DM Bigrin's Second Darkness (Inactive)

Game Master bigrin42

"Scar tissue isn't enough for you, Lef?" Bruendor quips.

"Heh... should be, but I want something my grandchildren can admire on a mantle or something."

"Don't humans hang up skins and things from great battles?" Anklebiter asks, innocently.

"Depends on the creature. Fellow humanoids, no. Pelts from hunting, yes. Dragons? I'm not sure. In my homeland, if you take down a Linnorm, and present its head, you get to be a king. It's probably the greatest meritocracy in the known world."

"So your kids can't hang up your skin and say to their friends, 'That scar is from a dragon, that one is from an angry ex-girlfriend'?"

"You are a great friend... " he says to the goblin, "But you are very odd."

"I am a Goblin," Anklebiter agrees, nodding.

Hooray, I have internet again!

Doors leading to the two southern towers were on either side of the balcony area. Opposite the balcony was a set of one-foot-tall risers that led to a pair of dull silvery doors, on which images of planets and stars are carved.

Bruendor plied his keen senses and nimble fingers to each of the doors, taking care to not trip any traps that might be on them. The doors themselves did not appear to be trapped, nor were any of them locked, that he could tell. While looking at the door leading, presumably, to the southwestern tower, he thought he might have heard a sound from beyond the door, but he couldn't be certain.

Here's the map.
doors circled in yellow

Welcome back and congratulations! ^_^

What about the result of my checks...? ;)

"How do you all want to do this?" Anklebiter whispers.

"Southwestern tower it is, then. Let's not leave potential enemies at our back!"

Just before Bruendor opens the door, she'll activate her ring for the second time today.

Subtracting 13 charges from my wand.

Checks? What checks? Stop burying those things like a cat in a litter box! +1 keen composite longbow (+2 str), +1 mithral shirt, gloves of dexterity +2

Calla eyes the bow, and the gloves if no one else wants them...

bow and gloves to Calla, our resident archer can use the boost

The blush of embarrassment still not completely faded from her cheeks, Kel tries her best to silently follow the group without creating further problems.

Anklebiter follows along with the rest of the group, of course.

Bruendor throws open the door, ready to face whatever is beyond.

Lefrik is still happy to be alive and has a huge grin on his face as they move along

The door indeed opens to one of the towers, the walls and ceiling decorated as a forest scene at night, like the others, this one looking as if the trees were shedding their leaves in autumn. In the room were the ebaten and bound forms of Shalelu and Kaerishiel. But, before you could do more than recognize them, a large reptiloid leaped out and swung at Bruendor with a huge spiked club!

The club crashed into the dwarf, sending him rocking back on his heels. The barbed spikes tore flesh and bruised muscle and bone. Bruendor saw stars for a moment.

"If we survived the dragon, this lizard shouldn't prove much more of a problem," Calla observes as she fires a pair of arrows toward it.

Mwk longbow (point blank range): 1d20 + 9 + 1 - 2 ⇒ (10) + 9 + 1 - 2 = 18
Damage (point blank range): 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 1 = 8
Mwk longbow (point blank range, rapid shot): 1d20 + 9 + 1 - 2 ⇒ (10) + 9 + 1 - 2 = 18
Damage (point blank range): 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5

"Bruendor, get clear!" Anklebiter yells as he pulls a wand from his belt. Provided Bruendor listens, Anklebiter fires a splash of acid at the reptilian.

Delaying until after Bruendor. If he moves, wand of Acid Arrow. Ranged touch attack 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (16) + 5 = 21 for 2d4 ⇒ (3, 1) = 4 acid damage.

Kel fires a carefully placed shot at the reptiloid.

light crossbow: 1d20 + 7 - 4 ⇒ (13) + 7 - 4 = 16
damage: 1d8 ⇒ 5

Seeing as the foe has popped up in his face and hit his friend, Lefrik decides to return the favor his great axe curving down.

To hit #1 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (11) + 12 = 23
Dmg: 1d12 + 7 ⇒ (7) + 7 = 14
to hit #2: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (18) + 7 = 25
Dmg: 1d12 + 7 ⇒ (6) + 7 = 13

The troglodyte champion might be more than sufficient to guard bound prisoners kept near unconsciousness with drugs and torture, but it proved little challenge for the combined might that just dehorned a dragon. As Bruendor ducked, magical and mundane missiles slammed into the creature. This was followed up by a pair of brutal attacks from Lefrik's axe that left the trog bleeding out on the floor.

Anklebiter scrambles over the dead Trog and heads over to the bound Elves. He draws one of the daggers he took off the Drow to cut their bonds.

"Kelendra? Help?"

There's nothing in your spoiler, DM.

Calla looks around to make sure there are no more surprises as Anklebiter attends to the prisoners.

Perception: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (7) + 15 = 22

It was just a trog. Maybe it didn't have anything worth looting? ;)

Lefrik looks at the Trog, "Was this creature a fool, or did we just look that weak?"

"Scared not to do what the Drow told it to do, maybe?"

Bruendor winces and stumbles away from the troglodyte as his friends tore into the final guardian keeping Shalelu and Kaerishiel. "Dammit...once, just once can we take care of things without getting the s**t beaten out of us?!?"

He shakes off the injury, his pride hurt far worse than his form, and rushes over to the other elf that Anklebiter isn't assisting. "Kaerishiel, come on, wake up!"

The troglodyte's stench made it difficult to find out what interesting gewgaws he might have on him. The club, of course, was magical, as was a pair of potions in its pouch. The teeth and beads in a belt pouch weren't worth anything, but the gems mixed in with them might be valuable.

Loot:

"We should have brought anti-poison potions or a wand... She's really out of it."

Lefrik nods as the items are gathered, "Drugged? Huh, I wonder if they were made to tell things to the drow." He looks at Shaleu, "Remember us? The outsiders that are helping your people?"

"Come on, snap to, Kaerishiel," Bruendor said again, more forcefully this time. "Can you hear me? It's Bruendor, the dwarf who keeps pulling your fat out of the fryer. You can't die on me yet, not until we've figured out a way to pull that stick out of your ass." He didn't really mean the things he was saying, but he wanted to provoke a reaction from the elf, and playing the antagonist was as good a place to start as any.

"The watch is not yet done, Shin'ra'korath... The world still needs your courage. Awaken!"

Kel tends to the fallen elves. "Thank the Stars they are alive! This is the first good omen we've stumbled upon since entering this shadowy realm."

Heal check: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (14) + 12 = 26

Calla smirks.

"Figures. He probably won't even remember we saved his bacon...

"Unfortunately, we still need to find that damnable wizard. Dragging them with us in this state isn't going to help. We can hope they don't realize the dragon's dead and don't check back here, thinking everything's under control, but that one drow got away... We're probably not lucky enough to have the wizard be in one of the other areas in this place..."

Shalelu's eyes focused a bit more and she gasped. "You. You are alive. No, you must be more illusions. Nolveniss said all the others involved in the raid on the Academy were killed. Should have known the dark bastard was lying. But what if he wasn't? What if you're real and I'm the illusion?" She buried her face in her hands and wept. It crushed your hearts to see the vibrant scout and ranger reduced to this pathetic state.

Coming in close, Kelendra could tell that Shalelu was barely alive. Her body seemed to weak even to hold itself upright, and she looked emaciated. Far too much for the relatively short time she had been in this place. There were signs of physical toture, and drugs of course. From what the elf said, there were likely mental abuses as well. Quickly she moved Bruendor aside and examined Kaerishiel, finding the ranger in much the same condition as Shalelu, though still unconscious.

In game terms they are at Str 3, Con 3. Regular healing will get them back to normal hit points, but until the Str/Con damage is restored, they aren't going to be very effective.

Anklebiter scratches himself behind the ear... then very gently puts his hands on Shalelu's cheeks and... kisses her on the forehead and hurriedly scuttles away.

"No illusions here, Elf lady-hero," the Goblin says, winking at Shalelu from a safe distance. "Or do you wish there were, now?"

Do we bring them with us when we move on? For move on we must. After Shalelu has told us what she knows about Nolveniss, of course.

"I have a hard time leaving them here helpless. Kelendra, you can restore them somewhat, yes?" Lefrik looks at her.

To Shaleu he says, "You and we, we're real. We're trying to rescue you. I know it is hard, but can you remember anything that will help us do that?"

Bruendor offers them both some rations and sips from his waterskin, but feels otherwise powerless to help them.

"Where now?", Bruendor asks quietly.

Kel calls upon Desna to heal the damage to the elves. one lesser restoration each and see what difference that makes

Lesser Restoration, K: 1d4 ⇒ 4

Lesser Restoration, S: 1d4 ⇒ 2

"I don't know," Calla growls in response to Bruendor. "Maybe the sleeping Wonder Twins here heard something that could help us? We still need to find the damn wizard. I think we have time to search the rest of this place, at least, while they gather themselves."

I think we can leave them here for a minute while we search the rest of the building. If we don't find the wizard here, we can figure out our next step afterward.

The results of Kelendra's spell were obvious from the moment of casting, as both Shalelu and the unconscious Kaerishiel seemed to grow stronger and more like themselves. Still, though, Kaerishiel did not wake. Shalelu gasped as the spell took effect.

"Thank you, my friends. I feel better, though not nearly enough to continue at this moment. The wizard Nolveniss is likely upstairs. That is where he tortured us. He may not be there, though. I cannot say how long we have been in this cell. Nolveniss used drugs and both physical and mental tortures to gain what he could from us. Know this, though. The wizard carries on his person the keys to both the portal from this place, and the one in the academy that is attuned to a drow city in the Darklands. There will be no leaving this place without the portal key."

"That's all we needed to know," Calla says, a cruel smile crossing her face. "It's time for this drow to become nothing more than a relic of the past... Have you any idea of what type of spells he favors or anything else that might help us kill him?"

She fingers three special arrows in her quiver, wondering if it may finally be time to use them.

"Then that's our goal," Bruendor said with a grim nod. "End him, and get out of this damnable plane. Which reminds me, Kel - water?"

"My summoning spells are ready," Anklebiter announces. "So is my Limp Lash. Time to go."

"I hate leaving you two behind alone," He tells the elves, "But it sounds like we have no alternative. We'll return for you after we kill the wizard and get that key."

"Yes, we'll return for you," promises Kelendra, "with the portal key.

With a constant dousing of water for her jellied companions, Kel slinks along with the party upstairs towards the drow wizard.

Shalelu moved carefully over to Kaerishiel, wincing as some of her wounds reopened. "We will wait for you to return. I will try and get this irascible man to wake up. Did you find out things? There may be something in one of our packs that might help. As for the wizard, I know nothing about him other than I have told you."

------------------

The remaining door to the southwest opened onto an empty tower chamber, this one decorated in scenes of winter. There was nothing there of interest, but at least you knew that you weren't leaving a known source of danger to your backs.

The final door at the top of the risers was made from a silvery metal. The depictions of stars and planets upon it fit this building's theme of observatory. There was no lock on it that Bruendor could see, and no traps, either.

Opening the doors carefully, you can see that two staircases wind up the interior walls of the observatory tower. Between them is an immense black field, suspended in the air, containing hundred of glowing motes. It took a minute, but given the nature of this place, you surmise that these are stars.

The stairs wind upwards, leading to a landing, and then upwards again to another. This third level has a small balcony overlooking the haunted city of shadow Celwynvian, and the vague impression of the shadow forest beyond. You pause here for a break, as the steps were just tall enough to be a difficult climb for everyone, and rather more than difficult for the much smaller Anklebiter. From here, you can hear chanting from the stairs winding upwards.

"He is here," Anklebiter whispers. "And he is not alone."

Stealth 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (16) + 12 = 28

"Okay, what do we know?", Bruendor replies quietly. "He's a wizard, but we don't know what flavor. Maybe a conjuror? It would explain how he's able to get all of these demons. AB, Kel, Calla? What sort of magics do you have ready before we plunge in?"

Anklebiter quietly explains the magics he still has remaining, then holds up his three wands. "Forty magic missiles. Maybe ten acid arrows, if I'm Lucky," he concludes, grimly. "The magic missiles will be single shots; most wand-makers are cheapskates or inexperienced."

Spells remaining at this time:
0 - Acid splash, Dancing Lights, Detect magic, Detect poison
1 - Shield*
2 - Knock, Limp lash (x), Mirror image, Protection from arrows*
3 - Daylight, Dispel Magic*, Summon monster III x3
4 - Magic Circle Against Evil* (Extended)