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<blockquote data-quote="Rybaer" data-source="post: 8628" data-attributes="member: 118"><p>Session #7.2 – Into the Mines</p><p></p><p></p><p>When last we left our heroes, Zalman had transformed into a perfect replica of the young elf-maiden Sinea. Sinea, meanwhile, had taken on the appearance of Zalman (white hair and all). The elvish community’s elder wizard, Tehloan, was now a squirrel. The means by which to undo the effects were beyond all present except possibly for Tehloan, but he no longer possessed the faculties to cast a spell. The strange egg-like stone artifact recovered from the mines seemed the most likely culprit. As they retraced their interactions with the item, it became clear that any who handled it had taken on the form of the next person or creature with whom they’d had physical contact…after about a six hour incubation time. They tried reversing the process by retouching the egg. Only time would tell if that would work in the case of Sinea and Zalman. For Tehloan, it was not a possible solution. Everyone was exhausted and agreed to meet again the next morning to further ponder the matter.</p><p></p><p>A couple hours after everyone had settled to sleep, a knock came at the companion’s door. Sinea (in Zalman’s form) poked her head in an called out quietly to Zalman. She indicated that she had been studying the artifact and believed that she might have learned something of use. She led Zalman, as well as most of the others, back to the wizard’s home. The egg was laying out upon her desk. She handled the egg with a pair of sticks, setting it spinning gently. As it slowed, it reversed direction and came to a wobbly halt, pointing roughly northeast. She spun it a second time, and again it came to a halt pointing in the exact same direction.</p><p></p><p>“Where is the mine that this thing was found in?” Zalman asked.</p><p></p><p>“Oh, right about the direction that thing is pointing in,” Rurik replied.</p><p></p><p>“Figures.”</p><p></p><p>It seemed likely that the egg was pointing toward something. A few wild thoughts were thrown out, but no one had enough evidence to support anything beyond speculation. They agreed to sleep out the rest of the night and decide how to proceed in the morning.</p><p></p><p>At dawn, the companions met with Sinea, Tehloan the squirrel, and the leaders of the village Healana and Noalas. As Zalman and Sinea were still stuck in the other’s body, the theory of reversing the egg’s power was dismissed. Finding whatever the egg was pointing toward seemed the next logical choice. Even if it did not lead them to a cure, it might lead them to someone or something that could provide more of a clue. Secure in its wood box, the egg was packed for the trip.</p><p></p><p>Sinea and Tehloan agreed to come along on the trip. Tehloan, in spite of his inconvenient form, still had the wisdom and intellect of a powerful elvish wizard. Healana and Noalas insisted on sending along another of their community, Findus, an archer and warrior of no small skill, to add additional support. </p><p></p><p>One other alternative means of solving the riddle of the egg would be to contact Shadykin. Armed with a copy of the wording found on the egg, Amblin was sent off on a marathon back to the wizard’s home. (The player was to be absent for a number of weeks.)</p><p></p><p>The rest of the companions, along with Kisty, packed up their essential gear and mounted their horses. The journey to the mines was quick and uneventful. They paused frequently to spin the egg within its wood box, and it unerringly pointed them toward the entrance of the mine each time. Tying up the horses, they proceeded into the dark depths of the abandoned iron mine.</p><p></p><p>Before they made it much past the entrance, Rurik called a halt. Digging in his pack, he pulled out a small ball of beeswax he’d picked up earlier in the morning from the village. He split it into small bits and encouraged everyone to stuff it in their ears, “Fer when we run into that nasty critter again.”</p><p></p><p>They quickly and cautiously moved back toward the shaft. They paused again at the spot where the brothers had pointed out they’d found the egg. A thorough inspection revealed no clues. The egg continued to point further back, and ever so slightly downward. On they went.</p><p></p><p>As they reached the shaft chamber, Nigel and Findus scouted down the passage from which the creature had last appeared while everyone else took up a defensive posture in the more spacious chamber with the elevator shaft. The two elves pushed further into the dark corridor until the faint gibbering sound could be heard through the wax in their ears. They quickly retreated back to the others and indicated that it was coming.</p><p></p><p>Just as it came around the bend, the volume of the horrid gibbering increased immensely. The wax helped several resist its confusing effects, but still two were affected: Sinea bolted back toward the entrance in terror and Findus turned his bow on Zalman. Only because he was prepared for the possible effects of the creature was Zalman able to narrowly dodge the shot, and he retaliated by trying to pin the elf against the wall with the immovable effect of his staff.</p><p></p><p>The others launched every missile weapon they could at the grayish blob of eyes and toothy mouths while Rurik charged with his axe. The creature’s vocal abilities were potent, but the soft body could not endure the pummeling it took. By the time Rurik reached the creature, it had collapsed into a formless sack of goo.</p><p></p><p>Sinea and Findus quickly returned to themselves, apologizing for their failure to resist its effects. All told, though, they were surprised at how quickly and easily the thing had fallen. A search of the hallway from which it came revealed little more than a couple dead ends and a smelly room that must have been the gibbering mouther’s lair.</p><p></p><p>They used the well-aged but sturdy winch to pull the elevator platform up to their level. It was noisy enough that anyone down below was likely to hear them. So, they kept arms ready at hand as they lowered themselves back down the shaft. </p><p></p><p>About fifty feet down, they came to a dark side passage. They locked the elevator into position and began a cursory exploration. The dust on this level lay heavy with little but small animal tracks. They explored several side passages but found nothing. Rurik weighed in with his dwarven assessment that the former miners had dug some exploratory shafts but gave up on this level and continued to dig downward. Back to the elevator they went.</p><p></p><p>Another eighty feet down and they reached the bottom of the shaft. The passages leading off from this chamber seemed of better construction. Nothing was waiting for them, to their relief, but the telltale clanking of metal on stone in the far distance indicated that this mine wasn’t as abandoned as they had originally thought. A wide hall led off both left and right. Nigel inspected the floor and concluded that there was too much regular traffic through here to discern any specific tracks. It did appear, however, that heavy carts were regularly moved through the hall. The sounds of mining came from the left, so they chose that direction.</p><p></p><p>Several side passages, chambers, and dead ends later, they reached a section of the mine that was much rougher than the well-cut sections near the shaft. They were close to the sounds of tools breaking rock. With the echoes, it was difficult to tell how many people were mining, but it was likely close to a dozen. Rurik, with his keen darkvision and knowledge of mining operations, agreed to scout ahead alone. The clanking of his plate armor was of little concern given the ambient noise. The others waited back in one of the hallways for his return or cries for help.</p><p></p><p>He made it up to a wide, rough chamber where the several wide pillars blocked his view of the far end. The sounds of mining were loud and clear here, though he was unable to spot the workers without risking exposing himself to the lack of cover. He watched another couple minutes and caught brief glances of smallish figures – kobolds, he suspected, but couldn’t be certain. Finally, he returned to the others to report what he had learned.</p><p></p><p>In the hall, they discussed the pro’s and con’s of ambushing the unknown miners versus leaving them alone and trying the other direction from the elevator. Before they could reach a consensus, the unmistakable sound of a squeaky cart started coming their direction from the mining operation. Quickly and quietly, they got around a corner and concealed all light sources. Rurik, the only one with full darkvision, took point just around the corner.</p><p></p><p>As the leading edge of the ore-laden cart rounded the corner, Rurik leapt out and swung his mighty dwarven war axe. In the split second it took for his axe to connect with the nearest target, he was able to confirm with a grim satisfaction that it was indeed a kobold – two of them, actually. Rurik scored a critical hit (the first with this weapon) and lopped the creature’s head off and got his axe lodged in the support timber of the hallway. Kisty brought out her continual flame torch, giving Nigel enough light by which to leap around the corner and tackle the remaining kobold. Spotting no others kobolds, they quickly moved the body, the captive, and the cart down a side passage.</p><p></p><p>A couple of the party spoke Draconic, so the ad hoc interrogation began. There was considerable dispute among the party as to how they should treat the kobolds. On the one hand, they were known to be inherently evil. On the other, the party were the invaders in what appeared to be the kobold’s home.</p><p></p><p>What details they could get from the frightened kobold went something like this: He was a simple miner, and his clan was working this mine for its iron. They made ordinary items and weapons with it. They had been here for a number of years – he couldn’t be more specific. The rest of his clan lived further down the opposite direction from the elevator shaft. He also told them something about a dragon that they worshipped and left offerings for.</p><p></p><p>“Dragon, eh?” the party asked, rhetorically.</p><p></p><p>“Which direction is that egg-thing pointing?” They checked.</p><p></p><p>“More or less in the direction of the kobold’s lair, and further back in the mine.”</p><p></p><p>“And the kobold says there’s a dragon down that way?”</p><p></p><p>“Yup.”</p><p></p><p>“Figures.”</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Next session: The (5th-6th level) party learns what a couple dozen kobolds are capable of.</p><p></p><p>-Rybaer</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Rybaer, post: 8628, member: 118"] Session #7.2 – Into the Mines When last we left our heroes, Zalman had transformed into a perfect replica of the young elf-maiden Sinea. Sinea, meanwhile, had taken on the appearance of Zalman (white hair and all). The elvish community’s elder wizard, Tehloan, was now a squirrel. The means by which to undo the effects were beyond all present except possibly for Tehloan, but he no longer possessed the faculties to cast a spell. The strange egg-like stone artifact recovered from the mines seemed the most likely culprit. As they retraced their interactions with the item, it became clear that any who handled it had taken on the form of the next person or creature with whom they’d had physical contact…after about a six hour incubation time. They tried reversing the process by retouching the egg. Only time would tell if that would work in the case of Sinea and Zalman. For Tehloan, it was not a possible solution. Everyone was exhausted and agreed to meet again the next morning to further ponder the matter. A couple hours after everyone had settled to sleep, a knock came at the companion’s door. Sinea (in Zalman’s form) poked her head in an called out quietly to Zalman. She indicated that she had been studying the artifact and believed that she might have learned something of use. She led Zalman, as well as most of the others, back to the wizard’s home. The egg was laying out upon her desk. She handled the egg with a pair of sticks, setting it spinning gently. As it slowed, it reversed direction and came to a wobbly halt, pointing roughly northeast. She spun it a second time, and again it came to a halt pointing in the exact same direction. “Where is the mine that this thing was found in?” Zalman asked. “Oh, right about the direction that thing is pointing in,” Rurik replied. “Figures.” It seemed likely that the egg was pointing toward something. A few wild thoughts were thrown out, but no one had enough evidence to support anything beyond speculation. They agreed to sleep out the rest of the night and decide how to proceed in the morning. At dawn, the companions met with Sinea, Tehloan the squirrel, and the leaders of the village Healana and Noalas. As Zalman and Sinea were still stuck in the other’s body, the theory of reversing the egg’s power was dismissed. Finding whatever the egg was pointing toward seemed the next logical choice. Even if it did not lead them to a cure, it might lead them to someone or something that could provide more of a clue. Secure in its wood box, the egg was packed for the trip. Sinea and Tehloan agreed to come along on the trip. Tehloan, in spite of his inconvenient form, still had the wisdom and intellect of a powerful elvish wizard. Healana and Noalas insisted on sending along another of their community, Findus, an archer and warrior of no small skill, to add additional support. One other alternative means of solving the riddle of the egg would be to contact Shadykin. Armed with a copy of the wording found on the egg, Amblin was sent off on a marathon back to the wizard’s home. (The player was to be absent for a number of weeks.) The rest of the companions, along with Kisty, packed up their essential gear and mounted their horses. The journey to the mines was quick and uneventful. They paused frequently to spin the egg within its wood box, and it unerringly pointed them toward the entrance of the mine each time. Tying up the horses, they proceeded into the dark depths of the abandoned iron mine. Before they made it much past the entrance, Rurik called a halt. Digging in his pack, he pulled out a small ball of beeswax he’d picked up earlier in the morning from the village. He split it into small bits and encouraged everyone to stuff it in their ears, “Fer when we run into that nasty critter again.” They quickly and cautiously moved back toward the shaft. They paused again at the spot where the brothers had pointed out they’d found the egg. A thorough inspection revealed no clues. The egg continued to point further back, and ever so slightly downward. On they went. As they reached the shaft chamber, Nigel and Findus scouted down the passage from which the creature had last appeared while everyone else took up a defensive posture in the more spacious chamber with the elevator shaft. The two elves pushed further into the dark corridor until the faint gibbering sound could be heard through the wax in their ears. They quickly retreated back to the others and indicated that it was coming. Just as it came around the bend, the volume of the horrid gibbering increased immensely. The wax helped several resist its confusing effects, but still two were affected: Sinea bolted back toward the entrance in terror and Findus turned his bow on Zalman. Only because he was prepared for the possible effects of the creature was Zalman able to narrowly dodge the shot, and he retaliated by trying to pin the elf against the wall with the immovable effect of his staff. The others launched every missile weapon they could at the grayish blob of eyes and toothy mouths while Rurik charged with his axe. The creature’s vocal abilities were potent, but the soft body could not endure the pummeling it took. By the time Rurik reached the creature, it had collapsed into a formless sack of goo. Sinea and Findus quickly returned to themselves, apologizing for their failure to resist its effects. All told, though, they were surprised at how quickly and easily the thing had fallen. A search of the hallway from which it came revealed little more than a couple dead ends and a smelly room that must have been the gibbering mouther’s lair. They used the well-aged but sturdy winch to pull the elevator platform up to their level. It was noisy enough that anyone down below was likely to hear them. So, they kept arms ready at hand as they lowered themselves back down the shaft. About fifty feet down, they came to a dark side passage. They locked the elevator into position and began a cursory exploration. The dust on this level lay heavy with little but small animal tracks. They explored several side passages but found nothing. Rurik weighed in with his dwarven assessment that the former miners had dug some exploratory shafts but gave up on this level and continued to dig downward. Back to the elevator they went. Another eighty feet down and they reached the bottom of the shaft. The passages leading off from this chamber seemed of better construction. Nothing was waiting for them, to their relief, but the telltale clanking of metal on stone in the far distance indicated that this mine wasn’t as abandoned as they had originally thought. A wide hall led off both left and right. Nigel inspected the floor and concluded that there was too much regular traffic through here to discern any specific tracks. It did appear, however, that heavy carts were regularly moved through the hall. The sounds of mining came from the left, so they chose that direction. Several side passages, chambers, and dead ends later, they reached a section of the mine that was much rougher than the well-cut sections near the shaft. They were close to the sounds of tools breaking rock. With the echoes, it was difficult to tell how many people were mining, but it was likely close to a dozen. Rurik, with his keen darkvision and knowledge of mining operations, agreed to scout ahead alone. The clanking of his plate armor was of little concern given the ambient noise. The others waited back in one of the hallways for his return or cries for help. He made it up to a wide, rough chamber where the several wide pillars blocked his view of the far end. The sounds of mining were loud and clear here, though he was unable to spot the workers without risking exposing himself to the lack of cover. He watched another couple minutes and caught brief glances of smallish figures – kobolds, he suspected, but couldn’t be certain. Finally, he returned to the others to report what he had learned. In the hall, they discussed the pro’s and con’s of ambushing the unknown miners versus leaving them alone and trying the other direction from the elevator. Before they could reach a consensus, the unmistakable sound of a squeaky cart started coming their direction from the mining operation. Quickly and quietly, they got around a corner and concealed all light sources. Rurik, the only one with full darkvision, took point just around the corner. As the leading edge of the ore-laden cart rounded the corner, Rurik leapt out and swung his mighty dwarven war axe. In the split second it took for his axe to connect with the nearest target, he was able to confirm with a grim satisfaction that it was indeed a kobold – two of them, actually. Rurik scored a critical hit (the first with this weapon) and lopped the creature’s head off and got his axe lodged in the support timber of the hallway. Kisty brought out her continual flame torch, giving Nigel enough light by which to leap around the corner and tackle the remaining kobold. Spotting no others kobolds, they quickly moved the body, the captive, and the cart down a side passage. A couple of the party spoke Draconic, so the ad hoc interrogation began. There was considerable dispute among the party as to how they should treat the kobolds. On the one hand, they were known to be inherently evil. On the other, the party were the invaders in what appeared to be the kobold’s home. What details they could get from the frightened kobold went something like this: He was a simple miner, and his clan was working this mine for its iron. They made ordinary items and weapons with it. They had been here for a number of years – he couldn’t be more specific. The rest of his clan lived further down the opposite direction from the elevator shaft. He also told them something about a dragon that they worshipped and left offerings for. “Dragon, eh?” the party asked, rhetorically. “Which direction is that egg-thing pointing?” They checked. “More or less in the direction of the kobold’s lair, and further back in the mine.” “And the kobold says there’s a dragon down that way?” “Yup.” “Figures.” Next session: The (5th-6th level) party learns what a couple dozen kobolds are capable of. -Rybaer [/QUOTE]
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