COLLAPSED BUILDINGA quake rocks the city, and a building collapses in the
distance. The characters hear cries for help emerging
from the rubble.To keep the trapped victims from suffocating or being
crushed, the characters must succeed on a total of six
ability checks to rescue them before incurring threefailures. The base DC for these checks is 10. Possible
checks could include Strength (Athletics) checks to re-
move debris, Dexterity (Acrobatics) checks to squeeze
into tight places, Intelligence (Investigation) checks todetermine the best place to dig or support the structure,
or Wisdom (Perception) checks to notice dangerousareas threatening to collapse further. You might also
decide that magic or other abilities could result in auto-
matic successes.
During the rescue, the commotion might attract
devils (see "Hateful Patrol" below) or other unwelcome
attention.
If the characters succeed in the rescue attempt, theypull out three lawful good shield dwarves from beneath
the collapsed building: Strovin l ronfist, Kartra Boulder-
stern, and Velkora Ashenwell. Strovin and Kartra are
laborers (use the commoner stat block), but Velkora is
a mason and an acolyte of the dwarven god Moradin.
Her healing powers would be a welcome resource at the
High Hall. All three dwarves speak Common and Dwar-
vish, and have darkvision out to a range of 60 feet. They
also have resistance to poison damage and advantageon saving throws against being poisoned.
CRY FOR HELP
The characters hear a voice shouting for help. If they
follow the voice, they find a male human under attack by
two bulezaus (see page 230 for their stat block) that
slipped past the devils and climbed the infernal binding
posts to Elturel.If the characters save the man, he introduces himself
as Orin Ragron, a blacksmith who had a shop in Elturel.
Orin is actually an incubus in disguise named Faltrax.
The incubus is trying to gain information on the de-
fenses ofElturel, which it then plans to sell to the high-
est fiendish bidder. If the characters discover Faltrax's
true nature, the incubus flees.
GHASTLY MEALThe characters catch of glimpse of four cloaked figures
sneaking out of an alleyway and into a residence, as
if trying not to be seen. If the characters enter the res-
idence, they see four gbasts standing around a table
eating the remains of a human family that perished here
during the trip to Avernus. The ghasts reek of death
and decay.
When the ghasts are dealt with, a successful DC 10
Wisdom (Perception) check discerns a faint c rying
coming from a cupboard. Inside is a young girl called
Shorah Hevrun. A noncombatant, she immediately at-
taches herself to the first character who is kind to her.
Shorah insists on accompanying the characters until
she feels safe. If they can get her to the High Hall, each
character gains inspiration, and the survivors there can
see to Shorah's care.
GHOUL PACK
Seven ghouls roam the streets of Elturel, looking for
their next meal. Their leader, formerly an adventur-
ing rogue, wears magical studded leather armor that
increases its AC to 13 (see "Treasure" below). These
former citizens of the city died when Elturel was drawn
into Avernus. Their souls were corrupted by the terr ible
power of the plane, leaving them in these undead forms.
Treasure. The ghoul leader wears +l studded leather
armor, carries an explorer's pack, and sports a belt
pouch holding a potion of invisibility.
HATEFUL PATROLA merregon (see page 238 for its stat block) leads
three spined devils through the streets, looking for
mortal survivors or demons that have slipped past the
devilish forces below the city. The spined devils grum-
ble in Infernal, unhappy about being up here when theycould be fighting demons in the battle below. The merre-
gon takes their insolence in silence.IMP SALES PITCH
As the characters pass an alleyway, they notice an imp
talking with a halfiing. The two are focused on each
other, making it easy for characters to get close enough
to overhear the conversation in Common. The halfiing, abaker (commoner) named Pilster Pebblehuck, has been
hiding with his family in the basement of their bakery.
They are running out of food, so Pilster has braved the
streets to search for provisions. The imp, Perchillux, is
offering Pilster a month's worth of food for the low priceElTUREL HAZARDS
In addition to the threats they'll face from fiendish crea-
tures and undead in Elturel, the characters quickly become
aware of the threats presented by the city itself
Falling. Any creature that falls from Elturel's loca·
tion high above Avernus plummets 500 feet into the
soul-shattering waters of the River Styx, taking 70 (20d6)
bludgeoning damage from the fall. The memory-wiping
effects of the river• are described on page 76. However,
characters who plunge into the Styx or the battle raging
around the river are likely killed immediately, with their
bodies beyond recovery.
Lightning. lightning from the Companion strikes the
city every minute or so. The odds of the characters being
harmed by the lightning are slim, but you can use it to
reinforce a sense of urgency as the lightning damages
a rooftop, triggers a building collapse, or strikes the
ground nearby.
Quakes. Every so often, the entire city lurches from
side to side as the great posts binding it to Avernus sink
farther into the ground. This results in the same kind of
damage that would be caused by an earthquake on the
Material Plane: loose objects fall, buildings are damaged,
cracks form in the ground and the streets, and creatures
fall prone.
When Elturel shifts, creatures standing on any surface in
the city must succeed on a DC 10 Dexterity saving throw or
fall prone. In addition, you can describe other damage and
drama resulting from a shift. Perhaps a building collapses,
forcing any creature close enough to be struck by falling
debris to succeed on a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw or
take 7 (2d6) bludgeoning damage.CHAPTER 2 I ELTUR.EL HAS FALLEN
55