3.5 VERSION NOTE:
Thanks to a tremendous effort from people too numerous to mention, we now have a 3.5 conversion document. Find it here
Thanks to a tremendous effort from people too numerous to mention, we now have a 3.5 conversion document. Find it here
Welcome to the Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil FAQ. Along with the Errata thread, this should eventually clear up most of the common questions about this great adventure. For general questions about Monte Cook's boards, please refer to Carthain's excellent FAQ.
NB: Please note that as with all threads here, everyone can post. As Andorax puts it, "I would say that any DM who's been posting here for a while, and has answered the same question 3 times or more (actual content, not opinion) has a valid FAQ question.". So... Q&A away!
The format is quite simple: Q & A. Please don't pose any questions here. Once a question has been cleared up in another thread, it may be posted here along with its answer, but I think 'twould be best if we kept this as simple as possible.
Common Abbreviations: (There may be more)
RttToEE: Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil
Big T.: Tharizdun
EEE: Elder Elemental Eye
Big U.: Utreshimon the blue dragon in the moat house
CRM: The Crater Ridge Mines
ToAC: Temple of All-Consumption
Q:
How do I get the party involved in Hommlet and how do I get them from Hommlet to the Moat House and back again?
A:
Renne seems to be the most common way of luring the players in. Her dad, Spugnoir, runs the potions shop and often explores the moat house. He's "missing, having disappeared a few days ago." (p. 16) Another common lead is having Spugnoir be an acquaintance of someone. Note, however, that he's been in Hommlet for 12 years (you an in fact find him in the original Temple of Elemental Evil adventure, p. 15 in area 10 of the Inn of the Welcome Wench)
How to get the party moving, Geynor Ton in area 32 of the Moat House carries a journal. In that journal, there is a reference to the flour mill, as well as to Chatrilon, who brought them food. The journal is reprinted on p. 189.
In the mill, Master Dunrat has a message in his iron trunk from Naquent (Hedrack's second-in-command in the Outer Fane). This message refers to Tal Chammish in the village of Rastor.
Q:
But what about Nulb and the Ruined Temple?
A:
These are not necessary or relevant for the adventure as such. Nulb is quite a handful for most 4th-5th level parties because of the many incorporeal undead there. Note that even though the party kills Lareth, he will return as the Champion of Elemental Evil.
The Ruined Temple is now a fortress to a band of hobgoblins. The hobgoblins have no interaction with the cult and may in fact be enslaved by it, depending on whether you follow the text on p. 32 ("Stage 2"), which says that the hobgoblins still occupy the complex above-ground, or whether you follow the text on p. 7 ("Hobgoblin Attitudes"), which says that PCs may recognize some of the hobgoblin slaves if they didn't kill the hobgoblins in the temple above-ground).
Q:
Where is Tharizdun first mentioned to the players? The Elder Elemental Eye appears quite early. But what about Tharizdun?
A:
There are DC's for Knowledge Religion checks in the introduction to the module (p.5), so if your players stumble onto a symbol, you know what chance they have of recognizing it.
Many of the clerics in Hommlet have some idea about Tharizdun. And some are even suspecting a connection between the (relatively) well-known Elder Elemental Eye, which was also found in the original Temple of Elemental Evil, and Tharizdun.
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