# the Kyri Chronicles - last updated 22 Oct



## Plane Sailing

My normal policy is to post this storyhour in bite-sized chunks. The game is run approx once a month, and I write the details down to remind players of what they've been up to. As such it is more of a log than a storyhour - I'll not often include dialog sadly.

The Kyri Chronicles 

An account of the adventures surrounding the town of Knightsbridge.

*Dramatis Personae:*

(removed so that you can see people arrive (and die) as the adventures proceed...


*Campaign Setting*

Briefly these adventures are set in the world of Kyri, a campaign world that I created back in the late 1970's and have used as the basis for each of the D&D campaigns that I've run to date.

It is a generally low-magic setting, and it is monotheistic. There is only one god - Asura, the many-facetted one. Before the days of the cataclysm the world was under the dominion of the “Great Old Ones” and it was full of madness and pain. Then Asura burst into the world, fought the Great Old Ones and banished them forever. The centre of worship of Asura is the nation of Singh. It is ruled by a theocracy. There are shrines and temples to Asura across Caran and the whole world though. Full details of the setting can be found on my website at http://www.starguild.freeserve.co.uk/frp/

*Outsiders*

The Wizards say that there are many, many planes - all pressing together closely around Kyri; and on these planes Outsiders are waging the "Great Game". Celestials, Elementals and various groups of Infernals battling for possession of reality. (none of the normal D&D "alignment planes" exist here - I have a completely different cosmology).

*Calendar*
Spring is divided up into the months of Floodwater, Greening and May.
Summer is divided into the months of Summertide, Midsummer and Harvest
Autumn is divided into Autumntide, Stormtime and Hogswatch.
Winter is divided into Frostdawn, Ironwater and Bleakwinter. 

*Days*

The seven days of the week are _Holyday, Restday, Fastday, Waxday, Moonday, Waneday and Markday_. Holyday is a day of religious observances and celebrations of Asura, including lectures and miraculous healings. The first Holyday of each month is a festival, and is normally well attended. Restday is when townspeople tend to recover from the joyous excesses of the Holyday celebrations, although is often used as an additional market day. Fastday is traditionally a day of fasting in preparation for the week ahead. Rigorously applied in Singh, it is less commonly observed to the East of the Barrier range. Waxday, Moonday and Waneday reflect the main phases of the moon of Kyri. The moon goes through each phase once a week, and Moonday is always the time of the full moon. These three days are all normal working days. Markday closes the week, and is the traditional market day; commoners bring their produce into town for sale in the markets, and much business is transacted in preparation for the coming Holyday.

*Character Nationalities*

Most of the characters are Southlanders from Lythau. Olive to fair skinned, and with a range of dark brown to fair hair, people from this nation have a reputation for nobility and honour.

Lysander and Azrin (who will appear later) are from Singh - swarthy skinned, yet soft featured. They normally keep their heads shaved and wear short, hooded robes.

*Character classes*

Martial arts are very common in this world, and many fighters become "martial artists", concentrating on a large range of unarmed combat feats. Monks are more spiritually aligned than the martial artists (although are still just as good at bashing people).

In this world, there are no "Paladins", the class has been replaced by "Jazumai" - a kind of paladin-monk hybrid class. There are no Barbarians as a class - barbarians all come from particular regions and there are regional feats for various kinds of barbarian rage. The Ranger class has been heavily modified, losing two-weapon fighting and spells, gaining d12 HD, fast movement and uncanny dodge as per barbarian. The druid class is renamed Shaman, and they are only found amongst the barbarian tribes

*Races*

Only human characters are allowed at first, the elves and dwarfs are mostly rumours - only once they have been encountered will it be possible for players to have a nonhuman PC.

*Knightsbridge*

The base of operations, guards a significant crossing of the Silverlode river. The bridge is a natural stone arch across the river gorge here, and legend has it that an Honourbound knight of Lythau once held off an army of goblins here until the locals had escaped and the alarm raised.

It is still the only crossing point for many leagues, and so is a natural stopping point for travellers and adventurers. It comprises a keep, town wall, houses, shops, marketplace, temple to Asura, 3 taverns - "The Wyvern", "The Queen of Cups" and “The Stony Gaze”


The adventures start on the first Moonday of Midsummer, an auspicious beginning.


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Caravan Trouble*

Miranda, Rog1
Graculous, Ftr1
Blodwyn, Clr1

Miranda, Graculous and Blodwyn (the initial party) break their travels northward along the trade roads at the imposing town of Knightsbridge. Guarding the natural rock span across the river gorge, the town stands at a natural crossroads for trade and defence. While deciding which tavern they like the best, and circulating in the town, Miranda picks up rumours of bandits hitting small merchant convoys on the road to the North. 

Mindful of their need to gain local credibility (not to mention the reward offered by local merchants in the market) they set off to the last known location.

As luck would have it, just five leagues up the road they come across a ransacked and burnt-out caravan. There is a lot of bloodshed, but no sign of bodies - did the brigands bury their captives? It doesn’t seem likely. The trail led into the wooded hills to the North.

Abruptly the party reached a small building, and after Miranda picks the lock they enter - to be confronted by the shambling horror of the recently dead caravan owners, lurching towards them! Blodwyn steps forth, and invoking the power of Asura causes the undead to flee and cower at the end of the room, whence they are hacked down by her companions.

Checking the next room they find six kobolds, well armed and with good tactics - but not good enough as the agile Graculous leaps over the crates they shelter behind and swiftly cuts them down with his swords. Blodwyn calls upon Asura to heal her companions somewhat, and then they press on, with lighted torches, into the cavern behind the building. 

Across a narrow chasm they see the leader of this gang of bandits - an evil priest of one of the forbidden cults of Asura! Magically he incapacitates Blodwyn, and as Graculous and Miranda leap the fissure he joins them in combat. Graculous, wounded by the Kobolds falls quickly, but Miranda strikes with precision. The vile creature falls, and after rest and bandages for the wounded the small party returns triumphant and richer to the tune of several bales of silk to Knightsbridge.

A league out from town they meet a softly spoken monk Ynnsfeardh by name, escorting a farmer from Oakhurst. Apparently there have been strange goings on in the surrounding farms, mysterious deaths amongst the cattle, and the village elders are sending to the Baron of Knightsbridge for help.
Sensing the opportunity to further their experience the team immediately volunteer to help out, and change their course to Oakhurst.


----------



## Plane Sailing

*The Sunless Citadel*

*The Sunless Citadel*

In Oakhurst, there was news of an earlier expedition to a chasm in which the Sunless Citadel lay - yet none had returned. Furthermore, some remembered an old witch who had travelled that way many years ago, and wondered if her hand was behind some of the unnatural goings on.

On Markday the adventurers set off to the chasm, and lowered themselves down on ropes. Miranda was jumped by a couple of dire rats which wounded her before they were dispatched, and threatened her life with filth fever… not for the last time either. Stealthily moving into the darkness, they came to the entranceway to the citadel, where Miranda cunningly detected the spring loaded trapdoor in a precipitous fashion! Assailed by an imprisoned dire rat in the depths of the pit, she was saved by Graculous who leapt in and swiftly dispatched the rat.

Investigating with more caution, they found a sealed door covered with dragon motifs which they couldn’t pass, and a corridor with a metal water cylinder. They tried for some time to prise out the bung in the top of the cylinder but happily without success. Moving further into the citadel they came across a whimpering bundle of rags, which seemed to contain a heavily scarred kobold named Meepo.

Blodwyn, ever the diplomat, managed to calm the frightened chap who seemed to have lost something important. Meepo agreed to introduce them to “the great leader” who knew the answer to all their questions.

to be continued...


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Dramatis Personae*

Graculous Ftr2
Miranda Rog2
Blodwyn Clr2
Ynnsfeardh Mnk1

Ysdrayl, the sorcerous leader of the kobolds was interested to see the adventurers, and they were interested to see a large key on the altar behind here - in all likelihood suitable for opening the locked door that they had found! A rival tribe of goblins had captured the kobolds white dragon hatchling, their mascot. If the party could recapture the little dragon and slay some of the goblins, then Ysdrayl would be highly pleased and would let them select from her collection of “treasures”.

The kobolds showed them the back way into the goblins lair, and they burst into a chamber, slaying all the guards in seconds. Creeping through a pillared hall they found the icy room containing the baby dragon. While the others waited outside Graculous and Ynnsfeardh leapt in and managed to subdue the little beast without too much trouble with some lucky blows. Retreating back to the kobold lair with their prize, the party are interested to hear further information from Ysdrayl which links the goblins to the rogue witch. After a short discussion the party decide to clear out the goblin enclave in return for further concessions from the kobolds.

Deciding (rightly) that the “back door” into the goblin lair was probably trapped to high heaven now, they decide to taking the long route round to the goblins. Along the way there are a number of fountains with indecipherable scripts, some skeletons which Blodwyn proudly blasted into nothingness with the divine power of Asura, and the mother of all dire rats which Graculous defeats single-handedly. 

The party are gaining in confidence and experience all the time, and press on towards the goblin enclave. A defensive post is cleared in short order, the 3’ high wall providing no barrier to the fighters who simply leapt straight over it. One goblin escapes to raise the alarm, and a mighty fight ensues in the pillared hallway. Once again Blodwyns’ healing powers help to sway the tide, although many of the hobgoblins were fatally surprised at the nimbleness and combat reflexes shown by Graculous!


Rather than press on to the goblin throne room the party retreat with the injured Ynnsfeardh and hole up in one of the cleared side rooms for a day, praying and recuperating. The mighty Asura once again answers prayers for healing and wholeness, and the company are ready to continue into the depths of the citadel...

The final battle with the goblin leader is, like his namesake, short and brutal. Goblin ears are collected and presented to Ysdrayl, who offers them the pick of her treasures. They select the large key and head back to the sealed door with dragon motifs. The following rooms have clearly not been visited for many, many years - dust lies thick upon the floor. They cross a room where a strange glowing orb sits in an alcove, but don’t approach it. In the next room they answer a riddle posed by a statue and finally gain access to what looks like a tomb - where Miranda is ambushed by a tiny demonic figure after crossing a pit. His claws inflict itching wounds that reduce her dexterity, but before she is completely immobilised the others leap across the gap and scare off the nasty fiend, who flies of swearing and cursing at them.

So there it is. A great marble sarcophagus. Obviously they need to open it...


----------



## Plane Sailing

...but no sooner is the cover removed when a fearsome giant sits up and steps out of it. The gangling arms of the creature have a tremendous reach, and in the close confines of the tomb it is difficult for the party to move without being caught by the swinging arms. Suddenly Blodwyn is down and dying! Miranda backs into a hidey hole, but is also caught by a claw and lies dying! Severely injured, Graculous leaps back across the pit and is horrified to see the creature, all its wounds healing, stride towards him. Thinking tactically he bull-rushes the creature and knocks it back - straight into the pit where it is impaled on spikes! He jumps in on top of it, along with Ynnsfeardh who has been summoned from his position on watch by the sound of fighting. The creature is burnt with torches, and expires. A quick survey of the companions reveal Miranda at deaths door but just stabilised. Not so with poor Blodwyn. Saddened, the party loots the tomb and then retires back home to Knightsbridge, carrying the body of Blodwyn with them.

They present Blodwyn to Alkanar the High Priest at the Asuran temple in Knightsbridge. For reasons he is not yet sure of, Alkanar agrees to ask Asura to raise Blodwyn back to life on Holy day, in three days time. Word gets around, and the Holy day ceremony is one of the best attended for several seasons. To everyones amazement, Blodwyn breathes again! There is great rejoicing, and Alkanar exacts a promise from each of the party - they owe a favour to the priesthood of Asura now.

After a weeks rest and reequipping, and with a new friend, the witch Auriel (who is following rumours of a wicked witch named Belak), the party returns to the sunless citadel. The goblins may have been dealt with, but there is still the renegade witch to deal with. The kobolds seem to have abandoned their rooms and returned to the underdark. In the goblins inner sanctum there is a mysterious vine-filled shaft that descends into the earth. 

With some trepidation Miranda climbs down, followed by her companions. They alight in a compost-filled room, suffused by a dim violet light which emanates from fungus growing on the walls. Two skeletons engaged in muck-spreading are dispatched quickly. Investigating the southern door leads to a crevasse which has cut through some of the dungeons, and a room with a mysterious dragon plinth, which doesn’t appear to do anything.

Turning to the eastern door is more productive. There is another hall of columns, and sneaking from door to door the party is able to ambush a number of goblins, in each case slaughtering them before an outcry can be raised! Their superior experience is really starting to tell now, and Graculous is particularly deadly when fighting with two weapons and cleaving left right and centre!

Pressing on through further halls, which seem to have been transformed into strange, stunted gardens, there are a couple of worrying fights with bugbear gardeners - scythe wielding gardeners! Once again the party triumphs without too much difficulty, and once again the healing power of Asura readies them for further action. Or so they think.


----------



## Plane Sailing

It is not long before they find themselves in another room with a large dragon statue - and to Miranda’s horror her careful investigations are disturbed when a shadow detaches itself from the darkness and strikes at her! She fights back ineffectually, meanwhile Blodwyn casts “magic weapon” on Graculous’ sword, and he wades into the combat. The shadow is one of the toughest combats yet - more often than not their blows pass harmlessly through its immaterial body, while it almost drains Miranda’s strength to nothing! Desperately Miranda tumbles to safety outside the room while Graculous, with missile support from Blodwyn and Oriel finally disperses the vile undead creature.

While searching the room the party trigger a strange summoning spell, and find that a swarthy skinned, goateed southlander named Kieran is in the room with them - snatched from his homeland many hundreds of miles away. A guarded conversation determines that he is a good warrior snatched unwilling from his home, and the party decide to allow him to join up with them for the remainder of their mission.

Dripping corridors lead down stairs and round corners before bringing them to what must be the witches library, and an adjoining room with four goblins - again quickly dispatched. The fourth wall of the goblins den has crumbled away however, and beyond is a vast cavern - still illuminated by the sickly violet glow of fungus, there is a thick carpet of brambles across the floor of the cavern - and in the distance the branches of a twisted and vile tree can be seen poking above ruined parapets...

*Dramatis Personae at this time*

Graculous Ftr3
Miranda Rog3
Blodwyn Clr1 Died - and raised
Ynnsfeardh Mnk2
Oriel Dru1 
Kieran Ftr1


----------



## Plane Sailing

The party form up, and start forcing their way through the brambles towards the castle. 
They get halfway across when they are suddenly attacked by more of the horrible twig creatures. Oriel uses her witch-powers to run untouched through the brambles and help flank the blights. Kieran swings his pair of swords, pommel-tassels flying and acquits himself well. With minor injuries the party presses on - and now in-between the walls they can see their foe - a twisted tree, at the base of which stands Belak the witch, with a couple of additional human companions (albeit with woody appearing faces) and some animals.

Suddenly the brambles rise up and grasp at the heroic party, attempting to pin them down. Only Graculous saves, and leaps free of their embrace. Belak reacts quickly - and charms Graculous! Asking her new best friend to stand to one side, Belak directs her companions into the attack. Belak casts a heat metal on Kieren, forcing him to let go of his swords, and then a flaming sphere starts to cause Blodwyn serious damage! Taking a risk, Ynnsfearth tumbles past the struggling combatants and ends up right next to Belak, who starts getting a right pounding from the fists of fury! Belak calls to Graculous for help, but Grac is distracted by seeing his best friend Blodwyn burning - an opposed charisma check later and Graculous is off helping his priestess buddy away from the fire.

Suddenly the rest of the bad guys are down. In a trice, Belak swarms up the tree, weaving in and out of the branches and disappearing into the gloom faster than Miranda and the others can follow, before jumping down the far side of a crumbling wall. By the time they party get into the upper branches it is too late. Belak has escaped into the darkness.

Returning to Oakhurst, the villagers are delighted to hear about the ending of their problems - although they are distraught to learn that they had been helping to propagate the twig blights themselves. There is a tremendous celebration with the heroes at the centre, and the next day they return to Knightsbridge with joyful hearts!

*Dramatis Personae at this time*
Graculous Ftr3
Miranda Rog3
Blodwyn Clr2 
Ynnsfeardh Mnk2
Oriel Dru2 
Kieran Ftr2


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Depths of Rage*

They spend some more time training and preparing in the town - ordering goods from the armourer and Weaponsmith, trading souvenirs and stories at their favourite tavern for further rumours and several nights board. Miranda discovers subtle sorcerous powers growing within her, and spends time getting to grips with them. While there, they are met by Tonar, the chief of the city guard. He summons them to an audience with Baron Kellder...
The exploits of the adventurers has not gone unnoticed, and the Baron thinks that they might be suitable candidates as “Companions” of his - a rank which lies outside the normal military structure, and loosely refers to “special agents” for the Lythunian nobles. One of the villages north of Knightsbridge has recently been razed to the ground, and the scant evidence left suggests that goblins may have been involved. The next nearest village of Three Beeches is very concerned. Baron Kellder resolves to send the companions to investigate and solve the problem.

A couple of days journey brings them to Three Beeches, a community wrapped in fear like a blanket wraps an old man on a cold night. Many of them lost friends when the other village was destroyed, and there was evidence of terrible barbarism. A trapper who knows how to follow tracks leads them through woods to the base of the “uneasy cliffs”, which continually shudder and groan. A couple of goblins are visible, guarding the entrance in a desultory way...

A swift ambush and the goblins at the entrance are dispatched. Venturing into the caves is uncomfortable - no walls and corridors here, there are plenty of narrow squeezes, steep inclines and uneven surfaces. A goblin outpost is encountered and attacked, and to their surprise the goblins go into a barbarian rage! Fighting fiercely, Blodwyn is nearly killed by a critical hit before the goblins are finally killed.

After a spot of healing and recovery the companions press on into the caverns, ever mindful of the ominous creaks and groans from the cavern around them. Suddenly their passage opens into the side of a vast chasm, stretching further than their torchlight can reach in every direction. There are other lights visible at different points on the far side of the chasm, and a narrow rope bridge stretches, swaying, ahead of them.

The party crawl across one by one - but as Blodwyn is halfway across, disaster strikes! A tremendous shock hits the caverns, the bridge bucks and rocks like a wild animal, and Blodwyn loses her grip! There is a despairing cry as she falls into the darkness, followed by a loud splash. While the others maintain guard, Graculous quickly ropes himself up and climbs down the side of the crevasse. Although he is lucky enough to find Blodwyn, the fall has broken her neck. His sword-sister will never fight alongside him again...

_Dramatis Personae at this time_
Graculous Ftr4

Miranda Rog3/Sor1

Blodwyn Clr2 Dies

(Ynnsfeardh Mnk2 - on leave from the company, this soft-spoken monk stays in the background, but is capable of great acts of bravery)

Auriel Dru2 - a mean spirited witch with a grudge against humans.

Kieran Ftr2 - magically spirited from his home on the Sword Coast, this flamboyant fighter uses his trademark twin weapons while awaiting the opportunity to return to the lands he grew up in.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Blaming the goblins, Graculous decides that they shall pay in blood. Progressing a little further into the tunnels Miranda spots a cavern full of the little blighters. Firing an arrow at them and then running for it, the goblins rage and charge into a rocky corridor, were Graculous and Kieran stand at a junction, both with their two swords readied. It is a bloodbath. Wave after wave of goblins crashes against the two fighters and are cut down or cleaved apart until at last the rage wears off the last few remaining goblins who are cut down as they run for it. Gazing at the mountain of bodies, they decide that it is time for them to escape and lick their wounds, ready for the next day. Our heroes are far from unscathed, and without the divine aid of Asura they are in no fit state to continue the fight. Wearily the characters retrieve Blodwyns body and make their way out of the caves and back up to sunlight.

Back in Three Beeches they proceed to the tiny temple in order to make burial arrangements for Blodwyn, and meet a young Singharese man with a white band tied around his forehead named Lysander. Strangely charismatic and compelling, this man helps with the funeral service and then asks whether he can aid in avenging the blood of his church - for he is a Jazumai, one of the holy military arm of the church of Asura (think a kind of Paladin-Monk).

The next day the party ventures once more into the caverns despite the ominous groaning of the uneasy mountain above them. Disposing of an early guardpost they venture deeper and deeper into the caverns. In one room they find a strange and talkative adept who is more fearful of the mountainside than the adventurers, and asks them to slay the goblin leader so that he might escape the coming doom. As a token of his good will he gives them a potion that he has prepared. Crossing the chasm once more and Progressing yet deeper they find a guard post with three alerted goblins - much tougher ones too. Miranda bravely tumbles past the bodyguards ranks, only to be cut down by one that was previously unseen! Graculous too falls to a critical axe blow and it would have been disaster if not for fine swordsmanship by Kieran, and an illusionary flaming man conjured in a last gasp by Miranda that gives them a moment to win free. Lysander calls upon the power of Asura to keep each of the others from death and a weary and crippled band slowly make their way back to the surface, wary of the creaking rocks and the possibility of goblin ambush.

Once more they return to Three Beeches, but with heavy hearts - knowing, as they do, that the goblins are now bound to attempt a counterstrike at the village. The local cleric is able to help heal them somewhat, but it is not possible to get everyone back up to full strength. Appraising the villagers of the seriousness of the situation they decide to gather everyone together into the small temple - probably the most defensible of the buildings in the hamlet. Lysander stays inside the temple to rally the village men in defence with his indomitable personality while Graculous, Kieran and Miranda mount guard on the roof with their missile weapons. The long wait starts... shortly after midnight, Miranda’s owl familiar raises the alarm - a ring of goblins has surrounded the village and they start vandalising the outlying buildings. Finding nobody home, the goblins run towards the temple, the only place where lights are burning. With a howling roar, fully forty barbaric goblins charge hooting and howling out of the shadows and towards the temple building...


----------



## Plane Sailing

One character dies! One character finds himself at deaths door! Who will survive the Barbarian onslaught?

Tune in later to find out...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Before more than a few bowshots have been made the goblins, charging at incredible speed reach the base of the temple and swarm up the sides to the roof. Miranda, Kieran and Graculous all dislodge goblins from the edge, but more goblin heads pop up all around the roof. Miranda calls upon her sorcerous illusions to hold up some of them (apparently making a section of roof crumble silently infront of them), but then decides that discretion is the better part of roguishness and abandons the roof. While Graculous and Kieran are both surrounded by half a dozen raging goblins, others start attempting to batter down the main door of the temple. Inside Lysander is rallying the bravest of the villagers to stand with him, improvised weapons at the ready.

On the roof the combats go badly - Kieran and Graculous are both surrounded and pressed hard - then tragically Kieran is struck down and swiftly hacked to pieces! 

By the front door, Miranda has crept round and sneak attacks one of the goblins, dispatching him rapidly, and just as the goblins batter the door in she covers the portal with an illusion of wholeness - from within Lysander and the peasants strike through the illusion and two more goblins fall. The barbarian rage is now wearing off from the attackers and a hoarse call signals their retreat; the goblins race off into the darkness once more. 

Fearing for her companions, Miranda scurries back up to the roof and sees a feebly moving Graculous - racing across she is able to staunch the flow of blood just in time - six seconds longer and he would have bled to death! Their joy is short-lived though, as they realise that Kieran is fallen.

There is a solemn service of thanksgiving the next morning. In the short time they knew him the villagers had taken this extravagant young man to their hearts. His tasselled swords were committed into the keeping of a 14 year old boy who had spent a lot of time following Kieran around in the village and his soul was committed to the grace of Asura. Ynnsfeardh reaches the village after his short sabbatical, and after the local priest works with Lysander to heal Graculous back to normal, the party form up to venture into the uneasy cliffs once again. But this time it’s personal...

_Death Toll now includes Blodwyn and Kieran. Sadly many more are to follow..._


----------



## Plane Sailing

The goblins have clearly faced another setback after their attack on the village, and Graculous is concerned that they might move off to safer lands, since their leader is still very much alive. The only solution seems to be to take the fight to them once again, and to bring the goblin reign of terror to an end.
At the now familiar cave entrance, Miranda conjures a silent image to screen their entrance from any watching guards - but their way seems clear. None of the early guard posts in the caverns seem manned any longer. Amidst continuing ominous creaks a groans from the rocks above them, the party presses deeper into the caverns. Miranda scouts ahead, taking a different route from before. Turning a corner, she finds herself on a steep incline… a very steep incline… covered with pebbles… Losing her balance, she slides down a rocky path and just as she is going to shoot over the lip into the chasm she grasps hold of a rocky projection! Safe, phew! Painstakingly she crawls back up to the top of this treacherous passage, turns… and loses her footing once more! This time she hurtles down the slope and into the abyss, screaming!

Back along the corridor, Ynnsfeardh hears the falling scream and is galvanised into action - running in her direction, he glides skilfully down the slippery corridor and dives head-first into the chasm! With superb jump and swim rolls he dives gracefully into the subterranean lake, and then looks around for Miranda. His friend was knocked unconscious by the fall, but her tumbling and jumping skills (along with a fair amount of luck) had saved her life. Her Owl familiar guides Ynnsfeardh to her body, and he drags her to safety. Up above, pitons and ropes make it possible to safely traverse the corridor and Ynnsfeardh and his precious cargo are hauled out of the crevasse. To their delight, all this noise hasn’t drawn attention from goblins, who must be even further into the caverns than they had expected.

The party retreat out of the caverns, and lick their wounds once more. Ynnsfeardh travels with Lysander back to the village while Graculous, Miranda, Auriel and Tekel venture back into the caverns before the goblins can regroup. They backtrack to the normal chasm crossing, and work their way deeper into the uneasy caverns, with the groaning and creaking of the caves growing louder and more persistent around them. There are a couple of skirmishes with lone goblins, and the discovery of a gross kitchen and sewer cave before the party stumble across a vast cavern - filled with goblins!

After a seconds hesitation, Graculous and Auriel move into the cavern entranceway, whilst Tekel hangs back and casts his sleep spell, and Miranda creates a silent image of crevasses opening and rocks falling. Whilst a few goblins are slept, and a few more hesitate before the illusions, the rest press into the attack, led by the goblins second-in-command, whilst another snipes from the other side of the cavern. Auriel sends her badgers into combat, and the furry teeth of doom soon get enraged and rip the bow-goblin to shreds. The other goblins start falling, but at a cost in wounds for Miranda and Graculous.

Suddenly there is a howl of rage from behind Tekel - and the leader of the goblins thrusts his sword straight through the wizards chest! Tekel chokes out a few words and then collapses. The goblin beserker, fresh into the fight then lunges into the room and attacks Graculous - Miranda attempts to flank him but fails because of his barbarian senses - then he critically hits Miranda, and to add insult to injury electricity flashes out of the blade as it cleaves into her. Mirandas body jerks from the electric discharge and falls smouldering to the ground. Graculous hauls himself round to deal with this new threat, but as the grinding rocks overhead reach a crescendo, the Goblin chieftain hacks him down too. Auriel, in fear for her life casts obscuring mist in the centre of the cavern and dives inside, calling her badgers to her side. The goblin chieftain stalks the outskirts of the mist while Graculous lies bleeding to death and Auriel cowers inside.

With a tremendous, ear-splitting roar, the cavern cracks open for real, and boulders start falling into the room, as the floor bucks and heaves in the throes of a tremendous earthquake. Auriel hangs on for grim life, and when the dust finally settles, and the noise of falling rocks ceases, she finds herself alone with her badgers in a silent cavern. The entrance she came in by is buried under a mountain of stone. As are her friends, Graculous, Miranda and Tekel. Conjuring a light spell, she starts to find her way out of the caverns, more by luck than by judgement since even if she had been able to unearth Mirandas map the topography of the caves has been upended by the tremendous earth tremor.
Eventually reaching the caverns entrance that evening, she returns with low spirits to Three Beeches. The goblin threat is ended… but at what cost?

_*Depths of Rage Death Roll: *Blodwyn falls to her doom; Kieran is hacked down by goblin barbarians; Tekel, Graculous and Miranda killed by the goblin chief. 

This set the campaign back some, I can tell you!_


----------



## Plane Sailing

The Candlemakers Fire
(WotC cliffhanger adventure)

*Current Party composition*
Auriel: Druid 3
Lysander: Jazumai 3

and introducing 
Crail: Rogue 1
Sula: Barbarian Ranger 1

*Crail* grew up as a street urchin in Knightsbridge, hanging around in the disreputable areas around SouthSpur and running with the gangs. He always had a bit of a sense of honour about him, and recently there has been a change at the head of the thieves guild - an outsider called Squim took over the local guild and with several henchmen - all with long, greasy black hair - a much more violent atmosphere started to permeate the guilds activities. Crail wasn't too sure that he liked the way that things were going, and decided that it was time to leave the town. How to do this in safety though? 

He has been hearing stories on the grapevine about Lysander and his fellow adventurers, he approaches Lysander with a proposal that he works with them awhile. They are happy to accept, judging that he is honestly looking to change his ways.

*Sula*, meanwhile, finds herself a long way from her home in the jungles of the deep south. A towering black woman from one of the barbarian tribes, she is more used to hunting dinosaurs and other beasts than trading in a large town. She is a ranger _(DM: heavily modified local version of a ranger)_ with barbarian rage feats _(DM: regional feats for the barbarian tribes)_. She draws attention throughout the marketplace, attempting to sell her small carvings but generally meeting with fear and distrust. The party hears about this strange woman and tracks her down, making friends because of her fledgling interest in the cult of Asura.

More of their story to follow shortly...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Arriving at Knightsbridge, the much depleted party first go tovisit Alkanar at the temple. Lysander reports and dedicates his sword to the work of Asura in this location, and Alkanar is delighted to have a Jazumai in his region. Then Auriel and Lysander go to the Queen of Cups for a drink, while Ynnsfeardh leaves to transact some private business for a while, promising to return in a month or so.
While at the Queen of cups, the pair meet Crail (as detailed above) and the next day meet Sula in the market square (also detailed above). Joining together and helping Crail get out of town since Lysander thinks he is redeemable, they head off back to the village of Oakhurst to pass on news of the deaths to friends there.

A couple of days later they arrive at Oakhurst and discover the streets empty. A cautious recce by Crail reveals that everyone is standing, silently in the tavern. The heroes enter and see that everyone seems to be staring at something flickering on the bar. Crail gets drawn in by the mystic flame and stands entranced by Lysander is able to dash the candle off the bar, extinguishing it. Suddenly everyone wakes up out of their stupor.

Apparently, Edarad, a visiting candlemaker had been in town that morning - and had a number of exotic candles to sell. He had done fairly good business, and attracted quite a crowd, when he decided to show them one of his special candles. Other villagers came down to the pub looking for their loved ones and were also ensnared by the powerful charm of the candle, and nobody can remember what happened while they were entranced by the flame.

The company decide to do something about this, and casting around outside Sula soon finds tracks leading off into the woods, a small handcart led by a human. They give chase, and by late afternoon find themselves in the depths of the woods. Suddenly they become aware of a loud buzzing sound – and hurtling through the trees towards them come four giant bees!


----------



## Plane Sailing

The hurtling attack of the giant bees is met quite easily, Auriel’s manouverability in the dense underbrush proving very useful. Crail is unfortunately stung, and the poison cripples his dexterity – the last thing he wanted. Nobody is able to treat his poison, so they continue along the trail, until it comes to a clearing with a small hut built onto the side of a large rocky mound.

Crail & Sula hang back on watch, while Lysander and Auriel move up to the broken door. The hairs on Lysanders neck start to bristle… there is something evil inside there – he moves in and spots a tiny, hideous fiery red creature hovering near the back of the room. As the two enter it lights a candle set on the table, and mystic force glides outward from the burning flame. As quick as thinking, Lysander charges into the room and kicks the table over, extinguishing the flame. Sula hears the sound of combat and charges across the clearing, diving straight through the weakly boarded window of the hovel. The little impish thing quickly flies through a carved entrance that leads back into the hill and the party reform and step forward into the darkness, keenly aware of the smell of warm wax and a whir of small wings in the distance...


----------



## Plane Sailing

A short passage leads into a rough cave whose walls are coated with grey wax. There are niches all around the walls with unlit candles in, and several benches which are covered in candles of all shapes and sizes. A second fiery mephit appears and both breath gouts of flame over the Jazumai, as Auriel stands in the doorway. Next round while Lysander and Auriel tackle the first mephit, Sula grapples the second one, grits her teeth as her flesh burns, and then douses it with her water skin! The stunned and drenched mephit can’t resist as her powerful hands grind out its life, while Lysander and Auriel finish off the remaining mephit as it tries to flee.

Crail joins them inside, and his quick eyes and nimble fingers spot a trap in the far opening which leads further back into the rockface. He disarms it, and they proceed into a smallish hexagonal room, whose walls seem to be made of smooth grey wax. Poking an eyehole through one of the walls shows more small hexagonal wax rooms beyond. Lysander and Auriel carefully cut a hole in one wall and then another, before coming across a similar chamber but with a wax-covered tall humanoid figure standing in the middle of the room. As they enter, the waxen head turns and gazes at them.

The fight is short and brutal – the wax golem is unable to land a solid blow on any of the quick-moving party, and it is soon cut down. As it falls, though, a secret door slides open in the southwestern wall, and beyond another one of these golems a robed figure is chanting ominously...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Auriel and Sula take on the golem, while Crail hangs back. The Edarad the enchanter lets off a couple of magic missiles from a wand and Lysander dodges an AoO from the golem in order to get close enough to strike the wizard. His blows all seem to be deflected - either from the glowing force which surrounds his body or some kind of invisible shield that intercepts his blows (AC 23 with all his protections and dexterity!). Meanwhile Edarad hazards an unsuccessful hold person, before unleashing more magic missiles into Sula. The golem is downed quickly this time, and as Edarad finds his foes starting to surround him he decides to make a desperate escape. Casting defensively he unleashes a spider climb spell - and runs up the wall and to one of the bee escape holes in the ceiling.
Most of the party rush out to the exit and try to climb up to the top of the rocky outcrop, but by the time they get up there he is long gone, and Sula is unable to pick up any tracks.

Meanwhile, Auriel searches around the workshop and finds what looks like a spellbook - so she pockets it, to sell later in town.

The party collect together again in the outer cabin and bind their wounds. Lysander calls upon the power of Asura to heal those who are most badly wounded, but they are still not in a good condition - the magic missiles of Edarad had taken a high toll of their vitality.
While contemplating their journey back to Oakhurst, Sula notices a quietning of the woodland sounds outside in the forest - and then a fearsome, hooting roar. Auriel and Sula share glances... "Owlbear" they both say. Peeking through the shattered door, they can see a massive shape at the fringe of the clearing, sniffing the air and pawing at the ground. Suddenly it lumbers forwards towards them!

Sula attempts to block its charge and recieves a crippling blow, hurling her back into the building. Auriel and Lysander duck and weave from just inside the doorway, landing some light blows while dodging the beasts fearsome claws - and it won't be lured into the shack were more of the party could get around it. Sula, stabilised but in a bad condition hauls herself up onto her feet and uses her animal empathy to taunt and enrage the beast, issuing a hooting challenge of her own - The owlbear, driven wild with anger, charges in at her, drawing attacks of opportunity from Lysander and Auriel, as well as a sneak attack from Crail - just enough damage to crumple it at Sulas feet. She snarls at the beast and then collapses herself, and only the swift ministrations of Lysander prevent her from following the monstrous beast into oblivion.

The company rest and heal for a few hours, and then make their way slowly and cautiously back through the woodlands to Oakhurst. The villagers are delighted to hear that Justice has been done, Edarad has fled and his power base removed. After a day to recover and heal themselves in Oakhurst (at the expense of a grateful citizenry), the company set off on the road back to knightsbridge.

Sula and Crail both gain a level at the end of this adventure.

_DMs note: You can bet that Edarad will be back in a few months or years time with a serious grudge, a depleted spell book and several levels in the Candlemaker prestige class from Tome & Blood..._


----------



## Plane Sailing

An Eye for an Eye
(Dungeon magazine adventure)

*Current Party composition*
Auriel: Druid 4
Lysander: Jazumai 3
Crail: Rogue 2
Sula: Barbarian Ranger 2

The road back to Knightsbridge comes with a few surprises... along the path ahead of them they spot a meeting between two armed men and a third. It looks like money changes hands... then the single bloke is cut down, mercilessly!

Auriel calls upon the forces of nature to rise up and entangle the men - and one of them finds himself bound fast by gripping branches and grasses, whilst the other struggles free and runs off into the woods. Sula charges in pursuit of the runner, whilst Lysander and Crail go to talk to their prisoner - who bargins for their freedom and then swings his weapon at them. He is quickly subdued, then they set off after Sula, leaving Crail to guard the injured man. Sula chased her quarry down, but has not been successful in melee, with much missing of weapons. Auriel arrives and again flexes her mystic muscles, summoning a wolf behind the fighter, who is tripped and then pummled into submission by Sula. Both are dragged back to the main pathway and questioned - Crail senses that they are under some kind of magical compulsion (great sense motive roll!) and the party decide to take them to Knightsbridge and hand them over to the Barons magistrates, then return here to investigate their employer - someone called "Plygar" - and find out what he wants with the jewelled eye which was delivered by the murdered courier.


----------



## Plane Sailing

A couple of days later they return to this point after delivering the charmed men to the authorities - although charmed they still bore some guilt, since even under the charm they were behaving in a way which they were predisposed towards, and had to answer for the murder of the courier.

Following the trail into the forest the company are surprised to find, after a couple of leagues, evidence of a long-forgotten roadway along their trail - jumbled stones which, at one time, must have formed part of a paved highway. A little further along and Crail notices hidden in the grass an ancient stone memorial, apparently depicting elves involved in siege against trolls or some other giantish creatures. It’s strange, because nobody round here has ever seen an elf, not in living memory. This must be from a long, long time ago.

As they press deeper into the forest there are some alarming calls heard away to the north - some strange strangled bird-like sounds. Auriel’s nature knowledge is improving, and she confirms that it is cockatrice mating calls - and in the mating season they tend to be less aggressive towards large creatures (saving their aggression for mating duels). Even more wary they press on.

After another couple of leagues they see a large white wolf, lounging on grass beside their trail. While they study it, the animal stands, and both Auriel and Sula gain an empathic impression - a sort of question, a need for them to follow. The two wilderness lovers project feelings of agreement with their animal empathy and they follow the wolf off the track and into the underbrush. An hours journey brings them to an old log and sod hut, with grass and flowers growing all around it and a family of wolves lounging or playing nearby and inside. The large grey wolf enters, introduces himself to them as Thornfur, and asks for their help…


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thornfur is the descendant of an awakened companion of a good witch who used to live in these forests. His great-grandparents are now long dead, as is the witch, but Thornfur and his pack still watch over the woods. Recently, he is facing two troubles which the pack have not been able to deal with - one is a huge assassin vine which has rooted itself in a glade, the other is the work of "the crooked man" who has done something which is flooding the swamp, and upsetting the balance in the woods. Having a hunch that this is the same as the "Plygar" that they are hunting, the party agree to help the wolves in both their requests.

They set out with the pack to the location of the assassin vine, and when they reach it the wolves charge straight in to the attack. Cursing, because they had hoped to make more of a plan of action the party charge in too, arming themselves mainly with handaxes _(DMs note: The Plant subtype is immune to criticals - except from axes. Axes are allowed to score critical hits on plant creatures. After all, axes are built for chopping wood.)_

The battle is fast and furious, half a dozen of the wolves are crushed and all the party are severely injured by the time they finally rob the horrible plant of its uncanny vitality. Lysander immediately runs round and checks the dying wolves, and calls upon Asura to stabilise those that he can, maintaining the core of the pack.

Thornfur leads them back to the hut and shows them healing herbs that the wolves all chew to help them to recover. The next morning Thornfur guides them to the flooded swampland, where the crooked man is up to some kind of evil.


----------



## Plane Sailing

(Ynnsfeardh, Monk3 is taking a break from adventuring to meditate)

It is raining quite heavily, everyone is cold and wet and visibility isn’t too good. It looks as if the swamp has turned into a broad lake, with a series of rush-covered islets connected by flimsy looking bridges. Crail sets off to scout the first island, and fairly soon hears the murmurs of conversation - sounds a little like Singharese trader talk. There is a strange contraption of wood and pulleys damming up the water, and two guards up top. A complex plan to attack the two guards doesn’t go off like clockwork, and one of the guards crashes off through the rushes to raise help. Auriel attempts to head him off, but misjudges the shoreline of the island and crashes into the muddy water. Luckily Sula was hot on her heals and pulls her out. Sula joins Crail in running down the escaped guard, but hearing a scream from up ahead they come across his body suddenly - pierced with many small wounds and horribly pale.

They all gather back at the dam, which looks as though it has been constructed with sluices in order to cause a flood down in the valley before them. A fire is built to warm themselves up, and to attempt to throw off the effect of the chill air which is proving draining (especially to those in wet clothes). Meanwhile Sula travels down the valley for a few hours and discovers that the stream leads down towards Oakhurst - if the dam bursts, the village is doomed!.

Returning to the rest of the party, they decide that the best course of action is to disable the sluices, so that the water drains out in a controlled fashion. While they are doing this, they are disturbed by the sudden arrival of something else drawn by the warmth of their fire and their own body heat - a flock of stirges!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Six of the little beggars attack, latching on to Sula and one of Auriel’s badgers. The company all jump to engage the pernicious little beasts with a lot of success, apart from Auriel’s attempt to spear one of the stirges attached to a badger… missing the beast, she strikes her animal friend who goes into a rage and takes a dim view of this, launching into an attack on his former mistress. The situation is brought under control with no more deaths, but the furious Auriel dismisses her badgers and they wander, whimpering, downstream and into the wilds.

_DMs note: The badgers had been animal companions of the Witch since her inception, and at the lower levels were worth more in combat than any two of the other characters! There was a slight element of pathos as they were sent away, but Auriel is notably hard-hearted. If this is how she treats her animal friends, you can guess what she is like to her human enemies! _

It seems that the crooked man is living out on one of the islets, and so Lysander, Crail, Sula and Auriel set out to navigate their way across the bulrush covered terrain. Along the way they avoid problems with giant frogs, mudholes and a collapsing bridge which precipitated Crail into the water with a hungry giant catfish which grabbed him but wasn’t able to swallow him before being driven off by Sula and Auriel. There are yet more signs of some great battle in the past - a discarded battering ram head, and the ruined walls peeking out above the waterline of the lake. There are more important things at hand though - Crail reports that the next bridge crosses to an island with a hovel built out on the far end - and warriors guarding the bridge!

The plan is for Crail to stay in the reeds and give covering fire. Auriel conjures the forces of nature and Lysander feels his skin harden to a bark-like consistency. He is to take the point. Sula is less well armoured and protected and will follow up once the bridgehead is established. As they charge across the bridge a tall man armoured in chainmail steps up to guard the end - and at a word Khelsors sword starts sparkling with electrical discharges...


----------



## Plane Sailing

As the fight starts, Sula is getting bored and wants in on the action. Leaping across to the corner of the island, she aims to outflank the guards, but there are too many of them, and in the ensuing battle Khelsor takes every opportunity to strike at the lightly armoured giantess near his flank. Within a few short rounds Sula is cut down, although the scimitar of Lysander has been making things dangerous for Khelsor, who is nearing his last legs himself. As warrior reinforcements pour out of the hovel, Khelsor runs for it, to prepare himself for a last ditch defence of his master.

As Crail and Oriel join Lysander on the cleared pathway, the remaining warriors are cut down to a man, no match for the infuriated company, ready to raise a pyre of bodies in Sula’s name. The door to the hovel is barricaded, but it is soon kicked in. Inside there is a horrible hunchback at one side of the room, and Khelsor standing guard before a raven-haired woman. The hunchback shouts out “You fools, Oakhurst is doomed! I will have my revenge!” as he dives out of the window and they hear a splash from the lake. 

Lysander goes to engage Khelsor, and the woman - a witch perhaps? Darts in front. As she is cut down and falls bleeding Khelsor casts his sword aside and throws himself across the fallen woman to shield her body with his own. Lysander, sensing that things are not as they seem calls upon the power of Asura and stops the woman from bleeding to death. He turns the full power of his personality and diplomacy on Khelsor, and calms the man, who breaks free from the charm he has been labouring under. Grief stricken at the things he has done while under the power of the twisted man, he throws himself upon Lysanders mercy, and asks to be taken back to Knightsbridge to appear before the magistrate. As a token of submission and thanks he bequeaths his magic sword to Lysander.

Meanwhile, Oriel and Crail speed round the islands, and make nearly as good time as the crooked man as he swims direct. They catch him as he reaches the dam, and hear him moan as he finds the dam sluices wrecked and his plans undone. Turning towards them he clasps a pendant and cries out “People, hear my words - protect me!”. Oriel laughs as the challenge slides from her determined will - but Crail succumbs, and he attempts to launch a sneak attack at Oriel! 

Oriel senses that the real challenge is the crooked man and she charges him and brings him down While Crail inexpertly slashes at her back. Auriel renders the crooked man unconscious and smashes the pendant. Crail staggers back, freed from its influence and horrified at what he had attempted to do to his friend. Oriel, meanwhile, vents her frustration and aggression against this man who has destroyed this swamp, upset the ecology, led to the loss of her badgers, their friend Sula and almost cost her her own life at the hands of a friend. She grasps the crooked man and pounds his head on a boulder until there is just blood, and no signs of life.

Oriel and Crail return to Lysander and the others. It seems that Khelsor and this woman were running a merchant caravan from Singh through to Tanor, and were ensnared by the charming power of the crooked man. They take everyone down to Oakhurst where the villagers are delighted to discover that yet again they have been saved by this noble band of adventurers. It is Moonday, and the normal businesses are put on hold as the whole village gathers in celebration of the adventurers. Some of the villagers go up the river valley to finish the dismantling of the dam, others to help Janne and Khelsor to recover the remains of their trade goods.

Next: Enter Azrin, priest of knowledge, and the Swamps of Doom


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Azrin* a naïve young priest of Asura has recently arrived in Knightsbridge, having been sent away from his position in the great temple library back in his homeland of Singh. He is weak and clumsy (both Str and Dex are 8) and he is not particularly used to being with people - he much prefers books and abstract knowledge. He is an acolyte of "Asura who opens the way"; in place of his normal domain abilities he has "General Knowledge" like the bardic ability, because of the vast amount of reading he has done and still does even now.

He comes with a message to the High Priest in Knightsbridge suggesting that Alkanar involve him in “adventures - particularly dangerous ones”. Seems like some of his digging in the library uncovered a few morsels of information that others would like to be hidden...

Introduced to the company, Azrin does some research whilst the rest of the party trains and contemplates the things they have learnt. Lysander, particular, feels his connection with Asura strengthened, and he knows that he can now pray for some effective blessings in battle. 

Azrin gathers the following scraps of information:

---

In the year of the fall of Usher, Radeem called forth the most dreaded swamp denizen to aid his defence

---
The elven campaign was long and hard fought, but the castle in the swamp was eventually thrown down, at a terrible cost in lives of the faerie.

---
"The wizard Radeem and his apprentice were accused of traffic with the Infernal, but they laughed off the accusation .

---
(marginal note in a local folk song)
"...And the mad mages flesh rot ate him to the bone, 
All because he never heard of the day of stone"

---

It is drawing towards the end of Autumntide, and in a weeks time Stormtime will begin - the most violent and wet of the months of the year. Still, next week is the Autumntide carnival, and that would just give the company time to get to the ruined castle and back before the carnival starts.

We wouldn't want to miss the carnival, would we?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Swamp of Doom

Auriel, Druid 4
Lysander, Jazumai 4
Crail, Rogue 3
Azrin, Cleric 2
Ynnsfeardh, Monk4

Lysander, Crail, Auriel, Ynnsfeardh and Azrin set out back to the ruined castle. Breaking their journey at Oakhurst (amid a riotous welcome from the villagers), they set out back towards the now-drained bog. 

The woods still ring with the call of strange animals, and none stranger than a large, plucked chicken with a lizard like tail which stepped out of the bushes and gazed at them, distracted from the rabbits it was chasing. After a moments indecision the company win initiative and attack the creature, which responds by pecking back. It seems unable to touch any of the armoured and dextrous crew until the clumsy Azrin joins the combat - one peck and he stiffens, turning to stone! Auriel strikes down the cockatrice, but too late to help poor Azrin.

Considering what to do, the party reason that cockatrices are not natural for this kind of woodland, and Radeem was involved with supernatural allies, and some things to do with stone… perhaps they are descendants from creatures once kept at the castle, and an antidote was kept there? It seems that the ruined castle is the best chance for the future of their young priest...

Crossing the swamp is almost without incident, apart from when Auriel fell into a mud-hole and inadvertently picked up a giant leech, which wasn’t spotted until it fell off sated, and leaving the witch much weaker from loss of blood.

A search of the ruined castle site by Crail turns up a hidden trapdoor with an aperture for the skeleton shaped key. As the stone door grinds open, dank air issues forth from steps descending into darkness. Carefully moving forward, the stairs wind down to a chamber containing four brass levers, surmounted by symbols for earth, air, fire and water. 

Which one to pull? There is much discussion relating to the fragments that Azrin had discovered earlier; Crail suddenly realises that the song fragment is probably the clearest indicator and stretches forth to pull the “stone” lever as the others dive for cover...


----------



## Plane Sailing

The door grinds open. There is a frank exchange of opinions , but Crail shrugs his shoulders and proceeds into the revealed corridor. Trying to avoid splashing in the little stream running down the centre of the corridor, they find a room opens up on their left - and suddenly they are charged by fearsome humanoids, rotted flesh hanging from the frames of several undead zombies, including one zombie ogre. 

Battle is quickly joined as the zombies charge forth; the ogres reach and huge battleaxe prove devastating, nearly killing Crail with a single blow! 

He tumbles back over the heads of his companions and Lysander and Ynnsfeardh step up to bat - Ynnsfeardh nearly going down straight away to another tremendous blow. 

The ogre is slow and quickly killed though - then Lysander calls upon the power of Asura and the fierce flow of divine power routs the remaining zombies.

The small chamber was once an operations room in days gone by - tapestries hanging on the walls still show elements of the old campaigns. A hidden draw in the rooms table reveals a set of vials containing oily liquid. 

A few moments with Auriels alchemy kit suggests that they may be a cure for Azrin. The party retreats outside, back to the statue of their friend and apply the oil, which quickly seeps into the stone, turning it back again to flesh! Hoorah!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Returning to the ruined dungeon, and with Azrin able to provide translating facilities they make their way past the trapped entrance and once more to the planning room. 

The remaining zombies lurch to the attack but this time are turned by Azrin invoking the holy power of Asura. Following the path of the zombies lead down a broad marble stairway to a large marbled hall with enormous ruined doors at the far end, and an opening on the left which proves to be a balcony. 

There are two ranks of skeletons waiting for action, but once again the power of Asura is channelled through Azrin’s frail body and the skeletons are blasted into nothingness. 

Crail, cautious as ever checks out the balcony and discovers it to be unsafe to stand on.

Checking the doors is somewhat more interesting… a large domed chamber with a vast dragon skeleton resting on a dais... and behind that something small, black, winged and scaly...

Azrin calls out in Draconic, and the creature replies “Come, talk to me, I’m lonely. I want to be your friend”. Lysander feels the hairs on the back of his neck rising once again though - this tiny dragon is evil, and there is something else in the room too, below the water level. 

Guessing that these are offspring of the dead dragon, which in turn was the “dreaded swamp denizen”, the company decide that they are too evil to allow them to live and grow.

Auriel uses wood-shape to fashion a makeshift bridge to be dropped across the waterway, and then the party burst through the doors and move to attack the dragonet.

The fight is fierce and mobile. A second small dragonet rises out of the water and the company find themselves attacked by acid breath on two fronts. Lysander calls on Asura to bless his blade, and finds with his enchantment the scimitar bites deeply. Crail takes shots with his bow as the dragon takes flight and hovers. 

Azrin, remaining by the doorway and unfamiliar with combat attempts to create water in front of a dragon as it breaths, but misjudges the range. He then throws his spear away in a vain attempt to cast it at the nearer dragon before running back into the marbled hall, where he spends a few rounds running fruitlessly to and fro trying to find another usable weapon. _DMs note: The player handled this really well. It is the first time that the librarian Azrin has really seen any combat, and he dithered superbly!_

Lysander, Crail, Auriel and Ynnsfeardh gang up on one dragonet and kill it, and finally manage to down the remaining flying one too. Battered and badly burnt by dragon acid, the party treat their wounds using mundane and mystical means. 

Turning to survey the rest of the room they find a vast pile of copper and silver coins, several artworks and, partly buried amidst these things, the skeletal remains of a nonhuman. 

Interestingly, a number of the items of clothing on this nonhuman, probably one of the half-mythical elves, are untouched by time. _DMs note: nonhuman races such as dwarfs and elves are extraordinarily rare - nobody has seen one in dozens of years._


----------



## Plane Sailing

A cloak and boots of soft grey-green material is claimed by Auriel, and she blends easily into the shadows while wearing them. Crail takes the vest of ultra-fine Mithril links which can be worn underneath his normal clothes and Lysander accepts the fine quality Elven bow. The silver clasp for the cloak is identified along with the other items by Azrin - the general knowledge he gained while book-learning in the libraries of Singh has done his church proud here - and he takes the brooch of shielding for himself.
After resting, the company investigates the room below the balcony, which turns out to be flooded. 

Auriel re-shapes the wooden equipment into a small boat and ferries Crail and the others across to a series of statues. Crail finds a secret panel, but not the trap guarding it and receives a face full of acid gas, fortunately not fatal. 

Retrieving a locked iron box, they investigate the chamber further, but all of the remaining exits seem completely flooded. There are giant centipedes visible under the surface of the water, so they retreat back to check out the one remaining corridor in the dungeon before returning to Knightsbridge.

The remaining corridor poses some questions of its own, since it apparently joins onto a circular corridor which has the floor covered in magical symbols laid out in lines of coloured sand. 

Azrin recognises them as some form of planar barrier, a magic circle either keeping outsiders out, or keeping them in. There is some discussion about how to investigate further, but eventually it is marked on the map and abandoned. After all, the elves that destroyed the fortress must have found it and either left it alone or set the wards up... either way it is not a good idea to disturb it while the party resources are at a low ebb.

Time to return to Knightsbridge for the fair!

During the journey back to town, they contemplate the things that they have learned. Azrin follows up the sparring lessons that Ynnsfeardh has been giving him, and takes the first steps on the road to controlling his weak and clumsy body. Auriel extends her knowledge of nature magic and Crail gets a little better at several of his skill. 

At this point the party makeup is as follows:

Auriel, Druid 5
Lysander, Jazumai 4
Crail, Rogue 3
Azrin, Cleric 2/Monk1
Ynnsfeardh, Monk4


----------



## Plane Sailing

Strange times in Knightsbridge
aka *Speaker in Dreams*. from WotC

Returning to Knightsbridge on Markday, they find the festival in full swing. Arriving at Eastgate their weapons are peace-bonded as is the custom during festival weeks - to give drunken hot-heads a chance to cool down before they injure one another. The main street is even more crowded than normal, with jewellery sellers, stages with high class performers and musicians, noise bustle and music. 

Crail eyes up the situation as ideal for thieves, and all the party take precautions against cutpurses. Lysander and Azrin go directly to the temple while the others attend their favourite local - the Queen of Cups.

Barnabas, the proprietor, greets them as old friends now. “what have you brought me from you adventures, boys?” he calls out. To his astonishment they lay two black dragon wyrmling skulls on the counter. 

“well, we killed these two” says Auriel 

“and we found this one” 

They watch his eyes bug out as they open another sack and pull out an ancient black dragon skull! As busy as the town is at the time of the fair, Barnabas pledges to “Find some room for my boys!”.

At the temple Lysander finds a room has been prepared there for his own use, although Alkanar the high priest seems strangely distant and uncommunicative. Perhaps unwilling to see Lysander for some reason? Well, tomorrow is Holyday, and he’ll have a chance to speak to the priest then...

Peeling Azrin away from the temple library which is closed for the period of the festival, they go to join up with their friends before trying out the fair.

Our friends don’t find much to distract them during the fair, although one rumour leads them to a stall just in the shadow of the bell tower where a swarthy skinned man in a broad-brimmed hat is selling an exotic missile weapon shaped somewhat like hollow Frisbees (they are chakrams). 

He is a personable enough sort, but is rude to Azrin because of the deep enmity between his own nation of Tillan and Azrin’s homeland. 

There are no problems with pickpockets - rather the reverse as Crail finds a note has been inserted into one of his pouches. It is from Laidley, a girl that used to have a crush on him before he ran away from the local thieves guild. It says “Be careful - there have been many changes in the guild, and it is even less safe for you than it was before. Many outsiders have come into the guild and they have said that they want to find you“. 

Crail redoubles his watch for any of the black-haired men who had started infiltrating the guild just before he left them. He has a bad feeling about this...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Suddenly there is an unusual commotion in the street ahead - the sound of carts being turned over, screams and fighting! 
The party loose their weapons and push their way through the crowds to find a bizarre scene - ratmen turning over stalls and attacking merchants and dire rats as big as Alsatians swarming around and biting everyone they can. 

The leader of the ratmen espies them and fires his crossbow at Auriel, hitting her while she was still flatfooted - fortunately she was just that little bit too far away for him to aim his shot at a vital location.

Crail returns fire to no avail, and Lysander moves to engage the were-creatures. With no magic weapons, his blows are largely futile - and Auriel is getting a battering every time she tries to cast a spell - until Azrin passes a silvered dagger to Lysander. 

In short order two wererats lie bleeding to death on the ground. The others flee, moving faster than any of the party can follow and quickly getting lost in the alleyways around the main street. 

Crail nearly catches one but is distracted by a dire rat which is gamely trying to chew his leg off, so he takes a 5’ step back, loads and shoots it with his crossbow.

Surveying the devastation, Lysander quickly goes to check the wounded merchants, and calls upon the power of Asura to heal those who are hovering on the brink of death, although some have sadly already passed that final gateway. 

While nobody is looking Auriel finishes off the wounded were-rat that had been attacking her, eliminating their one source of information about what has just been going on. DMs note: bloodthirsty girl, isn't she?

The guards arrive, and demand to know why there are all these dead men around, but the healed merchants explain the situation, and the guards proffer their thanks. 

Crail notices that both of the dead ratmen have long, black, greasy hair - and he has a bad feeling about what has happened to his old thieves guild. 

So what was going on here? Was it the protection racket and people weren’t paying up? Or was there something more sinister going on?

_DMs note: Something I ommitted from an earlier account was when the party went back to the town armourer and requested some silvered weapons - and he refused, saying that they didn't have any in stock and he wasn't able to make any. In fact, he seemed a little nervous about talking to them about the issue. Azrin had his silvered dagger as part of his equipment that he brought with him from Singh when he entered the game - it would have been much tougher for everyone if that had not been the case. Clearly, the wererats had forced the thieves guild to put the frighteners on the blacksmith one way or another. _


----------



## Plane Sailing

The foul, filthy bites of the giant rats have infected Auriel and Crail with filth fever. Lysander calls upon Asura to heal Crail, but Auriel will have to wait awhile, and she finds her strength starting to fail, so she plans to spend more time resting. 
Crail, Lysander and Azrin spend a little more time looking around the festival. Crail picks up rumours about deaths down in Southspur, the poorest area of town outside the fortified walls. 

Also, apparently Tonar, the chief of the guard has disappeared a couple or weeks ago. 

He was investigating something down in Chatterstreet or Southspur and hasn’t been seen since. 

They also hear about a foreigner selling exotic weapons near the bell tower, and go to make his acquaintance. The see a swarthy man called Chandra, dressed in a broad-brimmed hat and clothing with fringes along the arms and legs. 

He greets Crail happily, and shows his Chakrams - exotic thrown weapons that look a little like steel frisbees (think of Xena). 

Azrin tries to make conversation with him, but Chandra tells him to “keep his stinking Singharese nose out of things.” 

DM note: Chandra comes from Tillan, a small state far to the west across the barrier range which is continually threatened by the religious super-state of Singh. He is understandably upset when one of his hereditary enemies tries to strike up a conversation with him!

The group decide that the exotic weapon looks interesting, and several are purchased. They then pick up Auriel and decide to pay a visit to the strange little bookshop which was going to be selling the Candlemakers spell book for them. 

Proceeding into West Hill, Azrin is surprised by yet another tirade when a passer by starts shouting at him. 

“You priests, you say you are looking after our spiritual welfare, but what are you doing about the ghosts around here, eh? What are you doing about the West Hill ghosts? You are just foreign scum trying to get our money and prayers, aren’t you!” 

Azrin can’t get a word in edgewise, and is bemused - he certainly hasn’t heard of any such trouble, but apparently ghastly moans and gibberings have been heard in the neighbourhood of cheap street and the jewellers mall at night.


----------



## Plane Sailing

They proceed on to the bookshop and once more find the lecherous old man, who intersperses every statement with licking of his lips and slobbering glances towards Auriel, to whom he addresses all his comments. If anything he is worse than before, and Auriel finds herself particularly disgusted. No, he hasn’t managed to sell the book yet, yes he does have a potential buyer but it is expensive, and the sale can’t be rushed, and would the young witch like a quickie behind the stairwell while the others leave? No? Perhaps next time then?
Shortly after leaving the vaguely disturbing bookshop, as they travel back to the Queen of Cups, the group are accosted by two more tall men with long black greasy hair. One of them swigs a potion and suddenly grows to large size, as they both transform into humanoid rats and press their attack!

This time the battle goes much better for the party - they have Azrin’s silvered weapons to hand and even with the reach advantage enjoyed by one of them the creatures are quickly defeated.

As the party watch the bodies return to their human forms, a merchant hurries out of a nearby bakery. “Please”, he calls out, “can you do something to stop the depredations of these creatures? We have all been paying protection money out of fear, but it looks like you might be able to stop them? I don’t know if its any help, but the festival stallholders who are near the bell tower have been complaining about rat problems...”


----------



## Plane Sailing

Making their way back to the town centre, the party visually survey the bell tower, standing tall in the middle of the town. It is tall and sturdy, with only the one entrance. Auriel decides to keep watch over the tower until dusk, drawing her Elven cloak around her shoulders and fading into the shadows. The others will meet her back here at sundown.

An argument breaks out between Lysander and Azrin. Azrin seems more interested in knowledge about the wererats and less about the terror which they have been inflicting on the local people. Lysander is incensed that Azrin would place his own thirst for knowledge above the well-being of people. Issuing a dire threat for the priest to keep out of his way, he storms off into the festival.

Crail was somewhat intrigued by this exchange, and engages Lysander in conversation. In turn, Lysander decides to try to interest Crail in the tenets of Asuran religion, and Crail decides to get into a full blown theological discussion. As the time is whiled away, Crail finds the arguments advanced more and more convincing, and somewhat against his earlier wishes finds himself a convert to Asura! Lysander decides that there is no time like the present for introducing him to the temple, and proceeds off there with Crail in tow.

Lysander continues to have great difficulty in getting to see Alkanar - he is still “too busy”, and it is only by really forcing the issue does he get to see him. It is an unhappy conversation with Alkanar - not least because after voicing his concerns about Azrin’s suitability, Lysander is actually charged with his protection, much to his horror. 

Alkanar seems very distracted, not his normal pleasant self, and he dismisses Lysander abruptly.

The fuming Jazumai returns with Crail to meet Azrin (Who is given the command “stay out of trouble and stay out of my way”)  and then to join up with Auriel outside the bell tower.

Auriel has had a boring afternoon. There hasn’t been any activity around the bell tower, nor from the surrounding buildings. The single door at the base of the tower hasn’t moved while she has been watching. Although the street festival is continuing into the night, they are away from the bright lanterns, and the noise covers their activities. The party decides to unravel the secret of the bell tower...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Crail picks the lock, and finds a lobby with a door opposite and a stairway on his right that probably spirals up around the inside of the tower. Pushing open the door gently, he sees an elderly man sitting in a comfy armchair, reading a book by the light of a small oil lamp. The room has a small bookcase, a bed and several bell-ropes hanging down the centre of the room.

“What are you doing here? Go away” shouts the elderly man. 

“Sorry” replies Crail and he shuts the door again. 

The rest of the party look at him - thief, burglar extraordinaire - and he says “sorry”?

_DMs note: the rest of the players just cracked up over this whole exchange - they couldn't believe the politeness of his response when they were intending to clear the place of were-rats!_

They decide to leave him there and head up the staircase. Crail and Auriel lead the way, both moving silently and hiding amidst the shadows. A full spiral around the stairway has taken them up about 20 feet, and reveals another door, which they decide to open. 

They enter the small, empty room which is littered with debris and smells of damp fur, and suddenly they are ambushed by three wererats who had been hiding above the doorway!

One of them attacks Auriel, the other two attack Crail. Spying the silvered spear that the witch carries the wererat decides to make a disarm attack, and he then steps sideways and places his foot firmly on the spear so it can’t be picked up. 

Crail desperately fences with the two facing him. Hearing the call for help, the rest of the party start running up the stairs.

Auriel moves to one side and casts shillelagh on her cudgel. Crail shifts his position slightly and two of the wererats spot their chance, move to flank him. One strikes, critical hit, triple damage! The next one strikes, critical hit, triple damage! 

Mortally wounded, Crail stumbles but heroically attempts to strike once more. The ratman who was attacking Auriel swings round and strikes the wounded rogue too, running him through. 

Crail slumps to the ground, dead...

... to be continued!

_DMs note: I make a point of rolling important rolls to hit out in the open, and I couldn't believe that both of the flanking wererats got a critical hit on poor Crail. If he'd slumped to the floor they would probably have left him, but he didn't want to leave Auriel alone and the rats percieved him to still be a threat._


----------



## Plane Sailing

Auriel finally lands a solid blow with her shillelagh, taking down one of the wererats, and Lysander appears at the door and strikes down a second. He calls out “Surrender” to the final wererat, and it complies, throwing down its weapon. 

Questioned, it says that Squim, the leader, is up at the top of the bell tower with his two remaining cronies.

Lysander and Auriel start up the stairs to the bell room, and on the next landing there is a flash, and cold black energy leaps around Lysander, but the divine grace he enjoys from Asura keeps the enervation trap at bay. 

Finally, at the top of the bell tower they find Squim and his two remaining cronies, in ratman form hiding up amongst the bells and ropes. Azrin is sent downstairs, and an arrow knocks one of the ratmen down to the floor. 

Auriel goes to take advantage of the downed wererat, but finds herself flanked by Squim who has read a scroll summoning a strange alien squid being which attacks Lysander, grappling him thoroughly. 

Squim lands telling blows against Auriel, who starts returning the favour. Lysander struggles to free himself from the squid-things grasp while it produces a cloud of inky darkness around itself. 

After a scrabble for a few rounds the squid thing is dispatched, as are two of the ratmen. Squim makes a run for it, quickly climbing up the bell ropes and escaping through one of the small windows.

Outside, Azrin who was waiting and watching sees Squim attempting to make his exit - quickly calling to Chandra, the Tillanian weaponsmith, he points to the wererat. “Can you hit *that*?”. Chandra whirls one of his chakrams at Squim and knocks him from his precarious perch. 

The 40 foot fall wounds squim severely, and Azrin leaps forward and grapples the wererat, pinning him quickly in his weakened state. The others burst out of the foot of the tower, and help to quickly tie the wererat up, so he can be taken to justice.

Searching him, they find something particularly interesting... he has some notes on him that are written on headed notepaper - notepaper from the strange little bookshop up at West Hill...


----------



## Plane Sailing

That same night the two captured were-rats and the body of Crail are taken to the temple of Asura. Knocking at the side door, they are allowed in by a local acolyte - but to their surprise are told that Alkanar is unable to see them because he is unwell... but a new high priest, Daros can speak to them!

Daros meets them in the main temple sanctuary - a big, bluff man, with the shaven head typical of the religious natives of Singh. He is pleased to meet Lysander, and tells Azrin to “speak up man! If you’ve got something to say, spit it out!”. 

He introduces them to a companion of his, Felgar - a female Jazumai who came with him from Singh. His duties will place him in charge of the temple until Alkanar recovers, then he will be moving on. 

He is pleased with their nights activities but disappointed to hear of the death of Crail, their recent high-profile convert. Although Alkanar always believed in waiting for holy days for performing the mightiest magics, Daros tells them to leave Crails body here and return tomorrow after dawn. Even though it is only Moonday, he will pray for the power to raise Crail from the dead.

The next day the party assembles early at the temple, and Daros performs the rite of resurrection, breathing new life into the young rogue, their friend. They spend the rest of Waneday with Crail, helping him to recover from his ordeal and planning their next steps. 

Several clues seem to point towards evil activities up in the West Hill district, and the arcane bookshop with the lecherous bookseller would seem to be near the centre of the problems. Auriel leaves them to spend a few days meditating in a grove outside the town.

Walking through the fair and talking with the guards at the West Hill guardpost, they find out a little more about strange goings on - mysterious deaths (“we don’t know what killed him, but it wasn’t sword or blows. He seemed real pale-like though” . There have also been mysterious mists rising up in the middle of the afternoon. Azrin suggests that maybe this is to allow people to move in and out of the bookshop covertly... 

That afternoon, as they are checking out the jewellers mall close to the arcane bookshop, mist billows out across the square. Without hesitation, Lysander charges into it...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Crail follows him into the mists, and they zero in on the sound of two men talking - engaging them, Crail finds himself struck by magic missiles, and a fan of burning flame also shoots forth from the mist. 

These two hooded sorcerers would not be too much of a problem though, and Crail quickly takes one of them down - but suddenly with an awful sucking sound a huge, tentacled slimy worm like creature appears in their midst. 

Its head dips down and five of its tentacles slash Lysander, hauling him up in the air and transferring him towards its terrible sucking mouth. Ynnsfeardh and Azrin head into the mist to aid their fellows, the monk striking at the creature with a kama, while Azrin finds himself duelling across its tail with the sorcerer who produces flaming hands. 

Lysander calls upon the healing powers of Asura to keep himself going, and the worm gets bored with him and flings him aside before attacking Crail. Things are starting to look serious when suddenly the creature vanishes, sucked back to whatever plane it had come from. One of the cabalists has escaped, the other is captured, relieved of a number of potion vials which Azrin looks after, and a wand in a holster which Crail appropriates.

They need to take some time to recover before tackling the bookshop itself, so they drag the cabalist off for questioning, but all they get from him is babbling inanities 

- "the door swings open", "the dreamer awakes", "doom will befall all, all will fall before him Mwha-ha-ha-ha!". 

Lysander is a little concerned about the way that the cultists mind seems to be going, considering the religious secret he uncovered during his recent studies in the library - that some prophets teach that there is an unspeakable entity, imprisoned forever by mighty Asura in the dawn of time, the god of this world and its inhabitants before men ever arose. Some prophets say that one day this unspeakable one will awaken and destroy the world. No wonder that information is well hidden!

_DMs note: every 5 ranks in Knowledge(religion) or knowledge(arcane) will reveal one of the campaign secrets to a player)_

They decide to take the cultist back to the temple, but on the way Crail notices that they are being followed...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Just before they reach the temple Crail ducks into a side alley and doubles back around a couple of side streets to find himself behind the follower. It is a man, clearly a foreigner with straight, jet-black hair, sharply featured nose and cheekbones and a tunic made of some kind of fur. He seems to be studying sweetmeats at a stall, but when he sees Lysander striding back up the street in his direction he turns to leave - and is tripped by Crail, or very nearly. 

He stops himself from falling and first attempts to bluff out of the situation, but as Crail waves Lysander over, he changes his tune.

“Why were you following us?” Crail demands. 

“I’d prefer not to talk about it in such a public place” the man retorts. “Could we step into an alleyway? You choose one”. 

Crail agrees, and Lysander senses no overt evil from the man so the three of them step out of the immediate vicinity of the festival.

His name is K’tan, and he is one of the mages of Cadlan, a mountaintop city far to the North of Knightsbridge. Apparently the mages are concerned - “Crystals deep under the mountain have started moaning” and as a result representatives have been sent across the known world to track down any evidence of attempts to waken “the dreamer”, a mysterious prophetic figure. 

K’tan had been following up rumours of strange activities in West Hill, and observed their combat with the Wyste, an alienist creature summoned by servants of the dreamer. 

“You are in great danger”, he warns them. “We all are”. “The cabal of sorcerers working out of the bookstall have much magical power - I would be willing to aid you in any assault on the place should you so desire”. 

Lysander sends Crail a little further away in the alley to confirm some of his suspicions about the nature of the dreamer - (which Crail lip reads, the sneaky beggar) and then agrees that K’tan's help would be valuable. They will meet with him in the Silver Hill amphitheatre late that afternoon, and proceed to the bookshop.

Having arranged that, they return to the temple to meet up with Azrin and Ynnsfeardh once more. They are let in by *yet another* new acolyte from Singh who leads them round to the meeting room where the others are waiting. How many new guys are there in the temple anyway? 

As the acolyte leaves them, Lysander concentrates and receives the familiar sensation on the back of his neck - he’s pretty sure that the guy is deeply associated with evil! He looks across at Azrin - is it normal for a church to be subtly overtaken and placed in other hands...? 

He finds himself in a dilemma - it is well known that Asura has evil as well as good worshippers - but both are concerned with the rule of law and the promotion of the worship of Asura, even though they may have different, uh, methods of going about it. It seems that this alienist plot that they have uncovered at the bookshop is a greater and more insidious evil, stretching back to an ancient horror... this temple politics is probably safe to leave alone for a short while. 

Isn't it?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Late afternoon on Markday they return to the amphitheatre and pick up K’tan, then head off to the bookshop in West Hill. Crail scouts around the alleyway behind the bookshop and disables the lock on the rear door, to make sure that nobody is going to be leaving that way in a hurry. Then they meet up around the front again. 

The shop appears to have been doing its customary poor trade, and nobody is inside, so they enter. 

“Yesss?” intones the obsequious bookkeeper from behind his counter. “What can I do for you? Have you got that pretty witch with you again so I could SEE her? (snigger snigger)”. 

Disgusted by this foul pervert, Crail walks around the counter and tears down the curtain to the back room, revealing yet more bookshelves, a stairwell and a large cupboard.

“Hey, what do you think you’re doing!” cries the bookkeeper 

- then Lysander steps up to him and picks him up by the throat “Tell us about the cabal, you scum” he says, menacingly. 

The bookkeeper isn’t intimidated. “I don’t know what you’re talking about” he replies, choking. 

“Wait” says Crail. “I can hear some strange, manic humming in here”. 

He opens the door and a horrific gibbering sound fills the room, as a mound of flesh covered all over with eyes and mouths spills out into the room in front of him! 

Steeling his nerves against the horrific sounds, he strikes at the creature to no avail. Three of its mouths launch out on tentacles and latch hold of him, sinking deep into his flesh. Three more lash out and grab Azrin too. 

In desperation, Azrin drinks two of the potions they found earlier - and he finds his feet levitate off the floor and his outline becomes blurred and shifting. 

Lysander takes a step into the room, and against the better judgement of his conscience casts the bookkeeper into the midst of the aberration, where he is engulfed. 

K’tan concentrates and the sound of a low hum builds rapidly into a crescendo of a shout and the open door next to the creature is shattered as if by a blow.

Lysander moves in to the attack and calls upon Asura to bless his blade. Asura says "NO". _DMs note: he should have listened to his conscience..._

Both Crail and Azrin feel themselves weaken as blood is drained from them by the awful sucking mouths. Worse, Azrin is tugged off his feet and enveloped into the centre of the heaving mass and feels a dozen more small mouths biting at him! 

Another soundless shout comes from K’tan and a portion of the doorframe is blown into splinters. The power is there, but his aim today is rotten. _(DMs note: Concussion is a ranged touch attack which can affect objects in my campaign). _

In desperation Crail whips out the wand he got from one of the cabalists earlier and attempts to suss out how to use it - somehow he is successful, and the wand crackles with electricity - he swings at the creature and electricity lances into its amorphous form, felling it with the shocking grasp. 

As it collapses into a stinking pile of goo, Azrin floats up from its midst. Among the remains on the floor is a partially devoured and bloodless husk of the bookkeeper...

_...Action hotting up a bit now, and Lysander has made a bad mistake in his actions here. While not quite going as far as stripping him of his Jazumaihood (aka Paladinhood), Asura is certainly withholding certain benefits and graces until atonement is made. Oh dear._


----------



## Plane Sailing

Fog starts rolling down the stairs, and a large fiery ball bounces into the room. Lysander leaps up the stairs and is confronted by a hooded and robed figure just visible at the head of the stairs, who conjures another fiery ball between them before retreating into the mist. Lysander attempts to leap over the ball and doesn’t quite clear it, getting scorched toes. Ynnsfeardh follows him up. Back on the ground floor Azrin grabs a fire bucket and douses some of the fires started by the rampaging fire sphere, before following Crail and the others up to the first floor.

Detecting the cabalists by the sound of their enchantments, our hero’s cross the floor and attempt to engage them; Lysander is struck by an Acid Arrow, and Crail ducks two of them during the combat. One of the cabalists is cut down, the other escapes up a further set of stairs in the mist after Azrin manages to fumble and trip Crail rather than his target (This came just after an inspired lunge by Azrin *underneath* the rooms table to trip the cabalist, although nobody was able to take advantage of that effort.) 
Azrin levitates up the next stairwell, bursting through the mists, and is greeted by two flaming bolts, both of which sear into his chest. 

Asura is clearly smiling on him, as only a miracle keeps him from dying instantly (rolls a 20 on his save vs instant death). In the thinning mist on the first floor the company see his dying body, and Crail and Lysander quickly run up the stairs, followed by K’tal and Ynnsfeardh after some rudimentary first aid keeps Azrin alive.

(I wonder if I've got the record for highest number of posts in a storyhour without anyone else saying anything  )


----------



## Plane Sailing

Amidst the black-painted walls there is a chamber of horrors - a tall robed figure is visible in the far corner of the room, chanting a spell - and between her and the top of the stairs is the escaped cabalist and a series of horrific, slimy be-tentacled creatures. Two of them are small aberrations which ooze noxious acidic vapours which harm everyone within 10’, and a third is a medium aberration with grasping tentacles surrounding a sucking, lampreylike mouth. 

Ynnsfeardh moves first and strikes at one of the small aberrations with his kama - which promptly disintegrates in the acid body! Mentally he resolves to *not* use his fist on these creature! Lysander draws his spare dagger and strikes it into the same beast, killing the creature at the cost of a dagger. Crail moves to engage the cabalist and K’tal attempts to shoot the creature with his crossbow, since he no longer has sufficient psychic energy to perform concussions.

The lampreylike creature attacks Lysander and quickly latches on to him, and an awful sucking sound starts. Crails’ opponent concentrates on casting defensively and starts peppering Crail with magic missiles. Ynnsfeardh makes a magnificent tumbling leap over the heads of all the combatants and attempts to strike the leader of the cabal (who must be the one known as “the Blessed”) who responds by scorching him with firebolts - one of which is evaded but the second one strikes home, seriously wounding him. Lysander wounds his attacker, but it then sucks huge mouthfuls of his blood, seriously weakening him _(DMs note: in my campaign blood drain attacks reduce Str first, and when that is all gone they reduce Con. Having them reduce Con straight away is too nasty for my liking ) _.

Although K’tal is not being terribly effective with his crossbow, the odds don’t look terribly appealing to the Blessed, so she runs up onto the ceiling with her magic slippers and spends a round opening a trapdoor onto the roof. Another crossbow bolt misses her and she ducks out. Ynnsfearth moves to give Crail a flanking attack on the cabalist, but the cabalist hits Crail with another brace of magic missiles, seriously wounding him (and with the blood loss he sustained from the gibbering mouther, he falls unconscious). 

Lysander manages to kill his creature just before it sucks him dry, and the remaining acidic aberration disappears in a puff of summoned smoke. The final cabalist falls to the company and they take stock of the situation. Lysander is drained and wounded, Crail seriously so and Azrin is hovering on deaths door.


----------



## Plane Sailing

They start to make their way downstairs but find their way blocked by a blazing fire that the unattended flaming sphere started down in the bookshop (Azrin is going to be mortified about the amount of information that has been destroyed!).  The doors are all heavily barred with iron, so they get everyone up through the skylight and onto the roof, and then use rope that Lysander had been carrying to lower everyone to the ground and safety. 

A crowd are gathering already, and a bucket chain is dousing the nearby buildings to prevent the fire spreading - but it is clear that the bookshop itself is not going to be put out until it is reduced to a shell. The crowd gather round and Lysander raises his voice, allows his Charisma to pour forth and tell people of the great victory that has been won. 

The crowd recognise the company as the ones who had dealt with the wererat problem and hoists the heroes aloft, shouting their praises. Lysander sends a messenger back to the temple suggesting to Daros that tomorrows holy day ceremonies should probably have a good sermon, as he expects that there will be a higher than average turn-out! The heroes are carried back to the Queen of Cups where Barnabas is pleased to see them and sorts them out with rooms where they can rest and enjoy the toast of the people. Words get around that there will be a big feast arranged for Holyday afternoon in the heroes honour, tomorrow. In the meantime, they need to spend some time resting and recuperating from the battles of the day.


Before exiting the bookshop, a quick search did turn up the following things:

· A diary with writing in a language that isn’t familiar (Azrin can check it once he is conscious and active again)
· A wand which looks like a sturdy burnt twig with silver around the base. (wand of burning hands)
· A golden ring with a single ruby setting (both these from the defeated cabalist) (+1 protection)
· An arcane scroll (change self, invisibility, haste)
· Two potions, one of which is iridescent blue (the colour of healing) and the other effervescent yellow.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Late that afternoon Auriel returns from her time in the nearby grove, swapping information with a witch who had summoned her with an animal messenger. The nearby council of witches is concerned with rumours of continued evil-doing by the renegade Belak, whom Auriel had encountered with others way back in the early days. Apparently there have been sightings of strange, possibly undead plants, and the council would like Auriel and others to investigate in the near future.

Auriel is stunned at the amount of activity which has gone on in her absence, and helps them out with some lesser restoration spells to help alleviate the problems of blood loss suffered by so many of the party. They all rest up overnight at the Queen of Cups and then since it is holyday most proceed to the temple for the morning services, while Auriel hangs around outside and K’tan retires to his residence at “The Wyvern”. 

During the service, Azrin appeals to Asura to understand the thoughts of people in the temple, and amidst all the general babble of voices he hears one distinct tone 

“Not long to wait, this afternoon, and our plans come to fruition - Mwha-ha-ha!”. 

He can’t pinpoint who this is, but takes note of a number of shady looking characters towards the rear of the temple and reports his findings to the others. 

They know that this afternoon they have been invited to a feast in their honour, and suspect that a trap may be set there, especially since many of the top merchants will be there and at least one of the Cabal (the leader) has escaped. Azrin also tries to get another word with one of the local acolytes who had tried to tell him something a few days earlier - but despite the acolytes presence in the service, he doesn’t manage to speak with him.

They all decide to go along to the celebration in their honour, but remain watchful. This probably spoils their enjoyment a little, and the songs in their honour go unheard and the women who fawn over them go unloved.

_DMs note: Ah, paranoia!_


----------



## Plane Sailing

Late evening of holyday a messenger boy arrives - can they meet with someone up at the old bell tower. Suspicious, but they agree they must go. As they proceed up Chatterstreet a call is heard from the narrow alley they are passing “Hey, Heros!” and a sneakily aimed crossbow bolt pierces Azrins side. Before the ratman figure - it looks like Squim again - darts back into the alleys.

Lysander and Auriel charge directly after him, and Crail and Ynnsfeardh duck into the next alley along to attempt to cut him off. Azrin treats his wound and moves a little further into the alleyway.

Past the next junction, Lysander sees Squim and moves to attack him, backed up by Auriel - but suddenly two turbaned Mendonnan assassins appear out of the shadows, surrounding the two of them, and one gains a vicious flanking attack on Lysander. Their kris knives are poisoned and both Auriel and Lysander drink deep of the venom.

Meanwhile, two more cloaked rogues have leapt from doorways around Crail and Ynnsfeardh, striking at them, and Azrin (alone in another alley) suddenly finds himself flanked by rogues too!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Ynnsfeardh tumbles past Crail and his opponent, allowing Crail to get a flanking attack before stepping aside to prevent being flanked himself. Auriel gets a mighty critical hit with her spear and nearly impales one of the assassins, critically wounding him. He attempts to tumble away but draws an AoO from Lysander who breaks his neck with a snapping kick before continuing to whittle away at squim. Lysander uses his intimidate skill to attempt to enrage Squim, and is successful - the ratman hacks away with more determination than ever, but to little effect this time.

Azrin gulps down a potion of firebreath and breaths at one of the rogues flanking him - and uses the moment when the rogue evades the breath to dash past him and attempt to meet up with his friends again. Crail leaves Ynnsfeardh to handle their two rogues to go and protect Azrin, the monk downing one of his rogues at the same time. Auriel manages to kill the assassin behind her, and then runs back round to the fight near Azrin. She gets into difficulty as she is flanked by two rogues and seriously wounded. Lifting her arms up she transforms into an eagle and quickly flies up onto the guttering. 

Lysander finally cuts Squim down, cleaving his head from his neck. Azrin invokes a spiritual scimitar of Asura to start hacking away at one of the enemies after calling upon Asura to bless his companions. Auriel returns to normal form and starts summoning four badgers, which appear and quickly kill one of the rogues. 

While Lysander comes round to the main body, Ynnsfeardh finishes off his opponent and Auriel leaps 20ft from the building, attempting to hit the remaining rogue - she misses and nearly knocks herself out! While Crail prepares to send the rogue to his maker, Azrin steps between them and with a perfect leopard punch kills the villain.

Phew!

The party take stock. Whilst all seriously wounded and many of them poisoned, they are all alive. It is worrying to see the assassins from Mendonna here, they are known far and wide as experts in dealing death. Even more worrying, all of the rogues who attacked them have the shaven heads and soft features common to Singharese - just like Azrin and Lysander. What is this, an invasion from Singh or what?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Query: is it better for readers if I post in short segments, or would longer segments be better?

Should I use longer segments until I'm back to the current position and then return to shorter segments after that?

Feedback appreciated!


----------



## Plane Sailing

They retrace their footsteps back to the Queen of Cups, and Lysander flags down a guard, and asks him if he can find out whether Squim escaped from custody, or was released. The message comes back a little later - he was released on orders from the Baron...

Barnabas sets them up in a couple of his best rooms that night, and his wife Maria tends to them with her healing skills.
In the early hours of the morning, both Lysander and Azrin wake, with a sudden feeling of wrongness. They quickly rouse their companions and check the inn, but there is nothing to be found. Crail can see a strange glow from over in the east, and these three decide to pay a visit to their temple.

Storm season has clearly come in with a roar, as rain lashes down and the wind howls around them as they make their way along the main boardwalks towards the temple. They encounter some city guards who have orders to clear people off the streets, but Lysander is determined to make his way to the temple of his god. The guards are torn between their loyalty to the baron and their respect for the Jazumai, and in the end agree to escort Azrin and Crail back to the inn, leaving Lysander to proceed alone.
He finds the temple doors locked. 

Shinning up the side of the building, he has a strong sense of evil from within the dome, the sanctuary of the temple. Returning to the ground, he breaks down one of the back doors into the temple. He starts to creep down the passageway when with a howl two hell hounds leap out of the hall in front of him and an evil acolyte, wearing hastily donned armour and with a huge flail appears behind him. He is engaged in combat, and despite his skill the fiery breath of the hounds and the cleric who boxes him in behind are quickly whittling him away. In desperation he calls upon his new sorcerous talents and defensively casts “Daze” at the priest - and then uses his movement action to dart past the dazed opponent and back out into the rain.

Incensed at the obvious desecration of his temple, even more angry that he had to retreat from the battle, Lysander returns to his friends. They decide that it is not safe to remain at the Queen of Cups because enemies at the temple will be on their guard and may be preparing a counterstrike. They leave quickly in the night and return to the old belltower, where Crail once more picks the lock and lets everyone in. They settle down for the night and attempt to heal their wounds and prepare once more.

Come morning, Crail hears trumpets being blown up at the keep, summoning the townspeople for an announcement. While the others pray and prepare, he goes and mingles with the crowd, moving to listen to the announcement. Up on the battlements, he sees the well-known figure of the Baron, giving a proclamation. In the background, Crails keen eyes make out a tall, robed figure standing in the shadows - not the Blessed, but with a head shadowed by a large hood.

The Barons announcement is shocking. Apparently, because of the breakdown of law and order, as exemplified by the assassination attempt on the brave adventurers, but seen also in the fire up on west hill, the wererats killing guards and the general disruption caused by the street festival... so he is declaring martial law. Carrying of weapons will be punishable by death. Alkanar, Lysander and all of the acolytes from the temple are to be arrested on sight, since their temple has failed the town - and the temple is now given over to new forces of law who will be maintaining order in the town. Able bodied men should report to the militia. The town gates will be sealed and nobody will enter or leave the town. 

As he finishes, an enormous, skeletal fiendish humanoid appears on the battlements beside him, lifting aloft a huge scythe and lashing the air with a terrible scorpion sting.


----------



## Old One

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *Query: is it better for readers if I post in short segments, or would longer segments be better?
> 
> Should I use longer segments until I'm back to the current position and then return to shorter segments after that?
> 
> Feedback appreciated! *




Use the longer ones to get caught up...then switch to the "nibbles"!

Old One


----------



## Plane Sailing

Ah, you spoilt my attempt to have the longest thread with no comments 

I'll post in longer chunks until I get current - although with the old boards still closed it is a little difficult to remember where I'd got up to!

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

The crowds run from the square in some panic, and Crail moves along with them, making his way back to the bell tower. He doesn’t like the sound of this *one bit*

After his companions finish their praying and spell preparation they all hear the town criers repeating the Barons words - apparently flanked by a pair of enormous goblins with glowing purple eyes. Azrin recognises a fiendish creature from Crails descriptions, and he surmises that a gate must have been opened to a fiendish plane from somewhere in the vicinity. That would match up with the extreme sense of evil that Lysander sensed at the temple the previous night! But how to close such a gate? It is beyond Azrins planar knowledge at the moment - but he is sure that there are a couple of books within the temple library which will give him the answers he needs. Of course, the temple seems to be overrun by fiendish creatures and probably an evil subcult of Asura...

First, they need to find allies. Crail goes off to make contact with K’tal, sticking to the back routes. Even so, he sees the bony fiend with a number of frightened militamen terrorising a baker out on his rounds, and then later narrowly escapes from a huge, fiendish megaraptor stalking round the back ways. K’tal has heard the news and is happy to join up with the company in attempting to bring true order back to the town.

In the meantime, Auriel takes her own walk around the town - much quieter now, with far fewer people around. She notices a couple of turbaned, hawk-nosed men in one of the streets and doesn’t pay them much attention - but they apparently recognise her and shoot at her with their hand-crossbows, poisoning her slightly again. Thankfully she manages to escape and work her way back to the bell tower. It definitely isn’t safe out at the moment, and the enemy have good descriptions of them to work from.

They spend a considerable time planning how to break into the library and collect the necessary books - a frontal assault is out, since they wont have the time to look through the library if they are trying to protect themselves from the cultists, yet somehow they have to get Azrin in there since he’s the only one who knows what books to collect.

A plan is drawn up. That night, Auriel and Azrin sneak up to the temple, to the wall adjoining the library. Auriel casts stone shape and makes a hole that can be wriggled through. Azrin then quaffs the potion of invisibility which was recently found, and works his way into the library, taking off some of the books in order to get into the building. The library is occupied - Felgar is sitting at the table, regarding the doorway and idly tearing pages out of one of the books. 

Holding his breath, thanking Asura for luck, Azrin creeps around the back of the library, selects the books he needs, then carefully wriggles out the hole once more. He replaces the books in the shelf behind him as he leaves, and then he and Auriel camouflage the hole and return to the bell tower.

The books have the answers he is looking for. This kind of planar gateway  can be closed by channelling energy into it - although it needs to be a concerted effort, as it will be a difficult task, especially if the temple has been desecrated as they anticipate.

Meanwhile, Crail and Lysander move carefully round the town to visit some of the houses of the more devout worshippers from the temple, to see if they can track down what has happened to Alkanar and the temple acolytes. Soon they find a household where one of the acolytes, Sheena,  is being sheltered. The other two are at locations further a field in the town, although nobody is sure of the whereabouts of Alkanar. It seems likely that he is being kept prisoner somewhere for a future sacrifice at a major holyday ceremony which would be in a couple of days time. With assurances of faithfulness, the worshippers agree to spread the word to the other acolytes

Crail then goes to attempt to locate some of his friends from the old thieves guild, from before the ratmen came. After a days searching he follows up rumours of the girl Laidly, and makes his way to an abandoned warehouse near the Chatterstreet gate. He picks the complex lock to gain access, and is nearly turned into a pincushion by crossbows, but Laidly recognises him and holds their fire. A short reunion ensures, and although the band of rogues will not aid in any direct assault, they are happy to provide a distraction up at Westgate, to draw attention away from the temple end of town.

They spend the next day, Waxday, resting up and contemplating all that has happened within the last week. Lysander re-dedicates himself to the path of the Jazumai, practicing his swordplay and prayers more. Crail turns his thoughts from roguish ways to more direct combat and Azrin concentrates on new prayers from some of the books which he took from the library.

*Current roster:*
Lysander: Jazumai 5 / Sorcerer 1
Auriel: Witch 5
Crail: Rogue 3 / Fighter 1
Azrin: Priest 3 / Monk 1
Ynnsfeardh: Monk 4
K’tal: Mage Savant 4


----------



## Plane Sailing

Moonday dawns, and the company assemble in a side street near the temple an hour before dawn. Azrin and Auriel meet the acolytes and pray for their spells, and then the company casts preparatory spells and advances. Lysander drinks the potion of Eagles Splendour and his force of personality visibly increases.
Auriel uses stoneshape to wreck the hinges of the great stone doors into the temple dome, and the party leap into the central atrium. From the middle of the hall, where the altar used to be, a pillar of fire reaches upwards, scorching the roof of the dome overhead. Beyond it can be seen the skeletal fiend. 

Azrin casts “consecrate” to dispel the desecration in the temple, and Lysander, assisted by the three acolytes, attempts to pour sacred energy into the gate. Focussed and hyped up on adrenaline, the four of them pray their hearts out and the fiery gate visibly dims. Others launch attacks on the fiendish osyluth, with K’tal being especially successful, blasting a concussion past its spell resistance and wounding it quite badly. The Osyluth responds by creating a wall of ice between the party and the gate, but Azrin whips out his new wand of burning hands, and invoking the name of Asura the consuming fire demolishes the ice wall, turning it into steam.

Next round Lysander and the acolytes continue to pour sacred energy into the gate and Asura hears their petitions and the gate swings shut, snuffing out the infernal fire. The Osyluth roars its rage, and teleports into the midst of them, missing Lysander with its scythe, but impaling one of the acolytes upon its sting;  Sheena is flung aside like a lifeless rag doll. As the rest of the company moves to encircle it, the creature teleports to the other side of the dome, shrugging off further attempts at concussion by K’tal which fail to penetrate its spell resistance.

Not willing to allow it to escape or regroup, Ynnsfeardh, Auriel and Lysander charge across to it and continue to press the attack - and as Lysander calls upon Asura to allow him to smite evil, despite his personal failings, he lands a mighty blow which severs the creatures spine, and it collapses into a mass of stinking, festering bones.

The gate is closed. No more fiends will be coming through to the city, although there are plenty that seem to have already entered through the gate. And what about the evil cultists still occupying the temple?

“Enough!” cries Lysander. “This temple needs to be cleansed!”

Azrin runs over to the door into the east wing, and blocks it while covering the opposite door with his crossbow.

Suddenly a great, pointy eared figure with blazing violet eyes appears on one of the balconies overlooking the central atrium and casts a spell at Lysander. "Stay where you are, my friend!" it cries out, and Lysander complies. Another appears, and projects a terrible feeling of despair which is shrugged off by all except for Auriel, who starts to wonder what the point of it all is.

Ynnsfeardh vaults up to the balcony, but fails to land a blow. Crossbows are fired at the creatures, but pass harmlessly through their bodies. What kind of monster are these? Then, hungry for blood and souls the Barghests leap into combat, shifting into their wolf-forms. K'tal launches one more 
concussion successfully, then fights with his crossbow, shooting into the various melees.

With the most powerful combatants either charmed or despairing, a hard fight ensues while the remaining party members attempt to fend off the barghests - and Azrin can hear the sound of someone breaking down the door which he is holding closed.

On the far side another hell hound bursts through from the west wing, shrugging off an AoO and lightly wounded by a crossbow as it charges towards Azrin. Both Barghests have taken significant damage by this point, and decide that it isn't worth hanging around, and dimension door away.

The door behind Azrin bursts apart, and the Acolyte Keltar burst in, swinging a great flail at Azrin who runs over to the other side of the chamber.  He misses, and receives a brief stab in the kidneys from Crail who had moved into a flanking position in anticipation. As Auriel also moves into the attack Keltar retreats back to lick his wounds and two hell hounds burst past him into the room. One of them engulfs Auriel in flames, but she smiles grimly as they lick harmlessly around her thanks to her spells. One of the hell hounds is downed, then Crail receives a very nasty bite and burn which takes him down.

Keltar appears again and touches one of the severely wounded hell hounds - and as the distant tolling of a bell is heard the hound slumps lifeless and more strength flows through their foes arms. He scores a mighty critical hit on Auriel (rolled 2d10+10 and caused 30 points damage!) Still Keltar is now
outnumbered, and despite causing some serious injuries is soon killed himself.

In the moments hush, the party is quick to rouse Lysander from his stupor. Then they hear a shout from the west wing:

"Lysander! I challenge you to a congress of blades"


----------



## Piratecat

I think people are more likely to read a story hour when the individual posts are shorter. I'm not sure why, but it seems to be the case.

But who cares? I'm having fun catching up. Now, if the old boards would just reopen, so that we can get to our archives....


----------



## Plane Sailing

I know that I am more likely to start reading a storyhour with short segments - I think if I see a smaller bit of text it is easy to think "oh, I can manage that one"

Any idea when the old boards will reopen, PC? I would have been more careful to get everything transferred before open day if I'd realised they were going to spend so long closed 

At least I've got my original source document to work from, which is something.

Cheers


----------



## Piratecat

They'll reopen as soon as activity here dies down a bit; with lots of registration, the server will complain about the additional load, even if they're read-only. I'm guessing within two weeks!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Felgar steps into the room, clad in half-plate armour with the other dark-eyed acolyte as her second. She has issued the traditional Jazumai challenge to a duel, a one-on-one fight between Jazumai in which no outside interference is brooked.

Lysander replies "to the death, naturally!"

"Indeed, to the death. You may take a few moments to prepare yourself. I have long looked forward to testing myself against someone of your mettle".

Lysander takes a moment to heal himself and cast a sorcerous magic weapon on his scimitar, then the two Jazumai square off in the centre of the room.

Disconcerted that he cannot cry "my god is better than your god" since they both serve different aspects of Asura, Lysander launches into the attack and draws blood immediately - but is then surprised as Felgar takes two slashes with her scimitar and then spins around and lands a crushing blow with her foot, nearly knocking him over! _Dms note: Felgar is a Ftr1/Jazumai5. She is not as strong, dextrous or charismatic as Lysander, but her base attack bonus gives her one extra attack per round and she has two weapon fighting to enable her to use her unarmed attack alongside the scimitar swipes. _

The battle rages as standing toe to toe the scimitars whirl. Lysander scores a critical hit! Felgar fails to knock him over with her kick once more. Lysander scores another critical hit! _DMs note: I couldn't believe it. It seems clear who Asura really favoured in this battle!_ Felgar calls upon Asura to heal her wounds and then redoubles her assault on her opponent.

Finally Lysander scores yet another critical hit and cleaves the wounded Felgar in two.

The remaining acolyte charges across the room and attacks Lysander with his great flail, crying out, but Auriel and the others are able to enter the fight now and despite a couple of awesome blows, he is soon cut down. While the injured tend to each other and somebody remembers Daros ability to raise dead so Felgar is decapitated, Azrin moves off into the west wing on his own to search for Alkanar. 

yep, you heard that right, he went off on his own into the unexplored area while severely wounded.

Azrin quickly runs round the rooms in the east wing of the temple, looking for Alkanar the high priest. He finds damaged books in the library, and the robing room was clearly used by some of the hell hounds as a nest.

While the fight with the acolyte continues in the main hall, he runs up the stairs, and peeks into Alkanar’s room - in the process of being desecrated by a foul imp. The imp flies at him and he hobbles  through the doorway that leads to the balcony - and comes face to face with Daros, armoured and glowing with magic. 

Daros sees his badly wounded condition and quickly casts "death knell' and strikes Azrin! Remarkably, Azrin saves (on a 20) and leaps straight past Daros and over the edge of the balcony - a 25' leap, made possible by the potion of jumping which he had imbibed earlier.

Lysander and the others are astounded to see Azrin land amongst them, and all the more astounded when an Unholy Blight explodes amongst them. Auriel is untouched out of range, as is K'tan, Lysander shrugs off the worst of the blast but the others are all mortally injured, and only just save vs dying.
Lysander calls out to Daros

" Either fight or leave now!" - somewhat of a bluff, since the party are in no condition to take on the high priest - but Daros doesn't know that. He airwalks off the balcony and hangs above the party, before booming out

"You have slain my chosen Jazumai. I will have to raise up another. My plans here are ruined, and it seems the voices in my prophetic dreams were mistaken - but I have other eggs a-hatching, and I must tend to them. Beware when we meet again, I may not be so merciful'. He then airwalks out through a hole in the temple dome.

Lysander breathes a sigh of relief - he knew that they were in no condition to take on Daros, and he managed to bluff him out of the picture.

They party quickly tend their wounds, then turn their minds to the other large problems facing Knightsbridge. Apart from the fiendish creatures currently walking the streets, and un-investigated problems in Southspur, it seems clear that the Baron is under some kind of control. Furthermore, it seems likely that that is where Alkanar the priest is being kept captive...


----------



## Plane Sailing

The Baron spends most of his time in the villa rather than the gatehouse, and so the heroes plan their rescue attempt carefully. Crail goes to find the remnants of the old thieves guild once again, and for the price of a platinum ring which Azrin gave him, he procures from them a set of plans for the villa.

Clearly, their best route would be to enter through the top of the tower. Auriel flies up to the top in bird form, and lets down ropes which the others use to assist their climb. The wooden trapdoor at the top of the tower is cunningly locked and barred, but Auriel calls upon magic to shape the wood and makes it openable.
They proceed down the narrow spiral staircase in single file, Crail and Lysander in the lead and the others bringing up the rear. They find the door to the bedroom and carefully swing it open. Inside is a richly appointed bedroom and a tattered figure lying on the bed...

While Crail and Lysander enter the room, Azrin calls upon Asura to reveal thoughts to him, and he scans around the room, attempting to pick up the mental voices of anyone who is hidden. While most of the others enter the room, Azrin completes his scan - and detects some thoughts from another entity in the room - coldly thinking “now I’ve got them”.

Azrin calls out “there’s something else in here!” when suddenly a terrible blast of freezing cold sweeps through the room, and a horned ogre magi appears over at one side. Azrin runs out of the room to cast a prayer, while Lysander, Crail, Ynnsfeardh and Auriel move to attack the ogre. Crail misjudges its reach, and is caught by a mighty two-handed blow, but the others press the attack and the ogre lacks the room to use his full manoeuvrability. 

Shocked to find itself near death in a matter of only eighteen seconds, the creature turns gaseous in order to escape and regenerate - a ploy that is foiled as Azrin dashes back into the room and uses his domain spell - burning hands - to destroy the fiend.

Congratulations all round, the party think about seeing to their wounds and checking the frail body on the bed - indeed, it is Alkanar.

Suddenly, they all find their heads filled with an awful, awful screeching sound - mind numbingly painful, all of them reel stunned except for Lysander, who resists it by the grace of Asura - and is horrified to see a creature phase into reality next to Ynnsfeardh and grab him. Lysander launches an attack, slightly wounding the creature that looks at him with pupil-less white eyes and speaks into his mind 

“Bull or cow, the cattle shouldn’t raise its hand against the farmer; the world that you knew is doomed. And I will remember YOU in particular”. 

Then with mounting horror he sees the hooded creature phase out once more, carrying the stunned Ynnsfeardh with it!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Gradually the company recover from the dreadful results of the mind blast, and wonder what they should do. Can they rescue Ynnsfeardh? Should they retreat from the villa now, in their wounded state, or should they press on and attempt to rescue the Baron from his foul captors before a replacement for the Ogre Mage can be arranged?

Looking to the bed, Lysander checks Alkanar and finds that he has been severely affected by both Devil Chills and Cackle fever, leaving him weak and unable to pray for even the most simple of aid from Asura. Lysander calls upon the power which Asura has granted him to cure disease, and drives the worst of the infection from the high priest. Auriel then picks up the frail old man as they decide to make their exit. 

In the meantime, Azrin was checking out documentation on the table, to see if he can find any clues - the only notable thing is that all of the account ledgers haven’t had any entries made in the last three weeks - pretty much since the start of the fair and the start of the troubles in Knightsbridge. Crail on the other hand, was investigating a bureau and found a secret compartment with rubies and sapphires which he surreptitiously pocketed.

Their plan is to continue down into the villa and out through the front - moving down another level they come out onto the villas mezzanine, where they can see some comfy chairs set around a table. In one of the chairs facing them sits the Baron with glazed eyes, another figure is in the chair with his back to them. 

Crail sneaks up, intent on sneak attacking the man whose face is obscured - and is taken aback to find Ynnsfeardh slumped in the chair. Worse, he is covered in blood, and there is a gaping hole running from his forehead to the crown of his head. Something terrible has eaten his brain!


----------



## Ziggy

Hi Plane Sailing!

I've read it all, and it's good. I like the plot and the narrative, and I'll try to keep up with it (but reading story hours is putting a serious dent on my spare time these days). 

I would like to see a bit more dialogue and "behind-the-scenes", but that's just my personal preferences. Keep up the good work, I know how hard it is.

.Ziggy


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks for taking a look, Ziggy!

A lot of the early stuff was written retrospectively by several months, so I could remember very little dialog by the time I was writing. I'm attempting to write things up fairly soon after the event nowadays, but I'm still a little behind (and the storyhour has quite a way to go before I catch up to the present day)

I'm very glad that you've enjoyed what you've read, and I think it is encouraging for all story-hour writers when readers post anything encouraging at all!

Cheers,


----------



## Plane Sailing

There isn’t time to mourn the loss of their friend, and the party help the passive Baron to his feet, and guide him down the stairs and to the front door. Opening the first set of gates they see two guards who are understandably surprised - Lysander’s attempt to bluff them fails because the guards know that Lysander is a wanted man with a price on his head - and Lysander and Crail find themselves engaged in combat by the halberd - wielding guardsmen. 

One of them manages to wind his alarm horn, despite Azrin’s attempt to knock it from his hand by casting his chakram - which ricochets madly around the tiny area but doesn’t injure anyone. One of the guardsmen is severely wounded and slumps down unconscious, but the other is threatening Crail severely so K’tan concentrates hard and launches a concussion - and the guardsman explodes in a gory heap _(DMs note: I use concussion as a ranged touch attack - and he got a critical hit and rolled extremely well on the damage)_.

Although a key to the front gates is quickly found, the sound of alert guards on the outside attempting to get through the portal is worrying - whether or not the party is able to deal with them, they are not willing to decimate the Barons guards who only think that they are doing their job.

Azrin had prayed earlier that day for the ability to locate secret doors, and he now calls upon Asura to honour that prayer - and as he turns and scans the room, he sees a secret doorway hidden within the fireplace! Auriel protects herself from fire and then moves the logs and ashes out of the way and opens the door. Closing the door behind them they follow the narrow passage to a secret opening on the outer wall of the villa, and make their escape into the dark.

They plan to meet at the Bell tower, and split up - Crail is to attempt to borrow some additional clothes from known supporters of the temple (to use as a disguise for the Baron if necessary), while the others travel home. On the way they spot and are spotted by another one of the Mendonnan assassins who escapes from them but starts trailing them. They decide not to return directly to the bell tower but to go to the temple and then use the secret tunnel they had made in the library to duck out...


----------



## Plane Sailing

On the way they are ambushed by another Mendonnan, who attempts an assassination attempt with a hand-crossbow - he strikes Auriel in the back of the neck, but she turned at just the right moment and avoided death (although the sneak attack damage hurt). Missile fire is swapped back and forth between the party and the assassin on the rooftop until Auriel changes shape into a giant eagle, flies up and grapples him, causing him to lose his balance and crash sickeningly to the ground. When the company approach the severely wounded assassin he quickly draws a knife and gives himself the coup de gras. These assassins obviously take themselves pretty seriously!

They follow through their plan to throw off pursuit, and make their way back to the Bell tower, where they eventually meet up with Crail who had got tired of waiting for them and went exploring again for a short while. Auriel decides that enough is enough, and feeling the siren call of lycanthropy coursing through her blood, she transforms once more into a great bird and flies off into the night, without any explanation. Come morning, Azrin and Alkanar pray for magic, and it is granted them - and Alkanar dispels the mental befuddlement which rests upon the Baron, while receiving additional healing himself from the others. He also identifies the scimitar which Felgar had been using as one of the twelve “scimitars of suliman”, undead bane weapons forged several hundred years ago. Lysander decides to use this as his main weapon for the future.

Alkanar also challenges Lysander about the displeasure Asura has with him, over the matter of the bookkeeper.  At first Lysander feels that his actions were justified, but as Alkanar warns him that he is on the brink of having Asura’s grace withdrawn from him at any time unless he makes atonement, he repents, and receives atonement from Alkanar’s hands.

The Baron is quickly brought up to speed with events, and he has only misty memories of the last few weeks. Nonetheless he is determined to take control of the situation quickly, and commanding the party to escort him, he returns with them to the villa. He is quick to take control of the guards once more, who tell him about “attackers in the night” who “killed both the guards” (funny, one of the guards was left alive…), although “one of them was killed, up on the mezzanine” - the body of Ynnsfeardh is still there. 

Quickly the Baron summons one of his trusted wizards from a recent exile, and within short order is surrounded by glowing magical protections, to keep his mind clear and safe from control. He commands his heralds to summon the populace, and delivers a stirring speech - claiming that he had been replaced by an impostor, but that has been dealt with by these heroes - Lysander, Azrin and Crail. All charges against the temple of Asura are dropped, all militia units are to be disbanded.

Later, as a personal reward, he presents the company with the deeds to Mithril Manor, one of the enclosed manor houses in the Silver Hill area that used to be owned by a notable wizard in years gone by. 

In addition, he mentions that their help would be valuable in tracking down and destroying any remaining fiendish creatures which had slipped through the gate into this neighbourhood - and Crail can’t help thinking of the huge Carnosaur which he nearly ran into...


(Multiple character deaths coming up! Stay tuned!)


----------



## Plane Sailing

_nb - I just did a quick calculation and was horrified to see that my storyhour has the lowest amount of viewings per post of ANY storyhour on the boards! Help! What can I do to encourage people to start looking? Rename it to "Meepo and the Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil with ideas copied from Piratecat" _

They decide that the first thing to do is to track down the Carnosaur which is reportedly wreaking havoc amongst nearby farmsteads. While K’tan goes off to make contact with his superiors in Cadlan,  Azrin’s research suggests that it is probably difficult to hurt with fire or normal weapons. Lysander, Crail and Azrin decide to hire riding horses and track it down. Gathering information amongst the local farmers quickly identifies the general location, and in the wet mud after several days of light rain it is easy to find the tracks of the huge creature. It is followed to a large grove, and the party wait about 200’ downwind of the grove, dismounting from their horses and readying their missile weapons.

Peering into the depths of the grove, Crail can just make out two glowing red eyes - and then suddenly the huge beast charges out of the trees, splintering branches and running straight for them - within the space of a dozen heartbeats it is amongst them and starting to attack, having shrugged off the arrows with ease!
Azrin casts “shield other” on Lysander, and then tries to target the creature with a “sound burst”, but succeeds only in damaging every one of his friends and not affecting the creature at all! 

Lysander slashes at it with the scimitar and causes some damage - but in return it grabs him up with its jaws, crushing him and lifting him off his feet. Next round Crail darts in and strikes completely ineffectually, his rapier skittering off its magically hardened scales. Lysander struggles in the grip of the beast as it chews him, hurting him more severely. He is really thankful for the spell Azrin cast earlier, although Azrin himself is starting to look a little worse for wear. 

Lysander suddenly breaks free, and drops to the ground ready to continue fighting. Crail is attacked by the creature and grabbed too, and in only a couple of rounds is severely wounded, so he feigns death and is dropped. While Lysander continues slashing away at the creature it viciously bites Azrin, whose vain attempt at a stunning attack fails, and the priests luck at last runs out - the teeth pierce his heart and he cries out and dies.

Lysander calls upon Asura to bless his blade, yet still the critical hits elude him, and the creature continues to take its toll of him. Thankfully much of the injury it would have inflicted is still magically diverted into the body of Azrin, writhing like a bloodied puppet on the grass under the vicarious impacts while Lysander’s continued onslaught starts to bite deeply into the fiendish carnosaur.

Crail thinks he sees his chance, and quickly whips out the shocking wand and applies it to the creature - but horror of horrors he rolls really badly on his “use magic device” and attempts to use it by the wrong end...

There is a shower of purple sparks and then the young rogue is hurled back smoking in the churned up mud, to move no more.

Suddenly Lysander manages a killing blow, sliding his scimitar into the groin of the creature which, exhausted and bleeding, crashes down and dies. He immediately goes to the aid of his two fellows and finds them both beyond the help of his bandages or faith. With a heavy heart he tracks down and recaptures their horses, places his dead comrades upon them, and heads back to Knightsbridge.

As he approaches the west gate, there is a heroes reception waiting for them, but which goes deathly quiet as he rides past with his silent cargo. Several dozen people follow as he makes his way to the remains of the temple, and acolytes take the bodies inside...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Alkanar is horrified to see two of his rescuers slain, and decides that since they helped rescue him from a living death, he is honour bound on this occasion to deliver them from death itself. His recent experiences have drawn him closer to Asura, and he informs Lysander that on this coming Holyday he will perform the rite of resurrection.  
Lysander rests, prays and ponders for the remaining few days, and then on Holyday amidst a terrific celebration and time of worship, the power of Asura breaths life once more into Azrin and young Crail.

After a few more days recuperation, the company start to turn their mind to the location of the mysterious “moathouse”, a centre of elemental evil which was mentioned in the diary of the Blessed. They have one bearing upon it, but ideally they need to get another line on its location. Their thoughts turn once again to the swampy castle that belonged to Radeem, and all of the hints in the castle and the surrounding area that he was associated with elemental earth magic. They decide that they will have to travel back to Oakhurst and the castle in the swamp, to check out some of the wall hanging maps which still remained in the castle dungeons operations room.

Travel to Oakhurst is uneventful, and they reach the village on Waxday, to a warm welcome from the locals. Many people are worried about rumours that they have heard about Knightsbridge these last few weeks, and are looking for confirmation about events. They stay a comfortable night in the inn and then press on in the morning up the river and to the swamp.

Swamps of Doom, redux

They manage to cross the swamps without any serious problems - Crail nearly fallsinto a mudhole, but his lightning reactions pulled him back just in time. They find the trapdoor once more, but nobody seems to have the skeletal key that would open it, so Crail starts trying to pick the lock. It is difficult, and it takes quite some time - just as he is clicking the final tumblers into place a whirring of wings is heard - it must be the local stirge flocks! Quickly they open the trapdoor, get down the steps and close it behind them.

The catacombs are still cold and empty, with a faint sound of trickling water. They investigate the remains of the maps, and Azrin is able to determine information about the site of the moathouse, marked as an ally in those ancient days of battle. 
Remembering the sealed doors in the dragons room, the party decide that they want to get through to the other side of it - they deliberately collapse part of the balcony to get hold of an old column which they start to use as a battering ram. Azrin calls upon Asura to grant great might to Lysander, and the others provide assistance with the ram. The sound of stone on stone thunders through the room as they chip away at the stone door time after time. 

Finally, with a shuddering crash the doors burst - inwards towards them! A wall of water, mud and shattered stone sweeps them all across the room, hurting everyone. They pick themselves up and look at a mud and water filled tunnel leading out into the swamp - this must have been the dragons entry and exit in days of old.

Feeling foolish that all that effort was expended on a dead end, the company decides to retreat back, having achieved their aim. The only part of these tunnels not examined is the strange circular corridor with the thaumaturgic circle. Crail is dead-set against investigating further, believing that the circle may have been left by the invading elves, but as they pass the entrance to that passage they can hear a soft lament being sung in an elvish language. Azrin is intrigued and calls out in the ancient Imperial tongue, and a female voice responds joyfully...


----------



## Plane Sailing

“Hello, who is it? Has Radeem sent you to free me? It is sooo long since I had someone to talk to!”

Azrin engages her in conversation, providing a translation for the others - She is Thurra, apparently Radeems lover who has been imprisoned here by the “protective measures” which Radeem took “for her benefit”. She can’t believe that Radeem has been dead for centuries, and her querulous voice keeps coming back to the theme of Radeem and his love for her. And will they come and set her free. Please?

After much discussion, the party decide that they will take the risk of breaking the circle. They still don’t know whether it was focussed inwards or outwards, but now is the time to find out!
They brush some of the sand away, and then make their way around the circular corridor. Round the other side of the circle they find a couple of steps up to an archway, and beyond is a room decked out in marble and fur, with a large four poster bed, a blazing fire, a marble bath and some tables and low chairs. A fair haired woman sits on the bed, apparently packing a few things together,

“Thank you, thank you!” Thurra  cries, turning round towards them. The long fair hair falls back from her forehead, revealing two small white horns...

Lysander is getting a faint prickling sensation of evil at the back of his neck, but is at a loss about what to do here - this woman doesn’t appear to be a threat, is clearly not as evil as the fiends which they have recently encountered... he waits to see what transpires.

Continuing to talk with Azrin, she wonders if there is anything she can give as a reward for freeing her so that she can go and find her beloved Radeem. He can’t think of anything, unless there is perhaps some knowledge that she can pass on. She looks at him shyly and explains that she knows 438 techniques for making love, and she would be happy to share some of the practical experience with him. 

Oo-er.

Crail and the others shake their heads, not knowing what to make of the situation, yet Azrin is extremely tempted. They ask her if she is a succubus, or if she is hungry (“no, she says. I’m not”) and ask Azrin if he knows what happens to people who get seduced by succubi... In the end, Azrin decides that it is an opportunity that he is never like to have again, and agrees. The others wait just outside the room, waiting to rush up to the four-poster’s curtains if they hear any screams of terror.

Some time later, the exhausted but pleased Azrin opens the curtains on the bed. It has been a mind-blowing experience for him. Thurra lovingly strokes his hair, and purrs

 “Thanks for helping me, Azrin - I really appreciate it. Don’t forget me, and be nice to your son when you meet him” 

Then disappears in a puff of acrid smoke.


----------



## gothwalk

This is great reading - looking forward to more posts, and indeed seeing what Azrin's son turns out like!

Drew.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Many thanks for the encouragement, Drew!

You won't be seeing the Son for a little while yet, but in a very short time the adventurers will be heading off for a little "return to the temple of elemental evil", if you know what I mean!

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

Stunned, the characters leave the room and the ruined dungeon, making their way back across the swamp and down the road over the next few days to get back into Knightsbridge.

Time passes - Azrin and Lysander are involved in the rebuilding of the ruined parts of the Asuran temple, Crail starts sorting out their affairs at Mithril Manor - tidying up and looking for the hire of domestic staff. K’tan goes off to meet an old friend of his who is being sent down from Cadlan to help with the... problems. 

During the re-cataloguing of the library Azrin finds some unusual references to a “Sword Saint” - an ancient group of superlative swordsmen whose dedication to Asura was mirrored in their dedication to their scimitars but who died out centuries ago. The strange thing is that this was in a local history book, from only 30 years ago. It could be that the code of the sword saints is still alive...

Meanwhile, Azrin has been having a series of disturbing dreams. In his dreams it is almost as if he can see the mighty Asura covered in myriad silver threads. While he watches more threads are slowly being laid down, slowly binding Asura in some way. What does it mean? He prays earnestly, but receives no answer.


After a couple of weeks, K’tan arrives with his old friend M’ir, a Mage-Seer who should be able to help them in the choices they have to make as they investigate the old moat house and the trail of the Blessed which leads out there.

========
At this point in time, the Company look like this:

Lysander, Jaz5/Sor1
Crail, Rog3/Ftr2 
Azrin, Clr4/Mnk1 
K’tan, Mage: Savant 5
M’ir, Mnk1/Mage: Seer 4

The roster of the dead looks like this:
Miranda, Rog4/Sor1 (deceased)
Graculous, Ftr5 (deceased)
Blodwyn, Clr2 (deceased) 
Ynnsfeardh, Mnk4 (deceased)
Auriel, Dru5 (left)
Kieran, Ftr2 (deceased)
T’kel, Wiz1 (deceased)
Sula, Rgr2* (deceased)

The characters are just about to start out on the "Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil" - and I'll probably start a new thread for this new phase of the Kyri Chronicles, starting by giving a little character outline of each of the party.

Now where *were* those notes?


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Kyri Chronicles - Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil*

This is a continuation of the Kyri Chronicles part I, which covers the Sunless Citadel, Speaker in Dreams and a number of Dungeon modules.

You can find information about my campaign world of Kyri there, or you can check it out in more detail on my web page http://www.thewhitetower.co.uk/frp

In part I we have seen the following deaths:
Miranda, Rog4/Sor1 (deceased) 
Graculous, Ftr5 (deceased) 
Blodwyn, Clr2 (deceased) 
Ynnsfeardh, Mnk4 (deceased) 
Auriel, Dru5 (left) 
Kieran, Ftr2 (deceased) 
T’kel, Wiz1 (deceased) 
Sula, Rgr2* (deceased) 

The Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil has a reputation as a bit of a meat grinder, so there may be many more to follow.

The current party composition is as follows:

Lysander, Jaz5/Sor1 
Crail, Rog3/Ftr2 
Azrin, Clr4/Mnk1 
K’tan, Mage: Savant 5 
M’ir, Mnk1/Mage: Seer 4 

Here is a little information about each of them:

*Lysander.* A Jazumai from the nation of Singh, he has been brought up since his youth in one of the temple training barracks. From his very earliest days he was selected because of the touch of Asura on his life and he grew up strong and charismatic. As he turned 18 his leaders sent him through the pass into Caran. He was given responsibility to take the name of Asura amongst the infidels and to support the growing network of churches to the one true god amongst the Southlander nations.

Lysander takes his faith and his mission seriously. He tends to mentally categorise the ordinary people he meets into those who are “of the flock” and are to be protected, and those “who may become of the flock” and should be encouraged to faith in Asura. His current base of operations is the temple in Knightsbridge, part of the nation of Lythau.

As he has gained in experience and responsibility he has spent much time studying only scriptures and prophecies, and he is worried by the themes that he has uncovered - themes not spoken of ordinarily in church, prophecies that talk of an ancient sleeper awakening, an ancient evil waiting to reclaim the land.

*Crail.* He grew up as a street urchin in Knightsbridge, hanging around in the disreputable areas around SouthSpur and running with the gangs. He always had a bit of a sense of honour about him, and when there was a change at the head of the thieves guild - an outsider called Squim took over the local guild and with several henchmen - all with long, greasy black hair - a much more violent atmosphere started to permeate the guilds activities. Crail wasn't too sure that he liked the way that things were going, and decided that it was time to leave the town. How to do this in safety though? 

He had been hearing stories on the grapevine about Lysander and his fellow adventurers, he approached Lysander with a proposal that he works with them awhile. 

It proved to be a bigger change than he had expected, when one day he became deeply involved in a theological conversation with Lysander and ended up converting to the worship of Asura - much to his own surprise.

He is still headstrong and likely to act first, think later. It has got him into bad trouble before and is likely to again.


*Azrin.* A priest from the nation of Singh. Slow and fat, quick to turn to his books. Azrin was a librarian in the Singharese city of Tarshai, and planned to spend his whole life digging through books and avoiding people. Occasionally he would write reports about his findings, assuming that nobody would read them. Perhaps someone did. One day, he was quickly removed from the great library and packed off on a donkey through the Caran pass and to the small town of Knightsbridge in the Southlander nation of Lythau. He arrived with a sealed letter to the local high priest, Alkanar - a letter suggesting that he be sent into as greater a danger as possible, as soon as possible. “in order to strengthen his character”. Alkanar set him to work with Lysander, with whom he has had an uneasy relationship these last few months. Azrin is not particularly interested in people - only books and knowledge. He continues to study a wide range of fields of knowledge, and he is particularly concerned about the scraps of evidence he has that some of the evil subcults of Asura may be on the rise again. Still, that’s not really his problem, is it?

*K’Tan.* A mage-savant from the mountaintop land of Cadlan.  K’tan speech is terse and clipped, and he speaks little. He was sent out by the masters of Cadlan because the crystals under the city had started singing a dirge, and their seers believed that the time was drawing near when the ancient enemy would attempt to reassert its power over the world. He was sent out amongst others to seek out signs of Illithid incursion - and joined up with the rest of the band in Knightsbridge, where one such breakout was found. He has since stayed with them, and introduced a personal friend of his, M’ir to the group.

*M’ir* is also from Cadlan, he is a mage-seer, specialising in magics which divine the way and open doors of remembrance. His mentor, a venerable seer had a premonition that M’ir would be need by a group working in Knightsbridge and he was halfway there before he received K’tans summons. As part of his training he has spent some years honing his body as well as his mind amongst the monks in Cadlan - a natural match for his intuitive nature. He now bends his mind and will to the tasks ahead of the whole group, and is much valued for his incisive grasp of realities and excellent planning ability.


Coming soon... off to the moathouse


----------



## Plane Sailing

Stunned, the characters leave the room and the ruined dungeon, making their way back across the swamp and down the road over the next few days to get back into Knightsbridge.

Time passes - Azrin and Lysander are involved in the rebuilding of the ruined parts of the Asuran temple, Crail starts sorting out their affairs at Mithril Manor - tidying up and looking for the hire of domestic staff. K’tan goes off to meet an old friend of his who is being sent down from Cadlan to help with the… problems. During the re-cataloguing of the library Azrin finds some unusual references to a “Sword Saint” - an ancient group of superlative swordsmen whose dedication to Asura was mirrored in their dedication to their scimitars but who died out centuries ago. The strange thing is that this was in a local history book, from only 30 years ago. It could be that the code of the sword saints is still alive…

After a couple of weeks, K’tan arrives with his old friend M’ir, a Mage-Seer who should be able to help them in the choices they have to make as they investigate the old moat house and the trail of the Blessed which leads out there.

Meanwhile, Azrin has been having a series of disturbing dreams. In his dreams it is almost as if he can see the mighty Asura covered in myriad silver threads. While he watches more threads are slowly being laid down, slowly binding Asura in some way. What does it mean? He prays earnestly, but receives no answer.
The time comes to set out to the location of the moat house. Lysander will follow on in a few days, so the rest proceed out along the Great North trade road towards Morannan, turning off the road at the border post to make their way down beside the river. It is strange, there seem to be lots of Singharese in caravans - middle class professionals who have come through the pass and are heading deeper into the Southlands. Casting his mind back, there have been more Singharese in the temple services this last fortnight, although nobody who stayed more than a few days. Azrin attempts to strike up a conversation with some of the travellers, but all seem tight-lipped. Respectful but tight-lipped and noncommittal. 

As they make their way East along the river side they have a bad encounter with a hungry Ankheg, and later (after Lysander has caught up with them) a pair of dire badgers. Azrin and Crail spend some time crawling through the dire badgers tunnels in case there are any youngsters, but this late in the autumn all their find is the leafy nests of the adults.

Eventually they are drawing near to the location of the moathouse, and they are surprised to see a small trappers camp. The trapper introduces himself as “Ole Del”, and inviting them to spend their supper with him, he is happy to talk about things he has seen in the locality.  As soon as they show an interest in the moathouse, Ole Del says “You don’t want to go there! There’s a dragon at the old moathouse!” Pressing him for details he can remember a smell of ozone that suggests it could be a blue dragon. Moreover, he has seen groups of other adventurers in the past week - mostly wearing orange robes and accompanied by dog-men of some kind.

They spend the night with Ole Del, and in the morning bid him farewell as he makes his way back towards Knightsbridge to sell his furs. The party head towards the moat house. Crail sneaks down taking every advantage of the cover and is able to sketch out a map of the ruined walls and the broken down drawbridge over the moat.

Azrin is rather concerned - recently while praying for his spells each morning the familiar sense of Asura saying “GRANTED” has been replaced by a sense of Asura saying “IF YOU WILL” or even “IF YOU MUST”. Azrin grows even more worried...


----------



## Plane Sailing

The party sneak down to the gates, and M'ir exercises his will to give Crail the ability to walk right up the walls. Inside the courtyard the broken flagstones are discoloured by a reddish brown smear which leads from the centre of the yard towards the double doorway. Scouting along the top of the wall, Crail decides not to try to balance on the tumbled down wreckage which is all that remains of the upper stories. Instead he crawls alongside the
inner wall, up towards large double doorway.

Creeping around the top he leans over and looks into the chamber beyond - and is surprised to see a dragon head looking right at him! It slashes at him with its teeth and he scuttles back out and starts running along the wall. The dragon Utreshimon flies out and hovers over him, snatching at him with teeth and claws. With a despairing scream Crail falls limply to the floor and the rest of the company rush into the courtyard. Utreshimon hoped to raise a cloud of dust by hovering, but the weeks of autumn rain prevent that.

Utreshimon spends most of its time on the wing, either breathing blasts of electrical power or swooping past for a wicked attack with its jaws. The dragon is only man-sized, but it is a formidable opponent, severely wounding several of the characters before it is finally driven off, flying into the mist along the river.

Azrin calls upon Asura to heal, and after a rest Crail leads the others in a search of the moathouse ruins. The dragons lair in the chamber just beyond the entrance doorway yields two bodies - one in ochre robes who has a lilac coloured stone mask, a mace inscribed with runes of destruction and a scroll which looks like a prayer for healing - but not to Asura. Azrin decides to not take any risks with this. The other body seems like a rogue, armed with
longsword and shortbow. Money pouches are removed from these two victims of the dragon and the search continues.

In a room with faded and torn black hangings on the wall, Crail finds a well hidden secret door. Opening it, they make their way down and after a few minutes find that they are in a maze of dimly lit corridors. A little cautious searching reveals a tiny secret room with voices beyond it. Following another path they find a sleeping chamber with 6 rough wooden beds. Beyond that, Azrin is ambushed by a Gnoll chieftain, but Lysander quickly leaps to the rescue and after a short battle he is dispatched. The company recognise that they are not in a good condition to fight any more serious battles, so gathering up a small chest in the bedchamber they make their way back up out of the secret door, through the moathouse ruins and into the nearby hills - to lick their wounds and plan their next assault - hopefully before the dragon comes back.


----------



## Plane Sailing

The next morning, Crail is astonished to see a face from the past coming up the hill towards their campsite - a giant Negro figure. At first he thinks that it is the ghost of Sula, coming back to haunt them. It is only as the figure gets closer that he realises that this tribesman is male - although he bears an uncanny resemblance to Sula.

The man's name is Juma, Sulas' brother. Word had got back to him of her death, and he had followed her trail to Knightsbridge, and heard of the heroes of the town who had known her and been with her when she died. He had determined to find them and find out more about his sisters death.

After some time talking, the party inform him of their plans to attack the nearby moathouse once more and foil the plots which are brewing there. Juma offers his aid, to fight alongside these friends of his sisters and to do her honour.

Crail opens the box which was retrieved from a bedroom, and narrowly escapes the acid spray released as the lid opens. Inside there are a few interesting items, most particularly the remains of a journal of some kind. There are also a couple of potions, a couple of divine scrolls invoking the power of some other god (which are summarily burnt) and a carved ceremonial dagger with gold inlay.

The party, considerably bolstered with this addition of Juma to their fighting strength, make their way down to the moathouse once more. They scout around the outside and find no additional signs of entry or exit, so Crail and Juma creep down a second set of stairs to further investigate the dungeons.

Moving with great silence, Crail overhears the sound of a couple of gruff voices and the rattle of dice. Peering around the corner of the stairs he spies two large hyena headed humanoids gambling. He and Juma leap out and surprise the creatures, and taken by surprise they are quickly slain, although one has a brief opportunity to call for help. Nothing seems to come.

The rest of the party join them in this chamber, and keep watch while Juma and Crail head off down past pillars with manacles and a long row of narrow prison cells. The stench is overpoweringly awful, and as Crail starts retching from nausea a hollow faced figure leaps out from hiding and bites him. With horror his muscles start stiffening and within seconds he finds himself rigid with paralysis. The awful mewling sound that the creature makes is disconcerting as it claws and bites at Juma, paralysing the big barbarian too! K'tan launches a concussion from the edge of his range at the creature but misses badly, spraying stone chips as the mental hammer blow strikes the wall nearby. Lysander runs past the paralysed Crail, while Azrin holds up his holy symbol and cries "Begone, in the name of Asura!". The ghast suddenly takes fright and flees, running down to the last cell and shutting itself within.

M'ir goes to investigate an old adjoining torture chamber, and ghoul lunges out of the shadows as he enters, tearing at him with its poisonous claws and lusting after his meat. Lysander leaps in and swings the scimitar of suileman, which growls with power as it strikes the undead, cleaving it in two. Another ghoul leaps out and fumbles, falling at Lysander's feet and is also quickly dispatched.

A cursory search of the area reveals nothing else around, and nothing seems to have been attracted by the noise through the doors. After a few minutes Crail and Juma recover from the paralysis, although the shock of nearly being consumed by ghouls and ghasts may take a little while longer to go.

Azrin opens one of the doors which is apparently a cell, and finds a dishevelled prisoner inside who rants at them a little and then runs up the staircase and out as soon as he learns that the dragon is no longer there. The others are annoyed that Azrin didn't really manage to question him.

Another door is a disused storeroom, and a final door leads to a room with broken rubbish and a door on the opposite side. Arranging themselves around the door, Crail opens it and ducks down. A voice cries out "Freeze" and Crail finds himself unaccountably held fast. Two bowshots are fired at him before Juma reaches across and yanks him out of the doorway.

Lysander and the others pour into the room, tackling two Gnolls, while a priestess in ochre robes at the other end of the room attempts to cast other spells. M'ir remains in the doorway and starts concentrating on the priestess, and as the fight continues the skin on her face starts to blacken and char as he wills her body temperature to rise inexorably. The Gnolls fight Lysander and Juma and don't last too well, especially when one ends up flanked four ways. The priestess retreats up the stairs and Crail pursues her closely. She manages to get off one healing spell but M'irs continued concentration sears her face once again. Desperately she knocks Crail back, sending him tumbling down the stairs, and she legs it up the stairs.


----------



## Plane Sailing

The Gnolls dispatched, Lysander runs up the stairs, rounds the corner and gets stuck trying to work out how she opened the secret door at the top of the stairs. By the time he and others have finally opened it the priestess seems to have made her escape.

Another anteroom is discovered, containing skeletons which are soon reduced to powder by the mighty power of Asura.

Back in the room they find a strange assortment of things laid out on a white blanket: an iron torch with three black cones. A black sceptre with violet gems, a small black sphere and a black metal tube. The tube contains instructions in some unknown language, which when magically deciphered turns out to be instructions for accessing an extraplaner node of utter darkness, called the Black Cyst. The ritual requires multiple wish spells, living sacrifices and years of work. The company put it to the torch, and stay away
from the oddly writhing smoke which results.

They cautiously open the secret door which they know opens into the gnoll corridors - but careful investigations show no sign of the gnolls other than empty chambers and cold beds. Can it be that the gnolls have left. They find the human bedchamber (which is as far as they penetrated before), and Juma tells them that only one of the exit doors have any tracks going to and fro, so they take that one. Crail scouting ahead, they find a slimy archway and
steps which lead deeper into the earth. Trying to hold his breath against the foetid stench, Crail sneaks down the stairway - and is suddenly jumped by another Ghast, hiding in an alcove. Crail quickly succumbs to its paralysing venom, and just as the ghast is about to start chewing his arm Lysander calls upon the power of Asura to banish it. _DMs note: I lost track of the number of times Crail got paralysed during this adventure. Poor bloke!_. The ghast turns and flees. and seconds later comes charging back into their circle of light to attack them!

While Lysander starts to fight the ghast, a crackle of magic surges past him and strikes Juma - who suddenly acts randomly, dropping the paralysed form of Crail and swinging his greatclub at the back of Lysanders head! Crash! Probably the nastiest blow which he's taken all night staggers Lysander.


----------



## Plane Sailing

As Lysander finishes off the ghast, and he and an apologetic Juma move into the chamber at the end of the corridor a puff of smoke behind them reveals a giant fiendish rat which upon being summoned starts chewing at the paralysed Crail. M'ir and Azrin both move in to attack it, while K'tan hangs back keeping watch.

Within the chamber Lysander and Juma find two more priests in ochre robes - one human and one reptilian. The human cleric dies quickly to the skill of Lysander and the power of Juma. Bracing themselves against the strength-sapping stench of the reptilian, Lysander and Juma circle both ways around a pit with the sound of running water in, in order to flank the creature. After only a couple of rounds and sensing imminent defeat, the strange priest leaps past them into the pit - and floats rather than falls down out of their view.

The dire rat is defeated and vanishes, and the party gather together in the room with the pit, and a large stone circle some 8ft in diameter standing on one wall. They can't see anything down the pit, but there is a rope, pulley and platform device which clearly allows people to lower themselves down into the darkness. As they look around, they hear a piercing nonhuman scream from below, which cuts off suddenly.

The company decide that they need to investigate, and so Juma, Lysander, Crail and Azrin will ride down on the platform, K'tan will keep watch at the top and M'ir uses one of his mage powers to enable himself to clamber down the side of the pit, adhering to the wall.

After 15ft they find the shaft intersects a stream, with a narrower 8ft hole directly below them. Water from the stream tumbles down into the hole, and a chill mist rises up from within. They continue downwards, tugging their cloaks more tightly around themselves. After a further 40ft, and as they are coming to the end of their rope, they can see a surface below them. A floor of shiny black marble, shot through with thick pulsing violet threads, lies beneath them. Off to the side, they can just make out the edge of the chamber, some 15ft further away than the edge of the black marble surface, which is a circle some 30ft in diameter. In the west, there is another platform and pulley arrangement for going deeper into the cavern. It would be a very difficult jump to move from one platform to the other, but nobody fancies setting foot near the writhing violet veins on the surface.

They decide to look for a third way. They winch their own platform higher up, and pass a robe to M'ir who clambers upside down like a spider across the roof of the chamber and makes the rope fast to the other platforms fixture. Lysander and Juma make their way across but Azrin is nervous. He doesn't have much of a head for heights and his arms are weak. Crail decides to make a loop of rope around him so that he can slide down to the other platform. That should work.

Midway through the slide, Azrin panics - he's going too fast! He careers straight into the platform, the security rope fails and as he flails his arms to grab onto the platform, Lysanders hand lashes out - just too late. With a despairing cry, Azrin falls into the misty darkness below them.

The company is stunned.

_What happens next? Is this the end for Azrin? Keep reading for the next exciting(?) installment!_


----------



## Plane Sailing

Quickly they start to wind this new platform downwards, peering over the edge in the hope that their companion may have somehow survived. Ten, twenty, thirty feet - then Lysander feels a strange prickling of his neck hairs, and as he looks round a creature shaped like a huge, beaked brain floats down towards them, lashing out with barbed tentacles. Several tentacles strike Crail, wrapping around him and (you've guessed it) 
paralysing him.

Juma leaps forwards and with his tremendous strength frees Crail from the creatures grasp before it can fly off with him, then he and Lysander attack the creature itself, while fending off its blows.  In a few seconds the creature is destroyed, leaving them that bit more exhausted, that bit more tired.

They proceed further down, a full 100ft, and at the bottom they can make out the form of Azrin apparently lying spread-eagled but otherwise unharmed on a strange symbol etched into the stone of the floor.

_  what happened to Azrin...

Tumbling head over heels, suddenly Azrin finds himself stationary but in a pool of utter blackness. A chill grows over his whole body. There is a robed figure vaguely visible. It speaks. "Your soul is now at the very edge of my prison". 

He can feel his body dying. He attempts to turn the figure, but the channels to other planar power remain closed to him here. 

"Do you seek to free me?" the figure asks. "NO" shouts Azrin. 

"It doesn't matter what you seek. I am all. You are nothing". As the last fragment of his life is just about to ebb away, the figure speaks once more. 

"You serve me now, whether you wish it or not".

Suddenly he is conscious, lying spread-eagled on the floor and apparently all in one piece. He had rather expected that this fall would have left him spread thinly across the rock. What has happened here?

_

The remainder of the company bring the platform to the base of the cavern, and find to their surprise Azrin apparently only just alive, and lying spread eagled on a large version of the holy symbol that they have found on the ochre-robed priests. He seems none the worse for wear, and rejoins the party.

Juma asks, astonished "Aren't you going to question him? Isn't it strange that he survived that fall? How do you know he isn't a doppleganger or something?" For some reason the rest of Azrins companions are happy to accept him as he is though. _DM notes: Huh? Considering their normal level of paranoia, I'm astonished that they didn't follow this up more. Still, fun for the future... _

Further investigation of the bottom of this cavern reveals a mirrored doorway which summons more of the paralysing brain-creatures (quickly killed), an image of a black sun, a pillar with rungs, upon the top of which the obelisk appears to be balancing by its point, and a pool of water cascading off the side of the obelisk. 

Spotting around, Crail notices a scroll tube in the pool. He uses a grapple hook to fish it out, then takes it off and tosses the tube across to Azrin.

"Arrgghh" Crail suddenly screams, grasping his wrist - the touch of the water is chillingly cold, and his fingertips start to blacken. Azrin fumbled his attempt to catch the scroll and now has no inclination to touch it. He hurries across to Crail and attempts to use his healing skill to keep Crail alive. It is to no avail. Before Lysander can return to them the poison reaches Crails heart, and as the flesh on his arm, torso and neck blackens and crisps, he squeals and dies. _Dms note: 11 points out of 2d6 CON damage exactly equalled poor Crails Constitution. The young thief dies to rise no more_.


----------



## Plane Sailing

This obelisk is clearly an evil artifact of some power, and after unfruitfully considering ways in which it might be destroyed the party decide that the best thing is to hide it again. Going back up via the platform, they spend the best part of a day collecting rubble and clay, to replace the plug above the cavern and seal it as best they can.

Finally, tired and wounded in spirit they decide to leave the moathouse dungeons. Strangely one of the entrances into the dungeon is now collapsed. Not so strange when they reach the top of the other exit and find the blue dragon back again, healed and waiting in ambush!

This time the dragon doesn't have the freedom of mobility which served it so well in the last combat - and the company is bolstered by the raging strength of Juma who charges in and deals two mighty blows with his maul, while Lysander strikes with his blessed scimitar and K'tan and M'ir pour all their energy into manifesting concussions and recall pain respectively. Surprised by the ferocity of the onslaught Utreshimon the dragon succumbs quickly and dies.

Free at last from the moathouse, the party camp a short distance away to lick their wounds and plan their next step. Juma finishes gathering their stories about his sister and decides to leave them to continue his wanderings - but he will check in on them occasionally back at Mithril Manor in Knightsbridge.

The party return to Knightsbridge and arrange for the funeral of Crail - quite a lot of the underclass in the town turn up, including one particularly tearful young woman named Laidley. During the preparations, Alkanar introduces Lysander to an unusual young man.

His name is Trajan, and he comes from one of the small dukedoms nestled in the foothills of the barrier range to the North. He grew up in a village, but spent less time looking after the cows and more time with an elderly hermit living further up the mountains, who regaled him with tales of fighting and the service of Asura. After several years training with the old man and starting on the path of the Jazumai, the hermit sent him down to Knightsbridge, saying that he needed to serve a broader apprenticeship under the auspices of a temple. Alkanar agrees, and sets Trajan to work with and learn from Lysander. Trajan has an exotic oversized scimitar, in a style which the hermit taught him to craft.

Although winter is coming on, and they are getting deep into the month of Ironwater, they make plans to return to the moathouse.


----------



## byxbee

Fabulous stuff PS. Keep it coming...

And that 11 Con damage was N-A-S-T-Y...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks Byx!

I make the important rolls for damage and stuff out in the open - adds to the tension and also means that the dice get the blame rather than me when things go badly wrong.

For some reason Crail got the bad end of the stick much more often than anyone else though - as seen in my first storyhour thread...

Next instalment coming soon!


----------



## Little_Buddha

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *For some reason Crail got the bad end of the stick much more often than anyone else though - as seen in my first storyhour thread... *




On the upside, your dice rolls can't hurt him now! 

Great story hour, incidentally. It just pleasantly wasted several hours of my time from start to finish... you've gone into my list of storyhours to keep track of.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks! I'll try to keep up the death rate (oops, I mean standard)

Cheers


----------



## Little_Buddha

The death rate is absolutely nuts! The line "[insert character] is introduced to the party. [insert brief history]" is used alarmingly frequently.


----------



## Plane Sailing

On returning to the moathouse the cold of the month of Ironwater starts to really grip the region, and everyone is glad of the extra warm clothes they puchased before leaving Knightsbridge. As they near the rise of land before the moathouse they notice a plume of smoke rising. Dismounting and creeping towards the crest of the hill they spy over the other side a group of Ogres around a large campfire, with a humanoid figure cooked on a spit.

The ogres charge to engage them, and in a short but brutal battle the ogres are eventually killed. M'ir makes very effective use of his new ability to recall pain on the ogres, and many died with vicious bruises around their heads in addition to the deep scimitar cuts they bore. Azrin calls upon Asura to heal the wounded, and then they all investigate the remains of the camp. The poor victim seems to have been a foreign spy from Morannon sent to this area, and a map is found on him showing the location of the moathouse, an old temple across the river in Morannon and the small town of Rastor much further inside the borders of the neighbouring country.

After rest and recuperation, the party decide that they ought to return to the Moathouse dungeons and check out the remaining unexplored corridors for hidden evils. They have no problem in getting down into the tunnels, but accidentally set off a trap which seals their exit with a portcullis. They decide to worry about that later, and press on into the complex.

After a very short while they come across a very large crypt, with a musty smell and a palpable sense of evil in the air. The walls are surrounded by sarcophagus lids, and as they enter and start investigation the room is filled with deafening noise as a score of the lids are pushed aside and ghouls lurch forward into the room, ready to feed.

Trajan is paralysed by a ghoul despite his immense fortitude _DMnote: You can tell that this was Crails player, right?_, but when Lysander and Azrin start calling upon the holy power of Asura to turn the creatures, one after another they disappear in the midst of searing holy energy. _DMnote: I completely forgot about the unhallowed nature of the crypt which gave +4 turn resistance. You win some, you lose some_


----------



## Plane Sailing

Behind one of the sarcophagus lids is a rough-hewn tunnel, winding its way deeper into the rock. The party follow it, and wander through a series of tunnels for about half an hour before realising that they might be lost. They start marking junctions with arrows, and then as they come across the junctions *again* with barred arrows, and arrows with circles around them _Dmnote: nightmare for me, annotating a tiny map!_ and wandering more carefully.

After another hour, and with much backtracking, they come across a strange, cold and evil chamber. The floor of the chamber is carpeted in cool mist, and in the middle of the chamber is a strange stone altar composed of black rock marbled with purple veins, and a three-sided pillar, each side of which seems to be carved with a masked Illithid like figure. A search of the pillar reveals a secret compartment containing a small drum, bells and other things. 

Trajan looks across seriously at Lysander. "I DON'T think we ought to try using these things in front of this altar!"

Stowing away these items carefully, they continue attempting to find their way out of the maze. As the hours draw on they get worried as more and more of the routes that they take seem to lead back towards the altar chamber, but finally they hit upon an untried route which leads them back to the ghoul crypt. Out at last!

While checking for other exits from the moathouse they find one corridor that ends in a blank wall is actually blocked by a magical wall of stone. Finding hammers and other implements they manage to break down the wall and start off along a long, long tunnel.

They hear the sound of squawking ahead of them, and two pairs of small and evil eyes ahead of them resolve into two small cockatrices. Taking them by surprise, Trajan leaps forwards and in one smooth motion draws his scimitar and slices one of the beasts in two - a powerful exhibition of the Quickdraw focus skill which the hermit had been teaching him before he came down into civilisation. Lysander and the others quickly dispatch the other cockatrice. They note how much less of a problem the beasts are than the first time they met them with the neophyte Azrin, all those months ago!

Walking a further half a mile along this tunnel they come to a bush-covered cleft in stone, and emerge to find themselves on the other side of the river, looking back across the frozen water towards the ruined moathouse.

I wonder what will be the best way of getting the horses?


----------



## Plane Sailing

With no way back through the tunnels, and a bit of experimentation with old tree branches, they decide that although the ice wouldn't support horses, it will support people - One at a time they skate and slide across the frozen river, and then return to their horses. They need to set off upriver to the border keep. It would be less than days journey normally, but with snow no the ground and more falling every minute it looks like a long slog.

As hour after hour drags on, the cold is getting increasingly hard to resist. The horses in particular are suffering, and it takes all of Trajans animal handling and M'irs wilderness lore to keep them all going. Finally, the keep appears amidst the swirling snows, and with great relief the company negotiate their entry into the tower.

The next day is the second holyday of Ironwater, and Lysander, Trajan and Azrin spend the day in prayer and meditation. The group wait another day for the snows to fall, and then cross over the border into Morannon here and travel down the river to find the location of the secret door they had used three days earlier - and hopefully locate the "temple" which was marked on the map carried by the foreign spy.

Looking around the site, M'ir opens himself up to the psychic impressions which have been left in that area, and he gets a very clear vision of a tall and beautiful man exiting the secret passageway, both angry and relieved. He is seen casting charms over it, and then striding off to the North West.

Setting off through the crisp snow, they come across some frozen woodland, full of dead, bare and blackened branches reaching towards the sky. Leading their horses single file through the clearest trail, they are ambushed by a party of three hobgoblins who are defeated almost as soon as combat is engaged. They have very little of worth on them, except for some simple silver wolf-head pendants which Trajan keeps.

Pressing on into late afternoon, under the darkening skies they become aware of a great clearing in the woods ahead of them. Creeping up closer, they can make out in the centre of the clearing a partially ruined curtain wall surrounding a huge, charcoal grey temple, with arched buttresses and walls which are covered in obscene designs, gargoyles and fiendish creatures. The air here is chill not with the fresh crispness of the snow, but the dank and bone-wearying cold from beyond the grave.

While surveying the temple environment, Azrin becomes aware of a shimmering patch of air near them - not an invisible person, but the tell-tale sign of someone scrying them! After a short discussion the company decide that they can't to anything about it and so ignore it (!) while they make their plans to assault the temple _DMsnote: Could I believe them happily continuing to plan when they *knew* they were being scried upon? No I couldn't! Still, it leaves them to blame for the debacle which follows..._


----------



## Little_Buddha

???

Ummmmm... Could any of your players shed light on this clearly... _unwise_... course of action? Extenuating circumstances?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Regrettably none of my players frequent the ENboards - or at least if they *do* they are doing it secretly, hoping to pick up hints 

They had never been the subject of scrying before, and couldn't think who would be scrying them anyway; they certainly didn't associate it with the temple or an old enemy of theirs. Heh.


----------



## Plane Sailing

They are not facing the front gate of the temple, and have no intention of going directly in that way. They creep up together to a low point in the broken down wall, and start climbing up it. Everyone except Azrin and K’tan get over the wall without too much difficulty, and so they decide to press on with their investigations and let the other two catch up when they finally get over the wall (!)

_DMnote: Pardon? You are going to split up and leave those two weaker characters noisly attempting to scramble over a wall while the rest of you go off scouting? O-kay _

The inside courtyard of the temple has a few trails amidst the snow-covered brambles. Lysander, M’ir and Trajan follow one of the trails up towards a ruined building to the rear of the main temple. Mostly destroyed, their searches inside reveal a trapdoor into a cellar. A thin, ghostly wail issues forth.

Jumping down into the cellar they see three hobgoblins preparing to defend themselves against the other side of the floor. Two weary looking hobgoblin warriors before a wizened elderly hobgoblin female. The hobgoblins look quite badly beaten up and willing to parley, so Lysander talks to them. 

Apparently two new powerful humans, a man and a woman have recently moved into the temple, crucifying the old leader and exiling this adept and her guards. The newcomers are cruel and ruthless. The man wears ochre robes and a strange holy symbol. The woman always keeps her face hidden in a deeply cowled robe - and is continually muttering about the “things from the furthest Abyss”, “the tentacles, the tentacles” and “the day is coming, the door will swing wide and then… mwahahahah”. Certainly sounds a lot like the Blessed, who escaped from Knightsbridge several months ago. As to the male priest? Just another enemy.

Meanwhile, after several noisy attempts Azrin and K’tan have finally scrabbled to the top of the broken down curtain wall. They sigh, smile at each other… and then are surrounded by a hail of flaming arrows...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Nearly a dozen flaming arrows are fired from near the main doorway of the temple; caught flatfooted both of them are hit several times and tumble down the outside of the wall once more. Azrin is bleeding seriously, but takes the risk of calling upon Asura to cure light wounds and he is stabilised. Azrin then proceeds to heal himself while K'tan draws upon his power to heal his own fierce wounds.

Back in the cellar, Trajan asks the hobgoblins about the significance of the wolf-head pendants - but the adept has never seen them before. It dawns upon the group that they may be scrying tokens, used by the leaders to check up on patrols that go missing. Trajan quickly buries them under a small pile of rubble.

The Adept is willing to use some of her magics to help them in an assault on the temple - she hates and fears the new leaders of the hobgoblins and longs to see them eliminated. She will cast an obscurement to fill the temple for them. Lysander accepts the deal and they leave the cellar together, making their way back round near the wall. They find a wounded and exhausted pair, and Azrin warns them of the magical flaming arrows fired at them.

As the party, now recomposed, circles around to the front entrance of the temple there is a puff of noxious green smoke and a foul, slimy and betentacled creature appears in their midst, similar to one of the summoned creatures fought in the weird bookshop back in Knightsbridge. A choking acidic miasma surrounds it, and while they attempt to hold their breath both Trajan and Lysander strike at the creature. They cleave it in two, but the powerful acids which spray out over their swords cause both of their unique weapons to corrode terribly, and become useless. Cursing, they draw secondary weapons and turn to the temple doors...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Goodness me, the rate of posting on the storyhour forum has increased some - it looks as if stories don't stay on the front page unless something is posted _every day!_

Since I've nearly caught up with the real life position of my campaign and it is run approx once a month... I'm going to have to do some hunting to find this on the boards each time


----------



## Plane Sailing

Preparing themselves, the party burst the doors in and their allied hobgoblin adept casts obscurement to fill the vast hall, then scurries away. Lysander, Trajan, M'ir and Azrin make their way into the obscuring mists, while K'tan secures the doorway just in case...

No sooner than they have entered than they hear strange chanting from the other end of the hall, and some more strange alienist creatures appear amongst them - the slimy tentacled creatures with sucking lamprey-like mouths which have also been seen before. Trajan is quite badly wounded by one which drains much of his strength before it can be killed.

While the party are attempting to deal with the summoned critters, suddenly into the midst of the fighting a confusion spell explodes; randomly targeted into the mist it only catches a couple of the party - but Azrin succumbs. Looking around confused he sees Trajan as one of his enemies and whips out the wand of burning hands and shoots him in the back with it, and then steps forward to attempt a stunning blow, which misses.

After a couple more rounds of confused fighting, the evil priest dispels the mists and the Blessed casts flame arrow on a group of ten prepared hobgoblin archers. The arrangement of the columns in the temple means that they cannot concentrate their fire on just one foe, so five shoot at Trajan, five at Lysander. The hobgoblins fire is astoundingly accurate, landing three hits apiece on the heroes and Lysander is even critically hit. The magic fire makes the arrows even more deadly than normal and suddenly the frontline fighters are looking to retreat. _Both reduced to single-digit hit points_. As one they call upon Asura to heal their wounds, and then they start moving back using the pillars as cover.

There is a laugh and a shout from the black-armoured and ochre-robed priest, who spins his cape around his head and then a cloud of webs shoot out and form over the entire  entranceway of the hall, ensnaring all of the heroes. While they struggle to free themselves (except for the confused Azrin) the hobgoblins continue to take potshots at them, and the blessed starts launching magic missiles. Lysander is able to struggle free of the webs and makes his way back to the entrance, and with K'tan wonders what to do next...

Trouble for our heroes - will they escape? Tune in tomorrow for the next exciting episode!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Apparently the two chief villains decide to have a "sporting" competition, and the priest launches a searing light spell at Trajan, wounding him even more, while the blessed launches a pair of firebolts at M'ir - both of which hit, neither of which he manages to save against and evade... and M'irs charred body drops to the floor.

The webs are engulfed in flames, ignited by the magic spells; Trajan grapples the confused Azrin and bodily carries him out of the front door. As Lysander and K'tan prepare to recover M'irs body two groups of hobgoblin warriors appear from the wings of the hall and charge toward the door. With the entire company virtually at deaths door they decide that the only option they have is to run for it, and they escape out the main entrance and round to where their horses were tied up. Heedless of the sound, they mount up and ride for their lives out of the forest.

Meanwhile - M'ir is not actually dead. 

The hobgoblins notice that he is alive but fading, so the ochre-robed priest calls upon dark forces to prevent him bleeding to death.

Captured by the hobgoblins he is placed in a cell for later interrogation and sacrifice. Recognising that he doesn't have much hope unless he escapes, M'ir uses up his "dimension slide tattoo" to appear the other side of the barred window of his small cell, and then he carefully creeps away into the night, to attempt to rejoin his friends...


_DMs note: what a fiasco - routed by the Hobgoblins (with some heavy magical help). Trajan and Azrin want to go back to try and "take them", but Lysander alone seems to recognise that at the moment the company is simply unable to match the temple in a frontal assault. They decide to return to Knightsbridge to lick their wounds, recover and plan _

Next game this Sunday - and they will be taking a side trek into "Of Sound Mind" by Piratecat. Will the magic rub off?


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Kyri Chronicles - updated 12th August*

This is the third part of the Kyri Chronicles...

Taking a break from that well-known meatgrinder, what follows is the party adventuring through Piratecats awesome module, "Of Sound Mind".


In the Beginning 

It is a two day trek through the frosty wilderness to reach the warmth and safety of the border keep, where they are welcomed back by the guards. They spend two days resting and healing there, and are astonished when M’ir appears at the gate too! Excited by his escape and a little embarrassed that they had left him there, they start to plan what to do next. Trajan wants a plan for assaulting the temple once more, but M’ir thinks they are not ready yet. It wouldn’t be possible to borrow troops from Baron Kelder, because he won’t want to provoke an international incident by marching his troops into Morannan territory, and they can’t do it on their own.

K’tan suggests that the discussions would be best held back at Mithril Manor in Knightsbridge - the one-time wizards abode may have protection against scrying, and they know that one of their biggest enemies can now spy on them. It is agreed so they set off back home, looking forward to seeing the manor, warm beds and cozy fires for the first time in weeks.

They are surprised as they draw near Knightsbridge to see that a veritable shanty town of wagons and tents have sprung up outside the town, on the near side of the stone span from which Knightsbridge draws its name. Azrin recognises that the wagons are of typically Singharese construction, but poorly insulated against the snow and fierce cold weather here on the east of the barrier range mountains. Azrin wonders aloud - what is happening back in his homeland?

Deciding that this is an issue to be tackled another day, they proceed to the gate guards, and find new men on watch, whom they don’t recognise - and who don’t recognise them either. The corporal recognises Azrin’s bald head and Singharese robes however - and tells him to be off with the rest of his rabble across the bridge. While Azrin flusters, M’irs eyes twinkle as he telempathically improves the guards feelings towards them, and Lysander turns the full force of his charm on the man. Allowing that they may, in fact, be the heroes of Knightsbridge, the guards still insist on peace-bonding their weapons before allowing them inside their town.

Tsk. You are away for a month and look what happens, eh?
The party retire to Mithril Manor, rest and unwind, then proceed down to visit Alkanar at the temple of Asura. Rebuilding work on the temple is going well, and Alkanar introduces them to another priest who is visiting them for awhile, one Stronar by name. Stronar is the chief priest up in Bellhold, a small town nestled against the barrier range, to the northwest of Knightsbridge. Renowned for the quality of its brass bells, it was clearly the place where Alkanar would order replacements from. There has been a problem however. Alkanar explains

“I’m glad to see you. We have a problem with the construction and delivery of our replacement bells. Stronar tells me that they have been having… problems up in Bellhold for the last few weeks, and the completion and delivery of our bells is being badly delayed”

He continues “As you know, the midwinter feast is only a few weeks away - and we will not be able to celebrate it satisfactorily without the bells. It is _imperative_ that the problems are sorted out and the delivery of our bells happens on time”.

Stronar takes over “We, ah, are experiencing, ah, a spate of bad dreams, ah. More to the, ah, point, it is a never ending stream of, ah, nightmares. For weeks. Productivity has, ah, been _going down_ dramatically..."

He looks at them meaningfully, a tall and skinny man, balding and with a long white beard. “Alkanar here, ah, tells me that you have dealt with, ah, a _dream based_ problem right, ah, here in Knightsbridge. Is that, ah, true?”

With nods and hesitant affirmations, the party agrees. Azrin, Lysander and Trajan look at one another and nod. Their duty to the church of Asura is clear. M’ir and K’tan perhaps feel that this is a diversion from their true mission, but they hold their peace. Still, it is holyday in a couple of days and the religious members of the party feel a need to worship in a temple once more… even if it is still not completely reconstructed from the battles a month and a half ago.

With the spare time, M’ir circulates around the frosty marketplace on Markday, picking up information about Bellhold - an easy job for a Seer like him. Renown for the quality of bells, the town used to have a more sinister secret - 50 years ago it was ruled by a dragon known as Copperdeath, who used to force the humans to work in his mines and to work the copper that was found. Slain by adventurers way back then, the town is planning a big celebration in the coming summer to celebrate their 50 years of freedom from the dragon. There is so much information because there are quite a lot of well-to-do merchants who normally live in Bellhold but who seem to have moved to Knightsbridge for the present, most of them complaining of the terrible nightmares they were having back home. One person also mentions to M’ir about missing children. M’ir also purchases a masterwork spear, quickly produced for him by the local armourer.

Trajan sells frozen dire boar meat to a butchers and with the proceeds hires time at a forge in order to start re-forging one of his specialist swords. He can’t get far in two days, but makes a good start on it.

While K’tan potters around the manor and practices his magecraft, and Lysander does additional teaching duty at the temple, Azrin spends much more time in libraries - their own has grown with a few extra donations from grateful townspeople. He spends a fruitless time looking for additional information about the Cabal and the Elder Eye, but visiting the (only remaining) mystic bookshop and looking for books about dreams he finds a very interesting tome apparently written in elvish. Now, nobody has seen an elf in living memory, but Azrin knows the elvish letters even if he is not familiar with the language. He purchases the book and starts to study it in the hope of learning some elvish words and getting to grips with the book.

While at his study, Azrin receives a letter from a young man named Dalla, who wishes to meet him and his companions. Dalla claims to be on the run from the Cabal, and seeks protection (and aid) from the company who vanquished them. Intrigued, Azrin sends a reply, and suggests that Dalla presents himself to Alkanar, who will forward him after them, since Dalla is due to return to Knightsbridge after their dawn departure for Bellhold tomorrow. Azrin also forewarns Alkanar, so he can be prepared to meet this Dalla, and determine the truth of his claims. They arrange a sign and a seal which Alkanar will send on with the man if he appears genuine.

Early the next Restday, the group set off at Dawn, with the blessing of Alkanar and Stronar on them. They gallop across the stone arch and set off on the road to Bellhold...

to be continued shortly


----------



## Piratecat

I've got a comfy seat, popcorn, and one of those air horns for the cheering.  More!


----------



## Plane Sailing

The company ride past the new shanty town and take the North road, past the village of Oakhurst and the forest where some of their earliest adventures took place and brave companions lost their lives. Azrin perhaps wistfully remembers the days when his life was a lot simpler than it is now, days when all he had to care about was his books…

Continuing northwards, past frosty hamlets and frozen tracks, they end their first days riding early, since Trajan remembers seeing a monolith near the road here when he first came down to Knightsbridge from his home village a few weeks ago. Southlander folklore says that the monoliths are particularly safe to camp by at night, so they set up their camp and settle down for an early night.

Azrin is on second watch, and is startled to hear the soft crunch of paws on frosty grass. Just beyond the edge of the firelight he can make out several pairs of yellow eyes watching them and the horses in the night. Wolves. He calls upon a prayer of Asura designed to weaken his foes morale, and the wolves slip a little further back into the night, but continue circling their small camp. Worried, Azrin wakes his companions.

Trajan steadies the horses, and counsels calm. Azrin wants to launch a magical attack on the wolves but M’ir has another idea. He wants to find out whether the monolith is truly a place of safety. He opens his mind to the psychic impressions in the area, and detects feelings of relief, tinged with fear. In his minds eye he can see the ghostly shapes of dozens of individuals through the years - farmers, women and children of different times and different ages, each hugging the rock and looking outwards, fearful but relieved.

“Don’t worry” M’ir says. “We are safe from the wolves here”. He lies down and goes back to sleep. Through the night watches the wolves linger, watching but never approaching into the firelight. Before the last watch the pack gives up and moves on.


----------



## Plane Sailing

The next day, as the company continue on towards Bellhold they hear pounding hoof beats behind them. A man and a woman on horseback pull up within hailing distance, and a raven lands on the mans shoulder.

“I am Darra” he calls out. “I have a message from Alkanar and Lysander”.

The raven takes the scroll in its beak, flies over and drops it into Azrin’s hand, before returning to its master. The message is genuine, the pair have passed all Alkanar’s tests and so they are welcomed into the company.

Darra is from the Sword Coast, down in the south east. His long blonde hair is tied back, apart from two braids hanging down by his temples. He explains that he was once involved with the Cabal, some years ago. The woman known as the Blessed had taken him under her wing with promises of understanding and control of his growing sorcerous powers. At first things had been interesting, but he had become increasingly disturbed by the way that the Blessed was taking his studies, and the studies of those others who had joined the Cabal. Shortly after moving in to the bookshop in Knightsbridge he started hearing insane mutterings and gibbering from the cupboard under the stairs, and saw a townsperson captured and sacrificed. He escaped not five days before the company assaulted the bookshop and broke the power of the Cabal in Knightsbridge.

However, not many people escape from the Blessed. She is wanting to start up another Cabal and in the last few weeks Darra has occasionally noticed the signs of someone scrying him. He is deeply concerned.

“And that is why I want to throw my lot in with the heroes of Knightsbridge”, he finishes. “You have defeated her once, you are my best chance for escaping her foul clutches. Also, I know of her powers – I can be of use to you”.

His companion, Syl, is a young woman from the neighbouring nation of Morannan. Like many of her countrywomen she has long dark hair gathered in a widows peak at the front. A grey cat rests on her lap.

Born and brought up in Morannan, she has been seeing a lot of strange humanoids around at night while she was “out walking”. On top of that, she was recently doing a job for someone when she discovered some very unsavoury goings on. Furthermore, her own life was endangered if anyone found out about what she knew, so she decided to escape across the border into Lythau, ending up in the town of Knightsbridge. She and Darra met and recognised a sort of kinship of spirit, so they started hanging out together, looking out for each other. And now she is following him, and them, to Bellhold...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Late afternoon, and only a few leagues to go, the frosty peak of Steeple Mountain already dominates the landscape, standing proud from the barrier range which spreads to the north and south of here. Nestled in the shadow of that mountain is Bellhold.

As they ride closer, the company see an old man just beside the road. While they approach they see him attempt to creep up on two horses which are rooting around in the frosty ground for grass. They see him and move off a dozen yards. The old mans shoulders slump, and he turns and sees the party.

“Ho there” he calls out “Can you help me? my horses escaped for the second time this week and I can’t catch them again”.

Trajan dismounts, takes the halter and with his superb animal handling skills quickly reassures and recaptures the two heavy shire horses. As he brings them back to the old man he briefly checks them for signs of mistreatment, but doesn’t find any.

“Oh thank you” wheezes the old man, who introduces himself as Othic. “I really appreciate you taking the time to help an old man. Would you care to join me for my lunch?”

Although the afternoon is wearing on, the idea of a hot meal inside from the cold is attractive, so they visit Othic’s farm, placing the runaway horses, Blaze and Broadsword next to the other horses, settling their own comfortably and joining Othic in his kitchen for bowl of warming mutton stew.

Othic is able to tell them a little more about Bellhold and its history. He is a widower, and his two sons work for Krekket – the mine and foundry owner known as “the new dragon”… but Othic can remember the days of working for Copperdeath when he was a young man. It was hard work in the mines but he still remembers the deep pleasure which he felt whenever Copperdeath made a personal appearance to his subjects. Still, all that was fifty years ago – and there is going to be a big celebration next summer to commemorate it.

People are really ‘ornery in the town at the moment, and he knows that there is lots of aggro and worry amongst the mine and foundry workers. He hears that the missing children still haven’t been found, but the local adventurers, the “Heroes of the Bell” who have dealt with goblin bands and other problems are on the case, so it is sure to be OK.

“The best inn in town is the ‘Bell and Clapper’”, Othic says as they prepare to leave. “If I were you, I’d go and stay there. Tokket the innkeeper is a son of one of the adventurers which slew Copperdeath. He’ll have some good stories to tell you”

Othic calls after them “I’ve got some business in town tomorrow – what say I meet you for breakfast at the Bell?”

“Sure!” replies Trajan, and as they ride down the road in the fading sunlight towards the town nestled under Steeple mountain he says to his friends “What a nice old man”.

_I thought I'd better get to an official part of the adventure quickly, having done all the set-up and introduced the two new characters. I'll continue with the write-up shortly. At first suspicious of the old man, or suspicious that he was ill-treating his horses, they came to appreciate and like him.

What happens next?_


----------



## Old One

*Tactics, Baby, Tactics...*

P_S -

Ahhh...the beauty of tactics in action!  How did the players repond to their major a$$-whuppin'?  I look forward to picking things up again on the far side of OSM.  

I did want to say that some of the PCs are showing _extreme_ longevity (Lysander).  You're not slipping, are you?

~ Old One


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Re: Tactics, Baby, Tactics...*



			
				Old One said:
			
		

> Ahhh...the beauty of tactics in action!  How did the players repond to their major a$$-whuppin'?  I look forward to picking things up again on the far side of OSM.




Their responses were interesting. A couple wanted to go and rest up, then come back with better tactics. Lysanders player was of the opinion that at present the party was simply not tough enough to take the temple, and they would be better following up some other avenue first. His view was the one that eventually held sway, especially after they realised that they couldn't "request" some soldiers from Baron Kelder to help them... moving an armed force across the border into Morannan would not be a politically sound move.

Two more players have joined the party, Dalla (Sor6) and Syl (Rog4/Sor2) for OSM, if they survive that adventure, it is likely that they will be back for RttToEE and a much-needed bolster to the party firepower. I may post their background info and descriptions here anyway.




			
				Old One said:
			
		

> I did want to say that some of the PCs are showing _extreme_ longevity (Lysander).  You're not slipping, are you?
> 
> ~ Old One




Slipping? How dare you sir! I've killed Crail at the moathouse, and he was the second oldest of the party

Lysander is, truly, doing very well. It is that divine favour thingy - really keeps those paladin-types alive! He is 7th level at present, most of the rest are 6th, Trajan is 5th (the replacement for Crail). The mid-level characters are slightly less fragile than the low level ones, and I'm getting better at judging what will be an exciting threat rather than a TPK.

To be honest, I'd rather they manage to stay alive now... there is investment in each character both on my behalf and on theirs. Still, if they make bad decisions, and the dice roll against them, its goodnight vienna all the same.

Of course, mysteriously  obtained RBDM tactics that are generously provided may sway the odds now and then... and its a good job they ran from the temple just now 

Cheers


----------



## Piratecat

Hee hee... I know.


----------



## Plane Sailing

(sound of busy writing, to get the next bit ready before I disappear off the front page again - should be here later today)

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

*Hey !*

Hey Pkitty! How's that feeling? 

And please...even if they screw it here (dodges Plainsailings headbutt), don't stop to write adventures!


----------



## Piratecat

Hey! I'm leaving for the weekend, and there's no update? Aieeeee!

Okay, fine. I can be patient.  Honest.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Sorry - major business at work, trying to hit an April 1st deadline with a new online service for UK doctors  

But here's the next installment

The company ride into the town of Bellhold as the last rays of the sun still reflect off the top of steeple mountain, shining on the winter ice. Even this late in the day the ring of bells and the striking of forgehammers is clearly heard. Riding down the main street to the Wyrmcall plaza they notice that many of the better class of shops are closed and boarded up - it looks as if many of 
the wealthier people in town have moved out.

Finding the Bell and Clapper is easy, and Trajan leads the horses to the stable at the rear.

“Treat Lightning special” he tells the stablehand, who glances at him and stammers “It’ll be a whole Mark for oats, sir”.

Checking his pouch, Trajan removes his last five Marks.

“Oats for all the horses then lad”

He’ll have to rely on his friends for drinks, but Trajan likes horses. He can’t see them badly done by.

Inside the inn there is a hubbub of noise. Many of the foundry workers are enjoying a drink before wandering home, and it is a few minutes before the company can gain the attention of Tokket, the barkeeper. M’ir and Darra circulate, listening for rumours while Azrin and Trajan speak to Tokket.

It turns out that Tokket is the son of one of the adventurers which killed Copperdeath, nearly 50 years ago. There are many souvenirs of that campaign hanging on the walls of the bar, including a huge claw. Azrin is interested to hear about a fragment of diary from those old adventurers, and is soon sitting at a table, poring over it and laughing to himself as that story unfolds. Tokket is sure that the headaches are the results of something in the water, and recommends that everyone drinks more ale.

M’ir discovers more about the missing children and the Heroes of the Bell - the local adventurers who were out looking for them, but have been gone over a week and a half now. One of the drinkers believes that the headaches are a curse from Asura, because the local people are shallow in their religion - he is shouted down but some men glance over the rims of the mugs at Azrin the priest.

Darra discovers tales of a witch who lives just outside town - and heard that she says the headaches will end within a week. Crazy old woman, tells fortunes and stuff. Sometimes she really gets a prophecy right though.

As they meet to confer notes, the inn door slams open, and a wide-eyed man looks around the room, fastening his eyes on Trajan and company. “Aha, new friends! Welcome, welcome!” he shouts before his voice drops to a harsh whisper “you will be welcomed by he who will swallow us all into his abysssss” He rants on and on, then with a sob turns and flees out the door. The silence in the room gives way to ordinary chatter again, and Tokket explains - “That’s just Cobble. He’s taken a bit funny recently, I wouldn’t pay him no mind”.

As they talk, a huge bell sounds outside in the plaza. Its sound is so deep and loud that they feel it in their chest more than hearing it by their ears. After two strikes a town crier is heard, calling for a town meeting at the next bell. Tokket explains that *everyone* goes to the town meetings, and Mayor Hob will be answering some of the questions which people have.

Half hour later, as the great bell chimes once more, Tokket closes up the inn and they join everyone else gathered in the plaza - facing a raised, torchlit platform on which stands Mayor Hob with Krekket the mine owner and his wife on one side and the guard chief on the other. Azrin attempts to detect thoughts, but finds it hard to concentrate with such a seething mass of people before him, although he senses that Krekket wants the mayor to calm people down. M’ir makes his way to the front of the crowd and the others stay near Tokket.

Mayor Hob addresses the problems of the town, attempting to calm people down and reassure them that everything is all right. He covers most of the issues that the company had discovered people talking about in the inn, but none of his “solutions” ring true.  Azrin has a bit of unwanted excitement when three ruffians who had watched him in the bar attempt to pick a fight with him for being a “baldie”, but after the training he used to do with Ynnsfeardh (the monk who died a couple of months ago) he finds their fist fighting and trip attempts ludicrous - they keep leaving themselves wide open for simple counterattacks, and within seconds the scuffle has ended with all three staggered or knocked out.

Tomorrow the party will have breakfast with Othic, then go and visit the witch.

They all retire to the inn, paying for less luxurious rooms on the 1st floor. Syl creeps upstairs and picks a lock on one of the luxury bedrooms, but with a bare mattress and not having been prepared she has little better sleep than her companions on the floor below.

In fact, they all have an awful nights sleep. Disturbing nightmares, different for each of them - full of threats and veiled promises. Difficult to remember the details in the morning, but sharing their experiences is quite difficult and distasteful.

Ready for breakfast, they await their farming companion. Then the door crashes open, and a dirty and puffed farmhand cries out

It’s Othic - he’s been *murderered!*”


----------



## Plane Sailing

While the farmhand runs off to find the guards, Trajan and the rest quickly saddle up and ride out to Othic’s farm. Arriving there they can see the barn doors open and the horses all out in the field. They ride up, dismount and investigate.

Inside the barn there is a stink of blood, and in the middle of the floor lies the body of Othic – face down, trampled and with great bloody chunks torn out of him. Darra promptly goes back outside the barn and loses his breakfast. Azrin dispassionately examines the scene, and turns over the torso – rather surprised to see a bridle forced into the old mans mouth...

M’ir and Syl help Darra into the farmhouse, where he looks for a drink while they search for signs of suspicious activity. K’tan stays with Azrin and Trajan goes out to check on the horses. 

He notices that they are in two groups – Blaze and Broadsword are further away from the barn and separated from the rest of the horses. He decides to go and check on them first.

Drawing closer, and making ingratiating noises, he is startled by a voice inside his head

“Stupid two-legs!”

He glances around looking for the speaker. Nobody around except for the two horses, Blaze and Broadsword. 

Looking at him.

Suddenly he feels a stiffness grip at his limbs, as if a giant hand is trying to make a puppet out of him – and to his mounting horror, he sees Broadswords jaws unhinge and elongate, becoming nearly a yard long and filling with finger-long razor sharp teeth as it leaps towards him!


----------



## Piratecat

YEAH!

Author note: it was originally going to be cows, but a friend asured me that psionic cows are silly.  Good advice, I think.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Piratecat said:
			
		

> *
> Author note: it was originally going to be cows, but a friend asured me that psionic cows are silly.  Good advice, I think. *




I think your friend was right - it would have been more "Gary Larson/Far Side" than horrific surprise


----------



## Little_Buddha

Piratecat said:
			
		

> *Author note: it was originally going to be cows, but a friend asured me that psionic cows are silly.  Good advice, I think. *




!!!!

!!

!!!!

Buy that friend a beer


----------



## KidCthulhu

You're welcome.


----------



## Plane Sailing

The grace of Asura is with the young Jazumai, and he mentally casts off the unseen shackles that attempted to bind him. Vicious teeth gouge his ribs as he jumps back, quickdrawing his scimitar and slicing back at the beast. 

“Asura’s Blood!!”  he cries out. 

Once again he hears the refrain “Stupid two-legs” and the attempt to mentally control his body but his resolve is sure; he calls for help as he defends himself against the razor sharp teeth of Broadsword and the attempts by Blaze to either control him or knock him down.

Back at the barn, Azrin and K’tan hear his cries and start running down the field towards Trajan, apparently battling with two… horses? In the house M’ir and the others hurriedly make their way out of the small door. M’ir concentrates briefly and horrible whip-like welts appear on Broadswords side. Trajan spots his opening and critically hits the beast, slicing its awful head clean from its body.

Concerned, Blaze steps back from Trajan, and Darra spots his chance. From his position by the farmhouse he throws his arms forwards and cries out arcane words – and a bolt of lighting blasts across the field, catching Blaze squarely in the side and tumbling it over, dead. _DMsnote: this is the first big damage spell ever thrown by the good-guys in my campaign – the first 3rd level arcane spell come to that. It was great! _

The party gather round the two corpses.

“What in Asura’s name was all that?” they wonder. Examining the corpses carefully, Syl notices partly-healed wounds on each horses forehead – and apparently some kind of splinter beneath. Azrin does his best to carefully dig out each of the splinters for further examination, but they are delicate crystal, and shatter as he attempts to remove them. M’ir and K’tan both confirm with their knowledge of magecraft _Dmsnote: psicraft in my campaign_ that these goings on sound like magery – and particularly the banned disciplines of the telepaths and the mutables.

“OK” says Darra “Lets go and see that witch now”.

“NO” says Trajan, sharply. “We are not leaving that old mans body lying there in the barn. We hardly knew him, but he was a friend and he deserved better than this. We are not going anywhere until he is properly buried.”

As they are starting to make preparations, a group of guards come up the road from Bellhold, along with the farmhand who originally raised the alarm. A short discussion, and the evidence of the frighteningly deformed head of one of the horses convinces the guards about what has been going on.

With matters settled at Othics farm, and with an increased sense of urgency, the company mount up and ride off to find the witch, and to… discuss… matters with her.

to be continued


----------



## Piratecat

Whoo! What a great scene. I wrote OSM to keep jaded players guessing; to take expectations and twist them somewhat. Nice to see you had them curious.


----------



## Darklone

*APPLAUSE*

Kudos to you Piratecat!

Bought that book and love it. Planesailing: Congratulations how you handled it. 

Huh? Did you hear that? 

"Stupid two legs"!

Where did that come from?

AAAAAAaaaaaaaargh!


----------



## Plane Sailing

It doesn’t take them long to reach the small wood where the witch lives. Dismounting and leading their horses through the frosty trees, Darra sends his raven, “Awk”, to circle the cottage they come across. They hear Awk talking to someone behind the cottage, and find an old lady with parcels on her back, trying to head off into the forest and shouting at the familiar. 

The company learn that she is the local oracle, but she is on her way off to another town now and if they wouldn’t mind, she would like to be on her way. She repeats the assurance that all the headaches will be gone within a week – but when pressed her voice drops to a hush as she reveals the rest of what she has seen

“Within a week, nobody will notice the headaches - because nobody will have any free will or volition of their own. Doom is coming to Bellhold, and I don’t intend to be here to see it arrive”.

They want to talk to her further, but in the end she bribes them with three magic potions and they let her go.

Obviously there is still a problem with the missing children and local adventurers, but there is now a real sense of urgency about solving the problem facing Bellhold. The answer must lie in the dragons old eyrie, high up on steeple mountain. But those sheer cliffs look virtually unclimbable. 

Then M’ir says

“My mind can open the way for us to climb up there. Follow me.”


----------



## Darklone

*Hah! Old adventurers virtue: GREED*

Nothing like bribing some adventurers with some magic gimmicks to keep them from asking more questions !


----------



## Plane Sailing

You should have seen the sorcerer's drooling when he realised that (among other things) she was offering a potion of charisma!

The jazumai (paladins) were more circumspect but I'm sure that they were equally pleased to get their hands on such bounty 

next part coming up soon


----------



## Plane Sailing

They make their way back through the town and to the base of steeple mountain. It is imposing and cold, with a 300 ft scree slope, followed by a near vertical cliff. The plan is that everyone will scramble up the scree slope (once Trajan has blazed a trail), then M’ir will manifest his power to enable everyone to spiderclimb up the sheer wall.

Trajan makes it up the first section without too much difficulty, but to get the attention of the others he ends up shouting out to them and waving his arms up and down. Eventually they get the message and Awk is sent up to communicate with him (but not before the denizens above are thoroughly alerted…). While the rest start on their way up a shower of rocks comes from above, striking Trajan although he maintains his footing.

Darra gets out his precious scroll of “Fly”, and casts it, using Awk as the touchee to impart the spell to Trajan (since he has the greatest carrying capacity of any of them). The others then make their way up the slope, albeit with a few tumbles from Azrin. 

Trajan uses his new flying ability to help Azrin and the others up the scree slope, then he zooms up to the top of the mountain to peer into the cave entrance. No sooner does he reach the same altitude as the entrance when two large arrows shoot from the darkness, piercing him badly. He falls from the sky and pulls out of his dive where the rest of the party are at the top of the scree slope. Azrin quickly calls upon Asura to heal him, giving up many of his prayed-for spells in order to help Trajan recover from the vicious wounds.

Once M’ir has manifested his power and they start scampering up the mountain face a barrage of rocks starts in earnest – there is small chance that the rocks will hit, but the icy surface of the mountain is hard for the spiderclimb to adhere to.

They are halfway up the vertical section, an additional 200ft up, when one of the defenders strikes luck – a hurled rock bounces into Syl! – fingers scrabbling for purchase, the young female rogue from Morannon loses her grip on the surface – and tumbles into space!


----------



## Darklone

*Huh!*

Is it a bird? Nooooooo! Is it a dragon? Nooooooo! It is: SUPERTRAJAN! 

Just make sure he won't be wearing underwear.

Straight ahead approach of the group. Some arrows and boulders didn't scare them, eh? And the first lesson: Never climb without ropes attached to each one... was forgotten too?

Well. Heroes are heroes. Why do it the easy way ?


----------



## Plane Sailing

I tried to dissuade them by mentioning (again and again) how steep and treacherous and high steeple mountain is.. The one thing that I forgot to take account of at the time is ice and snow - after all, it is drawing towards the middle of winter now. Doh!

Still, they have some luck, as it happens.

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *Still, they have some luck, as it happens.
> *




Eagerly waiting 

Yeah yeah... those players never listen to good advices from your trusted DM...


----------



## Plane Sailing

...and why wouldn't they trust me?


----------



## KidCthulhu

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *...and why wouldn't they trust me?  *




Well, you probably shouldn't have mentioned you were working on your next level "Rat Bastard DM" merit badge at DM Scouts.

Keep posting.  I can't wait until they get to the [spoiler ommitted]!


----------



## Plane Sailing

As Syl falls, Trajan dives down to attempt to catch her – but misses! with a scant 50 feet to go Syl reacts instinctively with the sorcerous trick she learnt many years ago – and gently floats the remaining distance to the scree slope _DMs note: she was the *only* one who could featherfall, so in that sense it was a "lucky" hit._

Trajan carries Syl back up to the rest of the party, but even though they try to angle their climb sideways around the peak it doesn’t seem to put off the defenders boulders. Eventually K’tan decides that he’s had enough. He says so in no uncertain terms and sets off down the cliff again. Azrin points out that he has used up almost all the divine power vouchsafed to him at the start of the day (2 spells left) and questions what state they are going to be in if they actually reach the top. Furthermore, it is even more icy and slippery up there. After a short discussion Darra decides to retreat down as well, and the rest of the party follow. 

The direct assault on Steeple Mountain has come to an end.

With the aid of the spider climbing and the remains of the fly spell, all reach the ground safely again – the barrage from above ceased when they were on the way down. As the sun starts to set on their first day in Bellhold they retreat wearily to the Bell and Clapper. Trajan mentions that up on the mountain he thought he heard a voice whisper to him – it said something like 

“I hear you coming. Your thoughts are very tasty. Hurry to me, my little delicacies”

Several of the others also heard whispered threats or promises while on the mountain face, but nobody can say where the voice came from. Worrying.

After an evening meal, a short talk with Mayor Hob and another study of the old diary, they decide that in the morning they need to check out the old mine – it seems likely that the dragon used to have some way of getting from his eyrie down to the mine, and maybe they can use that way to get up to the dragons old hideaway unannounced.

They retire to another unsettled night full of nightmares.


----------



## Darklone

*Cooolll*

Wahey! Featherfall ... sooo nice. 

Back to the good old question: How far do you fall in 6 seconds ?

Supertrajan lost. And no fly scroll anymore. 

"Dinnertime... " Nothing like an invitation to dinner by some hungry things 10 times your weight...


----------



## Plane Sailing

The spell now says that you fall 60 ft a round for 1 round per level. Syl is a 2nd level sorcerer, and as she knew she was something like 3-400 ft up at the time she delayed casting a smidgin.

Complete pain for them to lose the fly scroll, and even though they don't have Supertrajan any more, I'm sure plain ole Trajan will see them proud!


----------



## Plane Sailing

The next morning, each of them has had the same nightmares again – common themes seem to be emerging – possibly that each of them is being warned about a choice that may come to them, and they will be horrifically doomed if they choose the wrong way.

Still, that’s dreams and it is time for real life. None of the spellcasters has had their sleep so badly disturbed that they can’t concentrate to prepare their spells, and fully armed they decide to set off towards the old mine – that was where Othic and other old-timers had seen the dragon before.

Leaving their horses at the inn, they walk up the riverside track to the old mine. At one point Syl notices apparent tracks and signs of a scuffle just off the track to one side – there are clear marks of large biped dog-paws, and a small clay sculpture of Steeple Mountain (?). M’ir once more opens his mind to the past in this area and while he concentrates he can see the ghostly forms of gnolls _(DMs note: the adventure uses goblins, but on advice from PC on scaling the adventure up I upgraded them to gnolls – with increased class levels too)_ holding down and tying up a small child, before dashing off into the forest. One of the forms hangs back, builds the little clay sculpture and then continues after the others.

With a better idea of who their foes are, the company continue up the track to the old mine head. Overgrown wreckage surrounds the top of the shaft which has been sealed with a plate of copper. This plate has been levered up at one side though, and a knotted rope from a nearby boulder snakes down into the damp darkness below.

Azrin picks up a stone and calls upon Asura to shine his light upon it, and in the light so produced M’ir quickly climbs down the rope. There is a loud roaring sound of fast-moving water from below, but he finds a fragile wooden platform built across the shaft which he alights upon. 

Lighting his bull’s-eye lantern he can see a passage leading off into a chamber of some sort. The others start following him down the rope, but since it starts creaking ominously once two people are on it, they quickly move off the platform and join M’ir at the threshold of the old mining room.

There is a faint skittering sound, and hordes of inch-long beetles with shiny bluish-green carapaces scuttle away from the light and into crevices or further away in the room, which is filled with old and decrepit mining paraphernalia. Disturbed patches of greenish and orange slime on the floor reveal to Syl’s expert eye that some people have been through here within the last week – and there are some older tracks of larger creatures – probably the gnolls.

Beyond this room is a large irregular cavern, the ceiling supported by pit props and clearly once part of the old mine. Again there is algae and slime all around and the damply humid air feels cold and clammy. Half way across the room, M’irs light reveals an archway into a corridor carved with a dragon sigil. 

Just ten foot further is a crossroads with a small pile of heads, rocking slightly...


----------



## Darklone

*Hihihi*

Slime drooling out of my mouth this time... Piratecat: Praises for this thingy!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Agreed - Praise for Piratecat for creating an adventure that is fun to run, creepy for the PCs and (particularly importantly) easy to use. Credit goes to Fiery Dragon too for the layout.

We play again this Sunday, so I'll try to get the adventure completely up-to-date before then.

- thanks for the encouragement!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Getting within twenty feet or so, they can see that there are two gnoll heads with a human head atop it. Darra summons a mage hand, and uses it to roll the human head towards them - scattering those shiny beetles which had been crawling all over the heads and making it look as if they were moving.

As the head passes by M’ir, suddenly its rotten eyes snap open and it starts screaming and screaming and screaming. Trajan calmly steps forwards and slices it in two, although the sound of the screams echoes through the caverns.

“Ah well, someone knows we’re here now”.

The passageway to the left leads to a disgusting room, filled with an awful stench and with a huge pile of flesh in the middle of the floor - crudely stripped from bones. The room is also full of the little beetles, and the sound of their munching on the dead flesh is quite disgusting. They decide not to search this room further.

The passageway to the right leads to a large cavern, even more moist and with many patches of greenish slime. Investigating further into the room M’ir notices a piece of rock with words carved on recently, by a dagger. 

It is next to a particularly luscious patch of slime. 

It is a memorial to one of the “heroes of the bell” - who apparently was eaten alive by that same patch of slime. Backing away, they check out an adjoining room to the cavern - spotting a rotting old desk and some kind of broken copper mechanical man on the floor. They ignore this room and return to the crossroads, just in time to be faced by two zombie troglodytes who had positioned themselves near the corner, and who lurch into the attack!.

Azrin unhurriedly raises his holy symbol and cries “Turn, in the name of Asura!” but the zombies ignore him. Trajan cries out “Begone, foul beasts in the name of Asura!”. They carry on swinging. It is left to M’ir and Trajan to fight the zombies by hand, interspersed each round with further cries of “Turn, damn you!” from Azrin. The first two zombies fall, hacked apart, and two more approach but find their attack halted by a skilfully cast “grease” spell from Darra.

While Azrin continues with mounting disbelief to attempt to turn this second set of zombies, they are dispatched by Trajan and a combination of Darra’s magic missiles and Syl’s ray of frost. K’tan holds his power in reserve at the moment.

Finally, the zombies lie defeated. As they approach a copper bound door at the end of the corridor they hear an aged voice hiss out from beyond it.

“Ssssso, do you thinkssss you can come backssss and finishessss the job, eh? To kills the ressst of usss off, eh? Come and killsss me too, if you can. Sssssss”…


----------



## Plane Sailing

Oh dear.

Oh dear, oh dear oh dear.

Two party deaths coming up. Place your bets?


----------



## Darklone

*Ack no!*

Hey! You can't do this to me... I just gotten accustomed to the party, placed the miniatures in a line and visualized... And now you tell me two party members bite the dust? Cruel. Awesome. I love it. 

Let's see... M'ir or Trajan ... one of those I guess... And Syl. 

No idea why, just a feeling.


----------



## Piratecat

Two deaths? Holy cow! Now we'll never come to visit you and hang out for a game; they'll want revenge.

After six failed turning checks, though, they should have _known_....


----------



## Plane Sailing

One of the deaths came about because of a fundamentally heroic act by one character who could stand still and see one of his comerades cut down, so he got in out of his depth. Someone else got buried alive.

There was an incident with a backfiring scroll which helped out in a backhanded way though...

Ok, enough with the teasing. I'll start writing up the adventure when I get home from work tonight.

Oh, and PC - should you and your gang find themselves in the London region one Sunday evening, I'm *sure* we could hide your involvement in OSM if you wanted to come and game 

Cheers


----------



## Old One

*I think Azrin and Syl...*

P_S -

I just realized I haven't stopped by here yet.  Seems like a most entertaining adventure thus far (of course, coming from PKitty, how could it be otherwise).

I loved the horses bashing the PCs, that must have been a fun scene!  With regards to climbing the mountain...just make something "impossible" and the PCs will try and do it!

Looking forward to more!

~ Old One


----------



## KidCthulhu

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *Oh, and PC - should you and your gang find themselves in the London region one Sunday evening, I'm *sure* we could hide your involvement in OSM if you wanted to come and game
> 
> Cheers *




We're in the UK every year or so, to visit friends.  Now we have more friends to add to the list.  We'd love to sit in on a session.  I can play dumb.  It's surprisingly easy!


----------



## Piratecat

*Re: I think Azrin and Syl...*



			
				Old One said:
			
		

> *With regards to climbing the mountain...just make something "impossible" and the PCs will try and do it. *




Actually, I made sure not to make it impossible; I hate modules that do that, and you KNOW that some clever PC will find a way around it. I just tried to foresee a good strategy that would make it really, really challenging. It's easier to come in the back way... but they don't have to!


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Re: Re: I think Azrin and Syl...*



			
				Piratecat said:
			
		

> *
> 
> Actually, I made sure not to make it impossible; I hate modules that do that, and you KNOW that some clever PC will find a way around it. I just tried to foresee a good strategy that would make it really, really challenging. It's easier to come in the back way... but they don't have to!   *




I second this approach - too many times in the past I've seen modules (or had them "inflicted" on me) where something just can't be done - as a player you spend ages coming up with complex schemes and the DM eventually says "sorry guys, you just can't go this way".

Although it takes more effort, I think it is far better to think through the possible routes that could be taken and consider the consequences of such. Apart from anything else, it helps make for far less linear storylines, which is a good thing in my book. One destination, many routes!

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

*Hmm*

I never built my encounters in an impossible way... I just lined up the monsters and considered what they would be doing... thus making it impossible for the PCs to enter or get through...


----------



## Plane Sailing

As they debate what to do, Azrin hears the sound of feet shuffling off from behind the copper door. They also hear footsteps behind them, and are pleased to see Lysander joining them once more. Freed from his additional duties with Alkanar, he arrived at Bellhold earlier today and found out from the Mayor the route they had taken. It hadn’t taken long to work his way into the mine and down to meet them. They bring him up to date with developments in the Bellhold and the mine, then they proceed onwards to the door. Stiff but unlocked, they push open the large copper door and find another large room, with three mining corridors leading out, and no clear indication about the route which the hissy voice took. Once again, small beetles scuttle away from their torchlight.

One of the corridors leads to a partially collapsed room, with a large pile of rubble at the end. While they watch, every so often a pebble or small rock suddenly rolls down from its position on the mound of rock. No matter how carefully they look they can’t find evidence of anything else in the room, but they are a little worried by what is going on. Azrin asks K’tan to “knock some of the rubble away”, and K’tan responds with a concussion – which brings the house down! M’ir and K’tan dance back out the doorway as the remainder of the room collapses in.

They spend some twenty minutes marching along different mine tunnels, and M’ir is getting more and more irritated with the “waste of time” when they suddenly see a tunnel which opens into a chamber, filled with flickering light.

Creeping up to the entrance, the room is surrounded by carvings and bas relief artworks, but it is dominated by a huge stone dragon, rearing up so high that its head brushes the 30 foot high ceiling. It is looking down towards a vast copper bowl on an altar, fully 10 feet in diameter and 8 feet high, with pale dancing flames filling it. Over to the left is a huge pile of random humanoid bones. Stepping into the room, they can see just past the copper altar bowl is a wizened and crooked old troglodyte. He hisses and snarls at them, then waves his hand in their direction.

Suddenly three of the tiny beetles which infest the mine grow until they are the size of horses, two scuttle to attack Trajan, another scuttles towards Azrin. Lysander jumps to Azrin’s aid, while M’ir and K’tan stand ready to support Trajan. Darra and Syl duck back into the entrance. As combat is joined, they are all surprised to hear a sudden tumble of noise from the far corner of the room – and then look in horror as the pile of bones rises up into a single mass, twenty feet tall!


----------



## Plane Sailing

While the heroes fight the beetles, the huge Bonetangle steps towards the combatants and grabs both M’ir and K’tan, grabbing them and constricting them within its conglomeration of bones. Trajan slays one of the beetles and turns his attention to the other. 

Lysander darts towards the ancient troglodyte who casts fear at him, but the Jazumai is immune to the dark threats which whisper at his psyche, and plunges headlong into combat with the elderly priest.

K’tan keeps his concentration and starts using concussion to blow bones of the undead creature holding him. M’ir keeps his concentration and starts raising the body temperature of the troglodyte. Syl gets her shortbow out and starts shooting at the beetle which is attacking Azrin, while Azrin attempts once more to call upon Asura’s power to turn undead – and once more fails to get anywhere.

The troglodyte slaps Lysander with a cause critical wounds and tries to back off while Lysander lays into it with his scimitar. Azrin runs to join in that combat as the beetle  turns to attack the annoyance that has been stinging it in the rear, galloping over to attack Syl.

The Bonetangle has grabbed Trajan as well, and is now constricting all three – fortunately it doesn’t seem to have too good a grip on M’ir, as it always gets low damage on him. K’tan continues to manifest concussion, doing it some serious damage before he starts running low on power – at which point he draws the attributes of the tortoise to himself (gaining some much needed hit points from the Con boost). Darra joins in the combat, casting defensively he slides a layer of grease under the bonetangle. Trajan manages to wriggle free and is joined by Lysander, who has slain the old and feeble troglodyte priest. Chopping away together, and supported by magic missile fire from Darra, the Bonetangle starts to collapse, skid on the grease, and finally shatters into a conglomeration of bare bones.

Phew.

(we had a couple of scale 20ft tall minis that I put on the table for the stone dragon and the bonetangle, and it made the situation look pretty desperate! It gave the players a much better idea of the scale of the threat they faced!)

They check out the body of the ancient troglodyte, and find nothing on him but some kind of dragon tooth holy symbol. A long theological discussion ensues between M’ir and Azrin – M’ir wants to know where it got its clerical powers from if there is only one god, Asura. Azrin explains that it must have worshipped some hitherto unsuspected draconic aspect of Asura, the many-facetted one. The conversation gets quite heated, and only really dies down when Syl decides to climb up the stone dragon to take a closer look at the lovely sparkly and glowing sapphire eyes which it has…


----------



## KidCthulhu

Oh, the sparkly eyes.  They can never resist the sparkly eyes.


----------



## Plane Sailing

What made me laugh was that the rest of the party retreated to the corners of the room and watched him. It was as if some kind of dread fascination had come over them...

I think Trajan said "I don't think you want to do that", but that was as far as the dissuasion went!


----------



## Old One

*Hmmm...*



			
				Piratecat said:
			
		

> *
> 
> Actually, I made sure not to make it impossible; I hate modules that do that, and you KNOW that some clever PC will find a way around it. I just tried to foresee a good strategy that would make it really, really challenging. It's easier to come in the back way... but they don't have to!   *




Pkitty -

I didn't mean to imply that you put a "no-win" situation into OSM, it was just commenting on P_S's continual comments on how difficult and icy the climb was.  Many times - for some perverse reason, a party of PCs that are given several options for accomplishing a task will gravitate towards the most difficult!

I am a big proponent of making everything doable!

~ Old One


----------



## Darklone

*Re: Hmmm...*



			
				Old One said:
			
		

> *I am a big proponent of making everything doable! *




Doesn't help if the players don't care. 

Plane Sailing, Lysander bashed that trog priest alone? Wow. Last few times a single party member over here attacked an enemy priest, they always got bashed. Hmm. Shouldn't attack a 12th level priest with a 6th level jack of all trades though...


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Re: Re: Hmmm...*



			
				Darklone said:
			
		

> *
> 
> Doesn't help if the players don't care.
> 
> Plane Sailing, Lysander bashed that trog priest alone? Wow. Last few times a single party member over here attacked an enemy priest, they always got bashed. Hmm. Shouldn't attack a 12th level priest with a 6th level jack of all trades though... *




Well, Lysander is the highest level character in the group, a Jazumai6/Sorcerer1; very strong and getting two attacks per round with his scimitar against and elderly and decrepit old cleric 8 troglodyte. The trogs fear spells were useless against him and he has monstrously high fortitude and will saves. The trog had penalties to both his strength and dex... He hurt him with the inflict critical wounds, but apart from that...


----------



## Darklone

*Right*

Well... without Divine Power or something similar, there's not much the cleric could do... Hold Person perhaps? But I agree, a full score fightertype uses to annihilate MUs at close range if those don't have several rounds to prepare.

Jazumai was something paladin like? Excuse me for asking, you mentioned it somewhere earlier...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Sure, the Jazumai are the paladin -type class in my campaign. They get most of the Paladin benefits, but with the following restrictions:

* No mount
* Only light armour 
* Only proficient in scimitar, shortbow and unarmed (they get the monks unarmed damage progression as long as they are in light or no armour)

Their code is quite restrictive - as an example, they are obliged to defend the name of Asura, and this often means kill blasphemers. While in the Southlands they don't mind that there are many people who haven't "seen the light" and worship Asura, just so long as nobody shows disrespect to the name of their god. The LG Jazumai would typically strike to subdue with their unarmed proficiency, so that they can be taught the error of their ways; the LE Jazumai would typically cut down the infidels with some glee.

(there are no PHB standard paladins - the Jazumai are the only ones in my campaign)

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *(there are no PHB standard paladins - the Jazumai are the only ones in my campaign) *




Hmm. Have to admit I like them. Plus: Never liked the standard paladins either. *YOINK*


----------



## Plane Sailing

Syl quickly clambers up the statue and examines the glowing eyes. Sapphires bigger than her hands. Excellent. She can also see into the giant copper bowl, and within the flickering flames she can tell that it is full of “stuff”. 

“What kind of stuff?” the others call up.

“Dunno” says Syl. “Just stuff. I’m going to get one of these eyes out”.

At which point the rest of the party scatter to the various exits in the room and watch warily. Trajan says “I don’t think that is a particularly good idea…”

Syl presses on, and heaving away with her dagger manages to prize one of the gemstones free. “Got it!” she cries, holding it aloft for all to see.

Suddenly, with a grinding lurch, the huge stone dragon animates and steps away from the wall, shaking its neck. Syl manages to hold on and does a quick mental calculation – jump 25 ft to the floor or… She grabs hold of the other side of the dragons neck and stabs towards the other glowing sapphire eye, to attempt to free it from its socket…


----------



## Plane Sailing

The sapphire starts to move, but then holds fast (missed her STR check by 1!). The stone dragon clubs her with one of its enormous forepaws, sending her spinning to the ground, badly wounded.

The other party members jump into action. Darra throws his hands out towards the dragon and shouts an incantation, and a bolt of electricity scars its stone head. Azrin calls upon Asura to stun the creature and a blast of sound knocks a couple of extra chips off.  M’ir runs towards the fallen Syl, in case she needs to be carried away from the stone dragon whose head turns once again towards here. Syl, although barely conscious has no desire to hang around and jumps up, hobbling towards the nearest mining tunnel exit. 

K’tan and Lysander who are within that exist quickly back further down the tunnel as the huge stone dragon stomps towards them, crouches down, folds its stone wings and forces its way into the passage. All three of them run for their lives, surrounded by the whanging sound of pit props being smashed away from the walls as the stone colossus chases after them.

Azrin notes the damage that the dragon is doing to the tunnels which it only just fits in, and while K’tan, Lysander and Darra run left at a vital junction, Azrin calls Syl to the right, leading her back into the main chamber. Hobbling along, just staying in front of the stone construct Syl follows directions, and the stone dragon follows her. Lysander makes a foray to strike at the statues back, but to no avail, nor do any of Trajan’s arrows harm it in the least.

Syl ducks into the ruined tunnel, hears the dragon smash its way in after her once more and she throws herself forward as she hears the tunnel start to collapse around her…

The company can see the tail of the buried stone dragon, but nothing else as the sound of the cave-in peters away. Tracing their way through the mine tunnels, they work their way round to the other side of the cave in – to find no smiling young rogue, nothing except rubble and a female hand, outstretched from it. Syl didn’t make it.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Darklone and Old One both score a prize for predicting one of the deaths - poor Syl

How did you guys know? Was it a rogue thing?


----------



## Darklone

*Hmmm*



			
				Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *Darklone and Old One both score a prize for predicting one of the deaths - poor Syl
> 
> How did you guys know? Was it a rogue thing?  *




*high5 towards Old One*

How did I know? Read it in my coffee when I started to work that morning... After some unintelligible curses the milk and the coffee tried to dissolve the mountain of sugar and formed the word ... S Y L...

Honest: It's always the rogue who goes first.
- Who's got his fingers where they don't belong, be it traps or pouches? The rogue.
- Who's in front of the frontline fighters trying to stick his dagger somewhere? The rogue.
- Who's relying on his evasion that does not kick in when she/he needs it? The rogue.
- Who's the guy who hates poison and charms since he lacks will and fortitude? The rogue.

Personally, I never understood why a rogue should take Improved Initiative. Only makes him standing alone between all those enemies


----------



## Piratecat

Damn! I'm weeping for her. But it was a good way for a rogue to go!  How many people get to say "my PC pulled huge gems from the eyes of a stone statue, got chased through narrow mine tunnels, and got caught in the cave-in?"

If she gets brought back, I hope they let her keep them.

You did a glorious job of painting the image; I could *see* the thing slamming through the narrow tunnels, in a fantasy cross between the T-Rex chase from Jurassic Park, and the giant stone ball scene from raisers of the Lost Arc.


----------



## Plane Sailing

I agree, its a classic for a rogue death. Easily beats "oh, I was stabbed by Orcs". I was surprised when her first impulse when it came alive wasn't to run but to try to get the other eye out - and she darn near succeeded!

The chase through the mine tunnels was really exciting for us on the night - everyone got caught up in the atmosphere, some people just legged it and Azrin came up with the excellent idea (normally Azrin comes up with ideas that are so out in left field that he nearly circumnavigates the earth and comes back in to right field - but he was a real winner in this adventure )

I remember you saying somewhere, PC, that when creating an adventure you try to think of a really cool scene, and then work that into the adventure (like the torture gallery in the trillith demiplane). I think this comes over very well in OSM, and there are several portions which are particularly "cinematic" - this was one of them.

It's a technique I'm going to try putting into practice more myself too


----------



## Plane Sailing

The company spend three hours resting and recuperating. M’ir hauls himself up onto the edge of the copper bowl once experimentation proves the flames to be heatless, and with some help from Azrin they sort their way through the litter of assorted rubbish and offerings obviously made by the troglodytes over the decades. A few good things are found - four recently made healing potions, a masterwork shortsword and buckler, a copper statue of a dragon and some assorted silver Marks.

Of much more interest is the opening in the wall revealed by the dragon statue moving away. It is a large opening into a chamber floored with copper plates and with a huge copper bath on one side. Looking around at the evidence here, it seems as if Copperdeath was at least 30 foot long. Unlike the mine workings this room wasn’t carved by tools of men, but by claws and magic. A circular tunnel leads out the other end.

Rested and with the fighters amongst them mostly recovered (but a lot shorter on magic power) the party start off along the huge circular tunnel. After walking for about fifteen minutes they become aware of a subtle trembling in the ground and a far-off sound of rumbling amidst the white noise of fast moving water. A vertical shaft is passed with the aid of a knotted rope - which must have been left by surviving heroes of the bell. 

Eventually they reach a chamber - more like a shaft, rising up further than the eye can see into the upper reaches of the mountain. What first draws their attention is the incredible waterfall cascading down from the heights - the water glowing all manner of shifting colours as it falls thundering into a lake held back behind a retaining wall.

Through the rising mist off the water they can make out a beautiful woman, apparently enjoying the shower of water at the edge of the waterfall. She seems to be singing, and straining their ears to hear it they realise that the song is one of surpassing beauty and strange yearning…


----------



## Piratecat

Mmmmm. She sounds like someone you'd want to stay with for a really long time.....  

What did Syl's player do? Watch, play a NPC, or something else?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Syl's player watched, made assorted groaning sounds and (when faced with a riddle) made astounding faces because he got it instantly, and nobody else did.

There have been a few occasions where I've let the player of a dead PC take on the running of an NPC, but that wasn't too practical on that evening.

Hopefully I'll get to the conclusion of writing that nights adventure in the next couple of days - especially since we are heading for the grand finale next Sunday. Yay!

(and for the onlookers, who do you think the other death is going to be? Coming to your screen soon... Mwahahahaha!


----------



## Darklone

*Huhm...*

Well.. singing lady... my bard loves to sing to at similar occasions... whaddayamean, countersong?

Hmm. Second party death? Probably a low will save fighter type that tries to protect that lovely lady from his adventurer companions 

Wait,... a Jazumai... psions... Are there any low will save fighter types in that group ?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Ah, Darklone, you see my problem exactly! Not one weak Will save amongst the lot of them!


----------



## Plane Sailing

However, the party consisting at this point of Jazumai, mages and a priest, have Will saves out the wazoo, and they all shake off the effects of her song without much problem. She moves closer to the edge of the mist and spray, and they can't help noticing that it is only her long flowing hair covers her… charms.

Lysander looks across to Azrin and raises his eyebrows. "Do you want to make love to this one too?" he asks with more than a hint of sarcasm.

Ignoring the Jibe, Azrin leads off into conversation with this Fey creature - who is apparently trapped here, imprisoned by Copperdeath so long ago, and with nothing to comfort her other than her songs and her giant rat friends (The Company now notice a number of dire rats paddling around in the pool near her - dire rats with strangely domed craniums and a particularly intelligent glint in their eye.

Trajan, Lysander and the others decide that they don't want to get involved with a fracas here, and say that they will consider seeing how to free her. Lysander and Trajan both have the distinct sense of an evil presence in her vicinity, and although they can't pinpoint her it seems likely that she is the source. Still, if she has been trapped here for fifty years or more, why not just leave her here?

A spiral ramp leads up the huge rock chimney; it is slippery with slime and mist from the multicoloured waterfall so the company rope themselves together before making the trip. Up, up, up they climb, getting soaked to the skin. The wisdom of roping themselves together is revealed when twice clumsy old Azrin slips, but is held tightly by his neighbouring companions. At several places up the path they see sparkling wet webs stretched across the cave and through the edge of the waterfall. Many skeletons of small fish are present, strained out of the tumbling water which must arise from a spring higher and further back in the barrier range.

At last, they reach the top of the slippery ramp, and through an open square window they can see a dragon-sized chamber, with assorted things in it. Entering the chamber for a closer look they find their clothes magically dried. Amongst the paraphernalia there is a huge chessboard with copper pieces set in the middle of a game, a small dragons head with dusty cobwebs affixed to a wall, a large brass bell and a corridor sloping up and away, filled with damaged stone statues of warriors and craftsmen.

Azrin checks out the chess game while Trajan dusts off the plaque under the copper dragon head – and is astonished when it animates, looks around at the party and then tells them a riddle (which I’ll not include here). Trajan looks around at the others, keeping his mouth shut, and they wonder what to make of it – nobody can remember much.

Suddenly one of the copper chess pieces animates and hurtles across towards the brass bell. Reacting like lightning, Trajan quickdraws his scimitar and hurls it across the chamber at the copper automaton – he strikes it, but it spins around and hurls its damaged body into the bell.

A sonorous “CLANG” fills the air.


----------



## Plane Sailing

They look around, worried. Weapons are loosened, spell components reached for – but nothing happens. They decide to try again, making an effort to each write down part of the riddle. Again the dragons head is polished, again the riddle produced – and inspiration hits Azrin who cries out the answer.

They hear a grinding noise from the far wall, as a wide section slowly raises up into the ceiling. Beyond it their lantern light reveals mounds of sparkling copper. There must be thousands and thousands and thousands of copper pieces, piled around the room. A closer look reveals some larger than life sized copper statues and several chests. Darra casts detect magic and points out one of the chests as being particularly magical.

M’ir brings that chest out into the main chamber, and it is carefully opened. Inside wrapped amongst silks are a shiny copper longsword with hexagonal designs carved along its blade and with quillions decorated with hexagons. Azrin’s book-learnin’ recognises those symbols as being common amongst the Harthar wizards work from several thousand years ago… a group known for their dedication to the principles of law and strongly opposed to chaos. 

Darra shies away from the sword (which is claimed by Trajan for the time being) and picks up a small gold ring with a couple of rubies on it. Wearing it he tries putting his hand into a flame (Ow!), asks Trajan to catch him if he jumps into his arms (Trajan agrees but moves his arms away at the last moment. Ow!) and tries a few other things in the hope of revealing the magical nature of the ring. He gives up in the face of the increasing laughter of his colleagues.

There is a thin crystal wand which M’ir and K’tan quickly identify as a Dorje – a mage device. M’ir exerts his power to look into the Dorje’s past, and he can see ghostlike images of strange creatures being constructed out of astral matter… They know what the wand can do, but neither of them can work out the command thought to work it. M’ir stores it away.

Azrin is particularly interested in some scrolls which are in the chest – one arcane scroll of Fireball is passed to Darra, but there is a divine scroll as well… of raising the dead. As one, the party turn to look at the slippery slope back down to where Syl’s body lays...


----------



## Darklone

*Argh*

First you threaten us with two player deaths and now you write and write and nothing happens... almost like Old One !


----------



## Plane Sailing

Hey, you've had one death 

Although that might be dealt with soon...


BTW, As well as scaling the encounters up for my party, I've also scaled the treasure up too (ain't I nice?). Piratecat doesn't leave resurrection scrolls laying around in hidden dragon treasure hordes, but hey - I felt it was appropriate in these circumstances.

Besides, Azrin isn't high enough level to cast Raise Dead yet, so there is possibility for extra fun...

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

To save time and reduce risk, M’ir and Trajan go down the slope together whilst the others stay up in the dragons treasure rooms. Waving briefly at the girl in the waterfall, they proceed down to the mines, dig out Syl’s body and drag it back up the slippery ramp.

After an hour, they return to their companions. Azrin thinks that he has puzzled out how to use the Raise Dead scroll. Normally the spell must be cast on a consecrated altar on holy day, but since the scroll was probably created in those conditions, it should be OK to use now right? Right?

Syl is laid out and Azrin starts reading the scroll. Divine power is unlocked and surges through Azrin, making his hair stand on end, crackling with blue-white flames. He can’t hold the power, it seems beyond him… and then suddenly he feels power flow out through him and into the body of Syl, which takes a shuddering breath. Azrin feels cold and weak, and is suffering from three negative levels which have stripped his most powerful remaining spells from his mind.

Azrin says “Wow, no wonder the priests don’t like casting that spell!”

_Dmsnote: Azrins attempt to use the Raise Dead scroll resulted in a backfire – yay! It seemed at the time that the best way of handling this was a strangely botched version of raise dead, where the spell works but it draws its power from the caster instead of the divine. Azrin picked up 3 negative levels, and Syl was raised but is also suffering from 3 negative levels too_

After much discussion about the corridor of statues, M’ir eventually demonstrates that it is safe, and the company proceed along it into a huge cavern, outfitted with horrific copper statues (apparently people who had been dipped alive into molten copper), rotted drapes, a huge stone house-like structure (but with a big handle on its roof) and adjacent to that an enormous laboratory table, with glittering crystalline things just visible on it.

With the aid of Trajans grappling hook, M’ir shins up to have a look at the things on the table. There are magical crystals ranging in size from that of a head to that of a cow, there are gem cutting tools fit for a enormous dragon to use – and a dissecting kit fit for a enormous dragon to use too. There is also a glowing crystalline structure apparently composed of interlocked stands of crystal. M’ir attempts to manifest his ability to read psychic impressions near it, but instead of the normal result he feels anger and frustration and reels back as he takes some heat damage. He is astounded, and keeps saying “that shouldn’t happen. Nothing should be able to reach across time and hurt me like that”.

After some discussion about the possibility of dismantling or destroying the crystalline structure, Azrin and Syl wander round the corner of the cavern – and find a ramp leading to an illusory wall.

Bringing the others up the ramp, they all look through the illusion which is now just a pale mist to them. Beyond they can see a couple of vast chambers, again plated with copper on the walls and floor. Over to one side there is a simple corral with some sheep and pigs in. Over to the other side are a few small cages, with a couple of children in! What really grabs their attention though, is a group of goblins around a central table, holding down a small child who is shaking with terror, while Gnoll guards look on.

In the room beyond they can just see the mummified remains of a gargantuan dragon, whose jaws are propped open by spears. Out of the dragons mouth comes another goblin, clutching something in his hand. He calls out to the centre room

“Now, child, your time has come – you are going to be joining us in a new world… or die in the process! Mwahahahaha”


----------



## Darklone

*Raise Dead Scroll*

Nice idea with the neg. levels. Like it more than simply saying it didn't work!


----------



## Piratecat

Mwahahahaha!!!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Without pause for thought or consultation the company spring into action. Darra twists his fingers and then points them down, and a web explodes over the table, sticky tendrils lashing out in all directions.. but not reaching any anchoring walls falls into a sticky mess on the floor and dissipates. Trajan and Lysander both jump down the 20 foot from their viewing place and run towards the goblins. K’tan is out of power, so he loads his crossbow. M’ir crouches down in cover and prepares to give someone an intimate recollection of past pain. The others await their chance.

Down on the floor, the goblins and gnolls react quickly to the surprise situation. Several of the gnolls move to engage the two Jazumai, one blue skinned goblin looks up at M’ir and amidst the tinkling sound of bells grabs him with a brain lock

_”Hah, I only need a 1 to fail a save against that DC” says M’ir. Rolls a 1. _

The Gnolls are considerably tougher than others that they have met before, stronger and with apparent insight into how to hurt humans… they must be gnoll rangers!

Trajan manages to catch one of the goblins flat-footed, and with his quickdraw focus and his new sword exploding with lawful energy he does tremendous damage to it – and is astonished to see the goblin shrug it off. Flying into a fearsome rage, the goblin draws a shining longsword which crackles with electricity. “You!” cries Lysander – it is the one-time leader of the barbarian goblins who has slain Lysanders first friends in this land with his magic sword!

Darra launches another web, this time attempting to catch two goblins which are between the table and a wall. This time the web takes, although a bodyguard gnoll frees himself and engages Lysander, the blue goblin is caught, crying out “Thimdrul, save me!”. K’tan and Syl start missile fire against goblins and unengaged gnolls. Meanwhile, the goblin who is evidently named Thimdrul changes… with a grotesque sound of cracking bones his body grows and reshapes itself into the form of a large troll !

Trajan is under attack from two gnolls, the barbarian goblin and another roguish goblin who gets in a nasty flanking attack. One of the gnolls is taken down but Trajan cannot stand against their combination of blows and falls.

Darra, seeing his companions in difficulty jumps out of their lookout post and featherfalls to the ground under the influence of Syl’s magic. Landing lightly he shouts the syllables to unlock the lightning and once more throws his hands outward – his lightning bolt killing one gnoll and seriously wounding the blue goblin who is still struggling to free himself from the web.

Unfortunately, none of his other companions move to join him down in the chamber – with Trajan down and Lysander hard-pressed, one Gnoll and a goblin with a crown on his head run across to flank him

And as the goblin-turned-troll steps nearer, huge bear claws spring into existence on the ends of his enormous arms…


----------



## Plane Sailing

Darra unleashes another lightning bolt, attempting to catch the approaching goblin and gnoll. The gnoll is badly burned but the goblin neatly evades the blast. Their axe and sword bite home, and Darra realises that he is running out of options.

Above him, Azrin sums up the situation – Syl is weakened, K’tan has no power left and can only use his crossbow, and M’ir is still brain-locked. If nobody goes to Darra’s aid, the young sorcerer is doomed. Without any more thought, and with bravery that the young librarian would never have imagined when he left his cloistered halls last year, Azrin tumbles down from the opening, landing behind the goblin and landing a solid blow against it, knocking its crown off.

Thimdrul the troll thing stalks nearer, and the huge claws turn two dimensional and impossibly sharp…

Lysander finally takes down the barbarian goblin who had been hacking at him, and his remaining gnoll.

Azrin, having distracted the goblin prince, backs off and starts to cast a spell – but he underestimated the trollish reach of Thimdrull, and as an AoO a casual swipe tears his head clean away from his body, slicing neatly through his garments and bones with equal ease. Blood fountains from his neck as he falls.

Darra casts defensively and blasts the trollish figure with lightning. Syl and K’tan both fire their missile weapons and K’tan shouts out “He’s a METAMORPH” 

Galvanised into action, Lysander picks up the magic sword which the goblin barbarian had been using against him and charges in to attack Thimdrul with the unfamiliar weapon. Likewise, the stabilised Trajan gulps down a healing potion and rises from the floor swinging his Harthar-wrought sword into action. Electricity and lawful energy flare as both weapons strike home.

Thimdrul swings back at his attackers, but is somewhat off balance and misses wildly, gouging furrows in the copper plated floor. Nevertheless, some of his wounds heal while they are watching. The goblin prince runs across to Azrins body and grasps a wand, attempting to use it against Trajan and Lysander – but holds it by the wrong end and burning flames lick out and end his miserable life

_ he rolled particularly badly on his “use magic device” and I’m quite brutal when someone does this with wands – normally explodes in their face  _

Several of the remaining gnolls and goblins have started running for the exit where the mummified dragon body is – and Darra whips out his recently acquired fireball scroll, launching a fiery pellet into their midst which blossoms into a scarlet flower of death, scattering their bodies.

Thimdrul doesn’t like the way the odds are going, and suddenly shifts form into a small bird – flying up and over the heads of his attackers, being clipped by their swords on the way, he speeds back into the concealing darkness by the head of the dead dragon.

Battered and bloody, the company assess their situation. Darra in particular looks across at the body of Azrin, without whose sacrifice he would certainly have died. Then grim-faced they turn to look at the remains of the dead dragon in the next room…

To be continued this Sunday. Yay!


----------



## Ziggy

WoW !

Excellent combat scenes, I loved the way you describe this battle, it really sucked me into the action.

I noticed that you scaled to adventure to a higher level party, and it seems to work well. I'm thinking of running it myself for a bunch of 5th level PCs, and wondered how much work it was to adapt  it ? PC has a few pointers in the adventure, but you seem to have changed it is bit more (e.g. gnolls).

.Ziggy


----------



## Old One

*Do I Get a Cookie?*

PS -

I guessed that Azrin and Syl would fall!  Does that mean I win the prize?

~ Old One


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks for the compliments, Ziggy - I was hoping to capture something of the way the big fight felt for us.

re: scaling, Piratecat kindly sent me privately suggestions for scaling it for my (average 6th) party, most of which I took up.

I increased the class levels on levelled foes, introduced some Gnoll ranger mercenaries since they are going to be featuring more in my campaign but kept the general goblin thing because it was an opportunity to tie up a loose end, by having the Barbarian goblin chief from depths of rage turn up here - At the conclusion of that adventure (in my first storyhour) that particular nasty killed three of the four PC's (including the highest level ones), basically putting my campaign plans back about three months. Lysander knew the party well at that time but missed out on the climactic adventure when that goblin threat was finally put down - but at the cost of the lives of every other party member except one. This was a great opportunity to finally close that chapter.

I changed Thimdrul from a Seer to a Mutable (aka Egoist) since Mutables and Telepaths are the two "banned" evil disciplines amongst the mages in my world... and I wanted to demonstrate just why that was so 

The horses had slightly more powerful powers, the Bonetangle was bigger and stronger and the stone dragon was bigger too.

The adventure was quite easy to scale at this kind of level - PC noted that 5th level upwards is when "fly" spells appear which could make frontal assaults more appealing to the adventurers, but this didn't work out too badly in my campaign. So much of the really good bits of the adventure are in the setting and atmosphere, and they work well for nearly any low-mid level, I think.

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

Old One, you were prophetic in your utterance. Spookily so. Inspired guesswork, or??

Rather than a cookie, I'll treat you to a drink of your choice and pat on the back when you manage to rearrange your plans to visit London!

Cheers


----------



## Ziggy

Thanks for the advice PlaneSailing, I guess its not to much work to do it this way.

I've already used the bonetangle (stole it from the description in the Iconics Adventure), so I'll probably substitute it with something else. 

And I guess I can put my own twist on the gnoll/goblin variant, I've got plenty of villains to put in there. Drow will probably not go well with the goblins, but some orcs should work.

I wondered how many class levels you put in there. The original NPCs are 1-3 level, did you scale this linearely all the way to level 8, or is that to challenging ? 

I might also do something else I love to do, put a competing (evil) party in there who is after the same goal. I've got a couple of handy ones, and at least on of them have fling capabilities for an arial assault. If the PCs go in through the mines, we could end up with a big three-way fight at the end !

.Ziggy


----------



## Plane Sailing

Ziggy said:
			
		

> Thanks for the advice PlaneSailing, I guess its not to much work to do it this way.
> 
> I've already used the bonetangle (stole it from the description in the Iconics Adventure), so I'll probably substitute it with something else.




Something that I think would probably work well is to do more with the "enlarged vermin" kind of thing. By the time they meet the trog, they have become quite used to seeing those beetles scuttling around everywhere - I used the 4th level spell vermin growth (or whatever it is called) to give the trog some instant allies - you might be able to do something more interesting along those lines?



> I wondered how many class levels you put in there. The original NPCs are 1-3 level, did you scale this linearely all the way to level 8, or is that to challenging ?




I think I went for a fairly linear scaling of the levels - the Trog became Clr8, Thimdrul became (effectively) an Egoist 8, the other goblins ranged from Rogue 7 (the spy), Barb 6, Rogue 6 (the prince), Telepath 4 (the apprentice). The Gnolls each had 2 levels of my own alt.ranger - basically exactly like a barbarian but without the rage and with the rangers skill list and favoured enemy.

I have to admit that for the battle above, this was too much. With good tactics (and in the face of abominable initial tactics by the party - no planning at all!) I could have had a TPK. Two of the goblins are not interested  in stand up fights though, and I decided that their gnoll mercenaries would quit if the tide turned against them (thats what you get for CE mercenaries!), but even so one of the players emailed me afterwards and said he thought I'd let them off lightly in the circumstances.

Still, I had one major death, so I hope I don't get thrown out by the RBDMC 

In case you are interested, my version of Thimdrul used Polymorph Self to become troll-sized. Gave him oodles of Str and Con (great for his power DC's), he used Claws of the Bear (which as a Large size creature went from d12 to 2d8) and then duodimensional hand to increase his claw threat range from 20 to 17-20. He also manifested Schism, so the other part of his mind could continually manifest Body Adjustment to heal himself during combat. My version started off with a great Con, giving him a fair few hit points to start with. If he had stuck in the fight I would certainly have killed Trajan and probably got Lysander as well - but He was seeing his allies decimated and from his POV it was time to bale out and regroup.




> I might also do something else I love to do, put a competing (evil) party in there who is after the same goal. I've got a couple of handy ones, and at least on of them have fling capabilities for an arial assault. If the PCs go in through the mines, we could end up with a big three-way fight at the end !




An interesting possibility in this respect is if the Heroes of the Bell were somewhat higher level than expected, and the two which never made it past the Fey actually ganged up with her. Perhaps the Heroes of the Bell had actually been captured and got a crystal in the head themselves for their trouble 

Best of luck with the adventure - I'm sure you'll have a great time with it!


----------



## Piratecat

> Azrin, having distracted the goblin prince, backs off and starts to cast a spell – but he underestimated the trollish reach of Thimdrull, and as an AoO a casual swipe tears his head clean away from his body, slicing neatly through his garments and bones with equal ease. Blood fountains from his neck as he falls.




Holy CRAP!  That's amazing! Critical? Please tell me it was a critical.


----------



## Darklone

*I am beaten!*

First of all kudos to the Old One for guessing the deaths!



			
				Piratecat said:
			
		

> *Holy CRAP!  That's amazing! Critical? Please tell me it was a critical. *




Uhm... Considering the damage you need to down Azrin... and the troll strength... I don't think he needed a crit to kill him on the spot. 

I am partially relieved that both players met a real heroical end. Nothing tragically like "I dropped into a hole"  

*twinkles to Old Ones campaign*


----------



## Plane Sailing

Piratecat said:
			
		

> *
> 
> Holy CRAP!  That's amazing! Critical? Please tell me it was a critical. *




Sorry, not a critical... the ordinary blow did about 24 damage (what with enlarged claws of the bear, trollish strength and a good damage roll). 

Poor old Azrin was suffering from the 3 negative levels he picked up when raising Syl from the dead, plus damage from the fight so far here, plus some earlier half-healed wounds (he had tended to use his healing for his friends rather than himself). The damage was enough to kill him instantly.

I'm rather sad to see the clumsy and weak librarian of "Asura the Knowing" bite the dust - he was a fun character, often despised by the other characters and often facing theological disagreements with Lysander, but with a heart of gold... and able to read just about any language they came across.

Plus he was a walking plot-hook


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Re: I am beaten!*



			
				Darklone said:
			
		

> *
> I am partially relieved that both players met a real heroical end. Nothing tragically like "I dropped into a hole"
> 
> *twinkles to Old Ones campaign* *




There have been a couple of near-death experiences, like when Syl was knocked off the mountainside by a boulder earlier on in the adventure - fortunately she was the one character with Featherfall! During the fight with the Bonetangle K'Tan would have gone down if he hadn't given himself affinity with a tortoise and boosted his Con considerably. Trajan nearly copped it in this battle when he got himself surrounded.

I hear that actors particularly look for good death scenes when they are checking a potential script. At least all of these guys who died have had great death scenes!

Cheers


----------



## Little_Buddha

Damn, that's a great fight. I've *yoinked* the metamorph and his power combo for sure!



			
				Ziggy said:
			
		

> *... put a competing (evil) party in there who is after the same goal... at least on of them have fling capabilities for an arial assault.*




Fling capabilities for an aerial assault? Damn those tinker gnomes!


----------



## Ziggy

Little_Buddha said:
			
		

> *
> Fling capabilities for an aerial assault? Damn those tinker gnomes! *




Well, the gnome aerial assault cannon(TM) can fling any creature up to medium size with a range increment of 70. Of course you better put some points into profession(aerial assault bomb), or take serious falling damage on impact    

.Ziggy


----------



## Plane Sailing

Phew!

The adventure came to it's senses-shattering conclusion last night! Fun and surprises to the very end - I'll starting writing it up tonight.

Cheers


----------



## Ziggy

Looking forward to the conclusion PS 

BTW, I've decided to use In Sound Mind IMC, planned the plot hooks for my game tonight, will probably start it next game (in two weeks). But no gnome assault cannons, just plain ol' Fly...

.Ziggy


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Enter the Dragon…*

While Lysander, Darra and Syl free the imprisoned children and help to calm them down (Lysanders tremendous diplomacy and personality really helping here),  K’tan, M’ir and Trajan approach the huge dried dragon corpse. They can see where Thimdrul flew down the gullet, and quickly circling around the back they can’t see any other way out – so they remove the spears which hold the jaws open.

K’tan and M’ir then cover Trajan with their crossbows as he starts hacking away at the side of the dragon, in roughly the location where its stomach should be. They all have pounding headaches now, and the voice which they have each been hearing in the heads is talking incessantly – threatening, wheedling, demanding.

The magical blade taken from the dragons horde starts slicing through the hard old scales. Suddenly there is a blue light leaking out from the sword rents, glowing and pulsing. Angling his cuts a little, Trajan makes an opening which he could squeeze through. Inside he can just about make out a small man clutching a melon-sized throbbing blue crystal.

“We are evenly matched” he cries. “You have spoilt my plans here, but let me free to rejoin my brotherhood and I’ll let you live!”

Trajan grimly presses through the hole he has carved, steeling himself to resist attacks – and he feels razor sharp claws slice his skin before he gets into the cramped confines himself. 

M’ir can’t see to act past Trajans bulk, so calling for help he runs round to the dragons head – and as companions hoist the jaws open, he starts crawling down the dead dragons gullet in the most bizarre attempt to start a flanking manoeuvre that he has ever experienced.

In the cramped conditions inside the belly of the dragon, Trajans bulk and the size of his longsword both play against him – but he is still skilled, and lands as many blows as he receives – each one joined by a blast of white light as lawful energy ploughs into the body of Thimdrul, whose schismed mind continues to heal himself.

Sweating, knowing that one more decent blow will kill him, Trajan presses his attack, and with a critical hit thrusts his sword straight through Thimdruls chest. Thrimdrul falls, gasping for air but Trajan keeps the sword in place – lawful energy continuing to blast into the mutables body until it dies, and the energy stops coursing.

“Wow” says M’ir, who has just finished his gullet crawl. As he watches, Trajan spins his sword round and decapitates his erstwhile foe.


----------



## Darklone

*hah who needs magicks?*

Here comes the hero!


----------



## Piratecat

Wow!  When I wrote the event, Cntxt and Sagiro read it and said, "Put in stats for the dragon's body. You *know* someone will try to go in through the body instead of down the throat!"


----------



## KidCthulhu

Hey, you prop open a door (even if it is a dragon mouth) and adventurers will close it.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Piratecat said:
			
		

> *Wow!  When I wrote the event, Cntxt and Sagiro read it and said, "Put in stats for the dragon's body. You know someone will try to go in through the body instead of down the throat!"   *




They looked at it and thought "ambush". They imagined crawling through there and into a faceful of duo-dimensional bears claws, and then thought again 

They closed the mouth because they didn't want a little birdy flying out again.

Part of me was tempted to have Thimdrul escape in order to plague them in the future - he would have made a great recurring enemy - but I decided that he was really ensnared by the Dragonstone, and finishing him off would give them a sense of closure. Mind you, the next section which I've entitled "Revenge on the mountainside" gave them even more of a sense of satisfaction.

I'll just have to wait upon the brotherhood of mutables to find out stuff.

nb in my campaign the mutables (egoists) and telepaths are the two banned, evil branches - because with one, you never know who they are, or what they are doing, and they can suddenly sprout evil teeth and claws; with the other... well, just look at Mind Seed and that body-swapping one and tell me that those aren't thorougly eeeeeevil powers 

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

*Telepaths?*

Worst thing about telepaths: You never know if you didn't actually like them. You don't even remember anything bad about them. Everyone likes them. They didn't do no harm. 

*Darklone buying everything to raise his will save.*


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Revenge on the mountainside...*

Dragging out the body of their foe, and momentarily leaving the issue of the crystal on one side, they check out the remainder of the room – and find a huge passage stepping down towards a cave mouth and the outside!

Very wary of an ambush, Trajan and M’ir work their way down the passage, using ropes that must have been left there by the goblins to descend to the first passage and then to the “balcony” at the cave mouth – a wide semicircular platform with piles of boulders, javelins and arrows. A quick search shows nothing hiding on any of these areas, so they start peering down the side of the mountain – and catch sight of a gnoll attempting to climb quickly down the sheer slope.

Grinning with glee, M’ir starts hurling rocks down the mountainside at the gnoll, shouting out “try some of your own medicine, you b******!). Trajan joins in with a few well-aimed arrows, and the gnoll is dislodged, and falls howling to his doom. A 650ft fall at that point makes for quite a long howl.

Checking further, M’ir’s keen eyes spot the goblin well hidden somewhat further down, and he starts launching a few more boulders. The sound of hammering wafts up from below, and they see the goblin gesturing at them ferociously as he lets out a long, long line of rope – then quickly abseils the rest of the way down to the scree slope.

Figuring that the goblin isn’t going to be a further threat, they go back to investigate the glowing blue crystal.


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *Figuring that the goblin isn’t going to be a further threat, they go back to investigate the glowing blue crystal. *




They actually let him escape? 

Strange players you have ... Mine would have jumped from the cliff before letting him go!


----------



## Plane Sailing

I was actually really pleased that they showed a bit of planning a this point - they didn't "lose sight of the mission" as it were... and they certainly didn't want to leave a glowing, mind-affecting blue rock behind them


----------



## Piratecat

Hurray, he escaped! He was hoping to escape. Assuming that was who I think it was. Clever little bugger.


----------



## Plane Sailing

I think you are probably spot on... 

Can you imagine the stories he'll be telling all his little grandgoblins in years to come? I imagine his version of the events near Bellhold could be quite entertaining!

What a life for a spy, eh? Everyone out to get you...


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *Can you imagine the stories he'll be telling all his little grandgoblins in years to come? I imagine his version of the events near Bellhold could be quite entertaining!*




I bet it will sound a little bit more like him standing with his back on the wall, heaps of fallen enemies at his feet as he fought valiantly against superior forces that kept him just barely from saving that crystal all by himself.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Sounds like you are spot-on with the goblin psychology Darklone!


----------



## Plane Sailing

As they turn their back on the late afternoon sun, they can hear loud and clear the “bongs” of the wrymcall bell down in the town square, marking out the end of another working day down in the besieged town.

Returning the to dead dragon, their minds are being continually assaulted by the glowing crystal, throbbing away and demanding that they bow down and worship it (although it keeps getting distracted by the thought that it doesn’t have a body any more). M’ir gingerly pokes the crystal into a sack,  hoists the sack up and attempts to smash it into the wall - and finds his mind viciously assaulted as it attempts to stop his breathing. Trajan likewise throws off an attempt to dominate his mind.

After a few rounds of these mental assaults, as if in a sulk, the Dragoncrystal says “You are insignificant to my plans anyway. Serve me, mortals, or it will be the worse for you in the long run”.

Trajan remembers the huge gem cutting equipment they saw on the creatures workbench, so they go back into the cavern and up onto the table, selecting an 8 ft long chisel and a similarly sized hammer used for splitting crystals. 

Removing the Dragonstone from the sack and wedging it in a corner, M’ir kneels and holds the chisel steady while Trajan takes huge wacks at it with the hammer. With each ringing “clang” of the steel upon steel the Dragonstone flashes a bloody red, before returning to its normal pulsing sapphire blue glow. Chips fly off – but the crystal is extremely tough, and seems to regrow itself almost as quickly as they damage it. After three minutes of frantic hammering (and one wild swing which nearly took M’irs head off) Trajan is fatigued and the crystal looks almost as good as new.

What next?

“Perhaps” wonders Trajan “this crystal is like yours – just the focus, and his real power is elsewhere… Maybe in that strange glowing linked crystal thing we saw on the dragons workbench?”

“Right. Lets smash it” K’tan and M’ir agree.

Once again they make their way back into the cavern, grappling hooks are attached to the crystal construct, and with a few big heaves – it comes smashing down onto the floor of the cavern.

The shattering sound seems to go on and on and on, and on the floor where it hit, it almost looks like there is a shattering in reality, fragments of spacetime falling away to reveal…


----------



## Little_Buddha

You *bastard*! Nice timing of posts


----------



## Piratecat

Now there's something I hadn't thought of...!


----------



## Plane Sailing

A shining portal, a rainbow flash of colour and a momentary sense of something collapsing. Then amongst the crystal shards they are astonished to see a person - a young woman – quickly get up from the floor. A brightly coloured Macaw flaps to her shoulder as she steps back from them and brings her rapier up en garde.

“What do you be doing here?” she asks. “And why not be the dragon gristing your bones, eh?”

“Umm, the dragon has been dead some fifty years or more, that’s why” says Trajan.

Her shoulders slump.

“Fifty years? FIFTY years? But the dragon would torment me regularly in that prison – he would come every… every… I don’t know how often... It was a place of swirling greyness with no time to it…”

_This was a little demi-plane with the timeless attribute which I decided that Copperdeath used to keep certain “toys”. _

Trajan and M’ir try to help Marie-Anne adjust to the fact that fifty years have passed in the outside world while she has remained a prisoner in time. They discover that she is a sword-coaster, daughter of the owner of what was a reasonable merchant concern. She used to travel on her dads boats, and spent much time training with “uncle Jarr”, a renegade from the Scarlet Brotherhood (an evil band of monk pirates who plague the coastline). After a family tragedy she left the ships for dry land, training as a fighter and attempting to right wrongs throughout the sword coast and further inland. She can fight in the traditional two-weapon style of the Sword Coasters, normally using a sword biter in her off-hand. This and the distinctive tassels on her swords earned her much respect as she travelled the Southlands with her pet Macaw.

Finally, rumours led her path to a town under the domination of a dragon – more true than she had expected. The dragon found her mildly entertaining and more resourceful than most of his pets, so he decided to store her in a demiplane that he had once created, visiting her in order to torment or toy with as he pleased.

And that is where she has just been rescued from. What has happened to her family and friends in the meantime? What has changed in the world? She must wait to find out…

_Marie-Anne is a Monk2/Fighter4, with the whirlwind attack feat chain plus a couple of other things. Replacement character for Azrin._

Together, they return to the main hall of the dragon, and decide what to do next about the dragonstone. 

They decide that the dragons consciousness  must reside in that crystal. Furthermore, it seems to not like loud sound. “What”, wonders Trajan, “About the Wyrmcall, the big bell down in Bellhold?”.

“You must be nuts!” retorts M’ir. “The thing has been twisting peoples minds down there for weeks – what is going to happen if we bring the crystal down amongst them eh?”

Lysander chips in - “What about we send Darra, Syl and K’tan with the children down the inside of the mountain, I’ll go down to the village and tell them that the children are rescued and get the townspeople to meet them at the old mine shaft. I can be pretty persuasive”.

The plan is agreed. Lysander sets off quickly down the cliff to mobilise the towns people. Trajan, M’ir and Marie-Anne follow carefully with the dragonstone in a sack. Darra, Syl and K’tan start to shepherd the frightened children down the slither ramp to safety…

Next: Ask not for whom the bells toll…


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *Marie-Anne is a Monk2/Fighter4, with the whirlwind attack feat chain plus a couple of other things. Replacement character for Azrin.
> 
> Next: Ask not for whom the bells toll… *




Huih! Monk Whirlwind... Your players all seem to go for high will saves, eh? 

Let it ring!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Darklone said:
			
		

> *
> 
> Huih! Monk Whirlwind... Your players all seem to go for high will saves, eh?
> 
> Let it ring! *




Well, she's mostly fighter but with a bit of monk because she is aiming for the "Sword Coast Duellist" prestige class, which requires tumble skill. I think that my Poet class (think a spell-less bard) would have been a better fit with the nationality, but the link in to the scarlet brotherhood is something I can use. What if "Uncle Jarr" went on to become a venerated elder amongst the evil scarlet brotherhood? See "timeless body" in action!

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Ask not for whom the bells toll…*

Bidding farewell to the others, Darra, K’tan and Syl start shepherding the children through the caverns and to the slither ramp, back down into the old mine. At least they got the easy job this time.

The children “ooo” and “ahh” at the multicoloured waterfall, but as they start down the slippery ramp one of the children turns to Darra and with big eyes says

“Mr, I’m scared” <lower lip trembles> “Please can I hold your hand?”

Darra takes the small little hand in his own – and suddenly finds his mind almost overwhelmed by a deluge of strange impressions and discordant futures! He takes 7 points subdual damage and staggers back!

The child steps towards him, with the same kind of glint in its eye that you might expect if he was pulling the wings off a fly

“Sorry mister, it was an –accident-“ as he reaches out to touch Darra again.

Simultaneously one of the other children looks over at Syl, who finds his arms gripped by some mental force – but which she is able to shake off. “Right, I’m going to have you” she says, drawing her sword.

“Wait, the’re only kids” shouts K’tan

Darra knows that he cannot take another one of those touches so he steps back and judging the size of the shaft carefully. Once again he twists his fingers and then points out towards the kids and a massive web explodes outwards, catching Syl and all three children. The small children have no chance of escaping from the clinging strands, and Darra then intimidates the child who attacked him in best full-on parental mode.

The kid who attempted to mentally attack Syl is still active but K’tan is able to use his far punch talent to knock him out. K’tan below, Darra above and everyone else trapped in sticky webs, they decide to wait until the webs expire (since they aren’t a dismissable spell that will be about an hour).

Still, at least the other guys must be having it easier, eh?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Pop quiz - dramatic imperative suggests that I leave the story dangling at this juncture until tomorrow...

But I've got the next installment ready. Do I post twice in one day? Could this be considered greedy


----------



## Piratecat

Bwah ha ha ha ha! That's great!

More, please. Now.


----------



## Plane Sailing

As Trajan, M’ir and Anne-Marie reach the top of the scree slope at the base of Steeple Mountain, they can see a stream of people moving out from the town towards the woods and the Old Mine.

They make their way through dark and somewhat quieter streets than normal for this hour in the evening until they are almost within sight of the Wyrmcall plaza when disaster strikes. Rounding a corner, M’ir walks almost straight into someone. While they start bluffing their way away from the man there is a sudden flare of blue light from the sack holding the dragonstone crystal which is mirrored by a flare of blue light in the eyes of the man talking to them!

What is worse, the dozen or so people that they can make out in the plaza all turn to face them with eyes blazing sapphire blue too! A voice issues from a dozen throats at once

“YOU you MUST must SERVE serve ME me NOW now!”

“Quick!” says Anne Marie “Run for the tower, I’ll hold them off”

“FOOLISH PLAYTHING plaything” the voices chant “GET BACK IN YOUR CAGE cage!”

Anne Marie charges towards the group of four townspeople who are between them and the tower and is promptly grappled by the group of them working together. The others speed past her to the belltower door – it is locked!

Back at Anne Marie, she wriggles free from the group surrounding her and then spins into a blur of action – fists and feet lash out in all directions and she is surrounded by four unconscious townspeople.

_Whirlwind attack at its best!_

At the belltower Trajan is having difficulty battering the door down – his feet must keep slipping on the frosty ground because he is not getting anywhere, and all around the square more and more townspeople are lurching quickly towards them, eyes blazing blue. Lysander had managed to take many out of the town square with his urgent message to meet the rescuers of the children, but now women and children are coming out of their houses and men hurry into the square.

Over it all the voice of the dragoncrystal is heard loud and clear from a hundred throats

“KNEEL! KNEEL AND SERVE ME me!”
“MY GLORY SHALL BE COMPLETE complete!!”
“YOUR LIVES ARE *MINE*!!! mine!! mine!”


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *“Quick!” says Anne Marie “Run for the tower, I’ll hold them off”
> 
> Whirlwind attack at its best!
> 
> “KNEEL! KNEEL AND SERVE ME me!”
> “MY GLORY SHALL BE COMPLETE complete!!”
> “YOUR LIVES ARE MINE!!! mine!! mine!” *




Nice  Heroically  Let's call it foolish! Hehehehehe...

How many lvl1 commoners can you survive as a lvl6 multiclasser ?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Actually it is a surprising amount... In the grand finale coming up you will see combat reflexes kicking in too as well as the whirlwind attack

Anne-Marie turns out to be (unknowingly) perfectly designed for this part of the adventure - being part Monk meant it was easy for her to make subdual attacks, nice for keeping the townspeople down without killing them, whirlwind attack and combat reflexes made her a superb defensive backstop for the party!

I'll get writing on the final part and What Happened Next.

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

*I can imagine... *

Yeah, monk fighter rocks for that thing. Good AC, good at grappling, ... btw. Monks can do subdual damage with normal attacks too? I thought they can only choose while grappling without penalties...

Hah! _Darklone leaves towards the rules section for a new thread about how to stop hordes of commoners with a lvl6 char!_


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Re: I can imagine... *



			
				Darklone said:
			
		

> *btw. Monks can do subdual damage with normal attacks too? I thought they can only choose while grappling without penalties...
> *




Yep! Can't give you the page number of anything, but I remember it says that Monks can make unarmed subdual attacks at no penalty.

_Quickly checks SRD_


> Usually, a monk's unarmed strikes deal normal damage rather than subdual damage. However, she can choose to deal her damage as subdual damage when grappling.




OK, Consider this a house rule then. I see it as a reasonable one, since normally all unarmed attacks are considered subdual. Otherwise it is no easier for a monk to subdue someone with his pounding fists than it is for someone wielding a battleaxe 

Just a warning... don't go rushing off to that rules forum too quickly!


_Thinks... I was *sure* I read somewhere about Monks being able to freely do subdual damage. I'll have to go through my PHB when I get home tonight_


----------



## (Psi)SeveredHead

That was a Sage ruling called "Monk gonna knock you out", and also in the 2nd printing of the PHB.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Back to the story (at last!)

--------------------------------

Finally the door is kicked in. Trajan runs upstairs with the crystal, M’ir grabs hold of the bell rope and waits for instructions, Anne Marie unleashes another whirlwind of blows and takes down another half dozen townspeople, then steps into the doorway to prevent others passing.

Trajan places the crystal under the Wyrmcall and shouts out “Now!, Pull the bell now!”. M’ir starts ringing the bell and thunderous tones hammer into Trajan and the crystal pulses scarlet, cracking across its edges.

More zombified townspeople attempt to pile onto Anne Marie, but her reflexes and skill are punishing, and only one manages to get a grip which four others fall to the ground stunned. 

“STOP!! stop!” yell the voices. “I WILL GIVE YOU ANYTHING anything!”

One of the possessed townspeople manages to slip past Anne Marie’s guard and lunges at M’ir, attempting to stop his frenzied ringing of the bell, but he swings around and with a swift karate kick lays out the opposition. 

Up above, Trajan is starting to succumb from the terrible sound of the bell himself, but seeing the crystal deteriorating further he slides back down the hatch and cries out “keep ringing, keep ringing”

Anne Marie is surrounded by a pile of unconscious bodies and is a whirling blur of fists and kicks, stunning those attempting to grapple her and all those who surround her.

Then suddenly it is over.

There is a mighty splintering sound from the top of the bell tower, and a howl raises from hundreds of voices before suddenly ceasing – as if a door was suddenly closed on it. The townspeople collapse like puppets with cut strings, and the blue light disappears from their eyes.

The battle is over.


Back on the slither-ramp...


----------



## Darklone

*Wow.*

Pkitty: Horrific adventure. Plane Sailing: Grats for an amazing story hour.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks Darklone! It has been a blast!

The epilogue is still to come up though... and I'll continue the companys exciting adventures in this thread 

Cheers


----------



## Piratecat

Ohhhh, I wish I was there.


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Meanwhile, back on the slither-ramp...*

The children caught in the web start crying softly, and calling out for their mummy. A clear change has come over them, and when the web eventually dissipates the strange evil possession of the children has ended. Syl and K’tan help lead the children round and round the ramp and down to the base of the waterfall. Darra uses some prestidigitation to cheer the children up in the process.

The pool at the base of the waterfall is now empty. Darra finds himself pestered by his raven familiar “Awk, tasty treats, can I have the tasty treats”

“What do you mean, Awk?”

“Over here, lovely tasty treats” The raven perches on the wall at the edge of the pool, looking into the water. “Nice eyes, Awk”.

Darra peers over the ledge and sees the waterlogged faces of two partially eaten people, wedged under the water. He recoils in horror, but realises that this must be the remaining two “heroes of the bell” who had preceded them into so much of the mines. 

Gritting their teeth, they haul the bodies out, and remove a couple of identifying marks – a signet ring here, a sodden scarf there – so that in time their bodies could be recovered and properly buried. Of the fey creature that was bound here by Copperdeaths power there is no longer any sign.

Comforting the children yet again, the three heroes lead the children back through the mine tunnels and out to the entry shaft. The copper plate at the top has been peeled back letting more pure daylight shine down onto the rotted platform. Dozens of faces are peering over the edge, and Lysanders triumphant voice calls out “The heroes return with your children! Give them the heroes welcome they are due!”

With cheers, Darra, K’tan and Syl, with the children are lifted out of the shaft on ropes. there are tearful reunions with parents up above, and the three are carried shoulder-high back into the town of Bellhold.

Entering the wrymcall plaza with cheers and shouting, they see a small crowd outside the Bell & Clapper, including amongst them Trajan, M’ir and Anne-Marie.

“Hey!” calls out Hob the mayor “While you’ve been drinking here, some of your friends have found the children!” Join us in giving praise to the new heroes of Bellhold!”

Trajan says “Pardon?”, his ears still ringing from the proximity of the giant bell earlier. M’ir gives him a wry look.

They follow the others into the taproom to continue their celebrations.


----------



## Plane Sailing

*So "Of Sound Mind" is over - if you've enjoyed it, would you like to stick around and see what the gang gets up to next? I'd love to continue to see you! *


A lot of experience has been gained during the adventure, and the company feel the need to spend some time training and thinking through the things which they have learnt. Once they see to the completion of the new bell required by the Asuran temple at Knightsbridge, they settle down in Bellhold, enjoying the adoration of the local populace (and being rewarded with medals). They oversee operations to recover bodies from the old mine, recovering the wealth of copper coins and other materials from the dragons eyrie (Syl wants to take it as “spoils”. Trajan insists that it was mined by the townspeople, it belongs to the townspeople)

Three weeks are spent on training. K’tan works out how to freely trigger his concussive blasts and learns how to featherfall (after that mountain climb) and produce a cone of destructive sound. Trajan’s apprenticeship with Lysander is paying off, and he gains another level in Jazumai. Darra was tempted by the power of the fireball he unleashed from a scroll, but instead gains the knowledge to dispel magic and cast invisibility.

The party levels at this point are:
Lysander: Jazumai 7/ Sorcerer 1
K’tan: Mage-Savant 7
M’ir: Mage-Seer 6 / Monk 1
Darra: Sorcerer 7
Syl: Rogue 4 / Sorcerer 2
Anne Marie: Fighter 4 / Monk 2

During the training period, Darra notices that he is being scried upon. It seems that the Blessed may still be after him (or all of them). They decide to return to Knightsbridge and the security of Mithril Manor before drawing up their future plans, so despite the bitterly cold Midwinter weather, they set off for home.

The roads are empty and untravelled, with deep snow everywhere. As cold as this month normally is, this is particularly bad. For the first night out they find a sheltered hollow away from the road and settle down around a large fire. 

Awk comes to complain to Darra “Not fair boss. Wanted tasty treats but they are too frozen. awk.”

“But I didn’t give you any treats” says Darra.

“Frozen treats in snowbank, awk” the raven cackles. “Not human, don’t eat human treats boss. Dead horse, awk”.

Intrigued, the party move a little way away from their fire and indeed find a large snowbank with part of the hindquarters of a horse protruding from it. Frozen solid. It doesn’t look as if it ran into the snowbank, nor as if it were dropped. Digging it out partially shows it to have been savaged. There is no sign of a rider. Curious.

Later that night, Anne Marie is on watch when a bank of fog suddenly rolls out across their hollow and covers the camp. Quickly she and the other guard rouse the others. Then the still night is split by a blood-curdling roar which raises the hairs on their necks and sends the horses wild with terror. A cone of freezing cold rips out through the fog, burning all the horses and most of the party with extreme cold. Trajan grabs his horse, Lightning, and keeps him calm but the others break their tethers and run madly off. As Lysander and M’ir dart towards the source of the icy blast, their hear a flap of wings and a whistling sound as something darts over their heads, following in the direction of the horses.

Darra deduces that the fog bank is magical and manages to dispel it. They can hear the sound of panicking horses in the distance, and Anne Marie sets off on foot; Trajan calms his horse and races off too. Ahead there is the horrible sound of a horse screaming, and then silence. In the darkness it takes them too many minutes to find the location and when they arrive there is the frozen carcass of K’tan’s horse, and plenty of blood – but no attacker. Wary, they track down and calm the remaining horses. In the few hours of night left, they all stay watchful and alert.

Morning dawns crisp and clear, with no further attacks – but in this arctic cold and snow it is difficult to make good speed. M’ir remembers the monolith where they rested safely on the way out, and they try to make the best speed they can for it – pushing the horses as much as they dare and carrying on into the twilight, they eventually make it to the monolith…


----------



## jonrog1

Piratecat said:
			
		

> *YEAH!
> 
> Author note: it was originally going to be cows, but a friend asured me that psionic cows are silly.  Good advice, I think. *




Particularly disturbing image, as the way Othic died was a mockery of his relationship with the horses -- that is, what he had done to the horses, they did to him (the bridle).

Seeing as you _milk_ cows, I shudder to think what my dwarven ranger would have discovered when he rolled that corpse over ...

And Ross, if you're reading, I only got as far as the above qote, I'm not cheating!


jonrog1


----------



## Plane Sailing

jonrog1 said:
			
		

> *
> 
> Particularly disturbing image, as the way Othic died was a mockery of his relationship with the horses -- that is, what he had done to the horses, they did to him (the bridle).
> 
> Seeing as you milk cows, I shudder to think what my dwarven ranger would have discovered when he rolled that corpse over ...
> 
> *




Hi Jonrog,

Sorry that you can't read the rest of the story (yet!), but somewhat envious of you being able to play through the adventure!

Hope you'll be able to come back and check it out once you've completed it yourself - see how a different party fared 

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Interlude*

Camping the night at the monolith, those on guard wonder whether there is the sound of a pursuer in the night around them, but the ancient magic of the monolith holds true, and they are not disturbed.

The next morning they press on and down towards Knightsbridge. It has been over a month since they were last here and the shanty town of tents on the nearside of the stone bridge seems to have grown a little. As they get nearer many beggars wrapped in threadbare blankets shuffle out asking for help, for money, for clothes. Lysander is deeply cut to see his countrymen in this state, and resolves to do something about it. He and Trajan wander into the encampment and see people huddling around fires, living in wagons and tents which are inadequate against the cold. Many people are frostbitten or ill. 

Seeking out a spokesperson amongst the refugees, Lysander learns disturbing news. Apparently people are leaving Singh in droves because of fear of the priesthood. Fear of the priesthood? Unthinkable! Yet village after village in the Sung district have been purged – populations carried off to who knows where at the orders of the high priest lords. Many well-to-do merchants have been leaving the country for the last six months. Fear and desperation started driving out farmers in the face of winter.

Back in the town, Lysander confronts Alkanar the high priest, and wants to know what is being done about the refugees. Pretty little, as it turns out. The Baron has decreed that while they can camp outside, they cannot come into the town walls. There is tremendous distrust amongst the refugees of priests, so Alkanar and his acolytes cannot work directly. Worse still, the unusually heavy winter is eating into everyones stores – there is little to go around.

The cost to obtain blankets and materials for the refugees is immense – some 4000 marks. Lysander decides to go on a charm offensive, making his way around to the guild leaders and shopkeepers, bringing the full force of his diplomacy and charm to bear. He gets the cost down to 3000 marks and the company start donating their money to purchase the goods (some more willingly than others!).

Meanwhile, Darra spends time in the Mithril Manor laboratory, developing alchemistical poison antidotes, M’ir gathers information around the town – and discovers rumours of war being threatened by the neighbouring Morannon (who claim that Lythau is sponsoring hobgoblin terrorists in their territory). Trajan travels up into the foothills to see his old mentor, and do some more training with him. He finds it an uncomfortable experience (“*slap* You are too slow! You move like a cow! *slap* Have you forgotten all *slap* that I taught you? And you use a longsword! *slap*. where is your spirit? I don’t care if it is magical *slap*”)

Meanwhile, Syl decides to try to hook up with the local thieves guild, picks up some information in the taverns and decides to make her way down to the Chatterstreet warehouses – and finds an awful lot more trouble than she bargained for.


----------



## Darklone

*Ugh. Ugh. ugh.*

With all those cliffhangers here at the storyhourboard, I need a permanent spiderclimb.

Btw, Trajan is what level now?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Sorry, I missed Trajan off the list, didn't I?

He is Ftr2 and just made Jazumai 5 (7th level character). He is completing his final preparation to enter the "Sword Saint" prestige class - a minor variant on the iaijutsu master class from Oriental Adventures.


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Warning. Some not very nice stuff happens here*

In the dark evening, Syl finds the appropriate warehouse – and a locked door. She spends many minutes attempting to pick the lock without success, when she is interrupted by a couple of ruffians walking down the street towards her.

“Ello Darlin’, wot you doin out this late?” calls one of them.

“You a Morannan spy?” snickers the other.

“Mind your own business” says Syl as she watches them approach.

“I think you ought to be showin’ us a good time, girly” replies the first.

Syl decides to take some action, but fails completely. The rogues quickly step forward to flank her and both strike with their saps, getting plenty of sneak attack damage. Syl collapses in a heap; they drag her into a nearby alley, strip her of her goods and, er, ‘assault’ her.

Hours later, Syl arrives back at Mithril Manor distraught, dishevelled and with torn clothes. Righteous anger fills her companions, most of whom set out to attempt to track down the ruffians straight away. Lysander takes a different tack, and lets it be known at the temple that he wishes to contact Laidley – the thieves’ guild girl who used to have a crush on Crail.

The next day the others have not had any success, but Laidley contacts Lysander, and recognises the description as a couple of Southspur bullies. By a little later that day she has found out which of the shanty town shacks they live in. 

Anne-Marie is all for charging down there and killing the bastards, but K’tan counsels that the rule of law should be followed within the city – they should be apprehended and brought before the Baron’s justice. Trajan and Lysander agree, and it is decided that is what shall happen.

In preparation for their visit to Southspur, Darra uses his new ability to cast invisibility on each of the party except for Lysander, who reads his scroll of Alter Self and makes himself look like a comely wench.

Then they set off for the rotten heart of Knightsbridge, the shanty town of Southspur.


----------



## Plane Sailing

_I got a little behind, so detail is a little weaker on this section I'm afraid _

*Justice at last*

As Lysander (in female guise) walks past the gate guards into Southspur, the sargeant of the guards, Clovellin, comes over. 

“Excuse me miss, but you don’t want to be going into Southspur on your own” he says. “Do you want one of my men to give you an escort?”

“No thank you, kind sir” simpers Lysander. “I’ll only be a short while”

“Well, holler out if you get into any trouble” replies Clovellin.

Lysander and his invisible companions file past the guards, with much invisible jostling and bumping, but nobody is given away. They make their way rapidly to a small building near the outskirts of Southspur. While Darra and others go round to cover the back, Lysander and Anne-Marie come to the front door.

“Open up” calls Lysander, “we want to talk”.

“Snut off, we’re resting”  comes a voice from inside.

Lysander kicks the door down and leaps into the small room, closely followed by Anne-Marie. The two ruffians leap up and defend themselves with daggers as a short but brutal fight ensures. Anne-Marie uses her whirlwind disarm ability to strike away the ruffians primary weapons with her swordbiter, and before long both of the villains are wounded and captured. They had managed to manoeuvre to get in a couple of sneak attacks, but were no match for a whole team that was ready for them.

Quick questioning revealed that the goods (and magic gloves) taken from Syl have already been converted into a ludicrously small amount of cash at “Billy the Fence’s place” and by now will be halfway to Tanor. Those goods are lost and no mistake. The prisoners are not though.

They are marched up to the magistrates office in the centre of Knightsbridge, charges are brought and the pair are found guilty.

The next dawn they are hung in the town square. Justice has been done.

Around about this time, Trajan returns from his sojourn with his master with some disturbing news. Up in his home village there have been several reports of a white dragon breaking into barns and killing livestock. It is his old village, this winter being so harsh they can’t afford the loss of livestock and the village can’t do anything about this dragon. It must be the one which attacked them a couple of weeks ago as they were on the way home from Bellhold.

Will the rest of the company come and help him deal with the problem? The few eyewitness accounts put it as a young adult, just on the cusp of becoming mature. If they don’t deal with the problem now it will only, as they say, get bigger...

next: Dragon hunt!


----------



## KidCthulhu

Ok, Plane.  That's just disturbing.  "Assaulting" a PC.  How did this come about.  Were you on a verisimilitude kick, or did the player just roll really poorly?  What gives?


----------



## Wulf Ratbane

Hey PS...

I just finished a marathon reading session here.

It's so good I got weepy! Some really heroic stuff there from your players, and tons of good DMing.

My players in OSM have just finished the attack on the goblins and it was a squeaker. Two 2nd level PCs, one down, and one at 2 hp, before it was all over.

Unfortunately Thimdrul and his toadie got away with the Dragonstone... 


Wulf


----------



## Plane Sailing

KidCthulhu said:
			
		

> *Ok, Plane.  That's just disturbing.  "Assaulting" a PC.  How did this come about.  Were you on a verisimilitude kick, or did the player just roll really poorly?  What gives? *




The player was rolling extremely poorly over a fairly long sequence, and made some extraordinarily bad decisions. At the time, considering the location, the situation, the known issues about Southspur it seemed the only logical thing to happen for verisimilitude. In retrospect it was something that I regretted and I would handle the situation differently in the future.

Fortunately the player was fully prepared to accept the situation and make use of it, so there were no hard feelings or other repercussions.

I don't expect to see it happen again though.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> *Hey PS...
> 
> I just finished a marathon reading session here.
> 
> It's so good I got weepy! Some really heroic stuff there from your players, and tons of good DMing.
> 
> My players in OSM have just finished the attack on the goblins and it was a squeaker. Two 2nd level PCs, one down, and one at 2 hp, before it was all over.
> 
> Unfortunately Thimdrul and his toadie got away with the Dragonstone...
> 
> 
> Wulf *




Hey Wulf, thanks 

You know that means a lot to me <fx: wipes tear from eye> since I particularly enjoy your storyhour... one of the few that I manage to read regularly.

Ah, Thimdrul and the dragonstone... the party might forget about them, but just guess how much they may have taught one another by the next time they meet in a few levels time! I love the idea that a year down the line your players might be facing a huge goblin uprising and at the back of it turns out to be the villains who escaped from OSM 

Is this in your "lazy days" thread, or written up elsewhere? I love reading about how other people have tackled published modules that I have run (or am likely to run - so I can cannibalise good ideas!)

So many thanks for dropping in, and spread the good word about my storyhour 

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

*Phew.*

"Assaulting" ..... Bad luck. Glad you handled it kinda acceptable. RPGs usually try to handle things independent of gender issues, but it's still a difference if a girl or a boy walks a dark alley alone...


----------



## KidCthulhu

I'm not saying you shouldn't have done it, Plane.  Actions have consequences.  It's just such a delicate subject that I'm glad that you and the player were comfortable going there.  Certain types of violence are taken for granted in D&D, and others are still considered forbidden (and that's a good thing!).


----------



## Wulf Ratbane

*Re: Phew.*



			
				Darklone said:
			
		

> *RPGs usually try to handle things independent of gender issues, but it's still a difference if a girl or a boy walks a dark alley alone...  *




I guess that depends what city you're in, really. Lot offered up his daughters, after all, and they didn't want 'em...

I was under the impression that the PC was female and the player was male. Whether or not that's the case, that's really the deciding point for me. I don't think I'd throw anything at a PC that is something personally sensitive to the player.

At any rate, verisimilitude is one thing, but if it doesn't add anything to the campaign, why even go there? There are ways to make the PC feel the repurcussions of her foolish decision without it. How? Drop the saps and use real daggers. If the PC wants to defend her honor  with her life, at least give her the option. Knocking her out removes that option. I'd rather have my PC killed than raped, any day-- but no matter what, I'd at least like to have the choice.


Wulf


----------



## Rune

*Re: Re: Phew.*



			
				Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> *I don't think I'd throw anything at a PC that is something personally sensitive to the player.*




Ah, but if you run horror, as I tend to do, you've kind of got to touch on issues that are sensitive to the player.  The question, then, becomes, "Where do I draw the line?"  The answer varies by player.  You have to know your players well enough to be able to draw that line and tread it, but never cross it.  

Obviously, this is not so important in more "boot-the-door" style games, in which I generally just don't have such topics come up, at all.

Post script:  Great story, by the way, Plane Sailing!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks guys 

A short interlude before the storm (or is that blizzard?)

M’ir decides that he is not going to continue with the company. He feels that he is not pulling his weight, and decides to return to Cadlan to hone his skills against the day when the Mind Flayers actually return.

The fighters set out immediately, to be followed a couple of days later by Darra and Syl. A couple of days on horseback leads them to Trajan’s home village. The stable boy at the small inn starts to make fun of Trajan when he takes their horses round back, but thinks better of it upon seeing his companions. Once inside the inn though, the innkeeper ribs him mercilessly. Lysander winks at him. “I can see why you left this place to find adventure”.

All the local talk is about dragons breaking into farms during the coldest part of the night or during sudden fogs. Ultricht, one of the locals had his barn vandalised just a couple of days ago, and the company decide to escort him home to his farm, about a league away, and see what they can find there.

Taking the opportunity to sleep at Ultrichts farm, they set out early the next morning and Ultricht displays a barn with the door torn off, and the frozen remains of one of his cows – hooves and chewed hip bones. The damage and the flash-frozen remains of the carcass confirms their suspicions. It looks like it is a white dragon all right.

Fighting something that can fly as fast and as powerful as a dragon is no easy task. But Lysander has a plan, and it is going to need all his Charisma to pull it off.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Back at the inn, Lysander calls a village meeting. His plan is to hold an ox-roast and celebration for the entire village, in order to lure the dragon to this particular location with tasty smells and festivities that it can ruin. The panicked alarm which appears on the faces of the villagers slowly turns to looks of grim resolve under Lysanders silver tongue and forceful personality. Watchmen will be set, all villagers are allotted bolt-holes to which they disappear at the first sign of an attack while the heroes deal with the dragon.

No time is wasted in getting things set up. A roasting pit is prepared and an ox slaughtered, instructions are given and watchmen set. The children enjoy themselves while the parents anxiously scan the sides of the U-shaped glacial valley in which they live.

“Alarm!” cries one of the watchmen, and there is a mad panic – villagers rush for their boltholes, children scream as they are grabbed up and manhandled to safety. The heroes prepare their weapons and stare in the direction which the watchmen point. They can see it! 

But it looks a little... small.

“Blast!” declaims Trajan. “Only an eagle. Everybody back”

It takes about half an hour to round everyone up and get them back to their positions around the roast. About half an hour after that, Lysander notices a couple of the watchmen talking about something. Curious, he goes to see them.

“What’s up, men?” he asks.

“Oh, I dunno. Charlie thinks he saw something looking over the cliff, but I reckon it was just the drink” 

“What!” shouts Lysander. “What!! Everyone under cover NOW!”

As a sheet of fog tumbles over the valley wall and rolls down over the village centre...


----------



## Darklone

*Haha!*

A DM going for the BADD honour medal


----------



## Plane Sailing

Well - it's only a White, and at this age they are pretty dumb (Int 8) so it ends up being treated like a very cunning animal rather than an extremely intelligent foe. It is still going to cause *real* headaches though!

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

A blast of freezing cold breath extinguishes the fire and freezes the roasting ox as screaming villagers run for their hidey holes. K’tan attempts to shepherd people to safety while Trajan, Anne-Marie and Lysander all converge on the sound of fearsome roaring. Trajan is first to get there and charges in to attack and receives a vicious bite on the way in, which seems to put him right off his strike. Anne Marie dances forward and barely scratches it with her rapier.

Lysander steps forward and calling upon Asura to smite evil, lands a fearsome blow, critically hitting the dragon – and marking himself out as a significant threat. The dragon is right next to him so it launches a full on attack, power attacking with its bite, claws and wings.

While Trajan and Anne-Marie bat futilely at its flank in the fog, Lysander stands his ground and lands two more solid blows _Dmnote: Crazy fool – going toe to toe with a dragon is a baaaad idea! _ and in return is struck by another flurry of wings and claws, severely wounding him.

At last Trajan lands a big blow on the dragon too, and with two thirds of its hp gone it decides to evacuate – a leap and tremendous thump of wings and the dragon is airborne, their remaining AoO glancing futiley of its horny hide.

First aid all around, and the healing power of Asura conveyed through his Jazumai’s hands help the wounded party, but not fully. They could do with several hours rest, but they know that the dragon has flown off up the valley and will be resting or preparing a counterattack, so they should set off quickly.

Leaving messages with the village elder for Darra and Syl, they set off up the valley. Eyewitness accounts have often mentioned the dragon flying up and down the length of the valley, and Trajan remembers a well-known ledge called “Lovers Look” which has a splendid view down the entire valley, and a cosy cave into which young lovers could retreat after viewing a beautiful sunset. It would probably make a great lair for a dragon which was only the size of a horse.

Leaving their mounts in the village, the company set off the couple of leagues westward towards the end of the valley, and Lovers Look.


----------



## Plane Sailing

The upper valley is thickly blanketed with snow, and the company nearly fall into two dangerous snow-covered crevasses. One was particularly nasty, with carefully crafted ice stalactites lining the bottom. By Asura’s grace,  reflex saves were made by the leading Jazumai and they reached the slippery path up to Lovers Look. Conversations were held in whispers, and they started moving very slowly and carefully, because even a cursory glance showed a massive snow overhang – and Trajan remembered stories of winter avalanches in this region.

Meanwhile, some way behind them Syl and Darra were catching up along the valley, having received directions from the headman. On foot like their companions, they mentally rehearsed their spells and skills on the way up the valley.

Trajan was the first to crest the top of the path onto the broad sweep of Lovers Look, and his initial glance took in the snow-covered outcrop, the glittering icy cave – and a pair of fierce green eyes, glittering with hatred and delight!

The dragon reared up and roared, a terrible reverberating sound which shook the hillside and nearly unmanned Anne-Marie and K’tan – although the two Jazumai stood fast. The roar of the Dragon was overtaken by a deeper and more thunderous roar as an avalanche of snow hurtled down upon our heroes!


----------



## (Psi)SeveredHead

Plane Sailing, have you had any trouble balancing psionics? I haven't had trouble with psionics in my campaigns, but lots of posters at the WotC psionics forum seem to.

So, I have 3 questions
#1: Did you have trouble balancing your PCs
#2: Did you have trouble balancing psionic NPCs or monsters?
#3: Did you use any psionic house rules (eg no psionic combat, ITCK, etc)?

Thanks in advance


----------



## Darklone

*Rendez-vous at Lovers Look!*

Lovely look!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Interesting questions, I'll do my best to answer them:

#1: I didn't think that there was a problem balancing the PC's, although one of the players suddenly upped and decided that he did. You will notice that M'ir the monk/savant is no longer present... his player felt that "his character wasn't pulling his weight in the group". Now, he had the best AC of anyone, and was one of the few characters to not even "nearly die". His level of monk was a good synergy with his Wis, contributing nicely to his AC, but it slowed down his rate of power use. He was comparing what he would be at his next level (mnk1/seer6) with what the Sor7 would be doing and was disappointed that he couldn't throw lightning bolts like the sorcerer. He had a character with great versatility but very little direct power in one direction. The other "psionic" character, K'tan is fine at present.

#2: I've not had any trouble balancing "psionic" NPC's or monsters. As you'll see in my next answer, I treat it as just another kind of magic. Actually, the answer isn't strictly true... I find it as difficult balancing encounters as it always is 

#3: I do have some psionic house rules (over and above the standard "same as magic" option).

a) No psionic combat at all. I've completely ditched everything about direct psionic combat. This is because it doesn't fit with my vision of using the psi rules as just another kind of magic, and because I think it is more of a hindrance than a help to psionic characters! Mind Blast is the only thing rescued, and it has become a 5th level Telepath power.

b) Psions get a bonus metapsionic feat at 1st level and every 5 levels.

c) The _Concussion_ series of powers is a ranged touch attack with no saving throw, and can affect objects. This has caused plenty of fun as slightly missed concussions blew chunks out of walls, knocked down doors and such. It also means it can be used against undead (which technically, the standard book version cannot!?!)

c) I have my own "power scaling" variant. There are two elements to it basically. Firstly, you can put less pp into any damage-causing power which you can manifest. Thus a 6th psion could manifest "burning ray" with 2pp for 2d6 damage, a 10th shaper could use from 1pp up to 9pp when manifesting "burning shroud"

The second part of the variant is that higher level powers use bigger damage dice. I'll admit that this isn't playtested thoroughly for the very highest levels, but I'm running with it for now.

The basic principle is that higher level powers have an increased damage die - they make more efficient use of the pp expenditure. At any given level an effect with a fixed radius uses a lower die size, and one with a variable area like a cone uses a die two sizes lower. The basic rate  is summarised in this table. Sever the Tie is an exception because of its very specific target "audience"

<table border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="6"><tr align="center"><td><b>Spell level</b></td><td><b>base die size</b></td><td><b>fixed radius </b></td><td><b>variable cone</b></td></tr><tr align="center"><td>1-2</td><td>1d6</td><td>1d4</td><td>-</td></tr><tr align="center"><td>3-4</td><td>1d8</td><td>1d6</td><td>1d4</td></tr><tr align="center"><td>5-6</td><td>1d10</td><td>1d8</td><td>1d6</td></tr><tr align="center"><td>7-8</td><td>2d6</td><td>1d10</td><td>1d8</td></tr></table>

edit: since HTML is turned off!

Spell level | single target | fixed radius | variable cone 

1-2 | 1d6  | 1d4  | - 
3-4 | 1d8  | 1d6  | 1d4 
5-6 | 1d10 | 1d8  | 1d6 
7-9 | 2d6  | 1d10 | 1d8 


The rationale for doing this is described in some detail on my web site.

I've not decided precisely what to do with the 9th level power "detonation" yet - but it will be a while before I have to worry about that.

So that, basically, is the house rules which I use for "magery" - my version of psionics.

Cheers!


----------



## Darklone

*Huh...*

Just to chime in here ... I never had problems balancing psionics. They usually were less tough than the sorcerers. Lower powers and less spells/day (except for 1st level spells).


----------



## Plane Sailing

*At last an update!*

Nearly half a mile away, Dala and Syl see what looks like half a mountain side of snow hurtling down the valley towards them. They scramble for cover and avoid most of the damage. Then they set off across the fresh snowfield to the lip of lovers look, to find their buried comerades.

As they near the location, they hear a familiar sound – the rising shout of K’tans concussion power, and a fountain of compacted snow blowing away from him. They help dig the others out, and after some rudimentary first aid they look over the cave mouth – now blocked with snow. Dala whips out his burning hands wand and starts to carve a way through the snow, whilst the others stand back. After a few rounds he is through, and beyond the cave is an icy, sparkly wonderland.

As a preparation, Dala gets out a scroll of Fire Shield, and tries to cast it upon Trajan. Much to his surprise, he finds himself wreathed in warm orange flames! Hesitantly, they step forward… K’tan and Syl bring up the rear, while Anne-Marie, Lysander and Trajan press forward, and Dala angles to the side. He is the only one who is keeping on his feet in the icy cavern, as the others are slipping and sliding as if the floor had been greased.

Rounding the corner first, Lysander sees the dragon waiting – and a cone of freezing breath engulfs him. He decides to press an attack forward towards the dragon, while Annee-Marie helps Trajan to his feet and attempts to gain a flanking position. Dala catches the dragon in a blast of lightning, then starts to pepper it with magic missiles.

The action is fast and furious. Trajan attempts to get around the side of the dragon and is caught a mighty blow by its tail, and is smashed to the ground, bleeding. Lysander cuts the dragon badly but in return faces a full attack for his troubles, and the whirl of claws, wings and teeth hurts him badly – he decides that he can’t back down from it and remains toe to toe with the young adult dragon, cutting it twice more. The dragon then takes advantage of its tremendous natural weaponry  and putting additional power into its attacks the two claws rip away the last of Lysanders vitality and one wing slashes around and gashes his neck – Lysander falls to the ground dying.

Meanwhile Syl is attempting to creep around to Trajans body, to stop him bleeding to death, and Dala and K’tan continue to pour magical power towards the dragon, who decides that those magic missiles are just a bit too stinging, particularly in its current wounded state. The dragon charges towards Dala who makes a futile attempt to dodge, and its jaws close on his arm – and the resulting fiery backlash from the fire shield strips the skin from the dragons face and boils its eyes in their sockets!

A few seconds a spent surveying the carnage in the cavern – blood and draconic bile mingled everywhere – then the effort to keep Trajan and Lysander alive kicks into action. Fortunately both survived killing blows by the grace of Asura, and the party huddle together around a fire near the mouth of the cavern to watch the final rays of sunset shine along the gorge. Making every effort to keep the wounded warm and alive, a fitful night is passed, and refreshed in the morning both Jazumai call upon the power of their god to heal the worst of everyones wounds before the party slowly and carefully make their way back to the village with their trophies of war. – the skull of the white dragon and the odds and ends which were found in its meagre hoard… some of which lead to surprising conclusions...


----------



## Wulf Ratbane

*Re: At last an update!*



			
				Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> * The dragon charges towards Dala who makes a futile attempt to dodge, and its jaws close on his arm – and the resulting fiery backlash from the fire shield strips the skin from the dragons face and boils its eyes in their sockets!*




SOMEBODY ALERT B.A.D.D.!

We need an intervention! 

Well, it _was_ a stupid white, I suppose... but still... you'd think a white dragon would learn early on _not to chomp on the guy who is wreathed in flames!_


Wulf


----------



## Plane Sailing

Nah, it was a stupid white, not even mature yet 

the backstory to this liddle dragon is that in the unseasonably cold winter it was able to extend its range down into the lowlands, where it was starting to meet a range of interesting food (and avoiding confrontations with frost giants looking for a guard up in the mountains where it had been growing up).

As such, it had never really come across humans, let alone ones that could be a real threat to it... and with its 8 INT and the white dragon description as straight-forward aggressive"...

Not to mention it is a cool death for the dragon! much better than being nickle & dime'd to death by magic missiles.

- I would add that I made one serious mistake in the running of the dragon. I completely forget about its spell resistance (Doh!) which would have eliminated about half of the magical damage it took on average. Still, I had the desired effect - the weakest form of dragon, only as big as a horse, and it nearly totalled the party.

All that and just CR7


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *All that and just CR7  *




Yeah, the dragon CRs.... 

Kill them!!


----------



## Plane Sailing

There is a tremendous celebration in the village at the safe return of the heroes. Some of the old timers start looking at Trajan (“that young scamp”) in a new light now. A group of men make their way back up the valley to see the body for themselves. The skull is mounted on a pole and the village decide to rename their humble community “Dragons End”.

Amongst the few treasures recovered from the back of the cage there was a masterwork axe, short handled but with an exceptionally broad blade. A suit of chainmail that while broad across the chest was decidedly short in the leggings, a couple of backpacks, one of which contained a small chest with 6 carefully wrapped and exquisitely carved stumpy figures and a letter from one Jorish Baral, a mastercraftsman from Bridlerest. The other contains a small fortune in gemstones.

As strange as it seems, the evidence is that one of the recent victims of the dragon was one of the half-mythical dwarven race. But nobody has had contact with the dwarfs – or seen them – for many years!

Putting two and two together, the company reason that the dragon must have ambushed the dwarf and a courier, eaten them both and brought their goods back here. Apparently this mastercraftsman had been commissioned to produce these exquisite carvings, and this was a meeting to hand them over for payment.

Syl is all for dividing up the “loot” straight away, but Trajan is particularly concerned about that. He reckons that this doesn’t count as genuine loot, since Jorish is actually owed the payment for his work, and the dwarves haven’t got their artwork. K’tan, always mindful of his mission to avoid the threat of the mind flayers points out that dwarfs would be a valuable ally in any future battles, with their unparalleled knowledge of the roots below the mountains – and that this might be an opportunity to get “in” with them.

Eventually Syl is shouted down, and the decision is made – they will journey down to Bridlerest, a large city of artisans situated on the silverlode down towards the sea. There they will return the artworks and money to Jorish, and perhaps see if they can get a link into the Dwarves (perhaps acting as couriers themselves)

The route there will take them past the temple of elemental evil, where they have a score to settle with the hobgoblins and their leaders. Furthermore, they will pass a wizards tower where, 50 years earlier, Anne Marie had commissioned a pair of magic boots as payment for services rendered. Hopefully she will be able to pick them up before they progress further East along the river.

First though… the temple!


----------



## Darklone

*Hehehe*

"Ehm, good day sir, I just passed along the way and thought if you perchance know anything about the magical boots I ordered at the wizard who lived here some decades ago..."

Nice


----------



## Plane Sailing

The party make their way down the north side of the river silverlode, taking their normal precautions against the cold. A weeks careful riding brings them to the forest of twisted trees which hides the old temple of elemental evil. Planning their attack more carefully this time, they make their way to the edge of the clearing, then Dala cast invisibility on every member of the party.

They sneak past the guards at the outer wall, but as they reach the huge doors into the temple proper guard dogs start barking.invisibly they charge past the guards, jostling past them as the alarm is raised. Dala is last to enter, and he turns around and casts a web across the entire doorway while the others pound up the temple atrium. Trajan and Lysander take the lead, while Anne-Marie veers off to the left to prevent flanking, and K’tan and Dala veer to the right to get a clear field of fire. Syl sneaks quietly towards the rear.

On the dias at the rear of the temple is that armoured priest who defeated them before and his lieutenant, armed with a double sword. There is no sign of the Blessed though. The sound of booted feet echo throughout the temple and Lareth the priest starts casting his defensive spells while his bodyguard Grathak takes up a guard position.

Lysander is first to reach the altar rail, and he is taken by surprise as a dire ape lunges out from a stairwell at him, guided by its sense of smell and hearing. Luckily for him the raking claws miss, and he dodges past it into the sanctuary.

In the left wing of the temple hobgoblin children scatter away from Anne Marie and towards a back room from which a horder of elite hobgoblin warriors erupt. They charge at her with their two handed swords, and move to surround her. Anne Maries combat reflexes kick in, and she wounds several of them as they try to strike her – but between her reflexes, her monkish intuition, her expertise and the mage armour which Syl cast upon her before they entered… they can’t touch her. Then she starts unleashing a whirlwind of blows back with her rapier darting and pricking them.

Trajan and Lysander make it into the sanctuary at about the same time, and they become visible courtesy of an invisibility purge which was cast earlier.  Dala casts a lightning bolt at the dire ape which badly singes its fur. The ape charges towards the now-visible mage, but to his intense relief (and my great surprise) misses him. Lareth, the priest, casts a searing light at Dala but misses badly and fatally scorches his own dire ape (!).

Anne-Marie is hit by one of the greatswords and recognises that she is in a precarious position, even though she is still holding the attention of the majority of the hobgoblins. She calls out to K’tan “Blast me!”. He responds with a cone of sound which Anne Marie evades completely but which takes down half of the hobgoblin fighters.  “Again!” she shouts and although her teeth are rattled by the next blast the remainder of the hobgoblins go down.

Back on the main dias, a tricky fight is underway between Lareth with his enchanted quarterstaff and Grathak who keeps moving to make flanking opportunities against Trajan, the double sword biting viciously when combined with his sneak attacks.

Against her better judgement, Syl is persuaded to join in the fight, attempting to work around to a sneak attacking position herself.

Casting defensively, Lareth launches a confusion spell at Dala, who is dumbfounded and wanders off into the cloisters for the rest of the battle. Lareths armour is protecting him well from Lysanders assaults, and he joins in the concentrated efforts to take down Trajan. 

Suddenly there is a couple of well placed blows, and Trajan is down! The ringing sound of a huge gong sounds throughout the temple as Lareth quickly casts “Death Knell” and reaches forward...


... to be continued!


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Re: Hehehe*



			
				Darklone said:
			
		

> *"Ehm, good day sir, I just passed along the way and thought if you perchance know anything about the magical boots I ordered at the wizard who lived here some decades ago..."
> 
> Nice  *




I was quite pleased with Anne-Maries manner of introduction, because she makes a great "foil" for introducing snippets of geography or other information that she remembers from (what seems to her) a couple of months ago - but which may have changed greatly in that time!

I've managed to get behind on my writeups, so even after the temple is finished, and the death has been mourned over (did I say death? slip of the tongue, obviously ) I've still got to write up the two mind-numblingly horrible sessions at the wizards tower and the start of "The Standing Stone" adventure...

Ah, chores, chores


----------



## Plane Sailing

Once again, the grace of Asura saves Trajan’s life by the merest whisker, as his spirit resists the evil drain upon his remaining life. Syl attempts to step into the breach and takes an uncharacteristic melee swing at Lareth, but fails to get past his magical protections.

Lysander finally manages to take down the double sword wielding Grathak, but Lareth takes the opportunity to thrust back with his quarterstaff at Syl – and it strikes her temple with such force that she drops like a stone, with the audible *crack* of her neck breaking!

Anne-Marie charges up towards the sanctuary and vaults into combat with Lareth, and Lysander likewise turns his full attention on the evil priest. Lareth decides that descretion is the better part of valour and to their astonishment turns and runs right up the wall behind them! Their attacks of opportunity miss, and as Lareth sprints across the ceiling to the main doors they are running across the floor, keeping up with him – until he gets to the webbed doorway, which he simply slides through… the webs seem unable to adhere to his cloak, and he escapes into the night. 

It is going to be another hour before those webs evaporate, so the company decide to check on Syl, bring Dala out of his confusion and see what can be sorted out.


----------



## Piratecat

Shortest update ever - what, you trying to match me!  

Lord, I love dire apes. It must be my pulp roots, but there's just something about giant gorillas that fills me with glee.


----------



## Darklone

*Syl again???*

Nah! That's not fair!

She's really the groups whipping boy, ehm girl, isn't it? Darn, can't your strong boys look out for the nice girls?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Piratecat said:
			
		

> *Shortest update ever - what, you trying to match me!
> 
> Lord, I love dire apes. It must be my pulp roots, but there's just something about giant gorillas that fills me with glee. *




Hi PC - glad you're still reading!

Hey, I was on the second page, and I don't think anyone ever bumps ME  ... hence a short update 

(in truth I had a short gap at work this afternoon and was able to put a little bit more in)

One of the things about Dire Apes which is great is that they can turn out much worse than they look - although I'm betting that this one will have lulled them into a false sense of security since I think it only managed to lay one paw on one person before being finished off by its own boss (of all things!)

 - next, a little interesting negotiation with hobgoblins, and then we're off to see the wizard...


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Re: Syl again???*



			
				Darklone said:
			
		

> *Nah! That's not fair!
> 
> She's really the groups whipping boy, ehm girl, isn't it? Darn, can't your strong boys look out for the nice girls? *




It is a real shame about Syl - although it's not really captured here since I can't remember all the dialogue, Syl had really turned the corner in her relationship with Trajan and Lysander. They had always percieved her as a thieving, money grabbing fool who stuck in the background. Suddenly she had started taking a few more risks on their behalf, and after a bit of encouragement joined in the fight - and then suddenly it was all over.

I actually introduced a rule from Star Wars d20 to improve the survivability of the characters - when you reach -10, make a Fort ST against the damage which you just recieved... fail and you are dead instantly, succeed and you are unconscious and dying, make the same save again in an hours time. (and so on). This rule kept Azrin alive on three occasions, but his luck eventually ran out. Trajan has been at that point three times (one of which you haven't seen yet) and Lysander has once (fighting the white dragon).

My early games had such a high mortality rate, and I couldn't keep a plot going when all the "plot hooks" (PC's) kept dying!

In the next update you will meet Syl's replacement - a mysterious Mendonnan wizardess who talks with the wind...

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

While waiting for the webs to dissipate they check out the treasure horde of the goblin bosses, in an anteroom off the main sanctuary, discovering some coinage and a wide range of trade goods – the fruit of hobgoblin banditry.

Time passes. 

As the webs dissipate, they prepare themselves by the entranceway into the temple – and are surprised to hear a voice call out from around the corner in hobgoblin accents.

“You bastards! Give us our children back!”

The party look at one another. “Children?”

“Oh yes” says Anne Marie – “The children are locked and cowering in the room which the elite soldiers came out of”.

Negotiation ensues, the hobgoblins want to escape from this vile place before the priest or the sorceress returns. “This is no place to bring up a family” they complain. Eventually Lysander and Trajan agree to the terms, and allow a couple of the hobgoblins into the temple to bring their children out, before escorting the remains of the hobgoblin band through the horrible woods and into the scrubland beyond.

Instructing the hobgoblins to go and seek honest mercenary service up in the Borderlands, they are sent on their way, and the company continues southwards towards the wizards tower.

After a few days travel, they are surprised to see a small tent beside the road, with a lithe young Mendonnan woman standing, regarding them. Although the air is still and crisp today, her cape and hair blow as if in a gentle breeze.

“Greetings, travellers” she calls out. “The wind told me that you would be along this way. My path to adventure lies with you”.

Anne-Maries sharp eyes pick out the smoky outlines of a small creature circling around her, but neither Lysander nor Trajan have that familiar feeling of supernatural evil. They join, and introduce themselves.

Her name is *Arilyn*, a hawk-nosed Mendonnan who grew up in that city famous for its assassins – but she had always been a disappointment to her family. They worried that she would never be able to enter the service of one of the powerful families like her siblings planned to. Her life changed one day when she rescued a stranger in the city, and helped to nurse him back to health – a stranger who used books to prepare magic spells. She became his apprentice, and for several years travelled around with him, learning from his magic and his wisdom. She even started to scribe her own spell book, and found herself naturally drawn towards magic which reflected the air and the wind. 

One day, their path took them to a fork in the road, and while her mentor travelled left, she knew that the time had come for her to travel a different path. It was a difficult parting, as a great affection had drawn up between them. Shortly after that, she decided to call a familiar for company,  and casting the ritual during a thundery snowstorm she was astonished when a small portion of the clouds came down and introduced itself to her. It was at that time that she started the long journey to the East, through Caran pass and to this meeting place. Her familiar had heard stories of the company as she passed by Knightsbridge and the winds that had been with her since her youth directed her down this way.

After a very short discussion, the company decide to allow her to join them. Dala is somewhat scathing of someone who “has to get magic out of books”, and the pair needle one another continuously as they continue Southwards.

Drawing near to Holy Day, the second week of Floodwater, they spy the confluence of rivers where the wizards tower lies. With the waters surging in the first of the spring thaws there is clearly no safe way to get the horses across, but after a short discussion a plan is hatched. Trajan stays behind to look after the horses, Arilyn casts a spell and then flies up into the air, and one by one K’tan manifests “Featherfall” on each of the party, allowing Arilyn to shuttle them across.

Waving to Trajan, they make their way towards the valley which leads to the wizards tower. The harsh winter has left the area looking much bleaker than Anne Marie remembers, and the small stands of trees seem to have been chopped down – pity, they were so pretty.

Then they see the village past the head of the valley – with gates battered down – and rounding the corner a disciplined group of hobgoblin soldiers armed with large shields and two handed spears.


_Arilyn is a Wizard 6, with an air-elemental familiar, the replacement character for Syl_


----------



## Wulf Ratbane

Nice, still going strong!

Don't you think it's time to change the title of the thread, though?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> *Nice, still going strong!
> 
> Don't you think it's time to change the title of the thread, though?  *




I'm hoping to lure in new readers 

- or at the least alert people to potential spoilers which are in the text.

Maybe I could add "...and beyond" to the title?


----------



## Darklone

Nah. Simply keep on writing! A cloud familiar... I once knew a character with a permanent raining cloud over his head... The others thought it was a curse, but in reality he was a watermage and liked it wet...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Four of the hobgoblins open fire with longbows, but Arilyn creates a windwall between the two parties, and the arrows are deflected all over the place. Lysander and Anne-Marie move in to attack the hobgobline spear wielders, but they are obviously well trained fighters, taking full advantage of their long spears and combat reflexes to get several attacks of opportunity against their attackers. Even Anne-Maries spring attack doesn’t help against this hedgehog of spears.

The hobgoblins are clearly outclassed though, and as the fight continues and the magic users look on, the hobgoblins are slowly whittled down – although one of them manages to actually strike Anne Marie and gain a critical hit, which really hurt (took her down to half hit points).

At last, the hobgoblins are all dead. Ignoring Awk’s request to take advantage of the “tasty treats going to waste”, they press on into the village, and find it strangely deserted… strange because in many of the houses there is still food laid out on the tables, and childrens toys scattered across the floor. It is all cold now, but these villagers must have left in an awful hurry.

Careful examination of the gateway to the village reveals numerous tracks frozen into the mud – although nobody is a skilled enough tracker to make out the details, it looks like the villagers were herded out of here a few days ago by booted soldiers – probably hobgoblins. 

Concerned by this news, the party continue round to the valley leading to the wizards tower – siz hundred feet away from them they see it now, rising from a solid base into a carved spire, high in the sky. There is something odd, assymetric about the tower though. Dala sends Awk to go and have a quick look around the tower and he reports back that the room at the top of the tower has one of its walls blown completely out, probably a long time ago. Arilyn tries to send her familiar to have a more detailed look, but Smoke baulks a little. He has a bad feeling about that tower and is at pains to point out that he is not very robust at the moment!

As they watch, huge brass doors at the foot of the tower slowly swing open, and another troop of hobgoblins with similar armament troop out. Dala quickly makes himself and K’tan invisible, Arilyn hides while Lysander and Anne-Marie draw their bows and start to open fire at extreme range.  The hobgoblins hunker down and return fire in turn.

After a minute of fruitless arrow exchange, apart from a good hit by Anne Marie and a couple of truestrike – enhanced shots by Lysander, the missile fire has not been effective at this long range. The Hobgoblins drop their bows, ready their longspears and start to charge across the open ground towards our heroes.

In the meantime, Dala has been cautiously working his way down one side of the valley. Seeing the hobgoblin charge he waits, and prepares one of his favourite spells. As the yelling line of hobgoblins draws level with his position he throws his hands forward and utters a few sharp syllables – and a bolt of lightning crackles across the valley, frying almost all the hobgoblins in mid stride. The one survior attempts to make a break for it up the side of the valley but is shot by Anne Marie as he is climbing.

The way is clear to investigate the tower.


----------



## Darklone

*Wonderful*

Hobgoblin phalanxes and archers protected by towershield wearing comrades... that's the way to go  

There's nothing like scaring a mid level group with some puny little hobgoblins!


----------



## KidCthulhu

Hmmm. Tower shields.  Think Plane has been getting ideas from PC?  Tower shields are bad news.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Actually there weren't tower shields... I didn't fancy going in that direction because they are a pain to keep track of in combat. 

The hobgoblins were all 2nd level Fighters, and they had Combat Reflexes and Hoplite feats. The Hoplite feat allows a soldier to use a large shield (+2AC) and a longspear at the same time. After all, it was historical! The shield was mostly strapped across a shoulder or something IIRC.

If I'd thought about it it would have been good to have used tower shields for the same reason that PC used them to such great effect, but... I wanted them to get into the BIG fights (heh heh heh)


----------



## Plane Sailing

Anne Maries early years spent in monk training under her mentor makes her best suited for spying, so she creeps quietly through the main doors, into a vast hall, cold and dimly lit by flickering torches. From corridors at the far side rings the sound of metal weapons clashing and harsh hooting and jeering. Bypassing the doors, and taking advantage of the shadows, she investigates the corridors at the far end of the hall. The first she tries has a door with a barred window at the end, and a stairway that spirals up into the tower. Checking out the other corridor reveals a mirror of the first.

She peers through the barred window in the door and finds that she is looking into the ground floor of an ampitheatre – two wounded men are warily circling one another, while ranks of seats ascend up away towards the ceiling – many of which are occupied by... hobgoblins? No, it is something different... the creatures jeering and shouting as they watch the gladiatorial combat have horrible bat wings, and their goblin like faces have been distorted into muzzles filled with sharp teeth. It is almost as if hobgoblins have been horribly merged with something of dreadful, fiendish ancestry!

Carefully she creeps up the stairwell, and after three turns of the stairs she can hear the moaning and crying of injured people coming from above. Peeping ever so cautiously up into the room she sees a chamber of horrors. Chained around the walls are villagers – men and women from the abandoned village – weeping and moaning, covered with painful cuts and bruises and crying out in agony every time a large, half-fiendish bugbear casually flicks out with his whip to increase their torment.

Chilled, Anne Marie carefully slides back down the stairs to report back to her friends. Something has gone *very* wrong in the wizards tower since she was last here, five weeks – and fifty years – ago.


----------



## Wulf Ratbane

_...and beyond?_

Man, that's pretty lame.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Current character roster, in order of longevity:

Lysander:  Singharese Jazumai 8 / Sorcerer 1
K'tan: Cadlanian Mage Savant 8
Trajan: Southlander Fighter 4 / Jazumai 3
Dala: Southlander Sorcerer 8
Anne-Marie: Sword Coast Fighter 6 / Monk 1
Arilyn: Mendonnan Wizard 6

Lysander has been thinking more and more about the plight of the refugees from his country in the shanty town outside Knightsbridge, and he is considering abandoning his adventuring career to lead and care for those people, and give them back a home.

K'tan is itching to get on with what he sees as the big problem - that of the coming mind flayer insurgence - and he is chafing at the time spent on these "trivial side matters".

Trajan has been honing his skills and is nearly ready to attempt to put his old mentors training into practice, and take up the mantle of the Sword Saints once more.

Dala is still a hedonist, out for what thrills he can get out of life. He loves the feel of magic flowing through him, and like any addict wants to get more and more of a buzz. He is also becoming quite a ladies man.

Arilyn considers her life guided by a purpose, and often just stands to listen to the wind. She finds Dala's devil-may-care attitude irritating, and often wishes he would be more serious about things.

====

And a quick recap of the dead so far:


*Miranda*, Rog4/Sor1 - critically hit with a shocking burst sword wielded by Skrok, a goblin barbarian chief.
*Graculous*, Ftr5 - cut down by Skrok.
*Blodwyn*, Clr2 - fell 100ft to her death.
*Ynnsfeardh*, Mnk4 - brain eaten by a Mind Flayer
*Auriel*, Dru5 - infected with wereratism, left the party
*Kieran*, Ftr2 - cut down by goblin hordes
*T’kel*, Wiz1 - Run through by Skrok.
*Sula*, Rgr2* - cut down by the charmed captain of a group of caravan guards
*Crail*, Rog3/Ftr2 - critically impaled by wererats. Raised, killed by shocking grasp wand misfire, raised, killed by poison trap (wyvern venom)
*Azrin*, Clr5/Mnk1 - nearly bitten in half by fiendish megaraptor and finished off by her own shield other spell, raised, decapitated by Thrumdill, a rogue metamorph (in trollish form with duo-dimensional bears claws in effect)
*Syl*, Rog3/Sor2 - Killed by collapsing tunnel while running from huge stone dragon, raised, killed by the quarterstaff of Lareth the beautiful in the temple of elemental evil.

I wonder if I've missed any?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> *...and beyond?
> 
> Man, that's pretty lame. *




hey, I'm open to suggestions !


----------



## Darklone

Thanks for the character summary!


----------



## Schmoe

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *
> And a quick recap of the dead so far:
> 
> 
> Miranda, Rog4/Sor1 - critically hit with a shocking burst sword wielded by Skrok, a goblin barbarian chief.
> Graculous, Ftr5 - cut down by Skrok.
> Blodwyn, Clr2 - fell 100ft to her death.
> Ynnsfeardh, Mnk4 - brain eaten by a Mind Flayer
> Auriel, Dru5 - infected with wereratism, left the party
> Kieran, Ftr2 - cut down by goblin hordes
> T’kel, Wiz1 - Run through by Skrok.
> Sula, Rgr2* - cut down by the charmed captain of a group of caravan guards
> Crail, Rog3/Ftr2 - critically impaled by wererats. Raised, killed by shocking grasp wand misfire, raised, killed by poison trap (wyvern venom)
> Azrin, Clr5/Mnk1 - nearly bitten in half by fiendish megaraptor and finished off by her own shield other spell, raised, decapitated by Thrumdill, a rogue metamorph (in trollish form with duo-dimensional bears claws in effect)
> Syl, Rog3/Sor2 - Killed by collapsing tunnel while running from huge stone dragon, raised, killed by the quarterstaff of Lareth the beautiful in the temple of elemental evil.
> *




Man, this makes me feel like a push-over.  The group I DM is all about 5-6th level, and they've only had 4 deaths so far.  All of the characters have been raised, as well.  Hrrmph.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Well, I *am* a bit of a bastard (although not in Dinkledogs league, obviously!)

There was a higher proportion of early deaths since: 

(a) lower level characters are more fragile 

(b) I was still getting to grips with balancing threats for the players - and critical hits are easy to underestimate

(c) The players tended to not know when to retreat - too much standing in place and hacking, not enough tactical thinking.

Bad luck also has a remarkably detrimental effect on the longevity of characters - I make most of my significant rolls out in the open, and if the dice fall badly (or I get lots of crits in a row)...


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Where do little fiends come from?*

Carefully the party creep into the empty hall at the base of the tower, and slowly move up the stairs. Even though some of them are not particularly skilled at moving silently, the screams from the torture chamber easily cover their movement. 

Reaching the top of the stairs, Lysander takes in the situation with a horrified glance and leaps towards the half-fiend bugbear – only to come crashing down as its whip curls around his legs and trips him up. Then a wave of blackness sweeps out from the creature and engulfs the room.

Lysander struggles to his feet and swings out in the darkness, guessing the location of the creature, but it catches him with its whip once again, and once more brings him crashing down before following up with a heft blow from its spiked morningstar. The others cluster on the stairwell, wondering what do do as they hear the sound of oaths and fighting from within the wall of pitch black. The darkness prevents Lysander from dodging properly, and he is clearly being hit regularly by the fiend which has no difficulty in seeing in its own darkness.

Suddenly there is an unearthly scream as one of Lysanders blows strikes home, his blessed scimitar biting deep. The fiend moves back from straight melee combat and starts using its whip from range again to attempt to trip or disarm.

Anne-Marie decides that she can’t let her companion fight alone, and dives into the darkness, guessing by sound roughly were the creature is – and then unleashing her whirlwind attack to strike at all of the space around her (_DMs note: I decided that this was a smart move, and that the hard-won whirlwind attack was a good way of making an attack into every surrounding square, even though the 50% miss chance still applied_). Lysander readies an action to attack wherever the sound of impact comes from, and between them they score a couple of lucky hits and the creature dies, with curses still on its frothing lips.

The darkness fades away in wisps, and over the ever present moans and tears of the tortured villagers comes the cries “help us, please help us”, “in the name of Asura please help us!”, “it hurts, please make it stop”.

Then one of the women starts screaming shrilly, and as they turn and look at her in mounting horror her flesh starts to crack and fall off, and a half-fiend levers itself out from within her body!


----------



## Schmoe

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *I make most of my significant rolls out in the open, and if the dice fall badly (or I get lots of crits in a row)... *




Remarkably, so do I.  I don't know how they've avoided deaths, but they have.  Just a few sessions ago, an ambush by four ankhegs took one of the characters to -8 HP in just the surprise round (critical) and left his limp body in the active jaws of one of the creatures.  Still, they managed to save him.

I think you're right, though, that low level combined with a reluctance to flee can lead to a deadly environment.  My players had no trouble fleeing from the kobolds in their first adventure.  It was a bit humiliating for them, fresh off of a 12th-15th level romp through a lich's fortress.  

Anyway, great story!  Carry on.


----------



## Wulf Ratbane

*Re: Where do little fiends come from?*



			
				Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *DMs note: I decided that this was a smart move, and that the hard-won whirlwind attack was a good way of making an attack into every surrounding square, even though the 50% miss chance still applied*




Good thinking on her part and good DMing on yours!

A perfect application of the rules... but... did she hit it or not?


Wulf


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Re: Re: Where do little fiends come from?*



			
				Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> *
> 
> A perfect application of the rules... but... did she hit it or not?
> 
> *




Unfortunately I'm a bit skimpy on the details for this combat because it happened over a month ago... for one reason or another I got *very* behind on writing up the adventures. I'm pretty sure that she scored one decent hit which lined up Lysander to truly splice its mainbrace (so to speak)


----------



## Darklone

Yeah that whirlwind in darkness ... Our fighters use it regularly. Since the DM loves devils and demons (we hate them), they often get the opportunity for it.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Something else I ought to mention - I changed the whip so that in my campaign it is a melee weapon with a range of 15ft - so that it can be used to make AoO within that range. To my mind making it an exotic weapon and then having it as a ranged weapon with a 15ft range which can't even hurt most targets was just... weak.

After all, why do lion tamers use whips? why are whips good at holding people/creatures at bay? I think the AoO bit works well here (although in reality it is the stinging pain bit that helps keep people away too!)

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

It's a reasonable change as long as the players don't abuse it


----------



## Plane Sailing

Well, none of the players use it at present, and nobody seems likely to take it up either... so it seems I'm safe at the moment!

I suppose one potential benefit of having it as a "missile" weapon is that it is quicker to get "rapid shot" in order to get two cracks off in succession... but you are still going to be within 15ft of an angry enemy, which doesn't seem too cool.

Also, even if you are a rogue with a +10d6 sneak attack, you (apparently) can't hurt someone wearing armour with a defensive value of +1 (or natural armour of +3 or more).

Anyway, enough digression, on with story!


----------



## Wulf Ratbane

Perfectly reasonable restriction, really. You just can't whip someone through a suit of armor, after all.

The LASHER prestige class addresses a lot of those problems. If you are going to use a whip, you really need to take that PrC.

I can't believe none of your players was enticed by the lovely whip availabe in _Of Sound Mind! _


----------



## Plane Sailing

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> *Perfectly reasonable restriction, really. You just can't whip someone through a suit of armor, after all.
> 
> The LASHER prestige class addresses a lot of those problems. If you are going to use a whip, you really need to take that PrC.
> 
> I can't believe none of your players was enticed by the lovely whip availabe in Of Sound Mind!  *




I don't like the lasher prestige class - it just seems a lot of neat abilities, and doesn't fit my notion (and dare I say the DMG notion!) of prestige class reflecting certain prestigous organisations or groups.

What I'm likely to do is turn key lasher abilities into feats that anyone could take. Essentially I would allow the "wound" ability to be given to anyone with the exotic weapon proficiency to use the whip (non proficient users just get the standard subdual attack) and I'd allow the "third hand" as a feat since that is just plain cool. I think I would allow a Whip Stunning Attack feat too, although I'd need to work out details that I was happy with for that.

Regarding the lovely whip in OSM... they never found it! They spent some time looking at the mound of rocks with small pebbles occasionally tumbling down it - and left it alone!

(or was it the room they collapsed?)


----------



## Darklone

Hmm. My char loved to use a whip as tripping wire against horses (though that's ridiculously impossible in 3rd ed), climbing help and to disarm  opponents. 

Why doing damage ?


----------



## KidCthulhu

You do all know why that whip was there, right?  PC is playing a lasher in Sagiro's game, and he really wishes the whip were a cooler weapon.  Hence the not so subtle whip propaganda and propigation.

[sits back and waits resignedly for the inevitable comments about PC and whips.]


----------



## Plane Sailing

KidCthulhu said:
			
		

> *
> 
> [sits back and waits resignedly for the inevitable comments about PC and whips.] *




Are whips PC? I would have thought they were very un-PC 

- I think whips have been cool ever since Indiana Jones and the raiders of the lost ark!  What rogue would want to be without one? Except, of course, they suck in 3e without additions like the lasher


----------



## Plane Sailing

Incidentally, I've only got one day left to attempt to complete my one-page summary for the WotC Fantasy Setting Proposal! I've got no real illusions of success, because I don't think my world would be unique enough for them... still, I have to give it a try, eh?

If nothing else, its good practice for thinking about the overall issues of the campaign.

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

OK, proposal sent off, back to writing up the storyhour.

(run this, Sunday, whooo! Don't want to fall even further behind though...)

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

Reacting quickly, Dala fires off a sleep spell, and the half-fiend slumps forward, only partly emerged from the womans body. Lysander steps forwards and decapitates it, amongst a rising tide of panic from the rest of the villagers.

Lysander lays his hands on one of the other women, and prays that Asura might free her from the magical parasite growing inside her, her body arches under his hands, then relaxes. Buoyed up by his aura of fearlessness, she lifts tear stained eyes and whispers “thank you”.

Around them, a cacophony of voices rises amongst the moans and cries: 

“help me!”
“No, please help me!”
“My children need me! Help me!”
“No me!”

The healed woman says “Please help my husband, for the love of Asura help my husband!”

K’tan turns to Lysander. “How many times can you do that?”

Eyeing the twenty or so villagers chained up here, Lysander whispers “Once more this week. It isn’t enough”.

Dala wants to do something to ease the pain of the villagers, so he casts a couple of widely targeted sleep spells, which drops the rest of the villagers into a deep sleep (and drops the noise level in the room significantly too).

Arilyn taps her lips pensively. “What are we going to do? The safest thing is to put them out of their misery before the fiendish parasite completes its growth…”

“No” Lysander replies flatly. “We must find another way”.

Dismissing Anne-Maries idea of cutting the fiendish baby out and healing the villagers before they die, they decide to try something with holy water. Finding just one they carefully apply it with all of Lysanders healing knowledge, and after a minute or two this villagers breathing and skin starts returning to normal. But they don’t have any more holy water.

Below them is an amphitheatre filled with half-fiend hobgoblins. Somewhere above them must be the fiendish creature which is behind this whole nightmare. They will not be able to get the villagers healed until they can get them to safety, and that means dealing with the problems at hand.

“Right” says Anne-Marie. “K’tan, you follow me up the stairs. We’ll get this bastard”.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Following the stairwell up some 60 feet, they enter a circular room with siz doors leading off it. Listening carefully at each door, Anne-Marie can hear sounds of sleeping or low talking in hobgoblin accents behind four of them, two seem clear. Picking one of them she opens the door – and surprises two half-fiendish hobgoblins inside! They howl with glee and leap forward with fangs bared, and she starts a defence against them in the doorway.

The rest of the company start running up the stairs to back them up, leaving Dala and Syl to guard the villagers while they sleep. Meanwhile, half a dozen extra fiendish hobgoblins appear from the other doorways were noises had been heard. K’tan unleashes an excellent cone of sound which severely wounds all of them, and although Anne Marie is critically hit and wounded she manages to hold them off until the others arrive, whereupon short work is made of them.

After a short period of bandaging, Anne Marie who is still critically wounded retreats downstairs to help look after the villagers, replacing Syl and Dala who come up to help with exploring the tower. The last door of this room leads up, up, up within the tower about 150ft. Moving cautiously, they overhear a voice talking inside a room on the next level above them. It is cursing and blaspheming regularly, not apparently about anything in particular but just as it is talking to itself. Dala understands the Infernal language it is using:

“My latest **** plans are starting to  ***** come to **** fruition; now I’ve worked out how to ******* impregnate humans without killing them in the initial process! I’ll ****** build a fiendish ***** army to take back with me into the great game.”

 “But first I’ll check on my ******* troops.”

Then there is a flash and a stench of brimstone – and silence.
Creeping up and peering through the doorway they see a room, once richly furnished but now desecrated and with blood and excrement smeared everywhere. On the table in the room is a roughly drawn local map, and leaning against the wall is a blackened steel glaive. To Lysander the feel of evil in the room is palpable.

They make some attempts to damage the glaive, but don’t have any success. Then they decide to set an ambush – guessing that it will be returning soon they array themselves around the room. Dala prepares his lightning bolt, Arilyn one of her special spells (static cling), and K’tan his Cone of Sound. Lysander draws his scimitar, blesses it, and takes up a martial stance.

They wait for a few minutes – and then with a flash of smoke and a smell of Brimstone the fiend covered in horrific horny barbs appears in front of them! Lysander strikes and cuts it badly, before stepping back. Lightning flashes, a Cone of sound shouts and a sticky ball of lightning fly across the room and unerringly strike the creature – and one by one dissipate against its spell resistance...

To be continued...


----------



## Darklone

Wahaaaa action! That suxxxxss sometimes.... SR. 

SR and DR against a group without magical +2 weapons and just a few lightnings and flamestrikes... 

Hah, those were the times when I had to fight kytons with a toothstick!

Glad to see your guys handle it more professional!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Darklone said:
			
		

> *Wahaaaa action! That suxxxxss sometimes.... SR.
> 
> SR and DR against a group without magical +2 weapons and just a few lightnings and flamestrikes...
> 
> Hah, those were the times when I had to fight kytons with a toothstick!
> 
> Glad to see your guys handle it more professional! *




Hey, having forgotten the White Dragons spell resistance (Doh!) I was going to make DAMN SURE this guy got his...

The paladin "Bless Weapon" spell really comes in useful since it negates the damage reduction of evil creatures.

The lack of magic weapons able to penetrate DR really caused immense problems in last nights game BTW - which is three sessions down the way from the current stage of the storyhour. They muddled through though!

(Not often mentioned, but I think the DR mechanism has been excellent news for D&D. It is easy to forget that prior to 3e there might have been NO way of hurting some creatures if you didn't have the appropriate magic weapon... now there is at least the option for some creativity!

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

Reminds me how some of my guys wanted to destroy a phylactery ... The whole group discussed how to buff our strengest guy (a cleric with the strength domain). They did cast every spell that could help and he rolled well for damage... doing a mere 2 points of damage. Then the psio walked by from his shopping tour, asked what they were doing, cast levitate on the thing, levitated it to a few hundred feet and let it drop.... CRASH!

Then he said: Mind over matter! and walked on.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Dripping ichor and unnerved by this assault in its lair, the devil immediately teleports back to its troops down below, to regroup and start making some judgement about the intruders in the tower.

Meanwhile, the company have a small collective panic and then start planning what they can do. It won’t do any good to evacuate the villagers right now, since all the winged fiends can chase them down and pick them off with ease. The best option would probably be to get the villagers in a defensible location and wait for the fiends to come to them… It seems likely that the barbed devil will take some time to regroup and rest a little after Lysanders fierce blow. Perhaps an hour, no more.

They move all the villagers up onto the spiral stairs, and with K’tan and Dala guarding the ends of the column of frightened people, the others start a quick investigation of the very top room in the tower.

As they had seen from the ground, one wall of the room has been blown out by an explosion many years ago. There are two sealed doors into other chambers, with arcane symbols that appear to be a ward against fiendish creatures. Each doorknob is carefully examined and seems to be coated with a chilled, festering slime. Carefully wiped off and discarded, the right hand room opens into a library, with a table and comfy chair. The left hand room opens into a machinery chamber which includes, among other things, a 7ft tall humanoid figure that looks like it has been stitched together out of spare parts in a little alcove. A big ol’ wheel with a handle, a small wheel, a set of 4 huge switches, lots of pipes and a big glass bell jar with an electrical para-elemental zapping around inside it.

Hmmm.

Examination of the library shows a lot of books which are weather and storm related. A secret compartment is discovered in one arm of the comfy chair which contains an aged diary. Apparently Keldas the wizard had been doing lots of research on electrical magic. Some fifty or so years ago he was responsible for creating a number of shocking swords for feudal lords to the north of here, and he comments that his magic has brought him a decent income.

Towards the end of the diary, he is clearly anticipating an important summoning which will give him the power he requires to finish his greatest project. Apparently it can now take place since he has managed to purchase his “insurance policy”.

Meanwhile, Arilyn has sent her familiar, Zeph, to go and summon Trajan from his vigil with the horses. Shocked at the news, and wondering how best to get across the raging river, Trajan strips and allows the air elemental to carry his armour and equipment over, before attempting to swim the river. He manages to get three quarters of the way across before getting into quite serious difficulty, and although he recovers and is able to scramble out just in time, he has lost over half his hit points in the process.

At the tower itself, he climbs nearly halfway up the outside, until he can get within reach of a rope dangled down from the ruined upper level. With the help of the Zeph he secures himself to the rope and is hauled up to the chamber where they will make their stand.

Running out of time, they decide to leave the machinery room for the moment, but crowd all the villagers into the library - guessing that the arcane ward will keep the fiendish creatures out of there. Dala checks around some of the frost coated piles of rubble and under one such pile finds a tiny locked chest. The lock is picked and inside is an arcane scroll - one read magic later and they discover that it is a Planar Binding spell, one more powerful than either Arilyn or Dala could safely cast - but apparently it would summon a celestial being known as Garamon.

Hmmmm.


----------



## Krellic

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *
> 
> Apparently Keldas the wizard had been doing lots of research on electrical magic.  *




Good to know he has a life away from Wulf Ratbane..


----------



## Plane Sailing

Don't you just hate in when your brain does that with a randomly assigned name? When I created Keldass as a background NPC I just picked a name from my random alphabetic "names" list... typical that it got in there because of Wulf's storyhour!!

(I even mis-spelt it in the above passage, just to confirm my inadvertant name-plagirism. Huh!

Ever had the feeling your subconscious is out to get you?


----------



## Krellic

My sub-conscious got me ages ago, every now and then it leaps out and beats me to a bloody pulp just to keep me in my place...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Unfortunately there won't be an update for the next 10 days - I've got to travel to Barcelona for a conference (shame!). 

When I return you will hear about heroes falling down stairs, flights of half-fiend hobgoblins, wizards grappled by bearded demons and Jazumai with a subconcious death-wish defying celestials of horrible power.

(you may now talk amongst yourselves for a while )

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

Oh the shame of it! having to bump my own storyhour (found access to a terminal at the conference)

Just to make it a little more worthwhile:

Zeph alerts them to noise from the stairwell, as some of the evil fiends are running up to the summoning room. At the same time Awk notes that a dozen winged fiends are flying up to the hole in the outside of the tower. 

Dala quickly casts web across the hole in the tower wall to give some protection and prevent easy access, while Lysander and K'tan stand ready with their missile weapons to snipe at the fiends which come in range.

Meanwhile Trajan and Anne-Marie take a stand on the first few steps of the stairwell, to prevent the fiends coming up from that direction. Dala casts a helpful _Grease_ on the stairs before them to further discomfort those attackers. Meanwhile Arilyn readies her spells and scans the room in case the barbed devil teleports in.

Missile fire is exchanged through the webbing, and a confusing fight ensures on the stairwell, with relatively sure-footed hobgoblin fiends slugging away with trajan. After an initial fumble Anne-Marie seems to spend a lot of time on the floor.

Hard pressed on all sides, Dala decides to take the risk of reading the scroll, and see just what kind of a being Garamon is...


----------



## Darklone

Whoever said, it could not get worse, did never summon celestials.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Congratulations Darklone! You are my 200th customer!

You win, er, something valuable... er... plaudits and adulation 

The celestial has some good points, and some bad points... it's that planar summoning bargin bit that bites 

Still, at least he doesn't get a backfire on attempting to use a scroll which is beyond his power 

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

A sound like an angelic shout fills the room, and then a huge ball of softly glowing, pulsing light appears before Dala.

“WHY HAVE YOU SUMMONED ME?”

“We seek aid against these awful fiends and their works” breathes Dala.

“A PRICE MUST BE PAID. PART NOW, PART LATER. I SENSE A HARTHAR SWORD. YOU WILL RENDER IT TO THE CELESTIAL CAUSE NOW – AND YOU, DALA, WILL RENDER US SERVICE WHEN WE CALL FOR YOU IN THE FUTURE”

“Agreed” says Dala. “Agreed! Calls out Trajan, the bearer of the extremely lawful Harthar sword.

Despite the fact that it has no eyes, the focus of the celestials attention clearly moves to the hovering half-fiends beyond the web, who have been exchanging bow fire with Lysander and K’tan. Suddenly a horde of whirling blades materialises in the midst of the fiends, and with the sickening of sliced melon underlying evil screams, a rain of meaty chunks falls to the ground.

Bare moments later there is a sudden stench of brimstone as the barbed devil appears behind Dala and latches on to him with two horny hands...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Dala is spun round and sees a horrible, barbed and leering face staring into his for just a moment before the creatures head twitches and a slimy, stinking beard is smeared across his face. Sickened by the chilling, disgusting feel of the slime covering his nose and mouth he staggers back as he is released and the barbed devil leaps for Arilyn.

Meanwhile, on the stairwell the fight has not been going well. Most of the hobgoblin fiends have managed to bypass the grease spell, and several flanking attacks drop Trajan bleeding to the floor. Anne-Marie is also clearly in a bad way. Then a bolt of lightning flashes from the pulsing orb of light in the centre of the room, and arcs from one to another of the fiends down the stairwell, crisping them in turn.

Arilyn cries out as the barbed devil starts to rip into her, and across the room K’tan focuses his mind, draws as much power to himself as he can and launches a stunningly effective Concussion. The Barbed devil had not been able to completely recover from Lysanders earlier attack, and the psychic hammerblow shatters its chest cavity. 

The body doesn’t stop writhing until Garamon the celestial floats across and incinerates it with beams of light.

All eyes except those of Lysander are on the majestic celestial floating amidst them. It reaches out with its power and heals each in turn of their wounds, with the sole exception of Lysander – who unfazed by the tremendous presence of the creature refuses to bow his head or accept aid from any other-planar creature which is not sworn to the service of his master, Asura.

The villagers are released from the library, and the healing power of Garamon sweeps over them, cleansing them from the horrible fiendish life which had been growing within each of them. There are many tears and sobs of relief all round.

Then the awareness of the celestial turns once more towards Dala.

“YOU ARE SEALED TO ME BY BARGAIN AND BY BLOOD”

Dala waits.

“I WILL EXPAND YOUR KNOWLEDGE OF MAGIC, BUT YOU WILL DO MY BIDDING WHENEVER I SEND TO YOU”

“How will I know…?” Dala begins – but the celestial presence vanishes from before his eyes. He doesn’t feel any different yet, but he is sure that something important has happened here today.

Lysander takes charge again. “right, let’s get these villagers out of here and away to safety – and lets do it smartly”

They descend from the tower together…


----------



## Darklone

Uh oh.... 

Perhaps it's the chaotic side in me, but I would have never shouted Agreed so fast... 

Ah well, it's a plothook and another adventure!


----------



## Plane Sailing

From the point of view of Dala, he is a pretty chaotic chap and makes snap decisions. Plus, he has been hoping that he might be able to find a celestial "patron", since in my campaign sorcerers do have a benefit from accepting "patronage". 

Which of course, happens to be ripe with plot hooks 

Trajan could have put up a bit of a fight about it, but although the Harthar sword was a wonderfully powerful, strongly lawful weapon, he was preparing to walk the path of the Sword Saint prestige class in my campaign... and they *only* use the scimitar and a related variant... and with the rising howls of unknown numbers of fiendish creatures charging towards him, I guess he decided on a quick decision too!


----------



## KidCthulhu

Hey Plane! I thought you made that sled avatar for me.  I thought I was special.  But now I'm gonna look just like you.  [pout]

(Only kidding, I love my toboggan)


----------



## Plane Sailing

Well, I hadn't seen it in use recently, and the old avatars had disappeared... 

Don't worry, I'll leave it up to you soon (and at least I know you're still reading )


----------



## Plane Sailing

There, I've changed to a (first cut) of a ship sailing the planes, having just passed through a gate.

Difficult to get stuff into 64x64 pixels!


----------



## KidCthulhu

Thanks, Plane.  Now I feel all special n' stuff.  And of course I'm still reading.


----------



## Plane Sailing

As Lysander and the others lead the villagers outside, and start helping them come to terms with their ordeal, Trajan and Anne-Marie investigate the arena on the ground floor – and find the two combatants they had seen earlier manacled to stake in the centre of the room, beaten and bloodied. Spotting a key by the door, Trajan moves across and unlocks their chains.

One of them is a tall, blonde Borderlander, with a thick beard and braided hair. The other is a hawk-nosed man with a deep tan and his hair gathered in a long ponytail – who springs back into a wary crouch, facing the new intruders. Trajan makes conciliatory gestures, and smiling attempts to calm the man down.

The Borderlander introduces himself as Sean, a ranger who was captured while he was half-frozen in the depths of winter. He had been following a rumoured trail of fiends at large… but ended up closer than he had intended. Since then they had pitched him against a series of foes, human and humanoid, in brutal fights to the death. It was only when the pony-tailed man arrived that they were able to draw the fights out in a way which fooled their captors – which had been going on for nearly a week now.

Meanwhile the hawk-nosed man, who clearly didn’t speak any of their languages, gingerly approached Trajan, sniffing approvingly. Trajan looks around, hands spread wide, when the man startles him with a clear and distinctive whinny. Puzzle pieces fall into place, and they realise that he must be one of the Dukan nomads, horse barbarians from the far West.

Gathering outside, they decide to donate one of their horses to the barbarian, to give him a chance to find his way home. Discarding the saddle and inclining his head respectfully to Trajan and Sean, the man rides off.

The villagers are obviously distraught at the idea of returning to their village. Barely two thirds of them are left now, and they have terrible, terrible memories of this place. During conversation with the acting head woman Lysander finds out that until last summer they normally had quite a lot of trade with a village in the woods a few leagues downriver from here, a hamlet known as Ossington. It seems that the best thing for them to do would be to travel down to Ossington and set up a new life with friends from that place. Lysander, K’tan, Trajan and the others decide that they will help escort them and their remaining goods to find this new life, before continuing their journey towards Bridlerest. Sean also elects to stay with them, to help provide protection for the people.

Meanwhile, Lysanders thoughts are turning more and more frequently back Westwards, to the refugee shanty town of his people, suffering outside Knightsbridge. What is the point of fighting against evil from outside the world when there is no help for the ordinary people? He has helped many Southlander villagers overcome dire perils; when is it time to help his own Singharese brothers and sisters?

After spending a day packing up belongings onto handcarts and wagons, the party lead the villagers across the river and down past the thick deciduous wood, where leaves are just starting to appear on the ends of twigs as the month of Greening dawns bright and clear. 

At last, a time free from unknown horrors!

If only they knew...

(at about this point some of Lysanders training and experience pays off, and he gains another level of Jazumai, making him a Jazumai 9/ Sorcerer 1)

Next:  The Standing Stone


----------



## Piratecat

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> * What is the point of fighting against evil from outside the world when there is no help for the ordinary people? *




Loot.  Duh.  Unless his people are packing magical weapons that they'll hand over after he's successful, why would he want to go help?  Boy, some people are naive.


----------



## Plane Sailing

On the positive side, this is the best that I've ever seen the player of Lysander role-play in two dozen years... it is his first character that I can recall that isn't a min-maxer, and who actually takes his religious role seriously...

On the negative side, the player has been finding things a little less fun recently... as the longest surviving character he feels that some of the newer characters have all kinds of new "cool toys".

In truth, pretty much most of the "new" stuff already existed, but peoples 2nd or 3rd or 4th characters have more been more cannily designed.

During the Standing Stone Lysander bows out of the story... I'm trying to think of some way to encourage the player to not do likewise 

Cheers


----------



## KidCthulhu

I've always felt that good role playing deserves in game rewards.  How about giving him some cool powers based on what he wants to do?  Protection abilities.  New spells.  Godly recognition.  All good presents for nice roleplaying.

Also, talk to the player.  Is his frustration with the character or the nature of the game?  Does he want to do something new, or is he just feeling underpowered with a character he loves.  Have an amnesty day, see if he wants to change the character around, swap levels for a PC or other regular class.   Maybe he wants to go somewhere with the character that his current class or configuration won't let him.  Swapping for new stuff and a tuning up of the stats and skills might make him more eager to get behind the wheel again.  And your willingness to accomodate his needs will make a big difference in his feelings about the campaign in general.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Good thoughts, KidC.

I've not been able to pin down exactly what the issue is which the player is unhappy about. I have a feeling that part of it is that this current campaign is the first time that I've run one with some big, underlying stories which the players are involved in... and I don't think that they have caught his imagination. He's not been able to express to me exactly what he is concerned about though - and apparently can't think of any other archetypes which he would like to play (here I'm frustrated because there are approx 10 different character concepts I'd *love* to play, and I can't imagine how he can't think of any!!)

Thinking back, another issue was that although they saved the town of Knightsbridge last autumn, he is frustrated that the town don't rally round the heroes four months later and jump when he was asking for help to look after the refugees who have formed a shanty town outside the walls... Personally I thought this was a reasonable touch of reality, having seen what happens to refugees myself  and the way that political leaders can have short memories - plus it is all part of the growing tension about what is happening back in Singh, which was his homeland (along with the late, lamented Azrin).

An amnesty day might work - he took a level of sorcerer some 4 levels ago which really hasn't worked well for him. One of the underlying story issues is problems with the priesthood back home... maybe Asura the god needs a *special envoy/emissary* to start to sort things out?

From reading PC's storyhour I recall that you have been allowed some quite wide-ranging amnesty-days (recalling Tao certainly, and perhaps Nolin too). What particular Pros and Cons are there, and how far do you normally suggest DM's go? I don't want to alienate the other players (who are all loving the current campaign direction).

Cheers
Alex


----------



## Piratecat

Wulf and Dinkeldog can answer this better than we can; they have amnesty days all the time. As for me, though, I have no regrets. The players like their PCs better and have more fun. Isn't that what it's all about?

I think one redesign is reasonable for each player. More than that, and you probably have a player who is discontented for other reasosns. Once, though, I think that it makes sense to let players take advantage of new rules.  for instance, Sagiro let Dranko drop a seldom-used feat in order to become a lasher. I was thrilled.

I always try to time these with dramatic events in the PC's life. For Tao, it was bonding with the Al'Quith, her holy tree. For Nolin, it was truly cementing his bond with the phoenix. That makes it more plausible in terms of the story.


----------



## Plane Sailing

I'd love to come up with something for this chap that will allow him to feel fully "engaged" again. I'll discuss things with him, and check out the kind of stuff that he would be interested in. The time is pretty ripe for his god to choose a Divine Agent to start kicking righteous booty, and I can imagine an interesting event which could surround such a change...

I'll let you know how it goes.

Meanwhile I've got the entire Standing Stone adventure to write up - three 8-hour sessions over the last month and a bit  During the process there will be revelations and an untimely death. 

Oh dear.


----------



## Plane Sailing

(_I missed out Anne-Marie finding her magic boots! that was the whole purpose of going to the tower. Doh!_)

_Back in the tower, in the machine room, Anne-Marie noticed a large cardboard box, battered with age and chewed by insects. It has a label on the side… with her name barely visible in long-faded ink! Almost reverently she opens up the box, and finds inside a pair of fine leather boots, long and in exquisite leather. A little old and dried, so she spends a while to rub oils in to make them soft and supple once more. Then she tries them on.  She has a lightness to her movement that she has never known before… a spring in her step that makes every pace an effortless glide. As an experiment she runs a few paces and then leaps forwards – and soars through the air, covering over 50 feet in an effortless bound! “Excellent” she thinks. “It took longer to get hold of these than I’d thought, but well worth the wait”._

It is a days walk down the road beside the fast-flowing silverlode before they come across the wide track which leads through dense woodlands towards Ossington. Heading up the train of villagers, Lysander, Trajan and the rest lead the way into the forest which is showing the first spread of green leaves appearing on the trees, and with heavy growths of bracken obscuring the forest floor to either side of the track.

Pressing on, they start to realise that there is something a little strange, something which they are finding it difficult to put their finger on – until someone realises that there are no bird calls. The woods should be full of the noise of small wildlife at this time of year, and yet there is an eerie silence. Waving the villagers to a halt for a meal, the company press onwards up the path.

Suddenly, they hear a cry for help ahead of them – a farmer rounds the corner a dozen pages ahead of them, running for his life – and bursting after him with the sound of thundering hoof beats is an armoured knight on an armoured steed.

Trajan and Lysander run forward to meet the peasant and block the horsemans path – but the figure rides right *through* them, their scimitars connecting with nothing but thin air – and with a mighty blow the peasant is cleaved in two.

A crossbow bolt is launched at the fearsome horseman, but passes through him and thuds into a nearby tree. Unperturbed, the horseman gallops off into the woods, riding straight through the thick tree trunks in his path.

Stunned, The party check the farmers corpse – very dead, gutted from stem to stern. Middle aged, his pockets are empty apart from a few acorns. Checking up the path and round the bend they find a wagon with two more corpses: a woman and an older man, both bearing marks of being killed within minutes, hot blood staining the woodwork.

They don’t want to expose the villagers rescued from the wizards tower to yet more horror, so they ask Sean to take them back down to the main road and set up a temporary camp “while they go and square things with people up in Ossington”. Lysanders charisma and compelling use of words soon persuades the villagers of the right of this idea. 

Having seen the villagers settled, Lysander, Trajan, K’tan, Anne-Marie, Arilyn and Dala gird their loins, check the condition of their weapons and prepared spells, and then set off along the path towards Ossington, eyes peeled for the mysterious horseman.

It is late afternoon, and in the fading sunlight they see an old farmhouse amidst a cleared but overgrown field just off to the right. The faint glimmer of light is visible through the shutters, and so they decide to investigate. Rapping smartly on the door, Lysander makes himself known.

“who is it?” responds a reedy voice from inside “what do you want?”

“We are just some friends, travelling to Ossington, and seeking shelter for the night” Lysander responds with all the charm he can muster.

“You don’t have any ghostly horsemen with you?” the voice enquires

“Certainly not!” Lysander laughs.

The door is opened by a thin and withered old man who is grimly gripping a rusty pitchfork. 

“Well, perhaps you’ll come in and share supper with us then?” he says. He motions to a young woman at the far side of the shack who puts down the crossbow she had prepared.

The company crowd into the small room, and look on as watery gruel is spooned into small bowls. Trajan and Lysander exchange glances, then bring out some of their own rations and share it with the farmer and his daughter. They eat hungrily, as if the iron rations were the best meal they’ve eaten in weeks.

The village of Ossington is a village under siege. Since last autumn, a horrible ghostly horseman has cut the people off from the outside world. In addition, evil fey creatures of the woods have been killing the farmers in their fields. Last year so many people went missing that much of the harvest was not taken in and rotted in the field. A peace party led by the village elder was massacred up by the meeting stones further into the woods. Everything had been fine for years and years, but now – the villagers are starving to death while anyone who attempts to leave is cut down by the ghostly horseman. They need a miracle to save them, surely they do...

After some more conversation, the old man retires to his bed, but his daughter flirts with Trajan, Lysander and Dala – and in Dala finds a willing response. So much so, that by the time it is dark outside they are busy canoodling in the corner. Half the party think this is not appropriate, so Lysander, Trajan Anne-Marie and K’tan leave, deciding to ride on to the village that night. Arilyn curls up under her blankets at one end of the room and tries to ignore the noises coming from the rather larger bundle at the other end...

Meanwhile, riding down the pathway at night, the moon throws stark shadows on the ground and turns the branches overhead into looming claws. There is a very spooky atmosphere. After half an hour a dimly lit structure becomes visible beside the path – the moonlight shows a squarish mausoleum with a low wall completely surrounding it, encompassing unkempt tombstones. Both the Jazumai have the uneasy feeling of supernatural evil present in this place, and they decide to press on, hoping to reach the village before midnight

Another half an hours ride crests a small rise, and in a clearing some three hundred paces across nestles a small village. It is built entirely within a circle of granite standing stones, and a small aisle of standing stones lies either side of the pathway as it extends down into Ossington. They ride carefully into the village, heading for the largest buildings in the centre of town.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Shouting up at the shuttered window in the central tower, they eventually wake an elderly man who calls back, telling them to rest in the meeting hall, and he’ll meet them in the morning. They settle down there for the remainder of the night.

In the morning, they are met by a small deputation. Elder Murdows, who lives in the building next door and is the leader of the village, the elderly Dyson and somewhat more sprightly Tully, his bodyguard. Dyson is a retired adventurer, who never made much of a success of his adventuring career, and decided to set up home in this small village. His bodyguard and companion, Tully, decided to stay with him - as did a Shamaness whom he knew - although she spends most of her time down by the graveyard now.

About a dozen villagers also squeeze into the meeting hall, with pinched faces and ragged clothes. They seem happy to see the adventurers, and keep asking whether they have any food or news for them. There is something a little strange about the villagers manner - but nothing that being starving in a small village with the potential for a lot of inbreeding wouldn’t account for.

Dyson is happy to explain in more detail about the evil horseman that has been terrorising the village. He is very sad to learn of the deaths of the peasants in the road… he had hoped that the diversion which he and Tully had set up that day would keep the horseman away from the main road. So sad. 

Dyson is convinced that the horseman comes from the barrow up to the North of here, where the woodlands become much thinner. It is a strange and evil place; something must have happened to disturb the unquiet spirit and send him out for vengeance, although Asura knows, it wouldn’t have been any of these simple farmers here.

The problem is bigger than just the horsemen though. Evil fey creatures, elves perhaps, have been killing farmers out in the woods for months now. Suddenly there is a flurry of arrows fletched with leaves, or a vicious trap. Four months ago, shortly after the problems started a truce party set out to the Meeting Stones, to try and find out what happened. All murdered horribly, of course.

“Still, if you were able to solve the problem of the horsemen, that would be really great” Dyson finishes. “I’m too old and feeble to go myself now, but I can give you a couple of scrolls with detection spells on” and he gives a scroll each for Dala and Arilyn.

Meanwhile Tully has been having a conversation with Trajan about swords. She is intrigued by the hand-and-a-half scimitar which he bears, and he is likewise impressed by her bastardsword, the blade of which sparkles with an unearthly keenness.

While the rest of the party wait for Dala and Arilyn to arrive, Trajan and Anne-Marie set out to scout out the barrow…


----------



## Plane Sailing

Coming soon - "don't touch that tripwire!" and the squirrels from hell...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Travelling through the woodland is eerie in the silence. Although the leaves are starting to come out on the trees plenty of light gets through to the forest floor, and they are wading through knee-high bracken. Anne-Marie is slightly more sharp-eyed than Trajan so she takes the lead, although an hour into their trek she feels her shin catch on something in the foliage. 

“Watch out” cries Trajan - but too late.

Two huge logs come crashing together where Anne-Marie stands. She tries to twist out the way, but they catch her full on, and drop her to the ground. Trajan hurriedly kneels down beside her calls upon the name of Asura, and healing power flows through his hands and into her battered body - which breathes with life once more.

“****” says Anne-Marie. “Your turn to take point now!”

After resting for a couple of hours to enable Anne-Marie to get some of her vitality back, the continue on through the woodland.
Trajan notices something shiny and white off to one side, and cautious of an ambush they circle around a pile of humanoid bones, but don’t move close enough to investigate. 

“Dead villagers, I guess” muses Trajan. They move on.

As the afternoon wears on they find their way out of the thick forest and into a more lightly wooded area - on the edge of which is a huge oak with no leaves - evidently it was deliberately killed by someone, since its bark has been stripped off in a ring around its girth. Getting their bearings better, they head off towards the barrow, rising like a low hill in the distance.

The barrow itself is huge - several hundred feet in diameter and nearly 80 feet tall. There is an alcove with a stone doorway, and inside they can make out an altar of sorts in an room empty apart from a decrepit old skeleton in the corner.

Trajan gets out his grapping hook and drags the body over towards him - it is an armoured skeleton, the parts all still bound together. The armour looks badly hacked up, and quite recently too by the shininess of the scratches. It is of a very, very old design, probably dating back to the late Imperial days when scale armour was popular. Interestingly the skeleton has a scabbard for a bastard sword, but no weapon in evidence. 

Suspicious, Trajan hunts around in the long grass by the barrow and finds a discarded bastard sword - one well worn, but commonplace. His mind wanders back to the fine blade which Tully displayed to him - and her assertion that she had not been to the Barrow...


(last update for a couple of weeks I'm afraid - away on hols)


----------



## Plane Sailing

OK, I'm back. 

Did you miss me?


----------



## KidCthulhu

Desperately.  How were your hols?  Do anything good?

Enough small talk.  Post now.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Lots of nice sunshine, lots of nice people, visted interesting places on the French Riviera 

Back to the story...

It is far too late to attempt an entrance to the barrow tonight, and Anne-Marie is still feeling somewhat battered from the trap she sprung, so they decided to set off back to the girdled oak tree and camp there for the night. Trajan takes great care to minimise the local damage to make a camp fire, collecting only dead wood and occasionally speaking into the night words of reassurance, just in case some leaf-fletched arrows are aimed in their direction.

A couple of hours after dusk, Anne-Marie’s attention is drawn by a cute little animal face peering at her from the branches of a nearby bush. “Prickit?” it says, evidently curious. Anne-Marie checks her bags for some little bits of food to tempt the creatures with. As she holds it out there is rustling from more of the bushes, and several more cute little faces appear - something like a cross between a cat and a squirrel. “hobyah, hobyah, hobyah” they chorus together. Trajan watches in amusement as Anne-Marie continues to attempt to entice them. “It’s nice food” she says.

“Food, food, food” they repeat. Then the little voices get harsher

“_Food, *Food, FOOD*_ they screech and an unnerving wave of fear emanates from the creatures as they leap and tumble into the attack!

Trajan is unaffected by fear because of his close connection with Asura; his steadfast presence bolsters Anne-Marie and she holds her ground too. The creatures leap in, grab and bite; Anne-Maries first blow literally bounces off the creatures fur - her rapier is unable to penetrate its enchanted hide! Trajan fares somewhat better, and cuts at the neck of one of the creatures, but a blow that would have cleaved a man in two only slightly wounds the “hobyah”.

Three of the evil little creatures attack each of the heroes. Anne-Marie fights defensively, tumbling back and forth while the creatures tumble around attempting to grab hold and start biting. She has an idea and grapples one of them, easily holding its tiny form and thrusting it into the campfire. “Burn you little bastard” she hisses through gritted teeth - but while her own arm is scorched, the creature laughs at her from within the flames...


----------



## Krellic

Ooh unpleasant!  I seem to remember that these critters are particular pests.


----------



## paulewaug

yay an update!!

Welcome back!

more story...vacation's over!!  

ahhh... the price of an adoring public, eh?!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Hi paulewaug, I didn't know you were a reader!

I'll just get this pesky bit of work out of the way and then write up the next section


----------



## Plane Sailing

Trajan is faring a little better - his great strength and his bastard scimitar are occasionally getting past the damage resistance. Then while Anne-Marie flings away the grappled creature (which bounces to its feet and runs right back in towards her), Trajan decides to “Smite Evil” and lands a might critical blow, felling one of the creatures. 

The remaining Hobyahs don’t like playing a game where they could get killed, and they quickly leap off into the undergrowth, chanting “_Run, run, run_” to each other. Battered and bloody, Anne-Marie is affected by the poisonous bites of the creature and some of her personality and will continue to drain away. Trajan is, by the grace of Asura, unaffected by the many bites he took.

They don’t get much sleep that night, as they warily watch the shrubbery for the hideous squirrel creatures, but they don’t reappear. In the morning Trajan makes a point of skinning the creature which he killed, and taking the pelt with them, back to the village.

Meeting up with their friends once more, they are surprised when Arilyn and Dala recognise the demon squirrel skin - apparently an elderly priestess by the old graveyard had one perched on her shoulder the other morning… Trajan and Anne Marie are joined by K’tan and they travel back up the road to the graveyard.

It takes them less than an hour, and they can see a low wall surrounding gravestones overgrown with long grass. In the centre of the graveyard is a mausoleum with the sound of low chanting coming from within.

Cautiously stepping over the wall, they approach the entrance to the structure, and inside in the dim light they can see an elderly woman dressed in rags who is apparently praying at various symbols around the walls. In one hand she clutches a staff of black wood. Trajans neck-hairs rise with the sense of supernatural evil in this place, but he can’t pin it down.

They attempt to talk with the old woman, but she seems clearly unhinged, moaning about appeasing the spirits and some such nonsense. Clearly she is no follower of Asura and thus a pagan, with no real god to worship. As they leave, a movement catches Anne-Maries eye - up in the rafters she is sure she saw a movement and glint of green eyes, probably the size of a large cat… or squirrel creature. They decide to do nothing further for the moment and head back to the village

At least, that is the plan… but the road back to the village seems to have disappeared! Rather, it ends abruptly, and several huge trees are now growing up right in the middle of the path, as if they have always been there! Hunkering down and watching out for elven archers they creep up to the huge trees and decide to gingerly squeeze past them - all the while calling out into the forest in general that they “mean no harm”. If only it was clear that the forest and its denizens felt the same about them...


----------



## Plane Sailing

The three of them manage to find their way through the trees and back to the old road again, and within an hour or so are back in the village. They request a chat with Dyson who is happy to oblige. The kindly old scholar explains that his old friend Henwen lives in the mausoleum now -"her mind was destroyed by one of the awful creatures that we fought in our simple adventuring days, and she just babbles to herself in imbecility." He says. "So sad. It is just good fortune that the ghostly horseman keeps away from that gravesite, since I’ve not been able to convince her to seek safety here in the village. Well, what safety there is, anyway".

Trajan reassures them that they are going to do what they can to tackle the barrow and see to this ghost which is terrorising them (but he doesn’t reveal his suspicions about Tully’s lies). 

Lysander, Dala and Arylin remain behind in the village to protect and reassure villagers, while Anne-Marie, Trajan and K’tan head out to the barrow.
_DMs note: An old friend was visiting from Germany and took over the playing of the NPC K’tan, so you’ll see a little more action from him for a while. It was only his third game of 3rd edition, and his first go at a caster, but he took to it with much aplomb_

Getting their bearings better, they head off directly towards the barrow. At the edge of the thickest part of the forest Anne-Marie narrowly avoids setting off a snare which would have catapulted her skywards, but the expected hail of arrows never materialises.

In early morning they reach the huge barrow once more. Entering the small chamber with the alcove, and performing a detailed search of the walls reveals three secret doors, each activated by switches hidden in the carvings. They select one at random and the wall slides downwards, revealing a dark and damp passage. K’tan lights up his lantern, and Trajan leads the way cautiously through the narrow passage and up to the T junction. 

All is silent as the grave.

As he reaches the T Junction a hideous undead figure leaps around the corner, alerted by the lantern light; as its claws rake his chest a chilling cold steals into his soul...


----------



## paulewaug

darn pesky work! 

Wow Two updates!!
Check it out!

I hope Trajan sticks with it! Does he read the boards much?
I'd say he is well liked. 


Yeah I have been reading/lurking for a while,
 Kyri Chronicles was one of my first Story Hours that got me hooked!
I had just been putting off registering for a while and ended up waiting until the boards found their permanent home from when they were moving around and testing things.
I had more read time then and actually thought I'd be able to keep a Story of my own updated...Hah...

Nice description of the negative energy/drain BTW
I always find your S.H. inspiring!  
Ok so enough smoke blowing here!
back to  our regularly scheduled Sailing!


----------



## Plane Sailing

paulewaug said:
			
		

> I hope Trajan sticks with it! Does he read the boards much?
> I'd say he is well liked.




None of my players read these boards (although the player of Dala knows about them). I'd love to encourage them to read and contribute, but all have lots of RealLife(tm) that sucks up their internet time.

If you saw the storyhours from the beginning, the player of Trajan started off with Graculous (fighter) and Blodwyn (priestess), then took Crail forward for quite a while before pressing on with Trajan - his most successful character yet. I really like the way the player is taking this character - probably the most thoughtful and good-minded character I've seen him play.




> Yeah I have been reading/lurking for a while,
> Kyri Chronicles was one of my first Story Hours that got me hooked!




Hey, you wouldn't believe how encouraging that is! I remember in the early days I just kept plugging on through sheer bloody-mindedness  The new boards showing views as well as replies was tremendously encouraging, as at least everyone else knew that their work was being looked at!

I'll try to get the next installment up quickly too (playing again on Sunday, and I'm quite a way behind still!)

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

Backing off quickly and bringing his guard up, Trajan attempts to fend off the creature while Anne-Marie behind starts backing up too. The charnel stench from the creature is awful. K’tan gathers his power and launches an amplified concussion at the creature but in the darkness his aim is appalling and he strikes Anne-Marie right in the back of the head! With a couple more ineffectual swings at the creature they retreat out of the narrow corridor and into the chamber - but the wight backs off, refusing to follow towards the daylight it retreats back around its corner.

Shaken up by the encounter, the party discuss their options. They wait for a couple of hours to allow Anne-Marie to recover from the nasty blow she took. In compensation, K’tan decides to try out a new power which he is getting to grips with - and he places an inertial barrier on each of his companions.

“Don’t worry” he says. “It will be difficult for the wights to hurt you now”.

Once more they activate the secret door, and this time Trajan glides careful forward, scimitar poised. At the T-junction he bursts around the corner and catches the wight completely flat-footed! With one smooth, focussed motion he brings his bastard scimitar around in an overhead cut and pauses with the tip of the blade at ground level - and the two halves of the wight collapse separately on the floor. The steps he has been taking along the path to Sword Saint are really starting to take off… his old master will be pleased!

Surprised that a foe which had caused them such trouble early on could be dispatched so quickly, the party form up and start winding their way through a tricky maze of passages. After 10 minutes they stumble across another wight, but its claws cannot penetrate the inertial barrier, despite striking magical sparks with each blow. Its chilling touch is also blocked, thank Asura!

They proceed on a little further, before Anne-Marie sounds a note of warning.

“I can hear something” she says. “a deep rumbling sound”

“I can see the ground trembling slightly” K’tan responds

to be continued...


----------



## Plane Sailing

There is a sudden shower of dirt and pebbles as a huge humanoid figure erupts out of the earthen floor, much like a sounding whale. Gem-like eyes flash and a huge fist of rock swings around in a punishing arc and catches K’tan with a fierce blow. Trajan reacts quickly, but his scimitar glances off its rocky surface, the force of his blow completely absorbed by the elementals inorganic body.

“Run for it!” Anne Marie cries, and the party charge headlong deeper into the maze of tunnels. 

They quickly outdistance the elemental, but at a crucial junction they take a wrong turning, and fetch up against a dead end! Scurrying back to the junction they arrive just to see the elemental step out of an earthen wall, at the end of its shortcut.

Anne-Marie steps into one side of the fork and attempts to taunt the creature while fighting with all the defensive skill she can muster. Trajan maintains his position in the other branch of the fork to defend K’tan. The elemental lazily reaches out and lands a two-fisted attack on Trajan, rocking him back on his feet. Mentally he gives thanks to Asura for the Inertial barrier spell K’tan placed on him earlier, which robs the attacks of much of their power.

Trajan calls upon Asura for divine might, and holding his bastard scimitar in a two-handed grip he chops away at the elemental. Meanwhile K’tan starts pouring his power into triggered concussions which he mentally hurls at the beast, each one of which knocks stones out of its head and shoulders.

The elemental takes time to land a crippling blow on Anne-Marie before switching its attention back to Trajan, but the Jazumai’s stand continues and at last a final blast from K’tan fells the creature, which collapses into a mass of stones and dirt.

Bruised and sore, Trajan does his best to bind up the wounds that people have received, then calls upon the healing power of Asura, which flows through his hands and lifts both their spirits.

“That inertial barrier saved my life” Trajan says to K’tan. “Can I have another one?”

“Sorry. Not enough power” replies the laconic Cadlanian. “Invisibility?”.

Trajan nods, and his two companions see him fade from view. 

They set off deeper into the maxe, Trajan invisibly leading the way, and relying upon the light source of his comrades behind him. Rounding a corner he sees another wight, crouching in wait. Stepping forward and with a shout to focus his concentration he sweeps his scimitar up in a lightning fast blow which cleaves the surprised undead in two before it can move. Visible again, he taps the bones and rags with his feet.

“Not too shabby”, Anne-Marie says as they come into view.

“Invisibility again?” asks K’tan

Trajan nods. Then they press on deeper into the barrow.


----------



## paulewaug

ooohhhh excellent

I esp. like the offers of "Invisibility?" and "Invisibility again?"
the dialogue just seemed funny to me!

Trajan is quite the Wight killer!


----------



## Plane Sailing

paulewaug said:
			
		

> *
> 
> Trajan is quite the Wight killer! *




It was funny (to me), since the first encounter with a Wight was a desparate retreating battle where everyone was getting flustered and hurt. 

Then there was the encounter with inertial barrier up and the wight couldn't hurt him.

Then there is a whole series of invisible surpirse-round demolitions of wights... the change in attitude amongst the players was interesting to watch!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Winding deeper and deeper the circular dirt tunnels seem to coil more and more tightly back and forth, indicating that they are nearing the centre of the barrow. A deep pit is easily crossed thanks to Anne-Marie’s stupendous leaping ability. A couple more wights are summarily destroyed by Trajan, although K’tan can no longer continue making him invisible.

Finally there is a long, steep, coiling path that leads them downwards for several minutes - and opens into a chamber containing a large sarcophagus, and many dark niches around the walls. As they cautiously enter, an apparition arises from the sarcophagus.

“Why do you disturb Saithnar’s rest?” it demands in a commanding voice.

“Sire”, answers Trajan, “We mean no disrespect, but we are on a quest for a terrified village”

“Good.” Rumbles Saithnar. “Men of honour should defend the helpless. It has always been thus”.

Trajan presses on with his line of questioning. “The villagers are under siege by elvish archers, aided by a fearsome ghostly horseman… some thought the horseman might be based at your barrow…”

“It is a fool who misjudges the nobility of elves” Saithnar replies. “Although rarely seen by the end of the days of my life, they have always been upright and true, defenders of the just and opposers of that which is evil. I know of no horseman”.

Bowing, Trajan says “We mean no offence, and fear we have been misdirected here. With your leave we will depart and seek to unravel this mystery further”.

As they start to back out of the room the ghostly figure bids them to hold for a moment.

“While serving the forces of good in this land you may borrow some of my treasures which supported me in my tasks here. Open the lid and take my rapier and my circlet, for they will aid you”.

As the apparition watches they remove the lid, Anne-Marie takes the frost-rimed rapier and Trajan picks up the circlet, and feels his confidence and authority grow as he places it across his brow.

“We vow to return these treasures to you when our quest is done” they say in turn. Is that a smile that crosses the face of Saithnar?

“One of my wives will show you out” he says, and a wight dressed in rags that might have once been a fine dress shuffles forward, and motions for them to follow.

After a further half-hour of twisting passages, a secret door is opened into the barrows first chamber. While the wife of Saithnar retreats back into the barrow tunnels, the adventurers step bleary -eyed and exhausted out into the twilight, and prepare a camp fire for the night.

Then they hear someone singing to the sound of a Lute…


to be continued.


----------



## Plane Sailing

To their astonishment, they see the man known as Cuckoo picking his way through the brush which surrounds the barrow.

“Excuse me gentlemen” the reedy voice enquires “Might I camp with you for the night?”

“Come into the light, where we can see you” Anne-Marie demands.

Sure enough, it is the lanky, balding minstrel which they met in the village.

“What are you doing out in the woods at this hour?” Trajan enquires. “Don’t you fear the horseman?”

“Ah” says Cuckoo, “I was out seeking my muse, inspiration for song and time ran away from me… as did my sense of direction!” He chuckles lightly. “Your campfire?”

“Well, you may stay with us the night then” says Trajan.

Meanwhile, K’tan is eyeing the minstrel up. He whispers to Trajan “He looks remarkably _well fed_ compared to the rest of the villagers, don’t you think? In fact Dyson and Tully looked quite well fed too, didn’t they? How come all the villagers are starving and these retired adventurers are not, hmmm?”

By common consent watches are shared that night, Trajan keeping his watch with Cuckoo, and on him, despite the odd lullaby coming from the minstrels lute.

Come morning, they decide to set off to the Red Horse, another one of the local landmarks. Cuckoo counsels against it, recommending that they return to the village with the latest news from the dweller in the barrow - but he soon acquiesces to the desires of the rest of the party. However, they have covered less than a quarter of the distance to the Red Horse when disaster strikes!

One of the trees which they are walking past suddenly wrenches itself free from the soil and swings around towards them, its branches swinging in punishing arcs which just miss Anne-Marie and Cuckoo.

Trajan draws his weapon and starts chopping at the bark of the tree, Anne-Marie deduces that her rapier is not likely to penetrate the trees wood and so fights defensively and attempting to draw attacks her way. K’tan starts launching concussions at the horrifically mobile tree, and the air resonates with the voiceless shouts of his power manifesting.

Cuckoo backs off, attempting to start a rousing war-chant to inspire his comrades, but the tree takes two great strides past Anne-Marie and Trajan to strike at him again, putting him off his music.

As suddenly as the attack had started, it is over. The tree appears to be rooted once more, although badly blasted by the mages power and with chunks hewn out by Trajan. The strange spirit which had animated the tree seems to have fled. 

Cuckoo is all in a fluster, and keeps mumbling about getting back to the village, that he should never have come out here.  The other three confer quickly and decide that it would make sense to return to the village and get Cuckoo safely home. It certainly seemed that the tree life around here has something against him, and if they can get him safely back within the stone circle they should be free to continue their investigations.

Changing bearing, they strike off through the thicker woodland towards the village. After a couple of hours walking they take a break for lunch before setting off once more so they can reach the village before sundown.

Then they hear them.

Hoofbeats.

Coming from behind them, the hoofbeats grow louder.

Drumming, _drumming, DRUMMING!_

With a scream of fear Cuckoo charges off into the woods on their left, and Anne-Marie runs screaming off into the woods on their right. Trajan’s resolute aura enables K’Tan to stand his ground alongside the Jaxumai - as a ghostly horseman manifests, charging through the trees towards them!


----------



## Old One

*Good Stuff!*

Alex,

I have just gotten caught up...I didn't realize how far behind I was.  How are you managing the transition from lower-middle to upper-middle power?  It seems like you are throwing pretty tough encounters at them now.

Also, did you ever have "The Talk" with Lysander's player?  If so, how did it go?

Thanks,

Old One


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Re: Good Stuff!*



			
				Old One said:
			
		

> *
> I have just gotten caught up...I didn't realize how far behind I was.  How are you managing the transition from lower-middle to upper-middle power?  It seems like you are throwing pretty tough encounters at them now.
> 
> Also, did you ever have "The Talk" with Lysander's player?  If so, how did it go?
> *




The transition is pretty tricky - it turns out that equivalent challenges for upper-middle level (or in 3e terms I suppose it is still lower middle - not got to halfway yet!) are just as likely to kill people off as hobgobins and orcs were when they were 1st level... OK, I'm jesting a bit, but a critical hit or bad luck at the wrong moment and the party would be nursing extra corpses... that never seems to change. We do all get to do more cool things now though (me as DM, them as PC's).

Lysanders player has been off on extended hols for a while, In his absence I've sent him a proposition, and he'll either email me back or (better) I get to talk to him in about 10 days time. Hopefully He'll sign up again (fingers crossed!)

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

The horseman veers off to the left, avoiding Trajan and chasing after the screaming Cuckoo, galloping straight *through* small trees which lie in his path. Glancing at each other, Trajan and K’tan decide to follow the horseman and try to help Cuckoo, rather than Anne-Marie who seems not to be in such direct danger.

They have been running for only a few seconds when there is an awful, chilling scream from ahead. They burst into a clearing and can see nothing except for a smoking patch of scorched grass, and a lute which has been hacked in two. There is no other sign of Cuckoo or the horseman.

“Time to find Anne-Marie” Trajan grunts, and they start to retrace their footsteps to the place where the horseman ambushed them. It is quite time consuming, and once there following the tracks from Anne-Maries headlong flight is more difficult than they had expected. After spending an hour searching fruitlessly, K’tan suggests an alternative tack:

“The Red Horse. Best landmark. Wait there?”

“Yes” Trajan agrees “it is easier to see that than anything else - she may decide to head up that way. Lets wait up there”.

Meanwhile, Anne-Maries panic wore off, and she found herself deep in the woods, with no sense of where she had come from or what direction anything was. Her hair is messed and her clothes torn from her headlong flight, and she burns with shame at fleeing and leaving her companions in danger. She can’t think what came over her.

Choosing a direction at random and striking out, she stumbles across a horrific scene. A small clearing by a withered tree, and around the base of the tree are the rotted bodies of several horses. Each of them has had their legs broken many times, and... no, these are not horses... the stumps on their foreheads... someone has actually tortured *unicorns* to death in this place!

Feeling a cold chill settle over her, she quickly crouches and hides in the brush at the sound of a creature pushing its way through undergrowth in the other side of the clearing. To her mounting horror she sees the dismounted horseman stepping into the clearing!


----------



## Plane Sailing

She watches as the ghostly figure walks over to the unicorn corpses, then it appears to rest one hand on the nearby tree trunk and cover the face of its helm with the other. If it didn’t seem foolish, she would say she thought it was - weeping?
Deciding to risk it, Anne Marie stands up.

“Excuse me” she whispers haltingly “do you know who slew the unicorns?”

The figure straightens up and turns to face her, one hand on its sword hilt. It remains silent.

Anne-Marie continues “I hate it that someone could do this to creatures that are so lovely. I want to stop them. Will you let me? Can I help?”

The ghost gestures and a small twig breaks off a nearby tree and flies over to him. It hovers in the air and starts scratching some writing in the dirt.

“The
focus
of
evil
rests
in
the 
village.”

“They 
slew 
me
but
I 
cannot
Rest”.

“Where is your body?” Anne-Marie asks.

“By
the
lake.
Follow
Me”

A ghostly horse fades into existence beside them, and Anne-Marie starts following the horseman out of the forest.

A half-hours travel brings them to the hillside with a red horse carved out of the grass, and a still, dark tarn gathered near the horses feet, reflecting the clear blue sky and the red horse. As they approach Anne-Marie notices her two friends standing by the lake. She can see them loosen their weapons, and feels a tenseness from the horseman, so she quickly shouts out

“No! Friends!”.

They draw together and she quickly explains to Trajan and K’tan what she has seen. They figure that if they can bury the body, the ghost will be set free. They decide to ask the horseman a few more questions.

“Sire,“ Trajan asks, astonished at the majesty of the ghostly horseman sitting astride his ghostly mount “Where is your body lain?”

The figure points to the tarn. Trajan and Anne-Marie wade into the shallow water and before they get out of their depth find a headless body lying, covered in a thin layer of mud. They drag the body out to the bank.

The horseman seems to be staring intently at the body. Once again a twig is used to scrape some words in the dirt

“SHE
FED
IT
TO
HER
BEASTS!
THEY 
ATE
MY
HEAD!”

Suddenly the horseman wheels his horse around and charges off in the direction of the village, fading from sight as he thunders away. Anne-Marie, Trajan and K’tan look wordlessly at one another. He must have been talking about Henwen and those evil little squirrel-beasts which serve her. Consider Cuckoo too - surprising that he showed up in the middle of the night, surprising that the animated tree was more interested in attacking him than any other, surprising that the horseman chased him down rather than any other. 

Gradually the evidence seems to be piling up that their companions in the village are taking their ease in the midst of a nest of evil, and their erstwhile enemies might turn out to be the ones in the right...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Meanwhile, Arilyn has got fed up with waiting in the village, and even more fed up with Dala’s constant jibes about her book-learning. She and Zeph decide to take a walk out into the woods in order to find the others. She figures that with enough warning from Zeph the winds can carry her aloft and out of any harms way. Randomly choosing between the Barrow and the Red Horse, Zeph the smoky elemental flies up above the treeline and gives her a bearing towards the Red Horse.

The woods are still astonishingly quiet, and Arilyn mentally rehearses the trigger for the fly spell which she had prepared that morning, ready to escape at a moments notice. 

As she takes a short break and Zeph comes down to chat with her and regale her with the wonders of the elemental planes, her smoky familiar suddenly registers alarm through their empathic link. Turning quickly around Arilyn espies something tiny floating in the trees a dozen feet behind her… it is about the size of a baby’s fist, and is pale with a dark dot facing her. As she watches it darts away behind a tree and disappears back the way she came. 

“I wonder what *that* was?” she thinks. Then presses on towards the Red Horse.

As luck would have it, and with the additional guidance from Zeph, she is able to make contact with the other three companions. She doesn’t bother mentioning the strange floating thing since there is so much to learn from the experiences of the others.

After taking council with one another, they decide that the next step they need to take is to visit the “meeting stones”, the other locale on their little map of the area and the site of the supposed ambush by elves of the village delegation. Perhaps more light will be shed on the mystery there. It will be a couple of hours, so they should be able to get there before the sun sets tonight.


----------



## Plane Sailing

They reach the clearing around the meeting stones as the shadows are drawing longer along the ground. If one was imaginative you could almost visualise claws of shadow reaching out from the stones towards you.

While K’tan and Anne-Marie keep a watch from the edge of the clearing, Trajan and Arilyn move forward to investigate the ring of standing stones. As they are creeping up towards the edge of the ring, Arilyn thinks she hears a faint snatch of Archaic being spoken off in the woods to the far side...

Without further warning, a pillar of fire descends down from the heavens, engulfing Trajan and Arilyn. They both throw themselves to the side, Trajan rolls to his feet again while Arilyn stays down. Trajan’s eyes narrow as he sees six shadows glide out from the meeting stones themselves, and bear down upon him.

Meanwhile, Anne-Marie has spotted a figure gesturing in the woods around the other side of the clearing. She leaps into action, running pell-mell through the trees at the edge of the clearing, each step springing several strides in her magic boots. She covers 180ft in less than six seconds, and arrives to see Henwen, the deranged woman from the graveyard, smiling cruelly. Henwen completes some syllables and lashes out with a hand dripping with black ichor - it sprays over Anne-Maries shoulder and she shudders as poison eats away at her. Unperturbed, she strikes forwards with the new rapier from Saithnar, running Henwen right though the ribs! The evil shaman gasps...

Trajan doesn’t want to take any chances with the shadows, and calls upon Asura to disperse them. With the added force of presence granted him by Saithnars circlet, the power of Asura flows through him and blows like a wind through the shadows, dispersing their incorporeal substance into nothing. “Good job too” whispers the badly wounded Arilyn lying by his feet.

K’tan has started jogging across the clearing to help Anne-Marie in her fight when suddenly he is faced by four more shadows which had been hidden in the dappled light of the clearing. As they reach out one of them strikes true and, not being a strong fellow, he feels fully half his strength drain away. He is very robust against ordinary attacks, but these undead can quickly kill him if he is not careful!

Henwen knows she is badly wounded, so her outline blurs and she changes form to a Black Bear, incidentally healing some of her wounds. In recent weeks Anne-Marie has seen undead wights, fiends from the pits of hell and dragons that freeze the flesh off your bones. A bear just isn’t that frightening any more. She steps in close to the bear and thrusts her rapier up, under its chin and piercing into Henwen-bears brain. Stepping lightly back, she watches dispassionately as the bear collapses onto the ground, and returns to its normal raggedy human form.

At the same time, K’tan is rescued from the shadows by Trajan, who once again calls upon the power of Asura, and once again the shadows are swept away as if by a divine wind. Trajan then turns to Arilyn, kneels down, and the healing power of Asura flows through his hands and across her wounds, healing the worst of the burns she experienced. K’tan helps Anne-Marie take appropriate herbs, and she is able to resist the secondary effects of the nasty poison which she had been infected with.

Searching around, they find little here other than the evidence of non-human skeletons in the long grass - if anyone was betrayed here, it wasn’t human villagers. Henwen has a long black staff, with a black-painted skull on one end. They are not sure what it is for, but are certain that it is of evil design and nature, so they break the staff and leave the portions here.

Just then, a haunting melody floats across the clearing. A song follows, in a strange language but one which is hauntingly familiar. As one, the company is transfixed, enraptured by the beauty of the sound...

to be continued.

_DMnote: I had expected this encounter to be somewhat more challenging than it turned out to be... the PC's dice suddenly found favour with them! Anne-Marie struck two blows, both critical hits for triple damage. The first one nearly crippled Henwen, she recovered some hit points via the wildshape and then the second one took her straight out. Then Trajan goes and rolls a 20 on his first turning attempt and a 20 on his second, dispersing all the shadows. 

 [edit] Doh! I just realised that since he doesn't have double the shadows HD in *class levels* they should have been turned rather than destroyed. Doh! [/edit] _


----------



## Krellic

Such mistakes are a DM's bane, though they make good storytelling...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Hi Krellic, thanks for popping back!

I don't feel too bad about it - as you say, it made for a good scene, and they get whupped so often (and just escape by the skin of their teeth) it made a nice chance for them to strut their stuff and wipe out the bad guys so quickly!

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

As they stand, listening, they see two humanoid figures at the far end of the clearing, armed with bow and harp. Familiar words in the Southlander tongue become noticeably interleaved into the music. _“The village is evil. A festering wound. Eliminate the disease. Kill the villagers. Cleanse the wound. Heal the land”_.

Then, just like that, the music fades away, and they can’t see the two figures any more. 

“What was that about?” wonders Trajan.

“I don’t know”, replies Anne-Marie, “but we’d better get on with our business and wipe out those stinking villagers. Get everything right in the land once again”. K’tan glances over at her and raises his eyebrows.

They decide to circle back around to the village, certain that Dyson and his bodyguard are their foes, and a little worried by the bloodthirsty bent which Anne-Marie seems to have developed to the rest of the starving villagers they saw there. Once again Arilyn notices one of the strange floating balls, and sends Zeph to have a closer look as it flees away. Apparently it looks rather like a large squidgy eyeball?

Raising their guard, K’tan readies his power to launch a concussion at any further eyeballs which they spy. Halfway round to the village they are spotted by a large raven, that flaps down on a tree near them. “Awk” it says. They look at it guardedly.

“Dala has been trapped! Lysander too! Dyson walked in on them, read a scroll and now they are in a magic cage, and can’t escape!”

“Please help my master!”.

“Damn” whispers Trajan. “That’s our two heaviest hitters out of action. Lets get our plans ready”


----------



## Plane Sailing

“Excuse me chaps” a thin, reedy voice calls out.

They turn around to see the tall, thin, balding figure of cuckoo striding through the woods in their direction.

“Would you be so good as to accompany me back to the village? I’m a bit worried about the whole horseman thing”.

The party wander over nonchalantly. “I’m a bit worried too” says Anne-Marie. “But I think I know a great solution to clean things up”. She whips out her rapier and stabs at Cuckoo. “Oh, bad show” he says, dancing away from the tip of the rapier, but not drawing his own weapon. “Why are you attacking ME?”

“Because,” growls Trajan, “You are in league with Dyson and the forces of evil which he controls”. He likewise draws his weapon.

“Oh well, I suppose the jig is up” says Cuckoo. His voice becomes harsher, more croaky: “It was fun while it lasted, and it was a splendid opportunity to gather souls for the war… and make a foothold here! Dyson is to be commended, he is serving the masters very well indeed”

Then with a hideous groan the figure of Cuckoo grows - 7, 8, 9ft tall, a hooked bill extending out through his mouth and his outer skin peeling back and shredding off as he grows. His hands and feet become taloned and he shakes huge black-feathered wings, releasing a cloud of spores over the heroes surrounding him.

“have at thee, demon” cries Trajan, slicing at it with his scimitar, but seeing the weapon leave the creature unmarked. Anne-Marie thrusts forward with her rapier but finds that even the enchantment on her new weapon is not enough to penetrate the magical aura around the fiendish creature. K’tan launches a concussion at the beast only to see it deflected by spell resistance.

The Vrock throws back its head and laughs wildly, while spores sprout, grow and start entwine into the faces and arms of the company...

to be continued.


----------



## Schmoe

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *“Oh, bad show” he says,  *




Now that's just priceless!  

Have at thee, demon!

I'm anxious to see how this turns out.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Again our heroes press the attack against the foul creature, but to add insult to injury it doesn’t even bother to fight back. Trajan manages to land a critical hit, but the result is a mere scratch. Once again it releases a cloud of spores which start to burrow into Anne-Marie, although all the previous spores are sloughing off Trajan, unable to find root because of the holiness Asura has embedded in his soul. Anne-Marie is not so fortunate, and still weak from the earlier poisoning by Henwen, she is starting to succumb.

“I think you are going to have to watch your little friend die” gloats Cuckoo. “I’m getting tired of this little dance though. Toodle-oo!” And with that, he vanishes, in a puff of sulphurous smoke, leaving smoking footprints.

Anne-Marie collapses on the ground, nearly covered by the horrible fungus tendrils sprouting all over her body. Trajan kneels beside her and thrusts his hands into the morass of tendrils. “Asura, by your name heal this woman! Remove this foul infection I beseech you!”.

The healing power of Asura flows though his arms and into Anne-Maries limp body, and the tendrils dry up and blow away. A glow continues to surround Trajan’s hands and Asura’s power brings Anne-Marie back from the edge of consciousness. The demon had just been toying with them and has now travelled to cause mischief elsewhere. Anne-Marie looks at Saithnars impotent frost rapier with a measure of disgust. “I thought YOU were supposed to be magic” she grumbles.

They move a little way deeper into the forest and camp for the night, to pray and prepare their assault on the village tomorrow.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Incidentally, I don't know what the author of this module was thinking of, putting a blooming vrock into the module! as a CR13 creature it would probably wipe out most 7th level parties. In retrospect an Erinyes would have been much more appropriate. The Vrock has 20/+2 damage resistance for starters!

I basically had to play up the idea that it was just toying with them and got bored, otherwise there would have been a stupid TPK and a lot annoyed players.

Mind you, having read through the next "adventure path" module, the Heart of Nightfang Spire, I can't see the current party surviving it, so there will have to be several other adventures before they could hope to tackle that and live.

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

Next morning, at first light, K’tan concentrates, extending his power over all his companions, and everyone becomes invisible. They creep towards the village, passing through the boundary stones. Trajan, Anne-Marie and Arilyn move down the left side of the buildings, but K’tan got his left and right muddled up and ends up (invisibly) separated from his companions on the right side of the main street. It is clear that they are expected, as there are two ranks of villagers in front of the tower, clutching scythes and pitchforks.

Anne-Marie, still under the compulsion from the suggestion imbedded the previous day, quietly sneaks up to the front rank of peasants - and then unleashes a deadly whirlwind attack, cutting down three of them quickly. More peasants run up to surround her as she becomes visible, and two more are felled by her deadly reflexes as they try to get behind her. Their peasant weapons swing wildly, but against Anne-Maries graceful speed and uncanny intuition they are helpless.

As the swordsmistress wades further into the crowd of peasants, she catches a sight out of the corner of her eye as Tully steps up to flank her - and lands two vicious blows with her keen bastard sword, cutting deep into her thigh and stabbing in at her kidneys. Anne-Marie makes one strike in return and then steps back away from the bodyguard - only to be caught in a cone of frigid air beaming down from the top of the tower! She throws herself to one side, twisting her body and evading the force of the icy blast which freezes the grass and a few of the peasant warriors.

“Dyson must be up there”, Arilyn mutters. “Trajan, the winds will carry you there”. She taps him lightly on the shoulder, releasing the spell prepared earlier that day, and Trajan feels the familiar feeling of weightlessness, and he glides quickly up to the top of the tower where Dyson must be - but can’t see anyone up there.

Hovering invisibly, he suddenly feels a tap on his side, followed by searing pain as vitality flows out of him and into… nothing? He swings at where his attacker should be, but does not connect with anything invisible. Suddenly he is struck again, and once more his health is draining away - in desperation he throws himself back off the rooftop, and over the parapet...


----------



## Plane Sailing

K’tan shouts with alarm as Tully runs towards him and attacks him viciously, thankfully K'tans savant training has given him the health to survive two of the blows. Tully’s attention is distracted as the wounded Trajan swoops down behind her and strikes a mighty critical hit upon her. 

Staggered by the blow, Tully tumbles away from them and then just seems to vanish in the long morning shadows.

Anne-Marie starts to move towards where Tully was last scene, but a cloud of purple smoke announces the arrival of a fiendish dire gorilla. It’s long arms reach out as she tries to duck past it, and just snag on the back of her tunic. With a roar it reels her in and starts to rend and bite...

K’tan launches a concussion at the dire gorilla, and Trajan charges it, both determined to distract it from Anne-Marie - they succeed, but it is a badly bleeding form which is dropped unceremoniously to the ground.

Meanwhile, Arilyn has a premonition, and casts her other fly spell, carried aloft by a swirl of winds and to better keep an eye on the top of the tower _Dmnote: just in time - she had been spotted by Tully, who was making her way across to hurt her badly_
On the tower top, Dyson makes a calculation. He doesn’t want to risk catching the wounded Tully in a fireball at the other wizard, so he launches his empowered fireball at Trajan and the fallen Anne-Marie. Trajan saves, but is still badly burnt. Anne-Marie didn’t stand a chance.

The door at the base of the tower suddenly opens and closes as the wounded Tully slips out of the shadows and into the security of the building.

The company calls a retreat; Arilyn and K’tan are virtually out of arcane power, Trajan is sorely wounded and Anne-Marie has been killed. They run for cover and out of the stone circle surrounding Ossington, regrouping in the woods outside.

What can they do next?

_Unbeknownst to them, Dyson has also scarpered at this point, after the hidden Tully rejoined him. He is virtually out of spells, he knows that Henwen and Cuckoo are out of the equation and his plans here have been ruined. He gathers some of his most valuable possessions and then Dimension Doors with Tully out into the surrounding forest, the opposite way to the heroes. He will have to start a new plan for fiendish dominance, but at least he got away this time

Incidentally, Dyson was up on the top of the tower, improved invisible, hasted, with see invisible running. He used a 10th level wand of vampiric touch to attack Trajan with (touch attack, does 5d6 damage and heals him/gives him temporary hp for the same amount) and the two hits he scored nearly doubled his hit points.

It was a really tough fight, and I was sorry to see Anne-Marie fall
_

next: Closure.


----------



## Schmoe

It's always tough to see PC's fall.  Ironic, really.  We try our darndest to kill 'em off, then feel bad when they die.  Ah, the bittersweet joys of DM'ing.

Good updates!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks for the compliment, Schmoe!

Fortunately Anne-Maries player was OK with the logic of the situation, and didn't feel "got at" in any way - always a worry for sensitive souls like myself  

Good death scenes are hard to come by though, and being fireballed while in a stabilised condition isn't easy... but slightly better than being mobbed by peasants


----------



## Plane Sailing

Apologies for the tackiness in bumping my own storyhour, but I had to go back 20 days to find it!

Still, in the next exciting segment you will meet high elf lords, a returning villan with a grudge which leaves them puzzled, a nasty encounter with an Asuran inquisition police team and a [deleted] which proves to be [deleted]

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

Gathering together in the woods, and keeping an eye out for potential pursuers, the company are not surprised when there is a rustling of new leaves and a couple of figures step into view. They are as tall as men, lithe and graceful. Both carry bows, but arrows are not nocked. The female, with long reddish hair speaks.

“Men, you have done us a service beyond measure. Our Lady wishes to thank you herself”.

Then a golden aura is visible between the trees, and a woman clothed in white and glowing with unearthly beauty and presence gracefully steps into view. As she surveys them they see tears on her cheeks, and such is the personal magnetism radiating from her that each of them feels a similar pang in their own heart.

“Elves” gasps K’tan. “Nobody has seen Elves in hundreds of years!”

“It is true” says the Lady, with gentle regret in her voice. “We have not walked amongst men since the fall of Radeem. Our paths have taken us to different routes, different roots… We still seek the way home, even after these many long years. Do you know the way home?”

Trajan glances across at K’tan, slightly puzzled. “No, my Lady” he replies.

She continues, in a dreamy voice “If you should find the way home, be sure to come and find us. We have a deep, deep longing inside us…” her voice fades away, then returns strongly.

“Our gratitude is yours for removing this evil from the land, and laying the ghost of Caleddin, my Love to rest - if any deserved peace, he did. Please take my people and show them where you buried his body. I will look to your fallen comrade, the child who lies burned and scarred amongst you. Go now, and return in the morning.”

Somewhat hesitant, Trajan, Arilyn and K’tan back away from the Elven lady, and set off with the two “normal” elves (if any elves could be considered “normal”!). They lead them to the red horse hill, and show them the site where they had buried the ghostly horseman’s body. Surprisingly the low mound of earth is now covered in brilliant flowers amongst verdant grass. One in particular catches Trajan’s eye - a flower with seven sparkling petals. He motions to one of the Elves and asks “what is this flower? I don’t recognise it”.

“Ah,” replies the Elf. “That is the ‘Star of Remembrance’. A flower from our home, many, many years ago. It is said that they bloom whenever an Elf Lord falls, and Caleddin our Lord was great amongst us.”

“May I take one, as a remembrance?” asks Trajan. “Certainly” replies the Elf, so Trajan carefully plucks one of the flowers and stores it away.

The next morning they are led back to a clearing near the village. The Lady has departed, but sitting around a fire with three other beautiful elves is Anne-Marie. The burns from the fireball are mostly gone, although her hair is considerably shorter now, and will take many weeks to grow back to its old length. She seems in good spirits, although her memory of the last few days are very hazy and patchy.

The company rejoice that she is alive again, and thank the elves. 
A bargain is struck - the company will repopulate the village with the people whom they rescued from the fiends tower, and the elves will protect them from woodland dangers for the next year and secretly help them to become established.

Dala and Lysander meet them at the edge of the village. The force cage which had been holding them dissolved during the night and they had been cautiously examining the carnage around the village. The good news is that there has been no sign of Dyson or Tully since the fight. The bad news is that shortly after imprisoning them, Dyson had boasted that he was already sending out pairs of villagers to start infiltrating human settlements in neighbouring kingdoms, and his plans would still succeed…

Trajan and the others travel back down to the edge of the woods and meet Sean the Borderlander and the villagers which he has been keeping an eye on. The villagers are informed of the situation and travel up to Ossington. Everyone helps in the clear-up job. Trajan finds a stonemason amongst the villagers, and takes him round to the standing stones. Pointing at the evil runes which had contributed to Dyson’s plans, he takes out the “Star of Remembrance”.

“I want you to obliterate the runes, and carve an image of this flower on each of the stones. Can you do that?”

The burly mason nods, and starts to work straightaway at his task.

Sean is keen to start tracking down escaped fiendish villagers, but before he goes Trajan and Anne-Marie ask him to help them with a local task. 

They’ve got to clear out that wizards tower first.


----------



## Plane Sailing

-- interlude --

Lysander decides to leave them.

He has been doing some heart-searching as they have been moving South and helping out numerous villagers. He can’t help thinking about the refugee camp outside Knightsbridge. Many of the families there - his own kinsmen - barely survived the last winter. Their prospects don’t look great for this summer either, unless someone can help. And Lysander believes he can.

He remembers back a year ago (can it be only a year?) when he crossed the barrier range and as a younger and less experienced man helped defend a village against goblin barbarians... barbarians which had destroyed another, nearby village.

He is going to go back to Knightsbridge, and persuade the Baron to allow him to settle the refugees in the village which was destroyed by goblins last Summer. He will become the head man and spiritual leader of the village. It will be difficult to start a village from scratch, but he knows that despite the reputation Singharese have for softness, it is the softness of the wheat which springs back up again after the storm has passed.

And who knows what the final harvest might bring?

-- end interlude --


----------



## Krellic

Good stuff.  It's nice to see this adventure, which looked like one of the weakest of the Adventure Path series actually working, and working quite well but you embellish wonderfully.

Dyson sounds like he'll make your players a good on-going villain, just what every RBDM needs!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Krellic said:
			
		

> *Good stuff.  It's nice to see this adventure, which looked like one of the weakest of the Adventure Path series actually working, and working quite well but you embellish wonderfully.
> *



*

Thanks for the compliments. The module got great reviews on d20 reviews, but panned by people in messageboard threads. It has quite a lot of pretty severe plot holes/railroading, but I really liked the basic idea - the good ghostly horseman, the evil villagers and a vaguely celtic feel to it all. 

It is going to be a while before the characters are of the right level to attempt the next adventure module (heart of nightfangs spire) but I think they will have plenty to do before then.




			Dyson sounds like he'll make your players a good on-going villain, just what every RBDM needs!
		
Click to expand...


*
I've got more on-going villains than I know what to do with! Most of the bad guys have strong self-preservation streaks and bail-out plans...

I just sent the following list around to all my players as a reminder of "loose ends" that they need to follow up...


*Dangling plot threads:*

Daros the evil priest that was subverting the temple at 
    Knightsbridge is still on the loose, presumably subverting 
    other churches. Someone oughtta stop him! _This would 
    involve tracking down subverted churches in different towns, 
    and following leads to the big guy before finally putting him 
    down. Lots of travel, some wilderness and quite a bit of town 
    stuff. _

The Blessed is still working on setting up her Cabals, and is 
    working with a grand scheme, probably in league with the 
    mind flayers somehow. Someone oughtta stop her! _This 
    would involve mostly a big, complex dungeon crawl, to put a 
    stop to her mad schemes before it is too late. _

Dyson, the evil wizard escaped with his henchwoman, Tully. 
    They were working with fiends, and will probably start 
    attempting to bring fiends into this world once again. 
    Someone oughtta stop them! _A shorter term quest, this 
    would involve chasing them down somehow and finishing 
    them off. They have not had nearly enough time to get 
    sorted out in a new stronghold yet; the only issue is how to 
    find them. _

New diplomatic relationships could be forged with the 
    Dwarfs, cementing new friendships and bringing a powerful 
    ally into the future struggle with the mind flayers. _Diplomatic 
    adventures, investigating the underdark, making friends with 
    the suspicious dwarves and learning about them. _

That horrible shaman from the very first adventure turned up 
    again, causing trouble... she could be tracked down and 
    finished off before she does other horrible things with undead 
    plants and that nasty tree which she used to serve. 
    Someone oughtta stop her! _This would lead to the next 
    adventure path module, basically a nasty dungeon delve 
    designed for 10th level characters, and you're not ready for 
    that yet! _

The refugee problem in Singh is getting worse, it seems that 
    something has gone very badly wrong there. Who is going 
    to find out what is happening? Who is going to stand up to a 
    theocracy gone bad and rescue AN ENTIRE NATION? 
    Someone oughtta do something! _This would involve getting 
    into a nation, sneaking infiltration, military battles, political 
    struggles, gradually moving onto a grander stage._

Because we only play my campaign once every 2-4 weeks, it was getting so that they needed a programme to sort out the potential bad guys!

I decided to additionally let them know what *kind* of adventures they are likely to be getting themselves into by following up each of these leads, to make sure they choose something that they are keen to do at the moment. Of course, everyone *elses* plans will advance a notch or two in the meantime, heh, heh, heh!

Cheers


----------



## paulewaug

Wow that was an interesting end to that adventure
They ran each other out of town!

Sorry to see Lysander leave the team..
so now I am excited to see what new character will be joing the team then!?

The update on unfinished business is a good idea, they have some bad guys they need to hunt down and kill!


----------



## Plane Sailing

paulewaug said:
			
		

> *Wow that was an interesting end to that adventure
> They ran each other out of town!
> 
> Sorry to see Lysander leave the team..
> so now I am excited to see what new character will be joing the team then!?
> 
> The update on unfinished business is a good idea, they have some bad guys they need to hunt down and kill! *




It was a close run think at the end - much closer than I thought it was going to be! I did my best to play Dyson without any metagaming knowledge, and he didn't really have any idea how badly they were hurt - while he DID know that he didn't have his friendly shaman to heal him any more!

Lysanders player hasn't actually got a replacement character yet - he is still trying to decide what kind of character he would like to have, and (unfortunately) hasn't got any ideas that really grip him yet. hopefully soon though


----------



## Plane Sailing

The door into the wizard Dyson’s tower is magically locked. Unable to force it open by main strength they decide to batter the door down. Trajan stands before the door, composes himself, and then with a sudden cry kicks out, knocking the door off its hinges (quickdraw focus skill applied to an unarmed kick attack). Unfortunately he is engulfed by a gout of flame from the trapped door, which badly singes his clothes, but is far from dangerous to him.

Entering carefully, they find a comfortable circular room, with a ladder leading up to a trapdoor in the ceiling at one end. After searching around carefully, they take it in turns to climb the ladder up into a bedchamber. Trajan goes across to open the shuttered windows when giant spiders rush out from hiding places under the bed and attack, two going for Trajan, and two going for Sean.

The battle against the spiders appears to be short and sweet - although suddenly one of the spiders fighting Trajan disappears, becoming invisible. “Phase spider!” shouts Anne-Marie in alarm. Sean feels a strange suggestion tickling his mind. He can’t shake the feeling that the wizardess, Arilyn, must be in league with Dyson… he’d better cut her down quickly… He swings at her and just misses; Arilyn ducks away behind Anne-Marie who helps Sean to shake off the spell.

The window is opened, and a quick search of the room reveals no sign of the spider. Trajan and Sean proceed up another ladder to the top portion of the tower. This turns out to be a laboratory, with many items scattered about as if someone grabbed a whole series of things hurriedly before leaving. Amongst the few remaining materials are books, several scrolls in a rack and a small selection of potions.

Suddenly the spider appears between the two warriors and attacks again, but it is quickly slain with two crushing blows from the doughty fighters. The others come up to investigate the room and check out the contents. A further ladder leads up to another wizard-locked trapdoor to the top of the tower.

Everyone is caught be surprise as the dead spider suddenly leaps back to life and scurries down the trapdoor to the bedroom - it must have been regenerating! Anne-Marie leaps straight down the trapdoor, lands lightly and seeing no sign of any creature leaps straight down the next trapdoor and out into the yard. There is a small group of frightened villagers, pointing and worrying - apparently one of them saw a huge black spider crawl out of the window and then change shape into a crow and fly off. Anne-Marie makes several futile attempts to reassure them (diplomacy isn’t her strong point) before explaining that Trajan will come down and explain everything, which seems to settle them.

Meanwhile, up in the lab, Arilyn is carefully examining the remaining prizes. Three of the potions are oily and thin with a metallic smell to them. The books left on the shelves are not books of spells, but books on local politics, geography, history and one book with writing in an unrecognisable, crabbed script. 
Then we turn to the scrolls.

The explosive runes knock Arilyn right off her stool, bleeding and shaken as are the others in the room. “Aha” says Arilyn, “That old trick, eh? Something will have to be done to check and disarm these others”

Most of the rubbish and other material is then taken out of the tower and burnt for safety, and the tower is declared safe for use by the villagers.

“Now” declares Anne-Marie, “I have some unfinished business to attend to”


to be continued.


----------



## Plane Sailing

“I’ve got to return this frost rapier to Saithnar” she explains. “He said I could keep it until my task was accomplished, and I figure it must be done now”

Arilyn looks at her quizzically. 

Anne-Marie continues “The first time I used it was against the witch, Henwen, and it struck truly, dispatching her quickly. Then we fought cuckoo and I couldn’t hurt him. It hasn’t really done much for me since at any point since then. So I guess the lucky enchantments must be used up or something.”

So it is agreed, and Anne-Marie, Trajan, Arilyn and Sean set off through the woods towards the barrow. It is comforting to know that the elves have disarmed all the traps which they had littered these woods with. Perhaps too comforting, since nobody noticed a couple of songbirds which started trailing them. Not until the entangle spell went off, anyway.

The trees and bushes around them spring into unnatural life, grabbing and restraining all except Trajan, who wriggles free and quickly makes his way to the edge of the area. Storm clouds grumble overhead, and their sound is mirrored in the angry voice of an old crone, shouting at them from about 60ft away

“Where is Graculous? Where is Miranda? Where is Ynnsfeardh and the thrice-damned Auriel? They will pay for ruining my plans!”

The entangled group glance round at each other, puzzled, as they continue to try and struggle free. Trajan attempts to placate the old woman

“We know nothing of these people. Can we help you?”

“HA” she shouts, “You might try to hide them from my wrath, but my divinations have led me to their friends, to YOU. Perhaps you need some help to loosen your memories? Jog something free?”
She gestures skywards, and an answering bolt of lightning sears downwards onto the three entangled figures...


----------



## Darklone

Phew, caught up again!

Thanks for the SH, Plane!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Ah Darklone, welcome back!

I thought you had abandoned me for sexier storyhours  

I need to try to get a few more segments up before I go off on hols in a weeks time... watch this space!


----------



## Darklone

Sexier storyhours? 

Who told you about my secret passions ?

Damn, having to kill someone else in the morning really makes my day.

Standing Stone: never played it, just bought it.

Do you think your players shouldn't be able by now to kill a Vrock? I mean, I did just leave a group where most of the guys still got stuck with +1 weapons (shall I say daggers?) while the cleric cast GMW +4 on his stuff...

One of my players took on a Vrock at lvl 7 singlehandedly, but he "took care" of a minor artefact (rapier +3 with +1 AC and some other nifties). And he never rolled so lucky.

But yes, I do know how DR 20/+2 sucks.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Darklone said:
			
		

> *
> Do you think your players shouldn't be able by now to kill a Vrock? I mean, I did just leave a group where most of the guys still got stuck with +1 weapons (shall I say daggers?) while the cleric cast GMW +4 on his stuff...
> 
> One of my players took on a Vrock at lvl 7 singlehandedly, but he "took care" of a minor artefact (rapier +3 with +1 AC and some other nifties). And he never rolled so lucky.
> 
> But yes, I do know how DR 20/+2 sucks. *




Well, since Vrocks are (in theory) CR13 even without the bard levels, and it was fighting three characters with an average level of 7...

I guess the module expects four characters to be starting the module at level 7 and reaching about level 8 or 9 before the end... but even so, it is a bit heavy.

Standing Stone has the potential for a great adventure, but I think that you will probably need to do quite a bit of work to make it all hang together nicely. Especially if you have any elven priests or druids in the party! It goes out of its way to railroad the characters into situations, with no negotiations allowed, which was a bit of a cop-out to my mind. I guess they made Dyson a sorcerer for the "bang" value and to keep valuable spell books out of PCs hands, but I changed him to a wizard since that fit my conception of the person better. Let me know if you'd like the variant stats and spell list I put together for him.

Cheers

The setting is great though.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Hampered by the entangling plant growth, all of them are badly burnt by the lightning blast. They redouble their efforts to get free. Zeph flies down to try and help Arilyn, but has to spend most of his effort avoiding the leaves which grasp at him.

Trajan takes a few steps towards the woman, sheathing his weapon. “Can’t we just talk..” He doesn’t get to finish his sentence. Balak the shaman points and shouts out “kill him” - and an enormous bear as big as a carriage charges out and attacks him.

Trajan draws his scimitar smoothly and slices across the bears shoulders - but it hardly fazes the dire creature, which lunges forward with one paw and pins Trajan to the ground. His struggles are futile against the tremendous strength of the bear.

Balak looks over the scene. “Finish them all off. Kill them all” she commands her bear. Then she walks off, into the woods.

Anne-Marie and the others continue to struggle to get themselves free, Sean being the first to break away from the branches - although in the meantime the dire bear has used Trajan as a chew-toy, wounding him nigh unto death. Anne-Marie gets out one of the metallic scented potions and starts smearing it over her body, in case it is oil of slipperiness. Sean whips out his longbow and launches an arrow in the bear, distracting it before it finally tears Trajan in two. The bear lumbers towards the ranger, who bravely draws his longsword in an attempt to hold it off.

Sean lasts two rounds before falling before the might of the dire bear (he had suffered badly from the called lightning), without causing it much more serious injury. Fortunately Anne-Marie frees herself (at last!) and springs over to the clear ground behind the bear. Making noise, she distracts it from the body of Sean, and starts leading the bear on a frantic chase through the woods - carefully travelling just fast enough that it still chose to follow her. After about 10 minutes she breaks and hides in cover - only to see the bear stop and start sniffing around towards her hiding place!

Quickly she makes a break for it again, with the bear in hot pursuit. Next time she gets out of its line of vision she quickly upends another one of the metallic oils over some thick shrubbery, then leaps vertically up to a tree and hides amongst the branches (mentally thanking Keldass for the boots he crafted for her all those long years ago).

The dire bear stops near her, sniffs its way up to the bush and then tears it apart - but doesn’t find its quarry. After looking around angrily, the bear starts walking off to the south, presumably to meet up again with its master.

After waiting a short while, Anne-Marie runs quickly back to the rest of the party, where Arilyn has been busy stabilising Trajan and Sean. They are all a little non-plussed about what this was all about.

_Dmnote: This is, of course, Balak whose plans were foiled by the original adventurers way, way back in the Sunless Citadel at the start of my storyhour… The party is like the proverbial murphys shovel - all the components have changed (or in most cases died) but it is still the same shovel. Balak wants revenge for what happened to the Gulthias tree, and is going to cause big trouble in the future unless stopped_

After the use of some healing potions and a few hours rest, they feel ready to travel again. As it nears nightfall they arrive at the barrow, and Anne-Marie ducks inside, leaving Saithnar’s frost rapier on the small altar, then ducking out again. They build a small campfire outside the entrance, and spend the night.

In the morning, a quick check shows that the rapier has gone - but in its place is a long strip of leather… a hilt wrapping for a sword. Intrigued, Anne-Marie takes it and uses it to replace the binding on her old and ageing rapier. To her surprise there is a quick flash of light which spreads out from the hilt and along the blade of the weapon. She examines it carefully, and Trajan casts his craftsmans eye over the blade. Magically it is now much sharper and harder than it used to be.

A faint smile of satisfaction plays over Anne-Maries lips. “Let’s get back to the village”.


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Interlude*

The trip back to the village of Ossington is uneventful, and the party spend the next couple of weeks of Floodwater helping the villagers to clear up and settle down.

Then it is time for partings. Lysander bids them farewell and Asura's blessing as he heads back towards Knightsbridge, to see what he can do for the refugees there.

K'tan, also, has decided to part company with the adventurers. He misses his friend M'ir, and feels that the party is not working directly enough to counter the mind flayer threat. He plans to return to Cadlan and gain new direction from there - although he gathers promises from his friends to summon him should they come across more news of the ancient enemy. He shares with them once again all the news and stories of the strange times in Knightsbridge when he realises that none of those that remain actually took part in those days. Lysander is leaving them and all the rest are in their graves. He sighs and leaves them, unlocking a newly discovered power to transform himself into a great eagle to fly home.

Trajan, Anne-Marie and Arilyn set off Southwards towards Bridlerest, to continue their interrupted quest to find Jorash, the craftsman who apparently has contacts with the mysterious dwarves. Dala promises to follow along later, privately concerned to find that the farmer who gave them hospitality when they first arrived has been murdered, and the "daughter" who gave him comfort that night has vanished. Did she run away... or was she one of the fiendishly touched creatures too?

Mounted up, they travel South on the great trade road. After a day they catch up with a brightly coloured wagon and make friends with the garrulous merchant who is taking his wares down to Bridlerest for the Greening Fair next week. He waxes lyrical about the wonders of the city, and the finest craftsmen in all the Southlands.

The continue on, entertained by his company and the opportunity to have a sense of normality in their life, even if only for a while.

_next: The Mounted Inquisition_

Cheers


----------



## Krellic

Nice to see a definite sense of closure from this 'episode'.  I look forward to seeing who our new stars (new PCs) will be when the next installment starts!

Good stuff.


----------



## Piratecat

Ha! I have Plane Sailing captive here in Boston. If you want him returned, please send me cash - lots and lots of cash.  And maybe, just maybe, I'll let him come home safely.  

In the mean time, though, he's playing NPCs for me.


----------



## Darklone

Ugh, kitty kitty, want fish?


----------



## Darklone

Uhm, how do you bribe a piratecat.... Want a goldfish?


----------



## Plane Sailing

_Scurry...

Search...

Upends furniture..._

Ah-ha!

_Dusts off storyhour_

Back from hols in Sunny USA, I'll get catching up in the next day or two.

Thanks to those who met PC's astonishingly high reserve price for my release


----------



## Old One

*Welcome Back!*



			
				Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *Scurry...
> 
> Search...
> 
> Upends furniture...
> 
> Ah-ha!
> 
> Dusts off storyhour
> 
> Back from hols in Sunny USA, I'll get catching up in the next day or two.
> 
> Thanks to those who met PC's astonishingly high reserve price for my release  *




Alex,

Glad to see you back safe and sound!  How was your trip?  Was your guest shot at Pkitty's as fun as it sounds?

Best to you,

~ Old One


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Re: Welcome Back!*



			
				Old One said:
			
		

> *
> 
> Alex,
> 
> Glad to see you back safe and sound!  How was your trip?  Was your guest shot at Pkitty's as fun as it sounds?
> 
> Best to you,
> 
> ~ Old One *




We had a fantastic time. PC and KidC looked after us in Boston (and I got to play in Sagiro's AND PC's campaigns - how cool is that!). We then popped down to Rhode Island to visit an uncle of mine, then up to Vermont to look at trees and other local attractions. Restful and relaxing. Especially driving on the roads up there! We'd play "spot the car" on some stretches, and even the roads marked as "seriously winding" were lovely smooth curves compared to the cart-tracks-with-tarmac that we have in my neck of the woods!.

On interesting thing that I noticed in both of their DM'ing styles - they were much more likely to say "Yes" than "No" when asked a question, or when one of the players tried something a little off-the-wall, and I'm sure that added to the overall atmosphere immensely.

 - Oh yes, and I met Ben (Wulf Ratbane) Durbin, who is a really nice guy too.

For my first visit to the States, it was a great introduction.

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

Wulf Ratbane is a nice guy? Ah... the player... Wulf himself would probably be p***ed off if you call him nice!

I'll miss my goldfishes...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Trajan, Anne-Marie and Arilyn decide that the time has come to set off towards Bridlerest, and attempt to find the craftsman who has contact with the dwarves. Dala is upset to learn that the farm girl he spent a night with has disappeared and her father is dead. He plans to spend a little more time in the village setting things to rights and will follow on later.

During their first days travel southwards they come across a merchant with a single caravan, and fall in alongside him, glad of his company and smiling at his homespun wisdom. 

Early in the morning of the next day, just as they are finishing their breakfast, they become aware of a group of horsemen galloping down the road in their direction, pennants and cloaks flying. Each of them wears a grey and yellow cloak, with their hood thrown back. Drawing up about thirty feet away, their shaven heads are clearly visible, with white headbands similar to Trajan’s across their brow.

“Hold, strangers!” one calls out imperiously. “We seek the renegade Lysander! You match descriptions of some of his travelling companions. Tell us what you know!”

Arilyn recognises their Singharese accents, and moves behind her two friends. There is old enmity between her people and those who now stand before them. “Keep hidden, Zeph” she whispers to her familiar, who ducks behind the wagon.

Trajan stands forward. “We know of no renegade. Peace be with you on your journeys”.

There is some whispering amongst them.

“Southlander scum” the spokesman calls out. “How dare you sully the garb of our holy order with your pagan flesh and ways?”

“I do not offend my god. Nor should you” Trajan replies in measured tones.

“Don’t bandy words with your betters” one of the mounted Jazumai calls out. Another one breaks in - “look at his headband! He bears the mark of the heretics!”

Trajan thinks up to the lightning slash which divides the circle on the front of his headband, the new headband presented to him by his master when the hermit had initiated him into the training of the sword saints. What had the old man said about a pogrom to eradicate his kind?


----------



## Plane Sailing

“You are a foul impostor and will return with us for trial” calls their captain.

“I don’t think so” responds Trajan, as he loosens his sword. Anne-Marie likewise changes her stance to face attacking horsemen.

“You shall return in chains or face judgement here!” and two of the Jazumai spur their steeds forward in a charge, while the other two whip up their shortbows and unleash a hail of arrows.

Arilyn has been preparing for this moment and quickly conjures a howling wall of wind between the two parties, which deflect the arrows harmlessly skywards.

The mounted attackers make spirited ride-by attacks, wounding both Trajan and Anne-Marie without giving them the opportunity to return the blow. Trajan turns and prepares for the return of the horseman, readying an attack to strike as he nears. Anne-Marie takes the fight more directly to her foe, and with the aid of her magic boots runs up behind her assailant and strikes him just as he is turning his horse round!

As the two mounted bowmen approach and attempt to gain a line of sight around the wind wall they see Arilyn rising aloft as winds make her cloak billow around her and decide to make her their primary target. Arilyn is hit several times with arrows before rising above their effective range, but retaliates by targeting one of them with her static bolt spell, which clings to him with electric fire.

Anne-Marie duels her opponent for a while and then sprints off to distract one of the archers that is shooting at Arilyn. A 120ft charge and a leaping kick sends the Jazumai flying of his mount.

Meanwhile, after several rounds of trading blows with the jazumai riding past him, Trajan finally gets the upper hand and cuts his opponent down, his superior strength telling at last. He doesn’t have a moments respite though, as his opponents heavy warhorse whinny’s fiercely and attacks him with its hooves! Trajan backs of defensively, unsure how to take this... the masters bonded warhorse is clearly out for his blood, but he can’t bring himself to strike a beloved horse. Nor can he take too many more blows from those heavy hooves…

Suddenly to his amazement, his faithful light warhorse _lightning_ charges into the combat, body-checking the heavier warhorse and knocking it slightly away from Trajan. Not wasting a second, Trajan leaps into the saddle and spurs Lightning away.

_DMnote: it might not come over as much here, but I really loved this moment, when his faithful light warhorse who he has made a point of caring for carefully charges in against much tougher opposition to rescue "her man". Sigh._

Riding past Anne-Marie he scoops her up beside him and the two of them ride for their lives Northwards along the trade road, and back towards the ferry crossing while Arilyn flies overhead and the two remaining Jazumai remount and ride after them...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Half an hours hard riding with the Jazumai team in hot pursuit brings them to the ferry, which they quickly mount and start moving it across the river. The Jazumai start opening up with their shortbows, but both Trajan and Anne-Marie are able to reply with longbows. As their attackers realise they are not going to win this arrow duel they lay hands on one another and then mount and gallop off northwards towards Caran pass.

“Well” says Trajan, as Arilyn drifts down towards them and cocks an eyebrow. “We didn’t admit anything to them, they don’t have our names… so hopefully they won’t be providing trouble for us further down the road”

Arilyn isn’t so sure. Teams of Jazumai were once seen riding together within her own country. “Inquisitions”, they were called, and their attention was soon directed at the local people as much as the Singharese.

Warily, they cross back over the river and set off again Southwards towards Bridlerest. They are moving faster on their own than when they travelled with the merchant, and so as dusk approaches they find themselves entering light woodland a few miles short of the city. 

Wispy cobwebs keep drifting across their faces, as if the road is not often travelled. They don’t want to try to get in the city gates at nightfall, and they are rather pleased to see an inn beside the road - the Long Bottle. Entering the courtyard they recognise Monads wagon (and their spare horses). While Trajan sees the stableboy and arranges the feed and care of lightning, the two women enter the tavern.

“Welcome, milady's”  Says a comely serving girl. “Would you be wanting a bath run after your long journey?”

Anne-Marie and Arilyn glance across at each other. Civilisation at last!

to be continued.


----------



## Darklone

Lo bumpuru!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Hey, a bump! I got a bump!

<hurriedly scribbles date down in diary>

I'll get writing again on Monday (I'm away for much of the weekend)

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

As Trajan joins them for an evening meal, Emilie the serving girl comes to offer them the menu for the day - a choice ranging from mutton stew to flank of beef. Arilyn sighs “What I wouldn’t give for a good Mendonnan curry right now. I miss the flavours of home”.

“But milady” says Emilie, “Our cook is familiar with all three of the major types of curry from Mendonna! I’m sure he’ll be happy to do a special order for you”

There are smiles all round. Anne-Marie orders wine, asking for a good Sword-Coast vintage. “A good one, mind”. Soon the steaming plates of food arrive, along with a fine and dusty bottle. “One of our very best” says Emilie, curtseying.

Anne-Marie takes the bottle, glances down at the label and gasps in astonishment.

The wine, five decades old, has her fathers signature on the label. It is from the old family vineyard. Is that a brief tear we glimpse in her eye?

(back to the action next post)


----------



## Plane Sailing

As they finish the meal, they become aware of Emilie hurrying around, with a concerned look on her face, calling for Jard, the stableboy. Shortly she comes over to their table.

“I’m sorry to bother you, gentlesirs, but our stableboy has gone missing… Mr Longbottle says that if you could get him back the meal will be free. He left a couple of hours ago, shortly after you arrived, to fetch fresh chickens from the farmer down the back trail in the woods. It’s no more than a twenty minute jog, and he should have been back long ago. He’s probably napping or something, so you could just give him a swat and send him on his way…

…only we’re a bit worried, ‘cos one of the travellers thought he saw something odd in the trees yesterday - we’d feel better if you’d check.

Trajan leads them in agreement, and they pick up some of their gear and set off down the dirt trail behind the inn, running perpendicular to the road. Strangely, occasional cobwebs over the path catch on Anne-Maries face as she leads the way. Its almost as if nobody has been down the path in days!

The trail ends and opens into a field. Across the meadow in the fading light they can see the farmhouse and a strange structure next to it. As they get closer it looks as if an entire barn has been wrapped in scrub and tree limbs, bound together with a silky web-like substance. They decide to investigate the farm first.

The farmhouse door swings ajar, half torn from its hinges. Preparing their weapons, Trajan leads the way into the building. The air is foul, and there is dried slime on the floor and on the walls - as if something very bulky has dragged its way through the hall. The rooms have been trashed, food has been thrown around in the kitchen and all of the kitchen knives have been thrust through a wooden cabinet with incredible strength.

On the floor of the kitchen is a trapdoor to the cellar, webbed shut. After some judicious cutting they get the edges free and Trajan heaves the door open. Arilyn magically causes a small stone to glow and tosses it down the bottom of the slime-coated ladder.

Leaning down through the trapdoor, Trajan can see dried slime, shards of glass, chunks of smoked meat - and across more than half of the cellar a huge, web-wrapped mound of eggs, glistening in the light, and with small dark shapes moving fitfully inside them…

to be continued.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Climbing carefully down the ladder, Trajan and Anne-Marie approach the eggs. Fearful, Arilyn remains on the floor above to secure their retreat.

There is no sign of movement as they draw near, either among the eggs or elsewhere around the room. Trajan cuts one of the eggs open with a slice of his scimitar, and evil-smelling goop flows sluggishly out. There are dozens  of eggs here and they quickly decide that the best way of destroying them will be fire, so they light torches and place them over the mound of eggs.

Sure enough, the mass starts to catch fire quickly - rather too quickly for comfort, so they rapidly leave the cellar and the house as a foul burning smell becomes more pervasive. Now to tackle the barn.

The main door to the barn has been webbed shut, although there are a couple of openings into the hay loft which might be clearer. They decide to hack through the webs and material across the main door, and after several minutes of chopping manage to break through, and lever the sliding door partly open. 

Stepping into the barn they are struck by an even fouler stench than before. The ground floor is empty of life. Slightly sticky webs and dried, foul-smelling slime coats most of the floor, and stall and pen doors are ripped open. With the magical light spell they can see a little up into the hayloft, and it is obvious that bundled sacks hang from the ceiling like dangling fruit.

“Motherrrrr, we have visitorrrrrs” whispers a mangled voice from up above


To be continued


----------



## Plane Sailing

After a short discussion, where the voice promises to let the people go if the intruders leave, the heroes refuse to accept the offer. They step forwards into the barn, to get a closer look at the eyes glinting between the rafters - and suddenly sticky webs are cast down across each of them!

None of them can get out the webs quickly, and three foul-smelling ettercaps slide down web strands and dart forward, each biting one of the heroes and then quickly retreating away, to watch their poison get to work. Trajan is favoured by Asura, and quickly throws off the poison, but Anne-Marie suffers a little. Zeph flies in and forms a little whirlwind around Arilyn, helping her to free herself from the clinging strands, and she ducks back out of the barn.

The ettercaps fling more webs over Trajan and Anne-Marie, and a horrible sliding, gasping, slithering sound is heard from up above.

“Now you are forrrrrr it!” cackles one of the creatures. “Now Motherrrrrrr comes!”

A charnel stench flows over them, and a vast black bulk becomes visible at the edge of the hayloft. Slowly it’s huge, sagging bulk is lowered over the edge on a web strand like a cable. Eight glittering red eyes take in the scene before it lunges forward and bites Anne-Marie. Poison like fire courses through her veins and she finds that she is losing all control of her muscles.

Arilyn invokes one of her prepared spells, launching her electrical static bolt spells at the Ettercaps, encouraging them to retreat while Trajan rips Anne-Marie free from the webs that ensnared him and his companion.

Miraculously the monsters hold back, retiring back into their loft amongst the suspended parcels of their living larder, and the heroes have a chance to fall back and plan.

Their first objective must be rescue of the farmers and Jard; that is going to be much harder with Anne-Marie out of action (since she is currently so weak from the poison that she finds it difficult to hold her rapier, much less fight with it).

They decide to attempt to smoke out the ettercaps. Arilyn casts a fly spell on herself and on Trajan. Then they creep down to the front of the barn and throw torches inside. The straw which litters the floor of the barn catches fire quickly, and they hear a  chittering sound, which is presumably the creatures conversing with one another. Both of them then fly around to the other end of the barn, and Trajan chops through the silky covering which bars one end of the hay loft closed. 

They can hear the sound of splintering wood from the other end of the barn, but proceed with their plan. As soon as the door is open Zeph scoots in and after a quick circuit informs them that the ettercaps have broken out the roof of the barn. Flames are roaring below, and smoke is starting to fill the barn. The wooden floor is illuminated by flickering light from between the boards, and it is very hot as Trajan and Arilyn fly in, quickly cutting down the human-sized cocoons and flying out again. 

They alight in the farm clearing, well away from trees, and watch as the barn blazes alongside the farmhouse which is also well on fire. They cut the victims free, and find Jard and the Farmer and his wife alive but paralysed by the creatures venom. Anne-Marie staggers across to help them as they carry their unconcious cargo back to the Long Bottle.

_(darn it, I lost my notes and with this being a couple of months old now I couldn't remember the details - hence a rather sketchy portrayal of these events)_

Cheers


----------



## Piratecat

I feel your pain. It's still incredibly cool, though.


----------



## Darklone

Yup


----------



## Plane Sailing

The company spend a week in the Long Bottle convalescing. Anne-Marie’s strength gradually returns to her, and although they are running out of silver marks, they all agree that there could not be a more pleasant place to spend their funds. Many merchants and entertainers pass by, often stopping for a night at the tavern. They are all heading for the spring tournament down at Bridlerest. Trajan is distracted from his books about politics and some spider cult (gathered in Ossington) and gets involved with a conversation with a poet up from the sword coast - and is tricked into revealing more of his background than he would have liked. The poet rightly guessed that a southlander in the garb of a Jazumai must have a bit of a story about it. When the man leaves Trajan sighs, sure that no good can come of that slip. 

Many evenings they enjoy conversations with Galladin Longbottle or his daughter. Although he doesn’t speak much about his own past, he was clearly at one time an important figure in Bridlerest and he familiarises them with the names of some of the major nobles in the town. It is obviously larger than Knightsbridge, being ruled by a Count and Countess, with several Barons too. The Spring Tournament is one of the major events in the Southlands, with competitors arriving from all over the country to compete in martial and magical duels, before the Grand Ball at the end of the week - an opportunity for nobles and ambassadors to mingle, entertain and deal with one another.

When Anne-Marie is fully recovered they prepare to set off for Bridlerest themselves. They should be able to get there just before the week-long tournament and fair starts. Galladin Longbottle presents them with a letter of introduction to Baron Kagiro. Arilyn decides to wait a little longer until her friend, foil and the butt of jokes, Dala arrives. She misses the chance to cross wits with a man “as half-witted as he is charming”.

After a couple of hours on horseback, Trajan and Anne-Marie reach the broad gates of Bridlerest. The city beyond the walls is replete with towers, banners and glowing shapes, but even this pales into insignificance compared to the sea of brightly coloured tents which surround the southern part of the town and the games fields. There must be thousands of visitors, and as they joined the main thoroughfare towards the gates the blend of voices in all manner of languages and with all kinds of faces is exhilarating.

At the gate, the guards welcome them as “my Lord and Lady”, mistaking them for a married couple. Anne-Marie decides to play up to this a little (perhaps drawn by Trajan’s startling charisma). They haven’t gone far when a young man wearing bright livery hails them, and asks if they need a guide or a message sent. Trajan asks for a good inn near the town centre, so they are led to the “New Bolt” a four storey building facing into a large decorative square. They then give the messenger a note to deliver to Baron Kagiro’s household. The inn proves to have excellent food and good company - but at a high price. They are entertained by a series of musicians, dancers and storytellers. One particularly entertaining bard told of a story near the barrier peaks where two barbarian chieftains worked together with a mighty wizard to slay a white dragon which had been terrorising local villages. “Just last winter too, it’s all true M’Lords!”. Trajan allows himself a wry smile at how repetition and retelling has blurred the details - his memories of the event was one of bloodied survivors who just escaped alive rather than the triumphant gleaming heroes spoken of in tales. Ah well.

That afternoon they set off to visit some of the high spots in the town, and to attempt to sell on some of the spoils they have been carrying around with them. A trip to Dwergs, a very exclusive weaponsmith is enlightening. They actually complete commissions in mithril and adamantite here, and each weapon is a work of art. Charley, one of the crafters there, is interested in the magical weapons which they want to sell on. He explains that they don’t have the marks to purchase those particular items, but they do lots of business with the Guild of Four, the arcane guild in the town. Would a credit note for their services be acceptable?  Most certainly!

Meanwhile, Dala and Arilyn arrive in town. A messenger who was on a small retainer from Trajan notices them and introduces himself. He will lead them to the New Bolt, where their friends are staying. On the way, a freak swirl of wind fetches a sheet of paper up against Arilyn. Plucking it up, she finds that it is an entry form for the magical tournaments, and they both decide to sign up. At the New Bolt they are just in the process of checking in when the other two arrive back for lunch. Information is shared, and they decide to visit the Guild of Four to find out what kind of enchantments might be possible.

The Guild of Four have a large and very tall tower on the east side of town. There is no door, just an archway leading into the main hall, but Arilyn and Dala both sense the presence of protective magics there. Negotiations at the Guild go smoothly once their relationship with Dwergs is known. Arilyn is interested in membership of the guild, and so she goes off for a separate audience with Ravi, one of the masters. The others find out that the guild is prepared to set enchantments upon weapons or perform other work, but are a little alarmed when they are told that their participation will be required in such work, in order to provide the necessary portion of their soul...


----------



## Plane Sailing

OK, we’ll all think about that.

The party go off to enjoy the fair and to pay to sign up to various tournaments, after checking the programme of events. Anne-Marie enters the wrestling and Archery for the first day, while Trajan just goes for the archery. Arilyn and Dala both sign up for the prestidigitation show down, and Dala enters the summoning circle too.

The wrestling match is a disaster for Anne-Marie. It appears that she is the only woman who has entered, and she is surrounded by cat-calls and rude suggestions. It must be quite off putting, as she crashes out in round two of the competition to a huge blonde borderlander.

The archery competition is much more exciting. Both Trajan and Anne-Marie manage to shoot their way into the quarterfinals before being knocked out. After a disappointing morning Anne-Marie’s spirits are lifted a little. They lift a little more when a man dressed in finely cut noble silks introduces himself to her as they leave the field. His name is Jordan, and he has been very impressed by her skill at arms and her dark, sword coaster beauty. Can he invite her out for a meal this evening? By all means!

While Arilyn retires early that evening, and Anne-Marie enjoys regal hospitality at one of the plushest restaurants in town, Trajan and Dala spend a little time wandering around the town. Much to Dala’s surprise, he is approached by a messenger bearing a scroll tube for him. Apparently it was given to the messenger by a woman in “bilious green robes”. As Dala thinks back, he is sure that he has noticed someone in that kind of robes from time to time during the day. He’s suspicious.

Dala and Trajan retire into a darkened alleyway. “I know how to check this safely” says Dala, as he conjures a Formian worker in a puff of greenish smoke. “Open the scroll case” he commands.

The Formian gazes at him, its head on one side, idly clicking its mandibles.

It clicks its mandibles some more.

Trajan laughs. “I don’t think it can understand you!”

Cursing under his breath, Dala irritably dismisses the Formian, but he can’t stay angry for long, as the ridiculousness of the situation stands before him. Dismissing his earlier fears he opens the scroll case and finds a scrawled message inside.

_the gate swings open and the bell tolls but without a guide we are lost without a centre we must fall will you help us will you guide us we sense you are closer to the door than us meet us in the old book shop on elm street

Vigdis _

Hmmm.

The two of them march off to find the local militia office, and are quickly directed to a building run by the Artisans Fist, the local police enforcers who are paid for by the merchants and shopkeepers. Dala informs them of the likelihood that a bunch of evil cabalists who are interfering with things man was not meant to know are probably holed up in the bookshop on Elm street. He neatly avoids any mention of the fact that he himself is also interfering with things man was not meant to know.

The Artisans Fist are interested in the information and promise to look into it.


----------



## Plane Sailing

A visit to Dwergs proves fruitful. Although tempted by the prospect of finely jewelled and crafted weapons in Mithril or Adamantite, the company decide to accept a credit note from Dwergs to cover work which they plan to arrange at the Guild of Four.

Waxday dawns, and Arilyn and Dala take part in the magical tournaments. Both do well in their initial rounds of the prestidigitation duels, and they meet each other in the quarter final, where Arilyn easily triumphs, mocking Dala mercilessly. She then proceeds to crash out of the competition in the semi-finals, to her disgust.

Dala is then involved in the Summoning Circle competition. A smaller competition, he knows he just has to win four contests to have a chance at the title. In the first round he summons a magmin, which duels with a celestial badger. Both creatures are unable to harm one another significantly, and Dala wins by default when his opponents creature ends its summons first. Into the second round, he prepares an Azer, which is attacked by his competitors fiendish dire wolf… which kills the azer in just one bite! Arilyn chortles with glee and makes fun of him.

After the competition Dala is approached by a common merchant and taken aside for a conversation - and when out of vision from people nearby the “merchant” reveals that he is actually a she… Vigdis , the cabalist who had sent a note to him earlier. Please, please will he help?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Dala starts to have second thoughts about helping out and he arranges a meeting for the following evening. Anne-Marie meanwhile spends another evening with the charming Jordan, wined and dined, taken to the theatre. She spends the night with him at his exclusive townhouse...

The next day dawns bright and fair, ready for the jousting. There is a tremendous atmosphere and great fun. Trajan whispers encouragement to his assigned horse, encouraging it with his skills and getting that little bit extra out of it… and he manages to squeak through the quarter finals and eventually finds himself in the final, facing last years champion, an equally powerful knight from Tanor. Trajan is outclassed and his earlier luck deserts him; he is unseated by his opponent and loses the match - although he has caught the eye of the Countess Naomi who provides him with a “favour”, and an invitation to the grand ball at the end of the week.

That evening they prepare a room for the meeting with the cabalists. With Trajan watching invisibly from the shadows Dala waits for Vigdis to arrive. She is with a couple of other members of her cabal - the matronly Elva and the waif like twins Godfred and Fyoder.  It seems that this cabal was set up by the Blessed, and left with someone in charge of Vigdis and her fellow acolytes... they had thought it was interesting and exciting - the Blessed had spoken of mysterious things and taught them magical powers. But then the Blessed left to continue some “unfinished business” late last year. Paulo was left in charge, but when he summoned something from a scroll in the cellar it all went horribly wrong and the creature dissolved him and ate him. It’s still there in the cellar, making noises. They are scared and don’t know what to do...

Dala agrees to help, as do the others. It sound like another gibbering mouther problem. This could be the chance to put these misguided people back onto the straight and narrow, and keep them from falling further into the clutches of evil.


----------



## Plane Sailing

They travel round to the bookshop, Vigdis opens up with her key and they move past the crowded bookshelves and into a store room at the back. Heavy weights are moved off the trapdoor, and preparatory spells are cast - mage armour, and light on a small coin. The trapdoor is thrown open and the coin is flicked down into the cellar. Trajan and Anne-Marie leap down, and press an attack against a tentacled mass squatting in the corner.

Dala drops down too, and summons a fiendish ape which joins in the attack against the tentacles which are thrashing around without causing much harm.

Suddenly the mass of tentacles transforms shape into an oozing bag of pus-filled eyeballs and tumbles past its opponents and right up to Dala. One of the eyes bursts and squirts pus across Dala’s face, and he stumbles back. The ape turns and reaches out with its great claws, finally rending the creature into a stinking mess.

Dala looks across at his friends. “I don’t feel too great”.

Then his form dissolves into a pool of liquid flesh, with eyes and mouths erupting all across its surface, all screaming with his voice..


----------



## Schmoe

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *Then his form dissolves into a pool of liquid flesh, with eyes and mouths erupting all across its surface, all screaming with his voice.. *




Eww, that's never a great way to start the day.  Chaos beast?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Spot on Schmoe (nice to see you still reading BTW!).

The set-up to the situation had "gibbering mouther" written all over it, especially since their last encounter in an old bookshop.

There was a clue which they missed... how could a summoned creature stay around for this long? The answer is that a summoned chaos beast might disappear but his chaos beast progeny stay around. They didn't ask themselves that question...

Cheers


----------



## Schmoe

You bet!  I don't get as much time to post as I used to, but this story hour is still one of the ones I check regularly.  Great stuff.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks for the kind words!

I'm nearly up to date, in that I'm only one whole session behind... but we play again this Sunday (wheeee!) so I'll get a little bit more behind again shortly unless I'm lucky.

The next set of things coming up is heavier on the role play than the action, with the grand ball. And of course Dala's, er, problem.

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

Nearly a minute passes as they watch helplessly while Dala struggles to regain his form - bending all of his considerable will to the task several times he nearly manages to reform his body before it collapses once more. Only at the last moment does his shattered personality and self-image start to re-integrate and he stands before his comrades whole once more.

There is a slightly mad look in his eyes though.

_Dmnote: With a +4 on his DC15 Charisma check it was unexpected that Dala failed 8 times before managing to re-integrate his form. I don’t use the permanent instability of the book version of the chaos beast because that would be a guaranteed kill on someone - they just couldn’t keep themselves together long enough to reach someone with the super-high-powered spells needed to cancel it. Still, I keep the permanent Wisdom drain, and Dala now has a wisdom of 4…_

They report to Vigdis that the creature is destroyed, but recommend that they disperse and lie low, hiding until the Blessed has been dealt with. Once more Vigdis implores Dala to lead them, although she steps back at the somewhat glassy stare he returns to her.

They tidy themselves up and then leave the bookstore, to walk straight into the arms of the Artisans Fist, the mercenary police force of Bridlerest. Their claims that they were here on behalf of the owners fall on deaf ears when they can’t produce said owners (who have already left by the back door). Although Arilyn contemplates attacking the guards magically, Trajan doesn’t want to make a scene and agrees to accompany them back to their guardhouse for questioning.

A captain of the guard questions them, and Trajan drops the name of Countess Naomi into the conversation - although it doesn’t grant them the instant freedom they were hoping for. They are detained overnight in a locked room while the Fist undertakes some investigations.

The next morning they are released by a corporal, with a brief request to not get involved in breaking and entering again “but we’ll let you off this time since the owner has asked us to drop all charges”. They return to their hotel rooms. It is going to be the grand ball this evening, and they want to prepare and get ready.

Trajan is alarmed to find that his room has obviously been searched during the night, as has the girls room. He angrily takes it up with the owner who seems genuinely upset that something like this could happen in his exclusive inn (“But I pay my dues!” he whines). He passes them a small bag of silver Marks for them to not let it known that something like this has happened in his inn, which they accept.

Their next task is to visit the local temple of Asura, to see if the local high priest is able to restore Dala’s lost wisdom. Trajan is feeling cautious, as he is aware that there might be a price on his head at his own temples at the moment…

At the entrance they are greeted by a small, tubby and bald acolyte with a broom - he seems surprised and pleased to receive visitors. Stuttering, he asks them to take a seat while he fetches the “acting high priest” from the library.

He returns with another very short acolyte, a bald Singharese woman who is introduced as Maztil. Can she cast powerful healing magic to restore Dala’s wisdom? Well, not today. She prays each evening before Holy Day and Lord Asura normally grants her certain miracles of healing, purifying or blessing, but nobody has been able to cast powerful magic since the old high priest died. No, she doesn’t have any miracles “prepared” today, she only prays for them on Holy days. The rest of the time she is in the library attempting to catch up on her new job.

“It is strange” Trajan notes, “that one as apparently, uh, inexperienced as yourself should now be in charge of the temple here. What _exactly_ has happened?”

“Well” Maztil replies, “a few months ago our old high priest Shunnamin took ill and died all of a sudden, and nobody could do anything to help him. It is a good job that the itinerant priest from Singh came along soon after, yes siree! He helped get us back on the straight and narrow, and promoted me into my current position until new help comes down from Singh”.

“His name was Daros, I think”.


----------



## darkbard

too good not to be on the 1st page, so ... bump!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks for the bump, Darkbard - I've not been able to continue this for a while with pressure from work, but in a lull just before Christmas...

=============

A little more conversation reveals that Daros has moved on, and they don’t feel like attempting to track him down at the moment, although he is clearly continuing his policy of subverting temples of Asura in one form or another. Still, the barely competent group who have been left in charge here are no immediate threat; although they are not going to be any help in recovering Dala’s sanity and wisdom.

The next thing on their agenda is shopping for the ball. Arilyn protests that here tattered and stained travelling clothes are perfectly adequate for the ball, but Anne-Marie, tutting, takes her to one side and offers to pay for suitable dresses out of her own purse. “You need something _special_ for a grand ball, my dear”

Trajan meanwhile sets off with Dala to the mens costumiers and tailors. The mincing shop keepers try to steer them towards the more ornate and expensive materials, and Trajan is horrified to see that he is expected to wear a half-cloak and codpiece in addition to tights and hose. He selects a demure green and purple combination. Dala, however, in his less-wise-than-normal state decides to go the whole hog and selects a range of clothing in blue and scarlet with gold filigree. He decides to go for a flamboyant extended codpiece with golden dragons embroidered around it “for extra potency, sir”. Dala is determined to make a big impression. He makes an impression all right...

_(n.b. Dala's player couldn't make it, and an old friend from Germany was visiting and took over the role (with the players permission). His lack of familiarity with certain rules and spells nicely simulated Dala's currently slightly unhinged state, while giving us some laughs in the process )_


----------



## Plane Sailing

*The Grand Ball* (at last)

That evening, Jordan picks up Anne-Marie and takes her by carriage to the ball. Trajan, Dala and Arilyn make their own way there. Trajan had been planning to remove his Jazumai headband for the occasion, but he has a clear sense of divine displeasure when he does so, so he ties it back in place and proceeds proudly to the Ball. Most of their special belongings are left locked in the safe at the inn, and when they arrive at the grand hall they check their weapons with the guards at the entrance and are hardly held up at all while their invitations are inspected. Trajan’s invite is from Countess Naomi as a result of his performance in the tournament, Arilyn has an invite from Grandmaster Ravi from the Guild of Four. Dala is pencilled in as Arilyns escort (much to her disgust, but it is the only way he can be brought into the ball).

The main hall is vast, and lit with huge candelabras whose light reflects from thousands of mirrors and golden ornaments. High on the wall portraits of statesmen and nobles from earlier ages look down on them. A butler hands Arilyn a card, and Anne-Marie hurries across to her friend. “These are dance cards… there will be ten dances before the entertainments, and then the final masked ball. This is a chance to mingle with guests and get attractive and influential people to sign up on your dance card - I’m off to start talking with the courtiers across the way there”. She moves off to start speaking to the well dressed men in the noble retinues.

“Ain’t gonna be dancin’” Arilyn grumbles to herself.

Dala looks on as he sees a number of beautiful young women arrange themselves around Trajan, hanging on his every word and complimenting him on his heroism, his looks, his sense of humour. Dala is feeling a bit annoyed - as one of the most charismatic men in the city who happens to be hanging around with the only person more charismatic than himself. 

Trajan is trying to extricate himself from the attention of the ladies, recognising the steely glint in the eyes of men who were quite obviously their dates for the evening who keep staring over in his direction.

Meanwhile, Dala starts attracting quite a different kind of problem. Several times young men approach him, and after a little conversation “remind” him that the normal meeting place is at the bottom of the west kitchen stairs (with a knowing wink). After a while even the slightly befuddled Dala recognises that these men are attempting to arrange an assignation with him, attracted by his personal magnetism - although why they should be identifying him as a potential date is a mystery...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Just a quick Happy Christmas to those who read the storyhour, and double Happy Christmas to everyone who posts a question or encouragement 

And Andrzej - if you are reading this, get yourself registered and post Arilyns personal thoughts on here!!

Cheers, and thanks!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Amongst the noble entourages they spy Baron Parry, Baron Kagiro and another that they do not recognise. Countess Naomi and her husband are also visible amongst the ranks of simpering courtiers.  There are also a number of ambassadors at the ball too, here to discuss and forge agreements. 

Arilyn is standing near some of the food tables, absently nibbling on pastries and thinking about a knotty problem in arcane calculus when she realises that the older gentleman sampling the fois gras has spoken to her.

“Excuse me, my dear” says ambassador Sheen, of Morannon.

“You seem a long way from home, no? Your desert touched skin and deliciously almond eyes speak of the heritage of Mendonna, I believe, no?”

“Could be” responds Arilyn, annoyed at being distracted from her thoughts.

“So I’m wondering” Sheen continues “whether you might be here on, uh, _business_?

_Dmsnote: Mendonna is well known as the city of assassins - *all* assassins are trained in that nation_

“Oh yes, sure” replies Arilyn, thinking about the information she hopes to trade at the guild, and the artworks they are returning to Jorash.

“Ah, as I thought my dear. Wouldn’t be _business_ considering anyone I know, no? Never mind. I don’t mean to pry. Perhaps I could be putting a bit of business your way myself, no?”

“Well, I’m up to my neck in plans at the moment” says Arilyn with some frustration.

“Ah, I’ll not be pressing you when you have serious _business_ right now then. Maybe another time my dear, no?”

With that, ambassador Sheen sidles off into the ebb and flow of people in the ball. A number of his retinue glance back at Arilyn then look away quickly. Arilyn barely seems to notice, and gets back to thinking about the knotty problem on interplanar shifting that she’s been working on.


----------



## Plane Sailing

this space reserved for double post

(Doh!)


----------



## Plane Sailing

Trajan, meanwhile, receives an invitation from the Count to join the noblemen and ambassadors as they retire to the smoking room, for brandy and discussions of world affairs. As he makes his way after the others he feels a pat on his rump - glancing behind him he is astonished to notice the Countess, apparently deep in conversation with someone else but the only person who could -possibly- have touched him.

“C’mon man” calls the Count, “Stop dallying. And bring your friend”

Dala joins Trajan as they enter the smoking room, the sorcerer still looking a little bit glazed, and his attention wandering all over the place.

During the various conversations Trajan learns that Baron Kagiro has lost some of his Companions while they were investigating something over the border in Morannon, and he is looking for replacements who might carry on the investigation. Would his adventuring company be interested? Arrangements are made for Kagiro’s warlord to see them later after the ball to discuss details.

The Lythanian ambassador is able to pass on some of the latest news from Knightsbridge and their homeland. The Singharese ambassador, a short and podgy man with a stammer attempts to make conversation about trade treaties but starts sweating profusely every time he is asked about refugees from Singh. “There is no refugee p-p-problem, no p-p-p-problem at all” he stammers.

Dala finds that his exotic codpiece draws unwanted attention from Baron Parry, and he decides that enough is enough and he ducks behind some heavy velvet drapes and casts an incantation to make the codpiece invisible, before arranging his remaining clothes decorously. 

Meanwhile, out in the main hall Anne-Marie finds herself the unwanted focus of attention for a drunken old man, clearly up from the Sword Coast and delighted to find another Swordcoaster for company. He persistently tries to arrange a dance with her, even though she points out time and time again that her dance card is now full (apart from the spot she has been reserving for Jordan, her date for the evening - but she hasn’t managed to get to see him yet, for some reason).


----------



## Plane Sailing

Arilyn has successfully fended off all attempts by men to get on her dance card, and is disturbed once more by a cough from behind her; she turns to find two of the journeymen from the Guild of Four. “No, I _don’t_ want a dance…” she starts, but then she realises that the two are staring at her with an unfriendly leer.

“So, sneak” one hisses “do you intend to sleep your way to the top of the guild?”

The other laughs nastily “we’ve seen the way Ravi looks at you, and the provocative way you swirl your hair around”

Arilyn seems a little nonplussed. What -are- they talking about?

“Be careful” says the first, “don’t forget she’s from the city of -assassins-“

“nasty little pointy-nosed bitch” replies the second. Then they push roughly past her, and make their way towards the stage area. 

“oh!” says Arilyn, gingerly touching her somewhat prominent nose. “That was a bit unfair”.

As the noblemen re-enter the hall, the band strikes up the first of many tunes for the evening, a lively polka. Laughing and waving dance cards women start seeking out their partners and the ball starts in earnest!


----------



## Plane Sailing

A short dancing interlude follows, with several dances traditional amongst the nobility are performed. Anne-Marie actually has some skill at this kind of dancing, but to her (well hidden) disgust, Trajan and Dala both outperform her handily, with their natural charm, poise and sense of timing. Ah well.

The dancers all wear their masks on their shoulders for this part of the ball. They will break for entertainments, then everyone will mask up for the final grand masked ball and people will dance with anonymous partners - unless they recognise the mask from this stage, of course, and seek out particular partners.

The last of the waltzes comes to an end, and the two journeymen from the Guild of Four take to the stage and start performing intricate juggling acts with flaming doves.

Something draws Anne-Maries attention...


----------



## Plane Sailing

She is standing near the entrance to the kitchens, and she overhears one of the waiters whisper something to another who is carrying a tray of drinks.

“Don’t forget, the flagon with the dragon is for Baron Purry. It has been _fixed_”

Anne-Marie watches as the waiter expertly weaves his way through the crowd of people towards a wealthy and well dressed man laughing amidst his courtiers. She waits until the servant reaches him. The Baron reaches out his hand, plucks his drink from the tray - and Anne-Marie springs into action.

At least, that was her intention - she plans to cartwheel impressively through the gathered throng to the Barons side, but misjudges the footing and her flouncy dress. She crashes into some of the delicate ladies, bringing them all to the floor. As she gets up the ladies she struck cry out in pain and start weeping hysterically. All eyes turn away from the entertainments and focus on the (now somewhat disheveled) Anne-Marie. Several of the gentlemen present move to help up the distraught women and want to know what in the seven depths this sword-coaster woman was up to. Luckily, the commotion has distracted Baron Purry from his drink, and Anne-Marie is able to gasp out “Stop! The drink is poisoned!”.

While Trajan soothes the tempers of the young gentlemen, Anne-Marie explains that she overhead one of the waiters saying that the drink was poisoned. Guildmaster Ravi saunters up and waves a magical periapt across the top of the glass.

“Ah, I don’t think you’ll be wanting to drink *that*, Baron. Very nasty magical poison in there I’m afraid.

The Baron looks shocked, and glances around before fixing his eyes on Arilyn, still standing on her own near the food table.

Other eyes turn in her direction too, and whispers run around the hall before Ravi calls out “Enough interval! Back to the show!” and he conjures a fountain of rainbows which directs everyones attention back to the stage and the rest of the entertainment.

As the masquerade ball starts, Dala decides to make himself scarce to avoid the unwanted attention of some of the gentlemen at the event, and decides to kill two birds with one stone by dancing with Arilyn, drawing attention away from her a little. Arilyn doesn’t really want to dance, and isn’t any good at it, continually treading on Dala’s feet or attempting to turn the wrong way.

Trajan’s attention is attracted by a delicate tap on his shoulder, and he finds a lithe woman in a catlike mask looking to dance with him. He spends the ball in a surprisingly intimate fashion. He suspects that he is dancing with the countess Naomi herself, but he doesn’t ask and she doesn’t offer any information, although nobody comes to cut in on the dance.

Anne-Marie is upset that things haven’t been going to well, and she was expecting to have the final masquerade ball dance with her paramour, Jordan; but he isn’t around. Unless - is that him over there, talking and laughing with his mates? “I’ll just creep up on him and give him a surprise” she thinks.


----------



## Shockwave

> The Baron looks shocked, and glances around before fixing his eyes on Arilyn, still standing on her own near the food table. Other eyes turn in her direction too, and whispers run around the hall




As Arilyn became aware of the growing fear/hostility from the crowd she finally gave up on trying to be nice and thought what the heck they want an assasin so be it and was glaring at the odd person here and there. The only reason she accepted a dance with Dala is because she felt that out on the dance floor was probably the safest place to be at the time, Arilyn *really* doesn't like to dance she sees it as a waste of time that could be better spent reading books or gaining some more knowledge of the plane of air from her familiar.


----------



## Darklone

Sounds like she needs to fall in love


----------



## Plane Sailing

<---- {points to shockwave}

This is Arilyns player! Huzzah, a PC posts here 

I'll email your most recent "secrets" before the weekend. It is fair to say that they will revolve around the elemental plane of Air and more details about a chap named Arkon...

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

Gosh, it's been ages since I posted anything - sorry folks. A combination of a busy time at work followed by over a week of illness has slowed me down.

I'm on leave from work at the moment, but feeling a little more perky, so I'll see how close I can get to being up-to-date (since I'm now over two major sessions behind - and due to run again this Sunday (health willing)).

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

Still around


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks for being faithful, Darklone!

Here we go..


Jordan is talking with his friends, laughing. Then they all start passing him money. Anne-Marie edges closer.

“Did I lay her? You bet! She was so easy, it hardly seems fair to take your money” Jordan Guffaws. “She squealed like a stuck pig too!”

While the others laugh, a reddening Anne-Marie taps him on the shoulder, and as he turns round punches him straight in the face. His hand moves quicker than the eye and a dagger produced from his sleeve slices at Anne-Maries kidneys, but she dances back from the blow which slices her tunic and draws a thin line of blood.

“Stupid bitch, don’t try to drag *me* into your wrestling fantasies” Jordan hisses.

Suddenly a figure leaps across the table from their left, plucking up a kebab stick in the process, and lands lightly between Anne-Marie and her tormenter. “That’s no way to speak to a Sword Coast lady” the grizzled old man says – and the kebab stick flicks out like an epee and disarms Jordan of his knife.

Startled by this turn of events, Jordan and his cronies make a run for it, narrowly avoiding Anne-Maries attempts to trip him as he flees.

The whiskery old fellow is none other than Barenath, the Sword Coaster lush she had been fending off earlier in the evening! With a flourish he produces a glass of wine and steers her away from the eyes of everyone who had stopped to see what was going on. 

“My dear”, he whispers, “I feel you are not cut out for diplomacy, are you? I can see in you the training of a warrior, coupled to the fierce temper which many from our lands feel! You fight with speed and by your instincts, which serve you well – but he would not have laid that dagger upon you if you had been fighting with your mind too!”

“But, but, I’m always thinking about how I fight” Anne-Marie protests.

“Nonetheless, there are canny tricks of defence which I could teach you. I have not had a student for many, many years, but you… I could train you in the ways of the sword coast duellist. If you are willing, of course”

Anne-Marie turns aside so he doesn’t see the shine of hope in her eyes – the possibility of training as a duellist has long been one of her greatest desires, even though she is not confident that she is ready for such training yet. She agrees though, and then is surprised when Barenath offers a courtly bow, and inquires whether she would be willing to have the closing dance with him. They whirl off into the ballroom floor, lost in the music.

Eventually the final chord is played, the ball ends and the party meet up to return home. They share their news and their stories, and make plans for the following days.

There have been no further incidents at their hotel, and in the morning they travel to find Jorish the craftsman whose goods they are returning. They have no difficulty in finding his shop, which is filled with exquisite sculptures of all kinds. Jorish is astonished to see the dwarven figurines returned which he had crafted last summer. He is astonished as well that they feel into the hands of people noble enough to return them to him.

Jorish is keen that the statuettes are delivered to their owners, especially since he has now been passed the payment for them. The company are equally pleased to be able to get a connection, an opening to meet dwarves, since none have been seen in the Southlands for many, many years.

As payment for their services, Jorish offers them a small ebony figurine of a panther, which he names Padfoot. “Place her down and speak her name and she will serve you, once a week for an hour”. Anne-Marie takes care of the valuable item.

In order to deliver the dwarven statuettes, they will have to travel west again, back past Knightsbridge and up into the Barrier Range, the tall spine of mountains that runs down the middle of the world. Their contact works in the Aeolian College, a centre of music in a small town named Moradins Call, where a small community of men live by the entrance to a dwarven kingdom. They will have to ascend a steep trail known as Stooks Climb, near Bellhold, in order to reach it.

Before they set off, they want to spend some time training and preparing. They have agreed to pool their Marks in order to arrange for a powerful enchantment to be laid upon Trajans’ bastard scimitar, Anne-Marie wants to spend time studying with Barenath the duellist and Arilyn has research she wants to continue in the library at the Guild of Four, discovering more information about the Storm Lords.

Trajan has to participate in the enchanting of his sword, since as part of the process he is required to donate a small portion of his soul into the magic, and activity more tiring than he thought it would be as he spends days and nights praying Asura’s blessing into the blade.

Anne-Maries training proves successful, although she hasn’t been able to fully integrate it into her fighting style yet. A little more experience, a little more practice though, and she is sure that she will be able to step out fully onto the established path of the duellist.

Arilyn is excited by the results of her research. Firstly, she has determined that portals to the elemental plane of air sometimes open spontaneously in the highest parts of the barrier range. Secondly, she has unearthed information about Arkon, the greatest of the Storm Lords, who was lost in battle with Storm Giants in the Barrier Range peaks. It was Arkon who wrote the code of the Storm Lords and who used to educate his chosen apprentices in the secret ways. Although he fell many decades ago, his citadel was supposedly on the elemental plane of air… it could be that the their current path will lead them closer to her ultimate goal!

The time spent in training and research has brought them to the end of the month of Greening, and after attending with Trajan the first holy day ceremony of May (amid his grumblings about the poor state of the temple of Asura in Bridlerest) they set out Westward along the great road back to Knightsbridge. Alkanar is there, the old priest that they’ve worked with many times before, and he might be able to restore Dala’s lost wisdom and personality.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Boards seem really slow tonight! lots of people on the server?

I'll just add another section of story here then...


They spend a leisurely week on their journey, calling in on old friends along the way. Stopping to see Galladin Longbottle at his inn, they enjoy another of his incomparable dinners. Further west, and they make a side trek up to Ossington, and find that the villagers are settling in well around there. The spring plantings have gone very well, and there are happy rumours of “fairy folk” looking after the villagers and helping children who are lost. Anne-Marie is filled with delight to be reunited with Lord Haw-Haw, her brilliantly coloured macaw, who had turned up several weeks ago and been treated as an honoured pet by the villagers. Lord Haw-Haw seems genuinely excited to see his mistress again, and a much happier Anne-Marie leaves Ossington on the last leg of their journey.

Arriving at Knightsbridge and its familiar stone arch across the gorge, they are surprised to see the shanty town has disappeared. The gate guards are a bit suspicious of Trajan at first, because there has apparently been a lot of problems recently with bands of Jazumai throwing their weight around. As soon as the guards realise that these are friends of Lysander, their entire attitude changes. Everyone thinks well of Lysander since the Baron gave him permission to resettle the refugees from the shanty town in one of the old villages destroyed by Goblin barbarians last year.

Entering the familiar old town, they make their way swiftly to the temple where they are greeted by the acolytes and quickly find themselves before Alkanar, who is able to restore Dala’s wisdom, and will do so in a couple of days on the coming holyday ceremony. Everyone else retires to their rooms at Mithril Manor, while Trajan goes in search of a jewellers, to settle some unfinished business.

At Trapps, a well known jeweller, he brings out a silver set of chimes which they discovered long ago under the moathouse. They have been kept carefully wrapped in cloth, and Trajan promises the man 50mk if he will melt it down and destroy it – but warns him not to let them sound.

That night, Trajan wakes suddenly from a dream of distant chiming, and with the sound still ringing in his ears quickly wakes his companions and they race off through the streets to Trapps.

The front door is closed, but they can hear screams from within the building. Bursting down the front door of the shop they move towards the rear workshop, where there is a foul stench of sulphur and hot blood. Gazing into the room they see a large troll with flaming red eyes glowing from its armoured helmet, and a red-hot salamander torturing Trapp the Jeweller who is held against the wall. Seeing the company arrive, the salamander quickly guts Trapp and turns to face them.

Without any thought or planning, Trajan leaps to attack the troll, smiting evil with all his might – and missing because of its heavy armour. Anne-Marie likewise leaps into combat with the salamander, hurting it slightly and then getting struck once, twice by its greatsword, then grabbed by its coils and squeeeeezed… Anne-Marie cries out and succumbs to the fiery embrace. Trajan is likewise attacked by the troll, who lands blows with both its claws and rends him terribly.

The salamander which is radiating an aura of fear tosses the body of Anne-Marie aside and moves up to slash at Trajan, gashing him with its blade. Dala attempts to cast a spell from the doorway but reckoned without the reach of the troll which lashes out and hurts him so badly that he loses his spell. The troll then finishes another full attack against Trajan, rending him once again and dropping him to the ground.

Arilyn and Dala look at one another horrified as the fiendish creatures turn towards them. Dala unleashes a lightning bolt which dissipates on the creatures spell resistance and Arilyn throws an area Dispel Magic into the room – which astonishingly causes the armoured troll to disappear, overcoming the summoning magic which had brought it here! As the salamander slithers forth to attack them both retreat. Arilyn shouts “use dispel magic!” before using Dimension Door to vanish to safety the other side of the building. Left on his own and with his low wisdom keeping his brain in a rut, Dala retreats, launching sorcerous dispel magic after dispel magic against the oncoming salamander to no avail, and then using his last third level spell slot to launch a massive lightning bolt – which overcomes the salamanders spell resistance and save and the creature dies, wreathed in electrical energy.

Arilyn comes flying over the top of the building, borne by the winds, and joins Dala. They hurry inside and find amidst the burning wreckage of the workshop the bodies of Trajan and Anne-Marie. At deaths door, but with much fumbling and swearing they manage to stabilise their two friends. Arilyn checks the upstairs rooms of the house and finds Mrs Trapp and the children upstairs, horribly murdered by the fiends. Downstairs Dala eyes the chimes on the workbench with hatred in his face. Calling upon the most powerful magics he can, he calls for celestial aid to deal with this foul evil. 

Suddenly a soft light fills the room, and a glowing luminescent ball appears before Dala’s face.

“Good day. My name is Boswell. How may I serve you Dala?”

“Can you take that *thing* where it can never sound or harm anyone again?”

“Of course, Dala”.

The lantern archon zooms down, touches the chime and both archon and instrument disappear. Seconds later Boswell reappears.

“I have placed it deep under the ocean, four hundred leagues East of here, Dala. Will that be sufficient?”

“Er, sure” replies Dala, scratching his head. “That will be all, Boswell, thanks.”

Carefully, the wizard and the sorcerer gather up their wounded colleagues, and slowly carry them back home to the manor.

Arilyn thinks “I’m going to have to teach these fools *some* elementary tactics. We can’t just charge in against foes like these!


_DM's note - I don't know who was more surprised at how quickly Trajan and Anne-Marie went down here. Both were lucky to avoid death, and the bad guys could easily have spent a round killing them with no difficulty.

I think it comes down to a major disconnect from earlier editions of D&D which we've only just started to come across in 3e. Namely, in previous editions once you reached 8th level +, it was almost impossible to get killed in only a couple of rounds! The thing is that now appropriate challenges for high level characters can be as deadly to them as equivalent challenges for them when low level - an issue which I as a DM and they as players are just getting to grips with!

Plus, as Arilyn says - their tactics that night sucked so bad I thought a black hole had drifted into the room  _

Next a short interlude for soul-searching, and then onto the next adventure (mostly cribbed from an excellent IronDM adventure from last year )

Cheers


----------



## Shockwave

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> At Trapps, a well known jeweller, he brings out a silver set of chimes which they discovered long ago under the moathouse. They have been kept carefully wrapped in cloth, and Trajan promises the man 50mk if he will melt it down and destroy it – but warns him not to let them sound.




Arilyn also had a few choice words, which she mostly kept to herself as to the party's handling of the chimes, from now on if they have any magical matters they are to at least ask her her opinion first before trying anything. No one bothered to mention to her that they were trying to destroy a magical device and therefore she couldn't implement any safety measures or make any attempts to dispose of it safely herself.

Ah well such is the bane of working with people who act rather than think.  
'Here i am brain the size of a small planet...'


----------



## Plane Sailing

More story tomorrow afternoon!


----------



## Darklone

Yeah,... rending sucks.... a lot...


----------



## Plane Sailing

You said it, brother! It is a real case of adding insult to injury (or should that be injury to injury?)

More storyhour now!

*Interlude*

The days pass. The party heal and recover. In a well-attended Asuran ceremony on holyday the power of Asura is called upon and wisdom returns to Dala’s brow and the horror of losing his form to the chaos beast fades away.

Trajan is filled with a different kind of horror though. His close relationship with Asura has been lost. The aura of grace that has surrounded him for years has faded, and his prayers seem empty. He knows that he is responsible for the loss of life amongst the Trapp family, he had a responsibility to destroy an evil magical item and he stepped aside and tried to pass that responsibility on to others – and it led to their deaths. Time weighs heavily on him, and he resolves to go and visit his old master, back above his home village of Dragons End.

Trajan and Anne-Marie leave early, so that they can make the detour together. Arilyn and Dala will meet them later at Bellhold, in the Bell & Clapper inn. They receive a warm welcome at the inn in Dragons End, and nobody now refers to Trajan as the lanky boy who was always off with the old hermit. Trajan doesn’t feel like banter though, and they soon set off up the hillsides to his masters old place. He’ll know what to do, how things can be set right.

Eventually they reach the old shack on the hillside. There was the sound of chopping wood from the other side, but as they circle the yard they don’t see anyone – until they both become aware of an elderly man standing just behind them and with a knife at each of their necks.

“clumsy fools, and slow as ever. I despair of your Trajan, really I do”.

Released, they turn to face the wrinkled old man. Trajan hangs his head and explains the story, his failure as he sees it, in the matter of the chimes and the loss of the family. The hermit agrees. It was stupid, bad and dishonourable. In the old days the only appropriate response was to commit ritual suicide. 
Trajan attempts to say that things are different nowadays, and that other responses might work, but his master turns away from him coldly.

“Have you learnt nothing from my teaching? Is my old order truly doomed to die with me?”

He stalks back into his house and shuts the door. For long minutes Trajan stares at the door, wrestling with his thoughts, then he shrugs off Anne-Maries comforting hand, and kneels before the door.

“Master” he calls out.

The door opens, and the hermit looks down on him.

“Master, will you be my second?” Trajan asks. The hermit nods, draws a knife and stands behind him. 

Trajan draws his scimitar, holds it up praying, then reverses it to place the point just below his sternum.

“Stop! Stop!” cries Anne-Marie, “You must stop, you can’t do this, you mustn’t!”

The hermit glances across at her. “Why should he stop short of atonement?”

“Because”, whispers Anne-Marie, “because… I love him”.

Trajan gasps, distracted. Anne-Marie kneels down before him, moving the sword out of the way. “After I sought happiness with someone else in Bridlerest to no avail, I realised that the happiness I truly seek lies before me here – you are the one I love, Trajan. Live for me…”

The hermit gazes on them. “hmmm. Unorthodox, but I’ve seen stranger workings of Asura. Trajan, your atonement is not yet complete, but I feel that the light of Asura will once more shine on your brow. Anyhow, you’ve got to go now. I’m supposed to be a hermit, and it doesn’t do to have too many people around me. Go now. Go!”

Trajan gets up, bows to his master and he and Anne-Marie set off arm in arm down the hillside to their horses and on to Bellhold. He doesn’t have his relationship with Asura back yet – but it seems that another relationship is blossoming that he hadn’t suspected.

To be continued tomorrow, travelling up into the mountains and eventually meeting more undead than you can shake a stick at!

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

*The Echo in the Wind*

The current party roster is as follows:

*Trajan* 2nd Fighter/5th Jazumai/2nd Sword Saint
*Anne-Marie* 6th Fighter/2nd Monk
*Dala* 8th Sorcerer
*Arilyn* 7th Wizard

The people of Bellhold are delighted to see their heroes again, and wine and dine them royally. They even show them a commemorative statue which has been put up in the town square with representations of Lysander, Trajan, M’ir, K’tan, Dala and Syl. The company raise their flagons in remembrance of friends who have moved on to other things, or died in the service of good.

Many local people know of Stooks Climb, but nobody has been up that way to the Aeolian College in more than a year. Rumour has it that a giant has set up camp near the climb and exacts heavy tolls – or worse – from those who want to use it.

The company set out next morning to Stooks Climb, regretfully leaving their horses in the care of the inn at Bellhold. While still a long way from the passage, Awk is sent flying ahead to scout out the area. He returns with news of a large Hill giant, camped up by the second bend of Stooks Climb. He has a large pile of rocks and he is staring out towards all the approaches, waiting for anyone to approach. The weather is getting very windy, and Awk doesn’t think he’ll be able to fly in it for much longer.

A plan is made. Dala and Trajan are made invisible, Arilyn will watch from 500ft away, within range of her static bolts. Anne-Marie will creep up to the bottom of the climb while Dala and Trajan fly up and position themselves above the giant.

The attack is launched by surprise, but the giant is much tougher than expected, and it gets to unleash a full attack against Anne-Marie, seriously wounding her before it is finally cut down. Trajan calls upon the power of Asura to heal Anne-Marie, and she gasps back to consciousness. Investigating the giants sack reveals grisly human remains. At least this is one less menace to local society. It doesn’t look as if there has been many travellers passing either way recently here…

The brace themselves against the increasingly cold wind and start the long struggle up Stooks Climb. It is steep and unfriendly, taking hours to walk up, and the sun is dipping down to the horizon when they come out to the broad valley which leads up to the town of Moradins Call. 

As they approach the gatehouse, their attention is drawn to a pair of small flying creatures which are dancing and weaving around the towers, and emitting bolts of lightning.  Suddenly the creatures notice the party, and more specifically notice Zeph, and wing their way like arrows towards the little elemental, spearing him with electrical blasts. At about the same time, four orcish rangers erupt from cover just feet away from the adventurers and charge into the attack, raging with their greataxes swinging!

The battle is short and furious; the orcs don’t last long even though they were experienced hunters amongst their people, and the juvenile arrowhawks don’t last long against magic missiles. Arilyn recalls that they are creatures from the elemental plane of air, and Zeph mentions that they are sworn enemies of his kind. Arilyn thinks it is strange that elemental creatures of that type might be found here, out on the mountains. There must have been a portal somewhere which they slipped through...


----------



## Shockwave

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *The attack is launched by surprise, but the giant is much tougher than expected, and it gets to unleash a full attack against Anne-Marie, seriously wounding her before it is finally cut down.*




How could you miss out one of Zeph's crowning achievements? You forgot his heroic slam flyby powered up with a shocking grasp spell. A daring and damn risky manoeuvre on the familiars part, good job he's a fast little ball of cloud and that the giant missed.


----------



## Plane Sailing

What can I say? It was a long time ago and I couldn't remember many of the details of the fight... If I can get some more feedback from you and the others I'll edit it in though, after all - Zeph's heroism deserves some commemoration, eh?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Oh dear...

Major character death occurred last night... I'm about 2 runs behind in the writeups here, but one of these guys isn't going to make it through the campaign

(no spoilers, Shockwave!)

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

As they reach the gate they are greeted by the guards who let them in and thank them for handling the menaces outside. They are particularly grateful that the orcish scouting party had been detected and stopped, as they were always a big problem in the spring time.

The wind has grown stronger and louder, coming in cold gusts down from the mountain peaks. As the company walk along the main street in the direction of the Aeolian College sounds of singing and laughter come from all of the houses which they walk past. They stop in at a tavern and find it crowded with men and women, apparently all taking it in turns to put on a performance of song or music, which is joined in with good humour by everyone. The quality of the music is good, and the atmosphere is welcoming. Anne-Marie is reminded of growing up on the Sword Coast where impromptu guitar sessions were common, and takes a turn with the musicians herself, drawing interest from her rousing ballad of the sea so far away.

Seated near a window shutter, Arilyn suddenly jumps – the sound of the wind changed suddenly for a moment, from a whooshing sound to a sudden roar, like a great beast, then back to it’s normal howling, It was a disturbing and unusual sound, not what she is used to hearing on the wind. It seems to be coming from further into the town, up where the College is supposed to be. Over the next fifteen minutes the strange roaring sound intrudes into the wind more and more often, and she encourages the others to press on directly towards the College; they wrap up against the wind and waving goodbye to new friend press on up the road.

As the main street opens into a small square, the can see the impressive frontage of the Aeolian College built into the cliff face to their right – and standing in front of it is the huge figure of an ettin, lumbering back and forth and with rocks in its hands. It spots them and starts throwing with deadly accuracy. After initially ducking back behind the corner of the street, Trajan and Anne-Marie run forward to attack while Dala and Arilyn provide spell support. The sound on the wind is now clearly audible to all of them – a disturbing song coming from within the College. No lyrics can be discerned but the melodies and vibrations seem to be disturbing.

The fight with the ettin proves to be short and brutal. It was a zombie, and that thankfully made it much slower and less resilient than the foe would otherwise have been. Behind it are 8ft tall stone doors, which appear barred from the inside. After they have tried opening the doors a small slit in one door opens, and a bitter, feminine melodic voice says “Oh, thank you for _saving_ us. Please, come in!”.

The hear the sound of the door being unbarred, and as they push the doors open the horrible sound of the song pours out over them. The song is hideous and yet beautiful: discordant, full of pain and loss and suffering, yet full of longing. It seems to be calling something to it, something horrible...


----------



## Schmoe

Good stuff!  I can't wait to hear what lies within the old college.

Regarding the switch to 3e, I think it's definitely true that encounters remain deadly throughout a character's lifetime.  That's one of the things that keeps the game fun, though, is that the players never need to feel like they aren't challenged.  In my campaign, at the game table I keep remarking on how tough the party is and how they always seem to come through at the end, but when it comes time to design the encounters, I always find myself having to scale back to avoid an almost certain TPK.  So yeah, while the PC's are definitely tough, challenging them is still no challenge at all.

Who knows, maybe this changes at certain power-levels (my PC's are about 1 level above yours), but I doubt it.

Hey, I just thought of something.  Considering that your party and mine are about the same level, if you want to share notes sometime on some cool encounters, I'd be more than happy to.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Schmoe said:
			
		

> *
> Who knows, maybe this changes at certain power-levels (my PC's are about 1 level above yours), but I doubt it.
> 
> Hey, I just thought of something.  Considering that your party and mine are about the same level, if you want to share notes sometime on some cool encounters, I'd be more than happy to. *




I don't think that Piratecat has had many fatalities despite horrific odds against his players, so perhaps at 16th+ level it becomes less of an issue... It'll take a while before we get there though!

I'd love to share notes on some cool encounters - would it be worth opening a thread in the "plots" forum?

Next installment coming up later tonight BTW!

Cheers, and thanks for the encouragement.


----------



## Plane Sailing

As Trajan and Anne-Marie enter the room two young women who have been hideously deformed into undead wights leap at them, clawing with broken fingernails. They seem to be bolstered by the unearthly song ringing through the hall, and before they are struck down their talons have struck a deep chill into Trajan’s heart, weakening his health slightly.

The proceed down the corridor into the great hall, which has many side passages leading off to dormitories and classrooms. The great hall itself is lined with trophies, banners, plaques and old instruments, while benches and tables are set out across the floor. Dala gestures and spits a few words and an explosion of webbing coats one side of the hall, sealing all the doors there closed as a precaution. The sound is clearly coming from the closed door to the main auditorium, which is thrumming with the powerful beat of the hideous, cacophonic music.

Trajan thrusts the door open, and his eyes gaze on a horrible sight. Students and teachers stand against the wall of this circular 50ft diameter room. All have been turned into wights, and all are playing instruments or singing with melodic, evil voices, amplified by the astounding acoustics of the auditorium. Standing in mid-air just below the 40ft ceiling, poised in the air is a dwarven wight, conducting his evil choir with a black baton. He turns as they enter.

“Good evening! My name is Thorsted. Have you come to appreciate my choir?”

“No” says Trajan, whose sensitivity to evil is raising all the hairs on his neck. “We have come to stop you”

“Pity” growls Thorsted in a deep bass voice, and as the horrible song reaches a crescendo he waves his baton down at Trajan and the others and barks a command – and at the musically correct moment a thunderbolt of electricity streams out from the baton bathing Trajan and the others in its power. They leap for safety, Dala touches Trajan and whispers “Fly” and Trajan leaps up into the sky to take the fight to the dwarven wight.


----------



## Plane Sailing

The dwarfs gleaming black chainmail deflects some of Trajan’s blow, and it strikes back at Trajan with a clawed, chill hand and then backflips 10ft away and down from Trajan, landing again on the air as though it were solid ground.

The choir continues singing, and the sense of longing, the sense of calling grows stronger and stronger. Dala casts Spider Climb and peeks round the top of the door, and starts summoning a celestial ape while looking to find a target. Anne-Marie dances into the room to attack one of the musicians directly and summons Padfoot to also attack the singing wights.

Thorsted catches sight of Dala’s conjuring and catches him with another blast from the lightning wand he was using as a baton, spoiling the spell. Trajan continues to trade blows with him, but can’t manage to pull off a full attack on the dwarf as he tumbles through the air.

Dala moves more fully behind cover and works again to summon a celestial ape which he sends in to start attacking wights alongside Anne-Marie. They don’t fight back, and they each are able to down one and start on another, but there is a clear sense that the horrendous song is building to a conclusion, and there is an awesome rumbling coming from deep within the earth beneath their feet, and a tangible chill starts to fill the air. Thorsted takes a moment to gloat and Trajan seizes the opportunity and with a mighty blow removes the dwarven wights head.

The sudden silence is deafening as all the remaining wights stop their song, dazed by the death of their creator. “Quick” shouts Arilyn, “leave now”. Trajan flies straight out, and Anne-Marie backs out summoning Padfoot. The celestial gorilla remains in place and is suddenly swarmed by five wights which rapidly drain it of all life. As the other wights start to surge towards the auditorium exit, Trajan cries out “Turn, in the name of Asura!” and channels divine power through the holy symbol he carries. A few turn back, the remainder press on. Again he cries out “Turn!” and all but the last two flee from him… but now the wights which had finished off the gorilla seek new flesh to tear, so Dala casts a web across the inside of the auditorium to seal it off.

As the heroes back into the grand hall they can see the wights tearing their way through the webs, and soon the ones that had been turned join the throng… There are still a dozen of the foul creatures and Trajan and Anne-Marie have both already been weakened by the chill touch of the undead. Magic missiles and static bolts are cast into the wights, dropping a couple of them but suddenly they are through the webs and charging into the room. Dala polymorphs himself into a gargoyle, recovering some much needed health and taking to the air to get out of their reach. Padfoot leaps once more into the attack and draws off some of the creatures while Anne-Marie and Trajan fight a desperate defensive retreat, aware that a solid blow from any of the wights could easily finish either of them off. One wight is downed, and another one, but a couple are moving up round the flank. Arilyn flees out the main door, hotly followed by Dala. Padfoot is down, his energy drained away and he returns to his figurine form. Trajan is struck again and both he and Anne-Marie tumble away from their attackers and race down the entrance hallway, bursting out into the evening air. 

Dala has been waiting, and once more summons webs to fill the corridor, delaying the remaining wights who start fighting their way through these webs. Trajan and Anne-Marie stand back from the doorway, side by side and with their bows drawn fire arrow after arrow through the webs and into the wights, felling one, and then another. The last remaining wight just manages to break free of the webs and charges into their midst in one final attempt to bring them down, but the heroes manage to cut it down without receiving any more serious harm.

The cold night wind howls around them, the lights burn behind the shutters of the houses down the way and a faint sound of wholesome singing can be heard from the rest of the town. It seems like normality has returned to Moradin’s Call, and whatever fearsome creature was being summoned from the depths has returned to its subterranean haunts. Their look round at each others haggard faces, Anne-Marie and Trajan are particularly white of complexion and hollow cheeked, having lost much of their vitality to the undead foe. By Asura’s grace the price had not been higher.

One strange thing that they all notice – the potions which they had been carrying with them have all be spoiled, becoming rancid and useless. I wonder why that was?

They return into the hall, back into the main auditorium and start hauling the bodies out so that they can be burnt in the night air. From Thorsted’s body they recover the enchanted black chainmail shirt which Trajan dons (+2 chainmail of invulnerability), a magical cloak which strongly enhances ones personality and self esteem is given to Dala and it opens new gates to his magical power (Cloak of Charisma +4), along with the boots of air walking which the dwarf was using. Arilyn takes the lightning wand and Anne-Marie the magical gauntlets which the dwarf was wearing (gauntlets of arrow snaring).

During their search they find two teachers and five young students who had managed to hide in a music storeroom during the initial attack when all their colleagues were transformed into wights. They are relieved and full of praise for the party who have saved them, although distraught at the doom of their friends. They vow to spread the word of this victory while attempting to rebuild their College and its reputation.


(next: meeting the dwarves, and the Door in the Air)


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *One strange thing that they all notice – the potions which they had been carrying with them have all be spoiled, becoming rancid and useless. I wonder why that was? *




Uh oh.... "Sir, my Nightshade detector just located something!"


----------



## Plane Sailing

Darklone said:
			
		

> *
> 
> Uh oh.... "Sir, my Nightshade detector just located something!"  *




A bonus prize to the man in the corner over there!

So, the song *WAS* calling something 

They would be horrified if they ever realised what it was and how near it got before they stopped the song...


Cheers!


----------



## Schmoe

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *
> 
> A bonus prize to the man in the corner over there!
> 
> So, the song WAS calling something
> 
> They would be horrified if they ever realised what it was and how near it got before they stopped the song...
> 
> 
> Cheers! *




Who's to say that the song didn't work?  Just because nothing appeared _right there, at that time_, doesn't mean nothing appeared.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Ooo, you are a sneaky man Schmoe... 

Naturally I wouldn't *dream* of doing something as horrible as that, now would I


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *Ooo, you are a sneaky man Schmoe...
> 
> Naturally I wouldn't *dream* of doing something as horrible as that, now would I  *




No DM would, wouldn't we ?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Sorry about the long wait for the next update, I'll probably be writing it up on Monday.

(less free time at the moment than I've had for quite a while)

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

Though 333 replies are a nice number... bump!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks for the bump - I'll get writing on my notes tonight.

BTW - I'm now playing in a game too, and the DM has started writing up the notes... I'm going to see if he'll let me post them up here (and you can try to guess which character I play!)

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

Not quite ready to post my next bit of storyhour yet - expect first contact with dwarves, the stairway of fear, a ghost who might be the oldest creature in the world, a terrifying encounter with air elementals on a precipice - all this, before they get to the Door in the Air...

In the meantime, why not take a quick look at Stories from the Steppes an adventure being run be a friend of mine, and where I get to be a player (yay!).

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

*The Door In The Air*

The teachers tell them that the local priest of Asura is a man named Mizraim, who runs a small shrine. He doesn’t have many attendees at the moment though, and most of the time he is just screaming abuse at the popular young prophetess, Anna, who ministers down at the flophouse.

Trajan and the others decide to pay Mizraim a visit, and find his small shrine at the dim end of one of the side streets in Moradins Call. Entering, they find the small shrine shabby and ill-kept. Trajan still doesn’t really know much about the religion, but he’s sure the candles shouldn’t be lying around at those angles, so with some help from Anne-Marie he starts straightening the place up.

Just as Trajan is about to start praying they become aware of shuffling footsteps and coughing from the room above them, and a scruffy old man in nightclothes (at *this* hour?) comes down the back stairs and through the curtain.

“What are you doing here” he asks grumpily.

“Why, we come to worship at a shrine to Asura” Trajan responds mildly.

“Hmpf. Well, stop making so much noise, and make sure you leave something in the collection”

“Probably his drinking money” Arilyn whispers underneath her breath.

Trajan tries to draw Mizraim out into a conversation about Asura, but before long the old man is simply ranting about the heretic Anna who is drawing away all his flock and spreading evil lies about Asura and the priesthood. After taking quarter of an hour of the mans ravings, they excuse themselves and find some accommodation for the night. Tomorrow is Markday, and surely their best chance of delivering the dwarven carvings to their rightful owner will come at the dwarfmarket advertised tomorrow…


----------



## Plane Sailing

Early the next morning they make their way to the dwarf market – two huge stone doors lead into a dark chamber filled with very low tables which have metalwork and jewellery strewn over them. There are quite a number of surly looking, stumpy folk wandering around, and a scattering of humans who tower over them.

As they approach there is a sudden altercation near the entrance. A human cries out “you cheating liar!” to one of the dwarves, who without a moments hesitation bursts into a furious rage and swings his axe murderously, gutting the man and then taking two more swings at the body for good measure. The most strange thing about the entire action is that nobody else seems to be taking much notice… The dwarf spits and rasps something in his harsh language then stumps off deeper into the marketplace.

“Touchy people” muses Trajan. “I think we had all better be on *best* behaviour”.

After a short time wandering around and getting the feel of the market place, Trajan leads them to the table of an artisan who is surrounded by stone carvings. Going down on bended to knee to observe the artworks, Trajan broaches a conversation, asking about Grishnak the king of the dwarves and explaining that they have a delivery to make to him.

The merchant warms to them, especially under Trajans delicate flattery, and introduces himself as Kazrak, a dwarven fighter and merchant. Business has been slow this week, so he proposes to cut his losses and take them underground to the dwarf city. He has connections with the royal family, and he should be able to arrange them an audience. Just as he is stacking his things away Dala notices some exquisitely jewelled masterwork daggers near the back of his stall, and decides to purchase one of them “for luck”.

Kazrak warns them that it will be a days march into the underdark to reach the city, so after a short break for them to purchase some food for the journey, they set off together.

It is eerie walking in the cold silence of the mountain passages. The light from their lanterns illuminates a sameness in the floor and the walls. Kazrak states with a hint of challenge in his voice that the dwarves have never bothered to spend the time putting proper carvings in these passages because they only lead up to the humans at Moradin’s Call. During the march Kazrak starts to tell them more about the dwarven temperament. Fierce warriors, loyal and full of honour is the way that they describe themselves. Their honour must be defended at all times, and under the treaty with Moradin’s Call (he is at pains to point out) the dwarf Trazkan was perfectly within his rights to cut down that human who levelled a deadly insult at his honour by calling him a liar. Apparently he can’t have been a local man, since all the local people “know how to treat us with respect, you understand?”. Another thing that they notice, although they don’t question it at the time, is that Kazrak only speaks with Trajan and Dala, not with Anne-Marie or Arilyn. They don’t think twice about it at the moment, as the monumental charisma of their two friends mean that they tend to dominate all conversations with other people anyway!

After many long hours of walking, they start to become aware of a rhythmic thundering sound coming from up ahead, and as they draw nearer the ringing like giant anvils being struck starts to mingle with the sound. Arilyn asks whether this is anything to do with the “Pipes of Air” which she has read about while researching Arkon the Stormlord. Kazrak raises his eyebrows in surprise and responds to Dala 

“How interesting that someone from the surface should know something of dwarvish history. Indeed our city used to use the Pipes of Air to power our machines many centuries ago, but our agreements with some of the sources fell into dispute, and because no one could, no one could… go to _ that place_ there was no chance that it could be reinstated. That is why the kings grandsire created our waterwheels here.  You’ll see them in a minute”.


----------



## Plane Sailing

They are now standing before huge, ornate iron doors. They are apparently covered with runes and there is a faint eldritch glow about them. Kazrak talks into a speaking tube in his harsh, barking language, and shortly after the doors glide soundlessly open – or rather, any sound which they might have made is drowned out in a complicated music of hammering, beating chimes overlaid on a thunder of water!

The doors open into a vast chamber, lit all around with glowing stones and torches, paved with stone smoothed by years of use. Huge building frontages are carved into the circumference of the chamber and in the centre a huge cataract of water tumbles from up above, turning scores of waterwheels of all manner of sizes. Many of the waterwheels are connected via belts or pulleys to other devices, or transmission systems which disappear into the cluster of buildings that reach up around the base of the waterfall. There are huge, slow turning wheels as well as small wheels that seem to serve no purpose other than to add musical ringing sounds at appropriate places within the overall rhythm of the sound.

Kazrak takes several paces into the chamber before realising he is alone – he turns to see the awestruck faces of the company, marvelling not just at the feat of engineering, but also the care that went into crafting the sounds it created too – something that seems to blend together the march of an army, the sound of industry and the laughter of small children into one coherent whole.

Settling them in a stone Circle of Contemplation (“other dwarves won’t try to challenge you to test their mettle if you are here”), Kazrak leaves them to see if it is possible to make an arrangement to see the king. While he is gone, Arilyn reminds them of her desire to get up into the mountain tops, because the fabled Door in the Air is supposed to be somewhere near here – the semi-permanent gate into the plane of elemental air which would lead to the dwelling place of Arkon the Stormlord, who lost his life in there mountains many, many years ago. The others agree that they will pursue this possibility with the king, especially in the light of those arrowhawks which were terrorising Moradin’s Call when they arrived.

An audience with King Grishnak is arranged for the following day. Kazrak informs them of some of the niceties of the meeting – they will be expected to leave their weapons with the door guard, don’t take umbrage at being treated with suspicion, and really, _really_ don’t offend the king. He is nowhere near as easy going as “good ‘ole Kazrak”, because he never gets to meet many people who aren’t dwarves.

The audience goes well, especially with the presentation of the statuettes made in Bridlerest. Seeing the king, Dala can’t help but notice the strong family resemblance between the figurines and the present King. At one point Anne-Marie offers a helpful observation in the conversation and the king turns frosty eyes on Trajan.

“You’re property seems out of control. Would you like its tongue removed?”

“No sire” Trajan replies quickly “I’ll beat her myself later”. He grimaces at Anne-Marie and Arilyn who take the hint and don’t say anything else for the duration of the audience. Suddenly the meaning of Kazrak always talking to the menfolk in the company becomes clearer – and he hadn’t thought to mention this basic social structure to them! Males!

The king closes their audience with a summary note of thanks for delivery of the statuettes, and grants them permission to venture up the stairwell of fear to reach the mountain peaks.

“Perhaps you can solve the mystery which has kept the stairwell closed to our race for so many centuries. Kazrak can guide you there”.

There is an almost imperceptible twitch in Kazraks expression of honourable devotion to his liege, and those more perceptive than the company would have noticed a sudden bead of sweat trickle down by his ear.


----------



## Schmoe

This is great stuff!  Wonderful descriptions, and good role-playing.  Can't wait to hear more


----------



## Plane Sailing

Your wish is my command!


----------



## Plane Sailing

It is going to be a two day trek through the tunnels to reach the stairwell of fear, so they load up with a suitable supply of dwarven hard-tack and water before setting off. The first few hours of walking are through relatively well travelled and well lit regions, with many side tunnels, all beautifully carved. Apart from the strange looks they receive from the dwarves they pass by, the journey is as easy as any they have undertaken.

By the afternoon, however, the corridors have become far quieter. They rarely see beetle-hauled wagons or guard dwarves, and side tunnels or rooms become rarer too. Kazrak announces that it is time for an evening rest, and they gladly sink down to hot meal and a snooze.

Starting off early the next morning (is it morning?), after Arilyn completes her spell preparation and Dala his meditation they follow deeper into the mountain. They have not been travelling long when they are alerted by a clicking, clanking and buzzing sound from a doorway a little further up the corridor. 

Suddenly four small metallic spidery creatures burst forth from the room. Three silvery ones dash towards the party with fierce little saws buzzing where their mouthparts might be. A golden one hangs back and unleashes a bolt of lightning which sears into the party. Trajan and Kazrak leap in to engage the creatures, while Anne-Marie tumbles behind them to attempt to flank them – without success as it happens. It seems that whatever one of the creatures knows, they all know. The silver constructs alternate firing small darts with striking with their razor sharp saws – but despite their cunning and power, the little clockwork horrors are soon destroyed. Kazrak has been quite badly hurt, but none of the others have sustained serious damage. They bind up Kazraks wounds, wait for a couple of hours, then head on.

Kazrak is still limping slightly from the wound he took, and inadvertently reveals that the harsh dwarvish language is ripe with expletives. Trajan does his best to charm the dwarf and learn some of the basic rudiments of their tongue; surprisingly Kazrak agrees.

By mid afternoon on the second day, they are aware of a flow of air moving past them and into a large space ahead of them. Kazrak breathes out the words softly “the staircase of fear”.

Broad stairs spiral up around a central column that must be fifty feet across. The walls are carved with the faces of dwarves, all crying or screaming. Kazrak seems to be torn between staring brazenly at the faces and turning his gaze away from them.

“None of our people have ventured here and returned in generations” whispers Kazrak. “None”.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Trajan asks Kazrak whether he would consider taking the risk of staying alone at this place in the stairwell to secure their rear. He correctly reasons that for the aggressive and honour-bound dwarves, being unmanned by some kind of magical fear would be the worst imaginable disgrace. Building on the friendship he has developed with Kazrak over the last few days he is able to persuade him of the importance of that particular task, and Kazrak agrees.

Trajan then starts up the stairwell, with Anne-Marie, Dala, Arilyn and their respective familiars.

The broad, shallow steps are easy to climb, but as they ascend the stairwell they become slightly uneasy. There is a continual feeling that something is looking over their shoulder. From the corner of your eye it looks like there is some movement in the eyes of one of the stone-carved dwarves… a quick check reveals that it is mere stone, but still…

What is almost worse is that there is a noticeable change in the carvings of screaming dwarves – now all of the dwarves are shaved, faces portrayed shorn of all hair. It looks quite disturbing and unnatural. As they trudge up the stairs pondering these things a sudden blast of fear washes over them all. Trajan stands unaffected, and Anne-Marie and Arilyn are buoyed up by his steadfast presence, but Dala suddenly screams and starts running down the steps as quickly as he can, screaming like a little girl.

In a flash, Anne-Marie starts off after him, and with the aid of her magic boots quickly catches up. Shouting at Dala makes no difference so she quickly trips him, grapples him and pummels his head into the stone paving, rendering him unconscious. Draping him over her shoulder, she makes her way back up the stairwell to the others.

Arrk the raven flutters around distractedly by his unconscious master, obviously concerned with his bruised head. Anne-Marie steadies Dala on his shoulder and they continue up the winding staircase.

Having climbed for nearly an hour, they notice another step-change in the carved dwarven faces lining the stairwell walls. The portraits are now much cruder, especially at the edges. Nonetheless there is a disturbing hyper-realism about them. It puts the company in mind of faces pushing through the rock as if pushed against fine silk. The expression on the faces, such as can be read, seems even more horrified and full of despair.

Shrugging, they press on round the corner… and a horrific wailing sound crashes down around their ears, as if the throats of a thousand imprisoned dwarven souls are uttering cries of intense desolation! The sound batters at their wills, their sense of self, even their very life… Arrk and Zeph collapse instantly to the floor, Anne-Marie’s knees quake but she stands firm and Trajan is like a rock in the centre of the noise. The sound of Arilyns scream is lost amongst the horrific cacophony…

Trajan rushes to Arilyns’ side. Her life is almost gone, and only a whisper of her soul remains. As the cry from the rocks fades away, Trajan Calls upon Asura’s power like never before and he pours life into her still, cold, form – and it is enough. She coughs, and then starts breathing again, yet chilled through to the bone.

Meanwhile, Dala awakes. Unconscious throughout the wailing noise, he was unaffected by its evil magic. He sits up and looks around puzzled at the strange silence he feels inside his head. It is as if a part of him is missing. “Arrk?” he calls out. Then he spies the crumpled mass of feathers lying just a few feet further up the stairwell. He crawls over, and with unexpected tenderness gathers up the frail form. 

“Arrk? C’mon me old mate, come round” he whispers.

“There’s fresh tasty treats for you… I’ve been saving them… special…”

Dala dissolves into tears, curling over the tiny body of his dead familiar, friend and soulmate...


----------



## Plane Sailing

I'd just like to say mucho kudos for the player of Dala during this session. I've not captured it as well as I should, but he acted the part of Dala so genuinely distressed about the death of his familiar that I actually got a little choked up (!)

Good man.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Arilyn slowly comes round, and similarly feels the aching loss of her misty companion. Zeph, too, has been slain by the magical attack. She looks angrily over at Anne-Marie, whose macaw still flutters near the duellist. “Why has my familiar died and your parrot survived!”. Anne-Marie wisely holds her peace and says nothing.

Dala uses a summoning spell to call Boswell the Lantern Archon to him. He directs the attention of the ball of light to a small box in which the body of Awk lays. “Transport this back to Mithril Manor, Boswell” he commands. “Place it in my study,  with this note indicating appropriate an burial.”

“As you wish” responds the Archon, and it ducks down, touches the box and vanishes, along with the miniature coffin. Scant seconds later Boswell returns. “It is done”.

After dismissing his summoned servant, Dala turns to the others and indicates that he is ready to continue. They are nearly at the top of the stairwell, and they can hear a distant rushing of wind. One more turn past the strangely carved bald and tortured faces leads them to a large chamber, sheathed in marble. On the opposite wall there is an archway beyond which they can see sky. In the middle of the chamber is a pedestal, with a large glowing gem on the top. Nothing is visible in the room, so they step inside – and as they do so a ghostly figure materialises above the pedestal...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Quick question - do you think it makes most sense to continue the storyhour in this same thread, or start a new thread?

One of the things I'm wondering is whether a great big thread might put people off starting to read it...

Should I go to part IV when I get back into the ToEE (which is in play at the moment)?


----------



## Darklone

Well, I always think starting another dungeoncrawl is worth a new thread


----------



## Plane Sailing

The figure resolves into the form of an elderly, shaven headed dwarven female.

“What are you?” it asks. “You are not of the people”

Trajan steps forward. “We are humans, we mean no harm”.

“Humans?” It says the word as though it is unfamiliar, rolling the sound of it around.

“I’ve not heard of humans. Do you serve the masters, or are you free?”

“I serve none but Asura my God” Trajan replies.

“asura is not a name I know. Can things have changed so much in 10 thousand summers?”

Dala, Arilyn and the others share startled glances… can this ghost have been waiting since, since the dawn of time?

“Yes, we are a young race” Trajan continues. “Your race yet survives, but they may not climb yon stairwell. A fearful trap holds them back”.

“Ah” breathes the ghost “Some might think it no more than memories which horrify – and my memories are horrible enough”

“Since you are not dwarfs, the curse which binds me to destroy my kinfolk has not laid hold on me. Would you talk with me a while?”

“Ma’am” interjects Anne-Marie, “We go to find the door in the air. Can you tell us of this?”

“Why should you want to follow the paths the masters trod all those years ago, strange tall woman?”

“That’s for us to know” Arilyn says impatiently. She wants to press on towards her goal of finding Arkons ancient documents about the StormLords.

“So, no time to spend in conversation with me? That’s a shame. I do so love conversation, but I mostly have only myself to talk to. But if you will not, you will not. Goodbye, Hoomans”

And with that, the ghost fades from view.

A quick detect magic cantrip from Arilyn reveals that the glowing gem is magical, and so is a hair comb cast to one side of the chamber. The hair comb is unaccountably forgotten. The gem is determined to be the source of the magical trap, and a small amount of satisfaction for the death of the familiars is gained by smashing it.

The party then move to the archway, and find that it leads directly out onto a mountain ledge, with a cliff face falling dizzyingly away below them. About forty feet away they can see a small plateau, no more than a hundred feet across, again with sheer sides.

By edging out onto the narrow ledge, they can just make out the town of Moradins Call in a valley below. They also have a clear view of the mountain Tarn which provides the town with its water – perfectly still and calm, it is like a mirror, containing perfect reflections of the mountains, the clouds and… what’s that? A castle floating high up within the clouds?

Glancing upwards, there is no sign of the floating castle, but it appears very clearly in the reflection. On a whim Arilyn casts her spell which allows her to see the unseen, and she gasps – from the opposite plateau there is a huge transparent walkway, curving up and into the clouds where she can just make out a castle. Huge, four-winged arrowhawks swoop around the structure, but don’t come near the causeway.

Getting across to the plateau doesn’t seem like a problem. Anne-Marie takes a short run up and leaps straight across the 40ft gap. Dala casts his fly spell on Trajan who quickly flies across, then Dala steps out using his new boots of air-walking, to stride easily across the gap. Arilyn hangs back for a moment. Her sensitivity to the wind warns her that something isn’t quite right, there is something in the sound of the air around here that doesn’t quite match up with reality.

Dala is almost half way across the gap when two large air elementals swoop down from above, one of them turning into a fierce tornado of air which plucks Dala up and starts spinning him round mercilessly, the other zooms past Anne-Marie, making a flyby attack on her with impunity because of its reach!


----------



## Darklone

Eeks. Favorite 1st level spell ever: Featherfall!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Dala is being whirled around so fast he cannot concentrate to cast spells, and he can feel his joints being gradually stretched out of his joints. Arilyn casts Magic Missile at the air elemental then ducks further back into the chamber and away from the danger of the narrow ledge. Trajan flies back across the chasm and starts to attack the whirlwind carrying Dala, his magical sword biting into the strange elemental material of the creature.

Meanwhile, Anne-Marie has been frustrated in attempting to strike her air elemental as it swept past her, so she takes another tack – readying an action, the next time the elemental sweeps in she runs a few steps and leaps fifteen foot into the air next to it, cutting it with her rapier before landing nimbly back on the plateau once more. The elemental howls with rage and sweeps round again – two, three, four times before it realises that it is in danger of dying at the hands of this spring-heeled adventuress and plummets away into the gorge.

Arilyns magic missiles and Trajans scimitar play manage to finally free and destroy the elemental which was whirling him to death, and not before time. Dala is in a bad way and needs a lot of rest. They all retreat and regroup back in the marble chamber and look out across at the plateau, and draw up their plans.

They decide that a frontal aerial assault is not a good idea. The arrowhawks diving around the cloud castle could prove very dangerous, and it would alert the inhabitants. The plan, then, is for Dala to enable Trajan to fly once more, so he can ferry everyone across to the plateau, then Dala will make everyone invisible and Arilyn will cast See Invisibility so that she can guide everyone safely up the invisible causeway (the lack of handrails is a matter of some concern for the rest of the party!)

Marching up the steep causeway takes about half an hour, and by mid-afternoon they find themselves in the dreamlike situation of standing ankle-deep in cloud-stuff, and seeing the towers of a castle which is constructed on a gigantic scale rising out of the misty clouds ahead of them.

Passing through a giant archway into an ornamental garden, the visibility is only 10ft because of the ever-present cloud which the castle dwells within. There is the tinkling of a fountain in the middle of the formal gardens, and black castle walls loom up out of the mist. 

They make their way to the door, scrambling up steps which are each three foot higher. If the castle is built to the same approximate scale as humans, it must be inhabited by giants who are eighteen feet high! Nervously they check their weapons and spell components.

Anne-Marie and Trajan are able to squeeze the main door open between them, and it leads into a vast hall, still on the giant scale, and with a balcony and mezzanine floor high above them. The cloud castle is eerily silent, and they all make a special effort to creep slowly. A side door leads into a giant kitchen, and a spiral staircase under a tower leads to a series of cellar rooms. One of the storerooms is particularly horrible, as it looks like a huge stone face has been carved so that it appears to be pushing out of the walls of the storeroom, contorted in agony. Apart from the scale it is exactly like the dwarves faces on the stairwell in form and tenor?!?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Goodness me, I've got to add an update *again* to stay on the front page.

Good job I've had a good chance at writing just recently


----------



## Plane Sailing

They decide to investigate the upper floors before going all through the cellars, and so they proceed up through the kitchen, through the main hall and into what appears to be a music room, filled with fine artworks and a beautiful golden harp. In one corner of the room is a spiral stair which must ascend through a tower and lead to the upper levels of the castle. Cautiously they take it, still invisible.

The next floor looks like a giant nursery – it has a huge wooden rocking horse, a giant ball and building blocks. From the stairwell they can just make out ogre-sized feet laying on the floor behind some of the toys. Drawing their weapons, the creep into the room, round the giant blocks – and see a toddler, built to an inhumanly large scale. It is nine foot from the soles of its feet to the crown of its head – or at least it would be if the crown of its head was there… but something has cracked open this giant childs head and feasted upon its brains…

Trying to put the horror of this scene out of their minds, especially the bewildered and frightened expression on what remains of the toddlers face, they retreat back towards the stairwell. Upwards further. One more turn of the spiral staircase and a giant-sized arch leads into a vast chamber with a huge bed in the middle of it, and an appropriately sized giant asleep on the bed. Dala quickly casts fly on himself, as does Arilyn, and the party creep into the room. Arilyn gets a high vantage point in the room, and hisses a warning – it is a giantess on the bed and she too is dead, with her head cracked open.

A hidden door to a study behind them is thrown open and the air in the room ripples crazily as a piercing scream fills all their heads; but they remain strong in spirit and throw off the stunning effect of the mind blast – long enough to hear the creepy mental voice of a mind flayer command the cloud giant that stands in front of it “Don’t forget… strike to subdue”...


----------



## Plane Sailing

A Chill runs down each of their spines. As one they think “We _can’t_ afford to get captured here – it will eat our brains!

Trajan can see the mindflayer standing behind the giant and runs up, tumbling through the giants legs - but 20ft tumble doesn’t get fully past its 15ft reach and it reaches round and tags him as he passes out the other side. Trajan maintains his focus and deals a mighty critical blow to the mindflayer before the giant unleashes a full attack on him. The second blow is a massive critical (61pts) and Trajan is flattened. 

_DMsnote: the limitation on the distance you can tumble came as a very nasty surprise to Trajan... The huge giant had 15ft reach either side of him, and when Trajan stopped tumbling he was still moving within that threatened area. Whammo!_

The giant then takes a step towards Anne-Marie and just misses her with another huge swing. She tries to tumble through it too and fails, falling over and being hit and seriously wounded by the giant. Dala launches a powerful lightning bolt at the giant and then ducks under the bed. Arilyn notices a scar near the illithids tentacles, and realises that this creature could be Ghaerlith, who had been behind all the horrors which she had been told about in Knightsbridge! She casts a spell at the mindflayer which completely fails to penetrate its spell resistance. Ghaerlith hisses with suppressed pleasure and mindblasts her and Arilyn reels, floating in mid air.  

Dala casts an empowered magic missile and punches through the illithids spell resistance, eliciting a hiss of anger. Anne-Marie bravely rolls across the floor in front of the giant and up onto one knee, extending her rapier in a lunge and impaling the mindflayer!

Ghaerlith looks down, laughing hideously as its body dissolves into a bubbling mass of goo. There is perhaps a faint twinkle behind it, a line of silver for a moment. Then it is gone. And a giant boot stomps her into unconsciousness. 

Dala becomes invisible and hides beneath the bed once more. The giant examines the stunned Arilyn then bats her into the wall, knocking her out. Then it starts sniffing for Dala, and lifts up one end of the bed. Dala flies out and into the study. The giant mis-hears and chases down the stairs.

Everyone is Knocked out! What to do? Dala keeps calm and summons Boswell the Lantern Archon who uses "aid" to bring his companions round, then Trajan calls on the power of Asura to heal each of them a little more.

Anne-Marie casts around, looking for the body of the mindflayer; she doesn’t understand where it can be. Once Arilyn hears her account of what happened she pales a little and explains that Ghaerliths real body wasn’t killed today… he was astrally projecting to this plane of existence from some other plane, and killing his “body” on this plane was just an inconvenience to him. Anne-Marie resolves to travel to the mages of Cadlan, to find out how she can take the fight to this evil enemy in such a way that they _stay_ dead.

The sound of the huge cloud giant searching around downstairs is still loud in their ears, so they quickly take the stairwell up to the rooftop garden of the castle – and are astonished to find themselves looking down the eye of a whirling vortex of air into which the castle is jammed – and through it is a plane of existence comprised of emptiness – and in the near distance a tower standing at a crazy angle on a floating chunk of rock.

This must be the entrance to the elemental plane of air...


----------



## Darklone

Oink!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Oink?!?


----------



## Darklone

Old tradition in my old group... Honouring our first TPK when the whole group but one got slaughtered and the last remaining member was polymorphed into a pig... As the DM asked him what he was going to do, he said: OINK.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Ah, I see now...

Sorry I've been forcing you to wait for the denoument here, but I've been laid low with a fever for a while, and haven't been able to get much writing done.

I can reveal to you that in the adventure following the current one, we have the death of a long-loved character...

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

While Dala refreshes his flying spells on his companions, Arilyn quickly examines the edge of the gate. 

“Interesting” she muses. “This is showing the kind of interference pattern first noted by Calamnus in 2435 in his seminal study of interplanar boundaries”

The others just look at her

“So”, she continues, “obviously this gate is being held open unnaturally by the confluence of two poles – one being this cloud castle stuffed into the gate, but the other must be in Arkon’s tower yonder” She points into the strange plane of air.

“Both must be shut down for the gate to close, that’s all I’m saying”

“Ah, right. Lets get on with it then” and Trajan leads them all through the shimmering portal.

Were it not for the flying magic they would all have become disorientated as they moved through into a world with no land below them, or almost anywhere in sight! The sky recedes into banks of clouds or blueish haze in every conceivable direction. One of the few bits of solidity which they can spot is the chunk of rock upon which Arkons tower rests, and they naturally orientate themselves by that. 

Half a minutes flight leads them into the towers immediate vicinity. There are no visible doors, and broad but barred windows all around. With no signs of an entrance, nor of any residents, Trajan and Anne-Marie join their muscles together and bend apart some of the bars enough that they can slip in. They find a room which once was lushly decorated but which has been treated badly by time (even though there is little sign of native elemental life entering the tower at any point). 

There are no stairs, only holes in different parts of the room going to other areas above and below in the tower. They ascend to the next level and Arilyn starts forward with amazement – it is a tremendous library, with shelf after shelf of books on the walls. Here are Arkon’s secrets! This must be where the information about Storm Lords can be found! She hears a vague sussuration of sound, a merest whisper on the wind which suggests “yesss”.

“You go on” she calls, “I’ll find the books I need here”.

Trajan, Dala and Anne-Marie ascend to the final chamber at the apex of the tower. Although opaque from the outside it is transparent from the inside and they have a marvellous view of their surroundings. Their attention is drawn immediately by a podium in the centre of the room though. It has a large glass dome a yard across on the top, with a tiny representation of the tower in the centre. There are red lights flashing, and a mass of glowing blue dots clustered on one side of the dome.

There is writing in arcane script which Dala easily reads with his magic. Facing out of the tower in the same direction as the cluster of lights in the dome he speaks the word _“magnificium”_ and the view out of the tower walls zooms towards them magnifying the view ten fold, a hundred fold. 

Meanwhile, down in the library, Arilyn is busy checking books and stuffing them into her rucksack when she opens a book sealed with explosive runes! BOOM! The blast knocks her out and ignites the other books in the library!

Despite the noise of the explosion below, the other three heroes find themselves riveted in horror to the view unfolding before them. An army of air elementals – large elementals, huge elementals, even gargantuan elementals speeding towards them at full pelt. And in the midst of them, clearly directing this army of hundreds... two mind flayers.

Dala purses his lips. 

“I reckon with got about, oh, three minutes before they arrive here”.


----------



## Plane Sailing

It takes nearly a minute to evacuate the tower. Dala and Anne-Marie streak back to the gate, winds howling around them, while Trajan takes an extra thirty seconds to prevent Arilyn from dying of her wounds, then carry her and her bag of books out of the tower. Glancing over his shoulder he can see angry storm clouds racing towards and around him, and the howling of the wind is growing stronger and stronger. He can see the gate is trying to close but is blocked open by the cloud castle!

Dala and Anne-Marie fly through the gate and into the castle roof garden. How can they move the castle out of its current position to allow the gate to continue to close? Dala smacks his forehead with his hand. “Idiot!” he thinks, “I can probably dispel the domination on the giant!”. 

“How much magical power have you got left?” enquires Anne-Marie.

“Oh, just enough for one try... I hope it works” he replies.

They quickly fly down the spiral staircase, hunting through rooms at high speed for the location of the dominated cloud giant.

Meanwhile Trajan has laid Arilyns body down in the garden and stands facing the gate, ready to draw his sword. Wind rushes out from the gate, it is like standing in a gale. Squinting, he can make out the largest of the elementals with his naked eye. “About another thirty seconds, no more” he reckons.

Dala has reached the cellar level, and in the store room where they first saw the tortured face of a giant in the cloud castle wall they see the snarling giant. Dyson gestures and shouts his words of dismissing magic, and the giant is bathed in a cool white light. The fierce anger fades from the giants face, to be replaced with horror and revulsion

“MY WIFE! MY SON! WHAT HAVE I DONE?” the giant cries in anguish as the memory of all that he did while dominated crashes in on him.

Aware of the need for speed, with surely only scant seconds left, Dala quickly persuades the giant by dint of his amazing personality to move the castle away from the gate. The giant furrows his brow and they sense some movement.

Up in the garden, Trajan wipes the sweat from his hands as a gargantuan elemental, being ridden by a mindflayer hurtles towards the gate… but he feels the castle move underneath him, and the gate suddenly winks out of existence, leaving only a piercing psychic cry of anger fading in his mind.

Phew!

Downstairs, Dala and Anne-Marie attempt to console the distraught giant, but he is overwhelmed by grief at the thought of what he did to his toddler and his wife. They follow him back upstairs, through the huge hall and into the music room. The giant gestures round at the artworks which adorn the room.

“TAKE WHAT YOU WANT. I’LL GIVE YOU A COUPLE OF MINUTES THEN YOU *MUST* LEAVE. I CANNOT LIVE WITH WHAT I HAVE DONE”.

As Trajan brings a groggy Arilyn down with him, he meets the other two who are hurriedly gathering some valuable and portable artworks in gold and silver. The giant has retreated back down into the cellar, sobbing heavily.

“Hey, this thing is moving again” Anne-Marie notices. “That’s our cue to get out of here”.

They run to the castle gatehouse, out onto the cloud and  with the help of the flying magics cast earlier they take off and fly down to the small plateau which supported the invisible bridge. As they look back round at the castle they can see it entering a shallow dive, straight towards the side of a mountain. There is a tremendous roar and crash as the cloud castle smashes into the rocky cliff, and then a silent explosion of clouds as the castle and all its contents vanish in a series of thunderclaps and lightning bolts.

The Door in the Air is closed.


----------



## Shockwave

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Trajan takes an extra thirty seconds to prevent Arilyn from dying of her wounds, then carry her and her bag of books out of the tower.




Damn it! One of these days Arilyn may stop and check for a magical trap on a book or scroll, but the contents are sooooo intriguing she just wants to get on a read them. 

*SOB* All those lovely books left behind and burning too.


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *I can reveal to you that in the adventure following the current one, we have the death of a long-loved character...
> 
> Cheers *




You "teased" us with this already half a page ago 

Nice stuff. Sooo colourful.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Hey, two posts in a row by not-me! woo-hoo!


Nice to see you back Shockwave aka Arilyn. Shame about those books...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Darklone said:
			
		

> *
> 
> You "teased" us with this already half a page ago
> 
> Nice stuff. Sooo colourful. *




Ah, I'd be getting confused because of those *other* deaths which start appearing a little later on 

But I'll get to that in a little while. Let's just say that last Sundays adventure was, uh, brutal.

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

Hmm, somehow I never manage to kill my players... yet. 

I am probably too soft.


----------



## Shockwave

Darklone said:
			
		

> Hmm, somehow I never manage to kill my players... yet.




Let's just say that in our party the brains and brawn tend to have hearing difficulties.


----------



## Darklone

Shockwave said:
			
		

> *Let's just say that in our party the brains and brawn tend to have hearing difficulties.  *




My newbie party solves this pretty common problem by having no brains


----------



## Plane Sailing

Newbie parties have excuses... this group has about 100 years gaming experience between them 

To be fair, we are only just reaching the mid-levels in 3e, and they play very, very differently to mid-levels in previous editions of the game. After all, in previous editions it was quite difficult for a 9th PC to get killed in just a couple of rounds of combat, right? Not so now in 3e!

It seems as if 1st level fragility continues all the way up at the moment!

New update coming soon (since we play next Sunday and I'm already three major sessions behind... must-get-writing-soon!)

Cheers


----------



## Shockwave

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Newbie parties have excuses... this group has about 100 years gaming experience between them




Thankfully i only make up a small part of that 100 years and well you know the trouble with old dogs and tricks 

(Starts running and hopes to out pace the old guys.  Hmm better start rolling up a new character too.  )


----------



## Darklone

Tell me. I played some time in a 2nd ed group who converted later... 

They never listened to my reasoning because I only played for nearly 20 years  
They died a lot but never learned


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks for waiting so long, a nice big update now.


(14th May)
They re-enter the ghosts watch point, and bid their farewells courteously into the air just in case, before proceeding down the stairwell into the darkness again. Kazrak looks relieved to see them once more, although he quickly composes himself into his normal grumpy manner before leading them back towards the king. Once again it is a trek of a couple of days to get back to the city, and Trajan continues attempting to pick up some odd words of Dwarvish.

The audience with king Grishnak goes well. He is delighted that the company has solved the riddle of the stairwell and disarmed the magical traps which were blocking it and swears mightily. 

“What the fark do you want for this you great mashkars!” he roars in good humour.

“Well my Lord, we hear that the work of dwarven smiths is most remarkable. Is there anyone who can place enchantments on our weapons?” asks Trajan respectfully.

“Naturally” shouts the king. “My scribe will deliver you a note and you can take it to Gagrakarl my runesmith”.

Sensing that the audience is coming to an end, Kazrak ushers them out and leaves them back in the Circle of Contemplation while he finalises details with the kings accountants, as well as making arrangements for the purchase of some of the artworks they brought down from the cloud giants castle with them.

This is a good opportunity for the company to plan what they need to do next. In the short term Trajan wants to speak with Anna the prophetess, and find out what’s actually going on with her. In the longer term they fell that it is appropriate to try to track down one of their various escaped enemies over the years. Should they be looking for the Blessed, setting up her evil alienist cabals? Should they be searching for Barak that rogue shaman? Should it be Daros who is busy corrupting temples of Asura across the Southlands? Anne-Marie wants to head directly for Cadlan to speak to the mages there and learn what needs to be done in order to take the fight to the mind flayers home plane (wherever that might be) because she wants to make sure that the next time she kills one it stays dead. Eventually, after much discussion, they decide that Dyson is the one they want to tackle first. They had stopped his plans in Ossington, but he escaped with his bodyguard Tully, and it seems likely that he is up to further evil and infernal plans. They have the best chance of finding and stopping him before he gets some new plan thoroughly set up.

Kazrak returns, and leads them to Gagrakarl’s quarters – but the runesmith isn’t there. His apprentice is very unhelpful and merely suggests that they return some time later.

It takes two days of returning and asking before they finally find Gagrakarl at home. He is a gnarled and elderly looking dwarf, with intricate scars all over his face and forearms. He carefully reads the note from the king, then asks them what they want.

“Can you place runes on our weapons?” asks Trajan.

The runesmith raises an eyebrow. 

“If that’s what you want”, he says.

They come to an agreement, both Trajan and Anne-Marie seeking particular runes inscribing on their weapons. When they return the following day, as agreed, Gagrakarl hands them back their weapons, each with some small yet complex runes inscribed on them.

“Excellent” exults Anne-Marie. “How do I make use of it?”

The runesmith raises an eyebrow again, then replies to Dala.

“My understanding is limited, but I believe you stick the sharp end into your foes”.

“No, no” says Anne-Marie to Dala. “Ask him about the magic runes”.

“Magic?” chuckles Gagrakarl. “What ever makes you think of them as magic?”

“But… we assumed…” Trajan starts

“You assume too much!” snaps Gagrakarl. “Good Honour to you” and he turns back to his forge.

A long conversation with Kazrak reveals that runesmiths don’t actually work as craftsmen, but they use runestones to cast magic spells. “Gagrakarl was probably quite offended that you took him as a mere craftsman” their guide points out. “You’ll notice he did some exquisite workmanship though” he muses.

The party arrange another visit to Gagrakarl, apologise for their previous mistakes, and enquire whether he will be able to cast a scrying spell for them, so that they might try to gain some intelligence on Dyson. The runesmith agrees, and ushers them into another chamber. The far wall has a smooth circular area embossed on the far wall, about 5ft in diameter.  Around that there are numerous carved holes, and after spending a short while quizzing them about the characteristics of this “Dyson”, Gagrakarl starts selecting a couple of dozen stones marked with various runes and slotting them into vacant holes around the stone ‘mirror’.

Once he is happy with  the arrangement he starts chanting in harsh and guttural dwarvish; Arilyn recognises the occasional words of Archaic, the tongue of magic, wrought in with it, and she can sense the gathering of magical potential in the room. 

The stone ‘mirror’ looks as if shadows are flitting across its surface, a few at first and then more and more. As the chanting continues the entire stone surface gradually becomes reflective and then a mass of swirling greys and browns. Eventually, after an hour, a picture starts to form.

Dyson is on top of a high tower, looking out across mountains and a fertile valley. He is apparently getting a report from someone who is just out of view in darkness and shadow. Only a pair of horny lips can be seen moving.

“how are the plans going?” _Well, my 'master'_.

“and our forces are growing well?” _We will have them at full capacity within the month 'master'_

“excellent. What problems remain?” _Only that of gaining raw materials 'master'. If we march on Knightsbridge first our forces will swell on the way, and after Knightsbridge we will be unstoppable!_

Suddenly the wizard stops. “We are being scried upon. Go now and continue our plans”. He then looks into the scrying sensor, silent, with one eyebrow arched, then it all goes black.

to be continued...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Plans are made to return to the daylight of Moradins Call, and Kazrak guides them back there. In a final audience with the king they have each been given a tiny pendant in the shape of a battleaxe and made of a wonderful silvery material, a gift and identifying mark amongst the dwarves.

Kazrak takes them back to the marketplace and bids them good luck in their new quest. It is Holyday and before setting off, Trajan calls in upon the local priest of Asura, Mizraim, but finds him in as ill a humour before, still complaining about the foul blasphemer – Anna  the prophetess – and the evil that she is spreading.

Trajan decides to follow it up, and goes along to the poorhouse, which is crammed full of people, even to overflowing onto the pavements outside. Trajan and Anne-Marie work their way in and see a fresh faced young woman preaching to the masses. Her words seem fairly innocuous, and there is nothing overtly blasphemous that Trajan can detect (although his religious knowledge is admittedly very sketchy). There is a transparent honesty in her approach and the way that she deals with questions that is impressive however.

At the end of her talk she calls forward any who need healing – several come forward and her prayers find immediate answers. When all who are needy are healed, she invites all of the poor to come forwards for Asura’s feast – and a miraculous spread of food and drink appears on the table behind her.

The tradesmen drift away, while the poor of the town tuck in to their best meal in the week. Trajan approaches Anna to find out what is going on. She is disarmingly frank and direct with him. No, she is no part of the Asuran priesthood, no she has nothing against that sad man, Mizraim (although she claims that he is working against Asura’s will, which seems somewhat strange).

Ultimately Trajan leaves, and bids her farewell. He doesn’t know what to make of her, and the fact that he is following a path which is officially anathematised makes him wary of leaping towards judgement of her. She must remain a mystery, but he promises to look her up when he next returns to Moradins Call.

The party gather together again and descend down Stooks Climb into the warmer lowland air. It is the last week of May, and Summertide will soon be upon them. Weighing up their options, they decide against returning first to their home in Knightsbridge. The view of Dyson which they had in the scrying stone was very clear – and on the horizon to the north of his position were the mountains of the Barrier range. That put his hideaway within 20 leagues of the mountains, and Trajan believes that it is most likely to be in the northern reaches of the Sisters range, lesser mountains but which contain many hiding places.

Travelling through the foothills their spirits rise as they come to a village around midday – although strangely there are no workers in the fields, and as they ride past the stockade and into the middle of the village there doesn’t appear to be any people at all – neither women, children nor elders. A closer search of the buildings reveals signs of bloodshed, but neither bodies nor graves can be found. There does seem to be quite a lot of human tracks leading southwards though. 

Continuing their route, they see more empty fields and other deserted hamlets and thorpes. As evening draws in they can see the Sisters rising up just a couple of leagues away, and rather than venture into the lions den at night, they decide to make camp in the remains of the local inn.

Their sleep is disturbed by screaming from the horses in the stables round the back. Leaping into action Anne-Marie and Trajan charge outside and find six cadaverous figures breaking down the stable doors, groaning “meat, meat…” Within a few seconds the creatures are dispatched by their blades, then Trajan, with the help of his bonded mount Lightning, calm the disturbed horses. The rotted corpses smell atrocious, and Anne-Marie and the others drag them some way away from their inn  and burn them.

Arising early in the morning they leave Lightning in charge of the other horses and approach cautiously on foot. They can make out a cleft in the rocks, a hanging valley, and water shoots out and down about 80ft into a plunge pool below. Just next to the cataract is a forbidding tower, built to vaguely resemble a tremendous fang.

Showdown at Waterfang 
The current party roster is as follows:
*Trajan* 3nd Fighter/5th Jazumai/2nd Sword Saint
*Anne-Marie* 6th Fighter/2nd Monk/ 1st Duellist
*Dala* 9th Sorcerer
*Arilyn* 7th Wizard/1st Stormlord


----------



## Plane Sailing

Is this the right sort of length for updates, by the way? Or would shorter and more frequent be better?

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

Can't complain... I don't read storyhours sooo regularly anyhow 

Will you convert to 3.5 with your homemade paladins (and the summon mount paladin change?)


----------



## Plane Sailing

Hey, I'm glad that you persevere with mine then!

I'll be introducing 3.5e changes piecemeal - there are some major events happening in the campaign at the moment which will explain some of them. Apart from other things, Trajan's mount, Lightning has been pining and looking skywards for some time now - he's been trying to explain to Trajan that he is feeling a call, but the big T doesn't understand.

It's gonna happen at an appropriate dramatic moment


----------



## Darklone

Now that sounds like a nice idea!


----------



## Plane Sailing

*The Big Fight...*

Dala scouts invisibly, flying around the tower and scanning it with a detect magic spell. There is clearly some abjuration magic around the door on the top of the tower, and he deduces that it is most likely an alarm spell. They plan their assault accordingly, and Dala grants everyone the ability to fly, then they head off for the tower.

Arriving at the top, Dala dispels the alarm. They carefully open the door and descend into a foul laboratory. While quietly looking around, a flask of alchematical acid is flung across the room towards them, narrowly missing Trajan. Arilyn invokes her prepared See Invisibility and spots a foul little imp pulling obscene faces at the party while it edges around towards the stairs. She shouts to Anne-Marie who attempts to head it off – and at the same time Dala decides to blast its location with lightning. Anne-Marie is caught off guard, and is quite seriously wounded by her friends lightning as the imp tumbles down the stairs.

They quickly follow it down into the main library.  The walls are lined with books and Dyson is sitting reading at a table,  with a barbed devil standing by his shoulder.

Trajan charges in and swings at the figure standing behind the table but swinging wildly. The barbed devil responds with an almost completely ineffectual unholy blight (4pts!). Arilyn has learnt from her experiences on the stairwell of Fear, steps forth and launches a fearsome Phantasmal Killer - but it doesn’t seem to faze Dyson at all. Anne Marie races in around the edge of the room and launches a perfect stunning blow across the bridge of his nose - and finds her fist passes straight through his illusory head!

From across the room a thin blue beam lances out towards Arilyn, missing her and striking the wall next to her - which disintegrates in a puff of dust! This is followed up by a cone of cold which catches all the other heroes - Anne Marie nimbly skips aside, Trajan avoids the worst of the blast, but poor Dala catches it full-on and slumps frozen to the ground, dying.

Arilyn has her wits about her, and she can now see the sparkling outline of the invisible Dyson - so she conjures a glitterdust cloud on him, covering him with the sparkling particles so that everyone can see him. Anne Marie moves past him to block his escape before striking, and catches an AoO in the process from the wand which he holds; to her horror she feels some of her vitality drawn from her and pass into the wicked old wizard. The barbed devil makes further attempts to magically paralyse Trajan, but is completely ineffective against the Jazumai’s steel-hard will.

Trajan rushes across and joins in the attack against Dyson, cutting his arm with a slice of his scimitar. Dyson responds by detonating an empowered fireball in the midst of the room, which seriously injures Trajan although Anne Marie manages to dodge the worst of the blast again. Arilyn is thrown backwards like a rag doll and lies still, and the frozen form of Dala explodes into flames under the punishing heat. Dyson grunts and curses as his imp dies in flames, and the soul-ties with his familiar cost him one of his most powerful remaining spells. 

 The barbed devil charges Trajan and catches him with its fearsome claws, dragging him in and impaling him on some of its body spikes. Anne Marie lands another blow on Dyson despite his tremendous magical protections, and the wizard decides it is time for some repositioning. Casting defensively, he dimension doors across the room, then launches a burst of glowing magic missiles at Anne-Marie. The battered swordswoman was staggering on her last legs when the missiles slam into her body and she collapses by the top of the stairs. 

With a roar, Trajan breaks free of the barbed devil and charges at Dyson, catching another glancing blow from it on the way but wriggling free from its grasp. He lands another critical blow on the wizard, cutting his shoulder deeply. Dyson responds by casting invisibility defensively and stepping away from his attacker. Trajan thinks he hears the footsteps, but his blows cut naught but air. The barbed devil, meanwhile, has made another two attempts to capture Trajan with a hold person, so the sword saint decides to deal with that threat, and presses an attack against the barbed devil.

Seeing him thus occupied, Dyson creeps in and attacks him with the vampiric touch wand once more, to regain some much-needed hit points. This proves his undoing as Trajan spins around quick as thought and lands two lightning fast blows across Dyson’s midsection. He hears a thump as Dyson’s body invisibly collapses to the ground and the wand skitters away to one side. Trajan turns to the barbed devil “You’ve not got a reason to hang around now, right?”. The devil grins. “I’ve just got a soul to collect for torment at our feast… come ‘_master_’ ” then it vanishes with a sulphurous swirl of smoke.

Trajan quickly hurries to each of his prone friends. Anne Marie is barely alive and he calls upon Asura, pouring healing power into her until her breathing stabilizes. Then he runs across to Dala but sees the Borderlander sorcerers body burnt beyond recognition. He then turns to the third member of the party, Arilyn, and finds the young Mendonnan woman still barely clinging to life, despite the awful burns she received from the fireball. Once again he calls upon Asura and the healing power stabilizes his friend.

On the stairwell below, the wizards lover and bodyguard Tully realises that she has arrived too late, and the fight is over. Using her shadowdancer powers she fades into the shadows and makes her exit from Waterfang tower. Trajan and Anne Marie make a very cautious investigation of the remaining rooms of the tower, but find only sleeping quarters, storage and a guardroom occupied by a pair of zombie ogres which are no match for even wounded heroes. 

A secret door is detected in the library, they decide to wait until they are recovered.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Dyson was a 12th level tiefling Wizard at the time of this fight.

It was the first time that the haste spell had been used in anger. At the conclusion of this battle we unanimously decided that haste as it stood needed to be toned down, and we went for my variant which we'd called "Quickness".  The various elements are just like haste (duration, target etc), but the effect is simply +4 to hit, +4 to AC, +4 to Ref ST. Nothing else.


----------



## Seule

Very cool.  However, seeing as I have to nitpick, Dimension Door is always the end of your round, so he couldn't have Missiled afterwards.  I wish it wasn't like that for my character, but what are you gonna do...

  --Seule


----------



## Plane Sailing

Hi  Suele, thanks for posting! I'm glad you liked the story.

Regarding the nitpick... in the heat of combat, this was the reasoning:

The magic missiles were from his hasted partial action, after taking his normal action to dimension door. 

I guess that it could be interpreted that you get absolutely no actions after a dimension door takes place, but our assumption was that it must means that in a normal round you can't dimension door as a standard action and then take a move action after you arrive (aka "hitting the ground running").

It won't matter for the future anyway, since we nixed haste 

Cheers, and thanks!


----------



## Shockwave

*Re: The Big Fight...*



			
				Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Arilyn is thrown backwards like a rag doll and lies still.




Sigh!  One of these days i'll be able to walk away from a fight at the end instead of being dragged out......i hope, and who knows maybe then one of my better spells will work too.


----------



## Plane Sailing

A secret door is detected in the library, they decide to wait until they are recovered before proceeding further.

They make a pyre and burn Dala’s body. Of the magic items he carried, only his treasured ring of protection survived the inferno, and it is passed on to Arilyn. Boswell appears and summons his body to Garamon, for the final fight (explaining the deal that had been struck).

They re-enter the tower, go through the secret door and down a narrow, dripping corridor, to find a huge cavern. Dim light filters through the waterfall which blocks the entrance to the cavern. As their eyes become accustomed to the light they can see movement on the floor of the cavern. Lots of movement. One light spell later and the cavern is revealed to be full of hundreds of zombies, undead peasants from all the villages to the north of here, killed and gathered in this one place. This is the army which Dyson was building, this was his current plan for domination. The Devils ability to freely animate dead would have made it possible to raise a tremendous army had Knightsbridge been invaded!

The work of destroying the zombies is long and arduous. Once Trajan has exhausted all his capacity for channelling positive energy to destroy them, Arilyn takes her wand of lightning and starts blasting off charges as the zombies fruitlessly attempt to reach them. Eventually the cavern is still once more.




 They camp that night some way down the river from Waterfang, discuss around the camp fire their memories of Dala – his impetuousness, his power, the funny things that he had done in the past. While talking, they heard some music coming from the south – the sound of a lute and a beautiful lilting song. Anne-Maries eyes easily pierce the moonlit night, and she can see a tall and slim figure strolling towards them. The figure waves, without breaking his tune until he comes with range of their torchlight. The song is familiar to both Anne-Marie and Trajan – it is the song of the elves which they met down in Ossington last year.

“Greetings, friends” smiles the elf. “Your tale has been told across many forests, and I have decided to rouse myself from my long ennui and join you in your quests – until such time as I find the way home or…” he trails off “some other reason”. He smiles again, especially favouring Anne-Marie. “Ah, it is true, you do have faerie blood in your veins”

He is full of stories and songs, yet he has a listening ear too as he dwells on the fall of Dala and composes an impromptu lament in his honour. He came with a greeting from the Lady of Ossington woods which identified him to them, and he is quickly welcomed into the company.

_DMnote: this is the first elf PC in the campaign. These are not standard elves; those in this campaign use the planetouched (aasimar) stats and benefits, along with some of the more traditional elvish benefits. This makes them a +1 ECL class. Another difference is that they have favoured class: Bard, and all elves are bards (and only elves are bards until such time as a human gains training from them). This is a campaign flavour thing, and reflects the difference in their magic_


next: The Blessed Returns!


----------



## Plane Sailing

*The Blessed Returns*

The current party roster is as follows:

Trajan 2nd Fighter/5th Jazumai/3rd  Sword Saint
Anne-Marie 6th Fighter/2nd Monk/ 1st Duellist
Meliamne 7th Elven Bard *
Arilyn 8th Wizard

Early in the morning, Trajan is woken by a female voice speaking inside his head.

_“Where is my Dala? The door swings wide and I want him. Bring him to me now or face the consequences”_

Trajan simply responds to the Sending  “he died”. 

He quickly gets to his feet and rouses the others. “We’re likely to have trouble any time now”

Suddenly four sickly emerald green blobs appear, floating and pulsating in the air above them. Pustules on their surface pop, and thin jets of hot acid squirt out towards individuals as they circle around.

Trajan and Meliamne prepare their bows, while Anne-Marie makes a prodigous leap, covering fully 30ft and striking at one of the blobs en-route. Her rapier pierces it and it pops and vanishes. Meanwhile another five of the pulsating blobs wink into existence.

A desperate dance ensues; Arilyn starts launching magic missiles, although cowed before the aura of menace exuded by the creatures. Trajan’s arrows slip through the blobs without causing any harm. Meliamne is gradually taking them down with her magic bow, as is Anne-Marie with her startling acrobatic leaps.

Suddenly the air is clear again, as the last of the blobs wink out suddenly. Nobody is untouched by the painful acidic scars, and Trajan calls upon Asura’s healing might to make the worst of the damage better.

There is one thought on  everyone’s mind. The Blessed. Furthermore, she has increased in power enough to summon creatures capable of teleporting to a location which she is scrying. They are going to have to deal with her now before she becomes more powerful. Racking their brains, they remember information from the ruined temple of elemental evil that suggested she was heading towards Rastor. 

Trajan remembers it as a proverbially “backwoods” mining community in Morannon. Meliamne can supply some additional details, in particular that there used to be some communication with a dwarvish community up in the mountains near them a few hundred years ago – the last time he came through this way.

The decision is made to head off to Morannon directly, rather than proceeding back to Knightsbridge as planned. Crossing the border into Morannon in the farmlands is relatively easy, but they join the road before they approach the town of Olduvor for the night.

On the road they met a young man with a small mule-wagon loaded with some bolts of cloth and spices heading in their direction. They strike up a conversation with him and find he is a Southlander called Bannon. He seems to turn his hand to any number of different activities – sometimes a merchant, sometimes a bounty hunter, sometimes a dilettante. He is soon accepted into the company as an equal, declaring that the cloth business has turned to dust recently anyway. 

They arrive at Olduvor just before dusk, and they are viewed with suspicion by the guards, with their slicked-back black hair. Trajan’s diplomacy gets them inside, and they decide to make their way into a central plaza, where they find a tavern named the Sly Rat. It is overpriced and quite dirty, and the locals scowl at them over the tops of their mugs of ale.

Meliamne decides to lighten the atmosphere in the way that he normally would in the woodland parties he is used to, so he starts conjuring sparkles and musical notes from his fingertips. The response of the patrons is remarkable, as with a cries they all leap up and attempt to squeeze out through the door, all at once. 

The innkeeper comes over with fear on his face, sweating heavily. “I’m very sorry, gentlemen, but I’m very much afraid that I was mistaken when I offered you rooms earlier. I’ve double checked and there are none actually free”

He’s wringing his hands.

“Please don’t think badly of me sirs, but my patrons have all fled scared and I fear that the very worst might happen. In fact I think I’d better be closing up now, if you’d be so kind as to drink up. Please my lords?”

He is obviously distressed, and they leave a pile of Marks on the table as they get up to leave. Entering the square there is quite a large crowd of people who are standing, watching the inn. The others are going to try to sneak away but Meliamne doesn’t want to leave the innkeeper out of pocket, and he sings a song which captivates the crowd, and weaves into it a suggestion that the inn is OK and that there had been a mistake by someone who was drunk. As he retires, he smiles to himself as he sees the crowd start to dissipate, some going back into the Sly Rat.

They retrieve their horses and manage to find their way through the unlit streets towards a coaching inn, named The Royal. Even more expensive, the party remain particularly circumspect and low profile, and avoid drawing any attention to themselves this time. They knew that Morannon was a country of dark secrets and old magic, but they little imagined that there might be such a strong reaction as they had seen here this night.

The next morning they set off for Rastor, and arrive in the evening to find it like a wild west outpost, along with saloon. Gathering information suggests that the mining is going down, but there are strange ochre-robed priests up at the crater ridge mines are hiring new toughs.

Trajan remembers that these were the guys that were linked with unspeakable evil and working with gnolls back in the moat house last year – back when the company comprised Lysander, Azrin, K’tan and M’ir and he had just joined the company.

Apparently although most of the traffic is through the main door into the old crater ridge mines, there are groups of these priests who use a lesser door to the North of the complex. A plan is laid to ambush some and steal their robes, so that they can sneak inside.


----------



## Shockwave

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Meliamne decides to lighten the atmosphere in the way that he normally would in the woodland parties he is used to, so he starts conjuring sparkles and musical notes from his fingertips. The response of the patrons is remarkable, as with a cries they all leap up and attempt to squeeze out through the door, all at once.




You see this is what happens when you start flinging magic around all the time, you don't see Arilyn startling the locals, but then she only used her magic to make the food a bit more palatable.


----------



## Darklone

Hehehehehehe


----------



## Plane Sailing

Shockwave prodded me by email to remind me that Arilyn *did so* do something against the pulsating blobs, launching off magic missiles... so I've edited her slightly in the above section of story. 

Hey, I'm working from 3 month old memory, so occasionally things slip through!

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

The adventure is just about to become: 

*Return to Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil!* 

Mwahahahaha!

Although it will be a shame to say goodbye to this nice long thread, I think it would be a good time to start a new thread for the new series of adventures.

Promise you'll show up?


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Kyri Chronicles part 4 - (updated Oct 6th)*

(All in piratespeak since it was originally posted on "talk like a pirate" day... and out of fun I think I'll leave it that way, even if I've turned the title back to normal)

Avast there me beauties!

The fourth part o' the Kyri Chronicles will be appearing here afore the sun dips below the yardarm!

Ye may be wanting to get up to date wi' a reading of the earlier exploits, and so's to help ye I'll be a-postin the links to previous scribin's


Kyri Chronicles part the first 
In which a bunch of scallywags engage in sundry misdimenours, many diving head first 'to davy joneses locker, Arrrr.


Kyri Chronicles part the second 
In which th' remaining scallywags cross swords with the Return t' th' temple o' elemental evil


Kyri Chronicles part the third
In which a group of scallywags sharing nought but their name with the original bilge rats encounter O' Sound Mind and sundry other encounters wi' Eeeeeeevil

And following now... a re-entry into said Temple, to keelhaul those Crater Ridge Mines.

Come now, ye swabs! Get readin!


----------



## Plane Sailing

So far  we have seen the following deaths:

Miranda, Rog4/Sor1 (cut down by barbarian goblin chieftan)
Graculous, Ftr5 (cut down by barbarian goblin cheiftan)
Blodwyn, Clr2 (fell down a 100ft chasm) 
Ynnsfeardh, Mnk4 (brains sucked out by Ghaerlith the mindflayer)
Kieran, Ftr2 (Hacked to pieces by goblin barbarians)
T’kel, Wiz1 (cut down by barbarian goblin chieftan)
Crail, Rog3/Ftr1 (slain by a backfiring wand, by wererats and finally by fearsome venom)
Sula, Rgr2* (cut down by charmed guaard lieutenant)
Auriel, Dru5 (retired) 
Azrin, Clr5/Mnk1 (decapitated by Thrimdull the metamorph) 
M’ir, Mnk1/Mage: Seer 6 (retired)
Lysander, Jaz7/Sor1 (retired) 
Syl, Morannon Rogue 6 (crushed by stone dragon, slain by Lareth the Beautiful)
K’tan, Mage: Savant 9 (retired)
Zeph the air elemental familiar (slain by phantasmal killer)
Arrk the raven familiar (slain by phantasmal killer)
Dala the Borderlander: Sorcerer 8 (slain by Dyson’s cone of cold)

The current party composition is as follows:

Trajan the sword saint, Ftr2/Jazumai5/Sword Saint3
Anne-Marie the duellist, Ftr6/Monk2/Duellist1 
Meliamne the bard, Elven bard 7 
Arilyn the stormlord, Wizard 8

* Jazumai are a campaign variant of the paladin. Sword Saint is a slightly modified version of the Iaijutsu Master prestige class from oriental adventures. Elves are aasimar in this campaign, Meliamne is a +1 ECL character.

Here is a little information about each of them:

*Trajan*. He grew up in the shadow of the barrier range, in one of the many small farming communities in that part of the Southlands. He had been a useless farmer because he kept sneaking away to spend time with the mad old hermit, who turned out to be the last surviving Sword Saint, who escaped from the inquisition and purges fifty years ago in the theocratic nation of Singh across the mountains. He learned a love of the foreign god, Asura, and after some years of secret training with the hermit he was sent down to face adventure in Asura’s name at the temple in Knightsbridge.

There he met up with the Knightsbridge Company, comprising at that time Lysander the Jazumai (whom he looked up to), Azrin the Asuran librarian-priest, and M’ir and K’tan the mages from far Cadlan. In various adventures he proved his mettle, and when Lysander retired from killing to look after refugees, he took up the mantle of leadership of the Company.

Many have joined the company since then and many have died. Trajan has been the centre of attention for amourous young women, not least Anne-Marie who is in love with him and who recently risked her life to stop him committing seppuku in atonement for his own wrongs.

He is tough and forthright, but not wise. He is acutely aware of his limitations and the shallowness of his knowledge of the faith he professes. He has had disturbing dreams and visions from Asura when he strays off the track.

*Anne-Marie*. Rescued from a time-trap crystal, Anne-Marie the fiery and passioniate sword coast woman is literally fifty years out of time. Much has changed in the world since she last saw it, and perhaps the severing of relationships with all her family and friends from her childhood has contributed to her ruthlessness now. Unarmoured, she is as elusive as the wind and whirls and dances in combat with her lightning fast rapier and sword-biter.

A few months ago she met a drunken old sword coaster at a Ball, and discovered that he was one of the famed duellists of the sword coast, and she persuaded him to  initiate her in the ways of that secret group 

She is in love with Trajan, and would risk anything for him. Her real consuming passion, however, is the grand threat which they have uncovered… of which I’ll speak later.

*Meliamne*: A recent addition to the party, Meliamne was related to the group of elves which were involved in the Ossington affair. Four hundred years old, he has seen many things and gathered thousands of stories from all across the land. In common with all his people he feels the strong desire to return “home”, to the plane of existence which his race originally came from. Like all the elves he is continually seeking for clues, for gates, for plane-shifting portals which might be the key for them to leave this land.

It has been nearly a hundred years since he last walked amongst men, and he is still not very used to the way that they think and act. He comes from a world of light hearted laughter and merriment and sometimes doesn’t think about the implications of his actions in an alien culture.

*Arilyn*: The hawk-nosed Mendonnan woman is studious and dismissive of everything outside of her art. She has recently been able to secure the diaries of the noted Stormlord, Arkon and she is studying them with the intention of focussing her mind and powers ever more closely towards the element which has nurtured her since childhood - the air.

She still mourns the recent death of her trusted friend and familiar, Zeph. She also misses her old sparring partner Dala, for all the insults they used to trade with one another. Adventuring still isn’t in her blood, and she has a tendency to dither at important moments. She is often heard muttering under her breath about the lack of planning by her teammates in the company but she doesn’t have the charisma to come forward with plans of her own.

Next: The Enemies and outstanding plot threads so far.


----------



## Piratecat

An' pleased we are, har har!

If you need Moderator power to edit anything in the older threads, please let me know. In the mean time, I'm excited to catch up!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Piratecat said:
			
		

> An' pleased we are, har har!
> 
> If you need Moderator power to edit anything in the older threads, please let me know. In the mean time, I'm excited to catch up!





I don't know that there is any editing to do in the older threads - hardly any comments, just posting goodness 

I'll try to get something ready to post tonight


----------



## Darklone

Wow... I forgot about some of these deaths...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Enemies who have escaped

*Belak, the mad shaman* from Sunless Citadel. He has encountered the party once again since that time and he has increased in power and was hunting down his nemeses from those old days - Graculous, Miranda, Ynnseardh, Blodwyn and Auriel. Unfortunately the current party only knows what was happening as a result of stories handed down about the companies earliest exploits! Belak and his dire bear companion beat them up and then travelled off to continue his mad ambitions. At the present time the party don’t have any interest in tracking him down. “Not my problem” they think


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Daros the priest from Speaker in Dreams*. Since his escape from them at the climax of that adventure, Daros has been continuing his plan of subverting temples to Asura across the length and breadth of the Southlands. Last Spring when the party were in Bridlerest they discovered that the temple there had lost its old high priest and was in the hands of Singharese incompetants. There is every evidence that Daros has been working over the last year to extend his influence and subvert more churches to the worship of the Black Circle of Asura - one of the banned evil subcults of the church.


----------



## Plane Sailing

*The Blessed, an alienist from Speaker in Dreams.* The mad alienist who was a willing pawn in the mindflayers plans escaped from them in Knightsbridge, and has turned up again at the ruined temple of elemental evil where she trounced them soundly. She has also been working her way across Caran, setting up cabals of sorcerers in each town as she finds it possible. She continually scries them, particularly to keep an eye on Dala who she was grooming as a protégé. She is _very_ annoyed at his death. 

The evidence discovered so far puts her in the neighbourhood of the town of Rastor, in the foothills of Morannon, presumably working in league with more evil buddies. She is number one on the PC’s hit list.


----------



## Plane Sailing

*The Candlemaker.* A minor wizard whose plans they thwarted long, long ago. He has been refining his candlecasting skills and plans to track down the unthinking fools who spoilt his little scam. Not considered to be one of their bigger threats


----------



## Plane Sailing

Unfolding Storylines


*The Binding of Asura*. The priests of Asura keep having visions of Asura being bound again and again by sparkling chains of light. As they pray for spells they are finding more and more that the mighty Asura is responding “If you must” rather than “I grant this boon”. There has been a new class of religious people starting to arise amongst the nations of Cadlan who style themselves “prophets” and who eschew the traditional priestly heirarchy, speaking out against the priesthood while apparently invoking the power of Asura to heal the sick and feed the poor.


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Unrest in Singh.* Over the last year a trickle of refugees from the theocracy of Singh increased to a flood, and then suddenly stopped altogether. Such intelligence as is available suggests that there has been an upheaval amongst the religious elite of that land, and power is in new and oppresive hands. They probably need some heroes to sally forth and free the nation from unholy bondage. 

Who will be up to the task?


----------



## Plane Sailing

*The Mindflayer threat from the Far Realms*. Evidence has been pieced together from old religious tomes, from the sages of Cadlan and from recent threats (Speaker in Dreams, the Door in the Air) that the dread Mindflayers, thought destroyed when mighty Asura came and cleansed the world of Kyri and threw down the god Cthulhu, are still active. Worse, they want their world back. Even worse, they are not based on this plane of existence but live on some other plane, probably in the Far Realms, and they astrally project into this reality. This makes them impossible to slay here. 

Who will be able to learn how to take the fight to other planes in order to secure the safety of the world?


----------



## Darklone

Woah. Who said adventurer is an easy job? Loot and wenches, they said...


----------



## robberbaron

*PC reporting in.....*

Greetings from Trajan.

I've spent far too much time in the last couple of days catching up with the past postings on this game.    Keen-eyed readers will have noticed that I have rather taken to playing below average Wisdom, and will have to moderate my "youthful enthusiasm" now my Wisdom is up from 8 to 12.

Looking forward to playing the next instalment.

BTW, for some extra background, Trajan is a little unconfortable with Anne-Marie's professed love for him (and has not reciprocated), and is seriously worried about her new-found "interest" in the Illithid Threat. He thinks she is but a short step from becoming dangerously single-minded with potential party-splitting possibilities. 
More insights into Trajan's psyche later.


----------



## Darklone

Hehehehehehehehehehehe!

If I were a good friend of Trajan, I'd tell him some things about women and ... oops


----------



## robberbaron

Darklone said:
			
		

> Hehehehehehehehehehehe!
> 
> If I were a good friend of Trajan, I'd tell him some things about women and ... oops




He's finding everything out the hard way.

1: The first girl to profess her love to him (and mean it) is turning psycho-nutter, and goes with other men - very unsettling for a young Jazumai out of the mountains.
2: The first high-born woman who seems interested (Countess Naomi) only wanted him so she could humiliate him in public. Thankfully this was avoided more by luck than judgement - Trajan was very happy to go along with whatever she wanted to do.
And 3: Once you get past the muscles and Charisma (much the same thing for some girls   ) there is only devotion to Asura and the desire to vanquish Evil. Not particularly appealing for any girl not just after a good time.

*sigh* - I guess he's just destined to be single.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Hi RobberBaron/Trajan... Great to see you posting here (and reading it) at last. I'll try to get a little bit more up to date (checks watch)

(checks calendar)

PS - don't think for a moment that I haven't recognised Usagi Yojimbo in your little icon!

Cheers


----------



## robberbaron

Yep, the fiercest of rabbit Samurai.
My Hero!


----------



## Darklone

Now we know how Trajan would love to be...


----------



## robberbaron

Without the long ears, though.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Gosh, a couple of months go past with no updates soooo quickly. My excuse is that I'm waiting for the imminent arrival of my second child (any day now...)

But to let you know what is ahead, we have venturing into the crater ridge mines, green slime problems, riding ore carts, fighting a green dragon, assaulting a guardhouse. There are new characters and more deaths coming up...

Watch this space!


----------



## paulewaug

Dude!
You can't just put that out there like that!  That is like going to the movies and seeing a trailer and getting all excited and then it says...."coming next summer!"



Spoiler



Tease!



So pop out that baby and get to writing!!

Come on now!


Oh yeah......

*Congratulations!*


----------



## robberbaron

Dear PS,
just a little bump to go with Mrs. PS's larger one.

And, so the thread is easier for you to find when you get the time to update.


----------



## Darklone

Indeed.


----------



## Plane Sailing

The next morning they set off for Rastor, and arrive in the evening to find it like a wild west outpost, along with saloon. Gathering information suggests that the mining is going down, but there are strange ochre-robed priests up at the crater ridge mines are hiring new toughs.

Trajan remembers that these were the guys that were linked with unspeakable evil and working with gnolls back in the moat house last year – back when the company comprised Lysander, Azrin, K’tan and M’ir and he had just joined the company.

Apparently although most of the traffic is through the main door into the old crater ridge mines, there are groups of these priests who use a lesser door to the North of the complex. A plan is laid to ambush some and steal their robes, so that they can sneak inside.

(Bannor is an 8th Rogue who has joined them - being played by Meliamne’s players’ 12 year old son. He did a great job!)

Bannor immediately proves his worth to them – he scouts out an excellent ambush position along the path up to the side entrance to the crater ridge mines, and blends invisibly into the rock formations. They don’t have to wait long for a party of seven clerics in ochre robes to wind their way up the path. Bannor leads off the ambush, springing up with a pair of daggers he slices the throats of two of the priests before they even had a chance to gasp. Trajan’s lightning fast reactions enable him to take one down with a couple of arrows before Bannor dispatches another two priests who were still goggling flatfooted at him. Finally Anne-Marie leaps into the midst of the trailing two priests and disposes of them with rapid thrusts of her rapier.

In less than ten seconds the mountain air is still again, and the whole ambush happened so quickly there was no time for an alarm to be raised. Quickly the bodies are carried off the road and stripped. Resplendent in ochre robes which have been cleaned of blood by prestidigitation the party continue up to the Western gate.

The gate is at the end of a small opening carved into the rock face of the crater ridge mines. Arrow slits around all the surrounding walls show that this could easily be turned into a killing ground by experienced defenders. A doglike voice barks out “Who goes there?”

Trajan replies “Who does it look like? Let us in now!”.

The gnollish voice snarls “Let yourself in, dog-meat!”.

Attempting to surreptitiously arrange their weapons under their robes for easy access they boldly march up to the entrance door, carved with horrible fiendish figures, and push it open. Inside a corridor is dimly lit by guttering torches in wall sconces. The walls are covered in horrible scenes of human torture and fiendish creatures cavorting together. Quietly and purposefully they march up to the crossroads. Snarling noises from a large creature come from the doors ahead of them so they turn southwards, heading deeper into the mines. The plan is to gather as much information as possible.

Bannor and Anne-Marie scout ahead and they find a food storeroom with barrels and crates, and beyond that are two rooms with mining equipment – huge tables with water channels which must have been used for separating out valuable ores at some time in the distant past. They haven’t been used for decades.

The next room is more interesting There are two large ore carts resting on buffers here, and two tunnels with tracks heading out to the South. After a little discussion they all climb into one of the carts and remove the break. Anne-Marie gives it a push to get them rolling then leaps aboard and the ore cart starts to rattle off into the darkness which is lit only by the faint light of Arilyn’s magic.


----------



## robberbaron

Yaay, update!


----------



## Darklone

Aye!


----------



## Plane Sailing

After a short while Meliamnes eyes pick out a figure standing in a side tunnel that they trundle past. They apply the break, dismount and walk back to investigate. The figure turns out to be a finely carved statue, and at the edge of their light they can just make out another statue further ahead in the rough-hewn passageway. Weapons drawn they edge forward into a chamber and their light washes over the large reptilian beast, illuminating its horrific visage. Fortunately they all manage to avert their gaze in time, and Trajan and Anne-Marie leap forward to assault the fearsome creature, opening huge wounds in its side. It stares at Meliamne and the elf starts to feel his flesh hardening horribly, but then the message that it has been mortally wounded manages to make its way into the creatures tiny brainpan and it releases its gaze, the eyes unfocussing in death.

Looking around the cavern reveals only mounds of ground up stone, the digested remains of previous victims of the basilisk. They return to the ore carts and move them a little further down the track before coming across another passageway that looks worth investigating. A narrow crack of a passageway, whose walls are glistening with moisture. After a dozen feet there are some steps rough-hewn leading upwards. Their voices echo strangely in the suddenly moist air, and then Anne-Marie shouts a warning as globs of greenish slime drop from the ceiling onto them!

Anne-Marie, Trajan and Bannor leap to the side, but Arilyn and Meliamne both get splattered by the falling material, both cry out as it quickly starts eating away their clothes and their flesh. Moments are wasted by a hurried discussion between the others about what to do, and by the time a pair of knives have been sacrificed to scrape off the foul slime both the wizard and the elven bard are pale and seriously ill (DM note: they were both reduced to single digit CON scores!). The company decide that it would be foolhardy to continue with half their party so grievously wounded and placing their injured companions back in the ore cart they get it moving back towards the room they started from and then walk out under the gaze of the temple guards again.

Halfway down the path to Rastor they remove the ochre robes, then the continue back to the inn where they are staying and both Arilyn and Meliamne settle down for a weeks bed-rest to recover their health after the slime-induced damage, while tended by their friends.

The following Markday they return to the mines by the western door once more. Again the ochre robes get them past the initial gnoll guards without difficulty. They seem to have an unshakeable confidence that nobody could be coming to attack them from the outside world, and they seem a little more concerned about the “earth worshippers” round to the North. The company start to hatch a plan to pass themselves off as a rival elemental cult and foment discord amongst the various elemental temples which are believed to exist in this place.

Once again they take the ore carts, and this time they get them up to quite a speed, rattling past the chambers and corridors they investigated last week. At one point the enter a large chamber with another ore-cart track crossing above their heads, but with no sign of life. Then their cart rattles into a very large chamber, and to their dismay they see a large, two headed creature waiting beside the track and with one club waiting hanging in its left hand while its right arm is poised to sweep the adventurers out of the cart!


----------



## Darklone

Woah!

Medusa, green slime and now an ettin? Hope you had a good DM screen to protect you from thrown dice


----------



## Shockwave

Darklone said:
			
		

> Woah!
> 
> Medusa, green slime and now an ettin? Hope you had a good DM screen to protect you from thrown dice




I think you'll find it was a basilisk not a medusa. I am also now looking into dice with sharpened edges to conteract a sturdy DM screen.


----------



## robberbaron

Rubber dice to bounce over the screen when he thinks you've missed.

Actually, we all take this sort of action in our stride. After all, we are all heroes.
Well, Trajan's a hero. The others, well, they try to keep up.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Well, it IS "Return to the Temple of Elemental Eeeeeevil". It's *supposed* to be tough. Not as tough as it is going to get though <smile>


----------



## Plane Sailing

Trajan starts to swap full attacks with the ettin, and comes out of it very badly – with two heads directing its attacks, the ettin strikes twice as many times and for much more damage. Although Trajan gets in some strong blows himself with his sharp-edged scimitar things would have gone badly if Anne-Marie had not managed to jump forwards and flank it with her darting rapier. As it was his chain shirt of invulnerability which he had obtained from the mad dwarf wight was all that kept him alive.

The ettin is finished off but Trajan is badly hurt. Although rest will cure some of the ills he starts by calling on the gracious Asura to heal him and the worst of his wounds magically heal over. They spend a couple of hours eating and resting. The ettins lair is found, although it contained very little in the way of treasure – mostly the fruit of ambushing low ranking warriors by the look of it.

When the time comes to start travelling in the ore cart again they have barely got any momentum up when Bannor shouts at them to stop and hauls on the brake. Only a dozen yards into the next tunnel the track suddenly ends by a stagnant pool of water with some unidentified ooze roiling beneath the surface and the buffers are out. If they had attempted to speed past the ettin they would have faced disaster if the ore cart had dumped them into the foul water and then followed them in. A quick check of the end of the track suggests that it has been designed to do just that. 

There is a path alongside the stagnant black pool, and they follow that round for a few minutes before they become aware of a chamber opening up to their right. As Arilyns light fills the chamber they can see the other ore-cart track entering the cavern from the North and leading into a large shed. Beside the shed is a high platform – at least 20ft up from the ground. The cavern itself is domed with a high ceiling, rising to 30ft in the centre. Slowly they creep into the cavern. Then a noise is heard from the darkened northern entrance to the chamber. It is the rustle as of leathery wings. 

Large leathery wings...


----------



## Plane Sailing

A voice dripping with sibilant venom hisses from the darkened passageway. “I hunger for flesssh, I hunger for treasssure, I ssscent them both among you”. A green, scaly head on a sinuous neck becomes visible at the edge of their wizardlight, and then a horrible gout of acid is sprayed out towards them. The grace of Asura once more protects his chosen son, and Trajan avoids the worst of the acid. Anne-Marie and Bannon via their quick reactions duck wholly out of the way but Meliamne is badly scarred. 

The dragon stalks forth, the stench of chlorine hangs in the air and it surveys its handiwork.

“A Juvenile” breaths Meliamne, “probably 30 summers old. Pretty smart already”.

“Run” shouts Arilyn

“No” Trajan replies, “it can chase us down. I’ve fought one of these things before” His mind flicks back to the last winter when they managed to track down a juvenile White on the cusp of entering young adulthood. It had nearly killed the entire party. Its body was no bigger than a man. This one was the size of a horse. And smarter. Press the attack before it can breath again, that’s the trick.

The dragon leaps into the air and hovers, raising a storm of dust in the room.

“Air spirits grant you the gift of flight” incants Arilyn, and she touches Trajan’s shoulder. He feels the familiar lightness of a fly spell, and he accelerates up towards the creature, scimitar poised. He feels claws rake him as he closes to strike, but he calls upon the mighty power of Asura to smite evil and his blade bites deeply. Meliamne unlimbers his bow and strikes up a martial ballad, “The Dragonslayers of the Direwood” to encourage his friends. Anne-Marie runs across the room and scales the small tower with the aim of getting close enough to the hovering dragon to engage it; Bannor follows her lead.

Trajan and the dragon hang in mid air, swapping full attacks. Once again Trajan breaths thanks for the chain shirt of invulnerability which blunts the edge of the claw and wing attacks, although within a matter of seconds he is exhausted and more of the dragons blows draw blood.

Arilyn casts magic missile spells and Meliamne uses his bow, but both to little effect.

Anne-Marie is frustrated that the battle isn’t near enough to the tower she is on, so she jumps down to the shed, runs along the roof and launches herself into space, intent on grappling the flying dragons wings and bringing it down. Her plan nearly works, but the dragon manages to twist in the air and slap her down with one of its wings just before she reached it.

Trajan is in a quandary – he is sorely wounded, but he knows that retreating from the dragon would incur a possibly fatal AoO from its long neck. Suddenly he hears the voice of Bannor below him.

“Here, catch this!”

Bannor had been following the fight from his vantage point, cursing at his inability to affect the flying dragon. Noticing Trajans wounds becoming more and more severe he vaults off the platform he was standing on, runs underneath the hovering dragon and his flying friend and tosses up his only potion of Cure Serious Wounds.

Trajan snags the potion out of the air and the dragon surprisingly doesn’t take the opportunity to strike at him but folds it wings and plummets down and through the opening into the cavern which it first appeared from.

The whole party charges after it, through a short passage and into its lair where it is cornered and wounded. It breathes a stream of acid which catches Bannor flatfooted and sears the flesh from his bones before their very eyes. As they press their attack both Trajan and Anne-Marie miss the beast and it retaliates brutally – a fearsome bite takes Trajan out and leaves him dying on the cavern floor. Its wings lash at Anne-Marie, setting her up for a critical slash from one of its claws which disables her (0 hit points). Meliamne whispers an ancient elvish incantation and looses his arrow…

It flies true and catches the exhausted dragon right in the neck, causing it to slump forwards. With her last breath Anne-Marie staggers forward and makes a massive CDG attempt, driving her rapier between its scales and up into its black heart. As the creature shudders and expires the swordcoaster duellist also slumps forwards dying.

Meliamne finds himself the only one breathing properly in the vicinity, as Arilyn is still hiding back in the large cavern. He quickly prepares some of his healing potions and treats Trajan and Anne-Marie, stabilising them and bringing them back to consciousness. There is nothing that can be done for the blackened bones of their companion Bannor though. In the short while he has spent with them he has been both brave and resourceful, and will be sadly missed.


----------



## robberbaron

It was at this point, or rather when he regained conciousness, that Trajan realised where he had been going wrong. 
Instead of toe-to-toeing with the Big Bad Gribbly he should be darting in and out of combat. Duh!
(Levelled up and gained Spring Attack)


----------



## Plane Sailing

Around about this point I was rather hoping that Trajan would take Spring Attack, otherwise I just couldn't see him lasting out against any real big hitter monsters. It added another string to his tactical bow (hope I'm not mangling metaphors there)


----------



## Plane Sailing

Intermission/Introduction

A wizard in a darkened room turns to his friend.

“Well Taran, you know what the results of my divinations have been showing for some time now.  Increasing instability in Singh at the hands of their new world order could wipe out your investments there, and your local man is having to keep his head down in the light of the recent upsurge of activity by the inquisition”

“The refugee problem that has been developing over the last year is starting to badly affect the Southlander nations too. Your holdings here in Morannon are secure, but the network is reporting a widespread reduction in trade due to the local uncertainties. Of course, there are also the criminal elements hiding amongst the refugees who are attempting to set up their own new thieves guilds and so forth, causing conflict with the established order.

“All in all, it’s bad for business and I project that we will need a substantial cash injection if we are to continue the growth which we had planned for our little enterprise. It’s back to adventuring again for us, Taran…”

“No, old friend” the slight figure by his side replies. “Not us. Me. You’re getting rather too old for risking your life in the dark places of this world, Dominic. AND” he forestalls the complaint forming on his friends lips.

“and you can work best with me in your laboratory here. You can keep in contact by scrying me twice a day through yon crystal ball and we can communicate via your Message spells. I can call upon your divinatory and research skills and you can report back to me your findings – and anything else that the network brings up that I need to know about.”

“Plus, you can be my ace in the hole, if things get really tough. After all, we bought that bunch of teleport scrolls for a reason, no?” 

Dominic the diviner laughs. “I’d swear that you’ve been planning this whole thing for months, Taran. I really would. One day you’ll be too cunning for your own good” He wags his finger at his lightly built friend.

“Ah, Dominic. And that is the day when I’ll be glad for you being here, ready to pull my fat out of the fire”.

The two friends raise their glasses in a toast.

“Back to business” says Dominic. “I need a party of adventurers to work with. Have you found any good ones”

“Well, as you know I’ve been tracking such activity as I can through my divinations recently and there are three good candidate groups.  One of them is not far from here – I last scried them over in Rastor, just the other side of the Seven Sisters range. Almost on our doorstep in fact. I believe they are intent on investigating the old crater ridge mines for some reason. That place has been a bit of a divination black spot for many years now and I can’t give you any decent background information on it I’m afraid”

“What are they like, this group?” Taran inquires.

“You’ll be able to see for yourself in a moment, when I fire up the crystal ball. Basically there is a big Jazumai of some kind – but unusually he is a Southlander, so history alone knows how he earned the white headband. He stands side by side with a big swordcoaster woman. Don’t be fooled by her size though – she is as quick as you are, and extraordinarily canny in combat with her rapier which she appears to have thoroughly mastered. The next woman is from the desert city of Mendonna, well known for its assassins although she doesn’t appear to tread that path. Indeed, it appears she is a wizard of power that probably exceeds my own, and she has recently unearthed the secrets of Arkon the Stormlord – I’d love to know what is in those documents!”

“Finally, and perhaps most strangely of all, they have recently been joined by – I kid you not Taran – an _elf_”

Taran raises an eyebrow.

“”No, really, I’m certain it is an elf” Dominic continues. “I know that nobody has actually seen elves for centuries, and their race was almost considered mythical, but for some reason I’ve not yet determined there is an elf adventuring with this group.”

Dominic makes mystic passes over his crystal ball and it goes cloudy and then clears, revealing the adventurers battered but breathing, standing over the corpse of a juvenile greed dragon.

“Dragon slayers too, I see” Taran whispers even though he knows they cannot hear him. “Send them a message, I’d like to meet these guys.”

_DMsnote: For those who have been around since the early days, this is the player of Lysander returning to the gaming group. Taran is a charismatic, intelligent and dextrous rogue 8 (with relatively feeble strength, consitution and wisdom). He has the leadership feat, and Dominic is his cohort. The followers are his spy network scattered across the world. Half of them have been already allocated, and some are left unallocated to enable the player to say, in any human locale, "I'll contact my man here". I think the idea is working out quite cool at the moment _

Cheers


----------



## Old One

*Ouch...*



			
				Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> <snip>
> 
> There is nothing that can be done for the blackened bones of their companion Bannor though. In the short while he has spent with them he has been both brave and resourceful, and will be sadly missed.
> 
> <snip>




Alex,

That hurts...ya gotta hate those instant kills !  Just getting caught up...you and the Missus getting any sleep these days?  Your namesake is just past 10 months and walking is immenent...hide the breakables!

Looking forward to more...

~ Old One


----------



## robberbaron

The instant kills sure do hurt (speaking as the player of Crail who was taken to exactly 0 CON through contact with poison - another charred black corpse   ).

I think we've only had 2 or 3 instant deaths, so at least PS isn't forming a habit.


----------



## robberbaron

My first double post - I'm so proud.


----------



## robberbaron

Ooh, ooh, a triple.

Jittery mouse finger coupled with 2-legged dog slow board.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Old One said:
			
		

> That hurts...ya gotta hate those instant kills !  Just getting caught up...you and the Missus getting any sleep these days?  Your namesake is just past 10 months and walking is immenent...hide the breakables!




Hi Old One, nice to see you back again! Once little Alex starts walking his ability to disappear when your back is turned increases by an order of magnitude. Felicity (2.5yrs) has got to the stage where anything climbable has a big "I dare you" sign visible only to toddler eyes painted on it. Just last weekend we found that she had climbed on the toilet seat, then scaled onto the toilet cistern in an attempt to reach a tempting cupboard...

We're getting plenty of sleep just at the moment, but a second child is due any day now (was actually _due_ on Tuesday 9th, so we're running behind schedule!) I imagine sleep will be disappearing again ever so shortly 

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

robberbaron said:
			
		

> I think we've only had 2 or 3 instant deaths, so at least PS isn't forming a habit.




Although you'll have to admit that it is mostly because of the house rule we introduced to keep the casualty rate down a little!

(House rule: when you are taken to -10hp or lower you can attempt a Fort ST to remain at deaths door, DC = the amount you are negative. Thus Bannor here was breathed on and went to -22hp. He had to make a DC 22 Fort ST to avoid instant death)

Do you remember how many times Trajan has been saved by this rule? I'm sure I can think of about 3 times. Paladin-types are more difficult to kill this way  Rogues and Wizards die more often because they find this Fort ST a tricky one to manage.


----------



## robberbaron

I think it is at least 4 times.

The green dragon was certainly one of them, as was the earlier white dragon.
And at the top of the tower where Anne-Marie got her boots.
And in Knightsbridge when the Chime summoned that Salamander and armoured Troll.
I'm sure there was another one, but can't think of it at the moment.

Just thought of it - but it hasn't happened in these pages yet (same place I was relieved of most of my kit   )


----------



## Old One

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> We're getting plenty of sleep just at the moment, but a second child is due any day now (was actually _due_ on Tuesday 9th, so we're running behind schedule!) I imagine sleep will be disappearing again ever so shortly
> 
> Cheers




Ahh...

I thought #2 had already arrived...duh!  Well, here's to an easy labor and the last few precious nights of sleep !

~ Old One


----------



## Plane Sailing

Trajan and the others all hear a whispered message from a man named Taran who has been watching them at work and wishes to join them – gaining protection from their steel and offering his knowledge to aid in their quests.  After a short discussion the company agree and with a puff of purple smoke the slight figure clad all in grey appears alongside a young and rather traditionally dressed wizard. The wizard smiles at them all, unrolls another scroll and vanishes again. 

Taran surveys the scene of the dead green dragon. “I like your handiwork” he offers.

While Meliamne starts to talk to Taran, Anne-Marie and Trajan investigate the small horde that the dragon was guarding. There is an iron cauldron filled with silver Marks and with the glint of red and purple gems among them. Leaning next to the cauldron is a beautifully made large shield emblazoned with a rampant green dragon and a large golden statue, nearly three foot high. Hanging in the air above the cauldron is a twinkling glassy pyramid.  Anne-Marie reaches past the floating pyramid to check out some of the gems but her should brushes it and it falls to the ground.

There is an explosion and a small cloud of purple smoke which dissipates instantly to reveal a large, four armed red eyed, ape creature. It takes a full attack against Anne-Marie but is foiled by her astounding agility and canny reflexes (that is what good Dex, Int, Wis will do for you when you are a bit of a monk and a bit of a duellist!). One claw snags her tunic but only lightly scratches her, and it is not able to rend her. Anne-Marie replies with a lightning fast series of strikes with her rapier and Trajan moves up to flank the creature and finishes it off with his scimitar. With a clap of distant thunder the summoned creature disappears. Six months ago it would have been a serious threat for them, but now – just a speed bump.

Investigating the treasure further, Trajan swaps his old steel shield for the one emblazoned with a green dragon.

“I remember hearing about those” Meliamne muses. “They were made constructed for the fight against Radeem and his servants from the swamp. It contains a powerful enchantment to guard against acid”.

“Nice” says Trajan.

The coins come to a tidy sum – nearly a thousand marks all told, and Taran’s experienced eye values each of the 21 gems at about 100Mks in value. Arilyn finds a crumpled scroll in the cauldron which turns out to contain spells of see invisibility and alter self. The golden statue is terrible attractive. It weighs 200lbs and must be worth an absolute fortune, but nobody can carry it. Lift it, yes; carry it no. With regrets they place it in their mine cart and resolve to remove it from her if they are able to later.

*Next: Assaulting the gatehouse - and a character death! Who can it be?*


----------



## Plane Sailing

Hey Guys - I've just become a daddy again!

Katarina Ruth White was born in the early hours of 18th December, she weighed in at 9lb 8oz and I think she is a little darling. We have yet to determine exactly what her big sister Felicity (2 1/2) will make of her


----------



## (contact)

Wow, she's precious!  Congrats, dad!  (And no photosho><oring, I promise.)


----------



## Krellic

Congratulations


----------



## Old One

*Congrats!*

Alex,

Just beautiful...congrats to you and the family.  At 9 lbs, 8 oz, she must be quite healthy!  I will raise a pint to you and yours this weekend, my friend across the pond...

Cheers,

~ Old One


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks Phil, I look forward to when we can make our (postponed) meeting in person 

And now, on with the story...


Rested up and prepared, they scout out the passageways beyond the cave in which they fought the green dragon. None of them notice a pair of furtive goggly eyes viewing them from the waterline in the stagnant watercourse alongside their path.

The first cave they find is empty and clearly unsound, but they notice sound and movement from another chamber. There is a fierce looking reptilian biped on a ledge at the far side of the cave. They eye it cautiously, and are surprised when suddenly a jet of vile green fluid shoots from its head at Trajan. His trained reflexes swing his shield up and he is surprised and pleased to find that the shields magic deflects the acidic blast completely _DM note: the shield grants improved evasion on any saves against acid attacks_

Anne Marie springs forwards and in a prodigious leap launches herself up fifteen feet onto the ledge next to the creature. The digester was prepared however, and successfully bats her off down onto the floor again. For a few rounds Meliamne and Trajan prepare their bows and shoot from the entrance while Anne-Marie leaps up and down like a demented jack-in-a-box, slashing at the creature with her rapier. The digester is unable to successfully draw a bead on Anne-Marie because of her excellent dexterity and her monkish ability to evade harm. Eventually it succumbs to the (almost literal) death of a thousand cuts and the party moves on.

Arilyns light illuminates a huge cavern, larger than the ballroom in the Barons’ hall in Knightsbridge. The light is deadened by the dull surfaces of hundreds of mushrooms growing throughout the area – huge ones the size of small trees and thousands of tiny ones as numerous as grass. They would worry about it more if it were not for the clear pathway through the midst of the fungi.

The path winds through to a narrow, rough-hewn stairwell, and thence to a small chamber at a crossroads. Lying on the floor in the middle of the chamber is a chitinous, headless corpse the size of an ogre but with even more hugely muscled arms. Ignoring the side passage, and alert to danger, Taran slips his elven cloak around his shoulders and his special goggles over his eyes and sneaks ahead to scout out the passage.

After a couple of hundred feet and numerous bends he hears rough voices ahead, clearly conversing in a dialect of Dark Speech. From their size they are large creatures. Cautiously moving forward his nostrils are assaulted by a terrible stench arising from a 5ft crevasse that divides a cavern in two. On the far side of the crevasse are two large, rubbery trolls, apparently arguing about something. Beyond them the rough-hewn walls progress farther and at the limit of his darkvision he can just about make out a large iron-bound door.

He returns to the party and a plan of action is drawn up. Arilyn casts invisibility upon Trajan. He and Anne-Marie are to be the shock force that attack the trolls while Meliamne will support them with his song and arrows and Arilyn will marshal her magical forces. Taran will be sneak across and be available should the moment arise.

First Trajan runs forward, springs across the crevasse and charges up to one of the unaware trolls. In a lightning fast move unfortunately invisible to all his scimitar leaps from its sheath and nearly shears completely through  the trolls body. _DM note: iaijutsu focus coming into play_.  Anne-Marie then covers the length of the cavern in a prodigious leap with the aid of her magical boots, and draws a thick red line across the chest of the other troll. Much to Trajan’s surprise he is still invisible, Arilyn smiles at the knowledge that her power is now greater than that of her erstwhile rival Dala, who could only make people invisible until they attacked. She has managed to improve on the magics that untrained sorcerer once used!

Both trolls turn to attack Anne-Marie, but she proves a far too elusive target and although one tags her with a claw neither are able to rend her slender form. Unfortunately for the trolls their hidden foes are ready to pounce. Taran leaps up from the shadows towards the flank of one troll and slices twice with his shortsword, puncturing its kidneys and then slicing its throat open. The invisible Trajan unleashes a full attack and with his new experience and tricks lands three blows on the remaining troll, two of which are criticals. His target falls in four places.

Wise to the way of trolls they quickly produce some fire and burn the trolls corpses even as the trolls inhuman vitality attempts to regenerate them back to life. Once charred and certainly dead the corpses are rolled into the shallow crevasse alongside the detritus of the trolls earlier victims.

Now for the iron door.


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Hey Guys - I've just become a daddy again!
> 
> Katarina Ruth White was born in the early hours of 18th December, she weighed in at 9lb 8oz and I think she is a little darling. We have yet to determine exactly what her big sister Felicity (2 1/2) will make of her



Guess I´m horribly late... but congratulations! 
She looks soooo cute!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Hey Darklone, I'll take compliments to my family any time over the next forty years - and Katarina is only 8 days old 

Thanks mate,


----------



## Plane Sailing

Taran quickly ascertains that the door is not merely locked but it is barred from the inside. After considerable debate Arilyn tuts and mentions that she has the secret power to make anyone gaseous for a short while. While she doesn’t believe it would be wise for her to become gaseous herself, perhaps one of the mighty warriors could volunteer for the spell, since they can do some good on the other side of the door?

Anne-Marie is still slightly wounded and Trajan is still improved invisible, so Trajan agrees to the spell. It is a strange feeling, having your insides and then your skin transform into mist. Unable to communicate with the others, Trajan knows that he can cause the spell to cease once and once only. Ignoring the strange sensations, and putting aside all that he knows to be true, he attempts to force his body through a tiny crack at the side of the door.

To his surprise the spell has apparently worked. His invisible, gaseous body reforms inside a large guardroom. On one side is a huge iron door blocked with a sizeable bar of oak. On the opposite side is a less formidable door. The room is lit by candles in an iron chandelier hanging over a sturdy wooden table. Seated at the table is a troll wearing half-plate armour which has a two-bladed sword to hand.

Trajan reforms himself next to the door and starts to slide the bar out of position. The troll sniffs and then snorts hugely, rumbling to itself “Krall smell Intruders”. It leaps to the door and slashes at Trajan’s position – but its sense of smell can’t pinpoint him clearly and it merely scores the door. Trajan yells out “PUSH” and both Anne-Marie and Meliamne burst the door open while Trajan opens up a gash in Krall’s side. Krall the troll is an experienced fighter and he decides to take the fight to his visible foes. Unleashing a full attack with his two bladed sword he snakes past Anne-Marie’s defences and with a critical hit to her chest takes her down! Reversing his strike his blade slices deeply into Meliamne with another critical hit which takes the elvish bard down!

Taran remains hidden in cover in the side of the passageway. Arilyn goggles at the ferocious troll. 

Krall is struck again badly by Trajan – only one of the Jazumai’s blows connect, but it is a critical and opens up another wound in the trolls back. Krall realises that he’s got to get out of here if his regeneration is going to do him any good. He charges away from Trajan, ducking the AoO and guts Arilyn on the end of his huge weapon, hoisting her skyward and then tossing her aside. Taran glides quietly in cover over to Meliamne and attempts to stop him bleeding to death, and then moves over to Anne-Marie who was at deaths door. The severely wounded troll keeps running while Trajan calls to Asura for healing for his friends. 

But for Arilyn it is too late. Her entrails are spilled across the floor and it would take more powerful divine magic than they possess to return her to life.

They all enter the guardroom together, wrapping up Arilyns body and mourning over her death.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Arilyn was a Wizard 7/ Stormlord 1 at the time of her death.


----------



## robberbaron

Isn't hindsight wonderful?

Approximately 5 seconds after the door was opened I KNEW Trajan should have taken the Troll out himself. 
But then, you can't predict a run of hostile criticals like we had.


----------



## Old One

*Ouch...*



			
				Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Arilyn was a Wizard 7/ Stormlord 1 at the time of her death.




Alex,

You are making the rest of us softies look bad...I am going to have to get busy killing some players !

~ Old One


----------



## (contact)

Old One said:
			
		

> Alex,
> 
> You are making the rest of us softies look bad...I am going to have to get busy killing some players




You can't kill Taran.


----------



## robberbaron

(contact) said:
			
		

> You can't kill Taran.




Hang on a minute. I thought Trajan was the hero here!

If FNG Taran is already wowing the audience I guess I'll have to be extra heroic from now on.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Old One said:
			
		

> Alex,
> 
> You are making the rest of us softies look bad...I am going to have to get busy killing some players !
> 
> ~ Old One




Come now, I'm not that harsh... I only kill _characters_ 

I've not finished yet though...

The worst of it is, I actively try NOT to kill anyone    

I've mentioned before the "avoid instant death" Fort ST which I give anyone who gets to -10 or below... without that safety net I don't know how other DM's get *any* survivors!

Cheers


----------



## Old One

*Durn You English...*



			
				Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Come now, I'm not that harsh... I only kill _characters_
> 
> I've not finished yet though...
> 
> The worst of it is, I actively try NOT to kill anyone
> 
> I've mentioned before the "avoid instant death" Fort ST which I give anyone who gets to -10 or below... without that safety net I don't know how other DM's get *any* survivors!
> 
> Cheers




Alex,

Durn you Englishmenz and your proper semantics!  Of course I meant characters...yeah...that's it...no killin' of players by Old One...nope...that would never happen...

_Old One looks around carefully and places his Austrian made hand-and-a-half sword back in the corner._

Now git back ta work and post sum more stuff !

~ Old One


----------



## Darklone

Hmm. PlaneS, you easily beat Rels storyhour as well in the PK league... what's your secret ?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Probably my incurable sense of honesty and fair-play 

(Membership of the RBDMC might help a tad though )

gets back to writing


----------



## Shockwave

What?!? You don't actively try to kill the PC's? Why that jus... *rolls up new character* ..t doesn't seem to be true, it's lies, lies i tell... *urgh! rolls up new character* ..you!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Come on Shockwave, you're not doing *too* badly.

After all, you've only lost 3 characters so far - the same as Robberbaron - and you are behind Kev who has lost 4!


----------



## Plane Sailing

*A diversionary assualt starts going wrong...*

After spending an hour recovering, and with no noise detected from the door which leads further into the complex, it is agreed that Taran will start scouting ahead. The door is opened quietly and he slips silently into the corridor. Making the most of the concealment offered by the flickering wall torches he glides almost invisible down the corridor. Past a door with no sound from behind it. The main corridor proceeds ahead, but he turns down a narrow side corridor. He is no more than twenty feet down it when some creatures up ahead seem to have caught his scent – there is the sound of squealing hisses, and loud bangs as creatures throw themselves against the bars of their cage by the sound of it.

A door in front of him opens and Heunar, a minor half-orc wizard in a long coat steps out to investigate his animals. Taran gets the drop on him, but has to move closer and so he only gets in a single sneak attack, which is appallingly poor. Heunar casts invisibility defensively and then runs away from his attacker. 

Taran returns to the guardroom, gathers the others and they all run down the main corridor shouting “For the temple of Air!”_DM note: At first I thought they just weren’t particularly concerned about the possibility of organised resistance and a raised alarm, but it turned out they were hoping to sow discord amongst the elemental temples by pretending to be from a rival temple – they didn’t really have the necessary understanding of the politics to pull it off at this point though_

They reach a large intersection. Ahead is corridor with additional doors, to the right are double doors engraved with unholy scenes, to the left an arched opening to the outside world, and a hill giant standing at the edge. He appears to be munching on melons…

Trajan attempts to taunt the giant into attacking him while Taran takes up a hiding place suitable for a flanking attack when the giant charges up. The giant declines to charge however, and instead throws a ripe melon at Trajan, splattering with some force over his upper body and rocking him back on his heels. The giant then picks up a small boulder and gestures obscenely.  Trajan remembers the pounding he took at the hands of the Ettin and so he puts his new techniques into practice - springing forwards, slashing at the giant and then springing back once more. The giant responds with thrown boulders and Taran starts getting frustrated at his lack of opportunity to take action.

Meliamne backs against the doorway and starts using his bow to send arrows into the giant when Anne-Marie, who has been standing rearguard, shouts the alarm as a cloud of darkness blossoms in the corridor between them and their exit.

_I hate to say it, but watch out for another death coming up in the next installment... _


----------



## Darklone

Oih. Remind me to give my players your PK record sheet when they whine next time that only one char from the start of the campaign is still around (I didn't kill ALL of them, some changed character or ... got turned into NPCs.)

Throwing melons 
Hmm, gotta use a giant with Ranged Bullrush soon next to a cliff...


----------



## robberbaron

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Come on Shockwave, you're not doing *too* badly.
> 
> After all, you've only lost 3 characters so far - the same as Robberbaron - and you are behind Kev who has lost 4!




Yeah, and I didn't kill any of them! They simply couldn't stand up to the pressure of being useful (one time each).


----------



## Plane Sailing

robberbaron said:
			
		

> Yeah, and I didn't kill any of them! They simply couldn't stand up to the pressure of being useful (one time each).




It is a sad irony that Shockwave's characters are normally being berated by the other party members for not being useful, but in each case where a character has stepped forward and taken a risk, or made an effort to be useful to the party and use their magic for the benefit of the party rather than just themselves... the character dies.

Strange but true.

Ready for a new bit of story?


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> It is a sad irony that Shockwave's characters are normally being berated by the other party members for not being useful, but in each case where a character has stepped forward and taken a risk, or made an effort to be useful to the party and use their magic for the benefit of the party rather than just themselves... the character dies.
> 
> Strange but true.
> 
> Ready for a new bit of story?



Yeah, "useful" wizards .... my group hates their wizard for overusing invisibility, fly and the whole array of defensive spells all the time before helping them as well... 

I'm ready, don't know about the others though... anyone around?


----------



## Plane Sailing

It's nearly my bed-time, so one more quick post...


*An Assault resolved... *

A bolt of lightning sears out from the darkness, slightly injuring Anne-Marie and Trajan although Taran avoids the effect by ducking back behind a pillar. Anne-Marie readies herself in case of assault and has to nimbly duck aside as another lightning bolt sears out of the darkness, filling the corridor.

The door behind Meliamne opens, and the elven bard hears huge breathing behind him. Glancing over his shoulder he sees the door being held open by another armoured troll bearing a huge greatsword. The troll swings its sword in a short, punishing arc and sunders his magical bow!

Trajan is slowly winning his war of attrition against the hill giant, his scimitar having opened many wounds across its legs and lower torso – although he is sporting many bruises himself his armour of invulnerability is certainly helping to keep him alive.

Anne-Marie suddenly finds herself fighting two deinonychus which leap out of the darkness and attempt to flank her; She finds herself engaging in a deadly ballet with the two agile dinosaurs imported from the Yin-Sloth jungles. 

Taran opens the door next to him and sees a room full of human guards throwing on their armour. He glances round at the fighter troll and bluffs in his most commanding voice

“Quick, some of the intruders are in this room! Kill them now!”

The troll nods in agreement and runs past the gazing Meliamne and svelte Taran and hurtles into the room. Taran pulls the door closed on the chunky sounds of a troll fighter great cleaving through bad guys.

Meliamne winks at Taran – and then is caught in a fireball which blossoms at his intersection. Once again Taran evades damage, and by the grace of Asura Trajan isn’t badly harmed, but poor Meliamne is blasted down, and lies there dying.

Taran runs back to heal Meliamne with his religious icon he is able to con into working. Trajan finally finishes off the Hill Giant and Anne-Marie drops the last of the deinonychus and springs forward into the darkness to assault the female wizard Tippesh who is hiding within. She guesses her location and expertly skewers the stocky evoker, staining her yellow and orange clothes with red blood as the darkness vanishes.

Suddenly Taran and Meliamne are overshadowed by gruesome figure twice their size. He looms out from the doorway, blue-black scales covering his torso, long curved horns arching forward from his temples and with piercing yellow eyes with tiny white pupils. In one hand he holds a huge greatsword and the other is stretched out towards them.

“I am D’Gran and you, mortals, shall be suitable sacrifices. SURRENDER!”

Meliamne is not thinking clearly. His years of simple bardic performing and storytelling have not prepared him for the cut-throat violence of this dungeon. He forgets the cloak of the Mountebank which he won in a bet a century ago, and which could have effortlessly spirited him to safety and attempts to leap to his feet and run.

D’Gran’s freezing blast drops him like a stone, and his frozen flesh shatters as it strikes the hard paving slabs of the floor. Taran manages to once again nimbly avoid an energy attack and tumbles past D’Gran and breaks into a run back towards the guardroom.

“Retreat” cries Anne-Marie, and even though it goes against the grain Trajan joins his companions in arms and runs for it back towards the guardroom and beyond. 

Behind them they hear booming, fiendish laughter. 

“We’ll be back” Trajan curses to himself. “By Asura, we’ll be back”...


----------



## Old One

*Ach...*

Sunder...yummy...

~ Old One


----------



## robberbaron

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Taran opens the door next to him and sees a room full of human guards throwing on their armour. He glances round at the fighter troll and bluffs in his most commanding voice
> 
> “Quick, some of the intruders are in this room! Kill them now!”




Ok, ok. Taran is a quick-thinking hero.
Shame about Meliamne, but it does show that you should be aware of the magic items you have, especially when you only have 2 or 3.


----------



## Darklone

I never understood why bards don't get evasion....


----------



## Plane Sailing

Darklone said:
			
		

> I never understood why bards don't get evasion....




He didn't make his save, so even that wouldn't have helped.

Probably the big problem is that he was a replacement character, created at 8th level with a set of equipment, and it is that much harder for a player to be used to using equipment and tactics when he hasn't "grown up" from a relatively low level.

At the conclusion of the adventure I turned to Meliamne's player and asked "why didn't you use your cape of the mountebank to dim door away?"

IIRC he looked back with glazed eyes then said simply "Doh"

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

Either that, or it's the oldest character in a big group with a huge heap of magical gimmicks and powerful artifacts.... that he never uses


----------



## robberbaron

We are somewhere around the DMG Player Wealth guidelines, although Trajan is currently about 10k below, having 3 magic items. I think the other characters have between 3 and 5 magic items.
This means that we don't have lists of gear to sift through whenever we come across a different situation and should be able to remember everything the items do.

Meliamne was fairly new and his player was still unused to his gear. Hope he won't make that mistake again.


----------



## Plane Sailing

As of the current day (which is some six months ahead of the storyhour as it stands at the moment almost all the characters are 10%-20% below the recommended amount of treasure for their level. 

Obviously I'll have to arrange for a treasure bath the party in the near future.

Fancy tracking down a dragon horde, chaps?

Cheers


----------



## robberbaron

Why not?
Although, I'd still like to get the Black Circle myself and Anne-Marie will want to go Illithid hunting at some point.


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Interludes*

Quickly the party hurry back, through the fungus filled cavern and back to the mine carts. Still making the best haste they can, they use their mine cart to travel back towards their entrance gate, pausing only to make sure that they haul their golden statue along with them which they won from the dragons small hoard.

Just as they prepare to enter the main thoroughfare of the gatehouse they become aware of gnollish voices snarling at one another. They burst open the doors and surprise a group of five gnoll warriors playing cards around a makeshift table. Trajan steps forward and with three blows kills the two nearest him. Anne-Marie makes a somersaulting leap across the table and polishes off two more. Taran puts on his best darktongue and says

“You will lead us to the exit or we will gut you like a sheep”.

Overwhelmed by the speed and power of their attack, the gnoll capitulates. He leads them out past the main guards at the front and down the track outside the crater ridge. Halfway down the track they pause to question him. There isn’t much information available, it seems he is merely a mercenary guard for hire. Apparently most of the conflict occurs between the various elemental temples around the rim of the crater ridge mines. The gnoll pleads to be allowed to escape to his freedom in the wilderness. Anne-Marie is becoming uncharacteristically bloodthirsty and votes to cut him down right now, but cooler heads prevail and he is released unarmed.

Trajan, Taran and Anne-Marie, the only survivors, manage to return to Rastor that evening. Before settling down to bed, Taran pays a visit to the local undertaker and arranges for a coffin to be delivered for “a friend”. He wants this friend to be transported back to Morannon (to his cohort, Dominic’s villa.) The undertaker is given warm assurances of money should things go well, and dire consequences if his friends body is interfered with. Taran brings back the coffin heavy with the weight of his “friend”. Actually containing (amongst much padding) the large golden statue which weighed about 160lb. Now safely en-route to his main base of operations.

That evening Taran hears a whisper which indicates that Dominic is scrying him again, and is ready for a chat. Gladly he listens to what his friend has been discovering.

“ Taran, I’m sorry to hear about the death of those other two adventurers, especially since you’ve lost your local arcane support with the death of that Mendonnan woman. I’ve got some good news though”

“Speak on, Dominic”

“There is a woman, a necromancer, here amongst the halls of wizardry in Morannon. Her power rivals my own, although she concentrates on the arts of life and death rather than information like I do. I think she would be a good match for your adventuring group since she is not evil despite her professed subject matter. I’ve had some initial contact and conversation with her and she is very amenable to joining up with you. Apparently she has some good reasons for leaving the city at the moment and it will only take a few days to ride down to Rastor. Her name is Tania”.

“Thanks, Dominic. I’ve sent a coffin across to you containing a large gold statue. Please see that it gets melted down and the gold sold to good jewellers – the ones on sharp street, I’d suggest. Everything else going OK?”

After a little more chit-chat they cease their connection and Taran talks to the others about Tania. They decide to welcome her into their company when she arrives in a few days time.


Next: re-entering the mines...


----------



## Darklone

I need a "Trajan rules" fanboy smiley.


----------



## sumi

*Trajan  has interest!!!!!!!*

Trajan, you had better not tell Anne-Marie or the Black Forest gateau will become a custard tart.  
As the saying in Cadlan is 'Beware the pine cone, for it can bounce'.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Welcome Sumi, welcome!

(I hadn't realised that a whole month had gone by since my last update. I've really got to get writing again!)

Cheers


----------



## robberbaron

I think we're only about 8 months behind now.

If only we could get Guido to update as well.  

Oh, and Anne-Marie is certainly some variety of tart. Just not quite sure of the flavour yet. Possibly psychodelic.


----------



## Plane Sailing

During that evening they spend time gathering information, and preparing themselves for the arrival of Tania. 

Tania arrives in the morning, dressed in dark colours and sporting the slicked back dark hair and widows peak which is so common in her native Morannon. After some long introductions, during which they discover she is a specialist necromancer (which gives Trajan a pause for thought) they decide to let her join their party. Taran has left word with Dominic to continue checking up on her background in case there are any unforeseen problems.

The company move up towards the side gate at the crater ridge mines once more early on Moonday, once again donning their disguises before they get there. Almost a week has passed since their last foray and they are hoping that the guards will have become lax again. 

It seems as if their prayers have been answered, and they find no problems in getting past the gatehouse and back into the mining cart railtracks. Once again they take an ore cart down to its terminus and then proceed through the cave of fungus and up to the iron guardroom door. 

Taran takes the lead, easily bluffing the current guards that they are “replacement guards” arriving to make up the numbers accidentally slain by Slaazh, the troll with the two handed sword.

Quite unlike their last visit they wander down to the main intersection and then have a short conversation with a giant who is on guard. The giant is a bit mournful, apparently his best friend was killed by intruders last week and he doesn’t have anyone to make jokes with now.

Leaving him they take the huge right hand door and open it onto a chamber occupied by two large foes and one small figure who is manacled to the wall, and who clearly has undergone some severe torture. One of the figures is Slaazh, the troll fighter with a two handed sword, the other is D’Gran a fiendish ogre mage.

Trajan gains initiative and springs in, hewing at Slaazh with a mighty blow from his bastard scimitar. Anne-Marie tumbles past it and strikes ineffectually at the Ogre Mage while Taran and Tania watch from the doorway. 

D’Gran unleashes his fearsome cone of cold, catching Trajan, Anne-Marie and Taran. Trajan avoids the worst of the freezing blast and the other two evade it completely; D’Gran utters a fiendish curse.

The troll is putting a lot of strength into his sword swings, but he finds himself unable to hit the agile young duellist dancing around him. Suddenly a sharp pain in his kidneys drops him to his knees and he realises that the small rogue flanking him is not to be ignored! On his next round he swings at Taran, easily catching the weak rogue with his sword and laying him out bleeding on the ground.

D’Gran has shrugged off a full attack from Trajan and then disappears into invisibility, much to the sword saints, frustration. Anne-Marie impales the troll on her rapier and then quickly thrusts her torch into its wounds, momentarily tipping Slaazh over the edge of consciousness. Tania has been waiting for this moment and darts forward, her hand glowing with necromantic magics. Before the trolls regeneration can life it back into consciousness her Death Knell strikes it and the troll collapses lifeless, its spark extinguished and used to strengthen Tania’s power for the next hour. Anne-Marie looks across, astonished. “Neat trick” she offers.

D’Gran appears for a moment, as he fires his huge longbow at Trajan, but it seems that he doesn’t have the stomach for continuing the fight and visibly goes gaseous and then invisible, disappearing into the darkness beyond.

The hill giant that they were talking to earlier now bursts into the room, having eventually decided that the last thirty seconds of combat that it was hearing was not right. Unfortunately for him he walks into a flanking position between Trajan and Anne-Marie and the two fighters decimate him before he lands his second blow.

After healing Taran they turn to the small tortured figure hanging on the wall. He is little more than the size of a human child, but with a wizened face beneath the blood and bruises.

“Hello” the figure says over his laboured breathing. “I suppose you’re here to hurt me too? Everyone has it in for us svirfneblin. I don’t know why we ever bother to try to help”.

“Er, No” Says Trajan, curious as to what manner of humanoid he is seeing. 

Taran quickly picks the locks on the manacles, setting the little figure free.

“Well, you’re not hurting me right now, so maybe you aren’t bad sorts after all. My name is Garrick” says the deep gnome.

“My people drew lots and I drew the short stalagmite, naturally, so I came up to warn…” he guestures around “… subsurface dwellers that this extinct volcano isn’t nearly as extinct as they thought it was. In fact, unless we manage to complete our engineering work in time the vast magma chamber below us is going to fail and this whole caldera is going to blow sky-high”


----------



## robberbaron

Still not sure about Tania.
Can't figure out whether she only has a couple of spells per day or if she just chooses spells which have no obvious use.


----------



## Darklone

Perhaps she's like the kobold I used to play... officially (disguised) as an illusionist gnome. 

He was a Ill1/sor7 and had some Cure spells (one level higher) in his repertoire, so everyone eventually assumed he was a wizard/cleric multiclass due to his now and then curing and his general "Could I have this wand?" behavior... 

Or she's a rog/wiz/asn


----------



## Plane Sailing

Probably more a classic case of the difficulties which wizards have when preparing their spells at the start of the day. Will I pick useful ones?

Plus as a specialist necromancer she loses two other schools - I think it is evocation and conjuration, which takes out many attack spells.

Plus, an issue not to be overlooked, is that traditionally Shockwaves characters are not very "useful" to the party, and as soon as they become useful or heroic they die a grisly death. This was the fate which befell Syl and Arilyn... maybe Tania is just being cautious for karmic reasons... 

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

“I beg your pardon?”

Suddenly the self-effacing svirfneblin has all their attention. Rather uncomfortable at seeing all these heavily armed and ichor-splattered big people surrounding him he stammers out his response.

“We live deep underground, we found this huge magma chamber and realised that it was becoming unstable, something was seriously disturbing it. My people have used magics and skill to seal off a side channel which would have caused it to blow up in a matter of weeks. Luckily we think we’ve sealed it properly so it will stay safe for a few years yet”

Taran looks thoughtful. “How easy would it be to ‘un-fix’ it?” he wonders aloud. The others quickly agree that the smartest way of eradicating the evil brewing at the crater ridge mines would be to allow a huge volcanic eruption to wipe the whole sorry mess off the face of Kyri. Well, either that or slog their way through hundreds of evil priests and their minions. 

Right.

“OK Garrick, could you lead us down to this, whatever, magma chamber?” Trajan asks

“Sure” replies Garrick. “As long as you don’t mind escorting me past hordes of violent orcs and the remaining few that don’t die make it down a sheer shaft into the underdark without incident and are able to traverse the miles of underdark to the magma chamber without going mad, why not?”

Anne-Marie expertly twirls her steel rapier, Tania looks mysterious, Taran winks and Trajan lifts his chin heroically, even though he doesn’t realise he’s doing it.

“Lets get going then!” the Sword Saint says.


----------



## Shockwave

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Plus as a specialist necromancer she loses two other schools - I think it is evocation and conjuration, which takes out many attack spells.




Being the total specialist that Tania is she doesn't have access to Conjuration, Enchantment and Abjuration spells. Plus there is that whole dying thing, it's quite a drag really.


----------



## robberbaron

Shockwave said:
			
		

> Being the total specialist that Tania is she doesn't have access to Conjuration, Enchantment and Abjuration spells. Plus there is that whole dying thing, it's quite a drag really.




So, fireballs and lightning bolts then?


----------



## Plane Sailing

robberbaron said:
			
		

> So, fireballs and lightning bolts then?




Can you say "collatoral damage"


----------



## robberbaron

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Can you say "collatoral damage"




Trajan is intimately acquainted with that particular form of damage.


----------



## Darklone

Yeahyeah, the friendliness of friendly fire.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Darklone said:
			
		

> Yeahyeah, the friendliness of friendly fire.




Do you suffer much from that in your campaigns, Darklone?

In the last but one adventure there was a cone of cold and a mass concussion both went badly astray, affecting party members...


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Do you suffer much from that in your campaigns, Darklone?
> 
> In the last but one adventure there was a cone of cold and a mass concussion both went badly astray, affecting party members...



Nope, my chars take Evasion  

Always. 

And the Refl save of my Bbn/Rgr/Rog/Bard char was ca +18 at level 9. At least. He had a broken wand of fireball which let the fireball explode around him... the DM didn't think it was funny how I used it 

But yes... the reason why that char developed that way was friendly fire. The first two battles of my bbn1/brd2 in that campaign ended with one friendly Flame Strike from the level 9 cleric (yeah, they did let newbies start low).

My other running char is a litorian AU archer... he's not often in the way of friendly fire.

Edit: My favorite web D&D comic about Friendly Fire


----------



## Plane Sailing

I've never seen Giant in the Playground before, it's good stuff!

How often do familiars get treated like this?

http://www.giantitp.com/cgi-bin/GiantITP/ootscript?SK=3

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

Back to business...

*Somethings in the chimney and its not Santa Claus*

Tania speaks up “I’ve studied a lot of ancient history, especially the time of the Jade Empire. It is said that there were numerous underground watch stations constructed in the underdark. We might have the opportunity to investigate one of them while we are down there”.

Taran scouts ahead. He pulls his darkvision goggles down over his eyes and slips into the first of the orc-guarded caverns. Keeping close to the wall he has no difficulty sneaking close to the orcs on watch in the dark. The orcs are aware of the light from the rest of the party in the chamber beyond and have their arrows readied to attack. Taran’s sword of subtlety slashes once, twice and both orcs fall silently dead, slain by lethal sneak attacks before they could react.

Taran sneaks into the next chamber and spies another four orcish archers. Once again he gets into position but he deems his odds not good against that many foes. As his friends prepare to enter he attacks by surprise and stabs one orc and in the ensuing confusion Trajan reacts like lightning and charges into the room; unsheathing his sword and slicing one of the orcs in two in a smooth single motion. Anne-Marie makes an impossible leap over the heads of the orcs and skewers one as she lands.

The remaining orc drops his bow, draws his shortsword and swings ineffectually against Trajan before he too is cut down.

After their recent battles the opportunity to easily dispatch foes such as these comes as something of a relief.

They pass through another chamber with crude orcish warning signs daubed on the floor in dried blood, and approach a well made dwarven door, covered with dwarvish runes. Taran examines it for several minutes before divining how to open the door. Moving a hidden catch, the door glides open on hidden hinges revealing a well carved corridor of apparent dwarvish handiwork. The floor is dusty, with perhaps some old tracks barely visible on the floor of many orc boots travelling inward and one set coming out.

“Not that way” says Garrick. “Down here” 

He gestures towards a hidden crack in the wall and one by one the company squeeze through. 

“It is a rock chimney, with three tricky sections” Garrick explains. “Only about a thousand feet straight down though”.

“Don’t worry” says Anne-Marie, “We’re all experienced climbers, and strong. I don’t expect any trouble”

“Maybe *you* don’t” Tania mutters under her breath, as she realises she has no spells prepared that could save her in the advent of a long drop.

One by one they start their descent, following Garricks lead. The first hazard, a crumbly layer of rock is found a couple of hundred feet down and bypassed with no difficulty.

Some ten minutes and two hundred feet further down there is another tricky bit. Tania loses her grip, scrabbles at the edge and starts to topple backwards when Anne-Maries powerful arm darts out and grabs hold of the front of her robes.

“You’ve got to be more careful” the swordcoaster woman says with a twinkle in her eye.

Down they continue, another hundred, two hundred, three hundred feet and they come to an overhang that has to be bypassed. Garrick and Trajan go first, then get ready to help the others down. Taran comes first and his roguish abilities don’t stretch to climbing – he nearly slips, and freezes twice before finally making it down. Tania slips once more but is saved by Trajans arms this time. Finally Anne-Marie prepares to traverse the overhang, having assisted everyone else across. Pretty tricky though.

Then a handhold comes loose under her weight. She topples backwards into the shaft, hands flailing for something to break her fall! Trajan reaches out but he is still steadying Tania!

Holding silence so as not to alert nearby foes, Anne-Marie plummets into the depths...


----------



## Darklone

Eeks!


----------



## Plane Sailing

falling... falling...  falling


----------



## robberbaron

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!


----------



## Darklone

I'll quote this next time someone in the rules forum tells me, natural wings aren't necessary because you can usually fly by some means.


----------



## sumi

*Amateur night*

Fly. This bunch of amaters can barely walk. If Planesailing gets on with it, you will start to see what a true hero is about. Always saving this lots pathetic necks. He left them once before, as they couldn't organise the perverbial piss up in a brewery, but came back as the world is in dire peril. If it wasn't for the Cadlanese this world would have faded years before.  

Lock and load people......its a bug hunt


----------



## robberbaron

Er, yeah. Whatever.

Anyway, 3rd page? I think not.


----------



## Plane Sailing

For any curious onlookers, Sumi isn't a troll attempting to cause trouble, he's the player of Auriel the witch in the very earliest storyhour episodes, then later M'ir the Cadlanese Seer-Monk. He went on hiatus after the party made a disastrous attack on the Temple of Elemental Evil some while ago. He is back with the party now, but the storyhour is about eight months behind where we are at present.

End of intermission, I hope to be writing again v. soon.

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> For any curious onlookers, Sumi isn't a troll attempting to cause trouble, he's the player of Auriel the witch in the very earliest storyhour episodes, then later M'ir the Cadlanese Seer-Monk. He went on hiatus after the *party made a disastrous attack on the Temple of Elemental Evi*l some while ago. He is back with the party now, but the storyhour is about eight months behind where we are at present.
> 
> End of intermission, I hope to be writing again v. soon.
> 
> Cheers



Which disastrous attack ?


----------



## robberbaron

Darklone said:
			
		

> Which disastrous attack ?




Possibly the one where I (Trajan) went through a door gaseous and invisible and let an armoured Troll out to marmalise the rest of the party in 2 rounds flat.   (See post 54 in this thread).

Or, perhaps, where we charged in, only for the BBEG to come out of his playroom to turn Meliamne into a corpsicle (Post 71).


----------



## Plane Sailing

Oh no, much longer ago... Back in Kyri Chronicles part 2, about 3/4 the way down this page http://www.enworld.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=4070 where Azrin and K'tan were brought down by a hail of flaming arrows, Trajan and Lysander lost their special swords to an acidic creature, in the temple proper Azrin gets confused and flames Trajan, both Lysander and Trajan are reduced to single digit hit points, the whole party is ensnared in a web as they try to retreat and they eventually retreat while leaving M'ir for dead.

What a grand time!


----------



## sumi

Like I said Amateur night. The mage ends up at the front because a bunch of paladin types run past him saying 'were off, bye fend for self' we don't feel well. Valour, courage, protecting the meek - b ll cks. I woould have been better with a party of thiefs -there you don't expect any honour or help. Jazumi -


----------



## Plane Sailing

The party cautiously but as quickly as possible complete the descent down the stone chimney. As their light floods the chamber at the bottom of the rock face they see Anne-Maries broken body, her legs and neck twisted at unnatural angles, her eyes wide and staring.

Trajan chokes up a little.

“We can’t leave her body here for the scavengers. She’s not too heavy. I’ll carry her”. The others stand aside as with surprising tenderness he straightens her limbs, binds up her obvious wounds and then carefully carries her over his shoulder.

Everyone is shocked that the agile, devil-may-care swordcoaster woman with the fiery temper and one-track mind has been silenced. Trajan says a quick, inarticulate prayer (aware of his complete lack of religious knowledge, even now) and in solemn mood the party continue onwards, following Garricks lead.

The silence and oppressive weight of darkness reminds Trajan of his journey under the mountains along the dwarf passageways, and he thinks of companions from those days who have fallen – Dala the sorcerer, Arilyn Windbourne who wanted to become a stormlord and now Anne-Marie. There are now none who faced the door in the air with him.

After an hours travel they approach some caves which are lit with dim greenish light. Garrick assures them it is merely natural luminescent fungi and they enter a series of caverns which are full of toadstools – some huge, as big as trees, many smaller ones the size of shrubs and bushes, and everywhere there are scatterings of diminutive mushrooms, almost as common as grass except on the obviously well trodden trail they are on.

Tania is surprised in the third cavern by the impression that one of the diminutive mushrooms that she was watching as they walked along blinked at her. The others watch as she stops to look in more detail then recoils slightly in shock as three or four of the toadstools uproot themselves and scatter away from her, peering at her with little yellow eyes under the hoods.

“That’s pretty strange” they all think, as a man sized toadstool the other side of the path from them leans over unseen and discharges a cloud of spores all over the party...


----------



## robberbaron

sumi said:
			
		

> Like I said Amateur night. The mage ends up at the front because a bunch of paladin types run past him saying 'were off, bye fend for self' we don't feel well. Valour, courage, protecting the meek - b ll cks. I woould have been better with a party of thiefs -there you don't expect any honour or help. Jazumi -





Yeah, well,  happens. You do your best until you have to retreat. 

One always come back though.


----------



## Darklone

For yet another disastrous attack, right ?


----------



## robberbaron

If anything, Trajan's consistent. It's one of his more endearing features.   
That and his muscles.   
And his rugged good looks.   
And his immense Presence.   

Shame most of those around him have the thousand yard stares of the psychopathically driven. At least they don't drool. Too often.  :\


----------



## Darklone

Looks like the Jazumai don't preach modesty


----------



## Plane Sailing

Darklone said:
			
		

> Looks like the Jazumai don't preach modesty




Darn right! Their credo is to lay down the righteous smack on the enemies of the state and religion. Do it with honour, but do it.

We're not talking namby-pamby Paladin city here


----------



## robberbaron

That's one of my less endearing features.

To explain more fully:
Trajan is a basically lad from the hills who has been thrust into the midst of a world he still doesn't really understand.

He is a Holy Warrior of Asura and, as he has just gained his first Rank in Knowledge: Religion, it is only now that he starts to see down the path before him. And he doesn't particularly like what he sees. He suspects that he will be seeing Asura again in the not too distant future.

He has been called Heretic and hunted by his "Brothers", without knowing the reasoning behind it (and it upset him no end). All he knows is that a number of years ago the Sword Saints were proscribed by the Singharese High-Mucky-Mucks.

His companions try his patience on an hourly basis with their incessant squabbling.

One of his friends is a Psychotic who is obsessed with the "Illithid Threat" in which almost no-one outside of the party believes.   
Another is disdainful of anything the rest of the party does or says, but is handy in a fight, when he keeps an eye on where his allies are lying.   
The third is a rogueish sort with his own network of contacts. Not sure what he is actually up to, but at least he doesn't moan.   
The fourth is a "Black Mage". Now that in itself is unsettling, but Trajan can find no trace of "badness" within her. However much he looks.  :\ 
And the fifth is an ancient (as in from an ancient time, not wrinkly) Priest who bows to Trajan's "greater knowledge" all the time, especially when he doesn't know what he is doing.   

All in all, modesty is something for which Trajan doesn't have too much time. Everyone else seems to either love him and shower him with compliments or hate him and try to kill him.


----------



## Darklone

Hmm. Like this?

"I'm here looking for a job as Jazumai. Heard you'd be looking for young lads like me. What's in it for me?"
- "You'll be the greatest, bestlooking dude around, there's a nice shiny sword on your side, the chicks will love you and you'll be knocking out all evildoers."
"Where do I sign?"


----------



## robberbaron

Darklone said:
			
		

> Hmm. Like this?
> 
> "I'm here looking for a job as Jazumai. Heard you'd be looking for young lads like me. What's in it for me?"
> - "You'll be the greatest, bestlooking dude around, there's a nice shiny sword on your side, the chicks will love you and you'll be knocking out all evildoers."
> "Where do I sign?"




Pretty much, yep. Only I wasn't actually looking to become a Jazumai. That was really a lead-in to the Sword Saint (Iaijutsu master).

More like "I've come to right wrongs. Who's got some wrongs to right? Look, don't all shout at once, one at a time please, aaaaarrrrggghhhh! Bad guy overload!". 

And the stuff about being the bestlooking dude, etc., of course.


----------



## Plane Sailing

As RobberBaron says, Trajan was a poor country lad from a small village up in the mountains. He didn't have the makings of a proper farmer because he was always wandering up to the shack in the mountains were the mad old foreign hermit lived.

The hermit taught him and trained him in martial skills, and led him onto the path of the Jazumai. Eventually the old man decided that it was time that Trajan got out into the real world and sent him down to the priest in Knightsbridge, so that he might gain some more orthodox training down there. The rest, as they say, is history.


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Magic Mushrooms?*

Trajan is protected once again by the grace of Asura from the spores that settle over the party. The others cough once or twice and then start looking around quite surprised. For them, the air has become full of voices.

All except the sword saint hear words rising out of a general susurration -  “we are the many, we are the folk, we are the we. Are you part of the we or part of the other?”. Tania responds, thinking out loud “we are separate, but friendly”. She along with the others that have been affected by the spores become aware that almost all the tiny toadstools now have eyes, as to several of the man sized toadstools and one of the huge, tree sized toadstools. It is hard to tell who is having the weirdest time – them or Trajan who can’t understand why they are talking to thin air and their eyes are almost bugging out of their heads.

There is a deep sense of sadness in the air.

“The we are fewer now (fewer)” the voices continue. “The we are coming to a time of melding. Would you come with us and participate in the melding?(melding?)

Three pairs of eyes turn to look at Garrick for an explanation. He shrugs his shoulders. “The underdark is a big place, I’ve never seen toadstool people like this before. _My_ people generally move quickly and quietly, unseen through the darkness. Not tramping around like juggernauts and alarming all the locals”.

“Ok”, says Taran, “Lets go along with them for the time being. We might be able to learn something useful from them”. He explains to Trajan what the heck is going on, and they set off amidst a strange entourage of shuffling and hopping toadstools of all sizes. Around them all except Trajan can hear a continual whispering of conversation echoing in the caverns.

After an hours travel through an increasing blue phosphorescence, the party arrive in a small cleared cavern. In the centre of this is a particularly dumpy toadstool, which slowly shuffles round in place and two old yellow eyes open beneath its cap.

“We welcome you to the we (welcome, welcome).  You are not of us yet you are welcome to share with us (share with us, share, share, share with us).

“Uh, just what would this sharing entail?” wonders Taran.

“The we form a circle, and we share spores with one another” It nods its toadstool cap sagely. “It is a very intimate and rewarding process (intimate, rewarding, pleasurable)”.

Thinking quickly, Taran replies “Ah, there is the problem. Much as we’d love to we can’t; we have no spores”.

“Ah, how sad (saaaad)” the old toadstool creature says. “All we must end sometime, and it is sad to meet those in their ending. We must give you gifts for your passing (gifts, gifts for the passing)”.

Taran’s ears prick up. “Gifts?”

“You are heading in the direction of the cavern of fire (cavern of fire, fire, cavern of fire say the echoing whispers.)  You will need spores to protect you."

The toadstool men hand out small puffballs; apparently one needs to crush the puffball and allow the spores to settle over you. There are puffballs of Endurance, of Strength and of Protection from Fire.

After a few more pleasantries where neither side fully grasped what was going on, the company take their leave from the strange toadstool creatures and proceed further into the underdark.

An hour or so later Taran receives a whispered message from his friend Dominic who must be scrying him again.

“Hello Taran. I’ve got a couple of disturbing messages for you, and I don’t have any explanation of exactly what is going on yet. Your man Shinzin in Singh reports a flurry of activity and rumours of a dire emergency that threatens the entire nation. At the same time the your man in Morannon, Councillor Darryl reports that the Archmage of the Black Wizards of Morannon has appeared to the king of Morannon – an unheard of event”

He draws a deep breath.

“There are some powerful movers and shakers in this world who are getting ready to do some moving and shaking, Taran. Something big is coming up and I can’t divine what it is yet. I don’t like it. Keep your wits about you”.

“Find out what you can, old friend” Taran replies. “report in twice a day if you can. I don’t want to lose touch”

“I’m worried that we might be losing more than that if we’re not careful Taran. A lot more. I’ll call you tomorrow morning. Dominic out.”


----------



## sumi

Come on plane sailing, where is the action when the true hero of this group returns. By the time you get to him his true exploits will be diminished. 

Cadlan sees the world with inner strength. 

Katanga


----------



## Graywolf-ELM

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> tearing at him with its poisonous claws and lusting after his meat





I know it wasn't meant that way, but my perverse sense of humor left me teary-eyed, from laughing, after reading this.

One or Two puzzled looks from people as they walked by my office. 

GW


----------



## robberbaron

Yeah, come on PS.
Let's get to more of that wholesome Trajan goodness!


----------



## robberbaron

Oops. Double post, mainly due to the board being slow, part due to me being hasty.


----------



## Graywolf-ELM

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> “Hello” the figure says over his laboured breathing. “I suppose you’re here to hurt me too? Everyone has it in for us svirfneblin. I don’t know why we ever bother to try to help”.




This reminds me of Priggle from PC's story hour.

Thanks for the pointer here.  I read the previous editions as well.  I'm enjoying the story.

GW


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks Graywolf!

Garrick should sound a little similar to Priggle... I was the original Priggle and much of his character results from my roleplaying of him as a depressed and easily ignored svirfneblin  I'm dead chuffed he's managed to last this long in that adventure!


----------



## Plane Sailing

At last, an update...

*The Imperial Outpost*

Garrick leads them deeper into the depths of the earth. Does a day pass? Two? The size and scale of the network of caverns they pass is impressive, but the darkness and weight of rock above them is oppressive to all except their svirfneblin guide. The only thing that marks the passage of time is the twice daily messages from Dominic, keeping them informed of the goings on in the world above, the gathering of powers and the increasing uncertainty.

“Stop” says Garrick. “There is something up ahead which might interest you. A sealed old human outpost”.

Curious, the party edge down the side passage Garrick indicates and they find, set into a rock wall, a corroded old iron door covered in ancient imperial pictograms. Taran moves forward and carefully runs his hand over the door. 

“I can read this” he says. “It is imperial, from the age of the Jade Emperor a thousand years ago. Records speak of many underground military arcane listening posts which the Empire maintained – this must be one of them”.

“Can you get in?” asks Tania.

A few minutes work and Tarans nimble fingers have decoded the lock on the door and it swings slowly inward. A dim blue light glows from the ceiling of the short corridor which leads into an octagonal chamber. Halfway down the corridor there is a large humanoid bas-relief figure set into the wall on one side, amidst a wide range of carvings and pictograms. 

The chamber has a table in the centre and four other apparent exits, three of them leading to small rectangular chambers with decomposed rubbish in a thin layer on the floor. The fourth is blocked by a sparkling magical field of some type. Taran speculates that it might be some kind of magical prison, before going back to the entranceway to keep watch with Garrick. Trajan’s investigations reveal a hollow section in one of the walls of the octagonal room, and he breaks it down with a few fierce kicks, revealing a secret hollow containing an ancient breastplate – a breastplate which is covered in fine and delicate inscriptions.

Suddenly there is a tremendous cracking sound from the entrance corridor, and what looked like a bas relief steps out of the wall in a shower of plaster, revealing itself to be a stone golem, which charges in and attacks Trajan!

He strikes at it then tumbles past to lure it out. Tania attempts a ray of enfeeblement against the golem but misjudges its reach and gets knocked flying by its AoO. It then chases Trajan and starts hammering at him again. Taran tumbles between the golems legs and goes to the prison, on the basis of "the enemy of my enemy may be my friend". He is able to deactivate the prison and finds a woman in heavy armour finishing a sentence in Imperial. He replies in the same language, warning her to leave now because of the golem. Trajan tries swapping full round attacks with the golem but comes off second best, so he decides to lure it further away. Tania blasts it with a fireball... ineffectively.  (she has not really had any experience fighting golems yet!) Then the released Asuran priestess calls out some command words in Imperial, and the Golem stops its attack and returns to its hiding place. 

Taran manages introductions with Zherinda the priestess, who can speak Imperial with Taran and can communicate in pidgin Asuran with Trajan. Tania doesn't understand any of it. Zherinda was trapped here about a thousand years ago. 

She had been on a mission to seek the body of a lost Singharese champion who was leading resistance against the Jade Emperor. From her conversation she recognises Trajan as a sword saint, albeit a Southlander and not Asuran like herself. She clearly reveres sword saints, which is likely to put her at odds with most of her contempory priesthood. Her world was quite different to this one.

Among her belongings she carries a scroll of raise dead, and as thanks for her rescue she agrees to use it to attempt to bring Anne-Marie back to life. The scroll is completed, the divine energy crackles around the room – but her body is too badly damaged, and it looks like it will fail. Trajan steps forward and with an invocation to Asura pours healing into her body; Taran also steps forward and jiggles around his little divine icon to activate it, and between them they repair her body enough for life to return to it. 

With a shuddering breath, Anne-Marie comes round, and gazes up into Trajan’s open face with adoring eyes. “You brought me back” she says.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Heh, with email notification turned off and the number of storyhours going on at the moment I don't think either of my readers noticed an update 

I'll try to get the next installment ready tonight.

Cheers


----------



## Graywolf-ELM

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Heh, with email notification turned off and the number of storyhours going on at the moment I don't think either of my readers noticed an update
> 
> I'll try to get the next installment ready tonight.
> 
> Cheers




Nope, I read it.  It's hard to post so much as a comment these days.  

With notifications turned off, I go to "My Account" and list all the threads I am subscribed to, and see if any of them are updated.  Makes spelunking through the forums easier and takes much less time.  When things speed up, late at night, I go back and look for new stuff that interests me.

GW


----------



## Plane Sailing

Graywolf-ELM said:
			
		

> With notifications turned off, I go to "My Account" and list all the threads I am subscribed to, and see if any of them are updated.




Good thinking - I'll take that up. I'd particularly got in mind Sumi and RobberBaron since they both play in my campaign (although Sumi hasn't rejoined the party yet at this point)

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

While they rest, they ponder the text which they found etched in acid on the ancient steel breastplate which had been hidden behind the stone panel. The armour is soot-covered, but copper from melted coins was dribbled into the acid-scarred words, so it is easier to read than it could be. 

I am Corvos of Bellemir, scribe to my Lord Hengel the Radiant, Jazumai of the One Kindly God. At his command I tarry here to write this message on the breastplate of his fallen guard, so that those who come after us will hear the word of the fire spirit and heed her wisdom after we are long dead.

For my master sought her here, daughter of the Living Flame, and he courted her with vasty gifts, and she prophesized for him truly. When she had finished foretelling his personal matters, she raised a fiery hand and spoke sooth.

*"But do not leave, Hengel son of Hagel son of Hellstrom, for you shall be my voice to those of flesh not born. There will come a time that in the lands above us, a second temple shall rise that sings its hymns to One Who Sleeps. It is corrupt. It festers, for it lacks the purity of true flame. Shall they wake that Sleeper Beyond? Pray that they do not. It would carry away all who are just, as those who are godfearing would learn to fear God. 

"But the flame may be cleansed. When the songbird tumbles at the crossroads on a day edged with pain, the flowing blood will signal that the time is nigh! Those above may slave to wake the foul, but they forget... They do not know that more than foul dost sleep, and that purity can be awoken as simply as corruption. More simply, in fact! For purity is closer; it too sleeps, but only a breath away. The second sleeper may be woken by those who have known loss and triumph, fear and bravery beyond compare. But are they brave enough to choose? This even I can not see. A choice can let the second sleeper rise as a phoenix, and he will soar forth, yearning to burn away the corruption he senses from the unnatural temple above. 

"And these who I see... they may make that choice. They may call him, he whom I once loved, and if they do, the sleep of a millennium shall shake from his ancient bones. I foresee the Offer, the Tribute, the Dance, and the Balance Restored. I foresee the fall of the false gods. He shall touch the world and all voices will be raised to him." She smiled then, terribly. "All voices except those of the priests from the Temple Above, for none may speak with lungs of char.

"How to call, how to call, sleeping, waking, rising tall? Blood in magma, song in stone. Hammered altar, melted bone.

"So call him, heroes, if you wish. Call him before the sea god rises, or perhaps he will sleep forever. Few like him still exist in the world, for he is older than mountains and wise beyond kings; but desperate times call for desperate measures, and fate favours those bold enough to make a choice."*

And so she foretold, and so I commit her prophecy for all time to come. I do not envy you who read this and know of the songbird, but I will say this; I have seen the fire maiden, and she holds my heart forever. Any being that she once loved has my jealous respect and my eternal envy. Her words are bound in truth; may you follow them, and your heart, to wisdom and grace.

Respectfully scribed this day, by Corvos of Bellimir. May the One Kindly God hold you and keep you safe.



Anne-Marie thinks it's a song, Trajan thinks it refers to their task of freeing the stone plug which will enable the volcano to erupt once more.  Zherinda the priestess says that Lord Hengel the sword saint was the one she was sent to contact all those years ago. The debate about the meaning of the prophetic words goes on fruitlessly long into the night.


----------



## robberbaron

Do not fret, (sometimes) kindly GM, we are here.
Just don't always reply after every update.

Looking forward to the exciting climax of this part of the story.


----------



## Darklone

We don't miss no updates here


----------



## Shockwave

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Anne-Marie thinks it's a song, Trajan thinks it refers to their task of freeing the stone plug which will enable the volcano to erupt once more.  Zherinda the priestess says that Lord Hengel the sword saint was the one she was sent to contact all those years ago. The debate about the meaning of the prophetic words goes on fruitlessly long into the night.




Why do the intelligent and insightful always get ignored?


----------



## sumi

Shockwave said:
			
		

> Why do the intelligent and insightful always get ignored?




It's maybe because they are spending so long being insightful that they do not say anything.


----------



## Plane Sailing

The next waking period (Day? Night? It would be impossible to tell in the underdark without the regular scrying messages from Dominic) they proceed further into the depths. Garrick suggests caution as they approach what he describes as a mercantile crossroads. Taran creeps ahead with him and sure enough there is a pack lizard with four or five elfin characters nearby – elfin apart from their pale bone-white skin, silver hair and limpid black eyes.

“Drow” Garrick shudders.

They retire to the rest of the party and decide that these emissaries of evil must be dealt with effectively if they are going to proceed on towards the lake of fire. The best plan is to draw them out into an ambush. Taran helps to find an appropriate stretch of cavern tunnel and Garrick goes to lead the drow into position for the ambush.

After waiting for about five minutes all seems to be working according to plan when Garrick scuttles around the corner – and then pitches forwards right onto his face as magical power splashes over his body and the “hold” spell penetrates his innate resistance to magic. As three of the dark elves saunter up towards the prone deep gnome Trajan decides to break cover and charge into the attack. Anne-Marie joins him, using her incredible speed and ability to spring attack to close and retreat before the drow warriors can touch her. One of the wounded fighters moves back towards his cleric for healing and the other two flank Trajan, slashing at him several times with their black-bladed shortswords. A look of astonishment briefly crosses Trajan’s face as the paralysing poison on their blades suddenly robs him of consciousness – the first time Asura’s grace has failed him.

The drow priestess moves forwards to curse Anne-Marie, and Trajan sees his opportunity – he tumbles forward and sneak attacks the priestess brutally in the kidneys, bringing her to her knees. The rest of the drow change tack – they call down darkness _DMnote: this was 3e so it was total darkness_ while one of them shoots his own priestess, killing her before she could be captured. Crucial seconds pass before Tania dispels the darkness, and the find that the drow have carried off Trajan’s body!

The heroes charge forward, and round the corner they find another globe of darkness filling the corridor. Anne-Marie and Taran charge through it and Anne-Marie strides and leaps forward, continuing her charge towards the lone drow she sees some 60ft away. She reaches him only to find that he has been readying for her arrival, and as she springs in to attack he gashes her thigh… and instantly collapses, succumbing to the virulent paralysis poison on his weapon.

Taran has his bow handy and taking cover behind and outcrop unleashes a hail of arrows at the lone drow. It starts to draw its hand crossbow but falls under the rogues withering hail of accurate fire. Zherinda follows them through the darkness and is able to call upon Asura to neutralise the poison flowing through Anne-Maries veins, enabling her to recover.

The group continue following the way towards the crossroads chamber, but when the reach the crossroads all that can be seen is the pack lizard. There is no sign of either drow or Trajan. Eventually they start looking for tracks and deduce that the drow never came back up to this area. Going back to the second set of darkness it is once more dispelled and they see the semi-naked body of Trajan asleep on the floor, stripped of his armour of invulnerability, shield of acid resistance and other magic goods including Saithnars circlet of Charisma. Only his sword is still around, dropped when he was first paralysed with the poison before he was dragged off.

They recover the pack lizard and use it to convey Trajan until he recovers some 5 minutes later. They use the pack lizard to continue onwards for several hours until the air temp starts getting uncomfortably warm and a wind picks up in the direction they are travelling. Anne-Marie dismisses the pack lizard which is starting to become uncomfortable in the rising heat, Zherinda implores Asura for endure elements to be given to all the party with success and they press on. 

Dominic contacts them and warns of bad, bad, bad things happening in the world up above. 

Summoned celestial and fiendish creatures hover above the crater ridge mines, as do a circle of black mages of Morannon and assorted High Priests of Asura. The centre of the crater is the focus of an incredible magical bombardment but from the broken and static-filled scrying glimpses Dominic sees they are unable to cause enough damage to penetrate the purple-veined stone spike in the centre of the crater.

Yet the threads of reality are wearing thin around the crater ridge mines, ripples and warping of _what is_ are ebbing and flowing.

Divinations are failing. Wizards attempting to contact other planes are going mad. Those priests attempting divination are sickening and collapsing in nausea, their psyche stunned by the perception that tomorrow… does not exist…


----------



## robberbaron

Pi55ed doesn't even begin to describe my feelings about this bit, although everyone rolls a 1 sometimes.


----------



## Darklone

Eeks.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Now, do you think Trajan is annoyed at the imminent end of the world, or the loss of treasured magic items


----------



## robberbaron

Funnily enough, both.

The End of the World tm is all very well and needed avoiding, but having to adventure with only a grimace and a leopardskin posing pouch was annoying.   

Had the thieving bas.. drow nicked my sword as well, I would have taken it as a sign from Asura that I was on the wrong path and gone back to being a Fighter.
Mind you, Trajan has considered that a couple of other times since.  :\


----------



## Plane Sailing

Pressing on, making the best speed they can, they see a chamber which contains a pool of fire. Garrick believes it is probably the place where the fire weird allegedly dwells. They lack gifts or anything appropriate to offer, but call out in appeal. Eventually the fiery magma swirls and they get a single poetic sentence answer, which reinforces the central line of the earlier prophecy. 

_*From the fire, a friend;
Woe betide those
Who stand as foes.

From the past, a power;
A force set in motion
Rests no more.

From the sea, a sleeper;
Whence comes the peace
That would threaten the world?*_

The temperature is getting much hotter, and shortly they can see a bright rosy glow illuminating the caverns ahead of them, and they can hear the crackle of fire. 

Only fifteen minutes later they reach the huge cave entrance, and they see a vast underground cavern, a literal sea of fire which stretches off into the distance. Nearby the shelf of rock is in the slow process of breaking off and drifting over the sea of fire much like ice breaks off an ice pack. Garrick points out that they must jump across a whole series of floes to reach a tall pillar which rises out of the magma, and then move on from there across some more of the floating rocks to the point where the deeplings repairs have to be breached. 

Each of them burst the magic puffballs which they were given by the toadstool men, providing themselves with protection from fire, and the heat becomes more bearable. They start taking running jumps across the floating rock plates. Each of them is moving slowly in the magma currents, and Tania tends to wait for moving rock floes to get very close before risking jumps.

The tower has a series of steps carved into its side, winding around to the summit. Cautiously they make their way up, and at the top Zherinda is astonished to find a simple stone altar – not dedicated to the One Kindly God or any fake god as far as she can tell. Leaving her there to puzzle over the purpose of it, the others return down the pillar and get ready to make their way across the floating rock platforms and towards the location where Garricks companions had sealed the fissure.

Suddenly a voice rings out across the cavern, above the crackling of the fires.

“You foolish, infantile weaklings! Do you think that you can stop the opening of the door, the rising of the forgotten one? Do you think that you have the power to oppose me, who have mastered you on so many occasions?

It is the Blessed, wreathed in green robes; beside her stands Lareth the beautiful, the evil cleric who murdered Syl over a year ago.

Anne-Marie, Trajan and Taran quickly fire some arrows at the Blessed and Lareth, but magic protects them and none of the arrows are able to strike home. Stowing their bows the company start running and leaping across the rock floes to join with their enemies. Anne-Marie takes an early lead with her magic boots and Lareth targets her with a confusion spell… nearly her mind succumbs, but it is foiled by the half-elven nature she now bears.

Trajan makes a mighty leap at the end of his charge in order to land on the rock floe with the Blessed – but to his shock smacks into a wall of force and reels back, sliding into magma! Meanwhile the Blessed finishes summoning glashnoglu on an adjacent floe – a huge mass of shining bubbles, featherlike feelers, clawed tentacles and slimy sucking needles _DMnote: an alienist dire bear, 3e fashion_

Anne-Marie finishes closing with Lareth and knocks him into the lava, and the AoO’s him as he crawls out, the lava dripping off his protective magic. He invokes magical rage and starts laying into her with his fearsomely powerful quarterstaff. 

 Tra uses a grappling hook to get over the wall of force (good move!) but is then hit by two out of three empowered flame bolts, which is bad news. The Blessed then retreats to glahsnoglu’s floe. 

 Taran moves up as Anne-Marie swaps full attacks with Lareth and comes off worst. _Fully buffed, Lareth gets +21/+16 to hit, 1d6+18 damage. His AC drops to 17.  If he is hitting easily, he power attacks for 5 points (or more)._. Taran’s attacks are pitiful in comparison because he can’t get a flank. And Anne-Marie goes down. 

Tania casts magic missiles, negative energy blasts and so forth, Causing some minor damage to the Blessed.  Trajan presses his attack on the Blessed but is brought near to death by three fearsome blows from the huge gashnoglu. He retreats and then attempts to stabilize Anne-Marie. The Blessed turns the floe Tania is standing on into Evards black tentacles, causing a hasty retreat from the female wizard as she makes a panicked jump to another floe. “Wait” calls out Tania, “I’m actually on your side! We can work together! Let me join you!” The company are stunned at this volte-face, and the Blessed calls back “seal you pact – strike down the Sword Saint with magic missiles”.

Tania prevaricates and the Blessed realises that she has called the wizards bluff – so she disintegrates the rock floe Tania is standing on! While the magma starts burning through her protection _20d6 per round!_, she manages to scramble back onto a small rock.  

Taran finds himself facing a raging cleric with huge muscles and bulls strength swinging a hugely magicked staff.  In desperation, despite his 8 Str, Taran attempts to bull-rush Lareth to push him off the floe. To everyones surprise his bold manoeuvre succeeds… and he follows the priest over into the magma to keep him down! For three rounds Lareth attempts to struggle free and the weak rogue masters him, and keeps him there. Tarans protection is burning off, but Lareths's is going faster! 

Zherinda completes a divination spell and receives a cryptic message about singing and so she bursts into a hymn of praise to the One Kindly God. 

Trajan joins Tania, and is just about to leap into range of the black tentacles before he realizes what they are and stops in time.  The Blessed commands Tania once more to attack Trajan, and once more Tania shows her true colours and doesn’t – so the Blessed disintegrates the remainder of their current rock floe and both are plunged into the molten magma again – Trajan’s protection from fire is all gone at this point and the fire sears him terrible.

Suddenly Lareth screams and flames and dies as his protection from fire gives out, his bones disintegrating in the magma. The sound of singing and screaming and fire reach up in the chamber, and as if by some kind of strange echo the sounds build and merge and reinforce one another, growing greater and greater in the cavern. There is a swirling and upheaval of the magma as something colossal starts moving under the magma, and starts to break the surface...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Taran finds himself facing a raging cleric with huge muscles and bulls strength swinging a hugely magicked staff. In desperation, despite his 8 Str, Taran attempts to bull-rush Lareth to push him off the floe.




I thought this was an incredibly gutsy move from the 8 Str, 8 Con rogue who has just seen his higher level fighter buddy get demolished in 2 rounds by his foe.

Following him over into the lava was also incredibly gutsy, and was the root cause of his success. Each round Lareth was taking 20d6 against his protection from fire and he was taking 10d6, I gave him +4 to his Str check for being on top, and his Str roll of 1d20+3 beat Lareths roll of 1d20 + 8 something like three times in a row. Phew!


----------



## Graywolf-ELM

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> I thought this was an incredibly gutsy move from the 8 Str, 8 Con rogue who has just seen his higher level fighter buddy get demolished in 2 rounds by his foe.




Sounds like bonus Experience time for that wily character.  Taking the risk and pulling it off under great threat and peril is what experience is all about.

Now can they survive to complete the quest?

GW


----------



## Plane Sailing

A huge head rises out of the magma on an immense neck. A truly colossal dragon, larger than any living thing that any of them has ever seen, wakes and regards. 

“Nooooo!” cries the Blessed, and she launches a pale blue ray of disintegration against the Colossal figure, which sparkles into ineffectiveness against its spell resistance. 

Summing up the situation quickly the dragon uses a wingtip to pluck Trajan and Tania from the magma and deposits them on rock before they die, and then bends down and bites into the Blessed. She struggles in pain and attempts to concentrate enough to teleport away, but can't. Then she is utterly destroyed as the dragon looks upwards and issues a flaming gout of fire which washes against the ceiling and for a second makes the cavern blindingly bright.

Trajan alone isn’t shaken by fear by the awesome presence before him, but even he is struck by awe and bows to one knee.

*“FOR WHAT PURPOSE HAVE YOU MITES AWAKENED ME?”*  thunders the dragon.

“Lord”, Trajan replies, “evil beings in a temple in the world up above are seeking to wake the Sleeper, and bring disaster and madness on all the world. No man can touch them”.

*“I HAVE SLEPT TOO LONG. I WILL ACT AGAINST THIS TEMPLE. AND I WILL ONCE AGAIN WALK MY WORLD ABOVE, SEE WHAT MY SONS HAVE MADE OF THEIR INHERITANCE.”* 

The dragon climbs out of the sea of fire, magma dripping from its colossal flanks. Without a second glance at the company it bounds towards the chamber they entered by, as quick and lithe as a cat despite its size, then vanishes.

Garrick comes out from his hiding place with Zherinda on the pillar, and quickly undoes the repair work his friends had made to the weakness in the wall here.

“There. Within a couple of weeks pressure will build up and that caldera will be a full blown active volcano once more, taking over from whatever that dragon leaves behind”.

Garrick continues “My way leads down into the dark depths with my people once more. Your way leads out and then left… a long series of chambers will bring you to a surface opening, where citadel of the surface world once crashed down into a crevasse. It will take you a couple of days to reach it”.

There are thanks and manly hugs all round, then Garrick departs for the deeper underdark and Zherinda heals their wounds as much as she can. While they rest Dominic enters contact with Taran once again. He is tremendously excited.

“Taran, you won’t believe it” he starts

“Try me” Taran replies drily

“A colossal dragon just appeared above the caldera, it was vast, bigger than any dragon I’ve heard record of! Magical power rippled around it as it cast a powerful wish and then a lance of fiery breath unlike anything I’ve ever seen recorded cut through the inner sanctum of those evil cultists, the purple veined rock thrashing and spewing glowing blood around everywhere, writhing and blackening under the intensity of the flame. Lightning was striking up from the towers and scorching the dragons hide but didn’t distract it from its purpose!”

“The whole thing can’t have taken more than a minute, but in that minute the crater was filled with slag, the water boiled away.” 

“Then the dragon vanished, teleported presumably, goodness only knows where. What do you think of that news then, old chum?”

"Let me give you a few additional details, my dear Dominic..."


...


Two days walking upward, upward, leads eventually to the cavern under the sunless citadel. None of this party were present when the company first broke the power of Belak the evil shaman who was using a foul tree for fouler purposes. None of them understand the significance of the Tree uprooted and a vacant space underneath it which they don’t investigate. They work their way up through the dragon-carved chambers of the ancient citadel until finally they reach the sunshine and breathe open air once again. The bright sunlight is painful to their eyes which have become accustomed to the twilight of the underdark, but a relief nonetheless.


Next: friends reunited


----------



## robberbaron

Couple of things omitted:

Taran thought that immersing Lareth in the lava might fulfil the "blood in magma" bit of the rhyme, but it didn't. I think it did do the "melted bone" bit, though. Taran, being the hero he is, then cut his hand and thrust it into the lava. What a guy!

Anne-Marie started singing, and someone (I can't remember who, but I know it wasn't me) thought of banging the altar with a rock or somesuch to do the "hammered altar" bit.

All together a real team effort and good to finally get rid of ONE BBEG. Only a few more to go.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Whoops, apologies for getting some of the details wrong - my notes were fairly good but it's just those kind of details which were obvious at the time which didn't make it into my notes the next day 

As you said, excellent teamwork though, especially in the desperate environment


----------



## Darklone

Love it.


----------



## Plane Sailing

I have to admit, I was finding RttToEE incredibly boring to run, and I don't think it was going to be much fun for the players either. I was seeking help at the RBDMC and Piratecat came up with the basic idea of "what if the crater isn't as dormant as all that?" with the svirfneblin link and all, as a way of breaking out of the pretty stagnant module and getting back to interesting stories and environments

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

And interesting slaughtering of PCs.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Funny you should say that... in the last adventure a fortnight ago one PC died and another was permanently lost. Should be appearing in the storyhour within, oh, the next six months or so


----------



## Plane Sailing

Friends separated and reunited

The current party roster is as follows:

*Trajan * 2nd Fighter/5th Jazumai/4rd  Sword Saint
*Anne-Marie* 2nd Monk/ 6th Fighter/ 2nd Duellist
*Zherinda * 8th Cleric
*Arilyn * 8th Wizard
*Taran * 9th Rogue
and re-introducing *M'ir* 1st Monk/8th Seer

Half a days travel takes them back to Knightsbridge, where they wipe the dust of their home at Mithril manor and then call in on Alkanar. They introduce Zherinda to him and it is difficult to see who is most astonished – the Asuran priestess from 1000 years in the past or the Southlander convert to Asura. Zherinda settles down in the library to catch up on a thousand years of theology and Trajan settles down next to her to better grasp the basics of his religion (at last).

After a few days rest, Taran, Anne-Marie and Tania set off Northwards. Tania wants to visit Morannon to study with the Black Wizards and Taran wants to pick up the coffin stuffed full of gold which he left with the undertakers in Rastor. At Rastor they split up. Anne-Marie bids farewell and continues northward to the strange mountain city of Cadlan where the mages live, so that she might train as a Guardian and learn how to take her private war to the place where the mind flayers live.

Tania starts training with the Black Wizards of Morannon, and receives a facial tattoo as a sign of the power she accepts from them, as she swears allegiance to master . Taran escorts his treasure in a coffin back to Knightsbridge, while sending messengers and an appropriate portion to Dominic for investments in the economies of Morannon and Tanor.

Anne-Marie arrives at Cadlan and meets old friends – K’tan and M’ir. They are concerned by her news (the adventure known as “the door in the air”), and will support her in her desire to learn the ancient rites of illithid slayers. The first step is gruelling training as a guardian, and opening her mind to the potential of her will. M’ir finds his heart stirred into action once more, and decides to rejoin the company. K’tan gifts him with a wand of mass concussion which he had crafted, and teleports with him to Knightsbridge before returning back to his research.


next: interlude with a ball and griffons


----------



## Darklone

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Funny you should say that... in the last adventure a fortnight ago one PC died and another was permanently lost. Should be appearing in the storyhour within, oh, the next six months or so



Perhaps I can bribe you at GenCon UK with some German beers?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Darklone said:
			
		

> Perhaps I can bribe you at GenCon UK with some German beers?




When _is _ GenCon UK?


----------



## Darklone

Good question, IIRC something around Octobre or Novembre... I can't guarantee anything, but I try to be there and meet some guys from the Kenzerboards as well.


----------



## robberbaron

GenCon UK 2004:
14th-17th October, at Butlins Holiday Camp Minehead, Somerset. 
See http://www.horsemenevents.com/


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Dancing with Griffons (or how  big is it?)*

M’ir meets Trajan and Taran while Anne-Marie and Tania are still away. The party all receive invitations to the Barons Spring Ball which they gratefully accept. Although it is nowhere near as grand as the events they have experienced in Bridlerest it is still enjoyable fun. Both Trajan and Taran find the women flirting with them. M’ir spends his time observing everything and diplomatically avoiding all offers of dancing.

The dances go well, and during the final dinner the Baron makes it known that he would pay very good money indeed for young griffons and eggs… he is of a mind to train an elite cadre of mounted troops, and desires eight of the creatures. Furthermore, Lysander, their old companion who is now mayor of the resettled Singharese refugees, has reported sight of a pride of griffons over the uneasy cliffs, and he is a little concerned for his cattle and horses.

The company decide to take the commission, and load up with ropes, a huge cage on a wagon and assorted other tools. They trek out to the village and are welcomed by Lysander who is clearly enjoying looking after his “flock”. They are given a place to stay for the night and directions in the morning about where to go. They promise Lysander a griffon egg in thanks for services rendered and promised. Lysander gets a delegation from villagers who are concerned about the presence of an evil sword saint (Trajan) amongst them, but he is able to calm their fears with promises to remain on watch.

Near the base of the uneasy cliffs a griffon spots them and comes in to land. It watches them prepare their bows then pounces causing brutal damage, but when Trajan gets into action it is swiftly dispatched. They mock up the corpse so it looks like it has been captured and tied down, and various party members hide (apart from Trajan). After several hours waiting, four griffons are spotted on the heights by M’ir, and one swoops down to recon.  This is followed by a power diving stoop of three other griffons down around Trajan. Their flashing sabre-like beaks and terrible claws are brutal, and he really misses his chain shirt of invulnerability. M’ir hides further up in a tree, gaining concealment from its leaves, and starts manifesting maximised recall pain to injure the griffons. 

One of the griffons goes down, but so does Trajan, with a fearful wound across his side. The two remaining griffons spring into the sky and M’ir launches a fearsome mass concussion from his dorje, sending them sprawling from the air. They quickly spring up and charge across to M’ir’s hiding place but the leaves spoil their attacks, and M’ir gets off lightly with only one wound. In desperation he launches another concussion almost at ground zero, stripping the leaves and breaking branches on the tree, and blasting the griffons once again. They are starting to sag under the punishment, and their wings are hanging broken, but they press the attack. Meanwhile Taran has crawled out from his ambush position under the fake captured griffon and over to Trajan’s body. He is shaking and concentrating on the little icon of Asura he uses to heal, and while he watches breath returns more strongly to Trajans body.

Trajan and Taran prepare their bows, and M’ir tumbles away from the griffons and launches one final maximised recall pain to slay one, while the other succumbs to arrow fire.

Phew, that was close!

Rest several hours and move away. M’ir grants flying to everyone, and they fly up to the top of the cliffs, where amongst the rubble they see a nest. They move to attack the adults and they find eight young griffon (about the size of Alsatians)  which bit and nip at them.

Trajan and Taran slay one griffon, while M’ir tackles the other one, fighting defensively and drawing its attention. Trajan then moves across to help M’ir and Taran attempts to knock out some of the young ones with his sap – more difficult than it looks. Then with a thunder of wings the pride leader arrives. A huge griffon, as big as an elephant swoops down just behind Trajan and tears into him with its massive bill. “I can’t take another one of those” Trajan thinks as he slashes it three times with his scimitar. The griffons blood runs redly. Then it hacks into him again and he goes down.  The other female facing M’ir is killed, but as Taran runs up behind the Griffon to gain a flank it lashes out with one of its hind paws and lays him out on the ground. M’ir tumbles away from it and is in a quandary – he can’t draw his wand and use it this turn, so instead he magically gives himself minor natural armour. The huge griffon closes and bites at him and misses. He draws the dorje and prepares to launch the mass concussion once more but Taran who was feigning injury leaps up and stabs the huge griffon in a nasty flanking manoeuvre, sneak attacking it. Taran is within the explosive area of the concussion, so M’ir acrobatically leaps sideways, drawing the griffons attention and doing everything he can to make himself hard to hit. His gamble pays off, the griffon pounces towards him and away from Taran – straight into a beak-jarring concussion, which weakens it enough for Taran to come in with another sneak attack and finish it off.

After Taran has managed to heal Trajan back to consciousness with his little icon again, they manage to subdue all the baby griffons and collect up a number of griffon eggs. These are easily transported down the cliff and back to Knightsbridge, dropping off one egg with a grateful Lysander on the way.

The Baron is delighted and pays the adventurers a huge bounty, making them wealthier than at any time in their past. Trajan makes a point of sending a couple of thousand marks worth of gems and jewellery by courier off to Anna the prophetess in Moradin’s Call.

After another week Anne-Marie and Tania turn up (Tania only just surviving a nasty encounter with three ruffians on her route from Morannon. Refusing to waste a spell on them, she ended up being grappled and nearly subdued before she wriggled free and burned them with a fireball).

Trajan is keen that they return to Bridlerest, so they get ready to travel Eastwards once more.


----------



## robberbaron

Altogether now:

I get knocked down, but I get up again..... quite a lot, actually.


----------



## Plane Sailing

I wish y'all would try out my parrying rules in the campaign... have PC's and villains heroically blocking each others blows rather than just soaking up the damage and falling over 

Why not give it a go? G'wan, G'wan, G'wan, G'wan


----------



## Darklone

Parrying rules naaaah. Germanys most successful RPG uses a hit/parry system. High level chars could fight each other for hours... was pretty boring


----------



## robberbaron

That's pretty much why I didn't want to go for it.

If I wanted parrying I'd play Runequest.
Now there's a thought......


----------



## sumi

*Enter the Hero*

Did I not say that eventually a true hero will arrive. 

A poxy 3.0 Seer saves the day and earns all those eggs for the party. Great fighters lying on the floor taking a break, whilst the rest of the party have to pick up the pieces they have left. However, it does remind me of the song Tubthumping by Chumbawamba - "when I get knocked down, I get up again". Oh, if the world was ruled by Cadlanese in stead of glorified Sword saints


----------



## Plane Sailing

robberbaron said:
			
		

> That's pretty much why I didn't want to go for it.




Actually, it is one of the things that would be a little more appealing - since the characters reached mid levels no fight has lasted more than about 6 melee rounds... Back at 3rd level a fight could last 10-15 rounds easily.

It would seem more heroic to me if the big, high-level fights were a little more "knock down, drag out" affairs. Also to remove the amount of magic band-aids needed!

I know that it is moving away from straight D&D, but the old "suck up the hp damage" has to be (for me) the most irritating and non-fantasy element of the game 




			
				robberbaron said:
			
		

> If I wanted parrying I'd play Runequest.
> Now there's a thought......




Now you're talking 

I'm looking forward to getting the Eberron campaign setting once it arrives in the UK, and I might think about doing a conversion of it to the RQ2 rules we all know and love, in the same way that I did a Dark Sun conversion some years ago.

Cheers


----------



## robberbaron

You'll need to remind me of your parrying rules. I seem to remember something about using the next round's attacks to parry, but might be thinking about something entirely different.

Don't promise anything, but I'll at least give them another consideration.


----------



## sumi

The reason no fight lasts more than 6 rounds is the fact the fighters have +18 to hit everything and then do 20+ damage when they do. If the creatures and villains have massively high AC and saving throws then the fight will last longer. This is no different from any AD&D1 or 2. 

However, just think of the last fight - creature demands, we refuse, it hits Anne Marie for 72hp in a single hit. Holy Words the rest of the party who become deaf and blind. Anne Marie hands over what it wants. End of story. Unfortunately that is the nature of fights at 7th plus. The fun is overcoming the odds and doing something that little bit different.


----------



## Darklone

You can always have fights for 20 rounds, just bring in more enemies 

D&D monsters do have an ugly tendency to dish out several hundred points of damage without any problem.

I still hope my newbies will enjoy playing level 10-15 for half a year and then let me show them the light of low level gaming again


----------



## robberbaron

And the previous fight:
Glabrezu grapples me then Power Word:Stuns me and holds me in a Wall of Fire, then he grabs the cleric and holds her in the WoF.
Then he Power Word:Stuns the barbarian (DM boo-boo, but didn't really change the course of events).
All this after Anne-Marie runs off with full trousers from his Fear ability.

Don't think we even got to hit him.


----------



## Plane Sailing

sumi said:
			
		

> The reason no fight lasts more than 6 rounds is the fact the fighters have +18 to hit everything and then do 20+ damage when they do. If the creatures and villains have massively high AC and saving throws then the fight will last longer.




I think this highlights one of the design decisions of D&D that seems (in retrospect) to be a bit of an error - the fact that ability to hit increases more rapidly than the ability to avoid being hit. I remember designers saying that they decided to do it this way, but I don't remember anyone saying *why* for metagame purposes, they made it so.

Essentially it makes for more fragile PCs (and monsters) at higher levels, and I'm not sure that I understand why that is a -good- thing.

Cheers


----------



## Graywolf-ELM

Are you still writing for this story hour?  I'm curious if I should keep it on my list or not.

GW


----------



## Plane Sailing

Hi Graywolf, I'm sorry that I've not been writing for a long time but almost all my evenings for the last couple of months have been taken up with prep for a holiday for a few dozen people that I was helping to run.

All I've got to do there now is set up the post-holiday website and I'll be back in business - I promise!

Coming up:

_Looking for Daros in Bridlerest unveils huge problems - political assassinations, storming their own temple at midnight, gradually unravelling the masters behind the masters (and who is behind them?)

A proposition to uncover the hidden history of a missing prince from a century earlier, and the possible ramifications for the largest kingdom in the Southlands.

Deaths of central characters

Raiding a dragons lair for a magical dwarven mirror

Moving towards a final showdown with the fiendish Daros...._

I'll try to get writing before the end of the week. Thanks for sticking with me!

Cheers


----------



## Darklone

Deaths of central characters... 

Hehehehehe. Yeah, that's what we're used to here


----------



## Graywolf-ELM

Thanks for the note.  I'll keep this one on my list then.

GW


----------



## Plane Sailing

On the way they naturally stop off at Longbottles’ inn before they reach Bridlerest. The food is as superb as ever and Galladin Longbottles nose for rumour and gossip in the town haven’t faltered either. It is the last days of Harvest, the sweet summer air is just starting to get a bite of Autumn in the evening. This has apparently been a great summer in Bridlerest – the economy is up, crime is down and there is a society wedding in the offing in a few weeks time.

Well rested and equipped with the latest news the company proceed on to Bridlerest and find a suitable inn to accommodate them. They are wealthy now after the profits from the griffon hunting and the fee for their stay no longer makes them blanche.

Trajan is keen to track down Daros, the evil priest of the Black Circle subcult of Asura who has been corrupting temples all across the Southlands. He is certain that their best lead will be the temple in Bridlerest which when they last visited with manned only by Singharese half-wits, or so it seemed. Since Trajan is rather obvious the party divide up their resources to keep an eye on the temple day and night for a while. There are two notable events they see as the week progresses. Firstly there is a steady stream of individuals arriving on noble steeds who appear to be staying within the temple courts. They arrive but don’t leave. Secondly, near midnight on Markday a strange collection of ragtag people arrive at the temple for some kind of secret service. It seems that Bridlerest has its poor, and even they find a place in the Temple to Asura, even though Zherinda explains that in her day there never used to be night time services.

One other notable thing – they keep hearing that people are being hassled by the Artisans Fist, the local town militia. A couple of them tried to put the squeeze on Taran one evening as he was small and on his own but he easily gave them the slip. Asking around it seems that although the economy and local government is really going well, there are concerns that the Artisans Fist is perhaps working less well then before. Quite a conundrum.

Taran decides that he wants to find out more about the undesirables who were meeting in the temple at night. He didn’t need a keen sense of smell to notice that many of them were tanners,  so he pays a visit to the, uh, industrial area just south of the city walls. He doesn’t have to go as far as the steaming forges, but the tannery is well downwind from the city walls.

His easy manner quickly ingratiates him with the tanners on their meal break, and it isn’t long before they trust Taran like a long lost friend. He dresses well but he doesn’t talk down to them like everyone else from the city! “Sure, we go along to a special service that the temple holds for us and the people like us – the nightsoil workers, the undesirables who keep the wheels of Bridlerest turning” he says. “It’s great to have something, you know, spiritual in your life innit?”

Further questioning reveals that there is a different priest who takes the evening service, a tall guy. He leads them in community singing and prayers, then they all draw near for a blessing. It is really exhausting stuff and everyone comes away from the service with a feeling of being slightly drained emotionally – but none would give it up. It is the only fellowship these poor guys get.

Back with the party, it is decided that they need to infiltrate the temple. First they arrange to see Don Cullon, the head of the Artisans Fist and gain agreement to their infiltration of the temple and ousting of the evil-doers that Trajan thinks have taken control. Don Cullon grants permission as long as they don’t do too much damage, which would be bad for business.

The plan is set. Taran and M’ir will both go in with the congregation in disguise. Anne-Marie, Trajan and Tania will hide up on the temple dome and leap down to the entrance hallway at the right moment.

The plan is simple. Wait long enough to confirm that there is something evil going on, then take the high priest down. What could go wrong with that?


----------



## Graywolf-ELM

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> The plan is simple. Wait long enough to confirm that there is something evil going on, then take the high priest down. What could go wrong with that?




Famous last words.

GW


----------



## Darklone

Graywolf-ELM said:
			
		

> Famous last words.
> 
> GW



"What could go wrong" is probably the most inspiring expression for RBDMs.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Taran and M’ir meet up with some of the tanners at just before midnight and walk with them into the district where the temple is. Despite the disgusting smell from the workers there is a jolly air amongst them. This is their opportunity for belonging and they are happy to be going along. 

Inside the temple the largest candles have been lit and the ground floor is well illuminated even though the balconies and dome are heavily shadowed. To start with there is some desultory chanting led by the three short temple acolytes who had been met before – Jazil, Mizril and Shalzar. Then a much taller figure in robes and carrying a large holy water sprinkler strides onto the platform by the altar. He uses his sprinkler to shake water over the heads of the nearest faithful and proclaims loudly the mighty Asura’s blessing on them, along with many words of encouragement and blessing for the “foundations of society”.

Then as the chanting increases in tempo he makes some mystic passes and utters a prayer to Asura,  then he gestures to the congregation and his words roll out with commanding power “COME!”.

Taran and M’ir feel his voice tug at their hearts, but they resist the compulsion to move forward – then decide to move forward with the others to avoid blowing their cover.

Up on the top of the dome Tania, Trajan and Anne-Marie are waiting for a code signal. They faintly hear the words of the high priest, and Tania responds instantly – Dimension Dooring down into the main body of the temple in accordance with the command!

“Nine Bloody Hells” curses Trajan and he instantly runs for the edge of the temple and takes his pre-prepared rope down to the front door.  Anne Marie is slower off the mark but makes up for lost time by simply leaping down the 20ft to the ground, landing catlike with her rapier prepared.

Inside the service the priest seems a little surprised to see the black-robed wizard appearing in the middle of his congregation, and perhaps his eyes widen a little more as the temple doors are hammered open. Thank evilness that he had been able to prepare for tonight thanks to that useful divination Asura vouchsafed to him a few nights earlier...


----------



## Darklone

Ouch. Military (priestly) intelligence worked? Ohoh.


----------



## Plane Sailing

The way I see it, if I'm a bad guy working a covert operation in the middle of a big town I'd be praying for auguary and divination on a regular basis... and this guy got the big-time blip of his career...


----------



## Darklone

Right. I'd even do it if I were the good guy


----------



## robberbaron

We would've if we could've but had to settle for blundering in again.


----------



## sumi

He might have known that we were about, and maybe going to attack on that night. What he would not know was when (as we didn't.) However, Tania sort of helped him out with that.   

Such is life.


----------



## Plane Sailing

It was the most wonderful example of succeeding at a difficult listen check to the detriment of the party that I've seen in a long time. The only thing that might better it would be to make a successful spot check when hunting basalisks


----------



## Plane Sailing

As Trajan and Anne Marie enter the temple sanctuary four Jazumai rise on each of the balconies and start firing their shortbows  at the heretical interlopers. One rank fires at Trajan and one rank fires at Anne-Marie, who takes a couple of very nasty hits.

As Trajan starts to push his way through the innocent worshippers Jazil summons down a flamestrike which singes him and cremates four of the tanners near him. Taran is still hidden in the crowd and quietly uses a small blowpipe to fire a dart poisoned with Blue Whinnis at the priest, but although it penetrates his enchanted armour he is able to shrug off the effects of the venom.

Trajan manages to make his way through the now panicking crowd and up to the stage with the evil Jazil who is happy to reveal that his holy water sprinkler does fine double duty as a Morningstar as he grows to 12ft tall and his torso is surrounded by flickering yellow chaotic energy.

Anne-Marie vaults up to the balcony nearest to her and starts attempting to duel with the Jazumai up there, but the damned archer specialists keep stepping back and unleashing a fusillade of arrows at her – she is able to deflect one or two but takes some more nasty wounds before taking two of them down (then she has to dive back off the balcony to avoid death at their hands).

The Jazil has summoned the righteous might of Asura to himself, and surrounded by Dispel Law attempts to swap full attacks with Trajan, trusting in his magical buffs to pull him through. He trusted wrongly, and Trajan’s scimitar bites deeply again and again

Meanwhile Taran is taking out the other acolytes and M’ir is using his Mass Concussion dorje to good effect at the Jazumai on the other balcony who are still raining arrows down around him and Trajan.

Tania decides to do something useful and unleashes a fireball upon the balcony – failing to consider the potential for collateral damage. True, the four Jazumai on the balcony go down, but so do most of the innocent worshippers in the temple who were struggling to leave or milling around in the confusion.

Jazil is beheaded by a mighty critical hit from Trajan, who then runs towards one of the side exits from the sanctuary while the others stare at the devastation wrought by Tania amongst the innocents.

Bursting through the door Trajan sees the two surviving Jazumai from Anne-Maries balcony running down the stairs, scimitars to hand.

“In Asura’s name, hold!” Trajan calls out to them “I mean you no harm”

The foremost one holds his head up proudly “You may attempt to kill us all, heretic, but others will come. You shall not corrupt this place unless it is over our dead bodies”

Trajan raises his eyebrows. “You’ve got it wrong… THAT guy was the one /corrupting/ the temple… I’m here to rescue it. He’s sold you down the river and attempted to get honourable men such as yourself to do the dirty work for him and his masters”

“If I was an evil heretic would I tell you to heal your wounded and leave with my blessing? I do such right now and I will happily call upon Asura to heal you too”

The Jazumai are given pause. This isn’t the way that the dangerous heretic they have been hunting is supposed to be acting. They are good at sensing motives and this young Southlander before them is on the up and up.

“We accept your offer of healing, and your offer of peace. We will take a report back to Jannek, the leader of the inquisitions in the Southlands”

(While this is going on Tania has made her way up to the balcony with the Jazumai she had taken out with the fireball. Finding all four of them stabilised but near death she secretly slits the throats of each of them. She brings back a report that “they were all killed by the fireball” and nobody double checks her perfidy.)

The two Jazumai take their mounts and ride off into the night. The party start a quick search of the premises and Jazil’s quarters – finding one thing of particular interest, a document, possibly a treaty, between the Black Circle and the Queen Below.

Less than twenty minutes have passed since the assault on the temple started, and they fade back into the night; clean up; and return to their taverns. Mission accomplished?


----------



## Plane Sailing

Top tip - if you subscribe to this thread on a "weekly notification" basis, you still get emails when I update - You know it makes sense!


----------



## Plane Sailing

And to prove that I'm really getting on top of the updates again - three in three weeks...


==========

The company are up early next morning. Trajan is carefully writing a note to Warlord Astimon outlining the circumstances surrounding Rastor, Morannon and the temple of elemental evil. The others are enjoying their breakfast when the doors slam open.

Don Cullon, the head of the Artisans Fist storms into the room with two of his men. His face is red and he is clearly furious.

“You bastards” he hisses “two dozen citizens were murdered in the temple last night. Murdered”

There isn’tmuch the adventurers can say – few of the tanners and foundrymen got out alive last night, and they know that most of them were killed by Tania’s fireball.

“By rights I should hit you for the weregild to support their families and children, and to support the essential town services which will start making this town stink if replacements can’t be found”

“By rights I should raise the standard of your infamy across the nations of Caran so that all people will know of your foul deeds this night. But…”

They wait. Trajan and Anne-Marie are feeling uneasy.

“But… I’m prepared to be lenient – if you help me out with an issue which I have”

They lean forward, listening carefully.

“In recent months the increasing efficiency and do-gooding of the councillors has been causing certain problems. They are neither supplying nor collecting graft any more and they have become much more efficient and less… malleable than before. I don’t know why this should be. I want to know why”

He’s regaining his composure. Cullon continues “Go to a commercial party next week, attended by the councillors and the local nobility. Find out what is up with the councillors and who is leaning on them. And don’t kill anyone or else I’ll be taking a contract out with the Guild of Four with _your_ names on it. Understand?”

Chastened, the party agrees. There are five days to go before the party next Waxday, so Anne-Marie goes to the Guild of Four and commissions a pair of gloves of severus, imbued with magic to make her just that little bit quicker. M’ir and the others gather information locally and discover that:

•	the political situation has improved markedly over the last few months. The councillors are doing a much better job than they used to – they seem more inclined to work rather than doss around. At last they are earning their keep!
•	The shopkeepers are concerned that the Artisans Fist is getting more unruly and rude, and some businessmen have even been threatened by them. Unheard of!
•	Formal attempts at investigating the councillors by the Artisans Fist have come to nothing and a few of their men have, er, disappeared.


----------



## Graywolf-ELM

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Top tip - if you subscribe to this thread on a "weekly notification" basis, you still get emails when I update - You know it makes sense!




So weekly is turned on, but immediate is not?  No matter, I check My Account and the subscribed threads daily, and see when my favorites have been updated.

GW


----------



## Plane Sailing

Graywolf-ELM said:
			
		

> PS: take a look at the end of your post.  You trailed off, and then repeated something.




Good catch; I write everything up in Word and then copy and paste into here - I'd deleted some note text but must have "revisions" turned on and MS Word (bless it) sometimes decides to copy deleted text for you 'just for completeness'.

I've edited it out now.

Cheers


----------



## Graywolf-ELM

The dangers of willy-nilly fireball tossing come home to the party.
Thanks for the update,

GW

PS.  PS edited out of my above post, as if nothing was discovered.  <Shakes fist at Microsoft in the general direction of Redmond Wa.>


----------



## sumi

Graywolf-ELM said:
			
		

> The dangers of willy-nilly fireball tossing come home to the party.




I thought fireballs were a good way of population control. Silly me.


----------



## robberbaron

Certainly good for crowd suppression, saves on the clean-up - for 'extras' you only need a spatula and a bucket.


----------



## Plane Sailing

The party is not a masked ball on this occasion, but a formal buffet and dance. The adventurers are now old hands at this kind of event and mingle freely with the guests for the most part (although M’ir holds himself distant from the revelry). Taran is, as always, a centre of attention and he is particularly quizzed by Baron Purry about a couple of issues – particularly the whereabouts of the sorcerer Dala and the female Mendonnan “assassin” who were partners of his during a previous visit. Purry is disappointed to learn of their deaths. Taran circulates amongst the assorted councillors who are present and gathers background information about many of them. Ambassador Sheen of Morannon takes pains to introduce himself to Tania, who is easily recognisable as one of the Black Wizards of Morannon by the intricate tattoo on her forehead.

Gradually the noise of conversation draws to a close and all eyes turn to the top table where Count Issel is making a toast to the continued commercial success of Bridlerest. He proclaims in ringing tones the achievements of the past year and looks forward with sparkling eyes and much more charisma than he has shown in the past to the new vistas opening up to local businesses.

All raise their glasses (a fine vintage champagne from the Sword Coast) and drink – and a bubbling scream comes from Count Issel, followed by terrified screaming from all those around him as his flesh bubbles and dissolves!

His body collapses in a matter of seconds into a steaming mound of raw flesh and pandemonium breaks out...


----------



## Plane Sailing

I've just taken the opportunity to merge all four threads of the Kyri Chronicles into one (once upon a time we had to be careful to make sure threads didn't exceed a certain length - Piratecat neatly proves that we need no longer worry on that account).

So having said that, it made more sense from my point of view to bring everything together under one roof as it were.

I hope to get the next installment (a bigger one) ready this week.

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

Interestingly the thread merging process didn't remember how many 'views' each of the threads had had, only the number of views in the first (shortest) thread. So instead of the total of about 5,000 views we have, uh, a much smaller number. 

Hopefully it won't make people think "that storyhour must suck" and not take a look 

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

Anne-Marie spots someone slip out of a side door - she pushes her way through the screaming crowds and bursts through the door, a room and an outside door. A carriage lurches away as the driver cracks his whip and she leaps in pursuit.

M’ir followed in Anne-Maries wake but can’t match her speed so he returns to the ballroom where Trajan is managing to call for calm by dint of his personality and big voice. M’ir describes the man who is attempting to escape and someone says “Sounds like councillor Jonne. Where is here?”

In moments they have confirmed that councillor Jonne is indeed the one who has made a break for it.

Anne-Marie pounds powerfully along the road after the carriage, and although it is already travelling faster than a man can run under the whip of the driver she is closing in thanks to the magic in her boots. Suddenly she leaps, flies through the air and lands on the rear of the carriage. She works her way round to the door and tears it open, but is surprised to find a shadow figure inside that strikes with huge claws at her! Dodging and twisting to avoid taking damage she starts to grapple with the occupant of the carriage, shouting out to the driver

“Stop the carriage! You have a monster on board, not a man!”

The driver leans down over towards her and kicks at her head; slightly off balance the occupant of the carriage is able to win the grapple and throw her from the carriage. She tucks up into a ball and rolls as she hits the ground, avoiding the worst of the damage. But when she is up on her feet again all that remains of the carriage is the distant sound of hoofbeats away in the streets of the town. She jogs back to the ballroom.

Back at the scene of the murder, Trajan collects the broken pieces of the glass up carefully so that they can be examined for traces.

Countess Naomi has dried her tears and seems possessed by an icy calm.

“Trajan, I want you to take charge of this investigation. I want an outsider to Bridlerest and you are the only person that I can trust who is close to hand. Find out who murdered my husband”

She assigns a pair of guards to escort Trajan and his friends to the Guild of Four along with a letter bearing the Countess’ seal as authority for requesting magical investigation of the glass fragments.

The duty guildsman doesn’t like the idea of waking up his superiors but is persuaded by the seal and the presence of the Count’s guards to comply. In the circumstances Ravi, one of the heads of the guild comes down to consult with them. He points out that nobody has the right spells prepared at the moment, but if the party would like to use his guest accomodation he will ensure that adequate magical preparations are made in the morning for the investigation.

As they settle down for the night, carefully guarding their evidence, they can’t help wondering - who is the murderer? Is it councillor Jonne? What was his motive?

All will be revealed...


----------



## Darklone

Yummy, update. 

We'll get the thread view up again, no worries


----------



## Plane Sailing

The "Guild of Four" artificers are unable to detect any magic in the shattered remains of the goblet at all, but the droplets of wine seem to be a powerful magic mutagenic poison – a precisely targeted one too, since it doesn’t seem to affect animals.

When the shards are returned, M’ir decides to focus his seer talents on the objects. Holding them gently in his hand he lets his mind unfocus and there is a low hum discernable as he starts object reading.

First he senses pain and horror and then agony as the duke dissolves. Further back in time he reaches and he sees a strong pair of hands working raw glass in a furnace, rotating, shaping, forming the glass goblet – but the whole image is suffused with raw hate, directed into the glass and towards a victim. The glass itself is to be the assassination weapon, somehow transforming the liquid placed in it into  a deadly poison. But who? And why? And how could it be so precisely targeted?

The next step seems to be to trace Councillor John. Their guard escort knows where he lives and takes them round to his house. His wife answers the door – prim, proper and polite.

“I’m sorry, my Jonn isn’t available at the moment. Would you like to come in for some tea?”

Trajan comes straight to the point “Has your husband got any reason to murder Count Issel?”

“Far from it” she replies over tea and crumpets. “In the last month he and the Count have become much closer. I haven’t seen him since he left for the party last night though”

“Do you now where he might be?” Taran enquires

“Well, in the past I’d have directed you towards the seamstress’ guild down by the gully… but I’m not so sure now. These last few weeks he has been a changed man. Much more… attentive” she smiles coyly.

They take their leave and find their way to the seamstress’ guild, where they are able to chat with Rosy the, uh, head of the guild. She knows Councillor Jonn well, but hasn’t seen him for a good month. It is a shame with him having been such a good customer over the years and all.

The party retire to an inn to discuss what they have learned and attempt to put the pieces together. Things seem so random at the moment – a mysterious murder, a councillor who runs who has a mutable bodyguard, who was good friends with the count and whose traits have changed quite dramatically over the last month or so – changed for the better to all accounts. Since they arrived they have been hearing rumours about how much better things have been getting in recent months, how the councillors in general seem to be doing a better job. 

The best bet would be to ask Don Cullon to call the councillors for a meeting tomorrow afternoon and see if they can scare someone into giving something away...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Don Cullon sends a message to Taran and the others. He has instructed the councillors to come to the countess’ palace this afternoon where the murderer will be revealed. His spies tell him that the councillors have called an emergency meeting in the town hall chambers. Now it is over to the party.

Anne-Marie and Taran scale the outside of the town hall managing the difficult climb up the side of the dome and into the little cupola at the top. Carefully they sneak in and peer over the balcony. Forty feet below them is a circle of tables with the twenty councillors talking with one another in an animated fashion. Then one of them holds his hands up for silence and stillness falls across the room. Then he speaks in a clear, ringing tone.

“We have visitors with unguarded thoughts. Anne-Marie, won’t you and your friend kindly join us? Now?”

Anne-Marie and Taran shrug – they had been silent, nobody could have heard them… but they are spotted. Taran lets a coil of rope fall down, Anne-Marie merely jumps down lightly, landing in a crouch and then recovering herself.

“You know me. I’ve got to warn you – there are impostors in your midst! Changelings or worse, possibly metamorphs!”

“Oh?” says the leader of the council “do you have evidence for this assertion?”

“My own eyes” she asserts “Councillor Jonn ran from the ball were Issel was murdered. I chased him and found myself fighting a human with claws. It was either him or his footman, but it seems that the circle of councillors is compromised”

“My dear Anne-Marie, may I call you that? I don’t think our order has been compromised. Oh no, not compromised at all…”

Around the circle of tables all of the councillors stand up, all of their outlines blur, their faces stretch into different shapes and their hands elongate into ferocious claws

“the Order of Glass is still, fully, intact my dear…”

Taran is mentally running through his options – he knows that Trajan, M’ir and Tania are outside the front doors, but it will take them precious seconds to get here – and he’s not the healthiest guy in the world himself. Perhaps if he can buy a few seconds?

“Sir, may I ask you one question first? Why did you murder Count Issel?”

The councillor changes his posture slightly

“Why do you ask me?” he says coldly “Why should I murder one of my brothers in this foul manner?”

Blank stares from Taran and Anne-Marie to the order of glass and back again.

“So Jonne wasn’t a murderer running from the scene” says Anne-Marie

“hardly” another councillor replies, who’s features shift and change until he is Councillor Jonne. “I was terrified that whatever force had struck down brother Issel would be coming after me too. I don’t know what happened but I heard his mental scream along with his vocal one as his whole body catastrophically lost its cohesiveness”

“It was in the glass” Taran says. “It was in the drinking glass he was using. Something had been forged into it to kill him”

One of the councillors whispers something. Another says it louder. “it is Gideon. We had escaped his plans but now he attempts to kill us all”

Taran snaps his fingers. “Gideon, the foundry owner. I met him near the tannery. Big, obnoxious man yet with an aura of power around him”.

“That is right. He owns the foundry and all the men there. He is a powerful telepath. It was he who took my family and turned us into the Order of Glass, opened our minds to the power to accentuate our mutable form. He wanted us to infiltrate and replace the councillors of Bridlerest – which we did. They are all dead now I’m afraid. But they deserved it. They were cruel and venal, thinking only of themselves and not the people they ruled or the families that loved them. They were so inefficient. The town runs more efficiently under us, their families receive love once more.”

“We regret what happened then, the last few months have changed us. We have all embraced the tenets of law and goodness, turned from our old ways. And this has angered Gideon, angered him mightily. We do not respond to his calls and he has threatened us. He made us, and now he hates us, and he will kill us”.

“Not if we get the bastard first. Let’s call in our friends and make plans”


----------



## Plane Sailing

(This adventure took place 21st September 2003)

*Party Composition*
Trajan 11th (Ftr2/Jazumai 5/ Sword Saint 4) 
Anne-Marie 11th (Monk 2/ Ftr 6/ Sword Coast Duellist 2/ Psychic Warrior 1)
Tania 9th (Necromancer 8/ Black wizard of Morannon 1)
Taran 10th (Rogue 10) 
M’ir 9th (Seer 9) (player absent)
Zherinda 9th (Cleric 9) (player absent)



They have a fairly good plan of the interior of the foundry. M’ir is really concerned about the prospect of going up against a powerful telepath.

“You don’t know what you are facing! This isn’t like Thimdrul the mutable you fought up at Bellhold Trajan! Powerful telepaths can turn your minds inside out! There is a reason – a good reason – why telepathy is a banned discipline in Cadlan!”

“Nonetheless” Trajan replies “we will rise to this challenge and seal the fate of this evil-doer”.

Zherinda will not join them in the assault but casts many preparatory spells on the rest of the party – including imbueing them all with the ability to cast protection from evil when needed (imbue with spell ability) to protect them from mental control, and casting Protection from Fire on several of them because the foundry is likely to be hot.

Entering the foundry office they meet a workman that Taran knows and after a quick bit of sweet-talking he agrees to take the party and the councillors on an inspection tour of the foundry. The tour quickly leads them into the main foundry hall. It is swelteringly hot, there are huge doors into a raging furnace, foundrymen working stripped to the waist throughout the hall. There is a walkway twenty feet up and another one a further twenty feet above that. Chains hang from gantrys, as do huge crucibles of molten iron. The noise is tremendous.

Without any notice, all the foundrymen suddenly cease what they are doing and turn to look at the party, all as one person. On the very highest balcony next to a small office a powerfully built man is looking down into the hall. The air between him and the party on the floor, already blurry with heat haze, suddenly blurs more ferociously and a hideous mental scream fills everyone’s minds. Half of the Order of Glass fall to their knees clutching their heads, as do Anne-Marie and Tania! The foundreymen charge forward and start grappling the stunned and living opponents and start dragging them towards the open furnace doors while Gideon laughs raucously from above...


----------



## Plane Sailing

I hope I haven't lost all the readers in the old thread merge!

Next post coming up...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Recognising that the foundrymen are dominated ordinary men the party don’t want to fight back with lethal force, so they are grappling back in turn. Taran is in difficulty each time he is grappled, although if he slips free he is tremendous at knocking out others who were in the process of dragging along stunned victims. Trajan is dogpiled by half a dozen strong men who are gradually inching him towards a furnace door despite his fighting back powerfully.

One of the Order of Glass has already been killed by the furnace and Tania is on the brink of being thrust into a furnace herself when suddenly, unaccountably, the foundreymen all stop their fighting and go back to their tasks. Gideon laughs from up above and goes into his office on the top balcony.

Those stunned by the devastating mental blast, and they want their piece of the action. Anne-Marie moves like lightning, zips up the ladder and charges round the first balcony to the next ladder – unfortunately tripping a trap which showers her with molten metal from one of the crucibles. Badly wounded, she returns to Trajan to seek healing from him.

While Trajan lays hands on her in Asura’s name, they hear someone knocking feebly on the locked door of the office on this balcony. Taran picks the lock and they release a wild-haired woman with mad eyes. She clings to Trajan who is tempted to cut her down as a dangerously insane threat; Taran votes for it too, but Anne-Marie feels sympathy for her, and thinks she may be an ill-treated prisoner. While Trajan and Taran decide (reluctantly) to make some sense out of her ramblings about crystal walls and the growing mind.

Tania uses magic to float up through the centre of the hall while Anne-Marie makes her way up to and around the top balcony to the office. Outside the door she focuses her mind in the way she has recently been taught in Cadlan and she can detect magery (psionics) inside. She gestures to Tania who readies a spell. Anne-Marie hauls the door open, Tania launches a fireball into the room and Anne-Marie flips the door shut again. There is a boom and light flashes from under the door and out of the window, shattering the glass.

Anne-Marie can still detect magery so she kicks the door open and leaps in, slashing all around in a devastating whirlwind attack which shatters the remaining magical glasses and items which had survived the fireball. The small 10ft x 20ft office is otherwise empty apart from the desk with burning papers, the shelves with shattered glass paraphernalia and a couple of full sacks.

A search reveals no secret passages, no trapdoors, no other way out. Puzzled they return down to Trajan and the others, and thence down to the ground floor of the foundry hall. Annia they want to take out to Zherinda for long term care. The Order of Glass are likewise not sure exactly where he can be.

As they make for the exit Gideon’s voice shouts out from above once more

“You losers! You fools! What chance do I have of finding worthy foes to match wits with when I’m faced with this kind of paltry idiocy?”

The party snarls, but Gideon just gestures

“Why don’t you play with my furnace for a little while? He could do with stretching himself a little. I free him from his bindings!

With a roaring sound all of the furnace flames go out momentarily, then fire gushes out and forms itself into a towering pillar between them and the exit. Forty foot tall, it’s top is brushing the roof of the hall.

“Slay all who attempt to leave” Gideon commands, before going back into his office.

Anne-Marie attempts to attack the elemental and is struck badly by it as she closes, her rapier strike is almost completely ineffective, and after being struck twice by it and brought near to death she decides to retreat away from it, tumbling out the other side and into the outside world.

The elemental makes no move to directly attack the others, so the party and the order of glass together decide to return to the office and investigate it more thoroughly. Once again the room appears to be completely empty apart from the desk with it’s contents (mostly papers and accounts), assorted glass rubbish and two sacks which contain – granulated sugar?

Anne-Marie manages to find Zherinda outside and is healed back to full health again. Zherinda is appraised of the situation but there is little she can do at this point.

As they discuss the significance of the sugar, they find a few grains scattered around the back wall of the office; not melted so it must have landed there after the fireball was sent in. Why would there be sugar here? Taran picks up a handful and looks at it closely. Fine, white. No, look closer. Tiny crystalline grains, firelight flickering dimly from its facets. Crystals have an important place in magery… thoughtfully, Taran throws his handful of sugar against the back wall and there is flash and a kaleidoscopic crystalline vortex springs into being on the wall.

“For Asura” yells Trajan, and he leaps through, the portal closing directly after him.

Taran throws another handful of sugar against the wall and leaps through himself, wondering what on earth he’s doing; the Order of Glass file into the room, each of them casting sugar at the wall and jumping into the kaleidoscope. “Death to Gideon” they whisper menacingly.

Then Tania is alone in the room. She looks at the blank wall. She looks at the sack of sugar. Back at the wall. Icy fear crawls down her spine and she can’t bring herself to follow her companions into mystery. 

They are all in there and Tania looks on. 

Alone.


----------



## Shockwave

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Then Tania is alone in the room. She looks at the blank wall. She looks at the sack of sugar. Back at the wall. Icy fear crawls down her spine and she can’t bring herself to follow her companions into mystery.
> 
> They are all in there and Tania looks on.
> 
> Alone.




Well considering we knew nothing of what the other side was like and i was the only one that could possibly hazard a guess i decided to stay put. The chance of becoming the local ruler should no one return wasn't the only thought in my head.....honest.


----------



## Plane Sailing

I thought it was a classic moment of heroism by the other characters, jumping into the unknown, contrasted with the one who was too scared to take the risk and was left standing on the outside...


----------



## pogre

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Interestingly the thread merging process didn't remember how many 'views' each of the threads had had, only the number of views in the first (shortest) thread. So instead of the total of about 5,000 views we have, uh, a much smaller number.
> 
> Hopefully it won't make people think "that storyhour must suck" and not take a look
> 
> Cheers




Well, it made me look. I was looking at the hit meter and page count saying, "There is no possible way!"

I've enjoyed the bit I have read thus far and I look forward to checking out the rest.


----------



## Plane Sailing

pogre said:
			
		

> Well, it made me look. I was looking at the hit meter and page count saying, "There is no possible way!"
> 
> I've enjoyed the bit I have read thus far and I look forward to checking out the rest.




Thanks Pogre - I'll endeavour to get the upcoming major battle sorted out by the end of the week!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Trajan and Taran find themselves in a crystal cave. It is large, some 800ft in diameter, and diffuse light radiates from and reflects from crystal facets all around the walls, ceiling and floor. Crystal pillars near the centre of the room seem to be a focus for the light.

More than the light though, there is a susurration, a whispering of voices that they are hearing not just with their ears but in their minds as well. Near the centre of the chamber they see Gideon standing near to a large block of crystal encasing something shadowy.

Meanwhile, outside, the healed Anne-Marie is determined to get in once more. The main foundry is still dominated by the colossal fire elemental and she doesn’t want to tangle with that again. Moving round to another entrance she finds an ore car on a clear section of rail. Boosting it up to speed she leaps in and hides within it as it rattles past the elemental. Searing flames flicker over the top of the cart but she remains safe. 

Reaching the far wall she leaps out of the cart and swarms up the ladder. With her increased speed and magical boots she races around one level of balcony and up onto the top level, all the time skilfully dodging the strikes of the pillar of elemental flame.

She bursts into the office and sees Tania staring at the wall. “Where are the others?” she demands. Tania points to the sack of sugar and motions towards the wall. Without hesitation Anne-Marie casts some of the crystalline sugar at the wall and leaps through the portal

From the point of view of those inside the crystal demiplane only a few seconds have passed since they entered. Trajan, Taran follow the Order of Glass who have already started charging towards the centre of the plane where Gideon waits for them.

Suddenly there is a flare of light from their opponent and his powerful will descends upon them. The Order of Glass shrug it off, as do Trajan and Taran, but Anne-Marie is dominated. Gideon starts gloating

“Ha, you intellectual minnows have succumbed to my master plan! Now I have managed to lure you all into my central sanctum… and…”

A look of puzzlement crosses his features

“… why would I want to bring you _here?_”

Without warning there is a thrum of power from the shape encased in crystal, a coercive wave which stretches out over the Order of Glass who suddenly stop dead in their tracks. Filaments of psychic power stretch out from each of their heads and coalesce in a glowing ball over the shape in the crystal as they are forced against their will into a terrible metaconcert. There is slight movement within the crystal and the shape inside resolves itself into a massive brain supported by eight spindly spider-like legs.

“FiNAlly mY PlANs hAve ReaChEd FrUItiOn. tHiS WoRLd ShALl bE mINe”


----------



## robberbaron

Oops.


----------



## Plane Sailing

As one, the Order of Glass manifest their metamorphic powers and grow steel hard spikes out of their arms and start hacking away at the crystal imprisoning the creature. Chips and shards fly rapidly. Gideon is momentarily stunned by the turn of events and the creature which calls itself Unflaith reaches out

“mY auGMEntEd PowER Now aLloWS Me tO oVeRWElm yOU”

Boosted by the metaconcert it has forced the Order of Glass into, it has no difficulty overcoming his defences and suddenly they are facing a room full of dominated thralls.

Anne-Marie fies a couple of arrows into Taran’s back, then realises that she can carve him up more effectively in person so starts sprinting towards her old ally. Trajan is attempting to cut down the Order of Glass before they break Unflaith free but their defences are strong and half of them break off to assault him and Taran, while Gideon launches frightening telepathic attacks at the Jazumai who is saved again and again by his divine grace granted him by Asura.

Taran starts getting desperate. He shouts to Trajan “Call for divine aid man, you’re the one with the touch of the gods, call for divine aid!” but Trajan doesn’t respond, caught up in the battle that is whirling around him.

Desperate, Taran the man who has never really believed in anything before, surrounded by enemies and trapped in a crystal demiplane, calls out to Asura for help

“Mighty Lord Asura, I don’t know if you can hear me but unless you aid us we are lost! If we fall what will stop this horror from descending on the world of men? Aid us in this hour!”

Miraculously there is a ringing sound like the peal of a great bell, and a powerful angel stands amongst them, glorious and terrible (_DMs note: I said “OK, I’ll give you a 5% chance that Asura hears you and responds. 03. Well damn._).

The dominated Gideon launches a powerful dominate effect himself but it slides off the angels magical resistance. The Angel invokes a disjunction which breaks the Order of Glass and Anne-Marie free from their psychic entrapment, and it says commandingly “*FLEE, AND I WILL SEAL THIS PLANE FOR EVER*”.

Their doppleganger allies, free from Unflaiths malign influence, sprint for the exit from the demiplane which sparkles in the angel light and the unholy glow from Unflaiths cracking-open prison. Gideon exerts all his telepathic might against the angel, staggering it but not stopping it. The heroes and the order of glass leap one by one out of the demiplane; Taran hears a voice in his head as he exits for the real world “*A BARGAIN IS STRUCK, A PAYMENT IS REQUIRED, A CALLING MUST BE HEEDED*”.

Then with a crash and tumble of bodies they all pile onto the floor of the office containing a startled Tania. There are three last psychic echoes

–	a human voice crying “Noooooooooo!” 
–	an unearthly thought “yOU hAvE cOSt Me dEaR MY hELL SHalL bE yOUrSsss”
–	*SEALED*

Then, apart from their ragged breaths, there is silence.


----------



## robberbaron

Yeah, I got a bit fixated on the fight and didn't think to call for Holy aid, even though we were deep, deep, deep in the poo.
Once a fighter-always a fighter, I suppose.

It was better coming from Taran though.


----------



## Plane Sailing

I really liked the way that adventure turned out - and I'm afraid you have Piratecat to thank for the extended inspiration and main campaign elements


----------



## Plane Sailing

The party have two months downtime. They decide that the Order of Glass might as well continue in their current roles as councillors for Bridlerest because (a) society is working better with them than it was before (b) they were initially acting under malign influence of Gideon and (c) they can't think of anything better to do. The Order swear to continue to uphold the law and in gratitude for their freedom from oppression, rule well and honestly.

Anne-Marie commissions a headband of intellect +2, Trajan commissions boots of striding and springing, Taran commissions gloves of dexterity +4.

Taran has been very thoughtful since his encounter with divinity and finds a prophetic spark arising within his soul. Touched by Asura he now finds he has the ability to heal with Asura's touch and be filled with Asura's divine favour.

_DMnote: Taran gained a level and decided to take a level in prophet - a sorcerer-like divine class in my campaign_

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

*Bloodlines*
Trajan 12th (Ftr2/Jazumai 5/ Sword Saint 5) 
Anne-Marie 11th (Monk 2/ Ftr 6/ Sword Coast Duellist 2/ Psychic Warrior 1)
Tania 9th (Necromancer 8/ Black wizard of Morannon 1)
Taran 10th (Rogue 10) 
M’ir 9th (Seer 9) 
Zherinda 9th (Cleric 9) 

At one of the many parties and balls, they recieve a proposition. One of the local nobility, Baron Noliss von Purry, introduces himself to them. He claims that he is related to the royal line of Tanor, despite living as a relatively minor noble here in Bridlerest. If he can find the evidence he needs, he will be able to advance in the royal court.

Some of his research seems to indicate that a hundred years ago a prince of the royal family might have been living in an old family estate of his, now ruined. History never really speaks of this prince, but if evidence exists in the old ruins… he will provide them with 20,000mks for such evidence.

It is a compelling proposition, and it is the kind of money they could do with.
The party gather together and meet a week later at his hunting lodge near the edge of the woods where Baron von Purry gives them further information – the location of the ruined keep, an ancient key that will provide entry into the underkeep and so forth. He sends a woodsman named Olaf along with them to help them find the way.

Four hours walk through the woods lead them to the shattered remains of the keep, overrun with vegetation. It doesn’t take long for them to find the overgrown trapdoor which, when unlocked, leads into the ruined wine cellar. It doesn’t take long to find a concealed passage – not a secret door but a bricked up passage which has been plastered over. Perhaps not so much a concealed passage but a sealed passage?

With the help of picks and hammers the wall is broken down and there is an exhalation of stale air, a musty, ancient smell. The corridor has faded murals of royal splendour, and finally it enters a square chamber with three exits out of it and a small plinth in the corner.

As Taran moves to scout the room out a horrid stench fills the room as four ghasts lurch into the room, crying “Food! Food!” The experienced adventurers make short work of them however.

The plinth in the corner seems to be an altar to a storm god, an ancient incarnation of Asura. M’ir centres himself and allows the years to roll past his inner vision in this room. He sees decade after decade of stillness, punctuated by an occasional ghast slouching through the room. Then about 80 years ago the room is filled with howling and murder as dozens of robed priests are massacred in the room, then going back further there is a decade of peace with monks moving in and out, then there is another 40 years of emptiness with no plinth, and then again a sense of terrible evil as individuals scatter through the room pursued by something clouded in evil and hatred. And beyond that it was a brightly lit series of rooms filled with courtly laughter.

Half an hour has passed before M’ir opens his eyes again, and he recounts his visions to the party. On at least two occasions there have been brutal massacres in this place. Hmmm.
They decide to take the northern exit from the room and find their way to a rune carved door. Taran scans it for traps and proclaims it clean, then starts to open it and with a flash of dark energy a curse glyph explodes, and his Strength drops dramatically as weakness drains his already slim limbs of energy. He curses, and the others move past the now disarmed trap and look into a room, a burial chamber filled with sarcophagi.

“I bet there’s mummies in there” Someone says.

They enter the room, scanning carefully for danger and suddenly the lids are thrown aside from six of the sarcophagi along the walls and mummies leer out. Their appearance is so supernaturally fearful that Zherinda the cleric and Anne-Marie are frozen in place in terror, and the mummies lurch to the attack.

The battle is fast and furious. The tough old mummies resist their blows, but are eventually cut down; but everyone has been exposed to mummy rot – and Taran and Tania suddenly both find their skin sloughing off their faces and arms as the awful curse grips them…


----------



## Shockwave

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> *Bloodlines*Taran and Tania suddenly both find their skin sloughing off their faces and arms as the awful curse grips them…




Why is it always me? Guess i should have known better than to do something useful in combat.


----------



## Plane Sailing

My memory is hazy, since that took place over  a year ago - did you do anything useful in combat in that occasion?


----------



## Shockwave

No no i definately didn't do anything in the least useful......*waits patiently for the curse to look away briefly  *...... Quick while it's not paying attention, i seem to remember a fireball or two. Errrr i mean no you are right i did nothing useful.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Taran has always been frail and it looks like he will succumb quickly, but Anne-Marie quickly drapes her Amulet of Health around his neck. The party make a quick return with their ailing companions back to the edge of the forest and then on horseback to Bridlerest – it takes a few days and their cursed friends are at deaths door before they get them to the temple of Asura and the aid they need to free themselves from the curse and the disease.
Another couple of days recovery and they travel back to the hunting lodge, confer with Baron Noliss once more and head back to his ancestral tower.

This time they explore southwards from the entrance chamber. They enter a corridor which has a series of monks cells on either side, and while investigating these rooms they are jumped by half a dozen shadows. The small monks cells makes manoeuvring difficult for the heroes, but the shadows jump back and forth through the cell walls, gaining cover from them and sapping the strength of the heroes with every strike. The combat is tense and lasts for nearly two minutes before the last of the shadows are put down. Further investigation reveals an ornate key but nothing else amongst the decomposed rubbish.

Exploring further they find a corridor leading to an antechamber with a large locked stone door sealing the far end. Naturally they need to find out what is on the other side, so Taran picks the lock and the door is slid to one side, revealing a long corridor leading to a dimly lit chamber.

The chamber contains a shrine which has been over painted with symbols of corruption and kneeling before it is the mummified remains of a priest clad in purple robes. M’ir recognises the robes from his vision of the past; it was obviously a representative of the old storm god heresy. Wary of mummies an attack is launched against the figure from the doorway, only to be deflected by an invisible wall of force across the entrance. Good job they didn’t try to fireball it!

The attention of the creature has been attracted however. Slowly it turns and rises to its feet. There is a susurration as its arms are raised to the ceiling in an imploring gesture, and it starts casting divine magics, power starting to settle across its undead frame second by second.

The party retreat back to the antechamber and set themselves ready to receive it. The creature has grown to large size (divine favour, righteous might, divine might, greater magic weapon on his metal staff) and charges forward. Trajan takes its first blow and returns powerful blows in return, but is taken aback when the huecuva strikes him once in the ribs, once on the knee and then an upswing cracks his jaw, snapping his head back and crumpling him on the floor! Taran bravely taunts the creature and he is so effective that it moves to strike him, ignoring Anne-Marie. Unaccountably Anne Marie doesn’t trip or grapple the creature but instead attempts a stunning blow, which is completely ineffectual. One blow takes Taran down.

Tania is starting to panic, and she unleashes a tremendous cone of cold which catches the undead, Anne-Marie and the unconscious Trajan. Anne-Marie skilfully evades all damage, but Trajan is frozen nearly to death and it is only the grace of Asura which saves him (went to -22hp, house rule gives a DC22 Fort save to avoid death). Fortunately the Huecuva is also badly stiffened by the frosty attack and Anne-Marie leaps forward and lands a crushing blow, shattering its frozen body into a thousand pieces.

While Anne-Marie tends to the wounded, Tania goes to search the chamber with the corrupted shrine. She is part way through her search when she notices the faint curdling in the ether which suggests magic at work, and through her spellcraft she realises that the wall of force is reforming itself! Hurriedly she vacates the chamber, unwilling to become a prisoner there herself.

Once Taran and Trajan have been healed back to consciousness, several hours are spent resting and recuperating until they are fit to continue once more.
The next stretch of corridor leads them to a solid locked iron door, and Trajan can sense a palpable evil emanating from beyond it.  Taran picks the lock after several attempts and when the door is opened a foul presence washes out…


----------



## Plane Sailing

A death in the family...


----------



## Plane Sailing

Darkness shrouds a room which is cloaked in shadows. Their light doesn’t penetrate the darkness that hides the walls, and only the centre of the room can be seen – with shattered bodies, the remnants of armour and a single shining sword lying pinned under the broken remains of a knight.

Across the room stands a bearded devil, leering at them and brandishing his glaive. Trajan is sickened by the sense of depravity and intending to end this fiends existence charges across the room towards it. He never reaches it as huge spiny arms reach out of the darkness as he runs through the room, snagging his clothes and drawing him into a spiny and painful embrace.

Taran is affected by the devils fear aura and runs screaming back towards the exit from the dungeon.

The barbed devil emerges from its hiding place in the darkness and continues to grapple Trajan while Anne-Marie and M’ir join the fight and Tania waits for the right moment to cast something useful. The bearded devil is defeated quickly, but the barbed devil is a much more fearsome adversary – every strike made against it opens up vicious wounds in the hero from the multitude of spines. 

Trajan bravely continues trying to wrestle free but can’t defeat the creatures strength and with a cry and crack of bones he falls limp and dying. The barbed devil turns to its other two foes who have both been wounded attempting to hurt it while it was working Trajan over.

Tania sees her moment and drops a powerful fireball into the room. Woomph! The devil is unhurt and both Anne-Marie and M’ir manage to evade the blast, but Trajan is burnt so badly that even his divine favour can’t keep him alive…

M’ir moves into full defence mode and dances backwards and forwards in front of the barbed devil, drawing its attacks and trusting in his boosted defences, expertise and fully defensive tumbling fighting to protect him – he knows that one good strike from it could take him down. Anne-Marie in desperation grabs up the sword from under the knight and as she lifts it the light of the sun streams from its blade – taking the chance she plunges it into the devil, accepting the wounds from its spines to drive the sword right through its body, where the sunblades power blasts the fiend into a thousand smoking shards (critical hit, triple damage. Whoo!)

It hardly feels like a triumph though. All eyes turn to the smouldering corpse of Trajan in the corner…


----------



## robberbaron

Very close. Trajan actually survived the Fireball but M'ir's Concussion thingy squashed me flat against the floor (missed my Fort save by 1 or 2. He was very apologetic for a bit.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Sorry, I forgot about the concussion wand usage - I can't remember where exactly it came in (did it perhaps fail to penetrate the devils spell resistance? there must have been some reason why it wasn't used again). 

Some of my notes from the last 18 months are moderately good, others are less so... 

Cheers


----------



## Graywolf-ELM

Graywolf-ELM said:
			
		

> So weekly is turned on, but immediate is not?  No matter, I check My Account and the subscribed threads daily, and see when my favorites have been updated.
> 
> GW




As of this post, I've not seen a single notification of update on this thread.  Grr.  I'm going to delete and re-add the subscription.  Now, to find out what I remember and start back from there.

GW

PS: I checked.  My subscription was gone again.  Did I read mention of a thread merger?  Maybe it went away when that happened.  No wonder I've had an empty feeling.


----------



## Plane Sailing

Ah yes, the thread merger. That would have done it.

I should have remembered that old superman saying (or was it spiderman?) "With Great Power comes Great Responsibility". The thread merger seemed like a good idea at the time but it 
a) killed any recent subscriptions
b) slashed my "viewed" figures by a factor of five.

Huh.

I'll try to get another update done this week.

Cheers


----------



## Plane Sailing

With heavy hearts they gather up Trajans remains and transport them back to the hunting lodge and then by horseback to the temple in Bridlerest. Messages are sent up to Knightsbridge and Alkanar is able to make it down by the next holy day. In moving ceremony Trajan is publicly restored to life, and after a couple of days recovering they are ready to investigate those ancient dungeons once again.

This time they are joined by a scout named Orlandar, a young ranger who works for the crown. Once again they delve into the dungeon. They find a library with doors that are sealed and which they cannot pick. Following the dungeon round they find a passage cloaked in a darkness which sucks their light into it. Scary baying starts up, and Orlandar is freaked out and runs for safety. Zherinda casts daylight which dispels the darkness and reveals several Shadow mastiffs. Trajan springs forward and takes one down in a single blow. Anne-Marie steps into the gap and uses her whirlwind attack to injure two of them. Zherinda follows up by stepping forward and impaling one on her flaming spear and the last one is finished off very quickly. Orlandar overcomes his fear and returns shamefaced. 

A little further on they find an underground well room, and Orlandars search skills reveal a hidden space behind some loose bricks – there are a couple of scrolls which Zherinda can use and the tattered remains of a secret message – but they need at least one more fragment to make sense of it.

Further investigation in the dungeon tunnels reveal a pit trap which guards some doors which can’t be opened, so they return to the library they found earlier. Outside the library door both M’ir and Anne-Marie sense psychic static from inside. A key which they found earlier amongst the shadows opens the library door and inside the room appears untouched – even to the skeletal body sitting at the table with a silvery diary.

The slightest vibration causes the skeleton to crumble to dust. The silvery coating on the diary is identified as quintessence, a substance which freezes small items in time. It is scraped off and saved carefully, and the diary is read.

/46 – I am beginning to worry about the prince. He is acting strangely. I am starting to think that this might not be the best place to secret one such as he. Despite royal decrees to the contrary. It is not much , but occasionally I see him gazing at one of the keepers with a look of, well, I cannot describe it but it is frightful. And now he has been very quiet of late. brooding.

I am sure I am merely imagining the worst. After all, he is on the cusp of manhood, and being locked away with the likes of us probably does not appeal to his youthful sensibilities. Though one would imagine that he would be used to it by now.

/50 – I think something is troubling the mind of our reverend cleric Septimus. He has shut himself within his chambers and has not ventured forth for even meals for almost two days now. The serving boy who last saw him said the priest was hurrying down the hall with a look of such consternation as to make a man blanche. And I now recall that shortly before I saw him remove something from the hidden alcove by the cistern. What he is doing in his rooms I do not know but I dare not disturb him for fear of ruinding some divine process.

/55 – I learned some interesting things about Severi von Purry today, after speaking with Gridla the serving maid. I knew Severi was a powerful wizard, but I never before realised how powerful – it turns out he was once the royal court wizard of the king himself! I knew that Severi was a member of house von Purry, related by blood to the king and of a very noble and powerful family, but I didn’t know Severi was actually the Kings Wizard! I asked Gridla how such a one came to be here hiding in obscurity, watching over this moody prince we’re sheltering instead of at court where he belongs. Did he fail the king somehow? No, Gridla told me, it’s the opposite. When the prince was born with his obvious problems and the king decided he needed to be secreted away, Severi volunteered for the job! It makes me proud to be serving under such a man.

/61 – Oh, tragedy, tragedy! I had never thought that such a thing could occur in our quiet sanctuary. Sweet Septimus has been murdered! A servant discovered the fact when she went in to clean the clerics chamber and found his rent and bloody corpse on the bed. Horrible, horrible! I have never before heard such a clamour! The servants were in an ungodly state of confusion, milling around like ants, and the girl who found him was positively hysterical. Even we keepers found it hard to keep our heads. Through it all, only the prince seemed to remain calm; perhaps there is hope for him yet. Well, guards on all entrances were immediately doubled and extra torches ordered for the halls at night. I pray the intruder be found!

/63 – We received a messenger from Baron Bediss von Purry, Severis’ brother and as head of House Purry the one ultimately responsible for the prince. The message stated that the Baron was sending a troop of soldiers to help us guard against whatever fiend slew poor Septimus. The company includes the famed Honourbound Knight Tremones the Pure who wields a blade called Sunrazor! The presence of such a knight will undoubtedly raise spirits around here. Also with them comes a high priest of Asura to administer the last rites to Septimus as befits a devout cleric.

/65 – Tremones  and the other men from the Baron arrived today and they searched every crevice and alcove in the keep for the signs of the murdered. As we had already done this several times it was no surprise to me that they found nothing. The High Priest laid what was left of dear Septimus to rest but he also spoke out in fear that whoever did this gruesome deed would return with the intention of desecrating our honoured dead. Personally I would think the killer would want to desecrate the honoured living but that’s priests for you. No, I shouldn’t be sacrilegious, we are all in such a state right now. The High Priest cast many magical traps upon the entryway to the crypts but we can bypass them by uttering certain holy phrases. I suppose I ought to write them down here so I do not forget.
The first phrase is “I am of noble intent” said when entering the fist door. The second is “I come to honour the sacred dead” which must be spoken as one passes about halfway down the entry hallway. Lastly “I beseech admittance in the holy names of our ancestors” when opening the door to the mausoleum proper.

/68 – Well, things have quieted down a bit there have been no more incidents of any kind. The High Priest has returned back to Singh as have most of the men sent by the Baron, though the knight Tremones stays on. We can only assume that whoever or whatever this murderer is, we have scared it away. Even so, I cannot shake a feeling of dread gnawing at my gut.

/70 – Strange. Everything appears normal but I have been on edge for several days and cannot sleep properly. Perhaps I will take some medicine.

/71 – Oh, horrible, horrible! The worst disaster ever has come to pass! The prince is the murderer, the prince! Not only is he guilty of Septimus’ bloody end but now he is the slayer of them all! Blood runs down the halls. I can still hear the screams! What shall I do? I saw the prince, laughing, red light streaming from his eyes and mouth as he brutally cleaved through men and women! For a sword he wielded naught but unholy darkness! How they screamed! And he, laughing all the while. Weapons were useless, blades could not pierce the skin and magic might as well have been water for all the good it did. What a sorrowful catastrophe!

I awoke to terrifying screams in the night and emerged from my cell to find the keep in a horrifying state of madness. The prince stalked the halls slaying whoever he came across! He must not have seen me, thank Asura, but be murdered any who tried to flee the keep. Finally all the servants and keepers rallied around Tremones in the storage room. I saw it all from the hallway, saw the prince go in, saw the shaking men and women gather themselves around the knight… but when the prince entered darkness entered with him and it was like it all happened on a night with no moon. I held hope to my breast as I watched Tremones approach the prince, Sunrazor blazing, but the knight was cut down with a hideous cry! The remaining servants huddled together, clutching whatever weapons they could find but the prince cam on uncaring and then I saw two more creatures lurking in the shadows, falling upon the helpless victims. They were terrifying monstrosities – something out of a twisted nightmare. One was tall and covered in immense thorns and spikes, the other was shorter wielding a glaive that left horrifying rounds in whoever it touched. The massacre began and I couldn’t take it any more. But I had to do something. I rushed forwards and slammed the doors shut and locked them, then ran to the library and locked myself in. I fear he will find me even here, that prince – he should have been killed after he was born, after they saw the horns and the eyes.

Is that a sound outside my door? Asura preserve me.


----------



## Richard Rawen

*Soooooo*

Dare I ask?
What happened next?
Did they find the Prince of darkness... erm, well ok, not That Prince of Darkness, just the lower case darkness?   
Looking forward to some form of . . . continuation, exploration... closure?
I do hope all is well with you and yours Plane...
Blessings,
Richard
M < > <


----------



## Plane Sailing

Hi Richard, thanks for waking the 'nearly dead', I *must* get back to writing updates! I've had aa much more busy summer than normal, but things are quietening down a little bit now, so hopefully I'll have the chance to get back to my notes and start writing again very soon now!

Cheers


----------



## Richard Rawen

*Huzzah!*



			
				Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> Hi Richard, thanks for waking the 'nearly dead', I *must* get back to writing updates! I've had aa much more busy summer than normal, but things are quietening down a little bit now, so hopefully I'll have the chance to get back to my notes and start writing again very soon now!
> 
> Cheers




title could also be:  "I'm feeling much better now... I think I'll go for a walk..."    

So anyways, I'm sure your loyal fans would easily forgive you the 'pause' in the action once you return to spinning the fantastic tale of the Knightsbridge Company (none of which are of course still around, but hey, ya gotta call'em something   
Just thought I'd let you know we're out here, rootin for the good guys, appreciative of your time and story-telling skills.
Blessings
M < > <
Richard


----------



## Plane Sailing

They continue their search of the library and find a secret door which apparently contains a small fragment of a pass-phrase, similar to the one found by the well room. Tania is closest to working out the meaning, but doesn’t have the confidence to push her point of view, especially in the light of Trajan’s insistence that it must be something different. After much discussion they decide that they will have to return to Bridlerest and hire sages to do some research for them. They leave the site, and rendezvous with Count Noliss at his hunting lodge once more, where they bring him up to date with their discoveries (including the news of a blood relative who was once court wizard to the king) before heading off to Bridlerest. 

A week passes before they return, with their coffers slightly lighter but with more information about the history of the kings of Tanor, and in particular the kings advisor Severi. Tying things together they realise that the pass-phrase for the impenetrable doors must be “the throne belongs to Severi” spoken in infernal. An odd sentiment for the kings advisor. It seems certain that the final secret they are after lies behind the sealed doors, and these words may give them entry.

They bypass the pit and range themselves around the huge doors into the last remaining uncharted part of the dungeon. They cast their preparatory spells – inertial armour, protection from evil, displacement. Zherinda casts shield other upon Trajan. The phrase is spoken and the doors disperse into a foul smelling mist.

The room beyond is filled with darkness, dimly lit from below by a pulsing evil red light emanating from a pentagram on the floor. As the flood of evil pours forth, numbing their senses and slowing their reactions, a tall, cadaverous figure strides forth, swinging a blade of pure darkness. Swinging wildly, putting all the power it can into the blow and channelling it’s evil essence at the same time it lands a might critical hit upon Trajan; the blade passes straight through his armour as if it wasn’t there but tears into his shoulder. Zherinda cries out in agony as the “shield other” spell transfers much of the damage to her (full power attack, smite good, critical hit – did something like 80 pts damage in the one blow).

The party surge into action. Zherinda desperately heals herself, Trajan unleashes a withering flurry of attacks, M’ir uses his concussion wand to good effect once again and each of the others targets the huge figure.

The fight is all over within twelve seconds. If they hadn’t prepared themselves magically for the battle it would have gone much more badly, but together they were able to defend themselves against the slashing blade of the one-time prince and his wicked piercing tongue which thrashed around at them, while cutting him down.

Ironically, he turned out to be one of the least dangerous fights they had experienced down here!

The darkness slowly dissipates, as does the red glow of the pentagram as the curse is lifted from the keep and its environs. On the finger of the fallen prince they can see a bright gold signet ring, of the kind which signifies royal blood – the token they were hired to find! The black sword still lies where it feel on the floor. Anne-Marie attempts to pick it up and feels her life-force suppressed by its evil nature. She attempts to shatter it with Sunrazor which she recently obtained but nothing other than living flesh seems to have any effect on the composition of the sword – although it lies on the ground, no other metal or stone can touch it. Carefully it is wrapped in hides and placed in a sack.

Towards the back of the room they can see the remains of a long dead robed human, cloven in twain although his thick velvet cloak still seems in pristine condition. Next to him is a small wondrous satchel whose insides seem far larger than the outside, which contains the wizards own journal and a few odds and ends.

Severi’s own journal is revealing:

/43 Ah, the time is drawing nigh I can sense it today I cast my most potent spells into the prince, bending him even further to the control of my superior mind his body had a difficult time handling the raw power but I was able to stave off disaster using the skills taught me by the fiends I’ve been contacting recently. Soon the prince is ready to become king in name at least. My patience has at last borne fruit. Twenty long years have I waited. Sixteen long years after I touched the unborn mind of our dear prince, making him mine. Now he will grant me a kingdom.

/53 I received a letter from my fool brother Bediss today, making sure everythings running smoothly he says. Bay! Bediss is nothing more than a walking rock with a sword strapped on. The great idiot thinks the safekeeping of the prince is his responsibility. Won’t he love it when he learns the truth? I can’t wait to see the look on his face and I’ll tell him “this is what you allowed me to do, sweet brother, thank you for your trust” as I send him to the executioners block. “But the boar will charge forever” he’ll say, because that is what he always says “The boar will charge forever”. Bay! Even I couldn’t think of a more moronic saying! Damn this boar of ours. After I ascend the throne I’ll change my symbol to something else, perhaps a horned serpent. The rest of my noble family would do well to replace their boars as well if they don’t want to join Bediss in the afterlife.

/60 – that rotund, over-pious lump of a cleric is starting to annoy me. He keeps watching me and trying to listen when I enter the princes cell. He’s outlived his usefulness. I believe it is time to put my princes power to the test.

/61 – Admirable! Septimus is no more and no one suspects “noble” Severi or his highness!

/71 – Damnation. Everything has gone awry and its up to me to sort it out. The prince must be unstable; he went on some bloody rampage tonight and butchered every man woman and child he could find. I don’t doubt that I will be able to reassert control, but why must things always be difficult?

So, the prince was turned to evil by the wizard Severi who was supposed to be his guardian. Not great news for Baron Noliss von Purry, but compared to the news that there was indeed a prince of the royal line who stayed in the old family keep, it is small potatoes.

They leave, relieved to be back into the clear open air again. Only a few minutes after setting off back towards the hunting lodge they meet the Baron himself, and prepare to give him all the news…


----------



## Plane Sailing

Noliss is delighted by their news – no more minor nobility for his family! And even more intrigued by the ring. He asks to see it and Anne-Marie hands it to him.

No sooner is it in his grasp than he leaps skywards, propelled upwards by the power of his pre-cast fly spell.  He has been scrying them through all their adventures in the dungeon, and knows that with this ring he has the tangible proof he needs to bring down the current line of kings!

But there are annoyances to deal with first – having taken a single more skyward he guestures and dozens of thick black tentacles erupt out of the ground and start grappling the company!

Taken by surprise, even Trajan’s initiative fails him for once, and as he and Orlandar leap out of the grasp of the tentacles Noliss drops a cloudkill on top of their struggling companions. M’ir protects himself from the grappling damage of the tentacles by manifesting inertial barrier, which prevents their squeezing grasp from hurting him, although he still can’t struggle free. Tania thinks quickly, touching Zherinda, Anne-Marie and dimension dooring them out of the tentacles along with herself.

The Baron is flying away at high speed when he is surprised by a fireball from Tania bursting over him, and the sound of Anne-Marie virtually matching his speed as she charges through the forest paths below him. Swiftly he casts invisibility on himself and changes direction, travelling across dense forest where Anne-Marie has to slow from her breakneck speed.

Meanwhile M’ir has been attempting to struggle out of tentacles while avoiding inhaling the poisonous gas which is pooled around him. He nearly succeeds, and uses his Seer powers to manifest ‘fate of one’ and escapes at last.

Noliss has escaped, and is clearly their enemy. Anne-Marie wonders aloud if that means they are not going to get their money now. Trajan cocks an eyebrow and Tania patiently explains that a man who has clearly been studying the black arts himself, is the descendant of an evil wizard, and who just attempted to KILL THEM is probably not going to allow a little fiscal impropriety to embarrass him...


----------



## Richard Rawen

Plane Sailing said:
			
		

> ...
> 
> Noliss has escaped, and is clearly their enemy. Anne-Marie wonders aloud if that means they are not going to get their money now. Trajan cocks an eyebrow and Tania patiently explains that a man who has clearly been studying the black arts himself, is the descendant of an evil wizard, and who just attempted to KILL THEM is probably not going to allow a little fiscal impropriety to embarrass him...




Ahhh, the ole' double cross.  Tsk Tsk... and Anne-Marie, for the record, after you lay the smackdown on that black hearted curr you help yourself to his stuff!  The sad thing is that is doesn't appear as though the Company was really even suspicious of the Baron. Had he paid them their fee they would probably just moved on... but now... now they have to teach the Baron all about playing nice.  Of course that level of caster will have some goodies in store I am quite sure, assuming he doesn't just declare the PC's outlaws and turn the Good Guys against them... I definitely like this setup PS, I may have to YOINK this for my campaign, when my PC's get out of orcs and gnolls that is lol.
Thanks for the updates,
Blessings
M < > <
Richard


----------



## Plane Sailing

The bones of this adventure came from a Dungeon magazine, I'm struggling to remember which one (I think it might have been called 'Bloodlines'). I scaled the adventure up a little to suit my higher level PCs, and made some other changes to integrate it into my campaign. I really liked some of the ideas behind it though.

More coming soon...


----------



## Richard Rawen

*SHHHHHHhhhhhhhh*

if you are Reeeeallly Quiet you can hear the 
*bump*
in the long darkness that this story got lost in . . .


----------



## Plane Sailing

Thanks for the reminder bump Richard - real life is getting in the way up until next Monday, but Tuesday evening I've scheduled as a writing evening...

In the near future there are meetings with an old friend, visiting the largest city in the world, an audience with the king and the normal array of deciet and villany before heading North again for the next chunk of adventure and two PC deaths.

Oops, did I mention two PC deaths? Hush!


----------



## Plane Sailing

Not very happy with the current situation, the band make their way through the woods back in the direction of Bridlerest. Near the edge of the woods one of them becomes aware of a bird which looks suspiciously as if it is following them. Not prepared to walk into an ambush, they call out for those shadowing themselves to reveal themselves, and are surprised to hear a familiar voice from the past boom out in reply

“My friends, it is I, Juma!”

At the edge of the woods they find a well hidden campsite with four adventurers gathered around it. Juma the huge black barbarian who has fought alongside the party a couple of years ago when they first encountered the temple of elemental evil welcomes them with warmth, asking the identity of those he doesn’t know and introducing them to his new friends – Leeta the druidic shaman dressed in animal hide who crouches at the edge of the firelight. Sir Torvald, the honourbound knight of Lythau and Blenhem a wizard from the same nation.

Sharing war stories, the new party commiserate with them over the problems with Baron Noliss, and Sir Torvald suggests that their best route for seeking redress surely lies in the city of Tanor. Juma and his pals are heading northwards past their old stomping grounds and into the Barrier Range, seeking a dragonhoard which they have heard about, and a magic mirror contained therein.

“We will be rich, brothers!” Juma boasts with his customary laughter, and they spend a comfortable evening together before setting out their separate ways in the morning.

Back in Bridlerest they put their affairs in order and gather their supplies and belongings ready for the trip down to the capital of Tanor. Apart from the advice of Sir Torvald, and the fact that Baron Noliss clearly wanted to do something to destabilise the kingdom with the information they had discovered in the crypt, there was also the matter of communicating with Warlord Astimon about everything that has been going on recently – a commission with money involved.

Before they set off, it appears that letters have arrived for each of them.

Trajan has a letter from Jannek, Grey Lawgiver and head of an inquisition team and his cohort. Apparently Daros has been seen in the Borderlands, but no further action has been taken their since Borderlander Rangers killed the last inquisition team who went there. In addition the sword saint problem is due to be resolved shortly.

Trajan also has a number of letters from women at court in Bridlerest, seeking romantic liaisons, plus a letter from Countess Naomi, in very restrained language, informing him that he is to receive an honour at the court of the king of Tanor.

Anne-Marie has a letter from a group of Cadlanian guardians (psychic warriors) who wish her aid in mustering an assault on a demi plane apparently used as a prison by illithids, and a letter which is apparently written by the wizard who created her magic boots more than half a century ago before she had been time trapped. Strange because the wizards tower had been abandoned and taken over by fiends, and all the evidence suggested that he had died a long time ago, yet this was fresh writing. Furthermore, the wizard remembers that once upon a time Anne-Marie had been instrumental in the romance with his beloved, and he seeks help from her once again in romancing the reborn image of his one-time lover – Tania!

Tania has a letter in code from her Black Circle mentor Lonnia. She is to meet up with him that night to help him in a circle magic ritual. She never finds out what the ritual is used for. Tania then hurries off to make a secret report to the Morannon  ambassador, filling him in on all the information they have recently learnt.

Then it is off by coach. Four days travel down roads clogged with merchant caravans laden with grain and hay – far more than might normally be expected at this time of year. A poor harvest in Tanor perhaps? On the fourth day they come in sight of Tanor. An amazing, marvellous, vast city. It is the first time that Zherinda and Trajan have ever seen the sea, and that is wonderful in itself, but the city – it stretches for miles! And in the centre, dominating the harbour is a volcanic plug rising up above the shoreline; and on top of that is the palace of the king.


----------



## Plane Sailing

OK, I'm back to the storyhour... the extensive time since we played has removed dialog from my memory, but I want to continue the story for posterity...


 Tanor is an incredible city. The guards at the entrance gates are well equipped and well trained, not to mention polite. The party find their way to the Golden Dragon inn, and enjoy a refreshing time there and decide what to do next. A few days are spent shopping – scribing scrolls, picking up spell components (particularly pearls) and restocking their supplies. Taran spends time with his network of local contacts and discovers that there has been a major failure of the autumn harvest which has led to a terrible shortage of grain. This has caused a lot of local political unrest, and some nobles are using this problem to further their own ambitions and build support among the populace, especially with the grand moot due in a months time, when the nobles are allowed to discuss any issues before the king and the people.

Trajan arranges for a meeting with Astimon, the warlord of Duke Charis whom he had agreed to gather information for some time ago. Astimon is very interested by their news and offers them a large bag of coins for their information – and then purchases it back with further information for them, which would allow them access to the kings court.

They arrange to take a carriage up to the kings citadel, and are astonished at the cost of it. Captain Patton and the guards at the citadel give them a lot of trouble because they are not of noble blood, but Trajan intimidates Patton and gains them access.

The citadel covers the top of the volcanic plug, and is almost like a wealthy village of its own. There are beautiful flower gardens and fountains in the centre of the courtyard, and it is surrounded on three sides by baroque buildings facing towards the towers of the palace. They enter the hostel and are impressed to find that despite its luxurious nature it is actually free to all visitors to the citadel, and it is run much like a high class gentleman’s club. They attend the evening banquet and mix with a variety of different groups. Zherinda is swept off her feet by a suave noble, and spends the night in his suite. Tania gets passed a secret message by a Morannon spy from her home nation, Taran parleys his extensive knowledge of wine into conversations with senior nobles, while Trajan flirts with the ladies of the court – but gets sucked into an unwelcome wager resulting in a challenge to a duel… 


The noble involved in the duel invokes his right to have a proxy fight on his behalf, and he chooses Captain Patton. Summoned to the duelling circle in the courtyard, Captain Patton clearly thinks that this has been arranged by Trajan in another attempt to humiliate him, and expresses his disgust to him.

The combat opens with a spring attack from Trajan, which draws some blood. Patton responds with an improved disarm only just fails to work, and Trajan returns the favour with a riposte which actually disarms Patton. Trajan bends slowly to retrieve Pattons weapon and is kicked in the stomach, but he straightens up and hands the weapon back to a surprised Patton. Trajan doesn’t want to seriously hurt this innocent guard and he is pulling his strength and holding back on his attacks, although every blow counts. Captain Patton, while outmatched still fights well, using readied actions against spring attacks well. Eventually in desperation Patton tries to bull rush Trajan out of the duelling ring and drives him well back. Trajan falls over and concedes the match to Patton. When Captain Patton offers his hand to help him up Trajan calls upon Asura to heal his wounds as their hands clasp. An enemy turned into a friend that day.


----------

