Undermountain - Temple to Loviator? - my players stay out!

[Raflar]

A friend of mine is borrowing my Waterdeep books (new hardcover and City of Splendors boxed set) so I can't look this up right now. I remember reading something that there was a secret temple to Loviator (Forgotten Realms goddess of pain, whips and S&M) located in Undermountain somewhere.

I have the Undermountain boxed set, but after a quick scan, I can't seem to find any info. Does anyone know where this temple is located and if there are any details on it? If it's in the Undermountain boxed set what level? I don't have time to read the entire book just to find this bit of info. Even though the rest could prove useful I'm just looking for the temple stuff.

This is for a solo campaign in which the PC (Gnome - Psion/Cleric of Hoar) has started a small business called the Seekers Guild in which he (with some helpful NPCs) investigates crimes and collects bounties (Waterdeep's Most Wanted) and brings justice to those wronged. The Seeker's Guild is loosely associated with the City Watch but focuses on jobs where the law binds the Watch's hands. In a previous session in Undermountain while rescueing a lost noble's son, he found a small shrine to Loviator where the noble was tied up (with others). Now the PC wants to investigate if there are more Whip-wielding-priest(esses) down there.

Any help would be appreciated. If there is nothing there and I'm just losing my mind (good possibility) then I'll just create it on my own. But I know that several Waterdhavian Nobles worship her and would like to know who.

 

[Raflar]

Anyone? Anyone at all. Don't be shy... There must be some Forgotten Realms Junkies around here.... Kuge31 - you seem to know as much about the realms as Elminster or Volo...

We're playing this weekend so I would like to have something prepared if possible. I can make it up but if the work is already done for me, I can use that time for other aspects of the game.

So if anyone can point me in a direction of where to look I'd appreciate it. Thanks.

 

[Arnwyn]

Yes, there is a temple to Loviatar, called "The House of Pain".

It's in Undermountain Level 1, in the rooms along the very north section of the Level 1 map.

This was mentioned (but not really detailed) in an article (called "Report From Undermountain") in Dragon #227, by Steven Schend.

 

[kuje31]

Anyone? Anyone at all. Don't be shy... There must be some Forgotten Realms Junkies around here.... Kuge31 - you seem to know as much about the realms as Elminster or Volo...

We're playing this weekend so I would like to have something prepared if possible. I can make it up but if the work is already done for me, I can use that time for other aspects of the game.

So if anyone can point me in a direction of where to look I'd appreciate it. Thanks.

Sorry. I usually only lurk over here once a day. Now if you asked on WOTC's or Candlekeep's boards, I would have saw this faster.

 

[Sernett]

The original Undermountain boxed set has an encounter revolving around the idea of the "temple," but it's not very detailed. Mainly, there's a fight with orcs working for High Whipmaster Hlethvagi Anteos who uses some parts of Undermountain to have meetings and to hide contraband. There's also an encounter with a hobgoblin that works for him. By his description in that product, Hlethvagi seems more interested in illegal trade than being the leader of a cult of Loviatar. There isn't really a temple per se.

City of Splendors: Waterdeep picks things up in 1372, the Year of Wild Magic. That's some 10 years later, making Hlethvagi quite old. City of Splendors: Waterdeep says that during the last four years, Hlethvagi has used some of his fortunes to establish the House of Pain, an actual temple to Loviatar on level one. Given the aforementioned article and the info from the book, it's safe to assume the temple is in the northern part of the 1st level and rather large. Unfortunately, there's little detail beyond that.

In the Undermountain column I write for the Wizards of the Coast website, I've avoided detailing areas in the northern section of the dungeon to leave room for a big temple. I've also avoided detailing the temple because the format of the column doesn't allow for the right kind of article. The column presents rooms as individual encounters, and dealing with the temple seems to me like it could be a whole adventure.

If you don't have the original boxed set, you can get a map of the first level from the Wizards of the Coast website. There is an area of what could be jail cells just south of a stairway down into Undermountain in the northern part of the dungeon (the Long Dark Stair that leads up to an alley behind the Blushing Nymph festhall in Waterdeep), and I suggest using those areas and the surrounding rooms as the temple complex. The jail cell area seems a cool place to store the House of Pain's victims.

 

[DaveMage]

I love EN World.

Great answers from generous people.

 

[marune]

In the Undermountain column I write for the Wizards of the Coast website, I've avoided detailing areas in the northern section of the dungeon to leave room for a big temple. I've also avoided detailing the temple because the format of the column doesn't allow for the right kind of article. The column presents rooms as individual encounters, and dealing with the temple seems to me like it could be a whole adventure.

We must also understand that it's why Halaster's heirs magical academy isn't included in this column... Someones understood where it is supposed to be (on first level) ?

 

[ericlboyd]

As mentioned above, the Temple of Loviatar in Undermountain is revealed in Dragon #227 in the "Reports from Undermountain" article.

The name "House of Pain" actually comes from the Complete Necromancers' Handbook. If you look at the NPCs in the back, two of them are based in Waterdeep and worship at a temple of Loviatar called the House of Pain.

I combined the unnamed temple and the name for an unplaced temple into one locale in City of Splendors: Waterdeep.

--Eric

PS The two NPCs from the Complete Necromancers' Handbook show up in short paragraph write-ups in City of Splendors: Waterdeep.

 

[ruleslawyer]

Well, Eric and Matt have weighed in, so what more is there to say? (Sorry I didn't get to this sooner, Raflar!)

Is it fair use to post a rough summary of the details from Dragon #227, or not? I can do so if allowed...

Finally, the important parts of the House of Pain could be as follows:

1) A connection between the temple and the dark Loviatan rituals performed on occasional nights in Black Well Court (see Volo's Guide to Waterdeep). Perhaps a portal or secret passageway affording PCs an easy dump into Undermountain?

2) As for nobles, you're on your own to pick Loviatar-worshipping nobles. I'd actually recommend taking a few from less obviously suspicious noble families: Some, like the Anteos clan, are written up with a patently sinister reputation, whereas others (like the Roaringhorns) are written to seem more benign. I'd choose my Loviatans from the latter, or even better, from an NPC or two already known to (and trusted by) the PC. It's just not worth being obvious here; Loviatans should be people with secret fetishes and obsessions, not obvious muhahahaha evil types.

3) Hlethvagi is pretty clearly written up as a serious smuggler of note in the original boxed set. One way to expand on this might be to tie in his smuggling with Loviatar's ideology: Perhaps he supplies the nation of Dambrath with some much-needed supplies, or has begun to specialize in shipments of slaves for torture, liquid pain (see BoVD, which is practically a must if you're doing stuff with Loviatar!), or drugs with long-term and subtle, but painful and crippling, side effects.

4) Ellandra and whats-her-face from CBN would be good NPCs to use; I think there are probably more than a few interesting plotlines to mine there.

 

[Raflar]

Thanks for all the info. I finally found the 'jail cells' in level one of Undermountain (thanks Matt for the directions) I can't believe I actually missed that since I was specifically looking for 'the long dark stairs' - I guess I shouldn't be reading at 3am

I've already established that certain members of House Husteem are involved. I agree with 'Rules Lawyer' that some 'nicer' more respected Houses need to have their fetishes revealed. The PC is on really good terms with both the Helmfasts and Raventrees (the latter having donated a building to his cause after rescuing a young noble from certain death) so I think after building up some more trust I will slowly reveal some clues to a tie-in.

I also like the idea of an aged and slightly crippled Anteos struggling to hang onto his power - a tough old man who feels nothing anymore (physical or emotional) so he inflicts great amounts of pain upon others and himself just to 'feel'... he's somewhat lost his passion for his Dark Mistress' cause so he goes even deeper over the edge to try and find it. hmmm.. wheels are turning, ideas are churning and the PC will be burning in the end... mwuhahahaha

Thanks again.


I have the Necromancer's Book packed in a box that I will have to dig out. I vaguely remember the NPCs in the back.