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Dungeons
Crypt · Medium · Easy

The Bell That Rang Twice

A cold note trembles through the stone, though the entrance holds no bell.
Rooms
12
Foes
10, CR 1/8 to 1
Traps
2
Treasure
273 gp
123456789101112Entrance
Select a room on the plan to open it.

The party is in

1. Mourner's Vestibule

Seen

Something wanders by

At a glance

The threat

A restless dead presence stirs in , where an ancient corpse was sealed beneath the family's later tombs.

Wandering monsters (1d3)

  1. 1

    Lost WatchmanCR 1/8

    When: Appears after loud fighting or when the party lingers in a corridor for ten minutes.A lone skeleton in a rotted watch coat drags one foot and reacts to any sound resembling a bell.
  2. 2

    3× Crawling HandsCR 1/8

    When: Appears when a character bleeds or disturbs bones in a corridor.A cluster of three crawling skeletal hands scrapes along the floor, following the scent of warm blood.
  3. 3

    2× Crypt RatCR 1/4

    When: Appears when food is exposed or a door is left open for several minutes.A pale cave rat with a patchy coat darts between shadows; its eyes reflect blue light from the deep crypt.

Rooms

12
1

Mourner's Vestibule

treasuresecret

What they see

Read aloud

A low stone vestibule opens beneath a lintel carved with a bell and two faded burial dates. Damp earth has crept across the floor, and the ordinary western door stands ajar while a faint draft comes from concealed seams to the north and east.

Features

  • A cracked stone bench for mourners
  • A faded inscription asks visitors to leave weapons at the threshold

What the GM knows

Treasure

Mourner's Cup5 gp

A tarnished copper offering cup is wedged beneath the bench.
Room secrets · GM only

Notes

The west door leads to ; the concealed north and east doors connect to rooms 1 and 10. A character searching the wall can find either secret door with a successful Wisdom (Perception) check.

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

The place

What it is

The Bell That Rang Twice is a modest family crypt whose orderly upper chambers give way to sealed cells and increasingly old burial rooms.

Atmosphere

Cold damp air carries the smell of candle grease, old stone, and shut-in earth.

The threat

A restless dead presence stirs in , where an ancient corpse was sealed beneath the family's later tombs.

History

The crypt was built by the Vardek family after a flood washed away their hilltop chapel and its burial ground.

Rumors

1d4
Roll a rumor

  1. 1The bell beneath the old hill rings twice whenever someone in the village is about to die.
  2. 2A family heir swears a locked door in the crypt opens only when the dead hear their true names.
  3. 3Grave robbers returned from the entrance with silver coins, but none would say what they heard below.
  4. 4The Vardek family has always denied that anyone was ever imprisoned in its burial place.

Plot hooks

3
RecoveryThe Missing SignetA family descendant asks the party to recover a silver signet from before rival heirs learn the crypt has been entered. The signet's inscription may reveal that the current inheritance is based on a forged record.From: A worried family solicitorReward: A modest purse and the signet's value as evidence
InvestigationA Sound Beneath the HillVillagers hear a bell tone from beneath the abandoned chapel each night. The party must discover its source and stop the dead from wandering into nearby graves.From: A village gravediggerReward: Payment, local goodwill, and a blessed lantern
RetrievalNames in the LedgerA stolen burial ledger may be hidden in . Its pages identify a prisoner whose descendants now hold a claim to the estate above.From: A descendant with a disputed claimReward: A share of recovered estate funds or an old family relic

Corridors

3

  • Between and

    A line of shallow boot prints crosses the dust, then stops at a blank wall. The prints are old, but a fresh wax drip lies beside them.

  • Between and

    Three iron hooks hold rotted funeral cloth. Something has recently brushed the cloth aside, leaving a clean streak in the dust.

  • Between and

    A narrow drainage groove carries cold water toward the entrance, though the stone around it is dry.

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