I wrote this up for my group, and figured I’d share it here in case anyone else would be interesting in adding some interesting content to Hammer Rock (I found it very bare bones as written). In my game, Dondun was saved in Book 3 and turned a new leaf, and comes back as Aylunna’s Knight Arcanist in Book 6, to clear up any confusion below:
Tar Baphon has erected two Witchgates since his escape from Gallowspire - one in Vigil, and one in Hammer Rock. These locations mark his most overt displays of dominance over the Knights of Ozem, but as two settlements bordering the southern-most edges of Virlych, he also saw these newest Witchgates as a way to expand the borders of his realm.
Knight Arcanist Dondun is quite right to suspect a teleportation error had befallen Aylunna’s previous team, and is dreadfully on the nose when he suggests that there could even be a new Witchgate in play. By teleporting 10 miles away from Hammer Rock, he successfully lands the party outside of the Witchgate’s ensnaring properties. After taking a minute to orient themselves (noting a forest that is not supposed to be there), Dondun reminds the PCs that he will remain in this area while they move forward with their mission.
This Witchgate reacted strangely with the lingering energies of the Radiant Fire, and with the fickle nature of the nearby First World-spawned forest; unlike most Witchgates, this one does not deposit teleporters to the same location that it is located in. Instead, teleporters are dropped in the middle of Keirodera Forest. Tar Baphon is unaware of this, and left Ptemiazrol, the Wyrmwraith, at Hammer Rock as the Witchgate’s guardian. Though teleporters are not brought to the feet of a Wyrmwraith, it still functions as an effective protector of the Witchgate itself. Just as well, as the teleport deposit location has acquired its own guardian, a Forest Blight. The fate of the original team is largely the same, save that Kwenlyn was able to locate the Hammer Rock Witchgate before perishing. If raised from the dead, or questioned about the Witchgate specifically with Speak with Dead, Kwenlyn can direct the PCs directly to it.
Ever since Tar Baphon set the Radiant Fire upon Hammer Rock, the sky above has been overcast with dark, low-hanging clouds of water vapor and sulfur. This effectively blocks any natural sunlight from touching Hammer Rock, save for an hour after sunrise and an hour before sunset. Because of this, Ptemiazrol has almost completely unfettered rein to move about without being exposed to sunlight. However, any spell that alters weather, even temporarily, can sweep away this overcast, returning Hammer Rock to a normal weather rotation.
Two Crypt Dragons have been drawn to Hammer Rock, hearing of the recent gross abuse of Necromancy ever since Tar Baphon escaped Gallowspire, and Hammer Rock was the most recent target of such magics. They’ve heard of Tar Baphon’s Witchgates, and are aware of a ritual that might be able to disarm them, though they’re hesitant to perform this ritual without help.
The two dragons are hunkered down nearby, strategizing on their best approach to Hammer Rock, as they correctly assume the area to be very dangerous. They are unaware of the magical protections of Hammer Rock, and if they end up approaching before the PCs, they automatically trigger the Antipathy Flames trap as they close a proximity of 70’ of the outer walls. Whether they fail their saves or not against the Antipathy effect, they both immediately halt their approach and turn back to strategise more.
If they observe the PCs fighting Undead within the walls of Hammer Rock, they identify the PCs as enemies of Undead, which is good enough for them to approach and assist during the fight. They arrive 1d4 rounds after combat begins.
After combat ends, the dragons will introduce themselves to the PCs and explain that they’re thirsty for some Undead hunting and found this place, in which, they suspect hides a Witchgate. They automatically assume that any random adventurer is dim-witted and only interested in fighting, and the PCs will need to succeed at a DC 30 Bluff, Diplomacy, or Intimidate check, combined with a DC 30 Knowledge (Arcana), (Nature), (Planes), or (Religion) check to properly assert themselves and display an adequate base of knowledge before they can be taken seriously.
The Dragons are aware of the PCs’ proficiency in combat so long as they witnessed them fighting any Undead, and so if attacked by the PCs, the dragons keep their distance with their superior Fly speeds and rely on their Breath Weapons to wear them down. If they are both brought to 57hp, or if one is killed and the other brought to 95hp, they attempt to flee.
The tower called the Bronze Wing (B8) was designated as the Hammer Rock Witchgate. Without being directly told where it is, a DC 23 Knowledge (Arcana) check finds it after searching for 1 hour; DC 27 finds it in 1d4x10 minutes; DC 31 finds it in 1d4 minutes; DC 35 finds it intuitively. PCs will need to stand atop the Bronze Wing in order to interact with it. There’s a noticeable shift in the air up here, like when you stand near a cracked-open door that has that heavy breeze from uneven air pressures, but instead of wind, it’s just chills.
When the dragons mention the ritual, PCs can make a DC 25 Knowledge (Acana) check to get some basic info on occult rituals, namely that all rituals come with a Backlash (a price extolled by the ritual that can’t be avoided), and a consequence of failure. The PCs may notice that whether accidentally or conveniently, the dragons have not mentioned this ritual’s Backlash or failure consequence. The Backlash affects all casters, and is 1 Permanent Negative Level. The failure consequence is unknown, for this is always unique to the specific Witch Gate (though it is an Insanity effect (all casters), DC 24 Will negates). The dragons only know about the Backlash; they know that the Ritual’s failure consequence is different for each location, but they don’t know this location’s consequence. They freely explain this to PCs who ask.
The ritual requires incense ground from plants native to the First World. Luckily, Keirodera Forest is itself an extension of the First World, and many plants found within are native to that plane. If the PCs were decent to The Hunt, won their race, and dealt with the Forest Blight, the tokens gifted by The Hunt will suffice for this requisite. Otherwise, spending 1d4 hours in the forest and succeeding at a DC 30 Knowledge (Nature) or Survival check is needed to get them; for each hour spent gathering herbs in Keirodera Forest, there is a 20% chance of a random encounter (roll 1d20+70 on the random encounters table for the First World in Planar Adventures). Regardless of how the PCs get the necessary herbs, it takes 1 hour and a DC 30 Craft (Alchemy) or Knowledge (Nature) check to grind the herbs into burnable incense (failure by less than five instead takes 1d4+1 hours, and failing by 5 or more ruins the plants and requires a new expedition to get more).
The dragons collectively know a cobbled together version of the ritual, and one of them acts as the primary caster, while the other will stand guard. Up to 8 secondary casters can join the ritual (granting a +1 bonus to all checks made for every 4 secondary casters). The ritual requires 9 hours, and 1 Knowledge (Nature), 1 Knowledge (Planes), 3 Perception, 1 Spellcraft, and 3 Sleight of Hand checks, with 5 or more of these Checks succeeding at DC 35. The dragons insist that the PCs do the Sleight of Hand checks (their big claws are ill-suited to such small-folk tasks), but they take the lead in all other checks.
Unfortunately, the dragons’ cobbled knowledge of the ritual is flawed, and instead of Knowledge (Nature), they try to use (Religion), reciting praises to Pharasma in lieu of incantations to steady the ley lines. The PCs can catch this mistake with a DC 35 Knowledge (Arcana), (Nature), (Religion), or Sense Motive check, but they must make a DC 30 Bluff, Diplomacy, or Intimidate check to convince them to allow a PC to attempt the Knowledge (Nature) check instead.
If the dragon isn’t corrected, they suffer the effects of failure, even if the ritual is otherwise successful. They must make a DC 24 Will save or suffer from Insanity. If the PCs have no way to cure Insanity on hand, the unaffected Dragon asks for assistance in putting it down. After this, it flies away, never to be seen again. If the dragon is struck insane and is saved, they express their gratitude by fetching a small token from their horde, located about 30 minutes (by dragon flight) East - a fine leather bag containing a porcelain display hand wearing a bracelet adorned with 5 small diamonds worth 200gp each, and wearing a magical ring, which is a Ring of Transposition. The dragon placed the display hand into the leather bag for the trip, but wants the bag back.
If Dondun is informed that there was a Witchgate (“Ha! I KNEW it!”), and that it has been destroyed, he eagerly joins the PCs at Hammer Rock, where he sets up a Secure Shelter. He thereafter can be found in this encampment in Hammer Rock. He forwards this development to Aylunna, who is pleased with the PCs’ initiative and success, and sends two Iomedean priests to join Dondun, with instructions to remain safe, but otherwise help the PCs with any Divine magic they can employ. The priests remain on the surface with Dondun. They venture down to Glerhadring only if the PCs declare the place completely safe.
Once the Dragons leave, Tsomar Trant reveals himself “I thought they’d NEVER leave! Sorry, but with the state I’m in, you can’t make many chances with agents of the Boneyard. I’m Captain Tsomar Trant. I know what you’re looking for, and I can help you. Come find me in the gatehouse and we’ll talk.”
“I saw it - the Radiant Fire. A green flash. Must have been smuggled in with one of the refugees coming into the fort. Nothing I could do but die. Except, I persist! I swore an oath to High Priestess Aylunna Varvatos to protect Hammer Rock, and death is just another hurdle in my way.
“The Whispering Tyrant arrived one day, with a small army of followers. I emerged to defend the castle, but…well, I’m Undead, now. One of his Death Priests took control of me and I was forced to comply. I granted them passage inside the castle, and accompanied them as they went down. There’s something hidden beneath Hammer Rock - an enormous storage facility called Fallowdeep. I didn’t see all of it, but there’s enough corpses and resources down there to raise an army of tens of thousands of Undead! The Whispering Tyrant grabbed what was ready and left with them, but he ordered the foremen to ready the rest of them. I slipped free of my jailor once they started controlling more Undead, and returned here.”
“I can’t accompany you - trust me, the last thing you need is for another necromancer to take control of me and aim me back at you. No, I need to remain up here, where I can be out of your way, and continue guarding Hammer Rock. But I’m not entirely useless - I can offer you the intelligence I gathered during my enslavement.
“To reach Fallowdeep, you need to go through Hammer Rock’s cellar. Tar Baphon brought a bunch of evil giants with him, and he left them there, so you’ll have to watch out for them. He blasted apart the floor in the dungeons on the south side, and there’s a tunnel that leads down. It was hidden - sealed up, and we never knew. We’ve been harboring an Undead factory right under our noses for perhaps the entire history of Lastwall.
“Fallowdeep is made up of three separate wings. Best I can tell, each wing specializes in a different method of reanimation and has its own foreman. From what I gathered, the three foremen don’t get along with each other. Tar Baphon was beside himself with their infighting getting in the way of output. And then there’s the Daughter of Urgathoa - goes by the name Lyanthari. The Foremen were already inside, but she arrived with Tar Baphon. He put her in charge of overseeing production, but she didn’t seem to be his biggest fan. After he left, she just went off about how insufferable he is and how she wants to teach him a lesson. See, they’re all the enemy, and they need to be destroyed, but maybe the easiest path to that goal is to turn some of them against each other.”
“I’m sorry to have to tell you this. I know Lastwall is struggling to find any morale these days, but there’s something else. There’s a traitor down there. She was my hero. Now she’s a graveknight. Ceto Malderra.”
“Oh, one more thing. Maybe it’s nothing. I was fleeing for my…well, I was frantic, so maybe I’m mistaken, but if there’s a chance that we have an ally hidden in Tar Baphon’s ranks, I can’t not report this. As I was fleeing Fallowdeep to return here, there was someone already up here. A Winterwight. He knew I had escaped. But, he didn’t attack me, or report me, or try to control me. He just said something about being happy to see me in control of myself, and then he returned down to Fallowdeep. I don’t know, maybe he just knew there was nothing I could do to stop the operation. But it’s stuck with me.”
Tsomar will cast (CL 12th) Heroes’ Feast every day for the PCs (reveling in any jealousy it causes Argenus “It KILLS me to see you so upset, son”). He’ll cast Greater Magic Weapon (+4) and Magic Vestments (+4) for anyone who wants it. He always bids the PCs farewell with a Mass Bull’s Strength spell.
He’s also capable of casting Raise Dead and Restoration, so long as someone else provides the material component, and will acquiesce any Cure requests as long as he has the spell slots to spare.