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The Ruined Tower of Zenopus Prep Notes, Part Three

Continuing my fluffy prep for The Ruined Tower of Zenopus, Zach Howard's 5e adaption of Holmes' Sample Dungeon.
Room A
Rooms B-E

F. Firuzeh The Thaumaturgist’s Workroom
60x50’
The Thaumaturgist has secured this room, from which she has made a few cautious forays into the rest of the dungeon, hoping to unlock Zenopus’ secrets.

Workbench: Scattered with books, notes, and materials.
  • 6 books full of impractical arcane theory. If collected and studied at leisure, the following spells could be compiled with an Arcana 18+ check (each): floating disk, knock, magic mouth.
  • Partial maps of the dungeon, and notes on the goblins and pirates. A few references to dark things from under the cemetery.
  • Lunch: Cookpot half-full of lentil stew and a jug of watered wine.
  • Small pots of samples of soil, rock chips from dungeon walls, ashes, dried insects, bat guano, and moss
  • A baby cleaning cubelet trapped in a glass bulb
  • A spoonful of amber material (see E. Empty Rooms) in a sealed glass vessel
  • Various measuring implements, mundane and arcane
  • A wicker hamper full of scorched clothes
  • A giant rat skeleton with each bone labeled in neat handwriting on paper tags
  • Alchemy supplies: a dozen glass beakers, a metal frame holding a beaker in place over an open flame, glass stirring rods, a small mortar and pestle, salt, powdered iron, and purified water, and other common alchemical ingredients. Anyone with proficiency could assemble an Alchemist’s Kit
  • Tucked in a gap in the wall beneath the workbench (revealed by any decent attempt at Investigation): a bound sheaf of notes that Arcana 15+ will reveal are very preliminary notes on lichdom


3 Statues: Petrified victims of the Thaumaturgist’s wand of petrification:
  • A guide who first led her to the dungeon, over a decade ago (normal human stats)
  • A pirate (bandit stats)
  • An old man in wizard’s robes (Not Zenopus—a fellow researcher, betrayed) (same statblock as the Thaumaturge)

Firuzeh, The Thaumaturge and her guard, Papak, a charmed smuggler, can be found in this room during the day, and in Beda-At, the New Tower, at night.

Firuzeh the Thaumaturgist
An older woman, squat and hunched, wearing a plain sackcloth robe with dozens of little ceramic flowers pinned to it.
She is consumed with discovering Zenopus’ secrets, and has become increasingly ruthless in her efforts to protect her access to them.


G. Gloomy Midden
30x40’
This is the room where the cleaning cubes deposit any indigestible debris. Rocks and rubbish are piled four feet high. It is difficult terrain.

2d4 Giant Rats have half cover, due to debris.

Among the rubbish:
  1. Gnawed bones, rotted leather, and rusted bits of armor
  2. Belt with a sheath holding a silver dagger (102 gp value) 
  3. Bag of 50 ep in Olamic currency
  4. Scrap of paper written in Parsasian (deed to a parcel of land in Parsas)
  5. Several bottles of rum
  6. Wooden figure of a Simorgh (mythical Persian bird, like a Phoenix)
  7. Charcoal sketch of a goblin
  8. Dead scarab beetle pinned to piece of wood
  9. A glass eye
  10. Jaunty, purple felt cap
  11. Sealed pot of grease
  12. Coil of copper wire (20’)


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