Koskatep Level 12: Koskatepetl , The Wasted City

The wrath of the Sun God has hit the Gem of the Mountains, the great Azcan city of the land of the rising Sun. The city is now destroyed and abandoned; civil war plagues the Empire. The Sun God has forsaken the Emperor who wanted to defile the secret temple. It is a time of despair, and many fear the end of the Fourth Sun is upon us.

Koskatep, Level 12

This level can be reached only by going down from the chasm in area 1 on Level 11 (Kalasah, published in Issue 13 of Threshold magazine). The PCs will find themselves on Level 12, Koskatepetl, once the original Azcan city built over the location of the hidden temple of Ixion (Level 13, to be detailed in the next issue of Threshold), but abandoned before the Great Rain of Fire.

The levels of KOSKATEP in past issues of Threshold magazine:

#1: “Mirror of the Eternal Night” (Overview)
#2: “The Debris” (Level 1)
#3: “The Akropolis of Kotesh” (Level 2B)
#4: “The Lower Ruins of Kotesh” (Level 2A)
#5: “Ranesh, city of four people” (Level 3)
#6: “Karrast, dwarven gold” (Level 4)
#7: “Dark secrets of Ieronyx” (Level 5)
#8: “Shadows of Kundrak” (Level 6)
#9: “Signs of the Universe” (Level 7)
#10: “Mokrath, serpent eye” (Level 8)
#11: “Krystallac,Crystal Heart” (Level 9)
#12: “Intitepetl, Gem of the Sun” (Level 10)
#13: “Kalasah, The Black Heart” (Level 11)

The text below repeats the original description of this level in issue 1 of Threshold Magazine (Mirror of Eternal Night article). Read on to discover more on this level of Koskatep!

Level TWELVE, GEM OF THE MOUNTAINS

Koskatepetl, the original Azcan city before the Great Rain of Fire, was once here. As it was purposely destroyed by the priests of Ixion from the level below, just a mass of debris and corpses - long ago turned to dust - is all of what’s left of the once proud and great city. Yet, as the beastmen did not explore it much, and the Inti found it impractical to try to clear, almost all the contents of the city at the time are still here, buried in the ruins. Because of this, the site is one of the greatest treasure troves of the world, and one of the most intact archaeological sites of Blackmoorian times. At first look, the city is just a maze of fallen tunnels full of rubble, difficult to cross, with some partially crumbled skeleton or skull lying around, but one needs only the patience to dig a little to find metals, gems, gold, clothes, furniture, blades, treasures, ancient codes and spells - and very dangerous items such as radiance machinery and weapons.

The secrets: The DM should point out to over enthusiastic PC’s that randomly pillaging the ruins is a major archaeological crime. While PCs probably will not care about this, all the items found in Koskatepetl are still infected with the Wasting, the terrible disease that killed millions after the Great Rain of Fire - so foolish PCs will soon learn the error of their ways.

No undead inhabit old Koskatepetl nor do any lifeforms - not even oozes or small insects. That should give PCs a clue about the dangers of the place.

Nothing changes here after the Darkers take control. During the centuries The Last One has explored the city extensively but, much to his frustration, found it impossible to animate the dead here (an effect of the Temple), found the radiance items quite useless, and he knows of no passage to the Inner temple lying below. Should he find himself in serious danger on Level Ten, he might try to escape here, where he will be quite hard to find in the huge maze of rubble.

Timeline

5.100 BC: Precious and semi-precious gems are found in the area and the local people, ancestors of the Azcans, build mines nearby. Slowly the temple becomes a town, and later a city, that falls under the influence of the Oltec empire and is named Koskatepetl, the Gem of the Mountains.

3.525 BC: The Azcan empire is formed, and Koskatepetl becomes not only a source of gems but also of metals, to build new lethal weapons for the war.

3.057 BC: The Azcan emperor declares that the underground, secret temple of Ixion has to be opened to share its secrets with the people. The priests refuse, and destroy the city to seal the temple. A revolt of the Church of Ixion throws the empire into civil war and chaos; the site of Koskatepetl is abandoned and for several years infested by bandits and monsters that try in vain to occupy the place.

2.998 BC: Human refugees hide from the Great Rain of Fire in the ruins of Koskatepetl, but are soon slaughtered by a group of beastmen that take residence among the ruins. The inner temple survives the cataclysm and the invasions unscathed. In time the beastmen cover the ruins and create a complex cave system

2504 BC: The Inti, led by the church of Ixion, occupy the ruins and rebuild the city of Koskatepetl. The beastmen who survive the conquest hide in a remote part of the cave and are not detected. The Inti explore briefly Level 12, but realize it is poisonous and abandon Level 11 and 12, building their new city over them. Only a part of Level 11 is occasionally used as storerooms. Inspired by Hel, the beastmen seal a part of the caves (sublevels 1-4) to hide there.

2379 BC: The Troll Queen of Grondheim conquers the city, renaming it Krystallac. Just a few years later sidhe priests discover the existence of the inner temple of Level 13 and begin a century long negotiation with the sollux and the brutemen below to gain access to the artefact. They communicate through the temple of Ixion in Level 10 and do not settle Level 11. The beastmen thrive in their new hidden cave system.

2282 BC: As the Queen grows impatient about the unwillingness of Ixion to compromise, she sends her best troops to open the temple, digging a magical tunnel from Level 10 to 13. As this affects only the abandoned part of Level 11, the beastmen do not even notice. Inti troops soon attack the place, and Taymora intervenes shortly thereafter. This is the beginning of the War of the Empires, or the Twilight Wars, or the War of Southern Grondheim, that will last decades and will devastate the region. Mogreth intervenes as well a few years later.

2170 BC: Some fairies of Krystallac turn to the Unseelie, and decide to tell Elienor about Ashira’s tomb. The Troll Queen discovers them and exiles them, and manages to scatter the essence of Elienor after a terrible magical battle near the Crystal Lake. But she is gravely wounded by Elienor’s magic, and will never be able to recover. The Crystal Lake is also damaged and its capacity as a portal greatly reduced.

2080 BC: In a time of crisis in Grondheim, due to the Troll Queen’s malady, Taymora and Intua, lizardmen and troglodytes, escaped from Mogreth, occupy Krystallac and keep it for a hundred years. As the lizardmen cannot locate all the portals left by the fairies in Level 9, they try to seal it completely, and likewise they ignore Level 10 and below.

1976 BC: After a long siege Taymora conquers Krystallac and renames it Kosmoteiros. Nyx knows about Ixion’s artefact, but rather than try to steal or destroy it, she decides to exploit the magical aura of the place to build her own, stronger artefact that will bring about the fulfilment of her Dream. The followers of Nyx leave alone the levels below.

1777 BC: To prevent Kosmoteiros from falling into the hands of Thanatos, the priests of Nyx destroy the city with a terrible earthquake. Thousands die and the place is abandoned for many years as seismic activity increases in the area. The earthquake opens the Chasm down to Level 12.

1664 BC: After the destruction of Taymora, fairies of the Unseelie court, former exiles of Krystallac, take possession of the place and try to use the Starlake, but do not discover Ashira’s burial and are not able to reach Elienor until much later. The dark fairies of Kundrak do not reach Level 10 and below.

1597 BC: Lord Keiros, a Tal¹ nosferatu and follower of Nyx, conquers Koskatep from the dark fairies. Vampiric followers of Thanatos attack several times but are defeated. Lord Keiros briefly explores Level 10, 11 and 12, but does not use them.

1412 BC: Hutaakans conquer the site for Ixion and Pflarr; a seriously wounded Lord Keiros is forced to hide, and his followers are exterminated. The Hutaakans slowly explore the levels below, reaching Intitepetl and its mummies, and succeed in communing with them. They explore Level 11 and 12 also but, finding them empty, leave them alone.

1021 BC: Orcs sack Koskatep. Some hutaakan priests survive hiding in the lower levels, and will become more guardians for the hidden temple of Ixion, teleported from the temple in Level 10 by the will of the Immortal.

954 BC: After several battles, a dwarven army defeats the orcs and conquers Koskatep, but they are soon in constant warfare with the gnolls that rule over the region. They do not fully explore the lower levels.

912 BC: The dwarves are finally defeated by the gnolls, who build their own city over the ruins. Shamans of Ranivorus and Thanatos begin to study the Starlake. The Gnolls do not reach Level 10 and below.

841 BC: Followers of Nyx, aided by ogres and giants, attack Koskatep but are unable to conquer it from the gnolls, though they succeed in killing the most powerful shamans of Thanatos in Level 7, and burning their notes.

603 BC: The ogre king Kulfan conquers Koskatep in the name of Nyx; ogres rule over the area for centuries. Human priests of the Lady of the Night live in the city along with them. They have some contacts with Level 8 and 9, and reach Levels 10 and below, but do not use them.

95 AC: The Darkers almost complete the ritual to use the Starlake and bring forth the Eternal Night, but are stopped at the last moment by priests of Ixion, who drive out the ogres and occupy Koskatep for years. The priests of Ixion occupy all the levels down to the 10th, while they briefly explore Levels 11 and 12, soon abandoning them.

227 AC: The priests of Ixion have repelled several attempts by ogres, giants and followers of Nyx trying to reclaim the ruins, but are destroyed at last by a very powerful and ancient vampire sent by Thanatos, The Last One. Some priests of Ixion escape to the lowest level and become defenders of the inner temple, teleported from the temple in Level 10. In the following centuries ogres, giants, followers of Nyx, and even adventurers sent by Ixion try to reclaim Koskatep, but The Last One destroys them all. However, he fails to control completely Level 9 and 10, and so is unable to fully settle the empty Levels 11 and 12 with his minions.

912 AC: Traladaran freedom fighters hide in the ruins for some time, but are destroyed by the Thyatian army. The Thyatians soon leave the place.

998 AC (or later if the DM prefers): Lady Sonya, the Grand Daughter of the Night, a powerful priestess of Nyx, and her followers, are able to defeat The Last One and reclaim Koskatep. The Last One is not destroyed, but escapes to Level 10 with some faithful followers, to plan his revenge. However, Quehuar has his own plan to stab The Last One in the back and destroy the Darkers, too, with the aid of the followers of Ixion in Level 13.

1031 AC: The next alignment. On this date, the Starlake could be used to bring forth The Eternal Night. Shortly before this date at the latest, the beastmen of the hidden level will attack Level 13. If The Last One is still alive and hidden in Level 12, he will stage his final attack at this time. See also “The Battle on this level” paragraph at the bottom of the previous levels of Koskatep in Threshold issue #12 and #13.

The Random Critters table and the Wandering Parties table of level 2B (in issue #3 of Threshold magazine, pages 207 and 208) may apply here if the DM so wishes, ONLY in the empty part of the level. In this case there is a 1% chance in each room that a Wandering Party will be encountered.
The Followers of The Last One encounter table of level 1 (in issue #2 of Threshold magazine, page 122) can also still be used here if the DM so wishes, but only in the empty part. One such follower could try to join the PCs to explore this level, with the final purpose of bringing them in the presence of The Last One himself (in Level 7). After the Darkers take control (see issue 1) a party of them could also be encountered in this level.

Except for the casual explorer listed above, and The Last One and some of his minions if he is defeated twice but not destroyed, this level is completely empty. There are no living creatures, nor undead. There are only some constructs in specific locations, as described below, but they will not move around.

Spells that provide magical transportation, such as teleport, passwall, dimension door, magic door, travel, gate and spells such as clairvoyance and find the path do not work on this level as on Levels 5-9 due to powerful wards² placed by The Last One and others before him. The DM could decide to apply the same rule to the levels above the 5th, at least from Level 2 and below, particularly if the PCs are of a high level.

The map and the inhabitants of this Level
The area in dark grey on the map is solid stone, and thus very difficult to dig, even though it may contain small tunnels dug by critters and wandering monsters. The area in lighter grey of the main level is partially clear, but full of rubble, rocks and collapsed structures which cannot be recognized anymore. The dark red areas are collapsed buildings, sometimes with just a wall or half a wall standing. The orange buildings are still (mostly) standing and are the only ones which can be entered. Collapses may still occur inside them.
The former buildings of Koskatepetl are shown in red and orange because they were often painted and decorated with a prevalence of these colours.
The black “scar” in the middle of the map is the Chasm opened by the Kosmoteiros earthquake of 1777 BC, which goes all the way down to this level.
This level is empty of any inhabitants, unless The Last One is hidden here after a second defeat (see Levels 7 and 10 in Threshold issues #9 and #12). This could be the end of the dungeon for the PCs, because there is no way to reach Level 13 below by walking or mortal magic. The only way is by the will of Ixion, through the temple in Level 10, as described in Threshold issue #12, or if the beastmen of Level 11 are able to open a physical passage as described in Threshold issue #13. There is no light in this level unless the PCs bring it.
All Level 12 is contaminated by the Wasting, or Radiance poisoning, therefore anyone spending at least a day here or drinking the water of this level has a 70% chance (- constitution) to develop nausea and vomiting after 1d6 hours, which will last 1 full day, with minor headaches, and -3 to all rolls. The PC so affected will also feel weak for a full month thereafter, and suffer a -2 to all rolls and a 20% decrease of his/her hit points. After this month, she or he should recover fully, but there is a 15% chance the PC will develop a mysterious malady which will bring him or her to death in 1d6+2 weeks. The malady can be cured only with clerical healing of the fifth-seventh level.
This is the reason why nothing alive inhabits this level.
Something also happens here to undead, despite their status. After a full day spent here, the unintelligent undead such as zombies and ghouls begin to decay, losing pieces of their bodies and feeling weak, with a -1 cumulative to all rolls and characteristic for each day spent on this level. Once their constitution drop to 0, they fall to dust and are destroyed. Incorporeal undead suffer a similar effect, and eventually dissolve. Superior and intelligent undead, such as mummies, vampires, nosferatu and lich, do not suffer the weakening effect, but are unable to raise any lesser undead in this level. This effect is due to a combination of the powerful aura of the secret temple of Ixion in Level 13 and the Radiance poisoning suffered by the ruins of Koskatepetl after the Great Rain of Fire.

1 - The Chasm
This is the only passage from Level 11. As described in previous levels, climbing up and down or tying a rope could be quite dangerous, as the water dripping from Level 7 has random teleportation effects (see sidebar). Even if the Chasm does not reach down to Level 13, it’s still about 70 meters to the bottom, so a fall from here can easily kill anyone slipping down. Around the Chasm there are mostly collapsed buildings. Among the buildings, the skeletal remains of many inhabitants of the ancient city can still be seen, as is the case everywhere around the ruins of the city. Due to the effect of the temple of Ixion in Level 13 below, these skeletons cannot be animated.

1 - There is the Dark Waterfall coming down from above. As the walls of the chasm are wet, it is extremely dangerous to try to reach Level 11 and above from here, but on this level it is also the only way.
Touching the Dark Waterfall may also cause random teleportation effects to Annwyn, particularly the areas where it borders the Carnifex prison³.
This area of the city was the noble quarter in the heyday of Koskatepetl. Searching for many hours, it is still possible to find several ancient magical weapons, as well as precious and semi-precious stones (1 object decided by the DM for every hour of search by 5 people, or a 20% chance each hour for any individual PC). The magical objects found in Koskatepetl may be very strange and very powerful⁴, but are also all contaminated by the Wasting. This means that anyone carrying them around, even outside this level, will have a 30% chance (- Constitution) to develop nausea and vomiting for each day he or she carries the item. The sickness will then last 1 full day, with minor headaches, and -3 to all rolls. The PC so affected will also feel weak for a full month hereafter, and suffer a -2 to all rolls and a 20% decrease of his/her hit points. If the PC continues to carry the item, he will never recover and the malady will bring him or her to death in 1d6+2 weeks. The malady can be cured only with clerical healing of the fifth-seventh level. A similar spell could also be able to remove the contamination from the item, if the cleric understands this is not a “common” curse.

The Last One, Quehuar of Level 10, and the Darkers will keep on ignoring Level 12 as they have done so far. Only when the followers of Ixion open Level 13 to come up (if called by Quehuar as detailed in Area 4) will a permanent passage probably be built from Level 11 to 12. The actions of the beastmen in the hidden sublevels will obviously come into play, too (see previous issue of Threshold magazine). If the Last One is defeated in his hideout of Level 10 but not destroyed, he will come down here, but will not stop in this area.

This was once a great plaza, used by the noble Azcan of the ancient city for sports and meetings. The only standing building was once a house of pleasures to consume drugs and engage in other activities. Not much is left now except for rubble, and some interesting mural paints which seem to represent dog-headed people. PCs could find treasures and objects digging around, as described in the previous area.
The river runs slowly to the north. It is completely devoid of any life; its waters will cause nausea and vomiting, and affect a PC with the Wasting, should he or she drink them. There was also a bridge in this area, now collapsed. Beyond the river was the area of the city inhabited by servants and common people, now completely in rubble and containing in general only common objects.

2 - The house once had a guardian, a jade living statue⁵, which is still inside, appearing as a dog headed creature. PCs who have seen gnolls, Hutaakans or lupins may believe it to represent one of these races. The statue will animate if someone enters the house, presenting herself as Chetlan. She will speak in Azcan only. She will offer pleasures which are no longer available in the house. Her real usefulness may escape the PCs, as she can answer many questions on the ancient past and the layout of the city. She does not know about the Wasting and the danger of staying in Koskatepetl or picking up objects. She will refuse to leave the area unless a powerful wizard PC can somehow modify her incantation. She is still contaminated by the Wasting and can affect PCs staying near her, giving all a 15% chance each day to develop the malady as described above.

The Last One will ignore this area even if he hides in this level. Should he stay here for a long time, he may try to modify Chetlan for his purposes. Any other party who will decide to rebuild this level, if they will be able to remove the contamination of the Wasting, will do the same (see Area 6).

This area once held the forges and workshops of the city, mostly pottery, and some buildings are still standing. This area too could be excavated to find archaeological treasure, and among them there are several masks made of obsidian and other materials. Some of the masks are clearly magical. There is only a 5% chance of finding a magical mask for each person searching for an hour, but there are several mundane masks clearly visible.

3 - The masks have similar properties to the minor artefact Mask of Bachraeus, described in the Rules Cyclopedia, page 249, but each one has only one power between Charm Person (once a day), Resist Poison (permanent when wear), Turn to Stone (once a day), Detect Magic (once a day), Passwall (once a day), Immunity to Turn to Stone and Charm (permanent when worn), or others the DM thinks appropriate. The masks can be removed at will.

The Last One will probably find the masks and use them to his advantage. If he is defeated and another party manages to fully explore Level 12, they will find the masks and take them.

This was once the great palace of the city on the Golden Avenue (see below), and had in front of it the great garrison, now completely in rubble. The great palace has partially survived, and its four pyramidal levels can still be entered, but the interior could be subject to collapses. Murals depicting jaguars and fantastical creatures can still be seen on the walls. There are also several iron and rock living statues in the palace which will activate if someone enter the room in which they stand. There is also a 25% chance of finding magical treasures and object for each person searching for an hour.

4 - The statues will ask intruders to leave in Azcan, and will not accept delays. However, a powerful wizard could be able to modify their incantation. In this case, the statues could answer many questions about the city, their times, and also the secret caches of treasures and magical weapons which are still hidden in the basements of the palace and the garrison. As Koskatepetl was an important city on the eastern border of the Azcan Empire before the Great Rain of Fire, the amount and power of such weapons and magical object could be quite relevant.

The Last One or any other party coming after him could well be capable of turning the statues to his side and discovering the secret treasures and weapons.

This was once the main avenue of the city, surrounded by shops and the great covered market on the left side. The great bridge over the river is the only one now still standing, and can be crossed in relative safety. In this area there is a 20% chance for every hour of searching by each person to find valuables, including gold and gems. Just a few strange coins are present, however, as the classical Azcan did not use them.

5 - An ancient jade statue is half buried among the rubble of the market. His name is Ceotl, and in Azcan time he served as a guide and source of information. As with the other statues, he speaks in Azcan only, but magic could be used to communicate with him. He will not attack but will defend himself if attacked.

The Last One, or any other party coming after him, will find Ceotl and use him for information.

This was the pyramidal temple of Ixion (called by the Azcan Otzitiotl) at the height of Koskatepetl. The temple was not destroyed by the earthquakes of 3,057 and 1,777 BC but partially damaged and abandoned. The temple has several levels, but now all the internal areas are dangerous and can collapse on minimal vibrations (10% chance every turn, 15% if more than 5 people are walking near each other). Despite the danger, the temple still has all its treasures intact: gold, tapestries, magical objects, and gems. All of it is contaminated by the Wasting. The Vault of the temple has even more fantastic treasures. However, at least 12 living statues will activate to defend the treasures of the temple, 5 of them defending the Vault. The statues will animate only with someone tries to take objects away or if someone tries to open the Vault’s locked door. They will not speak to anyone, even if he or she speaks Azcan. A fight will increase the chance of a collapse by 5% for every 5 rounds of fighting.

6 - Several skeletons lay around the temple, remnants of ancient adventurers who tried to take the treasures away and failed. Some of them have also magical objects. The statue will not intervene to defend such objects. Followers of Ixion entering this temple may experience visions warning them of the dangers of the collapses and the Wasting, and advising them to reach the temple in Level 10 (see issue #12 of Threshold magazine) for a safe access to Level 13. A group of at least 12 clerics of Ixion working together in this temple for a month will succeed in purifying this level from the Wasting. The clerics of Level 13 will eventually do that if they come out, and a visiting PC cleric could receive a vision showing this too.

The Last One, or any other party coming after him, will explore the temple and take possession of the many treasures still buried here.

This plaza was once home to the other main temples of the city, such as the one dedicated to Kalaktatla (Ka), and other immortals venerated by the ancient Azca, such as Tlaloc (Protius), Xochiquetzal (Valerias), Mictlancihuatl (Hel) and others. The temples of Ka and Valerias are the biggest ones, and are in the best condition. Both contain treasures, and at least 7 living statues protecting them, as in the great temple described above.

7 - As in the temple above, some skeletons are also abandoned here and their minor magical objects can be safely taken. Followers of Valerias and Ka could also experience visions when inside the temple of their immortals, with warning of the dangers. They will not, however, receive directions on how to access Level 13.

The Last One, or any other party coming after him, will eventually explore these temples, too, and take possession of the many treasures still buried here.

This area of the city was once home to workshops of various kinds, as the technomagic development of Blackmoor had reached the Azcan Empire, too, back in 3,057 BC, when the city was destroyed and abandoned. Various types of technomagic toys and weapons can be found here⁶, but they are all contaminated by the Wasting and therefore highly dangerous. There is also the laboratory in which the living statues were created, with several of them in different stages of completion.

8 - A good wizard or alchemist, or a gnome or dwarf with some relevant skills, could be able to learn here all what is necessary to build a living statue. The process is explained in several Azcan Codices, which could be taken away and studied. The codices suffer from a minor Radiance contamination, giving a 5% chance each day of developing the malady described in Area 1 to anyone handling them.

The Last One or any other party coming after him will eventually discover the codex and develop his (or theirs) own living statues as soon as possible.

In Azcan times, this was a school for girls of various ages, normally daughters of nobles or rich merchants who were educated to become clerics, wizards, or refined courtesans. Several images of a female immortal, probably Valerias or Ordana, are painted around the palace. Not much is left now except for some half decayed dresses, toys and laboratories. A lone living statue, Xechal, stands in the main courtyard, appearing as a noble Azcan woman (with a long shirt, long skirt and hair braided on the front). She is a crystal statue but will not attack unless PCs destroy the properties of the Palace. It is possible to speak to her in Azcan.

9 - The only treasures still lying around in this building are the jewels and the gems once worn by the young students. A small minority of them may be magical (only 1% chance of finding one if one person searches for one hour).

The Last One, or any other party coming after him, will not explore this palace much, unless they want eventually to clear this level and settle it (once the level is purified from the Wasting).

This was once a beautiful garden with a lake in the centre, a popular place to walk for the ancient inhabitants of the city. Now rubble is all around, and the water is grey and dirty. In addition to that, it will cause the malady of the Wasting to anyone drinking it. Another major danger also lies in it.

10 - The stone living statue of an alligator is hidden just below the waters. The statue was created just before the destruction of the city by an Azcan wizard who meant to use it to kill a hated rival, but this never happened. Deprived of its purpose for centuries, the statue will now attack any wizard coming near the waters. The statue is able to detect magic, and will attack any PC which possess a relevant quantity of it, including magical objects.

The Last One or any other party coming after him will surely possess a lot of magic, and so will be attacked by the stone alligator immediately. The Last One will try to take control of the statue for his own purposes, and the same could be done by others who will come here.

There will be no initial battle on this level, but the Last One will come down here to explore if he is defeated again in Level 10, or in any case in which he is repelled but not destroyed. The paragraphs about the battle in Level 10 and 11 in the previous issues of Threshold already explained and detailed several possible outcomes of the battle for the control of Koskatep.

1The name I gave to the Taymoran descended population that lived in Karameikos before the arrival of the Traldars, see my History of Traladara here in the Vaults: http://pandius.com/tralhist.html

2For example a Teleport Ward as the spell created by Robin D. here in the Vaults: http://pandius.com/tprtward.html

3This idea comes from RobJN here: http://thornschronicle.blogspot.it/2014/06/design-diary-time-before-years.html For more information about the Carnifex, see here: http://pandius.com/lore.html and here: http://pandius.com/carnifex.html Annwyn is the home plane of the Dark Fairies, see also the previous level of Koskatep in Threshold issue #8 here: http://pandius.com/Threshold_8.pdf and issue #9 about the Dark Waterfall: .http://pandius.com/Threshold_9.pdf. The chance of teleportation could be very low (only 5% of the times that someone touches the waters), or much higher, depending on the DM’s preference. This should be considered an Immortal level effect, thus not affected by any Teleport Ward, see note 4.

4For ideas on the technomagic items from before the Great Rain of Fire see these links in the Vaults of Pandius: Alien devices from DA3 http://pandius.com/aliendev.html, Sample tech weapons by Rob http://pandius.com/techweap.html, Additional tech weapons by Alex Benson http://pandius.com/techwep2.html and 3.5E Technology by Jamie Baty http://pandius.com/blktech.html

5Living statues appears in the Rules Cyclopedia, with more types as new monster in B10 Night’s Dark Terror and in the 1993 Creature Catalog. See also here on the Vaults of Pandius: http://pandius.com/livestat.html