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
The
VOIDRUNNER'S CODEX
is coming! Explore new worlds, fight oppressive empires, fend off fearsome aliens, and wield deadly psionics with this comprehensive boxed set expansion for 5E and A5E!
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
Rel's Faded Glory III: Glory Reborn (FINAL UPDATE 6/22 - SHE'S DONE, BABY!!)
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="Rel" data-source="post: 2283778" data-attributes="member: 99"><p>Here's a little something to chew on over the weekend and I should be able to update again next week despite a busy schedule:</p><p></p><p></p><p>The fear that had gripped them from the moment they entered the Dragon’s lair gradually subsided. They moved cautiously toward the rear of the chamber and saw the hoard that ringed the room Their eyes filled with wonder at the treasures they beheld. Antiquities, armors, weapons, gemstones and rolling hills of coins were piled before them. It was simply dumbfounding the wealth that they beheld.</p><p></p><p>Lazarius interrupted their reverie, “I don’t think the sword is in there.”</p><p></p><p>The rest of the group managed to tear their gaze away from the mounds of treasure to address the War Wizard. “What?” asked Marius.</p><p></p><p>“The Bloodstone Blade. I don’t think it is in this pile of treasure. The magic I’ve detected so far has shown a few fairly powerful items but none of them matches the description of the Bloodstone Blade that I found in the War College Archives.”</p><p></p><p>“Well there is one way to find out for sure,” said Cathal with a grin. He dropped to his knees and began to sift through the nearest mountain of coins. The wealth glittered and jingled as the money cascaded from his cupped hands and fell back to the floor sending copper coins of antique mint rolling in all directions.</p><p></p><p>“Wait,” said Marcus, maintaining his focus on their objective. What about over there?” He pointed to a large passageway recessed into the shadows at the rear of the room. It led into darkness and uncertainty.</p><p></p><p>Marius let out an impressive sigh. “Wouldn’t it be nice if just ONCE we could have an easy battle and get LOTS of treasure and NOT have to go chasing off down some dark, gods-forsaken HOLE?!” He shook his head and let loose another sigh. Drawing his rapier again he stepped toward the opening. The others fell into line behind him. Cathal looked back mournfully at a shining, silver breastplate that jutted from a heap of gold coins.</p><p></p><p>The darkness ahead seemed to yield reluctantly to their torchlight, as though it was at home here and would not give up its lair without a struggle. The passage ran for a couple dozen paces before the walls and ceiling receded into darkness. The group stood close together in fear of what horror might lay ahead. They crept forward and a towering menace of bone and stone appeared before them.</p><p></p><p>“By the BEAR!” Cathal exclaimed in his native tongue. He stepped cautiously to the fore of the group, his sword drawn and shield held close. The others spread out to the sides somewhat and the collective light of their torches forced the darkness to give up its secret.</p><p></p><p>Standing some twenty feet high was the skeletal form of the Dragon. But the entirety of the skeleton was laced in a tracery of thin stone branches that seemed to stretch out from the chest and cover every part of the body from thicker branches in the neck and limbs to a nearly gossamer lace on the wings. The Dragon crouched in an awkward pose as though trying to crane its neck to reach something down near its chest. There, front and center was the thick handle of some sort of sword that had split the sternum and was lodged in a large, irregular hunk of stone just inside the chest cavity. It seemed to be the source from which the stone branches extended.</p><p></p><p>The party stood in awe for more than a minute. Then they exchanged worried glances and wordlessly began to creep forward, closer to the skeletal statue. Beneath the creature there was a covering on the ground that shimmered in their torchlight. Glimmering on the floor were thousands of scales, looking for all the world like thick leaves that had fallen from an autumn tree. Tense moments passed as they covered the dozen paces and they finally stood almost beneath the great head of the creature, just out of reach of the hilt of the sword that pierced its breast.</p><p></p><p>They could now see that the pommel, hilt and thick, single edged blade of the weapon were all carved from a single stone. It looked heavy and awkward but menacing nonetheless.</p><p></p><p>“Nobody touch ANYTHING,” commanded Lazarius. “I believe this must be the Bloodstone Blade.”</p><p></p><p>“Ya’ think?!” Marius asked in mockery.</p><p></p><p>Speaks With Stone leaned to the side, peering into the Dragon’s ribcage. He looked at the stone in which the sword was buried and the branches of stone that seemed to grow from it. His voice filled with awe and amazement, “That is the heart of the dragon. The Blade turned it to stone along with every vein and vessel.” His eyes followed the ranches that started from the stony heart as thick as his legs and forked into the forelegs and wings. At each split the stone vessels grew smaller until they were as thin as his wrist, his thumb, his fingers, a twig. He reached out and gently grasped one of the thinnest stone branches that ran to the base of one scimitar-sized claw. He gave a quick twist and it snapped off in his hand.</p><p></p><p>He jerked his hand back and scrambled backwards as the blood began to flow. A cry escaped his throat as he watched the skeleton, certain that it was about to seize him in its jaws. But it stayed completely still, regarding him with its malevolent, orbless eye.</p><p></p><p>He looked down at his bloody hand as the others gathered around him. “Didn’t I say not to TOUCH anything?!!” demanded Lazarius. Speaks held up his unwounded hand, covered in crimson and looked back at the Dragon. “Not the vessels. The blood!”</p><p></p><p>“What?” asked Marius.</p><p></p><p>Speaks looked at him with a mix of horror and wonder, “The BLOOD! The sword turned every ounce of the dragon’s blood to STONE!”</p><p></p><p>“And Bale.” whispered Marcus, “is made of blood…”</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Rel, post: 2283778, member: 99"] Here's a little something to chew on over the weekend and I should be able to update again next week despite a busy schedule: The fear that had gripped them from the moment they entered the Dragon’s lair gradually subsided. They moved cautiously toward the rear of the chamber and saw the hoard that ringed the room Their eyes filled with wonder at the treasures they beheld. Antiquities, armors, weapons, gemstones and rolling hills of coins were piled before them. It was simply dumbfounding the wealth that they beheld. Lazarius interrupted their reverie, “I don’t think the sword is in there.” The rest of the group managed to tear their gaze away from the mounds of treasure to address the War Wizard. “What?” asked Marius. “The Bloodstone Blade. I don’t think it is in this pile of treasure. The magic I’ve detected so far has shown a few fairly powerful items but none of them matches the description of the Bloodstone Blade that I found in the War College Archives.” “Well there is one way to find out for sure,” said Cathal with a grin. He dropped to his knees and began to sift through the nearest mountain of coins. The wealth glittered and jingled as the money cascaded from his cupped hands and fell back to the floor sending copper coins of antique mint rolling in all directions. “Wait,” said Marcus, maintaining his focus on their objective. What about over there?” He pointed to a large passageway recessed into the shadows at the rear of the room. It led into darkness and uncertainty. Marius let out an impressive sigh. “Wouldn’t it be nice if just ONCE we could have an easy battle and get LOTS of treasure and NOT have to go chasing off down some dark, gods-forsaken HOLE?!” He shook his head and let loose another sigh. Drawing his rapier again he stepped toward the opening. The others fell into line behind him. Cathal looked back mournfully at a shining, silver breastplate that jutted from a heap of gold coins. The darkness ahead seemed to yield reluctantly to their torchlight, as though it was at home here and would not give up its lair without a struggle. The passage ran for a couple dozen paces before the walls and ceiling receded into darkness. The group stood close together in fear of what horror might lay ahead. They crept forward and a towering menace of bone and stone appeared before them. “By the BEAR!” Cathal exclaimed in his native tongue. He stepped cautiously to the fore of the group, his sword drawn and shield held close. The others spread out to the sides somewhat and the collective light of their torches forced the darkness to give up its secret. Standing some twenty feet high was the skeletal form of the Dragon. But the entirety of the skeleton was laced in a tracery of thin stone branches that seemed to stretch out from the chest and cover every part of the body from thicker branches in the neck and limbs to a nearly gossamer lace on the wings. The Dragon crouched in an awkward pose as though trying to crane its neck to reach something down near its chest. There, front and center was the thick handle of some sort of sword that had split the sternum and was lodged in a large, irregular hunk of stone just inside the chest cavity. It seemed to be the source from which the stone branches extended. The party stood in awe for more than a minute. Then they exchanged worried glances and wordlessly began to creep forward, closer to the skeletal statue. Beneath the creature there was a covering on the ground that shimmered in their torchlight. Glimmering on the floor were thousands of scales, looking for all the world like thick leaves that had fallen from an autumn tree. Tense moments passed as they covered the dozen paces and they finally stood almost beneath the great head of the creature, just out of reach of the hilt of the sword that pierced its breast. They could now see that the pommel, hilt and thick, single edged blade of the weapon were all carved from a single stone. It looked heavy and awkward but menacing nonetheless. “Nobody touch ANYTHING,” commanded Lazarius. “I believe this must be the Bloodstone Blade.” “Ya’ think?!” Marius asked in mockery. Speaks With Stone leaned to the side, peering into the Dragon’s ribcage. He looked at the stone in which the sword was buried and the branches of stone that seemed to grow from it. His voice filled with awe and amazement, “That is the heart of the dragon. The Blade turned it to stone along with every vein and vessel.” His eyes followed the ranches that started from the stony heart as thick as his legs and forked into the forelegs and wings. At each split the stone vessels grew smaller until they were as thin as his wrist, his thumb, his fingers, a twig. He reached out and gently grasped one of the thinnest stone branches that ran to the base of one scimitar-sized claw. He gave a quick twist and it snapped off in his hand. He jerked his hand back and scrambled backwards as the blood began to flow. A cry escaped his throat as he watched the skeleton, certain that it was about to seize him in its jaws. But it stayed completely still, regarding him with its malevolent, orbless eye. He looked down at his bloody hand as the others gathered around him. “Didn’t I say not to TOUCH anything?!!” demanded Lazarius. Speaks held up his unwounded hand, covered in crimson and looked back at the Dragon. “Not the vessels. The blood!” “What?” asked Marius. Speaks looked at him with a mix of horror and wonder, “The BLOOD! The sword turned every ounce of the dragon’s blood to STONE!” “And Bale.” whispered Marcus, “is made of blood…” [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
Rel's Faded Glory III: Glory Reborn (FINAL UPDATE 6/22 - SHE'S DONE, BABY!!)
Top