The Causeway Gate

Terrain: Crags
Movement Cost: Restricted

Also called the Gray Doors, this gate is what separates the Decider's little paradise from the horrors of Nirn. The gate is actually a walled pass composed of two layers - the North and South locks. The North lock is controlled and maintained by the Decider's forces, a small encampment of men (roughly a hundred) that dwell in and around the structure. The South lock is controlled by the Spiral, guarded by ranks of skeletal soldiers and archers. The truce between the two factions is kept only through the threat of force; each time one faction increases either the armament or personel of its gate, the other responds in kind. Consequently, both gates are now incredibly well fortified and defended. There is a space of nearly a hundred yards between the two gates, and the no man's land in between is absolutely off limits. Archers on either side are permitted to fire without warning on anyone spotted crossing the neutral zone. To make matters worse, this area is littered with buried incindiary bombs. These are casks of greek fire buried just below the surface, each equipped with a 'Glyph or Warding'. Anyone stepping over such a barrel sets off a small fire charge, which detonates the buried cask directly under the victim's feet. The blast inflicts 5d8 points of fire damage to a ten foot radius, with a saving throw for half applicable. There is a 30% chance that anyone moving outright across the neutral zone will set off one of these explosives.

The North Lock is rather elaborate, done in white stone and topped with red flags and banners. It is in itself a small fortress, thirty feet high, five hundred feet long, and fifteen feet thick. The top ramparts are equipped with even higher lookout towers, and either face of the wall is lined with arrow slits, providing the snipers inside with cover and a nearly unlimited supply of ammunition. The gate itself is composed of both an outer portcullis and a massive wooden siege door. Most of the locks here are equipped with alarm spells should anyone attempt to slip through in secret. The garrison is controlled by one of the Decider's top lieutenants, a grizzled human veteran named Waters. Waters is a 7th level fighter.

The South Lock is controlled by the Spiral forces of Nirn, and is far less elaborate or showy. It is composed of black granite slabs and a single huge portcullis through which a dozen men could walk abreast. The skeletal guards here are perhaps not as strong as the human troops protecting the North gate, but they never need to eat, sleep, or rotate watches. They simply stand on the walls or at the threshold of the portcullis, waiting for trouble or instructions from the garrison commander. The South lock is controlled by one of Xevus' underlings, a Spiral priest named Ulgrith. The area around the portcullis is lined with 'Magic Mouthes', designated to shriek if anything larger than a rat comes within twenty feet of them. Ulgrith is a 7th level dark priest.

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