Memories of Holdenshire: Northminster Catacombs
These ancient halls of religious burial run all throughout Northminster, though cave-ins have separated major sections from the whole. Unless otherwise specified, all of the following locations are pitch dark.
#1: The Holy Deep
The walls of this 30-foot wide and 50-foot tall circular chamber are lined with alcoves filled with the ceremonially shrouded bones of only the holiest of ancient monks. A staircase leading up into the ceiling (Area #2) encircles the room and makes a landing on the floor to the south. A pair of lit torches flank the stair landing along the southern wall. The corpses of an armored human woman and some sort of insect creature lie dead on the floor at the room's center.
Treasure
Adventurers that inspect Annika Crestveil's body find that she is wearing cold iron full plate armor, though it is currently broken . She was also wielding a +1 warhammer with a distinctive curved design (attacks with it gain a +1 magical bonus to attack and damage).
Both of these items are distinctive and instantly recognizable as Annika's, which may have an impact if openly used later on.
#2: Dead Sanctuary
This square chamber is 25 feet to a side and is filled with dilapidated pews arranged facing a ruined altar of some sort, though the dais is currently slid to the left revealing a stairwell heading down (Area #1). Strange runes still glow on the front of the altar, as if some kind of puzzle was solved to move it and reveal the staircase. There are shut stone doors on the west (Area #3) and east (Area #4) sides, and a set of stone double doors hang open to the south (Area #5).
#3: Rubble-Blocked Hall
This long hallway once led into the rest of the labyrinthian maze of catacomb tunnels but it has fallen to ruin and filled with rubble. A single stone door to the east (Area #2) holds back a rockslide.
Trap
While not specifically set as a trap, any creature that opens the door to this hall is hit with a ton of falling rubble and makes a DC 16 Strength saving throw or takes 3 (1d6) bludgeoning damage.
The area is otherwise filled with rubble and is impassable without major excavation.
#4: Chancel Storage
This 15-foot by 10-foot room seems to have once served as some sort of chancel by the original builders but it has been used as a storage room by the cult of the khalkos.
Treasure
The room contains several boxes of an unpleasant but serviceable hard tack and some filled waterskins. All told up to 10 Supply can be scavenged from here.
Adventurers that inspect this area closely with a DC 12 Intelligence (Investigation) check also find a small sack of hard candies tucked in amongst the hard tack.
#5: Gelatinous Hallway
This 10-foot wide and 40-foot long tunnel ends in stone double doors at both its north (Area #2) and south (Area #6) sides. The floor seems to be soaking wet and glistens in torchlight.
Trap
This tunnel was once occupied by a pair of gelatinous cubes but they were destroyed by Annika Crestveil as she made her way through the catacombs leaving their remains to create an unintentional hazard.
The entire length of the hallway is difficult terrain and any creature that steps into the area for the first time on their turn or ends their turn there takes 2 (1d4) acid damage. Adventurers that make a DC 14 Wisdom (Perception) check notice the strange glisten and angular chunks before stepping into the acid slick.
The PCs should be encouraged to come up with their own creative solutions to this problem, but the old pews from the dread sanctuary (Area #2) could be easily laid over the acid to create a safe path.
#6: Parishioner's Tomb
This 50-foot square chamber is lined with countless locili (the shelf-like alcoves where bodies are laid to rest), the floor littered with broken bones and partial skeletal remains. A set of double doors hang open at its northern wall (Area #5) and a passage yawns open to further catacombs beyond on the western wall (Area #7). As the party arrives, 2 skeletons draped in burial shrouds pull themselves out of the rubble and stare at the adventurers with eyes like shining blue stars atop a velvet black void.
Creatures
The reanimated skeletons are the "survivors' from when not long ago Annika Crestveil smashed her way through a dozen of their undead compatriots. The skeletons are actually nonhostile remains of the old monastery's parishioners.
If the PCs approach without hostility, the skeletons simply bow and step aside to allow them to leave unharmed.
If the party chooses to attack the skeletons, they instead fight until destroyed.
#7: The First Trap
This 30-foot long 5-foot wide hallway terminates in an open corridor on its eastern side (Area #6) and an odd stone door at its western side (to the exterior). The middle of the corridor is dominated by a 10-foot wide pit, a simple pit trap with a false floor that seems to have already been triggered, sharpened metal spikes lining the bottom 20 feet down. A nicely coiled 50 foot length of hempen rope sits on the eastern side of the pit.
Trap
Annika Crestveil already triggered and circumvented this trap but even a triggered trap can present an interesting challenge for 1st level characters. There are many solutions with or without the rope, but any creature that falls onto the spikes takes 3 (1d6) bludgeoning damage and 2 (1d4) piercing damage.
Catacomb Exit
The door on the west side of this corridor leads out of the catacombs into the Redwall area of Northminster, operated by an old and rusty lever. When the adventurers first pull this lever, read or paraphrase the following:
The door before you has an odd angular edge, like the pattern of brickwork. At the lever's pull you hear the grind of stone and the shine of daylight pours into the darkened catacombs. With a stuttering jolt the door suddenly swings open with a hearty smack and you hear muttered curses from the other side.
Blinking in the light, you see out into a cluttered alleyway, the sounds of bustle and civilization starkly contrasting the deathly silence of the catacombs. You spot a halfling, the source of the muttered curses, picking himself off the trash-littered cobblestones and rubbing a fresh red mark on his forehead. He raises a knife and begins to shout but drops it and gasps the moment he sees your faces saying, "why you little! Ah, heh… forgive me, I ah, didn't realize I was speaking with celebrities." The halfling gestures to the wall behind him, which you now see is plastered with countless wanted posters each bearing striking if exaggerated likenesses of you and your companions with the words, "wanted, dangerous cultist, dead or alive 100 gold reward'. He sheepishly looks up at you and asks, "you ah, ain't gonna cut out my kidneys or whatever cultists do right?"