Sarlonan Ruins

The tracks you've been following suddenly break and scatter around a low rise of hill. Rising above the waist-high plain of golden grass, distant standing stones mark off the edge of a field of rubble and low walls. 

No sign of current or previous habitation can be seen from outside the ruins. A successful DC 15 Knowledge (local) or Knowledge (architecture and engineering) check notes more destruction here than would be expected of the enduring ruins of old Sarlona. A successful DC 25 Survival check anywhere around the rubble determines that the grass shows signs of rain more recent than has occurred in the area (a product of the elemental effects from area 5). 

The open plain marks the edge of the territory of a hippogriff herd that adventurers might be seeking or protecting. Alternatively, the PCs could be tracking a nomadic tribe with which they have pressing business. The ruins are at least a day's ride from the nearest settlement or trade road.

The combination of tall grass and rubble makes movement in the area challenging. Characters can move within the ruins without difficulty, but those attempting to run must succeed on a DC 10 Balance check or fall.

Ruined Buildings: The ruined foundations of a midsized town spread through the wind-swept grass. The shattered walls vary from 3 to 5 feet in height, though higher walls appear at intervals. Where multistory buildings have collapsed, time and weather have reduced their stones to little more than gravel. Place specific ruins (apartments, stables, warehouses) and encounters as desired.

Guard Posts: The 20-foot-high standing stones marking off the area are the remains of a great wall that once surrounded this settlement. Climbing to the top of a guard post stone reveals holes in the top where a wooden platform was once attached. Each standing stone has a 5% cumulative chance to collapse for each character who climbs it (Reflex DC 20 to avoid 2d6 points of falling damage and ld6 points of bludgeoning damage). From the top of any guard post, a successful DC 20 Spot check enables a character to notice the hidden campsite.

Well: Any animals with the party catch the scent of water in this area. A low mass of rubble covers a capstone leading to a long disused well. At the bottom of a 15-foot shaft, a natural spring flows slowly but is fresh and clear. Alternatively, ice mephits from the wild zone in area 5 have settled here, and PCs seeking precious water find themselves led into an icy trap.

Spell Turret Trap: An aura of magic fills this area, centered on a single black pillar. This spot once marked the entrance to a secret chamber, its roof and walls fallen long ago. The pillar's magic protected it from the ravages of time.

Any creature touching the pillar activates a spell turret trap of appropriate Challenge Rating for the party. See Dungeon Master's Guide II for more information on spell turret traps, or replace it with any appropriate magic trap from Chapter Three of the Dungeon Master's Guide. In addition to the dangers of the spell turret trap, this potent defensive magic might bring one or more essence reavers (see page 147) to the area.

Wild Zone: Twisting through the ruins, a planar gateway to Risia surges from time to time. At times of connection, wide vents crack open among the rubble and blast the area with elemental cold. Such an occurrence is what drove the recent inhabitants of the secret campsite away.

A planar shift occurs about an hour after the PCs arrive. A sudden chill fills the area, followed by a low rumbling that might be mistaken for an earthquake. Then the ground is torn through by freezing winds and bolts of elemental ice. Treat the ice bolts as a 5th-level call lightning or 9th-level call lightning storm effect (depending on party level) that deals cold damage instead of electricity damage. Treat the areas within 30 feet of each breach as severe cold or extreme cold, depending on party level.

Once the planar activity diminishes, the ground closes up again, but creatures escaping from the manifest zone might remain in the area. Any investigation concludes that much of the destruction here has been caused by previous planar events.

Hidden Campsite: Sheltered behind a mostly intact stone wall, a blackened fire pit and a pile of well-charred bones points to recent occupation of this site. A successful DC 15 Survival check determines that it has been approximately two weeks since anyone was here.

Shallow Grave: If the PCs investigate the hidden campsite, a successful DC 22 Search check shows that more stones have been removed from the site than can be accounted for in the construction of the fire pit. A short distance away, a makeshift cairn has been placed over a shallow grave. If the party is pursuing Karrak cultists, this could be the remains of a victim ritually sacrificed and buried. If they are involved with Inspired activity in Syrkarn, the body could be that of a Riedran exile tracked down and killed by the Thousand Eyes—or the remains of a Riedran agent murdered by those he pursued.

Treasure appropriate to the party's level can be found protected by the spell turret trap or inadvertently buried with the victim in the shallow grave. As well, the ruins might hold magically protected lore of old Sarlona that could drive further adventures.

The ruins are suitable as the beginning of an adventure arc, with the PCs either stumbling upon the ruins randomly or seeking them out. Evidence of murder there can drive the party to seek further information of plots among the Karrak cultists or the Inspired. Alternatively, this scenario can mark the end of a campaign arc, with the party pursuing some ancient treasure or lore protected by the spell turret trap.