Session 7 (191213)

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When last we left our heroes Ronda was suffering the effects of the poisoning she'd received at Gerald's lab and she just started hallucinating when they found themselves caught between a mob of villagers and a squad of mounted goblins led by snozzmallow. Ronda woke up long enough to hurl a javalin at the fleeing goblin and his rail mounted barrel rocket shot out over a foothill lake and exploded.

Then Tringa was approached by a raccoon and given an amulet through which an old grandmotherly woman spoke to her, imploring the party to rescue her. So they travelled to the abandoned Fisk mansion near a walnut grove twenty miles south of city and Abby climbed into a dumbwaiter and was pulled up, first to the second floor servant's room where she thought she saw a brush rattle on on the dresser and then to the master bedroom on the third floor.

The Fisk walnut mansion

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An overgown dirt road leads to a gated estate about twenty miles south of Phandalin. The wrough iron front gate is covered in dead creepers and one side is only attached by the bottom hinge. A plaque on the wall says 'The Fisk Estate'

A white gravel road winds it's way through thick trees to the Fisk mansion set before a dark and overgrown walnut grove. There is a sandstone obelisk in the center of the driveway and two stone lions flanking the front gate.

Back behind the house you can see a twenty foot wide stream and a dark grove of walnut trees growing gnarled and neglected.

1. Entrance

A wrought iron gate fills the archway of a stone portico. The gate is open a few inches and soil and dead leaves are piled at it's base.

Its rusty hinges shriek when the gate is opened. Oil lamps hang from the portico ceiling by chains, flanking a set of oaken doors that open into a grand foyer (area 1B). Sandstone wall panels show dog headed humanoids holding lanterns.

2. Main Hall

A wide hall (area 2A) runs the entire width of the house, with a black marble fireplace at one end and a sweeping, red marble staircase at the other. Mounted on the wall above the fireplace is a short sword and shield of strange design. The shield is old and stained and the laquer is flaking off but you can see it was painted with an iridescent green beetle.

The wood-paneled walls are ornately sculpted with images of vines, flowers, nymphs, and satyrs. The decorative paneling follows the staircase as it circles upward to the second floor.

A cloakroom (area 2B) has several dust covered black cloaks hanging from hooks on the walls. A top hat sits on a high shelf.

Characters who search the walls for secret doors or otherwise inspect the paneling can, with a successful DC 12 Wisdom (Perception) check, see serpents and skulls inconspicuously woven into the wall designs.

3. Den of Wolves

This oak-paneled room looks like a hunter’s den. Mounted above the fireplace is a stag’s head, and positioned around the outskirts of the room are the remains of three stuffed wolves. Bugs have eaten through their pelts leaving their heads with large bald spots and lidless glass eyes and each specimen stands within a halo of hair.

Two padded chairs draped in animal furs face the hearth, with an oak table between them supporting a cracked cask of wine, two carved wooden goblets, a pipe rack, and a candelabrum. A chandelier hangs above a cloth-covered table surrounded by four chairs. Two cabinets stand against the walls.

The east cabinet sports a lock that can be picked with thieves’ tools and a successful DC 15 Dexterity check. It holds a heavy crossbow, a light crossbow, a hand crossbow, and 20 bolts for each weapon. The north cabinet is unlocked and holds a small box containing a deck of playing cards and an assortment of wine glasses.

Trapdoor A trapdoor is hidden in the southwest corner of the floor. It can’t be detected or opened until the characters approach it from the underside (see area 32).

4. Kitchen and Pantry

The kitchen (area 4A) is tidy, with dishware, cookware, and utensils neatly placed on shelves. A worktable has a cutting board and rolling pin atop it. A stone, dome-shaped oven stands near the east wall, its bent iron stovepipe connecting to a hole in the ceiling. Behind the stove and to the left is a thin door leading to a well stocked pantry (area 4B). The food has long since rotted though there are a few jars with murky colored liquid.

Behind a small door in the southwest corner of the kitchen is a dumbwaiter. A 2-foot-wide stone shaft containing a wooden elevator box attached to a simple rope-and-pulley mechanism that must be operated manually. The shaft connects to areas 7A (the servants’ quarters) and 12A (the master bedroom). Hanging on the wall next to the dumbwaiter is a tiny brass bell attached by wires to buttons in those other areas.

A Small character can squeeze into the elevator box with a successful DC 10 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check. The dumbwaiter’s rope-and-pulley mechanism can support 200 pounds of weight before breaking.

5. Dining Room

The centerpiece of this wood-paneled dining room is a carved mahogany table surrounded by eight high-backed chairs with sculpted armrests and cushioned seats. A crystal chandelier hangs above the table, which is covered with silverware and crystalware. Everything is covered in cobwebs and dust.

Mounted above the marble fireplace is a mahogany-framed painting of an alpine vale. Sandstone statues of animal headed humans clutching rods to their chests stand in the corners.

The wall paneling is carved with elegant images of deer among the trees. Characters who search the walls for secret doors or otherwise inspect the paneling can, with a successful DC 12 Wisdom (Perception) check, see twisted faces carved into the tree trunks and wolves lurking amid the carved foliage.

Red silk drapes cover the windows, and a tapestry depicting hunting dogs and horse-mounted aristocrats chasing after a wolf hangs from an iron rod bolted to the south wall.

6. Upper Hall

Unlit oil lamps are mounted on the walls of this once elegant hall. Hanging above the mantelpiece is a wood-framed portrait of the Fisk family: Gustav and Elisabeth Fisk with their two smiling children, Billy and Ren. Cradled in the father’s arms is a swaddled baby, which the mother regards with a hint of scorn. Gustav Fisk is holding two walnuts in his outstretched hand.

Standing suits of armor flank wooden doors in the east and west walls. Each suit of armor clutches a spear and has a visored helm shaped like a wolf’s head.

The red marble staircase that started on the first floor continues its upward spiral to the third floor. A cold draft can be felt coming down the steps.

7. Servants’ Room

An undecorated bedroom contains a pair of beds with straw-stuffed mattresses. At the foot of each bed is an empty footlocker. Tidy servants’ uniforms hang from hooks in the adjoining closet (area 7B).

A dumbwaiter in the corner of the west wall has a button on the wall next to it. Pressing the button rings the tiny bell in area 4A.

Words are scratched into the glass attached to the dresser drawer. 'GO AWAY' an old brush begins to rattle and skitter across the tabletop.

If the characters stick around they are attacked by the poltergeist of Edward Shank the house butler. Who lunges out of the mirror with shriek and starts tossing the lighter characters around and out of the room.

8. Library

Red velvet drapes frame the windows of this room. A huge mahogany desk and a matching high-back chair face the the fireplace, above which hangs a framed picture of George Fisk, dressed in hunting gear and holding a riding crop.

Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves line the south wall. A rolling wooden ladder allows one to more easily reach the high shelves.

The desk has several items resting atop it: an oil lamp, a jar of ink, a quill pen, a tinderbox, and a letter kit containing a red wax candle, four blank sheets of parchment, and a wooden seal bearing the Fisk family’s insignia. The desk drawer is empty except for an iron key (which unlocks the door to area 20).

The bookshelves hold hundreds of tomes covering a range of topics including history, warfare, and alchemy. Many are so moldy they crumble to dust upon handling.

Secret Door

A secret door behind one bookshelf can be unlocked and swung open by pulling on a switch disguised to look like a red-covered book with a blank spine. A character inspecting the bookshelf spots the fake book with a successful DC 13 Wisdom (Perception) check. Unless the secret door is propped open, springs in the hinges cause it to close on its own. Beyond the secret door lies area 9.

9. Secret Room

This secret room contains bookshelves packed with tomes describing fiend-summoning rituals and the necromantic rituals of a cult called the Priests of Osybus.

The rituals are bogus, which any character can ascertain after studying the books for 1 hour and succeeding on a DC 12 Intelligence (Arcana) check.

A heavy wooden chest with clawed iron feet stands against the south wall, its lid half-closed. Sticking out of the chest is a skeleton in leather armor. Close inspection reveals that the skeleton belongs to a human who triggered a poisoned dart trap. Three darts are stuck in the dead adventurer’s armor and ribcage. The dart-firing mechanism inside the chest no longer functions. Clutched in the skeleton’s left hand is a letter.

Dear Liz,

I'm pleased to report we finally reached the main chamber and have discovered historical artifacts beyond compare. To catalogue only a portion of these treasures would require a encyclopedia. I will be sending the majority of the statues, wooden idols, pottery, and caskets to the museum but as leader of this expedition I've taken a few items for myself. These include beautiful works of art, a mummy so well preserved you'd expect her to sit up and look around, and a curious bronze statue of a crayfish with naked human limbs.

We're packing up now and I expect I will be home by August. I will write you from town when we hire a boat. I miss you with all my heart.

Love,

Gustav

10. Conservatory

Gossamer drapes cover the windows of this elegantly appointed hall, which has a brass-plated chandelier hanging from the ceiling. Upholstered chairs line the walls, and stained-glass wall hangings depict beautiful men, women, and children singing and playing instruments. A harpsichord with a bench rests in the northwest corner. Near the fireplace is a large standing harp. A collection of painted pots is set in one corner.

The pots contain a few inches of sand.

Characters hear a scrabbling or scratching sound from the fireplace. If they inspect it a swarm of rat pours out and attacks.

11. Balcony

Oil lamps are mounted on the oak-paneled walls, a thick carpet set on the floor, and a suit of black plate armor stands against the wall draped in cobwebs.

This suit of animated armor and the rug of smother attacks as soon as it takes damage or a character approaches within 5 feet of it.

A secret door in the west wall can be found with a successful DC 15 Wisdom (Perception) check. It pushes open easily to reveal a cobweb-filled wooden staircase leading up to the attic.

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  • 200xp poltergeist
  • 850xp rug and animated armor
  • 50xp poltergeist

Everyone gets: 367xp