Cothernoster

A giant beetle pushing an enormous golden ball before it.

Within this Menagerie are housed many hundreds - perhaps even thousands - of arcane Familiars, scurrying and flying to and fro through the innumerable, ever-winding corridors and passageways.

At the centre of the golden ball is housed The Monarch - the brain that controls the dual device of insect and object.

Use this section as a quick reference during play, or at the start of a Session to refresh your GM senses!

Sights
~ all manner of small creatures; bats, imps, weasels, and owls to name but a few.

~ ornate inscriptions and exceptionally detailed murals carved into glistening, golden walls.

~ crackling sparks of arcane energy as Familiars apparate in and out of Cothernoster.

~ maze-like corridors and tunnels that curve and overlap in a bewildering, gravity-defying array.

Sounds
~ deep rumbling of the golden menagerie across the earth.

~ sharp skittering of the giant coleopteran's claws upon its precious golden chattel.

~ various chitterings, squawks, croaks, and shrieks echoing through Cothernoster's interior.

~ strange explosions, whoops, whizzes and bangs as Familiars are summoned and dismissed.

Smells
~ faint scent of incense, charcoal, animal fat, and herbs.

~ mushroom-like mildewed stench.

~ molten iron and pewter.

~ occasional wafts of sulpher and brimstone.

The coming and going of Familiars from the Menagerie never ends!

Whatever the cause, and no matter the distance or time - should the spell be cast, and the incantations true, one among the many is sent forth to serve!

The Familiars have no need nor impulse for barter or trade amongst themselves, satisfied as they are by the attentions and favours of their many mistresses and masters.

Burnt, bloodied, battered, and half torn asunder, Familiars return from serving the whims, wars, and wonders of their temporary masters - some for a brief moment, others forever, having served their purpose to be called upon no more.

Gold coin, too, tinkles and rolls along the rounded corridors - sometimes ten, or even a hundred, at a time - an alchemical transformation performed by the burning of incense, charcoal and herb as each spell to summon the many creatures of Cothernoster is cast.

Occasionally, a Familiar may return with a trinket or small marvel - a gift from those who have called them forth. Such trifles are highly prized and treasured, and decorate the nests of those who receive them.

Familiars, all sorts!

Called upon to do battle, to disarm, or distract! Whatever the purpose, each creature is transported from its den within Cothernoster, away to serve whatever the call.

Note to the GM : see the relevant section of either your GM guide or Player's Handbook for the Find Familiar spell (or closest option in your chosen system)

One may find an empty nest, here or there, into which to climb and slumber.

Rest may be brief, for if the nest's owner is dismissed - by action or by death - they will invariably return to the Menagerie and be most distressed to discover a stranger in temporary residence!

Some corridors and passageways may offer a place for temporary respite, though the surfaces vary from cold and metallic, earthen and moist, undulating and seemingly alive.

A vague stratum of status exists - the Familiars growing more adept, more useful, the closer their nests are to the centre of the giant golden globe.

At this centre can be found a golden cube, perfectly balanced and horizontal, as though strung upon an arcane gimbal, of sorts.

Within this cube resides The Monarch; architect and keeper of Cothernoster. Encased in gold they dream their endless dream, and see, feel, and guide the enormous beetle that pushes endlessly on, rolling the menagerie here and there across all the land.

The many imps, devils, beasts, and creatures of Cothernoster coexist in near-perfect harmony, each busy enough to be generally unconcerned by their nearest nesting neighbours, or recuperating from their exhausting expeditions.

Some Familiars seek solace in others of their kind, whilst others prefer seclusion and quiet isolation, awaiting the summons of their Mistress, or Master.

This list is by no means exhaustive, and is intended simply to stir the pot of your own imagination.

Use what follows as starting-points, or ignore them entirely in favour of your own Adventure Hooks!

Roll 1d6 or choose from the Table below :

1 - A Familiar much-loved by the Party has somehow become trapped within Cothernoster's Menagerie, unable to escape.

2 - The arcane power of the Monarch's Enclave holds the key to a greater power; one that may change the Party's fortunes forever.

3 - A strange, shadowy Familiar (see NPCs for Skörn) calls through the dreams of a Party member, promising great riches in exchange for ending Cothernoster's endless perambulations.

4 - An ageing monster-hunter prepares for one final season, their last hurrah requiring the varied skills of the Party to help secure a burial trophy from Cothernoster.

5 - The desperate pleas of local Lord and Lady are heard; their child, and sole heir, has been taken by the Menagerie!

6 - Rumours of an astonishing hoard of coin somewhere within the Monarch's dwelling reach the Party. An irresistable prize, indeed!

Roll 1d20 for a Cothernoster Trinket

1 - Thizzi’s Guide to the Material Plane (a small, charred edged chapbook full of scruffy illustrations and entries such as “A is wat a Apple is, and reet tasty too”, apparently penned by one of Cothernoster’s Familiars).

2 - A small, arcanely sealed wooden box from which a rhythmic ticking can be heard. Etched about its edge are the words "Xestobium Rufovillosum".

3 - A cloth satchel stuffed full of bat-wings.

4 - Several cat's tails knotted together into a rope 9ft in length.

5 - A jar of pickled toad eyes.

6 - A hawk's claw festooned with small coloured ribbons.

7 - A tinderbox full of lizard teeth.

8 - A grappling hook fashioned from octopi arms.

9 - A small pebble that emits an owl's hoot when shaken.

10 - A snake-skin hand drum.

11 - A vest of mail fashioned from fish-scales.

12 - A quill, of sorts, made from the wizened claw of a giant rat.

13 - A broken wand topped by a raven's skull.

14 - A delicately detailed golden broach in the shape of a sea-horse.

15 - A shawl that appears made of a spider's web.

16 - A metal cylinder stuffed with the body of a weasel.

17 - A water-skin full of glow-worms.

18 - A dead fox infested with sexton beetles.

19 - An almost impossibly tiny glass bottle containing the laugh of a flea.

20 - A weighty manual bound within the body of a golden scarab-beetle, its text detailing the tenets and methodologies of metamorphosis.

Roll 1d6 for a Cothernoster Encounter, or choose from the Table below :

1 - Instead of Familiars returning to the Menagerie, their Spellcasters are arriving instead, locked in an arcane stasis and slowly shrinking!

2 - A terrifying beast has somehow managed to board Cothernoster, and is picking its way through the many corridors and tunnels of the Menagerie, devouring Familiars as it goes.

3 - Familiars are adopting Party members at an alarming rate!

4 - Possessions and belongings are a great many powerful individuals are appearing in nests within the Menagerie.

5 - The Monarch is no longer able to control the Coleopteran, which is now on a potentially destructive heading towards a large settlement.

6 - A small child's laughter is heard echoing along the winding golden passageways and tunnels of the Menagerie.