Tower of Death

## The Tower of Death

One of the many towers that appeared across Etera, heralding ancient and enormous powers, the Tower of Death remains one of the greater enigmas. To date, none have penetrated further into the tower than its entry chamber, but the land is already well aware of the chaos and violence that could ensue were it not properly contained.

**Current Status:** Sealed, but Active

## Appearance on Etera

Nobody knows the exact day the Tower of Death appeared on Etera, for one simple reason: It appeared several miles into the Ghostlands, one of the most inhospitable regions of the continent. There was nobody around to see it rise, and it was only spotted by chance when a lone scout was braving the outskirts of the Ghostlands and stumbled across it. However, the tower was already active then, sending an unending stream of the undead out to clash with the Ghostlands' own apparently-endless reserves. The battle was almost a stalemate, with the lines of combat shifting very slowly, but surely, towards the world outside.

## The Great Raid

For most of the entire month of Rova, in the year 44 IA, heroes and adventurers from across Etara plotted and planned to stop the Tower of Death from becoming a true threat to the people of Etera. While some advocated for a heavier assault on the tower, its location meant the Ghostlands' own forces would intervene to attack further intruders, and that could jeopardize the entire mission.

Instead, some local commanders decided on a plan to seal the tower. This ended up being a three-part mission for the skilled adventurers ready to take part in the assault.

The first part of the assault, and the first two weeks of the raid plan, was spent entirely on preparations. During this time, most of the few magical craftsmen remaining on the continent worked together to create Ghostwards that would temporarily repel any undead that came near them, similar to the Turn Undead power of some holy casters. They were going to need quite a lot of them, so they also accepted donations from those interested in helping. This funded the efforts to turn out as many Ghostwards as possible. At the same time, the adventurers who would be participating in the rest of the raid received information about the lay of the land and made personal preparations to enter the deadly realm they'd found themselves in.

The next two weeks were arguably the most dangerous part: placing the Ghostwards along the routes that would be used to get to and from the tower itself. Collectively, heroes spent several thousand hours sneaking into the Ghostlands, placing down the wards, and then getting back out before the local undead decided they'd been around for too long and needed to be exterminated. This might have been completed faster, but the short range of the powerful Ghostwards meant that they needed to place a great many of them down in order to make the plan viable.

Finally, on Rova 30, year 44 IA, the go-ahead was given for the final assault on the tower. Several dozen experienced adventurers stormed in with two roles, protecting the scout who'd first noticed the tower and gotten into the first chamber. Some of the adventurers focused on defense, distracting the undead not pushed back by the Ghostwards and taking hits for their allies. Others focused on offense, clearing some other undead out of the way and opening the path they needed to get to the tower.

Once inside, the scout put up the warding item, and the group pillaged a pile of magical items inside the chamber before escaping from the Ghostlands. The tower was still active, but continued observation from scouts (who were the only way to get information, given the Ghostlands' apparent imperviousness to divination magic) found that the tower had indeed been shut down... and not a moment too soon, given the way the battle lines had gotten much closer to the edge of the Ghostlands.

The raid was a success, and the tower sealed - for now. But many mysteries still remain, and who knows what else may come out of this mysterious structure...?

### Highlights Of The Raid

[If you participated in the raid on the Tower of Death, you may link to the stories you wrote or describe your character's actions below.]