Waytravel to the dead island of Tidalock...
A
s reality materializes around you, you find yourself in the Land of the Dead. Everything you see from your vantage point atop a small, lifeless island floating above the coastline is void. Grays and blacks make up the thick, seemingly-alive shadows that blanket the landscape; it would have been majestic once, when life flowed on the three skylands overlooking the large Tidalock Island below. Instead, you feel death staring at you, as if from all directions at once...
Desecrated Ground
Tidalock Island is desecrated ground. Some cemeteries and catacombs are imbued with the unseen traces of ancient evil. While most desecrated places in the world taint a small area, few have been created by threats as tainted and powerful as the Nightwalker--which now. An area of desecrated ground can be any size, and a detect evil and good spell cast within range reveals its presence. Undead standing on desecrated ground have advantage on all saving throws. A vial of holy water purifies a 10-foot-square area of desecrated ground when sprinkled on it, and a hallow spell purifies desecrated ground within its area.
Tier III Waypoint | The Iron Coin will not allow anyone through of 10th level or lower. The monsters present flee instinctively should anyone of 17th level or higher arrive.
Tidalock Solo Encounters
CR ¼: Skeleton
CR ½: Undead Cockatrice | Shadow
CR 1: Ghoul
CR 2: Skeletal Polar Bear | Ghast
CR 3: Vampiric Mist
CR 4: Ghost
CR 5: Undead Bulette | Wraith
CR 6: Nass Lantomir's Ghost
CR 7: Giant Skeleton
Tidalock Special Encounters
The following encounters appear only once. When they have been slain and their rewards taken, they do not return. Notify a DM, so that they can list the slayer.
When fighting one of these creatures, it is important to note the information contained in the Notes section below.
Slain: Protector of the Stone of Auril
DISCOVERY: The Stone of Auril
In the center of this structure is a large diadem, a six-pointed snowflake intricately carved into its surface, illuminated by blue-grey light. It must be a temple of sorts to Auril. Four giant statue pillars stand on each corner of the open-sky structure, shapes of bears holding stone bricks the size of a house. When my feet entered the diadem, its light illuminating the symbol flashed white-blue, and one of the stone bear statues came to life...— You
Prerequisites
- Stumble on this site by discoverying anything on the Structures table in Chapter 9 of the Solo Adventurer's Toolbox. You must start your journey by rolling on the Forest/Jungle or Coastal tables. Use the travel speeds offered in the PHB (Chapter 8: Adventuring -- Movement/Speed) to determine how many miles you cover per day. The population density of Tidalock is low, so you check for wilderness encounters three times per 24 hour period. For every roll of 25 or below, you have an encounter.
- (Optional) Expend 3 Lore or 2 Divine Favors to learn of the Stone of Auril
Encounter Notes
-
The moment you step onto the diadem, the eidolon awakes and assumes control of one of four giant bear statues. Every time it inhabits a statue, it throws the stone brick it is holding, using a stone giant's rock throw attack. After that, it maintains sacred statue's stat block.
-
It rolls its Sacred Animation recharge at the end of every turn, even if it's currently inhabiting a sacred statue.
-
Combat ends once the Eidolon is defeated.
-
The Stone of Auril isn't in the cache. This opens a group adventure to obtain this stone.
Loot
-
Coins: 1,500pp 15,000gp
-
Gems: 3x Black Opal, 2x Emerald, 3x Opal, 1x Star Ruby, 2x Yellow Sapphire (1,000gp each)
-
Items: Potion of Storm Giant Strength
Hale Aramastus
| CR/Monster |
Reward Type |
Soloable? |
Slayer(s) |
Date Slain |
| CR 13: Vampire |
Treasure Hoard |
Yes |
N/A |
|
DISCOVERY: Overgrowth Abbey
Whilst gallavanting through Tidalock island in all its death and decay, I discovered a small region where leaves still clung to their skeletal branches. Within this strange bit of brambled geography, an abbey stands, mostly covered and hidden by the noxious growth. It houses the only living creatures on this island; though I've only heard and seen bats, rats, and wolves...— You
Prerequisites
- You must expend 2 Legendary Lore, 20 Lore, or 10 Divine Favors to learn of the strengths and weaknesses of a Vampire
- For every day you adventure in Tidalock, roll a d2. On a 2, you notice the heavily fog-covered region with plant life
- Success on a difficult fast skill challenge to break through the overgrowth and discover the abbey
- Complete a hard encounter, monsters reskinned as skeletal wolves
- Complete a moderate fast skill challenge to find a way into the building (or use a relevant spell/class feature to get in)
- Complete four hard encounters of vampire spawn
- 2 attempts to complete a DC 18 Investigation check to find the crypts where Hale Armastus resides; 2 failures means you cannot find his resting place
Encounter Notes
- The crypts have no light. Regular fire cannot exist here. You are in total darkness.
- Hale's swarm of bats from the Children of the Night feature are summoned before initiative start.
- If he drops to 40 hit points or less, he will turn into a bat and attempt to flee. You must complete a hard fast skill challenge to keep the chase (which lasts three rounds, taking into account Hale's regeneration feature).
- If you successfully tail the vampire, combat resumes and you enter an empty room save for the fog (that is the vampire) lingering on the north end. He reverts to his humanoid form, gaining advantage on a grapple check against you.
- When Hale reaches 20hp, add two vampire spawn to the encounter; if Hale is dealth a killing blow before reaching 20hp, the damage is transferred to a vampire spawn instead
- Two chances at a successful hard skill challenge (vampire spawn encounter on failure) to find its resting place within 1 hour and permanently slay him
Loot
Keeper Illuminarim
| CR/Monster |
Reward Type |
Soloable? |
Slayer(s) |
Date Slain |
| CR 14: Devkarin Lich |
Treasure Hoard |
No - DM Lead |
N/A |
|
DISCOVERY: The Lich's Secrets
I've done it. I can get Master Previeme out of the Negative Plane! ...The Nightwalker. Its eyes are on everything... I've... I've unlocked Master Previeme's rune-locked room. I'll save him after I've experimented... just. a. little. longer...— Tabitha Illuminarim
Prerequisites
- Reach Previeme Tower, located on Trinium, the island floating a mile off the coast and a half-mile above the ocean
- Succeed on a fast moderate skill challenge or trigger a trap when entering the tower
- If the trap is triggered, succeed on a DC 16 Wisdom Saving Throw or be subject to the Hold Person spell; a spiritual weapon appears (using the AC and hitpoint stats of an animated sword) and begins striking at you; you make a wisdom saving throw at the conclusion of each of your turns
- Summon a DM to run you through the rest of the booby-trapped mage tower
Encounter Notes
Keeper Tabitha Illuminarim was Previeme's senior-most, right-hand wizard. She was responsible for generating the barrier that locked the Nightwalker on Tidalock. She delved into heavy research, pouring through Previeme's items, notes, and research, to figure out a way to swap him for the Nightwalker. She made a breakthrough just after she discovered how to access Previeme's "Personal" Room. No one was allowed there; not even her. Inside, she found information that led to her pursuing lichhood; her drive to rescue her master waned. She went insane. The keepers that hadn't been slain by the Nightwalker were destroyed by and reanimated as ghosts under her control. She then dropped the barrier containing the Nightwalker.
Keeper Tabitha is a high-level lich-wizard inhabiting a spell-infused master wizard's tower.
Loot
-
Coins: 1,600pp 14,000gp
-
Gems: 1x Jacinth, 1x Diamond, 2x Emerald, 2x Fire Opal
-
Items: Potion of Flying, CR 14 Magic Component for use in crafting a Very Rare item
William Lestat
AMBUSH: You killed my brother...
So I will hunt you down on this dead land, in the dead of night. My hounds will feast on your blood; and I shall have the last bite.— WIlliam Lestat
Prerequisites
- Hale Aramastus slain
- Spend three nights in the Tidalock wilderness; he strikes at night during your long rest (you only benefit from a LR if you don't require the eight hours, such as the elve's Trance feature).
Encounter Notes
This vampire is a lone traveler that haunts the world. Long before the Nightwalker broke free of its boundaries, this warrior would venture off the island with its pack of yeth hounds and confirm that nightmares do exist.
- They hunt only at night.
- William travels with three yeth hound and 3d6 wolf companions.
- Two chances at a hard skill challenge (failure means yeth hound and wolf encounter) to find and permanently kill William in his resting place. Two failures means you do not find his resting place and he stalks you once more at full health.
- His permament defeat reveals a hint in his coffin revealing the location of the Nightwalker.
Loot
-
Coins: 2,100pp 21,000gp + !sloot 15 2 "Vampire Warrior"
Shazo-zul
| CR/Monster |
Reward Type |
Soloable? |
Slayer(s) |
Date Slain |
| CR 16: Mummy Lord |
Treasure Hoard |
No - DM Led |
N/A |
|
DISCOVERY: An Ancient Civilization
Massive orange-yellow walls shrouded in mist display enormous windows into the past, each with its own spectacular mural. The colors are dampened and muted from the taint of Tidalock, but you can't help but wonder how incredible of a place this must have been in its prime. Despite its age, its structural integrity stands strong and true. Though a mostly primative people, based on their dress in the murals, they seemed well-acquainted with art and the management of a civilization...
— Your Inner Musings
Prerequisites
- Discover a settlement using the jungle/forest or coastal terrain tables in the Solo Toolbox
- Expend 2 Legendary Lore, 20 Lore, or 10 Divine Favors to learn the strengths and weaknesses of a mummy lord
- Encounter 2d4 traps with a DC of 15 (type of check / save dependent on the trap you choose; you may request aid from a DM in generating these traps if you fail the check to notice it, you trigger the trap
- Ping a DM to give them time to build out this fight
Encounter Notes
The Pyramid of Shazo-tul stands as a testament of time. Shazo-zul ran one of the most ancient of civilizations on the known world. With enough clues from the labyrinthine depths below the structure, one might begin to draw conlcusions that the Shaz-tul Emprire could have been the source of power that manifests itself in the world through the tear in time and irregularity of things within Dragonsmoke.
Loot
Tidalock Monster Lair
The Nightwalker
| CR/Monster |
Reward Type |
Soloable? |
Slayer(s) |
Date Slain |
| CR 20: Nightwalker x3 |
Treasure Hoard |
No - DM Led |
N/A |
|
WANTED: Breach!
The fearsome scion of shadow saturates the very ground of Tidalock Island with necromantic energy and is responsible for reaping all life from the area. After breaking containment, all that prevents this being from driving the world to extinction is the distance of water which separates Tidalock Island from the mainland, the sea life having long fled from the edge of the arcane barrier that has now fallen.
— Everyone, Everywhere
Prerequisites
- Discovery of the clue to its whereabouts as obtained from the slaying of William Lestat
- Expend 2 Legendary Lore, 20 Lore, or 10 Divine Favors to learn the strengths and weaknesses of a nightwalker
- Ping a DM to give them time to build out this fight
- A group of willing adventurers
Encounter Notes
Tidalock, once a beautiful marvel with its three spectacular floating islands, Everroan, Freestep, and Trinium, used to be the home of Kutorid Previeme, a wizard obsessed with the discovery of hidden, make-believe realms. He discovered one, but it wasn't the one he thought. Now, it isn't known if poor Kutorid trapped himself in the Negative Plane; but it is known that he toyed with powerful magics he ought not have, dealing with realms between realms.
He prepared his "Keepers", his name for his "apprentice" wizards (true wizards in their own right), for anything that could go wrong. Or so he thought. When Kutorid the Foolish entered the Negative Plane, a gargantuan manifestation of pure death swapped places with him in the Material Plane. The Keepers acted quickly, managing to use several ancient and powerful magical artifacts, in conjunction with their combined magics, to create a powerful arcane dome that covered nearly all of Tidalock Island.
This dome trapped what was to be dubbed the
Nightwalker by scholars. And within, it romped around the island destroying and consuming all life. Not a settlement was left standing, not a soul left alive, not a spark of life left unsnuffed. And so the world thinks themselves safe. But little do they know that the barrier that imprisoned this configuration of death for the last 75 years has fallen.
Loot
-
Coins: 60,000pp 83,000gp
-
Gems: 3x Star Sapphire, 3x Blue Sapphire, 3x Fire Opal
-
Art Objects: 10x 2500gp art objects
-
Items: Dwarven Thrower (Unidentified - Very Rare), Carpet of Flying (Unidentified - Very Rare), Ioun Stone, Fortitude (Unidentified - Very Rare), Cloak of Arachnida (Unidentified - Very Rare), Potion of Gaseous Form, Potion of Fire Giant Strength, Spell Scroll (4th level), Potion of Diminution,Potion of Heroism, Elixir of Health, Ammunition +2
Creatures of CR 2 or higher may be in the area of units of Nightshade, which can be harvested in this region.
New World Harvesting Guide
Nightshade
A deep dark blue flower with 4 soft, long and pointy petals and a gray, dried-looking stem.
Unit value: 10 gp
Bomb effect: Bomb (necrotic)
Poison effect: Weakness (Wisdom)
Potion effect: Darkvision
