Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
D&D Older Editions
My Dark Sun 4e Game Experience Updated 01/22/2013
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Raunalyn" data-source="post: 5736317" data-attributes="member: 72670"><p><strong>Dark Sun: Sessions 19, 20, and 21</strong></p><p></p><p>Over the course of their two days of rest, the companions discuss how to break into the Queen's palace. Rightly assuming that it would be heavily guarded, they all agree that a frontal assault would be suicide. Ela explains that all captured "lesser races" are brought before the Queen so that she can observe them. If she feels that they are worthy, she lets them fight in an arena. The group ponders this, but then decides that sneaking in as slaves would likely be the best scenario. Careful observation of the Queen's palace shows that slaves are allowed in and out with relatively little supervision.</p><p></p><p>Krika leaves to find proper attire for the group, and Pa Mela and Kratas begin working on rituals that would assist them in their subterfuge. Kratas casts a Comprehend Languages on himself and Pa Mela, and Pa Mela casts a Self Holding Bag ritual that allows the group to hide their equipment inside of the party's Bag of Holding, then to shrink the bag and hide it until it is needed; the group doesn't want to get caught without their weapons and equipment yet again. Soon, they are prepared and head for the Queen's palace.</p><p></p><p>Arriving at the main gates, they are confronted by a Githanki officer. He rudely asks them what they are doing, and Pa Mela and Kratas perform some very good bluff checks to fool the guard into letting them into the palace. The companions try to look as if they have a purpose as they begin moving through the buildings; the entire palace is the size of a small city, and it is just as populated with hordes of Githyanki and their slaves. They begin looking for the Queen and her throne room.</p><p></p><p>It isn't long, though, before they are stopped by another Githyanki. This female is stately and demanding, forcing the group to follow her to the kitchens. Fortunately, Pa Mela again rolled VERY well on her bluff check and was able to convince the Githyanki that they belonged there. The Githyanki woman forces the group to grab platters of food and drink, then leads them further into the palace. </p><p></p><p>Eventually, they arrive in the throne room, where the Queen and her advisors are holding court. Unfortunately for the party, one of her advisors is none other than General Raskon. Immediately, he calls an alarm, and the party is quickly surrounded by a large number of guards. </p><p></p><p>The Queen approaches them. She's an impressive figure, standing over 9 feet tall and wearing armor and jewelry that could easily buy a small city on Athas. In one hand, she wields a ruby tipped rod that they can only assume is the artifact they are looking for, Yrilonir. As she observes eact of the companions, she turns to Raskon and asks if this was the group that almost defeated him. He nods, and she smiles and says, "Most impressive for such pitiful creatures. Perhaps we may have some use for you, afterall. We propose a wager. If you survive, we will set you all free, and you shall have the honor of receiving our blessing. If you impress us, we may even allow you into our service to help enslave your world."</p><p></p><p>She steps away and waves her hand, and the floor drops out from beneath the group. They fall a good 30 feet before landing, bruised, on the floor of a large oval-shaped arena (insert Jabba the Hutt's "Ho Ho Ho HO"). 8 doors adorn the arena, each of a different color; red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, white and black. As they pick themselves up off the floor, the Queen calls down,</p><p></p><p>&#147;"You must now choose your fate. One of these doors leads to freedom, the rest have inhabitants that will be most pleased to see you. You must select the correct door, or die trying. If you choose incorrectly and survive, you may choose again. Please, make this entertaining, and don't take too long; our patience is not infinite.&#148;"</p><p></p><p>The party quickly summons their bag of holding and begin suiting up. The Queen, delighted, claps for a moment, and the rest of her guards start making wagers as the party equips themselves. Kratas then starts moving from door to door, trying to mentally probe to see if he can determine what's behind each one. When he approaches the white door, a mental voice pleads with him to free it. It will help the party fight if only they will free it. Cautious, the party opens the door, only to find a horrible creature awaiting them; an insectile creature and powerful psionic monster known as a Gaj.</p><p></p><p>The creature immediately attacks, trying to lay down the hurt on Kratas. However, the group quickly surrounds the creature, locking it down and preventing it from doing some of its more potent abilities. It quickly dies, and the party is none the worse for the wear. Meanwhile, the Githyanki Queen and her consorts applaud, changing bets.</p><p></p><p>Next, they move to the blue door. Upon opening it, two strange creatures spring out and sweep through the group. They look like large black cats, except that they have two long tentacles twitching and waving from their shoulders. These are displacer beasts, creatures not native to Athas. The creatures run through the party, using their tentacles and agility to make some devastating attacks against the companions. Soon, though, Tor Val, Dryder and Ela pin down one of the creatures while Katrie, Kratas, and Gundrek pin down the other. Soon the creatures are dead, and the Queen cheers louder, calling down how impressed she is with the party's prowess.</p><p></p><p>On a personal note, I LOVE the 4e displacer beasts. Heavy hitters, and the ability to shift in and out of danger very quickly. Very fun monster!</p><p></p><p>They next move to the green door. Gundrek cautiously prepares to open it, and Tor Val prepares to push it closed if they don't see a way out. Within are two burning dogs (hellhounds). Tor Val quickly pushes the door closed, and jeers and insults are hurled down at them from the Githyanki watching above.</p><p></p><p>As they approach the black door, the party prepares themselves to do the same thing. Opening the black door, they see the passageway out of the arena, but also see a horrible creature that has only been hinted at in Athasian legends; a creature known as a Nightmare Beast.</p><p></p><p>Now, some of you familiar with Dark Sun are probably gasping about this, but it's ok; I used the lesser one. The creature immediately charges the group, knocking Gundrek back several feet, then hurling a bolt of black lightning at Kratas and Katrie. And then, Tor Val starts laying the hurt on, getting 2 critical hits on the creature in the space of a few rounds. Between Tor Val and Dryder, the creature doesn't stand a chance.</p><p></p><p>As they work on opening the exit, Kratas mentally tells the group that he has a plan. He wants to try to persuade the Githyanki queen into allowing the party to join her. Then, when she invades Athas, he hopes her and the Sorcerer Kings will fight until one or more of them is weakened by the battles. Then, Kratas hopes, it will be easy to overthrow either the Queen, or whichever Sorcerer King is being attacked. A win/win situation as he sees it.</p><p></p><p>The group soon finds themselves in the throne room again. The Queen is most impressed with their strength and says. She asks them why there are so many psionically gifted individuals on their world, but the party is unable to answer that. She finally offers the group her blessing; any who kneel before her and swear her fealty will be rewarded. Kratas and Dryder are the first to kneel. She touches them with her ruby tipped rod, and since Kratas and Dryder were willing, they are immediately dominated by its touch. They both lay down their weapons and begin swearing undying loyalty to Queen Trinth.</p><p></p><p>Suddenly, they hear an alarm from the front gates. Guards start running there, and a messenger soon arrives, warning the Queen that a large force of Githzerai are attacking. Trinth, furious, is certain that the party is involved. She orders Raskon and his guards to kill the party, and she departs through a doorway on the north end of the room. Dryder and Kratas grab their weapons and immediately turn on their companions.</p><p></p><p>As Raskon and his githyanki guards move to attack the party, Dryder and Kratas move into better position to attack their friends. Luckily, both rolled very well on their saving throws, so they both shake off the effects of the domination. The battle is fierce. 6 guards, General Raskon, and a powerful Gish named Bran'not quickly move to isolate several of the party members, forcing them to fight without their companions nearby. Raskon engages Kratas and Pa Mela, which causes her to retreat so that she can more effectively use her bow. Kratas struggles to fight him off until Ela can assist. Katrie tries to fight off one of the guards, while Tor Val charges Bran'not. Dryder does his void trick so that he can be left alone to assist his companions. One by one, the party starts killing off the githyanki guards until only Bran'not and Raskon are left. Inevitably, the enemies fall, and the party takes a brief moment to catch their breath.</p><p></p><p>This was a tough fight! The group uses almost all of their resources fighting off the combined attacks of the Githyanki. I tried playing them smart, utilizing different tactics to prevent the party from getting flanking advantages. Two githyanki stayed back, hurling spells and area effects to slow the party down. Most of their dailies were needed, and a few of the players were down to their last healing surge.</p><p></p><p>After the brief rest, they follow the Queen. The palace is like a maze; narrow passageways lead to arching bridges that overlook the causeway below. As they cross these bridges, the githyanki below them turn and watch them. Their expressionless faces follow the party as they run through the palace. Their eerie silence is almost frightening; they turn and move as one.</p><p></p><p>As the group turns a corner, they see the Queen at the far end of the corridor. She laughs as she hurls a spell at them and runs. Battered, the party continues. Eventually, they emerge on another bridge, and they can see Trinth within her chambers beyond. As they move forward, several githyanki jump up onto the bridge from below, surrounding the group. A brief struggle ensues while the party destroys these minions, and they move forward to confront Queen Trinth.</p><p></p><p>She attacks, hurling spells and trying to slow down the party. It isn't long before she is surrounded, though, and after several devastating blows from Tor Val, Katrie and Dryder, she is bloodied. And then the fun begins.</p><p></p><p>A bright flash of red light nearly blinds the group. Where once there was just Trinth, there are now 3 of her, different aspects of the githyanki queen. The Aspect of Body is clearly a warrior type, able to mark and restrict movement. The Aspect of Mind is definitely a controller type, hurling large area mental attacks at the group and teleporting in and out of danger. The Aspect of Entropy is a striker type, sliding through the party with heavy damaging attacks. Katrie locks down the Aspect of Mind and Tor Val charges, only to be horrified as the Aspect of Mind teleports away. Kratas is nearly killed by the Aspect of Entropy, but was lucky that Pa Mela had thrown out an effect that allowed Kratas to heal whenever he hit his target. Dryder and Gundrek surround the Aspect of Body so that they can restrict her from joining her other two aspects. Ela pulls the Aspect of Entropy off Kratas, allowing him to back off and assist.</p><p></p><p>The first to fall is the Aspect of Mind. Between Tor Val and Katries, it stands no chance. As it dies, it disappears, sending a bright red flash to the other two aspects. As the Aspect of Entropy falls, the Aspect of Body is again infused by the essence of her companion. Tor Val holds off, certain that the Queen would reappear if the final aspect was destroyed.</p><p></p><p>Finally, as the Aspect of Body falls, Trinth again appears in the center of the room. Tor Val quickly charges, forcing the Queen to fall prone. The Queen, however, is now infused with the powers of her aspects and teleports away. She hurls an area attack at a group of the clustered companions and drops Kratas. But soon, she is again surrounded by the party, and Katrie is able to lock her down, preventing her from doing some of her more powerful abilities. </p><p></p><p>As the Queen dies, a terrible gong sound reverberates through the palace, similar to the sound that the portal made before they were thrust into this dimension. The floor shifts and the party is almost thrown from their feet. They quickly wake up Kratas and help him to his feet. He can feel a strange energy coming from beneath them, and he encourages the group to grab what they can and run.</p><p></p><p>I wanted this fight to be completely epic. I made Trinth an Elite monster, and her aspects were normal monsters. All in all, I was quite pleased with how the fight turned out, and the party was nearly completely out of powers and surges by the time it was over.</p><p></p><p>Gundrek quickly grabs Yrilonir. He suddenly hears its voice in his head. It tells him that it knows the way out, and that Gundrek would gain great power if he were to take the artifact back to his world. Gundrek quickly grabs the party, guiding them through the palace as the asteroid that the Githyanki city is on begins to crumble.</p><p></p><p>Yrilonir continues to whisper to Gundrek, begging him to wield it. Gundrek pulls the party into a large chamber. In the center lies the portal; obviously the point where the group was pulled into this dimension. It vibrates and pulses in time to the rumbles and quakes that shake the asteroid. This is the way home.</p><p></p><p>Yrilonir makes its move. It attacks Gundrek, trying to force him to run through the portal. Gundrek is able to resist the compulsion and fights back, warning his companions. Tor Val remembers that the artifact can only be destroyed in the space between worlds. Gundrek gets a glimmer of inspiration and strikes the arch of the portal with the rod. There is another loud gong sound, and the entire asteroid shivers. A crack appears on the ruby, and Yrilonir desperately attacks again. Gundrek is dominated, and starts running into the portal. Dryder quickly grabs the artifact from Gundrek and is immediately dominated as well. Tor Val wraps Dryder in a bear hug, preventing him from moving. He drags Dryder to the archway and forces him to strike the rod again on the archway.</p><p></p><p>A bright flash of light erupts from the portal. A rush of wind knocks the group off their feet, and a horrible ripping sound fills the air. They get a sense of falling, and then all is black.</p><p></p><p>They are not sure how long they are unconscious. They awaken in complete darkness with the scent of decay filling their noses. Gundrek strikes up a torch, and the group realizes that they are back at the original portal site on Athas. Around them are the dead and decayed bodies of the Gith who died to open the portal. They are home. Pa Mela does a heal check on the gith bodies, determining that the way they are decayed, that the bodies were dead at least two months.</p><p></p><p>They begin working their way toward the surface, they move through the ancient city. They recognize the architecture now as Githyanki. Apparently, they have been to Athas before and built this stronghold. Something forced them to leave, though. Either that, or the Gith are their descendants. As the move through Yathazor, they find the body of a well starved Morlah laying beside the body of Slate. The poor man could not fend for himself after the companions defeated his master.</p><p></p><p>Eventually, they arrive on the surface. The hot desert air is like perfume to them after so long in the underground. They journey back to Kiris Dahn.</p><p></p><p>Soon, their sense of joy is shattered. One day out from the town, they can see smoke. As they get closer, they notice that the town is utterly destroyed. Large swaths of vegetation are blackened and defiled, and the group sadly begins digging through the rubble for survivors.</p><p></p><p>After about a day of digging, they are still unable to find any evidence of survivors, nor any evidence of dead bodies. However, a terrible realization sweeps over Dryder, and he quickly rushes to the Bath House. Descending into the catacombs, he soon arrives at the chamber where the artifact was hidden.</p><p></p><p>The Eye of Abalach Re is gone.</p><p></p><p>The day is now the 14th day of Smolder, in the Season of High Sun, in the Year of Enemy's Slumber, 190th King's Age. In the skies above, the comet known as the Messenger can be seen.</p><p></p><p>The party is now 11th level.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Raunalyn, post: 5736317, member: 72670"] [b]Dark Sun: Sessions 19, 20, and 21[/b] Over the course of their two days of rest, the companions discuss how to break into the Queen's palace. Rightly assuming that it would be heavily guarded, they all agree that a frontal assault would be suicide. Ela explains that all captured "lesser races" are brought before the Queen so that she can observe them. If she feels that they are worthy, she lets them fight in an arena. The group ponders this, but then decides that sneaking in as slaves would likely be the best scenario. Careful observation of the Queen's palace shows that slaves are allowed in and out with relatively little supervision. Krika leaves to find proper attire for the group, and Pa Mela and Kratas begin working on rituals that would assist them in their subterfuge. Kratas casts a Comprehend Languages on himself and Pa Mela, and Pa Mela casts a Self Holding Bag ritual that allows the group to hide their equipment inside of the party's Bag of Holding, then to shrink the bag and hide it until it is needed; the group doesn't want to get caught without their weapons and equipment yet again. Soon, they are prepared and head for the Queen's palace. Arriving at the main gates, they are confronted by a Githanki officer. He rudely asks them what they are doing, and Pa Mela and Kratas perform some very good bluff checks to fool the guard into letting them into the palace. The companions try to look as if they have a purpose as they begin moving through the buildings; the entire palace is the size of a small city, and it is just as populated with hordes of Githyanki and their slaves. They begin looking for the Queen and her throne room. It isn't long, though, before they are stopped by another Githyanki. This female is stately and demanding, forcing the group to follow her to the kitchens. Fortunately, Pa Mela again rolled VERY well on her bluff check and was able to convince the Githyanki that they belonged there. The Githyanki woman forces the group to grab platters of food and drink, then leads them further into the palace. Eventually, they arrive in the throne room, where the Queen and her advisors are holding court. Unfortunately for the party, one of her advisors is none other than General Raskon. Immediately, he calls an alarm, and the party is quickly surrounded by a large number of guards. The Queen approaches them. She's an impressive figure, standing over 9 feet tall and wearing armor and jewelry that could easily buy a small city on Athas. In one hand, she wields a ruby tipped rod that they can only assume is the artifact they are looking for, Yrilonir. As she observes eact of the companions, she turns to Raskon and asks if this was the group that almost defeated him. He nods, and she smiles and says, "Most impressive for such pitiful creatures. Perhaps we may have some use for you, afterall. We propose a wager. If you survive, we will set you all free, and you shall have the honor of receiving our blessing. If you impress us, we may even allow you into our service to help enslave your world." She steps away and waves her hand, and the floor drops out from beneath the group. They fall a good 30 feet before landing, bruised, on the floor of a large oval-shaped arena (insert Jabba the Hutt's "Ho Ho Ho HO"). 8 doors adorn the arena, each of a different color; red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, white and black. As they pick themselves up off the floor, the Queen calls down, “"You must now choose your fate. One of these doors leads to freedom, the rest have inhabitants that will be most pleased to see you. You must select the correct door, or die trying. If you choose incorrectly and survive, you may choose again. Please, make this entertaining, and don't take too long; our patience is not infinite.”" The party quickly summons their bag of holding and begin suiting up. The Queen, delighted, claps for a moment, and the rest of her guards start making wagers as the party equips themselves. Kratas then starts moving from door to door, trying to mentally probe to see if he can determine what's behind each one. When he approaches the white door, a mental voice pleads with him to free it. It will help the party fight if only they will free it. Cautious, the party opens the door, only to find a horrible creature awaiting them; an insectile creature and powerful psionic monster known as a Gaj. The creature immediately attacks, trying to lay down the hurt on Kratas. However, the group quickly surrounds the creature, locking it down and preventing it from doing some of its more potent abilities. It quickly dies, and the party is none the worse for the wear. Meanwhile, the Githyanki Queen and her consorts applaud, changing bets. Next, they move to the blue door. Upon opening it, two strange creatures spring out and sweep through the group. They look like large black cats, except that they have two long tentacles twitching and waving from their shoulders. These are displacer beasts, creatures not native to Athas. The creatures run through the party, using their tentacles and agility to make some devastating attacks against the companions. Soon, though, Tor Val, Dryder and Ela pin down one of the creatures while Katrie, Kratas, and Gundrek pin down the other. Soon the creatures are dead, and the Queen cheers louder, calling down how impressed she is with the party's prowess. On a personal note, I LOVE the 4e displacer beasts. Heavy hitters, and the ability to shift in and out of danger very quickly. Very fun monster! They next move to the green door. Gundrek cautiously prepares to open it, and Tor Val prepares to push it closed if they don't see a way out. Within are two burning dogs (hellhounds). Tor Val quickly pushes the door closed, and jeers and insults are hurled down at them from the Githyanki watching above. As they approach the black door, the party prepares themselves to do the same thing. Opening the black door, they see the passageway out of the arena, but also see a horrible creature that has only been hinted at in Athasian legends; a creature known as a Nightmare Beast. Now, some of you familiar with Dark Sun are probably gasping about this, but it's ok; I used the lesser one. The creature immediately charges the group, knocking Gundrek back several feet, then hurling a bolt of black lightning at Kratas and Katrie. And then, Tor Val starts laying the hurt on, getting 2 critical hits on the creature in the space of a few rounds. Between Tor Val and Dryder, the creature doesn't stand a chance. As they work on opening the exit, Kratas mentally tells the group that he has a plan. He wants to try to persuade the Githyanki queen into allowing the party to join her. Then, when she invades Athas, he hopes her and the Sorcerer Kings will fight until one or more of them is weakened by the battles. Then, Kratas hopes, it will be easy to overthrow either the Queen, or whichever Sorcerer King is being attacked. A win/win situation as he sees it. The group soon finds themselves in the throne room again. The Queen is most impressed with their strength and says. She asks them why there are so many psionically gifted individuals on their world, but the party is unable to answer that. She finally offers the group her blessing; any who kneel before her and swear her fealty will be rewarded. Kratas and Dryder are the first to kneel. She touches them with her ruby tipped rod, and since Kratas and Dryder were willing, they are immediately dominated by its touch. They both lay down their weapons and begin swearing undying loyalty to Queen Trinth. Suddenly, they hear an alarm from the front gates. Guards start running there, and a messenger soon arrives, warning the Queen that a large force of Githzerai are attacking. Trinth, furious, is certain that the party is involved. She orders Raskon and his guards to kill the party, and she departs through a doorway on the north end of the room. Dryder and Kratas grab their weapons and immediately turn on their companions. As Raskon and his githyanki guards move to attack the party, Dryder and Kratas move into better position to attack their friends. Luckily, both rolled very well on their saving throws, so they both shake off the effects of the domination. The battle is fierce. 6 guards, General Raskon, and a powerful Gish named Bran'not quickly move to isolate several of the party members, forcing them to fight without their companions nearby. Raskon engages Kratas and Pa Mela, which causes her to retreat so that she can more effectively use her bow. Kratas struggles to fight him off until Ela can assist. Katrie tries to fight off one of the guards, while Tor Val charges Bran'not. Dryder does his void trick so that he can be left alone to assist his companions. One by one, the party starts killing off the githyanki guards until only Bran'not and Raskon are left. Inevitably, the enemies fall, and the party takes a brief moment to catch their breath. This was a tough fight! The group uses almost all of their resources fighting off the combined attacks of the Githyanki. I tried playing them smart, utilizing different tactics to prevent the party from getting flanking advantages. Two githyanki stayed back, hurling spells and area effects to slow the party down. Most of their dailies were needed, and a few of the players were down to their last healing surge. After the brief rest, they follow the Queen. The palace is like a maze; narrow passageways lead to arching bridges that overlook the causeway below. As they cross these bridges, the githyanki below them turn and watch them. Their expressionless faces follow the party as they run through the palace. Their eerie silence is almost frightening; they turn and move as one. As the group turns a corner, they see the Queen at the far end of the corridor. She laughs as she hurls a spell at them and runs. Battered, the party continues. Eventually, they emerge on another bridge, and they can see Trinth within her chambers beyond. As they move forward, several githyanki jump up onto the bridge from below, surrounding the group. A brief struggle ensues while the party destroys these minions, and they move forward to confront Queen Trinth. She attacks, hurling spells and trying to slow down the party. It isn't long before she is surrounded, though, and after several devastating blows from Tor Val, Katrie and Dryder, she is bloodied. And then the fun begins. A bright flash of red light nearly blinds the group. Where once there was just Trinth, there are now 3 of her, different aspects of the githyanki queen. The Aspect of Body is clearly a warrior type, able to mark and restrict movement. The Aspect of Mind is definitely a controller type, hurling large area mental attacks at the group and teleporting in and out of danger. The Aspect of Entropy is a striker type, sliding through the party with heavy damaging attacks. Katrie locks down the Aspect of Mind and Tor Val charges, only to be horrified as the Aspect of Mind teleports away. Kratas is nearly killed by the Aspect of Entropy, but was lucky that Pa Mela had thrown out an effect that allowed Kratas to heal whenever he hit his target. Dryder and Gundrek surround the Aspect of Body so that they can restrict her from joining her other two aspects. Ela pulls the Aspect of Entropy off Kratas, allowing him to back off and assist. The first to fall is the Aspect of Mind. Between Tor Val and Katries, it stands no chance. As it dies, it disappears, sending a bright red flash to the other two aspects. As the Aspect of Entropy falls, the Aspect of Body is again infused by the essence of her companion. Tor Val holds off, certain that the Queen would reappear if the final aspect was destroyed. Finally, as the Aspect of Body falls, Trinth again appears in the center of the room. Tor Val quickly charges, forcing the Queen to fall prone. The Queen, however, is now infused with the powers of her aspects and teleports away. She hurls an area attack at a group of the clustered companions and drops Kratas. But soon, she is again surrounded by the party, and Katrie is able to lock her down, preventing her from doing some of her more powerful abilities. As the Queen dies, a terrible gong sound reverberates through the palace, similar to the sound that the portal made before they were thrust into this dimension. The floor shifts and the party is almost thrown from their feet. They quickly wake up Kratas and help him to his feet. He can feel a strange energy coming from beneath them, and he encourages the group to grab what they can and run. I wanted this fight to be completely epic. I made Trinth an Elite monster, and her aspects were normal monsters. All in all, I was quite pleased with how the fight turned out, and the party was nearly completely out of powers and surges by the time it was over. Gundrek quickly grabs Yrilonir. He suddenly hears its voice in his head. It tells him that it knows the way out, and that Gundrek would gain great power if he were to take the artifact back to his world. Gundrek quickly grabs the party, guiding them through the palace as the asteroid that the Githyanki city is on begins to crumble. Yrilonir continues to whisper to Gundrek, begging him to wield it. Gundrek pulls the party into a large chamber. In the center lies the portal; obviously the point where the group was pulled into this dimension. It vibrates and pulses in time to the rumbles and quakes that shake the asteroid. This is the way home. Yrilonir makes its move. It attacks Gundrek, trying to force him to run through the portal. Gundrek is able to resist the compulsion and fights back, warning his companions. Tor Val remembers that the artifact can only be destroyed in the space between worlds. Gundrek gets a glimmer of inspiration and strikes the arch of the portal with the rod. There is another loud gong sound, and the entire asteroid shivers. A crack appears on the ruby, and Yrilonir desperately attacks again. Gundrek is dominated, and starts running into the portal. Dryder quickly grabs the artifact from Gundrek and is immediately dominated as well. Tor Val wraps Dryder in a bear hug, preventing him from moving. He drags Dryder to the archway and forces him to strike the rod again on the archway. A bright flash of light erupts from the portal. A rush of wind knocks the group off their feet, and a horrible ripping sound fills the air. They get a sense of falling, and then all is black. They are not sure how long they are unconscious. They awaken in complete darkness with the scent of decay filling their noses. Gundrek strikes up a torch, and the group realizes that they are back at the original portal site on Athas. Around them are the dead and decayed bodies of the Gith who died to open the portal. They are home. Pa Mela does a heal check on the gith bodies, determining that the way they are decayed, that the bodies were dead at least two months. They begin working their way toward the surface, they move through the ancient city. They recognize the architecture now as Githyanki. Apparently, they have been to Athas before and built this stronghold. Something forced them to leave, though. Either that, or the Gith are their descendants. As the move through Yathazor, they find the body of a well starved Morlah laying beside the body of Slate. The poor man could not fend for himself after the companions defeated his master. Eventually, they arrive on the surface. The hot desert air is like perfume to them after so long in the underground. They journey back to Kiris Dahn. Soon, their sense of joy is shattered. One day out from the town, they can see smoke. As they get closer, they notice that the town is utterly destroyed. Large swaths of vegetation are blackened and defiled, and the group sadly begins digging through the rubble for survivors. After about a day of digging, they are still unable to find any evidence of survivors, nor any evidence of dead bodies. However, a terrible realization sweeps over Dryder, and he quickly rushes to the Bath House. Descending into the catacombs, he soon arrives at the chamber where the artifact was hidden. The Eye of Abalach Re is gone. The day is now the 14th day of Smolder, in the Season of High Sun, in the Year of Enemy's Slumber, 190th King's Age. In the skies above, the comet known as the Messenger can be seen. The party is now 11th level. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
D&D Older Editions
My Dark Sun 4e Game Experience Updated 01/22/2013
Top