49. Alchemist's Room

This room appears to be an alchemical laboratory; worktables laden with alchemical gear line the walls, except for the diagonal wall where you see a bed, a footlocker, and an armoire. The alchemist himself is here, working at one of the far tables. He turns toward you and says, "Welcome! I was afraid I was the only man left alive in this place!" The "alchemist" is actually a doppleganger. The real alchemist is dead, having been killed by the doppleganger and stuffed in his own footlocker. He's begun to smell, and any Elves or Halflings in the party have a chance equal to 1 on 1d10 to notice the smell of rotting meat in the room; if the locker is opened, the stench will be obvious to all. The doppleganger will do all he can to convince the party he is actually the alchemist, Harcus; he didn't study his subject for very long, but as the adventurers don't know Harcus personally, they are unlikely to figure out he's been replaced. The doppleganger will pretend to be willing to help, and will share what little he knows (somewhere in the fortress is a demon- prison with the powerful demon Khaadk in it; the prison is weakening and Khaadk's power is leaking out) in hopes that the party will tell him what they know, or that he will be able to read what they know from their minds. He wants to release Khaadk, as do most of the monsters in the fortress, but he's willing to bide his time and even pretend to be helping contain the demon in order to get the chance to free him. Doppleganger: