Death House Maps and descriptions:

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alhoon
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Death House Maps and descriptions:

Post by alhoon »

This will be updated as the PCs explore more rooms. It should help for reference.
"You truly see what a person is made of, when you begin to slice into them" - Semirhage
"I am not mad, no matter what you're implying." - Litalia
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alhoon
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Re: Death House Maps and descriptions:

Post by alhoon »

1st Floor

Image

The first floor has 10-foot-high ceilings and the rooms are free of dust and signs of age.

1:
VIEW CONTENT:
A wrought-iron gate with hinges on one side and a lock on the other fills the archway of a stone portico. The gate is opened. Oil lamps hang from the portico ceiling by chains, flanking a set of oaken doors that open into a grand foyer. Hanging on the south wall of the foyer is a shield emblazoned with a coat-of-arms (a stylized golden windmill on a red field), flanked by framed portraits of stony-faced aristocrats.
Mahogany-framed double doors leading from the foyer to the main hall are set with panes of stained glass.
2: Main Hall
VIEW CONTENT:
A wide hall runs the width of the house, with a black marble fireplace at one end and a sweeping, red marble staircase at the other. Mounted on the wall above the fireplace is a longsword with a windmill cameo worked into the hilt. The wood-paneled walls are ornately sculpted with images of vines, flowers, nymphs, and satyrs. The decorative paneling follows the staircase as it circles upward to the second floor.
A cloakroom (2A) has several black cloaks hanging from hooks on the walls. A top hat sits on a
high shelf.

Serpents and skulls are inconspicuously woven into the wall designs, carefully hidden that require sharp eyes and investigation to notice amidst the otherwise peaceful ornaments.


3:
VIEW CONTENT:
The oak-paneled room looks like a hunter’s den. Mounted above the fireplace is a stag’s head, and positioned around the outskirts of the room are three stuffed wolves. Their carcasses are displayed here in a grotesque parody of a wolf pack, their snouts permanently locked in an unfriendly growl.
Two padded chairs draped in animal furs face the hearth, with an oak table between them supporting a cask of wine, two carved wooden goblets, a pipe rack, and a candelabrum. A chandelier hangs above a cloth-covered table surrounded by four chairs.
Two cabinets stand against the walls.

The shutters of the windows are broken by the PCs.
4: Kitchen and pantry
VIEW CONTENT:
The kitchen is tidy, with dishware, cookware, and utensils neatly placed on shelves. A worktable has a cutting board and rolling pin atop it. A stone, domeshaped oven stands near the east wall, its bent iron stovepipe connecting to a hole in the ceiling. Behind the stove and to the left is a thin door leading to a wellstocked pantry, the food in which seems recent, unspoiled and could be the first sign they got that someone actually lives here.

Behind a small door in the southwest corner of the kitchen is a dumbwaiter—a 2-foot-wide stone shaft containing a wooden elevator box attached to a simple rope and-pulley mechanism that must be operated manually. Hanging on the wall next to the dumbwaiter is a tiny brass bell, which as the gnomes quickly realize, is attached by wires to elegant cords in different floors so the aristocrats could inform the servants that the dumbwaiter has been -or is to be- used.
A Small character can squeeze into the elevator box.
5: Dining hall
VIEW CONTENT:
The centerpiece of this wood-paneled dining room is a carved mahogany table surrounded by eight highbacked chairs with sculpted armrests and cushioned seats. A crystal chandelier hangs above the table, which is covered with resplendent silverware and crystalware polished to a dazzling shine. Mounted above the marble fireplace is a mahogany-framed painting of an
alpine vale.

The wall paneling is carved with elegant images of deer among the trees. Red silk drapes cover the windows, and a tapestry depicting hunting dogs and horse-mounted aristocrats chasing after a wolf hangs from an iron rod bolted to the south wall.

There are twisted faces carved into the tree trunks and wolves lurking amid the carved foliage of the paneling, hidden from casual view.
"You truly see what a person is made of, when you begin to slice into them" - Semirhage
"I am not mad, no matter what you're implying." - Litalia
My DMGuild work!
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alhoon
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Re: Death House Maps and descriptions:

Post by alhoon »

2nd Floor
Image

This floor is also free of signs of age. The ceiling is 12 feet high.

6: Main staircase
VIEW CONTENT:
Unlit oil lamps are mounted on the walls of this elegant hall. Hanging above the mantelpiece is a wood-framed portrait of the Durst family: Gustav and Elisabeth Durst with their two smiling children, Rose and Thorn. Cradled in the father’s arms is a swaddled baby, which the mother regards with a hint of scorn. Standing suits of armor flank wooden doors in the east and west walls. Each suit of armor clutches a spear and has a visored helm shaped like a wolf’s head. The doors are carved with dancing youths. The red marble staircase that started on the first floor continues its upward spiral. A cold draft can be felt coming down the steps.

Closer inspection of the dancing youth has proven that they were not dancing amidst birds, but fighting off swarms of bats.
The upper left armor had a trap that has been de-activated and destroyed.
7:
VIEW CONTENT:
An undecorated bedroom which contains a pair of beds with straw-stuffed mattresses. At the foot of each bed is a footlocker. There's a door that seems to lead to a build-in closet or similar small room.
The room again seems free of dust and signs of age. It is devoid of personal affects or items.
8: Library
VIEW CONTENT:
Red velvet drapes cover the windows of this room. An exquisite mahogany desk and a matching high-back chair face the entrance and the fireplace, above which hangs a framed picture of a windmill perched atop a rocky crag. Situated in corners of the room are two overstuffed chairs. Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves line the south wall. A rolling wooden ladder allows one to more easily reach the high shelves.
9: Secret room
VIEW CONTENT:
This secret room contains bookshelves packed with tomes describing fiend-summoning rituals and the necromantic rituals of a cult called the Priests of Osybus. A heavy wooden chest with clawed iron feet stands against the south wall, its lid half-closed to prevent the dart trap from re-arming.

On the floor of the room are the remains of an undead skeleton, belonging to a long dead adventurer.
10: Conservatory
VIEW CONTENT:
conservatory.
Gossamer drapes cover the windows of this elegantly appointed hall, which has a brass-plated chandelier hanging from the ceiling. Upholstered chairs line the walls, and stained-glass wall hangings depict beautiful men, women, and children singing and playing instruments.
A harpsichord with a bench rests in the northwest corner. Near the fireplace is a large standing harp. Alabaster figurines of well-dressed dancers adorn the mantelpiece.

Close inspection of them reveals that several figurines are carvings of well-dressed skeletons.
"You truly see what a person is made of, when you begin to slice into them" - Semirhage
"I am not mad, no matter what you're implying." - Litalia
My DMGuild work!
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alhoon
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Re: Death House Maps and descriptions:

Post by alhoon »

Image



This floor shows obvious signs of abandonment. Dust, decay and cobwebs adorn the faded tapestries, carpets and wallpanels. The floor has 8' ceiling.

11:
VIEW CONTENT:
At the top of the red marble staircase is a dusty balcony with a suit of black plate armor standing against one wall, draped in cobwebs. Oil lamps are mounted on the oak-paneled walls, which are carved with woodland scenes of trees, falling leaves, and tiny critters.

Inspection of the paneling reveals tiny corpses hanging from the trees and worms bursting up from the ground.
12: Master Bedroom.
VIEW CONTENT:
The double doors to this room have dusty panes of stained glass set into them. Designs in the glass resemble windmills.

The dusty, cobweb-filled master bedroom has burgundy drapes covering the windows. Furnishings include a four-poster bed with embroidered curtains and tattered gossamer veils, a matching pair of empty wardrobes, a vanity with a wood-framed mirror and jewelry box and a padded chair. A rotting tiger-skin rug lies on the floor in front of the fireplace, which has a dust-covered portrait of Gustav and Elisabeth Durst hanging above it.
A web-filled parlor in the southwest corner contains a table and two chairs. Resting on the dusty tablecloth is an empty porcelain bowl and a matching jug. A door facing the foot of the bed has a full-length mirror mounted on it. The door opens to reveal an empty, dust-choked closet (area 12B). A door in the parlor leads to an outside balcony (area 12C).
13: Bathroom
VIEW CONTENT:
This dark room contains a wooden tub with clawed feet, a small iron stove with a kettle resting atop it, and a barrel under a spigot in the east wall. A cistern on the roof used to collect rainwater, which was borne down a pipe to the spigot; however, the plumbing no longer works.
15: Nursemaid's suite
VIEW CONTENT:
Dust and cobwebs shroud an elegantly appointed bedroom and an adjoining nursery (area 15B). Double doors set with panes of stained glass pull open to reveal a balcony (area 15C) overlooking the front of the house.
The bedroom contains a large bed, two end tables, and an empty wardrobe. Mounted on the wall next to the wardrobe is a full-length mirror with an ornate wooden frame carved to look like ivy and berries.

A closer look reveals eyes hidden among the berries. The mirror is broken by the party.
"You truly see what a person is made of, when you begin to slice into them" - Semirhage
"I am not mad, no matter what you're implying." - Litalia
My DMGuild work!
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alhoon
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Re: Death House Maps and descriptions:

Post by alhoon »

ATTIC
"You truly see what a person is made of, when you begin to slice into them" - Semirhage
"I am not mad, no matter what you're implying." - Litalia
My DMGuild work!
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alhoon
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Re: Death House Maps and descriptions:

Post by alhoon »

Dungeon:

Image



Key: white: unexplored. Black: Wall. Gray: open floor. T: Trap.

The dungeon level underneath Death House is carved out of earth, clay, and rock. The tunnels are 4 feet wide by 7 feet high with timber braces at 5-foot intervals. Rooms are 8 feet tall and supported by thick wooden posts with crossbeams.

There's an eerie, incessant chant echoing throughout. It’s impossible to gauge where the sound is coming from.

22:
VIEW CONTENT:
The wooden spiral staircase from the attic ends here. A narrow tunnel stretches southward before branching North and South.
23: Family crypts
VIEW CONTENT:
Here are the crypts of the Durst family. Most crypts are sealed with a stone slab.

A: The blank stone slab meant to seal this crypt leans against a nearby wall. The crypt is empty.
B: The stone slab meant to seal this crypt leans against a nearby wall. Etched into it is the name Walter Durst. The crypt is empty.
24: Cult initiate quarters:
VIEW CONTENT:
A wooden table and four chairs stand at the east end of this room. There are four alcoves containing moldy straw pallets.
25: Well and Cultist quarters:
VIEW CONTENT:
A 4-foot-diameter well shaft with a 3-foot-high stone lip descends 30 feet to a water-filled cistern. A wooden bucket hangs from a rope-and-pulley mechanism bolted to the crossbeams above the well. Five side rooms once served as quarters for senior cultists. Each contains a wood-framed bed with a moldy straw mattress and a wooden chest to hold personal belongings. Each chest is secured with a rusty iron padlock.
"You truly see what a person is made of, when you begin to slice into them" - Semirhage
"I am not mad, no matter what you're implying." - Litalia
My DMGuild work!
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VAN
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Re: Death House Maps and descriptions:

Post by VAN »

Just want to bring it up so it will be easier to find.
- The first 2 Feats a wizard should take are "point blank shot" and "Precise shot"!
- W H A T ! ? !
- Or they should NEVER memorize rays!
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