Notes on the Gauntlight Keep
As compiled by the adventurers during their descent into the ruins and from the words of Wrin Sivinxi
The Gauntlight: An Overview
Once only a looming silhouette in the fog north of Otari, Gauntlight Keep has revealed itself to be far more than a ruin. Rising like a cyclopean finger from the bog, the lighthouse-like tower contains within and beneath it a vast network of dungeons, secrets, and dark history.
Historical Knowledge (as told by Wrin Sivinxi)
- Belcorra was a powerful sorcerer, possibly necromancer, who made her lair within Gauntlight long ago. Her magic was focused on undeath and dominion, and her ultimate ambitions remain unclear.
- Belcorra terrorised the surrounding region, raising the dead and summoning horrors from unknown places.
- The town of Otari was founded in the aftermath of this threat. Its namesake, Otari Ilvashti, led a party of adventurers to confront Belcorra. He died in the assault, but his allies defeated her, later building the town in his honour.
Exploration Summary
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Surface Ruins:
- The crumbling remains of the old keep.
- Within these ruins, the party discovered the Mudspitter Goblins, a clan of opportunistic scavengers and breeders of oversized maggots.
- Machival negotiated a tentative agreement with the goblins, leveraging their survival instincts for his own aims.
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First Subterranean Level — The Servants’ Quarters:
- A maze of dust-choked halls, collapsed rooms, and ancient servant corridors.
- The adventurers encountered a tribe of Morlocks, strange subterranean humanoids who seem to have taken up residence. Their culture is violent but survivable, and a temporary peace was established.
- They found signs of old necromantic activity, including an offering chamber bearing signs of sacrifice—possibly connected to Belcorra’s cult.
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Second Subterranean Level — The Library:
- Here they met the Cult of the Ghost Queen, undead ghouls who revere Belcorra as a divine figure.
- The cult, maintains the ancient knowledge within the library. Some members are intelligent and even cooperative—so long as the party does not threaten their faith.
- The party discovered a sealed passage leading to a Gibbering Mouther, a horrid manifestation of flesh and madness, which attempted to consume one of the cult’s members.
Current Conclusions
- The Gauntlight is waking.
The keep’s long-dormant magics seem to be stirring—especially after the undead recently rose in Otari’s graveyard, likely triggered by the Gauntlight’s power. - The Cult is active.
The Ghost Queen’s worshippers below are not passive—they maintain the old structures, defend Belcorra’s legacy, and may be part of a larger, slower-moving plan. - The Deeper Levels Await.
The party has only scratched the surface of the keep. Belcorra may be long dead… but the powers she commanded still churn deep below.