Vlad swings twice at the raging frog..
Kharn continues to rage roaring at the frogs and mocking their attempts to scare him. He then brings his greatsword down at the frog man's head.
Lil drain more of the frog vitality as Seth trip, Grumblejack crush, Vlad and Kharn make a bloody pulp of the fallen enemy.
With the ‘leader’ slain, the others flee with surprising speed, into the dark cavern, outside the light effect.
"Wait, come back! We only didn't like that frog!"
"Whatever freaking tunnel they are using, we want to know where it goes! Let's go!" Argan swiftly moves after the slowest frog.
Vlad will follow the others after the frogmen, but isn't very fast in his fullplate.
Kharn calms down and follows the others in chasing the frog men.
Lil’s promises of friendship and frogloving are ignored as the frog people just run for their lives. Argan urges the group in pursuit, but only Kharn is able to keep up with him, and thus they opt to follow at a slower and safer pace, since the trail is easy to follow.
The trail leads into one of the passages in the right, first ignored by the villains. From there it winds up in two other caves, and following the trails takes you into the left passage.
Another cave room, this one with its many stalagmites and shadowy corners, this cavern is a natural ambush site, or that is what Argan thought when he first saw it, but no frog here to offer any danger.
The trail continues through the cave, leading into a larger room, with an immediate passage to the left and right, and a larger path continuing ahead. The trail however, turns immediately at the passage to the left, and from there, you can hear what appear to be dozens of frogs croaking, but for predators such as yourself, that sound had only one meaning: Fear.
Lil sits down next to the defeated barbarian frog. "Don't you worry Mr.Croakers, we'll get you fixed right up." She starts putting the bones back in their proper places, already having plans for her first friend.
Seth follows behind Argan and Kharn, scanning the area. "Onward I say, it seems their leader has fallen so I doubt they are much threat anymore."
"They might have other leaders. Like a chieftain and a shaman."
Kharn looks down the left hall.
"And I dislike leaving enemies behind us."
Argan also thinks they won't be a threat anymore, but still he wants to finish the thing, although they could wait and fix themselves before that.
"Indeed. It might be we will find other clues about Kael and his party. Hey miss seventeen languages, do you speak theirs?"
Lil looks up from her work and shrugs. "Don't know, didn't hear them speak a language."
"If the crazed frog was indeed their leader there has to be a second in command around here. Perhaps one more inclined to talk.. I say we find out.. They could be useful if we subjugate them.." Vlad moves down the left passge to confort the frogmen..
Argan moves right after him to "comfort" the frogs.
Every boggard in the Lower Caverns seems to lives here in seven crude mud and thatch huts. There were sixteen bane-wog boggards in total, not counting the leaders;
You can't say if the boggards are stunned by surprise or fear.
Fact is, none venture forward, none challenge your advance. After some brief silence, from the mud tent , emerges a boggard, that you are pretty sure is a female.
She walks past the stunned throng of frogs, stopping in front of Kharn. She says something in their frog-like language, that none of you understands. Then, tentatively, the boggard point to Kharn and to tent she came from, some moments ago.
Lil listens intently. "Ooh wait, I think I can piece together what they're saying." Lil takes out some parchment and a pen, handing it to the female boggard.
Kharn noticing the boggard pointing to him and the tent assumes that they must have some sort of treasure that he gets since he killed the old chieftain, and he heads towards the tent.
The meaning is clear to you even tho their words are not.
Kharn was the one to deliver the killing blow, so he is the new ‘Chieftain’ of the tribe.
Also, you are pretty sure the female boggard is the ‘Chief’ mate.
Lil giggles and looks at Kharn. "Since you killed that big one, you're their new chief! And this one's your wife!"
Vlad grins ear to ear.. "Oh yea Kharn.. Froggy style.. Go get her biggun!"
Kharn sighs.
"and here I was thinking I was about to get some sort of treasure."
Kharn glares over at Vlad's grin.
"You lot owe me for this."
At which point Kharn decides to take one for the team.
"Who knows, could be the time of your life.. Chieftan Kharn!"
"Do a good job and lead this loosers to their demise inside the tower. 16 less traps for us to disarm!" Argan seems serious about it, of course. "By the way, I owe you nothing. You're the one getting free sex around here, so you should be paying us".
The boggards keept in stunned silence while the party talks among themselves, until some moments later, from north of the village, another boggard walks in, using a crude made staff to support his walking, his eyes clouded and sure enough, he only stops when he is closer to you as if he could not see you before.
At this one arrival, all the boggards starts talking at the same time, in their frog-like voice, if you did not knew better, one might suspect you just found a frog swarm.
The shaman-like boggard then turns to the newcomers, the invaders, and in a barely understandable common says ”Be right. Sho’ power. ” he points to the tent that the same female pointed and says ”Chief hut. Chief treasures.” then he points to the female boggard, draw two lines in the ground ”Chief woma’.” pointing to Kharn ”U woma’.”
In all this exchange, you got the impressing he is, for lack of a better word, high on some kind of drug.
The shaman-like walks two steps closer and continues ”Father Dagon showed Zikomo Hears-the-Father. Kumanda Slays-Nine-Men slay, restore Father Dagon glory.”
These vile frogmen venerate the demon lord Dagon who they simply call Father (since in their cosmology, Dagon sired them).
Dagon is the demon prince of sea creatures. He is worshiped as a deity by legions of sahuagin, locathah, skum, lizardfolk, tritons (those that have accepted the ways of evil), and some merfolk, and for the purpose of this adventures, boggards! :D
Lil whispers aside to the party. "They worship the demon lord Dagon, often calling him "Father". He's the demon prince of sea creatures."
"Tomorrow I will prepare a spell to better communicate with them." Seth switches to infernal. "It appears we have Kharn as their leader by combat, so we may be able to utilize them as minions."
Kharn cannot begin to show his anger through just a glare as he regards Argan and Vlad, but the appearance of the shaman along with his words forestalls any comment for now. Kharn isn't entirely sure who this Dagon fellow was until Lil explained it. Kharn kind of whispers back in Infernal.
"Well I see no reason not to help them right now since it will get a tribe of minions."
Kharn then addresses the priest in Common.
"We restore Father Dagon glory."
"Chief sa'd, done be." says the shaman.
==//==
The village treasury is kept here in the chief hut, scattered among the many skins and bunches of grass and leaves. The “treasury” is a collection of large bones, broken weapons and armor, crocodile and snake skins and shiny rocks that have impressed Kumanda over the years. Among this worthless junk however, there are a few legitimate treasures. There are two large chunks of flawed but valuable amethyst worth 150 gp and 220 gp respectively ; a fossilized mammoth ivory tusk worth 500 gp ; and a fearsome‐looking helm, winged and red‐plumed, decorated with grinning goblin faces. Helm of comprehend languages and read magic. .
"Once we can talk with them better they should be able to give us info on the place.. Perhaps they know some alternate entrances to the Horn. Certainly they can be used as a labor force once we get the place up and running.."
Argan finds it weird that Kharn is showing some resentment now. The man was so calm that he didn't even seemed like a villain, but now his true side was slowly showing up. "King hoopa loopa... There must be some entrance around here. Put that helm on and make us proud Kharn."
Kharn puts on the helmet so that he can finally understand what the frog people are saying. He tries to communicate with the shaman since that boggard actually spoke common.
"Helm make me understand people voice, so speak people's voice. Where magic horn?"
When Kharn says people voice he motions to all the boggard people.
"Magic Horn Kharn? The Horn isn't an item but a place there we're underneath at the moment.." He looks to the Boggard Soothsayer.. He speaks slowly.. "IS THERE AN ENTRANCE TO THE MOUNTAIN ABOVE US DOWN HERE?"
While you were searching the chieftain hut, and identifying the helm and jewels, the shaman left, most likely using the same path he used before.
The boggards near you talk among themselves about the strange leader, that don’t know how to speak, and keep shouting strange noises.
Vlad will follow the shaman while Kharn gets everything sorted out..
Doubting the members will attack Kharn, Argan also goes after the shaman, although he tries to keep his distance and remain unseen, just in case.
Kharn's not sure that he can do anything to communicate with the frog people, but he thinks that traveling after the shaman is a bad idea.
"Maybe you shouldn't follow the shaman. He may be heading out to a sacred area to the frogs."
If they don't listen Kharn just shrugs and tries to communicate with the frogs before giving up and taking a break in his tent.
Following the shaman trail is easy, his footsteps dragging in the muddy and fetid floor gives a clear trail to follow. It passes for a cave, which save for a walkway around the edge is covered in a mix of mud and boggard manure. From this foul mixture grows a field of barely edible mushrooms that the boggards reluctantly consume when they can’t get anything alive to eat.
From there, it leads into a large and high-vaulted cave drips with water so constantly it seems as if it is perpetually raining. Fetid pools and luminescent algae combine to give the chamber an ominous greenish glow and a lingering stench. The chamber is dominated by a large and impressive mud and stick hut that is surprisingly sturdy.
The entrance is decorated with bones and leather strips cut from dozens of creatures (many sentient).
The temple itself is a single room almost thirty feet across. Inside, countless bones from those who have died upon Dagon’s altar decorate the place. A crude stone block is encrusted with old dried blood. Above the block, drawn in vibrant luminescent paint distilled from rare marsh plants, is the mad spiral rune of Dagon himself surrounded by countless scribbles of daemonic iconography copied from the Horn’s exterior. A fire pit burns in the center of the temple.
Zikomo seems to be in a trance when you arrive. He emerges from his trance long enough to stare you glass-eyed and pronounce “The cave of the blue slime conceals your future. Learns its secret or fail at ye master’s charge.” Suddenly the drug-induced fatigue seems to lift from him in one manic burst of energy. He leaps to his feet and starts dancing and screaming his terrifying croaks about blue slime and the fury of the master. The fire that burns at the center of the temple changes color to blue in response to his frenzied abyssborn prayer. Zikomo laughs like a mad fiend.
"Seems the this Cave of Blue Slime might yield a passageway into the Horn.. Lets have a look.." Assuming the shaman meant the cave they were in currently Vlad starts to look around..
"Ooh." Lil takes in the whole area, ending at the blue slime. "I wanna know the secrets!" She looks curiously at Zikomo's mad dance. At a word from Seth she nods, going to get the body of the barbarian frog. "Anybody want to help me with his body?"
Seth rolls his shoulders as he looks around the room. Well. Zikomo is completely mad. Hopefully we can use his madness to our advantage. "Tell me of these secrets, Zokomo."
Any further attempt of conversation is futile, lost in his mad dance, the shaman answer any and all questions with the same mad laughter and croaks of blue slime and the master's fury.
Surprisingly, there's no blue slime in this cave, or in any of the caves you passes until now.
Vlad inspection of the place, reveals only one thing, the alter can be moved. The only question left if: Is it wise to disturb an evil god alter while is priest is in a abyss born mad dance and trance?
Argan will give the mad shaman some time to do his stuff. He sits down inside the hut, and if the shaman does anything suspicious he does not immediately retaliate, but waits to see what happens. "This will eventually end."
Kharn the scholar, continues in his attempt to understand the frog tongue, but for the moment, al he can do is hear croaks and nothing more. But the Barbarian is a patient person, and diligently keep trying to learn the frog ppl language.
The other Villains, just comfy seat inside the temple, while the mad priest dance and laughs.
Eventually, the burst of energy fades, and the shaman slumps on the ground, in a drug induced comma-like status.
Nearby, a home-made hallucinogen vision juice and surprisingly, it was a pleasant smell.
Argan takes a look at the juice, but he's not drinking it. He looks at the altar and shakes his hand. "Ready girls?"
"Might as well take a peek while he's passed out.."
Lil picks it up and carefully smells it.
The altar is not hard to move. The shaman stirs as you starts to move it, and you hear one last "Master's fury" before he goes completely limb and unconscious.
Hidden beneath the stone is the treasure hoard of Zikomo: 2300 gp in mixed coinage stolen from countless travelers murdered by the banewogs. Mixed with the coins are a small bag of shiny jewelry and lumps of raw turquoise. The contents of the bag is worth another 1200 gp.