Again, Longbow on the Kelpie.
The shambling trog shambles after her, while the remaining trog tries to club the kelpie with a stone club. ” Szálljon le Sessrok-ről!” He growls, as his club does not seem to do anything to her thick cellulose like skin.
Robert tries to shoot at the kelpie, but nearly hits Ringo instead.
Get off Sessrok!
Hedran double moves up.
Desperately, Gren says "Stop attacking her, don't you see? She was an enchanted gnome! I can't let you hurt her!" He flails his glaive wildly in the hopes it will distract the party from attacking the kelpie.
Having not gotten close enough to attack earlier, both Ratel and Bear move closer.
She dodges out of the way of Ratel's kick, but gets smashed by his shield and collapses in a limp pile of seaweed.
"Mit tettél? Ő volt a legszebb trg, amit valaha láttam." The charmed trog starts hugging her body.
What did you do that for? She was the most beautiful trog I've ever seen.
" Készítsen belőle Sessrok! El akarta enni!" The other trog slaps the charmed trog.
Snap out of it Sessrok! She wanted to eat you up!
Then he turns to the party, and respectfully says, "Köszönöm a Sessrok megmentését, még akkor is, ha ezt a hálátlan gazember nem értékeli."
Thanks for saving Sessrok, even if that ungrateful bastard doesnt appreciate it.
Once the Kelpie is splatted, both Grenwold and Sessrok come to their senses.
"Sajnálom. Nem tudom, mi jött át rajtam." Sessrok apologizes sheepishly.
Once they reach a tree covered ridge, the trogs gesture at the party with a clawed hand.” Várj itt.”
Wait here.
Then they duck into what appears to be hanging roots, and then there is a horrible shrieking sound.
They hear a voice complain. ” Minden alkalommal, amikor visszajöttem a riasztásba, mindig majdnem felrobbantja a dobhártyámat.”
Everytime I get back in the alarm always nearly bursts my eardrums.
About 10 minutes later, the two trogs appear from the hanging roots.” Ighiz még mindig a kő gondolkodásakor, de a második, Handiss beszélni fog veled. Kövess minket, de a szag rosszul lesz a felszínre. És érdemes lefedni a füledet. A bejáratnál vannak shierker gombák.” They gesture for the party to follow.
Ighiz is still in her contemplation of stone, but her second, Handiss will speak to you. Follow us, but the smell is going to be bad for you surfacers. And you might want to cover your ears. There are shrieker mushrooms at the entrance.
Beyond the tangle of roots shading the cave entrance, a narrow tunnel slopes sharply down. The tips of tree roots protrude from the ceiling like stained teeth. A cloudy teal crystal that is melded into the wall glows with a faint light.
Hedran realizes that a continual flame spell has been cast on that crystal in question.
Tanned coloured fungi covered with a fine white fuzz sprout from the ground and an unpleasant odor of decaying meat hangs in the air. Nigel,Ratel and Grenwold realize that it smells pretty similar to how the troglodytes are smelling, and sort of figure why those trogs smell that bad.The celling is only 4 feet high.
There are also a patch of shrieker mushrooms, that raise an unholy ruckus as soon as the party steps into the chamber.
A cylindrical mass of roots hang from the exact centre of this room The roots have been braided together to form a large cradle holding a giant violet crystal as big as a human head, which is also glowing, and Hedran identifies it as another continual flame. Two other gray lizards are in the room, wielding crystal Sickles that have a green hue on them accompany the party further into the caves.
"Whew, thanks for dispatching that Kelpie. They're so gross..."
At the cave entrance, Gren casts heightened awareness and follows inside behind Nigel.
A sharp drop leads to a large chamber. Rough stone steps have been cut at the end of the tunnel, easing the downward passage. Faces loom from the walls, cut from the natural stone in the form of reptilian visages. Their mouths are open, filled with jagged teeth, and their oval eyes lack pupils, making them seem blind. The charred remains of a fire sit within a bowl in the center of the room. A large muscular gray lizard, with a crystal greatsword that glows with an orange red hue, giving the suggestion of flames, accompanied by another gray lizard with green glowing mystic tattoos over his body, and two other gray lizards are sitting within the chamber.
"So, surfacers, you come to ask about cave sharing?" The gray lizard with the crystal greatsword asks.
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Nigel, who has made his misgivings clear (his concern only mounting at the sight of the existing décor), turns and looks at Gren, before nodding.
"It had been suggested zat ve might ask if zere vould be room in zis cave complex for us to join you; ve had been led to believe zat you liked surface cooking, so zere might have been some sort of quid pro quo zat could be arranged. Zere are, however, more zan 40 of us; ve are just an advanced guard..."
Shaking his head as they move through the caves, Ratel mumbles to Bear, "Well at least we know why the place stinks."
When they enter the room, Ratel reaches into his pouch, holding the vial of his mutagen with his unshielded hand. Looking from Nigel to Hedran, "Quid pro puo?"
Grenwold detects no evil pings.
"Well that could be arranged, there's certainly sufficient space around, especially so if the lower chambers could be cleared, and its true that surfacers food commands a premium among us. Enough surfacer food and you might even be able to trade for something like this here," The trog strokes his blade lovingly.
"Ah, I see you're not familiar with its properties."The trog continues as the party stares at him uncomprehendingly. He then strokes his blade over the fire remains, his blade briefly bursting into flame and igniting the fire.
Ratel clears his throat, "There is another issue, we are at war with a hobgoblin army. They have places a bounty on our heads for much gold. We will need you to help us fight them, even though we intercepted a messenger inviting you to join them in overthrowing the human aggressors." He looks from the sword holder to the other, "Would you make war against the goblin horde?"
"Bringing the tribe to war is something I cannot do lightly. You will have to consult Ighiz yourself, for she hears the wisdom of the stones, and can see the best future for the tribe." The gray lizard with the crystal greatsword answers. "Ighiz meditates in the bowels of the earth, through the uncleared lower chambers I mentioned earlier."
Nodding his head, Ratel continues, "I understand, we will speak with her. Shall we wait here or go to where she is?"
He looks from the speaker to the others. "But there is something you need to understand as well. War is upon you already. If you do not side with the hobgoblins, they will subjugate or destroy you as they are doing to the humans."
Grenwold detects no evil pings.
"Well that could be arranged, there's certainly sufficient space around, especially so if the lower chambers could be cleared, and its true that surfacers food commands a premium among us. Enough surfacer food and you might even be able to trade for something like this here," The trog strokes his blade lovingly.
Hedran is particularly curious about the blade, taking a good look at it when the lizard evidences it, but unfortunately he cannot simply borrow it for a further examination.
"Bringing the tribe to war is something I cannot do lightly. You will have to consult Ighiz yourself, for she hears the wisdom of the stones, and can see the best future for the tribe." The gray liry zard with the crystal greatsword answers. "Ighiz meditates in the bowels of the earth, through the uncleared lower chambers I mentioned earlier."
"And would you allow us to access the lower chambers and speak to Ighiz?" - the half-orc adds, and introduces himself - "I am Hedran"
To Hedran’s casual examination of the blade, the blade is made entirely out of rock crystal. It does not appear to be magical.
”Perhaps so. But not too long back – we warred against surfacers under Ighiz’s master, Magnaz” The greatsword wielding lizard says contemplatively, as if he was reciting a history lesson. ”It did not end well for us – and we learned the error of our ways. It is why we stay out of surfacer matters, and flee on sight of any surfacers, much as we enjoy the bounty of the surface world.”
”You will be permitted access to the lower chambers, but be wary, for the last few messengers I sent to find Ighiz did not return. I would attempt to clear the lower chambers myself, but someone must watch the tribe while Ighiz is deep in her meditations. “ The greatsword wielding lizard answers.
”Also, if Ighiz gets upset, she only speaks the language of stone.”He adds as an afterthought.
"I am Handiss,"then he gestures at the tatttoed lizard, "Slate" then he gestures at the trogs in the room, "Rhosz, Vokzo, Thrix, Khos, Sessrok and Ressh."
Ratel nods, as he eases the vial back into his pouch. "Show us the way to the lower levels.'
"I would very much like to learn how it is you can work rock crystal like that" - Hedran comments to Handiss before they leave - "Perhaps one day, if peace is found" - he adds.
The air is damp and moist here, but it’s a fresh, cool mist. A rough crystal globe hangs from the ceiling, candles burning within it. The light from the globe refracts off the mist in the room and the crystal growth on the walls, filling the room with rainbows. A bubbling fountain in the center creates a jet of clear water that continually drains back into the ground. A trog tends to two cat sized poisonous frogs. ” Tartsa a békáit a kezében, látogatóink vannak.” Handiss tells their handler.
Keep your frogs in hand, we’ve got visitors
A few animal skulls, which Nigel, Grenwold and Robert recognizes as boars, stags, auroches and ringhorns adorn the clay walls. In the centre of the room work table containing many crystal shaping tools as well as a grindstone. Two more trogs are in the room, wielding longspears that crackle slightly with electricity, standing guard on the passage down. Handiss sighs melodramatically, while gesturing at the trophies. ”Alas, duty is a heavy mistress and I now have no time for sport.”
Then he looks at Ringo a little sheepishly.”Ooops.”
” Hadd menjenek át.” He commands the guards.
Let them pass
Then he gestures to the passage below, "Good luck."
Snorting at the 'sport' comment, Ratel stops for a moment, releasing his animal form, to reclaim it, this time focusing and being able to see in the dark. Nodding to the others, he leads them into the passage below, keeping a keen eye out.
Hedran follows suit.
The corridor here slopes down at irregular angles and reeks of dampness. The walls are jagged and covered with sharp stone barbs. Mossy growths spread across the floor and walls, and some bones lie pale against the dark moss, with a belt made of jade plates and a pair of boots still on it. Two lumps lie on the ceiling and when they spot the party, they start twitching in preparation to attack!
Hedran identifies the creatures as darkmantles. It can open up like a hideous octopus, its thin, hook-lined tentacles connected by a fleshy web. And grab people.
Seeing the carcasses Ratel asks as he moves forward, "Do you think these umbrella looking things did that?" Shrugging his shoulders, he tells Bear, "Attack Bear" As Bear moves forward, rearing up on his hindlegs, attempting to bite the thing, Ratel swings his shield at the one on the right also.
Ratel stabs one of those lumps and Bear bites it savagely and it falls off the ceiling showing itself to be octopus like creature with a thin, hook-lined tentacles connected by a fleshy web.
Hedran wades in after Ratel - "I have read about them before, but never actually encountered Darkmantles" - he comments, moving in to attack.
Hedran manages to inflict a nasty tear on the remaining darkmantle with his longsword. Grenwold urges Ringo up, then strikes the dark mantle with his glaive.
Grenwold cuts the darkmantle out of the ceiling and it falls off resembling a set of thin, hook-lined tentacles connected by a fleshy web.
Examining the bones, Hedran realizes that the belt is magical and so are the boots but cannot identify them.
Grenwold has no such luck either.
The party follows the winding tunnel down until it abruptly ends in a wide pit descending into the lower level 40 feet below. Rungs have been carved into the side of the pit, allowing creatures to climb up and down as easily as they might a ladder.
Robert passes the bulls eye lantern to Weasel for him to grab in his mouth, before making the descent.
Then he takes back the bulls eyes lantern from Weasel.
This vast chamber seems more finished than the upper chambers. Walls of smooth masonry stones intersect a mirrorlike marble floor. A statue of a swirling portal made from four elements stands in the centre of the chamber. Reliefs along alcoves to the east and west depict rough-hewn reptilian forms gathered around a step pyramid. Rough purple gems have been wedged into the reliefs, forming starburst patterns.
The southern wall has partially collapsed, cracking the floor and blocking what was once the only hall leading out of the room behind tons of stone and rubble. There are two secret doors to the left and right, but thousands of years of wear and tear have made them easy to spot.
The party also realizes they are sharing the chamber with a quivering cube of slime.
Grenwold and Hedran both know the cube is a gelatinous cube.
It has Engulf:
Although it moves slowly, a gelatinous cube can simply engulf Large or smaller creatures in its path as a standard action. It cannot make a slam attack during a round in which it engulfs. The gelatinous cube merely has to move over the opponents, affecting as many as it can cover. Opponents can make attacks of opportunity against the cube, but if they do so they are not entitled to a saving throw. Those who do not attempt attacks of opportunity can attempt a Reflex save to avoid being engulfed—on a success, they are pushed back or aside (opponent’s choice) as the cube moves forward. Engulfed creatures are subject to the cube’s paralysis and acid, gain the pinned condition, are in danger of suffocating, and are trapped within its body until they are no longer pinned.
And has nasty slime.
A gelatinous cube secretes an anesthetizing slime. A target hit by a cube’s melee or engulf attack must succeed on a Fortitude save or be paralyzed for 3d6 rounds. The cube can automatically engulf a paralyzed opponent.
Standing gap mouthed for just a moment, Ratel looks at Nigel and ask, "Can we just go back up the ladder and drop stuff on it?"
Nigel thwacks the quivering slime and it gives a quiver. It's pretty much all the same and doesn't have any vital parts to speak off.
Hedran steps to the side drawing his bow, and shoots an arrow at the strange creature - "Nigel, it is very slow, but dangerous if you get close" - Hedran warns - "We should try to kill it from a distance"
Hedran manages to send an arrow sticking into the slime cube.
Gren says ”And spread out, if it’s going to engulf us, let’s hope it only gobbles on of us up.” He drops his glaive and draws his bow, and takes a shot at the cube.