an intermediate level AD&D™ adventure by John Williams development by Mike Brunton & Paul Cockburn PART 1: INTRODUCTION This isan intermediate level mini-module: the ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGO tobe used with aparty of 4-7 charactors of levels 3-6. Thepary should include a wide renge of character types to deal with the problems presented in the adventure. If you plan to play in this mini-module please stop reading here. The rest of the information is for the Dungeon Master [DM) only. Knowledge of the details of the adventure will spoil the game for all concerned. Throughout the mini-module descriptionsof monsiersand their Statistics have been standardised. The information given in brackets after 1! abbreviations use mention of the monster's name end the fe as follows, Rate (MVi: Hit Dice (HD) or er of Attacks |* AT); Damage ‘any othar notes ag Spocial Attacks (SA), Special Defences (SD); experience points (xp): Alignment (ALI Sizo (8), 21THE GUARDIAN OF THE KFY TO TIME The Guardian of the Key to Time is civided into three sos Part 1 (his section is an introduction te the rini-medule Port 2s the adventure and encounter Key for the wildornoss ares surrounding Augull's Mansion which has bean subject to the side: ftfeets ofthe disaster described in Part 1 Part 2 ie the detailed encounter kay for the dungeon’ lecated beneath the Marsion Two maps are provided. One shows the wilderness area of the adventure and the (ocetion of the Mansion, the ether details the ‘dungeon’ DM's Background ‘Six months ego Auquhol, the Wizaré-Legate of Tuilyd, returned to his ‘mansicn to beeina Series of enper ments. He had travelled the koa work! and visited other planes of exisience in Search of the key Constituents toa series of experiments that he had long been planning, ‘Auquhol wae growing old, and death from old age terrified him. Ha had Jong ago dotermined that all means of prolonging his existence by altering hie own body would eventual fal |eaving Nim to die as any ‘ctherman, Auguhol therefore or:ivodatc solution askoldanddaring a hardy and misguided — if he couke net alter his passage. ie he would alter Time relative to himself. through Ti In his researches Aughol aiscoveredi thar centuries earlier ant Wizate, Laynun, had been working on 2 similar project, the let ‘manipulation of Timo, Loynun had created a device which he gran texlleg the Key to Time, intanding to use tas the contra focus this inal Experiment Before he could de sohhe died, and tho Koy was bro%on up ‘2nd Its ports scattered. ‘Auqunel returned to nis brary to seek for evidence of the Key's ‘Continued existence, and after long manths moog his fomnes believed that he had found where savaral parts of the Koy could be found. Securing highhome againetintrudore, Auqunol sat autinto ine rot dsof men to seek the Key. Mier ten years of treveling, bargaining and ‘cultight theft, Auguno! had obtained four parta of tho Key. Ho roturnad ta his mansion and began to prepare the experiment which he had planned! fersolong, Three monihspessed spentnlanning ane gathering frinor materials for the experiments, and then Auquvol began his spel casting (One Autumn evening, shen the first series of oxparimants wore completes, the mansion end tho surrounding araa wora shaken by 2 huge, soundless explosion, The last exper ment had gore entirely wrong, the Key gaits had caused a feedbeck ei Auquhol and nis mansion had been caught In a massive tineblast fohich killed him, andblew tha mansion slightly off hi Piane: This wasnotthe only majoreffectof the blast Theentre region around tha mansion suifaredt It (snow sealed aft tram the rest a the ward ing de itsown moment of Time, Outsidersean sturblain, and so rem ‘ume to time, but ence inside choy arotrappedin a twilight imbo, which is graduelly running dowin inte an ice age, General Notes ‘The DM shauld mage sure that all tna eharscters who take part in This fagventure hava had thair physiological ages rolled up for viem dy ts playors, Tho acvontura ieheavily eancornod with Timo and aflects, and some manipulstion of charactor ages doas take place within tre ‘dungeon’ section ef the adventure Players’ Background tha playars should be intraduced to this adventure without any nowladge oF what ie about to happen to thom. Tho exact mothog that the DM should use to do this i largely up to the indvidual’s discretion, bt tre following introduction is offered as an oxamplc, “The party has been hited by the Council of Elders of a small town to transport a wksing gift to their hege-oré who is being married dutiog the harvest fastival alebrations —in another town some distanceto 13 scuth, The wedding gift fs 2 velunsle jewellod amulet of superb ‘Workmanship [worth 450Dgp) and a matching emelier Breach (worth 250090) in the shapo of the lingo lord's horaldts arms, For this service the adventurers are to be paid the sum of SOOap eee ‘when they return from the wedding bearing the greetings of the lord “The Eiders a'sa agree to supply them with a guide, who will show them the quickest and most diseroet route tthe wedding. During the course of their journey, which should take several, uneventful days, party and guide make good progress, However, tho sweathr takes a suasonal turn for the worse, with autumnal mists and taistormas, Te partys guide vianders olf course during a rainstorm es hight is falling, ane: then manages to get himself killed when his hors falls dawn a mucsice The DM should then allow the party to find @ rough teail which leas southwards, etzight into the area affected by Auguhel's disastrous ‘experiments, Once the party ie within the area the DM should raduelly Introduce the elements of the lendseape — the ool, the odd light the leafless trees etc — until the party realises that sorieching edd hes fceurtec. The DW can then introduce an incongruous note by telling them that the terrain they are passing through looks familiar. If the adventurers continus te head sauthwards (even though thay ere stuck incido tho aroa) the OM should allow somobedy to find an itam which could only have eome from ongcet the party — a dagger dreppodin the middle of the Vack,@ stitup or spur from a character. Once they reel se ihattheyare within some kindaf tone the OMshould use hisd scretion aso what ele emt of the mystery 10 Introduce next. er Hy Ih ps MUNIN Ok E RA orPART 2: THE MANSION AND THE SURROUNDING AREA General Notes [As a result of Auquhol’s exponent, the region surrounding the romaine of he mansion is largely cutoff from the outside world Itiestil possible to entor the aroa, But once insida, tho lecel time distortion prevenis anyone — or anything — leaving. Exiting the area appears possible, but is in fact impossible. Anyone attempting to do so wil Fapicly realise thatas they walk avvay fromthe marsion inne direction they begin to approach ‘trom the opposite direction. For example, 3 ‘group whien walked away from te mansion in a sour westerly Girection would find themsalves eppreaching the mansion from the orth east after a five male walk, ‘The entire oreo hes consed to have a requir day/night cycle. At ell times the region isine grey enlight, without any epperent ight source inthe sky. The light source é all thet remains of tne sunlight that was, falling upon the area whan the accident happened: However. for those wha acetrapped within the aaa tim anpearsto he passing atits normal Fate — creatures stil raquire sleep, magie-users andelatics can regain Spoils when tho corraot amount of subjective time has beon spent in rest, ete, ‘The general climatic conditions within the area ere morkedly different {rom those outside, The area hes heen Cutoff fram the major source of ‘haat. Suni ght. for wo months. The haat retained by the ground and ‘wogatation Keeps theregion irem freezing completely, butthis source of Jali gradually ies pating and tre ares fsgreving coléer. Tne lakeand river have frozon, and mist and fog have becema permanant faatures of ‘the weather. The area istco.smallto generato any real woathor systems, suchas einer sriow storms, but the eonsian tcovling effectar te logs Censure that. unless preceutions are teken, everything becomes damp very quickly. eg bow strings will become useless in under three subjeetive nurs ‘Spell casting i alfocted by the temporal disturbances inthe area, All spoils doaling with prociction af the future (ag predict weather), summoning er conjuration of creatures (cg monetor summoning), travel to, oF contact with, ether planes of existence (09 phase door). 0! ‘weather contrat eg callfightning) will not worker haveast-ctly hited etlectbounded by he edge ofthe area. Aeleport spel (or examive, will ot work if usedin an attemptio move out of the arez. The OM should ‘uso his or her diseretion as to tha exact limite of magie uso within the The Inhabitants of the Area Bebe Auqunol'sdeparturein sdarchvof the Key, pats te lands eround the mansion were properly managed. The woodlands were carstully hustiended and kept free of vermin and major pradaters, the river ad Jakos wore well stacked with fch, and the pactura lands wore lush and ‘dant ‘With Auauhel gone this menagementended. Many creatures miarated fie the atea from the surrounding bleaker lands in search of easier Dickings. The weeds became the abode ol pradators. the Lake was fver-tished, and the pastures fell into disuse. The lake overflowad its banks, turning much ofthe pasture land into marsh, providing Saver for ‘ven moro unsavoury ventures, Aftr the timablast killed Auguhol and ‘sealed off the arco, many of the ereaturos that had movod in could not Survive ihe increasing cold. Seme, however, did survive, generally the Si‘cngest arid {oughies: specimens. These creaiutes, alone vrith the ‘thes unfortunates who ave stumbled into the area since the disaster, Frew roam twilight werd in @ constant sparen for Food and Se ‘The DM may use-ny or allot tye fllowing encounters, Mestarenottied toa epeaitc geographical location and may be used at any point within theares, Some, n particular the mud men, will only be encountered at fone specific paint 1. Six dire wolves (AC 8. MV 18% HO 3+3: hp 24. 29. 202) 19)" AT! 02-8; xp 156, 182, 1402), 135,22) AL NSM) with four woives (AD 7, MV 18"; HO 2+2\ hp 20, 18, 17,14 AT 1; D 2-5: xp 95, 89, 88, 17; ALN; $8), Thess aro ramnante of ene ofthe packs caught within the res when the spell went wrong. They slways set as though hungry, even ‘wien they hove just fed, ond are ot the top of the food hierarchy: They mar be encountered anywhere within the THE GUARDIAN OF THE KEY TO TIME 1.4 nosdloman (AC 6; MV 9"; HD 344; hp 28, 26, 25, 24,23, 20,18; AT1 6;D 1.2; SA Surpriao: xp 160, 163, 780, 187, 154, 149, 199, ALN, S M), Statistics for seven of tase creatures are given, because seven stil exist in the area, But hho mere than fout will ever be encountered in one place Generally 'ettalone, theneeclamen will nat artack anything except elves, whom they attack on sight They may ba ‘encountered anywhere in the woodlands around the mansion, A meazel (AC 8; MY 12": HD 4; hp 27; “AT 2; D 1-4/1-4, np 193, ALGE, S M), which hasmadeiis lair upon the ‘slandin the ake. Constantly searching for food, the meazelwill only bo ln tslair 10% of the tme. The rest ofthe time f willbe using {ts natural thieving abilities of tne 4th level of experienes *0 snoakaroundand attack views rom behind wath astrengling cord, Succees with thisattack inicatos thatthe cord hac bet \wrapaed araune the victim's neck, Vietims ill cie from Strangulation in two melee rounds unless they manoce to break re0, or the moazel is forced to relinquish it hold ‘The meazel’s tronsure is stored in its island lair, intermixed \vi the bones of past victims. itconsists of 143cp, three gold human twoth (worth Sgp each), bleodstone (100gp) 3 zireon (2009p), a dagger wath an amber pommel (1203p), a suit of waterlogged chainmail [6Ggp). a quiver containing thr rows+3, and a flask containing 2 potion of oxtra-healing The meazel may be encountered almost anywhere within the area, bal It prefers to remain within half @ mile of marshy ‘raunes 2:12 door (AC 8, MV 21"; HD 141; hp Geach; “AT nl; D nil xp rilALN;S 8). The DM may choose to have several groups fof doo" in the area, using the some statistics fer e26 group, land heve more groups stumble into the area atimes, Thedecr ate the primary food source for most of tie athier inhabits, They maybeencountered at any point withintie ates, except te lake and ks isiand Throsharpiog(AC 7, MV6"/18";HD3:hp 19, 17,12; 4AT3; D1-3/1-3/1-6;SAsinging& charm; xp 202, 196, 181:ALCE, 5 M) who aray upon the ether ereetures of tho are, oven attack na the wolves when they are hungryenough. The 19hp Ingivicuelisarmed wit a shortsword+1 (ro special abiliies Harpies cai emit sweat sounding calls. ll chose who fear these calls wil proceed towards the harpies uniess they \vemagic Any cteaturotouehee by aharpy should a'sa save us megizersutfer the ofiects.ofs eharm spall. The harpiescarry litle porconal tracsure. The 17h ona has a small vil ef ‘expensive parfume (worth 160gp) around hor reck, and the thirdone wearsa rig set witha smell ruby (wrth 200gp| on one ther ciaws. They may be encountered anywhere inthe area, except in onan couniryside Five mud-men (AC 10; MV 3°; HO 2; hp 16, 14, 13, 19, 6; AT al: Dnil, SAmudtheowing: SDnees magical weaporsto hit immune to certain spells: xp 60, 58,54, 48, 38; ALN, SS) havo arison in the ovorllow from Aucuhol's workshop. Toy are formed where enchenied waters collect and evaporate, Concentrating the diweomer in the resulting mud Physically thay ate animated mud, andi spend most of sheir lume in a dormant state Sereath the suriace of 8 muc poo! in this state they are immune to all but spell atacks), and only rouse themsolves if anyane enters their poo. It taka thom fone melee round to 0 90, and once like this they are wulnerable 10 allacks by magical weapons as well. Tey Cannot sense opponents beyord their poo. 23THE GUARDIAN OF THE KEY TO TIME Mud-men attack by hurling mud maximum range 6") at their ‘opponents, who are considered 1o be AC 10 |modiied by Sexterity) when cetermininghis. The mudherdens.on impact landslows the movement af he vietimby' 1" per iit Once tha mud-man are within 1” ofan oppor ent they hurl themselves fathor than a blob. A hit lille the mud-man but slows the ‘victim's movement by 4”. A mies means the mud-man must spend the next round reforming, Once a vitim's movamentreteis carer below heis unableto move of wipe the mud away and begins to sutfocare, 1-8 points of damage per round unti his mouth and red. The vctimawil die fram sufacation infive rounds Tescued, Hardanad mud can be broken away rom iy or whelly immobilized creatures, restoring 1” of erent rate per five rounds. IMud-men ate only affected by spells which couse physical ‘semage, and by dispel magic anddia as thouch bya fireball) i transmute mud torock (wich kills mud-men its able toaffost — no eaving throw), Thay ere immune to poisoning, When dormant, damage eaused by spells wnlen de not have fn aren of effect (og mage miceile) re divided among them [iropp ng fractions) besause the substence of their bodies 1c throughout the poe! ‘Once alitheirappanenis havaleit helt poo|or been killed. the trud- men wl sink back inte the cove Irom whieh they came Further doteile of the muci-men will ae available in Monstor Manual I, vinich wil Be on sale soon, Topography ‘The three important features af she landscape ara located in the m dle ‘of tho aroa They ara deecribed below in numbered sections. The other fotee given hora are intended at guidelines for the OM. Allthe natural features of the area are starting to show the effects cf the feck of warmth and light. The grasslands are pastures erourd the mansion are yellowing and oying. and the tees throughout the Woodlands have shed their leaves. Lie cover or feed remains forthe ‘reaturoe wna live there, The marsh plants have also lat their leaves, land most of tre marah has frozen 201d, providing a reasonable eurtace for travelling across (no penoltios will ecerue for moving in marshy areas), The lake and river hove likewise frozen solid, and are firm tenough to be walked cn without any danger of falling through, 1. Tha Mansion Ovarttow Only ene stratch of water remains unirozan,aetween the mansion anc the lake, Ths i the abode of the rmud-man (see Tho Inhabitants ofthe ‘roel This pert of the marsh lieadireciyin tho path of the evertiew from ‘Auquhol's laboratory, Although the waters and ether detritus which flowed fiom the latoretory vete not ‘magica’ they did have an eura of magic about them. Over the course of Auquhos experiments the wearer bullt up inthis region of the marsh, causing the mud-men i form and pravanting from freezing when the disaster struc Hidden in the mud ate tho remains of the mud-men’s past viet ms ‘Among the bones of wolves, @ haroy end e deer, are tha remaing of @ ‘wart and an elf The dwarl's body weats a suit of plate mail+1 (dwar! Siged), and carries a shorisword with gold inley and a siNer scabbaré [nworih 226g), The ef carries a longbow +. vhich has werged out of Shape and must have the attention of # masier Dowmyer for 1 month before itis usable again, and has @ gome in ns belt pouch: acarnelian (1509p), topaz (200gp) and an opal {40099) 2, The Bost House Auquhol's boat house isa simple, wooden building, some 33 feet long 20 (eet wide and 12 feet high, sei on the lakeshore and project ng into ‘thawater. The boat house has two entrances Atthe endof tre building fatin thelake are two large doors, which arencw frozen into the ice ina Fall openpostion. A singlsdoerstancs ajarin thecontre of thenorinern wall, Arough track, now overgrown, leads tothe mansion. Inside, the building does not have o floor, merely 2 catwalk whish runs. around a central mooring pool for boats. Tied 19 mooring posts in thi poolarethree, semi-rertenrowingboats,Allare rozaninto theice ofthe Taka, Ontop of onset the mooring posts is aleather helmet, The body of ite owner es in the Bottom of one of tha rowing bats 24 KEY North Ay oe gw Boathouse (~~ Track am Time Barrier =“River yp Mansion 3 Bridge 2hexes=1 mile “2 Marsh £3 Woodland AUQUHOL’S MANSION KEY , is ay" Ser i Mirror mm Door © Statue @ Colum mie I” Gencetes Door 5 trough & zu Trapdoor _ Stairs Down Curtain| The body is hava young wer ehainmall Theequipment ont ‘anc cole. buttne armourane shield are sill usable, as isthe mace. In the woman's backpack are ran rations (now stale), a full wineskin (stil ‘drinkable, rope, a £0 of caremenial robes (ineluding @ medallion wertn 200gp), a blankot and a ecr Ingida the scroll case are thraa ‘erolls, The firat has the spells cure disease, noutralizo poison and alyph of warding upon it. The second is a scroll of protection from undead (shadows). The third bears a cryptic litle verse, The withered finger pt the ti To plces whee all veniet al ‘nd cbr piles yee yt way the party may find ‘dungeon’ which This verse relates tothe image f Auquhol's body th in the ruins (see below), and the route down init thay may lake in sarc of an escape route ou: of theTHE GUARDIAN OF THE KEY TO TIME 1. Beneath the Mansion & The Vaults aietheRaomBevond The Mirror Ruing of the Mansion once the partys inside the mansion 11s sate trom attack by any of the ymains of she mansion arsthe strangest clement ofthearea, The area's inhabitants eg the wolves othe herpies|, The creatures within jon has been removed (ram the Prine Meterial Plane by the the afea are extremely wary of the unnatural character sties of the Timeblast which killed Avaunol Ir hes not been moved entiraly to mransion. ‘another Plane, But new rasts i its own inaccessiote pecket cf space {the adventurers search the ‘ground floor of the mansfon they will Howover.ashadowol the marsionsstilvisibleonthe.air wheraitused ave atualiyfind an image ot the body ofan ancient, withered manie-user. to sland, @ kind of thrao-dimonsiona\, insut \heunded urte death by some terrible explosion building itgel! appears te be intact, burt this fot \etelythebroken remnantacitestoncs This'sthe body of Auauhol, whe the same fateas the mansion dfelegantarchieewreisconstiueted managed 10 crawl a short way towatds his underground laboratory intfine wiht stone wth diseraet, coloured brickwork The walls and nan attempt to raoch fp. His right hand 4s auistte or featuros of this im spiral stairs leading down ina tha ‘dungeon benaath the mansion. images, although richly appointed. This ends the first part of the adventureTHE GUARDIAN OF THE KEY TO TIME PART 3: BENEATH THE MANSION no ‘dungeon’ part of the adventure iz divided nto two eect ons — the ‘eal cellar beneath tna mansion, which Auquhol used as. |aboretory and a region of space and time which heve Become impressed with Auguiials memories. This is aide effect of the individual Key parts ing upon theming of Aucuhol The memories whishheve been seved fre those of ie crcurisiances uncer which Auguho! obieined echone Exporionco paintawards and 1neacqu sition at reasuce are hardlodina non-standard manner n hee prt of the acvonture Al treasure, magical itome ond experience peints that charocters gain in PART 2: The Mansion end the Sucrounding Area ond in the frst section of the ‘ungeon" may be kept at the end of the adventure Once the auven users have entered Augulor's memories they wil contin ‘gain leasure ana magicet tems, but these wil dsapnear wen te pany emerges. They ate not ihe actual treasure and macieal toms, moray the memary ef thers. W/thin Auquhel & memories the magical itame snd practical toms of treseure will function se normal, Any experiance points earned from the momory encounters will, howover, = permane™ gains, as the characters leern fram what they encounter Any characiers who die (from any cause) while the party 1s wali Augunol's memories may not be permanently dead Thera is @ crance that they wil raturn to it once tn9 partys no langor witn thorns mory fogion The change ct any inéiv dual returningtolisisthe cquiva\ent ta the Sysiem Shock survival porsontage (Ployera Handbook, p12, Constitution Table) Tho DM may wish to extend ths acverture by allowing characters 10 eaarch for the real world locations that Auquhel's memoves snow. is oft tothe DM's discretion whether or rot to place these encauinters ampaign, at aeekgn a value tathaKey parte which would nS 71s | 1. The Stairwetl slimy, black goo. The black slime ve harmiece and eny heat hulle i Iinmediately, but tis extreme)y slippery. The steps are alsacovered with alight frost sotha: ary character Nas a chance of (40 — Dexterity of falling down the Staits, aking 1-4 pons of damage as they do $6 ‘at ine bottom of she stairs there Ig a small bare area. locked conoeialed doar exists inthe south wall en has Formed in the leek, 80 that unlees hoat eappliad. thevos culfora 10% penalty whan wy ng 0 pick 2. Hallway As sion as a member ofthe batty Ober the oor at he LottoFY oF the Stats and steps into the room. 8 magic mouth spel 'sactivatec. and says the following in Common ‘Master, we have visitors. They are ungracious to come hore wathout an invitation, You said you needed fresh bodies, se ‘Suppose they cen ste, Auquot seth workroomms spell whan he stil speak muci of nis de ie his ear 2 triggered when ariyone bul he aetared tha chamber The room contains Wtle of interest. Although obscured by ‘at, the ‘walls, eeiing and lecrare-coxored by adosign of inlaid los wich the 26 ‘mouifs of anhourclass and a sundial are endlessly repaatedamid scenes bf alien lite, wherein strangaly dressed humanoids are sean travelling inmysterious containers. One section f these tiles Ite up to reveal & ‘ll Any character who walks upon thi aston of tho Higor wil ail through, taking 1-6 pointe of damage from the fall end 1-4 points of damage fom falling thvoush the nomfrozen well water 3. Storage Cellar Tg was ebviously @ food store. Hanging trom the caitings are hams, Joints of voricon and boot. gamenirds, sacks of grain ane vagotabies, bundles of horbs and spices, and.a pumpkin. In tha corer at tha ra0m stando o small eaak of eal. Al ofthis foad ig now rathor mi dewod and covered in frost, but there Ws a 25% chance of any item being 10 eat Along the swostern wall i$ a winerack containing 48 hortes of wane There is a3 in 8 chance thet any boxe wil be undringanie due 16 the wanige In tomperaiure. Any wine that is still drinkaale wl ba wrth 30-1809p por bettie 4. Laboratory Augutiol used this room asa laboratory when heexperimenied wit Iie fextension. Since then, extra workbenches have buen mavedin fromthe Room a the Mirror tea 5), 30 the roc is ney somewhat cluttered, The mayor feature of the oom, pariallyhiddon ty a stack of Sanches, isa 4-armed staiue of a male numanovd. In each hand the statue holds a bow! none is ain another ie, ina hird dust, and the last isempty if ‘anything is placed in tha bows, or #any of thearms are interfered 2 independent. all four arms wall anintate, tipping th convents of tue bhow'sonte he floor Acloudefdustul ariseinsiantly. affecting anyone: immediately infront ofthe statue Thase characters must (nen save vs breath er he blinced tor 2-12 turns Only if all four arme are pulled together will a small, thiol proof compartment in tae base ofthe pins open, jetconing en amber liquid from a small tbe, which suppresses the tant quality of the dust. In the comparument ate severel sinall parchinents, wrapped in hive documents obtained by Auaulno at thedeyinning of his researches. One Shows a representation of a Key. which wil enable the party (0 fesagnise the ehjests when fand{encnuntars 7.8.9. and 10) Another parchment hae a it, showing the locations ofthe Koye thus: AstKey The Tomb of Carline 2nd Key The Vaults Beneath the Capitol Museum Brad key The Village of Childeon th Koy Old Fathor Tima Itshe DM intanda to havo tho party sack these tome again in rea timo ‘and space, as eugiestedat the beginning of Part 3, he er she may-ellow the charecters Io roll uercersile dice to see il they have ever hoard of {hese places, The Capitol Museum should be well-known 20% cha per ehoraeten) but Carkinas Tomb andthe Village of Children are im fbscure places |S% chanca por character) The location of Old Father Time ie unknown to anyana athe party All the tables end benches inthe laboratery ate covarad in alchomies| equipment, Most of inebot esandilasks havedriedout butore of two stl contain seme foul looking brews. On one of the tables are three flasks contain viscoussiocking liquids. Tao of the flasks contain potions af longevity. tne other is 9 potion af extra heating ‘Noarby lie two books and agile of notes. The neter relate to Auguhols| reeoarshos into longavity and ara worth 1000 ap to a gage specialising Inhumen b ology. The firet book ie a travelling spell beok contsining he pclls animate dead and magie jar, the othor is cried “The Leh fivth or reali?" and 3 worth 260099 fo 2 bage or Magis use ‘The room contains several other lems of value. In one corner, hden behing a pie ef glassware, isan orrery — a mecnanieal device whic emonsisates the movemertof the Sun. Moon andthar planets about the Earth — worth 750gp. On one of tho tales stands a part of hourglasses made of gold inlaid with geme (orth 200¢p each), lin the southwest corner of the room stends a large, sione darnage Trough, which ts the Source al the dveciner- laden waer which has ‘olvan niseto the muc-men. The bottom of t3e tough is lledwnth mud, nd there is 2.15% chance of a muceman appearing the mits lsturhed [sue PART 2. The Inhabitants of tha Area lor dotaie of te5. The Room of the Mirror This was onaot Auquhol s laboratories untishecleared to make space forthe room's dominant feature —a largo ‘mitrer which etretchee long the costern wall The only othor features of the room are 6 large ites! against the southern wall and a pak of columns, apporently holding the mirvor up, but aciually two Garyatié columns (AC 9. MV 0° HD 2zhitpoinisjaxack as 5 HO monster AT 1, D2-8 SD 25%chance Df any wenpon breaking when (See ta hi the column, -§S per magica’ plus +419 allsauing Yrrows; 280xp, ALN; S Mt which ara pregrammee Yo atlack anyone wre attompis te stika tha miter Thuchest s locked, wiih a poison needle inthe lack Inside areagoleen und aliniaid wth plata wae jar th S004 sve oad fet gotd wire (worth 300) helen of underwater action, 3 dagger 1 ahowi af watery death, anda bow tha fir trapenit Tete ir ‘wilde 1-47 pornis 0! damaged! cote Insida tre box are tnree srl, Thefrst hac the spells Blink and gust of wind. the seoondthacpell dig, andthothied the clerical spells silence 15° radius, epeak with dead and ‘cure sorious wounds The misror is more than ® looking glass. It does show a reflection of ony character wh looks nto, butthis reflection saliays, 10 begin with of Ine chatacter as a child Gradually dhe reflection cihanges. url ‘appears to de of old age Throughout the process the reflect wil aways be recognisable as that cfthecharactor At imes(I inachance par turn] the mirror val shew @ reflaction of an old’ man (Augunal) Wwizardly garb the same man whosa image pomte towside the tTapdear im the mansion above. Il anyone exarmines the relation they sillretice hat the men is carefully ho ding four grey bars about 6 Tong thermore, enyone witvan intelligence of 16 or yrester maybe able ead fis ips and make out the words Key to Time [Anyone who touches the mirrar will discover that, apparently, st dose notex'st The mitro"isactually tha gateway to Auquhol s memories, anc ‘can bo walled through without visible harm, but anyono doing se vl feel o wrenching sensation, and age 1 4 years, Auquhol’s Memories 6. The Elomente ‘nee the adventurors have paasod through tho mieror thoy will net be ale to see it feom this side Around ther stretches e zane of white, Gloud-1ke vapour, which obscutes al vision beyond 30 No matter which direction the charactors take, tive minutes wil pass While they erogs thiszcne. Towarde the end of tatume the atmosphere ‘will grow damp, anc the adventurers will find themselves walking through a torrential downpour This val also take about five mats to tpalk through, reaardiess of vihich dircetion the party tokes, The downpour wil then giedually abate, and the characters wil ind themsalves standing on a muddy plain (erhien will ry Out es they. proceed) whieh stretches as far as the eyacan sea After a further fhe “ites wall the plain wll iake on acracknd sunbaked appearance an \.airwil grow hot Asths party pracaeds tha rr will groweven hotter and gouts of flame wll appear from tho eracks in the plain, whch will hhow be seen to be made f black basalt. Ths region will aise ke Five Irinutes tocross at. walking pace twominutes al arunning pace) and the characters shoud make a saving vow vs dea'h magic or Coke 1-0. points of damage dii@10 the super-heated aut entering their Lunas fier the characters have erossad this haselt plain. they wil tine Inemselves entering @ tone of leattreless gray. Attar wallong tor five rinutoe wn this zone they will come open another mrtor, auperently ddentieal te the ane they pases through inthe mansion callar Passing through ths miror wallnottake the pertyback tothe cellar, buttoarsa 7 detailed below) and age them all 1-3 years. 7. The Tomb at Carine Asthe adcenturerserarge trem the mirrors imo, thay wal find that it ‘stl behind ther In rontol tame aervallelaacing ato bottom ofa ciiffazo. Let ntothofaco af the cliffisadcorway. The leature of thoar thatthe choracters will most easily rotice ‘that it tends to fads tourey fothirgness as they wander {uriher tom the door, untilall distiagash ‘ng features disanoear Tne 6oorwayis large andimposing, vata complex seal across he lock Ghee tha seat is Broken, a thiol wil have no Irauble ping the lee shies ¢ not trapped, Bolund t90 door, a eorndar of rough hewn stone stretches into theif Atits one, it widens ito achomber (A}fllee with lueosure, but this treasure is insubstantial and slightly grey. None oft THE GUARDIAN OF THE KEY TO TIME ‘may be removed. The only partof the ream whieh has any raalityar alls the door leading to the bural chamber (2) which is again sealed, Brooking this ses will not alone disturb Corline, the marimy (AC 9; MV 6", HD 8:3, AT 1,0 1-12, SA feor. 1406xp; ALLE, SM] via was buried in tis wr The mummy, cressed in ragged cloves, and wearing a thin gold circiet lapparerily worth 3090) abou tis Dow. 1s Securely nested in caftin against me seuthern wall The Fuummy wll ‘only he rouses if anyone rauishas the inisint weacen hex (apparently ‘worth 1259p) wh ch resis on top of the coffin, Inside thie box ea small 9r2y red, caverad in runes (which are indecipherable even with o read ‘magic spel). This 3 apart of the Key to Tire There is nothing else o! interest in the roam, mnhich otherwise apnsars Siabtly grey are! insubstancial Aavane passing through tie miro from this side willnotte trarsportadbiack te the Roor oft Micror(3}-nth® mansion cellar bur intothe small seetion of ungean (3) detailed below. Passing through the miror Irom here wallage any character 2-4 years 8. Tho Vaults Bonoath the Capitol Musoum Again, a5 the adventurers step out from the rmirror thoy will ind that t sll exists inthe wall behind trem. Towards the west, thecorridor grows grey, mistyand insubstantial alter only 10 1901 or se. To the e2st, tha staps down to beth doors are filed With wabs, a5 theugh causce by tho cacend lave! magic user apall ‘The mainroam (A) hasplain sionewors floes, eps, wallsandcelling It hasbuttwvofeatures o!note. The rst se statue of a Centaur(AC 2. MY 18 -HD4.1)p20.- ATB{missile}or 1 (nelee}-O 1-6 (arrow) oF 1-4 (bow asclubj;ap1 85: ALNG:SL., witna bow andquwvar tullofarrowe, placed Inthe centre of the lower part of the room, The cacondisarow of masks, malo and forsale, in fourdifleront motale vor, oleetrum, gold and platinum, hanging on tho wost wall Ifany of these are moved ar remeved by the party, the Centaur will animate, fing arrows at arate of three per rourd andyeling in Centaur) ‘Leave then alone —they are not for you Henasan enciess supply of arrows, ‘apd in close combat will swing his bow like a club. Near dear (Shp oF Tess) he will surrender, wooping tears i the masks aro toa taken The masks wll radiate a magiesl aura Hf dotect magie ve o2st but thoir snaivte eannot be ident fed. This can only be dore threugh tre wearing ‘ofeachone, When thisisdene, the mesk's property is dischatued and then cis ntegrates, The meerers (eaiures will have Suoty allered 10 moth the features on the mast, andi adcition each confers 8 ‘itt. ¢s fotiows +1 t0 Prime Requisite “1 to Charioma “1 te Prime Requisite * dB for exira hit points Silvor Femalo: Eleetrar Malo Electrum Female: Gold Mate: ‘gain one ful level Gold Female: reverse alignment sp penalty) Platinum Male rocoive a cursed waapen {(doterminod randomly) Platinum Female: averse 30% ‘The smaller room (B1is the abode of a wight {ACS MY 12" HD +3, hp 20" ATT: 1-48 energydrain; SD neadsiiver or magiew2apons tail; Bdbxp, ALLE, S M) who willatack anyone entering the room In fone corner a pila of elfal andld clothing. and te horethattho wight ‘Koepa its treasute (token frem post vetiens|. ‘Apart from the clothing (werthless) end 27gp, this consists ef a short sword and a grey rod covered in indecipherable runes. Tris is anctiver parcof tne Key to Time Mervyn the short sword +3 (AL LW; powers davact aull 1 radius, heat 1/day, causa insanity: Languages spoke any at DM's discretion; lint 18; Ego 19%! used to have = special purpose (hence the insanity powor), but has fergotten what it wae — What do you expect when Superior werkmanshp is left o.ge rusty in a waght's lar. A wight rund you, Noteven awarihy undeed like a ich, but avrght. Ne wonder ge! a {eiriblepain in he potimelandasputotrusi vn y scebbet, but never have found anyone worthy of carrying me. hardly surprising really, Morwyn's powmors ate Heawiee doproseed and doprossing. Ha must ba talked roundto tho idoaofeomdat ie there roaly anoint?) 75% of tho time otherwise he ectsas short sword “1 without special oowers. His Inganitycausing ability 's inated to nducir'g sucidal menia(OMG ps) 27THE GUARDIAN OF THE KEY TO TIME Pagsing through the mirros from this sido will age any character 1-4 yoore and toke him or hor to tho nex’ encountor aroa |8. The Vilage) detailed below. 8. The Village of Chiléren “There 's no map for this encounter, because t should not be required. {As the adventurers step through the micror this time they are greeted with a depressing sight, Seer is felling slowly, and threatening co put ‘ut the fires of tha smouldering wocden huts rat surround them. They are staring in necentrecfa smal village which Ioaksas though twas faided ane plundered about twelve hours ago Most ofthe bulldings are burnt to the ground, and the ashes are now steaming rather than bbutning, All tho buildings, excopt one, havo a tinge of grey unreality {bout them, whieh becomes more merked further awey fromthe centre fof the villace unt the forest which surrounds the village fades entirely togrey. The only building which hasan air of realityistnelargost nein te illege. citculat fit eboul 25 feet across. thas net been burnt at ail. Lying in the doorway is the body of @ human male child dre Inside the bulldingitisdareard smells of loodane smoke. Lying inthe centre the oom is tebody of ayoung ‘emnalachild. and kneolingover the Uody 1s another, remarkably silt, child. The second child ts, however. @ doppelganger (AC 3: WIV 8: HD @: no 23, “AT 1: D 1-12, SASurpriseona-4'SDimmure to sleep andenatm, saving rhrows.ae 1Dihlovel fighter, 4223p; ALN: S M) whieh hes just apparently sisinthe fist child, I the doppelganger is ove*come, the body in tye doorway willrise asa second, identical doppelganger, and it ints in wurn is detested, then tne prone chiks nthe cantre ef the tom wil rise ms 9 third In apoueh aroundthe dead! chiis's neck is a grey rod covered in runes fnethor part of the Key to Time. Ita command spal is cact at the child, end the word ‘rise’ is speken before the child has become a doppelganger, thon, no metter what clee is hoppening orouing it, the child wll rise and give the Key to the nearest sheracter ‘Theve is natning else ef interest in the nut Passing back through tne mittee trom here vil ake tha party to Old Father Time (10) detailed below, and age them all 1-3 years, 10. Ole Father Time This time the characters emerge inio the arte-chamber of a lerue throne-room, Anead of them two great, redwood doors have Deen thrown back, showing the room ahead This vast chamber s2ams 10 hava bean carvad out of giazad chalk, co white dose i seem. As the: charactors pate through the door, they may fool they oe dancing ‘apparitions, faint aré. short lived, women ené men’ dancing and beckoning them forwa'e ‘The rocm ‘$ dominated at its further end by @ massive throne. of lusireless, Back stone. On itis seated agiant skeleton (AC 6: UV 12 HDS.1p 30" ATT Oby weapon xp240° ALN'S.), 10 eestall.nearing 2 huge silver scyihe that inficts 2-12 points of damage. Tha skelaton ill stack anyone who enters the room. “An undecipherable rune pinted on 1 forahoad prevorts it from boing turned by a clare Behind the throne, a curtain conceals a second room of mere madest ionensions, in which there is single coffer he lid of which las been fashioned out ofa shield ~3. The coffer is net locks and contains the feurth Key When theadvonturors pass back through the mirror fromhore,thoyare teken te the Aoom of Mirrors 1,belovil Passing through the rveror thie time ages the charecters one year. 28 11. The Room Bayond the Mirror [As they emerge from the mirror his time, thapzrty finds coll inaroom ‘whore each wall \s made of mirrors, with andieee raflactions of the Contents of the room If they return througn the mirrer again now, they vil return <0 the Room of the Mirror (6), and will effectively heve ‘turned 19 tha area just as it was when they Het in mirrored niches along the walls, tere are several stone statves, ell human with the eueapiion of one eit, and of varying classes. In the conito.0% the room, the mab floors engraved with a sirango oper, Giving off @ sparking aura. Any person entering the ‘nll be turned into stone, asthe statues. By contrast ‘eluding one formed from a member ofthe porty, be placed inthe eree of the eypher, they will be raturned to flesh. The human statues who have been intheit niches for many decades, wll instantly {urn to dust Dut pany memwers and tne ef would be restored to Ie, “The elf [AC 7, MY 12" Fighter/Thie 2/2; hp 7; "AT 1; D by weapon: 3g 84; ALCN, Sl) wil introduce himectt 98 Sorensenn, who come to this place bofere Avauhol tock aver He woarsleather "fend carries dagger +2. He will be very csoriertaied, particularly fhe oatiy S able to move that several decades have passed since hs imprisonment ‘commenced “isovin sense of the passing ef time nasbetrayed nim. In his contusion, much of wha! ha observed ever the long years will not foturn to him in coherent fashion, but ho has two vital pioses of informetion for the adventurers. First, he ean tell them how io sign the Keys3othat they will activace, although he has noideacf theirfunciion (Auguho! rehearsed the experimentin:his room). Second, heknowsthe location of Old Father Tine, ane can lead the paity there. Inthe comer. there isa silver hioek, of vast dimension, inscribed wh Anreadable, magical runes which are clearly in tha same language as ‘markingeon the Keys, On each side of thecube there feasingla holo, andthe Keys mustbe insertadeimultanacuely and turned nee counter: Slockowiee Ifa singlo key, of anything loastvan allfour,iatrned, then 2 noisoloas shoo* wove will emanate from the block, ane characters should save egeinst deeth magicor tehe 1-1 Dpointsef shock darnaus This nas the isigke thatAuachol mada In asence,theberty is lucky — she fact that the block has already unleashed the full potency of is ower has reduced is affect now. The sherk wave ul barapeatedeach ‘ime that the party ariompts to turn any less than four cays inthe cubs, ‘As e000 os thie is done, every adventurer wil suffer from an instant blackout, Their actions have not causes the true function o! the Cube to occur, since Auquhol’s exzeriment has 80 radicaly misshapen the ure of realty in this area, but 11 ais undane the arm he aLised When they awake, which willbe at atime sean minutos aftr thay frst, lencored ihe mansion, the party wl find isa strewn abeut the ruins of ste mansion. The illusion of the auilding 38 9 whole vnll hays vanished 4nd the whole oF tho undorgreund lovol wll be blasted and tured 10 ‘rubble. Aroae 5 and 12 will have boon utterly destroyed. Sorremnsenn wil ‘et be with the party And Finally The DM may now choose whet was ral ane whet merely @dreem from the adventure that hos token place. ifhe or she does not intend to teke this storylinoany furthest nay bebest ithe porty is alowed 1922p al the treasure ic has discovered throughout theadveniurea nd gain allthé fexpetiencetrom combat However, ihe DMwishes to allow thepariy fo search again for the Keys to tim, tha party should emerge trom the marion without aay of the artvacte irom the imaginary encounters (7-12), inclucing the effects of the maske, and the encounters 7-10 ‘should placed w thin the eompeign, gerhaps eltered in sume ctl, “The main goin for the perty will then be hnowledke, ofthe ocetion ard ddengers inherent in searching for the Keys to Time, and they ean ten tttempt fo ciscove: just what would happen ifthe experiment were Sarried out properly... Regerdiess, te perty should Koop all the lexperiansa points gained from somnat trouchous the advanture, since the dangers were vary real Of cours, avani they find the Keys to Time again, thors sallitle matter of digging a foe fifty feet ince the ground to find the Cube... Credits Original Concept John Wiliams Dovolopmont by ike Brunton & Paul Coekb utn Cartography Paul Ruiz at Tim Sell