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Message: <blockquote data-quote="bowbe" data-source="post: 3812586" data-attributes="member: 6328">What Next?So after much deliberation the PCs decide it is time to infiltrate the City of the Dead Sultana.They approach the platform, noting that all bridges connecting this platform to the rest of the city have been destroyed. Some bardic knowledge on the part of the Half Djinn reveals that a beam of light is known to fire forth from the darkened platform and slay any efreet who ventures too close to the walls so that the only entry is through one of the cities many Demon Gates. Problem? Demon Gates Balors bound into the gate itself. They allow none to pass where a demon gate has been placed. The PCs approach with caution, juicing themselves up with all the typical and appropriate buffs. The player of Rhy brings a new player tonight. A guy named Zack (who has been mentioned previously).Zack is immediately in over his head with this one, he’s been playing 3.5 for about 3 months prior to joining our group and starts out playing a cleric that the player of Rhy and the Player of Konn helped him generate (tho not much) remembering the level of pure twinkishness that the Mul Fighter Monk and the Human “I don’t like to be touched” fighter aka wannabe paladin bring to the table, Zack’s character “Barnabus” is a lawful neutral inquisitor styled cleric. So right away we have a whole “why do we need another cleric in the party” situation… that could prove to be sticky. Add to that we have lawful (neutral) good Konn, Neutral Good (wannabe lawful good) Rhy, Lawful Evil Ard, and Neutral (evil) SamQ2 with Chaotic Good Elandrin, Chaotic Good Kitiara, and Chaotic Neutral (Crazy) Glandril. A big party, and lots of conflict. A couple players have been more and more rules lawyerly as time has passed, which has become sort of a drag on session time as every single miniscule rule has to get looked at for veracity over and over again. I don’t think I’m a horrible DM and feel that I have a pretty decent grasp of the rules and a better grasp of HAVING FUN! But no matter, I try to be cool with everything and when I’m wrong I eat it with a smile. Either way they approach the gate. It tells them to flee or be eaten. They don’t flee, and battle commences. Even with a 16th -17th ish level party in the mix, this is a TOUGH encounter that the PCs luck out in when I blow initiative. I lay lots of mass damage on them, and try to decapitate some people with the tongue of the demon gate. Glandril goes big, Elandrin uses holy bolt type spells from the book of all twinkish books “Spell Compendium”… hahahaha! I know that statement probably annoys some folks, but for 5th level spells that play as 8th level spells and special conditions you have to dig deep into the text to find (such as spell resistance) you can’t beat it. Nobody dies, but some powerful spells are wasted in the attempt and the PCs pass into the darkened platform.Beyond they come unexpectedly face to face with a thick jungle. They cut their way through the choked pathways that were once thick thoroughfares pausing a moment at the enormous statue of the Sultana carved from a single piece of jade. They note her eyes missing as well as a space in the forehead. In the distance they see a strange tower with a glowing reddish light at its top that gives the whole area a reddish tint.On a hill in the center of the platform they can make out the spires of a beautiful palace beyond the trees.As they explore they find themselves stalked by hordes of ghostly genies made part of flame and squadrons of skeletal warriors. Avoiding the palace they make their way by circuitous route to the tower. Climbing the stair they are faced with the dusty apparition of the former Vizier of the City of Brass, brother of the former Sultana who fashioned her tomb and is the guardian of the Ruby of Law… the source of the glowing red light.The PCs listen to the Salt Lich’s tale, and are surprisingly moved. He tells of the fate of his sister and how her spirit may be called by one who has a droplet of her blood. (Which would be back in the Library D’oh!)The PCs ask if the Lich my be raised, and he replies, only by true resurrection (Still out of reach) or through the waters of mukphat, but without his sister and her blessed husband, he knows of no reason to be raised. The Usurper is still on the throne, raising the Lich alone would be a phirric gesture. The PCs inquire about the waters of Mukphat, now finding 2 other missions they must fulfill and learn that Mukphat was a holy man buried somewhere in the Plane of Molten Skies whose dripping effluence is said to have the power to Ressurrect anyone, no matter how dead!The Lich also mentions the armies of the obsidian angel and again the PCs note this mention. They ask what would free the angel and are told of the carnelian idol. The lich suggest that the idol may be hidden within the Heart of Nyolz… which happens to be in the Minaret of Screams! (OH NO!)Remembering how difficult it was to get into the library in the first place they figure to make a run at the Minaret again, surmising that it was the easiest to enter…WrongThe entire place was now surrounded with hundreds of Marmalukes and their Efreeti masters on flying carpets. Evidently the place was under extra guard, tho the marmalukes and Efreeti make certain to stay a safe distance from the minarets wails. So… remembering that the efreeti they saved from the minaret had a noble father who happened to have a secret way into the Library… the PCs went that route. Using their rod of embassy they went to the noble quarter, visiting the Bayt Al Jyoom. There they asked for audience with the Bayt’s Sheik, who showed them to a large iron bound book once they revealed their identities and how they had saved his son. They took the passage through the huge iron bound tome… Ard was nearly killed in the passing due to the unprotected damage that the demonic guardian of the book plagues upon any who make the passage into the repository.Once in the repository they faced another librarian, but with the extra muscle the battle went quickly with only one character imprisoned (and later freed with a spare wish the PCs had been saving). Having two clerics + Ard made it A LOT easier. PCs in the group seem happy that Barnabus actually heals people. This annoys the player of Elandrin, since he figures just about everyone in the party has been out to kill him all along anyhow. (He's only partly right). Into the chamber of blood they pulled the levers and rolled the dice. Eventually they got lucky and got the blood of the Sultana which mentioned to the Half Djinn “I know you” and poof they put the blood into a bottle. Onward back through the wound of Harepshet they re-entered the disgusting bowel of the Minaret of Screams and made their way in… looking for the Heart of Nyalz…About that time the session drew to a close.</blockquote>

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