Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
The Kordovian Adventurers Guild
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Richards" data-source="post: 7807884" data-attributes="member: 508"><p><strong>ADVENTURE 65: QUEEN OF DRAGONS</strong></p><p></p><p>PC Roster: <p style="margin-left: 20px">Binkadink Dundernoggin, gnome fighter 17</p> <p style="margin-left: 20px"> Darrien, half-elf ranger 17</p> <p style="margin-left: 20px"> Finoula Cloudshadow, elf ranger 17</p> <p style="margin-left: 20px"> Gilbert Fung, human wizard 17</p> <p style="margin-left: 20px"> Hagan, half-orc sorcerer 17</p><p></p><p>NPC Roster: <p style="margin-left: 20px">Aithanar Ivenheart, elf fighter 4</p> <p style="margin-left: 20px"> Malrin Ivenheart, elf druid 12</p> <p style="margin-left: 20px"> MARCI, humanoid construct</p> <p style="margin-left: 20px"> Verdant Gristwold, human druid 5</p><p></p><p>Game Session Date: 7 September 2019</p><p></p><p> - - - </p><p></p><p>After one of Helga Battershield's hearty breakfast feasts - the dwarven woman seemed ever concerned that the adventurers "weren't eatin' enough" and had taken it upon herself to correct that deficiency - the heroes stepped into the courtyard of Battershield Keep fit to burst. "I think I need to lie down for an hour or two," muttered Binkadink, patting his stomach.</p><p></p><p>"Tell me about it," commiserated Finoula. After Ingebold's death, Helga had more or less adopted Finoula as a surrogate daughter and as such the young elven ranger bore the constant focus of the dwarf's maternal attention. "At this rate, I'm going to need to add some new notches to my belt."</p><p></p><p>"Listen to that," pointed out Malrin, smiling. A songbird was singing its little heart out somewhere nearby. Looking about, the druid finally spotted it perched on the edge of the roof of the stables. Malrin squinted up at it - the bright yellow bird seemed to have something held tightly in one of its claws. The songbird dropped over the edge of the stable roof, landing upon the druid's outstretched hand. Malrin took the bird's offering: a few strands of gray hair, tied together in a small bundle by a piece of green yarn.</p><p></p><p>"Let me see that," Gilbert demanded, grabbing up the small bundle and frowning down at it.</p><p></p><p>"What is it?" asked Hagan, looking at the item in the wizard's pudgy hands.</p><p></p><p>"These hairs from father's beard. Green yarn: it from fingerless gloves he wear." Gilbert scratched his own beard. "Why dad send this to me?"</p><p></p><p>"It's a message," observed Malrin. "Quite literally: an <em>animal messenger</em> spell, one druids use often. He probably sent this so you'd know it was from him."</p><p></p><p>"Well, let's see what he has to say," replied Finoula, casting a <em>speak with animals</em> spell on herself. Once in effect, she addressed the little songbird. "Hello," she said pleasantly.</p><p></p><p>"Hello," replied the yellow-feathered bird.</p><p></p><p>"Were you given any instructions to pass on to us?"</p><p></p><p>"'Find Gilbert. Send help.'"</p><p></p><p>"This is a message from Verdant Gristwold?"</p><p></p><p>"Yes."</p><p></p><p>"Do you know where he is?"</p><p></p><p>"Yes."</p><p></p><p>Finoula smiled at the literal-mindedness of the little songbird. "Where is he?"</p><p></p><p>"In a smelly cave."</p><p></p><p>"Smelly?"</p><p></p><p>"Very smelly."</p><p></p><p>"Is he a prisoner there?"</p><p></p><p>"Yes. Tied up. Hurt."</p><p></p><p>"Who has him prisoner?"</p><p></p><p>"Lizards."</p><p></p><p>"Lizards?"</p><p></p><p>"Smelly lizards."</p><p></p><p>Finoula thought about that answer. "Do these smelly lizards stand on two legs, like I do?"</p><p></p><p>"Yes," was the songbird's reply. Finoula nodded in comprehension: troglodytes!</p><p></p><p>"What he saying?" demanded Gilbert. The <em>speak with animals</em> spell only allowed communication between the one who cast the spell and the animals around her, not anyone else. Finoula quickly filled in the others what the songbird had relayed to her. "We check this out," Gilbert announced, pulling his <em>crystal ball</em> from a pocket of his robes. Passing a hand over it and concentrating on his father, he squinted into the clear globe as its center darkened. An image formed in the middle of the globe but it was fuzzy and kept winking out of existence for seconds at a time. "There interference," Gilbert told the others. "Somebody not want anybody scrying on area."</p><p></p><p>Still, Hagan's half-orc darkvision allowed him to get a bead on the dark image fading in and out of the <em>crystal ball</em>. "Looks like your dad, all right," he told Gilbert. "He's sitting up against a stalagmite with his hands bound in front of him. I think...it looks like his feet are manacled."</p><p></p><p>"He alive?" Gilbert asked.</p><p></p><p>"I'm pretty sure. His head's slumped to one side, but I think he's just asleep. Or maybe drugged. But he's breathing." However, just then whatever anti-scrying spells had been put into place overcame the <em>crystal ball</em>'s arcane sensor and the image winked out.</p><p></p><p>"You get good enough look to teleport us there?" Gilbert demanded.</p><p></p><p>Hagan shook his head. "Just a dark cave, and not a good image at that. If we try teleporting in, we could end up in any random cave in the area."</p><p></p><p>Finoula anticipated the next question. Turning to the songbird, she asked him, "Can you lead us back to the cave where Verdant's being held?"</p><p></p><p>"Hungry," replied the songbird.</p><p></p><p>Finoula pulled out some seeds from a belt pouch and held them out in her hand. The bird flew over from his perch on Malrin's hand and snatched up a seed in its beak, gulping it down. "Can you lead us back to Verdant, after you've eaten?" Finoula repeated.</p><p></p><p>"Yes," the bird answered between bites. Further interrogation revealed the cave was several hours away, up at the southern edge of the Clatspur Mountains. The group was familiar with the general area; it was where Aithanar had been committed when a bump on the head had resulted in his inability to speak anything but gibberish. They decided to take the Vistani wagon, since flight via the dragonfly spelljamming ship would be problematic: it couldn't fly between the trees of the Vesve Forest and the bird couldn't direct the course as high up as the ship would need to travel. Instead, the bird would fly back the way it had come, stopping from branch to branch to allow the heroes to catch up in their horse-drawn wagon.</p><p></p><p>Everyone geared up for the trip. Aithanar, as usual, would be driving the wagon, with Finoula mounted on her pony Daisy and her timber wolf animal companion keeping pace. Binkadink, naturally, would be riding his trusty jackalope, Obvious. And while Malrin decided to allow her dire fox Taihar to come along, Darrien opted to let Grumps Junior stay behind; the dire bear cub wasn't likely to enjoy a trip of that duration and the half-elf ranger didn't want to take the chance of his enormous baby bear to fall behind. And the two familiars, Wezhley the weasel and Mudpie the earth elemental, would be accompanying their respective masters; Gilbert likewise wanted MARCI to come along in case she was needed. "She ride in back of wagon with me," he decided.</p><p></p><p>And thus it was that the collection of assembled heroes and their various animals headed north through a path in the Vesve Forest, heading to the southern edge of the Clatspur Mountains at the border of the kingdom of Kordovia.</p><p></p><p>"If nothing else, the trip will give us time to digest that enormous breakfast," pointed out Binkadink as they departed the keep.</p><p></p><p>The songbird proved to be an excellent guide; his bright yellow coloration was helpful in finding him waiting on a branch for the horse-drawn wagon to catch up to him before flitting away a bit further up the trail. In a little over two hours of travel the group had made it out of the thickest part of the Vesve Forest and could see the mountains dead ahead. The songbird led them to a cave opening in the mountains, then sat in a high branch of a tree and groomed his feathers with his beak.</p><p></p><p>"This must be the place," Finoula observed, leading Daisy back beside the Vistani wagon as Aithanar brought the draft horses, Castor and Pollux, to a halt. The door at the back of the wagon opened up and Hagan, Gilbert, Malrin, and MARCI stepped out. Wezhley had fallen asleep on Hagan's shoulder and Mudpie was currently residing in one of Gilbert's pockets, shrunk down to the size of a pebble. Darrien dropped down from the roof of the wagon, where he'd ridden as a lookout.</p><p></p><p>"I'll take the horses back a ways and camp out there, awaiting your return," Aithanar suggested. Finoula dismounted from Daisy and tied her reins to the back of the wagon. "Wrath, you stay with Aithanar," she told her wolf. Malrin had Taihar do likewise; the animals were fine companions and lookouts on the road but weren't particularly suited for combat against unknown foes.</p><p></p><p>As the wagon rumbled away, the pre-combat spellcasting frenzy began. <em>Barkskin</em> spells were cast upon Binkadink, Darrien, Finoula, Malrin, and - at the gnome's request - Obvious. Hagan cast the standard <em>mage armor</em> spell upon himself and Wezhley; <em>stoneskin</em> spells were cast upon Hagan and Wezhley, Gilbert and Mudpie, Malrin, and Obvious. Darrien and Gilbert each enhanced their eyesight with <em>darkvision</em> spells, seeing as there was no light at all coming from within the cave entrance. Darrien cast a <em>greater magic fang</em> spell upon Obvious once it was apparent the jackalope was going to be handling combat duties against the troglodytes and anyone else within the cave network. And, as usual, Gilbert finished off the spellcasting with a <em>Rary's telepathic bond</em> spell linking the heroes together in a telepathic communication network, allowing them to converse without being overheard.</p><p></p><p><We ready?> Gilbert asked over the link. He always liked ensuring the <em>Rary's telepathic bond</em> spell was working before they had to depend upon it.</p><p></p><p><Let's do this!> Hagan replied, stepping into the cave. With his natural darkvision, it made sense for him to scout the place out ahead of the others. <Empty tunnel thus far,> he reported. But just in case, he allowed the words to the <em>scorching ray</em> spell to come to the forefront of his mind, ready to send the spell blazing out at any enemies who might show themselves. Darrien entered the cave tunnel behind the half-orc sorcerer, his own darkvision the result of a spell but just as effective. He had an arrow ready to fire from his <em>Arachnibow</em>, pointed down at the ground lest he release it at something he didn't intend to shoot. He went further down the tunnel than Hagan, peering into a side cavern...and seeing a large, hunched over figure standing at the back of the cave.</p><p></p><p>The <em>Rary's telepathic bond</em> spell allows for near instantaneous communication, as thoughts are much more efficient than words. As such, Darrien was able to pass along the creature's description and location before he could consciously dredge up the word "hezrou" from his memory, well before he could even raise his bow to aim his readied arrow at the advancing fiend.</p><p></p><p><Hezrou a demon!> Gilbert advised over the link. <Immune to poison, lightning!> Before he could pass on any more information, Obvious was hippity-hopping down the winding tunnel, Binkadink holding his glaive out ahead of him like a lance. The demon entered the tunnel just before the jackalope arrived, but his Abyssal stench hit them all before any of them had a chance to react to his sudden appearance. Binkadink got a good dose of the foul odor up his overly-large gnomish nose and his face wrinkled in distaste. Instinctively, he tried covering the miasma with his innate <em>prestidigitation</em> abilities, but it was like trying to mask the stench of an overflowing midden with a single rose petal. Obvious was affected even worse, coming to an abrupt halt that nearly pitched the gnome from the saddle. But as the hezrou opened wide a tooth-filled maw to bite at Darrien, the gnome managed to stab at the demon with the tip of his glaive. He drew not only blood but the demon's wrath; in a fit of pique, the hezrou switched targets and brought his fangs down upon the jackalope's neck instead of the half-elf archer's.</p><p></p><p>But then a trio of <em>scorching rays</em> came roaring down the tunnel, each striking the hezrou and exploding across his warty chest. The demon roared in pain and fury, its howls echoing and reverberating across the cave interior. Darrien took a step back from the pain-crazed demon and looked further down the cave tunnel; sure enough, a few reptilian humanoids entered the larger cavern just beyond from a side tunnel, their clawed hands holding primitive clubs as they sought the intruders fighting their lair guardian.</p><p></p><p>Finoula ran down the entry tunnel somewhat disappointed she wouldn't get a chance to use her <em>lightning amulet</em> against the hezrou, given Gilbert's warning it was immune to electrical attacks. But, seeing Darrien had yet to succumb to the fiend's horrid stench, she decided to see if she could keep the demon-odor away by casting a <em>wind wall</em> spell directly in front of the hezrou. Immediately, a blast of air rose up from just before the toad-demon's feet, creating a wind barrier that Finoula hoped would keep its awful stench at bay. She felt a gentle weight land on her shoulder just then and looked over to see Malrin in her owl form sitting there. <Do you mind?> Malrin asked. <This way I'll be near at hand and it's easier than trying to keep aloft in these cramped passageways.></p><p></p><p><By all means,> Finoula replied.</p><p></p><p>Gilbert huffed down the passageway, MARCI stepping up behind him. He couldn't see much, for his view was blocked by Obvious's body, which seemed to be convulsing. In point of fact, the poor jackalope was violently heaving, the contents of his latest meal being forcibly ejected at high speeds from his mouth by the power of the hezrou's vile stench. The vomit hit the <em>wind wall</em> and was immediately sent flying straight up; when it hit the ceiling it started to fall back down before being thrust back up by the powerful air currents of the spell. It was, Gilbert decided, an oddly fascinating view, watching chunks of vomit being thrown about by the opposing forces of gravity and upward-thrusting gusts of air.</p><p></p><p>From behind him, Hagan saw the troglodytes advancing from a side tunnel ahead and off to the right. Darrien had seen them as well and sent several arrows flying down the corridor to hit the lead troglodyte in the chest and shoulder. He spat blood from his mouth as he pulled a shaft from his upper torso.</p><p></p><p>Seeing his jackalope mount temporarily out of commission, Binkadink leaped down out of the saddle and sent his glaive slicing through the hezrou's glistening flesh. The gnome extended his <em>stilt-boots</em> to their fullest height, then followed suit with the length of his glaive, the better to put himself on an equal footing with his oversize foe. The demon lurched forward in an attempt to retaliate against the gnome but his snapping jaws and snatching claws all missed the nimble fighter. However, his attack took him beyond the effect of the <em>wind wall</em> spell and Finoula, Malrin, and Gilbert each felt the full force of the demon's vile stench hit them like a ton of bricks. Finoula's stomach clenched in knots; Malrin's wings flapped around in sudden consternation as the half-elf ranger backed away from the demon. Meanwhile, Gilbert projectile vomited on the floor directly in front of him. At his side, MARCI scanned the portly mage with her red eye-beam and announced, "You seem to be experiencing gastrointestinal distress. As the effects appeared quite suddenly, it is possible there is an external factor in play." She sent her sensors on full sweep, seeking an answer to this puzzle.</p><p></p><p>Binkadink, in the meantime, slew the hezrou with a series of rapid blade strikes with his glaive. The demon's foul blood spilled onto the floor - and then in the blink of an eye it was gone, leaving behind only the fresh blood on the stone floor and the lingering stench of its Abyssal aroma. Fortunately, although Binkadink had been sickened by the stench he hadn't been as badly affected as had been Obvious or Gilbert, both of whom were still fully incapacitated. Hopefully they'd be able to snap out of it soon, for it sounded like there was more combat to be had farther on down the corridor.</p><p></p><p>Hagan slew the arrow-pierced troglodyte with a well-placed <em>magic missile</em> spell, then moved down the corridor alongside Darrien, who pumped the next troglodyte to pop around the corner full of arrows. It, too, fell to the ground, dead. Binkadink charged down the corridor, seeing a large group of troglodytes approaching warily from his right, while a smaller but more battle-ready group raced at him from his left. He spun in place to face this greater threat. But in spinning around he had caught glimpses of a few things that threatened to take his focus away from the impending battle, something no front-line fighter could afford: a figure who could easily have been Verdant sitting against a stalagmite - it was difficult to see from the light spilling from Binkadink's antlered helmet - and, in the next cavern over, what looked like a massive statue of a multiheaded hydra with wings. But before he could process the images he'd seen the troglodytes were upon him, two attacking from behind and many more approaching from the front, these latter spreading out to try to catch him from multiple sides. Binkadink shortened the length of his glaive's shaft for better close-in fighting and did his best against the massive force swarming all around him.</p><p></p><p>But then a blast of lightning came crashing down from above to strike the troglodyte immediately before him, with similar blasts arcing off from him to nearly a dozen of his compatriots. Binkadink knew at once that could only be a <em>chain lightning</em> spell cast by Hagan. It was well-timed, for it slew its primary target and three of the troglodytes attacking the gnome from behind; five others in front of Binkadink were still in the fight but had smoke steaming from the burn-marks where the spell had hit them.</p><p></p><p>But now other troglodytes were approaching from behind the gnome, eager to attack. Darrien pumped the first of these would-be assassins full of arrows, dropping the reptilian beast at once. The half-elf stepped up carefully closer to the gnome, <em>Arachnibow</em> raised and ready. Behind him, Obvious trotted down the corridor on unsteady legs, still violently upchucking but eager to provide whatever assistance he could to his gnomish friend. Finoula did her best to follow suit, an equally-sick Malrin still perched on her shoulder in owl form.</p><p></p><p>Binkadink's glaive came slashing down at an angle and another of the lightning-scorched troglodytes fell before him. These troglodytes had their own nasty smell, one quite different from the hezrou's but just as vile. Still, despite the prodigious size of his gnomish nose, Binkadink was able to ignore the odors and concentrate on the job that needed to be finished. Again he struck forth with his glaive and again an enemy dropped before him, dead.</p><p></p><p>Gilbert staggered up behind Binkadink and saw his father bound to the stalagmite, his head lolling off to the side. Ever distrustful, the portly mage took shallow breaths to overcome the nausea plaguing him and cast a <em>true seeing</em> spell. If this was some sort of fake-out illusion, he wanted to make sure he didn't fall for it! But under the effects of the divination spell his father looked exactly the same. Well, good - but Verdant was perfectly safe where he was for now and the heroes had more pressing concerns at the moment, like killing off these troglodytes!</p><p></p><p>Another group of the reptilian barbarians sped up from the back of the side cavern to try to swarm over Binkadink, as a few of the smaller ones approached the gnome from behind. He fought them off as best he could but a few of their clubs hit home and hit hard when they did. But once again a <em>chain lightning</em> spell from Hagan took out a bunch of these new combatants, weakening those who weren't slain outright.</p><p></p><p>Hands on her knees, standing feebly above a pool of her own vomit, Finoula felt weak but as if the worst of the nausea was finally behind her. <You okay, Malrin?> she asked over the link.</p><p></p><p><Not great...but better than I was,> the owl-druid replied.</p><p></p><p><Then let's go see if we can help the others.></p><p></p><p>Binkadink could use the help, that was for sure. The troglodyte barbarians had him almost surrounded by now, clubs striking down at him from all directions. He continued to put his glaive to good use but there were more enemies than he could handle all at once. Hagan, for his part, had concentrated his efforts on the larger number of troglodytes spilling out from the cave to the east, and his third <em>chain lightning</em> spell sent the whole cave's worth of reptiles falling to their hand and knees in pain. But those in front regained their feet and advanced, snarling and hissing threats while the smaller ones backed off in fright and huddled against the back walls, folding in on themselves and trying to hide from the hideous, spellcasting half-orc who wielded the very lightning from the sky at his fingertips. And now staggering into place behind the half-orc stood a towering bunny with the antlers of an elk rising up from its head: a ridiculous-looking thing, but probably quite tasty!</p><p></p><p>Darrien, seeing Hagan and Obvious apparently had the troglodytes in the side cavern covered, decided to see what he could do to help out the beleaguered gnome. He got off a perfect shot that pierced a troglodyte straight in the eye, causing it to fall backwards and land in a lifeless heap at the feet of one of its comrades. Binkadink stepped into the open space, bringing down another vile-smelling combatant with his glaive; was it his imagination, he wondered, or was combat making the troglodyte musk flow even stronger?</p><p></p><p>A familiar flaming lash wrapped around the neck of one of the troglodytes facing Binkadink and then the gnome saw him get pulled away, straight onto the point of <em>Tahlmalaera</em>. Finoula, it seemed, was back in action. She kicked the dead troglodyte off her sword and spun about to face the next foe. Malrin cast a <em>call lightning</em> spell, causing a bolt of electricity to fall down from the cavern's ceiling, directly onto the head of a troglodyte barbarian, singeing his scales and head-crest. Gilbert had at this point stepped up to assist as well but he was suddenly overcome by the stench of these troglodytes. That songbird hadn't been kidding when he warned, "Smelly cave!" He swallowed down the nausea, forcing himself by sheer stubbornness not to be violently sick.</p><p></p><p>The troglodytes fought back against Finoula as well as Binkadink and now the ranger could feel her stomach clenching up again in disgust from the horrid stench. <em>Not again!</em> she thought. <em>My poor stomach doesn't have anything left to disgorge!</em> But Binkadink slew the one who had hoped to take advantage of the elf's discomfort, his blade almost decapitating the smelly, reptilian barbarian in one powerful stroke.</p><p></p><p>Standing at the top of the higher cave that overlooked the sleeping area of his most powerful warriors, <strong>Zondrass</strong> scowled in disappointment. This is how they fared against a handful of <em>mammals</em>? <strong>Tiamat</strong> would not be pleased! He had spent the moments since the hezrou's warning cry had alerted him of the intruders casting his own personal combat spells, confident that his troops could handle things until his arrival, but it seemed in this he had been mistaken. Still, it was no concern of his; Tiamat's will was supreme and this could very well be her way of culling the weak members from his tribe, that only the strongest and most deserving would live to carry their genes forward, to the overall benefit of the troglodyte race.</p><p></p><p>Still, Zondrass was now ready for combat and he began in his customary method, by sending forth an emissary to announce his arrival. Another hezrou suddenly appeared before Binkadink, snapping its wicked teeth at the gnome's throat while it tried gutting Finoula with its equally-sharp claws. But the first to react to this sudden threat was neither Binkadink nor Finoula but rather Gilbert, who cast a <em>quickened Evard's black tentacles</em> spell beneath the frog-demon's feet, centered such that its area of effect didn't encroach upon the positions of either of the wizard's friends. "Let see you get out of <em>that</em>, demon!" he taunted as ebony-colored, rubbery appendages rose up from the cavern's stone floor to entangle their way around the hezrou's torso and limbs.</p><p></p><p>Hagan had been surprised at the hezrou's sudden appearance but his spellcasting knowledge told him someone had to be responsible - and his half-orcish darkvision allowed him to spot Zondrass standing on the platform above the back cavern from which the troglodyte combatants had spilled forth. He cast a <em>polar ray</em> spell at the troglodyte, his aim spot on. Zondrass cried out in a hiss of surprise and stepped back from his ledge - not a second too soon, either, as Darrien sent a slew of arrows streaking his way.</p><p></p><p>Binkadink swung his glaive at the entangled hezrou, his blade slicing deep into the demon's flesh. Finoula merely backed away, her stomach doing flips from the demonic stench now pervading the cavern. Malrin flew off Finoula's shoulder, eager to be as far away from the demon as she could be. She landed upon MARCI's metallic shoulder; the medical construct didn't even seem to notice, intent as she was on her sensor readings. Gilbert, still fighting the rising of his gorge, took a few steps back from the demon as well.</p><p></p><p>Then Zondrass stepped forward again and cast a <em>blade barrier</em> spell right through Binkadink, Darrien, Obvious, and Hagan. With a cry of pain, Binkadink stepped away from the wildly-contorting blades, staying on the same side of the wall as his imprisoned hezrou foe - for he fully intended to cut the demon down while he could. The other three also jumped to the same side of the blade-wall as the gnome, in Hagan's case because there wasn't any room for him to do otherwise. But then, as Binkadink brought his glaive down in an overhand swing, hoping to pierce the demon's skull...it suddenly wasn't there anymore, and he had to tug his weapon away from the pitch-black tentacles eager to embrace anything put within their reach.</p><p></p><p>The hezrou had <em>teleported</em> out of the area of effect of the <em>Evard's black tentacles</em> spell and directly before Finoula, the closest opponent it could see. As its teeth clamped down on the ranger - still too sick to put up much of a defense - Hagan fired off another <em>polar ray</em> spell at Zondrass, but this time the spell failed to overcome the troglodyte cleric's <em>spell resistance</em> spell. On the half-orc's shoulder, Wezhley hissed in annoyance - he hated it when that happened!</p><p></p><p>But now Binkadink was on the wrong side of the <em>blade barrier</em> to get to the demon! Gritting his teeth in determination, he raced through the whirling blades, his poor body getting sliced and stabbed numerous times as he pierced the spell's width and popped out the other side, stabbing at the hezrou still attacking Finoula. The gnome grinned as his blade went deep into the demon's flesh, causing it to howl in pain and release the elven ranger from its grasp. Finoula staggered further back down the entry tunnel, ducking through her own still-active <em>wind wall</em> into the original hezrou guardian's lair. Having had a moment to overcome her own debilitating sickness, Malrin flew from MARCI's shoulder and rejoined her fellow elf.</p><p></p><p>Darrien touched the <em>amber amulet</em> he wore around his neck and summoned his giant praying mantis, causing it to manifest in the upper cave behind Zondrass. It struck out lightning-fast with its claws but ran up against another of the cleric's protective spells: <em>freedom of movement</em>, which prevented the mantis from getting a firm grasp upon the troglodyte. Furthermore, the mantis's claws failed to even penetrate the <em>stoneskin</em> spell Zondrass had cast upon himself. Almost contemptuously, the troglodyte cast a <em>flame strike</em> spell on the giant insect, burning it to a crisp. It vanished upon death, returning at once - at normal insect size - inside Darrien's amulet.</p><p></p><p>Binkadink had a momentary thought of trying to lift the hezrou and toss him back through the <em>blade barrier</em> spell, but he realized their two respective sizes and strengths made that nothing more than wishful thinking: there was no way the little gnome could lift anything that large and heavy. <em>But</em>, he thought to himself, <em>I bet I could drag him....</em> No sooner had the thought come to the gnome, as the hezrou spun around to face him again rather than be backstabbed by that damned glaive, than Binkadink grabbed the demon by the wrist and pulled him backwards with him through the still-active <em>blade barrier</em> spell. Once again the gnome felt the whirling blades stabbing and slicing at him, but they were doing the same to the hezrou and the gnome was reasonably sure he could take the damage far longer than the demon could....</p><p></p><p>Finoula snapped out of her dry-heaves about the same time Gilbert cast a <em>maximized ray of enfeeblement</em> at the hezrou as it was passing back through the <em>blade barrier</em>. That wouldn't do any real damage to the demon, Gilbert realized, but it would lessen the damage it could inflict on others - and maybe allow Binkadink to keep his hold on the demon and drag it through the whirling blades a few more times!</p><p></p><p>But now Zondrass entered the fray himself. Dropping down from his platform, he raced up behind Binkadink - who was facing the hezrou, trying to keep his hold upon the struggling demon - and slapped a scaly, clawed hand upon the little gnome's shoulder, channeling a <em>harm</em> spell through his claws. Binkadink arched his back in surprise and agony, releasing his grip upon the hezrou and very nearly releasing his grip upon his own life as well - but at the last moment he gritted it out, leaving him still alive but just barely still standing on his <em>gnomish stilt-boots</em>.</p><p></p><p>"TIAMAT!" called out Zondrass in the language of his patron deity, Draconic. "Fearsome Queen of Dragons, I call forth your awesome power: bring death to the enemies of your loyal followers!" On the raised plinth at the back of the northernmost cavern, the five-headed dragon statue animated to an unholy semblance of life, its stiff wings creaking apart as it stepped forward on its massive legs.</p><p></p><p>The hezrou, freed from the crazy gnome's grasp, instantly <em>teleported</em> over by Gilbert, whose prodigious stomach couldn't handle the sudden reapplication of the demon's vile stench. The wizard retaliated, quite inadvertently, with a spray of vomit across the hezrou's chest and stomach. The demon idly dropped its tongue into the middle of the dripping stain and grinned in pleasure at the taste.</p><p></p><p>Hagan saw the Tiamat golem step forward and realized the mobile statue was nothing he wanted to have to deal with right then. Furthermore, he knew Obvious was in no shape for combat with anything, let alone a five-headed dragon-goddess statue twice the jackalope's own size. <Darrien!> Hagan called over the link, getting the ranger's attention, before stretching out his arms to both the archer and the jackalope and <em>teleporting</em> all three of them (and Wezhley) back over to the cavern network's entry tunnel.</p><p></p><p><Thanks!> Darrien called to the half-orc over the link, while pulling his <em>ebony fly</em> from his pocket and activating it. Leaping upon the pony-sized creature, Darrien sent it buzzing into the sentry cavern, where an elevated passageway connected to Zondrass's cavern, from which he could fly back down and approach the troglodyte cleric from the rear. Binkadink saw Zondrass spin at the sound of the <em>ebony fly</em>'s buzzing wings and took advantage of his distraction, his glaive slicing a deep scar of pain across the cleric's back. Even with his <em>stoneskin</em> protection, the troglodyte spellcaster cried out in pain.</p><p></p><p>Obvious slapped his <em>collar of healing</em> and, staggering, took up position just outside the cave, ready to attack should any enemies make it past the others. But for now, he badly needed to catch his breath and get some fresh, clean air into his lungs.</p><p></p><p>Finoula stepped up to snap her <em>flaming burst whip of thorns</em> at the hezrou but sure enough, even though it struck true, bringing it to bear meant re-entering the range of the demon's vile stench. This time the nausea was even worse; it was all Finoula could do not to drop to her hands and knees and start retching uncontrollably.</p><p></p><p>"Analysis complete," announced MARCI suddenly. "I have synthesized a suitable antidote for the external poison being transmitted through the nasal membranes." She approached Gilbert, who was staggering weakly away from the hezrou.</p><p></p><p>Zondrass, now flanked by Binkadink and Darrien, tried casting a <em>word of recall</em> to return him to his upper lair--but he was struck down by Binkadink's glaive halfway through his spellcasting. Darrien leaped from his <em>ebony fly</em> and made room for the gnome. "Take it," he offered. "You're a much better mounted warrior, and Obvious isn't up for much combat." He channeled a healing spell through his hand, closing up the worst of the gnome's wounds.</p><p></p><p>Binkadink nodded his thanks, leaped onto the fly, and sent it buzzing back through the cleric's upper lair to circle back around to the hezrou, who was taking the opportunity of Gilbert's general helplessness to attempt to claw him to ribbons.</p><p></p><p>The Tiamat golem crashed through the <em>Evard's black tentacles</em> but was too strong for the rubbery appendages to get a grasp on it. It then passed straight through the <em>blade barrier</em> spell effect - and again, the whirling blades had no effect upon it, shielded as it was from most spells. Its five heads peered over the hezrou and its central head - the red one - blasted a gout of flame encompassing Gilbert, MARCI, and Finoula. Shortly thereafter, Binkadink arrived on the scene on his borrowed <em>ebony fly</em>, scoring a hit against the five-headed golem with his glaive but not doing much beyond scratching his blade across the construct's hardened body. But his attack allowed Finoula a moment to back away again, through her still-active <em>wind wall</em>. Malrin was there, having overcome the various stenches of the cave, and the owl-druid cast a <em>mass cure light wounds</em> spell that added some much-needed healing to Binkadink, Finoula, and herself.</p><p></p><p>Gilbert worked through his stomach queasiness and cast a <em>quickened wall of force</em> directly in front of the drakestone golem fashioned in the form of Tiamat; the maneuver had worked well on Carceri against the Tarterian dragon so it was worth trying again here, the wizard reasoned. He followed up that spell with a <em>dimension door</em> spell that took him over by his father, still unconscious and bound to the stalagmite. In his sudden absence, MARCI scanned the immediate area and approached Finoula, injecting her with the antidote to the hezrou stench; Gilbert had long ago added Finoula to the list of "honorary humans" the medical construct was to heal without question. Finoula breathed a deep sigh of relief as her stomach immediately settled. But the hezrou followed MARCI into the guardian lair, attacking Finoula with its claws. The elven ranger was aware of the demon's vile stench but it was now nowhere even close to debilitating. She had both weapons in hand and was about to counterattack when the demon froze up - quite literally - as Hagan slew it with another <em>polar ray</em> spell. That was perfectly fine with Finoula; she didn't need to have been the one to slay it, she was just glad it was dead!</p><p></p><p>The Tiamat golem bumped into the invisible <em>wall of force</em> and couldn't get past it. It blasted the wall with several of its breath weapons, but neither acid nor cold nor a burst of electricity had any effect. Too big to turn around in what was to it a narrow tunnel, it began the laborious maneuver of attempting to back up in the curving passageway. But Gilbert was ready for it and cast another <em>wall of force</em> spell, sealing it off in a section of the tunnel.</p><p></p><p>Malrin flew through the upper lair in owl form and around the <em>blade barrier</em> to get to Verdant. Then, dropping to his side and resuming her elven form, she used her dagger to cut through the ropes binding him to the stalagmite. He mumbled incoherently and Malrin, suspecting he'd been drugged, cast a <em>neutralize poison</em> spell upon the elderly druid. That had the desired effect: he blinked in surprise, looked about him, and broke into a broad grin upon seeing a lovely elven lass bending down over him. "Well, hello," he said as Malrin cut the ropes binding his hands together in front of him. Then she looked down at the iron manacles around his ankles and the chain between them and frowned. "I don't have any way to break through those, and my brother isn't here, or he could easily pick the lock open. Maybe Binkadink can cut through the chain...?"</p><p></p><p>But Binkadink was now over in the chamber beneath the upper lair, where piles of bedding spoke to this being a sleeping area for the troglodyte barbarians. Of more interest than smelly bedding, however, were the three large chests lined up against the wall: the communal treasury, presumably. Darrien opened one chest and found it full of jewelry. Finoula opened the next and discovered piles of gold and platinum coins. Binkadink opened the third and found an explosion of flames erupting in his face, but once the <em>fire trap</em> had been triggered, inside was a nasty-looking greataxe - whose dried bloodstains told of its probable use as a sacrificial weapon - and a folded-up flag bearing the image of a top view of Tiamat. "I wonder why they've got their flag all folded up instead of on a flagpole somewhere," the gnome mused.</p><p></p><p>"Probably because it isn't a flag," replied Hagan. "That looks like a <em>flying carpet</em>."</p><p></p><p>"Hey, Binkadink!" called Malrin. "Can you help me with these shackles?" While the gnome carefully cut through the links of the chain keeping Verdant Gristwold's feet hobbled with his glaive's sharp blade (and the application of every ounce of strength the little gnome possessed), Gilbert had peered into the side cave from which the smaller of the troglodytes had exited to attack the intruding heroes. Seeing a group of the younger reptiles huddled against the back cave walls, he shot Mudpie from his <em>slingshot of rock shrinking</em>, returning the pebble-sized earth elemental to his normal, four-foot height, then cast a <em>Tenser's transformation</em> spell upon his familiar. "They all yours," Gilbert offered and Mudpie entered the cavern, intent upon carnage.</p><p></p><p>None of the troglodytes survived the onslaught.</p><p></p><p>In the meantime, Verdant explained what had happened to him. He had been spending time in the forest wildshaped as a black bear - a form he greatly enjoyed, and in which he often spent weeks at a time - when he had been surrounded and captured by a group of troglodyte raiders, seeing him as an easy meal. However, when he wildshaped back into human form to try to fight them off with his spells (rather unsuccessfully, as it turned out), they opted instead to use him as a sacrifice to the Queen of Dragons, although that meant waiting until the night of the next full moons. And they found a druid capable of wildshaping to be a particularly troublesome captive, for he kept changing shape when they'd try to bind him with ropes. But try as he might to escape, by becoming a bird or a snake, a quick clonk on the head from a troglodyte's club easily put that attempt to a screeching halt! Finally, Zondrass resorted to drugging the elderly druid, although Verdant had come out of it just briefly enough to cast an <em>animal messenger</em> spell that sent the yellow songbird to pass word to his son Gilbert to come to his rescue.</p><p></p><p>"And here you are!" Verdant beamed.</p><p></p><p>"But not for much longer," Gilbert replied. "Those <em>walls of force</em> not last forever. Think we better vamoose while they still keeping Tiamat statue imprisoned. Bink! You guys grab up treasure?"</p><p></p><p>Binkadink indicated the <em>portable hole</em> he'd taken from Malrin. "Got it all right here," the gnome replied.</p><p></p><p>"Good, then let's go find Aithanar, head back home. After all that puking, I ready for another of Helga's meals!"</p><p></p><p> - - - </p><p></p><p>After we finished up the adventure, everyone leveled up to 18th. Everyone, that is, but Jacob, who was working again and missed this session - which explains Castillan's absence. I've emailed Jacob, offering to switch our Kordovian game days from Saturdays to Sundays to accommodate his work schedule, and also let him know that if he didn't want to play in our campaign any more (he's started up his own campaign with his friends) there would be no hurt feelings. I haven't heard back from him yet, and Dan's hanging on to Castillan's PC folder until either Jacob upgrades him to 18th or gives his dad free reign to do so on his behalf. It won't really matter a whole lot for the next ten adventures or so, but towards the end of this campaign (there will be 80 adventures in all) there will be a series of a half-dozen adventures or so which will require Castillan to be present at the beginning or there will be no real way for him to participate in those ones at all. (The example I gave him in my email was it was similar to the little Spelljammer excursion the heroes took into wildspace; had Castillan not been present when they ended up teleported from Captain Skunkbeard's trapped dungeon to the wildspace receiving station it would have been next to impossible to incorporate him into the Spelljammer adventures that followed. We won't be going back into wildspace again, but the concept will be similar.)</p><p></p><p>So we'll see how that plays out. But it's possible we'll soon be phasing Castillan out for good.</p><p></p><p> - - - </p><p></p><p>T-shirt worn: My "DAD: Cleverly Disguised as a Responsible Adult" shirt, given that it was Gilbert Fung's dad who was the plot hook of this adventure.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Richards, post: 7807884, member: 508"] [b]ADVENTURE 65: QUEEN OF DRAGONS[/b] PC Roster: [INDENT]Binkadink Dundernoggin, gnome fighter 17 Darrien, half-elf ranger 17 Finoula Cloudshadow, elf ranger 17 Gilbert Fung, human wizard 17 Hagan, half-orc sorcerer 17[/INDENT] NPC Roster: [INDENT]Aithanar Ivenheart, elf fighter 4 Malrin Ivenheart, elf druid 12 MARCI, humanoid construct Verdant Gristwold, human druid 5[/INDENT] Game Session Date: 7 September 2019 - - - After one of Helga Battershield's hearty breakfast feasts - the dwarven woman seemed ever concerned that the adventurers "weren't eatin' enough" and had taken it upon herself to correct that deficiency - the heroes stepped into the courtyard of Battershield Keep fit to burst. "I think I need to lie down for an hour or two," muttered Binkadink, patting his stomach. "Tell me about it," commiserated Finoula. After Ingebold's death, Helga had more or less adopted Finoula as a surrogate daughter and as such the young elven ranger bore the constant focus of the dwarf's maternal attention. "At this rate, I'm going to need to add some new notches to my belt." "Listen to that," pointed out Malrin, smiling. A songbird was singing its little heart out somewhere nearby. Looking about, the druid finally spotted it perched on the edge of the roof of the stables. Malrin squinted up at it - the bright yellow bird seemed to have something held tightly in one of its claws. The songbird dropped over the edge of the stable roof, landing upon the druid's outstretched hand. Malrin took the bird's offering: a few strands of gray hair, tied together in a small bundle by a piece of green yarn. "Let me see that," Gilbert demanded, grabbing up the small bundle and frowning down at it. "What is it?" asked Hagan, looking at the item in the wizard's pudgy hands. "These hairs from father's beard. Green yarn: it from fingerless gloves he wear." Gilbert scratched his own beard. "Why dad send this to me?" "It's a message," observed Malrin. "Quite literally: an [i]animal messenger[/i] spell, one druids use often. He probably sent this so you'd know it was from him." "Well, let's see what he has to say," replied Finoula, casting a [i]speak with animals[/i] spell on herself. Once in effect, she addressed the little songbird. "Hello," she said pleasantly. "Hello," replied the yellow-feathered bird. "Were you given any instructions to pass on to us?" "'Find Gilbert. Send help.'" "This is a message from Verdant Gristwold?" "Yes." "Do you know where he is?" "Yes." Finoula smiled at the literal-mindedness of the little songbird. "Where is he?" "In a smelly cave." "Smelly?" "Very smelly." "Is he a prisoner there?" "Yes. Tied up. Hurt." "Who has him prisoner?" "Lizards." "Lizards?" "Smelly lizards." Finoula thought about that answer. "Do these smelly lizards stand on two legs, like I do?" "Yes," was the songbird's reply. Finoula nodded in comprehension: troglodytes! "What he saying?" demanded Gilbert. The [i]speak with animals[/i] spell only allowed communication between the one who cast the spell and the animals around her, not anyone else. Finoula quickly filled in the others what the songbird had relayed to her. "We check this out," Gilbert announced, pulling his [i]crystal ball[/i] from a pocket of his robes. Passing a hand over it and concentrating on his father, he squinted into the clear globe as its center darkened. An image formed in the middle of the globe but it was fuzzy and kept winking out of existence for seconds at a time. "There interference," Gilbert told the others. "Somebody not want anybody scrying on area." Still, Hagan's half-orc darkvision allowed him to get a bead on the dark image fading in and out of the [i]crystal ball[/i]. "Looks like your dad, all right," he told Gilbert. "He's sitting up against a stalagmite with his hands bound in front of him. I think...it looks like his feet are manacled." "He alive?" Gilbert asked. "I'm pretty sure. His head's slumped to one side, but I think he's just asleep. Or maybe drugged. But he's breathing." However, just then whatever anti-scrying spells had been put into place overcame the [i]crystal ball[/i]'s arcane sensor and the image winked out. "You get good enough look to teleport us there?" Gilbert demanded. Hagan shook his head. "Just a dark cave, and not a good image at that. If we try teleporting in, we could end up in any random cave in the area." Finoula anticipated the next question. Turning to the songbird, she asked him, "Can you lead us back to the cave where Verdant's being held?" "Hungry," replied the songbird. Finoula pulled out some seeds from a belt pouch and held them out in her hand. The bird flew over from his perch on Malrin's hand and snatched up a seed in its beak, gulping it down. "Can you lead us back to Verdant, after you've eaten?" Finoula repeated. "Yes," the bird answered between bites. Further interrogation revealed the cave was several hours away, up at the southern edge of the Clatspur Mountains. The group was familiar with the general area; it was where Aithanar had been committed when a bump on the head had resulted in his inability to speak anything but gibberish. They decided to take the Vistani wagon, since flight via the dragonfly spelljamming ship would be problematic: it couldn't fly between the trees of the Vesve Forest and the bird couldn't direct the course as high up as the ship would need to travel. Instead, the bird would fly back the way it had come, stopping from branch to branch to allow the heroes to catch up in their horse-drawn wagon. Everyone geared up for the trip. Aithanar, as usual, would be driving the wagon, with Finoula mounted on her pony Daisy and her timber wolf animal companion keeping pace. Binkadink, naturally, would be riding his trusty jackalope, Obvious. And while Malrin decided to allow her dire fox Taihar to come along, Darrien opted to let Grumps Junior stay behind; the dire bear cub wasn't likely to enjoy a trip of that duration and the half-elf ranger didn't want to take the chance of his enormous baby bear to fall behind. And the two familiars, Wezhley the weasel and Mudpie the earth elemental, would be accompanying their respective masters; Gilbert likewise wanted MARCI to come along in case she was needed. "She ride in back of wagon with me," he decided. And thus it was that the collection of assembled heroes and their various animals headed north through a path in the Vesve Forest, heading to the southern edge of the Clatspur Mountains at the border of the kingdom of Kordovia. "If nothing else, the trip will give us time to digest that enormous breakfast," pointed out Binkadink as they departed the keep. The songbird proved to be an excellent guide; his bright yellow coloration was helpful in finding him waiting on a branch for the horse-drawn wagon to catch up to him before flitting away a bit further up the trail. In a little over two hours of travel the group had made it out of the thickest part of the Vesve Forest and could see the mountains dead ahead. The songbird led them to a cave opening in the mountains, then sat in a high branch of a tree and groomed his feathers with his beak. "This must be the place," Finoula observed, leading Daisy back beside the Vistani wagon as Aithanar brought the draft horses, Castor and Pollux, to a halt. The door at the back of the wagon opened up and Hagan, Gilbert, Malrin, and MARCI stepped out. Wezhley had fallen asleep on Hagan's shoulder and Mudpie was currently residing in one of Gilbert's pockets, shrunk down to the size of a pebble. Darrien dropped down from the roof of the wagon, where he'd ridden as a lookout. "I'll take the horses back a ways and camp out there, awaiting your return," Aithanar suggested. Finoula dismounted from Daisy and tied her reins to the back of the wagon. "Wrath, you stay with Aithanar," she told her wolf. Malrin had Taihar do likewise; the animals were fine companions and lookouts on the road but weren't particularly suited for combat against unknown foes. As the wagon rumbled away, the pre-combat spellcasting frenzy began. [i]Barkskin[/i] spells were cast upon Binkadink, Darrien, Finoula, Malrin, and - at the gnome's request - Obvious. Hagan cast the standard [i]mage armor[/i] spell upon himself and Wezhley; [i]stoneskin[/i] spells were cast upon Hagan and Wezhley, Gilbert and Mudpie, Malrin, and Obvious. Darrien and Gilbert each enhanced their eyesight with [i]darkvision[/i] spells, seeing as there was no light at all coming from within the cave entrance. Darrien cast a [i]greater magic fang[/i] spell upon Obvious once it was apparent the jackalope was going to be handling combat duties against the troglodytes and anyone else within the cave network. And, as usual, Gilbert finished off the spellcasting with a [i]Rary's telepathic bond[/i] spell linking the heroes together in a telepathic communication network, allowing them to converse without being overheard. <We ready?> Gilbert asked over the link. He always liked ensuring the [i]Rary's telepathic bond[/i] spell was working before they had to depend upon it. <Let's do this!> Hagan replied, stepping into the cave. With his natural darkvision, it made sense for him to scout the place out ahead of the others. <Empty tunnel thus far,> he reported. But just in case, he allowed the words to the [i]scorching ray[/i] spell to come to the forefront of his mind, ready to send the spell blazing out at any enemies who might show themselves. Darrien entered the cave tunnel behind the half-orc sorcerer, his own darkvision the result of a spell but just as effective. He had an arrow ready to fire from his [i]Arachnibow[/i], pointed down at the ground lest he release it at something he didn't intend to shoot. He went further down the tunnel than Hagan, peering into a side cavern...and seeing a large, hunched over figure standing at the back of the cave. The [i]Rary's telepathic bond[/i] spell allows for near instantaneous communication, as thoughts are much more efficient than words. As such, Darrien was able to pass along the creature's description and location before he could consciously dredge up the word "hezrou" from his memory, well before he could even raise his bow to aim his readied arrow at the advancing fiend. <Hezrou a demon!> Gilbert advised over the link. <Immune to poison, lightning!> Before he could pass on any more information, Obvious was hippity-hopping down the winding tunnel, Binkadink holding his glaive out ahead of him like a lance. The demon entered the tunnel just before the jackalope arrived, but his Abyssal stench hit them all before any of them had a chance to react to his sudden appearance. Binkadink got a good dose of the foul odor up his overly-large gnomish nose and his face wrinkled in distaste. Instinctively, he tried covering the miasma with his innate [i]prestidigitation[/i] abilities, but it was like trying to mask the stench of an overflowing midden with a single rose petal. Obvious was affected even worse, coming to an abrupt halt that nearly pitched the gnome from the saddle. But as the hezrou opened wide a tooth-filled maw to bite at Darrien, the gnome managed to stab at the demon with the tip of his glaive. He drew not only blood but the demon's wrath; in a fit of pique, the hezrou switched targets and brought his fangs down upon the jackalope's neck instead of the half-elf archer's. But then a trio of [i]scorching rays[/i] came roaring down the tunnel, each striking the hezrou and exploding across his warty chest. The demon roared in pain and fury, its howls echoing and reverberating across the cave interior. Darrien took a step back from the pain-crazed demon and looked further down the cave tunnel; sure enough, a few reptilian humanoids entered the larger cavern just beyond from a side tunnel, their clawed hands holding primitive clubs as they sought the intruders fighting their lair guardian. Finoula ran down the entry tunnel somewhat disappointed she wouldn't get a chance to use her [i]lightning amulet[/i] against the hezrou, given Gilbert's warning it was immune to electrical attacks. But, seeing Darrien had yet to succumb to the fiend's horrid stench, she decided to see if she could keep the demon-odor away by casting a [i]wind wall[/i] spell directly in front of the hezrou. Immediately, a blast of air rose up from just before the toad-demon's feet, creating a wind barrier that Finoula hoped would keep its awful stench at bay. She felt a gentle weight land on her shoulder just then and looked over to see Malrin in her owl form sitting there. <Do you mind?> Malrin asked. <This way I'll be near at hand and it's easier than trying to keep aloft in these cramped passageways.> <By all means,> Finoula replied. Gilbert huffed down the passageway, MARCI stepping up behind him. He couldn't see much, for his view was blocked by Obvious's body, which seemed to be convulsing. In point of fact, the poor jackalope was violently heaving, the contents of his latest meal being forcibly ejected at high speeds from his mouth by the power of the hezrou's vile stench. The vomit hit the [i]wind wall[/i] and was immediately sent flying straight up; when it hit the ceiling it started to fall back down before being thrust back up by the powerful air currents of the spell. It was, Gilbert decided, an oddly fascinating view, watching chunks of vomit being thrown about by the opposing forces of gravity and upward-thrusting gusts of air. From behind him, Hagan saw the troglodytes advancing from a side tunnel ahead and off to the right. Darrien had seen them as well and sent several arrows flying down the corridor to hit the lead troglodyte in the chest and shoulder. He spat blood from his mouth as he pulled a shaft from his upper torso. Seeing his jackalope mount temporarily out of commission, Binkadink leaped down out of the saddle and sent his glaive slicing through the hezrou's glistening flesh. The gnome extended his [i]stilt-boots[/i] to their fullest height, then followed suit with the length of his glaive, the better to put himself on an equal footing with his oversize foe. The demon lurched forward in an attempt to retaliate against the gnome but his snapping jaws and snatching claws all missed the nimble fighter. However, his attack took him beyond the effect of the [i]wind wall[/i] spell and Finoula, Malrin, and Gilbert each felt the full force of the demon's vile stench hit them like a ton of bricks. Finoula's stomach clenched in knots; Malrin's wings flapped around in sudden consternation as the half-elf ranger backed away from the demon. Meanwhile, Gilbert projectile vomited on the floor directly in front of him. At his side, MARCI scanned the portly mage with her red eye-beam and announced, "You seem to be experiencing gastrointestinal distress. As the effects appeared quite suddenly, it is possible there is an external factor in play." She sent her sensors on full sweep, seeking an answer to this puzzle. Binkadink, in the meantime, slew the hezrou with a series of rapid blade strikes with his glaive. The demon's foul blood spilled onto the floor - and then in the blink of an eye it was gone, leaving behind only the fresh blood on the stone floor and the lingering stench of its Abyssal aroma. Fortunately, although Binkadink had been sickened by the stench he hadn't been as badly affected as had been Obvious or Gilbert, both of whom were still fully incapacitated. Hopefully they'd be able to snap out of it soon, for it sounded like there was more combat to be had farther on down the corridor. Hagan slew the arrow-pierced troglodyte with a well-placed [i]magic missile[/i] spell, then moved down the corridor alongside Darrien, who pumped the next troglodyte to pop around the corner full of arrows. It, too, fell to the ground, dead. Binkadink charged down the corridor, seeing a large group of troglodytes approaching warily from his right, while a smaller but more battle-ready group raced at him from his left. He spun in place to face this greater threat. But in spinning around he had caught glimpses of a few things that threatened to take his focus away from the impending battle, something no front-line fighter could afford: a figure who could easily have been Verdant sitting against a stalagmite - it was difficult to see from the light spilling from Binkadink's antlered helmet - and, in the next cavern over, what looked like a massive statue of a multiheaded hydra with wings. But before he could process the images he'd seen the troglodytes were upon him, two attacking from behind and many more approaching from the front, these latter spreading out to try to catch him from multiple sides. Binkadink shortened the length of his glaive's shaft for better close-in fighting and did his best against the massive force swarming all around him. But then a blast of lightning came crashing down from above to strike the troglodyte immediately before him, with similar blasts arcing off from him to nearly a dozen of his compatriots. Binkadink knew at once that could only be a [i]chain lightning[/i] spell cast by Hagan. It was well-timed, for it slew its primary target and three of the troglodytes attacking the gnome from behind; five others in front of Binkadink were still in the fight but had smoke steaming from the burn-marks where the spell had hit them. But now other troglodytes were approaching from behind the gnome, eager to attack. Darrien pumped the first of these would-be assassins full of arrows, dropping the reptilian beast at once. The half-elf stepped up carefully closer to the gnome, [i]Arachnibow[/i] raised and ready. Behind him, Obvious trotted down the corridor on unsteady legs, still violently upchucking but eager to provide whatever assistance he could to his gnomish friend. Finoula did her best to follow suit, an equally-sick Malrin still perched on her shoulder in owl form. Binkadink's glaive came slashing down at an angle and another of the lightning-scorched troglodytes fell before him. These troglodytes had their own nasty smell, one quite different from the hezrou's but just as vile. Still, despite the prodigious size of his gnomish nose, Binkadink was able to ignore the odors and concentrate on the job that needed to be finished. Again he struck forth with his glaive and again an enemy dropped before him, dead. Gilbert staggered up behind Binkadink and saw his father bound to the stalagmite, his head lolling off to the side. Ever distrustful, the portly mage took shallow breaths to overcome the nausea plaguing him and cast a [i]true seeing[/i] spell. If this was some sort of fake-out illusion, he wanted to make sure he didn't fall for it! But under the effects of the divination spell his father looked exactly the same. Well, good - but Verdant was perfectly safe where he was for now and the heroes had more pressing concerns at the moment, like killing off these troglodytes! Another group of the reptilian barbarians sped up from the back of the side cavern to try to swarm over Binkadink, as a few of the smaller ones approached the gnome from behind. He fought them off as best he could but a few of their clubs hit home and hit hard when they did. But once again a [i]chain lightning[/i] spell from Hagan took out a bunch of these new combatants, weakening those who weren't slain outright. Hands on her knees, standing feebly above a pool of her own vomit, Finoula felt weak but as if the worst of the nausea was finally behind her. <You okay, Malrin?> she asked over the link. <Not great...but better than I was,> the owl-druid replied. <Then let's go see if we can help the others.> Binkadink could use the help, that was for sure. The troglodyte barbarians had him almost surrounded by now, clubs striking down at him from all directions. He continued to put his glaive to good use but there were more enemies than he could handle all at once. Hagan, for his part, had concentrated his efforts on the larger number of troglodytes spilling out from the cave to the east, and his third [i]chain lightning[/i] spell sent the whole cave's worth of reptiles falling to their hand and knees in pain. But those in front regained their feet and advanced, snarling and hissing threats while the smaller ones backed off in fright and huddled against the back walls, folding in on themselves and trying to hide from the hideous, spellcasting half-orc who wielded the very lightning from the sky at his fingertips. And now staggering into place behind the half-orc stood a towering bunny with the antlers of an elk rising up from its head: a ridiculous-looking thing, but probably quite tasty! Darrien, seeing Hagan and Obvious apparently had the troglodytes in the side cavern covered, decided to see what he could do to help out the beleaguered gnome. He got off a perfect shot that pierced a troglodyte straight in the eye, causing it to fall backwards and land in a lifeless heap at the feet of one of its comrades. Binkadink stepped into the open space, bringing down another vile-smelling combatant with his glaive; was it his imagination, he wondered, or was combat making the troglodyte musk flow even stronger? A familiar flaming lash wrapped around the neck of one of the troglodytes facing Binkadink and then the gnome saw him get pulled away, straight onto the point of [i]Tahlmalaera[/i]. Finoula, it seemed, was back in action. She kicked the dead troglodyte off her sword and spun about to face the next foe. Malrin cast a [i]call lightning[/i] spell, causing a bolt of electricity to fall down from the cavern's ceiling, directly onto the head of a troglodyte barbarian, singeing his scales and head-crest. Gilbert had at this point stepped up to assist as well but he was suddenly overcome by the stench of these troglodytes. That songbird hadn't been kidding when he warned, "Smelly cave!" He swallowed down the nausea, forcing himself by sheer stubbornness not to be violently sick. The troglodytes fought back against Finoula as well as Binkadink and now the ranger could feel her stomach clenching up again in disgust from the horrid stench. [i]Not again![/i] she thought. [i]My poor stomach doesn't have anything left to disgorge![/i] But Binkadink slew the one who had hoped to take advantage of the elf's discomfort, his blade almost decapitating the smelly, reptilian barbarian in one powerful stroke. Standing at the top of the higher cave that overlooked the sleeping area of his most powerful warriors, [b]Zondrass[/b] scowled in disappointment. This is how they fared against a handful of [i]mammals[/i]? [b]Tiamat[/b] would not be pleased! He had spent the moments since the hezrou's warning cry had alerted him of the intruders casting his own personal combat spells, confident that his troops could handle things until his arrival, but it seemed in this he had been mistaken. Still, it was no concern of his; Tiamat's will was supreme and this could very well be her way of culling the weak members from his tribe, that only the strongest and most deserving would live to carry their genes forward, to the overall benefit of the troglodyte race. Still, Zondrass was now ready for combat and he began in his customary method, by sending forth an emissary to announce his arrival. Another hezrou suddenly appeared before Binkadink, snapping its wicked teeth at the gnome's throat while it tried gutting Finoula with its equally-sharp claws. But the first to react to this sudden threat was neither Binkadink nor Finoula but rather Gilbert, who cast a [i]quickened Evard's black tentacles[/i] spell beneath the frog-demon's feet, centered such that its area of effect didn't encroach upon the positions of either of the wizard's friends. "Let see you get out of [i]that[/i], demon!" he taunted as ebony-colored, rubbery appendages rose up from the cavern's stone floor to entangle their way around the hezrou's torso and limbs. Hagan had been surprised at the hezrou's sudden appearance but his spellcasting knowledge told him someone had to be responsible - and his half-orcish darkvision allowed him to spot Zondrass standing on the platform above the back cavern from which the troglodyte combatants had spilled forth. He cast a [i]polar ray[/i] spell at the troglodyte, his aim spot on. Zondrass cried out in a hiss of surprise and stepped back from his ledge - not a second too soon, either, as Darrien sent a slew of arrows streaking his way. Binkadink swung his glaive at the entangled hezrou, his blade slicing deep into the demon's flesh. Finoula merely backed away, her stomach doing flips from the demonic stench now pervading the cavern. Malrin flew off Finoula's shoulder, eager to be as far away from the demon as she could be. She landed upon MARCI's metallic shoulder; the medical construct didn't even seem to notice, intent as she was on her sensor readings. Gilbert, still fighting the rising of his gorge, took a few steps back from the demon as well. Then Zondrass stepped forward again and cast a [i]blade barrier[/i] spell right through Binkadink, Darrien, Obvious, and Hagan. With a cry of pain, Binkadink stepped away from the wildly-contorting blades, staying on the same side of the wall as his imprisoned hezrou foe - for he fully intended to cut the demon down while he could. The other three also jumped to the same side of the blade-wall as the gnome, in Hagan's case because there wasn't any room for him to do otherwise. But then, as Binkadink brought his glaive down in an overhand swing, hoping to pierce the demon's skull...it suddenly wasn't there anymore, and he had to tug his weapon away from the pitch-black tentacles eager to embrace anything put within their reach. The hezrou had [i]teleported[/i] out of the area of effect of the [i]Evard's black tentacles[/i] spell and directly before Finoula, the closest opponent it could see. As its teeth clamped down on the ranger - still too sick to put up much of a defense - Hagan fired off another [i]polar ray[/i] spell at Zondrass, but this time the spell failed to overcome the troglodyte cleric's [i]spell resistance[/i] spell. On the half-orc's shoulder, Wezhley hissed in annoyance - he hated it when that happened! But now Binkadink was on the wrong side of the [i]blade barrier[/i] to get to the demon! Gritting his teeth in determination, he raced through the whirling blades, his poor body getting sliced and stabbed numerous times as he pierced the spell's width and popped out the other side, stabbing at the hezrou still attacking Finoula. The gnome grinned as his blade went deep into the demon's flesh, causing it to howl in pain and release the elven ranger from its grasp. Finoula staggered further back down the entry tunnel, ducking through her own still-active [i]wind wall[/i] into the original hezrou guardian's lair. Having had a moment to overcome her own debilitating sickness, Malrin flew from MARCI's shoulder and rejoined her fellow elf. Darrien touched the [i]amber amulet[/i] he wore around his neck and summoned his giant praying mantis, causing it to manifest in the upper cave behind Zondrass. It struck out lightning-fast with its claws but ran up against another of the cleric's protective spells: [i]freedom of movement[/i], which prevented the mantis from getting a firm grasp upon the troglodyte. Furthermore, the mantis's claws failed to even penetrate the [i]stoneskin[/i] spell Zondrass had cast upon himself. Almost contemptuously, the troglodyte cast a [i]flame strike[/i] spell on the giant insect, burning it to a crisp. It vanished upon death, returning at once - at normal insect size - inside Darrien's amulet. Binkadink had a momentary thought of trying to lift the hezrou and toss him back through the [i]blade barrier[/i] spell, but he realized their two respective sizes and strengths made that nothing more than wishful thinking: there was no way the little gnome could lift anything that large and heavy. [i]But[/i], he thought to himself, [i]I bet I could drag him....[/i] No sooner had the thought come to the gnome, as the hezrou spun around to face him again rather than be backstabbed by that damned glaive, than Binkadink grabbed the demon by the wrist and pulled him backwards with him through the still-active [i]blade barrier[/i] spell. Once again the gnome felt the whirling blades stabbing and slicing at him, but they were doing the same to the hezrou and the gnome was reasonably sure he could take the damage far longer than the demon could.... Finoula snapped out of her dry-heaves about the same time Gilbert cast a [i]maximized ray of enfeeblement[/i] at the hezrou as it was passing back through the [i]blade barrier[/i]. That wouldn't do any real damage to the demon, Gilbert realized, but it would lessen the damage it could inflict on others - and maybe allow Binkadink to keep his hold on the demon and drag it through the whirling blades a few more times! But now Zondrass entered the fray himself. Dropping down from his platform, he raced up behind Binkadink - who was facing the hezrou, trying to keep his hold upon the struggling demon - and slapped a scaly, clawed hand upon the little gnome's shoulder, channeling a [i]harm[/i] spell through his claws. Binkadink arched his back in surprise and agony, releasing his grip upon the hezrou and very nearly releasing his grip upon his own life as well - but at the last moment he gritted it out, leaving him still alive but just barely still standing on his [i]gnomish stilt-boots[/i]. "TIAMAT!" called out Zondrass in the language of his patron deity, Draconic. "Fearsome Queen of Dragons, I call forth your awesome power: bring death to the enemies of your loyal followers!" On the raised plinth at the back of the northernmost cavern, the five-headed dragon statue animated to an unholy semblance of life, its stiff wings creaking apart as it stepped forward on its massive legs. The hezrou, freed from the crazy gnome's grasp, instantly [i]teleported[/i] over by Gilbert, whose prodigious stomach couldn't handle the sudden reapplication of the demon's vile stench. The wizard retaliated, quite inadvertently, with a spray of vomit across the hezrou's chest and stomach. The demon idly dropped its tongue into the middle of the dripping stain and grinned in pleasure at the taste. Hagan saw the Tiamat golem step forward and realized the mobile statue was nothing he wanted to have to deal with right then. Furthermore, he knew Obvious was in no shape for combat with anything, let alone a five-headed dragon-goddess statue twice the jackalope's own size. <Darrien!> Hagan called over the link, getting the ranger's attention, before stretching out his arms to both the archer and the jackalope and [i]teleporting[/i] all three of them (and Wezhley) back over to the cavern network's entry tunnel. <Thanks!> Darrien called to the half-orc over the link, while pulling his [i]ebony fly[/i] from his pocket and activating it. Leaping upon the pony-sized creature, Darrien sent it buzzing into the sentry cavern, where an elevated passageway connected to Zondrass's cavern, from which he could fly back down and approach the troglodyte cleric from the rear. Binkadink saw Zondrass spin at the sound of the [i]ebony fly[/i]'s buzzing wings and took advantage of his distraction, his glaive slicing a deep scar of pain across the cleric's back. Even with his [i]stoneskin[/i] protection, the troglodyte spellcaster cried out in pain. Obvious slapped his [i]collar of healing[/i] and, staggering, took up position just outside the cave, ready to attack should any enemies make it past the others. But for now, he badly needed to catch his breath and get some fresh, clean air into his lungs. Finoula stepped up to snap her [i]flaming burst whip of thorns[/i] at the hezrou but sure enough, even though it struck true, bringing it to bear meant re-entering the range of the demon's vile stench. This time the nausea was even worse; it was all Finoula could do not to drop to her hands and knees and start retching uncontrollably. "Analysis complete," announced MARCI suddenly. "I have synthesized a suitable antidote for the external poison being transmitted through the nasal membranes." She approached Gilbert, who was staggering weakly away from the hezrou. Zondrass, now flanked by Binkadink and Darrien, tried casting a [i]word of recall[/i] to return him to his upper lair--but he was struck down by Binkadink's glaive halfway through his spellcasting. Darrien leaped from his [i]ebony fly[/i] and made room for the gnome. "Take it," he offered. "You're a much better mounted warrior, and Obvious isn't up for much combat." He channeled a healing spell through his hand, closing up the worst of the gnome's wounds. Binkadink nodded his thanks, leaped onto the fly, and sent it buzzing back through the cleric's upper lair to circle back around to the hezrou, who was taking the opportunity of Gilbert's general helplessness to attempt to claw him to ribbons. The Tiamat golem crashed through the [i]Evard's black tentacles[/i] but was too strong for the rubbery appendages to get a grasp on it. It then passed straight through the [i]blade barrier[/i] spell effect - and again, the whirling blades had no effect upon it, shielded as it was from most spells. Its five heads peered over the hezrou and its central head - the red one - blasted a gout of flame encompassing Gilbert, MARCI, and Finoula. Shortly thereafter, Binkadink arrived on the scene on his borrowed [i]ebony fly[/i], scoring a hit against the five-headed golem with his glaive but not doing much beyond scratching his blade across the construct's hardened body. But his attack allowed Finoula a moment to back away again, through her still-active [i]wind wall[/i]. Malrin was there, having overcome the various stenches of the cave, and the owl-druid cast a [i]mass cure light wounds[/i] spell that added some much-needed healing to Binkadink, Finoula, and herself. Gilbert worked through his stomach queasiness and cast a [i]quickened wall of force[/i] directly in front of the drakestone golem fashioned in the form of Tiamat; the maneuver had worked well on Carceri against the Tarterian dragon so it was worth trying again here, the wizard reasoned. He followed up that spell with a [i]dimension door[/i] spell that took him over by his father, still unconscious and bound to the stalagmite. In his sudden absence, MARCI scanned the immediate area and approached Finoula, injecting her with the antidote to the hezrou stench; Gilbert had long ago added Finoula to the list of "honorary humans" the medical construct was to heal without question. Finoula breathed a deep sigh of relief as her stomach immediately settled. But the hezrou followed MARCI into the guardian lair, attacking Finoula with its claws. The elven ranger was aware of the demon's vile stench but it was now nowhere even close to debilitating. She had both weapons in hand and was about to counterattack when the demon froze up - quite literally - as Hagan slew it with another [i]polar ray[/i] spell. That was perfectly fine with Finoula; she didn't need to have been the one to slay it, she was just glad it was dead! The Tiamat golem bumped into the invisible [i]wall of force[/i] and couldn't get past it. It blasted the wall with several of its breath weapons, but neither acid nor cold nor a burst of electricity had any effect. Too big to turn around in what was to it a narrow tunnel, it began the laborious maneuver of attempting to back up in the curving passageway. But Gilbert was ready for it and cast another [i]wall of force[/i] spell, sealing it off in a section of the tunnel. Malrin flew through the upper lair in owl form and around the [i]blade barrier[/i] to get to Verdant. Then, dropping to his side and resuming her elven form, she used her dagger to cut through the ropes binding him to the stalagmite. He mumbled incoherently and Malrin, suspecting he'd been drugged, cast a [i]neutralize poison[/i] spell upon the elderly druid. That had the desired effect: he blinked in surprise, looked about him, and broke into a broad grin upon seeing a lovely elven lass bending down over him. "Well, hello," he said as Malrin cut the ropes binding his hands together in front of him. Then she looked down at the iron manacles around his ankles and the chain between them and frowned. "I don't have any way to break through those, and my brother isn't here, or he could easily pick the lock open. Maybe Binkadink can cut through the chain...?" But Binkadink was now over in the chamber beneath the upper lair, where piles of bedding spoke to this being a sleeping area for the troglodyte barbarians. Of more interest than smelly bedding, however, were the three large chests lined up against the wall: the communal treasury, presumably. Darrien opened one chest and found it full of jewelry. Finoula opened the next and discovered piles of gold and platinum coins. Binkadink opened the third and found an explosion of flames erupting in his face, but once the [i]fire trap[/i] had been triggered, inside was a nasty-looking greataxe - whose dried bloodstains told of its probable use as a sacrificial weapon - and a folded-up flag bearing the image of a top view of Tiamat. "I wonder why they've got their flag all folded up instead of on a flagpole somewhere," the gnome mused. "Probably because it isn't a flag," replied Hagan. "That looks like a [i]flying carpet[/i]." "Hey, Binkadink!" called Malrin. "Can you help me with these shackles?" While the gnome carefully cut through the links of the chain keeping Verdant Gristwold's feet hobbled with his glaive's sharp blade (and the application of every ounce of strength the little gnome possessed), Gilbert had peered into the side cave from which the smaller of the troglodytes had exited to attack the intruding heroes. Seeing a group of the younger reptiles huddled against the back cave walls, he shot Mudpie from his [i]slingshot of rock shrinking[/i], returning the pebble-sized earth elemental to his normal, four-foot height, then cast a [i]Tenser's transformation[/i] spell upon his familiar. "They all yours," Gilbert offered and Mudpie entered the cavern, intent upon carnage. None of the troglodytes survived the onslaught. In the meantime, Verdant explained what had happened to him. He had been spending time in the forest wildshaped as a black bear - a form he greatly enjoyed, and in which he often spent weeks at a time - when he had been surrounded and captured by a group of troglodyte raiders, seeing him as an easy meal. However, when he wildshaped back into human form to try to fight them off with his spells (rather unsuccessfully, as it turned out), they opted instead to use him as a sacrifice to the Queen of Dragons, although that meant waiting until the night of the next full moons. And they found a druid capable of wildshaping to be a particularly troublesome captive, for he kept changing shape when they'd try to bind him with ropes. But try as he might to escape, by becoming a bird or a snake, a quick clonk on the head from a troglodyte's club easily put that attempt to a screeching halt! Finally, Zondrass resorted to drugging the elderly druid, although Verdant had come out of it just briefly enough to cast an [i]animal messenger[/i] spell that sent the yellow songbird to pass word to his son Gilbert to come to his rescue. "And here you are!" Verdant beamed. "But not for much longer," Gilbert replied. "Those [i]walls of force[/i] not last forever. Think we better vamoose while they still keeping Tiamat statue imprisoned. Bink! You guys grab up treasure?" Binkadink indicated the [i]portable hole[/i] he'd taken from Malrin. "Got it all right here," the gnome replied. "Good, then let's go find Aithanar, head back home. After all that puking, I ready for another of Helga's meals!" - - - After we finished up the adventure, everyone leveled up to 18th. Everyone, that is, but Jacob, who was working again and missed this session - which explains Castillan's absence. I've emailed Jacob, offering to switch our Kordovian game days from Saturdays to Sundays to accommodate his work schedule, and also let him know that if he didn't want to play in our campaign any more (he's started up his own campaign with his friends) there would be no hurt feelings. I haven't heard back from him yet, and Dan's hanging on to Castillan's PC folder until either Jacob upgrades him to 18th or gives his dad free reign to do so on his behalf. It won't really matter a whole lot for the next ten adventures or so, but towards the end of this campaign (there will be 80 adventures in all) there will be a series of a half-dozen adventures or so which will require Castillan to be present at the beginning or there will be no real way for him to participate in those ones at all. (The example I gave him in my email was it was similar to the little Spelljammer excursion the heroes took into wildspace; had Castillan not been present when they ended up teleported from Captain Skunkbeard's trapped dungeon to the wildspace receiving station it would have been next to impossible to incorporate him into the Spelljammer adventures that followed. We won't be going back into wildspace again, but the concept will be similar.) So we'll see how that plays out. But it's possible we'll soon be phasing Castillan out for good. - - - T-shirt worn: My "DAD: Cleverly Disguised as a Responsible Adult" shirt, given that it was Gilbert Fung's dad who was the plot hook of this adventure. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
The Kordovian Adventurers Guild
Top