Check the door to the west, Alice, if you would. Unless you feel we should check these coffins for dangers before we go.
Alie finds no traps.
The party heads down the stairs and finds a huge mosaic of a red dragon decorates the floor of this large chamber. To the north lie three cicular alcoves, each with a single pillar of black marble in its center. To the south, in a single large alcove, a spiral staircase descends to a deeper level of the crypt. Four stone sarcophagi sit on the floor on the south side of the main room, two on each side of the alcove entrance.
In each pillar is an urn which begins to rattle as a small fire elemental emerges from each!
Fire elementals. Wonderful.
"You just better stay offa my new boots, you little bastards," Kurth says, swinging his sword - unlit - at the closest elemental.
Milloy blasts one of the elementals away with a missile! Kurth moves in and slices another in two! Alice fires her bow but the arrows break against the wall.
With a whoosh of flame, the fire elemental swoops out of the room to assault Kurth!
The lone elemental is no match for the martial prowess of the party, though, and is quickly dispatched by Kurth's blade.
Immediately after the fire elemental disappears, though, spirals of fire lance and blast throughout the room, catching everyone in the blast!
An inscription in the mosaic's center reads, "Red Azramo-Give the Dragon Her Due."
WIthin the four sarcophagi lie the desiccated remains of old Taldan fighters clad in badly aged plate armor. The corpse in the westernmost sarcophagus wears a ring that Milloy recognizes as a ring of strength sapping and has a +1 acid resistant light steel shield on its right arm.
Damn fire... Milloy will ask for healing with his wand when the party gathers themselves.
"By Gorum's iron balls! Why's it always got to be the boots!" Kurth bellows, tamping out the flames on his clothing.
"What do you think we have to offer this thing? Gold? Mutton?"
Can anyone use the ring or the shield? They'll fetch a decent price in any case.
Milloy will go and investigate the pillars of marble, using the usual methods.
Harsk manages to dodge much of the flames, but is still singed. "Ack! A hot one, eh?" he asks the group. He takes hold of the wand and gives Kurth his requested healing.
"Think I could use a bit myself."
"Hey there... I could use that shield. It looks pretty nice!" Harsk takes up the shield and stows his previous one.
Milloy detects that the mosaic has a lingering magical aura (from the trap that was activated). Other than the magical items already found, there is nothing left in this chamber.
The party heads down the stairs to find a small oval chamber. On the east wall is an altar, the front side of which is carved to resemble a winged eye. A chalice and a small leather-bound book sit atop the altar.
The gold chalice is worth 875 gp and the book is an antique tome of prayer for devotees of the Last Azlanti worth 1000 gp.
"Ah, an alter to Aroden - Lady Tula's patron," Harsk notes of the altar. The dwarf follows carefully and closely behind the rogue checking for traps.
Milloy will see if there are any other magical surprises as the others check out the room. Hmm, On the off chance we might need them later, take the book and chalice. Then we can move on.
"Right. And let's just hope there ain't nothing with flames or bitey mouths on the other side. Gimme something that stands up straight and has some meat on its bones I can stab with my sword," Kurth says, ready to advance once Alice checks the door.
The party moves through the door. . .
The floor of this great, domed chamber has a coppery metallic sheen, save for three mosaics of blue dragons made of polished blue glass. Chiseled into the north wall is an inscription, and the air smells slightly of ozone.
The message on the north wall reads, Baesterogh, Alamitatus, and Vernegash-each dragon slain by Lady Tula of Belhaim and the Slayers of Nazilli, Battle of Blue Note Hill, 3668 AR.
The metallic sheen on the floor is actually a thin sheet of copper that conducts periodic blasts of electricity, although the party can avoid the worst of the blasts by making haste across the floor and standing primarily on the blue dragons, which are safe.
There is a secret door to the east easily located by Alice, although the room beyond contains nothing but a spiral staircase leading down.
The room to the west is locked but easily picked by Alice. Beyond are painted statues of four human archers, bows drawn, occupying the western curve of the circular chamber. The two archers to the north aim toward the northeast, and the two archers to the south aim southeast. An inscription decorates each statue's base. The inscriptions all read , May your arrows strike center and true.
The party easily finds scrapes on the floor around the bases which suggest they can be rotated.
What do you make of all this, Alice? Is this some sort of trap or merely a a portal to something else? Milloy will suggest trying to swivel the statues so that the archers point to the center of the room, unless Alice discovers something else. Maffei, do you know of anything here?
Kurth watches, a bit confused, as Milloy tinkers with the statues.
"Er, so there's two stairs down? Which do you reckon we oughta use?" he says, happy to let the others choose a way down.
"Yeah, Milloy - I'd say turnin' these archer statues like that." Harsk will help with rotating the statues, taking care to ensure that each one points to the center of the room.
As the party moves the archers into the positions suggested by Milloy, a loud click! is heard as a spiral staircase opens up in the center of the floor, heading down.
As you say, my dear Alice. Lead the way if you wish. Milloy will try to Detect Magic before she goes, because that's just what he does.
The party heads down the hidden stairs and finds that the stone spiral stairs open onto a circular alcove looking out into a great domed chamber. Seven statues stand to the north, and seven more to the south-burly figures wielding large hammers. A single stone sarcophagus sits in the center of this room, at the bottom of a series of four tiers descending in five-foot increments.
As the party steps into the room, four of the statues begin to move, taking positions on either side of Kurth and Alice!
Azers! They are immune to fire and vulnerable to cold and can resist spells. They can also channel heat into their metal weapons.
Milloy will simply use on #3 since he can't reach any of them with a touch attack at the moment.
"Bastards better stay offa my boots," Kurth says as he fends off the azers' attacks and steps to the west, sword swinging.
Milloy's missile bites into one of the statues. Alice leaps around the statue, waits for Maffei to step into flank, and then sinks her teeth in! It's enough to take down the statue that Milloy damaged! Maffei then turns her attention to the other statue but misses it completely. Kurth likewise misses his target.
Harsk steps forward, next to Kurth. "That's it ladies! Great work!" he shouts to Milloy, Maffei and Alice. He draws and swings his hammer.
Harsk puts a dent into one of the brass statue beasts! They swing their own hammers back!
"Careful, dwarf, the elf has a temper-he's liable to slap you if you call him a girl again," Kurth says as he brings his sword around for another attack.
Milloy casts Power Word Kill at the offending dwarf!
Milloy fires another at the other target!
Kurth brings his sword down hard enough to take out one of the bronze statue-men! Milloy hits another with a magic missile and Alice's blade bounces off the bronze exterior.
"Har-har! Well, you elves all look the same!" Harsk teases Milloy as he takes another swing with his hammer.
Harsk's hammer bounces off the statue's bronze plate! Maffei steps into flank with Alice and takes out the southern statue creature! The remaining statue gets one last swing off:
But the remaining azer is no match for the party by itself and is quickly taken down.
The plate beneath the corpse in this crypt bears the name Sir Echtyr; he wears a circlet worth 2250 gp and his golden armor is in fact +1 glamered full plate. The clasp holding his rotted blue cape about his neck is an amulet of natural armor +2 and on one hand he wears a ring of major acid resistance.
"Well, we ain't seen all of it yet. Maybe Tula's buried down that other staircase," Kurth says, examining the heavy armor with appreciation. "That's quite the tin can. Hafta call me Kurth the Crab, 'stead of Kurth the Fist, if I was wearing that. What about you, Harsk? You comfortable wearing that much metal? If not, my enchanted chainmail'd probably fit you."
That is quite an impressive set of metal. Either of you would do well to use it if you have the skill. Meanwhile, all I could handle would be this ring, unless someone else here feels the need?
"Alright now, look the other way while I slip into something more uncomfortable," Kurth says as he dons the enchanted full plate.
Milloy nods in thanks and wears the ring. Very well Alice, you always seem to know the way. Shall we?
Spiral stairs descend down. On the wall opposite the stairs, a large white slab of stone with a keyhold in it has been fitted into an archway, blocking passage entirely.
Fitting the brass key given to you by Bassy into the stone slab, turning the key, and removing it causes the slab to grind down into the ground, providing access to Tula's Tomb beyond.
This huge elegant domed chamber houses a single marble sarcophagus at its western end. A mosaic of a black dragon decorates the floor. The ceiling is covered by a vibrant fresco of armored soldiers fighting a host of dragons, with a blonde woman of noble mien at the center, rallying the troops with her sword. In circular alcoves to the north and south stand life-sized statues of this woman, standing in a pose of triumph over the head of a defeated dragon.
The ghostly voice of a woman sounds in the room, "And who might this be? A new generation of dragonslayers sent to gather my treasures? I sense this among your thoughts, yes. And you have even done a favor that has proved your worth to me. My husband's spirit was unquiet in his tomb-he lingered out of guilt for my death. But you have vanquished his shade I shall grant you my blessing to take up arms from this crypt."
Lady Tula's remains still wear her +3 breastplate of luck (as banded mail of luck). Her +1 keen composite longbow (+2 Str) lies at the body's left side. Her famed weapon Wyrmsmite (+2 dragonbane transformative longsword) lies atop the body under the crossed arms. The right hand holds 10 +1 dragonbane arrows and the left just a single shaft-an arrow of dragon slaying.