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Dungeons
Lair · Small · Level 3 · Medium

The Hot Store

Orange light flickers over a scatter of bright coins as the lava hisses beside the stone floor.
Rooms
4
Foes
5, CR 1/8 to 1
Traps
3
Treasure
236 gp
1234Entrance
Select a room on the plan to open it.

The party is in

1. Soot Gate

Seen

Something wanders by

At a glance

The threat

Saffra, a brass dragon wyrmling, has claimed the deepest chamber and its small hoard.

Wandering monsters (1d3)

  1. 1

    1d4× Kobold scavengerCR 1/4

    When: The party makes loud noise or spends more than ten minutes in the entrance passages.A soot-blackened kobold scavenger drags a sack of loose scrap and flees at the first sign of danger.
  2. 2

    Magma mephitCR 1/2

    When: A creature disturbs the lava channel or crosses its stepping stones noisily.A small, ember-bright mephit trails smoke and leaves tiny beads of cooling glass wherever it lands.
  3. 3

    1d3× Cave lizardCR 1/4

    When: The party rests or leaves fresh food unattended near the holding chamber.A pale cave lizard, warmed by the volcanic rock, watches from cracks and snaps at anything carrying food.

Rooms

4
1

Soot Gate

1 foetreasuresecret

What they see

Read aloud

A low square antechamber opens onto two doorways, with soot-blackened stone underfoot and a red glow pulsing from the passage ahead. Fresh claw marks score the door to the east, while the west wall looks oddly smooth beneath a layer of dust.

Features

  • A chipped stone lintel bears the faded mark of a hammer and three sparks.
  • The east passage carries a faint smell of hot metal.
  • The west wall conceals a secret door.

What the GM knows

Monsters

Kobold sentryCR 1/4

A lean kobold sentry wears a scrap-metal shoulder guard and has soot smeared across its snout.Tactics. It warns the others with a sharp whistle, then uses the doorway as cover and retreats toward the prison room if pressed.

Treasure

Sentry's purse8 gp

A small leather purse hidden beneath the sentry's bedding contains mixed copper and silver coins.
Room secrets · GM only

Notes

The normal east door leads to the shrine. The secret door to the west opens into the prison room; finding it requires searching the smooth wall. The sentry is nervous and may surrender if cornered.

2 doors: E (normal), W (secret)

The place

What it is

A squat lair carved into a volcanic shelf, its rooms linked by narrow passages and crossed by a glowing lava runnel.

Atmosphere

Sulfur and hot iron cling to the air.

The threat

Saffra, a brass dragon wyrmling, has claimed the deepest chamber and its small hoard.

History

The volcanic shelf was first quarried by a small clan seeking heat for a smithy and a defensible storehouse.

Rumors

1d4
Roll a rumor

  1. 1The old quarry doors glow red at night, even when no furnace is lit.
  2. 2Kobolds have been seen carrying bowls of scrap metal toward the volcanic shelf.
  3. 3A brass dragon lives below the hillside, but it would rather hear a good tale than fight.
  4. 4The lava stream has changed its course twice this month, and the ground shakes before each shift.

Plot hooks

3
RescueThe Surveyor's TubeA missing mining surveyor was last seen carrying a brass tube of maps near the old volcanic shelf. The characters must find the surveyor or recover the maps before another lava surge seals the approach.From: Dema, a worried quarry foremanReward: A purse of 40 gp and first claim on salvage from the abandoned quarry
NegotiationA Seal in the HoardA merchant claims a family seal lies in the dragon's hoard and offers payment for its return. The seal may be there, but Saffra is willing to trade only for a story she has never heard.From: Oto, a traveling metal sellerReward: A finely made shield and 50 gp
InvestigationThe Cracking ShelfNew tremors have cracked the hillside above the lair. The characters must find the source and stabilize the old channels before the lava stream breaks into the nearby road.From: Ketta, a village stonecutterReward: A local guide, supplies, and 60 gp

Corridors

3

  • Passage between and

    A narrow channel of lava cuts across the passage beyond the shrine. A pair of basalt stepping stones offer a precarious crossing, their edges slick with cooled glass.

  • Passage between and

    Tiny clawprints and scattered fish bones lead toward the secret door into the prison. The tracks abruptly stop at the threshold, as if their maker knows to avoid it.

  • Passage between and

    Warm air breathes through cracks in the walls, carrying a faint, rhythmic rasp from the boss chamber.

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