B. Warehouses: Most of these 7-foot-tall structures are filled with food and miscellaneous equipment. The gnomes keep one empty for caravans that happen into their village, and it contains comfortable bunks and ample storage space for travelers.
Forest Gnome Exodus
Many years ago, these gnomes lived within the trees, hiding from the travelers who frequented their forest. Then, acting upon the advice of Telimas Dreamweaver, they set about building a trading post. Inquisitive players may want to know why the gnomes left the trees to conduct trade with the humans and other Dales traders. Although this is beyond the scope of the module, it rests upon a vision that Telimas had all those years ago. Telimas saw a wave of spiders marching across the Realms, destroying everything that stood before it. The black horde was led by a darkskinned elven female with a crown of glittering silver.
Everyone—gnomes, elves, dwarves, and humans alike—died before her onslaught. Since many spiders make their homes in Spiderhaunt Wood, Telimas thought that his clan might be able to prevent this spider queen from succeeding if the gnomes knew what was going on both inside and outside their realm.
Establishing a merchant trade within Spiderhaunt and specializing in the sale of spider goods seemed the most logical way to accomplish this. Contact with traders and citizens from far beyond the woods increases the chances of hearing about something amiss elsewhere, Telimas believes.
C. Stone Wells: The village’s entire water supply is provided by these rough stone wells. The surface of the water is about 20 feet down, and the reservoir of water is approximately 10 feet deep.
D. Telimas’s Home: The only home in the village that has a wooden porch, the priest’s home is cozy and comfortable. He lives here alone.Telimas Dreamweaver, 3rd-level forest gnome cleric: AL NG; AC 12; MV 30'; hp 13; 1 attack with Hammer Dmg 1d6 +1; S 11, D 12, C 10, I 13, W 18, CH 14; XP 175; staff +1, ring of protection +2
E. General Store: This is the largest building in town,
and a cursory inspection reveals that it is probably the
sturdiest. A stone veranda hugs the building on two
sides, and rough-hewn chairs are strewn about it. Two
or three older gnome gentlemen are lounging here,
trading stories and whiling away the day. They call a
friendly greeting to anyone entering the store.
The trading post carries a dizzying array of items;
anything listed in the Equipment section of the
Player’s Handbook except animals can be found here.
Rilia, the proprietor, is happy to sell to the PCs, but
much of what she stocks in the way of clothing and
armor is gnome sized. Poison is not available, and if
anyone asks why, she explains that the last caravan
through town bought all she had.
The dark woods of Spiderhaunt open into a large, grassy clearing.
Nestled in this hideout is a rag-tag collection of mud-brick huts
and
stone buildings.
A large sandy area in the center of the clearing contains a
blackened
fire pit. Gnome children— wiry, loud, and full of wild
energy—immediately stop their play and stampede over to your
group.
“Are these heroes?” a little girl asks excitedly. “How many
dragons
have you chopped up?” another asks with awe in his voice.
The questions continue in a mad tumble, allowing no time for an
answer before it’s drowned out by dozens of new questions.
Various animals wander around and others are in cages near the
buildings. Between the animals’ cries and the children’s
questions, the
entire village has the feel of a surreal, out-of-control
circus.
Madarn seems unfazed by all of this, walking with slow deliberation toward the largest of the tone structures. As you disengage yourself from the children and follow, the door to the building opens and an old gnome with wrinkled leather skin emerges. He’s dressed in brightly-colored robes and is calmly making smoke rings with an ornately carved pipe.