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Enchanted Trinkets Complete--a hardcover book containing over 500 magic items for your D&D games!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lars Frehse" data-source="post: 1106380" data-attributes="member: 1674">Back into hell- part 3 of 4As Niklas resisted the strange shadow, four three-dimensional shadows stepped forward, separating themselves from the general darkness amidst the trees. These too attacked the companions.Trepat shot lightning into the first two of the approaching shadows, weakening one and destroying the other. As he dodged the arm of that shadow, feeling the supernatural cold breeze of death brushing past him, he saw how Torn, who was being attacked by the remaining two shadows, was hit by one of them. The black arm of the shadow seemed to simply pass through the halforc's armour, as if he were nothing more than a breeze going through a net. Torn jumped back, freeing himself from that arm, but he was noticeably weakened.Meanwhile, the shadowlord and Niklas were still locked in their deadly struggle. As both, shadow and man, were trying to get control of his body, Niklas jerked around, dancing a comical and off-beat dance that belied his dire situation.Torn was still battling his opponent, but Trepat had by now overcome his shadow, and at last he was in a position to help the monk. He stepped past Torn and then shot a barrage of magic missiles at the shadowlord. Where the projectiles of pure energy hit, they punched holes into the shadow, which was by and by substituted by the real one.As the second volley of missiles hit the shadow, Niklas ripped free. The shadow moved over the jungle ground, heading for the underbrush, but Trepat shot his magical missiles once more, and with the sound of a very faint scream, the shadow dissipated.They stood alert for a little longer, fearing more threats like the shadows, but as their breathing relaxed, there was no sign of any danger, except for the twisted forest itself. They took care of Torn's injury, which was invisible on the outside, and moved on.For the rest of the day, all they had to fight were gnats, mosquitoes, leeches and other mundane nuisances. When night fell, they settled down, and on the next morning, they reached their goal at last: Glivid Autel.From their position in the jungle, they only saw a sheer rock wall rising up in front of them and the foliage above them blocked away the view. But Trepat sent his raven up, and the bird was able to give them an impression of the place, which they wanted to enter.Piercing out of the surface jungle, which was steaming under the morning sun, a gigantic stone spire rose into the sky. The spire was almost a mile high and on it's top, there was a circular mesa, which was about four hundred yards in diameter. On this mesa, protected from most of the dangers of the forest below by it's sheer elevation, was Glivid-Autel, the necropolis that was run by the vilest necromancers, diabolists and sadists in Ghelspad.Only a quarter of the city, which had been founded within ruins, had been rebuilt. There, in dirty and poor surroundings the "citizens" of Glivid Autel were trying to make a living. In order to keep them in place, undead and necromancers were patrolling the rest of the ruins. There was little danger that anyone trapped in this place would flee anywhere else. Even if a refugee would somehow succeed in safely making it down the vertical rock face, he would still be facing the horrors the Hornsaw offered them. Instead, people stayed where they were, choosing squalor, poverty and fear of the rulers of the city over the downright terror that awaited them below.Trepat's raven returned. After he had given his description of what he had seen, Torn said:" I think it would be best if we would scale up the spire."Niklas nodded:" I still have two potions of spider climb... I could take Trepat on my back. I don't think we should waste any of those. If we find the elves, we will have to find a way to get them down, after all."Trepat agreed, and shortly afterwards, they were climbing up the rock. As they scaled past the treetops, it was soon clear that even for a skilled mountaineer, the rock was nearly impossible to climb. About halfway up, Trepat, who was clinging to Niklas' sweaty back during their ascent turned his head to look down. The Hornsaw below looked like a green, misty ocean, and as Trepat felt vertigo creeping up his spine, combined with the realization of what would happen should they fall, he turned his head back to stare at the back of the monk's head.Upon reaching the plateau, Torn sneaked a peek over the edge, and saw that there was nobody close-by right now. The walls of the inhabited part of the town were some one hundred yards to the right, and right in front of them were the partially standing walls of an ancient house. He signalled Niklas to take a look themselves, and they didn't need to exchange any words regarding what they were to do next.Like one man, they pulled themselves onto the rocky surface and covered the few yards between the edge and the ruin in mere seconds. There, they finally had the chance to get a closer look. The ruins around were looted. The rocky surface was strewn with rocks, and in the cracks and fissures, mosses, grass and sometimes even small scrubs were growing.For the next hours, they stayed in hiding while Trepat's crow took a look around. Judging by the bird's observation, it looked like the necromancers were lairing underground in the rock. At least every patrol of undead and necromancers either emerged or disappeared through one of the many trapdoors, which were at certain points among the ruins.In the evening, when it was dark enough for them to feel a little safer, Niklas said:" The elf had told us that he had been held captured under the city. I think we have to go through one of these trapdoors.""Sure" Torn answered, "let's hope that we will get the right one, though. I wouldn't want to end as an experiment in some fiendish laboratory!“Again, they sent up the crow. When it signalled them that a patrol had just come past, and that they were now safe, they ducked amidst the rubble and headed to one of the trapdoors nearby. Torn sprinted ahead, and to his surprise, found the door open. He pushed the heavy wood up, and a few moments later, he and his friends had disappeared into the rock.</blockquote>

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