Riverside Teahouse

The riverside teahouse, also known as the gnarled teahouse, was the home of the green hag Auntie Ethel for the years leading up to 15 century DR. While it appeared as a meager house situated within the riverside-swamp in the Heartlands, it was masked an old and ancient place, rich with magic originated from other planes of existence.

Location
The shack was located on a raised patch of dirt amid the murky waters of the putrid bog along the northern bank of the River Chionthar on the Sword Coast.

Structure
Powerful illusion magic permeated the swamp and the teahouse itself, making it appear as a cozy little cottage built within a sunny fen. Its thatched room was covered in moss for insulation, while its façade appeared decorated with beauteous ivy and wildflowers that provided vibrant colors.

In truth, the dilapidated shack was overgrown with twisting vines as massive rotting tree boughs threatened to collapse its decrepit roof. A varied collection of bones decorated the entrance to the hag's abode, some of which were larger than even a human man.

Interior
"Beautiful isn't it? It's my little refuge for the lost and hopeless."

- Ethel, in reference to her home and petitioners.

Teahouse
The illusory form of the teahouse appeared as a dusty but charming apothecary's home, filled with vibrant plans and flowers, illuminated by beams of sunshine from outdoors. A tall stone hearth provided warmth and light for Ethel as she formulated her alchemical concoctions.

The genuine interior of Ethel's home reflected the same disparity in its outward appearance. Strangling vines snaked down the walls and shadows twisted across the floor as dim light from torches flickered in a few sconces. The fire in the hearth was a mere illusion, concealing a passageway that led down into the hag's true home.

Entrance Gallery
Heading down the tunnel behind the false fireplace, a rickety wooden staircase led into to a single cavernous chamber – the entrance gallery of Ethel's lair. The overgrow root system of the aboveground swamp trees ran over, across, and through the walls within, occasionally suspending within in purulent bulbs of explosive gases. Ethel's bubbling cauldron sat within the room's center, surrounded by the poor souls that were victimized by the horrific "help" she offered them.

Among the poor wretches that suffered from Ethel's involvement in their lives included Efrin Hammerborn, the diseased dwarven man who was spared death by means of petrification, the elf Lorin who sought knowledge of the future and was rewarded with visions of terrible mind flayer invaders, and the beheaded Magron who sought great intellect before betraying the hag. The spirit one of one particularly vain man remained trapped within a mirror, while the eye of a blinded elf woman remained pierced atop a spike next to her corpse.

Perhaps most notable among Ethel's victims was the enormous, tormented face that appeared within the tangled roots that barred passage to the depths of her lair. This door of tangled wood could share images and feelings with some empathic link to those that entered the gallery but could not otherwise communicate. While it was given the purpose of protecting her inner sanctum – ironic given that it was once a thief that dared to steal from the powerful hag – its form was just a mere illusion, similar to that which obscured Ethel's home and true physical form.

Overgrown Tunnel
A narrow passageway opened up beyond the illusory door, opening into a wider cavern reminiscent of the passage beneath the teahouse. Raised stone platforms dotted the middle of the cave, some of which were connected with the same purulent bulbs dangling from some of the more massive underground roots. This chamber was the domain of Ethel's masked minions, the unfortunate individuals that were compelled by her magic to sacrifice their lives to defend her dark and secretive magics. At the rear of the cave was a waterfall that gave way to the furthest depths of Ethel's lair.

A leap through the waterfall led to a large stone outcropping that overlooked the enormity of the final cave of Ethel's domain. Dwarfing the previous chambers with its massive size, this immense opening was easily larger than all the others before it combined. Stone pillars and rocky tors were connected by twisted roots and wooden planks set precariously along their edge. Clouds of toxic, flammable gas lingered around rocky walkways, providing true peril for anyone that dared hazard across.

At the heart of this cavern was the entryway to Ethel's true lair. Just beyond the meager wooden door that led within was a circular cage made of wood and bone, suspended from above by narrow roots and vines that were easily severed or set aflame.

Appearances

 * Video Games
 * Baldur's Gate III