This thread is a continuation of a campaign originally chronicled *here…* and continued *here…*
This new thread marks the passing of the Evil party and the beginning of the new, Good party, which will be chronicled here…
A burgeoning force of Evil has been splintered and scattered, not by powerful Celestials or warriors of the Light, but other competing powers of Darkness… So it goes in the back-biting, vicious netherworlds that lie under the fetid ruin of what was the Great Kingdom of Aerdy…
Over thirty leagues to the west, within the borders of Nyrond – other powers have been sensing the events that have begun to transpire in the east…powers of Good… The movements and actions of the Ebon Triad - Skaven, Triel, Tarkilar… their allies, the Alleybashers, and their master, Lord Orbius Vhalantru, have attracted the gaze of certain Celestials, who investigate…their alarm is heeded by the high priests of Heironeus, who call on one of their few Saints and his friends to action against a threat that grows in the Darkness… They will seek out the source of the Dark Conspiracy and, once it is secured or destroyed, bring the perpetrators to Justice…
The party now consists of:
- Magnus (Human Saint Paladin6, LG): Protector of the weak and pious servant of Heironeus
- Triavis (Human Favored Soul9, LG): A “non-trained” priest, touched by the hand of Heironeus himself
- Bruce (Human Monk9, LG): A disciplined martial artist who serves Heironeus
- Lewen (Elf Fighter4/Wizard3/Bladesinger2, NG): A professional associate of Magnus
- Timmy (Human Wizard9, NG): A professional associate of Magnus
- Vyka (Human Wizard9, NG): A professional associate of Magnus
- Renard (Human Rogue7/Tomb Raider of Oliddamara2, CG): Professional holy scout of Oliddamara, sent to assist Magnus
- Shonuf (Human Rogue9, CG): Professional partner of Renard
- Grue (Human Fighter9, CG): Professional partner of Renard
- Mordekai (Human Druid9, NG): Representative of the Druid circle of the Vesve Forest
- Vi (Elf Druid9, NG): Representative of the Druid circle of the Celene Forest
The first synopsis will follow shortly...
M
"R.I.P. evil ex adventuring party and thanks a heap for ending it all so quickly. It's not like Marc hadn't planned and studied night and day for two straight weeks of specialized preparation just to accomodate your big fun idea of running an evil campaign! It's not like that, right?!
Well at least someone had fun!"
Good luck with the new party.
This thread is a continuation of a campaign originally chronicled]
Marc...I understand wanting to maintain continuity, but here was your chance to start the campaign fresh, with new Good PCs!
That is the true beauty of D&D...the early levels...at least in my opinion.
How do you justify the new players having the equipment that the characters have? What is their history? What ties bind them? That is the great thing about starting players from the beginning and a big problem I saw with the cohesion of the evil party. The party got to be a bunch of guys who barely knew each other with the only motivation being monetary, or so it seemed. I just feel you would get a more cohesive team and I would hope your players would enjoy it more if you began at the early levels...third level at the most! But again, that is my opinion.
I will just say that I think I said that this party was going to self-destruct from the beginning. I did enjoy the comedy of these guys being more of a threat to each other than to their adversaries, but I think you would have to agree that few things of tru splendor come from an evil party.
I definitely look forward to observing this new Good party and they will have my positive support!
Cheers and Stay Frosty!
Marc...I understand wanting to maintain continuity, but here was your chance to start the campaign fresh, with new Good PCs!
That is the true beauty of D&D...the early levels...at least in my opinion.
How do you justify the new players having the equipment that the characters have? What is their history? What ties bind them? That is the great thing about starting players from the beginning and a big problem I saw with the cohesion of the evil party. The party got to be a bunch of guys who barely knew each other with the only motivation being monetary, or so it seemed. I just feel you would get a more cohesive team and I would hope your players would enjoy it more if you began at the early levels...third level at the most! But again, that is my opinion.
I will just say that I think I said that this party was going to self-destruct from the beginning. I did enjoy the comedy of these guys being more of a threat to each other than to their adversaries, but I think you would have to agree that few things of tru splendor come from an evil party.
I definitely look forward to observing this new Good party and they will have my positive support!
Cheers and Stay Frosty!
I, like you and many others, do enjoy the more sincere achievements of survival at the lower levels of play; however, starting the party out at low level wouldn't allow us to continue the current Adventure Path where we left off.
Of course, starting the same A.P. over again or somewhere in the middle would've been an absurd idea, having already been through it, and I currently don't have any original material planned that would allow me to segue the plot into the current A.P. anytime soon; so, my best option to have the campaign continue on with less than a week's planning was to pick the current module up where we left off.
It actually worked out well that the Evil group ended before ever leaving the Wee Jas temple - I was able to start the new group at the next adventure (Karran-Kural) simply by providing an alternate plot route to it...the casting of several "Speak with Dead" and "Find the Path" spells by Jenya Urikas would start them out; Kristof Jurgensen, the Striders of Fharlanghn and other NPCs (Except Shensen Tesseril, who was sacrificed by the Evil party to Erythnul...) can now be of assistance to the party, rather than left out of the story or becoming potential foes.
M
Here begins the new chronicle of the most Holy Saint Magnus and his loyal followers of Heironeus and Oliddamara, who have sworn an oath to protect the mortal peoples from the threat of an Infernal invasion from the prison-plane of Carceri; they seek the party who has been tapping the ancient Evil housed in the ruins of a dead civilization, and the just punishment of those who dare bridge the Infernal realm into ours.
These events begin exactly one day after Ike Iverson notifies Lord Orbius Vhalantru that he has successfully defeated the threat to his dominance in the capital city of Rauxes; the de-facto ruler of the City has now suppressed or driven out all professional adventuring groups within the city…he now rules, through his mercenary militia, by force and threat…no one is strong enough to challenge him.
M
6/20/2005: A new beginning...
“The Calling Forth of Saint Magnus the Protector”
(or, "Come on in, the water’s great!”)
The Temple of Heironeus, in the City of Womtham:
The city is the Kingdom of Nyrond’s northern border watch post at the Flinty Hills, which lie at the southern base of the mountain range known as the Rakers.
The high priest of Heironeus calls his loyal servant Magnus and other friends and allies together, including Bruce and Triavis, as well as their adventuring partners, Timmy and Lewen; the temple of Oliddamara also assists by sending Renard, Shonuf, Grue and Kenny. The druids of the Vesve Forest to the west send their representative, Mordekai, while the druids of the Celene send Vi in their stead…
Something important has come up, which threatens the entire region:
Those who serve the Light have discovered an ambitious plot afoot in the decrepit ruin of the Great Kingdom of Aerdy; an ancient civilization known as the Spellweavers has been unearthed beneath the borderlands that join Aerdy and Keoland – within one of their ruins, a group of conspirators has been tapping into the long-dormant Evil that lie there…they must be stopped!
You are given a wagon and a month’s provisions; you soon depart northeast for the Flinty Hills.
For the next thirteen days, you all travel gradually out of the rolling farmlands and into the rocky crags of the hills; the weather is pretty typical for autumn…thick fog in the cool, damp mornings, mild and cool weather throughout the overcast days, with just enough chill at night to be uncomfortable. Some nights, you stop in small hamlets where you are greeted like dignitaries – the arrival of a Saint of Heironeus is truly an event in their small parts of the world…other nights, you sleep among the stars, with only small creatures of the night to greet you. But these lands are for the most part safe – you have yet to leave the patrolled regions of Keoland.
In almost two weeks, you all arrive at the foothills of the Rakers – the Flinty Hills; the map provided to you leads to an ancient caldera that is barely perceptible among the landscape here – only the faint evidence of a tree line that rings the old crater reveals its origins as a volcano, dead for eons. The center of the shallow, bowl shaped valley forms a small, boggy pond with a precipice of stone emerging from the center; on the far side of the valley, you find a crevasse in the valley wall wide enough to lead a horse through. Beyond the crevasse is a cave – you unload your wagon and set up the horses here in a makeshift corral within the cave; then, you all make your way to the back of the cave and into the tunnel beyond…
You enter into what appears to be an ancient lava tube tunnel…it is fairly uniform in its roundness and there is a lack of any significant stalactites or stalagmites; you are descending a gentle slope downwards – it is barely perceptible, but constant. You travel in almost a straight line for over four hours, before reaching a sudden change in the terrain – the tunnel enters a cave where the only other exits are a near-vertical shaft barely five feet in diameter and a collapsed shaft that slopes sharply down into the darkness; Shonuf has two hundred feet of silk rope, so you tie it off on a stalagmite and proceed down the steep, rocky grade into the dark…
As Magnus leads you all down the steep grade, he reaches the end of the rope – two-hundred feet down…the tunnel continues… Timmy has another hundred feet of silk rope, so he passes it forward and it is tied off onto the end of the first rope; you all continue, until it also ends…but Magnus can see the bottom of the slope another fifty feet ahead, using his darkvision – you all carefully climb down the remaining fifty feet of slope unaided by rope. Fortunately, you are all careful enough to avoid any accidents; you all have traversed a three hundred and fifty foot slope of almost forty-five degrees.
Proceeding down a second ancient lava tube, you all travel several hundred more yards before this tunnel also turns downwards; this second slope is not as steep or unstable, but you have used up your supply of rope – again, you all manage to climb down carefully enough to avoid problems…you all descend another two hundred feet.
After traveling another couple hundred yards down a third tunnel, Magnus hears the gentle sound of moving water echoing in the cave ahead; the tunnel appears to gradually flood, sloping downward slightly until water fills the tunnel. After some discussion, the tunnel is scouted out and determined to be about thirty feet long before an opening appears above; with some preparation, you all swim or walk underwater to the opening and climb out – you immediately notice that the tunnel here is quite cold…somewhere in the fifty degree range of temerature.
You all proceed on, wet and cold, for several hundred more yards until you reach an end of the tunnel; you can hear the sound of swift rushing water long before you arrive where it appears to make a downward turn…Fifteen feet below where the slope begins, the tunnel descends straight into a rapidly rushing stream! The presence of a rusted piton embedded into the stone ledge overlooking the water tells you all that this is the way you must go; Triavis lowers himself down one of your last remaining ropes and peers into the water that flows rapidly from right to left across the tunnel…
To the right, the strong current flows at him from beyond the limits of sight…
To the left, the underground stream travels about twenty feet before dropping off suddenly and rapidly – a waterfall!
Triavis tells the party that their direction of travel is clear…that it will be difficult…but that they have to fight this current to move on. But then, he sees something scratched into the stone of the slope in front of him, apparently etched there by blade or other tool: an arrow, which faces downstream…they must travel down the falls!
Faced with a literal leap into the darkness, the party pauses to think; fatigue is setting in – without the benefit of the sun, you all have lost track of time…it must be late night above ground, so you camp here until you are rested and ready for traversing the falls. When you wake, you have entered your thirteenth hour underground, cold and wet; you eat and begin to pack most of your water-sensitive belongings onto Shonuf’s bag of holding. Renard, standing at the edge of the tunnel slope above the rushing underground creek, says a prayer to Oliddamara and stares down into the water…
With the camp half-broken down, everyone suddenly sees Renard jump off of the ledge and into the swiftly moving water!
Magnus yells for the group to bring his remaining equipment and immediately dives in after him!
Chaos breaks out, as you all stuff whatever is left into the bag of holding and begin to file down the slope and to the water; Mordekai casts Water Breathing on all of you, so that you don’t have to worry about drowning – but, for all you know, the falls might be ten feet, or a hundred…
Some of you fight the current as you enter the water, some of you let it sweep you up and carry you away…Shonuf carries a stone and tries to keep his feet…but all of you, sooner or later, are pushed along until you are either running along the bottom, swept off of your feet or carried outright by the powerful current – straight ahead, the dim illumination of your magical light sources show you that the water ahead makes a sudden, vertical drop off… the twenty or so feet are covered in mere seconds, before the stone bottom drops away and you are carried out into the air, as if you had taken flight…
For a fleeting moment, you know the feeling of flying without magic – the pure sensation of moving through the air without gravity…
Then, the terror returns as swiftly as gravity does – as the water around you breaks into a heavy spray, you are falling into a pool, within a dim cave, from a twenty foot height!
Renard calmly let Oliddamara take him in her arms; he was flung out of the spout floating on his back – and landed in the pool headfirst, backwards.
Magnus swam hard trying to reach the “stricken” rogue; he was thrown out the farthest, flailing all the way.
Triavis tried to walk the rapids, but he was pushed from behind by the force of the water; he was ejected as he was staggering forward, thus belly-flopping into the pool.
Shonuf carried a stone and tried to fight the current – which he did, for a moment; he was running down the tunnel when the floor stopped – he dropped out the bottom of the column of water, pushed the stone away and fell feet first underneath the falls.
All of the rest of you exited the falls in a similar manner, in varying degrees of grace (or lack thereof…); due to the water breathing spell, those of you in heavy gear or armor who wound up on the bottom of the rocky pool some twenty feet deep did not have cause to panic. Fortunately, not only did you not drown, you were able to collect your scattered equipment and belongings and rejoin your comrades as they climbed out of the pool and into the surrounding cave, which you immediately notice is quite colder than the one you just left – it feels like a wintery night in this tunnel, save for the wetness of your clothing replacing the chill from any wind…
After such a bracing start, you all are all too happy to walk on, for warmth if anything else; the tunnel here less resembles ancient lava tube and more resembles natural cavern. After covering a few hundred more yards, you see the first significant branching of the passage; a side tunnel breaks to your left, with a second one ahead also breaking left… Thoroughly checking both exits, you find that they join together after about thirty feet – an easy choice; finding that some of the more jagged stone formations here have been sheared or worked smooth, you know that this is the way you are headed. After fifty feet, you see that the passage is blocked by a thick wall of ice – the temperature here is near-freezing; a hole, five feet wide by seven feet tall, has been chopped through the ice, revealing more passage beyond… A waterlogged, thick-beamed portcullis blocks the passage twenty feet beyond the ice wall, but it also has been breached; splinters surround the obstacle on both sides. Just beyond the portcullis is a pair of stone doors that are covered in small runes that are written in patterns all over each portal; after determining that the runes are non-magical and there are no traps here, you open the doors and see a cold, pale light beyond.
A ten foot wide hallway extends some sixty feet straight into the distance – the smooth stonework is the first worked masonry that you’ve seen underground so far; two panels set into the ceiling illuminate this hall with a light that isn’t unlike the pure-white illumination you would see on a moonlit night…but that isn’t what makes this hallway eerie:
You see a series of glass-like cylinders that stretch from floor to ceiling, staggered left and right all the way down the hall – a total of ten; each contains what appears to be the preserved corpse of what can only be one of the legendary Spellweavers… As you move close to the first one, it suddenly twitches, jerking you all back in surprise! After a few leery moments, you surmise that the movements are harmless as far as you can tell; Renard, however, isn’t going to wait for a change in the status quo – he decides that ‘now or never’ is a better course and sprints down the entire hallway to the frost-crusted iron doors at the opposite end, triggering a range of sudden and violent movements in the contents of all of the other cylinders!
After Magnus rolls his eyes, the rest of you follow, filling the hallway in and around the coffins…
Renard checks and OKs the iron doors – no traps; after giving the rogue a disapproving look, Magnus reaches for the handle of the iron door…
*To be continued*
M
7/27/05: Back to good old dungeon-crawling, after a 0-2 battle losing streak...
“The Paladin Uses Two Hands with His Lance”
(or, "Can I Wand Myself?”)
The Paladin Magnus opens the right door, pulling hard and steadily as frost flakes off of the hinges and it groans loudly…
The chamber beyond is circular, although the left and right sides are made flat by thick walls of ice that appear to block off sections of the room; the entire room appears to be filled with a fine lattice of icy strands that flicker with a faint, blue light. Standing in the back of the room amongst the strands is a Fiend of some sort…it stands about the height of a large Goblinoid but is covered over every inch by porcupine-like barbs, rather than fur; Magnus, who has the ability to speak and understand any language, converses with the outsider after detecting that it is quite Evil…
Magnus: “Who are you, and why are you in this place?”
Devil: “Aahhhhh – It’s been a LONG time since I had the pleasure of tasting sweet flesh…!!”
Magnus: “OK then…prepare to be banished back to where ye came…”
Spells are cast in preparation… Lewen with Mage Armor, Magnus with Divine Favor as he enters the room (he breaks a strand, triggering some negative energy damage, but he is immune to cold, so he isn’t badly affected) and Mordekai with Call Lightning; Timmy and Vyka already have Greater Mage Armor active, from before entering the complex. Renard gets out his hand crossbow and loads it while taking cover behind the left door, which is still closed; Triavis tries to make a gauging shot with his bow from the back of the hallway, but his arrow deflects off of one of the glass cylinders long before entering the room.
The barbed Devil moves to Magnus, who had advanced within reach, and attacks him with clawed hands, missing once and hitting once – it is enough for him to grab the paladin and drag him into a grapple! Vyka casts Orb of Fire at the grappled pair, but she instead hits Magnus – with one of the few elemental effects that will actually harm the paladin! Bruce runs into the room, deftly avoiding the strands as he does, and punches the Devil; he is punctured and slashed by multiple barbs as he does, but he hits – for no noticeable damage…
Shonuf carefully moves into the room and attacks the grappled Devil – scoring a critical hit that elicits an angry groan! Timmy, Lewen, Kenny and Triavis move forward, waiting for an opportunity to clear the doorway and get into the room, as Mordekai calls down the first of nine lightning strikes at the Devil; unfortunately, the lightning fails to penetrate its spell resistance… Seeing the other rogue’s success, Renard moves into the room, breaking a strand and taking damage as he does, and attacks with his rapier also – but he stumbles badly in his attack; Kenny, who is now raging, breaks a strand also as he moves in to power attack – he also misses. Bruce does no better – he fumbles also, which causes his two other attacks to also miss!
Magnus decides to outlast the Devil by touching himself and healing back all of the damage he’s taken so far – the gambit works, as the Devil is demoralized and enraged at the paladin being fully recovered… You all can hear harsh scraping and popping as the Devil hugs the paladin tightly, puncturing Magnus’ plate armor in multiple places and taking Holy damage, even as he impales him on his barbs several times! Vyka, recovering from the poorly placed orb, succeeds in hitting the Devil with a cast Vitriolic Sphere, coating it with acid!
Shonuf immediately follows the spell with a pair of critical hits! The tide is turning…except that Lewen casts Melf’s Acid Arrow, which is dispelled by Magnus’ anti-magic field (oops…); Mordekai calls a second lightning bolt onto the grappled Devil, but fails a second time to breach its resistance. Renard recovers from a bad start and hits the Devil once out of two attacks, while the raging barbarian Kenny finds his stride and hits twice for massive damage!
The Devil realizes that his strategy is failing – even as Magnus completes his healing touch for the day, it pushes him off and Teleports away…you have driven it off, even as it continues to sizzle from the acid on it!
Timmy, who has been content to let the fighters handle this threat, now slowly and cautiously enters the room, being careful to avoid the glowing strands – Mordekai follows, as everyone else waits and scans the room for any possible new threats, except for Kenny, who begins hacking at the wall of ice next to him, and Renard, who gets out his wand and casts a curing spell.
Shonuf, who had kneeled down to pick up some dislodged barbs from the devil as trophies, inspects the floor for possible seams that might indicate a passage or trap; as Timmy carefully locates himself strategically in between the door you entered and the doors behind the wall of ice that Kenny is chopping at, he watches the third set of doors behind the other wall of ice – Magnus directs Mordekai to blast at that wall with his summoned lightning, which he does... Just as Kenny breaks through his wall of ice, the first of three lightning bolts blasts chunks from the other wall of ice…
Vyka suddenly notices movement behind her, from the back of the hallway where you all entered from – the Devil has returned! She yells alarm, and you all begin to move back toward the door you entered the room from, carefully trying not to break the glowing strands of ice – but Kenny, Bruce and Renard don’t hear the wizard’s warning, as they are focused on the doors beyond where the barbarian broke through; as Kenny widens the breach in the ice, Renard moves through it toward the doors beyond… But as the rogue passes through the wall of ice, he passes through a thin, pale plane that formed the exact center of the ice wall…he is stunned by a blast of cold energy that causes him to stagger against the wall next to the doors! He gropes for his wand again and casts curative spells…twice…
Back in the hallway, the burned and smoking Devil grimaces as he casts…a second Devil appears!
Vyka and Lewen, who are still in the hallway and closest to the two Devils, swallow hard…
Vyka casts Greater Invisibility and steps back toward the door, while Lewen advances on the first Devil, hearing Magnus drop his lance, put on his shield and draw his sword from the room behind him…but self-preservation suddenly kicks in – he casts Blur and steps back again before they can close on him…
Magnus is entering the hallway now, casting Divine Shield as he does, while Triavis makes a shot with his bow at the front Devil, who is using the glass coffins as cover– he misses...
As the front Devil covers for his stricken partner, the original one in the back casts Unholy Blight on the doorway – an inky, noxious shadow fills the area, affecting everyone except Renard! It dissipates quickly, but the effects are immediate – damage to all of you and sickness in those of you who fail your Foritude saves (Shonuf, Timmy, Lewen and Triavis).
While Timmy moves to the doorway and peers into the hall, Shonuf and Bruce get out a vials of healing potion to drink; in the hallway, Magnus moves to engage the front Devil, but he fumbles his attack! Mordekai calls down his sixth lightning bolt onto the Devil in front of Magnus, but he again fails to penetrate the Devil’s spell resistance; Kenny, who has heeded the paladin’s call for support, picks up Magnus’ dropped lance, so he can attack without getting hit by barbs…he advances boldly past the icy strands (miraculously avoiding them) and attacks from ten feet away, hitting it solidly… It disappears – it was an illusion!
As Vyka cowers invisibly behind Magnus (the doorway is too crowded to flee out of), the real Devil casts Scorching Ray at the paladin – but his anti-magic field dispels the rays! Frustrated, the barbed Devil backs up, keeping just out of reach of the paladin, who casts Bless in preparation for a final matchup…but Mordekai, who had stepped backward into the doorway just enough to get a line of sight on the Devil, calls his seventh lightning bolt down onto it, which finally penetrates its spell resistance and fries it where it stands!
The battle is over.
Magnus sacrifices one of his turn undead powers for the day and activates fast healing in the party; you all return to full hit points…he then goes through the energized cold field to join Renard in opening the door that exits the room; the other door is left undisturbed, since going that way would involve Renard crossing two planes of cold energy to reach it – which might be fatal.
The party crosses the energized plane of cold and joins Renard and Magnus, who are opening the door on the far side, after he assures you all that the field shouldn’t be severely harmful and that he will help all of you heal the damage…
You all find that of little comfort…
Nevertheless, you all cross painfully through the plane and regroup in the now open doorway; Magnus again activates his fast healing for the party and you all recover most of your damage – many of you are slightly frostbitten, but the party is mostly in good shape. The paladin uses his darkvision and scouts the passage ahead – the hallway to the left branches into other passages, but all of them are collapsed and caved in; there are some intact cylinders in these hallways, but others are broken, their contents long lost. The passage to your right ends in a four-way intersection – there are several cylinders in the hallway, spaced about ten feet apart each.
Shonuf searches the hallway floor on his hands & knees, working towards the intersection, as Magnus and Renard follow behind…
M
Marc, what happened to your campaign?! Are you on hiatus or did this one get derailed?
Marc, what happened to your campaign?! Are you on hiatus or did this one get derailed?
Actually...both.
The last week and a half, I've been in Alaska to spend a week with my parents (who maintain a summer cabin in Kenai, near Anchorage) and to pick up my two older daughters, who have spent the summer with them since June. My wife is still recovering from her hysterectomy and wasn't able to travel.
I returned last Tuesday night and we did play Wednesday evening; I've written up this week's synopsis, but not yet posted it (I forgot to email it to my office, so it waits at home).
As far as the long term:
Due to the start of the new school year, both for my kids, my wife and all of the players who are in college, as well as a few who had other things happen (one is moving out of state for a new job, two have just had their first child and two are working major overtime right now)...the game group in its current format will END following next week's session.
I plan to rebuild the group from who might be left and continue on with the same campaign and the same characters; those who leave will be written out of the game at that point. I also plan to cap the group at eight to ten players (much to my relief!)... Despite the attrition of real life, I'm still going to have at least eight returning players - no small feat, one that I consider flattering as a DM.
Last week's synopsis will be posted this evening, once I get home.
M
8/10/2005: A long break, but we're back...
“It’s A Hard, Smooth Shaft”
(or, "We Have Three Torches - Why Are We Looking For Wood?”)
Magnus and Shonuf, once they reach the intersection of four hallways, can see the following choices of where to go next:
-Straight ahead is a stairwell down - it is filled with solid ice up to the top step; digging through the tens of feet of ice may take hours, if not days.
-To the left is a hallway that features three frost-rimed doors along each wall; the hall ends in a thick tangle of icy strands that, like those that you all found to be painfully enchanted in the opening chamber, flicker with blue energy.
-To the right is a hallway that is partially obscured by a pair of Spellweaver ‘coffins’ that stand in a rank on the floor; behind them is an iron double-door.
They look at each other and then back to the party; a quick discussion is followed by your choice – you all go to the left hallway…
Shonuf searches the first door on the right hand wall and clears it for entry; Magnus opens it and sees a ten foot square room that contains only four cylinders...but these do not contain Spellweaver corpses – they contain Dwarves! Expressions of horrific pain and agony are on their eternally frozen faces as their nude bodies float motionless; these corpses do not move in any way, compared to the other alien coffins that you’ve seen until now. As Shonuf enters the room to inspect it further, he is halted in mid-stride less than three steps into the room by indescribably intense pain – as if his entire nervous system was set on fire! He slowly collapses onto the floor, in his best James T. Kirk fashion, just out of arms reach from the door, into a writhing, screaming, spastic heap; Magnus, accepting the risk of a similar fate, jumps into the room to drag him out – he appears to avoid any ill effect in doing so, however.
Once out of the room, the scout quickly recovers from his agonizing pain in a minute or so; chastened by the experience, he clears the next door down the right wall and steps back for the Paladin to enter first… This room is identical in every way to the first one, with the cylinders also containing Dwarves – you all decide that the risk of entering is too great, and move on to the last door on the right. This room, while identical in size and shape to the first two, only contains a single, solitary cylinder which holds a Spellweaver corpse...one which does not move like the others – with no enchanted light source in here, it is totally still in its dead, silent and dark solitude. Again, you all decide against entering the room.
Across the hallway on the left, you clear and open the third door, working back down the hall in the other direction; this room is exactly identical to the previous one you found, with a solitary Spellweaver corpse left totally still in the silent dark…again, you leave it and move on. The second and first doors, respectively, are scouted in similar fashion and are found to be identical to the rooms across the hall that contained the four Dwarves each – except that these two rooms contain four Elves each! While not obviously in a state of agony, these corpses appear to be more in a sad and forlorn state in their entombment… Again, you all leave them be and move on, as Shonuf and Magnus scout the right hand hallway and beyond the pair of twitching Spellweaver coffins.
Behind the pair of Spellweaver cylinders are a pair of iron doors that are etched with alien symbols and glyphs in the same manner as all of the other doors encountered so far; after being declared trap-free by Shonuf, he opens the left portal to reveal a twenty foot wide by twenty-five foot long room that appears to have no exit - save for a square shaft that goes down through the floor in the back of the room. But he and the Paladin also sees a ten-foot tall iron statue that stands sentinel over the pit; ice glazes all of the horizontal surfaces of the statue and frost covers the rest of it…
All of you are immediately suspicious of the iron behemoth – and your suspicions confirmed when, as Magnus takes the first step into the room, it begins to move to intercept him!
Lewen and Bruce move to support the paladin, as Grue, Renard and Vyka reposition themselves to not be in the way; but the iron Golem, with its long reach, hammers Bruce (who had run into the room and taken up position in the right corner) for massive damage – it follows through with a similar smashing blow to Magnus! Triavis casts Bless on the party as Magnus dodges the Golem, changing weapons and activating Divine Shield as he does; behind him, Timmy casts True Strike and Mordekai casts Bull’s Strength on Kenny, who then moves up to attack, avoiding the Golem’s attack as he does.
As Shonuf moves out of the way of the fighters, Lewen and Grue wait for Kenny to clear room for him to join in the battle… Bruce succeeds in tumbling past the Golem to the far side of the room, flanking it from behind but missing his attack. Vyka casts Orb of Force at the Golem, blasting away bits of it and leaving a pockmark in its thick armor; it responds by slamming Magnus a second time - it misses Kenny for a second time, also, who hits with one attack out of two, himself. Magnus goes fully defensive, hoping for the party to wear the Golem down as he holds it back – Renard and Triavis are waiting for an opening to act… But Timmy unleashes his arcane arsenal all at once - he casts a maximized Orb of Force at the iron Golem, easily hitting it with the aid of his True Strike spell; the gargantuan blast shatters the Golem and sends fragments of it flying throughout the room, showering all of the fighters within with bits of metal and sending several larger chunks sliding into the shaft in the floor!
Not breaking the pace of the party in the slightest, Bruce scouts the pit that he stands next to; the five foot square shaft is perfectly smooth and vertical, as if it had been magically excavated… Knowing that climbing down this shaft unaided will be impossible, you rig up one of your grappling hooks to the last segment of rope that you have and hammer it into the floor adjacent to the pit; Mordekai can shape change into a small bird and fly down the shaft and the half-Ogre can squeeze down it, but everyone else must climb down the knotted rope.
The difficulty of the task is made immediately apparent, when Triavis immediately fails on his try, falling the full thirty feet to the floor below; everyone else climbs down with varying degrees of proficiency, but several of you fall the last ten feet when the shaft ends and you must climb down the rope without the benefit of a wall to brace against.
You all are heroic warriors and spellcasters, but your dungeoneering skills have grown rusty…
The party has overflowed the small remnant of hallway at the bottom of the shaft – you gather up in a tight hallway that lies outside of the single iron door; the hallway outside is only five feet wide; the half-Ogre groans his displeasure, as he waits in the small room while the rest of you form a single-file rank out into the hall and the intersection beyond. The right hallway is caved in after ten feet, the left hallway is over forty feet long and ends in a door – but is choked by the same glowing blue strands that you have become painfully familiar with – and the hallway in front of you proceeds to a door fifteen feet ahead. You decide to move ahead; Shonuf searches the ice-glazed iron door and backs up so that Magnus can open it.
Magnus opens the door and scans the room beyond; it is filled with sparkling ice lattices, from floor to ceiling and wall to wall! To make matters worse, there is a creature here, waiting for you; Timmy identifies it as an Outsider and Magnus identifies it as definitely Evil…
Magnus greets the Demodand with his trademark pithy comment about why it is here and why it will be sent back to where it came…he elicits the expected rage from his opponent, who has apparently been magically bound here far too long for his liking…
As Shonuf steps into the room and moves to the nearest corner, to clear the doorway for the others, the Demodand gets the jump on the party and casts a spell; immediately, an unnaturally thick, dense fog envelops the group! Everyone’s visibility is now only five feet, and the fog’s foamy texture makes it difficult to move through – after a few seconds, you all realize to your horror that your armor, clothing and anything else exposed (including skin) is beginning to sizzle - the fog is acidic!
While most of you reposition yourselves to allow each other room to escape the fog, Mordekai quickly casts Resist Acid, Kenny retreats to the back of his small room, barely escaping the outside fringe of the effect, Magnus readies his weapons to move forward into the room and Timmy blindly casts a Fireball into the room; the wizard is disheartened when he hears no reaction to the spell from the monster…he decides to regroup in a safer area and casts Dimension Door – he disappears!
Magnus is concentrating on his Detect Evil ability and pinpointing the position of the Demodand as he moves forward – the rest of you are either waiting for the fog to lift, listening for sounds of battle before moving to follow the paladin, or waiting for the person in front of you to move out of the way…
*to be continued...*
M
For those who have been reading along;
This week's session was cancelled due to the chaos of the start of a new school year for my 3 kids and my wife having to return to the hospital to resolve a complication from her hysterectomy.
The last session of the current game group will be played on 8/31 and posted before 9/5.
M
8/17: The last session of the 'large' group; after this, we're down to under 10 players - for good...
“Lewen Gets A Swirly”
(or, "Hey, These Powers don’t Come Easy…”)
You guess that it might be between twenty and thirty degrees in this area - if there was a breeze, you all would be dead from hypothermia already…
Shonuf is slowly advancing into the fog… Vyka is pressed into the back of the hallway, listening for an enemy to cast her spell at… Bruce, Mordekai, Grue, Triavis and Renard wait in the stinging fog for a way out of the narrow hallway… Kenny sits in the wider collapsed hall, cursing at the closed door and the acid fog in front of it… Magnus steps slowly forward, zeroing in on his Evil quarry…
Lewen, standing along with the rest of you, is the first to succumb to the acid fog; he staggers and falls from a combination of acid burns, pain and fatigue from the cold. Mordekai, standing next to him, gathers up his weapon and prepares to carry him out of the hallway as soon as it’s safe. But for now, peril is drawing near – so close, that Shonuf succumbs to the Demodand’s horrible stench and begins to retch in the corner of the room where he hides
Magnus pinpoints the Demodand in the fog when a sickly green ray is cast out from the fog at him – but the paladin’s anti-magic field dispels it; he charges his opponent and hits it!
Grue and Bruce follow behind Magnus but do not engage in battle yet; Mordekai casts Summon Nature’s Ally, calling forth an Air Elemental to clear away the fog! But the thick fog, aside from being whipped into a swirling froth in the area of the elemental’s vortex, is too persistent to be dissipated – the Druid commands it to clear a path forward into the room there the paladin, Grue and Bruce pursue the Demodand. Renard also falls to the acid fog, having suffered too much cold and acid for too long; Triavis moves to cover his burns and keep him warm as he tries to drag him away.
The Demodand attacks Magnus, but his claws are ineffective against the paladin’s thick armor plating…as Bruce moves past it, Grue moves to the left, covering the paladin’s flank; Magnus hits it once, which elicits a fierce counterattack – the Demodand misses with its claws, but a bite pierces his armor – barely…Magnus takes it in stride, but it is enough to make him miss his next two swings as it backs off to reassess the situation. Evading the paladin’s attacks now, the Demodand avoids his third and fourth attacks before casting a spell and disappearing!
Shonuf, who has been puking in the corner for the past fifteen seconds, continues to do so… Mordekai has begun to drag Lewen behind his Air Elemental into the room, while Triavis drags Renard behind Mordekai; while Grue listens for movement and watches Magnus’ back, after finding the edge of the acid fog along with the paladin and the monk. Bruce gets out a vial and drinks a healing potion to stave off the effects of the acid fog that is steadily weakening everyone else.
Far above this battle, Timmy had reappeared in the room where he had vanquished the Iron Golem not long ago; after healing himself up with a curing vial, he proceeds to return to the party below him – better prepared. After a short panic from slipping on the rope that is left there, he carefully climbs back down the narrow chimney but is held up at the bottom by Kenny, who fills the small room below where there is no deadly fog – he is forced to wait, dangling above the half-Ogre…
As Magnus scans the room for Evil and begins to zero in on the Demodand for a second time, Grue hears movement and attacks an open space nearby on the ceiling – he hits something! Following only what he can hear, Grue unleashes the fury of his dual attacks on the invisible Demodand – amazingly, he still manages to score critical hits with three out of four attacks, even if he is unaware of any damage done…foul, green-tinged brownish blood and ichor on his weapons are his only hints at any real damage to the beast.
Shonuf, who has been puking in the corner for the past thirty seconds now, continues to do so – but he begins to stagger towards the exit of the room, knowing that he’s not going to be much use in his state; Mordekai and Triavis have now entered the room, having followed the lead of the air elemental that is parting the acid fog in front of them, if at least temporarily. But your collective torment grows, when casting is heard from the Demodand – and the rear half of the room, already criss-crossed with glowing ice lattices, fills with more acid fog!
As Grue continues to attack the area near the ceiling, Magnus spins around to detect Evil in the same area and listen for sounds of movement…but when he sees that Grue is weak and beginning to falter, he stops and lays hands on the frenzied fighter. As precious seconds pass, Magnus heals Grue as Triavis casts Dispel Magic in an attempt to dispel the fog – he fails; he then casts Cure Critical Wounds on himself to ward off the effects of the acid fog. Moving past Grue and Magnus, Bruce takes out and drinks a healing vial as he moves to the back of the room, hoping that the far exit leads out of the fog; once healed, Grue moves forward to follow Bruce as Magnus turns back towards the party in resuming his search for the Demodand.
Triavis casts Dispel Magic a second time in the hopes of dispelling the acid fog – again, he fails; Shonuf, dry heaving now, has staggered all the way out of the room and down the hallway towards Vyka, who has remained in the back of the hallway, just out of the fog, this entire time. The air elemental, shrinking and weakening due to the constant wear of the acid fog, closes off the entrance to the room after entering it and expanding to its full size; but Mordekai and Triavis, who had been dragging Lewen and Renard, now smell the stench of the Demodand – which means that it’s nearby! Triavis withstands the horrible odor, but Vyka and Mordekai fall ill; as the druid retreats back down the hall where he came from, the air elemental advances over the abandoned body of Lewen and farther into the room…
…it knocks the helm off of the fallen fighter and leaves him with a swirly.
Grue joins Bruce at the far side of the room, where Bruce has already begun to search the doorway; only they are in the newer cloud of acid fog, as the original one finally peters out and dissipates – just after the air elemental is dissolved away. Their hopes are realized, when Bruce opens the iron door to find that the air beyond is clear – he and Grue both quickly move into the halls beyond and out of the acid fog…
In the hallway where you all came from, relief over the ending of the acid fog is quickly overtaken by horror – as the Demodand appears on the ceiling within the hallway and attacks Mordekai, sneak attacking him with a claw! The druid, unable to counterattack due to nausea, can only manage to step back out of its reach before vomiting on the floor, as Triavis draws his weapon and Kenny is suddenly rousted from his grumbling and he leaps toward the doorway to investigate the battle that is suddenly much closer.
As the now-visible Demodand turns to face its only threat in Triavis, Vyka has finally found her target, only to turn away and hurl…Shonuf is within reach of the battle but is dry heaving to one side of the hallway… Timmy’s arms grow weak from dangling from the end of a thirty-foot rope, just above Kenny’s head – as the barbarian peeks out of a barely open doorway, hoping for the space to join the battle… Mordekai desperately backs away from the Demodand, heaving chunks as he does… Magnus, back in the room, pinpoints his adversary and begins running to save them – although, his plate armor makes that slow going in itself.
The Demodand attacks Triavis, hitting him with a claw – the acid-burned and semi-frozen holy man falls…
The party is still in the throes of panic – literally; Magnus activates his saintly fast healing ability for the party, but he is still several seconds away from engaging the Demodand… It turns its attention to the helpless Mordekai, mauling him mercilessly…
Magnus is coming…but is still too far away.
The Demodand turns and mauls Vyka – she still stands, but not by much…
The tide still hasn’t turned yet.
M
8/31: The first session of a stripped-down, more high-performance group of players - it went very well!
“It Takes A While To Get The Train Rolling”
(or, "Do You Have Strong Thigh Muscles?”, or, “It’s Hard. –You Wish!”)
Vyka can’t fight the Demodand for long, especially not in this cold…the outsider continues to maul her until she falls under his attacks; Kenny is helpless to save her, as he must defend himself from its attacks, also, after missing with his first attack through the narrow doorway - while Timmy can do no more than get out a wand as he dangles above the half-Ogre. Triavis, who is recovering now due to Magnus’ healing aura, has picked up his bow and fires at the Demodand while kneeling – but his first two arrows deflect off of its tough hide; Magnus steps past the dry-heaving Shonuf and smites the brute – his first swing misses, but the second one hits.
A room and a hallway beyond this battle, Bruce is investigating what appears to be a source of cold in the complex – a pair of pillars that appear to be made of undead flesh! As Grue watches from the intersection that connects to the large room, Bruce suddenly sees a ray or green energy shoot out from behind one of the two columns! A moment later, he also sees a well-built half-Orc in plate armor run out from behind the same column, around the narrow ledge that rings the room (whose floor is twenty feet below and ceiling forty feet above) and towards him, unnaturally fast – carrying a greataxe! Behind him, appearing on the undead pillar, is an anaconda-sized skeletal snake with a human skull for a head and glowing green eyes!
Bruce has seen enough – he flees back to the intersection and hides along with Grue!
As Shonuf staggers back into the same corner he’s been taking cover in for most of the battle, the Demodand attacks Magnus – his claws still cannot penetrate the saint’s plate armor, so it fights its way, upside down on the ceiling, above the paladin to try and escape back into the room behind him; Magnus and Triavis try and stop him, but they both miss their attacks. Timmy casts Fly on himself and releases the rope, waiting for Kenny to clear the room; the barbarian squeezes himself into the five-foot wide hallway above where Vyka and Mordekai fell, but he still manages to critically hit the Demodand before he gets out of reach – which elicits a scream of pain from the monster for the first time!
The wounded Demodand steps away from its attackers and casts a spell as it continues to avoid Magnus (who drops his lance and tries to touch it, but misses), Triavis (who hits with one out of two arrows, but for little effect) and Kenny (who misses both attacks); it turns invisible, again!
Far in front of the group, Bruce and Grue are blasted by a Fireball where they hide! The monk reflexively curls himself up in a corner to avoid its effect, but Grue is blasted severely – he drops and plays dead, in a desperate bid to stay alive! The two of them can still hear spell casting in the hallway beyond…
Timmy, who had just cast True Strike, flies into the doorway as soon as Kenny will allow him space, and casts Orb of Force – unfortunately, the Demodand is now invisible, so he throws the Orb where he last saw it…and blasts the ceiling, but no more. As Magnus draws his sword and begins to detect for Evil, Kenny attacks the ceiling (not hitting anything…) and Triavis casts Cure Critical Wounds on Renard, who is unconscious due to the cold more than any wounds; the rogue sits up, wearily, and vomits.
Bruce, who sees Grue fall to the fireball, decides to make a final stand in the ice lattice room; he sprints over the fallen fighter, into the room and takes an ambush position to the left of the doorway. The half-Orc cautiously pursues the monk, moving into the intersection; he sees the fallen Grue and steps past him! Shonuf, seeing Bruce hastily retreating into the room, groans…
As Timmy slowly advances into the hallway to assist in hunting the Demodand, he casts Mirror Image, generating seven images; Magnus, turning to detect Evil, finds that the monster is now behind the group and trying to move back into the ice lattice room – when he loses track of it, it must mean that it has moved into the doorway and around the corner! Triavis fires an arrow along the top of the hallway, more out of frustration than anything;
Kenny, raging and frustrated, sees an enemy fighter – a whole room away – and immediately bull rushes the entire group into the ice lattice room! Magnus avoids the rush by dropping to the ground, but everyone else is sent scattering to both sides as Kenny pushes them through the doorway, breaking a lattice himself and shrugging off the cold damage from it!
Shonuf, joined by Renard, cower helplessly in one corner of the ice lattice room, as Bruce ambushes the pursuing half-Orc with a flurry of punches – that unfortunately fail to affect the enemy fighter through his plate armor; it brutally counterattacks the monk, hitting with two out of three swings! Grue joins in the ambush, as he crawls into the room and attacks the half-Orc from the floor, hitting three times out of four – once critically! Kenny, finally in an open space with a clear target, charges the half-Orc also; he cleaves the hapless fighter to the floor!
The Demodand appears! It casts Melf’s Acid Arrow at Grue, who is lying on the floor only fifteen feet away, and hits him squarely; that same moment, the horrifying skeletal snake-thing appears in the doorway, shimmering with displacement and multiplied into nine identical images! It casts a spell, and suddenly, dark, thick tentacles appear from the very floor and begin attacking everyone in the room!
Bruce, already staggered from the half-Orc’s attacks, barely manages to avoid being grappled by the tentacles…Timmy, who instead is focused on destroying the Demodand, manages to finally do so by blasting it with another Orb of Force – but in the process, he sacrifices himself to the tentacles, which envelop him tightly! Magnus, grue and Triavis all struggle to fight off the tentacles, but Grue is suffering under the acid that clings to him. Kenny attacks what is identified as a Bone Naga – but his first attack misses.
Shonuf and Renard were lucky – they had helped each other stagger out of the room and into the hallway just before the tentacles appeared; now, they help each other retreat back into the small room where the rope you all entered on still hangs.
As the Naga backs off from Kenny, it casts Shield on itself and avoids the barbarian’s second attack – Kenny is beginning to tire after raging for so long…
Bruce, Grue and Magnus manage to break the tentacles’ hold on them for now – Bruce gets a healing vial out to drink, Grue gets on his feet to get out and Magnus tries to move out of the room to regroup, as Timmy and Triavis suffer from the tentacles’ squeezing… Kenny decides to change weapons to allow him more reach – he gets out his long spear, as the Naga continues to back off and cast spells.
Triavis is fighting the tentacles, but Timmy is being squeezed to death… Magnus has escaped the room to the near side and gets out his spear, while Grue escapes the room to the far side, behind Kenny; unfortunately, the acid is taking its toll – Grue succumbs to the acid and falls, even as Kenny engages the Naga and dispels one of its mirror images. But the barbarian is flagging – he can no longer maintain his rage and is suffering from the accumulated damage that he has until now, ignored; as Triavis continues to fight the tentacles, Timmy continues to lose to them, Bruce escapes into the hallway behind Grue and Kenny, and Magnus makes the typically Saintly choice and runs right back into the tentacles to save the party, the Naga casts a Cone of Cold into the hall! Kenny, who fills the hall, cannot withstand the assault – he falls; fortunately, Bruce again avoids the spell effects from the undead monster, but he finds himself again left alone facing it…
Timmy and Triavis are still fighting the tentacles, with varying degrees of success and failure, even as Magnus fights and drives his way slowly past them across the room, sometimes only inches per step; the Bone Naga, who Kenny had backed up as far as the room it came from, now begins to advance on Bruce, who is now the one retreating back down the hall, leaving Kenny at the mercy of the now heavily spell-enhanced Naga…
Shonuf and Renard weakly emerge from the room they were hiding in once they hear sounds of battle wane; they are horrified to see only Magnus, alone and fighting his way through a room full of black tentacles and glowing, frozen ice strands, hearing nothing but screams of struggle pain from Timmy and Triavis – and hearing nothing at all from anyone else… Their hopes improve when Triavis escapes the room on their side and he immediately begins to cast several Cure Critical Wounds – first on himself, then on Timmy, who is struggling just within reach of the doorway.
Bruce backs up to the same corner at the intersection of hallways, where he hid before; when the Naga appears, he ambushes again, dispelling a second mirror image – the Naga counterattacks directly, missing with its bite but stinging the monk twice! But the monk is lucky – he resists the stinger’s poison, despite missing his next three attacks; his luck continues, when the Naga fails to bite or sting him a second time! Bruce is tying up the Naga, but neither are connecting with any blows; meanwhile, Magnus still forces himself across the tentacle-infested room that still holds Timmy tightly…
Triavis casts Dispel Magic in an attempt to dispel the tentacles – he fails; he tries a second time – and fails a second time…
Shonuf and Renard are recovering from their nausea, now that the Demodand is destroyed… But even as Timmy finally breaks free and begins to escape the tentacles, Magnus is getting bogged down in them. The Naga manages to sting Bruce once over the past three rounds, which is enough to stagger the monk, who has been steadily whittled down the entire battle; he steps back and retrieves a healing vial – just as Shonuf and Timmy do, far behind him.
The Naga backs off from Bruce for the moment; its displacement dissipates, but having no opponent to face, it merely casts the spell a second time…
Triavis casts Dispel Magic a third time, in another attempt to dispel the tentacles – again, he fails…he tries for a fourth time – and fails again…
Shonuf and Bruce both drink second vials of healing potion, while Renard positions himself to rush into action as soon as the tentacles are dealt with…Shonuf then gets out a third one; Timmy casts Cat’s Grace on himself in preparation, also… Magnus finally reaches the far side of the tentacle room and escapes – he repositions his shield, grasps his sword and steps into the hallway intersection, past a relieved Bruce… The Naga has retreated into the room with the twin undead pillars, where it now waits…
As Magnus takes his first step down the hall toward the room, a black mist begins to rise from the floor – where the hallway enters the room, a curtain of black mist now obscures all that lies beyond it.
M
9/7/05: The fourth session of a VERY long battle - this one is going to set a new record for duration...
“Timmy Gets His Salad Tossed/ Cold Reality, Ep. IV”
(or, "It Pulled Out Early” or, “Do Ya Think Ya Can Make It Grow?”)
The party is regrouping now, after being faced with this new obstacle – Bruce takes the opportunity to drink a pair of haling potions, as Timmy continues to struggle against the black tentacles in the room and Triavis exhausts his fifth and final attempt to dispel the tentacles; Shonuf moves up to join Renard, who is waiting for Triavis to dispel the tentacles, while in the next hallway ahead, Magnus detects Evil in front of the hall while Kenny crawls backwards under his legs to safety and gets out a healing potion.
Meanwhile…hundreds of miles away - the most attractive, musically talented, self-confident, well-adjusted Kobold in the entire realm of Greyhawk - reads a scroll…and succeeds in Teleporting herself and her adventuring partner several hundred miles into a place they’ve never seen before…
*POOF*
The first thing they notice is the bone-biting cold in this place…the second thing they notice are the multitudes of thick, black tentacles that begin to grasp at them! While the Kobold screeches in alarm at the sudden predicament, the male Human immediately turns into a polar bear and begins trying to pull the tentacles off of her!
Renard, Triavis and Shonuf wait indignantly for the tentacle spell to expire…but Timmy is determined to catch up with the rest of the party, far ahead – he stomps back into the room and begins fighting the tentacles again!
He promptly is caught up, wrapped and squeezed by the tentacles.
As Bruce peers around the corner from the hallway intersection and Kenny crawls backwards past him to drink his potion unmolested, Magnus steps into the black mist, using his spear to feel for where the ledge ends inside the room beyond and using his detect Evil to track the Naga in the mist. Grue stirs, thanks to Magnus’ healing aura that he activated a few moments ago; he jerks at seeing the polar bear, but can immediately tell that it and the Kobold with it are both in as deep a hole as the rest of the party right now…
While Shonuf tries to reach from the doorway to help Timmy, Renard and Triavis continue to wait for the spell to end… As Grue gets up and re-equips for the fight again, he and Kenny observe Deeta and Pladoh to assure themselves that they have arrived as allies and not more opponents; Bruce drinks a second healing potion while listening for any sounds of alarm from Magnus, who is unseen in the mist.
The party gets a break – the tentacles expire and disappear!
As Timmy immediately reaches for a healing vial and drinks it as he begins to walk (inadvertently breaking a glowing ice strand, much to his discomfort), Shonif, Renard and Triavis all move into the room (Triavis breaks another strand in the process) and past Deeta and Pladoh, who get their bearings in the room and size up the task they now face.
Having located the edge of the walkway in the mist-filled room, Magnus backs out a bit and then moves back in, as Bruce and Grue take up positions behind him in the hallway; Bruce finds out what Magnus already knows, but is immune to – that the mist is even colder than the frigid air already permeating the complex!
Triavis is plowing through the ice room, breaking another strand and clearing a temporary path for Shonuf as he makes his way across, while Timmy flies out of the room, down the hallway and into the mist after Magnus; Kenny keeps his oversized bulk clear of the intersection and drinks one of his final healing potions, as Deeta and Pladoh move up to clear out of the room. The Kobold casts a healing spell on herself, as the bear lays down to conserve energy and space.
As Renard searches the quickly dessicating corpse of the slain Demodand, Shonuf rifles through the possessions of the dead half-Orc warrior after dragging his body out through the doorway, stuffing it into his bag of holding afterwards –
Out of nowhere, a torrent of hail and sleet bombards the party!
The still-weakened Grue is beaten down to the floor by the onslaught, but fortunately, no one else falls; Bruce backs out of the black mist, gets out his last healing potion and drinks it as Magnus drops his anti-magic field long enough for Timmy to fly up and cast Fly on him as well… As Renard covers, Triavis casts Cure Moderate Wounds on the fallen Grue and then himself, while Deeta casts Detect Magic to analyze her surroundings.
Magnus and Timmy are flying back into the mist-shrouded room together, with Bruce backing them up… The paladin is pinpointing the Naga by its Evil aura, Bruce backs along the wall to the left until he reaches a corner, and Timmy flies under the walkway and to the right; he makes it halfway around the perimeter of the room before the naga appears out of the mist and tries to sting him with its tail – it misses!
Timmy concentrates hard to avoid the Naga’s attacks, casts a maximized spell and throws an Orb of Force at the naga from point-blank rage – he hits it, blasting fragments of bone from its body as it shrieks! The blast and following howl is heard by Renard, Bruce, Grue, Kenny and Pladoh, who are awaiting the outcome of the battle outside of the black mist and the room itself; Magnus, who is being slowed now by the necrotic mist, flies toward the blast in the hopes of finishing off the Naga. Deeta tries to dispel the mist and fails; she tries a second time – and fails again. Triavis is being the party healer, since Magnus is occupied at the moment; he casts Cure Moderate Wounds on Grue, Kenny and Bruce, as they and Renard wait for the mist to clear.
Shonuf is heading back to gather useful items from the bodies of Vyka and Mordekai (read: loot), as Kenny and Pladoh decide to go in and back up Magnus; the shapeshifter turns into a bat and flies into the mist, as Kenny walks in carefully…both of them suffer from the supernaturally cold mist from the moment they enter.
Pladoh is slowed by the cold, but Kenny fares even worse – he escapes the new group of black tentacles that he finds populating the platform that rings the room, but during his struggle to escape them, he falls off of the platform, avoiding a twenty-foot fall to the floor by grabbing onto tentacles – that promptly grab him back!
Deeper in the room, the Naga backs off, moving a large, summoned hand of energy to intercept Magnus and push him back – but the saint holds his ground (or air, as it is) and does not yield; he attacks the hand but misses, as Timmy casts protection from Cold to save himself from succumbing to the frigid mist. The wizard is lucky to have cast the spell, because seconds afterward, a Cone of Cold is cast blindly out of the mist by the Naga! The cone engulfs the room, but both Timmy and Magnus are gratefully immune to the effect – unfortunately, Kenny and Pladoh are not…but they survive the spell, even if they are frostbitten…
Magnus sees that Timmy is weakening, even with his protection from Cold spell; as the mage slowly gets out a healing vial to drink, the paladin activates one of his last Fast Healing bursts for the day to aid the stricken wizard.
Bruce, Renard, Grue, Triavis and Deeta still wait, just outside of the black mist; the Kobold bard barks out a tune to inspire flight out of the group, while Shonuf dumps out the corpse of the half-Orc next to the corpse of Mordekai and begins to remove the armor from him.
Back in the pillar room, an Ice Storm erupts, pelting Timmy, Magnus, Kenny and Pladoh in wet hail! Again, Timmy and Magnus avoid the cold damage, but they are still being pummeled by the hailstones, as are the half-Ogre and the shapeshifted bat; Pladoh flies up to the roof of the room, escaping the mist and the ice storm, as Kenny, who fought his way off of the tentacled ledge and dropped the remaining five feet to the floor, moves toward the back of the room to take his revenge on the party’s tormentor.
There is little that Magnus can do to slow down the Naga’s spellcasting at the moment, since he is still being pushed on by the glowing hand of energy; he attacks it again and fails to damage it a second time, despite the various spells that have been weakening it.
Just as the ice storm wanes, a pulse of negative energy sweeps through the room – energy is sapped from everyone in the room, as Magnus, Timmy, Kenny and Pladoh are left exhausted!
To be continued…
M
9/14/05: The fifth and final session of a record-setting epic battle between the party and a Demodand, a half-Orc fighter and a Bone Naga...
“Triavis Gets Violated/ Cold Reality, Ep. V”
(or, "How Long Does This Hand Last?” or, “Just Wake Me For The Money Shot…”)
Awesome magical powers have been eating away at the party’s strength, even as the chaotic pace of battle saps your endurance…
The fight with three different opponents now stretches into its fifth minute of non-stop battle…
Bruce, Renard, Grue, Triavis and Deeta can now all fly…but Grue doesn’t take it so well – when he realizes that he’s floating, he immediately lands and curses at the Kobold for it! Bruce and Renard are emboldened by the efforts of the bard, however – they both fly into the mist and the room beyond, manage to fight their way past the flailing tentacles that wait just inside the mist, and then split up, with Bruce landing on the floor twenty feet below and Renard flying straight to the back of the room, past the undead pillars. Deeta and Triavis follow them, but they are caught by the tentacles as they try to pass through the entrance and over the ledge!
In front of Renard, just out of his sight in the mist, Timmy blindly casts Scorching Ray into the mist in the hopes of hitting the Bone Naga – he hears no response to the spell; to the mage’s left, Magnus is beginning to be pushed back by the Bigby’s Hand that presses on him – he swings madly at the hand, eventually hitting it for damage on his third blow, just before he shakes off the magical slow effects from the mist.
Plato is going on the offensive – he transforms himself into a Chimera and turns to patrol the mists for the Naga!
Shonuf hears that the party is leaving the general area; not wanting to be left behind, he prudently decides to leave looting the bodies for later and sprints back to the party, yielding to the cold damage he takes when he breaks an icy strand in the room on the way out.
In the pillar room, on the mist-free floor, Bruce is disturbed by the visages that appear in the necrotic flesh of the pillar next to him…he punches at one of them, but when he touches the pillar, his mind is bombarded with the telepathic pleadings of a thousand trapped, insane souls that wish to be released from their eternal bondage! The jolted monk is glad that he only touched the pillar for a second…
As Timmy overcomes the magical slow effect on him, he moves underneath the ledge twenty feet above him and tries to locate the Naga in the mists; above him, Renard circles around the perimeter of the two Soul Pillars toward the back of the room…
He sees the Naga! It immediately lashes its tail at the rogue – and misses!
Unfortunately for the hapless Renard, he has circled around too closely to the ledge at the back of the room…which is also covered with tentacles! He is grabbed and drawn onto the ledge by the tentacles and squeezed – while at the front of the room, Triavis and Deeta suffer the same torment…
On the floor, Kenny tries to save Renard by throwing his spear blindly at the Naga from where he stands in between the two Soul Pillars…not only does his spear clatter harmlessly and unseen into the wall above him in the mist, but it doesn’t even fall to the floor.
Suddenly, for a moment, the mist disappears – all of you see the Naga, adhering to the wall in the back of the room just above where Renard is trapped in the tentacles, as well as each other; but the Naga, realizing that his spell has expired, promptly casts again, creating a new mist that refills the room as before!
Outside the room, Shonuf drinks a healing potion as Grue curses the new mist that keeps him at bay; inside, Bruce moves across the floor into the nearest corner underneath the ledge while Kenny moves into the far corner in the back of the room. Magnus continues to hack at the magical hand that now pins him against the right side wall, hitting once out of two swings, while Timmy listens hard and tries to hit the Naga with his Wand of Orb of Force…
Out of plain luck, he hits! An unnatural scream accompanies the shower of bone shards that rain down from the mist!
On the tentacle-covered ledge that rings the room, Renard, Triavis and Deeta all struggle to free themselves, as Shonuf reaches into the mist and tries to help free Deeta; Triavis manages to cast Bless and Deeta sings a song to inspire strength in the party, as they fight the tentacles.
Descending into the mist from near the ceiling, the Plato-Chimera slowly flies down until he spots the Naga… he tries to breath fire from the Red Dragon head, but he can’t yet fully grasp the natural abilities of the magical beast…he fails.
From the dark mist, a Cone of Cold envelops a majority of the entire pillar room!
Bruce is affected where he stands, but he avoids the effects with a successful save – he sprints across the room to hide underneath the opposite ledge, underneath where the spell originated… Timmy is fortunate to be underneath the ledge – from the angle of the spell, he is not hit; neither are Magnus, Triavis and those outside of the room… Renard, unable to escape, is hit badly and goes limp in the grasp of the tentacles… Kenny, unable to fully take cover underneath the ledge due to his size, is hit – he falls… The Plato-Chimera is hovering high up in the room, but the cone blasts is level to him; it hits – but he survives, barely…he is forced to land, however, by his wounds.
Triavis and Deeta both escape the black tentacles – he flies straight up while she flies back out of the room, pushing both Grue and Shonuf back in doing so; she immediately casts Cure Light Wounds on herself, while Shonuf drinks another healing potion.
Magnus continues to fight the interposed Bigby’s Hand, as his fast healing aura for the party begins to end; he hits it for damage once out of his next four swings… In front of him and to his right, Timmy steps out from under the ledge and casts a Fireball spell our of his spellbook; he immolates more than half of the room above the ledge, narrowly missing the already-hurt Chimera he has no awareness of - but it certainly covers the Naga – which fails its spell resistance and burns!
Unfortunately, the unconscious Renard is caught within the Fireball and burns as well…
Grue, Deeta and Shonuf notice that all sound from the room has been suddenly cut off – but they don’t immediately see any reason why…
Kenny, still benefiting from Magnus’ waning aura of fast healing, begins to stir…he sits up, grateful to still be alive…
Bruce decides to go on the offensive, before the Naga’s spells overwhelm the party – he flies straight through the unnaturally cold mist, straight up, until he emerges from them near the ceiling; he sees that Triavis also emerges from the mist a moment later and casts Cure Moderate Wounds on himself… Back on the floor, Timmy casts Shield on himself, as Kenny and the Plato-Chimera, both of them severely hurt, get out and drink healing potions.
The onslaught of spells from the Bone Naga continues – another Ice Storm fills the room!
Everyone suffers another brutal pummeling from the hail and sleet, but only the weakened Kenny succumbs; grim determination is beginning to take hold – Bruce flies back down into the mist, looking for the Naga…he finds it!
The Naga whips its tail at the monk, but misses; Bruce immediately grapples the undead monster, yelling out his location to the others!
(DM note: The Naga’s Mirror Image, Displacement, Mage Armor, and Shield spells that were all in effect on the Naga at the time had been overlooked by the DM for purposes of targeting and touch AC – to maintain continuity, the DM has allowed the successful hit and grapple, and attributed the monk’s hit to the Divine influence of Heironeus, acting through Saint Magnus.)
Timmy flies up, getting his wand of Orb of Force back out, while Triavis flies into the mist from the opposite side, looking for the fight; Magnus is left behind as he still hacks at the enchanted hand, which is beginning to weaken - more from all of the spells than the paladin’s attacks.
Outside, Deeta decides to try and enter the room again, to save her friend and new allies; once she enters the freezing mist again, she quickly finds what has silenced the room from them – a thick sheet of ice seals off the entrance to the room! She is forced to back out of the mist and reconsider her tactics, but Shonuf charges into the mist, braving the cold, and begins to hack at the ice with the pommel of his rapier!
Far above the floor in the pillar room, the startled and severely damaged Naga finally finds itself on the defensive – it casts Cone of Cold on itself and Bruce in a desperate attempt to dislodge the persistent monk, who doggedly survives the blast and continues to grapple the monster, snapping of small shards of bone as he does.
Timmy levels his wand at the grappled pair…
Bruce vigorously shakes his head… (“No!”)…
The mage knows that if he misses, he will likely kill the monk and free the Naga at the same time; it is a chance that he must take… Magnus is still pinned by the Bigby’s hand, Kenny is down, Renard is dead, one third of the party is sealed outside by a wall of ice, and those who remain inside with this horror are steadily weakening in the necrotic mist that, at the same time, rejuvenates your enemy… Spells are running out, fatigue is setting in, and desperation calls for a sacrifice…
Timmy takes aim at Bruce and the Bone Naga as they wrestle on the side of one of the Soul Pillars…
Bruce again vigorously shakes his head…
Bruce: “NO!”
Timmy: “FORGIVE ME!”
The wizard casts Orb of Force out of his wand, as the monk wrenches his body to one side to force his grappled foe in front of him...
The Orb hits – and the Bone Naga’s skull shatters into hundreds of shards that ricochet off of the pillars and scatter throughout the room!
(DM note: Again, the Naga’s Mirror Image, Displacement, Mage Armor, and Shield spells that were all in effect on the Naga at the time had been overlooked by the DM for purposes of targeting and AC – to maintain continuity, the DM has allowed the successful hit and attributed it to the Divine influence of Heironeus acting through Saint Magnus.)
Bruce lets go of the now-limp bone-snake, as the spells it had cast dissipate and it falls to the ground; the black mist clears, the tentacles disappear (leaving Renard’s burnt, frozen corpse on the ledge) and cold silence reclaims the room, except for the labored panting that causes wispy clouds of fog to materialize in front of your faces…
A few moments later, the ice wall is breached and the party is together again.
From the moment that you all had first laid eyes on the Demodand in the ice-lattice room, over five and a half minutes have passed.
M
9/14/05: Supplemental background for two new characters...this transpires in the moments before they appear in the battle referenced above...
“Deeta and Plato hire into a job of a lifetime”
Morning, at the Temple of Lordly Might dedicated to Kord, in the City of Rauxes…
Asfelkir Hranleurt, the half-Orc High Priest of the Temple of Lordly Might, has called a meeting of several interested factions within the City:
- Meerthan Eliothlorn, Fario Ellegoth and Fellian Shard of the Striders of Fharlanghn (an organization that is opposed to the Cagewrights but is otherwise neutral; they work to maintain balance between all religious entities);
- Annah Taskerhill, Cora Lathenmire and Zachary Aslaxin of the Stormblades (a professional adventuring company composed of city nobles);
- Nidrama, a Deva who has appealed to Asfelkir for aid in a just cause;
- Kristof Jurgensen, sole Cleric at the Shrine of Pelor.
Nidrama has come to ask for aid from Asfelkir at the urging of Kristof, whose small shrine lacks the resources to counter the growing might and malevolence of the Cagewrights, the Temple of Wee Jas (who is apparently involved in their plots), and Lord Orbius Vhalantru (who has become unchallenged in the City regarding all matters that are not of interest to the Imperial Palace).
Kristoff is a paranoid and bitter man who blames the Temple of Wee Jas for cozying up to the corrupt City government, engineering the disappearance of the Lord Mayor (which led to Vhalantru’s de facto takeover) and negating any influence his church had in the past. He believes that the recent construction of the new spire at the temple of Wee Jas was a direct thumbing of the nose at his church, since the spire blocks the morning sunrise and casts a long shadow directly over his small shrine, which is built on the lot of an ancient holy ground contested by several religions both Good and Evil.
The Striders are well known to all of the religious organizations – not always in the best of terms, but seldom violently. They don’t share Kristof’s strong view of the priests of Wee Jas, but they still suspect the Cagewrights of being up to a plot – exactly what, they don’t know…which is why you’re here. Meerthan has suspicions that the priests of Wee Jas are in alliance with the Cagewrights over some kind of power grab in the city, although he doesn’t know why or what kind of compensation they would want or get.
Annah and the other Stormblades are reticent and not very happy to be talking to you all – they recently lost one of their members (who now lies in state at the temple of Wee Jas, as it is…) during an epic battle in the Underdark and are currently a bit deflated from the usual confidence that a group of young, powerful nobles would typically have. But Nidrama has gently nudged them into sharing what they know – that the wizard and powerful undead servants with him seemed to know all of their tactics and was ready for them…this was no chance encounter – he was looking for them. They had been on a mission to scout the Underdark against a possible Kuo-Toa invasion and had been hired by Ike Iverson – acting High Priest of Wee Jas…
Nidrama introduces Deeta and Plato to the assembled parties and shares their story:
“The high priest of Heironeus in Nyrond has dispatched his loyal servant, Saint Magnus, along with friends from the temple of Oliddamara and druids of the Vesve and Celene Forests to the east, on a mission of importance.
Something which threatens the entire region is taking shape; we must know what it is, and thwart it.
Those who serve the Light have discovered an ambitious plot afoot in the decrepit ruin of the Great Kingdom of Aerdy - an ancient civilization known as the Spellweavers has been unearthed beneath the borderlands that join Aerdy and Keoland. Within one of the ancient ruins, a group of conspirators has been tapping into the long-dormant Evil that lies there…
Saint Magnus has been sent to Karran-Kural in order to stop them.
I have discovered that their mission is linked to our own struggles here, against the Cagewrights; a recent insurrection within the ranks of Cagewrights has distracted the priests of Wee Jas – I managed to uncover a correspondence between the acting High Priest and his superior, Embril Aloustinai – the High Priestess of Wee Jas who has been indisposed for several months now.”
High Priestess;
As many have heard me say, the cages alone will not afford the completion of the ritual. What more is needed I cannot say, and so I continue to explore the mysteries of the Soul Pillars at great peril. The guardian grows ever more restless, and the insanity that lies frozen in Karran-Kural is beginning to stir.
My price has doubled.
~ F. A.
“Deeta…Plato, your services have been contracted because you have a reputation for serving the good of the people, regardless of the corruption of their lords and rulers; now is the time to show your quality – you must find your way to Saint Magnus and his friends, tell him that their path will bring them here to Rauxes, share what we know with them and assist them in escaping Karran Kural safely so that they may aid us here in facing the priests of Wee Jas and the Cagewrights together.
I know you have been promised a share of whatever portion of the peoples’ wealth is recovered from the wrongdoers by Kristof; I have every confidence that, regardless of your own desire to help the Light, Saint Magnus will honor that pact.
Take this scroll of Teleport – join Magnus and share what we know; I know you’ve never been there, but we know where they are at and we’ll help you succeed with the spell.”
Nidrama gives Deeta the scroll and everyone wishes the two of you good luck.
Deeta reads the fine vellum that is written upon in a Celestial hand, swallows hard, and casts the spell.
M
9/24/05: The aftermath of an epic battle...and the beginning of another...
“The Rescue Mission /Cold Reality, Epilogue”
(or, "I’ll be peeing on THAT Church”, or, “Next time, go sh1t your pants somewhere else!”)
Some of you bend over and pant in the dry, cold air…some of you collapse onto the ice-cold floor to catch your breath… It is time to count the dead; Vyka, Mordekai and Renard are stripped and looted for useful items by Shonuf…he’s thinking of survival right now, not honoring the fallen, lest he join them.
Quickly, plans made – you all need to rest, tend to the wounded and find some source of warmth to stave off the biting cold that saps at your strength; the party retreats back to the chimney room, where you all entered this level, to camp & rest in a secure, closed area where there is a vent for a fire…the problem is, there is precious little to burn, save for some cloth and goods taken from the dead. The party is ill-equipped to stay here – someone must leave for supplies and return.
Timmy forms a plan to Teleport out, for camping supplies and cold weather gear, as well as some firewood; Lewen and Triavis volunteer to go with Timmy and haul back supplies. Once plans are made, the three of them teleport back to their home base in Keoland
{DM Note: The three of them originally teleported to Rauxes; it would be easier for Timmy to teleport to Keoland, due to his familiarity with the location, as well as easier to acquire support and supplies for little cost by returning to the temple from which the party left. Let it be noted that they instead teleported to Keoland for supplies.}
Upon the arrival of Timmy, Lewen and Triavis, the priests of Heironeus send acolytes out for supplies and gear, while Timmy debriefs the priests on the horrors they have survived in Karran-Kural. Within the hour, Timmy is loaded with gear in the Bag of Holding that he carries; Triavis and Lewen stay behind, however, promising to return once some local business is attended to. At least the wizard can carry back more supplies that anticipated before.
Timmy returns to the rest of the group in Karran-Kural, who have been quietly conserving body heat by huddling close together in a ten foot square room along with their gear; Kenny, being too large to fit in the room, stays in the hallway just outside the door.
After building a healthy fire in the center of the room, it takes approximately three hours for the party to warm up back to health; they change into their new, warmer clothes in the meantime, as Magnus activates his fast healing aura to heal their wounds. After a full, eight hour rest cycle, they are ready to move on.
The party has three options to explore: a narrow hallway filled with magical ice lattices that ends in a door, a second door at the intersection that leads into the Soul pillar room, and a narrow tunnel dug out of an adjoining hallway that has collapsed. They choose the path of least resistance and follow the tunnel.
A single file line forms, following the length of the fifty foot tunnel that appears to exit into the same hallway, beyond the collapsed area; Shonuf is the first to emerge into the hall, with Magnus and Timmy behind. Kenny waits back at the intersection until he is called for, since his massive bulk would cut off any possible escape, should one be necessary. Shonuf searches the one iron door in this hallway - which appears to be the only way out, since the hall is collapsed just beyond it, with no other exit; he finds nothing but a solitary rune carved into the door jamb – he tries to disable it, but in doing so he triggers the rune, which flashes red for a moment, leaving Shonuf suddenly numb and reeling!
Quick aid by Magnus cannot help the stricken scout; he has suffered a loss of life force that must heal naturally… With the trap now triggered, the Saint fearlessly opens the frost-rimed iron door and reveals the room beyond, which is filled with three rows of five, rune-covered corpses – a row each of Dwarf, Human and Elf! Glowing runes, in the same color as the ice lattices throughout the complex, cover every square inch of the otherwise naked and well-preserved bodies.
Following some cursory inspection and detections for Evil and Magic, Timmy attempts to read the runes; after a few moments of silence, the group begins to notice that Timmy is struggling to comprehend…he begins to look panicked! They intervene, but it’s too late – the wizard begins to babble, as his mind reels out of control and the insanity that he unleashed upon himself takes hold! Magnus burns one of the corpses to try and break the effect, but there is no effect on Timmy – a second party member is stricken!
The party backs out of this cursed tomb and moves on to the door at the intersection, where Kenny has been standing guard; after Shonuf does the best as he can inspecting the door in his current state, Magnus opens it, revealing a long hallway beyond; the walls on each side of this hall is filled with doors – the first one on the left is opened, cautiously, revealing a cylinder that is identical to all of the others found in Karran-Kural so far – except that this one is empty… The following doors that are along the right side of this hall also reveal alcoves that are identical in their contents - except for one that contains some camping supplies… All of the doors along the left side of the hall are also identical - save for one, which contains more supplies…
The long hallway ends on a four-way intersection; the right hall is full of glowing ice lattices, right up to where the hall is caved in…the left hall is mostly full of ice lattices, but it ends in a door some fifty feet distant…the hall ahead has doors on each wall, ten feet down, and ends in a cave-in ten feet beyond them.
The party chooses to proceed past the intersection and to the door on the right wall.
After Shonuf searches the door and declares it clear, Magnus opens it, revealing a mostly empty room of unknown purpose that now serves as a campsite for some type of humanoid; a simple bed sits along the back wall, next to a plain desk and chair. After cautiously entering the room, Timmy peruses the sheaf of parchments on the desk while Shonuf begins to ransack the rest of the room, tearing into the mattress to empty its stuffings.
In a flash of light, a magical portal appears, from which a robed human steps into the room!
For the next few seconds, Timmy, Shonuf, Magnus and Bruce are just as aghast as the owner of the room whose furniture you’ve just disturbed…but after he quickly sizes up your group, he casts a spell – avoiding Shonuf’s sudden assault with the deflated mattress as he does – and steps into another portal before it closes behind him…
Tense seconds pass…but the spellcaster never reappears.
You all decide to redirect your attention to the room across the hall; Shonuf clears the iron door for entry, and again Magnus opens it. The octagonal chamber beyond this door appears to be a summoning room – a pentagram of inlaid metal occupies the floor, its protection from Evil enchantments still intact. There are no exits, so you all agree to leave the room and its contents undisturbed.
The last open passage from the intersection is a long hallway that goes over fifty feet to your left and has two areas that are blocked by overlapping ice lattices – there is an iron door at the end of the hall; carefully threading yourselves through the hazardous lattices, you all fill the hallway, single file, as Shonuf inspects the door and Magnus stands by to open it…behind him are Bruce and Timmy.
When Magnus opens the door, what shocks you is the total lack of illumination beyond…while most of the passages and rooms of Karran-Kural are illuminated the cold, white light of the enchanted ceiling panels, two places have remained unlit - the Soul Pillar room, and this one… What light filters past the party from the hallway casts long shadows into a deep, cavernous room that appears to be almost spherical; the doorway opens onto a stone ledge that runs around the equator of the room but then ends in broken, jagged ends – just short of a platform that fills the far third of the room. Not two, but five Soul Pillars inhabit this chamber – a bridge made of thick ice reaches straight out from the ledge, directly in front of the doorway, out to within a few feet of the pillar closest to the center of the room.
Timmy casts Fly, taking off and flying into the room past Bruce, Magnus and Shonuf – he is wary of an ambush that might catch the party in the narrow hallway; but to everyone’s horror – especially Timmy’s – a booming voice, thickly accented in Draconic, shatters the stillness of Karran-Kural:
“You are not Fetor… Who are you… that would invoke my wrath for disturbing the Soul Pillars?!”
*To Be Continued*
M
9/28/05: The big climactic battle:
“Magnus vs. Floor”
(or, "His wand is always in his hand”, or, ”Your mom has no gag reflex”)
Timmy’s already clouded and raving mind is racing even faster now; he spins in mid-air just in time to see the huge yet swift bulk of a Green Dracolich land and adhere to the curved wall of the spherical room, far above the doorway where he entered from. The wizard watches as it turns its semi-skeletal head toward him, its eyes mere points of neon green in inky black sockets…a wave of magical energy pulses through Timmy’s body – the trained mage knows that he has just been subjected to a gaze attack! Fortunately, he resists the effect…
Timmy casts his maximized Orb of Force back at the undead Dragon – he hits! The spell blasts cracked scales and dried fragments of centuries-dead flesh from the skeletal frame of the undead Green Dragon, leaving it quite enraged!
Shonuf, hearing the Dracolich speak and the following blast, reaches for vials of Alchemist’s Fire in his belt, while Magnus activates his Holy shield and moves through the doorway for a better look at your foe; Deeta casts Mirror Image and Bruce moves up behind the rest of the you waiting to enter the room, as Kenny and Grue try to steel themselves after being shaken by the Dracolich’s immense size and horrific appearance.
The Dracolich leaps off of the wall above the entryway, stretching to it’s full length, takes a single stroke of its skeletal wings and lands on the opposite wall of the room as you all look on in awe; after landing, it turns to face Timmy and breathes a cone of acid at him, burning away fabric and flesh! Timmy, his mind too chaotic for spellcasting, is relying on his Orb of Force wand to save the day – he launches a second orb successfully at his huge target, before flying down to land on the floor of the room; he blasts away more dead flesh and scales from the Dracolich, even as it turns to pursue his single tormentor!
As Magnus casts Bless and calls out the Undead Dragon to fight him one-on-one, Shonuf moves out onto the frost-encrusted stone ledge in the room as Plato, Grue and Kenny all shuffle forward to wait their turn to enter; Deeta, who was at the front of the line behind Shonuf, moves out onto the ledge in the room also and finds a clear shot with her crossbow – she fires a shocking light bolt at the Dracolich, but her shot careens off of one of the few remaining scales on it’s rear quarter, as it dives down after Timmy and scoops him up in its jaws!
Even grappled by the massive Dracolich’s jaws, Timmy is driven by his mania to defeat the monster – he activates his wand a second time, blasting the Dracolich again!
Shonuf throws his pair of Alchemist’s Fire vials, as Magnus activates his aura of Fast Healing for the party (knowing that Timmy will need it shortly); the rogue hits the Dracolich with one of them, but the other explodes next to Timmy, burning him with flaming oil even as the Dracolich chews and mauls him for even more damage! As Plato, Deeta and Kenny move into the room in force to close in for battle, a clobbered Timmy realizes that he must escape now or die here; he concentrates hard, casts Dimension Door, and disappears! Bruce makes a classic monk-like attack, leaping off of the ledge and falling twenty-five feet to the bottom of the room, attacking the severely damaged Dracolich as he does! Unfortunately, the monk fails to damage the undead monster, but he lands gracefully on the floor; Grue, also eager to save the wizard (but not yet realizing that he is now gone), leaps and attacks the Dracolich in identical fashion as Bruce did – he also fails to damage the monster, but he also fails to land with the same grace as the monk did…
*Crunch!*
While Shonuf mutters apologies to an invisible or missing Timmy, he grabs for two more vials of Alchemists Fire, while Magnus leaps and attacks the Dracolich just as Grue and Bruce did; he achieves pretty much the same result, but the Saint’s damage reduction and fast healing ease the pain a bit…
In the chaos of falling adventurers, the Dracolich finds itself being hemmed in by the party – it climbs up the nearest Soul Pillar with amazing agility for an undead monster; reaching just over halfway to the ceiling, it stops, turns its head back at you all and breathes a second cone of acid downward at the party, enveloping everyone except Deeta, Plato and Timmy (who isn’t there) in a spray of burning slime!
Fortunately, Magnus’ healing aura and the fact that this is the first damage that all of you have taken since yesterday help you all to survive the acid in varying states of discomfort…
Suddenly, Timmy – who had not left the room but instead used Dimension Door to escape to the far side of the room, flies out from behind it, catching everyone, except the Dracolich, by surprise! He activates his wand and launches his third Orb of Force at the undead beast – and finally blasts it into oblivion!
The sudden end to the battle leaves the party stunned, but this time in a good way.
You all decide to camp here, despite the presence of the five undead pillars…the cold weather gear you all are enjoying now and the hints of the Dracolich’s hoard that glint from under rubble, refuse and accumulated piles of frost are comforting thoughts for you enough to forget the tortured faces that emerge and move throughout the columns of necrotic flesh. You build a fire near the back of the room where there appears to be the heaviest concentration of coins and debris, set your watch, and begin to sift through the debris; useless bits of leather, wood or metal that sift out of the frost are tossed into the fire, while coins and other valuables are kept aside and tallied.
Two hours later, some of you are sleeping, some of you are counting a steadily growing pile of gold and platinum coins, and Plato lazily scans the quiet room while Kenny nervously studies the undead necrotic pillars; Plato notices a subtle change in the light filtering in from the open doorway on the platform above - a shadow appears in the door…followed by the silhouette of a man!
Plato: “Alarm”!
By the time those who are awake are responding to Plato’s call to arms, the silhouette is already receding from the doorway; those of you who were sleeping wake up to find Plato in mid-transformation into a Chimera! While Deeta considers her options, the rest of the party gathers their weapons and begins to line up at the rope that leads up to the platform, while the Plato-Chimera takes flight and lands on the platform, just right of the open doorway. Timmy decides to make a bold tactical move – he casts Dimension door and disappears!
Bruce, who was first in line to climb the rope, bolts over halfway up, easily; Deeta, however, gives everyone else a better option – she sings her bard song of Flight (which Grue has yet to get used to…), which allows her, Grue, Magnus, Shonuf and Kenny to begin flying up to the platform!
Far ahead, past the intersection that connects to the Soul Pillar room, Timmy has appeared near the campsite where you all first encountered the strange wizard that disappeared on you – he peeks around the corner of the intersection and finds that very same mage, who sees him through the glowing, icy strands that criss-cross the hallway both in front and behind him; seeing that the wizard hides himself behind a Mirror Image spell, Timmy closes his eyes and activates his Orb of Force wand blindly! His brash act is rewarded by Heironeous, as he hears the mage cry out in pain from a lucky hit! He casts a spell back at Timmy, but he resists the effect of what he discerns was an attempt to Confuse him; backing off to give the party time to advance, he retreats down the hall and into the conjuring room that you all had found earlier across from the camp room where he took the Dimension Door to.
The party is landing on the platform now, as Bruce climbs up off of the rope and takes up a position at the rear of the group… But the wizard in the hallway can hear you all coming – he casts a spell…and Kenny is suddenly stricken by fear – he takes flight and begins to flee toward the back of the chamber! Plato, who is too large as a Chimera to easily fit through the doorway, decides to change again – he takes the form of a Gray Render and waits to enter the hallway after the rest of the party. Magnus, who is at the front, ignores the stinging pain of the ice strands as he passes through them and charges the wizard, hitting him! Shonuf tries to tumble past both Magnus and the mage as they fight, but he cannot manage the feat – fortunately, the wizard is unarmed and cannot attack the vulnerable rogue as he stumbles and falls prone around Magnus’ feet.
Back in the Pillar room, Kenny recovers from his fear and flies back in, charging the enemy…but he mistakenly attacks Deeta, hitting her critically from behind! The mauled Kobold casts Cure Serious Wounds on herself, as Grue and Plato move into the hallway to avoid the obviously confused half-Ogre.
At that moment, the wizard unleashes his trap – he casts an empowered Lightning Bolt down the narrow hallway, as you all line up in it! Shonuf rolls out of danger, but Magnus, Grue, Plato, Deeta and even Kenny beyond are all hit; Deeta, already seriously injured by Kenny’s attack, is fried where she stood, but the rest of you withstand your first damage of the fight.
As Bruce goes fully defensive, knowing that only he is left to face Kenny in the room now, a quick change of tactics is agreed upon – Magnus, activating his Fast Healing aura, drops prone to allow Plato to overrun everyone in the party and charge the wizard; Shonuf leads the attack from the floor by crawling up to the shocked mage and stabbing him with his rapier! The wizard counters by casting a powerful spell of Death…but it falls just short of affecting the party, with Magnus fighting for his life on the floor – but succeeding! The Plato-Gray Render then charges the wizard, hitting him and immediately grappling for massive rending damage!
Kenny, realizing that something is wrong after his attack on his Kobold party-mate, stands on the platform, trying to sort out his thoughts, as he is carefully watched by Bruce; he decides to flee back to the far side of the room; as Magnus gets back on his feet, Shonuf leaps acrobatically to his feet on the far side of the grappling Plato and successfully stabs the struggling wizard in his arms, as Grue drinks a healing potion back near the doorway.
Timmy, who had retreated to the back of the summoning room, drank a healing potion and was expecting to defend himself against anything that came through the doorway; he changes plans after hearing the pained screams from the enemy wizard and runs back out of the room and to the same corner he hid at before… Seeing the wizard being overpowered by the Gray Render (that he can only assume is Plato), he casts Scorching Ray – one hits the wizard, but one misses, striking the Gray Render!
The wizard is in over his head, now – he is clearly in a losing grapple with the Gray Render and is about to get finished off by the others…he concentrates as hard as he can muster, yet still barely gets the spell off – but cast he does…
The wizard, who can be no other than the one called ‘Fetor’, abruptly disappears!
Back in the Soul Pillar room, Bruce quickly steps out into the hallway and pulls the door shut before Kenny goes berserk and attacks again; there is little chance he can get through, against a Gray Render holding the door on this side…
He will come to his senses soon enough.
M
10/5/05: The aftermath...
“The ‘Timmy Retirement Fund’”
(or, " The ‘Timmy Funeral Fund’”)
While Plato guards the door to the Soul Pillar chamber (in the form of a Gray Render), the rest of the party sits on the floor to rest, as the half-Ogre Kenny alternates between contrition and rage in his magically-induced confusion; after a few minutes, he comes out of it and the party can collect their belongings and resume resting…after a few dirty looks – especially from Plato. After resting for a full eight hours on top of the interrupted two hours you all had before, you all agree that you have discovered all that you need to in this place – that the Cagewrights have used the knowledge here to conduct research in the name of Evil, and that the temple of Wee Jas is involved, as is Orbius Vhalantru in some way.
Once you have all packed your belongings, you decide on your next course of action…as you work your way carefully towards the exit of Karran-Kural, you stop at the only unexplored hallway left – one you all had passed by over a day ago…filled with glowing, icy strands, a door lies at the far end of the sixty foot hallway. You decide to investigate and begin to carefully wind your way down the hall; despite great care, Kenny and Timmy break strands and suffer for them – otherwise, you all reach the door in a single-file line before Magnus opens the door.
The room you find beyond resembles the summoning room you had found earlier; a single enchanted light-plate illuminates the octagonal room, which contains little more than a large, black icy patch in the center of the floor. With some concentration and thought, Timmy determines that this ice is used as some kind of scrying device; you also find the remnants of a crude campsite along the back wall of the room – it would seem that your arcane nemesis once lived here for a while…based on the parchments you find that match the handwriting you found on papers in the room at the back of the complex, your attacker was the same mage who teleported in on you, then immediately back out!
Timmy focuses on the ice and concentrates…he begins to bend images in the ice to his will…he focuses his thoughts…”…show me where the wizard is…” Images begin to appear, hazy at first, but rapidly focusing – a manor house appears, then the interior…the ice shows rooms, then the view is moving towards a doorway…its subject is near… But just then, Timmy loses the image! He tries to scry the last thing that the ice showed before you all arrived, but there is nothing that comes into focus…
Nevertheless, your work is done here and you’ve gathered enough evidence…Timmy now teleports the party back to the cave entrance so you can retrieve your wagon and horses, avoiding the hassles of a long march back up and out, traversing two dangerous water hazards and a waterfall. When you find them, the horses are in need of some food and water, but are otherwise healthy and unharmed. The next morning, you all set out across the wilderness, searching for the nearest road that will take you east, into Aerdy.
For the next month and a day, you all march across Aerdy toward its capital city of Rauxes; the late-fall weather is mostly cool and dry, but your cold weather gear is more than sufficient for even the coldest of these nights under the stars – which still doesn’t come close to the bone-biting near-zero temperatures you were enduring a short time ago. While you experience a multitude of minor encounters over the next month as you travel across the countryside, all of them that would be hostile to you are no match for Saint Magnus and his party of do-gooders; woe be unto the Goblinoid raiding party, the bandit highwaymen, the rogue ambush, or the rampaging beast that crosses paths with this group!
While the details of the party’s travels are too insignificant to warrant merit here, these minor encounters will net you all 1,000 XP each over the four weeks’ worth of travel.
You all arrive in Rauxes exactly four weeks and two days after leaving Karran-Kural; Saint Magnus and the rest of you are struck by two things that are immediate about the capitol of the oldest kingdom in the land of Greyhawk – the immensity of the city dwarfs that even of the Free City of Greyhawk, and that every building, every resident and the very air here seems steeped in the corruption and Evil of a once proud kingdom, gone mad with insanity and power ignored (or nurtured) over generations, if not centuries.
Led by Plato, who is native to these parts, you all make your way to the Shrine of Pelor, where you all meet with your benefactors here; the shrine itself is too small to house your whole party, so you are directed to lodging at a nearby neighbor, with one of the few Good-hearted worshippers remaining in Rauxes – they are honored and take it as a sign of change that a Saint is in their midst to join the efforts of Nidrama, a Deva who watches over the few faithful in this neglected land. You have a large shed to call your own for the time being; it is large enough to house the horses across from a row of cots that are set up for you…meals are provided for you as long as you wish while here – they are modest, but served lovingly by the faithful.
It is time for reflection and training; four of you are in need, including Saint Magnus. While it will require only one week for Magnus and Bruce to train, it will take three weeks for Grue and Shonuf to complete their training. The treasure you carry is divided up and expenses are paid first; the remaining loot is tithed under the supervision of Magnus, then the rest is divided evenly among you. Magnus then gives his cut of treasure to the poor, after making sure that his expenses are met. You also present the corpse of Deeta to Jenya Ulrikas, of the Church of St. Cuthbert, along with a scroll of Raise Dead that you found amongst the treasure hoard of the Dracolich; considering that you’ve provided the spell to her for use, she is more than gracious to cast it and return the Kobold to life for you at no cost.
During the first two weeks of training, Timmy returns to Karran-Kural with a demolition team of Good priests and acolytes in order to destroy the Soul Pillars and free the trapped spirits within; the mission is a success, with many tortured souls set free from eternal bondage.
Once he returns, Timmy joins the other four in training – it will take him two weeks, but the first week overlaps with the rest of the group, so you all will only wait one week for him to complete his training.
Over the next four weeks in Rauxes, you all learn the streets from Deeta and Plato, acclimate yourselves to the local slang and culture, and get acquainted with the local citizens and the Good priests who minister to them; for such a large city, you are amazed at how small their flocks are…
- Asfelkir Hranleurt, the half-Orc High Priest of the Temple of Lordly Might – a militaristic order, but Good in its nature;
- Kristof Jurgensen, sole Cleric at the Shrine of Pelor – a bitter man who blames the temple of Wee Jas for all his ails;
- Jenya Ulrikas, High Priestess of the Church of St. Cuthbert – leads one of the largest flocks of Good citizens left in Rauxes;
- Nidrama, a Deva who works in alliance with the Good temples of Rauxes (because they need the help);
- Meerthan Eliothlorn, Fario Ellegoth and Fellian Shard of the Striders of Fharlanghn (an organization that is opposed to the Cagewrights but is otherwise neutral in that they work to maintain balance between all religious entities);
- Annah Taskerhill, Cora Lathenmire and Zachary Aslaxin of the Stormblades (a professional adventuring company composed of city nobles);
Near the end of the fourth week, the Striders of Farlanghn call a meeting to share news and information regarding your mutual foes, the Cagewrights…
M
10/12/05: Resuming posts after a short break...
“Lick the Carpet Clean”
(or, "Are Wands Supposed to Throb?”)
During the fourth week of training, you all are introduced to Sapper, a professional slayer of spellcasters and a professional associate of the Striders of Farlanghn; noticing that the party is in need of front-line combatants, they referred him to Magnus with the blessing of Nidrama, the Deva. Also during this time, Plato seeks out a pair of beast claws recently sold by another adventuring party (they had lost a compatriot who was a Lycanthrope, in an expedition not far from Rauxes…) and trades the Keen bastard sword for them.
At the end of the fourth week, you are called upon to meet with a member of the Striders of Farlanghn by the name of Fario Ellegoth; he asks that you meet with the leader of the Striders, Meerthan Eliothlorn, in a room at the Drunken Morkoth Inn…there is new information that he needs to share with you which is urgent and needs swift action!
Once again reunited and rested, you all quickly prepare yourselves for a journey and leave behind the modest hospitality of the faithful servants of St. Cuthbert; you follow Fario through the mid-afternoon streets, through the market and into the Warehouse Districts, where you find the Drunken Morkoth Inn. Once inside, Fario takes you upstairs, where he knocks four times on a door – the room beyond is comfortably appointed; a Dwarf in a rich vest sits on a padded leather chair facing the door, his hands clasped tightly under his beard as if in deep contemplation. Once you are shown in and the door closed, he removes the gold circlet he was wearing – revealing that he is actually a handsome half-Elf of mature years and hazel eyes; a small, crescent-shaped tattoo is under his right eye.
Meerthan Eliothlorn is not known to spend a lot of time on pleasantries…
Meerthan: “One of my agents, a half-Elf named Skiriol, was captured while spying on House Rhiavadi; he’s being detained and interrogated in a Last Laugh safe house in the slum district. Normally, this wouldn’t be a problem – I keep a Bracelet of Friends (a magic item that can teleport allies) that I use to keep my agents out of harm’s way; but Skiriol gets into more than his fair share of trouble, and, well, I can’t use the bracelet on him a second time.
Members of the Last Laugh are interrogating Skiriol as we speak; he has resisted their torture so far, but he can’t hold out much longer. With the help of a Telepathic Bond spell, I’ve managed to remain in constant contact with him - the Last Laugh doesn’t know; please forgive my presumption, but I’ve already told him that help was on the way…
When you return, we can discuss what Skiriol learned from his reconnaissance. They’re holding him at “The Brass Trumpet” - an abandoned inn on ash Avenue.”
Plato (being the mercenary of the party, along with Deeta): “What about compensation?”
Meerthan: “I’ll pay you 2,500 gold coins to rescue him and get him back here safely.”
Plato: “2,500 for each of us?”
Meerthan: “No…total.”
Plato: “Dang.”
Meerthan quickly agrees to the party’s terms – which are fairly simple, considering that Magnus is willing to rescue Skiriol for nothing, anyways. They leave for the Brass Trumpet Inn, without a moment to spare.
Locating the Brass Trumpet is not difficult at all… Originally an inn, the two story stone building has been closed for a couple of years now; the owner left the City (or disappeared), the windows on the ground floor have all been bricked up, and the windows on the upper floor are all smoked over and grimy. The iron sign remains over the front doors (which have been replaced in the past month with sturdier ones), where you all gather for the assault after scouting the building from the outside; Magnus has called his warhorse for the attack, while Plato has changed shape into a raven and scouted the upper floor windows before settling onto a windowsill.
Magnus instructs his warhorse, Thunder, to kick the doors in; the white Celestial stallion, flecked with silver and gold, obliges – and sends the doors crashing into the ground floor room…Saint Magnus strides in, soon after, stepping calmly into the center of the room. It appears that walls have been built to the left and right sides of the room – the ones that have arrow slits in them…
The paladin is met at the broken doorway by a thick fusillade of arrows fired from the arrowslits on the left and right sides of the smallish room that used to be a tavern…all six arrows deflect harmlessly off of the heavily armored holy warrior, as he kneels, activates his Holy Shield, and instructs his mount to stand guard over the entrance to the inn.
Timmy, who had cast Fly on himself as a contingency, flies up to keep watch on the upper floor windows; he notices that the window just left and above the front door has a small, triangular hole cut out of it… Bruce sprints to the back of the room and flattens himself against the wall, next to the door there; Sapper follows Bruce, but he prefers to exit the room instead of lingering in the crossfire of arrows… He opens the far door when he gets to it; on the other side is a row of heavy crossbows, mounted to tripods, that all fire as he opens the door! Sapper is hit twice, Bruce is hit once and Magnus barely avoids a hit, as behind them, Grue and Deeta are moving into the room also, taking up positions along the side walls as arrows continue to ricochet off of and around all of you!
Magnus rises to his feet and strides out of the room and past the crossbows, towards one of two sets of curtains that cover the exits to this room; Bruce follows and takes up a safe position in the far left corner of the room, just beyond one of the curtains…
Outside, Plato sees the party bust into the inn and decides to use the diversion to his advantage; he flies up to the top of one of the two softly smoking chimneys and descends… Rather than allow himself to be immolated in the ground-floor fireplace, he lands in the second floor fireplace, which is cold and unlit; stepping out, he sees nothing but a bare, dusty room, dimly lit by what little light filters past the opaque windows along the seams. He takes flight again, landing across the room at the door, which is closed; he listens…
Timmy, seeing that everyone else has stormed the Brass Trumpet, flies in and through the first room, landing just inside the second room and casting Mirror Image; he remembers, as the six images of himself appear, flicker, then vanish, that Magnus naturally suppresses magic around him…he will have to keep that in mind later on.
Sapper moves into the room and goes to the opposite side of the curtain facing Bruce; using his scythe, he pulls the curtain toward him, exposing the next room beyond – which results in a second shower of arrows! There are only four that are fired, but one of them just barely catches Bruce in the leg. Grue moves into the opening to confront the bowmen, but he sees nothing in the room; however, the rest of the party sees a falchion emerge from behind the opening to Grue’s left – he is sneak attacked by someone just behind! Deeta moves into the crossbow room and begins to sing a Song of Courage, to inspire the beset group, as Magnus leaves the curtain he was at to assist; he strides up next to Grue; but the paladin finds a second thief waiting behind this side of the opening too! Fortunately, he hadn’t yet drawn a blade after dropping his short bow, so Magnus swings – and misses, sending sparks and a blast of stone chips flying in all directions from just above the rogue’s head!
Having flown into the room behind Magnus, Timmy lands and moves behind the opening to the next room and spots the one Last Laugh thug who tried to strike at Bruce – he points his Orb of Force wand and activates it, but he misses the thug and blasts a ball-sized chunk of stone out of the wall, raining sand throughout the room!
The element of surprise is now used up by these thugs and the party begins to bring their full force onto them; Bruce punches out his nearest opponent, who had avoided the wizard’s wand to meet a brutal end at the monks hands – literally; Sapper slices the other thug on the opposite side of the opening to the room, then finishes him off by cleanly decapitating him… As Deeta moves just into the room, continuing her unique, Kobold-song, Grue charges into the room and attacks another thug hiding under the stairs, as Magnus takes up an anchoring position in the center of the room. Grue’s opponent trades cuts with him, but he is lucky to avoid the pair of arrows that are fired from the top of the stairwell and embed themselves into the floor, inches from his toes! Timmy takes the offensive, flying past the rest of the party and up the stairs until he encounters the thugs responsible for the bow fire at Grue – he casts Scorching Ray at both of them, killing one immediately and sending the other one backing up the stairs, on fire and flailing…
Plato, who had been listening at the door as a raven, hears chaos approaching from a distance – the fight is coming… He decides to create a second front – he begins to change into a Grey Render…
Bruce, seeing Timmy fly upstairs, runs after him to back him up – he attacks the first thug that greets him at the top of the stairs, but he gets poor footing at the top step and misses badly; but, out of the pure luck and his good fortune of being a monk, he still manages to avoid, deflect, or catch the second fusillade of arrows that are launched at him by the squad of thugs that have been waiting for the party’s arrival!
Downstairs, Sapper clears the rest of the lower floor by searching the curtained rooms that branch off of the main room – the three rooms have a metal grid laid out on the floor, that support crudely mounted short sword blades as some kind of trap…
Grue is engaged with a thug under the stairs, hitting him with two attacks out of four, but he finds a second one there also! Deeta moves up to engage him, but she misses her first swing, as Magnus moves to the stairwell and waits to move up after Timmy and Bruce clear the way The wizard obliges by flying straight upwards, casting Magic Missile at one of the thugs engaged with Bruce – he falls.
On the other side of the room, a door opens and a long, Ogre-sized arm reaches out, horrifying the thugs and catching one of them off guard – he pays the price, as the Grey Render drags him through the door, screaming, then demoralizes his comrades with a cacophony of blood-curdling screams, followed by a spray of blood, gore and discarded body parts...
Bruce notices that the thug he stepped over to reach his target is still alive – he can’t finish him off yet, but he does manage to drop another opponent in front of him; downstairs, Grue finishes off his opponent by filleting him, as Deeta shrugs at the loss of a target and nonchalantly moves up the stairs, behind the paladin. She is caught by surprise at the number of thugs up here, however – a random arrow fired at the stairwell grazes her on the side of the head as it barely clears the upstairs floor!
Magnus emerges into the upstairs room now, calmly issuing an ultimatum to surrender to the armed crowd…the thugs’ defiant resistance results in his swinging on the nearest man, killing him in a single blow.
Suddenly, Bruce is hit by a small object that he instantly recognizes once he removes it from his neck…a shuriken! As he starts to feel his strength ebb, he realizes that he’s been poisoned! Despite that, he still manages to drop two thugs with his fists, as the party assaults the upstairs room in force now; Deeta moves near Bruce and clobbers the one lying under the monk’s legs in the head, as Plato reaches through the door and begins to maul a second unfortunate thug. Timmy has become a hovering artillery piece – from the ceiling rafters, he blasts thugs with his Orb of Force wand…
Timmy: “One!”
*Blam!* “Aiiii!-* *thud*
Timmy: “Two!”
*Blam!* “Aiiii!-* *thud*
Timmy: “Three!”
*Blam!* “Aiiii!-* *thud*
Bruce is still pummeling Last Laugh thugs, as is Deeta, while Magnus and Plato more efficiently kill a thug each; downstairs, Sapper is completing his sweep of the lower floor, having found four different rooms that contain these odd metal racks of blades with no apparent purpose… He moves to the stairs to rejoin the party as it begins to mop up the rest of the thugs. As Bruce and Deeta finish off their opponents, Plato hears something whistle past his wide head…but he can’t tell what happened – only that one of the doors in the room beyond is slightly ajar…he begins to squeeze his massive bulk through the doorway, so he can rejoin the party.
Magnus sees that two of the four doors that adjoin this room are cracked open – he picks one of them and opens it; beyond is nothing more than an empty room, with dust on the floor and nothing but darkness other than what light the paladin lets into the room through the doorway (or emits himself). As Timmy lands and begins to search the fireplace in the corner for possible hiding thugs, Bruce moves to the other cracked door and pushes it open, also; he finds no more than Magnus did. Grue fills in for the absent Shonuf - he begins to search the fallen thugs, while Deeta starts briefing Plato on what the party found downstairs; Magnus cautiously enters the room he is searching, as Timmy takes up a supporting position behind him.
Bruce gets out an Everburning Torch and tosses it into the room he is searching, as Sapper checks the other doors leading from this room, Grue checks bodies and Deeta continues to brief Plato; Magnus spots movement in his room – the darkened window shatters, broken by a rogue that clings to the wall next to it! The paladin rushes at the thug, but the floor collapses underneath him, sending him falling onto the rack of blades in the room underneath!
Timmy, who had been standing just behind the paladin, casts his empowered, maximized Orb of Force at the thug – and reduces the hapless rogue to a red smear on the blasted wall behind him!
The thrown torch in the adjacent room reveals a second rogue to Bruce – but between the collapsed floor that Magnus found and Sapper’s screamed warnings that ALL of the rooms are similarly trapped, he knows better than to rush this foe; he takes a flying leap to kick this thug – but forgets that his opponent is also trained in the martial arts… The thug lets go with one hand and foot, pivoting on the wall, like a window shutter flapping in the breeze, leaving Bruce to harmlessly impact the wall next to him; when the monk falls to the floor after kicking the wall, the floor collapses underneath him, also – sending him crashing onto the blades below!
As Magnus extricates himself from several blades and a tangle of broken planks, Timmy flies out the window to pursue the final Last Laugh rogue, who Sapper sees slip out the window after the monk fell; as he emerges from the second floor window, he barely avoids a shuriken that embeds itself in the wall next to his head! He sees the rogue climbing onto the roof of the Brass Trumpet Inn and blasts him with his Orb of Force Wand, sending the assassin sprawling across the roof; the staggering rogue takes a wild leap from the far side of the roof, but he cannot escape the flying wizard, who flies over the top of the building in time to see him regain his feet in the street below…
Timmy blasts the assassin with his wand a second time, as people in the street pause and begin to cower in the presence of the powerful magics that are being released; the Last Laugh thug gets thrown down with the second Orb, as peasants flee in all directions.
The mage is cautious…he blasts the still rogue with a third Orb of Force, as good measure, eliciting a final shriek and spasm from the Last Laugh thug and a gasp of horror from bystanders.
Magnus meets his warhorse at the broken front doors of the building, to assess the situation on the street; inside, Sapper notices that the street side of the second floor is unreachable by any hallway or door on the second floor…this is unusual.
The assault on the Brass Trumpet Inn has taken a total of ninety seconds.
M
10/19/05: Mopping up after the assault of the Last Laugh safe house...
“Gang Bang at The Brass Trumpet”
(or, " Magnus is Flaming”)
After finishing off the last of the Last Laugh thugs, the party is trying to figure out how to reach the two second floor windows that appear to be unreachable from anywhere within the building…
Magnus, after getting out of the blade trap on the ground floor, meets Grue, who is keeping watch at the front doors of the inn; they see someone break through the growing crowd of serfs on the street, running hard for them – Lewen! He brings news from Meerthan Eliothlorn – he has telepathically heard from Skiriol that he is being held on the second floor of the inn, behind a secret door, and that his captor knows the inn is under attack! Time is short!
After some hasty deliberations (the crowd gathering in the streets and alleys surrounding the Brass Trumpet is beginning to grow thick, and nearby mercenary City guardsmen are scrambling to call for help), Timmy flies up to the left window (the one with the peep hole) to do some scouting; he sees someone on the other side – a second later, an arrow flies out of the hole, missing Timmy’s head by inches after glancing off of the edge of the glass!
Timmy returns the favor by activating his Orb of force wand through the same hole, in the other direction – he is thanked by a horrid shriek that accompanies the muted blast on the other side of the window, which is then followed by a heavy thud…
Inside the inn, Magnus, Grue and Lewen wait at the front door for Timmy’s report; the rest of the party is searching the walls that face toward the front of the inn for any secret doors – where is Shonuf, when you need him… Sapper decides to resort to brute force – he begins to take his scythe to the stone wall! Plato decides on a more efficient use of brute force – he shape changes into a Chimera; squeezing through the narrow doorway into the room where he first entered, the Plato/Chimera takes flight, hovering over the floor that Sapper warned was trapped…he then proceeds to bite at the stone wall with two of its three heads – with the third head (the Ram) butting the stone with its horns! Bruce moves into the room next to Plato and joins him in punching and kicking at the stones with his bare hands and feet!
Hovering in front of the inn, in full view of the agitated crowd on the street, Timmy kicks in the window he is at – but decides against entering alone…he instead lands in the main doorway below, to confer with the rest of the party; after calling them over for a briefing that lasts mere seconds, Timmy casts Dimension Door, transporting Magnus, Lewen, grue and himself directly into the room above!
The moment they arrive, they notice that the dimly lit room is subdivided by thick, red curtains into a miniature maze…small bells sewn onto the tops of the curtains make it impossible to move about without ringing them! In the rafters above the curtains, the four of you spot movement in the long shadows – a spell is being cast! Timmy sees a Halfling pointing a wand at him – but the spell fails, due to Magnus being near!
Curses!
Before anyone can react, the frustrated Halfling pulls his cape around him, speaks a command word, and promptly disappears! Timmy scans the room to detect his magical aura, but he discerns that the rogue apparently cast Dimension Door – he can’t be far; Grue and Lewen, spreading out to search the room, both locate hatches that lead into the arrow-slit rooms on the first floor, but they are both unoccupied. Magnus keeps watch over the three others, as they thoroughly search the room for anyone hiding amongst the curtains or in the rafters above.
On the other side of the upper floor, Sapper picks away at the stone wall, while in the next room, Plato and Bruce claw at a different one; they have been chipping away at the stones for almost a full minute now…
Sapper begins to break through!
The Occult Slayer has weakened a seam along a secret door and partially smashed in the stone portal; after widening the breach, he grabs one of the two torches that light this room and carries it back to the opening he created…
After flying amongst the rafters in the second floor front room, Timmy breaks and flies out the left window, eliciting a gasp from the crowded street below – he flies up to the roof and begins to scout above and around the Brass Trumpet for the blonde Halfling; inside the room, Lewen has been searching the back wall for a secret door or mechanism to open one – not finding any, he begins to hack at the stone after hearing the rest of the party doing the same on the other side of the wall. When Timmy flies back into the room and sees this, he aims his wand again…
With far too little warning to be safe, Timmy calls out for Lewen to back up, and then activates his Orb of force wand at the wall directly in front of the surprised Bladesinger – he is immediately showered with sand and chips of stone, as Timmy blasts away at the wall! Lewen staggers back, as Timmy blasts the wall a second time, then a third…
*BOOM!*
*BOOM!*
The first blast immediately gets the attention of Sapper, who, after carefully searching the small passage on the other side of the wall, has begun to pick at the far side to reach the others; he stops, after seeing the stone wall quiver at the first blast, and then takes a step back at the second…
*BOOM!*
The third blast breaches the wall, sending dust and gravel spraying into the passage where a shocked Sapper stands in utter surprise; he looks like a ghost, once the dust settles…
Finally, the front and back rooms of the Brass Trumpet are joined – but there is still an unreachable area on the floor…an area being bitten and clawed at by a Chimera and a Monk in one of the back rooms.
As the rejoined party files through the short hallway and briefs each other on what they’ve found, the Plato/Chimera finally begins to break through the wall that he and Bruce have been working at for the past two minutes with tooth and nail; beyond, they see a fifteen foot square room, lit by a flickering magical light source somewhere above in the rafters, with neither door nor window; it contains nothing but a wooden ‘X’ constructed out of two beams…it has a male half-Elf manacled to it – Skiriol! He lies face down on the rack, his back striped with crimson lacerations… Standing next to him is a young woman in black garb, holding a dripping blade at Skiriol’s throat with one hand and gripping the handle of a silvery whip in the other; half of her face is painted black, the other half painted white. Her stance suggests catlike readiness…
The sight of a Chimera ramming and clawing its way through the very stone wall (as opposed to using the secret door on the opposite wall) initially elicits wide-eyed shock from the human woman…but when Bruce presents himself through the widening hole, she recovers her composure – as the monk pulls enough stones out of the wall to make a passable opening, she coldly slits Skiriol’s throat and lithely steps back into the corner of the room, smiling –
“He’s yours… I’m all through with him.”
Bruce moves with more urgency than the woman anticipates – making a head-first dive through the window-sized opening, he smoothly rolls across the floor, coming to stand in front of the Last Laugh thug; catching her almost flatfooted, he hits her and drags her into a grapple!
Plato, unable to fly through such a narrow opening in the wall to attack, decides to take the risk of landing on the floor to squeeze through the hole – he pays the price, as the floor promptly collapses underneath him and sends him onto the rack of blades below!
The woman tries to slash at Bruce with her short sword, but the monk deftly avoids her close-in attacks – he makes a few quick moves and soon has her pinned, as Sapper calls out to the rest of the party from where he is at the doorway to the outside room; the party bolts for the room that adjoins the secret chamber, with Deeta picking up the party with a snappy tune, for bravery. The only one who doesn’t rush for the opening is Timmy, who is still carefully scanning the top floor using Detect Magic, in search of the blonde Halfling rogue who is still missing…
Plato gets up to rejoin the group; he begins to hover upwards, but he finds the remnants of the second floor crowded with his comrades, who are lined up trying to climb through the opening in the stone wall without getting tangled up in the grapple taking place just beyond…
The female Last Laugh operative is trying to break free from Bruce’s pinning hold, but she cannot; the monk hits her with his elbow, in punishment for her struggle. Sapper uses the opportunity to slash the woman with his scythe, once he is inside the room and clear of the opening in the wall, while Lewen climbs through and slashes her a second time with his sword. Deeta sings, as she backs out of the room with the collapsed floor, knowing that the hovering chimera seeks somewhere to land; Grue and Magnus wait, just behind her.
For a moment, the now desperate woman breaks the monk’s hold on her – but Sapper slashes her twice for trying to escape, distracting her just long enough for Bruce to attack again and regain his hold on her as she weakens from pain. A second stab by Lewen finishes her off…she goes limp in the arms of the monk. for a moment, there is victory…but the gnawing guilt of murder soon begins to haunt the bladesinger, and then the monk and the occult slayer, as well…
There will be time for contemplation of this, later…
It is time to leave – the crowd on the street is closing in on the building and more City mercenary guards are arriving; Magnus, upon finding the freshly killed Skiriol, unbinds him from the rack and heaves his body over his shoulder while Sapper picks up the Last Laugh woman. While the paladin gently places the body of the half-Elf over the back of his mount, the occult slayer brusquely stuffs the human woman into a bag of holding, lest some Last Laugh operatives or loyalists see you all carting her body away and go warn someone.
Arriving back at the stable you currently are using as a base, you are met by Meerthan and Fario; while disappointed at the loss of Skiriol, they have the means to raise him from the dead, so they are willing to ‘split the costs’ of the expense with you…they pay you 1,250 gp and are grateful to you for bringing his body back to them, despite the loss.
That evening, Magnus activates his fast heal aura for the party before you all bed down for the night; by morning, you are all healed to full strength. Bruce is still in need of rest, due to the dose of poison that he was exposed to, but the priests of St. Cuthbert cast Resoration on him, to restore his strength; the spellcasters spend the day casting Identify on the magic items that you recovered from the thugs at the Brass Trumpet, while the rest of you count out the curious ‘jester coins’ that they carried.
The priests of St. Cuthbert cast Raise Dead on Skiriol, letting him rest for the afternoon; the half-Elf’s comrades, however, get a bounty information from him, gradually, throughout the rest of the day.
Skiriol had a lot to tell you:
- House Rhiavadi is an impervious structure with four squat towers; one of them is capped with an observatory. A set of heavy oak doors on the ground floor provides the only obvious entrance, although the building has many windows on the first and second floors.
- Members of the City Guard, including half-Orc and Goblinoid mercenaries hired by Lord Vhalantru, have been seen entering and leaving the manor at al hours of the day and night; some of the troops head straight for House Vhalantru after leaving House Rhiavadi, and vice versa. Sometimes they stay for hours before leaving.
- Lady Thifirane Rhiavadi hasn’t been seen entering or leaving her house in weeks, although members of her household staff come and go during the day; she has a dozen or more servants, all Halflings.
- Lady Rhiavadi has several shady guests staying with her at the moment.
- A comely, yet pale, half-Elf clad in scant, tight-fitting black garments arrived at House Rhiavadi last night by coach; She wore a cloak of black shadow that fluttered about her, despite the night air being still. Her coach had blackened windows and sped off into the night after dropping off the woman; she moved with grace up the steps, whereupon a smiling Halfling in a black suit ushered her inside.
- A band of well-armed humans – mercenaries or adventurers – arrived at House Rhiavadi two days ago; one of them carried a black mace, capped with an iron skull, as well as a heavy shield with the symbol of Nerull emblazoned on it.
- Lady Rhiavadi’s other guests include a contingent of five well-armed Dwarves who arrived three days ago; one of them was a white-haired, white-bearded Dwarf wearing a black leather half-mask that covered his right eye and had a black gem set into the socket.
Timmy spends the next morning casting Scry, to seek out the Halfling who escaped the assault on the Brass Trumpet; the wizard succeeds – he observes a meeting of Last Laugh thugs at another safe location, where the blond haired Halfling seems to be discussing something important with several peers. While none of the conversation can be heard, at least the party knows that he is still somewhere in Rauxes.
Sapper spends his day gathering information on House Rhiavadi, as does Deeta; they can confirm much of what Skiriol has told them, but little more, other than the general description of the manor and the surrounding blocks of the High District.
Into the afternoon, you build a strategy for assaulting House Rhiavadi that night…
M
Thank you, readers, for still following the story; it's been a while, so it is now time for an update on who's who...
At this point, the adventuring group currently consists of:
- Magnus (Human Saint Paladin7, LG): Protector of the weak and pious servant of Heironeus
- Bruce (Human Monk10, LG): An associate of Magnus who serves Heironeus
- Lewen (Elf Fighter4/Wizard3/Bladesinger2, NG): An associate of Magnus
- Timmy (Human Wizard10, NG): An associate of Magnus
- Grue (Human Fighter10, CG): Originally a partner of Renard, who now fights for the cause of Good
- Shonuf (Human Rogue9, CG): Originally a partner of Renard, who now fights for the cause of Good (and profit)
- Deeta (Kobold Bard7/Dragonsong Lyrist3, CG): Traveller/adventurer hired by the Good churches of Rauxes to assist Magnus
- Plato (Human Shapeshifter 10, CG): Professional adventurer/traveler and partner of Deeta
Currently away form the party, due to obligations:
- Triavis (Human Favored Soul9, LG):
Renard was killed during the expedition into Karran-Kural; he was replaced by:
- Sapper (Human Fighter5/Occult Slayer5, NG): A professional Wizard hunter associated with the Striders of Farlanghn
Joining the party for their assault on House Rhiavadi (the guest player from last year's Evil party returns):
- Falorn (Dwarf Cleric 11, LG): A travelling priest asked to serve by his 'desperate' hosts, the priests of St. Cuthbert in Rauxes
M
10/26/05: The big assault begins!
“The Super-Trojans Attack!”
(or, “But, a Fireball isn’t 2,000 feet wide”, or, "That’s not leaving – you’re still gonna die”)
The party continues its planning for the assault on House Rhiavadi…
Bruce scouts the manor from the same location that Skiriol did…before realizing that the fellow adventurer had been captured, tortured and killed after being caught there…
…He quickly leaves.
The rest of the party deliberates over the best mode of entry, equips themselves and prepares for the coming battle; you all share intelligence and readiness over that evening’s meal that has been prepared by local commoners who are part of the flock of St. Cuthbert. At this dinner meeting, you all are introduced to Falorn, a dwarven priest who had been traveling through the area and had been called upon in this time of need by the church of St. Cuthbert; after meeting Magnus and Nidrama, he was all too happy to assist the Light – and as a dwarf, he was getting bored after traveling from the West and was looking for a good fight to get him back into adventuring form.
Over dinner, Bruce shares knowledge that he observed three humans departing House Rhiavadi that afternoon, as well as two more dwarves about an hour later, just before he left; Deeta and Shonuf reveal that they had made inquiries about the house staff – at least half a dozen halflings who are known to be punctual with payments but notoriously dour and humorless for those of their kind.
With the setting of the sun and the coming rise of the twin moons, the party sets out for House Rhiavadi; Magnus calls upon his Celestial warhorse, Thunder, for the assault. Travel across the City goes quietly, as you pass patrol after patrol of City guards – human, half-Orc, hobgoblin and bugbear soldiers by the scores eye you as you pass into the High District, but none of them provoke Magnus or the party. Magnus is more stirred by the echoing cries of those suffering out in the dark alleys and streets far across the blocks of ancient buildings, but he is focused on the task at hand…
Following your pre-planned strategy for the assault, the spellcasters of the party begin to cast preparatory spells on the party and themselves; Timmy and Falorn cast multiple spells, while Deeta and Lewen cast a couple each, also. As you all gather on the doorstep of House Rhiavadi, the last spells are cast and you all nod to each other… Magnus will have his horse, Thunder, kick the front door in, and then you will all bull rush the house, hoping to catch them by surprise.
Magnus relays the instructions to Thunder…the Celestial warhorse nods in agreement…
…With Magnus striking a heroic pose, Thunder rears up and strikes the stout, oak double-doors with his front hooves…
*Ka-DUNK!*
Thunder fails to break down the door.
Sitting on his mount at an angle, Magnus then recovers and pulls Thunder back (as if they had planned that). As the party looks at each other, searching for a ‘Plan B’, the overwrought knock elicits a response from the household staff, who answers the door - as they should…
However, the door is opened not by a well dressed Halfling but by a well armed half-Orc!
The guard’s jaw drops at the sight of the force he faces:
A Saint, atop a Celestial warhorse…Five humans of varied classes - all armed to the teeth…an Elven bladesinger…a Dwarven priest…a Gray Render…and a Kobold!
The Dwarf speaks, on behalf of the group:
“You can leave, if you like; now’s your chance.”
The half-Orc, already shaken and still staring at Magnus, drops his double-headed Orcish waraxe…as it clangs to the marble floor, he steps politely to the left, past Falorn, and down the steps; as soon as he hits clear ground, he runs.
The loud noise from the dropped waraxe rouses the other three half-Orc guards in the room – they grab their axes and jump towards the door; just then Magnus rides in on top of Thunder, stopping their charge cold.
Magnus: “We have no argument with you; you can leave, just like your friend, or die here.”
The three guards look at each other, whisper amongst themselves for a moment, and then flee up the nearest spiral staircase to your left…
Magnus: "That’s not leaving – you’re still gonna die.”
Dismissing the three half-Orcs for the moment, the party begins a room to room downstairs search of House Rhiavadi, for the room where the meeting of Evil leaders is taking place; after assaulting the coat closet, a drawing room, the privy, the kitchen and the dining room, the party completes a circuit of the ground floor, generally gets in the way of the mostly silent and indifferent house staff, and finds no meeting place of Evil…
Having lost the element of surprise and given the guards who fled ample time to warn anyone on the upstairs floors of their presence, the party now steels itself for what will be a much worse assault of the second floor. They decide to split and assault the upper floor on two fronts – Timmy, Lewen, Plato and Deeta will climb the staircase in the dining room, while Magnus (and Thunder), Falorn, Shonuf, Bruce and Grue will follow the half-Orcs up the stairs they fled up. Timmy casts Summon Celestial Ally and calls forth a Hound Archon to take the lead on his side…
With the two teams meeting in the foyer, they relay news of what each team finds at the top of the stairs – it appears that both teams enter the respective foyer of the second floor rooms of each tower that they have entered; aside from a single small door to the left and right, a set of double doors exits straight ahead. As the teams separate up each stairwell, they agree to go through the double doors, presumably to meet on the second floor.
As they open the double doors and proceed through, Timmy’s team enters an adjoining room that appears to be a parlor – two other sets of double doors exit the far side of the room; however, Magnus opens the doors to find a meeting going on, in the ballroom!
To his dismay, but not his surprise, they are ready and waiting for them…
Immediately as the door opens, spells are cast – it is entirely the good fortune and blind luck of the party that the presence of Magnus prevents several spells from taking effect within the foyer room where he, Falorn, Shonuf, Bruce and Grue are grouped! Unfortunately for you, several spells still affect some of you:
- A crackling black ray, cast by a half-Elf in black robes, strikes Magnus – he cries out in pain and weakness as his Saintly aura is momentarily snuffed; it returns as the ray ends, but it is slightly dimmed;
- A half-Fiend/ Elf wearing the holy symbol of Erythnul casts a spell – a pulse of Evil energy then detonates in the foyer; Magnus and Falorn suffer the brunt of the damage;
- A large automaton of stone, iron and wood activates a spell effect – it becomes wreathed in bluish flames;
- The Human priest of Nerull that you knew of casts a spell – the affect isn’t apparent to anyone;
- A Human woman in an elaborate, expensive looking gown makes a command to the automaton in front of her – a transparent globe then forms around her, but fades form view; she then casts a spell and an invisible barrier suddenly mutes all sound into the foyer that contains Magnus’ team. As the paladin advances, Thunder bumps into it – it is impassible!
The sudden roar of spells being cast perks up the ears of the Hound Archon in the foyer on the opposite side of the second floor; he swings the double doors open – and is immediately slashed by the half-Orc who was waiting on the other side! A second later, a fireball detonates in the parlor, singing everyone in that team (except Deeta, who was still in the stairwell) !
Lewen casts Mirror Image, creating four of himself, while Timmy flies to his right to get a clear view and then casts an enlarged, maximized fireball back into the ballroom!
In the aftermath of such a fierce blast, two out of three half-Orc guards lie cooked on the floor, the third is barely on his feet, and the half-Elf who hit Magnus with the ray lies smoking in the front of the room; in addition, a previously unseen fourth body appears, landing with a dead thump on the floor, next to the corpse of the half-Elf!
In the other foyer across the ballroom, Shonuf moves to hide along the walls of the foyer, Bruce waits in the stairwell for any other spells that might blast the room he is about to enter above the stairs – Grue waits behind him… Magnus moves Thunder slightly to the left, so he can assess all of the opponents in the room, while activating his fast healing; Falorn casts Divine Power, as the paladin decides that to rejoin the battle, they must go down and across the ground floor to use the other stairwell…
The Hound Archon, Timmy, Lewen, Plato and Deeta must hold them off, for now…
*To Be Continued*
M
11/2/05: The second session of their toughest fight yet...
“Double-Teamed/Party Crashers, Ep.II”
(or, “She’s Got It Up, But…”)
As Magnus, Bruce, Shonuf, Grue and Falorn turn and begin the urgent trek to the other side of House Rhiavadi, Deeta advances onto the second floor behind her team and gets out her crossbow…Sapper moves up behind her…
In the doorway to the ballroom, the Hound Archon valiantly holds his ground as he is charged by the half-Fiend! The Archon weathers a brutal hit, and then takes two more at the hands of the automaton that reaches from behind the half-Fiend!
Timmy, hovering above Plato behind the Archon, helps out by casting Orb of Force, which blasts the half-Fiend; the clobbered Archon can only hold his ground, as his attack misses. On the other side of the doorway, Lewen casts Magic Missile at the half-Fiend, but the spell fails to penetrate its resistance; Plato, attacking from behind the Archon, merely serves to harass, as all three of his attacks miss.
Leaning into the doorway, next to the half-Fiend, the Human wizard in the elaborate gown opens her mouth…you can see a third eye open up on her forehead as she gapes wide – and a deafening shout issues from her!
The Archon, Timmy, Plato, Lewen, Deeta and Sapper are all struck deaf and damaged by the buffeting noise, which kills the Archon who, unfortunately, happened to be directly in front of her! The wizard’s spell allows the half-Fiend time to retreat and cast a spell on itself, but Sapper quickly steps into the doorway to take down this spellcaster, hitting her with his scythe on his first swing!
But seconds after Sapper’s attack, a form appears, holding a greatsword and pointing one hand through the doorway at the group…an Ogre! To make matters far worse for Sapper, the Ogre then casts a Cone of Cold into the room – Sapper, Timmy, Plato, and Deeta all take heavy cold damage, and Lewen falls! Deeta, being in the back of the group in the rear doorway, slips to the side and out of sight, where she gets out a healing potion and drinks it…
Rushing downstairs and across the ground floor, Bruce has turned for the third staircase in the kitchen in the hopes of flanking your opponents as Grue and Shonuf head for the other team’s staircase; Magnus follows the monk toward the kitchen as Falorn tries to keep up after him and his warhorse…
In the doorway to the ballroom, the Ogre is now holding its ground against Sapper and his team, as the three-eyed woman activates a wand of Magic Missiles at Sapper – but the arcane hunter turns the spell back at her!
She scowls at him, as the missiles dissipate against her own warding magic…
Plato, now fighting from behind Sapper, now harasses the Ogre from around the human, missing with his three attacks as Sapper hits once out of two tries; the Ogre misses twice on both of its two attacks.
Bruce bounds through the kitchen, oblivious to the Halflings there, and leaps up the spiral stairs and into the foyer above; he goes up to the double doors to the ballroom and puts an ear to them, as he waits for the others on his team to catch up. Shonuf draws his weapon as he climbs up the stairs behind Deeta, who has cautiously ventured back to the doorway to assess the situation – she sees the fallen Lewen and moves to him, casting Cure Serious Wounds to revive him; he then crawls over to the corner of the crowded foyer and gets out his own vial to drink. Timmy, still hovering over Plato, does his best to cast a spell while deaf…he tries to cast Flesh to Ice on the Ogre mage, but he mis-casts the spell – it fails! Crushed, he flies out of sight of the doorway and into the corner of the room to regroup…
The three-eyed wizard steps back from the foyer doorway to avoid sapper’s scythe, casting a spell - the entire foyer, all the way back past Deeta, then erupts in a mass of thick, black tentacles that grapple Sapper, Plato Shonuf, Deeta, Lewen…and even Timmy! Plato, as a Grey Render, easily pulls free of the tentacles, but he still cannot hit the Ogre from behind Sapper, even after nine tries; as the arcane hunter unsuccessfully tries to free himself from the tentacles, the half-Fiend retreats from the doorway, casting spells on himself, as does the black-armored human behind him… the Ogre hits Sapper once out of two attacks with his greatsword!
Shonuf, Lewen and Deeta are still fighting the tentacles, but Grue arrives, fighting his way through the morass…he reaches Timmy and helps him to free himself from the tentacles! The grateful wizard makes a fateful decision, and casts Dimension Door, grabbing onto the surprised warrior… they disappear!
In the third foyer that enters the ballroom, Bruce hails the arrival of Magnus, who has threaded his trusty steed, Thunder, up the spiral staircase with the Dwarf, Falorn, following behind - at a discreet distance; the paladin opens the door, revealing the automaton, which fills the doorway! But, even catching the stone guardian flat-footed, Magnus fails to hit it – although his horse does manage to hit it once out of three attacks. Falorn, seeing his chance to attack, casts Flame Strike into the ballroom, enveloping the Ogre and hitting the Guardian – as well as inadvertently hitting the grappled Sapper, who is just beyond the Ogre on the other side…all three take significant damage!
Suddenly, in the back corner of the ballroom, Timmy and Grue appear!
Unfortunately, their appearance is noticed, if not heard; the three-eyed wizard, who had just weathered an attack from Magnus to retreat to this side of the room, happened to be facing their direction when they appeared – she immediately casts a spell, throwing a green ray at Grue, which hits him and immediately disintegrates a small portion of the fighter’s armor and flesh, leaving him howling in pain!
To add to the fighter’s torture, the half-Fiend who had retreated to that side of the room casts a spell also, paralyzing Grue where he stands and leaving Timmy without a bodyguard!
Back in the parlor, the black tentacles are beginning to squeeze Deeta, Shonuf, Sapper and Lewen to death, while still continuing to harass Plato; the Plato/Grey Render, despite the distraction, still attacks the Ogre from behind the struggling Sapper – he manages to score his first hit, after twelve tries! The Ogre, not yet acknowledging Plato as a challenge, continues to attack Sapper, hitting once out of two tries.
Shonuf and Lewen fight the tentacles, but are losing; Deeta successfully casts Dispel Magic against them, but the spell fails to defeat the strong magic… Plato begins to succumb to the tentacles, also, as he finally loses to them and becomes grappled…
In the second foyer doorway, the guardian automaton attacks Magnus and Thunder, missing both, as the paladin and his mount both return damaging blows on it; Bruce tries to tumble past the automaton and into the room, but the construct blocks him unexpectedly well, sending him bouncing back.
Behind the guardian automaton, Timmy is left alone against at least three foes – two of them spellcasters… Recognizing the main threat of the female wizard, he flies up near the ceiling and casts Orb of Force at her; the deaf mage succeeds in his casting, but he misses her and blasts the intricate mosaic tile flooring! In return, the woman opens her third eye widely and hits Timmy with a ray that burns at him without actually damaging his flesh, while simultaneously casting a spell that cancels his ability to fly and leaves the Dwarf gently floating to the ground!
Nearby, the half-Fiend Erythnul worshipper turns and swings his morning star at the beleaguered Dwarf, but fails to hit the lucky wizard! However, the danger hasn’t lessened – Timmy notices a shadowy form emerging…from the wall above him! He narrowly avoids a sneak attack from the black-masked Dwarf that had been seen entering House Rhiavadi that morning! The wily dwarf snarls and manages to hit Timmy with a second attack with his waraxe…
Behind Magnus, Falorn sees an open spot in the ballroom, behind the guardian automaton – he summons a Celestial Brown Bear to fight for him! The bear immediately crushes the round table and its delicate stack of glassware goes crashing to the floor, as it attacks the Ogre and the automaton but misses; the Ogre meets the bear’s attack with a brutal pair of slashes from its greatsword, as the guardian keeps its focus on attacking Magnus and Thunder, hitting each for minor damage (after barely penetrating the damage reduction for each).
The battle is raging on three fronts now…but the tide has been slowly slipping in favor of the villainous Lady Rhiavadi and her criminal band…
Team one – Sapper, Plato, Deeta, Lewen and Shonuf, are mired in a room of black tentacles and fighting just to stay engaged with the Ogre who holds the doorway against them…
Team two – Magnus, Falorn and Bruce, are being held at the door by the automaton even as they wear it down steadily with their attacks…
Team three – Timmy, Grue and the summoned Celestial Bear – have been shattered…Grue has been held by the half-Fiend’s magic and the last half-Orc guard moves in for the kill, as the grounded Timmy faces at least two opponents and the black-clad priest of Nerull finishes off the Celestial Bear with a cruel blow to the head with his morning star.
Out of pain and sheer will, Grue shakes of his magical paralysis, seconds before the wounded and limping half-Orc arrives for the coup de gras’…he raises his swords against it!
There may be hope…
M
11/9/05: Round three...
“The Chain Gang/Party Crashers, Ep.III”
(or, “Straddle The Bear/I Like Hairy guys”)
Before the injured half-Orc can finish off a magically held Grue, the fighter unleashes a sudden fury of slashes on him –
The half-Orc mercenary falls, after receiving three quick cuts…he should’ve fled with the first guy…
Shonuf, Deeta and Lewen are still fighting the black tentacles – Shonuf is determined and angry… Deeta is frustrated and growing weaker… Lewen is injured – he can’t keep this up much longer…but Plato has broken free from the tentacles’ brief hold on him, while Sapper has gotten lucky and broken free, also.
Inside the ballroom, Magnus squeezes his warhorse, Thunder, out of the doorway and engages the Ogre Mage with his lance after activating his Divine shield for a second time – he impales the Ogre twice, killing him!
Timmy, his back against the wall, concentrates hard and casts a radical, desperate spell –
The wizard then polymorphs…into a ten-headed Hydra, pushing both Grue and his opponents back and filling half of the ballroom, all the way to the ceiling!
Unfortunately for Timmy, the three-eyed woman has something up her embroidered sleeve for him – she immediately summons a forcecage and imprisons the Timmy/Hydra! But Falorn has his own surprise, as well – he summons two more celestial Brown Bears, who both reach out and grapple the beleaguered wizard between them in a horrifying orgy of fur and claws! The bears tear away whatever protection she had left under her stoneskin spell, leaving her bleeding and without the aid of her automaton guardian.
The other villains jump to her aid – The half-Fiend summons a fiendish, monstrous spider that bites one of the bears… The black-clad priest of Nerull casts a greater command, but affects only one of the bears (and none of you), causing it to flee; the rogue Dwarf slashes it with his axe while it looks for an exit, while the guardian grapples the remaining bear who still holds the woman. Bruce runs up to the still-grappled wizard and punches her with a flurry of blows…this causes her great concern…
Across the room, Grue moves around the corner of the force cage and attacks the black priest – he hits him twice critically, one of them for triple damage! Grimacing, he casts a spell of slaying at the fighter, but he resists and shakes off the dark magic!
Magnus and Thunder join in on the gang-bang that is taking place between the Celestial Bear, the three-eyed wizardress, and her automaton guardian; between the two of them, they hit her five times! She’s had enough of this – she’s going to be killed within seconds…so she does the only thing she can…
Casting with only a couple of words, she disappears!
Falorn casts a third summoning spell and adds to his menagerie by summoning a pair of Lantern Archons to harass targets on the far side of the room, where he cannot reach due to the combat in the center of the ballroom; they fire rays of light down onto the half-Fiend, but he counters by summoning a spiritual weapon and slashing one of them out of existence.
While fighting to break free of the black tentacles, Plato has been waiting for a clear path out of the room; first, he was blocked by the Hound Archon – after it fell, Sapper took his place… Now that he has broken free of the tentacles for a second time, he isn’t waiting on anyone any longer – he charges into the ballroom, overrunning Sapper (who, having just broken free of the tentacles himself, is promptly pushed back down into them) and the Celestial Bear who was formerly grappling the female wizard; encountering the fiendish Giant Spider just inside the doorway, he attacks it, but misses. The automaton, having no master here to guard any further, attacks Plato, but it misses both him and Magnus.
Shonuf and Deeta continue to struggle against the black tentacles…Lewen has fallen to them and he lays there as his life is squeezed out of him, while Sapper, having just been pushed back into them, now succumbs to their attacks and ceases to struggle…
Bruce and Magnus are now focusing their attacks on the automaton, but it’s fire shielding is inflicting as much damage on them as their attacks are on the construct; Magnus dismounts and dismisses Thunder, before it becomes to injured, while Bruce hits the guardian one last time before retreating from the fire shield – but the paladin manages to finish off the guardian with his lance from the floor.
As the Lantern Archon harasses the half-Fiend, Grue continues to slash the black priest of Nerull, hitting three times even as he manages a single blow in return with his evil mace – but one that is poisoned; Falorn, pushing his way past Bruce (who falls to the floor to let him get by), runs up to the force cage and casts Cure Critical Wounds on the Timmy/Hydra, so the wizard can change shape back into himself without dying from his wounds. The Plato/Grey Render mauls the fiendish Giant Spider as it feebly tries to defend itself, as the half-Fiend behind it avoids the Lantern Archon’s light ray and casts Unholy Blight within the room, affecting everyone here, but not too severely.
Bruce, who had dropped to the floor to let Falorn pass, gets back up, retrieves a healing vial and drinks it, as Falorn casts a Mass Cure Light Wounds to restore everyone in the party and save Sapper’s life – but not Lewen, who is out of the spell’s range, as are Deeta and Shonuf…
Grue, who is feeling sickened from the black priest’s attack, slashes him fiercely, hitting him three times, once critically – he falls!
Magnus steps up to join Plato’s fight with the Giant Spider, but he misses; however, Plato finishes it off quickly. Timmy, now back to his human form, gets out his Orb of Force wand and activates it at the half-Fiend, blasting him the most severely so far! Enraged, the half-Fiend knows that Timmy’s forcecage is now a sanctuary rather than a prison, so it bull-rushes Grue, taking in stride the slashing attack he gives it as it pushes him toward the doors at the back of the ballroom – his charging attack on Grue scores a triple-damage critical hit, dropping him where he stood!
Back in the parlor, Deeta grows weaker, even as Shonuf grows more enraged with pain as they fight the black tentacles; Sapper, having been healed by Falorn’s spell, now fights the tentacles heartily, but he is still caught…and Lewen lies still, wrapped and held tightly where he lay.
As Bruce drinks his healing potion and then moves to rejoin the battle, Magnus engages the dwarven rogue who is standing on the ceiling of the room, using his lance to reach him; he hits the Dwarf once out of two attacks, as Falorn casts Dispel Magic in an attempt to dispel the forcecage – he fails. Timmy blasts the half-Fiend with a second Orb of Force out of his wand, clobbering it, as the Plato/Grey Render moves in and grapples it! While the grappled half-Fiend manages to cast a spell in an attempt to poison Plato, he resists the poison…
The Dwarf can tell that the tide has now turned…the three-eyed wizardress has fled and most of the others are dead – he tries to flee along the ceiling, but Magnus jabs him with his lance as he makes his way towards the doorway where the half-Fiend was trying to reach.
Meanwhile…
In the parlor, Shonuf has finally broken free of the black tentacles!
Bruce moves up to where the Plato/Grey Render is grappling the half-Fiend and finishes him off with a combination as Plato holds him in place; Magnus jabs the fleeing Dwarf again with his lance as he moves to keep up underneath him, while Timmy activates his Orb of Force wand again at the Dwarf also, but instead blasts away a section of ceiling plaster. The Plato/Grey Render, his opponent having gone limp in his arms, sees the Dwarf directly above him – he reaches up, plucks the shrieking Dwarf off of the ceiling, and pulls one of his legs out of his body…
Magnus activates his fast healing aura in order to save his live and gain a prisoner to interrogate, but it’s too late – he is dead.
As Shonuf tumbles out of the dreaded, tentacled parlor, Bruce moves to Sapper and tries to help him out of the doorway where he is caught…he fails; Falorn moves toward the parlor and casts a second Mass Cure Light Wounds, even as Timmy casts Dispel Magic in another attempt to dispel the horrid tentacles…he fails.
Deeta regains strength and resolve, but Lewen barely stirs…
*To be continued*
M
11/16/05: the aftermath, and more...
“Party Crashers, Epilogue/The Liquidation of House Rhiavadi/The Assault of House Vhalantru, Prologue”
(or, “Shonuf Has His Monkey”)
The battle at House Rhiavadi is winding down, but the parlor filled with black tentacles still has Deeta and Lewen trapped and fighting for their lives…they are slowly losing…
As Shonuf rubs at the multitude of abrasions and bruises that cover his body, he gets out his Cure Light Wounds wand, fiddles with it intently, and manages to activate it on Grue, who is immensely grateful. (DM note: A successful ‘activate magic device’ check was neglected; it will be assumed that it was successful.)
Bruce continues his attempts to help Sapper fight his way out of the doorway and out of the tentacles’ grasp – with a final pull, the two of them are sent sprawling into the ballroom together!
As Magnus and Falorn scan the room for enemy survivors and friends in need, Timmy casts Dimension Door to escape the forcecage; Plato, slightly embarrassed at Magnus’ unapproving glare at the loss of your only possible live prisoner, feebly tries to reattach the Dwarf’s rended leg, shrugs, and casually tosses the corpse and his leg to the floor.
Shonuf gives Grue one of his cure Serious Wounds vials and regains focus on matters at hand – he moves to the mutilated Dwarf villain and begins rifling the blood-spattered corpse.
The battle is over – but Deeta and Lewen are still struggling...
Ten seconds later, with the party watching helplessly from just outside of the doorway and out of reach from the tentacles, the Kobold and the Elf are about to lose consciousness for the second time to them – and then, suddenly, they release them and disappear!
As Deeta and Lewen drop, gasping and weak, to the floor, Magnus steps in and activates a fast healing aura to immediately aid them and the rest of the party; Shonuf leads the fighters in ransacking the fallen enemies, as the rest of you take assessments on the destruction here.
This once-opulent ballroom is in shambles… The round table that was piled high with crystal goblets full of various libations has been reduced to a pile of wet shards and splinters on the mosaic floor; chips, burn marks and blood partially obscure the fine tile patterns that spiral toward the center of the room. The chandelier on the ceiling is damaged but still hangs true, the seven luxurious chairs have been crushed to kindling and the tapestry on the wall is bloodstained and burned. Only a single piece of furniture stands undamaged - due to its remote location in the far corner of the room, where it was untouched by Timmy’s Fireball or any nearby combat.
The small table against the wall at the back of the room contains nothing more than a sheaf of fine parchments, an ink bottle and a quill – except that the quill is hovering, upright, at the bottom of a fully written upon sheet of parchment…another sheet lies, full of script, just to the left of this one… The curious nature of this hovering quill catches the attention of the spellcasters of the party; Sapper quickly assesses this as a magical device.
The writing on the parchment is in the common tongue and is written as if several different writers took turns at the quill:
(Person 1):“I hope that your time here so far has been a pleasant diversion; it is now time to get to business at hand.
Adrick, I’m sure that Velior shares my gratitude, as well as the other four Last Laugh ‘Jesters’, for the gold and silver you have been providing for their coins – your mining rights to the Underdark regions surrounding Rauxes are secure.
The ‘professional’ services of the “Necrocants” has been indispensable – your party has distinguished itself to the Ebon Triad and the Cagewrights; I will be furnishing the both you with writs of title within the new realm, as well as your compatriots, Oster and Tervas, once they return to the manor.”
“Vervil…”
(Person 2): “- LORD Ashmantle!”
(Person 1): “…Of course.
Lord Ashmantle… The Cagewrights recognizes your legitimate claim to all slaving rights of the region, but the negotiations you must undertake to secure these will be taking place at a much higher level than this; be assured that I have forwarded your claims to the Imperial Palace, as a matter of record, but considering how notoriously unresponsive the Palace has been about anything these past years…you may have to take this up with the…how should I say, ‘new government’..? You of course have our full support, but we simply cannot speak on the behalf of the Demodands, who have eons more experience in these matters than we…
Velior, you and the other four Jesters have all been men of your word; you have my personal gratitude, that of the Cagewrights on whose behalf I speak, and of Lord Vhalantru himself. Your guild has rightfully earned dominion over this land and will possess all taxation rights remaining after the change of government.
More than five centuries ago, the Demodands sent a few of their kind to our reality; disguised as humans, they mated with humans and other denizens of this plane, as well as created some artifacts of ‘infection’ of their blood lineage. Most of their spawn were stillborn…but a few survived; they mated and produced the next generation with Demodand blood. As the generations passed, their bloodlines spread throughout the lands, both by mating and the passing of their artifacts through greed and vanity; today, we recognize this sacred lineage by an invisible mark – the sign of Carceri!
We call these honored descendants “the Shackleborn”, and their sacrifice is the key to unlocking a portal to Othrys, the first Layer of Carceri. Here, Demodands and countless other fiends have languished for near-eternity; here, in the fetid streets of Rauxes, we have found more Shackleborn than anywhere else in the Realm, and here in the very seat of power in the Old Kingdom of Aerdy, we have the perfect conditions for the Ritual of Planar Junction.”
For the past five years, the Cagewrights have labored in secret to build thirteen soulcages to drain the life energy from the Shackleborn; these soulcages hang from an artifact called the Tree of Shackled Souls – the device that gathers the life energy needed to unlock the prison doors of Carceri.
All of the preparations are now complete; the Shackeborn are safely in our hands and ready to give their lives to change the world forever. All that remains is the ritual itself, and it is already underway, thanks to the efforts of Lord Vhalantru.
Once the ritual is complete, Rauxes will once again become the mighty capitol of a new, greater kingdom – but it will never be the same as it is today. It will be the unholy font from which darkness gushes forth – a roiling pit filled with doom and despair for our enemies. Almost immediately, fiendish armies will sweep across the Flanaess and lay waste to every settlement, enslaving the weak and carving out new dominions for their masters.
Naturally, we expect resistance from all sides…that’s where you come in…”
(Person 2): [i]“All eyes will be on Rauxes – the Great Kingdom will be the center of the world again… We’ll have their worst fears to play with!”
(Person 1): “Precisely.
As kings raise armies to confront the legions of Carceri, your slavers, merchants, mercenaries, spies and assassins will methodically search for weaknesses from within, soften their resolve, and convince the populace that their only true choices are to yield or die.”
(Person 3): “Lady Rhiavadi – intruders! Many of them, and they are Celestial!”
(Person 4): “What treachery is this!?”
(Person 5): “We’ve been set up!”
(Person 1): “Friends, calm yourselves – if they are here, then it means that they have gravely erred in their ‘noble’ quest to halt the Ritual of Planar Junction, and that Lord Vhalantru will succeed before the tomorrow is done! These do-Gooders will either perish here by our hands, or die under the feet of thousands of Demodands with the setting of the Sun tomorrow…join me in being the first strike upon these lands, or join them in being the first to fall!”
(Person 6): “I’m in – prepare yourselves!”
(Person 2): “My mercenaries have been part of this from the beginning – we are the front line in the invasion!”
(Person 1): “Prepare yourselves – they can’t be far now. Kralk, Yaughr, Blackspine – to the doors! Guardian – I will stand here.”
Garbled words take up the remainder of the space – they seem to indicate that several people cast multiple spells from that point to the end of the page…where the quill has then stopped and has remained inert, since.
The party is now assessing the contents of House Rhiavadi… It appears that Lady Rhiavadi surrounded herself with all sorts of beautiful, expensive furnishings and works of art – there are paintings, sculptures, tapestries, statuettes, rugs, upholstered furniture, carved furnishings, vases, shelves of books, musical instruments and other miscellaneous decorations, all of the highest workmanship that adorn every room; the sole exception would be the ballroom, which was trashed. Most of these items are bulky to transport, but Magnus declares that the entire household is to be catalogued and auctioned off to feed the hungry and needy of the city; he will send for acolytes of the Good-aligned temples to come and inspect the manor.
Leaving the party behind as they continue to pilfer and disrobe the corpses of your opponents, Magnus sets off back to the stable that you all have made your home base; the rest of you evacuate from the manor and catch up to the paladin within minutes of his arrival back at the temple of St. Cuthbert, where he warns all of the priests of the terrible events about to unfold in Rauxes. Struggling to maintain calm, they immediately dispatch every available person to send word out to all the surrounding Good temples in every town throughout the lands formerly of the Great Kingdom, to adventuring guilds in neighboring cities and to call upon clerics of all faiths to gather in this crisis.
Magnus retreats to a solitary room and calls on Heironeous for guidance…
Within moments, a Solar appears in your midst – sent by Heironeus himself to hear Magnus’ petitions for aid. He receives word of the Ritual of Planar Junction with concern, but he concedes that direct intervention by Heironeus may trigger hostilities between he and other Powers… It is up to Saint Magnus and all available allies in Rauxes to stop the Cagewrights!
Magnus and Deeta level up from the Solar before he departs – a parting gift from Heironeus; the paladin gains two full levels, while the Kobold regains the level she had lost after dying in Karran-Kural and subsequently being raised.
Knowing that there must be immediate action taken, the party spellcasters settle down to rest as best they can, so they can prepare spells for the next day; all higher level priest who have Divination or Augury spells available try to portent the event that will be unfolding within the next twenty-four hours…they determine that the Tree of Shackled Souls may or may not be in Rauxes, but that either way, the path to it leads through House Vhalantru…
Falorn & Lewen take charge of the grass-roots effort to raise a quick-response battalion of local, Good-aligned adventurers; they will first summon Triavis, then gather any Good-aligned adventurers that they can muster on short notice, with no promise of pay, then they will launch a diversionary assault on the City barracks, to lure the platoons of City guard away from House Vhalantru and draw any notice away from the party, who will assault House Vhalantru directly in the hopes of stopping or delaying Lord Orbius Vhalantru before he can complete the Ritual of Planar Junction. Magnus warns all of you that the chances of survival are slim, but you are the only hope of many innocent people – even if your actions achieve little more than to delay the coming of a dark, horrible new day, you will have helped the cause of Good in possibly driving the impending invasion back before it envelops the entire continent of Aerdy…
You will barely get eight hours’ rest before assaulting House Vhalantru; if you leave early, you will arrive at the manor just before sunrise, with only minutes to spare before the population at large begins to stir and the City guard shift change…
If Falorn, Triavis and Lewen are successful, the mercenary City Guard will be caught mostly asleep or off duty – they will be tied up in the Low Districts fighting riots that should be easily stirred up by the chaos and simmering discontent; for once, public misery will aid the cause of Good.
Quick to rest, Bruce will scout House Vhalantru in the last hours before sunrise; he will report that there is one full platoon stationed outside the manor. You will have to hope that they are all that awaits you…
M
12/7/05: A week off and back into the thick of the plot...
“Here, Eat Some Sugah!/The Assault of House Vhalantru, Ep. I”
(or, “I’ve never seen a package this big…”)
In the early morning hour just before twilight, your approach to House Vhalantru is fairly easy; the streets are nearly empty, save for drunks who stagger along the fronts of buildings, late night revelers who exhaustedly stumble home, and small groups of goblinoid City Guards who warily keep watch on the whole scene… The party is eyed carefully several times, but none of these street patrols can handle a group of your size or apparent power – Magnus’ warhorse alone intimidates these mercenaries away from confrontation.
Once you are in the vicinity of House Vhalantru, you begin to hear bells – the City Alarm!
The diversion team of Plato, Deeta, Falorn, Triavis and Lewen have begun their attack, with the help of anyone they could find to help; it’s time for the assault team to spring into action… Seeing that the platoon of guards in front of the manor have run to the end of the street to join with another group in defending the gate to the High districts, the party moves into position. Splitting into two groups, Bruce and Shonuf take up a place at the rear of the house, where the fine, Elven-crafted windows look into a dining room; the rest of the party – Magnus, Timmy, Grue and Sapper – take up position at the front door.
While Shonuf checks the windows for traps and locks, Magnus takes the typically paladin approach at the front door while sitting astride thunder, his warhorse…
With the tip of his lance, he knocks.
As Grue, Sapper and Timmy gawk in amazement and disbelief at the paladin, Magnus sits and smiles smugly, as the sound of heavy footsteps approaching suddenly becomes apparent to you all; even at a time like this, there are still house servants who will open the door for you…
…Except that when the door is opened, there is no doorman or butler standing there, but a fully armed and armored half-Orc!
Immediately wide-eyed with shock, the half-Orc gets the jump on you and slams the door in your face – a moment later, a heavy ‘thunk’ indicates that the door has just been barred. But before Magnus can rear Thunder back to try and bash the door in, Timmy raises a hand – he casts Knock…You all hear a second, loud clunking sound as the bar drops to the floor, and then a click as the door swings open. As you enter, you’re greeted by four statues of Elves in alcoves, two on each side of the hallway:
- A female wizard in robes;
- A male ranger with a longbow;
- A female cleric carrying a shield with the holy symbol of Correlon Larethian carved into it;
- A druid wearing a cowl and carrying a vinelike whip
As you kick the 4-inch thick door beam out of your way, Magnus spurs Thunder into the main hall beyond, in pursuit of the half-Orc; a red carpet leads from the front door into a ‘T’ shaped room with a five-foot wide staircase that rises onto the far wall, where the carpet splits left and right to continue upstairs. A pair of five-foot tall candelabras dominates the center of the room.
At the rear of the manor, Bruce has jumped into the dark dining room and motioned all clear for Shonuf; they detect activity behind one of the two doors that exits this room, to they move to the other one on their left…finding it untrapped and unlocked, they find a dark and empty kitchen beyond, with one exit – a set of double doors… Shonuf hears the rest of the party behind these doors, so they enter the main hall through them and rejoin the group.
As Magnus spurs thunder up the staircase toward the second floor, Shonuf directs the rest of the party to the double doors across from the ones he stands in – pointing out that he heard noises from that side of the manor, he moves to check the door as the rest of the party files into the main room; not hearing anything, he backs off so that Magnus can come back down and open the door…
The paladin lines up his lance on the door and pushes them open – he and Thunder are then promptly showered with a fusillade of crossbow bolts!
Shonuf, who had prepared a thunderstone, acts first and throws it at the first sign of hostility; the stone impacts the corner of the room opposite the rogue, but the half-Orcs within are anticipating action and wear heavy helms – they shrug off the effects of the stone, but Shonuf, who is within the area of the effect, is deafened by his own stone! As Bruce, Grue and Sapper move into position behind the paladin, Magnus jabs one of the half-Orcs who is using an overturned sofa as cover; a second volley of crossbow bolts scores one hit on Thunder, but a more dangerous threat literally materializes, as a dark shadow rolls over the second floor railing and solidifies above the paladin – it reaches out a tendril and fans a dark finger of death right through the heavily armored saint, causing him to rear back in pain and torment!
Timmy casts his maximized Orb of force spell at the wraith, but he misses!
Shonuf tumbles out of harm’s way across the room, as Magnus and Thunder unleash their combined fury on the wraith – but the shadow is swift, as it avoids a majority of their attacks and shows little reaction to the blows that connect; Grue steps up and slashes the wraith also, eliciting a shudder from it and raising the hopes of the party!
The half-Orcs are fighting a static defense within the small room they occupy, as four of them fire their heavy crossbows on the paladin (and miss), the other four reload; they are just holding the party for the real threat…
Appearing from a cloud of mist that was enveloped within the shadow, a withered half-Elf materializes and slashes Grue from behind with long claws – Grue screams in agony, as life-force is drained from him!
The shriveled woman is a vampire!
Adding to the party’s misery, the wraith attacks Magnus again, hitting him but failing to drain life force as it did before… Sapper steps up to hold the half-Orcs at bay and let Magnus focus on the other threats, missing with both swings as his opponent takes cover behind the left door in the opening between rooms; Timmy quickly addresses the new threat by blasting the vampire with his Orb of force wand, hitting her squarely!
Reconsidering his tactics, Shonuf tumbles back near the side of the room where he was before, finding it safer than were he wound up at first – Bruce also attempts to tumble after the rogue under Thunder and across the room, but he slips and winds up in a heap next to the warhorse! Luckily for the monk, the nearby wraith only makes a passing swipe at him, missing cleanly.
Magnus and Thunder, smiting the wraith, now begin to score multiple hits on it while Grue engages the vampire, keeping her busy but failing to hit; she tries to mentally dominate the fighter, but fails. Timmy activates his wand at the vampire, but she manages to avoid the orb of force – it impacts the staircase, blowing splinters out of the banister! As part of the half-Orc squad fires their heavy crossbows (none of them hit), the other half rearms with swords while facing off against Sapper, who continues to chop away at the door being used as cover by one of the half-Orc fighters.
The heavily tattered wraith tries to withdraw and regroup, but it cannot escape the long reach of Magnus’ lance – he stabs it one last time and it is destroyed!
Shonuf and Bruce study the battle for tactical options and Sapper pulls back from the doorway facing the room of half-Orcs, to give someone else a chance to engage them – he is hit once while withdrawing… Magnus pulls Thunder back and joins Grue in engaging the vampire fully, but she manages to avoid being hit by either of them, while still trying to exert some kind of control over Grue; Timmy, however, connects with a second orb of force out of his wand, eliciting a genuine scream of pain from her!
With Sapper and the deafened Shonuf backing him up, Bruce steps into the doorway and engages the half-Orcs, punching one of them as all six of his opponents fail to connect in return… Timmy finds his aim and hits the vampire with a second consecutive orb of force, hurting the vampire decisively, even as she continues to avoid all the collective attacks of Magnus, thunder and Grue!
With some desperation growing in her pale eyes, she focuses on Grue even more, knowing that the fighter is the only weak link she can exploit…
~ “You will defend me…”
Grue: “I must defend you…”
As the stricken and limping half-Elf vampire turns to flee, Grue turns to face Magnus, up on his warhorse – his eyes are red with fury…
*To Be Continued*
M
12/14/05: The assault continues...
“In The Bubble/The Assault of House Vhalantru, Ep. II”
(or, “…I can’t believe this is what I’m supposed to save the world with…”)
Shonuf and Sapper spot Grue and sense that something is wrong here…they study the fighter for a moment… As they both watch, Magnus is occupied with the vampire – he tries to inflict holy damage with a touch, but he still fails to hit the agile vampire, as does Thunder.
Suddenly, Shonuf’s fears are realized, as Grue attacks Magnus and Thunder, hitting the warhorse once!
In the side parlor, Bruce pummels one of the half-Orcs three times, while they continue to miss – one of them actually breaks his double-bladed axe on the wall!
The clobbered vampire backs right up the wall and onto the staircase, narrowly avoiding the end of Magnus’ lance; Timmy, flying in pursuit, activates his wand at her but misses – he blows out a small hole in the wall behind her.
Shonuf sprints to the defense of Magnus, who is busy fighting the vampire; he runs up and attacks Grue, hitting him – but he immediately incurs the wrath of Magnus, who would rather defend himself against the mentally overcome fighter than harm a comrade…the paladin defends himself against Grue but does not attack him, even as the fighter slashes him once out of four attacks. Sapper runs up behind Shonuf and tries to knock Grue on the head with the back of his scythe, but he misses, also; Bruce drops one of the half-Orcs in the side parlor with a pair of punches, but he is hit in return twice by axes, despite the monk’s luck in a second half-Orc breaking his weapon.
In the air above the main hall and over the grand staircase, Timmy and the vampire are dueling one-on-one…The vampire gets the jump on the mage – she runs with inhuman speed around the breadth of the balcony around the main hall, catching Timmy hovering just within arm’s reach off of the railing but missing with her slashing claws; he fires his wand at point blank range, hitting the vampire with a third orb of force for massive damage! escape.
As Shonuf holds back, Sapper is still trying to hit Grue on the head with the blunt end of his scythe, but is still failing to hit; Magnus looks up and assists Timmy by hitting the fleeing vampire with a jab of his lance – the Holy power unleashed onto the vampire is enough to cause her to vanish into a cloud of white mist! The cloud begins to move toward a second floor window, but Timmy is following close behind, hoping to prevent her from escaping. Grue continues to attack Magnus and Thunder, hitting the warhorse once again. Bruce hits another one of the half-Orcs twice, as one of them tries to grapple him in return; he avoids the assault and returns several critical hits on the attacker, clobbering him as well as avoiding all four of their other attacks!
Returning to the attack, Shonuf tries to pommel-whip Grue but misses, as does Sapper; Magnus turns his attention now to Grue and socks him with the shaft of his lance, as Thunder butts him in the head! The confused Grue returns a flurry of swings, hitting Thunder once.
Behind all of them, Bruce is finally starting to succumb to the mass attack of the half-Orcs – one of the unarmed fighters finally manages to grapple the monk, allowing his comrades to hit him twice as he struggles! But their victory is short lived, as the experienced grappler breaks out of their grasp and backs out of the room; the half-Orcs take the opportunity to reload their crossbows.
As the cloud of mist escapes from underneath the second floor window pane, timmy flies up to it, opens the window and follows the cloud out of House Vhalantru and into the early morning twilight!
Back inside, Shonuf saps Grue on the head with the pommel of his rapier, as Sapper and Magnus both miss – but Thunder rears back and hammers on the fighter with his hooves, causing him to miss his attacks and clobbering him! As Sapper pauses to make room for the others and both Magnus and Shonuf miss with their next attacks, Thunder rears a second time and finishes off the traitorous Grue – he collapses in a bruised heap!
At the doorway to the parlor, Bruce regroups, steps back into the doorway and catches one of the half-Orcs rearming, pounding him with three hits as the other half-Orcs either miss the monk entirely or have their bolts deflected! They all rush to change weapons again, as the monk lands multiple body blows on their hapless comrade…
As Sapper and Shonuf move to support Bruce, Magnus dismounts and begins to gather up the unconscious Grue to load him onto Thunder; he will send the stricken fighter back to the Church of St. Cuthbert for treatment, after which his mount will be dismissed.
Outside of House Vhalantru, Timmy is slowly following the fleeing vampire; seeing that she is trying to escape and reach her coffin to regenerate, he casts Otiluke’s Resilient Sphere to trap the cloud of mist for the time being…but the cloud moves with an unnatural speed through the air -
He misses!
Timmy formulates a second, more desperate plan – he gets out one of his spellbooks, as he flies on…
Back inside, Bruce is making headway into the parlor – he hits one of the half-Orcs twice as he pushes them back, allowing Sapper to advance into the room and hit a second foe; Shonuf, remembering where he entered the manor, runs around through the kitchen and through the dining room, bursting into the parlor from the opposite end of the room – pushing back an overturned table that blocks the doorway, he manages to sneak attack the nearest half-Orc, who he catches focused on Sapper…with a second quick jab, he falls! Bruce, hitting his opponent with three out of his next six punches, also drops his enemy, while Sapper hits his for a second and third time in five tries; the half-Orcs, now on the defensive and their morale collapsing, score one hit each on Sapper and Bruce, but otherwise miss with all other attacks.
Magnus has secured Grue into his saddle…he gives Thunder instructions and sends him galloping off through the dimly lit streets…he moves to support the others now…
Timmy retrieves a second spellbook from his pack and casts Otiluke’s Resilient Sphere a second time – the mist avoids capture again! Curses! The frustrated wizard fishes through his pack for the third spellbook…
In the parlor, there are but a pair of half-Orcs remaining; Bruce offers them a chance to surrender, but that only infuriates them and hardens their resolve – they trade blows with Shonuf and Bruce, as Sapper hits one of them unopposed, but Shonuf then repositions and catches one of them flanked between Bruce and Sapper – he sneak attacks the half-Orc, dropping him! After further pummeling from Sapper and Bruce, the rogue finishes off your last opponent seconds later.
With the immediate threat handled, the party assesses itself…
…where is Timmy?
Outside, about thirty feet above the street in the dawn twilight, Timmy continues to follow the mist-cloud that is the fleeing vampire; he retrieves his second spellbook, thumbs through pages and casts Otiluke’s Resilient Sphere for a third time…
The spell captures the vampire!
Relieved, Timmy flies back at full speed to rejoin the party, as the mist cloud is held fast within the confines of the sphere of energy…
…while on the horizon, twilight begins…
The party now regroups and begins to explore the upper floors of House Vhalantru; with Magnus and Shonuf in the lead, you all venture onto the second floor, searching doors and rooms one by one, discovering, among bedrooms and a library, a nicely appointed privy…
When Shonuf enters the aviary (the room where Timmy pursued the vampire out of the window without as much as a glance toward the room), he fails to hear a nearby rustle and hiss, due to his deafness… As the rest of the party discovers in horror, the rogue is suddenly bitten in the side - by a fanged human head attached to a fifteen-foot long snake, while a second one incants a spell from the far corner of the ceiling!
These horrid creatures are vaguely similar to the undead Bone Naga that you all first faced off with in Karran-Kural…except that these are obviously not undead…
Luckily for all of you, Magnus’ anti-magic aura prevents whatever spell the abomination was casting from taking effect – it hisses its disapproval at you as those in the front of your rank rush to attack (Magnus, Timmy and Sapper). Seeing that these are spell using creatures, Sapper rushes in first, brutally slashing the Naga that attacked Shonuf, as the bitten and poisoned rogue backs off and retrieves a vial of healing potion to drink; the arcane-slayer deftly avoids the attacks of both Nagas, as Magnus moves up and slashes the same naga that Sapper hit.
Timmy, hovering above the melee in the hallway just outside of the room, fires an Orb of Force from his wand, blasting the first Naga and leaving it to be quickly dispatched by Sapper - who narrowly misses slashing the second one, also; however, as the Naga falls from the wall and high shelves like a massive coil of rope, it buries Sapper, who was immediately underneath it fighting upwards…The arcane-slayer, prone and buried underneath hundreds of pounds of snake-coils, narrowly dodges a second attack by the other Naga as Magnus moves to attack it, hitting it twice. A second Orb of Force from Timmy’s wand all but assures a rapid victory.
Comfortable in his element fighting spell-using monsters, Sapper pushes his way out of the dead, bloody snake-coils, but he loses his long scythe in the mess before he can attack – he dodges another biting attack from the Naga; fortunately, Magnus is there to finish off the mortally wounded monster before it can strike again…
The ambush and battle lasted barely twenty seconds.
The aviary was the last unexplored room on the second floor – behind a doorway is a staircase that leads to the third floor; cautiously moving upstairs in single file, you scout the top floor of House Vhalantru… You find two more bedrooms, two master suites and adjoining privies, but nothing more; Sapper and Timmy identify nothing magical in these areas, so you all move back down to the ground floor to complete your search of the manor.
Having already been through the kitchen and dining room, as well as the main hall, the last unexplored room lies behind a door in the parlor, where all of the half-Orc guards lie dead; after being cleared by Shonuf, Magnus opens the door to find a wine cellar – shelves line the left and opposite wall, crates are stacked along the right hand wall and several barrels are on the floor.
Sapper can immediately see that something is not right here… Timmy soon confirms that there is a magical aura on the right hand wall; moving crates and boxes out of the way, you can tell that the aura is coming from the wall itself and not the boxes – with some tactile searching, you discover that the wall is an illusion and that there is a room beyond!
The circular room beyond the illusion is twenty feet across and contains six, highly detailed statues around the wall:
- A male Halfling rogue with a quizzical expression on his face;
- A female Elven wizard aiming a wand;
- A female human druid drinking a potion;
- A Cheetah in a defensive stance;
- A male Human ranger with his longsword and shortsword crossed in a defensive pose;
- A Black Bear rearing up.
The room is otherwise empty…
M
12/21/05:
“The Barbarian Turd/The Assault of House Vhalantru, Ep. III”
(or, “…You wanna TOUCH that thing??”)
Magnus is the first to enter the circular chamber; it has no doors or other exits and is otherwise bare, except for the six statues…as the others enter, they all see the paladin stumble and catch himself – his foot appears to have sunk ankle-deep into the very floor!
The paladin brushes his hand on the floor next to his feet and finds that the floor is also covered with an illusion – one that conceals the gradually increasing slope that leads into a ten-foot wide hole in the floor! Had Magnus taken another step, he may well have fallen to his death…
Shonuf activates one of his sunrods and crawls on his belly toward the hole, until his head is underneath the illusion and he can see the shaft down; dropping the sunrod, he finds that the shaft is over fifty feet deep and opens into a room below. After first checking on the trapped vampire-mist within the Otiluke’s Resilient Sphere (and casting a second one after the first was nearing its end), Timmy flies through the illusion and proceeds down the shaft to scout the room below; he reports that the shaft opens into the ceiling of another circular chamber twice as large as the room you are in now – alcoves that line the wall at varying heights contain life-sized statues of various humanoids, in differing poses, of various ages (based on apparent wear and stains).
The party forms a strategy – some of Shonuf’s rope is tied off around one of the statues and knotted, as Timmy keeps watch on the shaft; the rogue climbs down first, followed by Magnus. But the paladin, heavily weighed down by his bulky plate armor, finds it difficult to maintain a good grip on the rope with his mailed gauntlets and cannot keep his footing with his armored boots…he slips and falls, narrowly missing Timmy (who is now on his way out of the shaft to make sure that the vampire is dead), after descending only twenty feet!
Magnus falls from the rope and lands on the floor, fifty feet below, with a loud crash – only a couple of feet from Shonuf!
To make matters worse, the rogue had just begun to detect movement on the far side of the chamber!
Bruce jumps into the shaft, to support Magnus and Shonuf at the bottom – but while the monk easily bounces between opposing sides of the shaft, controlling his rate of descent, he fails to account for the last twenty feet of open air at the bottom, where the shaft ends in the ceiling of the room below; the monk winds up falling the last twenty feet from roof to floor and lands heavily next to Magnus, who has rolled over and activated his fast healing aura to mend his fractured bones and repair sprained ligaments (although armor repair will be another matter, entirely).
Suddenly, Shonuf looks up after hearing something familiar…Sapper (the last person left on the top of the shaft) hears it also – Grue has returned to House Vhalantru and is calling out for the group from the front foyer!
* After being borne to the Temple of St. Cuthbert by Magnus’ steed, the unconscious fighter was revived and healed by the priests there; luckily for all of them, the enchantment on him was broken after the morning sunrise destroyed the vampire while she was still trapped within Timmy’s second Resilient Sphere spell…
Sapper, who is the last to descend the knotted rope down the shaft, is wary and nervous, after seeing what happened to Magnus – his fears cloud his concentration; bearing the same burden as the paladin and not being nearly as focused, the arcane slayer slips and falls from the same height that Magnus did – he falls over fifty feet and lands with an identical crash, inches from Shonuf, Bruce and Magnus!
However, this victim doesn’t roll over and begin to spontaneously heal – he lays there, unmoving.
Timmy, who is now exiting the wine cellar, sees Grue in the main hall and directs the recovered fighter to the shaft in the hidden room – unfortunately, the mage neglects to tell Grue about the illusionary wall, causing some confusion and delay for the hapless fighter as the party gathers in the room far below…around the quite literally fallen Sapper and the still healing Magnus.
As Timmy leaves House Vhalantru to check on his summoned globe that contains the vampire, he hears the rest of the party call out:
“There are zombies down here – three of them, coming out of the darkness!”
*Should be easy*, thinks the wizard, as he flies out the front door; he moves to gather up the belongings of the vampire that have fallen to the ground, after the morning sunrise destroyed it, leaving a small pile of items and empty clothes inside the transparent globe, some thirty feet above the street below.
Far below street level, the party faces off against three zombies that advance on them from the back of the room, where a door-sized opening appears to be the only exit from the room; the first two of them attack – one misses Bruce and the other bangs on the unconscious Sapper but fails to penetrate his (bent) armor. The third zombie attacks Sapper also, but it fails to injure him as well.
Shonuf leaps at one of the zombies, hitting it twice with his rapier; Bruce steps up to the one on the left and finishes it off with a triple combination to the head…but as it falls to the floor, it begins to twitch…
The fallen zombie shakes on the floor – then, it suddenly flashes with some orange, internal light, as a pair of clawed, gnarled hands begins to tear their way out of the zombie’s disintegrating corpse!
The slimy, obese, naked beast that climbs out of the fouled remains is even more horrible!
Seeing this sudden, new horror that he immediately senses is an outsider, Magnus cannot wait to regenerate – he lays hands upon himself and heals back as much injury as he can summon, then gropes for his sword and shield! As the second zombie attacks Bruce, he backs off and hits it with a throwing star, as he tries to formulate a new plan to deal with this sudden threat; Shonuf tries to grapple it but fails, while the last zombie attacks Sapper again but misses, even as the paladin’s healing aura begins to revive the arcane slayer. Sapper awakens under the pummeling attacks of the zombie and begins to crawl away, as Magnus bears the next attack (the zombie misses) – but the newly emerged Demodand is amongst the party and attacks immediately, raking Magnus twice and grappling him, as it takes Holy damage from contact with the Saint; the burning positive energy makes the Demodand go into a rage!
Grue, who has found his way through the wine cellar’s illusionary wall on his own, sees the rope that descends into the floor, despite there being no hole… After playing with the rope for a bit and discovering the shaft underneath the illusionary floor, the leery fighter finally heeds the growing desperation of the rest of the party that he hears below – taking hold of the rope, he slides into the shaft and begins to climb down…
…but Grue slips – he falls the full fifty feet down the shaft and the extra twenty feet of the room itself – seventy feet in all! He lands, with a messy crunch, amongst the party in mid-battle…miraculously, he is still conscious!
Shonuf flanks and sneak attacks the Demodand, impaling it deeply, as Bruce moves in to also take advantage of it being grappled with Magnus; the paladin isn’t trying to escape the monster, being content to simply hold onto it and let his Holy touch continue to damage it as it claws him in return. Sapper however, gets run down by one of the zombies, which slams him and leaves him unconscious again on the floor while the other zombie attacks Shonuf and misses. The rogue dodges his attacker and sneak attacks the Demodand again as it continues to grapple Magnus; he impales it a second time and his next attack leaves it dying in the paladin’s grasp!
Bruce attacks the nearest zombie and kills it with a combination of blows, like he did with the first one…but as it falls to the floor, it also begins to twitch…just like the first one did!
Seeing the emergence of a second abomination as he awakens (again) - thanks to Magnus’ healing aura, Sapper groans as he stands up and retreats… A few feet away and laying on the floor, Grue gets out a miraculously unbroken vial and drinks the healing potion within, just as the last zombie reaches out and attacks him (but misses).
Outside House Vhalantru, Timmy has been waiting anxiously for his spell to end… Once it does and the contents fall down to the street, he scoops up the pile en masse, then turns and flies back toward the manor as fast as his flying spell will let him…
Magnus tosses aside the limp Demodand that he was grappling and attacks the new one as it climbs out of the zombie corpse, hitting it; Shonuf joins in the attack, hitting it from behind as Bruce moves in and hits it once, also, as the monster gets on its feet and attacks Bruce, grappling him and flying into a rage also! Grue retrieves his sword and hits the Demodand once as he gets to his feet, even as the last zombie continues to attack him but misses; Magnus, having lost his weapon while grappling the first Demodand, merely reaches out and touches the second one to harm it.
The second Demodand is battered within seconds of emerging from its host… Shonuf hits it with a second sneak attack, Bruce pummels it twice while grappling it, and Sapper returns to battle after absorbing enough of Magnus’ healing aura to function – he slashes the monster with his scythe, killing the spell-using creature with a single stroke!
Magnus turns and easily dispatches the third and last zombie with a pair of Holy touches to the undead corpse – the rest of the party is waiting and ready for what happens, this time…
Grue beats everyone to the attack, as he unleashes a furious attack – he hits three times, once for a triple damage critical hit! Shonuf follows through with a brutal sneak attack that impales the still-emerging Demodand through the skull and leaves it slumped over, half-emerged from the zombie it was trying to exit!
Magnus relaxes and activates another healing aura, immediately after his first one ceases; for a moment, everyone just sits on the floor, healing…
Timmy then appears, emerging from the hole in the ceiling with his Heward’s Handy Haversack in his hands. Landing amongst you, he and Sapper scan the items for magic pieces – they spot a magical ring and a magical rod among the personal items left by the vampire; having only a single Identify spell available at the moment, you all decide to identify the ring and store the rest for the time being.
Continuing on, you all gather at the only exit to the room – a portal in the wall that opens out into the inky blackness of a vertical shaft, twenty feet in diameter that descends down endlessly beyond all light sources… Shonuf activates a second sunrod and drops it down the shaft –
…the globe of sunlight that spans the shaft accelerates downward to terminal velocity, falling for several seconds before impacting the bottom – some two hundred or more feet below!
As he did before, Timmy flies down the shaft, spiraling as he descends so he doesn’t miss anything on the walls; in the darkness, he finds some kind of circular doorway about halfway down the shaft that, for a moment, looked like a beholder to him! The intricate circular door is composed of interlocking parts of various materials – darkwood, bone, adamantine and iron; the face has been worked into the likeness of a beholder, with different color gemstones set into each of its ten eyestalks and a transparent crystal set as a central eye. The thick stone ring that frames the round door is carved with runes that circle the door – while Timmy recognizes the glyphs as undercommon, he says nothing for the moment…
With the party staring from distantly overhead, Timmy continues on – he flies to bottom of the shaft and scouts the area where the sunrod landed; he finds an empty, circular room connecting to the tunnel with a similar round door that is set ninety degrees from the entrance… He also finds a second door that blocks a short, ten-foot tunnel that connects to the shaft opposite the room.
Able to go no further, Timmy flies back up to the party; he debriefs them on the details of everything he’s found, including a thorough description of the round doors and the inscription that surrounds all of them, in stone. He translates the undercommon, for anyone who doesn’t know what the glyphs spell out, in eight large blocks that surround each door:
“O - B - L - I - V - I - O - N”
M
Thank you, readers who are still following the story; it's time for an update on who's who, since I last did this in October...
At this point, the adventuring group currently consists of:
- Magnus (Human Saint Paladin9, LG): Protector of the weak and pious servant of Heironeus
- Bruce (Human Monk10, LG): An associate of Magnus who serves Heironeus
- Timmy (Human Wizard10, NG): An associate of Magnus
- Grue (Human Fighter10, CG): Originally a partner of Renard(who was killed in Karran-Kural), who now fights for the cause of Good
- Sapper (Human Fighter5/Occult Slayer5, NG): A professional Wizard hunter associated with the Striders of Farlanghn and recruited by Good priests to assist Magnus
- Shonuf (Human Rogue10, CG): Originally a partner of Renard, who now fights for the cause of Good (and profit)
Currently away form the party, due to obligations:
- Deeta (Kobold Bard7/Dragonsong Lyrist3, CG): Traveller/adventurer hired by the Good churches of Rauxes to assist Magnus
- Plato (Human Shapeshifter 10, CG): Professional adventurer/traveler and partner of Deeta
- Triavis (Human Favored Soul9, LG): An associate of Magnus
- Lewen (Elf Fighter4/Wizard3/Bladesinger2, NG): An associate of Magnus
Those players who are away from the game have had their characters join into a "diversionary attack" on the City of Rauxes mercenary guards, while the 'active' party assaults House Vhalantru; hopefully they will rejoin the group by the end of the current adventure.
Joining the side party is an NPC who was run by the guest player from last year's Evil party:
- Falorn (Dwarf Cleric 11, LG): A travelling priest asked to serve by his 'desperate' hosts, the priests of St. Cuthbert in Rauxes
Keep on reading!
M
1/11/2006: Following a week off, we return to the excitement of the assault of House Vhalantru...
“This is my BOOM Stick! /The Assault of House Vhalantru, Ep. IV”
(or, “Excuse me, while I whip this out…”)
Since the departure of the rest of the party for House Vhalantru, Deeta & Plato’s have been busy… First, they rouse Falorn and Lewen from bed, then they go to the nearest inn, seeking Good-Aligned adventurers to conscript to the coming insurrection; with Good-aligned adventurers being fairly rare in Rauxes, a good many ruffians and shady characters are awakened in the pre-dawn hour - but with most of them lacking for sleep, facing an agitated Grey Render as the first thing you wake to is a bit intimidating…
Having it speak to them clearly in Common leaves most of them to turn over thinking it a bad dream, or cower in shock, if not intimidation.
Fortunately, most of the non-good adventurers that are roused from bed that dawn will capitalize on the growing anarchy in the streets rather than oppose the party.
After meeting with Falorn and Lewen (who have located Triavis and dragged him out), the diversionary party splits into three pairs, to cover all quarters of Rauxes in conscripting help to fight the imminent threat facing all of Aerdy:
- Deeta and Plato make their way back towards the High District to seek out high level help among the pricey inns and homes of the wealthy and powerful;
- Lewen and Triavis work the slums, calling on the people to rise up in insurrection against all City Guard posts in the district and beyond;
- Falorn and Fario Ellegoth, of the Stormblades, lead whomever they have gathered so far on a frontal assault against the Main Barracks, near the North Gate.
Knowing that the rest of the party has probably arrived and penetrated House Vhalantru already, they waste no time waiting on a signal – the command is to engage and attack all Rauxes City guardsmen, be they Human, Goblinoid or monster; if they can be persuaded to defect, knowing what is about to transpire, all the better…mercenaries, after all, will remain loyal only so much.
Having dispatched over a dozen sleepy-eyed warriors into the growing civil unrest, Deeya and Plato keep one of the more dedicated warriors for Good with them, as he has requested to join the assault on the Demodand portal ceremony personally; Ryoko, an Aasimar templar who had just arrived in Rauxes the previous day, joins the Human and the Kobold on their way to House Vhalantru – he claims that a vision led him to seek out the heart of the Old Kingdom of Aerdy, lest it be lost forever…he believes that this is his cause.
Upon arriving at House Vhalantru, the signs of entry are clear – the front door is ajar; muddy hoof prints on the bright red carpet leading through the foyer tell the trio that Magnus has been here recently…half-Orc bodies crowding a side room off of the main hall tells them which way they went. Arriving in the wine cellar, they are perplexed at finding no exit – but they quickly find the illusionary wall and the room beyond, due to the boxes having been moved; in the next room, they note the statues and the rope that is found secured to one of them – which suspiciously descends into the very floor, despite the lack of a hole!
Deeta crawls on the floor and finds that it is also an illusion; following the rope with darkvision, she can tell that it drops into a room below – just then, she begins to make out the sounds of Grue and the rest of the party, debating on how to further descend into the complex! Calling out to them, Deeta hails the party and informs Plato and Ryoku that she has found the assault team; they are certainly relieved at the reinforcements – Timmy flies up the shaft before his spell expires in order to retrieve Ryoku and Deeta, as Plato shape changes into a bird and flies down to rejoin the others.
The Party is once again whole and has added muscle in the Aasimar templar, who nods approvingly at Magnus, as he does in return; after a quick briefing of matters back in the city, the debate returns to the obstacle at hand – a two hundred foot vertical shaft that lies before you, with only three apparent exits.
After some debate, a strategy is decided to traverse the vertical shaft safely; while Timmy and Plato aren’t troubled by this (Timmy still has some time left on his ‘Fly’ spell, while Plato shape changes into a Chimera), Deeta will sing a song of flight for herself and four others – Ryoko, Magnus, Sapper and Shonuf, while the best two who can climb rope, Bruce and Grue, descend manually. Since the flying portion of the party can traverse the shaft first and await the other two, they are afforded the luxury of taking their time and care…they reach the bottom of the shaft and wait for the monk and warrior-rogue to carefully climb down, which they eventually do, pausing only to peruse the circular door halfway down.
At the bottom of shaft, Shonuf has already begun to search the two other exits; he first examines the door that is immediately connected to the vertical shaft by a short tunnel, then he moves to the other door, which is set into the wall of an adjacent, square room. The floor of this thirty-foot, hemispherical room is littered with torn bits of cloth, leather and bone, but it is otherwise empty; the rogue finds that the doors appear to be totally identical to each other, as well as to the one in the vertical shaft that was bypassed earlier. The intricate, circular doors are almost ten feet in diameter and are composed of interlocking parts composed of bone, wood, iron and adamantine; the face has been worked into the likeness of a beholder, save for the fact that it possesses nine eyestalks, rather than ten. Set into each eyestalk is a gemstone of differing colors, while the central eye is a clear crystal; the stone ring that frames the door is composed of eight large blocks, each carved with a single rune that spells out the word ‘OBLIVION’ in Undercommon.
The party, being gathered within the hemispherical room, decides to make an attempt at breaching the door there – but with Timmy and Sapper warning the party of the enchantments they sense on the portal, everyone except Magnus and Shonuf backs out into the vertical shaft’s lower terminus, while they try to defuse it. The paladin hopes that his anti-magic aura will protect him and the rogue, should they trigger something from the door; unfortunately, when Shonuf does trigger an enchantment, it is powerful – the door overcomes Magnus’ aura, firing a beam of white light from each of the nine eye gems…three hit Magnus and three hit Shonuf, with the last three missing entirely. Both men are injured from the beams of force, but not too severely; while Shonuf winces at the discomfort, Magnus is fully healed within thirty seconds…
Timmy offers an alternative strategy – he casts Dispel Magic at the door; much to his fortune, it is successful – the magic aura on the portal dissipates!
Acting while he can, Magnus immediately grabs the door and begins to push on it in all directions, seeking to open the door by force while the enchantments are dispelled; with others joining in, you all find that the door opens like an aperture, with three major sections rotating and sliding into the surrounding ring… With Shonuf prying at gems as you do, the rest of you push the inert door sections around and aside – revealing a contrasting square room that is cobblestoned on all surfaces, including the walls and ceiling. You can tell from the doorway that there are many stones missing from the opposite wall, forming small niches that each contains an urn, vase, coffer or small cloth bag. A pair of small chests sits on the floor, in front of the far wall.
Magnus, Sapper and Shonuf enter the room as everyone else watches from the doorway; they safely cross the room to the opposite wall, but Magnus and Shonuf catch something out of the corner of their eyes, as Sapper begins to ponder which container to open first…
The rest of you see two large sections of the cobblestone floor begin to peel up towards the back of the room – the paladin and the rogue can’t tell and the arcane slayer is caught flat-footed, but those of you in the doorway can make out humanoid shapes behind the layer of cobblestones laid across the front of these two automatons!
Shonuf immediately tumbles along the left wall to get behind these golems as they sit upright, as Magnus drops his lance, activates his Divine Shield and draws his sword; the nearest golem tries to grab the paladin and misses, but the other one successfully grapples him, dragging him nearly ten feet as he fights it!
Shonuf tries to make it out the open portal, but he miscalculates the reach of the nearest golem – it turns and reaches out, swatting the rogue to the floor! The party is leaping into action already, as Grue, Bruce, Ryoko and Plato (the chimera) draw weapons or move into a position to rush through the open portal, while Deeta breaks into a Song of Strength to bolster the might of the warriors; as Magnus struggles mightily with his foe (and gets painfully squeezed as he does), Sapper attacks the other one but does little more than strike sparks from the stone golem’s leg!
In return, the stone golem that Sapper attacked pummels him twice for massive damage, as the other one continues to squeeze and pummel Magnus as he struggles, while Timmy blasts the golem on Sapper with his Orb of Force wand.
As Deeta sings and Bruce looks for an advantageous opening, Shonuf gets out a vial of healing potion and drinks it; Grue steps forward and attacks the golem on Sapper, hitting once out of four tries, while Sapper hits once also out of two tries… Ryoko charges in, but doesn’t account for the golem’s superior reach – it punches him hard as he approaches, throwing off his charge enough to make him miss; the golem then attacks both Ryoko and Grue, hitting each of them once, while the Plato/Chimera tries to save Magnus (and fails to grapple) and Timmy blasts his same target a second time with his slowly depleting wand.
Deeta continues to sing and Shonuf moves back in behind Bruce, as the monk steps up to join in the gang attack on the first golem – he misses; Ryoko is clobbered and casts sanctuary to regroup, but Grue gets his footing and unleashes three hard hits on his target, dropping the first golem!
Sapper moves to attack the second golem, but he barely scratches it, while it continues to strangle Magnus; Plato, sensing a need for a better-suited form, shape changes into a grey render and tries to grapple the last golem again…he hits, but fails to join the grapple. Timmy, also trying to save the paladin, casts Dimension Door, runs up and tries to grab Magnus to transport the both of them out of the room, but his attempt at grabbing him fails – he appears in the outside room…alone!
As Ryoko casts a Cure Light Wounds on himself and Deeta continues to sing her song of strength, the rest of the party begins to surround the last stone golem; Shonuf and Sapper move around the golem but miss their attacks, while Bruce and Grue move and hit for light damage. Fortunately, the distraction of the full party is enough for Magnus to break the golem’s grapple! Just as the paladin backs away from it, the Plato/Grey Render jumps in and takes over grappling the golem, hitting it after three tries!
The battle has become one for the fighters, as Deeta singe to maintain all of their strength and Timmy holds his fire…
Plato and the stone golem are mauling and battering each other, but the golem has the advantage of being more resistant to damage…it is becoming a battle of attrition.
Grue, Shonuf, Bruce, Sapper and Magnus all attack the golem as it wrestles with the Plato/Grey Render, but all of their strikes either miss or cause scant damage to the stone automaton; Ryoko and Timmy wait anxiously, as Deeta sings on…
Over the next ten seconds, only an Iron fist attack by Bruce causes any discernable damage to the golem, as it begins to wear down Plato with constant, bruising pummels that force the shapeshifter to break off and push the golem away – whereas Timmy, waiting all the while, promptly blasts it with his wand!
Seeing that he is having little effect, Shonuf breaks off his attack also, but everyone else persists, scoring small hits here and there that begin to chip away at the golem; free of grappling opponents, the golem flails out, hitting Grue once, just before Timmy blasts it again with another Orb of Force.
Seeing that their individual attacks aren’t getting anywhere fast, Magnus calls on everyone to support him and set up his attack – Shonuf and Ryoko join back in, helping Grue set up Magnus, who then drops the golem with a power attack!
The room is left littered with piles of rubble that lie scattered around a pair of shallow pits in the floor; you all cautiously, but hurriedly, pick magic items and some of the smaller containers out of some of the alcoves in the wall before leaving.
Almost on cue, the circular portal reactivates and closes, mere seconds after the last person exits the room!
Moving to the other portal that lies in the vertical shaft, Timmy suggests an alternative way to traverse this obstacle: with some passengers stored in Bags of holding, he will Dimension Door the entire party to the other side!
After some objection from Grue, the plan is approved by the party, for lack of a viable alternative; with some consternation, Plato shape changes into a small animal and climbs into one of the Heward’s Haversacks, while Deeta climbs into another…the larger of the two enchanted sacks will hold Sapper and Ryoko, while the other will contain only Shonuf. Magnus, Bruce and Grue carry the sacks and accompany Timmy, who then casts the spell and hopes that there is time on the other side to open them and release their passengers…
On the other side, Magnus’ natural light is the only illumination…
The group appears in an irregular room – you have appeared just beyond the portal; to your left, you can make out another circular portal just over twenty feet away…to your right, a pair of sturdy, flame-hardened oak doors face you, across from another portal that faces you at an angle fifteen feet away... Ahead, a ten-foot wide hallway recedes into the darkness…
From the darkness, Magnus senses something sinister, just around the same moment that he hears the growling…
…and three pairs of glowing, red eyes appear, at shoulder height…
M
There have been changes at the table; two players have moved on... and three have been added to the two others who have returned after along absence. We're back to maximum capacity!
At this point, the adventuring group currently consists of:
- Magnus (Human Saint Paladin9, LG): Protector of the weak and pious servant of Heironeus
- Bruce (Human Monk10, LG): An associate of Magnus who serves Heironeus
- Timmy (Human Wizard10, NG): An associate of Magnus
- Grue (Human Fighter10, CG): Originally a partner of Renard(who was killed in Karran-Kural), who now fights for the cause of Good
- Sapper (Human Fighter5/Occult Slayer5, NG): A professional Wizard hunter associated with the Striders of Farlanghn and recruited by Good priests to assist Magnus
- Shonuf (Human Rogue10, CG): Originally a partner of Renard, who now fights for the cause of Good (and profit)
Rejoining the party:
- Deeta (Kobold Bard7/Dragonsong Lyrist3, CG): Traveller/adventurer hired by the Good churches of Rauxes to assist Magnus
- Plato (Human Shapeshifter 10, CG): Professional adventurer/traveler and partner of Deeta
Introducing:
- Dezra (Human Cleric 10, LG): A priest of St. Cuthbert recently arrived in the city, only to be rousted from bed to save civilization
- Delvar (Human Fighter 10, CG): A recently-independent adventurer similarly caught up in the events of a fateful day
- Ryoko (Aasimar Ftr3/Clr3/Templar3, CG): Pilgrim who followed a vision to join a fateful mission
Thanks - keep on reading!
M
1/18: The assault continues - and Vhalantru draws closer...
“It’s a Nut Wash… /The Assault of House Vhalantru, Ep. V”
(or, “You’re lucky that we don’t have a kids’ table”)
Among the many adventurers roused from their beds on a particularly fateful morning near the end of the year, Dezra is one of the few who are not surprised at the events unfolding around him; he has journeyed to Rauxes following a vision…one of an old kingdom falling into darkness, lest he bring the light of St. Cuthbert into the seat of power and crush the Evil that grows there. Within minutes, he is awake and on the street in front of the inn he was staying at.
Finding a fellow Dwarf by the name of Falorn organizing the grass-roots revolt on the street, he is introduced to Delvar – a professional warrior who recently divorced the party he was with following the death of the group’s leader and the party assassin taking the group in a direction where he didn’t want to follow.
After Falorn explains the reasons for the sudden uprising, Dezra’s destiny is clearer than it ever has been and Delvar has the perfect cause to clear his conscience of his past exploits. The pair are directed to go to the manor of the de facto mayor, House Vhalantru, and seek out the rest of Falorn’s party, where they are to bring word to them that the uprising is under way and assist them if necessary.
Dezra and Delvar seek out the manor of Lord Orbius Vhalantru; being easy to find, they only have to navigate the growing chaos in the city streets as they make their way to the High District and onward to his manor home. Finding the manor with its front doors ajar, the two of them enter, finding signs of a struggle in the main hall and bodies in the adjacent parlor; following the trails of blood and broken debris, they find the wine cellar with the illusionary wall and the round statue room beyond, with its six statues. They also find the rope that descends into the illusionary floor and make their way down the vertical shaft – or rather, Dezra falls down the shaft while trying to climb down in full plate armor, while Delvar follows him down the rope…
From within the circular room at the bottom of the shaft, they find the two-hundred foot shaft that descends into darkness – but, hearing voices far below, Dezra summons a Giant Owl and commands that it fly him down the shaft as Delvar carefully climbs down the entire length of the shaft. Unfortunately, they reach the bottom of the shaft just after the party below them has departed; finding the adjacent chamber empty and muffled sounds coming from behind the circular portal immediately to their left, they surmise that the party has passed this way – though they don’t know how…
Meanwhile, on the other side of this portal…
The group appears in an irregular room – you have appeared just beyond the portal; to your left, you can make out another circular portal just over twenty feet away…to your right, a pair of sturdy, flame-hardened oak doors face you, across from another portal that faces you at an angle fifteen feet away... Ahead, a ten-foot wide hallway recedes into the darkness…
From the darkness, Magnus senses something sinister, just around the same moment that he hears the growling…
…and three pairs of glowing, red eyes appear, at shoulder height…
Dezra and Delvar hear muffled growls through the closed portal that turn into raging barks as unseen canine monsters leap at the party before they can react!
Three Hell Hound-like dogs fill the room with their collective bulk – these are much larger than their fiendish brethren…one of them goes right, attacking Grue and biting him for massive damage, while the center one attacks Magnus and misses – the one that goes left also bites at Magnus and hits for slightly less damage than Grue suffered.
Knowing that half of the party is entrapped in magical containers, Bruce and Grue forego defending themselves and spend precious seconds opening up the large Bag of holding and the Heward’s Handy Haversack, allowing others to escape: Plato(currently a small bird) flies up and out, sees that they are under attack, and changes shape back into a Chimera, becoming an umbrella over the whole party… Sapper squirms out of the bag of holding but finds himself under Bruce’s legs and unable to stand due to the cramped space…Deeta squeezes out of the haversack onto the floor and immediately begins to sing a Song of Inspire Greatness after seeing that you are being attacked.
Magnus drops his lance then equips his shield and activates it, while touching the nearest dog for Holy damage; Timmy casts Defenestrating Sphere and blasts the same target, just as it bites back at Magnus and misses. Unfortunately, Grue is bitten a second time before he can draw his second weapon and counterattack – but his only hit is a deep stab for quadruple damage, that elicits a roaring yowl that Dezra and Delvar hear clearly outside!
After the hound on the left bites at the hovering Chimera and misses, Bruce picks up Magnus’ lance at his urging and stabs at the center hound – he hits, as does Magnus after drawing his own sword! Timmy follows up by blasting the left hound twice – once with the Defenestrating Sphere and once with his Orb of Force wand, as the Plato/Chimera hits with one of his three heads’ attacks (the lion’s) and Sapper makes his first attack, which misses.
Just as the party finds its stride and begins to counterattack, the center and right hounds both lower their heads and breathe cones of fire that envelop the tightly packed group, burning everyone except Ryoko and Shonuf, who have yet to emerge from their containment! Adding to their misery, Timmy is attacked and critically bitten by the third hound as Bruce tries to hit twice with the lance, but misses!
Deeta literally changes her tune after this assault – she begins singing to Inspire Courage, which works well for a moment, as the Plato/Chimera mauls, bites and gores one of the hounds to death within seconds and Sapper hits a second one twice, killing it also!
But at the same moment, Magnus makes a bad swing and strikes Timmy standing behind him – the mage screams drops to the floor, to the paladin’s horror!
As Ryoko and Shonuf drag themselves out of dropped sacks, Grue continues to fight the third and last hound, missing twice and hitting twice – one of them for a critical hit; but the hound is also determined – it bites the warrior back, just as fiercely, felling Grue where he stands! Bruce drops the lance and attacks the hound to keep him from killing Grue – he hits once out of three tries; Ryoko grabs his bow and has time to fire once (he misses), as Magnus turns to attend to Timmy, ignoring the last hound…he gets out his Cure Light Wounds wand and uses it on the fallen mage even as he grunts and shrugs off the attack of the hound behind him.
Once conscious, Timmy picks up his own wand and blasts the hound behind the paladin; the Plato/Chimera hovering immediately above then mauls it just as badly as it did the first one, leaving it to be finished off by Sapper, who kills his second target while lying on the floor!
Timmy immediately searches for one of his healing vials and Magnus activates a healing aura burst, as Shonuf gets up and searches the corpses of the three hounds; the rest of you scout the three other round portals and the set of normal double doors that all adjoin this irregularly shaped room.
Once relative quiet returns, you all begin to realize that there are voices on the far side of the portal you just left the other side of… Your alarm is slowly replaced by caution, as you identify the people beyond as men sent to assist you; your caution gives way to relief, once they tell you they Falorn had sent them and they are here as reinforcements (that you can use right now).
Dezra inquires about how you all got past this doorway and casually bangs on it with his mace… but doing so provokes the door – it fires rays out of all nine of the gems that make up the stylized eyes on the beholder carving built into the door, striking the Human with all but two of them!
Chastised, Dezra backs off to heal himself with his wand, as Delvar discusses options through the barrier; there are theories made about how a Beholder would activate these doors and multiple attempts to cast various spells on it in order to trigger it to open – all of them fail…
There is much thinking going on…then a solution to the doors is found – Dezra can prepare multiple Stone Shape spells to burrow around the portals! As the priest reads his scrolls and memorizes the incantations, an hour passes…eventually, he is ready for the spell. He casts Stone Shape, creating a curved tunnel out of the bare stone that circumnavigates the door and ruins the channels where the door splits and recedes into the wall, effectively sealing it closed.
Delvar and Dezra finally join the party, as they proceed on…
M
1/25: The party takes on the Flamewardens!
“Ugly Woman Taste Like Honey/The Assault of House Vhalantru, Ep. VI”
(or, “He’s a Lumberjack and he’s OK, he sleeps all night and he works all day…”)
Having five exits to choose from, the party decides for now to tackle the easiest one – a set of thick, fire-hardened double doors that is the only non-circular portal exiting this room; Shonuf finds these doors neither locked nor trapped, so you all gather around and enter…
The twenty-by-thirty foot room has no exits…what it does contain are six stone torch sconces shaped like fists that each hold an Everburning Torch (identified as such by Sapper) and a scorched granite throne in the shape of a stylized, kneeling Fire Giant; the ceiling is twenty feet above.
In the middle of the room, a tall woman with hair like flames swings a greatsword at unseen foes, oblivious to your presence; her body is covered by rust-colored fur and her eyes smolder – she is clad in a mithral breastplate, wears metal gauntlets and has a large shield floating beside her, moving as she moves. A pink, rhomboid stone lazily orbits her head, she wears a red-lacquered armband on her left arm and her greatsword leaves behind trails of fire from one edge, while ice runs down the opposite edge, as she cleaves the air around her.
She suddenly stops, looking barely out of breath – casting a baleful glance at all of you, she walks over to and sits on the throne; from behind it, a sneering wolf with flame-colored fur and red embers for eyes emerges. It is the wolf that speaks, not the female:
Hell Hound: “Flameless ones…have you come to pay tribute to Ti’ irok Coalfire?”
Magnus: “Did those hounds outside belong to him?”
Hell Hound: “Yes.”
Magnus: “Then his tribute has already been paid.”
Hell Hound: “Aszithef, we will have revenge!”
Enraged, the hound and the woman leap more swiftly than any of you anticipate…
With a speed that isn’t Human, the woman leaps from the throne and attacks Magnus, who had taken a place in front of the throne while everyone else filtered into the room along the back wall (except for the Plato/Chimera, who lingers in the outside room) – she cleaves him twice out of three attacks, wounding the paladin severely! The wolf stands on its hind legs and changes form into a humanoid identical to the woman, before reaching behind the throne and picking up a greataxe!
Plato’s eyebrows arch…
Grue and Ryoko leap forward to defend Magnus, but aside from both missing their attacks, Grue actually hits the paladin by mistake! As Bruce sizes up the opponents, Sapper and Shonuf move tactically and Deeta sings to Inspire Courage in the party; Delvar attacks the woman also but misses twice, as Dezra moves up and hits the shape-changed wolfman with his heavy mace! Plato leaps upwards through the doorway and takes flight over the party, hovering in the center of the room and bathing everyone in a warm wind as the torches wildly flicker; he reaches out over the paladin and bites the woman, as Magnus hits her also with one of his two attacks.
Timmy, wanting to build a quick advantage, gets out one of his spell books and quickly casts Animal Summoning V, calling a Celestial Brown Bear to appear immediately to the right and behind the woman, where it fills the back of the room – it immediately attacks, mauls and grapples the shocked woman!
The wolfman, furious at the predicament of his mate, attacks the bear in a rage – but his three power attacks fail to connect! Fortunately for the woman, she is a skilled warrior that has apparently been underestimated by the group – without assistance, she still manages to wrestle free of the bear!
As Deeta sings on, Bruce, Shonuf, Ryoko and Sapper wait to see what happens next, seeing that the front line fighters seem to have the fight well in control; but the front line falters – Grue and Dezra miss all of their attacks, as well as the Plato/chimera and the Celestial Bear…even Timmy’s attempt to cast Hold Monster on the woman fails! Delvar, however, scores a critical hit on the woman with the one attack that connects, while Magnus solidly hits the woman, also.
Almost surrounded, Aszithef unleashes the full brunt of her warrior skills on the party – she whirlwind attacks Dezra, Grue, Delvar and the Brown Bear, hitting all four of them, while her mate, Khetru, power attacks the bear again, killing it in two more blows!
While Deeta sings on, Sapper and Shonuf reconsider their assessment of the battle, while Bruce jumps into the fight but misses Khetru, while Grue trades a pair of blows with Aszithef; however, Delvar, Dezra and Plato miss all of their attacks against the skilled and well-armored pair.
But then, Timmy casts a second Hold Monster, right out of his book…Khetru is held fast- the tide of battle turns when Ryoko braves injury by Aszithef to reach and coup-de-gras the wolfman!
In a determined frenzy, Aszithef unleashes a second whirlwind attack, hitting Dezra, Grue, Delvar and Ryoko (critically), leaving them all weakened and in danger!
Magnus realizes the threat and decides to focus the party’s ability – he aids Grue in his attacks, allowing him to hit the woman twice out of four attacks, while Delvar misses; Sapper and Shonuf join in the battle also (Shonuf tumbles in), but they both miss. Deeta continues to inspire with her singing, while the injured Dezra and Ryoko manage to withdraw under the cover of Bruce (who punches once) and Plato (who claws once).
Timmy ends the fight, when he blasts Aszithef with his Orb of Force wand, carefully firing between several other party members…she lands heavily on the floor before she can whirlwind attack again…
Not losing a moment, Shonuf moves to search the two fallen warriors, as Magnus and Dezra heal the party using wand of Cure Light Wounds; in a short time, everyone is healed up and a myriad of loot is gathered from the two corpses. After certain items are identified and all useful item are distributed, your attention turns again to the ubitiquous circular portals…you have four exits to choose from.
Magnus and Plato offer the best two plans to get past the doors – both of them involve pain…
1. Plato can shape shift into the strongest monster that he can; he then tries to force his way past the doors in as few attempts as he can stand, given the doors’ self-defense mechanisms.
2. Magnus can attempt to hack his way past the doors, using his natural healing ability to counter the cumulative effects of the doors’ defensive rays.
After some debate, it is agreed that Magnus has more healing ability and can thus regenerate more damage over time than Plato without the use of spells or other healing resources that are drawing thin; he is loaned several augmentative magic items by others in the party, picks up his lance and sets to work against the door directly across from the one you entered around. Bracing for the door’s rays, he attacks with his lance…
Predictably, the brave and selfless paladin is hit by several rays from the door as he attacks it, but to the party’s relief, you all discover that the number of rays that are fired by the ‘eyes’ will vary from between two and nine per attack by Magnus; after attacking for ten seconds (2 rounds), he pauses to heal damage for a few moments (4 rounds) before continuing…and this is how he proceeds, attacking the door four to six times, before resting and healing back the damage from rays, then continuing again.
The paladin maintains his attack and rest pace against the door for almost five minutes, before finally and painfully breaching the door… What you all find beyond is a vertical shaft identical to the one you all descended when entering Oblivion – the twenty-foot wide shaft rises up and beyond Magnus’ darkvision, into the blackness above… Across from you, on the floor of the shaft, you all see another round doorway – as Shonuf picks through the shards of door that are either adamantine or gemstone....
Not seeing a reason to go this way yet, you all decide to investigate closer portals; Magnus then breaches door directly across from the room where you fought the two shapechangers. After another five minutes of painfully breaching the door, Magnus reveals a twenty-foot diameter, hemispherical room with a wooden floor – it is decorated with fine, wooden furnishings and objects of art, much like House Rhiavadi was… The contents of the two unlocked trunks verify that this room must be a secondary quarters of Lady Thifirane! The observation that there is a recently extinguished, smoldering oil lamp in this room, along with the ransacked nature of this room, tells all of you that she sought refuge here after your earlier assault on her manor and then fled again when she heard you fighting the hounds earlier.
A note that Shonuf finds under the furs on her bed and gives to Timmy confirms your suspicion:
“You are too late.
When the Portal opens, I will oversee your torment and violation…
…Personally.
T.R.”
The ink is still damp to the touch…
As Shonuf rifles the room, Sapper nods to Timmy – there is no magic left here; everyone files out and moves to the last portal left unmolested, which is opposite this one.
Going on fifteen minutes of tortuous door-breaking, Magnus breaches the door to his chagrin:
On the far side of the portal is a twenty-foot diameter, spherical room – the door opens into the equator, so there is a bowl-like floor below and a hemispherical roof above; this globe of a room is otherwise totally empty and apparently unused.
Returning to the second vertical shaft that you discovered earlier, Magnus attacks the only door left with a potential exit - he breaches door on the opposite side of the shaft and finds a larger room, but aside from this one also being hemispherical, it appears to also be filled to the equator with water!
After some prodding, Plato agrees to become Magnus’ personal hovercraft – he flies slowly out over the water, bearing the paladin as a load hanging underneath him, until he reaches the door ledge on the far side of the room; he hovers there for a full five minutes as Magnus swings back and forth like a pendulum, attacking the door and getting hit with rays with each swing. After the paladin breaches the door, he unties himself from the rope and the tired Chimera returns to the party with an ugly crash landing, pulling his wings in as he hurtles through the narrow, shredded portal that he came out of.
Inside the next room that Magnus enters, he finds a twenty-foot square space that contains ten-foot hemispheres in each of the three other walls as well as the floor and roof; suspended in the exact center of the room, just out of reach from the floor, is a single, old book that is bound in leather and has no writing on its exterior. After some consideration and notifying the party, Magnus reaches out and tries to nudge the book with the tip of his lance; there appears to be some kind of telekinetic field that acts on the book and keeps it suspended in the center of the room, but with steady pressure in one direction, he eventually ‘pulls’ it out of the suspensory field and sends it thumping to the floor. Magnus picks up the book and returns to the breached portal, where he calls for Plato to return and pick him up after informing the party that there are no exits from here.
After a return trip that is no more than a shorter version of the trip out, Plato again drops off the paladin before a second crash landing back where the rest of the party is gathered; Timmy and Dezra take a few minutes to peruse the book…on the inside cover is written an apparent title, in Undercommon:
“Zar’-ilkoth Tarteros”
The mage and priest determine that the book contains notes and ceremonies relevant to the summoning of a spirit from Carceri – there is much study to be done with this…later.
Having only one avenue remaining, Plato hovers straight up the second vertical shaft that you discovered, in order to scout what lies above in the darkness; after returning to the party 2 minutes later, he reports that the shaft is in all ways identical to the two-hundred foot shaft that you had descended earlier, except that it is only half that height and has only one exit at the top – another circular portal…
Knowing what you must do, you all allow Plato a few minutes to fully rest before he hovers back up the shaft, dangling Magnus beneath him by a rope; after another painful five minutes of the paladin attacking the door, it is breached and the winded Chimera hovers back down to the party in a much more graceful landing.
*To Be Continued*
M
2/1: finally - the epic encounter with Vhalantru himself... plus his new buddy...
“That’s What You Get for Not Using Protection/The Assault of House Vhalantru, Ep. VII”
(or, “If I had a saddle, I’d ride you…”)
As Magnus holds the breach, he suppresses his natural Saintly light and scans the dark room beyond using darkvision, as Plato informs the rest of the party that they will either need to fly or be carried up a hundred feet by the Chimera to join the paladin. With some trepidation, the rest of you agree to either ride in a bag of holding or be carried aloft by the Plato/Chimera to the chamber a hundred feet above.
As Plato shuttles his comrades up the shaft by ones and twos, Magnus illuminates himself again and begins to inspect the twenty-foot wide by fifty-foot long hall…
The walls here are thirty-feet tall and are carved with myriad bas-relief renditions of various Underdark creatures and environments; a thirty-foot wide alcove along the right side of the room holds an impressive collection of lifelike statues: a juvenile Black Dragon, a juvenile Minotaur, a Harpy, an Otyugh, a Rust Monster, a Kuo-Toa and a Phantom Fungus. There are two exits from this hall – both are round portals; according to your crude map, the door at the far end of this hall should be the one that exits halfway up the original vertical shaft you entered the complex in and passed on your way down – which leaves only one unexplored door remaining, on the left hand side of the hall…
Magnus sets to work, one last time.
For another five minutes or so, Magnus attacks the door and pauses to heal from the damaging rays fired from the portal – as irony would have it, as the paladin finally breaches the door, he is fired at by all nine ‘eyes’ and hit by seven of them…he staggers backwards from that last blow, both in pain and from the horrors he sees within the room beyond…
A fifty-foot hemispherical room opens before you; it has weird, abstract murals painted all over the domed ceiling… Sapper sees that there are six everburning torches in sconces around the perimeter of the room, twenty feet up the dome, that brightly illuminate the room; he also sees that there is a strong magical aura emanating from the floor, where a twenty-foot diameter symbol is carved into it – a triangle inscribed within a circle…both are inlaid with gold. At the corners of the triangle are three people chained to iron rings in the floor with iron manacles and chains about their wrists and ankles - they are securely bound with leather straitjackets; they are a Human male, a half-Orc male and a Gnome female…all three of them are babbling incoherently as they feebly struggle against their bonds.
Hovering in the center of the room, twenty feet above the inscribed symbol, is a bloated sphere with nine wildly flailing eyestalks…pale green mucous weeps from knobby, festering sores all over its body…
Suddenly, arcs of black lightning leap from the eyes of the three sacrificial victims and strike the Beholder, causing its great bulk to heave and become even more distended for a moment – then, the three prisoners ghoulishly collapse into heaps of ash on the floor, leaving nothing but charred leather straitjackets and burnt buckles!
Lord Orbius Vhalantru turns and faces all of you, as though aware of you all for the first time… You can see, pressed up against the convex pane of his enormous central eye, a horribly fat visage of some demonic creature with a wide mouth full of sharp, triangular teeth! The Beholder’s own mouth then spreads open wide towards you all…it exhales and gurgles as greenish slime pours out, dropping onto the floor below in heavy, gelatin-like clumps!
Preparations among the party are immediate and intense:
Shonuf and Ryoko move to covered lines of fire and get out their respective bows; Deeta, who is around a corner from Magnus and out of his anti-magic aura, casts Mirror Image, creating eight Kobolds out of one…The rest of you are moving, either into the room to avoid bunching up and making the party an easy target for a spell, or out of the doorway’s line of fire – Delvar and Bruce both charge the room, taking a position along the left and right walls and firing their bow and crossbow; both of them miss…
Vhalantru acts as you all are moving – he casts a spell and creates a billowing cloud of toxic fog in the hall outside the door; everyone except Bruce and Delvar is affected! His eyes begin to fire magical rays – one ray narrowly misses Delvar, one ray misses Bruce and one ray hits Sapper, but the arcane-slayer resists the effect with a determined grin - curses!
Grue draws swords and scans for immediate danger…Plato rushes into the chamber to escape the fumes, as does Dezra and Magnus, who summons Thunder and mounts up so he can reach the Beholder with his lance. Timmy runs just behind Magnus into the room and casts Flesh to Ice at Vhalantru, hoping to end this epic clash before it can begin – but the Beholder makes his save and the spell fails!
As the Cloudkill spell begins to roll out of the chamber and into the hall where you were, the party takes up positions around the perimeter of the room and begins to make missile attacks on Vhalantru… As
Sapper moves underneath the Beholder to avoid attack, Bruce fires his crossbow and misses, Shonuf moves farther around the room and fires his bow (and misses) and Ryoko moves to the edge of the toxic fog (having resisted the effect), also missing with his bow; Delvar fires twice from where he is, hitting once, while Deeta flees from the Cloudkill spell into the chamber.
Vhalantru casts a spell, in addition to unleashing the power of his multiple eye rays at the party; while the effect of the spell isn’t apparent, Delvar suddenly ceases reloading his bow and begins to look around, confused… While the party is fortunate that eye rays miss Shonuf and Plato, Magnus is hit by one of them – but the celestial power he emanates cancels the spell effect! However, Timmy also hit by an eye ray - he is suddenly turned to stone!!
Grue is still staggering around within the cloudkill fog, as Magnus demands Shonuf give him his bow, so he can use it against the Beholder; Plato flies up to attack Vhalantru and Dezra casts Monster Summoning V and calls forth a Lantern Archon to fight for the party – the Archon misses its attack and the Plato/Chimera is hit by an attack of opportunity by Vhalantru which prevents him from grappling.
Shonuf is growing weak from the noxious cloud that rolls out of the chamber – ghe gets out a healing vial and drinks it as Sapper tries to get the Beholder’s attention from beneath it and Deeta casts Sonic Weapon; Ryoko hits the Beholder with one of two arrows and Bruce hits with his crossbow, but it will take a great many more to bring it down…
To make matters worse, Vhalantru calls out to Delvar:
“Delvar…help me!”
The fighter drops his own bow, draws his greatsword, and suddenly attacks Ryoko, slashing him!
Vhalantru then unleashes another barrage of spells – he casts Cloudkill a second time, filling the chamber with a second toxic cloud! A pair of eye rays hit Deeta, but they both harmlessly destroy two of her Mirror Images instead of the Kobold herself; however, a third ray destroys the Lantern Archon before it can attack again, a fourth one misses Bruce and a fifth ray hits the Plato/Chimera – Vhalantru avoids all of the Chimera’s attacks but Plato makes his save and avoids possible destruction!
While Vhalantru is occupied, Magnus calls out to Dezra and moves to the priest – he has a plan; Dezra casts Air Walk on Magnus’ warhorse, Thunder, seconds after.
While moving across the room and out of the cloudkill fog, he sees Delvar turn to attack him; while not caught unawares of his charmed teammate, he is still cannot escape being slashed by him! Ryoko takes the opportunity to step into the fog and away from the enchanted fighter, while Deeta opens fire on Vhalantru with her bow, hitting once out of two tries, while Bruce hits again with his crossbow and Sapper continues to try and get the Beholder’s attention.
While Grue moves out of the second cloudkill area, Delvar sees Magnus atop of Thunder and attacks – he misses twice before the paladin rides off into the air, leaving him alone in the toxic fog…
Vhalantru tries to bite his only melee threat in the Plato/Chimera, but he misses; however, he trains several eye stalks on his immediate threats…he misses Deeta twice and Bruce once, but hits Sapper – only to learn that the Arcane Slayer is immune to the effect! Curses! However, one eye ray hits the Plato/Chimera…and the chimera stiffens and turns to stone – he falls into the cloudkill fog and lands unseen on the floor with a thundering boom!
Magnus charges through the air as if it were a ramp leading to the hovering Beholder…he hits Vhalantru for the first significant damage – the multiple wounds are beginning to add up… Dezra moves into the cloudkill fog and casts Break Enchantment on Timmy, in the hope of returning the mage to flesh – he fails!
As Ryoko moves away from Delvar, Shonuf takes shelter from the cloudkill and hides from the Beholder, while Sapper continues to try and draw its attention and Deeta fires more arrows, hitting once out of two shots; Bruce misses this time with his crossbow.
Delvar, seeking a target, moves through the toxic fog, taking the poisonous damage in stride until he finds Ryoko and attacks – he cleaves him for major damage! Far above, Vhalantru is running out of targets that he can see…he fires two eye rays at Bruce and Deeta each, but the four rays fired at the monk and dragonsong lyrist all miss! He makes up for the poor showing by opening his large central eye upwards, catching Magnus in the conical area of effect…the strong anti-magic field cancels Thunder’s summoning – the warhorse instantly disappears to whence it came, leaving the hapless paladin in a forty-foot freefall onto the floor below, where he lands, for the second time in a day, in a loudly crashing heap! The Beholder also casts Dispel Magic at Deeta in an attempt to dispel her multiple Mirror Images, but he miscalculates and instead cancels out the everburning torch over the Kobold’s head!
Grue moves to defend the hard-pressed Ryoko, attacking in a flail of sword blows; he only hits once out of four tries, but his triple-critical hit staggers the enchanted fighter! Behind them, Magnus rolls over painfully and gets back to his feet, while Dezra tries out of desperation to cast Break Enchantment a second time to save Timmy from an eternity as a statue…he fails again!
Magnus sees the bow that Delvar dropped…the party’s hopes are riding on him, Bruce and Deeta, now… If Grue can keep Delvar occupied long enough, will the three of them bring down Vhalantru before the cloudkill poisons you all or the Beholder destroys whomever is left..?
*To be continued*
M
2/8: The big finale!
“Timmy is Hard /The Assault of House Vhalantru, Ep. VIII”
(or, “Not in the ear – you need to do it in the nose…”)
The battle is getting desperate…the party mage is a statue, as well as one of the front line fighters; everyone else is busily trying to evade Vhalantru’s deadly eyestalks…
As Shonuf drinks a vial of healing draught, Ryoko takes up a new position and fires two arrows at the Beholder above all of you – he misses; while Sapper continues to try and draw its attention, Deeta moves and fires her own bow, but fumbles the shot as Bruce moves and reloads his crossbow.
The charmed fighter, Delvar, attacks Grue, critically slashing him as he tries to move out of the way and get out a healing vial! Above, Vhalantru closes his central eye and casts a third cloudkill spell in the chamber, blanketing all of you in toxic fumes for a third time! The beholder also fires a pair of eye rays at Deeta, missing once and blinking out one of her mirror images with the other; a second pair of eye rays both miss Bruce, but the last one hits Grue – he is now charmed, too!
Among the last of you to still pose a threat to the Beholder, Magnus picks up Shonuf’s dropped bow and casts Sacrifice…he then moves into an optimal firing position with grim resolve, as Dezra casts Restoration on the paladin, knowing that he may be the party’s last hope.
Sapper puts his back up against the wall to maintain line of sight to Vhalantru – he is still waving his arms and taunting him as Shonuf and Deeta move to new positions outside of the cloudkill spell; Ryoko hits with one arrow out of two, while Bruce dodges a pair of attacks from Delvar and fires his crossbow from a better spot, hitting for minor damage. The charmed Delvar misses the monk but still manages to slash Shonuf for serious damage; Grue, feeling a bit confused now over whom friends and foe are, gets out a vial and drinks a healing potion, until he hears a friendly voice callout into the toxic fog:
“Help me!”
Near the top of the domed room, Vhalantru has grown frustrated at the elusiveness of the monk…he spits a large globule of green spittle at Bruce, hitting him – the slime paralyzes the monk! Laughing at his good fortune, the Beholder fires an eye ray at Bruce, hitting him and levitating him almost halfway up the curved roof of the room!
Addressing the last of his annoyances, Vhalantru fires two eye rays at Sapper; the first ray misses, but the other one hits – however, Sapper turns the Death ray back at the Beholder, sapping it of lifeforce and leaving it groaning and weakened! Adding to his new misery, Dezra casts Spiritual Weapon, summoning a weapon of force that begins to harass him!
Shonuf tumbles to escape both Delvar and Grue, who are still charmed by Vhalantru, as Sapper calls for the Beholder to try and hit him with more eye rays and Deeta begins to sing a Song of Courage to bolster the party’s morale; Ryoko fires twice at the Beholder, hitting once, even as Delvar continues to slash him for more damage. Delvar hits Ryoko and misses Shonuf – but Grue moves in and slashes the rogue instead!
Despite the efforts of his charmed minions on the ground, Lord Orbius Vhalantru is beginning to fight out of fear for the first time – fear of an eternal imprisonment that was part of his dark bargain with the Demodand whose spirit he ingested and absorbed during his perverted ceremony… The altered Beholder spits a messy glob of slime at Magnus, hitting him squarely – but the paladin resists the effects of the slime; he then fires several eye rays at him – two of them miss and the third hits, but Vhalantru finds to his horror that Magnus is immune to petrification!
“ARRRRRRRGH!”
Other eyes fire rays at Shonuf and Ryoko…Shonuf dodges the one aimed at him, but Ryoko is hit; fortunately, he makes his save and resists the ray’s effect!
Magnus is in position…he fires Shonuf’s bow with his sacrificial arrow…and hits – the enchanted arrow kills Vhalantru, leaving his limp spheroid drifting in the air, its dead eyestalks falling like dreadlocks around the top of the dead Beholder’s hovering, spherical corpse!
A collective sigh of relief is heard in the settling silence, and then the grim assessment of the rest of the party…
Timmy is a statue…Plato is worse – also petrified, as well as broken into several large chunks on the floor; the rest of you are in various states of weakness from the poisoning Cloudkill spell…
A quick exit is decided upon; Dezra casts Air Walk on Bruce so that he can most quickly summon help from the outside…Timmy’s statue is stuffed into one of the bags of holding, so he can possibly be restored and further help the party. After Magnus breaks his way through the last round door (taking another five minutes or so for the task), the enchanted monk sprints up and out of Oblivion, through House Vhalantru and out to the street; he runs past dozens of scenes of destruction, chaos and civil unrest as Rauxes goes through the throes of open insurrection and anarchy.
Bruce arrives at the temple of St. Cuthbert and calls for the priests – all around, the few acolytes treat injured citizens of the City and other adventurers who were either fomenting dissent or trying to save people from it…while Jenya Urika’s fewer subordinate priests attend to Bruce; they gasp in horror when they see the monk remove Timmy’s stone self from the bag of holding. This is beyond the scope of their ability, but fortunately, it isn’t beyond the ability of the Mage’s Guild; within the hour, the paid guildmember is released from his entombment and on his feet. The first thing Timmy does is ask where the rest of the party is; when the monk tells him that they are still in the Oblivion complex awaiting rescue, the wizard asks his fellow guildmate for scrolls – cost is no object…
The restored Timmy joins Bruce and returns to House Vhalantru, with several scrolls with the necessary spells to facilitate a speedy exit from the deep tunnel complex; as Bruce waits in House Vhalantru, timmy casts Fly and descends the first vertical shaft to where the party currently is located, where they have been healing up with whatever means they had left for the past few hours.
First, the petrified Plato is reassembled using a spell and then restored to flesh; once debriefed on the aftermath of the battle with the Beholder, the Plato/Chimera then returns to air/rescue duty and shuttles everyone out, either one at a time or in bags of holding carried by others.
Once out of Oblivion and back in the foyer of the now-wrecked House Vhalantru, the party returns to their Temple of St. Cuthbert base together – once there, Timmy and Shonuf depart for the Mage’s guild for more scrolls, as Magnus debriefs the temple priests on what they found and the rest of the party eats and naps into the afternoon, knowing that their mission isn’t yet over.
Around mid-afternoon, Magnus gets a mental message… a Sending spell from Jenya Urikas, asking the party to attend a meeting at City Hall that evening; he answers affirmative and informs those of you who are awake. Following the return of Timmy and Shonuf late that afternoon with many scrolls and helpful items, Magnus briefs them about the meeting; by evening, you all have rested, eaten and prepared spells.
At twilight, all of you make your way through crowded, chaotic streets filled with fires, litter and loot, blood and the trampled corpses of hundreds; while danger is all around you, no one interferes with your passage, as even mobs know a powerful group of adventurers when they see one and know better than to attack. You all find city Hall virtually abandoned and looted thoroughly – most windows are broken and most doors are damaged, ajar or both. However, one of the main council chambers is inhabited and has been re-ordered to some degree; inside, you find Jenya and many of the more influential nobles and businessmen of the city.
They are here, aside from dealing with the critical civil crisis at hand, to find out how to determine the next Lord Mayor of Rauxes…
M
2/15: Out of one, into another...with disastrous results!
“Bad Boys /Cut him Like A Drag Queen”
(or, “Man, those are some rough primaries.”)
At the Rauxes City Hall, the following people have been called here, along with all of you, by Jenya Urikas to essentially reform the city government:
- Lord Ankhin Taskerhill (human): One of the wealthiest nobles in Aerdy, who owns several mines and local stone workshops;
- Lord Premiach and Lady Aeberrin Vanderboren (human): Regional land barons and ‘new money’ in the city – they are actively climbing local social power circles;
- Lord Zachary Aslaxin (human): Prominent art dealer and collector with strong ties to shipping and trade throughout the continent;
- Lady Ophelia Knowlern (elf): Multiple business owner and philanthropist who you know to be a personal friend of Jenya Urikas;
- The Striders of Fharlanghn: Meerthan Eliothorn (1/2elf), Fario Ellegoth (1/2elf) and Fellian Shard (1/2elf) – they are the surviving members of one of the few remaining adventuring companies who support Good in Rauxes;
- Keygan Ghelve (gnome): Prominent local locksmith and merchant
- Skie Aldersun (gnome): Prominent local merchant
- Tygot Mispas (halfling): Prominent local merchant
- Kristof Jurgensen (human): Keeper of the Temple of Pelor
- Omar Tiskensen (human): Priest of the Temple of Kord
- Maavu Arlintal (human): Prominent local artisan/craftsman and owner of several warehouses
After introductions by Jenya, she indicates that neither she nor the other priests here are interested in the post of High Lord Mayor of Rauxes, but that they are here as advisors, observers and moral support for those who would determine the next Lord Mayor; normally, the Lord Mayor names and apprentices his successor, but in the case of the previous Lord Mayor before Orbius Vhalantru, no such designee had been named before his disappearance and presumed kidnapping and death.
Jenya tells all of you that the choice of a new Mayor will be the first step to returning civil order; following the announcement of a new Mayor, the calling up of a city militia will preclude the formation and recall of a new City Guard, that will restore order and protect the citizens as city services are restored.
With this, the meeting degrades into several side conversations and arguments:
- The three merchants immediately begin to argue for their choice for Mayor; Keygan supports Taskerhill, Skie supports Premiach Vanderboren and Tygot supports Aslaxin;
- Omar clearly supports Taskerhill, but spends more time entertaining himself and his nominee with stories of his physical prowess;
- Kristoff looks like a fish out of water…years of being the least powerful priest in the city has left him embittered to any political process and he dejectedly swigs wine from one of the flasks brought here by Jenya’s acolytes;
- The Striders quietly watch the deliberations and your group, as they whisper amongst themselves;
- Maavu supports Aslaxin and vehemently opposes Taskerhill
While the other nobles entertain their own conversations, Lord Aslaxin seems to be actively working the room; he eventually introduces himself to all of you and makes a competent (yet textbook) sell of why he should be nominated – because Taskerhill is going to seek the nomination and someone with ulterior motives should be opposed by someone who was reluctant to take such a position of power, but would do it for the greater good of the City *hint*…
Taking this as a cue, Magnus decides to scan the room for Evil…he notices that the only aura he detects is that of Lord Ankhin Taskerhill…
Breaking from the party, Magnus suddenly strides right up to the noble, cuts off the conversation that he was in and confronts him:
Magnus: “I don’t know what your motives are, but I do know that you are not a righteous man.”
During the unsettled pause in the room, Bruce speaks out:
“Why don’t we make the paladin Mayor? The people would follow him and gain hope from such a righteous leader.”
The sudden silence is extended for several more seconds, as everyone takes in this new nomination and adjusts to this radical new idea…
At that moment, Sapper notices, among the myriad of magical auras in the room, that a point of magic seems to float freely in the air, independent of any single item or person, nearby Lord Taskerhill – he points this out to Timmy, who casts detect Magic and sees the same point… He and Sapper come to the same conclusion –
…someone is scrying on him!
The Striders begin to sit up and notice as the room suddenly stirs back to a state of cacophony - with an added nervousness that wasn’t previously present; Bruce moves to back up Magnus, who suddenly appears to be in more danger than he may realize. They inform of the paladin of their discovery and confront Taskerhill with it; the noble appears to be completely confused – if someone was scrying on him, he seems to be unaware of it or as to why…
Almost on cue, there is a sudden appearance of a Derro, standing on one of the chamber tables – he looks disheveled and appears to be trying his best to unsuccessfully stifle giggles; he looks like a small, hunched Dwarf with pale, blue-white skin and bulging white eyes. His otherwise fine clothes are unkempt, his hair is crudely cut in no particular fashion and a long goatee hangs from his chin and lips; he clutches a dagger and plays with it as he giggles and mumbles to himself. His voice is a gaggle of grating squeaks and giggles that often erupts into spasms of hiccups.
He swings his left arm around the room and issues a command to no one in particular:
“Kill them… kill them, all!”
At this clear threat, Shonuf moves before anyone else in the room thinks of a response – he moves to a defensible spot in the room and draws his rapier; his instincts are dead-on, as the wild Derro points across the room, casts a spell and directs a thin green beam through no less than four people to reach a randomly selected target in the back corner of the room – Fario Ellegoth!
When the green ray hits him, he tenses, screams half a scream – and disintegrates before he can complete it!
At this horrible sight, you all realize who the Derro was issuing his command to – as four other Derro appear, frothing at the mouth and attacking everyone in the room!
The first one appears in front of Delvar, hacking into the flat-footed fighter with a greataxe before he can react – in three rapid swings, Delvar falls the floor, bleeding from several deep lacerations! He then tries to slash at Shonuf but misses twice, which sends him into a rage!
The second Derro appears in front of Maavu - he cuts the merchant down in three swings also! The Derro then slashes Omar Tiskensen once but misses a second time.
Grue moves and draws his sword, attacking but missing the first Derro as a third one appears amongst the merchants, cleaving a path through them – he drops Tygot in three swings and Keygan in two!
Adding to the ambush, a fourth Derro appears in the center aisle – he drops Skie in two swings and then unleashes three attacks on Plato, who fortunately survives the onslaught despite the mauling he receives!
A shocked Magnus deploys his new dancing shield and draws his sword to defend whomever is left standing, as Plato changes form into a Chimera (pushing his attacker back into the benches as he does) and Deeta casts Mirror Image; Shonuf attacks and critically hits the first Derro, but fails to hit with a second stab as the party and everyone in the chamber at large struggles to react to the sudden ambush!
The Derro leader casts again…a Fireball erupts in the back corner of the chamber where a majority of the party is – Timmy, Deeta, Ryoko, Grue, Shonuf, Kristof and Lord Aslaxin are all caught in the conflagration! When the smoke clears, Timmy, Ryoko and Lord Aslaxin lay still and smoking…
The first Derro fighter attacks Grue, hitting him with two attacks out of three, while the second one attacks Magnus, hitting once out of three times; the third Derro attacks the Plato/Chimera and drops it in two swings! The fourth Derro moves and attacks Omar Tiskensen, hitting him once…
Sapper, who was near Magnus, jumps over a low banister and attacks the spellcaster leader with his scythe, hitting him and definitely getting his attention, as Grue hits his opponent twice (once critically) out of four attacks; Bruce, who had missed the leader with his first crossbow shot, hits with his second one. Magnus activates his Divine Shield ability and hits his foe once out of two attacks, while Deeta casts Haste on herself, Grue, Shonuf, Sapper and Magnus; Omar Tiskensen, despite his attacker nearby, heroically casts Cure Critical Wounds on Maavu Arlintal…only to discover that the merchant is already dead…
The Derro leader deals with his most immediate threat, Sapper, by casting a spell at the Arcane slayer…he concentrates to avoid Sapper’s attack and casts…
Sapper’s scythe, equipment and clothing all suddenly drop to the floor – empty!
…and from out of them hops a frog!
Shonuf moves to attack the nearest Derro berserker, but his attack is fumbled - to make matters worse, he suffered an attack of opportunity as he moved into position; he is hit a second time out of three attacks, before the Derro turns his attention to Grue, dropping the fighter in two swings! The second Derro hits Magnus only once out of four tries, while the third moves to attack Omar Tiskensen as he tries to save the fallen – the priest is hit once; Bruce moves and grapples the fourth Derro before he can attack once more – despite having nearly equal strength and skill, the Derro barbarian is at a size disadvantage against the more finely-trained monk…he is grappled!
As Magnus hits his foe (once of three attacks), Deeta moves to revive Timmy, casting Cure Serious Wounds on the fallen wizard; Timmy awakens, as Shonuf recovers from his poor attack, critically hitting his foe twice out of three attacks.
The Derro leader, laughing maniacally at having turned his nearest threat into a small amphibian, turns next to Magnus, who is his next nearest target; he casts again, but the paladin not only evades the barbarian’s three attacks, he makes his save against the leader’s spell – nothing happens! The first Derro hits Shonuf twice out of three attacks and the second is faring better, dropping the heroic Omar in his first two swings and attacking the grappled Bruce with his last (but misses); despite the attacks, Bruce manages to pin his foe despite his best efforts to break free.
Timmy wakes to a nightmarish scene of carnage in one of the City’s more revered halls…he calls forth his best magic to save the day; staying prone and using the bench seats for cover, he casts a spell at the Derro leader…
The Derro leader turns into a statue of ice!
Sapper, who is still apparently a frog, has hopped free of his equipment and continues to hop towards cover away from where he may be stepped on…
M
Thank you Marc, Rippet rippet.
2/22: The Derros are dealt with, but a greater task awaits our heroes...
“Timmy Gets the Rod”
(or, “I’m a healer, not a fluffer…”)
Magnus takes advantage of the momentary disruption of the berserkers’ confusion at the loss of their leader – he critically hits his opponent twice out of three hits, but the berserker doesn’t fall; Deeta moves from Timmy to Plato, casting another cure spell to revive the shape-changed Chimera.
Shonuf, who is weakening against the fury of the attacking berserker, decides to go fully defensive until someone can help deal with him…he weathers another hit, but only one out of four attacks; the other nearby berserker, who had been shaken by Magnus, only manages one attack that hits the paladin for relatively meager damage. As his grappled and pinned comrade struggles to escape Bruce’s pin, the monk begins to issue subduing and suppressing punches and kicks to pacify the berserker, even as the last Derro attacks the monk, hitting only once out of four tries.
Timmy grabs his Orb of Force wand and activates it at the nearest Derro, who is fighting Magnus - he misses… Magnus hits his foe once, but then fumbles his next attack – however, he recovers enough to finally dispatch the Derro berserker; After receiving a second cure spell from Deeta, Plato takes revenge on the nearest Derro, biting him twice and head-butting once but missing with both claw attacks.
With Plato taking over fighting his Derro berserker, Shonuf falls back for a much needed break; he gets out a pair of healing vials and drinks them, as Timmy activates his wand again and blasts the first Derro warrior! He retaliates by hitting Plato twice out of four attacks, which slows the Chimera enough to make him miss his next attack; Bruce continues to pummel his pinned foe, but he weathers three hits from his comrade, which causes him to lose the pin. As Deeta revives Grue with a healing spell next, Magnus makes a change of tactics after dropping his opponent – he drops his sword, gets out his lance and hits the grappled Derro being fought by Bruce.
The Derro berserker fighting Plato decides to attack Deeta, blinking out one of her five mirror images, as she steps back and begins to sing a song of Inspire Courage; Timmy activates his Orb of Force wand at him, but misses, as the newly-revived Grue sees combat going on within arms reach above him and crawls away underneath seats to retrieve a healing vial.
While Bruce and the fourth Derro berserker continue to grapple, the third one tries four times in vain to hit Magnus as he continues to stab the grappled one with his lance; Plato, who is barely able to fight after getting healed, decides to throw himself into battle to try and finish off one of the berserkers – but his plan fails when his target hits him first…the Plato/Chimera falls a second time. Shonuf steps back into battle to save Plato, hitting once out of two attacks, as Timmy fires his wand again – and misses; their opponent hacks Shonuf, but not enough to drop him, as Deeta gets out her bow and fires her first shot into the attacking Derro at point blank range!
Bruce manages to finally pin his opponent for a third time, after briefly regaining his pin and losing it – he wraps his arms around his smaller opponent and at great effort, snaps the berserker’s neck…
The third Derro berserker tries to exact vengeance, but he only manages to hit the slippery monk once out of four attacks, while Magnus hits him once in return out of three attacks himself.
In the back of the chamber, Shonuf finally ends the battle of attrition, dropping the first Derro as Grue drinks a healing potion and moves to a safe area and, nearby, a manic frog hops underneath benches toward him and the rest of the group…
With the immediate area safe and only one Derro left, Timmy tries to pick him off with his wand from across the room…he misses again…
Bruce steps over to the last Derro, who tormented him while he was grappling before – but he finds that this one is a more deft wrestler; after first pinning him, the Derro berserker breaks free of both the pin and the grapple itself! But the delay caused by the monk allows Magnus to hit the last Derro twice with his lance (out of three attacks), which is immediately followed by an arrow from Deeta’s bow…
…and, finally, by a blast from Timmy’s Orb of Force wand!
In the back of the chamber, Shonuf gets out a healing vial and feeds it to the unconscious Plato/Chimera (through one of its three mouths…) as Grue drinks his own potion; once the Chimera revives, it retrieves a second potion and drink it, also.
The last Derro berserker is rocked, but Bruce tries three times and still fails to grapple him; the Derro attacks the monk, dropping him in two swings (out of four), before being hit once again by Magnus (out of three attacks) and again by Deeta (out of two bow shots). The battle ends when Shonuf rums over and critically stabs the Derro before he is able to attack again…
Magnus activates one of his healing bursts, in an attempt to save the lives of any of the fallen in the chamber that have not yet been attended to… He is saddened to see that none of them stir…they are all dead…
The party retreats from City Hall, where they are met on the street by those who fled the chambers, as well as the full surviving contingent of the Striders…but the battle is over, save for healing and dealing with the dead. Those nobles who were killed in the ambush will likely be raised from the dead, under the presumption that they will compensate the appropriate priests for their efforts; Magnus sends a personal appeal to the Temple of Kord to raise Omar Tiskensen from the dead, in light of his valiant efforts so save others while endangered himself. The merchants’ bodies will be released to their families, if any, for whatever future awaits them.
Shonuf and Sapper pilfer the Derro corpses while the dead are removed from the room; all of the loot is added to your accumulated wealth from your adventures through House Vhalantru and sold or divided up amongst all of you. Ryoko leaves the group, returning the enchanted adamantine great axe he was carrying to the party but keeping the Rod of Wonder, to fund his training to a higher level. The remaining treasure funds your intensive training activities that will occupy the next month along with your mundane activities such as armor repair, clothing and equipment replacement or repair, and the purchase of new magic items or equipment.
All of you are in training for at least three weeks, with the exception of Magnus, Bruce and Plato, who will be training for two weeks; with the costs covered, all of you seek out purchases or commissioned items of interest, and then split up to sequester yourselves in study, exercise and practice, or contemplation.
Over the next couple of weeks, a relative calm returns to Rauxes… The mass riots and looting over the previous week has driven almost half of the population out of the City and brought commerce to a standstill; merchants are fearful of bringing goods into the City and those who remain either lack the means to depart, lack a place to seek refuge outside the City, or are criminals feeding off of what is left. The previous state of the corrupt, totalitarian yet ignorant government has been supplanted by a might-makes-right anarchy, where armed gangs rule the streets and bloody fights in the open determine the distribution of wealth – only established, well-defended and obviously dangerous institutions, such as the Collegium Arcanum, the Fighter’s Guild, The Imperial Palace (obviously), most religious Temples and all holdings of the various Thieves’ Guilds escape looting or destruction. The Thieves’ Guilds are at war, fighting for the spoils of the city, but they are stretched thin to gain dominance in any new areas, since they must fight mobs of peasants in addition to the other guilds.
All centers of commerce, as well as all shops, have been looted, damaged or destroyed; prices for common goods is well above 200% of normal… Special items (such as magic items) that are not normally obtainable through open shops might still be available, but are at 150% base price before any modification.
Just above one-half of the population remains in Rauxes; it lies somewhere just below 6,000 people now. Remember this number. It is important.
During the second week of training, Rauxes is shaken by an earthquake…a fairly minor tremor, but strong enough to disturb livestock and rattle windows; it is the rarity of such events that causes concern among the populace remaining in the city.
Aside from an emergency schedule that sees priests of all faiths operating on a round-the-clock schedule without normal services, there are few who have the time or resources to divine the nature or permutations of this event - except that it is likely an ill omen related to recent events. With a constant stream of injured to attend to and growing piles of corpses in the streets, disease will be spreading within another week…there is talk that the City may soon be uninhabitable and given up to the foolhardy criminals who elect to stay behind amidst the rubble and filth – but those like Jenya Urikas are still fighting for the City and its people, despite the emergence of those who are faithful to formerly underground, Evil temples who are trying to keep the City in a constant state of anarchy and decline.
The true concern for the forces of Good in Rauxes occurs on the third day of the third week of training, when a second, stronger earthquake rattles the City and throws many people to the ground, along with several weakened buildings and many of the slums’ shacks…
Knowing that you all have stopped Vhalantru, Jenya had been hoping that the threat of the Cagewrights had been stopped or delayed –
If there was a delay, it appears to now be over…
The morning after the second earthquake – the fourth day of the third week of training – clouds begin to form over Rauxes; regardless of the weather in the surrounding areas, the clouds persist over the city, circling and growing thicker throughout the day…by evening, it is overcast and remains so throughout the night. The next morning, twilight barely breaks but no further daybreak is seen – the sun is blotted out from here on, except for the dawn and dusk…
On the sixth day of the third week – three days after the previous – a third earthquake shakes Rauxes; a majority of the slums are now rubble, while those refugees driven out seek refuge in abandoned shops, warehouses and homes left behind by those who fled the riots of three weeks ago.
The following morning, the twenty-second day since the ambush at City Hall, the last of you are completing your training; in constant twilight, you all meet for the first time in weeks and compare stories of how you each weathered the three earthquakes and what damages you witnessed…
At half past the tenth hour of the day, a fourth earthquake strikes Rauxes…
M
3/1: I would like to apologize to all readers of this thread, for this synopsis being, by far, the least colorful of any since the very first ones I wrote over two years ago; I've been pressed for time lately, and I've decided that a succinct synopsis is better than posting a partial one, or none at all...
“Magnus, You’re On In Five…”
(or, “Shonuf Has A Jerry Bruckheimer Moment”)
*With apologies to Simon, who was the only player to miss last week’s session; this week’s synopsis is severely abbreviated to allow me time to prepare for Gulf Wars, a regional SCA event held out-of-state*
The morning after you all complete your training, Jenya summons the party to the temple of St. Cuthbert and asks them to evacuate Rauxes on her behalf, while she and her priests try to divine the source of the earthquakes that are increasing in frequency and strength. She gives you a fully charged wand of Cure Moderate Wounds to aid in the evacuation efforts and bids you good luck.
The party equips and leaves for the lowest districts of the city first; you stop to pick up Shonuf’s horse at the stable and find it, surprisingly, still there.
The party cruises the chaotic streets of the Low Districts, ordering people out of the City; after encountering a hostile, panicked mob, Magnus takes charge and calms them, telling them to leave the city.
Upper story heroics ensue, after finding an unstable building with a family trapped inside; while Bruce exits with a child, Shonuf (of all people) leaves a cold-cocked dad on the stairs to retrieve a second child left behind – he gives the child to Timmy (who is hovering outside the window) and takes a ring of Feather Falling from him before retrieving the unconscious man and doing his best Bruce Willis impression, jumping out of the third-story window and floating to the ground as the building collapses behind him…
The second strong tremor of the day strikes.
The party enters the crowded streets of the Merchant Districts and orders people out of the City; after encountering another hostile, panicked mob, Magnus takes charge again and calms them, telling them all to leave the city immediately.
More heroics as the party comes across a recently collapsed stone building and Deeta hears cries from within the rubble; the party acts as a team in locating and digging out the survivors from the rubble before any of them perish.
The third strong tremor of the day strikes; weak or shoddy buildings are falling all around the city and fires are breaking out.
The party enters the Artisans’ Districts and begins to order people out of the City; they find a burning house and hear cries inside – despite smoke inhalation weakening several of you (notably Timmy and Plato, who fly into the upper floor to rescue two people), you manage to rescue all eight people inside the house without losing any to the fire. The party is having a 100% rescue rate with no casualties so far!
You all encounter a rift that has opened up across a major thoroughfare; over twenty people have fallen into the rift; using magic flight, you all manage to rescue everyone from the fissure before it closes again!
A steam vent opens in the road, scalding Deeta – the rest of you either avoid it or are not seriously burnt; Deeta is healed.
The party witnesses a building collapse from the next strong tremor; no one detects any survivors within the rubble, so you all move on…
You all enter the Middle Districts and begin to order people out of the City; while clearing the streets, you walk into the path of a stampede from a local stable! Plato’s quick thinking and sacrifice saves the party, as he changes from a Chimera into a Rhemoraz while in flight and lands in the road, his huge bulk acting as a natural barrier against the stampeding herd – they divert down alleys, part and flow around the huge monster… Plato gets bruises, but he parts the stampede around the rest of the party, saving them all from doing their best “Mufasa” impression (no pun).
A noxious steam vent opens in the road, immediately next to the party; many of you are either scalded or poisoned, but what damage there is amongst you gets healed back from the wand.
The party encounters an intersection that has become crusted in volcanic stone – underneath is a lava-filled sinkhole! The party again takes to flight to rescue the frightened bystanders that were caught within the area when the central crust buckled and collapsed; some casualties, but the party saved those who were on the outskirts of the sinkhole.
From out of a nearby lava rift appears a forty-foot tall Fire Elemental!
Details to follow…
M
3/8: A return to form for the Synopsis, at least for the time being; I'm officially one week behind, but we'll see if I catch up.
“I’ll Take Anything Wet”
(or, “I’ve gotta make the eye slits in my helmet wider”)
As the gargantuan Elemental climbs out of the nearby rift of lava, Shonuf and Delvar draw weapons and move into position past a frozen Sapper… The Elemental reaches out and attacks Magnus, grazing him as Bruce returns the attack, hitting with his kama for negligible damage as Ryoko fires two arrows and hits once – also for imperceptible damage.
Above you all, Plato partially changes form, morphing the Red Dragon head into one of a White Dragon, while Grue tumbles up to the Elemental and strikes with both weapons – he misses; Deeta casts Haste on the party, affecting everyone except Timmy, Plato and Grue, while Timmy casts his empowered, maximized Orb of Force at the elemental – blasting a large portion of it away!
Magnus quickly dismounts his new polar bear mount, Cloud, and attacks the Elemental as the bear charges it; he hits once out of four attacks, for negligible damage, as the bear weathers two attacks by the Elemental to hit with its own charging attack…
The smell of burning fur accents the urgent howls of the brave but suffering polar bear, as it fights a Fire Elemental several times larger than itself.
Shonuf tumbles next to Grue and attacks the elemental for negligible damage as Delvar and Sapper move into better positions and Bruce tumbles into a better position also and hits again; Ryoko hits with two out of three bow shots, but he doesn’t seem to be hurting the monster…
The Elemental attacks Magnus again but misses – it also attacks Shonuf, hitting him once and burning him as Grue flails at it, hitting four out of five attacks; Plato tries to muster a breath attack from his white dragon head, but he can’t do it. As Deeta casts Sonic Weapon on her bow, Timmy flies up from the road and casts Cone of Cold, hurting the Elemental for a second time; Magnus dismisses his wounded mount and attacks, hitting three out of four attacks with his lance for light damage.
Delvar is in position and attacks, hitting three out of four times for light damage as Bruce and Grue tumble and attack again - both for a miss; Shonuf, Magnus, Deeta and Ryoko all move to new positions, but also miss their respective attacks.
The Fire Elemental springs to one side and attacks Delvar, taking an attack of opportunity to do so – it hits the fighter and burns him as it repositions itself next to a building…
Hovering over the party, Plato tries to breathe frost again…he fails; Timmy gets out his trusty wand and sends another Orb of Force into the Elemental, blasting another large area of it away.
While the party pursues the elemental to its new position, it attacks Bruce and Grue as the party advances, hitting both of them; but Bruce returns the attacks, hitting twice out of four tries – he destroys the Elemental!
The streets are safe once again; the party assesses its health, applies some healing spells from the wand, and moves on to the last areas of Rauxes to complete the evacuation.
You all enter the last unsearched districts – those that surround the Palace; you search any building still standing and order any people you see still on the streets out of the City. The only other people you see at this point are apparent Samaritans and fellow Good-aligned adventurers who are spreading word themselves to flee Rauxes.
From the Imperial Palace of the Undying Overking, there is an unsettling silence, as if the very building and its inhabitants were immune from the increasingly perilous earthquakes; while cracks have appeared on several outer walls, the structure itself is still standing…no activity takes place in or around it and people nearby make no effort to approach neither with warnings nor assistance…
Several new rifts open in the street around you; travel is becoming dangerous, as most streets are by now partially cut by a rift – some spew noxious gases, some contain lava, some open and close on themselves…
Ahead of you, Deeta sees the ground begin to swell; she warns the group – and they don’t take long to heed the warning… As you all take cover in and around nearby ruins and rubble, Plato and Timmy fly away and upwards just in time to avoid a huge explosion of gas from the area ahead that litters the surrounding area with stones, dirt and rubble, leaving behind a sizeable crater in what used to be a wide street.
No one in the party is hurt, but a pit in your stomach appears when you look out at the dozen or so bodies that are strewn around the crater…
In the midst of heroism, a moment of cowardice?
*DM Note: I actually omitted the details about there being many civilians present around the blast area, so they were unaware of the public danger; I disregarded the encounter, granting no evacuation points and moving on to a different one.)
The crackling lightning and thunder in the skies has grown more frequent and regular to the point that you all have grown to ignore it; but, in one moment, your attention returns, as suddenly and without warning, a body tumbles out of the sky, landing with a wet thump in the middle of the street and splattering a large area around it with a copious spray of thick, black sludge!
The creature is humanoid, about seven feet tall with overly long limbs and a deformed, oblong head; its skin secretes more of the tar-like ooze, even as the body shudders and then lies still.
As those of you with any knowledge ponder the origin of the creature, you notice that others are appearing in the sky at random locations and heights, emerging from crackling points of lightning; first a few, then several, and now a steady drizzle, you see similar creatures tumbling out of the sky from varying elevations and crashing through roofs, glancing off of statues or walls, or simply thudding into the street. It doesn’t take long to determine that these creatures are outsiders – and that they are likely the first wave of Demodands to appear directly from Carceri…
All of you can see in the road ahead that whatever creatures survive the fall are trying to consolidate and defend themselves in groups, so as to maintain their beachhead on the Prime Material Plane; seeing you, they all try to summon more of their kind, even as you rush forward to stop them.
Plato, Delvar, Shonuf and Grue begin to advance (Plato by air), Bruce moves to the nearest one and attacks it (he misses) and Sapper activates his Spell Turning ability as he moves forward; Deeta casts Mirror Image, Magnus casts Summon Mount to call back a newly healed Cloud and Timmy holds out his new rod of Lesser Empower while casting Lightning Bolt at one of the Demodands – however, the lightning fails to penetrate the Demodands spell resistance!
As Shonuf moves in double time, Bruce moves and fires his crossbow and misses, as Deeta gets out a wand of bull’s Strength and announces her availability to the others…
One of the Demodands casts a ray at Bruce, bit it misses; a second one hits Sapper with a ray, but the Arcane-Slayer turns the ray back at the Demodand, which groans at being hit by it’s own attack! Sapper moves up to capitalize on the moment, but his attack misses. Timmy uses his Orb of force wand at his target, but his orb misses and blasts the nearby rubble! The other two Demodands cast rays at Ryoko and Magnus, with both of them being hit – they lose strength!
Delvar and Magnus both charge their targets – one on foot, the other mounted on his polar bear; Delvar hits, but Magnus misses. Focusing his attention, Plato flies towards another Demodand and successfully breathes a cone of frost for the first time, coating his target in a white dusting of frost!
Grue, fully engaged with her foe, hits with one attack for no discernable damage; his off-hand attack is deflected into the rubble strewn ground, where the fighter breaks his kukri against a stone!
As Plato slowly flies to his next target and recharges his breath weapon, Delvar waits for a target and Deeta moves closer to the fighting to use her wand on anyone who needs a boost; Shonuf tumbles to the flank of a Demodand and sneak attacks it – but he misses! The hard-pressed and already injured Demodand casts a spell – and disappears!
Missing a second shot with his crossbow, Bruce changes tactics and drops it in favor of a pair of kamas as he waits for an opportunity to attack – but his intended target also casts a spell and turns invisible! Sapper, who can see the magical auras of their spells, continues to attack, but misses twice, as Timmy tries to prevent a third from escaping by casting Evard’s Black Tentacles around it! The Demodand is fighting the tentacles and slowly moving toward the far side of the area of the spell effect, but Magnus dismounts and sends his bear into the tentacles to pursue, even as he runs to follow.
Grue, whose target went invisible, listens intently and swings his sword in wide arcs where he hears movement; out of sheer luck, he connects – a disembodied head falls to the ground, followed by a now visible corpse that lacks a head!
Shonuf adopts Grue’s attack strategy, listening for his invisible foe as Deeta and Delvar move closer for safety and Grue moves closer to Sapper, who is still attacking the magical aura that he can see (but misses); as Plato lands to support the pursuit on the ground, Timmy flies toward the last visible Demodand in the black tentacles and hits it with an Orb of Force from out of his wand, causing it to drop into the tentacles and be crushed to death. Magnus helps his bear out of the tentacles and they move back to search the first Demodand that was killed.
A game of cat and mouse breaks out, as Grue, Bruce and Plato still themselves and look for signs of their foe, Deeta holds her place behind them for support and Shonuf attacks an area he heard movement in…he connects once out of two attacks, just as he hears the Demodand cast a spell, which is followed by the appearance of a cloud of thick fog!
Timmy gets out one of his spellbooks and casts Dispel Magic, but he fails to dispel the fog; Sapper tries to find the magical aura in the fog but loses track of it – however, Delvar fights on, blindly, swinging on air.
Magnus and his polar bear look down on the dead Demodand and contemplate the task that they face ahead of them, that might very well be their last mission in the service of Good…
*To be continued*
M
3/15: Almost two weeks late posting this, but hey - it's here, alright...
“Pop goes The Deeta”
(or, “The three-headed Yak”)
Bruce, Deeta, Sapper, Delvar listen intently in the fog, as Plato spreads his wings and moves toward them in the hopes if flushing their quarry toward his comrades; Timmy watches from behind them but sees nothing – Shonuf stabs at where he heard something, but hits nothing but air. Magnus, finished with inspecting his first kill, quickly mounts his Polar Bear and gallops to the last fight…
A voice breaks the forced stillness – a spell is cast! Shonuf, Deeta and Grue are gripped with fear – they flee in all directions!
Bruce tries to stop Deeta as she runs past, but he grabs one of her Mirror Images instead –
*pop!*
As Magnus begins to Detect Evil and his bear sniffs the air for a trace of scent, Plato charges through the fog but finds nothing, as Delvar and Sapper appear in front of the Chimera and the three of them shrug; Timmy flies closer to the action, but he still sees nothing.
Bruce is jogging behind the fleeing Kobold, easily outpacing the small bard; he tries to grab her again –
*pop!*
There are five Deetas left.
Timmy hears casting again – the Fear spell is repeated…but fortunately, no one else is affected; he casts Arcane sight and sees the magic aura of the hidden demodand!
Sapper hears and sees nothing in the fog…Delvar swings for a sound, but misses badly and almost throws his great sword; Plato hears something and attacks towards it – his ram horn connects with something! Timmy is now directing the party to attack near where Plato is, but the invisible Demodand is now trying to flee…the mage fires and Orb of Force out of his wand, but he misses and instead blasts a divot of dirt out of the ground.
Bruce grabs at the panicked Deeta again – he grabs the real one, picking up the struggling Kobold and holding her fast!
Timmy tracks the fleeing Demodand as it clears the party and makes for open ground – he casts Fireball, enveloping it completely!
The charred corpse appears in the street, once the smoke clears.
The fight didn’t tax the group too severely, so you all drink a healing vial or two and move on…
You travel several city blocks as you scout for any remaining citizens to evacuate; the streets are appearing more decidedly empty now and your workload has grown light – there are only a few buildings to check now, before leaving the city yourselves.
Some of you begin to make out a voice above the rumbling of the ground and the crackling in the sky – commands being barked in a deep, thickly-accented voice…
As you enter the next intersection, you can see what is issuing the commands:
An immensely obese creature flies in lazy circles, on bat-like wings that seem far too small to support its great bulk; its leathery skin is knobby, rough and coated in a pale green slime and its bloated face is demonic and hateful. It barks out orders in thick, phlegm-filled phrases to a small crowd of cowering peasants huddled below it; they root through the rubble of a fallen building, taking intact stones and placing them in the street atop each other as if building some sort of structure.
While the plan of action is clear to most of your group, stealth has never been a strong point in your collective talents – it sees you and takes action…
As you organize to attack, you all see the Demodand summon a second one of these creatures, which then appears next to it!
Bruce is cautious – he tries to discern the Demodand’s motives as all of you advance on the scene; this Demodand is trying to build the first new Carcerian prison in the Prime Material Plane!
All of you advance and draw weapons; Shonuf loads his bow and holds fire, but Delvar fires and hits for indiscernible damage… Sapper activates his spell turning ability and Deeta sings a song of Flying, allowing Magnus to charge the Demodands in the air; shaking off the effects of the Demodands’ stench, Magnus still misses with his charging lance, but the bear hits – Plato flies in and charges also, but he is stopped by the stench and he turns away, all three of his Chimera heads – Dragon, Lion and Ram – begin retching!
As the workers continue to toil below, the second, summoned Demodand waves its hands and disappears!
Seeing the effect of the Demodand on the Plato/Chimera, Bruce pauses, tears a small strip of fabric from his robe and stuffs pieces of them into his nostrils, as Shonuf runs up to the cowered peasants and directs them to flee…unfortunately, they are fear-stricken of the Demodand and hesitate to obey, even as it grapples with Magnus’ Polar Bear mount overhead.
Sapper scans the air for the disappeared Demodand, but Timmy – who still has his Arcane Sight spell in effect from the previous combat - can still see its magical aura; the mage casts a second Spell Vulnerability as he flies after it – and it works! Delvar and Deeta magically fly toward the battle as the nauseated Plato retreats from it; Magnus quickly dismounts from Cloud and steps back, stabbing the first Demodand twice with his lance as the bear pins it!
The invisible Demodand casts a spell…Timmy can’t see its hands clearly, so he can’t tell what is cast until it’s too late – a dart materializes in front of the Demodand as it appears, streaking toward the mage and striking him in the chest, before bursting into a foamy, acidic mass!
*Pop – Fshhhhhhhhh…* “AAAAAGH!*
The first Demodand is struggling to fight the Polar Bear – even now the bear has it pinned, as Magnus and Sapper coax the peasants below them to flee; Grue takes a more direct approach, grabbing and pushing people away from the area as he barks out orders to obey or risk death. Between the three of them, the group of peasants is breaking up – they realize that their captors are too busy to deal with them, so they begin to scatter in all directions!
Shonuf fires two arrows at the newly-visible second Demodand, but he misses both shots, as Delvar charges up into the sky but also misses; Plato and Deeta are airborne and keeping a safe distance from the fighting, as Timmy casts Disintegrate on the second Demodand, which elicits a huge scream of pain! It tries to cast a spell on Magnus, but fails to achieve any effect that will save its partner, who is gruesomely dispatched in the clutches of the Polar Bear, Cloud, seconds later…
The tide of the battle is with the party now, as Deeta, Plato, Grue and Sapper secure the perimeter and watch the remaining civilians clear the area, while Shonuf fires another pair of arrows and misses; Bruce, his nose protected against the stench, now charges the second Demodand and hits for imperceptible damage, as Magnus turns and stabs it with his lance once before fumbling his next attack. As Delvar and Cloud fly down to the safety of the ground, Timmy casts Hold Monster on the Demodand but fails to affect it - it immediately casts Invisibility again to escape!
Both Magnus and Bruce, who are in combat with the Demodand, attack the area in the hopes of hitting it blindly – they fail; Shonuf continues to fire arrows but he misses, also. Timmy, however, still has Arcane Sight and can make out the creature hiding behind its magical aura…he casts Hold Monster again and freezes the Demodand in flight – it falls almost seventy feet to the ground and lands with a heavy, if unseen, thud!
Grue and Delvar run up to where a cloud of dust and splattered slime marks the spot where the Demodand fell – but they are unable to find the creature for a killing blow; Bruce lands to help, but he also fails to locate the abomination… Shonuf, however, stumbles across a limb and strikes for where its head should be with his rapier – the grunt and sudden stillness tells you that the Demodand is finally dead.
After looking over the corpses for valuables, you join the rest of the people of Rauxes in evacuating the city; leaving from the north road, you rejoin Jenya Urikas and her acolytes, who have taken refuge in a large house outside the city…
M
EDIT TO THE ABOVE POST: The last paragraph was added in error; the party has not fully exited the city yet.
My apologies for the inconsistency; there will be others to follow (more on that later).
M
There have been minor changes at the table - one player has left and two have been on and off the past few weeks (if you haven't noticed by the synopses themselves); one character was dropped and the other gets run by the player's buddy when he's not here for medical reasons.
At this point, the adventuring group currently consists of:
- Magnus (Human Saint Paladin11, LG): Protector of the weak and pious servant of Heironeus
- Bruce (Human Monk11, LG): An associate of Magnus who serves Heironeus
- Timmy (Human Wizard11, NG): An associate of Magnus
- Grue (Human Fighter11, CG): Originally a partner of Renard(who was killed in Karran-Kural), who now fights for the cause of Good
- Sapper (Human Fighter5/Occult Slayer6, NG): A professional Wizard hunter recruited by Good priests to assist Magnus
- Shonuf (Human Rogue11, CG): Originally a partner of Renard, who now fights for the cause of Good (and profit)
- Deeta (Kobold Bard7/Dragonsong Lyrist4, CG): Traveller/adventurer hired by the Good churches of Rauxes to assist Magnus
- Plato (Human Shapeshifter 11, CG): Professional adventurer/traveler and partner of Deeta
- Delvar (Human Fighter 10, CG): A recently-independent adventurer who joined the party as a result of the crisis in Rauxes
Thanks - keep on reading!
M
3/22: The Climactic battle of "Foundation of Flame" flames out!
- Read on...
“Your Mother Was A Kobold! – Hey!”
(or, “I Hope You Live A (whole) Round”)
After helping or warning most of the population of Rauxes to move out of the city due to the constant tremors and subsequent dangers of collapsing buildings and fires, all of you begin to exit the city yourselves; except to scan the near-empty streets for looters of other criminals who might take advantage of the chaos, you are now evacuating yourselves.
Flashes in the sky amongst the lightning and thunder indicate that Demodands of several varieties are still falling literally out of the sky, but even after destroying several, you come to the realization that staying in the city to fight them as they arrive would almost certainly be suicide…
You all make your way towards the North Gate, weaving around fissures that have opened in the street and bracing yourselves against fallen piles of stone with each tremor that occurs; in double the time it usually takes to reach the gate, you eventually clear the Old Wall through the North Gate and pass into the more spread out buildings of the small townlets that surround each gate that stretch out for more than a mile as the number of buildings gradually thin into rows of farm houses and cattle ranches.
Having cleared the outer wall of the city, you can look back and see the circling clouds that sparkle and flash around the center of Rauxes…each third or fourth flash produces a small black dot that either falls groundward or drifts slowly towards the buildings…
…But as you turn back and look northward, you see that something else has broken through the low cloud cover, in an area farther away that doesn’t circle the city; this is no dot – it is much larger…and headed towards Rauxes…in a straight line.
As the creature passes through one of the few shafts of sunlight that still penetrates the thick cloud cover, you can see glints of blood red through the semi-translucent skin of its wings – the scales glint like garnets as it turns in the light…
…a Red Dragon!
For the first time, the party reacts to a new threat in a completely unexpected fashion: a single, long moment of stunned silence…which eventually ends, with the pronouncements of several expletives.
As it approaches the city, you can see that it is scanning the ground with its eyes, although what it seeks is beyond your reasoning; what you can tell, though, is that it appears to see you – since it turns in your direction and is now headed directly for your group!
Fear courses through the group as the range begins to rapidly close – the Dragon is diving gradually and approaching at a high rate of speed; a sudden urgency emerges – Timmy casts Fly, Cat’s Grace and Shield on himself in rapid succession, as Magnus casts Bless on the party.
The Dragon is closing range fast – At Magnus’ urging, Timmy casts Fly on his mount, cloud… As all of you begin to scatter for cover, everyone except the monk and the paladin is shaken from the Dragon’s fearsome charge!
The Dragon draws near – Shonuf runs for the nearest rubbled building to hide, as does Bruce, Sapper and Deeta; Delvar nervously stands his ground, as Grue moves toward Magnus and Plato flies above him, changing his Red dragon head into a White one as he does.
The Dragon attacks!
Flying just above the party, the Dragon dives toward Timmy (who had been taunting the Dragon as it approached) and snatches him up in one of his front claws! At the same moment, it turns its head and breathes fire onto Magnus and his summoned Polar Bear mount, catching Delvar in the cone far behind!
While the paladin, his mount and Delvar are not fried where they stand, the three of them are left smoking and staggered! Magnus activates his Divine Shield and casts Heal Mount on Cloud as it flies up, bearing them both sixty feet vertically up into the air.
Timmy, not losing his cool, casts Dimension Door from the clutches of the Dragon, disappearing from its grip and reappearing on the ground below!
The roar that he hears from the ground tells him that this isn’t over yet…
Shonuf, Bruce and Grue take up defensible positions amongst destroyed buildings, as Deeta gets out a wand and casts Invisibility on herself and Sapper activates his spell turning ability; Delvar retreats behind another fallen wall and gets out a healing vial. Plato climbs steeply to intercept the Dragon, but he can’t keep up with its high speed – it flies over Delvar, slapping him with its tail and sending the fighter careening into the wall behind him…he falls to the ground like a sack of swag – the miraculously unbroken vial still in his hands!
From the relative cover of a rubbled building, Timmy grabs his Rob of Lesser Empower and casts Orb of Force at the Dragon – he hits, eliciting a horrible roar from the Dragon as he blows several scales off of its hide! The mage then makes sure to move from his firing position to a different spot that is similarly well-concealed…
Magnus casts Divine Power on himself in preparation for engaging the Dragon, as Cloud continues to fly straight up to gain more height – they are now over one hundred feet in the sky…
Grue jumps over shattered stones and splintered lumber to reach Delvar – he sees the vial in the stricken fighter’s hand and pours it down the fighter’s throat, which is enough to revive him; Sapper, Bruce and Shonuf look on, as an unseen Deeta begins to sing a Song of Inspire Courage.
Plato is still flying up, climbing to meet Magnus, who lays hands on himself as he continues to climb to one hundred eighty feet high; receding into the distance, the Dragon has begun a wide turn to the left – he turns his head back toward you, and a volley of Magic Missiles streaks back, pummeling the Plato/chimera!
Sapper, while still shaken, is now gilded for a fight – he begins to taunt the Dragon as it turns back toward the group…
Timmy emerges from his new hiding place and casts Orb of Force a second time, again through the Metamagic Rod – and again, he torments the Dragon with a huge blast that shakes it as it comes around…
The dragon is completing its turn…most of the party is an audience at this point, watching Magnus and Plato far overhead as they move to intercept the approaching Dragon from above and Timmy continues to engage it with magic from the ground; Deeta continues to invisibly Inspire Courage, though no one considers the oxymoron of the situation…
The Plato/chimera charges the Dragon first, weathering a brutal bite from the Dragon to do so – he hits, returning a vicious bite of his own; but the Dragon flies past Plato, making a flyby attack as it does and biting the chimera again and leaving Plato hurt and spiraling for the ground as it pulls into a steep climb to meet Magnus next…
…but the paladin has been waiting for this moment…
As Magnus dives into a charge, Timmy casts his final Orb of Force spell through the Metamagic Rod and critically hits the Dragon, matching the damage of the previous two spells combined! As the Dragon rears its head in pain, Magnus deeply impales it with his lance on a diving mounted charge, matching Timmy’s damage! Cloud’s charging attack that follows up the lance finishes off the Dragon – it falls out of the sky, passing Plato as he painfully descends to land, and impacts the ground in a thunderous crash of flesh, bone and scales!
All of you circle the steaming mess that was the Dragon…nearby witnesses and other bystanders run to join in the gawking at such a sight – the bringing down of such a legendary monster is going to be the talk of the region for generations…if all of you weren’t famous yet, you are now.
M
CORRECTION: The synopses from 3/15 on have been mis-dated; I was at an SCA event that week, but the synopsis dates were not corrected for the skipped session.
- The 3/15 Synopsis is actually for the 3/22 session - subsequently...
- The 3/22 Synopsis is for the 3/29 session...
The next posted synopsis will be for the 4/5 session.
Sorry for the confusion,
M
4/5/2006: The party is now 12th level – and the dangers are getting greater… The party leader falls…
“Magnus’ Requiem”
(or, “I just wanted to see if it would go off again…”)
After your Dragon-slaying heroics in front of several dozen witnesses, there is little likelihood of your ever going unnoticed in Rauxes ever again – presuming, of, course, that the city survives its current crisis.
Despite the events unfolding over the past couple of days, you all are mobbed by onlookers and awed groupies as you try to remain focused on the task at hand; Magnus placates the crowd, which hangs on his every word, as he deftly moves away from the Dragon’s corpse so that Timmy can fill a couple of wetbags with untainted and unspilled blood before it all seeps into the ground. The rest of the party joins with the growing throng of those who curiously pick at the broken corpse – they shoo off treasure-seekers and others who get too close to the party for comfort, as they pry scales and teeth out as personal mementos of the occasion.
Away from the party, anyone else in the possession of a knife or any other bladed object is in the process of prying off scales or any other bits that can be carried away.
After eventually escaping the circus atmosphere that begins to brew around the fallen Dragon formerly known as Hookface (which takes no less than two hours, even despite the constant tremors that shakes people into nervous curiosity rather than outright celebration), you all make your way out of the city proper and to a large farm house on the side of the road that has become the new home of the Temple of St. Cuthbert; it seems to lie outside of the most destructive reach of the tremors’ effects, as the intensity seems to decrease sharply the farther away from the city you get. The farm has been transformed into a refugee camp, with hundreds of injured and displaced peasants, who lack beasts of burden or wheeled transport, making impromptu campsites all over the property and along the sides of any intact building; the acolytes and faithful minister and tend to a suddenly swelling mass of believers and those in need.
For the next three weeks, all of you will be training, contemplating, studying, or a combination of all three as the tremors in the near distance slowly subside in intensity; while the frequency of them remains constant and many pillars of smoke, steam and ash can be seen rising from the shattered city on the horizon, the strength of the tremors appears to be muted and constant – more like regular aftershocks than earthquakes themselves.
For the most part, you rely on Jenya for shelter (she allots you a corner of the barn to live, while the house has become a hospital for the seriously injured) and food (volunteers hunt nearby woods and peasants work new fields farther out from the city, as well as forage for edibles); the farm’s well is pumped around the clock to supply fresh water for all, but even so, filth is beginning to accumulate in ditches and gullies around the property.
Being adventurers, you are no stranger to camping or rationing your food, but guaranteeing the security of your possessions is more difficult that usual; more often than not, the occasional scaring or punishment of a sticky-fingered youth is required to remind those around you of the danger of crossing your party. Sometimes, mob rule keeps you safe, due to your newfound status as local celebrities; one potential thief in the refugee camp was lynched in your honor – something that Magnus and Bruce found abhorrent but were too late to prevent…
The third week of your respective training finds the year coming to a close with the NeedFeast – seven days of revelry and reflection; this year, the festival will be very different, with the atmosphere in the refugee camp being subdued, at best… A smaller “Mummering” costume festival still takes place, but an underlying sense of foreboding and general nervousness eats away at any attempts at festivity.
On the last day of your training, a meeting is called by Jenya to be held, ironically, the next day during the ‘Feast of Unreason’…a point that doesn’t go unnoticed by the High Priestess of St. Cuthbert as she receives you in a tent by the side of the house. She is disheveled and weary, but she is still leading the efforts to aid the refugees as much as possible.
(DM Note: The full conversation of the meeting is extensive and will not be included here, since all players were in attendance and know what transpired. Anyone who is familiar with the material can surmise the bulk of the discussion.)
To facilitate your entry to the city, Jenya gives you a scroll of Teleport; Timmy, knowing the full value of this level of scroll, saves it and casts teleport out of his head to get the party into the city. In the usual manner, some of you take a short ride in a Bag of Holding, while others will teleport with Timmy.
You all find yourselves in a sewer tunnel, somewhere underground; you stand in front of a side tunnel that is blocked by a thick, iron portcullis, yet breached on one side by a short tunnel that curves around it and into the tunnel beyond. The party spell casters determine that this breach is artificial and the work of a spell resembling Stone Shape, disintegrate or Passwall. Using the detour, you all proceed on. Magnus, using darkvision, takes the lead far in front of the rest of you to avoid your torchlight.
The party marches in a straight, level tunnel for approximately one hour, before it dips and enters some kind of underground chamber where the water pools and drains off some thirty feet below you; a ledge at your entrance connects to a second tunnel on the far end of the room.
Shortly after entering the second, dry tunnel, you can see that the walls and arched roof are scorched (Magnus missed this detail); some ten yards beyond this, Magnus sees irregular shapes breaking smooth lines of the floor and the trickle of water that winds down the center of it… As the torch bearers reach the area, you see that they are the scorched, moldered remains of corpses!
Cursory searching by Shonuf abd scanning for magic by Sapper reveals that one of the corpses has a vial on a thin chain around its neck; Shonuf retrieves the vial and discovers a bronze medallion on what’s left of the clothing – they were members of the Stormblades!
The paladin shakes his head…
“Fools…If they had only asked for our help…”
Taking the vial, you all move on.
The tunnel is generally straight, but it descends at a fairly steep angle; it continues on like this for several miles… Progress is slow, due to the angle of the tunnel, the unsure footing and the presence of rubble generated by the constant tremors. Approximately two hours total after you entered the tunnel from the sewers, you see an obstacle ahead – a large, black iron gate fifteen feet high and almost ten feet wide that is emblazoned with an iron symbol that you’ve come to know as the Carcerian Eye.
A twisted, leering visage sculpted from the same metal adorns the lintel over the gate, near where the widened tunnel meets the ceiling; the face seems both serene and entirely insane, if that is possible…the race and gender of the face cannot be determined, but the eyes have both been stylized into symbols of the Carcerian Eye.
Magnus and Shonuf decide to investigate the gate after Sapper scans it and confirms that it is, to your chagrin, enchanted heavily with several overlapping auras; they slowly approach so that the rogue can determine the threat and hopefully disarm it…
As the Rogue and Paladin reach three paces from the gate, Shonuf sees the eyes flash – green rays fire from each eye, striking both Magnus and himself with searing bolts of energy that cause the both of them to simultaneously scream out in pain! Shonuf immediately retreats, but Magnus doesn’t – he has a hunch that the trap, now sprung, is dispelled… Relying on his natural healing ability to rejuvenate him over the next few moments, he steps forward again…
The Paladin is proven horribly wrong – the eyes fire a second pair of rays, both of which hit him and leave him clutching at several deep wounds where his flesh has been disintegrated! However, Magnus has reached the gate – hoping that the trap is triggered by movement, he waits…for his fast healing ability to ease the pain - and for his hopes to be true…
…But Saint Magnus has ventured into an area where Heironeous cannot hear his prayers…
The gate’s guardian visage fires a third pair of rays straight down onto the wounded Saint – one hits Magnus in the torso, the other hits him in the head…
Saint Magnus the Protector is disintegrated – his plate armor, dusted with a fine powder that used to be the Paladin of Heironeous, falls to the ground along with the rest of his equipment!
The party looks in shocked silence at the now inert gate, as darkness reclaims the area where the Paladin’s celestial light used to shine and pushes inward on your feeble torchlight; several moments pass, as the horror of the moment begins to sink in.
Timmy solemnly casts Mage Hand…he draws Magnus’ possessions back to the party, bit by bit, before they are divided amongst the remaining party members, either to be put to use or carried back to the surface.
However, your grieving is cut short – when suddenly, another half-Celestial appears in your midst, illuminating the area once again in celestial light!
Your visitor introduces himself as Orion, warrior bard and servant of Heironeous…as he continues his prepared greeting, you all notice that he is standing approximately where Shonuf was hit by the gate trap’s first ray! Orion is at first befuddled when all of you suddenly start yelling and reaching out for him to move over to where they are…when he is promptly stung in the ass by a Disintegrate ray from the gate trap, he quickly understands and complies with your urgent requests!
After completing his introductions to all of you (and massaging his severely burned posterior, even as it rapidly heals), he informs all of you that he is here to watch over you as Magnus’ replacement is called for…
…The group finds this development interesting, to say the least; the forces of Good are taking notice of this crisis, after all…
Timmy decides that it is time to move on; he casts Knock on the gate to open it and suggests that several party members ride in Bags of Holding as they bypass the trap with spells. There is immediate agreement. Volunteers get into enchanted sacks and then the mage casts Dimension Door, taking the party past the gate several dozen feet into the tunnel beyond.
After fifty feet, it angles to the right and splits off into two tunnels – one goes straight and the other to the right, where it dead-ends; you decide to move on, but Timmy stops and asks Shonuf to scout the tunnel, just in case…
The sharp-eyed rogue finds that the end of the tunnel is actually blocked by a well-camouflaged curtain!
After the party forms up behind him – and no one volunteers to draw the curtain – Shonuf boldly pulls the curtain aside himself; he reveals a cave beyond that is some kind of living quarters… Odd, uncomfortable pieces of furniture lie around the cave, including several long, narrow beds, bizarre statuary and disturbingly abstract paintings; adding to the surreal scene is a thick layer of black, viscous goo that is either coating or heavily splattered over everything here, to the point of forming puddles on the floor.
Plato turns into a gargoyle and Timmy cast Fly earlier, so they both slowly fly into the cave towards several holes in the left wall they wish to investigate…but when Plato nears the left wall, a creature, hiding behind a piece of furniture and covered in the same black goo, leaps up and grabs the Plato/Gargoyle by the legs, dragging him down and grappling him as it tears into his stone-colored flesh!
Ambushed, the Plato/Gargoyle is quickly grappled and pinned by the sticky Demodand – the type of whom you’ve encountered before… A second one leaps from behind a different piece of furniture and grabs onto Timmy, who hovers nearby – it grapples him also, managing to pin the mage and wrest his invaluable Orb of Force Wand from his hand! Shonuf darts into action, but he doesn’t see a third Demodand hiding on his side of the entrance – it dives on him and grapples him, too!
Orion breaks into an Angelic song that resonates throughout the cave – a sound that is so pure that you can almost see the viscous goo throughout the cave quiver and recoil from the harmonies, as all of you feel strengthened and emboldened; Bruce runs into the cave and tries to break into the grapple that Timmy is in, but despite the bolstering effect of Orion, the Demodand shakes him off and continues to pin the mage.
Plato, however, has another strategy… He immediately changes shape into a twelve-headed Hydra, pushing the surprised Demodand off of him with several of his new heads and backing up Bruce against the cave wall, where he slips onto the floor to avoid getting crushed by the growing mass of the Hydra! The Plato/Hydra wastes no time in attacking Shonuf’s assailant with four of his remaining heads, which tear the hapless Demodand to pieces; the last four heads attack the other Demodand that pins Timmy – they promptly kill it also and free the mage, who lands in the muck and then pries his wand off of the dead, dismembered Demodand. The third Demodand tries to summon more companions for aid - it fails.
The rest of the party stands outside of the slimed room and watches, slack-jawed, as the Plato/Hydra moves out into the room to attack the horrified Demodands that remain… Shonuf attacks the next nearest Demodand, hitting it once, but is grappled by it in return as, just outside the cave, Orion flies up to the top of the curtain and pulls it aside so he can get a clear line of fire with his bow; firing above and through a dozen Hydra heads, he hits the Demodand in front of the Plato/Hydra twice – before six heads tear it limb from limb. Timmy hits the one on Shonuf with a salvo of Magic Missiles, successfully penetrating its magic resistance, while the rogue struggles to free himself from its sticky grasp; Shonuf doesn’t have to fight it for long, as the Plato/Hydra pulls the Demodand off of him and rips him into large chunks moments later.
All of you look at the Plato/Hydra in amazement, as the dozen heads look at each other in a contented manner; after scanning the room for valuables (not likely), to regroup in the hallway and move on…
M
With the passing of the party leader, the adventuring group now consists of:
- Orion (half-Celestial Human Bard 11, LG): Servant and low-level military officer of Heironeus
- Bruce (Human Monk12, LG): A former associate of Saint Magnus who serves Heironeus
- Timmy (Human Wizard12, NG): A former associate of Saint Magnus
- Grue (Human Fighter12, CG): Joined Saint Magnus' group for this adventure along with Shonuf
- Sapper (Human Fighter5/Occult Slayer7, NG): A professional Wizard hunter recruited by Good priests to assist Magnus
- Shonuf (Human Rogue12, CG): Joined Saint Magnus' group for this adventure (and for profit) along with Grue
- Deeta (Kobold Bard7/Dragonsong Lyrist5, CG): Traveller/adventurer hired by the Good churches of Rauxes to assist Magnus
- Plato (Human Shapeshifter 12, CG): Professional adventurer/traveler and partner of Deeta
- Delvar (Human Fighter 12, CG): A recently-independent adventurer who joined the party as a result of the crisis in Rauxes
Thanks - keep on reading!
M
4/12/06: After losing the Paladin and gaining a different Celestial, the party moves on, to bigger dangers...
“Get Yer Ass Back In The Closet!”
(or, “You need to do something with his big thing…”)
The group is extracting itself from the sticky mess that is this cave; as you reassemble in the tunnel and scrape black goo off your boots, Orion makes an announcement:
“You all are safe; it is time for me to go.”
The stunned, blank stares from everyone prompt an explanation.
“I was sent here by Heironeous to ensure your safety until Magnus’s replacement can arrive; where we currently are is enchanted against transport magics, so I must leave you before you venture further.”
Timmy: “At least we’ve got the attention of a Good power… We thought that you were the replacement.”
Orion: “I’m just a soldier in the army of Heironeous; the one that will be sent is of more use to you. Know that you are being watched and that the hopes of your people go with you.”
The half-Celestial looks up to where a new point of light has begun to form; it grows brighter than his own Celestial light and fills the tunnel with pure, white light… He spreads his wings and flies straight up into it – he disappears and is replaced by another half-Celestial who stands in his place…
“I am Dorian, a high priest in the service of Heironeous; I’m here to ensure your safety while you confront the dangers that await you.”
No one looks very excited about hearing the word Danger.
The priest offers to enchant any one person with a spell that will grant them the same holy illumination that he has; the party volunteers Bruce as the most qualified to have it, so the priest casts and the monk begins to glow with the same bright light – there are now two intense light sources in the party, aside from the single everburning torch being carried. Plato changes shape from a Hydra into a Gargoyle, in order to allow the party room to navigate in the ten-foot wide tunnel; you’re ready to move on.
Looking down the cave tunnel as you advance, you find that it curves to the right and dead-ends; knowing how the previous cave was concealed, Shonuf proceeds cautiously to the end of the tunnel – where he finds another well-camouflaged curtain blocking the entrance to another cave… Knowing how entering the first cave turned out, he waits for everyone to take positions behind him before pulling the curtain to one side and confronting the flanks of the cave beyond…where they find no one.
This cave is identical in every way except dimensions to the previous one – this cave is more evenly round and slightly larger; there are also three small holes on both the left and right sides of this cave, not just one side as in the first. The rogue slowly searches along the cave wall, starting on his right and working around the entire perimeter of the room, as the rest of the party either flies behind him or covers him from the entrance.; over twenty minutes later, Shonuf declares the room clear, while Sapper reports that there are no magic auras in here that might be concealing anyone or anything.
Timmy isn’t convinced that the rogue was thorough enough in certain spots; he asks Shonuf to try again in the back of the cave…
Shonuf finds a secret door in a crevasse in the rock that he had previously overlooked! Taking careful time to search the door for traps, he finds that the door is not locked; he opens it as the rest of the party treads its way slowly across the sticky floor and finds a small alcove, perhaps ten feet deep and five feet wide, on the other side of the door. After searching this area for a couple of minutes, he finds a second secret door on the opposite side of the alcove!
Slowly and cautiously, Shonuf advances out the back of the alcove and into another tunnel of about the same size as the one you were in before…it curves to the right, but after thirty or so feet, it curves back left and out of sight. The party forms up in the new hallway, two across; Shonuf is on the front rank with Bruce next to him, providing ample light so he can search the floor as you move forward. You progress slowly as the rogue searches, but you all are moving as quietly as since you’ve arrived – too bad that between the monk and the priest (who, being magically enlarged, takes up the rear of the group as he fills the back of the tunnel), you emit the equivalent of sunlight for sixty feet in either direction…
Rounding the corner of the passage, you all see that the tunnel curves again slightly to the right and then ends in a set of double stone doors that are almost as wide as the tunnel itself and ten feet high; continuing to scan the floor for possible traps or trip lines, you work toward the doors…
Dorian suddenly notices movement behind him – openings have appeared on both sides of the tunnel walls and creatures are bursting out - the half-Celestial knows that these are…Vrocks - demons!
But the priest stands fast… Between his own celestial light and that emitted by Bruce, the pair of demons leap out into a searing white light that burns them immediately, breaking their surprise attack before it begins; they hesitate against the burning light and then flee together down the tunnel where the party came from a moment earlier, until you can only hear them crying out in pain, somewhere out of sight in the distance behind you…
While not liking the fact that you let potential foes occupy your only known exit path, you all are content to let the matter pass for the time being…
Shonuf clears the double stone doors to opened – again, they are unlocked; beyond is another tunnel that extends left and right…you all decide to go left. After forty feet, the passage splits again and you face another left/right choice; again, you all go left. Having turned one hundred eighty degrees, the passage faces back the direction you came from and enters a cave after thirty more feet – the cave extends off to the left and the back right corner of the cave has another set of double stone doors set into the right hand wall.
This third cave is different from the previous two that were thickly coated with black, sticky goo – this one is thoroughly slimed with a pale green ichor and reeks of a strong, acrid odor. Light from the monk reveals more strange, warped furniture and along the back left wall of the cave, you can discern a torture rack of some kind, mounted on the wall; stretched out on it are the burned and disfigured remains of at least seven humanoids, but it is difficult to determine the exact number due to the condition of the remains.
Shonuf hears movement or some kind of noise in the cave as he steps to his left around the corner into the dark cave… As Bruce reaches where the tunnel enters into it, his Celestial light widens into the cave, filling it with bright illumination and revealing the four Demodands that are suddenly pained, smoking and enraged in the back of the cave! But that isn’t what Shonuf heard, or what threatens him, as a fifth Demodand of a different type appears next to him, slashing with its claws from his flank – but failing to penetrate the rogue’s armor and magical protections!
Delvar charges into the cave and attacks Shonuf’s assailant, hitting it once as an enlarged Dorian steps up to attack it from over both of their heads; he severely injures the Demodand with his devastating attack but he also blocks the tunnel entrance, forcing Sapper, Grue and Deeta to wait behind him. Timmy, however, casts Mass Suggestion, hoping to break the rank of Demodands by commanding “Stop!” and halting some or all of them; unfortunately, he appears to only affect two of them, as they cease their attack and become confused about their motivations at the moment…
As a nauseated Bruce steps out of battle to go retch against the cave wall and Deeta retches in the back of the party out of harm’s way, Shonuf successfully wriggles free of the Demodand’s grasp and moves to safety – but when he stops, a second larger Demodand appears out of nowhere and tries to slash the rogue with its claws; Shonuf’s luck continues, when the second one fails to hit (just as the first one did) and a smaller Demodand misses him with all three attacks!
Delvar steps up and attacks one of the hostile Demodands, but his attack falters – a good hit is followed by a miss and then by a fumble; he is immediately counterattacked by two of the smaller ones – the first hits him three times and grapples him, while the second one hits once more. Dorian moves to his left and attacks the smaller Demodand on Shonuf for huge damage, but his weapon sticks to the Demodand, which disarms him! Grue advances up and dual strikes one of the smaller Demodands as well, but after hitting with both weapons, they stick to it as well, leaving Grue disarmed also!
Plato, deep inside the cave, has space – he shape changes into a Hydra again, promptly attacking and hitting a surprised Demodand! One of the two larger Demodands tries to move away from him, but numerous heads converge on it as it does, shredding it to pieces! Timmy casts Magic Missile from relative safety, but he fails to penetrate the larger Demodand’s spell resistance – it fails…
The mop up has begun, as Shonuf fights on the flank of the Plato/Hydra, hitting once out of two attacks and Dorian pulls his weapon free from what remains of the large Demodand that the Hydra just killed; Delvar struggles to free himself from the small Demodand he is stuck to, but brute force can’t do it. The other large Demodand backs up against the cave wall near the rogue and casts a spell, but there is no immediate effect yet, as the Plato/Hydra attacks in all directions, hitting two small and the large Demodand, twice critically, killing two of them! Grue pulls his weapons free from the remains of the smaller one, as Timmy casts Tasha’s Hideous Laughter and again fails to break through the Demodand’s spell resistance.
One of the remaining two small, sticky Demodands is pummeling Delvar as it grapples him, while the other one gets in on the easy fighting with the beleaguered fighter – but the party is quick to help… Shonuf moves up and hits one of them but doesn’t seem to injure it, while Dorian steps up and kills one of them with his first strike, but loses his weapon again! Undaunted, he pummels the other one with his fists, as the Plato/Hydra masses all twelve heads on the other one…
Delvar is suddenly surrounded by the Hydra’s necks, heads and teeth as it pulls a screaming Demodand off of him; he is showered with gore, bits of flesh and black ooze seconds later, before the Hydra begins to disgustedly spit out a multitude of sticky bits in all directions.
There are drawbacks to having twelve mouths.
M