Battlemap
Steam Reservoir Cave
The cave steams, hisses, and remembers one very bad magical decision.
This small cave complex wraps around a heated reservoir and the mistakes of a very unlucky halfling mage. What should have been a romantic display of power instead drew hungry steam mephits into the cavern, turning the place into a scalding, unstable lair.
Warm, wet cave air hangs over slick stone and a shallow underground reservoir. Steam hisses from cracks in the walls, torchlight gutters in the damp, and the constant drip of water echoes like footsteps in the dark.
☠ Threat
A cluster of steam mephits has turned the reservoir into a scalding nest, harassing intruders with bursts of vapor and petty ambushes. The halfling mage who caused the summoning is exhausted, embarrassed, and dangerously improvised, using unstable cantrips and half-working wards to keep the creatures from overrunning the cave.
History
A young halfling hedge mage leased the cave from a local quarryman to prepare a dramatic proposal for a woman from the nearby village. He chose the reservoir chamber for its mist and reflections, but his charm spell tangled with the cave's natural heat vents and summoned steam mephits instead. The disaster drove him deeper into the cave, where he now hides among the hissing water and angry elementals.
Encounter Table
CRRestless little steam spirits that dart through cracks, sting with heat, and flee when bloodied.
A harmless-looking but annoying cloud of condensed vapor that burns exposed skin and fogs vision.
A frantic halfling apprentice searching for his missing mentor, likely mistaken for a threat in the dark.
Rumours & Whispers
The cave breathes on cold nights, and anyone who enters hears someone proposing from deep inside.
Steam ghosts have driven the quarry cats mad, and no one knows where the heat is coming from.
A halfling wizard set off a love spell and turned the whole cavern into a boiling mess.
There is treasure in the reservoir chamber, if you can reach it without getting cooked.
Quest Hooks
Quest giver: Rellin Stonebeard, quarry foreman
The local quarry owner wants the cave cleared before the steam damage spreads to the nearby work tunnels.
25 gp and free lodging for the party's next visit to town
Quest giver: Pippa Thistlewink, anxious apprentice
A nervous halfling apprentice begs the party to find his missing mentor, who vanished after a magical mishap in the cave.
A spell scroll and a family heirloom brooch
Quest giver: Mara Fen, village reeve
Villagers keep seeing ghostly steam lights at night and want proof the cave is the source before they panic.
20 gp and the village's favor
Corridor Notes
Thin bands of mineral crust on the floor give way to sudden patches of warm stone that fog boots and hems.
A narrow stream of condensed runoff crosses the tunnel in a shallow rut, feeding the reservoir below.
Faint whistling vents breathe out warm air in uneven bursts, carrying the smell of wet limestone and brimstone.
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