--- "Crimson Crane" Warehouse (Covert Smuggling Operation) Map ---
[Overturned Dray Yard (1) - Entrance] --- [Loading Bay West (2)] --- [Foreman's Checkpoint (3)] | | [Central Storage A (4)] --- [Sorting Platform (5)] --- [Bandit Mess Hall (6)] | | [Security Booth (7)] --- [Secure Goods Bay (8)] --- [Hidden Goods Vault (9)] --- [The "Textiles" Cache (10) - Objective]
--- Area 1 (Overturned Dray Yard - Entrance) --- Description: The outdoor yard leading to the warehouse is a chaotic scene of discarded pallets, broken wagon wheels, and scattered packing straw. The ground is deeply rutted from heavy drays, and the air smells of dust and stale wood. A faint, oily sheen coats puddles of stagnant water. This serves as the primary entry point. Exits/Connections: To Loading Bay West (2) (East).
--- Area 2 (Loading Bay West) --- Description: This covered loading bay is lined with various winches and manual hoists, all appearing well-used. The large, sliding warehouse doors are closed but not locked, hinting at ongoing activity. The air is still and cool, carrying the faint scent of old canvas and industrial grease. Exits/Connections: To Overturned Dray Yard (1) (West), To Foreman's Checkpoint (3) (North), To Central Storage A (4) (South). Creatures: It has creatures (type: bandits - disguised as laborers).
--- Area 3 (Foreman's Checkpoint) --- Description: This small, grimy booth is situated to monitor all traffic entering and exiting the warehouse. A heavy, ink-stained ledger sits open on a simple desk, covered in what appear to be standard shipping records, though a closer look might reveal subtle inconsistencies. Exits/Connections: To Loading Bay West (2) (South).
--- Area 4 (Central Storage A) --- Description: This vast section of the warehouse is crammed with towering stacks of crates and barrels. While most appear to contain mundane goods, an unusually heavy crate with "TEXTILES" stenciled on its side is prominently visible, its weight seeming to bow the floorboards beneath it. Dust motes dance in the few shafts of light. Exits/Connections: To Loading Bay West (2) (North), To Sorting Platform (5) (East), To Security Booth (7) (South). Creatures: It has creatures (type: bandits - disguised as laborers). Encounter Type: Battle Area
--- Area 5 (Sorting Platform) --- Description: A raised wooden platform dominates this area, used for sorting and repacking goods. Various packing tools, coils of rope, and discarded wrapping materials are scattered about. The air here is pungent with the mingled scents of various merchandise. Exits/Connections: To Central Storage A (4) (West), To Bandit Mess Hall (6) (North), To Secure Goods Bay (8) (South). Trap: It contains a trap (type: tripwire connected to a falling stack of loose timbers). Perception DC 13 to spot. Potential Damage: 1d8/T1, 2d8/T2, 3d8/T3, 4d8/T4 Bludgeoning/Entanglement.
--- Area 6 (Bandit Mess Hall) --- Description: This crude mess hall is filled with overturned benches and tables stained with food scraps. The air is thick with the smell of stale ale, grease, and unwashed bodies. A few scattered playing cards and a set of dice lie on a dirty table. Exits/Connections: To Sorting Platform (5) (South). Secret Passages/Areas: A loose floorboard under a particularly rickety table (Perception DC 16 to find) conceals a small, personal cache containing a few ill-gotten coins and a cryptic, numerical code on a scrap of paper.
--- Area 7 (Security Booth) --- Description: This small, reinforced booth has a thick, barred window overlooking the central storage areas. Inside, a simple cot, a locked chest, and a few discarded weapon sheaths are visible. The air here is cold, as if frequently left open to the outside. Exits/Connections: To Central Storage A (4) (North), To Secure Goods Bay (8) (East). Creatures: It has creatures (type: bandits - on guard duty).
--- Area 8 (Secure Goods Bay) --- Description: This section of the warehouse is more organized and clearly holds higher-value goods. Crates are neatly stacked and secured with chains or heavy tarpaulins. A faint, almost imperceptible metallic tang hangs in the air, hinting at something unusual beneath the coverings. Exits/Connections: To Sorting Platform (5) (North), To Security Booth (7) (West), To Hidden Goods Vault (9) (South). Trap: It contains a trap (type: pressure plate activating a spring-loaded crossbow bolt from a hidden wall slot). Perception DC 15 to spot. Potential Damage: 1d8/T1, 2d8/T2, 3d8/T3, 4d8/T4 Piercing Damage. Creatures: It has creatures (type: bandits - guarding valuable goods). Encounter Type: Battle Area
--- Area 9 (Hidden Goods Vault) --- Description: This chamber is protected by a heavy, reinforced iron door with multiple locks. Inside, climate-controlled shelving units contain various high-value, but seemingly legitimate, goods. However, a faint, unnatural hum can be felt, originating from somewhere deeper within. Exits/Connections: To Secure Goods Bay (8) (North), To The "Textiles" Cache (10) (East). Creatures: It has creatures (type: bandits - elite guards).
--- Area 10 (The "Textiles" Cache - Objective) --- Description: This innermost chamber is surprisingly small, but its walls are lined with stacks of heavy, dark crates. Upon closer inspection, these are not textiles at all, but highly illegal and dangerous weaponry, contraband magical artifacts, or perhaps even a forbidden magical substance, all disguised under false "textiles" manifests. A prominent, heavily sealed crate bears the exact weight and description that Milo found suspicious. Exits/Connections: To Hidden Goods Vault (9) (West). Encounter Type: BOSS FIGHT! Objective: This area is designed for the final confrontation or discovery. The "boss" could be a particularly shrewd bandit leader overseeing the operation, or a powerful figure connected to the "powerful figures" Milo mentioned. The objective is to "investigate the 'heavy textiles'" by discovering their true contents, thereby exposing the "major smuggling operation" and gathering evidence against the responsible "powerful figures." The cryptic note's meaning is fully revealed here.
