Abbey of the Abyss

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The Abbey of the Abyss[edit]

The Abbey of Abyss has been a spot of evil for many thousands of years. When the fortress was a Dhakaani outpost, a great battle of the Daelkyr War was fought against a malignant horror that they managed only to bind with the power of the sword Demon Slayer. The horrible creature was deemed too great a threat to the living and was bound within its walls as the design of the imprisoning tower was built to keep it bound.


Eventually, a follower of Karn the Conqueror decided to make the spot to be the main house for the Castle that he was going to construct. In the end, he went mad and killed his entire family with a battle ax before hanging himself. After several such incidents with the luxurious manor, the place was judged to be cursed by the dead and abandoned. There, it stayed largely undisturbed for the next few centuries with only its tendency to draw creatures of evil being noteworthy.


The Abbey of Abyss was constructed by a Priest of the Mockery named Kalas (LE Half-Orc Male Cleric of the Mockery 1/Monk 9) whom had learned Adar martial arts from a Kalashtar Grandmaster before murdering him. Kalas soon established a powerful hold on the locals with his Ninja becoming amongst the most feared killers in the area. They trained members of the House of Shadow and delivered the hearts, ears, or eyes of enemies as offerings to their Dark God. Working for the House of spies and killers, they gained great favor.


It was then that Kalas' son Adrick experimented with attempting to summon the avatar of The Mockery into the world. What he instead brought forth was a horrible creature from Khyber that had been sleeping under the Abbey for some centuries. The Ninjas were killed almost to the man. Their souls imprisoned in the walls of the blasphemous horror.


The Monks of the Quenching Flame were lead by penitent deserter Kane (LG Human Male Fighter 2/Monk 9) whom had abandoned the cause of Thrane to fight for good and good alone. In the monastery, they routinely were assailed by evil creatures and monsters from the Dark Dimension as they worked to contain the evil by prayer and hoping to eventually drive away the horror by wearing it out.


In the end, Kane's desire to avoid conflict was ignored by his followers who fought to defend the city against the attack of the Red Hawks. The resulting disaster was one that had all of the monks killed to the man for their fierce resistance. Since then, the Abbey has been a haven for rogues and evil doers that wish to sneak into the city. There's an abnormal number of murders here as killers seem to enjoy taking their victims to this place. Vampires and other wicked monsters have also chosen to make the Abbey into their lair.


Game Information: The Abbey of the Abyss is a Manifest Zone to Xoriat with horrible creatures able to plunge through and the interior architecture warping into a nightmarish parody of itself. The place is terribly haunted but monsters have no real desire to leave its blasphemous grounds for some reason. It appears abandoned during daytime but there's a profound sense of unease to anyone who enters.


Those of evil alignment gain a Level within the walls due to the horrible sensation about the place while those of good alignment lose a level. Few of the horrible creatures will harm those of evil alignment within their walls, recognizing them as kindred spirits.


Saint Alice's Academy for the Mentally Distressed[edit]

Saint Alice's Home for the Mentally Distressed is a rebuilt Abbey of the Abyss with countless magical wards and places that focus the energies of Xoriat outwards. It seems to be a combination of prison as well as a hospital. The location is one of the few actual sanitariums in the whole of Khorvaire and a place where prisoners are treated with dignity as opposed to derision.


Saint Alices' Sanitarium is meant as a way of attempting to weaken the constant presence of evil that the Abbey brought to Shadowfast. Cassius hopes by making a place of healing and safety that the energies of Xoriat can be weakened over the place. Many have questioned whether he's putting the prisoners at risk for this plan.


Basement: A place sealed off from the rest of the Sanitarium by a series of magical wards and blessings. The basement is where the geomancy of the building has focused all the energies of Xoriat and imprisoned them. It is here that the constantly twisting and churning madness of the previous Abbey still continues to exist. Ben has argued that they're just containing the problem but, arguably, this is the best place for keeping the Daelkyr imprisoned under Shadowfast in a state of continuous imprisonment.


Cells: The Cells that were formerly for the monks are now filled with locations for the housing of the inmates. Most of them are covered in special magical alarms and are fairly spartan with reinforced transparent iron doors (use of Continual Invisibility spells on the doors). The majority of the patients here are actually Mourners attempting to cope with the loss of their homeland.


Maximum Security: A level devoted to housing Zorlan D'Cannith, Hassen, Razorvine, and other super-criminals that the Watchmen capture but no nation really wants to attempt to execute or send to overcrowded Dreadhold. The elaborate measures used to house these individuals are rather spectacular really.


Staff: Doctor Hans Ilhousen (LG M H Expert 10) is the chief Physician on staff at the Saint Alice's Sanitarium. A progressive and noble Karrnath Doctor, he's pretty much the moral opposite of the majority of his countrymen in that he's a pacifist and a humanitarian. Bizarrely, Doctor Ilhousen is an atheist but tolerates the presence of the various religions present. Doctor Rene Turk (LE M H Expert 7) is a traditional sanitarium Doctor of Khorvaire and one of Maya's former physicians. Hired by Cassius primarilly because he's brilliant at devising traps and countermeasures for escapes, Turk believes Ilhousen is cracked and the best method for treating the insane is conditioning. Mostly, Turk believes its their duty to keep the crazy people from normal members of society.


Treatment Center: A location where Marie and other clergy use their magic to attempt to remove the insanity of those suffering from gross trauma and also attempt talk therapy for others. Chemical experiments are also being conducted in order to help the innocent. Due to Maya's past experiences, shock treatments are not available nor most of the other brutal methods still in use across Khorvaire. Doctor Turk has his own secret room where he conducts more 'traditional' methods of treatment, especially when information is needed from captives.


Shadows over Cyre