Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
Menexenus's Age of Worms Campaign Journal
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Menexenus" data-source="post: 3549076" data-attributes="member: 8951"><p><strong>Session 31: Hall of the Rainbow Mage</strong></p><p></p><p><em>23rd of Goodmonth</em>. After a fortnight on the road, the party was finally nearing its destination: Rosewater, a small town that was once home to the Rainbow Mage. As the party broke camp to begin the final leg of their journey, Thorash revealed that he had performed a divination and had learned that the party would not be facing the Rainbow Mage in combat (at least not within a week's time). Alexander was typically dubious of anything that the dwarven cleric claimed to have learned from Wee Jas. The others seemed at least somewhat relieved that they were not destined to face such a powerful and renowned wizard in combat.</p><p></p><p> The party finally arrived in Rosewater a little past noon. As they rode through town, they found that it was a bit smaller than Diamond Lake. The roof of the wizard's tower was clearly visible poking through the tree tops on a hill about 5 to 10 miles away. The party's first stop was at the Rosewater Stable, to board their horses. They all tipped the stable boy, Radik, 4 extra silver pieces to pamper their road-weary horses. He was very appreciative. Alexander asked him where they might be able to find the Rainbow Mage. Radik responded solemnly that the Rainbow Mage had been ambushed on the road outside town almost 2 months ago now and was feared dead. No one in town knew who had attacked him or why. Radik confided that, upon learning of the Rainbow Mage's disappearance, some strangers had been coming to town to loot his tower. Some of these strangers came back from their expeditions and some didn't. Those who returned seemed disappointed with what they were able to find. By all accounts, none of them had found any of the wizard's secrets. No one has found the wizard's body. Alexander thanked the boy for his information.</p><p></p><p> Next the party stopped at the Town Hall right off the village square. Inside they met the town sheriff, Hamra Ranthas, a towering woman with a greataxe strapped to her back. She had a large scar running down her cheek and neck. Her voice was barely louder than a whisper, no doubt because of her wound. When the party inquired about the Rainbow Mage, she inquired about the cause of their interest. They told her that they were from Greyhawk on a mission to investigate the Rainbow Mage's death because there was evidence that he might have known something about the forces that caused the Worm's Rampage. The sheriff seemed to accept this explanation. She asked for the party members' names, and said she would convey them to her constables so that they would let the party pass. She explained that the wizard's tower had seen a good deal of looting, and she was trying to put a stop to it by arresting trespassers. </p><p></p><p>She shared with the party what her investigation had turned up about the Rainbow Mage's death. He had been travelling to town in his carriage one evening when he was ambushed by several assailants at a bend in the trail. A number of poisoned arrows were shot at the carriage. 3 of them struck the horse pulling the carriage, causing it to bolt. It ran for about a minute before collapsing, causing the carriage to overturn a short distance off the trail. Two arrows were also found in the driver of the carriage, Dane, Londar's longtime house servant (a local man). Both the horse and the servant died quickly of the poison on the arrows. It had been a warm night, and apparently the Rainbow Mage had opened the windows on his carriage, as some arrows were also found inside the carriage itself. There was also blood found inside the carriage. Killick asked for permission to inspect the arrows taken from the crime scene. Hamra took out a sack containing evidence from the crime and allowed Killick to inspect its contents. He found the arrows to be perfectly ordinary. The poison was too old for precise identification, but Killick was able to ascertain that it was very deadly - whoever was using a poison like this one was intending to kill their target, not capture him. </p><p></p><p>When the party asked for permission to investigate the wizard's tower, the sheriff referred them to the tower's lawful owner by right of inheritance, the Rainbow Mage's daughter, Learah. Hamra informed the party that she was staying at the Red House, a local boarding establishment for wealthy and well-connected travellers, but she ate dinner each night at the White Boar Inn looking for adventurers willing to find out what happened to her father. Hamra suggested that they party might be able to strike a deal with her.</p><p></p><p> While most of the party left to get a room and order dinner at the White Boar Inn, Thorash went off to find Dane's elderly mother. As delicately as he could, Thorash asked the woman for permission to exhume Dane's body so that he might ask his spirit for more information about the circumstances of his death. While the old lady encouraged him to find and punish Dane's killers, she asked Thorash to allow Dane's spirit to rest in peace. Thorash told the woman that he would respect her wishes and then left to join his companions at the White Boar Inn. Each party member except Katawan and Killick rented a room for the night. (Killick had been disappointed to learn that Baeris, the owner, did not allow guests to keep dogs in their rooms.)</p><p></p><p> Since dinner would not be ready for an hour or so, the party took a stroll through town entering a small house with a placard outside indicating that healing services were available for sale. Inside was a woman with long brown hair into which she had braided numerous wildflowers. She introduced herself as Mara and asked if the party was in need of healing. They said they were not, but they might be in the future. Thorash asked her if she could tell them who in town had used her services at about the same time that the Rainbow Mage disappeared. She politely replied that she had taken a strict vow of neutrality which required her to keep her patients' information confidential. When the party asked her if she had any healing potions for sale, she said that she did. However, if they wanted a greater selection of potions, they should find Maroof, the local apothecary, who sold a number of magical elixirs along with more mundane potions and salves. Since it was about time for dinner, the party thanked her for her help and suggested that they might have reason to return over the course of the next few days.</p><p></p><p> The party walked back to the White Boar Inn and found that dinner was well-attended. It seemed that half of the town had turned out. The party was lucky to find a small table available. When they asked a waitress, they were told that this level of attendance was normal. Just before dinner, a golden-haired woman with a lute took the stage. She introduced herself as Khenden Brightsun. She began singing and playing very pleasantly, and her performance was greeted with generous applause and not-quite-so-generous tips from the bar patrons. As soon as the party was done with their meal, a well-dressed, well-mannered woman in her late 20s or early 30s approached the party's table, introducing herself as Learah, Londar Brightrain's daughter. She asked the party if they could be persuaded to help her find out who attacked her father. The party replied that they were in town to do just that. They told her they had come from Greyhawk because they thought Londar might have had some information about the Worm's Rampage in Greyhawk. Learah interjected that perhaps that is why her father was killed. She explained that, since she was not a student of the magical arts, she had never had a reason to visit anything more than the first floor of her father's tower. So she was unaware what might lie on the other levels, and she was unaware of the passwords that might disarm any traps. The one thing she could help them with was getting in the front door, which she knew was trapped. She said she was in possession of a key that would temporarily disarm the trap and allow the party to enter. She said that her first priority was to find her father's remains and her second priority was to find out who had killed him. She gave the party permission to investigate her father's house and read his writings. She offered each party member one item of their choice from the house in payment for their help. The party accepted this offer, and they all agreed to meet just after dawn to go to the tower together.</p><p></p><p> After Learah retired for the evening, the party was approached by a dark haired man whom Alees had noticed earlier was watching them. He introduced himself as Anders Fierk, a humble student of the arcane arts. He surmised from observing the party's discussion with Learah that they would be helping her explore her father's tower. He offered to pay the party generously if they would recover Londar's spellbooks for him to copy. He explained that he was the Rainbow Mage's former apprentice, and he couldn't bear the thought of his former master's knowledge being forgotten. He wanted to help spread the word of his former mentor's greatness, but in order to do so, he needed copies of Londar's work. While Alexander complimented Anders on his motives, he said that he could not agree to such an arrangement without discussing it with Learah first. Anders seemed disappointed. As he left, he asked the party not to forget his offer, if they should change their minds. After he was gone, Alees shared with the rest of the party that she thought Anders was not being completely honest with them.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> <em>24th of Goodmonth</em>. The next morning, the party met with Learah outside the White Boar Inn and they all headed down the road towards the wizard's tower. Alexander asked Learah about Anders. She replied that Anders had been making the same offer to everyone who arrived in town. She was of the view that his offers were encouraging much of the looting that had taken place. Consequently, she did not want the party to make any side arrangements with Anders. Alexander assured her that they would not do so. </p><p></p><p>Along the way, they came across the spot where the carriage had been found. Killick poked around a bit, and found the deep wheelmarks where the carriage had left the road. But there was nothing else of interest left there. A few minutes later they came across the ambush site. This location was easy to spot, because there was a large black blastmark in the middle of the road where the Rainbow Mage had apparently fought back briefly against his assailants. Killick spent a half hour here while the rest of the party continued ahead. He was able to find a few more arrows like the ones that Hamra had shown him before, but nothing new. </p><p></p><p> Killick and his dog caught up with the group just as they arrived at the wizard's tower. A dead body lay on the steps leading up to the front door. The corpse had already been picked clean of valuables. After examining the deceased's state of decay, Killick guessed that the body had been lying there for about a week. He determined that the man died from a massive discharge of energy, but the state of decay made it impossible to tell exactly what kind. Two stained glass windows on the front of the house had been broken - a round one above the front door and a square one to the right of the door. There was almost no glass at all left in the square one, while the round one looked as though a rock had been tossed through it. Learah used her key in the front door and wished the party luck. She informed them that she would be in the common room of the White Boar Inn if they had any news to report. At that point she headed back to town. The party scouted around the outside of the house. There were two other broken stained glass windows on the other two sides of the building. But on the rounded far side of the house - the side where the tower was - there were very large unbroken stained glass windows.</p><p></p><p> Thorash propped the front door open to ensure that the door would not close and the trap reset. The party entered the foyer. There were darkened spots on the walls where pictures or tapestries had once hung. There were 3 interior doors leading from this small room. 2 were closed, but the one directly across from the front door was open, showing a hallway that eventually opened up into a larger space. Along this hallway were a number of doors, all of which were closed. Alees took her time checking everything for traps and secret compartments. She found no traps on the door immediately to the right of the main entrance. She opened the door and found an emptied coat closet. The door to the left of the main entrance was also not trapped. When she opened it, she found the servant's quarters. This room had been ransacked and anything of value big enough to fit through the window had been taken. Everything else had been destroyed. Alees also found a secret compartment behind a loose panel in the foyer. Inside was a finely-made crossbow with some finely-made bolts. Since Alexander was still outside, Alees made an attempt to switch her own mundane crossbow bolts with the bolts inside the panel. She thought that her sleight of hand had not been detected by anyone in the party (or at least, anyone who might actually care).</p><p></p><p> Next she started carefully checking the doors in the hallway. She opened the door on the right side of the hallway, and it opened up into a kitchen. There was a large brick oven in the middle of the room, flour was strewn about the floor, and all the cupboards were open and bare. The party spotted a number of human-sized boot prints moving through the flour in all directions. After Alees was convinced that there were no secret compartments in this room, began investigating the doors on the other side of the hallway. While she was looking at the first door, Thorash moved into the open space at the end of the hallway and found that it was a dining room. The table and all of the chairs had been overturned, and there was a noticeable odor of stale vomit in the room. Thorash saw that there was a small ledge on the far wall below the broken stained glass window, where small figures might once have stood. Indeed there was one small statue of a silver dragon still on it.</p><p></p><p> At this point, Alees finished checking the door for traps. Finding it untrapped, she opened it and found herself face to face with a group of 5 adventurers who seemed prepared for her. As soon as the door opened, a wizard cast Web into the dining room, catching Thorash and Alees in the sticky strands. An archer shot an arrow at her, missing her. A rogue stabbed at her with his rapier, missing. A cleric in the back of the room cast a spell on himself. Finally, a large, well-muscled man screamed in rage, stepped up and slashed into Alees with his greataxe, causing grievous damage. Her companions moved up to the Web to help Alees escape. Katawan even drew a flint and steel from his backpack in order to help burn her out of the web, but Alees shook him off. Instead, she closed her eyes in fervent prayer to Fharlangn, and suddenly she was able to slip out of the Web, avoiding another blow from the big man's greataxe. The enemy wizard stepped up to the doorway and fanned a sheet of flames from his finger tips, setting the web alight. This was the opening that Katawan had been hoping for. He dropped the flint and steel, ripped a bead from his necklace, and tossed it against the room's far wall, engulfing the whole room in flames. Screams of pain came from inside. Alexander launched magic missiles at the man in the doorway who had struck Alees. The enemy cleric cast a spell that caused Alexander to freeze. However, Alexander was able to shake off this effect just seconds later. Used his skill with the whirling quarterstaff to block the doorway and make it virtually impossible for anyone to hit him. Thorash struggled to free himself as he saw the fire quickly approaching. Alees healed herself in the safety of the kitchen. Tarric attacked the man with the greataxe from around the corner, doing him serious damage. Meanwhile, Katawan kept tossing in beads. After the third explosion, the enemy party dropped their weapons and offered their surrender to Tarric. They seemed to recognize his shield insignia and surmised that a Knight of Holy Shielding would be likely to treat them honorably. However, just when the battle seemed over, a bearded demon suddenly appeared in the room. The enemy party quickly rearmed themselves and began fighting it. Tarric and Killick moved into the room to help them against the infernal entity. Seeing that it was most likely going to be dispatched by force of arms anyway, Thorash waved a charred hand and the bearded demon returned from whence it had come.</p><p></p><p> With the fight really over this time, the enemy party negotiated the terms of their surrender. They offered the party all of their magical items in exchange for their freedom. When the party realized that arresting and trying the looters in court would result in the looters' property being forfeited to the crown (rather than to them), they decided to accept their prisoners' offer. However, before the prisoners left, they mentioned that the party might regret attacking agents of the Thieves' Guild engaged in Guild business. The party found this comment to be laughable and sent their former prisoners on their way, warning them not to return.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Menexenus, post: 3549076, member: 8951"] [b]Session 31: Hall of the Rainbow Mage[/b] [I]23rd of Goodmonth[/I]. After a fortnight on the road, the party was finally nearing its destination: Rosewater, a small town that was once home to the Rainbow Mage. As the party broke camp to begin the final leg of their journey, Thorash revealed that he had performed a divination and had learned that the party would not be facing the Rainbow Mage in combat (at least not within a week's time). Alexander was typically dubious of anything that the dwarven cleric claimed to have learned from Wee Jas. The others seemed at least somewhat relieved that they were not destined to face such a powerful and renowned wizard in combat. The party finally arrived in Rosewater a little past noon. As they rode through town, they found that it was a bit smaller than Diamond Lake. The roof of the wizard's tower was clearly visible poking through the tree tops on a hill about 5 to 10 miles away. The party's first stop was at the Rosewater Stable, to board their horses. They all tipped the stable boy, Radik, 4 extra silver pieces to pamper their road-weary horses. He was very appreciative. Alexander asked him where they might be able to find the Rainbow Mage. Radik responded solemnly that the Rainbow Mage had been ambushed on the road outside town almost 2 months ago now and was feared dead. No one in town knew who had attacked him or why. Radik confided that, upon learning of the Rainbow Mage's disappearance, some strangers had been coming to town to loot his tower. Some of these strangers came back from their expeditions and some didn't. Those who returned seemed disappointed with what they were able to find. By all accounts, none of them had found any of the wizard's secrets. No one has found the wizard's body. Alexander thanked the boy for his information. Next the party stopped at the Town Hall right off the village square. Inside they met the town sheriff, Hamra Ranthas, a towering woman with a greataxe strapped to her back. She had a large scar running down her cheek and neck. Her voice was barely louder than a whisper, no doubt because of her wound. When the party inquired about the Rainbow Mage, she inquired about the cause of their interest. They told her that they were from Greyhawk on a mission to investigate the Rainbow Mage's death because there was evidence that he might have known something about the forces that caused the Worm's Rampage. The sheriff seemed to accept this explanation. She asked for the party members' names, and said she would convey them to her constables so that they would let the party pass. She explained that the wizard's tower had seen a good deal of looting, and she was trying to put a stop to it by arresting trespassers. She shared with the party what her investigation had turned up about the Rainbow Mage's death. He had been travelling to town in his carriage one evening when he was ambushed by several assailants at a bend in the trail. A number of poisoned arrows were shot at the carriage. 3 of them struck the horse pulling the carriage, causing it to bolt. It ran for about a minute before collapsing, causing the carriage to overturn a short distance off the trail. Two arrows were also found in the driver of the carriage, Dane, Londar's longtime house servant (a local man). Both the horse and the servant died quickly of the poison on the arrows. It had been a warm night, and apparently the Rainbow Mage had opened the windows on his carriage, as some arrows were also found inside the carriage itself. There was also blood found inside the carriage. Killick asked for permission to inspect the arrows taken from the crime scene. Hamra took out a sack containing evidence from the crime and allowed Killick to inspect its contents. He found the arrows to be perfectly ordinary. The poison was too old for precise identification, but Killick was able to ascertain that it was very deadly - whoever was using a poison like this one was intending to kill their target, not capture him. When the party asked for permission to investigate the wizard's tower, the sheriff referred them to the tower's lawful owner by right of inheritance, the Rainbow Mage's daughter, Learah. Hamra informed the party that she was staying at the Red House, a local boarding establishment for wealthy and well-connected travellers, but she ate dinner each night at the White Boar Inn looking for adventurers willing to find out what happened to her father. Hamra suggested that they party might be able to strike a deal with her. While most of the party left to get a room and order dinner at the White Boar Inn, Thorash went off to find Dane's elderly mother. As delicately as he could, Thorash asked the woman for permission to exhume Dane's body so that he might ask his spirit for more information about the circumstances of his death. While the old lady encouraged him to find and punish Dane's killers, she asked Thorash to allow Dane's spirit to rest in peace. Thorash told the woman that he would respect her wishes and then left to join his companions at the White Boar Inn. Each party member except Katawan and Killick rented a room for the night. (Killick had been disappointed to learn that Baeris, the owner, did not allow guests to keep dogs in their rooms.) Since dinner would not be ready for an hour or so, the party took a stroll through town entering a small house with a placard outside indicating that healing services were available for sale. Inside was a woman with long brown hair into which she had braided numerous wildflowers. She introduced herself as Mara and asked if the party was in need of healing. They said they were not, but they might be in the future. Thorash asked her if she could tell them who in town had used her services at about the same time that the Rainbow Mage disappeared. She politely replied that she had taken a strict vow of neutrality which required her to keep her patients' information confidential. When the party asked her if she had any healing potions for sale, she said that she did. However, if they wanted a greater selection of potions, they should find Maroof, the local apothecary, who sold a number of magical elixirs along with more mundane potions and salves. Since it was about time for dinner, the party thanked her for her help and suggested that they might have reason to return over the course of the next few days. The party walked back to the White Boar Inn and found that dinner was well-attended. It seemed that half of the town had turned out. The party was lucky to find a small table available. When they asked a waitress, they were told that this level of attendance was normal. Just before dinner, a golden-haired woman with a lute took the stage. She introduced herself as Khenden Brightsun. She began singing and playing very pleasantly, and her performance was greeted with generous applause and not-quite-so-generous tips from the bar patrons. As soon as the party was done with their meal, a well-dressed, well-mannered woman in her late 20s or early 30s approached the party's table, introducing herself as Learah, Londar Brightrain's daughter. She asked the party if they could be persuaded to help her find out who attacked her father. The party replied that they were in town to do just that. They told her they had come from Greyhawk because they thought Londar might have had some information about the Worm's Rampage in Greyhawk. Learah interjected that perhaps that is why her father was killed. She explained that, since she was not a student of the magical arts, she had never had a reason to visit anything more than the first floor of her father's tower. So she was unaware what might lie on the other levels, and she was unaware of the passwords that might disarm any traps. The one thing she could help them with was getting in the front door, which she knew was trapped. She said she was in possession of a key that would temporarily disarm the trap and allow the party to enter. She said that her first priority was to find her father's remains and her second priority was to find out who had killed him. She gave the party permission to investigate her father's house and read his writings. She offered each party member one item of their choice from the house in payment for their help. The party accepted this offer, and they all agreed to meet just after dawn to go to the tower together. After Learah retired for the evening, the party was approached by a dark haired man whom Alees had noticed earlier was watching them. He introduced himself as Anders Fierk, a humble student of the arcane arts. He surmised from observing the party's discussion with Learah that they would be helping her explore her father's tower. He offered to pay the party generously if they would recover Londar's spellbooks for him to copy. He explained that he was the Rainbow Mage's former apprentice, and he couldn't bear the thought of his former master's knowledge being forgotten. He wanted to help spread the word of his former mentor's greatness, but in order to do so, he needed copies of Londar's work. While Alexander complimented Anders on his motives, he said that he could not agree to such an arrangement without discussing it with Learah first. Anders seemed disappointed. As he left, he asked the party not to forget his offer, if they should change their minds. After he was gone, Alees shared with the rest of the party that she thought Anders was not being completely honest with them. [I]24th of Goodmonth[/I]. The next morning, the party met with Learah outside the White Boar Inn and they all headed down the road towards the wizard's tower. Alexander asked Learah about Anders. She replied that Anders had been making the same offer to everyone who arrived in town. She was of the view that his offers were encouraging much of the looting that had taken place. Consequently, she did not want the party to make any side arrangements with Anders. Alexander assured her that they would not do so. Along the way, they came across the spot where the carriage had been found. Killick poked around a bit, and found the deep wheelmarks where the carriage had left the road. But there was nothing else of interest left there. A few minutes later they came across the ambush site. This location was easy to spot, because there was a large black blastmark in the middle of the road where the Rainbow Mage had apparently fought back briefly against his assailants. Killick spent a half hour here while the rest of the party continued ahead. He was able to find a few more arrows like the ones that Hamra had shown him before, but nothing new. Killick and his dog caught up with the group just as they arrived at the wizard's tower. A dead body lay on the steps leading up to the front door. The corpse had already been picked clean of valuables. After examining the deceased's state of decay, Killick guessed that the body had been lying there for about a week. He determined that the man died from a massive discharge of energy, but the state of decay made it impossible to tell exactly what kind. Two stained glass windows on the front of the house had been broken - a round one above the front door and a square one to the right of the door. There was almost no glass at all left in the square one, while the round one looked as though a rock had been tossed through it. Learah used her key in the front door and wished the party luck. She informed them that she would be in the common room of the White Boar Inn if they had any news to report. At that point she headed back to town. The party scouted around the outside of the house. There were two other broken stained glass windows on the other two sides of the building. But on the rounded far side of the house - the side where the tower was - there were very large unbroken stained glass windows. Thorash propped the front door open to ensure that the door would not close and the trap reset. The party entered the foyer. There were darkened spots on the walls where pictures or tapestries had once hung. There were 3 interior doors leading from this small room. 2 were closed, but the one directly across from the front door was open, showing a hallway that eventually opened up into a larger space. Along this hallway were a number of doors, all of which were closed. Alees took her time checking everything for traps and secret compartments. She found no traps on the door immediately to the right of the main entrance. She opened the door and found an emptied coat closet. The door to the left of the main entrance was also not trapped. When she opened it, she found the servant's quarters. This room had been ransacked and anything of value big enough to fit through the window had been taken. Everything else had been destroyed. Alees also found a secret compartment behind a loose panel in the foyer. Inside was a finely-made crossbow with some finely-made bolts. Since Alexander was still outside, Alees made an attempt to switch her own mundane crossbow bolts with the bolts inside the panel. She thought that her sleight of hand had not been detected by anyone in the party (or at least, anyone who might actually care). Next she started carefully checking the doors in the hallway. She opened the door on the right side of the hallway, and it opened up into a kitchen. There was a large brick oven in the middle of the room, flour was strewn about the floor, and all the cupboards were open and bare. The party spotted a number of human-sized boot prints moving through the flour in all directions. After Alees was convinced that there were no secret compartments in this room, began investigating the doors on the other side of the hallway. While she was looking at the first door, Thorash moved into the open space at the end of the hallway and found that it was a dining room. The table and all of the chairs had been overturned, and there was a noticeable odor of stale vomit in the room. Thorash saw that there was a small ledge on the far wall below the broken stained glass window, where small figures might once have stood. Indeed there was one small statue of a silver dragon still on it. At this point, Alees finished checking the door for traps. Finding it untrapped, she opened it and found herself face to face with a group of 5 adventurers who seemed prepared for her. As soon as the door opened, a wizard cast Web into the dining room, catching Thorash and Alees in the sticky strands. An archer shot an arrow at her, missing her. A rogue stabbed at her with his rapier, missing. A cleric in the back of the room cast a spell on himself. Finally, a large, well-muscled man screamed in rage, stepped up and slashed into Alees with his greataxe, causing grievous damage. Her companions moved up to the Web to help Alees escape. Katawan even drew a flint and steel from his backpack in order to help burn her out of the web, but Alees shook him off. Instead, she closed her eyes in fervent prayer to Fharlangn, and suddenly she was able to slip out of the Web, avoiding another blow from the big man's greataxe. The enemy wizard stepped up to the doorway and fanned a sheet of flames from his finger tips, setting the web alight. This was the opening that Katawan had been hoping for. He dropped the flint and steel, ripped a bead from his necklace, and tossed it against the room's far wall, engulfing the whole room in flames. Screams of pain came from inside. Alexander launched magic missiles at the man in the doorway who had struck Alees. The enemy cleric cast a spell that caused Alexander to freeze. However, Alexander was able to shake off this effect just seconds later. Used his skill with the whirling quarterstaff to block the doorway and make it virtually impossible for anyone to hit him. Thorash struggled to free himself as he saw the fire quickly approaching. Alees healed herself in the safety of the kitchen. Tarric attacked the man with the greataxe from around the corner, doing him serious damage. Meanwhile, Katawan kept tossing in beads. After the third explosion, the enemy party dropped their weapons and offered their surrender to Tarric. They seemed to recognize his shield insignia and surmised that a Knight of Holy Shielding would be likely to treat them honorably. However, just when the battle seemed over, a bearded demon suddenly appeared in the room. The enemy party quickly rearmed themselves and began fighting it. Tarric and Killick moved into the room to help them against the infernal entity. Seeing that it was most likely going to be dispatched by force of arms anyway, Thorash waved a charred hand and the bearded demon returned from whence it had come. With the fight really over this time, the enemy party negotiated the terms of their surrender. They offered the party all of their magical items in exchange for their freedom. When the party realized that arresting and trying the looters in court would result in the looters' property being forfeited to the crown (rather than to them), they decided to accept their prisoners' offer. However, before the prisoners left, they mentioned that the party might regret attacking agents of the Thieves' Guild engaged in Guild business. The party found this comment to be laughable and sent their former prisoners on their way, warning them not to return. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
Menexenus's Age of Worms Campaign Journal
Top