Arendel’s Serpent's Skull Journal. (Complete! 06/25/13, With Pictures!)

Arendel’s Serpent's Skull Journal. (Complete! 06/25/13, With Pictures!)


No, the Heroes of the Barrow have not returned… Instead we have the 5 Castaways and their adventures through the Serpent’s Skull Adventure Path. This is a Pathfinder game with 5 players and 1 DM. 4 of the participants you may recognize from the original Story Hour, with 2 new players, picked up during Shackled City. One of those 2 has decided to take the reins as DM, allowing me to participate as a player.

Though many seem to dislike the “journal” style story hour, I’m going to use this as a tool to keep track of my characters experiences through the AP and hopefully someone will enjoy reading it. This journal will of course contain spoilers for the Serpents Skull AP and will be from the (perhaps limited) perspective of my character, Arendel Whisperson. Unlike most adventurers, Arendel is not a brooding orphan. He is a happy, well adjusted son of a single mother (a powerful Eldritch Knight) on a quest to sate his desire for knowledge. He prefers diplomacy (World Traveler (Diplomacy) Trait) over fighting, but will defend himself and his friends in a pinch.

DM – Soanso

The 5 PC castaways are as follows:

Arendel Whisperson – Human Fire Elemental Wizard 1 (Abciximab)
Chumba-Wumba – Human Female Barbarian 1 (Gretchen)
Max “Little” Hammer – Human Fighter 1 (Peteinmaine)
Acemodius and Kay Es – Tiefling Summoner 1 and his Eidolon. (Mundinironhand)
Taraz Nadar (AKA: T’ar Roddan) – Aasimar Oracle 1 (Adam B.)

As this is a player’s journal, my perspective on events may be skewed. Please keep future spoilers out of the thread.

Castaways.​

I am unsure of the date, the 20th of Erastus perhaps?

It is evening now and a lot has happened today, so I will try not to forget anything. It began with dinner aboard the Jenevire (last night I believe), the ship I had booked passage on to complete my journey to Sargava. We had been invited to participate in a special dinner to celebrate 100 days at sea and our imminent arrival in Sargava. All the passenger were there as well as Captain Kovak, his First Mate Alton Devers and two crew members who had been a loyal part of his crew for the longest period of time. My memory of what happened next is foggy at best. We started the meal… then awoke on a beach being attacked by sea-scorpions!

I awoke to find the ships healer, an oracle named T’ar Roddan, fending off one of the lobster-like creatures. I called forth a jet of flame and incinerated one of the monsters. The oracle crushed a second that was before him and Chumba-Wumba got up and crushed the third.

With the immediate threat removed we took in our surroundings. All our gear was piled on the beach in boxes and we were all fairly dry, leading me to the conclusion we had been marooned. Purposefully put off the ship onto a deserted Isle!

Just as we started cursing the Captain and his crew, we spotted the wreck of the Jenivere being pounded against some nearby rocks by the waves. It would seem someone had, in fact, rescued us. There were signs of a long boat having pulled up onto the beach, but no sign of any of the three longboats that had been on the Jenevire remained. How we got here remains a mystery. We gathered what we could and sorted our gear. We planned to explore what was left of the ship as soon as the tide receded to a point where we could reach it.

In addition to myself there were the following survivors. Only two of the ship’s crew seems to have benefited from our mysterious saviors. One was a tall, strong and capable sailor (with almost no actual sailing skill come to find out) named Max “Little” Hammer. I got the “Hammer” part right away, as he wields a Meteor Hammer, two steel balls connected by a length of chain. The “Little” I didn’t get at first, but he has related to me that it was a nickname given to him by his father that just happened to “stick”, as it were. The other crewmember was T’ar Roddan, the ships healer. Both seemed personable as well as capable.

Of the passengers there was Chumba-Wumba, a tall, strong, Human Barbarian Woman and a Male Tiefling named Acemodius, or “Ace” as he likes to be called. It would seem Ace is a Summoner and has a somewhat demonic looking creature he calls Kay Es (pronounced like “K S”) that follows him about and does his bidding. Both also seemed fairly personable and capable. The other passengers, I’m not so sure about. They are quite the handful and seemed to need be convinced to stay together and work as a team. Very strange.

A Human Male named Ishirou seems very laid back, taking things as they come. He doesn’t seem particularly passionate about anything. After considerable convincing and discussion, he has offered to assist in the defense of our base camp.

A Male Gnome named Gelik, seems flighty but friendly. After considerable convincing and discussion (you will note the theme in dealing with these troublesome individuals) he has offered to assist in keeping the camps moral up. (A responsibility he has not been very successful at thus far, as I will soon relate.)

A human Named Jask, who was shackled in Irons initially, was a prisoner being transported aboard the Jenivire. He claims to be a cleric of Nethys and says his crimes were non-violent in nature. He seemed convincing and we planned to release him from his shackles as soon as a way to do so was found (which was not too long, it turned out). He has agreed to be the camps Healer (out of simple gratitude I suspect, as there was comparatively little convincing and discussion with him).

The other two have proven to be difficult, nay, impossible. A Half-Elven woman named Aerys has refused all attempts to enlist her to our common cause (survival and rescue). She is apparently a raging alcoholic (having swiped some brandy from our salvaged supplies) and seems angry and bitter towards all of us.

Sasha, a Human woman, has also proved challenging, but for other reasons. She seems very flighty, almost overly so. I suspect she may be faking it (it seems impossible anyone could be as clueless as her and be traveling alone). She is missing a pinky finger and seems to have marks on her back. I wonder if perhaps a traumatic experience has shattered her mind. She made vague references to her childhood and her mother, perhaps I should try a different tact to try and develop a rapport with her. I tried asking about her missing pinky hoping there was an interesting tale she would tell, but she was offended by my questions. Even Max’s attempts to assist me by relating an interesting tale of personal injury did not placate her. She just insulted him and continued her rant. She seems to be quite a… difficult individual.

Salvage

Salvage​

Using my knowledge of Geography and Ace’s map (lucky break there), I determined we were somewhere in Desperation Bay, on one of the many unmarked islands.

Our first order of business was to set up a base camp with what we had while we waited for the tide to go out so we could reach the remains of the Jenivere. I think recruiting the assistance of the other castaways was more work than setting up the actual camp was. Once our little camp was settled we set about recovering what we could from the Jenivere.

We made our way across the slippery rocks upon which the Jenivire was wrecked and climbed inside through a hole in her hull. We found ourselves below what some called the Forecastle, though I personally believe it’s the stern or “poop”-deck, where the officer’s quarters were. In the First Mate's cabin (Alton Devers) we found his journal. He seemed to think the Captain's behavior had become somewhat erratic of late. In the Captain's quarters we found a locked desk, which Chumba quickly smashed open. Within we found a few baubles, some Brandy, a few useful potions and the Captain’s log. We also found a ring of keys (upon which was the key to Jask’s shackles) and a map of an Island called Smuggler’s Shiv.

The log had some interesting clues as to our fate, and perhaps the fate of the Captain and one of our fellow travelers. It would seem the First Mate’s concerns were quite valid. The Captain had become obsessed with a Passenger named Ieana, a woman who was rumored to be the owner of the Jenivere and perhaps the Captain's lover. His last entry was probably the most telling. It showed a strong distrust and dislike for the crew and passengers and indicated his intention to sail (with his “Beloved”) to the Smuggler’s Shiv, where they would begin their new lives and build their “Paradise” together. It seems very likely that Smuggler’s Shiv is where we have found ourselves.

Continuing the exploration of the ship we found the supply closet. Within was another Sea Scorpion, which Chumba quickly dispatched, as well as the body of First Mate Devers. His body had rapier wounds and bites from the Sea Scorpions. Truly an unfortunate end for one who seemed to have been a good man. We also found many useful supplies.

Our continued exploration led us to the kitchen and larder where we scavenged much food and water. We also came across the body of Ranbar, the ships (not so good) cook. It would seem he died from the bites of a snake. Many theories were bandied about, from a sorcerer with the serpent bloodline, to a hidden serpent familiar or animal companion. It seems unlikely a snake from the island came to the wreck and attacked him.

So now we rest, preparing to explore the island to see what is offered by the jungle and what options we may find for escape.

Gelik (he seems at least somewhat familiar with Smugglers Shiv) thinks we will find many shipwrecks around the island. In fact both Jask and Gelik have confided in me that they are hoping to find specific ships wrecked upon the shores of the Shiv. Jask seeks the Brine Demon, while Gelik seeks the Night Voice. Neither indicated why they might be searching for these vessels. Perhaps their reasons will come to light eventually.


Erastus the 21st.

After our first night of sleep, many of our group reported disturbing dreams. In fact they each reported the same dream. They each described eyes staring at them from the sea. I’m not sure what to make of that. All were quite upset and required more than a little reassurance from us. By “Us” I mean those of us that have quickly developed a bond and share common goals. Myself, Max, Ace, Chumba and T’ar Roddan . I have come to think of the five of us as the leaders of this band of castaways. I have come to rely on the thoughts and council of these four far more than the others. Though Gelik had assured us he would work to keep moral up, he needed as much reassurance as the others. I would like to explore this occurrence more, but fear that drawing attention to it would be detrimental.

Today, a brief exploration of the beach a half days journey to the east did, in fact, result in the discovery of a wreck. There was no discernable name and little to be salvaged. Oddly enough, Chumba seems to have developed a rapport with Sasha, who eagerly suggested we go find shipwrecks. I wonder if she is seeking a specific wreck as well…

Max also explored the beach a short distance to the west, with little to report. We shall rest again tonight and try to relocate our base camp closer to a source of fresh water.

A great start to what I hope (and expect) will be an interesting and exciting campaign. Not too much combat (and all combat was very short 1-2 rounds at most) and a whole lot of diplomacy.

If any of you read my Barrow SH you may remember we are not diplomacy heavy normally. In this group we have 3 characters that excel at diplomacy (Oracle, Summoner and Wizard) and two that excel at failed diplomacy (Fighter, Barbarian).

Diplomacy and Knowledge Checks were the majority of rolls that night and we did well on most. There were a couple poor rolls on Diplomacy and one really bad Knowledge Check for information on the Smuggler’s Shiv (A whopping 9, uhg).

Currently we play every two weeks on Monday. Updates will (hopefully) be up by the Friday following game day.

As our next scheduled game was the 14th (Valentine’s Day) and we all have significant others (and hope to keep it that way) we have moved up our next game to next Monday, February 7th, so hopefully I'll have another update next week.

Erastus the 22nd.

We are working on moving our base camp inland and closer to fresh water. We had a brief run in with more sea-scorpions last night, but they were of little trouble. Chumba and Max have proven to be quite effective fighters. I cannot wait for the day when my magic might rival the damage they mete out with hammer and chain.

We traveled along the eastern shore of the island as best we could, but the rocky coastline made it difficult and we had to travel through the jungle in some parts. We encountered some of the local fauna. Thankfully, they were not too much trouble either. Angry goats of some type, this island is proving to be quite unusual.


Erastus the 23rd.

First, I must mention that last night was a night of strange dreams all around. Though some reported different dreams, there was a definite trend and many similarities. Some dreamt of an undead First Mate Devers rowing us to shore, others of the last meal aboard the Jenivere and serpents in their mouths. Mine, I shall record as best I can recall.

I was back aboard the Jenivere, bent over the railing, seasick. As I look back amidships I see that all the passenger and crew are sick as well, save the Captain and Ieana. She whispers to him and then kisses him on the cheek. At that point the Captain holds up a wooden spoon and I see that we all have spoons. I then realize that the ship is sinking and I must start bailing the ship with the spoon. I work feverishly, but the waters keep rushing in. Then I see the monstrous sea-scorpions clawing their way onto the ship… and then I awoke.

A number of venomous snakes slithered into camp last night as well. One managed to latch onto me and left me feeling a sense of malaise that still has not passed. Cursed poison.

On a better note, we have finally found an adequate campsite, halfway up a ridge near a freshwater stream. On the way, we found a couple of interesting things.

First an old wreck infested with zombies. We managed to clear them out and found a little gold and more importantly (to me anyway), an arcane scroll that will allow me to comprehend languages that are unknown to me. I shall scribe it into my spellbook at the first opportunity.

Further along, we also found what we believe to be the point where Captain Kovak and Ieana came ashore. There was no sign of their longboat other than the marks in the sand where it was beached, but we did find the remains of an old campsite and a few scarves reminiscent of the ones Ieana is so fond of. There were tracks leading inland as well. Now that we are set up in our new camp we plan to see where the tracks lead in the morning.


Erastus the 24th.

The effects of the poison still linger, though I am feeling somewhat better.

Leaving the others at the new camp, Max, Chumba, Ace, T’ar and I have gone to see where the Captain and his new “First Mate” might have gone. The tracks approached the western shore of the island where we found the remains of an old shanty style camp made from rotting driftwood along the bay. Besides the three rotten shacks, which contained little of value, there was an odd zombie. I was able to identify it as a Yellow Musk Zombie, the progeny of a Yellow Musk Creeper, a plant whose spores appropriate the bodies of living creatures, infest them with growths that kill them and then re-animates them as disgusting zombies. Chumba killed it quickly and there was only the one, thankfully. We are taking a short rest and should continue our exploration soon. We must keep our eyes peeled for this monstrous plant and its malefic pollen. I feel we should burn the remains of the zombie before we leave to ensure no trace of the spores remains. We wouldn’t want to have to pass through later to find a Yellow Musk Creeper growing in its place.

In 30 years of playing D&D (now Pathfinder), I’ve never played a Wizard. I’ve discovered 1st level is painful. I never thought I’d live to see the day when I would fear a DC13 Fort Save. Poison, ouch. I only lost 3 Con, but after 1 day of rest I’m still down 1 HP (out of 7).

The best part of being a 1st level Wizard is hitting a creature with a spell for 6 hp of damage or less, only to have a fighter or a barbarian kill the creature by hitting for 18 hp, which is more than the creature started with. Maybe I should just work on buffing… actually I started to type that “tongue in cheek”, but now that I think about it, that’s probably a good idea. (No, I will not buff the Eidolon.)

It was a fun game, though my head wasn’t in it. My daughter was off getting an x-ray on her elbow and I couldn’t find my notes from last session so I wasn’t exactly at my peak. Regardless, the session went well and now we have a goal! (In addition to getting rescued.) Find the Captain and his girl and thank them for this lovely side trip.

The 2 fighter types had a lot of crits (I think 5 confirmed crits between the 2 of them?), very lucky with the dice that night. Max is using a Ball and Chain combo that offers reach and a threat range of 19-20 (Meteor Hammer) and Chumba-Wumba uses some type of hammer that does 2d6 dmg and has a x3 multiplier (Both are from The Adventurer’s Armory I believe).

I’m beginning to get the impression all the NPC’s on the island with us have a mission that needs to be accomplished (Like the Side Quests from Kingmaker). It would seem Sasha wants a pet Dinosaur? We’ll see how that goes. I think we only need to figure out Ishirou’s Quest…

Erastus the 24th (Cont).

After burning the zombie and resting through the hottest part of the day, we continued to follow the tracks of the Captain and his, for lack of a better word, “Girlfriend”. Further on, we encountered the source of our zombie friend we had just dispatched. In a barren clearing, we found the yellow musk creeper guarded by a number of its zombie minions. Though Chumba was enthralled by the plant creature, fire and weapons dispatched the threat and she quickly regained her senses. Though she seemed a little addled after, there didn’t seem to be any permanent harm.

At this point we lost the tracks we had been following and chose to travel along a game trail. Along this trail Max got caught up in some type of snare trap that snapped him up into a tree where he was impaled upon fiendishly placed spikes. At first we feared it was the start of an ambush, but no enemies presented themselves. Max had been knocked out by the trap, but was quickly healed by Taraz. (I should note at this point that T’ar Rodan has recently revealed his true name to be Taraz Nader. I’m not sure why he travels under a pseudonym.)

Later in the day we came across another old camp. There was little to find other than a silver plate with the name “Bearded Harpy” etched upon it. We assumed this was the name of another ship and walked to the nearest shoreline to see if there was anything left of the ship. We spotted an old wreck along a small island just off shore. After a brief discussion it was decided we would swim out to explore the wreck in the morning. We returned to the old camp to rest.

During the night we noticed the phosphorescent glow of the bioluminescent microbes that thrive in the warm waters around the island. Other than that, it was uneventful.


Erastus the 25th.

The last of the effects of the snake poison have finally left my system. I finally feel like my old self again. The lingering effects of the Yellow Musk Creeper on Chumba seem to have worn off as well. I am quite pleased that I successfully scribed Comprehend Languages into my spellbook last night, though my scribing materials are running low.

After swimming out to the wreck we noted that this was indeed the “Bearded Harpy,” an old Chelish navy frigate. Once aboard, our explorations revealed a few coins and the lair of some small, strange, mermaid-like creatures. They were not the usual human sized human-fish hybrid that you expect to make up a mermaid. These were smaller, with more monkey-like upper torsos and fish tails. They were quite vicious, but quickly dealt with.

From this vantage point we saw two more wrecks along the coast to the north. This island is proving to be a true ships graveyard. Having explored this wreck, we swam back to shore and continued along the coast to the next wreck.

This one was called the “Scallywag”. Just like the last, we had to swim out to the wreck. Once on board we were attacked by small, flying, sharp toothed pterosaurs. After they were dealt with, we found a box with a few gemstones and a silver string. We also found a cache of dinosaur eggs. We collected the eggs thinking perhaps Sasha would be interested in our find. As night was falling, we returned to shore and rested.


Erastus the 26th.

More of the bioluminescence last night, though Taraz thought he saw figures beckoning to him from the surf as well, inviting him to join them. He did not feel compelled to do so, thankfully. We also noticed the carcass of a goat wedged high in a tree. My first thought was of a large cat that had perhaps dragged its kill up into the tree, but upon examination we discovered all the blood had been drained from the creature implying something more sinister. The longer we are here, the stranger this isle gets.

After much research I have finally mastered two new spells and scribed them into my spellbook.

We traveled north to the next wreck, this one called the “Wind War”. We were able to walk out to this one. When we arrived we were set upon by giant crabs. There was little else.

We noticed yet another wreck at the mouth of a river and traveled west along the shore of a small bay to reach it. Upon cursory examination it appears to be the “Brine Demon”. We are about to set out to explore it. Once that is accomplished our plan is to return to our Base Camp as we have gone almost full circle already.

The 5 PC castaways are as follows:

Arendel Whisperson – Human Fire Elemental Wizard 2 (Abciximab)
Chumba-Wumba – Human Female Barbarian 2 (Gretchen)
Max “Little” Hammer – Human Fighter 2 (Peteinmaine)
Acemodius and Kay Es – Tiefling Summoner 2 and his Eidolon. (Mundinironhand)
Taraz Nadar (AKA: T’ar Roddan) – Aasimar Oracle 2 (Adam B.)

More combat this time around and Soanso let us level up about two-thirds of the way through the session (Thank the gods!). There are certainly a lot of wrecks around this island. I hadn’t thought too much about it, but as I type this, I have to ask myself, “Where the heck are all the survivors?” We haven’t seen any other actual humanoids, just the remains of their camps. Food, water and other survival concerns haven’t been too big of a problem, so I would think someone should still be around.

A mysterious island to be sure. A little metagaming with the bioluminescence. I’ve seen it in the real world, very cool when the surf seems to glow when the waves break. I think there may be more to it than that on this island though, as the Oracle’s nighttime experience seems to imply.

I like the references to “Modern Mythology”, the Fiji Mermaid and the Chupacabra. I’ve also seen a Fiji Mermaid (as real as they get) in a strange store in Seattle (or was it Tacoma?). They had a lot of taxidermy (including “Rogue Taxidermy”) and actual mummies in the store. The DM says there are plenty of those types of references in this AP.

I do like playing a character with a lot of skill points (18 Int, Human and all my favored class points have gone toward skills) and all of the Knowledge skills as class skills. It really helps “fill in the blanks” so to speak. I know in my campaigns, the PC’s have missed out on clues or back story because of shortcomings in the knowledge department. It was great having a Bard in my short lived Kingmaker Campaign.

Erastus the 26th (Cont).

It turns out the ship is indeed the “Brine Demon”. Luckily, Ace was able to read the name of the ship. It was, for some strange reason, written in Infernal. Jask had told us that he hoped we would find information which would prove his innocence onboard. In the Captain’s cabin we found documents that demonstrate some level of corruption in some of the local government figures and the leaders of the Shackles. We were hopeful these were the documents Jask seeks to clear his name as we found no others.

We also found a magical dagger and a golden locket. On Chumba’s suggestion we opened the locket. Inside was a remarkable portrait of a beautiful Half-Elven Woman with the name Aesha Mara scribed below it.

On our way back to camp we were attacked by large constrictor snakes. Chumba and Max dealt with them quickly.

Once we returned to base camp and delivered the documents to Jask, he seemed pleased and felt these documents were exactly what he had hoped for. To thank us, he offered to teach us a method of meditation to help us focus in times of stress. I feel this will be quite helpful to those of us who must cast spells within the chaos of combat. Ace, Taraz and I chose to undergo the training.

Sasha was so pleased with the dinosaur eggs she quickly built a small nest for them then offered to teach us a way to hone our instincts and quicken our reactions when confronted by enemies. Chumba and Max took advantage of that offer.

Jask pointed out that Aerys was quite sick. It would appear all those years of heavy drinking have taken quite a toll on her and now that her alcohol supply has run out, she is deep into withdrawals. He described to us a tropical plant, a Viper Nettle, the berries of which might sooth her symptoms. We all promised to keep our eyes open for this plant as we travel.

While reinforcing a wall on one of the shelters, the somewhat withdrawn Ishiru opened up to us. He showed us an old map, and pointed to a distant hill. He felt that at the top of that hill was buried a great treasure as shown on the map. We quickly made plans to investigate this for him.

That night we were visited by the ghost of a pirate. He seemed to materialize right out of our fire. Knowing we had very little that might affect incorporeal creatures, things were looking rather dire. As the apparition advanced, it called out for Aesha Mara. Chumba immediately recognized it as the name from the locket and I held it forward as the spirit approached. The specter reached out for the locket and, as his hand passed through it, he dissipated. After, we noticed that the portrait of the Half Elf was no longer within the locket. I must say, it was a good thing Chumba had thought to look in the locket or we may never have realized what this ghost was after and that surely would have spelled our end.


Erastus the 27th.

Today was spent training with Jask and Sasha. During training, we were attacked by large lizards. They proved to be a mild inconvenience and were not significantly disruptive of our training. By late afternoon we had each mastered our respective abilities.

We plan to rest early and leave for “Treasure Hill” while it is still dark as Ishiru has told us that the light of the rising sun will show us the precise location of the treasure.


Erastus the 28th.

Our journey to Treasure Hill was interrupted by an attack by crazed cannibals with sharpened teeth. They attacked in a maddened frenzy, in a rage quite similar to Chumba’s when she is threatened. I was injured by one, but was able to assist in their defeat with a fan of flames. My magic has definitely grown in power since the end of my apprenticeship with my mother. Taraz healed my wounds once the cannibals were defeated.

Ace recognized a word the cannibals were shouting as a battle cry. It seems to be the name of Ace’s House, “Thrune”. They mentioned “Mother Thrune”, specifically. I’m not sure what connection to the cannibals there could possibly be, if there is one. Ace was a little uncertain on the matter as well, but it definitely caught his attention. Both Ace and his creature paused in the midst of combat in an attempt to parley with the madmen. They were both unsuccessful and we had to resort to violence to permanently quell their rage. In looking at their rusted weapons I noted that, thought they were made by different craftsmen, all the weapons were about 80 to 100 years old.

We also noted that they had tattoos and ritual brands that were identical to markings scribed in blood on the wall of one of the abandoned camps. I think we may have an answer as to what happened to some of the shipwreck survivors.

We also encountered a solitary Ghoul. I was able to destroy it with a ray of positive energy.

At dawn we were gathered around the hill to watch for the sign that would lead us to the location of the treasure. It was quite obvious as the rising sun illuminated a spot on the ground. We quickly marked the location and then started our excavation. After the better part of the day had gone by we hit wood and found the skeletal remains of a long-dead dwarf. As we thought it might be the roof of some type of hidden structure, we dug around it to find the edges. It turned out to be more like a wooden door, keeping us from a chamber below. We knocked a hole though and lifted it out of the way. Below was a forty foot drop to a small chamber filled with water.

After a short rest, during which we knotted a rope to ease our descent, Ace sent his creature down the shaft where it found the water to be waist deep. As the others were descending, two more ghouls (of the aquatic variety) leapt from the water. A few tense moments followed as the rest of the group rushed down the rope to assist. We were able to defeat these creatures with no loss of life on our part.

Exploring the small chamber, a low tunnel almost completely filled with water was found. Down that tunnel was another chamber with a large chest. We hauled the chest to the surface and when we were all at the top of the pit once more, Max broke it open.

Within was a large quantity of coins of all types, a magical buckler, a masterwork cold iron short sword, and a mithral scroll case. Within the case was a divine scroll of Raise Dead! A wonderful find, but one I hope we never have the need to use. I think we shall rest here and then deal with the disbursement of the treasure once we return to Base Camp.

NPC Boons – Very Cool
Ghost vs 2nd Level PCs – Not Cool

I really like the idea of NPC Boons. I liked the “Bonus XP” thing in Kingmaker, but as a player I definitely like the Boons more. Jask gave us a Bonus to Concentration Checks, Sasha gave us a Bonus to Initiative.

The ghost could have been big trouble. I think our outcome was the “Best Case Scenario” (Figuring out what the ghost wanted). If we hadn’t figured it out quickly, things would have gone very badly for us. I had 2 magic missiles and we have a +1 dagger, not too much stuff to affect an incorporeal creature (Especially if it was a true CR7 Ghost). It would be interesting to see if there are any deaths related to this encounter in other campaigns.

I think this is the first time in D&D I’ve done the “Follow the Treasure Map to the Treasure” thing. It was apparently based on the Oak Island Money Pit, a cool concept with some very useful treasure.

The heavy hitters kept the crits rolling this week. I know Chumba had at least one, as did Max with a 32hp Power Attack to One Shot a Large Snake. Arendel rolled a 20 with a Disrupt Undead attack, but botched the Confirmation. Oh well...