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Session History
Session 17 - A Clone in the Library of Xathor
Feeling that the town of Giant Coast will be lost
whether they stay and fight or proceed to Xathor the group heads to Xathor at
best speed. Using multiple magic items and Wind Walk spells the group passes
directly over the oncoming Army of Xathor. Knowing the defenders of Giant Coast
outcome are sealed weighs heavily on the hearts of the group. They proceed
through mountain passes and over the Wall of the Dead. Across what used to the
be the Fifth Confederacy they see only destruction. Getting closer to Xathor the
ground turns to a sickening black. Only massive fires could cause so much
destruction.
They arrive in the sixth of ten rings of Xathor. This
rings seems to be almost unoccupied. They proceed into the fifth ring and see
inns and taverns and shops. They locate a place to stay for the night. The
spirit of Gallegos appears to them saying that the agents of Mil search for them
in the city even now. They decide to head for the center of the city even on
little or no rest. Fighting through three of their hunters they arrive at the
central library even more exhausted. Two Balors guard the doors and they
formulate a plan to get inside without much fighting but when they approach the
Balors hold the doors to the library open and allow them inside. Once inside
they see thousands of book, possibly millions. Stacked floor to ceiling, almost
sixty feet up. After a Commune spell from Rasti reveals that Gallegos is
directly beneath them the group starts to use some spells to dig a hole down to
him. Shortly after they start a creature looking precisely like Mil enters the
room. They stop digging and a horde of undead comes in and starts filling the
hole.
'Mil' asks them to sit down and tells them that the
demons are destroying the city. The undead are merely to hold off the demons and
rebuild the city. Questions from the group force 'Mil' to reveal that he is only
a Simulcrum of the original but that he can speak for the master. Maybe this
servant could lead them to the master.
Session 16 - Dealing with Scouts
Something is amiss in the Giant Coast. The streets are
nearly deserted and the shops empty. Stopping by the city watch Henson learns
that advance scouts for the Army of Xathor have been encountered by guard units
a few miles from the city. The scouts appear to be a team of three giants
clearing a path directly to Giant Coast. The order has been given for the town
to be evacuated and many people slow to heed the order are just now piling onto
boats in the harbor. Rasti has made contact with Maluran and the party stocks up
on supplies that are no longer available in town.
Setting out the next morning the group comes upon three
massive giants swinging huge greataxes clearing a fifty-foot wide path. The army
must not be far behind as the giants ignore the party and concentrate on their
work. The group sneaks closer but Fargoth is spotted as he attempts to sneak and
the giants turn at once to face the threat. Henson fears this may be a trap as
his first spell fizzles. Probing of the giants defenses reveals that they carry
amulets of anti-magic making the ten feet around them dead to all mortal magic.
Perhaps Mil foresaw what the giants would face as they worked eastward. After a
fierce and bloody battle the giants are slain and the group victorious. Taking
the three amulets of anti-magic the party gives them to the town of Giant Coast
hoping they will make some difference in the coming fight. The town's defenders
know the amulets will prove useful but even so powerful a magic item as this can
not change the odds of these four hundred brave defenders versus hundreds of
thousands of undead from Xathor.
Session 15 - Secret Dealings and the Lair of Tiamat
The party arrives on the Outlands. Through his research, Henson has divined
that the path to Gallegos leads them to the plane of Hell. While walking through
the forest near the portal Rasti disappears. The group searches for him and
locates a young woman in a chair next to a tree. She informs them that he was
selected for an audience with her liege and would return shortly. Rasti returns
from his meeting informing the group that Mil the Necromancer, ruler of the
Xathor, is behind their troubles on the outer planes. He has made a deal with Tiamat herself to provide legions of undead in exchange for her sending dragons
to Aram to weaken the Free Kingdoms. Stepping through the portal the group is
immediately beset by magic users, foot soldiers and a black dragon. The battle
rages on for several minutes with the group prevailing. Setting off in the
direction of Tiamat's lair the party avoids several small packs of demons, odd
sights on the plane of Hell. As they approach the lair entrance a single
humanoid stands before them. Getting closer they can tell the man is blind. He
addresses them as the siege breakers, which catches the party a bit off guard.
He is known only as the Watcher. He tells them that several demons have invaded
the lair and the dragon mother is holed up inside. The siege is being run by
three demon generals and they have at least twelve other demons working to break
down the door to the inner-lair.
The group heads inside, led by Donata and Rasti. They
notice a door up on the cave wall and realize that they have been in this cave
before (See Session 10). Knowing the layout of the cave works to their advantage
as they are able to ambush many of the straggling demons they encounter. The
three generals fight valiantly but fall one by one. However, the Watcher failed
to mention the leader of the demons, the Dark Prince.
Towering above the party at nearly twenty-five feet
tall the massive Pit Fiend bashes at the door to the inner-lair. This huge door,
seventy-five feet tall by sixty feet wide looks to be made of a single piece of
wood. As the Prince wheels to deal with the party a nicely worded Wish by Donata
releases the door from it's hinges and it crushes the Dark Prince beneath its
massive weight.
Session 14 - The Path to Gallegos
Following a path that leads through some low hills to the east the group spot
two large towers straddling the road. Closer inspection reveals the crest of
Gallegos flies from both towers. Approaching cautiously, they meet with several
clerics that worship Gallegos. Fargoth is especially puzzled by this as Gallegos
is believed to still be alive. While resting here Rasti and Donata see several
dragons circling to the east. The priests tell them that the dragons showed up
about two years ago and have been guarding a cave atop the eastern mountains. If
they follow the road east and skirt the lake of lava at the base of the hills
they will come directly to the cave, and the planar anchor between Hell and the
Abyss, a direct link between the two outer planes.
Donata devises a plan to fly below the first layer of the Abyss and use a
bottle of pigment to create an opening directly into the cave from below. As the
party travels this way Donata thinks it would be quite humorous to drain the
lava lake onto the lower layers and upsets a few thousand residents of the next
layer. While reconnoitering the cave complex Donata and Rasti spot two dragons,
one green and one black and a large winged creature that somewhat resembles the
Pit Fiend they tangled with earlier. Moving swiftly, they set to ambush the
defenders of the cave through the unguarded back door.
Donata manages to get off a sneak attack on the green dragon and sinks his
sword directly into the creature's heart, killing it instantly. The other two
defenders put up a spirited fight but are overmatched. The Half-Fiend, as Henson
has identified him, escapes through a portal that closes shortly after he uses
it. A sarcophagus lies upon a raised dais in the center of the cave. Donata,
Fargoth and Henson set to securing the cave while the priests of Gallegos are
teleported in. Inside the sarcophagus lies a battered long sword that the
priests insist contains part of the spirit of Gallegos. Teleporting back to the
hilltop overlooking the twin towers the group sees thick black smoke rising from
them. The priests of Gallegos rush to their comrades aid and the party decides
this is not part of their fight and continues back to Plaguemort.
Entering Plaguemort they are ambushed by two magic users and eight of their
henchmen. The party easily defeat them and head for the Outlands.
Session 13 - Quill of Kiv the Graven
While Henson and Fargoth continue their research Rasti
and Donata notice a lone figure following their comrades. When they confront him
he explains that his master, Maluran, seeks an audience with them. Maluran
informs them that he seeks the Quill of Kiv the Graven. It lies just north of
the city and is guarded by a single creature only referred to as the 'Guardian'.
The party secures acceptable compensation and ventures north.
The altar containing the Quill is set into a steep hillside but no creature
is nearby. Rasti decides to use his blazing speed and run for the altar,
possibly securing it before the Guardian even realizes it is in jeopardy. About
halfway across the clearing Rasti spots a fiery being about twelve feet tall
emerging from the forest. Henson immediately recognizes the being as a Pit
Fiend. Rasti beats the creature to the altar but can not find the Quill. The Pit
Fiend arrives at the altar and slices down at Rasti with a huge greatsword.
Rasti dodges and the blade impacts the altar, cracking it. Fargoth is of the
opinion that the quill is embedded in the altar. As the battle rages on around
the altar Fargoth manages to sift though the rubble and locates the Quill.
Henson transposes Fargoth from the center of the fray and the Quill is spirited
to safety. The group returns to Maluran's and presents him with the Quill.
Having received their reward, the group presses on to the planar gate on the
opposite side of Bytopia.
Stepping through the portal, the party arrives on the outer plane of the
Abyss. While Henson believes there should be hundreds to thousands of demons
here the plane seems almost abandoned. Making their way to the nearest town they
re-supply and set out in the direction they believe will lead them to Gallegos.
Session 12 - The Planar Wild Goose Chase
The journey to the portal is rather short and the group
makes it unscathed. Exiting on Valhalla they observe a battle between a
Nalfeshnee and a Hound Archon. The Archon is obviously overmatched and the group
decides to come to his aid. The Nalfeshnee summons another and the two stride
into the group wreaking havoc with their Smite abilities. The hillside runs with
the blood of several party members before the demons are subdued. Fargoth begins
healing and binding his comrades while Donata searches for a cave that Henson
read about in the area that contained another portal. By the time the party
wakes the following morning the daily battle is already underway in the valley
below. Henson explains that the city of Planesgate is what they are looking for
once they arrive on Bytopia. The group makes their way very quietly to the
portal and step through.
Bytopia, the twin planes that face each other, is very
disorienting. After a few minutes to get accustomed to their new surroundings
they head off toward a good sized hill to get a look around. They avoid several
wildlife encounters along the way but at the top of the hill they can see a town
in the distance that matches the description Henson read of in the book back in
Karuth. They arrive without incident and secure lodging. A search of the city
library results in several references to Gallegos but surprisingly few for Kiv.
The group decides to rest up here for a week or two before continuing their
search.
Session 11 - An Unwelcome Party Crasher
The group rests up near the exit to the spire before
venturing forth. The plan is for Fargoth to conceal the group from the hordes of
undead roaming the city streets while making their way toward the lower city.
When they open the door an opaque shimmering field blocks their view of the city
but there is no other way out of the warrens. The party decides to exit together
and stands face to face with a pale horseman. The horseman wears an ornate
crown, bedecked with rubies and sapphires. His address to the party is short and
to the point, hand over the bag and the party can walk away, fail to surrender
the bag and their lives are forfeit. The party decides against surrender (of
course). Four invisible archers strike from their left and right while the
horseman leisurely rides off to a safe distance. After a fierce battle the party
is able to best the four invisible archers. Having spent most of their energy
and spells they are not up for another battle when the horseman returns. The
group decides they can probably take the horseman until he casts prismatic
spray, catching the group off guard. Many in the group are rendered insane or
turned to stone in this one surprise attack. The remaining group members decide
that discretion is indeed the better part of valor and surrender the bag
containing the four dragon eggs and over 100,000gp.
The horseman disappears and the surrounding city comes
more into focus. The undead that had been forefront in their minds before
exiting the warrens now grab their attention again as they approach in mass.
They manage to escape through some back alleys. Donata comes across some
interesting shops and replenishes some of the party's lost gold. Henson suggests
heading for the city library. After several days of searching the library Henson
discovers that Gallegos and Kiv may have gone through a planar portal a few
blocks away leading to Valhalla. Yvette decides continuing with the group is
against her best interests and takes up residence in one of the abandoned
houses.
Session 10 - Ancient Tomes and Planar Gates
Behind the pit over which the armor hung the passage
continued. It led to a single door. Donata checked the door out and opened it,
revealing a twenty foot square room with a marble pedestal holding an ancient
tome in the center of the room and two doors behind the tome. The ink on the
pages of the tome seems to swirl and form words at random. Fargoth looks at it
for a few minutes and the words "We are watching you" are spelled out in
Draconic. The book is left alone for now and Rasti listens at the two doors. One
sounds like ocean waves crashing ashore at irregular intervals while the door on
the left remains silent. Donata opens the door on the right revealing a large
cave with a gapping opening facing out over a large desert valley below. The
group correctly ascertains that this door leads to the Nine Layers of Hell. They
decide to shut the door and seek another passage. As they are shutting the door
a massive eighty foot long flying lizard exits the cave and soars over the
valley below.
Exploring a circular room with magical darkness fifteen
feet off the ground Rasti discovers the secret door in the ceiling that the
spirit mentioned. The secret trap door opens into a four thousand foot tall
cylinder rising to the uppermost floors of the spire. A giant spider's nest is
discovered two hundred feet up. Henson is able to summon a fire mephit to slowly
burn the web and the spiders fall to their deaths. An unsealed door twelve
hundred feet up opens into a storage room containing four sealing rods and a
master machine rod. Rasti quickly gathers the items up and the party descends.
Peering through the trapdoor at the bottom of the
cylinder, Henson is struck by the amount of sand and in the halls. The smell of
Sulfur waifs through the air and the group rushes back to the pedestal room to
check the portal. The sand gets deeper and deeper as they get closer to the gate
room. Once to the staircase Rasti rushes ahead to replace the tome but a smaller
four legged lizard is walking around the pedestal. As Rasti sneaks into the room
the creature looks directly at him and lets out a loud roar. Rasti puts the tome
in place and makes a run for the staircase. The beast begins to chase him down
and a battle ensues near the top of the staircase. Eventually the group wins the
battle. When Fargoth enters the tome room this time the book has the word
'Commendable' scribed upon it. The group begin the task of fixing the door that
has come off its hinges and getting all the sand back onto its original plane.
While in this process a battered and bruised man approaches from the plane of
Hell. His clothes are torn and he looks to have a large red 'X' on his forehead.
He tells the party that just around the corner in the cave is a dragon hoard
that he and his compatriots were looting when the beast had shown up and killed
his partners. He had managed to escape but was in need of healing. With Donata's
interest peeked, the group ventures forth through the portal to investigate this
hoard. It is reasoned that a quick sortie into the lair grabbing everything that
they could carry and a return to the portal would only take a few minutes. They
manage to avoid harm in the geyser caves and pass over a pool of magma to find a
giant nest with six large eggs inside. Near the nest they find a charred body
and a very nice bag of holding. Donata reaches into the bag and discovers that
two eggs are already in the bag. Rather then take them out the group decides to
leave them in the bag in case the mother can sense when the eggs are in peril
and maybe while the eggs are in an extra-dimensional place they may be safe from
detection. The party continues deeper into the lair in search of the treasure
the wounded man told them of. Skirting the lava field they spy two massive piles
of coins completely unguarded. Scampering up the last ten foot wall they are
attacked by a coin creature. The creature manages to delay the party for only a
few seconds before exploding into a thousand pieces. The group gathers
everything they deem is valuable and light and scamper away. They manage to get
back to the tome room just before the mother dragon returns to her lair. Closing
the portal behind them, they pull out an odd deck of cards with emblems of
dragons on the back and begin to draw. One card Donata draws seals the portal
and the group appears to be ready to seal the warrens and return to Aram
victorious. Upon leaving the chamber the only word on the tome is 'Horrific'.
Session 9 - Shooting Rats in a Barrel
Fully rested, the party sets out to explore the rest of this level of the spire. Rounding a bend they enter a large
room with a 10' wide door and an 8' tall vase in the corner. The vase has rungs
set into the side to climb up and see what's inside. Donata scurries up the side
and peers in. The vase appears to be full of rats. The group spends quite a
while discussing how best to find out what the rats were hiding at the bottom of
the vase. Donata skillfully begins shooting the rats in the vase until a plan is
hatched to send in the party skeleton that Fargoth animated. The skeleton slugs
through the rats until only 2 rats remain. Donata kills the last two rats only
to discover that there is nothing at the bottom of the vase.
Entering the wide door Rasti spots a Lamia readying a spell. He leaps upon
this new foe and with a mighty stunning fist bludgeons the spellcaster to death.
The party looks on in amazement at the ferocity of the attack. A door beckons
from across a small chasm. Donata inspects the door then deftly pops it open. In
the room beyond is a solitary iron statue. As Phi-Thorn approaches the statue
animates and attacks with a massive two handed sword. Caught off-guard,
Phi-Thorn is gravely wounded. The creature turns to attack Rasti but instead
falls forward and disintegrates at the party's feet. A green cloud ushers forth
from the fallen foe, Rasti manages to dive away but Phi-Thorn, still staggering
from the previous attack, is caught in the cloud. Fortunately, the cloud is
beneficial,, granting Phi-Thorn even greater strength. Behind the statue is a
door leading to a vault. Upon inspection a strange deck of cards is found.
Continuing, the group is stopped by a massive stone blocking the entire
passageway. Another route will need to be found. Backtracking a bit, Donata
traces the blockage to a particular side passage. Investigating the passage,
Donata stealthily approaches an open room. Inside he sees an Illithid with some
cohorts discussing an ambush on the party. Instead, the party jumps into the
room and ambushes their assailants. A wild battle ensues with the party emerging
victorious. Resting here seems the wisest course of action.
After a well deserved rest, the group continues on. Spying a Will-o-Wisp
perched above a rickety wooden staircase the group attacks with Phi-Thorn's
height coming in handy. Further down this passage a strange sight befalls the
heroes, a suit of full plate armor hanging from a noose. Approaching carefully,
they are asked to help put a long dead soul to rest. For information,
specifically the location of the sealing rod, they agree to put the soul to
rest.
Session 8 - Into the Spire of Karuth
The night spent in the entryway to the spire was
interrupted several times by the scratching on the double doors. The mindless
undead outside seem to lose interest sometime during the night. After a bit of
exploring the party sets out towards the spire. Donata takes the lead and stops
just short of an eighty foot deep chamber cut directly into the rock. Upon
further inspection it appears to be a nearly perfect sphere removed from the
worked rock passage. Donata deftly scales down the rock face and finds a rough
tunnel at the bottom. The rest of the group manages to get down the rock face
with only a single member tumbling down. Fargoth thinks he spots something
moving in the cave and the party decides to scramble up the other side of the
cavern and continue to the spire before combat ensues. Donata manages to make it
to the top of the cavern but finds nothing to tie a rope off to. Trying to
assist the team scale the near vertical wall Donata almost plunges to the bottom
after Fargoth loses his footing. Luckily, Donata manages to hang from the ledge.
A huge Umberhulk appears from the cave and starts up the side of the cavern,
clobbering anyone in his path. The group barely survives the battle and searches
the creatures cave and finds some old relics the beast was hoarding.
Another night passes peaceably while our heroes recover
from their latest battle. The rough cavern opens into a worked stone area and
the sound of picks working stone can be heard from up ahead. Donata scouts ahead
of the party to check out the sounds of mining. He spies six goblins with picks
trying to free what looks like a coffin from the hillside. Two other creatures
are nearby and look to be in charge of the mining party. While the party does
not know if the miners are friendly or not they hatch a plan to ambush the group
with ranges weapons. A well placed fireball from a necklace of fireballs chars
all the goblins and gravely wounds the leader of the mining party. The group
manages to mop up the leader and his assistant in short order. They decide to
pull the coffin that the goblins were working on from the wall and see what it
contains. After a few hours they are able to unearth the ancient box. Donata
locates a trap but is unable to disarm it. He decides to open the box anyway and
the trap is far more powerful then he expected, immediately knocking him out.
Fargoth tends to his fallen comrade while the group inspects its find. Two
massive swords in separate compartments occupy the box. Removing them from the
case, Phi-Thorn is the only one large enough to wield one effectively.
Around the next corner, a wraith emerges from the
shadows but a timely charge from the staff of illumination destroys the
creature. The party finds a massive gemstone on a pedestal inside the wraiths
room. Resting here the party prepares for what lies ahead.
Session 7 - Through Marraketh to Karuth
After resting up inside the door leading to Marraketh, the party ventures onward.
Traveling the streets of the ancient city, Henson and Fargoth notice that the
shadows seem to move around their lantern light. They decide to take a direct
route to the northwest gate, the one that Kyrandor told them leads to Karuth. As
they reach the end of the main boulevard that heads in that direction they
notice that their lantern light no longer penetrates the darkness. They make out
a faint outline about twenty feet tall. When the large shadow starts to move
toward them they decide to switch streets. The feint fails to shake the creature
and it lands directly in front of them. Henson uses the Staff of Illumination
and gravely wounds the creature but Fargoth's Searing Light spell seemed to have
no effect on it. The creature casts a Confusion spell on Fargoth and Henson but
Phi-Thorn and an unknown assistant continued the fight, finally defeating the
creature. The unknown spellcaster that lent her assistance introduced herself as
Yvette. The group decided to hurry on towards the door before the shadows could
regroup and finish them off. Once they reached the gate they were able to figure
out its code from the map Kyrandor gave them. Swinging the gate open they gazed
upon a grassy, sun-drenched, hillside.
Steeping through the gate they witness creatures big
and small fleeing up the hill. They decide to lay low for a bit, then they see
the reason for the mass exodus, two titans striding through the valley. Since
they know that titans are creatures of good, the party continues on toward
Karuth without delay.
Arriving in the great city of the valley, the group
finds less then 1,000 living inhabitants in a city easily able to support more
then 100,000. They find a place to stay for the night and then scout the upper
city. Unfortunately, the upper city has been inhabited by countless wandering
undead for the past 40 years. Fargoth convinces the party that he can cast a
spell that could get them through the undead and into the entrance to the Spire
without a fight. The plan works to perfection, until they open the door to the
spire. A grotesque creature manages to grab a hold of Henson just as they are
entering the hall. After the creature is able to paralyze Phi-Thorn and Fargoth,
Henson comes up with a plan to use the Staff again. After a bolt from the staff
the creature turns on Henson and knocks him unconscious. With the creature
pummeling Yvette, Donata manages grab the Staff from Henson and activate it,
destroying the creature but mortally wounding Fargoth.
Session 6 -
Journey to Marraketh
It is decided that the group
should seek out the path of Gallegos and Kiv the Graven. During
re-provisioning Phi-Thorn discovers an old prospector, Ferdinand,
selling a magnificent set of full plate. Fargoth decides to purchase
the armor. Henson purchases a wand from the local arcanist,
but finds he has been taken when the wand only contains eight
charges. Setting out to the West they come to the tiny village of
Gunity. Stopping here may be the wise as this is the last town
before entering the mountains. Henson is unable to sleep as he keeps
hearing singing. Donata sneaks out to check out the singing and
spots a young man with Ferdinand's possessions. The whole group now
ventures out to confront this man. Upon arriving however, everyone
can see he's the same old man that they remember from Santorium
Void. Rasti stays hidden nearby until the old man goes to sleep.
They come to the conclusion that they are being paranoid and go
about their business. The next morning Rasti follows the old man out
of town. The old man appears to be carrying a huge load but moves
pretty well. About 500 yards from town the old man just disappears.
The party leaves town only to be ambushed when the path winds
through a chasm. The arrows only target Fargoth and strike home with
an eerie precision. Maniacal laughter echoes through the cavern as
arrow after arrow pummels Fargoth. Donata and Rasti finally catch a
glimpse of their attacker and scramble up the hillside to confront
him. As they crest the hill they discover six copies of a young
archer. As he falls back he yells out, 'Now my minions", and six
skeletal warriors appear on the opposite hillside tumbling down
towards the party's cart with all their winter supplies and rations.
Quick thinking and poor accuracy from Henson's Staff of Illumination
decimates the undead threat but also destroys the cart, the donkey,
and the winter supplies.
After defeating Simon,
Fargoth's archenemy, the group continues down the path. Coming to a
valley with a large cottage centered in a clearing at the valley
floor. Another four hours walk and they arrive at the cottage. The
cottage appears to be carved from a single rock. The workmanship is
obviously dwarven, as the cottage is three stories tall and fifty
feet on a side. Fargoth is able to make out the runes on the door
which read 'Kyrandor, Guardian of Marraketh'. With no answer at the
door the group decides to camp on the edge of the clearing. Kyrandor
arrives shortly thereafter and allows the party to rest up in his
home. During their discussions they learn that Kyrandor is the last
descendant of the Forgehammer clan. His clan has guarded the
entrance to the ancient dwarven city for the past 600 years.
Furthermore, they learn that a passage through Marraketh lead to the
lost city of Karuth. Kyrandor agrees that the party can use this
passage if they will help him drive off the beasts that have been
attacking the entrance of the city.
Cresting a small hill the
party spies two Chimeras and a Wyvern near the massive door. They
assist Kyrandor in killing the beasts and he lets them enter the
ancient city. Just inside the door the group rests up for the long
journey ahead.
Session 5 - The
Defeat of Urki
After resting the party continues deeper into the
kobold lair. Donata locates a secret door leading to the outside and the party
decides they can use this passage if they get in trouble further into the
complex. They continue, coming to a transition from tunnels to worked stone and
proceed more cautiously. Donata surprises two kobolds on sentry duty and the
party overcomes them quickly. A prison compound is found to hold over 100
kobolds, rather then releasing them they learn of an obstacle course that the
kobolds are expecting to enter to earn their freedom. It is decided to leave
them here and continue on. Donata accidentally triggered a boulder trap but
managed to sidestep it as it rolled down an incline, Henson wasn't so lucky.
After much healing, the group continues. Henson is able to deftly get the party
across a chasm but a pool of acid in the next room presents a problem. It is
decided that the group will conscript a kobold from the prison to test the acid
pool. The eager volunteer leaps into the pool, swims across, leaps out and
continues without looking back. Eventually the party crosses the pool with
Henson's help and comes to a locked door. Nearly spelled out they decide to
press on. Donata opens the door to find three archers with arrows nocked. The
initial volley almost kills Donata as she struggles back to cover. Phi-Thorn
rushes forward driving the table providing cover for the archers back into the
wall. A frenetic battle ensues leaving only Fargoth and Rasti not knocked out.
Session 4 - Into
the Orge Den
After resting in the now empty displacer beast cave the
party entered the leftmost cave. Forty feet into the cave Donata spots an ogre
lair to the left. Donata manages to avoid the ogre mother but the fight is on
when Rasti takes poorly aimed shot at the lumbering brute. A heated battle takes
place with no fewer then three party members wrestling with ogres. Proceeding a
bit more cautiously now, the party is able to ambush a hobgoblin sentry force
and then take the main hobgoblin lair by force. Discovering a stirge trap near
the hobgoblin lair, the party traps 6 stirges and releases them further into the
dire kobold lair.
Session 3 - Dire
Kobold Raid
The party was ambushed in town by larger then normal
kobolds. Some townspeople have taken to calling them Dire Kobolds. Two merchants
were gravely wounded during the ambush. The party was hired shortly thereafter
to assess the kobold menace and drive them off. While traveling northwest of
town a small hill with two cave entrances was located. Investigating the
rightmost cave, Donata came face to face with a displacer beast. A fierce battle
ensues with the party narrowly coming out on top.
Session 2 -
Defeat of the Beast Lord
Proceeding cautiously through the hallways of
this underground labyrinth the party encounters several zombies, an occasional
skeleton, two ghouls, and two bickering female wraiths. Leaving the wraiths to
themselves seems the best course. Fargoth locates a secret door in a cut stone
wall and Donata is able to open it. It opens into a throne room occupied by a
single giant skeleton. Defeating the skeleton seems a bit too easy so the group
pushes on. after locating another secret door they discover a larger room
holding only a single coffin on a raised dais. Donata approaches and
touches the coffin, awakening the long sleeping occupant. The large ghoul that
emerges from the coffin proves no match for the party.
Session 1 - Call
for Adventurers
A call for adventures goes out from Santorium Void.
Many requests have come from the Northlands Woods but orc and goblin raiding
parties have also been getting dangerously close to Santorium Void. Two parties
are recruited, one heading to the Northlands and one dealing with the problems
at home. Phi-Thor, Donata, Henson, and Fargoth set out to deal with the local
problems. While traveling southwest out of town they come across two goblins
digging up graves in an unmarked cemetery. The party is able to sneak up on them
and kill one while capturing the other. The captured goblin tells them his
master seeks the thighbone of a long dead dwarven king. Continuing southwest
they come across and defeat four goblins. One carries a map. Following the map
they come to a small forest and just inside the tree line discover an odd gate.
Two crystal globes atop four foot tall pillars guard the path deeper into the
woods. Hiding, the party learns how to bypass the gate when another goblin
raiding party passes through. In a clearing not far from the gate Fargoth spots
door in a hill side. Donata manages to open the door and the group proceeds
inside. Once inside, they are beset by zombies almost immediately. The wandering
adventurer Rasti, following the group at a distance, decides to lend his
assistance and the zombies are defeated.
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