Wormsnacks: An Age of Worms story hour (updated 9/4)
dungeon blaster
First Post
All we are is dust in the wind
10 Reaping, 595 CY
With Filge safely locked away in the town jail, the party returned to the Land family farm to bury the bones of Alastor’s kin (the skeletons the PCs had fought in the Old Observatory). As the last spade of dirt was turned, they only hoped that Alastor’s ghost would fulfill its end of the bargain and open the impassable door in the Whispering Cairn.
In Filge’s lab they had found several items of interest, including a syringe, vials of strange colored liquids designed to be injected into the body using said syringe, silver dissection instruments, a jar with a thin, green worm floating inside, and a note from Smenk to Filge.
Proof of a connection between Diamond Lake’s most notorious mine manager and a necromancer! The adventurers knew that this document could be used to their benefit…but how? None of them had any experience in the games of politik. They were apt to make a wrong maneuver, and end up the worse for it.
Ehrune returned to Allustan’s house, only to learn that the sage had recently spoken with a wizard named Khellek about the Whispering Cairn. Looks like the Free City Adventurers had finally caught on to where the action was at and wanted a piece for themselves! Ehrune and his gang would have to act quick if they were to finish exploring the Cairn before anyone else got to it. They decided to leave for the Cairn the following morning.
Once they had arrived at the Cairn, the adventurers quickly made their way to the room of colored lanterns. Assuming the door was now open, there was only one place left to explore, and they weren’t certain that the Free City Adventurers hadn’t already explored it. They quickly lit the lanterns in order to disarm the stone face trap: red, orange, yellow, green, indigo, violet.
…er…wait a minute. Wasn’t there a blue lantern? Indeed, the blue lantern alcove was missing its lantern. In its place they found a note, reading:
“Tough luck fellas” – F.
Who the hell is F? Filge? No, he was locked up. Free City Adventurers? Possibly. Ferros?
All eyes turned to Etherik, who had been the cause of bad blood between themselves and their former adventuring companion (of one session). “Damn it Etherik! You had to go and attack him and now we’re screwed”. Etherik swelled with indignation, but a hint of guilt could be seen in his eyes.
“we can still get by the trap I think”, Lindingar piped up, happily.
“how? We’re missing one of the lanterns and that face will activate the moment we get near it”.
“Yes, but we already know where the pressure plate is, so we can avoid that, which leaves only the stone block at the back of the mouth.”
“yeah, and how will we get past that?” Ehrune always thought that the halfling was a little batty, but now he was sure of it.
“Watch” the halfling said cryptically, the hint of a smile forming at the corners of his mouth.
They stood at the edge of the pressure plate, apprehensively watching the stone face for any sign of danger. Lindingar began casting a spell, while Ehrune looked doubtfully at the little shaman. The halfling completed his spell and looked expectantly at Etherik, who seemed a bit bored and hadn’t noticed any spectacular effects of the spell.
“Blast it” Lindingar commanded.
Etherik obeyed, releasing a blast of eldritch power at the stone face. Chunks of stone flew in all directions, leaving a gaping wound in the stone face. Stone fragments richochetted off of the walls and ceiling of the corridor, but instead of clattering as stone normally would, the chunks thudded softly…as if they were made of clay.
“Brilliant!” Ehrune exclaimed joyously, his hopes of finishing this exploration finally returning.
Etherik hooted with glee. “Take that Ferros! Can’t nobody break our stride, can’t nobody hold us down, oh no… we got to keep on mooooovin.”
At the far end of the room stood the impassable door. At first glance, it appeared to be closed, and the adventurers hopes sank, but then they felt a faint whiff of air and saw that the door was open a crack. Surely, if Ferros or the Free City Adventurers had been through here, they would have closed the door when they left.
The chamber beyond was circular, with a gaping pit in the center, a walkway around the edges, and four bridges leading to a stone ring in the center of the pit. Two of the walkways were broken, leading the adventuers to think that they were traps designed to collapse when walked across. In the very center of the room, a roaring column of air whooshed upwards through the stone ring and into a circular hole at the top of the domed chamber.
As they circled the chamber, strange images composed of steam flowed from the walls; each set of images appeared to describe an event related to the being whose tomb they were exploring. After walking full circle, there was only one thing left to investigate: the stone ring and air column. Lindingar, being the lightest, was the first to step on the unbroken walkway. He closed his eyes and concentrated, reaching out tendrils of perception. His eyes shot open. There were spirits here, he was sure of it. At that moment, two beings emerged through the hole in the stone ring. Humanoid in shape, and clad in ancient ceremonial armor with penants flapping wildly in the wind, the two beings each wielded twin longswords, and appeared to be riding the wind.
The wind warriors floated out of the air column, and as one, clanged their swords together. The clang was deafening, and more than that, the action created lines of sonic force that tore into the halfling’s body. He thought his teeth would rattle right out of his jaw. Why was it that every time he encountered a spirit, it tried to kill him?
“Bad elemental!” the spirit shaman chastised the wind warriors, blue energy flaring in the gaps of their armor as they convulsed in anguish. Etherik blasted them from the relative safety of the walkway, while Ehrune did the same with his wand of magic missiles.
The wind warriors advanced; one soared over to Etherik, the other charged Lindingar. With incredible agility, the wind warrior slipped through the halfling’s (admittedly weak) defenses, inserting a longsword into Lindingar’s right lung (CRIT!). The halfling stumbled back, clutching at the wound and struggling to breathe. Etherik fared mariginally better, suffering a wicked slash across the chest. It was only the first round, and things were already looking bad. Lindgar retreated behind Ehrune, but the wind warrior continued to push the attack. Etherik attempted to gain some breathing room and blast the wind warrior attacking him, but the elemental’s agility proved difficult to overcome. Realizing that another strike would probably be the end of him, Etherik made a tactical maneuver (a.k.a. run away!) towards the entrance, but miscalculated the wind warrior’s speed and the fact that it could fly (!). The wind warrior, heavily damaged itself, easily caught up to the warlock and plunged a blade into his back. He collapsed soundlessly, just as Ehrune sent a couple magic missiles into the wind warrior, destroying it.
There was but one wind warrior left and it was sorely wounded, yet things looked grim for the group. Etherik had fallen, and Lindingar and Ehrune were wounded. Lindingar attempted to chastise the spirit again, but it didn’t seem to be affected much. With one swift slash, the wind warrior’s blade severed the halfling’s throat, and he collapsed upon the ground, dying.
The wind warrior turned its attention to Ehrune, who knew he had but one choice: attempt to save the halfling with his cure light wounds potion, and likely be struck down in the attempt, or kill the wind warrior now and let the halfling expire. Ehrune knew that he would not last long against the wind warrior’s blades; he had to kill it, and do it quick. The swashbuckling wizard leapt back and let loose magic missiles from his wand, just as Lindingar gave one final gurgling cough of blood. The magic missiles tore into the wind warrior, dispersing the elemental inside the armor, which promptly disintegrated into dust and was blown away by the wind.
Ehrune immediately turned to Lindingar, but alas, his spirit had already passed into Yondalla’s waiting arms. The haflling had come to the Cairn seeking spirits; at least now he would see all the spirits he wanted.
10 Reaping, 595 CY
With Filge safely locked away in the town jail, the party returned to the Land family farm to bury the bones of Alastor’s kin (the skeletons the PCs had fought in the Old Observatory). As the last spade of dirt was turned, they only hoped that Alastor’s ghost would fulfill its end of the bargain and open the impassable door in the Whispering Cairn.
In Filge’s lab they had found several items of interest, including a syringe, vials of strange colored liquids designed to be injected into the body using said syringe, silver dissection instruments, a jar with a thin, green worm floating inside, and a note from Smenk to Filge.
Proof of a connection between Diamond Lake’s most notorious mine manager and a necromancer! The adventurers knew that this document could be used to their benefit…but how? None of them had any experience in the games of politik. They were apt to make a wrong maneuver, and end up the worse for it.
Ehrune returned to Allustan’s house, only to learn that the sage had recently spoken with a wizard named Khellek about the Whispering Cairn. Looks like the Free City Adventurers had finally caught on to where the action was at and wanted a piece for themselves! Ehrune and his gang would have to act quick if they were to finish exploring the Cairn before anyone else got to it. They decided to leave for the Cairn the following morning.
Once they had arrived at the Cairn, the adventurers quickly made their way to the room of colored lanterns. Assuming the door was now open, there was only one place left to explore, and they weren’t certain that the Free City Adventurers hadn’t already explored it. They quickly lit the lanterns in order to disarm the stone face trap: red, orange, yellow, green, indigo, violet.
…er…wait a minute. Wasn’t there a blue lantern? Indeed, the blue lantern alcove was missing its lantern. In its place they found a note, reading:
“Tough luck fellas” – F.
Who the hell is F? Filge? No, he was locked up. Free City Adventurers? Possibly. Ferros?
All eyes turned to Etherik, who had been the cause of bad blood between themselves and their former adventuring companion (of one session). “Damn it Etherik! You had to go and attack him and now we’re screwed”. Etherik swelled with indignation, but a hint of guilt could be seen in his eyes.
“we can still get by the trap I think”, Lindingar piped up, happily.
“how? We’re missing one of the lanterns and that face will activate the moment we get near it”.
“Yes, but we already know where the pressure plate is, so we can avoid that, which leaves only the stone block at the back of the mouth.”
“yeah, and how will we get past that?” Ehrune always thought that the halfling was a little batty, but now he was sure of it.
“Watch” the halfling said cryptically, the hint of a smile forming at the corners of his mouth.
They stood at the edge of the pressure plate, apprehensively watching the stone face for any sign of danger. Lindingar began casting a spell, while Ehrune looked doubtfully at the little shaman. The halfling completed his spell and looked expectantly at Etherik, who seemed a bit bored and hadn’t noticed any spectacular effects of the spell.
“Blast it” Lindingar commanded.
Etherik obeyed, releasing a blast of eldritch power at the stone face. Chunks of stone flew in all directions, leaving a gaping wound in the stone face. Stone fragments richochetted off of the walls and ceiling of the corridor, but instead of clattering as stone normally would, the chunks thudded softly…as if they were made of clay.
“Brilliant!” Ehrune exclaimed joyously, his hopes of finishing this exploration finally returning.
Etherik hooted with glee. “Take that Ferros! Can’t nobody break our stride, can’t nobody hold us down, oh no… we got to keep on mooooovin.”
At the far end of the room stood the impassable door. At first glance, it appeared to be closed, and the adventurers hopes sank, but then they felt a faint whiff of air and saw that the door was open a crack. Surely, if Ferros or the Free City Adventurers had been through here, they would have closed the door when they left.
The chamber beyond was circular, with a gaping pit in the center, a walkway around the edges, and four bridges leading to a stone ring in the center of the pit. Two of the walkways were broken, leading the adventuers to think that they were traps designed to collapse when walked across. In the very center of the room, a roaring column of air whooshed upwards through the stone ring and into a circular hole at the top of the domed chamber.
As they circled the chamber, strange images composed of steam flowed from the walls; each set of images appeared to describe an event related to the being whose tomb they were exploring. After walking full circle, there was only one thing left to investigate: the stone ring and air column. Lindingar, being the lightest, was the first to step on the unbroken walkway. He closed his eyes and concentrated, reaching out tendrils of perception. His eyes shot open. There were spirits here, he was sure of it. At that moment, two beings emerged through the hole in the stone ring. Humanoid in shape, and clad in ancient ceremonial armor with penants flapping wildly in the wind, the two beings each wielded twin longswords, and appeared to be riding the wind.
The wind warriors floated out of the air column, and as one, clanged their swords together. The clang was deafening, and more than that, the action created lines of sonic force that tore into the halfling’s body. He thought his teeth would rattle right out of his jaw. Why was it that every time he encountered a spirit, it tried to kill him?
“Bad elemental!” the spirit shaman chastised the wind warriors, blue energy flaring in the gaps of their armor as they convulsed in anguish. Etherik blasted them from the relative safety of the walkway, while Ehrune did the same with his wand of magic missiles.
The wind warriors advanced; one soared over to Etherik, the other charged Lindingar. With incredible agility, the wind warrior slipped through the halfling’s (admittedly weak) defenses, inserting a longsword into Lindingar’s right lung (CRIT!). The halfling stumbled back, clutching at the wound and struggling to breathe. Etherik fared mariginally better, suffering a wicked slash across the chest. It was only the first round, and things were already looking bad. Lindgar retreated behind Ehrune, but the wind warrior continued to push the attack. Etherik attempted to gain some breathing room and blast the wind warrior attacking him, but the elemental’s agility proved difficult to overcome. Realizing that another strike would probably be the end of him, Etherik made a tactical maneuver (a.k.a. run away!) towards the entrance, but miscalculated the wind warrior’s speed and the fact that it could fly (!). The wind warrior, heavily damaged itself, easily caught up to the warlock and plunged a blade into his back. He collapsed soundlessly, just as Ehrune sent a couple magic missiles into the wind warrior, destroying it.
There was but one wind warrior left and it was sorely wounded, yet things looked grim for the group. Etherik had fallen, and Lindingar and Ehrune were wounded. Lindingar attempted to chastise the spirit again, but it didn’t seem to be affected much. With one swift slash, the wind warrior’s blade severed the halfling’s throat, and he collapsed upon the ground, dying.
The wind warrior turned its attention to Ehrune, who knew he had but one choice: attempt to save the halfling with his cure light wounds potion, and likely be struck down in the attempt, or kill the wind warrior now and let the halfling expire. Ehrune knew that he would not last long against the wind warrior’s blades; he had to kill it, and do it quick. The swashbuckling wizard leapt back and let loose magic missiles from his wand, just as Lindingar gave one final gurgling cough of blood. The magic missiles tore into the wind warrior, dispersing the elemental inside the armor, which promptly disintegrated into dust and was blown away by the wind.
Ehrune immediately turned to Lindingar, but alas, his spirit had already passed into Yondalla’s waiting arms. The haflling had come to the Cairn seeking spirits; at least now he would see all the spirits he wanted.
Last edited:
dungeon blaster
First Post
An Offer They Can't Refuse...
The adventurers returned to Diamond Lake that night with Lindingar’s corpse. The next day, Ehrune and Etherik went to see a cleric about a body. First, they visited the Church of Hieroneous and spoke with high cleric Valkus Dunn. Dunn explained that he did not personally have the power to raise Lindingar, but that he possessed a scroll that may work, if they could cough up the 5,000 gold to purchase it. After doing a quick inventory, the party realized that they did not possess that kind of money, even if they sold everything they had. Despondent, the adventurers resolved to try one last option: the Bronzewood Lodge. Knowing almost nothing about druids, they were under the impression that druids could not raise the dead.
At the Lodge, they were greeted by the local druid of Obad Hai. The druid admitted that raising the dead was not in his power; however, he agreed to reincarnate the halfling in return for a suitable donation. The adventurers offered the halfling’s boots of the winterlands in exchange. Ehrune and Etherik waited outside the Lodge as the druid began casting the spell that would recall the halfling’s spirit from the otherworld and create a new body to house it. An hour later the great doors of the Lodge opened; within the doorway stood…
…a halfling. A bit shorter perhaps, and with darker hair and eyes, but the same spirit. The newly reincarnated halfling was ready to take on the Whispering Cairn!
The adventurers returned to the Whispering Cairn the next day. Slowly, the trio crossed the walkway that had meant death the day before. This time they crossed without incident and Etherik stepped into the corridor of raging air in the center of the room. The air propelled him upward through the circular hole in the domed ceiling and into a small chamber above.
The room contained a large stone sarcophagus, nearly identical to the one they had found in the room of colored lanterns. Using a crowbar, Etherik and Ehrune pried off the lid of the sarcophagus. Inside, they found a metal box covered in twisting runes, the lid sealed in silver, along with a silver circlet and a pair of bestial horns, black as ebony and blood red at the tips.
They brought the relics to Allustan, who was able to share a little more information about them. After much research, Allustan revealed that the horns were from a demonic servant of the Queen of Chaos. The rune covered box was also associated with the Queen of Chaos, but of more importance was the relic contained within: an adamantine loop and handle (much like an ankh). The sage identified the item as a talisman of the sphere, although he added that the item was nonfunctional.
With the Whispering Cairn fully explored, the trio turned their attention to that most notorious of mine managers, Balabar Smenk. Back in the Old Observatory, they had found a note to Filge from Smenk, along with a jar containing a segmented green worm. They decided to investigate the matter and pay Smenk a visit.
At the Smenk manor, Smenk made them an offer they couldn’t refuse: sneak into the Dourstone mines, kill the cultists, and do it quietly. In return, Smenk agreed to pay them 500 gp, yet it was the subtle connotations of what could happen if they refused that convinced them to take him up on his offer.
While restocking on potions at the Temple of Hieroneous, the party was approached by an hulking, brutish figure—an immense half-orc armored in full plate and wielding a very heavy-looking shield and a longsword! The half-orc introduced himself as Hiro, and asked to join them in their righteous crusade against evil. Fully realizing the utility that 300 lbs of divine spell-casting muscle could provide, the group readily accepted Hiro’s offer.
The Dourstone Mine was well guarded; twelve guards operating in two shifts walked the edge of the wooden palisade that surrounded the mine entrance. Sneaking in wouldn’t be easy and fighting the guards was out of the question. The PCs decided to retreat and reassess the situation. That night, at the Feral Dog, the adventurers made a deal with a couple of disgruntled miners, demonstrating that a well-placed bribe can be more effective than swords or spells.
Once inside the Dourstone Mine, the adventurers followed instructions given to them by Smenk and discovered an elevator shaft behind a sealed mining tunnel. A wooden elevator platform took them 200 feet down to the Dark Cathedral below, where two tiefling guards stood sentinel. From their elevated position, defeating the tieflings was easy, but one of the guards managed to knock loudly on one of three large stone doors in the chamber. The door opened, and from beyond they heard the ringing of small bells. Out poured a horde of skeletons armored in rusted and pitted full plate. Hiro made short work of them by brandishing his sword and calling upon the holy might of Hieroneous. Looking around, they noticed that at one end of the Dark Cathedral was a large, dark pool of liquid. The bloodstains around the lip of the pool indicated that it was used for sacrificial purposes. Three of the walls held large stone doors; a black gauntleted fist holding six arrows marked one door, a hand holding an eye marked another, and the third was unmarked.
Entering the next chamber (Citadel of Hextor), the PCs were greeted by a group of cultists willing to lay down their lives for their Lord Tyrant, Hextor. And lay down their lives they did, despite some clever use of longspears and much calling to a creature they called “Beast”. Just as the adventurers were about finished quelling the rabble, a piercing squeal and the sound of screams brought their attention to the passage ahead, where a cultist was suddenly flung like a rag doll from a room beyond, only to slam into the passage wall and crumple to the ground.
“So, how about them long spears?” Etherik mused.
A massive boar emerged from the room beyond, caught sight of the group, and released a deafening squeal of rage. Once again, Lindingar attempted to empathize with the beast. And once again, the beast charged.
Most of the adventurers were off to one side of the room, but Etherik stood right at the opposite end of the room from the corridor. The dire boar’s tusk pierced Etherik’s side and it lifted him bodily into the air. In return, he gave it an eldritch blast. Despite its size and ferocity, “Beast” was defeated.
The main corridor led to a set of double doors, but the group decided to explore the auxillary passages first. After several frantic battles with more tiefling guards, they fought their way into a large chamber with a dirt floor and ringed by a 5’ wide stone catwalk (which the PCs were on). It was a good thing they hadn’t gone through the double doors, as the doors led to the dirt floor and there were a group of tiefling archers perched on the catwalks. At the far end of the room, also on the catwalk-level, they saw several humanoid figures. Three of the figures began casting spells and drinking potions, and the fight was on.
The tieflings sniped at the PCs from the catwalk on the other side of the room, while three humanoid zombies shuffled towards them. Glowing flails appeared in the air, battering their armor and making life miserable in general. However, the adventurers fought back bravely, turning the zombies and sending them fleeing at zombie-pace back towards their masters, who commanded the zombies to attack, and were then turned, and so on. Etherik’s eldritch blast proved useful once again, taking out the tiefling archers, although he suffered a few arrow wounds for his efforts. While fortunate not to be on the ground level, the narrow catwalk made it near impossible for them to advance and bring the fight with the clerics into melee range. In fact, the dangers of close-combat among allies was driven home via sharp blade when Hiro made an egregious fumble, dramatically missing his target and driving his longsword into the softer parts of Etherik’s body. Not a good thing to do when you’re the new guy. The fight wore on, with the adventurers slowly gaining ground, and eventually dropping the zombies, the tieflings, and two of the three clerics. The last, and obviously the leader, fled through a backdoor, summoning a hell hound to aid his escape. With the battle one, the group spent the next few hours looting bodies, pillaging their little black hearts out, and preparing for a night of well-deserved rest.
The adventurers returned to Diamond Lake that night with Lindingar’s corpse. The next day, Ehrune and Etherik went to see a cleric about a body. First, they visited the Church of Hieroneous and spoke with high cleric Valkus Dunn. Dunn explained that he did not personally have the power to raise Lindingar, but that he possessed a scroll that may work, if they could cough up the 5,000 gold to purchase it. After doing a quick inventory, the party realized that they did not possess that kind of money, even if they sold everything they had. Despondent, the adventurers resolved to try one last option: the Bronzewood Lodge. Knowing almost nothing about druids, they were under the impression that druids could not raise the dead.
At the Lodge, they were greeted by the local druid of Obad Hai. The druid admitted that raising the dead was not in his power; however, he agreed to reincarnate the halfling in return for a suitable donation. The adventurers offered the halfling’s boots of the winterlands in exchange. Ehrune and Etherik waited outside the Lodge as the druid began casting the spell that would recall the halfling’s spirit from the otherworld and create a new body to house it. An hour later the great doors of the Lodge opened; within the doorway stood…
…a halfling. A bit shorter perhaps, and with darker hair and eyes, but the same spirit. The newly reincarnated halfling was ready to take on the Whispering Cairn!
The adventurers returned to the Whispering Cairn the next day. Slowly, the trio crossed the walkway that had meant death the day before. This time they crossed without incident and Etherik stepped into the corridor of raging air in the center of the room. The air propelled him upward through the circular hole in the domed ceiling and into a small chamber above.
The room contained a large stone sarcophagus, nearly identical to the one they had found in the room of colored lanterns. Using a crowbar, Etherik and Ehrune pried off the lid of the sarcophagus. Inside, they found a metal box covered in twisting runes, the lid sealed in silver, along with a silver circlet and a pair of bestial horns, black as ebony and blood red at the tips.
They brought the relics to Allustan, who was able to share a little more information about them. After much research, Allustan revealed that the horns were from a demonic servant of the Queen of Chaos. The rune covered box was also associated with the Queen of Chaos, but of more importance was the relic contained within: an adamantine loop and handle (much like an ankh). The sage identified the item as a talisman of the sphere, although he added that the item was nonfunctional.
With the Whispering Cairn fully explored, the trio turned their attention to that most notorious of mine managers, Balabar Smenk. Back in the Old Observatory, they had found a note to Filge from Smenk, along with a jar containing a segmented green worm. They decided to investigate the matter and pay Smenk a visit.
At the Smenk manor, Smenk made them an offer they couldn’t refuse: sneak into the Dourstone mines, kill the cultists, and do it quietly. In return, Smenk agreed to pay them 500 gp, yet it was the subtle connotations of what could happen if they refused that convinced them to take him up on his offer.
While restocking on potions at the Temple of Hieroneous, the party was approached by an hulking, brutish figure—an immense half-orc armored in full plate and wielding a very heavy-looking shield and a longsword! The half-orc introduced himself as Hiro, and asked to join them in their righteous crusade against evil. Fully realizing the utility that 300 lbs of divine spell-casting muscle could provide, the group readily accepted Hiro’s offer.
The Dourstone Mine was well guarded; twelve guards operating in two shifts walked the edge of the wooden palisade that surrounded the mine entrance. Sneaking in wouldn’t be easy and fighting the guards was out of the question. The PCs decided to retreat and reassess the situation. That night, at the Feral Dog, the adventurers made a deal with a couple of disgruntled miners, demonstrating that a well-placed bribe can be more effective than swords or spells.
Once inside the Dourstone Mine, the adventurers followed instructions given to them by Smenk and discovered an elevator shaft behind a sealed mining tunnel. A wooden elevator platform took them 200 feet down to the Dark Cathedral below, where two tiefling guards stood sentinel. From their elevated position, defeating the tieflings was easy, but one of the guards managed to knock loudly on one of three large stone doors in the chamber. The door opened, and from beyond they heard the ringing of small bells. Out poured a horde of skeletons armored in rusted and pitted full plate. Hiro made short work of them by brandishing his sword and calling upon the holy might of Hieroneous. Looking around, they noticed that at one end of the Dark Cathedral was a large, dark pool of liquid. The bloodstains around the lip of the pool indicated that it was used for sacrificial purposes. Three of the walls held large stone doors; a black gauntleted fist holding six arrows marked one door, a hand holding an eye marked another, and the third was unmarked.
Entering the next chamber (Citadel of Hextor), the PCs were greeted by a group of cultists willing to lay down their lives for their Lord Tyrant, Hextor. And lay down their lives they did, despite some clever use of longspears and much calling to a creature they called “Beast”. Just as the adventurers were about finished quelling the rabble, a piercing squeal and the sound of screams brought their attention to the passage ahead, where a cultist was suddenly flung like a rag doll from a room beyond, only to slam into the passage wall and crumple to the ground.
“So, how about them long spears?” Etherik mused.
A massive boar emerged from the room beyond, caught sight of the group, and released a deafening squeal of rage. Once again, Lindingar attempted to empathize with the beast. And once again, the beast charged.
Most of the adventurers were off to one side of the room, but Etherik stood right at the opposite end of the room from the corridor. The dire boar’s tusk pierced Etherik’s side and it lifted him bodily into the air. In return, he gave it an eldritch blast. Despite its size and ferocity, “Beast” was defeated.
The main corridor led to a set of double doors, but the group decided to explore the auxillary passages first. After several frantic battles with more tiefling guards, they fought their way into a large chamber with a dirt floor and ringed by a 5’ wide stone catwalk (which the PCs were on). It was a good thing they hadn’t gone through the double doors, as the doors led to the dirt floor and there were a group of tiefling archers perched on the catwalks. At the far end of the room, also on the catwalk-level, they saw several humanoid figures. Three of the figures began casting spells and drinking potions, and the fight was on.
The tieflings sniped at the PCs from the catwalk on the other side of the room, while three humanoid zombies shuffled towards them. Glowing flails appeared in the air, battering their armor and making life miserable in general. However, the adventurers fought back bravely, turning the zombies and sending them fleeing at zombie-pace back towards their masters, who commanded the zombies to attack, and were then turned, and so on. Etherik’s eldritch blast proved useful once again, taking out the tiefling archers, although he suffered a few arrow wounds for his efforts. While fortunate not to be on the ground level, the narrow catwalk made it near impossible for them to advance and bring the fight with the clerics into melee range. In fact, the dangers of close-combat among allies was driven home via sharp blade when Hiro made an egregious fumble, dramatically missing his target and driving his longsword into the softer parts of Etherik’s body. Not a good thing to do when you’re the new guy. The fight wore on, with the adventurers slowly gaining ground, and eventually dropping the zombies, the tieflings, and two of the three clerics. The last, and obviously the leader, fled through a backdoor, summoning a hell hound to aid his escape. With the battle one, the group spent the next few hours looting bodies, pillaging their little black hearts out, and preparing for a night of well-deserved rest.
Last edited:
the Jester
Legend
I take it Hiro is a new pc? Perhaps a cleric?
Good show so far!
Good show so far!
dungeon blaster
First Post
You got it! Sort of.
Hiro is a half-orc cleric of Hieroneous. He's strong. Really, really strong. The Charisma penalty hurts, but he's more of a "buff and smash" type of guy than an undead turner.
Hiro was created to give the party some extra "oomph" after the untimely death of the spirit shaman. This was the moment when the players went "um, what just happened?" You see, they aren't used to losing characters.
We rotate playing him, and even I (the DM) take a turn.
I'll be posting his stats soon.
Hiro is a half-orc cleric of Hieroneous. He's strong. Really, really strong. The Charisma penalty hurts, but he's more of a "buff and smash" type of guy than an undead turner.
Hiro was created to give the party some extra "oomph" after the untimely death of the spirit shaman. This was the moment when the players went "um, what just happened?"
You see, they aren't used to losing characters.We rotate playing him, and even I (the DM) take a turn.
I'll be posting his stats soon.
dungeon blaster
First Post
I've added Hiro's stats to the Rogue's Gallery. I'm also posting this story hour, character stats, and (eventually) more over here: http:www.freewebs.com/dungeonblaster/index.htm
dungeon blaster
First Post
Grimlocks, and Kenkus, and Cultists -- oh s#*@!
Rumaging through their ill-gotten loot, the adventurers discovered a couple journals, various notes, and an interesting piece of parchment that detected as magical, but had not a single marking upon it. Of particular interest was a journal entry describing the summoning of an “Over-God”, as if regular gods weren’t bad enough, and a “slumbering power that must be awoken”. Further, the author of the journal, believed to be the Hextorian priest who escaped the previous day’s battle, mentioned his affiliation with a group called the ‘Ebon Triad’. The group quickly decided that the ‘Triad’ probably referred to the gods of the three temples located in this underground complex. Separate they are merely Hextor, Vecna, and Erythnul, but together they form MIGHTY HEXNATHUL! Er, nevermind.
It seemed, too, that there was some distrust within the ranks of the three cults, mainly between the Hextorian leader, Theldrick, and the so-called “Faceless One”, whom the group surmised was the leader of the cultists of Vecna.
After little deliberation, they resolved to take out the Vecnans and then assault the final temple. Good plan, no? Well, it would have been if the door to the Vecnan temple wasn’t locked. So, they did what any rational person in a similar situation would do. They knocked. And waited. Eventually, they determined that the Vecnans were either a) not home, or b) not going to let in bunch of bloodthirsty killers bent on pillage and slaughter. Without a rogue or a ‘knock’ spell among them, the score was set at ‘Door: 1 -- Adventurers: 0’, and they decided to tackle the unmarked temple, hoping it may contain a key or other method of entering the Vecnan temple.
Fortunately, cultists of the god of slaughter have little need or desire for locks, as locks make slaughter less likely, and the stone door swung open silently. Unlike the Temple of Hextor, the walls, ceiling, and floor here were of natural, uncut stone. As the brave adventurers made their way deeper into the network of caverns and passages, the local inhabitants, i.e. your friendly grimlock cultists of Erythnul, assaulted them from all sides. The battles were brutish, nasty, and short, but in all cases the result was the same: dead grimlocks and bruised, but victorious heroes. Soon, the group came upon a small passageway, barely wide enough for a single person to fit, and smelling of something most foul. Hiro was leading the way, with the others close behind, when a sudden scream of primal rage echoed through the passage. The originator of said scream appeared soon after -- a filth-covered female grimlock bearing two long rusty knives charged at Hiro and plunged them both hilt-deep into his abdominal region. Short, and slight of frame though she was, her strength was equal to that of the burly half-orc, and with each wrenching stab he felt more of his life leaving him. He returned the attack, but found that the small passage was much more conducive to fighting with a light weapon than a large sword, and even when he hit, the grimlock barbarian did not seem to notice, and she continued to treat Hiro like a pin cushion. Were it not for Lindingar’s healing ministrations, Hiro certainly would have fallen that day, but his halfling buddy kept him alive long enough for the barbarian’s rage to end, and a final thrust of his sword concluded the affair.
"We really ought not to fight in enclosed spaces", Ehrune pondered thoughtfully.
With the grimlock barbarian defeated, the party continued onward, soon reaching a large cavern with a higher ledge defended by many grimlocks wielding long spears and javelins. The adventurers routed the grimlocks in short order, but were once again greeted by a wail of primal rage coming from the opposite end of the cavern.
“Here we go again”, Etherik grimaced as he scaled up the cavern wall. Hiro’s eye twitched nervously.
From a passage on the other side of the cavern, a hulking brute of a grimlock bounded towards them, a greataxe clutched in his meaty fists. Hiro grabbed a long spear and became the recipient of a bull’s strength and enlarge person spell, making him prodigiously strong and tall enough to peer over the ledge. He set the spear, bracing it against his foot, and waited for the grimlock barbarian. Consumed in Erythnul’s blood rage, the barbarian cared not that a spear the size of a horse lance was aimed directly at him as he leapt off the ledge, greataxe raised high. With a satisfying ‘thunk’, the huge spear penetrated straight through the airborne barbarian, who continued his trajectory along the shaft of the spear and brought his greataxe down upon Hiro’s chest (dealing 40-odd points of damage!). Wounded, but alive, and very angry, Hiro grabbed his longsword, but Etherik beat him to the punch, blasting the grimlock directly in the face with an eldritch blast. As the good ole’ doc would say, “I guess the strain was more than he could bear.”
A long passageway led downward, and the group feared that they were entering the underdark, where, judging from their level of fear, they likely believed Freddy, Jason, and the Predator lurked. But, it turned out that the passage merely led to a large chamber filled with a ghostly mist. The group moved through the mist by sticking to one side of the cavern. They quickly learned that they were not alone, as grimlock warriors wearing bronze masks of Erythnul assaulted them, then disappeared into the fog. They could also hear the sounds of divine prayers being uttered and decided that now was a good time to use their scroll of silence (they also reasoned correctly that the grimlocks’ blindsense would be affected). Bereft of his spell-casting capability, Grallak Kur, priest of Erythnul plunged into the battle, dropping Etherik with a flurry of strikes of his morning star. The insane priest had sewn beholder eyes into his eye sockets, and somehow had enchanted them to give him sight. However, even the cleric of the god of slaughter could not withstand the righteous might of Hiro’s blade combined with the ferocious attacks of Lindingar’s summoned hippogriffs and Ehrune’s annoying, but not particularly damaging magic missiles. A final swing of Hiro’s blade parted Grallak’s head from his body, and the battle was won.
Rumaging through their ill-gotten loot, the adventurers discovered a couple journals, various notes, and an interesting piece of parchment that detected as magical, but had not a single marking upon it. Of particular interest was a journal entry describing the summoning of an “Over-God”, as if regular gods weren’t bad enough, and a “slumbering power that must be awoken”. Further, the author of the journal, believed to be the Hextorian priest who escaped the previous day’s battle, mentioned his affiliation with a group called the ‘Ebon Triad’. The group quickly decided that the ‘Triad’ probably referred to the gods of the three temples located in this underground complex. Separate they are merely Hextor, Vecna, and Erythnul, but together they form MIGHTY HEXNATHUL! Er, nevermind.
It seemed, too, that there was some distrust within the ranks of the three cults, mainly between the Hextorian leader, Theldrick, and the so-called “Faceless One”, whom the group surmised was the leader of the cultists of Vecna.
After little deliberation, they resolved to take out the Vecnans and then assault the final temple. Good plan, no? Well, it would have been if the door to the Vecnan temple wasn’t locked. So, they did what any rational person in a similar situation would do. They knocked. And waited. Eventually, they determined that the Vecnans were either a) not home, or b) not going to let in bunch of bloodthirsty killers bent on pillage and slaughter. Without a rogue or a ‘knock’ spell among them, the score was set at ‘Door: 1 -- Adventurers: 0’, and they decided to tackle the unmarked temple, hoping it may contain a key or other method of entering the Vecnan temple.
Fortunately, cultists of the god of slaughter have little need or desire for locks, as locks make slaughter less likely, and the stone door swung open silently. Unlike the Temple of Hextor, the walls, ceiling, and floor here were of natural, uncut stone. As the brave adventurers made their way deeper into the network of caverns and passages, the local inhabitants, i.e. your friendly grimlock cultists of Erythnul, assaulted them from all sides. The battles were brutish, nasty, and short, but in all cases the result was the same: dead grimlocks and bruised, but victorious heroes. Soon, the group came upon a small passageway, barely wide enough for a single person to fit, and smelling of something most foul. Hiro was leading the way, with the others close behind, when a sudden scream of primal rage echoed through the passage. The originator of said scream appeared soon after -- a filth-covered female grimlock bearing two long rusty knives charged at Hiro and plunged them both hilt-deep into his abdominal region. Short, and slight of frame though she was, her strength was equal to that of the burly half-orc, and with each wrenching stab he felt more of his life leaving him. He returned the attack, but found that the small passage was much more conducive to fighting with a light weapon than a large sword, and even when he hit, the grimlock barbarian did not seem to notice, and she continued to treat Hiro like a pin cushion. Were it not for Lindingar’s healing ministrations, Hiro certainly would have fallen that day, but his halfling buddy kept him alive long enough for the barbarian’s rage to end, and a final thrust of his sword concluded the affair.
"We really ought not to fight in enclosed spaces", Ehrune pondered thoughtfully.
With the grimlock barbarian defeated, the party continued onward, soon reaching a large cavern with a higher ledge defended by many grimlocks wielding long spears and javelins. The adventurers routed the grimlocks in short order, but were once again greeted by a wail of primal rage coming from the opposite end of the cavern.
“Here we go again”, Etherik grimaced as he scaled up the cavern wall. Hiro’s eye twitched nervously.
From a passage on the other side of the cavern, a hulking brute of a grimlock bounded towards them, a greataxe clutched in his meaty fists. Hiro grabbed a long spear and became the recipient of a bull’s strength and enlarge person spell, making him prodigiously strong and tall enough to peer over the ledge. He set the spear, bracing it against his foot, and waited for the grimlock barbarian. Consumed in Erythnul’s blood rage, the barbarian cared not that a spear the size of a horse lance was aimed directly at him as he leapt off the ledge, greataxe raised high. With a satisfying ‘thunk’, the huge spear penetrated straight through the airborne barbarian, who continued his trajectory along the shaft of the spear and brought his greataxe down upon Hiro’s chest (dealing 40-odd points of damage!). Wounded, but alive, and very angry, Hiro grabbed his longsword, but Etherik beat him to the punch, blasting the grimlock directly in the face with an eldritch blast. As the good ole’ doc would say, “I guess the strain was more than he could bear.”
A long passageway led downward, and the group feared that they were entering the underdark, where, judging from their level of fear, they likely believed Freddy, Jason, and the Predator lurked. But, it turned out that the passage merely led to a large chamber filled with a ghostly mist. The group moved through the mist by sticking to one side of the cavern. They quickly learned that they were not alone, as grimlock warriors wearing bronze masks of Erythnul assaulted them, then disappeared into the fog. They could also hear the sounds of divine prayers being uttered and decided that now was a good time to use their scroll of silence (they also reasoned correctly that the grimlocks’ blindsense would be affected). Bereft of his spell-casting capability, Grallak Kur, priest of Erythnul plunged into the battle, dropping Etherik with a flurry of strikes of his morning star. The insane priest had sewn beholder eyes into his eye sockets, and somehow had enchanted them to give him sight. However, even the cleric of the god of slaughter could not withstand the righteous might of Hiro’s blade combined with the ferocious attacks of Lindingar’s summoned hippogriffs and Ehrune’s annoying, but not particularly damaging magic missiles. A final swing of Hiro’s blade parted Grallak’s head from his body, and the battle was won.
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dungeon blaster
First Post
8 hours later, and fully rested, the party returned to the entrance chamber, intent on breaching the final temple, the temple of Vecna. What they found awaiting them in the chamber, however, was a bit of a surprise.
Standing defiantly in the center of the chamber and surrounded by tiefling zombies and a very large, very dead dire boar, the Hextorian priest, Theldrick, called out a challenge to Hiro.
"Worm of Heironeous! Slathering knave! I challenge you to glorious combat in the name of the Herald of Hell, Hextor! Do you accept my challenge, or will you hide behind your simpering comrades?" Theldrick's eyes burned with hatred and anticipation.
Hiro, having never turned down a challenge of any sort, pushed past his allies and answered in kind.
"I hide behind no one, priest! the cleric of Heironeous bellowed, "and I accept your challenge!"
Etherik groaned. "Hiro, he's only challenging you because he knows we can take him." But even Etherik knew that it was no use trying to reason with a Heironean cleric facing his arch-nemesis. It looked like the rest of the group would have to sit this one out...or at least appear to sit it out. Ehrune had come to the same conclusion, and winked at Etherik and Lindingar as he assured Hiro that they would not join the fight unless the Hextorian priest's allies joined first.
Hiro realized he was in trouble after his first swing deflected mid-strike. Etherik noticed too, and used his innate magic sense to see if Theldrick had any abjurations in effect. To Etherik's vision, the cleric lit up like a christmas tree.
"Crap." Etherik muttered. Theldrick had numerous protective spells, spells that turned aside blades, magic, and goodness itself. "We need to get involved."
Ehrune agreed, as by now the fight was decidedly in Theldrick's favor. Suddenly, Ehrune had an idea. Reaching into Lindingar's handy haversack, he pulled out a Grallak Kur's severed head. with a wrenching twist, he dislodged a neck vertabrae, and cut off a piece of flesh using his dagger. Flesh and bone, the components needed for his spell.
"Boar. Kill Theldrick." Ehrune commanded. The undead monstosity lumbered forward, unnoticed by the Hextorian priest as he attempted to finalize his victory. The boar slammed into Theldrick, wounding him. He commanded his zombies to attack and they shambled towards the adventurers, but Lindingar was ready and hurled balls of flame at the slow moving undead. Given a moment of respite, Hiro healed his wounds and charged the priest. He didn't know what had happened, and at the moment, didn't care. If his friends had cheated, he would lose honor, and be shamed before his god, but he would figure that all out later. At that moment he had business to take care of.
Hiro's renewed attacks drove Theldrick into a hasty defense. His tiefling zombies had occupied the other adventurers, but he had greatly counted on the zombie boar and they had somehow turned it upon him! He gave a thought to fleeing, although he hated himself for even considering it; having issued a direct challenge to the Hieronean cleric, it would be cowardice to retreat now. He hardly had a chance to finish his thought, however, as Hiro took advantage of the momentary distraction apparent in his opponent's thoughts and drove his blade through steel and flesh. Nearly at the same moment, the undead boar drove a tusk the size of a sword through the priest's back, lifting him bodily into the air.
"Looks like Hell just gained a new Lemure", Hiro grimaced. His allies had already finished dealing with the tiefling zombies and had watched the priest get spitted like a boar...well, by a boar.
Standing defiantly in the center of the chamber and surrounded by tiefling zombies and a very large, very dead dire boar, the Hextorian priest, Theldrick, called out a challenge to Hiro.
"Worm of Heironeous! Slathering knave! I challenge you to glorious combat in the name of the Herald of Hell, Hextor! Do you accept my challenge, or will you hide behind your simpering comrades?" Theldrick's eyes burned with hatred and anticipation.
Hiro, having never turned down a challenge of any sort, pushed past his allies and answered in kind.
"I hide behind no one, priest! the cleric of Heironeous bellowed, "and I accept your challenge!"
Etherik groaned. "Hiro, he's only challenging you because he knows we can take him." But even Etherik knew that it was no use trying to reason with a Heironean cleric facing his arch-nemesis. It looked like the rest of the group would have to sit this one out...or at least appear to sit it out. Ehrune had come to the same conclusion, and winked at Etherik and Lindingar as he assured Hiro that they would not join the fight unless the Hextorian priest's allies joined first.
Hiro realized he was in trouble after his first swing deflected mid-strike. Etherik noticed too, and used his innate magic sense to see if Theldrick had any abjurations in effect. To Etherik's vision, the cleric lit up like a christmas tree.
"Crap." Etherik muttered. Theldrick had numerous protective spells, spells that turned aside blades, magic, and goodness itself. "We need to get involved."
Ehrune agreed, as by now the fight was decidedly in Theldrick's favor. Suddenly, Ehrune had an idea. Reaching into Lindingar's handy haversack, he pulled out a Grallak Kur's severed head. with a wrenching twist, he dislodged a neck vertabrae, and cut off a piece of flesh using his dagger. Flesh and bone, the components needed for his spell.
"Boar. Kill Theldrick." Ehrune commanded. The undead monstosity lumbered forward, unnoticed by the Hextorian priest as he attempted to finalize his victory. The boar slammed into Theldrick, wounding him. He commanded his zombies to attack and they shambled towards the adventurers, but Lindingar was ready and hurled balls of flame at the slow moving undead. Given a moment of respite, Hiro healed his wounds and charged the priest. He didn't know what had happened, and at the moment, didn't care. If his friends had cheated, he would lose honor, and be shamed before his god, but he would figure that all out later. At that moment he had business to take care of.
Hiro's renewed attacks drove Theldrick into a hasty defense. His tiefling zombies had occupied the other adventurers, but he had greatly counted on the zombie boar and they had somehow turned it upon him! He gave a thought to fleeing, although he hated himself for even considering it; having issued a direct challenge to the Hieronean cleric, it would be cowardice to retreat now. He hardly had a chance to finish his thought, however, as Hiro took advantage of the momentary distraction apparent in his opponent's thoughts and drove his blade through steel and flesh. Nearly at the same moment, the undead boar drove a tusk the size of a sword through the priest's back, lifting him bodily into the air.
"Looks like Hell just gained a new Lemure", Hiro grimaced. His allies had already finished dealing with the tiefling zombies and had watched the priest get spitted like a boar...well, by a boar.
dungeon blaster
First Post
I spy with my little eye...
"Was that always like that?" Lindingar wondered, watching the wisps of fog emanating from the pool of dark liquid, which bubbled and gurgled noisily.
Ehrune studied the pool for a moment. "No. It definitely wasn't doing that before." Suddenly, a copper coin soared over Ehrune's head and plunked into the liquid. He spun around and glared at Lindingar. "What did you do that for?!"
Lindingar shrugged. "Maybe there's something in there."
"Well, if there is, I'd rather not find out." Ehrune hated action without forethought. He approached every situation as he approached his wizardly studies, carefully and methodically.
Hiro stood apart from the others, silently watching the large stone door that led to the Temple of the Maimed Lord. Slowly, the rest of the group congregated by him.
"Everyone ready?" Ehrune asked, fingering the key he had pilfered from Theldrick's corspe.
Hiro grunted.
"Oh yeah", Etherik grinned.
"Let's do it", Lindingar affirmed.
Ehrune turned the key in the door, and with a soft click, the door opened. "Remember, Smenk said that there was a maze up ahead, so I'll be using the chalk."
"That'll help us not get lost, but it won't help us find the right way" Etherik frowned.
Lindingar stepped through the doorway and inspected the floor and walls carefully. He rose, and turned back to his companions, smiling. "Looks like our good friend Theldrick has given us a lead". He held up his index finger, which was smudged with dried blood.
"Perfect." Ehrune turned to the zombie dire boar. "Boar. Let's go." The hulking corpse shambled forward through the doorway, with the group following behind, except for Lindingar, who sat on the boar's snout and kept an eye out for more dried blood.
Following Theldrick's trail was not difficult, and what could have been a very confusing maze was made significantly more simple and straightforward. Still, the cultists of Vecna, strange bird-men in dark cloaks, harried the group as they slowly made their way through the maze. These Kenku, as they are called, sniped with crossbows and tossed vials of alchemist's flame before disappearing around a corner. The adventurers quickly gave up on the notion of pursuing the bird-men, as they seemed to know every passageway and turn in the labyrinth, and somehow found ways to disappear even while fleeing into a dead-end. Annoying as they were, they caused little damage to the party.
The trail of dried blood abruptly ended at a wall. Lindingar immediately began probing for a secret door, and was rewarded by the silent swinging open of part of the wall. Without hesitating, the group walked through the secret door into the chamber beyond.
The chamber was shaped like an 'L', with dull gray marble walls covered in strange, circular bulges of varying sizes and placement. A row of columns ran down the center of the chamber, and strange patterns of wispy green veins writhed and undulated within the stone. Upon seeing the wispy patterns, the group began to hear voices in their minds, and they quickly averted their gazes.
Etherik used his innate power of magical detection and as he did so, the bulges on the walls sprang open, revealing eyes of every imaginable size, shape, and color. Many eyes looked around wildly, some started at nothing in particular, but the majority were focused on the adventurers.
Etherik frowned. "Do ya think we're busted?"
"Big time." Lindingar replied. "Try blasting one".
Etherik released an eldritch blast, destroying one of the eyes in a shower of stone shards.
Ehrune motioned the group forward. "Let's not waste time with these eyes. The enemy knows we're here, I'm sure of it." He commanded the dead boar to lead ahead. They continued to the next chamber, which had walls of strange green rock with purple veins that writhed and danced within it. Six black pillars of a tar-like substance formed two rows along the length of the chamber. Hands pushed at the surfaces of the pillars, as though there were creatures trapped within, and a plain, basalt altar rested at the far end of the chamber. Beside the altar stood two humanoids robed in dark purple. Their hands moved in intricate patterns and their voices carried words of power.
Etherik had but a moment to curse as lines of fire erupted from the cultists' hands. The scorching rays burned the adventurers, setting their clothes alight. Etherik returned fire with an eldrtich blast, dropping one of the wizards instantly. Ehrune commanded the boar to attack, and it easily dispatched the second wizard. Suddenly, a door burst open and two more cultists emerged. The adventurers tactically withdrew to the L-shaped corridor, only to see a humanoid figure standing at the opposite end of the passage. The figure was robed in green, trimmed with gold, its face covered by a leather mask. In one hand it held a rod carved with intricate runes, while it's other hand was already moving in the casting of a spell. The rod flared briefly as lightning crackled from its hand, striking the boar and Hiro. The acrid smell of burnt flesh began to fill the chamber. Ehrune quickly released a couple of magic missiles, but they had no effect on the robed enemy, who was already casting another spell.
A web of sticky magic strands filled the area, trapping most of the group. The two cultists sent forth rays of scorching fire, which burned away some of the webbing, but caused great damage as well. The adventurers knew they were in for the fight of their life and responded with everything they had. Eldritch blasts, alchemist's fire, and summoned hippogriffs tore at their enemies, who responded with bolts of lightning, magic missiles, and summoned monsters.
After a long and desperate fight, the adventurers finally defeated the masked figure and his underlings. Weary, but ecstatic, they thoroughly searched the masked figure's corpse and his personal quarters. Lindingar took the metamagic rod, while Hiro found a shield emblazoned with the symbol of Hieroneous.
Ehrune removed the mask of their slain enemy, revealing a pale face devoid of features, except for two small, black eyes, and a thin line for a mouth. The body was freezing cold and glistening. With horror, he realized that the body was melting! This was no living man, but a construct of snow and ice, although Ehrune had never heard of such thing. He would have to remember to ask Allustan about it later.
Gathering their new-found loot, the adventurers retraced their steps through the maze, back to the Dark Cathedral. Immediately, they noticed that the elevator was no longer there. Someone must have used it to escape!
"Was that always like that?" Lindingar wondered, watching the wisps of fog emanating from the pool of dark liquid, which bubbled and gurgled noisily.
Ehrune studied the pool for a moment. "No. It definitely wasn't doing that before." Suddenly, a copper coin soared over Ehrune's head and plunked into the liquid. He spun around and glared at Lindingar. "What did you do that for?!"
Lindingar shrugged. "Maybe there's something in there."
"Well, if there is, I'd rather not find out." Ehrune hated action without forethought. He approached every situation as he approached his wizardly studies, carefully and methodically.
Hiro stood apart from the others, silently watching the large stone door that led to the Temple of the Maimed Lord. Slowly, the rest of the group congregated by him.
"Everyone ready?" Ehrune asked, fingering the key he had pilfered from Theldrick's corspe.
Hiro grunted.
"Oh yeah", Etherik grinned.
"Let's do it", Lindingar affirmed.
Ehrune turned the key in the door, and with a soft click, the door opened. "Remember, Smenk said that there was a maze up ahead, so I'll be using the chalk."
"That'll help us not get lost, but it won't help us find the right way" Etherik frowned.
Lindingar stepped through the doorway and inspected the floor and walls carefully. He rose, and turned back to his companions, smiling. "Looks like our good friend Theldrick has given us a lead". He held up his index finger, which was smudged with dried blood.
"Perfect." Ehrune turned to the zombie dire boar. "Boar. Let's go." The hulking corpse shambled forward through the doorway, with the group following behind, except for Lindingar, who sat on the boar's snout and kept an eye out for more dried blood.
Following Theldrick's trail was not difficult, and what could have been a very confusing maze was made significantly more simple and straightforward. Still, the cultists of Vecna, strange bird-men in dark cloaks, harried the group as they slowly made their way through the maze. These Kenku, as they are called, sniped with crossbows and tossed vials of alchemist's flame before disappearing around a corner. The adventurers quickly gave up on the notion of pursuing the bird-men, as they seemed to know every passageway and turn in the labyrinth, and somehow found ways to disappear even while fleeing into a dead-end. Annoying as they were, they caused little damage to the party.
The trail of dried blood abruptly ended at a wall. Lindingar immediately began probing for a secret door, and was rewarded by the silent swinging open of part of the wall. Without hesitating, the group walked through the secret door into the chamber beyond.
The chamber was shaped like an 'L', with dull gray marble walls covered in strange, circular bulges of varying sizes and placement. A row of columns ran down the center of the chamber, and strange patterns of wispy green veins writhed and undulated within the stone. Upon seeing the wispy patterns, the group began to hear voices in their minds, and they quickly averted their gazes.
Etherik used his innate power of magical detection and as he did so, the bulges on the walls sprang open, revealing eyes of every imaginable size, shape, and color. Many eyes looked around wildly, some started at nothing in particular, but the majority were focused on the adventurers.
Etherik frowned. "Do ya think we're busted?"
"Big time." Lindingar replied. "Try blasting one".
Etherik released an eldritch blast, destroying one of the eyes in a shower of stone shards.
Ehrune motioned the group forward. "Let's not waste time with these eyes. The enemy knows we're here, I'm sure of it." He commanded the dead boar to lead ahead. They continued to the next chamber, which had walls of strange green rock with purple veins that writhed and danced within it. Six black pillars of a tar-like substance formed two rows along the length of the chamber. Hands pushed at the surfaces of the pillars, as though there were creatures trapped within, and a plain, basalt altar rested at the far end of the chamber. Beside the altar stood two humanoids robed in dark purple. Their hands moved in intricate patterns and their voices carried words of power.
Etherik had but a moment to curse as lines of fire erupted from the cultists' hands. The scorching rays burned the adventurers, setting their clothes alight. Etherik returned fire with an eldrtich blast, dropping one of the wizards instantly. Ehrune commanded the boar to attack, and it easily dispatched the second wizard. Suddenly, a door burst open and two more cultists emerged. The adventurers tactically withdrew to the L-shaped corridor, only to see a humanoid figure standing at the opposite end of the passage. The figure was robed in green, trimmed with gold, its face covered by a leather mask. In one hand it held a rod carved with intricate runes, while it's other hand was already moving in the casting of a spell. The rod flared briefly as lightning crackled from its hand, striking the boar and Hiro. The acrid smell of burnt flesh began to fill the chamber. Ehrune quickly released a couple of magic missiles, but they had no effect on the robed enemy, who was already casting another spell.
A web of sticky magic strands filled the area, trapping most of the group. The two cultists sent forth rays of scorching fire, which burned away some of the webbing, but caused great damage as well. The adventurers knew they were in for the fight of their life and responded with everything they had. Eldritch blasts, alchemist's fire, and summoned hippogriffs tore at their enemies, who responded with bolts of lightning, magic missiles, and summoned monsters.
After a long and desperate fight, the adventurers finally defeated the masked figure and his underlings. Weary, but ecstatic, they thoroughly searched the masked figure's corpse and his personal quarters. Lindingar took the metamagic rod, while Hiro found a shield emblazoned with the symbol of Hieroneous.
Ehrune removed the mask of their slain enemy, revealing a pale face devoid of features, except for two small, black eyes, and a thin line for a mouth. The body was freezing cold and glistening. With horror, he realized that the body was melting! This was no living man, but a construct of snow and ice, although Ehrune had never heard of such thing. He would have to remember to ask Allustan about it later.
Gathering their new-found loot, the adventurers retraced their steps through the maze, back to the Dark Cathedral. Immediately, they noticed that the elevator was no longer there. Someone must have used it to escape!
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