For many years Khaldun, in the Lost Lands, existed only on the Felucca facet. This changed Halloween 2018 with the Treasures of Khaldun event when the Trammel Khaldun dungeon was discovered. It is the lost Tomb of Khal Ankur, leader of a cult who worshipped death and sacrifice. The tomb was excavated by his zealot followers, their carvings can be seen and examined on the walls. Such was the strength of their beliefs that they sealed themselves in the tomb with their master’s corpse on completion. Khaldun was found and opened by a group of four explorers, Tavara Sewel, Morg Bergen, Grimmoch Drummel and Lysander Gathenwale. Three of these doomed explorers kept journals from which the fate of the group, and the dark motives of the team’s leader, becomes clear. The early journals can be found, dropped on the ground, throughout the dungeon while later ones are sometimes left behind if an adventurer defeats the cursed one in battle. No corpse marks this defeat, merely a pile of gold and a book or packpack.
Forced to abandon their camp outside the tomb’s main entrance (58.47’S 9.37’W 6007, 3781) by an attack of strange beasts they took refuge in the tomb, only to fall prey to the evil forces within. They and their cursed team of diggers roam the passages of the dungeon along with skeletons, zombies and shadow fiends. Further from the entrance are the zealot summoners and zealot knights who built the tomb with skeletal or bone knights and skeletal or bone mages. A second entrance to the west (62.03’S 18.21’W 5883, 3818)) appears to have not been found by the expedition.
Secrets of the Dungeon
The Puzzle Room
Special chests exist in some parts of the dungeon, opening them requires that a puzzle be solved. One of these boxes is found in a hidden room accessed by double clicking the floor at the point pictured below (marked P on the map).
The room is often empty, but if not, any occupants can be easily despatched and will not return. Clicking on the chests in the room gives one of two messages. If the message is that the box is locked, it is merely a normal dungeon chest; the message from a puzzle chest is a little more worrying for a hidden character ‘Fiddling with the lock has revealed thy presence’. The puzzle will also open on screen. High lockpick skill is an advantage, the higher the skill the more helpful the hint will be. The pictures below show a puzzle attempted by a GM lockpicker.
To place a cylinder on a pedestal, you first click on one of the blue diamond shaped buttons at the bottom to select which pedestal to use. Next select one of the eight grey balls next to the colored cylinders to place that color cylinder on the pedestal you selected.
There is a penalty for failure, “Lightning arcs through thy body”. The reward for a successful attempt varies, one such is pictured. The small round bag contains 50 of each mage reagent.
A second chest, found next to the tentacles of the harrower, included a supply treasure map among the items, however problems of being revealed by the chest and the tentacles make this a more risky venture. Other puzzle chest are marked with a red chest on the map below. More chests appeared during publish 101, not all of which can be accessed when the puzzle is solved.
The Tomb
Deep in the tomb, close to the first switch room is a raised platform with a sunken center and a statue at the foot (marked T on the map). Double clicking the statue causes the pictured event. The message of the coffin may be a clue to accessing the sealed area.
The Sealed Area
In the north east corner of the dungeon is a sealed area, to reach it hidden switches must be pulled. To find the first such switch one must ‘walk the path of darkness’.
This composite picture illustrates the route to the first switch (marked S on the map); it causes the raising of a stone block elsewhere in the dungeon revealing the second switch (also marked S on the map).
The distance between these switches is considerable and the time the second switch is unhidden is short, therefore it is advisable to work with a partner to achieve this. Once both switches have been activated a moving wall raises to allow access to the sealed area (marked M). The wall stays open only a short while.
Inside the sealed area is another puzzle box, this one small and red. There are four teleport sparkles on rectangular, decorated tiles. Each goes to a different point in the dungeon. They are shown on the map below as pairs of differently colored sparkles.
The Large Teleporter
Found close to the North East exit this floor decoration is recognisable as a similar style to the teleporters in Moonglow and Jhelom cities, however this does not actually function as a teleporter, instead walking over it causes the pattern to change. The secret purpose of this pattern changing is undiscovered.
The Champion Spawn
The Halloween event, Treasures of Khaldun saw the return of Khal Ankur, together with several minions forming the waves of his champion spawn found in the far southern area of the dungeon. Shadow fiends, formerly found roaming the entire dungeon, left the main areas to become a part of this spawn. Rewards for defeating Khal Ankur include disguise costumes and in Felucca only, power scrolls with the property ‘shard bound’.
Khal Ankur’s Forces
- Wave 1: Blood, Skelemental Knights in 2 types.
- Type 1, 100% energy damage, weak against poison.
- Type 2, 100% poison damage, weak against energy.
- Wave 2: Viscera skelemental mages in 2 types
- Type 1, 100% fire damage, weak against cold.
- Type 2, 100% cold damage, weak against fire.
- Wave 3: Cultist Ambusher, Shadow Fiend
- Wave 4: Cultists (Scout, Corporal, Lieutenant, Captain & General)
Also spawning in this area, but not part of the champion spawn are Ancient Lich, Bone Magi, Skeletal Mages and Zealots of Khaldun (Knights and Summoners)