Shackled City (Pathfinder) - GM_Chris

Game Master Chris Shannon 719

"He was asking about how to get to the underdark. He was looking for another dragon. Why all this interest in such a dark place?"

"It is indeed curious that that one would seek the Underdark. And more surprising it thinks it could fit down there...so the entrance must truly be huge. And another dragon, you say, m'Lord? Did you happen to catch the name of that one or this one?" Dyrant points to the mangled carcass behind him.

"They certainly sound most mighty. I agree, Sir Glimmil. Perhaps as further test of our readiness for this battle, we could first go and vanquish these vermin kuo-toa." Stay with me, Glimmil. Stay with me.

Jared easily turns from person to person keeping three conversations going at once.

"Yes. That is an excellent idea. The entrance to the underdark is not far from here. Another 20 miles into the mountains. I sent 500 of my finest knight there just last week to stop an incursion of mind flayers."

"Where are my servants? If someone would bring me a parchment and pen, I can draw you a map."

Clearly excited and beyond over-stimulated by everything going on around him at once, Glimmil almost passes out...

Heroic deeds...!

Slain dragons...!

Fancy (phantasmal) kings and kingdoms...!

Dyrant's getting married...!

Party!

Horses.. Carts.. dogs.. fun stuff to ride!

Evil armies...

Mind flayers...!

Evil too-koh-uhs...!

Glimmil stands, wide-eyed, teeth chattering, head bobbing, appearing ready to explode.

GM_Chris wrote:

"He was asking about how to get to the underdark. He was looking for another dragon. Why all this interest in such a dark place?"

"It is indeed curious that that one would seek the Underdark. And more surprising it thinks it could fit down there...so the entrance must truly be huge. And another dragon, you say, m'Lord? Did you happen to catch the name of that one or this one?" Dyrant points to the mangled carcass behind him.

"Probably the black dragon, Dhorlot. He too ravages my kingdom, but is nothing more than a mosquito compared to the Kheltoan armies."

"Brother Dyrant, you are a fine scholar of military campaigns. Perhaps you can tell us or his Lordship something of this Kheltos' incursions upon Cauldron. Weeks ago did you say, My Lord?"

Shrugging as he listens to the conversation going on around him, Atol will use the wand once on himself before putting it away.

Cure Light Wounds for 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5

Spellcraft 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (18) + 3 = 21

"Hey Dyrant, he just cast a Hallucinatory Terrain spell. Imagine that. It's kind of cool don't you think?"

On hearing of another dragon Atol visibly pales. "Perhaps we should rest here tonight and gather our strength before plunging into the darkness tomorrow."

Glimmil continues to think on various thoughts, and then starts to imagine a dark cave somewhere filled with treasure - coins, gems, jewelry... and shiny armor!

"Hey, Mister King... do you know where this dragon came from? The one we just slew? Aren't dragons supposed to have real big caves filled with treasure?"

Dyrant scrunches up his face as he tries to make sense of the nonsense.

1d20 + 9 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 9 + 2 = 22 Know (History) Kheltoan/Kheltos
1d20 + 9 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 9 + 2 = 19 Know (History) Dragon, Dhorlot

How much of this is fantasy and how much of this is reality?

Dyrant pulls out a pieces of paper and ink for Jared to draw upon.

"I know not where this red dragon came from. There was once another red dragon in these parts, but much larger. Hookface was his name. My knights tracked him to his lair many, many miles north of here and slew him. It was with his hoarde that I rebuilt my kingdom and forced out the hordes of Kheltos."

Jared accepts the paper from Dryant and draws quite well. The map depicts the mountains and shows what appears to be a clear path to the underdark.

"Ah, the Pit of the Seven Jaws. It is a large pit that scars an otherwise beautiful alpine meadow. You should visit it in the spring when the mountain flowers are in bloom. There is a metal-grate stairway that spirals down into the depths there."

1d20 + 9 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 9 + 2 = 16 Know (History) Hookface

Dyrant groans at the mention of more dragons, feeling his singed hair and eyebrows.

Angel, we walk into a known dragon's cave! Protect us!

Taking advantage of Glimmil's barrage of questions, Toffitt whispers to Finneas, "Would you care to skin the drake with me?"

Atol looks at the remains of Jareds house, burned to the ground.

"Jared, where shall you stay while the damage from the Dragon is repaired? Do you need shelter?"

Do we have a spare tent in the gear? I wonder...

Atol digs through the gear looking for 'extra' materials that might help Jared for a while.

Oh!

"Jared, while we are underground, do you think you could look after our steeds? They require little food as they can graze, but they will need regular water and companionship."

Diplomacy 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (7) + 8 = 15

Atol looks for an area that could be blocked off to create a makeshift pen for the horses and mules.

1d20+9+2 Know (History) Hookface

Dyrant groans at the mention of more dragons, feeling his singed hair and eyebrows.

Angel, we walk into a known dragon's cave! Protect us!

Dyrant has heard of Hookface, but his attacks on the area were a couple centuries ago, not decades.

Toffitt nudges Atol and whispers. "'Your Highness,' Atol. 'Your Highness.' If he will be king, let him be king."

"Your highness, may we encamp here for the night? We might aid in rebuilding your castle and resting before our journey to Pit of the Seven Jaws."

If Jared agrees, Dyrant will go get the horse and mules and lead them back, taking extra time to make sure that Gristle is safe and unharmed.

"Jared, where shall you stay while the damage from the Dragon is repaired? Do you need shelter?"

"Jared, while we are underground, do you think you could look after our steeds? They require little food as they can graze, but they will need regular water and companionship."

"Oh my. Yes. This will never do to celebrate our victory."

He pulls out his rod and summons forth a palatial tent—a huge pavilion of silk 60 feet across. Inside the tent are furnishings and food suitable to the splendor of the pavilion and sufficient to entertain as many as 100 people.

"I do not know what happened to my stablehands, but you can leave your horses here. I will ensure their safety."

Toffitt nudges Atol and whispers. "'Your Highness,' Atol. 'Your Highness.' If he will be king, let him be king."

"Oh, right."

"I mean your highness King Jared of course."

King? What if he leaves it to his servants to tend to the horses. We should have a servant with us for these sort of things.

Atol tries hard to see through the spell which created the 'tent' the same way he did with the terrain...

Failing he begins to re-judge this crazy Jared.

He may be crazy, but he does have some power! It would be wise to stay on his good side.

Maybe I should bring Carts along to stay behind with the horses next time. Not to mention that my tent would be warmer at night...

Say Chris, what's your feeling about the Leadership feat and cohorts?

Glimmil frowns when Jared reveals he doesn't know where the "little" red dragon came from.

Blast... a cave full of shiny armor likely to be found by a bunch of adventurers that didn't even have to fight the dragon. I wonder... how does one track a dragon back to it's lair? Hmmmm...

At the emergence of the palatial tent, Glimmil's eyes bloom like a flower in the morning sun as he bounds ahead and finds a comfortable cushion on which to rest.

I should encourage some of Cauldron's people to come help the King rebuild his kingdom. Cauldron is so crowded!

"So, umm... what can you tell us about these Too-Koh-Uns from the Underplace, your highness? Do they have any special weaknesses? Like bright light? Or silver?"

Jared heads into the tent and takes a seat at the head of the largest table.

"Please sit and enjoy yourselves."

He looks about. "Where have all my people gone? Oh well. I'm afraid you will have to serve yourselves." Jared takes a large glass of wine and begins to eat and drink.

No unexpected guests show up for dinner. The party can stay the night or leave after dining. It is now noon. The entrance to the underdark is 20 miles through the mountains, so a full 8 hour day on horses.

No unexpected guests show up for dinner. The party can stay the night or leave after dining. It is now noon. The entrance to the underdark is 20 miles through the mountains, so a full 8 hour day on horses.

Oh, I thought we were just a few miles from the pit.

After some hesitation, Atol digs in and thoroughly gorges himself on the food, and drinks a little wine.

"Lord Jared, how did you come by such largess out here - and without servants! This is truly magnificent!"

"I suggest we travel after this fine meal and get some part of the way to our goal before dark. We can then rest, and make the entrance to the caves by mid-day, more or less. With luck we'll find a place to tether the horses nearby - though we will have to check on them from time to time I suppose."

Hrm.

"...that is unless you'd like to join us to the entrance Lord Jared? You could stand watch at the gates ready to summon an army if we should fall. While you're there, you, er, and your servants, could see to our horses."

Atol grins at the thought, but secretly wonders if this is a good idea, or a foolish one...

Toffitt enjoys the meal that King Jared conjured up, thanking the cook (or, really, rod-maker) that prepared such sumptuous fare.

"I agree that we should make what progress we can tonight. We'll want to be well rested as we descend into the depths. It won't due for us to spelunck outside of our usual sleep cycle."

He takes a bit of time after eating to prepare his mutagen again.

After Dyrant takes care of Gristle, he enters the pavilion and begins to enjoy the amenities offered, starting with any meat and fresh fruit that he can scavenge from the platters.

"Good King Jared, how long have you ruled your kingdom?" Dyrant asks while loading up a plate with 2 kinds of sausage. "Too few of your loyal subjects know your full history. Mayhaps I could spread the word of your heritage so that all may know the strength of your lineage."

Dyrant picks up a large rutabaga and then puts it down.

Really? Who brings rutabagas to a pavilion?!

"Good King Jared, you mentioned earlier an invasion...was it by dragons, you say? What color and type? More like the one we slew outside?"

He takes a bit of time after eating to prepare his mutagen again.

Didn't notice until now that an Alchemist can prepare more than one mutagen a day. There doesn't appear to be any limit, just the hour it takes to prepare it. Tiabrar will be so happy to find this out.

Jared turns to Atol, "I'm afraid I cannot join you. I am needed here. The daily tasks of a king are quite boring, but essential I assure you."

And then to Dyrant, "I have ruled for a score of years now. My father, King Jared III, oversaw a prosperous time for our kingdom. Unfortunately, I was not blessed with such peaceful times. The hordes came shortly after his death and have harried my kingdom ever since."

"These monsters from Kheltos are worse than dragons. They have eight legs and four wings and two heads. One breathes acid and the other breathes lightning. But they have a weakness. The skin between the two necks is quite thin and unprotected. A solid strike of the sword there cuts straight to the heart."

"It is a costly tactic, but the squads in my army practice a techinque of distracting the two heads while brave souls rush forward to land the killing blow. Many do not survive the attempt, but great glory is reaped upon those who do."

Finneas stands, panting as he stares over the mountains, the dragon's head slowly dripping blood down his leg. Snapping to at Toffitt's whispered comment, he shakes himself and turns to the Doctor.

"I think we should, but I doubt we have the time now, or a good knife for it. Let's have this one" *He nods his chin towards Crazy Jared* "take care of it while we go underground. We can carry it back with us with the dwarf."

Listening to the conversation back and forth, he says nothing but perks up at the mention of another dragon and the Pit of Seven Jaws.

"Why do they call it that do you suppose. Maybe we can skin two dragons Doctor, one for you and one for me."

Spellcraft: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (13) + 6 = 19
Spellcraft: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (17) + 6 = 23

Illusions of a mad man. I wonder if the dragon is real?

Finneas takes some of the dragon blood and drinks it. Sputtering at the taste, he once again grunts his ideas to the group.

"If it's 20 miles to the pit then we should get as far as we can today. We can leave the horses here with his Majesty and go the rest of the way on foot tonight, camp out and then get to the pit while there's still some light."

I don't trust him, he's crazy.
Male voice: Yeah he is.

"My great grandfather, Jared I, was a hard man, but built the kingdom from nothing. He lived to quite an old age and my grandfather, Jared II, only ruled a few years before dying."

1d20 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11 Int check: two headed monsters who breathe lightning and acid

Dyrant listens to the man's story with feigned interest while sucking the morrow from a turkey leg bone and casting onto a growing pile of bones.

He's nuts. Unlike me.

"Tell me, your Highness, before we go battle with your foes from inside the Pit, what dangers will we face within? Is there any measure of aid you can give us on our journey?"

Dyrant's eyes briefly flicker to Jared's rod.

1d20+4 Int check: two headed monsters who breathe lightning and acid

"Tell me, your Highness, before we go battle with your foes from inside the Pit, what dangers will we face within? Is there any measure of aid you can give us on our journey?"

Dyrant has never heard of the creatures described by Jared.

"Surely, my army has put down the mindflayers, so they will not be any trouble. The Pit of Seven Jaws gets its name from the seven gigantic lizards that were once chained there to guard the entrance. There was a song, how did it go, that had to be sung to walk safely down the steps. It's not a worry any longer though. I had the creatures killed because too many tone deaf soldiers were dying."

"Now I remember. 'Mary had a little lamb, little lamb, little lamb. Mary had a little lamb whose fleece was white as snow.'"

Earlier, as Toffitt and Finneas examine the dragon's corpse, Toffitt takes out his surgical tools. "I think you'll find I have the knives required to separate flesh from flesh. Not to, er, spook you. But it is much easier to skin most things once their, er, fire has died." The Doctor does not betray a wicked gleam of delight in the gore. Perhaps more disturbing is how businesslike he is as he slices off a large, intact sheet of scale.

Healing / Knowledge (nature) 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (17) + 15 = 32 with masterwork tools

Toffit cuts off a sheet of several scales that would be suitable for a gauntlet. He figures it would take numerous hours to skin enough for a suit of armor.

What's our hurry, anyway? This dragon cutting is lots of fun. It's like butter. Evil, fiery, human eating butter.

His belly full, Atol begins to worry about the cavern ahead.

Mary had a little lamb? ...who knows what sort of place we're headed to. Well, we should at least get there with sunlight to spare.

"May I suggest we get going? It's still a few hours to sunset, and I'd like to enter the caves with the sun warm on my back. There may be creatures guarding he mouth still and I'd rather fight in the light than the dark."

Atol gathers up some of the food and stuffs it in his pockets for the trip. He thanks 'king' Jared diplomatically for his help and prepares the mounts for the journey.

Glimmil chomps down on the food, passing table scraps to Cog throughout the meal.

"Yes.. *munch* we should.. *munch* make haste.. *chew*" he adds, waving a tiny chicken wing in the air as he enjoy the "celebration" commemorating their defeat of the dragon.

I wonder if Dyrant's fiancee will be here when we return? I bet she's a beautiful princess - he will be so lucky! Perhaps it will cheer him up a little to be a married man?

Glimmil daydreams about Ell... Skie, definitely Skie while finishing his meal.

"...so no aid, eh, King?" Dyrant asks once again while finishing eating the rind of a watermelon, leaving the red part intact.

"I don't think Finn and the Doctor will be done with the dragon skinning anytime soon. I guess we leave in the morning." Dyrant grabs a few apples and goes to check on Gristle.

* * *

The next morning, Dyrant communes with Angel and is ready to go forth.

The party leaves King Jared without any assistance except a good rest and full stomachs. The party makes good time for the rest of the day before making camp. Atol awakes to find the food he packed from Jared is still there.

At about noon the following day the party arrives at their destination, a forty-foot-wide pit that scars an otherwise unremarkable alpine meadow, surrrounded by low mounds of the dirt and rock that likely once filled the hole. A metal-grate stairway spirals counter-clockwise down the wall of the pit. The pit bottom is dimly visible some sixty feet below.

The stairway is 4' wide and has no railing. The steps are metal grates (i.e. full of holes to allow water to drip through and not collect).

For no particular reason, here's a map.

New Map

The party leaves King Jared without any assistance except a good rest and full stomachs. The party makes good time for the rest of the day before making camp. Atol awakes to find the food he packed from Jared is still there.

At about noon the following day the party arrives at their destination, a forty-foot-wide pit that scars an otherwise unremarkable alpine meadow, surrrounded by low mounds of the dirt and rock that likely once filled the hole. A metal-grate stairway spirals counter-clockwise down the wall of the pit. The pit bottom is dimly visible some sixty feet below.

The stairway is 4' wide and has no railing. The steps are metal grates (i.e. full of holes to allow water to drip through and not collect).

For no particular reason, here's a map.

New Map

Atol casts Magic Vestment on Finneas' Plate Armor again (+1 AC, 5 hour duration) and finds a place to tie up the animals.

He takes a long rope or two and ties it between a few trees. Then loosely ties the animals to the rope so they can move a little up and down the line.

"This will hold them a few hours, but we should return and camp here if possible so as to take care of the horses and mules."

Satisfied, Atol makes ready to descend into the darkness...

Glimmil hesitates for a moment on Cog's back as he observes the ominous pit, then holds up a hand and concentrates on the stairs below.

I wish I could fly at times like this, certainly something like a hungry grue will ambush us...

Detect Evil, taking copious time to scan 60ft in all directions.

Before I forget, too...

Glimmil also looks about the meadow to see what wildlife may be actively alive in the area as an indicator of how dangerous this pit really may be.

Glimmil detects no evil and the surrounding wildlife seems normal.

Toffitt drinks an extract and then swishes with his potion of heroism before spewing it back in its little vial. Once he feels it's rather invigorating effects fill his body (I feel invincible!), he moves in to carefully examine the steps leading down his ioun torch bobbling into the air.

Perception 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (3) + 12 = 15

I feel invincible! "Stairs look clear!"

Glimmil waves over a squirrel and kneels before it.

Cast Speak With Animals.

"Hey, little guy. What kind of stuff have you seen coming and going from this big pit here lately?"

Dyrant will cast Light on a rock and toss it down.

1d20 + 6 ⇒ (9) + 6 = 15 Perception for bad stuff/bones/remains

"Did you wish to climb down and scout, Doctor? I'd avoid using the stairs. We may yet find out what gave this place it's name." Dyrant nods towards the Doctor's boots/cloak.

"I think perhaps better to scout and risk it, so that our less agile friends might know what they're in for." He will descend once everyone is set, albeit wary and ready to leap back against the wall with his slippers. Half speed, being stealthy.

Stealth 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (18) + 5 = 23

For the Doctor's bravery, Dyrant will give him the Blessing of St. Cuthbert.

+2 to AC/Saves until he gets hit or fails save.

As Dyrant goes down, Dyrant will pray to Angel for the gift of flight and follow him down, staying 15' above him and keeping quiet. Dyrant will not be using the stairs, but flying directly down in square J17.

Moving at pace with Dr. Toffitt.

1d20 + 3 ⇒ (11) + 3 = 14 Stealth

Glimmil dons a look of concern to match the squirrel's before relaying what he heard to the others.

"This little furry guy says there's a big black dragon in the pit and suggests we don't go down -- most things don't come back up that go down."

Then, he turns back to the fuzzy animal.

"Thanks little guy. You're a smart one for not going down. Be safe and well!"

Nodding that he's ready, he continues to add, "I think I'd be able to sense the evil of the dragon if he was in the pit here - I guess that means its safe to go down... "

Giving it the briefest additional thought.

"...err, well not safe, I mean there's the dragon and stuff, but he's not right here at the stairs, at least."

"I think perhaps better to scout and risk it, so that our less agile friends might know what they're in for." He will descend once everyone is set, albeit wary and ready to leap back against the wall with his slippers. Half speed, being stealthy.

Stealth d20 + 5

The doctor begins to descend the steps which creak and rattle loudly, but seems steady. Assuming he continues to the first landing (15' down) and peaks over the edge he can see the floor of the pit opens up to a large cave exiting to the east.

Now I have the analogy I'm looking for. Think old metal fire escape.