TEXT:  
   
   
   
  
   
  2 
  TABLE OF CONTENTS 
  FOREWORD ...................................................................... 3 
  LEVEL XIX: CAVERNS OF OOZE ..................................... 4 
  Areas of Note ............................................................... 5 
  Epilogue ..................................................................... 11 
  LEVEL XX: RUNESTONE CAVERNS ............................... 12 
  Areas of Note ............................................................. 16 
  Epilogue ..................................................................... 21 
  LEVEL XXI: THE TERMINUS LEVEL .............................. 22 
  Areas of Note ............................................................. 27 
  Epilogue ..................................................................... 32 
  LEVEL XXII: SHADOWDUSK HOLD ............................... 33 
  Areas of Note ............................................................. 37 
  Epilogue ..................................................................... 49 
  LEVEL XXIII: MAD WIZARD'S LAIR ............................. 50 
  Optional Twists ......................................................... 55 
  Halaster's Game .................................................... 55 
  The Dark Tower .................................................... 55 
  Ground-Mage Day ................................................ 56 
  Puppet on the String .............................................. 56 
  Penultimate Encounters............................................. 56 
  The Elite Four ....................................................... 57 
  The Prismatic Gauntlet .......................................... 61 
  Tarrasquic Park ..................................................... 62 
  Welcome to the Thunderdome .............................. 63 
  Ultimate Showdown .................................................. 64 
  Checkmate ............................................................. 65 
  Clash of the Titans ................................................ 66 
  Donkey Kong Redux ............................................. 68 
  Monty's Hall .......................................................... 69 
  Planar Hopscotching ............................................. 70 
  Snakes and Portals ................................................ 75 
  Third Times the Charm ......................................... 76 
  Time is a Wheel .................................................... 79 
  Areas of Note ............................................................. 80 
  Epilogue ..................................................................... 89 
  APPENDIX A: MAGIC ITEMS .......................................... 91 
  APPENDIX B: NPCS & MONSTERS ................................ 97 
  APPENDIX C: EFFECTS ................................................ 146 
   
   
  ART CREDITS 
  All hail our glorious artist: 
  Cover: Mage with Marionette by Dean Spencer, 
  hallowed be his name 
   
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  3 
  FOREWORD 
  Dungeon of the Mad Mage is a tough nut to crack. Even 
  after digesting its twenty-three chapters, you're left 
  wanting, wondering. What, exactly, is this campaign's 
  story? What aims are there beyond gold or glory or 
  power—beyond just delving into the deeps? 
  The Dungeon of the Mad Mage Companion is aimed at 
  fleshing out what would be an otherwise skeletal module. 
  Through narration blocks, variants, and actual narrative, 
  the Companion should make running DotMM easier for 
  you and more satisfying for your players. No adventure is 
  perfect, but DotMM's lack of a narrative is glaring—hence 
  the founding reason for the Companion.  
   
  SHORTHAND 
  With even just five chapters per document, this 
  supplement is massive. The following shorthand must be 
  implemented to reduce the strain on your printer or the 
  scroll wheel of your poor, poor mouse: 
  DoTMM refers to this module, Dungeon of the Mad Mage.  
  LX refers to a level of Undermountain (e.g. "L1"). 
  App refers to an Appendix, either of the of the Companion 
  or Dungeon of the Mad Mage itself.  
  Ch. refers to a chapter. Intuitive, right? 
  HG refers to Halaster's Game, the overview chapter of 
  the Companion & DotMM.  
   
  STRUCTURE OF THE COMPANION 
  Each chapter of the Companion follows this structure: 
   
  PREAMBLE OR "RUNNING LEVEL X" 
  The Companion opens with notes on how to best run that 
  level of Undermountain. It always includes quick notes 
  for the DM but might also break down the story of that 
  level, outline its factions, detail additional loot you can 
  add, or criticize how that chapter was written, providing 
  you with alternative ideas to running it.  
  Halaster's Game. The Companion depicts the Mad 
  Mage as a deranged gameshow host whose program, 
  Dungeon of the Mad Mage, is broadcasted across the 
  multiverse. In specific chapters of the Companion, 
  however, this also includes wide-reaching variants that 
  you can utilize to flesh out or improve that level.  
   
  AREAS OF NOTE 
  The Companion fleshes out areas of a particular level that 
  need it. Sometimes this is simply a narration block to read 
  to your players. Sometimes it includes tactics used by 
  NPCs there or additional loot. Often it includes tips to 
  better run that area, even if it alters DotMM.  
  Special Events. Many levels have special events written 
  that can occur in a multitude of areas. These serve as 
  narrative devices to shake things up. Use them at your 
  own discretion.  
   
  EPILOGUE 
  The epilogue details any possible paths that might occur 
  after finishing a level, as well as reminding you of what 
  level the party should reach. 
  Send-Offs. Each chapter of the Companion is written 
  with a narration you can use to cap-off your session. 
  Every send-off includes one in which the Mad Mage 
  telepathically speaks to the adventurers and the audience. 
  These messages may include quips, a moral to the story, 
  warnings, jests, foreshadowing, or even an announcement 
  of the next dungeon level. 
   
  APPENDIX A: MAGIC ITEMS 
  Magic items—and sometimes mundane items—are 
  detailed in Appendix A. The location thereof is also 
  included. Some chapters of the Companion add additional 
  loot to the mix since Undermountain often seems 
  deprived of any useful items. Spell scrolls, however, 
  aren't ever described in Appendix A. 
   
  APPENDIX B: NPCS & MONSTERS 
  The statistics of the NPCs and monsters that inhabit a 
  level are provided for you in Appendix B. Additionally, 
  some chapters of the Companion include new or different 
  monsters you can add to the level; these statistics are also 
  provided for you.  
  Exceptions. Over 230 unique creatures are in Dungeon 
  of the Mad Mage. To avoid bloating these supplements, 
  CR 0 creatures such as cats aren't included. So too are 
  spellcasters with different spells prepared than their 
  original statblock, as well as creatures whose variants are 
  just too trivial to detail—such as a wood elf bandit who 
  merely gains an additional 5 feet of movement or the 
  additional hit points an enlarged mimic might have.  
  Additionally, the many petrified creatures of Level 2, 
  Area 26 are not included. 
   
  APPENDIX C: EFFECTS 
  Appendix C includes effects or traps, such as Madness, 
  that are encountered in more than one chapter or 
  otherwise warrant their own section to detail.  
   
  ROLEPLAYING THE MAD MAGE 
  As always, the Halaster Blackcloak has been rewritten as 
  a deranged gameshow host whose program, Dungeon of 
  the Mad Mage, is broadcasted across the multiverse. 
  Countless souls watch—apparently—as Halaster hurls 
  challenge after challenge at an adventuring party in 
  Undermountain, filming their every struggle and victory. 
  It's this insidious game that the player characters have 
  found themselves trapped in. 
  See Halaster's Game of the Companion for more details 
  on roleplaying the Mad Mage in this manner. 
   
   
   
   
  
   
  4 
  LEVEL XIX: CAVERNS OF OOZE 
   
  QUICK NOTES 
  • 
  Nothing on this level is serious. The Companion intends to 
  make it as ridiculous as possible.  
  • 
  Nothing prohibits the party from quickly advancing to the 
  next level of Undermountain; in fact, they're encouraged to 
  by the genies on this level. Thus, they should be presented 
  with both their first time on this level, as well as random 
  encounters. You should aim to leave this level by the end 
  of one session.  
  • 
  The genies cannot leave their respective areas even if the 
  party gives its rival the phylactery. However, you can lift 
  this restriction to facilitate vengeful attacks on the party. 
  See Special Events under Areas of Note for details.  
  • 
  Gargoyles, present in Area 9, cannot be harmed by non-
  magical attacks from non-adamantine weapons. 
  • 
  It goes without saying that the genies on this level cannot 
  grant wishes to the party. However, they're certain to imply 
  to the adventurers that they can, in return for a certain lich's 
  phylactery…   
  • 
  Area 10 is deceivingly deadly; if a creature falls prey to the 
  culvert, they will drown in ooze as they're swept up in the 
  ooze-river's current.  
  • 
  If your party is lost and aimless on this level, direct Urm, 
  the mud mephit in Area 4, to them. It can deliver them to 
  both the genies, who give the party the quest to retrieve 
  Ezzat's phylactery from Level 20.  
   
  PREVIOUSLY ON DUNGEON OF THE MAD MAGE 
  Keep in mind the following when running this level: 
  • On Level 10, the party may have come across altars and 
  statues dedicated to Ghaunadaur, the drow god of oozes 
  and other slimy creatures.  
  • As described in the supplement, Halaster's Game, the 
  Mad Mage is fond of announcing to the show's viewers 
  and contestants this episode's sponsor. The party may 
  have been needled with the advertisement, "This 
  episode of Dungeon of the Mad Mage is brought to you 
  by the Ghaunadaur ooze-clerics of Undermountain: 
  fhinala-pekta-een-een-pa-pha! Paaa-pha! The Church 
  of Ghaunadaur is not responsible for any caustic burns, 
  mutations, or reduction to jelly matter that occur during 
  or after baptism."  
  • On Level 16, the adventurers may have been confronted 
  with proof that there are spacefaring species living out 
  across the cosmos, that there is life among the stars. If 
  they encounter The Scavenger, you cement this fact.   
  • The illithids of Level 17 have a host of orogs under their 
  control; while never confirmed in DotMM, there's no 
  doubt that they were all survivors of The Scavenger's 
  crash and Captain N'ghathrod's starved betrayal.   
   
  HALASTER'S GAME 
  As an immortal magus of great power, Halaster has found 
  himself acting as other higher beings do. Sure, he could 
  take the fight to the lich Ezzat himself, but such a task is 
  beneath him. Like deities and feylords, Halaster has a 
  game of cat-and-mouse to play. That's where the 
  adventurers come in—and, if you play the Mad Mage as 
  the game show host of Dungeon of the Mad Mage, he 
  knows it'll make great TV.  
  Level 19 excels as a short chapter sandwiched between 
  two 
  dangerous 
  levels 
  of 
  Undermountain. 
  After 
  Vanrakdoom, the adventurers (and players) will need a 
  breather. The party can run through this level passively, 
  perhaps only facing the oozes and orogs scattered across 
  the caverns.  
  The Chessmaster. The Mad Mage, for his part, is 
  surprisingly silent on this level. He relies on Urm, the mud 
  mephit in Area 4, to push his pawns to Level 20. He 
  should, for once, keep his distance from the party as they 
  entertain offers from the genies.  
  A Rock & A Hard Place. The party must pick their 
  poison if they agree to the genies' terms. Of the two, 
  Ichthyglug the marid is surely the gentler patron to spurn, 
  for it lacks the minions that its rival has. In contrast, Jarûk 
  is sadistic and cruel. It's backed up by minions that can go 
  where it cannot. 
   
  MAXIMUM ABSURDITY 
  The Caverns of Ooze are already absurd, but it's time to 
  crank it up a notch. As the genies already offer the chance 
  for you to sing, we might as well play some… copyrighted 
  songs throughout the level. Adjust the campaign to better 
  fit the song, such as changing the name of Rukha (see 
  Area 2) to Gaston. Otherwise, simply ignore any 
  discrepancies the music may offer.  
  Several songs are suggested throughout the level with 
  this variant, which can be found online. Play them at the 
  terrible risk of summoning the ghost of Walt Disney.   
  Knot in the Weave. Spacefaring individuals (such as the 
  pirates from The Scavenger) are especially vulnerable to 
  the Knot in the Weave, the very force that drove Halaster 
  insane. Continued exposure has planted seeds of madness 
  in the crew, who now sing just as the genies on this floor 
  do. Or that's how you can rationalize it, anyway.  
   
   
   
  
   
  5 
  AREAS OF NOTE 
  The following areas are of note:  
   
  "RANDOM" ENCOUNTERS 
  The Caverns of Ooze are large but empty. The party 
  should face the encounters outlined in DotMM, but with 
  added narrative.  
   
  HUGE GRAY OOZE 
  The ooze is best encountered in the tunnel to Level 18. It 
  slides in from the tunnel to Area 13. When it attacks, 
  Halaster telepathically announces, "This episode of 
  Dungeon of the Mad Mage is brought to you by the 
  Ghaunadaur ooze-clerics of Under-mountain: fhinala-
  pekta-een-een-pa-pha! Paaa-pha! The Church of 
  Ghaunadaur is not responsible for any caustic burns, 
  mutations, or reduction to jelly matter that occur during 
  or after baptism." 
  The ooze has swallowed 1d4+4 willing cultists of 
  Ghaunadaur, who are slowly being dissolved. These 
  masochists, however, consider it a trial imparted by their 
  deity. While in the ooze, they are considered restrained. 
  Likewise, they're unarmed and unable to attack. They're 
  simply along for the ride and shout insane gibberings held 
  dear by the Church of Ghaunadaur: 
  • "Pekta-een… Pekta-eeeeen!" 
  • "Come on in; the water's pekta-een."  
  • "It's all pekta-een in here, my man." 
  • "Life has many doors, Ed-boy!"  
  • "Surf's always up with Ghaunadaur."  
  • "Join us! Free baklenal on Tuesdays!"  
  • "I am one with the ooze; the ooze is with me. One with the 
  ooze, the ooze is with me." (When one cultist says this, the 
  next nearest cultist immediately adds, "He is one with the 
  ooze; the ooze is with us. He is one with me; the ooze is with 
  us." 
   
  INTELLIGENT BLACK PUDDINGS 
  Make the most of the puddings, who can harangue the 
  party throughout the caverns. They should attack at least 
  twice, preferably as the adventurers leave a genie's 
  territory and while near The Scavenger. 
  Maximum Absurdity. If the black puddings hope to 
  return to their true forms, the song Human Again from 
  Beauty and the Beast would be perfect. At your table, you 
  may see fit to make that change to invoke this variant. 
  Otherwise, the songs Circle of Life or Hakuna Matata 
  from Lion King serve to express the oozes' jubilance. Per 
  this variant, they can still speak, despite being turned into 
  oozelings.  
   
  SPACE OROGS 
  The space orogs are best encountered along the banks of 
  the ooze river, such as in Area 3B, 4, and 5A. They must 
  take care to avoid provoking the genies' wrath and thus 
  won't pursue prey into those territories.  
  Maximum Absurdity. Driven insane by hunger and the 
  Knot in the Weave (see Ch. 1 of DotMM), the orogs sing 
  as they fight. In particular, they sing Can You Feel the 
  Love Tonight from Lion King.  
   
  1. THE RESPLENDENT GROTTO… 
  As the adventurers descend from Level 18, they should 
  encounter the huge gray ooze described in "Random" 
  Encounters above.  
   
  1C. ICHTHYGLUG'S CAVERN 
  The air is warm, humid. It clings to your flesh as the scent of 
  the sea overwhelms your senses. Melodic music brings you 
  back to better days, days on the beach and in the surf.  
  As you round the bend and approach the cavern's heart, an 
  enchanting voice booms, "Welcome to my grotto!"  
  That's when you see it swimming in a pool of shimmering 
  water: a piscine creature dressed in flowing robes whose cuffs 
  are embroidered with illustrious pearls. You know what you're 
  looking at; the legends have never failed you before. It's a genie, 
  a genie here and in the flesh.  
  Continue with Ichthyglug's song once you finish with the 
  text above.  
  Music. Ignoring DotMM's specification that the music 
  playing is harp music, you can use any of the following 
  songs at your table:   
  • The opening to Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 
  • Two Steps from Hell's Colin Frake 
  • Two Steps From Hell's Legend of Velkee 
  • Two Steps From Hell's Nightwood (seriously, the entire album 
  is amazing).  
   
  Roleplaying Ichthyglug. The marid is as covetous as 
  the rest of its kin; it's truly a shame that these new, 
  marvelous baubles (the party) must be sent away to 
  retrieve Ezzat's phylactery, as Ichthyglug would like 
  nothing more than to keep them around as trophies and 
  trinkets. Still, the marid is kind and full of mirth, and fond 
  of tranquil music. Whether the party agrees to fetch 
  Ezzat's phylactery, Ichthyglug allows them to rest in its 
  cavern, offering the "freshest of refresh-ments" (which is 
  water drawn from its native plane). Ichthyglug can also be 
  fleshed out with the following sample dialogue: 
  • "You must take care, for the lich Ezzat is a master of magic. 
  A handful of heroes like yourself have fallen prey to his dark 
  magics and I have wept each and every time. Should you 
  fall… I will weep for you as well." 
  • "No doubt the mephit will lead you to Jarûk, that ground-
  hugging dao, if its minions do not deliver you first to its sandy 
  doorstep. Tread carefully, for the dao are greed-manifest. 
  Trust not its offers, for a usurer never lends money it has no 
  intention of reaping interest on." 
  • "…afterwards, you may join me in my coral palace in the 
  depths of the Plane of Water. Together we can enjoy such 
  lavish luxuries like olives, perfume, flayed eels, music, and 
  the like. You can check out at any time, though you can't ever 
  leave…" 
   
   
  
   
  6 
  • "The ooze that so superfluously fills these caverns comes from 
  the Swamp of Oblivion: the border between the pristine Plane 
  of Water and that muddy realm that is the Plane of Earth. It 
  is a dismal place, an affront to the very senses! I mean, can 
  you imagine it! Purest water tainted by soil and earth and 
  conceit!" 
   
  Maximum Absurdity. If using this variant, play the 
  song Hawaiian Rollercoaster Ride from the film Lilo & 
  Stitch and use it to voice Ichthyglug's desire to return 
  home. Under the Sea from The Little Mermaid is also a 
  fitting song to describe the Plane of Water's mystical 
  beauty.  
  Ichthyglug's Quest. When the genie propositions the 
  adventurers to retrieve Ezzat's phylactery, he of course 
  does it in song. Read the following, while keeping in mind 
  that the author of the Companion is as tone-deaf as they 
  come.  
  I've been pressed into service! 
  Can't you help me so? 
  Below here lairs a lich, 
  Did ya happen to know? 
   
  See the Mad Mage… he's got a grudge! 
  That lich has got to go! 
  Ezzat's his name, a real mean fella! 
  Oh, can't you help me so? 
   
  Venture there for me! 
  Return with his phylactery! 
  I'll reward you, I swear! 
  Loot beyond satisfactory! 
   
  So, what say you, pal? 
  You reap what you sow, 
  Riches can be yours! 
  Oh, won't you help me so? 
   
  2. SPACE OROGS 
  Unlike DotMM, the space orogs should be hostile but 
  hesitant to attack the party. Rukha has more to gain by 
  treating with the outsiders at first, namely in the form of 
  rations. Meanwhile, her men circle around the party to 
  attack if they prove less than generous.  
  Roleplaying Rukha. Rukha speaks Common—or 
  rather, a strange dialect of it spoken by spacefarers. Her 
  companions follow suit. When she first interacts with the 
  party, it never even occurs to Rukha that they might not 
  know of space travel and it would shock her to learn 
  otherwise. Calm, civil, and level-headed, she may 
  surprise adventurers with an unkind opinion of the 
  average orc. You can draw upon any of the following 
  sample dialogue to help shape the story she feeds the 
  party: 
  • "We were laying low in the planet's orbit, far outside the eyes 
  of Johnny Law, when a portal opened up before the ship. Our 
  captain saw it as a boon—and fearing that the constables were 
  on our tail, we took it. All readings suggested we'd end up on 
  the edge of the solar system. Instead, we crashed in this 
  dismal cavern." 
  • "Much of our crew hails from Wheeled H'catha, farthest orb 
  from the sun. Nothing on this earth or the next will convince 
  me to go back; I'd rather die a brigand than live under a 
  beholder's lash."  
  • "Captain's an illithid. One of the good ones, I suppose. Or was, 
  before he started to starve. When he ran out of pickled brains, 
  he turned on us. Look, I know a rabid dog can't help but bite, 
  but I don't have to just give it an arm. We high-tailed it outta 
  there."  
  • "Without the spelljamming helm, our craft's dead in the water. 
  When we crashed, some old-timer flashed into the Bridge, 
  snatched it, and disappeared as fast as he came in. Saw it 
  m'self, an' I'll remember his fearsome battle cry 'til the end of 
  my days: 'Yoink!'" 
  • "You don't know what a spelljamming helm is? What are you, 
  straight primitive? The helm is a high-backed ornate chair 
  attuned to the very stars. A magus sat upon it can traverse a 
  million miles in a matter of hours." 
   
  Maximum Absurdity. With this variant, the song 
  Gaston from Beauty and the Beast should be played as the 
  adventurers overhear a conversation between the orogs in 
  which they praise Rukha (or "Gaston" if you see fit to 
  change her name) prior to their arrival.  
   
  3. OOZE THERE? 
   
  3A. THE GREAT OOZE MARCH 
  The ooze meanders in a lazy river throughout these stinking 
  caverns. As you tread upon its banks, the surface ripples! You 
  instinctively ready for another peculiar confrontation—but the 
  ooze has other plans. It coalesces into a conga line of strange, 
  geometric beings: modrons.  
  These modrons, however, are not native to that distant plane 
  of Mechanus. Forged from ooze, they clasp their hands upon 
  each other's sharp-angled shoulders in brotherly love. They 
  march onward, making little progress against the ooze-river's 
  current, but still they sing in camaraderie: 
  "The modrons go marching one by one, huzzah, huzzah. The 
  modrons go marching one by one, huzzah! Huzzah! The 
  modrons go marching one by one! The little one stops to share 
  a pun, and they all go marching on! 
  "The modrons go marching two by two, huzzah, huzzah. The 
  modrons go marching two by two, huzzah! Huzzah! The 
  modrons go marching two by two! The simple ones stops to 
  tune its axiomatic-mind lest it defy its basic programming—and 
  they all go marching on!"  
  If left unchecked, this song reaches thirty-six before the 
  ooze-modrons collapse back into goo.  
   
  4. THE WEEPING EYE 
  The ooze-river's tide is strongest here, and you can see why: the 
  river begins not from deep underground, but from a floating orb 
  of murky slime that weeps ooze into the cavern. It floats above 
  the tide, two armlengths in diameter.  
  When the adventurers reach the "M" on the map, read the 
  following: 
   
   
  
   
  7 
  You sweep your gaze across the fetid river, catching sight of 
  ripples that originate from the bank. You squint, making out the 
  shape of an imp made of mud. It's absentmindedly poking the 
  surface of the ooze with a stick. 
  Urm is bored to tears; if it wasn't already compelled by a 
  geas spell to see Halaster's quest fulfilled, it'd approach 
  the party itself, flying above the river if not diving into its 
  foul depths.  
  Roleplaying Urm. Urm belongs on a farm—which is 
  what the Swamp of Oblivion is most like among the Inner 
  Planes. It starts just about every sentence with "boy" or 
  "lemme tell ya." It's an ungrateful being, prone to blaming 
  others for its woes. You can draw on any of the sample 
  dialogue to share its tale: 
  • "Boy, lemme tell ya a tale. There I was, minding my own 
  business in the Swamp-'Blivion, when a sorta flood swept me 
  out and into the Material Plane. Suddenly, I'm pressed into 
  service by some old man by his gods-damned geas spell, 
  forced t'be messenger and punchin' bag to two genies, both 
  of 'em held up to some bargain with the same magus that 
  bound me. Neither can hold a tune. I'm Urm, by the way." 
  • "Per my geas, I'm to act as messenger 'tween the genies bound 
  here. Mostly I'm sent to spirit along insults." 
  • "The dao roosts in that direction. Name's Jarûk. Lives in a 
  sandpit, tended to by living boulders and gargoyles. Cruel as 
  the rest of its kin, no matter how civil a smile it wears."  
  • "Ichthyglug 'the Volum-nous' as it calls itself is a marid lairin' 
  in the grotto thatta-way. Loves flattery more than anythin' 
  else, but don't you dare enter its pool." 
  • "Neither Jarûk or Ichthyglug can leave their d'mains. They're 
  bound there by the same magic of the magus as I am. 'Til they 
  get some lich's phy-lak-to-ree, they cain't return to the 
  Elemental Planes. Way I see it, they's desperate." 
   
  6. CAVE WITH A VIEW 
  As you trudge through ankle-deep ooze in another otherwise 
  nondescript cavern, you spot a gargantuan cuttlefish through a 
  gap in the wall. 
  You're so distracted by this oddity that you trip and fall into 
  the muck. But when you clear the ooze from your eyes, that fish 
  is still there—an utterly massive cuttlefish stranded in Under-
  mountain. As you peer through the gloom, agog and confused, 
  you make out finer details: the oddity is actually an entire vessel 
  carved to resemble a cuttlefish. Its eyes are portholes and iron 
  rivets line its sides. There are no sails, no oars, but you're certain 
  it's a ship of some kind—which begs the question: what sort of 
  moron models a vessel after a cuttlefish?  
   
  7. STANDING GATE TO LEVEL 21 
  Floating before two crystalline menhirs is a beholder, silent and 
  brooding and patient. The air is thick with strange spores that 
  meander about in the sour air.  
  Maximum Absurdity. Honestly, at this point, even the 
  demons ought to be singing. As they look like a mockery 
  of apes and boars, they sing I Wanna Be Like You from 
  The Jungle Book. Those that listen to the entire song and 
  compliment the demons' singing are rewarded with the 
  command word needed to open the arcane gate. 
  Otherwise, they attack.  
  8. THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES 
  While the adventurers are in this area, they should 
  experience every memory the gas spores can offer. These 
  memories are described in Area 7. If you don't want to 
  inundate your party with them now, just have them 
  harmlessly inhale spores throughout the level without the 
  danger of facing an actual gas spore.  
   
  9. HIGH GROUND 
  When the adventurers encounter the gargoyles, read the 
  following: 
  Out from the dark comes the thunderous beating of wings on 
  stale air and the scratch of stone on stone. They emerge from 
  the gloom as a single flock: gargoyles brandishing outlandish 
  grins on their stony faces.  
  Their leader lands before you and renders to you a deep bow. 
  The gargoyle babbles in a language that sounds like stones 
  getting it on. It bears an air of hospitality. 
  While this spectacle unfolds, you spot a sixth gargoyle flying 
  away, towards the cavern's rear, but whether it's as a messenger 
  or tattletale, you do not know.  
  The gargoyles, proud but amicable servants of Jarûk, treat 
  the party as honored guests. 
  Gargoylic Insult. If the gargoyles deign the party as 
  fools, one hurls an insult in Terran: "Your mother was a 
  mephit and your father reeked of fireberries!" 
   
  10. CULVERT 
  As with all potentially deadly traps, this one ought to be 
  broadcasted to the party.  
  Maximum Absurdity. If a character falls prey to the 
  culvert, the ooze sings A Whole New World from Aladdin 
  as they're scraped against dagger-like stones and drowned 
  in viscous ooze. Two faces even form in the ooze: a man 
  and woman's. Their haunting duet will be the last thing 
  that poor fool ever hears.  
   
  11. THE GLITTERING CAVERNS… 
   
  11B. JARÛK'S CAVERN  
  This cavern is wall-papered in violet crystals that gleam with a 
  rainbow of light, blazing brighter than the fiercest stars of the 
  night sky—and without any darkness to diminish their light. It's 
  as if you've walked into the stomach of a geode. At its heart is 
  a pit of sand.  
  Music is everywhere, reverberating off of every stone and 
  rock of this place, rolling through the cavern like an invisible 
  force. As you listen, mesmerized by the drums, the sands stir. 
  A voice booms, "Welcome to my cavern!" 
  Out from the sand pit looms a creature whose flesh is stone. 
  Its features are humanoid, but its eyes are twin topazes that 
  gleam with the fury of the sun. Dressed in a robe of soft-worked 
  golden-scales, you recognize the creature from legend: a genie 
  of the Plane of Earth… a dao in the "flesh." 
  Rock Music. Yeah, we're really leaning into the rock 
  puns. Consider the following songs to play:  
  • Metallica's Orion 
  
   
  8 
  • Ozzy Osbourne's I Don't Want to Stop 
  • The Scorpion's Rock You Like a Hurricane 
  • Led Zeppelin's Immigrant Song  
  • Kiss's Rock'n'Roll All Night 
  • Twisted Sister's I Wanna Rock 
  • Deaf Election's Never Get to Me 
   
  Roleplaying Jarûk. Jarûk keeps to an imperious tone, 
  as it's used to being obeyed. All dao are cruel by their very 
  nature and Jarûk is no exception. It will only ever see 
  "lesser" creatures as pawns to its own ambitions; the 
  adventurers are just the latest stock of pieces to be moved 
  across its chessboard. You can flesh out the dao with any 
  of this sample dialogue:  
  • "When I am freed, I will return to the Plane of Earth. To my 
  call will my vassals flock, their levies raised and armed. And 
  I will return here to teach that impetuous mage the price of 
  arrogance. He will taste the fury of the Earth—and when his 
  broken body is lain at my feet, I will lean down to whisper 
  the slur he first addressed me with long ago when I was 
  ripped away from my palace: "Howdy."  
  • "Ezzat is a cunning foe, indeed. In undeath, he has found the 
  strength and safety of the earth, burying himself in a 
  stalagmite tower decorated in runes. These runes… they sing. 
  I hear the song as I ponder the mysteries. The 'Runestone,' as 
  the mage calls it, is a tremendous font of power. I often 
  wonder from which dao-lord it was stolen from, for it is 
  impossible for a mere mortal to create such an impressive 
  crystal." 
  • "These caverns are filled with the blood and strength of the 
  Plane of Earth. I speak, of course, of the ooze that clogs the 
  subterranean arteries of Undermountain. It hails from the 
  Swamp of Oblivion, a frontier blessed with charitable 
  donations from my kin on the Plane of Earth. It is the duty of 
  the strong to bolster the weak, is it not? And so, we give 
  graciously to our neighbors in the Plane of Water, adding to 
  their empty lives the soil and salt of earth—to give them 
  purpose and pride. Are we dao not generous as we are regal? 
  Ah, but the short-sighted marid can only balk at a gift, much 
  like an ape does when handed a hammer." 
   
  Maximum Absurdity. If you utilize this variant, play 
  Prince Ali from Aladdin when the adventurers first meet 
  Jarûk (changing its name, if necessary). It's heralded by a 
  parade of gargoyles, galeb duhrs, medusas, earth 
  elementals, and more.  
  Alternatively, you can play I Just Can't Wait to be King 
  from the Lion King to describe Jarûk's tragic history and 
  ambitions on the Plane of Earth. If freed from Halaster, 
  Jarûk will return to its kingdom to reclaim the throne of 
  its sire from its rivals, which was stolen long ago.  
  Jarûk's Quest. When the genie tasks the party with 
  retrieving Ezzat's phylactery, he of course does it in song. 
  Read the following, while keeping in mind that the 
  Companion's author is as tone-deaf as they come.  
   
   
   
   
   
   
  Listen! Listen well! 
  This ain't my kind of town. 
  This ain't where I get down, dig? 
  That Mage's got me bound! 
  Now I've a job to do! 
   
  Ezzat: lich! Liar! 
  He lairs just below 
  in a place that I can't go! 
  So, believe me when I say, 
  I've got a job for you! 
   
  I know not the Mage's grudge 
  But 'til Ezzat's gone, 
  From this place I can't budge! 
  So, handle this for me! 
  Get me that phylactery! 
   
  Scour that stalagmite tower 
  for the lich's precious jewel, 
  and my debt you'll accrue! 
  I promise all within my power! 
  If only this job you'll do!  
   
  12. GHAUNADAUR SHRINE 
  When the adventurers arrive here, they witness a new 
  cleric being transformed into an ooze. In addition to the 
  three intelligent black puddings are six cultists and a cult 
  fanatic, gathered in prayer as a seventh cultist receives 
  "Ghaunadaur's" blessing before the statue. The cultists are 
  still human, but parts of their bodies have become 
  amorphous. Some have ooze-tentacles for arms, others 
  viscous pools of ooze for eyeballs. The cult fanatic is 
  missing its nose, which has been replaced with a blue pit 
  of ooze that ripples with every breath he takes. Read the 
  following:  
  Just when you thought you were done with cultists, you hear a 
  familiar chanting that floats throughout the depths: "Fhinala-
  pekta-een-een-pa-pha! Paaa-pha! Fhinala pekta-een! One with 
  the ooze, one with the earth! One with the ooze, one with the 
  earth! Ghaunadaur swallow us pekta-een and make us whole!" 
  As you creep forward, hiding among stalagmites, you see 
  them: assorted freaks dancing before a shrine in sputtering 
  torchlight. One of their number kneels before a statue carved to 
  resemble a lurching ooze-creature, its dozen clawed arms out-
  stretched to welcome this new supplicant.  
  These freaks are horrors unto themselves, half-dissolved into 
  abominations. You make out a brute with an ooze-tentacle for 
  an arm, a ragged young man whose eyes weep black ooze, and 
  more. These fanatics have been forever marred by the ooze they 
  so clearly worship.   
  As the party watches, the statue shivers and moves. It 
  embraces the seventh cultist with its clawed arms and 
  drenches him in opaque slime. In the sheen of it, one lucky 
  adventurer can glimpse the grinning visage of Halaster 
  Blackcloak himself. When the statue finishes vomiting, 
  the cultist is missing—but from the ooze on the floor 
  emerges a new black pudding (added to the three already 
  here). The cultists go wild, cheering and hooping with 
  calls of "Pekta-een! Pekta-eeeeen!"  
  
   
  9 
  13. THE SCAVENGER 
  After their foray to the Crystal Labyrinth, the party should 
  now know that there are spacefaring cultures out there—
  but The Scavenger truly cements the truth by proving that 
  strange, steel ships can cross the stars —and that it is the 
  party who are primitive beings. 
  When the adventurers near the ship, the Mad Mage 
  telepathically whispers to them. Read the following: 
  Words worm their way into your brain, drawing out the familiar 
  rasp of Halaster Blackcloak: 
  "No one would have believed it if I told them that our world 
  was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater 
  than man's—but not mine—and yet as mortal as his own. If only 
  they could see what I have seen, heard what I've heard, tasted 
  what I've touched. The cosmos are vast indeed, its secrets and 
  resources ours for the taking, if only we could put aside our 
  petty differences and—" 
  A strange sound consumes your brain: the sound of metal 
  rapidly striking brass. The ringing pounds across your head, 
  drawing tears. The Mad Mage grunts, "Sorry, gotta take this—
  my regards to Captain Hook!" 
  Once the party get onto the ship, the four gray slaadi 
  approach them under the guise of orogs. They have orders 
  to bring guests to their captain in Area 13G. They won't 
  take "no" for an answer—for they can't actually disobey 
  N'ghathrod, who possesses their control gems.  
  Roleplaying N'ghathrod. Desperate to cut a deal, 
  N'ghathrod can be cowed into submission. Alas, tigers 
  can't change their stripes and still the mind flayer hungers. 
  Like a pissy housecat or domesticated zombie, it extends 
  its tentacles threateningly at an opportune moment in a 
  vain attempt to devour a person's brain. Proverbially 
  spraying N'ghathrod with water causes it to back down… 
  for a time.  
  You can use any of the following sample dialogue: 
  • When it enters combat, N'ghathrod unsheathes its rapier and 
  telepathically snarls, "Avast, ye rock-bound priss!"   
  • "We were cruising at a steady 45-million knots when the 
  portal opened; I saw it as salvation… a fool I was. It spat us 
  out on this primitive world, in the depths of the black earth. I 
  know not by what magic we were brought here, but I know 
  who stranded us: an old-man by the initials of "H.B." He left 
  them in the dust."  
  • "When the mage appeared, it was without flash nor fan-fare. 
  One moment he was just there; and with a single arcane word, 
  he worked terrible magic! I will remember it 'til the end of 
  my days as I work to replicate it for my-self. That spell… 
  That word. It fills me with dread and wonder: "Yoink!" 
  • "You must recover the spelljamming helm! We cannot die on 
  this rock! Come with me, and you will see worlds of pure 
  imagination! We will cross the stars together!" 
   
  Maximum Absurdity. Under this variant, Captain 
  N'ghathrod and its four gray slaadi sing The Elegant 
  Captain Hook from Peter Pan. They begin when 
  N'ghathrod offers the adventurers the chance to join his 
  crew and traverse the stars—if they manage to find his 
  spelljamming helm. Using divination spells, the arcanist 
  knows that it's "hundreds of leagues" down, deeper in the 
  earth, in a sanctum radiating with arcane magic. When it 
  offers the party a ride across the stars, if they recover the 
  helm, N'ghathrod sings Pure Imagination from Willy 
  Wonka.  
   
  15. STANDING GATE TO LEVEL 17 
  When the adventurers arrive here, they find 1d4+3 space 
  orogs scratching their heads at the Standing Gate. Read 
  the following: 
  You hear the chatter of Cockney accents as you stroll through 
  this corner of the caverns. Several orcs are gathered about, each 
  scratching their head or voicing doubt. At last you see it rising 
  from the muck: one of Halaster's arcane gates. Two pillars share 
  a lintel upon which an arrow symbol has been carved. 
  "That's rubbish, Gregorel," an orc grumbles. "Sure as the turn 
  of the worlds, there's no way we need a gods-damned arrow." 
  Another orc grimaces. "Y'know nothin,' you wain o' an orc. 
  Shoot an arrow through, see what happens." 
  "Where are we even gonna get an arrow?" 
  "On The Scavenger." 
  "I ain't goin' back there," the orc grunts. He casts a look at his 
  brethren. "Anyone else?"  
  The remaining orcs shake their heads, firm in their solidarity. 
  The orogs attack the party only if the party fails to provide 
  the solution to the standing gate. Their "leader" is named 
  Gregorel. They speak in a strange dialect of Common 
  used by spacefarers.  
   
  16. TUNNEL TO LEVEL 20 
  Since the adventurers are expected to play ball with the 
  genies, this tunnel is undefended. If the party has yet to 
  meet either (or both) of the genies, either one can use their 
  elemental magic to block the tunnel. Ichthyglug floods it 
  with his water curtains, which turn solid when a creature 
  tries to pass through. Jarûk prefers to collapse the tunnel.  
  The voice of whichever genie blocked the tunnel floats 
  out, urging the party to meet them in their respective lairs 
  for a "quest of a life-time."  
  Heads Up. Ezzat, the lich of Level 20, has trapped Area 
  1 with a symbol spell. It cannot be discerned without a DC 
  20 Intelligence (Investigation) check. The first character 
  to cross over it triggers the spell's death effect and must 
  make a DC 20 Constitution saving throw or take 10d10 
  necrotic damage. On a success, a creature takes half 
  damage.  
   
   
   
  
   
  10 
  SPECIAL EVENTS 
  You can run either of the following encounters on this 
  level when or if the party returns with Ezzat's phylactery.  
   
  DAO-DADDY BEATDOWN 
  This event can only occur if you allow Jarûk to roam this 
  level after Ezzat's phylactery is instead given to its rival, 
  Ichthyglug. The dao can sense when its rival escapes to 
  the Inner Planes or is informed by the party's decision by 
  Halaster.  
  Forever condemned to this drag of a dungeon, Jarûk 
  cuts the party off as they try to leave this level by gate or 
  tunnel. Jarûk won't rest until they've been beaten into a 
  bloody pulp for their insolence.  
  Its cruelty and mastery over the earth certainly makes 
  Jarûk the more dangerous of the two genies.  
  Bound. In this event, Jarûk can roam anywhere on 
  Level 19, but cannot enter the Expanded Dungeon, nor 
  can it ascend or descend to another level. It like-wise 
  cannot escape through any magic short of a wish spell—
  which it lacks the power to grant to mortals.  
  Wrath of Khan. Jarûk can sense whenever the party 
  returns to this level. When the dao marshals its minions 
  and moves to intercept the party, it chooses any of the 
  following areas to stage its attack, utilizing the terrain to 
  their advantage:   
  • Area 1: Jarûk collapses the tunnel leading to Level 18 and 
  sends its six galeb duhrs rolling towards the party. 
  • Area 5B: Jarûk's six gargoyles boil out from the chasm to 
  accost the party; they attempt to drop the adventurers into the 
  20-foot-deep pit, which may still be inhabited by intelligent 
  black puddings.  
  • Area 7: Jarûk positions its two medusas in the cave's alcoves 
  to petrify the party as they open the gate.  
  • Area 15: Jarûk seals the two tunnels to Area 13; its six galeb 
  duhrs emerge from the water to attack.  
  • Area 16: Jarûk collapses the tunnel to Level 20, using the same 
  tactics it would in Area 1.   
   
  Tactics. Jarûk employs these tactics: 
  • Jarûk travels and hides within the earth, courtesy of its Earth 
  Glide feature. It uses this to surprise foes from below or aside 
  and to move without provoking attacks of opportunity, save 
  from any foes within 5-feet of its initial descent into the earth.  
  • Jarûk has several spells at its disposal, but nearly every one 
  requires its concentration. Thus, it relies more on a good 
  thwacking than magic.   
  • Before engaging its foes in combat, Jarûk casts conjure 
  elemental from within the ground, summoning an earth 
  elemental, which can also move through stone and soil 
  thanks to its Earth Glide feature.  
  • To corner a foe, Jarûk can cast wall of stone, separating them 
  the party (to do so banishes a conjured elemental). It then 
  takes a maul to that stranded foe.  
   
  MARID MELTDOWN 
  By default, Ichthyglug is bound to its cavern, even after 
  Ezzat's phylactery is given to its rival. You can lift that 
  restriction to facilitate this event. Now bound forever to 
  Undermountain, Ichthyglug seeks revenge against the 
  party for freeing Jarûk. It can sense when the dao leaves 
  or Halaster telepathically taunts the marid. Given the 
  opportunity, Ichthyglug attacks the party when they return 
  to this level.  
  Bound. Ichthyglug can roam anywhere on Level 19, but 
  cannot enter the Expanded Dungeon, nor can it ascend or 
  descend to another level. It likewise cannot escape 
  through any magic short of a wish spell—which it lacks 
  the power to grant to mortals.  
  Attack of the Cray King. This stony world isn't the 
  marid's oyster, but it can still utilize the viscous ooze-river 
  to attack the party. Only the arcane gate in Area 5B is 
  inaccessible from the nearby river. While it can still attack 
  on dry land, Ichthyglug prefers a watery terrain to use to 
  its advantage. Likewise, it lacks for reinforcements, as 
  opposed to Jarûk's minions, who are vast and mobile.  
  Tactics. In battle, Ichthyglug employs these tactics: 
  • Ichthyglug prefers to stick to watery terrain, using the viscous 
  ooze river to its advantage.  
  • Before combat begins, Ichthyglug summons a water 
  elemental with conjure elemental.  
  • As a master of water, Ichthyglug can envelope the six swarms 
  of quippers from Area 1 in floating spheres of water, 
  allowing them to attack on dry land or from within the ooze.  
  • The ooze-river obeys Ichthyglug's call, allowing it to use 
  control water on it. The ooze does come from the mesh of the 
  Planes of Water and Earth, after all.  
   
   
  
   
  11 
  EPILOGUE 
  This level is intentionally short and sure to see the return 
  of the party, unlike all other levels. If the party didn't 
  square off against any antagonists, such as the genies or 
  Captain N'ghathrod, they shouldn't level up to 16th level. 
  Only if they deliver Ezzat's phylactery should they receive 
  the experience. Alternatively, if they defeated N'ghathrod 
  and slaughtered any oozes on the level, you may level 
  them up.   
  Send-Off. You can cap off your session with the send-
  off below. Unlike other levels, the send-off is the same 
  whether or not you're running the Halaster's Game variant 
  presented in the Companion. The send-off likewise has 
  little to do with Level 19 and more Level 20, as Halaster 
  details his relationship with Ezzat—although, it's seeded 
  with lies.   
   
  THE SEND-OFF 
  When the adventurers leave for Level 20, read the 
  following:  
  The Mad Mage's grave voice pipes up within your mind, stained 
  blue with regret. "Ezzat," he rumbles, as if to himself. "Ezzat… 
  My dearest Ezzat. If only he had not spurned my offers. What a 
  jewel Dweomercore could have been under his stewardship… 
  What could have been…" 
  Your mind swims as a vision swamps your senses. In it, you 
  see a human with sharp cheekbones—Ezzat; his name is heavy 
  on your lips—frolicking through ghostly meadows, arm in arm 
  with Halaster Blackcloak himself. Together the two unleashed 
  gouts of fire and lances of lightning —but soon Halaster trips 
  into a pit that falls deep into the earth. And when Halaster 
  throws out his hand for Ezzat to catch him, the magus instead 
  looks to the east, across the meadow to a priest whose silent lips 
  seem to shout, "Turn back from this evil path!" 
  And when Ezzat looks again to Halaster, hanging there on the 
  edge, does he reach out for Blackcloak? Does he brace himself 
  against the earth to take the Mad Mage's weight? No, no he does 
  not. And so, the mage falls deep into the darkness—into Under-
  mountain, where he has fumed ever since.   
  Your vision rocks back to the present; your mind is wreathed 
  in a haze. What you saw… Surely it was not literal, but how 
  much of it was a lie? 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  
   
  12 
  LEVEL XX: RUNESTONE CAVERNS 
   
  QUICK NOTES 
  • 
  This level is a confluence of several factions, especially if 
  you utilize every addition here made by the Companion: 
  o 
  The Shadowdusk Expedition (added to the tunnel 
  leading to Level 21) 
  o 
  The Myconids (Area 4) 
  o 
  The Duergar Raiders (Area 7) 
  o 
  The Gentlemen Bastards (Area 3) 
  o 
  The Stonecloak golems as background 
  • 
  The Stalagmite Tower does count as Ezzat's lair, raising his 
  CR to 22. While the party would be wise to draw him out, 
  he should be fought in his lair—and with an Intelligence 
  score of 20, nothing will convince him other-wise, not even 
  his dear pseudodragon familiar, Ipses.  
  • 
  Ezzat's tower can only be accessed by the front door, which 
  is trapped by a spell. Teleportation spells and spells similar 
  to passwall fail to breach the tower, which is also immune 
  to all damage.  
   
  PREVIOUSLY ON DUNGEON OF THE MAD MAGE 
  Keep in mind the following when running this level: 
  Retrieve a Runestone Fragment. The adventurers may 
  have received this quest on the surface; if you forgot to 
  issue it, handle it as a flashback: Volothamp Geddarm—
  esteemed author and perpetual bachelor —introduced the 
  party to Jalester Silvermane of the City Watch. He 
  promises them his friendship… and the young captain has 
  many friends in high places.  
  Throwbacks. So late into the campaign, you want to 
  remind the adventurers of their past exploits. It's 
  recommended that you bring back the following 
  characters if they've had any meaningful interaction with 
  the party: 
  • On Level 6, the party met duergar of Clan Ironeye, led 
  by the half-duergar Skella, during their raid on the Lost 
  Level. You can include them on this level (see Area 7 
  for details).  
  • On Levels 7 & 8, the party may have met the Gentlemen 
  Bastards, an adventuring party added to the campaign 
  by the Companion. They fell prey to both the bullywugs 
  and nagas of Level 8, but can reprise their roles here.   
  • As noted in the Epilogue, you can link this level to Level 
  7 by having Maddgoth make a return if the party clears 
  Ezzat out of the Stalagmite Tower. By the time they 
  return from Level 19, the archmage (or lich) may have 
  already taken up residence in the tower.  
  • On Level 13, the party may have encountered the ruins 
  of a myconid colony and its sovereign, Chanterella. The 
  Companion added other survivors, which were taken to 
  be living cattle by the hobgoblins. You can include 
  these survivors on this level or replace its sovereign 
  with Chanterella. See Area 4 for details.   
  HALASTER'S GAME 
  Imagine the life of an immortal, nearly-omnipotent magus 
  condemned to boredom and insanity. Such is the life of 
  Halaster, who has been elevated beyond the station of a 
  mere mortal. Such elevation comes with new rules and 
  expectations obeyed by fey lords, deities, fiends, and 
  other otherworldly entities. 
  The short of it is this: Halaster could take the fight to 
  Ezzat, who has so audaciously set up shop in the heart of 
  Halaster's demesne, but he cannot. That's just not how 
  higher beings do things. And so, Halaster has a game of 
  cat-and-mouse to play. He must use his pawns—
  adventuring parties—to dispatch Ezzat; his very pride and 
  dignity as a higher being hinges on it.  
  Halaster's Enmity. We know nothing wounds the Mad 
  Mage more than betrayal. The disappearance of Jhesirya 
  still haunts Halaster, so much so that he won't allow his 
  remaining apprentices any semblance of peace. That 
  Ezzat has spurned him before and even returned to usurp 
  him cuts Halaster deeply. His very ego has been 
  tattered—for isn't it he that is meant to use and throw 
  away mortals? 
  The Companion dials up Halaster's attachment to Ezzat; 
  he loved the man as if they were brothers—and no scorn 
  is worse than that of a brother betrayed.  
  Conflicts & Distractions. There are a number of 
  potential conflicts on this level to entertain your party 
  with; the mission to recover Ezzat's phylactery should 
  overshadow these distractions. A cunning party ought to 
  utilize some of these conflicts to draw out the lich from 
  his lair. These conflicts are: 
  • The Stonecloaks vs. Ezzat (and everyone else).  
  • The duergar raiders (unknowingly) vs. Gorka Tharn, the 
  duergar mummy lord. The Companion also pits them 
  against Halaster's precious snail in Area 8.  
  • The Shadowdusk Expedition, led by Akarrth (contrived 
  by the Companion to be opposed to the myconid colony 
  in Area 4, as well as Ezzat). 
  • The Gentlemen Bastards vs. the party and Ezzat.   
   
  Dramatized Visions of the Past. You can seed this level 
  with melodramatic visions that detail the spirit of the Mad 
  Mage's and Ezzat's relationship. Each is an allusion to a 
  famous movie from our world. Whenever the party enters 
  a new area, you can roll a d8 and use one of the visions 
  below. If you get the same result, Halaster telepathically 
  grumbles, "Man, I hate reruns." 
   
  
   
  13 
  DRAMATIZED VISIONS OF THE PAST 
  d8 Vision 
  1 
  Ezzat clings to a cliffside on Level 15, dangling above the 
  molten chasm carved by Netherskull. "You were the 
  chosen one!" Halaster shouts. "You were meant to bring 
  balance to Undermountain! Not leave it in darkness! You 
  were my brother, Ezzat! I loved you!" Ezzat then loses his 
  grip and falls into the chasm. 
  2 
  Halaster is dangling upside down from a golden chain in 
  Maddgoth's Castle on Level 7. He tells Ezzat, "You just 
  couldn't let me go, could you? This is what happens when 
  an unstoppable force meets an immovable object." 
  3 
  Ezzat unleashes a storm of magic missiles against Halaster 
  on the rooftops of Alterdeep (the simulation of Level 17), 
  who leans back, dodging each and every one at lightning 
  speeds. From the adventurer's perspective, time slows 
  down as the missiles sail past Halaster. 
  4 
  Halaster and a young Ezzat are on Level 13; Halaster has 
  a strange contraption in his hands. On a horseless carriage 
  made of iron sits a dog. Halaster tells Ezzat, "When this 
  baby hits 88 miles an hour, you're gonna see some serious 
  shit." As the chariot animates and races forward, Halaster 
  prevents Ezzat from jumping out of the way. Just before 
  collision, the chariot disappears, leaving tracks of fire. 
  Halaster begins to dance and shout "88 miles an hour!"  
  5 
  Ezzat and Halaster are dueling with flaming swords on a 
  rope-bridge spanning a gaping chasm. The Mad Mage gets 
  the upper hand and severs Ezzat's sword hand. "There's no 
  escape," Halaster warns. "Don't make me destroy you… 
  Together, we can bring order to the world. You've never 
  known the truth, have you? Ezzat… I am your father!"   
  Ezzat then gives him an incredulous look and says, "No 
  you're not!" Halaster shrugs, caught, and says, "Okay, I'm 
  not, but you get my point. C'mon, let's wrap this up and 
  get back to business." 
  Ezzat then peers down the chasm and, after a moment's 
  hesitation, let's go. As he hurtles into the abyss, Halaster 
  cries out in faux-paternal pain.  
  6 
  A catatonic Halaster is wrapped in a spider silk cocoon. 
  Ezzat cradles him, crying out, "Master Halaster! Don't go! 
  Don't go where I can't follow you!"   
  7 
  Halaster brandishes a wand of magic missiles at Ezzat who 
  bears one of his own. After a shootout, Halaster strides up 
  to Ezzat and says, "I know what yer thinking: 'Did he fire 
  two shots or only three?' Well, to tell ye the truth, in all 
  this excitement, I forgot myself. Well, bein' this is a wand 
  of magic missiles, the cheapest wand in the world, you 
  better ask yourself, 'Do I feel lucky?' Well… do ya, punk?"  
  8 
  Halaster bursts into a hearth-lit room on a stormy night, 
  waking up a young Ezzat in his bed. Trembling, Ezzat 
  clutches at the blanket, his nightcap damp with sweat. 
  Halaster breaks into a grin and shouts, "Yer a wizard, 
  Ezzat!"   
   
   
  DEALING WITH EZZAT 
  The party should start this level already knowing their 
  objective: find Ezzat and steal his phylactery. Their best 
  bet is to fight the lich outside his lair, but Ezzat is loathe 
  to leave his sanctum. Drawing him out will surely require 
  either holding Ipses, the pseudodragon, hostage or staging 
  a distraction or pitting another faction against Ezzat, such 
  as the Shadowdusk Expedition, duergar raiders, or the 
  Gentlemen Bastards (described below). You as the DM 
  surely do want Ezzat to fought in his lair.  
  Roleplaying Ezzat. Evil has corrupted Ezzat's soul, as it 
  does any lich's, but still the old mage believes his cause to 
  be righteous. He pities Halaster, referring to him as "the 
  Mad Dog of Undermountain." Putting down that rabid 
  hound has become his sole mission. At the heart of this 
  self-righteousness is a faint ember of love for Halaster that 
  yet glows.  
  While Ezzat's time in Undermountain isn't exactly 
  spelled out in DotMM, we can assume he's been here for 
  at least half a century—for that's how long the two drow 
  vampires have been trapped in his black sapphires (see 
  Area 15), unless he's traveled with them in his pocket. 
  Over the years, Ezzat has faced 2d6+7 adventuring 
  parties, most of whom have been set up by the Mad Mage. 
  At this point, Ezzat finds no pleasure in entertaining them 
  and considers them nuisances. He's quick to call 
  adventuring parties rude —which, from his lips, is a grave 
  insult.  
  Liches are inherently evil, but portraying an evil 
  character can be taxing or tiresome. Since the Companion 
  dials up DotMM's absurdity to 11, consider roleplaying 
  Ezzat as a posh, frustratingly-polite individual full of 
  "umm's" and "ah's." You can draw upon any of the sample 
  dialogue below:  
  • When someone has truly irked him, Ezzat calls their behavior 
  "unacceptable."  
  • Ezzat is quick to concede arguments with a sheepish "fair 
  enough."  
  • When the adventurers seem intent on harming him, Ezzat calls 
  such violence "quite unnecessary." 
  • "Leave me to my books and let yourselves out!"  
   
  Tactics. As a mighty spellcaster, Ezzat utilizes the 
  following tactics in combat; his quick wit allows him to 
  think clearly through any shock the party might give him. 
  With a spell save DC of 20, his foes will be in for quite a 
  challenge. 
  • If Ezzat is expecting a fight, he begins with mirror image and 
  globe of invulnerability already cast upon himself. 
  • If Ezzat is fought inside his lair, he tries to make his way to 
  Area 22B (via dimension door, if necessary), wherein the 
  statue in his likeness stands. Its antipathy effect (from the 
  antipathy/sympathy spell already cast upon it) can frighten 
  creatures, preventing them from reaching Ezzat (as 
  frightened creatures cannot willingly move closer to the 
  source of their fear). If they are still within 5 feet of Ezzat 
  when they fall prey to this effect, he knocks them back with 
  a thunderwave spell so that they can't come closer to him.  
  
   
  14 
  • Ezzat is very liberal with his shield spell, using it every turn if 
  he can. Since he can regain spell slots every other round from 
  his first Lair Action option—and shield can be upcasted, 
  despite not having a higher-level-benefit—he has no reason 
  not to. At a minimum, he regains a 1st level spell slot from 
  the Lair Action, fueling another shield spell.  
  • If the adventurers demonstrate a preference for hard-hitting 
  lightning or force spells, Ezzat makes his way to Area 20 (via 
  dimension door if necessary) to drink a potion of lightning 
  resistance or -force resistance, if not both. Doing so requires 
  an action.  
  • While in his lair, if Ezzat expects a bruising soon, he resorts 
  to his second Lair Action to link himself to his own 
  attacker—or, worse, their healer.  
  • While in his lair, if Ezzat needs to punish a ranged target, 
  Ezzat uses his third Lair Action.  
  • On his first turn, Ezzat opens up with power word: stun to 
  temporarily remove one adventurer from the fight.  
  • With his first Legendary Action, Ezzat uses Frightening Gaze 
  on a non-spellcaster, disadvantaging their attacks. He then 
  puts distance between him and that target, since the 
  frightened target cannot willingly move closer to the source 
  of its fear. Afterwards, Ezzat uses his last Legendary Action 
  this turn to cast ray of frost against a melee combatant.  
  • On his second turn, Ezzat casts mirror image if he isn't already 
  under its effects. He then wades into the melee and, at the 
  next opportunity, follows it up with a Disrupt Life Legendary 
  Action, hoping to catch as many foes in it as possible.   
  • On his third turn, Ezzat is likely to be wounded, but so too will 
  his foes. He shocks a weakened target with a finger of death 
  spell, adding a zombie to the mix if his foe is slain. See 
  Appendix B for its statistics. If this does occur, he then 
  follows up with a Paralyzing Touch via a Legendary Action; 
  he then directs the zombie to attack that target; it will have 
  advantage on its attacks and will automatically score a critical 
  hit on a hit.  
  • Once Ezzat is mortally wounded, he unleashes a power word: 
  kill spell. Before then, he's loathe to expend his greatest spell 
  slot against the party, fearing that greater foes—like 
  Halaster—might be lurking in the shadows, waiting for an 
  opportune moment to strike. Once near death, however, he 
  knows he cannot afford to let the survivors rummage around 
  so close to his phylactery.   
  THE GENTLEMEN BASTARDS 
  Added by the Companion in Halaster's Game, Level 7, 
  and Level 8, the Bastards are an adventuring party that the 
  players may already be familiar with. If the Bastards 
  didn't die on Level 8, or were never met by the party at 
  all, you can add them to this level. The Bastards too met 
  the genies of Level 19 and hope to cash in the lich's 
  phylactery before finally leaving the dungeon for good.  
  As Allies. If the Bastards were rescued by the party on 
  Level 8, or never met at all, the Bastards greet the players 
  with open arms. They're loathe to take on a lich by 
  themselves and welcome any aid they can get. They're 
  resting in Area 3.  
  As Enemies. So late into the adventure, it's very 
  possible that the Bastards are already hostile to the party. 
  Reasons abound:   
  • If Grel Momesk, their leader, is dead or gone, Jocelyn of 
  Daggerford has seized command. Unless she believes 
  the party can be duped into helping them, she sets up an 
  ambush for when they leave Ezzat's lair.  
  • If the party spurned them, such as by leaving them to 
  their fates on Level 8, the Bastards plan an ambush; they 
  only kill if necessary and hope only to steal Ezzat's 
  phylactery from the players.  
  • If the party has attacked or betrayed them before, the 
  Bastards are out for revenge and stage an ambush—the 
  phylactery be damned. See The Gentlemen's Hello 
  special event for more details.  
   
  THE BASTARDS 
  The Gentlemen Bastards are cautious opportunists who 
  only enter fights they're sure they'll win. While Grel 
  Momesk and Ilinar are alive, the Bastards tend to lean 
  towards NG. However, without Grel, Jocelyn quickly 
  pushes the remaining Bastards towards evil. 
  The Gentlemen Bastards consist of: 
  Grel Momesk. A LN human champion, Grel seeks the 
  riches necessary to lift his family out of poverty. He 
  leads the party, often to his own peril. The Bastards, for 
  their part, tolerate his occasional mistakes and fragile 
  temperament.  
  Jocelyn of Daggerford. A NE human warlock of the 
  archfey, Jocelyn serves the Queen of Air and Darkness, 
  who has tasked her with discovering "the secret" of 
  Undermountain (the Knot in the Weave). She once 
  belonged to the Fine Fellows of Daggerford but was 
  kicked out for being too "unsettling." When a fight she 
  has no intention of fighting seems imminent, she casts 
  charm person as a 5th-level spell so as to defuse the 
  situation.  
  Perlos. A NE halfling assassin, Perlos is a wanted man in 
  Waterdeep, Baldur's Gate, and Never-winter. The name 
  attached to his various crimes varies. He joined up with 
  the Bastards to escape his life of contract killing in the 
  hope of retiring to the countryside a rich man. At night, 
  he's haunted by those he's slain for coin.  
  
   
  15 
  Ilinar. Devoted to the elven god of war, Shevarash, this 
  NG moon elf war priest is a veteran of several wars. 
  After years of serving in the Waterdeep City Guard, he 
  found employment as a mercenary. He eventually gave 
  that up too before finally setting out as an adventurer. 
  Ilinar is crass and impatient. His holy symbol is a 
  broken arrow over a teardrop.  
   
  THE SHADOWDUSK EXPEDITION 
  Only briefly mentioned by DotMM, the Shadowdusk 
  Expedition is further fleshed out on this level and can be 
  utilized by the party to breach Ezzat's tower or draw the 
  lich from its lair. Since the penultimate level of DotMM 
  features these lunatics, it's important that the party meet 
  Akarrth now to gain further insight into his family and 
  their dealings. 
  Changes. The Companion adds 2d6+4 cultists and 1d6 
  cult fanatics to this level, all of whom attend Akarrth. 
  They're essentially cannon fodder that also rationalize the 
  logistics of the expedition. If they're interrogated by the 
  adventurers, they can reveal any of the information below 
  (any clause marked with an asterisk is something added 
  by the Companion):   
  • The Shadowdusk family, who seek to "become one with the 
  Void" are intentionally trying to burst into the Far Realms on 
  Level 22. Last these cultists heard, progress has been going 
  "swimmingly." 
  • The Shadowdusk family is cursed with both genius and 
  insanity—"two sides of the same coin, really," laments the 
  cultist.  
  • The Shadowdusk family is allied with Halaster, who acts as a 
  sort of patron to their escapades. Those that seek to elevate 
  themselves through the family can cut through seniority and 
  inheritance rights with his favor. To that end, it's logical that 
  Akarrth would oppose Ezzat so as to curry favor with the Mad 
  Mage.*  
  • Akarrth is in a loose partnership with a beholder named 
  Gz'zarp. They're in heated arguments day and night but seem 
  to have a grudging respect for each other—"well, as much 
  respect can be possible between an eye tyrant and a mad 
  tyrant," says the cultist. Their most feverish argument was on 
  the correct amount of alfredo sauce for pasta when one person 
  is hungry and the other is just "feeling peckish."* Since this, 
  all expedition personnel have been forbidden from 
  mentioning alfredo sauce or wood peckers. 
  • Akarrth intends to capture the myconids of Area 4 to use as 
  test subjects on Level 22. He wonders what influence the Far 
  Realms will have on sentient, fungal creatures.*  
   
  MEETING AKARRTH 
  The expedition is camped out in the tunnel that leads to 
  Level 21. Their camp is quite literally a camp, with tents 
  fashioned from strange, violet flesh dotted with still-
  blinking eyes the size of acorns and corncobs. The gazes 
  of cob-sized eyeballs, in particular, follow nearby 
  characters.  
  Roleplaying Akarrth. Roleplaying a lunatic can be 
  cumbersome. Akarrth's madness manifests in the 
  following flaws, which you can use to guide your 
  portrayal of him:  
  • "I can't die; my story is not yet over." 
  • "Unseen enemies lie in every shadowed corner. They're after 
  me. Always after me."  
  • "Ethics cannot stand in the way of science."  
   
  Halaster's Game. If you're running DotMM with the 
  Companion's gameshow twist, then Akarrth is already 
  familiar with the party, having "caught a few episodes on 
  [his] scrying orb between experiments." He's keen on 
  shaking hands with these impressive individuals. 
  Madness and ego have deluded him into thinking that 
  they'll never harm him—after all, he's not a part of the 
  show, right?  
  An Alliance of Convenience. If confronted by the 
  party, Akarrth's first tactic is to dangle an alliance in-front 
  of them, claiming to know all about Halaster's "beef" with 
  the nearby lich. He has no love for his pet aberrations and 
  servants and is willing to hurl them at Ezzat's tower to 
  save his own skin—or to accomplish his goal of 
  kidnapping the myconids of Area 4 (a goal added by the 
  Companion; he wants to expose them to energies from the 
  Far Realm and create a super-breed of "mold men"). If 
  Akarrth has it his way, the myconids will be delivered to 
  his camp in chains before his forces march on the 
  Stalagmite Tower. Only Gz'zarp refuses to attack the 
  tower.  
   
  HOW THE TABLES TURN 
  If Akarrth is mortally wounded, the beholder Gz'zarp 
  wastes no time in overthrowing his reign. It has long 
  resented the Shadowdusk family and will take this 
  opportunity to carve out its own demesne in Under-
  mountain, using the expedition's forces as its inaugural 
  class of underlings. These underlings obey under the 
  imminent threat of disintegration.  
  Gz'zarp cares not for mortals' "petty squabbles" and 
  won't oppose Ezzat. "I've no nothic in this fight," the 
  beholder is quick to say.  
   
   
   
  
   
  16 
  AREAS OF NOTE 
  The following areas are of note:  
   
  1. DESICCATING SYMBOL 
  When the party enters Level 20, read the following: 
  Down into the earth you venture, hounded by the shrill calls of 
  the Mad Mage. But these shrill calls are not his usual shrill calls; 
  for once he isn't trying to haggle with a cabbage vendor. Nay, 
  now his shrill calls share a single name: "Ezzat!" 
  Sometimes he shouts the name, other times, he whispers or 
  cries... but in the darkness, when your torchlight sputters out for 
  just a moment, he whispers the name with longing. "Ezzat," he 
  whispers. "Ezzat." You can taste each syllable: "Eh-Zat," but 
  you feel it in your heart a third syllable: silence. A silent syllable 
  of loss that trails into the shadows.  
  Down into the earth you go, until at last the tunnels straighten 
  out and deliver you to a cavern that weeps lazy water. In the 
  distance, you hear the pounding of stone against stone. There is 
  something here… an air of unease and wanting. Power, too. 
  The last sentence hints at the existence of the symbol spell. 
  Remove it at your own discretion. Once the spell is 
  triggered, read the following: 
  The air cracks like thunder! The stench of death wafts through 
  the earth, bubbling out like an invisible miasma! Your very 
  lifeforce staggers in the presence of such power, and as you 
  stumble to your knees, ghostly skulls float about you, howling, 
  cackling! Each shares the same sunken face, and you know in 
  your heart that this is the face of Halaster's dreaded foe, the lich 
  Ezzat.  
  Halaster's voice crowds its way into your mind: "See? See? 
  Do you not see his treachery everywhere like I? Do you not feel 
  his spite in your very bones! Strike him down for the good of 
  the world! For the good of man, for the good of good itself! 
  Find him, find Ezzat, find him!" 
   
  2. MAD GOLEM'S LAIR 
  When the party enters the area, read this maddened rant. 
  Embrace melodrama for the narration.  
  Thunderous blows echo across the otherwise empty caverns, 
  stone pounding against stone. As you round the bend, you see a 
  sight most curious: a mobile mass of jumbled torsos, limbs, and 
  heads—all fashioned from stone—wailing on a golem carved 
  in the likeness of the Halaster himself. Instinctively you know 
  to call this golem a "Stonecloak," as if informed by magic.  
  The multi-armed, multi-headed behemoth beats down on the 
  Stonecloak in mute fury. The Stonecloak tries to reason with it, 
  speaking in a language of blinks, but the behemoth ignores its 
  pleas! The Stonecloak throws up its hands in fealty, but the next 
  thunderous blow sends it reeling! And when the Stonecloak 
  tries to crawl away from its assailant, all negotiations at a stand-
  still, the behemoth snatches the golem's ankles! Its every head 
  shakes simultaneously, silently pronouncing "Not today!"  
  The behemoth heaves! It ho's! It whips the Stonecloak into 
  the wall! Crack! It reels back! Crack! Crack! You watch the 
  stony face of Halaster lose its nose! A gash the size of your arm 
  gapes across its chiseled cheek! 
  If the party intervenes for some reason, they can save the 
  Stonecloak, earning its gratitude; it then serves as their 
  guide and confidant, convincing other golems in the 
  caverns to leave them be. If the party doesn't intervene, 
  read the following: 
  Crack! Crack! There goes an arm! Crack! Crack! The other 
  arm! Good gods above, the carnage! Oh, the stone-manity!  
  Heaving a silent sigh, the behemoth drops the Stonecloak to 
  the floor and pants as if strained by this labor. Dazed, the golem 
  sits there, cradling its battered head—but then… oh, but then 
  the behemoth rallies, snatching at Halaster's stony lips. It pries 
  them apart as the golem flails helplessly! You hear the crack of 
  stone bones as the behemoth begins to tear apart the golem's 
  head—and in that head shines a light, you see, an ivory light!  
  With a terminal groan, the behemoth snaps open the golem's 
  head and reaches deep into its brain, plucking out a fragment of 
  a gemstone that shines with luminous magic. Every head on that 
  jumbled behemoth smiles as it swallows the gem. It shudders 
  with ecstasy and begins to attach the severed limbs of its victim 
  to its jumbled body, which quickly fasten on its form. 
   
  3. SUNKEN PARADISE 
  The cavern gapes with a gash that falls deep into the earth. 
  Pebbles scatter and fall into the abyss as you near its edge to 
  peer down into the depths. Soft violet hues color the otherwise 
  tenebrous depths and crimson lights slowly meander across the 
  dark, adding to the illumination. Fungi and fire beetles, you 
  reckon. This soft light dances on the surface of a subterranean 
  lake, the nearest bank of which you can see is dotted with huts 
  and other empty structures.  
  Surely this must be a trick of the Mad Mage. There's no doubt 
  that this sunken paradise is truly a trap waiting to be sprung.  
   
  THE GENTLEMEN BASTARDS 
  If you include the Gentlemen Bastards on this level, 
  they're already resting here in Area 3. How they react to 
  the party depends on their past dealings. Because it's so 
  late in the adventure, the Companion cannot anticipate 
  who among them are even still alive. Refer to the 
  descriptions above. If they're on good terms with the 
  party, they offer to team up with the party to get Ezzat's 
  phylactery. If not, they pretend as if they have no idea the 
  lich even exists—and immediately begin plotting an 
  ambush. See The Gentleman's Hello in Special Event 
  below for details. 
   
  4. MYCONID COLONY 
   
  4B. FRIENDLY SOVEREIGN 
  The sovereign can offer several quests to the party if 
  they've the time or interest to help the colony. 
  Previously On… On Level 13, the hobgoblins had 
  torched a myconid colony. Only its sovereign, Chan-
  terella, survived. The Companion added survivors, all of 
  whom were taken to be living cattle by the hob-goblins. 
  You can replace Floot with Chanterella so as to show a 
  familiar face to the party, provided they actually met 
  Chanterella and helped it.  
  
   
  17 
  Enemies Without. The myconid colony is beset by both 
  gargoyles from Areas 8 & 9, and the Shadow-dusk 
  Expedition. Akarrth intends to scour the colony and drag 
  its survivors kicking and screaming back to Level 22 for 
  further experimentation. The sovereign asks the 
  adventurers to dispatch these cultists. When it does so, 
  read the following: 
  The sovereign looks at you with its strange eyes. The air is thick 
  with those special spores that grant you a rapport with the 
  fungal creature. Its voice rings softly through your head: "There 
  are others that have come here, not for the deathlord in the 
  tower, nor the rock demons. They have come for us. There is an 
  evil far below us now, a cancer in the earth—and it is they who 
  have let it fester. I fear that this world and a stranger one are 
  about to be wed and that we, if lucky, will merely be witnesses 
  to it all. For us, for everyone, rid these caverns of those lunatics. 
  Even now I can sense their budding madness…"  
  Opposing the expedition, however, removes them as a 
  potential ally in the fight against Ezzat. The party must 
  decide whether to defend the defenseless or leverage 
  those lunatics against the lich.  
  Sunken Paradise. If the adventurers have found Area 3 
  and inform the sovereign of its existence, it attempts an 
  exodus from Area 4 to Area 3, believing that the colony 
  will be safe there. The sovereign then asks the party to 
  escort its people there. Such a task will take over an hour, 
  given how slow the myconids are. While in transit, they're 
  attacked by the Shadow-dusks, whose forces consist of 
  Akarrth, the human archmage, two cult fanatics, 1d4 
  cultists, a grell and a nothic. The remaining forces are 
  back at their camp in the tunnel to Level 21. If he's 
  reduced to half his hit points, Akarrth flees, leaving his 
  minions behind if necessary.   
   
  5. GIGGLING CHASM 
  Look, by now we've had enough of Halaster's ghostly 
  giggling and we can't waste an opportunity to detail 
  Halaster and Ezzat's relationship. Instead of giggling, the 
  chasm plays out one of the dramatized visions of the past, 
  namely #1 from the table.  
  6. LAIR OF THE MUMMY LORD 
  In case it wasn't clear, this entire area counts as the lair of 
  Gorka Tharn, the duergar mummy lord.  
   
  6A. TOOTHY MAW 
  When the party reaches this area, they're filled with a 
  sense of dread. Read the following: 
  There is no breeze here; the air smolders in monotony. The little 
  lizard at the back of your brain seems to shiver, as if your most 
  primal instincts can sense a danger your "advanced" brain 
  cannot. The lizard sticks out its forked tongue, tasting the air of 
  this place and deeming it too eerie to reman in. It withdraws 
  back to its hidey hole at the base of your head.  
  You want to bait the party into casting spells here, so as 
  to awaken Gorka Tharn. Methods include: 
  • Ipses, Ezzat's pseudodragon, flies through this cavern, 
  chasing after a lizard or rat.  
  • The Gentlemen Bastards are already hidden in the area. 
  Contest their Dexterity (Stealth) checks against the party's 
  passive Perception. An altercation here is likely to produce 
  several spells.   
  • The duergar raiders from Area 7 are exploring the area.   
   
  Whenever a spell is cast, the spellcaster is filled with a 
  sense of dread and hairs on their arms stiffen.  
   
  6C. MUMMY LORD'S CRYPT 
  It isn't clear in DotMM where exactly Tharn's body is 
  located, only his preserved organs. Assume he is sleeping 
  beneath the piles of treasure.  
  Roleplaying Gorka Tharn. Gorka Tharn is a loud-
  mouthed, melodramatic, narcissist. The first thing he does 
  when awoken is shout in Dwarvish, "I liiiiiive!" which 
  echoes throughout Area 6. He never demeans himself by 
  speaking anything but Dwarvish—and if others can't 
  understand him, so be it. Other than when he announces 
  that he's alive again, Gorka Tharn only ever refers to 
  himself in third person. You can draw on the following 
  sample dialogue (in Dwarvish): 
  • "Kneel before Tharn, first and last of his name!"  
  • "We all have masters—and Tharn is yours." 
  • "Death is the gift of the gods! Milk it for all its worth!"  
  • "And so you come to the lair of Tharn… May it be your last 
  regret!"  
  • "You would defy Tharn so jubilantly?" 
  • "Tharn shall be your redeemer!"  
  • "Everything's coming up Tharn!"  
   
  Tactics. In combat, the mummy lord employs the 
  following tactics. Even without his eight mummies, he's 
  a considerable threat to the party. Many of his abilities can 
  hamper them long after Tharn is dead.  
  • Tharn uses his first Lair Action on the third option, inhibiting 
  spellcasters until the next round. He switches between that 
  and the second option throughout combat unless the party 
  tries to flee. As noted in his statblock, he can't use the same 
  Lair Action two rounds in a row.  
  • Tharn wants to be in the thick of his foes, as so many of his 
  spells and abilities are Areas-of-Effect. He stops at nothing to 
  accomplish this, using his movement or his Whirlwind of 
  Sand Legendary Action to get within 10 feet of several 
  characters.  
  • On his first turn, Tharn snaps out a harm spell. He then follows 
  up with a Channel Negative Energy Legendary Action. At the 
  next opportunity, he follows up with Rotting Fist via a 
  Legendary Action.  
  • On his second turn, Tharn casts guardian of faith and positions 
  the spirit 5 feet away from him. At the next opportunity, if 
  he's in melee range, he unleashes his Blasphemous Word 
  Legendary Action, thus trapping his foes between a rock and 
  a hard place. He follows this up with another Rotting Fist 
  attack via Legendary Action or a Blinding Dust if he's 
  injured.  
   
   
  
   
  18 
  • On his third turn, Tharn casts insect swarm on a point that 
  doesn't include him but does include his guardian of faith. He 
  intends to have a trifecta of effects going on at once: these 
  two spells and his Legendary Actions. Any creature within 
  this area is gonna have a bad time. At the next opportunity, 
  he uses his Channel Negative Energy Legendary Action. He 
  then follows it up with another Rotting Fist via Legendary 
  Action.  
  • When at Death's Door, Tharn casts contagion against the 
  nearest, lowest-AC character as revenge.  
   
  Maximum Absurdity. If you'd like an absurd tone for 
  your session, consider dressing Gorka Tharn in a bright 
  red robe; when he and his eight mummies are together, he 
  sings Michael Jackson's Thriller.  
   
  7. CRYPT RAIDERS 
  When the adventurers reach this area, the duergar are in a 
  heated discussion. Assuming an adventurer speaks 
  Dwarvish, read the following: 
  "Damnit, Klom! I've had enough of the snail! Cease prattlin' 
  about it!" snarls a dwarf. 
  Wounded, another dwarf replies, "It's shell glitters gold! Ye 
  can imagine, can't ye, the favor we'll earn with Fazrian!" 
  "Tell ye what I can imagine, Klom! Bein' reduced to bloody 
  pulp by the 'goyles and golems 'tween us and the snail!"  
   
  PREVIOUSLY ON…  
  If your party ventured to Level 6, they'll have met the 
  duergar raiders of Clan Ironeye, led by Skella, a half-
  duergar. It's suggested that you add her here; after getting 
  lost in Undermountain, her raiders joined up with the 
  duergar on Level 21.  
  This accomplishes two things: it links the current level 
  with a past escapade of the party, and it gives them an "in" 
  with Prince Valtagar on the Terminus level.  
  On Level 6, the duergar plundered a Melairkyn temple 
  dedicated to Dumathoin, a god of secrets and miners. The 
  Companion added invisible stalkers loosed by Halaster 
  to torment the duergar, which the party may have tangled 
  with. Additionally, Skella may have attuned to the Heart 
  of the Mountain (a site in the temple), allowing her to cast 
  divination. If so, she asked "What fate awaits my people?" 
  What she saw was to be determined by you; however, it 
  was suggested she foresaw the party's treachery, or the 
  duergars' demise as a punishment by Halaster for not 
  slaying the party.  
  Roleplaying Skella. If you add Skella to this level, 
  follow these guidelines, altering them to reflect her past 
  dealings with the party. Skella, unlike other half-duergar, 
  feels no need to prove herself to her kin; she rose to her 
  station through merit alone and has the confidence of her 
  men. While she's as dour as most other duergar, she has 
  an obsession with artistry and beauty—an obsession she 
  doesn't bother hiding. As a lawful person, she's a woman 
  of her word and keeps her end of all bargains.  
  How Skella treats the party is determined by both you 
  and their past actions. If the party worked with Skella 
  before and did not betray her, she greets them well. If they 
  did, her men greet the party with drawn weapons; Skella 
  demands they remove themselves from the area.  
  Having already been to the Terminus Level, she can 
  provide any of the information the duergar here normally 
  would, including the name of the exiled prince that the 
  duergar serve: Valtagar Steelshadow, younger brother of 
  Deepking Horgar Steelshadow V of the mythic city of 
  Gracklstugh. After a humiliating ransom, Valtagar 
  attempted to foment war between the duergar and drow. 
  To keep the peace, Valtagar was exiled by the Deepking. 
  Now Valtagar hopes to buy his way back into his brother's 
  good graces with Undermountain's mithril and wealth.  
  Skella's Statistics. On the Lost Level, so long ago, 
  Skella had the statistics of a duergar. After being 
  tormented by the Mad Mage and preyed upon by the 
  predators of Undermountain, she's risen to a duergar 
  warlord. She and her men, likewise battle-hardened, all 
  now have the Brave feature (they have advantage on 
  saving throws against being frightened). 
  Skella's Motive. The duergar raiders' goals remain 
  unchanged, even with Skella and her men added to the 
  level. The raiders want to plunder the shrine of Laduguer 
  in Area 6C (ignorant of Gorka Tharn) and earn Fazrian's 
  (the planetar of Level 21) favor. Skella and her men, 
  however, intend to worm their ways into Valtagar's good 
  graces. Despite his termagant of a wife, Skella intends to 
  seduce Valtagar and harness his influence as her own. 
  Like all duergar, she is unaware that Valtagar's wife, 
  Stalagma, is secretly a steel dragon (adult silver dragon) 
  in disguise.  
   
  8. MADE OF STONE 
   
  8D. GOLDEN HAUNGHARASSK 
  The Companion offers three humble changes to this 
  otherwise unimportant snail: it has the statistics of a flail 
  snail; the duergar raiders hope to steal it; and it's 
  worshipped as a messiah by the Stonecloak golems.  
  Flail Snail. Haungharassk's new statistics can be found 
  in Appendix B. Ignore the statistics described in DotMM.  
  Raiders. Having learned of the snail, the duergar hope 
  to steal it away for the same reasons they hope to raid Area 
  6. If the adventurers clear Areas 8A-C of foes, the duergar 
  creep in to snatch up the snail—although it's likely that 
  they perish to it. 
  Golden Messiah. In times of trouble and political 
  upheaval, the Stonecloaks make a pilgrimage to this area, 
  bowing before Haungharassk and pleading for its divine 
  guidance. These pleas are, of course, met with more 
  silence, leaving the golems unsatisfied until one golem 
  insists it heard the snail speak and that those that could 
  not hear its regal voice are fools and heretics that deserve 
  to be purged. They defend Haungharassk with their lives.   
  
   
  19 
  11. WEIRD MAGIC 
   
  11A. HAMMER TIME 
  Look, it's the dungeon of the Mad Mage. You're more than 
  welcome to play U Can't Touch This by MC Hammer as 
  the party fights the golem. Just for good measure, have an 
  apparition of Halaster dance nearby as the song plays. 
  Characters that copy the dance (via a successful DC 15 
  Charisma (Performance) check avoid the golem's wrath.  
   
  13. RUNESTONE CAVERNS 
   
  13A. MAIN CAVERN 
  A sterile, blue-white light paints this cavern and its many stony 
  teeth, as if a dentist has set up shop far below the earth. Its light 
  sheens off every stalactite and stalagmite, every dripping drop 
  of water that falls from the ceiling. That sterile light wipes away 
  every shadow, reveals every nook and cranny; it banishes the 
  secrets from this place, letting the truth rot for all to see.  
  At the heart of it all twists a massive stalagmite crowned with 
  a glowing crystal within which floats a red rune—a pupil, 
  almost. Caves lead off into the dark, but you pay them no mind. 
  The floor is strewn with the broken remains of golems, which 
  point towards that stalagmite, as if they threw themselves 
  against a lethal force that extolled from them the ultimate price. 
   
  SURVEILLING THE TOWER 
  If the party decides to surveil the tower, the hours pass 
  slowly before anything or anyone emerges from the 
  tower. Structure this as a series of choices, after which 
  they see the results of their surveillance: 
  1. When the party chooses to surveil the tower, an hour 
  passes, granting them the benefit of a short rest. Nothing 
  emerges from the tower. 
  2. Choosing to continue surveilling the tower, two hours pass. 
  At one point, a stone golem meanders into the cavern; 
  contest the party's Stealth checks against its passive 
  Perception. If they go undetected, the golem approaches 
  within 10 feet of the tower (as far as the wards placed by 
  Ezzat allow) and rails silently at the tower, protesting 
  against the lich. This lasts for about twenty minutes before 
  the golem lumbers back into the dark, satisfied with its 
  work. 
  3. Forty minutes later, Ezzat lets out Ipses, the pseudo-
  dragon, to feed. After fifteen minutes, Ipses returns to the 
  tower and Ezzat shuts the door. 
  4. An hour after Ipses returns, 1d4 cultists and one cult 
  fanatic from the Shadowdusk Expedition come to inspect 
  the tower. This inspection lasts five minutes, after which 
  the cultists hightail it back to the tunnel to Level 21, where 
  Akarrth has set up camp. 
  5. Thirty minutes later, the Gentlemen Bastards arrive to 
  scout out the tower. They creep around its base for two 
  minutes and then hunker down in Area 13F to plot their 
  next move.  
   
  14. THE RUNESTONE 
  The Runestone is comparable to the Eye of Sauron in 
  Lord of the Rings. When they at last approach the tower, 
  the Mad Mage peers through the Runestone but does not 
  say a single word. Read the following:  
  You creep towards that Stalagmite Tower, bathed in the blue-
  white light of the Runestone above. You're tense: with dread, 
  with anticipation. A showdown with a lich is no trivial matter. 
  You push away the doubt but it finds a way to crowd back into 
  your mind, drowning out reason, drowning out hope, drowning 
  out the dawn. The Runestone watches over you, its sterile light 
  almost calming—until suddenly it twists crimson. 
  You flinch, a rat caught on the floorboards—surely it must be 
  a spell of the lich Ezzat! The Runestone's light paints the cavern 
  crimson, but before you decide to hide, flee, or gun it, you see 
  in the Runestone's heart a familiar symbol: the personal, purple 
  rune of Halaster Blackcloak himself. It gazes down upon you 
  like an immense, fiery eye, perceiving all before it. 
  But no fire comes, no lightning. The light… the light winks 
  at you—and you know that the master of Undermountain has 
  wished you luck against dreaded Ezzat! Halaster has given you 
  his blessing, his confidence!   
   
  15. OUTER DOOR AND FOYER 
  In terminal silence, you approach the stalagmite tower. The air 
  is thick, as if the caverns themselves have deigned to hold in a 
  breath on your behalf.  
  There's only a single door to this lich's lair: a doorway carved 
  with a bas-relief of a human skull, a black sapphire embedded 
  in each eye socket. The skull is grinning a grin that stretches too 
  far to be human. Your eyes flick up to a message carved into 
  the lintel: "GO AWAY!" These words of unwelcome ring 
  throughout your ears, repeated inside your mind with growing 
  alarm.  
  If the adventurers trigger the trapped vampires, read: 
  As you push against the door, the twin sapphires begin to glitter! 
  Without a sound, they unleash a flash of light—and when at last 
  you blink away that blinding pain, the causeway to the tower is 
  shrouded in mist—a sudden mist streaked with crimson veins. 
  The mist rapidly begins to condense, outlining two elven 
  figures, gaunt and doubled over in apparent agony.  
  The vampires appear in unoccupied spaces within 10 feet 
  of the outer door. Once they've reverted to their true forms 
  on the second round of combat, read the following: 
  Throughout the mists beat twin heartbeats that quickly wither 
  into silence. The elves' translucent forms solidify. What you 
  notice first are the fangs—vampires!  
  The first elf stretches, cracking every vertebrae in its spine. 
  "Half a century imprisoned in an opal!" he shouts! 
  "Sapphire!" shouts his counterpart. 
  "What?" 
  "Sabatene, we were in sapphires, not opals." 
  This "Sabatene" gives his counterpart an incredulous look. 
  "What difference does it make?" 
  "Well, geologically speaking—" 
  "You shouldn't speak with your mouth full, Tebran!" 
  "My mouth isn't full?" Tebran stammers.  
  "Then shut up and fill it!" The vampire bears its fangs and 
  lunges at you!   
  
   
  20 
  16. ANIMATED STAFF 
  Amidst a cozy nook, sandwiched between a gameboard and the 
  door, floats a staff carved from ice.  
  The staff continues to float, seemingly inanimate, in the 
  center of the room, hoping that a creature tries to touch it 
  (and thus bewitching them). Otherwise, it attacks as they 
  attempt to leave the room.   
  Statistics. See Appendix B for the animated staff of 
  frost's statistics.  
  Roleplaying the Staff. The sentient staff can speak 
  Common! It is a haughty creature that believes itself due 
  for a great destiny, so long as it faithfully serves the lich 
  Ezzat for a time, for however long it deigns, for it is free 
  to leave of its own accord is it not—for it is an imperial 
  creature, fully dressed in the regalia and authorities 
  befitting a king! Or, at least, that's how the staff views 
  itself. You can draw on any of the following dialogue:  
  • "It shall be a cold day in the Nine Hells before I submit to 
  you—cold, get it? Ha! Don't you get it! You get it, right? You 
  do? Great! Now die." (The staff is likely to cast cone of cold 
  immediately after this.)  
  • When the staff casts ice storm or wall of ice, it says, "There's 
  snowplace like home!" or "It's easy to become ice-olated in 
  these depths…" 
  • "You don't like my genius puns? How cold of you." 
   
  17. LICH'S STUDY 
  Thanks to his alarm spell placed on the tower's door, 
  Ezzat will already be aware of the party, unless they went 
  to the pains of casting dispel magic on it. When the party 
  arrives, treat it as a cutscene. Let Ezzat have his say then 
  jump straight into combat. Read the following: 
  At last you see him, dreaded Ezzat, the lich that has rattled even 
  the Mad Mage. His gaunt, skeletal form is hunched over a desk 
  piled high with dusty tomes of ancient lore, reading by the light 
  of candles made from the skulls of rats. His voice is like gravel: 
  "Yet another party of fools sent to their deaths by the Mad 
  Dog of Undermountain." The lich heaves a heavy sigh and turns 
  to face you. Twin spokes of blue fire blaze in his eyeless skull. 
  "Can you not see the futility of your quest? Can you not hear 
  that dog howling in the distance, cackling, chortling? I need not 
  ask this more than once: turn back on your path. Cast off your 
  shackles. Free yourselves from the Mad Mage." 
  Ezzat's next words fall like hail on a grey day: "Join me, and 
  we can cleanse Undermountain of Halaster Blackcloak once 
  and for all."  
  If the party declines Ezzat's invitation to conspiracy, he 
  sighs and says, "So be it. Let's get this over with." 
  Tactics & Roleplaying. See the preamble for this 
  chapter for Ezzat's tactics and roleplaying tips.  
   
  19. EZZAT'S SCRYING MIRROR 
  The scrying mirror here should always be fixated on the 
  false-Halaster, otherwise the party will miss it. However, 
  if the party fights Ezzat here, Halaster ends his trick and 
  allows the mirror to view him directly. He sits on his 
  purple marble throne within his tower on Level 23. Read: 
  Amidst the carnage, the nearby scrying mirror bubbles over 
  with static. Gone goes the image of Halaster sweeping and in 
  its stead is the Mad Mage himself seated on a violet throne. His 
  personal rune glows behind him, carved into the wall. 
  "Yesss," the Mad Mage purrs. He pushes himself to his feet, 
  shouting, "Yes! Strike him down! Strike down the Betrayer! 
  Strike him down and let this world know a brother's scorn!" 
  On every subsequent round, Halaster gets closer to the 
  "camera" of the scrying mirror until his face is pressed up 
  against it, every craterous pore and liver spot gaping on 
  its surface. By then, Ezzat looses a blast of lightning at the 
  mirror (no action required), destroying the mirror so that 
  maddened voyeur can't watch his demise.  
   
  23. EZZAT'S PHYLACTERY 
  The stone lid groans, opening upon a cave—or, rather, a 
  chamber meticulously carved by magic to resemble one. It 
  glitters with a sky's worth of tiny stars, each a crystal fragment. 
  Beneath this starry sky is an ornate silver box—and guarding it 
  is a six-armed maiden whose torso ends at a serpent's body! 
  Your mind reels against her shrill cry: "Years burdened, but no 
  more! No more!"  
   
  SPECIAL EVENT 
  You can include the following special event: 
   
  THE GENTLEMAN'S HELLO 
  This event only occurs if the Gentlemen Bastards are 
  added to this level and if they're opposed to the party for 
  whatever reason.  
  Whether it's for revenge or to nab Ezzat's already-stolen 
  phylactery, the Gentlemen Bastards stage an ambush they 
  lovingly call "The Gentleman's Hello." Assuming that 
  their adversaries will be returning the phylactery to the 
  genies on Level 19, the Bastards hide in the tunnel leading 
  to Area 2. Ultimately, their goal, once the attack begins, 
  is to push the party back to the chasm in Area 3. 
  Variant. If your version of the Bastards are loathe to 
  fight the party, they retreat to Level 19. Jocelyn casts 
  seeming, disguising one Bastard as a genie and the others 
  as medusas (if they suspect the party will turn in the 
  phylactery to the dao) or as water genasi. To see through 
  this illusion requires a DC 15 Int. (Investigation) check 
  made as an action. If the ruse is blown, the Bastards either 
  hightail it or fight.  
  Tactics. During the ambush, the Bastards employ these 
  heavily-rehearsed tactics:  
  • For the purpose of this ambush, Jocelyn (warlock of the 
  archfey) has the One with Shadows eldritch invocation. She 
  can use an action to become invisible until moving or taking 
  an action or reaction. Before the party arrives, she casts silent 
  image (which she can cast without using a spell slot) to paint 
  the tunnel to Level 19 as if it were blocked by a rockfall. She 
  remains invisible nearby, concentrating on the spell. This, 
  hopefully, gives the party pause. To discern her illusion 
  requires a DC 15 Intelligence (Investigation) check made 
  with an action. 
  
   
  21 
  • Perlos (a Small assassin that can move through the spaces of 
  other creatures thanks to his halfling heritage) waits behind 
  the rockfall illusion. He has already made an Investigation 
  check to see through the illusion. He is hidden behind the 
  illusion. On his first turn, he fires off a poisoned light 
  crossbow attack against the party, possibly surprising them. 
  Once Grel Momesk or Ilinar have waded into the melee, 
  Perlos joins in, making two shortsword attacks per turn & 
  utilizing his Sneak Attack feature. 
  • On her first turn in combat, Jocelyn drops concentration on 
  silent image and casts conjure fey, summoning a yeth hound 
  (see App. B) and loosing it on the party.  
  • On its first turn, the yeth hound uses its Baleful Baying 
  ability. Since it's friendly to Jocelyn and her allies, the 
  Bastards are unaffected. Creatures that fail the Wisdom save 
  must run from the hound; the hound tries to force the party 
  south towards Area 3 where Grel Momesk and Ilinar are 
  waiting.  
  • Grel Momesk (champion) hides out of sight in the tunnel to 
  Area 2. Once Perlos has kicked off combat, he storms into the 
  area and flanks the party. If a character is at the edge of the 
  chasm in Area 3, he takes the Shove action. Characters that 
  fall into the chasm take 20d6 damage from the fall.  
  • Ilinar (elven war priest) hides with Grel; on his first turn in 
  combat, he casts crusader's mantle. He stays within 30 feet 
  of Grel, Perlos and the yeth hound. He blasts clumps of foes 
  with a flame strike spell. Once the party has been routed to 
  the chasm in Area 3, he casts spirit guardians and tries to 
  block off any escape. For most of his turns, he pairs healing 
  word with the Attack action.  
   
  EPILOGUE 
  Defeating a lich is no easy task; doing so advances the 
  party half-way to 17th level. Soon enough, they'll have 
  9th level spells at their disposal.  
  Back to Level 19. If the party returns to Level 19 to turn 
  in Ezzat's phylactery, the opposing genie attacks them. 
  See the Companion's previous chapter for details on this 
  attack.  
  Send-Off. You can cap off your session with one of the 
  send-offs below; one is written for if the party failed or 
  didn't bother to steal Ezzat's phylactery and the other 
  assumes they completed the quest, in which case you 
  should deliver it after the party turns in the phylactery to 
  a genie on Level 19.  
   
  THE LICH ROBBED 
  With an air of victory all around you and the phylactery handed 
  off to your benefactor, an image of Halaster steps out of the wall 
  as if it were a door. His hands are greasy. So is his hair; it's all 
  slicked back with a foul-smelling grease. His smile is just as 
  greasy and he beams it at you like torchlight.  
  "Well, well, well, well done!" Halaster shouts, his voice 
  thundering across the cavern. The image wavers with static. 
  "My dearest contestants, my friends, my stars. Ezzat'll never 
  live this down. In fact, he'll never live again!" Halaster throws 
  back his head and cackles with delight. He doubles over and 
  slaps his own knee. "No longer shall he plague my thoughts! 
  No longer shall I weep at the memory of what once was and 
  what could have been! No longer will I need to remember the 
  brother I so loved and cherished. No longer…" 
  The image of Halaster rapidly begins to fade, first losing all 
  color, then definition. "No longer… must I feel human. No 
  longer must I feel at all…" The image sobers, giving you a 
  blank look. His eyes go wide with the realization of it all. The 
  Mad Mage blinks—once, twice—and by the third time, he's 
  gone to lament the loss of one he loved so well.  
  After this, preferably at the start of your next session, the 
  party should have to face the wrath of the genie they've 
  just condemned to an eternity in Under-mountain. See 
  DotMM 19 for details.  
   
  THE LICH UNTOUCHED 
  Your mind rings with heavy silence, as if you've fallen prey to 
  a curse of tinnitus. The sounds of the world around you are 
  hushed and colorless, distant and faint. You try to speak and can 
  hardly hear your own voice. The ringing thunders against your 
  ears to the tune of your own heartbeat; the very blood pulsing 
  through your ears becomes a storm so fierce it drives you to 
  your knees—and as you crash to the dirt in absolute agony, an 
  image appears before you: a specter of Halaster Blackcloak. 
  Grim is his countenance. Grim and disappointed.  
  When he speaks, his voice thrashes through your head: "You 
  would spurn me? I, who gave you life? I, who gave you 
  purpose? Suffer! Suffer as I have the grey silence! SUFFER!"  
  The party must all make a DC 18 Constitution saving 
  throw or take 4d10 thunder damage. A character that is 
  reduced to 0 hit points by this damage is not killed and is 
  instead unconscious and stable. If the entire party falls 
  unconscious, they awaken 1d4 hours later with 1 hit point 
  each. No enemies attack them during this time, although 
  you could have them dragged off to Level 21 by the 
  duergar raiders from Area 7.  
   
   
   
   
  
   
  22 
  LEVEL XXI: THE TERMINUS LEVEL 
   
  QUICK NOTES 
  • 
  This level is almost entirely a social encounter that might 
  erupt into a deadly duel with a planetar and its yugoloth 
  minions. Once the party has met Fazrian and the duergar, 
  most exploration through the level will halt, consumed by 
  this encounter.  
  • 
  Fazrian knows when it hears a lie thanks to his Divine 
  Awareness trait! 
  • 
  Valtagar Steelshadow, the duergar archmage, is married 
  to Stalagma, a steel dragon (adult silver dragon) in 
  disguise! You don't want to meet his in-laws! 
  • 
  The passageway to Level 22 is found in Area 19A and is 
  guarded by an ultroloth. Do not prevent the party from 
  escaping this level, even if you're running the Judged From 
  on High plotline; the players must always have the choice 
  to fight, flee, or stand trial.  
  • 
  Clearing this level puts the party at 17th level; wizards, 
  sorcerers and bards that utilize their Magical Secrets 
  feature will now have access to the wish spell. See the 
  epilogue at the end of this chapter for advice on how to deal 
  with the wish spell.  
  • 
  Attempting to leave Level 21 provokes Fazrian's wrath.  
   
  PREVIOUSLY ON DUNGEON OF THE MAD MAGE 
  Keep in mind the following when running this level: 
  • A simulacrum of Halaster was added to Level 12 by the 
  Companion; Erelal Freth, matriarch of the drow house, 
  mistook him for the true Halaster and sought to forcibly 
  marry him to cement a claim over Undermountain. He has 
  been brought back to serve as the prosecutor in the Judged 
  From on High plotline.  
  • On Level 6, the party met duergar of Clan Ironeye, led by the 
  half-duergar Skella, during their raid on the Lost Level. Just 
  as they were added to Level 20 as a possible "in" with 
  Valtagar, you can utilize them on Level 21 as well. Skella, 
  not knowing how dangerous Valtagar's wife truly is, seeks to 
  seduce the prince and use him to cultivate her own influence 
  over the duergar. She can be added to the duergar patrols, 
  Area 2, 6 or 15. She can also be called as a witness in the 
  Judged From on High plotline, either endorsing or 
  condemning the party.  
   
  REGIONAL EFFECTS: UNHOLY CHOIR 
  As described in Fazrian's regional effects, whenever 
  combat breaks out, an unholy choir begins to sing. The 
  following songs are suggested for this choir; it's important 
  that you play the same song each time: 
  • Two Steps From Hell's Unholy Requiem 
  • Mindhunter's Main Titles by Choir   
  • The Daughter of Darkness by Peter Gundry 
  • Bloodletting from the game Darkest Dungeon's Crimson Court 
  expansion 
  JUDGED FROM ON HIGH 
  The Terminus Level is well-designed—but you can 
  ignore just about all of it. This level shouldn't be a 
  dungeon crawl; it isn't a hack-and-slash. No, on this level, 
  the party must talk their way out of being put to death by 
  the planetar Fazrian. For once, it isn't a battlefield they 
  must tackle, but a courtroom.  
  When adventurers (and players) gallivant across the 
  world, rarely do they think of the consequences—and 
  when confronted with consequence, they justify 
  themselves, absolve themselves of blame. Level 21 is 
  your chance to bring about their reckoning. Should they 
  fail to convince the jury and/or Fazrian of their virtue, the 
  planetar orders their immediate execution. If the party 
  doesn't just keel over and take it, the angel unsheathes its 
  mighty sword and attacks, along with any minions it 
  might have left.  
   
  CHARGES 
  The charges levied against the party must be tailored to fit 
  their history. Even the most virtuous characters will be 
  judged as corrupt by corrupted Fazrian. You want to also 
  confront the party with their past crimes. So, at the very 
  least, Fazrian charges them with being corrupt; at the 
  most, he tacks on specific crimes and injustices they've 
  committed. How does Fazrian know these sins? Why, 
  Halaster was kind enough to tell Fazrian's yugoloth 
  servants, who shared it with the planetar.  
   
  JUDGE: FAZRIAN THE JUST 
  Unsurprisingly, Fazrian presides over this court. Thanks 
  to his Divine Awareness trait, he can tell whenever a 
  creature lies in his presence. He does, however, wait until 
  a substantial amount of lies have been told to inform the 
  jury in one fell swoop whose testimony is false. Perjury is 
  then added to the party's list of crimes; other creatures 
  might also be put on a quick trial during a recess—in 
  which the jury finds them guilty and Fazrian orders the 
  defendant's death. 
  Roleplaying Fazrian. In the fallen angel's mind, he can 
  do no wrong. He is soft-spoken and smug; when he resorts 
  to violence, he pretends to be disappointed, but he secretly 
  revels in it. When he speaks to others, he refers to them as 
  his "children." To cement his authority in an argument or 
  decision, he admits that he is literally "holier-than-thou." 
  When he speaks, he often pauses mid-sentence to sound 
  profound.  
   
  JURY 
  The jury consists of five (or six) individuals, each with 
  their own vices. The jury must be unanimous to carry out 
  a verdict; if instead the jury is hung, Fazrian decides the 
  party's fate.  
  
   
  23 
  • The arcanaloths Aximus and Exekarus, wish only to please 
  Fazrian, unless bribed otherwise. They lean in whatever 
  direction they believe Fazrian would want them to. Thus, if 
  Fazrian seems impressed with tales painting the party as 
  heroes (such as testimony claiming that they defeated Ezzat 
  or the Vanrakdoom cult), the yugoloths probably vote not-
  guilty.   
  • Valtagar Steelshadow, the duergar archmage. Unless he is the 
  only outlier, he always votes guilty—hoping to provoke a 
  conflict between Fazrian and the party. He privately tells the 
  party that he has their "best interests at heart" and will vote 
  not guilty.   
  • Malgorn, the duergar of Area 10B that hungers for the last 
  card to complete his Three-Dragon Ante deck. If the party 
  give him the card (which he knows in Area 23C) he votes not 
  guilty. However, slaying the otyughs in Area 23C will likely 
  enrage Fazrian—if they're caught. Malgorn was chosen as a 
  juror precisely for how insignificant and irrelevant he is. In 
  this manner, he represents the Common Man, according to 
  Fazrian.  
  • Thomas Clarke, a LG human commoner summoned straight 
  from Waterdeep. He has no idea what is going on or why he's 
  suddenly in Undermountain. He can only be won over 
  through clever lawyering.  
  • Trobriand (iron golem with an Int. of 20 and 18th-level 
  spellcasting, found on L23). This apprentice of the Mad Mage 
  is unaligned; the transference of his spirit into a metallic 
  vessel has scrubbed away his morality. With him, sound 
  reasoning and logic prevail. Add Trobriand only if you wish 
  to introduce him to the party before they reach Level 23.  
   
  EXECUTIONER (AND BAILIFF) 
  The nycaloth Raxxus follows the planetar's orders 
  without hesitation. It acts as the bailiff, and when it gets 
  lucky, the executioner of the court. Fazrian does not assist 
  Raxxus unless the fiend's life is in danger. 
   
  PROSECUTOR: SIM, HALASTER'S SIMULACRUM 
  The prosecution consists of Sim, a simulacrum of 
  Halaster himself. He was first added to the campaign by 
  the Companion on Level 12, wherein Erelal Freth mistook 
  him for the true Mad Mage and sought to marry him, 
  cementing her claim to all of Under-mountain. Sim 
  statistics are included in Appendix B under Halaster's 
  simulacrum. Sim was created by Halaster to entertain 
  guests or fulfill commitments he himself couldn't be 
  bothered with. He's forgotten Sim's very existence and 
  would surely destroy him if he remembered. Sim, who 
  frankly enjoys existing, does his best to sneak under the 
  Mad Mage's radar.  
  Sim shares much of Halaster's personality, but little of 
  his power or insanity. His power is capped, per the 
  simulacrum spell, and his attachment to the Knot in the 
  Weave is virtually nonexistent. He's thus much less 
  powerful than the true Mad Mage. He must also abide by 
  the alterations to magic in Undermountain, making it 
  impossible for him to teleport. Now free from Erelal 
  Freth, he reveals his identity to anyone who takes the time 
  to listen.  
  Simulacrum. As a simulacrum, Sim is severely 
  handicapped: he can't regain hit points except in an 
  alchemical lab, forcing him to avoid confrontations; he 
  can't ever regain expended spell slots, many of which he's 
  used over the years, effectively reducing him to a 7th-
  level spellcaster; and he lacks the capacity to learn, 
  meaning he will never increase in power. All in all, this 
  creates a meek, feeble, and terrified version of the 
  infamous Mad Mage. 
  A Gig's A Gig. With no other purpose, Sim has found 
  employment as Fazrian's prosecutor. He's still fresh on the 
  job, however, and sort of bumbles his way through trials. 
  This is much less a problem now that he doesn't represent 
  defendants.  
   
  DEFENSE 
  The party receives no outside aid or counsel and must 
  represent themselves. They are told before the trial begins 
  that they can call upon at least five witnesses to testify on 
  their behalf.  
  Ideally, the party relies on a character proficient with 
  History and Persuasion; the former relates to legal 
  decorum and the latter is self-explanatory.   
   
  WITNESSES 
  The prosecution intends to call at least five witnesses to 
  provide testimony against the party, proving themselves 
  to be evil or corrupt. For every witness the prosecution 
  calls, the defense is allowed to call another. Halaster 
  remotely summons that character to Area 23B, whether 
  they're even aware of the trial or not. Likewise, both the 
  prosecution and defense can question a witness, 
  regardless of who called them. You must tailor these 
  witnesses to your party. Possible witnesses include:  
  • Yek (goblin boss, L2) or any other Rustbone goblin 
  • Rizzeryl (drow mage, L2) who opposed the Xanathar Guild. 
  If the party opposed the guild too, this is a point in their favor.  
  • Azrok (hobgoblin warlord, L3), who may have been aided 
  by the party by virtue of opposing House Auvryndar. He 
  likely has an intellect devourer in his skull, implanted by the 
  mind flayer on Level 3.  
  • Wyllow (archdruid, L5) who likely fought the party. If the 
  party also killed or drove off Illuun (the aboleth of L4), she 
  might begrudgingly call the party "neutral at heart" or even 
  endorse them.  
  • Skella Ironeye (duergar/duergar warlord of L6, who may 
  already be present on this level). If the party aided them in 
  finding the Tomb of King Melair or fighting off invisible 
  stalkers, she endorses them.  
  • The stone giants of L7 if the party somehow reversed their 
  magical amnesia or otherwise brought happiness back into 
  their lives.  
  • Chanterella (myconid sovereign, L13), who they may have 
  aided. Likewise, Zox Clammersham, the gnome archmage 
  of L13 might endorse the party if they saved him from 
  hobgoblins.   
  • The githzerai zerths of L15, who would endorse the party if 
  they saved Ezria from L16 
  
   
  24 
  • The githyanki of L16, who are likely pissed that the party 
  rampaged through their home.  
  • Characters that were stuck in the Alterdeep simulation of L17, 
  if it was shut down by the party.  
  • Portia Dzuth (champion) from Vanrakdoom, if she was freed. 
  If she testifies that the party ended the cult, it scores big in 
  the eyes of Fazrian and Thomas Clarke.  
  • Any character of Skullport—if the party overthrew the 
  Xanathar Guild whilst there.  
   
  ACT I. WE THE VIRTUOUS…  
  Act I starts when the adventurers are first brought to Area 
  23, where they meet Fazrian. The planetar is already 
  aware of the party's crimes, having been told by Halaster, 
  whose letter is on the arm of Fazrian's throne. This brief 
  part consists of Fazrian charging the party and laying 
  down the rules of the trial. If the party tries to flee during 
  his speech, all exits to Area 23 slam shut, requiring a DC 
  29 Strength (Athletics) check to pry open. A knock spell 
  works as well.  
  When Fazrian begins his spiel, read the following; it 
  assumes the party has already identified him as an angel 
  and that they've already been introduced. 
  The angel lifts a letter whose envelope was once sealed with a 
  violet, wax "H." "Halaster," you instantly think, knowing that 
  this is a trap lain for you by the Mad Mage.  
  "I have been appraised of your crimes, of which there are 
  many, my children. Courage. Good judgment. These are the 
  ideals of my lord, Torm. Ideals that creatures both mortal and 
  immaculate must live by. You… You have not lived bravely; 
  you have not exercised restraint nor good judgment. You have 
  found cowardice a soap with which you absolve your faults and 
  flaws and crimes. But fear not, for now in the eyes of Torm, I 
  myself will wash you. I will make you clean. I will make you 
  whole at last." 
  The angel stands from his throne of bones, resting his great-
  sword against its side. "Justice shall be meted out in these halls. 
  Justice is blind; it is fair. And so shall you stand trial before 
  Torm… Before me. Tomorrow begins your trial. An unbiased 
  jury shall be called to weigh in against the charges being levied 
  against you. The prosecution shall call witnesses to bear sacred 
  testimony to your crimes. I suggest you prepare a list of those 
  that may exonerate you. The Mad Mage has offered his aid in 
  summoning these individuals to these halls. I tell you this now: 
  there are no half-measures in the Dogma of Torm. Should you 
  be found guilty of corruption, death will be your just reward." 
  With a cherubic word, the greatsword animates, flying 
  straight into Fazrian's hand. "But, my children, should you try 
  to flee the Deep Mines, I myself will give pursuit—and know 
  this: I have chased fiends and sinners across the sordid planes 
  since before your world was even a pile of smoldering dust. 
  There is no escaping the Long Arm of Torm." 
  With that Fazrian grants the adventurers their leave, 
  graciously allowing them to take up Area 10 as their 
  temporary residence. However, before they leave, he has 
  each of them swear the following oath, using his Divine 
  Awareness trait to determine whether they will defy his 
  rule: "I swear to remain here in the Deep Mines until the 
  trial's conclusion; I swear to respect the verdict rendered 
  unto us by the jury and to accept the sentence meted out, 
  should guilt be found." 
  Fazrian focuses on which clause a character lies about. 
  Even if they lie, he still wishes to go through the farce of 
  a trial before executing them.   
  Witnesses. After being dismissed, the party must 
  compile a list of witnesses (preferably five) that they can 
  count on to provide favorable testimony, and deliver that 
  list to Fazrian directly or indirectly via a minion. Remind 
  your players that you yourself will be roleplaying these 
  NPCs, so they must give you notice. Not calling witnesses 
  all but dooms their defense. Also remind them that they 
  are representing themselves, whereas, apparently, a 
  prosecutor has been appointed.  
  Keeping the Party Weak. If the adventurers are at full 
  strength, they can likely prevail over Fazrian. He knows 
  this; the Mad Mage knows this; and they, of course, 
  suspect it. If you cannot afford for the party to achieve a 
  long rest, have Halaster drop a beholder zombie on them 
  whenever they try to finish one.  
  ACT II. COURT IS NOW IN SESSION 
  Act II begins the next day with an unannounced visit by 
  the nycaloth, Raxxus, who escorts the party to Area 23. 
  When they arrive, Fazrian is not yet there, but the jurors 
  and prosecution are. As described in Area 23B, the 
  prosecution stands before the crystal menhirs; the jurors 
  (and witnesses) share the north wall. Meanwhile, the 
  defense must stand with their backs against the open pit, 
  just beyond the reach of the otyughs lairing there.  
  Jurors. Generally, the party is barred from speaking to 
  the jury; Raxxus moves in if they try, insisting (with his 
  axe drawn) that they take their places near the pit.  
  Prosecution. The Companion assumes the party is 
  already familiar with Sim, having met him on Level 12. 
  Adjust accordingly if you never used that variant. When 
  he first sees the party, read the following: 
  You look towards the prosecution—and it's Halaster himself. 
  Halaster Blackcloak! Prosecuting you in a trial he has surely set 
  up himself! With fury in your veins, you rush forward, but, 
  when the mage turns around, you instead hear the mewling 
  voice of Sim, the simulacrum: 
  "Oh, hey! It's you guys! What are you doing here?" 
  It takes Sim, who's a bit daft, to remember that it's the 
  party that he's prosecuting this time. He explains that, 
  after untangling himself from House Freth, he found his 
  way to the Terminus Level. Since he is not truly alive, 
  Fazrian could not judge him ("He just about short-
  circuited," Sim says) and thus decided to hire him for a 
  "greater purpose." Initially, that was to counsel and 
  represent defendants, but after proving himself to be a 
  little too green, Fazrian relegated him to prosecution 
  instead.  
   
   
   
  
   
  25 
  ALL RISE 
  When the trial is about to commence, Fazrian enters the 
  chamber (from Area 24, if you don't mind betraying the 
  location of the secret door; in which case he was cradling 
  the headless corpse of the cleric Brythia, believing it will 
  keep him "true" and "just"). Read the following:  
  Whilst the chamber bubbles with chatter, the fiend Raxxus 
  raises his voice and greataxe, shouting "All rise for Fazrian the 
  Just!" 
  With an eerie smile stretched taut across his face, the angel 
  glides into the chamber to the tune of that unholy choir. He 
  takes to his throne of bones and sighs dreamily. "Please be 
  seated. Court," he says, fondling the hilt of his greatsword, "is 
  now in session." 
  Tailor the proceeding dialogue to your party. If they have 
  a group name use it. Otherwise, Fazrian calls on their true 
  and full names. If a character has neglected to give their 
  true name, or hid an embarrassing middle name, for 
  example, Fazrian somehow knows it and declares it to the 
  court. Likewise, he must name the charges being levied 
  against them; by default, this is merely "corruption." 
   
  PROCEEDINGS 
  The trial is divided into three "rounds" interrupted by 
  recesses. Both the prosecution and defense can call a 
  recess which can last 10 minutes to an hour. Any further 
  recesses require a party to succeed on a DC 18 Charisma 
  (Persuasion) check against Fazrian. While they are 
  forbidden from speaking to jurors during a recess, the 
  party will find that that is their only chance to do so.  
  Calling Witnesses. The prosecution calls the first 
  witness; the defendants, of course, have a chance to cross-
  examine that character. The defense can then call their 
  witness. Each round should two witnesses from both 
  sides. The third round is reserved for the fifth and final 
  witnesses, plus any surprise witnesses called by the party.  
  Objections. Whenever a party objects to how the 
  opposition questions a witness, they must succeed on an 
  Intelligence (History) check to convince Fazrian to 
  sustain or overrule this behavior. Characters cannot, 
  however, just shout "objection, your honor" without 
  providing a valid reason rooted in legal decorum. Thus, 
  Charisma (Persuasion) checks have no bearing on 
  Fazrian's decision. Unfortunately for the party, Sim has a 
  +15 to Intelligence (History) checks. 
  The following reasons are proper and valid for an 
  objection to a question asked of a witness: 
  • Ambiguous, confusing, misleading, or vague questions  
  • The question makes an argument rather than actually asking a 
  question 
  • The same question is continuously asked to a witness even 
  after already receiving an answer 
  • Asking the jury to prejudge evidence, even if certain facts are 
  proved thereafter that they claimed would sway their vote 
  • Assuming a fact as true without evidence 
  • Badgering or antagonizing a witness to provoke a response 
  such as by mocking them or not giving them time to respond 
  • The question calls for conclusion (i.e., asking for an opinion 
  rather than a fact) 
  • The question calls for speculation (i.e., asking for the witness 
  to guess the answer rather than rely on the known facts 
  • The question is a compound question with multiple questions 
  strung together; Sim is always quick to call these out just to 
  be annoying 
  • Hearsay (i.e., the witness doesn't personally know the answer 
  but heard it from elsewhere) 
  • The witness is incompetent and not qualified to answer the 
  question 
  • The question is irrelevant or inflammatory, intended to cause 
  prejudice against another party 
  • The question is leading (i.e., suggestive of an answer to the 
  witness). Leading questions can be sanctioned if the attorney 
  asks the judge permission to treat the witness as a hostile 
  witness 
   
  Convincing Jurors. Each of the jurors have a bias or 
  sympathy. Whenever the prosecution and defense are in 
  opposition to a point (such as whether one specific act was 
  evil versus being justified), contest each side in a 
  Persuasion check. When this check is related to 
  compassion, use Charisma; when it's based on logic and 
  facts, use Intelligence.  
  • Thomas Clark's simple world is black and white. Thus, 
  he is swayed by evidence painting the adventurers as 
  heroes or villains.  
  • Valtagar cares only to provoke a conflict between the 
  party and Fazrian; if voting guilty precipitates this, he 
  does not hesitate to.  
  • In a twisted way, evidence of virtue sways Aximus and 
  Exekarus as they vote how they perceive Fazrian wants 
  them to. So, if the planetar seems impressed or revolted 
  by testimony and evidence, they follow suit.   
  • Without the last card of his Three-Dragon Ante firmly 
  in his pocket, Malgorn is swayed solely by logic. Like 
  other duergar, he is pragmatic above all else; arguments 
  that what the adventurers did was necessary to survive 
  resonate well with him.   
  • Heartless, Trobriand is swayed only by logic. He cares 
  not for the morality of one's actions, only if they were 
  justified legally or naturally. He would not find a lion 
  guilty for murder if its victim was an antelope; likewise, 
  he would not find the party guilty of murder if sparing 
  a foe would conflict with their goals. In Trobriand's 
  mind, there is no need to seek other solutions when an 
  acceptable one is already available.  
   
   
   
  
   
  26 
  ACT III. THE VERDICT 
  After all of the hullabaloo is finished, the jurors retire to 
  Area 14 to deliberate on the party's fate, which takes 
  4d10+35 minutes. How they vote is determined by how 
  the trial went, in accordance to each juror's internal biases. 
  In the meantime, Fazrian does not allow the party to leave 
  Area 23B. Raxxus remains at his side and all other 
  witnesses are dismissed and returned whence they came.  
  As the jury deliberates, the party may be tempted to flee 
  or fight. Do not deprive them of this decision. If they 
  attack Fazrian and its nycaloth, the planetar calls for aid. 
  The arcanaloths in Area 14 hear their master's call and 
  obey. See Area 23 for Fazrian and the yugoloths' tactics. 
  Once they're finished deliberating, the jury files back 
  into Area 23B to pronounce the adventurers guilty or not 
  guilty. If you do not want so many characters at the scene 
  of the battle, then reduce their numbers. Trobriand would 
  leave immediately, not returning to Area 23. If the verdict 
  is guilty, Malgorn also decides to dip, knowing he'll likely 
  wind up dead in the crossfire; Valtagar might send him to 
  fetch his wife Stalagma (an adult silver dragon) and his 
  iron golem from Area 15.  
   
  THE JURY HUNG 
  If the jury could not come to an agreement, Fazrian takes 
  matters into his own hands. Read the following: 
  The jurors file back into Fazrian's court, stony-faced. It's the 
  duergar prince, Valtagar, that delivers their verdict. "We the 
  jury, pursuant to our oaths sworn, on the matter as to whether 
  the defendants ought to be sentenced to death, cannot come to 
  a unanimous agreement." 
  The silence is deafening. The jurors almost seem to cringe 
  with the expectation of a scolding by Fazrian. The angel, 
  however, looks only to you, gathered there before the pit into 
  which you're dead-certain other defendants have been tossed. 
  The angel frowns. Its greatsword flies into its hand as it stands 
  and descends from its throne.  
  "With your peers splintered, it is up to… a higher being to 
  decide your fate." He levels the sword at you. "There will be no 
  amnesty, no mistrial. It pains me to do this, my children, but 
  this is the fate you have earned. You've only yourselves to 
  blame. Raxxus! Perform your duties, my child!"  
   
  THE VERDICT: GUILTY 
  If the jury declares the party guilty—a verdict likely 
  engineered by Valtagar—read the following: 
  The jurors return to the quiet hall. You look to Valtagar; he tries 
  to avoid your gaze and silently shakes his head. Its one of the 
  duergar priests that declare to the court, "We the jury have 
  found the defendants… guilty as all Hell, my lord Fazrian! 
  Guilty! Rot is in their souls, my lord! A rot that has spread and 
  will spread to others if they are not cut down now! Do so, my 
  lord, we the jury do beg! Do so!" 
  The angel lifts a hand, silencing the mad priest. "Enough of 
  these theatrics, Aximus. This court will not tolerate such 
  buffoonery." The angel stands from his throne, taking to the 
  steps with reluctant steps. "The jury has found you guilty—and 
  so you are. The only punishment in the court of Torm for the 
  failure to be pure… is death. Raxxus, perform your duties." 
  If Valtagar is confronted later over voting guilty along 
  with the rest of the jurors, he lies, claiming that the 
  arcanaloths assured him that Fazrian would see him, his 
  wife, and his people dead if they "so clearly lacked the 
  judgment to denounce these degenerates." He's a victim 
  see? This, however, is a flat-out lie.  
  As described in DotMM, a character that willingly 
  submits themselves to Fazrian's judgment is deemed 
  innocent and can perhaps force the angel to confront its 
  own folly.  
   
  THE VERDICT: NOT GUILTY 
  If the jury finds the adventurers not guilty, Fazrian 
  begrudgingly spares their lives—but also demands they 
  swear an oath to serve him when he one day raises an 
  army to purge Undermountain. Read the following: 
  The "not guilty" verdict rings throughout the court. The angel 
  only thaws after a frozen moment when it begrudgingly says, 
  "So are you judged innocent by your peers. Your lives are your 
  own… to be spent in fulfillment of further righteous causes." 
  The angel stands and descends from its macabre throne, his 
  greatsword in his hand. "But know this, my children: there shall 
  come a day when I will raise an army to purge Undermountain 
  of its degenerates, to bring light where it is dark, and good 
  conduct to where it is needed. I expect you to swear an oath, 
  here and now, before Torm himself, to serve me when the time 
  comes. Together we shall make the world clean." 
  If a character swears the oath, Fazrian knights them with 
  his greatsword, declaring them to now "rise as a servant 
  of Torm."  
  Screw It. At your discretion, Fazrian is appalled at the 
  jury's decision and decides to put the party to death 
  anyway. Read the following: 
  The jurors stand as one, quiet but for Valtagar Steelshadow, 
  who proclaims in a solid voice, "We the jury find the defendants 
  not guilty." 
  Silence thunders across the hall. You look to the fallen angel. 
  His lips are set in a flat line that, only after another moment, 
  curl into a callous scowl.  
  "No," he whispers. Then a little louder: "No. This cannot be. 
  It will not be. You are mistaken, my children. These 'heroes' are 
  guilty of the most primitive deformity: corruption. Do not 
  blame yourselves, though. I am… disappointed, but it was my 
  mistake to trust the sheep to spot the wolves amongst them." 
  The angel opens its palm; its greatsword—forged in the fires 
  of Heaven, no doubt—flies into its grasp. Fazrian levels the 
  cruel blade at you and denounces you: "For the crime of 
  unrepentant corruption, I, Fazrian, Hand of Torm, sentence you 
  to death." 
  Fazrian can only be mollified by a character that submits 
  themselves to his judgment, as described in DotMM.  
   
   
   
  
   
  27 
  REDEMPTION 
  If the party manages to force Fazrian into confronting his 
  own fall from grace, read the following: 
  Your words echo out across the courtroom, silencing all others 
  but the angel, who gapes at you. "I… I have fallen? I, who 
  basked in the warmth of Torm? You would dare accuse me of 
  cor—" 
  The angel's fury melts from its face as it confronts the truth. 
  It looks to its own hands, stained as they are. Its eyes swing to 
  the walls that weep blood. And then, just as chaos is about to 
  erupt, the unthinkable occurs: the angel collapses to his knees 
  and weeps. His sobs are like thunder! His remorse is like a flash 
  of light that blinds you! You hear steel rasping against stone, 
  and when you blink away that blinding light, you see Fazrian 
  impale himself on his own sword.  
  "Forgive me, my lord Torm," the angel whispers as he slowly 
  sinks onto the steel and moves no more. 
  No one else moves. No one dares. Then a pillar of golden 
  light crashes in from the ceiling, illuminating Fazrian's corpse, 
  and rapturing it to the heavens above! The weeping blood dries 
  and evaporates and the tiles of this forsaken place begin to glow 
  gold. Fazrian's corpse begins to float, disintegrating into golden 
  motes of ash. When all is done, not even his sword is left, 
  having melted into a puddle of molten steel.  
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  AREAS OF NOTE 
  The following areas are of note:  
   
  1. ENTRANCE 
  When the adventurers enter the Terminus Level, it's in 
  minecarts led along a tour narrated by Halaster. Read the 
  following: 
  You come upon a great well of darkness that slants deep into 
  the earth, pierced only by a solitary minecart track. Four carts 
  lay along the flat. As you creep forward, perpetually wary of 
  traps, the world explodes into neon lights, loud music, and far 
  too much confetti to be environmentally conscious. 
  Words burst into being above you: "THE TERMINUS TOUR! 
  NARRATED BY HALASTER BLACKCLOAK (YES, THAT ONE)!" 
  The disembodied voice of the Mad Mage himself bounces off 
  the walls, commanding you to get in the minecart.   
  Assuming the party plays ball, read the following as their 
  minecarts roll into Level 21:  
  Your minecart teeters on the edge, stopping with a rusty groan. 
  You hear a spell muttered from all around you; suddenly near-
  translucent hands materialize behind your cart and give it a 
  healthy shove. You go rolling through the dark, islands of light 
  passing you by. Halaster's voice squeaks from above: 
  "Welcome to the Terminus level! Once upon a time, King 
  Melair—yeah, that Melair, of the Melairkyn dwarves—sent his 
  best and brightest to oversee his most impoverished people as 
  they lifted mithril from these depths. If you look to your left, 
  you can see where he first found mithril. On your right is where 
  he first found his second deposit of mithril. Up ahead is where 
  he considered penning his dear mother but, ultimately, decided 
  he wasn't ready to open up that can of worms. 'Better not open 
  that can of worms,' he muttered—and truer words were never 
  spoken, I tell you. Last I spoke to my mother, she told me I 
  ought to get some sunlight, supply her with more grandkids. It 
  was all 'are you eating enough carrots? Did you try on that 
  sweater I sent you?' and so on and so forth. We lost contact 
  shortly after; wonder if she's still alive. It's been… centuries. 
  "Up on the left is where Melair took a nap, by the way. The 
  dwarves—they worshipped him, you know—called it King's 
  Rest, pretentious buggers. Vast pilgrimages to it every year, but 
  whenever I just sleep in a mine, all I get is a trespassing notice."  
  As your minecart speeds through the earth, you see it: a small, 
  hollowed out cave with a gilded pillow and hammock strung up 
  between two stalagmites. Halaster—you recognize his hand-
  writing—has put up a sign that says "King's Rest, 4 copper."  
  Still that voice prattles on; you can't escape it. When you 
  press your hands to ears, you hear it switch to a frequency that 
  seems to come from within your brain. You grit your teeth but 
  that only makes the voice chuckle. You thump your fist against 
  the cart and hear a snort. There's nowhere to go as Halaster 
  rambles on and on and on. He tells you all about the Terminus 
  Level, namely how he "honored King Melair" by using it as a 
  dumping ground for monsters, failed experiments, and "tire-
  some grad students." 
  When at last the ride ceases, you glide gently to a stop in a 
  cavern with four exits, two of which contain more mine tracks. 
  The voice shouts, "Thank you for partaking in our tour! Also, 
  you're doomed! So doomed! Doooooooooooooooomed!" 
  
   
  28 
  After that last bit, the tracks the characters rode into this 
  level retract, rolling up like a carpet. Thereafter, the tunnel 
  gets bricked up right before their eyes. A message then 
  appears on the wall: "WE SINCERELY HOPE YOU ENJOY 
  THE TERMINUS LEVEL!" After a minute, "WHILE YOU 
  CAN" is added just below the first message.   
   
  2. ORE-FILLED CART 
  If the party has yet to encounter the remorhaz (see 
  Wandering Monsters in DotMM), this is an ideal area for 
  it to appear. Do include the duergar as well. If you do so, 
  read the following: 
  Amidst your deadly tryst with this centipedal horror, you hear 
  the thunder of steel on stone. Out from the dark storm dwarven 
  warriors clad in bucket helms and armor dripping with the 
  omnipresent blood that weeps from the walls. In Dwarvish, they 
  shout a rallying cry: "For Steelshadow!" The first warrior draws 
  twin axes and leaps onto the monster's tail, hacking and 
  cackling with wild abandon! 
  Once the monster is dealt with, the duergar present 
  themselves as vassals of Valtagar Steelshadow. If she 
  wasn't slain on Level 6 or 20, this warrior is none other 
  than Skella Ironeye, the duergar warlord (see Previously 
  On… above). If not, the warrior is instead Rojkarn 
  Ironhead (a duergar with 40 hit points who normally 
  resides in Area 6). Once introductions have been made, 
  draw on the sample dialogue below, tailoring it to fit the 
  identity of the duergar speaking to the party: 
  • "If you're here… Fazrian already knows. Hurry! To the prince 
  with you before the giant orders you to court."  
  • On Fazrian: "A cruel giant whose skin is the color of 
  unpolished jade. I would mistake him for an angel if I hadn't 
  seen his callousness firsthand."   
  • "Prince Valtagar Steelshadow, pretender to the throne of 
  Gracklstugh, expects to meet all visitors to the Deep Mines—
  before it's too late. As his humble servant, I promise ye safety 
  and guest right." 
  • "These mines were once full of mithril; now, only iron and 
  monsters dumped here by the Mad Mage. Watch yourself; a 
  rift may open at any time." 
  • "Our people cannae suffer anymore incursions by the Mad 
  Mage. Somethin's got ta give! By when the iron dries up, I 
  pray to Laduguer that our fortifications are finished or we're 
  on our way back to Gracklstugh." 
   
  3. DEPLETED MINE 
  When the adventurers first visit this place, they are 
  confronted with a memory from the past. Read: 
  These mines have seen livelier days; the picks and hammers of 
  old no longer ring out here, instead lying in rusting silence. Yet 
  as you pick your way through the tunnels, a warm wind blows 
  in, and with it, a scene from the long-forgotten past: 
  Apparitions climb from the dirt and walls, armed with ghostly 
  picks. They take to their work feverishly, watched over by 
  armed guards who cast out wary glances towards the dark. You 
  can tell that they're afraid, but of what? 
   
  The picks fall silent one by one as the dwarves haul the last 
  of their metals to a cart: mithril, that legendary ore. As the last 
  deposit is dropped off, a miner tells a foreman, "That's the last 
  of it, boss." 
  The foreman swallows and addresses the miners and warriors 
  alike: "Be quick; leave your tools where they are. There are 
  worse things down here than dark elves and duergar. Say your 
  last to the Deep Mines, boys. Say your last to Undermountain." 
  With that, the apparitions vanish and silence reigns again.  
   
  4. DEEPER MINES 
   
  4A. INVISIBLE SPIES 
  If the three duergar don't detect the party, they are 
  engaged in a conversation in Dwarvish by when the party 
  arrives. Read the following, if a character in the party 
  shares a language with the duergar: 
  In the dark float whispers shared between scared voyeurs, all in 
  the proud Dwarven tongue: 
  "They look hungry, Hoitr," a dwarf whispers. His accent is 
  acutely duergar. "Mayhaps we can enlist them."  
  "And where d'ye think we're supposed to get enough food to 
  feed these brutes? We're hardly scrapin' by ourselves." 
  "Rojkarn—" 
  "Aye, aye, I heard the overseer's orders just the same as ye. 
  You wanna be the first dwarf to walk up, biscuits in hand? 
  Think you might like that? I say, we report back to Rojkarn with 
  inconclusion! Let some other poor saps be the ones to make first 
  contact with the giants!"  
  The duergar, all male, are named Hoitr, Heimyr, and 
  Tawd. If the adventurers come into view, Heimyr quickly 
  shushes his companions. When they see that party are 
  adventurers, read the following: 
  As you search for those invisible spies, the silence stretches 
  until at last it is broken by a casual "Hey" in Common.  
  "The name is Tawd," the whisper explains. "Vassal of Prince 
  Valtagar, Lord of the Mines. You're just what the prince has 
  been looking for. Come, come, drop your weapons and let us 
  speak plain! All visitors to the Deep Mines are extended guest 
  right by the prince himself!"  
   
  4B. SOMETHING WICKED 
  The fomorians here are starving; an extraordinary display 
  of conjuring sustenance could placate them, such as a 
  spell of create food and water or heroes' feast. Whether 
  sparing or slaying these monsters impresses or angers 
  Fazrian is up to you.   
  6. DUERGAR OUTPOST 
  If the adventurers have not yet met Rojkarn in Area 2, 
  plant him here as normal and rely on the dialogue 
  presented earlier to steer them towards Valtagar.  
   
   
   
  
   
  29 
  7. CLERIC'S END 
  You enter amidst chaos: a spectral maiden clad in the livery of 
  her deity swings wildly at an invisible foe. That foe catches her 
  winged mace and tears it from her grasp, sending it flying—it 
  fades away into the darkness. "No!" she cries, "You are the hand 
  of Torm! Act like—" 
  Before she can finish her indictment, her head is separated 
  from her shoulders by an invisible blade. It careens through the 
  air, landing at your feet. For a moment, all is still; the maiden 
  looks up at you with her still, dead eyes, as blue, spectral blood 
  oozes out onto the floor—and all at once, blue blood begins to 
  weep from the walls around you, as if her death sealed the fate 
  of this dungeon. For a moment, everything is still. The memory 
  has played out, paused. But as if you sneezed, they violently 
  shatter into spectral glass and disappear.  
   
  9. MINERS' QUARTERS 
  When the adventurers first arrive to this area, they behold 
  a strange but harmless phenomena: the ghosts of 
  Melairkyn dwarves yet sleep on the stone slabs. The 
  apparitions are without sentience and instead closer to an 
  illusion. Read the following: 
  Dust covers every surface of this forgotten chamber, lit by a soft 
  but spectral blue light. On stone slabs, dwarven apparitions 
  slumber, just as they so clearly did in life, some snoring, some 
  stirring, some awake and mending boots or writing letters by 
  candlelight. Once you step foot into the room proper, they 
  vanish, like a candlelight snuffed out with a strong blow.  
  While the trial is underway, Fazrian allows the party to 
  take this area as their resting chambers. He has his pet 
  nycaloth, Raxxus, keep an eye on the chamber. The 
  yugoloth remains invisible thanks to its Innate 
  Spellcasting trait.  
   
  10. COMMON AREAS 
   
  10B. DEN 
  If you're running Judged From on High, Malgorn is aware 
  of the location of the last card of his Three-Dragon Ante 
  set: Area 23C. Desperate to receive it, he tells the party 
  that the pit is laired in by three otyughs ("living garbage 
  disposers," he adds). He says, "Listen to me! Listen! I will 
  do anything for that card, hear me? A favor for a favor. I 
  swear it on the name of my father and on the name of 
  Prince Valtagar Steelshadow himself."  
   
  13. GRAND VESTIBULE 
  You come upon a grand vestibule streaked with blood. The very 
  walls weep with it, staining the murals that were once so pain-
  fully carved into the walls. Its vaulted ceiling is held up by old 
  pillars, one of which is carved to resemble a scowling, muscular 
  dwarf with sapphires for eyes—King Melair, perhaps? 
  A curtain of black dragon scales hang from a wall, brittle but 
  unaffected by the perpetual blood that so eerily leaks from the 
  walls. The curtain is opposite doors that sport a waterfall 
  carving. Its mithril inlays paint the scene as one of flowing, 
  molten metal. The craftsmanship here is appallingly thoughtful, 
  ruined now by that omnipresent blood.  
  Suspended from the ceiling by iron chains is a massive war-
  horn, 20-feet-long at least. The Dwarvish runes etched upon its 
  surface tell you that it is magical, protected, or beloved—if not 
  all three. Such is the legacy of the Melairkyn dwarves, over 
  whose toils you now tread, eons after their disappearance.   
  While the adventurers are here, the doors to Area 14 open; 
  the arcanaloth Aximus (in his dwarven form) shouts at 
  the party, "Come to hear the Dour Words of Laduguer, 
  eh? Quickly! Quickly, before Brother Exekarus begins his 
  eighth sermon of the day!"  
  If the party hesitates or refuses to come, Aximus says 
  "Don't you want to be rosy with the lord?" but otherwise 
  returns to Area 14.  
   
  14. SHRINE OF LADUGUER 
  A thin, smoky haze chokes this low-lit chapel, at the heart of 
  which rests an iron altar traced with silver and shaped like a 
  giant anvil. A shield fit for a giant is mounted behind it on the 
  wall, bearing the symbol of a broken arrow with a jagged arrow-
  head. In a set of drab robes kneels a duergar who turns to you 
  with something between a scowl and a smile plastered on his 
  face… Something between misery and excitement.  
  "Welcome! Have you come to hear the Dour Words of Great 
  Laduguer?" 
  If the adventurers linger here, Exekarus launches into a 
  sermon lasting 1d4 + 10 minutes. Throughout it, they can 
  make a DC 15 Wisdom (Insight) check to sense that these 
  duergar are… off; their mannerisms are unlike any other 
  duergar, many of which the party has surely met 
  throughout their time in Under-mountain. A DC 15 
  Intelligence (Religion) check also implies that the 
  "priest's" sermon is quite text-book and lacking a personal 
  interpretation or touch that most priests would weave into 
  their preaching.  
  Recited Dogma. The arcanaloths love to share their 
  favorite maxims of Laduguer, be it in a sermon or in a run-
  of-the-mill conversation. They always manage to work in 
  those maxims by precipitating it with, "As the Dour 
  Laduguer says…" or attributing the quote to "Holy 
  Laduguer." No matter how brief the party's interactions 
  with the fiends, they'll walk away having heard one, if not 
  all, of these maxims:  
  • "No matter how much wealth and power you have, it's never 
  enough." 
  • "The fight never ends. Take what you deserve and destroy all 
  who stand in your way." 
  
   
  30 
  • "Let no emotion rule you. Abandon joy! Abandon love! 
  Abandon pride and anger and ambition, for they are all signs 
  of weakness! Know your role and perform it to the best of 
  your ability." 
   
  15. VALTAGAR'S QUARTERS 
  The walls of this chamber are adorned with iron masks—the 
  visors of helms, scarred or charred or stained with blood shed 
  long ago, all arranged neatly. At a lectern studies a duergar 
  mage, if the spellbook at his disposal is any indication—and 
  rather than paper or papyrus, this one is formed from mithril 
  plates. The mage looks up at you, his dark eyes unblinking. The 
  very first thing out of his mouth is, "Has Fazrian found you?" 
  When Valtagar invites the party to conspire with him 
  against Fazrian, you have a handful of options to choose 
  from:  
  • He proposes they take the fight directly to Fazrian: "Quickly; 
  if you're here, the giant will surely know. You cannot escape 
  the Deep Mines without alerting him. We must take the fight 
  to him now while we are at our strongest." 
  • He proposes they meet Fazrian and stand trial: "The giant will 
  try you for your 'crimes.' As Lord of the Deep Mines, I will 
  be one of the jurors deliberating your fate. At least, I will be, 
  if he does not suspect we have already met. No matter the 
  evidence presented against you, I shall ensure you survive the 
  ordeal. On your way out of the Deep Mines, I pray for nothing 
  short of you freeing us from this tyrant. Gods know I want 
  nothing more than to return to my rightful home of 
  Gracklstugh." 
   
  As the Companion holds that the Insight skill should not 
  be a lie-detector, any checks made against Valtagar 
  should reveal that the duergar seems to be confident and 
  relieved, if not to eager, to proceed with the next chapter 
  of its plot. It should not betray the fact that he intends to 
  vote guilty, no matter what, to provoke the party into 
  fighting Fazrian.  
   
  18. IRON MINE 
  The sound of mining echoes throughout these caves. A steel 
  voice cuts through the din of pick and chain and cussing: 
  "Come now, you curs! Surely you wish to return home, do 
  you not? Swing! Strip! Swing! Strip! Take from the earth what 
  is ours! Tear open its clots and let it bleed! Strip! Swing! Strip! 
  Your break isn't for another forty, so get your fragile selves 
  back to work! Gracklstugh awaits! Redemption awaits!" 
  The voice belongs to Stalagma Steelshadow, the wife of 
  Valtagar; it cuts over all other noise here. If the miners 
  attack the adventurers, she can quickly arrive astride her 
  gorgon to settle the conflict. She has no compassion for 
  the duergar, but understands that the mining operation 
  will suffer for any harm they incur. 
  Roleplaying Stalagma. An absolute brickhouse, 
  Stalagma is unflinching in danger. Unlike Valtagar, she 
  has no fear of adventurers; she's devoured or dissolved too 
  many to count over her years. After all, she is a dragon. 
  When she first sees the adventurers, she shouts, "You 
  there! Either pick up a pick and take to the wall or get the 
  hell out of my mine!" 
  Hinting at the Truth. The duergar refer to their cruel 
  overseer as "Valtagar's dragon" and "the lady of steel," 
  unaware of how right they truly are. You want to work in 
  these in often so that your party groans when Stalagma 
  assumes her true form later. 
   
  19. OUTPOST 
   
  19A. WAY TO LEVEL 22 
  Unlike on some other levels of Undermountain, you 
  shouldn't contrive a method to prevent the party from 
  advancing to Level 22. They must always have the agency 
  to decide whether they will face Fazrian's wrath or flee 
  from his "justice."   
  Xindulus. The invisible ultroloth guards the secret 
  door to Level 22. Unlike other yugoloths, which look 
  fiendish, the ultroloth is as alien as they come, which thus 
  necessitates a description. When Xindulus' invisibility is 
  dropped, read the following: 
  The hidden door slides in its socket—and suddenly you're at 
  your knees as a thunderous screech consumes your brain! You 
  turn around and there it is! There it is, a smooth-faced creature 
  with no other features than its inveigling eyes! It is a creature 
  unlike any other you have ever seen! A creature with no place 
  in this world—not a fiend, angel, or horror from the Far Realms, 
  only a gray-skinned abomination whose flat face is the sum of 
  all your deranged uncle's ramblings of "aliens" and "visitors!"  
  And its voice, gods above! Its voice makes no sound, uttering a 
  word audible only to deep within your brain, a word that slips 
  past your mind's most forward defenses: "No." 
  Unlike in DotMM, Xindulus does not need to attack 
  immediately if a creature opens the secret door. It can 
  instead cast mass suggestion (for the purpose of this, give 
  it Common, unless all party members speak Abyssal or 
  Infernal). It says, "You should proceed to Lord Fazrian 
  and submit yourself to his judgment." 
  Tactics. On its first turn, Xindulus attempts to summon 
  1d4 nycaloths. On its second turn, it casts firestorm. On 
  its third turn, it uses its Hypnotic Gaze if it doesn't need 
  to flee via dimension door.  
   
  21. CLEAN AIR STATION 
  The natural tunnels break into a mortared room whose smooth 
  walls are otherwise decorated in runes. The air here is 
  noticeably fresher, cleaner even. You suck in a breath greedily, 
  and it's as if you're back on the surface of this world, before you 
  learned to appreciate open skies and crisp, cold air. Your heart 
  twitches as you remember the world above…  
   
   
   
  
   
  31 
  23. FAZRIAN'S COURT 
   
  23B. HALL OF FINAL JUDGMENT 
  When the party visits this area for the first time, read the 
  following: 
  The neglected foyer empties out into a hall dimly lit by distant 
  braziers. Through the thin haze, you make out a giant upon a 
  throne fashioned from bones. His skin is the color of soft jade 
  and from his back sprout two white-feathered wings. His eyes 
  are of molten silver and his smile is unwelcoming. 
  "Welcome," the giant tells you. "To my court—to the Hall of 
  Final Judgment. I am Fazrian the Just. In the name of Torm, I 
  ask you… have you been righteous?"  
  The giant focuses on you with the heat of the sun. Its gaze is 
  sterile and clinical, and it nitpicks at your every flaw, even those 
  you've managed to hide on the inside. There is no escaping that 
  heat, that attention, that scrutiny. You feel a force in the air; it 
  is unlike any you have ever experienced in Undermountain. It 
  is warm, but unkind. It is gentle—but even the softest hands can 
  curl into fists, and that's what you feel here. That's what you 
  feel. As if the open palm will clench into a fist that will smite 
  you from the heavens themselves. You feel far too small… as 
  if you were but a child again, facing your father as he devises 
  your punishment, disappointment fierce on his face as he 
  wonders why his child misbehaves so.  
  You have come face to face with an angel, of that you have 
  no doubt, and his question thunders through your mind: have 
  you been righteous? Have you?  
  Now that Fazrian has been introduced to the party, the 
  Judged From on High storyline begins.  
  Tactics. In combat, Fazrian relies on these tactics: 
  • Fazrian has a flying speed of 120 ft. and Area 23B has a ceiling 
  of 40 ft. On his first turn, he flies upwards after making his 
  attacks or before, if he intends to cast spells. If he can afford 
  the opportunity attacks, he relies on strafing foes on the 
  ground before flying back up.  
  • To crowd in its foes or split the party, Fazrian opens up with 
  a blade barrier spell, devoting his concentration to 
  maintaining the spell.  
  • If his foes are clumped up, he unleashes a flame strike spell to 
  capture as many as possible.  
  • If Raxxus the nycaloth is present, it casts mirror image on 
  itself before entering the fray. If blade barrier is up, it 
  teleports in (or out) before or after making a Claw attack. It 
  focuses on one single character, making Claw attacks against 
  it to further exacerbate the fiendish wound the attack inflicts.  
  • If they're not already present, the arcanaloths Aximus and 
  Exekarus hear Fazrian's call and attack from Area 14, arriving 
  on the second turn of combat (via two back-to-back 
  dimension door spells, with each one taking its peer through 
  the door with them, per the spell). Both devote their reactions 
  to counterspell or shield spells. 
  • Aximus targets an armored character with a heat metal spell, 
  especially if blade barrier separates it from its target. On its 
  next turn, it casts finger of death while using a bonus action 
  to continue inflicting damage to the armored character.  
  • Exekarus unleashes a chain lightning spell, then mops up with 
  a fireball spell the next turn.  
   
  Valtagar. If Valtagar is present, he joins combat on the 
  second round of combat if he's confident that the 
  adventurers can defeat the angel. Likewise, his wife 
  Stalagma, joins the fray if present. They respectively have 
  the statistics of an archmage and adult silver dragon. 
  Knowing that the yugoloths will answer to any master 
  with enough clout or coin, they focus on taking down 
  Fazrian. If the party becomes collateral damage during 
  this attack, so be it.  
   
  JUDGED FROM ON HIGH 
  During the trial's proceedings, Fazrian, of course, sits on 
  his throne. The defendants are to stand with their backs 
  against the open pit on the southern end. The prosecution 
  stands in the crystal menhirs to the north. Jurors and 
  witnesses stand behind the prosecution, along the 
  northern wall.  
   
  23C. GARBAGE DISPOSAL 
  As you stand near the pit, you hear… a scrabbling. As if bone 
  and flesh paws at the sheer stone walls. The darkness here defies 
  you, as if by magic. From its depths, you hear whispers, three 
  in all, and each offered by a different voice. These whispers… 
  they echo within your mind, begging you to visit the dark 
  below, to come "only for a little while." 
  Creepy. You shut down a shudder. 
  The "defiant darkness" here is just a darkness spelled 
  placed at the middle of the pit's height to keep up the 
  suspense of what's down there. Darkvision really ruins the 
  game sometimes. The darkness spell does not darken the 
  pit's floor, nor the cave attached to it.  
  Judged From on High. If you run this variant, Malgorn 
  knows that the last card of the Three-Dragon Ante set is 
  down here with the otyughs. They telepathically tell the 
  adventurers that it was they who informed Malgorn—and 
  told him that if he wanted his precious card, all he had to 
  do was come down here and take it.  
   
  24. SECRET VAULT 
  There is little here in this hidden vault. No loot, no monsters—
  only a headless corpse and a winged mace. The dead woman 
  has been left in the rubble; maggots the size of carrots squirm 
  within her guts. Where, you wonder, is her head? Then you find 
  it, forlorn and forgotten in a dusty corner.  
  As you turn the head around, you can't help but think that she 
  was pretty in life. Not so much in death. As you lift your eyes 
  from hers—already half-eaten by maggots—you see that the 
  blood stains on the far well depict a giant hand… the symbol of 
  Torm, God of Courage and Self-Sacrifice. 
  What a farce.  
   
   
   
  
   
  32 
  EPILOGUE 
  They've done it, the madmen. The adventurers have 
  reached 17th level, triumphing over nearly all of 
  Undermountain's troubles. Only one level remains 
  between them and the Mad Mage. Your game is to change 
  considerably now that the spellcasters among the party 
  have access to 9th level spells—so consult with them on 
  which spell they choose and prepare yourself for any 
  possible chicanery.  
  Wish. Now that the adventurers are 17th level, the wish 
  spell is available to wizards, sorcerers, and bards that use 
  their Magical Secrets feature to gain the spell. Keep in 
  mind the following to prevent Halaster's untimely—but 
  deserved—demise: 
  • If the caster simply wishes for Halaster to die… he just 
  reforms 1d10 days later via his Rejuvenation trait. 
  • If the caster wishes for Halaster to cease existing, the Knot in 
  the Weave explodes, probably killing every single creature in 
  Undermountain.  
  • If the caster wishes for Halaster to have never existed, the 
  adventurers are knocked down to 5th level, since they only 
  advanced in power while in Undermountain. 
  • If the caster wishes for Halaster to become sane, they have just 
  unleashed the worst possible version of him upon the world. 
  • If the caster somehow manages to skirt the above issues and 
  still wishes to get rid of Halaster, they may succeed, but a 
  version of the Mad Mage from an alternate reality steps in to 
  fill his shoes. This one is even crazier or crueler than the 
  original.  
  • Halaster may be warded against wish spells via an upgraded 
  contingency spell he has crafted; whenever a wish spell that 
  affects him occurs, he is given time to review it and screw 
  around with it. Halaster is one of the most powerful mortal 
  wizards in existence; thus, this isn't outside the realm of 
  possibilities. Someone he pissed off would have tried this 
  long ago before the party was even born; he would already 
  have planned of this and thwarted other attempts on his 
  existence.  
  • If all else fails, then Halaster has already wished that he cannot 
  be thwarted by a wish spell. Insist that wish spells cannot alter 
  other wishes.  
   
  Essentially, be happy if the adventurers use their wish 
  for something that doesn't derail the campaign. The best 
  possible meta-use of a wish spell could be for them to skip 
  Level 22 and reach Halaster's tower, saving you several 
  sessions of game-time.  
   
  THE SEND-OFF 
  Unlike other levels of DotMM, there is no Host's Send-
  off—which the party should find curious, since Halaster 
  never shuts up and would surely gloat over orchestrating 
  the trial. Cap off your session with the send-off below: 
  Through the fresco you delve, leaving behind the Mad Mage's 
  dumping grounds, leaving behind the angel that has so clearly 
  fallen from grace. Instinctively, you know that there is only one 
  more distraction keeping you from the Mad Mage's lair… but 
  as you turn into the darkened depths, Halaster is absent. Not 
  even silent, just absent. His attention—that inescapable 
  warmth—is strangely absent. Why isn't he watching you? 
  Mocking you?  
  What, you must wonder, awaits you below?  
   
   
   
  
   
  33 
  LEVEL XXII: SHADOWDUSK HOLD 
  "The stars turn, and a time presents itself,"  
  – Dezmyr Shadowdusk  
   
  QUICK NOTES 
  • 
  The party doesn't need to fight this level's bosses to get to 
  Level 23, they only need to reach Area 35. Of course, they 
  will lose out on experience—and possibly doom the world 
  to an aberrant apocalypse.  
  • 
  The Shadowdusk family has made frequent contact with 
  the Far Realm via the black crystal tablet, which is in Area 
  23. The portal is in Area 32.  
  • 
  This level's three bosses cannot truly die—the death 
  knights Dezmyr and Zalthar and the adult blue dracolich 
  provided its phylactery isn't destroyed—meaning that the 
  party might have to face them again in the far-off future. 
  These foes would not be appeased with anything but the 
  adventurers' death and eternal servitude as undead slaves.  
  • 
  Star spawn, featured in Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes are 
  featured on this level. When using them, be cautious; their 
  CR's are incorrect and misleading.  
  • 
  There is a trapped couatl in Area 34, a LG celestial. While 
  it has little purpose in DotMM, its role is expanded in the 
  Dead Hold variant.  
  • 
  There are no other means to Level 23 in Undermountain. 
  To reach the Mad Wizard's Lair, the party must take the 
  arcane gate in Area 35, which requires the sacrifice of a 
  magic item. As written on Level 23, Halaster is keen on 
  returning this item to the party once they reach his throne 
  room, if he has no intention to fight them. However, the 
  Dead Hold variant on this level has the item permanently 
  destroyed when given to the gate—as a means to deprive 
  the Shadowdusks of their black crystal tablet.  
   
  PREVIOUSLY ON DUNGEON OF THE MAD MAGE 
  Keep in mind the following when running this level: 
  • The party has likely already encountered Shadowdusk family 
  members throughout Undermountain: the mage Maleen and 
  the assassin Tendra Nightblade sent to Level 12 to recruit 
  Drivvin Freth as an apprentice of the Mad Mage; and Akarrth, 
  the mad archmage that led an expedition to Level 20.   
  • A sun blade could be found on Level 18; it would come into 
  great use against the six wraiths that join Dezmyr, a death 
  knight, in battle.  
  • Fazrian, the planetar of Level 21, dreamt of purging 
  Undermountain of its filth—was Shadowdusk Hold to be the 
  heart of darkness the angel intended to impale? Surely the 
  planetar must have known of the family's horrific endeavors. 
  Surely, if its current two leaders were once paladins of Torm, 
  Fazrian's' god.  
  MADNESS UNFURLED 
  The penultimate level of Undermountain is a mad arcade 
  devoted to opening a gate that should've never even been 
  discovered. The Far Realm has corrupted Shadowdusk 
  Hold, leaking out from the portal the family has so 
  foolishly opened. Above all else, Level 22 should be 
  weird—and not the campy, oddness of the Mad Mage, but 
  horrifically weird.  
  To that end, consider the following additions to 
  Shadowdusk Hold: 
   
  NESTED TENCTACLES 
  As described in Halaster's Game, contact with the Far 
  Realm has sprouted tentacles that infest much of 
  Undermountain, especially Shadowdusk Hold. With a 
  mind of their own, they can attack a creature within 10 
  feet of it (+6 to hit). On a hit, the creature is grappled 
  (escape DC 14) and takes 1d6 psychic damage. The 
  tentacle nest has 16 hit points and an AC of 14. Inside 
  each nest is a cloudy eye that leaks a milky-white fluid.  
  These nests have been scattered throughout the level to 
  harass the party.  
   
  FUNKY PHYSICS  
  The energies of the Far Realm are wreaking havoc on the 
  physics of Shadowdusk Hold. At any moment, an area or 
  character—but not an aberration—can suffer from one of 
  the following effects: 
  Gravitational Distortion. Gravity no longer affects 
  creatures equally in Shadowdusk Hold, subjecting some 
  to the effects of a reverse gravity spell. At your discretion, 
  a creature must roll a d20. On a result of 1-11, gravity 
  remains normal for the creature. On a roll of 12-15, 
  gravity vertically reverses; on a result of 16-19, it shifts 
  90 degrees so that they fall towards the east. On a roll of 
  20, gravity presses down on the character, encumbering 
  them.   
  Time Dilation. Time has become stretchy. At your 
  discretion, when a character leaves an area, their 
  perception of time remains the same, but minutes may 
  have passed. Characters keep to the same clock if they are 
  within the same room together or if they remain in each 
  other's line of sight, otherwise time is prone to lengthen 
  for one of them. Stairways are especially screwy. This can 
  be your party's ticket to a rest if allowed one.  
  Synesthesia. A character's senses may get jumbled, 
  allowing them to taste colors, smell the passage of time, 
  and more. A character afflicted by synesthesia must roll a 
  d10 and consult the Synesthesia table.   
   
   
   
  
   
  34 
  SYNESTHESIA  
  d10 Form of Synesthesia 
  1 You personify numerals (ex. the numeral 4 is generous). 
  2 You can taste music; high notes are sweet and cloying; low 
  notes are earthy and bitter. 
  3 Letters always have a color affixed to them, such as the 
  letter C always being magenta.  
  4 You can hear colors.  
  5 Others' emotions radiate a heat (or lack thereof).  
  6 You mirror the tactile feelings of another person you can 
  see (i.e., if they touch a hot surface, you feel the heat too).  
  7 Certain sounds produce tactile sensations on your body. 
  8 Words have distinct tastes on your tongue.  
  9 Any sound provokes aggression within you.  
  10 Silence provokes aggression within you.  
   
  Toxic Air. Once during this level, oxygen becomes 
  toxic—and creatures that normally need to breathe find 
  that they no longer need to. For the next 10 minutes, every 
  creature that breathes in air takes 3 (1d6) poison damage.  
  A successful DC 10 Intelligence check is enough to 
  make the connection between breathing and pain. After 
  10 minutes, the oxygen loses its toxicity and all creatures 
  therein must breathe normally. There's no indication when 
  this change occurs; some creatures might foolishly 
  suffocate themselves as they still believe that they must 
  not breathe to live.  
   
  MADNESS 
  Madness is heavily featured on this level; several effects 
  can induce it. For your convenience, the Madness tables 
  from the Dungeon Master's Guide have been included in 
  Appendix C.  
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  Level 22 has its flaws and its strengths—but the 
  Companion contends that it has much more potential than 
  what is presented in DotMM. The adventurers have 
  already faced cults working towards diabolical ends 
  before—so why not give them a level where they're 
  already too late? 
  Doom Has Come. Under this variant, the Shadow-
  dusks have stabilized their portal to the Far Realm and an 
  inaugural class of star spawn—the aberrant horrors 
  featured in Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes—have stormed 
  through the sanctum, slaughtering any-one not of 
  Shadowdusk blood. This variant seeks to turn Level 22 
  into a feverish romp infested with horrors from beyond 
  the stars.  
  A Storm of Strange. The creatures of Shadowdusk Hold 
  must seek out the adventurers, charging them down as 
  they're detected. Shift the onus away from the party—
  rather than investigating rooms one-by-one and coming 
  upon foes, the foes must come upon them instead if you're 
  to achieve the atmosphere of Dead Hold. Give no quarter, 
  no respite.   
  Player Sacrifice. As noted several times below, in the 
  sixth encounter of Dead Hold, one mortal must be given 
  (or give themselves) to the Far Realm to host a star 
  spawn seer. If one of the adventurers is slain, you might 
  have the Shadowdusk minions steal their corpse and 
  revive it, sacrificing them to the portal in Area 32. The 
  circumstances are up to you.   
  Changes to the Module. The Dead Hold variant makes 
  a number of changes, elaborated on below:  
  • The Shadowdusks were attended to by a large number of 
  cultists and servants born into or brought to the Hold. Most 
  are dead now, slaughtered by star spawn. Some managed to 
  flee—into the Expanded Dungeon or via the gate to Level 23.  
  • The adventurers will meet a fleeing cultist named Jeras in Area 
  1 who elaborates on the situation. You want him to spell this 
  out for the party: the sanctum is overrun, there's a portal to 
  the Far Realm, and the only way out is the arcane gate to "the 
  Mad Mage's private sanctum." 
  • Most aberrations on this level, including the nothics and 
  slaadi, have been cosmetically changed to star spawn.  
  • Dead Hold has up to seven encounters to run. 
  • Several foes have been removed from the level to make up for 
  the additional difficulty of facing real star spawn. 
   
  Magus ex Machina. If you're concerned about the far-
  reaching consequences of star spawn being let into the 
  world en masse, remember that Halaster can intervene 
  off-screen. Once larva magi are around, even the Mad 
  Mage is sane enough to see that this might require some 
  clean-up.  
   
  STAR SPAWN 
  As noted in DotMM, star spawn can periodically visit 
  Shadowdusk Hold. These horrors are described in 
  Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes and are featured in the 
  Dead Hold variant. Do not be deceived by their listed 
  CR's: star spawn are deadly. The Companion has so far 
  advocated unleashing Undermountain's full wrath on the 
  party, so long as they had a fair shake… but you must err 
  on the side of caution with star spawn. You must.   
  Grue. Even the lowly grues can doom a party, as they 
  impose disadvantage on attack rolls and saving throws on 
  non-aberrations within 20 feet—without a saving throw 
  to resist that aura. Grues are pitiful by themselves but 
  become a deadly nuisance when mixed with other 
  creatures.  
  Mangler. The mangler is rated as a CR 5 monster —
  and that could not be further from the truth. This horror 
  can make up to six attacks in a single turn, with advantage 
  against a target that has yet to act in the first turn of 
  combat—and with its +7 bonus to Stealth checks, it's 
  more than likely to surprise someone in the party. Were 
  the mangler to make all six attacks against one target, it 
  would deal an average of 48 slashing damage and 42 
  psychic damage—and a critical hit isn't unlikely. Ask 
  yourself how much health your party's wizard or sorcerer 
  has before you merrily unleash the mangler upon them.  
   
   
  
   
  35 
  Hulk. The hulk is both an aberrant bruiser and tank. If 
  it strikes the same target with both Slam attacks, it can 
  stun them—a condition that is deadly at all levels of this 
  game. Likewise, because of their Psychic Mirror trait, 
  other star spawn, namely the seer, will target them with 
  psychic damage so that it bounces off and harms the hulk's 
  foes. Do not forget that even if two hulks are within 10 
  feet of each other, they cannot create an endless feedback 
  loop of psychic damage. The triggering psychic damage 
  bounces off the hulk only once; the other hulk is simply 
  immune to the damage.   
  Seer. The seer is our penultimate villain in Dead Hold. 
  It can only be formed by a foul union between a mortal 
  and sentient energy from the Far Realm. One of the 
  Shadowdusk archmagi must be sacrificed for this 
  purpose (preferably Melissara or Cassiok). In combat, the 
  seer targets its pet hulks with the Psychic Orb ability, 
  splashing its foes with psychic damage.  
  Larva Mage. The larva mage comes out to play only if 
  eight hours pass without the party closing the portal to the 
  Far Realm in Area 32. Unfortunately for our heroes, even 
  if they slay the creature, it might later return, per its 
  Return to Worms trait.  
   
  REFLAVORING OTHER CREATURES 
  For a mad asylum in frequent contact with the Far Realm, 
  Shadowdusk Hold doesn't have enough star spawn. There 
  are aberrations, sure, but not enough of those mind-
  rending horrors. You can reflavor the creatures on this 
  level without altering the balance of its encounters. 
  Simply cosmetically alter them while keeping their 
  statistics the same.  
  Nothics. Most nothics on this level are now star spawn 
  in name and appearance while retaining their normal 
  statistics. No two look alike; they can only be described 
  as "multi-armed horrors" whose tentacle-limbs are 
  serrated with teeth. The Companion notes which nothics 
  have been turned into star spawn. 
  Slaadi. While they're aberrations, slaadi have been seen 
  before the party—and they come from Limbo, not the Far 
  Realm. They are instead reptilian ooze-creatures whose 
  limbs somehow cut sharper than forged steel. 
  Wraiths. Dezmyr's council of wraiths are instead 
  creatures of a sickly light, roughly humanoid in shape—
  for that is the closest association a mortal mind can make 
  when confronted by these things.  
  Death Knights. Because Dezmyr and Zalthar were 
  paladins in life that fell from grace, you need not change 
  them much. Dark powers of any sort can create a death 
  knight. Perhaps instead of skeletons clad in armor, they're 
  now faceless creatures in an exoskeleton of chitin—your 
  choice.   
   
  THE DEAD RUN 
  Dead Hold is designed to evoke terror and urgency. It is 
  ran as a series of encounters aimed at getting the party 
  from Area 1 to Areas 23, 32, 34 and 35, the last of which 
  gets them to Level 23. In an ideal world, the party will 
  free the couatl in Area 34, which can close the portal in 
  Area 32 by sacrificing itself. Thereafter, the party can take 
  the arcane gate in Area 35 to Level 23—hopefully 
  sacrificing the Shadowdusks' black crystal tablet, found 
  in Area 23, which began this entire mess in the first place. 
  Under this variant, any magic item sacrificed to gain 
  passage to Level 23 is permanently destroyed.  
  Quick Burn. Dead Hold is not a slow burn. The party 
  is entering Shadowdusk Hold after it's already fallen. 
  They must be confronted with horror at every turn. It's 
  only after that all seems lost that they're given a glimmer 
  of hope in the form of closing the portal to the Far Realm 
  and sparing the world from these aberrant horrors.  
  Maintaining Balance. Because the inclusion of star 
  spawn adds more challenge to an already deadly level 
  (again, there's two death knights, multiple archmagi and 
  a dracolich!), you can remove other creatures from the 
  level to maintain a (relative) balance. These creatures are:  
  • The four nothics in Area 3 to make up for Encounter 1 
  • Four of the twelve nothics in Area 24A and two death slaadi 
  (one from both Areas 28 and 31) to make up for Encounters 
  5 & 6.  
  • One of the archmagi, who must be sacrificed for the star 
  spawn seer to take a mortal form. Preferably, this is 
  Melissara (of Area 10), who is dragged kicking and 
  screaming to the portal after the party meets her and while 
  they're away. Otherwise, use Cassiok (Area 39) because, 
  c'mon, the body of a beetle isn't horrific, it's just ridiculous. 
  Alternatively, do both, if Melissara does not end up fighting 
  the party.  
  • Three of the six wraiths in Area 38 to make up for Encounter 
  6.  
   
  Other Encounters. On this level, more than any, 
  creatures already dwelling in other rooms—such as the 
  many nothics and grells should investigate other sounds, 
  should the party fail to be stealthy. You want doors being 
  kicked down and hordes of horrors to descend upon the 
  party. The first level is relatively quiet, but the second and 
  third are where they come under fire from throngs of 
  monsters.  
  Kicking it Off. After the party meets Jeras, the cultist 
  added to Area 1, the encounters below—the Dead Run, 
  more or less—begins. 
   
   
   
  
   
  36 
  1. THE MANGLER DESCENDS 
  The first encounter of Dead Hold features the star spawn 
  mangler, a terrifying, multi-armed creature. After the 
  party are appraised of the situation by Jeras, they're liable 
  to an ambush by the mangler. It begins to hunt them and 
  will attack before they descend to the second level of 
  Shadowdusk Hold. It prefers to attack in Area 3 or 9 
  (replacing the area's preexisting combatants if need be) 
  after the party returns from an adjacent room. It can also 
  attack in the stairwell if they immediately make for it. 
  When the adventurers return to either of these areas, they 
  find the hallway dark; all sconces have been snuffed—
  curious, since they were lit with continual flame spells.  
  Death From Above. The mangler clings to the ceilings 
  or hangs from the walls, dropping amidst the party when 
  it attacks. It immediately unleashes its Flurry of Claws 
  attack. Don't forget to utilize its +7 bonus to its Stealth 
  checks. 
  Flight. If the mangler is reduced to 20 hit points or 
  fewer, it takes the Hide action as a bonus action and flees. 
  It clambers up the walls, its claws puncturing the stone, to 
  avoid opportunity attacks. If it can, it goes for the stairwell 
  to Shadowdusk Hold's second level. It can then attack 
  later on.  
  Fear of the Unknown. When the mangler attacks, 
  describe it no more than as a "a faceless, fleshless, eight-
  armed horror whose claws are the color of night." Don't 
  try to fill in the blanks, but instead let the players' 
  imaginations run wild. To that end, you want the mangler 
  to escape, because then it becomes an object of dread to 
  hang over the party, until its inevitable return. If it dies, 
  the party can inspect its corpse and that scrubs away much 
  of its mystery. 
   
  2. GRUE SWARM 
  On the heels of the mangler's attack comes a swarm of star 
  spawn: 2d4+3 star spawn grues and 1d4+1 nothics that 
  boil out of the stairwells in Area 3 or 9. They're chasing 
  after 1d6+2 blubbering cultists that are making a break 
  for the exit.  
  Nothics. The nothics involved in this attack are only 
  nothics mechanically. Cosmetically, they're star spawn, 
  not cursed Shadowdusk arcanists. Subtract their numbers 
  from the five nothics found in Area 20B. They're included 
  in this encounter only because grues lose much of their 
  potential if they're not joined by a non-grue ally (per their 
  Aura of Madness trait).  
  Funky Physics. When the star spawn boil out from the 
  depths, the Far Realm's influence poisons the oxygen in 
  Shadowdusk Hold for the next 10 minutes. The party will 
  likely associate this sudden change with the grues. 
   
  3. MELISSARA'S PLEA 
  The third encounter is a social one that threatens to erupt 
  into violence. The adventurers open a door—any door, it 
  doesn't matter, for the Far Realm has warped space just as 
  it has time—onto Area 10A, where they meet Melissara, 
  the archmage.  
  Melissara wants nothing more than to end this madness. 
  The star spawns' recent arrival has shocked her to her 
  core, but she dares not make an escape, believing that an 
  "eight-armed horror" is waiting for her to make her move 
  and that "they" will allow none of the Shadowdusk family 
  to leave. "They want their parade," Melissara says, "they 
  crave the welcoming my brethren so promised them." She 
  implores them to seal the portal and slay her undead 
  cousins.  
  She also tells them where to find the black crystal tablet 
  that started this entire mess. If they can find a way to 
  destroy it, grand. If they cannot, the best thing they can do 
  for this world, she says, is to take it far away from 
  Shadowdusk Hold so that her brethren can never again use 
  it to contact the Far Realm.  
  Melissara will allow the adventurers to rest in her suite, 
  but they must contend with the irritable and 
  overprotective Derrion (her husband, a champion) who 
  refrains from violence only at her request. However, if 
  they do so, the seventh encounter of Dead Hold comes to 
  pass.  
  See Area 10 for further details and Melissara's dialogue 
  for this encounter.  
   
  4. CELESTIAL WHISPERS 
  This encounter should occur only on Levels 2 or 3 of 
  Shadowdusk Hold. When it does is up to you, but it should 
  be done early in their exploration of Level 2.  
  By now, Tezca-Zyanya, the couatl trapped in the black 
  obelisk of Area 34, has sensed the adventurers. The 
  celestial is aware of the fell energies seeping out from the 
  Far Realm portal in Area 35 and seeks to close it. To do 
  so, Tezca-Zyanya must be freed from the obelisk.  
  When the couatl contacts the party, read: 
  Madness presses in all around you, bringing your mind to its 
  very knees. As the darkness seeps in, you cannot help but reel 
  and despair. Yet as you near the brink, a warmth consumes your 
  heart and you hear within your head the chime of bells…  
  "Listen to me," whispers a saccharine voice. "This world, this 
  very reality, is in danger of falling apart. There yawns a portal 
  on the lowest level of this mad asylum, a portal to a realm that 
  should not be. Free me! It is my duty to spare this world from 
  those horrors! Free me by toppling my prison—an obelisk 
  guarded by a knight of death! I am Tezca-Zyanya and it is my 
  duty to end this madness!"   
  The couatl cannot directly guide the adventurers to the 
  obelisk, but they can feel its warmth or hear the bells 
  stronger when they go in the correct direction. 
   
   
  
   
  37 
  Sacrifice. Tezca-Zyanya's only solution to the Far 
  Realm portal is to enter it itself and close it from the other 
  side. Doing so will subject the celestial to an eternity of 
  torment and madness—a sacrifice it is more than willing 
  to make, if given the chance. See Area 34 for the couatl's 
  dialogue concerning this. This act of sacrifice should 
  come as a twist later on, so don't reveal this to the party 
  just yet.  
   
  5. THE SEVEN-ARMED SLASHER 
  This encounter can occur anywhere on Level 2 or 3, 
  preferably in Areas 20 or 29, such as when the party is 
  leaving Area 23 or about to descend the staircase to Area 
  30. A pack of 2d4+1 star spawn grues swarms the party; 
  amidst these murderous scamps lurks a seven-armed star 
  spawn mangler that was so hunched over it almost 
  passed as a bulkier grue. That this mangler has seven arms 
  should come as a shock to the party—it confirms that the 
  eight-armed horror they already faced has bedfellows.  
   
  6. ENVOYS FROM THE HUNGERING REALM  
  This encounter is centered on the portal in area 32. The 
  time has come to offer to the Far Realm a living vessel 
  that can host a star spawn seer. The ideal candidate is 
  Melissara, the archmage of Area 10. She is brought 
  kicking and screaming to the portal just before the 
  adventurers arrive—and thrown in before they can 
  intervene. If Melissara is dead, then Cassiok (from Area 
  39) willingly sacrifices himself to the Far Realm.   
  Tezca-Zyanya. Ideally, the adventurers have with them 
  the freed couatl from Area 34, who intends to close the 
  rift… from the other side.  
  Combatants. The encounter consists of Zalthar, the 
  death knight and three nothics (former arcanists of the 
  Shadowdusk family). On the third round of combat, a star 
  spawn seer arrives with a star spawn hulk. It is 
  unsurprised when it finds the adventurers instead. This 
  seer has similar features to the archmage that was 
  sacrificed to give it a living vessel, hinting of what has 
  transpired.  
  Details. See Area 32 for further details, including 
  narrative text to read aloud.   
   
  7. FOR THIS WORLD, A BED OF WORMS 
  This encounter only occurs if the adventurers rest in 
  Shadowdusk Hold for eight hours or more without already 
  closing the portal. A star spawn larva mage emerges 
  from the portal to inspect its new bastion on the Material 
  Plane. It roams the halls with 1d4+1 star spawn grues 
  that mewl like cowed dogs. For every day that goes by, 
  more star spawn enter Shadowdusk Hold, growing into a 
  horde that hungers to wreak havoc on the world above.  
  The larva mage can confront the adventurers any-where 
  within the Hold. It can collapse into a swarm of worms to 
  squeeze under doorways or through cracks. Its minions 
  are never long behind.  
   
  AREAS OF NOTE 
  The following areas are of note:  
   
  1. GRAND FOYER 
  Shadowdusk Hold shouldn't sit right below the Deep 
  Mines; the Companion contends that the journey to Level 
  22 should take 1d4 days. Despite the staircase on Level 
  21 leading straight to Shadowdusk Hold, as it is written in 
  DotMM, the Companion adds a myriad of tunnels in the 
  way. This is for the sake of narrative and to also explain 
  why the planetar Fazrian didn't just sweep into 
  Shadowdusk Hold before and cut down these cultists—
  after all, he clearly knew of the entrance to Level 22, since 
  he stationed one of his minions there. If he was afraid they 
  would boil up from below, he would have kept more than 
  just a single sentry there to keep watch.   
  The text below, to be read when your party reaches 
  Level 22, assumes that you run with these changes. If 
  you're worried about your party attaining a long rest, be 
  reminded that for this level they sorely need one to 
  survive.  
  When the party reaches Level 23, read the text below, 
  altering it to your liking:   
  It has been days since you left the Deep Mines and they have 
  been spent in darkness—until at last you have come upon the 
  most curious sight: a neatly carved stairwell descending below. 
  You know it in your hearts that this is your next trial, that the 
  Mad Mage would've righted your course if it was indeed wrong.  
  Carefully, you descend the spiral staircase, wary for traps. By 
  when you reach the grand foyer below, you encounter none. 
  Pillars support a vast chamber curiously lit by torches whose 
  flickering flames point upside-down. You find a statue of a 
  young woman in plate armor. The plague reads LADY DEZMYR 
  SHADOWDUSK. Below that, another line reads "MAY SHE 
  DELIVER US TO THE PROMISED LAND." 
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  If you're running this variant, a cultist named Jeras, 
  fleeing certain death, slams into an adventurer. He was 
  hiding behind a pillar and makes a break for the exit. He 
  is almost incoherent but manages to sputter out that 
  "doom has come at last." Read the following: 
  A man steps out from the pillar, making a break for the exit, 
  wailing in terror. He slams straight into you and falls flat on the 
  floor, shrieking a shrill shriek as fragile and sharp as glass. He 
  lifts an arm to shield his face. There's foam on his lips—actual 
  foam. "Spare me, O' Old One! Spare me, star spawn!" he howls, 
  but once he sees you for what you are, he instead shouts, "Run! 
  Run now! The gateway is open and doom has come at last from 
  beyond the stars! Gravity has gone and, with it, time!"  
  If the adventurers don't let Jeras go immediately, he curls 
  into the fetal position and begins to repeat mantras taught 
  to him by the Shadowdusks: "If you taste magenta, grovel. 
  The clock shrieks. Shriek with the clock. Shriek until the 
  magenta is ash."   
  
   
  38 
  The party can sober Jeras with a DC 12 Charisma 
  (Persuasion or Intimidation) check. If he is calmed down, 
  read the following: 
  Terrified, the man continues to howl, "I saw it myself! The 
  creatures lumbered from the portal, greeted by Lady Dezmyr—
  and sixteen of us dropped dead, bleeding out our eyes and ears! 
  Raving! Raving! They've went mad and I ran! The star spawn 
  boiled out from the gate, sparing only those of noble blood! My 
  own sister, julienned into a ribbon! You have to go! They stalk 
  all other exits but the gate to the Mad Mage's private sanctum! 
  The world itself is at its end and you must outrun it now!"   
  Jeras is at the brink of irreparable madness. There are 
  scant moments before his mind snaps unless a calm 
  emotions spell is cast upon him. Your goal is to have the 
  party informed of the portal's existence and that the 
  gateway to Halaster's sanctum is on this level before he 
  goes catatonic.  
  Grells. While running this variant, either hold off on the 
  six grells that guard this chamber or have them attack 
  before Jeras appears. If the former, they can float in from 
  Area 2, 3, or 9.  
  The Mangler Descends. You can launch the first 
  encounter of Dead Hold now if you so wish. The star 
  spawn mangler drops from the ceiling amidst the party. 
  Starting the encounter now capitalizes on raw shock; 
  delaying it capitalizes on dread. 
  Halaster's Whisper. You can also have Halaster 
  telepathically confirm Jeras' story about the portal. If so, 
  he whispers to the party, "The lunatic speaks true. There 
  is but one way to my domain and between you and it lies 
  only madness. Madness and other horrors. Our game is 
  nearly at an end. Find the gate; pay the toll. I await you in 
  my lair below."  
   
  3. WEST WING 
  Nested Tentacle. A nest has sprouted in the stairwell and 
  attacks intruders on sight. See Nested Tentacles above for 
  details.  
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  This area is one of the possible locations for the first 
  encounter of Dead Hold. If you run this variant, replace 
  the four nothics in this area with the star spawn mangler.  
   
  4. DECAYED QUARTERS 
   
  4B. MAD CREATURE 
  Within this circular chamber, a foul creature scratches at the 
  stone. When it hears you, the creature turns to face you with an 
  unsettling smile. Its forehead gapes with a massive, unblinking 
  eye so sickly green it is the color of vomit. Its claws scrape at 
  the stone as if it were a chalkboard. In mangled Common, it 
  says, "The stars turn, and a time presents itself. A visitor comes 
  to barter for secrets."  
  Just because the nothic says the phrase above in Common 
  does not mean he speaks the language. He likely picked it 
  up from Dezmyr Shadowdusk.  
  Roleplaying the Nothic. The creature once known as 
  Rhamagant wears an unsettling smile. He never fails to 
  blink with exaggerated slowness. He is eager to trade 
  secrets and gives his answers first—and does not voice his 
  own question. If the party asks why he does not get his 
  side of the bargain, he blinks slowly and assures them that 
  he already has (via his Weird Insight ability). You can use 
  the following dialogue to convey the three pieces of 
  information provided in DotMM by the nothic (in order): 
  • "You stand in Shadowdusk Hold. The soft ones tell me I once 
  belonged to their ranks. Slept on the second floor, I did, they 
  say, on a bed of straw. No roaches. No mites. Straw. I think 
  of it from time to time. Straw. Visited it too. Found the straw. 
  It balked! It took one look into me and forbade that I nest on 
  its silken flesh! The straw branded 'freak' upon my face and 
  spoke no more!" The nothic then reaches into its gums and 
  picks out a length of chewed straw. "This is what I told the 
  straw." 
  • "We are on the brink of the Promised Land. For every level 
  one descends, the higher they climb to that wondrous realm, 
  so far from our nest in the cosmos. I wish to visit, I tell Lady 
  Dezmyr. I wish to tour it. To go on holiday in that distant 
  realm." The nothic then scowls and leans in. "And what does 
  she tell me? That I do not have the right 'vee-sa!' I! I? I who 
  spent his existence, apparently, in pursuit of finding the 
  Promised Land? I, Rhamagant, cannot visit the Far Realm? If 
  I may be denied my birthright, what does that spell for others 
  not so landed as I?" 
  • "Secrets abound. They lie in shadow. They hold out for the 
  hope of being discovered by one who is worthy. Three 
  secrets. Three floors. Three of me, now three of you. They 
  yearn to be opened by one who is worthy, do you ken?" 
   
  5. STOREROOM 
  Funky Physics. Influence from the Far Realm has 
  poisoned all food and drink in the storeroom. Weird, one-
  eyed maggots crawl across food, lay eggs within fruit, and 
  play water polo in wine bottles, the corks of which they've 
  seemed to squeeze through via a process similar to 
  osmosis. The Shadowdusk and their servants are immune 
  to any ill effects of the food and they consider the maggots 
  treats—as if they were ghastly, live, alien tequila worms.   
   
  6. KITCHEN 
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  If you're playing with the Dead Hold variant, the kitchen 
  is littered with corpses, all torn apart by the star spawn 
  mangler hunting the adventurers. The living unseen 
  servants continue their work as if it never happened, 
  scrubbing dishes and sweeping the floor—ignorant to the 
  fact that their brooms are wet and red and sticky with 
  spilled intestines.   
  Read the following when the adventurers enter: 
   
   
  
   
  39 
  Red. It's all red. Corpses are strewn about the kitchen. Not a 
  single one is intact. Heads have been smashed into pulp, limbs 
  julienned into long strips.  
  The Shadowdusk family is clearly attended to by living, 
  unseen servants and these invisible masses of energy continue 
  to lazily perform their chores, despite the carnage. Even now, 
  dishes are being scrubbed and dried. The floor is being swept 
  with red, wet brooms sticky with spilled intestines.   
  A quiet voice within your mind compels you to shut this door 
  and never open it again.  
   
  7. DERELICT SHRINE 
  The adventurers should be familiar with the icons of Torm 
  by now, the very god that Fazrian in the level above once 
  served. If the party saw to the planetar's redemption 
  earlier, this should be a sad reminder; if not, the symbol 
  sends a shiver down at least one person's spine. Once they 
  identify the shrine as one devoted to Torm, they should 
  ask themselves why that would be here in these depths.  
   
  8. NOTHIC'S NICHE 
  The nothic has stashed away several goodies, but the party 
  has likely had its fill of gold, or can't carry any-more. 
  Thus, they might be unmotivated to invade the niche, 
  which is 20 feet above them. However, you may want 
  your party to get ahold of the potion of supreme healing 
  here. How do you get it to them without just saying the 
  nothic has one? Just have the nothic wear the silver 
  necklace it's fastened to.  
  When the party enters this area, read the following: 
  This meeting chamber has borne the stress of Undermountain 
  itself: a fissure gapes across the ceiling, just large enough for a 
  man to clamber inside, if he could jump twenty feet. The niche 
  is filled with darkness. Dust is everywhere, thanks to the 
  crumbling ceiling. 
  As you inspect this chamber's very fine tapestry—a wedding 
  invaded by shadowy tentacles that creep from the corners—you 
  hear glass softly clink against stone. You look up, just as a 
  horrific creature with one massive eye pulls back into the niche 
  above. On its neck, you saw, was a sparkling vial containing a 
  scarlet liquid. You're a seasoned adventurer; you can recognize 
  a potion when you see one.  
  Roleplaying the Nothic. Channel Gollum from Lord of 
  the Rings. The nothic has forgotten its name and cares 
  only for its next meal and, of course, its "precious potion".  
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  Even if you run this variant for Level 22, this nothic is still 
  a cursed Shadowdusk family member, unlike other 
  nothics that are cosmetically rebranded as star spawn. The 
  nothic offers cryptic omens about the invading star 
  spawn. You can use the following sample dialogue:  
  • "It is done. Our grand quest is complete. Waterdeep will rue 
  our exile—the very world shall rue it!"  
  • "You are too late. They are already here. They always have 
  been… The knob just needed turning." 
  • "Dezmyr has foreseen your coming. Join her! She has lain 
  quite the banquet out for you below…" 
  9. EAST WING 
  A lazy, ivory light drifts down the hall of this wing, painting the 
  walls in flickering shades of white and silver. An elaborate bas-
  relief depicts peasants kneeling before nobles who brandish coy 
  smiles and cold eyes.  
  Nested Tentacle. A nest has sprouted in the stairwell 
  and attacks intruders on sight. See Nested Tentacles above 
  for more details.  
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  This area is one of the possible locations for the first 
  encounter of Dead Hold.  
   
  10. NOBLE QUARTERS 
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  Should you run this variant, the party's visit to this area 
  becomes inevitable. The Far Realm buckles reality in 
  Shadowdusk Hold and the next door the party opens 
  opens on Area 10A, wherein they meet Melissara. The 
  archmage greets them with visible relief and ushers them 
  in before the star spawn—"they"—find the party.  
  Melissara wastes no time directing the party to the tablet 
  and portal room (Areas 23 and 32). While she tolerates 
  the party resting in her suite, she implores them to act now 
  before "worse things crawl into our reality." If they leave, 
  she does as well to seal any exits to Shadowdusk Hold, 
  hoping to contain the star spawn. She then holds the line 
  in Area 1 to ensure further horrors don't escape into 
  Undermountain.   
  Roleplaying Melissara. Melissara, like her mind, has 
  begun to gray. Years have been spent in these depths. 
  She's watched her family turn to madness and seen the 
  same corruption take root in both her and her beloved, 
  Derrion. With the portal stabilized, she can see the 
  apocalypse creeping up upon the world. It's now or never 
  to snuff out the Shadowdusk's upside-down flame and she 
  knows it. The arrival of the party represents the answering 
  to prayers she never prayed but secretly yearned to voice. 
  Paranoid, Melissara refers to the star spawn as "they" and 
  knows that they're always watching. 
  For years now, Melissara has searched for a means to 
  destroy the black crystal tablet in Area 23B, which she 
  blames for all her family's troubles. She doesn't know how 
  to destroy such a powerful artifact of magic.* 
   
  *Although the Companion rewrote it so that the arcane gate in 
  Area 35 destroys any magic item sacrificed to it—so that the 
  party might destroy the black crystal tablet—that's only a 
  recent stipulation added by Halaster, whose humor, of course, 
  is morbid. Melissara is unaware of the change to the gate; 
  beforehand, a magic item was said to be just "given" to 
  Halaster.  
   
  You can use any of the following sample dialogue to 
  further flesh out Melissara and spirit the party along their 
  quest through Shadowdusk Hold: 
  
   
  40 
  • To explain why she not fled, Melissara says, "They want their 
  parade. They crave the welcoming my brethren so promised. 
  Those without Shadowdusk blood were cut down—if not 
  dragged screaming back to that god-forsaken portal. My 
  brethren are on lockdown. They will not let us leave—as if 
  I'm not the only were that doesn't wish to stay. The second I 
  leave this suite, an eight-armed horror will find me… and 
  when it sees that my madness is not as deep as Dezmyr's it 
  will instead tear me to pieces. I know it. I know it true." 
  • "There is but only one arcane means to escape the Hold: a 
  magical gateway on the lowest floor that leads to the Mad 
  Mage's sanctum. Dozens fled there when the star spawn 
  boiled out from the portal—but they're dead. They must! 
  Dead or about to be! Halaster approved of my family's efforts, 
  encouraged them even! Those fools have delivered 
  themselves to the very monster that allowed their—and this 
  world's—doom!" 
  • "I know not how to seal the breach to the Far Realm. It has 
  bled into the Hold unabated for years. Now… Now it's stable 
  and things have emerged. Things that not even my family 
  could have pictured, even after a century of research. Those 
  creatures… they were spawned beyond the stars and have 
  come to undo this world."  
  • "It's all that damned tablet's fault! My ancestors should have 
  left it in the blackened depths! It doesn't matter if you seal the 
  portal—so long as my cousins have that infernal thing, they 
  can rebuild. They can open the gate once again and let those 
  horrors pour out into the world. You can find it on the floor 
  below, but… it is a mythic piece. My life's work has been 
  devoted to destroying that tablet but… nothing. It's as if I'm 
  been holding onto fistfuls of sand."  
  • "My cousins, Dezmyr… Zalthar. Madness has been their sole 
  inheritance. They wear it like a crown and continue the work 
  our ancestors began. They've died, you know. They've died 
  once already and risen from the grave; I saw it happen. Once 
  they were worshippers of Torm, paladins even, and now all 
  they worship is that godforsaken tablet—and the beings that 
  whisper to them through it."  
   
  Roleplaying Derrion. The knight is an irritable, sleep-
  deprived wreck of a man that dances on the brink of 
  insanity, wondering why his dear wife will not join him 
  on the edge. He protects her at all costs and obeys with 
  only a minimal amount of husbandly lip. You can use the 
  following sample dialogue: 
  • "I've but one life and it has been sworn, in madness and 
  in health, to my beloved." 
  • "I've not slept in ages. The nightmares care not. They'll 
  visit when they wish. They visit as I speak even now." 
  • "Dezmyr and Zalthar have fallen to undeath, rising again 
  as skeletal warriors—knights of death incarnate. Their 
  lord Torm must be weeping from the heavens." 
  • "There is no price too steep to end this madness." 
   
  Melissara's Fate. The sixth encounter of Dead Hold 
  involves a star spawn seer. Seers are animate, sentient 
  matter; when summoned to the Material Plane, they must 
  take over a mortal's body, which has the added benefit of 
  scrubbing away the host's entire personality. One of the 
  archmagi of this level must be given to the Far Realm. 
  Long-suspecting that their cousin was not as committed 
  to "the future" as they are, Dezmyr and Zalthar have 
  Melissara brought to Area 32 and sacrificed. This happens 
  off-screen, after the party have met her and moved on, 
  provided they didn't kill her. If Melissara cannot be used, 
  use Cassiok, that ridiculous freak in Area 39.   
   
  12. LOUNGE 
  Clearly, this is where the family receives its guests. This lounge 
  is furnished with leathern chairs, all facing a tapestry depicting 
  an ivy-overgrown villa in the familiar streets of Waterdeep. For 
  but a moment, you yearn again to return to the world above. 
  Soon, you tell yourself. Soon…  
  Nested Tentacle. A nest has sprouted here and attacks 
  the party as they try to leave; before it does, it uncurls to 
  reveal its cloudy, milky-teared eye. See Nested Tentacles 
  above for more information.  
   
  13. WALKING DEAD 
  A zombie is less than a gnat to a party of 17th-level 
  adventurers unless it gets the drop on them. Instead of 
  shambling throughout the room, it's poised on the ceiling, 
  spread eagle and hanging on rafters. It drops on the first 
  character to enter the room that isn't its creator. The 
  character it falls on must make a DC 14 Strength saving 
  throw or be knocked prone.  
   
  14. TRAINING ROOM 
  Energies from the Far Realm have corrupted the suits of 
  armor in this chamber. Any set has the following curse 
  attached to it: 
  Hooked Curse. Once you don this cursed armor, you 
  can't doff it unless you are targeted by a spell of remove 
  curse or similar magic. Slimy talons dig into your flesh 
  and whispers poison your mind; whenever you finish a 
  long rest while wearing the armor, you must succeed on a 
  DC 14 Intelligence saving throw or suffer from a form of 
  Indefinite Madness.  
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  While running this variant, several cultists made a last 
  stand here before being torn apart by the very star spawn 
  mangler that haunts Area 15—if not the one featured in 
  Encounter 1 of Dead Hold.  
  When the party enters this area, read the following:  
  This sparring room has been made into a grave. Corpses lie in 
  tatters, whatever weapons borrowed from the racks impotently 
  strewn across the bloodstained floor. Even the mannequins and 
  training dummies have been cleaved by wicked claws, mixing 
  straw, canvas, and wood with the scattered organs of the poor 
  fools that made their futile last stand here.  
   
   
   
  
   
  41 
  15. FOUNTAIN 
  The halls are eerily quiet, save for the constant splash of water 
  from this fountain. The clean deluge is vomited out from a 
  marble aboleth. Your mind reels with the sudden memory of the 
  twisted caverns, which you put behind you so long ago—of the 
  creature that claimed those sunken tunnels as its demesne.  
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  While running this variant, the fountain is polluted by two 
  corpses, under which a halfling cultist hides. After 
  witnessing a star spawn mangler tear apart his 
  compatriots, the cultist was driven mad—so much that he 
  has forgotten his own name (Aldrin). He now only refers 
  to himself as "this one."  
  Expanded Dungeon. The tunnel leading out from this 
  area is watched over by a star spawn mangler, which 
  attacks anyone who dares leave Level 22. It was this 
  creature that cut down Aldrin's compatriots and even 
  dumped their bodies in the fountain. Aldrin is aware of its 
  presence; he was playing dead when the beast dumped the 
  corpses in the fountain. He suspects that it knows he is not 
  dead and is simply waiting for him to make his move.   
   
  17. VERTRAND'S ROOM 
  The door opens silently upon a modest suite. A bald, elderly 
  man darkened by liver spots sits at his desk, scribbling into a 
  journal. His back is to you—but his quill halts.  
  "I foresaw this…" the old mage whispers. "I saw it long ago. 
  And I have chosen to face you. Alone." 
  He turns to you—and where his eyes ought to have been is 
  only smooth flesh. He breaks out into a sad, toothy grin. "In the 
  end," he sighs, "Death owns us all." 
  With a world-weariness, he pushes himself to his feet and 
  unleashes an arcane word of power! 
  Roleplaying Vertrand. There's little opportunity to 
  roleplay Vertrand outside of combat, as he attacks the 
  party the moment they reach him. He is fond of loosing 
  world-weary sighs. His verbal components for spells are 
  lazily pronounced.  
  Tactics. A brilliant mage waiting for this inevitable 
  conflict, Vertrand employs the following tactics:  
  • Vertrand fights to the death, never fearing his doom. It's as he 
  said—Death already owns him.   
  • Vertrand casts time stop on his first turn. While time is halted, 
  he casts mirror image, fire shield, mage armor, stoneskin and 
  finally cone of cold (in that order, if he gets enough turns). 
  He sacrifices stoneskin  for cold of cone if he only gets four 
  turns in time stop.  
  • If he is facing multiple spellcasters, Vertrand casts globe of 
  invulnerability instead of stoneskin.  
  • Vertrand wastes no opportunity to counterspell a foe. 
  • While concentrating on a spell, Vertrand utilizes spells of 
  lightning bolt and cone of cold. 
  • If he must pursue a fleeing foe, Vertrand casts misty step and 
  looses a fire bolt cantrip.  
   
  18. BERLAIN'S SUITE 
   
  18A. STUDY 
  It's warm here. Candles are still lit, giving off a fragrance that 
  hints at a sinister origin… as if it were rendered not from the fat 
  of animals. You hear now soft murmuring in another chamber, 
  spoken in a language that itches your very brain.  
   
  18B. BEDCHAMBER 
  Sitting there upon the bed, nestled between two floating grells, 
  is a two-mouthed woman with too many arms. She seems to 
  be… conversing with those floating, beaked brainy horrors. 
  When she sees you, she smiles twice and says, "Just when I was 
  fresh out of subjects." 
  To your horror, that second mouth of hers animates and spits 
  out in a serrated voice, "You shall rue the day your mothers spat 
  you out. To the table with you!"  
  Roleplaying Berlain. Like Vertrand, there's little 
  opportunity to roleplay Berlain before combat erupts. She 
  wields a scalpel instead of a dagger. You can have Korva, 
  her obliterated brother, speak through Berlain's extra 
  mouth in a twisted voice. Together, they say the following 
  in combat (parentheses mark when Korva speaks): 
  • "The gate is open!" ("This world will finally know the Truth!") 
  • "The stars turn!" ("And a time presents itself!") 
  • "There is indeed a method to madness!" ("Reason within 
  rhyme!")  
  • "I cannot wait to get you onto my table!" ("The scalpel makes 
  whelps of us all!")  
  • "Yours will be an enlightening tale…" ("In the marrow, we 
  shall find Truth… together!")  
   
  Tactics. Berlain wants to capture the adventurers for use 
  in her experimentations, not kill them. Thus, in combat, 
  she uses the following tactics:  
  • On her first turn, Berlain casts time stop. While time is halted, 
  she casts mirror image, wall of force, fire shield and mage 
  armor in that order of priority. Should she get a fifth turn, she 
  casts polymorph, turning the target into a white lab rat. Her 
  second turn is spent on polymorph if she does not cast it on 
  time stop's last turn.   
  • To better befit her theme as a mad scientist, give Berlain the 
  acid splash and chill touch cantrips. She can cast two in a 
  single turn.  
  • Berlain's grells attack creatures on their side of the wall of 
  force with their Tentacles action, grappling and potentially 
  paralyzing their victims.  
  • If things look bleak for the party, Berlain offers them this: "My 
  toll for safe passage is simple: leave me two live subjects and 
  go your separate way, unmolested." Korva adds, "Their 
  sacrifice to science shall not be made in vain!"  
  • If things look bleak for Berlain, she abandons her hope of 
  capturing the adventurers and instead tries to kill them. There 
  will be more in the future, she tells herself. 
  
   
  42 
  20. PILLARED HALL 
   
  20A. CENTRAL CHAMBER 
  When the adventurers reach this area, read: 
  Your very first step into this hall echoes loudly throughout it. 
  You need not be a dwarf or mason to see that it has been carved 
  to amplify every sound and whisper committed here.  
  If the adventurers are discovered by the five will-o'-wisps 
  haunting this hall, read the following: 
  As you make your way through the hall, a floating, ivory light 
  appears before you. It flickers like a ghostly flame and its voice 
  is thin like glass. "What is your purpose here?" 
  Before you can respond, yet another light appears, winking 
  into existence to your right. "Were you bid?" it asks. 
  Then a third, a fourth, and yes, indeed, a fifth wisp of light 
  materialize, surrounded you, and they ask:  
  "Have you strayed?"  
  "Strays receive no guest right." 
  "Would you die a vagrant's death, stranger?" 
  Hovering there, the first wisp repeats itself, firmer now: 
  "What is your purpose here?" 
  "Were you bid?" asks the second wisp.  
  Then, all in one voice, the others demand, "Well? Were you?" 
  Roleplaying the Wisps. The wisps all share ghostly 
  voices that talk over each other. If one speaks, the other 
  four are quick to add something, piling onto the 
  conversation with several quips. They are impatient and 
  haughty, and they condescend to all who are not of 
  Shadowdusk blood, especially the nothics.  
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  If it has not yet happened, the fourth encounter of Dead 
  Hold should happen while the adventurers are in this area. 
  The trapped couatl in Area 34B reaches out to the party, 
  who it can sense. It implores them to seek it out. This 
  happens amidst combat, if a fight breaks out in this area.  
  Additionally, the five nothics in Area 20B—which are 
  star spawn in name and appearance—do not shy from 
  combat. They instead charge down the party once they 
  hear the adventurers. Their sadistic howls can alert the ten 
  nothics in Area 24, who arrive three rounds later. These 
  nothics are also star spawn in appearance.  
  Throughout this encounter, the will-o'-wisps strafe the 
  party. One cackles, "The rift yearns! It hungers! Give to it 
  yourself—come as you are!"   
   
  21. PARLOR  
  Mirror, Mirror. The parlor's mirror contains a thing of 
  nightmare within it; its surface is glossy and black, 
  reflecting no light. As a character is looking at it, a 
  massive eyeball opens up, as if the entire mirror was its 
  lid. This six-pupiled eyeball gazes into its victim 
  character and overwhelms them with madness. The 
  creature must make a DC 14 Intelligence saving throw or 
  succumb to a form of short-term madness. See Appendix 
  C for details.  
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  Under this variant, the parlor is littered with corpses of 
  servants that died here, several seemingly having 
  committed suicide. They were not torn apart by star 
  spawn but were instead driven mad by the thing in the 
  mirror. Those that did not die to aneurisms instead slit 
  their own throats to spare themselves from that darkness.  
   
  22. TORM'S SHRINE 
  After Level 21, the party should be familiar with Torm's 
  iconography. If they correctly identify the shrine, read: 
  Just as you thought you had put the imagery of Torm behind 
  you, here it is again. The memories of Fazrian the fallen angel 
  crowd your mind. The walls of your world are suddenly 
  streaked with that mysterious blood once again.  
  Questions abound: why did the angel never lift a finger 
  against the Shadowdusks? How could he not turn his crusade 
  upon this place? Or was this the crusade he had in mind all 
  along? Were they just hiding under his nose this entire time? 
  You will never know why… but still you must wonder what 
  this shrine is doing down here. These freaks do not seem to be 
  the most… orthodox of worshippers.  
  If they were responsible for Fazrian's atonement, then a 
  vestige from the heavens manages to whisper a warning 
  to the party: 
  As you turn back to those wretched halls, a warmth overwhelms 
  you, flooding your senses in an instant—and it's gone the very 
  next. But not before leaving you with this wisdom: 
  The Shadowdusk matriarch and her brother were once 
  paladins in service to that distant god, Torm. Paladins that have 
  since fallen from grace—and the power they once wielded for 
  good can still be wielded now for more wicked ends. You face 
  not robed freaks ahead but—the wisdom warns—knights of 
  death and malice.  
   
  23. MEDITATION ROOMS 
   
  23B. BLACK CRYSTAL TABLET 
  The door slides open upon a chamber filled with a greasy 
  darkness that hurls back any light that might be brought to bear. 
  Upon a stone table at the far wall rests a black, crystalline tablet 
  whose glyphs you instinctively know should never have been 
  carved, let alone read. Its runes writhe as if it were the flesh of 
  a living beast kept in captivity with no other recourse but to rage 
  against its prison. 
  The darkness… it beckons you forward. You feel that in your 
  bones. It… invites you to stand before it, as if it were an altar to 
  an attentive god. And slowly you realize that it is. It is an altar. 
  These freaks have made it into one. They worship it—they have 
  to. It is an artifact that demands attention, that draws the very 
  mind to it like a beacon. Not a beacon in the dark, but a beacon 
  that glowers at all the light touches—and wishes to see it not 
  dead but only stranger.  
  A sickness wells up in your belly. You taste bile on your 
  tongue and foam on your lips. Your mind begins to reel, cringe. 
  A step. You take a step, though you never planned on doing so. 
  Your mind fights against that oily hold on your body, knowing 
  that should you give in, there will be nothing to save you but 
  madness.  
  
   
  43 
  DEAD HOLD 
  The fifth encounter of Dead Hold can occur here after the 
  adventurers lay their eyes on the tablet. The star spawn 
  attack from Area 20, if so.  
   
  24. NOTHIC WARRENS 
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  If you're running this variant, the nothics here are star 
  spawn in name and appearance only. No two look the 
  same. Describe them simply as "aberrant horrors with no 
  place in this world." They're feasting on actual dead 
  nothics (former family members of the Shadowdusks) and 
  dead servants. They attack the party on sight and 
  investigate any sounds they hear in adjacent areas.  
  Four nothics have been removed from the fourteen in 
  Area 24 to make up for the added difficulty of facing star 
  spawn.  
   
  25. ABANDONED CHAMBER  
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  You step over shattered dregs of furniture to enter this ghastly 
  chamber. You can't but shake your head at it all. What were they 
  thinking? That divans and doors could stop these aberrant 
  horrors? As you survey the carnage, you know it would take 
  hours to piece together the unfortunate souls that were torn apart 
  by those creatures rampaging through this madhouse.   
  Several cultists holed up in this chamber, hoping to wait 
  out the star spawn—as if they expected the Shadowdusks 
  to call the beasts off. If a character spends an hour sifting 
  through their remains, they can piece together eight 
  humans. These unfortunate souls were torn to shreds by a 
  swarm of star spawn grues—the very same swarm that 
  attacks the party in Dead Hold's second encounter.  
   
  26. HOARDED SECRETS 
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  Should the adventurers discover the tunnel to the 
  Expanded Dungeon, read the following. Apparently, 
  some cultists managed to escape down there but were 
  followed by star spawn.   
  Behind the tapestry yawns a blackened tunnel that stretches out 
  into oblivion. Fresh blood streaks the tiles closest to you, 
  already drying into a sticky paste. You know not how many 
  escaped this wretched place—nor what sort of horror might 
  even now be in hot pursuit of them.  
   
  28. LEGACY OF XERRION 
  You come upon what can only be history: a fresco fifteen by 
  thirty feet long. A robed wizard stands before a black portal, 
  clutching in his arms like a newborn babe a tablet fashioned 
  from black crystal. He's smiling. His eyes are cracked with a 
  lifetime of smiles. He shares that warm smile with the portal—
  a lightless rift from which serrated tentacles slither. Your eyes 
  fall on the plague below: "THE LEGACY OF XERRION," it 
  reads… and below that: "WE WILL ONE DAY JOIN HIM IN THE 
  PROMISED LAND."  
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  If you're running this variant, reduce the number of death 
  slaadi here by one, so as to make up for the added 
  difficulty imposed by the star spawn.  
  Additionally, make the slaadi star spawn in name and 
  appearance. They appear as translucent, half-gelatinous 
  horrors with razored limbs. Once their invisibility drops, 
  they "shift colors."  
   
  29. LANDING 
  You come upon a staircase under the stony gaze of a statue. It 
  depicts a grimacing man being crushed by tentacles that erupt 
  from the floor—from a carven portal. His expression seems to 
  say, "Well, them's the breaks."  
  As you near the staircase that spirals down into darkness, you 
  feel a wind blow through you—through your mind. This is the 
  brink; you know it like an animal knows when foul weather is 
  ahead. Your instincts are tuned up. You can feel the foulness 
  down there, a brooding darkness that, at best, seeks not to 
  consume you… only leave you stranger than before.  
   
  30. LOWER HALLS 
  The tension in the air builds as you clamber down the stairwell. 
  The air takes on an oily quality, as if it were humid without the 
  heat. You feel in your heart a palpable dread, thick like molten 
  lead, that pushes its way through your arteries. You shouldn't 
  be here—and this place should not be.  
  What you see first is the Shadowdusk family crest inscribed 
  upon the floor: a 20-foot disk of purple stone carved upon which 
  is a lit torch, its flames pointed away from you. Peeling mosaics 
  paint the ceiling as a cloudy sky and scorch marks can be found 
  along the walls and many pillars of this place.  
  In the distance, some titan grumbles a sleepy groan—and a 
  breeze flutters throughout the halls, one not felt on your skin 
  but on your very brain. For a moment, you're reminded how 
  very small you are.   
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  If you're using this variant, cultists were slaughtered here 
  by star spawn. Blood streaks the floor and walls. The 
  family crest is outlined in the spilled intestines of the star 
  spawn's victims—the handiwork of bored grues after all 
  their cattle had been slain.  
   
   
   
  
   
  44 
  31. APPROACH TO MADNESS 
  If combat breaks out in this area, Zalthar, the death 
  knight, investigates from Area 34A.  
   
  31A. WARPED FOYER 
  You feel a wind that seems to push at your every being. The 
  lines between the floor and its walls are warped. In some places, 
  the stone has seemed to melt. In others, they meet at angles that 
  make your head swim. And the pillars holding up that ceiling 
  your eyes seem to refuse to look at? They were but columns 
  once. Now you don't really know what they are, only that 
  they… breathe.  
   
  31B. THRESHOLD OF INSANITY 
  You should not be here. Nothing should. Nothing of this world, 
  this reality, anyway. There is a pressure here, a power, a shadow 
  that should not be. Strange energy pervades this place and, in 
  the distance, you can hear a sort of… groaning.  
  At the end of the day, you're still an animal. Face it—you are. 
  Every instinct of yours screams at you to abandon this place, 
  for there are things lurking here that are antithetical to all reason 
  and reality—a force of unmaking.  
  You swallow that primordial dread. A tapestry on the wall 
  depicts noblemen giving themselves to some unseen god that 
  has deigned to twist, warp, and melt them into one gelatinous 
  entity that your mind cannot bear to focus on for too long.   
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  If you're running this variant, reduce the number of death 
  slaadi here by one, so as to make up for the added 
  difficulty imposed by the star spawn.  
  Additionally, make the slaadi star spawn in name and 
  appearance. They appear as translucent, half-gelatinous 
  horrors with razored limbs. Once their invisibility drops, 
  they "shift colors."  
  Despite what's written above, Zalthar doesn't come to 
  investigate a disturbance in this area if you are running 
  Dead Hold. He's instead busy in Area 32.  
   
  32. FAR AND GONE 
  Sickly light bleeds out from a breach in what your mind assures 
  you is reality itself. Tumorous flesh hangs there, draped across 
  a rift that beats as if it were a heart—a heart whose arteries have 
  creeped out along the walls and ceilings like mold and found 
  purchase on this side.  
  As you gawk at this rift, you begin to giggle. Blood trickles 
  down your nose and you know that to gaze into this abyss is to 
  let it gaze long into you.   
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  If you're running this variant, the portal has been 
  stabilized and creatures can now physically pass through 
  the portal—although mortals will find that it is a one-way 
  trip. Once they enter the Far Realm, they will not find 
  their way out, effectively killing their character. If there 
  was ever a thing that a mortal should not enter it is this 
  portal.  
  Once the adventurers reach this area, read the text 
  below. Zalthar, the death knight (armed with his nine 
  lives stealer, as detailed in Area 34), is here with three 
  nothics (former family members) and their sacrifice: 
  either Cassiok (see Area 39) or Melissara, who has long-
  been suspected of not being committed enough to the 
  family or "the future."  
  The world is awash in a sickly light vomited out by a rift to a 
  place your mind has unhinged itself from. In the distance, from 
  behind that veil, you hear some titanic beast groan again, lazily 
  belching out its contempt for this very reality. A cloud of spores 
  erupts from the rift, crashing to the floor and then dragging itself 
  into the air, meandering aimlessly but not inanimately. The rift, 
  you realize, is alive. It's breathing. Along the walls of this room, 
  tumorous flesh has crept in, finding purchase on this side of 
  reality, growing like a mold.   
  There are others here, standing before the breach in your 
  reality: three one-eyed freaks and a knight clad in armor that 
  can only be dedicated to celebrating death itself. In his hand the 
  knight clutches a longword around which float the wailing souls 
  of its past victims.  
  If Melissara is the intended sacrifice, she has 1 hit point 
  and no remaining spell slots. Add the following text to 
  your narration; it assumes the adventurers are already 
  familiar with the archmage:  
  Crumbled at the death knight's feet is a bruised woman missing 
  an entire patch of hair—Melissara. She's screaming; you could 
  hardly hear them over the portal's groans. She's screaming and 
  kicking, but the freaks have her tight and they inch ever closer 
  to the edge.  
  "Zalthar!" she screams. All her magic must have already been 
  spent. She writhes again, but it's a futile effort. "Zalthar! No! 
  Please! Do not send me there!" 
  "Your commitment to our family—to the future," murmurs 
  Zalthar, "has been found lacking. A host must host—what else 
  is it good for? Goodbye, dear cousin… and see you again soon."  
  The freaks plant Melissara before the brink—and as she 
  beholds an unseen madness therein, the death knight plants his 
  heavy boot on her back and kicks. She goes screaming to what 
  you're certain is not her death—but something far worse.   
  If Cassiok is the sacrifice instead, he hands off his staff of 
  power to Zalthar. Read the following: 
  At the death knight's side is a ridiculous horror—a man whose 
  body is more of a carapace, beetlelike in nature. His head is still 
  mostly human, however. You catch only a glimpse of his 
  middle-aged features in that sickly light: a crooked nose, a bald 
  head, chitinous protrusions along his cheeks. 
  "Well," says the freak. "Cousin, it has been a delight." 
  "You will be remembered," the death knight says, "but 
  perhaps not missed." 
  "My life for the future," says the freak. "A host must host, 
  mustn't he?" 
  "What else would he be good for?" agrees the death knight.  
  The freak nods and hands his runed staff to the death knight. 
  With a content sigh, he walks face-first into that sickly light, 
  disappearing from this world entirely.  
  Once the sacrifice has been made, Zalthar and his minions 
  face the party. Read the following: 
  
   
  45 
  Only now does the death knight turn to face you. His eyes burn 
  as blue fire from behind that helmet.  
  "Dezmyr foretold your arrival," he says, lifting that wretched 
  blade of his. "I've been waiting for you. All this time, I've been 
  waiting for you." 
  Envoys of the Hungering Void. After the sacrifice has 
  been made, Zalthar and his nothics attack. On the third 
  round of combat, the sixth encounter of Dead Hold 
  unfurls: the sacrifice returns to Shadowdusk Hold as a 
  star spawn seer with a pet star spawn hulk. The seer's 
  features are familiar, matching with whoever was 
  sacrificed—but his or her personality has been obliterated 
  and its skin is rubbery now, its fingers fused into tongue-
  like appendage.  
  Read the following once this encounter occurs: 
  Amidst the carnage, the rift shudders and groans with sloppy 
  ecstasy. Your eyes confront that breach in reality, even if your 
  mind shies away into a dark corner, fearful of that sickly light. 
  Out from the portal steps a tumorous creature whose arms are 
  but rubbery, tongue-like appendages. Its eyes are starry voids 
  and it grips a twisted staff made of equal parts flesh, bone, and 
  iridescent matter. It looks out across this place, this world, and 
  pronounces a sound of victory in a language you were never 
  meant to hear—that no mortal ought to ever hear.  
  At this creature's side is a flayed, hulking brute with far too 
  many teeth and lidless eyes that regard you as more than a meal. 
  It regards you only as its freshest plaything.  
  If Zalthar is still alive, he welcomes back whoever was 
  sacrificed and then adds, "It is done! Our work is at its 
  zenith! Let the world get… weirder. Now." 
  Lair Actions. The rift itself is as living of an entity as 
  the star spawn. On initiative count 20 (losing initiative 
  ties), one of the following effects occur; the same effect 
  cannot occur two rounds in a row:  
  • A tentacle unfurls and makes an attack roll against a creature 
  within 60 ft. (+5 to hit). On a hit, the target is grappled 
  (escape DC 13) and dragged 10 ft. closer to the portal; prone 
  creatures are dragged 15 ft. If it is dragged into the portal, the 
  creature is spirited to the Far Realm. See Entering the Rift 
  below for the effects of entering the Far Realm. A tentacle 
  has an AC of 14, 20 hit points and immunity to psychic 
  damage; destroying it frees the grappled character. 
  • The rift groans and unleashes a foul, strong wind. All non-
  aberrations within 30 ft. must make a DC 14 Strength saving 
  throw or be knocked prone. Zalthar and Dezmyr Shadowdusk 
  are immune to this effect. 
  • The rift shrieks in rage. All non-aberrations within 30 ft. of 
  the portal must make a DC 15 Intelligence saving throw or 
  take 14 (3d6) psychic damage. Zalthar and Dezmyr 
  Shadowdusk are immune to this effect.  
  • The rift vomits out a cloud of spores. Creatures within 10 ft. 
  of the portal must make a DC 16 Constitution saving throw 
  or take 17 (4d6) poison damage or half as much on a success. 
  On a failure, a creature also succumbs to a form of Indefinite 
  Madness (see App. C for details).  
   
  Funky Physics. Any of the effects described above can 
  come into play during this encounter.  
  Entering the Rift. A creature that enters the rift is taken 
  to the Far Realm and instantly takes 36 (8d10) psychic 
  damage. This damage occurs again every time the 
  creature ends its turn in the Far Realm. If it is reduced to 
  0 hit points, it does not die but is instead taken by things 
  therein and is effectively killed.  
  A creature on the other side of the rift is stunned. It can 
  still see the Material Plane and it can make a DC 15 
  Charisma saving throw to return whence it came, even 
  though a stunned creature cannot move. On a success, it 
  appears in an unoccupied space within 5 ft. of the portal 
  in Shadowdusk Hold. This harrowing visit wreaks havoc 
  on the creature's mind, causing them to develop a form of 
  Indefinite Madness (see App. C). They might also suffer 
  other deformities like the Shadowdusks have, determined 
  by the DM.  
  Closing the Rift. The gateway to that hungering realm 
  can only be closed from the other side—a realization that 
  eventually dawns on the party if the couatl Tezca-Zyanya 
  doesn't reveal it. If the couatl is with the party, it 
  volunteers to close the portal, otherwise it falls to another 
  character, such as one of the adventurers or Melissara. For 
  the purpose of this module, exactly how the portal is 
  closed is never told to the players… and any character that 
  makes this sacrifice will never again see the Material 
  Plane. For all intents and purposes, that character is dead, 
  their corpse trapped in the Far Realm. Should one of your 
  players wish to make the sacrifice, let them, but only after 
  warning them that there is no coming back from that 
  darkened realm.  
  If Tezca-Zyanya is with the adventurers, it reveals its 
  true form now and sacrifices itself to close the rift. Read 
  the following, dramatized text:  
   
   
  DESCRIBING THE FAR REALM 
  The Far Realm is antithetical to the mortal mind. Should an 
  adventurer fall through the portal, describe it as a lightless realm 
  whose only floor is a black canvas. Every step sends ripples of some 
  foul water out across existence. A creature with darkvision or magic 
  is just as lost in the dark and can only see up to 10 feet away. Things 
  lurk there in the dark, just outside their periphery, sending up 
  splashes of water as they circle around that unfortunate soul. From 
  time to time, the ground shifts as a groan echoes throughout the 
  realm, as if they stand on the back of some sleepy titan—which they 
  do. They and the monsters there are but mites on the back of an 
  unseen colossus whose tumors and bleeding sores are like 
  carnivorous flowers. 
  Meanwhile, the senses begin to blur. The ears ring with tinnitus 
  and the nose bleeds as the brain suffers a long-drawn-out aneurism. 
  Organs begin to fail one by one, but this does not kill the unfortunate 
  visitor, only liberate them. The mind slowly unhinges as the shadows 
  press in, as the claws come out, and the wolves lurking there in the 
  dark can help their appetite no longer. No one, as that damned fool 
  will learn, truly dies in this insidious realm—that would be too 
  merciful—and they are doomed to suffer this madness for eternity.  
  
   
  46 
  It's bedlam. Even now the rift seems to shudder with pleasure. 
  Its mold trembles and finds further purchase in this reality. You 
  can see shadows in that sickly light—more of those foul 
  creatures are lining up to walk into this world and see it undone. 
  Your heart begins to sink as the hordes fall into ranks and march 
  towards your side of the rift.  
  It's when the first faceless beast pokes its maw through the 
  rift that a frog hops onto your shoulder and then into the fray. 
  You almost forgot of Tezca-Zyanya—and when the frog lands, 
  it becomes a flash of blinding light. Not sickly light, oh no. 
  Heavenly light that washes away the darkness. Where once a 
  frog crouched now hovers a winged serpent whose every scale 
  is radiant. Tezca-Zyanya's saccharine voice echoes within your 
  mind: "There is only one way to seal the rift… And it is my 
  burden alone to bear." 
  The winged serpent wades through the fray, evading claws 
  and psychotic energies. It slips into that rift, showing no fear, 
  no hesitation… and blinding light erupts from within. That 
  distant titan rages, denied again its entrance to this world, and 
  in its tantrum, you crumble to your knees! The rift implodes, 
  leaving a radiant scar on the wall!  
  The rift now sealed, the moldy flesh of the portal wails as 
  it wilts to death. The star spawn howl, denied 
  reinforcements and conquest. Surviving Shadow-dusks 
  despair, their costly efforts thwarted.  
   
  33. SHRINE 
  Portraits galore hang in this chamber, all featuring the same 
  woman: Dezmyr Shadowdusk. Her name is painted onto every 
  single one. As you spin about, you see that the portraits are 
  arranged chronologically: first showing Dezmyr as a young 
  woman who slowly grows taller until she abandons gowns for 
  armor in the iconography of Torm himself. Just as she reaches 
  what you can estimate to be her thirties, she plunges into death, 
  becoming a skeletal warrior clad in dark armor… armor that 
  still bears that same iconography.  
  Disgust rears up within you. There's an air of adulation, of 
  unchecked limerence. Obsession, even. Whoever produced or 
  commissioned these portraits is obsessed with Lady Dezmyr. 
  It's almost frightening. These works of art are nothing more than 
  idols—this entire scene is nothing more and nothing less than 
  naked idolatry.  
   
  34. ZALTHAR'S CHAMBERS 
   
  34A. ZALTHAR SHADOWDUSK 
  The door to this dusty chamber is already open—and in it sits a 
  skeletal knight clad in deathly armor. In his withered hands are 
  two painted wooden figurines—and you can only guess what 
  sort of scene he was privately enacting.  
  Having interrupted his make-believe, the knight addresses 
  you: "Dezmyr foretold your arrival. I've been waiting for you." 
  He drops the figurines and unsheathes a blade around which 
  circle the souls of his past victims, all wailing in damnation.  
  If the adventurers do not deign to join Zalthar in his 
  private chambers, the knight looses a Hellfire Orb and 
  strides out to greet them personally. He follows the same 
  tactics as Dezmyr (see Area 38). 
   
  34B. BLACK OBELISK 
  Nothing stands in this bald chamber but for a black obelisk 
  fashioned from darkened crystal. It has a gravity to it that lacks 
  the greasy touch of all the other abhorrent artifacts found in this 
  wretched sanctum of the Shadowdusks.  
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  Under this variant, Zalthar is not in his chambers, but 
  instead Area 32, where he is sacrificing a family member 
  to the Far Realm so that a star spawn seer can take over 
  his or her body.   
  Trapped Celestial. The couatl imprisoned within the 
  black obelisk telepathically contacts the party, urging 
  them to free it from this dark prison. Read the following: 
  As you gaze at the obelisk, that saccharine voice infiltrates your 
  mind—and, tracing its warmth, you find that it first found 
  purchase in your very heart.  
  "Free me," it softly demands. "Whether your heart is black 
  with rot or as gilded as the heavens above, you must free me. 
  The flood is coming and it will sweep up all creatures—even 
  you—in its wrath. There is no parleying with such an animal 
  force. No mortal, no matter how evil, can weather their 
  invasion—nor should they abide it. Destroy my prison; topple 
  the obelisk. The rift must be sealed before it is too late." 
  Free at Last. If its prison is toppled, the couatl emerges 
  as a toad. Read the following: 
  The obelisk teeters—and crashes thunderously onto the floor, 
  sending lightning-like cracks throughout the tiles. Crystal flies 
  everywhere and, for the sake of your own skin and eyesight, 
  you shield your face from the debris.  
  When at last you lower your guard, you see only a yellow 
  frog crouched upon the obelisk's shattered head.  
  "Well?" comes a telepathic voice. "Let's get a move on."   
  Roleplaying the Couatl. Tezca-Zyanya normally would 
  not reveal itself as a celestial, but does so if the 
  adventurers promise to help end this madness. It insists 
  that they immediately set out for the portal, "before more 
  of the unbidden enter this world." It is utterly consumed 
  by this duty. Having forgotten its own identity, the couatl 
  has founded its new one on this quest. It does not yet 
  reveal that only a creature on the other side of the portal 
  can close the rift.  
   
  35. EYES OF STONE 
  There is power here. More power than you could possibly ever 
  crave. It flows like an arcane wind that whispers in your ear and 
  rustles your cloak. You know whence it came: the arch gate set 
  into the wall. One of the Mad Mage's gates—perhaps the last 
  gate in all of Undermountain. Its keystone is carved in the like-
  ness of Halaster himself and its stony eyes follow you as if it 
  were alive. Surely there must be a trap here, a trick. In the corner 
  you spot a petrified beholder lost to eternal, stony sleep. What 
  does it mean? What has the Mad Mage lain for you?"  
   
   
  
   
  47 
  Sacrificial Item. At your discretion, Halaster's gate 
  permanently destroys any magic item sacrificed to gain 
  access to Level 23. This distinction is necessary; it is 
  written on Level 23 that Halaster might return the magic 
  item when they meet him in his sanctum. Ideally, the 
  adventurers will sacrifice the Shadow-dusks' black crystal 
  tablet, depriving them of their usual means of contact with 
  the Far Realm.   
  Do It. If the adventurers have not yet dealt with the 
  Shadowdusk family—Dead Hold variant or not—the 
  Mad Mage telepathically whispers to them, "Come. Leave 
  them to their devices. To their crusade. Ours is a dance 
  between friends and lovers; they have no place at the 
  table. There's but one road to my domain and you're 
  looking at it. Come. Take the head, and the rest of the 
  body dies—isn't that true?"   
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  Under this variant, over a dozen corpses surround the arch 
  gate, most torn apart, but some clutching their faces or 
  scraping at the empty space underneath. These were those 
  that did not "make the cut-off," as Halaster would put it, 
  and were left to the star spawn. Those that weren't torn to 
  shreds died by sheer panic. 
  Additionally, Dezmyr and Zalthar can sense if the rift 
  to the Far Realm is sealed. If the couatl manages to close 
  the rift, Dezmyr attacks the party when they reach this 
  area along with three wraiths and, at your discretion, 
  Zalthar. If the party has the black crystal tablet and seem 
  intent on sacrificing it to the gate, they're desperate and 
  panicked—a sharp contrast to their otherwise frosty, 
  undead demeanors. 
  If Dezmyr intercepts the party, she unleashes a Hellfire 
  Orb as soon as she's within range. There's a 25% chance 
  that it only hits the closest adventurers. Read the 
  following: 
  Just as you're about to put an unknowable amount of distance 
  from this madhouse, an orb of black flame comes sailing out of 
  the darkness and explodes against the gate. Through the smoke 
  and flames you see striding forth a knight clad in the armor of 
  Death itself, and, at her heels, a retinue of wraiths.  
  Lady Dezmyr Shadowdusk comes forth, her name attaching 
  itself firmly to your brain. Her blade is already drawn when she 
  shouts, "The fork is unforgiving and the void vast between the 
  stars. Your end begins here."  
   
  38. DEZMYR'S CHAMBERS 
   
  38A. MEMENTO MORI 
  The door opens silently upon an unfurnished suite. It's cold here 
  and the air is ripe with spores that undulate like a fleet of wasps. 
  A tapestry depicting Waterdeep, the City of Splendors, hangs 
  from the wall and before it is a stone pedestal on which rests a 
  charred skull, small and human. The skull is angled towards the 
  tapestry, as if it longed to look at those better days of the past.  
  Across the room stands another door behind which a hushed 
  conversation takes place.  
  The conversation is too faint to be heard, even with an ear 
  pressed to the door. In Area 38C, Dezmyr is taking 
  counsel from her wraith advisors.  
   
  38C. DEZMYR'S SANCTUM 
  A voice heralds your arrival, a voice of the grave, filled with rot 
  and worms: "They have come at last."  
  "Indeed," murmur's a graven woman. Your eyes fall upon a 
  knight of death and decay clad in ebon armor. A council of 
  wraiths float behind her, smoky and ephemeral. 
  Behind the knight stretches a fresco depicting her and another 
  knight as they were in life—gilded and good, armored and on 
  horseback, with the iconography of Torm emblazoned on their 
  armor. The symbol on her shield is that of an upright torch—
  the opposite of what the Shadowdusks now consider their 
  heraldry.  
  The death knight looks to you; her eyes are starry voids 
  within which one can guestimate all of Creation's worth. Her 
  blade rasps against the sheathe as its drawn. Dezmyr Shadow-
  dusk murmurs, "The stars turn, and a time presents itself" as her 
  wraiths sink into the wall and disappear with chilling shrieks!  
  Dezmyr cannot be parleyed with, even if they hold the 
  black crystal tablet hostage. She attacks without 
  hesitation.  
  Tactics. Dezmyr and her forces use these tactics:   
  • Dezmyr fights with wild abandon, knowing that she will return 
  from death just as she did before. It's only if she knows that 
  Zalthar is dead and her family's work is threatened that she 
  tries to survive.  
  • Dezmyr's wraiths rely on their Incorporeal Movement to 
  harangue the party from above, below, and behind, 
  employing hit-and-run tactics by phasing through the walls 
  and floors. They start combat behind Dezmyr, thus avoiding 
  her Area-of-Effect abilities. She directs them to harangue 
  distant foes, especially casters that can't inflict much damage 
  with an opportunity attack.   
  • Dezmyr does nothing that will endanger her mother's skull in 
  Area 38A. Thus, the adventurers are safe from a Hellfire Orb 
  while within 20 feet of it. 
  • Dezmyr opens up on her first turn with a Hellfire Orb if the 
  adventurers are bunched up and her wraiths aren't going to be 
  caught in the blast.  
  • Many of Dezmyr's spells are cast as bonus actions, which 
  competes with her ability to undo damage to herself or her 
  allies. Likewise, most are concentration spells. She blows 
  through her highest-level spell slots first, which are spent on 
  smite spells.   
  • On her second turn, Dezmyr casts destructive wave if she's in 
  the heart of the fray. If not, she casts staggering smite at 4th-
  level instead.   
  • Until her foes dwindle in number, Dezmyr reserves her 
  reaction for her Parry ability. As they fall, she then uses it for 
  opportunity attacks.  
  • If a foe tries to flee, Dezmyr casts compelled duel to ensure 
  they stay within 30 feet of her.   
   
  Dead Again. If Dezmyr is slain, her last words are, "We 
  do not fear the darkness… the void between stars… but 
  you soon shall." 
   
   
   
  
   
  48 
  DEAD HOLD 
  If you're running this variant and the party has dealt with 
  Encounter 5 or 6, remove three of the wraiths in this fight 
  to make up for the beating they've taken from the star 
  spawn. Likewise, the wraiths appear as creatures of sickly 
  light only vaguely humanoid in shape—a measure the 
  mortal mind takes to attach some degree of familiarity to 
  those things.   
  If the portal to the Far Realm has yet to be sealed, 
  Dezmyr says, after her initial riddle, "It is too late. The 
  knob turns and the darkness smiles." 
  If the portal has already been sealed by the couatl's 
  sacrifice, Dezmyr mocks, "Time is a wheel. So as it was, 
  shall it be again," believing that her family's work cannot 
  be thwarted. She, like her family, can sense if the portal is 
  sealed.   
   
  39. DRACOLICH'S PHYLACTERY 
  You're met by a freak so ridiculous you find yourself analyzing 
  this strange chamber before confronting him.  
  The walls here bulge and wriggle as if they were the flesh of 
  some flea-ridden, tumorous beast. A statue suffering from a 
  similar malady stands nearby in an alcove, writhing until it 
  morphs into another person. Every few seconds, it takes on a 
  new appearance, but always is it of a noble.  
  The freak. You turn your eyes and mind back upon the freak: 
  a bald, middle-aged man with chitinous protrusions along his 
  cheeks. His body is that of a beetle's, its black carapace only 
  modestly hidden by the tatters of a black robe that spares you 
  the indecency of his groin. He leans on a heavy staff intricately 
  carved with runes of power. 
  You only realize now that the freak has been addressing you 
  for the last few moments and you cannot even make sense of 
  his words, he's so crazed. His mind is as ruined as his body. 
  Even the slavering, beaked monstrosity at his side—a grick, you 
  dully realize—makes more sense than him.  
  "This place must be razed," you can't help but think—and not 
  for the first time.  
   
  DEAD HOLD 
  If you're running this variant, one of Shadowdusk Hold's 
  archmagi must be sacrificed to the Far Realm so that a 
  star spawn seer can take over the host's body and enter 
  the Material Plane. If this victim isn't Melissara (dragged 
  screaming to the portal's edge), then it has to be Cassiok. 
  There's just no way that you can maintain the integrity of 
  this level's theme of horror by presenting a man with the 
  body of a beetle to your players. It's just too ridiculous. 
  Send him to the portal, leaving the gray slaad and grick 
  alpha to guard this room.  
   
  40. LYNNORAX'S LAIR 
  Darkness lurks like a smoky haze in this unlit chamber, within 
  which lies a dragon—and it's with a silent sigh of relief when 
  you realize it's nothing more than a skeleton cloaked in dust so 
  thick, you could bake it into bread. 
  When it moves on its own accord, you can't but flinch—your 
  heart seizes, for Death was clearly cheated out of this corpse. 
  "Imprisoned for decades," the skeletal drake grumbles. 
  "Reduced to a guard dog with no visitors to harangue."  
  The creature rises to its full height, its every joint creaking 
  and complaining with the effort. Dust showers the chamber, 
  falling like heaps of sand and choking the air.  
  "You," says the drake, "will make a fitting distraction." Its 
  jaws part—and inside its empty mouth lightning curdles, 
  lighting up its entire body and filling the Hold with a serrated 
  shriek! 
  It isn't explicitly spelled out in DotMM whether this area 
  counts as Lynnorax's lair. The Companion contends that 
  it doesn't; the adventurers already face more than enough 
  danger in these halls. If this was to be the dracolich's lair, 
  they would have included new and exciting lair actions 
  befitting its undead nature and Far Realm-influenced 
  location.  
   
  41. SHADOWDUSK VAULT 
  There can only be one thing behind a dragon, dead or otherwise: 
  a hoard of unimaginable wealth… and the Shadowdusk's vault 
  does not disappoint. Treasure galore is heaped in one precarious 
  pile at the center of the vault, watched over only by monstrous 
  statues standing in shallow alcoves. 
  The statue directly ahead is carved in the likeness of a nude 
  woman whose head has been replaced with a chisel-toothed 
  maw. No eyes, no forehead, no ears—only a toothed void. 
  To your right stands a statue of a young man whose cranium 
  has erupted into a mass of tentacles. And to your left is a melting 
  statue of Halaster himself, his eyes sparkling as they droop in 
  the flood of his face. His stony smile speaks volumes. It seems 
  to tell you that your game is almost at its end—that all things 
  must end and when they do it is not pretty, not at all.  
  Additional Loot. If you're a kind DM, or a worried one, 
  now is the most opportune moment ever to add diamonds 
  worth 300 gp or more. Or, in other words, the reagents 
  needed for the revivify spell. These are the last of the 
  diamonds that Dezmyr and Zalthar used to resurrect 
  family members—before they fell from grace. Choose 
  one of the methods below to present the diamonds to your 
  players:  
  • Each of the statues holds the diamond: stuffed in the 
  melting eye of Halaster; deep in the chisel-toothed maw 
  of the southern statue; and in the center of the tentacles 
  of the western statue.   
  • For every minute the adventurers sift through the hoard, 
  they have a 5% chance of finding a diamond.  
  • If the adventurers listen to the gold music box's song, 
  which takes 1d4+2 rounds to play, a diamond magically 
  appears in a space where a ballerina would be. This can 
  occur three times, after which the music box loses its 
  magic.   
  
   
  49 
  EPILOGUE 
  The simple fact is that the adventurers are just about to 
  peak. It doesn't matter if they defeat this level's bosses; 
  they're already 17th-level and they're slated to become 
  20th level after they defeat Halaster.  
  Dead Hold. If the adventurers ran through the Dead 
  Hold encounter, give them the experience they would 
  have earned if they tackled the dracolich. If the party 
  destroyed the black crystal tablet and sealed the rift, the 
  Shadowdusks' are effectively destroyed, all their efforts 
  undone. Without the tablet, they can't so easily contact the 
  Far Realm. Without the rift, the star spawn cannot waltz 
  into this reality. The party has truly scored a victory for 
  the Multiverse.  
   
  SEND-OFFS 
  The Dead Hold variant is of so much importance that 
  separate send-offs to end your session are written below. 
  Regardless of which one you use, add in Halaster Bids to 
  the end.  
   
  THE STANDARD SEND-OFF 
  You have always known Undermountain to be the opposite of 
  paradise—but this, as they say in the worlds above, truly takes 
  the cake. The foul efforts of these freaks can never be told, lest 
  they inspire others to stranger heights. As you stand in the gate 
  to Halaster's personal domain, you can't help but shudder with 
  relief as you put an unknowable amount of distance between 
  you and Shadowdusk Hold. You can only pray that the Mad 
  Mage has a gateway there that will let you return home without 
  ever again stepping foot in this madhouse.  
   
  THE DEAD HOLD SEND-OFF 
  If you ran the Dead Hold variant, read one of the send-
  offs below.  
  The Rift Sealed. If the adventurers managed to seal the 
  rift to the Far Realm, they've spared this world from an 
  early Armageddon. Read the following: 
  The world will never know how close it came to destruction—
  and nor should it. This rift has been sealed, but there are surely 
  others that would try to open that blasphemous door to the Far 
  Realm. They would try, you have no doubt, emboldened by the 
  near-success of the Shadowdusks.  
  Even you have forgotten so much of what has transpired. 
  Dully, you understand that's just your mind's attempt to cope 
  with the horrors you've witnessed. Like patterns in the sand, 
  waves sent from the deep ocean of your mind wipe away any 
  evidence of what happened. The details are already foggy. 
  Some part of you knows that you ought to remember—but your 
  mind refuses, as if it were a parent choosing the better of two 
  evils. Your sanity has surely been frayed—and soon you won't 
  even know it. Will your mind ever heal? Will it ever surrender 
  to you the memories of what— 
  —of whatever happened here in this wretched place? 
   
   
  The Rift Unclosed. If the adventurers leave this level 
  without sealing the rift, read the following: 
  You've gazed long into the abyss—and it has left you broken. 
  What's done is done; you cannot be expected to right a wrong 
  so flagrant. What mortal can? This is above your paygrade.  
  You'll return, you tell yourself—but deep in your heart, you 
  know that to be a lie. Perhaps one day you can forgive yourself 
  for such cowardice—even if the world, whether it learns of this 
  blasphemy, does not. Your only solace is that, should you cut 
  down the Mad Mage, you might find in his sanctum the secrets 
  to return to Shadowdusk Hold—and bring about these freaks' 
  well-deserved reckoning.  
   
  HALASTER BIDS 
  Add the following narration to your chosen send-off: 
  The gate thrums with energy, scooping you up and spiriting you 
  away from this madhouse. The journey to the Mad Mage's 
  sanctum is not instantaneous, however. You speed through 
  corridors strewn with passing stars and long-drawn-out light. 
  His voice bounces off the curve of infinity and resounds in your 
  mind: "Our game is almost at an end. The stars turn, and a time 
  presents itself." 
  It's in that moment you realize Halaster has been the patron 
  behind all this madness. If he did not orchestrate the Shadow-
  dusks' efforts, he certainly approved it, gave it his rubber stamp. 
  If he would allow such things to be bidden into this world, then 
  he cannot be left alive. He's broken a covenant with all 
  mortalkind—with the Multiverse itself. No person should be 
  willing to let those things crawl into reality. 
  This madness must be stopped and that burden falls to you. 
  Only you are in a position to end Halaster Blackcloak's spree. 
  It's as if Destiny itself has lured you here for this purpose—and 
  you cannot help but think back to your initial motivation to 
  delve into Undermountain: gold, glory, and power. 
  What use is the power you've gleaned if you do not use it now 
  to spare the world from the Mad Mage's antics? What has this 
  all been for, if you do not thrust that blade deep into his rotted 
  brain?  
  Chasing that is another realization, this one far more chilling: 
  he wants you there. He's expecting you. Perhaps he always has. 
  Perhaps all of this is just one long-drawn-out game of chess in 
  which a deluded pawn has painted itself as the king. He's 
  waiting for you there, armed and ready in a mad wizard's lair.  
  His whisper comes again, as if he heard your conflicted 
  thoughts. "The time has finally come… to dance with you in 
  person…. At ground zero of my zoo. You truly are the greatest 
  friends I have ever had."  
   
   
   
  
   
  50 
  LEVEL XXIII: MAD WIZARD'S LAIR 
   
  QUICK NOTES 
  • 
  If you utilize the many variants provided in this chapter of 
  the Companion, the party should gain a long rest before 
  they leave Area 1, courtesy of chronomancy spells placed 
  by the Mad Mage. Thereafter, they cannot achieve a long 
  rest on this level. Let that be repeated: the party should 
  never be allowed another long rest on this level. It isn't 
  hard to contrive (and justify) a way to ruin any rests the 
  party takes. This is Halaster's personal domain, after all.  
  • 
  There are few—but mighty—creatures on this level. All 
  are meant to soften the party up before they reach Halaster. 
  • 
  If you use the Elite Four penultimate encounter, Arcturia 
  and Trobriand are missing from their respective areas—so 
  that the party can't kill them prematurely.  
  • 
  The party can acquire a horned ring in Area 29, allowing 
  its attuned wearer to bypass Undermountain's restrictions 
  on magic—meaning a wizard could teleport the party out 
  of the dungeon to rest and come back to fight Halaster.  
  • 
  Marambra Nyghtsteel, the missing apprentice of Halaster's, 
  was intentionally left out of DotMM by its authors so that 
  the DM could use her as they wished. The Companion has 
  a few ideas, but does not make her a cornerstone of this 
  chapter. See the Elite Four penultimate encounter and 
  Areas 2, 24, and 29.  
  • 
  Except for the final encounter of Third Times the Charm, 
  where the Mad Mage tries to drop the asteroid Stardock 
  into Toril, Jhesiyra is mentioned little in this document, as 
  she is best left to the Dungeon Master's imagination.  
   
  PREVIOUSLY ON DUNGEON OF THE MAD MAGE 
  Keep in mind the following when running this level: 
  • The adventurers may have destroyed Arcturia's phylactery on 
  Level 14, earning her ire. 
  • The party may have encountered the Scavenger on Level 19 
  and learned of its purpose. Its helm is in Area 20.  
  • The party may have sided with one of the genies on Level 19, 
  which can come up in the Planar Hopscotching encounter 
  (see Ultimate Showdown)  
  • The adventurers should be familiar with the Seven, whose 
  portraits could be seen on Level 9.  
   
  ART CREDITS 
  Cover by © Dean Spencer 
  Maps by Dyson Logos 
  IN THE KINGDOM OF MADNESS 
  The time has come to lay waste to Undermountain's mad 
  tyrant. At last, the gloves are off: the tortured captives of 
  Halaster Blackcloak can strike him down and win their 
  well-earned freedom—and the Mad Mage can shed his 
  veneer and finally throw his full might against such 
  worthy opponents.  
   
  ORGANIZATION 
  This toolbox of a chapter is heavily modular. It adds 
  several variants to help cap-off your campaign and 
  overhaul its final encounters. The following elements are 
  included:  
  Optional Twists are late additions to your game you can 
  use to shock your players. They are more narrative than 
  mechanical. 
  Penultimate Encounters provides a challenge to throw 
  against the party right before they face the Mad Mage—
  because otherwise, they just saunter into his throne room.  
  Ultimate Showdown encounters are used to elevate the 
  pitiful final fight with Halaster into something worthy of 
  you and your players. Mix and match your preferred 
  encounters.  
   
  THE LEVEL AT LARGE 
   
  LEVELING UP IN THE MAD WIZARD'S LAIR 
  The adventurers must be 17th-level to contend with the 
  Mad Wizard's Lair and DotMM claims that they should 
  hit 20th-level by clearing the level. The Companion 
  breaks this down further: 
  Penultimate Encounter. If you run a penultimate 
  encounter before facing Halaster, the party should reach 
  18th-level. See below for details.  
  Ultimate Showdown. The adventurers should hit 19th-
  level after triumphing over two of the ultimate encounters 
  described in Ultimate Showdown.  
  The Mad Mage. For defeating Halaster in combat, the 
  party should hit 20th-level. If you're running the Ground 
  Mage Day optional twist or Third Times the Charm 
  variant, the party cannot level up to 20th-level until 
  they're free from Halaster forever.  
   
  PERSONALIZING LEVEL 23 FOR YOUR PARTY 
  Your party has triumphed over countless horrors and 
  challenges to reach this level. They're the cream of the 
  crop, destined for greatness, and worthy of the Mad 
  Mage's respect. You can personalize this level for your 
  players in some of the following ways:  
  • Every creature on this level should know who the party is—
  by now they're legendary throughout Undermountain. These 
  creatures' dialogue should reflect this infamy.   
  • An artificer might be invited to become Trobriand's apprentice 
  if they help him overthrow Halaster.  
  
   
  51 
  • Take stock of the party's arsenal and plan around it—but don't 
  invalidate it. If they have a stock of healing potions, then you 
  have license to amp up the pressure. If they have a potion of 
  giant's strength, don't let an Athletics check derail your entire 
  set-up. Keep track of their consumables and other magic 
  items. You cannot afford to be taken unawares. Halaster, a 
  20th-level wizard with an Intelligence score of 24 and ample 
  access to scrying spells, should know what the adventurers 
  have at their disposal.   
  • Arcturia might offer to cure a character of their "maladies." 
  • Halaster might offer an apprenticeship to a character, whether 
  they're already a spellcaster or not. Muiral began as just a 
  bodyguard, so why can't the party's barbarian or fighter?  
  • A cleric or paladin or warlock might be drawn by divine (or 
  infernal) providence to the diabolical and angelic shields in 
  Area 6B and 9B, which respectively contain a pit fiend and 
  deva. This entity might be the warlock's patron or ally; or it 
  might be a servant of the cleric or paladin's god.  
  • Call back to the campaign's earlier days. If a beloved or hated 
  character survived the party, perhaps orchestrate their grand 
  appearance on this level, even if they're here to oppose the 
  party. Examples include Wyllow, the aboleth Illuun, and the 
  genie the party did not free from Halaster's service.  
   
  RESTING IN THE MAD WIZARD'S LAIR 
  It is impossible for the Companion to anticipate your 
  party's composition or current wellbeing. Thus, it assumes 
  that they achieve a long rest upon arrival to Level 23, 
  courtesy of Halaster. This will be the last long rest the 
  party ever gains until Halaster is dead.  
  To ruin the adventurers' long rest, consider the 
  following methods: 
  • Halaster is aware of the party's presence on this level. No one 
  enters his lair without his knowledge. To interrupt the party's 
  rest, he releases the four invisible stalkers from Area 5. They 
  do not fight to the death, but attack for a round or two, then 
  flee. Until the party gives up on resting, the stalkers plague 
  them. If these stalkers are slain, Halaster can resort to the 
  helmed horrors or ultroloths also on this level.  
  • Contrive that spells of Leomund's tiny hut do not work on this 
  level or have Halaster just dispatch a creature with dispel 
  magic, such as a nycaloth.  
   
  BATTLING HALASTER 
  The final showdown with Halaster is described under 
  Ultimate Showdown below. A number of encounters, all 
  of them zany, have been provided. Simply pick your 
  poison and run it.  
  The Companion seeks to fulfill the expectations of 
  Halaster, a master wizard, by overhauling the final 
  encounter, his changing up his spell list, describing the 
  defenses he would erect in anticipation of this conflict, 
  and more.  
  While you could bend rules or fashion homebrew spells 
  for Halaster, the Companion tries to keep it all 
  aboveboard, more or less, working within the limits of a 
  20th-level wizard at the helm of a massive hoard of 
  wealth, spellcraft, and industry.   
   
  ADDRESSING THE DISAPPOINTMENT 
  Halaster Blackcloak is a mad genius empowered by the 
  legendary Knot in the Weave. He has defied his natural 
  lifespan and spent it in the study of magic. He is cunning, 
  diabolical, paranoid, and a master of the Arcane that can 
  never truly die, so long as his demise occurs in 
  Undermountain—and yet DotMM makes him into a 
  lightweight. Suffice to say that the final showdown of this 
  campaign is a letdown unworthy of print.  
  The Criticisms. Here are a number of issues with 
  Halaster, as presented in DotMM. To be fair, the Mad 
  Mage is practically immortal, and therefore isn't too 
  troubled by death, but his demise is too anticlimactic for 
  a Dungeons & Dragons campaign when he is the chief 
  antagonist in the story.  
  • Despite being a CR 23 foe, Halaster is a glass cannon, hardly 
  able to withstand a group of 17th-20th-level adventurers for 
  even a single round.  
  • With the exception of the empyrean Nalkara, he has laid no 
  traps for the adventurers—not a glyph of warding, not a spell 
  of symbol. Neither has he even already cast mind blank on 
  himself—which he has prepared—or set of a defense with 
  contingency. He hasn't even utilized his arsenal of potions or 
  spell scrolls (which can be produced in areas that are already 
  described in his lair). All he has to his name is a throne that 
  renders him invisible. Big whoop.  
  • His Lair Actions are largely muted in Area 33, with exception 
  to his ability to reshape stone or spaces—although the latter 
  must be unoccupied. His other two options are only useful if 
  he tries to run from the adventurers, which the module makes 
  no mention of.  
  • Despite sitting on a hoard of magic items, many of which he 
  can reasonably find throughout Undermountain, he has only 
  a blast scepter and horned ring. Compare this to other 5E 
  campaign antagonists, some of whom have five attuned items. 
  • His Spell Ward Legendary Action is laughably insignificant: 
  five temporary hit points per level of sacrificed spell slot, up 
  to 4th level? Get out of here.   
   
  HALASTER'S EMOTIONAL STATE 
  The Mad Mage does not need to fear death—he has 
  returned from it several times. However, it takes an 
  excruciating toll on his body and, more importantly, his 
  ego. Halaster wants to have his game, but he does not 
  want to lose. He will not abide failure—because he has 
  never been a failure. He has been slain, he has goofed up, 
  dropped the ball, and made more mistakes than he can 
  remember, but he is not a failure.   
  That being said, Halaster is in pursuit of something far 
  greater than victory: a challenge. He has had quite a while 
  to prepare for the adventurers and he could easily crush 
  them—he could wish them away—but that would not be 
  satisfying. That's what Halaster craves: satisfaction by 
  besting a worthy opponent whose fate is undetermined. 
  It's for reasons like this that he lacks spells that just utterly 
  remove creatures from the fight, such as banishment (and 
  why the Companion removes maze from his spell list).  
  
   
  52 
  When the adventurers take the fight to Halaster, don't 
  excuse stupidity for madness. Halaster is, of course, the 
  Mad Mage, but he is not irrational for this encounter. He 
  is, perhaps, the most lucid he has ever been. He would 
  take every precaution that would not spoil the challenge. 
  He would not spare an enemy—in fact, he would break 
  the fourth wall and subvert expectations by finishing them 
  off. Above all, he cannot afford to become a cliché, and 
  he knows it. There are no grandiose speeches, no taunts. 
  The Mad Mage is spoiling for a fight—and he has no 
  obligation to fight fair.   
   
  HALASTER'S SPELLS 
  Obeying the same mechanics of spell preparation just like 
  any other wizard, Halaster can prepare up to twenty-seven 
  spells. In anticipation of this inevitable conflict, he has 
  swapped out the following spells from his list of prepared 
  spells: arcane lock, cloud of daggers, hallucinatory 
  terrain, knock, maze (because it's an anti-fun spell that 
  just removes the dumbest character from the final battle) 
  magic missile, programmed illusion, silent image and 
  symbol (if he were to use this spell, he would've cast it 
  days ago).  
  You can replace the spells as you see fit. However, 
  several Ultimate Showdown encounters require that he 
  prepare particular spells, such as feather fall. The 
  following spells are worthy of his preparation. Spells 
  marked with an asterisk belong in Xanathar's Guide to 
  Everything.  
  • Fire shield, which he would cast before combat 
  • Mirror image 
  • Misty step, which is great for goading counterspells, pairing 
  with a fire bolt, and casting via a Legendary Action 
  • Mordenkainen's faithful hound, which he would cast before 
  combat; it bites any warrior foolish enough to approach the 
  Mad Mage 
  • Power word pain*, used to cripple spellcasters 
  • Slow 
  • Steel wind strike* made with a dagger 
  • Synaptic strike* 
  • Thunderwave (which replaces magic missile; while it may 
  seem redundant with his blast scepter, Halaster needs a 1st-
  level spell that protects him, harms others, and baits counter-
  spells that he can cast with a Legendary Action) 
   
  Cantrips. Halaster knows four cantrips and they're all a 
  bit lackluster. As a 20th-level wizard, he should at least 
  have a fifth; as an apex mage, it's conceivable for him to 
  know every single wizard cantrip. At a minimum, the 
  Companion adds shocking grasp to his repertoire, but you 
  can also add the following:  
  • Blade ward, which he only ever casts with a Legendary Action 
  • Chill touch, if you're especially vicious with how you run your 
  version of Halaster; he casts it via a Legendary Action after a 
  character is grievously wounded 
  • Gust, which is quite useful for encounters in which the party 
  must contend with great heights and gravity, such as the Plane 
  of Fire encounter in Planar Hopscotching   
   
   
  HALASTER'S GEAR 
  It would be easy to kit Halaster out in overpowered 
  magical items, but the Companion is conservative. It 
  suggests only the following equipment. Given his potion 
  brewery, factory, and wealth, it's conceivable for him to 
  have prepared these items.  
  • Two potions of resistance, chosen from the party's two most 
  favorite damage types (but not fire or lightning, as his blast 
  scepter already grants resistance to those damage types). 
  These effects persist for 1 hour.  
  • An oil of slipperiness, granting him the effects of a freedom of 
  movement spell for the next 10 minutes—which will wrinkle 
  the nose of any warriors fond of grappling and monks that 
  intend to disable him with a Stunning Strike. He applies this 
  to himself before the adventurers reach Area 33. 
  • Three potions of greater healing (4d4+4 hit points), two 
  potions of superior healing (8d4+8) and a single potion of 
  supreme healing (10d4+20).  
  • A handful of dust of sneezing and choking which can be used 
  to incapacitate foes—namely spellcasters who are warded 
  with heavy spells like invulnerability. Be aware that Halaster 
  also has to make the DC 15 Con. saving throw and will blow 
  a Legendary Resistance if he fails.  
  • A single bead of force  
  • A gem of brightness with five remaining charges 
  • A rope of entanglement 
   
  See the sidebar for these items' effects and details, as 
  well as Halaster's Legendary Actions for how Halaster 
  can utilize these items.   
   
  HALASTER'S PREPARATIONS 
  The greatest and most ridiculous mistake made by the 
  DotMM authors is not having Halaster cast any spells in 
  anticipation of the battle. He's a wizard, for crying out 
  loud. Perhaps they would have assumed that the Dungeon 
  Master would do so. Perhaps they didn't. At the very least, 
  Halaster would ward himself with the following spells: 
  • Fire shield, cast shortly before the adventurers arrive to Area 
  33. Woe be to the warrior that dares strike at Halaster.  
  • Mage armor (this is a given; even DotMM can assume to have 
  that already cast)  
  • Mind blank, cast within the last 24 hours, but before the Mad 
  Mage underwent a long rest. This wards him from psychic 
  damage and even wish spells that alter his consciousness.  
  • Mirror image, cast while the party's in Area 33, before combat 
  or via a Legendary Action during it.  
  • Mordenkainen's faithful hound, cast seven hours ago. The 
  hound is not there as a sentry, only as a means to punish the 
  warrior that attacks Halaster 
   
  Per his Arcane Recovery feature, Halaster regains his 
  expended spell slots of 5th level or lower when he finishes 
  a short rest. Therefore, he can afford to buff himself 
  before battle. If the adventurers take a rest, so does he.  
  Traps and Glyphs Galore. The Clash of the Titans 
  encounter, detailed below in Ultimate Showdown, has 
  Halaster also ward his lair with glyphs of warding and the 
  like.  
   
  
   
  53 
  Contingency. The Mad Mage wards himself with the 
  most wizardly spell of all: contingency. You need to 
  personalize the contingent spell to your players' penchants 
  and capabilities; however, the following spells would 
  interest Halaster: 
  • Haste, with the clause that he's within 5 ft. of a foe. Thus, he 
  can take the Disengage action with haste's extra action.  
  • Otiluke's resilient sphere, activated when he is reduced to half 
  his hit points or less (a.k.a. "bloodied"). While in the sphere, 
  he drinks any potions he might have or reapplies any buffs he 
  needs, such as mirror image or the like. Alternatively, the 
  clause he sets is that it activates when a power word kill spell 
  is cast against him, if he knows the party has that spell.   
  • Polymorph, with the clause he is reduced to 62 hit points or 
  less (a.k.a. "gravely wounded"). He turns into either a giant 
  ape or a tyrannosaurus rex (your choice) 
  • Protection from energy, if he didn't account for such damage 
  with a potion of resistance. The spell activates whenever he 
  takes the chosen damage from acid, cold, or thunder damage 
  (fire and lightning can be chosen as well, but his blast scepter 
  already grants him resistance to those damage types)  
  • Remove curse if your adventurers have demonstrated a pen-
  chant for bestow curse or the like.  
  • Skill empowerment (see Xanathar's) if Halaster did not use an 
  oil of slipperiness. He chooses Athletics or Acrobatics to be 
  competitive in grapple checks; the former bumps his check 
  up by +14, the latter by +18.   
  • Stoneskin, with the clause of activating whenever he is struck 
  by a physical attack. 
   
  Remember, that a contingent spell still requires the 
  caster's concentration if it would normally require it. 
  Additionally, a caster can only have one contingent spell 
  at a time. You—and Halaster—can write down on an 
  index card what his contingency was, if you'd like to have 
  a "Gotcha" or "You've activated my trap card!" moment.  
  HALASTER'S GEAR (ABRIDGED) 
  As described in Halaster's Gear, the Mad Mage can have any of the following items on his person for the ultimate battle:  
   
  BEAD OF FORCE (1 BEAD) 
  You can use an action to throw the bead up to 60 feet. The bead 
  explodes on impact and is destroyed. Each creature within a 10-foot 
  radius of where the bead landed must succeed on a DC 15 Dexterity 
  saving throw or take 5d4 force damage. A sphere of transparent force 
  then encloses the area for 1 minute. Any creature that failed the save 
  and is completely within the area is trapped inside this sphere. Creatures 
  that succeeded on the save, or are partially within the area, are pushed 
  away from the center of the sphere until they are no longer inside it. 
  Only breathable air can pass through the sphere's wall. No attack or 
  other effect can. 
  An enclosed creature can use its action to push against the sphere's 
  wall, moving the sphere up to half the creature's walking speed. The 
  sphere can be picked up, and its magic causes it to weigh only 1 pound, 
  regardless of the weight of creatures inside. 
   
  DUST OF SNEEZING AND CHOKING (1 HANDFUL)  
  When you use an action to throw a handful of the dust into the air, you 
  and each creature that needs to breathe within 30 feet of you must 
  succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or become unable to 
  breathe while sneezing uncontrollably. A creature affected in this way 
  is incapacitated and suffocating. As long as it is conscious, a creature 
  can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the 
  effect on it on a success. The lesser restoration spell can also end the 
  effect on a creature. 
   
  OIL OF SLIPPERINESS 
  The oil can cover a Medium or smaller creature. Applying the oil takes 
  10 minutes. The affected creature then gains the effect of a freedom of 
  movement spell for 8 hours. Alternatively, this oil can be poured on the 
  ground as an action, where it covers a 10-foot-square, duplicating a 
  grease spell in that area for 8 hours.  
  Freedom of Movement. The creature's movement is unaffected by 
  difficult terrain, and spells and other magical effects can neither reduce 
  its speed, nor cause it to be paralyzed or restrained. Additionally, it can 
  spend 5 feet of movement to automatically escape from nonmagical 
  restraints, such as manacles or a creature that has it grappled. Finally, 
  being underwater imposes no penalties on its movement or attacks.  
   
  POTION OF HEALING 
  Using an action, you regain a number of hit points: 
  Greater (3). You regain 4d4 + 4 hit points. 
  Superior (2). You regain 8d4 + 8 hit points.  
  Supreme (1). You regain 10d4 + 20 hit points. 
   
  POTION OF RESISTANCE (2 POTIONS)  
  You gain resistance to the type of damage the potion is brewed for. This 
  effect lasts 1 hour. 
   
  ROPE OF ENTANGLEMENT 
  This rope is 30 feet long and weighs 3 pounds. If you hold one end of 
  the rope and use an action to speak its command word, the other end 
  darts forward to entangle a creature you can see within 20 feet of you. 
  The target must succeed on a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw or become 
  restrained. 
  You can release the creature by using a bonus action to speak a second 
  command word. A target restrained by the rope can use an action to 
  make a DC 15 Strength or Dexterity check (target's choice). On a 
  success, the creature is no longer restrained by the rope. 
  The rope has AC 20 and 20 hit points. It regains 1 hit point every 5 
  minutes as long as it has at least 1 hit point. If the rope drops to 0 hit 
  points, it is destroyed. 
   
  GEM OF BRIGHTNESS (5 CHARGES) 
  While holding this prism, you can use an action to speak one of three 
  command words to cause one of the following effects:  
  • The first command word causes the gem to shed bright light in a 30-
  foot radius and dim light for an additional 30 feet. This effect doesn't 
  expend a charge. It lasts until you use a bonus action to repeat the 
  command word or until you use another function of the gem. 
  • The second command word expends 1 charge and causes the gem to 
  fire a brilliant beam of light at one creature you can see within 60 feet 
  of you. The creature must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving 
  throw or become blinded for 1 minute. The creature can repeat the 
  saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself 
  on a success. 
  • The third command word expends 5 charges and causes the gem to 
  flare with blinding light in a 30-foot cone originating from it. Each 
  creature in the cone must make a saving throw as if struck by the beam 
  created with the second command word. 
   
  When all of the gem's charges are expended, the gem becomes a 
  nonmagical jewel worth 50 gp. 
   
   
  
   
  54 
  Some encounters make use of a contingency spell and 
  thus competes with whatever you use here. See Ultimate 
  Showdown for details; a notable example is Halaster 
  polymorphing himself into a shark if he is ever engulfed 
  in water (which he will be if he takes the adventurers to 
  the Plane of Water).  
   
  HALASTER'S LAIR ACTIONS 
  When compared to other legendary characters and 
  creatures, Halaster's lair actions come up short. You must, 
  however, utilize them during the final conflict. Consider: 
  • Per Alterations to Magic, spells cannot destroy or alter the 
  shape of Undermountain's ceilings, walls, floors and more 
  (doors, however, aren't protected). Therefore, Halaster can 
  form an impenetrable wall or create pits. He can't encase a 
  character within the area, as the area must be unoccupied, but 
  he can at least hinder their progress.  
  • Halaster can duck into Areas 32 and 34-36 and use a lair action 
  to replace the door with an impenetrable wall that cannot be 
  reshaped by magic. He does so if he needs to avoid hazards, 
  drink a potion, or cast a spell uninterrupted.  
  • Per the points above, Halaster can sit on his throne and protect 
  himself with a newly-formed wall. The alcove the throne is 
  in is only 20-feet-wide and the ceiling is 30 ft. high. Halaster 
  can give himself three-quarters cover, or even total cover, and 
  blast behind the wall through slits.  
   
  HALASTER'S LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  The authors of DotMM did not afford our dear lunatic 
  many options for his Legendary Actions. His Spell Ward 
  is laughably terrible, so he'll only ever make use of the 
  Cast Spell option.  
  The following spells are worth using a Legendary 
  Action to cast, provided he has them prepared: 
  • Cantrips such as chill touch, shocking grasp and blade ward, 
  if he has them added to his spell list (see above), which are 
  great for baiting counterspells from the enemy 
  • Dispel magic to rid his foes of their buffs 
  • Fireball to soften up his foes 
  • Mirror image, to keep himself alive 
  • Slow to hamper his foes 
   
  Additional Action. One more Legendary Action can be 
  added to Halaster's repertoire, which allows him to keep 
  up longer in the fight.  
   
  Use Magic Item. Halaster uses a magic item that requires 
  an action to use, except for his blast scepter.  
   
  HALASTER'S BARE MINIMUM MINIONS 
  5th Edition boils down to this: no matter how mighty the 
  boss is, they're toast if outnumbered four to one. Halaster 
  needs minions to soak up damage and divide the party's 
  attention, otherwise he's just dead. At a minimum, he has 
  a shield guardian that contains a spell of fireball, haste 
  or slow (your choice). He is also joined by a gray render 
  (see MToF for lore) that he's named after the dumbest of 
  the adventurers. These minions never leave Area 33, even 
  if Halaster sends the party to a demiplane or the like. 
  The Clash of the Titans encounter vastly expands on 
  Halaster's minions, which includes these two. See the 
  Ultimate Showdown sections for details.  
  Tactics. These minions are simple ones, freeing up your 
  decision-making to focus on Halaster. They follow these 
  tactics:  
  • The gray render is incredibly aggressive and harries the party's 
  backline.  
  • The shield guardian remains within 5 ft. of Halaster so it can 
  protect him with its Shield reaction. It unleashes its stored 
  spell at Halaster's command.  
   
  HALASTER'S TACTICS 
  Halaster possesses a razor-wit burdened by madness. 
  With an Intelligence score of 24, he can, would, and 
  should come up with a myriad of countermeasures and 
  plots that individually disable members of the party. You 
  have carte blanche when tailoring these individual 
  strategies.  
  Tactics. Halaster has had ample time to study his foes. 
  In combat, he generally follows these tactics: 
  • When fighting in Area 33, Halaster can escape a beating by 
  touching the statue of himself (no action required) to teleport 
  to Areas 22 or 28, where he can drink potions, cast new spells, 
  and more.  
  • Halaster's first priority is to disable or hinder the party with 
  spells such as synaptic strike, confusion, slow or wall of force.  
  • Halaster knows he's done for if he's pinned down in a grapple. 
  To combat this, he either misty steps out of a grapple, sets his 
  contingency spell (see above) to skill empowerment, or uses 
  an oil of slipperiness.  
  • Wary of being counterspelled, Halaster baits such spells with 
  cantrips cast with Legendary Actions. He reaction is reserved 
  for counterspells of his own—especially if he suspects his 
  foes of having power word kill at their disposal. He is certain 
  that his first spell will be counterspelled—and that another 
  foe will counter any of his retaliatory counterspells.  
  • Halaster reserves his turn for hard-hitting spells of 4th-level 
  or higher and usually only casts 3rd-level or lower spells with 
  a Legendary Action.  
  • If Halaster has utilized spells of fire shield, mirror image, and 
  Mordenkainen's faithful hound (see Halaster's Spells above), 
  he wants melee combatants to strike him.  
  • Halaster absolutely won't live long enough to use every one of 
  his spell slots, so he doesn't bother being conservative with 
  them. If he needs a spell, he needs a spell.  
  • Bigby's hand is a favorite of Halaster's, as it allows him to use 
  bonus actions. This versatile spell can grapple targets, push 
  away foes, and provide half cover.  
  • Halaster may pair thunderwave with his Legendary Actions 
  (if he replaces magic missile with it) to bait counterspells and 
  keep away warriors. Imagine three thunderwaves in one 
  round of combat. To fool the party, he can cast it twice, then 
  use his last Legendary Action for a fireball spell.  
  • Halaster is loathe to waste his Legendary Resistances. He only 
  blows them against abilities that would disable him, such as 
  a Stunning Strike or polymorph. Damage can be healed, but 
  a debuff like that could end everything.  
   
   
  
   
  55 
  • Within Area 33, Halaster remains on his throne until he's being 
  wailed on by a warrior, after which he's likely to cast fly and 
  hover out of reach—but only if he isn't concentrating on a 
  crucial spell.  
  • Remind yourself of the points made in sections above, such as 
  Halaster's Preparations and incorporate them into his tactics. 
   
  ON PARTICULAR SPELLS 
  You must consider the following spells, many of which 
  can just ruin Halaster's day: 
  Concentration spells are best countered by a bag of dust 
  of sneezing and choking, which you can add to Halaster's 
  equipment. Spells like invulnerability and globe of 
  invulnerability can be interrupted easily by this simple 
  magic item.  
  Counterspell is the one spell that can completely neuter 
  Halaster. Keep these in mind: 
  • Per XGE, a character must use their reaction to identify a spell 
  being cast (via an Intelligence (Arcana) check, the DC of 
  which equals 15 + the spell's level; made with advantage if 
  the spell belongs to that character's class spell list).  
  • How you run counterspell at your table is your business, but 
  the Companion suggests declaring to your players "Halaster 
  casts a spell" and giving them a six-second countdown for 
  anyone to decide if they're going to counterspell him. You 
  should afford players this same courtesy, since Halaster can 
  also cast counterspell.  
  • Spellcasters do not add their proficiency bonus to counterspell 
  ability checks, although bards get to add half, thanks to their 
  Jack of All Trades feature.  
   
  Polymorph is at Halaster's disposal, but he doesn't share 
  Arcturia's penchant for transmutation. He is loathe to 
  waste his concentration on the spell, but if he must, he 
  turns a target into a toad or the like. If he needs to cast it 
  on himself, he chooses either a giant ape or a 
  tyrannosaurus rex (see App. B for stats). If it's cast 
  against him, he either counterspells it or blows a 
  Legendary Resistance to succeed.  
  Power word kill can just simply end Halaster. No 
  saving throw, no counter. His only option is to cast 
  counterspell against the resident warlock, wizard, 
  sorcerer or bard—or set up a glyph of warding that does 
  the same.   
  Wish is an anticlimactic spell that ruins just about 
  everything. Halaster wouldn't waste his own on the party 
  unless they were to do something drastic like wish that he 
  could not be resurrected. Because of his mind blank spell, 
  his mind cannot be affected by a wish spell.  
   
   
   
  OPTIONAL TWISTS 
  Now, in the final hour of Dungeon of the Mad Mage, you 
  can spring a twist on your party if you hadn't already 
  planned on one. Choose one of the following twists 
  below; if you manage to weave together more than one, 
  more power to you.   
  Epiphany. Should one of the adventurers figure out the 
  twist before it's revealed to them, reward them with 
  Inspiration.  
   
  HALASTER'S GAME 
  This section applies whether you've been running the 
  Companion's game show element, or if you'd like to add 
  it to your campaign now as a twist.  
  In the case of the latter, the adventurers learn that they're 
  the unwitting contestants on Halaster's hit transplanar 
  game show broadcast across the Multi-verse: Dungeon of 
  the Mad Mage. Expect a litany of groans when they hear 
  its title. See Area 33 for the dialogue used when Halaster 
  makes his grand reveal: 
   
  THE GENTLEMEN BASTARDS 
  If you've included the rival adventuring party, the 
  Gentlemen Bastards (added by the Companion, and 
  featured on Levels 7, 8 and 19), you can add another twist: 
  they too are contestants on Dungeon of the Mad Mage. 
  Perhaps, even, they're the sole survivors of last season's 
  party and were promised freedom if they manage to kill 
  the current contestants.   
   
  THE POINTS GAME 
  If you utilized the Points Game (see the Halaster's Game 
  supplement), the adventurers should cash in on their 
  points before facing Halaster personally. If you didn't ever 
  use it, but would like to invoke a Harry Potter-esque 
  scene, have an apparition of the Mad Mage appear to 
  randomly reward and subtract points for the players for 
  reasons such as, "Striking down the death tyrant 
  Netherskull" or "Being the first to hop into the minecarts 
  on the Terminus Level." 
  Rewards. Halaster promises anything to the party, but 
  likely won't deliver. His rewards might come in the form 
  of healing potions, spell scrolls, trinkets, or even a catnap 
  spell (see Xanathar's Guide to Every-thing for details on 
  this spell). The prices for these rewards are arbitrary, of 
  course. 
   
  THE DARK TOWER 
  Halaster's tower has poked its way into the epicenter of 
  not just the Multiverse but the—as he calls it—"Multi-
  Multiverse." This has afforded the Mad Mage the 
  opportunity to fight the contestants' alternate-selves from 
  other universes. In most timelines, these contestants have 
  died in Undermountain, but in a very select few, they have 
  triumphed, beating the Mad Mage at his very own game.  
  
   
  56 
  Using this twist, the "main" party can find visions and 
  literal bones of their alternate-selves. If you employ this 
  twist, you must:  
  • Lay bones and familiar belongings of the alternate-parties 
  throughout Level 23. The party is likely to at first think that 
  the Mad Mage is messing with them, but these are just hints 
  to the later reveal that Halaster has been tormenting countless 
  alternate versions of them.  
  • Confront the party with past visions of themselves; however, 
  something is always different, such as a decision or event that 
  occurred. For example, if the main-party slew Wyllow on 
  Level 5, a vision can show them sparing her. Alternatively, 
  in these visions, minute details are changed, such as an 
  adventurer having a scar or dyed hair.  
  • Intelligent creatures should mutter otherwise benign phrases 
  like, "You again?" or "Aww hell, here we go again."  
   
  RESPAWNS 
  At your discretion, alternate-selves of the party are still 
  alive, and, thanks to Jhesiyra, they can replace slain 
  versions 
  of 
  themselves. 
  The 
  disembodied 
  spirit 
  orchestrates their rendezvous, invisibly guiding them 
  back to the party. In this manner, the adventurers 
  effectively have respawns.  
  Using this variant, you have the license and even the 
  responsibility to dial up this level's dangers to 11, now 
  that the party has extra lives. Instead of running three 
  ultimate showdown encounters, run five—or throw two 
  penultimate encounters at the party.  
  Extra Lives. To determine how many versions of a 
  character are still kicking and can be brought by Jhesiyra, 
  roll a d4. The "main" version of a character already counts 
  as one of these; thus, a character has a maximum of three 
  replacements.  
  Hit Points. Replacements arrive with less hit points 
  than the last one. Crossing through different realities has 
  reduced the replacement's hit point maximum; the first 
  replacement has only three-quarters of its hit points and 
  hit point maximum; the second has half, and the third has 
  a quarter. There is no fourth.  
  Spell Slots. Whenever a spellcaster is replaced, you 
  must roll to determine their remaining spell slots. 6th-9th 
  level spell slots are already exhausted. They have 1d4 1st-
  level spell slots and 1d3 2nd-5th spell slots remaining.  
  Items. These replacements come with no items, 
  mundane or magical, except for armor and regular 
  weapons. Nothing stops them from picking up their 
  former selves' gear from the floor and—perhaps if you're 
  a generous DM—they find that they're already attuned to 
  the magic items of that character.   
   
  AS A PENULTIMATE ENCOUNTER 
  As described below, the adventurers must face one last 
  trial before reaching Halaster's sanctum. If you're using 
  this twist, you can have the adventurers fight alternate 
  versions of themselves instead. If you do so, you need to 
  create a 17th-level version of the party to battle.  
  Why Can't We Be Friends? If the party meets their 
  alternate-selves, you can be sure the first thing they'll do 
  is suggest they all team-up against the Mad Mage. 
  Unfortunately, these alternate-selves have already been 
  burned by other alternates and now trust no one but 
  themselves. Surely any other attempts would just be yet 
  another trap lain by the Mad Mage, no? 
  Try as they might, the adventurers can broker no peace 
  and must murder their alternate-selves to progress to the 
  Mad Mage.  
   
  GROUND-MAGE DAY 
  As the adventurers learn, they've already defeated the 
  Mad Mage once. Countless times, in fact. With his dying 
  wish—one whispered in a past when the party managed 
  to rob him of his reincarnation cycle—Halaster trapped 
  them in a time-loop. Only a wish spell cast while Halaster 
  is dead (again) can break the cycle.  
  To foreshadow this twist, follow these guidelines:  
  • Describe areas of the Mad Wizard's Lair as "familiar" 
  • A grave, gut feeling warns a character when they're about to 
  enter a dangerous area 
   
  PUPPET ON THE STRING 
  While more of a truth than a twist, you can paint the Mad 
  Mage as the tragic figure he is: a wizard kept enthralled 
  by the Knot in the Weave. Halaster never asked for this, 
  remember, for who could ever know the madness that had 
  already bloomed beneath Undermountain?  
  You can tack this onto any other twist presented here, 
  or just run it in general. No accommodations must be 
  made to reveal the truth.  
   
  PENULTIMATE ENCOUNTERS 
  Before the party faces the Mad Mage in Area 33, they 
  must triumph over one of the challenges below. 
  Nalkara. The encounter with the empyrean that 
  Halaster summons in Area 33 is considered a penultimate 
  encounter and has been expanded on below in Welcome 
  to the Thunderdome.  
  The Dark Tower. As described in Optional Twists, the 
  other versions of the adventurers from alternate realities 
  may have already faced Halaster, whose tower pierces the 
  Multi-Multiverse at the epicenter of all time and space. If 
  the adventurers are going to fight alternate versions of 
  themselves to reach the Mad Mage, this can instead count 
  as their penultimate encounter. 
  Leveling Up. For overcoming their penultimate 
  encounter, the adventurers should level up to 18th-level if 
  they weren't already there. However, this doesn't entitle 
  them to regaining all their resources (i.e., they do not heal 
  up to their hit point maximum, they only get an extra hit 
  die to increase their hit point maximum and current hit 
  points, et cetera). 
   
  
   
  57 
  THE ELITE FOUR 
  Throwing open the doors to the Mad Mage's sanctum, you find 
  only a long corridor leading to a darkened, empty doorway.  
  A force from behind blows you into the corridor just as the 
  floor begins to slide forward, animated by underlain magic. The 
  walls are soon painted with an illusion that spells out the words, 
  "NEXT OBJECTIVE: DEFEAT THE ELITE FOUR!"   
  As you're hurried to the next door, a clock appears within 
  your mind, ticking down from sixty-one minutes and fifteen 
  seconds. You know not what it means but can conjure the image 
  at the slightest thought. 
  The clock ticks to fourteen, to thirteen. By twelve, you're 
  already thrown through that darkened doorway and into the next 
  world beyond.  
  This encounter hurls the party into a harrowing gauntlet 
  in which they must best Halaster's surviving apprentices, 
  provided they're still alive. When they throw open the 
  doors to Halaster's throne room (Area 33), they're 
  teleported to several locations throughout Undermountain 
  in the order below:   
  Time Limit. When the first encounter begins, the 
  adventurers can see a timer in their minds set to 61 
  minutes and 12 seconds. They are acutely aware of the 
  remaining time. The implication of this timer is subtle: if 
  the party can best all of the Elite Four in under 1 minute 
  and 12 seconds (a.k.a. 12 rounds of combat), they can 
  achieve a short rest before the Mad Mage rips them back 
  to his lair.   
  Running Out the Clock. If time runs out, the party must 
  still face all of the Elite Four. Halaster will just teleport 
  them to the next encounter. When he does, he 
  telepathically scorns them with, "There's only one train on 
  this railroad, and you're on it, like it or not!"  
  Changes to the Module. If you run this variant, both 
  Arcturia and Trobriand are absent from their lairs on 
  Level 23 (Areas 17 and 13, respectively)—so that the 
  party cannot preemptively kill them and ruin your plans.  
  Surprise. Despite being teleported into a member's lair 
  unannounced, none of the Elite Four can be surprised, 
  thanks to a telepathic warning sent by the Mad Mage only 
  seconds before the showdown.   
   
  1. NESTER 
  You're spat out from a rift into a dolorous deadwood barely lit 
  by a sputtering campfire. Assembled students—wearing the 
  Dweomercore school colors—gape at you. As you pick yourself 
  up, you see Nester, that sadistic, skeletal fiend and apprentice 
  of the Mad Mage himself! 
  "Well," chides Nester, grinning a lipless grin, "class, it seems, 
  is finally in session." The fiend points a massive claw at his 
  terrified pupils. "Extra credit to whomever cuts down these 
  flunkies! Extra credit and a semester untortured!"  
  A master of necromancy felled by his own hubris, Nester 
  is the first of the Elite Four. He was featured on Level 9, 
  wherein the Companion remade him into a boneclaw. 
  That change is present here, even if he appeared with his 
  normal statistics in your campaign. This failed lich has 
  been reduced to a professor in the Mad Mage's academy. 
  Every semester, the sadist physically and mentally 
  tortures his pupils.  
  This encounter occurs in a dolorous grove smack-dab in 
  the Shadowfell. Nester, see, has taken his students on a 
  field trip to that grim realm. If you used the Deadwood 
  variant for Level 18 (in which the Companion added a 
  subterranean forest outside of Vanrakdoom, which has 
  been subjected to a Shadow Crossing), then the field trip 
  takes place there, rather than the Shadowfell proper. 
  Characters must abide Undermountain's restrictions on 
  magic nonetheless. 
  The students have set up camp in this dead forest, as 
  Nester is forcing them to spend the night. When the 
  adventurers arrive, many students are huddled grimly 
  around a sputtering campfire, watching their professor 
  torture Jacob Anderbrood, a loner mage (with 10 hit 
  points) that just can't catch a break—or at least they were, 
  until Nester mysteriously dropped Anderbrood and 
  craned his earless head to the side. What they don't know 
  is Halaster has just warned Nester he has about eighteen 
  seconds before the party is teleported to him.  
  Students. Of the twenty students on the field trip, 
  sixteen of them are apprentice wizards way in over their 
  heads. As for the other three students, choose three 
  individuals from Dweomercore's star pupils (see the 
  sidebar). Otherwise, a conjurer, a diviner and an 
  enchanter aid Nester.  
  Tactics. Nester and his students follow these tactics in 
  combat:  
  • All apprentice wizards flee to the tents or out into the woods, 
  effectively removing themselves from the fight.  
  • The campfire sheds bright light for 10 ft. and dim light for 
  another 20 ft. The rest of the camp is shrouded in darkness, 
  allowing Nester to use his Shadow Jump unabated.  
  • Nester grapples a foe with his Piercing Claw on his first turn. 
  On his second, he Shadow Jumps up 40 ft. to the boughs of a 
  great dead tree, where he can rip his prey apart in peace. If 
  thwarted, he returns to the fray, relying on his Deadly Reach 
  reaction to harry foes.   
  • If present, the conjurer casts Evard's black tentacles, choosing 
  an area occupied by an adventurer.  
  DWEOMERCORE STAR PUPILS 
  While running Nester in The Elite Four, you can use the 
  Dweomercore pupils the party already met, provided they are still 
  alive. For the encounter, choose three of the following characters to 
  back-up Nester:  
  Spite Harrowdale is a human archmage protected by an oni 
  bodyguard. Together, they count as three characters for the 
  encounter. 
  Nylas Jowd is a human mage with animate dead prepared instead 
  of fly.  
  Skrianna Shadowdusk is a human mage with quite the grudge to 
  nurse against the party for what they did to her family on Level 22.  
  The Horned Sisters are tiefling mages with resistance to fire 
  damage and darkvision out to a range of 60 ft. Each sister counts as 
  one character for the encounter. 
  Elan Tanor'thal is a drow mage from Skullport.  
  Cephalossk is a mind flayer arcanist. It counts as two characters 
  for the encounter. Shocked, it doesn't use its Mind Blast ability until 
  the second round of combat.  
  
   
  58 
  • If present, the diviner subjects a character to a maze spell and 
  uses its Portent feature at the first opportunity to hinder a foe.  
  • If present, the enchanter casts haste on Nester and blows its 
  Instinctive Charm feature at the first opportunity.  
  • If present, Nylas Jowd, a coward, casts greater invisibility on 
  himself and follows it up with cone of cold on his second turn. 
  He then flees into the wood like the craven bastard he is.  
  • If present, Cephalossk traps a single foe with a wall of force 
  spell on its first turn. On its second, it makes a Tentacles 
  attack, and, if the target is stunned or incapacitated, it then 
  uses its Extract Brain attack.  
  •If present, Elan Tanor'thal casts Evard's black tentacles. He 
  relies on a ray of frost and misty step combo to outrun foes.  
  • With exception to the Horned Sisters, who always blow their 
  reactions on counterspells, the craven Dweomercore star 
  pupils use their reactions for shield spells. 
  • If present, the Horned Sisters pair the ice storm and cone of 
  cold spells on their first turns. On their next, they both let out 
  a fireball spell.  
  • If present, Skrianna Shadowdusk casts greater invisibility on 
  Nester. On her second turn, she misty steps 20 ft. up into the 
  boughs of a tree and looses a fire bolt.  
  • If present, Dumara, Spite Harrowdale's oni bodyguard, draws 
  its sword and engages the party's most formidable warrior in 
  battle. If Nester is in need of darkness for his Shadow Jump, 
  it can also cast darkness to provide it.  
  • If present, Spite Harrowdale snaps out a time stop spell to cast 
  the following spells on in this order of priority: mirror image, 
  fire shield, wall of force and mind blank.   
  • Jacob Anderbrood staggers to his feet and declares firmly, "No 
  more!" He casts fireball on his classmates, regardless if the 
  spell also hits the adventurers.   
   
  Victory! When Nester and his allies fall, the Mad Mage 
  opens a rift leading to the next challenge. The adventurers 
  can take however long they want before they enter, but 
  must remember that time is ticking—and they innately 
  know how much time is left. The rift, if peered into, 
  reveals nothing of their next fight.  
   
  2. MUIRAL 
  The rift dumps you out upon a familiar scene: the Temple of 
  Lolth, deep within the stained halls of Muiral's Gauntlet. This 
  time, however, you've seen a sight most strange: a porcelain tub 
  lying smack-dab in the center of the nave. Violet flames light 
  the curious scene and a zombie stands idly by, holding in its 
  rotten hand a decrepit loofah.   
  Muiral just can't catch a break, not even in death. If he 
  was slain by the party, Halaster stitches the freak back 
  together and animates his corpse with a create undead 
  spell, bestowing him the same autonomy and intelligence 
  he possessed in life.  
  Map. For this encounter, you must prepare the map 
  from Level 10, focusing on Area 3B.  
  Halaster gave Muiral a twelve-second heads-up before 
  the adventurers arrived. He was previously bathing. He's 
  since called for his minions, of which there are few, to 
  back him up: a zombie (standing at the tub in the center 
  of the room, holding a decrepit sponge), four skeletons 
  standing in Area 3A, and two ghouls hiding beside the 
  pillars (where the X's are marked on the map).    
  Tactics. Muiral and his minions use the following 
  tactics in combat: 
  • Muiral, having been forewarned, starts the encounter with 
  greater invisibility already cast upon him. He does not retreat 
  from battle, knowing that the Mad Mage will just cause these 
  intruders to find him again until one side is dead.  
  • Furious, Muiral casts finger of death on his first turn. On his 
  subsequent turns, he prefers to make longsword and sting 
  attacks rather than cast spells.  
  • Once his greater invisibility spell is lost, Muiral casts wall of 
  force to separate the party. He tries to angle it so that he is 
  alone with one foe and his minions can harry those without.   
  • Muiral always uses his reaction on shield spells.   
  • The skeletons make shortbow attacks at the party (+4 to hit, 
  1d6+2 piercing damage).  
  • The two ghouls flank the adventurers, haranguing creatures 
  not within melee range of Muiral.  
  • Muiral commands the zombie to go touch the altar of Lolth, 
  summoning eight swarms of spiders that attack the zombie; 
  as they pursue prey, he has the zombie run back up to the 
  party, causing the swarms to also attack them. The zombie 
  starts 25 feet away from the altar and takes the Dash action 
  until this goal is achieved. Thereafter, it mauls at foes.  
  • Half the summoned swarms of spiders (see Area 3B, L10), 
  attack the zombie until its dead. The other swarms attack foes 
  within 10 feet of the zombie.  
   
  Victory! As soon as Muiral dies a rift opens up to the 
  next Elite Four member. The party can take it at their 
  leisure; Muiral's remaining minions need not be 
  eliminated for them to enter the rift.  
   
  3. TROBRIAND 
  The rift drops you at the feet of an iron golem standing between 
  iron-plated pillars humming with magical energy. The golem 
  pushes its fist against its palm in a gesture of violence. Sparks 
  leap across its fingers, trailing up its arm.  
  "Gone are the frailties of flesh," the golem murmurs. Its head 
  has been carved into a mirthless skull. "I consider you a worthy 
  test—and your sacrifice for science will not go in vain. Today, 
  machine finally triumphs over man!"  
  The adventurers are teleported to Area 13, Level 23. 
  Halaster gave Trobriand only six seconds to prepare, and 
  so Trobriand has Readied a single Slam attack for the 
  closest character that appears near him. It's advised you 
  put the party's resident tank within 5 ft. of him for this 
  purpose.  
  Roleplaying Trobriand. Refer to Area 13 in Areas of 
  Note for further tips about roleplaying Trobriand. In this 
  variant, he still attempts to convince the party to join him 
  in usurping Halaster, but realizes too late that the Mad 
  Mage that only one side can emerge alive. Thus, 
  attempting to parley with Trobriand serves only to waste 
  their time, possibly depriving them of the short rest they 
  can win if they defeat the Elite Four fast enough.  
  Tactics. See Area 13 for Trobriand's tactics.  
  Victory! Once Trobriand is truly defeated, the rift to 
  Arcturia's court opens. They can hear her singing the 
  Dismemberment Song by Blue Kid. 
   
  
   
  59 
  4. ARCTURIA 
  The final challenge lies before you, and the rift betrays no hint 
  to where it leads—but it doesn't need to. You know there is but 
  one apprentice of the Mad Mage left: Arcturia, whose domain 
  you romped through long ago.  
  Preparing yourself for whatever foul trial lies ahead, you step 
  through the rift, and appear in the familiar court of Halaster's 
  most devoted apprentice.  
  The shock is evident on her face, and it thaws with sheer rage. 
  "You will not harm him!" this gossamer-winged lich shouts. 
  She shouts it with all the love and ire of a devoted partner. 
  Magic kindles in her palm. "Your crusade ends here!"  
  The final member of the Elite Four is Halaster's most 
  devoted apprentice, Arcturia, who was only warned by 
  Halaster five seconds before the party appears, depriving 
  her of even a round of combat to prepare. She is joined by 
  her twelve mimics and her three malformed champions 
  (one of whom turns on her).   
  Roleplaying Arcturia. Refer to Area 17 in Areas of 
  Note for tips about roleplaying Arcturia, which paints her 
  as madly (unrequitedly) in love with the Mad Mage. In 
  the Elite Four variant, she views herself as his last line of 
  death.  
  Arcturia's Lair. DotMM does not specify whether this 
  atelier of a chamber counts as Arcturia's lair. The 
  Companion contends that it is not, and, if you run the Elite 
  Four challenge, that you follow this distinction. The 
  adventurers already have a grueling gauntlet before them 
  and adding Lair actions would break the tenuous balance 
  of this challenge.  
  On Polymorph. As lamented in Area 17 below, the 
  Companion does not advocate Arcturia abusing the 
  polymorph spell. At the end of the day, D&D is about 
  having fun for everyone. See On Polymorph in Area 17 
  for details.  
  Tactics. Arcturia's tactics are detailed in Area 17 below, 
  since the adventurers can already encounter her if the Elite 
  Four encounter isn't being run. Her tactics are the same, 
  as Halaster didn't warn her soon enough for her to prepare 
  for the party.  
   
  VICTORY! 
  If the adventurers slay each of the Elite Four and still have 
  at least 60 minutes left on their timer, Halaster teleports 
  them to a demiplane to get a short rest. Read the 
  following: 
  The last of Halaster's apprentices falls before you. Thunderous 
  applause erupts within your mind and the Mad Mage shouts, 
  "Well done! Well done, indeed!" 
  Before you even realize what's happened, you're in another 
  realm entirely: a den without walls whose horizons stretch 
  endlessly. A fireplace warms the nearby sofas. On a coffee table 
  sits a pitcher of wine, a kettle of tea, and cups of steaming 
  coffee. A tall grandfather clock ticks away loudly in the corner, 
  but the little hand is fixed to 12 and the big hand has yet to reach 
  1.  
  Halaster's voice bounds across this gray realm: "Take a load 
  off, friends! You've earned it!"   
  Any refreshments and objects taken from this realm turn 
  to dust when the adventurers are returned to the Material 
  Plane an hour later. When their rest is over, they stand in 
  Area 32, the doors already open upon Area 33, Halaster's 
  throne room. 
   
  BACKUP: DRIVVIN FRETH 
  A foul wind scoops you up, carrying the putrid scent of licorice 
  and rotten teeth. As it embraces you in its own vortex, the world 
  grows dark—until you crash upon a tiled floor. Slowly, you 
  recognize the place: Spiderwatch Keep, the bastion of House 
  Freth, whom you met so long ago.  
  The hall is as dark as ever, as befitting the drow, but you can 
  make out the details: the shrine of Lolth, in all its silvered glory, 
  and a familiar elf staring at you, his prayer interrupted and his 
  mouth ajar: Drivvin Freth. 
  "How in the Nine Hells have you made it here?" the archmage 
  shouts, his hands already kindling fire.  
  If for some reason the Elite Four members above are 
  unavailable to you, you can sub in Drivvin Freth, the drow 
  mage courted by Halaster Blackcloak. Unlike the other 
  Elite Four members, Halaster gave Drivvin no heads-up 
  whatsoever. He cannot be surprised, however. 
  Map. If the adventurers face Drivvin, it's on Level 12, 
  Area 19K, in Spiderwatch Keep. Alternatively, If Ezzat 
  was evicted from Undermountain, Drivvin now lairs in 
  the Stalagmite Tower on Level 20. The party teleports 
  into Area 21; Drivvin is in Area 22A. His guards (1d4 
  drow and a drow elite warrior) are in Area 20.  
  Roleplaying Drivvin. The drow is committed to his 
  house and sister first and foremost—but if they've been 
  destroyed by the party, Drivvin has nothing left but 
  anguish and mottled ambition. Now, given the chance to 
  revenge himself, he falls into a frenzy. You can use any 
  of the following sample dialogue: 
  • "You again! The Mad Mage promised we would meet again!" 
  • "Vengeance is an endless cycle!"  
  • "House Freth shall rise again—over your broken bodies!"  
   
  Statistics. Drivvin Freth has the statistics of a NE 
  archmage with the following changes: 
  • He has advantage against being charmed, and magic can't put 
  him to sleep. 
  • He has darkvision out to a range of 120 ft. 
  • He can innately cast dancing lights at will, and can cast dark-
  ness, faerie fire, and levitate (self only), each once per day. 
  Charisma is his spellcasting ability (DC 15) for these spells. 
  • He has disadvantage on attack rolls and Wisdom (Perception) 
  checks relying on sight while he's in sunlight.  
  • He always has mind blank cast upon himself.  
  • Once per day as an action, Drivvin can summon a demon that 
  has a CR of 6 or lower. The summoned demon appears in an 
  unoccupied space within 60 ft. of him, acts as his ally, and 
  can't summon other demons. The demon remains until it is 
  dismissed by Drivvin, as an action, or until its reduced to 0 
  hit points. 
   
  
   
  60 
  Tactics. Unlike other Elite Four members, the Mad 
  Mage did not give Drivvin enough of a warning to prepare 
  for the adventurers—as a test, of course. He uses the 
  following tactics:  
  • On his first turn, Drivvin casts time stop. His first action is to 
  summon a barlgura, then cast fire shield, mage armor and 
  stoneskin on himself, in that order of priority. He then calls 
  for nearby guards, who arrive on the second turn of combat, 
  adding 1d4 drow and a drow elite warrior to the fray.  
  • On its first turn, the barlgura casts entangle. If any targets fall 
  prey to it, the barlgura prioritizes them with its melee attacks. 
  If the spell failed to restrain anyone, it uses its Reckless trait 
  and attacks.   
  • Once they arrive, the drow cast faerie fire spells on unarmored 
  foes and plink away at them with hand crossbows on the third 
  turn of combat. 
  • Once it arrives, the drow elite warrior positions itself between 
  Drivvin and the adventurers, if possible.  
   
   
  BACKUP: MARAMBRA NYGHTSTEEL 
  The Mad Mage's rift delivers you to a hive of scum and villainy 
  that you miss dearly: Skullport. In the distance, you see that 
  wretched town, its shores clogged with endless flotsam.  
  The island you stand upon is aglow in violet light emitted by 
  a massive beacon. You see a figure there—a mage performing 
  a ritual. Around her slender frame dance entities born of fire 
  and a creature of pure lightning coils around the beacon. 
  Per its authors, Marambra Nyghtsteel was excluded from 
  DotMM so that DM's could write her in as they see fit. 
  Now, should you need her, you can draw upon 
  Marambra—a master of evocation—as a backup 
  apprentice for the Elite Four encounter.  
  For reasons unknown, Marambra has returned to 
  Skullport. Perhaps out of altruism, she has been working 
  on a vast arcane beacon that will perpetually light 
  Skullport—but whether this is just an added benefit is 
  anyone's guess. This vast spire has been erected on a small 
  island southwest of town.  
  Contradictions. The Companion touches on the 
  missing apprentice a few times in this chapter, which can 
  clash with her inclusion: 
  • If you're running the Puppet on the String optional twist, 
  Marambra is mentioned in Halaster's journal in Area 2—
  specifically that she managed to escape Undermountain's 
  addicting influence.  
  • In Area 24, Marambra is suggested as one of the alternate 
  identities of the demilich overseeing the potion brewery.  
  • In Area 29, when a character looks at Marambra's portrait, 
  they see a vision of her being exiled by Halaster. 
   
  Map. Refer to The Violet Beacon map above.    
  Statistics. Marambra Nyghtsteel's statistics are detailed 
  in Appendix B.   
  Minions. As a master of evocation, Marambra has 
  created several living spells that serve her in combat: three 
  living burning hands and one living lightning bolt. She 
  also has at her disposal a shield guardian, the amulet to 
  which she wears, which stores a spell of fireball.  
  Tactics. Halaster warned Marambra of her coming 
  battle fifteen seconds ago, giving her two rounds to 
  prepare. He has also forbid her from fleeing; should she 
  disobey, he has promised to hunt her down, no matter 
  where in the Multiverse she flees. She follows these 
  tactics in combat:  
  THE VIOLET BEACON 
  Top Platform Square = 5 ft.  
  
   
  61 
  • Marambra starts the encounter under spells of mage armor, 
  fire shield and mirror image. Thus, she's out of one 1st-level, 
  2nd-level and 4th-level spell slot.  
  • Marambra takes flight when the adventurers arrive, utilizing 
  her winged boots. Because she can cast shield at will without 
  expending a spell slot, she isn't concerned with provoking an 
  opportunity attack.  
  • Marambra is likely to utilize her reaction every round for a 
  shield spell, or her Elemental Aegis reaction to dampen any 
  elemental damage she receives.  
  • Depending on the adventurers' positions, she snaps out a 5th-
  level fireball or cone of cold and uses her Overchannel trait 
  to deal maximum damage. On this round, she reserves her 
  reaction to counterspell a counterspell against that juicy spell.  
  • When she's at Death's door, Marambra drops meteor swarm, 
  now indifferent to the Violet Beacon's construction.  
   
  Treasure. As reflected in her statistics, Marambra 
  wields a +3 wand of the war mage and wears a pair of 
  winged boots. See Appendix A for details.   
   
  THE PRISMATIC GAUNTLET 
  The dungeon is aglow with a scintillating rainbow of fiery light, 
  all crisscrossed and welded into a single wall of magical energy. 
  To behold such a beauty is to look into pure fire—fire that burns 
  at your retinas, perhaps at the core of your very being. You can 
  feel the waves of energy being shed as one color dominates its 
  fellows, moving through a predictable pattern. Your hackles 
  rise as that energy washes over you, as if it's a sickness that 
  pierces your skin and embeds itself deep in your bones.  
  Halaster has trapped the entrance to Area 19 with a 
  prismatic wall spell. Assailed by the Mad Mage's 
  minions, the adventurers must contend with each of the 
  wall's layers—or gun it, taking obscene amounts of 
  damage.   
  Permitted Individuals. Per the prismatic wall spell, 
  creatures of Halaster's choice can pass through the wall 
  unharmed. The only individuals he designated long ago 
  when casting the spell were Trobriand, Arcturia, and the 
  ultroloth below.  
  Minions. The prismatic wall is a boring waste of time 
  and resources without an assault from the Mad Mage's 
  minions—a force consisting of three helmed horrors, 
  two invisible stalkers and an ultroloth.  
  Tactics. The assailants follow these tactics:  
  • The invisible stalkers and helmed horrors approach from the 
  northern tunnel, whereas the ultroloth comes from Area 21.  
  • While under a spell of invisibility (granting advantage to its 
  +8 Stealth check) the ultroloth approaches and opens up on 
  the party with fire storm before its allies storm the tunnel. Its 
  invisibility spell then ends. Thereafter, it attempts to trap itself 
  and a single foe in its wall of fire spell. On its third turn, it 
  uses its Hypnotic Gaze on its target, then makes its three 
  Longsword attacks against the (hopefully stunned) target.  
  • If the ultroloth takes too much of a beating, it can pass through 
  the prismatic wall to safety; however, it must walk through it. 
  If too many foes block its way, it teleports up to the indigo 
  layer and walks through the rest. Halaster granted it free 
  passage when he cast the spell, allowing it to pass unharmed.   
   
  • On its fourth turn, the ultroloth uses its action to summon 
  yugoloths. It has a 50% chance of succeeding. If it does, it 
  summons its choice of 1d6 mezzoloths, 1d4 nycaloths, or 
  one other ultroloth. After 1 minute, or if the summoner dies, 
  the summoned yugoloths disappear.  
  • The helmed horrors act as the vanguard; given the opportunity, 
  they shove creatures into the prismatic wall.  
  • The invisible stalkers harangue the party's flanks.  
   
  Thwarting the Wall. The adventurers must contend 
  with the wall; they cannot teleport past it, per the indigo 
  layer's effects. Thus, spells of dimension door and the like 
  are futile against it. Do not budge on this; even the 
  ultroloth can't teleport through it (although Halaster did 
  permit it to physically pass through it unharmed when he 
  cast the spell…) 
   
   
  PRISMATIC WALL (ABRIDGED, DC 17) 
  The wall sheds bright light for 100 ft. and dim light for another 100 
  ft. Creatures that can see the wall and moves to within 20 ft. of the 
  wall or starts its turn there must succeed on a Con. save or become 
  blinded for 1 minute.  
  The wall consists of seven layers, each with a different color. 
  When a creature attempts to reach into or pass through the wall, it 
  does so one layer at a time through all the wall's layers. As it passes 
  or reaches through each layer, the creature must make a Dex. save 
  or be affected by that layer's properties as described below. 
  The wall can be destroyed, also one layer at a time, in order from 
  red to violet, by means specific to each layer. Once a layer is 
  destroyed, it remains so for the duration of the spell. An antimagic 
  field has no effect on a prismatic wall. 
  Red. The creature takes 10d6 fire damage on a failed save, or half 
  as much on a success. While this layer is in place, nonmagical ranged 
  attacks can't pass through the wall. The layer can be destroyed by 
  dealing at least 25 cold damage to it. 
  Orange. The creature takes 10d6 acid damage on a failed save, or 
  half as much damage on a successful one. While this layer is in place, 
  magical ranged attacks can't pass through the wall. The layer is 
  destroyed by a strong wind. 
  Yellow. The creature takes 10d6 lightning damage on a failed 
  save, or half as much damage on a successful one. This layer can be 
  destroyed by dealing at least 60 force damage to it. 
  Green. The creature takes 10d6 poison damage on a failed save, 
  or half as much damage on a successful one. A passwall spell, or 
  another spell of equal or greater level that can open a portal on a 
  solid surface, destroys this layer. 
  Blue. The creature takes 10d6 cold damage on a failed save, or 
  half as much on a successful one. This layer can be destroyed by 
  dealing at least 25 fire damage to it. 
  Indigo. On a failed save, the creature is restrained and must make 
  a Con. save throw at the end of each of its turns. If it successfully 
  saves three times, the spell ends. If it fails its save three times, it 
  permanently turns to stone and is subjected to the petrified condition. 
  The successes and failures don't need to be consecutive; keep track 
  of both until the creature collects three of a kind. While this layer is 
  in place, spells can't be cast through the wall. The layer is destroyed 
  by bright light shed by a daylight spell or a similar spell of equal or 
  higher level. 
  Violet. On a failed save, the creature is blinded. It must then make 
  a Wis. save at the start of its next turn. A successful save ends the 
  blindness. If it fails that save, the creature is transported to Area 22, 
  Level 23 of Undermountain. This layer is destroyed by a dispel 
  magic spell or a similar spell of equal or higher level that can end 
  spells and magical effects.  
  
   
  62 
  Identifying the Spell. A creature can use its action to 
  make a DC 18 Intelligence (Arcana) check. On a success, 
  they identify the spell at work. Specifically, they learn the 
  following:  
  • A creature can pass through it, at the risk of being reduced to 
  smoldering ash. 
  • An antimagic field has no effect on the wall and a dispel magic 
  spell only affects the final layer—which is protected by the 
  indigo layer. 
  • The wall can be destroyed one layer at a time, in order, through 
  specific means and each layer has its own properties: 
  • The red layer inflicts fire damage and can only be destroyed 
  with cold damage 
  • The orange layer inflicts acid damage and can be destroyed 
  only by a strong wind 
  • The yellow layer inflicts lightning damage and can only be 
  destroyed with force damage 
  • The blue layer deals cold damage and can only be destroyed 
  by fire damage 
  • The indigo layer can petrify those that walk through it and 
  blocks spells from passing through it; to destroy it, it must 
  be exposed to bright light shed by a daylight spell or a 
  similar spell of equal or higher level 
  • The violet layer blinds creatures and can teleport victims to 
  other planes of existence. Only a dispel magic cast at 9th 
  level, or a similar spell of equal or higher level, can destroy 
  the layer.  
   
  VIOLET BANISHING 
  Should a character be banished by the violet layer of the 
  prismatic wall, they're transported to Area 22 and are 
  paralyzed into a gesture of supplication before the 
  Halaster statue until Halaster remotely releases them or 
  another creature uses an action to touch them.  
   
  TARRASQUIC PARK 
  Hurling open the doors to the Mad Mage's sanctum, a wall of 
  darkness crashes over your psyche. Your last memory of that 
  distant place is Halaster's giggle.  
  When you awaken, you find yourself within a horse-drawn 
  buggy parked alongside a road audaciously carved through a 
  jungle. Night has already fallen and a tropical storm batters the 
  land, but braziers lit by magical flames light the scene whenever 
  lightning fails to flash across the sky. Somewhere a goat bleats 
  between bouts of thunder.   
  You throw open the door to the dickey box where two draft 
  horses stamp nervously as the storm rages above. Looking out, 
  you see another carriage nearby and can make out the familiar 
  shapes of your allies.  
  If you've ever wanted to shoehorn in a tarrasque, then, 
  boy, do I have the encounter for you.  
  Under this variant, when the adventurers hurl open the 
  doors to Area 33, they wake up inside two horse-drawn 
  buggies, which are parked on a road winding through a 
  darkened jungle. Braziers lit by continual flame spells 
  flicker in the rain. A wall of force spell separates the 
  adventurers from a giant goat chained to a post inside 
  what they may realize is one massive paddock.  
  Shortly after the adventurers awaken, the braziers go 
  dark, signaling that the park's magical systems have gone 
  down for whatever reason and the wall of force separating 
  them from that titanic beast is gone. The tarrasque is on 
  its way.  
  Precautions. The tarrasque is a CR 30 creature. Use this 
  encounter only if you're absolutely certain that your party 
  has the resources to tackle it and then face Halaster.  
  Buggies. Each buggy is drawn by two draft horses 
  which grant the buggy a speed of 40 ft., or 80 ft. if both 
  take the Dash action. If only a single horse draws the 
  buggy, it has a speed of 20/40 ft. A buggy has an AC of 
  14, a damage threshold of 10, immunity to poison and 
  psychic damage, and 50 hit points.   
  The Rift. When the tarrasque attacks, a brightly-
  glowing rift opens 500 ft. away from the buggies, visible 
  to the party despite the inclement weather. A character 
  that reaches the rift can expend 5 feet of movement to 
  enter it, crashing onto the floor of Area 33 of Halaster's 
  tower.   
  Tarrasque's Tactics. The savage titan acts quite simply 
  in combat:  
  • The tarrasque starts 100 ft. away from the closest buggy. Until 
  it gets within melee range, it takes the Dash action. When it 
  does so, it can also use its Frightful Presence.  
  • The tarrasque relies on its Legendary Actions to either close 
  the gap with its prey, or, if it took the Dash action on its turn, 
  to still make attacks.  
  • The tarrasque has extended reach, given its size. Do not forget 
  that its Bite and Horn attacks have a reach of 10 ft., its Claw 
  a reach of 15, and its Tail a reach of 20 ft.   
   
  THE BEAST COMETH 
  When the tarrasque attacks, read the following: 
  As rain pelts the jungle, the wind—wailing like an abandoned 
  child—snuffs out the flames that lit those distant braziers. The 
  horses have grown distressed, neighing and stamping wildly.   
  It's only now you realize what's missing: the goat's no longer 
  bleating. The goat's gone—until it's dropped upon the roof of 
  your buggy. Looking into the dark, you see the massive eye of 
  some titanic, horned beast staring down at you from above. And 
  as a fresh lance of lightning sheds light from above, the beast 
  looses a thunderous roar that drowns out even the storm.  
  Unlike in Jurassic Park, this creature's vision is not based 
  on movement; the tarrasque plainly sees the party. If it 
  was capable of such emotion, the tarrasque would be 
  amused to see them try to remain still.  
  Theme Music. Creatures with a passive Perception 
  score of 22 or higher can hear Halaster humming the 
  Jurassic Park theme song.  
   
  VICTORY! 
  If the adventurers flee from the tarrasque, they still 
  advance to 18th-level. However, if they manage to slay it, 
  Halaster rewards them with an hour—long enough for 
  them to gain a short rest. Thereafter, he teleports them to 
  Undermountain, specifically Area 33 on Level 23.  
  
   
  63 
  The following text assumes the adventurers slew the 
  tarrasque. Read: 
  With a clash of thunder, the tarrasque crashes to the ground, 
  unleashing tremors that will surely be felt for miles. You have 
  done the unthinkable, the impossible. Only in the most dreaded 
  myths has this creature ever emerged to scour men from the face 
  of the world. And yet, the Mad Mage—and if not him, then 
  who?—has dared to include such a behemoth in what can at best 
  be described as a zoo. 
  The storm rages all around you, but in this moment, you are 
  perfectly calm. As you rest in the safety of an enormous kapok 
  tree, you know that this was the day that you truly became 
  legends in your own right—even if no one ever knows what 
  you've achieved tonight.   
   
  WELCOME TO THE THUNDERDOME 
  Reckoning has come at last! With an air of triumph, you hurl 
  open the doors to Halaster's innermost sanctum—and the world 
  beyond it is a colosseum infested with fans that buck and cheer 
  under a sky painted with an illusion reading ENTER THE ARENA!  
  When you look back, the furnished chamber is gone. Every-
  thing is gone. You know not which world you're on, but certain 
  that this is no trick, but a trap lain by the Mad Mage.  
  Ivory sands sift beneath your feet as you contend with this 
  new reality. Only now do you hear the audience jeering in every 
  language possible, some that you can even recognize. A voice 
  booms out across the world, and instantly you can hear the hint 
  of a tongues spell on his lips: 
  "Coming from you live on the Shattered Shelf, it's Enter the 
  Arena! Tonight, we welcome a crowd of challengers to our little 
  bloodbath! You may know them as the stars of the hit game 
  show Dungeon of the Mad Mage and more! To our guests, we 
  cry, 'Welcome! Welcome, welcome, welcome! Tooooo the 
  Thuuunderdome!'" 
  Apprehensive, you back up. You didn't sign up for this and 
  won't tolerate it. Gateways gape all along the walls. Moving to 
  the closest one, you slam into a wall of impenetrable force. "It's 
  like that," you realize. High above soar grim-faced magi that 
  seem to police this so-called "Thunderdome." 
  The announcer continues his spiel, his voice thunderous: " 
  This episode of Enter the Arena is brought to you by Dungeon 
  of the Mad Mage and Undermountain Dew: do the Dew! 
  "Tonight our guests square off against the heavyweight 
  champ herself, the Celestial with Attitude, the Daughter of 
  Auril and Thrym, the Frost Queen herself—it's Nalkara!" 
  Outside the dome and into the arena strides a giantess whose 
  beauty can only be described as empyrean, as angelic. Her skin 
  is a soft, blue and her eyes are the deepest shades of winter. Her 
  very hair crackles with blue fire and where she walks, the very 
  sands shiver as frost creeps out from her footprints to claim all 
  it can for her wintry domain.  
  This titan smiles down at you, her maul crooked across her 
  shoulder. "Nalkara in the house, yeah!" she roars, stepping 
  through that invisible wall of force.  
  The announcer again thunders, "Glory, guts, gore and more 
  only on Enter the Arena! Let the game begin!"    
  This encounter is a fresh coat of paint for the battle with 
  the empyrean Nalkara in Halaster's throne room. Instead 
  of being summoned, Nalkara is the heavyweight 
  champion of Enter the Arena, a trans-planar gladiatorial 
  gameshow enjoyed by much of the Multiverse. Enter the 
  Arena is one of the possible sponsors named in the Trans-
  planar Advertisements added in the Halaster's Game 
  supplement.   
  The Dome. A hemispherical, 30-feet-radius wall of 
  force spell encloses the arena. Creatures that mange to 
  escape the dome are instantly thunderwaved (DC 17) back 
  inside by a flying archmage—three of which circle the 
  dome. The archmagi can permit a character or object to 
  enter or leave the dome (no action required), as is the case 
  when a creature is forced back inside via a thunderwave 
  spell. The spell is initially cast at 1st-level, but repeat 
  offenders are subjected to 4th-and higher levels of the 
  spell.  
  Roleplaying Nalkara. Honestly, just channel the 
  ludicrous charisma of Macho Man Randy Savage. 
  Nalkara drops any of the following lines in battle: 
  • "You are like a grain of sand in the desert—and I am the entire 
  desert!" 
  • "I'm the tower of power, too sweet to be sour. I'm funky like 
  a monkey. Sky's the limit and space is the place!"  
  • "Best there is… past, present, and future! Oh yeah!" 
  • "Expect the unexpected in the kingdom of madness!" 
  • "The cream surely rises to the top!" (Nalkara says this after a 
  Trembling Strike or after standing up from being prone. She 
  then just continues to shout, "The cream of the crop!") 
   
  Tactics. Nalkara follows these tactics in battle: 
  • As an empyrean, Nalkara is incapable of even considering the 
  possibility of failure. She fights without fear, without caution. 
  Egotistical, she fantasizes about glorious one-on-one duels 
  with a formidable warrior—thus, she eliminates the "softer" 
  members of the party first, leaving the resident barbarian, 
  fighter, or paladin for last.  
  • On her first turn, Nalkara softens up her foes with a fire storm 
  spell. At your discretion, the spell instead deals cold damage. 
  Objects set aflame burn under a blue flame. 
  • Nalkara picks off distant or flying targets with her Bolt attack, 
  choosing cold damage—or surprises them by flying herself.  
  • Nalkara pairs her Legendary Actions to annihilate foes, first 
  using Trembling Strike and then a Maul attack, courtesy of 
  another Legendary Action.  
   
  VICTORY! 
  If the adventurers triumph over Nalkara, the audience 
  quickly turns on them—incited by the announcers—for 
  felling their beloved champion. The legion fans begin to 
  hurl their garbage and insults at them from afar and 
  images from arcane eye spells are projected onto the sky, 
  showing the party the enraged crowd. An announcer 
  shouts, "Get 'em!" and the fans surge forward, slamming 
  their fists against the Thunder-dome, which slowly 
  powers off. Just before the first fan—a demon—can get 
  at the party, a rift opens up and sucks the adventurers back 
  to Undermountain, depositing them into Area 33.  
  
   
  64 
  WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE 
  Requires the Dark Tower optional twist 
  Before they can reach the Mad Mage, the adventurers 
  must battle their alternate-selves from other realities. 
  These doppelgangers match the "main" party in level and 
  gear. Admittedly, much of this encounter falls upon you, 
  as the Companion cannot know how your players are 
  designed, nor how they would act.  
  Location. This encounter should occur in Area 28. The 
  alternate-selves make great use of the antimagic field at 
  the center of the chamber.  
   
  ULTIMATE SHOWDOWN 
  The final showdown with Halaster is, to say the least, 
  lackluster. It's almost guaranteed the party will want to 
  fight him—him, their tormentor and jailor—yet he 
  prepares nothing. Even though he can be resurrected in 
  Undermountain, death is painful and humiliating. This 
  section provides several encounters you can use to 
  overhaul your showdown.  
  Halaster's Hit Points. Most encounters are meant to be 
  finished in either one round of combat or to halt combat 
  completely. However, failing that, should the Mad Mage 
  lose 100 or more hit points in a phase, he dips out and 
  heads to your next chosen encounter.  
  Leveling Up. After overcoming two of Halaster's 
  challenges, the party should level up to 19th-level. 
  However, this doesn't entitle them to regaining all their 
  resources (i.e., they do not heal up to their hit points, they 
  only get an extra hit die to increase their hit point 
  maximum; and et cetera). 
   
  THE BIG HALOWSKI 
  When next you open your eyes, the world has swelled into a 
  great riot of polished wooden lanes lit by crazed lamps. Surely, 
  the Mad Mage has shrunk you with his foul chicanery. On the 
  far wall, in titanic letters, a sign reads, "Bowl-A-Rama!" You 
  try to make sense of it, but you find no bowls here. Not on the 
  tables, not on the distant counter. All you see is a gargantuan 
  Halaster Blackcloak polishing a ceramic ball as stout and thick 
  as a dwarf. His yellow grin stretches wide and his pores gape 
  like craters. He shouts, "You're entering a world of pain!"  
  You reach for your weapons, but your limbs disobey! They 
  disobey! You struggle against your invisible bonds to no avail 
  and it's only then that you notice that Halaster has kidnapped 
  innocents from all across Undermountain. All are struggling 
  against their invisible bonds, mewling or demanding answers as 
  to what game they've been dragged into, their terror alight.  
  That's when you hear it: the crash of thunder. Halaster has 
  pitched that ceramic ball; as it sails down the lane, it seems to 
  shift, revealing it to be a ball of pure force that reduces the first 
  victim—a barber you recognize from Skullport—into a red 
  smear. T  
  "Uh," Halaster thunders, "I'm just warming up!"  
   
  Exercising his love of bowling, Halaster condemns his 
  foes to an extradimensional bowling alley where they—
  and innocent victims—are the pins. His first pitch 
  completely demolishes an innocent.  
  The Alley. Within this realm, characters other than 
  Halaster remain their normal size. It may seem to them 
  that they have been shrunk to the relative-size of a 
  bowling pin, for the bowling alley is massive, as is 
  Halaster (although, for the purpose of combat, he is still a 
  Medium size creature).  
  The Lane. The lane on which the adventurers and other 
  victims start is a 15-foot-wide, 150-foot-long passage 
  enclosed by walls of force. Creatures in it cannot fly via 
  magic items or spells.  
   
  PINS 
  There are ten pins in a game of bowling; Halaster has 
  kidnapped enough innocents to fill out that ten, after 
  accounting for the adventurers. Choose characters that the 
  adventurers have an attachment for, otherwise they won't 
  care for their fates. 
  Paralyzed! The pins start the encounter paralyzed. At 
  the end of their turn, a pin can attempt a DC 15 Charisma 
  saving throw, ending it on a success.  
  Swapping. Halaster is a sadistic host. It wouldn't be 
  enough for the adventurers to watch their comrades be 
  pulverized by magical bowling balls. Whenever a pin is 
  targeted by Halaster, but before his attack roll is made, a 
  character can use their reaction to swap places on the 
  board, letting them be struck. Thus, to save their friends, 
  the adventurers must put them-selves at risk. If a character 
  swaps with a paralyzed character, both characters become 
  paralyzed and must attempt a DC 15 Charisma saving 
  throw at the end of their turn, ending the effect on a 
  success.  
   
  HALASTER 
  The Mad Mage is a masterful bowler; within this realm, 
  his bowling balls are condensed energy. For this 
  encounter, he cannot attack or cast a spell against 
  creatures on a lane; he can only use his Bowl attack, 
  described below. Once a pin reaches the end of the lane, 
  he can contend with them as normal.  
   
  Bowl. Ranged Spell Attack: +14 to hit, range 150/400 ft., 
  one target. Hit: 16 (3d10) force damage.  
   
  Legendary Action. During this encounter, Halaster can 
  make use of a new Legendary Action:   
   
  Bowl. Halaster makes a Bowl attack against a pin.   
   
  Defenses. The Mad Mage bowls from within a globe of 
  invulnerability. When Halaster is struck by a ranged 
  weapon attack, a glyph of warding activates, unleashing a 
  warding wind spell that disadvantages ranged weapon 
  attacks that pass in or out of the wind. Halaster's Bowl 
  attacks are unhindered.  
   
  
   
  65 
  Tactics. Halaster continues playing his game until the 
  majority of the adventurers have escaped the lane or when 
  he has lost 50 or more hit points. Afterwards, the 
  characters are expelled from the bowling alley. Proceed 
  to the next encounter.  
   
  CHECKMATE 
  Halaster brings the adventurers to a demiplane that 
  resembles a chessboard—and to their horror, they find 
  familiar faces forced to play in the game. The Mad Mage 
  has kidnapped individuals across Under-mountain and 
  even the world at large.  
  Personalization. This challenge is a moral one; if the 
  innocents involved are not known by the party, it loses all 
  its impact. You have to include individuals both loved and 
  hated by the party—and distribute them across both 
  teams. As an example, if Vlonwelv Auvryndar survived 
  the party, and they detest her, put her on their team. 
  Meanwhile, someone the party cherishes is on the black 
  team. Would it not be gut-wrenching to order Vlonwelv, 
  their hated enemy, to murder their beloved friend for the 
  sake of the game? If you run out of individuals, snatch 
  familiar faces from the adventurers' lives: a friend, an 
  acquaintance that once loaned them 10 silver, their local 
  baker, or the lonely old painter that spends his time 
  feeding the birds near the church. Hell, grab their barbers, 
  the cobbler that made their shoes, and especially their 
  mothers and mentors. No one is safe from Halaster.   
  Statistics. Unless a character already has statistics, use 
  the ones befitting their piece in the Chess Piece Statistics 
  table. If their statistics are pitiful, such as a commoner's, 
  use the statistics better befitting their role instead, such as 
  a knight.   
  Rules. The magical game of chess follows these rules, 
  in addition to the normal rules of chess. The party is 
  forced to play the game and can't act or move as they 
  normally would in combat.  
  • Halaster's team is black, symbolizing the evil nature of this 
  demented game.  
  • The party's side is white, allowing them to take the first turn.  
  • At the start of the game, the adventurers can choose which 
  pieces on the board they represent; shift the identities of those 
  involved accordingly.   
  • In this encounter, there is no initiative. The white team goes 
  first, then the black team. Each turn, a team can move only a 
  single piece across the board. Characters cannot take actions, 
  bonus actions, or reactions. Every character's movement 
  speed is reduced to 0 and they can only move as the piece 
  they represent can.  
  • Whenever a piece takes another, it instantly kills them unless 
  the defending piece is a player character, in which case the 
  player character instantly takes the damage from the attacks 
  used by the attacking piece (e.g., a knight's two Greatsword 
  attacks) and is then eliminated from the game. An eliminated 
  player character is teleported to the side of the board and can 
  no longer affect the game or its pieces. They can, however, 
  affect themselves (i.e., they could drink a potion).   
   
  CHESS PIECE STATISTICS 
  Piece 
  Statistics (if no other statistics apply) 
  Bishop 
  Priest 
  King 
  Halaster Blackcloak  
  Knight 
  Knight 
  Queen 
  Warlord 
  Pawn 
  Thug 
  Rook 
  Assassin  
   
  • If a piece overtakes another piece and subjects it to a saving 
  throw, such as a spell that only does half damage on a success, 
  the overtaken piece can attempt their saving throw, but are 
  still eliminated. This is so that a piece can't just unleash a 
  finger of death on a player character without any chance of 
  halving the damage. Use tact whenever determining which 
  attack the overtaking piece uses; there is such a thing as over-
  kill in this encounter.  
  • When the first king is slain, the remaining pieces on their team 
  takes 22 (4d10) necrotic damage and the encounter ends. Any 
  player characters already eliminated also take this damage.   
  • If Halaster is overtaken, he takes damage from his attacker's 
  attack, but doesn't take the 4d10 necrotic damage for losing. 
  He leaves the demiplane before the damage is inflicted.   
   
  ICONIC INDIVIDUALS OF UNDERMOUNTAIN 
  You don't need to attach an identity to every piece on the 
  board, but you do want to bring back individuals that left 
  a lasting mark on the party and survived. Your table will 
  vary, of course, but some possible individuals are 
  included below. Their statistics are not in Appendix B of 
  this chapter.  
  Bishops. Bishops are good-hearted individuals that are 
  driven by duty to commit evil in this game.  
  • Yrlakka of Level 15 (githzerai zerth) 
  • Preeta Kreepa of Level 3 (human mage with beholder eye-
  stalks, see Level 3, Area 21M) 
  • Any stone giant of Level 7, if the party found them tragic or 
  sympathetic 
  • Any quest-giver from Waterdeep 
   
  King. The opposing team's king is, of course, the Mad 
  Mage. The following individuals could take the role of 
  king for the adventurers' team if none wish to wear that 
  crown. The king represents a fragile leader kept alive 
  solely by the duty of others.  
  • Warlord Azrok of Level 3 (hobgoblin warlord)  
  • Yek the Tall of Level 2 (goblin boss) 
  • Doomcrown of Level 3 (hobgoblin warlord) 
   
  Knights. Knights are unyielding, unquestioning 
  soldiers of the king. Individuals who represent this 
  uncompromising loyalty, whether it's to Halaster or 
  someone else, are included below. Most yugoloths and 
  slaadi would be knights.   
  • Hexacali of Level 8 (bone naga) 
  • Zress Orlezzir of Level 10 (drow house captain) 
  • The Headmaster of Level 9 (arcanaloth) 
  • Drivvin Freth of Level 12 (drow archmage)  
  • The Alchemist of Level 4 (green slaad) 
   
  
   
  66 
  Queen. To Halaster, the queen represents his chief 
  confidant. Likewise, the queen is a strong, feminine 
  figure. Possible individuals include:  
  • Tasselgryn "Tas" Velldarn of Skullport (archmage) 
  • Wyllow of Level 5 (elven archdruid) 
  • Lurkana, wife and general of Azrok's Legion of Level 3 
  (hobgoblin captain) 
  • Emberosa of Level 14 (fire giant) 
  • Vlonwelv Auvryndar of Level 10 or Erelal Freth of Level 12 
  (drow priestess of Lolth) 
   
  Pawns. Pawns ought to be innocents forced into the 
  game, such as a friend, a cherished barber, et cetera.  
  Rooks. In normal chess, a rook represents a castle. In 
  Halaster's game, they're instead wild cards that can wreak 
  great damage upon others. Identities include: 
  • Torbit of Level 8 (bullywug assassin) 
  • Maddgoth of Level 7 (human archmage or lich) 
  • Xarann A'Daragon of Level 10 (drow assassin) 
  • Trenzia of Level 2 (a flameskull with resistance to fire and 
  immunity to lightning damage; and lightning bolt prepared 
  instead of fireball) 
  • Zox Clammersham of Level 13 (gnomish archmage)  
   
  HALASTER'S STRATEGY 
  As black, Halaster is instantly on the defensive and his 
  strategies must reflect that. With an Intelligence score of 
  24, Halaster should prove to be formidable opponent. If 
  you yourself aren't an expert at chess, familiarize yourself 
  with the most famous defensive strategies, such as the 
  Sicilian Defense, the Nimzo-Indian Defense, and more.  
   
  USING INTELLIGENCE 
  When it comes to puzzles and the like in tabletop games 
  the issue boils down to a player being ham-strung out of 
  the game while their character could reasonably figure out 
  the answer—especially if their character is a genius 
  wizard. 
  The players, not the adventurers, must play chess in this 
  encounter. To just let them use their abilities and scores 
  utterly trivializes it. However, to tie-in their abilities, you 
  can let one character on the team, preferably the character 
  calling the shots in this encounter, attempt Intelligence 
  (chess) checks (chess, or dragonchess, being a gaming 
  set). On a success, the white team can reverse their turn. 
  For example, if they moved a knight and lost it the next 
  turn because of that single, foolish move, they can get a 
  do-over if they succeed on the check.  
  If you allow this, it can only occur once per turn and the 
  DC begins at 14, increasing by 2 for every subsequent 
  success.   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  CLASH OF THE TITANS 
  Ultimate Encounter, counts as three encounters 
  The gloves are truly off in this encounter, which dials 
  Halaster's cunning and wrath up to 11. It presents him as 
  the ultimate wizard—one that has had ample time to 
  prepare for his foes and utilized every tool at his disposal.  
  Balancing the Encounter. Halaster has pulled out all 
  the stops for this battle, which occurs entirely in Area 33. 
  He has glyphs of warding, a contingency spell at work, 
  and laid traps to thwart the adventurers. That being said, 
  it would be easy to just equip him with an incredible 
  arsenal of tools, per DM fiat—but this encounter does its 
  best to stay within the bounds of what a wizard could do. 
  Review Halaster's Spells, -Gear and Preparations at the 
  start of this chapter, incorporating all elements thereof.  
   
  MINIONS OF THE MAD MAGE 
  Halaster crumbles when outnumbered; knowing that, he 
  has called upon a number of allies:  
  • A shield guardian—perhaps even the one that can be met on 
  Level 1—whose amulet is worn by Halaster 
  • A gray render that Halaster has long-since bonded with. He's 
  named him after the dumbest of the adventurers.  
  • A red dragon wyrmling taken from Stardock as a tax 
  • A green slaad whose control gem is in Halaster's possession. 
  If it was not slain, this slaad is the Alchemist of Level 4, 
  otherwise it is just a random one conjured from Limbo 
  • Halastron, the adopted quadrone from Level 2, provided it 
  wasn't destroyed. Admittedly, it can do little against such 
  high level adventurers—but they can still go "bite [its] shiny, 
  transplanar ass!" 
  • Two living counterspells, which come out to play on the 
  second round of combat 
   
  Tactics. Halaster's minions follow these tactics: 
  • The shield guardian stores a spell of slow (DC 22) and casts it 
  on its first turn, concentrating on the spell. It positions itself 
  to always be within 5 ft. of Halaster for its Shield reaction.  
  • The wyrmling flies at a height of 15 ft. and strafes the party 
  with its Fire Breath attack. On turns the ability is recharging, 
  it attacks weak and unarmored characters.   
  • Halastron flies at a height of 15 ft. and picks off weakened 
  adventurers with its four Shortbow attacks.  
  • The green slaad starts the encounter invisible. On its first turn, 
  it unleashes a fireball spell. On its second, it casts fear.  
  • The living counterspells use their actions on Magical Strikes 
  and reserve their Spell Mimicry for whenever the adventurers 
  cast counterspell  
   
  GLYPHS GALORE 
  It's not enough for the Mad Mage to be backed up by a 
  handful of minions; nay, this wizard's lair is trapped with 
  several glyphs of warding. Per the spell, the glyphs 
  "concentrate" on these spells, allowing Halaster to 
  concentrate on his own.  
   
   
  
   
  67 
   
  • A glyph of warding in the center of the magical circle contains 
  a reverse gravity spell that activates when a creature passes 
  over the center of the room. A creature that falls upward takes 
  2d6 bludgeoning damage if it strikes the ceiling. Halaster has 
  tailored it to only affect the area of the magic circle, reducing 
  it to a 20-foot-radius cylinder.  
  • When touched, a glyph of warding on the left arm of Halaster's 
  throne casts warding wind, centered on the throne.  
  • When touched, a glyph of warding on the right arm of the Mad 
  Mage's throne casts maddening darkness, centered on the 
  throne. Because Halaster is already under a mind blank spell, 
  he is immune to its effects. See the sidebar for this spell.  
  • A glyph of warding placed at the foot of Halaster's throne 
  contains a spell of Otto's irresistible dance that activates once 
  a creature passes over it to ascend or descend the throne.  
  • A glyph of warding on the door to Area 35 activates when a 
  creature enters within 10 feet of it, unleashing a grease spell 
  on the 10-foot-area before it.   
   
  HIDDEN PIT TRAP 
  Hidden by an illusion spell, the Mad Mage has placed an 
  extradimensional pit trap in front of the door to Area 36. 
  The pit is 10-feet-wide, 20 ft. deep, sheer, and trapped 
  with spikes. A creature that falls into the pit takes 2d6 
  bludgeoning damage from the fall and must make a DC 
  14 Dexterity saving throw to avoid the spikes, taking 2d10 
  piercing damage on a failure.   
  CLASH OF THE TITANS: HALASTER'S ARCANE ARSENAL 
  The following spells are utilized in the Clash of the Titans encounter. Their effects have been summarized for your convenience. Because they are 
  cast with glyphs of warding, Halaster does not concentrate on the spell; it instead continues for its full duration. The spell save DC for these is 22.  
   
  GREASE 
  Duration: 1 minute 
  Slick grease covers the ground in a 10-foot square centered on a point 
  within range and turns it into difficult terrain for the duration. 
  When the grease appears, each creature standing in its area must 
  succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or fall prone. A creature that enters 
  the area or ends its turn there must also succeed on a Dexterity saving 
  throw or fall prone. 
   
  MADDENING DARKNESS 
  Duration: 10 minutes 
  Magical darkness spreads from a point you choose within range to fill 
  a 60-foot-radius sphere until the spell ends. The darkness spreads 
  around corners. A creature with darkvision can't see through this 
  darkness. Non-magical light, as well as light created by spells of 8th 
  level or lower, can't illuminate the area. 
  Shrieks, gibbering, and mad laughter can be heard within the sphere. 
  Whenever a creature starts its turn in the sphere, it must make a Wisdom 
  saving throw, taking 8d8 psychic damage on a failed save, or half as 
  much damage on a successful one. 
   
  OTTO'S IRRESISTIBLE DANCE 
  Duration: 1 minute 
  The target begins a comic dance in place: shuffling, tapping its feet, and 
  capering for the duration. Creatures that can't be charmed are immune 
  to this spell. 
  A dancing creature must use all its movement to dance without leaving 
  its space and has disadvantage on Dexterity saving throws and attack 
  rolls. While the target is affected by this spell, other creatures have 
  advantage on attack rolls against it. As an action, a dancing creature 
  makes a Wisdom saving throw to regain control of itself. On a 
  successful save, the spell ends. 
   
  REVERSE GRAVITY 
  Duration: 1 minute 
  This spell reverses gravity in a 50-foot-radius, 100-foot-high cylinder 
  centered on a point within range. All creatures and objects that aren't 
  somehow anchored to the ground in the area fall upward and reach the 
  top of the area when you cast this spell. A creature can make a Dexterity 
  saving throw to grab onto a fixed object it can reach, thus avoiding the 
  fall. 
  If some solid object (such as a ceiling) is encountered in this fall, 
  falling objects and creatures strike it just as they would during a normal 
  downward fall. If an object or creature reaches the top of the area 
  without striking anything, it remains there, oscillating slightly, for the 
  duration. At the end of the duration, affected objects and creatures fall 
  back down. 
  SYMBOL 
  Duration: 10 minutes once triggered 
  When you inscribe the glyph, choose one of the options below for its 
  effect. Once triggered, the glyph glows, filling a 60-foot-radius sphere 
  with dim light for 10 minutes, after which time the spell ends. Each 
  creature in the sphere when the glyph activates is targeted by its effect, 
  as is a creature that enters the sphere for the first time on a turn or ends 
  its turn there. The glyph is nearly invisible, requiring a DC 22 
  Intelligence (Investigation) check to find. 
  Death. Each target must make a Con. save, taking 10d10 necrotic 
  damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful save. 
  Discord. Each target must make a Con. save. On a failed save, a target 
  bickers and argues with other creatures for 1 minute. During this time, 
  it is incapable of meaningful communication and has disadvantage on 
  attack rolls and ability checks. 
  Fear. Each target must make a Wis. save and becomes frightened for 
  1 minute on a failed save. While frightened, the target drops whatever 
  it is holding and must move at least 30 feet away from the glyph on each 
  of its turns, if able. 
  Hopelessness. Each target must make a Cha. save. On a failed save, 
  the target is overwhelmed with despair for 1 minute. During this time, 
  it can't attack or target any creature with harmful abilities, spells, or 
  other magical effects. 
  Insanity. Each target must make an Int. save. On a failed save, the 
  target is driven insane for 1 minute. An insane creature can't take 
  actions, can't understand what other creatures say, can't read, and speaks 
  only in gibberish. The DM controls its movement, which is erratic. 
  Pain. Each target must make a Con. saving throw and becomes 
  incapacitated with excruciating pain for 1 minute on a failed save. 
  Sleep. Each target must make a Wis. save and falls unconscious for 10 
  minutes on a failed save. A creature awakens if it takes damage or if 
  someone uses an action to shake or slap it awake. 
  Stunning. Each target must make a Wis. save and becomes stunned for 
  1 minute on a failed save. 
   
  WARDING WIND 
  Duration: 10 minutes 
  A strong wind (20 miles per hour) blows around you in a 10-foot radius 
  and moves with you, remaining centered on you. The wind lasts for the 
  spell's duration. The wind has the following effects: 
  • It deafens you and other creatures in its area. 
  • It extinguishes unprotected flames in its area that are torch-sized or 
  smaller. 
  • It hedges out vapor, gas, and fog that can be dispersed by strong wind. 
  • The area is difficult terrain for creatures other than you. 
  • The attack rolls of ranged weapon attacks have disadvantage if the 
  attacks pass in or out of the wind. 
   
  
   
  68 
  To see through the illusion, a creature can use its action 
  to attempt a DC 15 Intelligence (Investigation) check. The 
  illusion and pit trap also disappear 1 minute after Halaster 
  dies.  
   
  SYMBOL 
  Halaster has inscribed a symbol spell on the statue of 
  himself that activates when a creature other than him-self 
  touches it. To goad them into doing so, he races for it—
  making a big show about touching it—and teleports to 
  Area 22 or 28. Alternatively, he can have a minion of his 
  touch it.   
  When activated, the 60-foot-radius sphere covers most 
  of Area 33. Creatures pressed against the south-western 
  and southeastern corners are out of its range, as are 
  creatures on the steps leading to Halaster's throne, or 
  further. The spell cannot penetrate walls, so Areas 32 and 
  34-36 are safe.  
  Effect. Choose beforehand which effect Halaster has 
  chosen for the symbol spell and consider its implications, 
  remembering that all creatures must contend with its 
  effect, if they're in the sphere, including Halaster and his 
  minions: 
  • The Death effect is a reset button that will likely wipe out 
  Halaster's minions, none of whom have immunity or even 
  resistance to necrotic damage—and all creatures take 10d10 
  damage every time they enter or start their turn in the sphere 
  for the ten minutes. It is, hands down, the most brutal effect.   
  • The Discord effect allows the battle to continue but drags it 
  out further by disadvantaging attacks and the like.  
  • The Fear effect disarms combatants and forces them to the 
  corners of the room, or through a door. The shield guardian 
  cannot be frightened and is thus unaffected.  
  • The Hopelessness effect will likely be overcome by warlocks, 
  sorcerers, bards, and paladins. Any non-healer or supporter 
  that fails the save is, effectively, removed from the fight, 
  which is no fun.  
  • The Insanity effect can be hilarious if Halaster tells them, 
  "Now you can be just as crazy as I am!" It effectively pauses 
  the fight while Halaster freshens up outside.   
  • The Pain effect allows the fight to haphazardly continue, as 
  affected creatures can still move. Becoming incapacitated 
  also ends a spellcaster's concentration.   
  • The Sleep effect momentarily pauses the fight, but it can be 
  thwarted if enough characters resist the spell. Meanwhile, 
  Halaster can freshen up outside.  
  • The Stunning effect removes characters from the entire fight, 
  which is no fun. However, it can facilitate roleplay as the 
  characters speak falteringly while the villain gets away.  
   
  Tempering the Spell. Once the spell is activated, 
  symbol causes its effects every turn for ten minutes. For 
  the sake of the encounter, you can temper the spell by 
  letting it emit its effects for only a minute, or even just 
  once.   
   
   
   
   
  DONKEY KONG REDUX 
  The world shrinks down to a glass prison striped with strange, 
  red, steel platforms. In your mind's eye, you can see it all, as if 
  you were looking in from a window. Atop this crisscrossed 
  gauntlet, a gigantic ape lords over its sole captive: a frail figure 
  in a floral gown that you recognize to be none other than the 
  Mad Mage himself.  
  As if it could sense your peeping, the giant ape pounds its 
  chest with its fists and reaches into the darkness. From that inky 
  void it plucks a barrel, and the primate hurls it down the criss-
  crossed gauntlet.    
  This variant is ostensibly based on Donkey Kong, the 
  1981 arcade game. If your version of Halaster has visited 
  Earth, it's directly based on it. If not, it’s just uncanny. 
  Halaster teleports the party to a demiplane whose 
  dimensions are 5-feet-wide, 100-feet-tall and 50-feet-
  long. To the south extends a glass wall impervious to all 
  magic and damage. The north, east, and west "walls" are 
  solid darkness. The adventurers can magically view the 
  entire demiplane at once, just as if they were an arcade 
  player looking at a screen.  
  Like in Donkey Kong, the characters have to reach the 
  top while jumping over barrels, climbing ladders, and 
  more. A giant ape has kidnapped Halaster (who, of 
  course, is wearing a floral pink dress) and tosses down the 
  barrels from the top layer. For the sake of simplicity, 
  barrels aren't tracked on the map, nor can they be targeted.  
  Map. For very obvious copyright concerns, the 
  Companion cannot include an image of the Donkey Kong 
  map. Take inspiration from the original game's Level 1 
  stage. Every platform is 50 ft. in length, with 10 ft. 
  between each platform. Ladders connecting the platforms 
  count as difficult terrain for any creature without a 
  climbing speed.  
  Rules. Follow these guidelines for Halaster's game: 
  • At the start of a character's turn, there is a 75% chance they 
  must leap over a rolling barrel, subjecting them to a Dexterity 
  saving throw (DC 10 + 2d6). On a failure, they're knocked 
  prone and take 5 (1d10) bludgeoning damage. It then 
  explodes, dealing 11 (2d10) fire damage to all creatures 
  within 10 feet. A character that takes the Ready action to 
  jump over the next barrel succeeds automatically.  
  • Once a character comes within 10 ft. of the giant ape on the 
  final layer, it ceases to throw barrels. Starting the next round, 
  creatures already on the final layer no longer need to make 
  Dexterity saving throws at the start of their turn. 
  • The giant ape and Halaster fight in tandem against the party 
  once a character reaches them. Halaster leaves the demiplane 
  after losing 50 hit points or more, or when the giant ape is 
  slain. Once the ape is dead, the next encounter begins.  
   
  Magical Restrictions. Magical flight is disabled in this 
  realm, be it from magic items or spells. The Mad Mage 
  has specifically not warded against spells that would 
  teleport a creature or alter the landscape.  
   
   
   
  
   
  69 
  MONTY'S HALL 
  You awaken on a stage, bleary-eyed and confused. An audience 
  leers at you, clamoring, cheering. Jaunty music is playing all 
  around you as an announcer shouts, "These people have come 
  from all over the Multiverse to make a deal here, on live planar-
  vision! Now, here's our host: Monty… Thrall!"  
  A smart-dressed man with a broad smile steps onto the stage. 
  "Hiya folks, it's me, Monty Thrall! Today, our guests hail from 
  the little rock known as Toril and they're here to—" 
  The crowd erupts into a chant of: "Make! A! Deal!"  
  Monty throws back his head and laughs. "I like this energy! 
  Now, let's get right to it! Our guests have been kidnapped by a 
  deranged mage whose name is—" Monty checks a notecard. 
  "Halastar Blackcape. They're hot on his tail and they've gotta 
  get outta here. Now, the escape from this demiplane is hidden 
  behind one of these three doors." 
  Monty gestures and… and you can see them now: three, 
  unremarkable doors along the far wall.  
  The host continues, "Now, they get to choose one door and 
  one door only. You, sir- or madam-fleshbag! Which door of 
  those three do you choose? And I remind you, you best choose 
  fast, because today as our Shadow of Doom, we have… a spell 
  of delayed blast fireball!" 
  Monty points upward and only now are you aware that a wall 
  of force keeps a spinning orb of fire from crashing down into 
  the studio, setting all ablaze. As you watch, the cracks in that 
  invisible forcefield grow. Time is of the essence.    
  The adventurers find themselves within a demiplane 
  sporting a stage whose far wall has three doors in it. A 
  game show host named Monty (secretly Halaster in 
  disguise, unsurprisingly) lays down the rules of the game: 
  the party must open one of the doors and face whatever is 
  inside. Behind one, Monty assures them, is the 
  demiplane's exit—secretly Door #2.  
  When the adventurers choose a door, Monty opens one 
  of the other doors, unleashing whatever is inside. 
  Obviously, he doesn't open Door #2, because that is the 
  correct answer. After Monty opens Door #1 or Door #3, 
  he asks the party if they'd like to switch to another door 
  and open that one instead.  
  Halaster. If you run this encounter, subtract a 7th- and 
  8th-level spell slot from Halaster, which he used to cast 
  delayed blast fireball and incendiary cloud.  
  The Stage. The stage is a 20-foot-wide square. The 
  adventurers find that the demiplane does not extend 
  beyond that, except for chambers behind the doors. The 
  audience is beyond the wall and is illusory.   
  Everything Sucks. It would be easy for Halaster to 
  force the adventurers to face every horror and then just 
  reveal—surprise, surprise—that there was never a hidden 
  exit in the first place. Alas, there is a correct answer, but 
  it isn't harmless. Perhaps if this game were played on a 
  mortal world, there would actually be a prize behind a 
  door, but truly this is an exercise in "winning" the least 
  amount of pain.  
   
   
  Time Limit. Give the players a minute at your table and 
  one round in-game to debate which door to choose, with 
  a second minute for when Monty gives them the option to 
  switch doors. If they fail to adhere to this time limit, 
  humble them with the delayed blast fireball spell.  
  Screw the Game! If the adventurers just attack 
  "Monty," roll initiative. On his turn, Halaster uses an 
  action to release the spirit troll and bulezau, then a bonus 
  action to leave the demiplane. When he leaves, the 
  delayed blast fireball is released.   
   
  DOOR #1 
  Monty waves his hand and the door crumbles into dust—and 
  out from the cloud born from it storms a caprine demon whose 
  howls can only be described as "murderous." 
  "Zonks!" shouts Monty. "Looks like you chose the bulezau!" 
  The host reaches up to his face and pulls away the flesh as if it 
  were a mask—and, of course, it was Halaster all along. "I bet 
  that really gets your goat, doesn't it?" says the Mad Mage. "Get 
  it? Because it's a goat-like demon? The bulezau? Ah, you don't 
  get it…" 
  Behind this door is a bulezau, a caprine demon that has 
  been forced into Halaster's service for the last forty years. 
  Due to the demiplane's wonky rules, the demon gets to 
  take one turn before initiative is rolled, and it uses that 
  turn to attack the closest creature that isn't Halaster, whom 
  it is forbidden to harm.  
  Magical Aura. If scrutinized by a spell of detect magic 
  or the like, the door radiates a faint aura of conjuration 
  magic—faint, for the demon therein was summoned 
  decades ago.  
   
  DOOR #2 
  A look of revulsion crosses Monty's face. The door opens on its 
  hinges, revealing a long corridor at the end of which stands a 
  glowing, open doorway.  
  "Take your prize and go," the host snarls… and at the heels 
  of that last word, fiery miasma pours into the passageway—a 
  cloud of smoke striped with white-hot embers.  
   
   
  DELAYED BLAST FIREBALL (DC 22) 
  When the spell ends, either because your concentration is broken or 
  because you decide to end it, the bead blossoms with a low roar into 
  an explosion of flame that spreads around corners. Each creature in 
  a 20-foot-radius sphere centered on that point must make a Dexterity 
  saving throw. A creature takes fire damage equal to the total 
  accumulated damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a 
  successful one. The spell's base damage is 12d6. If at the end of your 
  turn the bead has not yet detonated, the damage increases by 1d6. 
  If the glowing bead is touched before the interval has expired, the 
  creature touching it must make a Dexterity saving throw. On a failed 
  save, the spell ends immediately, causing the bead to erupt in flame. 
  On a successful save, the creature can throw the bead up to 40 feet. 
  When it strikes a creature or a solid object, the spell ends, and the 
  bead explodes. 
  The fire damages objects in the area and ignites flammable objects 
  that aren't being worn or carried. 
  
   
  70 
  If the adventurers choose this door, they only have to 
  contend with the incendiary cloud spell trapping it. 
  Halaster does not open any other doors, nor does he 
  unleash the delayed blast fireball unless they dawdle here 
  for more than three turns.  
  Magical Aura. If scrutinized by a spell of detect magic 
  or the like, the door radiates a strong aura of conjuration 
  magic, due to the incendiary cloud spell. 
  DOOR #3 
  You hear glass shatter from behind the door, as if some seal that 
  was meant to remain forgotten was finally disturbed. Through 
  the door comes a ghostly claw chased by a tumorous, but 
  ephemeral maw—a troll! A spirit troll steps through the door 
  and turns its claws upon you!  
  "Looks like you've been trolled," Monty quips to the groans 
  of the audience. The host looks at them and says, "Hey! The 
  sign says 'laugh!'" 
  "You suck, Monty!" shouts an audience member just as the 
  spirit troll beats its incorporeal chest and bellows out its rage.   
  Behind the third door lurks a spirit troll—the spirit of the 
  troll that once laired on Level 1 of the dungeon. If the 
  adventurers are responsible for its death, the beast hungers 
  only to revenge itself upon its killers. Alternatively, if you 
  ran the Troll in the Dungeons! special event on Level 9, 
  in which a dire troll rampages through the academy, the 
  spirit is all that remains of that colossal beast.   
  Magical Aura. If scrutinized by a spell of detect magic 
  or the like, this door radiates a moderate aura of abjuration 
  magic—indicative of the wards placed to contain the 
  spirit troll, who could otherwise phase through the door.  
   
  PLANAR HOPSCOTCHING  
  Ultimate encounter, counts as two encounters 
  In this encounter, Halaster takes the adventurers on an 
  absurd tour of the Multiverse. Whenever they arrive to a 
  new plane, the party must grapple with its hazards, 
  denizens, and any planar effects it imposes upon visitors. 
  Nine planar encounters are included; choose at least three 
  to run. If you decide to run five or more, if Halaster lives 
  that long, then Planar Hopscotching counts as three 
  Ultimate Showdown encounters instead of two.  
  Plane Shifting. Halaster plane shifts the party to the 
  plane of his choice as a Legendary Action, without even 
  casting a spell, and no matter the distance between him 
  and all targets. If you need to justify this spellcasting, 
  equip him with at least four spell scrolls of plane shift.  
  NPCs' Initiative. Several planar encounters feature 
  denizens of that plane. It's recommended that you roll 
  initiative beforehand to avoid slowing down your game.  
  Escaping. This encounter hinges on the good will of 
  your players, who are free from Undermountain's 
  restrictions on magic once brought to another plane. They 
  could absolutely ditch Halaster and plane shift elsewhere. 
  However, they're unlikely to know the spell, since it's 
  utterly useless in Undermountain, and Halaster can just 
  wish them back into the dungeon.  
  Aftermath. Once Halaster is finished gallivanting 
  across the planes, or when he's beaten within an inch of 
  his life, he returns them to Area 33. Everyone but Halaster 
  crashes onto the floor and is knocked prone.  
  Death. Remember, Halaster can only be reborn if he 
  was slain within Undermountain. Therefore, he ends this 
  planar spree when near death.   
   
  ACHERON 
  The world echoes with war. You find yourself upon an iron 
  battlefield floating in the emptiness of space. Distant cubes of 
  iron collide above and below while orcish hordes hurl them-
  selves against a goblinoid legion. Instinctively, you know 
  yourself to be in Acheron, that fabled realm of ceaseless war, 
  whose armies clash for the amusement of dread-gods.   
  The adventurers and Halaster appear at the heart of a 
  massive battle between goblinoids and orcs waged in the 
  name Maglubiyet and Gruumsh, respectively. Shocked, 
  the nearby warriors both strive to slay these newcomers 
  to honor their dread-god.  
  Goblinoids. Goblinoids slain by the adventurers in 
  Undermountain have the opportunity to appear here 
  again. For example, Yek the Tall from Level 2 and the 
  hobgoblins of Levels 3, 13 and 14 (such as Azrok, 
  Yargath the Breaker, and Doomcrown, respectively) 
  could be fighting here, eternally serving under their deity 
  now that their souls have been liberated from the Material 
  Plane. Regardless of their identities, the following 
  goblinoids are present:  
  • A goblin boss or hobgoblin captain 
  • Three hobgoblins or five goblins 
  • A hobgoblin warlord 
   
  Orcs. The orcish horde attacks from the south. The 
  soldiers that involve themselves in the battle against 
  Halaster and the party consist of an orc Blade of Ilneval, 
  an orc Hand of Yurtrus, and three orogs. They use the 
  following tactics in combat: 
  • The Hand of Yurtrus casts bane on three adventurers (DC 12). 
  • The Blade of Ilneval makes two Longsword attacks then uses 
  its Ilneval's Command to galvanize the three orogs.  
  • The three orogs each make two Greataxe attacks, plus a third 
  if they're affected by Ilneval's Command.  
   
  Planar Effect. Acheron rewards a creature for harming 
  others by imbuing it with the strength to keep fighting. 
  While on Acheron, a creature gains temporary hit points 
  equal to half its hit point maximum whenever it reduces a 
  hostile creature to 0 hit points. These temporary hit points 
  are lost when the creature leaves Acheron.  
  Halaster's Tactics. Knowing Acheron will reward him 
  for slaying other creatures, Halaster does his best to 
  include orcs or goblinoids in his attacks; thus, he relies 
  more on his blast scepter or fireball spells to gain 123 
  temporary hit points whenever he slays a creature. 
   
   
   
  
   
  71 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  THE ASTRAL PLANE 
  The world blurs again and you find yourself on the deck of a 
  ship sailing a waterless sea. Asteroids and the corpses of dead 
  gods float in the distance. The air here is clean, invigorating—
  and after a flash of clarity, you understand why: you're on the 
  Astral Plane, that famed realm free of hunger, of thirst, of aging. 
  As if reading your thoughts, Halaster says, "I like to lounge 
  here whenever I need a break from my arthritis." He pats the 
  dust off his robe and then arches his back, smiling as a handful 
  of vertebrae pop. "That's the stuff," the Mad Mage moans.  
  It's only then that you realize you're not alone: olive-skinned 
  aliens stare at you, jaws agape. A psychic murmur runs through 
  the crowd and the first githyanki telekinetically draws its silver 
  blade. "Na vazeal!" the warrior shouts, leaping into battle! 
  A perfectly-timed plane shift spell has supplanted the 
  adventurers onto a warship bound for Créche K'liir. It's 
  minutes away from shifting to the Material Plane and 
  docking with Stardock.  
  Planar Effect. While on this plane, a creature's walking 
  speed is equal to 3 x its Intelligence score.  
  Githyanki. This is your opportunity to bring back the 
  githyanki of Level 16, who would nurse grudges against 
  the adventurers. At the very least, they should be familiar 
  with their likenesses. The following combatants enter the 
  fray: 
  • Three githyanki warriors, (speed 39 ft.) 
  • A githyanki knight (speed equals 42 ft.) 
  • A githyanki gish whose speed equals 48 ft. on the Astral 
  Plane. On its first turn, it casts haste on the knight.  
   
  Map. Refer to The Wreck of the Wight's Shadow map 
  below, courtesy of Dyson Logos.  
   
  THE BEASTLANDS 
  When the world's lines become crisp and sure again, you find 
  yourself in a place of staggering heat. A thousand feet below 
  lies a sprawling jungle—and at its edge is a reptilian beast with 
  three, magnificent and bloodied horns. It stamps its massive 
  paws in a dance of indignation.  
  Dust is everywhere, choking your lungs and impairing your 
  vision. Waving a hand, you look away from the cliff—and out 
  from the cloud comes a scaled behemoth whose roar shakes the 
  very ground—and on its back rides Halaster himself. "Steven 
  Spieldberg, eat your heart out!" he shouts.  
  Halaster has delivered the party to the fabled Beast-lands, 
  a savage realm of unchecked nature. They appear on a 
  cliff a thousand feet above a jungle.  
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  Beasts. The party finds itself in the middle of an epic 
  struggle between a tyrannosaurus rex and a triceratops. 
  An opportunistic quetzalcoatlus strafes the adventurers, 
  at first attempting to grapple the weakest among them and 
  flies out; if a creature falls, they take 20d6 bludgeoning 
  damage as they crash into the jungle below.  
  Halaster is, of course, riding the T-Rex, although the 
  behemoth isn’t too happy about it. The two dinosaurs 
  ignore each other to attack these sudden interlopers, 
  perceiving them as threats.  
  Planar Effect. While on this plane, the adventurers 
  must contend with these two planar effects: 
  • Characters have advantage on Wisdom (Animal Handling), 
  Wisdom (Perception), and Wisdom (Survival) checks. 
  • Whenever a visitor slays a beast native to the plane, the slayer 
  must succeed on a DC 10 Charisma saving throw or become 
  transformed (as in the polymorph spell) into the type of beast 
  that was slain. In this form, the creature retains its intelligence 
  and ability to speak. After each long rest, the polymorphed 
  creature can repeat the saving throw. On a success, the 
  creature returns to its true form. After three failures, the 
  transformation can only be undone by a remove curse spell 
  or similar magic. 
   
  GEHENNA 
  Your stomach reels as reality shifts. Halaster deposits you into 
  the dismal ruins of what only could have been a temple or court-
  house. Smog has choked all color from the sky, whose sole 
  clouds are floating chunks of earth. Volcanos burn in the 
  distance and the dead land is pock-marked with craters. This is 
  a scabrous realm, indeed.  
  "Uh," says a telepathic voice, "Can I help you?" 
  You look and see a grotesque fiend attending to three others 
  at a stone dais in the ruins. Its massive left arm bulges with 
  muscle and in its atrophied right, it holds documents whose 
  script make your head spin. You're well-acquainted with 
  yugoloths by now, but never have you seen one like this.  
  The fiend grimaces at you, and its voice chimes again: "Look, 
  we're in the middle of hashing out a contract, so…" 
  Suddenly, the Mad Mage appears—and the fiend sighs. "Oh, 
  it's you. What now, Mr. Blackcloak?" 
  The Mad Mage rips a coinpurse from his robe and tosses it at 
  the fiends' feet. "There's more where that came from! Kill these 
  fools!"  
   
   
  THE WRECK OF THE WIGHT'S SHADOW 
  1 Square = 5 ft.  
  
   
  72 
  Immediately, the three yugoloths across the dais spring into 
  action: two insectoid fiends wielding tridents, and some 
  faceless, quadrupedal horror whose rotund mouth is lined with 
  fangs. It opens that circular maw and out spills a serrated tongue 
  that can be no less than thirty feet in length. 
  The lawyer-like fiend sighs. "Well, Mr. Blackcloak, I will 
  take no part in your chicanery. If you will excuse me…" 
  Counting on the fiends' greed, Halaster has brought the 
  party to Gehenna, the infernal realm of yugoloths. The 
  lawyer-fiend, a yagnaloth named Hiynis, is the Mad 
  Mage's usual broker for infernal contracts. It comes as no 
  surprise when Hiynis refuses to partake in the violence—
  and if Halaster were to die, it would be one less headache 
  for the yugoloth. Unfortunately, it is bound by a contract 
  to never harm Halaster—but the other three fiends aren't.  
  Yugoloths. The gathered fiends consist of a yagna-loth 
  finishing up a contract concerning the canoloth and the 
  two mezzoloths who have been hired by a hedge-wizard 
  with a grudge. Under no circumstance does the yagnaloth 
  fight; therefore, it's statistics are not included in Appendix 
  B. However, the others do initially side with Halaster. 
  They follow these tactics: 
  • The first mezzoloth enshrouds itself in a darkness spell that its 
  fellow fiends utilize to their advantage; thanks to their blind- 
  and truesight, they're unhindered by the spell.  
  • The canoloth makes a Tongue attack against a target within 
  30 ft. and follows up with its claws.  
  • The second mezzoloth tears into the first victim grappled by 
  the canoloth's tongue. 
   
  Planar Effect. The plane's cruel nature makes it 
  difficult for visitors to help one another. Whenever a 
  visitor casts a spell with a beneficial effect, including a 
  spell that restores hit points or removes a condition, the 
  caster must first make a DC 10 Charisma saving throw. 
  On a failed save, the spell fails, the spell slot is expended, 
  and the action is wasted. 
  Bidding War. Halaster bribes the yugoloths with 500 gp 
  (50 platinum coins in a pouch). The party can attempt to 
  win over the yugoloths by overbidding Halaster. To throw 
  money on the ground requires no action. Halaster has a 
  total of 1500 gp on him for the purpose of this encounter.   
  Earthquake. Once during this encounter, an earth-
  quake rips through the ruins, turning it into difficult 
  terrain for the next minute. Every creature in contact with 
  the ground that is concentrating must make a DC 15 
  Constitution saving throw. On a failure, the creature's 
  concentration is broken. Additionally, each creature on 
  the ground must make a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw or 
  be knocked prone.  
   
  MECHANUS 
  The Mad Mage utters a scornful word. The world around you 
  blurs yet again, this time replaced by bronze gears the size of 
  grown drakes. It's as if you were standing in the guts of some 
  clockwork behemoths. Shafts of light fall through uniformly 
  distributed windows. Mechanical workers stand at the assembly 
  line, assembling intricate clockwork pieces together—all at the 
  same rhythm.  
  As you collect yourselves, a clarion alarm blares across what 
  you can only call a factory. A feminine voice shrills, "Intruders! 
  Intruders! Guest permits undetected! Eliminate immediately! 
  Good day!"  
  "Oh, right," Halaster says. He digs into his pocket for a little 
  brass badge embedded with a cog. He affixes it to his lapel just 
  as the constructs converge upon you. "Yeah, get 'em, boys!" he 
  shouts, promptly turning tail and fleeing into a tunnel leading 
  down the assembly line.   
  Halaster has chosen a modron factory as the next site of 
  the adventurers' battle. Intruders are to be put to death—
  and if the party doesn't like it, they should've read the 
  numerous warning signs posted outside. Halaster alone 
  has the guest permit—a badge he awkwardly affixes to his 
  lapel—and that affords him protection from the 
  constructs.  
  Constructs. Hundreds of modrons are at work, but only 
  a few involve themselves in combat: a penta-drone, three 
  quadrones, and two tridrones. They are, admittedly, no 
  match for the party, but they can't help but obey their 
  security protocols.   
  Planar Effect. While on Mechanus, creatures always 
  use the average damage result for attacks and spells. For 
  example, an attack that normally deals 1d10 + 5 damage 
  always deals 10 damage. 
  Guest Badge. A character wearing a guest badge is 
  considered to be an ally by the constructs. To snatch it 
  from Halaster's lapel requires a DC 16 Dexterity (Sleight 
  of Hand) check made as a bonus action. 
  Assembly Line. The assembly line is a 5-foot-wide, 60-
  foot-long tunnel. Windows exist here and there for 
  modron workers to perform their work. Creatures on the 
  assembly line have half-cover, thanks to the low ceiling, 
  and the moving pistons and gears.   
  Down the Line. On his first turn, while the party is 
  accosted by modrons, Halaster hops onto the assembly 
  line, which leads into the next chamber. The party must 
  give pursuit, chasing him through a gauntlet of lethal 
  machines and contraptions.   
  Lethal Machines. The combatants must face each of the 
  following traps in order, each of which are 10 ft. apart 
  from one another. Having practiced this run time and 
  again, Halaster automatically succeeds on his saving 
  throws.  
  • A cloud of daggers spell shaves off loose metal from the 
  product. Creatures, including Halaster, automatically take 
  4d4 slashing damage when passing through the area. 
  • A buzzsaw swings down to cleave products. A Medium or 
  larger creature that passes through must succeed on a DC 15 
  Dex. saving throw or take 4d10 slashing damage.  
  • An angry modron attacks the trespassers (except to whomever 
  is wearing the guest badge), making a melee attack (+5 to hit, 
  5 bludgeoning damage).  
  • Two metallic pads crush product into the correct shape. A 
  creature can make a DC 14 Intelligence check as an action to 
  time their jump through the machine. On a success, they take 
  no damage. If they do not time their jump perfectly, they must 
  make a DC 15 Strength saving throw or take 3d10 
  bludgeoning damage, or half as much on a success.   
  
   
  73 
  PLANE OF AIR: CEASELESS STORM EFFECTS 
  d20 Effect 
  1 
  You are struck by lightning and must succeed on a DC 
  17 Constitution save or take 6d10 lightning damage, or 
  half as much on a success.  
  2-5 You are battered by violent winds and must succeed on 
  a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw or take 4d6 bludgeoning 
  damage.  
  6-8 A thunderclap explodes nearby. You must succeed on a 
  DC 15 Constitution saving throw or take 3d8 thunder 
  damage, or half as much on a success. If you were 
  concentrating on a spell, the spell ends if you fail the 
  saving throw. Deaf creatures are unaffected.  
  9-12 An air elemental makes a single Slam attack against you: 
  +8 to hit, 2d8+5 bludgeoning damage. It slips away 
  before it can be retaliated against.  
  13 Gravitational forces render you unconscious until the 
  start of your next turn or until you take damage. 
  14-19 You are blown 10d10 ft. in a random direction.  
  20 You are miraculously unharmed by the storm.  
   
  • A pipe spits fire to make metal more malleable. A creature on 
  the line must make a DC 13 Dexterity saving throw or take 
  2d8 fire damage, or half as much on a success.   
   
  End of the Line. Once Halaster reaches the end of the 
  assembly line, he fires off at the adventurers. If two or 
  more of them reach him, he plane shifts the party to the 
  next encounter.  
   
  THE PLANE OF AIR 
  Amidst your battle, Halaster does the most curious thing: he 
  stuffs his ears with wax. He shouts, "I'm half-deaf and this one 
  always gets me!" 
  Before you can even voice your frustration, the walls of this 
  world disappear, replaced by an endless sky and the thunderous 
  howls of wind. There is no ground, none that you can see—only 
  ceaseless vistas of air pocked by adventurous clouds. As you 
  and the Mad Mage hurtle in a free fall, you see far below you a 
  titanic thunderstorm veined with lightning.   
  Halaster has chosen the Plane of Air as the next stage of 
  his battle—but he's neglected to fight on any of the flying 
  citadels that pepper the realm. Instead, he and the party 
  are in free fall, hurtling towards a massive storm below.  
  Falling. All characters begin the encounter falling. 
  Follow these guidelines for a simple encounter: 
  • All characters start at the same height. Until a creature does 
  anything to affect its falling speed or grant it a flying speed 
  (such as by feather fall, fly or similar magic), assume all the 
  combatants are at the same height. 
  • Per Xanathar's Guide to Everything, when a falling creature 
  starts its turn, it instantly descends 500 ft. Per the point above, 
  until someone isn't falling the same rate, just assume that all 
  the characters are falling together, regardless of whose turn it 
  is. Once a character does fly or alter their falling rate, you 
  must bust out this turn order rule.  
  • To move horizontally, a falling creature must point their body 
  at an angle to fall diagonally. At most, they can travel 30 ft. 
  horizontally in one turn.   
   
   
  The Ceaseless Storm. Seven hundred feet below, a 
  miles-wide storm rages. Thus, combatants that do not 
  alter their rate of free fall, or have a flying speed, are 
  expected to plunge into it next round. Whenever a 
  character starts its turn in the storm, roll a d20 to 
  determine the effects its subjected to and consult the Plane 
  of Air: Ceaseless Storm Effects table.  
  Halaster's Tactics. On this plane, Halaster makes great 
  use of his fly spell to avoid plummeting into the storm 
  below.   
    
  THE PLANE OF EARTH 
  The mortal body is truly an innovative machine capable of feats 
  of alacrity that the mind could never achieve. When the lines of 
  the last world blur and the next ones sharpen, you find yourself 
  on a cliffside overlooking a vast vista of mountains and hills 
  fashioned from geodes. The air reeks of sulfur; lava lazily seeps 
  down from above. Your hands are already clinging to the 
  cliffside, finding loose purchase. The instinct that drives you 
  could clearly tell what was up—and what was down—long 
  before your mind could even comprehend the peril here. 
  A sharp whistle directs your gaze upward: Halaster. He clings 
  to the cliff just as well, but draws from his robes a brown, silver 
  and gray-striped potion. He imbibes it with a grimace. 
  Envigored, the Mad Mage begins to climb.  
  Halaster plane shifts the party to a rocky cliffside in the 
  Furnace, the border-mountains between the Plane of Earth 
  and the Plane of Fire. Thirty feet above the Mad Mage 
  yawns a cave that overlooks this glittery realm. The 
  adventurers have a vertical battle ahead, as Halaster is 
  empowered by a potion of climbing that eases his 
  progress. The nearest adventurer begins 40 ft. below him.  
  Starting Positions. The adventurers are distributed 
  randomly across the cliff face, with the closest one being 
  30 ft. away from Halaster.  
  Hazards. The combatants must contend with these 
  hazards while on the Plane of Earth:  
  • The characters begin 1700 ft. above the ground. If a character 
  falls, they instantly fall 500 ft. At the start of their next turn, 
  they fall the remaining distance and take 1d6 bludgeoning 
  damage per ten feet fallen, up to 20d6.  
  • A character unaided by magic or unequipped with a climbing 
  kit must make a DC 15 Strength (Athletics) check to climb 
  the cliffside. Characters require both hands to climb, but can 
  cling to the cliffside with one hand if they succeed on a DC 
  10 Strength (Athletics) check.   
  • Once during the encounter, the cliffside rumbles and a tide of 
  lava spews out from a nearby fissure, basking the adventurers 
  in scalding heat. Each character on the cliffside must make a 
  DC 14 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, they take 16 
  (3d10) fire damage. On a success, they take half damage.  
   
  Halaster's Spells. If Halaster intends to visit this plane, 
  he prepares earthbind, erupting earth and feather fall 
  instead of arcane lock, knock and silent image, 
  respectively.   
  Halaster's Gear. To prepare for this venture, the Mad 
  Mage brings along a potion of climbing, which grants him 
  a climbing speed of 30 ft. and advantage on Strength 
  (Athletics) checks made to climb.   
  
   
  74 
  Revenge of the Dao. Halaster has made a grave mistake 
  coming here. If it was freed from its prison on Level 19, 
  Jarûk, the dao, appears to exact its revenge on Halaster. 
  The moment it sensed him, the genie used a wish spell to 
  appear nearby. Halaster uses a Legendary Action after the 
  genie's turn to plane shift him and the party to the next 
  realm. 
   
  THE PLANE OF FIRE  
  Halaster offers you a wan smile and shouts, "I hope you packed 
  for a beach trip!" He snaps his fingers and the world becomes 
  fire. It burns everywhere. The air is stagnant and searing; you 
  swallow cinders with every breath. A river of lava rages below 
  the ruined remains of a temple now connected to the distant 
  cliffs only by rickety bridges made of some fire-resistant wood. 
  Spires of earth jut from the magma, as if to condemn the 
  swollen sun that hangs in the sky.  
  This isn't Hell; Hell could never burn so fiercely. There is but 
  one place in all of Creation that can foster such heat—the Plane 
  of Fire. 
  Halaster mounts his next battle at a ruined temple on the 
  scorching Cinder Wastes of the Plane of Fire. A river of 
  boiling lava rages below—a fiery maw that can consume 
  even the mightiest heroes.  
  Map. Refer to the Pillars of the Temple Rains map 
  below. A river of lava churns below the rocky cliffs and 
  outcroppings. The adventurers start between the two 
  bridges; Halaster starts on the platform marked "C."  
  Pillars. If they lack a flying speed, creatures must leap 
  across pillars to reach Halaster. Remember, the distance a 
  creature can jump is equal to their Strength score if they 
  run at least 10 ft. first.  
  • The gap between Areas A & B is 19 ft. across 
  • The gap between Areas B & C is 23 ft. across 
   
  Hazard. Lava rages 100 ft. below. A creature that falls 
  into it takes 35 (10d6) bludgeoning damage (because lava 
  is much denser than a normal person, it's effectively a 
  solid surface). Additionally, they take 55 (10d10) fire 
  damage when they enter the lava the first time or start 
  their turn there.  
  Natives. While here, 1d4+2 living burning hands 
  accost the adventurers, coming in on a fiery wind.  
  Halaster's Spells. If Halaster intends to visit this plane, 
  he prepares feather fall instead of arcane lock.  
  Halaster's Tactics. Halaster employs the following 
  tactics in this encounter: 
  • Halaster begins in Area C, as marked on the map, and hurls 
  spells at the party, such as fire bolt and fireball.  
  • If he falls, Halaster casts feather fall, then uses a Legendary 
  Action to cast fly (which he can cast once per day without 
  expending a spell slot) or even just plane shifts the party to 
  the next plane.  
  • Although his blast scepter provides resistance to fire damage, 
  Halaster has no intention of getting a face full of magma. That 
  would just ruin his day.  
   
   
   
  PILLARS OF THE TEMPLE RAINS 
  1 Square = 5 ft.  
  B 
  A 
  C 
  
   
  75 
  THE PLANE OF WATER 
  "I hope you've got your floaties!" Halaster shouts, waving his 
  hands in a swimming gesture. Before you can even raise an eye-
  brow, the world warbles and cold, bitter water rushes in. The 
  depths of the sea lay out before you and the sun is nothing more 
  than a distant pinprick wavering high above you. The salt is 
  sharp on your lips as water pushes its way towards your lungs.   
  The Plane of Water welcomes every treasure it can come 
  by—and Halaster has delivered himself and the party into 
  its clutches. It comes as no surprise that the party will 
  have to exercise restraint when dealing with Halaster, if 
  he's the sole means of them escaping this watery realm.  
  Hazard. The adventurers did not have time to suck in a 
  breath before being plane shifted; therefore, each 
  character has only a number of rounds equal to its 
  Constitution modifier (minimum of 1 round) before it 
  suffocates. At the start of that next turn, it drops to 0 hit 
  points and is dying.   
  Contingency. If you intend to use this encounter, 
  Halaster cast a contingency spell on himself several days 
  ago. The contingent spell, polymorph, activates when 
  Halaster is submerged in water, turning him into a giant 
  shark, as described below. He loses no spell slots for this, 
  having spent them days ago when he first cast 
  contingency. Be aware that a spellcaster can only be under 
  one contingency spell at a time; using it for this encounter 
  removes it from others.  
  Alternatively, Halaster chose water breathing as his 
  contingent spell, rather than polymorph.  
  Halaster's Tactics. Halaster polymorphs himself into a 
  giant shark for this encounter, either on his first turn, or 
  immediately if he used a contingency spell for it. Once his 
  hit points are depleted, he plane-shifts the party after his 
  next turn. If any of his foes have power word: kill at their 
  disposal, Halaster does not ever cast polymorph; instead 
  he relies on a chain lightning spell and the like—if he 
  even brings the party to this plane at all.  
  Revenge of the Marid. Halaster has made a grave 
  mistake coming here. If it was freed from its prison on 
  Level 19, Itchthyglug, the marid, appears to exact its 
  revenge on Halaster. The moment it sensed him, the genie 
  used a wish spell to appear nearby. Halaster uses a 
  Legendary Action after the genie's turn to plane shift him 
  and the party to the next realm. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  SNAKES AND PORTALS DIAGRAM 
   
  100 
  99 
  98 
  97 
  96 
  95 
  94 
  93 
  92 
  91 
  81 
  82 
   
  83 
   
  84 
  85 
  86 
  87 
    88 
  89 
  90 
  80 
  79 
   
  78 
  77 
  76 
  75 
  74 
  73 
  72 
  71 
  61 
  62 
  63 
  64 
  65 
  66 
  67 
  68 
  69 
  70 
  60 
  59 
  58 
  57 
  56 
  55 
  54 
  53 
  52 
  51 
  41 
   
  42 
  43 
  44 
  45 
  46 
  47 
  48 
   
  49 
  50 
  40 
  39 
  38 
  37 
  36 
  35 
  34 
  33 
   
  32  
  31 
  21 
  22 
  23 
  24 
  25 
  26 
  27 
   
  28 
  29 
  30 
  20 
  19 
  18 
  17 
  16 
  15 
    14 
  13 
  12 
  11 
  1 
  2 
  3 
  4 
  5 
  6 
  7 
  8 
  9 
  10 
   
  SNAKES AND PORTALS 
  You find yourself in a flat, dreary realm whose distant plains 
  are wreathed in shadow. All you can make out is a checkered 
  floor of black and white tiles. Above every tile floats an 
  ephemeral number, some red, some gold, but most just white. 
  Clearly this is a trap lain by the Mad Mage—and when you 
  move to act, you find your legs petrified into stone. All of you 
  are crowded on a tile above which floats the number "1." Time 
  seems to be frozen; your body is deaf your will.   
  Suddenly the Mad Mage winks into existence. He shares with 
  you a sheepish glance and says, "Well. The host might eat last 
  but he plays first." He produces a six-sided die and rolls it into 
  the air and takes a number of lanky steps out onto the board. 
  Still smiling, Halaster rolls twice more, putting more distance 
  from you. "Forgive me!" he shouts, "But it's a house rule!"   
  Halaster escapes to a demiplane whose checkered floor is 
  an area of 10x10 tiles. Every tile is a 5-foot-square and 
  above each one floats an intangible but glowing number, 
  which number from 1-100. The numbers are either red, 
  white, or gold.  
  This encounter is, of course, just the classic board-
  game, Snakes and Ladders ported into D&D. When the 
  Companion's author—that's me—brainstormed encounter 
  ideas, he found an old Snakes and Ladders worksheet in 
  his teaching bag. "If it was good enough for 3rd-graders," 
  he said, "it's good enough for this." The encounter follows 
  the rules below: 
  • When the characters first awaken in the demiplane, their legs 
  are petrified. For the remainder of this encounter, their speed 
  is effectively 0. Roll initiative to determine turn order.  
  • At the start of a character's turn, they find a six-sided die in 
  their hand, which they can roll, after which their legs are 
  restored to their usual fleshy goodness. Roll a d6 to determine 
  how many squares forward the character can move. At the 
  end of their turn, their legs are petrified once again.   
  
   
  76 
  • Characters must move forward at the start of their turn; they 
  cannot move backward or stay still.   
  • A character can use actions and bonus actions within the demi-
  plane, but not reactions. Spells that affect their movement or 
  would thwart the petrification of their legs fail. The Dash 
  action likewise does nothing.  
  • All ranged attacks, including for spells, have a reduced range 
  of 20 ft. Melee attacks can only be made against creatures in 
  adjacent squares; melee attacks made with a weapon with the 
  reach property can hit a creature up to 10 ft. away.  
  • Halaster's placement on the board is determined before the 
  party can act. He rolls three times to determine his placement 
  but must then abide by his initiative for later turns. Each turn, 
  he can reroll his die once but must use the new result.   
  • Several tiles are trapped, as marked with a red number. When 
  a character lands on this number, a massive snake appears, 
  swallowing them whole and inflicting 5 (1d6+2) piercing 
  damage and an additional 10 (3d6) acid damage. That 
  character is then deposited elsewhere on the map. See the 
  Snakes and Portals diagram for details.  
  • Several tiles host portals that will spirit the character ahead on 
  the board. These tiles are marked with golden numbers. When 
  a character lands on the tile, the number transforms into a 
  portal which the character can choose to take. The portal's 
  destination is clearly marked: its linked tile's number morphs 
  into a portal. See the Snakes and Portals diagram for details.  
  • At the end of the first round, a wall of acid begins to fill the 
  board, starting at 0. At the end of the second round, roll a d6 
  for the acid, which follows the same path across the board 
  that the characters do. A creature that starts its turn in acid 
  takes 14 (4d6) acid damage.  
  • If Halaster is reduced to half his hit points or less, he abandons 
  the demiplane, ostensibly cheating his way across the board. 
  Thereafter, the adventurers must outrun the wall of acid.  
  • Once a character reaches tile #100, they are safe from acid and 
  can leave the demiplane if they so wish.  
  • If the party attempts to take a rest in the demiplane, likely on 
  tile #100, Halaster kicks them out.  
   
  THIRD TIMES THE CHARM 
  Ultimate encounter, counts as three encounters 
  Under this variant, you really lean into how anti-climactic 
  the showdown with Halaster is in DotMM. You can still 
  have a penultimate encounter, but otherwise, run Area 33 
  as written: the party have to face the empyrean Nalkara 
  and then the Mad Mage himself. He should fall easily 
  enough—so easily that your players will probably 
  complain, "That's it?" 
  Halaster returns to fight the party, but only 1d10 days 
  later, per his Rejuvenation trait. Sometime later, he 
  teleports the party back into the dungeon. The adventurers 
  are likely to be commanding their full resources—but 
  that's fine, because he's is meant to lose againn anyway.  
   
  ROUND 1: THE ANTICLIMAX 
  When the party first reaches Halaster, run the encounter 
  exactly as it is in DotMM: a fight with an empyrean 
  followed by a lackluster fight with a wizard that made no 
  preparations for this inevitable conflict. He follows his 
  normal tactics but lacks a contingency spell, potions, and 
  minions. His tower collapses as normal.  
   
  ROUND 2: SEETHING VENGEANCE 
  Halaster resurrects 1d10 days later and wishes them back 
  into Undermountain. With his tower destroyed, he 
  summons them to Level 15, Area 16—atop the spectral 
  bridge that spans Netherskull's smoldering chasm. From 
  Area 17 Halaster hurls his spells while his minions 
  advance from both ends of the bridge.  
  Map. For this encounter, you must prepare the map of 
  Level 15.  
  Starting Position. The adventurers begin 40 ft. from 
  Area 9—as Halaster wants them to head north and trigger 
  the fireball trap (see below).  
  Chasm Hazards. Keep these in mind for the battle:  
  • Although the spectral bridge normally becomes insubstantial 
  when a magic item is within 10 feet of it, Halaster's death has 
  broken that nasty condition.  
  • Spells and magic items that grant flight are suppressed in the 
  chasm. A character that enters under a fly spell or similar 
  magic instead goes hurtling into the lava. Spells that slow 
  one's fall, such as feather fall, function normally.   
  • Per Area 16, whenever a creature on the bridge crosses the 
  midpoint of the span, there's a 25% chance that the lava pool 
  spouts a fireball (save DC 19, 12d6 fire damage on a failure 
  or half as much on a success) that explodes at a point centered 
  on that creature.  
  • The lava is 30 ft. below the bridge. Because lava is denser than 
  most creatures, a character that falls onto the lava takes 3d10 
  bludgeoning damage, plus the 10d10 fire damage for entering 
  or starting its turn there.  
  • The chasm walls are sloped and have abundant handholds, 
  which can be climbed with a successful DC 10 Strength 
  (Athletics) check. On a check that fails by 5 or more, the 
  creature slips and falls into the lava.  
   
  Aerial Minions. The following minions fly above the 
  chasm; because their flight is not granted by a spell or 
  magic item, they do not plummet into the fiery depths 
  below.  
  • Two flameskulls hover above the chasm, 15 ft. above and 
  away from the bridge, one to the east, the other to the west.  
  • Up to five magma mephits kamikaze the adventurers (see 
  their Death Burst trait) but only after getting their money's 
  worth on heat metal spells and Fire Breath attacks.  
   
  Northern Minions. These minions act as Halaster's 
  vanguard, holding the line as he hurls his spells at the 
  adventurers: 
  • Four azers, whose sole directive is to stall the adventurers 
  from reaching Halaster. If moving does not provoke attacks 
  of opportunity from the party, they move back and forth along 
  the bridge, trying to trigger the fireball trap. The first pair 
  starts the battle 20 ft. from Area 17; the other pair wait at the 
  foot of the bridge, ready to advance if necessary.  
  
   
  77 
  • A fire elemental that can safely move through the azers' space 
  without harming them (see its Fire Form trait). It attempts to 
  move through every adventurers' space to set them aflame.  
   
  Southern Minions. These minions are meant to push 
  the adventurers northward to Halaster and stop them from 
  escaping to the south.  
  • A fire giant lumbers up from the south, aiming to pressure the 
  adventurers into heading north so that they might activate the 
  fireball trap on the bridge. If she was not slain, this giant is 
  Emberosa from Level 14; otherwise, the giant is the sole 
  survivor of the adventurers' rampage and Halaster's wrath.  
  • Four constructs carved in the likeness of Halaster pepper the 
  adventurers with arrows from Area 9. They are archers but 
  count as constructs, and have immunity to both psychic and 
  poison damage, as well as the poisoned condition. Should the 
  party storm Area 9, one of the constructs opens the double 
  door (see Area 9, Level 15), activating a random elder rune 
  that affects all creatures in the room. If Halaster's rune is 
  drawn, the pillars also emit a prismatic spray (DC 22) that 
  targets all creatures within Area 9.  
   
  Halaster's Tactics. The Mad Mage employs these 
  tactics, in addition to his normal ones: 
  • Halaster opens up with a chain lightning spell that should 
  teach the adventurers just how very badly they've screwed up. 
  • Halaster has prepared feather fall and investiture of flame (see 
  XGE) instead of arcane lock and knock.  
  • If he has it prepared and isn't concentrating on another spell, 
  Halaster drops a cloud of daggers to shore up a 5-foot-area, 
  should one of his northern minions die.  
  • As a last resort, Halaster attempts to destroy the bridge with a 
  dispel magic spell, cast via a Legendary Action. He adds a +7 
  bonus to his ability check and must succeed on a DC 18.   
   
  Victory. Should Halaster be defeated, the party will find 
  no further traps to harry them. However, if the death 
  tyrant Netherskull is not already dead, it may strike as 
  they make their way out of Level 15.  
  Repeat Ad Nauseum. If you'd like to insert more battles 
  with Halaster into your story without actually using 
  precious in-game time for it, narrate that over the course 
  of the next several weeks or months, the party is just 
  repeatedly conjured by Halaster for battle after battle. 
  Often he conjures them to the dark depths of 
  Undermountain, but he also ambushes them on the 
  surface: at their inn, while they're getting a haircut, at a 
  carnival in which he challenges them to a ringtoss, and 
  more. No matter what, it seems they cannot escape his 
  shadow. Each time, they emerge victorious; each time the 
  Mad Mage returns, more frenzied than the last—until 
  there comes a period in which he does not bother them. 
  That's when you begin Round 3, the final encounter, 
  below.  
   
  ROUND 3: MAXIMUM INSANITY 
  Like a scorned toddler, Halaster has deigned to take out 
  his fetal rage on the entire world—by knocking Stardock 
  out of orbit and crashing it into Waterdeep. There upon 
  the asteroid's craggy surface, the party must defeat 
  Halaster to spare the world an extinction level event.   
  Jhesiyra's Intervention. Unlike Round 2, it isn't 
  Halaster who conjures the adventurers, but Jhesiyra 
  herself. Although she is no saint, she cannot abide the 
  Mad Mage's lunacy any longer—especially since the 
  asteroid is aimed at Waterdeep itself and will destroy most 
  of Undermountain.  
  Halaster's "Plan." The Mad Mage has lost him-self to 
  insanity. He would rather destroy his toys than let others 
  play with them. Alas, he cannot crash an asteroid on his 
  own and required additional magi. Eager to see this 
  carnage wrought upon the world, fiends of all stripes have 
  volunteered for this effort. These co-conspirators care 
  little for their own self-destruction, for they shall return to 
  the Lower Planes where they will be lauded as heroes. 
  Even Halaster is unconcerned, as he's certain the Knot in 
  the Weave will survive to resurrect him in the collapsed 
  remains of Undermountain.   
  Stardock Inhabitants. Halaster neglected to tell the 
  dragons and githyanki of his plans, but they've discovered 
  them anyway. His fiendish army proved too much to 
  handle, and so they fled through the gateway leading to 
  the Crystal Labyrinth and hopped into the pits that empty 
  out into the Astral Plane.  
  Map. This encounter requires the Level 16 map.  
  1. THE END IS NIGH 
  When Jhesiyra conjures the adventurers, they begin in 
  Area 19A, which is strangely empty. Noises—almost 
  religious in nature—can be heard from Area 20. Read the 
  following: 
  Once again, you've been ripped away from your well-earned 
  rest. It does not surprise you that the Mad Mage lives again—
  but what does surprise you is the tone of this most recent 
  kidnapping. There's a distinct lack of… chicanery. A reek of 
  desperation hangs heavy in the air, heavy in your mind. The 
  chamber you stand in is familiar—and you realize that you 
  aren't on Toril anymore, but back on the orbiting asteroid you 
  visited long ago. Inertia rocks the asteroid and your stomach.  
  It's while you're holding onto your lunch that a voice visits 
  your mind. It whispers, "The Mad Mage! His fetal rage will cost 
  the very world! He's knocked the asteroid from orbit and is 
  aiming it at Waterdeep! At Toril itself! Murder is the only 
  solution left to us! Go, go now! GO!"  
  The doors fly open, revealing the swollen mass of the blue 
  planet below—and it's getting closer. At the docks, Halaster 
  Blackcloak watches, his arms spread out as if to embrace this 
  wanton destruction. Countless creatures so horrid that they can 
  only hail from the deepest of Hells crawl along the docks, 
  supplicating themselves in worship of the imminent destruction 
  and perhaps even Halaster himself.   
  A throng of fiends stand between the adventurers and 
  Halaster, described below, but only a handful involve 
  themselves in combat; the others must give their lives to 
  propel the asteroid. The Mad Mage stays until the 
  adventurers cut a path to him, after which he simply steps 
  off the dock and winds up on the inverted side of the 
  asteroid's gravity plane. He then runs onto Stardock's 
  bottom, where other fiends continue their diabolical 
  ritual.  
  
   
  78 
  Fiends. Devils, all giddy with excitement, inhabit Area 
  20 and protect Halaster at all costs: an ice devil, two 
  bearded devils, four spined devils, and a blue abishai. 
  They employ the following tactics: 
  • The ice devil engages the adventurers in melee combat but it 
  first raises a wall of ice to protect Halaster, closing off the 
  southeastern dock.  
  • The spined devils rain tail spines from above.  
  • The two bearded devils rush the intruders. 
  • On its first turn, the blue abishai casts greater invisibility and 
  launches into the air. On its second turn, it unleashes a chain 
  lightning spell and a cone of cold on the third.  
   
  Halaster's Tactics. Halaster spends this encounter 
  layering defensive spells on himself. He already has mage 
  armor and mind blank. His first turn is spent casting fire 
  shield and his first Legendary Action is used to cast 
  mirror image, if he has it prepared. He flees after two 
  rounds or when a foe reaches him.  
  Halaster's Rebuttal. When the party confronts the Mad 
  Mage, read the following: 
  Halaster turns around slowly as the asteroid enters Toril's fiery 
  atmosphere. If he's surprised to see you, he doesn't let it show. 
  He shouts, "Sometimes, my friends, the only way to win the 
  game is not to play! This time, the only way is to throw it all 
  out: the game, the baby, the bathwater! All of it! Lest we find 
  ourselves trapped in this endless cycle of duels and death, until 
  at last I triumph over you! But that would be madness! That 
  would be mad!" 
  The Mad Mage raises his arms to welcome this destruction. 
  He looks like a doomsday prophet that has graduated into 
  becoming the very messiah whose fiery arrival he foretold.  
   
  2. CHASING MADNESS 
  Chasing after the Mad Mage, you step off the docks and let 
  gravity reverse itself. What you see on the asteroid's underbelly 
  can be described only as a Golgotha strewn with the tattered 
  corpses of creatures so hellish, not even the most astute 
  demonologists could categorize them. One behemoth towers 
  above them all: a two-headed demon whose whip rains black 
  blood. Its wolf head snarls at you and its ophidian counterpart 
  declares, "In the name of Demogorgon, this world must burn!"  
  A frail figure clambers onto the demon's shoulder: Halaster. 
  He shouts, "Don't worry! There's plenty more where that one 
  comes from! Whole universe is full of 'em!"   
  On Stardock's underbelly, a horde of demons have just 
  finished slaughtering each other, for every death is a well 
  of power that Halaster can draw on to propel the asteroid. 
  Only one demon has emerged from this bloody and 
  gratifying conflict: a molydeus (see MToF for lore) upon 
  whose shoulder rides the Mad Mage. The demon's 
  infernal weapon is a whip, signifying its service to 
  Demogorgon, the Prince of Demons. Wounded in its 
  bloody conflict, it has only 140 remaining hit points.   
  Halaster's Tactics. After his first turn, Halaster uses a 
  Legendary Action to cast fly and flees to the top-side of 
  Stardock. If he is reduced to 101 or fewer hit points, he 
  leaves at the next available opportunity.  
   
  3. INSANE IN THE MEMBRANE 
  Fiendish corpses litter the asteroid, all aglow in the light of 
  Halaster's personal rune. It takes little effort to understand that 
  their lives, temporary as they are, were expended to fuel 
  propelling this asteroid into the unsuspecting planet below. 
  Flames lick at an invisible dome of force surrounding the 
  asteroid, preventing it from burning up in the atmosphere. A 
  coastline rushes in to meet you, and with a sickening clarity, 
  you recognize it as the Sword Coast.   
  You hear nothing but the screams perpetuating themselves in 
  your mind, perhaps planted there by the Mad Mage… perhaps 
  not. Over the asteroid's curvature, you run, until you see him 
  there, waiting for you. At his side are two yugoloths: a vulpine 
  creature clutching a glowing tome, and a green-skinned brute 
  fondling a bloodied greataxe.  
  "You should've known!" comes the Mad Mage's voice, flung 
  out like uncaring dice across a tabletop. "You should've known 
  I am nothing more than a sore loser! A sore loser armed with 
  more and better spellcraft than any mortal that has ever walked 
  these planes! Can you think of no better end than this?" 
  With his fortune expended on this ridiculous effort, the 
  Mad Mage has had to go on credit with his most favorite 
  retinues: yugoloths. Too many, however, are wise to his 
  tricks and only his chief-most confidants, all of whom 
  have also fallen prey to the seductive influence of the 
  Knot in the Weave, have decided to join him: an 
  arcanaloth and a nycaloth. If they were not slain, the 
  former is the headmaster of Dweomer-core; the latter is 
  Raxxus, the executioner of Fazrian the planetar.   
  Tactics. The yugoloths employ these tactics: 
  • The nycaloth is already under a spell of mirror image. On its 
  first turn, it teleports into the fray to strike at the weakest foes 
  and continues to harry them until they reach Halaster. It does 
  not land, but instead strafes its targets.   
  • Should a creature come under a powerful or necessary spell 
  (such as fly, to keep after Halaster), the nycaloth flies over 
  and casts dispel magic.  
  • The arcanaloth has already used its 8th-level spell slot to cast 
  mind blank on itself. It reserves its reaction for counter-
  spelling any counterspells used on Halaster or itself. It opens 
  up with a chain lightning spell and uses a finger of death spell 
  to finish off a weakened foe.  
   
  Halaster's Tactics. Halaster has already cast fly upon 
  himself and devotes his concentration to it. Use his 
  general tactics thereafter. He fights to the death, believing 
  that the Knot in the Weave can and will ensure his 
  resurrection.   
   
  JHESIYRA'S SACRIFICE 
  If Halaster is slain, his hold over Stardock vanishes. 
  Jhesiyra imposes all her will on it and causes it to explode 
  within the atmosphere, sparing countless lives—at the 
  cost of her own. Her last breath is also spent spiriting the 
  adventurers back to Waterdeep where they can see the 
  asteroid shatter.  
  Permadeath. Despite believing otherwise, Halaster 
  cannot be resurrected outside Undermountain. Even the 
  Knot in the Weave can extend its influence into the upper 
  atmosphere, let alone outer space.   
  
   
  79 
  TIME IS A WHEEL 
  Within this encounter, Halaster leads the adventurers back 
  to Level 1, Area 27, the Hidden Demiplane he may have 
  first met them in so long ago. As they will discover, the 
  rift they chased him through crossed not only space, but 
  time itself. They have turned back the clock to that fateful 
  day they found the Mad Mage.  
  If your party did not visit that location, or met Halaster 
  elsewhere, you can still reshape these events to better fit 
  your story. So long as a past- and present-Halaster faces 
  the adventurers, you're golden. 
  This encounter is a lesson in the dangers of chrono-
  mancy, as the adventurers will soon learn. Read the 
  following when the adventurers follow Halaster: 
  Through the rift you go, hungry to strike down that flippant, 
  fleeing wizard. Where you emerge is a gray and gloomy realm 
  you've seen before: a demiplane where you first met the Mad 
  Mage. And there he is, lounging on his plush chair, reading a 
  novel. A freestanding wall holds a portrait of Halaster, which 
  seems to grin crazily at you.  
  The wizard looks from his tome and smiles. "Well, don't just 
  stand—" His smile flattens, and his eyes take on a hard look. 
  "Oh, it's you. You're not my problem yet. Take it up with this 
  buffoon." The Mad Mage gestures to the portrait on the wall—
  which animates. The portrait melts, becoming an empty frame, 
  and that pool of ichor forms itself back into the true Halaster 
  Blackcloak. "Let's dance!" he shouts, brandishing his scepter! 
  When the adventurers arrive, the younger Halaster is 
  already there, reading a novel—The Adventurers of 
  Huckleberry Sahaguin. He seems unconcerned when a 
  future version of himself storms in with a band of 
  adventurers at his heels. The party can then resume their 
  fight with Halaster, now that he's stepped out from his 
  portrait.  
  Past-Halaster. If Halaster is bruised, he blackmails his 
  past-self into helping him. This Halaster Black-cloak has 
  all his hit points and spell slots, but only casts cantrips or 
  magic missile (at any level). Only if he himself is in 
  danger will he use his meaner spells.  
  When Present-Halaster solicits his past-self, read: 
  As you lay waste to the Mad Mage, his past-self jeers from his 
  plush chair. "Yeah, you get him!"  
  On the heels of an arcane flourish, Present-Halaster snarls, 
  "Get in here and help me, you daft fool!" 
  "Now why would I do that?" 
  "I know your every skeleton—enough dirt to fill a grave! I'll 
  tell Tas all about the—" 
  Past-Halaster gasps, "You wouldn't!" 
  Present-Halaster shrugs, "Won't be me that has to deal with 
  the fallout—you'll have already cleaned it up for me!"  
  Balling his fists, the past-Halaster grumbles, "Fine, you 
  blackmailing-bastard, fine!"  
   
  PARTIES OF FUTURE PAST 
  Amidst your mythic battle, the Past-Halaster cocks his ear and 
  demands, "Shhhh! I think I hear them?" 
  "'Them?'" shouts Present-Halaster. "Who?" 
  Past-Halaster gestures at you. "Them!" 
  "Oh god," Present-Halaster mumbles. He looks to you and 
  says, "Quick! Hide! If your past-selves see you, it will destroy 
  everything!" 
  Past-Halaster snorts. "No, it won't." 
  Present-Halaster grins sheepishly. "Okay, it won't, but it will 
  scramble your brains—and I just can't handle the paperwork 
  right now! The Chronomancer's Union's already on my ass!" 
  At the end of the first round of combat, the party's past-
  selves discover the Hidden Demiplane on Level 1 of 
  Undermountain. The present-adventurers can't risk being 
  seen by their past-selves, as it will inflict tremendous 
  damage to their past-psyches—damage that ripples out to 
  the present, harming them now in their battle with 
  Halaster. When the past-adventurers enter the demiplane, 
  read the following:  
  The Mad Mage squeals, "Eek!" and literally dives into the 
  empty portrait on the freestanding wall. As if driven by animal 
  instinct, you hide behind the furniture of this gloomy realm. A 
  rift opens and familiar voices echo throughout the realm. 
  "Well," says Past-Halaster, "don't just stand there like a boob. 
  Three questions of this lair you can ask; twice will the answer 
  be true, and once false. And be quick about it—the show must 
  go on!" 
  Good gods above, it's so eerie, so familiar, so hollow. Was 
  the Mad Mage always referring to you in this moment when he 
  said "the 'show' must go on?" Was he always just trying to hurry 
  you along while, outside your periphery, future titans battled it 
  out for the fate of Undermountain? 
  You can't help but nurse a need to see yourself, not as you are 
  but as you were. That need grows and grows into an insatiable 
  hunger that drives you towards the wall's edge. You inch 
  forward until at last you can behold them—you. You, so naïve, 
  so young and so unbroken, unaware to the horrors ahead and 
  blind to the chains that have always been locked firmly around 
  your neck. Time is a wheel, indeed.  
  Any character that doesn't take the Hide action and 
  succeed on its DC 17 Dexterity (Stealth) check is 
  glimpsed by their past-self while conversing with Past-
  Halaster. This sight is immensely traumatic. The past-self 
  has no choice but to compartmentalize the trauma of 
  seeing their future-self and kicks the can of that trauma 
  down the road, inflicting 22 (4d10) psychic damage to the 
  present-character. 
  Thereafter, 
  the 
  present-character 
  suddenly remembers that they did already see their future-
  self back then. Time has come full circle.  
  If a character currently in the party was not there when 
  the original party first met Halaster here on Level 1, 
  they've less to fear. They cannot be harmed, but can 
  minorly harm their comrades that were there in the past. 
  If the party met Brad the Bold on Level 10, weeks after 
  meeting Halaster, but now see him in the past, the same 
  trauma that would have occurred for being seen by a past-
  self echoes out again. This trauma inflicts 5 (1d10) 
  psychic damage to others.   
  
   
  80 
  THIS IS THE SOUND OF THE POLICE 
  After hiding from their past-selves, the adventurers must 
  listen to Past-Halaster give the same speech he gave to the 
  party so long ago. Just after the past-party leaves, a golden 
  rift opens up within the demiplane, out which steps a 
  Timeline-Enforcer named Kolidas Anderius. He's been 
  sent to arrest the Mad Mage for screwing around with 
  chronomancy again. Kolidas is not human, only 
  humanoid; in fact, his race is so utterly alien that a mortal 
  of the Material Plane can't even recall what the mage 
  looked like; they can only liken him to an "authority 
  figure."  
  Read the following when Kolidas appears: 
  A rift of golden hues roars into existence and out steps a man—
  a creature—whose eyeless face mutes your very mind. It may 
  as well be a grey, humanoid-shaped blob. All you can recall is 
  that this authority figure flashes a brass badge. 
  "You've done it this time!" the authority shouts. "This is your 
  third-strike, Halaster!" 
  "Kolidas?" shouts the Mad Mage. 
  "Anderius?" adds the past-Mad Mage. 
  "The very same!" agrees the present-Mad Mage.  
  "We warned you to stop screwing around with timelines, 
  H.B.! The Chronomancer's Union has called you to court! Get 
  in the rift. All of you—yes, all of you—are to face justice." 
  The Mad Magi squint at this alien officer of the time-court 
  and one shouts at you, "Get him!"  
  The adventurers have the opportunity to side with the 
  Halasters, lest they all be brought to face justice in the 
  Chronomancer's Court. After a round of combat, Kolidas 
  teleports through the rift, leaving them. If the adventurers 
  pay Kolidas no heed, Halaster teleports out of the 
  demiplane, waiting for the party in your next chosen 
  encounter.   
  Kolidas has the statistics of a LE archmage with slow 
  and haste prepared instead of fly and identify. He 
  considers all parties guilty and stops at nothing to take 
  them into custody. He won't aid the adventurers against 
  Halaster. He flees when reduced to 25 hit points or less. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  AREAS OF NOTE 
  The following areas are of note:  
   
  1. NO RETREAT 
  The Mad Mage's last gate flashes with violet energy, vomiting 
  you out onto the cold, marble floor. There is a chill in the air, a 
  miasma that drifts out from the now inactive gate. The sigil 
  above has gone dark and Halaster's stony visage bears a 
  lunatic's grin. Its eyes look towards a nearby statue of himself, 
  his stony fingers curled into talons like the vulture he is.  
  Frescoes line the wall, each depicting Halaster performing 
  mundane tasks: stretching and yawning; juggling rods; 
  sweeping the floor; making a grand escape from a straitjacket, 
  doing handstands, and shadowboxing. His chicanery is on full 
  display here—and you would expect nothing less in this mad 
  wizard's lair.  
  There is no escape. You know that and it does not scare you. 
  That truth dawns on you with little fanfare—and with it comes 
  this realization: the day has come at last. You've dreamed of it, 
  dreaded it. Not a single soul can truly understand for how many 
  years Undermountain has languished under the Mad Mage. It's 
  impossible to know how many lives have been lost or ruined by 
  Halaster's chicanery. There's but one certainty: you are not the 
  first, but you will be the last to suffer by his hand. 
  The day has come at long last to kill Halaster Blackcloak. 
   
  A WELL-NEEDED RESPITE 
  If you're utilizing the variants used throughout this 
  chapter, the adventurers will need a long rest—which 
  those variants assume they'll have. Before they leave, 
  Halaster's voice booms, "Take a rest! You'll need it!"  
  Thanks to chronomancy spells placed by Halaster, the 
  adventurers can achieve their long rest within minutes. 
  However, the statue here in Area 1 can still selectively 
  counterspell the party, so as to put a stop to any hijinks 
  they might attempt now that they've been gifted time to 
  rest.  
  Push it to the Limit. As described in Quick Notes, this 
  should be the last long rest the party achieves in the 
  campaign. Halaster stops at nothing to prevent them from 
  scoring another one.  
   
  HALASTER'S JUKEBOX 
  Throughout the Mad Wizard's Lair, music is belched out 
  from every hall and from under every tile. When the 
  adventurers first enter, they hear Apocalyptica's cover of 
  Hall of the Mountain King. 
  You can add further songs, including songs with lyrics 
  (which are normally avoided in tabletop games for how 
  distracting or ill-fitting they are), as all this music is in-
  game, being played by Halaster himself.  
  
   
  81 
  Halaster's Top Ten. Listed in the Halaster's Game 
  supplement, the Companion recommends several songs 
  that could be used as your campaign's theme song. You 
  may be interested in playing any or all of them right now: 
  • Apocalyptica's Hall of the Mountain King  
  • Blues Saraceno's Run On For a Long Time  
  • Ennio Morricone's Rabbia E Tarantella  
  • The Cosby Show's theme song.  
  • Blondie's One Way or Another  
  • Benny Goodman's Sing, Sing, Sing  
  • DJ Day's Four Hills  
  • Seatbelt's Tank! (Cowboy Bebop theme)  
  • Ousiodes' Arcadia 
  • Gary Jules' Mad World 
   
  2. REVERSED LIBRARY 
  You come upon an upside-down library whose gravity has so 
  clearly been screwed with. Bookshelves teem with ancient 
  tomes, some floating in the empty air, opened on their spines. 
  Behind a desk stands a high-backed chair wreathed in the 
  shadows spat out by a cold but roaring fireplace.   
  If this den seems familiar to the adventurers, it's because 
  it is: on Level 1, the Companion changed Area 13, into an 
  upside-down den. It's an exact copy of this chamber, 
  except for the desk.  
  Optional Twist. If you're using an optional twist, plant 
  one (or all) of the following tomes in the book-shelf or on 
  the desk. 
  • If you're running The Dark Tower, the tome is On the Nature 
  of Alternate Realities by Richard Bachdwarf.  
  • If you're running Halaster's Game, instead of a tome, a ratings 
  report is on the desk, describing that this "season" is the 
  highest-rated, most-watched ever.  
  • If you're running Ground-Mage Day, the tome is a collection 
  of plays. Woodchuck's Omen is bookmarked, a story in which 
  a wizard finds himself trapped in a time-loop. If this is too on 
  the nose for you, consider instead What the Chronomancers 
  Don't Say. 
  • If you're running Puppet on the String, the tome is instead a 
  loose diary page. Most of the chicken scratch is illegible, but 
  the reader can make out, "Melair could not leave either. It 
  called to him. Kept him here. Would not let him leave. This 
  was his tomb long before he ever died. Only Marambra 
  managed to break free… but no one else. Arcturia, Trobriand. 
  Will I succumb to the addiction? Have I already? And what 
  of Jhesiyra?" 
   
  3. TALKING HEADS 
  Cringing at what you expect can only be another trap, you push 
  open the door upon a sight most macabre: shelf after shelf lined 
  up with heads lined up in jars. And, to your horror, they're alive. 
  Alive and talking. One of these heads, a human's, pipes up: 
  "Heads up, fellas," he says—eliciting an avalanche of groans—
  "We've got new guests!"  
  Channel Futurama when presenting this area, which it 
  certainly is an allusion to.  
   
   
   
  To enumerate every head here would be tedious; to craft 
  several new characters for this social encounter would 
  also be tiresome. Instead, place characters that the 
  adventurers have already met—and perhaps even killed—
  in this area. Yes, that's right: Halaster has decapitated 
  these corpses and filled them with a foul mimicry of life.  
   
  OPTIONAL TWIST 
  The following optional twists an affect this area: 
  The Dark Tower. If you're running this optional twist, 
  some of the heads have recently spoken with alternate 
  versions of the adventurers from other realities. For 
  example, after being asked a question, a head might 
  remark, "Didn't you hear me an hour ago?" 
  Halaster's Game. If you're running this twist, or already 
  operating under it, the heads often provide interviews for 
  the show, detailing their encounters with the party, the 
  Mad Mage, or Undermountain. For example, if the head 
  belongs to Sundeth, the half-ogre that commanded 
  Skullport under the Xanathar Guild's banner, he might 
  detail his run-in with the adventurers: "Now, when the 
  contestants arrived, I just thought it was another boat of 
  adventurers. Boy, was I wrong. I don't particularly enjoy 
  ruling with an iron fist, but it's necessary sometimes… 
  They didn't see it that way, as you can tell."   
   
  4. HELMED HORRORS 
  The helmed horrors here are carved in the likeness of 
  Halaster himself. Anticipating their visit, he has 
  magically suited each horror's Spell Immunity trait to 
  protect against the adventurers' favorite spells—so 
  determine this ahead of time.  
  Additionally, the horrors are capable of speaking short 
  phrases in Common, as demonstrated in the text below. 
  Read the following:  
  From within the darkness, you hear a creaking whisper: "They 
  have come… at last." 
  "At last," murmur five more voices, each ringing out with the 
  echoes of drawn steel.  
  Now you see them, floating there in the alcoves: crimson suits 
  of animated armor whose helms are carved in the likeness of 
  Halaster himself.   
  With a shiver, each of these helmed horrors lift their arms, 
  growing a blade of crimson steel from their wrists.  
  "At last," they murmur in unison, "Our purpose is complete." 
   
  OPTIONAL TWIST 
  If you're running one of the optional twists described in 
  this chapter, the helmed horrors cryptically hint at it. Use 
  the dialogue below:  
  The Dark Tower. The horrors hint at the existence of 
  alternate realities. Two of these quotes are from Stephen 
  King's Dark Tower series. Reward a player that can 
  identify them as such with inspiration.  
  • "You come again, only slightly less than the last. Are we to 
  believe this time will be different?" 
  • "You again. Let us clash as we have in our fondest times."  
  
   
  82 
  • "We were worried you would never return. Dance." 
  • "All is forgotten in the stone halls of the dead. These are the 
  rooms of ruin where the spiders spin and the great circuits fall 
  quiet, one by one…" 
  • "Go, then… There are other worlds than these." 
   
  Halaster's Game. You can use these quotes even if your 
  campaign already uses the Companion's game show 
  variant. 
  • "Look, brothers. They've made it. We must be in the season 
  finale!" 
  • After cutting into an adventurer, the horror sheepishly asks, 
  "Might I have your autograph?"  
  • Looking into one of Halaster's spectral eyes, the horror says, 
  "This episode is sponsored by Paethier's Pipeweed: keep 
  blazing, stay amazing!"   
  • The helmed horrors all sing the Dungeon of the Mad Mage 
  theme song 
  • "The show must go on!"  
   
  Ground-Mage Day. The horrors remark about the 
  funny nature of cyclical time and remember each of its 
  cycles since being created.   
  • "Time is truly a wheel, indeed…" 
  • "So it has happened. So it shall again." 
  • "We tire not of our task. Nay, we revel in it." 
  • "Another barge comes every fifteen minutes…"  
  • "Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again. We welcome 
  it. We welcome you." 
   
  Puppet on the String. The horrors, sympathetic to their 
  dear creator, lament over Halaster's torment by the Knot 
  in the Weave.  
  • "The Master's torment is nearly at an end…" 
  • "It courses through us all. Nourishes us. Sustains us. Do you 
  not hear its phantom call?" 
  • "Its seed has already bloomed within you. Try as you might, 
  never shall you leave this dungeon. Never shall you wish to." 
  • "There is a Knot in the Weave—a noose from which we all 
  hang. You feel it, do you not? You feel it around your neck." 
  • "Free him who gave us life. Free him who gave purpose to 
  yours. Free him!" 
   
   
  6. WIZARDLY WARDS 
   
  6A. LIGHTNING PILLARS 
  At last, you come to the first gauntlet laid by the Mad Mage to 
  deter and eliminate intruders: a web of copper-plated pillars that 
  spit lightning. You watch arcs of lightning bounce from pillar 
  to pillar, zigging and zagging across the chamber. 
  Between a pair of pillars stretches a forking hallway. What 
  treasures and horrors might those vaults shelter? There's but one 
  way to find out…  
  Although it can only be gleaned by a divination spell or a 
  DC 20 Intelligence (Investigation) check, the lightning 
  that surges through the pillars is actually being channeled 
  to Trobriand's Workshop.  
  The Dark Tower. If you're running this twist, the 
  scorched bones of one alternate-self are in the corner, 
  easily noticed with a DC 14 Wisdom (Perception) check.  
   
  6B. ANGELIC SHIELD 
  When a character wields the shield, read: 
  The angelic shield is a comfortable weight on your arm. As you 
  admire its fine craftsmanship—likely forged by the Melairkyn 
  dwarves—a whisper runs up your arteries and into your heart. 
  "What mortal dares bear my weight?" it coldly demands. 
  Roleplaying the Shield. The voice emanating from the 
  shield belongs to a calm but indignant entity—a higher 
  being whose patience has thinned. Draw on any of the 
  sample dialogue below: 
  • "I have languished here for centuries only to be lifted up by a 
  mortal—oh how the mighty fall, indeed." 
  • "My secrets are my own. Deprive me of them if you must, but 
  I will not give them up so easily." 
  • "The Mad Mage is a cunning pest. I would like nothing more 
  than to break free from this prison and teach him the error of 
  his flippant ways."  
   
  Roleplaying the Pit Fiend. If Kastzanedes is ever 
  released, the fiend revels in it. It mocks the party as 
  gullible mortals who have invited themselves to their own 
  doom. As if evil were blood sugar, Kastzanedes' has built 
  up to cartoonish levels and its every word is a cliché.  
  Optional Twist. If you're running a twist, the pit fiend 
  is aware of it. It tells the shield's bearer, "There is a secret 
  to this place, to you. A dark horse that not one of you 
  could even begin to suspect. Alas, I am bound to silence, 
  thanks to the Mad Mage. Together, with my sister shield, 
  we can overcome our bonds to share the truth… 
  Otherwise, this secret is mine alone to bear until magic 
  forces me to divulge it."  
  If Kastzanedes is released, it doesn't divulge the secret 
  except to mock the adventurers mid-battle. It only hints at 
  the truth, reveling in the fact that it's privy to the truth and 
  they're not.  
   
  7. TELEPORTATION PILLARS 
  The cold hallway terminates in a chamber supported by eight 
  black, basalt pillars, each bearing a symbol. It’s the fleshless 
  skull you notice first, directly opposite of you. To its left and 
  right are a kite shield and an open eye. You need not be a wizard 
  to understand their meaning: abjuration and divination magic, 
  respectively. You continue to scan the pillars for their symbols: 
  a painted smirk that can only represent the school of 
  enchantment; a trio of fire, frost, and lightning; the masks of 
  tragedy and comedy; an anvil; and an open palm that seems to 
  beckon creatures from beyond the stars. 
  Perpetually wary for traps, it comes as no shock when a stone 
  mouth sprouts upon the floor. Its nasal voice shares with you a 
  riddle: "A crown festooned my dwarven brow; I rest beneath 
  the mountain now. Who, I ask, am I?"   
  When the adventurers provide the correct answer, the 
  magic mouth returns. Read the following: 
   
   
  
   
  83 
  That stone mouth reappears on the floor to mock you: "Wow, 
  you figured out this barebones, simple riddle that even the most 
  disheveled layman could provide. Feel good? Warm, fuzzy? 
  Like you earned something and weren't just handed it? Like you 
  broke into the Mad Wizard's Lair uninvited instead of what's 
  clearly happening?" 
  Amidst this castigation, the symbols begin to glow bright, 
  psychedelic colors.  
  "Well?" says the stone mouth. "Stand inside and wave your 
  arms about if you want to advance. Melair… Gods, Melair…" 
   
  8. TELEPORTATION PILLARS 
  Assuming the adventurers are teleported here from Area 
  7, read the following: 
  The chill wind that wound its way about you has delivered you 
  to another basalt-pillared chamber. Expecting to have to put up 
  with the magic mouth's diatribe again, you're relieved when it's 
  absent. The pillars in this chamber are embedded with fist-
  sized, yellow sapphires. Or, rather, five of the eight are. 
  It's when you see the empty indentations along three pillars 
  that you realize that, unless they're returned, there is no leaving 
  Halaster's lair from this way.   
   
  9. VAULTS 
   
  9A. HALL OF STAFFS 
  It is no secret that the Mad Mage has a fondness for staves—
  and in this half-collapsed hall, you find countless mosaics that 
  depict staves of every kind: staves of iron and gnarled wood; of 
  frost, fire, even vengeance; staves adorned with pearls from the 
  forgotten depths and staves made from driftwood, kept together 
  only by rope and faith. The one farthest from you depicts a staff 
  crowned with a nest of metal spires, within which lightning 
  curdles.   
   
  9B. DIABOLICAL SHIELD 
  This chamber holds but one treasure: a steel shield cast in the 
  form of a scowling devil's face. Bronze flames wreath the fiend, 
  framing its jagged, sinister face.  
  If your party's resident cleric or paladin happens to serve 
  Tyr, it's incredibly convenient they find one of their 
  deity's servants. You can otherwise personalize Aryx to 
  serve the deity of your choice, but most holy- or god-
  fearing men would respect the angel, no matter who he 
  serves.  
  Optional Twist. Unlike the pit fiend trapped in the 
  angelic shield, Aryx is aware that the optional twist exists, 
  but has no idea what it is. The Mad Mage has spent many 
  hours, Aryx says, mocking him over it.  
   
  10. ARCANE DISPLAY 
  DotMM misses a great opportunity with the flame skulls 
  here. If any of the Dweomercore students from Level 9 
  are dead—be it by an adventurer's hand or Halaster's—
  then they've since been turned into one of the seven flame 
  skulls in Area 10B.  
   
  The students retain their memories and vendettas. 
  Likewise, they're identifiable by their voices, which, other 
  than taking on a fiery tone, are the same. The skull of 
  Cephalossk, the mind flayer, is the most identifiable, 
  given its abnormal shape.  
  If even one former pupil is present, focus entirely on 
  them—and if all seven of Dweomercore's star pupils are 
  dead, all the better. Any other flame skulls aren't worth 
  roleplaying.  
  If any Dweomercore student is present, they might 
  confront the adventurers with the following dialogue. 
  Tailor it to better fit their past interactions with the party, 
  especially if they were slain by an adventurer. 
  • If present, Cephalossk says, "Today I will dine on that which 
  I should have ripped from your skulls long ago!" 
  • If present, Spite Harrowdale complains, "I had it all! Youth! 
  Admiration! The envy of my peers! And you've deprived me 
  of it! Face my fate and despair! At last—I can never die!"  
  • If present, Elan Tanor'thal blithely remarks on the irony of his 
  situation: "My ancestors ruled Skullport long before the 
  skulls came… And when you're nothing more than ash, I will 
  return there to take back my birthright." 
  • If present, Skrianna Shadowdusk mentions the portal her 
  family opened on Level 22: "Even now I still hear the 
  whispers… The door may be closed, but they can still peer 
  from the crack. You can hear them too now, can't you?" 
  • If present, Nylas Jowd laments, "I am what I made. And what 
  I made could never be satisfied again. Suffer with me!"  
  • If present, Turbulence and Violence shout a duet. Turbulence 
  shouts, "The Headmaster promised things would change for 
  the better." Violence snarls, "Then you arrived!"  
   
  Skullport. If you ran the Return of the Thirteen 
  questline included by the Companion in the Skullport 
  chapter, the adventurers should be familiar with the flame 
  skulls that once ruled Skullport. The seven skulls here 
  could be members of ruling Thirteen instead of the Mad 
  Mage's former apprentices or students. This could go to 
  explain how Skullport came to be under the Xanathar 
  Guild's rule. 
  Running with this idea, you can up the number of flame 
  skulls here to Thirteen, but structure it into a wave assault: 
  two waves of four skulls attack, one after the other, then 
  a wave of five.  
  It seems that the Mad Mage has pressed the Thirteen 
  into service. They cannot return to Skullport until the 
  party is defeated here. One might even remark, "We have 
  always known the price of duty… Never have we been 
  forced to ignore it until now. Because… Because of you."  
   
  11. TROBRIAND'S WORKSHOP 
  Demotivational posters decorate Trobriand's work-shop, 
  as included in the descriptions below. The author of the 
  Companion—that's me—did not come up with these 
  himself, so don't give that bastard any of the credit.  
   
   
   
  
   
  84 
  11A. WORK IN PROGRESS 
  The doors to this workshop are well-oiled; they swing open 
  without even the barest squeak.  
  Work benches line the walls and scrap metal is piled every-
  where in unorganized heaps. Grim, sarcastic, animated posters 
  line the walls. In one, you see a salmon leaping up a waterfall—
  right into the jaws of a grizzly bear. The caption reads, 
  "Ambition: The journey of a thousand miles sometimes ends 
  very, very, badly." After a moment, the animation resets.  
  Another poster shows a line of slaves pulling blocks of stone 
  towards a half-built pyramid. The caption reads, "Achievement: 
  you can do anything you set your mind to when you have vision, 
  determination, and an endless supply of expendable labor." 
  The posters go on.  
  Looking about, this seems familiar. The metal, familiar. 
  You've seen this handiwork before, ten floors up, in Trobriand's 
  Graveyard. Surely, this is the workshop of the Metal Mage.  
   
  11B. SCALADAR 
  Scaladar! The name is on your tongue as if their creator wanted 
  all to know of his invention! The metallic scorpions descend 
  upon you, their stingers crackling with arcs of lightning! 
  Behind them, you can't help but notice, is another one of those 
  bleak posters, this one depicting a sinking ship. The caption 
  below reads, "Mistakes: it could be that the purpose of your life 
  is only to serve as a warning to others." 
   
  11C. TROBRIAND'S BODY 
  Look, do you really think that Trobriand would leave his 
  body unguarded and unwarded? The archmage has 
  instead cast an antipathy/sympathy spell (DC 17) upon the 
  door that activates the moment a creature attempts to push 
  it open.  
  The following text assumes the party is familiar with 
  Trobriand's likeness. Adjust accordingly.  
  Lying upon a stone slab is the body of a wizard whose beard is 
  the color of rusted iron. On his left index finger is an elaborate 
  ring carved in the likeness of a scorpion.  
  It's only after a brief pause that you realize the comatose 
  wizard lying there is none other than Trobriand himself—the 
  so-called Metal Mage, the apprentice of Halaster Blackcloak.  
  As you approach, of course wary for traps, an emotionless 
  voice recites a message that booms from above: "Body in stasis. 
  Please confer with host golem. Please vacate the premises. 
  Body in stasis. Please confer with…"  
  Elite Four. If you're running this variant, the body of 
  Trobriand is protected by a wall of force that only 
  Trobriand or Halaster can dismiss, although it can be 
  destroyed by a disintegrate spell.  
   
  13. THE METAL MAGE 
  Lightning screams in the distance, washing the dungeon in an 
  azure glow. A door opens on its own accord, revealing an iron 
  golem whose chiseled skull is as fleshless and macabre as a real 
  one. The construct strokes its offhand and emits a cold voice: "I 
  have waited for this day. To think my place in the Seven could 
  be thwarted by someone as fragile as you." 
  Behind the golem, twin iron-plated pillars hum with power, 
  clouded by a strange miasma that instills within you a spiritual 
  malaise. This is no mere construct, you realize, but a vessel.  
  The golem's hand curls into a fist, within which lightning 
  curdles. The energy leaps from its knuckles, empowering its 
  entire frame. That cold voice declares, "Face the wrath of 
  Trobriand, mortals! Behold the triumph of machine over man!"  
  Roleplaying Trobriand. An anti-socialite that has 
  always preferred machines over men, Trobriand is a 
  heartless shut-in. The recent transference of his spirit to 
  his new body has done little wonder for his flimsy 
  humanity and emotional capacity. Only self-interest and 
  indignation remain. In his one-track mind, once an 
  acceptable solution has been found, there's no reason to 
  look for another. 
  Older modules and materials have shown that the Metal 
  Mage has long-sought to usurp his master. The 
  Companion follows suit. Paint him as an impotent, would-
  be usurper waiting for his moment—and this is his 
  moment. At your discretion, he parleys with the party, 
  offering to side with them against Halaster—an act of 
  treason that earns Arcturia's scorn. Secretly, Trobriand is 
  in love (or obsessed) with Arcturia, who is deeply in love 
  with the Mad Mage. Perhaps this is what drives his 
  treason. Perhaps, in his one-track mind, if Arcturia will 
  not love him as he is now, she may love him if he becomes 
  Undermountain's new master.   
  As an Ally. If Trobriand does side with the party, 
  Arcturia does not rest until he's dead. This is, admittedly, 
  a big can of worms to open up on your end, as the DM, as 
  they would suddenly have an iron golem at their side. 
  Trobriand does, however, betray the party once Halaster 
  is dead, as is his nature.   
  Tactics. Trobriand employs these tactics in battle: 
  • On his first turn, Trobriand casts haste on himself, enjoying 
  the barrage of Longsword attacks he can unleash.  
  • Once he's been wounded—likely on his third or fourth turn—
  Trobriand casts incendiary cloud, centering it on himself. Not 
  only does this inflict up to 10d8 damage on his foes, but it 
  heals him for that much, thanks to his Fire Absorption trait. 
  He intentionally fails the Dexterity saving throw imposed by 
  the spell.  
  • While in the body of a golem, Trobriand uses his reactions to 
  cast counterspell.  
  • If foes try to leave the room, Trobriand casts chain lightning 
  if the spell can reach them. The spell does not specify that it 
  cannot round corners between jumps.   
   
  Round 2. If his body was not destroyed, Trobriand 
  makes a thunderous return three rounds later, once his 
  spirit has been ejected from the golem. His tactics change 
  during this phase:  
  • Trobriand gets three turns to prepare for his thunderous return 
  to battle. First he casts greater invisibility on himself; with 
  his movement (after standing up from being prone) he can get 
  to Area 11B. On his second turn, he Dashes to get to just 
  outside of 11A. On his third turn, he takes the Ready action 
  to cast chain lightning when the first adventurer comes from 
  the hallway to Area 13.  
  • On his fourth turn, Trobriand snaps out a power word: kill. 
  The gloves are off now; he knows that this is life-or-death.  
  • While in his fragile body, Trobriand uses his reactions to cast 
  shield spells.  
  
   
  85 
  • If he needs to gain cover, Trobriand retreats to Area 11A and 
  closes the doors.  
  • If the adventurers do not leave Area 13, Trobriand kicks open 
  the doors (if they're not already open) and unleashes either a 
  chain lightning or fireball spell cast up to 8th-level, if 
  possible.  
  • When at Death's Door, Trobriand sputters, "It needn't be this 
  way! We can usurp the Mad Mage together!" (Trobriand is 
  earnest, although there can be no peace between them so long 
  as the Elite Four variant is being ran.)  
   
  ELITE FOUR 
  If you're running this variant, Trobriand is strangely 
  absent from this area until the party's teleported here by 
  Halaster, so that he can't be killed prematurely.  
   
  16. BROOM ROOM 
  When the adventurers enter this room, the brooms, which 
  are animated and can speak, but not attack, are performing 
  a play of your choosing. Singing Be Our Guest from 
  Beauty and the Beast is also appropriate.  
  If there are any items you're itching to give your party, 
  such as a lost memento, or a MacGuffin, here is a rather 
  anticlimactic place to leave it.   
  The Dark Tower. If you're running this twist, then a 
  nonmagical weapon belonging to one of the party 
  members is among the brooms. It is an exact copy of their 
  weapon, down to the last detail. It cannot be a weapon the 
  adventurer lost, as they'll assume that the Mad Mage 
  simply retrieved it.  
   
  17. ARCTURIA'S COURT 
  It shouldn't surprise you to hear music in this lair, but still it 
  sends shivers up your spine—and it's because there's no warmth 
  in it. You never thought music could be cold. It's as if all of 
  winter opened its throat to sing.  
  When you throw open those doors to this atelier, you note 
  first the swarm of butterflies plucking at a harp. All together, 
  they vaguely resemble a humanoid. It's the animal-headed 
  servants you see first, each brandishing blades or feather 
  dusters. These freaks number six in all: one with the head of a 
  dingo, another with an iguana, and—if you can believe it—a 
  stork; others bear the heads of a shrew, an aardvark and a 
  macabre head that can only belong to a moth.  
  At the center of it all is a blue-skinned woman adorned with 
  gossamer wings. Lifting up her skirts, she dances gaily upon a 
  pedestal. Her fingers are tipped in claws and bone spurs jut from 
  her forearms and elbows. It's only when you smell the rot do 
  you realize she's a gussied-up lich that has cheated the skeletal 
  disfigurements such undead are forced to bear.  
  Roleplaying Arcturia. As mercurial as her magic, 
  Arcturia has a volatile temperament. She can fly into a 
  rage just as easily as she can relax to fine music. If she 
  decides to betray the adventurers, her attack is as sudden 
  as it is treacherous.  
   
   
  Of the Seven, Arcturia has always been the most-
  devoted to Halaster. Older modules and materials even 
  imply that she loves him. Embracing this tidbit, the 
  Companion suggests roleplaying her as an un-requited 
  admirer, one perpetually envious of the few individuals 
  Halaster cares for, such as Tasselgryn Velldarn (the 
  archmage of Skullport, whom he oft visits) or even the 
  adventurers, who he gives so much of his attention—
  especially if Halaster has gone on and on about how he 
  expects one to become his newest apprentice.  
  With no one else to find true companionship with, 
  Arcturia has bonded with the many mimics that lair in this 
  atelier of hers. They are her chief confidants; killing one 
  sends her into a frenzy of wild grief.   
  Tactics. Arcturia and her minions (twelve mimics and 
  three champions, one of which who sides against her and 
  shall be referred to as "Dingo" below) use the following 
  tactics in battle: 
  • Above all else, Arcturia is spiteful. She tries to inflict the most 
  harm on someone, such as by disfigurement or feeblemind.  
  • Arcturia treasures her mimic companions and does her best 
  not to harm them, which greatly influences her tactics. She 
  won't, for example, cast an area-of-effect spell, like fireball, 
  if it will include the mimics.  
  • On her first turn, Arcturia moves to the back of the room and 
  casts reverse gravity, centering the cylinder on the doors so 
  as to escape its influence. Creatures that fall upwards take 3d6 
  bludgeoning damage when they strike the ceiling. 
  • On her second turn, Arcturia casts feeblemind, targeting the 
  foe she envies the most (such as a spellcaster Halaster has 
  gone on and on about and wants to take on as an apprentice).   
  • On her third turn, or when she's been reduced to 63 hit points 
  or less, Arcturia casts true polymorph on herself, assuming 
  the statistics of an adult gold dragon, the statistics of which 
  are provided in Appendix B. Per Monster Manual Errata, true 
  polymorph does not grant the target access to that creature's 
  Legendary Actions, but it does grant them its Legendary 
  Resistance.  
  • Arcturia's reactions are reserved for counterspells until she is 
  at 75 hit points or fewer.  
  • Arcturia prioritizes disabling her foes over inflicting damage. 
  Her first Legendary Action is spent on Paralyzing Touch (if 
  any targets are in range) or Frightening Gaze. Thereafter, she 
  uses Cantrip or Paralyzing Touch, as she's loathe to harm her 
  mimics. Once they're dead, she busts out Disrupt Life.   
  • If Arcturia wins the battle, she casts flesh to stone on the last 
  combatants. Later, after a rest, she true polymorphs them into 
  an animal-headed servant.  
   
  ON POLYMORPH 
  Arcturia is an unparalleled transmuter with the true 
  polymorph spell at her disposal, allowing her to turn into 
  a CR 21 or lower creature. While it would be easy for 
  her—and therefore, you—to abuse this spell, the 
  Companion recommends using tact instead. The same 
  goes for the polymorph spell, which she could incessantly 
  cast to gain more hit points and prolong this fight.  
  Additionally, consider the following whenever Arcturia 
  casts true polymorph or polymorph:  
  
   
  86 
  • Area 17 has a 20-foot-high ceiling.  
  • Per Monster Manual Errata, a polymorphed target doesn't gain 
  the Legendary Actions of the creature whose form it assumes. 
  It does, however, grant its Legendary Resistance trait.  
  • Arcturia has a special kinship with her mimics and would 
  rather not flatten them.  
   
  At the end of the day, D&D is about having fun. It's up 
  to you as how to Arcturia uses her polymorph spells, but 
  the Companion argues that less is more, which comes out 
  in the tactics above.  
   
  HALASTER'S JUKEBOX 
  In this area, Halaster's music is muted. Instead, play Blue 
  Kid's Dismemberment Song, which is sung by Arcturia 
  and played by her band of butterfly-swarm-humanoids. 
  All necessary instruments are provided.  
  The Cheeky Pluckers. Described in the Halaster's 
  Game supplement and featured on Levels 9 and 14, the 
  Cheeky Pluckers were amateur adventurers that fell into 
  Arcturia's clutches. If any still survive, then Arcturia is 
  cutting one open on a mimic in the form of a surgeon's 
  table. She sings the Dismemberment Song. The dingo-
  headed champion is Fiona dé Vaun and sides with the 
  adventurers against Arcturia.  
   
  ELITE FOUR 
  If you're running this penultimate encounter then Arcturia 
  is absent from this area until it begins. Her mimics stay 
  hidden. The Cheeky Pluckers, if they're included, are here 
  as well.  
   
  18. ANIMATED HALLWAY 
  Cracking open the next door unleashes a frenzy of thunder: the 
  hallway writhes and undulates like a worm high on moondust.  
  Slowly, you close the door, muting the cacophony. Taking a 
  deep breath, you prepare yourself for this chicanery.  
   
  19. DOUBLE DOOR ROULETTE 
  The winds of fate blow you towards a chamber marked with 
  seven sets of iron doors, each decorated with a mosaic of the 
  Mad Mage in a seductive pose. At the chamber's heart stands a 
  scintillating pillar wounded with deep notches. Within these 
  notches flash a rainbow of lights, fiery and beautiful.   
  Seven doors. You know it in your heart that one, if not all, 
  leads to the Mad Mage. What's the catch? 
   
  PENULTIMATE ENCOUNTER 
  As described in Penultimate Encounters, Area 19 is the 
  site of the Prismatic Gauntlet challenge. If you're running 
  this encounter, a prismatic wall spell stands between the 
  eastern tunnel and the chamber's heart.   
   
  OPTIONAL TWIST 
  Two of the optional twists can play a part here: 
  The Dark Tower. If you're running this optional twist, 
  then the remains of two alternate-selves can be found in 
  front of the north and northeastern doors. The first 
  remains are still-smoldering ashes; the other remains are 
  acid-scorched bones.  
  Puppet on the String. When a character opens the 
  wrong set of doors, they behold a flash of a chaotic realm 
  of boundless energy—the Knot in the Weave. Under this 
  variant, the pillar at the heart of Area 19 doesn't emit the 
  prismatic spray spell, but the Knot in the Weave does 
  from the doorway. Characters that see the Knot also see 
  the silhouette of a man trapped in the knot's center.   
   
  20. HIDDEN HELM 
  Tucked into this chamber, as if it were some prize or secret, is 
  a gilded throne with no hall to loom over, no subjects to dazzle. 
  Its black velvet is embroidered with silver stars, as if it call out 
  to the night skies you once dreamt under.   
  If Captain N'ghathrod or Rukha of the Scavenger 
  explained their starbound journeys, a character can divine 
  the purpose of this throne with a successful DC 23 
  Intelligence (Arcana) check.  
  Tactics. If the ultroloths attack from Area 21, they use 
  the following tactics: 
  • The fiends are already concentrating on clairvoyance spells to 
  watch Area 20, which they end to free up their concentration 
  for better spells, but at the cost of their vision in Area 20. To 
  make up for this, two ultroloths cast dimension door, each 
  bringing along a companion. Before doing so, each fiend 
  enshrouds itself in a darkness spell—which it can see 
  through, thanks to its truesight. Teleporting into the chamber 
  most likely surprises the adventurers, since the fiends can do 
  so from 500 ft. away. 
  • On their second turn, the first and second ultroloths each make 
  three melee attacks, prioritizing targets already stunned by its 
  companions. Once a fiend loses concentration on its darkness 
  spell, it uses its Hypnotic Gaze, now that its foes can see it.   
  • On its first turn, the third ultroloth casts fire storm on the party. 
  On its second, it casts fear, which ends its darkness spell. On 
  its third, if it gets one, it uses its Hypnotic Gaze and makes 
  three longsword attacks.  
  • On its first turn, the fourth ultroloth casts wall of fire, dividing 
  the party if possible, after its dimension doored into Area 20. 
  This ends its darkness spell. On its later turns, it uses its 
  Hypnotic Gaze and follows up with three melee attacks.   
   
  21. DISPLACED VAULT 
   
  21A. ACID AND GLASS 
  While DotMM has the ultroloths teleport into Area 20 to 
  attack intruders, you can have them instead bide their 
  time; they only attack if the intruders attempt to magically 
  transport the Scavenger's helm.  
   
   
  
   
  87 
  Tactics. The ultroloths employ these tactics:  
  • If the ultroloths detect the adventurers—easily done with their 
  clairvoyance spells in Area 20—they first cast invisibility on 
  themselves (granting advantage to their +8 Stealth checks), 
  then take Readied actions to spring the following tactics 
  below once the party is in position.   
  • The first ultroloth encases the adventurers within a wall of fire 
  spell, making it 20 feet in diameter. On its second turn, it casts 
  fear from outside of the wall of fire if any adventurers haven't 
  fallen into the pit.  
  • The second ultroloth unleashes a fire storm spell. This also 
  damages the glass pit, possibly shattering it. On its second 
  turn, it teleports into the fray alongside its brethren.  
  • The third and fourth ultroloths Teleport into the fray. On their 
  second turns, they both use their Hypnotic Gazes, then follow 
  up with three melee attacks.  
   
  The Dark Tower. If you're running this twist, one 
  adventurer is consumed by a vision of him- or herself 
  falling into the vat of acid below, although something 
  about them appears different, such as a different hair color 
  or armor style.   
   
  22. TOWER ENTRANCE 
  Per DotMM, characters that enter Halaster's extra-
  dimensional tower have no sense that they've left 
  Undermountain at all. They simply move from one room 
  to the next. If you'd instead prefer the party see Halaster's 
  tower, read the following text: 
  The doors open upon a field of evenly clipped grass at the heart 
  of which stands the Mad Mage's tower: a twisted spire whose 
  roof is thatched with moldy, ancient books. The sky above is 
  overcast and bleak, as if it were threatening to rain. What could 
  possibly fall in this realm is anyone's guess. Toads? Perhaps 
  silver, or maybe even eyeballs. Gods above know that Halaster 
  is fond of eyeballs.   
  Only one thing is for certain: you're not in Undermountain 
  anymore. As if it heard your thoughts, you find a sign growing 
  out of a mushroom; it reads, "MAD WIZARD'S LAIR AHEAD: 
  YOU'RE NOT IN UNDERMOUNTAIN ANYMORE!"   
  The adventurers start 300 ft. away from Halaster's tower. 
  They cannot affect it, or the field, in any way at all. 
  Neither can they fly; their only option is to walk to the 
  front door.  
   
  23. GNOME WITH NO NAME 
  This otherwise empty chamber has nothing for you but a mirror 
  framed in bronze—and gods above, you look terrible.  
  It comes as no surprise when the mirror's surface warbles, 
  depicting now a red desert. A gnome stranded there blinks at 
  you and she cries, "You! Can you hear me? Please, for the love 
  of all that's right, get me outta this thing!"  
  Why, you wonder, can't a mirror in Undermountain ever just 
  be a mirror?  
  As noted in DotMM, the gnome has been trapped so long 
  she has forgotten her own name and history. Freedom is 
  her only objective. Unfortunately, she can't provide 
  information about Halaster's lair, if she ever had any to 
  begin with.  
  The following text, in which the gnome is freed, 
  assumes that the party breaks the mirror, instead of 
  casting dispel magic. Adjust the text accordingly if they 
  did the latter. Read the following: 
  You can't be certain that breaking this prison will not kill its 
  sole prisoner—but here you are. The gnome offers a contented 
  sigh, as if no fate could be worse than the one she already faces. 
  The silvered surface cracks easily enough and the shards fly.  
  Instinctively you shield your eyes, lest glass or magic blind 
  you. In the aftermath, you hear what can only be described as 
  audible happiness. The gnome! The gnome is free! She picks 
  herself up from the debris, caring not that her hands are red and 
  slick with blood. 
  "Thank you!" she cries. "Gods above, thank—" As she opens 
  her arms to embrace you, she and you notice how quickly her 
  hand has deteriorated. Before she can even gasp, it turns to dust. 
  Immediately, the gnome scrambles for the mirror frame, now 
  deciding that imprisonment is better than death—but there is no 
  refuge for the poor woman as she wails and crumbles into dust.  
  Before the adventurers can do anything, the gnome 
  crumbles into dust. Because she died of old age, she 
  cannot be brought back by a revivify spell. Them's the 
  breaks.   
   
  HALASTER'S JUKEBOX 
  While in this area, Halaster plays America's A Horse With 
  No Name. The mirror's background becomes, of course, a 
  desert to better reflect this.  
   
  24. POTION BREWERY 
  At last, you come upon the Mad Mage's potion brewery—no 
  doubt the source of many a man's doom. Shelves line the walls, 
  the upper reaches accessible only to those that climb the rickety 
  ladder lain against the sides.  
  A rainbow of odors assail your senses, but most distinct of 
  them is moldy death. Floating behind the bubbling cauldron is 
  a skull whose eyes are set with sapphires—not quite a lich, but 
  something in between. It looks at you and shouts, "They'll be 
  done when they're done!" 
  Alternate Demiliches. Instead of Branta Myntion, 
  whom the adventurers have no connection to, you can 
  replace her with any of the following mages, especially if 
  you have no intent on ever using them again in your story:  
  • Maddgoth of Level 7. Although he achieved lichdom, he 
  failed to continue feeding souls to his phylactery, due to 
  tomfoolery on the Mad Mage's part or the faerie dragon Otto. 
  Alternatively, another band of adventurers, the Gentlemen 
  Bastards perhaps, stole his phylactery.  
  • Ezzat of Level 20. After his phylactery was stolen, Halaster 
  kidnapped his old friend and has since broken his spirit.  
  • Marambra Nyghtsteel, the unaccounted-for apprentice of the 
  Mad Mage, unused throughout this entire campaign. It turns 
  out that she too attempted lichdom but failed to feed souls to 
  her phylactery. Choose this if you want closure without any 
  of the work.  
   
   
   
  
   
  88 
  27. RANTANTAR'S WAND 
  Alabaster busts of Halaster leer at you from their pedestals, as 
  if their lunatic-grins held some great secret they were dying to 
  share with you. As you meet the gaze of one, the bust literally 
  turns towards the center of the room—they all do. That's when 
  the veil drops, revealing a floating wand orbited by golden orbs. 
  Magic sparks from its tip as the sentient wand points at you! 
   
  32. JHESIYRA'S WARNING 
  An unseen force pushes through you, past your mind's defenses. 
  Its presence is warm but sharp with concern, and it leaves you 
  with a simple warning: "He's there. The Mad Mage awaits; he 
  darkles but is no less delighted. Prepare yourselves!"  
   
  PENULTIMATE ENCOUNTER 
  Per the Companion, the adventurers should face a 
  penultimate encounter before engaging Halaster. These 
  possible encounters are: 
  • Welcome to the Thunderdome, which begins before they can 
  enter Area 33 (Halaster just teleports them to the arena) and 
  features Nalkara the empyrean  
  • The Elite Four, which begins here before they can enter Area 
  33 (Halaster just teleports them to the first encounter) 
  • Tarrasquic Park, which begins here before they can enter 
  Area 33 (Halaster just teleports them to the demiplane) 
  • The Prismatic Gauntlet, which would have occurred in Area 
  19, long before they reached the tower 
  • When Worlds Collide, which requires the Dark Tower optional 
  twist, and would've occurred in Area 28 
   
  33. MAD MAGE SHOWDOWN 
  In your heart you know the truth: few have ever laid eyes on 
  this—this, the sanctum of the Mad Mage, the very seat of power 
  from which Halaster Blackcloak has lorded over Under-
  mountain. Quite keenly do you see, in your mind's eye, the trail 
  of corpses that led you here. The pain, the suffering—and after 
  all that, the Mad Mage can't even be bothered to show up. 
  The chamber is empty! Empty but for a circle of runes, a 
  statue of Halaster (riding a donkey and nude but for a wide-
  brimmed hat) and an empty throne fashioned from purple 
  marble, behind which are heaps of ancient tomes haphazardly 
  stacked together.  
  Nothing is louder than pained silence and that's what you hear 
  here. Silence. Not the quiet thrum of magic. Not the lunatic-
  howls you've grown deaf to. Nothing. What has this all been for 
  if the Mad Mage would deprive you of catharsis?  
   
  COMMENCEMENT  
  You should personalize Halaster's opening statement to 
  best fit your campaign, but you can draw upon the sample 
  below. Modify it accordingly.  
  Halaster's voice seeps in from every darkened corner of this 
  chamber—and for once, his voice is plain, not telepathic. It 
  bounces from every brick, but does not penetrate your mind.  
  "The day has come. The day has come at long last. Do you 
  know for how long I've waited here? For how long I've suffered 
  your absence? How long I've longed for you—a worthy 
  opponent? You truly are the greatest friends that I've ever had. 
  Perhaps, you'll be the last." 
  Halaster's monologue shouldn't be one-way. Let the party 
  respond accordingly. Remember, no one can be surprised 
  here. If a character decides to shoot the Mad Mage 
  (assuming they can perceive him on his throne), roll 
  initiative—that's what it's for, anyway.  
   
  ULTIMATE SHOWDOWN 
  As described at the start of this chapter, the battle with 
  Halaster has been overhauled. Choose the three 
  encounters that interest you. After his opening state-ment, 
  the first encounter begins.   
   
  DO IT! 
  If, at your table, Halaster has decided not to battle the 
  adventurers and instead reward them for their efforts, you 
  can have Jhesiyra intervene. Hoping to depose Halaster, 
  she provokes a conflict.  
  • If the adventurers are inclined to leave peacefully, Jhesiyra 
  urges them to kill Halaster: "Countless lives have been ruined 
  by his antics! And he will ruin countless more if left alive! 
  Strike him down and spare the world from his madness!" 
  • If Halaster refuses to fight, or the adventurers continue to 
  abstain from violence, Jhesiyra provokes him. Her master has 
  long wondered where she went and was devastated by her 
  abandonment—and furious. A slight breeze flows through 
  the chamber and her voice audibly whispers, "Halaster." This 
  hurls Halaster into a frenzy; he shouts, "You brought her 
  here?" He then reaches for his blast scepter and attacks.  
   
  OPTIONAL TWIST 
  If you're using an optional twist, make sure to utilize it in 
  the final battle.  
  The Dark Tower. The party should have already been 
  exposed to signs that hint to alternate realities. This truth 
  becomes evident as Halaster nears death. Read: 
  As Halaster weeps red, a vision overwhelms your mind: the 
  tower. The tower and where it stands in that field of polished 
  grass. Only now do you see it; only now do you understand it: 
  every blade, every drop of dew is an entire universe spinning in 
  its own orbit, shivering in whatever strange wind ripples across 
  the meadow. There are other worlds than these—haven't you 
  already seen omens of that stark truth? 
  As that psychic wind howls, you hear another sound: a heart-
  beat. You look down and now can see it far below the earth, 
  pumping out its invisible blood and influence, infecting every-
  thing in Undermountain. It is a knot in the Weave, a font of 
  almost sentient magic.  
  Halaster grins at you. "See it now, do you?"  
  Halaster's Game. If you're using the Companion's 
  game show element or adding it as a twist, during the 
  battle, the walls of Area 33 seemingly fall away, revealing 
  a legion of spectators—the audience watching the live 
  finale of Dungeon of the Mad Mage. Should a character 
  press themselves against a wall, they can feel phantom-
  hands groping at their ankles like fans at a concert. These 
  individuals—mortal, demonic, angelic, or just alien—are 
  real and sit together on the Ethereal Plane, all enmities 
  and grudges forgotten for the sake of enjoying good 
  television.  
  
   
  89 
  Ground-Mage Day. As Halaster lays dying, he 
  murmurs, "I thought this time it would be different. I 
  thought…" Alternatively, if the adventurers aren't already 
  in a time-loop, have Halaster start the cycle now with a 
  wish spell. Read the following:   
  Halaster's voice is little more than a ragged whisper: "It can't 
  end like this. All those… good times together. It can't end. 
  Time… If only there was more time… If we could do it all over 
  again… I wish we could do it all over again… and again… and 
  again…"  
  Puppet on the String. If running this twist, you'll want 
  to show the Knot in the Weave and that it will resurrect 
  Halaster. Read the following: 
  You land the killing blow against Halaster Blackcloak, but even 
  still he manages to mutter one last omen: "If only my torment 
  was at an end. See you soon." 
  Halaster's corpse crashes to the floor; the very tower rumbles 
  with thunder. Cracks web out from his form and with a sick 
  feeling, you understand that this place is about to collapse. As 
  another tremor rocks the lair, a chasm splits open, letting in 
  violet light so blinding and intense, you fear it might rot the 
  flesh from your very bones. 
  That light… It seems to inch towards Halaster as if it were 
  magma or the tide itself. It swamps over his body, almost like a 
  mother scooping up its wounded child. Instinctively, you leap 
  at the corpse but it's too late—the light has taken him into the 
  radiant depths below and closed off its womb. And although he 
  is very much dead, you can hear his cries echoing out, as if he 
  were being punished by that very same mother.  
  Halaster's last words thunder in your mind: "See you soon."   
   
  34. FLYING SAUCER 
  You aren't exactly sure what you're looking at. Surely, it is some 
  sort of vessel—a disc-shaped vessel crowned with a glass 
  dome. Steel hinges reveal the dome to be the vessel's sole 
  entrance. All of it is polished to a sheen so bright, so clean you 
  aren't sure what sort of chromatic adjective is appropriate to 
  describe it. Certainly its metal was unknown even to the Melair-
  kyn dwarves of old.  
  Circling the vessel, you inspect its underside. Strange doo-
  dads line the surface. The vessel is propped up on three legs. 
  You feel sick, knowing this thing to be unnatural… yet so 
  advanced it leaves you feeling inferior, even insignificant.   
   
  35. EXERCISE ROOM 
  If your version of the Mad Mage has visited Earth, 
  Pumping Iron is projected onto the wall for the benefit of 
  the flesh golems.  
   
  EPILOGUE 
  The ending to a campaign is a heavy burden for any 
  Dungeon Master. After such a length journey, your party 
  will hunger for a brief but satisfying epilogue. It has to be 
  personal; it has to tie up loose ends; and it must put to rest 
  any mysteries—or provoke them.   
   
  ACUTE WEAVE ADDICTION 
  Leaving Undermountain, as the adventurers find, is not so 
  easy. They have languished here for so long, the Knot in 
  the Weave has left its maddening touch in their minds and 
  bones. Some among them may have fallen prey to the 
  same addiction that plagued the Melairkyn dwarves, the 
  Seven, and, of course, the Mad Mage himself. The Knot 
  is alive—and now it seeks to keep the adventurers in its 
  grip forevermore. As they journey towards the surface, it 
  strikes thrice.  
  Weave Addiction is included as a variant rule in the 
  Halaster's Game supplement of the Companion. If you 
  never used it before in your game, you can still implement 
  it here in this final chapter. 
  In the aftermath of their final battle with Halaster, as 
  they're trekking back to the surface, have each of the 
  adventurers make each of the following saves: 
  • While in the lower depths of Undermountain, a Wisdom save 
  to resist the Knot's phantom call 
  • While in the middle depths of Undermountain, an Intelligence 
  saving throw to recognize this potential madness as what kept 
  so many others in these wretched depths. The saving throw 
  also represents constructing mental fortifications against this 
  addiction.  
  • While in the upper reaches of Undermountain, the Knot in the 
  Weave, spurned and in the throes of a tantrum, subjects the 
  character to a Charisma saving throw to overpower their will 
  and keep them in the dungeon long enough to seduce them 
  into never leaving.  
   
  To leave Undermountain by their own accord, a 
  character must succeed on two of the three saving throws. 
  The first saving throw is a DC 20; failing that increases 
  the second save's DC to 23 and the third's to 25.    
  Suspense. You want to work in these saving throws 
  across the adventurers' journey back to the surface. Nor 
  do you want to reveal the purpose of the saving throws 
  until it's too late. Instead, tell them what sort of feeling 
  washes over them, should they fail: 
  • A character that fails the Wisdom saving throw feels a weight 
  around their throat, almost like a noose.   
  • A character that fails the Intelligence saving throw feels panic 
  bloom within their mind—an invisible dread that animals 
  must feel when they can sense a storm or earthquake. 
  • A character that fails the Charisma saving throw feels helpless 
  against this invisible tyrant and buckles under its regime.  
   
   
   
  
   
  90 
  Failure. A character that fails two of three saves gains 
  the following flaw: "Undermountain is my lair, my home, 
  my prize. I cannot leave it." Tailor that to fit a character's 
  personality; for example, a dutiful character's flaw would 
  likely sound like, "If I were to leave Undermountain, there 
  is no guaranteeing who will inherit the Mad Mage's 
  arsenal. I cannot allow that to happen; I must maintain my 
  vigil, lest Water-deep, or even the world, be subjected to 
  yet another mad tyrant. I must police these depths with 
  my dying breath." 
  Additionally, at your discretion, the character is 
  afflicted with the most dangerous malady of Weave 
  Addiction: every time they willingly leave Under-
  mountain, or remain on the surface, they suffer the effects 
  of a geas spell (save DC 25). 
  Narration. If a character falls prey to Acute Weave 
  Addiction, read the following as they're about to leave the 
  dungeon, modifying it to best suit the character(s) 
  involved:  
  You can't leave—not after so much bloodshed, so much loss. 
  This is your home—you've won it, goddammit! You've earned 
  every victory here and to leave it all behind is not a testament 
  to your strength, only your carelessness. So as it was, so shall it 
  be again—unless you remain here to guard Undermountain and 
  its denizens from future threats, keeping its baubles of power 
  out of the hands that would see this world brought to its knees.  
  You can't leave, and why would you ever want to? This is your 
  home. Maybe it always has been.  
  If the character that falls prey to Weave Addiction is an 
  arcane spellcaster, be sure to drop the title "Mad Mage" 
  on them. Alternatively, "the Mad Priest" or the "The Mad 
  Beast" would work for clerics and druids, respectively. 
  "Mad" anything, really. "Mad King, Mad Sovereign," et 
  cetera.  
   
  THE FATE OF UNDERMOUNTAIN 
  As described in DotMM, the fate of Undermountain is left 
  up to you. It is worth petitioning your players to see what 
  they want to do with Undermountain—and their lives in 
  general. After having bested one of this world's most 
  formidable foes, they deserve the chance to carve out 
  enterprises of their own.   
   
  THE FINAL SEND-OFF 
  End your final session with the following send-off, 
  modifying it as you see fit:  
  The roof is coming down; you can sense it. The Mad Mage has 
  left one last trap for you and it's time to bail. You can hear his 
  snide laughter in your very bones as blood roars in your ears. 
  The tower is collapsing and there is no more time to dilly nor 
  dally. Like frightened beasts, you flee from this reckoning.  
  Amidst your flight, your mind begins to drift. You've done 
  the impossible. You've slain the Mad Mage, one of the most 
  powerful, if not the most powerful mage, in the world. You have 
  triumphed where so many others have failed… And there was 
  a look in Halaster's eyes when he died. You haven't been able 
  to shake it from your memory. You fooled yourself into 
  believing it was madness, or some indecipherable emotion, but 
  you've known the truth: it was pride. Halaster Blackcloak was 
  proud of you. The dungeon-master of Undermountain went to 
  his grave proud of you.  
   
  POST-CREDITS: JHESIYRA'S RETURN 
  If Jhesiyra did not make a grand reveal during the 
  campaign, you can read to your players—but not their 
  characters—this post-credit scene in which Jhesiyra takes 
  command over Undermountain.  
  Never has Undermountain been so silent. Its ruined chambers 
  have gone dark and for once its dead halls hear no laughter. The 
  Mad Mage is gone yet again. He has perished before, but this 
  time… this time Jhesiyra Kestellharp was ready.  
  One by one the gates fell. One by one had Halaster's grip, 
  desperate at best, been undone, his phantom fingers uncurled 
  from the hilt of Undermountain's very soul. Although she could 
  already hear him reforming—his essence kindling in the 
  crucible below—he was powerless to stop her. His cries came 
  out like distant groans from deep within the earth. He was 
  watching. Good. 
  A breeze slipped through the ruined remains of Halaster's lair, 
  slowly turning into a frail woman whose smile was just as sharp 
  and cruel as a knife. She had played them like fools—all of 
  them. Her schemes had at last born fruit. She reminded herself 
  of their names; of what they sacrificed to depose her master. 
  She would always be grateful. And she would be sure to show 
  her gratitude should they ever dare descend into Under-
  mountain again.  
  With a wave of her hand, a marble throne materialized before 
  her in the remains of Arcturia's court. She climbed the steps, 
  savoring each one. In due time, she would erect her own tower 
  in that void below, but for now, she would reign from here.  
  Halaster was mewling again. Jhesiyra closed her eyes and 
  willed his rebirth to end—as if she was snuffing out a candle. 
  He fought her; to his credit, he fought her even then, weak as 
  he was. Even at his lowest, her master knew how to unravel her 
  defenses and strike deep into her heart. If only she still had one.  
  She pressed her will on the flame, ignoring its fetal rage and 
  the burns it left upon her. With an apocalyptic cry, the Mad 
  Mage was no more. And as Jhesiyra Kestellharp now surveyed 
  her new kingdom, a soft giggle exploded from her chest—a 
  maniacal giggle that shared all the lunacy that graced her grin 
  and her mad eyes.  
  "Well master," she murmurs, "the show must go on." 
   
   
  
   
  91 
  APPENDIX A: MAGIC ITEMS 
  The following magic items are found on this level: 
   
  +3 SHIELD 
  Shield, Very Rare 
  While holding this shield, you have a +3 bonus to AC. 
  This bonus is in addition to the shield's normal bonus to 
  AC. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L23, A21B. 
   
  +3 WAND OF THE WAR MAGE 
  Wand, Very Rare (Requires Attunement by a Spell-caster) 
  While you are holding this wand, you gain a +3 bonus to 
  spell attack rolls. In addition, you ignore half cover when 
  making a spell attack. 
  Elite Four. Marambra Nyghtsteel wields this item in 
  the Elite Four penultimate encounter on L23.  
   
  AMULET OF PROOF AGAINST DETECTION AND 
  LOCATION 
  Wondrous Item, Uncommon (Requires Attunement) 
  While wearing this amulet, you are hidden from 
  divination magic. You can't be targeted by such magic or 
  perceived through magical scrying sensors. 
  Location. This magic item is worn by Ezzat on L20. 
   
  BEAD OF FORCE 
  Wondrous Item, Rare 
  You can use an action to throw the bead up to 60 feet. The 
  bead explodes on impact and is destroyed. Each creature 
  within a 10-foot radius of where the bead landed must 
  succeed on a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw or take 5d4 
  force damage. A sphere of transparent force then encloses 
  the area for 1 minute. Any creature that failed the save and 
  is completely within the area is trapped inside this sphere. 
  Creatures that succeeded on the save, or are partially 
  within the area, are pushed away from the center of the 
  sphere until they are no longer inside it. Only breathable 
  air can pass through the sphere's wall. No attack or other 
  effect can. 
  An enclosed creature can use its action to push against 
  the sphere's wall, moving the sphere up to half the 
  creature's walking speed. The sphere can be picked up, 
  and its magic causes it to weigh only 1 pound, regardless 
  of the weight of creatures inside. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L20, A2. 
   
  BLACK CRYSTAL TABLET 
  Wondrous Item, Legendary (Requires Attunement by a 
  creature that has proficiency in the Arcana skill) 
  Any creature that attunes to the tablet must make a DC 20 
  Wisdom saving throw at the end of its next long rest. On 
  a failed save, the creature becomes afflicted with a 
  random form of long-term madness (see "Madness" in 
  chapter 8 of the DMG). 
  As an action, a creature attuned to the black crystal 
  tablet can use it to cast eyebite or gate (the portal created 
  by this spell links to the Far Realm only). After the tablet 
  is used to cast a spell, it cannot be used again until the 
  next dawn. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L22, A23. 
   
  BOOTS OF FALSE TRACKS 
  Wondrous Item, Common 
  Only humanoids can wear these boots. While wearing the 
  boots, you can choose to have them leave tracks like those 
  of another kind of humanoid of your size. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L19, A11B. 
   
  CANDLE OF THE DEEP 
  Wondrous Item, Common 
  The flame of this candle is not extinguished when 
  immersed in water. It gives off light and heat like a normal 
  candle. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L19, A1C.  
   
  CHIME OF OPENING 
  Wondrous Item, Rare 
  This hollow metal tube measures about 1 foot long and 
  weighs 1 pound. You can strike it as an action, pointing it 
  at an object within 120 feet of you that can be opened, 
  such as a door, lid, or lock. The chime issues a clear tone, 
  and one lock or latch on the object opens unless the sound 
  can't reach the object. If no locks or latches remain, the 
  object itself opens. 
  The chime can be used ten times. After the tenth time it 
  cracks and becomes useless. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L20, A12B. 
   
  DECANTER OF ENDLESS WATER 
  Wondrous Item, Uncommon 
  This stoppered flask sloshes when shaken, as if it contains 
  water. The decanter weighs 2 pounds. 
  You can use an action to remove the stopper and speak 
  one of three command words, whereupon an amount of 
  fresh water or salt water (your choice) pours out of the 
  flask. The water stops pouring out at the start of your next 
  turn. Choose from the following options: 
  • "Stream" produces 1 gallon of water. 
  • "Fountain" produces 5 gallons of water. 
  • "Geyser" produces 30 gallons of water that gushes forth in a 
  geyser 30 feet long and 1 foot wide. As a bonus action while 
  holding the decanter, you can aim the geyser at a creature you 
  can see within 30 feet of you. The target must succeed on a 
  DC 13 Strength saving throw or take 1d4 bludgeoning 
  damage and fall prone. Instead of a creature, you can target 
  an object that isn't being worn or carried and that weighs no 
  more than 200 pounds. The object is either knocked over or 
  pushed up to 15 feet away from you. 
   
  Location. This magic item is found in L22, A15. 
   
  
   
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  GEM OF BRIGHTNESS 
  Wondrous Item, Uncommon 
  This prism has 50 charges. While you are holding it, you 
  can use an action to speak one of three command words 
  to cause one of the following effects: 
  • The first command word causes the gem to shed bright light 
  in a 30-foot radius and dim light for an additional 30 feet. 
  This effect doesn't expend a charge. It lasts until you use a 
  bonus action to repeat the command word or until you use 
  another function of the gem. 
  • The second command word expends 1 charge and causes the 
  gem to fire a brilliant beam of light at one creature you can 
  see within 60 feet of you. The creature must succeed on a DC 
  15 Constitution saving throw or become blinded for 1 minute. 
  The creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of 
  its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. 
  • The third command word expends 5 charges and causes the 
  gem to flare with blinding light in a 30-foot cone originating 
  from it. Each creature in the cone must make a saving throw 
  as if struck by the beam created with the second command 
  word. 
   
  When all of the gem's charges are expended, the gem 
  becomes a nonmagical jewel worth 50 gp. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L19, A11B. 
   
  HELM OF THE SCAVENGER 
  Wondrous Item, Legendary (Requires Attunement by a 
  spellcaster) 
  This ornate chair is designed to propel and maneuver a 
  ship through space. 
  Passive Properties. The following properties of the 
  helm come into play even when no creature is attuned to 
  it:  
  • When placed aboard a vessel weighing between 1 and 100 
  tons, the helm generates an envelope of fresh air around the 
  ship while it is in the void of space (but not underwater). This 
  envelope extends out from the edges of the hull in all 
  directions for a distance equal in length to the vessel's beam, 
  so that creatures aboard and near the ship can breathe 
  normally in space. The temperature within the air envelope is 
  70 degrees Fahrenheit. 
  • When placed aboard a vessel weighing between 1 and 100 
  tons, the helm generates an artificial gravity field while the 
  ship is in the void of space, so that creatures can walk on the 
  ship's decks as they normally would. Creatures and objects 
  that fall overboard bob in a gravity plane that extends out 
  from the main deck for a distance equal in length to the 
  vessel's beam. 
   
  Active Properties. The sensation of being attuned to the 
  helm is akin to being immersed in warm water. While 
  attuned to the helm, you gain the following abilities while 
  you sit in it: 
  • You can use the helm to propel the vessel across or through water 
  and other liquids at a maximum speed in miles per hour equal to 
  your highest-level unexpended spell slot. 
  • You can use the helm to propel the vessel through air or space at a 
  maximum speed in miles per hour equal to your highest-level 
  unexpended spell slot × 10. 
  • Provided you have at least one unexpended spell slot, you can steer 
  the vessel, albeit in a somewhat clumsy fashion, in much the same 
  way that oars or a rudder can maneuver a seafaring ship. 
  • Whenever you like, you can see what's happening on and around the 
  vessel as though you were standing in a location of your choice 
  aboard it.  
   
  Drawback. While attuned to the helm, you cannot 
  expend your own spell slots. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L23, A20.  
   
  HORNED RING 
  Ring, Very Rare (Requires Attunement) 
  Allows an attuned wearer to ignore Undermountain's 
  magical restrictions (see "Alterations to Magic"). 
  Location. This magic item is found in L23, A29. 
   
  INSTRUMENT OF THE BARDS, ANSTRUTH HARP 
  Wondrous Item, Very Rare (Requires Attunement by a 
  Bard) 
  You can use an action to play the instrument and cast one 
  of its spells. Once the instrument has been used to cast a 
  spell, it can't be used to cast that spell again until the next 
  dawn. The spells use your spellcasting ability and spell 
  save DC. A creature that attempts to play the instrument 
  without being attuned to it must succeed on a DC 15 
  Wisdom saving throw or take 2d4 psychic damage. 
  You can play the instrument while casting a spell that 
  causes any of its targets to be charmed on a failed saving 
  throw, thereby imposing disadvantage on the save. This 
  effect applies only if the spell has a somatic or a material 
  component. 
  The harp can be used to cast the following spells: 
  control weather, cure wounds (5th level), fly, invisibility, 
  levitate, protection from evil and good, and wall of thorns.  
  Location. This magic item is found in L23, A17.  
   
  IOUN STONE OF INSIGHT 
  Wondrous Item, Very Rare (Requires Attunement) 
  An Ioun stone is named after Ioun, god of knowledge and 
  prophecy, who is revered on some worlds. Many types of 
  Ioun stone exist, each type a distinct combination of shape 
  and color. 
  When you use an action to toss one of these stones into 
  the air, the stone orbits your head at a distance of 1d3 feet 
  and confers a benefit to you. Thereafter, another creature 
  must use an action to grasp or net the stone to separate it 
  from you, either by making a successful attack roll against 
  AC 24 or a successful DC 24 Dexterity (Acrobatics) 
  check. You can use an action to seize and stow the stone, 
  ending its effect. 
  A stone has AC 24, 10 hit points, and resistance to all 
  damage. It is considered to be an object that is being worn 
  while it orbits your head. 
  Your Wisdom score increases by 2, to a maximum of 
  20, while this incandescent blue sphere orbits your head. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L22, A41. 
   
   
   
   
  
   
  93 
  MACE OF SMITING 
  Mace, Rare 
  You gain a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with 
  this magic weapon. The bonus increases to +3 when you 
  use the mace to attack a construct. 
  When you roll a 20 on an attack roll made with this 
  weapon, the target takes an extra 7 bludgeoning damage, 
  or an extra 14 bludgeoning damage if it's a construct. If a 
  construct has 25 hit points or fewer after taking this 
  damage, it is destroyed. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L21, A24. 
   
  MARINER'S ARMOR 
  Scale Mail, Uncommon 
  While wearing this armor, you have a swimming speed 
  equal to your walking speed. In addition, whenever you 
  start your turn underwater with 0 hit points, the armor 
  causes you to rise 60 feet toward the surface.  
  Location. This magic item is found in L19, A1.  
   
  NINE LIVES STEALER 
  Weapon, Very Rare (Requires Attunement) 
  You gain a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with 
  this magic weapon. The sword has 1d8+1 charges. If you 
  score a critical hit against a creature that has fewer than 
  100 hit points, it must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution 
  saving throw or be slain instantly as the sword tears its life 
  force from its body (a construct or an undead is immune). 
  The sword loses 1 charge if the creature is slain. When the 
  sword has no charges remaining, it loses this property. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L22, A34A. 
   
  ORB OF DIRECTION 
  Wondrous Item, Common 
  While holding this orb, you can use an action to determine 
  which way is north. This property functions only on the 
  Material Plane. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L19, A11B.  
   
  POLE OF ANGLING 
  Wondrous Item, Common 
  While holding this orb, you can use an action to determine 
  which way is north. This property functions only on the 
  Material Plane. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L19, A1C.  
   
  POTION OF CLOUD GIANT STRENGTH 
  Potion, Very Rare 
  When you drink this potion, your Strength score changes 
  to 27 for 1 hour. The potion has no effect on you if your 
  Strength is equal to or greater than that score. This 
  potion's transparent liquid has floating in it a sliver of 
  fingernail from a cloud giant. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L22, A37. 
   
   
  POTION OF FORCE RESISTANCE 
  Potion, Uncommon 
  When you drink this potion, you gain resistance to force 
  damage for 1 hour. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L20, A20. 
   
  POTION OF HEALING 
  Potion, Common 
  You regain 2d4+2 hit points when you drink this potion. 
  The potion's red liquid glimmers when agitated. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L19, A13B. 
   
  POTION OF INVISIBILITY 
  Potion, Very Rare 
  This potion's container looks empty but feels as though it 
  holds liquid. When you drink it, you become invisible for 
  1 hour. Anything you wear or carry is invisible with you. 
  The effect ends early if you attack or cast a spell. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L22, A16B. 
   
  POTION OF LIGHTNING RESISTANCE 
  Potion, Uncommon 
  When you drink this potion, you gain resistance to 
  lightning damage for 1 hour. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L20, A20. 
   
  POTION OF MIND READING 
  Potion, Rare 
  When you drink this potion, you gain the effect of the 
  detect thoughts spell (save DC 13). The potion's dense, 
  purple liquid has an ovoid cloud of pink floating in it. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L20, A4B. 
   
  POTION OF SUPERIOR HEALING 
  Potion, Rare 
  You regain 8d4+8 hit points when you drink this potion. 
  The potion's red liquid glimmers when agitated. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L20, A4B.  
   
  POTION OF SUPREME HEALING 
  Potion, Very Rare 
  You regain 10d4+20 hit points when you drink this 
  potion. The potion's red liquid glimmers when agitated. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L22, A8. 
   
  RING OF X-RAY VISION 
  Ring, Rare (Requires Attunement) 
  While wearing this ring, you can use an action to speak its 
  command word. When you do so, you can see into and 
  through solid matter for 1 minute. This vision has a radius 
  of 30 feet. To you, solid objects within that radius appear 
  transparent and don't prevent light from passing through 
  them. The vision can penetrate 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of 
  common metal, or up to 3 feet of wood or dirt. Thin sheets 
  of lead and thicker substances block the vision. 
  
   
  94 
  Whenever you use the ring again before taking a long 
  rest, you must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving 
  throw or gain one level of exhaustion. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L20, A13D. 
   
  ROD OF LORDLY MIGHT 
  Rod, Legendary (Requires Attunement) 
  This rod has a flanged head, and it functions as a magic 
  mace that grants a +3 bonus to attack and damage roll 
  made with it. The rod has properties associated with six 
  different buttons that are set in a row along the haft as well 
  as three other properties. 
  Six Buttons. You can press one of the rod's six buttons 
  as a bonus action. A button's effect lasts until you push a 
  different button or until you push the same button again, 
  which causes the rod to revert to its normal form. 
  • If you press button 1, the rod becomes a flame tongue as a 
  fiery blade sprouts from the end opposite the rod's flanged 
  head (you choose the type of sword). 
  • If you press button 2, the rod's flanged head folds down and 
  two crescent-shaped blades spring out, transforming the rod 
  into a magic battleaxe that grants a +3 bonus to attack and 
  damage rolls made with it. 
  • If you press button 3, the rod's flanged head folds down, a 
  spear point springs from the rod's tip, and the rod's handle 
  lengthens into a 6-foot haft, transforming the rod into a magic 
  spear that grants a+3 bonus to attack and damage rolls made 
  with it. 
  • If you press button 4, the rod transforms into a climbing pole 
  up to 50 feet long, as you specify. In surfaces as hard as 
  granite, a spike at the bottom and three hooks at the top 
  anchor the pole. Horizontal bars 3 inches long fold out from 
  the sides, 1 foot apart, forming a ladder. The pole can bear up 
  to 4,000 pounds. More weight or lack of solid anchoring 
  causes the rod to revert to its normal form. 
  • If you press button 5, the rod transforms into a handheld 
  battering ram and grants its user a +10 bonus to Strength 
  checks made to break through doors, barricades, and other 
  barriers. 
  • If you press button 6, the rod assumes or remains in its normal 
  form and indicates magnetic north. (Nothing happens if this 
  function of the rod is used in a location that has no magnetic 
  north.) The rod also gives you knowledge of your 
  approximate depth beneath the ground or your height above 
  it. 
   
  Drain Life. When you hit a creature with a melee attack 
  using the rod, you can force the target to make a DC 17 
  Constitution saving throw. On a failure, the target rakes 
  an extra 4d6 necrotic damage, and you regain a number of 
  hit points equal to half that necrotic damage. This 
  property can't be used again until the next dawn. 
  Paralyze. When you hit a creature with a melee attack 
  using the rod, you can force the target to make a DC 17 
  Strength saving throw. On a failure, the target is paralyzed 
  for 1 minute. The target can repeat the saving throw at the 
  end of each of its turns, ending the effect on a success. 
  This property can't be used again until the next dawn. 
   
  Terrify. While holding the rod, you can use an action to 
  force each creature you can see within 30 feet of you to 
  make a DC 17 Wisdom saving throw. On a failure, a target 
  is frightened of you for 1 minute. A frightened target can 
  repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, 
  ending the effect on itself on a success. This property can't 
  be used again until the next dawn. 
  Location. This magic item is found in Area 33.  
   
  SENDING STONE 
  Wondrous Item, Uncommon 
  Sending stones come in pairs, each smooth stone carved 
  to match the other so the pairing is easily recognized. 
  While you touch one stone, you can use an action to cast 
  the sending spell from it. The target is the bearer of the 
  other stone. If no creature bears the other stone, you know 
  that fact as soon as you use the stone and don't cast the 
  spell. Once sending is cast through the stones, they can't 
  be used again until the next dawn. If one of the stones in 
  a pair is destroyed, the other one becomes nonmagical. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L19, A2 & 13C.  
   
  SHIELD OF THE UVEN RUNE 
  Shield, Very Rare (Requires Attunement) 
  This shield is made from the scale of an ancient white 
  dragon. It has a rune burned into its outward-facing side. 
  A character who examines the rune and succeeds on a DC 
  20 Intelligence (History) check recognizes it as an uven 
  ("enemy" in Giant) rune that confers great power. While 
  holding the shield, you benefit from the following 
  properties. 
  Winter's Friend. You are immune to cold damage. 
  Deadly Rebuke. Immediately after a creature hits you 
  with a melee attack, you can use your reaction to deal 3d6 
  necrotic damage to that creature. 
  Bane. You can cast the bane spell from the shield (save 
  DC 17). The spell does not require concentration and lasts 
  for 1 minute. Once you cast the spell from the shield, you 
  can't do so again until you finish a short or long rest. 
  Gift of Vengeance. You can transfer the shield's magic 
  to a nonmagical weapon by tracing the uven rune on the 
  weapon with one finger. The transfer takes 8 hours of 
  work that requires the two items to be within 5 feet of each 
  other. At the end, the shield is destroyed, and the rune is 
  etched or burned into the chosen weapon. This weapon 
  becomes a rare magic item that requires attunement. It has 
  the properties of a +1 weapon. The bonus increases to +3 
  when the weapon is used against one of the following 
  creature types, chosen by you at the time of the magic 
  weapon's creation: aberrations, celestials, constructs, 
  dragons, elementals, fey, fiends, giants, or undead. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L23, A28.  
   
   
   
   
  
   
  95 
  STAFF OF POWER: RETRIBUTIVE STRIKE 
  Distance from 
  Orgin 
  Effect 
  10 ft. or closer 
  8 x the number of charges in the staff 
  11-20 ft. away 
  6 x the number of charges in the staff 
  21-30 ft. away 
  4 x the number of charges in the staff 
   
  STAFF OF POWER 
  Staff, Very Rare (Requires Attunement by a Sorcerer, 
  Warlock, or Wizard) 
  This staff can be wielded as a magic quarterstaff that 
  grants a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with 
  it. While holding it, you gain a +2 bonus to Armor Class, 
  saving throws, and spell attack rolls. 
  The staff has 20 charges for the following properties. It 
  regains 2d8+4 expended charges daily at dawn. If you 
  expend the last charge, roll a d20. On a 1, the staff retains 
  its +2 bonus to attack and damage roll but loses all other 
  properties. On a 20, the staff regain 1d8+2 charges. 
  Power Strike. When you hit with a melee attack using 
  the staff, you can expend 1 charge to deal an extra 1d6 
  force damage to the target. 
  Spells. While holding this staff, you can use an action 
  to expend 1 or more of its charges to cast one of the 
  following spells from it, using your spell save DC and 
  spell attack bonus: cone of cold (5 charges), fireball (5th-
  level version, 5 charges), globe of invulnerability (6 
  charges), hold monster (5 charges), levitate (2 charges), 
  lightning bolt (5th-level version, 5 charges), magic 
  missile (1 charge), ray of enfeeblement (1 charge), or wall 
  of force (5 charges). 
  Retributive Strike. You can use an action to break the 
  staff over your knee or against a solid surface, performing 
  a retributive strike. The staff is destroyed and releases its 
  remaining magic in an explosion that expands to fill a 30-
  foot-radius sphere centered on it. 
  You have a 50 percent chance to instantly travel to a 
  random plane of existence, avoiding the explosion. If you 
  fail to avoid the effect, you take force damage equal to 16 
  × the number of charges in the staff. Every other creature 
  in the area must make a DC 17 Dexterity saving throw. 
  On a failed save, a creature takes an amount of damage 
  based on how far away it is from the point of origin, as 
  shown in the following table. On a successful save, a 
  creature takes half as much damage. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L22, A39. 
   
  WAND OF WONDER 
  Wand, Rare (Requires Attunement by a Spellcaster) 
  This wand has 7 charges. While holding it, you can use an 
  action to expend 1 of its charges and choose a target 
  within 120 feet of you. The target can be a creature, an 
  object, or a point in space. Roll d100 and consult the 
  following table to discover what happens. 
   
   
  If the effect causes you to cast a spell from the wand, 
  the spell's save DC is 15. If the spell normally has a range 
  expressed in feet, its range becomes 120 feet if it isn't 
  already. 
  If an effect covers an area, you must center the spell on 
  and include the target. If an effect has multiple possible 
  subjects, the DM randomly determines which ones are 
  affected. 
  The wand regains 1d6 + 1 expended charges daily at 
  dawn. If you expend the wand's last charge, roll a d20. On 
  a 1, the wand crumbles into dust and is destroyed.  
  See the Wand of Wonder Effects table for details. 
  Location. This magic item is found in L23, A27.  
   
  WINGED BOOTS 
  Wondrous Item, Uncommon (Requires Attunement) 
  While you wear these boots, you have a flying speed equal 
  to your walking speed. You can use the boots to fly for up 
  to 4 hours, all at once or in several shorter flights, each 
  one using a minimum of 1 minute from the duration. If 
  you are flying when the duration expires, you descend at 
  a rate of 30 feet per round until you land. 
  The boots regain 2 hours of flying capability for every 
  12 hours they aren't in use 
  Elite Four. This item is worn by Marambra Nyghtsteel 
  in the Elite Four penultimate encounter on L23.  
   
  
   
  96 
  WAND OF WONDER EFFECTS 
  d100 Effect 
  1-5 You cast slow.  
  6-10 You cast faerie fire. 
  11-15 You are stunned until the start of your net turn, believing 
  something awesome just happened.  
  16-20 You cast gust of wind. 
  21-25 You cast detect thoughts on the target you chose. If you didn't 
  target a creature, you instead take 1d6 psychic damage. 
  26-30 You cast stinking cloud.  
  31-33 
  Heavy rain falls in a 60-foot radius centered on the target. The 
  area becomes lightly obscured. The rain falls until the start of 
  your next turn. 
  34-36 
  An animal appears in the unoccupied space nearest the target. 
  The animal isn't under your control and acts as it normally 
  would. Roll a d100 to determine which animal appears. On a 
  01-25, a rhinoceros appears; on a 26-50, an elephant appears; 
  and on a 51-100, a rat appears. 
  37-46 You cast lighting bolt.  
  47-49 
  A cloud of 600 oversized butterflies fills a 30-foot radius 
  centered on the target. The area becomes heavily obscured. 
  The butterflies remain for 10 minutes. 
  50-53 
  You enlarge the target as if you had cast enlarge/reduce. If the 
  target can't be affected by that spell or if you didn't target a 
  creature, you become the target. 
  54-58 You cast darkness. 
  59-62 
  Grass grows on the ground in a 60-foot radius centered on the 
  target. If grass is already there, it grows to ten times its normal 
  size and remains overgrown for 1 minute. 
  63-65 
  An object of the DM 's choice disappears into the Ethereal 
  Plane. The object must be neither worn nor carried, within 120 
  feet of the target, and no larger than 10 feet in any dimension. 
  66-69 You shrink yourself as if you had cast enlarge/reduce on 
  yourself.  
  70-79 You cast fireball. 
  80-84 You cast invisibility on yourself.  
  85-87 
  Leaves grow from the target. If you chose a point in space as 
  the target, leaves sprout from the creature nearest to that point. 
  Unless they are picked off, the leaves turn brown and fall off 
  after 24 hours. 
  88-90 
  A stream of 1d4 × 10 gems, each worth 1 gp, shoots from the 
  wand 's tip in a line 30 feet long and 5 feet wide. Each gem 
  deals 1 bludgeoning damage, and the total damage of the gems 
  is divided equally among all creatures in the line. 
  91-95 
  A burst of colorful shimmering light extends from you in a 30-
  foot radius. You and each creature in the area that can see must 
  succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or become 
  blinded for 1 minute. A creature can repeat the saving throw at 
  the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a 
  success. 
  96-97 The target's skin turns bright blue for 1d10 days. If you chose 
  a point in space, the creature nearest to that point is affected. 
  98-
  100 
  If you targeted a creature, it must make a DC 15 Constitution 
  saving throw. If you didn't target a creature, you become the 
  target and must make the saving throw. If the saving throw 
  fails by 5 or more, the target is instantly petrified. On any other 
  failed save, the target is restrained and begins to turn to stone. 
  While restrained in this way, the target must repeat the saving 
  throw at the end of its next turn, becoming petrified on a failure 
  or ending the effect on a success. The petrification lasts until 
  the target is freed by the greater restoration spell or similar 
  magic. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  
   
  97 
  APPENDIX B: NPCS & MONSTERS 
  The following creatures are found on this level: 
   
  TABLE OF CONTENTS 
   
  Adult blue dracolich ............................... 98 
  Adult silver dragon ................................. 98 
  Animated staff of frost ............................ 99 
  Arcanaloth .............................................. 99 
  Archer ..................................................... 99 
  Archmage ............................................. 100 
  Assassin ................................................ 100 
  Azer ...................................................... 100 
  Bearded devil ........................................ 101 
  Beholder ............................................... 101 
  Beholder zombie ................................... 102 
  Black pudding ....................................... 102 
  Blue abishai .......................................... 102 
  Boneclaw .............................................. 103 
  Champion ............................................. 103 
  Commoner ............................................ 103 
  Conjurer ................................................ 103 
  Couatl ................................................... 104 
  Cult fanatic ........................................... 104 
  Cultist ................................................... 104 
  Dao ....................................................... 104 
  Death knight ......................................... 105 
  Death slaad ........................................... 105 
  Demilich ............................................... 106 
  Deva ..................................................... 106 
  Diviner .................................................. 107 
  Draft horse ............................................ 107 
  Drow ..................................................... 107 
  Drow elite warrior ................................ 108 
  Drow mage ........................................... 108 
  Duergar ................................................. 109 
  Duergar warlord.................................... 109 
  Earth elemental ..................................... 109 
  Empyrean.............................................. 110 
  Enchanter .............................................. 110 
  Fire elemental ....................................... 110 
  Fire giant .............................................. 111 
  Flail snail .............................................. 111 
  Flesh golem .......................................... 111 
  Fomorian .............................................. 112 
  Galeb duhr ............................................ 112 
  Gargoyle ............................................... 112 
  Ghoul .................................................... 112 
  Giant ape............................................... 113 
  Giant centipede ..................................... 113 
  Giant shark ........................................... 113 
  Githyanki gish ...................................... 113 
  Githyanki knight ................................... 113 
  Githyanki warrior ................................. 114 
  Goblin ................................................... 114 
  Goblin boss ........................................... 114 
  Gorgon ................................................. 114 
  Gray ooze ............................................. 115 
  Gray render ........................................... 115 
  Gray slaad............................................. 115 
  Green slaad ........................................... 116 
  Grell ..................................................... 116 
  Grick alpha ........................................... 116 
  Halaster Blackcloak .............................. 117 
  Helmed horror ...................................... 118 
  Hobgoblin ............................................. 118 
  Hobgoblin captain ................................ 118 
  Hobgoblin warlord ............................... 118 
  Ice devil ................................................ 119 
  Invisible stalker .................................... 119 
  Iron golem ............................................ 119 
  Knight ................................................... 120 
  Lich ...................................................... 120 
  Living burning hand ............................. 121 
  Living counterspell ............................... 121 
  Living lightning bolt ............................. 121 
  Mage..................................................... 121 
  Magma mephit...................................... 122 
  Marambra Nyghtsteel ........................... 122 
  Marid .................................................... 123 
  Marilith ................................................. 123 
  Medusa ................................................. 123 
  Mezzoloth ............................................. 124 
  Mimic ................................................... 124 
  Mind flayer arcanist.............................. 124 
  Molydeus .............................................. 125 
  Mud mephit .......................................... 125 
  Muiral ................................................... 126 
  Mummy ................................................ 126 
  Mummy lord ......................................... 127 
  Myconid adult ...................................... 128 
  Myconid sovereign ............................... 128 
  Myconid sprout .................................... 128 
  Nalfeshnee ............................................ 129 
  Nothic ................................................... 129 
  Nycaloth ............................................... 129 
  Oni ........................................................ 130 
  Orc Blade of Ilneval ............................. 130 
  Orc Hand of Yurtrus............................. 130 
  Orog ..................................................... 130 
  Otyugh ................................................. 131 
  Pentadrone ............................................ 131 
  Pit fiend ................................................ 131 
  Planetar ................................................ 132 
  Priest .................................................... 132 
  Pseudodragon ....................................... 132 
  Quadrone .............................................. 132 
  Quaggoth spore servant ........................ 133 
  Quetzalcoatlus ...................................... 133 
  Red dragon wyrmling ........................... 133 
  Remorhaz ............................................. 133 
  Scaladar ................................................ 134 
  Shield guardian .................................... 134 
  Skeleton................................................ 134 
  Spined devil ......................................... 134 
  Spirit troll ............................................. 135 
  Star spawn grue .................................... 135 
  Star spawn hulk .................................... 135 
  Star spawn larva mage ......................... 136 
  Star spawn mangler .............................. 136 
  Star spawn seer..................................... 137 
  Stone golem ......................................... 137 
  Swarm of insects .................................. 137 
  Swarm of quippers ............................... 138 
  Swarm of spiders .................................. 138 
  Tarrasque.............................................. 139 
  Thug ..................................................... 139 
  Triceratops ........................................... 140 
  Tridrone................................................ 140 
  Tyrannosaurus rex ................................ 140 
  Ultroloth ............................................... 140 
  Vampire................................................ 141 
  War priest ............................................. 142 
  Warlock of the archfey ......................... 142 
  Warlord ................................................ 142 
  Water elemental ................................... 143 
  Will-o'-wisp.......................................... 143 
  Wraith .................................................. 144 
  Xorn ..................................................... 144 
  Yeth hound ........................................... 145 
  Zombie ................................................. 145 
   
   
   
   
  
   
  98 
  ADULT BLUE DRACOLICH 
   
  LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  The dracolich can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the 
  options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time 
  and only at the end of another creature's turn. The dracolich 
  regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn. 
  Detect. The dracolich makes a Wisdom (Perception) check. 
  Tail Attack. The dracolich makes a tail attack. 
  Wing Attack (Costs 2 Actions). The dracolich beats its tattered wings. 
  Each creature within 10 feet of the dracolich must succeed on a DC 
  21 Dexterity saving throw or take 14 (2d6 + 7) bludgeoning damage 
  and be knocked prone. After beating its wings this way, the 
  dracolich can fly up to half its flying speed. 
   
  ADULT SILVER DRAGON 
   
  LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  The dragon can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the 
  options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time 
  and only at the end of another creature's turn. The dragon 
  regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn. 
  Detect. The dragon makes a Wisdom (Perception) check. 
  Tail Attack. The dragon makes a tail attack. 
  Wing Attack (Costs 2 Actions). The dragon beats its wings. Each 
  creature within 10 feet of the dragon must succeed on a DC 22 
  Dexterity saving throw or take 15 (2d6 + 8) bludgeoning damage 
  and be knocked prone. The dragon can then fly up to half its flying 
  speed. 
   
   
   
   
   
  
   
  99 
   
   
  
   
  100 
   
   
  
   
  101 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  BEHOLDER 
   
  LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  The beholder can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the 
  options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time 
  and only at the end of another creature's turn. The beholder 
  regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn. 
  Eye Ray. The beholder uses one random eye ray. 
   
   
  
   
  102 
   
   
  
   
  103 
   
   
  
   
  104 
   
   
  
   
  105 
   
   
  
   
  106 
  DEMILICH 
   
  LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  The demilich can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the 
  options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time 
  and only at the end of another creature's turn. The demilich 
  regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn. 
  Flight. The demilich flies up to half its flying speed. 
  Cloud of Dust. The demilich magically swirls its dusty remains. Each 
  creature within 10 feet of it, including around a corner, must succeed 
  on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or be blinded until the end of 
  the demilich's next turn. A creature that succeeds on the saving 
  throw is immune to this effect until the end of the demilich's next 
  turn. 
  Energy Drain (Costs 2 Actions). Each creature within 30 feet of the 
  demilich must make a DC 15 Constitution saving throw. On a failed 
  save, the creature's hit point maximum is magically reduced by 10 
  (3d6). If a creature's hit point maximum is reduced to 0 by this effect, 
  the creature dies. A creature's hit point maximum can be restored 
  with the greater restoration spell or similar magic. 
  Vile Curse (Costs 3 Actions). The demilich targets one creature it can 
  see within 30 feet of it. The target must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom 
  saving throw or be magically cursed. Until the curse ends, the target 
  has disadvantage on attack rolls and saving throws. The target can 
  repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the 
  curse on a success. 
   
   
   
   
  
   
  107 
   
   
  
   
  108 
   
   
  
   
  109 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  EMPYREAN 
   
  LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  The empyrean can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options 
  below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time and only at the 
  end of another creature's turn. The empyrean regains spent legendary 
  actions at the start of its turn. 
  Attack. The empyrean makes one attack. 
  Bolster. The empyrean bolsters all nonhostile creatures within 120 feet of it 
  until the end of its next turn. Bolstered creatures can't be charmed or 
  frightened, and they gain advantage on ability checks and saving throws until 
  the end of the empyrean's next turn. 
  Trembling Strike (Costs 2 Actions). The empyrean strikes the ground with its 
  maul, triggering an earth tremor. All other creatures on the ground within 60 
  feet of the empyrean must succeed on a DC 25 Strength saving throw or be 
  knocked prone. 
   
   
  
   
  110 
   
   
   
   
  
   
  111 
   
   
  
   
  112 
   
   
  
   
  113 
   
   
  
   
  114 
   
   
  
   
  115 
   
   
  
   
  116 
   
   
  
   
  117 
  HALASTER BLACKCLOAK 
   
  LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  Halaster can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the 
  options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time 
  and only at the end of another creature's turn. Halaster regains 
  spent legendary actions at the start of its turn. 
  Cast Spell. Halaster casts a spell of 3rd level or lower. 
  Spell Ward (Costs 2 Actions). Halaster expends a spell slot of 
  4th level or lower and gains 5 temporary hit points per level 
  of the slot. 
   
  LAIR ACTIONS 
  On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), Halaster takes a 
  lair action to cause one of the following effects: 
  • Halaster targets a volume of unoccupied space or solid stone 
  no larger than four 10-foot cubes within 30 feet of him, 
  turning the open space to solid, worked stone or vice versa. 
  • Halaster causes one door or archway within 30 feet of him to 
  disappear and be replaced by a blank wall, or he restores a 
  door or an archway previously removed in this way. 
  • Halaster deactivates or reactivates one of Undermountain's 
  magic gates. The gate must be within 120 feet of him. 
   
  NOTES 
  Use the following section for notes of your own concerning 
  Halaster Blackcloak: 
   
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  119 
   
   
  
   
  120 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  LICH 
   
  LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  The lich can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the 
  options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time 
  and only at the end of another creature's turn. The lich regains 
  spent legendary actions at the start of its turn. 
  Cantrip. The lich casts a cantrip. 
  Paralyzing Touch (Costs 2 Actions). The lich uses its Paralyzing 
  Touch. 
  Frightening Gaze (Costs 2 Actions). The lich fixes its gaze on one 
  creature it can see within 10 feet of it. The target must succeed on a 
  DC 18 Wisdom saving throw against this magic or become 
  frightened for 1 minute. The frightened target can repeat the saving 
  throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a 
  success. If a target's saving throw is successful or the effect ends for 
  it, the target is immune to the lich's gaze for the next 24 hours. 
  Disrupt Life (Costs 3 Actions). Each non-undead creature within 20 
  feet of the lich must make a DC 18 Constitution saving throw against 
  this magic, taking 21 (6d6) necrotic damage on a failed save, or half 
  as much damage on a successful one. 
   
   
   
  
   
  121 
   
   
  
   
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  125 
  MOLYDEUS 
   
  LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  The molydeus can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the 
  options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time 
  and only at the end of another creature's turn. The molydeus 
  regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn. 
  Attack. The molydeus makes one attack, either with its demonic 
  weapon or with its snakebite. 
  Move. The molydeus moves without provoking opportunity attacks. 
  Cast a Spell. The molydeus casts one spell from its Innate Spellcasting 
  trait. 
   
   
   
   
  
   
  126 
  MUIRAL 
   
  LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  Muiral can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options 
  below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time and only 
  at the end of another creature's turn. Muiral regains spent 
  legendary actions at the start of its turn. 
  Cast Cantrip. Muiral casts a cantrip. 
  Lunging Attack (Costs 2 Actions). Muiral makes one longsword 
  attack that has a reach of 10 feet. 
  Retreating Strike (Costs 3 Actions). Muiral moves up to his speed 
  without provoking opportunity attacks. Before the move, he can 
  make one longsword attack. 
   
   
   
   
  
   
  127 
  MUMMY LORD 
   
  LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  The mummy lord can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from 
  the options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a 
  time and only at the end of another creature's turn. The mummy 
  lord regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn. 
  Attack. The mummy lord makes one attack with its rotting fist or uses 
  its Dreadful Glare. 
  Blinding Dust. Blinding dust and sand swirls magically around the 
  mummy lord. Each creature within 5 feet of the mummy lord must 
  succeed on a DC 16 Constitution saving throw or be blinded until 
  the end of the creature's next turn. 
  Blasphemous Word (Costs 2 Actions). The mummy lord utters a 
  blasphemous word. Each non-undead creature within 10 feet of the 
  mummy lord that can hear the magical utterance must succeed on a 
  DC 16 Constitution saving throw or be stunned until the end of the 
  mummy lord's next turn. 
  Channel Negative Energy (Costs 2 Actions). The mummy lord 
  magically unleashes negative energy. Creatures within 60 feet of the 
  mummy lord, including ones behind barriers and around corners, 
  can't regain hit points until the end of the mummy lord's next turn. 
  Whirlwind of Sand (Costs 2 Actions). The mummy lord magically 
  transforms into a whirlwind of sand, moves up to 60 feet, and reverts 
  to its normal form. While in whirlwind form, the mummy lord is 
  immune to all damage, and it can't be grappled, petrified, knocked 
  prone, restrained, or stunned. Equipment worn or carried by the 
  mummy lord remain in its possession. 
   
  LAIR ACTIONS 
  On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), the mummy lord 
  takes a lair action to cause one of the following effects; the 
  mummy lord can't use the same effect two rounds in a row: 
  • Each undead creature in the lair can pinpoint the location of each 
  living creature within 120 feet of it until initiative count 20 on the 
  next round. 
  • Each undead in the lair has advantage on saving throws against 
  effects that turn undead until initiative count 20 on the next round. 
  • Until initiative count 20 on the next round, any non-undead creature 
  that tries to cast a spell of 4th level or lower in the mummy lord's 
  lair is wracked with pain. The creature can choose another action, 
  but if it tries to cast the spell, it must make a DC 16 Constitution 
  saving throw. On a failed save, it takes 1d6 necrotic damage per 
  level of the spell, and the spell has no effect and is wasted. 
   
  REGIONAL EFFECTS 
  A mummy lord's temple or tomb is warped in any of the 
  following ways by the creature's dark presence: 
  • Food instantly molders and water instantly evaporates when 
  brought into the lair. Other non magical drinks are spoiled - 
  wine turning to vinegar, for instance. 
  • Divination spells cast within the lair by creatures other than 
  the mummy lord have a 25 percent chance to provide 
  misleading results, as determined by the DM. If a divination 
  spell already has a chance to fail or become unreliable when 
  cast multiple times, that chance increases by 25 percent. 
  • A creature that takes treasure from the lair is cursed until the 
  treasure is returned. The cursed target has disadvantage on all 
  saving throws. The curse lasts until removed by a remove 
  curse spell or other magic. 
   
  If the mummy lord is destroyed, these regional effects end 
  immediately. 
   
   
  
   
  128 
   
   
  
   
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  130 
   
   
  
   
  131 
   
   
  
   
  132 
   
   
  
   
  133 
   
   
  
   
  134 
   
   
  
   
  135 
   
   
  
   
  136 
  STAR SPAWN LARVA MAGE 
   
  LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  The star spawn larva mage can take 3 legendary actions, 
  choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action 
  can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature's 
  turn. The star spawn larva mage regains spent legendary actions 
  at the start of its turn. 
  Cantrip (Costs 2 Actions). The larva mage casts one cantrip. 
  Slam (Costs 2 Actions). The larva mage makes one slam attack. 
  Feed (Costs 3 Actions). Each creature restrained by the larva mage's 
  Plague of Worms takes 13 (3d8) necrotic damage, and the larva 
  mage gains 6 temporary hit points. 
   
   
   
   
  
   
  137 
   
   
  
   
  138 
   
   
   
   
  
   
  139 
  TARRASQUE 
   
  LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  The tarrasque can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the 
  options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time 
  and only at the end of another creature's turn. The tarrasque 
  regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn. 
  Attack. The tarrasque makes one claw attack or tail attack. 
  Move. The tarrasque moves up to half its speed. 
  Chomp (Costs 2 Actions). The tarrasque makes one bite attack or uses 
  its Swallow. 
   
   
  
   
  140 
   
   
  
   
  141 
  VAMPIRE 
   
  LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  The vampire can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the 
  options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time 
  and only at the end of another creature's turn. The vampire 
  regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn. 
   
   
   
  Move. The vampire moves up to its speed without provoking 
  opportunity attacks. 
  Unarmed Strike. The vampire makes one unarmed strike. 
  Bite (Costs 2 Actions). The vampire makes one bite attack.  
   
   
   
   
   
  
   
  142 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  WARLORD 
   
  LEGENDARY ACTIONS 
  The warlord can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the 
  options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time 
  and only at the end of another creature's turn. The warlord 
  regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn. 
  Weapon Attack. The warlord makes a weapon attack. 
  Command Ally. The warlord targets one ally it can see within 30 feet 
  of it. if the target can see and hear the warlord, the target can make 
  one weapon attack as a reaction and gains advantage on the attack 
  roll. 
  Frighten Foe (Costs 2 Actions). The warlord targets one enemy it can 
  see within 30 feet of it. If the target can see and hear it, the target 
  must succeed on a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened 
  until the end of warlord's next turn. 
   
   
  
   
  143 
   
   
  
   
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  146 
  APPENDIX C: EFFECTS 
  The following effects are described on this level:  
   
  MADNESS 
   
  TYPES OF MADNESS 
  Madness can occur in one of three forms: 
  A character afflicted with short-term madness is 
  subjected to an effect from the Short-Term Madness table 
  for 1d10 minutes. 
  A character afflicted with long-term madness is 
  subjected to an effect from the Long-Term Madness table 
  for 1d10 × 10 hours. 
  A character afflicted with indefinite madness gains a 
  new character flaw from the Indefinite Madness table that 
  lasts until cured. 
   
  CURING MADNESS 
  A calm emotions spell can suppress the effects of 
  madness, while a lesser restoration spell can rid a 
  character of a short-term or long-term madness. 
  Depending on the source of the madness, remove curse or 
  dispel evil and good might also prove effective. A greater 
  restoration spell or more powerful magic is required to 
  rid a character of indefinite madness. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
  INDEFINITE MADNESS 
  d100 Flaw (lasts until cured) 
  1-15 "Being drunk keeps me sane." 
  16-25 "I keep whatever I find." 
  26-30 
  "I try to become more like someone else I know—
  adopting his or her style of dress, mannerisms, and 
  name." 
  31-35 "I must bend the truth, exaggerate, or outright lie to be 
  interesting to other people." 
  36-45 "Achieving my goal is the only thing of interest to me, 
  and I'll ignore everything else to pursue it." 
  46-50 "I find it hard to care about anything that goes on around 
  me." 
  51-55 "I don't like the way people judge me all the time." 
  56-70 "I am the smartest, wisest, strongest, fastest, and most 
  beautiful person I know." 
  71-80 
  "I am convinced that powerful enemies are hunting me, 
  and their agents are everywhere I go. I am sure they're 
  watching me all the time." 
  81-85 "There's only one person I can trust. And only I can see 
  this special friend." 
  86-95 "I can't take anything seriously. The more serious the 
  situation, the funnier I find it." 
  96-
  100 "I've discovered that I really like killing people." 
   
  LONG-TERM MADNESS 
  d100 Effects (lasts 1d10 x 10 hours) 
  1-10 
  The character feels compelled to repeat a specific activity 
  over and over, such as washing hands, touching things, 
  praying, or counting coins. 
  11-20 The character experiences vivid hallucinations and has 
  disadvantage on ability checks. 
  21-30 The character suffers extreme paranoia. The character 
  has disadvantage on Wisdom and Charisma checks. 
  31-40 
  The character regards something (usually the source of 
  madness) with intense revulsion, as if affected by the 
  antipathy effect of the antipathy/sympathy spell. 
  41-45 
  The character experiences a powerful delusion. Choose a 
  potion. The character imagines that they're under its 
  effects. 
  46-55 
  The character becomes attached to a "lucky charm," such 
  as a person or an object, and has disadvantage on attack 
  rolls, ability checks, and saving throws while more than 
  30 feet from it. 
  56-65 The character is blinded (25%) or deafened (75%). 
  66-75 
  The character experiences uncontrollable tremors or tics, 
  which impose disadvantage on attack rolls, ability 
  checks, and saving throws that involve Strength or 
  Dexterity. 
  76-85 
  The character suffers from partial amnesia. The character 
  knows who he or she is and retains racial traits and class 
  features, but doesn't recognize other people or remember 
  anything that happened before the madness took effect. 
  86-90 
  Whenever the character takes damage, he or she must 
  succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or be affected 
  as though he or she failed a saving throw against the 
  confusion spell. The confusion effect lasts for 1 minute. 
  91-95 The character loses the ability to speak. 
  96-
  100 
  The character falls unconscious. No amount of jostling 
  or damage can wake the character. 
   
  SHORT-TERM MADNESS 
  d100 Effects (lasts 1d10 minutes) 
  1-20 
  The character retreats into his or her mind and becomes 
  paralyzed. The effect ends if the character takes any 
  damage. 
  21-30 The character becomes incapacitated and spends the 
  duration screaming, laughing, or weeping. 
  31-40 
  The character becomes frightened and must use his or 
  her action and movement each round to flee from the 
  source of the fear. 
  41-50 The character begins babbling and is incapable of 
  normal speech or spellcasting. 
  51-60 The character must use his or her action each round to 
  attack the nearest creature. 
  61-70 The character experiences vivid hallucinations and has 
  disadvantage on ability checks. 
  71-75 The character does whatever anyone tells him or her to 
  do that isn't obviously self-destructive. 
  76-80 The character experiences an overpowering urge to eat 
  something strange such as dirt, slime, or offal. 
  81-90 The character is stunned. 
  91-
  100 The character falls unconscious. 
   
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Dungeons & Dragons [multi]/5th Edition (5e)/3rd Party/Wyatt Trull/DotMM Companion Bundle 5.pdf