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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Colmarr" data-source="post: 5685309" data-attributes="member: 59182">Session 4This session was delayed two weeks because Cassi's player passed away on 1 September 2011 after a long illness.  RIP Nerida. Session Summary In the week after the events on the Coaltongue, RT3 were kept busy with paperwork and following leads around Flint relating to the saboteurs’ activities. They were then called to Inspector Delft's office and met with him and the tiefling Lya Jierre. Lya Jierre, the Danoran Minister for Outsiders, informed the investigators that Duchess Ethelyn and her allies had captured a Danoran outpost on Axis Island, so called because compasses spin on their axis there. Axis island houses a Danoran mining operation, some factories and an outpost. Lya shared King Aodhan's desire for peace, and was concerned that the Duchess' actions would be used by the Danoran congress as justification to renew the war between the two nations. She had proposed (and Aodhan had accepted) that Risuri forces recapture the island from the Duchess and then voluntarily hand it back to Danor.  Jierre had two conditions: the handover had to happen in approximately 3 days time, and she wanted RT3 to ensure that no harm came to her cousin Nathan Jierre, who was working on the island. Nathan had been just a teenager during the war and she maintained he was innocent of any crime. RT3 accepted her conditions. After Jierre left, Delft explained to his investigators that their involvement in the mission was primarily to investigate the Duchess's actions after the island was recaptured. Another team of infiltration specialists from Slate would lead the mission, although RT3 would be called on to take over if something went wrong. After making requisitions from the RHC quartermaster, RT3 set out on the RNS Impossible that afternoon and were surprised to find it captained by Rutger Smith, the cigar-smoking amateur theologist that Erik had interacted with onboard the Coaltongue. Over a well-provisioned dinner, Smith again expounded on his admiration for Millerite theories of understanding. Erik and Thornt took a more pragmatic view of how to solve disputes. The Impossible met up with the Risuri navy near Axis Island and the infiltration specialists came aboard: Seven foot Dan the fighter, Tanya the shaman, Burton the goblin rogue and Letmas the illusionist. Tanya briefed RT3 on the mission: reach the island by way of a secret sea cave at the bottom of a mine and emerge from the mine in an inland valley; journey over the northern mountains to reach the rear of the island's fortress. Breach the wall with Passwall scrolls, then make way to open the fortress' sea gates. Signal the fleet with Pyrotechnics scrolls and then hold the gate open until marines could storm the outpost. After the briefing, the Impossible hoisted black sails and set off under cover of night. Once it reached the target cove, the infiltrators took a length of rope, cast rituals of Water Breathing on their group and RT3, and set off for the hidden sea cave. A few minutes later the rope went slack and then began jerking fitfully. RT3 dove overboard and followed the rope, only to discover that the tunnel roof had partially collapsed. Burton's leg was pinned underneath a boulder, and the only trace of the other infiltrators was the crushed end of Seven foot Dan's spiked chain. Burton was delirious with pain and blood loss and begged RT3 to free him before sharks ate him. Almost simultaneously, Thornt noted ominous shapes circling at the edge of his sunrod's light. Erik discovered a strangely fresh iron rod in the rubble of the tunnel and Cassi, Willheim and Erik used it to lever the boulder off Burton. Fresh blood filled the water and the goblin began muttering about a purple swamp. RT3 quickly continued up the tunnel before whatever was following them could attack. At the end of the tunnel, they discovered a sea cave. When the lights later came up, RT3 realised that the cave was dominated by a pillar of stone that rose out of the water and platforms built into the wall. Near the bottom of the pillar, approximately 12' above the water level, a small ledge seemed to hold some form of object. Erik and Tok chose not to reveal their light sources and moved ahead slowly to investigate the cave. Erik soon came under pistol fire from a Danoran miner positioned on platforms high overhead. Thornt fed Burton a potion of healing to stablise the goblin, and then RT3 surged forward. They quickly overwhelmed the miner and his earth elemental and shadow stalker allies, but not before Cassi, Willheim and Thornt took significant damage. The good I deviated from the module's script a little by putting menacing shapes in the water behind the PCs when they came across Burton pinned in the sea tunnel, but the added pressure worked wonders. The players seemed genuinely torn between their desire to save Burton and their duty to head into the cave as quickly as possible. When they did manage to free him, I was pleasantly surprised to see Thornt's player feed the little scoundrel a healing potion to ensure he would survive. The bad The combat with Dupiers dragged quite significantly because the PCs carefully made their way up the platforms on the western side of the sea cave.  I contemplated having the shadow stalker rush them just to have something happening, but I knew that sending it out alone would lead to taking a fusilshot in the face from Erik and then being smashed with Cassi's hammer. So it hung back for approximately 5 rounds and did little other than throw a firepowder barrel. On the bright side, Thornt seemed completely unable to make the required saving throw and took 25 damage from ongoing fire before he finally saved on 3 hp. If I were to run the combat again, I'd put some firepowder barrels at the first ladder and have Dupier's elementals destroy them with a keg, thus setting the whole structure crumbling and forcing the PCs to sprint to stay ahead of the drop. The ugly I realised after the session that I never actually told the players where the weakpoint in the fortress wall is (or even that there is one). I'll need to remember to have Burton pass on that information next session. Next session is 2 October 2011, because Thornt's and Tok's players are away for a few weeks.</blockquote>

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