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 Credits

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Author: Benoit de Bernardy
Editor: Robin J. Samuels

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Cover Artist: Raluca Marinescu
Interior Illustrator: Raluca Marinescu
Cartographer: Benoit de Bernardy
Graphic Designer: Benoit de Bernardy

Special Thanks to:

Alban Jalabert, Travis Milam, Jeremy Porter, Michael and Katrina Schultz, Gary Travis

e Table of Contents
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Introduction 3 Uncovering the Truth 17
Adventure Background 3 The Clone Golem 18
Adventure Synopsis 4 Bernard Kothont 19
Running the Adventure 4 Part 3: Mortimer Yorman 20
Part 1: A Deadly Scarab 5 The Doppelganger 20
The Man in the Street 5 Mortimer’s Mansion 20
Securing the Job 8 Concluding the Adventure 24
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Returning to the Bazaar 9

Part 2: The Investigation 10 Appendix I: Monsters and Magic Items 26
Interrogating the Staff 10 Appendix II: The Raging Bull District 29
The Auction House 12
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DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of the Coast, Forgotten Realms, the dragon ampersand, Player’s Handbook, Monster Manual,
Dungeon Master’s Guide, D&D Adventurers League, all other Wizards of the Coast product names, and their respective logos are trademarks
of Wizards of the Coast in the USA and other countries. All characters and their distinctive likenesses are property of Wizards of the Coast.
This material is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or
artwork contained herein is prohibited without the express written permission of Wizards of the Coast.
Copyright © Benoit de Bernardy 2017

www.goblinstone.com
 T
he Scarab of Death is a 5th edition On the morning the adventure begins,
module for three to five characters Mortimer went to visit Nabulee to complain
of levels 9 to 11. The adventure about his pay. This was in fact a way to distract
normally takes place in Waterdeep, the merchant while the golem snuck into the
but you can easily adapt it and run vault. The construct first picked up a scarab-
it in any large city. shaped brooch that was lying on a table, and
then started searching the cabinet for more
Adventure Background valuables to steal. That’s when the golem
triggered a magical alarm that immediately
Nabulee el Jasafir is a merchant from the desert
notified Nabulee of its presence.

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city of Calimport, who owns a small auction
When the Calishite suddenly asked Mortimer
house in Waterdeep. His business is buying
to leave his house, the necromancer knew
enchanted items that adventurers recover from
that something had gone wrong. In a panic, he
the ruins of Faerûn, and reselling them to the
mentally ordered his golem to put all the stolen

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highest bidder. Over the years, he made quite a
items back where they belonged and to leave the
reputation for himself, and many Waterdhavian
notables now spend fortunes on his magical
trinkets as a means of showing their wealth and
Mortimer Yorman
status.
Nabulee stores his money and his enchanted
items in an extradimensional vault. He believes
his safe is impenetrable because the only way
to access it is via a magical portal that only

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he can use. He doesn’t hesitate to brag about
how many valuables he has in it (always
exaggerating) and he’s eager to explain how the
portal works.
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Mortimer Yorman is a necromancer who
has been working with Nabulee for years. He
has a passion for magical constructs and has
learned how to make near-perfect copies of
existing people. Mortimer can use a clone spell
to duplicate someone’s body, tear it apart, and
use the pieces to create a flesh golem that is
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nearly identical to the original person and

that retains a large part of their personality.
When Nabulee told Mortimer about his
safe, the necromancer (correctly) assumed
that a flesh golem made with a clone of the
Calishite would be able to use the portal
that leads to the extradimensional room.
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Mortimer just couldn’t resist the temptation

and devised a plan to rob Nabulee of all his
valuables. He hired some thugs to mug the
Calishite and chop off a piece of the merchant
while he was unconscious (the material
component of the clone spell). A few months
later, Mortimer had a perfect copy of Nabulee
and was ready for the heist. His plan, however,
went ludicrously wrong.

Scarab of Death
3
 vault. He then cast a sleep spell on Nabulee to
disable him, tied him to a chair (to have enough
Running the Adventure
time to cast his spells), and erased any trace of When preparing to DM this adventure, several
his presence from the merchant’s memory with a tools can help you start strong and run it
modify memory spell. Nabulee doesn’t remember smoothly.
seeing Mortimer that morning.
Getting the PCs Involved
In the meantime, the scarab the golem had
The adventure begins when the PCs are walking
taken from the table turned into a nightmarish
around Waterdeep, and more specifically, in
beetle-shaped creature that drilled into its flesh.
the Raging Bull District (see “Appendix II: The
It burrowed inside the golem searching for a way

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Raging Bull District”), but you can run the
to kill it, but the construct was immune to the
module in any major city. How the characters get
scarab’s deadly curse. The beetle eventually gave
there is left to your discretion. (Note that this can
up and burst out of the golem’s body as it was
be as simple as going back to town to rest after
running toward the exit. Later that day, a young
the PCs’ latest adventure.)

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Waterdhavian noble picked up the scarab at the
The module also assumes that Nabulee hires
end of an auction and died a block away from
the characters because he knows them by
Nabulee’s house.
reputation and because he recognizes them. If
the adventurers are new to the region, this is
Adventure Synopsis unlikely to happen. In this case, you should start
In the first part of the adventure, the PCs the adventure with a short prelude. For example,
encounter a dead noble in the streets of the PCs could help the local authorities stop
Waterdeep and witness a beetle-shaped a murderous stone golem that escaped from a

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construct bursting out of his chest (see “Part 1:
A Deadly Scarab”). A moment later, an eccentric-
looking man runs out of a nearby mansion
toward the scene. When he realizes what has
local wizards’ guild. Naturally, Nabulee witnesses
the PCs defeating the golem and will recognize
them when the time comes.
Roleplaying
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occurred, he hires the PCs to investigate the
The module lists the information that the NPCs
noble’s death.
know as bullet points for your convenience, but
Most of the adventure takes place in Nabulee’s
feel free to roleplay the interactions if you want
Bazaar of the Extraordinary (see “Part 2: The
to, and reveal what the NPCs know as part of a
Investigation”). It’s a fairly straightforward
conversation.
inquest in which the PCs learn that the noble
Similarly, when the PCs need to make a
apparently had picked up a scarab of death (see
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Charisma check to obtain information, the

“Appendix I: Monsters and Magic Items”) on
adventure only indicates the DC of the check,
his way out of Nabulee’s auction house. As the
but you can ask your players to impersonate
characters continue their investigation, they’ll
their character, or describe their actions before
learn that someone other than Nabulee entered
allowing the check.
his extradimensional vault and that someone
was with the merchant in his office that morning. Monster Statistics
The adventurers will then either have to track
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This adventure features new monsters and

down the person who was in the vault or restore NPCs. You can find their statistics in “Appendix
Nabulee’s memories. Either way will lead them I: Monsters and Magic Items.” Except when
to the person responsible for the noble’s death. otherwise specified, all NPCs are commoners.
In the last part of the adventure (“Part 3:
Mortimer Yorman”), the PCs go to Mortimer’s
house to try to find out how the necromancer
managed to enter Nabulee’s vault and take out
the scarab of death.

Scarab of Death
4
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Part 1: A Deadly Scarab
In this part of the module, a Calishite merchant Nothing short of a wish spell can save the noble.
named Nabulee el Jasafir hires the PCs to Once the young man is dead, the PCs only have a
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investigate the death of a Waterdhavian noble. small amount of time to inspect his body or talk
to his domestic servant before Nabulee el Jasafir
storms out of a nearby mansion to see what
The Man in the Street happened.
When you’re ready to begin the adventure, read
or paraphrase the text below. Inspecting the Body
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It’s the middle of the afternoon. As you’re The cause of death is pretty obvious: a scarab-
walking in the Raging Bull District of the shaped construct dug through the young man’s
bustling city of Waterdeep, you’re startled by belt pouch and into his waist, drilled its way to
loud screams of agony and terror. When you the heart, and then burst out of his chest. Once
look to see where they came from, you see a out of the body, the creature reverted back to
young man wearing the latest fashion trend being an inanimate beetle-shaped brooch.
convulsing on the floor, his pants stained with The Scarab of Death. On a successful DC 14
blood. Another man of lower status is trying to Intelligence (Arcana) check, a character learns
save him, yelling for help, but to no avail. The that the brooch is in fact a cursed item called
young noble stops moving, and shortly after, a a scarab of death. On a successful check, the
beetle-shaped creature drills out of his chest in PC also knows how to safely store the pin (see
a burst of gore and blood. “Scarab of Death” on page 28).

Scarab of Death
5
 Nabulee immediately understands that the
Talking to the Servant brooch that killed Aaron is a scarab of death
The man who tried to save the noble is called and that this particular one is supposed to be in
Liam Roogs. If the PCs talk to him, they learn his extradimensional vault. He knows who the
the following: noble is, and that his father, Archibald, has the
†† He says his name is Liam Roogs. reputation of being ruthless with those who do
†† He’s a domestic servant working for the him harm. Fortunately, Nabulee also recognizes
Littlehorn family. The young man who just the PCs and knows what they’re capable of. He
died was his master, Aaron. tells them the following:
†† He doesn’t know what happened. It appears †† His name is Nabulee el Jasafir. He’s a

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that the scarab-shaped brooch lying on young merchant from the desert city of Calimport.
Aaron’s chest turned into a nightmarish He owns a nearby auction house called
creature and killed him. Nabulee’s Bazaar of the Extraordinary.
†† Aaron found the brooch in the auction room †† The young man who just died is the youngest

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of Nabulee’s Bazaar of the Extraordinary (he son of the Littlehorn family, Aaron. The
points at a nearby mansion when mentioning aristocrat was in his auction house a few
the name of the place). It was on the floor, just minutes ago.
a few feet away from where they were sitting. †† The brooch that killed the noble is a scarab of
†† Aaron’s behavior was odd. He noticed the death. He’s pretty sure that this one belongs
scarab early during the auction, but he waited to him, but he doesn’t know how Aaron could
until everyone left to pick it up. Aaron was have acquired it. This brooch is supposed to
an honest person, but he seemed intent on be safely stored in an extradimensional vault
stealing the brooch. that only he can access.

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†† A few minutes after they left the auction
house, Aaron started to scream and fell to the
ground. He convulsed for a brief moment, and
then the scarab burst out of his chest.
†† Aaron’s father, Archibald, is a ruthless man.
Lord Littlehorn will want someone to blame,
and he’ll make sure this person loses his head.
†† He doesn’t want to die for something he
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†† To his knowledge, the Littlehorns don’t didn’t do. He’s absolutely certain he didn’t
have any enemies. He suggests taking to take the scarab of death out of his vault, even
Lord Archibald Littlehorn if the PCs wish to accidentally. If he had picked up the cursed
learn more about the family’s business (see brooch without taking special precautions, he
“Archibald Littlehorn” on page 8). would also be dead.
†† He begs the PCs to look into the matter. He
Nabulee el Jasafir offers them a magic item from his vault in
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Nabulee el Jasafir is the owner of Nabulee’s exchange for their help.

Bazaar of the Extraordinary. He storms out of Nabulee’s Suggestions
his mansion and rushes to the scene shortly after If the characters accept Nabulee’s work
hearing Aaron scream, probably interrupting the proposition, he tells them the following:
PCs in their conversation with Liam. †† Constable Bernard Kothont, the person in
When you’re ready to introduce Nabulee, read charge of law enforcement in the Raging Bull
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or paraphrase the following: District, is a good friend of his. Considering

the PCs’ reputation, he shouldn’t have any
An overweight, eccentric-looking man with trouble convincing the constable to let them
scruffy fiery hair bursts out of a nearby conduct the investigation on behalf of the city
mansion and runs toward you with a watch.
preoccupied look. He’s wearing a blue tunic †† Archibald Littlehorn will be more problematic.
embroidered with silver and matching pants, He’s a capricious but influential man. Nabulee
and is holding a gold-inlaid scepter shaped as doubts the noble will give the PCs enough
a dragon. After taking a moment to catch his time to conduct a thorough investigation. He
breath, he gazes at the scarab on the noble’s believes Archibald will have him arrested
chest and sighs. before the end of the day, and that he’ll lose
his head before sunrise.

Scarab of Death
6
 †† He recommends going to Archibald’s mansion
to try to negotiate some kind of truce, but he’s Nabulee el Jasafir
open to other ideas to get the aristocrat out of Nabulee is an overweight merchant from the
the way. desert city of Calimport. He has tan skin and
†† He suggests that the adventurers first gather scruffy, fiery hair, suggesting that the blood
whatever supplies they might need for the job of an efreeti flows through his veins (he’s
and make sure that Archibald doesn’t bother a fire genasi). Nabulee was born in a poor
them. family, and spent most of his youth selling
†† He’ll be waiting for them at his house. When trinkets in a bazaar. His luck turned when an
they’re ready, he would like to take them to the adventurer died of a heart attack in his shop.

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vault so that they may see for themselves how He stole everything that person had and fled
unlikely the circumstances of Aaron’s death to Waterdeep. When he arrived there, he
are. realized that the nobles were willing to pay
good money for the magic items he had taken

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Development off the adventurer’s corpse, and later opened
If the PCs wish to first make sure they have Nabulee’s Bazaar of the Extraordinary.
enough time to complete their investigation Nabulee didn’t receive a proper education.
before Archibald Littlehorn intervenes, please He’s barely literate and lacks vocabulary,
proceed to “Securing the Job” below. If the which make him self-conscious. He tries to
adventurers would rather go to the vault with impress others with extravagant clothing and
Nabulee or start their inquest, please proceed to complicated vocabulary, but always gets the
“Part 2: The Investigation”). words wrong.

Archibald Littlehorn e Interrogating Aaron

If the PCs have the speak with dead spell
prepared, they can use it to interrogate Aaron.
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They learn the following:
†† His name is Aaron. He’s the youngest son of
Lord Archibald Littlehorn.
†† He found the scarab-shaped brooch that killed
him on the floor, in Nabulee’s Bazaar of the
Extraordinary.
†† He wanted to give the brooch to Raferny
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Tchazzam, a noble girl that he’s courting.

†† He admits that he stole the scarab. His father
is always complaining about how much money
he spends, and he didn’t have the heart to ask
Archibald for money to buy the scarab.
†† He doesn’t have any enemies who would want
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to kill him, and to his knowledge, neither does

his father.

Scarab of Death
7
 Gaining More Time. Archibald doesn’t want
Bringing Aaron Back to Life to come out as a wrathful tyrant in front of the
Some PCs will try to bring Aaron back to PCs. He knows them by reputation and wants to
life with a raise dead spell or similar magic, make a positive impression. If he ever finds out
hoping that it would solve the problem. Alas, where the otherworldly entity took Aaron’s soul,
resurrecting Aaron is not so easy. When he might need their help to recover it.
Archibald was young, he didn’t want to If the characters present reasonable arguments
have children and signed a contract with an to Archibald, they can make a DC 14 Charisma
otherworldly being; the creature would help (Persuasion) check to convince the patriarch to
him become rich in exchange for the souls of give them an extra day to find out what happened

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his children when they die. Any attempt to bring to his son. No matter what the adventurers say
Aaron back to life fails. or do, Lord Littlehorn doesn’t give them more
than two days. He wants their help but he’s also
longing for revenge.
Securing the Job

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Before the PCs begin their investigation, they Talking to Archibald
first need to make sure that Archibald Littlehorn The PCs might take advantage of being with
won’t get in their way. The purpose of this part Archibald to ask him questions about his family
is to give the PCs a strong incentive to help or to talk more about what happened to Aaron.
Nabulee and to put pressure on them so that He tells the characters the following:
they complete the adventure in a timely manner. †† He owns an important merchant house and
You can find below some suggestions as to how recently rose to nobility.
the adventurers might achieve this. †† He has many envious competitors, but he

Archibald Littlehorn e
The easiest way to make sure Archibald
Littlehorn doesn’t intervene is to negotiate with
doesn’t believe any of them would kill Aaron
because none of them would have anything to
gain from his son’s death.
†† The adventurers won’t be able to bring Aaron
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back to life because of something he did when
him. The noble owns a mansion in the Castle he was younger (he doesn’t want to tell them
Ward, just a few blocks away from Nabulee’s about his pact with the otherworldly being).
Bazaar of the Extraordinary. Aaron’s father †† He believes Nabulee was careless and left a
is overcome by grief when he learns that his dangerous magic item out of his sight.
son died. Ever since his first child was born, †† He can’t fathom the idea of never seeing his
Archibald has been trying, in vain, to undo the son again. He wants revenge and he will get.
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pact that he made with the otherworldly being

when he was young (see “Bringing Aaron Back
to Life” on page 8). He knows Aaron is gone Archibald Littlehorn
for good, and he wants the head of the person Archibald Littlehorn (veteran) is a handsome
responsible for his son’s death. man in his late fifties with salt and pepper hair.
He’s tall, slender, impeccably groomed, always
Petitioning for Time wears elegant clothing, and often has his hand
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If Archibald learns that Aaron died because of

on his stomach because of chronic pain.
Nabulee’s scarab of death, he’ll hold the Calishite
He was born into a modest family,
responsible for it. Fortunately, Lord Littlehorn
but he managed to change his fate and
won’t believe Nabulee did it on purpose. He’ll
establish himself as the go-to person for the
assume it was an accident but he’ll still want to
transportation of valuable goods in all of
see him dead. He’ll give the PCs until the sun
Waterdeep (mostly because he was, and still is,
sets on the following day before he involves the
the only merchant foolish enough to reimburse
local authorities.
lost or stolen goods). He now owns three
caravels and a dozen carriages, and employs
a small army of mercenaries that protects his
convoys.

Scarab of Death
8
 The Cover Up Other Ways
There are many other ways the PCs can cover
The PCs can also cover up Aaron’s death. In this
up what happened to Aaron. Unfortunately,
case, they need to make sure Liam Roogs doesn’t
Archibald is a very resourceful man. He’ll quickly
talk to Archibald, and that Lord Littlehorn can’t
learn that Aaron was last seen leaving Nabulee’s
interrogate his son with a speak with dead
Bazaar of the Extraordinary, and then use spells
spell. As long as the PCs don’t mutilate Aaron’s
such as commune to learn that Nabulee is tied
body and don’t do anything illegal (like killing or
to his son’s death. You should assume that a
detaining Liam Roogs), Nabulee helps them with
cover-up will give the PCs at most two days, after
their endeavor as best as he can.
which Archibald has the Calishite arrested and

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Liam Roogs executed on the next day.
Liam Roogs is the only person who knows that
Aaron found the scarab of death in Nabulee’s Failing to Secure the Job
Bazaar of the Extraordinary. If the PCs manage

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The PCs will fail to secure the job either because
to convince Liam not to talk to anyone about their cover-up didn’t work (for example, because
what happened to Aaron, it will take Archibald they failed to intimidate Liam Roogs), or because
Littlehorn until the next day at dawn to break they didn’t bother talking to Archibald first. In the
the domestic servant and get him to confess former case, Lord Littlehorn has the Calishite
everything. If the PCs haven’t completed the arrested immediately, and executed at sunrise
adventure by then, it will be too late to negotiate on the next day (he uses his influence to expedite
with Archibald. The noble will have Nabulee the trial). In the latter, Archibald comes to
arrested that very night, and the Calishite will Nabulee’s Bazaar of the Extraordinary and asks

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lose his head the following morning.
Persuading Liam. Liam Roogs is a coward,
and he’s afraid of what Archibald might do to
him if he lies. The characters need to give Liam
for an explanation. At that time, the characters
will have a chance to negotiate with Lord
Littlehorn, but they’ll have disadvantage on their
Charisma (Persuasion) check to obtain more
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sufficient guarantees that he won’t get into time (see “Petitioning for Time” above).
trouble to convince him to cooperate. The PCs
also need to succeed on a DC 20 Charisma
(Persuasion) check. On a failed check, Liam tells
the characters that he’s too scared to lie to his
Returning to the Bazaar
If the PCs leave Nabulee’s Bazaar of the
master. Extraordinary to secure the job or gather
Intimidating Liam. The adventurers can supplies, they find Nabulee pacing up and
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also threaten to hurt Liam if he doesn’t keep down in the lobby when they get back. If the
his mouth shut. The PCs need to succeed on characters haven’t started their investigation yet,
a DC 14 Charisma (Intimidation) to do so. On he suggests going to the vault to make sure that
a failed check, the domestic servant swears he it was his scarab of death that killed Aaron (see
won’t say anything and goes straight to Archibald “A3. The Vault Room” on page 13).
afterward. The characters are entitled to a DC
13 Wisdom (Insight) check to notice that their
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intimidation attempt failed. If they don’t do

anything about it, Nabulee is arrested an hour
later and is beheaded the next day at sunrise.
Aaron Littlehorn
Archibald will use spells such as locate object
to find his son’s body, so the PCs need to take
special precautions. Fortunately, most divination
spells don’t work across different planes of
existence, so hiding Aaron’s body in Nabulee’s
extradimensional vault is good enough to make
sure Archibald doesn’t find it.

Scarab of Death
9
 Part 2: The Investigation
In this part of the adventure, the characters
search for clues that might help them understand A Guided Tour
how Aaron acquired the scarab of death. The key This part of the adventure assumes that
to solving this mystery is to find discrepancies Nabulee is with the PCs during their
between what Nabulee remembers and what investigation, and makes comments and
the evidence suggests. The PCs should then suggestions as the PCs visit the house. If the

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understand that someone used a spell to alter characters accept the Calishite’s company, he
Nabulee’s memories, which will lead them to first takes them to the vault to make sure that
Mortimer Yorman. Clever PCs might also find the scarab of death that killed Aaron is his (see
a way to track down the person who entered area “A3. The Vault Room” on page 13).

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Nabulee’s extradimensional vault in the morning. If the PCs refuse, he tells them the following:
This will also lead them to Mortimer’s house. †† He’ll be at the vault room trying to figure
out why the scarab of death wasn’t in his
extradimensional safe (and to make sure
Interrogating the Staff Mugabu doesn’t kill them).
If the characters interrogate the people working †† If they think it’s relevant to the investigation,
at the auction house, they learn that Nabulee got the PCs should feel free to interrogate his
into an argument with someone in the morning staff and search his house.
and that one of his employees spotted him in the †† The door to the third floor has an arcane

The Housekeeper
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streets wearing a bloodied shirt. lock on it. If they wish to visit that part of the
house, they can ask him or his staff to open
the door for them.
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Jasmin Metalwart is a lazy old dwarf who has
been working as a housekeeper for Nabulee for a
asked him to keep his voice down and invited
decade. She recently acquired a ring of reduction
him to his office.
(see “Appendix I: Monsters and Magic Items”),
†† They then went upstairs, but she doesn’t know
and she is now using it to discreetly take naps in
what happened after that.
the less accessible parts of the mansion during
†† She didn’t hear or see anything else out of the
work hours. She was sleeping in the broom
ordinary that morning. (She vaguely heard
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closet under the stairs when Mortimer paid

the flesh golem storming out the house, but
Nabulee a visit in the morning, and overheard
the noise wasn’t unusual enough for her to
their conversation. If the PCs interrogate her,
remember it.)
they learn the following:
†† She says her name is Jasmin Metalwart. Reading Jasmin. The well-respected dwarf
†† She started working for Nabulee as a isn’t being completely honest with the PCs; she
housekeeper shortly after he arrived from was taking a nap in the broom closet, and she’s
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Calimport. afraid the adventurers might find out about it.

†† She spent most of her morning cleaning the The PCs can make a DC 12 Wisdom (Insight)
auction room and the lobby. check to notice that she’s holding something
†† A man came to see Nabulee in the morning. At back during the conversation. The characters
that time, she was getting cleaning supplies in can then make a DC 15 Charisma check (with
the broom closet under the stairs. She didn’t the appropriate skill) to persuade her to tell
see who it was. the truth. This doesn’t have any effect on the
†† She overheard their conversation. The man adventure but it allows the PCs to learn that she
sounded angry at Nabulee. He said something possesses a ring of reduction which she gladly
about not being paid enough. Nabulee then sells for 5,000 gp.

Scarab of Death
10
 Confronting Nabulee
If Nabulee is present when Jasmin tells the
PCs about Mortimer’s visit in the morning or if
the characters seek him out after talking to the
housekeeper, he defends himself as follows:
†† He spent all morning alone in his office doing
paperwork.
†† He’s absolutely certain he was alone. He can’t
explain why Jasmin says he met someone in
the morning.

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†† He says he has a very good memory, and that
he wouldn’t have forgotten something like this.

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Reading Nabulee
In the course of their investigation, the PCs will
find clues that contradict what Nabulee told
them. Every time the characters confront the
Calishite with such evidence, they can make a
DC 14 Wisdom (Insight) check to notice that
he’s confused but doesn’t appear to be lying.

The Butler
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The butler is a skinny, stern-looking half-elf in his
mid-forties named Ronald Walrut. The PCs can
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talk to Ronald and learn the following:
†† He says his name is Ronald Walrut.
†† He’s been working at Nabulee’s Bazaar of the
Extraordinary as a butler for a couple of years
now.
†† He was out all morning running errands. He
only got back to the house shortly before the
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afternoon’s auction.
†† Something unusual happened this morning.
He saw Nabulee running through the streets
of the Raging Bull District, a couple of blocks
away from the auction house. He’s pretty sure
his shirt was stained with blood. (Ronald saw
Mortimer’s flesh golem running away; it had
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blood on its shirt because the scarab of death

burst out of its chest in the auction room.)
†† This wasn’t the weirdest thing, though.
Nabulee was wearing a purple Valentina
tunic (Valentina is the name of Nabulee’s
tailor). The Calishite is notorious in the
neighborhood for his poor taste in clothing,
but that shirt was really over the top.
†† He spent the beginning of the afternoon
ushering clients and standing by the door.
†† He didn’t see anything unusual during the
auction.

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11
 Confronting Nabulee a crowbar has advantage on this check). If
If Nabulee is present when Ronald tells the PCs the adventurers don’t take any precautions to
that he saw him running in the streets or if the muffle the sound when smashing the windows,
characters seek the merchant out after talking to nearby creatures can make a DC 13 Wisdom
the butler, he defends himself as follows: (Perception) check to hear the glass shattering.
†† He spent all morning in his office doing Doors. The doors are made of wood and are
paperwork, and only left it to conduct the normally unlocked.
afternoon’s auction. Defenders. Nabulee el Jasafir will go to see
†† He doesn’t know why Ronald Walrut says he what happened if he hears suspicious noises in
saw him running in the streets when he was his house, but he’ll escape with a dimension door

e
at home. spell to the vault at the slightest sign of danger,
†† He would never wear something as distasteful and come back with his iron golem to drive
as a purple Valentina tunic! intruders out.
†† Jasmin spent all morning cleaning the auction

fil
room and the lobby. If he had left the house, A1. Lobby
she would have seen him.
†† Jasmin can also testify that he was in his The sight before you is truly spectacular.
office. She came to pick up some dirty glasses White marble stairs dominate this large
shortly before noon ( Jasmin confirms this). lobby, and exquisite paintings by some of the
The Clone Golem most talented artists in Waterdeep adorn
Tracking down the flesh golem that Ronald saw the walls. The details of the room were also
in the streets isn’t impossible but it’s tricky. If the carefully thought out. Discreet mosaics break

e
PCs try to locate the construct after talking to
the butler, please proceed to “The Clone Golem”
on page 18.
the monotony of the walls, and oriental-style
hanging lanterns made of pure silver fill the
room with a warm yellow-orange light.
pl
If the characters accept Nabulee’s tour of the
The Auction House house, he proudly explains that he hired one
Nabulee lives in a large house in the Raging of the best interior decorators of Waterdeep
Bull District from where he runs his magic item to imagine a perfect blend of Calishite and
auctions. The interior of the place is luxurious, Waterdhavian styles. He tells them that the
and has many magical trinkets which are meant lanterns and the mosaics are typical of his home
to impress his clients. country, and that the grandiose marble stairs and
m

In this part of the adventure, the PCs search the paintings are local.
Nabulee’s house for clues that might shed some Treasure. The eight paintings in this room are
light on what happened to Aaron. Additional worth 100 gp apiece to a collector. Removing
information is provide in case the characters each of the six lanterns from the walls takes
decide to rob the place. about ten minutes. The characters can then sell
them for 150 gp each.
Sa

General Features
Nabulee’s mansion has the following features.
A2. Auction Room
Any exceptions are noted in the areas to which
they apply. Everything in this room has been done to
Light. During daylight hours, sunlight keeps impress. The solid marble table behind which
the house properly lit. Continual flame spells the auctioneer stands, the varnished pews
illuminate the house at night. for the clients, and the stained glass windows
Windows. Nabulee’s house has glass windows depicting scenes of Calishite battles all add to
that are all barred. A character can try to bend the impression of luxury and opulence.
the metal bars and sneak into the house with
a successful DC 15 Strength check (a PC with

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12
 If Nabulee is accompanying the PCs, he tells †† His valuables are completely secure in the
them that the two stained glass windows vault. It’s protected against teleportation, and
are copies of the ones in the throne room of a magical ward negates charm spells and
Calimport’s royal palace. possessions within.
Treasure. The furniture and the stained glass †† He instructed Mugabu to attack anyone
are all of masterful quality. If the characters who tries to approach the portal. This is a
somehow manage to sneak them out of the precaution in case someone wants to destroy
house, they can sell the two windows for 250 gp the gateway out of spite.
each, and the five varnished pews 25 gp apiece. †† He asks that the PCs wait there for a minute
while he enters the vault to verify that his

e
A3. The Vault Room scarab of death is still in it.
Nabulee then enters the safe and returns a few
The stairs go down to a wide hallway. A minutes later with a concerned look.
†† He searched everywhere but couldn’t find the

fil
stone arch filled with swirling orange-brown
smoke lies on the other side of it. An imposing scarab.
humanoid-shaped monster of steel stands in †† He doesn’t know how his scarab of death got
the middle of the room. out of the vault.
†† He has a very good memory and he would
An iron golem named Mugabu (see “Monster remember taking it out; plus, it’s not the type
Statistics” below) attacks anyone who tries to of item you casually pick up. The scarab of
pass without Nabulee accompanying them. The death would have killed him without special
merchant also placed a glyph of warding spell precautions!

hallway.
e
in the area with a cloudkill spell that goes off
if anyone else tries to cross the middle of the

The arch filled with swirling orange-brown

†† The only possible explanation is that someone
snuck into the vault and took the deadly
brooch out.
†† Jasmin Metalwart, the housekeeper, spent all
morning cleaning the auction room and the
pl
smoke is the portal that leads to Nabulee’s
extradimensional vault. Even if the PCs defeat lobby. It’s a long shot, but maybe she saw or
the guardian and survive the magical trap, they’ll heard something.
quickly realize that they can’t enter the safe, as †† Ronald Walrut, the butler, was attending to his
only the Calishite can use the portal. Anyone else clients in the afternoon. If someone entered
simply passes through the smoke. the vault during the auction, he might have
Monster Statistics. Mugabu is an iron golem seen who it was.
m

with an Intelligence score of 7 instead of 3. Identifying the Golem. If the characters

Mugabu also speaks Common, albeit in a robotic enter the vault room with Nabulee, they have
monotonous tone. plenty of time to inspect the golem, and notice
multiple unusual glyphs and magical symbols
Entering with Nabulee on the construct’s body. The PCs can make a DC
If the PCs enter the vault room with Nabulee, he
17 Intelligence (Arcana) check to understand
first orders the golem to stand down, and then
Sa

that the golem is an experimental model from

tells them the following:
Halruaa, and to recall that these types of golems
†† The archway filled with swirling orange-
are sentient and capable of speech.
brown smoke is a portal that leads to his
extradimensional vault. Talking to the Golem
†† He’s the only person who can use the portal; Mugabu is sentient but Nabulee forgets to share
anyone else simply passes through. this piece of information with the adventurers.
†† There are over 100,000 gp worth of riches in If the PCs notice this on their own, they can
the safe (he has an extremely satisfied look on interrogate Mugabu to learn the following:
his face when he shares this information). †† He says his name is Mugabu.
†† He’s an experimental iron golem from
Halruaa.

Scarab of Death
13
 †† His job is to defend the vault. Nabulee told suggestion, charm person, dominate person,
him to stay here and attack anyone who goes and magic jar), and that prevents anyone from
down the stairs. teleporting inside the room (people can still
†† Nobody, other than Nabulee, came to the teleport out of it).
extradimensional safe these past days. If the PCs somehow manage to enter the
The Calishite came to the vault once in the vault, they arrive in a small room with a simple
morning and multiple times in the afternoon wooden table, a chair, multiple small chests, and
to recover various items. a large cabinet. The last has a magical alarm
that notifies Nabulee whenever someone opens
Confronting Nabulee it. A PC who carefully examines the cabinet can

e
When Mugabu tells the PCs that Nabulee make a DC 15 Intelligence (Arcana) check to
went to the vault in the morning, the merchant notice the magical alarm; they can then make a
defends himself as follows: DC 20 Intelligence (Arcana) check to disarm it. A
†† He spent all morning in his office doing detect magic spell reveals the presence of a faint

fil
paperwork. abjuration spell on the cabinet, and an antimagic
†† He doesn’t know why Mugabu says he went to field spell temporarily suppresses the magical
the vault in the morning. alarm.
†† He doesn’t know how, but someone must Treasure. The small chests contain 1,500 sp,
have tricked the golem, found a way to 5,800 gp, 450 pp, eight red tourmalines (100
avoid the magical traps, and entered the gp each), two fire opals (1,000 gp each), a box
extradimensional vault. of turquoise animal figurines worth 250 gp,
†† Jasmin spent all morning cleaning the auction and a silver and gold brooch worth 750 gp. The
room and the lobby. If anyone went to the adventurers also find the following items in the

e
vault, she would have seen him.
†† He went multiple times to his
extradimensional safe during the afternoon
to recover the items that he sold during the
large cabinet: a gold cup set with emeralds worth
7,500 gp, the jeweled gold crown of King Uzmut
III (7,500 gp), and all the magic items listed in
“Solving the Mystery” on page 24.
pl
auction. He never takes more than one item
out at a time, to avoid thieves.
Tinkering with the Portal A4. Dining Room
Many adventurers won’t believe that Nabulee’s
vault is impenetrable and will want to This dining room sits eight people. A large
experiment with the portal to make sure it’s tapestry completely covers the southern wall,
and a rustic chandelier with magical flames
m

as safe as the Calishite says it is. Nabulee

is absolutely thrilled with the idea of testing provides the lighting. A wooden cupboard
the security of his vault. He cooperates with containing porcelain dishes, crystal glasses,
whatever plan the PCs might come up with, and and silver cutlery leans against the northern
even lets them use spells like dominate person wall.
on him.
There isn’t anything of interest in the dining
Sa

Stealing Nabulee’s Valuables room other than the tapestry and the contents of
Stealing the Calishite’s valuables is easier the cupboard.
said than done. The characters will first need Treasure. The large tapestry is twenty feet
to coerce Nabulee el Jasafir to help them or wide, ten feet high, and weighs about one
somehow make a near-perfect duplicate of the hundred pounds. If the PCs manage to take it out
Calishite. (At your discretion, there might be of the house unnoticed, they can sell it for 500
other ways to sneak into the extradimensional gp. The dishes, the glasses, and the cutlery are
room.) The interior of the vault has a magical worth 100 gp in total.
ward that suppresses charm spells and
possessions (this includes spells such a

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14
 †† The only explanation is that someone had
A5. Kitchen drinks in his office during the night, and
that he didn’t notice the dirty glasses in the
The kitchen is a total mess. Dirty dishes are morning.
piling up in the sink and the floor is filthy. You
even notice a couple of cockroaches quickly A6. Larder
running for shelter when you enter the room.
The workspace is by far the worst offender.
The table is covered in vegetable peels and The room is unusually cold. It contains a few
pieces of meat, and someone stacked a silver crates of fresh fruits and vegetables, and a

e
platter with two crystal glasses on top of them. meat rack. Pale blue fungus covers the entire
ceiling and most of the walls.
If Nabulee is with the PCs when they enter
the kitchen, he quickly turns red with If Nabulee is accompanying the characters, he

fil
embarrassment and swears the place isn’t tells them that the fungus on the ceiling and the
normally that disgusting. walls is a magical mold that feeds on heat and
The Crystal Glasses. Mortimer and Nabulee keeps the room cold.
had a drink in the office in the morning. Later
that day, the housekeeper, Jasmin Metalwart,
went to the office, picked up the dirty glasses,
and left them in the kitchen. If the characters
enquire about the glasses, they learn that
Jasmin recovered them in Nabulee’s
office shortly before noon.
Once the adventurers know e
that the crystal glasses aren’t
old dishes that Jasmin forgot
pl
to wash, you can call for a DC
17 Intelligence (Investigation)
check to have them notice that
there are two glasses, which
suggests that Nabulee wasn’t
alone that morning.
m

Confronting Nabulee
If the PCs ask Nabulee why
Jasmin found two glasses in
his office, he tells them the
following:
†† He admits that it’s very odd.
He can’t explain why there
Sa

are two glasses.

†† He has a very good memory but
he can’t seem to remember when
he had those drinks.
†† Jasmin came to his office the night before
to put away the glasses she had washed
in the afternoon. His set was complete and
clean when he went to bed.

Scarab of Death
15