One-Shot Adventures

The Seeker: Sru'ak is githzerai monk and had hoped to study in the radiance of the guru, he has clues that the power of the Guru is that he could plane shift (like githzerai can) but he could appear exactly wear he wanted and was unaffected by warding spells that prevented teleportation. He is happy to explain why this is powerful to the PCs (but is only interested in this knowledge in an academic sense). Scene 4: Almost Paradise Once inside, the players can be overwhelmed and distracted by the beauty and grandeur of heaven. If the players have other questions about heaven or about the guru, the souls of petitioners inside can fill them in. However, conversing inside with these heavenly souls as they eat, drink, and reveal could cause weak-willed PCs to forget their quest. Scene 5: The Mushrooms and the Bees "Man produces evil as a bee produces honey." -William Golding From inside the gates, the PCs can see green hill crowned with a columned temple a few miles away. This is the Acropolis of Ineradicable Thought. Only one thing mars the perfect vista. Part of hillside below the acropolis is covered in foul-smelling mushrooms. These fungi are part of the Demon Lord Zuggtmoy's corrupting influence as she seeks the Lotus for herself and the demons of the Abyss. A line of celestial worker bees steadily flies to the mushrooms. Each bee "cleans" away a bit of the fungal outgrowth before flying back to the upper levels of heaven. The PCs can tell that the bees' task will take months. Disturbing the mushrooms is dangerous, players that attempt to destroy these mushrooms instead releases a cloud of spores. Where these spores land, more mushrooms grow and 1d4+1 fungal dretchs (MM page 57). Any PCs that breath in the spores (DC 12 Constitution save to avoid) are infected with the corruption of Zuggtmoy (see below) and may be vulnerable to her influence later the in the adventure. Any PC adventurous--or foolish--enough to eat one of these mushrooms automatically is infected with Zuggtmoy's corruption and several mushroom grow out of their skin (at the DM's discretion, give these PCs a "boon" see DMG and MToF). Corruption of Zuggtmoy: Players infected with spores begin to hear the voice of Astrolex, a demon in Zuggtmoy's service. He promises power in return for the lotus but can only communicate through simple words and feelings ("power...give...lotus...etc."). Scene 6: The Docent "Greetings. I am the Monitor of Installation 04. I am 343 Guilty Spark." -Halo: Combat Evolved At the top of the hill sits the Acropolis and its keeper, the Docent of Ineradicable Thought, a floating ball of metal, light, and runes. It communicates in a crisp, polite, and unaccented speech and is initially friendly to any visitors. Its purpose is to help souls explore the Acropolis and gain enlightenment from the souls therin as they journey up the levels of Mount Celestia. The docent has an encyclopedic knowledge of heaven and the planes. It is happy to fill the players in on anything they would like to know, though his answers can be quite long-winded. The docent will tell the PCs that the Lotus with the guru's soul is gestating at the bottom of the Acropolis and they only need to keep journeying "down" to find it. The docent does not impede the players unless they tell it that they plan on giving the Lotus to the demons or devils.

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