Out of the Abyss

These rooms contain crystals of many colors. Ulthar

and his assistants per iodically move tablets, cylinders.

and stelae from the Archives of the Prese nt into these

rooms. Some of the records here date back to the mythic

times of the earliest giant gods.

Annals ofHistory. Characters can research the

backgrounds of the primary settlements of the

Underdark and any well-known characters who dwell

there. This lets them know what to expect if they visit

those s ites in the future, or to bette r understand some

of the events that occurred during a previous visit.

For example. they can learn more information about

Thcmberchaud. about the drow siege and demonic

assaull of Blingdenstone, or any other part of the well-

known history of FacrOn.

ARCHIVES OF THE PRESENT

The rooms that contain the works of Urmas have

inscriptions carved above t he doorway that anyone who

knows Dwarvish or Giant can translate:

l

The present is like sand, ever flowing and escaping one's l

grasp without mercy or respite.

The records in these rooms detail the current s tate of

the Underdark and the giam kingdoms.

Current Affairs. Reading the tablets in these archives

provides a good overview of what is going on in the

Unde rdark at the present time. The latest ne ws has a

delay of a few days and is often incomplete, becoming

more de tailed as Urmas obtains more information from

his messengers and informants. The re ports about

the demons· invasion are sketchy and incomplete. but

characters can still get a rough idea about which demon

lord arrived where. They can learn that ZuggLmoy might

be on the move to an undisclosed location, or follow the

ravaging paths ofYeenoghu and Baphome t as they gather

and rally the races that worship them. Unlike the bits and

pieces of news about the othe r de mon lords. a significant

amount of information is known about the cults of

Dcmogorgon festering under Grackls tugh, as events

there directly affect the resident stone giant clan.

ARCHIVES OF THE FUTURE

The rooms with Ustova's prophetic writings have

inscriptions above the doorways that anyone who knows

Dwarvish or Giant can decipher:

The future is a song we remember, but we cannot rush to its

end Jest we destroy the melody.

l

Unlike the other rooms in the library. these archives

echo with the sound of ru nning water. The wall niches

containing the stone cylinders Ustova favors for scribing

a re a lso fountains, where water shimme rs over crystals

as it falls.

Prophetic Visions. The information in the Archives

of the Future is uncertain. not onJy because Ustova

focuses on prophecies but also because her visions

GRAVENHOLLOW: GENERAL FEATURES

Not even the current librarians know who built

Gravenhollow. All they know is that t he library has existed

since the dawn of giantkind.

Power Node. Gravenhollow was carved from a titanic

geode whose crystals are imbued with magic that

concentrates Jaerzress. The magic that suffuses the library

profoundly affects time and space, a ltering the perceptions

and reality of all beings with in its walls.

Bigger on the Inside. The notion of space works strangely

in Gravenhollow. The interior of the library continually

expands as lore is added to it, but visitors can still

traverse all its floors and chambers with ease. Only the

most absentminded and scatterbrained become lost in

Graven hollow.

Universal Language. While in Gravenhollow, all creatures

gain the benefit of the comprehend languages spell.

Hidden from Magic. Gravenhollow is a window into the

passage of time and history, and the magic permeating the

library blocks it off from the real world around it. Though

divination magic works normally within the library, no

divination effect used outside the library can discern any

creature, object, or location with in it.

A Place of Peace. Visitors to the library ofGravenhollow

are expected to conduct themselves with decorum, and to

refrain from arguments and violence. Creatures that incite

conflict quickly draw the attention of the basilisk Veldyskar,

who is quick to use his Petrifying Gaze on troublemakers.

If a threat arises that Veldyskar can't handle, the library

generates 3d6 galeb duhr to assist him.

Willful Navigation. Finding anything in Gravenhollow

is an effort of will. Whenever a character seeks a specific

location in the library (a particular floor or period

of history. for example), the character must make a

successful DC 14 Wisdom check to find that location. On

a failure, the character takes a wrong turn and must make

additional checks until successful. If led by one of the

library's keepers, characters don't need to make checks to

find the location they seek.

detail potential futures, not definite outcomes. Urmas

and Ustova compare notes often to validate their visions.

The prophecies in these rooms are limited to the future

of giantkind-and the trials still to come for those once-

great races- because this is Ustova's sole inte rest.

THE ENEMY oF OuR ENEMY

As th e characters explore the library, ideally after

encountering an echo or two, they meet the venerable

drow archmage Vizeran DeVir. accompanied by Kleve. a

death s laad bodyguard in its natural form. Vizeran is an

archmage with the following statistical modifications:

Vizeran's alignment is ne utral evil.

Vizeran·s fey ancestry gives him advantage on saving

throws against being c harmed. and magic can't put

him to s leep.

• Vizeran can innately cast the following s pells, requir-
  ing no mate rial components: dancing lights at will.
  darkness once per day, faerie fire once per day (spell
  save DC 15), and levitate (self only) once per day.


• While in s unlight, Vizeran has disadvantage on attack
  rolls, as well as on Wisdom (Perception) checks that
  rely on s ight.

CHAPTER 11 I CRAVENHOLLOW

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