"Back you walking fish sticks!" Gig continues to inspire the group and soothes Brijetta's wounds.
Uhe waggles a finger in Gig's direction.
Now. Now, dear Gigg. We mustn't lower ourselves to insensitive name calling. I am certain that these find Bottom Feeders have feelings too.
The Investigator sizes up his best opportunity.
Uhe Shared Stratagem with Brijetta.
Aim for the berries.
The Investigator then Strides up to the damaged fellow.
Excuse me, but you are currently impeding us.
Mal roars in fury as Brijetta is carved into by her fishy foes, that fury bursting forth from her into a reddish-brown coat of fur with a pale underbelly.
HP 77/84
AC 23
Fort +14, Ref +13, Will +12; sonic resistance 3
Hero points: 2
Infused regents: 5
Thermal nimbus: fire resistance 6 in kinetic aura (10-foot emanation); enemies take 3 fire damage
Effects:
Gig's healing is so quick that Brijetta barely notices the pain before she unleashes more fire and metal at the attacking creatures. Her aura continues to ignite sparks on their flesh.
Brijetta impales one of the ulat-kini before piercing them all with shards. Mal and Uhe move into assist her, both scoring critical hits and taking out one of the initiates!
The remaining two foes turn on Mal and Uhe, scoring a few hits with their claws.
HP 77/84
AC 23
Fort +14, Ref +13, Will +12; sonic resistance 3
Hero points: 2
Infused regents: 5
Thermal nimbus: fire resistance 6 in kinetic aura (10-foot emanation); enemies take 3 fire damage
Effects:
"Leave them alone!" Brijetta cries as she blasts the more injured ulat-kini with fire.
Gig sustains his performance and flings some razor-sharp barbs at the ulat-kini.
for
Mal rears up in fury and crashes down on the hapless ulat-kini with a punishing chomp, tattoo flaring to ward her against retaliation.
The Investigator sizes up his best opportunity.
Uhe Shared Stratagem with Brijetta.
Aim for the roots.
The Investigator then Strides up to the next damaged fellow.
Excuse me, but you are currently impeding us.
Uhe stabs one of the ulat-kini, making it off-guard and allowing Brijetta to hit with one of her blasts, taking it down. Menawhile, Gig impales the third opponent with needles before Mal takes it down with a vicious chomp!
Ulgat swallows nervously, his eyes wide as he look at the flames swirling around Brijetta. He does his best to keep his distance from her as he finally moves in, clawing at Mal instead.
Gig continues his inspiration and fires more needles at the leader, though they go far wide.
for
"Give up now! We don't want to fight you."
Mal roars in greeting to the last charge, smashing into Ulgat with wild abandon!
HP 77/84
AC 23
Fort +14, Ref +13, Will +12; sonic resistance 3
Hero points: 2
Infused regents: 5
Thermal nimbus: fire resistance 6 in kinetic aura (10-foot emanation); enemies take 3 fire damage
Effects:
Brijetta's pleased the ulat-kini is avoiding her, but less so that he's hurting her friend. She rushes over, the heat washing over him as she forms a massive hammer made of fire and brings it down toward the aggressive aberration.
The Investigator sizes up his best opportunity.
Uhe Shared Stratagem with Brijetta.
Finish him.
The Investigator then Strides up to Ulgat for the Flank!
Excuse me, but you are currently being an ass.
Uhe moves behind Ulgat, stabbing him in the back. Mal delivers a particularly vicious bite, a critical hit that rips out chunks of strangely gelatinous flesh and black blood! Then Brijetta moves in, and thanks to Uhe's strategizing, she lands a solid strike with a fiery hammer.
As soon as the fire makes contact, a layer of pungent yellow slime coats Ulgat's skin. The stench is incredible, making your eyes water. Ulgat shudders momentarily, then there is a series of horrid popping sounds as long slimy tendrils pull themselves free from the ulat-kini's body. Something that resembles a rubbery manta ray unfolds itself and flaps into the air. Ulgat's inert body falls lifelessly to the ground!
The creature shudders and and glares through a single eye, its tendrils whipping around its body nervously.
"Gah, what is that thing??" Gig continues his performance and tries to Recall what it might be.
"Prepare to die, you goo!" he threatens the creature.
Uhe pukes.
The Sickened dwarf reluctantly looks for an opening.
Uhe Shared Stratagem with Brijetta.
Soy sauce!
The Investigator then Strikes the former not squid illy with the Flank!
Excuse me, but you are currently being sickening. Could you please turn that off?
The Investigator Parries!
Mal gags as the sudden stench invades her extra-sensitive snoot. She manages to regain control of herself, but it does make her reconsider her next bite...
Neither Gig nor Uhe recognize the creature, but that doesn't stop Uhe and Mal from slaughtering the slimy thing with teeth and blade! It falls to the floor with a wet thump, wriggling a bit as thick, stinky slime oozes from its body. Then it lies still.
With Ulgat's true form revealed, the other ula-kini in the village are horrified. Illisshu explains that the thing is known as a slime puppeteer, an agent of the alghollthu that originally created and enslaved the ulat-kini people. The ulat-kini are grateful that the impostor has been exposed, and as promised, Illisshu rewards you with her ring of energy resistance (acid).
Realizing now that they have been manipulated by both the puppeteer and by Narsiegus, the ulat-kini plan to return to their family groups throughout the region, ignoring Narsiegus' call to muster for his growing army. Narsiegus is only a day or so ahead of you, heading back to his home city of Hagegraf.
"If we hurry, maybe we can catch up with him and get to the bottom of this. We don't want armies of monsters attacking Highhelm from below!" Gig urges.
Brijetta nods, looking back at the slime thing. "Does it take people over? That's awful," Brijetta murmurs.
Uhe is seen busily writing notes....
Narsiegus is only a day or so ahead of you, heading back to his home city of Hagegraf. .
Uhe demonstrates a determination .
Let's be marching! Catch up ta Dat sombeetch!
"Did we know Veiled Masters were muckin' about 'round here? I reckon we'd better give that a good look!"
You set off down the long, winding path through the Darklands in pursuit of Narsiegus. It's a slog through rough and treacherous terrain, and without Jirelga guiding you, you have to be careful not to lose the way.
After a few days, you come upon an odd sight. A ten-foot-wide boulder blocks the tunnel ahead. Its rough surface is filled with various mineral inclusions, mostly jagged green crystals.
Gig tries to keep the group's spirits up with tales of the Quest for Sky. He makes shadow puppets along the walls of the tunnels and regales the group with anecdotes about the ancient dwarves.
"I think that's a troll!" Brijetta whispers. "We probably want to be careful if we wake it."
"A troll?!" Gig hisses. "Let's sneak by, quiet as we can."
The spelunking loving dwarf is seen happily marching along the dark, dangerous tunnels with ease.
Uhe stops. He stares at the rough surface filled with various mineral inclusions, mostly jagged green crystals. He scratches his beard.
Dat be da bum ov da troll. Be hoping he no had tacos.
The Investigator begins thinking about trolls met in a cavern...
"That's a big troll! It's at least the size of a small troll! Yeah let's sneak on by."
Uhe takes another look but the dwarf shakes his head.
Be no where's to git 'round it. Try a magic pass phrase. What's da elven name for open?
"It's 'उद्घाटित' I think," Gig says, "But I don't think many trolls speak Elven."
"Do any of us speak trollish?"
Uhe reluctantly raises his hand....
Insatiable scavengers stalking the eternal gloom of the Darklands, cavern trolls consume all in their path—even rocks and minerals when more nourishing sustenance is scarce. These rocky goliaths can tunnel through stone with their iron-sharp claws. Unlike common trolls, cavern trolls can regenerate wounds dealt by fire. The crystalline nature of their skin, however, permits sonic attacks to neutralize their signature regeneration.
Uhe swallows.
Not too certain it will not be violent.
The Investigator takes out Skysunder and continues to Study the Cavern Troll....
As you poke the troll, he starts to awaken. He rises up to his full height, yawning and turning to squint down at you. "Eh, wot? Little dwarves, ain't ya? Da name's Gritt. Ya wanna pass, ya gots ta pay the toll. One dead morlock, for's da snackin'!"
"Oh my--are there morlocks around?" Gig asks, innocently. "I'm afraid that we didn't see any."
"In fact, you've kept this area very morlock free. Great job!"
"Oh," Gritt says, disappointed. "Hrm. Well, then, what you got to pay toll wit'? Maybe you got extra stuff to trades, too?"
He reaches for a dirty sack nearby and opens it up, showing you its contents. Inside are 85 sp, 209 cp, a half-eaten cave scorpion claw, a battered silver tray, a bloodletting kukri, an iron cube, a shark tooth charm, a bloodseeker beak, and half a morlock corpse that is disturbingly fresh. The silver tray seems to have engraved Dwarven writing on it, along with some maps, but it's dirty and difficult to make out on casual inspection.
"You wants somethin', you gives me somethin'. Dat's how trades works!" Gritt says, proud of himself.
"We'd love to trade, let us go through our...erm...sacks," Gig offers.
He turns to his friends, "Anyone have something a troll might like? It would be nice to get that platter."
"That's a nice try. I wonder if it would be worth two alchemical elixirs?" Brijetta wonders aloud.
Uhe sighs.
Probably want dwarven jam, but me not going to suggest that.
The Investigator smiles up at the cavern troll.
Me have two magical potions! One be making you the best jumper! The other be making you the fastest around!
A faulty potion of leaping and a faulty potion of quickness.
At the end of each of the imbiber’s turns, roll a DC 3 flat check. If the check fails, the potion’s effects end prematurely. If the check succeeds, the potion’s effects persist (maximum 1 round), and the flat check’s DC increases by 1.
Uhe digs them out. He takes a look see at the troll's offerings. He clucks like a mother hen.
Be not too sure dat you be having anything for these.
Uhe looks back at his dwarven company. He shrugs. Turning back to the troll, he relates
We done did discussed it. We be liking you. So, for Passage and dat battered silver tray, dat bloodletting kukri, Dat iron cube, dat shark tooth charm, and dat bloodseeker beak, diesel Potions be powerful but you seem nice.
"D'you reckon he knows which ones of those we'd like the most? Or is it just we find somethin' to give him that he'd like at least as much as a half-finished claw?"
Mal gets the sense that the troll is somewhat dim-witted and doesn't really know the value of the items he possesses.
Gritt looks at the two potions Uhe is offering. "Hrmm... You offer two things, but you want--" He slowly counts on his fingers. "--five things! You give me five things, then I give you da five things you want. Deal?"
Brijetta pulls out the two mutagens she's been carrying and offers them along with Uhe's potions.
"And here's a beautiful necklace!" Gig adds his necklace of fireballs to the stack of trade goods.