Seed of the Southern Twin
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Cartography: The room is 30 feet from east to west and 40 feet north to south. 10 feet from the northern wall, the western wall opens into a 10-foot wide corridor that continues west for 10 feet before terminating at a door. |
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Room Details: The ceiling in this room is 20 feet high. The air quality is nominal. The volume of the room is approximately 12,000 cubic feet. The elevation of the room is -100 feet. This room is included in Dungeon Zone 1. |
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Landmarks: An ornate iron brazier ablaze with a golden flame against the east wall, a 20-foot tall column situated to either side of it. |
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The fresh air in this chamber bears a sweet floral scent that is accompanied by a subtle rhythmic thump, like a beating heart, that reverberates intangibly throughout the space. Against the eastern wall, an iron brazier bearing a forest motif blazes with golden flame, its flickering light summoning shadows of nearby columns to undulate across the room. At the heart of the fire, a palm-sized seed hovers weightlessly, suspended by some unseen force. The walls seem alive with intricate etchings depicting scenes of dryads and forest nymphs caught in mid-dance, their laughter frozen in time as they frolic playfully among ancient trees and thick, verdant foliage. The detailed carvings are rich with the essence of life, as if the very stone they are etched upon breathes with the vitality of nature. |
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The seed hovering in the brazier is a magical Elder Seed (Elm). When planted, it grows into an old-growth, fey-blessed tree up to 30 feet tall, conforming to smaller spaces if needed. A 30-foot aura centered on the base of the tree doubles the effects of natural healing and rest, creating comfortable conditions regardless of the surrounding environment. The seed can be used only once, but the tree it grows remains ageless and rooted until destroyed. The subtle sway of the elm in Room #9 appears to match the strange thumping reverberating throughout this room. The brazier’s flame is magical, radiating warmth without consuming fuel. Removing the seed causes the fey-blessed elm in Room #9 to wither to dust, the flame to go dark, and the rhythmic thumping to cease. If the elm in Room #9 is destroyed, the resulting dust and debris reveal a large, palm-sized, multifaceted ruby cut in the shape of a heart. Worth 5,000 gp, the ruby also radiates magical vibrations in rhythm with the thumping and functions as a key within Room #14. |
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Any attempt to remove the seed from the brazier immediately summons a soulbound dryad queen along with four additional soulbound dryads. The four dryads converge on the adventurers, attacking while the queen positions her incorporeal body in the golden flame, with the levitating seed occupying the space where her heart would be. The queen only attacks once her sisters have been destroyed. |
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