Lake Warriors of Cauldron: Zenith Trajectory & Beyond
The company:
Sir William Campbell, Champion of Cauldron, Knight of the Crane,
N male human rogue 1/ wizard 6
Sir Tolken, Champion of Cauldron, Knight of the Crane,
LG male ½ orc fighter 7
Sir Rink Id Nar, Champion of Cauldron, Knight of the Crane,
N male human sorcerer 7
Drool Knuckledragger, Hero of Cauldron, CN male ½ orc Barbarian 7
Blood E. Ell, Hero of Cauldron, NG male human Cleric 7
Rinaldo, Hero of Cauldron, N male Hillshire halfling Ranger 6/ Bard 1
Jasmine, Hero of Cauldron, N female human fighter 7
Grundar Blackface, CN male dwarf rogue 5/ umbral disciple 1
Allen Bentshield, Hero of Cauldron, N human rogue 6 (inactive)
Chapter 4 Zenith Trajectory
Allen Bentshield counts his blessings as he approaches his new friends, the Lake Warriors of Cauldron, whom he is a member. Those present included the three recently knighted leaders of the company. On the left Sir Wil, the enigmatic wizard, sat facing out the balcony of the second story of the tavern, overlooking the street below. Even though it was a warm spring afternoon, Wil kept his cloak close about his face, and only glanced at Allen in recognition of his approach then gazed out at the city around the lake. Sitting across Wil on the same table was the sorcerer Sir Rink Id Nar. A bed of flowers sits upon the funny sorcerers head, small bees buzz about his head, tending the flowers. Rink smiles at Allen as he approaches. Sir Tolken also smiles at Allen as the former lake side ruffian approaches. The massive ½ orc chose to sit at a table opposite Rink and Wil, on the inside of the balcony which was open to the outside. Tolken wore his spike full plate armor, Tolken always wore his armor. Allen swallowed as he noticed the 10’ long mercurial full blade lying on the floor at Tolken’s feet. Armored in plate mail and sitting next to Tolken, Jasmine smiles at Allen. Allen notices the large battle axe lying behind her against the balcony of his Tavern. Drool, ½ orc barbarian sat across the couple in plate mail. Drool wore his chain shirt and a mighty long bow on his back. Drool’s great axe leaned on a chair next to his person. Drool had just visited the Coy Nixie, where they always bathe him, and smelled of petuli oil and orc B. O. The final member of the Lake Warriors present was the warrior priest of Lyra, Blud E. Ell. Blud was also armored in plate mail (A sign of the times, thought Allen); at his hip was the cleric’s war hammer, the holy symbol of his goddess. Blud greeted Allen with a warm “Hello!” The only members of the company not present were Haley the beautiful blonde rogue vixen, who was jailed for larceny then escaped and was never heard of since and the halfling ranger Rinaldo, Allen wondered where he could be.
When first the company was formed, Allen was forced by the will of a kopru who wished to capture the wands of water control the group was after, for its’ own ends and clear the ruins of the remnants of the Ebon Triad, then lead the company to their doom. But when Allen’s deception was revealed, the party’s mages, the enigmatic Wil and funny sorcerer Rink, dispelled the magic which bound Allen to the monster kopru. Not only did they free Allen from his magical domination but also shared in the wealth gained in the ruins and the reward from the wands’ recovery. Since then Allen Bentshield former Alleybasher and lake side ruffian has married, adopted a dead friend’s three children, been given the title Hero of Cauldron and become the proprietor of the respectful Slippery Eel Tavern on Magma Ave.
Allen invited the lake warriors for afternoon supper. The sun was half way between its zenith and the western wall on the rim of cauldrons caldera. Across the lake from Allen’s tavern rose the Cathedral of Wee Jas, Allen breathed in the view as his wife Katrina poured water from a picture with one hand and held a baby, Allen’s nephew, in the other. Allen wanted to discuss the disappearance of the lord mayor Lord Nevelant Severence five days earlier and the move by Lord Orbious Vahlauntru, declaring him acting lord mayor, disbanding the town guard for corruption and the hiring a company of hobgoblins for replacement. More ominous for Allen was the decree for the raising of taxes to pay for the new measures.
Magma Ave. was bustling in the late afternoon of a beautiful sunny spring day. An unassuming dwarf stands across the street from the two stories Slippery Eel Tavern. Next to the tavern a crowd is gathered in front of Garlock” s auction house. It seems Garlock is auctioning off a beautiful hand painted anwar from the Sea of a Thousand Islands. The dwarf clad in dark clothes, cautiously walks across the street to the tavern. The dwarf had heard stories of a group known as the Lake Warriors of Cauldron, from a marvelous halfling story teller Rinaldo of the Hillshire. The proprietor a tall fellow named Allen had mentioned that the Lake Warriors would be by for supper this afternoon. Allen might introduce Grundar Blackface to his company if he was “lucky”.
“Brimstone!” Grundar thinks out loud, as he sniffs the air.
Just as the dwarf moved toward the tavern a terrible crash explodes a block down the avenue. A large creature standing 9’ high and 6’ wide, with red and gray hide and mandibles in the mouth, burst through a warehouse wall just a block away. Wood stone and plaster showers a crowd of children and there parents gathered in front of a puppet tent across the street from the warehouse from which the monster emerges. The creature strikes wildly at the crowd gathered in front of the puppet tent as it moves toward the dark clad dwarf Grundar.
Then a shout rings out from the balcony of the Slippery Eel Tavern, “For the children!!” Two arrows follow and strike the creature in the massive head and left shoulder. The what looks like a number of flowers fly from the tavern balcony to strike the creature, causing it to roar in agony. A large plate mail clad warrior leaps from the balcony of the 2nd story tavern wielding a larger than life battleaxe, literally flies 35’ over the roof of Garlock’s , landing a devastating blow throught the chest and abdomen of the creature. Then with out warning, a group of incorporeal ravens fly from the tavern slaming into the beast dropping it to the street. Grundar Blackface had seen enough, the Lake Warriors of Cauldron will make good allies.
The Lake Warriors rode north from the city of Cauldron. Allen had acquired horses, two handlers (his nephews Bail and Shave) and provisions for the party. Grundar Blackface dwarf rogue and umbrial disciple rides upon his own light horse. Allen had convinced the rest of the Lake Warriors to accept Grundar as his replacement as the groups rogue on their mission to recover Zenith Splintershield from Bhal-Hamatugn. The others including Allen’s nephew rode horses borrowed from stables in Cauldron. The day before, the group’s horses were attacked by a giant bird, a Roc. With arrows, sword and fireballs, the Lake Warriors quickly brought down the huge bird. They now approach a shack, with a low wood, fabric and rock fence with what looks to be false towers on for corners of the fence on a grassy alpine meadow knoll. As the company approaches they are greeted by the delusional hermit Jared, “Welcome to the Kingdom of Anduria!!” As, the party settles in to rest the night and ask Jarred about the “Pit of the Seven Jaws.”, a red dragon the size of a large war horse rises above the knoll from a valley below. Bail & Shave, currently tending to the horses, embrace each other and scream in terror.
“The Fall of Drool Knuckledragger”
The red dragon rose 30’ above the meadow, flew directly over one of the four wood and fabric towers around Jared’s shack and let loose with an awful gout of flame. The dragon flame engulfs the tower, the fence of that corner, four horses and Allen’s nephews Bail and Shave.
Drool, the ½ orc barbarian, acts without hesitation loosing two arrows from his enchanted mighty composite bow, striking the dragon in the head and left shoulder below the wing joint. Rink the sorcerer hesitates and tries to speak with the dragon, then decides negotiations are out of the question castes a haste upon those close including himself Tolken, Blud and Drool. Tolken also hesitates, realizing he has no weapons to deal with a mighty flying dragon. Jasmine begins to run from the fearsome red dragon. The halfling Rinaldo mounts his dog Tintin and flees. The Dwarf Grendar also flees upon his horse.
The red dragon flies directly over its assailant, the ½ orc barbarian Drool and looses its fiery breath engulfing Drool and Rink and scorching Tolken, who moves quickly enough to avoid the worst of the dragon’s fiery assault. This second fiery breath is not as powerful as the first and all three survive. Drool holds his ground and shoots three arrows at the dragon hovering 30’ above him. One arrow strikes the red dragon in the anus, enraging the awesome scaly beast.
The angry dragon descends next to Drool biting the ½ orc in the shoulder. Then Rin gathers his courage and shoots a hail of arrows with his enchanted bow, hitting the dragon with a number of electrified arrows. Jasmine also gathers her courage and leaps to attack the fearsome beast with her very large battle axe, striking the dragon in the right hind quarter.
Blud and Rink simultaneously cast true strike and enlarge upon the mighty ½ orc warrior Tolken. Wil, catching up with the rest of the party after leaving Cauldron late, so as to finish studying on the underdark, prepares to cast a lightning bolt at the red dragon.
But it is to late, the fearsome red dragon mauls Drool with claws, fangs, wings and a mighty tail slap. Drool’s bloody body drops to the ground, the life rendered from it. Just then, Wil’s lightning bolt strikes the red dragon. Tolken finally acts advancing his enlarged self with his enlarged mercurial full blade striking a devastating blow along the dragons left flank.
After killing Drool and the devastating attack by Tolken the red dragon decides to retreat. The scaly monster leaps into the air flies bellow the crest of the knoll, so as to avoid anymore lightning bolts and electric arrows.
“Pit of the Seven Jaws”
Introducing;
Drazryn Necroblas, N male ½ dragon/ drow, sorcerer 4
All agree Drool went out like Drool, a true orc barbarian, holding his ground, to stupid to retreat. After a quick remembrance, the surviving Lake Warriors, divide what survives of Drool’s belongings. Cairns are built both for the mighty, Drool Knuckledragger and Allen’s nephew’s Bail & Shave, whose remains had been fused together in the scorching heat of the dragon’s fiery breathe.
It is agreed, the party will leave the remaining horses in the “safety” of “Anduria”, under “King” Crazy Jared’s charge.
The following morning Jared “King” of “Anduria”, leads the Lake Warriors of Cauldron to the “Pit of the Seven Jaws”. The company follows the crazy old coot, down a valley bellow the grassy meadow knoll, slowly moving up the valley for about three miles.
Jared point’s up a trail and declares, “That way lies the Pit of the Seven Jaws. Here ends my kingdom. I can go no further!” Jared continues, “Farwell brave knights.”
The Lake Warriors approach the pit with caution, Tolken leading the way. Sir Tolken, mighty ½ orc fighter, stands at the edge of an iron grate staircase leading down some 15’ and 35’ across to a 10’x 10’ iron grate plate form, in the 40’x 40’ pit. Another staircase of iron leads down the far wall of the pit, in a similar fashion as the first, to another iron grate plate form. The staircase continues in this fashion back to the near wall and yet another plate form, 45’ bellow. The staircase again continues down the near wall, which the majority of the party has gathered above looking down, to the pit floor 60’ bellow.
Crazy Jared mumbles to himself, then chuckles. The old hermit looks up to see a dark cloaked figure strolling down the trail. Jared smiles and greets the person, “Good!!! Good!!! The others have gone ahead and are waiting for you at the “Pit of Seven Jaws.” Jared shakes his head and points down the trail, “That way good sir, that way!”
The cloaked figure stops, then stands a bit confused and asks, “Who was that?” He smiles with a toothy grin, “I wonder if I could eat him.” The sun beamed on the dark shiny scales of the dark figures face as he muses, “Maybe not, caution being the better part of valor.” The dark figure continued to muse as he walks down the trail to the pit of the seven jaws, “Drazryn Necroblas, abandoned by his draconic father, then ultimately rejected by his drow mother, shall return to the underdark, an accomplished mage.
The halfling Rinaldo shoots an arrow with a continual light spell cast upon it, tethered to a string, into the pit as he approaches the near edge. It is swallowed by the unknown as it descends into the darkness of the large pit. Rin gulps. Wil decides to throw a vial of alchemy fire into the pit. The vial explodes in flames as it hits the pit floor.
Grendar steps forward. This is the dwarf’s moment to show the Lake Warriors of Cauldron his worth on this expedition. Grendar Blackface offers to scout the pit before the party as a whole enters. Wil casts mage armor and invisibility upon the dwarf rogue then sends him on down the stairs.
Grendar moves eerily quite upon the rickety iron staircase. Grendar sneaks down the staircase to near the pit floor and discovers a seven headed hydra the size of a small house hiding in a deep fissure watching the staircase. The dwarf sneaks back up the staircase.
Creak… Sneaking up the west wall on the staircase 20’ above the pit floor, Grendar makes the most smallest of noises on the rickety old staircase. The seven headed behemoth moves to investigate, exposing itself to the party above.
Rin unleashes a hail of electrified arrows. Rink and Wil shower the huge beast with magic missiles. Under the hail of missiles the seven-headed hydra retreats under the cover of the fissure along the side of the pit, where it was hiding earlier.
Rink remembers something from his days in wizard school, “Sever the heads then burn the stumps!!! It is the only way to kill a hydra!!!” yells the excited little sorcerer. Grendar moves quickly, yet still invisible along the staircase to the pit floor. Tolken covered in spiked armor runs down the stairs with his large cold iron mercurial full blade. Rin orders his faithful dog Tintin to guard Rink and leaps into the pit; he falls gently like a feather to the pit floor below. Blud, war priest of Lyra, wearing plate mail and swinging his warhammer follows Rin and sails down to the pit floor as well. Jasmine, wondering why she is following these stupid boys, hesitates. Wil moves to cast a spell upon Tolken, know on the first iron grate plate form from the top.
Rink moves into a position across from the fissure looking down. Rink plays with a fire fly at the end of his fingers, then points into the fissure. The small firefly zooms into the darkness and dives into the ground next to the hydra.
The small firefly’s unnatural actions startle the seven headed behemoth, for it nearly leaps into the open, avoiding much of the blast from Rink’s magical fireball.
Drazryn ½ dragon watches the party from behind a tree. One by one they leap into the pit, only a single female warrior in plate mail wielding an over sized great axe stands mumbling and shaking her helmed head. Drazryn decides to approach.
One of the hydra’s heads spews a cold stream of fog on Rin.
Rink runs down the walls of the pit to caste haste on Rin, Blud and himself. Rin shoots arrows at a head. Blud also attacks. The invisible dwarf Grendar reveals himself and begins to climb upon the behemoth. Wil castes haste upon Tolken and himself.
Rink runs up a wall and out of the pit, to see Jasmine talking to a dark cloaked figure.
“Greetingthssss. I am Drazryn Necroblasss…” bowing very low with his right hand extended out, the ½ dragon greets the mighty warrior Jasmine.
Jasmine looks startled then replies, “I have one question.” The wind tosses her long hair dangling under her helm and she continues, “Friend or Foe?”
Drazryn smiles slightly and bows even lower, “Friend of courssssse.”
“Ok then.” Jasmine nods satisfied, turns, then leaps into the Pit of the Seven Jaws!
“Pit of the seven Jaws” (conclusion)
Jasmine the 6’ 6” war maiden leaps into the pit swinging a mighty blow to the neck of one of the hydra’s heads, with her over-sized great axe. Now in the pit, the mighty war maiden begins the work of decapitating a seven- headed hydra.
Sir Tolken ½ orc, leaps from the iron platform upon the beast and begins to hack at the necks of the hydra. Wil moves running along the walls of the pit and negotiating the iron wrought staircase, into a position to cast spells upon his friend Tolken. Then the resourceful wizard casts a true strike spell upon the spike plate mailed warrior.
Drazren ½ dragon, asks the funny little sorcerer Rink, now standing on the edge of the pit above the melee, “Could I be of sssome helpssss?”
Rink shrugs his shoulders and replies, “Sure.”
Drazren pulls out a 3’ long box then knells down before opening it. From the box the ½ dragon sorcerer produces a telescoping tube, he then extends. Drazren pulls out a brass appendage with a round flat crystal set in it, from the side of the tube. He then rests the tube upon his left shoulder. He grabs a flexible leather hose from the larger tube upon his shoulder his shoulders, this hose is placed in his mouth. Another hose from the tube on his shoulder in inserted into his chest, just above his heart.
The apparatus upon Drazren’s shoulder begins to hum. Brass and copper antennae sprout from the tube upon his shoulder. Drazren looks through the crystal attached to the ½ dragon’s sorcererous machine.
Whir! Click! The machine begins to make noises. An internal barrel spins aligning a wand into place along a small brass pipe running along the top of the large tube, upon Drazren’s shoulder.
Zap! Zap! Zap!
Three blue lights zoom from the end of the tube of Drazren’s sorceress machine. The bolts of blue light slam into the hydra’s body, weakening the behemoth further. Drazren Necroblas, ½ dragon, ½ drow, sorcerer joins the fray and allies himself with the Lake Warriors of Cauldron.
Rink continues to pepper the creature with magic missiles. Grendar, the dwarf rogue, struggles to stay on top the beast and hacks away on one of the necks. Tolken also on top of the hydra also hacks upon in of the necks. Jasmine gains some success loosing a head from the hydra’s body. Will acts quickly cauterizing the stump with an acid arrow.
Drazren switches a wand with a whir and a click and three ravens are launched from Drazren’s apparatus. The Ravens’ harass one of the creatures many heads. One of the black ravens plucks an eye out of the hydra and flies upon the far railing with his prize.
Drazren changes things up again, belches into the tube in his mouth, launching gout of acid from his sorceress machine. Tolken and Grendar leap to the ground from the massive hydra.
Still another head drops.
The tenacious dwarf rogue Grendar climbs back up the body of the hydra, so as to better lop off a head.
With the reach of his large cold-iron mercurial full blade, the mighty Tolken begins work on the necks of the hydra. But even for Tolken the job tough and takes time.
Drazren drops his magical machine and reaches for a javelin in a quiver at his back. He hits the body of the hydra and the javelin releases a bolt of energy. Grendar, the agile dwarf, reacts and leaps from the hydra to the iron staircase some 25’ above the pit floor. Stubborn, the dwarf rogue, leaps back on top the hydra and resumes his attack.
Flop! Tolken drops a head. Thunk, plop! Jasmine drops another. The versatile Wil is able to use two wands to cauterize the neck stumps with acid and flame.
Rink continues his magic missile assault, now with wands. The wound caused by Rink’s flowers overcomes the hydra and the beasts body falters and falls. Rink and Drazren keep up the magical assault, keeping the huge body of the hydra immobile.
The hydra is able to fight back biting several members of the company.
Grendar, the stubborn, agile dwarf rogue drops from his wounds. Rin acts quickly forcing a cure potion down the dwarf’s throat, stabilizing his wounds. Blud moves in to save Grendar and revitalize the fallen rogue.
More heads drop to the floor.
By the time Grendar is revitalized, the hydra has only one head left, and it will soon drop. The body of the behemoth suffers severe trauma and remains immobile. Grendar sneaks off to find an alcove with a flash frozen drow and cool swag, with no one else around.
The last head falls, and the pit of the seven jaws has been cleared.
“Assault on Bhal-Hamatugn: the Shrine of the Kua-toa”
The Lake Warriors of Cauldron rest and heal after their victory over the seven-headed cryo-hydra, guardian of the “Pit of the Seven Jaws”. Drazren, ½ dragon, has a map to Bhal-Hamatugn. With Grendar Blackface, the dwarf umbral disciple scouting, the company journeys into the Underdark to find Bhal-Hamatugn and retrieve the dwarf Zenith Splintershield.
On the way to the Kua-toa shrine, the company is ambushed by a group of shadows. They spend a day recovering their strength in the caverns of the Underdark wilderness.
Eventually the Lake Warriors reach a large underground lake glowing green from phosphorescent algae in the water. The green glow dimly lights the large cavern. In the distance some 600’ away the dimly lit image of an ancient spiny fish can be seen carved into the cavern wall. The eyes and mouth of the fish glow even brighter with a yellow greenish glow. A boat crosses the lake and heads toward the company. A hooded robed being pilots the boat from the stern, with a long paddle.
The boat reaches the shore where the party awaits. The face of the being can be seen from under its hood. On top a humanoid body covered in scales, sit a fish head with large bulbous eyes.
The halfling Rinaldo steps forward and asks in Undercommon, “We’re looking for a dwarf…, Zenith Splintershield?”
The hooded fish man replies, “Ahh, the prophet of the Smoking Eye. You seek the Prophet of the smoking eye!”
Rin, raising his right eyebrow, “Uhh, Yeah! You know where he is?”
“Sure I do the prophet sees all and tell us and let us know. Sure I know him, where is he? Sure he knows. The smoking eye sees all, he knows, he knows and he tells us.” the fish man replies, “To Bhal- Hamatughn!” The hooded fish headed boat man stares blankly at Rin with his large fish eyes.
The Lake Warriors board the boat, and the strange hooded fish headed boatman navigates the eerie green lake to the koa-toa shrine of Bhal-Hamatughn.
“Assault on Bhal-Hamatugn: the Shrine of the Kua-toa”
The Lake Warriors of Cauldron rest and heal after their victory over the seven-headed cryo-hydra, guardian of the “Pit of the Seven Jaws”. Drazren, ½ dragon, has a map to Bhal-Hamatugn. With Grendar Blackface, the dwarf umbral disciple scouting, the company journeys into the Underdark to find Bhal-Hamatugn and retrieve the dwarf Zenith Splintershield.
On the way to the Kua-toa shrine, the company is ambushed by a group of shadows. They spend a day recovering their strength in the caverns of the Underdark wilderness.
Eventually the Lake Warriors reach a large underground lake glowing green from phosphorescent algae in the water. The green glow dimly lights the large cavern. In the distance some 600’ away the dimly lit image of an ancient spiny fish can be seen carved into the cavern wall. The eyes and mouth of the fish glow even brighter with a yellow greenish glow. A boat crosses the lake and heads toward the company. A hooded robed being pilots the boat from the stern, with a long paddle.
The boat reaches the shore where the party awaits. The face of the being can be seen from under its hood. On top a humanoid body covered in scales, sit a fish head with large bulbous eyes.
The halfling Rinaldo steps forward and asks in Undercommon, “We’re looking for a dwarf…, Zenith Splintershield?”
The hooded fish man replies, “Ahh, the prophet of the Smoking Eye. You seek the Prophet of the smoking eye!”
Rin, raising his right eyebrow, “Uhh, Yeah! You know where he is?”
“Sure I do the prophet sees all and tell us and let us know. Sure I know him, where is he? Sure he knows. The smoking eye sees all, he knows, he knows and he tells us.” the fish man replies, “To Bhal- Hamatughn!” The hooded fish headed boat man stares blankly at Rin with his large fish eyes.
The Lake Warriors board the boat, and the strange hooded fish headed boatman navigates the eerie green lake to the koa-toa shrine of Bhal-Hamatughn.