Shattered Fort | Magi/Honeycomb | |
hostile |
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Akhronath (Shattered Fort) |
Other than the Royal Seal which is needed to get to Castle Hawthorne, there is very little to be found in this ruin.
This fort is on six levels with short flights of stairs from one level to the next. There are also two streams of lava cutting through the building, which make navigation much more difficult. The numerous imps, undead and demons naturally make matters worse.
Start by turning the wheel in the NE corner, then west up to level 2 and diagonally across the fort to the stairs to the 3rd level near the SW corner. Beware: there are lots of nasty undead lurking in the room without a west wall just NE of this flight of stairs. Surprisingly they drop a bit of loot. To the NE of this room is a cubbyhole where two Cave Demons are lurking. They also drop some nice items. Then up to level 3 and back across to the staircase in the north on the same level. As you cross the bridge in the middle of the building 6 Lava Imps appear. After disposing of them go north up the staircase and turn the wheel in the little room to the north. You need the gold key you found in the Castle to do this but the wheel still gets stuck. Let's hope that this does not matter!
Now down to level 3 and back to the middle and up the stairs to the 4th level. Before you can climb the stairs up to the next level you will be surprised by some Wights and a Cave Demon who drop a few items. Then up to level 5, round the corner and up the stairs to the west to reach the top level and the door to the North. Opening this door reveals a sort of arena on three levels with a kind of statue in the centre of a hexogram on the lowest level.
It is a good idea to enter battle mode and prepare for a hard fight, leaving your warriors on the upper level and sending one spell caster down to the lowest level. If you take the gold medallion from the statue you realise that it is the Royal Seal and that you have set off a chain reaction: 2 Cave Demons, 2 Fiery Demons and Horl the Imprisoned appear on the upper level. If you have placed your party members strategically, it should not be too difficult to kill them. They drop some good loot including Dragonskin Bracers worth 2000 coins.
Except for a bit of loot dropped by various monsters in particular the demons in the statue room in the NW where the Royal seal is to be found, there is very little to be found here (s. Secret Doors below).
Before fighting your way through the dungeon you could look at the altar in the shrine behind a magical barrier over the lava stream on the 1st level in the SW corner near the entrance to the building. Destroying it gives you about 30xp but you loose 2 reputation! Trying to decipher the engravings on this altar gives a Ward of Elements and a Cloak of the Arcane level 1 to each member of the party. I never bother with this protection as I have all wards and cloaks at level 2 or 3 by the time I get here.