Castle Justheart sits on a pile of solid rock that is just barely big enough to hold it, then surrounded by water. The drawbridge is long for a castle of this size such that the entrance is jutted thirty feet into Lake Glorious. The surrounding distance of water is much greater on the other three sides. All in all, a good defensible position.
The building itself is four stories high with an open rooftop and a basement.
The oddity of the castle being clearly built by an order of human paladins but now situated in the 10,357th layer of the Abyss, appears to be a story related to the magical glyphs on the rooftop. Those are original build and very sophisticated in design. While the true story is lost to time, it appears that some misuse of those glyphs resulted in the entire castle being transported to and becoming a new layer of the Abyss.
Since then, the castle and plane have had many owners, few others caring about turnover in the ownership of the slums below the 6,666th layer of the Abyss. Still, the castle has its charms, and is definitely finely crafted, albeit bedecked in righteous imagery which strangely no new owner yet has redecorated.
When Prince Zymaan and Grimald Nightleaf slay the latest owner of the castle and plane, the tile passes to Prince Zymaan who immediately renounces his title as Prince of the Seventh House, and assumes the new title as Count Zymaan of the 10,357th house. The mantle suits him well.
As for Grimald Nightleaf, the tattoos and markings and privileges he had received as a chosen of the Third House disappear when he accepts the role as Hand to Count Zymaan of the 10,357th house.
Paired again, but free. Free of the Citadel of Hate. Free of Prempress Cambion. Free of the Sea Ghost and its crew.
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With title to Castle Justheart passed to Count Zymaan, so too become the mercenaries contracted to protect it. These are divided into two team.
BLUE SQUAD: 1 leader who wields a long sword and a short sword (far left), plus three followers with long swords.
YELLOW SQUAD: 1 leader who wields a heavy crossbow (far left), plus three followers with maces.
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In the course of exploring the castle, Count Zymaan and Mister Nightleaf, as the mercenaries call the assassin Halfing, discover that the basement to the castle is haunted! The front half of the basement is not haunted, but the quasi-secret back portion very is!
By all appearances the back portion of the basement was used to hold prisoners and torture them. The mercenaries insist that the spirits who occupy the place must be the tormented souls of those inmates.
Regrettably, the storeroom and water well are in the front portion of the basement, making visits down there necessary and frequent. Often the greatest prize of the men’s card games is a pass on having to go down to the basement the next day.
While free men, Count Zymaan and Mister Nightleaf both know that clearing out their basement of spirits could prove dangerous, and it is a pity they no longer keep company with Ryparin who could clean out the place easily, like a barber sweeping away so much cut hair.
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Other challenges also present themselves, as do opportunities.
Blue Squad likes to occupy the first floor of the castle.
On the second floor, Count Zymaan becomes intrigued by the wizard’s study that was suddenly abandoned by this castle’s former owner. In that study Count Zymaan finds the previous owner’s spellbook, and a scroll of Speak with Dead which apparently the previous owner intended to use soon.
Also on the second floor to the right, Mister Nightleaf becomes very interested in the armory room and the chests contained therein. A quick sweep of those chests though reveal locks, traps and potential magic. The chests get left aside for now.
On the third and fourth floors, Count Zymaan finds a two-story church which he immediately imagines converting into a place of worship to The Great Old One.
Yellow Squad likes to occupy the third floor as their leader patrols the balconies on the fourth.
Soon after moving in, Copernicus becomes enthralled with the library of books on the fourth floor. He begins to refer to it as his “research library” and he seems quite content.
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Note: Castle Justheart was an insert added to Dungeon Magazine issue #53 in 1995.