NAT-12: Level 1 - Suel Temple of the Skull

Howling Moon Clan occupation • running battle • rescue & recovery

Approaching the Skull (boxed read-aloud)

The fangs lead you into a hush of oaks and ipp where the ground rises like a knuckle. The trail ends at a bald, root-scarred clearing and a low hill whose face has been cut to a mouth—rough-hewn and skull-shaped. A single pole stands before the teeth; an orc hangs by both wrists, leather torn, arrows like pegs pierce his body like a rack. Three dark bottles lie in the flattened grass. From within, torch-light breathes and boots scrape stone.

At the mouth: 4 orcs at ease; 1 ogre dozing just inside. Empty rot-spirit bottles = Disadvantage on the ogre’s first Perception check if lured.

Running the site: Response Clock

• Noise starts the clock. At end of round 2, 4, 6 roll for ready rooms (see map index): on 4–6 they commit; otherwise they hold or reposition.
• Horn bray: If the signal horn is blown, add +2 to commitment rolls and a Howling Moon Raid (6 orcs, 2 gnolls) can arrive from outside in 1d6×2 minutes.
• Mercy valve: If two PCs drop, an internal squabble delays the next commitment by 1 round.

Navigation highlights (cleaned & packaged)

Main Corridor / Ruined Portcullis. Brass-iron grate is a twisted wreck; nothing blocks movement. Dwarven stonework… but “off.” A smashed wall hides a former secret door to the first guardroom. Drunken voices, dice, and tankards echo from within.

It’s a good thing you’re upwind, as you can almost smell the orc just by looking. His hide armor looks stitched together from the fresh skin of whatever creature once bore it. What you can see of the orc’s gray-green skin is caked in filth—including the tusked face with its piggy nose. The muck there seems to have been deliberately placed as some sort of war mask.

Items

Three empty, dark glass bottles lie haphazardly on their sides. They smell of strong alcohol, but are empty.

Tactics

There are numerous tracks leading into the cave. PCs with tracking can recognize these tracks as belonging to orcs. Depending on Tier, each room may have or may not have a group of orc in residence. It is recommended that this part be followed closely due to the intensity of the running battle. Dependent on party actions, the battles may take place in a single area with each room's occupants joining the fray at intervals, or the PCs may advance the fight to the separate groups. Each room's occupants have a response time.

If the party is in trouble, all of the opponents need not attack. These combatants are simply out on a raid. This is a classic Dungeon crawl scenario, but the goal is to bring the party within inches of life to do the heroic deed of recovering the lost treasure of Asbury and freeing if possible the Dwarven smith Thuldon Rockspitter .

The Ruby Law: A History of the Ancient Suel Temple-Complex

“While some Suel reached the Sheldomar from the southwest, the founders of the Ruby Law necropolis near Verbobonc came inland from the Wild Coast by way of the Selintan and Velverdyva, establishing a lawful funerary seat on the Kron rim to serve scattered Suel houses.”

Founders: A Maure-linked Suel funerary/juridical enclave (Wee Jas/Lendor with Jascar & Fortubo under Ruby Law).

History article: The Ruby Law: A History of the Ancient Suel Temple-Complex
Route: Wild Coast → Selintan River → Nyr Dyv (Dyvers/Greyhawk) → up the Velverdyva to Verbobonc.
Why here: They wanted a lawful, inland necropolis away from coastal piracy and wars, yet still on a major river spine to serve dispersed Suel families. Basalt shelves, ruby chips, and Lortmil craft links (Fortubo) made the Kron rim ideal.
Context: The same post-Cataclysm pressure that sent Oeridians east also pushed Suel bands up from the Wild Coast into Gnarley/Velverdyva country; humanoid invasions and elven withdrawals in the wider region created a security vacuum the Ruby order sought to fill with law and stone.

Quick timeline

• c. 10 CY: Suel jurist-priests found the Ruby Law temple-crypt during Verbobonc’s early-century build surge.
• 1st–2nd century CY: Ferrondine governance from Dyvers regularizes the marchlands; Suel autonomy wanes.
• 119 CY: Verbobonc formally incorporated into Veluna/Ferrond.
• 350–355 CY: Keoland crosses the Kron Hills; trade cut; temple sacked/ritually sealed. Use: 355 CY—Abandoned.
• 436–438 CY: Short War ends Keoish occupation; site remains closed, drifts into legend.
• Late 550s CY: Temple of Elemental Evil roils the region; seals weaken, scavengers pick at the edges.
• 579 CY: Orc desecration wakes the Mortarch; your adventure begins.

What this means at the table

• The Skull-Temple feels occupied by a real army, not a random mob.
• If the party wins fast, nearby squads probe before committing; if the party lingers loud, numbers swell on predictable clocks.
• Success can be measured: kill/drive off the ogre anchor, silence a horn, capture a ledger → morale shifts and the garrison thins as they fall back down instead of out.

Howling Moon Expedition

Skull-Temple Detachment (NA-12)

Status: Howling Moon Clan active occupation & plunder of an ancient Suel temple hidden under the skull-cave hill, inside the Verbobonc, Viscounty border.
Temple leadership angle: Commander Deggum is courting Zorgrek, Son of Murgz for broader cooperation—but Deggum does not yet know this site is Suel, nor that Howling Moon has already moved on it. Urzhag’s force is operating quietly and independently to seize trophies before Temple oversight arrives.

Mandate & Intent

1. Seize and hold the skull-mouth approach as a forward den.
2. Plunder and desecrate Suel sancta (icon smashing, trophy taking, ward defacement).
3. Extract captives & craft talent (e.g., smiths, masons) back to the Fens caverns.
4. Scout raid lanes toward Imeryd’s Run and the Gnarley edge while avoiding Mounted Borderer patrols and ranger lines.
5. Keep it off Deggum’s ledger until Urzhag/Vhakra can deliver “proofs” to Zorgrek (leverage in clan politics).

Command Chain (on site)

• Urzhag Grey-Howl — Warband Chief and only werewolf (hybrid) in the detachment; field commander in Room 19 (boss).
• Vhakra the Blood-Singer — Shaman (not cursed). Controls alarms, taboos, and morale through rites.
• “Old Tusk” — Ogre enforcer (not cursed). Holds the main choke (Room 4).
• Rank & File — Standard orcs only. No other lycanthropes present by clan edict: “The Gift is for chiefs.”

Howling Moon Orc Demographics (Expeditionary Detachment)

• Headcount (on-site): ~55–60 orcs total. Of these, ~40–45 are rank-and-file, 8 are hard cases (3 elites, 4 bodyguards, 1 bruiser), plus 1 warchief (Urzhag), 1 shaman (Vhakra), and 1 ogre. No noncombatants; this is a raid garrison.
• Makeup: ~70% line fighters, 15% sleepers/porters on any tick, 10% elites/bodyguards, 3% command (chief + shaman), 2% monstrous support (ogre).
• Lycanthropy: Kept exclusive to Urzhag (“the Gift is for chiefs”). No other werewolves present by clan edict.

Doctrine & Alarm

• Layered alert: foot tap → howl-whistle (counts as horn) → beacon fire at skull → runners.
• Funnel & maul: shove intruders over hazards toward Ogre reach; Urzhag leaps lines to break the backline in the finale.
• Silence pockets: Vhakra uses silence to smother casters and block counter-howls.
• Night edge: dim-light pickets tighten; no singing, strict countersigns.
• Standing order: Do not reveal the Gift. If Urzhag falls, retreat to the skull and burn trophies.

Secrecy from Deggum (why he’s out of the loop)

• Motive: Urzhag/Vhakra want first pick of relics to present Zorgrek directly, strengthening their standing.
• Method: No written ledgers; only tally-bones. Runners avoid Temple routes. Messages to Zorgrek carried by two-orc relays at dusk.
• Risk: If Deggum learns it’s Suel, he’ll claim it as Temple property and parachute “Temple guards” into command.

Forensics PCs Can Find

• Tally-bones (not ledgers) with notch patterns for brass/coin/captive counts.
• Howl-whistles (wolf jawbone flutes) at posts.
• Suel brass bundles bound in sinew, stacked by exits.
• Orders scrap: “Hold skull-door. Send craft-hands. Do not spread the Gift. —U.”
• Silver tells: Rankers ignore silver; only Urzhag shows guarded flinches and keeps distance from bright-lined blades.

Hooks & Fallout

• Borderer brief: If captured, an orc slip reveals a rendezvous west of Twilight Falls—tie-in for patrol missions.
• Temple intrigue: PCs can expose Urzhag’s secrecy to Deggum, fracturing Howling Moon/Temple relations (future leverage).
• Clan politics: Delivering Suel trophies to Zorgrek earns the warband glory—cut this off to weaken Howling Moon’s rise.

NA-12 Faction Fix — Howling Moon

(single werewolf boss)

Chain of command (this site)

• Warband Chief (Room 19): Urzhag Grey-Howl, Zorgrek’s field captain; the only werewolf (hybrid) in the dungeon.
• Shaman: Vhakra the Blood-Singer, orc priest (not lycanthrope).
• Heavy: 1 Ogre (“old tusk”)—not cursed.
• Rank & file: standard orcs only.

Zorgrek stays in the Fens caverns, consolidating power after crushing Storm-Eyes. This team is his forward detachment.

NPC quick profiles (for your key)

Urzhag Grey-Howl — Werewolf (hybrid), field captain

• Scarred muzzle mask of wolfhide; silver-wired fetishes on his bracers (stolen trophies).
• Voice: low, clipped, deadly practical.
• Battle barks: “Die, metalman!” “Bleed! Bleed and die!” “You are weak! I am stroooonng!”
• 5e plug: start from Werewolf (MM); swap shortsword → battleaxe (1d8); add Pack Orders (Recharge 5–6): up to 2 allied orcs that can see/hear Urzhag move 10 ft as a reaction.

Vhakra the Blood-Singer — Orc shaman (not cursed)

• Spells: bane, bless, silence, spiritual weapon (fang), hold person.
• Tactics: protects Urzhag with silence pockets to shut down casters; maintains pressure with Spiritual Weapon.

Ogre (“Old Tusk”) — standard ogre stat block

• Job: hold the throat, throw javelins, finish prone targets.

Orc rankers — standard orcs

• Optional trait if you want a slight edge: Moon-Frenzy (1/encounter): when first bloodied, +2 damage on next hit (remove if you prefer pure MM stats).

Temple of Elemental Evil — Field Order (Prop Scroll)

Cracked red wax, twine-tied. The parchment smells of oil and smoke. The script is blunt, with stamped sigils along the margins.

To Zorgrek, Son of Murgz, Chieftain of the Howling Moon,

A stone-nest of the old man-gods lies two nights’ march from your current hunting ground, in the broken hills east of the tor-fens. I name it prey. You will take the place, break its ward-stones, and defile every face and name within.

Hold it as your den. From there you will raid the soft fat of the Viscounty. Bring back iron and grain and weak pink-skins. You and yours may feast on the road as you like.

For this work I pledge rich spoils now and greater gifts to come from the Eye’s patrons. I send my word and seal and the Moon-Fang mark so that all wolf-blood chiefs know this promise is bound.

Keep runners swift and dust-quiet. Burn no ledgers. Speak the count in bone-tally only. Keep the stone-nest’s routes from Temple ears until I arrive to walk the ground myself.

When the den is yours, place your strongest in the throat and hang the captives from the gate. Let men smell fear on the wind.

Commander Deggum
Hand of the Eye on the Border
(a hard, angular mark… then a row of stamped sigils)

⟟ Moon-Fang ✙ Blood-Oath ◐ Hunger-Run ᛝ Pack-Bind ◴ Crimson-Eye Warrant

Postscript, cut into the lower margin in orcish tally marks:

Urzhag Grey-Howl and Vhakra claim first pick of old stones for the Chieftain’s hand. No Temple counters. Runners move at dusk in pairs—avoid the stone-nest ways.

Wax & Glyph Key (what a were-leader understands)

• Moon-Fang (⟟): “were-blessing” mark; promises are sworn by the wolf-spirit—seen only on orders meant for wolf-blood.
• Blood-Oath (✙): price and plunder guaranteed; failure invites pack justice.
• Hunger-Run (◐): free license to hunt the Viscounty roads.
• Pack-Bind (ᛝ): allies are obliged to answer the horn.
• Crimson-Eye Warrant (◴): Deggum’s right-hand authority—enough to cow lesser bands.

DM Notes (secrecy, motive, method, risk)

• Secrecy from Deggum (why he’s out of the loop): Urzhag & Vhakra know the ruin is Suel—they intend to present the choicest relics directly to Zorgrek to strengthen their standing. If Deggum learns it’s Suel, he’ll reclassify it as Temple property and insert “Temple guards” over them.
• Method (how messages move): No ledgers; only tally-bones. Couriers run two-orc relays at dusk, skirting the main corridors. No one writes the true name of the shrine.
• Risk trigger: Any captured runner or a wax-seal mismatch lets PCs expose the plot. If Deggum discovers the Suel truth, he sends a disciplinary detachment that complicates every orc encounter.

Quick mechanical hooks

• Show the scroll to orcs: PCs gain advantage on Intimidation vs. rank-and-file Howling Moon for one scene (they “bear the Warrant”).
• Forgery: DC 15 Forgery kit (or Deception with tools) to fake the sigils; DC 13 Insight for an orc leader to catch a flaw.
• Decoding the postscript: DC 12 Orcish/Thieves’ Cant or Comprehend Languages to read the tally-bone instructions.

Thuldon’s Gear

The dwarf-sized chain mail, the shield with an embossed anvil, the fine hand axe and the helm with two widespread horns belonged to Thuldon Rockspitter. He would be grateful for their return. If the PCs do not have these items and vanquish the orcs, he will search for them and return while the PCs decide what to do with the treasure.

Thuldon Rockspitter — Gear Recovery (Level 1)

Quick-use notes

• Returning any one item earns clear gratitude; all four secures Thuldon’s lasting loyalty and public thanks to Lady Elinor.
• If the party misses something then later routs the orcs, Thuldon will scour these rooms and bring the items back to the PCs while they decide what to do with the treasure (your original note preserved).
• Want this as a World Anvil BBCode table? I’ll format it for immediate paste.

Adventure wrapup

Following the battle the PCs may load the Chest of Rao into the cart and with a combined strength of 26 pulling and pushing thread their way through the tunnels back to the surface. Thuldon will happily join the PCs in any battle against the Orcs. Outside, he will bid the PCs a farewell and thanks for his release unless someone mentions that Lady Elinor seeks the services of a smith for her new forge. In this case, Thuldon will mutter that he has always wanted a chance to be his own master and will accompany the PCs back to Asbury. Once out of the cave the PCs may hitch two of their horses to the cart. The riding horses are unused to this type of activity and will be balky reducing travel speed by half unless a PC with animal handling can make a successful check to soothe and reassure the mounts.

At this point the PCs have the option to return to Asbury Manor or to take the treasure for themselves. If the PCs decide to keep the treasure, Lady Asbury will have the PCs posted as oath breakers. In this event go straight to Conclusion B.

Random Encounter

(Noise Response)

How to use

• Start a Response Clock when notable noise begins (loud speech, steel, a spell, a scream, etc.).
• Roll on the sector table where the party currently is at Round 2, 4, and 6.
• Apply Noise Modifiers:
• +4 if a horn/howl/lever alarm is sounded
• +2 if continuous loud combat (steel/spells)
• 0 if brief clatter/raised voices only
• −2 if under silence or perfect stealth since last check
• If a result calls a room that’s already committed, send the next eligible from that table (or +2 orcs from the nearest barracks).

Sector A — Front Halls

(L1-1 to L1-4)

(Use when the party is at the skull mouth, red-tiled approach, or bray-horn station.)

Sector B — Barracks Block

(L1-5A to L1-5E)

(Use in/near the bunk rooms, overseer’s office, kitchen/stew hearth.)