Understacks Building / Landmark in Palimpsest | World Anvil

Understacks

The Understacks are a vast library of books directly below the official Elderton University Library. It contains the books that were considered not worth keeping as the library moved upwards to conteract the city's falling. Most of the books are just out-of-date, but some contain forbidden or forgotten knowledge.

Understacks layout

Top Level

The top level of the Understacks is located just below the University library. The books on this floor are generally in the newest condition of books in the Understacks. Most have been abandoned as a result of simply being older editions of works that are still carried by the library proper, although some are left behind on the "advice" of the Ecumenical Tabernacle or other city autorities. A door with the boot sigil of the Poor Man leads to the main library, where students study. There is also a door bearing the crown sigil of the Rich Man that leads in a similar direction. Each of these doors can only be opened when the library's orrery is set to their respective deity's days. The staircase leading down to the lower levels of the understacks is not blocked by a door.
Found: All Things Pass Away

Second Top Level

Room with flying spellbooks. Staircase up to level above and Two staircases down.

Third Top Level

Floor with Poor Commoner District Entrance. Two rooms, with a row of bookshelves that have solidified into a wall. Each of the room have a staircase up to the spellbooks and a staircase down: none of these have doors. The second room (that we broke through to) had the broken down clockwork librarian [missing its key].

Fourth Top Level

Big room where we fought the Eddimu (acquired Rot and Ruin from the Eddimu). One staircase leading down to Sesame door. Another staircase that has a Poor Man door at the top of it. Moon door. Leads to the Bone Room antechamber. His books are: Beyond the bookcase is the Bone Room proper.

Fifth Top Level

Poor man door led to some stairs down to Nippers's room. That room has a Tailor door. Also has a staircase down to Sixth Top Level with no door. Sesame door leads through to silent room with the Halo Mushrooms and the wastewater wall. Soldier door in silent room which leads through to the War Room. Encountered the library golem and the map of the screaming desert. Found Zyzygy of Hyades in the wreckage of the library golem. War Room is directly below the Bone Room. Silent room is partially directly below the alcove entryway to the bone room. Other parts of the floor are under Edimmu's library thing. Silent Room has Zyzygy door that leads to stairs down.

Sixth Top Level

Stairs from Zyzygy Door and stairs down from Nippers Room lead to the Hurricane Room that Lindie fought air elemental in. Has a Sailor door, two thorougly blocked staircases down. Bookworm infested corridor over to collapsed room with tall bookcase forming a makeshift ladder.

Seventh Top Level

Sailor door leads down to restricted section between Sixth and Eighth level. Other rooms may be accessible but we haven't seen them yet.

Eighth Top Level

Gnome corpse (Henrick Blueth). Maze of stacks. Encountered Clockwork Library Golem. Found End Times of the Ghouls. Other side of the stacks had the silent room with 4 extra doors leading off it. 3 Bookcases with animate theses. 3 doors with carved reliefs of theses authors. Glomtrass Toothfang the bugbear, Swackhammer Fartrodden the gnome, Bastet of Palimpsest the Sphinx. Also has a doorway through to a ledge in a corridor where the rest of the floor has collapsed except for the pressureplate on the opposite end that has the library orrery. Bugbear's room paralel to Orrery corridor had Darkroom with explodable books and collapsing floor Found Hali, the Lake of Mist. Gnome door leads to the waterlogged room where the Shambler was residing. Water was leaking into the Waterlogged room from something above through the weakened cieling and to the rotted floor that eventually colapsed. Floor led to metal pipe full of squeaking creatures and sewage and flowed under the corridor with the orrery. Sphinx door led to a ricketty staircase over the pit sinkhole.

Level 9

The sphinx's lair. Directly underneath the stacks with the Clockwork golem and the Darkroom.
Type
Library
Parent Location
Characters in Location