Dungeons & Dragons 5th – Embla City of Lights

Embla City of Lights

The passage opens before you, and for a moment, it is difficult to believe what you are seeing.

After traveling through seemingly endless tunnels, surrounded by darkness and the oppressive weight of the earth above, you find yourselves standing at the entrance to an enormous cavern.

Before you stretches an entire city.

Thousands of lights illuminate the vast underground chamber. Buildings of carefully worked stone rise along the cavern floor and climb the surrounding walls. Great bridges stretch across open spaces, connecting neighborhoods and towering structures. The distant sound of hammering mingles with the murmur of countless voices.

But it is the sight above the city that truly captures your attention.

Three immense crystalline structures hang suspended within the cavern, secured by enormous chains that disappear into the surrounding stone. Bridges connect these magnificent creations to the city around them. Light dances across their surfaces, scattering brilliant reflections throughout the chamber.

The air carries the unmistakable smells of civilization: freshly baked bread, roasting meat, burning coal, and the sharp metallic tang of working forges.

Dwarves move purposefully among merchants and travelers of unfamiliar races. Somewhere in the distance, a bell rings. A vendor calls out the day’s bargains. Laughter erupts from a nearby gathering before being swallowed by the city’s endless activity.

Yet beneath the bustle, something feels wrong.

Armed guards watch the approaches. Merchants speak in hushed tones over crates of unsold goods. Travelers study unfamiliar faces with more suspicion than curiosity.

Even here, in this great sanctuary beneath the earth, the dangers of the Underworld have not been forgotten.

Still, as you look upon the remarkable city before you, one thing becomes clear.

After so much darkness, you have finally reached the City of Lights.

Feature & Description

Location: Deep within Aventyr’s Underworld

Primary inhabitants: Dweorg, the underground dwarves

Other inhabitants: A diverse population of Underworld races

Government: The Merchant Circle, representing five major clans and civic leadership

Economy: Trade, craftsmanship, merchants, and services

Defining landmark: Three great crystalline gonjolas

Major road: The Long Road, connecting Embla with Stoneholme

Nearby resources: Mushroom farms and surrounding cavern settlements

Principal threat: Increasing drow aggression

1: Justice Gonjola: This giant blue crystal bathes the cavern floor in its azure radiance, which is broken only by the occaional fleeting form of a guard escorting a prisoner to trial or a judge returning to their legal affaris after a breif recess.  The gonjola houseds the Grand Court of High Order and various minor, tribunals, as well as the guards’ barracks, jails, and other law enforcement facilities.

The Majority of disputes within the city are negotiated within the Justice Gonjola.  Hearings involving disagreements between groups or organizations are held within the Grand Court of High Order while disputes between individuals or small businesses are settled in the minor court.  Any hearings have to do with commerce are typically relocated to the Trade Gonjola and directly overseen by the Merchant Circle, arbitrated by a high judge from the Justice Gonjola.

If a disagreement cannot be settled in court, many times the conflict will be moved to the Cage and will be resolved through unarmed combat.  both individuals must agree the terms, which can be involve loss of property and even life depending upon the agreed resolution.

Audience Chamber: A large audience chamber is available for public trials or other official events involving the Courts of Embla.  New laws are announced from here, as are city-affecting declarations of war, peace, or treason.

Barracks: The barracks are divided, with foot soldiers closest to the door and officers to the rear of the building.  The walls, and floor, and even the bunked beds are made from stone, usually hand crafted by the user.  Each military campaign a soldier takes part in is assigned a crest and these are carved into the frames.

Minor Court: Once past the four guards there is a sign that reads (in common, dwarven, undercommon, Svirfneblin, and drow) all “Weapons to be peacebonded before entry.”  Entrants can see the tiered seats of the courthouse descent almost two stories before reaching an open space for those involved in a trial.

Grand Court of the High Order: This house of law is huge, encompassing a vast amount of space within the Justice Gonjola.  The walls of the courtroom are heavily decorated in murals depicting ancient gods forging the Dwarven race.  The high justice (the judge who oversees all others) resides here during working hours and has living quarters within this gonjola as well.  Although many rows of solid wood benches line these halls, most trials are closed to the general public unless authorized by the high justice himself.

All major disputes between clans, groups, organizations or companies are settled here.

There is one guard house on either side of the courthouse door, each holding two justice guards.  Prior to someone entering the courthouse, the guards peacebond all weapons; if someone refuses to have their weapons bonded they are refused entry.  Those who sneak weapons in are charged with undermining Emblan security protocols and endangering the position of high justices.  this comes with a mandatory minimum term of five years non-life threatening service in the Emblan fungus fields.

Jail & Prison: The jail contains numerous cells filled with those waiting for trial in the courthouse.  It is staffed with a number of guards equal to half the number of the incarcerated.

Built from multiple layers of lead lined stone walls, the prison contains several heavily fortified cells with bars made from thick but metal beams.  It is staffed with a number of guards equal to the number of prisoners, plus a senior gaoler who handles the keys.

Plot Hooks: Innocent condemned, party must find the artifact that he supposedly stole to prove his innocence.  Witness protection, party must protect a witness from exposing a truth.  Assassination of judge, with doors locked after the incident will the party find the assassin and if the judge was truly the target.

2. Trade Gonjola

The Trade Gonjola was built from rose crystal soon after the dwarves took control of these caves.  This was the first of the huge stone platforms to be suspended, and is also the most visited.  During waking hours, the mayor can be found here working alongside the Merchant Circle and the notetaker.  Together they sign into effect new mercantile laws, negotiate major trade decisions, and work hard to ensure Embla is the primary hub for trade in the underworld.

All deals with neighboring settlements are made here in the Trade gonjola, every record, dept, map and document involving trade agreements, properties, crops, and other goods are kept here as well.  Returning merchants are given three days to log all trades undertaken while away from the city.  If any deals are completed without a record being deposited here, the Merchant Circle is permitted to extract goods worth up to ten times the value of the original deal from the merchant.  The level of fine is based on how many times the merchant has broken the law.  Any trader who breaks the law for an eleventh time is branded and banished from all dwarven markets for 100 years.  This gonjola is strictly for trading; any caught loitering here are ordered to leave and escorted promptly out by members of the guard.

Merchant Circle Chambers: This meeting place of the Merchant Circle is a circular room with an ornately carved table that is round so no one leader is at the head and everyone is treated equally.  There are eight seats: five for the great clan representatives, one for the mayor, one for the circle chair, and a final one for Balir, should the god choose to return.  This last chair is the one with it back to the entrance.

Off to the side of the circular table is a single seat and desk that is reserved for the ninth member of the circle, the notetaker.  The notetaker keeps the minutes of each meeting and copies new rules and regulations, as well as changes to them, into the latest of a large series of tomes entitled The Merchant Rules.  A copy of the latest volume is kept at the notetaker’s stand.

Plot Hooks: A desperate merchant approaches the party. They have only hours remaining to register a trade completed three days ago. Unfortunately, their records were stolen, and without them, the Merchant Circle could impose a devastating fine. The twist: The merchant’s business rival arranged the theft to bankrupt them and purchase their trade routes cheaply. The hook: Recover the records before the deadline. The rival may offer the party more money to walk away.

During a routine meeting, the chair reserved for Balir begins to glow. The entire Merchant Circle falls silent. Nothing like this has happened in living memory.  The twist: A small stone tablet appears upon the chair, bearing a warning that a great betrayal threatens Embla’s prosperity. The hook: The mayor discreetly hires the party to investigate the warning. Is it truly a divine message, or an elaborate attempt to manipulate the Circle?

3: Celebration Gonjola

The Celebration Gonjol is made from emerald green crystal and was a gift to the people of Embla from the Merchant Circle. it is used to celebrate birth, deaths, victories, and significant trade agreements.

Anyone is welcome here so long as they behave themselves “behave” is a term used loosely as most of the dwarves get a bit carried away with their entertainment.  A small amount of roughhousing and nudity are allowed, but if the limits are pushed, horn guards will escort belligerent or heavily intoxicated individuals to their homes.  Those that resist are taken to the Justice Gonjola and left in jail until they sober up, at which point they are released, assuming no damages were incurred.

Plot Hooks: During an extravagant wedding celebration, the groom disappears moments before the ceremony. The bride is furious, the families are accusing one another, and the horn guards are struggling to keep the peace. The twist: The groom hasn’t fled. His friends hid him as part of a traditional wedding prank, but when they returned to retrieve him, he was gone. The adventure: Find the groom before the families turn the celebration into a clan feud.

A legendary dwarven drinking champion challenges the adventurers to a contest. The winner receives a ceremonial tankard and free drinks for a year. The twist: The champion hasn’t lost in 47 years because the tankard is enchanted to neutralize alcohol. The adventure: Discover the deception, challenge the champion to a fair contest, or use the knowledge to win a favor from an influential dwarf.

4: Embla’s Mausoleum

The path of the Ancients is the grand entryway to the mausoleums.  It has high walls and wide open ceilings, and is well lit by torches.  After crossing the path of the ancients, one arrives at gilded double doors wrought of solid steel and bound in mithral.  Two guards stand watch here at all times.  Entry is only permitted to funeral processions unless approved by Moon Stonefood, overseer of Embla’s Mausoleum.  Stonefoot has held the position for over 200 years, and dis his father before that.

The Mausoleum has three main chambers, each divided into smaller sections organized by family name.  The first chamber contains the crypts of the laborers, smiths, and crafters.  The next are the trade tombs of the merchant clans, and finally the Crypt of Champions, in which are interred those who died in defense of Embla.

Plot Hooks:  Moon Stonefood reports hearing knocking from inside a sealed crypt belonging to a respected dwarven craftsman. The sounds occur every night at precisely the same hour. The twist: The craftsman’s spirit is not angry. He is desperately trying to warn his descendants about a flaw in a major construction project.  The adventure: Determine what the spirit is trying to communicate before the structure collapses and threatens lives elsewhere in Embla.

During preparations for a funeral, workers accidentally break through a wall separating two family crypts. Behind it they discover a sealed sarcophagus that is completely empty. The twist: The tomb belongs to a famous defender of Embla whose death was recorded more than a century ago. The adventure: Investigate whether the hero’s remains were stolen, the burial was staged, or the supposed champion survived and lived under another identity.

Moon privately asks the party to recover an old journal that belonged to his father. He believes it was stolen from his quarters.  The twist: The journal contains evidence that a celebrated hero buried in the Crypt of Champions betrayed Embla during a major conflict.  The adventure: Recover the journal and decide whether the truth should be revealed. Moon fears that exposing the betrayal could dishonor an entire family and undermine centuries of tradition.

During routine maintenance, a section of the mausoleum floor collapses, revealing a staircase leading into a forgotten chamber. The twist: The chamber predates the dwarven occupation of Embla. Its architecture is unlike anything found elsewhere in the mausoleum. The adventure: Moon requests that the party investigate discreetly before the discovery becomes public. The chamber may contain evidence of the caves’ original inhabitants.

5: Church of Balir

This humble church of Balir has simple, practical areas of worship.  At the same time, the unadorned building is a wonder of dwarven design.  It is deliberately positioned near sites of toil and creation and its clerics frequently visit the nearby forges and workshops to work with their owners.

Balir’s symbol, a hearth overflowing with flames, is the only decoration in the church, and features on every door.  Within the temple, Balir’s clergy are guided by the ancient knowledge of the forge.

Plot Hooks: A young apprentice produces a magnificent sword despite having barely mastered basic metalworking. The church’s clerics declare the craftsmanship extraordinary. The twist: The apprentice insists they made the sword while dreaming and cannot remember the process. Each night, they create another impossible object. The adventure: Investigate whether Balir is guiding the apprentice, an ancient smith’s spirit has taken possession of them, or someone is using them to forge something dangerous.

A master craftsman brings an ancestral hammer to the church after discovering it refuses to strike metal. The hammer stops in midair whenever it approaches an anvil.  The twist: The hammer was enchanted centuries ago to refuse service to anyone who knowingly creates weapons for an unjust cause.  The adventure: Determine whether the craftsman has been deceived about the destination of their latest commission. The trail leads to a merchant operating through the Trade Gonjola.

A newly constructed bridge collapses shortly after receiving a blessing from Balir’s clergy. Several citizens are injured, and rumors spread that the god has withdrawn his favor. The twist: The bridge was sabotaged by a contractor hoping to discredit a rival clan.  The adventure: Investigate the wreckage, uncover the sabotage, and restore public confidence before religious tensions threaten the city’s craftsmen.

The church receives an ancient fragment of metal bearing Balir’s symbol. When placed near a forge, it causes every nearby flame to burn brighter.  The twist: The fragment is part of a legendary divine creation scattered throughout the Underworld.  The adventure: Track down the remaining fragments before another faction assembles them for a more sinister purpose.

6. The All-God Temple

Sometimes called the “Hail All Hall” by less devout types, this temple is ecumenical and available for the worship of all deities regardless of race or type.  No ceremonies or rituals that may harm other beings are carried out here, but other than that, all forms of worship are permitted within these walls.  Special shrines to each of the gods and goddesses have been erected within the temple with a few chambers left empty for future races to venerate their own deities.  However, despite the presence of assorted shrines, time for services and ceremonies has to be booked in advance.  During periods of tension, this sometimes leads to conflict, as one religion deliberately books a slot that is usually used by another deity.  It’s at times like these that the mayor and chief minister of Balir consult with the notetaker to establish solutions.

Plot Hooks:  A religious group arrives for its annual sacred ceremony only to discover that another faith has reserved the temple for the same hour. The official schedule supports the second group’s claim. The twist: Someone altered the reservation records to provoke a confrontation between two rival communities. The adventure: Investigate the booking records, question witnesses, and identify who benefits from creating religious tension in Embla.

One morning, temple attendants discover that an empty chamber now contains an elaborate shrine to a deity nobody recognizes.  The twist: The shrine appears to be centuries old, and the inscriptions describe a civilization that vanished long before the dwarves occupied Embla.  The adventure: Discover the identity of the forgotten deity and determine whether the shrine is a divine manifestation, an ancient secret, or an elaborate deception.

A flamboyant stranger arrives claiming to be the living incarnation of a minor deity. They demand immediate access to a shrine and insist that the temple’s reservation system does not apply to gods. The twist: The stranger demonstrates several genuine supernatural abilities, but it remains unclear whether they are divine, magically gifted, or simply an extraordinarily convincing fraud. The adventure: Investigate the stranger’s claims while preventing an increasingly ridiculous dispute over temple scheduling.

Clerics serving one particular deity discover that their prayers and divine rituals no longer function properly within the temple. Outside the building, their abilities return to normal.  The twist: Someone has concealed an enchanted object beneath the shrine that interferes with divine magic.  he adventure: Locate the object and discover who placed it there. The culprit may be attempting to discredit the faith rather than harm its followers.

During renovations, workers discover a hidden book containing prayers to dozens of unfamiliar gods.  The twist: Several prayers reference locations beneath Embla that do not appear on any modern map.  The adventure: Investigate the locations and discover whether the book preserves knowledge from the civilization that inhabited the caverns before the dwarves.

7. The Armory

The city armory is run by Master Armorer Ralorin Ironhammer.  He and his apprentices work day and night to craft and repair dwarven plate mail armor for the justice guard.  Due to the recent drow threat, this area is secure and only members of the gaurd and city officials are permitted entry, anyone caught loitering outside the ubilding is soon rebuffed and asked to move along.  Dissent leads to arrest and summary expulsion.

Plot hooks:

1. The Armor That Failed, Investigation • Sabotage, A member of the Justice Guard is seriously injured when their newly issued plate armor breaks apart during an encounter with suspected drow scouts. Ralorin insists the armor was flawless when it left his workshop. The twist: Someone has been secretly weakening the rivets and joints of finished armor. The sabotage is subtle enough to escape ordinary inspections. The adventure: Ralorin discreetly hires the party to identify the saboteur before more guards are injured. The investigation may reveal that someone inside the armoury is supplying information to the drow.

2. The Missing Apprentice, Mystery • Rescue, One of Ralorin’s most promising apprentices fails to report for work. The apprentice’s quarters are undisturbed, but their tools and personal journal are missing. The twist: The apprentice discovered evidence that someone was diverting valuable mithral from the armoury. Rather than report the theft, they attempted to investigate alone.The adventure: Find the missing apprentice and uncover the smuggling operation before the trail goes cold. The investigation could lead to merchants operating through the Trade Gonjola.

3. The Masterwork Commission, Exploration • Crafting, Ralorin has been commissioned to create a ceremonial suit of armor honoring a legendary defender of Embla. Unfortunately, he lacks a rare mineral required to complete the work. The twist: The only known source lies within a cavern recently occupied by hostile creatures fleeing the advancing drow. The adventure: Escort a mining expedition, negotiate with the cavern’s inhabitants, or recover enough material for Ralorin to complete the commission. Possible reward: Ralorin offers to customize or improve a character’s armor in gratitude.

8. Blarinstone Smithy

Darg Blaringstone is responsible for maintaining the supporting cables for the aerial bridge system, as well as the chains which hold the mighty gonjolas of Embla.  Dark is tall for a dwarf, and sports a long, braided beard with intricate, decorative clasps made fo the different metals he regularly works with industrially.

Plot Hooks:

1. The Chain That Shouldn’t Break, Investigation • Sabotage • Level 5–8, During a routine inspection, Darg discovers several deep fractures in one of the massive chains supporting the Trade Gonjola. He insists that the chain was inspected only days earlier and showed no signs of damage. The twist: Someone has applied a rare alchemical compound that weakens metal over time. The substance is nearly impossible to detect without specialized knowledge. The adventure: Darg hires the party to investigate the sabotage before the chain fails. The culprit may be working for a rival merchant clan or an agent of the drow. Suggested reward: 300 gp and a custom piece of climbing equipment.

2. The Counterfeit Metal, Investigation • Trade intrigue • Level 5–8, Darg receives a shipment of supposedly high-quality dwarven steel. During testing, several links shatter under loads they should easily withstand.  The twist: The shipment was deliberately substituted with inferior metal. The forged certification documents bear the seal of a respected merchant operating through the Trade Gonjola.The adventure: Trace the shipment through Embla’s trade records and discover whether the merchant is responsible or has been framed. Suggested reward: 250 gp and a set of masterwork tools.

3. A Body in the Chains, Murder mystery • Level 5–10, During maintenance beneath a bridge, Darg discovers a body tangled among the supporting cables. The twist: The deceased was a city official investigating suspicious payments for infrastructure repairs. Their journal contains references to several prominent citizens. The adventure: Investigate the death before the evidence disappears. The trail could lead to corruption within the Merchant Circle. Suggested reward: 350 gp from the city and a favor owed by Darg.

Standard equipment

Specialized equipment

Homebrew items, designed for use in Embla and other vertical Underdark environments.

Custom commissions