Approximately 1,200 years ago, the Priesthood of the All-Seeing Eye built a monastery amid the isolated badlands south of Osirion. Worshipers of Nethys, god of magic, they honored their conflicted deity there for centuries, until other holy places rose to prominence. Abandoning the isolated site, the monks sealed its lower level and the place was largely forgotten.
That changed a few months ago. Father Jackal, leader of the One Source Merchant Guild, was commissioned by dangerous extraplaner merchants to secure a strange leathery ovoid known as a Rough Seed, said to be one of Rovagug’s eggs . His agents caught wind of an old rumor that a Rough Seed was hidden in an ancient ruin in the eastern Brazen Peaks.
Due to his personal interest in securing the object, Father Jackal went searching for the Rough Seed himself. After months of searching the northwestern Uwaga Highlands he discovered what he was looking for within the limestone ruins known as the Refuge. Avoiding the traps and most of creatures that make this site their home, he discovered that the ancient mage-priests hid the seed within the realm of dreams. Finding a secret hidden cache of magic items, Father Jackal discovered an ancient rod that the mage-priest used to project into different dimensions. Using the rod he projected his mind into the Dream Dimension. What he didn't know was that due to the proximity of the Breath of Nethys (magical vapors that permeated the room he used the rod) and the accumulation of stagnant magical energy in the ruin the caused a magical surge when he used the artifact. The surge broke his tether to his body but it also pulled animate dreams from the Dream Dimension into the ruin. The animate dreams are trapped, only able to survive within the confines of the Breath of Nethys and the energy they are feeding from Father Jackal who form lies unconscious with this mind adrift in the realm of Dreams.
After months of being trapped, the animate dreams are starved and desperate to get out. Using the dreams and memories they've pulled from Father Jackal, the animate dreams have used his form to project out to into the dreams of creatures that are similar to him and guiding them into the ruins with the promises of achieving something they desire. They hope of having someone else to feed on to get enough energy to escape. Its been almost a year since Father Jackal has entered the ruins. In his travels through the dimension of dreams he has found the hidden Rough Seed but escaping the realm has eluded him. After so long he lies in a semi-catatonic state as his physical body wastes away feeding the animate dreams.
Once the group has secured Kelmarane and live there after some time, Onyx will start to dream of the jackal. At first these dreams appear as a innocuous reoccurring dream. Eventually Onyx will start to see visions of a jackal when he is awake, patiently waiting for him in the distance. If Onyx does not investigate, the dreams start to become more pronounced and the vision of the jackal starts to haunt every moment of wakeful hours. After a month he looses his action recovery roll. After two months he looses both his action and 10 minute recovery roll. After 4 months Onyx will no longer be able to rest and starts to loose pool points due to lack of sleep.
Once Onyx decides to investigate, the jackal will lead him to the ruin.
Level Difficulty Result
3 Shrine of Magic: Hundreds of years ago reclusive priests of Nethys, the god of magic, built a monastery in the nearby hills where they could study forgotten and dangerous magics and objects. The shrine has been abandoned and ruined for centuries. (Any check.)
4 Holy Smoke: The Refuge of the All-Seeing Eye, as it was known, was built in a place where the breath of Nethys was said to seep from the ground, inspiring all who drew near with visions from the god of magic. (Any check.)
5 The Newcomer: Large predators, desert lions, giant spiders, and jackals have long dwelled near the shrine, though recently nomads have encountered strange beastial men raving that a jackal haunts their dreams and that they must follow the jackal which no one else sees. (Gather Information or Knowledge [local].)
5 Double-Bladed Magic: Aside from properties of the strange smoke, the Refuge of the All-Seeing Eye was built in a remote location so the priests of Nethys could study the dualistic nature of magic. The upper floor of the monastery was devoted to magic’s protective and creative aspects, while a hidden lower floor protected secrets of destructive magic. (Knowledge [history].)
The Refuge of the All-Seeing Eye hides among the badlands of the Brazen Peaks, about a mile east of Kalmerane.
Harsh winds whisper through the badlands, their cruel touch withering all but the hardiest of desert life. Dust and bits of debris dance across the ground, carried by the scorching breezes. Ahead, the ruins of ancient walls sprawl along the eroded bed of a long-dried wash. Two towering statues rise from the scree, their features sand-blasted into anonymity.
Crumbling after centuries of neglect, the ancient monastery’s walls loom 20 feet high. Elaborate friezes once covered the battered limestone, but scouring winds have destroyed many of the ancient carvings.
West of the temple, mostly buried ruins sprawl for hundreds of yards, mute testimonies to what once must have been impressive structures. Too tight for Medium creatures, even Small creatures must make a Level 3 Escape Artist check to navigate the shaft.
Beyond the outer ruins, a wide doorway leads into a forest of stone pillars: the roofless, colonnaded hall of a temple interior. The breeze here carries a pungent stench of decay. Two rectangular depressions run across the pillared hall’s rubblestrewn floor, perhaps once filled with water, but now choked with thorny desert weeds. Reflecting pools once decorated this chamber.
Conjured by ancient magic, tiny amounts of water still trickle into the pools, frequently attracting local beasts to lap at the rivulets of cool liquid. Those who cast detect magic notice a faint aura of conjuration magic emanating from worn fountainheads at the outside edges of both basins.
Creatures: Four giant tarantulas lurk high on the walls in the hypostyle hall. These monsters have already tangled with Haidar, who has eluded these four and killed a fifth.
Health: 10
Armor: 1 (Level 4 Speed Defense)
Damage: 3 damage + poison
Movement: Short
Size: Medium
Modification: Climb as level 6. Perception and stealth as level 4.
Combat: A giant spider bites foes, preferably from ambush. When it succeeds, the bite injects a poison that on a failed Might defense roll it gives a disadvantage to the target's Speed and might checks by a step and does 1 point of speed and might damage.
Treasure: A choker (from area 7) hid treasure beneath a flagstone here. A Level 5 Search check notices the cache. The treasure includes a golden pectoral (worth 1,350 gp), a copper mask symbol of Nethys (worth 30 gp), 82 tarnished silver pieces, and an intricate bronze scarab that functions as a wand of open/close with 14 charges.
A sense of restrained power permeates the dusty air of this dimly lit sanctuary, the only roofed portion of the ruin. On the walls, carvings celebrate a radiant figure. At his mighty command, legions of elementals build entire cities, raging seas calm, and enemies are brought to accord. Four falcon-headed statues guard a chamber to the west. Between them, a broad flagstone cants up into the air, a trapdoor no longer secret.
This room once served as one of the monastery’s primary sanctuaries to the god of magic, though most of the religious trappings are long gone or eroded. Those who make a Level 4 Knowledge (religion) check can still recognize the depictions of Nethys and perhaps even his herald, the cloud-like being known as the Arcanotheign.
Entering the sanctuary triggers a lingering magic effect (see sidebar).
The western chamber once held a secret entrance to the lower level of the Refuge, but time destroyed its bronze mechanism, making it exceedingly difficult to open and close. A successful Level 5 Might check raises the slab, revealing a shaft descending 30 feet to a sloping rise at the easternmost part of area 4. Bas-relief sculptures of ancient gods cover the sides of the shaft, requiring only a Level 3 Climb check to descend. At the base of the shaft lies a shattered stone slab.
Decorated with celestial eagles, this platform once levitated along the shaft.
Ceramic lamps burning with cadaverous blue flame light this wide, high-ceilinged chamber. To the southwest, a baboonheaded figure crouches menacingly. A stern-looking pharaoh stares across at it from the northeast. Carved folds of wellsculpted cloth enshroud the northwest statue, and in the southeast niche, the pharaoh is again depicted, his face scarred and twisted with anger. Three arches lead from the chamber, the fragments of shattered doors dangling on ancient hinges.
This chamber once served as the main entry hall of the monastery’s lower floor, a level dedicated to the unstable and often dangerous facets of Nethys’s nature. The doors here fell apart long ago, but those who investigate the timbers by making a Level 4 Search check notice that many seem to have been ripped apart or trod upon by something with great claws. As for the statues, a successful Level 4 Knowledge (religion) check identifies them as lesser-known spirits of destructive magic. Examining them more thoroughly likely springs the ancient trap protecting each.
Trap: In character with the dangerous natures of the four arcane spirits depicted here, anyone who dishonors the statues by touching them sets off a blast of deadly magical fire.
Type magic; Search Level 7; Disable Device Level 7
Effects
Trigger touch; Reset automatic
Effect spell effect (burning hands, CL 5th, 6 fire damage; Level 3 Speed Defense save half damage)
Millennia ago, all manner of spells filled the temple of Nethys, amazing its visitors. These spells have faded, becoming mere shadows of the awe-inspiring arcana that once ruled here. Even supposedly “permanent” spells have grown unreliable over the past centuries. Use these following manifestations to recreate the effects of failing and half-functional magical effects within the Refuge of Nethys. GMs might roll on the following table once every half hour the PCs spend exploring, when encounters call for such a roll, or whenever they please.
1d10 Spell Manifestation
1 Melody: A muted ghost sound recreates a lonesome piping from a nearby chamber.
2 Pool of Shadow: An incomplete darkness spell causes a veil of shadows to waver in an archway.
3 Glowing Globes: Light green orbs of dancing light whirl around the characters, bursting like bubbles if touched.
4 Scorching Arcs: Bright discharges arc between dueling sorcerers in an ancient wall carving. Those touching the display suffer 2 point of electrical speed damage. A small heap of dead insects lies beneath.
5 Guardian Blade: Once part of a shattered idol or wall carving, an animated arm feebly bangs its cracked stone khopesh against the floor.
6 Ancient Wine: An unseen servant brings one of the characters a chipped ceramic cup, half-filled with silt.
7 Sage Advice: A magic mouth on the wall offers timeworn epigrams in Osiriani. While its advice is rather general, those who understand might assume deeper meaning in such suggestions as “Bathe thy feet within the sacred waters.”
8 Fixer-Upper: Scattered stones reform into an archway, carved with a vulture motif. They sink down again if touched.
9 Silken Curtains: Curtains materialize over nearby doorways. Shimmering with ancient goldwork embroidery, these minor images evaporate after 1 minute.
10 Bitter Incense: Once used to repel evil spirits, the harsh scent of bitterbark caused by a major image incense wafts past.
A foul, metallic miasma assails the nostrils here. This vast chamber is clearly some sort of ominous worship hall. Frescos upon the walls and dozens of columns depict the terrifying power of magic, as radiant figures destroy entire worlds. Massive pillars support the chamber’s lofty ceiling, each covered with complex glyphs and designs. Between each column, glass lamps hang from chains of green copper, radiating pallid, bluish lights that pulse and flicker in unison.
At the room’s southern end, the temple’s alabaster altar gleams in the erratic blue light, its pedestal carved in the shape of winged, scale-covered bulls.
Grim and disturbing, this temple represents the darker side of magic, the unchecked power that possesses the godking Nethys in his destructive aspect. In this place, the priests of the All-Seeing Eye celebrated magic’s destructive potential, even as they hardened themselves against power’s allure. The lanterns here remain alight through the effects of numerous continual flame spells.
The carved designs upon the pillars are no mere decorations: arcane casters examining them can tell that they form a sort of ancient magical formula. Any arcane spellcaster who spends an hour in study here can make a Level 5 Spellcraft check to discover and decipher one of the following spells: burning hands, color spray, continual flame, grease, shocking grasp, or sleep. The character can then attempt to copy the spell as if it were another wizard’s spellbook. Repeat searches can reveal additional spells.
A small chamber rests at the southern end of the hall. Once a vestry, the chamber now stands open and barren. Those who make a Level 5 Search check here discover that the rear wall pivots, opening into a crumbling cavernous hall leading to area 10.
Trap: Perfectly clean and polished, the altar bears the power to immediately summon a supernatural asp if anyone but a cleric of Nethys approaches within 10 feet. The serpent uncoils from among the scaly sculptures of the base, viciously attacking any transgressors.
Type magic; Search Level 6; Disable Device Level 6
Effects
Trigger proximity (alarm);
Reset automatic (1 hour)
Effect spell effect (summon monster II, CL 3rd, summons one Fiendish Large Viper)
Environment: Anywhere a giant snake can lurk, including jungles, sewers, and caves.
Health: 18
Armor: 2
Damage: 5 damage
Movement: Short
Size: Large
Modification: Perception and stealth as level 6. Speed defense as level 3 due to size.
Combat: A giant snake bites foes, preferably from ambush. When it succeeds, the difficulty of the target's Speed defense roll increases by two steps, and the snake's bite deals 8 points of damage for that attack. On a failed Might defense roll, a bite also inflicts 3 points of Speed damage (ignores Armor). A giant snake may coil around a sleeping, stunned, or debilitated victim. Caught victims automatically take 5 points of crushing damage each round until they break free.
Treasure: A giant snake's droppings or gullet might hold a cypher and possibly an artifact that the creature couldn't not digest.
Morale: The giant snake fights to the death.
The floor of this chamber is covered with centuries of untouched dust. Along the walls, cobwebs cover gruesome fresco work depicting unworthy souls dismembered by demonic sphinxes. In the west wall, a pair of niches hold painted statues of gynosphinxes, glaring with wooden menace from beneath layers of ancient filth. A third niche stands empty to the south, while a fourth filled with rubble lies to the north.
The southern niche is more than it appears. An illusory wall covers the back of the niche, hiding a plaster-covered door there. A Level 7 Search check detects the door, but any search of the area notices flakes of plaster scattered on the floor with no corresponding cracks visible in the wall. The illusionary wall requires a Level 4 Will save to disbelieve.
When the temple was in use, the northern corridor led to chambers used for magical research. Those wishing to expand the adventure might allow player characters to dig past the collapse and explore further.
Creatures: Placed here to protect the temple’s secrets, the animate gynosphinx statues lurch forward to attack anyone entering the area unless someone present carries a holy symbol of Nethys.
Damage: 4 damage
Movement: Short
Size: Medium
Object used to damage the object needs of the same level or higher and minimal damage must be equal or higher than the level of the object.
Minor damage (Level 4) is a slightly damaged state. An object with minor damage reduces its level by 1.
Major damage (Level 6) is a critically damaged state. An object with major damage is broken and no longer functions and reduces the object by 2 steps in the damage track.
Destroyed is destroyed. The object is ruined, no longer functions, and cannot be repaired.
Brittle or fragile objects, like paper or glass, decrease the effective level of the object for the purposes of determining if it is damaged.
Hard objects, like those made of wood or stone, add 1 to the effective level.
Very hard objects, like those made of metal, add 2. (The GM may rule that some exotic materials add 3.)
Tactics
During Combat The statues only pursue intruders past their chamber if someone outside the room damages them. In that case, they attack until no active opponents remain visible. Their forms grant them no special attacks typical to animated objects.
Three spacious tubs dominate this room, with large terracotta braziers placed between them. Narrow vents lead into the ceiling above each brazier, evidently the source of the sand and grit covering the floor.
Warped and decrepit racks stand along the walls, the amphorae they once held now lying on the floor in shattered fragments. Sagging stone shelves hold dozens of small clay jars and bowls, many holding rotted or dusty remnants of ancient pastes or herbs.
A rank stench emanates from a strange heap of debris in the room’s northwest corner. Apparently made from broken bits of furniture and hundreds of torn papyrus pages, a narrow hole leads into the center of the pile.
In ancient times, the Nethysian Seers came to this chamber to be ritually cleansed and anointed before braving the House of the All-Seeing Eye (area 10). Temple servants bathed and shaved the priests while intoxicating vapors readied their minds to receive visions.
Creatures: Three chokers dwell here, snarling and cuffing one another. Normally solitary, these aberrations periodically gather to mate and squabble over territory. None of these chokers wants to give up the ruins as their hunting grounds, though, so they’ve stayed together for weeks, arguing and fighting. A fourth choker had been with them, but it failed to avoid the giant tarantulas. Since then, the others argue endlessly about which one should go look to see if the spiders have left. While they prefer to spend their time ambushing game near the ruins, the spiders frighten them too much. The heap of debris serves as a semi-shared nest.
This hunched-over wretch has long, pliable arms like tentacles capped with five wide, spiny claws.
Health: 10
Armor: 1 (Level 4 Speed Defense)
Damage: two attacks: 2 damage + grab (Level 4)
Movement: Immediate
Size: Small
Modifications: Level 6 (18) on Climb and Stealth checks.
Combat: During Combat These creatures can barely stand each other; they don’t coordinate their attacks.
Constrict: 4 damage and the target cannot speak or cast spells.
Sneak attack: +2 damage to attacks.
Treasure: A Level 4 Search checks reveals a collection of old coins and trinkets worth 164 gp in the chokers’ nest. Additionally, those who make a Level 4 Craft (alchemy) or Knowledge (arcana) check in addition to a Level 3 Search check discover ancient jars on the shelves filled with dry but still potable ancient potions. By simply adding water, two potions of bless, a potion of clairvoyance, and a potion of see invisibility are restored.
Reeking of dust, this ransacked room appears to have been some sort of scriptorium. Slate-topped tables and cedar-wood stools lie overturned and broken amid the cracked remains of scroll cases and rolls. Three wings lead to the east. In them, decrepit scroll racks of dry-rotted cedar lean haphazardly against the walls, their contents dumped out. Flecks of papyrus carpet the floor, a library of ancient lore laid to waste.
This chamber was the Per Ankh, where holy texts were written and copied. The chokers ransacked the room, destroying invaluable lore in their greedy search for gold or gems. Hundreds of scrolls were shredded as bedding for the nest in area 7. No scraps survive with any legible writing.
A massive basalt plaque dominates the southern wall of the chamber, surrounded by images of the god-king Nethys on the deck of a river barque. Osiriani inscriptions on the ominous southern portal alternate between descriptions of the positive and destructive properties of magic. A Level 5 Search check reveals that it blocks the way to another chamber. This barrier requires spellcasting to bypass. The plaque only moves if targeted by a spell of any type. Upon being affected, the eyes of Nethys on the stone glow for 3 minutes, during which time the plaque rises out of the way. Alternatively, the plaque (Level 4) can be broken apart (4 Hardness, hp 12).
A winding corridor stretches ahead, clouded with phosphorescent gray mist. Statues stand rigidly along the meandering hallway, each clad in the trappings of a powerful mage or priest. Thick tendrils of pearlescent vapor hiss forth from their open mouths, weaving through the air like translucent alien vines before reluctantly dispersing. A susurrus of whispers can faintly be heard from the statues, the sounds of forgotten tongues trapped in time.
These statues depict early leaders of the All-Seeing Eye. Those near them hear whispered questions in Draconic and Osirian (“Who were you?” “What is his task?” “Where is your power?”). As the statues speak, vapor puffs from their still lips, a magical manifestation called the breath of Nethys that supposedly opens casters’ minds to hidden levels of reality, but disorients and confuses those not prepared for it.
Type mechanical; Search Level 0; Disable Device Level 4
Effects
Trigger location; Reset automatic
Effect gas; multiple targets (all in area 9); never miss; onset delay (1 round); poison (see below)
The Nethys worshipers of the All-Seeing Eye had a reason for building their monastery in such a secluded locale. From this isolated outcropping leaked a strange gas that caused those who breathed it to experience lucid visions. Believing these hallucinations to be signs from the god of magic, the monks called the gas the Breath of Nethys and indulged in its powers to bring them new insights into the ways of magic. The breath of Nethys boosts magical abilities, allowing spellcasters within the mist to cast as if they were two levels higher. In addition, it unleashes visions hidden in the recesses of the mind. Upon entering an area filled with the breath of Nethys, a creature must make a Level 4 Might save or be affected as per the spell confusion for the next 5 minutes as they experience vivid hallucinations. Even after failing a save against the gas, a confused creature may make a Level 4 Concentration Intellect check to ignore the confusion effect for that round and act normally.
A vast cavern looms ahead, its outlines obscured by eerie vapors. Foul with the scent of ancient decay, these noisome mists crawl unnaturally along the chamber’s irregular floor. Unnerving outlines rise among the strange miasma, then fade back into nothingness as quickly as they appeared. An ancient barge dominates the chamber, hanging unsupported in the air. Little more than a skeleton of scorched spars and torn planks, portions of the ancient vessel flicker and fade, almost as unstable as the shifting vapors around it. In from of the barge is a beastial humanoid floating unconsciously, a rod held tightly in one hand.
In the center of this room levitates an ancient wooden representation of the Barque of Nethys, a craft upon which the monks of the All-Seeing Eye believe their god traveled the multiverse. Those deluded by the mists see the barge as a splendid vessel, afloat on a sea of cloud. In this strange chamber, Nethysian Seers once communed with (hallucinatory) servants of the god-king Nethys, while others “traveled through time and space” aboard the barque of Nethys, chronicling their visions in the House of Life (area 8).
As area 9, this chamber is filled with the breath of Nethys.
Creatures: The unconscious humanoid is Father Jackal. Two animate dreams hide within the breath of Nethys.
In his search of the ruin, he discovered that the priest of Nethys hid the Rough Seed within the dimension of dreams. He found an ancient artifact the priest would use to visit the dream dimension to pull the seed out. When he triggered the staff, there was a powerful surge in magic. It knocked him into a dream state in which he could not escape. A side effect of the wild magic surge was animated dreams escaped from the dream dimension. While free from the dimension they are trapped by the mist. They slowly feed on Father Jackal while using his dreams and memories they have been haunting the dreams of creatures like the Jackalwere hoping to bring someone into the ruin that they can feast on. Eventually they hope to have enough strength of escape the ruin. They flitting from form to form waiting to feed on someones strong desires.
This indistinct figure suddenly takes on a nightmarish shape, not quite human or animal or fiend.
Health: 12
Damage: 5 Intellect damage
Movement: Short
Modification: Stealth as level 7; tasks related to putting creatures to sleep as level 5
Language: telepathy 100 ft.
Combat: An animate dream doesn’t take damage from mundane physical sources, but it takes half damage from spells and attacks that direct energy, and full damage from weapons designed to affect spirits, psychic attacks, and similar attacks.
An animate dream’s touch inflicts psychic damage. Animate dreams try to put their victims to sleep to gain healing sustenance from their victim. An animate dream attack all creatures within short range with a psychic suggestion targets who fail an Intellect defense roll fall into a deep slumbering sleep. When they feed upon a sleeping victim they heal half of the damage they do. While feeding on an unconscious creature it moves the victim one step down the damage track.
An animate dream can move through solid objects of up to level 7 at will, although it can choose to pick up and manipulate objects if it focuses on them. Animate dreams can also go into a state of apparent non-existence for hours or days at a time.
Morale: The Animate Dreams are unable to escape. They fight to the death.
Treasure: None
To pull him from his dream state someone will have to enter the dreams state as he no longer has the energy to wake himself. They can use the Rod of Time and Space to project their minds to the Dimension of Dreams. It a Level 5 artifact (Knowledge Arcana check). Once they do they need only to will Father Jackal to appear before them (Level 4 Intellect check). They can then pull him out of the Dream Realm. When that happens he is slow to wake. Once he fully regains consciousness and has an understanding of what has happened he thanks his rescuers.
If Onyx is there he sees her for what she is, a fellow Jackalwere.
"Since you've rescued me from the illusion of dreams and nightmares, i will rescue you from the illusion cast upon you. I can only imagine that when it was cast upon you, it was to protect you from your human captures. We are viewed as creatures of ill luck to the humans. When they see us they kill us."
He pulls an object from his belt and touches you with it before you can stop him. You feel as if a heavy blanket has been pulled off of you. Your tuffs of rough fur shift to a smoother hide. You sense your ears and snout elongate and face becoming broader. Also you feel like your body is malleable.
"I sense a great power in you. Come with me. I can show what it is to be a jackalwere."
If asked about why and how he got to be here, he just tells the group that he's heard of the lost monastery of Nethys and came here to see if he could recover any relics he could sell. He does not mention the Rough Seed or the Sunset Ship or the One Source Merchant Guild.
Where Onyx goes with him or not he thanks them again for their help. He then shifts into a jackal and bounds out of there as quickly as possible, eager return to the One Source Merchant's Guild with the Rough Seed.