Locations of Hollowspire
A guide to the city's notable locations, from grand estates to shadowy hideouts
The City of Hollowspire
Hollowspire is a corrupt city-state built around an ancient spire towering over twisting medieval streets. Once prosperous from trade and crafts, the city's glory has decayed under graft and crime. The Duke nominally rules, but bribery and backroom deals hold more sway than decrees. By day, crowded markets and guild halls buzz with activity; by night, the alleys belong to thieves and clandestine meetings. A perpetual mist clings to crooked streets lit by flickering lanterns, giving the city a gloomy, mysterious ambiance.
Filter Locations
The Duke's Manor - Heist Target
A fortified estate with gothic architecture on a hill overlooking the city. It's the site of the masquerade ball and the target of the heist.
Grounds & Exterior
- Perimeter Wall: 10-foot wall topped with iron spikes surrounds the estate
- Gardens: Manicured hedges, a fountain, statues, and hedge mazes providing shadows
- Main Gate: Grand gate with guards checking invitations
- Servant's Gate: Rear entrance for staff and deliveries
- Patrols: Pairs of guards circle the perimeter periodically
Ground Floor
- Grand Entry Hall: Two-story foyer with sweeping staircase and chandelier
- Ballroom: Spacious chamber with polished marble floors - masquerade location
- Formal Dining Hall: Adjacent to ballroom for catered dining
- Drawing Room: Parlor for quieter conversation
- Kitchen & Servants' Quarters: Off-limits to guests, guarded
- Wine Cellar & Vault: Locked door under main staircase leads down - steel-reinforced with arcane lock
Upper Floor
- Duke's Study & Library: Books and possibly secret documents
- Gallery: Overlooks ballroom from balcony, used by guards or musicians
- Duke's Bedchamber: Personal quarters
- Guest Rooms: For VIPs staying overnight
- Rooftop Garden/Tower: Small rooftop patio where Duke retreats for privacy
Basement
- Wine Cellar: Doubles as vault room
- Hidden Tunnel: Connects to sewers - escape route known to the cabal
Security Measures
| Security | Details | Bypass Options |
|---|---|---|
| Guards & Patrols | ~20 guards on duty. Perimeter patrols in pairs, gate sentries, ballroom guards (masked), and 2 vault guards. | Timing routes, disguises, distractions (drunken guest fight, fireworks), bribery |
| Locks & Doors | Vault: Arcane-locked (key + passphrase). Interior doors DC 15-20. Windows barred/latched. | Lockpicking, stolen key (Chamberlain's belt), Knock spell, upper balcony entry |
| Magical Wards | Alarm spells on vault door and servant's gate. Glyph of Warding on Gem's pedestal (sleep/paralyze). | Detect Magic to spot, Dispel Magic, trigger alarms as distraction, Gem may suppress its own ward |
| Traps | Vault trap: pressure plate triggers cage or sleeping gas. Hidden crossbow (non-lethal dart) in private wing. | Learn locations from inside source, search and disarm with Thieves' Tools, trigger intentionally |
| Social Scrutiny | Lady Seraphine loves unmasking party crashers. Cabal agents observe for anything amiss. | Convincing cover stories, etiquette/dancing, Mask of Many Faces, one PC distracts while other slips away |
Key Locations
The Drunken Dragon Tavern
A seedy tavern where mercenaries and thieves gather. Smoky, dim, and dangerous - it's a favored meeting spot for mercs, smugglers, and informants. Home to backroom dealings. The party's hiring rendezvous with Marcel happens here.
Session 1: The Job OfferNight Market
A twilight bazaar in twisting back-alleys where poisons, maps, bribes, and information are freely traded. Moves location weekly to avoid guard raids. Anything can be bought for the right price - disguises, intel, illegal goods.
Session 3: Acquiring ToolsTemple of the Veiled Lady
An old church now secretly used by the Hidden Hand cabal for meetings. Catacombs beneath connect to sewers and secret passages. The temple's facade of worship hides dark rituals below.
Session 6: Shadows in the CityThe Iron Watchtower
City Watch barracks and jail. Many Watch officers are on someone's payroll. Captain Yelena Arden operates from here, one of the few honest officers trying to maintain order in a corrupt system.
Session 7: Unmasking the Hidden HandShops & Services
Gideon's Gadgeteers
A chaotic stall run by Gideon, an eccentric gnome inventor who sells questionable gadgets and clever rogue tools. Smoke bombs, grappling hooks, mechanical lockpicks, and other useful (if occasionally unreliable) devices.
Session 3: Acquiring ToolsSilver Quill Scriptorium
A hidden shop that forges documents, creates calligraphy, and discreetly sells spell scrolls - if you know the code phrase. Perfect for obtaining fake invitations or forged credentials.
Velora's Veils
A luxurious costume and disguise shop run by a retired elven thief. Offers magical disguises and gossip for a price. Velora knows everyone's secrets and trades information as readily as masks.
The Flickering Flame
An upscale inn that caters to visiting nobles and merchants. Lavish accommodations, but filled with secrets. A good place to gather noble gossip or encounter wealthy marks.
Underworld & Rogue-Favored Spots
The Rat's Asylum
An underground den for spies, fences, and information brokers. Accessible only through sewer tunnels. The place to go when you need to disappear or need information that no one else can provide.
Crowsrest Safehouse
A discreet multi-floor building owned by the Night Cloaks (Thieves' Guild). Offers sleeping quarters, stash rooms, and getaway tunnels. A safe place to lay low after a job goes wrong.
The Broken Dagger
A dive bar with a reputation for hosting illegal duels. Also a recruiting spot for underworld jobs. The regulars don't ask questions and the bartender has a selective memory.
Whispering Vault
An old bank turned into a private vault rental for criminal clientele. Anonymous dropboxes and hidden safes for hire. No questions asked about what you store - for the right fee.
City Landmarks & Flavor Locations
Ashwall Cemetery
A fog-covered graveyard on the outskirts of the city. Known to have crypts leading into ancient tunnels. The perfect setting for a midnight meeting or discovering dark secrets of the past.
The Painted Steps
A colorful terraced slum where artists, pickpockets, and street performers mingle. Beautiful murals cover crumbling walls - a place that's both beautiful and dangerous in equal measure.
The Gilded Gallows
A public square where executions and announcements occur. Often filled with angry citizens or whispering protesters. The Duke's decrees are read here - and often mocked afterward.
The Mirror Bridge
A sleek, marble bridge over the city's polluted river. Rumored to be haunted by a drowned noblewoman. On foggy nights, locals claim to see her reflection in the dark water below.
Sable Hollow Baths
Steamy, candlelit bathhouse frequented by nobles and rogues alike for secret meetings in plain sight. Information flows as freely as the water - for those who know how to listen.
The Catacombs - Final Dungeon
Ancient tunnels beneath Hollowspire where the Hidden Hand plans to complete their ritual. Accessed through the Duke's Manor wine cellar or the Temple of the Veiled Lady's crypt.
Catacomb Features
- Atmosphere: Dripping water, skittering rats, stale air, carvings of long-dead ancestors
- Evidence of Passage: Footprints in dust, recent torch stubs from cult activity
- Hazards: Pressure plate traps, poison dart dispensers, undead guardians (shadows, skeletons)
- Ritual Chamber: Large cavern with blood sigils on the floor, braziers, altar with depressions for the Gem
- Prisoners: Kidnapped innocents chained for sacrifice
Possible Encounters
| Area | Encounter/Challenge | DC/Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Entry Tunnels | Pressure plate trap (poison darts or hallucinogenic gas) | DC 15 Perception to spot, DC 14 DEX save |
| Ossuary Chamber | 2-3 Shadows or Skeletons | CR 1/2 each |
| Side Cells | Chained prisoner (information source) | DC 12 to free manacles |
| Ritual Chamber | 6-8 Cultists + 1-2 leaders + possible summoned creature | Final confrontation |
Quick Location Reference
| Location | Type | Key NPCs | Primary Session |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duke's Manor | Estate/Heist Target | Duke Haverfort, Lord Voss, Selise | Session 4 |
| Drunken Dragon Tavern | Tavern | Marcel Silvertongue | Session 1 |
| Night Market | Black Market | Gideon, Various Vendors | Sessions 2-3 |
| Temple of the Veiled Lady | Abandoned Temple | Hidden Hand Cultists | Session 6 |
| Iron Watchtower | Guard HQ | Captain Arden | Sessions 5-7 |
| Catacombs | Dungeon | Cultists, Vhal'Zar | Sessions 8-9 |