Find the Hidden Treasure
--- Hidden Cultist Lair (Undead-Infested Island) Map ---
[Secluded Inlet (1) - Entrance] --- [Chamber of Echoes (2)] --- [Collapsed Passage (3)] | | [Crypt of Whispers (4)] --- [Flooded Cavern (5)] | | | | [Burial Chamber (6)] --- [Guard Post (7)] | | [Bone Pits (9)] | | [Ritual Chamber (8)] --- [Summoning Altar (10)] | | [Forgotten Ossuary (11)] | | [Beacon Chamber (12) - Objective]
--- Area 1 (Secluded Inlet - Entrance) --- Description: Hidden behind jagged rocks and dense, sea-battered foliage, a narrow, dark opening leads into the island's interior. The air here is cold, carrying the faint, unsettling scent of decay mixed with sea salt. The rhythmic lapping of waves against the rocks is the only sound. Exits/Connections: To Chamber of Echoes (2) (East).
--- Area 2 (Chamber of Echoes) --- Description: This natural cavern amplifies every whisper and footfall, creating an unnerving soundscape. Water drips from unseen fissures in the ceiling, forming small, still pools on the uneven stone floor. Strange, geometric carvings are faintly visible on the damp walls. Exits/Connections: To Secluded Inlet (1) (West), To Collapsed Passage (3) (North), To Crypt of Whispers (4) (South). Creatures: It has creatures (type: undead).
--- Area 3 (Collapsed Passage) --- Description: A narrow passage terminates abruptly in a pile of fallen rock and debris, seemingly impassable. The air here is stale and heavy with dust. A faint, cold draft hints that a way forward might exist, or did at one point. Exits/Connections: To Chamber of Echoes (2) (South). Secret Passages/Areas: A cleverly disguised opening (Perception DC 16 to find) within the rubble leads to a small, hidden alcove containing a minor cultist relic or a few valuable coins.
--- Area 4 (Crypt of Whispers) --- Description: The air in this crypt is heavy with the scent of damp earth and ancient dust. Stone sarcophagi line the walls, many broken open, their lids askew. A chilling, almost imperceptible whisper seems to emanate from the empty burial niches. Exits/Connections: To Chamber of Echoes (2) (North), To Flooded Cavern (5) (East). Creatures: It has creatures (type: undead). Encounter Type: Battle Area
--- Area 5 (Flooded Cavern) --- Description: This large cavern is partially submerged in murky, cold water that reaches knee-deep in most places. The ceiling is high, dripping continuously, and the sound of splashing echoes unsettlingly. Strange, pale cave fish swim sluggishly in the gloom. Exits/Connections: To Crypt of Whispers (4) (West), To Burial Chamber (6) (South), To Bone Pits (9) (East). Trap: It contains a trap (type: submerged tripwire triggering a localized ceiling collapse). Perception DC 14 to spot. Potential Damage: 1d8/T1, 2d8/T2, 3d8/T3, 4d8/T4 Bludgeoning Damage.
--- Area 6 (Burial Chamber) --- Description: This chamber is a macabre display of desecrated tombs and scattered bones. The stone walls are stained with ancient grime, and a few broken religious symbols lie on the floor, suggesting a violent defilement. The air feels oppressive and cold. Exits/Connections: To Flooded Cavern (5) (North), To Guard Post (7) (East). Creatures: It has creatures (type: undead).
--- Area 7 (Guard Post) --- Description: This rough-hewn chamber, clearly intended as a defensive point, is sparsely furnished with a crude table and a few broken chairs. Crude symbols, vaguely resembling the erratic light signals, are scrawled in blood on the walls, still glistening faintly. Exits/Connections: To Burial Chamber (6) (West). Trap: It contains a trap (type: hidden pressure plate triggering a volley of poisoned darts from wall slits). Perception DC 15 to spot. Potential Damage: 1d8/T1, 2d8/T2, 3d8/T3, 4d8/T4 Poison Damage.
--- Area 8 (Ritual Chamber) --- Description: A large, stone altar, stained with dark, dried residue, dominates the center of this room. Unsettling sigils are carved into the floor around it, glowing faintly with a residual, malevolent energy. The air hums with a low, almost imperceptible vibration. Exits/Connections: To Burial Chamber (6) (North), To Summoning Altar (10) (East). Creatures: It has creatures (type: undead). Encounter Type: Battle Area
--- Area 9 (Bone Pits) --- Description: This gruesome chamber is dominated by several deep, natural pits filled with countless skeletal remains, some reaching almost to the ceiling. A cloying, sickly sweet odor of decay rises from the depths. The ground around the pits is treacherous. Exits/Connections: To Flooded Cavern (5) (West). Secret Passages/Areas: A small, narrow fissure partially obscured by bones (Perception DC 17 to find) leads to a small, overlooked cache of cultist ritual components or a valuable gem embedded in the rock.
--- Area 10 (Summoning Altar) --- Description: A more elaborate altar, carved with intricate and disturbing symbols, stands in this echoing chamber. Chains hang from the ceiling, leading down to bloodstains on the floor. The air is thick with a chilling presence, and the temperature drops noticeably here. Exits/Connections: To Ritual Chamber (8) (West), To Forgotten Ossuary (11) (South). Creatures: It has creatures (type: undead). Encounter Type: Battle Area
--- Area 11 (Forgotten Ossuary) --- Description: This hidden ossuary is packed tightly with carefully stacked bones, forming eerie walls and columns. Skulls stare blankly from every direction. The atmosphere is morbidly quiet, broken only by the faint skittering of unseen creatures. Exits/Connections: To Summoning Altar (10) (North), To Beacon Chamber (12) (East). Trap: It contains a trap (type: cursed bone pile releasing a burst of chilling necrotic energy). Perception DC 12 to spot. Potential Damage: 1d8/T1, 2d8/T2, 3d8/T3, 4d8/T4 Necrotic Damage.
--- Area 12 (Beacon Chamber - Objective) --- Description: This chamber, partially open to the sky through a cleverly disguised natural vent, houses a pulsating, unnatural beacon of light. Arcane runes glow on the floor around it, and the air crackles with energy. Scattered cultist robes and a complex, arcane device are strewn nearby, clearly the source of the erratic signals. Exits/Connections: To Forgotten Ossuary (11) (West). Objective: This area is designed for the final boss mob, likely a powerful undead entity, a necromancer, or a prominent cult leader, controlling the "erratic light signals." The objective is to "verify Old Man Hemlock's suspicions" by confronting the source of these signals (the glowing beacon and the cult's presence) and neutralizing the threat. The "beacon" itself serves as the manifestation of the "something far worse" that Hemlock feared.
