The Ghostwood

This haunting forest is avoided by most creatu1·es of the Underdark, despite Lhe plentiful food supply iL provides and the large tunnels leading t,o and from it. Read the following when the party enters the cavern: The tunnel expands into lwo caven1s-a smaller, stalactite-and stalagmite-filled cavern, and a larger cavern tilled with strange vegetation. 'J'wo natural stone steps lead down from the smaller cavern to the larger cavern. The only useful resou.rce in the smaller cavern is a pool of clea1 cold, drinkable water that bubbles up from a nahu·al spring. Read the following when Lhe party approaches or enters the larger cave: A constanL dark bl·eeze groans through the tunnel f rom the mush-room forest spread out before you. 'l'he forest cavern itself extends up into darkness and out beyond your vision to either side. You can sec something futting among the trunks of the tallest fongi, some-thing small and erratic, like a bat. As it approaches it gathers speed, and strikes-a black dagger plung-ing straight at you! An undead beholder named Cirnsean wields the dagger using his telekinetic eye. Cirosean floats nea1· the 40' high ceiling. The Ghostwood is named after the ghostly dagger; no c:reature of the Underdark knows what invisible hand holds the dagger's hill. The dagger is not an ordinary drow dagger-it is a black dagger uf di,1,aster named Heart uf Angrirnrn, for the drow cily where iL was forged. The black dagger destroys any magical barrier it touches; il absorbs all spells cast directly at il. When it hits, it in1Ucts 2d6 hp damage; on a roll of a natural 20, it functions as a disintegrate spell unless the target creatm·e saves vs. death magic. It can be defeated by a dispel magic (which renders it inert for ld4 rounds), by an anti-magic shell (which it cannot pass), or by destroying Cirosean's telekinetic eye. Cirosean (undead beholder): TNT semi-; AL LE; AC 0/2/7; MV fly 2 (C HD 69 hp; THAC0 7; #AT 1; Dmg 2d4; SA sleep, telekinesis, flesh to stone, charm munste,; slow, cause seri-ous wounds, and deu.th ray eyes; SD anti-magic ray; SZ L (6' diameter ML 18; XP 13,000; MM/21 (beholder). Cirosean was made undcad by Andeve, a drow sorceress of 400 years ago; he has defended the ghostwood ever since. Cirosean is an almost entirely mindless creature; he obeys Andeve'i-; orders and has few thoughts of his own. He has lost the use of his charm person, {ea,; and disintegrate eyes. If the PCs .Oee f rom Lhe beholder, they arc approached by its master. Andeve is a drow warrior dressed in fine armor-ghostly and transparent in bright light, but seemingly solid (and cold) to infravision. Once a drow queen, Andeve was slain by the ghouls 50 years ago, while out hunt-ing cloakers for sport. Since then she has been condemned to stay in the Ghostwood, the site of her death. Andeve hates her co11finement and cooperates with anyone who can harm the ghouls. This isn't to say she's an easy ally-she constantly rambles on about the early nays, when uI and my wan-i01· maidens took Angrimm f rom the dwarves by storm, feeding them bits of their own hearts and llinging Lhem from Lhe parapets just Lo waLch them die." This may gel on PC dwarves' nerves, but even worse is her habiL ofhumrniug to her-self; then singing, and finally wailing in her anger and despafr, killing crea-tures within listening distance. She'll stop if prompted, but she starts hum-ming again as suddenly as she stops. And.eve (drow banshee): lN'l' exceptional; AL CE; AC O; MV 15; HD 7; hp 32; THAC0 13; #AT l; Dmg ld8; SA sight causes fear, death wail; SD +1 or beLLer weaµon to hit; MR 50%; SZ M (5' tall ML 13; XP 4,000; MM/13. If the PCs parley with Aodeve, she tells them all about the city of Kilenor and its immense treasures (the crown of sapphires, the arches set with golden runes, the levitating treasures of the great library, the halls of blackest di:u·kwood, and the braziers of adamantitc-claboratc as much as you like). AJJ of these but the library were plundered by the ghouls 50 years ago. lf the PCs break the banshee's link to the Ghostwood (by a successful tuming attempt.), she immediately heads for the city, mov-ing with the unnatural speed of the undead (see area 10). The banshee's tl·easures are hidden in a rusted iron caskeL beneath the cavern's mulch. The casket contains 10,000 sp, 1,000 gp, six oddly green 100 gp pearls f rom the Sunless Sea (worth 1,000 gp Lo creatures of the Undcrdark), brigandine a.rmor +1, and a shield +1, +4 us. missiles.