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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Wulf Ratbane" data-source="post: 2321075" data-attributes="member: 94">Prophecies of ZakhtAn adventure for 6th-8th level PCs.BackgroundMore than one thousand years have passed since Zakht, the Plague of Riventon, was finally put to rest. The remote town of Riventon lies at the base of a rocky crag that was once home to Zakht, a great red wyrm of inestimable power, greed, and evil. Zakht’s tyranny over the town was complete, and he raised up a cult of priests and warriors dedicated to enforcing his rule over the countryside and to the appeasement of his most capricious whim.In time, of course, Zakht’s tyranny came to an end (as all such tyrannies do) at the hands of a band of noble adventurers. Zakht was defeated, his temples were torn down, and his followers were killed or scattered.Though finally freed from Zakht’s rule, Riventon was never again as prosperous as it once was. The outskirts of the town still boast many ruins to draw the occasional adventuring company, but the hustle and bustle of evil cultists, slavers, mercenaries, and other unsavory folks that had once supported the town are long gone. Life is quieter now, and the town is little more than a village left to eke out a simple existence.The PCs may be passing by, or they may have come to Riventon seeking adventure in the ruin temples of Zakht, which are rumored to still hold treasures and tribute never collected into his personal hoard.A Mission of Secrecy and UrgencyWhen the PCs pass through or stop in Riventon, they will see billets posted, calling for adventurers willing to undertake “A Mission of Secrecy and Urgency! Rich rewards guaranteed!”Even if the PCs do not follow up immediately on the posting, word of their arrival will spread and they will soon be contacted by the local priestess, Breda. Breda comes, billet in hand, to beg for their help. Breda is young, lithe, beautiful. She wears a silver breastblate engraved with her holy symbol; her midriff is bare and her navel bejeweled; and her long legs are adorned by tall boots and wrapped in a silver dress that shimmers like starlight.She is not only beautiful, she is desperate, and beseeches the good nature of the PCs to help her. If they ask after the reward, she will first suggest (of course) the rich reward of a good deed done, but will eventually relent and offer generous compensation in addition to whatever treasures they may find in the course of their mission.If the PCs take the hook, Breda will lay out the task before them. She may also pay a few local urchins to spread rumors on her behalf. The PCs may find out a few of the following rumors as they are subtly approached by urchins, or through their own efforts by successful Gather Information checks of increasing difficulty:Breda’s reputation in town is impeccable. She is helpful and kind. She is able (if not particularly willing) to cast spells as powerful as Raise Dead.A great treasure still lies unclaimed at the top of the cragThe treasure is guarded by a powerful evil aberrationThe aberration is the offspring of Zakht himself, half-human, half-dragonBreda is fairly typical example of the standard ‘hook:’ a goodly priest in need of help.Once Breda feels that she can trust the PCs, she will explain the nature of her needs.The Skull of ZakhtIn her studies of the local history, Breda has discovered that, in fact, Zakht was not entirely destroyed. High atop the mountain, his skull still survives, in a semi-lich-like state. If the Skull is appeased with a sacrifice of blood, it will stir to life to prophesize for the user. The depth of Zakht’s knowledge is impressive, not only on matters of ancient history, or of the magical arts, but, perhaps most disturbingly, on matters of warfare, strife, murder, and criminal enterprises. That the Skull is secreted atop the crag is little consolation to Breda. The fact that it is inaccessible to ordinary folks simply means that, when the Skull is discovered, it is simply more likely to be discovered by some powerful forces eager and able to use it for greater evil.As if this were not bad enough, it is possible the Skull knows the necessary rituals to bring Zakht back to life. Breda does not believe that the Skull can offer this information freely, but the Skull must answer true, so it may simply be a matter of time before someone asks the right (or, in this case, wrong) question. Breda cannot accomplish the mission without the PCs help—she suffers from acrophobia. Each time she has tried to ascend the mountain, she has been gripped with a sudden fear just as she reached the summit and approached the cave, and has had to turn back. But she is willing to give the PCs what help she can if they will agree to ascend to the top of the crag and destroy the Skull once and for all. She may even volunteer to accompany them as far as she is able.If the PCs ask after the guardian, Breda will tell them what she has been able to ascertain so far through her own divinations. She does not believe that the guardian is, in fact, an offspring of Zakht, but rather a powerful dark naga or spirit naga.All That GlittersBreda is, in fact, one of the few remaining priestesses of Zakht. Parts of her story are true, and parts are designed to take advantage of adventurers’ gullibility. True enough, she has a stellar reputation in the town; she can and does help the townsfolk with such healing as she can provide. She is evil, but she is crafty, and she has laid very cunning plans that would be spoiled by any obvious, foolish, or unnecessary eviltry.It is also true that the Skull of Zakht waits at the top of the mountain; it does in fact prophesize; and it may in fact tell Breda how to bring Zakht back to life. The Skull is guarded by a naga, true enough, but it is a guardian naga, not a dark or spirit naga. Breda hopes that, even if the PCs are clever enough to attempt a divination, her lack of specificity on this point will confound their efforts.Breda’s domains are Strength and Trickery; her Bluff skill is maxxed out and she begins each day by casting Undetectable Alignment.The AscentAssuming that the entire party can’t simply fly to the top of the mountain (and at the recommended levels, they shouldn’t…) the ascent is an adventure within itself. Breda will help to outfit the PCs for their climb, covering the PCs for their expenses in climbing gear. The mountain is a craggy, cracked, and splintery thing, prone to crumbling slopes and falling rocks at its feet, and covered in ice and blinding snow near the peak. The PCs will have to contend with an ice storm during their ascent, which will increase Climb and Balance check DCs by +5 (at least). If Breda is not actually accompanying the PCs at this point, she will trail them, using invisibility and/or her Hide skill. If she is accompanying them, she will stop short of the summit, sending the PCs along with whatever spells may help them succeed.The GuardianMost of Zakht’s lair collapsed in the ensuing fight, but there is still a short complex of multiple caves. The heroes who destroyed Zakht were unable to completely destroy him, so they left the guardian here while they searched for a way to finish the job. For whatever reason, they never returned, but the guardian naga remains true to her duty.The guardian naga will leave the Skull in the deeper caves and move to investigate anyone who enters the cave. She will almost always begin by casting deeper darkness to confuse and frighten her opponents. If she is pushed to use deadly force, she has phantasmal killer, and it is perhaps a feature of the high altitude her that the deadly spell seems to manifest as acute (and deadly) acrophobia when it takes effect.The Cunning PlanBreda’s plan is to use the PCs to distract the naga so that she can escape with the Skull. Her shimmering silver dress is, in fact, a portable hole, unrolled to its full six-foot diameter and then fashionably wrapped around her legs. While the PCs parlay (or fight) with the guardian, she will proceed to the back of the cave complex, cast enlarge on herself, unroll her portable hole, and shove the Skull inside. Then, she hopes, she can simply wrap the ‘dress’ back around her legs and escape with no one the wiser.Breda has a battery of spells ready to enact this plan. She will use confusion, if necessary, to entice the guardian naga to attack the PCs (or vice versa), as well as non-detection on herself or the skull prior to trying to escape.If the PCs or the naga recover enough to try to stop Breda, she will defend herself craftily, using Combat Reflexes and Improved Sunder to try to deflect any attack that may come at her. This might give the PCs a clue as to where the Skull is “hiding,” as, in fact, Breda lives in terror that her “dress” will be torn and the Skull will be lost forever. The PCs may deliberately try to attack her dress using the Attack an Object combat action, but this will provoke an attack of opportunity, which Breda will use to try to sunder any sharp weapon that comes at her. Of course, another PC with Improved Sunder can attack Breda or her dress without provoking this attack of opportunity. As Breda is likely to be enlarged, and probably with divine favor and/or bull’s strength going at the same time, she’s a tough nut to crack with sunder and she will plow through the PCs weapons as fast as she can. She’ll save her domain power to boost her Strength when she attempts to sunder the most impressive blade the PCs own.It may take the PCs a while to figure it out, but tearing Breda’s dress is the most simple and effective way to destroy the Skull for good.DenouementWrapping up the adventure may depend on how well the GM played Breda's deception. There is a good chance she will survive and escape with the Skull, in which case the door is open for many more adventures along this 'path.'Otherwise, the GM may need to drop the necessary clues ("She seems very concerned about deflecting your blows away from her dress...") in order to help the PCs succeed. In this case the wrap-up is a fairly simple affair, except perhaps to find out if there were other cultists working with Breda who may now have an interest in the PCs.Guardian Naga—guards the Skull of ZakhtPortable Hole—Breda’s dress; a subtle subterfuge for escaping with the SkullImproved Sunder—the key to tearing the dress and destroying the portable hole (and the Skull with it)Torn Dress—the weak link in Breda’s cunning planIce Storm—an obstacle on the path to the craggy peakAcrophobia—Breda's excuse for not going up the mountain herself, and the deadly effect of the guardian naga’s phantasmal killer</blockquote>

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