Kossuth's House was a name given to a subterranean magical chamber beneath Skelem which housed the Elemental Scourge.[1][3]
Location[]
A map of of Skelem showing the location of Kossuth's House, circa 1373 DR.
The House was hidden beneath the home of a worshiper of Kossuth[2] on the southern side of Skelem.[4] To find the entrance, about 1 foot (0.3 meters) of dirt had to be displaced at the correct location to reveal a 5‑foot (1.5‑meter) square steel hatch, which opened to a 30‑foot (9.1‑meter) drop into the first chamber.[3]
The only reliable way to identify the exact location to dig was by visiting the Map House.[3]
Structure[]
The building was located 30 feet (9.1 meters) underground. It was carved out of basalt and had stone floors.[1]
Interior[]
The first chamber had high ceilings reaching up to the surface, and the entry hatch sat above the southwest corner with no ladder or other means to safely get up to or down from ground level. This room spanned the whole width of the structure, and two wooden doors on the northern wall led further inside. The walls were etched with images of elementals, and between the doors was written "Kossuth's House" in the ancient Netherese language.[1]
Each of the two doors led to near-identical rooms with 15‑foot (4.6‑meter) ceilings and which were empty and featureless save for marks and etchings of elementals that adorned the walls. The eastern room was a dead-end, meant to serve as a trap where the House's defenders could attack intruders, while the western room contained a second door leading to an antechamber for the final room from which the first glimpse of the Elemental Scourge could be seen.[5]
The last chamber housed the massive Elemental Scourge, which dominated the 50 feet (15 meters) wide and 30‑foot (9.1‑meter) tall domed circular room.[5] This chamber contained four statues, each depicting a huge elemental—one each of air, earth, fire, and water—to represent the monsters that the Scourge could conjure.[1][6] The room's walls were decorated with frescoes of massive and intimidating ice creatures obliterating hapless victims. Unlike the rest of the House—which was unlit—magical yellow light radiated dimly from alcoves along the walls.[5]
Defenses[]
Intruders were beset in each chamber of the Kossuth' House by summoned devils. In the first chamber, an intruder's feet touching the floor would cause six erinyes and two chain devils to instantly appear. These devils would attempt to flank anyone on the floor and would harry anyone attempting to descend from the entry hatch in hopes of causing them to fall.[1]
The remaining chambers—aside from the one housing the Elemental Scourge—summoned not only devils, but traps that complimented the devils' abilities. In the dead-end chamber through the first chamber's eastern door, the room filled with spines as two barbed devils appeared and hounded intruders with spells. In the chamber through the western door, the whole room became chocked with bones as five bone devils appeared and used walls of ice to trap intruders. In the antechamber before the Elemental Scourge, the whole room iced over completely as two ice devils appeared and unleashed their spells.[5]
Lastly, the moment an intruder entered the final chamber, a horned devil appeared and immediately began summoning bearded devils. While these summoned devils harried the intruders, the horned devil unleased fireball and lightning bolt spells.[5]
History[]
The underground chamber was constructed in ancient times by an unlikely alliance of powerful wizards in league with the church of Kossuth. It was built for the purpose of housing the Elemental Scourge, which took several years to complete.[1][2]
The House was abandoned sometime after the Fall of Netheril.[3] Lines of corpses were left propped up against the walls in the first chamber, seemingly meant as a pantomime of life. By the mid-to-late 14th century DR, these bodies were long-decayed and covered in spider webs.[1]
The House was almost completely forgotten over the centuries,[1] although some legends still recalled that a powerful weapon resided in Skelem. In the Year of Rogue Dragons, 1373 DR, these rumors drew the attention of fire giant brothers Soluf and Gharod, who sent an excavation party to search the ruins.[2]
Appendix[]
Appearances[]
- Adventures
- Mysteries of the Moonsea: "Eastern Moonsea adventure arc"
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 Darrin Drader, Thomas M. Reid, Sean K. Reynolds, Wil Upchurch (June 2006). Mysteries of the Moonsea. Edited by John Thompson, Gary Sarli. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 120. ISBN 978-0-7869-3915-2.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Darrin Drader, Thomas M. Reid, Sean K. Reynolds, Wil Upchurch (June 2006). Mysteries of the Moonsea. Edited by John Thompson, Gary Sarli. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 117. ISBN 978-0-7869-3915-2.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Darrin Drader, Thomas M. Reid, Sean K. Reynolds, Wil Upchurch (June 2006). Mysteries of the Moonsea. Edited by John Thompson, Gary Sarli. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 119. ISBN 978-0-7869-3915-2.
- ↑ Darrin Drader, Thomas M. Reid, Sean K. Reynolds, Wil Upchurch (June 2006). Mysteries of the Moonsea. Edited by John Thompson, Gary Sarli. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 118. ISBN 978-0-7869-3915-2.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Darrin Drader, Thomas M. Reid, Sean K. Reynolds, Wil Upchurch (June 2006). Mysteries of the Moonsea. Edited by John Thompson, Gary Sarli. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 121. ISBN 978-0-7869-3915-2.
- ↑ Skip Williams, Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook (July 2003). Monster Manual v.3.5. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 98. ISBN 0-7869-2893-X.