Master Bellows

Area 1-7a – Master Bellows

Master Bellows lurks in the shadows just inside the chamber, cleaver and meat hook in hand. He waits for the PCs to enter before attacking. If the PCs don’t venture into the chamber, Master Bellows ambushes them in area 1-8.

Master Bellows resembles nothing so much as a walking cadaver. His stringy black hair hangs in clumps, his sallow skin clings to his bird-like bones, and his long, nervous fingers dance about like spider legs. He fights with a skill born of years of butchery, wielding both cleaver and meat hook to great effect. Master Bellows attacks with both weapons each round. On any round that the meat hook strikes a target on a roll of 17 or better, his attack with the cleaver automatically scores a critical hit.

The butcher-surgeon has served the temple for decades, disposing of bodies and castrating the eunuchs. If the PCs are disguised as devotees, they may be able to fool him for a short while, but subtle clues and missteps will quickly raise his suspicions. Fanatical in his devotion to Máni, Master Bellows cannot be bribed or frightened into submission.

He keeps his meager treasure hidden behind a loose stone set into the wall. Dwarves readily notice the stone as do other PCs carefully searching the south wall. The stone is easily worked

free. Hidden within the niche are 35 sp, lovingly arranged in stacks, a moon hand-carved from bone, and a simple opal wrapped in a leather scrap. The opal is blessed by Máni and grants its owner a +1 bonus to Luck checks.

Master Bellows: Init +1; Atk cleaver +4 melee (1d4+2) and meat hook +3 (1d6+2); AC 13; HD 6d6; HP 24; MV 30’; Act 2d20; SP improved critical hit (automatic crit with cleaver following 17+ meat hook attack roll); SV Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +1; AL C.