contain 100 pp belonging to the


Vanthampur family.
Coffer 8 contains twenty azurite gemstones (10 gp
each) stolen from Tiamat's hoard.

FINAL ENCOUNTERS IN


BALDUR'S GATE


If the characters fail to locate Thavius Kreeg's infernal


puzzle box (see area V13) or the Shield of the Hidden


Lord (see area V36), an NPC such as Reya Mantlemorn


or Falaster Fisk recommends a more thorough search


of the Vanthampur estate. As a Hellrider, Reya might

be able to sense the presence of the celestial s hield


and urge the characters to retrieve it, lest it fall into evil


hands. Similarly, Falaster loathes to leave the puzzle


box behind for someone else to snatch up.
If S lobberchops the tressym (see area VS) is with the

party, it can lead characters to the puzzle box. Captured


villains can also lead characters to the puzzle box or the

shield, as needed. Once these items are found, Falaster


strongly urges the characters to deliver them to Sylvira


Savikas at Candlekeep.
lf invited to join the characters on their journey co
Candlekeep, Reya and Falaste r r eadily accept. Falaster

has a modest dwelling in Little CaUmshan, a walled


neighborhood in the Outer City, and suggests making a

brief stop there so he can equip himself with weapons


before continuing the journey to Candlekeep.


REPORTING TO CAPTAIN ZODGE


Once the characters wipe out the Vanthampur family


and its devil-worshiping cult, they can return to Captain


Zodge to deliver their report, surrender their Flaming


Fist badges, and receive any payment owed to them.


Zodge is gratified to learn that the Vanthampurs are


no longer his concern. If the characters report that one


or more family members are still alive, Zodge promises


to hunt them down and punish them for their crimes.


COMMANDER PORTYR
As the characters conclude their business with Captain
Zodge, the meeting is interrupted by the arrival of a
higher-ranking member of the Flaming Fist. Read or
paraphrase the following text to the players:
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