This adventure is NeMoren's Vault by Fiery Dragon. I ran it once before to start a D20 campaign back near the turn of the century. This time I have cut it down to just the essential rooms and spread them over four levels. The resulting dungeon really is a deep vault. Since I was using it beneath a manor in a large town I felt it made more sense.
Since I was not using it to start a campaign I removed the hook of having the players all receive keys to the vault to discover their inheritance. Instead, I had them be contacted by the remaining NeMoren heir who needs their help in clearing the vaults of undead. The heir also accompanies them to be sure they do not make off with the family jewels. But this heir does not get involved much in combat.
Session 11: NeMoren’s Vault
Players: Lakima (Magic-user), Eathwund (Fighter), Daen (Dwarf Fighter NPC).
The adventurers spent the night at the Inn of the Dancing Dragon. At least, Lakima, Daen, and Eathwund did. They are not certain where Billy spent the night or where he got off to because he is not around in the morning. Also, Marta who said he would spend some time at the CHurch of St. Cuthbert has not returned.
On the way to the Merchant Adventuer's Guildhall to look at some properties, Daen is hailed by a passing young man who turns out to be the scribe Gareth. Gareth traveled with the group for a week from Larm to Edgerton. Gareth asks about the rest of the company and is sad to hear that Manny and Gaeleath were killed adventuring. He does tell Daen that he needs his help on a simple job. He tells them he will bring his employer to the Inn at noon.
When they return to the Inn for lunch Gareth arrives with a young noble named Ennio NeMoren. Ennio has a problem with his inheritance. Gareth explains that Ennio recently inherited the family home and business. He arrived from Dolmvay only 3 months ago. Gareth was hired to go through the family assets. Unfortunately, the ledgers make it clear that Ennio has inherited a pile of debts. They did find a silver key and the records of the construction of an underground vault. They found the vault and opened the door but were chased out of the vault by zombies in the first room they entered. Ennio asks them to clear the vault for him. Since Ennio is currently in debt they negotiate a price of 10 percent of the treasure found and a bounty on the zombies.
They head to the mansion in the wealthy part of town across the river. The NeMoren mansion was clearly very fine at one time but it has not been maintained. Ennio informs them that once the zombies are cleared he will accompany them. He changes into some leather armor and picks up a spear.
Ennio uses the silver key to unlock the door. Daen, Eathwund, and Lakima walk into the narrow hallways of the vault. They see a glowing object before a door at the far end of the hall. In the first door, they enter they find a pool of stagnant water surrounded by four pillars carved to look like trees. Behind a tapestry, they find a statue of a knight. A plaque indicates this is Jacin Three-Fingers. Lakima discovers a ring on a necklace about the statue’s neck. He casts Detect Magic and it is magical. Some kind of enchantment on the wearer. All this time Ennio is calling down the hall for updates.
They head to the north door where they find a dimly glowing orb resting in a holder of Elvish brass on the wall. They take the orb and it dims. Remembering a similar depression in the pool they return and place the orb in the depression. The water transforms into clear, fresh-looking water and it glows with magic to Lakima. Testing it he finds the water casts the effects of Cure Light Wounds. He fills a few containers.
Crossing the hall they finally enter the family crypt where Ennio previously indicated the zombies were seen. They do not see anything at first. But they notice four crypts are broken open. As soon as Daen descends a stair in the chamber, four undead creatures attack. Three of them appear to be zombies. But the last one, although looking similar is able to speak and cries out at the intruders defiling the family crypt.
Daen is attacked by two zombies in the lower half of the crypt. The more intelligent undead creature attacks Eathwund while another creature attacks Eathwund from behind. Immediately, Eathwund is struck hard by a clawed hand and staggered. Daen trades blows with the two zombies and then one strikes him knocking him off balance allowing the second zombie to hit him as well. Daen struggles to his feet badly wounded.
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| The Zombies in the NeMoren Family Crypt |
Eathwund steps back and drinks a potion of healing. Lakima throws darts from the doorway dropping one of the zombies. More blows are traded and Daen drops one of the zombies. Lakima brings down another with darts. Now all three concentrate on the undead thing fighting Eathwund. Lakima’s deadly dart throws finally bring it down. Ennio calls from the cellar if everything is all right. Lakima tells him they are handling it. Checking the open crypts they find little of value, just rags, and bones.
Lakima gives Daen the water from the pool but it has reverted to stagnant water. Returning to the pool they use the orb again and Daen is able to cure some of his wounds. A potion of healing helps cure some more. Lakima tries on the magic ring he found and he finds that it gives him the ability to see in low light.
Ennio joins them as they try to figure out how to open the mysterious iron door. It has no locks or hinges visible. Just a line of elvish brass around the door and connected to the orb holder. After a few false tries, Lakima finds that he can open the door by placing the orb in the holder and touching it. It does not work for anyone else. It glows brightly and the door ascends into the ceiling. Once everyone is through to the circular staircase beyond, Lakima snatches the orb and leaps under the door. It is anti-climatic as the door does stay up.
They descend to the second level. They find cave-ins caused by the work of human thieves who tried to pilfer the vault. A recently dug tunnel has broken into the vault and leads to a ladder going up. By the smell coming down from above, it leads to the sewers. Under one cave in, they find the body of a human thief who has been dead a few years. Daen surmises they triggered a deadfall trap. The rooms they search have been ransacked. They do find a use for the ladder to crawl across a bottomless pit leading to another ransacked room. Lakima finds a torn ledger with a scrawled note demanding to know where the treasure is hidden (in less polite language). They do manage to find a magic dwarven war hammer under some debris. Lakima’s Detect Magic spell doing the trick.
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| Crossing the Bottomless Pit |
Another Iron door is located. It is again opened by Lakima with the Glowing orb. They find another spiral staircase headed down. Ennio tells them that Gareth’s search indicated there were only three levels. In this third level, they find that the floor of one corridor is made of glass placed over a swiftly flowing stream. They avoid this and head the other direction. They find a door with dwarven runes carved into, “Trace the door to enter”. They try a lot of tracing with their fingers and with the orb but nothing happens. Next, they find a room with a stained glass “window” of art showing four figures before the NeMoren manor. Behind it is a kneeling statue with one hand outstretched. Lakima puts the Orb in the hand and the statue projects a brilliant light. The stained glass image is projected on the far wall. They marvel at how it is almost real looking. Lakima steps up and grabs the door to the manor in the image and pulls them open revealing a secret door. Beyond is a staircase leading down. Ennio, exclaims, “A secret fourth level!”
The fourth level staircase leads to a room empty but for a winged statue on a pedestal. Once Daen advances past the statue it animates and attacks him. The statue proves to be made of very hard rock and their blows bounce off it with little effect. Daen is pressed back and struck. Eathwund manages to hit it solidly and they statue turns its attention to him striking him violently. Finally, they batter the statue to pieces and it crumbles to dust.
A door leads to a treasure room. Daen who is leading the way has to be restrained as he sees three tables with gold bars stacked on them. A statue of a scholar holding a scroll speaks to them, “What must you first give to me in order to keep it?” Lakima and Eathwund ponder this for some time unable to come up with anything. Lakima searches a nearby bookshelf with Ennio and finds a second set of financial records for the family going back centuries. Suddenly, Eathwund has an idea and speaks to the statue, “My word!”. The statue says, “You speak wisely.”
Relieved that any traps are likely disabled they check the gold bards. Daen turns them over and says they are real, and worth about 400 gold each. Still, one more door beckons them. In the next chamber there four statues, one more door (this one with a key lock) and a strange trench cut on the floor. Daen circles the room to the door keeping clear of the trench. As he reaches the door, a ghost appears and demands the key to the door. Daen glances at Ennio and the ghost glides towards Ennio who hastily backtracks. Lakima casts Protection from Evil and tells Ennio to toss him the key which he does. The ghost is kept at bay by the protection and Lakima interrogates it learning it is the ghost of Paytro NeMoren and that he killed his brother Incaro for the family wealth. While Ennio distracts the ghost Lakima heads to the door to open it but the ghost possesses Ennio and runs to the door. As the door opens they see the sarcophagus of Kragor NeMoren. Ennio/Paytro cries out in triumph seeing four treasure chests against the wall behind the sarcophagus. Just as he is reaching for them another ghost appears, Paytro cries out that it is his murdered brother Incaro. The two fight with Incaro winning and banishing Paytro. Incaro approaches his nephew Ennio and tells him all of this is his now. But warns him not to disturb the tomb of Kragor NeMoren. Ennio nods to Incaro and the ghost vanishes.
In the chest they do find some gold, but a lot less than Ennio had hoped. It seems much of the family wealth was squandered. He does find a proclamation of logging rights given by the Elves to the NeMoren family for the King’s Wood. This he is ecstatic to find. It is something with which to rebuild the family's wealth.
They decide to head back up to the mansion. On the way through the third level Eathwund is persuaded to strip out of his armor and try to cross the glass floor over the stream. The glass starts to crack and he retreats. They decide to pass on trying to cross.
At the first of the iron door controlled by the orb they find it has closed at some point since they descended. Ennio is concerned because the Orb will not work for him. Only for Lakima. He asks Lakima to return in a few days when he has a work party put together. He will try to hire a mage to examine the door. Meanwhile, Lakima checks a hunch and takes off the ring he found earlier. The orb does not light up when he is not wearing the ring. But he does not tell Ennio.
Hapwich the NeMoren manservant has a meal waiting for them so they stay and eat. Ennio assures they he will abide by the contract and Gareth tells them he will send them an accounting of the treasure to deduce their share.
Lakima has a transcribes a message to a Scribe telling Ennio that he believes he needs someone with Elvish blood to operate the doors in the vault.
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