Delve · p.146 · 3p
Open source p.146Temple of the Jade Lantern
LEVEL 5–8 D eep within the ancient temple of Kulva, a giant is trying to conjure forth a permanent winter. To foil his evil plans, the party must brave freezing waters, froggish samurai, and unravel a tragic love story. Concept by Runehammer
Temple of the Jade Lantern Click or scan the QR code to access cheat sheets, errata, and other helpful tools for running the dungeon.
DUNGEON OVERVIEW
Themes Aquatic, Love, Winter Time 3–6 hours
Combat Dangers Puzzles Social
Background
The Temple Kulva is an ancient, half- submerged temple that lays concealed by overgrowth in a vast marshland. Built long ago by froggish humanoids, it guards many secrets. The greatest of these is the fabled Element Stone.
The Lovers Centuries ago, a pair of unlikely lovers – the half-croaker Fumiko and the swamp troll Stragh – came to the temple to flee the persecution of their home village. When they found a magical Green Dragon Blade, Stragh became cursed to protect the Element Stone forevermore. Imbued with immortality and unable to leave, Stragh was forced to watch Fumiko age and die. Now, Fumiko haunts the temple as an Arisen Spirit, while Stragh has transformed into a terrible Swamp Stalker that sings a lonely, baleful song each evening. The song has a magical property, causing the temple to seal shut until dawn.
Hook
Bargemaster’s Blockage Ice blockage in the normally warm waters of the River Thenne worries Brunbal, bargemaster in the nearby village of Dellsburrow.
The Giant & The Samurai Hasnir, a Giant Rimebinder, has come to the temple, seeking to use the Element Stone to bring about an unnatural winter and pave the way for his kin to eventually invade the region. As Hasnir claimed the Element Stone, Stragh became bound through the stone’s magic to serve the evil giant. Hasnir has now begun conjuring his arcane winter, but lacks the knowledge to make it permanent and powerful enough to encompass the whole realm. Alerted by Hasnir’s tinkering with the Element Stone, a detachment of Croaker Samurai arrived at the temple a few days ago. Their mission is to reclaim the long-lost stone and, if possible, enslave or capture Hasnir as a gift to their mighty frog Emperor. Only a band of brave heroes can stop Hasnir’s plans, deal with the samurai, and put an end to Stragh and Fumiko’s suffering.
He offers the party 100 gp to accompany him aboard his boat, The Modest Otter, to investigate the unnatural phenomenon and put a stop to it.
The Temple
The temple consists of long canals and vast chambers built beneath marshy hills. It is freezing cold. General Features
The temple has these features unless otherwise noted. ► CEILINGS. 20 feet high. ► DANGER LEVEL. Unsafe. ► DOORSTONES. Weigh several tons and require creatures with a combined STR stat of 30+ to open or close 1 foot (1 action). The doorstones at the temple’s exits become magically sealed and can’t be opened until morning or when Stragh wills it (see Developments, pg. 157). ► ECHOING. DISADV on checks to move silently; sound travels twice as far as normal. ► ILLUMINATION. Darkness, except for areas J4 and J8. ► WATER. Canals are 5 feet deep. After each minute a creature spends in the supernaturally cold water, it must pass a DC 9 CON check or take CON damage. The current flows from area J1 toward area J7, moving any creature or object within it a close distance each round.
Events
When the party enters a Narrative Canal (indicated on the map), choose or roll a random event. Event 1 Fumiko’s ghost (see area J1) briefly appears, crying: “My beloved Stragh... Free him, please!” 2 Stragh’s song reaches a fever pitch; DC 12 CHA check or damage and DISADV on all checks for 1 hour. 3 Icicles fall from above. DC 12 DEX check or damage. 4 Croaker Samurai pass by in a wicker boat.
J1 Arisen spirit
Narrative Canals 200 feet – 2 minutes J2
J3
J4 Croaker Samurai
Tunnels Lead to empty rooms J7
J8 Giant Rimebinder SWamp Stalker
Exit Canal 60 feet to exit
J6 Beast of Heket
J5
Narrative Canal 200 feet – 2 minutes
Outside the Temple
Traveling aboard Brunbal’s boat, The Modest Otter, the party arrives at the entrance around dusk:
As Brunbal steers upriver he declares: “Something strange in the air here. Thank the gods I have a crew of heavies like you knucklers! And there’s our quarry now…icy waters, three clicks abow! Look alive, heroes!” Brunbal’s little boat is slammed by huge bobbing chunks of blue ice. They crack and swirl, damaging the boat with each thump and scrape. “Keep the chunks back! The helm’s gone wild!”
Roll Initiative as the boat drifts into the ice. After 3 rounds, the icy current sweeps the party into the temple’s canals.
Chunks of Blue Ice At the start of each round, ice chunks appear. Brunbal steers while the party can attack the ice chunks (AC 10; HP 5) or push them away with Brunbal’s “pushin’ poles” (1 action; DC 12 STR). At the end of each round, The Modest Otter takes 1 hit for each ice chunk that wasn’t smashed or pushed away (see Brunbal & His Boat).
Icy Current After 3 rounds, the party is pulled into the canals (area J1):
Rocking side to side while bits of hull and gunwale splinter into the glassy, jagged freeze, you are pulled into a turbulent sluice of icy water and green stone. Rushing water fades behind you as you finally slow down, traveling down an ancient, dark canal. As you look around in the dark, Brunbal mutters, “So they are real…the canals of Kulva…”
Brunbal & His Boat It’s assumed that the party travels with the dwarf Brunbal aboard The Modest Otter. Bargemaster Brunbal. A gray- bearded dwarf Peasant wearing rubbery waders. He is far too old for adventures and doesn’t fight, but serves as both aid and liability for the party. The Modest Otter. Sails near/round when rowed with the current. If it takes a total of 5 hits, the boat sinks in rounds, forcing the party to wade or swim in the freezing canals.
No extracted maps for this adventure — the map is in the source book: Open source p.146
Rooms (9)
J1 Entrance Canal p.151
Icy water flows deep in this dark cavern-canal, the strong current carrying you along. Suddenly, a forlorn and translucent figure in a stylish kimono appears ahead, floating weightlessly above the water and holding a lantern aglow with green light.
As the party enters the canals, the ghost of Fumiko appears to give them her lantern, and Stragh begins his song, sealing the temple shut. The icy current then pulls the party further south.
Translucent Figure Arisen Spirit (Fumiko) appears when the party enters the canal:
Speaking in a weak and pitiful voice, the spirit says: “Please, take my lantern. I cannot serve the realm so frozen! To see the sun again…even without my lost love, even without love itself…to see the sun…” While she speaks, the figure, which you now see is a woman with frog-like features, drifts closer, carrying a lantern that shines with green light.
Fumiko attaches the Jade Lantern to the prow or gives it to the nearest character. If attacked, she drops the lantern in the water and flees. In either case, she vanishes:
A moment later, the figure fades and then disappears completely, leaving only a thin mist. As the mist clears, an eerie, sad song echoes through the canal tunnel, and a huge green doorstone seals the river entrance behind you with a grind and a thud. Only the lantern and its haunting green light remain. “It seems we’re trapped here… and naught but the current to guide us,” Brunbal mutters.
Icy Current The current pulls the party into mural-covered canals (area J2).
Swimming Swimming a Narrative Canal (indicated on the temple’s map, see pg. 148) takes about 2 minutes, forcing characters in the water to pass two DC 9 CON checks or take CON damage (see General Features, pg. 147). If they lost their boat outside, the party may be able to steal one of the croakers’ boats by the Map Room Landing (area J3).
J2 Mural Canal p.152
The current pulls the party along for a few minutes, past murals depicting the temple’s history:
Further ahead, long murals appear to depict the building of a temple and the capture of a large, froggish creature. The ghostly spirit reappears, now in a different kimono. Her form seems more tangible as she turns to you and asks, with sincere curiosity: “Why have you come?”
While the current pulls the party past the murals, Fumiko shares her tragic tale until a clanking noise frightens her.
The ghostly specter of Fumiko readily shares information about the temple, her and Stragh, the frost giant Hasnir, and the croaker samurai (see Background, pg. 146). Her answers may be cryptic and melancholic, such as:
• “My sweet Stragh! His soul is trapped by that awful sword! How I miss his embrace!”
• “I always loved Stragh, but my people wouldn’t have it. Then, on that dark night, we fled my village, guided by my lantern. Endless hours fleeing the marsh, only to take shelter here, in what would become our tomb.”
• “When my beloved touched that accursed green blade, he became bound to it. It preserved his life, but prevented him from leaving, forcing him to watch on while I wasted away by his side.”
• “The doorstones will not open until dawn. Stragh’s baleful song works terrible magic by night.”
• “So much commotion these days! First that awful giant, and now these imperial warriors. Terrible!”
• “Yes, Kulva was once mighty. A home for the Element Stone – a relic that can shape the seasons. The giant means to use it to freeze all the world! So…cold...”
• “The giant controls the stone now – and through it, my beloved Stragh. Please, outsiders, will you help me? Can you free my love from his doom? I beg you...”
Clanking Noise When the talk with Fumiko has gone on long enough and the current has swept the party all the way to where the canal bends to the east, a clanking noise from the map room (area J4) spooks Fumiko and she disappears.
J3 Map Room Landing p.153
As the canal bends, you see a sandy landing in front of a massive, disc-shaped doorstone. Four wicker boats lie upon the sand. Hushed voices can be heard from beyond the doorstone, which rests slightly ajar.
Unless the party is quiet (DC 12 DEX as a group), the croakes in area J4 hear the party and rush out to attack.
If aboard The Modest Otter, the current drives the boat into the sand, lodging it. Brunbal gets to work freeing it, but needs time to do so. If the party is in the water, the strong current washes them onto the landing.
Hushed Voices Belong to the croakers in the map room (area J4). A character that listens closely gathers that they are looking for an “element stone,” but are wary of “the foul frost giant and its enslaved swamp monster.”
Boats 4 wicker boats (same statistics as The Modest Otter, see Brunbal & His Boat, pg. 149). It takes 3 rounds to drag a boat off the sandy landing and into the canal.
J1
J2
J3
J4
Croaker Samurai
J4 Map Room p.154
Tattered, indecipherable maps cover the room’s frozen walls. Two small tunnels lead out and the back wall has all but collapsed into a mass of ice and debris. A heavily armored unit of froggish warriors stands gathered around a bonfire in the room’s center.
Croakers attack on sight. Brunbal readies a boat to aid the escape.
Froggish Warriors 10 Croaker Samurai; the leader is Kama the Terrible, a haughty samurai wearing a demonic mask. Another is Binturo, a kind warrior:
Among the froggish ranks, bristling with curved blades and slat-iron helmets, one warrior seems reluctant to attack. “Bruup! My fellow warriors! Are we not the Emperor’s diplomats, as well as blades? We’ve no quarrel with these outsiders! Bruuup!” Two of the others draw steel on this individual – the rest turn their attention toward you!
► COMBAT. Two croakers turn on Binturo, the rest face off with the party, fighting to the death. Croaker Samurai arrive from side-tunnels each round until a total of 20 Croaker Samurai have arrived. Brunbal dislodges a boat after 3 rounds (see Escape).
► TREASURE. Kama wears a War Demon Battle Mask, and the samurais’ supplies consist of 5 torches and 50 rations (dried and salted insects and vegetables).
Small Tunnels Lead to a barracks and a latrine.
Escape After 3 rounds, Brunbal has pushed a boat free and shouts for the party to jump on as the current drags it east. If alive, Binturo acts as rearguard before jumping onto the boat at the last moment. If The Modest Otter capsized, Brunbal frees one of the croakers’ boats. The croakers pursue after a few minutes.
Roleplaying Binturo If Binturo survives the battle and the party has done nothing to insult him, he offers to join them until Hasnir is defeated. Information. Binturo can provide details about the temple and the croakers’ mission (see Background, pg. 146), and explain how his kin’s hatred for “landwalkers” have made them stray from their true mission: to make the realm safe from Hasnir and the Element Stone’s magic. He wants to destroy the stone.
J5 Shrine Landing p.155
Another sandy landing comes into view. The doorstone here is open; a feeling of ancient power vibrates in the air, and strange green shadows are visible beyond the carven threshold.
The current slows here; the party decides whether to stop by the landing or hurry past.
Croakers’ Pursuit
The croakers catch up with the party when they exit the Shrine of Heket (area J6). Alternatively, if the party sabotaged the croakers’ boats or sailed straight past areas J5 and J6, the croakers may catch up with the characters as they are about to exit the temple (see Developments, pg. 157).
North
J6
Beast of Heket
J6 Shrine of Heket p.155
The walls are outfitted with ancient, ice-covered, ceremonial trappings. Shards of ice hang above; at the south end, a frozen pool holds glittering objects. At the north end, a giant, slimy shape sits on a raised platform.
The party must move silently; DC 15 DEX or wake the monster.
Slimy Shape Beast of Heket, once worshiped as an avatar of the frog god Heket. Attacks if disturbed. ► COMBAT. The sluggish monster moves 10 ft/round. It fights until slain, but is too big to leave.
Shards of Ice Echoshards (Tier 2); see map.
Frozen Pool A section of ice must be smashed (AC 10; HP 10) to free one ancient offering (DC 12 STR). ► TREASURE. Freezing Ring, Bracers of Utility, emerald (50 gp), pouch with 32 gp.
Echoshards
Frozen Pool
J7 Blocked Intersection p.156
The canal passes a sandy landing crusted with frost. The swirling of air and thrumming of arcane energy can be heard beyond the ajar doorstone there. Further south, a heap of rubble and ice blocks a sealed doorstone.
If Brunbal is with the party, he offers to clear the rubble to free the exit (doing so alerts Stragh who comes to the landing).
Heap of Rubble Blocks the doorstone to the south, barring the temple’s exit even if dawn’s light should come.
Sandy Landing Small, frosty landing before area J8. If Stragh hears noise or sees light from the intersection, the Swamp Stalker (carrying a Green Dragon Blade) leaves area J8 and investigates after 2 rounds:
A scaly monstrosity appears on the frozen beach, holding a large, green blade. In a stilted voice, as if fighting against the words, it says: “My master bids you to enter.”
Stragh waits for the characters to follow him into area J8; if they refuse, he attacks alongside Hasnir, who arrives after 1 round (see area J8).
Stragh Stragh’s indenture to the Green Dragon Blade has transformed him into a Swamp Stalker. Though a piece of his kind-hearted personality remains, Stragh is bound to defend the Element Stone and obey its master, the giant Hasnir. There are three ways Stragh may break free:
• Fumiko’s Love. The party can use the Jade Lantern to conjure forth a scene of Stragh and Fumiko from when they arrived at the temple, fondly embracing each other. The powerful scene empowers Stragh to defy Hasnir and join the party in battle against the giant.
• Hasnir’s Death. If Hasnir dies, Stragh is no longer compelled to fight the party, but still protects the Element Stone.
• Stone’s Destruction. If the Element Stone is destroyed, Stragh is free. He gives the Green Dragon Blade to the party, before going to be reunited with Fumiko (see Developments, pg. 157). Green Dragon Blade. 1/day each, Stragh can do the following:
• Make an attack against up to 5 creatures in a near-sized cube extending from him, and teleport to the last creature he attacks.
• Cast the Wall of Force spell with a duration of rounds.
J8 The Element Room p.157
Wide stairs descend into a chamber with a 50 feet high, vaulted ceiling and stone walls obscured by 3 feet of solid ice. At its center, an iridescent stone hovers 10 feet off the ground. Just beyond, a giant sits astride a throne of ice. A green-scaled monstrosity moves in front of the stairs, holding a large blade.
If the Element Stone is destroyed, the temple collapses.
Giant & Monstrosity Giant Rimebinder (Hasnir), Swamp Stalker (Stragh). ► DIPLOMACY. Because Hasnir doesn’t understand the timing required (the stone’s magic must be initiated during a full moon and maintained for a month) he’s only able to impose a partial winter on the region. If he believes a character to be a spellcaster, he seeks their aid:
“I require your services, mage!” the giant rumbles. “Tell me what I must do to make the winter envelop the realm in all perpetuity, and you may live!”
Whether they help him or not, Hasnir intends to kill the party. Once he’s told how to use the stone or if his request is refused:
“Foolish insects. The stone is mine to control, and these lands will freeze forever! Stragh, my loyal servant; raise your blade and end these fools!”
If Stragh can see the Jade Lantern, he is reminded of his beloved and roars: “Fumiko, forgive me my love, the blade is too powerful! Will...kill...you...all. Run!” He then attacks. ► COMBAT. Stragh fights until slain or released from the blade’s bond (see Stragh, pg. 155). If Hasnir drops below 16 HP, he uses the Element Stone’s magic to destroy itself and cause an earthquake (see below). ► TREASURE. Hasnir has a Staff of the Rimebinder, and Stragh has a Green Dragon Blade.
Iridescent Stone The Element Stone (AC 15, HP 40; immune to elemental damage) can’t be moved. The stone causes an earthquake if destroyed. Falling debris deals /round to all creatures for 10 rounds and then the temple collapses, burying anyone still within under tons of ice (see Developments, pg. 157). ► EXAMINE. A spellcaster U realizes what the stone is, how it works, and that it binds Stragh to serve the evil frost giant.
Conclusion Temple of the Jade Lantern: Conclusion p.158
Developments
As the temple collapses (see area J8), Brunbal (if alive) shouts that “the quake’s cleared the path – hurry, lest this place becomes your tomb!” It takes 3 rounds to sail out from area J7. As the party escapes aboard The Modest Otter or a stolen vessel:
The canal rushes with speedy water and rapids. The battered boat is barely holding together. “Hold on! I see a light up ahead!” Brunbal shouts from the helm. After a few moments, the current eases, and you see the sky at last.
The Croakers If the croakers catch up with the party as the temple collapses, they prioritize escape over battle. Any who make it out slink back to their emperor empty-handed. If the stone isn’t destroyed, the croakers try to claim it. If alive, Stragh fights to defend it and Fumiko shows up, pleading for the party to destroy the stone. If the croakers claim the stone, they use it to turn the marsh into a jungle. If Binturo survives, he is a pariah to his people. He sets out to save the world, one good deed at a time.
Stragh & Fumiko As the temple collapses, Stragh and Fumiko come outside (if Stragh died, he appears as a spirit):
The spirit, Fumiko, rises from the rubble “Stragh? My beloved, where are you?” she cries, her voice pleading yet hopeful. “Yes, my love, I am here,” Stragh says, approaching from behind. Teary-eyed, Fumiko turns toward him and they fall into a loving embrace. They seem to change subtly; Fumiko’s form solidifies, Stragh’s grows less reptilian. “Thank you,” they whisper. Then, a gust of wind dissolves the lovers into a faint mist, while a wordless, melancholy song sounds faintly.
Difficulty
The temple is suitable for level 5 adventurers (Total Party Level 19–22). You can adjust its difficulty to higher level parties by making the following cumulative changes.
Level 6 (TPL 23–26)
• 12/22 Croaker Samurai in area J3
• Giant Rimebinder has 1 Boss Action
Level 7 (TPL 27–30)
• 15/25 Croaker Samurai in area J3
• Giant Rimebinder has 3 Boss Actions
• Beast of Heket has 60 HP
Level 8 (TPL 31–34)
• 20/30 Croaker Samurai in area J3
• Giant Rimebinder has 58 HP and AC 16