House of Stone

With construction of the fortress begun in the Year of the Loom (344 DR) by the dwarves of Dardath under the charge of Turgo Ironfist, the citadel was established to help defend the kingdom of the dwarves against tribes of attacking orcs, hobgoblins, bugbears, and troll. The dwarves excavated huge, multi-leveled storage granaries out or the rock and built above them a fortress cunningly crafted of fitted stones. The fortress came to be known as the House of Stone after an old children's rhyme. The majority of the fortress was completed in the Year of the Dusty Shelf (360 DR).

In the Year of the Fortress Scoured (511 DR), the House of Stone broke the back of the orcish horde that destroyed the human kingdom of Elembar, sparing the realm's capital of Delimbiyran.

Once more, in the Year of the Burning Sky (528 DR), another orcish horde, this time the Howltusk horde, is led into a trap at the House of Stone by the armies of Phalorm, but their human King Javilarhh "the Dark" Snowsword is slain.

Although it is nearly as large as a small town, it seems to be a single building. Hundreds of rooms, atriums, halls, temples, and towers are interconnected in a maze-like manner. Some chambers are open to the sky, others are roofed over, while still more are crumbled ruins. Stairs, shafts, and wells descend to subterranean areas. Most rooms contain lifelike statues of men, elves, orcs, and minotaurs.

For many years, the moon elves of Ardeep guarded the tower, letting no one near it. Since their departure decades ago, several groups of adventurers set out to explore the structure.

As far as Waterdhavians know, none of these groups have ever returned. In old tales, the House of Stone is said to have many hidden doors, sliding rooms, and chambers that rise and fall in shafts like buckets in a well. The House of Stone is also believed to have dangerous traps designed to capture intruders and numerous caches of treasure (rooms of gold and gems mined by the dwarves from everywhere across the North). Most importantly, an armory of weapons for the defense of the kingdom is apparently collected here, including weapons of powerful magic crafted by the elves and dwarves of long ago.

The famous bard Mintiper Moonsilver was allowed to see the House of Stone some years ago at the permission of Eroan, archmage of the moon elves. He reported that the gates to it were open. A hill giant apparently forced them apart some months before his visit, for her huge corpse hung just beyond, impaled on a massive stone claw that sprung out into the space beyond the doors. The elves just smiled when asked if the place was full of such traps, and Mintiper noted that it was best for any future adventurers to be prepared for such magic before venturing inside. Elaith Craulnobur has been gathering information on the House of Stone for nearly twenty years, and he soon plans to challenge the traps and dangers (with a group of expendable hirelings and adventurers, if possible).

The House seems to operate in some kind of reverse-time effect. Rather than crumbling to rubble, ruined areas rebuild themselves unaided and room connections constantly change. The adventurer Kelvin Nikkelbane described a vast underground room that contained a forest of enormous silvery trees, and another adventurer is said to have seen spectral images of elves, dwarves, and men flitting about the rooms.