Brief Description of the Caves
eneath the fortress there exists a small
series of caves, forged over centuries by a hot sulferous spring. The water
is a balmy 98 degrees (bubbling up in a large central pool before trickling
away into fissures in the earth), and although it only occupies a single
chamber, it is the source of both the cavern's pleasant temperature and
foul sulferous stench. The water is clear, and when light illuminates the
walls of the 10 feet deep pool, they reveal a beautiful collage of reds,
yellows, and violet. By distilling sulferous powder from the water, Rabenstein
is able to collect 10 pawns of Mentem vis per year. The magic aura
seems to center around these caves.
Most of the caves are dry, and several Magi have elected to set up their
Sancti here in relative solitude, including Capra
of Bjornaer (now occupied by Magda of Bjornaer), Lassitor of Criamon, and
Gustav of Merinita. Each Sanctum is lit by a magical torch that bears light,
but not heat or smoke (gifts from Merento's pater, Rahewin of Trianoma).
The original entrance to the caves once opened up to the hillside outside
the fortress, but great care was taken to block this passage, and today
the only entrance/exit is an artificially constucted tunnel which leads
up and into the Temple. A plain, unlocked wooden trapdoor rests above the
spot that belays the ladder descending into the caverns below.
The Sulferous Hot Springs
The hot springs occupy the largest and most central chamber in the caves.
The water bubbles up from a deep pool about 25 x 15 feet at the far end
of the cave, and trickles along a narrow gultch toward the other end of
the long chamber where it sinks away into fissures in the rock. Although
the pool may appear considerably larger at first-glance, most of it is only
a few inches deep (and characterized by a yellowish-red hue in the rock
below it). The descending walls of the spring are quite uneven, and break
easily (as they are quite brittle), clouding the pool. The true depth of
the water is not known, because it receeds into narrow crevices, but a human
could only descend perhaps 10 feet before it grew too small.
Greyish lichen grows along the walls of the pool both above and below
water, but the rest of the chamber is dry and barren (as are the rest of
the caves). A pungent sulferous smell fills the chamber, and laboratory
equipment (particularly a sieve) stands on a table far from the water.
*By distilling sulfer from the shallow regions of the pool once every
three days, 10 pawns of Mentemvis (in the form of sulferous powder)
may be collected annually.
The Hundeloch
The Hundeloch ("dog's hole") serves as the donjon of
Rabenstein, crudely constructed with the approach of Christmas, 1206. Located
in the sparse caves beneath the courtyard, the prison is little more than
a blind-ended tunnel, blocked by a perfectly engineered iron lattice. Although
the temperature remains a constant 75 degrees (due to the hot springs nearby),
the pungent whiff of sulfer is poor company to anyone imprisoned here. A
mere 6 to 8 feet wide, the rocky cell recedes perhaps 15 feet, with a low-hanging
roof of 6 feet, and could hold up to 5 men. The floor of the Hundeloch is
actually quite smooth and flat contrary to the natural cragginess of the
walls, a minor comfort to any attempting to sleep here (alas, the bodies
of a knight, squire, and minnesinger lie embedded in the rock beneath -
the true reason for the smooth stone floor, as detailed in the story Fool Me Twice, Shame on Me).
Despite the Hundeloch's crude appearance, magics were used to fashion the
heavy-hinged iron gate into the stone, so little hope for escape exists.
A second, less formidable gate stands locked about 30 feet ahead of the
Hundeloch, and serves to further block access to the caverns in the unlikely
event of an escape.
Currently the Hundeloch is occupied by Demél, former Castellan
of Straussburg (see the story Burglary
in the Lindwurm's Lair).
This page last modified 11/20/97.
Comments to murphy@email.unc.edu
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