Description
Hidden deep beneath Hogwarts, Seylon’s Tower rises within a vast magical cavern. Carved from ancient, seamless stone and wrapped in creeping ivy, the tower stretches impossibly high into the darkness of a subterranean chasm. It gleams faintly under an enchanted night sky, complete with stars and a pale violet moon—an illusion conjured by long-forgotten magic.
The tower’s architecture is both monolithic and arcane. Each circular floor is marked by ornamental bands and deeply set carvings that whisper of forgotten schools of magic. Cracks—glowing faintly with blue energy—zigzag across the surface, pulsing with unstable power. Moss grows up from the cavern floor, and faintly luminous mushrooms dot the surrounding glade.
Inside, the tower is sealed by ancient spells. No one enters without first overcoming arcane challenges designed not only to protect secrets, but to prove worth.
Background
Seylon Vane was a brilliant and ambitious wizard from the early days of Hogwarts. He briefly served as a professor before abandoning the school after the death of his daughter, Lyra. Obsessed with reversing death, Seylon poured all his effort into the tower, delving into alchemy, dragon magic, divination, and darker arts.
The early Hogwarts faculty deemed his research too dangerous. Unable to destroy the tower, they sealed it inside a magical cavern whose entrance is known as the Firefly Cellar, hidden deep beneath The Restricted Section.
Professor Wizzlethorpe revealed that only children can see the tower for what it truly is—when adults enter, they see nothing but abandoned ruins. Some powerful enchantment Seylon cast ensures this.
Explored Levels
The party has explored the following floors:
- Alchemy Lab — Brewing stations, ingredient stores, and alchemical puzzles
- Scrying Pools — Memory pools showing visions of the past
- Lecture Hall — A spectral proctor testing magical knowledge
- Muggle Magic — Experiments blending magical and non-magical methods
- Dragon Hatchery — Where the party bonded with dragon hatchlings
- Seylon’s Suite — Living quarters with a portal to the frozen north
Key Locations
The Firefly Cellar
A forgotten cellar buried beneath the Restricted Section. The walls are choked with ivy and lined with ancient books long abandoned. In the center stands a lone, weathered door—no frame, no hinges, just a door standing upright. Around it, fireflies drift in slow spirals, casting soft golden light like living stars.
The Cavern
The tunnel beyond the door opens into a vast hidden cavern—so enormous it holds a false sky with shimmering stars and a violet moon frozen in place. At the center rises the impossible tower, its stone glowing faintly with pulsing blue light. The ground is carpeted with glowing mushrooms and tall grass swaying in a wind that doesn’t blow.