Descent into Avernus

(Nancy Kaufman) #1

104


In forgotten times, archdevils used these twin arches to

transport entire regiments to other planes of existence.


The arches' magic has waned significantly, but there's


still enough magic left in each one to transport crea-


tures to another location in the Nine Hells. Characters


who use a detect magic spell or similar magic to exam-


ine the arches discern a powerful aura of conjuration


magic around each one.
When a creature approaches within^100 feet of either
arch, the stonework emits a loud, resonant hum that

grows louder and higher in pitc h as the creature draws


closer. As a creature passes through an arch, a roaring


sheet of flame fills the archway, teleporting the creature

to another location in the Nine Hells. Any creature or


object that passes through the arch while the portal is


open is transported to the same destination. Each arch


is wide enough to accommodate infernal war machines.


To travel to a specific destination, a creature must


have visited it before or be able to point to its location on


a map. Characters who point to Kostchtchie's Maw on

their map as they pass through an arch are teleported to


the top of the demon lord's prison-chasm.
If the characters fail to pick a destination, determine

it randomly. Ask a playe r t o roll a d20 on the poster map


of Avernus. The location closest to where the clie rests


becomes the destination. If the die rolls off the map, the
DM chooses a destination.

The portal remains open and fixed to the same desti-


nation for 10 minutes, after which it deactivates as the


arch that created it crumbles and falls to the ground.

KOSTCHTCHIE'S MAW


THE ENEMY OF MY ENEMY JS MY FRIEND, BUT DOES THE

same hold true for fiends?


- The Cartographer


When the characters arrive at this location, read or


paraphrase the following boxed text to the players:


A dark chasm gapes between grumbling volcanoes that
spew lava and smoke into the hateful sky. The air trem-
bles with the bellowing of some monstrous creature in
the dark depths of the chasm.

The demon lord Kostchtchie (see the accompanying


stat block) resembles a squat hill giant with short, bandy


legs and a grossly shaped head.


Frost giants who forsake the ir gods and turn to demon


worship can summon Kostchtchie with bloody offerings


left on altars of hewn ice. If the demon lord chooses to
answer the giants' call, he hunts and fights alongside
them for a time, infecting the frost giants with savage

madness and bloodlust before disappearing back to


the Abyss. Kostchtchie's favored weapon is Matalotok,

a warhammer forged by the frost giant god Thrym (see


appendix C for more information about this legendary


magic item).

CHAPTER 3 I AVERNUS

_,


On his most recent visit to the Nine Hells. Kostchtchie


was defeated by the archdevil Zariel. who took his


hammer and chained him at the bottom of this chasm,


knowing that killing him would simply cause him to re-


form on his icy layer of the Abyss. Without Matalotok,


Kostchtchie's immunity to cold damage becomes resis-
tance to cold damage.

Shackled by ever-tightening magical chains that pre-


vent him from casting spells, Kostchtchie squats in a


10 -foot-deep, 80-foot-diameter pool of black tar in a cav-


ern at the bottom of a chasm, his hands chained behind


him. His unholy screams and vile epithets can be heard


for miles. Characters who attempt to communicate


with the demon lord are met with guttural cries of an-


guis h and frustration. In sporadic moments of lucidity,

Kostchtchie glares at a character and bellows, "FREE


ME!" or "BRING ME MY HAMMER!'' in Giant first and


Abyssal second. If that fails to garner the desired reac-


tion, Kostchtchie resorts to using telepathy to contact


the nearest character, demanding its immediate release


while offering nothing in return.

THE CHASM


The chasm descends to a depth of^500 feet. Although


there are abundant handholds and footholds, the route


to the bottom is steep and treacherous. Characters who


can't fty must make DC 15 Strength (Athletics) checks to


ascend or descend the chasm without climbing gear. If a


check fails by^5 or less, the character makes no progress


on their turn. If the check fails by more than 5, the char-
acter falls to the bottom of the chasm.

PRISON GUARDS

A chain d evil named Mazer and four hell hounds guard


the demon lord. If they detect intruders, the hounds

pounce down from high caves as the devil emerges from


the tar pit.


Mazer keeps Kostchtchie's c hains tight at all times.

Hidden in the tar pit are dozens more chains (each


100 feet long) that Mazer can use its Animate Chains


action to animate. Mazer uses these loose chains to


bind enemies or drag them into the tar pit, which is


difficult terrain.
If the chain devil dies, Kostchtchie's chains loosen

enough for the demon lord to break free of them. Once


free of its chains, the demon lord regains his spellcast-


ing abilities.

DEVELOPMENT


If Kostchtchie is freed, the he cries out to Zariel (in


Giant) that he's coming for his hammer and swears to


crush her with it. He then casts wind walk, which turns


him into a cloudy form with an astonishingly fast flying


speed of 300 feet. In this form, he travels with great


haste across Avernus, determined to get his hammer


back. Characters swift enough to follow in his wake are


led to Zariel (see chapter 5).
With Kostchtchie freed, the characters can return to

the Crypt of the Hell riders, where Olanthius dutifully


reveals the location of the Bleeding Citadel (see chapter

4). As the characters leave the catacombs, he asks them


to give his love to Yael when they see her.

Free download pdf