Ironperenti's Rise of the Runelords Campaign

Game Master Ironperenti

Other than taking time, our heroes find their time in Magnimar rather uneventful. Forest likewise, is given a room on the second floor of the temple where he can keep his watch. During the day, he, Konrad, and Vale help the citizens cleanup. With the rains soaking everything the waters do not recede so there is a lot of moving for business and homes to drier parts of the town. The otherworldly monster does not return and though there are a couple of sightings of the large blackbelly boa, Forest nor the others are ever in a position to engage it.

Kizzy will still spend her evenings performing where possible - telling the tale of Fort Rannick and the sacrifice of the Black Arrows.

Perform: 1d20 + 19 ⇒ (20) + 19 = 39

Runt would like to commission Isabella to craft a cloak of resistance +2 (2000 gp)

She would also like to buy scrolls of resist energy (150 gp), protection from law (25 gp), and Death Ward (700 gp).

I forgot how badly Forest wanted to deliver his letter to Magz himself lol. I think he would have entrusted it to Kizzy since she's the girl with da words.

Forest would never abandon the town with the Mother of Oblivion around - Kizzy would be honored to be entrusted with delivering the message for Forest

Piurchases - Ring of Eloquence Giant, Goblin, Orc, and Undercommon and a new CLW wand. Have 2k gold left if anyone is short of something they want...

Kizzy, give me 3 performance checks for spreading the fame of the Heroes of Sandpoint.

Hopefully the nat 20 roll above counts too
Perform: 1d20 + 19 ⇒ (11) + 19 = 30
Perform: 1d20 + 19 ⇒ (14) + 19 = 33
Perform: 1d20 + 19 ⇒ (13) + 19 = 32

I missed that one, of course it counts.

In the evenings, after the shops close, Kizzy sings songs and shares ballads of the amazing victories of the Heroes of Sandpoint. Each member is presented with awe and wonder throughout the tellings. The first night, Kizzy is so impressive that an older merchant, moved to tears because he has family in Sandpoint, gifts her with an emerald necklace that once belonged to his grandmother, an original settler of Sandpoint. (emerald necklace value 250gp)

While in Magnimar, Runt hunts down an alchemist who deals in spell components and purchases

100 doses of Ginger Alchemical Power Component for 50 gp (+1 CL transmutation to overcome spell resistance)
30 doses of Magnesium Alchemical Power Component for 60 gp (+1 CL transmutation duration)
45 doses of Quicksilver Alchemical Power Component for 45 gp (+1 CL mind-affecting duration)
200 doses of Salt Alchemical Power Component for 200 gp (+1 CL necromancy effect)

Note, some of these require multiple doses to fuel the spell. For example Salt says
Doses 20 (10 gp); Spells necromancy school
Which I read to mean that it takes 20 doses to boost the spell.

The one enemy that continues to threaten the town which Forest cannot directly battle is the water. With the initial flood many of the buildings were overtaken by a couple feet of water. Since the rest of the team departed the rains have added to the flood and the surging river. The waters climb by inches every day. Reports from the east are that the road has been washed out. The only way out is by ferry or boat or by breaking a new trail through the forest.

Woohoo let's go control water!

Kizzy visits the office of the Minister of Security on day one. She finds that Zherxikas' familiar made it to the city that morning. Minister Faust did not take time to meet with them himself but did write a response and provided a reward of a thousand gold for each of you. The group in Magnimar then began their work to sell, buy, and build. After four days Zherxikas, with his familiar back in his possession, teleported everyone back to the inn room at Turtleback Ferry.

@GM Ironperenti
ou want me to add the 1000gp rewards to the treasure tracker?

Done, meant to do it last night but got distracted by my kids.

Now what?

Kizzy would present the letter to Forest immediately upon their return.

"Hmph." He grumbles with a small smile when he sees Kizzy when they gather in his makeshift watchtower atop the church. She does brighten the room. "You look better! Guess that trip to the city did you some good." He looks tired as he reads the letter. You don't get much sleep with giant snakes on the prowl. "Thirty is... more than I sexpected." He muses. Thirty would be able to hold against an army if they can repair the outer walls and gate. His boots are wet. They've been wet the whole time. "But there won't be much of Varisia left to save if we don't deal with overflowing dam." The flooding had only gotten worse over the days. Maybe the evil snake attacked it whence she fled? "You just got here. Are you all ready to head back out?"

"Well, we need to go check out the dam. If we don't this entire village will be lost. I think our break is over."

"All of Varisa? Doubtful, but at least the section beneath the Storval, yes."

Nods to Runt, "Sounds like it."

"I'm not a geologist, Z, I don't know where the water from the lake will go."

Was there anything here anyone wanted to do? Did Isa want to try and stem the tide or would it all just flow back in?

Kizzy smiles at seeing the gruff swordsman again, and does a spin and bow, in response to Forest’s question. Thanks to Isabella! I am felling like myself again. Any sign of MO, the Mother of Oblivion? I think you two scared it off for good!

Kizzy puts an arm around Runt, Ogre armies, snekladies, servants of the gods, I think if we stand together, all of us, we can handle what comes next! Kizzy smiles at the assembled group.

Ready?!

I will post tomorrow assuming you head out the following morning. I want to give Isabella a chance to post before I send you up stream. Note, you can see that the trail heading up stream is washed out and you will need to go through the forest so it will be slow going.

"It can't rain all the time," says Isabella hopefully. "I have prayed for a little divine magic to lower the water in an area, but it won't last too long. It may be useful if we need to evacuate more people or try to perform repairs on something that's underwater."

The next morning the team heads out. Vale had managed to scrounge up two volunteers and he of course was ecstatic to hear there were thirty soldiers coming. The ferryman had originally lost his ferry to the rushing water but after four days he has retrieved it and is back in business. He gets everyone to the far side of a much wider river now and drops you off, free of charge. From there, you begin your trek north.

The ground has become sodden and the going is much slower than when you went north this way previously. Even though you have oiled cloaks you don't stay dry more than an hour as water finds its way in and runs in rivulets down your front and back. Luckily, Isabella prepared endure elements knowing the temperature is just above freezing so everyone at least does not have to deal with the cold in addition to the wet. It is nearly dark when you cross the area where you first met Kibb, the animal companion of Jakardos' one of the Blackarrows who died in the half-ogre's barn. You don't stay there but put up some overhead cover and rest leaning on your packs to keep your heads out of the water. An abundant use of prestidigitation does get you dry to help you rest and to stave off trench foot.

The next two days are identical to the first. You encounter no enemies but it is a miserable slog through undergrowth, muddy ground, and a constant patter of rain. The good news is that it is not the deluge with which the storm started but it is a steady rain far beyond a drizzle. All of this combined to add a day to your journey before you arrive at Fort Rannick. Finally, you have cooked food, a warm fire (whose life giving warmth is far different than the spell's protection), and a bed to sleep in. That evening you pull out the local map and spread it on the floor in the map room (the ogres had destroyed the table and a new one had not replaced it yet) and reviewed your options which were not many.

Skull's Crossing, the great dam on the Storval Deep, is another day's travel to the north. The mountains get steeper on either side of the river to the point it is likely you will be trudging through shallow river instead of dry ground. From the gorge there is a path that leads up to a cave that was previously occupied by an athach. Vale can tell you that an athach is a giant with two heads. It's stupid but it is cunning. The Black Arrows left the thing alone since it never wandered too far down river and the effort of destroying it could have endangered several lives. The cave has an exit on the north side onto the top of the dam. From there you could look at the level of damage, determine if there are any dangers and clear them if necessary before getting a team of stonemasons up to the dam to start repairs.

You could try to travel through the mountains but they are treacherous and it would greatly slow your progress. If you did this you could then rappel down the cliff face to the western side of the dam and avoid the cave of the athach.

"If I had a riding gecko instead of dog, I would just bypass the giant, but I don't. I think that would be treacherous in this rain for all of us and I'd rather face a straight on combat with a giant than one with mother nature."

"When we get up to a half mile away, I can go flight and scout it invisibly. Then come back and teleport a group of 5 in a surprise attack". He looks around... "Forest, Runt, Kizzy and Isabella" and paueses, "Sure the new mage can get himself there since he can fly." He shrug, "And with silence magic from Isabella, if anything else is up there they wouldn't know."

"I don't think leaving a giant at our backs is a good idea. Especially with the war that seems to be descending on this place. Rannick has tall walls, but I'm not sure they're tall enough to stop a giant." Forest agrees with Runt, and Z's plan is sound.

"When we get up to a half mile away, I can go flight and scout it invisibly. Then come back and teleport a group of 5 in a surprise attack". He looks around... "Forest, Runt, Kizzy and Isabella" and paueses, "Sure the new mage can get himself there since he can fly." He shrug, "And with silence magic from Isabella, if anything else is up there they wouldn't know."

The new mage smiles at his witticism.
"Just in case they came through the trip a little overtired though, I will help whoever needs help not teleporting to Skull's crossing ... no problem."

I learned Invisibility Sphere recently. If we huddle together, Kizzy gives Forest a wink, we could all get close, unseen.

"As much fun as that sounds, I'm not sure everyone getting up close to a giant is the best idea. Maybe I could go up from a slightly different angle, and the rest of you sneak up from behind." Smol as she is, Runt's adamantine mace would make mincemeat of the giant's toes.

"Sure, I could try that. With a little help from some magics. Though creatures sometimes have other senses than sight, so I'm not giving it a high chance at success."

Invisibility would allow us to get close enough to strike without being swatted away like flies.

The team heads out with a plan to move up through the canyon, scout the area and make final preparations once you have more information. It is a hard journey even though it is much shorter than the trip from Turtleback Ferry to Ft Rannick. Just like the earlier trip, the water sneaks in everywhere and by the time you have been traveling two hours it feels as if the water has gotten just about everywhere. There are some muddy areas that slow you down but the primary impediment is the lack of a trail forcing you to walk on the sides of the canyon fighting for purchase. More than once someone slips and ends up waist deep in the river that is roaring by. Helping hands from ahead and behind helps recover those who slip and prevents any losses but speed is not to found. Before the sun sets on the first day you come across a beach of slate and fallen rock where you setup camp because of its relative dryness. Using rocks and pitons you build a basic overhead shelter to keep the worst of the rain out, dry off a bit with several uses of prestidigitation, and dine on dried meat and hard tack.

The next morning is as dreary as the first and you find that half of your beach has disappeared. The flooding is getting worse. You head out, slow moving as before. At about 10 in the morning you can see the top of Skull's Crossing, it is huge and reminds you of the great spires of the old Thassilonian bridge in Magnimar. Two hours later you come into full view of the dam. Spanning the great breadth of the gorge is Skull’s Crossing. The massive wall of stone holds back the waters of the Storval Deep— but only just. Thousands of skulls have been carved into the dam’s face, while five larger ones decorate the middle length. The easternmost of these immense skulls is all but hidden by a steady flow of cascading water pouring through what appears to be a recent break in the dam. For now, the ancient dam seems to be holding its own against the Storval Deep, but unless these rains end soon the recent flood looks to be but a minor precursor to a fantastic disaster.

The eastern slopes of the gorge are sheer and slick with rain, but to the west, a narrow stone stairway, its edge decorated with hundreds of poles bearing the skulls of as many different creatures, winds up to a cave mouth near the western rim of the dam itself.

The map is updated. Scroll to the far right to find the dam area. You are currently in the spot marked C1.

"I guess we need to scout the cave now. We sending one person in or scouting in force?"

Forest looks at Konrad. "You strike me as someone who knows a thing or two about subterfuge."

Casts a spell on himself and starts floating in midair. Then sends out his raven to act as a set of eyes.

Runt will use her false life amulet and cast magic vestment (boosted to 10 hours by magnesium), clayskin, and heroism (boosted to 100 minutes by quickslilver) spells as soon as someone heads into the cave.

false life: 1d10 + 5 ⇒ (2) + 5 = 7

Forest looks at Konrad. "You strike me as someone who knows a thing or two about subterfuge."

"That is both a fair and polite assessment; valid also. Let's see what the raven has to share and plan a next step?"

"Light source?"

Isabella doesn't have light prepared at the moment, and I think we have at least a couple people who can't see in the dark.

Confused, Runt half asks, half states, "I don't think a raven needs light source. And if we gave it one, it would stand out like a sore thumb."

"I mean once we go in. Presumably after the raven comes back we're going to follow up on what it spotted."

The raven (should we call him Bob?) flies up toward the cave and alights on a branch. Although intelligent he is no more happy about flying in the rain than his wild forebears and picks a limb that is well under cover from those above it and preens a bit. Then he glances around the opening. After a moment he flies off to the north and up. Everyone loses sight of him but Zherxikas can point in his companion's direction due to their bond. The bird again pauses, presumably checking out the northern entrance to the cave. Finally after several minutes, the raven returns. In a croaking whisper he delivers all that he saw.

"After the first little bit the trail up turns into stone steps. As you near the top the stairs run through a narrow trench up to the cave entrance. There is a large dog like creature at the top of the stairs. On the north end the cave opens onto the dam but there was no visible guard there. There was movement near the middle of the dam but the rain was too thick for me to see what was over there."

Abadius 10th, Mid winter
1200, temperature 36, moderate rain (20% miss chance beyond 60')
Group Effects:
Runt 87/87; magic vestment, heroism 1000rds, clayskin 45/45, false life 7
Kizzy 62/62;
Zherxikas 54/54;
Forest 104/104;
Isabella 69/69;
Konrad 90/90;

Does Kizzy know anything about ettins that might be useful, or indicate what type of canine they would have?

Kn Local: 1d20 + 18 ⇒ (1) + 18 = 19

oooohh! In that case I do have a light spell. And that cmaping equipment we bought probably has torches. So shall we take the frontal approach and deal with the dog?"

"Can we lure the dog away, or something? I don't want to kill random dogs." He eyes Kizzy. "We just need some attractive bait..."

"Dog-like," says Isabella. "Could be something else. Hellhound? Who knows?"

If you want attractive; you want Isabella or Runt! Kizzy gives Forest a wink and her crooked grin. And dog-like could be sooo many things… Kizzy rattles off a list of dog-like creatures.

Kizzy believes the most likely "dog" options are either a worg or a troll hound.

Make the knowledge roll of your choice, not both

Kn Arcana: 1d20 + 18 ⇒ (8) + 18 = 26
In her ramble, Kizzy does list some possibilities, and their capabilities.