The Ghost Tower of Inverness (C2)

[Silver Moon]

Chapter 21, "Exiting the Lordholding," July 21st, 1005:

Augusta urges the group to leave as quickly as possible. They put on choir robes, and exit the church. They head directly to the city gates, where they bribe the two men on duty to let them leave. They explain that they are pilgrims on a time-sensitive pilgrimage for their church. They get a short distance away and then ditch the robes and hike westward for several hours.

They stop for lunch, meeting up with an actual group of Yon pilgrims on their way to an outdoor shirne, with a high holy day being the next day. Hherrmyie comments “Wow! You mean that bull we through around was actually legit?” During the lunch the group is attacked by nine wolves. The group kills four of them, and others run off. The pilgrims are very appreciative, and give the group extra food and water.

By evening the group is nearing the town of Gelorynth. They decide to avoid it completely, and circumnavigate around the town, then proceed westward along the main road. At dusk they are attacked by a group of fifteen men from the bandit camp. This time the group fights back, which the bandits are not expecting. All of the bandits are soon killed.

Klaaze and Hherrmyie try to talk the group into going and "kicking some more bandit butt." Kharole and Serita point out that the group is too close to finishing their mission to go off to an unnessary fight. The discussion is unresolved, and they group decides to stop for the night.

July 22nd, 1005:

Kharole and Serita take the first watch. Hherrmyie and Mark take the second watch. Hherrmyie manages to convince his half-elf friend that the group owes it to the bandits to go back and get them. Klaaze and Tao take the next watch. Klaaze also manages to sway his friend as to the merits of a return engagement.

Klaaze goes to wake up Natasha and Phuddi for the final watch. Natasha says that she is already awake, and if they are really serious about the attack then they had better move now, as dawn would be the best time. Nat, Tao and Klaaze wake up Mark and Hherrmyie. The five head off, leaving Serita, Kharole, Lysdashi and Phuddi behind.

[DM’s Note #32: At the start of the next game the two who objected to attacking the bandits the prior week were among the four absent that week, so the others decided to go for it. It was a macho hack-and-slash night, as all three of the female players were not present.]

They approach the eastern gate of the camp. Natasha and Tao take out the five men on guard duty. The group climbs over the wall, and head to the first building, which is an armory. They stock up on weapons, including some of their own which had been confiscated eight weeks earlier.

They then hit the next building, the prison. They free the four remaining prisoners, a fop fighter named James, a harlot named Kara, dwarf fighter named Boz, and an assassin named Garth. They then hit a row of barracks, killing all sleeping occupants. The next building is the kitchen and dining room. The cooks are killed, and since no alarms have been sounded yet the group stops briefly for a warm breakfast.

The five adventurers tell the rescued prisoners to wait there. Garth insists on coming along, and the group moves on to what appears to be the main building in the camp. Natasha, Garth and Tao climb the roof, and sneak over to the main doorway. They kill the guards outside, then knock on the door. The inside guards open the door, to be backstabbed by Nat and Garth from above. Hherrmyie, Mark and Klaaze then enter the building. The group enters a main room, housing a man who Klaaze recognizes from his previous imprisonment here as being the camp's second-in-command.

A major battle follows, during which the man is slain. The battle also manages to wake up all other occupants in the buildings, so the group soon finds themselves surrounded. They split up, each one taking on a group of four to eight men. Natasha and Tao wind up using their climbing skills to retreat, and Garth is killed. Mark is able to take out eleven men singlehandedly. Klaaze is soon brought down to single-digit hit points. Hherrmyie and Mark finish with their foes and come to Klaaze's rescue. Hherrmyie asks Klaaze why he didn't use the Rod. Klaaze replies "Because I was saving it for him," and points to the bandit camp leader who has just entered the room.

Klaaze once more utters his improvised command words "DIE, YOU BASTARD." The rest of the group attempt to dive for cover to avoid the Rod’s prime power backlash as the bolt of light shoots into the bandit leader, turning him into a pile of jelly. The backlash also kills twelve other bandits who were accompanying the leader. The remaining twenty men turn and run.

The group chases them outside, then switches to bows and starts dropping them. Four bandits get to the horses and ride off. The group mount horses to follow them, but are soon lured by the bandits into traps which allow the bandits time to escape. The party ride back to the camp.

They search the camp throughly, finding a magic sword, several potions, and about 19,000 gold pieces worth of jewelry, gems, and coinage. James and Kara take two of the horses and ride off. Boz decides to accompany the party. They take ten horses, and ride off to rejoin their party.

[DM’s Note #33: Up until this point there had been no dwarven playing characters. One of the players picked up the NPC Boz during the battle and enjoyed the character, so decided to keep him.]

When they get back Phuddi, Lysdashi, Serita, and Kharole are very upset at the others going off without them. They are however, grateful that they now all have horses to ride. A few miles down the road the group is set upon by yet another group of bandits from this camp. Thirteen bandits are slain, with three riding off back to their camp. "Those three are in for one heck of a surprise when they get home," comments Hherrmyie. The group reaches the Thenossia Lordholding border by nightfall.


Next: The Conclusion

 

[Silver Moon]

Chapter 22, "The Conclusion", July 22nd, 1005:

The group find wanted posters at the border, reading:

"10,000 Pieces of Gold Reward - The Noble Kinge of this rich and mightie land doeth seeketh eight grim criminals wanten for the slaying of..." The list goes on to mention some 185 men, along with the dates and locations of their deaths. It then mentions four "attempted slayings" including Kynge Kohlorahdooh and his brother Phillip. Upon reading the list Kharole comments that "there are some here that we had nothing to do with." Hherrmyie adds "Yeah, you're right. Only about 150 of these are ours. We ought to file a complaint."

The poster then lists names and descriptions of the party, calling them "Klaaze, also known as Clarence and Kormac," "Silas," "Mojo," "Vilicus, also known as Augustine," "Tymothie," "Annie, formerly called Natashia," "Mellie, also known as Adajia," and "Dessy." "Boy, they sure screwed up on most of the names," comments Mark. The rest of poster says to report any sightings to SIMON, of the King's Green Battalion, at the manorhouse in the town of Grammel.

[DM's Note #34: While I never got to do a cross-over game between my two gaming groups, both teams had at least managed to simultaneously make themselves criminals within in the Lordholding, which accounts for the various names on the poster.]

July 23rd, 1005:

The group stops near Grammel. Tao, Phuddi and Hherrmyie sneak into the town, which is heavily patrolled by the occupation forces of Kohlorahdooh. Narg returns to the rest of the group. Tao and Phuddi find out that Lord Toronas is mounting an army to retake his town, but that the Kohlorahdooh forces are prepared for them.

Tao and Phuddi are stopped trying to leave the town, and wind up killing seven soldiers, a human and six lizardmen, before getting away. Hherrmyie is also caught by a group of soldiers. He tells them that he is a Grammel fisherman who just returned from the sea that morning. They believe him, but instead of letting him go they conscript him into the Kohlorahdooh Navy.

July 24th, 1005:

Hherrmyie still hasn't returned by dawn, so the group decides to move on without him. Narg, Phuddi and Tao decide to scout out ahead. The group travels along the ocean road rather than the desert.

At mid-morning the three scouts ride around a bend in the road, to find themselves ambushed by half of the crew of a Kohlorahdooh Navy ship docked alongside the road. The three start to attack the enemy, who have them greatly outnumbered, consisting of 13 hobgoblins, 13 gnoll, and 2 human leaders.

After about ten rounds half of the enemy are slain, but Tao is unconscious and both Narg and Phuddi are down to single-digit hit points. The cavalry then arrives, with the others literally riding down the remaining enemy forces. Klaaze once again uses the Rod's prime power, killing the ship's captain. The backlash also kills two gnoll, 3 hobgoblins, and his own horse.

The second human leader is then killed, and the remaining six gnoll and hobgoblins run back to their ship. The party starts to follow, until they see a group of twenty-one orcs and another human coming from the ship. The party rides off as quickly as their horses will carry them.

After about an hour they see the ship following them in the water. The ship starts to overtake them, and the party starts to plan to battle them, although they are in no shape for another fight. Luck is with them, as the party rides right into the advance troops of Toronas's army. The ship turns around, and heads back to Grammel.

The group tells the leader of the army troops, Colonel McFarley, that they are working for Toronas, and that they have to get to him as quickly as possible. McFarley says that Toronas said to be on the lookout for the party, and to help them in any way possible. The battalion turns around and heads back to Halla.

July 25th, 1005:

The group of Serita, Narg, Kharole, Klaaze, Mark, Tao, Natasha, Phuddipeduzh, Lysdashi, and Boz meet with Lord Toronas. They give him the Rod of the Seven Parts, and tell him what they know about it. He serves up a feast for them, and they give him the assorted details of the mission. He then pays them 2,000 gold pieces each. He leaves, telling them that he is off to battle for his town of Grammel.

[DM's Note #35: I will continue this Campaign Journal with the three short modules that comprise the rest of "Silver Moon: Year One" (including two from TSR).]

 

[Silver Moon]

[DM's Note #35: The group next embarked on three modules with overlapping character time. Module #3 continued with the primary gaming group, and Hherrmyie's player took on the DM chores; Module #4 was a single-night pick-up game that Hherrmyie's player requested, which used the "Swords & Spells" miniatures rules by TSR and played by Hherrmyie and Serita's players; Module #5 was with a smaller sub-group of players and were played on nights other than the weekly game night with only three of the players. The DM of that module was Natasha & Augustine's player, who had also been DM for Module #2.]

Chapter #23, "The Story Continues", July 26th , 1005:

As Lord Toronas and his army of 2,500 troops leaves at dawn, heading eastward, the adventuring group conducts business transactions in Halla. Tao goes off to start his next apprenticeship. The group is approached by a man who wishes to hire them to investigate a castle on the distant Lendore Island. He guarantees that they will find a minimum of 50,000 gold pieces in treasure, and that he will provide them sea transportation.

Narg comments that "We could all use a vacation right about now, so a trip to a tropical island sounds about right." The group is given passage on the ship Coripius. While on the ship they meet two other adventurers: an old gnome thief named Jeremiah Q. Wildwander II, and a young human fighter named Phraakeese.

July 27th, 1005:

The Coripius sails westward. Back in Grammel, Hherrmyie, manages to convince the Kohlorahdooh troop leaders that he is skillful enough with a sword that he is promoted to Lieutenant. The army marches ten miles outside of town to face the approaching Thenossian Army. With the help of the Rod of the Seven Parts Toronas's troops win the
battle, and the Kohlorahdooh troops are forced to retreat back to Grammel. Grammel is put under siege.

July 28th, 1005:

The ship Coripius is attacked by a ship of the Kohlorahdooh Navy. The party orders the crew below deck, and repells the first troops who attempt to board. Phraakeese and Jerry join in the attack. The enemy ship is forced to retreat after fifteen hobgoblin and orcan troops are killed, as well as their human leader.

Back in Halla, Tao finishes his 4th level apprenticeship, and heads off alone to the north along the coastal road.

July 29th, 1005:

The Kohlorahdooh troops in Grammel have a major battle against Toronas's troops. The Thenossian troops are repelled. Before the battle is over it is interrupted by a third army, comprised of local Grammel citizens who had been conscripted by both sides. The leader of these rebels is Hherrmyie, going by the named Tibalt, who gets both Simon and Toronas to agree to let King Matthan settle the matter (upon the threat of having his Grammel troops throw in with whichever side didn't agree.) A cease fire is declared.

August 3rd, 1005:

The Coripius continues its uneventful trip westward. Tao arrives in the City of Cantage, the capital of the Kaloon Lordholding. He meets up with a dark-skinned cleric named Isaiah, who has just completed his initial apprenticeship. Isaiah explains that he is from a far off continent, and has come to Phlooredah to learn of the Yon sect of the Ukko religion. He tells of his desires to learn more of this land. Tao is fascinated by this talkative man, who tells much of the homelife of his own land. Tao invites him to accompany them on his travels.

August 4th, 1005:

Tao and Isaiah head eastward, into central Kaloon. They run into an elvan magician named Tolbyrne, who decides to join them in their travels.

August 5th, 1005:

King Matthan completes his investigation into the Kohlorahdooh/Thenossian matter. Is is upset with his brother for sending the group of mercenaries into the Kohlorahdooh Lordholding without first consulting him, and rules that Toronas cannot annex the Lordholding as he had wanted to. Lord Kohlorahdooh's death is now official. Matthan declares that the army commander now in charge, Kindor, can remain in charge until free elections can be held. The Lordholding's name is changed back to its original name of Jawlt.

[DM's Note #36: This concluded Module #4, which was a rather elaborate scenario using "Swords & Spells" miniatures rules by TSR, with tokens for the various squadrons of troops. The DM was rather surprised at the outcome, as he had anticipated that at least one side would have fought to the last man. The above scenario would also have major consequences in the future, as years later the adventuring party would change their allegiance from Toronas to Kindor. King Matthan and Lord Kindor will go on to become political rivals, and Matthan will come to regret the decisions that he made on this day.]

August 6th, 1005:

The trip of Tao, Tolbyrne and Isaiah arrive at a secluded town known simply as The Keep. They transact business, and inquire as to whether there is anything for adventurers to do. Since the town is adequately guarded by a well-trained militia they are told "No, but you may want to check with the town Castellan in the morning."

August 7th, 1005:

The trio meet with the Castellan, and are told of some merchants that have been attacked by hobgoblins. The group is also told the location of the hobgoblin lair. Isaiah is convinced that he can negotiate with the hobgoblins, and bring about peace to the region. He convinces Tolbyrne, but Tao is skeptical, and asks if there are any fighters who can accompany them "just in case."

The Castellan sends along his Sergeant of the Guard, a strong an powerful one-eyed fighter by the name of Furynick. The four soon arrive at the hobgoblin caves. Isaiah tries to spark up a dialogue, but the hobgoblins decide to attack instead. While Isaiah tries to get everyone to stop Tao, Furynick and Tolbyrne kill about ten hobgoblins. Isaiah knocks two out, and the four retreat with their prisoners.

Isaiah attempts to question the hobgoblins. They refuse to talk. While Isaiah and Furynick argue about the ethics of killing the prisoners, Tolbyrne and Tao do. The group decide to go back and attempt another dialogue in the morning. The evening is interrupted by an Ogre. Tao and Furynick manage to kill the ogre. They then search his lair nearby and find some treasure.

August 8th, 1005:

The four enter the hobgoblin lair. They head down several tunnels, then are ambushed by hobgoblins from two directions. The other three manage to convince Isaiah that "This is no time to talk. They have us where they want us, and won't believe anything we say." Isaiah goes along with this logic, and joins in the fight. After abut ten hobgoblins are killed they move on, taking one prisoner.

The prisoner is questioned. He agrees to bring the adventurers to their leader to talk. He then leads them into another ambush. The eight hobgoblins in the second ambush are killed. Their host then leads them into a third ambush. Furynick looses his temper, and grinds the prisoner's head into a wall. The other three fright off their attackers.

Some of the hobgoblins run away. The four follow them, arriving at the leader's lair. Tolbyrne casts a "Charm" on the leader, which causes him to tell his guards "Don't attack them yet, let's hear what they have to say." The four then negotiate a peace settlement, where the hobgoblins will no longer attack the road as long as a weekly shipment of supplies are left outside of their lair. The four then head back to town.

August 9th, 1005:

The four return to the hobgoblin cave, bringing with them the first weekly supply shipment. They return to town. The Castellan is very impressed at the success of their mission, and agrees to let Furynick accompany them on future missions around the keep."

 

[Silver Moon]

Chapter #24, "Arrival at Lendore Island", August 10th, 1005:

After a long and uneventful ocean voyage the ship Coripius arrives at their destination. Lendore Island is the largest island in the Spindrift Island Chain (at approximately 100 miles diameter). The ship docks at the City of Lendore, the Island’s largest community. There are many large ships I the harbor, as ship building is the chief occupation of the island.

The group goes to Falco’s Tavern to relax. Three of the crewmen from the Coripius follow them. These men have decided to either kill or capture some of the party in order to then return them to King Kohlorahdooh for the reward money. They wait until Klaaze, Mark and Narg leave the bar in a rather intoxicated state to jump these three from behind.

This proves to be a serious miscalculation, as even when drunk the three adventurers prove to be competent fighters. Both Klaaze and Mark manage to get their swords drawn, and slay their respective oppenents with a single blow. Narg also gets his sword out, but his first swing is wild, totally missing the opponent. At the sight of his two dead allies, and seeing that he is now outnumbered three-to-one, the man chooses to surrender.

This then presents a problem of what to do with the prisoner. Narg agrees to not kill the man in return for a week of manual labor. The man readily agrees, and introduces himself as Jocko. Klaaze objects to letting the man live, but begins to reconsider after Narg has Jocko shine Klaaze’s shoes and then fetches him a beer.

They rejoin the others and explain what has transpired. The group decides that it would probably be best to leave the city, as the other crewmembers from the Coripius will probably be seeking revenge for the deaths of their shipmates. They make a few inquiries about what there might be to do on this island, and are told of the ruins of an abandoned castle on the southern peninsula. The castle is said to be unguarded, and there are also rumors of treasue hidden somewhere near the building.

They head south, stopping for nightfall at a camp with a group of ten dwarves. The dwarves invite them for supper, and tell them more about the geography of the island. They confirm the rumors about Restenford Castle, saying that they have searched the area for the long lost treasure themselves, but have never found it. They warn the group not to get too close to the Castle, as a “mad wizard” currently resides there.

August 11th, 1005:

The group continues to travel south alongside a river. The run into four field hands. These farm workers start to pick a fight with Klaaze. Klaaze punches the leader of these four, the exceptional strength hitting so hard that the man’s neck breaks, killing him. The group makes a very hasty exit, as far south as their feet will carry them. They leave the main road and find a safe place in the forested hills to spend the night.

Meanwhile, back at The Keep, Tao and his three companions had left The Keep in search for more adventure. They run into a little girl named Goldilocks, who says that her parents were apprehended by a “furry giant with horns”. They take the girl back to The Keep, and find out moe information about the monster. They are told of a minotaur who lives in a cave near the hobgoblins lair. They decide to head out for there at dawn.

August 12th, 1005:

The four head to the cave where the minotaur is said to live. They first run into a group of giant fire beetles. Several bad jokes are made by the players, comparing this quartet of monsters to the musical group the Beatles. The adventureres and their oppoents put up quite a fight. After eight rounds of battle only two of he beetles have been killed, and all four adventurers each have less than half of their original hit points. Tolbryne then casts a sleep spell, which puts the final two to sleep and they are then killed.

The four realize that they are no longer in any shape to take on a healthy minotaur (assuming that they ever were in the first place), so they decide to leave the cave. They start to leave, and then hear a woman scream. They reconsider leaving, and head back into the cave in he direction of the scream. Tao quitely scouts ahead, finding a room where the minotaur is torturing the parents of Goldilocks. Tolbyrne’s player comments “Serves them right for giving her such a stupid name.”

Tao informs the others and the four bravely, but foolishly, decide to immediatley attack the minotaur. Furynick and Tao charge into the minotaur, who strikes back at them. Tao’s speed allow him to avoid the first swing of the minotaur’s axe, which then strikes Furynick’s shield with such force that the shield breaks in two. Meanwhile, both Isaiah and Tolbyrne untie and release Goldilock’s parents.

Once the pair is freed the decide to all escape. The minotaur chases after them, and hurls a handaxe at the group. The axe strikes Goldlock’s father in the back, killing him. The woman becomes hysterical and distraught, and falls onto the man’s body. The four adventures are now down to an average of three hit points each, with the barely wounded and very angry minotaur charging down at them. Furynick and Isaiah both state that they refuse to leave the woman, and decide to stand their ground and fight the monster. Tolbyrne panics, and Tao comments “this is suicide.”

 

[Silver Moon]

Chapter #25, “The Minotaur and the Wizard”, August 12th, 1005, 10:00 A.M.:

Tolbyrne pulls back and then lobs his remaining offensive spell, a Magic Missile, into the minotaur. Tao realizes that fighting the creature is suicide, and thinks of an alternative. He heads down a side passage, gambling that it curves around to join up with another entrance that he saw to the minotaur’s main chamber.

Before the monster is upon them Furynick tosses a dagger at the monster. It connects, but the creature is totally unfazed by it. Tao reaches the minotaur's chamber, heading straight for the treasure pile. He loudly clangs on a shield and throw some metal coins, the sound carrying down the hallway. The monster hears this noise, and immediately heads back to his lair to stop whoever is stealing his treasure.

Tao hears the monster returning, and grabs up a staff and vial from the treasure pile before heading back down the side passageway. Tao meets back up with the others, and suggests a quick retreat. Furynick picks up the body of the fallen man and Isaiah coaxes the woman into leaving.

They exit the caves a travel for a safe distance. They sample each of the vials of liquid that Tao found, concluding that they are potions of Gaseous Form, Healing and Giant Strength. Tolbyrne casts an Identify spell on the staff, revealing it to be a Staff of Healing. They have Isaiah use the staff to bring everyone back to maximum hit points. It is decided that it is best to attack the minotaur now, as he is currently wounded and will only be more difficult in the future. They tell the woman to wait for them.

The group reenters the cave. The find a place with several side corridors and decide to set up an ambush. Tolbyrne is sent forward to act as bait to lure the minotaur out. This works, with Tolbyrne then consuming the potion of Gaseous Form and turning to vapor prior to the minotaur reaching him. Isaiah and Tao then come out from hiding from opposite directions, both yelling loudly at the monster. While it is confused and uncertain who to attack Furynick charges up from behind, and having previously consumed the Giant Strength potion, hits the minotaur full force.

Furynick manages to get in three good attacks before the monster is able to hit him back. The other three then join into the fight, and the minotaur is soon slain. It has now gotten dark outside, and they decide that this lair would be a safe enough place to spend the night, because “any monster around here would stay away from the minotaur’s lair.”

They retrieve the woman and the body of the man. Isaiah tries to calm the woman by assuring her that her daughter is alive and well back at The Keep. Furynick comments that he could do a better job of comforting the woman, and provide her with some company for the evening. Tao states that that would be totally inappropriate, as the woman’s husband has just been killed. Furynick replies “Right, she’s single.” Tolbyrne then interjects “And she has a kid.” Furynick says “Oh yeah, forgot about the kid. Never mind.”

Back on Lendore Island, the party has spent the entire day hiking southward. The only encounter is an attack by a giant wasp which was killed by a Magic Missile spell from Kharole and arrows from Lysdashi. Narg comments that it is nice to “Not be hunted down by friends of someone Klaaze killed, for a change.” By evening they reach the hills. The night is interrupted by a pack of four wolves, which are scared away by the party.

August 13th , 1005:

Back at the minotaur’s lair, the party spends the morning searching around the cave and packing up any of the minotaur’s treasure that may be of value. Isaiah officiates at a burial service for Goldilocks father, and they then hike back. The only encounter along the way is when they run into a group of lizardmen. Isaiah bribes them with some of the treasure to let them pass. They reach The Keep by noon.

Meanwhile, back on Lendore Island, the party has climbed Bone Hill, the highest point in the area. From there they see the ruins of Restenford Castle. Ignoring the warning given to them by the dwarves, the party decides to head directly into the castle. They enter the first tower, soon encountering a sleeping bugbear. Rather than killing it, Phraakeese decides “Narg has a servant, I should have one too.” The bugbear is awakened, and given a choice of working for Phraakeese or being slain chooses the first option.

The bugbear convinces the party he knows the layout of the castle, and then leads them into a section of the building in a serious state of disrepair. The staircase in that section looks very fragile, and they insist that the bugbear go first. As the bugbear climbs upward the wooden stairs begin to creek. He is near the top when they collapse completely, the monster falling to its death. Phraakeese yells at him “Dying on the job! Well, just for that you don’t get a coffee break.”

The group finds a sturdier staircase in another room, and while carefully avoiding some broken steps, climb up to the second story. They pass through a large dining hall, and then begin to check out the side rooms. They eventually come upon the wizard that they had been told about, who is working in his study. The man is very surprised to see unexpected visitors, and orders them to depart immediately or he will kill them.

While the party discusses what to do the wizard successfully casts a Charm Person spell onto Natasha. He then persuades her to convince her companions to depart. The group soon leave, heading for the exit. The gnome thief Jerry (who is actually an assassin) manages to hide behind some furniture in the next room, and then climbs out the window. He doubles back, coming in through a window in the room where the wizard is. He then successfully assassinates. The party hears the wizard scream out a death cry as he falls, and head back to find out what happened. They see the dead man, with Jerry in the room near him holding a bloody sword.

Narg, Klaaze and Lysdashi check out the body. The ranger is able to detect that poison had been used in the attack, and accuses Jerry of being an assassin. Jerry confesses that he is indeed an assassin, and that he goes by the name of Elaskah. He says that he was sent by Lord Toronas to spy on them. He tries to convince them that he will only feed whatever information back to Toronas that the party wishes for the Lordholder to know.

[Chronicler’s Note #37: I was rather upset about the above encounter, as I was playing the Jerry character. I had been the group’s DM for over a year, and this was my first opportunity to be a player. I planned to maintain the assassin-posing-as-a-thief role, and had informed the DM of what I was doing this time via private note cards. Rather than responding in kind, the DM narrated out the encounter, letting the entire table that the character was really an assassin.]

While the fighters are discussing what to do with the gnome, Serita and Kharole are busy cleaning out all of the treasure that the wizard had stored in the room. When the rest of the party asks what they found the two women refuse to share, stating that they found it first. Jerry complains that since he single-handedly killed the wizard he deserves at least some of he treasure.” Kharole hands him a single potion. Serita refuses to give him anything, stating that being left out serves him right for keeping secrets from the party. Jerry experiments with the poison he was given, discovering that it simulates a Polymorph Self spell.

The group continues to investigate the rest of the castle, finding some more treasure. Along the way Jerry manages to assassinate the sailor Jocko, making it look like an accident, otherwise he might inform Toronas of the double-cross once they get back to Halla. He later confesses to Klaaze that he had killed Narg’s servant, who Klaaze had previously wanted to have killed, in order to collect a small fee from the fighter as payment for the assassination. Klaaze offers to pay Jerry to then kill Serita’s dog, but the gnome refuses, stating that he likes animals. He does offer to kill the dog’s owner instead. Klaaze gives this some serious thought, then declines.

[Chronicler’s Note #38: The above encounter will have far reaching consequences in the future. The Jerry and Serita characters are still actively played in the campaign, some 20 years later, and continue to have an uneasy and distrustful relationship with each other (and despite the fact that their players are married to each other.)]

 

[Silver Moon]

Chapter #26, “Finding the long lost treasure“, August 14th, 1005:

Back at The Keep, the group get several of their magic items identified, and then sell some of them. Tao uses some of the proceeds to hire out Furynick’s services from the Castillian for the next month. Both Tolbyrne and Isaiah begin their apprenticeships for second level. Tao and Furynick decide to spend the next few days visiting around The Keep in search of information that could lead to further adventure.

At Lendore Island, the group decides to investigate tunnels in the hill beneath the castle, in hopes of finding the long lost treasure. They get about 100 feet into the first tunnel when they are attacked by a gelatinous cube. Klaaze attacks the creature, which soon causes it to explode. The party moves on, next running into a giant stone-sucking monster related to an umberhulk. The creature is fought and killed, but the encouter also leaves the party rather wounded. Narg, Lysdashi and Phraakeese are in the worst shape, and the party is reluctant to continue without some of their top fighters.

Against their better judgement, the party pushes on. They soon run into a fire giant, which they unanimously conclude they are in no shape to take on. They start to reatreat, and Kharole tosses a Magic Missle spell into to as a distractions. The spell manages to make the creatue totally disolve, and the party quickly concludes it was only an illusion.

Party split up into smaller groups to search for the illusionist. The ranger Mark manages to find the man’s tracks. He and Serita soon catch the man as he attempts to escape from the area. The start to question him, and he makes another break for the exit at once the party has slightly relaxed their guard. Kharole throws a Magic Missile to stop him, but turns out to prove fatal, with him falling dead near the exit.

“He must have been guarding something,” Jerry states. They search the area for treasure, soon finding a secret doorway that is also trapped. Jerry has the party wait while he deactives the traps. Meanwhile, Kharole finds another secret door, and slides it aside. She enters a room, and the party attempts to follow. It only allows the females to enter, namely Kharole, Natasha, Serita and Klaaze’s pet Buzz. The women soon feel lethargic, and very mellow. They wander back out of the room, very disoriented but happy.

The group decides this is too weird, and wander out of the ruins. Phuddipeduzh complains about not having gotten a chance to slay any evil creture. Shortly thereafter, the party is attacked by an angry billy goat, which Phuddi helps to defeat. “Satisfied now?” Kharole asks him. “It’s not the same as vanquishing evil,” Phuddi replies.

August 15th, 1005:

The group decides to give up on searching around the Castle, and decides to head west towards a town on the other side of the island. The day is rather uneventful.

August 16th, 1005, 2:00 A.M.:

The night is interruped by an attack by a werewolf. Klaaze and Kharole are the pair on guard duty during the attack. The monster dives towards Klaaze, but is hit by a Levitate spell by Kharole before he connects with the fighter. Once levitated, Klaaze draws his bow and begins to shoot a bunch of arrows into it. Kharole keeps levitating him, with the arrow stikes having the effect of propelling him away from the party. When the spell runs out the monster is at a height of over 100 feet, and pluments to the ground. Klaaze checks the body, confirming that it is very dead. The two are pleased with themselves that they managed to dispatch it without having to wake any of the other party members.

At dawn the party head out to the nearby town of Restenford. The town is home to Baron Grellus, a seventh level fighter whose family has ruled this part of the island for centuries. The party spends the morning in the Restenford Tavern, where the fighters brag about killed the mad wizard of Restenford Castle. Word of this quickly reaches the Baron, who proceeds to the tavern to speak to them.

He calls the party into a private room, and derives from them the details of their exploration of he castle as proof of their claims. Once convinced that they are telling the truth, he tells them that his family once lived in the castle. He says that he knows the approximate location of the hidden treasure, but that he had never personally been in the lower caverns, otherwise he would have retrieved it himself long ago. He says that he owns a Cloak of Teleportation, but has always been reluctant to use it, as there is a slight risk of a fatal teleportation error.

Serita volunteers to go retrieve the treasure, in exchange for the party being given half of the treasure. The baron agrees to this. Both Jerry and Phraakeese state that they do not trust her, that she will try to keep it all for herself. A lengthy debate follows, where it is decided that half of the party’s treasure will be evenly distributed among the members present and the other half to be used jointly by the party.

Serita takes the cloak and uses it to teleport back to tunnels near where the Baron had described he secret treasure room being located. She finds a secret door, and slides it aside. She then enters throught the narrow opening, finding herself within a room filled with gems. This collection includes almost a hundred huge diamonds, some the size of an apple. Deciding that these are the most valuable items in the room, she gathers up as many as she can carry into a bag, which is about half of them. She then teleports away.

Rather than making her destination the room at the Restenford Tavern, she instead teleports back to the family home in the Aldorn Lordholding. She arrives in the study chambers of Louella, the senior druid who rules this area, who is also her mother. Louella is present, and started with the sudden and long overdue arrival of her daughter. Serita drops the bag at the woman’s feet, saying “I’m fine. Here, take these. Goodbye.” She then teleports back to the treasure room.

She quickly gathers up the remaining large diamonds, and then teleports back to the Restenford Tavern. The party is divided up as discussed. The Baron thanks her for her efforts, stating that he know has definitive proof to the treasure’s location. Serita mentions that there are still more gems back in the treasure room, but the Baron refuses to let her teleport back there again, chiding her and stating that they have been rewarded very fairly for their efforts, but that any remaining treasure is the rightful property of his family.

The Baron offers the party a ride back to Lendore City on a carriage drawn by a team of horses having magical horseshoes, that will get them back in a fraction of the time it would otherwise take them. The party realizes that is offer is being made primarily to keep them from heading back to the treasure, but they decide to accept, as they now have sufficient funds to purchase a ship to bring them back to Phlooredah.

 

[Silver Moon]

Chapter 27, “The Silver Moon”, August 16th, 1005:

The group leaves the town of Restenford, the carriage traveling at remarkable speeds over the roads. They reach Lendore City shortly before midnight and secure lodgings at an inn in the nicer section of the city in order to avoid any possible sailors from the Coripius.

August 17th, 1005:

The party heads out to the city’s ownly jeweler to see about selling the gems. The merchant agrees to give them a total of 80,000 gold pieces for the pooled share of the treasure. While the group is under the concensus that they are being cheated, and that the gems are actually work multiple times that amount, they agree to the sale since he is the only potential buyer in the city and they need money to buy a ship. They also decide to retain their own personal gem to sell to a more reputative buyer at a later date.

They head down to the Laughlin and Whitehall Shipping Company, which is said to make the largest vessels on the island. Their eyes immediately fall upon a newly constructed three-masted vessel whose main body is 130 feet long, and is 60 feet at its widest point. Jerry and Natasha haggle with Mr. Laughlin over he price, with him agreeing to sell it to them for 43,000 for the ship iteself, and another 2,000 to have it fully supplied for a lenghty ocean voyage by the afternoon.

Since they still lack one key ingredient, namely the crew to sail it, they decide to go recruit a crew. They set up shop in a local tavern, and at Jerry’s suggestion, have the word spread that they are paying twice-normal wages. Their primary requirement is that none of the people hired will have ever been to the continent of Phlooredah before, to ensure that they have no ties there with potential enemies. They also make it clear that they are hiring for a long-term assignment, and want crewmembers who won’t be leaving any family or close attachements behind.

A crew of twenty-six male humans are soon recruited. They include an experienced ship’s captain named Tim G. Quirk, a pair of experienced mates named Fritz and Hans, a cook named Frenchie, a navigator named Smiddle, a trio of construction workers named Moe, Larry and Curly, and 18 able bodied seamen between the ages of 15 and 20, most of whom have never sailed any further than the Spindrift Island Chain. The party and crew have a nice lunch, then head down to the shore to their new ship. A few hours later the vessel sets sail for the city of Halla.

[Chronicle’s Note #39: The majority of the original crew hired that day remain with the party some 17 years of character time later. The party now has a fleet of ships, with most of the surviving original crew now being either a Captain or First Mate . The “crew” have also always made for a nice pool to draw NPC’s from, and have been played in quite a few modules to the point that most have now gone up two or three experience levels.]

August 25, 1014:

Back at The Keep, the quartet have finished all potential adventuring in the area. Furynick decides to continue to work with the other three, and is granted a leave of absence by the Castillian. On the road back to the city of Cortang, they are ambushed by a group of 15 orcs. Isaiah manages to cast a Hold onto five of them. Tolbyrne uses a Magic Missile spell followed by a Burning Hands to kill a pair of them. Tao uses his martial arts to singlehandedly dispatch five of them. Furynick manages to slay the other three. Isiaah knows the five held onces into unconsciousness, and convinces his companions to leave them.

They soon hear some screaming from across a nearby swamp. They circumnavigate the swamp, finding a baby green dragon terrorizing a human couple. Tolbyrne casts a Light spell into the dragon’s eyes, followed by Isaiah casting a Create Water above the dragon as a futher distraction. This allows time for Furynick to charge at the creature while Tao moves in to rescure the people. He pushes the female away to safety.

Tolbyrne and Isaiah then move in to support Furynick’s combat against the dragon. The dragons sees what Tao is doing, and dives towards the monk and the other male human. The dragon lands atop the man, knocking him face down into the swamp. The four continue to fight the dragon until it is dead, but not until after the man the monster is atop of has drowned. Tolbyrne and Furynick are then given all of Isaiah’s Cure spells.

The woman says that the man was her boyfriend, and that they live in a village nearby. The four accompany her there, carrying the man’s body. They spend the night in the village.

August 28th, 1005:

The quartet finally arrive in Cortang. Isaiah returns to the Cathedral, excited to tell the High Priest about his adventurers. Furynick decides to stay in the city with Tolbyrne. Tao spends the next week in the city with them, before heading south to Halla to rejoin his companions.

September 8th, 1005:

The ship arrives in Halla. Tao has now been back in the city for three days, and is glad to see their safe return. Each of the respective party members decides to head back to their own home towns and villages for the winter, but to regroup back in Halla in the spring. Mark, Kharole and Serita will return to the Aldorn Lordholding. Lysdashi and Klaaze will return to he Kaloon Lordholding, and Tao tells them to visit his newfound friends while they are there. Narg’s pooka decides to bring him to the planet Seagram VII. Phuddipeduzh returns to the Jawlt town of Curigull. Hherrmyie heads off in search of his father. Tao decide to explore the Thenossia Lordholding desert to the northeast. Boz, Jerry and Natasha say that they have no family or home to return to, and offer to stay with the ship to supervise futher modifications to it.

Natasha and Jerry manage to obtain a three-year lease for the ship at one of the better piers in the city by bribing a high-ranking city official. Jerry returns to Lord Toronas and tells him the story that the party had “approved”, including a ficticious story about finding a magic item that is powerful enough to cause an artifact to malfunction. When asks, Jerry says he has been unable to steal the item since he does not know which member of the party currently has it.

Before everyone departs, the entire group gathers in a tavern to toast their past and future adventures. After a long discussion as to what to name both the ship and their group they decide upon Celeb-Itil, which is the Elvish phrase for Silver Moon.


***Silver Moon Year One concludes with this post**************

 

[Silver Moon]

Chapter 28, “Reunited”, March 23rd , 1006:

It is a calm spring day when Jerry and Phraakeese are sitting on the deck of the ship Moon when he is startled by the sudden appearance of a pair humans beside him. One is a tall mage in dark robes with a pointed hat and long staff. The other is attired as a monk, in robes with a simple rope belt and sandals on his feet. “Do not be alarmed, I am a friend,” the monk exclaims. Jerry looks towards Phraakeese, who replies “Don’t look at me, he’s not anyone that I know.” The monk says that he is named Augustine and that he has worked with their team mates before, and has need of them again. “Well, they’re not around, they all went home,” Jerry comments. “Very well,” the mage states, throwing his hands up into the air and begins an incantation.

The next thing they know, the four of them appear near the riding stables of what looks to be a rather large country estate, with the ocean off to the distance to the west. An extremely well-dressed Klaaze has just come in from a ride, and comments “What the hell?” Augustine replies “Get your things, we have a new mission.” Klaaze heads off to a large manor house, handing his riding gear over to a servant. “He never told us his family was rich” Jerry comments. “With you around I wouldn’t have either,” Phraakeese replies.

They then make two more trips, to Curigull to collect Phuddipeduzh, and to the Aldorn Lordholding to collect Mark and Serita. They then make one more trip, which ends at a barren location in the Thenossian desert, near a large pile of rocks where a human holding a bag of torches is waiting for them. “Would you mind telling us what is going on?” Serita exclaims. The mage finally introduces himself, stating that his name is Orman and that he is an Arch-Mage from the world known as Thibaultia.

Augustine then explains that it was that world where he and Nimmy originally came from, having been originally brought to this world by the same Arch-Mage. He says that Nimmy has already returned to that world, and he needs to go there as well to avert a disaster. Unfortunately Orman can not longer transport between the two worlds due to a barrier erected by the Arch-Mage’s evil twin, an Arch-Mage named Namro.

Orman explains that the only other way to reach the other world is through a mystical portal deep in the earth below where they are currently standing. Because of Namro’s barrier Orman himself cannot go, but Augustine has volunteered to. Unfortunately there are also many dangerous creatures living below, with each of the six levels being more dangerous than the one above it, and it is unlikely that Augustine would survive without assistance. The party agree to accompany Augustine on this task.

[Chronicler’s Note #40: Augustine’s player was the DM for this particular module. For the past year he had been the primary DM of another D&D gaming group which used the world of Thibaultia as their campaign setting. It became obvious to the players a ton of back-story existed that they did not know yet, nobody asked any further questions since Augustine was coming along for the ride so we could always ask later.]

Orman shows them where in the nearby rock cropping a secret door to the tunnels below is located. Orman introduces the man with the torches as Bryan, a who will serve as their torchbearer. then hands Klaaze a Bag of Holding, stating “You might need this.” The party enter, going down a long hallway that then spirals downward.

The eventually reach what they conclude is the first level. They make their way through several chambers until they run into a group of six angry minotaurs who do not like visitors. A fight soon follows during which the party eventually manage to kill two of the minotaurs and wound one more before the minotaur leader calls a retreat. The party are all now fairly wounded, and the servant Bryan is lying dead, so they decide not to pursue the monsters.

They continue down several more hallways, including an area where Mark recognizes a set of tracks as their own. They come to the conclusion that this level is all one big maze, and decide that they had better start mapping it. With the assistance of the map they soon figure out where a section is that they haven’t been to yet, and find a long stone staircase down at that location.

The second level is reached. The party passes by four wooden statues followed by thirty skeletons. They soon reach a vast room with a total of forty skeletons standing up along all of the walls. There is also a large diamond the size of a softball sitting in the middle of the room on a pedestal. Despite the fact that this is clearly a trap, Klaaze insists on taking the diamond. Not surprisingly, once he touches the diamond all of the skeletons become animated and attack. The group identifies the skeleton who appears to be the leader, and concentrate their attack on it. It crumbles, and the other skeletons stop.

The group is then ambushed by a group of ten zombies coming in from the entrance. The group quickly hurries down the hallway to get away from them. This leads to a vast chamber which is a large underground cemetery. It has hundreds of tomb stones and a large crypt. Jerry heads over to the tombstones while Klaaze goes to check out the crypt, both running into trouble. Jerry quickly hurries back to the group, with five ghouls chasing him. Klaaze runs into a vampire, who chases after him. Klaaze realizes that he cannot move fast enough to get away from it, so runs around to the side of the crypt that is within sight of the party. He then opens and jumps into the Bag of Holding, the bag falling to the ground. The party concentrate their attack on the vampire, miraculously managing to kill it. They then attack and defeat the ghouls.

They soon coming to another large room filled with boulders. They find a section of the room filled with recently killed bodies, five being ogres and three being gnomes. They move on, and run into a group of a dozen gnomes, several of which are wounded. The gnomes confirm that they have just come from a fight with a group of ogres, and invite the party to join them for the evening. The gnomes say that they are looking for a group of adventurers lost in these caves, one of which is the son of their clan leader.

Midway through the night a tall, dumb half-orc by the name of Eiowhah wanders into the camp. The gnomes start to attack, but stop once the half-orc speaks the name of the clan leader’s son. The half-orc says that he was part of the same multi-race adventuring team as that gnome, and became separated from them.

 

[Silver Moon]

Chapter 29, “Serious Player Clashes”, March 24th , 1006 (Day Two):

During the night Jerry talks to the other gnomes. He has decided that fighting vampires and ghouls is not what he signed on for, and he desires to leave. The gnomes agree to show him the location of a tunnel back to the surface. Jerry decides not to tell the party about his decision. Before leaving he also helps himself to a pair of potions from Serita’s backpack that she had gotten from the mad wizard at Restenford Castle which he considers to be rightfully his.

The party awakens and are upset about finding Jerry gone. They are angry with the gnomes for helping him leave. Serita becomes enraged when she discovers that some of her potions are missing, and accuses the gnomes of being accomplices to the theft. To calm the party down one of the gnomes, a 1st level fighter named Freyland, volunteers to take Jerry’s place. The party agree to this, giving him the sack of torches, and declaring that he is to be the party’s new torchbearer.

The party move on, soon coming to a room with around two dozen ogres. A fight follows, during which most of the ogres are slain. The two ogre leaders choose to flee, and the half-orc Eiowhah charges after them. They lead him into another room, which is home to a pair of trolls. The trolls attack the half-orc, giving the ogres a chance to escape. Eiowhah manages to get in two good attacks to each troll, for a total of fifteen hit points on each. The party hear the sounds of battle but decide to take their time getting there. They eventually enter the room, seeing that the half-orc is on his last legs. They watch as the trolls slay the half-orc, then enter into the battle themselves. The trolls are soon killed, then regenerate, and are killed again. The troll bodies are then burned. The party move on, eventually finding a place to stop for the night.

[Chronicler’s Note #41: A very frustrating encounter for me. I had started the module with my Jerry character only to be informed a week later by the DM that he did not like assassins or want them in his module, and to expect to become the next casualty. I didn’t want the character killed, so I arranged with the DM to pull him out instead and introduce the Eiowhah character as his replacement. When this happened the other players got upset about the change, and decided not to support the new character. After the half-orc’s death the DM announced he would not let me bring in another character and handed me the NPC torchbearer to play for the reminder of the module.]

March 25th, 1006 (Day Three):

The party awakens and Klaaze asks Kharole to identify a robe that he had taken from the vampire. She identifies it as a Robe of Useful Items, which can only be used by a magic user. She asks if she can keep it and he refuses. Serita decides to help convince him and attempts to cast a spell on him. Klaaze realizes what she is doing, and punches Serita in the face to stop the spell. Hherrmyie becomes enraged at this, pulling the Scepter of Wishes from his backpack, pointing it towards Klaaze, and wishing for him to be critically wounded. Both Klaaze and Hherrmyie then collapse.

The party discovers that Hherrmyie had used the Scepter one time too many, the item killing him with this fourth usage of it. Serita uses her cure spells to heal Klaaze’s wounds. The group has a long debate about what to do with Hherrmyie, deciding to bring him back. They have no resurrection devices, but Kharole has a Reincarnation spell, so they use it. He comes back, but is reincarnated in the form of an orc.

Hherrmyie’s player adamantly refuses to accept this, loudly declaring for the first time that Hherrmyie’s father was an ascended elvan hero, who would have never allow that to have ever happened. The now frustrated DM replies “Fine, your father materializes and transforms Hherrmyie back. Your father then plane shifts both of them away from the material plane. Hherrmyie is never seen again.” The player sits and pouts for the remainder of the game.

[Chronicler’s Note #42: A bit of background, Hherrmyie’s player was a few years younger than the other players in the group, being a friend who I knew from Boy Scouts that had also played D&D. During our first year he seemed to fit in fine with the others, but we began to have problems with him during the next year when he became infatuated with Serita’s player. The whole encounter above started because he was trying to impress her, and the situation then got out of hand.]

The party moves on, finding a staircase down to the third level. The soon run into and defeat a large group of zombies. They next come upon a large sandy chamber housing a large stone pyramid. While investigating the outside of the pyramid a door is found and the party enter. They are then attacked by a large group of giant beetles that are soon killed. The group eventually find themselves in a room with a door that will not open.

Using their combined strength, Phraakeese, Phuddipeduzh and Klaaze manage to pull it open. There is a vast pressure vacuum on the other side, which had been pulling the door shut. One opened, the vacuum pulls both Phuddi and Phraakeese inside, the door slamming shut again. The interior is actually another dimension, perhaps the elemental plane of air, where four semi-disembodied creatures holding some very solid weapons immediately attack Phrraakeese, killing him.

Meanwhile, the others have managed to get the door open again, and use their backpacks to keep it propped open. Using a rope of anchor them, both Mark and Klaaze jump into the vacuum and help fight off the monsters while grabbing their friends. Klaaze loses his +2 magical broadsword in the process, but is comforted by the fact that it was only his secondary weapon. He also manages to grab onto a metal rod that one of the creatures was holding. Phuddi and Phraakeese are grabbed and the party the pull all of them out, shutting the door behind them. The rod is identified as being one of Resurrection, which nobody in the party can use as they did not bring a cleric.

[Chronicler’s Note #43: By this point there was already a lot of tension around the table, given that I was upset over loosing my new character, and the term “upset” doesn’t even come close to describe the body language radiating from Hherrmyie’s player. Add to this that there had been a growing consensus for the characters to quit the adventure and just go back the way they came. The party was still only on the third of six levels, and had been told that each level would be more difficult than the last. Several players already had complained about the module being too difficult for their character levels.

The DM’s decided to appease the growing unrest by giving them the resurrection device. His plan backfired, with one player now voicing that the group wanted to earn powerful magic, not have it just be given to them. Another player then voiced that the DM was attempting to “bribe the group to stay in his deathtrap”. Two players then voiced complaints about the battle in the vacuum, pointing out that the monsters had all targeted Phraakeese until he was dead while totally ignoring the character Phuddipeduzh, being played by the DM’s fiancé. The DM took offense at having his impartiality questioned. He angrily stated that he had randomly rolled who each creature would attack, and they all just came up against Phraakeese.

Before the conversation got even further out-of-hand I intervened and strongly suggested that we just stop and break for the night, even though we had over an hour of scheduled time left. Everyone concurred, and we all departed in silence, with most people walking away angry. A game had been scheduled for the following week, although I seriously wondered if the group would ever meet again.]

 

[Silver Moon]

[Chronicler’s Note #44: I had spent the past week doing serious damage control, first convincing the DM to tone down the module and to be a bit less autocratic in his rulings. Next, I spoke to each player, passing on the DM’s agreement to this. With the exception of Hherrmyie’s player, everyone agreed to attend the following week’s game. The surprise appearance at the game of Narg’s player, who had been away at college, also helped to ease the tension.]


Chapter 30, “On the road again”, March 26th, 1006 (Day Four):

The party soon encounter a high-level cleric who resides on that same level. He brings the party back to his home, where he uses the Rod to resurrect Phraakeese. He invites the party to say with him while they fully recuperate. While they are there former party member Narg arrives, having been brought there by his Pooka.

March 27th to 30th , 1006 (Days Five to Eight)

The party stays with the cleric as his guests. He tells them that the staircase down to the fourth level is within the pyramid.

April 1st, 1006 (Day Nine)

Before departing the cleric’s home he offers them the services of his apprentice, a human cleric named Penzance, who would be able to use the Rod if needed.

The group proceeds through the pyramid, encountering a number of ghosts and ghouls. Several players start to mutter about the module being “more of the same”, when they happen upon a baby brass dragon who lives in the pyramid, that leads them to the staircase to the next level. Augustine, Klaaze and Narg had all been injured battling the undead, so the group decides to rest on a staircase landing, not knowing what to expect next.

April 2nd, 1006 (Day Ten)

The first thing encountered on this level are a pair of mummies who attack Klaaze. Both Phraakeese and Phuddipeduzh help him defeats them, but all three then wind up with the fun disease of Mummy Rot. Both the NPC cleric and Serita attempt to heal them, finding that the rot does not go away. Proceeding onward, the party next run into a pair of large umberhulk-type creatures. Klaaze sneaks past them, finding a pile of treasure that includes a magical horn. He blows into the horn, and the ceiling collapses atop the creatures. The movement of the rubble pile indicates the creatures still live beneath it, but there is enough time for the party to get away before they are free. The group eventually stop to rest.

April 3rd, 1006 (Day Eleven)

The group proceed onward, soon finding a secret door in the wall. The door is opened to reveal a chest inside. Augustine checks the lock for traps, finding none, and they proceeds to pick the lock. A large scythe blade comes flying out from the wall, cutting both Klaaze and Phraakeese in two. The chest turns out to be empty. Penzance uses the Rod to successfully resurrect both of them, but despite this the bodies continue to have mummy rot.

April 4th, 1006 (Day Twelve)

The group proceeds onward. They come to a large, damp chamber separated by a high wall. The wall is scaled, with them finding a dark marsh on the other side. In the midst of the swamp is a wooden hut. Several reptilian creatures are seen throughout the swamp.

The party suspects that the access point to the next level may be inside of the hut. Augustine uses a Polymorph Self potion to transform into a large bird, and flies a Bag of Holding containing Freyland and Kharole over to the hut. They find it is the home to a lonely old high-level cleric hermit. Kharole asks if he knows how to cure Mummy Rot, and he indicates that he does. They rest of the party are brought over to the cleric’s home via the Bag of Holding.

The cleric then negotiates rather steep payment in exchange for his services, with the party having to give up several of their more powerful magical items. Klaaze gets rather upset at being asked to give up his primary weapon, a +4 Longsword. “It’s either give it up or let the rot kill you,” Mark comments. “Yeah, I’m thinking…” Klaaze replies. “Not much,” Narg quips. The cleric explains that he can only heal one person a day, so begins with Phuddipeduzh. He agrees to guard the party while they rest for the night.

April 5th, 1006 (Day Thirteen):

Klaaze eventually agrees to be cured in exchange for the sword. The player mutters about needing to now find the location of the Better Business Bureau within these caves. The party decides to spends the day with the cleric, allowing Serita and Penzance to make sure that the party is fully healed before moving on.

April 6th, 1006 (Day Fourteen)

Phraakeese is healed, and the party bids the cleric goodbye. The move on where the cleric has directed them to find the next staircase downward. The fifth level is reached.

The road reaches a bridge overlooking a brook. A waterfall sparkling with lights of various colors is splashing across the bridge. The party hesitates to cross it. The torchbearer Freyland says “What are you waiting for? A little water never hurt anybody.” To prove this he bounds across the bridge and back again. The water that has splashed on him then begins to change the gnome, with him aging from the human equivalent of a teenager to being a decade older (about a century of a gnome’s lifetime). The gnome screams about this, and yells that he is dying. He is dried off, and the aging process seems to stop. Freyland mutters something about “never getting wet again.”