Preamble#

The trail of blood lead from the western door at (M), through the hastily erected defenses in the entrance to (N), to the two bodies Flint was examining when some sort of ward in the western wall blew up in his face, literally. The sitting corpse showed no outward signs of injury, though the man he cradled in his arms had been sorely wounded, as if by claws. Black studded leather armor rent asunder. Menka cast 2 cure light wounds on Flint, bringing him up to 25 points.

Ulland told us that these dead men were likely not part of his cousin’s party. Fenrig is a mage, these two were wearing armor.

Fixing some equipment iniquities

• Menka gave the +2 Cloak of Protection to Flint
• Flint gave the +2 Ring of Protection to Menka

Frozen Slime#

Flint’s magical gear survived the conflagration, his non-magical gear did not. His clothing was a scorched, shredded mess. He checked the room for traps, finally, finding none. None left, that is. Kyril remained on guard duty across from the door at (M).

The party had been scanning Ulland’s map (Session the 12th) regularly. Our location was defined precisely, trap and all, and a note on the map made clear that something was hidden in the northeast corner at (P). Flint checked out that corner and found a loose stone plate. Prodding at it as well as he could, he couldn’t lift it.

Gonchar just happened to have a crowbar. No comment. Gonchar, Lycovyne and Menka ganged up on the prybar and failed, collectively. Kyril, disparaging the virility of everyone involved, shoved them all aside and pried the stone plate open.

The plate formed a 3x3 hatch. When pried up and shoved aside it opened into a 5’ tall tunnel, flowing with brackish water. Gonchar went down. Again. There was about 4 ½’ standing room. Good for Gonchar, tight for the humans and elves.

He found himself standing in 6" of water and could see 20’ east down the tunnel - a tunnel carved out of the living rock - rough hewn stone, buttressed like a mine shaft, which ended in a stone wall.

Gonchar began moving slowly eastward in the tunnel and Flint dropped down behind him. At the same time something green and slimy dropped onto Gonchar. Flint saw it happen and shouted back to the party accordingly. He then set to scraping the green slime off. Nasty. We had max 4 melee rounds to kill it.

Menka dropped into the tunnel, dropped to one knee and cast chill on the slime, freezing it. Gonchar had to save against something and saved. He did not turn into a green slime (due to the chill?). Flint scraped the rest of the frozen green slime off Gonchar, while Gonchar took 9 points of damage total from the slime and the chill spell.

• green slime, 10 hp

Gonchar was nearly frozen, probably frostbitten. We warmed him up with a torch. Lycovyne offered to cast fireball on him to thaw him out.

Would checking for traps have given us a chance to avoid this? Yes, but Gonchar had taken point and not checked. Afterwards, Flint found a loose stone that triggered the trap.

Menka climbed back up out of the tunnel and Gonchar and Flint moved cautiously forward, with the latter checking for traps and secret doors. He found a loose stone in the ceiling down by the stone wall. Another hatch, but out of reach for the dwarf.

Menka dropped back into the tunnel made for shrimps and on one knee cast protection from evil on himself. Lycovyne joined him at the end of the tunnel and together they pushed up on the hatch. Coins fell on Menka and Lycovyne from above. Loot!

Air Dance#

The two managed to slide the hatch aside, though their effort was hindered by large quantities of coin of all denominations piled on and around the plate. Bracing himself, Menka stood up through the hatch and looked around. The small room was filled with massive quantities of coin, gems, weapons and other interesting items.

Flint climbed walls and entered the room in darkness. His infravision showed him nothing, so Menka tossed him a CL coin. He found himself blinded by all the coinage, and ankle deep in it. The room seemed empty enough, but he felt himself get struck by something and took 6 points of damage

• Flint jumped back down into the tunnel taking 8 points of falling damage
• he was covered in cuts and slashes
• Menka and Lycovyne hoisted Gonchar up into the room
• he was immediately hit by something for 7 points of damage
• the attacks seemed to be coming from the coins, he could see disturbances like waves
• he swung his axe in the general direction of the last attack and hit something for 16 points, feeling and hearing an exhalation of air
• Menka climbed up, got hit for 10 points by the invisible assailant
• Gonchar made some sort of save (yes?), was able to track the disturbances in the coins and fend off its attacks
• Menka missed it
• Lycovyne climbed up
• no initiative
• Lycovyne nailed it for 7 points
• Menka got hit for 12 more, bringing him down to 15 hp
• Menka attacked with his flail, expending a drain charge - hit it for 11 points and gained 6 points
• Lycovyne hit it again for 9 points
• no initiative
• Menka stayed in the fight and it missed him, praise Thoth!
• Gonchar got hit for 6
• it missed Lycovyne
• Kyril appeared through the hatch (having been retrieved by Flint) and cast faerie fire
• it affected everyone in the room
• Gonchar missed it though he could now see it
• Lycovyne nailed it for 11 points
• Menka hit it for 12 more
• initiative loss
• Gonchar got hit for 14 but it missed Menka and Lycovyne
• Lycovyne missed
• Gonchar hit it twice (3/2) for 22 points, killing it with a popping sound
• Menka cast stumble on one of the creatures made visible by Kyril’s spell
• initiative tie
• Lycovyne hit one of the creatures with 2 magic missles for 11 and 12 points, killing it with a pop
• the stumble had worked - the remaining creature took a lunge at Menka but botched it and missed by a mile
• Gonchar, with a natural 20, hit it for 24 points of damage, killing it with a pop
• surprise
• immediately 4 zombies appeared in the 4 corners of the room
• Menka turned them successfully, destroying them in the process, praise Thoth!
• they dropped to the ground and continued to rot
• 4 zombies (16, 13, 9, 8 hp)
• 3 invisible stalkers (57, 42, 33)

Kyril cast detect magic while the party squabbled over what to do next.

Treasure room, invisible stalker loot:

• sword (magic)
• rod, weapon-like quality (magic)
• wand (magic)
• scepter, heavily jeweled (uber-valuable but not magic)
• necklace with 3 rubies (priceless but non-magical)
• 5 gold rings (non-magical)
• 40 gems
• 1 good-sized diamond
• tabulated by Gonchar and Flint:
  • 3,000 gold pieces
  • 200 platinum pieces
  • 1500 electrum pieces

Kyril wandered back into the pillbox room at (N) while the detect magic was active but did not sense any magic there, nor did he detect any at the doors at (M). While he was at those doors, however, he left the room with the DM and came back a little while later, returning to the treasure room a sweat-soaked mess.

While at (M) he met another messenger from the cosmic satyr, this time a creature of steam, not of smoke . The creature came bearing a message but could not read it and destroyed it, probably a pulpy, wet mess. The creature knew the gist of it, and related the same to Kyril:

• down into the pit
• toward the rising sun
• to the evacuated drow prison
• follow the road of lanterns to the many-pillared hall
• show the wizard his (Kyril’s) sigil (see below)
• will be taken to a town
• can be trained, rest, etc

The party wondered if we would be able to leave and return at the same time. Interplanar travel and all that.

Wounds Are All I’m Made Of#

The party was in rough shape (see table just above). Half the party below half, and Flint down below 25%. While the party tried to decide where to rest, Kyril cast cure serious wounds on Flint, then followed it up with 2 CLWs, bringing him up to full at 48 points. He then changed into a dog and barked at everyone for a while before changing back, gaining 2 points for himself.

Several of us argued that this nasty chamber we found ourselves in had only one entrance, the hatch in the floor, and was therefore easy to secure for resting. That argument carried the day and we decided to rest and heal in the treasure room.

We rested for 8 hours, in this order:

• Menka, Kyril
• Ulland, Flint, Arkadios
• Lycovyne, Gonchar

Once refreshed, Kyril and Menka had 9 cure light wounds and 1 cure serious wounds spells available. Menka, Lycovyne and Kyril each received 2 cure light wounds and Gonchar received 3, bringing us to the totals at the right. Kyril’s 4th level cure spell was reserved, and we rested for 2 hours to get all the CLWs back. The numbers to the right include hit points gained from sleep.

Below Duneen’s Hideout#

Refreshed and healed, we were still in a room with 4 rotting zombies. Foul. Time to move on. We slid the hatch aside, dropped down into the tunnel and schlepped back to (M) and opened the door. Gonchar and Arkadios seemed to have some sort of caper brewing.

The door at (M) opened into a long room with an equally long table. The table was 50’-60’ long. No chairs were visible, but bits of wood were strewn about. Menka decided not to walk down the center of the table. The room had been robbed of anything valuable.

We walked the length of the musty room and saw a body in front of a cupboard against the eastern wall. Gonchar approached the corpse carefully. It had been looted and wore neither shoes nor armor. The corpse was likely weeks old.

Flint checked the cupboard for traps (I hope). He and Gonchar opened it and found silverware and one, solitary gold plate. Gold plate + body smelled like a trap. We made a note to come back and detect magic in this area.

We marched back to the door at (M) and turned south, then east down a hallway. At (1) on the second level we encountered some giant ants. Kyril made out with one of them for a few minutes and then they walked by, leaving us alone.

We continued east for a bit. A hallway branched south - Gonchar snuck around the corner to check it out and was immediately beset by a strange attack of horror of being stuck underground. We avoided that hallway and walked east.

At (3) we found ourselves in the tunnels under Duneen’s hideout. We saw again the dread-inducing statue at (4), some new form built on an old statue. We were glad the newer form was shattered and no longer visible. The dead goblin was still on the ground and dried excrement covered everything.

MAP: SECOND FLOOR UNDERGROUND#

We continued south down the hallway. The statue at (5) was similar the statue at (4) only large. It was broken as well, thankfully. Continuing south we came upon a large room at (6). Seeing a body on the floor in the center of the room, Flint hid in shadows and walked in carefully, only to be attacked from behind a few feet in. Of course.

• surprised
• looked like a squad of undead goblins
• they surrounded Flint
• one hit him for 8 points, though he made his save vs. paralyzation (claw/claw/bite)
• a 2nd one hit him for 4 points, total though he saved vs. poison as well
• the 3rd goblin hit him for 2 more points
• Flint hit one for 7 points of damage
• Menka turned them without rolling, automatically, and they buggered off
• 3 goblin ghouls, turned
• Flint down to 34 points

Flint walked out into the now otherwise empty room to examine the body. It was a human corpse, not robbed, but strangely drained. Exploring around we found slain, bloated goblins at (7) and heard a rustling noise at (8). He checked for locks and found an amateurish, cobbled-together lock. He picked it and opened the door. Apparently, we barged into the room head-first - Not a great idea, need to break the habit. And then, death from above.

• initiative loss
• party attacked by stirges
• a stirge latched on to Flint, doing one point of damage
• Ulland gained a stirge as well, taking 3 points of damage
• several missed Kyril
• one missed Gonchar
• one missed Arkadios
• Ulland gained another and lost 1 more point
• another one latched onto Flint
• Menka hit one of the stirges for 4 points of damage and Kyril hit the same one again for 6 points, killing it
• Arkadios hit one, killing it
• Lycovyne hit one of the stirges on Flint and killed it
• Gonchar splattered one all over the place with his axe
• Arkadios killed one
• Ulland dropped his bow and drew his dagger
• initiative tie
• Ulland took 7 more points of damage from the stirges attached to his body
• Flint gained another stirge and lost another point
• Ulland stabbed one with his dagger but did not kill it
• Menka knocked one off Ulland, killing it
• Flint missed, twice
• Lycovyne skewered one on Flint with a natural 20
• Gonchar killed another
• Arkadios missed
• initiative win
• Ulland missed
• Flint hit one twice, killing it
• Arkadios missed
• Gonchar killed one
• the remaining stirge attached Gonchar, sucking up 4 points worth of blood
• initiative win
• Gonchar killed the last one
• 9 or 11 sturges?

We searched the room at 8 after dealing with the airborne menace. There were several bodies strewn about. It looked to have once been a wine cellar. There were no other doors.

We backtracked a bit to the door at (9). The door was open and Flint found no traps. In the middle of the room chains hung from a beam into a pit. The winch system showed signs of recent use. Gonchar peered into the pit - it was at least 60’ deep, he couldn’t see the bottom.

An elvish word was inscribed in chalk on the northern wall: Celedrinn. While we examined the northern wall and checked for secret doors we triggered a magic mouth which provided the following message and then disappeared:

“We could not find the secret entrance to the catacombs - we are descending into the pit to see if it leads to the catacombs - Marix”

The magic mouth was speaking in an elvish dialect - Lycovyne and Kyril translated for the rest of the party, although Menka speaks elvish just fine. The party decided to leave the pit unexplored for now and headed toward the door at 10. Strangely, Flint heard nothing at the door. It was locked, so he picked it and opened the door.

A rather large half-orc that we didn’t recognize stood on the other side of the door. Menka wasn’t sure if there was a half-orc alive or dead that he’d recognize. Behind the half orc was assembled a party of adventurers, several clad in red robes.

A Reunion#

Ulland burst into the room, past Flint, and embraced his cousin, Fenrig. We had finally found his party. Fenrig was rather pleased to see Ulland and the two men made an effort to speak privately in a crowded, tense room.

Those men in Fenrig’s party robed in red also wore an amulet displaying a fiery amoeba with testicles tentacles. “cousin Alva Heard”?? One Kovar Fifth was obviously in charge. Tensions were high in the room due to our unexpected intrusion, but we spoke with this Kovar for a bit.

Kovar told us that the Innsport “pilgrims” enter the pit at (9) but do not return (yes?). “They follow their own faith…”

Tensions were indeed high in the room. Fenrig’s party was glaring at him for talking to Ulland and holding them up. Kyril tried to engage Kovar in further conversation without much luck. As a way of breaking up the stress, and knowing we wished to continue onward, Ulland told the party (us) he wished to stay and talk with his cousin about near future plans. We said “ok” and Menka walked toward the door in the western wall.

On our way through the room, Kovar told us they were looking for one of the lost amulets of their faith with a glowing jewel in it. We told him we’d keep our eyes peeled and walked through the door into what seemed to have once been a scribe’s office.

The room was littered with quills, inkpots, etc., all dry and worthless with the years. 2 doors in the south wall were barred from our side. Through the door to (11) we entered a room with multi- colored writing on one wall. We were all transfixed by the writing (after failing a save?) for a short time, and some of us were transformed as well.

• Lycovyne and Gonchar looked at the wall and felt a pleasant sense of warmth and peace. They did not need to save. It was just an unusually pleasant place in a crawling hole of rotting woe and chaos.
• Arkadios most certainly did not like it
• Menka looked and his worldview shifted from true neutrality to a marked tendency towards neutral good
• Kyril looked at it and felt good but was otherwise unaffected

“This temple is a place of powerful magic where the powers of the outer planes dabble in matters of the prime material plane, and the cleric was affected.” – DM

Shaking off the trance-inducing effect of the writing we continued through the room and around the corner, into a shrine of some sort. There was a door in the south wall at the far end of the shrine. At that door, Flint found nothing and heard the same. The door was large, with ornate carvings. The faces in the carvings had been chipped away and defaced.

Flint opened the door into the room at (12). We saw columns down the center of a long room, and then we were surprised by 5 humanoids with glowing eyes.

• initiative loss

• the creatures wore the same red raiment a Fenrig’s party

• Menka turned them, but only 1 out of 5 - curses!

• party attacked by 4 wights who had won initiative

• Gonchar got hit for 1 point of damage and got level drained

  • lost 1 level and 13 hit points
  • 61 hp max, 26,500 XP

• Flint hit one for 4 points

• Lycovyne nailed another for 13 points

• Kyril stone shaped a wall into place between us and them and we all shit a collective brick.

  That sucked. Thoth was clearly displeased at Menka’s earlier readjustment. The party, deflated and demoralized, walked back to the shrine at (11). We would have to deal with the wights later. Continuing our retreat, we found that Fenrig’s party was gone, and Ulland had left with them.

Into The Pit#

We hung fire for a bit, uncertain. 3 party members wanted to drop into the pit and try to follow up on the list of steps the steam mephit had read off to Kyril. The remainder wished to backtrack to the surface at once, regroup and go somewhere to rest, somehow. 3/2, the decision was made to go down into the pit at (9).

(The notes mention “Kyril at 29” here but I can’t back that up. The current totals since our last rest per the notes are at the right.)

We headed back to the room at (9) and examined the scene. Flint decided to use the Ring of Feather Fall. Menka, Gonchar and Lycovyne would ride the carpet down, and Lycovyne would come back up and bring down Kyril and Arkadios.

We made the journey down through the hatch. It was not a tunnel down, the opening was a hatch in a large domed roof. We made it safely to the floor far below (3rd level map, below) and encountered 3 young males. They were bumpkins in out-of-date clothes, also fishlike, with scales and large, unblinking eyes.

• They responded quickly - one ran for reinforcements, one began casting a spell and the 3rd attacked us.
• Lycovyne cast web on the one running for help
• the spellcaster cast darkness 15'
• Menka hit an assailant for 6 points
• Gonchar hit just barely for 13 points, killing one
• One attacked Menka but missed, praise Thoth!
• Gonchar hit Menka’s assailant, the hit him again, killing
• one left, what to do
• Gonchar grappled the remaining humanoid, throttled him a bit, tried to get him to speak
  • “we are going to see them in the sleeping city”
  • “HE will awaken”
  • “SHE will be mad at us and so will the rest of them”

Wearing the Ring of Free Action Gonchar bound the creature and left it in the web spell. We headed generally east from there, “toward the rising sun”. We left the domed hall and entered a tight, cramped, collapsed tunnel. We were forced to proceed single-file.

At the end of the cramped tunnel we found a large, wide door in the northern wall. We had to scramble over the rubble at the end of the hallway at (B) to reach it. The door was covered in Drow markings and spider insignia. It was also made of mithril. Flint found a trap on the door and removed it, an old, rusty needle. Opening the door, we moved through.

The Drow Prison#

70 feet down the hallway we came upon portcullis gates - one open and leading north, and a second blocking the tunnels east. A minotaur and a skeleton faced us through the eastern portcullis, trying to reach the winch to lift the gate which was on our side. We all failed a bend bars check on the winch. No more mention of the skeleton or the minotaur. A similar portcullis blocked the far northern end of the hall.

Turning north again we came to a door in the western wall. The door opened into a 20’ room with a door in the far wall. It seemed to be an old filing or processing office with scrolls and scroll storage everywhere. Unfortunately, none of the party could read Drow. Flint attempted to read languages but was unable to read any of the scrolls.

Flint found no traps and heard no noises at the door in the western wall. A storage room, not much to find. We did find a set of keys in the room, which we kept. Lycovyne also found a secret door in the south wall. It led into a large room with a with a table against the western wall. 4 odd, gray, identical gems sat on the table. (one of the walls) contained 4 slots, one in each corner, that looked like they’d just fit the gray gems.

We left the room for a bit to have a whack at the portcullis at (E). Gonchar failed to bend the portcullis, but Menka succeeded, praise Thoth! Gonchar then had a moment, as it were, and ran back to the small office, intent on stuffing the gray gems into the 4 matching slots. Incidentally the secret door into the records room at (D) was hidden in a large fireplace.