drow, he is predictably treacherous. His silken words
are pleasant enough, but any alliance forged with him is
doomed to end badly-and most likely in bloodshed.
Etan extends the false hand of friendship to new ar-
rivals while warning them to steer clear of the other stu-
dents and the headmaster. "They're all insane," he says.
He likes to hang around where the action is, so he can
quietly observe where the characters keep their magic
items and spellbooks (which he fully intends on claiming
once they're dead).
BONE DEVIL
A bone devil was accidentally summoned in the south-
ern wing by Yarek, an overzealous student. After killing
its summoner, the devil discovered to its dismay that the
magic wards of Dweomercore prevent it from escaping
area 47. The arcanaloth offers adventurers safe passage
through Dweomercore if they defeat the devil and send
it back to the Nine Hells.
Exploring This Level
Location descriptions for this level are keyed to map 9.
There are few light sources here; creatures that reside
in Dweomercore rely on darkvision or create their own
illumination with magic.
- ENTRY HALL
These rooms form the entrance to what was once a lav-
ish underground mansion.
lA. LEFT HAND OF MANSHOON
Alarm. An alarm spell has been cast on the 20-foot-
square area marked on map 9. It silently informs the
headmaster in area^15 when visitors arrive.
Ceiling Mosaics. This room has a 30-foot-high arched
ceiling. Bright mosaics on the arched roof depict wiz-
ards engaged in dazzling spell duels.
Undead Guardian. Floating in the middle of the room,
15 feet above the floor, is a man's withered left hand
and forearm, severed at the elbow.
Responding to the alarm spell, the a rcanaloth makes
its way toward area 1 to greet the new arrivals (see the
"Meeting the Headmaster" sidebar).
The limb belonged to a human archmage named
Manshoon- or, more precisely, to one of his clones. The
clone challenged Halaster to a spell duel and lost more
than just the contest. Halaster turned the limb into a
guardian that attacks all intruders until the Mad Mage
or a creature that looks like him waves it off. The limb
has the statistics of an archmage, with these changes:- It is a Tiny, unaligned undead with^63 (18d4 + 18) hit
points and blight prepared instead of banishment. - It has a flying speed of 30 feet, and it can hover.
- It has blindsight out to a range of^60 feet and is blind
beyond this radius. It can't speak or hear, and it can't
be blinded or deafened.
lB. WAITING ROOM
This room contains six stuffed armchairs with garish
upholstery.MEETING THE HEADMASTER
Characters who trigger the alarm spell in area 1 are met
by the headmaster, who otherwise dwells in area 15. When
in the company of visitors, the erudite arcanaloth tries
to remain civil even while impersonating the Mad Mage.
It describes the academy in glowing terms and s ings the
praises of its excellent students and their devotion to
arcane magic. It claims to have a vested interest in all
that happens inside Undermountain and bears no ill will
toward adventurers who provide "a much needed sanitary
service" by ridding the dungeon of pesky monsters.
If the characters are just passing through on their way to
the lower levels, the headmaster offers to take them to the
top of the stairs leading down to level 10. For safe passage
through Dweomercore, it requires one of the following:- A payment of one magic item per party member
- Slaying the bone devil in area^47
If the characters choose to deal with the bone devil
rather than give up their magic items, the headmaster
leads them south through areas 2, 3, 6, 38, 39, and 46. It
waits for them in area 46b while they slay the devil in area
47, then escorts them to the top of the stairs leading down
to level 10 as promised. After watching them disappear
down the stairs, the arcanaloth returns to area 15.
Visitors who decline the headmaster's offer are politely
asked to return whence they came and never show their
faces in Dweomercore again. Those who refuse to leave
are attacked.
Any character who c laims to be an arcane s pellcaster in
search of tutelage is invited to stay in Dweomercore and
take the entrance exam. If the character accepts the offer,
the headmaster uses a teleport spell to transport itself and
the candidate to area 11 c, where it suggests the character
remain until the entrance exam can be scheduled. (If the
party includes multiple candidates, the arcanaloth keeps
them together.) In truth, the arcanaloth expects the can·
didate to ignore its suggestion and explore the complex
further. The entrance exam is actually about how the can-
didate deals with the other students. Any candidate who
can hold their own against the other students is granted
admittance, having passed the headmaster's "exam"
in so doing.
A character admitted to Dweomercore is free to wander
the halls and talk to other students, until such time as that
character gets into trouble and is expelled or murdered.
le. COAT ROOM
The walls of this room are lined with rows of bare
metal hooks.lD. WATER CLOSET
This room is equipped with stone sinks and toilets, each
with a command word carved above it. The sink basins
and toilet bowls magically fill and flush with water on
command, and drain holes on their inside rims keep
them from overflowing. Two living unseen servants
(see appendix A) stand near towel racks, ready to hand
out towels to guests.- TRAPPED HALL
The recessed wall of this corridor has engravings of
eight wizards clutching staffs, each staff representing
a different school of magic. This hall also has two hid-
den features:
LEVEL 9 I DWEOMERCORE