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During the trip back to Jalakampathra, Thoric and Kylian succumbed to blindness, and were led the rest of the way by their companions. Thoric played the pity card with the tribal elder back at town, but ruined it by making reference to Linitheriva. It still had an emotional impact, but Kej said that he had no official capacity to reward or cure them. He suggested that the townspeople would be thankful should they simply tell their story.
So the party went to the only inn in town and told their tale. They garnered a lot of sympathy and praise, and everyone bought them drinks and food that evening. Even the semi-local people who were staying in the inn gave up their rooms that the party might be able to sleep in comfort. Everyone expressed regret that there was no one in town who could cure their blindness, but free quarterstaves were provided to help them navigate. It was suggested that perhaps the Magister would be able to help them. A woman tried to give Thoric a pouch of gold that she had collected from the townspeople in order to help him pay for a cure. He refused the money, but thanked them for their kindness.
The next day, several teens dragged a large block of sandstone into the middle of town by rolling it on logs, and they presented it to Thoric for carving into a sculpture. He set to work immediately. Ander picked up his map from the town scribe, and Kylian was taken to a small roadside shrine to Peshtem just outside of town. Boreas bartered for magical reagents and manged to sell his magical orb too.
Xakoraki and Ander went out to visit Hondro and Nunpar, who were still engaged in their ceremonial vigil at the cursed mesa. Ander snuck up on the militia encamped there, and was greeted warmly after the surprise had subsided. Xak spoke to the two boys, and they seemed to have gotten a little braver in the last few days. This was ruined when Xakoraki described the tentacled hobgoblins and aboleth that they encountered in the temple just a few days away. The boys recovered some of their poise when they realized that aboleths needed water to move around. But Ander said that this one had generated its own water, and that it might decide to escape one day. That scared the crap out of them again. Mission successful, Xak and Ander returned to town.
One the second day, Thoric was still working on his sculpture when Vrisana appeared with a flash of light. She gathered the townspeople together and told them that the party had been acting as her agents to clear the goblinoids out of the temple of Yama. She said that they had exceeded her expectations, and that they were to be honored for their service. She then escorted the party into the elder's house, and the official formalities were completed. She then asked the party to accompany her back to her tower. She did not have accommodations for all of them, but was able to conjure a magical pavilion for them to inhabit for a few days.
Vrisana gave each party member, including Kylian, 3000 gold pieces. She granted access to her Linked Portal and Cure Disease rituals. She also cured both Kylian and Thoric of their blindness. Boreas worked on upgrading his staff, but Vrisana wouldn't buff it for him.
After two days, she said that she was concerned that Orvalion might have relocated in the days since their divination. She was anxious to figure out if he was still there. The party packed up and teleported to the location that John had shown them. Thoric called out to Orvalion, and everyone stood in place so as not to make a misstep, either figuratively or literally. Orvalion showed up quickly, sword in hand, but stood and listened patiently while Thoric explained the entire story of their search for him. He studied each of them for their reactions to Thoric's story, and then nodded once. He touched the wall to one side of the corridor, and told the party to follow him, and not to linger too much in the room where he was just standing. Portions of the glyph on the floor had bits of thorium worked into it.
When asked about the effects of thorium, Orvalion said that he did not believe Caelbhan was seeking him for that reason. He said that the dragonstone did not contain any thorium, and that he had no way to cure Caelbhan, even if he wanted to. Which he didn't. He said that he believed Caelebhan merely wanted the dragonstone for study, and didn't trust him.
After some brief discussion about whether Vrisana could be trusted, they went back and told her that they had found Orvalion and that it was safe to teleport into his location. She then returned with them.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Too Close - 5/6 session recap
The party defeated a group of carrion crawlers, but one of them escaped. Xakoraki and John were left behind to guard while everyone else went down the only tunnel from which crawlers had not emerged. Thoric determined that this passageway had been widened by non-dwarven humanoids. Even so, it was only about five feet wide. A few hundred feet down the tunnel, Boreas spotted a secret door in the wall. It opened onto a short corridor that led to a small chamber with a teleportation circle inscribed on the floor. Hovering in the air above the circle was a small irregularity. It was suggested that perhaps the portal was open on the other end.
The party returned to find Xakoraki and John missing. Before they could panic, however, the two emerged from one of the carrion crawler tunnels. John had pursued the wounded beast and finished it off. Xakoraki followed to make sure that the lair was properly looted. Sadly, no loot was found. Only pieces of armor, broken weapons, and bones.
Someone mentioned the portal room, and John wanted to investigate. Boreas said that they'd come back to it later, but that they were going deeper into the dungeon first. John said that such a portal was the entire reason he was in the dungeon in the first place, and that if they would not show him the secret door, then he would look for it himself. Once again, the party left Xakoraki and John behind.
Several hundred feet later, the passageway opened into a large cavern filled with murky water. The last ten feet of the tunnel was a few inches underwater already. The air was rank and musty, and there was a sporadic dripping sound. As they took in the scene, they noticed ripples on the surface of the water, as if something submerged were moving around. The small waves became more pronounced, and a scummy coating began to creep up the sides of the tunnel walls. The party backed up, and the sheen of wetness continued towards them until they were about 25 feet away from the cavern opening. Spells were cast at the wetness with no effect. Growing curious, Boreas walked to the edge of the cavern, casting the occasional ray of frost at the water.
Once at the edge, he stopped. Something lashed out of the water and struck him in the face with great force. Nobody could see much of anything, due to the spray of water. Ander attempted to throw a shuriken into whatever it was, but it bounced off and was lost to the water. Boreas teleported behind the party, leaving Kylian in the lead.
Believing that Peshtem was with him, Kylian plunged forward into the cavern, immediately submerging in water that was deeper than his height. He felt something slightly springy under his feet, and then something smashed into his torso, giving him a squeeze before letting go. He made a prayer to Peshtem to punish the creature whenever it attacked him, but this seemed to merely enrage it.
Thoric threw himself flat at the edge of the cavern to reach down and grab Kylian's arm. Before he could start hauling him out of the water, a tentacle thudded into Kylian's leg. There was a snap, and he felt his femur break. Ander jumped into the water to save his friend, but his attack failed to find it's mark. A tentacle then wrapped itself around Kylian's leg and squeezed. There were crunching sounds, and he blacked out from the pain as Thoric pulled him to the surface. Boreas, having no target above the surface of the water, grabbed hold of Thoric and helped pull them further up the tunnel. Ander climbed over his unconscious friend and collapsed on slick floor.
Thoric murmured a prayer to Linitheriva while pulling Kylian another few feet. He regained consciousness in a tangle of bodies on the wet stone. His first words were, "Did I kill it?"
Ander reflexively rolled to one side just as a tentacle sprang forth from the water and slammed down where he had just lain. He then quickly moved up the tunnel along with everyone else. Once out of reach of the scum and tentacles, they stopped for a breather.
When they went back up the passageway, they saw that the secret door was open. Xakoraki was activating the lever every time the door tried to close. John was there with her. He said that he had completed his mission. He wanted to thank the party for their help, and said he had a certain divinitory power. He offered to answer one question for them, and that if he couldn't answer it, they could ask another one.
After some discussion and recollection of names, they asked John where Orvalion Parthanak the red dragonborn was currently located. John's eyes rolled back into his head and fluttered for several seconds. He then asked for a piece of paper, and Ander handed over his journal. John drew a teleportation circle and said that Orvalion was in a cave that had been the lair of a dragon, and that this circle would allow them to travel there. He then touched his amulet, and the glow at its tips began to pulse. He thanked them for helping him.
The party then started to discuss whether they should destroy the circle on the floor before them. About midway into the discussion, John vanished with a tiny popping sound. They then produced some climbing pitons and a hammer, and chiseled away the runes on the floor. The anomaly in the air above the circle vanished. Thoric then chiseled a rose into the floor beside the now-defunct teleportation circle.
Having accomplished one mission, and having a firm lead on the second, the party spoke of returning to Vrisana for their reward.
The party returned to find Xakoraki and John missing. Before they could panic, however, the two emerged from one of the carrion crawler tunnels. John had pursued the wounded beast and finished it off. Xakoraki followed to make sure that the lair was properly looted. Sadly, no loot was found. Only pieces of armor, broken weapons, and bones.
Someone mentioned the portal room, and John wanted to investigate. Boreas said that they'd come back to it later, but that they were going deeper into the dungeon first. John said that such a portal was the entire reason he was in the dungeon in the first place, and that if they would not show him the secret door, then he would look for it himself. Once again, the party left Xakoraki and John behind.
Several hundred feet later, the passageway opened into a large cavern filled with murky water. The last ten feet of the tunnel was a few inches underwater already. The air was rank and musty, and there was a sporadic dripping sound. As they took in the scene, they noticed ripples on the surface of the water, as if something submerged were moving around. The small waves became more pronounced, and a scummy coating began to creep up the sides of the tunnel walls. The party backed up, and the sheen of wetness continued towards them until they were about 25 feet away from the cavern opening. Spells were cast at the wetness with no effect. Growing curious, Boreas walked to the edge of the cavern, casting the occasional ray of frost at the water.
Once at the edge, he stopped. Something lashed out of the water and struck him in the face with great force. Nobody could see much of anything, due to the spray of water. Ander attempted to throw a shuriken into whatever it was, but it bounced off and was lost to the water. Boreas teleported behind the party, leaving Kylian in the lead.
Believing that Peshtem was with him, Kylian plunged forward into the cavern, immediately submerging in water that was deeper than his height. He felt something slightly springy under his feet, and then something smashed into his torso, giving him a squeeze before letting go. He made a prayer to Peshtem to punish the creature whenever it attacked him, but this seemed to merely enrage it.
Thoric threw himself flat at the edge of the cavern to reach down and grab Kylian's arm. Before he could start hauling him out of the water, a tentacle thudded into Kylian's leg. There was a snap, and he felt his femur break. Ander jumped into the water to save his friend, but his attack failed to find it's mark. A tentacle then wrapped itself around Kylian's leg and squeezed. There were crunching sounds, and he blacked out from the pain as Thoric pulled him to the surface. Boreas, having no target above the surface of the water, grabbed hold of Thoric and helped pull them further up the tunnel. Ander climbed over his unconscious friend and collapsed on slick floor.
Thoric murmured a prayer to Linitheriva while pulling Kylian another few feet. He regained consciousness in a tangle of bodies on the wet stone. His first words were, "Did I kill it?"
Ander reflexively rolled to one side just as a tentacle sprang forth from the water and slammed down where he had just lain. He then quickly moved up the tunnel along with everyone else. Once out of reach of the scum and tentacles, they stopped for a breather.
When they went back up the passageway, they saw that the secret door was open. Xakoraki was activating the lever every time the door tried to close. John was there with her. He said that he had completed his mission. He wanted to thank the party for their help, and said he had a certain divinitory power. He offered to answer one question for them, and that if he couldn't answer it, they could ask another one.
After some discussion and recollection of names, they asked John where Orvalion Parthanak the red dragonborn was currently located. John's eyes rolled back into his head and fluttered for several seconds. He then asked for a piece of paper, and Ander handed over his journal. John drew a teleportation circle and said that Orvalion was in a cave that had been the lair of a dragon, and that this circle would allow them to travel there. He then touched his amulet, and the glow at its tips began to pulse. He thanked them for helping him.
The party then started to discuss whether they should destroy the circle on the floor before them. About midway into the discussion, John vanished with a tiny popping sound. They then produced some climbing pitons and a hammer, and chiseled away the runes on the floor. The anomaly in the air above the circle vanished. Thoric then chiseled a rose into the floor beside the now-defunct teleportation circle.
Having accomplished one mission, and having a firm lead on the second, the party spoke of returning to Vrisana for their reward.
Death is a Dark Hole - 4/29 session recap
The party parleyed with the remaining hobgoblins and let them leave. When the party asked where the hobgoblins came from, they said that scary tentacle monsters had driven them up here.
The party descended to a deeper level of the temple and discovered the catacombs. Rows and rows of funeral niches made up the entire level, and in the corner they found a dark hole with ancient writing around it. The runes were not magical, and simply said, "This Way Lies Yama". The darkness itself was magical, but John offered to go first. He was unharmed on the way down, and the party followed.
A tunnel led to a small chamber that was halfway filled with water. Three tunnels led out of the chamber, and carrion crawlers started to emerge from one of them.
The party descended to a deeper level of the temple and discovered the catacombs. Rows and rows of funeral niches made up the entire level, and in the corner they found a dark hole with ancient writing around it. The runes were not magical, and simply said, "This Way Lies Yama". The darkness itself was magical, but John offered to go first. He was unharmed on the way down, and the party followed.
A tunnel led to a small chamber that was halfway filled with water. Three tunnels led out of the chamber, and carrion crawlers started to emerge from one of them.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Big Skull - 4/15 session recap
There was no skull on the floor of the dungeon. Don't even ask about it.
A long corridor faced the party. Two alcoves were on the left hand wall. A body lay near the end of the hall, just short of a large chest. Each alcove was floored with a pressure plate. Two areas on the floor were covered by large metal gratings, set flush into the stone floor. An electricity trap, in Ander's estimation. He jammed it as best he could.
The party ventured over the zapping zones, and Boreas reached out to check the body. A small spark jumped between him and the body, and it jerked. The man, as they could see now, breathed in sharply, but lay still for a moment, blinking his eyes. He wore slick leather armor, several daggers, and a triangular amulet with three softly glowing points at the corners. Soon he sat up and started answering the questions that were asked of him.
His name was John Oldhamshire, and he said that he had infiltrated this place to discern the source of the goblinoids. He did not believe that renewed habitation was caused merely by reproduction, though he allowed that some of that was happening as well.
He politely declined to give any information about his origins or employers, but he asked if he could continue his mission with the party. His initial plan was to sneak in. But considering that he had run afoul of traps already and the party was making better progress through the use of concentrated force, John figured his mission would be better served by tagging along. Without much discussion, it was agreed that John could join them.
The chest had no traps, and the lock gave way easily. Five magic items were in the chest, which were then distributed amongst the party.
They returned to the large room with the tentacled bugbear corpses and explored one of the corridors that led out of the room. This led to a set of rooms with several pressure plates scattered here and there, as well as some recessed metal poles that appeared to be able to act as bars to a cage. Ander was able to disarm the traps for the duration of the exploration, and nothing bad happened.
Other bones were found in a corner, however, and they appeared to be from a large four-legged animal of some kind. No further encounters or treasure were found in this room.
So the party went back to the large room and tried the other exit through which the single hobgoblin had escaped. There was yet another trap in this winding corridor, a scything horizontal blade about two and a half feet off the ground. It was discovered that the blade only deployed when a weight equivalent to a humanoid creature was standing on a pressure plate in an alcove just before the trap. One of the hobgoblin bodies was dragged over to perform this guard service, and the party settled in for an extended rest in the large room.
A long corridor faced the party. Two alcoves were on the left hand wall. A body lay near the end of the hall, just short of a large chest. Each alcove was floored with a pressure plate. Two areas on the floor were covered by large metal gratings, set flush into the stone floor. An electricity trap, in Ander's estimation. He jammed it as best he could.
The party ventured over the zapping zones, and Boreas reached out to check the body. A small spark jumped between him and the body, and it jerked. The man, as they could see now, breathed in sharply, but lay still for a moment, blinking his eyes. He wore slick leather armor, several daggers, and a triangular amulet with three softly glowing points at the corners. Soon he sat up and started answering the questions that were asked of him.
His name was John Oldhamshire, and he said that he had infiltrated this place to discern the source of the goblinoids. He did not believe that renewed habitation was caused merely by reproduction, though he allowed that some of that was happening as well.
He politely declined to give any information about his origins or employers, but he asked if he could continue his mission with the party. His initial plan was to sneak in. But considering that he had run afoul of traps already and the party was making better progress through the use of concentrated force, John figured his mission would be better served by tagging along. Without much discussion, it was agreed that John could join them.
The chest had no traps, and the lock gave way easily. Five magic items were in the chest, which were then distributed amongst the party.
They returned to the large room with the tentacled bugbear corpses and explored one of the corridors that led out of the room. This led to a set of rooms with several pressure plates scattered here and there, as well as some recessed metal poles that appeared to be able to act as bars to a cage. Ander was able to disarm the traps for the duration of the exploration, and nothing bad happened.
Other bones were found in a corner, however, and they appeared to be from a large four-legged animal of some kind. No further encounters or treasure were found in this room.
So the party went back to the large room and tried the other exit through which the single hobgoblin had escaped. There was yet another trap in this winding corridor, a scything horizontal blade about two and a half feet off the ground. It was discovered that the blade only deployed when a weight equivalent to a humanoid creature was standing on a pressure plate in an alcove just before the trap. One of the hobgoblin bodies was dragged over to perform this guard service, and the party settled in for an extended rest in the large room.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
May Cause Blindness - 4/9 session recap
Despite last week's decision to charge forward, the party decided to take a 5-minute breather on the stairs of the temple. Healing surges were spent, and encounter powers regained. Then they traipsed back to the fight.
The hobgoblins were arrayed in a line formation, shields interlocked. Kylian ran in and proceeded to duel a single hobgoblin for the entire battle. Thoric blasted his enemies with beauty and granted Kylian some spare hit points. Ander ran in and blinded several of them with a barrage of shuriken, and Xakoraki followed in order to take up a defensive position in the corner. Boreas used his new Spectral Ram spell to blast an enemy out of formation. Then things got serious.
Two bugbears joined the fray from behind pillars in the room, but something was not right about them. Each wielded a mace in one arm. The other arm was a mass of long tentacles. One grappled Ander from a distance, and the other failed to grab Boreas. Boreas retreated to a safe firing distance at that point, but everyone else remained locked in melee combat.
Ander was able to break free from the tentacle, but later Xakoraki was squeezed by a successful grabbing attack. Combat continued for a few rounds, and blows were exchanged. As the first hobgoblin fell, the rest became more determined. They used more powerful moves, which brought Kylian almost to his knees. Thoric healed him fully with the radiance of Linitheriva, however.
Xakoraki was not as lucky. She stepped forward to finish off a hobgoblin, and the two at her back bludgeoned her into unconsciousness. Ander knocked one of her attackers unconscious with the hilt of his short sword, but its tentacles continued to writhe. Boreas blasted it with spell, and it expired.
Kylian was victorious in his duel, and the other bugbear was brought down by Thoric's warhammer. The remaining hobgoblin fled deeper into the dungeon while Thoric stabilized Xakoraki. Kylian then healed her by laying on hands.
The party then backtracked to one of two side corridors that they had passed on the way. It was a short hallway with a small room at the end. Upon seeing chests in the room, Xakoraki, Ander, and Boreas moved into the room to check for traps while Kylian and Thoric stood in the hallway. Unfortunately, the trap was triggered by the floor surrounding the chests. There was a click, and a low rumbling sound that ran along the ceiling of the hallway. Thoric and Kylian looked up reflexively, and caught a dusting of fine powder on their upturned faces. Their eyes and noses started to burn, but after a while it subsided to a dull sting and ache. The chests were not trapped, and contained 2500 gold pieces plus two healing potions.
Thoric performed some medical diagnosis, and determined that he and Kylian were diseased. If they were unable to shake off the infection, they would become permanently blinded, perhaps only in a few days.
The hobgoblins were arrayed in a line formation, shields interlocked. Kylian ran in and proceeded to duel a single hobgoblin for the entire battle. Thoric blasted his enemies with beauty and granted Kylian some spare hit points. Ander ran in and blinded several of them with a barrage of shuriken, and Xakoraki followed in order to take up a defensive position in the corner. Boreas used his new Spectral Ram spell to blast an enemy out of formation. Then things got serious.
Two bugbears joined the fray from behind pillars in the room, but something was not right about them. Each wielded a mace in one arm. The other arm was a mass of long tentacles. One grappled Ander from a distance, and the other failed to grab Boreas. Boreas retreated to a safe firing distance at that point, but everyone else remained locked in melee combat.
Ander was able to break free from the tentacle, but later Xakoraki was squeezed by a successful grabbing attack. Combat continued for a few rounds, and blows were exchanged. As the first hobgoblin fell, the rest became more determined. They used more powerful moves, which brought Kylian almost to his knees. Thoric healed him fully with the radiance of Linitheriva, however.
Xakoraki was not as lucky. She stepped forward to finish off a hobgoblin, and the two at her back bludgeoned her into unconsciousness. Ander knocked one of her attackers unconscious with the hilt of his short sword, but its tentacles continued to writhe. Boreas blasted it with spell, and it expired.
Kylian was victorious in his duel, and the other bugbear was brought down by Thoric's warhammer. The remaining hobgoblin fled deeper into the dungeon while Thoric stabilized Xakoraki. Kylian then healed her by laying on hands.
The party then backtracked to one of two side corridors that they had passed on the way. It was a short hallway with a small room at the end. Upon seeing chests in the room, Xakoraki, Ander, and Boreas moved into the room to check for traps while Kylian and Thoric stood in the hallway. Unfortunately, the trap was triggered by the floor surrounding the chests. There was a click, and a low rumbling sound that ran along the ceiling of the hallway. Thoric and Kylian looked up reflexively, and caught a dusting of fine powder on their upturned faces. Their eyes and noses started to burn, but after a while it subsided to a dull sting and ache. The chests were not trapped, and contained 2500 gold pieces plus two healing potions.
Thoric performed some medical diagnosis, and determined that he and Kylian were diseased. If they were unable to shake off the infection, they would become permanently blinded, perhaps only in a few days.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
A Paladin and a Cleric Walk Into A Dungeon... 3/2 session recap
The party continued on to the other side of the temple of Yama. Boreas discovered a pressure plate on the floor, and Ander noticed the nozzles facing him on the opposite wall. Ander took a javelin and prodded the plate from around the corner, and the resulting blast of flame caught his arm on fire. After putting out the flames, he proceeded to carefully jam up the pressure plate with dirt and small rocks. As he was doing so, Boreas noticed a hobgoblin peer around from an alcove down the long hallway. Before he could get a spell off, the hobgoblin fled down the hall away from the party.
Several rounds of nothing then occurred. No one was willing to move past the trap with someone still standing on it, and the player in front was unwilling to move forward to open up room.
Boreas blasted down the corridor to try and catch the hobgoblin, who he suspected was at the end, just around the corner. He heard a yelp and a curse, indicating a successful hit.
The party finally got moving, and despite Kylian and Ander's best attempts, they failed to find the next trap. Kylian was engulfed in flame, but Ander was able to dodge it. Kylian then continued forward to battle with a hobgoblin in a second alcove. He was still on fire as he fought.
Ander charged to the end of the hall and around the corner to attack the first hobgoblin. Xakoraki followed him. They pushed the enemy past two other side passageways, and engaged him with precision teamwork. Ander eventually knocked him unconscious and then returned to help his other three companions in their ongoing battle against a single, cornered hobgoblin. Xakoraki took the opportunity to finish off the unconscious one at her feet.
Kylian stood, on fire, in a protracted duel with the other hobgoblin. Thoric kept him healed up, but it was taking forever to whittle down the opponent. Boreas kept hammering his foe with spells, and all but one were turned aside by the hobgoblin's shield. After several rounds, the fire finally burned out on Kylian, and he was able to deliver a fatal blow.
What Ander had seen while separated from his party was a well-organized phalanx of hobgoblins in a large room. He reported this to the rest of the party while Xakoraki hid in one of the two side passages. The other group did not attack the party immediately, so they decided to attempt a short rest. After a few minutes of this, a hobgoblin poked it's head around the corner. Boreas attempted to blast it, but failed. It retreated. The party had to restart their rest since it was interrupted. A few minutes later, the hobgoblin took another peek, and Boreas started to cast a spell. It retreated again. The short rest was once again interrupted.
The DM finally explained that they could not rest this close to a known enemy force. After some discussion, the party decided to go ahead and push through to the next encounter. Since it was running late, we went ahead and called it a night. Next week we'll start that encounter.
Several rounds of nothing then occurred. No one was willing to move past the trap with someone still standing on it, and the player in front was unwilling to move forward to open up room.
Boreas blasted down the corridor to try and catch the hobgoblin, who he suspected was at the end, just around the corner. He heard a yelp and a curse, indicating a successful hit.
The party finally got moving, and despite Kylian and Ander's best attempts, they failed to find the next trap. Kylian was engulfed in flame, but Ander was able to dodge it. Kylian then continued forward to battle with a hobgoblin in a second alcove. He was still on fire as he fought.
Ander charged to the end of the hall and around the corner to attack the first hobgoblin. Xakoraki followed him. They pushed the enemy past two other side passageways, and engaged him with precision teamwork. Ander eventually knocked him unconscious and then returned to help his other three companions in their ongoing battle against a single, cornered hobgoblin. Xakoraki took the opportunity to finish off the unconscious one at her feet.
Kylian stood, on fire, in a protracted duel with the other hobgoblin. Thoric kept him healed up, but it was taking forever to whittle down the opponent. Boreas kept hammering his foe with spells, and all but one were turned aside by the hobgoblin's shield. After several rounds, the fire finally burned out on Kylian, and he was able to deliver a fatal blow.
What Ander had seen while separated from his party was a well-organized phalanx of hobgoblins in a large room. He reported this to the rest of the party while Xakoraki hid in one of the two side passages. The other group did not attack the party immediately, so they decided to attempt a short rest. After a few minutes of this, a hobgoblin poked it's head around the corner. Boreas attempted to blast it, but failed. It retreated. The party had to restart their rest since it was interrupted. A few minutes later, the hobgoblin took another peek, and Boreas started to cast a spell. It retreated again. The short rest was once again interrupted.
The DM finally explained that they could not rest this close to a known enemy force. After some discussion, the party decided to go ahead and push through to the next encounter. Since it was running late, we went ahead and called it a night. Next week we'll start that encounter.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Refugee Displacement - 3/19 session recap
Xakoraki said she'd stand guard at the stairs in case anything came from behind, and the rest of the party continued onward. Boreas discovered a dart trap, and Ander disabled it. Ander then discovered another dart trap by stepping on it. He borrowed Boreas' staff, and triggered it twice more. At this point they heard a battlecry that was cut short as the goblin realized that none of the party was in sight yet.
The party sprung into action and attacked two goblin defenders. Kylian battled against one of them, and pushed it back into a room. As the goblin fell dead, Kylian noticed that the room was filled with cowering goblin women and children. Ander, Boreas, and Thoric wounded the other goblin defender, and Ander forced it to surrender. He then raced to the living area to keep his companions from executing anyone.
Once again, Ander convinced his party members to let the creatures go with a face scar. One of them, the smartest female, asked to be allowed to gather the other goblins further in the dungeon. She was allowed to get them. As she left, Ander proceeded to carve his mark into the face of a youngling. The screaming from the youngling brought the female running back, and some more discussion took place. Then she ran off again.
Meanwhile, Xakoraki was standing guard. She saw the first of the marked goblins fleeing for the stairs and almost hacked them down with her axe of terror. But at the last second, she noticed the bleeding facial wounds on all of them, and let them pass with a muttered curse.
After allowing the goblins to flee, the party continued deeper into the goblin section of the dungeon. They came across a wider hallway with a chest at the far end. Ander and Boreas moved forward, searching for traps, and came across a pressure plate about midway down the hall. Ander was able to temporarily disable it, but cautioned his companions to step lightly. The chest at the end did not radiate any magic, and did not appear to have any traps. The lock seemed to have been broken off long ago, and when they opened it they only found 50 copper pieces scattered in the bottom.
As they left the hallway, Kylian triggered the pressure plate, which had finally come loose due to the traffic. Spikes shot from the floor in a wave-like motion heading from the ends of the hallway towards the center. Boreas escaped by teleporting past them, but Ander took damage. Thoric was nible enough to escape harm. Kylian was safe in the center. When he left to rejoin the party, however, the trap triggered again, and he was pierced in the foot.
The rest of the area consisted of a twisty passage, another goblin living area (now vacated), and a refuse pile that doubled as a mushroom farm. The party could find no secret doors, and concluded that they had cleared the goblin portion of the dungeon.
Everyone went up to 7th level! Hooray!
The party sprung into action and attacked two goblin defenders. Kylian battled against one of them, and pushed it back into a room. As the goblin fell dead, Kylian noticed that the room was filled with cowering goblin women and children. Ander, Boreas, and Thoric wounded the other goblin defender, and Ander forced it to surrender. He then raced to the living area to keep his companions from executing anyone.
Once again, Ander convinced his party members to let the creatures go with a face scar. One of them, the smartest female, asked to be allowed to gather the other goblins further in the dungeon. She was allowed to get them. As she left, Ander proceeded to carve his mark into the face of a youngling. The screaming from the youngling brought the female running back, and some more discussion took place. Then she ran off again.
Meanwhile, Xakoraki was standing guard. She saw the first of the marked goblins fleeing for the stairs and almost hacked them down with her axe of terror. But at the last second, she noticed the bleeding facial wounds on all of them, and let them pass with a muttered curse.
After allowing the goblins to flee, the party continued deeper into the goblin section of the dungeon. They came across a wider hallway with a chest at the far end. Ander and Boreas moved forward, searching for traps, and came across a pressure plate about midway down the hall. Ander was able to temporarily disable it, but cautioned his companions to step lightly. The chest at the end did not radiate any magic, and did not appear to have any traps. The lock seemed to have been broken off long ago, and when they opened it they only found 50 copper pieces scattered in the bottom.
As they left the hallway, Kylian triggered the pressure plate, which had finally come loose due to the traffic. Spikes shot from the floor in a wave-like motion heading from the ends of the hallway towards the center. Boreas escaped by teleporting past them, but Ander took damage. Thoric was nible enough to escape harm. Kylian was safe in the center. When he left to rejoin the party, however, the trap triggered again, and he was pierced in the foot.
The rest of the area consisted of a twisty passage, another goblin living area (now vacated), and a refuse pile that doubled as a mushroom farm. The party could find no secret doors, and concluded that they had cleared the goblin portion of the dungeon.
Everyone went up to 7th level! Hooray!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
A Tale of Two Encounters - session recaps for 3/4 and 3/11
I'm keeping it brief today.
The party emerged from the woods and saw the temple in the middle of a swampy area. Ander walked up to parlay with the visible defenders, but was attacked instead. Goblins with mucky arrows attacked from hiding, and hobgoblins with shields and maces attacked on the pathway of dry land. Boreas took a lot of damage for once, but the party triumphed over the goblinoids.
After a short rest, the party ventured into the temple. They were hit with spear traps from the walls, but Ander disabled one of them. Goblins attacked from one side of the corridor, and a hobgoblin attacked from the other side. All of them were slain.
The party emerged from the woods and saw the temple in the middle of a swampy area. Ander walked up to parlay with the visible defenders, but was attacked instead. Goblins with mucky arrows attacked from hiding, and hobgoblins with shields and maces attacked on the pathway of dry land. Boreas took a lot of damage for once, but the party triumphed over the goblinoids.
After a short rest, the party ventured into the temple. They were hit with spear traps from the walls, but Ander disabled one of them. Goblins attacked from one side of the corridor, and a hobgoblin attacked from the other side. All of them were slain.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Comparative Theology 101 - 2/26 session recap
The party returned to town after their visit with Vrisana Pajul, and having nothing better to do, they went to the Sagebrush Inn for a drink. Thoric was focused on adding art to the outside of the Inn, so he asked permission to do some decoration. It was granted, and he went outside to begin a mural of sagebrush, pine, and desert roses.
The other party members immediately noticed a well armed and armored dark elf eating by himself at a table. Ander immediately went over an introduced himself, and Boreas and the stranger exchanged nods. The man waved them over, and all three of them took a seat. He introduced himself as Kylian, a follower of Peshtem. Ander seemed heartened by the shared choice of religion. Kylian said that he wandered the lands, helping those who were down on their luck, and that fate had brought him to this place recently. He had helped a woman and her son into town as they fled from goblin raiders, and he planned on seeking out the goblins and vanquishing them after he got a meal and night's rest.
The party said that they were on the same mission, and that perhaps they should join forces. This idea seemed to appeal to everyone, and thus a new party member was added. They all settled down to drinks of frothy fermented cactus juice and hard cactus liquor. Dinner consisted of cactus salad, crunchy cactus, sauteed cactus, boiled cactus with sage, piney stewed cactus with sage, and iguana on a stick. Xakoraki took offense at the consumption of iguana, but it didn't keep Ander from wolfing it down.
After picking up the maps the following morning, the party set out towards the abandoned temple of Yama that was rumored to be the source of the goblin raiders. The first day was hot, dry, and dusty. At the end of it, they had made it to the treeline of a thin pine forest. After clearing the ground of pine needles, they started a campfire and settled in for the night. They were soon approached by five well-armed men who stood at a respectable distance and asked if they could approach.
The men all bore shields with the symbol of Jocham, the protective aspect of Dravatadatman. They said that they were patrolling the borders of the land, both to protect the people from the goblins, but also to protect the truce. Their leader introduced himself as Gurti. Kylian told him that he was following Peshtem's will in seeking out the source of the goblins in order to destroy it. Thoric spoke up and said that it was also the will of Linitheriva that the ugliness of goblinkind be exterminated. Gurti called them unbelievers*, but said that he would not hold it against them.
The party agreed to let the group camp beside them for the evening. Nothing interesting occurred that evening, and in the morning the party prepared to move on. Gurti queried them again about their intentions in the truce zone, and Kylian's diplomacy convinced him that the party would not do anything to disturb the truce. Gurti mused that even though they were unbelievers, their mission was just, and he granted them Jocham's blessing.
Once they were into the pine forest, the air grew still and hot. The trees were thin and short enough to admit plenty of sunlight, and the ground was dusty beneath their feet. The shrill tone of cicadas was constant, and small flies harried the party. The smell of pine sap was thick, which was nice. But the occasional prick of pine needles began to wear on the travelers. Towards afternoon, the air became more humid and more oppressive. By late afternoon they found a tiny trickle of a stream which they used to refresh themselves. As the sun began to set, they decided to make a cold camp. Fatigued, they ate their rations and settled down for the evening.
Within an hour of full sundown, a group of hobgoblins and goblins was seen approaching the camp with torches. Everyone was quietly awakened, and the party was able to ambush the foul creatures. The hobgoblins quickly assembled an organized line of defense, but Boreas' area-affecting magic started wearing them down quickly. Ander blinded several with shuriken, and Xakoraki and Kylian stepped up to engage them in melee. Ander slipped behind their defensive line and was able to break up the phalanx that they created with their shields. He received a muck-tainted arrow in his shoulder for his efforts, but the battle was mostly a rout. Xakoraki took a few hits, but after less than a minutes of fighting, three hobgoblins and one goblin lay incapacitated. The remaining five goblinoids sprawled dead around the campsite.
*It should be noted that even in the face of divine magics from other good clerics, the followers of Dravatadatman believe that this is still the work of their god. Peshtem is merely a bastardized version of Jocham the Protector, and Linitheriva is an off-base version of Dhali the Teacher. It can also be noted that western followers of Dravatadatman believe that he is a spiritual god whose will is carried out by his people, and that his clerics are merely those who are closest to his true intentions. Eastern followers of Dravatadatman believe that his clerics are the physical incarnation of his five holy aspects. Naturally, both sides believe that the other side blasphemes against them.
The other party members immediately noticed a well armed and armored dark elf eating by himself at a table. Ander immediately went over an introduced himself, and Boreas and the stranger exchanged nods. The man waved them over, and all three of them took a seat. He introduced himself as Kylian, a follower of Peshtem. Ander seemed heartened by the shared choice of religion. Kylian said that he wandered the lands, helping those who were down on their luck, and that fate had brought him to this place recently. He had helped a woman and her son into town as they fled from goblin raiders, and he planned on seeking out the goblins and vanquishing them after he got a meal and night's rest.
The party said that they were on the same mission, and that perhaps they should join forces. This idea seemed to appeal to everyone, and thus a new party member was added. They all settled down to drinks of frothy fermented cactus juice and hard cactus liquor. Dinner consisted of cactus salad, crunchy cactus, sauteed cactus, boiled cactus with sage, piney stewed cactus with sage, and iguana on a stick. Xakoraki took offense at the consumption of iguana, but it didn't keep Ander from wolfing it down.
After picking up the maps the following morning, the party set out towards the abandoned temple of Yama that was rumored to be the source of the goblin raiders. The first day was hot, dry, and dusty. At the end of it, they had made it to the treeline of a thin pine forest. After clearing the ground of pine needles, they started a campfire and settled in for the night. They were soon approached by five well-armed men who stood at a respectable distance and asked if they could approach.
The men all bore shields with the symbol of Jocham, the protective aspect of Dravatadatman. They said that they were patrolling the borders of the land, both to protect the people from the goblins, but also to protect the truce. Their leader introduced himself as Gurti. Kylian told him that he was following Peshtem's will in seeking out the source of the goblins in order to destroy it. Thoric spoke up and said that it was also the will of Linitheriva that the ugliness of goblinkind be exterminated. Gurti called them unbelievers*, but said that he would not hold it against them.
The party agreed to let the group camp beside them for the evening. Nothing interesting occurred that evening, and in the morning the party prepared to move on. Gurti queried them again about their intentions in the truce zone, and Kylian's diplomacy convinced him that the party would not do anything to disturb the truce. Gurti mused that even though they were unbelievers, their mission was just, and he granted them Jocham's blessing.
Once they were into the pine forest, the air grew still and hot. The trees were thin and short enough to admit plenty of sunlight, and the ground was dusty beneath their feet. The shrill tone of cicadas was constant, and small flies harried the party. The smell of pine sap was thick, which was nice. But the occasional prick of pine needles began to wear on the travelers. Towards afternoon, the air became more humid and more oppressive. By late afternoon they found a tiny trickle of a stream which they used to refresh themselves. As the sun began to set, they decided to make a cold camp. Fatigued, they ate their rations and settled down for the evening.
Within an hour of full sundown, a group of hobgoblins and goblins was seen approaching the camp with torches. Everyone was quietly awakened, and the party was able to ambush the foul creatures. The hobgoblins quickly assembled an organized line of defense, but Boreas' area-affecting magic started wearing them down quickly. Ander blinded several with shuriken, and Xakoraki and Kylian stepped up to engage them in melee. Ander slipped behind their defensive line and was able to break up the phalanx that they created with their shields. He received a muck-tainted arrow in his shoulder for his efforts, but the battle was mostly a rout. Xakoraki took a few hits, but after less than a minutes of fighting, three hobgoblins and one goblin lay incapacitated. The remaining five goblinoids sprawled dead around the campsite.
*It should be noted that even in the face of divine magics from other good clerics, the followers of Dravatadatman believe that this is still the work of their god. Peshtem is merely a bastardized version of Jocham the Protector, and Linitheriva is an off-base version of Dhali the Teacher. It can also be noted that western followers of Dravatadatman believe that he is a spiritual god whose will is carried out by his people, and that his clerics are merely those who are closest to his true intentions. Eastern followers of Dravatadatman believe that his clerics are the physical incarnation of his five holy aspects. Naturally, both sides believe that the other side blasphemes against them.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
A Moment of Clarity - 2/18 session recap
Xakoraki spent some time scaring the living daylights out of Hondro, who sat up that night, shivering and jumping at every little scratching sound from the mesa door. Ander relieved him of watch duty, but Xakoraki had scared him so much that poor Hondro was reluctant to close his eyes. After some coaxing, and a promise that Ander would wake him in case of a zombie outbreak, he finally fell asleep. He was only able to get a few hours of rest before jolting awake with a scream, however.
Boreas and Thoric escorted Nunpar and a band of militia back to the mesa the following morning. The militia leader was brought up to speed on the situation, and he seemed less scared than the two teens. When asked, he provided them with the location of the magister, and that her name was Pajul or something.
The party had a discussion about where to go next. Ander wanted to walk back to Shandrapur across the desert. Thoric wanted to slay goblins with extreme prejudice, and a discussion arose about how bloodthirsty he was for a follower of Linitheriva. Eventually it was suggested that perhaps the party could visit the magister directly, and then decide on a course of action. They visited town first, and Ander commissioned a copy of both a local and a regional map from the scribe's shop.
The next morning, the party made the five mile journey south across arid scrublands to the magister's tower. It was a simple sandstone structure built on top of a natural rock outcropping. As they neared the tower they felt a building electrical pressure against them. They stopped, and a voice asked for them to identify themselves. They were permitted to approach, and a young woman in a white, loose-fitting garments appeared from around the base of the rock. She introduced herself as Vrisana Pajul, the local magister. After a few introductions, Thoric explained that they were looking for Orvalion. He asked if she knew anything about him.
She said that she was not surprised that Caelbhan had hired them for this task without explaining anything about it, but that she would be willing to talk to them further. She invited them to climb the stairs at the back of the rock and enter there. She then vanished. At the top of the stairs they found a simple door in the side of the tower. They knocked, and she bade them enter. She had laid out some cups, and she conjured some water into a pitcher to serve them.
She was apparently satisfied that she could trust the party, and she told them that Caelebhan was seeking Orvalion for the same reason that she was; Orvalion was the last known protector of the first dragonstone. All of the other dragonstones that had been located during the rebellion had self-destructed upon capture, but the very first one had been created with no such failsafes. It was the prototype for all of the others. Orvalion, as part of the original Parthanak lineage, was its protector before the fall of the empire. He has since disappeared, and understandably so.
Vrisana explained that she, and many others, were extremely interested in the whereabouts of the dragonstone. For her part, she said that she probably wanted the same thing that Orvalion did, which was to destroy it so that it could never be used against dragons or dragonkin again. She suspected that Caelebhan wanted to keep it "safe", and out of the "wrong" hands, but that he himself wanted to study it. She had already researched a bit into how to destroy it, and she guessed that Orvalion was doing the same thing in the places that the party had tracked him. She made the party an offer : If they could convince Orvalion to come share his research with her, she would pay them double what Caelebhan had offered. She also sweetened the deal by saying that she could also offer them a chance to study a teleportation ritual so that they would no longer have to rely completely on the whims of others for such travel.
Thoric asked her if she had come into contact with Thorium like Caelebhan, and she said that she had not. She also said that there was no known cure for his condition, at least not one for which he was willing to pay the price.
He also asked Vrisana about the goblin infestation that had been plaguing the town. She was vexed with this problem, since the townspeople had come to her a couple of times for her help with it. She was not inclined to deal with it herself, but she was willing to pay the party to take care of it, should they be so inclined. The reward was limited to free teleportation and access to learn the teleportation ritual themselves, but no fixed sum was discussed.
The party then set off for town for resupply and to pick up Ander's maps.
Boreas and Thoric escorted Nunpar and a band of militia back to the mesa the following morning. The militia leader was brought up to speed on the situation, and he seemed less scared than the two teens. When asked, he provided them with the location of the magister, and that her name was Pajul or something.
The party had a discussion about where to go next. Ander wanted to walk back to Shandrapur across the desert. Thoric wanted to slay goblins with extreme prejudice, and a discussion arose about how bloodthirsty he was for a follower of Linitheriva. Eventually it was suggested that perhaps the party could visit the magister directly, and then decide on a course of action. They visited town first, and Ander commissioned a copy of both a local and a regional map from the scribe's shop.
The next morning, the party made the five mile journey south across arid scrublands to the magister's tower. It was a simple sandstone structure built on top of a natural rock outcropping. As they neared the tower they felt a building electrical pressure against them. They stopped, and a voice asked for them to identify themselves. They were permitted to approach, and a young woman in a white, loose-fitting garments appeared from around the base of the rock. She introduced herself as Vrisana Pajul, the local magister. After a few introductions, Thoric explained that they were looking for Orvalion. He asked if she knew anything about him.
She said that she was not surprised that Caelbhan had hired them for this task without explaining anything about it, but that she would be willing to talk to them further. She invited them to climb the stairs at the back of the rock and enter there. She then vanished. At the top of the stairs they found a simple door in the side of the tower. They knocked, and she bade them enter. She had laid out some cups, and she conjured some water into a pitcher to serve them.
She was apparently satisfied that she could trust the party, and she told them that Caelebhan was seeking Orvalion for the same reason that she was; Orvalion was the last known protector of the first dragonstone. All of the other dragonstones that had been located during the rebellion had self-destructed upon capture, but the very first one had been created with no such failsafes. It was the prototype for all of the others. Orvalion, as part of the original Parthanak lineage, was its protector before the fall of the empire. He has since disappeared, and understandably so.
Vrisana explained that she, and many others, were extremely interested in the whereabouts of the dragonstone. For her part, she said that she probably wanted the same thing that Orvalion did, which was to destroy it so that it could never be used against dragons or dragonkin again. She suspected that Caelebhan wanted to keep it "safe", and out of the "wrong" hands, but that he himself wanted to study it. She had already researched a bit into how to destroy it, and she guessed that Orvalion was doing the same thing in the places that the party had tracked him. She made the party an offer : If they could convince Orvalion to come share his research with her, she would pay them double what Caelebhan had offered. She also sweetened the deal by saying that she could also offer them a chance to study a teleportation ritual so that they would no longer have to rely completely on the whims of others for such travel.
Thoric asked her if she had come into contact with Thorium like Caelebhan, and she said that she had not. She also said that there was no known cure for his condition, at least not one for which he was willing to pay the price.
He also asked Vrisana about the goblin infestation that had been plaguing the town. She was vexed with this problem, since the townspeople had come to her a couple of times for her help with it. She was not inclined to deal with it herself, but she was willing to pay the party to take care of it, should they be so inclined. The reward was limited to free teleportation and access to learn the teleportation ritual themselves, but no fixed sum was discussed.
The party then set off for town for resupply and to pick up Ander's maps.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Unlife, Revisited - 2/12 session recap
Having fought their way to a choke point at which they could hold off the lurching horde of zombies, the party decided to retreat. All of the territory that they gained last session just vanished in the wink of an eye as they fled to the elevator for a five minute rest. All so that they could get their encounter powers back. The room re-filled with zombies as the doors of the elevator closed.
During their rest, they mused on the fact that the barracks on the ground floor of the mesa was large enough to house an army of at least a thousand. They then estimated that they had only destroyed around seventy undead so far. The odds weren't good for simply killing all of them in a massive battle.
Afterwards, they ventured back down again to face the horde. This session was much like last session, except that Ander decided to make a dash for the control closet on the opposite side of the room while the rest of the party fought the never ending tide of undead. He found a way to raise the iron door, and everyone else retreated when it had opened enough. Ander himself waited until the last minute before sending the iron door back downwards. He then made an acrobatic leap to the ground and slipped out before the zombies could overcome him.
Beyond the iron door was a large wooden door with a sally port. Xakoraki unbarred this smaller door and was met by a teenager swinging a mace. "Die, Zombie!" She easily ducked the attack, and after a few confusing moments, the party emerged from the door into sunlight. Facing them were two scared teens. Boreas used his mage hand to drop the bar on the inside as the door shut behind him, hopefully slowing any zombies that made it through before the iron door fully closed.
The teens were named Nunpar and Hondro, and they explained that they were guarding Kopatri, the cursed mesa, as part of their coming-of-age trial. A thousand years ago, during the infernal invasions, several villages and an army sought refuge in the mesa as the horde of demons and devils surrounded them. A curse was laid on the mesa that turned people into undead when they died. Eventually reinforcements arrived, but not before the stores of the mesa had been exhausted, and everyone inside had perished. The place has been guarded ever since, in case the undead ever break free.
Ander and Xakoraki stayed at the mesa with Hondro while Boreas and Thoric traveled with Nunpar to the village. They met with the village elder who listened to their tale. When asked, he mentioned that he had seen what he thought was a dragon circling the mesa, perhaps a few years ago. Thoric came to the conclusion that Orvalion must have traveled to and from the mesa by riding a dragon.
They tried to subtly ask for a reward or resupply, but the village elder said that there were shops in town. When pressed, he said that he could do them a favor if they would do him a favor. He sent everyone else out of the house and told Thoric and Boreas of his proposal.
He explained that his tribe, The Jalakampathra, has a long-standing border dispute with a neighboring tribe, the Devratetlanak. A truce was declared many years ago, and a certain region between the two tribes was proclaimed off-limits to both sides. The problem is that there is a goblin-infested place within the truce zone, and the goblins have been raiding more boldly in recent years. The dragonlords used to fly by occasionally to scour the surface with dragonbreath, thus keeping the goblinoids in check. But after the rebellion, things have been getting steadily worse. He asked the party to cull or root out the source of the goblins, and in return he would tell the local magister to teleport them back to Shandrapur.
During their rest, they mused on the fact that the barracks on the ground floor of the mesa was large enough to house an army of at least a thousand. They then estimated that they had only destroyed around seventy undead so far. The odds weren't good for simply killing all of them in a massive battle.
Afterwards, they ventured back down again to face the horde. This session was much like last session, except that Ander decided to make a dash for the control closet on the opposite side of the room while the rest of the party fought the never ending tide of undead. He found a way to raise the iron door, and everyone else retreated when it had opened enough. Ander himself waited until the last minute before sending the iron door back downwards. He then made an acrobatic leap to the ground and slipped out before the zombies could overcome him.
Beyond the iron door was a large wooden door with a sally port. Xakoraki unbarred this smaller door and was met by a teenager swinging a mace. "Die, Zombie!" She easily ducked the attack, and after a few confusing moments, the party emerged from the door into sunlight. Facing them were two scared teens. Boreas used his mage hand to drop the bar on the inside as the door shut behind him, hopefully slowing any zombies that made it through before the iron door fully closed.
The teens were named Nunpar and Hondro, and they explained that they were guarding Kopatri, the cursed mesa, as part of their coming-of-age trial. A thousand years ago, during the infernal invasions, several villages and an army sought refuge in the mesa as the horde of demons and devils surrounded them. A curse was laid on the mesa that turned people into undead when they died. Eventually reinforcements arrived, but not before the stores of the mesa had been exhausted, and everyone inside had perished. The place has been guarded ever since, in case the undead ever break free.
Ander and Xakoraki stayed at the mesa with Hondro while Boreas and Thoric traveled with Nunpar to the village. They met with the village elder who listened to their tale. When asked, he mentioned that he had seen what he thought was a dragon circling the mesa, perhaps a few years ago. Thoric came to the conclusion that Orvalion must have traveled to and from the mesa by riding a dragon.
They tried to subtly ask for a reward or resupply, but the village elder said that there were shops in town. When pressed, he said that he could do them a favor if they would do him a favor. He sent everyone else out of the house and told Thoric and Boreas of his proposal.
He explained that his tribe, The Jalakampathra, has a long-standing border dispute with a neighboring tribe, the Devratetlanak. A truce was declared many years ago, and a certain region between the two tribes was proclaimed off-limits to both sides. The problem is that there is a goblin-infested place within the truce zone, and the goblins have been raiding more boldly in recent years. The dragonlords used to fly by occasionally to scour the surface with dragonbreath, thus keeping the goblinoids in check. But after the rebellion, things have been getting steadily worse. He asked the party to cull or root out the source of the goblins, and in return he would tell the local magister to teleport them back to Shandrapur.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
How Many Are There? last two session recaps
The party ventured down the grand staircase to find a barricaded double door at the bottom. After setting up for ambush, they unbarricaded and opened the doors. Chained to the floor on the other side were three undead warriors, still wearing their nice armor and weaponry. The chains were long enough to allow them to engage the party, and a quick combat ensued.
A few magical trinkets were looted from the chained guardian zombies, including an amulet that did not seem to be fully functional yet. There was also a leather map of the mesa keep that indicated a secret room in the servant's quarters.
Moving down to the kitchen level, the party wandered into a zone of intense cold that was emanating from several chillborn zombies. After they had engaged these foes, an imp the size of a human attacked from above and then disappeared again. The imp continued to harass the party during the combat, but eventually fell to their attacks. As he faded away he rasped, "Finally, after a thousand years! Release!"
Single zombies popped out here and there while the party continued to explore the kitchens and servant's quarters. They found the secret room easily. It was a small closet with a single lever mechanism. They left this for later, and went to check out the main elevator.
There followed a discussion about the nature of Thorium, a metal which Thoric revealed to the party as being both antimagic and toxic to non-dwarves. He put forth the theory that Caelebhan had handled some Thorium, perhaps during his fight against the dragonlords, which was why he was withered and losing his hair prematurely. He hypothesized that Caelebhan was seeking some remedy for his illness that perhaps Orvalion could provide. He also suspected that some amount of Thorium was in the mesa, since there was an anti-magic effect negating the teleportation circle.
The party's response was hostile, as usual. Two phrases were uttered back-to-back : "Why are the dwarves hoarding Thorium?!" and "Why are the dwarves thording Whorium?" Thoric was able to convince them that knowledge of Thorium was not something to be given out freely. Not only was it a potent weapon against magic, but also a great danger to those who carried it. Better that it remain a somewhat secretive piece of information. The party grudgingly agreed, for the most part.
The main elevator was packed with zombies. Ander single-handedly neutralized them with a flurry of shuriken headshots. Before heading down, the party went back to the secret lever. After a bit of fiddling with it, they activated it, and heard a gurgling rush that merged into the sound of rumbling that persisted for about 30 seconds.
Curious, they scaled 500 feet worth of stairs to get to the top of the mesa. As Ander had suspected, the pool at the top was almost drained. Nothing else could be discerned about the pool, however, except that there was an inanimate skeleton in one corner. Heading down one level to the mage lab, they found that the stone pillar covering the teleportation circle had been raised again. Curiosity satisfied, they rested the night in the mage apartment.
In the morning, they headed to the elevator. It dropped with a sickening lurch, but did not injure anyone. The doors opened onto the gate room on the lowest level of the keep. A wide ramp led down into the entrance area, a full twenty feet below the level of the elevator. Along two sides, crenellated walls enclosed the room at the same level of the elevator. It appeared that in better days, this area would have afforded archers a clear field of fire on anyone entering through the gate. Since these were not better days, the room below was filled with zombies.
Boreas unleashed the fury of the elements upon a large area of zombies, destroying many of them. Many still remained active, however, including a fairly large zombie that looked much stronger than the others. Boreas moved to a better firing position along the crenellated section of the wall, and started to cast spells down at the horde while his companions remained a little further back towards the elevator.
The zombie brute charged Xakoraki and smashed her into the ground with his long, powerful arms. At the same time, zombies started pouring out from a doorway near Boreas, flooding his area of the wall with undead. Ander moved forward to help Boreas, and Thoric stayed back to help Xakoraki. The party was fighting on two fronts.
The brute smashed Xakoraki back down to the ground after she regained her feet, but Thoric healed her with his divine magic. Ander quickly realized that he was needed to repel the brute zombie, and left Boreas to continue his barrage of thunderwave spells. Thoric helped with his blessings as Xakoraki got back to her feet. Then she and Ander coordinated their attacks to bring down the brute zombie. While they were mopping up the crowd of regular zombies around them, the brute reanimated amongst them and attacked Thoric. It was hacked down a second time. Boreas continued his holding action against a seemingly never ending stream of animated corpses.
Eventually there was a break in the flow of undead, and the party caught their breath to assess their options. The approaching moans from the doorway told them that they didn't have much time before the next wave, and that they had better come up with a plan.
A few magical trinkets were looted from the chained guardian zombies, including an amulet that did not seem to be fully functional yet. There was also a leather map of the mesa keep that indicated a secret room in the servant's quarters.
Moving down to the kitchen level, the party wandered into a zone of intense cold that was emanating from several chillborn zombies. After they had engaged these foes, an imp the size of a human attacked from above and then disappeared again. The imp continued to harass the party during the combat, but eventually fell to their attacks. As he faded away he rasped, "Finally, after a thousand years! Release!"
Single zombies popped out here and there while the party continued to explore the kitchens and servant's quarters. They found the secret room easily. It was a small closet with a single lever mechanism. They left this for later, and went to check out the main elevator.
There followed a discussion about the nature of Thorium, a metal which Thoric revealed to the party as being both antimagic and toxic to non-dwarves. He put forth the theory that Caelebhan had handled some Thorium, perhaps during his fight against the dragonlords, which was why he was withered and losing his hair prematurely. He hypothesized that Caelebhan was seeking some remedy for his illness that perhaps Orvalion could provide. He also suspected that some amount of Thorium was in the mesa, since there was an anti-magic effect negating the teleportation circle.
The party's response was hostile, as usual. Two phrases were uttered back-to-back : "Why are the dwarves hoarding Thorium?!" and "Why are the dwarves thording Whorium?" Thoric was able to convince them that knowledge of Thorium was not something to be given out freely. Not only was it a potent weapon against magic, but also a great danger to those who carried it. Better that it remain a somewhat secretive piece of information. The party grudgingly agreed, for the most part.
The main elevator was packed with zombies. Ander single-handedly neutralized them with a flurry of shuriken headshots. Before heading down, the party went back to the secret lever. After a bit of fiddling with it, they activated it, and heard a gurgling rush that merged into the sound of rumbling that persisted for about 30 seconds.
Curious, they scaled 500 feet worth of stairs to get to the top of the mesa. As Ander had suspected, the pool at the top was almost drained. Nothing else could be discerned about the pool, however, except that there was an inanimate skeleton in one corner. Heading down one level to the mage lab, they found that the stone pillar covering the teleportation circle had been raised again. Curiosity satisfied, they rested the night in the mage apartment.
In the morning, they headed to the elevator. It dropped with a sickening lurch, but did not injure anyone. The doors opened onto the gate room on the lowest level of the keep. A wide ramp led down into the entrance area, a full twenty feet below the level of the elevator. Along two sides, crenellated walls enclosed the room at the same level of the elevator. It appeared that in better days, this area would have afforded archers a clear field of fire on anyone entering through the gate. Since these were not better days, the room below was filled with zombies.
Boreas unleashed the fury of the elements upon a large area of zombies, destroying many of them. Many still remained active, however, including a fairly large zombie that looked much stronger than the others. Boreas moved to a better firing position along the crenellated section of the wall, and started to cast spells down at the horde while his companions remained a little further back towards the elevator.
The zombie brute charged Xakoraki and smashed her into the ground with his long, powerful arms. At the same time, zombies started pouring out from a doorway near Boreas, flooding his area of the wall with undead. Ander moved forward to help Boreas, and Thoric stayed back to help Xakoraki. The party was fighting on two fronts.
The brute smashed Xakoraki back down to the ground after she regained her feet, but Thoric healed her with his divine magic. Ander quickly realized that he was needed to repel the brute zombie, and left Boreas to continue his barrage of thunderwave spells. Thoric helped with his blessings as Xakoraki got back to her feet. Then she and Ander coordinated their attacks to bring down the brute zombie. While they were mopping up the crowd of regular zombies around them, the brute reanimated amongst them and attacked Thoric. It was hacked down a second time. Boreas continued his holding action against a seemingly never ending stream of animated corpses.
Eventually there was a break in the flow of undead, and the party caught their breath to assess their options. The approaching moans from the doorway told them that they didn't have much time before the next wave, and that they had better come up with a plan.
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