Descent into Avernus

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MAP 1.s. V ANTHAMPUI! VIL.LA

ABOUT THE VILLA


Vanthampur Villa is a stately stone edifice with a


detached stable house. Both buildings have sloped


rooftops covered with red clay tiles. A 12-foot-high


stone wall encloses the villa. Lanterns hanging along


the wall's interior are lit at dusk and extinguished at


dawn to illuminate the yard and villa at night. The wall


features three wooden gates- the main entrance and a


coach gate to the south, and a postern gate to the north.


The villa's wooden doors and lead-framed windows


aren't locked, and the Vanthampurs employ guards to


patrol the yard (see area Vl). The guards live elsewhere


and change shifts every six hours.


SERVANTS

The Vanthampurs employ four full-time live-in servants


(all neutral human commoners):


• Fendrick Gray, a decrepit seventy-year-old butler


• Sarvinder Peck, a salty fifty-two-year-old


groundskeeper and stable master


• Gabourey D'Vaelan, a fussy thirty-five-year-old cook


• Ambra Fallwater, a plainspoken nineteen-


year-old maid


Ambra is a recent hire to replace the previous maid,


whom Duke Vanthampur threw down the stairs for


breaking a vase.


VILLA LOCATIONS


The following area descriptions are keyed to map 1.5.


[l~~Oowo to VIS

Tower


Second Floor


VI. YARD


Nine lawful evil human guards patrol the yard in three


groups of three. When the characters first arrive, these


groups are located at the points marked "Vl" on map


1.5, and are circling the yard counterclockwise.


The guards attack anyone who trespasses onto the


estate without the consent or prior notification of Duke


Vanthampur or one of her sons. If the characters have


Amrik or Mortlock with them, they can convince either


of the duke's sons to talk them past the guards. Other-


wise, the characters need to kill the guards or sneak


past them. The guards are too well paid to accept bribes,


and they have no respect for the Flaming Fist. To sneak


past a group of guards, each character must succeed on


a DC 13 Dexterity (Stealth) check. This check is made


with advantage at night or in fog.


V2. STABLE HOUSE
This stone building contains stables for four draft
horses. plus a fully equipped smithy with an anvil and

a hearth. Sarvinder Peck (see "Servants" above) can


be encountered here, making and fitting new shoes for


the horses.


Trapdoor. A 3-foot-square flagstone in the southwest


corner of the stable doubles as a hidden trapdoor in the


floor. Any character who searches the area finds the


trapdoor with a successful DC 15 Wisdom (Perception)


check. The stone covers a brick-walled shaft and a


wooden ladder that descends 15 feet to area V27 of the


dungeon. If the Vanthampurs need to flee the dungeon,


they can use the trapdoor to reach their horses quickly.


CHAPTER I I A TALE OF TWO ClTlES
33
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