Out of the Abyss

206

If the tower goes on aJert (a~ indicated in some

of the encounter descriptions). all characters have

disadvantage when making thei r group Dexterity

(Stealth) cht>cks.

SORCERE ENCOUNTERS

d20 Encounter

1-6 1d4 drow mages

7-8 1 giant spider

9-10 1 anvisible quasit

11-12 1 mad drow mage

13-14 1 shadow demon

15-18 1d4 slaves

19-20 1 succubus or incubus

0ROW MAGES

There is a 50 percent chance that these mages have

been forewar ned of the party's arrival, either by Vizeran

OcVir or by Matron Mother Quenthcl Baenre. in which

cas<' t hey let the char acters pass. Otherwise. the drow

mages assume the character~ are intruders and attack

unless Grin Ousstyl is with them. If the characters

declare that they have Qucnthel Bacnre"s permission

to be here. they can convince the mages to stand down

with a successful DC 12 Charisma (Deception or

Per~uasion) check.

If one or more mages fall in battle. the rest use greater

invisibility spells to turn invisible and retreat. putting

the tower on aler t i f it isn't already.

ClANT SPIDER

This giant spider crawls along the walls or ceiling. ft

ignores the characters unless they take hostile action

against it. in which case it attacks.

TNVISIBLE QUASIT

A drow wizard's quasit familiar invisibly haunts the

halls and chambers of the tower. It follows and observes

th<• characters to find out what they're up to. leaving to

alt>rt its master (a d row mage) if they enter Gromph's

sanctum or ar e seen leaving it. I f t he demon escapes.

the tower goes on alen.

MAD DROWMAGE

fhi<o drow is afflicted with a form of indefinite madness.

Roll on the Indefinite Madness table in chapter 8 of the

Dungeon 1\fasrer's Guide to determine how the madness

'" exprcsc;t'd.

SHADOW DEMON

A hound servam of a drow mage. this demon attempts

to h ide from the characters, then follows to learn what

they're up to. It fights the characters only if they attack it.

Accing if reduced to 10 or fewer hit points. If the demon

C!>Capes. the tower goes on alert.

SLAVES

These commoners (your choice of race) are on an

errand for their drow magt> master when they run into

the parry by accident. If the characters state that they

have legitimate business in Sorcere, the slaves answer

questions about the tower if asked. I f the slaves suspect

Cll \PTER 15 (THE C J rv Of SI'IDI'RS

the characters are trespassers. or if they're threatened

or attacked. they Hee and call for help. If any slaves

escape the encounter. the tower goes on alert.

SuccuBusoRlNCUBUS

A sometime lover and ally of one of the tower's wizards

this fiend adopts the form of a slave (your choi<:e of race

Curious to see the inside of Gromph's sanctum, the

""slave"" offers to guide the characters there, taking thrm

al ong a r oute that avoids otht'r random encounters. The

fiend tries to steal Gromph's grimoire if the opportunit~

presents itself. first by using its Charm ability to

convince a character to part with the book. and then b~

using Etherealness to disappear with it.

GROMPH' s Ou T ER SANCTUM

The black marble door to Gromph Baenre's chambers

is etched with si lvery runes around its edge and closed

with an a rctme Jock keyed to him. Picking tht: lock

requires a successful DC 23 Dexterity check using

thieves' tools. while forcing the door open requi res a

successful DC 25 Strength check. I\ knock spell also

opens the door, and Grin Ousstyl can have the spell

prepared if none of the adventurers knows it.

The chamber beyond the door is floored in black marble,

laned with shelves laden with books and scrolls, and

dominated by a broad desk of polished bone. A plush

chair covered wit h lizard hide sits behind the desk, while a

smaller and simpler zurkhwood chair sits facing it on the

opposite side. A seven-foot-tall obsidian statue of a four·

armed. sword-wielding drow warrior stands behind the

desk against one wall. Burmng red candles are set about

the room in holders made from skeletal hands.

Cominual flame spells have been east on the dozen

candles in the room, filling the art'a with bright light. If

anyone other than Gromph enters the chamber w i thout

speaking the word ryrnae ("quench"), a fire elemental

appears and attacks the intruders. Casting dispel magJ•

(DC 15) on the door before it opens disables this trap.

but the elemental can't be dispelled once it appears.

If anyone tampers with the dt>sk or the shelves·

contents. or attempts to remove anything from tht> room.

the four-armed statue animates and attacks. Tt has the

statistics of a stone golem. but replace its ~1ultiauack

and Slam action options with the followin~:

Multiattack. The golem makes four sword attacks.

Sword. Melee Weapon Attack: t 10 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target

Hit: 10 (1d8 + 6) slashing damage.

Anyone speaking the statue's name (Szashune) aloud

isn't attacked by it.

TRAPPED SECRET DOOR

Any party member with a passivt> Wisdom (Perception

score of 20 or higher notices a st>cret door in the waU.

while a character searching the room for secret doors

must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom (Perception) check