[Gameday XI] GM Doug's Cavern of the Sundered Song (Inactive)

Game Master Doug Hahn

With dramatic music rumbling behind him, Kohl pulls himself up to his full height. "Just let us through! We're on important business." He gives his best imperious draconic look.

Intimidation: 1d20 + 19 + 3 ⇒ (16) + 19 + 3 = 38

Killed it!

The villagers sheathe their weapons. WE don't need help, but if you're not here to raid out home, we can take you in to see the others who came.

They take you into the village and to one of the larger wall caves. Inside are a frazzled elf with spectacles, and a gnome with faded pink hair.

The elf gives Kreighton Shaine a pointed look.

“Those who follow where they cannot see
should trust in those who went before.”

Shaine rolls his eyes. Then he notices the gnome, and relief washes across his face. It must be Irlah — one of the missing Pathfinders! Irlah leaps up and runs over to give Shaine a big hug. The scholar's relief turns to discomfort as he grits his teeth and awkwardly pats her pink hair. KREIGHTON! I never thought I would see either of you again! It’s been so long.” She turns to greet the rest of the party. “I’m Irlah Kestiwhitt, and you must all be Pathfinders. I can see they sent a good team! I’m sure you have a lot of questions. Why don’t you come in for some tea and snacks?”

Irlah pauses and notices Seggiatore's sickened condition. "Oh, it looks like you got infected with isqulugia on the way over. I have a cure for that."

Shains is incredulous, and mumbles: "Probably some superstitious folk medicine."

Effeflinn stares him down and recites more verse:

“Scholars should fear arrogance
more than cardiac arrest.”

Shaine clenches his fist. Irlah, oblivious to the tense undercurrents, lays out a full spread. There’s tea boiled from roots with a sweet and nutty flavor. She also offers sandwiches filled either with crunchy roasted insects or a mushroom paste, and sweet cookies topped with tiny glowing dots of lichen. "You'd think it's boring down here, but there is plenty of excellent baking to learn with Darklands ingredients!" She offers Seggiatore a pungent paste. Her isqulugia cure. "I only have one batch of this stuff."

Full artwork on Slide 1; Artwork and notes on SLide 2 (the NPCs slide).

Kohl digs into the spread with relish. Around a full mouth of food he asks Effeflinn, "What made you go through the portal today? Did you learn a new song?"

"So you have been down in the Darklands all these years? Why not return to the surface?" Kas asks a bit bewildered as the darkness and stone around him is near suffocating.

Orin grumbles but enjoys the local foodstuffs. He takes a moment to write down these biys of song between the rolled insects and the sweet lichen cookies.

Those who follow where they cannot see
should trust in those who went before.
Scholars should fear arrogance
more than cardiac arrest.

Orin thinks to himself Let's not lose any song lyrics, we might need them to get home...

Effeflinn is highly idiosyncratic and always speaks in verse. So far, what she has said are probably not the lyrics of Nhivi's song; instead, they seem to be digs on Shaine regarding his arrogance and lack of trust in others. I'll make it clear when you find a fragment of Nivi's song. However, maybe Orin just wants to write it down "just in case." :p

Kohl digs into the spread with relish. Around a full mouth of food he asks Effeflinn, "What made you go through the portal today? Did you learn a new song?"

The mushroom spread is deeply earthy. Effeflinn answers Kohl's question in verse…

"Old friends are like a forgotten song.
Echoes of a hundred seasons that say 'I knew you.'

I found my friend. Forgot the song."

Shaine sighs impatiently while Effeflinn slowly incants her impromptu poem. I HATE open mic night…

Irlah spreads some mushroom paste on her lichen sandwich and makes sure to elucidate her old friend's poetry. "Yeah. Effie here managed to piece together Nivi's song again and got so excited, she opened the portal and ran straight to us! And now she's here. And so are you." She pauses. "But she forgot the song again. We think that whoever sings it forgets it right away. If you can, maybe you can piece it together. And write it down this time! All I know is that it's called 'The Song of Nivi's Vault.'"

"So you have been down in the Darklands all these years? Why not return to the surface?" Kas asks a bit bewildered as the darkness and stone around him is near suffocating.

Irlah responds. "We would have if we could! The portal was closed all this time. It's the only way out." You may refer to the mission briefing — they've been trapped here for over 100 years with no way out. The only way out is with the song that opens the portal, but those who sing the song seem to forget it right away.

Yup, got that. For some reason I though since this was in the darklands they could have tried tunneling or something after all these years.

"Have you found the edges of the barrier? How far out do these protections go keeping you trapped here?" Kas grows more and more curious.

Irlah answers Kas in more detail. Well, I can tell you that we're not interested in testing the protections' boundaries. That's because we're probably in Orv. The deepest, darkest, and scariest level in all the Darklands. Luckily for us, this place's protections don't just keep us trapped, but they prevent the other things down here from finding us. Well… mostly. You saw some of the 'locals.'

It's too far down to tunnel out, and frankly I'd be terrified to see whatever's outside the vault down here anyway. Teleportation magic doesn't work to get you in or out of here, either.

Thrilled to meet Irlah, Seggiatore follows her to the tea and snacks. Unable to contain his excitement, he reverts to a hydrid of common and gnomish as he speaks to her.
"Thankyouverymuch. Andyes, Ididpickupabitofaninfection, soanycureyoumighthavewouldbewonderful!"

He catches himself and takes a deep breath before continuing, "The sandwiches look delightful and the cookies smell heavenly. Where do you get saffron down here?"

After the rest of Irlah's explanation, during which time Seggiatore devours a sandwich and a couple (aka four) cookies, he finally asks, "What of the other pathfinders? Have you seen or heard from them in the years since you arrived?"

"Fascinating," Chulyin says as he listens to Iriah describe what she knows about the sequestration. "How did you come to this village and where are the other two?"

Orin is a good Pathfinder and takes lots of notes when his hands aren't full with a shield protecting himself and his allies.

Orin grumbles and continues to furiously scribble anything that sounds remotely like a song lyric, including most of what Effeflinn says.

"The sandwiches look delightful and the cookies smell heavenly. Where do you get saffron down here?"

Oh, that's not saffron! It's from a microbial mat I scraped off the cave wall nearby. The microorganisms have a fascinating interaction with the moisture down here…

"How did you come to this village…"

"When we got trapped, we wandered around, lost in the mase-like tunnels. Finally we found the village, and received succor here. We're official members of the community at this point."

______

She addresses the elephant in the room — the missing Pathfinders — while Effie hums to herself and sips tea.

“So you know where you are by now: the Cavern of Nivi Rhombodazzle, somewhere in Orv. Kreighton told you about how we opened a portal to this realm and three of us went through, and then the portal suddenly closed behind us. We’ve been trapped here ever since. Thank goodness Effeflinn finally figured it out!” Kreighton audibly scoffs at this mention, but Effeflinn pointedly ignores him and sings:

”The Gambler’s Lament …
a firsthand account of Nivi Rhombodazzle…
The song…it’s gone now…
it opened… the portal.”

Irlah continues. “Right. But with a portal opened, at least for another day or two, we can finally go home! We’ll need to get the other two first. Would you mind doing that while I pack up all my things? It’s not clear if I’ll ever get to come back again. It seems like the portal erases the song when you pass through it, at least coming in this way. It’s a shame, really, I know the villagers here would prefer not to be cut off from the rest of the world. If we can ever find the whole song again…” Irlah starts to drift off, then recovers.

“Yes, well, as I pack up, why don’t you collect Piltineff Gosk and Eltha Embercall? Piltineff should be easy. He was worried about the Bleaching, so he allowed a dragon to encase him in crystal to hold him in stasis. You should be able to break him out. I have the location. I go to check on him every couple of years. Eltha might be a little tougher. She…has not done very well here in the Darklands. She didn’t want to live here in the village, but off by herself. I’m not sure how she’ll react to seeing Pathfinders. She was very mad about what happened to us. Oh, and as long as you’re traveling, you should go and see Nivi Rhombodazzle’s house! How many chances do you get to see the home of a god? It was before she was a god, of course, but still!”

You have three tasks, which you can accomplish in whatever order you like: find Eltha and let her know that it’s possible to go home, collect Piltineff from his crystal prison, and see Nivi Rhombodazzle’s house. Travel between any two locations takes about 2 hours and you can get directions.

It’s pretty late, so you can rest up and head out tomorrow if you want.

You may ask any more questions. After that, you should let me know if you're resting the night, and where you are heading next.

"A dragon encased Piltineff in crystal. Is that dragon still near the crystal and are we likely to encounter them?" Chulyin asks.

"A dragon encased Piltineff in crystal. Is that dragon still near the crystal and are we likely to encounter them?" Chulyin asks.

“Almost definitely. He’s pretty nice. Just don’t make fun of his taste in decor.”

"Piltineff isn't going anywhere, let's ease Eltha's mind, visit the GodHome and swing back through to free Piltineff." Kas suggests.

"Ah, we will commune and talk of draconic business!" Kohl is all for pushing on to see the dragon immediately, but he's been a Pathfinder long enough to know that sometimes rest is a better option.

"If nothing else, it would not shock me if Piltineff needs time to recover after his time in crystal, before travelling. Meeting this dragon and recovering him today would be good, if we can manage it."

"Any way is fine, but let us be careful not to overextend ourselves," Chulyin cautions. "If this dragon is at least sociable, then Piltineff might be the safest place to start. Other predators may be more sparse in their domain. Then we can reassess in the aftermath of actually meeting a dragon."

Orin grumbles "Nivi's house seems like the best choice for today."

Happy to go elsewhere based on party desire.

You set off with a map to Nivi's. Shaine accompanies you. Effie smiles and waves goodbye; Shaine hunches his shoulders and walks faster.

As you pass through the caverns strange, improbable things occur with increasing frequency. A river reaches a waterfall that flows upward. Enormous rock structures balance on tiny pebbles. Holes in the ground alternate between warm, damp air and freezing cold. There are periodic sounds like wind chimes, even in the absence of winds.

You must be getting close!

Chulyin's Nature (M): 1d20 + 19 ⇒ (3) + 19 = 22

Chulyin is busy considering what primal energies may be at work while they hike.

before, when you left:

The gnomes cheered you on the way out of the village, because they like you so much:

To those who raise instead of fold,
To those who deal one more,
To those who roll the dice again,
Then fear who’s at the door.

This is a song fragment!

Orin definitely writes it down.

Scribble, scribble, scribble.

Orin also stashes a few lichen cookies for later.

survival: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (9) + 14 = 23

Yendi can use his cool reaction to make one of those a success if he wants. His psychic spidey sense tells him this is important.

Yendi notices Chulyin's distraction, and mentally jolts hom back into focus at the last second.

Chulyin is jolted back into the moment and notices spores covering the ground at his feet.

Both he and Kas and determine that these are the spores of the drakauthix, huge floating fungal creatures from the Darklands who tend to ambush their prey from above. As fungal creatures are neither intelligent nor adaptable to unexpected situations. They are covered in poisonous spores and like to hook victims with improved grab and real them in for a tasty snack.

Thus forewarned, you keep a sharp eye on the ceiling and easily spot the creatures waiting in ambush. They float 50 feet in the air above a stone bridge that leaps a chasm. Beyond the bridge is a single, unassuming stone house of small proportions.

You move away from the bridge and to the edge of the chasm. It's 50 feet deep. If you can find a way to cross without using the bridge, it seems the drakauthixes will be content to wait for some other prey.

Now is the time to get creative or use cool high-level abilities to find a way across without using the bridge. (Well, I guess you CAN use the bridge and fight the floating, spore-producing, hooked monstrosities… :p) No check is necessarily needed to get across the chasm, especially if you have magic or an ability like jumping far.

Map on slide 1 for a visual; art of horrible monsters on slide 2.

Shaine Dimension Doors across and crosses his arms, waiting impatiently. Shall we?

Nature: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (17) + 13 = 30

Kas watches as Shaine dimension Doors across with ease. "Coulda taken the rest of us..." He grumbles. Kas motions to pulling his hood up over his head. "Think they can sense us if we are invisible?"

I have invisibility to sneak past is about it.

Orin has a speed of 30 so can leap 15 ft. Boots of bounding and powerful leap both add 5 feet each to that for a total of 25. With the half square on each side I think that's long enough to get across (See ~5ft lines I've drawn) If not ignore below.

Orin takes out the rope from his adventurer's pack and hands one end off before making the ridiculous leap across the chasm without too much trouble but plenty of grumbling.

Assuming nothing attacks him immediately he looks for a good spot to tie it off to help give his allies another option for getting across.

Yendi ponders for a second, "I have enough magic left to walk across that gap, easily enough. At most I could bring two others over in the same way, but at the least it would make it easy enough to help secure ropes at the far end."

"I can fly," Chulyin adds to the discussion. "If I had not used my magics to shape the stone earlier, I could have made a new bridge." He considers another moment. "I could also simply fall down to the bottom and climb up the other side, especially if someone lowers a rope, and give someone else the ability to fly."

"I can climb over!" Kohl thinks wistfully about how he could just fly everyone over on his back if he had achieved his final form.

Kas sneaks by, and Orin leaps across and then secures a rope. Yendi air walks across, Chulyin flies, and Kohl climbs — just for the style points. The stupid drakauthixes just float there on the bridge.

Seggiatore is last… You can use the rope or something else.

Seggiatore sends a second rope across the chasm, holding onto one end while the mighty warriors hold onto the far end.
He then leaps out into the chasm and begins plummeting as they give the rope one mighty tug. It barely goes taught as the gnome practically slingshots up over their heads and onto the ground on the far side.

Mechanically, leap 20' out and cast feather fall.
With all gear, I'm less than 7 bulk. An easy haul for 18 strength.
And a little whiplash, maybe. :)

Seggiatore is slingshot across the chasm!

The drakauthixes hover there waiting for other prey.

You approach the house. Chimes ring somewhere, even though there's no wind. The house itself looks unassuming from the outside: a simple structure of smooth stone. There are small gems on the door, making geometric patterns that resemble pips on the face of a six-sided die. There are also runes that spell out the Gnomish word for “hope.”

You don't notice any traps on the door, and a circumnavigation of the home shows nothing of interest, so you push open the door.

The inside of the house is simple but elegant, with walls and floors made from polished stone. There are half a dozen bedrooms, each laid out with a comfortable-looking bed and warm but dusty linens. These rooms may have been intended for fellow gamblers during hard times — ones who had the complete song to reach Nivi’s Vault.

A fireplace springs to life, quickly making the house cozy. A panel in the floor lifts, revealing access to an underground river with pure, clean, almost sweet-tasting water.

There's a stone gaming table in the center of the house with a cup containing a set of dice. There are also four six-sided dice affixed to the table, each displaying a 6. Those of you who approach it instinctively know how to play this game.

______

If you would like to play Nivi's game, let's first set up your number of dice with one post, making all your checks. After everyone has determined the number of dice they have, roll all your dice in a second post. After everyone has gone you can give fellow players rerolls.

Yendi approaches the table, more curiously than cautiously, and looks over the simple dice set, "I wonder... could this actually be the game she ran up the debts with before she had to disappear? Or maybe the one she played to try to win her way back out if the hole? Maybe even one she made herself, while lying low..."

society: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (13) + 12 = 25

religion: 1d20 + 16 ⇒ (20) + 16 = 36

He reaches out and takes a handful of dice, "So, five of a kind or a straight, I think..."

attempting the game: 9d6 ⇒ (6, 5, 2, 2, 5, 6, 6, 2, 1) = 35

Looking down at the dice he ponders, "trying to follow the sixes seems like an ill omen..." and keeps all of his 2s, rerolling the others.

reroll 1: 6d6 ⇒ (6, 1, 2, 1, 1, 2) = 13

He smirks lightly, "a set of 5 should do, but we can hardly fail to see what happens with the rest, especially in this place." Setting aside the 5 2s, he rerolls the last 4 dice.

reroll 2: 4d6 ⇒ (5, 5, 3, 1) = 14

Society DC 24: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (1) + 11 = 12
Religion DC 24: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (10) + 15 = 25 +1 Die.
Thievery DC 24: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (5) + 12 = 17

Kas looks over at the game. "Seems an easy enough game to make and lose bets on." he manages to grab another die.

Kas tosses his die across the table. Looking them over it is a difficult choice on what to keep and what to toss.

Roll 1: 7d6 ⇒ (2, 6, 4, 1, 3, 2, 1) = 19 Keep the 1,2,3,4, reroll 3 die
Roll 2: 3d6 ⇒ (2, 5, 5) = 12 Keep the 5 for a full run of 1-5. Yahtzee!

"I suppose it is a requirement to play the game found in a god of game's home," Chulyin comments.

Chulyin collects seven dice when it is his turn to roll.

Society: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (15) + 13 = 28
Religion: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (17) + 14 = 31

While gambling has never been a vice of Orin's he is quite familiar with many roadside shrines and other small bits of worship found throughout the gravelands and knows the value of stopping for small kindnesses and brief prayers.

roll the bones: 8d6 ⇒ (3, 2, 4, 6, 4, 1, 6, 2) = 28
Keeping Bold: 3, 2, 4, 6, 4, 1, 6, 2
roll #2: 3d6 ⇒ (5, 5, 6) = 16

1,2,3,4,5,6 (5,6) Crit success, one upcoming ally gets an extra reroll

Orin takes the dice in his hands and massages them around his thick Dwarvish hands before rolling them onto the table.

Getting most of the way there Orin picks up the three duplicates and tosses them a second time, succeeding without even getting to the 3rd roll.

Chulyin pours his dice into the cup, shakes it, and tosses them onto the table.

7d6 ⇒ (3, 2, 4, 6, 6, 3, 5) = 29

"Hmm. Which is the more likely, six or--no, wait," he says mostly to himself as he rearranges the dice: 2, 3, 3, 4, 5, 6, 6. "So toss one of the threes and one of the sixes in hopes of a one."

2d6 ⇒ (6, 1) = 7

"Ah. Excellent. Hopefully, Nivi is a good sport."

123456 (6)

Society: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (19) + 13 = 32
Religion: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (3) + 12 = 15

"Whelp, not gonna be easy to get all six, but here goes..."

7d6 ⇒ (3, 6, 3, 2, 3, 6, 5) = 28
Seggiatore looks at the 3s and the 6s and lets out the tiniest of sighs.
He scoops up the first three dice and gives them a very thorough shake.

2,3,5,6: 3d6 ⇒ (5, 6, 1) = 12

"This is why I always play for my supper instead of gambling for it."

2,3,5,6: 3d6 ⇒ (4, 6, 1) = 11

The bard begins jumping up and down excitedly. "Oo, oo, I did it. Woo hoo!"

Kohl watches everyone rolling, and says, "I think I know the rules..." Meanwhile, he tries to slip an extra die into the pile. Doesn't hurt!

Society: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (14) + 14 = 28 +1 die
Thievery: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (7) + 12 = 19

First Roll: 7d6 ⇒ (3, 4, 4, 4, 4, 3, 5) = 27

"Lots of 4s. Four is a very lucky number for dragons!"
Keep 4s, re-roll 3, 3, 5

Reroll 1: 3d6 ⇒ (1, 4, 2) = 7
"Ah ha! That's five fours! A nice set. But, let's see..."
Keep five 4s, re-roll 1, 2

Reroll 2: 2d6 ⇒ (4, 3) = 7

"Ah, I should start my hoard with a gambling streak!"
Pass a re-roll if anyone needs it.

Everyone has a set or run of six except Yendi! Can he do it with FIVE ONE reroll to maximize style points!?

Believe he can try to get a 2 on 1 more roll of 4d6…

One last roll for the road: 4d6 ⇒ (2, 2, 1, 6) = 11

"Well, seven should do for anyone's game!"

As you complete the game with an incredible set of six sets or runs, magical words glow around the rim of the table:

You won’t find gold in Nivi’s vault.
No treasures piled deep.
Instead, a safe respite from woes,
A chance to rest and sleep.

This is a fragment of Nivi’s song! I’ll add a handout with all the fragments tonight too.

_________

After the words fade, a small silver six-sided die appears in each of your hands afterward. These are holy relics of Nivi — each worth a pretty copper! (100gp each)

_________

Lastly, you know that you’ve won Nivi’s admiration, and thus her boon.

Nivi Rhombodazzle admires those who face great odds. Once during the adventure, each of you may, instead of attempting any other check, attempt a DC 11 flat check instead, with the same results as the replaced check. You must decide to replace the roll with a flat check before attempting the check. I trust you to actually roll these blind, but if its more fun for you and more in the spirit of gambling, I will roll the flat check for anyone on request.

This boon is partly why I pushed us in this direction after the “tie vote” earlier.

_________

It’s getting rather late. You can rest in a god’s house, or go back to the village. Tomorrow morning should be enough time to get the other Pathfinders. Visiting the dragon next?

Seggiatore makes himself very much at home - bathing, relaxing by the fire, and producing some tasty food from his pack. He sings while he does so, at times quietly and at others rather boisterously, and is quite happy with the acoustics of the house.

Definitely resting here.
Do I need to make a second check against the disease or did Irlah's paste grant an auto success?

"I would like to speak more with Irlah," Chulyin comments, "But I am also curious what dreams may come while sleeping in a god's home."

One does not so much as "sleep in Nivi's house"; rather, one "crashes in her pad."

That said, you sleep in comfort and safety. There's something about the simple stone house that makes it feel totally safe, even though creatures like drakauthixes and isqulugs roam out there in the darkness. You rest without any worry, and dream of piles of perfectly symmetrical, perfectly-weighted grey gemstones that refract beams of rainbows.

______

You wake refreshed and decide to head off to the dragon.

You walk for a couple of hours… the path soon winds through bizarre crystalline structures. They appear in every color of the rainbow and some strange hues that defy description. They grow from the ceiling and floor, sometimes growing into each other in a melding of colors. Occasional crystals contain a small animal, frozen in place. Some crystal cave art on the slides

Seggiatore and Chulyoin believe this looks like the demesne of a crystal dragon! They are friendly but extremely vain.

However, Kas uses Untrained Improvisation to recall knowledge about dragon lore and concludes this could be an umbral dragon — a cruel dragon from the Plane of Shadow.

______
Skill Checks!

When you arrive at the location that Irlah Kestiwhitt gave you, there’s no sign of a crystal with a gnome in it.

There are large tracks leading past where the crystal should be according to Irlah’s directions.

There are no Survival checks required to follow the obvious tracks.

Perception: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (11) + 14 = 25
Crafting: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (6) + 12 = 18

Seggiatore looks around, but comes up empty. He strikes up an inspiring tune - not too jaunty, but certainly light and entertaining - as the others look about.