Isle of the Sleeper

The Brilliant Heartshards
Golden strands cross like veins within this irregular shard
of clear crystal and pulse with glowing energy like a
heartbeat. Those fortunate or foolish enough to evade the
gargantuan worm in the Heart Chamber of the Sleeper can
attempt to pluck one of the crystals growing on the beating
heart floating in the centre of the cavern. The moment
one touches the Heart, they must choose to sacrifice a
powerful memory to the Heart in order to break a Brilliant
Heartshard free.

Brilliant Heartshards
The only way to gain a Brilliant Heartshard is through the
sacrificing a memory to the Sleeper, and the knowledge of
this requirement comes magically into one’s mind when
they reach the Sleeper’s chamber on the Isle of the Sleeper.
This must be an important moment in the seeker’s past.
Perhaps some major turning point? Or the first moment
they saw a loved one? Or a deathbed reconciliation? A lost
memory is completely erased, and only be restored with
a wish spell. How the missing memory might change one
varies greatly for each individual.
While plucking the Heartshard is difficult and costly,
the rewards for success are great. Those who possess a
Heartshard, can channel the power of the Sleeper by
selecting one of the following benefits when they finish a
long rest:

• They increase their Intelligence score by 2.
  
• They can regain one expended spell slot (of any level).
  

These benefits can be used a number of times equal to half
the user’s proficiency bonus (minimum 1). All expended
uses are regained with a long rest, for as long as the
Heartshard is in possession.

Enchantments and eldritch oddities abound on the
Sleeper, as do magical creatures drawn to the unique nature
of the island.

Call of Stone. Dwarves or other races with an affinity
with earth (such as the Stonecunning trait) are never lost
on this island. They can follow the stone like a map.

Curse of the Sleeper. Spells dealing with stone, earth,
or magical slumber increase their saving throw DCs (if
any) by 2.

Magical Disruption (Optional). A character casting
a spell or using a magical ability has a 20% chance of
triggering a magical disruption. This could include rolling
on a wild or chaotic magic table or some other effect
determined by the GM.

Over the centuries, waves of zealots, mage schools, and
holy orders have attempted to establish settlements on the
Sleeper. Some came to study the strange eldritch nature of
the island, others to discover the truth of the slumbering
god. The most deranged sought nothing less than to
awaken the slumbering god for their own dark purposes.
Today, only ruins remain. Near the God’s Feet, only
undead prowl the crumbling Catacomb of Saint Gurgi.
At the midsection, barbaric and insane descendants of the
Burbling Lord’s Cult guard the unnatural sinkhole that
swallowed the towers of their ancestors. A walled ruin on
the Skyward Face of the Sleeper, patrolled by aberrations,
is all that remains of the Academy of Eldritch Enquiry.
Rumours abound that the old mages hid their greatest
treasures in a vault within the god’s skull.

The Sleeper holds three complete dungeons beneath its
surface. Though each appears to be separate, commonly
held lore suggests they are linked together. The faintest
whispers hint a fourth underground area can be reached for
those brave enough to defeat the first three, and in that far
off oubliette rests the greatest treasure on the island.

Within the harbour formed by the encircling arms of the
Sleeper is the make-shift pirate port called Lost Sleep
Harbour. Honestly, it is not much to look at, just a few
docks, a scattering of buildings built from shipwrecks, dirt
and filth. A sort of place where a stab in the back is cheaper
than a good meal. Rest in Lost Sleep Harbour only heals
half as many hit points as normal and subjects the character
to terrible nightmares.

Accessible through the ruins of the cathedral above, the
Fallen Catacomb is a multi-level necropolis carved from the
stone of the Sleeper. The holy order of Saint Gurgi tragically
underestimated the magical energy of the island, else they
wouldn’t have interred generations of their brethren in
the necropolis. Their folly rose up in waves of undead and
destroyed them. Today, the four levels of the catacomb
abound with undead, traps, and lost treasures. A lich named
Cardinal Bigglefang rules the undead legions. He is proud
and fiercely protective of his domain, but his obsession with
poetry and musical performance offers a rare chance for
diplomacy and bargaining.

Once nine towers rose above the jungle canopy so the Cult
of the Burbling Lord could consult the stars and burn vile
offerings to the Autarch of Oozes. However, their dark
rituals broke the land, and the towers were swallowed by
a vast sinkhole descending far into the ground. Today, an
enchanted staircase winds down the sides of the miles-long
vertical pit. Broken ruins jut from the sheer walls like jagged
teeth, and a foul miasma rises up from the unexplored
depths. Fanatics, either degenerated and mutated
descendants of the original cult or newer arrivals, guard lost
relics while oozes and aberrations hunt among the ruins.

From entrances hidden in the ruins of the Academy of
Eldritch Enquiry, finely carved passages lead down into
the Skullmaze. The mages of old designed the labyrinthian
dungeon to test their students, and many perished in the
unforgiving crucible. The Skullmaze is filled with arcane
traps, summoned creatures, magical experiments gone
awry and teleporting archways. The labyrinthine dungeon
functions despite the long neglect; however, the spells
powering it now produce random effects. Whole levels
generate their own ecosystem of monstrosities, while others
host feuding fiends determined to win the Skullmaze’s secrets
for themselves. On the lowest level, a nigh-impregnable vault
still holds the lost academy’s greatest creations.

In the centre of the island, miles below ground, a series
of natural caverns weave around the Heart Chamber.
Here, the still-beating heart of the Sleeper pulses with the
arcane power of the gods while a vast, legendary purple
worm called Kalazar curls around it, feeding on its energy.
Passages from the other dungeons allow access to the Heart
Chamber provided one finds the three gemkeys, each
hidden in one of the three catacombs.

The darkness has infested this place and left many dangers
that plague the people of the island. While they try to
protect themselves from more outside attacks, you must be
prepared that at any time you may well be set upon by those
creatures of the darkness have remained.

D10 Roll Random Encounter
Surface
1 An ogre, leading a band of 1d12 insane
cultists, ambushes you!
2 Lost and hungry, a party of explorers
(use scout stats) flees a hydra.
Fallen Catacomb
3 A pack of 1d10 ghasts begins tracking you,
for their next meal.
4 A mummy lord, unaware it is dead,
challenges you to a game of chess.
Inverted Spire
5 1d6 floating gelatinous cubes attack anyone
on the enchanted staircase.
6 Waves formed from 1d10 black puddings
pour out of the nearby ruins.
Skullmaze Vault
7 A guardian naga demands a gift of magic
items for passage through its lair.
8 Interrupting the duel between the glabrezu
and the bone devil was unwise.
Heart Chamber
9 A pack of 1d6 behir prowls around the
skeleton of a black dragon.
10 The purple worm, offspring of legendary
Kalazar, reacts poorly to you.