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<blockquote data-quote="the Jester" data-source="post: 4667416" data-attributes="member: 1210"><p>Alas, after many fruitless hours of searching (and a change of residence!) I have proven unable to locate the elusive picture of the evil npc party in the Hill of Skulls. Nor are my notes complete enough to truly reassemble the sequence of events that followed.</p><p></p><p>So, much like I have throughout this story, I will endeavor to summarize and capture the flavor of the events as best I can. And boy, was that flavor a bitter one for our heroes.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>It’s an old cliched villain trick: threaten babies. But that’s exactly what Augustus- the envoy at the head of the Strogassian party in the Hill of Skulls- meant to do. </p><p></p><p>He tried to persuade Dexter to surrender to him; but Dex wasn’t having any of that. With a massive party of adventurers backing him, Dexter did not grovel; he growled. The Dark Emperor had his eye on the Son of Light? Well, stare at the sun and you just might get blinded.</p><p></p><p>The two parties of adventurers had a first clash, ending with the villains withdrawing and the heroes declining to pursue, fearing a trap. They were right; but the villains escaped not to lead the party into a trap, but rather, to get the babies they needed in order to set the trap. Meanwhile, our heroes continued their cautious exploration of the Hill, hoping to find their friends- hoping to find the ancient texts that they had come for- hoping to find a way out. </p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>Rajah, meanwhile, began to cautiously edge his way into the chamber that he was in. <em>No zombies,</em> he thought wryly. <em>That’s something, at least.</em> His nostrils flared. There was a reptillian scent... The Tiger Prince swallowed. The air was hot.</p><p></p><p>There was the sound of movement- a scratch of claws rasping along the rock-strewn floor of the place. Rajah moved into the shadows as best he could and tensed. And then a 20’ long lizard the color of fire came into view. It hissed, its tongue testing the air. Its beady reptile eyes swept over the rocks, looking for the prey it had scented. </p><p></p><p>Rajah leapt at it, using his <em>gloves of the slug</em>, and turned its flesh to mucus. </p><p></p><p>The fire lizard gave a loud howl as the Tiger Prince tore into it. The beast flailed about in agony as the hot environment immediately began to dry out its skin, and it roared in pain and fear.</p><p></p><p>It belched flames.</p><p></p><p>Rajah’s mastery over his body was complete. He adapted to the energy, blazing with light, and kept ripping at the monstrous lizard, his hands clenched into claws. He tore into its throat, and the great lizard choked and drew back. Rajah watched it drown in its own blood.</p><p></p><p>“I have got to get out of here,” he said aloud. He sighed. He could; his mind could get him out of the Hill of Skulls by teleporting him. But- what about his friends? What if they were inside? He might never find them again. </p><p></p><p>Rajah was not afraid, but the idea of being lost alone on Strogass was... daunting. For a moment, he wished he were back with his tiger clan, living a simple, free life on Dorhaus. But he knew that he could never return to that lifestyle- not with his uncle, Tovan, trying to kill him. </p><p></p><p>Reluctantly, Rajah kept exploring. <em>If I can’t find a safe resting place, I’ll have to get out of here soon,</em> he thought. <em>I haven’t yet found a real defensible area.</em></p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>Meanwhile, the others also continued their explorations for a couple of days and descended a level, encountering a tribe of bugbears. The party slew most of them, but Therighast the Prophet <em>charmed</em> two and brought them along as guides and muscle. </p><p></p><p>“We don’t really know all that much,” one of them rumbled in Strogassian (and Therighast translated for the rest of the party). “It’s not like all of the inhabitants of the Hill get together for dinner, you know. A lot of us fight and even eat each other.”</p><p></p><p>“Well, good,” replied Therighast. “Then since most of the creatures in here aren’t your friends, you won’t mind helping to defend us.”</p><p></p><p>“Oh, not at all,” beamed the friendly bugbear.</p><p></p><p>But it wasn’t too much longer before the party got in over their heads. What was that about babies, again?</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>At about the same time, Rajah finally used his psionics to escape the Hill of Skulls. Teleportation failed, but he proved able to <em>dream travel.</em> He encountered another adventurer above, Ilyara, a sly-looking Strogassian elf. They joined up, although each was wary of the others, and Rajah bleakly considered his options. <em>I could teleport back inside, but that won’t help me find the others. If I can figure out which entry point the others took, maybe I can follow them. Then again, I have no way of knowing which way they went, and even if I figure the riddle out, I can’t know for sure that they did. They might have chosen wrong.</em> He glanced sidelong at Ilyara. <em>I hope she’s trustworthy. I could use some help right about now.</em></p><p></p><p>Rajah sighed. <em>The best thing for me to do,</em> he thought, <em>might be to simply wait.</em> Though the idea left a foul taste in his mouth, he realized that any other choice might be disastrous.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>The enemy party appeared again, but this time was squalling infants in their arms. The threat was clear even before they made it: Dexter would give himself to them, and to their dark master, or the babies- innocent babies- would die. All of them. </p><p></p><p>Dexter was torn. Several members of the party wanted to attack the enemies and let Galador sort it out, but Dexter forbade it. </p><p></p><p>Pandos the Mute, Dexter’s Warden, watched with interest as Dexter wrestled with the situation. <em>He still has not shown any sign of evil or Bleak worship,</em> thought the paladin. <em>Clearly, he once was- and equally clearly, he feels terrible guilt and regret over his past. Everything he does is to atone.</em></p><p></p><p>And what could Dexter do in this situation? Quested with a holy mission by Galador Himself, forced to choose between half a dozen innocent babies and his Lord’s commands, Dexter did the only thing he could: he prayed. </p><p></p><p><em>Galador,</em> he prayed, <em>please hear my plea. I want to do Your work, but that work is all about protecting the innocent- and here I am, torn between protecting innocent children by surrendering myself to Your enemies and giving up on my sacred mission, or fulfilling my mission at the cost of innocent babies. My Lord, I need Your Light to guide me. Please, show me the way! What is the right thing to do?</em></p><p></p><p>And, for one of the only two times in my campaign to date, Galador answered.*</p><p></p><p>Great radiant wings seemed to sweep over the scene. Augustus and his henchmen cried out, and when their eyes cleared, our heroes were simply <em>gone.</em></p><p></p><p><em><strong>Next Time:</strong></em> After a sojourn in Heaven, our heroes return to the Hill of Skulls!</p><p></p><p></p><p>*The other time was at the climactic battle of the Great War of Ethics, where Galador Himself came to fight on Cydra- only to be confronted by the god Vandreu manifest as well.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="the Jester, post: 4667416, member: 1210"] Alas, after many fruitless hours of searching (and a change of residence!) I have proven unable to locate the elusive picture of the evil npc party in the Hill of Skulls. Nor are my notes complete enough to truly reassemble the sequence of events that followed. So, much like I have throughout this story, I will endeavor to summarize and capture the flavor of the events as best I can. And boy, was that flavor a bitter one for our heroes. *** It’s an old cliched villain trick: threaten babies. But that’s exactly what Augustus- the envoy at the head of the Strogassian party in the Hill of Skulls- meant to do. He tried to persuade Dexter to surrender to him; but Dex wasn’t having any of that. With a massive party of adventurers backing him, Dexter did not grovel; he growled. The Dark Emperor had his eye on the Son of Light? Well, stare at the sun and you just might get blinded. The two parties of adventurers had a first clash, ending with the villains withdrawing and the heroes declining to pursue, fearing a trap. They were right; but the villains escaped not to lead the party into a trap, but rather, to get the babies they needed in order to set the trap. Meanwhile, our heroes continued their cautious exploration of the Hill, hoping to find their friends- hoping to find the ancient texts that they had come for- hoping to find a way out. *** Rajah, meanwhile, began to cautiously edge his way into the chamber that he was in. [i]No zombies,[/i] he thought wryly. [i]That’s something, at least.[/i] His nostrils flared. There was a reptillian scent... The Tiger Prince swallowed. The air was hot. There was the sound of movement- a scratch of claws rasping along the rock-strewn floor of the place. Rajah moved into the shadows as best he could and tensed. And then a 20’ long lizard the color of fire came into view. It hissed, its tongue testing the air. Its beady reptile eyes swept over the rocks, looking for the prey it had scented. Rajah leapt at it, using his [i]gloves of the slug[/i], and turned its flesh to mucus. The fire lizard gave a loud howl as the Tiger Prince tore into it. The beast flailed about in agony as the hot environment immediately began to dry out its skin, and it roared in pain and fear. It belched flames. Rajah’s mastery over his body was complete. He adapted to the energy, blazing with light, and kept ripping at the monstrous lizard, his hands clenched into claws. He tore into its throat, and the great lizard choked and drew back. Rajah watched it drown in its own blood. “I have got to get out of here,” he said aloud. He sighed. He could; his mind could get him out of the Hill of Skulls by teleporting him. But- what about his friends? What if they were inside? He might never find them again. Rajah was not afraid, but the idea of being lost alone on Strogass was... daunting. For a moment, he wished he were back with his tiger clan, living a simple, free life on Dorhaus. But he knew that he could never return to that lifestyle- not with his uncle, Tovan, trying to kill him. Reluctantly, Rajah kept exploring. [i]If I can’t find a safe resting place, I’ll have to get out of here soon,[/i] he thought. [i]I haven’t yet found a real defensible area.[/i] *** Meanwhile, the others also continued their explorations for a couple of days and descended a level, encountering a tribe of bugbears. The party slew most of them, but Therighast the Prophet [i]charmed[/i] two and brought them along as guides and muscle. “We don’t really know all that much,” one of them rumbled in Strogassian (and Therighast translated for the rest of the party). “It’s not like all of the inhabitants of the Hill get together for dinner, you know. A lot of us fight and even eat each other.” “Well, good,” replied Therighast. “Then since most of the creatures in here aren’t your friends, you won’t mind helping to defend us.” “Oh, not at all,” beamed the friendly bugbear. But it wasn’t too much longer before the party got in over their heads. What was that about babies, again? *** At about the same time, Rajah finally used his psionics to escape the Hill of Skulls. Teleportation failed, but he proved able to [i]dream travel.[/i] He encountered another adventurer above, Ilyara, a sly-looking Strogassian elf. They joined up, although each was wary of the others, and Rajah bleakly considered his options. [i]I could teleport back inside, but that won’t help me find the others. If I can figure out which entry point the others took, maybe I can follow them. Then again, I have no way of knowing which way they went, and even if I figure the riddle out, I can’t know for sure that they did. They might have chosen wrong.[/i] He glanced sidelong at Ilyara. [i]I hope she’s trustworthy. I could use some help right about now.[/i] Rajah sighed. [i]The best thing for me to do,[/i] he thought, [i]might be to simply wait.[/i] Though the idea left a foul taste in his mouth, he realized that any other choice might be disastrous. *** The enemy party appeared again, but this time was squalling infants in their arms. The threat was clear even before they made it: Dexter would give himself to them, and to their dark master, or the babies- innocent babies- would die. All of them. Dexter was torn. Several members of the party wanted to attack the enemies and let Galador sort it out, but Dexter forbade it. Pandos the Mute, Dexter’s Warden, watched with interest as Dexter wrestled with the situation. [i]He still has not shown any sign of evil or Bleak worship,[/i] thought the paladin. [i]Clearly, he once was- and equally clearly, he feels terrible guilt and regret over his past. Everything he does is to atone.[/i] And what could Dexter do in this situation? Quested with a holy mission by Galador Himself, forced to choose between half a dozen innocent babies and his Lord’s commands, Dexter did the only thing he could: he prayed. [i]Galador,[/i] he prayed, [i]please hear my plea. I want to do Your work, but that work is all about protecting the innocent- and here I am, torn between protecting innocent children by surrendering myself to Your enemies and giving up on my sacred mission, or fulfilling my mission at the cost of innocent babies. My Lord, I need Your Light to guide me. Please, show me the way! What is the right thing to do?[/i] And, for one of the only two times in my campaign to date, Galador answered.* Great radiant wings seemed to sweep over the scene. Augustus and his henchmen cried out, and when their eyes cleared, our heroes were simply [i]gone.[/i] [i][b]Next Time:[/b][/i][b][/b] After a sojourn in Heaven, our heroes return to the Hill of Skulls! *The other time was at the climactic battle of the Great War of Ethics, where Galador Himself came to fight on Cydra- only to be confronted by the god Vandreu manifest as well. [/QUOTE]
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