Location Dossier
Location Tier Fortified Bastion, High-Security Gatehouse & Necromantic Quarantine Portal Location Western entrance into the Necropolis, northern heights of Ptolus (Overlooking the Warrens and Oldtown) Commander Brother Fabien (High Warden of the Gate & Priest of Pharasma) Garrison 40 Guardsmen of the City Watch, 15 Holy Inquisitor-Paladins of the Order of Light, 6 Pharasmin Mortuary Clerics Curfew Rule Gates unlock at 7:00 AM and lock firmly at 6:00 PM (Dusk); zero exceptions granted under penalty of immediate incarceration or execution
🚪 Overview: The Barrier Between the Quick and the Dead
The Gates of Lead form the sole authorized, heavily guarded entrance piercing the forty-foot-tall granite walls of the Necropolis. Built during the early consolidation of the Western Empire to contain the terrifying spontaneous undead risings spawned by the Spire’s shadow, this massive fortress gatehouse is an unyielding marvel of defensive military architecture.
The gate itself consists of three successive portcullises: two outer grates of cold-forged iron reinforced with steel studs, and an inner, ten-ton barrier sheathed in solid lead plates. The lead is etched with continuous devotional litanies to Pharasma, the Lady of Graves, and consecrated with radiant oils from the Cathedral of the First Radiance. This heavy lead shielding prevents incorporeal undead—wraiths, spectres, and shadows—from passing through the walls into the living city.
Flanking the gate are two massive stone watchtowers mounted with heavy swivel-ballistas armed with silver-tipped, incendiary harpoons. Below the towers, a deep moat filled with blessed water and iron stakes provides an additional layer of security against subterranean burrowers.
🔔 The Sundown Curfew Protocol
The daily routine at the Gates of Lead is dictated by the massive bronze Curfew Bell mounted atop the southern watchtower:
- Morning Opening (Dawn): Following dawn prayers led by Brother Fabien, the lead portcullis is raised with the groaning screech of counterweights. Common citizens, funeral processions, and licensed delvers are logged into the gate registry before entering.
- The Warning Chimes (One Hour Before Dusk): The bell tolls three slow, echoing chimes, audible across the entire Necropolis. Watch guards sound warning horns, ordering all living visitors to return to the gatehouse immediately.
- The Final Lock (Sundown): As the sun dips behind the western horizon, the bell tolls seven rapid strokes. The portcullises drop with a deafening crash, sealed with iron pins and heavy consecrated chains. From that moment until dawn, no living soul is permitted entry or exit. Anyone trapped inside the Necropolis must fend for themselves until sunrise.
⚔️ Pathfinder 2e Remaster Mechanics
The Gatehouse Defenses
- Consecrated Lead Aegis: Incorporeal undead attempting to phase through the Gates of Lead or adjacent lead-lined battlements must succeed at a DC 32 Will save or take 8d6 vitality damage and be repelled 30 feet.
- Sanctified Ballistas (Hazard 8): Mounted on the gatehouse towers. Ranged attack +20, range increment 150 ft., Damage 4d12 piercing plus 3d6 persistent fire damage (doubled against undead and vulnerable to silver).
- Quarantine Inspection: Returning delvers must submit to an Aura of Vitality inspection. Any individual carrying a cursed necromantic artifact or exhibiting symptoms of Ghoul Fever or necrotic rot is quarantined in the gatehouse holding cells until cleansed.
🧭 Story Hooks for Adventurers
- Beating the Sundown Chimes: Trapped on the far eastern ridge of the Necropolis as the warning bell tolls, the party must fight their way through packs of hungry ghouls and creeping shadows to reach the Gates of Lead before the final portcullis slams shut.
- The Infiltrated Carriage: A wealthy patrician’s funerary coach attempts to pass through the gates at dusk. Brother Fabien detects an illusion ward and discovers that the coffin does not contain an aristocrat’s corpse, but an elite strike team of the Fallen attempting to smuggle abyssal explosives into Midtown.
- The Siege of the Gate: A sudden, violent surge of hundreds of mindless zombies and skeletons swarms the outer ditch of the Gates of Lead. Brother Fabien calls upon every delver in the vicinity to man the battlements and repel the horde.