All of you have heard of the stories, Rappan Athuk, the place where many had made fortunes, and many more died. You all arrived at a small town, Zelkor Ferry. To call it a town might be a bit much,m as it consists of a handful of buildings in a old river fort, but it does provide a place to rest. You all stayed at the inn last night.Many hundreds of years ago, the forces of good allied to destroy
the main Temple of Orcus in the ancient city of Tsar. With their
temple in ruins, the surviving high priests of this accursed demongod
fled the city with an army of enemies on their trail—an army
of heroic fighters, clerics and paladins—led by Zelkor, a powerful
wizard. The exact fate of these evil priests was then unknown, for
not only did the remnants of the followers of Orcus disappear from
all human reckoning, but so did the army of light that followed after
them disappear as well. Some said that in the eternal scales the loss
of so many good men was a fair price to pay to rid the world of so
much evil.
The evil cult, however, had not been destroyed. The surviving
priests and their followers instead settled on a hill near the Forest
of Hope, a sylvan woodland near the Coast Road. There they found
a vast underground complex of caverns and mazes, carving out a
volcanic intrusion beneath the hill. There, the priests of Orcus found
the perfect lair to continue their vile rituals. For many years, they
carried on in secret, hidden from the light and from the knowledge
of men.
Many years later, their underground delving completed, the evil
priests erected a hideous mausoleum and a sunken graveyard atop
the hill. It is believed that these graves are in fact the final resting
place of the pursuing army of heroes that had been destroyed to a
man. Soon after the mausoleum was erected the peaceful creatures
of the wood began to disappear. Though many rangers and
druids investigated these happenings, the cause of the creatures’
disappearance was not immediately determined. Some years later a
powerful group of adventurers, led by Bofred, a high priest of Thyr,
investigated the evil happenings and found the sunken graveyard
leading to a labyrinthine complex. Bofred and his companions
found great hordes of evil creatures in the complex. Though some
of his companions returned from their expedition, telling tales of
fantastic treasure and ferocious monsters, Bofred was never seen
again—lost in the catacombs beneath the cursed mausoleum.
For the last one hundred years, ranks of adventurers have ventured
to the newfound dungeon. Many fell prey to bandits and monsters
in the surrounding wilderness. Rumors suggest that of those who
survived to reach the mausoleum and sunken graveyard, most were
slain by guardians of green stone or perished on the very first level.
Those rare few who return from deeper treks speak of horrible
undead and creatures that cannot be slain. All who have explored
Rappan Athuk offer this one universal piece of advice: “Don’t go
down the Well.”
You have heard many things, that there is a great mausoleum to the East, about 50 miles, though a ferry will take you to the coastal road that will get you within 10 miles of the Mausoleum. There is also a local place, called the "Mouth of Doom" that some say may be related to the fabled Rappan Athuk. Also you are warned, the local woods and hills are not a civilized place, there is Gnolls, Goblins, and worse, Outlaws who are hiding, Hidden shrines to Chaotic gods, and even a report of a Ogre leading a small army of 100 kolbolds.
The party meets at the Inn common room, and now it up to the party to decide how they wish to proceed, do you need to get last moment supplies or hire some help? Seek rumors and information? Or head out to one of the many places for adventure....
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