Darkmoon

Darkmoon was an ancient and evil temple, located on the Sword Coast.

Location
Darkmoon was located somewhere north of Waterdeep in a secluded forest. The temple itself was built upon a large rock formation that led to land via a curved path.

Structure
The temple consisted of a main building, under which were ancient catacombs. There were also three large towers than surrounded the main temple: silver, azure and crimson. As well as the large towers, was a prison that kept frost giants.

Interior
The interior was typical for that of a temple, but of an age-old design. The walls of the entry hall featured red banners with gold trim, decorative windows, as well as a fine stone carving of the four winds.

Atmosphere
At first, Darkmoon appeared to have a very friendly and welcoming atmosphere. The clerics appeared good-willed and seemed happy to help others in distress, but were actually just masking their evil intentions to conquer Waterdeep.

In many areas of the temple, Darkmoon was swarming with evil creatures, from basilisks, to beholders.

Ancient history
Drow elves had, hundreds of years prior to the 14th century DR, ascended to the surface and built the temple. The cold-hearted dark elves started to vie for power between themselves, which eventually led to their downfall. Mysteriously, their leader, Dran Draggore, disappeared without a trace.

14th century DR
The temple appeared to be active again, and was apparently still under the leadership of Dran. This meant that he was most likely very old, and very powerful. At this time, many feared Darkmoon, but the clerics of the temple appeared very friendly. Around this time, Wently Kelso went missing when returning from an investigation north of Waterdeep. Oltec of the Waterdeep City Guard had found an overturned carriage, and Kelso's journals nearby. Kelso noted that he had a vision of evil occurrences in the area, and human remains in shallow graves. As well as Kelso's journals, some townsfolk near the area had gone missing. Oltec let Khelben Arunsun know about the issue, who sent out a scout, Amber, to infiltrate the temple. Amber, although she managed to get inside the temple, died in her journey. Khelben was distressed, and called upon the Heroes of Waterdeep to investigate the area.

The Visitor
Before the heroes set off, they were confronted by a man in a local tavern, who told them a story of "the Visitor". One night, the local patron heard thumping at the tavern door, where he found a man striking with meager strength. He was in terrible shape, with bloodied and ragged clothes. The wounds were that of burns and bite marks, and worse. The Visitor became delirious over the next few days, and remained bedridden, however, he spoke of armies of undead warriors, and the conquering of Waterdeep. Apparently, the Visitor had gained access to the temple and looked around. The Visitor carried a book of his notes about his findings on the temple, and then left the next day. He left the patrons with the book, and a note which asked them to deliver it to Khelben Blackstaff. That was the end of the local patron's story, and he left in the storm.

The fall of Darkmoon
The Heroes of Waterdeep arrived in the forest close to Darkmoon. They managed to see through the disguises of the greeters (Joril and Nadia), who had tricked so many others. With great effort, the heroes infiltrated Darkmoon and killed countless undead minions. In the end, they met with the leader, Dran Draggore, who turned out to be a red dragon (who had polymorphed himself into humanoid). In a close encounter, they slew Dran. The heroes contacted Khelben, who then summoned several mages to destroy the evil temple. Darkmoon then ceased to exist.



Appearances

 * Video games
 * Eye of the Beholder II: The Legend of Darkmoon