TEXT: Based on the original DUNGEONS & DRAGONS® rules created by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson and the new DUNGEONS & DRAGONS game designed 
  by Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams, Richard Baker, and Peter Adkison. 
   
  This game product contains no Open Game Content. No portion of this work may be reproduced in any form without 
  permission of the author. To learn more about the Open Gaming License and the d20 system license, please visit 
  www.wizards.com/d20 
   
  DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, GREYHAWK and RPGA are registered trademarks of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. 
  LIVING GREYHAWK is a trademark of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. © 2004 Wizards of the Coast. ALL RIGHTS 
  RESERVED. This scenario is intended for tournament use only and may not be reproduced without approval of the 
  RPGA Network.  
   
  COR4-05 
   
   
   
  CRYSTAL CAVERNS OF THE 
  CAIRN HILLS 
   
  A Two-Round D&D® LIVING GREYHAWK™ 
  Core Adventure 
  Version 1 
  Round 1 & 2 
  by Nicholas K. Tulach 
  Circle Reviewers: Jason Bulmahn and Stephen Radney-MacFarland 
   
  Outside of the Free City of Greyhawk lie the burial grounds containing the relics of a era long past. Near one of these 
  cairns is the town Crystalhollow — a settlement of gnomes who mine for precious metals and gems of incredible value. 
  Greed drives them deep beneath Oerth where they've uncovered something... A two-round adventure recommended 
  for characters levels 1-9. 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 2 
  INTRODUCTION 
  This is an RPGA® Network scenario for the Dungeons & 
  Dragons® game. A four-hour time block has been 
  allocated for each round of this scenario, but the actual 
  playing time will be closer to three and a half hours. The 
  rest of the time is spent in preparation before game play, 
  and scoring after the game. The following guidelines are 
  here to help you with both the preparation and voting 
  segment of the game. Read this page carefully so that you 
  know and can communicate to your players the special 
  aspects of playing an RPGA scenario.  
   
  PREPARATION 
   
   
   
   
  First you should print this scenario. This scenario was 
  created to support double-sided printing, but printing it 
  single sided will work as well. There is enough room along 
  the inside margin to bind the adventure, if you desire.  
  Read this entire adventure at least once before you run 
  your game. Be sure to familiarize yourself with any special 
  rules, spells, or equipment presented in the adventure. It 
  may help to highlight particularly important passages.  
  When you run an RPGA D&D adventure we assume that 
  you have access to the following books: the Player’s 
  Handbook, the Dungeon Master’s Guide, and the Monster 
  Manual. We also assume that you have a set of dice (at least 
  one d4, d6, d8, d10, d12, and d20), some scrap paper, a 
  pencil, an RPGA scoring packet, and your sense of fun. It is 
  also a good idea to have a way to track movement during 
  combat. This can be as simple as a pad of graph paper and a 
  pencil, as handy as a vinyl grid map and chits, or as 
  elaborate as resin dungeon walls and miniatures. 
  Instruct the players either to prepare their characters now, 
  or wait until you read the introduction, depending on the 
  requirements of the scenario as described in the 
  introduction.  
  Keep in mind that you must have at least three players (not 
  counting the DM), for the game session to be a sanctioned 
  RPGA event. As well, you cannot have more than six 
  players participating in the game. 
  Once you are ready to play, it is handy to instruct each 
  player to place a nametag in front of him or her. The tag 
  should have the player’s name at the bottom, and the 
  character’s name, race, and gender at the top. This makes it 
  easier for the players (and the DM) to keep track of who is 
  playing which character. 
  The players are free to use the game rules to learn about 
  equipment and weapons their characters are carrying. That 
  said, you as the DM can bar the use of even core rulebooks 
  during certain times of play. For example, the players are 
  not free to consult the Dungeon Master’s Guide when 
  confronted with a trap or hazard, or the Monster Manual 
  when confronted with a monster.  
  Some of the text in this scenario is written so that you may 
  present it as written to the players, while other text is for 
  your eyes only. Text for the players will be in gray boxes. 
  It’s strongly recommended that you paraphrase the player 
  text instead of reading it aloud. Some of this text is general 
  and must be adapted to the specific situation or to actions 
  of the player characters. 
   
  SCORING 
   
   
   
   
   
  After the players have completed the scenario or the time 
  allotted to run the scenario has run out, the players and 
  DM score the game. The RPGA has three ways to score its 
  games. Consult your convention coordinator to determine 
  which method to use for this scenario: 
  1. 
  No-vote scoring: The players write their names and 
  RPGA numbers on the scoring packet grid. You fill 
  in the top of the grid. That is all. No one is rated. 
  This method is used for people who are just playing 
  for fun. 
  2. 
  Partial scoring: The players rate the game master and 
  the scenario on their player voting sheet, and 
  provide personal information, but don’t vote for 
  other players. The game master rates the scenario 
  and completes personal and event information, but 
  does not rate the players as a team or vote for players. 
  This method is used when there is no competition, 
  but the event coordinator wants information on how 
  the game masters are performing, or the game 
  master wants feedback on his or her own 
  performance. 
  3. 
  Voting: Players and game masters complete the 
  entire packet, including voting for best player. If this 
  method is used, be sure to allow about 15-20 minutes 
  for the players to briefly describe their characters to 
  the other players, and about 5-10 minutes for voting. 
  This method is used when the players want to know 
  who played the “best” amongst the group, or when 
  the adventure is run in tournament format with 
  winners and prizes.  
  When using voting, rank the players in order of your 
  voting choice while they are completing their forms, so 
  that you are not influenced by their comments on your 
  abilities. It’s a good idea to have the players vote while you 
  determine treasure and experience awards for the scenario.  
  After voting, give the Scoring Packet to your event 
  coordinator.  
  This is a LIVING GREYHAWK Adventure. As a LIVING 
  adventure it is expected that players bring their own 
  characters with them. If players do not have a LIVING 
  GREYHAWK character generated, get a copy of the 
  current LIVING GREYHAWK character generation 
  guidelines, and a character sheet from your convention 
  coordinator or the RPGA Web site, ant then have any 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 3 
  # of Animals 
  Mundane 
  Animals Effect on 
  APL 
  1 
  2 
  3 
  4 
  1/4 & 1/6 
  0 
  0 
  0 
  1 
  1/3 & 1/2 
  0 
  0 
  1 
  1 
  1 
  1 
  1 
  2 
  3 
  2 
  2 
  3 
  4 
  5 
  3 
  3 
  4 
  5 
  6 
  4 
  4 
  6 
  7 
  8 
  5 
  5 
  7 
  8 
  9 
  6 
  6 
  8 
  9 
  10 
  CR of Animal 
  7 
  7 
  9 
  10 
  11 
  players without a character create on. Once all players 
  have a LIVING GREYHAWK character, play can begin. 
  Along with the other materials that you are assumed to 
  have in order to run a D&D game, it is also recommended 
  that you have a copy of the LIVING GREYHAWK 
  Gazetteer. 
  LIVING GREYHAWK LEVELS OF PLAY  
  Because players bring their own characters to LIVING 
  GREYHAWK games, this adventure’s challenges are 
  proportioned to the average character level of the PCs 
  participating in the adventure. To determine the Average 
  Party Level (APL): 
  1. 
  Determine the character level for each of the PCs 
  participating in the adventure. 
  2. 
  If PCs bring animals that have been trained for 
  combat (most likely being war horses, dogs trained 
  for war), other than those brought by virtue of a class 
  ability (i.e. animal companions, familiars paladin’s 
  mounts, etc) use the appendix chart to determine the 
  number 
  of 
  levels 
  you 
  add to the 
  sum 
  above. 
  Add 
  each 
  character’s 
  animals 
  separately. A 
  single 
  PC 
  may 
  only 
  bring four or 
  fewer animals 
  of this type, 
  and animals 
  with 
  different CRs 
  are 
  added 
  separately. 
  3. 
  Sum 
  the 
  results of 1 
  and 2, and divide by the number of characters 
  playing in the adventure. Round to the nearest 
  whole number. 
  4. 
  If you are running a table of six PCs, add one to that 
  average. 
   
  By following these four steps, you will have determined 
  the APL. Throughout this adventure, APLs categorize the 
  level of challenge the PCs will face. APLS are given in 
  even-numbered increments. If the APL of your group 
  falls on an odd number, ask them before the adventure 
  begins whether they would like to play a harder or easier 
  adventure. Based on their choice, use either the higher or 
  the lower adjacent APL. 
  APL also affects the amount of experience you may gain 
  at the end of the adventure. If your character is three 
  character levels or more either higher or lower than the 
  APL this adventure is being played at, that character will 
  receive only half of the experience points awarded for the 
  adventure. This simulates the face that either your 
  character was not as challenged as normal, or relied on 
  help by higher-level characters to reach the objectives. 
  Note: LIVING GREYHAWK adventures are designed for 
  APL 2 and higher. Three or four, or sometimes even five 
  1st-level characters may find difficulty with the 
  challenges in a LIVING GREYHAWK adventure. If your 
  group is APL 1 there are three things that you can do to 
  help even the score. 
  1. 
  Attempt to create a table of six 1st-level characters, or 
  try to enlist higher-level characters to play at that 
  table. 
  2. 
  Advise characters to buy riding dogs to help protect 
  them, and fight for them. All riding dogs are 
  considered trained to attack. PCs who want their 
  dogs to attack must succeed at a Handle Animal or 
  Charisma check (DC 10). Failure indicates that the 
  animal will not attack that round. This is a free 
  action (spoken command) that may be attempted 
  each round. If an animal loses half or more hp in a 
  single round it flees, unless another check is 
  successful. 
  TIME UNITS AND UPKEEP 
   
   
  This is a standard two-round Core adventure, set in 
  Greyhawk. All characters pay four Time Units. 
  Adventurer’s Standard Upkeep costs 12gp per Time Unit. 
  Rich Upkeep costs 50gp per Time Unit. Luxury Upkeep 
  costs 100gp per Time Unit. 
   
  ADVENTURE BACKGROUND 
  THE STORY OF HIEIN’NIT THE 
  INSATIABLE 
  Over one hundred years ago, a powerful dragon once 
  ruled the underbelly of the Cairn Hills. This dragon did 
  not trifle with the events of the surface world, choosing 
  instead to hunt deep beneath the earth in the light-less 
  world known as the Underdark. This particular dragon 
  was known among the sentient creatures that lived 
  beneath the earth as "Hiein'nit the Insatiable", for he had 
  a hunger that never subsided. Unlike other dragons that 
  were known to slumber for decades, Hiein'nit hunted 
  constantly. Not for food, but for his true obsession: 
  treasure. He tormented the caverns under the realm of 
  Greyhawk and kept things for the surface world 
  relatively safe—for a time. The evil creatures of darkness 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 4 
  feared the great dragon and thought of a way to rid 
  themselves of the menace forever.  
   
  Rather then risk the suicide of confronting Hiein'nit 
  directly, the wicked drow came to the surface and spread 
  rumors of a great, evil red dragon below the earth with a 
  huge horde of treasure to be had by whichever brave 
  adventurers could slay the terrible beast. A motley band 
  of brave (and foolish) adventurers calling themselves the 
  Champions of Heironeous heard these rumors and 
  consulted their god. Luck was not with them that day, as 
  their divinations (perhaps nefariously misdirected by the 
  drow themselves) returned a great boon for them if they 
  were to partake on the dragon slaying quest. The 
  Champions at once set forth for the Cairn Hills to battle 
  their most fierce opponent yet. 
   
  Researching entrances into the Underdark at the 
  great Library of Greyhawk, the Champions located just 
  the right place to begin their search for the dragon 
  (perhaps once again aided by the subversive drow). They 
  gathered up their gear and a weeks worth of rations 
  strapped to their hirelings backs and set forth for the cave 
  entrance. 
   
  For hundreds of years before, the dragon known as 
  Hiein'nit lived beneath the earth. From his days as a 
  wyrmling through his adulthood and until his final years, 
  he plundered the hordes of the aberrations beneath the 
  surface of Oerth.  
   
  Hiein’nit had a great appetite for treasure. But in 
  order to accommodate that appetite, he needs someone to 
  tend to it. Thus he brought with him a subservient group 
  of kobolds that he used to keep his treasure safe and 
  secure. So long as the kobolds did their work, Hiein’nit 
  treated them well. Often times he would even reward 
  them with the fleshier spoils of his pursuit for material 
  wealth. The kobolds grew to love and respect the dragon 
  and some even went as far as worshiping him as some 
  kind of agent of their god, Kurtulmak. 
   
  In addition to the kobolds, the dragon had one other 
  that he trusted. Hiein’nit's greed could only be matched 
  by one other race: dwarves. And of those dwarves, one 
  surpassed the rest in greed so much so that even 
  Hiein’nit himself was impressed. Guldan Goldtooth 
  realized as soon as he stumbled upon the dragon's horde 
  that he and the dragon shared a common love: wealth. 
  More specifically wealth in the form of treasure! Some 
  may think that this relationship is as unlikely as any. 
  How can two beings so possessed and driven by a 
  destructive force like greed coexist? Well, as it turns out, 
  Guldan had a secret. He loved gold, silver, and gemstones 
  very much, but his real love was for mithral. Hiein’nit 
  cared mostly for gemstones and items of a magical 
  nature. While the dragon brooded over finding such 
  things to pleasure him, Guldan was able to extract an 
  enormous amount of mithral from the plunder. He and 
  the dragon could live in harmony so long as there was a 
  source of their precious substances. 
   
  The dragon grew to a ripe old age by the time the 
  Champions of Heironeous came along. Hiein’nit, being a 
  deep reddish-brown, was easily confused for a wicked red 
  dragon. Since he had little peaceful contact with 
  adventurers, Hiein’nit resorted to his usual scare tactics. 
  These adventurers, however, were bent on the glory and 
  wealth associated with dragon slaying and destroyed the 
  solitary being, leaving but a few kobolds left cowering in 
  the deepest caverns of the dragon's lair. 
   
  But what happened to Guldan during all this? The 
  dwarf often traveled to the surface to trade treasure and 
  other valuable items for mithral. On this occasion, he was 
  unlucky enough to have been away on one such venture. 
  Upon returning, he found that there was nothing left of 
  his or the dragon's horde. Only the remains of what was 
  once a mighty dragon's lair glinted with a coating of 
  copper and his small shrine to his patron— Dumathoin. 
  Infuriated by the theft and the death of his friend, 
  Guldan believed that the drow were to blame. He 
  descended into the crevasse that Hiein'nit used to hunt 
  in never to be seen or heard from again. However, before 
  leaving, he blessed the remains of his fallen companion 
  and told the kobolds that one day he and the dragon 
  would return to the caverns under the Cairn Hills. 
   
  THE STORY OF CRYSTALHOLLOW 
  The town of Crystalhollow has existed in the Cairn Hills 
  for centuries nearly undetected by humans, elves, 
  dwarves, or halflings save for two things. First is the 
  popular travel stop once known as the Last Chance Inn, 
  now rebuilt and renamed the Next Last Chance Inn. It 
  serves as the last travel stop before the wilderness of the 
  Cairn Hills for weary merchants and adventurers alike. 
  The second is the annual "Wares Days" that the gnomes 
  hold near the Last Chance Inn. This is an open market, 
  which is popular among the local farmers and some more 
  adventurous merchants from Greyhawk. Here they trade 
  some of their lesser gems and alchemical items for exotic 
  human goods brought by the tall merchants of the 
  surrounding area. The rest of the town is veiled in a 
  permanent illusionary terrain effect placed upon it by 
  one of the great illusionist gnomes of years passed. Not 
  that the effect is really needed. Much of the town (if you 
  can call it that) is underground and the entrances that are 
  outside of the spell effect are well hidden.  
   
  Everyday several gnomes hustle to and from the 
  nearby mine which serves as the chief source of pleasure 
  in the daily lives of the community. Each and every 
  gnome resident of the town is somehow connected to the 
  mining industry. The blacksmith makes the chisels, 
  picks, and shovels used to remove the precious stones 
  from the rock. The alchemist, wizards, and tinkerer make 
  things easier for the miners by enhancing their 
  equipment with alchemical, magical or technological 
  abilities beyond that of ordinary tools. Even the cobbler 
  makes boots for the men that work in the mines to assure 
  them proper comfort when carrying their heavy load. 
   
  The mine itself has been transformed into quite the 
  marvel over time. The tinkerer has invented several 
  creations to help make the process of extracting precious 
  gems more efficient. And sometimes they actually work! 
  Often times, they don't. The mine is littered with his 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 5 
  failed projects, but none failed more devastatingly then 
  his latest: the Mecha-Badger 600. This mechanical 
  digging machine was supposed to magically seek out 
  veins of precious crystal in the stone through the help of 
  the wizard's enchantment. Instead, it tunneled through 
  the rock and broke into the lair of the long dead dragon. 
  Of course, the descendants of the kobold servants of the 
  dead wyrm have overrun this lair. As many tales have 
  previously told, kobolds and gnomes do not like each 
  other one bit.  
   
  After the accident, the town of Crystalhollow 
  transformed from a small, peaceful, self-serving mining 
  community into a churning war machine preparing for 
  battle. The blacksmith enlisted several young assistants to 
  help him make armor and weapons for the gnomes. The 
  cobbler worked day and night making boots and leather 
  for the warriors to wear. The woman trained alongside 
  the men to help defend the city as well. From all 
  estimates, the kobolds outnumbered the small gnome 
  community five to one. Unknown to the gnomes, the 
  kobolds had their own ally. 
   
  Weeks before the accident, a group of adventurers 
  passed through the Next Last Chance Inn. It just so 
  happened that they ran into Grimble Blackbelly 
  Fuddlesmock, a tradesman from the nearby town of 
  Crystalhollow. A pair of no good tieflings was among 
  these adventurers. They were sent by their master to 
  cause chaos and prove their worth to "him that shall not 
  be named". The greedy Grimble saw opportunity in the 
  wealthy adventurers' pockets and decided not to let it 
  pass. He befriended them and offered to sell them some 
  worthless gems for an outrageous sum. Being foolish -- 
  and tired of carrying around such a heavy load of coins -- 
  the adventurers bit on the offer. However, the tieflings 
  noticed the dupe and thought that there might be an 
  opportunity of their own with this short man. 
   
  A short time later, the tieflings returned to the Next 
  Last Chance Inn (after having disposed of the weak-
  willed adventurers) and called upon Grimble once again. 
  This time they made him an offer. They asked Grimble 
  what it is he wanted most in the world. He, of course, 
  said gems. The tieflings in turn inquired about where a 
  source of these gems might be. Grimble, not the wisest of 
  gnomes, told the tieflings about the nearby mine. The 
  tieflings then offered to clear out the mine for Grimble in 
  exchange for a small sum to be determined at a later date. 
    
  So the tieflings set off to plot their wicked plan. 
  However, before they could strike, the accident occurred 
  and the tieflings realized that the kobolds would be 
  (slightly) easier to exploit then the gnome. So they 
  abandoned their plan and their deal with Grimble and set 
  off for the lower reaches of the mine—and the former 
  dragon's lair. 
   
  Luckily for the rest of the gnomes, one of the 
  wizards did not agree with others and decided to go to 
  Greyhawk for help. 
   
  ADVENTURE SUMMARY  
  This is a complex story of deceit, greed, war, fear, and 
  misunderstanding. It takes place in a small gnome town 
  in the Cairn Hills known as Crystalhollow (see below for 
  town's demographics). The story begins one of two ways. 
  Either the PCs are already in Greyhawk or they are 
  traveling there. Either way, they meet gnome named 
  Stubbon Gingelruddle. He explains to them that his 
  small town is in trouble and in need of the help of good-
  hearted warriors or quick-tongued diplomats, preferably 
  the latter.  
   
  Meanwhile, back at the town, the gnomes are 
  preparing to march on the mine. They only have 15 to 20 
  able-bodied men, so they are trying desperately to come 
  up with a strategy.  
   
  The kobolds, however, have a strategy thanks to the 
  newfound presence of Kurtulmak. A pair of tieflings 
  named Uzbik and Myltoi has exploited the poor kobolds 
  by holing up in the temple of Kurtulmak, and they have 
  convinced the kobold shaman that they are his god. The 
  tieflings have come up with a plan to rouse the gnomes 
  into battle on their terms and in their caverns where the 
  kobolds have a distinct advantage. They have even 
  brought an ally from the lower planes to aid them in their 
  attack on the town—a fiendish ankheg.  
   
  The tieflings have already taken a few kobolds to the 
  surface to attack the gnomes and disrupt their planning. 
  Then they will wait for the gnomes to retaliate and attack 
  the town again while the warriors are away, giving the 
  gnomes nothing left to fight for. All the while, the 
  remaining kobolds will use clever tactics and the aid of 
  one of the tiefling's magic to befuddle the gnome 
  invasion force.  
   
  The PCs come to town right while all this is about to 
  begin. The gnomes are still reeling from the unexpected 
  kobold raid and the PCs can convince them to allow for a 
  scouting mission before the gnomes attack. They can also 
  interview some of the townsfolk and potentially find out 
  about Grimble and his deal with some “adventurers”. 
  However, if the PCs stick around town too long, the 
  tieflings attack with the ankheg.   
   
  Once the PCs journey into the dragon's lair, they are 
  confronted by kobolds that constantly hit and retreat. All 
  around the walls of the lair are paintings depicting the 
  dragon, the dwarf, and the past events leading up to and 
  including the dragon's death. Eventually, the PCs drive 
  their way to main treasure chamber where the remains of 
  the dragon still lie. It is here that the PCs uncover the 
  tiefling's deception and exploitation of the kobolds. It is 
  here that the PCs have to decide whether to leave the 
  kobolds and seal the cavern, slaughter the kobolds to 
  make way for progress, or leave the gnomes to deal with 
  the situation and track down the evil tiefling(s). It is a 
  difficult choice, given the situation—surrounded by 130 
  kobolds. 
   
  Finally, after all is said and done, an old gray-bearded 
  dwarf emerges from the darkness below. Guldan has 
  returned as promised. He scorns or blesses the PCs for 
  their efforts depending on their choices. He is powerful 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 6 
  and has come to resurrect the great dragon to live with 
  him once again. 
   
  TIMELINE OF EVENTS 
  -18 days 
  Uzbik and Myltoi left their home in Hades met up with a 
  group of adventurers on their way to Greyhawk city. On 
  this day, they arrived in the town of Crystalhollow and 
  learned of the valuable mine. An evil black market 
  salesperson named Grimble Blackbelly Fuddlesmock 
  informed them of the mine. His plan was to pay the 
  tieflings a hefty sum to help him scare off the miners so 
  he could take up residence in the mine by himself. 
  -14 days 
  After leaving the town, Uzbik and Myltoi turn on their 
  companion adventurers, killing them and leaving their 
  corpses to rot in the wilderness outside of Crystalhollow. 
  They head toward the mine to scout. 
  -13 days 
  The gnomes accidentally open a passage into a previously 
  unknown cavern. Exploration quickly leads to a cause of 
  frustration for the gnomes. A tribe of kobolds are 
  squatting on their newly found mine (so the gnomes 
  believe). In addition, the mischievous tieflings make the 
  same discovery and begin plotting how they can use this 
  to their advantage. 
  -12 days 
  Chief Warden Brackendoddle declares the lower 
  passages of the mine too dangerous for the time being 
  and seals them off with a well-triggered cave-in. Actually, 
  he knows that the passage was not actually sealed, but 
  merely an illusion crafted by the gnome wizards. 
  -11 days to -9 days 
  These days are spent by the two tieflings setting up their 
  plot to take possession of the mine above. The tieflings 
  realize that the mine is far more valuable then Grimble 
  led them to believe, and so they've decided to abandon 
  him. Instead, they take up residence among the kobolds 
  and convince them that they are avatars of the kobold 
  deity Kurtulmak. Again using elaborate illusions, they 
  frighten and awe many of the kobolds into following 
  their leadership. Most of the kobolds are fooled. Those 
  that are not are brutally killed. During this time, the 
  gnomes are holding town forums about the kobold 
  threat. They argue a lot and two sides emerge. Some wish 
  to explore the caverns more thoroughly while others 
  would like to begin preparations for war. 
  -8 days 
  The tieflings use their secret passage to steal some 
  equipment from the mine. This causes a great deal of 
  confusion among the gnomes and gives more sway to the 
  war-mongering side. 
  -7 days to -2 days 
  Bickering continues in the gnome town. No resolution 
  can be agreed upon. Attempts to locate adventurers 
  nearby and in Greyhawk yield nothing. The pro-war 
  group begins gathering supplies and forging weapons for 
  then ensuing battle. Meanwhile, the tieflings have used 
  this time to train many of the kobolds to use clever tactics 
  and supplemental magic to aid them in battle against the 
  inevitable gnome invasion. 
  -1 day 
  The tieflings send out a raiding party to the surface to 
  sack the gnomish town. This accomplishes its goal of 
  swaying the majority of gnomes to rally behind the call to 
  arms. Preparations are in full swing to go to war. 
  Present 
  The PCs arrive in Crystalhollow in the early morning. 
  Only a scant few cool heads remain in town. The forges 
  are in full operation and many gnomes are testing their 
  latest war-making inventions. Underneath the surface, 
  the tieflings are preparing a raid on the gnome town as a 
  surprise attack. They also hope to weaken their 
  organization and force them to be hasty in their decisions 
  instead of allowing them time to plot. The kobolds have 
  set up defenses in the caverns below the mine. 
  +18 hours* 
  Myltoi 
  leads 
  the 
  attack 
  on 
  Crystalhollow. 
  He, 
  accompanied by a gang of kobolds and a fiendish pet, 
  wreck havoc on the town and quickly flee. Some gnomes 
  muster to give chase, but lose track of the swift enemy in 
  the dark of night. 
  APL 2 (EL 4) 
   
  �Kobolds (4): hp 4 each; see Monster Manual. 
   
  �Fiendish Ankheg: hp 28; see Appendix 1. 
   
  APL 4 (EL 6)  
   
  �Kobolds (6): hp 4 each; see Monster Manual. 
   
  �Kobold sorcerer: hp 6; see Appendix 1. 
   
  �Dire Weasel: hp 14; see Monster Manual. 
   
  �Fiendish Ankheg, Advanced I: hp 36; see 
  Appendix 1. 
   
  APL 6 (EL 8) 
   
  �Kobolds (8): hp 4 each; see Monster Manual. 
   
  �Kobold Warrior (2): hp 16; see Appendix 1. 
   
  �Dire Weasels (2): hp 13 each; see Monster Manual. 
   
  �Fiendish Ankheg, Advanced II: hp 52; see 
  Appendix 1. 
   
  APL 8 (EL 10) 
   
  �Kobolds (8): hp 4 each; see Monster Manual. 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 7 
   
  �Kobold Warrior (2): hp 16; see Appendix 1. 
   
  �Dire Weasels, Advanced (2): hp 31 each; see 
  Appendix 1. 
   
  �Fiendish Ankheg, Advanced II: hp 52; see 
  Appendix 1. 
   
  �Myltoi: hp 37; see Appendix 1. 
   
   
  Tactics: Myltoi’s goal here is to create as much chaos 
  and fear in the gnome community as possible. He has the 
  ankheg burrow into the some of the gnomes’ residences 
  and go after women and children first. The kobolds are 
  his personal bodyguard and protect him at all costs. He 
  uses his hat of disguise at all times to make himself look 
  like a kobold. If the PCs attempt to engage him, he uses 
  his darkness ability to flee. He is not interested in fighting 
  six or more adventurers alone. 
  +1 day, 2 hours* 
  Chief Warden Brackendoddle and a number of the 
  townsfolk decide to go to war and begin organizing a 
  militia to invade the mine. He sends several of his best 
  miners to begin opening another tunnel to the kobold 
  lair. 
  +2 days* 
  The gnomes begin their attack through the passageways 
  of the mine and into the old dragon's lair. They fall prey 
  to the kobold traps and suffer numerous casualties. 
  Driven back, they are forced to regroup in the upper 
  reaches of the mine near the surface. Here they discover 
  that they did not leave enough protection for the town, as 
  it has suffered a serious attack. The women, children, and 
  elderly have been slaughtered by the ruthless attack. 
  Many of the buildings and caves have been damaged or 
  collapsed beyond repair. 
  +3 days to +7 days* 
  The gnomes send word to Greyhawk, but hear nothing 
  back as the cunning Myltoi intercepted the runners 
  before they could reach the city. By the 7th day, the 
  gnome town is in ruins, the townsfolks’ spirits are 
  shattered, and the battle is over. The kobolds—and more 
  importantly the tieflings—have won. 
  NOTE 
  * All the future events assume no intervention by the 
  PCs. 
  INTRODUCTION 
  PCs have a couple of options to start out with. They can 
  either choose to start in Greyhawk City at the Black 
  Dragon Inn or start on the road to Greyhawk City. There 
  are essentially two parts to this introduction. One takes 
  place either on the road to Crystalhollow and one takes 
  place either at the Black Dragon Inn or at the Next Last 
  Chance Inn. 
  AT THE INN (BLACK DRAGON OR NEXT 
  LAST CHANCE) 
  If the PCs decide they are already in Greyhawk city, read 
  or paraphrase the following to them, otherwise skip this 
  part of the encounter and return to it after the second 
  part:  
  A young gnome—though it’s hard to tell relative age at times 
  with that race—has been going from table to table speaking 
  with the patrons of the Black Dragon Inn. Those he has spoken 
  with have shook their heads and turned him away. He 
  approaches. 
   
  "Good day, my friends. My name is Stubbon Gingelruddle 
  of Crystalhollow. I'm sorry to disturb you, but I'm looking for 
  some help."  
   
  He continues after a brief pause as if waiting to be turned 
  away. 
   
  "Well, you see, our town has had an incident. The Crystal 
  Caves—some of the richest mines in all of Greyhawk—have 
  become infested with kobolds. This has many in my 
  community very upset as you could imagine. However, I am a 
  bit more leery of the situation while others prepare to fight. I 
  know the kobolds have a serious advantage over us in 
  population and the terrain is quite difficult even for us gnomes. 
  I have come to seek out brave adventurers to spelunk the kobold 
  tunnels and report to us what is down there. Perhaps you are 
  interested?" 
   
  The PCs can make a Sense Motive check (DC 16) to 
  determine that Stubbon is trying to hide something. In 
  fact, he is trying to hide his profession. He is a wizard and 
  is posing as a young boy. He does not want to draw 
  undue attention to himself nor does he fully trust the 
  citizens of Greyhawk. However, if he is called on the fact 
  that he is being untruthful, he owns up to the fact that 
  there is more to him then meets the eye. 
  ON THE ROAD 
  If the PCs decide to start off outside of Greyhawk city or 
  in other regions, start with this encounter and read the 
  following, otherwise run this after the tavern encounter: 
  Traveling to Greyhawk city has always been an adventure in 
  itself. This time is no different. The weather has been 
  outrageously warm and muggy. The bugs have been terrible, at 
  times resembling stirges more then one would like. The Cairn 
  Hills have presented many obstacles for a supposed short cut. 
  Regardless, it is not far now till the bright torches and warm 
  beds of the city are within sight.  
   
  The PCs are allowed a Spot check while traveling. It is 
  recommended that the DM role this for each player even 
  before the game begins to determine if this encounter is 
  even necessary. 
   
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 8 
  Off the side of the trail that has wound through the rolling 
  hills, a putrid stench happens to draw your attention to a copse 
  of brush. 
   
  The PCs may make a Search check (DC 10) to locate the 
  rotting corpses of four adventurers. The bodies are so 
  decomposed that it is impossible to tell any details about 
  them at all. All of their useful gear has been stripped. A 
  Search check on the bodies (DC 20) reveals a small piece 
  of 
  paper 
  with 
  the 
  name 
  "Grimble 
  Blackbelly 
  Fuddlesmock" on it. A Heal check (DC 15) reveals that 
  cause of death was not physical in nature. 
  LOCATIONS IN 
  CRYSTALHOLLOW 
  �Crystalhollow (thorp): Nonstandard (warden is most 
  honored citizen); AL N; Assets 200 gp; Population 43; 
  Isolated (gnome 99%, halfling 1%). 
   
  Authority Figures: Chief Warden Brackendoodle, 
  male, gnome, War3/Exp3, (“Chief Warden”) 
   
  Important Characters: see below. 
   
  All entrances to the town are hidden: behind bushes, 
  inside hollowed trees, under boulders, etc. In addition, 
  there is an old hallucinatory terrain spell permanently in 
  effect that covers some of the area around town. Some 
  slight bulges exist on the surface, which can be located by 
  a successful Search skill check (DC 10). Success reveals 
  that there is a gnome habitat in the area. DC 15 reveals 
  signs of a town or village (large numbers of gnome tracks, 
  etc). DC 20 reveals one of the entrances to the gnome 
  town. As such, non-gnomes easily miss these details. 
  Gnome PCs can be given a Spot check to notice the town 
  (DC 10). All entrances are for small sized creatures. 
  Therefore a Medium-creature will suffer a movement 
  penalty of -10 ft. to their base movement when walking 
  through passageways in the gnome village. The 
  passageways and "holes" (as the residences and businesses 
  are called) are dimly lit. Light sources are placed 
  intermittently about every 30 feet for creatures with low-
  light vision. PCs without low-light vision will be limited 
  to 15 feet visible distance from each light source. 
   
  (Smoke compressed and filtered into "powdered 
  smoke", treated by an alchemist and reused as fuel again) 
   
  The social atmosphere in the city is one of anxiety 
  mixed with diligent preparation. The gnomes are 
  distraught at the discovery of the kobold community so 
  near to there home and they are focused on mobilizing 
  their able-bodied men for the short march into the 
  caverns to root out the menace. Men are sparing in the 
  tunnels and women are busily mending and sewing dark 
  clothing to serve as uniforms for the surrogate soldiers.  
   
  Unless otherwise noted, the caverns are built for 
  small sized creatures. In order to move through the 
  passageways and around the structures, Medium or 
  Larger creatures will have to squeeze using the rules in 
  the Player’s Handbook page 148. 
   
  a) Next Last Chance Inn  
  This small, newly-rebuilt structure is near a farmstead that 
  was once used to raise horses, ponies, and some cattle. The barn 
  however has been badly damaged by fire and looks like it has 
  been abandoned. The inn itself is in rather good shape. A fresh 
  coat of green and blue paint adorns the outside and the inside is 
  filled with stools and tables. Some are built for small people and 
  some are built for human-size folk. The inn itself is empty this 
  day, with the exception of three gnomes. Two of them are 
  cleaning dishes behind the bar and the other—an older gentle-
  gnome—is sweeping the floor. 
   
  The only structure partly built for Medium creatures and 
  (mostly) above ground. Krink (oldest), Klink, Klank (two 
  young gnomes)—purveyors of the establishment. Krink 
  is well mannered and polite while his sons are much 
  more distracted by anything and everything. All of them 
  are good natured and happy to have customers. 
   
  The innkeepers have the following information as it 
  pertains to this adventure: 
   
  Krink heard from one of the other gnomes in town 
  that there was some trouble in the mine, but he’s not sure 
  exactly what’s been going on.  
   
  The inn has been unusually busy with adventurers 
  lately, which is fine with them because they bring great 
  amounts of gold with them. 
   
  If questioned about the name “Grimble Blackbelly 
  Fuddlesmock”, Krink tells the PCs that he is the local 
  jeweler in the town of Crystalhollow. Klink or Klank 
  would be happy to show them to his shop. 
   
  b) Temple to Garl Glittergold 
  This underground structure seems to be lined with gems inset 
  into the walls. Magical light effects create a stained glass-like 
  glow throughout the subterranean room despite the lack of 
  actual sunlight. The altar is attended by two odd looking 
  gnomes who are aligning gems beneath a contraption of some 
  sort that is emitting a dense smoke that quickly disperses in the 
  air. 
   
  Though built for small-size people, the main chamber is 
  actually tall enough for humans to stand straight up in. A 
  brightly lit altar adorns the back of the chamber and the 
  sweet smell of incense is all about the area. The two 
  gnomes wear gem-studded conical headdresses that 
  denote them as priests of Garl Glittergold. 
   
  The priests have the following information that 
  pertains to the adventure: 
   
  They are afraid that the blessing of Garl Glittergold 
  will not help against the evil kobolds. Their attempts to 
  commune have been unsuccessful recently. 
   
  They believe that greed has finally caught up with 
  many of the residents. They have tried to tell the gnomes 
  not to dig too fast or too deep, but they will not listen. 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 9 
   
  c) Blacksmith 
  Black soot coats the tunnels around this cavern. The echo of 
  metal striking metal alludes to the fact that you’ve found the 
  blacksmith’s shop it seems. A dry heat emanates from the walls 
  around this place, but the air itself is clean as the top of a 
  mountain.  
   
  Inside you see a strange device dominating the center of 
  this room. It looks like a large black hood with a wide pipe at 
  the top. The pipe leads to a small box on the floor. Smoke 
  billows from a hot fire beneath the hood and rises into the pipe. 
  A burly looking gnome with a metal helmet leans over the fire 
  with a piece of white-hot slag in one hand and a hammer in 
  the other. All around are suits of half complete armor and a 
  variety of small weapons. The smell of burning metal is heavy 
  in this place. 
   
  The blacksmith is very busy preparing for war. He needs 
  to finish 15 suits of armor and several more axes, picks, 
  and hammers before the gnomes can march on the mine. 
  In the rear of the shop is a small tunnel that leads to his 
  living quarters. There sit his wife and daughter preparing 
  a meal.  
   
  �Tudorkin Gumwadder Pebblewell: hp 38; male 
  gnome War1/Com4; Profession (blacksmith) +8. 
   
  The blacksmith has the following information that 
  pertains to the adventure: 
   
  Tudorkin is all for going to war. He hates kobolds 
  more then anything and he knows that war is good for 
  his business. 
   
  He hopes that he’s too valuable to fight, though, 
  because he wishes to care for his daughter and wife more 
  than anything else. 
   
  �Dalillia Pebblewell: hp 4; female gnome Com1. 
   
  The blacksmith’s daughter has the following 
  information that pertains to the adventure: 
   
  She is secretly dating the assistant of the jeweler 
  Grimble Blackbelly Fuddlesmock. If questioned about 
  Grimble, she confirms that she believes he is a bad man 
  too. She knows about his obsession with gems, jewels, 
  and gold. 
   
   
  d) Hoidelly Tumbletail's Foot-Coverings 
  Another tunnel leads away from the central cavern to a small 
  wooden door. Written on the door in Gnome are the words 
  “Hoidelly Tumbletail’s Foot-Coverings”.  
   
  Beyond the door is the strong odor of leather and 
  alchemical mixtures. It burns at your nose and causes a 
  discomforting feeling in your stomach as well. Peering around 
  the room, you notice stands with large sheets of hides all 
  around. Each has a small label on it written in gnomish. A 
  gnome with a wooden leg sits at an odd machine that spins as 
  he pedals. Some sort of cutting device slices away pieces of 
  leather in foot-sized shapes.  
   
  Hoidelly is crippled from his days as a mineworker. He is 
  a jolly fellow and one of the nicest gnomes in 
  Crystalhollow. He seems to know a lot of gossip and 
  something about nearly everything that goes on around 
  this small community.  
   
  �Hoidelly Tumbletail: hp 26; male gnome Exp4; 
  Gather Information +4, Knowledge (local) +5, Profession 
  (cobbler) +9. 
   
  The cobbler has the following information that 
  pertains to the adventure:  
   
  He knows something about Guldan from his days 
  working the mine. He does not know the dwarf’s name, 
  but he has heard rumors of a great stone warrior that 
  would rise from the earth around these parts from time to 
  time.  
   
  He knows about the blacksmith's daughter and the 
  jeweler's assistant having a relationship but not about the 
  tieflings or their agreement with Grimble. 
  He does not trust Grimble as a businessman, but does not 
  believe him to be a bad gnome. (He is wrong here). 
   
  Hoidelly believes that, though war is good for 
  business, it will cause much pain, loss, and grief to the 
  community. He doesn’t like kobolds, but perhaps there is 
  another answer. 
   
  Treasure: Hoidelly has a special pair of shoes that he 
  offers to sell the PCs. They are hard leather boots with 
  rubber-like soles. The boots are detailed on the adventure 
  record. 
   
  e) Crystalhollow Mine Workers Union 
  This door is fashioned out of iron. Stamped in it are a shovel 
  and hooked hammer crossed as well as the words 
  “Crystalhollow Mine Workers Union”. 
   
  The room beyond is small and cramped – even for a 
  gnome. There is a desk and many papers, which at a quick 
  glance seem to be accounting documents. Everything is neatly 
  arranged and all the space is utilized to the utmost efficiency.  
   
  This is the residence of Chief Warden Brackendoddle. 
  The warden is very upset about the problems with the 
  mine mostly because his men cannot work and 
  productivity is being lost. He does not care how the 
  situation is resolved; he just wants it over with. He is 
  willing to take the PCs to the mine and show them 
  around. 
   
  �Chief Warden Brackendoddle: hp 46; male gnome 
  War3/Exp3; Diplomacy +4, Sense Motive +5. 
   
  The warden has the following information that 
  pertains to the adventure: 
   
  Brackendoddle reveals that he is the one that was 
  digging too deep. The truth is that it was another worker, 
  but he will never rat them out. 
   
  The warden knows of the Mecha-Badger 600, but 
  will not reveal its existence. 
  The warden knows how to get to the cavern where the 
  breakthrough happened, but it takes a Diplomacy check 
  (DC 18) to convince him to show the characters. 
   
  f) ‘Hollow’s Finest Jeweler 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 10 
  This tunnel leads to a multi-colored door with a small opaque 
  window in it. On it are the word’s “’Hollow’s Finest Jeweler”. 
   
  Beyond the door is a quaint room with several glass cases 
  and a few boxes behind a counter. Also behind the counter sits a 
  handsome gnome wearing a bright yellow shirt. 
   
  This is the home and business of Grimble Blackbelly 
  Fuddlesmock. He is the richest (and greediest) gnome in 
  town. But he does a good job of lying and acting sincerely 
  nice to most of the gnomes while he rips them off of all 
  their most precious jewels and sells them cheap rocks out 
  of his store.  
   
  In addition, Grimble deals often with black market 
  items. He has recently befriended a pair of tieflings 
  (though he doesn’t know their sinister nature or what 
  they are). They have made a deal with him to scare off the 
  miners from the crystal mine so that Grimble can move 
  in and have all the gems contained in it for him and him 
  alone. 
   
  What he doesn’t realize is that since the 
  mineworkers discovered the lower caves that contains 
  their hated enemy—kobolds—his deal has been 
  scrapped by the tieflings in favor of a new plan.  
   
  Grimble, of course, does not reveal any of this to the 
  PCs. However, he offers to sell them some cheap gems 
  and jewelry for outrageous prices.  
   
  �Grimble Blackbelly Fuddlesmock: hp 13; male 
  gnome Ari3; Appraise +8, Bluff +10, Profession (jeweler) 
  +5. 
   
  �Fernootin Humbleboots: hp 4; male gnome 
  Com1. (dating blacksmith's daughter).  
   
  Fernootin has the following information that 
  pertains to the adventure: 
   
  Fernootin knows about the nature of his boss, but he 
  does not know the details of his agreement with the 
  tieflings. He knows that Grimble deals with black market 
  goods and that he is the "greediest gnome alive. And 
  that's saying something." He will not tell this to them in 
  front of Grimble, but offers the information to them at a 
  discrete location.  
   
  g) Alchemist 
  Underneath this rock is a door. It seems to have a sticky 
  substance on it much like the consistency of... never mind. 
   
  Greeting you is a buck-toothed gnome with a limp white 
  hat and a baggy shirt with many pockets. Inside his hole is a 
  complex array of glass tubes, little fires, and liquids moving 
  from one container to another. Some of the tubing is smashed 
  or cracked and there is a strange smell like that of rotten eggs. 
  It’s one of the most complex laboratories you’ve ever seen, and 
  the smallest too. It seems to be optimized for this man’s short 
  stature. 
   
  This hole is home to a genius alchemist who has learned 
  many tricks from his mentor, including the means to 
  recycle smoke into fuel that can be burned again. He has 
  some items that he's willing to sell the PCs if they want 
  them. 
   
  �Finley Sparklestone: hp 31; male gnome Exp5; 
  Craft (Alchemy) +10. 
   
  In addition, he knows the following information 
  that pertains to the adventure: 
   
  Finley’s shop (and a few nearby residences) bore the 
  brunt of the kobold attack that happened the day before 
  the PCs arrive. He is visibly upset about it and has 
  recently joined the side in favor of war. 
   
  Finley knows a little about a “secret project” that the 
  tinkerer and the wizards were working on together. They 
  asked him to mix some potions for them and he did so. 
  The price they paid for them was double what he 
  normally fetched, so he didn’t ask any further questions. 
  This “secret” was, of course, the Mecha-Badger 600. 
   
  Treasure: Finley sells the characters the following 
  potions and oils (listed on the adventure record): potion of 
  remove blindness/deafness, potion of tongues, potion of resist 
  energy (acid). 
   
  h) Automated Mill 
  This underground structure is actually a wondrous mechanical 
  marvel. A large, wooden wheel is pushed by an underground 
  stream, which in turn powers a mill. The mill itself has many 
  levers, knobs, and buttons that allow for a myriad of tasks to be 
  performed without much more than loading the raw materials 
  into the proper shoots. 
   
  The mill is quite possibly the most robust invention that 
  the Mad Tinkerer has come up with. There are dials and 
  levers all over the place and a gnome can bring his or her 
  materials (grains, stones, and so on) that require milling 
  here and after pulling a few levers and turning a few 
  dials, the mill will do all the work for them.  
   
  i) Tinkerer Shop 
  A hollowed out tree leads down into a rather large open area 
  beneath the ground. Well, it would be open if it weren’t for 
  dozens of strange wooden, metal, and gem-encrusted inventions 
  parked and placed all about the floor and shelves. Truly the 
  strangest place you’ve seen in the gnome town, this appears to 
  be the den of some master inventor. 
   
  Most people in town are afraid of the Mad Tinkerer, as 
  he's referred to. He created many of the contraptions that 
  were used in the excavation of the mine. Most people 
  blame him for the disruption that his inventions have 
  caused. He is mostly harmless but very eccentric. 
   
  �“Mad Tinkerer” Harmin Chundool Bootlebean: 
  hp 46; male gnome Exp5/Wiz3; Disable Device +6, 
  Profession (inventor) +15, Use Magic Device +6. 
   
  The Mad Tinkerer knows the following information 
  that pertains to the adventure: 
   
  He created many contraptions to help the miners 
  work more efficiently. A Diplomacy check (DC 23) will 
  convince him to tell the PCs about the Mecha-Badger 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 11 
  600. If confronted with the information from the 
  alchemist, the DC of the check is decreased by five. 
   
  He is very proud of the mill that he created and will 
  suggest taking the PCs on a tour there. 
   
  j) Wizard's Hole  
  The wizard’s hole is warded by several magical 
  protections. The outside door is locked with an arcane lock 
  spell and also has an alarm spell on it. The alarm effect is 
  of the inaudible variety. In addition, an illusion covers 
  the end of the passageway from the tinkerer’s shop 
  closest to the wizard’s hole. 
   
  This cleverly hidden hole in the side of one of the nearby hills 
  opens into a set of smallish chambers, three to be exact. Each 
  one seems to be filled with stacks of papers, cupboards, and 
  chests. Each room is dark except for a single lit candle on a desk. 
  Above, hanging from a candelabrum, you notice a slumbering 
  bat. Scurrying beneath your feet runs a grey-haired rat. Off in 
  one of the room, you see a large potted plant with a snake 
  crawling on its branches. 
   
  This is the home of the local wizard. Actually a trio of 
  wizards: two illusionists and one transmuter. They have a 
  working relationship with the Mad Tinkerer. They work 
  together to magically imbue the tinkerer's creations. 
  Otherwise, they don’t often talk with the other townsfolk 
  except on special occasions. They are not unfriendly, just 
  very busy with their obsessive studying and concocting.  
   
  The wizards have the following information that 
  pertains to the adventure: 
   
  The wizards placed an illusion over the opening to 
  the kobold lair. They did so on order of the chief warden. 
  He told them that he did not want to collapse the cavern 
  because “there could be valuable gems down there”.  
   
  The wizards know of the Mecha-Badger 600. A 
  Diplomacy check (DC 20) will convince any one of them 
  to tell the PCs about it. 
  OTHER LOCATIONS 
  In addition to the locations described here, there are 
  several residential-type dwellings dispersed around the 
  fields and hills in the area that makes up the town. There 
  is also a large hole that serves as the common 
  schoolhouse for young gnomes. These locations would be 
  prime targets for Myltoi’s attack with the ankheg (see 
  Timeline section above). 
   
  LOCATIONS IN THE CRYSTAL 
  MINE 
  The following locations describe the crystal mine that the 
  gnome were working in prior to the accidental opening 
  of the passage to the caverns below. These caves are 
  mainly here as interesting bits of flavor into the world of 
  gnomish mining. For pacing purposes, make sure to keep 
  PCs on their toes here, but also use these encounters to 
  lull them to sleep before hitting them hard with the 
  kobolds deeper down the caverns. 
  THE MECHA-BADGER 600 
  It seems to be a huge contraption not unlike those you 
  saw at the entrance to the gnomish mine. One side of it is 
  a large bladed cone with sharpened scoops on the surface, 
  while behind it seems to be two seats with moving bars 
  below them, and fixed bars up and forward from them. 
  Confusing bits of cylindrical metal bits and strange 
  chains run everywhere. The Mecha-Badger 600 is a 
  gnome-powered auger. The gnomes would cast magic 
  weapon on the auger part. At the bottom of which is a 
  small catch pan that a belt runs the debris back to a 
  ‘funnel’ with a bag of holding attached to the other end. 
  When the bag filled, the gnomes would take it out of the 
  tunnel and dump it somewhere else. Two gnomes sat in 
  the back and pedaled the auger. The ‘seats’ and ‘bars’ are 
  actually a primitive exercise-bike-type contraption that 
  runs chains down to the drive shaft/cog of the auger, 
  which then works off a series of cogs and counter 
  weights to increase the mechanical advantage of the 
  pedals. It’s actually designed so the gnomes can make 
  unseen servants pedal it if they have to. If you ever saw 
  the movie “Labyrinth” it’s a bit like the ‘cleaners’ in the 
  tunnel, except the front of it is a bit more bladed like an 
  auger. 
   
  Remember when you explain it, to try not to use 
  modern day terms like auger. Most adventurers aren’t 
  mechanically savvy, and aren’t privy to the same 
  information a modern person would be. 
   
  A) MINE ENTRANCE 
  The entrance to the mine looks to have originally been a 
  narrow fissure in the rock face. It has since been widened in the 
  center of the fissure to a more useable size, for a gnome at least. 
  The widened hold is about 5 feet tall and equally about 5 feet 
  wide. Dual tracks run along both the floor and the ceiling, some 
  places bridging the erratic edges of the fissure that continues 
  above and below you. The tunnel seems to be well trodden, and 
  small items of obvious gnomish craftsmanship are occasionally 
  strewn about the area. 
  Someone who wormed his or her way through this 
  fissure originally found the initial cavern. The gnomes 
  have since widened it, but they see no reason to make it 
  any bigger than is necessary for them to move things 
  through, both for security reasons and sloth. 
  B) TUNNEL TO CAVERN A 
  As you peer down the corridor small alcoves line the walls, 
  seemingly littered with myriad items. Some seem easily 
  identifiable (like picks and mining carts), others rather 
  fantastic and looking more monstrous than useful. Hanging 
  from a set of the ceiling tracks in one of the better-lit alcoves is 
  some sort of many-armed monstrosity completely covered in 
  dust. Hinged metallic appendages bristle with various items 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 12 
  that look like they might be astoundingly useful—for 
  something. A few arms hang rather limply from its side, a 
  tribute to the uses not being entirely found yet. 
  Half of the alcoves are filled with either common mining 
  gear. The others are filled with various failed experiments 
  at mining equipment. A lot of it is just smaller bits off of 
  larger contraptions. Most of it was a combination of 
  cheap magical effects, and cog, gear, and spring powered 
  disasters. If the PC’s investigate these things, they find 
  many creations made by the Mad Tinkerer and his access 
  to magical cantrip effects. 
  C) CAVERN A 
  The tunnel you’ve been following opens up into a rather large 
  cavern. The tracks from the tunnel snake out ahead and weave 
  around and merge with other sets that disappear into the 
  darkness. Your lights twinkle and reflect off of deposits of 
  quartz, salt, and calcification left behind when the more 
  valuable resources were extracted. The sounds of your passing 
  reverberate through the cavern, and echo into the darkness. In 
  the center of the chamber a few larger stalactites have formed 
  the edges to a triangular pool. Tiny little blind-albino cavefish 
  swim around, oblivious to your presence. 
   
  When the original miners found the caverns, they were 
  chock full of precious gems amid the more common 
  quartz. They would slip in through the fissure and grab 
  anything that was loose or easily chipped from the rock 
  face. Over time, more serious measures were taken, and 
  real miners and equipment were brought in. At this 
  point, this cavern has been stripped clean of anything 
  even remotely valuable. Besides the entrance tunnel, 
  three other tunnels branch out and head down. The first 
  tunnel just meanders through a quartz vein and branches 
  off in a few places. It has nothing of interest or worth 
  noting, other than being a good waste of a few hours 
  exploration. The second tunnel is the continuation of the 
  fissure’s crack and again was widened like the entrance. It 
  runs into a Cavern B. The third tunnel runs about 50 feet 
  back before it dead-ends in a shaft that leads down.  
  D) CAVERN B 
  This cavern is smaller than the initial one. The floor is littered 
  with rock and mineral chips and makes a loud crunching 
  sound beneath your feet as you move. To one side a few 
  stalactites have been broken loose from their moorings and lay 
  toppled and broken to the side. Against the wall you see the 
  shattered remains of some gnomish contraption that you 
  suspect didn’t function as intended. The cart tracks continue 
  across the room and into a tunnel opposite where they came 
  out. Some boxes and barrels are stacked to one side, along with 
  piles of torches and other sundry supplies. 
   
  This cavern isn’t all that exciting. There never really was 
  anything of worth in here, it just happened that it was the 
  easiest to excavate along the fissure. They soon learned 
  the gems followed the quartz veins, and not the fissure. 
  They’ve since used this as a storage facility. A while back, 
  the Mad Tinkerer was experimenting with a self-
  propelled moving machine to carry supplies and ore, but 
  that only succeeded in propelling him and the machine 
  into the wall. To his credit, it was at a rather brisk pace.  
   
  The boxes and barrels contain any supplies they 
  didn’t feel like keeping in town. Things like lantern oil, 
  new picks and tools, some dried rations, etc. The tunnel 
  that heads away from the tunnel to Cavern A leads to a 
  short series of small tunnels that go absolutely nowhere. 
  Again, no veins, no gems, no dice. 
  E) SHAFT TOP 
  Ahead the tunnel comes to an end. In the middle is an iron-
  girded wooden platform that seems to be flush with the ground, 
  and an iron-girded wooden column is in the middle. On the 
  wall you see 9 holes and some writing. A peg is in the 5th hole. 
  Water seems to trickle from a crack in the ceiling drop down 
  onto the platform, where it runs to the side and disappears. 
   
  One of the few inventions the gnomes actually have 
  working is this lift. It works off a double-strung counter 
  weight system. The platform actually spins around the 
  column. In the middle of the column is the chain and 
  bearing system used to make the platform work. The 
  writing is in gnomish and is a series of numbers –2000, -
  1000, -500, -200, 0, 200, 500, 1000, 2000. The person at the 
  top operates the lift. Closer inspection of the column 
  shows there are foot and hand indentations as an 
  emergency method of climbing back up. Technically 
  speaking, there’s a method to override the peg system 
  above for someone at the bottom, but none of the PC’s 
  could figure it out. 
   
  At 0, the platform is counter-weighted for itself. If a 
  smaller person steps on it, it begins to spin down semi 
  slowly. If a larger person steps on it (over 225 lbs with 
  gear), the platform begins to descend rather rapidly. If 
  they don’t make a successful Balance check (DC 10), 
  they’re tossed to the side and suffer a rather scathing ride 
  as the platform spins about 150 feet down. 
   
  The peg can be removed by twisting it counter 
  clockwise to unlock it and then pull it out. The platform 
  then locks in whatever position it’s currently in. To 
  reengage the pin, insert it and twist it clockwise. The 
  positive numbers will do nothing if the platform is in its 
  top position. Conversely, the negative numbers will do 
  nothing if the platform is in its bottom position. If the 
  pin is changed to a number grossly different from the 
  current weight of the platform the platform will spin at 
  maximum speed till it reaches its limit in that direction. 
  If that takes it further than 50 feet, the system will derail 
  when it reaches its limit (with a loud rattling noise) and 
  cease to function.  
   
  The shaft was actually dug out of a natural shaft of 
  sand and limestone. Water had been draining down 
  through this area and weakened it enough that the 
  gnomes took the easy way out and dug through it. 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 13 
  Beneath the platform at the bottom is a drainage system, 
  along with the platform mechanics. 
   
  F) THE SHAFT 
  Feel free to add some fluff about spinning round and 
  round as the platform descends, assuming they take the 
  platform down.  
   
  As you descend the shaft, you notice small tunnels leading off 
  short distances around you, but your light seems to reach their 
  end. None of them look to be deeper than 10 to 20 feet. 
   
  The gnomes were prospecting at this point, and didn’t 
  find anything worth pursuing in these smaller tunnels. 
  G) SHAFT BOTTOM 
  At the bottom of the shaft is a single tunnel that appears to 
  head in the same direction as the tunnel leading to the top of 
  the shaft.  
   
  (If the platform is down fully) The lift platform rests 
  snuggly flush with the ground here. Large drops of water fall 
  from the shadows above and splash onto the platform, before 
  forming into small trickles and disappearing along the side. 
   
  (If the platform is elsewhere) The lift column rests in 
  the center of a circular depression. The bottom of the depression 
  is a metallic grate. The water dripping from above seems to 
  disappear through the grate. You’re able to make out some sort 
  of contraption in the shadows beneath the grate 
   
  The gnomes found another vein here, so they began to 
  excavate horizontally instead of vertically. The water 
  continues down as it always has, though some of the lift’s 
  machinery is hidden beneath the grating. Mostly some of 
  the cogs for the chain return. Nothing there is too 
  entirely exciting. It’s all magically lubricated and rust 
  resistant. 
  H) BOTTOM TUNNELS (A) 
  As you move further from the lift, the tunnels begin to slope 
  downward. Wooden reinforcement beams groan and creak 
  menacingly as you descent further into the tunnels. 
  Occasionally your footing gets a bit slippery, as water seeps in 
  through the walls and trickles down some other random crack. 
  Every so often, smaller tunnels split off from the main run and 
  quickly twist out of your view. 
   
  Small tunnels snake off from the main run, but they only 
  run for about 30 to 35 feet before coming to an end. The 
  first part of the bottom tunnels is the remnants of the 
  crystal vein the gnomes mined. The smaller tunnels are 
  the offshoots that they followed to try to clean up the last 
  dregs of gems. Their descriptions are the same, with the 
  exception of their size growing smaller to about 2 ½-foot 
  square 
   
  A successful Spot check (DC 20) notices small purple 
  crystal fragments among the rest of the debris. These are 
  chips and small pieces of the purple quartz. 
   
  I) BOTTOM TUNNELS (B) 
  The tunnel seems to have changed somewhat. The irregular 
  tunnel, cracked walls, and loose floor have been replaced with 
  an almost perfectly round tunnel that seems to have been cut 
  through almost solid rock. There are no side tunnels or 
  sidetracks to speak of. The rock is scored in big spiraling cuts. 
  The tunnel appears to have no shoring or supports to speak off, 
  and small trickles of dust fall from the ceiling as you walk. 
  The adventurous gnomes started testing their ‘Mecha-
  Badger 600’ digging machine here because the stone was 
  pretty porous. See above for details on the Mecha-Badger 
  600. 
  J) THE ENTRANCE TO THE KOBOLD 
  CAVERNS 
  Ahead, the tunnel opens into a beautiful cavern. The walls are 
  smooth, black, and ribbed. Great chunks of purple crystal seem 
  to burst through the black surface; its sharp edges a contrast to 
  the smoothness of the rest of the cavern. As your light becomes 
  more powerful, you see brilliant patterns reflect from and 
  refract through each of the crystals, bathing the room in a soft 
  purple glow. Small chunks of purple crystal lie strewn across 
  the floor, mostly collecting about the edges. You feel a 
  momentary and faint, hot breeze, which seems tinged with 
  some acrid smell. Across from you, you can make out something 
  glinting. 
   
  Here’s where the Mecha-Badger 600 busted into the 
  kobold’s caverns. This part of the kobold’s caverns is 
  actually the remnants of an age-old volcanic upheaval. It’s 
  all volcanic rock with the purple quartz bits sticking 
  through the surface. The kobolds had taken great care to 
  leave the quartz alone, attributing it to the dragon 
  mythos, but the gnomes weren’t so careful, and so a lot of 
  the brittle substance has broken and now lies strewn 
  about the floor. A lava tunnel enters from the north and 
  continues on towards the south. The ‘glint’ is actually the 
  Mecha-Badger 600. To its side are a few crates, barrels, 
  and a wooden cart or two. The crates primarily contain 
  supplies like rope, sacks, rations, water, lanterns, picks, 
  pitons, etc. There’s also some lumber for shoring. The 
  barrels are primarily full of water and lantern oil. The 
  gnomes had been using this cavern as a staging area for 
  looting the kobold caverns. Gems and precious metals 
  would be loaded into burlap sacks, and carted back to the 
  lift. If the PCs head down the northern lava tunnel, 
  they’ll basically get lost in a maze of increasingly 
  shrinking lava flows. There’s nothing of interest or 
  renown. See “Northern Lava Flow.” To the south heads 
  into the Kobold Caverns, see “Southern Laval Flow 1.” 
   
  LOCATIONS IN THE 
  DRAGON’S LAIR 
  a) Northern Lava Flow 
  The smooth narrow tunnels seem to twist and turn impossibly 
  often, in all directions (including up and down), till you’re 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 14 
  thoroughly confused. Occasionally the smooth surface is broken 
  by what looks to have been digging, but it’s never very deep, as 
  if someone was chipping something out of the surface. As you 
  progress further you see the tunnel branch into two directions. 
    
  The tunnels continue on basically indefinitely, but if the 
  PCs continue to search it, they’re just going to get lost or 
  stuck. It’s up to your discretion, but at some point the 
  tunnels go straight up or straight down for 50 to 100 feet. 
  They branch every so often. Sometimes coming to a dead-
  end, sometimes joining up with another tunnel, and 
  sometimes continuing onward. Any PC can make it back 
  with a DC 5 Track check (following their footprints in 
  the debris) or DC 10 Search. If a PC has a method of 
  mapping and tracking the tunnels magically, they’ll end 
  up deep under ground after about a 3-day search, till the 
  tunnel they’re following becomes too small to navigate 
  any more. If they try anything aggressive with the tunnel 
  that puts them in danger of a cave in, then cave it in on 
  them. Welcome to your new stony grave. 
   
  b) Southern Lava Flow 1 / Kobold Ambush! 
  Heading down the black tunnel to the south you abruptly come 
  to a screeching halt. Ahead the smooth tunnel has collapsed in 
  a pile of blackened, porous rock. Bits of harder rocks seem to be 
  interspersed with the debris.  
   
  This tunnel ends in an illusory wall placed there by one of 
  the gnome wizards. They didn’t want any of the miners 
  wandering into the kobold-infested caverns so the 
  warden asked the wizard to seal the passage. They also 
  didn’t want to collapse the tunnel because they didn’t 
  know what precious gems were down there should the 
  kobolds be dealt with. 
   
  If the PCs have learned of the illusion or convinced 
  the Warden to travel with them, they know of it and are 
  able to continue. If they came down without such 
  knowledge, they can attempt Will save (DC 16) (you can 
  have them roll a Search check in the open and instead 
  use the roll as a Will save) to foil the illusion. 
   
  On the other side of the illusion is a very small 
  cavern. Here the kobolds (see kobold box for APL 
  breakdown) have set up an outer defense with the help of 
  the tieflings. They have place barrels of hot oil at the tops 
  of a few stalagmites. If the PCs walk within 5 feet of the 
  stalagmites, they pitch the oil over onto them and retreat 
  into the caverns below. There are three kobolds arranged 
  in position to drop hot oil. 
   
  ALL APLs 
  Hot Oil: single target (Atk +3 ranged 1d6 burn damage 
  per round for 1d4 rounds); Fort save half (DC 13).  
   
  c) Steamy, Acrid Cave/Acid Bath Trap 
  The tunnels split off and lead into a small, low-ceilinged cavern 
  with several stalactites that reach from the ceiling to the floor. 
  Water runs freely along the walls. Acrid smelling steam rises 
  from the floor in several places making it difficult to see the 
  other side of the cavern, even with darkvision. 
   
  A group of kobolds (see kobold box for APL breakdown) 
  has moved in here on the order of the tieflings. They 
  throw a volley of missile weapons, bark some obscenities, 
  and jump down some small-size slides in the floor of the 
  cavern. 
   
  There are several slides that lead to different 
  chambers (as detailed on the map in the Appendix). The 
  kobolds know exactly which holes lead to which caverns, 
  but the PCs do not. At the end of the slides marked with 
  ‘B’ is a room with a rather large acid pit that the slide 
  empties out into (the kobolds use this to burn away their 
  trash and refuse). The slides marked with ‘A’ end safely 
  on the platform. The tunnel leading from the acid cave 
  and the above room connect as shown on the map. 
   
  �Acid Bath Trap: CR 3; 1d6 per round of exposure; Fort 
  save halves damage (DC 14); Search (DC 21). 
   
  A PC who slides into the acid bath must make a Swim 
  check (DC 5) to swim to the ledge.  
   
  d) Y Tunnel/Rope-Vermin Trap 
  This tunnel is actually wide enough for human-size people to 
  walk upright through. As your light flickers off the walls, you 
  see an intricate set of cave carvings all along this tunnel. Soon 
  you come to a split in the path. 
  Here the passage splits in a ‘Y’, which almost immediately 
  come back together. Those PCs with the Stonecunning 
  ability can notice that there is a slight up slope to this 
  passage. 
  APL 2-4 (EL 3) 
   
  �Spider Swarm (2): hp 9 each; see Monster Manual. 
  APL 6-8 (EL 7) 
  �Centipede Swarm (2): hp 31 each; see Monster Manual. 
   
  Tactics: Before the PCs have an opportunity to 
  search this area, the kobolds spring another trap. A rather 
  sneaky kobold has moved up to the rear of the group 
  through the use of a potion of invisibility given to him by 
  Uzbik. This kobold attempts to slip a noose around the 
  foot of a PC (Sleight of Hand +27 (due to invisibility) 
  against rear-most PCs Spot). An initial Spot check can be 
  allowed by the rear-most member of the party (DC 20 + 
  kobold’s Move Silently). A successful Listen check reveal 
  that their is something in the immediate area, but this 
  information is not very useful to the PCs because they 
  have been hearing distracting noises the entire journey. 
   
  Even if the PC notices him, it’s too late anyway as he 
  barks out and the kobolds in the rear pull the PC down a 
  slender shaft. The PC gets stuck 15 feet down the shaft 
  and two more kobolds run over with a bucket of 
  poisonous vermin and dump it down the shaft. The rest 
  of the kobolds (see kobold box for APL breakdown) 
  dump vermin from an alcove above the passageway 
  sealing off the PCs from their trapped companion. The 
  kobolds, again, throw their missile weapons and retreat 
  down the passageways. 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 15 
   
  e) Fake Treasure Trove/Pit Trap 
  The tunnel here has become wide enough for a pretty massive 
  creature to move through. Before you stands a bold entrance to 
  yet another cavern. But this entrance is adorned with a pair of 
  large, stone doors and they have a 5-foot diameter circle carved 
  into the center of them. Above the circle are some words in the 
  strange language. 
   
  The words are written in Draconic. It says, “Beware the 
  wrath of Hiein’nit any who steal from his horde.”  
   
  The door, however, is not locked or barred in any 
  way. 
   
  In the center of this chamber is an enormous pile of gold, silver, 
  strange relief paintings, and sculptures made out of obsidian. 
  Your light reflects off the shiny surfaces and creates a silvery 
  glow about the room. Above you stalactites loom with small 
  beads of water running slowly down them. In the center of the 
  chamber seems to be a fine crystal globe sitting atop a pedestal. 
   
  The treasure in this room is actually an illusion, provided 
  draconic spell similar to and illusory wall (DC 16). 
  Underneath the veil is a pile of tarnished electrum 
  pieces, old goblets, and various other useless junk. The 
  pedestal is actually a short stalagmite and all around it are 
  relief paintings that cover a pit. Once the PCs step onto 
  the pit, the paintings go crashing into the stalagmite 
  filled pit, taking the PCs with them. Feel free to try to 
  lure as many PCs onto the pit as possible with the muse 
  of treasure before the trap reaches “critical weight”. At 
  the bottom of the pit are several broken statues of drow 
  nobles. In addition, close examination of the relief 
  paintings reveals them to be inky black relief paintings 
  subtly depicting more drow elves. These were spoils of 
  the dragon’s battles with the drow in the Underdark. 
  Make sure to frighten the PCs into thinking that there 
  are possibly drow involved. 
   
  Hiein’nit set up this room to trick any would-be 
  spies or treasure hunters into thinking that they found 
  the dragon’s horde. A few kobolds actually live here and 
  they use the opportunity to attack and then flee down the 
  tunnels. See the kobold box for typical kobold 
  encounters for each APL. 
   
  �Stalagmite Pit Trap: CR 3; mechanical; location 
  trigger; manual reset; DC 20 Reflex save avoids; 20 ft. 
  deep (2d6, fall); multiple targets (first target in each of 
  two adjacent 5-ft. squares); pit spikes (Atk +10 melee, 1d4 
  spikes per target for 1d4+2 each); Search DC 23; Disable 
  Device DC 20. 
   
  F) THE GREAT CAVERN 
  The string of tunnels and caverns now opens into a mammoth 
  cave. The searing hot wind and acrid smell grow to alarming 
  proportions. Below you, you can make out braziers full of 
  burning embers that light a cavern close to 400 feet by 200 feet. 
  A huge maw in the center seems to descend down. Next to this 
  hole, you can make out some sort of huge pile, surrounded by 
  torches and chunks of purple crystal, and what appears to be a 
  bestial altar. Behind the pile is a strange structure composed of 
  purple crystal and something else. Off to the sides there seems to 
  be some sort of village. Shade forms creep in an out of your 
  vision, at the whim of the flickering brazier light. 
   
  This cavern was the dragon’s primary lair. Above it (not 
  that the PCs can see it) is a hole that, while zigzagging 
  somewhat (and hence why no natural light or anything 
  gets down here) is a tunnel that leads to the surface. The 
  dragon would fly in and out of this tunnel as necessary, 
  though primarily he hunted below and not above. The 
  ‘maw’ is actually an entrance to the Underdark, though 
  it’s thousands of feet below at this point. The dragon 
  would hunt in this tunnel, and down in the caverns 
  below, before returning to his lair. The southern section 
  of the cave is where he primarily laired. Behind him was 
  a small cavern and short tunnels that his dwarven 
  companion later used as his abode, as well as the storage 
  facility for the more ‘special’ loot (where he could keep 
  his eye on it, mind you) 
   
  When the dragon was killed, the kobolds were 
  confused, and left his corpse where it was. As time went 
  on, the skeletal remains of the dragon became a shrine to 
  them, and the dwarf’s caverns were considered sacred. 
  They built a temple face in front of the cavern opening 
  out of the purple quartz, and the bones of their fallen. 
  Those kobolds that died honorably, or in the name of 
  Kurtulmak were instead thrown onto the pile with the 
  dragon’s bones, as a symbol of their sacrifice. An altar was 
  built between the pile and the temple entrance where the 
  kobolds primarily kept their services.  
   
  When the tieflings moved in, they made the temple 
  their home, since nobody but the kobold clergy were 
  allowed in there outside of special occasions. 
   
  All APLs 
  �Kobolds (133): hp 4 each; see Monster Manual. 
   
  Development: These kobolds do not fight, despite 
  outnumbering the PCs 20 to 1. Most of their most 
  powerful warriors have already gone out to fight the 
  gnomes and/or PCs. These are mostly women, children, 
  elderly, and disabled. They cower in fear of the PCs. 
  Perhaps three or four may try a limited attack, but that is 
  all. Of course, the PCs may try to heartlessly kill all the 
  kobolds. If so, this is dealt with in the conclusion. 
   
  The leader of the kobolds before the tieflings arrived 
  is a shaman named Ruktulyk. He knows a bit of oral 
  history about the caverns and his clan of kobolds. He 
  does not know the true nature of the tieflings; he believes 
  that Kurtulmak has arrived and that Guldan will soon 
  return. 
   
  �Ruktulyk: hp 30; male kobold Sor3/Clr3; 
  languages: Draconic; Heal +5, Knowledge (local) +5. 
   
  Treasure: If the PCs negotiate a settlement with the 
  kobolds, they offer them each a copper dragon figurine. 
  This figurine is worth 200 gp. 
   
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 16 
  G) THE ‘MAW’ 
  As you approach the hole, a gust of bitter-cold wind blows up at 
  you. The stench of mildew with an acrid tinge wafts up from 
  below. An occasional screech of some hunter, or the squeal of its 
  dying pray, can be heard from the inky depths. 
   
  Deep, deep, deep below this cavern, this tunnel leads to 
  the Underdark, and all the horrible and nasty death 
  involved there in. This is not within the scope of this 
  adventure and should PCs wish to travel into it, you may 
  have Guldan Goldtooth emerge from the maw and 
  proceed to the conclusion. 
   
  H) THE ‘PILE’ 
  As you approach, and the light strengthens, you see that the pile 
  is actually the towering remains of some great reptilian beast. 
  Interspersed with the beasts bones seem to be piles of ash and 
  smaller bones, as well as chunks of purple crystal and various 
  primitive ornaments. Behind the pile, between it and the 
  temple, is a large piece of crystal. 
   
  A successful Heal check (DC 20) reveals the ‘beast’ to be a 
  dragon, and the smaller bones to be kobold bones. 
   
  I) THE ‘CRYSTAL’ 
  A huge chunk of purple crystal has been polished and laid 
  lengthwise between the pile of bones and the temple. Atop it 
  rests an ornately woven mat, as well as stone-carved chalices, 
  knives, and tablets with various symbols. 
   
  The symbols are in Draconic. They’re primarily just 
  popular words the kobolds believe have religious power 
  (they don’t—not any magical power, anyway). This 
  crystal is an altar. These kobolds, are not primarily 
  murderers, mostly just use the altar as a convenient place 
  to hold “religious” items and to stand as a central point 
  and preach to the masses from. 
   
  j) The Temple 
  Beneath the ancient skeleton is a tiny chamber that serves as 
  the temple for the kobold shaman. Inside lie several piles of 
  precious gems and a spellbook written in a strange language. 
   
  The spellbook belongs to Uzbik. It is written in Abyssal, 
  the language of the tiefling’s master. A successful Search 
  check (DC 20) reveals other signs of non-kobold 
  occupation (food and water from the surface world, and 
  so on). 
   
  The old dragon's skeleton has served as the kobold's 
  temple to Kurtulmak since the dragon fell decades ago. 
  Only the shaman has actually gone into the temple and 
  since the tieflings have arrived even he is too frightened 
  to enter. The tieflings have used this to their advantage. 
  They have cast many illusions from the temple to 
  frighten and convince the kobolds that Kurtulmak is 
  unhappy with them. Their "god" wishes them to more 
  actively pursue conflict with the nearby gnomes who 
  have encroached on their home recently. Of course, the 
  tieflings wish to nefariously control the kobolds and 
  drive away the gnomes so they can reap the benefits of 
  the upper caverns for themselves. 
   
  K) DWARVEN DRUID'S QUARTERS 
  A small side passage from the huge main chamber leads 
  through some old, dead cobwebs. Inside this chamber is a large 
  metallic slab and some old, rotted remains of what might have 
  one time been clothing or food. 
   
  Since the fall of the dragon, Guldan has left the 
  underground caverns in search of a way to resurrect his 
  old friend. His quarters have remained untouched by the 
  kobolds. The tradition of hallowed ground has been 
  passed on from generation to generation of kobold kin. 
  They believe that one day the "great metallic warrior" will 
  return with their god's avatar to judge all and choose who 
  is in his favor and who will be cast into the maw. 
   
  L) SHRINE TO DUMATHOIN 
  Past the room with the strange slab is another chamber. 
  Though small, the ceiling is over 50 feet tall. In this chamber 
  lies a dying tree encased almost cocoon-like in spider webs. 
  Around the potted plant are seven stone obelisks that stand 
  encircling the poor plant. Sitting atop the forked trunk of the 
  tree is a large stone with a ruby embedded in the center. 
   
  The dwarf, Guldan Goldtooth, built this shrine and kept 
  the tree alive using his divine abilities. It has suffered 
  greatly in his absence, but remains a work of extreme 
  precision and beauty. The stone sitting atop the tree can 
  be identified with a successful Knowledge (religion) 
  check (DC 15). The stone is a holy symbol of Dumathoin. 
  A success of 5 or greater on the Knowledge check 
  confirms that this was once a shrine to Dumathoin.  
   
  In the absence of the dwarf, some spiders have 
  moved in. If the PCs fight them, the kobolds back in the 
  main chamber become curious and start crowding 
  around the entrance to the dwarf’s chambers. They are 
  too afraid to actually go down the tunnel toward them, 
  but they chatter anxiously back in the main chamber. 
  Any PC can make a Listen check (DC 10) to hear the 
  kobold chatter over the combat with the spiders. 
   
  All APLs (EL 3 
  Large Monstrous Spiders (2): hp 22 each; see Monster 
  Manual 
  . 
  ADDITIONAL LOCATIONS 
  In addition to the locations listed above, the PCs can 
  stumble into other uninhabited areas. The following 
  includes some descriptions of such areas. Feel free to add 
  your own ideas as well. 
   
  Mush-room 
  The narrow fissure leads to a taller cavern dimly lit by a 
  phosphorescent moss. A tiny, crude cart is set to the side of the 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 17 
  passage. Along the walls, bulbous white funguses have sprouted 
  from the moist limestone walls. The drip of water echoes 
  throughout this cave and a few small fish stir in a pool that has 
  formed in the center of the opening. 
   
  Cave Drawings 
  This cavern seems to serve as possibly some sort of gallery. 
  Instead of paintings and sculptures, there are carvings in the 
  porous stone. The symbols are crude, but seem to depict a group 
  of small creatures and one large, winged creature. In the center 
  of the room is a pile of stones that have been meticulously 
  stacked in a pyramid-like formation. 
  The carvings partly tell the tale of the kobold’s history. 
  Most of the tale has been passed down orally throughout 
  the generations since the death of the great wyrm. 
  However, some details were written down in this room 
  and some of the other passages throughout the lair. Most 
  of these carvings document events prior to the death of 
  the dragon. The pyramid rock formation has no 
  significance to non-kobolds. 
   
  Dead Things 
  This would be just another empty cavern except that the stench 
  of rotting flesh permeates throughout. Dead on the floor at the 
  base of a large purple crystalline stalagmite is the decaying 
  corpse of a large, centipede-like creature. 
  This was a carrion crawler that the kobolds killed. They 
  often have to compete for food with such creatures and 
  they slay them on site. Since the dragon’s passing, 
  resources have been far scarcer. 
   
  THE TIEFLINGS 
  Of course, the climax of this adventure is the encounter 
  with the tieflings. There are several ways that the PCs 
  could potentially run into either or both of the tieflings. 
  First, if the PCs are in town during the ankheg attack, 
  they could potentially notice Myltoi directing it. Uzbik 
  has stayed back in the kobold caverns and has been 
  aiding the kobolds with their attacks on the PCs. He has a 
  hat of disguise that he has used to disguise himself as a 
  kobold throughout the entire ordeal. He is present but 
  hiding in the crowd of kobolds when the PCs arrive in 
  the main chamber. A detect magic spell allows the PCs to 
  locate and possibly pinpoint his location. However, the 
  kobolds do not look kindly on the PCs just attacking one 
  of their own kind. 
   
  Regardless of if the PCs do encounter the tieflings in 
  the above ways, Uzbik and Myltoi get infuriated at the 
  PCs actions once they learn of them. While the PCs are 
  making their way out of the mine, they will attack. The 
  most likely place for this to happen is at the shaft 
  contraption leading upward. This is when the PCs are 
  most vulnerable. The tieflings only stay to fight at APL 8, 
  otherwise their master summons them back to the lower 
  planes during the combat. The tieflings get one final 
  curse at the PCs before being summoned away in this 
  case. 
   
  �Myltoi: hp 50; male tiefling Brd8; see Appendix 1. 
   
  �Uzbik: hp 37; male tiefling Illusionist 8; see 
  Appendix 1. 
   
  Description: Myltoi and Uzbik are twins. They are 
  unusual for tieflings in that they are small size. They both 
  look almost like halflings, except for the charcoal-black 
  fur covering all of their bodies except their face. In 
  addition, they have small, curled horns protruding from 
  above their ears. The only distinct difference between the 
  two lies in Uzbik’s quasit familiar. Their master granted 
  Kif’te to Uzbik for the duration of their stay on the 
  Material Plane. Kif’te is an excellent scout and Uzbik uses 
  him to keep an eye on the PCs once he is aware of their 
  presence in the lair. Myltoi is murderously jealous of 
  Kif’te and would like to see the creature immolated. 
  However, he knows that the quasit may come in handy 
  for the time being. 
   
  CONCLUSION: AN 
  ENCOUNTER WITH GULDAN 
  GOLDTOOTH 
  The PCs also have an opportunity to return to the town of 
  Crystalhollow to negotiate a peace with the gnomes. The 
  warden is still bent on war, but if the PCs tell him what 
  they’ve learned his opinion may be swayed. This can be 
  done through roleplaying or with an opposed Diplomacy 
  check. The PCs must beat the warden’s check by 10 in 
  order to sway his opinion. The DM may apply 
  conditional modifiers for good roleplaying or other 
  positive (or negative) influence.  
   
  Development: If the PCs settle the matter with 
  Chief Warden Brackendoddle and expose the jeweler for 
  his true nature, he will reward them with jewels 
  recovered from Grimble’s stash.  
   
  Treasure:  
   
  APL 2-6: 400 gp per PC 
   
  APL 8: 100 gp per PC 
   
  After the PCs have dealt with the situation in the caverns 
  and made their decision about what to do with the 
  kobolds, there is just one thing remaining unresolved. 
  Guldan, the dwarven companion of the great copper 
  dragon Hiein'nit, returns from his journey into the 
  Underdark. He has completed his quest to find a means 
  to resurrect his old companion among the strange, alien 
  magic of the drow. When he emerges, he assesses the 
  situation in the dragon's lair and decides what to do next 
  based on what the PCs have decided to do about the 
  kobolds.  
   
  �Guldan Goldtooth: hp 148; Male dwarven Drd15; 
  Knowledge (nature) +15, Knowledge (local) +12. 
   
  If the kobolds have been slaughtered (either by 
  overly aggressive PCs or as a side effect of the PCs 
  indifference), Guldan tracks down the PCs and place a 
  curse on them, charging them with a quest for atonement 
  for their poor judgment.  
   
  Read or paraphrase the following: 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 18 
  Swooping down from high in the sky, a majestic golden eagle 
  perches on a branch above you. A split moment later another 
  lands right next to it. The first eagle poses briefly as if it were 
  judging your intentions. After a brief moment, it hops from its 
  perch and tumbles to the ground, shifting forms into that of a 
  stout dwarf. His face is lined deeply with age and his beard is 
  nearly completely steely grey. He wears a stone-like suit of 
  armor and has a large axe holstered on his back. A scowl on his 
  face, he speaks in sour tones. 
   
  "Aye hath seen what you wrought in MY caverns. Death 
  begets death. An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth."  
   
  The dwarf squints his eyes sharply. 
   
  "You do not realize what you have done. You have 
  destroyed an entire culture of creatures that did nothing. I have 
  killed adventurers such as you for less. But perhaps this time 
  you can carry the burden of their deaths as a memory and a 
  reminder of what you have done." 
   
  The rigid-looking dwarf tosses some metallic-looking 
  stones at your feet and starts in incantation. Before you have 
  time to react, he completes his spell. 
   
  "Forever you shall carry the burden of their lost souls with 
  you until such time as you have atoned for your actions. Only 
  then will you be acquitted of your debt." 
   
  The dwarf's skin shines with a metallic luster as he 
  frowns. 
   
  "Carry forth your story of failure and murder. Tell others 
  what you have done. Do not shy away from your shame. The 
  great wyrm Hiein'nit the Insatiable will return to life to hunt 
  in the Underdark once again or perhaps this time in the surface 
  world..." 
   
  With those final words, the dwarf skin mutates into rock 
  and he descends into the earth below. 
   
  The PCs have just received a curse. See the adventure 
  record for details about the effect. They are allowed a 
  Will save to resist (DC 19). 
   
  If the PCs have chosen to leave the kobolds to their 
  own devices and seal off the passageways to the lower 
  caverns, Guldan will reward them with a boon. Read or 
  paraphrase the following text:  
   
  Rising from the earth beneath your feet emerges a stout form 
  not unlike a dwarf. However, it seems to be glittering as if 
  made of metallic stone. Its rocky appearance slowly shifts to 
  that of skin and hair, though the tinge of metallic stone still 
  seems to cover his body. With a gruff stare, he speaks: 
   
  "I hath returned from the Underdark from my quest. It 
  seems that Ruktulyk has said that thou art responsible for the 
  protection of Hiein'nit's protectors..." 
   
  The strange dwarf pauses briefly, expecting a response. His 
  steel-like skin glistens in the daylight and his eyes glow bright 
  like small pyres. 
   
  "Well, I wish to offer thee goodwill and kind thanks for 
  your aide in my affairs whilst I was absent." 
   
  The dwarf clenches his fist and a handful of diamonds 
  appear. He throws them on the ground beneath your feet. They 
  glow briefly as he chants in a baritone voice and quickly change 
  into simple stones. 
   
  "May Dumathoin grant you courage, skill, luck, and 
  cunning wit for the rest of your days. I shall celebrate the honor 
  of your actions and recount your tale to Hiein'nit and the 
  many friends he cares for. And I shall curse the wicked 
  creatures of the Underdark in your name when we hunt 
  together again at last in that dark, wretched place. Remember 
  always the names Guldan Goldtooth and Hiein'nit, for they are 
  friends of yours and ye are friends of ours!" 
   
  Guldan takes a moment to thank each PC individually, 
  then shifts into the form of an eagle and flies away. He 
  has, however, left the PCs with a gift. He has enchanted 
  them with a boon in the memory of himself and his 
  companion Hiein'nit. See the adventure record for the 
  details of the boon. 
  The End 
   
  EXPERIENCE POINT 
  SUMMARY 
  To award experience for this adventure, add up the values 
  for the objectives accomplished. Then assign the 
  experience award. Award the total value (objectives plus 
  roleplaying) to each character. 
   
  Introduction 
  Located the bodies of the murdered adventurers 
  APL2 10 xp; APL4 25 xp;  
  APL6 25 xp; APL8 25 xp; 
   
  Crystalhollow 
  Defeat Myltoi’s attempt to ransack the town with his pet 
  ankheg 
  APL2 120 xp; APL4 180 xp;  
  APL6 240 xp; APL8 300 xp; 
   
  Negotiate a settlement to the kobold problem 
  APL2 40 xp; APL4 50 xp;  
  APL6 50 xp; APL8 50 xp; 
   
  Kobold Caverns 
  Defeat the kobolds at the entrance to Hiein’nit’s lair 
  APL2 60 xp; APL4 120 xp;  
  APL6 180 xp; APL8 240 xp; 
   
  Defeat the kobolds and the acid bath 
  APL2 90 xp; APL4 90 xp;  
  APL6 90 xp; APL8 90 xp; 
   
  Defeat the vermin trap and kobolds 
  APL2 90 + 60 xp; APL4 90 + 120 xp;  
  APL6 210 + 180 xp; APL8 210 + 240 xp; 
   
  Defeat the fake treasure room/pit trap 
  APL2 90 + 60 xp; APL4 90 + 120 xp;  
  APL6 90 + 180 xp; APL8 90 + 240 xp; 
   
  Negotiate a peace with the kobolds 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 19 
  APL2 40 xp; APL4 50 xp;  
  APL6 50 xp; APL8 50 xp; 
   
  Defeat the spiders occupying the druid’s shrine 
  APL2 90 xp; APL4 90 xp;  
  APL6 90 xp; APL8 90 xp; 
   
  Defeat Myltoi and Uzbik (bonus for APL 8: destroying 
  them before they flee to Hades) 
  APL2 60 xp; APL4 120 xp;  
  APL6 180 xp; APL8 300 xp; 
   
  Bonus Kobold Encounters 
  Defeat random kobold encounters in the mines and/or 
  dragon’s lair 
  APL2 90 xp; APL4 150 xp;  
  APL6 0 xp; APL8 150 xp; 
   
  Total possible experience:  
   
  APL2 900 xp; APL4 1295 xp;  
  APL6 1565 xp; APL8 2075xp; 
   
  TREASURE SUMMARY 
  During an adventure, characters encounter treasure, 
  usually finding it in the possession of their foes. Every 
  encounter that features treasure has a “treasure” section 
  within the encounter description, giving information 
  about the loot, coins, and magic items that make up the 
  encounter’s treasure. 
   
  The loot total is the number of gold pieces each 
  character gains if the foes are plundered of all their earthly 
  possessions. Looting the bodies takes at least 10 minutes 
  per every 5 enemies, and if the characters cannot take the 
  time to loot the bodies, they do not gain this gold. If you 
  feel it is reasonable that characters can go back to loot the 
  bodies, and those bodies are there (i.e., not carted off by 
  dungeon scavengers, removed from the scene by the local 
  watch, and so on), characters may return to retrieve loot. If 
  the characters do not loot the body, the gold piece value for 
  the loot is subtracted from the encounter totals given 
  below. 
   
  The coin total is the number of gold pieces each 
  character gains if they take the coin available. A normal 
  adventuring party can usually gather this wealth in a round 
  or so. If for some reason, they pass up this treasure, the coin 
  total is subtracted from the encounter totals given below. 
   
  Next, the magic items are listed. Magic item treasure is 
  the hardest to adjudicate, because they are varied and 
  because characters may want to use them during the 
  adventure. Many times characters must cast identify or 
  similar spell to determine what the item does and how to 
  activate it. Other times they may attempt to use the item 
  blindly. If the magic item is consumable (a potion, scroll, 
  magic bolts, etc.) and the item is used before the end of the 
  adventure, its total is subtracted from the adventure totals 
  below. 
   
  Once you have subtracted the value for unclaimed 
  treasure from each encounter add it up and that is the 
  number of gold pieces a characters total and coin value 
  increase at the end of the adventure. Write the total in the 
  GP Gained field of the adventure certificate. Because this is 
  a Regional scenario, characters may spend additional Time 
  Units to practice professions or create items immediately 
  after the adventure so this total may be modified by other 
  circumstances. 
   
  L = Looted gear from enemy; C = Coin, Gems, Jewelry, 
  and other valuables; M = Magic Items. 
   
  L: Looted gear from enemy 
   
  C: Coin, Gems, Jewelry, and other valuables 
   
  M: Magic Items (sell value)  
   
  Kobold Encounters 
   
  APL 2: L: 0 gp; C: 0 gp; M: 116 gp 
   
  APL 4: L: 0 gp; C: 0 gp; M: 316 gp 
   
  APL 6: L: 0 gp; C: 0 gp; M: 400 gp 
  APL 8: L: 0 gp; C: 0 gp; M: 522 gp 
   
  Kobold’s Reward 
   
  APL 2: L: 0 gp; C: 200 gp; M: 0 gp 
   
  APL 4: L: 0 gp; C: 200 gp; M: 0 gp 
   
  APL 6: L: 0 gp; C: 200 gp; M: 0 gp 
  APL 8: L: 0 gp; C: 200 gp; M: 0 gp 
  Tiefling Loot 
   
  APL 2: L: 0 gp; C: 100 gp; M: 0 gp 
   
  APL 4: L: 246 gp; C: 200 gp; M: 0 gp 
   
  APL 6: L: 492 gp; C: 400 gp; M: 0 gp 
  APL 8: L: 0 gp; C: 0 gp; M: 1970 gp 
  Conclusion:  
   
  APL 2: L: 0 gp; C: 400 gp; M: 0 gp 
   
  APL 4: L: 0 gp; C: 400 gp; M: 0 gp 
  APL 6: L: 0 gp; C: 400 gp; M: 0 gp 
  APL 8: L: 0 gp; C: 100 gp; M: 0 gp 
   
  Total Possible Treasure 
  APL A: L: 0 gp; C: 600 gp; M: 116 gp - Total: 800 gp 
  APL B: L: 246 gp; C: 600 gp; M: 316 gp - Total: 1162 
  gp 
  APL C: L: 492 gp; C: 600 gp; M: 400 gp - Total: 1492 
  gp 
  APL C: L: 0 gp; C: 300 gp; M: 1970 gp - Total: 2270 gp 
  Special 
   
  Special 
  Hoidelly’s Amazing Boots: These thick, heavy, rubber-
  soled boots allow the user to carry twice her normal 
  carrying capacity. Faint transmutation; CL 3rd; Craft 
  Wondrous Item, bull’s strength; Price 2000 gp; Frequency: 
  adventure. 
   
  Troglodyte Slime: range increment 10 ft., Fort save DC 
  12; causes affected creature to be sickened for 1d6 
  rounds; See Player’s Handbook page 312 for sickened 
  effects; Price: 100 gp; Frequency: adventure. 
   
  Guldan Goldtooth’s Boon: The great dwarven druid has 
  granted you his blessing. A character with this blessing is 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 20 
  granted a +1 circumstance bonus to Survival checks 
  when underground. 
   
  Guldan Goldtooth’s Curse: The great dwarven druid has 
  cursed you with the memory of the deaths of hundreds of 
  kobolds. A character with this curse has a –1 
  circumstance penalty on any die rolls pertaining to 
  dragons or kobolds. This curse also carries with it the 
  imprinted memory of the character’s misdeed. Any 
  attempt to remove it by anyone except Guldan causes the 
  memory to be flashed in the mind of the caster of remove 
  curse, limited wish, wish, or miracle. This has the effect 
  of causing NPCs to refuse to remove the curse. 
  ITEMS FOR THE ADVENTURE 
  RECORD 
  ITEM ACCESS 
  APL 2: 
   
  potion of remove blindness/deafness (any, DMG) 
   
  potion of tongues (any, DMG) 
   
  potion of resist energy (acid) (any, DMG) 
   
  Hoidelly’s amazing boots (any, see above) 
   
  Troglodyte Slime (adventure, see above) 
  APL 4: 
   
  APL 2 Items 
   
  oil of keen edge (adventure, DMG) 
   
  potion of haste (adventure, DMG) 
  APL 6: 
   
  APL 2&4 Items 
   
  +1 flaming short sword (adventure, DMG) 
   
  mithral chain shirt (adventure, DMG) 
  APL 8: 
   
  APL 2, 4 & 6 Items 
   
  hat of disguise (adventure, DMG) 
   
  lesser silent metamagic rod (adventure, DMG) 
   
  vest of escape (adventure, DMG) 
   
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 21 
  APPENDIX 1: NPCS 
  �Kobold Adept: Male kobold Adp3; CR 2; Small 
  humanoid (reptilian); HD 3d6; hp 14; Init +2; Spd 30 ft.; 
  AC 13, flat-footed 11, touch 12; Base Atk/Grp +1/-5; Atk 
  +0 melee (1d6-2, halfspear), +4 ranged (1d4-2, sling); SQ 
  Darkvision 60 ft., light sensitivity; AL LE or LN; SV Fort 
  +3, Ref +3, Will +5; Str 6, Dex 14, Con 10, Int 10, Wis 14, 
  Cha 8. 
   
  Skills and Feats: Escape Artist +4, Hide +10, Move 
  Silently +6; Great Fortitude, Stealthy. 
   
  Light sensitivity (Ex): Kobolds are dazzled in bright 
  sunlight or within the radius of a daylight spell. 
   
  Possessions: halfspear, sling, 10 stones, troglodyte 
  slime (3), potion of invisibility, scroll of obscuring mist, scroll 
  of cure light wounds. 
   
  Spells Prepared (3/3; DC 12 + spell level): 0—create 
  water, ghost sound, touch of fatigue; 1st—bless, burning hands, 
  cure light wounds. 
   
  �Kobold Warrior: Male kobold War3; CR 2; Small 
  humanoid (reptilian); HD 3d8; hp 16; Init +2; Spd 30 ft.; 
  AC 15, flat-footed 13, touch 12; Base Atk/Grp +3/-1; Atk 
  +4 melee (1d6, halfspear), +6 ranged (1d4, sling); SQ 
  Darkvision 60 ft., light sensitivity; AL LE or LN; SV Fort 
  +3, Ref +3, Will +0; Str 10, Dex 14, Con 11, Int 10, Wis 9, 
  Cha 8. 
   
  Skills and Feats: Craft (trapmaking) +2, Escape Artist 
  +4, Hide +10, Listen +2, Move Silently +6, Profession 
  (miner) +2, Search +2, Spot +2; Alertness, Stealthy. 
  Light sensitivity (Ex): Kobolds are dazzled in bright 
  sunlight or within the radius of a daylight spell. 
   
  Possessions: halfspear, sling, 10 stones, troglodyte 
  slime (3). 
   
  �Kobold War-Chief: Male kobold War3/Sor5; CR 7; 
  Small humanoid (reptilian); HD 3d8+5d4; hp 31; Init +2; 
  Spd 30 ft.; AC 15, flat-footed 13, touch 12; Base 
  Atk/Grapple +5/+2; Atk +8 melee (1d6+1, masterwork 
  halfspear), +9 ranged (1d4+1, sling); SQ Darkvision 60 ft., 
  light sensitivity; AL LE or LN; SV Fort +4, Ref +4, Will +7; 
  Str 12, Dex 15, Con 11, Int 11, Wis 11, Cha 16. 
   
  Skills and Feats: Craft (trapmaking) +2, Escape Artist 
  +6, Hide +10, Listen +4, Move Silently +6, Profession 
  (miner) +2, Search +2, Spot +3; Alertness, Iron Will, 
  Stealthy. 
   
  Light sensitivity (Ex): Kobolds are dazzled in bright 
  sunlight or within the radius of a daylight spell. 
   
  Possessions: masterwork halfspear, sling, 10 stones, 
  troglodyte slime (3), potion of haste, arcane scroll of 
  glitterdust, arcane scroll of minor image, arcane scroll of 
  shield. 
   
  Spells Known (6/6/4; DC 13 + spell level): 0--acid 
  splash, daze, ghost sound, mage hand, message; 1st—burning 
  hands, obscuring mist, ray of enfeeblement, true strike; 2nd—
  web, scorching ray. 
   
  �Fiendish ankheg: CR 3; Large magical beast 
  (extraplanar); HD 3d10+12; hp 28; Init +0; Spd 30 ft., 
  burrow 20 ft.; AC 18, touch 9, flat-footed 18; Base 
  Atk/Grp +3/+12; Atk +7 melee (2d6+7 plus 1d4 acid, bite); 
  Face/Reach 10 ft./5 ft.; SA Improved grab, smite good 
  1/day, spit acid; SQ Darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, 
  tremorsense 60 ft., resistance to cold and fire 5; SR 8; AL 
  NE; SV Fort +6, Ref +3, Will +2; Str 21, Dex 10, Con 17, 
  Int 3, Wis 13, Cha 6.  
   
  Skills and Feats: Climb +8, Listen +6, Spot +3; 
  Alertness, Toughness. 
   
  Smite Good (Su): Once per day the creature can 
  make a normal melee attack to deal extra 3 points of 
  damage against a good foe. 
   
  Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, an ankheg 
  must hit with its bite attack. It can then attempt to start a 
  grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of 
  opportunity. If the ankheg is damaged after grabbing its 
  prey, it retreats backward down its tunnel at its land 
  speed (not its burrow speed), dragging the victim with it. 
   
  Spit Acid (Ex): 30-ft. line, once every 6 hours; 
  damage 4d4 acid, Reflex DC 14 half. One such attack 
  depletes the ankheg’s acid supply for 6 hours. It cannot 
  spit acid or deal acid damage during this time. The save 
  DC is Constitution-based. 
   
  An ankheg does not use this ability unless it is 
  desperate or frustrated. It most often spits acid when 
  reduced to fewer than half its full normal hit points or 
  when it has not successfully grabbed an opponent. 
   
  �Dire weasel, advanced: CR 3; Medium animal; HD 6d8; 
  hp 31; Init +4; Spd 40 ft.; AC 16, touch 14, flat-footed 12; 
  Base Atk/Grp +4/+6; Atk +8 melee (1d6+3, bite); 
  Face/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.; SA Attach, blood drain; SQ Low-
  light vision, scent; AL N; SV Fort +5, Ref +9, Will +6; Str 
  14, Dex 19, Con 10, Int 2, Wis 12, Cha 11.  
   
  Skills and Feats: Hide +8, Listen +3, Move Silently +8, 
  Spot +5; Alertness, Stealthy, Weapon Finesse. 
   
   
  Attach (Ex): A dire weasel that hits with its bite 
  attack latches onto the opponent’s body with its powerful 
  jaws. An attached dire weasel loses its Dexterity bonus to 
  AC and thus has an AC of 12. An attached dire weasel can 
  be struck with a weapon or grappled itself. To remove an 
  attached dire weasel through grappling, the opponent 
  must achieve a pin against the creature. 
   
  Blood Drain (Ex): A dire weasel drains blood for 1d4 
  points of Constitution damage each round it remains 
  attached. 
   
  �Fiendish ankheg, advanced I: CR 4; Large magical 
  beast (extraplanar); HD 4d10+15; hp 36; Init +0; Spd 30 
  ft., burrow 20 ft.; AC 18, touch 9, flat-footed 18; Base 
  Atk/Grapple +4/+13; Atk +8 melee (2d6+7 plus 1d4 acid, 
  bite); Face/Reach 10 ft./5 ft.; SA Improved grab, smite 
  good 1/day, spit acid; SQ Darkvision 60 ft., DR 5/magic, 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 22 
  low-light vision, tremorsense 60 ft., resistance to cold and 
  fire 5; SR 9; AL NE; SV Fort +7, Ref +4, Will +2; Str 21, 
  Dex 10, Con 17, Int 3, Wis 13, Cha 6.  
   
  Skills and Feats: Climb +8, Listen +6, Spot +3; 
  Alertness, Toughness. 
   
  Smite Good (Su): Once per day the creature can 
  make a normal melee attack to deal 4 points of extra 
  against a good foe. 
   
  Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, an ankheg 
  must hit with its bite attack. It can then attempt to start a 
  grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of 
  opportunity. If the ankheg is damaged after grabbing its 
  prey, it retreats backward down its tunnel at its land 
  speed (not its burrow speed), dragging the victim with it. 
   
  Spit Acid (Ex): 30-ft. line, once every 6 hours; 
  damage 4d4 acid, Reflex DC 16 half. One such attack 
  depletes the ankheg’s acid supply for 6 hours. It cannot 
  spit acid or deal acid damage during this time. The save 
  DC is Constitution-based. 
   
  An ankheg does not use this ability unless it is 
  desperate or frustrated. It most often spits acid when 
  reduced to fewer than half its full normal hit points or 
  when it has not successfully grabbed an opponent. 
   
   
  �Fiendish ankheg, advanced II: CR 6; Huge magical 
  beast (extraplanar); HD 6d10+27; hp 67; Init +0; Spd 30 
  ft., burrow 20 ft.; AC 16, touch 8, flat-footed 16; Base 
  Atk/Gtp +4/+17; Atk +12 melee (3d6+11 plus 1d6 acid, 
  bite); Face/Reach 20 ft./10 ft.; SA Improved grab, smite 
  good 1/day, spit acid; SQ Darkvision 60 ft., DR 5/magic, 
  low-light vision, tremorsense 60 ft., resistance to cold and 
  fire 5; SR 11; AL NE; SV Fort +7, Ref +4, Will +2; Str 29, 
  Dex 8, Con 21, Int 3, Wis 13, Cha 6.  
  Skills and Feats: Climb +8, Listen +6, Spot +3; Alertness, 
  Toughness. 
   
  Smite Good (Su): Once per day the creature can 
  make a normal melee attack to deal 6 points of extra 
  damage against a good foe. 
   
  Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, an ankheg 
  must hit with its bite attack. It can then attempt to start a 
  grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of 
  opportunity. If the ankheg is damaged after grabbing its 
  prey, it retreats backward down its tunnel at its land 
  speed (not its burrow speed), dragging the victim with it. 
   
  Spit Acid (Ex): 30-ft. line, once every 6 hours; 
  damage 4d4 acid, Reflex DC 18 half. One such attack 
  depletes the ankheg’s acid supply for 6 hours. It cannot 
  spit acid or deal acid damage during this time. The save 
  DC is Constitution-based. 
   
  An ankheg does not use this ability unless it is 
  desperate or frustrated. It most often spits acid when 
  reduced to fewer than half its full normal hit points or 
  when it has not successfully grabbed an opponent. 
   
  �Myltoi: Male tiefling Brd8; CR 9; Small outsider 
  (native); HD 8d6+16; hp 50; Init +2; Spd 20 ft.; AC 17, 
  touch 13, flat-footed 15; Base Atk/Grp +6/+2; Atk +10 
  melee (1d4+1, +1 flaming short sword), +9 ranged; SA 
  Darkness 1/day; SQ bardic knowledge, countersong, 
  fascinate, inspire courage +2, inspire competence, 
  suggestion, darkvision 60 ft., resistances to cold 5, 
  electricity 5, fire 5; AL CE; SV Fort +4, Ref +8, Will +7; Str 
  11, Dex 14, Con 15, Int 13, Wis 13, Cha 19. 
   
  Skills and Feats: Bluff +17, Concentration +9, Escape 
  Artist +13, Hide +7, Intimidate +6, Move Silently +7, 
  Perform +15, Slight of Hand +7; Improved Initiative, 
  Persuasive, Weapon Finesse. 
   
  Darkness (Sp): Tieflings can use darkness once per 
  day as cast by a sorcerer of 1st level or their character 
  level, whichever is higher. 
   
  Possessions: +1 flaming short sword, mithral chain shirt, 
  hat of disguise, oil of keen edge, potion of cure light wounds, 
  potion of blur, lesser silent metamagic rod. 
   
  Spells Known (cast 3/4/4/2; DC 14 + spell level): 0—
  dancing lights, daze, detect magic, know direction, message, read 
  magic; 1st—cause fear, cure light wounds, grease, Tasha’s 
  hideous laughter; 2nd—glitterdust, silence, sound burst, summon 
  swarm; 3rd—blink, dispel magic, summon monster III. 
   
  �Uzbik: Male tiefling Illusionist 8; CR 9; Small outsider 
  (native); HD 8d4+8; hp 37; Init +3; Spd 20 ft.; AC 14, 
  touch 14, flat-footed 11; Base Atk/Grp +4/-1; Atk +3 
  melee (1d3-1, dagger), +7 ranged (1d3-1, thrown rock); SQ 
  darkness 1/day, banned school: conjuration, necromancy, 
  resistance cold 5, electricity 5, fire 5; AL NE; SV Fort +3, 
  Ref +5, Will +6; Str 8, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 20, Wis 10, Cha 
  10. 
   
  Skills 
  and 
  Feats: 
  Appraise* 
  +7, 
  Bluff* 
  +7, 
  Concentration +9, Disguise* +5, Escape Artist* +8, 
  Knowledge (arcana) +10, Knowledge (the planes) +10, 
  Listen* +2, Scry +10, Spellcraft +10, Spot* +2; Improved 
  Familiar (quasit), Silent Spell, Spell Focus (illusion), 
  Greater Spell Focus (illusion). 
   
  Darkness (Sp): Tieflings can use darkness once per 
  day as cast by a sorcerer of 1st level or their character 
  level, whichever is higher. 
   
  Possessions: spellbook, hat of disguise, arcane scroll of 
  expeditious retreat, arcane scroll of blur, arcane scroll of 
  fireball, arcane scroll of clairaudience/clairvoyance, arcane 
  scroll of dimension door, vest of escape. 
   
  Spells Prepared (4/7/5/5/4; DC 15 + spell level -- 17 + 
  spell level for illusion spells; necromancy and abjuration 
  bared): 0—daze, ghost sound†, detect magic, read magic; 1st— 
  hypnotism, magic missile (3), shield, silent image†, 
  ventriloquism†; 2nd—invisibility† (2), minor image†, magic 
  missile (silent) (2); 3rd—clairvoyance/clairaudience, fireball 
  (3), suggestion, major image; 4th—illusory wall, phantasmal 
  killer, 
  crushing 
  despair, 
  shadow 
  conjuration. 
   
  †Illusion spell 
   
  Spellbook: 0—detect poison, daze, dancing lights, flare, 
  light, ghost sound, mage hand, mending, open/close, arcane 
  mark, detect magic, prestidigitation, read magic; 1st—
  comprehend languages, detect secret doors, hypnotism, magic 
  missile, change self, color spray, nystul's magical aura, nystul's 
  undetectable aura, silent image, ventriloquism, message; 2nd—
  blur, hypnotic pattern, invisibility, leomund's trap, minor image, 
  misdirection, 
  knock, 
  levitate; 
  3rd—fireball, 
  clairaudience/clairvoyance, suggestion, major image; 4th—
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 23 
  crushing despair, lesser geas, illusory wall, phantasmal killer, 
  shadow conjuration. 
   
  �Kif’te (Uzbik’s Quasit Familiar): CR --; Tiny outsider 
  (chaotic, evil, extraplanar); HD 7; hp 18; Init +7; Spd 20 ft. 
  fly 50 ft. (perfect); AC 22, touch 15, flat-footed 19; Base 
  Atk +3; Grp –6; Atk +8 melee (1d3-1 plus poison, 2 claws) 
  and +3 melee (1d4-1, bite); Face/Reach 2 1/2 ft./0 ft.; SA 
  poison, spell-like abilities; SQ alternate form, darkvision 
  60 ft., deliver touch spells, damage reduction 5/cold iron 
  or good, fast healing 2, immunity to poison, improved 
  evasion, resistance to fire 10, speak with master, granted 
  abilities; AL CE; SV Fort +3, Ref +6, Will +4; Str 8, Dex 17, 
  Con 10, Int 10, Wis 12, Cha 10.  
   
  Skills and Feats: Bluff +6, Diplomacy +2, Disguise +0 
  (+2 acting), Hide +17, Intimidate +2, Knowledge (the 
  planes) +6, Listen +7, Move Silently +9, Search +6, 
  Spellcraft +6, Spot +6; Improved Initiative, Weapon 
  Finesse. 
   
  Poison (Ex): Injury, Fortitude DC 13, initial damage 
  1d4 Dex, secondary damage 2d4 Dex. 
  Spell-like abilities (Sp): At will—detect good, detect magic, 
  invisibility (self only); 1/day—cause fear (as the spell, but 
  30-foot radius; save DC 11). Caster level 6th. Once per 
  week a quasit can use commune to ask six questions 
  (otherwise as the spell cast by a 12th-level cleric). 
   
  Alternate form (Su): As polymorph, caster level 12th, 
  except that an individual quasit can assume only one or 
  two forms no larger then Medium. Common forms 
  include bat, monstrous centipede, toad, and wolf. 
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 24 
   
  DM MAP: DRAGON’S LAIR LOCATION B 
   
   
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 25 
   
  DM MAP: DRAGON’S LAIR LOCATION C 
   
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 26 
   
  DM MAP: DRAGON’S LAIR LOCATION C (CONT’D) 
   
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 27 
   
  DM MAP: DRAGON’S LAIR LOCATION D 
   
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 28 
   
  DM MAP: DRAGON’S LAIR LOCATION E 
   
  
  Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills 
  Round 1 and 2 
  Page 29 
   
  APPENDIX 2: KOBOLD ENCOUNTERS 
   
  KOBOLDS IN THE CAVERNS 
  The kobolds in these caverns have lived here for many, 
  many generations. They know the tunnels well and have 
  several favorite hunting spots at their disposal where they 
  typically hunt vermin and other creatures that serve as food 
  for them. In addition, the kobolds have been trained a bit 
  by the tieflings (in disguise as their kobold leaders) to 
  execute hit and run tactics and use traps and stealth to 
  confuse and befuddle their opponents. Below are listed the 
  typical hunting groups (by EL) as well as general tactics for 
  use in this scenario. Feel free to use this framework to 
  devise your own hit and run strategies. The goal is to try to 
  annoy the PCs into giving up or frighten them to the point 
  of breaking. At the very least, they should be given a 
  newfound respect for the crude cleverness of kobolds. 
  The kobolds have available to them piles of vermin to drop 
  on PCs, “troglodyte slime” to throw at them, basic crude 
  traps detailed in the Dungeon Master’s Guide page 70-72, and 
  some environmental effects detailed in the above 
  passageways. In addition, there are a few suggested 
  encounters listed in the various rooms above. Be sure to use 
  traps and terrain to your advantage in order to challenge 
  the PCs appropriately. Eight kobolds isn’t a challenge for 
  an APL 8 table, but given a CR 4 trap or two and some 
  kobolds firing behind cover makes for a tough encounter. 
  In addition to the normal equipment carried by kobolds, 
  half of the kobolds also carry a special concoction of 
  “troglodyte slime”. 
  �Troglodyte Slime: range increment 10 ft., Fort save DC 
  12; causes affected creature to be sickened for 1d6 rounds; 
  See Player’s Handbook page 312 for sickened effects. 
  TYPICAL KOBOLD RAIDERS (EL 2) 
  �Kobolds (4): hp 4 each; see Monster Manual. 
  �Kobold Adept: hp 14; see Appendix 1. 
  TYPICAL KOBOLD RAIDERS (EL 4) 
  �Kobolds (8): hp 4 each; see Monster Manual. 
  �Kobold Warrior (2): hp 16; see Appendix 1. 
  �Kobold Adept: hp 14; see Appendix 1. 
  TYPICAL KOBOLD RAIDERS (EL 6) 
  �Kobolds (8): hp 4 each; see Monster Manual. 
  �Kobold warrior (4): hp 16; see Appendix 1. 
  �Dire Weasels (2): hp 13 each; see Monster Manual. 
  TYPICAL KOBOLD RAIDERS (EL 8) 
  �Kobolds (8): hp 4 each; see Monster Manual. 
  �Kobold Warrior (2): hp 16; see Appendix 1. 
  �Kobold Adept (2): hp 9; see Appendix 1. 
  �Kobold War-Chief: hp 31; see Appendix 1. 
  �Dire Weasels, Advanced (2): hp 31 each; see Appendix 1. 
  EXTRA ELS AVAILABLE PER APL 
  APL 2: 3 available for traps/kobolds  
  APL 4: 5 available for traps/kobolds 
  APL 6: none available for traps/kobolds 
  APL 8: 5 available for traps/kobolds 
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Dungeons & Dragons [multi]/EXTRAS/Greyhawk/Living Greyhawk - RPGA/COR (Core)/COR4-05 Crystal Caverns of the Cairn Hills (3E).pdf