Dramatis Personae:
Romero: Human priest of Wee Jas, age 30, male, from Hardby
Cimmerii Acanthus: Half-drow ranger, age 20, female, from the Cairn Hills
Reinhart: Human paladin of Heironeous, age 25, male, from Greyhawk City
Fin: Human rogue, age 16, male, from Greyhawk City
Hailleck Beeblebrox: Dwarven bard, age 50, male, from Greysmere
Remus Winterbeard: Dwarven fighter, age 54, male, from Greysmere
Reaping 1, 595 CY
Cimmerii was to meet Romero at dawn at a roadside chapel outside of Diamond Lake, a @#$% mining town in the Cairn Hills. Romero approached her 4 days ago (Richfest 4) while shopping in Venelle's archery shop--he needed a guide to the Whispering Cairn, a "forgotten" ancient burial site less than a day from Diamond Lake. Later that same evening, she encountered Hailleck in the Spinning Giant & asked him to join her. Unsure what to expect, she arrived early & hid in the woods across from the shrine.
Reinhart arrived at the shrine before dawn to find no one there. Four nights before (Richfest 4), he was celebrating Richfest in the Spinning Giant, where he overheard Hailleck, a local dwarven entertainer, speaking with an unusual dark-skinned half-elf. He knew she was a drow, or at least part drow, though he'd never seen a dark elf before. Though he sensed no evil, he decided to eavesdrop, as he suspected lawlessness, if not evil, could be afoot. He'd seen the same woman earlier that day, speaking with Romero, a priest of the death goddess Wee Jas.
Romero first came to Diamond Lake the month before, and had spent much time at the garrison, speaking with Diamond Lake's Chief Cartographer Dietrik Cicaeda. What they spoke of, Reinhart wasn't sure, though he suspected the priest was in search of treasure maps, perhaps seeking one of the few cairns in the hills that hadn't already been plundered. When you overheard the half-elf's conversation, the paladin's suspicions were confirmed, and he vowed to arrive at the shrine early to find out exactly what the group's intentions were.
Romero arrived right on time. He almost immediately spotted Cimmerii hiding in the woods, and another figure waiting at the shrine. He waved to both. As he approached the man at the shrine (who looked into the woods dumbfounded), Romero recognized him as Reinhart, a paladin of Heironeous at the Diamond Lake garrison. Immediately, Reinhart began grilling the priest about what he was doing there, while Romero pulled out his measuring rope & began sizing the paladin up (for a coffin, should he meet with misfortune).
Three nights ago (Richfest 5), Fin was in the Feral Dog when he heard two dwarves discussing an expedition to a "forgotten" cairn. Intrigued, he decided to show up at their meeting place and act like he belonged.
Upon arriving, he saw neither dwarf, but did see two armor-clad humans arguing & a black-skinned half-elf attempting to hide in the woods. Approaching the men, he recognized Reinhart, the arrogant paladin who escorted him & other convicts from Greyhawk to Diamond Lake 6 months ago, to serve out a sentence of hard labor in Gelch Tilgast's mines. He hoped the paladin wouldn't remember him.
Unfortunately for Fin, Reinhart did remember him, and began grilling him hard. When asked why he was there, Fin's reply, "I'm a temp," did not seem to go over very well with the paladin. Romero then began measuring Fin.
About that time, Remus showed up. Three nights ago (Richfest 5), he was invited on this expedition by his friend Hailleck while the two were drinking in the Feral Dog.
He arrives to find three humans at the shrine--one (Fin) of whom he recognizes from the Feral Dog. The youth is getting the third degree from an arrogant paladin while the priest of Wee Jas measures him. Hailleck still hasn't arrived (not unusual, for him), but the half-drow he described is trying to hide in the woods.
"Where's the ale?" asks Remus.
Seeing that the situation is about to get explosive, Cimmerii emerges from the woods, much to Reinhart's (but no one else's) surprise.
"Leave the boy be," she says to the paladin.
Yet more bluster ensues. Finally, unable to detect any evil, Reinhart gives in, though vowing to check Fin's status with the authorities as soon as possible. For now, he deides to stick with Romero & the others to keep an eye on them.
Remus informs Cimmerii that Hailleck is habitually late, & will probably have to catch up with them later. He plans to leave a few clues to allow Hailleck to follow.
The group begins the journey to the abandoned mine office near the Whispering Cairn.
Reaping 2, 595 CY
Romero, Cimmerii, Fin, Reinhart, & Remus arrive at the abandoned mine office of Ulgo Fant. The nearby mine ran dry decades ago & was collapsed. The office stands in shambles from years of neglect.
Almost immediately, 3 stirges dive down at Reinhart, Romero, & Remus from a nearby tree. One quickly falls to Reinhart's sword, but each of the others attach themselves to Remus & Romero, preparing to drain their blood. Remus loses 2 CON to blood drain.
Reinhart neatly dispatches the one assaulting Romero. Remus tries in vain to hit the stirge attacking him as it begins to drain his blood. Fin & Cimmerii, who were exploring on the opposite side of the house, come rushing to help, & Fin wounds the stirge attacking Remus with his rapier. Romero finishes the beast off with his death touch.
After dispatching the stirges, the party decides to investigate the dilapidated house. Reinhart detects evil from the house & urges caution. Fin opens the door & looks in, seeing nothing. He turns to motion the others to follow & enters. As he steps in, a goblin emerges from the shadows & hurls a javelin into his side.
The others rush in as three more goblins reveal themselves. Fin retreats to the corner while another goblin rushes toward him. He manages to wound the goblin , but the humanoid delivers a heavy blow with it's morningstar to his head. Romero moves to engage the goblin while Fin slumps to the floor, playing dead. Romero finishes off the goblin, but Fin decides to keep playing dead, as he still hears combat.
Meanwhile, Cimmerii, Remus, & Reinhart engage the other goblins while Remus heals Fin. Cimmerii wounds one while Remus slays another. The two remaining goblins break off combat & run to a nearby pair of double doors. They open the doors & release 2 ravenous badgers.
Remus, Reinhart, & Cimmerii finish off the goblins & badgers. Fin quits playing possum & the five discover two more doors--1 in the living room where the goblins were first encountered, & 1 in the dining room where the badgers were.
Remus & Cimmerii investigate the door in the living room while the others investigate the other one.
Fin opens the dining room door to find a ruined kitchen. In the pantry he finds a stash of supplies--likely the goblins'. Romero joins him in looting while Reinhart guards the door.
Fin & Romero find the following:
8 pints of oil
5 tindertwigs
1 flask of alchemist's fire
1 50' silk rope
18 trail rations
625 sp
60 gp
1 rose quartz
3 blue quartz
Meanwhile, Remus & Cimmerii determine that the room behind their door is inhabited. Remus opens the door & is confronted by 2 goblins, both of which hurl javelins at him, both of which miss. Remus yells for the others & he & Cimmerii charge in & engage the goblins.
Remus drops one of the goblins before another, a goblin shaman, emerges from the shadows & casts a sleep spell, to no avail. Cimmerii moves in on the shaman & wounds him, before being joined by Remus. By the time Reinhart & the others get there, all the goblins are dead.
On the shaman's body they find potions of cure light wounds & an obsidian necklace, all of which Romero keeps.
Regrouping, the five explore the rest of the house. The second floor holds nothing of interest, but they encounter 5 dire rats in the cellar.
Cimmerii wounds one of the rats, is bitten, screams, & runs upstairs, leaving Fin & Remus to finish off the rodents, but not before they are also bitten.
By that time, Hailleck finally catches up to the rest of the party.
In the rats' nest, Fin finds a box containing a bottle of green liquid (labeled in goblin), 2 scrolls, 340sp, 82 gp, & a blank ivory-bound ledger. The scrolls & potion are given to Romero, while the remainder of the loot is hidden in the house.
The group decides to use the house as a base of operations. Though it's early afternoon, they decide to spend the rest of the day securing the area & resting, as Romero needs to recover his spells & some of the others are wounded.
Reaping 3, 595 CY
Cimmerii wakes up feverish & feeling like @#$%. Romero determines that she's caught filth fever from the rat bite. She decides to tough it out, hoping the fever will break by tomorrow (it will). Remus has partially recovered from his stirge wound.
Romero, Remus, Cimmerii, Fin, & Haileck decide to make for the Whispering Cairn.
Following Romero's map, the party finds the cairn entrance about 10 minutes from the Fant house. A faint breeze carrys sounds from the cairn that almost sound like sighing. they soon determine this to be caused by thin hollow tubes hidden in patterned bands along the walls. They postulate that the tubes must extend to the suface, where they catch the wind, thus giving the Whispering cairn it's name.
Hailleck & Remus take the point, while Fin carries the lantern. Inside, they find the areas near the entrance marred with graphetti & etchings in the stone. In an alcove they find a brittle old bedroll, long abandoned by its owner.
As they proceed, three hungry wolves charge from the darkness. Remus & Hailleck each face off against one, while the third (& biggest) jumps upon Romero, knocking him to the floor.
Near where they were attacked by the wolves, they find two 20' wide passages, one on each side. The right passage leads to a cave-in, while the left extends about 40', ending at a rounded wall. Here, the group finds a mysterious device resembling half a frame of a free-standing mirror, standing upon a stone base.
On the floor are shiny shards of a black, glass-like substance. On the base is an arcane glyph as large as a man's head, while the frame itself has small arcane etchings. Romero, Fin, & Hailleck determine that the device is a broken arcane transporter, and that the glyph is a personal symbol, in a language called Vaati, said to be the original written form Auran, the language of air elementals.
Further ahead, the party finds two larger passages east & west. Ahead is a cobweb-covered archway, leading to a staircase going down. They see a distant flicker of green light down the stairs.
Down the left (west) passage, they find a dais with a faded fresco on the north, south, & west walls. Standing upon the dais, the fresco makes it appear as if one were standing in a massive room with 7 short corridors radiating from a central point. A chain dangles at the end of each hall, each chain holding a gleaming colored lantern. From left to right the colors are red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, & violet.
Down the east passage, they find the passage blocked off by rubble, save for a small, waist high passage. Due to the stench of wet fur and animal dung, Cimmerii postulates that the wolves probably laired here. Getting on hands & knees, Cimmerii & Remus enter the lair. They find several bones, a silver armband with a repeating leaf motif (of elven make), & an exotic dark blue lantern, like those depicted on the fresco.
Descending the stairs, the party finds itself in a massive chamber with a domed ceiling (30' over the center of the room). Seven short passages branch outward from the room, each about 30' long & ending in rounded walls. A thick chain hangs at the end of each passage, & 5 of the chains hold colored lanterns. All but the one directly facing them is dark. This one flickers with a bright green light--it appears to contain a torch of some sort. Weird, murky shadows dance about the room. Numerous chips of glas & shiny metal set into the chamber's dome reflect the light, giving the impression of falling snow & starlight.
Beneath the dome's peak lies a 10'x20' platform, upon which sits an arrow-shaped dais holding a white marble sarcophagus. A milky white bas-relief figure of a tall, hairless, androgynous humanoid has been carved into the sarcophagus lid.
Unlike the chambers above, no "whispering" can be heard in this chamber.
Upon closer inspection, the party observes that the figure on the sarcophagus is missing a finger on its right hand, which appears to be open, while its left hand is closed. It wears an amulet with a glyph somewhat like the one on the transporting device. The arrow shaped dais points immediately to the west, the same direction the figures head lies.
Hailleck searches for the missing finger, to no avail, while Remus & Cimmerii explore the passages. First they go to the northeast, where a blue lantern hangs. Then they go to the passage with the green lantern. The chains seem to extend 40-50' to the ceiling. Cimmerii convinces Fin to try scaling the chain. Unfortunately, the young rogue gets 10' up, loses his grip, & falls to the floor.
Meanwhile, Romero decides to open the sarcophagus, only to receive a nasty surprise. As soon as he raises the lid, he is engulfed by fire. However, the damage is only minimal, though his beard is quite singed.
Much to everyone's disappointment, the sarcophagus is empty.
Hailleck then has an idea. Spotting the arrow on the dais, which actually seems to be attached to the sarcophagus, the dwarf pushes it clockwise. The heavy marble casket moves in a circular motion until it makes a clicking noise, pointing to the northwest passage.
A great rumbling sound comes from below, and slowly, a 5' diameter circular section of floor at the end of the passage arises from the floor, pushed up by a strange metallic cylinder. Seconds after coming to a stop, 2 thin doors slide into the sides of the cylinder, revealing a small, empty chamber.
The party investigates, & Cimmerii decides to step into the chamber. Almost immediately, the doors close & the cylinder sinks back into the floor. A few minutes later, the cylinder rises again. The doors open, revealing no trace of the half-elf. Reinhart boldly steps into the chamber, & the process is repeated.
At this point, Hailleck decides to return to the sarcophagus & move it one more click. Upon doing so, the cylinder sinks back into the floor. When the sarophagus stops at the passage with the green lantern, a cacophonous creaking of stone against stone is heard, as if something is lurching with great difficulty below the chamber. Seconds later, a section of the floor at the end of the passage gives way, and a thundrous crash comes from the opening, as if something large & metal just fell a great distance.
Six seconds later, a sound like the skittering of thousands upon thousands of aggitated insects comes from the hole.
Meanwhile, the cylinder doors open & Cimmerii sees Reinhart, though he can't see @#$%, due to lack of darkvision. Luckily, the paladin has a lantern. He lights it to discover that the pair are in a room roughly 15'x20'. To their backs is an alcove containing the arcane elevator, while ahead of them is an 10' wide archway leading out of the room. However, the archway is blocked by a large stone block, 10' wide, 8' high, & 2' deep. A long hallway seems to lie beyond the block.
Reinhart steps from the elevator & it returns to the floor above. Nearby is a button on the wall, presumably to operate the elevator.
"The walls here are covered in bas-relief images similar to the slender figure on the sarcophagus lid in the chamber above. Nearly a dozen androgynous, hairless humanoids stand in poses of deference, almost as if they are paying homage to the viewer. Many extend their hands in adoration, their faces awash in adulation. Several of the sculptures lack hands, arms, heads, or anything else easily hacked off by absent tomb robbers."
Back in the lantern chamber, a collective sigh of "Oh, @#$%!" is uttered as a living geyser of blue & red beetles the size of a thumb bursts from the hole & the swarm makes for the party. The swarm emits several popping sounds as it approaches, like tiny firecrackers--bombardier beetles! The undulating blanket of insects leaves a thin trail of bright yellow acid in its wake.
As if that wasn't enough, the beetles are joined by a horrid abberation with six skittering, bladed legs sprouting from a central eye. Fin identifies it as a mad slasher.
Fin immediately drops his backpack & rumages through it. He pulls out the flask of alchemist's fire found the day before & hurls it at the beetle swarm. The result is quite disappointing, as very few beetles are burnt to a crisp.
Hailleck pushes the sarcophagus one more click, to where it's pointing to the northeast. He seems to hear something, but can't quite make out what.
Remus & Romero move to engage the mad slasher, but fail to strike any good blows.
Hailleck runs down the northeast hall to investigate the noise he heard, but finds nothing. Meanwhile, Fin becomes the first to find himself coved in bombardier beetles. The young rogue quickly breaks for the stairs back to safety, outrunning the swarm & swatting the acidic vermin from his body.
The swarm moves on Remus & Romero, who are both nearly slain. Romero quickly quaffs his last potion of cure light wounds, grabs Fin's lantern from the floor, & runs to the stairs, where Fin waits. Remus follows, collapsing at the foot of the stairs. Romero uses the last of his minor healing spells to revive Remus. Seeing the mad slasher moving to follow, the three quickly flee up the stairs, leaving Hailleck behind.
Hailleck, seeing that his companions have abandoned him, realizes it's only a matter of time before the beetles & mad slasher turn their attention to him.
The dwarven bard sneaks over to the northern corridor & inspects the hole now at the end in the floor. A few stray beetles crawl through the corridor. He considers descending into the hole, from which the beetles & mad slasher both emerged, but then thinks better of it. By tossing a few daggers to distract the mad slasher's attention, the dwarf sneaks around the perimeter of the chamber, finally breaking for the stairs, to rejoin his companions.
Oblivious to the happenings above, Cimmerii & Reinhart continue to explore their surroundings.
Cimmerii examines the block while Reinhart tries to make out what he can beyond it.
There's a large niche in the ceiling, about the same size as the block. It appears very heavy, but could possibly be knocked over. There's a small space betwwen the top of the arch & the top of the block that someone could possibly squeeze through, with much difficulty.
"I think we should rejoin the others if possible," says Reinhart. "While I feel my god can protect us, it may be foolish to charge ahead with just the two of us."
Cimmerii voices similar concern. "We might want to go back to the surface," she says, "gather our companions, and then explore down here."
The paladin raises his lantern & concentrates on the hallway beyond. He then turns to Cimmerii, saying, "Something is amiss down there. I agree that we should regroup before going further. Let's use that device again."
Reinhart & Cimmerii decide to return to the surface. By this time, the beetles & slasher have returned to their hole. However, hearing the vibrations from the elevator, they soon return to the lantern chamber. Cimmerii grabs Fin's abandoned backpack, & she & Reinhart race up the stairs to rejoin their wounded companions.
The six decided to return to the Fant house & rest for a few days before returning to the Cairn.
Reaping 4, 595 CY
Fin awakes feverish. Romero quickly diagnoses him with filth fever, from which Cimmerii has only recently recovered. Everyone assumes Fin caught the fever from being bitten by the dire rat two days ago.
Not feeling confident enough to face the slasher and the beetles today, Cimmerii, Reinhart, Remus, & Romero decide to make sure they didn't miss anything on the top level of the Whispering Cairn. Despite his illness, Fin decides to go along as well.
Hailleck stays behind to clean up some of the debris around the house.
In the wolf den in the cairn, the party finds an intricately carved armband of elven make, bearing a repeating leaf motif. The group also finds a marble finger, presumably broken off the sculpture on the sarcogphagus lid in the room below.
Not finding much else, the group returns to the house.
Reaping 5, 595 CY
Fin's filth fever finally breaks, but Remus awakes with minor symptoms of filth fever. However, his hardy dwarven constitution allows Remus to quickly overcome the illness.
While Hailleck remains behind to work on the house some more, Fin, Romero, Reinhart, Cimmerii, & Remus return to the Whispering Cairn. In the lantern room, they raise enough hell to bring the mad slasher & beetles out of their hole.
Remus, Romero, & Reinhart close in on the slasher while Cimmerii stands atop the sarcogpahus, shooting at it with her bow.
Fin mainly deals with the beetles alone. Fin throws a few prepared flasks of oil at the beetle swarm, lighting their wicks with his torch, though a couple miss. Soon the young rogue (as well as Remus, Reinhart, & Romero) is covered by beetles, attacking them with his torch.
Romero heals his wounds & retreats from the slasher (& the beetles) to fire his crossbow at it. After being dealt several blows by Remus & Reinhart, Cimmerii finally slays the slasher with an arrow to the eye.
By this time, Fin has fallen to the beetles. Cimmerii, ignoring her own safety, pulls Fin from the swarm, dragging him to safety. Romero damages the swarm with a scroll of burning hands, while Remus lights a torch & engages the swarm. Romero next moves to keep Fin from bleeding out, while the others finish off the swarm with torches & what little oil they have left.
Seeing as Fin is unconscious (though stabilized), Romero is nearly out of spells, & the others are wounded, the party decides to return to the Fant house & recuperate.
Reaping 6, 595 CY
Fin regains consciousness. The group decides to spend the day resting, hunting, & working on their outpost.
Reaping 7, 595 CY
Though most of the party is able to return to the Whispering Cairn, they agree that it would be prudent to spend one more day at the house so everyone else can recover.
Reaping 8, 595 CY
Reinhart, Remus, Cimmerii, Romero, Fin, & Haileck re-enter the Whispering Cairn.
Descending the elevator where Reinhart & Cimmerii went down earlier, they find themselves in the room with the corridor blocked by the huge stone slab. Unable to tip it forward, they tip it toward themselves, into the room. Unfortunately, Fin fails to search for traps, & a noxious gas is released as the slab falls, weakening some of the party.
The group proceeds down a long, 10' wide corridor lined with statues, similar to the figure on the sarcophagus upstairs. Suddenly, they are attacked by a lurking strangler, which proves to be no match for our heroes, who quickly dispatch it.
The corridor ends in a large chamber dominated by a square stone pillar, some 20' to a side, in the center. The chamber is freezing. Archways to two other rooms are on the left & right walls of the chamber. An immense expanse of brown mold spreads from a recessed area on the pillar's right side (which looks like a fountain basin), across the floor & into the next room.
Cimmerii approaches the mold & is severely damaged by the cold as the warmth is sucked from her body. Fin suggests that Romero use the scroll he took from the goblins days earlier (which he determined to hold a Ray of Frost spell). Romero casts the spell & the mold is destroyed.
With the mold dead, the party examines the basin to find it filled with an orange sludge that looks a bit like vomit.
On the opposite side of the pillar, Fin & Hailleck find that part of the pillar appears to be different from the rest. Fin finds a hidden catch, which Hailleck triggers. Suddenly, a 10'X5' section of the pillar recedes into the ceiling. On the floor of the niche, they find a crushed human skeleton in +1 Chainmail, which unlike his other possessions, appears as good as new. A brittle, leather sack lays beside the skeleton, containing 3 broken statuetes & 3 more that are whole--a grand palace, a slim spire with 8 connected towers, & a grand stadium. One the wall are two wands (Unseen Servant--16 charges, & Shatter--7 charges) & a set of Goggles of Minute Seeing. Cimmerii puts the three undamaged statuettes into her backpack, while Hailleck takes everything else, though he is convinced to give the wands to Romero.
One of the side rooms appears to be living quarters, with a stone slab about the size of a bed that emits air currents to form a "mattress" of air above the slab. A bas-relief of a figure similar to (but not exactly like) the one on the sarcophagus in the lantern room is on the wall above the bed.
The other side room appears to be a workshop of some sort. An unfinished statue of an imposing bare-chested warrior (similar to the other humanoid sculptures found throughout the tomb) dominates the room. A wooden masterwork staff rests in the statue's hand. The staff has six grooves cut along its shaft, suggesting seven segments. Cimmerii takes the staff.
A black, egg-shaped stone rests on a red metal pedestal opposite the statue. Reinhart detects evil emanating from the egg. Fin touches it, & it transforms into Artophanx, an earth elemental, who the party quickly slays.
Romero, Fin, Cimmerii, Remus, Reinhart, & Hailleck return to the lantern room & descend down the hole from which the beetle swarm emerged.
The arrive in a room roughly 20X15 with a broken elevator cylinder laying on the floor. The hallway exiting the room goes for 10 feet before branching off in a 4-way intersection. Around the right corner, they hear "popping" noises, identical to those they heard from the beetle swarm. Rounding the corner, they see a large room with thousands of beetles, as well as a giant specimen of the species.
The beetles see them & a swarm, plus the giant beetle, come after the party. The group flees in the direction opposite the elevator room, until the hall reaches a staircase submerged in water, which the group enters. The swarm & giat beetle stop at the water's edge. Cimmerii, Remus, & Reinhart shoot arrows at the giant beetle while it sprays them with its acid, eventually slaying it.
Meanwhile, Fin descends the stairs alone, into the water, without darkvison or any source of light whatsoever, allegedly looking for an exit. Instead he is attacked by something in the water, & wisely returns to the surface.
By this time, Romero has devestated the beetle swarm with burning hands spells (with the help of other party members with torches), & the smell of roasted insect hangs in the air.
In the room where the beetles lair, the group finds mounds of the orange sludge, which the beetles nested in & fed upon. In the beetles' nest, the party finds the skeletons of 3 humans in moldly red leather armor, each suit bearing an 8-pointed star, which Romero recognizes as the symbol of the Seekers, an organization of corrupt archaeologists & researchers.
Amid the bodies' possessions, they find 3 potions of Cure Light Wounds & a Pearl of Power.
Next, the group enters the room across from the beetles' lair, where they see 8 stone slabs about the size of a single bed, 4' high. At the far end of the room is a red clay statue of a powerfully-built warrior wielding a huge cylinder-headed greatclub. On one of the slabs lies a long-dead human corpse in masterwork red leather armor with the Seeker symbol on the left breast. The corpse's head is smashed in, as if by a heavy object.
Upon entering the room, some of the group become fatigued. At the same time, a giant bombardier beetle comes stumbling from between the slabs & attacks. The party quickly dispatch it. Fin takes the corpse's armor, as well as the silver ring it wears.
Battered & bruised, the party decides to return to the Fant house and recover. They make plans to visit Diamond Lake the next day, to stock up on supplies and to sell loot.
Reaping 9, 595
Leaving Hailleck behind, Cimmerii, Fin, Romero, Remus, & Reinhart leave for Diamond Lake. Before leaving, Hailleck lets Reinhart borrow the suit of +1 chainmail he found in the tomb.
Reaping 10, 595
The party arrives in Diamond Lake. The majority of the day is spent in town, stocking up on supplies & selling loot.
That evening, in the Feral Dog, Fin takes part in a dagger throwing contest with other patrons. He is defeated by Tirra, an attractive elven woman who flirts with him intensely. Unconcerned with being branded a "cockblocker," Cimmerii intervenes, not trusting the elf. Tirra invites Fin to join her at Lazarre's House, should he tire of his "girlfriend."
The group also spots a mysterious figure in green robes. Soon after they spot it, the figure slips out the door & vanishes into the night.
Fin & Cimmerii decide to investigate Lazarre's House, while the others wait outside.
Within, the pair run into Tirra again, who invites them to sit with her & he companion, a man in red robes named Khellek. Khellek tells Cimmerii & Fin that he and Tirra are adventurers who've spent the last several days exploring the Stirgenest Cairn across the lake, while trying to pump Fin for information on his doings as well. Eventually, Fin lets it slip that he's in a "group," & Khellek & Tirra conclude that they're adventurers & inquire if they've done any cairn-hunting of their own. Luckily, Fin doesn't let much more slip. Fin does, however, notice a ring on Khellek's finger, with the same symbol found on the red armor in the tomb--the Seekers.
Meanwhile, a nearby young wizard of Suel descent, Jethias Talimor eavesdrops on the conversation.
After awhile, Khelleck announces he's returning to his chambers at the Emporium & bids Tirra, Cimmerii, & Fin good night. Jethias leaves shortly thereafter.
As Reinhart, Romero, & Remus wait outside Lazarre's House for Cimmerii & Fin, they hear a voice from a nearby alley, which sounds exactly like Fin. Upon investigating, they find the alley empty.
Soon, Khellek exits Lazarre's House. Dumbfounded, Reinhart, Romero, & Remus ask him if he's seen their companions.
"I would advise filing a missing person report with the Watch, not harassing passerby," snaps Khellek, as he heads toward the Emporium.
At that moment, Jethias also exits. He begins a conversation with the three & offers his services, & those of his master, the wizard Allustan.
At that moment, Melinde, a vivacious young redheaded paladin of Heironeous exits Lazarre's & approaches Reinhart, whom she knows from the garisson. Reinhart leaves for the night, escorting Melinde to the Diamond lake Garisson.
Soon Fin & Cimmerii arrive, and they compare notes. Jethias agrees to arrange a meeting with Allustan. Jethias will meet the party the next day at the Feral Dog & lead them to his master's home.
Reaping 11, 595 CY
Fin, Romero, Reinhart, Cimmerii, & Remus meet Jethias outside the Feral Dog, & he leads them to Allustan's house. Allustan emerges from the house, & takes the group to his garden on his grounds.
Cimmerii shows him the statuettes, & the group eventually tells him about the tomb. Allustan informs the group that from their description, & from the statuettes, the tomb was probably built by the fabled Wind Dukes of Aaqa, lords of elemental air. The Wind Dukes fought against the Queen of Chaos & her greatest general, Miska the Wolf-Spider, ages ago in the great war of Law vs Chaos.
Seven of the Wind Dukes left the struggle for a time to develop a weapon to defeat Miska. Their creation was the Rod of Law. In the final battle on the Plains of Pesh, north of the Nyr Dyv, one of these "Wandering Dukes" impaled Miska with the Rod of Law, opening a great rift in the earth (now known as Rift Canyon) & exiling Miska to another dimension. The Rod itself was shattered into seven parts, which were scattered across the earth.
Allustan tells the party that the Wind Dukes buried the heroes of the Battle of Pesh in the Cairn Hills, & that the Whispering Cairn is likely the tomb of one of these heroes. He encourages the group to explore the tomb futher, & to unlock the mystery of the lantern room, even if they have to explore the flooded portion of the tomb.
The group leaves Diamond lake that afternoon.
Reaping 12, 595 CY
Cimmerii, Romero, Fin, Reinhart, Jethias, & Remus return to the Fant house to find that while they were away, Hailleck restored the outhouse!
The six (Hailleck stays behind at the house) enter the flooded portion of the tomb, where they are attacked by a water elemental. They defeat the elemental & then slay a ghoul named Ulavant wearing a white gold Seeker ring.
In a side room, they discover another body wearing Seeker armor. Cimmerii finds & takes the +1 shortsword it wears. In its backpack, the party finds the missing red lantern!
The group returns to the lantern room, hangs the red lantern, & places torches in all the other lanterns. The room comes alive with light & shadow & they hear stone shifting down the blue corridor.
Upon investigating, they determine the sound came from up above, so Fin, Jethias, Cimmerii, & Remus climb up the chain to find a short passage at the top. Romero & Reinhart wait below.
At the end of the passage is a huge face with an open mouth. Despite Fin's best efforts to look for traps, a pressure plate is still triggered. The face's mouth opens & a strong wind erupts, threatening to blow the party out of the passage to fall 50' to their deaths. As suddenly as it started, the wind stops, & the group finds it can enter the face's mouth to a room beyond.
What the group finds is a large room, the floor covered deep in iron balls about the size of large oranges, about 10' below them. A 3' wide beam of petrified wood spans the chasm, ending at a door on the other side of the room.
They quickly discover that the iron balls shoot from the wall whenever anyone attempts to cross the chasm on the beam. Fin instead hangs under the beam & goes hand-over-hand to the end, to find the door locked.
The other lower themselves to the unstable floor. At that moment they hear a sinister, childlike voice. "This should be interesting," it says. Suddenly, from beneath the balls emerges a grick, which the party barely manages to slay, thanks to Cimmerii's magic blade. All the while, the voice taunts & laughs at the party.
After slaying the grick, the voice reveals itself as the ghost of a young teen named Alastor Land, who died exploring the tomb 30 years ago after running away from home. He informs the party that the door is sealed from the other side, but he can slip through & open it. In return, he requests that the party find his bones in the spheres below & bury them next to the graves of his family on a farmstead outside Diamond Lake. The party agrees, finds his bones, gets directions, & returns to the Fant house.
Reaping 13, 595 CY
The group awakes that morning to hear a feminine voice calling Cimmerii's name. Outside they see a young half-elven ranger. Cimmerii tells the group it's Daejin Moon, one of her fellows from Bronzewood Lodge, & goes out to talk to her. Cimmerii returns to the house & informs the party she won't be able to go to Diamond lake with them, as she's been summoned to Bronzewood Lodge to speak with her superiors. After she leaves, Jethias, Hailleck, Romero, Remus, Fin, & Reinhart leave for Diamond Lake.
Reaping 14, 595 CY
The party arrives in Diamond Lake. Citing other business, Hailleck splits from the party, which doesn't surprise them in the least. Reinhart also leaves, citing business at the garisson. Fin, Jethias, Remus, & Romero visit Taggin's General store & buy a shovel to bury Alastor's bones. They then head for the Land farmstead, about 10 minutes east of town.
In a small grove of Deklo trees, the four find the Land family graveyard, consisting of five headstones. Unfortunately, all 5 graves appear to have been recently dug up, attested to by the nearby piles of dirt & two abandoned shovels.
The headstones read:
Anders Land: 531-564 CY
Bemissa Land: 534-576 CY
Coldaren Land: 550-576 CY
Gertia Land: 563-576 CY
Alastor Land: 552-
Romero identifies a four-petaled flower motif on Bemissa's, Gertia's, & Coldaren's headstones as a symbol commonly associated with victims of the Red Death, a plague that swept through the region 19 years ago.
Fin notices the tracks of a wheelbarrow leading toward Diamond Lake, but without Cimmerii, the group can't track anything worth a damn.
The group decides to explore the nearby farmhouse for more clues. There, they encounter & slay a badly-wounded, enraged owlbear. Searching the area, Fin finds a baby owlbear--the group decides to attempt to sell it, at Jethias' suggestion. The group also finds a severed arm with a strange tattoo. Remus & Fin identify the tattoo to one very similar to that sported on the forehead of a local named Kullen, a 7' albino half-orcish thug who hangs out at the Feral Dog. Remus puts the arm in his backpack & the group decides to seek out Kullen for answers.
Fin, Remus, Romero, & Jethias return to Diamond Lake about two, & go to the Feral Dog, just barely opened. Remus approaches the bar & lays the severed arm upon it, asking the surly half-elven barkeep, Gorvic, if he knows anything about the tattoo.
"Come back at eight," he growls.
Unsure what to do for the next six hours, the group shops & gathers information. They sell the baby owlbear to the Emporium. They learn that Kullen works for Balabar Smenk, the most powerful mine manager in town. They also learn that Smenk's right-hand man, Mestal Fixx, hasn't been seen in 2 weeks, & that Smenk has seemed more on edge lately. They also discover that Smenk owns the old observatory in town, abandoned decades ago, & that someone has recently moved in, aided by some of Smenk's men.
Fin, Romero, Remus, & Jethias return to the Feral Dog around eight. Kullen is nowhere to be seen, so they order drinks at the bar. Kullen soon enters with his entourage: Rastophan, a wiry goon from the Mistmarsh; Todrik, a guisarme-weilding thug; & Merovin Bask, a bald, ill-tempered spellcaster.
Kullen approaches the group. "I hear someone's been askin' too many questions around here."
Jethias tries to difuse the situation by buying Kullen a drink--of course, he requests Diamond Water Ale, a foul, gritty substance that kicks like a mule & tastes like the polluted lake. Despite Jethias' efforts, Remus & the half-orc begin trading insults, until Remus shows Kullen the severed arm (which belonged to a man named Skutch, they learn) & the towering albino challenges the dwarf to a duel outside.
Remus, Romero, & Jethias follow Kullen, Bask, Todrik, & Rastophan outside, while Fin stays inside the Feral Dog.
Bask lets fly with a sleep spell, which drops Jethias, while Remus & Romero take on the other three.
Finally, Fearless Fin emerges from the bar to find his allies in trouble. Slapping Jethias awake, the two join Remus & Romero in combat.
Not long after, Jethias is knocked unconscious, and who should come strolling out of the Emporium but Hailleck?
Hailleck sees the dire straits his friends are in & begins walking toward them while playing his lute. Much to his allies' chagrin, Hailleck keeps on walking past the carnage, though he does try to inspire them on to greater feats of combative prowess, without risking his own neck, of course.
Eventually, the bard's guilt seems to get the best of him & he joins in the combat. Not long after, Kullen & company lie defeated, bleeding out from their wounds. Romero, Hailleck, & Fin remain standing, while Jethias & Remus are unconscious but stable.
Despite the fact that Kullen & his entourage probably are the only ones who can tell the party what happened to the remains of the Land family, Romero, Fin, & Hailleck decide to finish them off & throw the bodies into a pit behind the Feral Dog, where the losers in the nightly dog fights are deposited. Jethias, once he regains consciousness, takes the opportunity to berate the others for this oversight.
The berating is interrupted by the local law enforcement division, led by Deputy Jamis. Luckily, Jamis is easily bribed (100 gp), & the group decides to call it a night. Remus & Hailleck go to the Greysmere Covenant (where the local delegation from the dwarven stronghold of Greysmere to the south reside), Jethias goes to his master Allustan's home, & Romero & Fin go to the Able Carter Coaching House.
Reaping 15, 595 CY
Fin, Romero, Remus, Hailleck, & Jethias meet at the Able Carter Coaching House to decide what to do. Remus suggests they go to the Greysmere Covenant & speak with Dulok Blitzhame, head of the dwarven delegation in town.
On the way in, the group is warned by Gar, Dulok's nephew, that the Covenant's leader is "in a mood," before the young dwarf leaves.
Remus shows Skutch's arm to Dulok & asks him about the tattoo. After ordering him to "put that damn thing away," Dulok tells the group that the tattoo is the brand of Garavin Vesst, a mine manager who died last year. He tells them that all of Vesst's holding were bought out by Balabar Smenk years ago, & that anyone with such a tattoo likely works for him now.
The group then tells Dulok about the events of the previous night, & those leading up to them, wondering aloud if they should ask Smenk if he knows the location of the Land remains.
"So let me get this straight," Dulok groans, "you're going to confront one of the most powerful men in town, accuse him of graverobbing, & tell him you killed four of his workers?"
"Sounded good at the time," shrugs Fin.
Dulok suggests that instead they look into purchasing a scroll of speak with dead from the Church of St Cuthbert instead. The others agree that this is a much better course of action.
That afternoon, Fin, Romero, Remus, Hailleck, & Jethias sit in on a sermon delivered by Jierian Wierus, a fiery orater who drives his followers into a frenzy of self-flagellation.
Approaching Wierus with their problem, he seems reluctant to have anything to do with necromancy. They then ask Wierus if he remembers the Land family. He replies that they were members of his congregation, until dying from the Red Death in 576. They then explain that they need the scroll so they can recover the stolen remains & lay the family to rest. Wierus tells them he must pray on the matter, & to meet him tomorrow for the morning service.
Reaping 16, 595 CY
After another fiery sermon, Wierus meets with the party & agrees to sell them a scroll.
That night, Fin, Hailleck, Remus, Romero, & Jethias return to the Feral Dog & locate Kullen's remains. Romero uses the scroll to learn from Kullen's corpse that he & his boys were working for a necromancer named Filge, who requested they bring him some skeletons to animate. Kullen tells the group that they took the bones to the old observatory, some 5 minutes north of town. The spell expires & the group agrees to visit the observatory immediately.
Fin, Remus, Jethias, Romero, & Hailleck arrive at the old observatory. The front doors are locked, but Fin picks the locks & the group enters, only to be attacked by 3 skeletons with heavy crossbows. The group destroy the skeletons & place their remains in separate sacks, figuring they're the Land family, judging by slight deformities consistant with victims of the Red Death on two of the skeletons (the third is most likely Anders Land, the father who died in 564).
In a nearby feating hall, they see a gruesome sight--9 rotting corpses seated around a large dining table laden with food. The corpses, upon closer inspection, seem to be animated, though they don't move much. The seat at the head of the table remains empty. Jethias suspects that Filge eats with zombies for company.
Fin, Remus, Romero, Hailleck, & Jethias walk past the zombies & up to the next floor, which Filge has converted into his bedroom. The see an idealized, winged statue the Necromancer has erected to himself, as well as a stuffed goblin with a tophat holding a severed woman's head on a silver platter. On a desk, Fin finds a scroll of animate dead & a potion holder holding four tubes with different colored liquids (milky blue, deep red, sallow yellow, & white w/ black streaks)--a handwritten label on the holder reads "necroturgons."
Fin also finds a note:
"Filge,
I need you in Diamond Lake, my boy. The cult situation has grown worse. Deep within Dourstone Mine they're studying things brought in from the southern hills. Green worms & unkillable zombies. I nicked one of the worms for you to study.
I'll put you up in the old observatory. Show this letter to the big white half-orc at the Feral Dog. He'll help you get settled. I trust you'll find these coins sufficient to cover your travel from the Free City.
-S."
The group concludes that the note is from Balabar Smenk. Hailleck & Remus recognize the name Dourstone as that of another mine manager in town, a dwarf named Ragnolin Dourstone. He's friends with Dulok Blitzhame of the Greysmere Covenant. Rumor has it Ragnolin was run out of Greysmere decades ago, when he caved in his own mines on his agitating workers. They also suspect that the cult mentioned in the letter may be the Cult of the Green Lady, a sect of followers of Wee Jas (Suel goddess of magic, death, law, & vanity), who care for the Diamond Lake boneyard & hold their services in a cairn across the lake, not too far from the Stirgenest Cairn.
Jethias takes the necrmancer's spellbook from the nightstand & the 5 go up to the top floor.
On the top floor, Fin, Jethias, Hailleck, Remus, & Romero encounter Filge, who has converted the observatory's top floor into an operating theatre. A blue-skinned humanoid figure lays splayed on the operating table, which sits in the middle section of the room, which is 5' lower than the rest of the floor. Two sets of stairs descend to the central area, while 2 long wooden shelves about 3' wide flank the table, each shelf about 1' lower than the outer floor. Four large tanks surround the theatre, one on each side of the two small sets of stairs. The tanks are filled with yellow liquid straked with rust, & humanoid figures seem to bob within.
As they enter the room, it seems Filge has advance knowledge of their presence. He takes shelter behind one of tanks on the far side of the room, shouting, "Arise, my beautiful monstrosities!" A 5' tall skeleton (Gertia Land, presumably) accompanies him. Filge's familiar, an owl named Merrowahn, hovers nearby.
Remus attempts to reach Filge by running across one of the shelves, but it collapses under his weight, sending him to the floor of the operating theater. At that moment, four zombies burst from the tanks, 3 troglodyte zombies & one bugbear zombie. The zombies move to guard Filge.
Filge delivers a Ghoul Touch spell to Jethias via a spectral hand, sending some of his allies into fits of nausea & paralyzing the mage. Hailleck begins tossing jars from the intact shelf at the necromancer. A few times during the battle, the party sees Filge inject potions into his arm via a syringe.
Eventually, after a long, hard battle, the party triumphs. The zombies are destroyed & Filge is knocked unconscious. After tending to his allies, Romero opts to keep the necromancer from bleeding out, as he may have useful information.
Meanwhile, Reinhart receives a message at the Garrison from Jethias, telling the paladin of the group's plan to enter the observatory. Reinhart finishes his nightly duties at the garrison, dons his armor, & sets off for the observatory. On the way, he meets up with Cimmerii, who just arrived from the Bronzewood Lodge. Reinhart shares his infomation with her, & the pair enter the observatory.
On the top floor, they find Fin, Hailleck, Romero, Jethias, Remus, & the unconscious necromancer Filge. Reinhart ties Filge up & the other loot the observatory, taking Filge's silver disection instruments, a set of fine silverware, & some coins in Filge's closet. The group also finds a mysterious green segmented worm preserved in a jar on one of the shelves--they suspect it's the same worm mentioned in the note to Filge.
Reinhart & Cimmerii destroy the zombies in the dining room. Fin, Reinhart, Cimmerii, & Romero decide to spend the night in the observatory & take Filge to the garrison the next day. Jethias returns to Allustan's house & Remus & Hailleck return to the Greysmere Covenant.
Reaping 17, 595, in the wee hours
About 4:00 am, Romero is keeping watch over the bound & unconscious Filge. Romero hears something & notices a large owl at the window staring intently at him--Merrowhan, Filge's familiar. Romero slowly loads his crossbow, aims & fires. He's such a lousy shot, however, that the owl is able to lazily sidestep the bolt. Just as he's preparing to load another bolt, a second crossbow bolt from outside the window impales the owl from the back, causing its corpse to fall into the room.
Romero then hears what sounds like Filge's voice from outside:
"Ouch. That had to hurt," followed by maniacal laughter fading into the night.
Romero wakes everyone up. Fin rushes to a window to see a dark, cloaked figure running into the woods near the observatory. Filge also wakes up, bemoaning the loss of Merrowhan. Romero's plucking of the owl's feathers as he prepares it for a stew does little to console the derranged necromancer.
The group questions Filge. He tells them that Smenk asked him to come to town to investigate the strange green worm he took from the cultists' lair in Dourstone Mine, & that he determined it's part of a horrid undead creature called a son of Kyuss, an "unkillible" zombie that can turn others into similar creatures in the space of a day, should they become infested with the green worms also. He tells them that the cult is qustion calls itself the Ebon Triad, a cult dedicated to merging the gods Hextor, Erythnul, & Vecna into one supreme overgod. At mention of Hextor, Reinhart silently fumes.
The party decides to turn Filge over to the garrison.
Reaping 17, 595 CY
At the Garrison, Reinhart, Romero, Cimmerrii, & Fin turn Filge over to the commander, Tolliver Trask, and discuss the situation with him and the high priest of the chapel of Heironeous, Valkus Dun.
Not having enough evidence to implicate Smenk nor Ragnolin Dourstone in any wrongdoing, Trask asks the party to gather more evidence. He formally inducts Reinhart into the Greyhawk militia, giving him the authority to lead the investigation, "However," he warns, "such an investigation is to remain clandestine until sufficient evidence is gathered."
Trask also mentions that he will lead a force of militia to investigate the observatory to document Filge's crimes, if any.
Valkus Dun takes Reinhart aside & takes his holy symbol, telling him to come back in 3 days, when he will have a gift to aid the paladin in the mines.
Meanwhile, Cimmerii visits with chief scout Merris Sandovar, formerly of Bronzewood Lodge, while Reinhart attends to mundane affairs at the garrison.
Fin & Romero leave the garrison & bury the remains of Alastor & his family. The group buys a mule & meets that afternoon with Hailleck at the Feral Dog & decides to return to the Whispering Cairn. Remus & Jethias send word that they will be busy for the next 3 days.
Reaping 18, 595 CY
Fin, Romero, Cimmerii, Hailleck, & Reinhart arrive at the Fant House. After resting for awhile, they decide to return to the Whispering Cairn to see if Alastor Land was true to his word. Hailleck is sound asleep & won't wake up, so Reinhart, Fin, Romero, & Cimmerii leave without him.
The four relight the lanterns in the lantern room & ascend the chain to to the room where they fought the grick days earlier. They discover that the door on the far end is now open, presumably by Alastor Land. They enter the door to find a vast, circular chamber, brightly lit by daylight spells. The room is punctuated at equal distances by four huge alcoves, each with a different ba-relief which move and change via the magical steam released from the sculptures. One gallery depicts the Valley of AAqua, home of the Wind Dukes, & its invasion by the forces of Chaos. Another depicts 7 Wind Dukes presenting the Rod of Law to a group of superior Wind Dukes. The third depicts a group of Wind Dukes preparing for battle, led by their great general Icosial. The last depicts the defeat of Miska the Wolf-Spider, the death of Icosiel, & the shattering of the Rod of Law into seven parts.
The majority of the room is an open pit, 60' deep, with four walkways, 2 of which have been destroyed, radiating from a central platform. The platform has a hole in the center, with a column of swirling air passing through the center & up to the ceiling.
The four make their way around the outer rim of the room, exploring the bas-reliefs, before Fin begins to stride toward the central platform.
As Fin steps onto the walkway, 2 armored figures rise from the column of air--wind warriors--graceful elemental creatures that appear as ancient suits of armor decorated with flying pennons, animated by eddies of elemental air. The beings fly and wield twin longswords to deadly effect.
Immediately Fin and Reinhart engage one wind warrior while Romero engages the other. Cimmerii hangs back and fires arrows at the creatues, to little avail.
Romero begins by casting burning hands at the creature but it has little effect. He quickly switches to his mace, alternating between attacking & healing the massive damage the creature deals to him.
Fin & Reinhart, meanwhile, flank their opponent, though they still have their hands full. At one point, Reinhart is knocked unconscious. Fin thinks he's surely doomed, but Cimmerii drops her bow long enough to pour a potion of cure light wounds down the paladin's throat, putting him back in the game. She then draws her sword and goes to Romero's aid.
Just when all seems nearly lost, help arrives in the form of Hailleck, who finally woke up, saw his companions were gone & made his way to the cairn, where he spent the better part of an hour trying to haul his stubby dwarven self up the chain leading to this room. The dwarf begins singing a battle song to inspire his fellows, & rushes up to flank the wind warrior engaging Romero.
Fin, badly wounded, tumbles away from his foe, retreating to the central platform. The wind warrior disengages from Reinhart to follow, but is felled by an attack of opportunity from the paladin.
The other wind warrior soon falls thereafter, though Hailleck is knocked unconscious and the rest of the party is badly wounded. Luckily, everyone in the party (save Romero) had the foresight to buy several potions of cure light wounds while they were in Diamond Lake. Soon everyone is on their feet again, & the party moves to investigate the strange column of air.
Immediately Fin and Reinhart engage one wind warrior while Romero engages the other. Cimmerii hangs back and fires arrows at the creatues, to little avail.
Romero begins by casting burning hands at the creature but it has little effect. He quickly switches to his mace, alternating between attacking & healing the massive damage the creature deals to him.
Fin & Reinhart, meanwhile, flank their opponent, though they still have their hands full. At one point, Reinhart is knocked unconscious. Fin thinks he's surely doomed, but Cimmerii drops her bow long enough to pour a potion of cure light wounds down the paladin's throat, putting him back in the game. She then draws her sword and goes to Romero's aid.
Just when all seems nearly lost, help arrives in the form of Hailleck, who finally woke up, saw his companions were gone & made his way to the cairn, where he spent the better part of an hour trying to haul his stubby dwarven self up the chain leading to this room. The dwarf begins singing a battle song to inspire his fellows, & rushes up to flank the wind warrior engaging Romero.
Fin, badly wounded, tumbles away from his foe, retreating to the central platform. The wind warrior disengages from Reinhart to follow, but is felled by an attack of opportunity from the paladin.
The other wind warrior soon falls thereafter, though Hailleck is knocked unconscious and the rest of the party is badly wounded. Luckily, everyone in the party (save Romero) had the foresight to buy several potions of cure light wounds while they were in Diamond Lake. Soon everyone is on their feet again, & the party moves to investigate the strange column of air.
The group takes the items & descends the air column. On the way down, Cimmerii decides to continue though the hole in the central platform, to the bottom of the pit. Unfortunately, she learns that the column does not extend below the platform. Luckily, she manages to catch herself before falling to her death.
Looking over the edge, they see that the pit is a featureless basin, containing only the remains of the two ruined walkways. The 5 decide to return to the Fant house for the night & return to Diamond Lake the next day, where they will show Allustan their newfound treasures.
Reaping 19, 595 CY
Fin, Reinhart, Romero, Cimmerii, Hailleck, & the mule leave for Diamond Lake.
The group spends most of the day debating about whether to contact Balabar Smenk before delving into Dourstone mine. Reinhart thinks that there's a chance he can get Tolliver Trask to release Filge as a gesture of goodwill toward Smenk--that, & he wants to learn more about the cult of Hextor rumored to be in the mine.
Reaping 20, 595
The group arrives in Diamond Lake. Reinhart is granted special permission by Commander Trask to stable the as-yet-unnamed mule at the garrison. Reinhart asks Trask about releasing Filge & his proposal is flatly rejected. Furthermore, he's told that Smenk is quite upset about his observatory being broken into & denies knowledge of Filge's necromantic experiments.
After Reinhart's rejection, he and Cimmerii, Romero, Hailleck, & Fin visit Allustan. Jethias greets them at the door & apologizes for being unavailable the last few days, as Allustan's been keeping him busy.
"Thanks for letting us know in advance," Cimmerii say sarcastically.
Jethias leads the group into Allustan's study, where the elder wizard shows them a book he recently had delivered from Greyhawk.
"The Chronicle of Chan," he says, "attributed to a princess of elemental air who witnessed the Battle of Pesh." He then goes on to tell them that the book holds the names & glyphs of all who fought at the great battle, including the Wind Dukes. He informs them that many of the Wind Duke tombs in the Cairn Hills were constructed by Nadroc, a great architect of the Wind Dukes.
After discussing the book for a few more minutes, the group tells the wizard about their forray into the true tomb of Zosiel, & shows him their loot. He examines the box, & after casting a few divination spells on it, breaks the seal, opening it to reveal a talisman of the sphere, identical to the one used by the demon in the bas-relief above Zosiel's sarcophagus. He advises the party to hold on to it, as it may come in handy in the future.
The group then tells him about Filge & their plans to go into the Dourstone Mine. The wizard gives them a scroll of Obscuring Mist to help them in their endeavor and, like Trask, warns them that Smenk is dangerous. The party also asks Allustan about the spawn of Kyuss, but the wizard seems to know little more than Filge did.
Before leaving Allustan's, Jethias gives the party the 2 wands they found in the Whispering Cairn (Unseen Servant & Shatter), & Allustan lends them a Ring of Feather Falling.
About that time, Remus arrives, & the group catches him up to speed. The group then leaves Allustan's, still divided on whether to contact Smenk or not.
Romero & Hailleck leave the group, agreeing to meet up with them later at the Garrison. Fin, Remus, Cimmerii, & Reinhart return to the garrison to purchase some potions of cure light wounds from the Chapel of Heironeous.
Fin, Cimmerii, Reinhart, & Remus reach the Diamond Lake Garrison. While walking through the courtyard, they hear a scream from the dungeon entrance.
Going below, they see the young paladin Melinde & the junior cleric Tassilo laying unconscious on the floor, surrounded by 4 tomb motes. Filge watches nonchalantly nearby from his cell.
Reinhart, Remus, & Cimmerii rush in, while Fin runs to get help. Fin soon returns, but really isn't needed, so he stands by the stairs firing his crossbow at the little buggers. Reinhart, Remus, & Cimmerii finish the creatures off, though they all sustain bites from the creatures' infected teeth.
The tomb motes vanquished, Reinhart checks on Melinde & Tassilo, to find that they still live. At that point, Commander Trask & a group of his soldiers enter the dungeon to access the situation.
Filge is question, but denies having sent for the creatures, simply stating that they are extremely loyal, & came of their own accord.
Trask asks Reinhart, Cimmerii, Fin, & Remus to accompany him upstairs, while a group of his men remove Filge from his cell, shackling him.
Trask leads them out to the courtyard, where they see a horse-drawn caged wagon, used for transporting prisoners. Near the wagon stand the fat, cigar-chomping Sheriff Cubbin and his men, the local enforcers of law & order in Diamond Lake. With them are Gorvic, the half-elven bartender at the Feral Dog, & Natalo Bask, a dealer at the Emporium. Gorvic ponts at the party & speaks to Cubbin & Bask:
"That's them, Natalo. They're the ones who killed your brother!"
Gorvic's accusation refers to the slaying of Merovinn Bask, Natalo's brother & one of the members of Kullen's gang, a few nights before outside the Feral Dog (Reaping 14). Gorvic doesn't finger Reinhart, as he wasn't there, but he does accuse Remus & Fin (who were), & Cimmerii (who wasn't).
Remus claims it was justified, though Fin & Cimmerii claim their innocence. Reinhart is just confused & bewildered that anyone would deliver a coup-de-grace to a defeated enemy. Cimmerii begins arguing with Gorvic, claiming that he's held a grudge against her ever since they were children. Reinhart asks Trask to conduct his own investigation & to keep his friends at the garrison, rather than the Diamond Lake jail.
Trask informs Reinhart that though he is loathe to turn the 3 over to Cubbin, he has to uphold the law, & urges him to have his friends comply. He says that he'll send a runner to Bronzewood Lodge to verify Cimmerii's claim that she was there during the time the murders occurred.
Eventually, Remus, Fin, & Cimmerii agree to play along. Trask recommends they leave their weapons & valuables at the garrison, as the constables are notoriously corrupt, so they do so. Fin attempts to conceal a dagger & his lockpicks on his person, but Cubbin notices & confiscates both items, charging him with attempted escape. The 3 are shackled & loaded onto the wagon, along with Filge, who is to be tranferred to the constables' custody.
"Well, well. Isn't this an interesting turn of events? " cackles the necomancer, appreciating the irony. The four are transported to the prison, while Reinhart goes to the Feral Dog to find more witnesses to the alleged murders.
At the jail, Fin, Cimmerii, & Remus are soon joined by Hailleck & Romero, picked up separately in town. The group is placed in a holding cell with Filge, who seems to be annoying everyone but Fin, who engages the necromancer in a game of cards. Cimmerii especially seems creeped out by Filge, who constantly taunts her with sexual innuendos.
Reinhart, meanwhile, fails to discover any info exonerating his friends at the Feral Dog. Either people refuse to talk, or implicate the group further. Frustrated, the paladin returns to the garrison.
After a few hours of stewing, Cimmerii, Fin, Romero, Remus, & Hailleck are released. Cubbin tells them that a mysterious benefactor has posted their bail. He gives them a sealed letter, supposedly from their benefactor. The note is unsigned, & invites the group to join their benefactor for dinner at the Hungry Gar, a popular restaurant nearby. Remus & Fin decide to have a few drinks in the Feral Dog first, while Cimmerii, Hailleck, & Romero immediately head to the Hungry Gar.
Cimmerii, Hailleck, & Romero enter the Hungry Gar & are directed to a private dining room in the back. They enter to find a table set with places for everyone & heaping trays of food & spirits. At the head of the table sits none other than their benefactor, the corpulent, corrupt Balabar Smenk.
Smenk invites them to sit down, & they discuss their current situation. He explains that he can arranged to have the charges against them dropped in return for a favor. He states that he knows of their plans to investigate Dourstone Mine, & he welcomes someone bringing this cult, the Ebon Triad, down. All he wants in return is that they destroy & keep quiet any evidence of his cooperation with the cultists.
Cimmerii asks why he's so concerned just as Fin & Remus enter, fresh from the Feral Dog. Smenk explains that Dourstone asked him to secure supplies for the cult, but Balabar claims that he had no idea how depraved the group was. He mentions going down into the mines, led by Ragnolin Dourstone, & seeing black-robed figures with inhuman appendages worshipping in a chamber called the Black Cathedral, around a pool of grey, viscious liquid. He recalls meeting a green-robed, masked figure calling himself the Faceless One, in a laboratory filled with jars containing bizarre, green worms. Smenk nicked one of the worms to give to Filge. When Smenk tried to get out of the deal he'd made, he woke one morning to find the head of Mestal Fixx, his right-hand man, laying beside him in his bed.
The group agrees to the terms, though Fin tries to hit Smenk up for more supplies. Smenk instead gives Fin back his lockpicks & dagger that the constables confiscated. Fin makes a big deal about the dagger being scratched, so he passes the dagger to Cimmerii instead. The group also decides it may be best to keep the details of the deal secret from the paladin, though he may be too blinded by his hatred of Hextor to even care.
"One more thing," says Smenk. "I realize that you may need some aid, and that I may need someone to ensure my interests are served, so I'm supplying you with some firepower."
At that moment, much to the party's dismay, who should walk in but the derranged necromancer Filge.
"I can tell we're all going to become great friends," cackles the necromancer.
Cimmerii, Fin, Remus, Hailleck, & Romero agree to meet Filge atop the hill overlooking Dourstone Mine once it's dark, then the 5 leave the Hungry Gar & return to the garrison, where they gather their supplies & inform Reinhart of the situation. He doesn't seem to happy about bringing Filge along, but he doesn't complain much either, so the others silently agree that he must indeed be blinded by his hatred for Hextor.
As night falls, the 6 make their way to the meeting place, where they join Filge.
After much deliberation among the party, Filge uses the scroll of Obscuring Mist given to them by Allustan to sneak past the armed guards & into the mine. The group soon finds a tunnel with signs warning everyone to keep out. Down this tunnell they find a locked door. Fin picks the lock & the 7 continue until the tunnel ends at a room with a pit in the center. the pit is 10' square, ringed on 3 sides by a wooden railing, & has a heavy chain attached to the ceiling & descending deep into the darkness of the pit.
Unsure how deep the pit is, the group discusses several ways to get down, before settling on Remus' idea to unravel one of the 50' silk ropes & tie the ends together, giving them a total of 400'. Though not strong enough to support any of the group, it would certainly hold something small. Remus proposes to descend with the Ring of Feather Falling Allustan lent to them & holding the rope, then tying the ring to the rope once they hit the bottom & send it back up.
Remus puts on the ring & grabs the rope, & carrying Cimmerii, jumps into the darkness.
Remus & Cimmerii land 200' below, on a 10' square wooden platform with high walls on 3 sides, an open top & a winch mechanism in the center attached to the chain & stablized by struts at the top of the elevator car. Outside the elevator is a large pillared chamber lit by several torches. The two hear voices & footsteps headed toward them. Cimmerii ties the ring to the rope while Remus steps out of the elevator to investigate.
Remus sees 2 humanoid figures wearing chainmail masks & cloth tabards marked with the holy symbol of Hextor.
Their arms are covered in tattoos of strange symbols & diabolic images. One figure charges Remus with his greataxe, while the other runs. Shortly thereafter, Remus & Cimmerii hear a loud pounding, as if someone's hitting a door with the butt of an axe.
Remus quickly dispatches his foe while Cimmerii moves out. The chamber is about 100' long & 35' wide, except at its southern portion, which expands into a circular domed hall about 60' in diameter & 60' high. The northern section of the room is supported by elaborate black marble pillars & arches. The floor is tiled in black marble. Three halls lead from the room, one each to the west, north, south, & east. At the end of each hall is a door. The western door is unmarked, the eastern hall is flanked by crimson banners bearing the symbol of Hextor, while the north door bears the symbol of a human hand grasping an eye.
The southern part of the chamber is dominated by a large pool of dark, viscous liquid, 25' square. A marble stairway is carved into the curved wall around the pool. Three platforms stand above the pool on the stairway. The southern one at 30', & the eastern & western ones at 20'.
The guard who fled comes running back from the eastern hall, meeting Remus about halfway down, while Cimmerii supports him with bowfire, quickly slaying him. Romero arrives, ties the ring off, & joins Cimmerii & Remus, telling them that Fin is climbing down the chain while the others use the ring. At that moment, the eastern door opens & 8 skeletons in rusty, corroded full plate with maces begin walking up the 5' wide passage. Cimmerii yells up the shaft for Filge to come next while Remus moves to engage the skeletons.
Remus blocks the hall, taking on the skeletons one-by-one. Romero channels the power od Wee Jas to gain control of a a few of the skeletons, pitting them against each other, while Cimmerii supports Remus as best she can with bowfire.
Meanwhile, after a perilous climb down, Fin arrives, though he nearly fell twice. Filge arrives about the same time, ties off the ring, & send it up to Reinhart & Hailleck. Cimmerii hand the Wand of Shatter to Filge, since he's likely the best able to utilize it.
Remus back up to the hallway entrance, giving Fin some room to get in on the combat, while Romero continues with his rebuking attempts. Reinhart soon arrives, sends the ring up to Hailleck, & joins Fin, Remus, & Romero.
Meanwhile, Filge, awed at the Black Cathedral, examines the domed area. Cimmerii follows, not trusting the necromancer. Filges points out blood stains around the pool & on the platforms, as well as scratches made by something heavy, such as equipment, & scattered ashes. At the topmost platform, the necromancer finds a wicker basket containing a pouch holding 100 gp, & a small silver idol of Erythnul, god of panic & slaughter.
Filge & Cimmerii return to the others, who have destroyed all but 3 of the skeletons, who are currently under Romero's control, standing in the hall doing nothing. Just as Hailleck arrives, the group hears a loud, grunts, snorts & squealing, followed by hoofbeats. Suddenly, a large dire boar (named Beast), big as a horse, runs up the hall, trampling the skeletons & goring Romero, badly wounding him. Romero heals himself while Fin & Reinhart flank Beast, Remus engages it head-on, Cimmerii pelts it with arrows, & Hailleck sings a rousing battle0hymn to get the party's spirts rising. Filge retreats to the stairway & watches.
Beast gores Romero again, putting him down. Cimmerii rushes formard & pours a potion down the cleric's throat. Moments later, due mainly to Fin's massive sneak attack damage, Beast is slain.
Searching the bodies, the group discovers that the masked guards were tieflings. They find a total of 4 potions of Cure Light Wounds & 2 potions of Shield of Faith (+2), & 54 gp on the guards. Cimmerii takes one of their composite longbows (+2 Str bonus).
Fin, Reinhart, Hailleck, Cimmerii, Remus, Romero, & Filge enter the eastern hall & investigate the room the skeletons came from. The room is dark, so Fin lights his lantern, revealing a room 40' by 20', with open doors to the left & right. A 10' wide passage heads east. The room is empty, save for 4 non-animated armored skeletons, which Reinhart destroys just to be safe.
The group hears noise from up the passage. Looking down, 35' ahead, they see an open pair of double-doors, leading to a large, torch-lit chamber beyond. A one-eyed, scar-faced man in black armor is clearly visible. He raises his flail toward Reinhart.
"You! Lapdog of Heironeous! You have invaded my sanctum like a common thief in the night! I challenge you to single combat!"
The paladin growls and begins striding down the hall.
Reinhart walks down the hall, followed by Romero, Cimmeri, Filge, Hailleck, Remus, & Fin. On the way, Hailleck begins humming a rousing battle song to inspire his comrades, while Remus passes Reinhart his potion of False Life, which he consumes.
They enter a huge, torchlit room with a statue of Hextor in the center, over 20' tall. The floor of the room is covered in sand, a few inches deep. To the left, right, & front, the room is surrounded by a railless balcony about 20' above. The balcony is 5' wide at the left & right, while in front it is larger, holding a sloped viewing area with a large wooden throne flanked by 2 chairs.
Garras, a fat, bald, armored half-orc with the symbol of Hextor branded onto his face sits in the throne. To his right is his wife, Kendra, a slim, pale, dark-haired woman who would be judged attractive if not for her scarred face. At various points around the balcony stand 3 tiefling guards in chainmail masks with longbows & great axes (similar to those encountered in the Black Cathedral), as well as 2 troglodyte zombies.
Once the entire party enters the room, the double doors magically shut & lock beind them, effectively trapping the party.
On the floor of the room, to the rear, stand 8 robed cultists, some of whom the party recognize as citizens of Diamond Lake, in leather armor with longspears. Before them stands the man who challenged Reinhart--a one-eyed, scarr-faced human with thinning blond hair & a beard, wielding a flail & shield, & wearing black full plate with the symbol of Hextor etched upon the breastplate in dried blood.
"Come forth, fool, and meet your doom," he says. "I ask for your word that your companions will not interfere, as I give you my word that my allies will not."
Though Reinhart lets it be known he doesn't trust the priest, he nods in agreement.
"I am Theldrick of Hextor," he says.
"I am Reinhart of Heironeous," the paladin replys.
"Lay on!" shouts Theldrick, and the two begin to fight.
While Reinhart & Theldrick trade blows, Cimmerii moves to a position on the other side of the statue where she can get a clear shot in case Theldrick's goons interefere. Romero & Remus move about 10' away from Reinhart, ready to come to his aid should he need it, while Hailleck stands in fromt of the statue, humming his war ditty while gazing up at the ruby imbeded in the statue's forehead. Fin, meanwhile, remains by the door.
Filge moves up next to Cimmerii & whispers in her ear, "Cover me, my love." He then casts Command Undead on one of the zombies, making it walk to the nearest tiefling guard, pushing him off the balcony. The guard falls to the ground 20' below, right next to Cimmerii, who fires arrows at him.
"Treachery!" screams Kendra, attempting to wrest control of the zombie from Filge, but failing. The other tiefling guard begin firing arrows at the party, while the robed cultists begin attacking with their spears. Filge then begins using the Wand of Shatter to destroy the guard's bows, one by one.
After taking a monstrous hit from Theldrick, Reinhart moves 5' back & uses the Bolt of Heironeous infused in his holy symbol by Valkus Dun. A Lightning Bolt leaps from the holy symbol, hitting Theldrick, though far from slaying him.
After slaying a few guards & cultists, three more tiefling guards emerge on the balcony. Garras drops a rope & climbs down to the floor, where he engages Remus in melee. He is soon followed by those tiefling guards with great axes, whose bows have been destroyed, as well as the zombie not under Filge's control. Filge's zombie enages those tieflings remaining on the balcony, while Kendra tries to regain control of it (in vain).
During the course of the battle, one tiefling's bowstring breaks, while Hailleck stumbles & accidentially stabs Romero with his rapier. Soon after, Hailleck is downed by a spear-wielding cultist, & begins bleeding out.
A cultist runs past Reinhart, trying to flank him, but is felled by the paladin's blade. Soon Theldrick knocks Reinhart out, but Fin is able to revive him with a potion of Cure Light Wounds.
Kendra gives up on trying to regain control of Filge's zombie, & begins firing crossbow bolts at Cimmerii, who returns fire. Garras is making short work of Remus, when Filge uses the wand of Shatter to destroy his flail. He draws his dagger & stabs Remus, putting him down.
Meanwhile, Cimmerii & Filge harry Theldrick with Magic Missles & arrows, while Fin & Reinhart trade blows with the cult leader. Cimmerii soon moves to revive Remus with a potion of Cure Light Wounds. Remus soon finishes Garras off. Kendra cries out, "Garras!" & climbs down to the floor.
Romero makes a brave attempt to heal Hailleck & bring him back to consciousness, but is dealt a mortal wound from a cultist's spear, plunging into his unprotected armpit & deep into his heart, slaying him instantly. Remus soon downs the offending cultist, while Filge brings Hailleck back to the land of the living with his syringe.
At one point, Fin is downed by Theldrick, when Filge rushes up & plunges a syringe of Cure Light Wounds into Fin's body, reviving the young rogue, who then moves to engage Kendra. Filge's zombie is soon slain by the remaining tiefling, who climbs down to the floor, where his great axe is soon destroyed by Filge's wand of Shatter.
After a couple rounds healing themselves, Reinhart & Theldrick lay on once more. Theldrick appears to have Reinhart on the ropes once more, when suddenly Fin appears from behind, running the high priest through with his rapier. Theldrick curses Reinhart for his cowardice with his last breath, blood burbling from his mouth, as the paladin delivers the coup-de-grace, beheading the Hextorian.
Filge takes contol of the remaining zombie & uses it to aid Remus, Cimmerii, & Hailleck in slaying Kendra & the remaining tiefling guard & cultists.
The group looks around at the carnage, mouring the loss of Romero--except for Filge, who seems to still be smarting from the cleric eating his familiar, Merrowhan. Filge suggests making a zombie out of Romero, but Reinhart will have none of it.
Looting the bodies, the group finds a few scrolls (Silence, Sound Burst, Dispel Magic, & Spiritual Weapon), a wand of Cure Light Wounds (41 charges), a few potions of Cure Light Wounds, and assorted coins. Hailleck takes Romero's +1 chain shirt & Theldrick's masterwork light crossbow, & Fin takes his Ring of Protection +1. They also find several keys on the bodies, which Cimmerii takes. Cimmerii also takes a plain, silver ring, inlaid with several emeralds, from one of the tieflings. Cimmerii also takes Theldrick's necklace, which Filge identifies as bearing the talon of a young red dragon.
The group climbs up to the balcony, where they discover that the large wooden throne has three glass gems set into one arm. They discover by pressing these they can, lock, unlock, open, & close the double doors they entered through. They also see a door to the right of the throne & enter it, descending the steps behind it.
The stairs lead to a small chapel, lit by two Everburning Torches. Fin takes one while Filge takes the other. On the wall over the altar is a red tapestry emblazoned with the symbol of Hextor, which Reinhart rips down in disgust.
Behind the tapestry, Fin finds a secret panel. He fails to find the Inflict Light Wounds trap however, & is damaged before finding a hollow with a locked metal box. The box contains a golden chalice, 2 silver holy symbols of Hextor, a Pearl of Power (1st), & a silvered dagger with a jeweled hilt (which Cimmerii takes).
Cimmerii, Reinhart, Fin, Hailleck, Remus, Filge, & Filge's zombie enter the chamber south of the chapel, which appears to be Theldrick's room. On the table, they find a stone key (which Cimmerii takes), a leather-bound book, & several scrolls, which appear blank, though ones tests as magic. Filge uses Read Magic to determine it's written in a cipher.
The book appears to be Theldrick's journal. Two entries get the party's attention:
Praise Be to the Scourge of Battle,
The Faceless One grows increasingly concerned. That addled beast Grallak Kur has yet to provide new insights into the Overgod's nature. The crude missives he sends speak of the worms, of a slumbering power that must be awoken, but nothing more. I wish he would go back to the black pit that spawned him if he has nothing more to offer.
The Faceless One tells me this ties into an ancient figure, a being of great power. Of course, he tells me little else. He enjoys keeping his secrets, but he forgets that they flourish only behind the protection of Hextor. His latest taunt is a scroll that he tells me contains all the answers I seek. Of course, the fool wrote it in a cipher. Were it not for the dictates of the Ebon Triad, I would lead my troops into their damnable labyrinth and kill every last bird and wizard within it.
Grallak is the key. Thank the Scourge that he trusts me and not the Faceless One. Otherwise, I doubt the Faceless One would bother imparting anything to us. We cannot trust these mages. When the Overgod arises, I think it will be time to settle some old scores.
Under the Herald's Watchful Eye We Conquer,
Grallak Kur has finally yielded a useful clue. I personally delivered it to the labyrinth, and the Faceless one giggled like a blood-addled berserker when he saw the message. Grallak spoke of the worms again, of course. He says that even now they stir and writhe. The world is like an apple infested with them. All seems well for now, but soon they burst through the skin and swarm across the land. Still, part of this vision troubles me. Grallak spoke of a great power behind them, but the Ebon Triad teaches that these worms will awaken the Overgod. Is there some other power at hand here that we cannot see? Is it friend or foe?
The Faceless One knows more, but he of course has little to say. Perhaps Grallak has invented everything. His monstrous kin are few in number and battered after their pilgrimage through the Underdark. If he is an imposter or trickster, we may need to root him out of this place. In that case, our agents must make another supply run. Six coils of rope, and perhaps bows and more arrows, should do the trick. With the petitioners leading the way we can uncover any ambushes they have within the cliffs.
The table also holds some correspondence, addressed to "Rick" (presumably Theldrick), from someone in Greyhawk named "Lori." It mentions that preperations have already begun for an upcoming festival in Greyhawk. The letter also mentions "Auric's Warband" and whether they'll take the day for a third year. Also, Lori relates having to dispose of a lover from a place called Cauldron, and laments missing the lover's Suloise features.
Under Theldrick's bed, the group finds a chest containing 70 gp & a fist-sized gold bust of a dwarf wearing a gem-studded crown.
West of the chapel, the group finds Garras & Kendra's room. On the table lies a Hextorian prayer book, which Reinhart tears up. In a wooden chest under the bed, the group finds 200 gp, a wand of Enlarge Person, which Filge takes, & a jeweled bracer, which Cimmerii takes.
The rest of the Hextorian complex contains chambers for the guards & cultists, Beast's room, and a storeroom containing foodstuffs, wine, water, tools, rope, torches, oil, etc. In one of the guard's rooms, they find 20 pp & a gold necklace, which Cimmerii takes. Under a flagstone in the cultists' room, they find a gold holy symbol of Hextor & the broken blade of a silver, ceremonial dagger.
The group decides to bar the door to the complex & spend the night there, to recoup their lost spells and rest. Almost immediately, Remus opens one of the casks of wine, & he, Cimmerii, Hailleck, & Filge take to drinking. Cimmerii soon has enough wine to give in to the necromancer's advances, & they retire to Garras & Kendra's bedchamber.
Reaping 21, 595 CY
Cimmerii awakes feeling like @#$%, with a headache & fever.
"What's wrong?" asks Fin. "How'd you come down with this?"
"I'm not sure," she replies. "I don't know if it was from the tomb mote's bite yesterday, or from Filge," she whispers.
"It wasn't a threesome, was it?" asks Remus, eyeing Filge's newly-acquired troglodyte zombie.
"No," growls Cimmerii. "That thing stayed at the other side of the room."
Despite feeling badly, Cimmerii agrees to go on.
Fin, Cimmerii, Remus, Hailleck, Reinhart, & Filge leave the Citadel of Hextor and return to the Black Cathedral. Examining the unmarked western door, Cimmerii finds that the stone key found in Theldrick's room fits it perfectly. Opening the door, the group finds a roughly-hewn passage with stairs descending into pitch darkness. Remus leads the way, while Fin takes the center with his Everburning Torch, with Filge & his zombie taking up the rear.
The stairs end at a large, natural cavern, filled with a virtual forest of stalagmites & stalactites choking most of the room, and making the ground difficult to traverse. Suddenly, the group finds themselves attacked by three barbaric-looking humanoids, with rocky, grey skin, long stringy hair, & eyeless faces. One throws javelins from the shadows while the other two engage in melee, one attacking Fin & the other attacking Remus. Eventually the creatures are dispatched, and the party identifies them as grimlocks--monstrous, blind creatures of the Underdark.
The group decides to press on, exiting the cavern through another descending passage.
Fin, Cimmerii, Reinhart, Hailleck, Remus, Filge, & Herman (the troglodyte zombie under Filge's control) proceed deeper into the caves. They enter a large cavern which ends in a cliff with a 45' drop. Sunndenly, they find themselves ambushed by two krenshars & their grimlock master, who wields a masterwork battleaxe & wears a grey fur cloak & a wolf-skull mask painted red to emulate his pets.
The Krenshars attempt to scare the party, but only succeed with Filge, who begins descending the cliff via several spikes set into the wall. Cimmerii begins firing her longbow at the kennel master from 5' away & he breaks it. Filge eventually regains his composure while the rest of the party slays the krenshars & their master. They find a potion of Cure Light Wounds (blue), 2 potions of Remove Fear (yellow), 4 agates, & a large ruby. Remus lends Cimmerii his shortbow, since she's currently too weak to use the composite longbow she found earlier.
The party looks over the edge of the cliff. remus, Cimmerii, & hailleck inform the others that the spikes lead straight down to the bottom, 45' below. 20' across & 15' down, they see a debis-choked ledge. The shaft's bottom is choked with stagamites & other rocky debris.
The group decides to descend, with Remus leading the way, followed by Reinhart, then Fin, Cimmerii, Hailleck, Filge, & Herman. Just as Cimmerii is getting ready to descend, she spots movement on the ledge.
"Grimlocks!" she warns.
One grimlock pulls back its arm to throw a tanglefoot bag, when it suddenly bursts in its hand, covering the grimlock in a sticky mess. The other hits Remus, sticking him to the wall. Remus breaks free & begins descending, while Fin & Reinhart go back to the top. The trapped grimlock breaks free & the pair begin firing arrows across the gap, while Cimmerii, Fin, Filge, Reinhart, & Hailleck return fire. One grimlock is quickly slain, while the one who was trapped proves harder to kill, dealing severe damage to the others before he, too, is slain.
The group descends to the bottom of the cavern. Before them, about 20' away, lies a 10' wide, 8' high passage, which Cimmerii, Remus, & Hailleck say appears to lead to another cavern.
Twenty feet above the passage lies another, this one less than half as wide & only about 6' tall. A short series of spikes in the cavern wall lead from the upper passage to the ledge above, from where the grimlocks were shooting. Fin climbs up to the ledge & loots the bodies, finding 4 potions of Cure Light Wounds, 2 50' hemp ropes with grappling hooks, 42 gp, 4 quivers of arrows, & 2 masterwork composit longbows (+2 Str), one of which he gives to Cimmerii, even though she's currently too weak to draw it, once he descends.
At this point, the group takes a closer look at some of the coinage they've looted. They notice among that taken from the Grimlocks are not only local Greyhawk coinage, but also much from the lands of the Sheldomar Valley hundreds of miles to the southwest (Keoland, the Ulek states, Geoff, Sterich, & the Yeomanry).
Convinced that the grimlock band must have migrated long distances to get here, the group then decides to explore the bottom passage.
The tunnel opens up into another cavernous chamber, over 50' high. Directly above the group, 20' up, sits a stone shelf. On the other side of the cavern, 30' up, sits another stone shelf. A rope bridge consisting of 3 lengths of rope placed in a "V" links the shelves. Directly ahead, a huge pile of stone rubble rises almost to the second shelf. Cimmerii, Remus, & Reinhart begin climbing up the rubble, perhaps seeking an easy way to the second shelf, when they are attacked by two chokers.
After slaying the chokers, the group searches the rubble, where they find the gnawed bones of 2 grimlocks, a broken morningstar of stone & bone, & a leather necklace set with 4 rubies. Cimmerii also finds an unusual item--a masterwork cold iron longsword, with the symbol of Heironeous engraved on its pommel. naturally, she gives it to Reinhart.
After defeating the chokers, a gaunt, female grimlock with a ropey physique drops from in ledge above. In a blood-fueled rage, she attacks the party with twin daggers. Hailleck is quickly downed, and nearly bleeds to death before Cimmerii revives him with the wand. Much damage is dealt by the grimlock before she is finally slain.
Searching her corpse, Cimmerii sees she's wearing fine, black leather armor with steel studs, cut for a female, so she takes it & puts it on, to discover that it's +1 Studded Leather Armor. She also carries two masterwork daggers--Fin takes one & Hailleck the other. In a blood-stained sack tied to her belt, they find two potions of Cure Light Wounds, over 200 gp, another Wand of Cure Light Wounds (34 charges), & the preserved head of a female dark elf.
After healing up, the group decides to toss a rope up to the lower ledge above & climb up.
Fin & Hailleck climb up to the ledge, which is only big enough for the two of them. Directly in front of them, the 3-rope bridge leads to the other ledge, 10' above them & 15' across. To their rear lies a narrow, winding tunnel, some 5' wide & perhaps 6' tall.
The two beign to cross, but are stymied by three grimlocks who emerge from hiding on the upper ledge & begin throwing javelins at them. The two retreat & try to exchange missle fire, but the grimlocks move out of their line of sight. Hailleck & Fin eventually move back into the tunnel so the others can get up. Reinhart goes up first. Cimmerii, while having a spat with Filge, trys going up next, but the necromancer shakes the rope, bringing her to the group. Herman ascends, then Cimmerii slaps Filge & follows. Remus is last to go.
On the ledge, Hailleck, Cimmerii, & Fin stand in the passage while Herman tries to cross & Reinhart waits patiently for the slow-moving zombie to pick up the pace. Hailleck tries charming one of the grimlocks, but it doesn't do much good. Halfway across, the Grimlocks shake the bridge, sending Herman to the ground. Undeterred, Herman climbs again.
Meanwhile, the party tries using ranged attacks, but has little luck. In a bold move, Fin runs across the bridge & begins engaging the 3 grimlocks in melee, alone. Remus then tries crossing, only to be shaken off the bridge by the grimlocks. By this time, Herman is back on the ledge, & has managed to get on the bridge before anyone else, slowly moving to Fin's aid. However, Reinhart's patience has worn thin by this time, so he & Cimmerii shake the bridge, & Herman falls to the ground once more.
Meanwhile, Fin has slain one of the grimlocks & begins fighting another, tumbling past him to block the tunnel exiting the cavern. Reinhart takes the lead on the bridge, while the others follow, like a slow-moving Train of Justice. Reinhart & Remus eventually make it across to help Fin dispatch the offending grimlocks.
(During the whole bridge debacle, I suggested the players eventually come up with a name for their party. Without missing a beat, Jason says, "The Short Bus!")
Reinhart, Fin, Filge, Herman, Cimmerii, Remus, & Hailleck leave the room with the bridge, via a passage that ascends sharply. They arrive in a chamber with a number of 10' vertical slopes, where they surprise a pair of grimlocks wrestling.
The group attacks, & one of the grimlocks attempts to keep the party from climbing up the cliff by holding them back with his longspear, while the other yells down the northernmost of the 3 passages exiting the room. Six more grimlocks come from the north. Remus & reinhart moves to block the northern passage, effectively keeping the grimlocks from entering the room.
Meanwhile, just as the other 2 grimlocks are slain, the enraged grimlock chieftain emerges from the southeast passage & attacks Fin, nearly slaying him. Reinhart, Hailleck, Herman, & Cimmerii move to protect Fin while Filge injects the rogue with a potion of Cure Light Wounds in exchange for returning the crow-skulled Amulet of Natural Armor Fin took from the necromancer 5 days before.
Cimmerii tries attacking the grimlock at close range with her borrowed shortbow, but the chieftain sunders Remus' bow, so she uses her shortsword instead. Eventually the chieftain is slain. Remus slays nearly all of the other six grimlocks single-handedly, with some help from Fin & Hailleck.
The group loots the bodies & explores the chambers the grimlocks & their chieftain came from. The chief has a potion of Cure light Wounds. Cimmerii takes his masterwork greataxe, which seems to be of dwarven make, while Fin takes his +1 Mithral Shirt. In the northern chamber, they find a jade figurine of Erythnul, 50 gp, 3 garnets, & a silver necklace set with 3 gems. In the chieftian's room, which is decorated with a variety of humanoid heads mounted on spikes set into the wall (human, duergar, svirfneblin, ghoul, dwarf, derro, & drow), they find even more treasure: 4 rubies, 150 gp, a jeweled statuette of a drow warrior, & a Heward's Handy Haversack, which Fin claims.
Fin, Reinhart, Cimmerii, Remus, Hailleck, Filge, & Herman take the southwest passage in the room where they encountered the wrestling grimlocks. The passage curves down like a spiral. They emerge in a large cavern, somewhat shaped like a heart. The stench of rotting flesh hangs in the air. To the right lies a collapse passage. Directly ahead of them, the floor ends in a cliff which drops to the floor 10' below. At the far end of the cavern (the "point" of the heart), Remus, Cimmerii, & Hailleck can see a ledge, some 10' high. upon the ledge, a small campfire burns like a red ember, casting a shadowly, hellish light about the cavern. A small figure can barely be made out through the smoke, engaged in some demonic ritual.
The group attempts to descend the cliff when 3 grimlocks, wearing bronze masks that resemble holy symbols of Erythnul, emerge from hiding & attack from the bottom of the cliff with their longspears. Fin descends the cliff & attacks on of the grimlocks, while Reinhart & Remus also try to descend, but at a slower pace.
A morning star made of pure force (Spiritual Weapon), casting a crimson glow, streaks from the clifftop at the far end of the room & begins attacking Filge. Cimmerii moves to Filge's Aid, as does Herman, while Hailleck begins chanting a war hymn to Inspire his comrades.
Fin dispatches his grimlock & makes his way to the cliff. Reinhart & Remus soon follow. As Fin ascends the cliff, the figure at the top cast Hold Person on Remus, stopping the dwarf dead in his tracks. Fin makes it to the top, finding that there is rrom for only one other person on the clifftop--that other person being his adversary--Grallak Kur, a crazed grimlock priest of Erythnul, the god of slaughter & panic. Grallak is the most fearsome-looking grimlock seen yet. His black hair is cut short, spiked, & dyed a bright shade of red, his warty face is covered in piercings, his body is tattooed with strange, red, markings, his teeth are filed to sharp points, & he has a holy symbol of Erythnul branded into his chest. The most bizarre thing about Grallak, however is the fact that he has eyes where there should be none--two large, bulbous eyes (Filge later identified them as beholder eyes) have been sewn into his empty eyesockets, giving him the wide-eyed look of a madman. Fin attempts to attack Kur but misses.
Grallak Kur then casts Obscuring Mist, filling the eastern end of the cavern, where Fin, Kur, Reinhart, & Remus are. Their vision obscured, no one has any idea what has become of Fin, only that he is alone on the cliff with Grallak Kur.
Meanwhile, Filge attempts to outrun the Spiritual Weapon, descending the cliff, as do Cimmerii & Hailleck. Herman walks right off the cliff, but the fall does little damage to the hardy zombie. Remus breaks free from the spell & moves up to the cliff edge, attempting to climb up, but has little luck. He even attempts to grab Grallak's leg, but has no success with that either.
The Spiritual Weapon finally disipates, with Filge intact, thanks to Cimmerii's aid & her wand of Cure Light Wounds. Filge casts Silence on a rock & throws it into the mist, bouncing off Remus' helmet. The necromancer then orders Herman into the mist. Meanwhile, Reinhart & Remus try to ascend the cliff while fin tries to hit Grallak, who begins battering Fin with his morningstar.
Cimmerii, Hailleck, & Filge then enter the mist, in search of their companions. Hailleck begins trying to give Reinhart a boost up the cliff, but fails miserably, so leaves the mist. Filge tries using Use Magic Device to activate the wand of Enlarge Person found in the citadel of Hextor, but succeeds only in enlarging a nearby boulder near the cliff.
Cimmerii climbs up to the top of the boulder, & attempts to jump over to the cliff. She lands there briefly, nearly knocking Fin over. Unfortunately, she fails to catch herself, & falls atop Remus as he's trying to climb the cliff once more.
Filge finally gets the wand to work properly, enlarging Reinhart into a 12' tall uber-paladin with a 6' longsword of justice. Filge & Hailleck then retreat from the mist, readying their crossbows. "That was crafty, him casting that Silence spell," says Filge. "Yeah, says Hailleck, "He must've known we had a bard."
Grallak eventually pummels Fin into unconsciousness. Cimmerii is able to climb to the top, grab Fin, & roll off the cliff. She then uses her wand to revive the fallen rogue. Remus climbs up & begins fighting Grallak while Uber-Reinhart move up to the cliff & begins swinging on Kur. Grallaks delivers wounds to both dwarf & paladin, before finally being laid low by his adversaries. The group breathes a collective sigh of relief.
After slaying Grallak Kur, the group examines the room & loots. Hailleck determines that the passage to the south was collapsed intentionally. On Grallak's body, Cimmerii finds a silver Brooch in the shape of a spider, a masterwork morningstar, a potion of Cure Light Wounds, 42 gp, & a silver key. Remus notices that the banded mail Kur wears is a bit too small for the grimlock, & appears to be of fine dwarven make. Hailleck casts Detect magic on the armor & determines it's magical, so Remus dons the +1 Banded Mail.
Among Kur's personal possessions, the group finds 500 gp, a pearl necklace, & a hacked-up silver amulet depicting a spider with a elven woman's head, which Filge identifies as a holy symbol of Lolth, Demon Queen of Spiders & drow goddess. Cimmerii takes both the necklace & holy symbol, though Reinhart voices his feelings that she destroy it instead. Fin finds a fine rope among the stash, & with Hailleck's aid, determines that it's magic. Experimentation proves it to be a Rope of Climbing.
The group also finds 3 scrolls among the stash, 3 of which seem to have been written by Grallak Kur--Filge postulates that the beholder eyes must have allowed the blind grimlock to magically see somehow. The 2 scrolls are written in common, but the rambling, disjointed style is difficult to figure out. The scrolls seem to be letters meant for the Faceless One. They state that "a great power stirs" & that "a swarm of worms is at hand." They also mention a power growing in the pool in the Black Cathedral, which is to serve the Ebon triad as a champion, but that an even greater force drives the power of evil forward. One passage in particular stands out:
"At last the will of the Ebon Triad be done. With the return of great Kyuss, the Age of Worms is finally upon us!"
The third scroll is written in orcish, & appears in a different hand & style, leading the group to believe it wasn't written by Kur. It's dated over a year past, & reads:
"Coldeven 26, 594 CY
My Dearest Edralve,
T'was good to hear from you after so long. My sincere thanks for the gifts that you sent. I trust that the slaves I have supplied will serve to cement our alliance, and solidify our non-aggression pact. No further word on that red-eyed fiend who betrayed us over a decade past. I understand that he left Erelhei-Cinlu before the Wars, and spent some time as a mercenary. My spies tell me that our former ally was last seen visiting the Seeker Lodge in Greyhawk some three years ago, but he has long since left the city. The purpose of his visit remains a mystery, but perhaps you will be able to learn what I could not. It is with great regret that I cannot offer you more aid in this, but until your former paramour becomes a direct threat to the Empire, I must allocate my resources to more pressing matters.
~T"
Cimmerii says "holy @#$%" as she reads it. When the others inquire, she explains that the person the letter is addressed to bears the same name as her father, Fear's, paramour. She explains that her father was a slaver who captured her mother over 20 years before while she was adventuring in the Pomarj, a peninsula far to the south ruled by orcs. When her mother became pregnant by Fear, he helped her escape, as Edralve would have surely slain her had she discovered Fear had fathered a child on her.
Cimmerii at first assumes the letter was written by Theldrick, though she changes her mind when Reinhart points out that the handwriting is different from that found in the Hextorian's journal. The group is also stumped on where Erelhei-Cinlu is, as none of them have heard of the place before now.
The group decides to set up camp so everyone can rest & recover spells.
Reaping 22, 595 CY (early in the am)
Fin, Cimmerii, Remus, Hailleck, Reinhart, Filge, & Herman make their way from the grimlock caverns back to the Black Cathedral, where they see a familiar face--Jethias, who is accompanied by a huge, muscled human, dressed in the manner of the northeastern barbarians, wearing a greatsword & the symbol of kord on his fighting girdle.
Jethias introduces the man as Krieg, a priest of Kord, god of strength, athletics, brawling, & courage. The wizard tells them that the pair have just arrived, & that it is still dark outside. He tells them that Allustan, who is an old friend of Krieg's mentor, sent them into Dourstone mine, as he felt that the party would probably need backup.
Jethias registers his surprise at seeing Filge with the party, & Krieg notes his concern that a paladin of Heironeous has allied himself with necromancers & the undead, but the pair are reassured that the arrangement is just a temporary necessity.
The nine then make their way toward the northern door, bearing the symbol of Vecna above it. Fin checks for traps, finds none, then attempts to open the door, finding it locked. Cimmerii finds that the silver key borne by Grallak Kur opens the lock quite nicely, and the groups enters the Labyrinth of Vecna.
Once in the labyrinth, the group hears Allustan calling for help in the darkness. Suspicious, & remembering the attack on Filge's owl familiar, Merrowhan, & other instances in Diamond Lake, the group investigates with caution, with Remus in the lead.
The group soon finds itself engaged in a long, frustrating battle with several kenku & a pair of dire weasels. The weasels are quickly slain, but not before draining some blood from Fin & Hailleck (-1 pt CON each). The kenku prove much harder to slay, amily because of their familiarity with the labyrinth, which is littered with dozens of secret doors. Many times does the party find itself surprised & flanked by kenku emerging from these doors. In other cases, a kenku will spring open a door & toss vials of alchemist's fire at the party members.
Eventually, the party whittles down the kenku group to its boss, lieutenant, & a few of the other bird men. The lieutantant uses Grease spells to make Krieg & Cimmerii drop their weapons, & eventually Krieg falls, nearly bleeding to death before Hailleck uses a Cure Light Wounds to stabilize him. A kenku light Cimmerii on fire with a vial of alchemist's fire, & weaponless, she attempts to grapple the kenku, to no avail. making matters worse, the kenku boss pelts the group with beads from its Necklace of Fireballs on 3 different occasions. Finally, the battered group overcomes its foes, slaying every one of the damnable bird-men.
Among the petty treasure found on the creatures, Fin finds a set of masterwork thieve's tools on the kenku boss, Cimmerii finds some Eyes of the Eagle, & Jethias finds a wand of Magic Missles.
Cimmerii, Jethias, Fin, Filge, Krieg, Reinhart, Hailleck, Remus, & Herman decide to press on.
After thoroughly exploring the maze, they discover no visible exits. Fin attempts to find every secret door he can, concentrating mainly on interior walls. Tired of wasting time, Cimmerii finds an exit from the maze on the north exterior wall, calls Fin over, the the group opens it, only to find a 5' square room with a regualr door.
Entering the door, the group finds itself in a long, L-shaped chamber. It's 10' wide, with a long row of slender marble columns stretching down the length of the room, in the center. Strange patters of wispy green veins writes & undulate across the stone columns, lending a dim illumination to the chamber. The floor is made of 1' square, bone-white tiles, & the grey marble walls are covered with strange, circular bulges. Two doors exit the chamber from the south (one of which they just entered), one immediately to the north, and another further north, at the "end" of the "L" (__|). In addition, the room boasts a 10' wide archway on the left wall, before the northernmost door, leading into another chamber, from which flickering light emits. The group makes their way toward the archway.
The arch leads to the inner sanctum, consisting of walls of a strange green rock, with purple veins that writh & dance within it. The room, 20' wide by 40' long, is list by Continual Flame spells. Three slender pillars stand on each side of the chamber, along the north and south walls. The pillars have a tar-like appearance, & what appears to be human (left) hands push at the surface, as if trying to escape. A plain basalt altar rests at the far (west) end of the chamber, near a smaller archway exiting the room. Two doors exit the chamber, one tot he north, & one to the south.
They notice two figures in the room--human acolytes of Vecna dressed in ragged purple robes, each of them missing their left hands and left eyes. Suddenly, the party's ears are filled with a disturbing babbling sound, which freezes Reinhart & Jethias in their tracks, hypnotized. A spectral, faceless, figure clad in wizard's robes emerges from the floor--an allip.
The acolytes immediately down potions of gaseous form & flee through the western arch, blocking it with a Web spell. Remus moves to engage the allip & finds his weapon useless against the incorporeal creature. Hailleck begins singing to inspire courage, & Cimmerii moves to aid the dwarf, only to get too close to one of the pillars--she suddenly finds the hands emerging & holding her fast. Krieg casts Magic Weapon on his greatsword & hands it to Remus. Fin shakes Jethias out of his stupor, while Filge hits the Allip with a Disrupt Undead spell.
Remus lands a solid hit on the allip, & it sinks into the floor. Fin shakes Reinhart out of his stupor & Krieg & Remus help Cimmerii escape from the column's hands.
Cimmerii, Jethias, Fin, Remus, Reinhart, Filge, Hailleck, Krieg, & Herman, just catch their breath, when the Web spell is burned away and the acolytes re-enter the room, assaulting the party with spells. At that moment, the allip rises from the floor & renews its attack on Remus, bringing the dwarf to Wisdom 3 (from 10 originally). After much effort and annoyance, the acolytes & allip are slain.
Fin investigates the altar, taking the 2 golden goblets & a bronze sacrificial dagger set with blood red rubies.
Entering the archway, the group finds a small cramped room lit by a continual flame. It contains 2 sets of bunk beds--they figure it for the acolyte's quarters. A door lies to the north & one to the south.
Investigating the south door, Cimmerii, Fin, & Filge discover a croweded supply room, with another door leading out the the labyrinth. The foodstuffs are rotted & of low quality, & the crates & barrels bear the brand of Balabar Smenk--a rampant rooster perched upon a large gold coin. Filge vows to destroy the stuff as soon as possible.
The group enters the door to the north, which appears to be some sort of laboratory. The room is 15' wide by 25' long, with a door on the opposite side of the room, & lit by a pair of Continual Flame spells. Two long, narrow tables lie to either side of the room, running the length of the chamber. The tables are covered with a variety of alchemical gear and substances--beakers, bottle, burners, vials, tongs, etc. Some of the glass containers bubble with materials of various colors, from a fizzling blue liquid to a boiling green sludge. A number of jars hold preserved green worms like the one found in Filge's lab a few days before. A shelf of books sits on the opposite wall. Next to the shelves stands an intact human skeleton, with a heart, liver, & lungs writhing & pulsing within its ribcage. In the center of the room sits a large black cauldron, its top sealed with a layer of wax.
A figure in green robes and a leather mask with iron studs stands near the door--the Faceless One! His hands covered in mystic tattoos, the figure holds aloft a long magic rod.
Cimmerii acts first, charging the Faceless One with the axe taken from the grimlock chief, only to miss. The Faceless One responds by summoning a huge monstrous centipede, which nearly fills the room, then flees through the door, which magically shuts behind him, leaving Cimmerii and company to deal with the centipede.
Jethias uses his wand of Burning Hands on the centipede, to no avail, while on the opposite side of the room, Cimmerii defends herself from its mandibles.
"Help! There's a big demon-worm-bug-thing in here!" she cries.
"And the Faceless One is escaping!" Jethias adds.
Remus barrels his way into the room to engage the centipede, cleaving it in half with a mighty blow.
Fin, Hailleck, & Reinhart run to the northern door in the inner sanctum with Jethias on their heels, thinking to cut off the Faceless One's escape. Unfortunately, the door is locked & Fin finds it too difficult to pick.
Meanwhile, Cimmerii goes through the door that the Faceless One fled through, which leads to what appears the be the cult leader's private quarters. A door lies on the opposite wall & one on the wall to the right. The Faceless one appears to have fled the room, his escaped covered by two more one-handed, one-eyed acolytes. Cimmerii is quickly joined by Krieg & Remus, & the three engage in battle with the two wizards, who first delay Remus and Cimmerii with a Color Spray.
The Faceless One has meanwhile circled around to the archway leading to the inner sanctum, where Fin is fumbling with the locked door, & summons another huge fiendish monstrous centipede into the room. The centipede quickly drops Jethias. Filge, watching from the western archway, orders Herman to attack the centipede, & the troglodyte zombie bravely sallies forth. Meanwhile,Hailleck begins singing to inspire courage in his allies, while Fin gives up on the door & joins Reinhart, who begins advancing on Faceless One. The Faceless one deals with the double threat by summoning a fiendish ape to engage the paladin & rogue.
Shaking off the effects of the Color Spray, Remus joins Krieg, already attacking one of the acolytes. Unfortunately, Remus misjudges his blow & hits Krieg instead, dropping the priest to the floor.
In the inner sanctum, Fin tumbles away from the ape, & moves toward the Faceless One, though the rogue has little luck in his assault. Hailleck joins Reinhart in battling the ape. The Faceless One moves near the centipede & fires a lightning bolt ar Reinhart, dropping the paladin. Hailleck, himself severely wounded, revives Reinhart with a Cure Moderate Wounds.
Cimmerii recovers from the Color Spray & she and Remus dispatch the acolytes. Cimmerii exits the east door just in time to see Reinhart fall to the ape. She and Hailleck finish the fiendish beast off.
Remus opens the south door & drags the bleeding Jethias into the room before entering the inner sanctum. Filge, meanwhile, has circled around through the lab. The necromancer sees Jethias & rifles through the down evoker's pack. After recovering his spellbook taken in the raid on his sanctum, the Necromancer revives Jethias with a syringe full of Cure Light Wounds, before doing the same for Krieg.
"Herman! Noooo!" screams Cimmerii as the centipede destroys the undead troglodyte. Remus and Fin have cornered the Faceless One, but have limited success in hitting him. Cimmerii revives Reinhart, while Jethias uses his wand of Enlarge Person on Reinhart, who engages the centipede with Krieg.
The Faceless One finally falls. Jethias uses Enlarge Person on Remus, & the centipede finally dies as well, though Krieg gets snagged by one of the pillars.
The Faceless One's mask falls from his face, revealing a blank, featureless slate, with coal-black eyes, a small, sharp nose, and a toothless mouth. His frame is gaunt & fragile looking, & his skin as pale as an albino. Remus claims the mask.
After slaying their foes, the party searches the complex and loots the corpses. They find a total of 144 gp, plus two flasks of acid in the lab. Reinhart takes two of the jars containing worms.
Jethias claims the Faceless One's spellbook, as well as a few spell scrolls, one containing Lightning Bolt. He also takes the Faceless One's Bracers of Armor +1, & Filge takes his rod.
In the Faceless One's Chambers, Reinhart finds & claims a +1 Heavy Steel Shield of Blinding, emblazoned with the symbol of Heironeous. He conjectures that it, as well as the sword found in the grimlock caverns, may have once belonged to Amon Kyre, former high priest at Diamond Lake's Chapel of Heironeous. The paladin tells his companions that Kyre mysteriously vanished two years ago. Investigations by both the Garrrison & the Sanctum of Heironeous in Greyhawk turned up nothing, and eventually Valkus Dun was sent to Diamond lake to fill Kyre's position.
Hailleck finds a Cloak of Charisma +2, & gives his Cloak of Resistance +1 to Fin.
The group also finds the cipher to decipher the magic scroll found in Theldrick's chamber.
The scroll reads:
The Age of Worms
The secrets of this page are most holy. Know ye heretics who invade them that the eye of Vecna is upon you. If you read this, Theldrick, you have either slain me and doomed our cause, or the time is nigh for our final victory.
At last the riddle of this place is solved. In ages past, a great being known as Kyuss rose above the petty warlords who fought and struggled for material gain. Mighty Kyuss is the herald of the Overgod. Soon, he will sound the clarion call to the faithful. The three sundered faiths shall be made whole.
The undead our agents spotted must be located and captured. If they bear the worms of Kyuss then they perhaps hold the final answer to our research. The Ebon Aspect stirs within the pool, but it is still not ready to emerge. Perhaps a traumatic event, an invasion by heretics, a great battle fought within these halls, could awaken it. But even then it will attain only a minor form. The Way of the Ebon Triad speaks of the danger of awakening the aspect too soon. Our work will be for naught.
We must find the worms and the undead hosts that carry them. If they are not here, then we must send agents to the Rift . If Kyuss himself, or his agents, cannot shepherd in the Age of Worms, then we shall do it ourselves so that the Overgod may live.
Our course is clear, my dear Theldrick. Smenk is longer useful to us and must die. Kill him, then send agents to the Mistmarsh, across the southern hills. I believe that we will find what we are looking for there, among the lizardfolk. Summon more of your warriors. If the calculations and portents are correct, the time for covert action is at an end. As the Age of Worms begins, we must strike hard and fast to prepare the
coming of the Overgod.
Of course, dear Theldrick, if you were so rash as to slay my followers and I, then you, soon, shall join me in the afterlife. Doubtless your treachery has already stirred the Overgod. Our mission has failed, and you will die at his hands.
At that moment, the party hears a loud roar that echoes throughout the entire complex. They presume that the "Ebon Aspect" mentioned in the scroll has arisen from the pool in the Black Cathedral. The group quickly gathers its loot and makes its way back.
Healed, but still weakened from their battle against the Faceless One, Cimmerii, Filge, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Krieg, Reinhart, and Remus make their way to the Black Cathedral, knowly likely that they will have to face the dreaded Ebon Aspect.
Jethias prepares Remus & Reinhart upon exiting the Labyrinth by using the wand of Enlarge Person (passed to him by Filge) on the two warriors.
Entering the Black Cathedral, beyond the elevator & black marble pillars they see something rise from the grey, viscious pool at the chamber's southern end. The creature, of course, is the Ebon Aspect--a horrid amalgamation of Hextor, Vecna, & Erythnul, it stands knee-deep in the pool, towering ten feet high. A powerfully-built monstrosity with six arms and smooth, grey skin, its muscles pulsing with arcane might, the creature challenges the party with a deafening roar from its fanged maw. Three of its arms, two on the right & one on the left, end in pincer-like claws, while the other three end in bloody stumps.
Cimmerii immediately hefts the greataxe taken from the grimlock chieftain and charges the beast, while Hailleck pulls out his crossbow & belts out an inspirational battle song. Reinhart, now some 12' tall, & Remus, standing 8', also joins the melee. Fin runs up the stairs along the curve of the room to fire his crossbow at the beast, while Jethias enlarges Cimmerii to 11' high. Krieg, unable to find room to engage the creature in melee, stands behind the group, ready with his wand of Cure Light Wounds. Filge, meanwhile, immediately runs into the Citadel of Hextor, leading the others to suspect that he's afraid.
The creature takes little damage initially, but deals out plenty to Cimmerii. The group finds itself stymied even more when it suddenly emits a green glow for about 5 seconds, its woulds magically closing & weapons & magic bouncing off the skin. After the green glow fades, Reinhart and Cimmerii deal a few moderate wounds, before Remus lands a lucky blow, severing the beast's head with his trusty dwarven waraxe.
Catching their breath & not quite believing their good fortune, the party is quite surprised to hear Filge emerge from the Citadel of Hextor, followed by a dozen armored skeletons clanking behind.
"Fear not!" he says. "I've brought hel. . . . Oh." The necromancer then berates them for killing the Ebon Aspect so quickly. Not wanting to waste a perfectly good Animate Dead, Filge uses the skeletons to help the party gather the gold, magic, & various arms & armor of value & load it onto the elevator as they prepare to leave the complex.
Cimmerii, Filge, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Krieg, Reinhart, & Remus ascend the elevator shaft. Reinhart carries Romero's body (stripped by the others of its magic chainmail & other valuables, of course), while the others drag & carry the rest of the treasure & valuables.
The soon find a ore cart & fill it with their loot. On their way out, they are confronted by a limping human named Lordren & his young assistant, Carr. Lordren sends Carr outside to fetch the boss. Hailleck uses his skills of charm & diplomacy to get past Lordren. Outside, the group is confronted by Carr, who is quickly approaching with his boss, Ragnolin Dourstone.
Hailleck uses a Charm Person spell to get the group out of this sticky situation, & the group leaves the mining camp. Almost immediately, Filge takes his share of the loot, gives Cimmerii a note to pass to Smenk, and takes off. Krieg also takes his share and leaves. Remus heads for the Greysmere Covenant with his share, while Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, & Jethias take their shares & the party treasure to Allustan's, which they dump in Jethias' room. Jethias says they will return as soon as they speak with Balabar Smenk. The upstart appretice also asks his master if he could scribe some spells into his spellbook for him in the meantime, to which Allustan laughs, saying, "I'm not your personal scribe, lad."
Reinhart takes Romero's body to the old, shoddy piers, where he meets Durskin, a drunk, smelly retired marine who once fought at Emridy Meadows in 569 CY. Reinhart hires Durskin to take him & Romero across the lake on his sloop, the Autumn Runner (smelling of urine & infested with fleas & sea mites), to take the dead priests body to the Cairn of the Green Lady.
Across the Lake, Romero meets Amariss, a Charming woman in her mid twenties, with long black hair & green eyes. She recieves Romero, takes some gold for his burial, & tells the paladin that his funeral will take place tomorrow night. Reinhart goes back across the lake of Durskin's @#$% boat. Feeling sorry for the old man, Reinhart gives him 50 gold orbs, making the old man promise to buy himself a newer, cleaner boat. Durskin promises, despite the nagging thought that the old man's just going to blow the money on booze, kalamanthis, opium, & @#$%.
Meanwhile, Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, & Jethias pay a visit to Balabar Smenk. They meet him at his sodden old mansion a century past its prime, at the end of a dead-end street. As they approach the place, their way is blocked by 3 surley thugs with lead pipes. Cimmerii tells them they have a message from Filge, & one goes to announce their arrival. he returns telling them to go on in.
Walking through the open doors, they are confronted by three large, fierce, aggitated apes chained to a wall railing in the foyer. Seconds later, Smenk appears.
"Don't mind my pets," he smiles, stroking one's head. "They're really quite friendly."
Smenk takes Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, & Jethias into a side parlor, where Cim gives him Filges note. After reading it quietly, the adventurers report the events of Dourstone Mine to him, ensuring that all evidence of his involvement was destroyed (however, they don't give him the coded note with orders for his execution). Smenk thanks them for their discretion & promises that Natalo Bask & Gorvic will recant their testimony implicating Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Remus, & Romero in the deaths of Merovin Bask, Kullen, Rastophan, & Todrik.
The four then return to Allustan's home, where they report the same information. Cimmerii asks the wizard about the note found in Grallak Kur's possessions, & learn that Erelhei-Cinlu is the name of a vast drow city deep under the Hellfurnaces. Allustan tells them that they may be able to learn more from his former pupil Derek Ravenclaw, who now runs the Open Hearth Inn in Ery Crossings, a village a few hours walk to the southwest, along the Ery River. The group agrees that they should wait until the next Freeday to visit Ery Crossings, as most of them have duties to tend to over the next few days.
They also show Allustan the other scrolls they found. He tells them that the "Rift" mentioned more than likely refers to Rift Canyon, a huge canyon many miles to the north, across the Nyr Dyv. The same scroll mentions the Mistmarsh, two days to the south. The wizard tells them he'll be visiting his friend Marzena, a battle-mage stationed at Blackwall Keep, on the northern edge of the Mistmarsh, in a couple weeks, & that they're welcome to come along. Perhaps she has more information.
After dropping Romero off at the Cairn of the Green Lady, Reinhart returns to the Garrison, where he reports the events in Dourstone Mine to Valkus Dun, high priest of the Chapel of Heironeous, & then to Diamond Lake Garrison Commander Tolliver Trask. trask immediately sends a runner to Diamond Lake Governor-Mayor Lanod Neff, & to the Diamond Lake constabulary. The commander then takes a numer of his men, as well as Valkus Dun & Reinhart to the Dourstone Mine camp, to arrest Ragnolin Dourstone & seize the mine.
By this point, it's beginning to get dark. By the time the authorities have secured the premises & made their arrests, they notice that Dourstone's home, not far from the mine, has caught fire. By the time the flames are extinguished, however, most of Dourstone's possessions & home have been destroyed by the fast spreading fire. Dourstone, as well as some of his closest aides, are taken to the the cells at Sheriff Cubbin's office.
By the time Reinhart & the rest of the militia return to the Garrison, it's quite late. The paladin meets with Velias Childramun, fatherly chief healer at the Chapel of Heironeous, & shows him the sword & shield found in the mines. Velias confirms the items as belonging to the former high priest, Amon Kyre, who vanished 2 years before. Dun & Velias agree that the young paladin should be allowed to make use of the items until Kyre is found (should he still be alive, which they deem unlikely).
After leaving Allustan's, Hailleck stashes his loot & equipment at the Greysmere Covenant, then leaves for the Emporium's Veiled Corridor, where he pays for several attractive young staff members to bathe him, then spends the rest of the night partaking of the establishments pleasures, including games of chance, fine food & drink, kalamanthis, opium, and female companionship.
Cimmerii rents a room at the Able Carter Coaching Inn, where she bathes, eats, & catches some Z's.
Fin asks to crash at Allustan's couch, & he & Jethias get cleaned up, are served a fine meal by the wizard's manservant, then retire for the evening (Jethias in his room, Fin on the couch).
Reinhart, meanwhile, does the same at the Garrison.
Reaping 23, 595 CY
Remus leaves Diamond Lake with Bitris Ruthek, one of the envoys at the Greysmere Covenant, to act as her escort on a business trip to the nearby mining towns of Blackstone & Steaming Springs.
Fin, Hailleck, Cimmerii, Jethias, & Reinhart, meanwhile, meet for lunch at the Hungry Gar, where they exchange notes. Reinhart tells the others of Romero's upcoming funeral tonight & of the arrest of Ragnolin Dourstone & the fire at his house. The paladin also tells his companions that the Garrison received word from the sheriff's office early that morning that Dourstone was found dead in his cell, apparantly having hung himself.
The rest of the afternoon is spent selling & trading their loot from Dourstone Mine. Cimmerii, hearing that the local high priest of St Cuthbert, Jierian Wierus, can enchant weapons & armor, pays a visit to the Church. Walking into the nearly empty place, she sees the heavy-set, middle aged man kneely shirtless before the altar, flaggelating himself with a leather whip. Wierus stands up, greets, her, & puts his tunic on. Asking her business, she requests to have her bow enchanted. Wierus extracts a promise from her that she will use her bow in the pursuit of law & justice before agreeing to enchant it for 2000 golden orbs in coins and goods (including her +1 shortsword). He tells her it will be ready in a day, & invites her to the evening sermon. She apologizes that she won't be able to make it, as she has a funeral to attend.
That evening, Fin, Reinhart, Jethias, Hailleck, & Cimmerii meet on the shores of Diamond Lake's polluted namesake, where a boat called the Harkness, bearing an assortment of followers of the Cult of the Green Lady & Romero's coffin, docks at the piers.
Romero's coffin is loaded onto a wagon, & his funeral procession makes its way through Diamond Lake. The adventurers walk directly behind the slow-moving hearse, followed by green-robed cultists worshippers of Wee Jas bearing torches and incense, singing a mournful dirge lamenting the loss of one of their own.
The procession stops at the Diamond Lake Boneyard. Fin, Reinhart, Jethias, Hailleck, & Cimmerii, acting as pallbearers, carry Romero to a freshly-dug grave.
Amariss leads the funeral service. "We are gathered here tonight," she begins, "to send Romero of Hardby on his final journey. Led by the hand of the Blessed Green Lady, Romero shall travel to the Sanctum of the Ruby Sorceress, where he shall be received with favor and grace. Weep not for our dearly departed friend and comrade, for he lies content now; in the Dark-Eyed Lady's warm embrace."
At the end of her sermon, Amariss asks Romero's adventuring companions to say a few words of their own. Reinhart applauds Romero's courage and compassion. Hailleck gives thanks for the many times the priest saved his life, and how Romero's last attempt to do so ended in his death. Jethias, though he knew Romero only briefly, expresses his admiration for the priest's skills. Cimmerii & Fin remain silent.
Romero is then buried, Amariss expresses her condolences, and the party leaves the Boneyard as a slight drizzle begins to fall.
Reaping 24, 595
Most of the day is spent running errands, selling loot, & shopping, though Jethias spends the entire day scribing spells from the Faceless One's spellbook into his own book.
Cimmerii picks up her new +1 longbow from the Church of St Cuthbert, then leaves for Bronzewood Lodge, her druidic community 3 hours northeast of Diamond Lake, joined by Hailleck. Reinhart & Fin go as well, as they've never been there before.
Cimmerii pays her respects to Nogweir, the aged leader of the community, then introduces her companions to her mother, the ranger Cartissima Acanthus. She informs her mother that she's hell-bent on tracking down her father, the dark elf known simply as "Fear," despite her mother's warnings of the evil he's capable of. Cartissima tells Reinhart to keep her daughter safe, & the paladin nods.
Cimmerii also learns that a unicorn was recently seen in the area, and that an unreputable hunter named Grogan (an infrequent visitor to the community who was finally banned about 3 years ago when he came seeking a taxidermist, a dead sprite in his hands) had actually had the nerve to stop by the lodge a few days ago looking for it. He was accompanied by two other hunters, a wizard named Tor, & a tall, thin woman named Meg. They were sent away on a false trail. Cimmerii is told to keep an eye out for both unicorn & Grogan.
Returning to Diamond Lake that evening, Reinhart leaves to perform duties at the Garrison, while Fin, Cimmerii, & Hailleck spend some time at Lazare's dragonchess parlor, partaking of fine food & drink over a game or two.
On their way out, the three encounter Tirra & the Seeker Khellek again, who on are their way in with a third companion, a brawny fighter named Auric, who wears the belt of of Free City Champion, which goes to the annual winner of Greyhawk's Champion's Games. Tirra invites the group to join them at the Emporium later, but Fin, Cimmerii, & Hailleck leave with a friendly, "Perhaps we'll see you."
Cimmerii, Hailleck, & Fin go to the Midnight Salute, a brothel popular with the Diamond Lake Garrison, and cheaper (& more "wholesome") than the Emporium's Veiled Corridor.
The three enter & Cimmerii asks for the proprietor, Purple Prose. Upon learning that Prose is unavailable for services tonight, Cimmerii tells the servant that she's isn't interested in a romp, but in talking business. The servant fetches Prose, a ravishing elven woman with jet black hair that trails to her waist in long ringlets. She's dressed in various hues of purple, even her makeup & nail polish. She eyes Cimmerii & flashes a seductive smile.
"What a pleasant surprise," she says to Cimmerii, "I knew we had a half-drow in town, but I didn't think she'd end up here. I told them I wasn't available tonight, but I suppose I can make an exception for you."
"Uhhh, no," replies Cimmerii. "I'm not here for that. I'd like to make a business proposal."
"Really?" the elf says, arching an eyebrow. "This is even more unexpected." Prose begins slowly circling Cimmerii, sizing her up as she lightly touches the young half-drow's long, black hair. "Some cleaning up. New clothes. A little makeup. You'd be quite the attraction here."
"Ummm, thanks for the compliments, but that's not exactly what I meant, either," the ranger replies.
"Oh? What a waste. So what did you come here for then?" she asks.
"I was wondering if you'd be interested in buying this," Cimmerii replies, holding up the silver armband she found in the Whispering Cairn 3 weeks ago. The armband is of elven make, with a repeating leaf motif.
"How lovely," Prose replies. "How much?"
"One-hundred gold."
The two begin haggling, until they eventually settle on a price.
"Okay, dear. I'll give you seventy-five gold orbs for it, plus the boy and Hailleck may spend the night here for free."
"How does she know your name?" Fin whispers to Hailleck.
"Just shut up & let her talk!" the dwarf replies.
"Done!" replies Cimmerii. "See, I'm not such a heartless @#$% after all," she says to Fin & Hailleck, pocketing her coin as she takes her leave.
"I think you'll really like this place, " says Hailleck to Fin.
Reaping 25-27, 595 CY
Jethias spends these days studying & scribing. Reinhart occupies himself with duties at the Garrison & Chapel of Heironeous, while Cimmerii takes care of business at the Bronzewood Lodge. Hailleck helps his uncle, Galuth Grobadore & Dulok Blitzhame tend to some minor matters concerning Ragnolin Dourstone at the Greysmere Covenant. Fin, being the only one who doesn't have any real obligations in Diamond Lake, whiles away his time sleeping late into the afternoon & gambling & carousing at the Emporium, occasionally joined by Hailleck.
Reaping 28 (Freeday), 595 CY
Returning from Bronzewood Lodge early that morning, Cimmerii arrives in Diamond Lake in search of her companions. When last they met, they agreed that they'd travel to Ery Crossings to speak with this Derek Ravenclaw about Erelhei-Cinlu. She has no problems tracking down Jethias, as he's barely left Allustan's since their return from Dourstone Mine. She finds Reinhart at the Garrison, tutoring his friend Tassilo in the finer arts of swordplay. The rest of the group, however, is a bit harder to find.
Upon visiting the Greysmere Covenant, the three learn that Remus is still out on business with Bitris Ruthek, while Hailleck didn't come home last night. Needless to say, they find Hailleck in a rented room at the Emporium, along with Fin.
The five then equip themselves and leave Diamond Lake, walking southwest along the Ery River.
After a few hours walk, Fin, Jethias, Cimmerii, Reinhart, & Hailleck arrive in the village of Ery Crossings. As Freeday is a common market day, a number of stalls are set up in the village square, selling everything from foodstuffs, to farm implements, to clothing, furs, and more.
They notice that the vast majority of people in the square are not shopping, but are instead gathered around a demure, but well-dressed, middle-aged man. They soon learn that the man is Samuel Arnault, a village elder. Approaching closer, they learn that a huge wolf with unusual blue spots has been sighted at one of the outlying farms, where it tried to attack a farmer John Gallows' little girl, Batrice. The farmer himself managed to chase the wolf off before it could harm his daughter, but ended up getting bit for his trouble. Arnault offers a reward of 300 gp for anyone who captures or kills the wolf.
In the crowd, Cimmerii sees two familiar faces. The first, a burly, bearded hunter named Grogan, had visited Bronzewood Lodge in the past, mostly during moots. Despised there for his rumored use of poison, spiked pit traps, & other questionable hunting practices, he finally banned from the place about 3 years ago when he stopped by looking for a taxidermist to prepare a sprite he'd feshly killed.
Cimmerii also sees Valorin, a fellow ranger of the Cairn Hills who also visits the Lodge, usually only for moots. Known for his arrogance nearly as much for his skill with the bow, Valorin holds an intense hatred of wolves, & bears a facial scar from his boyhood from a wolf attack.
On the edge of the square, tied to a stake, Cimmerii sees another wolf, a young female. As she approaches it, Grogan approaches.
"Keep yer hands off m'@#$%, half-breed!" he yells.
Cimmerii seethes in anger, but keeps her cool. "I don't remember you having a wolf, Grogan."
"Gale's mine, y'see?" he growls, untying her. "Had her two years, now. Raised her from a pup.--after I kilt her mother, of course.," he says, smiling. "You. You just stay outta my way--I'll be having this other wolf, too, and 300 gold orbs th' richer!" he says, walking away, roughly dragging the wolf behind him.
"Nice friend you have," says Jethias.
Unable to locate Derek Ravenclaw at the Open Hearth Inn, Cimmerii, Fin, Jethias, Hailleck, & Reinhart decide to see if they can find the wolf instead. They first visit farmer John Gallows' home about a mile from the village. Gallows tells them the wolf was a huge, rabid, ferocious beast intent on eating his daughter. Suspecting Gallows is stretching the truth, they learn from he & Batrice that the wolf was just circling her early this morning, & acted like it wanted her to follow it somewhere. Farmer John attacked it with his pitchfork & the wolf reacted by biting him in the @#$% before fleeing. They also learn that Grogan & some of his thugs came by shortly afterward asking about the wolf, before heading toward Ery Crossings.
Cimmerii finds the wolf's tracks nearby, leading from some nearby woods, & heading toward Ery Crossings. The five decide to follow the tracks toward the village.
Following the tracks, the group come upon a group of 4 well-armed orcs attacking a slight man in a scarlet cape & cap, with a lute strapped to his back. Jethias casts a web spell upon the group, & 3 of the orcs are easily slain by the others, while the forth surrenders.
Interrogating the orc, they learn that he & his fellows were hired by a human named Grogan to attack anyone looking for the wolf. They saw the bard & thought he'd be easy pickings. Though Cimmerii & Fin want to kill the orc outright, Reinhart refuses to let them kill a foe who has surrendered. They end up taking the orc's weapons & letting him go.
The bard introduces himself as Gorik. He was on his way to Ery Crossings to check out the market & perhaps earn a little coin. He told them that he was to meet a friend of his this morning before going into town, a local half-elven ranger named Tamris Quickthorn (whom Cimmerii remembers from Moots at Bronzewood Lodge), but Tamris never showed up at their designated meeting place. Upon describing the wolf they're hunting, Gorik informs them that it fits the description of Rain, a wolf Tamris recently acquired as his animal companion, & that "The two are inseparable. If he's running about without Tamris, it can't mean good for him. We must stop this hunt immediately!"
The group agrees & continues to follow Rain's tracks toward the village.
As Fin, Cimmerii, Reinhart, Jethias, Hailleck, & Gorik approach Ery Crossings, they hear the village alarm bell ringing. Getting closer, they see a general rucking coming from the marketplace, along with cries of "Wolf!" Gorik runs to fetch the town militia to tell them to call off the hunt, while the others run toward the marketplace.
The five spy Rain weaving in & around the market stalls. They also see Grogan stalking through the place, as well as three of his hired thugs. In addition, they also spot Valorin & four archers who seem to be working with him.
Gale, Grogan's wolf, emerges from behind one of the stalls & confronts Cimmerii, who is able to difuse the situation using her Wild Empathy. Gale backs away, looking for easier prey.
Soon, they see Rain, who charges at Grogan. Valorin hits the wolf with a couple of arrows, but Rain ignores the pain, leaping on Grogan & knocking him to the ground. Grogan is bitten again as he stands up & proceeds to attack Rain, while Valorin & another archer shoot into the melee.
Hailleck & Reinhart attempt to join in the combat, but are confronted by Grogan's thugs. Jethias casts a Web spell to nullify Valorin & his archer, while Cimmerii & Fin rush to Rain's aid. Grogan downs Rain & badly wounds Fin, who is in turn attacked by Gale. Badly wounded, Fin withraws, Gale on his heels.
Eventually, Cimmerii down Grogan & claims the rights to Rain, unconscious but living. Valorin, realizing the fight is over, takes his archers & leaves. Her master defeated, Gale stops attacking Fin. Hailleck & reinhart slay two of the thugs, while the other surrenders.
At that point, Gorik returns with Samuel Arnault & few village militiamen. Gorik, Reinhart, & Jethias explain the situation while the militia binds Grogan & his lackey. Cimmerii revives both Grogan & Rain, who tries to rip out Grogan's throat, but is held back by the young ranger. Seeing that Grogan has smeared poison on some of his crossbow bolts & is suspected of foul play regarding Tamris Quickthorn is all the reason Arnault needs to hold him & his crony.
The group tries to interrogate Grogan as to Quickthorn's whereabouts, but have little luck. As Rain begins acting as if he wants to lead the group somewhere, Cimmerii suggests they follow the wolf, who will perhaps lead them to Tamris. Gorik stays with Arnault to round out the details, while Fin, Reinhart, Hailleck, Jethias, & Cimmerii follow Rain back toward the woods.
As they leave, Cimmerii notices Gale slowly following them. She whistles & the wolf happily runs up to her side. "Gale's not a very good name," the ranger says. "How's Skiemachen sound?" The wolf wags her tail while all but Cimmerii roll their eyes.
Cimmerii, Skie, Fin, Reinhart, Hailleck, & Jethias follow Rain through the woods for about 4 hours, before Rain slows his pace. Jest ahead they see a quiet clearing. On one side lies a firepit filled with glowing embers. On the other side they can see a large pit. Muffled grunts & low moans can be heard coming from the pit. The campsite otherwise appears empty.
As the group approaches, Cimmerii falls into a pit, & lands on a poisoned spike, which impales her leg & saps her strength. Jethias uses the wand of Enlarge Person on Cimmerii, who climbs out of the pit. An aggressive owl dives down and delivers a Ghoul Touch spell to Jethias, who becomes paralyzed & emits a nauseating stench.
A figure from the right begins firing crossbow bolts at the party. Fin & Cimmerii spot the figure--a tall, thin woman with dark hair--Meg! The two begin heading in her direction, & Cimmerii nearly falls in another concealed pit.
Hailleck, Rain, & Reinhart approach the pit. In the pit they see a badly wounded, half-conscious half-elf--Tamris Quickthorn! But they have worse problems, as the paladin is hit by a Shocking Grasp delivered by the owl.
Meg runs from the pursuing Cimmerii & Fin, but Skie catches up to her & knocks her to the ground. As Cimmerii & Fin approach her, they see the wizard, Tor, step into view & cast an Ice Storm--the two are caught in the downpour of hail & severely injured before fleeing the storms area of effect.
Hailleck works on rescuing Tamris while Reinhart charges Tor. Meg gets up & continues running. Fin steps back & downs a Cure potion while Cimmerii pursues Meg, but triggers two spiked branch traps which spring out & damage the 11' half-drow even further.
By this time Jethias is back in the game & casts Magic Missles at Tor & Meg. Unfortunately, it has no effect on Tor, who continues to cast more spells at the party. Reinhart finds that his attacks do little damage to the wizard, due to the Stoneskin enchantment he bears.
Skie knocks Meg to the ground once more, & she surrenders to the 11' tall amazon hovering over her with the greataxe. "I yield, " she says. "You can have her."
Meanwhile, Hailleck has pulled Tamris from the pit, & he & Rain have a joyful reunion. Hailleck, Fin, & Jethias rush to Reinhart's aid, who seems to be having a bit of trouble.
"Grab him so he can't cast spells!" yells Hailleck. Reinhart drops his weapon & shield & begins to grapple the wizard. Soon Hailleck joins in, & the two hold Tor down & attempt to bend his arms in fun new ways until the wizard gives in.
"Okay," he says. "You win. She's all yours."
"What are you two talking about?" asks Cimmerii.
At that point, Tamris limps up. "Over there, Cimmerii," he says, pointed to a nearby copse of trees.
The group ties up Tor and Meg, & leaves Skie & Rain to watch the two while they approach the copse.
In the center, secured by the neck by ropes tied to four trees, stands a large, brown, equine creature with white markings. They can easily see that its forehead is covered in blood.
"Oh, no," breathes Cimmerii.
"I'd been tracking this group for a few days," explains Tamris. "When i caught up with them, late last night, I'd seen they'd already caught her. I attempted a rescue, but fell into one of Grogan's damnable traps. Luckily, Rain escaped. They must have sawed the horn off earlier today."
Fin runs back to the camp & lfinds Meg & Tor's belongings. Searching them, he finds the 2' horn wrapped in a bloody cloth, & returns to the others.
"I found it," he says.
Cimmerii takes the horn & wand of Cure Light Wounds & attempts to approach, but the beast raises its forelegs & acts aggrssively toward her. Hailleck tries to, with the same results.
"Let me try," says Reinhart. The creature gives no resistance as the paladin approaches, softly stroking the mare's neck.
"Well, I guess we know who the virgin is, now," jokes Hailleck. Cimmerii elbows him in the ribs.
Reinhart places the horn on the creatures forhead, & uses the wand to cure the mare's wounds. A bright, white light emits from the creature, blinding everyone. When the light fades, the horn has vanished, and the mare appears to be little more than an exceptional horse, save for a reddish-brown marking on her white forehead, shaped like the lightning bolt of Heironeous. The horse nuzzles Reinhart.
Reinhart unties the mare & leads her back to the group.
"She seems to be taken with you," says Tamris.
"Aye. She bears the mark of Heironeous," he says.
"What will you call her?" Tamris asks.
"I think . . . Molly sounds good," he rplies, looking at the mare.
The horse nods her approval while everyone else rolls their eyes.
Fin, Cimmerii, Skie, Reinhart, Molly, Jethias, Hailleck, Tamris, & Rain bring Meg and Tor back to Ery Crossings, arriving in the late evening. They turn the prisoners over to Samuel Arnault. Arnault tells Reinhart, Cimmerii, Fin, Jethias, & Hailleck that the village doesn't have the facilities to hold criminals over long periods (they'll have to be bound & housed in the village hall overnight), so he'll need someone to help him escort Meg, Tor, Grogan, & his crony to Diamond Lake in the morning. The party agrees & Arnault promises them 50 gold orbs on top of the 300 he gives them for taking care of the wolf trouble.
The group goes to the Open Hearth Inn where Molly is taken to the stables, but the wolves will have to sleep in the woods. Tamris reunites with Gorik & the two spend the rest of the night chatting.
Cimmerii, Fin, Jethias, Reinhart, & Hailleck finally meet Derek Ravenclaw, a dark-haired, non-descript human tending bar. Cimmerii asks him about Erelhei-Cinlu, & Ravenclaw tells them that he spent roughly a year there as a prisoner some 15 years past & that it's a decadent, dreadful place. He tells them that he was able to escape only after a renegade dark elf led a group of powerful adventurers into the city & slew the high priestess. After the adventurers left, he was able to escape in the chaos of the resulting power struggle. Cimmerii asks if the renegade dark elf was her father, Fear, but Ravenclaw tells them the only name he remembers was "the Accursed." He tells her that it's possible they were the same person, as both names are obviously pseudonyms. As the night wears on, the group eventually retires.
Goodmonth 1, 595 CY
Samuel Arnault, Reinhart, Molly, Cimmerii, Skie, Fin, Jethias, & Hailleck leave Ery Crossings with Meg, Tor, Grogan, & Grogan's henchman that morning & make their way back to Diamond Lake.
The prisoners are turned over to Sheriff Cubbin, & Arnault pays the group & takes his leave.
Jethias, who has taken Tor's spellbook, returns to Allustan's & begins furiously studying & scribing once more. Reinhart & Molly return to the Garrison, where many marvel at the paladin's new warhorse. Cimmerii takes Skie to her new home at the Bronzewood Lodge, where she makes several new animal companion friends. Hailleck & Fin, meanwhile, return to the Emporium.
Goodmonth 2-16
The next two weeks are spent taking care of obligations in Diamond Lake & the environs, selling loot, & purchasing items.
Knowing Allustan is planning a trip to Blackwall Keep on the 17th to see his friend Marzena, & that the scroll written by the Faceless One mentions that more clues to the mysterious green worms can be found among the lizardfolk of the Mistmarsh, the group begins making preparations. Potions & scrolls are purchased from the Chapel of Heironeous, Bronzewood Lodge, the Church of St Cuthbert, Allustan, & Benazel the Alchemist. Jethias & Cimmerii craft another wand of Cure Light Wounds, this one slightly more powerful.
Reinhart visits the Church of St Cuthbert & pays Jieran Wierus to enchant his sword. Wierus recognizes it as Amon Kyre's sword & rem·i·nisces fondly about the vanished priest, saying how much more he liked Kyre than "that meddler" Dun. Reinhart grins & bears it, all to get a bright, shiny, magic sword.
Fin borrows the Amulet of Natural Armor+1 & Jethias borrow the Cloak of Resistance +!, as they neither hold enough gold to buy them from the party communal treasure. Jethias, Cimmerii, Hailleck, & Remus also buy horses for the trip to Blackwall Keep. Fin buys one, too, with borrowed gold.
By the evening of the 16th, the party is equipped & ready for the trip tomorrow.
Goodmonth 17, 595
Fin, Cimmerii, Skie, Reinhart, Molly, and Jethias meet Allustan early that morning at his home. Remus & Hailleck are nowhere to be seen. After waiting for about half an hour, Allustan grows impatient. "Probably in their cups again," the wizard growls. "Let's be off. They know where we're going, and can catch up, should they be so inclined."
Fin, Cimmerii, Skie, Reinhart, Molly, and Jethias leave Diamond Lake with Allustan, journeying east along the Urnst Trail (map).
Just as they suspected, Remus & Hailleck get a late start & don't leave until noon.
About mid-day, Allustan, Cimmerii, Fin, Jethias, Reinhart, Skie, & Molly stop by the roadside & have lunch with a small group of gnomish merchants.
After about eighteen miles, the group turns south, and journeys for a couple hours before stopping at an old, abandoned farmhouse for the night. Allustan tells them that the house is known as Shank's Rest, & is used by many travelers. The wizard tells them that Shank gave up farming years ago after inheriting a large amount of money. He moved to the city, but didn't bother to sell the farm, so now the old house is used as a waypoint by travelers. The rest of the evening is spent in conversation, mostly regarding the perils of the Mistmarsh.
Meanwhile, a few hours behind them, Remus & Hailleck make camp by the side of the road, unaware of Shank's Rest.
Goodmonth 18, 595
Allustan, Fin, Cimmerii, Jethias, Reinhart, Molly, & Skie leave Shank's Rest & continue their journey south to Blackwall Keep. They arrive to see a horde of lizardmen attacking the keep. The horses in the nearby coral have been killed, as well as a large number of militia. The lizardfolk seem to have taken very few casualties.
Allustan tells the group that he'll have to Teleport to Marsh Keep, on the other side of the Mistmarsh, to make sure it's safe, & then to Diamond Lake to send reinforcements from the Garrison.
Allustan launches a fireball & decimates about 10 lizardmen, then teleports away.
Cimmerii traps several lizardfolk trying to bash down the door of the keep in an Entangle spell, so Reinhart quickly cuts short his plan to charge headlong into them upon Molly with his lance.
Shesht, the lizardfolk druid, casts an Entangle spell of her own at the party, but Jethias quickly dispels it. Fin engages in combat with a formerly entangled lizardman who escaped into the corral.
A large group of lizardfolk led by the leader of the attack, Kushak, advances on Reinhart & Cimmerii, while Shesht begins flinging Produce Flame spells at Jethias.
Jethias wipes out about 5 lizardmen with a Lightning Bolt, while Shesht casts a Soften Earth & Stone spell to turn the ground beneath Cimmerii & Reinhart to deep muck, impeding their movement.
The party eventually slays Kushak & his cronies, but Shesht escapes. Reinhart rides down a fleeing lizardman & captures him. Meanwhile, 6 more remain trapped by Cimmerii Entangle spell, & they all comply when Jethias tells them to drop their weapons. Though Fin & Cimmerii want to slay their prisoners, Reinhart convinces them otherwise, having Jethias tell the entangled lizardmen that they can go once the spell wears off, so long as they never attack the "lands of men" again.
The party interrogates the prisoner & learn that the attack was ordered by his king, Shukak, leader of the Twisted Branch tribe. They also learn that Shukak has taken the tribe in a more aggressive direction of late, & not all of the tribe is happy with it, namely Hishka, the tribe's shaman, but they all fear Shukak too much to disobey him. They learn that the tribe lives two days into the swamp. The lizardman is given a stern reprimand & allowed to flee back into the Mistmarsh.
The party then consults with the surviving guards of Blackwall Keep, learning that the attack came early in the morning, & a few of the lizardfolk even managed to break the door down & get inside, before being slain of repelled. In the meantime, they lost the vast majority of their men, including their commander, Garm. Only 14 able-bodied men remain of a force originally numbering forty. Nineteen are dead, 3 are unconscious, and 4 were captured in the initial attack & dragged into the Mistmarsh, one of those four being the battlemage, Marzena (the others being Kyl, Mursk, & Tevver). The troops ask the party to go after them. Though Reinhart initially wants the party to rest, due to Jethias needing to recover his spells, the militia convince him that time is of the essence, as they fear their comrades were taken for food, or a sacrifice.
At that moment, Hailleck & Remus finally catch up to the party. wondering what happened. Fin fills them in, while everyone else puts the horses, including Molly, in the corral.
Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, Remus, & Skie then enter the Mistmarsh on foot, following the trail left by the lizardfolk captors.
Cimmerii traks the lizardfolk & their captives through the Mistmarsh, leading Hailleck, Fin, Reinhart, Remus, Jethias, & Skie through a morass of mud, slime, bugs, tall swamp grass, & other vegetation. In the drier areas, the mud only reaches their calves, while in some areas the water is waist high (chest high for the dwarves). The heat is unbearable & the mosquitos & other insects plague the group in thick clouds. The group stops periodically to remove leeches.
Groves of mangaroo trees (similar to freshwater mangroves) grow in thick clusters throughout the swamp, & must be navigated by climbing through the twisted branches. The swamp is teeming with animal life--frogs, marsh deer, bees, muskrats, lizards, snakes, fish, turtles, & various forms of marsh fowl, among others.
About 3 hours into the march, having covered some 5 miles, Skie wimpers & lies down in the driest place the bedraggled wolf can find. Realizing she's tired from the long journey from Shank's rest (unlike the others, she didn't get to ride a horse), Cimmerii tries to coax her into going on, but she refuses. Cimmerii then hands her bow & backpack to Remus, & carries the wolf for the rest of the way.
not long after, as the group wades through a knee-deep portion of a wide, slow-moving stream, which Cimmerii & Jethias estimate to be the Neen River, a large, strange-looking "log" suddenly comes to life, pouncing on Hailleck, dragging him beneath the water--a giant crocodile!
The crocodile holds Hailleck fast, defending itself with its tail while the dwarf's companions lunge forward. Reinhart Lays Hands on Hailleck, healing some of the damage he's taken while Jethias uses the wand of Enlarge to give the dwarf a better chance of escaping the reptile's fierce jaws. Eventually Hailleck passes out from the loss of blood. Jethias struggles to hold the dwarf's head above water while his companions attack the beast. Remus lands the killing blow, nearly beheading the croc. The group heals its wounds and Cimmerii harvests some of the reptile's flesh for dinner later.
As evening comes, a heavy mist settles on the swamp, obscuring vision greatly. Eventually the group stops & makes camp. Enough fairly dry wood is found to make a pathetic fire, & the group dines on rations & croc meat before settling in for the night.
A couple hours after settling in for the night, the party is awoken by a disturbance from the swamp. The party quickly prepares for another attack, when a familiar face stumbles into cap--Tassilo, the junior Heironean priest from the Garrison. He tells Reinhart that he'd heard the paladin was headed for Blackwall Keep & possibly the Mistmarsh the day before, & thought he might like a hand. The party is glad to have the help, & welcomes the weary Tassilo, who quickly falls asleep.
Goodmonth 19, 595 CY
Cimmerii, Fin, Skie, Reinhart, Tassilo, Jethias, Hailleck, & Remus continue on, following the lizardmen's path through the Mistmarsh.
About midday, they are attacked by four spiders as big as a man, which leap out at them from their cover of swamp grass. The threat is easily dealt with, & the group marches on.
Cimmerii notices heavier lizardman foot traffic that afternoon. Figuring they are close to the Twisted Branch lair, they slow their pace. About 450 feet ahead, they see a huge, dense clump of mangaroos. Cimmerii moves closer to investigate with Skie. She gets about 150 feet from the mangaroos when she sees a pair of lizardfolk, who seem to be circling the mangaroos at a distance of about 100 feet. Cimmerii & Skie quickly hide.
Jethias, Tassilo, Fin, Reinhart, Hailleck, & Remus can see the lizardfolk from their position as well. However, the only ones who seem to have the sense to hide are Jethias & Remus. Fin, Hailleck, Reinhart, & Tassilo are thus easily spotted by the patrolling lizardfolk, who quickly run back into the mangaroos.
The others decide to move up to Cimmerii's position.
"Good job giving us away, guys," she says.
"Don't blame me. I figured if they saw me hiding, they'd get the hint, " replies Jethias.
Within moments, roughly a dozen lizardmen emerge from the clump, let by Shesht, who escaped the party at Blackwall keep the day before. Though Shest makes good use of an Entangle spell, she & her forces, including her animal companion, a man-sized viper named Sasath, are no mach for the party. Jethias magic overwhelms the lizardfolk, while Remus draws their blows. Fin takes the opportunity to rob Remus of easy kills. Cimmerii soon runs out of arrows & must resort to her greataxe, as she forgot that Fin has a few extra quivers in his Haversack.
Their foes slain, the party regroups, heals, & restocks on ammo. They loot two wands from Shesht.
Suddenly, the group hears the most beautiful sound it's ever heard. A female voice, singing a sweet, gentle aria fills their ears. Skie, Remus, Jethias, Fin, & Tasillo stand, moths agape, listening to the wondrous sound, while Reinhart, Cimmerii, & Hailleck resist its power & see where it's coming from. High atop the clump of mangaroos perch a pair of hideous winged, taloned women with morningstars--harpies!
The pair begin diving down & attacking Cimmerii & Reinhart, while Hailleck tries to prevent the others from walking toward the beasts. Eventually the bard thinks to use his countersong ability to end the ensorcelment, the others are able to attack the harpies, slaying one & driving the other off.
Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, Remus, Skie, & Tasillo enter the Twisted Branch tribe's lair, a huge clump of magaroos which form tunnels & caverns. Once inside, they see a lizardman, who runs down a tunnel away from them. Fearing a trap, the group follows another path.
They soon find an abandoned sleeping chamber, which they loot. Among the possessions are a few carved wooden eggs, which Cimmerii & Reinhart recognize as holy symbols of Semuanya, god of the lizardfolk. The paladin wants to destroy the symbols, but Cimmerii refuse to let him have them, & puts them in her pack.
Pressing on, the group finds another sleeping chamber, this one occupied by 5 lizardfolk. Fin immediately rushes forward, swiftly dispatching one of the creatures, while the remaining four flee into another chamber.
Cimmerii follows them into a large, unlit room, which smells like a garbage dump built upon a cesspool. The entire chamber is filled with fouled ankle-deep water & filth, & a number of man-sized piles of animal & vegetable matter sit about the chamber. The lizardfolk stand at the far side. As Cimmerii advances, she is suddenly grabbed by a pair of long, throny tentacles, lifting her from the ground & toward a huge, toothy maw. Hearing her cry of, "Oh, @#$%!!!" the others rush in, the light of Fin's Everburning Torch illuminating a monstrous otyugh.
Through much effort, the creature is slain, as are three of the lizardfolk. The final one is taken captive. Questioning the creature, they learn that it's been over 2 years since anyone from the "lands of men" came to the lair, the last one being a male wizard from Blackwall Keep. They also learn that the attack on the keep was ordered by the lizard king, Shukak, who has advanced a very aggressive stance of late, which not all in the tribe are pleased with. Jethias asks who would lead should Shukak be slain, & is told that the king's right hand, Kotabas would, who feels the same as Shukak. If both were to be slain, they learn that the tribe's shaman, Hishka would lead, who feels differntly than Shukak, but is too afraid to stand against him.
Asking where the prisoners are, the party learns that they are held by Kotabas & Hishka. The group then forces their prisoner to lead them to the captives.
Their captive leads Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, Remus, Skie, & Tasillo to an empty chamber. The lizardman tells them that Kotabas is in the next room, & the party releases him.
In the next room, the party confronts Kotabas, a massive lizardman in spider carapace armor, with a black tinge to the scales around his mouth. He appears unarmed, but six more lizardmen around him are not.
The battle that follows is quite tough. The chamber is croweded with many obstacles that prevent easy movement or flanking. Cimmerii initially faces Kotabas alone, who attacks in a rage, tearing at her skin with fang & claw. Fin tries moving in to flank, but is knocked unconscious. Tasillo is able to revive Fin, who rejoins the battle. Eventually, the other lizardmen are slain & Reinhart & the others are able to help Cimmerii slay Kotabas.
Nearby the group finds two of the captured guards from Blackwall Keep, Kyle & Mursk, who lie bound & unconscious, but safe. The group unties the captives & loots.
Remus, Cimmerii, Reinhart, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Skie, & Tassilo continue into the next room, where they encounter Hishka, the tribal shaman, & its animal companion, a man-sized viper named Seskitar. Nearby is a bound guardsman from Blackwall Keep, Tevver.
Instead of attacking, Hishka parlays. It tells the group that many in the tribe are unhappy with Shukak's leadership, & that Shukak serves a black dragon named Ilthane.
Hishka tells the party that the Twisted Branch tribe's eggs were destroyed two years ago by an infestation of green worms, & that shortly after, Ilthane came & convinced Shukak that the worms were sent by wizards from Greyhawk. It also tells them that few in the tribe have seen the latest clutch of eggs in many weeks, as they Ilthane's kobold servitors currently guard them, as well as an egg from the dragon herself, which she left in a gesture of good faith.
Hishka asks the party to slay Shukak & offers them the prisoner. It tells the party that Marzena is nearby, held by Shukak. Hishka tells the group that with Shukak dead, it will be in charge, & can convince the tribe to stop raiding, but only if they promise to go to Greyhawk & help negotiate a treaty, in writing, to let the lizardfolk live in peace. They agree, & Hishka tells the party to seek out Souf, once they get to Greyhawk, who is a lizardman who has adapted to the ways of the "soft-skins."
Cimmerii heals the prisoner with her wand & the group follows Hishka's directions to Shukak's lair.
Following Hishka's directions, Hailleck, Remus, Jathias, Cimmerii, Fin, Reinhart, Tassilo, & Skie confront Shukak in his throne room. In a corner of the room, they see a human figure, bound & lying on the the floor, unconscious--presumably Marzena.
A massive lizardman, Shukak is accompanied by 6 lizardfolk warriors. Shukak begins the battle by hurling his trident at Cimmerii, wounding the young ranger. Much to the party's surprise, the trident magically returns to Shukak's hand! Remus, Reinhart, Fin, & Skie then join the fray.
Meanwhile, out in the room adjoining Shukak's, Jethias, Hailleck, & Tassilo are preparing to enter the room when the harpy they chased off earlier appears, beguiling Jethias & Tassilo. Hailleck manages to counter the harpy's song, allowing the mage and priest to join him in battling the harpy.
Shukak proves to be a very tough customer, however, nearly dropping Fin, Cimmerii, & Skie before Remus & Reinhart can get to him. The dwarf lands a devastating blow akin to the one which felled the giant centipede in Dourstone Mine, but it seems to have little effect. Reinhart also does his share of damage, with similar results. Shukak's warriors don't make things any easier, keeping their foes busy & distracting them to make Shukak all the more dangerous. The party manages to slay most of Shukak's warriors before the lizardfolk king plunges his trident deep into Remus' chest, instantly slaying the doughty dwarven fighter.
By this time, Hailleck, Jethias, & Tassilo have slain the harpy & joined their companions. The six fight with renewed conviction, determined to avenge their slain companion. Eventually all of Shukak's warriors are slain & Reinhart lands the killing blow on the lizard king, dropping him to the ground.
Hailleck moves to Remus, cradling the head of his slain childhood friend in his arms, vowing to write an epic battle-song to honor his deeds.
While Hailleck grieves, Fin loots the bodies, while Reinhart, Cimmerii, & Tassilo check on Marzena. Finding her jaw & several fingers broken, Cimmerii uses her wand to heal & revive the wounded battlemage.
Marzena, a dynamic older woman, thanks her rescuers & asks for the return of her gear, which Fin finds stashed behind Shukak's throne of branches & roots.
Meanwhile, Hishka enters the room & converse with Jethias. Jethias promises to check on the tribes' eggs, & convinces Hishka to let the party stay overnight & replenish their energy. Marzena & the three rescued soldiers from Blackwall Keep promise to guard Remus' body while the others check on the eggs. Cimmerii also orders Skie to stay behind.
Cimmerii, Reinhart, Fin, Jethias, Hailleck, & Tassilo follow Hishka's directions to the egg chamber. They find themselves in a long, water-filled tunnel, which eventually becomes submerged. Cimmerii enters the water & nearly drowns when she gets caught by a Snare spell.
"Did you think the lizardmen would leave their most valuable possession unguarded?" Tassilo sarcastically asks Fin.
The young thief then moves forward to discover & disarm 3 more Snare traps.
Emerging from the water & the tunnel into an large chamber, the party finds themselves ambushed by Ilthane's guardians, 8 black-scaled kobolds with crossbows & spears. The party easily dispatches the kobolds & moves futher into the chamber, finding a large, shallow pool in which rests hundreds of leathery-skinned lizardfolk eggs. In the north end of the pool rests a halfling-sized egg, black & horny-hided like a pinecone. On the other side of the chamber rests a dry area where 3 chests sit. Beyond that, another submerged tunnel exits the chamber.
Fin, Cimmerii, & Hailleck tiptoe their way through the eggs while Jethias, Reinhart, & Tassilo watch. Soon, Hishka & a few other lizardfolk enter the chamber, observing the thief, ranger, & bard. Hishka tells the group that the chests must belong to Ilthane, as none of the tribe have been down here for weeks.
Hailleck & Cimmerii approach the large dragon egg while Fin examines the chests, finding one filled with silver, one with gold, & one with potions & a ring. Fin loads his Haversack up with the potions & gold, leaving the silver for the Twisted Branch tribe & returns to where Reinhart, Tassilo, Jethias, & Hishka wait.
Reinhart & Jethias want to destroy the egg, while Fin & Hailleck want to sell it. Cimmerii is unsure. Tassilo suggests they take the egg to Allustan & ask for his opinion, since no one here can decide. Hishka plans to relocate the tribe anyway, so hopefully Ilthane will believe the tribe slain when she returns. Heeding Tassilo's wisdom, Cimmerii & Hailleck transport the egg to their companions. The group then returns to the throne room & settles in for the night.
Goodmonth 20, 595 CY
Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, Tassillo, Skie, Marzena, & the three soldiers from Blackwall Keep (Kyl, Tevver, & Mursk) leave the Twisted Branch lair, carrying Remus's body on a makeshift stretcher.
Goodmonth 22, 595 CY
After several days in the Mistmarsh, the group finally arrives at Blackwall Keep. Suddenly, Fin notices something unusual about Cimmerii--suddenly, her back is crawling with tiny, green worms! It turns out that the source is from the dragon's egg she carries on her back.
Screaming in , Cimmerii drops her burden & her allies help to scrape the worms off of her. Luckily, the creatures don't seem to be capable of burrowing into flesh yet, & die quickly. Jethias uses hiw wand of Burning Hands to bake the remaining worms crawling from the broken egg into a nasty, greenish-brown paste.
After dealing with the worms, Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, Skie, Tassilo, Marzena, Kyl, Tevver, & Mursk approach Blackwall Keep, where they find things in chaos. The soldiers at the keep seem to be in a panic, & have barricaded the entrance to the basement.
Investigating, they learn that days earlier during the lizardfolk attack, some of the lizardmen had made their way into the keep & broke a lock on one of the doors, before they were repelled or slain. Unfortunately, no one noticed the broken lock. The door led to a partially dug escape tunnel where the soldiers were holding the keep's old battle mage. It seems 2 years ago, the mage had visited the Twisted Branch tribe on an unsolicited diplomatic mission & had returned as a horrid undead creature. Not having the heart to slay their old ally, the keep's commander, Garm (slain in the lizard folk attack days before), ordered his men to trap the creature instead. Unable to beat down the door or dig its way out, the creature has remained locked up for 2 years. Even worse, not only did the thing escape, but it also slew two more guards & turned them into similar beings--zombie-like creatures crawling with horrible green worms!
Unable to believe the stupidity of the guards, the party agress to enter the basement & take care of them. In the narrow corridors, Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, Skie, & Tassilo come face-to-face with the creatures, which they immediately recognize as sons (or spawn) of Kyuss. Almost immediately, Skie & Tassilo, overcome with fear, flee.
After much effort, the monsters are defeated, though Reinhart has a couple close calls with the creatures' worms, which attempt to burrow into his flesh.
After clearing the creatures out, reinforcements from Diamond lake, led my a gruff woman name Mikela Vederin, arrive. She gives the party a message from Allustan, requesting that they escort Marzena to Diamond Lake, where he can confer with her about the worms, Kyuss, the Ebon Triad, & any other information they can find out.
The party stays at the keep that night, recovering from their trials in the Mistmarsh.
Sunday Goodmonth 23, 595 CY
Leaving Mikela Vedderin & her troops to help Sergeant Harrant, Larus, Moebius, Kurlon, and the other soldiers secure Blackwall Keep, Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, Tassilo, Molly, Skie, Zim (Jethias' toad familiar), Bruno (Jethias' horse), & Marzena leave for Diamond Lake, with Remus' body draped over his horse.
The group spends the night at Shank's Rest, under a waning Celene and a nearly-full Luna.
Moonday, Goodmonth 24
The group arrives in Diamond Lake. Jethias, Fin, Cimmerii, & Marzena stop by Allustan's, while Reinhart & Hailleck take Remus' body to the Greysmere Covenant, and Tasillo takes the horses to be fed and stabled at the Diamond Lake Garrison.
At Allustan's, the wizard informs them that Marsh Keep was not attacked, & that it took awhile for the Diamond Lake troops to get mobilized to go to Blackwall Keep. The wizard seems quite concerned to hear that they lost another comrade, but reminds them that adventuring is a dangerous occupation. Jethias, Fin, & Cimmerii tell Allustan about Ilthane, the lizard man filled with worms, the tainted dragon egg, and the spawn of Kyuss at Blackwall Keep. Marzena seems to have little more to add. The wizard then tells Cimmerii, Fin, & Jethias that they should visit Greyhawk, and consult with an old friend of his, a sage named Eligos, who may be able to uncover more about Kyuss, the Ebon Triad, Ilthane, the Wind Dukes of Aaqa, and the Age of Worms.
Reinhart & Hailleck bring Remus' body to the Greysmere Covenant in Diamond Lake. The leader of the Covenant, Dulok Grobadore, seems quite angry with Hailleck.
"Your antics have lost us a good man," he says. "It seems like every dwarf you've come in contact with lately has met with ill-fortune."
"We did not wish it to come to this sir, " replies Reinhart. "We wish it could have been otherwise. If anything, take consolation in the fact that Remus died a hero."
"Well, there is that," grunts Dulok.
"Yes, and I'm currenlt writing an epic ballad about our brave comrade's sacrifice," says Hailleck.
Dulok glares at the bard & stomps off.
Galuth Grobadore, Hailleck's uncle, speaks up.
"I'll arrange for Vulgan Durtch to have the body cremated tomorrow evening, at the smelting house. A small remembrance ceremony will be held prior to that. Afterward," he whispers to Hailleck, "perhaps it would be best if you were to leave Diamond Lake for awhile."
Hailleck grabs his belongings, then rents a room at the Emporium for the next few days. Reinhart returns to the Garrison to report to Valkus Dun and Commander Trask.
Early that evening, Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, & Tassilo meet for dinner at the Hungry Gar and fill each other in.
Goodmonth 25, 595 CY
Late that evening, under a full Luna & waning Celene, Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, & Tassilo meet Dulok Blitzhame, his nephew Gar Blitzhame, Galuth Grobadore, Bitris Ruthek, and other members of the Greysmere Covenant outside the Diamond Lake smelting house to pay their respects to Remus. A somber ceremony, many recount tales of Remus's bravery and prowess before Vulgan Durtch, chief smelter, cremates the body, mentioning something about it being the second dwarf in a month he's had to cremate, in reference to Ragnolin Dourstone, found dead of an apparent suicide Reaping 23 after being arrested for his involvment with the Ebon Triad.
Goodmonth 25-28, 595 CY
Over the next few days, the party prepares for their trip to Greyhawk City. They identify items, sell what loot they can, clean their weapons, restock their supplies, drink, @#$%, etc.
Valkus Dun grants Reinhart & Tassilo leave to go to Greyhawk & investigate their leads on the Ebon Triad. Cimmerii spends some time at Bronzewood Lodge. Jethias catches up on scribing spells into his book. Hailleck says "goodbye" to as many @#$% in Diamond Lake as he can find. Fin tries to keep up.
Before leaving, Allustan supplies them with Eligos's address & a letter of introduction.
Starday, Harvester 1, 595 CY
That morning, Cimmerii (& Skie), Fin, Hailleck, Jethias (& Bruno & Zim), Reinhart (& Molly), & Tassilo leave Diamond Lake on horseback, with many of their supplies carried by the mule they bought weeks ago. Traveling west on the Urnst Trail through the Cairn Hills. By evening, they arrive in Blackstone, another mining town similar to Diamond Lake, & rent rooms for the night.
Sunday, Harvester 2, 595 CY
The group leaves Blackstone that morning & continues along the Urnst Trail. By late afternoon, they encounter a pair of trolls attacking two men & their wagon. One man, a large fellow in blue studded leather with a shield & heavy mace holds the trolls off while the other, a smaller man in leather, attempts to keep the horses from panicking.
Reinhart, astride Molly, lowers his lance & charges at the trolls, missing them. Jethias casts a Fireball, deftly catching both trolls without harming his comrade. The rest of the part soon joins Reinhart, using oil, fire, spells, & weaponry to engage the trolls, while the two men they rescued see to their wagon & horses.
After the battle, the large man kneels before Reinhart, saying, "I owe you my life." Reinhart, seemingly uncomfortable, has the man get on his feet. The other man goes on & on about Reinhart's bravery (& what a fine horse Molly is), & introduces himself as Verin, & his comrade as Nogas. Verin is blonde, with a sun-browned complexion, about 5'9", & very gregarious, almost to the point of annoyance. Nogas is grim, deep-voiced, has dark hair & a mustache, blue eyes, & wears a helm with small horns & fur trimming. Verin tells the party that they're delivering supplies to the Able Carter Coaching House in Greyhawk. "Oy takes care o' th' animals, an' Nogas 'ere does th' foitin'."
After all the pleasantries are exchanged, the group decides to escort Nogas & Verin to Greyhawk.
Cimmerii (& Skie), Fin, Hailleck, Jethias (& Bruno & Zim), Reinhart (& Molly), Tassilo, Verin, & Nogas arrive at the Last Chance Inn, at the edge of the Cairn Hills, where the Urnst Trail joins the High Road going south to Greyhawk & north to the halfling town of Elmshire.
Outside the inn, under a tree near the stable, they see two tombstones. Once inside, the party meets the innkeeper, a festive gnome named Krink, & his two young sons, Klink & Klank. The gnomes seem quite familiar with Verin & Nogas (they travel this route frequently), & greet them by name. After ordering food & paying for their lodging, Jethias asks Krink about the tombstones. Krink tells the party that those are the graves of two frequent visitors of the Last Chance--Astin, a human ranger, and Gnorl, a dwarven bard. Krink says that they were slain 3 years ago defending the inn from trolls--the inn as destroyed, but the trolls were driven off. Upon hearing the name, "Gnorl," Hailleck walks out to the gravestones & pays his respects.
"You know," says Jethias, "we just slew a pair of trolls today, on the way here--attacking Verin & Nogas."
"Really?" asks the gnome. "I just had a trio of adventurers through here last week bragging about cleaning out a lair of trolls. I'd bet your two were leftovers from that venture."
"What did these adventuers look like?" asks Cimmerii.
"Well, there was this elf girl, a rather rude wizard, and a big braggart wearing a massive prize belt."
"Were their names Tirra, Khellek, & Auric?" (pic) asks Fin.
"Yeah! That's them!" says the gnome. "You know them, eh?"
"Acquaintances," replies Reinhart. "Did they say where they were going, by chance?"
"Greyhawk. The big one kept going on about having to get there in time for 'the games' or some such."
The party soon retires for the night, looking forward to finally arriving in Greyhawk tomorrow.
Moonday, Harvester 3, 595 CY
Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, & Reinhart leave the Last Chance Inn that morning with Verin & Nogas, going south on the Highroad. The group notices that traffic on this stretch of the High Road is much heavier than along the Urnst Trail. By mid-afternoon, they arrive at the massive metropolis of Greyhawk City, on the east bank of the Selintan River.
As natives of the city, Reinhart & Fin fill in Jethias, Cimmerii, & Hailleck on some of the more notable details. Outside the city, Reinhart points out the Grey College Observatory off the High Road, while further south, near the Druid's Gate, he points out a small copse of trees near Lord Wainwright's Manor. "In that grove you'll find an ancient circle of standing stones, older than Greyhawk itself! It's said that anyone who stands within is protected from any sort of scrying or magical detection!" North of the city walls lie flowered meadows and forest, where many of the idle rich spend their time hunting, frolicking, picnicing, etc. Ironically, right next to this region lies Shacktown, a collection of ramshackle huts, tents, lean-tos, & other decrepit dwellings where only the desperate and criminal dwell.
As the southern parts of Greyhawk are on lower elevation, much of the walled city's interior can be seen from the northern regions. As the High Road leads directly to the Duke's Gate in the Garden Quarter in the northern third of the city, the party gets a good view of things.
The entire city is bisected by the Processional, a great road leading from the Highway Gate in the south the the Grand Citadel (a great fortress housing the headquarters of the City Watch, the military, the dungeons, & the city treasury) in the north. A flowing creek called the Millstream runs through Greyhawk like a vein carrying blood to the city's vital organs. Starting beneath Bluto House (a vacant estate once home to a horrible child-murderer) in the High Quarter, the Millstream meanders south until disappearing underground in the Thieve's Quarter, and emerges once more several yards outside the city walls.
In the far south lies Old City, divided into the Slum and Thieves' Quarters. The Black Gate separates Old City from New City (ie, the rest of Greyhawk), & is always closed at nightfall "to keep the rats & other vermin confined to their nests," says the paladin.
The central part of the city is home to the working class, tradesmen, merchants, river-folk, academics, and foreigners. The Artisan's Quarter, in the south and east of the Processional, is dominated by the Low Market, and a great castle, now home to the Guild of Performing Artistes. North of the Artisan's Quarter & east of the Processional, one sees the Free City Arena (with its slight pinkish hue due to a college prank) & the 3-sided pyramidal University of Magical Arts in Clerkburg, the academic region of the city also known as "the Halls."
West of the Processional, & lying chiefly within Horseshoe Road sits the Foreign Quarter, where dwell most non-citizens who are taking an extended stay within the city. In the center of this section is a neighborhood known as the Burrow Heights, home to many of Greyhawk's gnomes, halflings, and even a few dwarves. Surrounding the Foreign Quarter is the River Quarter, known as the roughest part of New City.
The northern part of Greyhawk is home to the upper class, divided by High Street & Wharf Road into the High Quarter (north) & Garden Quarter (south).
Moonday, Harvester 3, 595 CY
As Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, & Reinhart approach the Duke's gate (named after an old duke of Urnst who spent a lot of time gambling, shopping, & whoring in Greyhawk) that afternoon, they notice that there's a long line of people waiting to enter the city. After over 2 hours of waiting, they finally reach the gate. Each is required to state their name and business. All but Reinhart & Fin (who are natives), are required to pay a Freesword Tax of 3 gold orbs each, which gives them the right to hire themselves out as mercenaries in Greyhawk, and also to collect tresure from Castle Greyhawk (a great castle a few miles to the northwest, across the Selintan, built by the mad archmage-cum-demigod Zagyg). The party is also required to purchase licenses for many of their weapons, as little more than daggers, staves, and clubs are allowed to be carried openly in the city without a license.
The guards begin giving Cimmerii a hard time due to her drow ancestry, but Reinhart intervenes, invoking his family name of Silverfox. The guards back off, and finally, after paying for various licenses & such, the group enters the Gem of the Flanaess.
Moonday, Harvester 3, 595 CY
Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, & Tassilo enter Greyhawk via the Duke's Gate. As they head west on High Street, the group thinks over their plans. The first priority, of course, is to visit with Allustan's old ally Eligos & see if he can answer their questions about the Ebon Triad, the Age of Worms, Kyuss, and the Wind Dukes of Aaqa.
Aside from their primary mission, the group also has a few individual goals, aside from selling some of the loot found in the Mistmarsh and buying items unavailable in Diamond Lake.
Cimmerii plans to track down the drow librarian that supposedly lives in Greyhawk, according to what Derek Ravenclaw told her. Jethias wishes to visit Greyhawk's famed Guild of Wizardry, and petition them for membership. Reinhart plans to visit his family, & he and Tassilo will also check in with the Sanctum of Heironeous. Hailleck intends to avail himself of all of the Free City's decadent pleasures, which likely includes a trip to the Silver Garter. Fin speaks little of his plans, but he'll likely make contact with some of his old allies in the city's underworld.
Moonday, Harvester 3, 595 CY
As Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Reinhart, & Tassilo enter the Garden Quarter, the paladin points out some of the notable buildings.
Immediately to their left stands the spiraling Sanctum to Heironeous. Behind it, the Chapel of Fharlanghn. Next to the Sanctum, farther up along High Street, stands a four-sided pyramidal structure housing the Temple of Zilchus, god of wealth. On the far side of the Temple of Zilchus stands the Golden Phoenix, one of the finest dining establishments in the city.
To their right, on the opposite the Temple of Zilchus, stands a fine home with a high tower. Reinhart notes that this is the residence of Jallarzi Sallivarian, a powerful wizard originally from the County of Urnst. Behind her home, on higher ground, stands the home of a dwarf named Glodreddi Bakkanin, a city director & head of the GRS--the Greyhawk Revenue Service. Thus, he is one of the most powerful & most hated men in town.
Farther up High Street, across from the Golden Phoenix, stands the Lord Mayor's "Palace"--actually just a very fine mansion. Also known as City Hall, it's where the Directing Oligarchy meets weekly, & houses not only Lord Mayor Nerof Gasgal & his staff, but also many city offices. Behind this structure lies another fine home, slightly smaller. Reinhart notes that this is the residence of Org Nenshen, another city director & good friend of Nerof Gasgal. Common knowledge has it that Org is also master of Greyhawk's Guild of Thieves.
Beyond the Golden phoenix, to the left, lie two more temples. The Temple of Istus, closer to the street, and behind it, the larger Temple of Pelor. Fin then speaks up, telling of annual parades in which the clergy of Pelor feed the poor of Old City, and carry the sickest children of the Slum & Thieves' Quarters back to the temple for healing, free of charge.
Beyond the temples of Istus & Pelor lies one of the two largest buildings in Greyhawk outside the Grand Citadel. An immense structure known as the Grand Theatre. The only other building in the city which rivals it in size is directly across from it on the Processional, the Royal Opera House. The owners of the two loathe each other and are constantly competing over the same audience.
Across from the temple of Istus, on High Street, stands "Bluto House," former home to infamous serial murderer Sir Bluto Sans Pite. High behind it sits another four-sided pyramidal building, Greyhawk's legendary Guild of Wizardry, founded by Zagig Yragerne himself. Jethias knows that several mages of renown are known to belong or to have once belonged to the Guild, including many in the Circle of Eight.
Across from the Grand Theatre on High Street, beyond Bluto House, sit several municpal buildings, including the Courts of Justice and the City Gaol.
Straight before the party, High Street meets the Processional, where their intersection holds the High Market. The crowd becomes thicker at this point, causing the group to dismount. Ahead, a large crowd has gathered, watching a parade on the Processional. The group moves closer to investigate.
Cimmerii, Jethias, Hailleck, Reinhart, Fin, & Tassilo watch the parade pass by. It's headed south, in the direction of the Garden Gate. Admidst many acrobats, clowns, fire-eaters, jugglers, & other performers, they see an elaborate chariot pulled by stunning white horses. In addition to its driver, the chariot carries two men, waving and throwing trinkets into the crowd. One is a muscular, scarred-faced man in his fifties, while the other is none other than Auric himself!
The group watches the parade pass with great curiousity, wondering how the hell Auric got his own parade, when they notice a wheeled cage, pulled by horses, near the rear of the parade, consisting of iron bars lined with glass. Within the cage rages a chimera with a blue dragon head, its lightning breath ineffective against the cage's glass. About that time, a pair of humans bump into Hailleck & Reinhart in the thick crowd--the pair are long gone by the time the dwarf & paladin remember the old adage about Greyhawk, "Hands in your pockets, eyes on your purse." At that point, they notice their coin purses have been lifted, making them a few gold orbs lighter.
Suddenly the glass in the cage breaks & the chimera escapes. The crowd panics, fleeing in every direction possible. Within secods, however, the adventurers have the situation well in hand, and Reinhart deals the killing blow to the wing-clipped creature.
Minutes later, Auric's chariot arrives on the scene.
"You killed it,?" He snorts. "Do you fools realize how valuable that creature was?"
"Here now, Auric," says the scar-faced man, "it's quite obvious that subduing the chimera was beyond this group's skill. After all, few can approach your prowess. The important thing is that no one really got hurt."
The group is slightly offended by this critique of their ability.
"Well, we wouldn't have had to slay it had its owner secured the beast," replies Reinhart.
"That would be my fault," says the scar-faced man. "I'll ensure that my cagewright is flogged for this oversight. My apologies for putting you in danger, and my thanks, for containing the situation, however unrefined it was. To whom do I have the pleasure?"
"Reinhart Silverfox," replies the paladin. And these are my companions, Fin, Tassilo, -"
"Jethias Tolemir," interrupts the mage, "of House Tolemir in Urnst."
"Cimmerii Acanthus," says the ranger.
"Hailleck Beeblebrox," replies the bard.
"Well met. I am Loris Raknian, director of the Free City Arena, and this is Auric, Free City Champion."
"We've met," mutters Auric.
"Oh really? You'll have to tell me more sometime," says Raknian. "But not now--we have a parade to finish!"
Raknian nods toward the group as his chariot takes off, leaving his lackeys to clean up the mess.
"That went well," says Hailleck.
Moonday, Harvest 3, 595 CY
Reinhart, Fin, Cimmerii, Jethias, Hailleck, & Tassilo make their way past the High Market, onto Garden Road & into the western Garden Quarter, where they come before a wide mansion on a well-tended estate. They notice that part of the impressive mansion is being rennovated.
"Welcome to Silverfox Manor!" proclaims Reinhart.
"You live here?" asks Cimmerii.
"Well, before I was sent to Diamond Lake," replies the paladin. It's been in my family for generations, ever since the first Lord Silverfox was enobled by Zagig Yragerne for creating trade routes through the Gnarley Forest."
"Ho! Master Reinhart!" The party turns to see an immense human exit the mansion & make his way over to them. He stands 6',8', and looks nearly as wide as he is tall. The man sports a long orange beard & long, upcurving mustache, with hair pulled back in a ponytail. His girth strains against a purplish-pink doublet with puffy sleeves, and he wears yellow trousers with deerskin boots & gloves. Atop his head stands a yellow skullcap with pennons flowing from it.
"Ah, Stalagov! How good to see y....erk!!!" Reinhart strains to breathe as the large man embraces him, picking him off the ground. When Stalagov finally releases the paladin, he introduces the man to his companions. They learn that Stalagov is the tutor for the children of the Silverfox family. After a bit of small talk, Stalgov leads the group inside, as Reinhart wants to see his aunt, the aged Lady Silverfox.
Stalagov leads Reinhart, Cimmerii, Jethias, Fin, Hailleck, & Tassilo into the mansion, past marble staircases, carved oaken doors, gilded mirrors, & fine sculptures, paintings, and tapestries. Jethias looks around the place appreciatively.
"Quite impressive, paladin," he says.
Stalagov leads the group to a luxurious parlor where sits the elderly Lady Silverfox. Reinhart kneels beside her and tells her of his recent adventures.
"My eyes are bad, dear. Who are your friends?" she asks. The group introduces themselves.
"Is that a young lady?" she asks upon hearing Cimmerii. "How nice of you to bring her to meet the family!" she beams.
Rather than explain, Reinhart just rolls with it. Upon asking if there are available guestrooms for his friends, he's disappointed to learn that that entire wing of the estate, including his old room, are being rennovated.
"Well, we didn't expect you back so soon," explains Lady Silverfox.
Further conversation reveals that Flinch, the teenaged son of one of the family servants, is having a hard time finding his place in the household. Lady Silverfox asks Reinhart to take Flinch with him, to broaden the youth's horizons. Reinhart agress, & Flinch is called into the room.
A skinny youth about 5'5" tall appears. He has medium-length sandy blonde hair & is dressed in fine clothes. "Yes?" he asks.
"Reinhart's agreed to take you on as his personal assistant," says Lady Silverfox.
"Oh joy," says Flinch rolling his eyes.
"That's right," says Reinhart, "we'll see what stuff you're made of."
"And you would be?" asks Flinch incredulously.
"It's me, Reinhart!" replies the paladin.
"Oh, sorry. I didn't recognize you with all the road dust & blood."
After introductions are made, Stalagov offers to join Flinch in order to keep him out of trouble, & to record Reinhart's journeys for the Silverfox family histories. Reinhart has Flinch & Stalagov seek out lodgings for the party. Fin and Hailleck leave with the pair. Jethias & Cimmerii leave to speak with the sage Eligos, who lives nearby. Reinhart remains at Silverfox Manor to visit with his relatives, & take a nice warm bath.
Flinch leads Fin, Hailleck, & Stalagov east on Garden Road, through the High Market, south down the Processional. At the Garden Gate, they're required to write their names on a roster as they pass through the Noble's Wall (the wall dividing the Garden & High Quearters from the rest of the city).
Near the Low Market, they see a crazed man standing atop a covered rain barrel, screaming at passersby. The balding human waves a charred staff & is dressed only in a ratty robe.
"Who's that?" asks Hailleck.
"Oh, just some lunatic," replies Flinch. "He's here all the time, always going on about something or other. They call him the Rain Barrel Man. Last week he was talking about 'the dragons of the rift & the sins they proclaim,' or something.
As they approach, they hear him shouting himself hoarse:
"Listen to me, children of Greyhawk, & hear the doom that builds before your blind eyes. You, in your house of gold, and you, in your hovel of mud, and yea, even you, in your mail of metal, none of you are safe from the doom, from the Age of Worms."
"What?" says Fin, grabbing Hailleck as they stop to listen to the madman's diatribe.
"Oh yes," the Rain Barrel Man continues, "it is coming. Have you not heard the dead dragon's roar? Have you not smelled the rot festering under your very nose? Have you not dreamt of the worm that walks, bringing decay to all he touches? Fools! You are all fools! Your doom is upon you! The very end is in sight and none of you shall be spared! Decay is the future, and the future is here!"
Hailleck approaches the man. "How do you know all this?" he asks.
"How? I am the Prophet of the Golden Eye," he replies. "I see all"
"What else do you see?" asks Fin.
The Rain Barrel Man onces again lauches into the very same monologue as before, revealing nothing new. The group sighs & walks on.
"I told you he was a lunatic," says Flinch.
The four go on to the Crooked House, a Foreign Quarter inn facing the Low Market. Run by a colorfully-dressed gnome named Tarquin Shortstone XXVI, Flinch pays for a week's lodging & the four head back to Silverfox manor to inform the others.
Moonday, Harvester 3, 595 CY
Meanwhile, Jethias & Cimmerii follow Allustan's direction to Eligos's house, located in the Garden Quarter. The pair arrive at a fine manor house of white marble, with gilded double doors & flickering golden lanterns on the portico. A white stone wall surronds a well-maintained lawn containing trimmed hedges & exotic flora & fauna. A cobblestone path, flanked by a pair of pools & rearing dragon statues, leads to the manor.
The front doors open as Cimmerii & Jethias approach, almost as if they were expected. The pair are greeted by an aged elven manservant who asks their business, though not without passing an odd look Cimmerii's way.
Upon being told that the two are there to speak with Eligos, the elf leads them inside, escorting them through a grand foyer, dominated by a marble staircase lined with ancient suits of armor & topped by an ancient battle banner used as a curtain. The auture manservant leads them to a parlor lined with packed bookcases. The furniture is gilded with fine gold tracery & padded with plush red velvet cushions. The floor is of polished wood, though covered by a well-worn carpet depicting some forgotten battle between the forces of good & evil. The manservant brings out a tray of fine wine (Celene Ruby) & fresh fruit (apples; pears; light brown, red-spotted, squarish karafruit; & bright blue, grapefruit-sized uskfruit). The manservant tells them to wait while he fetches Eligos.
As they sip wine, the pair admire the paintings framing the bookcases. One shows an abstract painting of vast, featureless ashen plain; a city set inside a dormant volcano; a circle of ancient stone megaliths; a large geyser-spouting mountain alone on a barren plain; the ruins of an ancient city deep in the jungle; and a great road of bones.
"Ah, the Road of Skulls. One of Iuz's greatest achievements, or so he feels, I'm sure."
The pair turns to see a middle-aged man in a red robe & silver breastplate, with bright red hair & deep grey eyes fleck with red.
"My manservant, Pollard, tells me that you wish to speak with me," he states calmly. "I am Eligos. How may I be of assistance?"
"I am Jethias Tolemir, and this is Cimmerii Acanthus," says the mage. "My master, Allustan, said that you could perhaps help us."
"Allustan?" asks Eligos, raising an eyebrow. "Hmmm. I never thought to hear from him again. But nonetheless, please continue."
"Show him the letter," prompts Cimmerii.
"Oh, right," replies the mage, fubbling through his robes for the letter of introduction given to him by his master a few days before.
Eligos reads the letter while Jethias & Cimmerii tell him of their adventures in the Whispering Cairn, Dourstone Mine, & the Mistmarsh, & ask him for details on the Wind Dukes of Aaqa, Kyuss, the Age of Worms, the Ebon Aspect, & the Ebon Triad. Eligos notes Cimmerii's diadem which she found in Zosiel's tomb in the Whispering Cairn.
Eligos tells the pair to leave all the evidence they found with him, including the Talisman of the Sphere, pewter box, & demon horns found in Zosiel's tomb, any preserved Kyuss worms they have, & the notes of Theldrick, Grallak Kur, & the Faceless One. He tells them that he should have an answer for them in a week. Eligos recommends they stay at the Crooked House, as the owner is a friend, & can give them a discount upon mentioning his name.
Cimmerii then asks Eligos if he knows anything of Erelhei-Cinlu, but he knows little other than it being a great drow city beneath the Hellfurnaces. She then asks about the Great Library of Greyhawk, & about the drow librarian there. Eligos informs her that there are no drow at the Great Library, & that she's likely thinking of the head librarian at the Guild of Wizardry, Jawal Severnain. Eligos tells her that Jawal's first-hand knowledge of Erelhei-Cunlu is likely dated, as it's said he hasn't left the Guildhall since he was appointed as its first librarian by Zagig centuries ago.
The pair thank Eligos for his help & make their way beck to Silverfox Manor.
Moonday, Harvester 3, 595 CY
Reinhart, Cimmerii, Jethias, Hailleck, Fin, Tassilo, Stalagov, & Flinch all meet up once again at Silverfox Manor & share the news. The group decides to head for the Crooked House, a rambling inn with 3 floors & not one right angle in the entire place. Mention of Eligos's name gets Tarquin, the gnomish proprietor, to toss in some free drinks. Skie is allowed to stay in the stable, near Molly. Tarquinn informs the group that he forbids the wearing of armor & weapons (other than staves & daggers) in the public areas of his establishment, unless they're just passing through. The group agress to abide by the policy.
The rest of the afternoon is spent selling some of their loot & dropping off armor & weapons to be upgraded: Hailleck & Cimmerii find a place near the Crooked House called Zud's Towering Armory, where he drops off his chain shirt & she her greataxe. Fin drops off his rapier at Fedroot's Daggararium in the Slum Quarter.
The group meets up again that evening for at late dinner at the Crooked House. They sup on rabbit, boar, beef, duck, chicken, and venison, finishing off with a few drinks. After dinner, Hailleck spends some time on stage entertaining the crowd. About 10:00 pm, Jethias & Cimmerii head to their rooms.
A few minutes later, Jethias comes back downstairs, runs behind the bar & stabs Tarquin, & runs back upstairs, leaving his dagger buried in the gnome's chest, while Fin, Hailleck, Reinhart, & Tassilo look on in disbelief.
The crowd at the Crooked House is in shock. Hailleck quickly leaps down from the stage and, strumming his lute, casts a Cure Light Wounds on Tarquinn, reviving the wounded gnome.
The crowd begins calling for Jethias's head. Jethias & Cimmerii, hearing the commotion, walk back downstairs.
"That's him!" says a man the group never noticed until now, a merchant named Elaxan. "There's the murderer!" he says, pointing at Jethias.
Confused as hell, Jethias prepares for the worst, while Reinhart tries to calm the crowd, hoping that his status as a paladin will hold some weight (it doesn't), while Elaxan calls for themage's head.
Hailleck uses his bardic skills to calm the crowd, and for the first time, he's at a loss for what to do with a captive audience, & eventually ceases his Fascination.
Elaxan riles the crowd up again, as Tarquinn, in vain, tries to calm everyone down. Soon the crowd is tired of just shouting, & one attempts to grab Jethias, but is foiled as the mage uses a Dimension Door spell to escape out onto the Processional, where he begins looking for the City Watch.
Angered, Elaxan & the crowd turn on the mage's friends. Cimmerii runs back upstairs to her room to grab her bow, while Fin also makes a dash for the stairs.
Meanwhile, Reinhart, Hailleck, & Tassilo begin defending themselves from the crowd, armed with bottles, chairs, mugs, & kitchen knives. All, but Elaxan, that is, who pulls a shortsword from beneath his robes and attacks Reinhart. The party is hard pressed without their armor and weapons, especially against Elaxan, who wears down Reinhart severely.
Tassilo eventually moves outside, where he is followed by two other patrons. Fin makes it upstairs, where he slips into his room & begins packing his gear. As soon as Fin enters his room, Cimmerii exits hers, & sees one of the patrons hot on Fin's heels. The enraged ranger lets loose with an arrow, immediately slaying the man.
Meanwhile, Jethias has finally located a Watch patrol, & begins leading them back to the Crooked House.
Cimmerii moves downstairs & stands on the landing, where she begins shooting at anyone who she fails to recognize as a friend. One man his back to her, is fighting Hailleck, who is on the other side of the bar. Cimmerii mercilessly shoots two arrows into the man's back, pinning him to the bar.
Jethias arrives back at the Crooked House with the Watch, where they break up the fight outside between Tassilo & two of the patrons. Meanwhile, Fin has slipped out the window & onto the roof. He sees the Watch & decides to hide.
The Watch goes inside, where they break up the fight. By this time, Cimmerii has slain 4 patrons, & severely injured 4 others. Elaxan runs outside, attempting to escape, but is grabbed by Tassilo & a couple watchmen.
The group tries to explain the situation. Things get stranger when the dagger that was used to stab Tarquinn is compared with the 3 that Elaxan carries, & they see that one of his 4 scabbards is empty. Reinhart, Jethias, & Hailleck are able to convince the Watch captain of Jethias's innocence, as the group suspects magic was used by Elaxan to disguise himself as the mage. Unfortunately, Cim's innocence is not so easy to prove, what with 4 dead bodies, one pinned to the bar by arrows in his back. The Watch thereby arrests Cim, too, and she and Elaxan are hauled off to the Foreign Quarter Watch Station.
Finally, Fin, Stalagov, & Flinch show up.
"Thanks for all the help, guys," says Hailleck.
"I had to protect young Flinch!" says Stalagov, as Flinch rolls his eyes.
Tarquinn thanks Hailleck for the save, & tells Reinhart that their group brings more trouble than they're worth. The gnome refunds his money & recommends that they find another inn. He suggests they try the Blue Dragon Inn, further north into the Foreign Quarter, just off Horseshoe Road. The group begins packing their things.
Moonday, Harvester 3, 595 CY
Jethias tells Reinhart, Fin, Hailleck, Tassilo, Stalagov, & Flinch that the Watch captain said they won't be able to see Cimmerii until tomorrow. As the group exits the Crooked House & Reinhart goes to the stables to fetch Molly (& Skie, too, he realizes), they are approached by two familiar faces--Verin & Nogas, the Able Carter coachmen whom they'd rescued from trolls on the way to Greyhawk.
Verin tells Reinhart that they'd been let go from their duties at Able Carter, as they'd worked off their debts & the company really was loathe totake them on permanently. He then tells Reinhart that he & Nogas have decided to offer their services to the paladin.
"Oi, mean, Oi'm really good wif 'orses, like, an' Nogas 'ere kin lookout forya when ya restin' an' such!"
After much badgering, Reinhart finally gives in. He tells Verin & Nogas to take Skie & Molly back to Silverfox Manor, & has Flinch write them a letter of introduction asking his aunt to give the pair work for room & board.
The pair leave, while the others follow Tarquinn's directions to the Blue Dragon. They find the place in a cul-de-sac off Horseshoe Road.
Inside, the group meets the proprietor, a man from Perrenland named Gustin Longpike. In the large drinking hall they see banners & heraldic shields from various nations lining the walls, with the place dominated by the stuffed head & foreclaws of a fierce blue dragon.
All but Hailleck & Fin retire immediately. The dwarf & young rogue, however, decide to sample a pint of the house ale, Witch Queen's Cauldron, before retiring.
Godsday, Harvester 4, 595 CY
The group leaves the Blue Dragon that morning, each with their own aganda. Reinhart plans to visit his older brother, Reinhold, who is a minor magistrate in Greyhawk. Hailleck plans to visit Zud's Towering Armory to check on the status of his +1 chain shirt he dropped off yesterday, while Fin plans to visit Old City. Jethias plans to visit the Foreign Quarter Watch Station & see what can be done about Cimmerii.
Reinhart (with Tassilo, Flinch, & Stalagov in tow) goes to his brother's home in Clerkburg, only to find that Reinhold and his family are out of town and won't return for a week. Reinhart takes his crew back to the Blue Dragon.
Hailleck visits Zud's Towering Armory, located in a Foreign Quarter neighborhood known as Midnight's Muddle, not far from the Crooked House. Zud, the wild-eyed, red-haired halfling who runs the place, tells him that the item should be ready tomorrow afternoon. He also overhears the halfling badmouthing someone named "Souf," who apparently works just around the corner. This rings a bell, as Hailleck remembers hearing about a lizardman named Souf from Hishka in the Mistmarsh. Hishka told the group to seek Souf out, as he could help broker a treaty between Greyhawk and the lizardfolk tribes of the Mistmarsh. Hailleck gets directions and makes his way back to the Blue Dragon.
Fin enters Old City via the Black Gate, noting his name on the logsheet as he passes through. While passing through the maze of crumbling buildings & streets that make up the Slum Quarter, Fin spots Elaxan. Slipping into the shadows, the young rogue tails him, following him back into New City, through the Foreign and River Quarters, and outside through the Cargo Gate to the Wharves. Keeping a fair distance back, Fin watches as Elaxan enters an old stone warehouse with a moss-covered roof and no windows. Faded green paint on the side of the building reads "Sodden Hold."
Fin returns to the Blue Dragon to share the news.
Jethias enters the Foreign Quarter City Watch Station on Horseshoe Road, where he speaks with one Captain Wayham about Cimmerii. Unfortunately, he learns that she cannot be arraigned, nor can bail be posted until tomorrow, as today is currently Godsday, and the courts are closed. Wayham also mentions that it's unlikely bail could be posted, anyway, considering she's facing murder charges.
Wayham also mentions that the other perp they brought in last night, Elaxan, somehow escaped in the wee hours of the morning. He hopes to have him back in custody soon, as an alert has been sent out to all station houses, as will as to the Guild of Nightwatchmen (a privately-funded police force which supplements the City Watch, mainly at night; they wear light grey tabbards bearing a cudgel symbol & wide-brimmed, plumed hats, & have close ties to the Church of St Cuthbert).
Wayham allows Jethias to speak with Cimmerii.
Locked in a cell by herself, Jethias ensures Cimmerii that the group is doing all it can to help her--"Well, mainly Reinhart & I," he says. Jethias tells her that Reinhart's brother is a judge, and may have some leverage.
At that moment, Jethias hears conversation in the main room of the watch station, & goes to investigate.
"Judge Porthos," says Wayham, "how unexpected. To what do we owe the honor of a visit from a Judge of Greyhawk?"
Jethias sees a middle-aged, portly man with muttonchops, dressed in fine clothes, talking to Wayham.
"I was just in the area, visiting a friend," says Porthos, "when I learned of an unusual prisoner arrested last night at the Crooked House. A drow, they say!"
"She's actually a half-drow, your honor," says Jethias.
"Who's this?" Porthos asks Wayham.
"Oh, uh, he's here visiting the prisoner, your honor. And I believe he may be right about her ancestry, sir--she's rather tall for an elf, and her hair is dark, rather than light."
"Nevertheless, I'd be interested in taking a look. We don't get many drow in these parts, especially women."
"No problem, your honor," replies Wayham.
When the judge is finished gawking at Cimmerii like an attraction at the Emporium, Jethias delicately asks Porthos if it'd be possible to arraign her & post bail, since he's already there.
"No," says Wayham, "the courts are closed on Godsday, and-"
"Hold on now, Captain," interrupts Porthos. "If I decide to set bail at all," he asks Jethias, "do you think you could afford it?"
"Well, I'm not sure what the going rate for her alleged crime is, your honor."
"Let's say 500 orbs per murder count. How many does she have, Captain?"
"Four, your honor," Wayham replies.
"Well then," smiles Porthos, come back within the hour with 2000 orbs and we'll have ourselves a little impromptu arraignment and see."
"Your honor, this is highly unusual . . . " protests Wayham.
"Captain!" Porthos scolds.
"But your honor, it's Godsday, and this is just a Watch Station, not the Courts of Justice."
"I am a Judge of Greyhawk, Captain--one of only eight in the city. If I want to hold an arraignment on a Godsday, in your dingy little watch station, that is MY perogative. Understand?"
"Yes, your honor," replies Wayham.
Not looking a gift horse in the mouth, Jethias runs back to the Blue Dragon, where Reinhart, Fin, & Hailleck await. Looking through the party fund & their possessions, they scroung up 2000 gold orbs & head back to the Foreign Quarter City Watch Station. Porthos arraigns Cimmerii, allows her to enter a "not guilty" plea, & sets her trial for Harvester 26, 595 CY. Her bow and arrows are confiscated & her weapons license for the bow is revoked until the trial. She is also forbidden from leaving Greyhawk, and Jethias & the others are deemed responsible for making sure she behaves & abides by the law.
The group then returns to the Blue Dragon, where Hailleck tells everyone he's found Souf, & Fin tells everyone he's found Elaxan.
Jethias, Fin, Hailleck, Cimmerii, Reinhart, & Tassilo decide to first visit Souf, and to check out Sodden Hold later that evening. Bringing Flinch & Stalagov along, they find the location: a shop in the Foreign Quarter called Souf's Paraphernalia, in the Midnight's Muddle neighborhood. Fin & Hailleck express disappointment when they learn the store doesn't specialize in hookahs & other smoking implements.
Within, the place is a tower of clutter, with items cramming every room, stairway, nook, & cranny. Amongst piles of books are seen crates of sunrods, elaborately-carved walking sticks, knick-knacks, a ballista, a banner depicting frog-men fighting badgers, musical instruments, and a stuffed pixie.
The party introduces themselves to the proprietor, Souf--a friendly, soft-spoken lizardman dressed in human clothing. He sports a broken arm, which Jethias asks about. The lizard man tells the mage that a loose timber from a nearby building fell on him recently, & that he suspects his neighbor, a hateful halfling named Zud Yabberchap, is behind it, but can't prove anything.
Getting down to business, the party tells Souf about their promise to Hishka that they would seek out Souf, who could help them negotiate a treaty between Greyhawk and the lizardfolk tribes of the Mistmarsh. Souf agrees to help, and tells the party to meet him at his shop in the morning, & they will go to City Hall & try to schedule a meeting with the Lord Mayor, Nerof Gasgal.
The party bids Souf farewell & stops for lunch at the Red Serpent Restaurant, a Foreign Quarter eatery that specializes in a variety of spicy pepper & rice dishes. The group then decides to separate & take care of personal business, & agrees to meet back at the Blue Dragon that evening.
Reinhart, Tassilo, Flinch, Stalagov, & Cimmerii go to Silverfox Manor, where Cimmerii is reunited with Skie, who is out on the grounds playing fetch with Verin. Cimmerii then leaves with Skie, and Reinhart & Tassilo check in at the Sanctum of Heironeous. Meanwhile, Fin returns to old City, & Hailleck & Jethias spend some time exploring Clerkburg, where Hailleck buys a Bag of Holding. Hailleck also notices & points out an unmarked building with shuttered windows, labeled with nothing other than a nondescript red eight-pointed star above the door, which strongly resembles the same symbol found on the leather armor & on the rings they found in the Whispering Cairn--the symbol of the Seekers.
That evening, the group meets again at the Blue Dragon. As twilight approaches, they strike out for Sodden Hold. At the Cargo Gate, the guards forbid Cimmerii to pass, due to her current legal status. Stalagov tries to talk the guards into making an exception, but fails miserably, so Reinhart has the gigantic man head back to the Blue Dragon to check on Flinch. Cimmerii eventually gets through by drinking the potion of invisibility found in the Mistmarsh. Oddly enough, she notices she swallows something solid, but doesn't say anything. As Fin leads Reinhart, Hailleck, Jethias, Cimmerii, & Tassilo through the Wharves, Cimmerii begins to feel weak. Reinhart notices & uses Remove Disease to purge the sickness from her body. He also uses a Lesser Restoration spell to return her health.
Staking out Sodden Hold, the group's patience is eventually rewarded when they see none other than Judge Porthos himself enter the warehouse. After waiting a few hours more, the group decides to return to the Blue Dragon & retire, as they have to meet Souf in the morning.
Waterday, Harvester 5, 595 CY
That morning, Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, Tassilo, Flinch, & Stalagov meet Souf at his shop, & the group proceeds to the Lord Mayor's Palace, where they make an appointment for the following week. Reinhart sends Flinch & Stalagov back to assist Souf at his shop, since they'll likely be working closely together on the treaty proposal.
Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, Tassilo then head for the High Quarter, where Jethias tries to enter Greyhawk's Guild of Wizardry, but is rebuffed by the dwarven Porters at the gates, who inform him that he first needs a member to sponser him. Dejected, Cimmerii suggests he talk to Eligos.
The entire group heads to the sage's house where Cimmerii & Jethias introduce their friends. Jethias asks for help getting into the Wizard's Guild. The sage tells the young mage that he will sponser him, but he'll have to finish his current work first (researching the Age of Worms, Ebon Triad, Kyuss, Wind Dukes, etc), which will take about a week. Jethias then tells Eligos of Cimmerii's legal dilemma, & the sage expresses regret that he is unable to aid Cimmerii. Reinhart then asks if he knows of Judge Porthos.
"Indeed, I do," replies Eligos. "We meet for breakfast every Godsday." Jethias then calculates that Eligos was having breakfast with Porthos at about the same time as the judge was visiting the Foreign Quarter Watch Station. Seeing as Porthos can't be in two places at once, Cimmerii suspects trickery. The group bids Eligos farewell, as they ponder this new mystery.
After a late lunch at the High Tower Tavern & Hostelry, Cimmerii, Jethias, Reinhart, Fin, Hailleck, and Tassilo all decide to visit the Great Library of Greyhawk and see if they can access any city records regarding Judge Porthos, to get some idea whether he's a fair judge, or a corrupt one.
At the Great Library's main reference desk, the group is greeted by the head librarian, the sage Iquander. Despite Reinhart's invocation of his status as a paladin of Heironeous, Iquander informs the group that access to city records is only permitted to authorized persons, none of whom are in the party. Dejected, the goup leaves.
The rest of the afternoon and evening is spent selling more of the loot from the last adventure, shopping, exploring, etc. Fin picks up his rapier at Fedroot's Daggerarium in the Slum Quarter, and Hailleck his chain shirt and Cimmerii her greataxe, both at Zud's. The party reunites late that evening at the Blue Dragon for dinner, where they wait until dusk, planning to return to Sodden Hold once more.
Waterday, Harvester 5, 595 CY
At dusk, Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, Tassilo, & Skie return to Sodden Hold. Cim gets through the Cargo Gate again via an Invisibility spell from Hailleck.
Finding the main entry locked, the group first checks for an alternate route. Since the western end of the building hangs over the Selintan River, Cimmerii uses a scroll of Water Walk on Fin so he can investigate. He finds a large pair of doors on the far end (probably used to unload & load cargo from & onto barges) that have been boarded shut. The group decides to enter through the only entrance available, that is, the front door. Fin picks the lock & the group enters.
The party finds itself in a large storage hall, lit by Everburning Torches hanging from the ceiling 30' above. The room is filled with dozens of crates & barrels of various sizes, covered by a thick layer of dust. A 10' wide catwalk, 15' high, lies along the far wall. One door is on the left wall, & three are on the right, one of them up on the catwalk. As the group begins to explore the room, suddenly they are attacked by 3 mimics disguised as large crates.
After a tough battle in which many of the party get grappled or their weapons stuck, the mimics are slain.
Searching the room, the group finds that the crates & barrels are filled with items of little value: rough cloth, spoiled ale, & chainmail links.
Investigating the door on the left, Fin picks the lock & discovers it's a trapped false door, designed to open a pit beneath anyone who opens the door. On the opposite side of the room, the party enters the door on the right, which leads to an old office, completely dark & packed with boxes & bookcases overflowing with paperwork & ledgers. Sifting through the stuff, they find that these are records of a business that hasn't been in operation for over 10 years. A bit more searching turns up a Ring of Swimming, which Tassilo puts on.
Fin, Cimmerii, Reinhart, Hailleck, Jethias, Tassilo, & Skie leave the office & enter the next room, which they find empty save for a ladder leading up to the catwalk (which continues from the large storeroom) & a door. Fin attempts to climb the ladder, but it collapses, along with part of the catwalk, raining down debris which the young rogue somehow manages to avoid. The group makes their way back into the large storage hall, where they stack crates up to provide an alternate route up on the catwalk. Searching the blank wall opposite the door leading to the ladder-room, the group finds a secret door & enters.
Fin, Cimmerii, Reinhart, Hailleck, Jethias, Tassilo, & Skie fnd themselves at the top of a staircase leading down into a small room with a door. Along one wall are a number of chests. The group opts to investigate the door before checking the chests.
The door leads to a tall chamber containing 5 cells, 3 to the left & 2 to the right, with the corridor between leading to a pair of double doors. Only one of the cells is empty. The group speaks with the occupants, who are:
A young elven noblewoman named Ilya Starmane, from one of Greyhawk's minor noble families. She claims she was abducted over a month ago by human thugs, but has yet to hear anything about a ransom.
An unconscious human male. Upon reviving him, they learn that he calls himself Gattel Watam, & is half-mad, weeping & laughing at random.
A soft-spoken, bald human male named Kayin, who claims to be a blacksmith. He has been in Greyhawk less than a month, seeking employment, when he was abducted by strangers & brought here.
Two tired-looking human men in a single cell, named Martal & Regim. They claim to be members of the City Watch captured last week. They speak in vague terms of the horrible things their captors have done to them, including invasive mind probes, severing & reattaching limbs, torture, and worse.
After much questioning & debate, the group decides to free the prisoners. Fin begins unlocking cell doors. Unfortunately, when he gets around to freeing Martal & Regim, he finds their cell unlocked. The two men immediately pull longswords from beneath their cloaks & attack. After a Lightning Bolt from Jethias & a bit of steel from the others, the pair are slain. The party is surprised to see the dead bodies transfrom into something inhuman.
"Dopplegangers," breathes Jethias. After the learned mage explains exactly what dopplegangers are & do, the group sees to the other prisoners, who have taken shelter in the previous room with the stairs, & are looking through the chests for their belongings.
Ilya thanks the group & gives Reinhart her Periapt of Health as a reward for her rescue.
Gattal babbles incoherrantly.
Kayin pledges service to Reinhart for his rescue, & offers to make sure the others get back safely to their homes.
After the former prisoners leave, the group notices one chest left undisturbed. Inside they find a Bag of Holding (type I) containing 863 gp. The group then turns its attention to the double doors.
Cimmerii, Fin, Reinhart, Hailleck, Jethias, Tassilo, & Skie enter the double doors to find themselves in a massive room about the same size as the storage hall where they fought the mimics. Much of the floor has given way, revealing a large pool of stagnant water, from which portrude a large number of rusty spears, just waiting for someone to slip & fall on them. between sections of the floor still intact rests a framework of soggy timbers & pilings that once supported the ruined sections of floor.
To the groups immediate right stands a wooden interior wall, which apparantly house a smaller room set off in a corner from the larger room. Unable to see around the corner of this structure, Fin begins moving across the pilings to see if there's a door leading to this room. Unfortunately, one of the pilings gives way, & Fin just barely avoids falling, making his way to another section of stable floor. Unfortunately, at that moment he is attacked out of nowhere by a apir of invisible attackers.
Jethias uses Dispel Magic, but the creatures seem to be inherently invisible & the spell does little more than reveal their location for a single instant. But that instant is all Hailleck needs to cast Glitterdust in their general direction, revealing two large creatures, which Jethias identifies as air elementals known as invisible stalkers. The party makes quick work of the creatures, and Fin returns to the others.
In the water below, Cimmerii spots a number of bloated corpses beneath the water, among the spears. She also notices a golden glint among the bodies. Lowering herself into the chest-deep water, she retrieves a golden wand from one of the bodies. Tassilo soon determines that it's a wand of Spiritual Weapon & takes it, seeing as he's the only one able to use it.
The group next determines how best to navigate the room, as only Fin & Cimmerii are likely to make it across the wet timbers without falling in. Jethias comes up with a crude, if direct solution, & has Cimmerii hack a large hole in the wall to their right with her greataxe.
After hacking through the wall, the group enters to find themselves in a 20' X 30' room with a deep shaft in the corner, 10' square. Ladder rungs lead down the shaft 35', where an empty wooden barrel bobs in water.
Fearing another mimic, Reinhart throws his dagger at the barrel, & it clatters as it lands inside.
"Well, it looks like it isn't a mimic," smirks Cimmerii.
Fin climbs down & informs the group they'll have to take a dip to proceed. Cimmerii & Fin are selected to go first (Fin with his Everburning Torch, of course), while everyone else waits a few minutes to follow, just in case they run into something nasty.
Waterday, Harvester 5, 595 CY
Fin & Cimmerii, holding their breath, sink down the shaft 40' into the drink, until finding themselves at the end of a corridor. The pair make their way through the murk, & the corridor leads them into a large water-filled chamber, 40' square, with a 10' diameter stone pillar in the center. Light can be seen coming from above, leading them to suspect the room is only partially filled with water. As the two prepare to ascend to the surface, they find themselves attacked by a gigantic octopus!
The creature immediately grapples Cimmerii while Fin looks on in horror.
Luckily for them, the rest of party has tired of waiting by this time, so they descend as well (except for Skie, who has no desire to go diving).
Reinhart, Tassilo, Jethias, & Hailleck arrive to see their companions in dire straights. Tassilo uses his wand of Spiritual Weapon to summon a magic longsword of force. Jethias tries to swim away from the creature's reach & toward the surface. Fin & Hailleck attempt to do the same, while Cimmerii, Reinhart, & Tassilo take on the octopus. Fin is the first to break the surface, finding that the room's ceiling lies 20' above the water level. The stone pillar rise 10' above the water--rungs on one sire lead to the top. Climbing up the rungs, Fin finds a large lever on top of the pillar. Pulling it, he finds that the water begins to drain & the pillar sinks.
When the water finally drains, Hailleck, Fin, & Jethias find Reinhart barely standing, Tassilo & Cimmerii barely alive, & the octopus gone, presumably through a nearby drain, its bars only inches apart. Cim & Tassilo are revived thanks to their companions pumping the water from their lungs the use of Cure Light Wounds wands.
They see a stone platrom about 5' wide & 15' long hanging from the wall opposite the entry corridor, 50' above. The pillar itself has sunk to where its top is only 10' above the floor. The group decides to pile onto the pillar's top, where they pull the lever. The pillar starts to rise & the water begins to drain back into the room, to where the pillar stands at a level with the platform & the water fills the room to 40'. The platform leads to a door. Fin picks the lock on the door & the six enter.
The adventurers find themselves in the center of a long hallway, with iron double doors capping each end. Acroos from them, where they entered, the group sees 4 single doors spaced along the hall. One more door lies on the side they entered from.
The group first checks the lone door, finding that it leads to a latrine. Hailleck decides to knock on one of the other doors. Upon opening it, they see two dopplegangers, who attack them immediately. The noise of battle brings 4 more dopplegangers from the other rooms, all of whom are easily slain.
"I wonder how they knew we weren't dopplegangers in disguise?" muses Hailleck.
"Dopplegangers can sense thoughts, at least according to what I've read," says Jethias.
"Oh. No wonder," replies the dwarf.
The group finds that the 4 doors opposite to where they entered are each identical, containing two comfortable beds, 2 full-length mirrors, a table, a washbasin, & a wardrobe packed full of clothes & jewelry.
The group decides to rest in the rooms so Jethias & Tassilo can recover their spells, with 2 standing guard at all times.
Earthday, Harvester 6, 595 CY, in the wee hours
Jethias & Cimmerii are keeping watch in the hall while the others sleep, each stationed near one of the sets of double doors. Suddenly, Jethias hears one opening. At that instant, Jethias blocks the door with a Wall of Ice. Cimmerii moves to wake the others while Jethias looks on. The door opens into the next room, where he sees the blurry form of a humanoid creature through the ice wall. The creature looks upon the wall, then quickly shuts the door. The rest of the party stays on alert for about half an hour. When they see no sign of guards coming, they decide to return to their rest, though those pulling guard duty remain nervous.
Earthday, Harvester 6, 595 CY
After an adequate amount of rest, the party returns to its explorations.
Fin goes to the set of double doors opposite the ones that opened when Jethias was guarding the hall, & promptly falls into a pit, right in front of the doors.
Reinhart, Tassilo, Cimmerii, Jethias, & Hailleck run up to see if he's okay, only to find the pit empty. Moments later, however, they see Fin's Rope of Climbing snaking its way up through the "floor" of the pit. Soon, Fin is rescued & tells them the "floor" they see is illusory, & that the real floor is a bit deeper, complete with spikes & a Silence spell.
"Good thing I had that rope, or you guys might've never found me," says the young rogue.
The group decides to leave the doors across from the pit alone, & goes to the other pair of double doors. They find that they lead to what looks like a planning room, with a pair of tables loaded with unorganized stacks of notes, books, & maps. A large map of Greyhawk hangs on the wall before them. Sifting through the documents, the group learns that they detail numerous noble families & government institutions that have been corrupted by the dopplegangers' influence. This includes the Starmane family, the Millrose family, the Wainwright family, merchant councils, the Guild of Carpenters, the Leatherworker's Guild, the Guild of Stonemasons, the courts, the militia, & even the Directing oligarchy. Luckily, the party finds no evidence of infiltration of the Silverfox family.
Fin finds a secret door behind a bookcase, & the group presses on.
Passing through the secret door, Fin, Jethias, Reinhart, Hailleck, Cimmerii, & Tassilo find themselves in a twisting labyrinth with mirrored walls stretching from floor to ceiling.
As they navigate the maze, they quickly find themselves separated, as mirrored walls occsionally emerge from the floor, dividing the party into smaller groups. At the same time, they find themselves attacked by longsword-weilding dopplegangers who take on their forms.
The party is split into three groups: Jethias & Cimmerii; Hailleck, Reinhart, & Tassilo; and Fin by himself. Though the dopplegangers give them a tough time, the party eventually prevails.
Soon, the party is reunited & Cimmerii finds a door, which leads to a long hallway & a dead end. Fin follows his hunch & finds a secret door, & the party enters the room.
Fin, Cimmerii, Jethias, Hailleck, Reinhart, & Tassilo enter an octagonal chamber, the walls mirrored with dark black glass reflecting unnerving blue flames from a trio of Everburning Torches suspended from the ceiling. Another door lies on the opposite wall. Six chairs sit in the center of the room, each holding a gagged, manacled, & bound duplicate of each party member.
Almost immediately, the prisoners begin freeing themselves, each pointing to their double & accusing him of being a doppleganger & ordering the other party members to attack. At that point, Cimmerii, greataxe in hand, attacks Jethias, dealing him a mighty blow. Shocked, the others realize that the Cimmerii seated in the center of the room is the only one who hasn't escaped her bonds. Jethias, thinking Cim's gone mad, quickly moves away from her, while the freed prisoners each begins to attack his double.
Reinhart and Fin eventually bring down "Cimmerii," whose form twists into that of a doppleganger. The "prisoners" also transform into dopplegangers when they're defeated. Suddenly, "Cimmerii's" wounds burst open even farther, as a bevy of hideous green worms crawl from her wounds, nose, & mouth, much like one of the lizardfolk slain in the Mistmarsh last month. Just as before, the worms quickly die.
"Hey! How about a little help here?" says the bound Cimmerii at the center of the room.
Unsure the captive is really Cim, or another deception, the party begins to ask her some questions.
"One time you got drunk, in Dourstone Mine," says Hailleck, "and had a tryst with someone. Who was it?"
"You mean Filge?" she replies.
"Un, Hailleck," says Jethias, "you know dopplegangers can read surface thoughts, right?"
"I do now," replies the dwarf.
After much continued interrogation, the party determines that this is indeed, the true Cim.
"How did you get here?" asks Jethias.
"After we saw Eligos, I dropped off my axe at Zud's Towering Armory," she says. As I was making my way back to the Crooked House, I saw Fin, who had me follow him into some dark ally. Something hit me from behind, & the next thing I know, I'm here."
"So it wasn't really you who killed those people at the Crooked House?" asks Reinhart.
"No,---What do you mean, 'killed'!?"
"There was an altercation in the Crooked House that night," says Jethias, "in which your doppleganger killed four townsfolk with your bow."
"One in the back," chimes in Hailleck, "pinning him to the bar."
"Speaking of which," says Cim, reclaiming her equipment from the slain doppleganger, "where is my bow? This isn't it."
"You--I mean, 'she'," says Tassilo, pointing to the dead imposter, "had to buy a new one after the judge confiscated it."
"Judge?" asks Cimmerii, wiping the dead worms from her armor.
"Yes," replies Reinhart, "it seems you've got four counts of murder on your head. You go to trial on Harvester 26."
"Trial?!" she says, incensed. "Four counts of murder?!"
"But on the bright side," says Fin, "at least WE know you're innocent now. Some of us weren't so sure there for awhile." Fin glances at the paladin & priest.
"We did find some documents earlier that detail the doppleganger's activities in the city, so we may be able to clear your name. We think the judge who arranged for your release was also a doppleganger, as we saw him enter this place," says Jethias. "The circumstances of your bail were most unusual, with it being Godsday & the courts closed and everything. It makes more sense now"
"Godsday?" asks Cim. "What day is this?"
"Earthday," says Fin.
"Three days," replys Cimmerii. "Hey. Where'd this come from?" Cim displays a large sapphire found in her pouch.
"First I've seen it," says Jethias, taking it. "Hmmmm. It detects as magic. We'd better hold on to it for now. It could prove important."
"What can you tell us about this place, Cim?" asks Reinhart.
"Not much." I've been half out of it when I' haven't been cooped up in here, though I do vaguely remember being strapped upon a strange marble table, & waking up with a serious headache.'
The group heals up & decides to enter the door opposite the one they entered. Inside they find a small empty chamber. Hailleck finds that one of the walls is illusory, which leads them to one of the bedchambers found earlier. The group goes back to the hallway with the two pairs of double doors & the pit. They find the doors across from the pit are false, so they decide to return to the mirror maze.
Earthday, Harvester 6, 595 CY
In the mirror maze, the party finds a secret door. Entering, the group finds a large chamber with a vaulted ceiling. To the right, they see an assembly of vats & metal containers connected by tubes to a strange silver helmet, which lies on a table with straps. To the left, two short staircases lead to a raised dais supporting a throne, upon which sits--Allustan!
Allustan rises. "So kind of you to join me," he says. "It is time for me to show you the truth of things. Come and learn what lies beyond!"
Having been fooled too many times already, the party doesn't buy that this is the real Allustan for a minute.
"Spread out!" warns Jethias.
Cimmerii jumps upon the table & readies her bow while Hailleck launches into an inspirational war hymn. Tassilo uses his wand to create a Spiritual Weapon to harry their foe. Fin manuevers to the far side of the room. Reinhart makes for the stairs, but is stopped when a pit trap opens--luckily, he narrowly avoids falling in.
"Allustan" suddenly changes into the form of an old, hawkish wizard & casts a Confusion spell upon the paladin, which causes him to flee back into the mirror maze.
Fin runs for the other set of stairs, but an identical pit trap opens beneath him & the thief falls in, where his leg is impaled by a spike. Fin pulls himself off the spike & sends his Rope of Climbing up to wrap around the table leg, & begins climbing up.
Cimmerii shoots arrows at the wizard while Hailleck uses his crossbow.
Meanwhile, the wizard casts a fireball, damaging all but Fin (who is in the pit) & Reinhart (who is back in the mirror maze).
Jethias casts Ice Storm & the wizard moves from the area of effect & enters a secret door by the throne. Fin climbs out of the pit & everyone waits for the ice storm to dissapate. The party then moves up to the dais. Jethias ascends the left staircase & sets off a trap--a poisoned spear shoots down from the ceiling & severely damages him. Luckily, he shakes off the poison.
Fin decides to bypass the stairs & climb up on the dais. Reinhart briefly comes to his senses, but the Confusion takes hold once more, sending him back into the maze. Tassilo, Cimmerii, & Hailleck take the stairs Jethias took, figuring (correctly) that trap was already spent--the party avoids the same spot at the top of the other staircase, however.
Cimmerii enters the secret door to find a 15'x20' bedchamber with a comfortable bed, ornate full-length mirror, wardrobe, desk, & chair. A strange rug of magically shifting geometric patterns lies on the floor. Instead of the wizard, however, Cim is faced with a barbaric orc wielding a fierce greataxe, its blade sheathed in ice & frost!
"This should be fun," she muses, as she moves to swing at him.
Cimmerii's fun is cut short when the orc deals some severe damage to the half drow. At that moment, Fin tumbles into the room, attempting to position himself for a sneak attack.
Unfortunately, Cim withdraws & drinks a potion of Cure Moderate Wounds found in the Mistmarsh. Unfortunately, she notices that she swallows something solid, & feels a bit weak.
Fin suddenly finds himself alone in a tiny room with a massive, angry orc barbarian with a powerful magic greataxe. Already wounded from his fall in the pit, the young rogue doesn't stand a chance when the orc's mighty axe comes down--crushing his chest through his mithral shirt, instantly slaying him.
Angered at having lost another comrade, Cimmerii reenters the room, this time with Hailleck & another Spiritual Weapon conjured by Tassilo. Periodically, they catch a glimpse of the orc in the mirror--only he appears to be a doppleganger with a strange tentacles symbol on his forehead. It isn't long before the creature is brought down. About that time, the Confusion spell on Reinhart ends, leaving him even more confused that he missed everything (& that Fin is dead).
Earthday, Harvester 6, 595 CY
After tending to Fin's body, the group examines the room & the larger chamber as well. In the larger chamber, they find a huge ruby & a huge emerald in one of the metal containers hooked up to the silver helmet (which Hailleck takes). The two gems are determined, like the sapphire found on Cim's imposter, to be magical. They destroy the rest of the apparatus.
They discover that the doppleganger boss was named Telakin, & in his room find more documents detailing the dopplegangers' activities in Greyhawk. They also find a note written in a strange alien hand, & signed with a symbol similar to the one on Telakin's forehead. Upon deciphering it, the group finds that the note reads:
I have a task for you, thrall. Meet me at the sewer junction beneath the cold forge and I will give you the details. There are some troublesome small minds that must be removed.
The group loads everything of value they can find, including all documents available, into their Bags of Holding & Fin's Haversack. They decide to take the mirror, too, wrapping it in bedding & using it as a stretcher for Fin's body. the group then makes its way back to the water-filled chamber.
Back in the water-filled chamber, the group is unsure how to get the 250-lb mirror up the shaft. They decide that Jethias will operate the water-lowering mechanism, while one-at-a-time, each party member will sit in the barrel while the water is raised back to the level of the rungs in the shaft leading back up to Sodden Hold. Reinhart, being the only one really strong enough to lug the mirror up the shaft, will tie it to his back with Fin's Rope of Climbing, going up last. Unfortunately, his gear, shield, & armor are too heavy to carry at the same time, so he'll have to have someone else take that up separately. Once everyone is up, Jethias will use Dimension Door to return to Sodden Hold, bringing Fin's corpse as well.
Jethias & Hailleck stand on the pillar while the others wait on the stone platform. Jethias pulls the lever & the pillar sinks, draining the room. As Hailleck walks to the corridor leading to the barrel, a secret door opens into the room. Standing at the door, Hailleck & Jethias see a humanoid abberation with mauve skin & a bulbous, octopoid head with four tentacles. The creature is accompanied by two male dark elves armed with rapiers.
"Damn!" thinks Jethias. "Drow, and an accursed mind flayer!"
"So that's what a mind flayer looks like," thinks Hailleck.
The pair have no time for second thoughts when the creature lets loose with a mind blast, stunning both of them.
The drow cast Darkness upon the room & move in.
Fifty feet above on the stone ledge, Cimmerii, Reinhart, & Tassilo don't see the mind flayer, but they do see the drow move into the shadowy illumination below. Reinhart attaches Fin's Rope of climbing to the ledge & begins climbing down, armed with his sword, though unarmored. Cimmerii is right behind him.
Meanwhile, one drow moves toward Hailleck & takes his weapons, while the other begins climbing up the pillar to where Jethias is, 10' above. At that point, the mind flayer (who the group will later learn is named Zyrzog) moves into the room, toward the helpless Hailleck. Tassilo sees the figure & recognizes the danger. The Heironean priest uses his wand to cast a Spiritual Weapon & sends it at Zyrzog. Luckily, Zyrzog is intercepted by the spell & Plane Shifts away, leaving his minions, whom the party dispatches with little effort, though their disarm attempts frustrate Reinhart to no end.
Upon looting the dead drow, the party finds that their boots are caked with a yellow, phosphorescent fungus which Cimmerii identifies as Beggar's Gold, a relatively rare harmless fungus which is most often found in underground urban environments, especially near where runoff from forges or smithies can be found.
The group determines that the "cold forge" mentioned in the note found in Telakin's room must be an actual place, & determines to track it down.
At the top of the shaft, Cimmerii is reunited with Skie, who has been patiently waiting her master's return.
Cimmerii, Reinhart, Hailleck, Jethias, Tassilo, & Skie exit Sodden Hold. Hailleck uses Prestidigitation to make everyone presentable before passing through the gates & also Invisibility spells on Cimmerii & Fin's body to avoid too many questions from the guards. The group enters through St Cuthbert's Gate this time, in the Garden Quarter, & begin making their way toward the Sanctum of Heironeous on High Street.
Earthday, Harvester 6, 595 CY, late afternoon
Cimmerii, Jethias, Hailleck, Reinhart, & Tassilo take Fin's body to the Sanctum of Heironeous in Greyhawk's Garden Quarter, where Reinhart & Tassilo meet privately with the high priest, an aged man named Jaikor Demien, to explain the situation.
When Reinhart & Tassilo rejoin their companions about an hour later, they inform them that Jaikor has agreed to raise Fin for 5450 gold orbs, and will allow the young rogue's body to rest in the temple morgue for a few days, giving the party time to gather the needed resources.
The five then return to the Blue Dragon, where they find Flinch, Stalagov, Nogas, & Verin waiting. They also find the three prisoners rescued from Sodden Hold--Kayin the blacksmith, Illya Starmane, the elven noblewoman, and the half-crazed human named Gattel Watam. Kayin explains that he led the other two out & thought it best not to immediately seek out their homes, as he feared their dopplegangers would be there as well. He also talked Illya out of going to the Watch, as he feared the creatures might have spies within thier ranks. Instead, he led them to Silverfox Manor, as he knew Reinhart was a Silverfox. Once there, he ran into Nogas & Verin, who told him Reinhart wasn't currently staying there, due to the renovations. Nogas & Verin were able to convince Kayin of the truth, and they led the three to the Blue Dragon to await Reinhart's return.
Herding everyone into his private room upstairs, Reinhart uses the mirror to make sure no one is a doppleganger. He then puts his followers to work.
He tells Nogas & Verin to escort Illya, Gattel, & Kayin to the Sanctum of Heironeous, giving them some gold & telling them to seek sanctuary there. He tells them that he's filled Jaikor Demien in on the situation & hopes to have it resolved soon. He asks Nogas to stay with them until he sends for them, after taking care of the mind flayer leader. After escorting the group to the Sanctum, he asks Verin to return to Silverfox Manor & stay with Molly.
Kayin objects, telling Reinhart that he wishes to aid him in any way possible. He offers to hone and clean Reinhart's arms & armor, giving Reinhart time to tend to other matters. Reinhart agrees to Kayin's request.
Reinhart asks Flinch to pore over the documents found beneath Sodden Hold while he has Stalagov try to locate the "cold forge" mentioned in the note found in Telakin's chambers.
Reinhart, Cimmerii, Hailleck, Jethias, & Tassilo then return to their rooms, doff their adventuring gear, clean uo, and meet up in the Blue Dragon's common room for dinner. The group then returns to Reinhart's room to appraise the loot, after which they retire.
Freeday, Harvester 7, 595 CY
Stalagov returns that morning to tell the group that the Cold Forge is a smithy in the Artisan's Quarter, man named Crusty Patten. Patten, as far as he can tell, is little more than a foul-mouthed blacksmith, & doesn't seem sinister at all.
Flinch tells Reinhart that he hasn't looked through all the documents yet, but so far he's determined that the leader of the doppleganger gang, Telakin, was enthralled to someone named "Zyrxog."
"Well, at least we know the mind flayer has a name, now," says Cimmerii.
Jethias & Hailleck spend the morning casting Identify spells on the loot, determining that the ruby, sapphire, & emerald are something called "mind clones," each containing an individual's memories. However, they can only be read with a spell or other method which reads thoughts.
Cimmerii claims Telakin's +1 Frost Greataxe & +2 Ring of Protection
Tassilo takes the Ring of Swimming
Hailleck takes Cimmerii's +1 Ring of Protection & Telakin's Scroll of Dominate Person
Jethias takes Telakin's Scroll of Fireball
Jethias then heads to the Great Library of Greyhawk to research methods of defeating mind flayers, while Tassilo & Reinhart head for the Sanctum of Heironeous. Hailleck & Cimmerii spend the day selling the bulk of the items found in Sodden Hold.
At the Sanctum of Heironeous, Reinhart & Tassilo give Jaikor Demien 4 +1 longswords and over 800 gold orbs, which he accepts. Demien tells them to return in the morning when he'll Raise Fin.
On the way back, they run into Jethias on the Processional. Jethias tells them he's found a way to defeat Zyrxog, but needs help from the Heironeans. The three return to the Sanctum, where they confer with Demien once more. Jethias requests scrolls of Spell Immunity. Demien tells him that he can procure some special ones overnight & should have them in the morning, but they'll run 700 gp each. The three agree and return to the Blue Dragon to wait on Cimmerii & Hailleck, who get back in the early afternoon.
Cimmerii & Jethias work the rest of the day & night crafting a Wand of Cure Light Wounds, while Tassilo buys himself some new armor & begins enchanting it.
Starday, Harvester 8, 595 CY
That morning, Cimmerii, Jethias, Hailleck, Reinhart, & Tassilo return to the Sanctum of Heironeous, where they buy 6 scroll s of Spell Immunity from Jaikor Demien & gather around for Fin's return. Demien leads them into a small room where Fin's body rests peacefully on a funeral bier draped with the trappings of the god of valor. Demien stands at the head of the corpse & lays his hands upon the youth's head, asking for Heironeous to grant life to the lad who died valiantly in battle. As the party looks on, a warm yellow light surrounds the body, & the color begins to return to Fin's cheeks, and his body shudders as his broken ribcage heals before their very eyes. Minutes later, the light fades, & Fin breathes once more. The young rogue begins coughing violently as he regains consciousness. Fin opens his eys & looks around, glad to see his companions around him but not quite sure what to think about ending up in a temple devoted to the Arch-Paladin. many greetings and thanks are passed between all parties, & the group thanks the high priest.
Reinhart takes a few moments to visit with Nogas, Ilya, & Gattel, promising them that soon everything will be resolved. The priests have little hope for Gattel, as his mind is shattered. Fin, Cimmerii, Reinhart, Jethias, Hailleck, & Tassilo then take their leave.
Back at the Blue Dragon, Reinhart gives Fin the Periapt of Health Ilya Starmane gave him, while Fin gives the paladin his Amulet of Natural Armor +1. Hailleck & Jethias spend the rest of the day crafting another Wand of Cure Light Wounds.
Fin & Cimmerii scout out the Cold Forge. Finding a nearby sewer entrance, the pair decide its best to wait until dark to enter, so they return to the Blue Dragon & share their information. the group agrees to enter that night & begins their preparations.
Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck (holding the Everburning Torch), Jethias, Reinhart, Tassilo, & Skie locate a sewer grate near the Cold Forge. Fin picked the lock and the seven descend the rungs into the sewer tunnel below. The 10' wide stone tunnels contain between 6 inches to 2 feet of raw sewage. The group does its best to walk to the sides of the tunnel.
"Ugh. This place smells like Kord's armpit!" says Tassilo.
"No," muses Hailleck thoughtfully, "more like the bunghole of Gruumsh."
The group eventually finds the junction beneath the Cold Forge, rife with beggar's gold. In a nearby tunnel, they find the body of a human male, dressed in the work clothes common to members of the Guild of Sewermen & Streetsweepers, with a large hole in its skull. Jethias looks closer & sees the brain is missing. Not far from the body, they spot another side tunnel, which leads deeper underground. Following it, the party discovers the entrance to a natural cave in the side of the wall. On the entrance to the cave, Cimmerii finds the same symbol found on Telakin's forehead, the note, the bodies of the drow slain in Sodden Hold, & Zyrxog's robes.
"This looks like the place," she says.
Cimmerii, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, Tassilo, & Skie enter the caves, which are completely dark, save for the occasional patch of phosphorescent fungus emitting a shadowy, violet light. The ceilings average 20' high.
Some 20' from the entrance, as the group rounds a bend, they enter a large chamber covered with patches of phosphorescent fungus amid huge swaths of Beggar's Gold, immense toadstools, and various other molds 7 fungi. As the band approaches, four of toadstools emit piercing wails, causing the party to cover its ears.
"Great," says Cimmerii. "Shriekers."
Jethias quickly takes charge of the situation by destroying all of the fungi & mold with his Wand of Burning Hands.
"That takes care of that," the mage says, dusting off his robes.
The adventurers continue down a narrow corridor, with Fin in the lead. The group soon finds themselves ambushed by three male dark elves hiding on a ledge above. The drow throw down vials of alchemist's fire, lighting the oil-soaked corridor on fire. Cimmerii climbs up onto the ledge to combat the drow while Hailleck & Reinhart support her with missle fire. Tassilo aids her with a Spiritual Weapon from his wand, while Jethias uses his Wand of Magic Missles. Jethias also uses another wand to Enlarge Fin, enabling him to engage the drow more easily. Soon, the three dark elves are slain. The group discovers that these drow are also marked with Zyrxog's symbol.
The adventurers continue down the sloping passage, which opens up into a large chamber containing a pool of water on the far side, formed by a leaking cistern, which flows across the room in a thin shallow stream & into the wall. A pale green light comes from the pool, bathing the cavern in shifting curtains of dim light.
As the group approaches, Cimmerii, Fin, Skie, & Hailleck spot a large, snake-like figure with a humanoid head curled around a nearby stalagmite.
"Naga!" yells Hailleck.
Cimmerii immediately shoots an arrow at it, before it disappears into thin air. Hailleck casts Glitterdust at the area where it was to find it no longer there. The creature then reappears, summoning a spider swarm near Cimmerii, Fin, Skie, & Jethias.
"Cretins!" hisses the naga, "You will pay for invading the sanctum of Fassash!"
Jethias uses his wand of Burning Hands to deal with the swarm, while Reinhart engages the naga directly. Hailleck sings & uses his crossbow, Skie retreats to a safer place, Fin moves to get a clear shot with his crossbow, Tassilo moves to aid Jethias, & Cimmerii fires arrows at the naga.
After Jethias takes care of the swarm, Fassash (protected by several spells, including one of Displacement) unleashes a Fireball upon the party. Reinhart is bitten by the naga's poisoned fangs, but eventually he and the others succeed in slaying the beast.
Looking in the pool, the group sees the dim light comes from a greenish phosphorescent fungus. They also find a bit of treasure in the pool, including an emerald, a handful of platinum plates (the squarish, platinum coins minted by Greyhawk), & an Eversmoking Bottle.
The group sees a nearby exit from the cavern & decides to press on.
Starday, Harvester 8, 595 CY
Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, Cimmerii, Tassilo, & Skie move on into the next cavern, where they seen a makeshift animal pen to the immediate left, containing a half-starved cow & a few pigs. The chamber is over 40' high, with a shelf sloping up to the right about 20' off the floor. The room has two exit points, one straight ahead, & a second one to the right, past the pen, which consists of an iron door set into a framework of iron bars. The room also contains 5 male dark elves, led by a female cleric of Lolth named Myrianaas.
Fin engages one of the drow hiding immediately to the left, who dis arms the young thief several times during the course of combat. Myrianaas casts a Spiritual Weapon (which looks like a flail with tentacles instead of chains) to harry Cimmerii, while Jethias casts a magic missle at one of the drow, which fizzles upon meeting the dark elf's spell resistance.
Another drow engages Reinhart, and another takes on Cimmerii, and a third Hailleck attempting to disarm them. A fourth attempts to engage Jethias, but is knocked to the ground by Skie.
Myrianaas casts a Confusion spell, causing Tassilo to flee the room. Reinhart slays one of the drow & moves on Myrianaas, while Cimmerii slays hers & moves on the on the one fighting Skie, who Cim sends after Myrianaas. Hailleck sings while fighting he & Fin each fight their foes, & Jethias offers support with his wands. Myrianaas strikes Reinhart the most powerful blow he's ever felt, one backed by pure evil. Myrianaas also hits Skie, nearly slaying her. Cimmerii finishes her second drow & moves to aid Skie. Hailleck & Jethias finish the one drow while Fin continues to engage his. hailleck moves to cast a healing spell on Reinhart while Cim moves in on the drow priestess. Cim wounds Myrianaas, but is wounded in turn, and much worse. Reinhart rejoins the fray, & manages to land a killing blow on the drow priestess. Fin finally finishes his drow.
"That @#$% hurt Skie," says Cim to Reinhart. "You should've let me finish her."
"I just figured it was best to take her out as soon as possible," says the perplexed paladin.
The party heals up & loots the bodies, discovering Myrianaas's armor & mace are magical. Fin finds a small shrine to Lolth in an area on the shelf, & takes a small jade statue of the spider goddess he finds there. The group then moves to examine the door to the south.
Fin picks the lock on the iron door & he, Hailleck, Jethias, Reinhart, Cimmerii, Tassilo, & Skie enter. Before them stand 4 unresponsive, rotting, human corpses with gaping holes in their heads.
"Zombies," growls Tassilo.
Beyond the zombies lies a chamber filled with scraps of cloth, mounds of straw, human waste, & other debris. Three dark corridors stand to the left.
Reinhart & Tassilo channel the power of Heironeous to turn the zombies to dust, while the rest of the group explores the corridors, finding that they lead to a small chamber where 5 frightened prisoners await. The prisoners are: two human men named Cherno & Nostern, merchants from Dyvers captured on their way into Greyhawk; Sivanias Aestion, an elven leather craftsman specializing in gloves, gauntlets, & bracers; & two young women named Gerda & Eliza, who work as serving girls at the Broken Staff & were captured a few days ago while heading home after work.
The party learns that none of the prisoners has been here more than a week, & the zombies were the remains of previous prisoners whose brains Zyrxog sucked out and ate.
The prisoners thank the party profusely (especially Greta & Eliza, who seem quite taken with Reinhart) & are shown the way to the nearest exit.
The adventurers return to the drow lair & head down the remaining corridor, which soon widens into a small chamber with a smooth floor. Upon the floor is Zyrxog's symbol, which glows with a faint purple light. The group is careful to avoid the symbol on the floor, but instead gets blasted by a hidden Glyph of Warding.
"Damn, that was nasty," says Hailleck.
The group heals up & continues onward, soon arriving in a larger chamber with a few large stalagmites & a pair of huge doors of white marble, streaked with veins of a faintly glowing purple mineral. Flanking the doors are a pair of huge columns of the same marble, each engraved with Zyrxog's symbol.
Unfortunately, also in the room are three monstrous creatures, each about 5' tall & 150 lbs, with six tentacles supporting a bulbous body dripping with slime. A single yellow eye with a star-shaped pupil stares from the mass, with a hypnotic gaze which Slows the limbs of all who meet it. Two longer tentacles end in razor-sharp claws which reach out visciously. One creature is deep purple, another indigo, & the third is forest green.
The party has a bit of trouble from the creatures, their Slowing gaze having to be counter by Hailleck & Jethias using Haste spells. The creatures claws prove deadly, rending flesh as they hit. Eventually the three creatures are slain.
"What are these creatures?" asks Reinhart.
"Nothing I've ever seen or read of," replies Jethias.
"Nor I," says Hailleck.
The party heals up & prepares to investigate the marble doors.
Before going through the doors, the party determines that now would be a good time to use the scrolls purchased through the Sanctum of Heironeous which make them impervious to the mind flayer's Mind Blast.
Fin checks the doors, & determines them to be barred from the other side. Jethias uses his wand of Enlarge Person on Reinhart & Cimmerii, & the two burst through the doors.
Beyond, Fin, Hailleck, Jethias, Tassilo, Cimmerii, Reinhart, & Skie find a circular room over 30' in diameter, with a 40' ceiling. The marble walls are carved with a repeating tentacle pattern. A 10' wide corridor to the left leads to a flight of descending stairs. Four benches sit against the walls of the room, facing a huge brain carved from purple-veined white marble, nearly 10' in diameter, in the center of the room.
Stepping into the room, the group finds the brain to be a trap, which uses Dominate Person against each party member, one-by-one. Luckily, most of the party have the willpower to resist, & Jethias uses the wand to Enlarge Cimmerii, who destroys it with her axe.
The group presses on down the stairs, where they enter a laboratory with a large vat of green liquid. They decide to pass it up & find the mind flayer's lair, going down the staircase leading from the room to a large pair of double doors, which are unlocked.
The room appears to be some sort of macabre museum, dominated by a large statue of a vulture-headed demon. Another pair of double doors lead from the room, which are also unlocked.
The doors lead to a 10' wide, curving corridor, sloping down 30' to the next room. The walls of the hall are painted with a long frieze showing mind flayers marching across the surface of the Oerth, with no sun above & all the races of the surface bowing before their tentacled masters.
The adventurers find that the corridor leads to a large, cicular room, 50' in diameter & 80' high. On the far wall stands a tall octagonal column reaching to the ceiling, of jet-black stone with glowing green symbols carved upon one of its faces. Before the column stands a pool of glowing green liquid, 15' wide & 25' long, which bathes the chamber in an otherworldly light. In the pool swim a number of tiny, four-tentacled monstrosities--mind flayer tadpoles! On the right wall, some 45' up, sits a small balcony leading to a 5' wide passage.
Floating 40' above the pool is Zyrxog himself, who addresses the party telepathically:
"You dare enter my sanctum? Fools! I shall finish what telakin could not. Your weak minds will be a sumptous feast, your terror a plaeasing garnish!"
Zyrxog then lets loose with a Mind Blast. Thanks to the scrolls purchased through the Sanctum of Heironeous, only Skie is stunned.
Jethias uses a Dispel magic to attempt to remove some of Zyrxog's magical enhancements, but succeeds only in removing half of them. hailleck begins singing to inspire his allies. Fin begins firing his crossbow at the creature, which misses more often than not, thanks to Zyrxog's Displacement spell & his high armor class. Cimmerii fires her bow at Zyrxog, & fares little better. Tassilo cats a number of enhancement spells on Reinhart.
At that moment, two octopins drop from the ceiling and begin attacking Reinhart, Cimmerii, Tassilo, & Hailleck, while Zyrxog casts empowered Lightning Bolts, Scorching Rays, & Magic Missles at the party, as well as using his Necklace of Fireballs. A powerful Scorching Ray soon slays Tassilo, & Reinhart vows vengeance. Hailleck finds himself keeping busy, using the wand of Cure Moderate Wounds to keep Reinhart and Cimmerii alive, while Zyrxog keeps hitting them with spells.
One octopin closes on Jethias, who uses Dimension Door to transport himself to the balcony above, where he finds his spells of little use against the illithid. The mage concentrates his efforts on the octopins, which are eventually slain by Reinhart, Cimmerii, & Fin, while Hailleck continues to keep his companions & himself alive. Out of frustration, Jethias uses his crossbow on Zyrxog, even hitting the creature once, much to its surprise. Cimmerii uses her magical Shock & Icy Burst arrows on the creature, only to find Zyrxog protected from electricity. Reinhart & Hailleck join in the missle fest, & finally the illithid is brought down, his body falling to the floor in a twisted mess.
After seeing to everyone's wounds, the group also destroys the illithid tadpoles in the pool.
Looting Zyrxog's body, Jethias takes his Rod of Lesser Empower, while the creatures Ring of Counterspells, Cloak of resistance, & Elven Boots are thrown in the party's Bag of Holding.
Starday, Harvester 8, 595 CY
Jethias, Fin, Reinhart, Hailleck, Cimmerii, & Skie, their victory dampened by the death of Tassilo, notice a door next to the pool. Inside, they find Zyrxog's private chamber, containing a desk, 2 bookshelves filled with books pertaining to Greyhawk & its undercity, and a locked chest. Upon the desk sits a ledger filled with transactions in a strange, alien tongue (Illithid).
Jethias deciphers a few of the transactions--one involves the purchase of a petrified pseudodragon from someone named "Korakaia," one the sale of something called the Apostolic Scrolls to one Loris Raknian, director of the Free City Arena (whom they met 5 days ago, on their first day in Greyhawk), and a third involves a payment made by Raknian to Zyrxog to "erradicate some Diamond Lake pond scum."
Curious why Raknian would want them dead, even if they did kill his chimera, the group turns its attention to the chest, which Fin opens a key found on Zyrxog's body. Within are bags containing 950 copper commons, 220 silver nobles, 300 gold orbs, 25 platinum plates, & 1500 gp in gems.
Jethias, Fin, Reinhart, Hailleck, Cimmerii, & Skie (with Reinhart & Cimmerii transporting Tassilo's body on a makeshift stretcher) go back the way they came, stopping to check out the museum room. The circular room is about 30' in diameter, with a large ebony statue of a vrock in the center. Three large glass cases take up the rest of the room, along with a number of strange items hanging on the walls. A halfling-sized metal cage hangs from the ceiling, crafted to resemble humanoid bones. The glass cases contain various odities, such as shrunken heads & body parts in jars. The most notable artifacts are in the cases, including:
*The preserved head of a juvenile black dragon.
*A wicked looking dagger, with the word "Hellthorn" engraved upon its hilt in Infernal script.
*A pile of animate chains from a kyton.
*5 books labeled "Unspeakable Tome."
*A tarnished bronze figurine of a griffon.
*Four jars, each with a preserved beholder eyestalk within.
*A petrified pseudodragon.
*A stuffed doll that bears an uncanny resemblance to Reinhart, pierced with 20 spikes from a spiked devil.
*A 4" thick tome wrapped in chains.
*A yellow sapphire on a golden chain
*A battered greatsword with the word "Bloodthirst" engraved in Fruz runes upon the blade.
Cimmerii begins to open one of the case when suddenly the vrock statue transforms into the real thing, emitting disgusting spores & a terrifying screech. The creature then casts Mirror Image before attacking.
The group defeats the vrock with little trouble. The loots the cases, only to have the book with chains animate & attack. Cimmerii shoots an arrow through it & it falls to the floor. The book lists over 100 demons, with information on their names, homes, & conquests. The group takes as many of the artifacts as possible before moving to the next room.
The group presses on, finding themselves in a semicircular room which appears to be a laboratory. The room contains a number of small bookcases filled with books on anatomy & arcane fusion techniques; a desk holding many logs pertaining to the creation of octopins; & a large tank filled with green liquid. A stone door stands on the wall opposite the tank.
Investigating the logs on the desk, Jethias finds (& deciphers) notes in Illithid on a new experiment that had yet to begin, where Zyrxog hoped to create a parasite that makes its host very susceptible to Suggestion, a creature he called a "mind worm."
Moving closer to the tank, the group finds its occupied by a Large octoppin, which clambers out & attacks. The group makes short work of the creature, gathers the books, logs, & notes, & goes through the door.
The door leads to a small round chamber with a calm pool of water in the center, glowing with a faint blue light. Two benches sit along the wall, & a short hallway leads to a small balcony overlooking the chamber where they fought Zyrxog. Looking at the pool, the group sees that it seems to be some sort of scrying device, & that the scene currently depicted is the large throne room under Sodden Hold where they fought Telakin.
Having explored Zyrxog's lair in its entirety, the party leaves, first taking Tassilo's body to the Sanctum of Heironeus to be raised. After accepting 5000 gold orbs for the cost of spell components, High Priest Jaikor Demian, agrees to Raise Tassilo on the morrow. Reinhart stays at the sanctum overnight, standing vigilant over his fallen cohort, while Fin, Cimmerii, Jethias, Hailleck, & Skie return to the Blue Dragon Inn.
Sunday, Harvester 9, 595 CY
After a night's rest, Hailleck, Cimmerii, Reinhart, Fin, & Skie return to the Sanctum of Heironeus, where they reunite with Reinhart & watch as Tassilo is brought back from the clutches of the Reaper.
The group thanks Demien, then pays a visit to Eligos. Over a light lunch served by Eligo's aged elven manservant, Pollard, the group tells him everything they've learned in Sodden Hold & in Zyrxog's lair. The party wants to turn over all the information regarding the doppleganger infltration of the city government and Loris Raknian's involvement with Zyrxog, but Eligos warns them against tipping their hand too early, as they have little evidence on Raknian.
"Going to the Directing Oligarchy with a mind flayer's ledger, written in the creature's own hand, that merely mentions Raknian's name will hold little weight," the sage warns. "He could easily claim he had nothing to do with such a beast, & is powerful enough that he wouldn't be investigated on such flimsy evidence."
"But what about him wanting to kill us?" asks Hailleck.
"None of you are mentioned by name," replies Eligos. "'Diamond Lake pond scum' could apply to any number of things."
"Well then, Master Eligos," asks Jethias, "what are these 'Apostolic Scrolls' the mind flayer supposedly sold to Raknian? Are they dangerous?"
"Indeed they are, but again, the city officials would need more cause than a simple entry in a ledger to justify investigating someone as politically well-connected as Loris Raknian--even if they were aware of the significance of such an item."
"So why are they significant?" asks Reinhart.
"The Apostolic Scrolls are an ancient work of evil I only recently became aware of, during my research on your Age of Worms business. It seems they were penned centuries ago by Kyuss himself, and detail the creation of the ulgurstasta."
"The ulgur-whata?" asks Cimmerii.
"The ulgurstasta," replies the sage. "Immense undead creatures capable of swallowing their victims whole & regurgitating them as undead."
"Nice," she says.
"Such evil in the hands of anyone concerns me," continues Eligos, "as it should you."
"So what should we do?" asks Fin.
"As I said, turning his name over to the authorities at this point would do little good, & would likely result in Raknian hiring even more powerful opponents to dispose of you. Your best course of action, I think, would be to gather more evidence of Raknian's wrongdoing. Finding proof that he intends harm to Greyhawk or its government would certainly be enough to bring him down."
"So what about the doppleganger plot to infiltrate the city government?" asks Reinhart. "Should we sit on that information, too?"
"As Raknian's only connection seems to be bartering for goods & services with Zyrxog, it's my guess that he isn't aware of the doppleganger conspiracy. I would keep Zyrxog's ledger, & turn over all the other information to the Directing Oligarchy--it would help you in the end--not only would you gain the goodwill of the city government, but exposing the conspiracy could root out any spies who could betray you."
"That still leaves Raknian," says Hailleck. "How would you suggest we find more evidence of his evildoing?"
"Well," says Eligos, "I'd start by finding some way into his home or business, & seek evidence there. In fact, it just so happens that such an opportunity may arise soon. There is an event called the Champion's Games due to take place in Brewfest, some three weeks away. If you could find a way into the games, it would perhaps give you the opportunity to explore the Free City Arena, which supposedly holds many passages in its understructure, & would likely be an ideal place to hide a gigantic undead abomination--after all, that's where he supposedly kept the chimera you killed."
"How do we enter the games?" asks Cimmerii.
"I've heard that one requires a licensed manager," replies Eligos. "I have a friend who may be able to help. I'll let you know in a few days what I've discovered."
After a brief discussion, the party agrees to heed Eligos's advice, & bids the sage farewell.
Reinhart, Hailleck, Cimmerii, Jethias, Fin, Tassilo, & Skie stop by Silverfox Manor to pick up the magic mirror found in Telakin's chambers beneath Sodden Hold. Cimmerii also drops off Skie, as Reinhart's follower, Verin, doesn't mind watching after her.
Reinhart's other followers, Flinch, Stalagov, & Kayin are also there, as well as Eliza & Gerda, the two serving girls rescued from Zyrxog's lair. The pair, remembering Reinhart's last name, decided to bond themselves to his service in return for saving their lives, so they ended up at his family's estate to await his return. Reinhart visibly winces at having yet more dependents. Reinhart asks all but Stalagov & Verin to accompany him.
Hailleck, Fin, Cimmerii, Jethias, Reinhart, Tassilo, Flinch, Kayin, Eliza, & Gerda go the the Sanctum of Heironeus, where Reinhart's follower, Nogas, awaits with Gattel Watam & Illya Starmane, the two prisoners rescued from Sodden Hold. The group then proceeds to the Lord Mayor's palace, where they meet with Lord Mayor Nerof Gasgal & Captain-General of the Watch Tigran Gellner. The group turns over all the evidence on the doppleganger plot to take over the city government, and Kayin, Illya Starmane, Eliza, & Gerda give statements regarding their captivity (the half-mad Gattel is in no shape to). The group also agrees to lend the mirror to they City, in order to help them flush out more dopplegangers.
The Lord Mayor & Captain-General ask any former prisoners not to return to their homes until they have a chance to see if any were replaced by dopplegangers, & offer sanctuary to those who need it. Illya accepts, the others do not, though the Captain-General does request that the party leave Gattel (a former tax collector) in the City's care, as he's certainly in no shape to care for himself.
Gasgal & Gellner thank the party for their help & tell them it's likely they'll be contacted later for further details. Hailleck, Fin, Cimmerii, Jethias, Reinhart, Tassilo, Flinch, Kayin, Nogas, Eliza, & Gerda then return to Silverfox Manor. Lady Silverfox tells Reinhart that the construction on his quarters has been finished, & there is now room for him & his followers, so long as they agree to help around the estate. The group eats dinner at the estate, then Fin, Cimmerii, Hailleck, & Jethias return to the Blue Dragon Inn.