Paths of the Doomed

The Paths of the Doomed was a dangerous labyrinthine cave system located in the deepest parts under the ancient Citadel in Thaymount.

"Many years ago, a successful group ventured into the bowels of the Citadel and discovered a near-endless series of subterranean tunnels and caverns. The area came to be known as the Paths of the Doomed and there are supposed to be horrendous creatures that inhabit those tunnels."

- Naglatha, the Black Flame

Description
The Paths were ancient, dangerous, and confusing to most.

Entrances
The Paths of the Doomed had several access points from within the Citadel. The main entrance was just past the Citadel gates, in the stronghold's twelve-sided room. Each side was a doorway, each marked with a different arcane rune. The rune of the labyrinth opened the way into the Paths of the Doomed. To gain entrance, one had to trace the symbol and say the command word "Thola Vos" which caused the door to disappear, allowing the passage. Another entry of note was located just beyond the Citadel's main banquet hall, often used by Szass Tam to host Zulkir and Tharchion meetings. Said chamber descended low into the beeper levels of the structure and, eventually, reached the Paths of the Doomed.

When entered from the 12-sided room, the first chamber of the Paths of the Doomed was known as the Main Hall. Just like the other  side of the entry door, the Main Hall's door was decorated with the same labyrinth rune. The command word that reopened the door was dahlal. The Main Hall was a long room covered in pristine marble with pale green columns of stone on its sides and a wagon vault ceiling. The chamber's floors were obsidian black and the room was lit with magical sources of light. The room ended with a ceiling-high double doors that led to the Hall of Statues. That hall was similar to the Main Hall but with matted black statues places between the many columns. The tall statues depicted the Citadel's original highly advanced lizardfolk creators. The black alloy the statues were made out of was virtually indestructible and proved to be too heavy to move. The Hall of Statues ended in a similar double door to the ones found in the Main Hall and led to the Guardian Hall. The Guardian Hall was a comparatively smaller chamber carved out of gray stone. This room served as the guard post for the Chambers of the Earth that laid beyond the door. The room was always guarded by a robed baneguard who collected a passage payment of one single gold coin.

The Chambers of Earth
The Chambers of Earth were separated from the Guardian Hall by a door and a short hallway. The main triangular shaped room was known as the Stone Chamber. All the rooms inside the Chambers of Earth were of similar shape and carved out of indescript grey stone with walls being covered in countless arcane runes. The rooms in the Chambers of Earth were all doorless and not lit, giving them sinister claustrophobic feel, sure to affect any of the creatures not used to the life underground. The first room, the Stone Chamber held three guardian stone golems, each in the triangle room's corners. Past he Stone Chamber were the Copper Chamber to the left from the entrance and the Iron Chamber to the right.

Defenses
The part of the Paths of the Doomed designed to lead to the Citadel's heart and hide various chambers of value was designed to confuse and protect against intruders. Very few knew of the ways, shortcuts, and protections against the dangers of the Paths. These protected areas of the Paths were divided into for elemental regions, Earth, Water, Air, and Fire, all converging on the Devouring Portal. Each elemental region was filled with guardians and traps so dangerous, that Szass Tam himself worried don't for possible trespassers.

The Guardian Hall was defended by eleven baneguards and five direguards who were hidden from sight but attacked anyone whoo refused to pay the toll or attacked the hooded door sentry.

The Chambers of Earth held guardian stone golems of Thayan creation that questioned the passersby of whom they serve (Szass Tam), what gods they serve (Cyric or other evil deities), and why they were there. The golems waited for all three answers and attacked if the answers were incorrect.

History
Many years prior to1368 DR, a group of adventurers found a way into the Paths of the Doomed and discovered not just thee tunnels and elemental chambers that served at the access point to the Citadel's heart, but also the expansive wild and dangerous winding tunnels, and almost infinite subterranean caves. The adventurers managed to map the paths. Later, the maps found their way into the possessions of the Zulkir of Necromancy of Thay.

Several years prior to 1368 DR, Szass Tam took control of the Thaymount region and the Citadel, turning it into the seat of his power. The lich survived the dangers of the Paths of the Doomed, reaching the Devouring Portal and aging access to the citadel's hart, where he subsequently performed the ritual of twin burnings, trapping the demon lord Eltab on the Thakorsil's Seat.

Rumors & Legends
The stories and rumors about the Paths of the Doomed were many and most originated from the group of adventurers who mapped the tunnels and told the stories of the forbidden magics, gemmed walls, and monstrous creatures.

Inhabitants
The part of the Paths of the Doomed that stood between the Citadel's inner chambers and potential invaders were guarded by many guardian creatures of magical origins such as baneguards, direguards, stone golems,

Appearances

 * Adventures
 * The Runes of Chaos
 * Novels
 * The Crimson Gold