Fleichshriver

This grim citadel is of fiendish design and construction, with twisted towers and walls, viciously barbed iron railings, and grotesquely obscene fountains and decorative stonework. The castle houses a sizeable force of huamanoids, used as scouts and skirmishers in the Fellreev forest. Troops rotate between this place and the three unnamed northern camps below the Fellreev. Jebli ores and hobgoblins are less common than Uroz in these camps.

Fleichshriver also has another purpose. Boneheart members Jumper, Null and Halga all visit here, researching new spells and magical effects. Something of the magic of the Abyss itself seems to infest this forsaken place, and many of its dungeons are chambers with magical qualities of their own. Here, the mighty spellcasters can experiment with profoundly destructive magic while remaining safe, since many chambers "dampen" magical effects. This isolated place was chosen for such work precisely because of its isolation. There are few to see the acidic smokes which drift from its spires, the toxic effluent oozing from the castle's cesspools, or the twisted remnants of monster-modification experiments which crawl away to expire in agony on the surrounding plains.

While the results of these experiments are left for the DM to develop, at least two lines of research have been known to bear fruit here. Jumper has been able to devise spells which create shadow monsters and demi-shadow monsters, though not yet shades with an unusually malign effect. As the shadow monsters inflict damage on an opponent, they are strengthened in force, so that for every 5 hp of damage inflicted, the shadow monster itself gains an extra 10% of the strength (HD/ hit points) of a normal monster of its type. These pseudo-vampiric shadow monsters, as yet, only function within two miles of Fleichshriver itself, but Jumper should soon be able to project them into the Fellreev to hunt its occupants.

Worse than this, however, is Halga s success with the resident ring of seven priests here in developing a •wraithblade spell which calls upon the energies of the Negative Material plane to infuse a sword or similar edged weapon with the ability to energy drain those it strikes. As yet, this spell is hazardous, because its casting can energy drain the priest casting it unless that priest is of 14th or higher level. At least, that is Halga's estimation at this time. If this problem of channelling the Negative Material energies can be overcome, Iuz's priests will have a truly formidable spell to deploy against their opponents.

Finally, Fleichshriver has a gate to the Abyss which can only be utilized if an Archmage or High Priestess is present. Summoned fiends are mostly used for divinatory, information-gathering purposes, but rarely some bar-igura are summoned to strengthen the forces entering the Fellreev Forest. Behind its forbidding walls and phalanxes of zombie and wight guardians, Fleichshriver holds many secrets. None who do not serve luz have ever returned after entering it and the place defies most magical scrying attempts.