[OSR Challenge] A New Skeleton For The Closet

A New Skeleton For The Closet: A Get Ready, Get Set, Go! 3.5 Edition adventure set in a Dwarven Stronghold, but easily dropped into any stronghold or similar structure.

Get Ready:

• The adventurers find a secret door hidden inside a closet in the Hold Lord’s bedchamber. Opening the secret door brings the party more than it bargained.

Get Set:

• The adventurers have quickly made their way through the front halls of the abandoned dwarven stronghold to the Hold Lord’s bedchamber. When they enter the bedchamber, their attention will be drawn to a closet; rather, a 5' high door set in one wall of the chamber. When they open it, it appears to be nothing more than a normal, empty 10' by 10' closet. From within, some of the adventurers may hear a slight scratching sound (DC 30 Listen).

Go!:

• To a careful observer (DC 15 Search) there is a secret door in the back of the closet. The secret door is easily found; it is poorly hidden and poorly constructed so that it stands out, almost as if it were intended to be found...
  
  ...which of course it was. Opening the door triggers a falling block trap; blocks measuring 5' W x 5' D x 10' H fall from the ceiling in the front 10' wide by 5' deep area of the closet. Not only does this injure or kill the adventurers standing inside the closet but behind the individual opening the door, the individual opening the door--and any other creature next to him--is now unable to leave the closet.
  
  To add injury to insult, the secret door opens inward to a 5' by 5' chimney space. The chimney runs the height of the stronghold and is the living space for a pair of grell. These tentacled flying brains use the chimney to travel throughout the mountain stronghold, feeding upon unsuspecting creatures who invade their space. The grell will immediately attack, even if the falling block trap was disabled.
  
  An inspection of the inside of the shaft reveals handholds; the shaft runs at least 100' deeper than this chamber and several hundred feet above the chamber. A creature that ventures into the shaft will find periodic entrances at fireplaces (which have a small shelf on the edge of the chimney on which the fires were built) or other obvious “trap” entrances. Some of the handholds are badly damaged or missing; this adds a +2 to the Climb DC. It should also be noted that there are more grell within the stronghold. Only two made this particular shaft their home.

Notable Creatures:

• Grell (2): See 3.5 Monster Manual II, p.121.

Notable Item:

• Falling Block Trap: CR 5; mechanical; location trigger; manual reset; Atk +15 melee (6d6); multiple targets (can strike all characters in two adjacent specified squares); Search DC 20; Disable Device DC 25.

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This is the twenty-fifth of 26 adventures that I will be sharing over the month of September. They are designed for use with edition 3.5 of the world’s most popular fantasy RPG, although they can be easily dropped into any fantasy setting (or modern/sci-fi setting with a little work). These posts are a part of Asshat Paladin’s OSR Short Adventure Challenge , and utilize his Get Ready, Get Set, Go! Format.
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