Several disturbing disappearances have recently occurred on the Nurhancoth Estate; long standing family friends of the Loderra family. Paulas requests that the characters investigate for him to make sure that there is no involvement by Priests of Salsmen or the now sundered Ebon Blade.

The rich Nurhancoth estates are but two days' ride southeast from the Loderra home. The Nurhancoth's lease a strip of land through the southern end of their estate to the city of Theodoptra for that city's Eastern Road. Situated on a high rise overlooking the road, the city and the sea, the Nurhancoth home is even more impressive than Loderra's.  They are, in fact, the richest family in all of Cauthax though throughout their long history, rarely has a Nurhancoth been produced who showed the flair for politics which could have elevated their family to that of a Ruling Family.  Instead, they have managed their wealth conservatively, lived very well, and played only tangential roles in governing Theodoptra ... only one Nurhancoth has ever sat on the High Councilor's chair, and presided over the City Council.

As far as family dynamics go, the Nurhancoths are quite a functional family without the 'eccentricities' often found in exceptionally wealthy families.  They have been exceptionally careful, through the many generations, to avoid inbreeding and have been spared the degeneration that such practices have wreaked upon other noble families.

The direct descendants of Lidatha get along well and it is understood that Hauhson will be taking over the reins of the Nurhancoth fortune upon Lidatha's passing.  Dhairhsa and Harad own competing companies, but it is a very friendly competition.  When necessary, the two of them pull together to guarantee success for their family.  Lady Tulca, as she is not a blood relative of Lady Lidatha, does not particularly enjoy her status as a dependent of the Nurhancoths, though she would never be so bold as to jeopardize her situation.  Her attitude can be played up so as to cast some shadow of suspicion of her and her immediate family, but they are innocent of the disappearance of Harad, Tath, Dylauca, and Trist.

The list of servants includes a butler, 3 valets, 14 maids, a cook, 5 groundskeepers, 1 game warden, 2 grooms, a horse trainer, and 6 stable hands. The parents (listed husband, first) and children (by age) of each of the families are as follows:
 

Person	Profession	Age	General Appearance
Garhan	Butler	52	5' 11", 184 lbs., with short, straight brown hair and green eyes
Hura	Chief Housekeeper	51	5' 3", 172 lbs., with long, straight black hair and brown eyes
Rharnae	Maid to Lady Tulca	32	5' 1", 149 lbs., with long, braided brown hair and brown eyes
Dain	Groundskeeper	27	5' 10", 152 lbs., with close cropped black hair and brown eyes
Rasa	Maid	23	5' 0", 129 lbs., with long, braided black hair and brown eyes
Ritha	Stable girl	13	4' 9", 119 lbs., with long, braided black hair and brown eyes
-------------------
Sathan	Chief Valet	48	6' 0", 168 lbs., with short, red hair and brown eyes
Duthsa	Cook	49	5' 8", 146 lbs., with long, braided grey hair and green eyes
Girthul	Groundskeeper	28	6' 2", 198 lbs., with long, straight reddish brown hair and green eyes
Laun	Groundskeeper	26	5' 8", 176 lbs., with very long, wavy brown hair and hazel-green eyes
Saidor	Groom	23	5' 10", 168 lbs., with very long, straight reddish brown hair and green eyes
Russa	Maid	20	5' 2", 153 lbs., with very long, wavy reddish brown hair and brown eyes
Gaeda	Maid	20	5' 1", 135 lbs., with short, wavy reddish brown hair and green eyes
----------
Raus	Chief Groundskeeper	49	6' 5", 215 lbs., with very long, straight reddish brown hair and blue eyes
Aesa	Maid	45	5' 7", 194 lbs., with very long, wavy brown hair and brown eyes
Durhus	Groom	25	6' 3", 198 lbs., bald and blue eyes
Alhas	Valet to Rhaussod	22	5' 11", 194 lbs., with very short, straight brown hair and brown eyes
Hanha	Maid	21	5' 4", 134 lbs., with very long, wavy reddish brown hair and green eyes
Lotri	Maid	19	5' 3", 144 lbs., with very long, braided brown hair and brown eyes
Dira	Stable girl	12	4' 9", 102 lbs., with shoulder length, curly brown hair and green eyes
--------------------
Sul	Horse Trainer	60	6' 4", 175 lbs., with shoulder length, straight brown hair and blue eyes
Rhisga	Maid to Lady Lidatha	54	5' 4", 176 lbs., with short, wavy blonde hair and grey eyes
Gairas	Valet to Hadan	38	5' 6", 181 lbs., with short, straight blonde hair and hazel-grey eyes
Tuldil	Stable hand	36	6' 1", 197 lbs., with shoulder length, straight blonde hair and green eyes
Gausla	Maid to Lady Saira	32	5' 11", 120 lbs., with short, wavy blonde hair and brown eyes
Hailan	Stable hand	31	6' 0", 201 lbs., with shoulder length, straight blonde hair and green eyes
Solsu	Maid	29	5' 9", 149 lbs., with short, wild blonde hair and brown eyes
--------------------
Tudaun	Game Warden (Ranger, 9th)	56	6' 1", 201 lbs., with close cropped light brown hair and green eyes
Rauthissa	Maid to Lady Sailta	52	5' 6", 141 lbs., with shoulder length, curly blonde hair and light grey eyes
Haila	Maid to Lady Dairhsa	31	5' 5", 145 lbs., with shoulder length, straight blonde hair and green eyes
Hauda	Maid	27	5' 7", 147 lbs., with very long, curly blonde hair and hazel-green eyes
Trist	Stable hand	18	6' 2", 220 lbs., with short, straight light brown hair and grey eyes
Rhait	Stable boy	15	5' 8", 175 lbs., with short, straight blonde hair and green eyes

Unfortunately, though Harad, Tath, Dylauca, and Trist all had honorable motives, their hired hands did not. Though the group was successful in determining the meaning of the riddle, they were betrayed by their henchmen and are now dead or trapped in the caverns beneath the Nurhancoth estates.

Harad discovered that the ancient crown, enchanted with some manner of magical properties, is the key to restoring a King to the throne of Cauthax. It is written in several books of prophesy, when the Crown returns, so does the Throne.  Though the throne still exists, kept empty and set in a place of honor above the table of the Theodoptran City Council, the rulership of the land has passed to the City Council of Theodoptra which bows to the Rhinnish Emperor as it has since the original conquest.

As Sharra would have it -- two sons of that ancient ruling family did, in fact, survive the war. They were protected by a renowned warrior of great skill and noble bearing, a man named Narhaan (the progenitor of the Nurhancoths).

The two boys in Narhaan's care were forced to keep their silence to prevent being murdered and not much else is known about what happened to them.  However, about a decade later, two young men, their wives, and their families were introduced to Theodoptran society as scions of a wealthy Rhinnish family named Maythan.  Over time, they and their descendants built a number of successful trading companies and their family has been prosperous and remained close to the channels of power in Theodoptra.  A Maythan has never held the highest office, though at least one member of the family has held a Council seat at any given time. The Maythan family and the Nurhancoths remained closely tied, though the relationship between Narhaan and the Meritaan heirs was lost; fulfilling Narhaan's plans.

Doing his research, Harad realized that the Maythans had to be the descendants of the two Meritaan boys.  He knew that if he and his were successful in returning the rightful king to the Throne of Cauthax that they would be very highly placed -- regaining their ancient noble titles, or possibly even elevated to dukes.  Knowing that a noble title, only one step away from the throne, was worth more than all the gold he could ever trade, Harad attempted to locate the crown.

By discovering the meaning of their own family Ritual, passed down from Narhaan as a means of both preserving as obscuring the family secret, Harad, Tath, and Dylauca found secret passages beneath the oldest section of the Nurhancoth home.  These passages lead down into deep and forgotten caverns. After nearly being killed by the first traps, they realized that the pathway to the lost crown was not an easy journey. They knew that three people, even though two of them were Theodoptran Knights, stood little chance of infiltrating the caverns and hired and adventuring company from Theodoptra. They did not know that the men and women they were hiring to aid them were not honorable.

The adventurers they hired were, unfortunately for them, members of Omi Toranaga's band; known as the Blades in the Night. These three evil adventurers have been scouting the area looking for signs of Raiko Yamato, hoping to kill him and end his quest of capturing Omi. Zekrani'akai Thessarullarius - a Drow woman of many skills, Urlatha Silverclaw - a deadly thief, and Parthenian of the Red Hands - a powerful warrior, were chosen by Omi to lead this assassination attempt and traveled to Cauthax from their base in Nidoshra. After learning that Raiko was engaged in a compaign somewhere in the hills of Cauthax, they posed as neutral adventurers of mid-level to join up with four other adventurers and form a new company -- the Silver Wolves -- to disguise their true purpose. To maintain secrecy, they allowed one of their new associates to 'lead' the party and make all of the arrangements in case Harad had some way of Knowing Alignment.

Harad's own tales of ancient family treasure sealed everyone's fate, as these powerful evil adventurers immediately planned to betray their employers and make off with all of the treasure instead of just their pay. They figured that there was a good chance that Raiko would not return from his adventure.  And, even if he did return, the chances of missing Raiko were slim as there were no major shipping vessels planning to leave Theodoptra any time in the next week and they assumed robbing their employers would take less time than that.

Waiting for the best time to show themselves as they truly are, the three Blades in the Night ambushed and attacked their employers. They killed Trist early, blaming his death on denizens of the caverns, and Zekrani charmed Tath. Later, they killed (or allowed to be killed) the rest of their new associates to prevent them from spreading the story or interfering with their plans. Dylauca survived and escaped in the twisting caverns. She healed her injuries by magic and is waiting, somewhat foolishly hoping for the chance to ambush the adventurers and retake the prize as they return.

The party will meet Dylauca in the 'empty' caverns (areas 6, 7, 8, 9); she will explain what happened with her allies (not knowing that Trist was, in fact, murdered by Urlatha) and beg them to try to recover the crown.  She will insist on joining them.

Information available in specific locations:

1. Claremont's Temple Library in Theodoptra:  records reveal that Harad removed several books from the collection about the ancient Cauthax civil war and the lineage of the king. The book about the lineage of the old king can be found on a shelf in Harad's room with a marker on the page with a drawing of the ancient crown.  Additionally, by researching the other books Harad placed on reserve, information about the elimination of the Meritaan family line, the sudden appearance of the Maythan family a decade later, the role the noble warrior Narhaan played in the civil war, and the founding of the Nurhancoths by Narhaan can be found.
2. Adventurers guild in Theodoptra:  it can be found that Harad hired a company called The Silver Wolves for unrevealed purposes. Further investigation at the adventurers guild will reveal that the Silver Wolves were recently formed, only in the past two weeks. There will be a few regulars around the Guild that will be able to give a description of the Silver Wolves; including the members of Omi Toranaga's group.
3. Theodoptra: several deaths have been reported in the area around where the Silver Wolves were staying. Most of the victims were rich merchants or nobles who had been robbed and killed, their remains looked as if they'd been torn apart by wild animals. Urlatha has been practicing her trade. Exploring around where the Silver Wolves were staying will lead the characters to a death house (funeral parlor) in which a rich merchant is being honored.
4. Harad's warehouses and offices:  a search will reveal a room that was obviously used to outfit adventurers. Receipts from various general supply stores and equipment shops will be scattered around on the tables along with a number of inferior quality iron spikes, frayed rope, broken knives, and stale rations. Another odd thing is a stylized wolf and symbols carved into a table -- as if by someone bored; partly in the runic pictograph writing of Kara-Tur and partly in Drow, reading the words Blades in the Night. This was done by Zekrani who has some artistic talent and knows Omi's native language.  Other scraps of paper can be determined to be the remains of travel papers from Nidoshra on a Dwarven steamship (the D.S.S. Granite) that set to port a few weeks ago and steamed south last week.
5. Tath and Dylauca's rooms at the Nurhancoth estate: A search of both rooms will reveal that both were interested in maps and military matters with Tath being more interested in the ancient Nidoshran campaigns of Kashran Sithuraman, and Dylauca more interested in current affairs of her own state. Also, it is clear they lived a fairly spartan military-style existence amid the opulence of their family.  Inspection of their wardrobes will reveal that their weapons and armor are gone.
6. Nurhancoth Stables: any one of the stablehands will be able to show the adventurers that Tath and Dylauca's chargers are still unsaddled and in their stalls.
7. Losa's room at the Nurhancoth estate: Losa is fascinated by maps, cartography and surveying.  Her shelves contain numerous pieces of expensive surveyor's equipment, and her walls are covered with maps, floor plans, and landscape drawings; many of which are drawn by her own hand.  Losa's oldest map of the Nurhancoth estate shows the extent of the Old House, including the tower and hall, two attached wooden buildings, and the compass-shaped fountain.  Losa also has another map, an exercise in surveying, that shows the height of several trees and buildings and large rock outcroppings all across the Nurhancoth estate; the fallen elm is marked as 64'.

Information available from individuals:

1. Harad was last seen two days ago at dinner, after which no family members (save Tulca, #12 below) remember seeing him again.
2. Ritha, the stable girl, saw Harad, Tath, and Dylauca standing around the entrance court with a bunch of adventurers three nights ago.
3. Girthul remembers Harad requesting, the day before he disappeared, a wooden pole exactly 8' high.
4. Agoth has been questioned by Harad, over the past few weeks, about the ancient civil wars and royal succession.
5. Saira has been questioned by Harad, several days ago, about how extensive the library of the local temple to Claremont were especially in the area of Cauthax history, genealogy, and royal succession.
6. Lidatha was questioned by Agoth about the meaning of the ancient Nurhancoth Ritual.
7. Losa saw Trist in the family library looking at a scroll detailing the words of the Ritual and studying maps of the grounds.
8. Tanri and Gitsa were questioned by Dylauca about anything unusual they might have seen while playing in the old mansion. (they heard and saw nothing)
9. Gar and Gocan were questioned by Tath about anything unusual they might have seen while playing in the old mansion. (they heard and saw nothing)
10. Any servant can attest that Trist has been nervous and jumpy over the few days before his disappearance.
11. (only if characters are getting lost)
12. Little Rhi claims to have been scared by ghosts 'thumping and banging' in a hallway in the old house. She can't remember where, but that won't stop her from leading the adventurers on a merry chase through the old hallways and rooms of the largely unused old house.
13. (red herring) Tulca is sure she saw Harad in Theodoptra, in the vicinity of his trading company warehouses speaking with a 'shady-looking' man, the day after he disappeared. She is mistaken about the date, and actually saw him the day before he disappeared speaking with Parthenian. This should be played up enough to lead the characters to investigate the warehouses.
14. (red herring) Thodo and Tudaun were seen riding out together in full ranger gear two days ago and haven't returned. Tudaun is showing Thodo to a place sacred to rangers and druids, and Thodo is taking his vows from the druids as a ranger (1st level).
15. (red herring) Aesa the maid claims to have seen Solsu sneaking out of the servants quarters late on the night that Harad disappeared. She was going to meet with a lover from Theodoptra.
16. (red herring) Dira and Rhait saw Sarait saddling a horse the same night that Harad was last seen. He was riding to Theodoptra to carouse with young friends.
17. (red herring) Dain claims to have seen a number of men on black horses riding through the northern woods, along the border of the Nurhancoth estate. The group is made up of eight ex-Black Riders who have given up their service to Salsmen now that they are free of the mind controlling drugs and the constant power of the priests. They are 5th level fighters in black leather armor and wielding longswords as specialists. None of them are of Evil alignment (these men were merely Lawful Neutral before the application of drugs, magic, and brainwashing that was part of Black Rider training) and they have excised all symbols and trappings of Salsmen from their gear. They are, however, making a small semi-permanent camp in the northern woods of the estate and will fight if attempts to drive them off are made.

The children (anyone 13 or under) are eager to help out but will invariably get in the way. They will only offer up information if they get a 'present' -- preferably candy or some sort of toy ... coins won't interest them.

Losa, however, doesn't want to be thought of as a child and will follow the adventurers around asking questions and offering as much information as she can. She is eager to prove useful to the adventurers and very friendly.  She likes to talk about taking the 'light' of knowledge into the 'darkness' of uncivilized lands.  If asked, she will also invite the adventurers up to her room to see her maps and collection of surveying equipment.

Despite the obstacles, however, the characters should be able to determine that Harad, Tath, Dylauca, and Trist all disappeared two nights ago. Harad is interested in a crown. The crown has something to do with royal succession. Harad hired some adventurers; strangely, one or more of them speak Raiko Yamata's language. Trist has been investigating the Ritual.

The key to discovering the caverns lies in the ancient Nurhancoth Ritual, handed down through the family for ages. The current members of the Nurhancoth family all know the words of the Ritual.  There have been rumors floating around for centuries that it is really a treasure map, but no one really believed it enough to research the matter until Harad.

Lady Lidatha does, in fact, know about the existance of the crown and the meaning of the Ritual ... but she understands the implications of the crown's return to the surface.  Carrying the burden of this knowledge is one of the responsibilities of the oldest living Nurhancoth.  Upon her death, the knowledge will be passed on to Hauhson.  Lady Lidatha will reveal none of this information unless she is directly confronted with the crown.

The Nurhancoth Ritual is recited as follows:

Whose was it?
    His who is gone.

Who shall have it?
    He who will come.

Where was the beginning
    West of the Rose.

Where was the sun?
    Over the oak.

Where was the shadow?
    Under the elm.

How was it stepped?
    To the East by three and by three, North by ten and by ten, east by five and by five, south by two and by two, west by one and by one, and so under to the Path of the Dragon.

What shall we give for it?
    All that is ours.

Why should we give it?
    For the sake of the trust.

Only the three Nurhancoth's -- Harad, Tath, and Dylauca -- learned the truth of the riddle and what it means, and they only shared it with Trist and their henchmen. The Ritual is actually a map, leading the solver to the entrance to the secret caverns beneath the old Nurhancoth mansion.

West of the Rose means the western arm of the compass rose built into the huge fountain at the doorway to the mansion, this is visible only if above the fountain; such as looking out the upper floor windows of the mansion or the tops of the towers. If the characters aren't looking in the right places, one of the groundskeepers could be overheard griping about having to scrub the 'godsdamned letters in the fountain' to draw attention to it.

When the sun is directly over the huge oak standing to the southeast of the house when viewed by someone standing directly on the W, the place to begin pacing is at the end of the shadow cast by the elm which once stood beside the oak. Unfortunately, the elm was struck by lightning two years ago and removed. Any of the groundskeepers can tell the players exactly where it was. But, only Losa (and Trist) remembers its height because she had been learning to survey as part of her tutoring (Trist remembers it because he brashly climbed to the top with a measuring rope to see if Losa was correct); and determined its height to be 64'. From this information, the players can determine the length of the shadow in a number of ways. By pacing out the steps as further instructed, from the proper spot will lead the characters around the back of the old house, through a broken door and into a leaf strewn hallway lined with an old, moldy carpet.

If the timing of the characters is right (no more than 1/2 an hour from the time when the sun is over the oak), a beam of light will be entering the room through a tiny aperture in the west wall making a tiny spiral pattern upon the old rug, there.  If the rug is lifted and the spiral beam allowed to touch the flagstone, the flagstone will begin to glow. While it is glowing, the shape of the flagstone changes so it can be lifted like a trapdoor; if it is not glowing, it can not be moved without first removing all of the other heavy stones around it, several of which disappear beneath the south walls of the room.

Beneath it, a simple stone stairway leads down a few dozen yards into a square chamber about 20' across with a 5' thick pillar supporting a large spiral staircase leading down into darkness.

When the light of day begins to fail, the large, glowing stone will slowly lower itself back into its resting place and seal off the stairway beneath.  Because she wants to minimize the chances of anyone noticing the glowing flagstone, Lady Lidatha has left strict instructions to her servants that the carpet is to remain in place over the stone.  A litter of leaves strewn across the flagstone is also sufficient to prevent the spiral of light from initiating the glowing change, which is why Lidatha never ordered the broken door fixed.

1.) Spiral Staircase
(Ceiling Height: 10'; Illum: None)
The room under the Old House, 10' beneath its flagstone floors, is a square chamber supported by a single pillar of stone some five feet in diameter. Surrounding the pillar, descending into darkness, is a broad spiral staircase; each stair is two feet thick and drops one foot from the previous. Twelve stairs make up a complete turn of the staircase, leaving 10 feet of ceiling space between each course. The staircase leads straight down, 90' feet into the earth. However, the middle fifty feet are enchanted so that a character stepping upon the 71st stair triggers a magical effect that teleports that character, and anyone within the immediately preceding 50 stairs, back to the beginning of the magical zone. The practical effect is that the characters will appear to be climbing down an endless stairway. Careful inspection will reveal that the 71st stair is made from a different kind of stone than the rest of the staircase and is also magical. Casting a Dispel Magic upon it will disrupt the teleportation effect for 24 hours.

2.) Dragon Entrance
(Ceiling Height: Varies 10' to 30'; Illum: Continual Light in Dragon's eyes)
At the bottom of the spiraling staircase, which descends some 70' into the limestone, is a room about 60' wide and 40' long; its is damp, warm, and somewhat hazy. At the far wall is an amazing work of sculpture that looks as if a huge dragon is lunging into the room. Three doors pass through the wall, two appear to be clutched in the dragon's claws and the third is clenched between it's jaws. The eyes of the dragon are glowing rubies enchanted with Continual Light and Continual Heat that will do 3-30 points of burning damage to anyone who actually touches them. The heat from the stones is noticeable from a few feet away. A second Continual Heated stone is set into the head of the dragon to vaporize the water trickling from the ceiling and channeled into the dragon's head into forming twin columns of steam which rise from the dragon's nostrils and add to the general haze of the room.

A careful search for traps will reveal that there is a pressure plate before the door in the dragon's mouth and that two of the dragon's talons on each of the doors are not carved stone but metal. Disturbing the plate in any way will cause the dragon's mouth to fill with flames doing 2-20 points of damage to anyone within ten feet of the dragon's head and 4-40 points of damage to anyone actually standing inside the mouth. It takes three rounds for the necessary gasses to accumulate for the dragon's mouth to flame, again. The two metal talons on each door are attached to hidden mechanisms which will cause them to sweep downwards, raking the area in front of the door. Anyone struck by the talons (which attack with a THAC0 of 8) will suffer 1-10 points of damage. After an attack, it takes two rounds for the talons to reset, during that time, the door locks may be safely picked. Passage through any of the three doors eventually leads to the same prize, but by way of different paths at the higher levels; all of the paths join together at a large cavern about 150' below the surface.

3.) Large Cave
(Ceiling Height: Varies 10' to 30'; Illum: None)
This huge cavern is spanned by narrow bridges of stone and wood, and is home to 8 large Bonebats (AC 5 (8 w/-3 AC Mod.); MV 3, Fl 15 (D); HD 5; hp 26, 25, 21, 29, 20, 18, 25, 21; THAC0 17; #Att 3 or 4; Dmg 2d4/(1d4+1 or 1d2) x2 or 3; SA Bite causes paralyzation 1d6+2rnds; SD See below; Ml special; INT 5-7; Sz M; XP 1400). These dangerous magically-constructed creatures will repeatedly attack anyone attempting to cross one of the bridges, biting, slashing with their wing claws, or lashing out with the blade-like tails. Bonebats are immune to sleep, charm, and hold, take no damage from holy water, and are turned as wights. Falling from the bridges will cause 4d6/6d6 damage (60%/40%).

Along with a broken sword and a dagger hilt, the body of Trist will be found here. It is obvious that he was stabbed in the back by what appear to be four slim daggers (Urlatha's claws).

4.) Hall of Armor
(Ceiling Height: 20' arched to 30'; Illum: From the armor)
Along the walls of this long hallway stand two raised platforms, upon which stand twenty suits of full plate armor; ten per side. When the adventurers enter this dark hallway, a pair of sparks will race swiftly along the walls, following a neatly carved channel just behind the helms of the armor. As the sparks pass each suit, a small fire will begin burning within the helm of the armor, casting a glow like an oil lamp. The armor is all in very good condition with respect to rust and corrosion, but some of the pieces look somewhat dented; the armor does not seem to be affected by the flames within the helms. After being in the room for a few moments, the characters will hear a faint metallic squeal and a pop, and anyone examining the armor will notice a dent pop out be itself.

The armor is actually Animated Mail (AC 1 (2 w/-1 AC Mod.); MV 12; HD 6+1 (+4 hp Mod.); hp 29, 34, 30, 31, 32, 28, 28, 33, 29, 23; THAC0 12; #Att 1; Dmg 1d8+4; SD Yes; Ml 20; INT 13-14; Sz M; XP 2000). Animated mail is immune to sleep, charm, and hold, and takes no damage from fire or heat. Any cold-based attack also affects Animated Mail as a Slow. Animated Mail takes only 1/2 damage from slashing or piercing weapons (but full damage from bludgeoning weapons), and can regenerate 1hp/round. Once every three rounds, the Animated Mail can cast a Fire Burst at 10th level, doing 10 pts. of damage to anyone within 5' of the Animated Mail. Animated Mail can only be permanently destroyed if reduced to 0 or fewer hit points and their the burning sphere is removed from the helm. When the sphere is removed, the armor immediately rusts completely through.

When they begin coming to life, the Animated Mail will attempt to block all passage through the hall. The Animated Mail will come to life a pair per round until all twenty are active. No Animated Mail will leave the hall.

Propped in the far corner of this room is the body of a mage, stripped of all but his robes; he was severely battered, but death seems to have come from having his throat cut in four parallel slashes.

5.) Tiled Hall
(Ceiling Height: 20' arched to 30'; Illum: None)
The floor of this long, broad hall is tiled in alternating white and black marble tiles, each 2' square. Near the center of the room is what appears to be a man dressed in dark blue leather armor, impaled upon a gleaming iron spike which extends up from the floor. This entire room is an elaborate trap.

For the first twenty feet of hall, stepping on a black tile will cause a dart to fire from the wall (attacks with THAC0 6, doing 1-4 pts. of damage and requiring a save vs. poison or take 2-12 additional pts. of damage).  The trap tiles can be triggered by placing 50 or more pounds of pressure upon the tile but doing this without standing in the way of the dart firing mechanism requires a long, sturdy weapons such as a staff or polearm; trying to use a sword will require leaning into the path of the dart.

For the second twenty feet of hall, stepping on a white tile will cause the same effect as above.

For the third twenty feet (where the body of the thief is) 2" diameter holes can be seen in the centers of the white tiles. Stepping on a white tile will cause an iron spike to spring up from the hole doing 2-24 points of damage. Unfortunately for those attempting to cross the hall, the black tiles are triggers for darts (see above).

The last twenty feet is the reverse of above with impaling tiles being black and dart tiles being white.

To make matters worse, the last forty feet of the hallway is magically dead and anyone attempting to levitate or fly through will be dropped to the tiles, possibly triggering more than one.

None of the dart tiles can reset themselves, as they are loaded with only one dart apiece.  However, the impaling tiles can fire repeatedly.

6, 7, 8, 9.) Empty Caverns
(Ceiling Height: Varies 5' to 30'; Illum: None)
As the adventurers delve deeper into the earth, they will come to a series of twisting and maze-like caverns. Except for dripping water, harmless fungi, and the occasional rat or rock lizard, all of these caves are empty of dangers. Two more bodies can be found here, members of the Silver Wolves who didn't understand the nature of their new compatriots; a warrior in light armor bearing a rapier and a priestess of Claremont. Both have been stripped of valuables and bear evidence of a violent death.

Dylauca is also hiding here in the twisting passages, waiting for the three Evil adventurers to return. She hopes to attack them and recover the crown. If she is surprised, Dylauca might attack the party before she realizes that they are not the Evil adventurers who betrayed her and killed her brother, their servant, and the other members of the Silver Wolves.

Dylauca will be able to explain how the Evil adventurers turned on the surviving party here, hunting them through the caverns an killing them all.  She does not know, but will not be surprised to learn, that the others (Trist, and the wizard) were also killed by the adventurers and not the dangers of the caverns.

10.) Throne Room
(Ceiling Height: Varies 20' domed to 40'; Illum: Continual Light)
As the adventurers enter this huge round chamber, they will come upon a wild battle surging around a massive stone throne surrounded by chests of gold and jewels. Three adventurers, a Dark Elf woman in light robes bearing a pair of slim battleaxes, a Human woman with what appear to be metal claws, and a huge warrior in reddish plate armor bearing a glittering two-handed sword are battling a horned, winged, demonic creature. The demon appears to be made from some sort of stone, and is wearing a gleaming gold crown upon its head. Several times during the battle, the demon will spew fiery breath upon its opponents, but they will eventually succeed in killing it.

A man in heavy armor lays face-down in a pool of blood near the entrance to the cave and it appears that he was struck from behind. His mail bears the symbol of Mykke and he bears a resemblance to Dylauca if she has been seen by the party.  The merchant, Harad, can be found, barely alive (2hp), nailed to the wall by a pair of iron spikes through his shoulders.  Attempting to remove him from the spikes will undoubtedly kill him, but he can be healed by magic before being freed.

Immediately after the death of the stone demon, the adventurers will begin packing their bags with gold and gems from the chests surrounding the now-empty throne while the huge warrior works with a hammer and chisel to remove the crown from the demon's brow. The treasure in the chests consists of: 15765cp, 4389sp, 1335gp, 75pp, 75 gems (14 X 10gp, 16 X 50gp, 22 X 100gp, 16 X 500gp, 5 X 1000gp, 2 X 5000gp), 5 art objects (silver chalicet: 33gp, copper medal shaped like a wolf with mother-of-pearl eyes: 75gp, maple locket shaped like a maple tree set with six marquee-cut rock crystals on a brass chain: 135gp, fox cloak: 255gp, emerald medallion shaped like a bat on a polished brass chain: 1829gp)

Needless to say, the three members of the Blades in the Darkness are not expecting to be found here by the party.  They don't know about the relationship between the players and Paulas and between the Loderras and the Nurhancoths.  They will be surprised and are not ready to face the entire party after being fairly beaten up by the demon and the trials of the caverns above.  They might fight for a few rounds before Zekrani will activate her Ring of Spell Storing and Teleport herself and her friends to safety.  Luckily for the party, Parthenian will not have had enough time to smash the crown from the head of the 'dead' stone demon.  Zekrani and Urlatha will be able to pocket 5% of the treasure each round until they are interrupted.

There are a considerable number of issues surrounding the return of the Crown.  It could be used to spark a civil war, or to unify the lands of Cauthax under a single banner.  Harad is completely sure that it should be used to return the Maythan's to power as the legitimate heirs of the Meritaan family.  Lady Lidatha will not do anything rash is she is given the Crown.

Additionally, if she is given the crown, she will allow the adventurers to have all of the treasure they found as a gift for rescuing her family members.

It is most likely that the Nurhancoth's will pay money to have the faithful servant Trist and their family members Raised from the Dead.

If the players succeed in rescuing the family members (or retrieveing the Crown for Lady Lidatha) they will have friends for life among the Nurhancoth's (and the Loderra's).

Harad, eternally grateful if actually rescued, will arrange any sort of non-magical equipment the players might want or need at prices no more than 25% of the 'list price'.  Additionally, he will come into some information that the three evil adventurers booked passage back to Nidoshra on a sailing vessel named the Morningstar.  He will inform the characters that he could book them free passage to the south on a spectacular steamer, the DSS Monolithic, coming into port in a few days and leaving eight days later.  Harad will arrange first- or second- class berths (depending on the social skills of the individuals) for the entire party, free of charge to them, on the Monolithic.

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