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<blockquote data-quote="the Jester" data-source="post: 1974212" data-attributes="member: 1210"><p><em><strong>9/1/368 O.L.G., in the Stern Mountains, Strogass</strong></em></p><p></p><p>Our heroes spend the day resting and hunting for owlbear eggs. To their disappointment, they do not find any; but certainly it’s a worthy cause. Over the course of the day they discuss what they’re doing and reaffirm their desire to leave Strogass. </p><p></p><p>No eggs, eh? Well, they can certainly cook up the beast itself! Whistling, Martini guts it, skins it and cooks up great sizzling slabs of it. Though it’s gamey and tough, the meat is fairly flavorful, and our heroes spend some time discussing what herbs and spices it would require to make owlbear worthy of a feast. Throughout the day Martini smokes the remaining owlbear meat.</p><p></p><p>They party rests another night in the same location, eating more owlbear in the evening (spiced up with wild onions this time- a definite improvement, but it makes several of them think of poor old Mama Flapjacks). The next day they continue their trek into the incredible Stern Mountains. Though the going is hard and they slip and slide down the scree from time to time, by early afternoon they come upon what is unmistakably an old track, overgrown by weeds. Excitedly, Martini points out the signs that it once saw a lot of traffic- but not for decades.</p><p></p><p>Naturally curious, the halflings follow the trail up the mountain. As evening settles in the group makes camp on the shoulder, but Naomi spots something ahead and below, in the general direction the track is headed: a faint green glow.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p><em><strong>9/3/368 O.L.G., 8 a.m., on the trail</strong></em></p><p></p><p>Boddynock wakes up feeling terrible. Nauseous... he drags himself out of his bedroll and stumbles behind a nearby collection of bushes to relieve himself. Federico, on watch, glances at him as he moves away, then scans their surroundings again, sniffing the air. </p><p></p><p>Suddenly, from behind the bushes, there’s a strangely familiar flapping, buzzing sound.</p><p></p><p>“Oh no,” Federico calls out, “you caught the buzzing bowels!”*</p><p></p><p>Martini strides back to camp: he’s already been out for a look around in the light of dawn. “There’s a ruin,” he announces.</p><p></p><p>“Oh boy! Like a building, or a ruined temple?” Federico asks excitedly.</p><p></p><p>“No- a ruined <em>city.</em>”</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p><em><strong>11 a.m., the ruined city</strong></em></p><p></p><p>The ruins show the signs of having once housed a small folk, about halfling sized, and if the remaining artifacts are any evidence, basically humanoid. Most of the buildings have fallen into disrepair and many have even collapsed. Near the center is a large ziggurat, climbing several stories high. </p><p></p><p>After considerable animated debate about the virtues of cowardice (though usually phrased ‘prudent’ or ‘cautious’ or ‘careful’), Lita and Naomi move together towards the stepped pyramid. (It is at this very moment that the pair of them are christened ‘the fine girl and the fat girl’ by several other members of the party.) The two of them have been building a fast friendship over the last few weeks.</p><p></p><p>They ascend the ziggurat without mishap, so everyone else follows them up to the top, where there is a strange slab of stone blocking what appears to be an entrance. Before it, in the ground, is a hole. Some examination indicates no sign of traps, but the hole does seem to be connected to some sort of mechanism. After some thorough examination, the party concludes that something needs to be inserted into the hole.</p><p></p><p>“We need some kind of key,” Federico announces.</p><p></p><p>The party searches around for quite some time, especially in the ruins of a nearby temple. They soon uncover a secret trap door and descend a ladder to a fairly small chamber, about 15’ square, bisected by a wall. On the far side, the sharp-eyed ranger catches sight of movement and hears the sloshing of water.</p><p></p><p>“Watch out,” he calls to the others. “I think we’ve got a water monster.”</p><p></p><p>The group moves into the room and watches the wall for a moment. Being halflings, they are too short to see over it; but they can hear movement. Lita whispers, “I’m going to look,” and before anyone can stop her she scampers up to the wall and then climbs up on top.</p><p></p><p>“I don’t see anything,” she says after a moment. Near the wall is a barrel, with a ladle; curious, she hops down and opens it. “Blood,” she says in surprise, her nose wrinkling. She glances at the ladle, glances at the wall, and visibly has an idea. She scampers back up the wall and reaches out to grab the ladle.</p><p></p><p>“Maybe that’s not a good idea,” Timothy says as Boddynock rejoins the group, more than a little green in the face.</p><p></p><p>But Lita’s not really listening to Timothy. He’s crazy anyway, right? She dumps the blood in the pool.</p><p></p><p>Almost immediately, a terrible creature stands up before her, hissing. It’s some horrible undead creature, with long jagged nails and broken, sharp teeth. Its limp hair dangles in front of its face. Its tongue is black and swollen and cracked. </p><p></p><p>“Gross,” Timothy comments. He’s very nervous.</p><p></p><p>“I think it’s friendly!” Lita says excitedly, and then a sickly grey claw swipes out at her. She gives a cry of fear, pinwheels her arms, and jumps back off the wall. Martini draws steel and moves up next to the creature. A single solid blow slices its arm off and it falls back dead with a hiss and a splash. But Martini cries, “There are more of them!” and stands ready. </p><p></p><p>Lita gleefully springs back to the ladle. </p><p></p><p>“No!” cries Timothy, but he’s too late. She flings more blood into the water, and three more of the undead rise from the water. Suddenly the room is all crossbow bolts and swords; Boddynock’s <em>magic missiles</em> streak into the creatures. Claws and snarling yellow teeth lash out; and in less than thirty seconds it’s over, with the monsters defeated. </p><p></p><p>“We should search the water!” Lita suggests cheerfully.</p><p></p><p>“What, while you ladle more blood in?” Martini snaps. She smiles at him.</p><p></p><p>“No, no more blood,” moans Timothy.</p><p></p><p>“Well, maybe they had treasure,” offers Federico. </p><p></p><p>“Fine, <em>I’ll</em> search,” Lita huffs.</p><p></p><p>A good cold wet half hour later, the group has found some coin, an ankh-shaped item that just might be the key they need, and a helmet.</p><p></p><p>“A helmet!” exclaims Martini. “Does it look good on me?” And he slips it over his head. </p><p></p><p>“Hey, that’s party treasure,” says Naomi.</p><p></p><p>“No, it’s mine,” Martini says.</p><p></p><p>“Uh...”</p><p></p><p>“It’s my pick.”</p><p></p><p>Suddenly Lita plucks it off of the ranger’s head. Without an instant’s hesitation, Martini whirls on her, whips out his greatsword, and buries it in her face.</p><p></p><p></p><p><em><strong>Next Time:</strong></em> Whoa! What just happened there?? (I’ll bet any veteran dnd player can figure it out pretty easily, actually...) More important, <em>what happens now??</em> Not telling, you’ll see.</p><p></p><p></p><p>*The buzzing bowels is a terrible intestinal disease. The pcs were exposed in their fight with the flies (barely mentioned above <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" />) Boddynock was the only one to catch it, however.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="the Jester, post: 1974212, member: 1210"] [i][b]9/1/368 O.L.G., in the Stern Mountains, Strogass[/b][/i][b][/b] Our heroes spend the day resting and hunting for owlbear eggs. To their disappointment, they do not find any; but certainly it’s a worthy cause. Over the course of the day they discuss what they’re doing and reaffirm their desire to leave Strogass. No eggs, eh? Well, they can certainly cook up the beast itself! Whistling, Martini guts it, skins it and cooks up great sizzling slabs of it. Though it’s gamey and tough, the meat is fairly flavorful, and our heroes spend some time discussing what herbs and spices it would require to make owlbear worthy of a feast. Throughout the day Martini smokes the remaining owlbear meat. They party rests another night in the same location, eating more owlbear in the evening (spiced up with wild onions this time- a definite improvement, but it makes several of them think of poor old Mama Flapjacks). The next day they continue their trek into the incredible Stern Mountains. Though the going is hard and they slip and slide down the scree from time to time, by early afternoon they come upon what is unmistakably an old track, overgrown by weeds. Excitedly, Martini points out the signs that it once saw a lot of traffic- but not for decades. Naturally curious, the halflings follow the trail up the mountain. As evening settles in the group makes camp on the shoulder, but Naomi spots something ahead and below, in the general direction the track is headed: a faint green glow. *** [i][b]9/3/368 O.L.G., 8 a.m., on the trail[/b][/i][b][/b] Boddynock wakes up feeling terrible. Nauseous... he drags himself out of his bedroll and stumbles behind a nearby collection of bushes to relieve himself. Federico, on watch, glances at him as he moves away, then scans their surroundings again, sniffing the air. Suddenly, from behind the bushes, there’s a strangely familiar flapping, buzzing sound. “Oh no,” Federico calls out, “you caught the buzzing bowels!”* Martini strides back to camp: he’s already been out for a look around in the light of dawn. “There’s a ruin,” he announces. “Oh boy! Like a building, or a ruined temple?” Federico asks excitedly. “No- a ruined [i]city.[/i]” *** [i][b]11 a.m., the ruined city[/b][/i][b][/b] The ruins show the signs of having once housed a small folk, about halfling sized, and if the remaining artifacts are any evidence, basically humanoid. Most of the buildings have fallen into disrepair and many have even collapsed. Near the center is a large ziggurat, climbing several stories high. After considerable animated debate about the virtues of cowardice (though usually phrased ‘prudent’ or ‘cautious’ or ‘careful’), Lita and Naomi move together towards the stepped pyramid. (It is at this very moment that the pair of them are christened ‘the fine girl and the fat girl’ by several other members of the party.) The two of them have been building a fast friendship over the last few weeks. They ascend the ziggurat without mishap, so everyone else follows them up to the top, where there is a strange slab of stone blocking what appears to be an entrance. Before it, in the ground, is a hole. Some examination indicates no sign of traps, but the hole does seem to be connected to some sort of mechanism. After some thorough examination, the party concludes that something needs to be inserted into the hole. “We need some kind of key,” Federico announces. The party searches around for quite some time, especially in the ruins of a nearby temple. They soon uncover a secret trap door and descend a ladder to a fairly small chamber, about 15’ square, bisected by a wall. On the far side, the sharp-eyed ranger catches sight of movement and hears the sloshing of water. “Watch out,” he calls to the others. “I think we’ve got a water monster.” The group moves into the room and watches the wall for a moment. Being halflings, they are too short to see over it; but they can hear movement. Lita whispers, “I’m going to look,” and before anyone can stop her she scampers up to the wall and then climbs up on top. “I don’t see anything,” she says after a moment. Near the wall is a barrel, with a ladle; curious, she hops down and opens it. “Blood,” she says in surprise, her nose wrinkling. She glances at the ladle, glances at the wall, and visibly has an idea. She scampers back up the wall and reaches out to grab the ladle. “Maybe that’s not a good idea,” Timothy says as Boddynock rejoins the group, more than a little green in the face. But Lita’s not really listening to Timothy. He’s crazy anyway, right? She dumps the blood in the pool. Almost immediately, a terrible creature stands up before her, hissing. It’s some horrible undead creature, with long jagged nails and broken, sharp teeth. Its limp hair dangles in front of its face. Its tongue is black and swollen and cracked. “Gross,” Timothy comments. He’s very nervous. “I think it’s friendly!” Lita says excitedly, and then a sickly grey claw swipes out at her. She gives a cry of fear, pinwheels her arms, and jumps back off the wall. Martini draws steel and moves up next to the creature. A single solid blow slices its arm off and it falls back dead with a hiss and a splash. But Martini cries, “There are more of them!” and stands ready. Lita gleefully springs back to the ladle. “No!” cries Timothy, but he’s too late. She flings more blood into the water, and three more of the undead rise from the water. Suddenly the room is all crossbow bolts and swords; Boddynock’s [i]magic missiles[/i] streak into the creatures. Claws and snarling yellow teeth lash out; and in less than thirty seconds it’s over, with the monsters defeated. “We should search the water!” Lita suggests cheerfully. “What, while you ladle more blood in?” Martini snaps. She smiles at him. “No, no more blood,” moans Timothy. “Well, maybe they had treasure,” offers Federico. “Fine, [i]I’ll[/i] search,” Lita huffs. A good cold wet half hour later, the group has found some coin, an ankh-shaped item that just might be the key they need, and a helmet. “A helmet!” exclaims Martini. “Does it look good on me?” And he slips it over his head. “Hey, that’s party treasure,” says Naomi. “No, it’s mine,” Martini says. “Uh...” “It’s my pick.” Suddenly Lita plucks it off of the ranger’s head. Without an instant’s hesitation, Martini whirls on her, whips out his greatsword, and buries it in her face. [i][b]Next Time:[/b][/i][b][/b] Whoa! What just happened there?? (I’ll bet any veteran dnd player can figure it out pretty easily, actually...) More important, [i]what happens now??[/i] Not telling, you’ll see. *The buzzing bowels is a terrible intestinal disease. The pcs were exposed in their fight with the flies (barely mentioned above :)) Boddynock was the only one to catch it, however. [/QUOTE]
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