Diancastra is a hero-goddess worshipped by giants; her spheres of influence include trickery, wit, impudence, and pleasure.
Monster Mythology, page 80:
"Diancastra travels in search of proving herself to Annam [the giant creator-god, her father] by the use of her wits in solving sphinx riddles, making solemn sages laugh with her punning and loquacity, deciphering an infamous and lethal "crossword maze" filled with cyphers by a long-dead lich-king who, in his boredom, had filled its inner recesses with magic (and elementals which had to be fought) and much else."
From the description of Lyzandred's tomb in From the Ashes (Campaign Book, page 38):
"Among the bizarre traps leading to his central halls and sphere are a crossword-maze dungeon filled with sliding walls; cryptic clues which, if solved, permit entry; bound earth elementals..."
It's just an interesting example of Carl Sargent including easter eggs in different books he wrote. Lyzandred isn't mentioned directly in Monster Mythology, and Diancastra isn't named in From the Ashes, but clearly they've crossed paths.
Kudos. Great find, rasgon! I am fairly certain only YOU could've found those two correlating sources. Lyzandred's place in GH lore never set well with me nor did his Crypt adventure. I have to admit pre-reading it as a DM I saw no way me or anyone I knew could successfuly complete that mod. I am wondering how many people on this forum have tried it?
My pcs did it while on a quest for the Rod of Seven Parts but I vastly reduced the number of tests they had to complete before reaching Lyzandred otherwise the premise became too repetitive and boring.
If you make him a moderately inaccessable sage it adds a nice dimension to information gathering about ancient magical lore. Plus they could go through all that and be cheated of the information they really needed or be sent on another mission for Lyzandred etc. Cheesy I know, but it can work.
In our campaign Lyzandred is part of a faction that wants to locate a book of prophecies penned by Zagyg (his former apprentice). Other factions include the priesthood of Istus (who view the book as heretical) and Lareth the Beautiful (of ToEE fame). Lyzandred's agenda adds another random element to the mix since he is crazy and works from behind the scenes through various agents, mainly failed visitors to his maze who must serve him to escape magical imprisonment.
I´ve played that adventure sometime ago, successfully concluding thanks to some modifications at the story (the DM picked most of the rooms as riddles, leaving few space for direct encounters). All in all, I liked the story, but I admit it needs some tweaking. _________________ Kneel before Rahu!
Lyzandred uses his tricks- and traps-heavy dungeon to train magic-users in exchange for magic items, In My Campaign (using the 1st ed. AD&D conceit that PCs must train to advance in level).
Also specific to my campaign, Lyzandred contacted a PC illusionist through an agent in Hexpools and invited him to his dungeon (the mini-version in the Glorioles suggested in the module) for INT training (which is how I handle ability score advancement). Instead of collecting a magic item, he was more interested in learning of the PC's involvement in the ongoing contest between Keraptis and Acererak for control of the Great Kingdom, circa 582 CY.
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