Adventure:
CEBER FANUIN
The adventure takes place in south Rhovanion (Mirkswood). As the jolly
comrads are out looking for Feorl, a missing scout from Buhr Widu they. They notice a
person being flung out off a cliffside and smashed 100 feet below. This is not an ordinary
accurance even for Mirkwood, but the party eager to slay somthing looks at the situation
as a challenge. (If they are smart enough to search the body they find Feorl dressed up in
queer clothing.)
The Plot: to find out why/how Feorl died. (The Answer:
He was executed by Huinen the "Crazy" Seer by being ejected out the chute
trap see *11 ). And get the hell out of Ceber Fanuin as Huinen will hold
on to his "guests" at all costs. The Party will be taken as prisoners if they
decide to climb up the cliffs to envestigate and if not they will be tracked down by the
guards and captured, but they won't be harmed by the guards and will be given nice rooms
and good food.They will be given expensive but silly clothing and will be threated by
Huinen as children or pets, as Huinen look at them as only for his amusment. He will force
them to go to bed early, demand them to do tricks for him. This will off cource annoy most
paries to try to escape. There are also a lot of magical items to steal and
some guards to kill.
Ceber Fanuin (S. "Spike of the Cloudy
Night") is the home and stronghold of Huinen the Seer, a former servant of the late
King Oropher. Situated atop a rocky crag in the easternmost spur of the Emyn Guldur (S.
"Sorcery Hills"), the highland retreat is about 115 miles due east of the Naked
Hill. It commands a wide view of southern Mirkwood.
Long believed to be dead, Huinen retreated from sight after becoming
quite insane. Save for the Necromancer, few are even aware of his existence. The Seer is a
Noldo Lord of considerable power and is ostensibly independent, but his presence in
Mirkwood pleases the Evil One. Sauron dominates Huinen through his servants.
Huinen's house is actually quite beautiful, with its several gracefully
curving balconies jutting horizontally from the jagged peak. The sheer-sided hill is
capped by three towers, their bases fused with the natural rock; and the towers and
balconies are all interconnected by corridors carved out of the heart of the pillar. All
of the doors are of two-inch thick oak bound with iron strips, and fastened with
sophisticated steel slide bars, operated by twisting a handle on either side of the door.
Each has a lock which is identical to the others but is rarely used (except where
specifically designated otherwise).
Light is usually provided by lamps mounted on wall bracketsin the
corridors spaced at ten-foot intervals on alternating sides (closer over stairs'), and at
varying density in the rooms. There is a stairway from each balcony down into one of the
rooms below; the stair may be closed by a heavy oaken trapdoor securely bound with iron
strips, and bolted shut from the inside with three iron deadbolts. The deadbolts
are inaccessible from the outside, making the lock Absurd (-75) to open.
Layout of Ceber Fanuin
1. Lounge. The largest single room in the complex, this chamber has
three large windows offering a panoramic view of the surrounding forest. The furniture is
all low couches and cushions in somber reds, browns, and greys.
2. Guard station. (See Tower A layout for plans of the upper levels of this tower.)
Three Elven guards/servants arc always on duty here.
3. Guard lounge.
4. Breezeway. This section of hallway is completely open on one side,
except for a railing, to the air and a 30 foot sheer drop.
5. Library. This is the main library of the house, containing many
histories as well as anthropological, astronomical, and physics-related texts. The room is
furnished only with several tables, and the walls are totally covered with bookshelves.
There is an entire section devoted to the journals of Huinen, including his past and
future visions; most of these are incomprehensible gibberish. There is also an extensive
literature collection. As a rule, Huinen's library is open for his servants' and guests'
use.
6.
Reading room. Comfortably furnished and well lit by a southern exposure, this is the
preferred room in which to peruse material from the library.
7. Huinen's office. Furnished with a huge oak desk and several plush
chairs, this is a dim room, cluttered with the stacks of literally hundreds of papers
strewn about, as well as the unfinished journals and notebooks piled haphazardly. There
are also countless knicknacks scattered around the room, none of them very valuable.
However, there is a secret compartment in the stone wall next to the window, and inside it
is the headband Rimalagon (S: "Sound of Many Wings") in a small box of fine
wood. The lock on Huinen's office is different, is extremely hard (-30) to pick, and only
Huinen has the key. He occasionally will lock himself in his office, open the window and
use the Rimalagon to spy out the lands about his home. He rarely goes out except at night.
8. Laboratory. A large alchemist's workshop, this chamber contains a
variety of chemicals. Huinen, however, knows little of chemistry and dabbles without
purpose. There is nothing here of particular use. The door to this room is kept locked;
the mechanism is Hard (-10) to pick and Huinen has the only key.
9. Guard mess and kitchen. (See Tower B, below, for details of upper levels.) This
is the informal gathering place of the garrison.
10. Drawing room. Carpeted and curtained in dark red.
11. Trap. The last ten feet of floor is a pit trap, triggered when more
than fifty pounds of weight is exerted on it. The trap is a chute, dumping any who fall
through out the cliffside to plummet down the 100-foot drop.
12. Dining room. Elegantly furnished; seating for twelve.
13. Kitchen.
14. Pantry.
15. Balcony.
16. Servant quarters. Three servants reside in this chamber, which is
subdivided. They are "on call" at all times to answer to the needs of their
masters. There is a pulley system so that a rope pulled in either room #18 or #19 will
ring a bell here.
17. Guest quarters. Richly furnished guest bedroom.
18. Ringlin's quarters. Huinen's mystic assistant Ringlin lives here
amongst simple but expensive furnishings. Ringlin is a Noldo Elf, loyal to Huinen, but
basically neutral in nature. He is at odds with Arien (see #19), as he believes that her
suggestions are contrary to Huinen's health and the long-term survival of the house.
Ringlin, of course, has little inkling of the true source other ideas. He has black curly
hair, is slender of build, and stands 6'7" tall. His eyes are perhaps his most
unusual feature, and earned him his name (which means "chilling glance" in
Sindarin): they are a brilliant violet. It is said that his glance alone can cause
paralysis (RR vs. 16th Ivl. Mental-ist attack).
19. Arien's quarters. The stark
bedroom of Huinen's Seer assistant. She is a Silvan Elf, seduced to evil by Sauron himself
long ago, whom she had tried to spy upon with her Seeing abilities. The Necromancer easily
detected Arien's fumbling attempts and took control other. She has been instructed to
manipulate Huinen, but his actions are so erratic that there is practically no danger of
him presenting any organized threat to anyone. The entire garrison is completely loyal to
Huinen, so there is little chance that Arien could arrange a coup. Arien has long chestnut
hair and green eyes; she is 6'2" tall and carries herself with feline grace. She is a
rare beauty even among the Firstborn.
20. Workroom. A general operations area where upkeep of clothes,
furniture, etc. goes on.
21. Guardroom. (See Tower C for details of the upper levels.) Four
garrison guards are on duty here at all times.
22. Stairway. The main stairway in the house, it is the only conventional
(non-magic) method of reaching the forest floor. The stair spirals down 100 feet, opening
onto a winding, rough-hewn tunnel, and finally a small stable where six horses are kept.
Two guards are posted at the lower entrance. The door at the bottom is a skillfully-made
secret, even though it is large enough to allow a horse and rider to enter and exit
easily. It can be securely locked from the inside.
23. Armory. The stores here include three +15 longbows, five +10 short
swords, ten +5 daggers, one +20 dagger, two +10 shields, and one +15 ge (killing bola).
Maegtil (Tower A)
Level 2. Guard quarters. These barracks house 20 guards in subdivided rooms.
Level 3. Practice hall. This is an unfurnished chamber in which Huinen's
solddiers brush up on their fighting skills.
Level 4. Observation lounge. A comfortably furnished room where the
guards spend many of their off-hours.
Angtar (Tower B)
Level 2. Guard quarters. Housing 32 guards in subdivided rooms.
Level 3. Prisoner quarters. Subdivided into five cells, this area
accomodates any tempo- ' rary uninvited visitors. Even these rooms are fairy
comfortable, although they are equipped with shackle mounted to the wall on chains long
enough for th|l prisoner to move about. Each cell is closed by an iron door with a small
barred window. The locks are extremely hard (-30) to pick, and Huinen and his bodyguards
have keys.
Level 4. Museum. This room is filled with a variety of bizarre objects:
stuffed rare animals, fish and birds, statuary in bronze, marble and glass. These items
are scattered about the room on pedestals of varying height and circumference, creating a
veritable maze.
Level 5. Observation deck. The walls of this level are made almost
entirely of glass, the roof supported by steel bars. The floor of this room is very
unusual in that a ring-shaped floor area extending ten feet in from the outer wall rotates
slowly. Four chairs are set evenly about the perimeter, occupied at all times by garrison
guards whose instructions are to survey the surrounding landscape for intruders or any
unusual activity. Shifts change every two hours. Each chair makes a complete turn about
the room every 5 minutes.
Ceber Fanuin, Angtar
Level Two
Level Tree
Level Four
|
Carcarjng (Tower C)
Level 2. Anteroom. The spiral stairway ends at this
level. The door from the stairway to this level appears identical to all the others but in
fact is only wood veneer over a steel core. The lock on the door is sheer folly (-50) to
pick, and its mechanism causes six deadbolts to shoot from the door into reinforced
sockets in the surrounding doorframe, For additional security, two solid iron bars can be
swung down into brackets on the door for additional bracing. These bars are inaccesible
from the stairwell. In short, the door is practically unbreachable by normal means.
This level consists entirely of a large anteroom, filled with an
incredible collection of the gaudy and the beautiful, the common and the bizarre. Dozens
of carpets overlap on the floor and tapestries cover the stone walls. The furniture which
packs the room is from at least ten different styles and time periods, and all of it is
covered with strange knicknacks and devices. Mixed in with the refuse are perhaps twenty
small items of true value, totaling approximately I0,000gp.
Level 3. Lesser Seeing-hall. The only furnishing in this room is a large,
thronelike chair mounted onto a two step pedestal. The chair is massive in design and made
of oak with red velvet upholstery. The tops of both arms of the chair flip up, revealing
four buttons on each, the pressing of which results in the following:
Front left-, rotate the chair and dais cuonterclockwise.
Second leff. rotate the chair clockwise.
Third left: causes steel panels to slide down over allthe windows in the room,
protecting them from outside attack and cutting off all light in the chamber. Pressing the
button again raises them.
Fourth leff. causes a steel panel to slide across the opening in the floor through
which goes the stair to the anteroom.
Front right: (trap) causes a spring loaded needle to fire out of the back-rest of
the chair into the back of whomever is sitting in it. ! Treat as a +100 rapier,
no quickness bonus for target. The needle is tipped with the poison Ondohithui. Anyone
receiving a critical must resist the poison or suffer the effects.
Second right: triggers a magical fog. This mist is created at
the perimeter of the room along the ceiling, and floats in a grey, opaque sheet to the
floor, where it rolls about and eventually dissipates. Huinen uses this mist as a
projection screen upon which he can magically cause various images and scenes to appear,
including scenes from his memory.
Third ripht: after pressing this button (and after having summoned the fog), anyone
sitting in the chair can see anywhere in the house.
Fourth right: (trap) causes a magical fog similar to the screen fog, but this has a
slight green tingeand is deadly to breathe. It fills the room, and all must
resist or fall asleep and eventually die. It is a derivative of the poison Hith-i-Ginth
but much stronger. Pressing the first and second left buttons simultaneously cause the
throne and dais to raise into the ceiling through a secret door which opens as the chair
rises. This is the only 'normal' mode of access into Huinen's bedroom.
Level Four. Huinen's bedroom. A large curtained bed rests against the
wall. Where unpunctuated by large windows, the walls are lined with wardrobes set against
them. These armoires are filled with an eclectic assortment of clothes of various styles
and types as well as some odd padded items. An astute intruder may realize that Huinen
uses pads and other costuming tricks to alter his form. The back of one of these wardrobes
serves as a secret door, which opens onto a full length mirror. The mirror is, as one may
suspect, magical in nature: it is a short range teleport, the only access way to the
Seeing Room above. One simply steps through the mirror and appears in the room above in
front of another such device. There is also a huge dresser with three flanking mirrors.
The top of the dresser is covered with countless jars and cans of various makeupsan
extremely sophisticated and complete collection. There are also a number of freestanding
full-length mirrors set about.
Level Five. Greater Seeing-Hall. Here is the center of Huinen's power. The
windows in the room are of laen and unbreakable; the walls would fall first, and they are
reinforced with steel bars. The only furnishings in this room are a slab of glass, a
chair, and a table. The glass is eight feet high, three wide, and one inch thick, standing
without any visible support but immovable and virtually indestructible. It is the other
end of the teleport from the level below. The chair nearby is of ornate and detailed
design, and is made of oak with a padded red velour seat. The table has a polished black
marble top, three inches thick and four feet in diameter, supported by an ornate golden
pedestal shaped to resemble a tree with spreading roots. The base and radiating branches
hold the top. Set upon the table is an orb of crys-tal, one foot in diameter, resting on a
delicate base of finely-wrought mithril. The orb is a truly powerful device of Seeing, and
with it, Huinen is able to utilize his Seer's powers as if he were a much higher level. To
be more precise, it is a x6 PP enhancer and allows any Seer to cast any spell lists
(already known to him) up to twenty levels above his own while using the orb. This is
heavily draining, and Huinen is only capable of doing it a few times per week without
permanent damage to his stats. Huinen is able to tap the PP multiplying aids of the orb
without being in its presence. He has learned much of events in the world, which perhaps
contributed greatly to his current state of insanity, realizing as he does the peril of
the enemies of Sauron. Much does he know, but little will he communicate to anyone, even
his trusted adherents.
|