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Elira Vale waits beside the watchtower maps with the Wyrmwood Reach spread out before her. She taps a marked ruin and says, “Cleanse it before whatever lurks there can spread farther.”

Details

Elira Vale hires the party at Brambleford’s watchtower and points them toward the corrupted temple ruin in the Wyrmwood Reach. She explains that the temple has become a foothold for dark influence and that the heroes must enter, cleanse it, and stop the spread before it reaches nearby trails and settlements. The watchtower map shows the ruin’s general direction and the party can leave immediately for the temple entrance; no roll is needed to learn the objective or the route out of town. Treasure placement: The NPC provides 25 Gold Pieces and an Ironblood Tonic to help the party with the adventure.

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The outer chapel lies in broken stone and stale incense, with warped altar carvings and a cold, watchful silence hanging under the cracked roof. Faint signs of recent desecration stain the floor around the altar.

Details

Attached monsters (use these exact stat blocks): - Quantity: 1; Monster: Shadow. Room guidance: This chapel is the obvious first chamber inside the temple, reached through the main entrance from the outer approach. A Shadow lingers here because the chapel’s lingering grief and corruption have given it a place to feed; it begins distracted and hostile, drifting among the altar stones until disturbed. If the party is alert, they can see it at a distance and choose how to approach, but the room is otherwise open and direct. After the Shadow is driven off or destroyed, searching the chapel reveals fresh defilement marks and Vhalzun the Ashen Prior’s trail leading deeper into the ruin; the altar also shows a clear path toward the inner corridors and a second route toward the side chambers. Treasure placement: Searching this area reveals 50 Gold Pieces and a Phial of Clarity.

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A narrow corridor of fallen tiles and blackened wall niches stretches ahead, lit by a weak red glow from deeper in the ruin. The passage is quiet enough to hear breathing from around the bend.

Details

Attached monsters (use these exact stat blocks): - Quantity: 2; Monster: Hobgoblin. Room guidance: This corridor connects the outer chapel to the deeper temple and the side chambers through broken side doors and a narrow central passage. Two Hobgoblin are stationed here as a disciplined patrol to keep intruders from reaching the inner shrine and learning who commands the ruin; they are alert and defensive, ready to strike if the party advances openly. Because they are hidden around the bend, the party can attempt to notice them before they spring the ambush; if the check fails, the Hobgoblin gains the first action from its prepared position. After the encounter, the corridor search reveals boot prints, a rough map mark pointing toward the side chambers, and a clear indication that the deeper rite chamber lies beyond the interior route. Treasure placement: None.

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The side chambers hold cracked storage shelves, old votive bowls, and a wall of stonework that looks slightly newer than the rest. A faint draft moves through the dust from somewhere behind the masonry.

Details

Attached monsters (use these exact stat blocks): - Quantity: 1; Monster: Dryad. Room guidance: These side chambers sit off the main route and can be reached from the outer chapel or the inner corridors, making them a useful branch rather than a forced step. A Dryad has taken root here among the surviving carved niches and overgrown offerings; she is open to interaction and frightened by the temple’s corruption, not hostile to the heroes. She knows a reliable secret route behind the sealed section and will reveal it once the party speaks with her, calms her, or otherwise helps her feel safe. The bypass leads directly toward the central rite chamber without depending on a risky roll, and the room also contains old devotional tools and a small hidden compartment with a useful healing herb bundle. Treasure placement: Searching this area reveals a small cache of healing herbs.

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The rite chamber opens in a wide circle of scorched stone and hanging chains, where old symbols have been smeared over with ash and blood. Heat shimmers above the floor, and the room feels active, as if the temple itself is still being worked.

Details

Attached monsters (use these exact stat blocks): - Quantity: 2; Monster: Magmin. Room guidance: This chamber is the temple’s active heart and is reached either from the side chamber bypass or through the deeper corridor network after the patrol is cleared. Two Magmin guard the dark working because they are drawn to the heat and corruption of the rite, and they are aggressive and threatening from the moment the party arrives. They begin by defending the ritual space and trying to keep intruders away from the inner shrine; if the heroes disrupt the rite’s focus, the Magmin become more reckless and may flee or lash out. The party can use the chamber’s hot stone channels and chain posts for cover or to cut off movement, and after the encounter the ritual apparatus is visibly damaged so the corruption no longer spreads forward from this room. Searching the chamber reveals the final access into the inner shrine and a clear sign that the lieutenant is waiting there. Treasure placement: None.

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Beyond the rite chamber, the inner shrine stands under a cracked dome, its altar hidden in deep shadow and its floor marked by old prayers turned dark. A gaunt figure waits beside the heart of the sanctum and turns to face you with a cold, deliberate stare.

Details

Attached monsters (use these exact stat blocks): - Quantity: 1; Monster: Ghoul. Room guidance: This final room is the shrine at the center of the ruined temple, connected by the temple’s deepest passage from the rite chamber. Vhalzun the Ashen Prior, using the Ghoul stat block, defends the temple’s heart because he is the lieutenant responsible for turning the ruin into a foothold for the Umbral Serpent; he is immediately hostile and fights to the death unless the heroes somehow break his resolve or quickly overpower him. He begins in close mutual awareness, ready for direct confrontation, and the shrine’s altar and side alcoves offer only simple cover rather than a separate puzzle. When defeated, Vhalzun’s body and notes reveal that the corruption serves the Umbral Serpent, making the campaign connection explicit and stable for later dungeons. Searching the shrine afterward reveals the temple’s central relic chamber, a small stash of dark prayer tokens, and the final proof that the ruin has been cleansed. Treasure placement: After the encounter, the party can recover 150 Gold Pieces, a Nightglass Dagger +1, and a Ring of Vigor from the guarded area and Vhalzun’s belongings.