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Note: This adventure comes from “Fortress of the Yuan-ti”, by Ari Marmell, as published by Wizards of the Coast.

Area Y1) Staging Area

After dispatching the Lizardfolk guards, the party uses their keys to open the door at the top of the stairs. Inside, the find themselves at the base of the highest (middle) tower. A man-sized bronze dragon drops down from a high balcony, claiming to be an abused captive. Up on the balcony, a Yuan-ti wizard begins casting spells.

During the initial instant of doubt, the dragon positions himself so that his lightning “breath” can affect as many of the characters as possible. This, of course, erases any doubt about the dragon's intentions.

When the battle is over, both the dragon and the wizard are dead. From the wizard (who they later learn was named “Issiel”), the party gets 2 potions of levitate, bracers of armor +4, and two keys (which they find go to areas Y2 and Y3). From the dragon, they get a pair of gloves of arrow snaring.

Area Y2) Map Room

This room contains numerous scroll cases, sheaves of parchment, and cartographers' tools. In the scroll tubes and on the table are many maps – which the party gathers in case they will be useful. While many of the maps are of places they do not recognize, some are places they know – including the “Barrow of the Forgotten King”, the Underdark city of Pedestal, and the area around Kingsholm.

Over the table, Ketamine pries a 2-foot by 4-foot mirror of polished silver off the wall (It is worth 1,000 gp). Also, among the scroll tubes, Freyrik finds a scroll of explosive runes, magic mouth and sepia snake sigil.

Area Y3) Living Quarters

Under a false bottom in the wardrobe, the party finds Issiel's Spellbook. ¹⁾

Area Y4) The Winding Stair

This long stairway merely connects the “Staging Area” with “The Lower Landing”.

Area Y5) The Lower Landing

Here is where Issiel, “The Master of the Way” fought. It also houses seven portals – five of which have a single bolt of electricity arcing across their middles, while the remaining two radiate strong magic, but have no electricity. (See area K21 for more on these portals).

Area Y6) The Upper Landing

This unused area once may have looked out over the fields below. Now, though, it is entirely sealed off (apparently by magical stone shaping spells).²⁾

Area K19) The Heart of Darkness

Returning back to the main part of the fortress, the party goes back to the Barracks (K16A) and takes the secret passage up to Level 4. They emerge into a vast room where the air is desert-dry and carries a foul scent. An evil effect permeates the region and causes most of the party to become “shaken”. In the center of the room stands a three-tiered ziggurat of black marble – each tier ten feet tall.

Area K20) The Black Ziggurat

Resting on the far side of the Ziggurat is a Yuan-ti Abomination and a pair of Purebloods. As they are on the first tier, they use ranged weapons to attack the party. However, the party's ranged weapons prove superior and in the end, the Yuan-ti are killed.

From atop the ziggurat, Ketamine (in bird form) recovers a pair of lesser bracers of archery.

Area K21) The Gate Room

In addition to mundane sloping passageways up and down, the party finds three more portals here. While the middle one has a single bolt of electricity across it like the five in area Y5, the other two are covered in an electric field.

From this and the other seven portals (as well as the portal they took from “The Sinister Spire” to here), the party deduces that the portals have three states:

• Inactive: No electricity present
• Active: A single electric bolt
• Open: An electric field

As only “Open” portals can be used, Ash retrieves the key he used to open the gate from Fadheela's lair. After some experimentation, though, it appears to have no effect on these gates. A series of gemstones are set into the stone around the gates, though, and the party decides that the means to activate the gates must somehow involve these gems.

Not willing to trust their fate to these gates just yet, the party opts to continue exploring the “mundane” way.

Area K22) The Outer Balcony

Area P1) Chamber of Purification

Area P2) Landing

Area P3) Main Sanctuary

Fight Vsolt, a Yuan-ti Dread Necromancer and two Yuan-ti Halfblood Skeletons. From Vsolt, the party gets a potion of barkskin, a potion of levitate, a wand (which contains some kind of Necromancy spell, +1 studded leather armor, a cloak of resistance +1, and 4 onyxes (worth 100 gp).

Because of Vsolt's importance to the Vanguard, the party earns three action points for defeating him.

One session closer to the TPK…

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