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<blockquote data-quote="Richards" data-source="post: 7810027" data-attributes="member: 508"><p><strong>ADVENTURE 58: TERMS OF SURRENDER</strong></p><p></p><p>PC Roster: <p style="margin-left: 20px">Daleth Stormsea, elf wizard 18</p> <p style="margin-left: 20px"> Galen Thorne, human paladin 18</p> <p style="margin-left: 20px"> Kaspar Hardstrike, elf monk 18</p> <p style="margin-left: 20px"> Orion Nightsky, halfling rogue 18</p> <p style="margin-left: 20px"> Syngaard, human fighter 18</p><p></p><p>Game Session Date: 11 September 2019</p><p></p><p> - - -</p><p></p><p>Over a week had passed since the conscripts had cleared out Tenryu's lair and they had been busy selling off the items they didn't want and purchasing upgrades to their armor and weapons. With single-minded determination, Syngaard had plunked down a heavy bag of coins and arranged to have his magic morningstar upgraded by the Temple of Pelor: it now had a holy aura about it that would deal extra damage to fiends from the lower planes and the bald fighter was pleased to see it now had Pelor's symbol - a radiant sun - carved onto each side, the spikes of the weapon's head looking like rays of light. Mezz, he knew, would have been pleased with his choice. Orion had seen to getting her <em>bag of blades</em> upgraded; now the endless supply of daggers it provided were charged not only with electricity but also flame, and the knives were keen enough to cut a piece of paper by simply dropping it on the sharp edge of the dagger's blade. Plus, if she struck her foe just right with a thrown dagger, the flames and electricity went into overdrive, exploding in a most satisfying blast. Galen opted for a more defensive route, enhancing his mithral full plate armor with additional enhancements to turn away the most wicked of blades and repel the most powerful blows. But Daleth outdid everyone else in terms of raw power: he'd gone months without spending a single coin on enhancements and upgrades and had amassed a large enough fortune to purchase one of the most powerful <em>metamagic rods</em> in existence: one that would greatly enhance the power of any three spells he could channel through it each day, maximizing the random effects that were often outside a wizard's control. With such an arcane tool at his disposal, he could maximize the explosive effects of a <em>fireball</em> or reflect back the absolute upper limit of arcane energy with a <em>spell turning</em> spell. He couldn't wait to test it on the field of battle!</p><p></p><p>And then, out of the blue on an otherwise uneventful morning, it suddenly looked like he'd be getting his chance, for the conscripts were all summoned to the <em>Enchanted Flagon</em> via the rings they wore. A summons from Skevros usually meant an assignment and a mission from Skevros usually involved combat of some sort, most often against the assorted enemies of the small kingdom: the various members of the Seekers of Eternity or, more recently, the Ossirnan army currently at war with the Azure Glade, Ashfall, and Durnhill.</p><p></p><p>Entering the tavern with three of the others - Syngaard, as usual, wouldn't arrive for a bit yet, as he lived further away - Daleth saw the king's adviser and his doll-homunculus familiar Dow standing around the table the conscripts used for their mission briefings. But floating across the room from Skevros and Dow were three sets of empty robes with symbols in place of their faces. As the robes were styled in the fashion of the wizards of the Azure Glade and were black, white, and orange in color, Daleth immediately identified them as representatives of the Council of Guilds: Necromancy, Divination, and Abjuration, respectively.</p><p></p><p>Daleth raised his newly-purchased <em>metamagic rod</em> and looked ready to channel a spell through it, but Skevros raised his hand and waved him off. "Hold up, Daleth!" he called. "They are only here to talk."</p><p></p><p>Kaspar looked at the floor beneath the three sets of robes and saw no feet. "There is nobody actually here but us," he observed.</p><p></p><p>"Quite right," Skevros agreed. "These are merely devices through which the respective Guildmasters can speak from a distance."</p><p></p><p>"Speak, then," commanded Galen, his hand upon the hilt of the <em>sword of Zehkar</em>.</p><p></p><p>A voice came from behind the mask of the white robe - the Diviner. "We are here to discuss the terms of our surrender."</p><p></p><p>"Very well," the paladin asserted. "You can begin with--"</p><p></p><p>"Let us first lay out our proposal," interrupted the floating Diviner, "and then we can negotiate from there." Galen frowned at being cut off but nodded his agreement.</p><p></p><p>"The Seekers of Eternity cult is all but dismantled. We propose the reunification of the Azure Glade and the Council of Guilds. The current Guildmasters of the Seeker-led guilds will step down and the Diviners' Guildmaster - the only one left of the original group that attempted the coup from within - will face judgment at the hands of the new Azure Council."</p><p></p><p>"Just the Diviners' Guildmaster?" demanded Orion. "What about the Necromancers' Guildmaster? He was equally to blame!"</p><p></p><p>"And he is now dead," replied the voice behind the Necromancer's robe. "I have assumed control of the Guild of Necromancers and have weeded out our Guild of those loyal to the Seekers. The Guild of Diviners has done likewise." The Diviner dipped his head in acknowledgement; whoever was piloting this floating construct remotely from the Azure Glade wasn't the original Guildmaster of Diviners.</p><p></p><p>"And what about the Guildmaster of Evokers?" pressed the halfling. "He was definitely in on the conspiracy!"</p><p></p><p>The Diviner replied, "We have lost all contact with the Guild of Evokers. All attempts to divine their whereabouts are actively being blocked."</p><p></p><p>"Not much good at divinin' then, are you?" piped up Syngaard, having walked into the tavern and picked up the last bit of conversation. "What'd I miss?" he asked. "Who are these floatin' bozos?" Kaspar stepped over to the scarred fighter and hastily filled him in while the Diviner continued on with their suggested terms of surrender.</p><p></p><p>"The masses of Ossirna also wish to end the war but orders from the very top are to immediate execute anyone attempting to surrender to your forces. There can be no peace so long as the usurper king Selvik lives."</p><p></p><p>"I think I like where this is headin'!" Syngaard said, smiling for the first time since walking into the conversation late.</p><p></p><p>"We believe your team here, Skevros, is capable of killing Selvik and his retinue of loyal followers - the ones most likely to have him <em>resurrected</em> upon his death."</p><p></p><p>"Wait--kill him?" asked Orion.</p><p></p><p>Syngaard sneered down at the little halfling. "Yeah, kill him: what did you think? Ask him really nicely to step down and hope for the best? You gettin' cold feet all of a sudden?"</p><p></p><p>"It's not that," Orion insisted. "I just thought he was, you know, immortal."</p><p></p><p>"He has the <em>potential</em> for immortality," corrected Skevros. "Barring accident or injury, he could live forever. He can, however, be killed as easily as you or I." He then thought about his own "living lich" state and amended, "Or as easily as you, in any case."</p><p></p><p>"Tomorrow," continued the Diviner, "we have foreseen there will be an uprising in Ossirna which will force the king and his most loyal followers to hole themselves up within the palace. You can then <em>teleport</em> into the entry chamber before the throne room, which itself is <em>dimensionally locked</em>, and then kill your way to Selvik."</p><p></p><p>"I'm <em>likin'</em> this plan!" enthused Syngaard. "But I got one question."</p><p></p><p>Skevros sighed in weary anticipation. "It is, of course, a paying mission," he said. "For putting an end to the war with Ossirna, I am quite sure His Majesty the king will see to it you are handsomely rewarded." The symbols in place of the faces on the trio of floating robes had no eyes to roll at the banality of the scarred fighter's question, but the Diviner shook his head in disbelief - an action that no doubt mirrored the head shake of the actual diviner piloting this floating robe device from back in the Azure Glade.</p><p></p><p>Galen moved on to practical matters. "How many loyal followers does Selvik have?" The Diviner described them: eight elite fighters armed and armored with hellsteel; a pair of hellsteel-clad barbarian executioners; the last two high priests of the Seekers of Eternity cult; Maelina, the Captain of the Royal Guard; and two assassins.</p><p></p><p>"They all human?" Syngaard asked.</p><p></p><p>"To the best of our knowledge, yes," replied the Diviner. Syngaard rubbed the hilt of the <em>human bane scimitar</em> sheathed on his belt. "You're gonna get to see some action soon," he promised it.</p><p></p><p>"What about doppelgangers?" asked Kaspar. "When we were last in Ossirna, there had been a plot to send doppelgangers into Durnhill to sow distrust and chaos. Does King Selvik have any of the shapeshifters still in his service?"</p><p></p><p>"We do not believe so. Once the scheme had been exposed they went elsewhere, seeking lives of ease." Orion for one was glad to hear that, her parents having been slain by the creatures when she was young.</p><p></p><p>Skevros looked over at his conscripts, seeing acceptance in their eyes. He turned to the floating robes with the symbols for faces. "I believe His Majesty will accept your terms of surrender," he apprised them. "My team will make their plans for tomorrow's assault. You may return these shells to the Azure Glade and make your own preparations for the restructuring of your Guild leadership." With a trio of nodded heads, the three empty robes floated to the front door of the tavern, which opened of its own accord - a simple cantrip, no doubt - to allow them exit.</p><p></p><p>"Okay," Galen said to the others after they were once again alone. "We have some planning to do."</p><p></p><p>"Not so fast," interrupted Syngaard. "If we're gonna do this, we gotta do this right." Then he called to the back of the tavern, "KAREN! Bring us a couple pitchers of strong ale and some mugs!"</p><p></p><p> - - - </p><p></p><p>The next day, the conscripts headed over to the South Gate, their plans made and strategies formalized. Skevros had been scrying upon Ossirna all morning and watched as the populace began their predicted uprising, just as the Diviner had prophesied. Galen summoned Burt from the Beastlands and the dire lion appeared at once, ready for battle. The paladin then sheathed himself in <em>magic circle against evil</em> and <em>death ward</em> spells and cast a <em>bless weapon</em> spell upon the <em>sword of Zehkar</em>, the better for it to strike true.</p><p></p><p>Daleth began his own spellcasting, but it was a slightly different assortment of spells than those he usually cast. True, he cast <em>stoneskin</em>, <em>fly</em>, <em>magic circle against evil</em>, and <em>spell turning</em> spells upon himself and his pseudodragon familiar Todd - some things, it seemed, would never change - but he also cast <em>greater invisibility</em> spells upon Kaspar, Orion, Syngaard, Burt, and himself and Todd, each of them vanishing from view as the spell was cast. Galen made do with Orion's <em>ring of invisibility</em>, lent to him for that purpose. Daleth then used his <em>staff of divination</em> to cast <em>true seeing</em> spells upon Galen, Kaspar, and Syngaard and <em>true seeing</em> upon himself, so they'd each be able to see each other while they were all invisible. (He didn't bother granting such ability to Orion, for the little halfling could sense the life forces of those around her whether the targets were invisible or not.) Using spell scrolls provided by Orion, Daleth then cast <em>stoneskin</em> spells upon Galen, Kaspar, Orion, and Syngaard, the better to provide protection from weapon-blows beyond even that which their armor could handle. Daleth finished off the flurry of spellcasting activity with <em>haste</em> and <em>Rary's telepathic bond</em> spells cast upon the entire assembled group. "<em>Now</em> we're talkin', Wizard-Pants!" Syngaard enthused and the elven wizard scowled at the fact it had taken Syngaard's grumbling during their last outing for him to give some serious thought about maximizing the benefits his spells provided across the entire group.</p><p></p><p>Skevros was still peering into his <em>crystal ball</em>, examining the throne room and the entry chamber immediately before it. Selvik and his sixteen loyal followers had barricaded themselves in these two rooms as predicted. The invisible conscripts examined the images in the clear globe. "There's a whole bunch of bodyguards massed up against the door to the entry chamber," Galen pointed out. "Daleth, I think we'll let you do the honors there while we stay out of the way. Then we'll all take out everyone left in that chamber before pressing on to the throne room."</p><p></p><p>"It's a shame we can't just <em>teleport</em> into the throne room and take Selvik out first," said Orion.</p><p></p><p>"I fear he has the throne room shielded against such a tactic," Skevros answered. "He's also taken precautions against being scried directly upon." He pointed a narrow finger to a blurry image around the space where the conscripts knew his throne to be. "He's somewhere in that area, but we can't be sure exactly where. But that should be an anti-scrying defense only; once you gain entry to the throne room you should be able to see him normally."</p><p></p><p>"Is everyone ready?" asked Kaspar as the group took their positions just outside the gate to Durnhill. Syngaard unsheathed his <em>human bane scimitar</em> and nodded eagerly. "We're ready," he answered for himself and his weapon. Orion gave the king's adviser the thumbs-up signal from the saddle of her ghost-dog Carl, then called "Ready!" as she realized she was completely invisible and she hadn't noticed whether Skevros had cast a spell upon himself allowing him to see them.</p><p></p><p>"Then good luck, everyone!" called Skevros as he cast a <em>greater teleport</em> spell upon the conscripts and sent them miles to the south, into the entry hall outside the throne room of the castle of Selvik, the usurper-king of Ossirna.</p><p></p><p>They arrived completely invisible, the only figure even capable of being seen without magical enhancement being Carl, and he was naught but a translucent image easily missed, even if everyone's attention wasn't drawn to the barred door, from which could be heard the banging and slamming of the uprising Ossirnans trying to gain entry. As planned, the first volley belonged to Daleth. He cast forth a <em>prismatic spray</em> spell which encompassed all seven fighters by the door and two others within range of his multicolored cone of spell energy.</p><p></p><p>The effects were instantaneous. One hellsteel-armored fighter frothed at the mouth and collapsed, slain instantly by a virulent poison flooding his body without warning. Another fighter petrified to a statue before he even knew what was happening to him. One of the barbarians gave a startled cry as he was whisked away to a random plane, never to be seen again. One of the Seeker high priests was blasted by a bolt of electricity and an assassin was scorched by a blast of sudden flames. Two fighters, one by the back door and one guarding the door to the throne room, had their sanity shattered. Those still alive (or at least those who still retained their full faculties) whirled around in place, seeking the source of this sudden attack - and that's when Daleth cast his <em>quickened Evard's black tentacles</em> spell, catching all of those by the barred door in the crushing embrace of inky appendages springing up from the ground.</p><p></p><p><Nice!> called Syngaard over the link - rare praise from him for a mere spellcaster. Despite himself, Daleth felt pride at the fact he'd gained a modicum of respect from the scarred fighter.</p><p></p><p>Orion stabbed out with her <em>nightflame short sword</em>, skewering the soulknife assassin through the heart before he could even attempt to fight back. Kaspar sped forward, attacking the insane fighter guarding access to the throne room, with Syngaard following behind. While they flanked the now-crazy guardian and attacked with fists and blade, Burt leaped onto the recently-zapped cleric and clawed him to shreds before Galen had a chance to bring down his sword - for to do so would have meant returning to full visibility, given his invisibility was powered by Orion's ring and thus only lasted until his first attack.</p><p></p><p>Daleth plopped an <em>acid fog</em> spell down on top of those imprisoned by the <em>Evard's black tentacles</em>, smiling at the sound of the screams and curses it brought to the lips of the hellsteel warriors.</p><p></p><p>Carl darted forward and Orion backstabbed the insane fighter before the throne room door, but he was made of stern stuff and refused to die, even when Kaspar and Syngaard gave it their best efforts to drop him. As he was the sole remaining target not being attacked by tentacles and acid, Burt ran over to him and tried to bite him on the leg while Galen swung the <em>sword of Zehkar</em> at him, returning to visibility as he did so. But as Burt was still hidden from normal sight, the insane Ossirnan fighter saw only a paladin of Hieroneous floating in midair, doing the splits.</p><p></p><p>That, despite his many wounds, might have been what it finally took to break the fighter's spirit. With a bleat of terror, he pulled open the door to the throne room and raced inside, screaming all the while.</p><p></p><p>Through the open doorway the conscripts could see the other soulknife assassin, the other high priest of the Seekers, Maelina the Captain of the Guard - and Selvik, hiding from behind his throne, peeking fearfully from the feeble protection it provided. Those inside the throne room could hear the shrieks of pain of the hellsteel warriors being squeezed to death by black tentacles while acid trickled down their faces and skin, although the only enemy in view was a straddle-legged paladin hovering several feet above the floor.</p><p></p><p>Daleth stepped past Galen and his invisible mount and raised his <em>greater metamagic rod of maximizing</em>, channeling a <em>meteor swarm</em> spell through it. He had a number of potential targets, but decided while casting to send each of the four meteors flying straight at Selvik; best to take the king out first and ensure his death before worrying about his loyal followers. As he released the spell Daleth had a moment of sudden panic, for he saw Selvik holding a black rod the elf feared might be a <em>rod of absorption</em> - but then he relaxed, realizing his most powerful spell wouldn't fizzle out from such a rod anyway, for they could only affect spells with but a single target, not area-of-effect spells such as his <em>meteor swarm</em>. Each meteor struck true, pummeling into the weak chest of the centuries-old king of Ossirna and then exploding into a glorious gout of flame that quickly encompassed his guardians. The fiery blast put an end to the insane door guard, who fell to the floor in a blazing mass of flames. And then Daleth cast yet another <em>quickened Evard's black tentacles</em> spell that not only grabbed up the Ossirnan king but his loyal Captain as well, crushing them both in their strangling embrace. Selvik collapsed at once, the entangling appendages squeezing him instantly into unconsciousness and well on the way to death.</p><p></p><p>Burt entered the room and thus Galen was the only visible intruder; as such, he became the target for the soulknife assassin's psionic attack. Fortunately, a blast of mental energy in the form of a thrown blade can be dodged as easily as the real thing, but while Galen was ducking beneath the attack the assassin moved back into the corner of the throne room, from where he could see any enemies approaching.</p><p></p><p>Or so he thought. Carl bounded up to him and he readied himself against the dog's potential bite, failing to notice his saddle until it was too late - and Orion's short sword cut a line of burning pain across a hastily-raised arm. While his attention was thus focused, Syngaard ran up behind him and stabbed him with his <em>human bane scimitar</em>, disappointed that it didn't drop him at once - but then he got a good look at the assassin and decided he wasn't quite a human after all: something close maybe, like an elf, but not a true human. Figures!</p><p></p><p>The Seeker cleric was the only other mobile combatant at the moment and he rushed over by the tentacle mass to cast a <em>mass heal</em> spell that not only healed himself and Maelina to full health but brought King Selvik back from the very brink of death, restored fully as well. Kaspar ran to the cleric, too late to prevent his spellcasting but hopefully in time to put a stop to him for good. Channeling the full power of his inner <em>chi</em>, he focused it into his right hand and struck the cleric a mighty blow, one powered not only by the <em>tenryutsume</em> he wore but the energy of the quivering palm he had infused into it. The cleric staggered under the onslaught but was not slain outright as the monk had hoped. Burt leaped forward and bit the cleric on the leg, allowing Galen to channel the evil-smiting power of Hieroneous through his blade, but that too failed to drop the Seeker.</p><p></p><p>All of a sudden, Selvik was standing well outside the range of the waving tentacles, glaring at Daleth with a burning hatred that informed the elf his <em>greater invisibility</em> spell was no longer concealing him from the king's vision. What had happened? Could he <em>teleport</em> somehow? The throne room was <em>dimensionally locked</em> - Skevros himself had said so! A flash of insight caused the elf to release an involuntary groan: Selvik, despite his seeming frailty, was more than likely a powerful wizard, one capable of casting a <em>time stop</em> spell! That, the elf believed, would require only spoken arcane syllables: a spell easily cast even among a veritable forest of grappling tentacles! From Selvik's point of view, the tentacles would have frozen in mid-motion, allowing him to easily extract himself from their embrace and simply walk out of the spell's area of effect. He would have had time to cast a <em>true seeing</em> or <em>see invisibility</em> spell, plus who knew what all else?</p><p></p><p><Selvik's a high-level wizard!> Daleth called over the mindlink. <He's free from the tentacles and can see us!> But then, his warning to the others given, the elf took matters into his own hands, once again channeling a spell through his new <em>metamagic rod</em>, this one maximizing the effects of a <em>cone of cold</em> spell that managed to catch Maelina in its area of effect as well as the Ossirnan king. Todd leaped from Daleth's shoulders, hoping to sting the king into instant slumber, but ran up against Selvik's <em>stoneskin</em> spell. <I can't penetrate his protection!> Todd informed his master.</p><p></p><p>The soulknife chose his target poorly, trying to attack the invisible halfling he now knew must be mounted in the ghost-dog's saddle. But unknown to the psionic assassin, Orion had ducked down and was hanging sideways from Carl's saddle, a perch from which she could easily slash at her foe's knee, dropping him to the floor, from where she could reach his unprotected neck with another quick slash of her flaming blade. He fell to the floor and at first Syngaard thought Orion and Carl fell with him, but nope - the halfling had merely directed her mount to sink ethereally into the floor so they could cross the throne room unseen by Selvik.</p><p></p><p>The Seeker cleric backed hastily away from Galen, who still hung in midair with his legs spread across the back of an invisible mount of some sort. The Ossirnan cast a <em>heal</em> spell upon himself, closing up the wounds he'd received from the paladin's sword, the monk's open hand, and Burt's sharp teeth. But Kaspar was there immediately, his limbs a blur of motion as he struck the cleric a series of devastating blows that stunned him into temporary insensibility. And while the dazed Seeker stood there, staggering and threatening to fall over, Burt ended his life with twin rakes of his front claws and a saber-fanged bite that almost took the cleric's head right off.</p><p></p><p>Syngaard spun in place and saw Selvik standing free. Behind the immortal king, thus far unnoticed, rose Orion and Carl from the floor; the bald fighter knew they'd be visible to the spell-enhanced Ossirnan king if he managed to look over in their direction. Syngaard also knew he was too far away to cross the distance in time, but he knew somebody who was much faster than he was. With an evil grin, Syngaard pulled his Dick from his pocket and gave it a good rub.</p><p></p><p>"Grapple him!" Syngaard commanded as the <em>bronze griffon</em> statuette took on full form, crossing the room easily with a flap of eagle's wings. With a screech of defiance, the griffon's front talons collided with Selvik's feeble frame, dropping the king to the floor while the winged war-mount stood over him, snapping at him with his sharp beak. Selvik might have been a powerful wizard with centuries of spellcasting practice, but Syngaard doubted he'd be able to concentrate on spellcasting very well while a 500-pound griffon grappled with him - especially after Daleth cast a <em>mass bull's strength</em> spell that only increased Dick's combat prowess. The bald fighter then followed in his griffon's wake, racing across the room with his <em>human bane scimitar</em> ready to taste an immortal's blood.</p><p></p><p>Buried beneath the griffon's bulk, Selvik reviewed his options. The <em>foresight</em> spell he'd cast earlier - which had him cowering behind his throne to fend off an attack he knew was impending - was still in effect, allowing him to foresee all attempts to negotiate with these intruders from Durnhill ended up with his death anyway. He'd simply have to get free of this horrid beast so he'd have the mobility for proper spellcasting. As he struggled to free himself he had to slap away Daleth's hand, which had tried grabbing the king's <em>rod of absorption</em> while he was otherwise distracted by the griffon. But then Orion, having manifested back into the material plane with her ghost-dog, leaped down from Carl's saddle and stabbed beneath the griffon, impaling her blade through the Ossirnan king's head. Just like that, Selvik the Undying was dead.</p><p></p><p>With a roar of fury at the death of her liege, Maelina finally escaped from the ebony tentacles entwined around her. But she stumbled upon gaining her freedom, allowing Kaspar to bring a two-handed slam down upon the back of her neck, dropping her to the floor, where she was an easy target for Syngaard's scimitar and the snapping beak of his Dick. But it was Galen who landed the blow that killed the Captain of the Guard, with a smite evil attack coursing through his blade that nearly took the head from her shoulders.</p><p></p><p>Orion looked around the throne room. "That's everyone!" she said.</p><p></p><p>"Well, everyone in here," Daleth amended, walking back through the throne room doors to ensure none of the hellsteel warriors still bound in the embrace of his first <em>Evard's black tentacles</em> spell had escaped their rubbery clutches. They hadn't. He sealed their fates with a <em>delayed blast fireball</em> spell that did maximum damage when channeled through his new <em>metamagic rod</em>. Despite the fire resistance their hellsteel armor provided, the massive blast of flames took them all out of the fight. When he released his <em>Evard's black tentacles</em> spell, they all fell unmoving to the floor like so many discarded dolls.</p><p></p><p>"I notice the Ossirnan citizens aren't in such a rush to batter down this door any more," Galen observed, hearing no more of the pounding on the barred door as they'd all heard upon their entry to the room.</p><p></p><p>"Probably heard all the screaming," Orion hypothesized.</p><p></p><p>The conscripts did a quick job of looting anything they thought might be of use to them - Daleth, for one, had appropriated King Selvik's <em>rod of absorption</em> and the Seeker clerics had a few defensive items which could be parceled out among the conscripts - before Kaspar pulled the <em>ring of return</em> from inside his robes and held it out laterally for the other conscripts to grab hold of. "Are we ready?" he asked.</p><p></p><p>"One moment," replied Galen, pulling the bar from the door to the rest of the castle. "Might as well make it easier for the common folk to see what's what in here, once we've taken off." Then he rejoined the others, Kaspar activated the ring, and the conscripts were <em>teleported</em> back to where they'd left, just outside the South Gate of Durnhill.</p><p></p><p> - - - </p><p></p><p>Logan admitted to us he wanted all of the PCs to make it to 19th level by the end of this adventure (as there are now only two more adventures to go in this campaign), so he reverse-engineered it: figuring out how much XP we would need to do so and then creating enough enemies for us to fight to get us there. And Daleth really came through for us this time, buffing the other PCs to ensure we'd have all the advantages we needed to keep us in the fight.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Richards, post: 7810027, member: 508"] [b]ADVENTURE 58: TERMS OF SURRENDER[/b] PC Roster: [INDENT]Daleth Stormsea, elf wizard 18 Galen Thorne, human paladin 18 Kaspar Hardstrike, elf monk 18 Orion Nightsky, halfling rogue 18 Syngaard, human fighter 18[/INDENT] Game Session Date: 11 September 2019 - - - Over a week had passed since the conscripts had cleared out Tenryu's lair and they had been busy selling off the items they didn't want and purchasing upgrades to their armor and weapons. With single-minded determination, Syngaard had plunked down a heavy bag of coins and arranged to have his magic morningstar upgraded by the Temple of Pelor: it now had a holy aura about it that would deal extra damage to fiends from the lower planes and the bald fighter was pleased to see it now had Pelor's symbol - a radiant sun - carved onto each side, the spikes of the weapon's head looking like rays of light. Mezz, he knew, would have been pleased with his choice. Orion had seen to getting her [i]bag of blades[/i] upgraded; now the endless supply of daggers it provided were charged not only with electricity but also flame, and the knives were keen enough to cut a piece of paper by simply dropping it on the sharp edge of the dagger's blade. Plus, if she struck her foe just right with a thrown dagger, the flames and electricity went into overdrive, exploding in a most satisfying blast. Galen opted for a more defensive route, enhancing his mithral full plate armor with additional enhancements to turn away the most wicked of blades and repel the most powerful blows. But Daleth outdid everyone else in terms of raw power: he'd gone months without spending a single coin on enhancements and upgrades and had amassed a large enough fortune to purchase one of the most powerful [i]metamagic rods[/i] in existence: one that would greatly enhance the power of any three spells he could channel through it each day, maximizing the random effects that were often outside a wizard's control. With such an arcane tool at his disposal, he could maximize the explosive effects of a [i]fireball[/i] or reflect back the absolute upper limit of arcane energy with a [i]spell turning[/i] spell. He couldn't wait to test it on the field of battle! And then, out of the blue on an otherwise uneventful morning, it suddenly looked like he'd be getting his chance, for the conscripts were all summoned to the [i]Enchanted Flagon[/i] via the rings they wore. A summons from Skevros usually meant an assignment and a mission from Skevros usually involved combat of some sort, most often against the assorted enemies of the small kingdom: the various members of the Seekers of Eternity or, more recently, the Ossirnan army currently at war with the Azure Glade, Ashfall, and Durnhill. Entering the tavern with three of the others - Syngaard, as usual, wouldn't arrive for a bit yet, as he lived further away - Daleth saw the king's adviser and his doll-homunculus familiar Dow standing around the table the conscripts used for their mission briefings. But floating across the room from Skevros and Dow were three sets of empty robes with symbols in place of their faces. As the robes were styled in the fashion of the wizards of the Azure Glade and were black, white, and orange in color, Daleth immediately identified them as representatives of the Council of Guilds: Necromancy, Divination, and Abjuration, respectively. Daleth raised his newly-purchased [i]metamagic rod[/i] and looked ready to channel a spell through it, but Skevros raised his hand and waved him off. "Hold up, Daleth!" he called. "They are only here to talk." Kaspar looked at the floor beneath the three sets of robes and saw no feet. "There is nobody actually here but us," he observed. "Quite right," Skevros agreed. "These are merely devices through which the respective Guildmasters can speak from a distance." "Speak, then," commanded Galen, his hand upon the hilt of the [i]sword of Zehkar[/i]. A voice came from behind the mask of the white robe - the Diviner. "We are here to discuss the terms of our surrender." "Very well," the paladin asserted. "You can begin with--" "Let us first lay out our proposal," interrupted the floating Diviner, "and then we can negotiate from there." Galen frowned at being cut off but nodded his agreement. "The Seekers of Eternity cult is all but dismantled. We propose the reunification of the Azure Glade and the Council of Guilds. The current Guildmasters of the Seeker-led guilds will step down and the Diviners' Guildmaster - the only one left of the original group that attempted the coup from within - will face judgment at the hands of the new Azure Council." "Just the Diviners' Guildmaster?" demanded Orion. "What about the Necromancers' Guildmaster? He was equally to blame!" "And he is now dead," replied the voice behind the Necromancer's robe. "I have assumed control of the Guild of Necromancers and have weeded out our Guild of those loyal to the Seekers. The Guild of Diviners has done likewise." The Diviner dipped his head in acknowledgement; whoever was piloting this floating construct remotely from the Azure Glade wasn't the original Guildmaster of Diviners. "And what about the Guildmaster of Evokers?" pressed the halfling. "He was definitely in on the conspiracy!" The Diviner replied, "We have lost all contact with the Guild of Evokers. All attempts to divine their whereabouts are actively being blocked." "Not much good at divinin' then, are you?" piped up Syngaard, having walked into the tavern and picked up the last bit of conversation. "What'd I miss?" he asked. "Who are these floatin' bozos?" Kaspar stepped over to the scarred fighter and hastily filled him in while the Diviner continued on with their suggested terms of surrender. "The masses of Ossirna also wish to end the war but orders from the very top are to immediate execute anyone attempting to surrender to your forces. There can be no peace so long as the usurper king Selvik lives." "I think I like where this is headin'!" Syngaard said, smiling for the first time since walking into the conversation late. "We believe your team here, Skevros, is capable of killing Selvik and his retinue of loyal followers - the ones most likely to have him [i]resurrected[/i] upon his death." "Wait--kill him?" asked Orion. Syngaard sneered down at the little halfling. "Yeah, kill him: what did you think? Ask him really nicely to step down and hope for the best? You gettin' cold feet all of a sudden?" "It's not that," Orion insisted. "I just thought he was, you know, immortal." "He has the [i]potential[/i] for immortality," corrected Skevros. "Barring accident or injury, he could live forever. He can, however, be killed as easily as you or I." He then thought about his own "living lich" state and amended, "Or as easily as you, in any case." "Tomorrow," continued the Diviner, "we have foreseen there will be an uprising in Ossirna which will force the king and his most loyal followers to hole themselves up within the palace. You can then [i]teleport[/i] into the entry chamber before the throne room, which itself is [i]dimensionally locked[/i], and then kill your way to Selvik." "I'm [i]likin'[/i] this plan!" enthused Syngaard. "But I got one question." Skevros sighed in weary anticipation. "It is, of course, a paying mission," he said. "For putting an end to the war with Ossirna, I am quite sure His Majesty the king will see to it you are handsomely rewarded." The symbols in place of the faces on the trio of floating robes had no eyes to roll at the banality of the scarred fighter's question, but the Diviner shook his head in disbelief - an action that no doubt mirrored the head shake of the actual diviner piloting this floating robe device from back in the Azure Glade. Galen moved on to practical matters. "How many loyal followers does Selvik have?" The Diviner described them: eight elite fighters armed and armored with hellsteel; a pair of hellsteel-clad barbarian executioners; the last two high priests of the Seekers of Eternity cult; Maelina, the Captain of the Royal Guard; and two assassins. "They all human?" Syngaard asked. "To the best of our knowledge, yes," replied the Diviner. Syngaard rubbed the hilt of the [i]human bane scimitar[/i] sheathed on his belt. "You're gonna get to see some action soon," he promised it. "What about doppelgangers?" asked Kaspar. "When we were last in Ossirna, there had been a plot to send doppelgangers into Durnhill to sow distrust and chaos. Does King Selvik have any of the shapeshifters still in his service?" "We do not believe so. Once the scheme had been exposed they went elsewhere, seeking lives of ease." Orion for one was glad to hear that, her parents having been slain by the creatures when she was young. Skevros looked over at his conscripts, seeing acceptance in their eyes. He turned to the floating robes with the symbols for faces. "I believe His Majesty will accept your terms of surrender," he apprised them. "My team will make their plans for tomorrow's assault. You may return these shells to the Azure Glade and make your own preparations for the restructuring of your Guild leadership." With a trio of nodded heads, the three empty robes floated to the front door of the tavern, which opened of its own accord - a simple cantrip, no doubt - to allow them exit. "Okay," Galen said to the others after they were once again alone. "We have some planning to do." "Not so fast," interrupted Syngaard. "If we're gonna do this, we gotta do this right." Then he called to the back of the tavern, "KAREN! Bring us a couple pitchers of strong ale and some mugs!" - - - The next day, the conscripts headed over to the South Gate, their plans made and strategies formalized. Skevros had been scrying upon Ossirna all morning and watched as the populace began their predicted uprising, just as the Diviner had prophesied. Galen summoned Burt from the Beastlands and the dire lion appeared at once, ready for battle. The paladin then sheathed himself in [i]magic circle against evil[/i] and [i]death ward[/i] spells and cast a [i]bless weapon[/i] spell upon the [i]sword of Zehkar[/i], the better for it to strike true. Daleth began his own spellcasting, but it was a slightly different assortment of spells than those he usually cast. True, he cast [i]stoneskin[/i], [i]fly[/i], [i]magic circle against evil[/i], and [i]spell turning[/i] spells upon himself and his pseudodragon familiar Todd - some things, it seemed, would never change - but he also cast [i]greater invisibility[/i] spells upon Kaspar, Orion, Syngaard, Burt, and himself and Todd, each of them vanishing from view as the spell was cast. Galen made do with Orion's [i]ring of invisibility[/i], lent to him for that purpose. Daleth then used his [i]staff of divination[/i] to cast [i]true seeing[/i] spells upon Galen, Kaspar, and Syngaard and [i]true seeing[/i] upon himself, so they'd each be able to see each other while they were all invisible. (He didn't bother granting such ability to Orion, for the little halfling could sense the life forces of those around her whether the targets were invisible or not.) Using spell scrolls provided by Orion, Daleth then cast [i]stoneskin[/i] spells upon Galen, Kaspar, Orion, and Syngaard, the better to provide protection from weapon-blows beyond even that which their armor could handle. Daleth finished off the flurry of spellcasting activity with [i]haste[/i] and [i]Rary's telepathic bond[/i] spells cast upon the entire assembled group. "[i]Now[/i] we're talkin', Wizard-Pants!" Syngaard enthused and the elven wizard scowled at the fact it had taken Syngaard's grumbling during their last outing for him to give some serious thought about maximizing the benefits his spells provided across the entire group. Skevros was still peering into his [i]crystal ball[/i], examining the throne room and the entry chamber immediately before it. Selvik and his sixteen loyal followers had barricaded themselves in these two rooms as predicted. The invisible conscripts examined the images in the clear globe. "There's a whole bunch of bodyguards massed up against the door to the entry chamber," Galen pointed out. "Daleth, I think we'll let you do the honors there while we stay out of the way. Then we'll all take out everyone left in that chamber before pressing on to the throne room." "It's a shame we can't just [i]teleport[/i] into the throne room and take Selvik out first," said Orion. "I fear he has the throne room shielded against such a tactic," Skevros answered. "He's also taken precautions against being scried directly upon." He pointed a narrow finger to a blurry image around the space where the conscripts knew his throne to be. "He's somewhere in that area, but we can't be sure exactly where. But that should be an anti-scrying defense only; once you gain entry to the throne room you should be able to see him normally." "Is everyone ready?" asked Kaspar as the group took their positions just outside the gate to Durnhill. Syngaard unsheathed his [i]human bane scimitar[/i] and nodded eagerly. "We're ready," he answered for himself and his weapon. Orion gave the king's adviser the thumbs-up signal from the saddle of her ghost-dog Carl, then called "Ready!" as she realized she was completely invisible and she hadn't noticed whether Skevros had cast a spell upon himself allowing him to see them. "Then good luck, everyone!" called Skevros as he cast a [i]greater teleport[/i] spell upon the conscripts and sent them miles to the south, into the entry hall outside the throne room of the castle of Selvik, the usurper-king of Ossirna. They arrived completely invisible, the only figure even capable of being seen without magical enhancement being Carl, and he was naught but a translucent image easily missed, even if everyone's attention wasn't drawn to the barred door, from which could be heard the banging and slamming of the uprising Ossirnans trying to gain entry. As planned, the first volley belonged to Daleth. He cast forth a [i]prismatic spray[/i] spell which encompassed all seven fighters by the door and two others within range of his multicolored cone of spell energy. The effects were instantaneous. One hellsteel-armored fighter frothed at the mouth and collapsed, slain instantly by a virulent poison flooding his body without warning. Another fighter petrified to a statue before he even knew what was happening to him. One of the barbarians gave a startled cry as he was whisked away to a random plane, never to be seen again. One of the Seeker high priests was blasted by a bolt of electricity and an assassin was scorched by a blast of sudden flames. Two fighters, one by the back door and one guarding the door to the throne room, had their sanity shattered. Those still alive (or at least those who still retained their full faculties) whirled around in place, seeking the source of this sudden attack - and that's when Daleth cast his [i]quickened Evard's black tentacles[/i] spell, catching all of those by the barred door in the crushing embrace of inky appendages springing up from the ground. <Nice!> called Syngaard over the link - rare praise from him for a mere spellcaster. Despite himself, Daleth felt pride at the fact he'd gained a modicum of respect from the scarred fighter. Orion stabbed out with her [i]nightflame short sword[/i], skewering the soulknife assassin through the heart before he could even attempt to fight back. Kaspar sped forward, attacking the insane fighter guarding access to the throne room, with Syngaard following behind. While they flanked the now-crazy guardian and attacked with fists and blade, Burt leaped onto the recently-zapped cleric and clawed him to shreds before Galen had a chance to bring down his sword - for to do so would have meant returning to full visibility, given his invisibility was powered by Orion's ring and thus only lasted until his first attack. Daleth plopped an [i]acid fog[/i] spell down on top of those imprisoned by the [i]Evard's black tentacles[/i], smiling at the sound of the screams and curses it brought to the lips of the hellsteel warriors. Carl darted forward and Orion backstabbed the insane fighter before the throne room door, but he was made of stern stuff and refused to die, even when Kaspar and Syngaard gave it their best efforts to drop him. As he was the sole remaining target not being attacked by tentacles and acid, Burt ran over to him and tried to bite him on the leg while Galen swung the [i]sword of Zehkar[/i] at him, returning to visibility as he did so. But as Burt was still hidden from normal sight, the insane Ossirnan fighter saw only a paladin of Hieroneous floating in midair, doing the splits. That, despite his many wounds, might have been what it finally took to break the fighter's spirit. With a bleat of terror, he pulled open the door to the throne room and raced inside, screaming all the while. Through the open doorway the conscripts could see the other soulknife assassin, the other high priest of the Seekers, Maelina the Captain of the Guard - and Selvik, hiding from behind his throne, peeking fearfully from the feeble protection it provided. Those inside the throne room could hear the shrieks of pain of the hellsteel warriors being squeezed to death by black tentacles while acid trickled down their faces and skin, although the only enemy in view was a straddle-legged paladin hovering several feet above the floor. Daleth stepped past Galen and his invisible mount and raised his [i]greater metamagic rod of maximizing[/i], channeling a [i]meteor swarm[/i] spell through it. He had a number of potential targets, but decided while casting to send each of the four meteors flying straight at Selvik; best to take the king out first and ensure his death before worrying about his loyal followers. As he released the spell Daleth had a moment of sudden panic, for he saw Selvik holding a black rod the elf feared might be a [i]rod of absorption[/i] - but then he relaxed, realizing his most powerful spell wouldn't fizzle out from such a rod anyway, for they could only affect spells with but a single target, not area-of-effect spells such as his [i]meteor swarm[/i]. Each meteor struck true, pummeling into the weak chest of the centuries-old king of Ossirna and then exploding into a glorious gout of flame that quickly encompassed his guardians. The fiery blast put an end to the insane door guard, who fell to the floor in a blazing mass of flames. And then Daleth cast yet another [i]quickened Evard's black tentacles[/i] spell that not only grabbed up the Ossirnan king but his loyal Captain as well, crushing them both in their strangling embrace. Selvik collapsed at once, the entangling appendages squeezing him instantly into unconsciousness and well on the way to death. Burt entered the room and thus Galen was the only visible intruder; as such, he became the target for the soulknife assassin's psionic attack. Fortunately, a blast of mental energy in the form of a thrown blade can be dodged as easily as the real thing, but while Galen was ducking beneath the attack the assassin moved back into the corner of the throne room, from where he could see any enemies approaching. Or so he thought. Carl bounded up to him and he readied himself against the dog's potential bite, failing to notice his saddle until it was too late - and Orion's short sword cut a line of burning pain across a hastily-raised arm. While his attention was thus focused, Syngaard ran up behind him and stabbed him with his [i]human bane scimitar[/i], disappointed that it didn't drop him at once - but then he got a good look at the assassin and decided he wasn't quite a human after all: something close maybe, like an elf, but not a true human. Figures! The Seeker cleric was the only other mobile combatant at the moment and he rushed over by the tentacle mass to cast a [i]mass heal[/i] spell that not only healed himself and Maelina to full health but brought King Selvik back from the very brink of death, restored fully as well. Kaspar ran to the cleric, too late to prevent his spellcasting but hopefully in time to put a stop to him for good. Channeling the full power of his inner [i]chi[/i], he focused it into his right hand and struck the cleric a mighty blow, one powered not only by the [i]tenryutsume[/i] he wore but the energy of the quivering palm he had infused into it. The cleric staggered under the onslaught but was not slain outright as the monk had hoped. Burt leaped forward and bit the cleric on the leg, allowing Galen to channel the evil-smiting power of Hieroneous through his blade, but that too failed to drop the Seeker. All of a sudden, Selvik was standing well outside the range of the waving tentacles, glaring at Daleth with a burning hatred that informed the elf his [i]greater invisibility[/i] spell was no longer concealing him from the king's vision. What had happened? Could he [i]teleport[/i] somehow? The throne room was [i]dimensionally locked[/i] - Skevros himself had said so! A flash of insight caused the elf to release an involuntary groan: Selvik, despite his seeming frailty, was more than likely a powerful wizard, one capable of casting a [i]time stop[/i] spell! That, the elf believed, would require only spoken arcane syllables: a spell easily cast even among a veritable forest of grappling tentacles! From Selvik's point of view, the tentacles would have frozen in mid-motion, allowing him to easily extract himself from their embrace and simply walk out of the spell's area of effect. He would have had time to cast a [i]true seeing[/i] or [i]see invisibility[/i] spell, plus who knew what all else? <Selvik's a high-level wizard!> Daleth called over the mindlink. <He's free from the tentacles and can see us!> But then, his warning to the others given, the elf took matters into his own hands, once again channeling a spell through his new [i]metamagic rod[/i], this one maximizing the effects of a [i]cone of cold[/i] spell that managed to catch Maelina in its area of effect as well as the Ossirnan king. Todd leaped from Daleth's shoulders, hoping to sting the king into instant slumber, but ran up against Selvik's [i]stoneskin[/i] spell. <I can't penetrate his protection!> Todd informed his master. The soulknife chose his target poorly, trying to attack the invisible halfling he now knew must be mounted in the ghost-dog's saddle. But unknown to the psionic assassin, Orion had ducked down and was hanging sideways from Carl's saddle, a perch from which she could easily slash at her foe's knee, dropping him to the floor, from where she could reach his unprotected neck with another quick slash of her flaming blade. He fell to the floor and at first Syngaard thought Orion and Carl fell with him, but nope - the halfling had merely directed her mount to sink ethereally into the floor so they could cross the throne room unseen by Selvik. The Seeker cleric backed hastily away from Galen, who still hung in midair with his legs spread across the back of an invisible mount of some sort. The Ossirnan cast a [i]heal[/i] spell upon himself, closing up the wounds he'd received from the paladin's sword, the monk's open hand, and Burt's sharp teeth. But Kaspar was there immediately, his limbs a blur of motion as he struck the cleric a series of devastating blows that stunned him into temporary insensibility. And while the dazed Seeker stood there, staggering and threatening to fall over, Burt ended his life with twin rakes of his front claws and a saber-fanged bite that almost took the cleric's head right off. Syngaard spun in place and saw Selvik standing free. Behind the immortal king, thus far unnoticed, rose Orion and Carl from the floor; the bald fighter knew they'd be visible to the spell-enhanced Ossirnan king if he managed to look over in their direction. Syngaard also knew he was too far away to cross the distance in time, but he knew somebody who was much faster than he was. With an evil grin, Syngaard pulled his Dick from his pocket and gave it a good rub. "Grapple him!" Syngaard commanded as the [i]bronze griffon[/i] statuette took on full form, crossing the room easily with a flap of eagle's wings. With a screech of defiance, the griffon's front talons collided with Selvik's feeble frame, dropping the king to the floor while the winged war-mount stood over him, snapping at him with his sharp beak. Selvik might have been a powerful wizard with centuries of spellcasting practice, but Syngaard doubted he'd be able to concentrate on spellcasting very well while a 500-pound griffon grappled with him - especially after Daleth cast a [i]mass bull's strength[/i] spell that only increased Dick's combat prowess. The bald fighter then followed in his griffon's wake, racing across the room with his [i]human bane scimitar[/i] ready to taste an immortal's blood. Buried beneath the griffon's bulk, Selvik reviewed his options. The [i]foresight[/i] spell he'd cast earlier - which had him cowering behind his throne to fend off an attack he knew was impending - was still in effect, allowing him to foresee all attempts to negotiate with these intruders from Durnhill ended up with his death anyway. He'd simply have to get free of this horrid beast so he'd have the mobility for proper spellcasting. As he struggled to free himself he had to slap away Daleth's hand, which had tried grabbing the king's [i]rod of absorption[/i] while he was otherwise distracted by the griffon. But then Orion, having manifested back into the material plane with her ghost-dog, leaped down from Carl's saddle and stabbed beneath the griffon, impaling her blade through the Ossirnan king's head. Just like that, Selvik the Undying was dead. With a roar of fury at the death of her liege, Maelina finally escaped from the ebony tentacles entwined around her. But she stumbled upon gaining her freedom, allowing Kaspar to bring a two-handed slam down upon the back of her neck, dropping her to the floor, where she was an easy target for Syngaard's scimitar and the snapping beak of his Dick. But it was Galen who landed the blow that killed the Captain of the Guard, with a smite evil attack coursing through his blade that nearly took the head from her shoulders. Orion looked around the throne room. "That's everyone!" she said. "Well, everyone in here," Daleth amended, walking back through the throne room doors to ensure none of the hellsteel warriors still bound in the embrace of his first [i]Evard's black tentacles[/i] spell had escaped their rubbery clutches. They hadn't. He sealed their fates with a [i]delayed blast fireball[/i] spell that did maximum damage when channeled through his new [i]metamagic rod[/i]. Despite the fire resistance their hellsteel armor provided, the massive blast of flames took them all out of the fight. When he released his [i]Evard's black tentacles[/i] spell, they all fell unmoving to the floor like so many discarded dolls. "I notice the Ossirnan citizens aren't in such a rush to batter down this door any more," Galen observed, hearing no more of the pounding on the barred door as they'd all heard upon their entry to the room. "Probably heard all the screaming," Orion hypothesized. The conscripts did a quick job of looting anything they thought might be of use to them - Daleth, for one, had appropriated King Selvik's [i]rod of absorption[/i] and the Seeker clerics had a few defensive items which could be parceled out among the conscripts - before Kaspar pulled the [i]ring of return[/i] from inside his robes and held it out laterally for the other conscripts to grab hold of. "Are we ready?" he asked. "One moment," replied Galen, pulling the bar from the door to the rest of the castle. "Might as well make it easier for the common folk to see what's what in here, once we've taken off." Then he rejoined the others, Kaspar activated the ring, and the conscripts were [i]teleported[/i] back to where they'd left, just outside the South Gate of Durnhill. - - - Logan admitted to us he wanted all of the PCs to make it to 19th level by the end of this adventure (as there are now only two more adventures to go in this campaign), so he reverse-engineered it: figuring out how much XP we would need to do so and then creating enough enemies for us to fight to get us there. And Daleth really came through for us this time, buffing the other PCs to ensure we'd have all the advantages we needed to keep us in the fight. [/QUOTE]
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