The Dolmen Tomb – Area 13: Trapped Hall

 

The walls, floor, and ceiling of this hall are covered with finely-worked carvings that depict pastoral/quasi-ceremonial scenes of beasts and hill-men.

• Carvings. The various wall scenes are framed by sculpted trees and other flora. Steep ridgelines are visible in the backgrounds of each scene. Likewise, the ceiling panels are carved with clouds and birds, while the flagstones on the dusty floor depict rodents, lizards, and even fish in streams.

• Many of the carved lines are actually deep grooves in the stone. Specifically investigating the carvings on the north wall reveals dozens of small holes hidden within the grooves (a casual search requires a DC 18 (WIS) Perception check to spot them).

• Secret Doors. The tapered walls of the south end of the hall conceal stone panels (DC 18 (WIS) Perception check to notice faint seams, but found automatically if the party already knows what to look for). They otherwise act identically to the secret panels in area 1.

• A DC 16 (WIS) Perception check notices hidden seams and hollow footfalls on the floor near the south end of the hall, indicating a pair of hinged pit doors.

• Trap! Roll Initiative if either angled secret panel at the south end of passage is pushed open, which triggers a series of simultaneous traps. On Initiative 20:

• A volley of poisoned arrows fires from the north wall (this element of the trap only occurs ONCE). Anyone in the hall is attacked by 1d3+1 arrows (+4/1d6 piercing). Anyone struck must make a DC 12 CON save or be paralyzed for 1 minute.

• The concealed pit doors drop open into a 20 ft. pit (2d6 bludgeoning) with (4) brittle skeletons waiting below. The pit doors close automatically on Initiative 20 of the following round, trapping anyone who fell in. 

• Tomb undead do NOT trigger the pit doors, but anyone else stepping on them causes the doors to open again (and then close the following round).

• BOTH secret panels to areas 14 and 15 swing open.

• On their rolled Initiative, 4d3 brittle skeletons in each of those crypts rise and attack. Each round thereafter, 2d3 more skeletons rise until all have animated (24 in each chamber, 48 total)

• When half the skeletons in area 15 are killed, the wight interred in the crypt also rises and joins the fray (see below).

• If the party retreats, the skeletons will pursue them as will the wight in area 15, stopping only at the base of the stairs to the outside (area 1).

<< Area 12: Shrine

>> Area 14: Wise-woman's Crypt

__________

New Monsters

Brittle Skeleton
Medium undead, neutral
AC 12 (no armor)
HP 1
Speed 30

STR        DEX        CON        INT      WIS        CHA
10 (+0)    14 (+2)    10 (+0)     6 (-2)     8 (-1)      5 (-3)

Vulnerabilities. Bludgeoning
Damage Resistances. Piercing
Damage Immunities. Poison
Condition Immunities. Exhaustion, Poisoned
Senses. Darkvision 60 ft., Passive Perception 10
CR 1/8 (25 XP)
Proficiency. +0

–Loosely-Assembled. Because they are a collection of barely-held together bones, a brittle skeleton can pass through a Small opening or an ally’s space without penalty. Two brittle skeletons can occupy and fight in the same space without being considered prone.

Actions 

–Bony Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +2, Reach 5 ft., one target, Hit: 4 (1d4+2) slashing.

–Push-through. When faced with a line of enemies, a brittle skeleton can use its Action to throw itself against an opponent’s space, breaking apart into its constituent bones and then reforming on the other side. The brittle skeleton can only move up to 10 ft. in this manner, but can do so through spaces controlled by another creature.