Illustrious Castle

A wide, slow path winds its way up the mountainside. Numerous times, the Old Deer River runs across the path. Stone bridges cross the river at each point. The characters might also reach the castle from north or south of the valley, as the path at the bottom of the cliff becomes part of another path going north and south, much used by farmers and hunters.

The path up the mountain from Biblyon to the castle is five miles. This will probably take a half day to climb. Going around the long way is twenty miles, which will probably take two days.

From a distance, Illustrious Castle is imposing. It stands atop a plateau, with a river flowing out beneath it and against the backdrop of an even larger cliff. As they near the castle, however, the depth of the decay becomes apparent. One corner of the outer wall has completely fallen in. The outer wall is jagged as entire sections of it have fallen to the ground. The outer wall of the castle grounds is ten or so yards from the edge of the 120 yard drop. There is a thin walkway leading up the cliff, which will be muddy and slippery in the spring.

The river comes out of the cliff face from a five yard wide, four yard tall hole, with a yard of clearance at the exit, another thirty yards down. (There is more clearance when the melting snow dwindles.) See the end of the adventure for what is inside—it is possible to reach the adventure through this as a back entrance, although it will be difficult. The river is rushing out at high speeds. Another six yards inside, the clearance increases to between a yard and two yards. The Tomb of the Hero is 160 yards inside, past many tiny caverns.

A thin path, overgrown with briars and small maples, rises steeply up the side of the cliff face. At the bottom of the cliff, you can barely see a small stone square or foundation covered in tall grass and weeds. Below, you hear water rushing out of the mountainside and gushing over the winding road to Biblyon.

The small stone foundation was once a platform where supplies could be loaded and hauled up to the plateau by means of a pulley system on the plateau. The rest of the pulley system has been taken away by the farmers of the area for its metal and wood. Outside of the outer wall, just south of the front gates, a small stone base is all that remains of the pulley system. (It’s removal inadvertently slowed the looting of the castle.)