Library of Denlthor

D&D 3e (3.0/3.5) Rules

by Gerrin

The Library of Denlthor is a hidden library that works to build a collection of information about the various topics of Ansalon. This group of scholars researches information from all over the continent. The scholars of the library have dedicated themselves to recording history, science, and philosophy from an unbiased viewpoint.

The founding of the library occurred 31 PC when an Istar noble named Tolin Denlthor, received a vision from the god Gilean to open a place of learning. Denlthor's own private library had been confiscated by Knights of the Divine Hammer for containing scrolls that promoted the ideas of the gods of neutrality. Denlthor was forced to watch as the Knights burned the contents of his library.

Denlthor was a scholar of all the histories of Dragonlance and the knowledge that was lost when his library was destroyed affected him greatly. Denlthor traveled to Palanthas and visited the Great Library there, while he was in the library researching Denlthor was overcome by sleep. While he lay sleeping in the library Denlthor received a vision from Gilean showing him a cave in the Khalkist Mountains and in the cave was a book. The book was safe from a great wall of fire that was falling around it.

Traveling back to Istar, Denlthor announced publicly that he and a few other loyal scholars were returning to Palanthas to study. As the group prepared to depart Denlthor sold all his land holdings around the city and used the funds to purchase materials. The group traveled with Denlthor to the northwestern Khalkist Mountains where they located a cave opening.

The cave opening was large enough for a small wagon to enter and the scholars entered unsure of what they would find. Inside the cave was a series of caverns and in a central cavern, Denlthor found the book he had visioned. The contents of the book were read by Denlthor and a few chosen scholars which he called the Scribes.

Denlthor knew that his group of scholars would not be of much use in creating a library and he would set out to locate a group of travelers that could aid them. As Denlthor traveled to the west, he encountered a group of dwarven engineers, led by Tor Silverlight, who had received a vision of a great building project in the east. Denlthor quickly suggested that his vision of a library and the dwarven vision of a building project were indeed the same. Both groups then returned to the library where the dwarves quickly began to transform the cavern into living quarters and hid the cave opening behind a plug and screw gate.

As the scholars worked to record the history of the world prior to the Cataclysm, Denlthor understood a great issue. While the scholars were knowledgeable about the past, they knew nothing of the current happenings of the world. Denlthor then created the Watchers, members who would go out into the world to observe the current history and cultures.

Denlthor continued to expand the library and the dwarven engineers took up residences in the library as they worked to create an engineering section in the library. The scholars and the dwarves moved in their families prior to the Cataclysm and the library went largely unnoticed by outsiders. Denlthor did make contact with a few wizards and researchers that he felt he could trust and opened the library to them for a fee.

Following the Cataclysm the library was largely forgotten by the few that remembered it. Denlthor continued to gather the information of the outside world through the use of the Watchers and also created a new class of historians called the Researchers. The Researchers traveled across the continent in hopes of recording the past history before it was lost. Their task was made extremely difficult with the destruction of the libraries in Tarsis and Istar.

In 28 AC Denlthor died in his study as he was copying the History of Vinus Solamnus and the library fell to the hands of his eldest son. His son Tarl Denlthor continued the practices of his father and to silently record the events of the days as they unfolded. The library continued to grow during this time as Watchers and Researchers brought in information from all over Ansalon.

During much of the Age of Despair the Library of Denlthor stood forgotten by outsiders as its members continued to add to the literary collections. Also rare and wonderful artifacts were brought to the library and housed in the Room of Antiquities. The knowledge that the library contains is perhaps one of the most complete collections of history following the Cataclysm.

In the current age the library has become a focal point for a few people who have discovered it. The wizardry group of the Hawkstones have contracted the library to be used for research by several of their members. Also the library is close to discovering several lost sources of information including parts of the Library of Tarsis that were thought to be lost.

Attitude

The scholars who work in the library believe that recording history is the most important thing to do in the world. They also believe that to record history you must witness things firsthand and do nothing to interfere. The preservation of knowledge and limiting the access to it is considered to be important.

Organization

The Library of Denlthor is a very organized group with a structured system of leadership. The Library Master oversees the activities of all the different groups in the library. The library is divided into three different orders, the Scribes, the Watchers, and the Researchers. Also living in the library are the descendents of the dwarven engineers who helped build the library. The dwarves still continue the construction and maintenance of the library and provide protection.

The Scribes oversee the copying of the materials and the preserving of ancient texts. They also are in charge of compiling information that is sent to the library from the Researchers and the Watchers. The Scribes have their own rank structure which is based on the levels of the library.

The Researchers are a group that travels out into Ansalon and tries to rediscover the lost histories of Ansalon. This group travels throughout much of Ansalon and is often found in major cities working with local scholars. There is no rank structure among the Researchers as they are all given tasks by the Library Master.

The Watchers are a group that oversees the current events of Ansalon. This group often travels throughout the continent and many times they follow specific personalities to learn more about them. Often times the Watchers take up residences in major cities and towns to record the events of these areas and send their notes and journals back to the library.

Areas of Influence

The Library of Denlthor is unknown throughout much of Ansalon and its members hold little influence in the area of politics. The Watchers, and the Researchers travel the countryside in hopes of gathering information to record and do not directly interfere with the events of the world.

Regions

• Sanction: The Library of Denlthor has several members posted throughout the city gathering information about the Lords of Doom and the recent developments of the city. The Researchers in the city have begun to build a small library to serve as a gathering spot for information.
• Palanthas: The Library of Denlthor has several members that work in the Great Library of Palanthas. They have pretended to be loyal members of the Aesthetics and have gained access to several areas in the library. This allows other Researchers to gain information from the library and copy it.
• Tarsis: The Library of Denlthor has established a small enclave of members in this city searching in the ruins of the former great library. They have taken great caution in ensuring the safety of the members of the group and the materials that they are looking for. To outsiders the group appears to be scholars who are examining ancient buildings of the city and have caused little suspicion to be raised.

Leadership

Members of the Library of Denlthor follow the orders of the Master of the Book. The rest of the groups of the library follow various ways to determine rank within the group. The Scribes base rank on which level of the library they work on, while the Researchers and the Watchers base rank on the information they have gathered.

• Roderick Denlthor: [LG male human, master 12, wizard 2] Roderick is the current Master of the Book and has held the title since 412 AC. He is a direct descendant of the library's founder Tolin Denlthor. Denlthor has a vision of the library someday being open to the public but is hesitant to do so fearing that it might be destroyed.
• Julia Bel: [N female human bard 4, expert 7] Julia Bel is a Watcher of the Library of Denlthor and currently is stationed in Khur. She is trying to observe the recent developments there between the elves and the nomads. Julia has been involved with the library her whole life as she was born there. She travels the countryside posing as a bard while collecting information for the library.
• Stwen Silverhawk: [NG male dwarf fighter 6, expert 4] Stwen is the grandson of the dwarf Tor Silverlight, who led a team of dwarven engineers into the library. He has become the leader of the dwarves and oversees the library's protection and engineering needs. Stwen is often found in the company of Roderick discussing the daily needs of the library.
• Jason Elensen: [NG male human master 7, wizard 2] Jason is the leader of the Researchers stationed in Tarsis. He has been overseeing the exploration of the former great library located there. Jason and his team have disguised themselves as being researchers from the University of Palanthas and have claimed that they are researching old buildings of Tarsis. In reality Jason believes that there is something wrong with the former great library and has begun to investigate the mystery of the building.

Allies

The Library of Denlthor has few allies that would often protection to the library in times of need. Instead of using allies, the library has a few patrons which for the most part have remained anonymous. These patrons pay fees to use parts of the libraries to conduct research.

The Hawkstones are the only group that has become affiliated with the library as they pay the library a lavish fee for the use of the facilities. This fee also ensures that the library asks only the basic questions an allows the members of the organization to use the library at any time.

Enemies

The Library of Denlthor has few enemies that are known. These enemies include anyone who despise knowledge, destroy ancient sources of information, or those who attempt to steal from the library. Individual members of the library may have enemies.

Joining the Library of Denlthor

There are to ways to become a member of the Library of Denlthor. The first is to be a child of a current member of the library and the second way is to be admitted by a Researcher or a Watcher. If the second way is used, the candidate will be placed in a controlled environment and watched by the Master of the Book and his advisors. They will have the final say if they person is admitted.

Costs and Benefits of Membership

One of the costs of joining the group is that the members of the group are unable to tell others of the library. Scholars are restricted to living inside the library and rarely venture outside. Watchers and Researchers are often forced to continue to travel around the continent gathering information which leaves them little time for families.

The biggest benefit of joining the group is being able to observe history as it unfolds. The Watchers have observed some of the greatest moments in history. Using several methods this group has been able to record events as they unfold with great accuracy. The scholars of the library also have access to countless records of history following the Cataclysm.

Classes

The members of the Library of Denlthor have a variety of different classes. Most Scribes in the library are either experts or masters while the Watchers and Researchers have classes outside of those to help them survive. Several members of the library dabble in wizardry and a few have even become mystics.

• Wizard: This class is practiced by those members who dabble in magic. No current member of the Library is currently a member of the Orders of High Sorcery.
• Bards: This is a favored class by the Researchers as it allows them to learn histories without drawing extra attention to themselves. Several of the Watchers have also elected to become bards.
• Fighters: This class is often favored by the dwarven engineers and the Watchers group.
• Mystics: A small sect of mystics has been allowed entrance into the Library. At first they were allowed in to add the stories of their mysterious power to the library's archives but quickly won the hearts of the members living within it.
• Experts: This is the most common class among the members of the library. These people do most of the work in maintaining and researching the information that is stored in the library.
• Masters: This class is most often found with elder members of the library who have spent much of their lives researching or copying information. The master class is rare but several current members have become masters.

Adventure Hooks

• The heroes find an injured man aside the road that is carrying several scrolls and books. He is being chased by a band of draconians who believe he is carrying magical scrolls. The man before he dies gives the heroes a map with a location of a house in Sanction labeled Ternol's and whispers to the heroes to go there. As the heroes gather the scrolls they can see draconians in the distance chasing them.
• As the adventurers arrive in the city of Tarsis they see a peculiar operation going on as part of the city has been roped off. The heroes can see a group of men and women working around a hole, talking excitedly about having found something of importance. A man comes out of the hole looking white and before the adventurers can see what has happened he is ushered into a nearby building. As the heroes prepare to depart the here a voice in the air yell, "Stop." As they turn one of the men comes over to them and offers them 50 steel to accompany them into the ruins of the building they have discovered.
• The heroes find a small group of ogres heading north in the Khalkists Mountains. The three ogres are scouts for a large force of ogres heading in the direction. A quick search of the ogres reveals that they have been told by their ogre titan to destroy a place of learning and bring back any knowledge. The heroes now must race to prevent the destruction of the mysterious place.

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