| J J 528 |
The following is the writeup summarizing about two thirds of the session we had yesterday. It was such a dramatic session and I've been reading these forums for a while getting ideas and such, that I figured I'd share it. I hope you enjoy.
As a sidenote, I've been running the campaign for a while now, and I have to say that the Shackled City hardcover is my most treasured role playing book - and I have lots of them! if you are running or playing in this, consider yourself fortunate.
I highly urge you to AVOID reading below if you a player and have not gone through this encounter yet. The writeup, by necessity, includes some SPOILERS (emphasis added to draw attention).
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A DEVIL BY ANY OTHER NAME
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"Run!" Shouted Kiara. "Run for your life!". She bolted towards the secret entrance below the platform.
"But Greyhawk..." murmured Anetka, as she reluctantly began to follow her friend. "We can't leave him behind".
"Oh yes we can," Kiara snapped. "and we most definitely will. You are welcome to stick around and die with him if you want. I'd rather live to fight another day".
Panting, they turned the corner and saw Arby waiting for them in the corridor, his face ashen. The look of panic on everyone's faces was clear as sky. They started running again. It was only after they reached the mouth of the fish statue that Anetka shouted "wait! where is that Paladin?!"
They looked around. Solon was gone. So, for that matter, was Azair. They were used to her sneakiness, but she was most definitely not with them. Behind, they could hear the echoes of laughter rising from the big chamber, the laughter of a creature far worse than their worst nightmares. Then they heard the cackle and resulting explosion of a lightning bolt. If someone was somehow still alive in there, there was no saving them.
In front of them lay the lake.
===================
"Puny mortals" spat Aushanna, as Mangh-Mitcho fired up the statue again to ensure that the two big fighters were truly dead. "Should I chase them? seemed like they were sufficiently frightened. I'd rather go back to my own business if you don't mind."
He looked up at her, choosing his words carefully. After all, no sense in upsetting her. She wasn't required to protect him, only the statue.
"with care, Aushanna, with care. I do think they might be back."
"bah!" she spat again, with a vehemence so magnificent and beautiful that even the Kuo Toan cleric's corrupt heart was touched. "what if they do? I'll just come and finish the job then. And really, they were in such a panic, I highly doubt they'll bother you again. I am feeling magnanimous. There is no more threat here. I'll let them live." and with that, she popped out of existence.
Mangh-Mitcho stared at the empty air where a moment before a stunning horned woman was hovering, then blinked and went back into his private rooms. Blibdoolpoolp was safe, of course. But Zenith did say they were doomed. Even the devil couldn't do anything about that.
===================
The ferryman could be seen in his boat slowly moving across it towards them. Arby started down the stairs.
"Wait!" the urgent tone in Kiara's voice stopped him dead in his tracks. "We don't need to fight that guy."
"But how will we cross the lake?"
Instead of replying, he saw her look up, and a moment later, her owl landed on her shoulder. They looked at each other, in that odd way that always unnerved him. It was as if they were speaking to each other, except that no words were exchanged. "Wizards are strange", he thought to himself, "but sorcerers are the worst".
He was awoken from his reverie by her words. "are you listening, Arby? get into the bag!"
Startled, he looked down and saw that she had opened the bag of holding and placed it next to his feet. He looked up at her. "have you finally lost your mind?!" he demanded.
"Just get into the bag. NOW. I'll explain later". Something in her eyes told him this was no time to argue. Even Harlan, the owl, was looking at him funny. "what the heck", he said softly, and put his left foot inside the mouth of the bag. "you only live twice".
===================
"what WAS that thing, anyway?"
Moving rapidly up the fissure, the three of them were speaking in muted tones. Anetka's question had a sense of urgency in it. "and where is Azair? and that guy, Solon? how are we ever going to finish this job?"
"I don't know, Anetka. But I bet it was a devil, or a demon", Kiara replied. She would know, after all. "we can research it later. Right now, we need to get out of this place, we need to rest, and we need to regroup".
"Me, I'm thinking we can look for less dangerous things to do... why not let those Stormblades do this, huh? my life isn't worth 6,000 gold, and let me tell you, if we come in here again, I don't think any of us is coming out alive, so no one's getting raised". Arby muttered.
"Come, come, Arby, aren't you normally the bold one? we'll figure it out. We've been through some tough things before, the four of us. You just need to get used to our ways. Right, Anetka?"
Anetka was in deep reverie. She nodded, and her hair fell prettily over her haggard face, softening the harshness of her lines of worry. Arby was struck again by just how beautiful these two women were. Even under these circumstances, he could not help but feel a pang of desire. Which is why he was taken entirely by surprise when the Wererat charged.
===================
The battle was short and confused, but in his weakened state, the threat of filth fever on top of mummy rot literally chilled his already degenerating bones. "what have I gotten myself into?!" his mind was screaming at him.
"White-eye?"
Anetka's query was odd enough that he looked again. Yes, it must be; the charred remains, thanks for Kiara's fiery ray attacks, had to be the prisoner they released only a few hours back. What on earth was he doing here? and why was he attacking them? didn't the other dude - Cheritt was his name, wasn't it? - say he was a wererat?
"it doesn't matter, folks. Let's keep moving, and watch for danger! the other guy might be around here too" Kiara said. She then took the lead again. A sorcerer. Nothing in his life prepared Arby for this.
===================
As they emerged into the pit, the last rays of the sun were streaming down it. Heaving a collective sigh of relief, they started up. Arby went first, and therefore was the first to see the campfire. They joined him a moment later.
200 feet down were their horses - and another one. And someone had lit a campfire, and was cooking something. They couldn't make out the figure, except that it was humanoid.
Anetka, obviously in a no-nonsense mood, stood up and started walking down towards the figure, her hands raised and her voice soothingly calling out an introduction. Arby could not help but watch in fascination. Her way with people was truly astounding. "She could outcharm a mind flayer", he thought. Then the figure next to the campfire stood up, axe at the ready. It was a dwarf.
"You Orphan Hunters?" the dwarf said. Arby squinted; "dear god, she's a female too!" came the thought unbidden to his mind.
"Yes, we are", replied Anetka. "And who might you be? your cooking smells delicious", she added disarmingly, as an afterthought, except Arby knew it was calculated. As if on command, the dwarf dropped her axe to her side.
"me come from Jenya Urikas", she said, before producing a folded letter and giving it to Anetka. She opened and quickly scanned it. She turned to the other two.
"it seems that our brave miss Barberra Ironheart - I hope I am pronouncing your name correctly," she said to the Dwarft, who nodded, "has been recruited by the church of St. Cuthbert to come and help us on our devilish quest. I am so please to meet you" she turned back to the dwarf, her hand reaching out, her smile all the more splendid. The dwarf shook it, her face registering a slight sense of wonder at the human woman.
As the events of the past day took over him, Arby felt his legs shake and he sat down heavily on the ground.
"What's for dinner?"
===================
"We cannot beat her!" demanded Anetka. "Whatever she is, she is far too powerful for us! didn't you notice that no matter what we did, we couldn't do anything to her at all? none of your spells even touched her, Kiara! and we lost Greyhawk, and Solon would have been some help but he's gone too, and who knows what happened to Azair..." her voice trailed into the darkness.
"Look, Anetka, we have two choices here. One, we go back to town, admit our defeat, take our lumps, and oh, let those monsters, the Cagewrights, keep on their path and do whatever it is they do with... what was it this Solon dude called them? Shackleborn? did you think maybe our relatives that disappeared were Shackleborn too? don't you want to find out what happened to them?"
"you mentioned two choices" Arby quipped. She froze him with her fierce stare.
"I know we're weakened, but they are too. We killed their clerics, and if we get the creature to follow us into a confined space, we might have a chance. I am growing in power, I can feel it tonight, and new spells are forming in my head... I just know I can hurt this thing."
"But we lost our strength!" replied Anetka. "even if you did get her next to you, and you did hurt her, we still need some serious defenses to soak all those flaming arrows... they were devastating!" The dwarf raised her head to look at Anetka. The cleric subsided, with a somewhat guilty look.
"I think it's decided then. Tomorrow morning we go in. And we'll find Azair, I'm sure of it, although we might as well say goodbye in our hearts to Greyhawk and Solon. They were both lying on the platform when we left. They're gone."
"I'll prey for their souls then," Anetka replied. "That Half-Orc gave meaning to overcoming the odds. You're right; he deserves better".
===================
When Aushanna heard the shrieking call in her mind the next day, she became furious. "how dare they?!" she thought. "you can never win with those mortals, unless you kill all of them". She sighed, and got out of bed.
Grrert'z looked at her questioningly "where are you going my love?" he asked. "don't worry, I'll be back soon", she replied, grabbed her bow, and blinked out of sight, leaving behind her a slight yet delicious smell of sulphur. He fanned the flames a bit with his tail, then flew out.
===================
The chamber seemed oddly empty. The devil wasn't there. "Barberra, run up those stairs to the right", Arby said. "I'll run across and open those doors. You two move forward and see if you can find anything to kill."
They acted in concert. The four Kuo Toan soldiers on the top platform looked down upon them, crossbows at the ready. One of Kiara's fireballs dispatched one, his ashes raining down on Arby as he was checking the doors for traps. Two others were severely hurt. Barberra was engaging with the fourth, as they heard a voice from atop the platform.
"oh, come to save the day, did you? here is a little breakfast for you!" the cackle of lightning from the statue flew across the room, missing Arby completely, as Mangh-Mitcho looked upon the group.
Anetka placed her spiritual hammer right behind him. It struck true. The Kuo Toan cleric whirled in surprise. "NOW you will pay!" he shouted.
Kiaran and Anetka were suddenly engulfed in a dark cloud. Kiara was hurt, but none too badly; Anetka, on the other hand, doubled over in pain, wretching and heaving, gasping for breath."unholy blight" she forced out the words, and threw up. Kiara looked up at the Kuo Toa. He was preparing another spell. She fired her magic missiles at him, and his concentration was broken.
"doors clear!" came the shout from Arby's direction. Barberra dispatched her foe. The Ku Toan cleric, still smarting from Kiara's attacks, darted back through one of the platform doors "chickens! come meet me here!" he proclaimed loudly before slamming the door behind him. A moment later he peaked back out to repeat his last statement and another lightning bolt flew across the room, frying Kiara and Anetka. They ignored him, instead choosing to finish off the soldiers up top with arrows and that hammer. Then they all ran through the double doors, shutting them behind.
===================
"to the left looks like some kind of workshop area, to the right we have a dark and murky pool in a large room with a staircase, and to the front those other double doors. Where should I go?" asked Arby, who had done peering around corners and turned back to look at the other three.
Kiara opened her mouth to answer, then froze. They all felt it. A foreboding, like something truly bad had just happened. A moment later, as the flying woman materialized next to the doors in front of them, they understood why. Her flaming arrow caught Arby, who rolled to the side, and she smiled.
The battle was joined.
Kiara threw a lightning bolt at the creature, for the first time defeating her spell resistance and actually hurting her a bit. Barberra rushed over and missed at first; the devil was unfazed. She let loose a barrage of arrows before blinking out of sight again, but not before Barberra connected on her subsequent attempt. A second later, she reappeared in another hallway, and took a potshot at Arby. He moaned in pain.
Kiara again positioned herself right in front and threw another lightning bolt. It connected again. Barberra, true to her duty, rushed over and placed herself in harm's way; Aushanna's furious response took an obvious toll on the dwarf.
Arby, feeling helpless and wanting to be useful rushed to the double doors and opened them. A dark room lay beyond, with bodies of Kuo Toa lining its walls, and an altar at the far back. The room was otherwise empty. He looked back, wanting to let his friends know he's checking things out, when he saw Aushanna materialize what seemed like a few steps away with a clear line of sight to him. He reacted, and jumped into the room. In his surprise, he barely registered the moving floor until it was too late; Arby was flung down 40 feat before being impaled on deadly spikes. His last thought before he lost consciousness was "I wonder if they'll forgive me?".
Both Kiara and Anetka saw Arby fall out of sight. The former, however, was too busy with Aushanna, who had again appeared close by and ready to dish out more fiery pain. But Barberra again saved the sorcerer's hide, rushing in from the other corridor and placing herself right in front of the devil. Aushanna had had enough. A moment later, the dwarf was lying dead on the floor, three more arrows sticking from her chest, smoke curling up as the flames were dying down. "irritating little bastard", she muttered before being hit yet again by the human magic user. Aushanna reeled. "I've had enough of you!" she said loudly. "Time for you to come pay me a visit at MY home!" she added.
Anetka had climbed down the pit frantically, casting her spell just in time. Arby opened his eyes. "Where am I?" he asked. Then his eyes followed Anetka's, and grew in horror as he saw a grisly apparition fly into the pit through the wall. "What IS that?!" he whispered. Anetka seized her holy symbol, holding it up in front of the creature, her face pale. "just sit still", she ordered. She turned back to the Wraith. "Begone!" she said. Arby looked at her, dazed, then stared in disbelief as the thing - whatever it was - turned around and flit up and out of the pit. He opened his mouth to ask another question, then shut it in a hurry as Kiara floated down into the pit.
"She's coming after us! I don't know if I can kill her! my magic is almost gone!". Kiara's voice had a hysterical tone to it. They looked up. A moment later, Aushanna materialized at the top of the pit, her flaming bow aimed directly at them. She smiled, that beatific, horrific smile that none of them would ever forget. Then she said "it's time to die".
It was more instinct than anything. Kiara's magic missiles found their way home. Aushanna was still smiling as she was drawing back her bow string, four deadly arrows notched and pointing straight at the three of them. Blinded by terror, Arby aimed his bow, shut his eyes, and let loose.Then he prepared himself to die for good, hoping against hope that when he went to the nine hells, he wouldn't see her again.
For some reason, it never happened.
A soft thud next to him was the next thing that registered on his senses. He opened his eyes. Kiara was holding the flaming bow, grinning. Anetka was wiping the sweat from her face. The devil's body was lying next to him, the tip of her wing touching his leg. He shuddered and pulled it back quickly. "What happened?" he asked.
"Your arrow caught her in the neck," replied Kiara sweetly. Her grin grew.
Then they all jumped at once as they heard a voice from the tip of the pit. "So should I be trying to shoot at this ghost or something?". They looked up. It was Azair, looking down upon them. "It's sort of cowering against the corner here, but I don't know how long it's going to do that. Say, you killed the demon, huh?"
| MundinIronHand |
We had a much easier time with this one (excpet my warlock) The kua-to died easily and I used my eldritch blast to piss off Aushanna, then ran into the hallway. She teleported in after realizing my tactic and knocked me uncouncious but the party's melee flanked her and finished her off. We hadn't intended to get her in a tunnel but it worked.
| Findas |
Great story JJ, and quite the epic struggle.
Aushanna was probably the most frustrating fight we've had, both for the players and the characters. Her damage reduction, along with her abilities to fly and teleport at will made for a very long, drawn out battle. One mistake the players made was staying in the shrine room, giving the erinyes a distinct terrain advantage. I still don't understand why they didn't retreat to a smaller space where they could get at her with their melee weapons. In the end they simply outlasted her - she finally ran out of arrows, and was forced to come down into melee range. They made quick work of her after that.
| Oti |
Aushanna is a great fight. This is what my players had to go through when we played it: http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/paizoPublishing/olderProducts/dungeon/ shackledCity/archives/bhalHamatugnTPK&page=1#5