Once part of the Ardin family crypt, this room and the hallway beside it were partitioned off when the tower was built, and the Dead relocated. The Ardins don't really like the space, it feels like it dishonours the Dead to them, and so it is sparse, holding mostly empty crates, a few rolled up rugs, and a tall harp that belonged to one of Gerald's great aunts.
The Ardin crypt once was much larger. The addition of the Tower Dungeon necessitated cutting it's size into less than half. The statue and sarcophaguses of Ector the Ardent stands front and center, while his eldest sons and grandsons remain in their sarcophagi. Most of the family's older remains were disposed of and their skulls placed in Ossuaries. Newer corpses were cremated and placed in urns instead.
While this was done at great expense by the Baron and attended by Confessors to ensure that the dignity of the Dead was respected (without needless 'superstition' or 'sentiment'), it was highly offensive to Gerald's family, and has led to a very cool relationship with the Baron and his House,
The dead inside are ill at ease, and a Confessor or faithful of Laren who steps in the tomb may find themselves cursed for their trouble. If the Baron's men were to attack the Inn, ghostly undead members of the house will surge out to attack any men under his banner.
The door to the Crypt is heavy, ironbound, and has a complex mechanical loch that must be opened by entering the correct combinations on three tumblers. Every member of the Ardin family memorizes these combinations.
The basement area serves as a workshop for the household. An apothecary's station that is good enough to serve as a laboratory since along the South wall. Thee are 24 unguents in various trays and drawers here. Seven bottles of Alchemist's Kiss (a cure for hangovers and fatigue) are kept here and sold to patrons who overindulged. A chafing dish in this lab diffuses an oil that repels rodents, which is lit for a few hours every week.
There is a carpentry table and a loom along the west wall, with sufficient tools to repair damaged furniture and prepare new linen and woolen cloth for curtains and blankets.
Cupboards with old, worn towels and cookware kept for emergencies, and a place for fresh bread to cool are kept along the West wall.
The brewery cellar of The Lazy Cockatrice contains enough beer stores to last them a little over a year of average custom. They have created a raised platform and left several gaffes and 10' poles for rolling casks into position under the hoist to raise the casks to the first floor.
The room at the north end of the cellar is heavy, barred, and has an excellent lock.
The South end of the cellar ramp up to the surface. That area has been boarded up and the hatch to the surface buried to prevent thieves and raiders from entering the Inn from below. Support beams have been added to ensure there are no cave-ins..
There is an abandoned gremlin nest in the debris from the collapsing ramp. It contains 37cu (sp), a tortoise shell hairpin (worth 17sil), a dagger, and a bag of jacks.
Although not illicit, worship of the gods is frowned on, and considered backward. Being an overtly religious person can get one barred from polite society in Tassia. This room was once meant to be a hidden chamber for the storage of valuables, but it's purpose has changed from generation to generation. At present it hides a shrine to Serra, the goddess of hearth and family, that is maintained by Iris Ardin. The shrine contains a ritual golden chalice (worth 350gp) sitting in the middle of an altar, along with an alabaster bowl (25gp) and golden candle sticks (50gp total) along with a shelf of not only holy books, but banned books of all sorts in Tassia.
The door can be opened by working a switch hidden in a candelabra in room 33, but locking the door from the inside disables the switch.
This is where cheeses, spare flatware, cutlery, wine, and curing foods are kept. It also has a parish pump that draws water from the well into a small basin. A candelabra near the bottom of the stairs opens a secret door to area 34. The wine rack has a number of fine vintages, 7 bottles in it are worth 60 sil each.
Two arbalests are mounted here at the East and West arrow slits The angle here allows the Western arbalest to be fired over the gate at potential invaders on the road. A pair of shields and two footman's armor suits are kept here to arm Inn guests who may be pressed into service in an emergency.
The Attic of the lazy cockatrice creatures a hatch similar to the kind used in a hayloft. A rudimentary crane is used to raise buckets of water to keep the supply used by the dormitory fresh. This is generally a job of Aden (Area 29)
A large portion of the North end of the attic (A) that not taken up by the winch system is dedicated to creativity: Aden has a makeshift painting studio here where he spend his evening. It is also the home of a dollhouse made by Gerald's Great-grandfather that continues to be maintained, upgraded, and played with every generation.
The Southern half of the attic (B) is curtained off and used a a storage space for rickety bedframes, old chairs, bolts of cloth, tattered sheets, cracked mirrors, etc. Along with tools only required occasionally.
A small apartment that serves as the home for Hugh Dorvan, the stable boy (see area 17) and Aden Morlain, a general laborer.
Aden was the survivor of a disastrous caravan who wandered into the grounds of the Inn after weeks of being lost in the wilderness. Gerald took pity on the young man and took him in.
Aden draws water up through the hatch in the attic to supply the jugs and washbasins in the dormitory and is responsible for keeping the dorm clean.
Aden is a shy, haunted young man who is a talented painter, and is fiercely loyal to the Ardins.
There is 45 cu in Aden's cupboard, and some painting supplies.
Hugh's cupboard has a hand crossbow and six bolts, a short sword, fishing gear, and several tiles with pornographic images painted on them.
Most of the uppermost floor of The Lazy Cockatrice serves as a dormitory for less affluent customers such as teamsters, caravan guards, grooms, servants, etc. Over the years Gerald and his father reduced the number of hammocks and added in curtained cubicles so that even the poorest guest has a modicum of privacy and comfort.
Each of the sixteen cubicles has a candle in a holder, chamber pot, trunk, hammock, clay mug, and blanket.
A set of water jugs at one end can be filled from a large beater pot that is kept filled by the staff of the Inn. At the Northeastern corner a shelf of old books, cards, dice, and chess sets sits next to a pair of chaise-lounges and wicker armchairs that serves as a quiet social area. No food or drink is permitted here to encourage dormitory guests to spend more time in the common room.
A cubicle costs 4cu (sp) to rent per night.
Currently, there are six guests in the dormitory:
Danin Carter, a groom and cartman who is responsible for the mules for Valmer Kalbern. He's a perpetually glum and pessimistic young man with shabby clothes nd sandy blond har.
Margrit Bones, a mercenary who protects Bors' wagon and wares. She's a cheerful middle-aged woman prone to dark and crass humor. She calls almost everyone "sweetie" or "darling" and keeps a pouch full of candy she hands out to people she takes a shine to. She is also, terrifyingly, a Master of Close Combat with a gift for using the crow-bill to puncture helmets and eyes. She's the only one in the Inn to have survived a Tzwa attack.
Nace is a cheapskate merchant wo carries fine meats, fruits, and other perishables in a covered wagon. While he is no great magician, he knows how to perform two cantrips to help keep his wares fresh.
Torg is a hulking foreign warriror from the Orlaw to the north. He serves as Nace's guard, as he owes the merchant a life debt.
Morgan is Nace's sister, a woman with a touch of faerie in her blood an a knack with animals that makes her an excellent drover. She is a strange, moony woman who tends to talk nonsense.
Toma Strand is the owner of the cart full of contraband weapons in the coach-house. He's a stern, scruffy miner-turned-merchant. He does all of the work for himself. He has a lot of family in Alil and has become a strong supporter of the separatist movements of the north, and holds the crown in contempt.
The Ardins' master bedroom has a grand curtained bed, thick carpets an plush carpeting. A vanity here once belonged to the Queen of Tassia 200 years ago (might be worth 400sil to the right buyer.)
A fine cabinet contains chamber pots water jugs, linens and a scented oils, soap, and a wash bowl. A crossbow sits on a desk along with five bolts.
There is a safe in the corner containing the Inn:s current revenues (1,700 sil and 3,523cu along with scrolls of deed and titles.) The safe is exceptional quality, as is the lock on the door.
The Thief's Eye: It also includes an elvish magic ring set with a vitrified dwarf's eye.. If the wearer is blinded or blindfolded, they can see through the eye on the gem, which has infravision to 60', and is immune to effects that blind it.
The safe also has a trap that fires a drugged dart. The safe includes 4 doses of the poison on the dart.
Dart Trap
Reliable. Bypassed with a concealed button on the bottom of the safe. A dart with a carefully preserved drug. Anyone opening the safe without first setting the bypass will be struck with the dart and must roll Sudden Violence modified by Strength or fall unconscious for 1d4 watches. It is armed by winding the springloaded launcher and lariat and closing the door
Disabling the Trap (Clock: 10)
Disable the Trigger in the Door: Only possible if the trap is not yet sprung. Sabotage modified by Intellect.
Open the Door and Dodge Simultaneously Sudden Violence modified by Agility -2
This room is the space for the Ardins' children. Katrinn and Iris sleep in closed alcove beds along the Southern wall. Harlan and Alan have more conventional beds.
This room serves as a cloakroom for the Ardins and their rare personal guests. The stairwell down to the coachouse is well lit, and flanked by a chest-of-drawers to hold scarves, mittens, shawls, sahes, etc. Hooks line the walls to hold coats and cloaks.
The ornate double-doors to their living area taken from an old dwarvish ruin, and are incredibly durable., and a sophisticated loch. It also has a mechanical trap the Ardins arm in times of uncertainty. It rings a gong and drops a wire net (normally concealed by a disposable plaster frame) onto the heads of intruders. The net is attached to cables in the ceiling of Area 12. These hang 500 lbs of leaden weights that drop from Area 12's ceiling to bear victims to the ground. It can be armed and disarmed by a lever under the desk, and reset with a winch under the stairs in Area 12 ( spare plaster frames are kept in a crate in are 12.)
Net Trap
Reliable. Bypassed with a lever under the desk in Area 24. Reset by operating a winch in Area 12 and installing disposable plaster panels. Triggered by opening the door when the trap is armed. Bares everyone in Area 24 within 10ft. of the door to the floor and holds them with a wire rope and 500lbs of pressure.
Disabling the Trap (Clock: 20)
Jam the ConcealedWinches: Sabotage modified by strength.
Force up the Net: Mighty Deeds modified by Strength at -3
Cut the Net: Close combat modifiedby Agility (requires a sharp tool). , make an additional tinkeringtest modifiedby Intellector ruin the tool..
Disable the Trigger in the Door: Only possible if the trap is not yet sprung. Sabotage modified by Intellect.
The Ardin's family living space sits above the coach house. A small kitchen includes an iron stove, utensils retired from use at the inn, and a barrel of Gerald's personal reserve on tap.
The dining area has an ancestral suit of plate mail that once belonged to Ector the Ardent. The magic sword Lumen sits on the mantelpiece, and a blessed shield hangs on the wall of the main living area.
A large writing desk sits in the archway between the dining room and the living room, which includes all the ledgers, documentation, and passed guest books of the Inn. Along with a family journal that has been passed from father to son noting the major changes and events around the Inn for over a century.
A bookshelf with an enviable library on venting, brewing, travel, humor, and other subjects of value to an innkeeper sit behind glass on a closing bookshelf, next to which is a rack of fine wines collected by Gerald and his father over the last few decades. That collection is easily worth 4,000 sil (gp).
The living room also includes a well used spinning wheel, and a cheese ball in which several rare and expensive cheeses are kept, which are only served to wealthy, aristocratic guests on special request.
The hayloft is well-stocked with hay harvested in a meadow behind the Inn. A couple of pitchforks, a scythe, a sickle, block and tack L e, and several hundred feet of twine can be found here.
The fading magical vibrations in the breezeway have attracted a handful (7) of magical monstrosities called feyspiders. These cat-sized spiders have gone unnoticed and so far have kept themselves fed on bats, barn owls, small birds, and the odd gremlin. The Inn personnel remain blissfully unaware of them.
The breezeway bridges the gap between the stables and the Inn. The rafters of the breezeway contain seven Goblin skulls painted with Arcane runes. A thin frame of painted cloth hides them from sight.
These are meant to ward off curses and other dark magic from the Inn. They even did so for awhile, but the God of Retribution to which they were consecrated fell as a result of the Great Confession. His magic no longer fuels the skulls, which remain only a grim and forgotten curiosity.
The doors here are locked most of the time. Only members of the Holder family: Dell, Rollo, and Tamra.
This furnished apartment has been the traditional home of the Holder family (the spelling has shifted from what is imprinted om a bronze door-plate.
Aside from a selection of dishes, cooking supplies, a warm hearth, and the items needed to attend it, the Holders keep a crossbow for hunting here. A small bed is used by both Rollo and Dell at different times of the day (although Rollo often sleeps on a bedroll in the smithy.
Rollo and Dell's mother, Tamra lives in the curtained partition in the Southeastern corner of the room. While she is only in her fifties, she has had several life-threatening illnesses that have left her feeble and crippled her right leg. She is content to have visitors from the Ardins and remain in her apartment most of the time, only rarely taking meals in the common room. Tamra does much of the knitting, sewing, and crocheting needed by the inn. Dell dotes on her when he is not serving as the inn's hunter and watchman.
The Second Floor of the tower is full of barrels of beer, rainwater, and crates of hard tack, dried fruit, nuts, root vegetables, and coal
Part of these supplies are there to meet the Baron's requirement that the Inn provide enough iron rations to feed two Road Wardens for two months. But, as most of the room is being used for storage, Gerald just turned it into a secondary storeroom in general. The Wardens ignore this so long as access to the stairs and arrow slits are not blocked.
Two short bows are kept here by the Wardens in case of invasion along with 120 arrows. Gerald has stashed two crossbows and 40 quarrels here in case he needs to assist in the defense of his Inn.
An unassuming chest in the tower contains toll revenues collected by the Wardens to be passed to tax collectors on regular dates. It currently contains 509sil (go).
The door to the second floor corridor is heavy and iron bound with a strong lock. Gerald, the Road Wardens and Almo have keys.
