TEXT: A G 3 2 0 9
  AN ADVENTURE FOR CHARACTERS OF 9TH LEVEL AND ABOVE
  REQUIRES THE USE OF THE DUNGEONS & DRAGONS® PLAYER’S HANDBOOK,
  THIRD EDITION, PUBLISHED BY WIZARDS OF THE COAST®
  BY MONTE COOK
  
  AN ADVENTURE MODULE FOR CHARACTERS OF 9TH LEVEL OR HIGHER
  BY MONTE COOK
  INTRODUCTION:
  A Rampaging Dragon
  3
  CHAPTER ONE
  The Village of Iversham
  6
  CHAPTER TWO
  Into the Swamp
  12
  CHAPTER THREE
  The Order of Saint Chausle
  17
  CHAPTER FOUR
  The Tower and the Bridge
  22
  CHAPTER FIVE
  Storamere’s Palace
  25
  APPENDIX A
  Experience Chart
  46
  APPENDIX B
  Map of Storamere’s Palace
  47
  Index
  48
  
  AUTHOR: Chris Aylott
  EDITOR: Michelle A Brown Nephew
  ART DIRECTION & GRAPHIC DESIGN: Scott Reeves
  COVER DESIGN: Scott Reeves and John Tynes
  COVER ILLUSTRATION: Helena Wickberg, Phoenix Studio
  INTERIOR ILLUSTRATIONS: Mike Dutton
  PUBLISHER: John Nephew
  PLAYTESTERS: Michele Carter, Sue Cook, Erik Mona,
  Chris Perkins, and Sean Reynolds
  SPECIAL THANKS TO Alex Knapik and Jerry Corrick
  Saint Paul, Minnesota
  info@atlas-games.com • www.atlas-games.com
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  15 COPYRIGHT NOTICE
  Open Game License v 1.0a Copyright 2001, Wizards of the Coast,
  Inc.
  D20 System Rules & Content Copyright 2000 Wizards of the
  Coast, Inc.; Authors Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams,
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  About the Author
  Monte Cook has been in the game industry a long time, but you probably mostly care that he was one of the 3rd Edition
  D&D designers and wrote the Dungeon Master’s Guide and Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil. Monte owns his own
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  DEDICATED TO Jonathan and Skip.
  
  Stories about dragons rampaging across the
  countryside are almost always false. The crea-
  tures are just too intelligent, too crafty, and too
  strategy-minded to “rampage.” Rampaging
  brings the wrath of oath-bound knights, power-
  ful mages and divinely-protected priests. Why
  would a dragon want such attention, unless it
  had some special secret, or unless it was insane?
  Or both.
  The northern reaches of the Derideth Swamp
  were once plagued by a rampaging dragon. This
  black dragon, named Storamere, attacked
  human villages, wiped out orc camps, drove off
  the 
  lizardfolk, 
  and 
  decimated 
  farmland.
  Storamere had inherited an impressive lair per-
  haps more fitting for a dragon of much greater
  stature. He attacked settlements in order to draw
  vengeful heroes into this lair to defeat them
  utterly within its dangerous confines. Storamere
  took a great deal a mad glee from this.
  Over two hundred and fifty years ago, however,
  he met his untimely end. The monks of the
  Order of St. Chausle goaded him into attacking
  what appeared to be a defenseless monastery,
  and then slew him outright in a sudden surprise
  ambush. Storamere died with a curse upon his
  draconic tongue. “You could not have defeated
  me in my lair,” he told his slayers. “I am forever
  invincible in my lair.”
  Adventure Synopsis
  The player characters are contacted to help a
  small community in need. Iversham, a village on
  the edge of a dismal swamp, is plagued by a
  black dragon. This seemingly routine (if chal-
  lenging) mission proves to be much more than it
  appears, however. Reports from witnesses who
  have seen the dragon and survived turn up some
  strange facts. The dragon has been seen to pass
  through trees. Its gaze seems to inflict harm all
  by itself. The dragon’s touch saps the life from
  living things. If any of these things are true, this
  is no ordinary dragon.
  More poking around town reveals this important
  bit of information: it refers to itself as
  “Storamere,” a dragon that hasn’t been seen for
  several hundred years. If this is Storamere, he
  should be much older (and thus bigger) than
  reports describe the dragon being. These clues
  alone might lead smart players to figure out that
  Storamere is dead — or rather, undead. Of
  course, many won’t. The same information can
  be learned by traipsing into the swamp looking
  for the dragon. After some other encounters,
  eventually the PCs run into the ghost of the
  dragon. They can either flee from Storamere or
  defeat him; it doesn’t matter. Ghosts just come
  back unless permanently laid to rest.
  THE MAD MONKS
  Advice from people in Iversham suggests that the
  PCs visit an old monastery in the swamp that
  may hold information about the dragon. The
  Monks of St. Chausle were Storamere’s original
  slayers. Now, unfortunately, there are only two
  monks left, and they are not up to the task that
  their forebears once undertook. In fact, they are
  both quite mad. It’s tricky to get information out
  of them, but once the PCs manage it, they learn
  that while Storamere was alive, he was supreme-
  ly haughty, and overconfident. He always
  bragged about how powerful he was within his
  own lair. He stressed that he simply could not be
  defeated there. While at the monastery, the PCs
  must help defeat one of Storamere’s progeny, a
  terrible half-dragon stone giant.
  And if the PCs get the information about its
  demise, they learn that in fact, Storamere wasn’t
  defeated in his lair — he was killed when he was
  attacking the monastery. That is the trick to lay-
  ing Storamere to rest permanently: he must be
  defeated in his own lair. This lair has never been
  found, but clues learned at the monastery, linked
  with 
  some 
  other 
  deductions 
  (like, 
  why
  3
  INTRODUCTION
  A Rampaging Dragon
  
  Storamere’s ghost is
  showing up now, after
  all these years), lead
  the PCs to a strange
  old 
  ruined 
  tower
  recently plundered by
  some other adventur-
  ers. A broken bridge
  leading halfway across
  a river turns out to be
  a 
  gateway 
  to 
  the
  Ethereal Plane.
  THE ETHEREAL
  PALACE
  Storamere wasn’t jok-
  ing when he said he
  was 
  tough 
  in 
  his
  palace. His palace
  exists on the Ethereal
  Plane, on a floating
  island accessible by
  crossing the “broken”
  magical bridge near
  the ruined tower.
  The palace itself is
  magical, in that the
  walls are made of
  solidified 
  acid.
  Fecund and twisted,
  Storamere created a
  number of half-drag-
  on creatures while he
  was alive — a half-
  dragon manticore, a
  half-dragon constric-
  tor snake, and a few
  half-dragon 
  dark
  elves. Many of his
  children remain in the
  palace 
  with 
  their
  ghostly sire.
  Since they’re on the
  Ethereal 
  Plane,
  Storamere is more like
  a traditional dragon
  here 
  than 
  before.
  However, he has pools
  of acid to hide in,
  secret tricks for mov-
  ing around the palace
  4
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  
  5
  INTRODUCTION: A RAMPAGING DRAGON
  unseen, and other challenges for the PCs to deal
  with. Eventually, though, one epic battle later (or
  possibly two), the world is hopefully rid of the
  ghostly threat once and for all.
  Enter the Characters
  There are a number of ways the Game
  Moderator can get the Player Characters
  involved in the adventure. 
  • A Plea for Help. Perhaps through a com-
  mon link (a friend, past associate, or relative
  local to the area around Iversham), or per-
  haps because of the PCs’ reputation as
  heroes, the PCs receive a message from
  Iversham stating their problem with the
  dragon and the need for help. Mayor Unnis
  Mavin is offering a 1,000 gp reward — prob-
  ably not enough to interest the characters,
  but enough to show that things are serious.
  The plea includes the large size of the black
  dragon, cluing in-the-know characters (or
  players) that it’s a mission well within their
  capabilities.
  • Just Passing By. The characters are near
  the Derideth Swamp on other matters (a dif-
  ferent adventure) when they hear that the
  area is being seriously threatened by a black
  dragon of Large size, cluing in-the-know
  characters (or players) that it’s a mission well
  within their capabilities.
  • An Obscure Reference. The PCs learn
  that something that they need regarding a
  different adventure (a lost magic item of
  importance, a key, a spell, etc.) is located in
  “the forever-hidden, always-burning fortress,
  deep in the Derideth Swamp.” This clue
  refers to Storamere’s lair. It should not refer
  to Storamere — leave that to be a connection
  that the players must deduce for themselves. 
  Open Game Content
  The Penumbra™ line of D20 System™ supplements is published under the terms of the D20
  System Trademark License and the Open Game License. The portions of this book that are
  rules-related — for example, character statistics and monster ability descriptions — are defined
  as open game content.
  This means that you are welcome to borrow and use these materials, under the terms of the
  Open Game License (see the credits page for its detailed terms), in materials of your own cre-
  ation. For example, you could use a new monster from this adventure for a different adventure
  that you design and share with the rest of the world through your personal website, or even in a
  printed publication. In this book, the open game content is contained in textured insert boxes
  like this one.
  The artwork in this adventure and most of the original storyline text does not rely on the D20
  system, and thus is not open game content. This proprietary material, which is everything out-
  side of the insert boxes, cannot be reproduced in any way without the express permission of Atlas
  Games or the individual artist who owns the copyright to the image.
  If you are interested in doing Open Game License or D20 System products of your own, you
  should go to www.opengamingfoundation.org to learn more and find the latest versions of
  the licenses.
  
  6
  Iversham is a small community on the banks of
  the White River, which feeds into the Derideth
  Swamp. Most of the people in the village hunt or
  fish, shipping what they don’t need to the rich
  farmland communities to the north. It rains fre-
  quently here, and is very humid most of the rest
  of the time. The temperature remains fairly mod-
  erate year round, however.
  Iversham
  Village
  Conventional; AL LG; 200 gp limit; Assets 5340 gp;
  Population 534; Isolated (504 humans, 13 halflings, 8
  elves, 6 dwarves, 2 half-orcs and 1 half-elf)
  Authority Figures: Mayor Unnis Mavin, female
  human Ari5
  Important Characters: Gastor Hul, male human
  War4 (hunter); Jassel Goldtooth, female dwarf
  Exp4 (blacksmith); Tae Lorenorth, female elf
  Wiz4; Nab Finiling, male human Com4; Strubben
  Seim, male human Clr4 (cleric of the sun deity);
  Chaserson Ibble, male halfling Com3 (merchant);
  Evon Kellar, female human Com3 (trapper); Siles
  One-Leg, male human Exp2 (craftsman); Aberith
  Followsong male elf Rng1
  Others: Ari1 (2); War1 (8); Com2 (9); Exp1 (3);
  Com1 (390)
  Places of Note
  The village of Iversham has only about seventy
  buildings. About sixty of these are homes. The
  people of Iversham built most of the buildings of
  gray stone with thatch roofs, although they are
  covered in green and black moss and slime from
  the rain and humidity here. A few smaller homes
  of wood and wattle are scattered amid the others.
  Some of the more prominent locations in town
  are detailed below.
  THE BURNED HOUSE
  Located on the outskirts of the east end of the vil-
  lage, this was the home of Dack and Illa Gerrith, a
  weaver and a carpenter, respectively. Storamere
  attacked this home with a blast of his acidic breath,
  leaving it a burned, strangely distorted ruin. The
  Gerriths both died in the attack.
  Everyone in the village knows that the house was
  recently destroyed and that the Gerriths are dead.
  Most people assume correctly that it was the drag-
  on. Iversham is small enough that it’s hard for any-
  one coming into the village not to notice the twisted
  remains of the house.
  SWAMP MOON INN
  This two-story building is the largest in town.
  The painted sign over the door, showing the
  moon setting into the green and gray mire of the
  swamp, is faded and chipped. Once a thriving
  place of drink, food, and lodging, the Swamp
  Moon Inn has seen better days. Tarred Mavin,
  the Mayor’s son, has recently bought the place
  and has big dreams of making it great again. For
  now, however, it remains as it has for years —
  middling- to poor-quality meals, somewhat stale
  ale, and shabby accommodations. Perhaps even
  worse, the short and stocky Tarred is new to town
  (the Mayor sent him off to a larger city for an
  education) so he knows nothing and no one.
  Most of the villagers ignore the Inn, but for visitors
  like the PCs, there’s nowhere else to stay.
  TEMPLE TO THE SUN
  Strubben Seim, the only cleric at the temple, is
  an enormous human man with a friendly but
  quickly judgmental attitude. The building itself is
  large by Iversham’s standards, smaller only than
  the Swamp Moon Inn by virtue of having no sec-
  ond story.
  CHAPTER ONE
  The Village of Iversham
  
  7
  CHAPTER ONE: THE VILLAGE OF IVERSHAM
  Strubben Seim
  4th-Level Male Human Cleric 
  CR 4; SZ M (humanoid); HD 4d8+4; hp 29; Init –1 (Dex); Spd 20 ft.; AC 14 (–1 Dex, +5 breastplate); Atk melee
  +5 (1d8+1, masterwork heavy mace); Face 5 ft. x 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.; SA Spells; AL NG; SV Fort +6, Ref +1, Will
  +8; Str 12, Dex 9, Con 13, Int 10, Wis 16, Cha 12
  Skills: Concentration +4, Diplomacy +5, Knowledge (religion) +7, Spellcraft +7
  Feats: Brew Potion, Dodge, Toughness
  Spells: (5/4+1/3+1) Strubben’s domains are Good (cast all good spells at +1 level), and Sun (greater turning once
  per day, undead turned are destroyed instead). Domain spells are marked with an asterisk.
  0 Level — detect magic, guidance, light, read magic, resistance
  1st Level — bless, command, comprehend languages, endure elements*, sanctuary
  2nd Level — aid*, bull’s strength, enthrall, lesser restoration
  Possessions: breastplate, masterwork heavy mace, +1 cloak of resistance, scroll of divine favor and remove poison,
  potion of levitation, two flasks of holy water, 243 gp. Strubben also has several potions to sell; see insert above.
  A huge stone statue of a woman holding the sun
  aloft in her hands stands before the double doors
  of the temple, although it has become black with
  mold and moss from all the rain. The building
  itself is just one large room (the sanctuary) with a
  few rooms in the back for storage and for
  Strubben. The temple is also used as a school
  and a meeting hall when one is needed.
  STRUBBEN’S SERVICES
  As a service to the community and to his patron,
  Strubben Seim casts whatever spells are requested of
  him for the standard donations (40 gp per spell level,
  20 gp for 0-level spells). Strubben also makes potions,
  and has the following already made:
  Potion
  Cost
  3 Potions of Cure Light Wounds
  50 gp each
  Potion of Aid
  300 gp
  Potion of Bull’s Strength
  300 gp
  Potion of Cure Moderate Wounds
  300 gp
  Potion of Endurance
  300 gp
  2 Potions of Lesser Restoration
  300 gp each
  Strubben gave advice and magical aid (in the
  form of spells cast and potions) to some adven-
  turers that passed through Iversham a few weeks
  ago. They were looking for an old tower and a
  bridge that they had heard about, but Strubben
  did not know where it was. He has not seen them
  since (see the Tower and the Bridge on page 22).
  He worries about them now, because of the drag-
  on sightings. They didn’t seem up to the chal-
  lenge of a dragon to Strubben. “Of course, there
  were no dragon sightings back then, or I would
  never have let them go off into the swamp in the
  first place.”
  Strubben has met but does not care for the
  monks of St. Chausle. They are strange and
  rude, in his estimation. He doesn’t recommend
  going there for any reason. “Those foolish old
  codgers wouldn’t tell you anything — if they
  know anything. Which is doubtful.”
  IBBLE’S OUTFITTERS
  Chaserson Ibble, a narrow-faced, brown-haired
  halfling with a penchant for speaking very quick-
  ly and at great length, owns the only real store in
  Iversham. Long ago, the area had a much larger
  halfling population, and Chaserson’s family was
  quite wealthy and influential. Most of the
  halflings left long ago, but the Ibble family stayed.
  Chaserson (Chase to his friends — which is every-
  one in town) sells pretty much whatever miscella-
  neous equipment the PCs need under 200 gp.
  Beyond a few knives or a small wooden shield, he
  sells no weapons or armor.
  Chase hears everything, and so he knows all about
  the dragon sightings — the size of the dragon, the
  color, and the fact that it calls itself Storamere.
  He’s also so dedicated a worker that he hardly
  ever leaves the shop — so he hasn’t seen anything
  
  8
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  first hand. He doesn’t really want to believe in the
  dragon, but the fact that one of the houses in town
  was destroyed by what looks like acid certainly
  makes it hard to doubt (see The Burned House on
  page 6).
  SMITHY
  Jassel Goldtooth is a friendly, golden-haired
  dwarf. She and her two human assistants make
  and all sorts of metal items, including weapons
  and armor under 200 gp. Jassel loves to gossip
  and tell stories, but she really knows little about
  the swamp itself. In fact, she never ventures into
  it. Jassel hasn’t seen Storamere, but she’s heard
  the stories. It confirms her overall fear of the
  swamp. She knows that Storamere is the name of
  a black dragon that lived in the area over 200
  years ago.
  BOWYER
  Siles One-Leg had always assumed that he would
  be an adventurer, but an accident led to an infec-
  tion and his leg had to be removed when he was
  only 12 years old. Now, he is a bitter, long-haired
  man in his early forties.
  Siles makes nicely crafted bows and arrows here, and
  even has mighty and masterwork-quality wares (even
  though they are beyond the price range of items typ-
  ically found in a village of this size).
  
  9
  CHAPTER ONE: THE VILLAGE OF IVERSHAM
  Tae Lorenorth
  4th-Level Female Elf Wizard
  CR 4; SZ M (humanoid); HD 4d4–4; hp 8 hp; Init +3 (Dex); Spd 30 ft.; AC 14 (+3 Dex, +1 bracers);
  Atk melee +2 (1d4, dagger); Face 5 ft. x 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.; SA Spells; SQ Elf Traits, Low-light Vision;
  AL CG; SV Fort +3, Ref +4, Will +4; Str 11, Dex 17, Con 9, Int 16, Wis 10, Cha 13
  Skills: Alchemy +10, Concentration + 6, Knowledge (arcana) +10, Spellcraft +10
  Feats: Brew Potion, Great Fortitude, Scribe Scroll
  Elf Traits: As an elf, Tae is immune to magic sleep spells and effects. Elves also get a +2 racial saving
  throw bonus against Enchantment spells or effects. She also has Low-light Vision.
  Low-light Vision: Characters with low-light vision can see outdoors on a moonlit night as well as
  they can during the day.
  Spells: (4/4/2)
  0 Level — detect magic, mage hand, read magic, resistance
  1st Level — magic missile, sleep, charm person, shield
  2nd Level — invisibility, summon monster II
  Spellbook:
  0 Level — all
  1st Level — charm person, expeditious retreat, jump, magic missile, protection from evil, sleep,
  shield
  2nd Level — blur, darkvision, detect thoughts, invisibility, levitation, see invisibility, summon 
  monster II
  Possessions: +1 bracers of armor, scroll of expeditious retreat, potion of cure light wounds, two 25 gp
  rings, 121 gp. Tae also has several potions and scrolls to sell; see insert box on page 11.
  Siles is convinced that there is no dragon, despite
  what everyone says. He hates lizardfolk, and he
  thinks the dragon is nothing more than a trick
  perpetrated by the lizardfolk to scare off the vil-
  lagers. He believes that the lizardfolk would like
  to drive off the villagers and claim the land for
  themselves (which is true, by the way, but the
  lizardfolk are far too few in number to attempt
  such a thing — and they certainly have no way to
  create a fake dragon).
  OLD NAB’S
  Nab Finiling sells and rents rowboats for use on
  the White River. Flat-bottomed, these boats rest
  high in the water and can even be used to navi-
  gate wet areas of the swamp. Nab is unbelievably
  old and moves very slowly. He doesn’t say much
  unless you ask him about the layout of the
  swamp. On that topic he knows much, including
  the location of the ruined tower and bridge (see
  page 22) and is willing to share specifics, but still
  speaks very slowly, and only answers direct ques-
  tions.
  Old Nab saw the ghost dragon once, three days
  ago, but doesn’t say anything unless asked direct-
  ly. He was on the river in a boat, and saw it far
  off in the distance, moving through the trees —
  literally. It spooked him, so he tries not to think
  about it much.
  TAE LORENORTH’S HOUSE
  This is a well-appointed but fairly small, single
  story wooden home. Tae, a surprisingly beautiful
  elf with long red hair and dazzling, almost gold-
  en eyes, is a wizard willing and able to make
  potions and scrolls for sale (although she rarely
  has customers interested in scrolls). She is friend-
  
  10
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  ly and a bit wistful when it comes to learning
  much about the world beyond the swamp’s edge.
  She would love to leave Iversham, but believes
  her father is lost somewhere in the swamp and
  feels the need to remain here in case he ever
  returns. She doesn’t get the opportunity to make
  many sales, but even one keeps her going for
  weeks. 
  If she meets and talks with the PCs, Tae would
  love to go into the swamp with them, both to get
  in on a little excitement and to possibly find her
  father. She’s terrified that the stories she’s heard
  about a dragon in the swamp could mean a great
  danger for her father. She’s never seen the drag-
  on, though.
  Of course, Tae is probably not nearly as power-
  ful as the PCs, and is actually fairly fragile phys-
  ically. If she does accompany the PCs, they’ll
  need to safeguard her carefully or she will almost
  certainly not survive.
  (The whereabouts of Tae’s father are beyond the
  scope of this adventure, but could lead to further
  adventures in the area).
  If your group isn’t up for roleplaying interactions with the townspeople, they can learn a few
  basic facts based on a Gather Information check, which reflects talking with villagers here and
  there on a casual basis for the better part of a day.
  The following information is presented as quotes from various villagers. The greater the result
  of the roll, the more information the PCs learn:
  DC
  Information
  5
  “The dragon? It’s as black as tar, long like a snake — about the size of a good-sized
  bear (with wings, a tail, and a long neck, of course). It talks a lot when it attacks, boast-
  ing about itself and putting down the poor folks it attacks. Calls itself Storamere.
  Attacked the village two nights ago — burned the Gerriths and their house pretty
  much to the ground.”
  10
  “Storamere is the name of a black dragon that plagued the area over 200 years ago.
  Back then, the dragon was about the size of a horse and attacked everything and
  everyone in sight.”
  12
  “They say that the dragon can hurt ya simply by looking at ya. Better watch out.
  Everyone’s afraid of goin’ out into the swamp now. Hunters, trappers — they’s all
  afraid.”
  15
  “The thing is, the monks at the Order of St. Chausle always say that they killed the
  dragon Storamere long ago.”
  18
  “Oh, I seen it. Strangest thing you ever saw. Flew right through the trees like they was-
  n’t there. I was hiding — hunting, you understand. It flew right by me. “
  20
  “Storamere, in the old days, talked a lot about his lair. Said he was unbeatable there.
  Some sort of special place — I don’t know. I don’t know that no one’s ever found it,
  either, and, back then anyway, plenty looked for it. Maybe them that killed him found
  and plundered it.”
  25
  “I … saw it. It attacked my friend Ranold. It grabbed him in one of those terrible
  claws. Except that Ranold … he didn’t really bleed. He just sort of … withered. It was
  so awful. I was lucky to get away. I don’t know what happened to Ranold, but … well,
  I’m sure he’s dead.
  30
  “Some other adventurers like yerselfs was here not too long ago. Went out to some old
  tower or castle out in the swamp. I dunno. Never seen it myself. Sounds like hooey.”
  Rolling for Information
  
  11
  CHAPTER ONE: THE VILLAGE OF IVERSHAM
  TAE’S POTIONS AND SCROLLS
  Tae has the following already made and for sale:
  Potion
  Cost
  Potion of Jump
  50 gp
  Potion of Mage Armor
  50 gp
  Potion of Protection from Evil
  50 gp
  Potion of Love
  150 gp
  Potion of Intelligence
  300 gp
  Potion of Invisibility
  300 gp
  Potion of Blur
  300 gp
  Potion of Levitation
  300 gp
  Scroll
  Cost
  Scroll of Expeditious Retreat
  25 gp
  Scroll of Shield
  25 gp
  Scroll of Darkvision
  125 gp
  Scroll of Mirror Image
  125 gp
  Scroll of See Invisibility
  125 gp
  Learning More 
  When the PCs come into the village, they may not
  know much more than the fact that a dragon has
  been attacking the people here as well as those ven-
  turing into the swamp. If they don’t even know that,
  they’ll learn about it quickly — the dragon attacks
  are the main topic of conversation.
  Just because the PCs didn’t roll high enough to
  learn all the information doesn’t mean that they can
  never find it out. Speaking with various NPCs
  directly allows them to learn more as decided by the
  GM. They can also find out more information at
  the monastery (see Chapter Three). Just about any-
  one in town can give the PCs directions to the
  monastery, although many of them will warn the
  PCs that no one really goes there anymore. In fact,
  only Mayor Mavin knows that there are monks
  there at all. She’s quite forthright about it, telling
  the PCs that Brother Freton and Brother Savisoll
  are quite mad, but perhaps knowledgeable. 
  USING DIVINATION SPELLS
  The PCs probably have a number of divination
  spells at their command that can help learn more
  about Storamere.
  Divination. The PCs can use this spell for advice. If
  the PCs use this spell to find Storamere, it might say
  something like, “In the depths of the mire, Storamere
  will find you.” If they use it to try to find his lair it
  would say, “Look to those in the ruins of order,
  though they are mad, they are wise.”
  Commune. This spell can confirm that the dragon
  attacking the village is indeed the same dragon from
  250 years ago, but it won’t actually reveal that he’s a
  ghost unless the question is asked directly.
  Legend Lore. This powerful spell is likely to reveal
  that Storamere is a ghost, and that his palace is on
  another plane. Further uses of this spell can be used
  to determine the secret to finally putting Storamere’s
  ghost to rest — killing him in his own lair.
  FINDING OUT FIRST HAND
  The PCs can, of course, just wander out into the
  swamp to see if they can find Storamere. If they do
  so, they almost certainly find him eventually — or
  more accurately, he finds them (see Chapter Two).
  
  12
  The Derideth Swamp is thick with leafy trees
  and reeds; grass grows amid soggy terrain, or
  right up out of the frequent slow-moving streams
  and shallow pools that cover the area. More
  often than not, an explorer is standing in one to
  six inches of water, and has to cross areas where
  the water is two to three feet deep. 
  The swamp swarms with mosquitoes and biting
  flies. Leeches, frogs, and snakes are common, as
  are colorful birds in the branches of trees or
  standing with long legs amid the reeds. In drier
  areas, muskrats, badgers, possums, and small
  lizards crawl about the ground and in trees.
  Legends say that the swamp is endless, and that
  it instills madness in whomever remains within
  its confines for any length of time. Today, explor-
  ers have clearly shown that it is not endless, but
  a few still claim that insanity lies at the center of
  the swamp. Who’s to say they’re wrong?
  Storamere’s Victims
  At some point decided by the GM, the PCs even-
  tually stumble upon the remains of eight dead
  lizardfolk. (For a random determination, assume
  that it occurs 1d3 days after the PCs enter the
  swamp.) Two are burned, as if by acid, their fea-
  tures completely unidentifiable. Five of the rest
  have wounds that have torn open their scaled
  flesh. The area around each wound is strangely
  black, shriveled and brittle. One dead lizardfolk
  has no apparent cause of death at all. All the
  corpses are slightly bloated from the conditions
  around them, but characters can tell they are
  about two days dead.
  A character that makes a successful Wilderness
  Lore check (DC 15) notes that no animals or even
  insects have chosen to feed on these corpses — an
  almost inconceivable event in the swamp.
  The most evident thing about this macabre find
  is that the corpses have not been eaten by the
  CHAPTER TWO
  Into The Swamp
  If the PCs wander about the swamp, they
  have a 50% chance (01-50 on d%) each day
  of 
  having 
  a 
  dangerous 
  encounter.
  Encounters of a non-threatening nature,
  such as with birds, large lizards (including
  the occasional crocodile), and various other
  mundane animals are much more frequent.
  Most of these encounters will not seriously
  challenge the PCs. Instead, they simply
  stress the dangerous nature of the swamp.
  Roll d10 or choose from the following list
  when the PCs do come in contact with dan-
  gerous beasts (don’t use an encounter more
  than once):
  D10
  Encounter
  1
  One Black Pudding
  2
  Three Trolls
  3
  One Ten-Headed Hydra
  4
  Two Ochre Jellies
  5
  One Will-o’-wisp
  6
  Two Chuuls
  7
  Three Green Hags
  8
  Shambling Mound
  9
  Tendriculos
  10
  Two Gray Renders
  Random Swamp Encounters
  
  13
  CHAPTER TWO: INTO THE SWAMP
  dragon, nor has their gear been removed. If the
  PCs search them, they find that each lizardfolk
  has a longspear, two shortspears, and a pouch
  with tools, food, and 1d4 pieces of interesting
  carved wood (worth 3 gp each).
  If desired, more such grisly remains can be found
  of other creatures — trolls, a hydra, a dire bad-
  ger, a giant crocodile, etc. Note that these bodies,
  and all victims of the ghost dragon, are avoided
  by natural wildlife, even insects, another sign
  that Storamere is an unnatural creature now.
  The Ghost Dragon
  If the PCs are in the swamp looking for
  Storamere, they will find him. His ghostly form
  wanders the swamp, attacking anything he
  comes upon. 
  When the GM decides it’s an appropriate time,
  Storamere comes to the PCs. For random deter-
  mination, assume that it occurs 1d4+1 days after
  the PCs enter the swamp.
  
  14
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  When this occurs, make a Spot check (+28) for
  Storamere to find the PCs in the swamp. Unless
  the PCs are hiding, assume that the ghost dragon
  succeeds. Remember that Storamere wanders the
  swamp carefully and incorporeally, so the PCs also
  need to succeed at Spot checks (based on his +26
  hide) to see him coming, and they need to be able
  to see invisible creatures.
  Storamere is arrogant and confident, manifesting
  in the midst of the PCs. He unleashes his corrupt-
  ing gaze first, so all PCs must make Fortitude sav-
  ing throws (DC 23) — only in subsequent rounds
  can they choose to avert their gaze. Then,
  Storamere breathes his acid breath, hoping to get
  as many of his foes at once as possible. 
  On the following rounds, Storamere attacks by
  attempting to touch his victims. His many claws, his
  maw, and his wings allow him to make multiple
  attacks, all of them withering his victims as opposed
  to actually damaging them (for effect, his bite still
  leaves bite marks, and his claws claw marks, but
  these attacks inflict no hit point damage).
  For a completely unprepared party, Storamere’s
  attack can be devastating. However, it is not his
  goal (despite appearances) to kill them all; if he
  has to, Storamere will pull back to allow the PCs
  to live. What he would like to do is urge them to
  come to his palace. He never was able to take full
  advantage of his lair in battle, so now as a ghost
  he has an overwhelming need to fight against
  powerful foes there — the only way to lay him to
  rest permanently is to defeat him in his lair.
  When he comes upon other victims in the
  swamp, like the lizardfolk, he simply destroys
  them out of spite and contempt. But the dragon
  is smart enough to recognize the PCs as adven-
  turers capable of coming to his lair, though too
  deluded to realize that no one knows where his
  lair is. He hisses as he attacks the PCs, “You are
  nothing to Storamere. I can destroy you with but
  a glance or gesture. As powerful as I am here,
  imagine the might I possess in my palace! You
  cannot, for you are mere mortals. The power I
  possess within my lair is beyond your meager
  mental grasp. You could never defeat me in my
  palace. There, I am invincible!”
  RETURNING TO IVERSHAM
  After their encounter with Storamere, the PCs
  are most likely very drained and almost certain-
  ly have discovered that Storamere is no ordinary
  dragon. Retreating back to Iversham is probably
  wise. If the PCs come back to town after a foray
  into the swamp, you should have the NPCs they
  talk to suggest that they go to the Monastery of
  St. Chausle (see Chapter Three).
  If the PCs have destroyed Storamere’s ghostly
  form and they don’t know much about ghosts,
  they may believe that they are victorious. If this
  is the case, show them the error of their ways by
  having Storamere attack Iversham again, prefer-
  ably before they get back or perhaps even when
  they are present. Multiple battles against
  Storamere’s ghost are quite possible — he simply
  reforms every time, until the PCs find and con-
  front him in his lair.
  
  15
  CHAPTER TWO: INTO THE SWAMP
  Large Undead Dragon 
  (Water, Incorporeal)
  CR 12; SZ L (undead dragon, incorporeal) HD 19d12; hp 128; Init +1 (+1 Dex, Improved Initiative); Spd
  fly 150 ft (perfect); AC 14 (+1 Dex, –1 size, +4 Deflection); Atk touch +19 (special*, bite), touch +14 (spe-
  cial*, two claws), touch +14 (special*, two wings), touch +14 (special*, tail slap); Face 5 ft. x 10 ft.; Reach 10
  ft.; SA Breath Weapon, Corrupt Water, Corrupting Gaze, Frightful Presence, Spells, Withering Touch; SQ
  Black Dragon Immunities, Blindsight, Damage Reduction 5/+1, Darkness, Darkvision 60 ft., Keen Senses,
  Low-light Vision, Manifestation, Rejuvenation, Spell Resistance 18, Telekinesis, Turn Resistance +4, Water
  Breathing; AL CE; SV Fort —, Ref +12, Will +12; Str 30, Dex 12, Con —, Int 15, Wis 12, Cha 19
  *Each touch attack inflicts one point of temporary Strength and one point of temporary Constitution dam-
  age; see Storamere’s Withering Touch supernatural ability.
  Skills: Concentration +19, Hide +26, Intimidate +23, Listen +28, Knowledge (history) +21, Search +30,
  Sense Motive +20, Spellcraft +21, Spot +28
  Feats: Hover, Flyby Attack, Power Attack, Cleave, Snatch
  Black Dragon Immunities (Ex): Immune to sleep, acid, and paralysis.
  Blindsight (Ex): Storamere can ascertain creatures’ locations by nonvisual means (mostly hearing and
  scent, but also by noticing vibrations and other environmental clues); this dragon’s range is 180 feet.
  Breath Weapon (Su): Line of acid, 80 feet long, every 1d4 rounds; damage 12d4, Reflex half DC 25.
  Corrupt Water (Sp): Once per day Storamere can stagnate 10 cubic feet of water, making it become still,
  foul, and unable to support animal life. This ability automatically spoils unattended, nonmagical liquids
  containing water. Magic items (such as potions) and items in a character’s possession must succeed at a Will
  save (DC 23) or become fouled. Magic items get a Will save bonus of 2 + 1/2 caster level, while an item
  attended by a character gets the character’s bonus.
  Corrupting Gaze (Su): Storamere can blast living beings with his glance, at a range of up to 30 feet.
  Creatures that meet the ghost’s gaze must succeed at a Fortitude save (DC 23) or suffer 2d10 points of dam-
  age and 1d4 points of permanent Charisma score drain.
  Damage Reduction (Su): Storamere ignores damage from most weapons and natural attacks; he takes
  normal damage from energy attacks, spells, spell-like abilities, and supernatural abilities. Each time a foe
  hits Storamere with a weapon, the damage dealt is reduced by 5 points. However, a +1 or better weapon
  does full damage.
  Darkness (Sp): Storamere can cast darkness up to three times per day at a radius of 60 ft.
  Darkvision (Ex): Storamere can see with no light source at all, to a range of 60 ft. Darkvision is black and
  white only.
  Frightful Presence (Ex): Storamere can unsettle foes with his mere presence. This ability takes effect auto-
  matically (radius 180 ft.) whenever Storamere attacks, charges, or flies overhead. A potentially affected crea-
  ture (one with less than 19 HD) that succeeds at a Will save (DC 23) remains immune to that dragon’s
  frightful presence for one day. On a failure, creatures with 4 or fewer HD become panicked for 4d6 rounds
  and those with more than 5 HD become shaken for 4d6 rounds.
  Incorporeal: Storamere can only be harmed by other incorporeal creatures, +1 or better magic weapons,
  and spells, spell-like abilities, or supernatural abilities. When hit by spells or magic weapons, he has a 50%
  chance to ignore damage from a corporeal source. He can pass through solid objects will, and his attack
  Storamere in the Swamp
  
  16
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  ignores natural armor, armor, and shields. An incorporeal creature can’t be heard with Listen checks.
  Keen Senses (Ex): Storamere can see four times as well humans in low-light conditions and twice as well
  in normal light. He also has Low-light Vision, and Darkvision with a range of 60 feet.
  Low-light Vision: Creatures with low-light vision can see outdoors on a moonlit night as well as they can
  during the day.
  Manifestation (Su): All ghosts have this ability. As ethereal creatures, they cannot affect or be affected by
  anything in the material world. When they manifest, ghosts become visible but remain incorporeal.
  However, a manifested ghost can strike with its touch attack or a ghost touch weapon. A manifested ghost
  remains on the Ethereal Plane but can be attacked by opponents on both the Material and Ethereal planes.
  When a spellcasting ghost manifests, its spells affect both ethereal targets and targets on the Material Plane
  normally unless the spells rely on touch. A manifested ghost’s touch spells don’t work on material targets.
  Rejuvenation (Su): A ghost that would otherwise be destroyed returns to its old haunts in 2d4 days with
  a successful level check (1d20 + 19 in Storamere’s case) against DC 16. The only way to get rid of a ghost
  for sure is to determine the reason for its existence and set right whatever prevents it from resting in peace.
  For Storamere, being destroyed in his palace would be enough to set him to rest permanently.
  Spell Resistance (Ex): To determine if a spell or spell-like ability works, the spellcaster makes a level check
  (1d20 + caster level). If the result equals or exceeds 18, the spell works normally, although Storamere is still
  allowed a saving throw.
  Telekinesis (Su): Storamere can use telekinesis once per round as a free action, as cast by a 19th-level sor-
  cerer.
  Turn Resistance (Ex): When resolving a turn, rebuke, command, or bolster attempt, add +4 to
  Storamere’s Hit Dice total.
  Undead: Undead are immune to poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, disease, death effects, and necroman-
  tic effects, and they ignore mind-influencing effects. Undead are not subject to critical hits, subdual dam-
  age, ability damage, ability drain, or energy drain. They have no Constitution scores and are therefore
  immune to any effect requiring a Fortitude save (unless it affects objects). An undead spellcaster uses its
  Charisma modifier when making Concentration checks.
  Negative energy (such as an inflict wounds spell) can heal undead creatures. When reduced to 0 hit points
  or less, an undead creature is immediately destroyed. Undead cannot be raised. Resurrection can affect
  them, but since undead creatures usually are unwilling to return to life, these attempts generally fail.
  Water Breathing (Ex): The dragon can breathe underwater indefinitely and can freely use its breath
  weapon, spells, and other abilities while submerged.
  Withering Touch (Su): When Storamere hits a living target with this unique incorporeal attack he deals
  one point of temporary Strength score damage and one point of temporary Constitution score damage.
  Against ethereal opponents, Storamere adds his Strength modifier to attack and damage rolls. Against
  material opponents, he adds his Dexterity modifier to attack rolls only (the above statistics assume corpo-
  real foes).
  Spells: (6/6) Treat Storamere as a level 3 sorcerer. He knows the following spells: 
  0 level — detect magic, flare, mending, open/close, read magic
  1st level — expeditious retreat, shield, true strike
  
  17
  CHAPTER THREE
  The Order of St. Chausle
  St. Chausle was a religious martyr almost com-
  pletely forgotten in the modern age, killed in defi-
  ance of an evil king who wished to suppress those
  religions different from his own. The Order of St.
  Chausle has since been dedicated to freedom and
  individual choice. Over the years, the order’s
  focus changed, so that it was more of a retreat for
  individuals who did not wish contact with the out-
  side world. The monks built a monastery deep in
  the Derideth Swamp, assuming that no one would
  disturb them there, and lived their ascetic lifestyle
  there. They were relatively undisturbed for
  decades, even after the tiny village of Iversham
  was established not terribly far away. In fact,
  things went very well for the order until the com-
  ing of the dragon Storamere.
  When Storamere ravaged the countryside, the
  Monastery of St. Chausle took the brunt of his
  wrath. Many monks died, and the monastery
  itself was greatly damaged. Finally, a brother
  named Schinde devised a plan. Playing upon the
  dragon’s boastful, arrogant nature, the monks
  stood out in the swamp and shouted insults until
  they provoked attention. When Storamere
  attacked, the monks were ready, and swarmed out
  to attack him together, eventually bringing him
  down. Storamere’s last words were, “You could
  not have defeated me in my lair. I am forever
  invincible in my lair.”
  Despite this victory, the order suffered greatly.
  Many had died, and many more decided to leave,
  no longer able to remain in the proper frame of
  mind after the incident. Decades, and then cen-
  turies passed, with the order’s size growing ever
  smaller.
  Today, the only two monks that remain are Brother
  Freton and Brother Savisoll. Freton is a human in
  his nineties. Savisoll is a half-elf and is 134 years old.
  They have lived in the crumbling monastery for
  many years, just the two of them. They are difficult
  to interact with, since they have not experienced
  contact with the outside world for so long.
  Arrival at the Monastery
  The monastery was once a large structure of
  mortared stone, a wood-shingled roof, and stained
  glass. Now, it fights a battle against the encroaching
  swamp, and loses. The two massive wings of the
  building have completely collapsed and are over-
  grown with plants and moss. Only the central,
  cathedral-like portion remains, and many of its win-
  dows are broken, letting in the elements. The entire
  place would look like an abandoned ruin except for
  two things: the door is closed tight and appears stur-
  dy, and a steady stream of smoke billows up from a
  hole in the roof.
  Freton and Savisoll greet the PCs together. They
  welcome the strangers into the monastery, although
  Savisoll has a bit of a suspicious glare. The building
  inside, or rather what is left of it, consists primarily
  of a great hall that probably once looked like the
  sanctuary of a church. Now it is filled with broken
  benches and tables. A clear path stretches into the
  middle of the room, where it appears the monks
  spend much of their time in meditation.
  ROLEPLAYING THE MONKS
  Freton has almost no short-term memory. He is
  likely to forget who the PCs are at any given
  moment, or why they are here. He remembers the
  past with clarity, and does not lose his memory of
  Savisoll, although he occasionally asks his friend,
  “when did you get so old?”
  Savisoll is the more truly mad of the two. He lies com-
  pulsively, even when it is obvious that he is contra-
  dicting himself. But only every second thing he says is
  a lie. Thus, if players catch on to that fact, they can
  often tell when he might be telling the truth. 
  A typical exchange with these two could potentially
  go like this:
  Freton: “The dragon? Oh yes, it was a long time
  ago, that one was. Haven’t seen him since, thank
  goodness.”
  
  18
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  Savisoll: “No, brother, we saw him flying through
  the swamp just yesterday.”
  Freton: “Really? I thought he had died long ago.”
  Savisoll: “No, he never died.”
  Freton: “But Shinde’s plan. I remember brother
  Ustis telling me all about it himself. The brothers
  defeated the dragon. Ended his reign of terror.”
  Savisoll: “Yes, that’s right.”
  Freton: “So, why are you folks here again?”
  Savisoll: “They’re here because of all the trolls in
  the swamp.”
  Freton: “Oh, yes, the trolls. Terrible things. I
  wouldn’t mind if you killed every last one of
  them. Well, good luck!”
  The PCs can try to get the monks to be more helpful,
  but this requires a Diplomacy (or, in theory,
  Intimidate) check with a DC of 25. A new check must
  be made for each question asked. Success means that
  the monks try harder to be helpful. Freton remains
  coherent for a little longer than normal, and Savisoll
  lies with only every third statement.
  Brother Savisoll
  6th-Level Male Half-Elf Monk 
  CR 6; SZ M (humanoid); HD 6d8–6; hp 34; Init +1 (Dex); Spd 50 ft.; AC 12 (+1 Dex, +1 class); Atk melee +2/–1
  (1d8–2, unarmed); Face 5 ft. x 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.; SA Stunning Attack*; SQ Evasion*, Half-elf Traits; Low-light
  Vision; Purity of Body*, Slow Fall 30 ft.*, Still Mind*; AL LN; SV Fort +3, Ref +4, Will +4; Str 7, Dex 12, Con
  8, Int 16, Wis 8, Cha 14
  Skills: Balance +10, Climb +7, Escape Artist +10, Jump +7, Knowledge (arcana) +12, Listen +9, Tumble +10
  Feats: All of Savisoll’s feats have a prerequisite of Dex 13, so they are all lost to him now.
  Half-elf Traits: Immune to sleep spells, and a +2 racial saving throw bonus against enchantment spells. Half-
  elves also have Low-light Vision.
  Low-light Vision: Characters with low-light vision can see outdoors on a moonlit night as well as they can during the
  day.
  *See Brother Savisoll’s entry for full descriptions of these special abilities.
  Brother Freton
  6th-Level Male Human Monk
  CR 6; SZ M (humanoid); HD 6d8–12; hp 28; Init +0; Spd 50 ft.; AC 11 (+1 class bonus); Atk melee +3/+0 (1d8–1,
  unarmed); Face 5 ft. x 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.; SA Stunning Attack; SQ Evasion, Purity of Body, Slow Fall 30 ft., Still Mind;
  SL LG; SV Fort +3, Ref +5, Will +5; Str 8, Dex 11, Con 7, Int 16, Wis 10, Cha 16
  Skills: Balance +9, Climb +8, Escape Artist +9, Heal +4, Jump +8, Knowledge (history) +7, Listen +2, Spot +9,
  Tumble +9
  Feats: All of Freton’s feats have a prerequisite of Dex 13, so they are all lost to him now.
  Evasion (Ex): If a monk makes a successful Reflex saving throw against an attack that normally deals half dam-
  age on a successful save, the monk instead takes no damage. Evasion can only be used if the monk is wearing
  light armor or no armor.
  Purity of Body: A monk gains immunity to all diseases except for magical diseases.
  Slow Fall: The monk takes damage as if a fall were 30 feet shorter than it actually is.
  Still Mind: A monk gains a +2 bonus to saving throws against spells and effects from the Enchantment school.
  Stunning Attack (Su): The monk can use this ability once per round, but no more than once per level per day. The
  monk must declare she is using a stun attack before making the attack roll (thus, a missed attack roll ruins the attempt).
  A foe struck by the monk is forced to make a Fortitude saving throw (DC 10 + one-half the monk’s level + Wisdom mod-
  ifier). In addition to receiving normal damage, if the saving throw fails, the opponent is stunned for 1 round.
  
  19
  CHAPTER THREE: THE ORDER OF SAINT CHAUSLE
  Storamere’s
  Emissary
  While the PCs interact with
  the brothers of St. Chausle,
  the monastery is attacked by
  an emissary of Storamere —
  a half-dragon stone giant
  named Gaulmeth. His skin is
  black rather than the typical
  giantish gray, and his eyes are
  green. He holds a huge iron
  flail covered with wicked
  spines, and has vast, swoop-
  ing dragon wings. His mouth
  is particularly wide and
  tooth-filled. Gaulmeth is a
  terror, and his flail makes
  him even more horrifying.
  The half-dragon giant begins
  his attack by pounding on the
  walls of the monastery,
  shouting, “Storamere has not
  forgotten you, you misbegot-
  ten monks! Your deaths will
  be slow and terrible!”
  Storamere sent Gaulmeth
  here not just to attack the
  monks that slew him, howev-
  er. The dragon/giant is here
  to encourage the PCs to come
  to the dragon’s acid palace,
  by antagonizing them. Even
  if they’ve not yet encountered
  Storamere, assume that the
  dragon has been spying on
  them 
  incorporeally 
  and
  thinks they are just the sort of
  foes he would like to fight.
  Thus, Gaulmeth’s tactics are
  as follows:
  • Gaulmeth hammers on
  the monks, incapacitat-
  ing or killing them.
  • Gaulmeth chooses one
  PC target and ignores
  the rest, attempting to
  kill the single PC.
  During the fight, he
  bellows, “I am the
  
  20
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  scion of Storamere the Mighty. I come from
  his palace, where he waits, invincible, to
  destroy all his foes!”
  • If Gaulmeth’s foes appear to be good at melee
  combat, he flies up to the top of the monastery
  and uses his breath weapon, and then tears por-
  tions of the roof off to throw as boulders. 
  He can scoop up three handfuls worth of bricks
  and stone as a move-equivalent action and throw
  one as an attack that round, and then two the
  next, grabbing more stone on the third.
  PCs attempting to climb the crumbling
  monastery walls must make a Climb check with a
  DC of 20. As a free action, Gaulmeth can stomp
  on the monastery, forcing a climber to make a
  new check (DC 25) or fall. 
  • If Gaulmeth’s foes appear to be good at
  ranged combat, he wades into the middle of
  them, smashing and sundering weapons with
  his flail. (He loves to destroy the magic bows of
  skilled archers.)
  Gaulmeth
  Large Male Half-Dragon Half-Giant (Water, Stone)
  CR 10; SZ L (dragon); HD 14d10+70; hp 151; Init +2 (Dex); Spd 40 ft., fly 40 ft (average); AC 29 (–1 size,
  +2 Dex, +15 natural); Atk melee +22/+17 (2d6+17, +1 huge sundering flail), or ranged +16/+11 (2d8+12,
  rock); Face 5 ft. x 5 ft.; Reach 10 ft.; SA Breath Weapon, Rock Throwing; SQ Black Dragon Traits,
  Darkvision 60 ft., Low-light Vision Rock Catching; AL CE; SV Fort +14, Ref +6, Will +4; Str 35, Dex 15,
  Con 21, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 13
  Skills: Climb +14, Hide +0, Jump +14, Spot +3
  Feats: Combat Reflexes, Point Blank Shot, Power Attack, Precise Shot
  Black Dragon Traits (Ex): Half-dragons are immune to sleep and paralysis effects, as well as acid. They also
  have a Breath Weapon, Darkvision to a range of 60 ft., and Low-light Vision.
  Breath Weapon (Su): Storamere’s progeny can breathe a line of acid 5 ft. high, 5 ft. wide, and 60 ft. long that
  inflicts 6d4 damage (Reflex save DC 17 for half damage) once per day.
  Darkvision (Ex): Half-dragons can see with no light source at all, to a range of 60 ft. Darkvision is black and
  white only.
  Low-light Vision: Characters with low-light vision can see outdoors on a moonlit night as well as they can dur-
  ing the day.
  Rock Catching (Ex): Gaulmeth can catch Small, Medium-size, or Large rocks (or projectiles of similar shape).
  Once per round, he can make a Reflex save to catch it as a free action. The DC is 11 for a Small rock, 16 for a
  Medium-size one, and 21 for a Large one. (If the projectile has a magical bonus to attack, the DC increases by
  that amount.) Gaulmeth must be ready for and aware of the attack.
  Rock Throwing (Ex): Gaulmeth is an accomplished rock-thrower and receives a +1 racial bonus to attack rolls
  when throwing rocks. Gaulmeth can hurl rocks weighing 40 to 50 pounds each (Small objects) up to 5 range
  increments of 180 feet.
  Possessions: +1 huge sundering flail, key to the chest in his chamber (Area 10 of Storamere’s palace), sack with
  348 gp and a worthless collection of strangely shaped rocks.
  NEW WEAPON SPECIAL ABILITY: 
  Sundering
  A sundering weapon grants the wielder the Sunder feat and adds a +4 circumstance bonus to Strength checks
  made to break an object of Medium size or smaller.
  Caster Level: 3rd; Prerequisites: Craft Magic Arms and Armor, shatter; Market Price: +1 bonus
  
  21
  CHAPTER THREE: THE ORDER OF SAINT CHAUSLE
  • If confronted by other flyers while in the air or
  on the roof, Gaulmeth attempts to smash
  through the roof and enter the main hall of the
  monastery.
  Smashing through the roof requires a Break
  check versus DC20.
  During the battle, Freton and Savisoll try to defend
  their home against the monstrosity. Their age and
  their deteriorating mental conditions have made
  them fairly feeble. They may indeed be far more of
  a hindrance to the PCs than a help.
  Gaulmeth does not fight to the death. Instead, if he
  is hard-pressed, he takes to the air. If followed, he
  takes a circuitous route back to the tower and the
  bridge, although if he is followed by flying charac-
  ters, he almost certainly won’t be able to get away.
  If he obviously cannot flee, he disobeys his sire’s
  commands and attempts to take out as many of his
  foes as he can.
  After the Battle
  If Freton and Savisoll are alive after the fight, they
  are both more eager to tell the PCs what they want
  to know. Savisoll will begin to mumble his lies and
  speak the truth eagerly. Freton struggles to remem-
  ber what just happened, but even after he forgets
  the fight and who the PCs are exactly, he feels that
  he should help them for some reason.
  If the monks are dead, the PCs can search the
  remains of the monastery if they choose. They find
  the monks’ living quarters behind the great hall, a
  long, high chamber with a pair of wooden pallets, a
  firepit with a simmering pot of soup over it, and a
  large collection of old books piled in five- to six-
  foot-high stacks.
  A character making a successful Search check (DC
  20) finds a book that has the handwritten title “Deeds
  of the Order of St. Chausle, and of the Dragon.”
  The book contains an account of 250 years ago,
  when Storamere first began his rampage, the plan
  of Brother Schinde, and the slow downfall of the
  order after that. Most importantly, however, it tells
  of Storamere’s ethereal palace, and even a little of
  his father, Leashadram, who actually created the
  place (see page 25). Details of the palace are few, but
  a reader can find directions to the old tower and
  bridge and a bit of their history (see page 22). It
  takes a character about four hours to read the
  musty, damp book.
  If the PCs manage to capture Gaulmeth, he won’t
  give them any more information than what he’s
  been instructed to: he is an emissary of Storamere,
  who dwells in his far-off palace, where he has never
  known defeat. Reading his mind through magical
  means could potentially reveal the following facts:
  • Storamere sent him to encourage them to
  come, because he truly believes he can’t be
  beaten in his lair (this may inadvertently
  encourage the PCs to try to draw Storamere
  out of his lair to fight, which of course is exact-
  ly the wrong thing to do).
  • Storamere, his father, is dead. His ghost
  remains tied to the palace, where he seems fair-
  ly normal.
  • The palace can be reached by crossing the bro-
  ken bridge near the old tower.
  Of course, following Gaulmeth’s path or scrying on
  him could lead the PCs right to the entrance to the
  dragon’s lair.
  
  22
  Clues learned in the monastery should lead the
  characters to an old abandoned tower and what
  appears to be a broken arch bridge.
  The Tower
  The bridge to Storamere’s ethereal palace is located
  next to a ruined tower. The ground here is fairly dry
  and solid, rising up from the swamp like a little
  island. Nearby, a branch of the White River moves
  past, faster than the river travels in most places
  through the swamp. This stream is about twenty-
  five feet across. The Bridge rises up near the tower
  and halfway over this stream, broken in the middle
  as if it once bridged this rise in the terrain with
  another on the opposite bank. However, it never
  did. Characters searching the other side find no evi-
  dence of supports for the bridge there. 
  About three weeks ago, some adventurers came and
  explored this tower, believing it to be the site of a
  long-lost treasure. These characters are long since
  gone, and have scoured the rubble thoroughly.
  Their continued presence here, however, was what
  awoke Storamere. The tower and broken bridge
  have been long forgotten by the villagers in
  Iversham, but the tower was once the abode of a
  mighty but malevolent warrior who worshipped
  dragons. He set it up as a shrine next to the bridge
  that led to the palace of an ancient black dragon
  named Leashadram — the very place where
  Storamere lived and now haunts.
  The door of the tower is on the second level; a set of
  crumbling stone steps leads around the tower up to
  it from the ground.  The door is not locked, and in
  fact hangs open. Leaves and dirt and broken wood-
  en planks cover the stone floor on this level. Some
  old wooden furniture lies smashed beneath the bro-
  ken boards, rotting in the damp of the swamp.
  Stone steps curve around the wall opposite the door,
  leading to the upper level. The wooden floor there
  has long since collapsed, leaving only a few planks
  around the edges and one rafter still crossing the
  diameter of the tower.  There is little of interest to
  find up there, although the roof is still just barely
  intact; searching the upper area causes the ceiling to
  collapse (see insert).
  Collapsing Roof (CR 2)
  Searching the upper level of the tower causes its
  barely intact ceiling to collapse. Anyone within the
  tower at that point suffers 4d6 points of damage
  (Reflex save DC 20 for half damage). A Search
  check DC 20 while on the stairs to the upper level,
  or specifically looking at the roof while on the
  main level, will note that the roof is structurally
  unsound and possibly dangerous. There is no
  Disable Device roll for this trap; reinforcing the
  roof with additional support beams, or triggering
  the roof while outside of the tower are the only
  ways to disable it without resorting to magic.
  A hole in the floor of the second, main floor leads
  to the lower level of the tower. It has been cleared
  of rubble, perhaps recently. The lower, ground
  level of the tower appears to be in better condition
  than that above. It is a cool dark place filled with
  fungus and damp slime. A dirt floor shows signs of
  recent digging. One hole is in fact almost twelve
  feet deep.
  A black pudding has very recently made its lair in
  this lower level, having oozed in through a crack in
  the foundation. To make matters worse, two patch-
  es of green slime coat the ceiling, ready to drop on
  anyone who moves under them, although they
  ignore the pudding. 
  A character making a successful Search check (DC
  25) can find black, ashy evidence that someone
  burned some green slime in here earlier — apparent-
  ly, they didn’t wipe it out completely. That same
  check also reveals that something indeed was
  unearthed here a few weeks ago by people with tools.
  CHAPTER FOUR
  The Tower and the Bridge
  
  23
  CHAPTER FOUR: THE TOWER AND THE BRIDGE
  THE RED HERRING
  There is every reason to believe that the players
  might think that whatever was dug up here is what
  awoke Storamere (which is partially correct), and
  that returning it will put him to rest (which is not at
  all correct). If this is the case, unless you want the
  PCs off on a wild goose chase — which might be
  fun, but potentially frustrating and counterproduc-
  tive — arrange an encounter in which the PCs find
  the four adventurers with their unearthed treasure,
  lying dead in the swamp. The treasure is a silver
  statue of a rearing, black dragon in a chest still cov-
  ered with caked-on dirt. They were carrying it
  away, and then were killed, Storamere’s first vic-
  Black Pudding
  Huge Ooze
  CR 7; SZ H (ooze); HD 10d10+60; hp 120; Init –5 (Dex); Spd 20 ft., climb 20 ft.; AC 3 (–2 size,
  –5 Dex); Atk melee +8 (2d6+4 plus 2d6 acid, slam); Face 5 ft. x 20 ft.; Reach 10 ft.; SA Acid,
  Constrict, Improved Grab; SQ Blindsight, Split; AL N; SV Fort +7, Ref –2, Will –2; Str 17, 
  Dex 1, Con 19, Int —, Wis 1, Cha 1
  Acid (Ex): The pudding secretes a digestive acid that dissolves organic material and metal quickly.
  Any melee hit deals acid damage. The pudding’s acidic touch deals 50 points of damage per round to
  wood or metal objects. The opponent’s armor and clothing dissolve and become useless immediately
  unless he succeeds at a Reflex save (use its wielder’s save bonus DC 19). The acid can dissolve stone,
  dealing 20 points of damage per round of contact.
  A metal or wooden weapon that strikes a black pudding also dissolves immediately unless it succeeds
  at a Reflex save (wielder’s save DC 19).
  Blindsight (Ex): The black pudding can ascertain creatures’ locations by nonvisual means
  (scent and vibration); this pudding’s range is 60 feet.
  Constrict (Ex): A black pudding deals automatic slam and acid damage with a successful grapple
  check. The opponent’s clothing and armor suffer a –4 penalty to Reflex saves against the acid.
  Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, the black pudding must hit with its slam attack. If it gets a
  hold, it can constrict.
  Ooze: Oozes are immune to poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, and polymorphing. They have no clear
  front or back and are therefore not subject to critical hits or flanking. Oozes are blind but have the
  Blindsight special quality. They have no Intelligence scores and are therefore immune to all mind-
  influencing effects.
  Split (Ex): Weapons deal no damage to a black pudding. Instead, the creature splits into two identi-
  cal puddings, each with half the original’s hit points (round down). A pudding with only 1 hit point
  cannot be further split.
  Green Slime (2 at CR 4 each)
  A single patch of green slime deals 1d6 points of temporary Constitution score damage per
  round while it devours flesh. On the first round of contact, the slime can be scraped off a crea-
  ture (most likely destroying the scraping device), but after that it must be frozen, burned, or cut
  away (applying damage to the victim as well). Extreme cold or heat, sunlight, or a remove dis-
  ease spell destroys a patch of green slime. Against wood or metal, green slime deals 2d6 points
  of damage per round, ignoring metal’s hardness but not that of wood. It does not harm stone.
  
  24
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  tims. The weeks-old, bloated and rotting corpses are
  burned and withered, but not eaten by scavengers.
  The statue is worth 250 gp, and of course burying it
  back under the tower accomplishes nothing.
  The Bridge 
  The bridge appears broken. It isn’t.
  A character making a Craft (stone) check with a DC
  of 15, or even a Search check with a DC of 20
  (dwarves get a +2 bonus from stonecunning), notices
  that it’s not broken — it was made that way.
  Any character who breaks the plane of the very
  edge of the “broken” end of the bridge sees the rest
  of the bridge and that it connects to a far off island
  shrouded in strange mist. Pulling back, the charac-
  ter sees just the broken bridge.
  The “missing” portion of the bridge is actually there
  — but it is ethereal. The place where the two meet,
  the “veil,” is a magical gate that leads directly to the
  Ethereal Plane.
  Only a character who actually passes through the veil
  and steps onto the ethereal part of the bridge can truly
  see what’s beyond with clarity. The exception to this is
  a character who becomes ethereal through a spell.
  For the rest of this adventure, while they are in the
  Ethereal Plane, the characters are called ethereal. An
  ethereal creature interacts with other ethereal crea-
  tures and objects the way material creatures interact
  with material creatures and objects. When a spell-
  casting ghost is on the Ethereal Plane, its spells work
  normally against ethereal targets.
  The description of what lies beyond the veil — the
  Palace of Storamere — lies in Chapter Five. Of
  course, there’s nothing stopping a character from
  going through the veil and coming back. It might be
  important to note that passing through the veil from
  the wrong side (such as if a character is flying in the
  Material Plane and circles around to pass through
  from the “broken” side) accomplishes nothing.
  THE WATCHER ON THE BRIDGE
  Storamere has made a deal with an invisible stalker
  (actually, the deal was first made by Storamere’s father
  Leashadram) to watch the bridge and alert him (and
  his guards, such as those in Area 1 of the palace) of any
  intruders. It has been a lonely mission for the stalker,
  but when the PCs first arrive, it excitedly carries out
  its duty. Characters able to see the invisible will spot
  the creature in the center of the bridge, moving quick-
  ly away. If seen, the creature looks like the vague out-
  line of an amorphous cloud. It fights only if attacked.
  Once it reports intruders it returns to the bridge.
  Invisible Stalker
  Large Elemental (Air)
  CR 7; SZ L (elemental); HD 8d8+16; hp 52; Init +8 (+4 Dex, +4 Improved Initiative); Spd 30 ft., fly 30 ft. (per-
  fect); AC 17 (–1 size, +4 Dex, +4 natural); Atk melee +10/+5 (2d6+6, slam); Face 5 ft. x 5 ft.; Reach 10 ft.; SQ
  Darkvision 60 ft., Improved Tracking; Natural Invisibility; AL N; SV Fort +4, Ref +10, Will +4; Str 18, Dex 19,
  Con 14, Int 14, Wis 15, Cha 11
  Skills: Listen +9, Move Silently +15, Search +9, Spot +13
  Feats: Combat Reflexes, Improved Initiative, Track, Weapon Focus (slam).
  Darkvision (Ex): Invisible stalkers can see with no light source at all, to a range of 60 ft. Darkvision is black and
  white only.
  Elemental: Immune to poison, sleep, paralysis, and stunning. Not subject to critical hits. Elementals have
  Darkvision to a range of 60 ft.
  Improved Tracking (Ex): Invisible stalkers are consummate trackers and make Spot checks instead of the usual
  Wilderness Lore checks to trace a creature’s passage.
  Natural Invisibility (Su): This ability is constant, allowing the stalker to remain invisible even when attacking.
  This ability is inherent and not subject to the invisibility purge spell.
  
  25
  This strange and forbidding place was created
  through powerful spells cast by a great black
  wyrm named Leashadram, the sire of Storamere.
  Three centuries ago Leashardam ruled from this
  palace, served by dark elves and a few humans,
  as well as a small number of half-dragons and
  dragon bloodspawn (see below). His mate,
  Estarandil, was much younger than he, and left
  Leashardam 
  soon 
  after 
  her 
  only 
  child,
  Storamere, was born.
  Leashadram left when Storamere was very
  young and never returned, leaving Storamere as
  the sole owner of the place. Storamere was an
  immature young dragon and the responsibility
  and power thrust upon him drove him a bit
  insane (perhaps the stories of the Derideth
  Swamp inducing madness are true). The two
  signs of his madness were his rather disgusting
  desire to mate and produce offspring with what-
  ever crossed his path (the lotion of size and shape
  alteration found in Area 12 helped in this unset-
  tling endeavor), and the wanton, and ultimately
  ill-advised swath of destruction that he spread in
  his lifetime. 
  When a character passes through the veil on the
  bridge she sees a wondrous and amazing sight. A
  huge island floats in midair, the bridge spanning
  toward it much farther than would have been
  expected — this “half” of the bridge is longer
  than the one by the tower. And speaking of the
  tower, a look back reveals that it is still there, as
  is the “broken” bridge and the swamp, but all
  are misty, distant, and indistinct. 
  Rising up from the stony surface of the island is a
  palace of sickly green — it positively glows with a
  wavy, churning emerald light. A harsh odor per-
  meates the air, burning the inside of a character’s
  nose and mouth. From the bridge, the player
  characters can see a set of iron doors built into
  the base of this strange, three-story structure, but
  no other entrances or apertures; there is not even
  a window. (There is another set of doors on the
  other side of the palace, but the PCs aren’t able
  to see them from this vantage.)
  Below and above, everything fades into a distant,
  swirling mist. All appears to be slightly green,
  although that may be from the pale glow of the
  palace.
  Acid Made Solid
  As the characters approach, the palace seems to
  bubble and seethe. It becomes clear that the walls
  are somehow made of liquid — and a dangerous,
  volatile liquid at that. The exterior walls of the
  fortress are five feet thick, and made from an
  opaque, magically semi-solid corrosive of great
  strength. It actually has a liquid consistency, but it
  retains its shape.
  It is possible to move through the exterior walls of
  the palace as one would move through a thick liq-
  uid, but doing so inflicts 10d6 points of acid dam-
  age per round. It takes a corporeal creature not
  inherently immune to acid a move-equivalent
  action to move through the wall. Even simply
  touching the wall inflicts 1d6 points of acid dam-
  age. Anyone knocked into the wall must make a
  Reflex saving throw (DC 20) or “fall” into the wall,
  becoming immersed enough to suffer the full 10d6
  points of acid damage. Success means that the
  character only touched the wall for 1d6 damage.
  The two sets of double doors leading into the
  palace are iron, pitted and burned, with corrosion
  stains covering their surfaces. Because of the
  weakening effect of the acid, the doors have a
  hardness of only 9, 50 hit points, and a Break DC
  of 27.
  The interior walls, floors, and ceilings are only one
  foot thick and are actually truly hardened corrosive
  acid. No damage is suffered by touching them and
  a creature can’t pass through them normally, but
  they are still unpleasant to touch or smell.
  CHAPTER FIVE
  Storamere’s Palace
  
  26
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  The interior walls have a hardness of 8, 60 hp, and a
  Break DC of 25. They are immune to acid.
  Each hour spent in the place requires a character to
  make a Fortitude saving throw. Failure results in a loss
  of 1d6 points of damage from breathing in acid fumes.
  Unless otherwise noted, the ceilings are 25 feet high.
  This gives some of the smaller rooms and hallways
  an imposing feel, since many are higher than they
  are wide or long.
  All of the rooms are lit with a continual flame spell
  (or more than one, if needed), providing eerie, flick-
  ering light that plays upon the green sheen of the
  scattered acid pools within the palace, as well as on
  the outer walls.
  Storamere’s palace is an unpleasant place to spend
  a lot of time in. Adventurers certainly will not want
  to spend the night.
  Level One
  1. ENTRANCE CHAMBER
  There are two of these rooms.
  Through the great iron doors leading into the
  palace is an entrance chamber. A narrow walkway
  encircles a huge pit of steaming, churning acid in
  this room. The smell burns the nose and throat of
  anyone who approaches. An iron door stands on
  either side wall, the surface of each stained with
  
  27
  CHAPTER FIVE: STORAMERE’S PALACE
  corrosion. Another set of double doors stands
  opposite the entrance.
  The pool of acid in each of these entrance rooms is
  twenty feet deep and connects under the surface to
  the Grand Chamber, and thus to the pool in the
  other entrance chamber. These unseen passages are
  twenty feet in diameter — large enough to allow
  even Storamere to swim through them. 
  Each of these areas is guarded by a half-dragon dark elf
  fighter. These two, Derim and Tellifar, are actually
  Storamere’s half brothers. They have sworn to protect
  the palace against any intruder. Neither particularly
  likes Storamere (alive or dead), but each has remained
  true to his word. Both have exaggerated features — par-
  ticularly large and pointed ears, and angular facial fea-
  tures, as well as stark white hair. They are far more
  massive and muscular than a typical dark elf, and their
  legs bend slightly backwards like a reptile’s.
  Neither of them listens to entreaties of diplomacy,
  although they may pause for just a moment to con-
  sider looking the other way if — and only if — the
  PCs say that they are there to defeat Storamere and
  nothing else. 
  Derim and Tellifar
  Medium-Sized 8th-Level Male Half-Dragon Half-Drow Fighters
  CR 10; SZ M (dragon); HD 8d12+8; hp 54; Init +7 (Dex, improved initiative); Spd 20 ft.; AC 22 (+2
  Dex, +6 Chainmail, +4 natural); Atk melee +14/+9 (1d8+9 double-bladed sword, first blade), and melee
  +14 (1d8+4, double-bladed sword, second blade); Face 5 ft. x 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.; SA Breath Weapon,
  Spell-like Abilities; SQ Black Dragon Traits, Darkvision 120 ft., Drow Traits, Elf Traits, Light
  Blindness; AL LE; SV Fort +8, Ref +5, Will +2; Str 22, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 13, Wis 11, Cha 15
  Skills: Climb +16, Hide +8, Spot +1, Swim +17
  Feats: Ambidexterity, Cleave, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Improved Initiative, Power Attack, Two-
  weapon Fighting, Weapon Focus (double-bladed sword), Weapon Specialization (double-bladed
  sword)
  Black Dragon Traits (Ex): Half-dragons are immune to sleep and paralysis effects, as well as acid.
  They also have a Breath Weapon, Darkvision to a range of 60 ft., and Low-light Vision.
  Breath Weapon (Su): Derim and Tellifar can breathe a line of acid 5 ft. high, 5 ft. wide, and 60 ft.
  long that inflicts 6d4 damage (Reflex save DC 17 for half damage) once per day.
  Darkvision (Ex): Dark elves can see with no light source at all, to a range of 120 ft. Darkvision is
  black and white only.
  Elf Traits: They are immune to magic sleep spells and effects. Elves also get a +2 racial saving throw
  bonus against Enchantment spells or effects.
  Drow Traits (Ex): +2 racial bonus to Will saves against spells and spell-like abilities, Darkvision up
  to 120 ft., Spell-like Abilities, and Light Blindness.
  Light Blindness (Ex): Abrupt exposure to bright light (such as sunlight or a daylight spell) blinds
  drow for 1 round. In addition, they suffer a –1 circumstance penalty to all attack rolls, saves, and
  checks while operating in bright light.
  Low-light Vision: Characters with low-light vision can see outdoors on a moonlit night as well as
  they can during the day.
  Spell-like Abilities: 1/day — dancing lights, darkness, and faerie fire. These abilities are as the spells
  cast by a sorcerer of 8th level.
  Possessions: +1 double-bladed sword (immune to acid), +1 chainmail (immune to acid)
  
  28
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  Because they loathe their mad half brother
  Storamere, the dark elf half-dragons would consider
  letting characters past who are going to attack the
  dragon and leave everything else in the palace alone
  — if the characters make a Diplomacy check with a
  DC of 30. Under these circumstances, they might also
  tell the PCs the history of Storamere and his sire
  Leashadram (see the first two paragraphs of this chap-
  ter). Of course, if the characters are not true to their
  word, Derim and Tellifar attack them immediately.
  Both Derim and Tellifar like to keep in close con-
  tact, so neither actually sits in the entrances and just
  waits for intruders. Instead, they patrol back and
  forth between each of the entrance rooms and
  Areas 4, 5, and 6. They are allies with Verrit in
  Room 7 and the half-dragons in Room 2. The invis-
  ible stalker warns them if someone is spotted cross-
  ing the bridge. Only if they are warned of intruders
  coming into both entrances will they split up to
  their separate stations. Usually, intruders encounter
  them both at the same time, ready in whichever
  entrance is used.
  If they know that foes are coming, the half-dragon
  elves hide in the acid pools (total Hide bonus +8) and
  leap out to attack, hopefully with surprise.
  With the pools of acid and other dangers here,
  don’t be surprised if the PCs opt to go in with pro-
  tection from elements and fly spells cast. This is a
  good strategy, however, the residents of the palace
  know how protection from elements spells work. If
  they see acid inflicting no damage on their foes,
  they don’t give up, in fact, they keep trying. They
  assume that eventually the protection provided will
  wear down, making their foes more susceptible to
  Storamere’s breath weapon.
  First False-Hoard Guardian
  Huge Half-Dragon Half-Manticore
  CR 7; SZ H (dragon); HD 6d12+30; hp 70; Init +2 (Dex); Spd 30 ft., fly 50 ft. (clumsy); AC 20 (–2 size,
  +2 Dex, +10 natural); Atk melee +13 (2d4+9, two claws), melee +9 (1d8+4, bite), or ranged +6 (1d8+4,
  six spikes); Face 10 ft. x 20 ft.; Reach 10 ft.; SA Breath Weapon, Spikes; SQ Black Dragon Traits,
  Darkvision 60 ft., Low-light Vision, Scent; AL CE; SV Fort +10, Ref +7, Will +3; Str 28, Dex 15, 
  Con 21, Int 9, Wis 12, Cha 11
  Skills: Listen +9, Spot +9
  Feats: Multiattack
  Black Dragon Traits (Ex): Half-dragons are immune to sleep and paralysis effects, as well as acid.
  They also have a Breath Weapon, Darkvision to a range of 60 ft., and Low-light Vision.
  Darkvision (Ex): Half-dragons can see with no light source at all, to a range of 60 ft. Darkvision is
  black and white only.
  Breath Weapon (Su): Storamere’s progeny can breathe a line of acid 5 ft. high, 5 ft. wide, and 60 ft.
  long that inflicts 6d4 damage (Reflex save DC 17 for half damage) once per day.
  Low-light Vision: Characters with low-light vision can see outdoors on a moonlit night as well as
  they can during the day.
  Scent (Ex): The creature can detect the presence of opponents by sense of smell, generally within 30
  feet. If it moves within 5 feet of the scent’s source, the creature can pinpoint that source. The creature
  can follow tracks by smell, making a Wisdom check to find or follow a track. 
  Spikes (Ex): A manticore can loose a volley of six spikes as a standard action. This attack has a range
  of 180 feet with no range increment. A spike deals a critical hit on a natural attack roll of 19 or 20.
  The creature can launch only twenty-four spikes in any one day.
  
  29
  CHAPTER FIVE: STORAMERE’S PALACE
  2. THE GRAND CHAMBER
  This huge chamber takes up much of the first floor.
  The floor is covered in 15 feet of bubbling acid,
  except for a small island of stone and dirt in the cen-
  ter of the room. Atop this island lies Storamere’s
  “false hoard”: a chest, about a thousand loose coins,
  and a large golden harp.
  Swimming through the acid is just like swimming
  through water except that the character sustains
  10d6 acid damage per round and has only about a
  foot of visibility.
  The two permanent guardians in this chamber
  are more of Storamere’s progeny — a half-dragon
  manticore and a half-dragon giant constrictor
  snake. The manticore is covered in black scales
  and the snake has bat-like wings. Both bear the
  dark green eyes of all of the dragon’s children.
  They attack anyone who enters other than the
  residents of the palace.
  Flying guardians, such as these two, attempt to foil
  PC fly spells by leaping up and pulling the char-
  acters into the acid pools. Treat this as a normal
  grapple attack. If an NPC manages to get a pin
  (not just a hold) on a flying PC, he can drag her
  down into the acid simply as a free action 
  (by dropping).
  3. THE ISLAND 
  AND THE FALSE HOARD
  As mentioned above, an island of coarse gray
  rock rises up from the acid. There are 983 cop-
  per coins piled near the center, atop of which sits
  a chest and a large golden harp. The harp is
  actually only gold-plated, but is still worth 200
  gp due to its workmanship. It weighs about 150
  Second False-Hoard Guardian
  Huge Half-Dragon Half-Giant Constrictor Snake
  CR 7: SZ H (dragon); HD 11d10+22; hp 82; Init +3 (Dex); Spd 20 ft., climb 20 ft., fly 20 ft. (average);
  AC 19 (–2 size, +3 Dex, +8 natural); Atk melee +17 (1d8+16, bite); Face 15 ft. x 15 ft.; Reach 10 ft.; SA
  Breath Weapon, Constrict, Improved Grab; SQ Black Dragon Traits, Darkvision 60 ft., Low-light
  Vision, Scent; AL CE; SV Fort +9, Ref +10, Will +4; Str 33, Dex 17, Con 15, Int 3, Wis 12, Cha 4
  Skills: Balance +11, Climb +22, Hide +3, Listen +9, Spot +9
  Feats: Flyby Attack, Snatch
  Breath Weapon (Su): Storamere’s progeny can breathe a line of acid 5 ft. high, 5 ft. wide, and 60 ft.
  long that inflicts 6d4 damage (Reflex save DC 17 for half damage) once per day.
  Black Dragon Traits (Ex): Half-dragons are immune to sleep and paralysis effects, as well as acid.
  They also have a Breath Weapon, Darkvision to a range of 60 ft., and Low-light Vision.
  Constrict (Ex): A constrictor snake deals 1d8+10 points of damage with a successful grapple check
  against Large or smaller creatures.
  Darkvision (Ex): Half-dragons can see with no light source at all, to a range of 60 ft. Darkvision is black
  and white only.
  Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, the constrictor snake must hit with its bite attack. If it gets
  a hold, it can constrict.
  Low-light Vision: Characters with low-light vision can see outdoors on a moonlit night as well as
  they can during the day.
  Scent (Ex): The creature can detect the presence of opponents by sense of smell, generally within 30
  feet. If it moves within 5 feet of the scent’s source, the creature can pinpoint that source. The creature
  can follow tracks by smell, making a Wisdom check to find or follow a track.
  
  pounds and is five feet high and almost as long.
  The chest is locked and is nothing but a trap —
  an empty decoy with a kick.
  Empty Fire Trapped
  Chest (CR 4)
  Characters must make an Open Locks check with a
  DC of 30 to open this ironbound chest. When
  opened, however, it activates a fire trap spell cast at
  15th level. It inflicts 1d4+15 points of damage (Reflex
  saving throw DC 16 for half damage) to all within 5
  feet. The DC to find this trap is 29, and the DC to
  remove it is also 29.
  Of course, Storamere himself might lie in wait for
  the PCs here, to do battle with them in the compa-
  ny of the chamber’s guardians (see his Ethereal
  Plane stats on page 44). In fact, this is the most like-
  ly place for the ghost dragon to be when the char-
  acters first arrive. He rises up out of the acid, and
  announces that this is his lair and the intruding PCs
  are doomed.
  “So,” Storamere might say to characters finding
  him here, “you have foolishly thought me in error
  when I told you that I am invincible here. Gaze
  upon the splendor of this palace — its very nature
  is anathema to you, but it is a delight to me. Now,
  at long last, I will show you insignificant worms
  what true power is — look upon me and know
  utter defeat!”
  It’s important to realize that Storamere never refers
  to himself as a ghost, and while he is in his palace he
  attempts to behave and act as though he is still alive
  as much as possible, falling back on ghostly powers
  only when he absolutely has to. On the Ethereal
  Plane, Storamere is solid and so forgets that he’s
  dead. He plays out the scenario that’s been going
  through his insane brain for the last few hundred
  years — he believes the PCs are enemies who have
  come to confront him in his lair, just as he always
  wanted them to in life.
  Storamere utilizes the two half-dragon guardians in
  the Grand Chamber when he fights here. For exam-
  ple, while they attack, Storamere casts true strike on
  himself and then swoops in next round, using Power
  Attack to switch +19 from his attack bonus to damage
  (since the true strike adds +20 to more than compen-
  sate). He uses his Breath Weapon as often as he can,
  hoping to wear down any acid resistance the PCs
  might have.
  The dragon also uses the acid pool to his fullest
  advantage, diving in and back up to attack the PCs
  with surprise. Characters must make a DC 20 Spot
  check to see Storamere’s black form in the acid
  beyond the normal one-foot limit to visual range. A
  new check is required every round, but if successful,
  the dragon under the surface can be targeted with
  spells and attacks with 50% miss chance and the char-
  acter cannot be attacked with surprise. Failure means
  that the character in question has no idea where
  Storamere is, and if attacked by the dragon loses his
  Dexterity bonus to AC.
  Storamere has no intention of dying here, or rather,
  of dying his second death here. If seriously hurt, he
  can become corporeal, leaving the palace and
  entering the real world. In this form, he floats up to
  the True Hoard to wait for his foes there. In most
  cases, even this isn’t necessary. Doing nothing but
  moving, Storamere can swim to one of the
  entrances (room 1) and then fly through the outer
  acid wall (harmlessly), flying up into room 21 on the
  next round.
  4. ARMORY
  When this place was more of an organized fortress
  under Leashadram, this is where the dark elf
  guards stored their weapons. Now spears, swords,
  shields, crossbows, and bolts hang rusting on the
  walls or sit neglected atop old wooden tables.
  Every weapon is rotten, pitted, or corroded so as to
  make it worthless. 
  5. EMPTY ROOM
  This room appears empty, with nothing but an old,
  threadbare and scorched rug on the floor. However,
  it is where Derim and Tellifar keep a secret cache of
  things important to them. 
  30
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  
  31
  CHAPTER FIVE: STORAMERE’S PALACE
  There is a secret compartment hidden under the rug.
  Characters must make a Search check (DC 20) to
  find it. When the floor panel is slid away, it reveals a
  small cache with three objects within it. The objects
  are a gold amulet, a flask of orange liquid that holds
  three doses of cure moderate wounds, and a dagger.
  All of the items are magical.
  NEW WONDROUS ITEM:
  Amulet of Dragon Will
  This gold amulet has a curled-up dragon imprinted
  upon it. When the amulet is held up to the surface of
  a wall of will, such as those found in Areas 14 and 16
  on Level Two (see page 37), it deactivates the wall for
  one minute.
  Caster Level: 5th; Prerequisites: Craft Wondrous
  Item, dispel magic; Market Price: 2,000 gp; Weight —
  NEW MAGIC WEAPON:
  Dragon Dagger
  This dagger has a bronze hilt made to look like a
  dragon and an iron blade in the shape of the flame it
  is breathing. In addition to being a standard +1 dag-
  ger, it is actually a key that when inserted into the
  columns in Room 20 gives access to the secret passage
  up to the third level. Also, if inserted into the statue of
  Leashadram found in the half-stone giant Gaulmeth’s
  chest (Area 10), it activates a special power of the stat-
  ue, turning it into a figurine of wondrous power. Even
  Derim, Tellifar, and Gaulmeth don’t know about the
  last effect.
  Caster Level: 3rd; Prerequisites: Craft Magic Arms
  and Armor; Market Price: 2,302 gp
  6. HALL OF REMEMBRANCE
  This long, dark hall has a floor of black, reflective,
  marble-like stone. Carved into this stone is a wind-
  ing path of runes. Each rune is dark green, and
  carved so as to resemble a writhing serpent. The
  walls also bear reliefs carved into their crumbling
  surfaces, depicting dragons in various scenes, such
  as fighting, sleeping, flying, casting spells, etc.
  Anyone who knows the draconic language or makes a
  Decipher Script check DC 25 can tell that runes are
  draconic characters and serve as a genealogy that ends
  with Leashadram’s sire Havastrene, Leashadram him-
  self, and Storamere (no half-breeds are recorded).
  These runes become important knowledge to any-
  one wishing to open the secret door in Room 20.
  The runes are not magical.
  7. THE SHRINE TO DRAGONKIND
  A dark room with twisted features, this chamber is
  dominated by a 12-foot-high statue of a black dragon
  so realistic that it’s likely to catch newcomers off guard.
  Before the dragon is a bowl-shaped altar of dark gran-
  ite, with stone draconic heads at four points around its
  circumference. The curved back wall is covered with
  carved stone reliefs like those seen in Area 6.
  Unless they make a Spot check with a DC of 15, the
  GM should tell the PCs that they see a large black
  dragon in the room, and play out at least a round’s
  worth of actions as if it were a real dragon (that takes
  no actions itself, of course). 
  The vampire priest Verrit, who is eternally bound to
  this chamber, takes actions as well, preparing to
  launch an attack against anyone who would defile his
  temple home. Verrit casts divine favor and bull’s
  strength while the players are distracted by the statue.
  Dragon Bloodspawn
  When a half-dragon has offspring with another crea-
  ture of its non-dragon heritage, this union produces a
  quarter dragon, or a dragon bloodspawn. For exam-
  ple, if a half-dragon/half-human has a child with a
  human, the offspring is a dragon bloodspawn. In this
  case, the creature is a normal human character
  except that it has the following ability modifiers:
  +4 Strength
  +2 Constitution
  +2 Charisma
  It also has a resistance of 20 to whatever breath
  weapon its dragon grandparent had, and a natural
  armor bonus of +1. Dragon bloodspawn CRs are +1
  higher than normal, and they gain “dragon blood-
  spawn” as a subtype.
  
  32
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  Male 7th-Level Undead Vampire Cleric (Dragon Bloodspawn)
  CR 10; SZ M (undead); HD 7d12; hp 54; Init +2 (Dex); Spd 20 ft.; AC 24 (+2 Dex, +5 breastplate, +7 natural); Atk melee +12
  (1d6+7, slam); Face 5 ft. x 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.; SA Blood Drain, Children of the Night, Create Spawn, Domination, Energy Drain,
  Spells; SQ Damage Reduction 15/+1, Darkvision, Turn Resistance +4, Resistances 20, Gaseous Form, Spider Climb, Alternate
  Form, Fast Healing 5; AL CE; SV Fort +6 Ref +7 Will +11; Str 25, Dex 14, Con —, Int 13, Wis 20, Cha 20
  Skills: Bluff +13, Concentration +11, Hide +10, Knowledge (religion) +12 Listen +15, Move Silently +10, Search +9, Sense Motive
  +13, Spellcraft +6, Spot +18
  Feats: Alertness, Combat Reflexes, Cleave, Dodge, Improved Initiative, Lightning Reflexes, Power Attack, Silent Spell
  Alternate Form (Su): A vampire can assume the shape of a bat, dire bat, wolf, or dire wolf as a standard action. This ability is
  similar to a polymorph self spell cast by a 12th-level sorcerer, except that the vampire can assume only one of the forms listed here.
  It can remain in that form until it assumes another or until the next sunrise.
  Blood Drain (Ex): A vampire can suck blood from a living victim with its fangs by making a successful grapple check. If it pins
  the foe, it drains blood, inflicting 1d4 points of permanent Constitution score drain each round the pin is maintained.
  Children of the Night (Su): Vampires command the lesser creatures of the world and once per day can call forth a pack of 4d8
  dire rats, a swarm of 10d10 bats, or a pack of 3d6 wolves as a standard action. These creatures arrive in 2d6 rounds and serve the
  vampire for up to one hour.
  Create Spawn (Su): A humanoid or monstrous humanoid slain by a vampire’s Energy Drain attack rises as a vampire spawn
  1d4 days after burial.
  If the vampire instead drains the victim’s blood, leaving his Constitution at 0 or less, the victim returns as a vampire spawn if it
  had 4 or fewer HD and as a vampire if it had 5 or more HD. In either case, the new vampire or spawn is under the command of
  the vampire that created it and remains enslaved until its master’s death.
  (Vampire spawn should not be confused with dragon bloodspawn.)
  Damage Reduction (Su): Verrit ignores damage from most weapons and natural attacks; he takes normal damage from ener-
  gy attacks, spells, spell-like abilities, and supernatural abilities. Each time a foe hits Verrit with a weapon, the damage dealt is
  reduced by 15 points. However, a +1 or better weapon does full damage.
  Darkvision (Ex): Undead can see with no light source at all, to a range of 60 ft. Darkvision is black and white only.
  Domination (Su): A vampire can crush an opponent’s will just by looking onto his or her eyes. This is similar to a gaze attack,
  except that the vampire must take a standard action, and those merely looking at it are not affected. Anyone the vampire targets
  must succeed at a Will save (DC 18) or fall instantly under the vampire’s influence as though by a dominate person spell cast by
  a 12th-level sorcerer. The ability has a range of 30 feet.
  Energy Drain (Su): Living creatures hit by a vampire’s slam attack suffer 2 negative levels.
  Fast Healing (Ex): A vampire heals 5 points of damage each round so long as it has at least 1 hit point. If reduced to 0 hit points
  or lower, a vampire automatically assumes gaseous form and attempts to escape. It must reach its coffin home within 2 hours or
  be utterly destroyed. (It can travel up to nine miles in 2 hours.) Once at rest in its coffin, it rises to 1 hit point after 1 hour, then
  resumes healing at the rate of 5 hit points per round.
  Gaseous Form (Su): As a standard action, a vampire can assume gaseous form at will, as the spell cast by a 5th-level sorcerer,
  but can remain gaseous indefinitely and has a fly speed of 20 feet with perfect maneuverability.
  Resistances (Ex): Verrit can ignore 20 points of cold or electricity damage each round as a vampire. As a dragon bloodspawn
  he can also ignore 20 points of acid damage each round.
  Spider Climb (Ex): A vampire can climb sheer surfaces as though with a spider climb spell.
  Turn Resistance (Ex): When resolving a turn, rebuke, command, or bolster attempt, add +4 to Verrit’s Hit Dice total.
  Undead: The undead are immune to poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, disease, death effects, and necromantic effects, and they
  ignore mind-influencing effects. Undead are not subject to critical hits, subdual damage, ability damage, ability drain, or ener-
  gy drain. They have no Constitution scores and are therefore immune to any effect requiring a Fortitude save (unless it affects
  objects). An undead spellcaster uses its Charisma modifier when making Concentration checks. Undead have Darkvision at a
  range of 60 ft.
  Undead cannot be raised. Resurrection can affect them, but since undead creatures usually are unwilling to return to life, these
  attempts generally fail.
  Spells: (6/6+1/4+1/3+1/2+1) Verrit’s domains are Evil (cast all evil spells at +1 level), and Destruction (can make one attack with a
  +4 bonus to hit and +7 damage once per day). Domain spells marked with an asterisk.
  0 Level — detect magic, guidance (2), inflict minor wounds, resistance (2)
  1st Level — cause fear, command, divine favor, inflict light wounds* (2), protection from good, summon monster I
  2nd Level — bull’s strength, cause moderate wounds, hold person, shatter*, spiritual weapon
  3rd Level — contagion*, create food and water, dispel magic, summon monster III
  4th Level — deeper darkness (silent), inflict critical wounds, unholy blight*
  Possessions: +1 breastplate of spell resistance (13), +1 cloak of resistance, scroll of spell immunity.
  Verrit, Undead Cleric
  
  33
  Verrit is a vampire cleric who once worshipped
  all dragonkind, a dragon bloodspawn himself
  (see insert). He dwelled in the palace until
  Leashadram left, at which point he committed
  suicide. However, Verrit had no idea that his
  actions, carried out in this evil shrine, would
  lead to his terrible, unwilling “resurrection” as
  an undead vampire.
  Verrit’s meager service to dragonkind now is to
  use his spells to feed the still-living inhabitants of
  the palace, while he himself slowly (over hun-
  dreds of years) starves with no blood to drink.
  Now, his hairless skin dark black-blue, his eyes
  piercing and yellow, Verrit throws his cape back
  with a flair like dragon’s wings and attacks any non-
  dragon worshippers who enter the shrine, shouting,
  “You are not welcome here! But the gates of Hell
  open wide for you. Let your spirit and your blood
  feed me, that I may serve the lords of scale and claw
  a while longer!”
  If the PCs take the time to try to speak with Verrit, a
  Diplomacy check of DC 25 gets him to pause. A check
  with a DC of 30 actually gets the vampire to talk.
  If Verrit speaks, he is willing to explain his strange ori-
  gins, and discuss even the history of Leashadram and
  Storamere (see the first two paragraphs of this chap-
  ter). But he only speaks of them with reverence, and
  has no idea that Storamere is dead. He himself has
  been trapped in the shrine since well before the drag-
  on’s death at the hands of the Order of St. Chausle. 
  During combat, Verrit doesn’t hesitate to pull back
  and use his inflict wounds spells to heal himself —
  sometimes climbing up a wall to do so. Verrit has no
  coffin to retreat to, if reduced to gaseous form.
  Instead, he floats up and into the dragon statue,
  through the mouth. The statue is hollow and serves as
  a strange resting place for this unique vampire.
  Inside, he has hidden a scroll with two spells: inflict
  serious wounds and dispel magic.
  The sides of the hollow dragon statue have a hardness
  of 8 and 60 hit points, with a Break DC of 27. The
  DC to Spot the hole that Verrit uses to get inside is
  25. If the Spot check fails, the character has no idea
  where Verrit actually went. It will seem as if he just
  disappeared. If the character searches the statue how-
  ever, the DC to find the hole is only 15.
  8. DRAGONPODS
  This large chamber was once a gathering hall with
  tables and benches, and trophies on the wall. There
  are only vague remnants of these now. Instead, the
  room has a number of strange brown and yellow
  pods on the floor, and clinging to the walls and ceil-
  ing, each about three to four feet across. Six of them
  remain unopened, while at least a dozen have burst
  from the inside. A few smaller dragonpods lie
  cracked and brittle on the ground, unopened but
  obviously long-dead. All of the pods are of some
  hard organic matter covered in a thick, sticky
  mucus. They smell of sour fruit.
  Storamere’s mating with a carrion crawler pro-
  duced some strange results. Carrion crawlers nor-
  mally lay hundreds of eggs at a time. But
  Storamere’s crawler mate produced dozens of
  strange, egg-like pods. Some of them hatched,
  and produced half-dragon carrion crawlers.
  Others never produced anything viable. Still oth-
  ers have yet to hatch, even though their parents
  are long dead.
  Strangely enough, the union of dragon and carrion
  crawler seems to have spawned a creature with
  entirely new abilities. These half-breeds thrive for a
  time and then curl up and die, producing yet anoth-
  er dragonpod. Even if slain conventionally, the body
  of the dead dragon crawler will create a new pod
  and thus a new creature. Only destruction by fire
  prevents a dead specimen from forming into a pod.
  As soon as anyone without dragon blood enters
  the chamber, four dragon crawlers scuttle out
  from behind the pods and attack. The round after
  combat starts, another one drops down from the
  ceiling to attack a random character. These crea-
  tures are covered in black scales and have green,
  dragon-like eyes on their stalks. Each has dragon
  wings but they are too small and ill-fitting to allow
  them to fly. Instead, flutter and flap their wings to
  distract opponents.
  Characters must make a Spot check based on the
  hide check of the monsters (total bonus of +10 due to
  circumstances) to avoid being surprised. If they
  achieve surprise, the creatures make a partial charge
  and one tentacle attack.
  The character attacked from above must make an
  additional Spot check on the round she is attacked, or
  the dragon crawler can make its attacks and she gains
  no bonus from her Dexterity to AC. 
  CHAPTER FIVE: STORAMERE’S PALACE
  
  The spiral stairs in this room rise up to Level Two.
  They are made of rusted black iron, but are still
  quite sturdy and safe.
  9. KITCHEN
  In years previous, when the palace was staffed
  by dark elves and dragon bloodspawn that
  served Leashadram, this kitchen was used to
  prepare meals eaten in Area 8. Now, the place
  is a shambles, with old rusted pots and broken
  dishes everywhere.
  10. GAULMETH’S CHAMBER
  Judging by the size of things in this chamber,
  it is clearly the domain of a giant. A huge bed,
  ten feet long and five feet wide, sits next to a
  wooden table with a brass lamp shaped like a
  bird with upturned wings. A towering wooden
  chair and a large chest also occupy the room.
  The wall to the left of the door bears a faded
  tapestry of a beautiful mountain scene at dusk
  (it is worthless, however).
  34
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  Dragon Crawlers (5)
  Large Half-Dragon Half-Carrion Crawlers
  CR 6; SZ L (dragons); HD 3d10+9; hp 25 each; Init +2 (Dex); Spd 30 ft., climb 15 ft.; AC 21 (–1 size,
  +2 Dex, +10 natural); Atk touch +8 (paralysis, eight tentacles), melee +3 (1d8+6, bite); Face 5 ft. x 10
  ft.; Reach 5 ft.; SA Breath Weapon, Paralysis, Wing Buffet; SQ Black Dragon Traits, Darkvision,
  Dragonpod, Low-light Vision; AL N; SV Fort +4, Ref +3, Will +5; Str 22, Dex 15, Con 16, Int 3, 
  Wis 15, Cha 8
  Skills: Climb +14, Hide +8, Listen +6, Spot +6
  Feats: Alertness
  Black Dragon Traits (Ex): Half-dragons are immune to sleep and paralysis effects, as well as acid.
  They also have a Breath Weapon, Darkvision to a range of 60 ft., and Low-light Vision.
  Breath Weapon (Su): Storamere’s progeny can breathe a line of acid 5 ft. high, 5 ft. wide, and 60 ft.
  long that inflicts 6d4 damage (Reflex save DC 17 for half damage) once per day.
  Darkvision (Ex): Half-dragons can see with no light source at all, to a range of 60 ft. Darkvision is
  black and white only.
  Dragonpod (Ex): If slain, the body of a dead dragon crawler curls up to create a dragonpod, out of
  which comes a new dragon crawler. Only destruction by fire prevents a dead specimen from forming
  into a pod. The time it takes for a dragonpod to hatch is completely random, ranging from a few min-
  utes to several centuries.
  Low-light Vision: Characters with low-light vision can see outdoors on a moonlit night as well as
  they can during the day.
  Paralysis (Ex): Those hit by a dragon crawler’s tentacle attack must succeed at a Fortitude save (DC
  14) or be paralyzed for 2d6 minutes.
  Scent (Ex): The creature can detect the presence of opponents by sense of smell, generally within 30
  feet. If it moves within 5 feet of the scent’s source, the creature can pinpoint that source. The creature
  can follow tracks by smell, making a Wisdom check to find or follow a track.
  Wing Buffet (Ex): Anyone within 10 ft. of a dragon crawler suffers a –1 circumstance penalty to
  attacks and reflex saving throws due to its fluttering wings. This penalty is cumulative when a char-
  acter is within reach of multiple dragon crawlers.
  
  35
  CHAPTER FIVE: STORAMERE’S PALACE
  The large chest (see insert) holds Gaulmeth’s
  personal things as well as an important magi-
  cal statue.
  Inside the chest, characters find an assortment of
  giant-sized clothing, a large and very sharp knife,
  two flasks of acid, a large empty sack, an iron pot
  and some dishes, and a small statuette of a black
  dragon — this is Leashadram’s statue.
  Gaulmeth’s Chest (CR 3)
  Gaulmeth’s chest is locked. A character must make an
  Open Locks check (DC 30) to open it, or he must
  bring back the key found on Gaulmeth’s body (see
  page 20). The chest is also trapped. When opened by
  any means other than the proper key, tiny spikes fly
  out in all directions up to thirty feet. These spikes
  inflict 1d6 damage (Reflex save DC 18 for half). Plus,
  anyone suffering damage from the spikes must make
  a Fortitude saving throw (DC 16) or suffer 1d6 points
  of temporary Dexterity score damage and another
  1d6 points of temporary Dexterity damage one
  minute later.
  
  36
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  NEW WONDROUS ITEM: 
  Leashadram’s Statue
  A small statue of a grinning black dragon, this object
  has two different magical powers. This statue, if given
  the proper command word (which is found in Area
  19), allows a character to make a safe path through
  the acid in Area 21.
  There is a small slot in the back of the statue that
  can only be found if a character makes a DC 20
  Search check. If the magic dragon dagger found in
  Area 5 is inserted into this slot like a key, the stat-
  ue’s main power is activated, and it henceforth
  becomes a figurine of wondrous power. When
  commanded, this statuette changes into a wyrm-
  ling black dragon under the command of the
  owner. Leashadram’s statue can be used for up to
  one hour, once per week. It obeys only its owner.
  If it is slain, it reverts back to statue form.
  Caster Level: 11th; Prerequisites: Craft Wondrous
  Item, animate objects; Market Price: 14,500 gp;
  Weight: 1 lb.
  11. STORAGE
  Once a storeroom and larder, this room is now
  unused since the living inhabitants of the palace get
  their food from Verrit’s spells. Old crates and bar-
  rels have rotted through, spilling their putrid con-
  tents on the floor. This terribly ancient mass of food
  and moldering wood has become a breeding
  ground for yellow mold.
  Yellow Mold (CR 6)
  If the barrels or crates are disturbed, a patch of
  yellow mold bursts forth with a cloud of poisonous
  spores. All within ten feet of the mold must make
  a Fortitude save (DC 15) or take 1d6 points of tem-
  porary Constitution score damage. Another
  Fortitude save (DC 15) is required one minute later
  — even by those who succeed at the first save — to
  avoid taking another 2d6 points of temporary
  Constitution damage. Fire destroys yellow mold
  and sunlight renders it dormant.
  Amid the moldy rubble and ruin in this chamber is
  a key that fits one of the locked chests in Area 21. It
  was dropped here long ago and forgotten.
  12. THE LAB
  When Leashadram ruled here, his dark elf servitors
  used this room as an alchemical laboratory. They
  developed a great many strange mixtures, some of
  which remain.
  There are three tables in the room — one large one
  near the door, another large one on the opposite
  wall, and a smaller bench in the middle of the
  room. All are covered with alchemical tools, dishes,
  beakers, and various bits of strange liquids, pow-
  ders, and ingredients of all sorts. The whole setup,
  if transported out of here, is worth 100 gp as an
  alchemical lab.
  The table near the door has a number of glass flasks
  and beakers, three of which contain doses of
  alchemist’s fire. A small box on the same table has
  nine tindertwigs. A thunderstone is amid the clutter,
  as are three normal rocks.
  The far table has still more vials, jars, and glass dish-
  es, including a potion of see invisibility and a ceram-
  ic pot with three doses of a lotion of size and shape
  alteration (see insert).
  The small bench has three large bottles, one with
  clear liquid, one with a greenish liquid, and the last
  with a bubbly red mixture. The clear liquid is actu-
  ally water. The green and red liquids have special
  abilities (see inserts).
  NEW MAGIC POTION:
  Lotion of Size and
  Shape Alteration
  This oily cream comes in a pot, with only enough to
  coat most of the flesh of a Medium-sized or Large
  creature, or two Small or Tiny creatures. Once
  applied, it allows a character to take on the form of a
  single creature within one size category of its own.
  The character gains the extraordinary abilities of the
  new form, just as if under the effect of the spell
  shapechange. Only one form can be adopted by the
  character, and the new form lasts for an hour,
  whether the character wants it to or not.
  Caster Level: 17th; Prerequisites: Craft Wondrous
  Item, Brew Potion, shapechange; Market Price:
  4,000.
  
  37
  NEW ALCHEMICAL
  POTION/TRAP: 
  Venenum Erratus (CR 2)
  If this bottle of greenish liquid is uncorked, the liquid
  bubbles over the edge and emits green fumes that fill
  the room quickly. Everyone within ten feet of the bot-
  tle must make a Fortitude saving throw (DC 18).
  Failure produces a random result:
  d6
  Result
  1
  Character gains +2 enhancement bonus to
  Dexterity score for 1 hour
  2
  Character is healed 2d8 hp (if hurt) but
  spends 1d6 rounds incapacitated by coughing
  3
  Character suffers 3d6 hp loss and spends 1d6
  rounds incapacitated by coughing
  4
  Character suffers 1d6 points of temporary
  Constitution score damage now and another
  1d6 points of temporary Constitution damage
  one minute later.
  5
  Character suffers 1d6 points of temporary
  Intelligence score damage now and another
  1d6 points of temporary Intelligence damage
  one minute later.
  6
  Character falls unconscious for 1d10 minutes,
  and is unable to be awakened.
  As a trap, this potion has a CR of 2. There is no
  Search roll or Disable check, but an Alchemy roll DC
  25 could identify the potion’s properties in an hour’s
  time, at a cost of 1 gp. 
  Prerequisites: Alchemy roll DC 35, access to an
  alchemical lab; Market Price: 200 gp
  NEW ALCHEMICAL
  POTION:
  Venenum Acidus
  Repugno
  The reddish liquid is safe to uncork, and in fact has no
  special effect unless it is mixed with an equal amount
  of water. If this happens, the liquid becomes a coating
  that can be applied to an inanimate object, rendering
  it immune to acid. This alchemical mixture will pro-
  vide enough to protect any Medium-sized object, four
  Small objects, or eight Tiny objects.
  Prerequisites: Alchemy roll DC 30, access to an
  alchemical lab; Market Price: 100 gp
  Level Two
  13. MORE DRAGONPODS
  Speading like an infestation, the dragonpods from
  Area 8 are here as well. Occasionally, a dragon
  crawler splits after it dies, creating two pods. Thus,
  slowly but surely, the dragonpods will eventually fill
  this entire palace. But that won’t happen for anoth-
  er hundred years at least.
  The top of the stairs is, in fact, almost completely sur-
  rounded by more dragonpods. There are ten in this
  room. As the PCs reach the top of the staircase, a pod
  near them hatches, and a dragon crawler comes out.
  If the PCs attack this newborn (which is fully formed
  and has the same stats as the others; see page 34), the
  other two creatures in the room lunge out from
  behind other dragonpods. If the PCs do not attack,
  they can pass through the area safely, while the two
  adults concern themselves with the newborn. This is
  not true if the PCs re-enter this room later, however.
  In that instance, all three attack.
  14. SLAVE QUARTERS
  Both of the doors in this room are locked (Open
  Locks DC 28 to open).
  Long ago, a number of slaves were kept in this
  room. A few very old blankets and woven straw
  mats lay on the floor, so ancient that they crumble
  to the touch. The walls bear scratched marks and
  carved graffiti that speaks ill of dragons in a variety
  of languages. The wavy line on the map indicates a
  special magical wall, called a wall of will, that seals
  off the prison in Area 15 (see insert).
  15. THE PRISON
  Beyond the wall of will, chains dangle from the ceil-
  ing and hang from the walls, attached to manacles
  covered in dried blood. This room stinks of the foul
  odors of both life and death. Ancient, dust-covered
  piles of straw and bones lie about the floor, now noth-
  ing more than clumps of dried, brittle matter.
  This is where Storamere once kept captives. Often,
  the place was used to hold his unruly offspring.
  Some of the shorter-lived individuals died here. In
  fact, only one prisoner remains.
  CHAPTER FIVE: STORAMERE’S PALACE
  
  38
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  Udalaag
  Large Male Half-Dragon Half-Umber Hulk
  CR 8; SZ L (dragon); HD 8d10+40; hp 87; Init +0; Spd 20 ft., burrow 20 ft.; AC 20 (–1 Size, +11 nat-
  ural); Atk melee +15 melee (2d4+10, two claws), melee +13 (2d8+5, bite); Face 5 ft. x 5 ft.; Reach 10 ft.;
  SA Breath Weapon; SQ Black Dragon Traits, Tremorsense; AL CE; SV Fort +7, Ref +5, Will +7; Str
  31, Dex 10, Con 21, Int 4, Wis 13, Cha 15
  Skills: Climb +21, Jump +18, Listen +12
  Feats: Multiattack, Power Attack
  Black Dragon Traits (Ex): Half-dragons are immune to sleep and paralysis effects, as well as acid.
  They also have a Breath Weapon, Darkvision to a range of 60 ft., and Low-light Vision.
  Blind (Ex): Udalaag’s blindness robs him of the Darkvision and Low-light Vision inherited from
  Storamere, and his umber hulk Confusing Gaze. He is able to function normally in combat using
  Tremorsense, however.
  Breath Weapon (Su): Storamere’s progeny can breathe a line of acid 5 ft. high, 5 ft. wide, and 60 ft.
  long that inflicts 6d4 damage (Reflex save DC 17 for half damage) once per day.
  Tremorsense (Ex): Udalaag can automatically sense the location of anything within 60 feet that is in
  contact with the ground.
  Evocation [Force]
  Level: Sor/Wiz 6
  Components: V, S, M
  Casting Time: 1 hour
  Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
  Effect: Wall whose area is up to one 10-ft.
  square/level or a sphere or hemisphere with a
  radius of up to 1 ft./level
  Duration: Permanent
  Saving Throw: Will passes through; see text
  Spell Resistance: No
  A wall of will is a visible sheet of bluish-white
  energy, which the caster can form into a flat,
  vertical plane whose area is up to one 10-foot
  square per level, or into a sphere or hemi-
  sphere with a radius of up to 1 foot per level.
  The wall inflicts 6d6 points of force damage
  against anyone attempting to pass through it.
  Further, the character attempting to pass
  through must make a Will save to force himself
  past the barrier (this is an enchantment effect,
  DC 18). Failure means that the character is
  repelled by the barrier, but can attempt to
  cross it again as many times as he likes — on
  subsequent tries a character will suffer an addi-
  tional 6d6 points of damage and have to make
  another saving throw. The amulet of dragon
  will in Room 5 allows a character to dispel the
  wall for one minute.
  A wall of will cannot move, it is immune to
  damage of all kinds, and it is totally unaffected
  by most spells, including dispel magic. Spells
  and breath weapons cannot pass through the
  wall in either direction, although dimension
  door, teleport, and similar effects can bypass
  the barrier. It blocks ethereal creatures as well
  as material creatures (though ethereal creatures
  can usually get around a wall of will placed on
  the Material Plane by floating under or over it
  through material floors and ceilings). Gaze
  attacks cannot operate through the wall of will,
  since it is opaque.
  Material Component: A small piece of agate.
  NEW SPELL:
  Wall of Will
  
  39
  CHAPTER FIVE: STORAMERE’S PALACE
  Rattling its way through the suspended chains, a
  stooped creature with black scales and green eyes
  lumbers forward soon after the PCs enter.
  Obscenely long arms ending in twisted, barely-
  usable claws drag on the ground. Its mouth is
  mandibled and drips with a greenish saliva. It
  growls and sputters.
  If a character makes a Listen check with a DC of
  15, he realizes that the growl is actually the beast
  attempting to speak: “Who comes here?” the crea-
  ture asks. 
  Udalaag is a half-dragon umber hulk that was
  born particularly slow-witted and clumsy. He is
  really far too stupid to carry on in the tradition
  of either of his parents, and has long suffered
  mistreatment by Storamere’s other progeny. His
  confusion-inducing eyes were gouged out long
  ago, so he does not share that ability with most
  umber hulks. He is evil, but only because he has
  known nothing else. In another environment,
  particularly if he is well treated, his alignment
  could shift to chaotic neutral.
  Characters attempting to deal with Udalaag need to
  make a Diplomacy check (DC 25). If successful, the
  characters can actually make an ally in this creature.
  Udalaag is far too unintelligent to say anything in
  much more than two- or three-word sentences, but
  he makes his mistreatment over the last few hun-
  dred years clear. Udalaag just wants to escape from
  the palace and be free.
  If asked, he knows the general layout of the
  palace, but he doesn’t know any of the secrets —
  how to shut down the barriers in Areas 14 and
  
  16, the existence of the secret door in Area 20,
  etc. He does know about all of the creatures that
  live in the palace still, and refers to Storamere as
  “fappa.” He knows the history of Leashadram
  and Storamere (see the first two paragraphs of
  this chapter), but can only relate it in the sim-
  plest of terms. He hates all of them for the abuse
  he has suffered but will not attack or deliberate-
  ly work against his father. If the PCs free
  Udalaag and make him their ally, they will get
  no direct help against Storamere in the final bat-
  tle, but he won’t harm his new friends, either —
  even if commanded to by his father.
  16. GUARD ROOM
  Both of the doors in this room are locked (Open
  Locks DC 28 to open).
  A total of ten shields, all bearing a device resem-
  bling a black dragon, hang on the walls. Three
  halberds are propped in one corner, and a single
  longsword lies on the floor. The other furnishings
  in the room are more grisly — a rack, an iron
  maiden, and a coal pot filled with irons (cool
  now, of course) mark this room as a torture cham-
  ber as well as a guard room.
  The wavy line on the map indicates another wall
  of will (see page 38) that seals off the prison in
  Area 15. Again, the amulet of dragon will found
  in Room 5 allows its bearer to dispel the wall for
  one minute.
  17. LIVING QUARTERS
  This room is full of bunks and other furniture
  indicating that once dozens of people called this
  chamber home. Judging by the dust and filth
  that coats everything, no one has lived here in
  many decades.
  18. COMMANDER’S QUARTERS
  This smaller chamber has a single (but very large)
  bed, a dresser, a mirror on the wall, a tub for
  bathing, a rack for towels and clothing, a wardrobe,
  a desk and chair, and a large chest. Everything is old
  and long since past any semblance of use.
  Characters find all sorts of mundane items here —
  clothing, combs, cosmetics, and even some weapons
  and papers (the writing is in dark elvish, and it sim-
  ply discusses finances and administrative duties
  important to the palace 280 years ago). Nothing of
  real value can be found.
  If the room is searched, however, the characters
  stir up an ancient spectre of one of the room’s
  former occupants. First, the bed rattles and the
  door slams shut. On the next round, the charac-
  ters hear a moaning sound that grows in intensi-
  ty. They can flee, but even if they do, the spec-
  tre, which appears the next round, follows them.
  The spectre is the horrible gaunt figure of a
  female dark elf with shriveled features, billowing
  white hair and wild, red eyes.
  The spectre attacks until it is turned or destroyed.
  19. THE LIBRARY
  Rotten, torn books, yellowed papers, and various
  scrolls lie scattered about this room, where aging
  wooden shelves eventually collapsed under the
  weight of their contents. A single book remains
  open and undisturbed in the middle of the room,
  resting atop a bookstand.
  The book is entitled Notes from a Dark Cliff, and it
  is about arcane magic theory (specifically transmu-
  tation magic). Tucked within the book is a fragment
  of a parchment that reads “with the statuette in
  hand, speak the name of he who built the palace
  and the pathway shall become evident.”
  The parchment is referring to Leashadram, and the
  fact that if someone in Area 21 holds the statue
  found in the chest in Room 10 and speaks the old
  dragon’s name, a path will form through the acid.
  Getting to the book is tricky, however, since a
  number of the books in the library that are now
  laying about the ground were once magically
  trapped (see insert).
  40
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  
  41
  CHAPTER FIVE: STORAMERE’S PALACE
  Fire Trapped Books
  (CR 4 each)
  Characters walking across the room must make a
  Balance check (DC 15). Those who fail kick over 1d4
  books on their way. Each book kicked over has a 25%
  chance (01-25 on d%) of having a fire trap spell cast
  upon it that inflicts 1d4+15 points of damage to the
  character and anyone within 5 feet (Reflex saving
  throw DC 16 for half damage). Characters searching
  for these traps must succeed at a Search check DC 29
  for each book, while a Disable Device check with a
  DC of 29 will deactivate one.
  20. THE FINAL HALL
  A long green and yellow carpet, still in good condi-
  tion, runs down the center of this hall. In the mid-
  dle of one wall, three stone cylinders about a foot
  long are positioned in small niches so that they can
  spin on their axes when pushed. However, none of
  the cylinders will move until they are unlocked by
  inserting the dragon dagger found in Area 5 into the
  small slot below each of the cylinders in turn, and
  then withdrawing it.
  Once the cylinders are manipulated, anyone who
  knows the draconic language or makes a Decipher
  Script check DC 25 can tell that there are draconic
  runes marked on their sides, just like the ones in Area
  6. Each rune is the name of a dragon.
  Spectre
  Medium-Size Undead (Incorporeal)
  CR 7; SZ M (undead); HD 7d12; hp 45; Init +7 (+3 Dex, +4 Improved Initiative); Spd 40 ft., fly 80 ft.
  (good); AC 16 (+3 Dex, +3 deflection); Atk melee +6 (1d8 and energy drain, Incorporeal Touch); Face 5
  ft. x 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.; SA Create Spawn, Energy Drain; SQ Sunlight Powerlessness, Turn Resistance +2,
  Unnatural Aura; AL LE; SV Fort +2, Ref +5, Will +7; Str —, Dex 16, Con —, Int 14, Wis 14, Cha 15
  Skills: Hide +13, Intimidate +12, Intuit Direction +10, Listen +13, Search +10, Spot +13
  Feats: Alertness, Blind-Fight, Combat Reflexes, Improved Initiative
  Create Spawn (Su): Any humanoid slain by a spectre becomes a spectre in 1d4 rounds. Spawn are
  under the command of the spectre that created them and remain enslaved until its death. They do not
  possess any of the abilities they had in life.
  Energy Drain (Su): Living creatures hit by a spectre’s incorporeal touch attack receive two negative
  levels. The Fortitude save to remove a negative level has a DC of 15.
  Incorporeal: Can be harmed only by other incorporeal creatures, +1 or better magic weapons, or
  magic, with a 50% chance to ignore any damage from a corporeal source. Can pass through solid
  objects at will, and own attacks pass through armor. Always moves silently.
  Sunlight Powerlessness (Ex): Spectres are utterly powerless in natural sunlight (not merely a daylight
  spell) and flee from it. A spectre caught in sunlight cannot attack and can take only partial actions.
  Turn Resistance (Ex): When resolving a turn, rebuke, command, or bolster attempt, add a +2 bonus
  to the creature’s Hit Dice total. 
  Undead: Immune to mind-influencing effects, poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, and disease. Not
  subject to critical hits, subdual damage, ability damage, energy drain, or death from massive damage.
  Unnatural Aura (Su): Both wild and domesticated animals can sense the unnatural presence of a
  spectre at a distance of 30 feet. They do not willingly approach nearer than that and panic if forced to
  do so; they remain panicked as long as they are within that range.
  
  When the cylinders are spun, different runes are
  revealed. If the cylinders are rotated so that they display
  (in order, from left to right) the last three members of
  Storamere’s line — Havastrene, Leashadram, and
  Storamere — a secret door to the true hoard opens.
  The secret door on the wall opposite the cylinders can
  be found with a Search check of 25, but cannot be
  opened until the cylinders are in the right positions.
  However, unless someone is searching for traps,
  careless characters will reveal the runes on the third
  cylinder that are a trap (see insert).
  Explosive Runes (CR 3)
  The runes are explosive runes and detonate when
  read, inflicting 6d6 points of damage on the read-
  er (no save) and the same to anyone within 10 feet
  (Reflex saving throw DC 15 for half damage). This
  trap has a Search DC of 28 to find and a Disable
  Device DC 28.
  Level Three
  21. THE TRUE HOARD
  This room, accessed only by the stairs, is all of the
  Third Level and actually takes up a good portion of the
  level below as well. The steps lead up to a narrow area
  next to what appears to be a wall of liquid corrosive,
  like the outside walls of the palace. However, this is dif-
  ferent, for this is actually just a huge pool of acid. In the
  middle of the pool lies a bubble of fresh air, inside
  which Storamere keeps his real horde.
  If the characters found Leashadram’s statue in Area
  10 and learned the command word in Area 19
  (“Leashadram”), they can form a ten-foot by ten-foot
  passage through the acid to the hoard bubble. A mag-
  ically created iron platform forms a floor in the path.
  Without the statue, if the PCs seek the hoard they will
  have to teleport, use dimension door, or swim
  through the acid. Swimming through the acid is just
  like swimming through water except that the charac-
  ter sustains 10d6 acid damage per round and has only
  one foot of visibility.
  Of course, if Storamere has not yet been destroyed, this
  is where he makes his final stand, using the acid to his
  advantage. He can not only swim effortlessly through
  the acid, he can also see through it with perfect clarity. 
  If the PCs enter the acid, he goes after one character
  with all of his attacks (with reach) and then pulls back
  five feet, well out of the character’s limit of vision. If
  the character manages to follow him and make an
  attack, he makes only a single attack and then uses a
  move action to get completely away from the charac-
  ter and within reach of a different, probably unsus-
  pecting character to attack the following round.
  If the PCs manage to create the passage through the
  acid and Storamere is defending, he swims close to
  the tunnel and attacks (probably with surprise)
  through the acid into the tunnel.
  In either event, it is a DC 20 Spot check to see
  Storamere’s black form in the acid beyond the nor-
  mal one-foot limit to visual range. A new check is
  required every round, but if successful, the dragon
  can be targeted with spells and attacks with 50% miss
  chance and the character cannot be attacked with
  surprise. Failure means that the character in question
  has no idea where Storamere is, and if attacked by the
  dragon loses his Dexterity bonus to AC.
  The hoard floats on a magical circular platform of
  iron 10 feet across, which disappears if taken from
  the palace. The treasure consists of the following:
  •A locked chest with 1,238 gp (Open Locks DC 30
  to open, the key is lost).
  •A locked chest with 2,457 sp (Open Locks DC 30
  to open, the key is in Area 11).
  •A locked chest with 2,849 sp (Open Locks DC 30 to
  open, the key is lost). This chest has a false bottom
  (Search DC 25 to find) that holds an ivory and wood
  box (worth 50 gp) that contains ten 200 gp agates.
  The false bottom has a false bottom (Search DC 25
  to find) hiding a small wooden velvet-lined box that
  holds a ring of chameleon power.
  •A two-foot-tall ebony statue of a halfling woman
  with a vase (worth 250 gp)
  •A jeweled longsword (worth 400 gp) in a jeweled
  scabbard (worth 200 gp)
  •A candle of truth in a tall brass candleholder
  (worth 30 gp)
  •A small red wooden box with a necklace of gold
  and emeralds (worth 1,300 gp)
  42
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  
  43
  CHAPTER FIVE: STORAMERE’S PALACE
  •A staff of healing (24 charges) leaning against one of
  the chests
  •A +1 greatsword of wounding with a silver-studded
  strap and harness to wear on one’s back (worth 120 gp) 
  •A scroll tube of ivory (worth 50 gp) that holds not only
  an arcane scroll of acid fog but a wooden wand of
  shatter (19 charges).
  A dangerous but crafty strategy the PCs might
  take is to bust through the walls surrounding this
  room on Level Two and drain the acid from the
  chamber. This can work, but it will destroy
  almost everything on Level Two, and eventually
  Level One. If a hole is made in Area 16, for
  example, the acid fills that room destroying its
  contents (the acid ignores the magical barrier)
  until it eats through the doors and moves into
  Areas 15 and 17. The outer walls cannot be
  “breached” in any way, and the inner walls are
  immune to acid, so the acid burns through the
  doors and eventually reaches the stairs, burning
  its way through the Second Level and eventually
  out the main doors. Depending on the size of the
  hole made by the PCs, this process will probably
  take about six hours. If they open the doors, it
  takes only about an hour. Characters caught in
  the deluge suffer damage as though they were
  immersed in acid, but what if they were to leave
  the palace and convince Udalaag (who is
  immune to acid) to do it for them, with his bur-
  rowing claws …
  Of course, Storamere is enraged at this destruction
  and attacks the PCs immediately if this happens,
  wherever they are. He attempts to kill them as
  
  44
  BEYOND THE VEIL
  quickly as he can and then do something to plug the
  hole — even if it means using one or more of the
  acid-immune half-dragons to do it.
  If Area 21 is completely drained, the iron platform
  still floats in the room, 25 feet off the floor.
  Leashadram’s statue and the command word will
  still create a safe bridge to the platform as well.
  Aftermath
  If Storamere is permanently laid to rest, any surviv-
  ing half-dragons — except for the dragon crawlers
  — leave the palace to attempt to make lives for
  themselves elsewhere.
  The people of Iversham are of course delighted to
  learn that the menace of the black dragon is ended.
  Large Undead Dragon (Water, Ethereal)
  CR 12; SZ L (undead dragon); HD 19d12+114, hp 237; Init +1 (+1 Dex, Improved Initiative); Spd
  60 ft., fly 150 ft. (poor), swim 60 ft.; AC 28 (+1 Dex, –1 size, +18 natural); Atk melee +28 (2d6+10
  plus special*, bite), melee +23 (1d8+5 plus special*, two claws), melee +23 (1d6+5 plus special*, two
  wings), melee +23 (1d8+15 plus special*, tail slap); Face 5 ft. x 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft.; SA Breath Weapon,
  Corrupt Water, Corrupting Gaze, Frightful Presence, Spells, Withering Touch; SQ Black Dragon
  Immunities, Blindsight, Damage Reduction 5/+1, Darkness, Darkvision 60 ft., Keen Senses, Low-
  light Vision, Manifestation, Rejuvenation, Spell Resistance 18, Telekinesis, Turn Immunity, Water
  Breathing; AL CE; SV Fort +17, Ref +12, Will +12; Str 30, Dex 12, Con 22, Int 15, Wis 12, Cha 15
  *Each attack Storamere makes on the Ethereal Plane does normal damage, but also inflicts one
  point of temporary Strength and one point of temporary Constitution damage; see Storamere’s
  Withering Touch supernatural ability.
  Skills: Concentration +26, Hide +26, Intimidate +23, Listen +28, Knowledge (history) +21, Search
  +30, Sense Motive +20, Spellcraft +21, Spot +28
  Feats: Hover, Flyby Attack, Power Attack, Cleave, Snatch
  Black Dragon Immunities (Ex): Black dragons are immune to sleep, acid, and paralysis.
  Blindsight (Ex): Storamere can ascertain creatures by nonvisual means (mostly hearing and scent,
  but also by noticing vibrations and other environmental clues); this dragon’s range is 180 feet.
  Breath Weapon (Su): Line of acid, 80 feet long, every 1d4 rounds; damage 12d4, Reflex half DC 25.
  Corrupt Water (Sp): Once per day Storamere can stagnate 10 cubic feet of water, making it
  become still, foul, and unable to support animal life. This ability automatically spoils unattended,
  nonmagical liquids containing water. Magic items (such as potions) and items in a character’s pos-
  session must succeed at a Will save (DC 23) or become fouled. Magic items get a Will save bonus of
  2 + 1/2 caster level, while an item attended by a character gets the character’s bonus.
  Corrupting Gaze (Su): Storamere can blast living beings with his glance, at a range of up to 30
  feet. Creatures that meet the ghost’s gaze must succeed at a Fortitude save (DC 23) or suffer 2d10
  points of damage and 1d4 points of permanent Charisma score drain.
  Darkness (Sp): Storamere can cast darkness up to three times per day at a radius of 60 ft.
  Darkvision (Ex): Dragons can see with no light source at all, to a range of 60 ft. Darkvision is black
  and white only.
  Frightful Presence (Ex): Storamere can unsettle foes with his mere presence. This ability takes
  effect automatically (radius 180 ft.) whenever Storamere attacks, charges, or flies overhead. A poten-
  tially affected creature (one with less than 19 HD) that succeeds at a Will save (DC 23) remains
  immune to that dragon’s frightful presence for one day. On a failure, creatures with 4 or fewer HD
  become panicked for 4d6 rounds and those with more than 5 HD become shaken for 4d6 rounds.
  Storamere in His Palace
  
  45
  CHAPTER FIVE: STORAMERE’S PALACE
  Keen Senses (Ex): Storamere can see four times as well humans in low-light conditions and twice as
  well in normal light. He also has Low-light Vision, and Darkvision with a range of 60 feet.
  Low-light Vision: Characters with low-light vision can see outdoors on a moonlit night as well as
  they can during the day.
  Manifestation (Su): Manifestation allows the ethereal Storamere to appear on the Material Plane as
  an incorporeal creature, as he did earlier in this adventure. Storamere will not use this ability while
  the characters are in his palace, unless they somehow return to the Material Plane.
  Ethereal (Su): While on the Ethereal Plane, a creature is called ethereal. An ethereal creature inter-
  acts with other ethereal creatures and objects the way material creatures interact with material crea-
  tures and objects. When a spellcasting ghost is on the Ethereal Plane, its spells work normally against
  ethereal targets.
  Rejuvenation (Su): A ghost that would otherwise be destroyed returns to its old haunts in 2d4 days
  with a successful level check (1d20 + 19 in Storamere’s case) against DC 16. The only way to get rid
  of a ghost for sure is to determine the reason for its existence and set right whatever prevents it from
  resting in peace. For Storamere, being destroyed in his palace would be enough to set him to rest per-
  manently ... he intends his final confrontation with the characters to be in Area 21 with his true hoard.
  Telekinesis (Su): Storamere can use telekinesis once per round as a free action, as cast by a 19th-level
  sorcerer.
  Turn Immunity (Ex): Storamere cannot be turned in his palace.
  Undead: Undead are immune to poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, disease, death effects, and necro-
  mantic effects, and they ignore mind-influencing effects. Undead are not subject to critical hits, subd-
  ual damage, ability damage, ability drain, or energy drain. An undead spellcaster uses its Charisma
  modifier when making Concentration checks.
  Negative energy (such as an inflict wounds spell) can heal undead creatures. When reduced to 0 hit points or
  less, an undead creature is immediately destroyed. Undead cannot be raised. Resurrection can affect them,
  but since undead creatures usually are unwilling to return to life, these attempts generally fail.
  While on the Ethereal Plane, Storamere does have a Constitution score, and is therefore no longer
  immune to any effect requiring a Fortitude save.
  Withering Touch (Su): When Storamere hits a living target with this unique incorporeal attack he deals
  one point of temporary Strength score damage and one point of temporary Constitution score damage. In
  his palace, Storamere inflicts damage as if he were a normal dragon in addition to the withering effect.
  Spells: (6/6) Treat Storamere as a level 3 sorcerer. Storamere knows the following spells: 
  0 Level — detect magic, flare, mending, open/close, read magic
  1st Level — expeditious retreat, shield, true strike
  Finding out that Storamere was a ghost is going to be
  confusing for most of the townsfolk, although Tae
  Lorenorth, Strubben Seim, or Unnis Mavin would all
  be interested to hear about the details of the dragon,
  the palace, and the Order of St. Chausle. Mayor
  Mavin offers the PCs 1,000 gp in reward, but it is clear
  (and if it’s not, she makes it clear) that the amount is
  the entire town treasury.
  FURTHER ADVENTURES
  GMs who want to have direct links to further adven-
  tures can do so in an interesting way by simply placing
  other bridges that lead from Storamere’s palace to
  other “half-bridges” located elsewhere. These are
  places that Storamere and his father Leashadram had
  access to, but could be in entirely different lands, on dif-
  ferent continents, or on completely different worlds.
  Perhaps Leashadram himself is in one of these places.
  
  The experience point awards below are calculated for characters of 9th level. Potentially, they will gain 69,132
  experience points as a group, if they encounter everything. Thus, if there are four characters, each receives
  17,410 XP — enough to take them well into 10th level. In fact, if such characters stop in the middle of explor-
  ing the palace, retreat and rest, you may wish to award experience points to see if anyone gains a level. This
  is a well-deserved reward, since so many of the encounters are challenges above 9th level.
  It is indeed possible to defeat Storamere at least three different times over the course of the adventure. PCs
  should be awarded the experience points for each time. For example, they could destroy Storamere’s ghost in
  the swamp, and then come to his palace and make him retreat from the false hoard in Area 3, but Storamere
  could then go up to Area 21 where he recovers and waits in ambush with his true hoard. The PCs make it up
  to the top of the palace and fight the dragon again, defeating him for the third and final time. However, if the
  PCs defeat him in Area 3 and then immediately carry the battle to Area 21 before Storamere can has rested or
  gained back any hit points, it should be treated as a single encounter and a single defeat of the dragon (assum-
  ing the PCs win).
  Encounter
  CR/EL
  Experience Points
  Storamere in the Swamp1
  CR 12
  8,100 XP
  Gaulmeth2
  CR 10
  4,050 XP
  Black Pudding & 2 Green Slimes
  EL 9
  2,700 XP
  Collapsing Tower Roof
  CR 2
  225 XP
  Invisible Stalker3
  CR 7
  1,350 XP
  Derim & Tellifar
  EL 13
  10, 800 XP
  Manticore & Constrictor Guardians
  EL 9
  2,700 XP
  Empty Fire Trapped Chest in Area 3
  CR 4
  506 XP
  Storamere at the False Hoard4
  CR 12
  8,100 XP
  Verrit the Vampire
  CR 9
  2,700 XP
  5 Dragon Crawlers in Area 8
  EL 10
  5,400 XP
  Gaulmeth’s Chest in Area 10
  CR 3
  338 XP
  Yellow Mold in Storeroom
  CR 6
  900 XP
  Venenum Erratus in Lab
  CR 2
  225 XP
  3 Dragon Crawlers in Area 13
  EL 9
  2,700 XP
  Wall of Will in Area 14
  CR 5
  675 XP
  Wall of Will in Area 16
  CR 5
  675 XP
  Udalaag5
  CR 9
  2,700 XP
  Dark Elf Spectre
  CR 7
  1,350 XP
  Fire Trapped Books in Library6
  CR 4 each
  506 XP each
  Explosive Runes in Area 20
  CR 3
  338 XP
  Storamere in the True Hoard7
  CR 12
  8,100 XP
  1 Points awarded for destroying Storamere, even though he’ll come back later.
  2 Points awarded for making Gaulmeth flee.
  3 Points awarded for destroying the stalker before it reports to Storamere.
  4 Points awarded for making Storamere retreat; award a +10% experience point bonus for the environ-
  mental conditions.
  5 Allying with him earns the experience award as well as killing him.
  6 Figure a minimum EL of 4, even if none are encountered.
  7 Points awarded for destroying Storamere, which finally puts him to rest; award a +30% experience
  point bonus for the environmental conditions.
  46
  APPENDIX A
  Experience Chart
  
  APPENDIX B
  Map of Storamere’s Palace
  ONE SQUARE = 10 FEET
  STAIRS TO
  AREA 8
  STAIRS TO
  AREA 13
  STAIRS TO
  AREA 21
  STAIRS TO
  AREA 20
  
  Communities
  Iversham (Village)   6
  Magic Items 
  and Potions
  Amulet of Dragon Will   31
  Dragon Dagger   31
  Leashadram’s Statue   36
  Lotion of Size and Shape Alteration
  36
  Venenum Acidus Repugno   37
  Venenum Erratus   37
  NPCs and Monsters
  Black Pudding   23
  Derim Half-Drow   27
  Dragon Bloodspawn   31
  Dragon Crawlers   34
  False-Hoard Guardians   28 & 29
  Gaulmeth the Half-Giant   20
  Half-Giant Constrictor Snake   29
  Half-Manticore   28
  Invisible Stalker   24
  Spectre   41
  Storamere in His Palace   44 – 45
  Storamere in the Swamp   15 – 16
  Strubben Seim   7
  Tae Lorenorth   9
  Tellifar the Half-Drow   27
  Udalaag the Half-Umber Hulk   38
  Verrit the Undead Cleric   32
  Traps and Molds
  Collapsing Roof (CR 2)   22
  Empty Fire Trapped Chest (CR 4)   30
  Explosive Runes (CR 3)   42
  Fire Trapped Books (CR 4 each)   41
  Gaulmeth’s Chest (CR 3)   35
  Green Slime (2 at CR 4 each)   23
  Venenum Erratus (CR 2)   37
  Yellow Mold (CR 6)   36
  Spells
  Wall of Will   38
  Weapon Special
  Abilities
  Sundering   20
  Index
  You’ve scoured the dungeon, looted
  the dragon’s horde, and lived to tell
  the tale of your brave deeds. Now
  it’s time to push on to the next vil-
  lage, where still more fortune and
  glory await ... but you have to get
  there first!
  On your path lie alien creatures,
  bloodthirsty magical weapons,
  mischievous 
  fey, 
  homicidal
  innkeepers, demonic livestock,
  bands of thieving children, the
  centuries-old 
  remains 
  of 
  forgotten wars, profiteering
  carneys, conniving bandits,
  not-quite-abandoned 
  temples,
  hallucinogenic plagues, sloshed
  spirits, and a host of other obsta-
  cles to complicate your journey.
  En Route is a collection of short
  encounters that GMs can easily
  insert into longer adventures of
  their own design, or use as  tran-
  sitions between published mod-
  ules. En Route goes beyond glori-
  fied battles with random mon-
  sters; the encounters strive to be
  innovative concepts that can
  stand on their own merits, and
  that can be played in less than
  one hour’s time.
  G ETTING THERE IS HALF THE FUN.
  ©2001 TRIDENT, INC. PENUMBRA IS A TRADEMARK OF TRIDENT, INC.
  THE D20 SYSTEM AND D20 SYSTEM LOGO ARE TRADEMARKS OF WIZARDS OF THE COAST, INC. AND ARE USED WITH PERMISSION.
  126 PAGES ¥ $20.95 
  AG3207 ¥ ISBN 1-58978-004-3
  www.atlas-games.com ¥ info@atlas-games.com
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Penumbra (d20) [multi]/Penumbra - Beyond The Veil {AG3209}.pdf