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
The Dark Squad in the Secrets of Saltmarsh #136 Into the Mere of the Dead Men.
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="Goonalan" data-source="post: 9126477" data-attributes="member: 16069"><p style="text-align: center"><strong><span style="font-size: 26px">Dark Squad in the Secrets of Saltmarsh</span></strong></p><p><strong></strong></p><p><strong><span style="font-size: 22px">Session #121: Race to the Bottom & Who is Gwen?</span></strong></p><p><strong></strong></p><p><strong><span style="font-size: 18px">Dark Squad (in alphabetical order, no egos here).</span></strong></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px"><strong>Daktari/Dak (played by Haggis) Male Human Uthgardt Sky Pony Barbarian Lvl 8</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px"><strong>Fellowyn Silverstream (played by George) Male Eladrin Wizard Bladesinger Lvl 8</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px"><strong>New Tricks/Newt (played by Bear) Male Tabaxi Warlock Lvl 8</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px"><strong>Ramshambo/Ram (played by Kev) Male Half-Elf Rogue/Fighter Lvl 7/1</strong></span></p><p><strong><span style="font-size: 18px">Vincenzo/Vinnie (played by Haggis) Male Shifter (Wildhunt) Druid Lvl 8</span></strong></p><p><strong><span style="font-size: 18px"></span></strong></p><p><strong><span style="font-size: 18px">DEAD PCs</span></strong></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px"><strong><s>Nicholai Barbaros Kostyiev/Nicky (played by George) Male Dhampir Cleric of Twilight Lvl 8 </s>RIP</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px"><strong></strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px"><strong>NPCs</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px"><strong><s>Inverna Nightbreeze (played by George) Female Wood Elf Fighter Lvl 8 (Sidekick) </s>RETIRED</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px"><strong><s>Garumn Male Mountain Dwarf Paladin of Moradin Lvl 5 </s>RIP*</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px"><strong><s>Tarbin Tul (played by goonalan) Male Human Bard </s>RETIRED</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px"><strong><s>Ubmo (played by Goonalan) Supreme Being Lvl 1</s> DESTROYED REPLACED BY-</strong></span></p><p><strong><span style="font-size: 18px">Ubdug (played by Goonalan) Supreme Being Lvl 2</span></strong></p><p><strong>*Trapped in the Land of the Bad Dead Ancestors.</strong></p><p><strong></strong></p><p><strong><span style="font-size: 18px">Servants/Familiars</span></strong></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px"><strong>Gerald (Bat/Giant Bat) servant/mount of New Tricks</strong></span></p><p><strong><span style="font-size: 18px">Owly (Owl) Vinnie’s familiar</span></strong></p><p><strong></strong></p><p><strong>The Dark Squad’s to-do list-</strong></p><ol> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">An extraordinary meeting of the Saltmarsh Town Council, the Dark Squad are going to get hired to end the smuggling menace (see below), scheduled for 10th Flamerule.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">The smuggler's ship will be turning up sometime between the 14th and 17th of Flamerule, the Dark Squad (and particularly Ram) are keen to meet the vessel, particularly Ram- why, because as the rogue said- “I'm getting a boat.”</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Find the other four Symbols of Ub, one was left in Deepbridge (Duergar fortress in the Underdark). The others need to be found, they belonged to- Rambles 'Shambles' Bowspirit (halfling killer from Lowhill), Antonio De La Crane (posh kid druid alchemist) & Giggles (crazy wood elf). All of these folk lived in the Saltmarsh region, the Dark Squad have found the De La Crane Manse (in the Dreadwood) and the De La Crane Crypt (in Saltmarsh Cemetary).</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Nightshade is in the Deep Dreadwood- except she's not there anymore, but a big red dragon is?</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Blackedge and the Goblin Stair?</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">To join the Pact of the Wild Flame prepare the Witch's Tor for the coming of the starfall, the Witch's Tor is in the Drowned Forest, in the Mere of the Dead Men.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">To join the Pact of the Wild Flame track down the last member of the Pact, a wild elf adventurer called Giggles- and finally put her spirit to rest, and also recover her maze button. Location unknown. SEE 2. ABOVE.</li> </ol><p>This is session 121, and once again there’s no fighting at all, although it wasn’t without tension- Newt was dying from the very start of this one.</p><p></p><p>The last time we were with the Dark Squad they had just jumped into the Void, except for Newt who was grabbed by a twenty-foot-long tentacle and dragged into the Void. The rest of the PCs went voluntarily into the inky black.</p><p></p><p>So, what does the Void have in store for the Dark Squad?</p><p></p><p>Here we go...</p><p></p><p>Oh, but just to say it’s mainly all pictures this session, let’s start with this one-</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294873[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>I bet you are thinking- what the hell is going on here?</strong></p><p></p><p>So, the void leads the PCs-in the order they jumped in- to… a great water (saliva) filled toothed maw, alas the giant mouth is clamped tight shut, and the owner of the mouth? Well, whoever he or she is they are in the process of swallowing.</p><p></p><p>To be clear- swallowing the PCs.</p><p></p><p>To begin with the PCs are drowning (in saliva), although that doesn’t last long for some of them, in fact all of the PCs have some way to render themselves able to breath underwater except for… that’s right, Newt.</p><p></p><p>Newt hates water.</p><p></p><p>He’s a cat.</p><p></p><p>Newt therefore is drowning, and not very happy about this. He has Constitution turns (12, I seem to remember) to find someplace that has air, or else things will start to go very badly for him.</p><p></p><p>So, in the first turn each PC can make an Athletics or Agility test (DC 10)- for every 10 feet of movement that they wish to expend. The result of these tests- anything above the DC 10 is doubled, and that’s how many squares a PC can move safely as they’re swallowed by the titanic beast.</p><p></p><p>So, for example, a PC with a 30-foot move, wishing to expend the lot, makes three DC 10 checks (Athletics or Agility) and doubles anything more than 10 on their three checks. So, if they (whoever they are) roll adjusted checks of- ‘12’, ‘16’ & ‘9’- that means that they can move their PC sixteen squares in just one move.</p><p></p><p>If they double move they go again, three more rolls in the example above, so- they can get a good way in.</p><p></p><p>This turn.</p><p></p><p>Keep in mind that the (owner of the) mouth is in the process of swallowing down the PCs. There’s no way back out of the mouth- the PCs must find their way too…</p><p></p><p>That’s right- the bottom.</p><p></p><p>The Players figured this out in seconds, after all Ub said (via Rambles)- “tell them to get to the bottom of it.”</p><p></p><p>Oh, and in this first rush into the body the PCs are in effect tumbling through the watery/rubbery landscape and trying to steer themselves as they slip and slide further inside.</p><p></p><p>Nice.</p><p></p><p>The floom ride.</p><p></p><p>So, back to that first picture (see up above). From top down- that’s Fellowyn in the creature’s mouth (top left) he hasn’t had his turn yet; Vinnie as Vincen G Octopod is next down the image; Daktari is next swimming through some unknown organ. Finally at the bottom- swimming down veins and/or tubules, that’s Ram, and the furthest into the body- Newt. Right at the very bottom.</p><p></p><p>Note, Newt is, of course, still drowning.</p><p></p><p>So, that’s nice.</p><p></p><p>Here’s another picture, and thankfully I’m an expert when it comes to physiognomy and animal biology et al, so sit back and relax as we (or else the Dark Squad) take a journey through the body.</p><p></p><p>Whose body, or else the body of what, is not known.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294874[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Vincen G Octopod takes in all the sights as he swims through the Parsnip Underpass.</strong></p><p></p><p>Here’s the shape-changed druid again-</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294875[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Making his way through the Soft Play Area.</strong></p><p></p><p>While Daktari-</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294876[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Takes a minute or two to recharge his batteries in the Meat Solarium.</strong></p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294877[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Newt is following the He-Oughta Vein through the Bloody Horror Chalet (Upper).</strong></p><p></p><p>Oh, and at this point the creature that has ingested the Dark Squad has ceased swallowing, and movement is more difficult now.</p><p></p><p>And every now and then George takes a screenshot showing where everyone is at.</p><p></p><p>Like this one-</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294878[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Ram is in the lead (bottom of the screen), and at present trying to squeeze himself through a sphincter.</strong></p><p></p><p>Which is a lovely thought.</p><p></p><p>Note this is a sphincter muscle, and not ‘the’ sphincter.</p><p></p><p>Also be aware there isn’t just one way through the body here, it is in fact a maze of veins and tubes heading in a variety of directions.</p><p></p><p>Newt is very keen I should add to get out.</p><p></p><p>The other four PCs, at this point, are beginning to enjoy the sights, but are very (very) keen to be the first to the bottom, as it were.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294879[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Daktari swims leisurely (he’s got a Potion of Water Breathing going on) through the Museum of Gulp.</strong></p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294880[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Fellowyn locates the Pee Bucket.</strong></p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294881[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Newt passes through the Pink Lumbago.</strong></p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294882[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>And then on into the Grisly Blood Bag.</strong></p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294883[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Ram (with Water Breathing & Mariner’s Armour) makes his way (slithers) through a sphincter muscle.</strong></p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294884[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Here’s Fellowyn again, swimming from the Left into the Right Flophouse.</strong></p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294885[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>And then on into the Dirty Harry.</strong></p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294886[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Newt meantime, he’s an unlucky lad, is just about to discover that the glowing worms that serve to illuminate the Gutter Sack here are just about to reveal… a dead end.</strong></p><p></p><p>He's also still drowning of course.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294887[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>And here we all are again.</strong></p><p></p><p>The observant may note that on the left of the image above we can see Newt and Daktari in close proximity.</p><p></p><p>Newt cannot talk- he’s holding his breath remember; however, he does manage to mime drowning well enough to cause Daktari to fish out a potion of Water Breathing for the tabaxi, which Newt hastily consumes.</p><p></p><p>Note, that was Daktari’s last Water Breathing Potion. He’s a very nice fellow.</p><p></p><p>Which is odd really because Newt, even after consuming the Water Breathing Potion and nodding his thanks to Daktari, fails to let the barbarian know that he is swimming towards a dead end.</p><p></p><p>Dak swims on, his good deed for the day done.</p><p></p><p>And yes, if you scroll right into the above image- Ram has found his way to the Arsenal.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294888[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Here he is, Ram in the Arsenal, his plan is to use one of the cannons deposited here to wedge the sphincter/exit open.</strong></p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294889[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>And at this point all of the PCs have figured the route out.</strong></p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294890[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Daktari makes his way through the Pork Butterfly.</strong></p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294891[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>And, into the Piss Sock.</strong></p><p></p><p>And then…</p><p></p><p>Well, there’s no pictures of the next bit- the escape that is, Ram- with help from Vincen G Octopod and Fellowyn, manage to wedge a cannon into the Sphincter Finale, and… they’re out.</p><p></p><p>Newt and Daktari escape two or so turns later.</p><p></p><p>POOOF!</p><p></p><p>The Dark Squad are shat/farted out into the Universe.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294892[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Here they all are, and as it turns out it's an awfully big universe.</strong></p><p></p><p>It’s full of stars!</p><p></p><p>And here’s the thing.</p><p></p><p>Water Breathing Potions/abilities ain’t going to help them now.</p><p></p><p>The Dark Squad are in space.</p><p></p><p>So, now all of the PCs are asphyxiating.</p><p></p><p>But again, the PCs are holding their breath.</p><p></p><p>But this time because of the sudden intrusion of the vacuum et al, the PCs start taking damage after Constitution Bonus turns.</p><p></p><p>Asphyxiating is 1d4 damage turn one, 2d4 turn two, 3d4, 4d4, etc.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294893[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Then a voice in the PC’s heads.</strong></p><p></p><p>“Say what you see.”</p><p></p><p>And suddenly a star blinks and continues to shimmer and flash.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294894[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>And then more stars join the party.</strong></p><p></p><p>And the PCs use a variety of skills to figure out what they have to do here, although they get what the challenge is very quickly. The correct answer however takes a while.</p><p></p><p>The puzzle is the flashing stars need to be joined up to form a constellation, which the Dark Squad- of course- have to identify.</p><p></p><p>“Say what you see.”</p><p></p><p>But now the lack of oxygen is beginning to hurt- Newt gets to 5d4 damage in a turn, and then…</p><p></p><p>Suddenly, after flailing and failing for a good while, they put it together.</p><p></p><p>I think it was Ram who got it.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294895[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>The Man & The Crocodile.</strong></p><p></p><p>Ain’t it always the way.</p><p></p><p>The PCs can breathe.</p><p></p><p>They celebrate by doing so.</p><p></p><p>Light- blinding light.</p><p></p><p>Music.</p><p></p><p>Which none of the Players recognise.</p><p></p><p>And then a voice like the end of the world, only much much happier, and soo very smooth.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]294896[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>“Welcome to Universally Challenged, and here’s your host- Cortex.”</strong></p><p></p><p>And the quiz starts straight away, and the questions are all about the Dark Squad…</p><p></p><p>And the PCs have no idea what’s going on but, they’re flattered of course, and they get it’s a quiz, and… well, it’s Tuesday night and in a certain light (deep dusk) this could be D&D.</p><p></p><p>They’re still laughing.</p><p></p><p>To be clear the DM is very obviously working his way through the write up here, asking questions as he goes along- some little thing from every session.</p><p></p><p>But here’s the clever thing about some of these questions.</p><p></p><p>Some of them the PCs don’t know the answers to.</p><p></p><p>So, the first question is something like-</p><p></p><p>“Early in their adventures the Dark Squad rescued a member of royalty, what was he or she called?”</p><p></p><p>The answer is, of course, Princess Lucky- a cow the Dark Squad saved from the “ol’ scratchy bastard”. Who turned out to be a Twig Blight, actually three Twig Blights.</p><p></p><p>Garumn, remember him, killed them all.</p><p></p><p>But the PCs get that one right, it’s just the remembering- or else being quick to find the answer.</p><p></p><p>But there are some questions here that the PCs don’t know the answer to.</p><p></p><p>For example-</p><p></p><p>“What was the full name and title of the creature summoned by the Nightcaller whistle?”</p><p></p><p>So, the answer the PCs give- eventually, after a lot of chatter amongst themselves is- “Gwen”.</p><p></p><p>Nightcaller is a black stone Duergar made whistle found in a much-protected room within the ruins of the Sunless Citadel, which when blown summoned a short and stout skeleton to Buggles’ side. Buggles later discovered that the skeleton was in fact the remains of a female duergar, he christened her ‘Gwen’, and before skipping the Dark Squad he developed a very odd relationship with her.</p><p></p><p>So, the Dark Squad answer- “Gwen”.</p><p></p><p>But that turns out to be incorrect.</p><p></p><p>And the PCs don’t like to be wrong, or else they are keen to show me the place in this narrative in which Buggles christened Gwen, er… “Gwen”.</p><p></p><p>The DM however is equally happy to inform the PCs that the duergar skeleton had a name even before Buggles and the Dark Squad came along.</p><p></p><p>The implication being the name of the summoned skeleton may be important in some way.</p><p></p><p>Is it?</p><p></p><p>The PCs have just learned/had confirmed that the Duergar have got at least one, maybe two, of the maze buttons.</p><p></p><p>Perhaps the answer is important.</p><p></p><p>And so, the DM is happy for Cortex to mention the answer to this question in his slick gameshow host-style reply.</p><p></p><p>Only it will cost one PC a set amount of experience points- to be deducted from their specific total.</p><p></p><p>How many XP?</p><p></p><p>Well, the first time they want to know the answer it will cost 1 XP, the second time 2 XP, the third 4 XP, the fourth 8 XP, then 16 XP, then 32 XP, 64 XP, 128 XP, 256 XP, 512 XP and then finally 1024 XP each any further answers.</p><p></p><p>But the Dark Squad want to know.</p><p></p><p>Who is Gwen?</p><p></p><p>It only costs 1 XP to find out...</p><p></p><p>Cortex therefore lets slip-</p><p></p><p>“And the answer is, of course, Gwendawr Blackheart, Scourge of the Black Sea, the Duergar Pirate Queen.”</p><p></p><p>Which leads to much more Dark Squad chatter.</p><p></p><p>But the PCs are enjoying themselves, and some of the questions are silly- but obviously important to the PCs in that moment, or else the answers are. For instance, they really do want to know who survived the longest in the Land of the Bad Dead Ancestors when the planar pocket (or whatever it was) finally collapsed with them all in it.</p><p></p><p>It gets to be a point of pride.</p><p></p><p>Who did best?</p><p></p><p>It was Ram, of course, in this instance.</p><p></p><p>These sort of questions seem to pop-up every now and then... who did best at...</p><p></p><p>And very suddenly the next answer they want to find out will cost one of them 64 XP, and it’s at this point that the PCs figure out that they shouldn’t have got to this point so quickly.</p><p></p><p>It’s going to get expensive from here to find out further answers.</p><p></p><p>So, there’s a lot more of this kind of thing next time.</p><p></p><p>And the beginning of a twist.</p><p></p><p>The PCs are learning/remembering all sorts of things from their story, and beginning to interpret, or else re-interpret, bits of it.</p><p></p><p>Stay safe and well you lovely people.</p><p></p><p>Cheers the Dark Squad and goonalan.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Goonalan, post: 9126477, member: 16069"] [CENTER][B][SIZE=7]Dark Squad in the Secrets of Saltmarsh[/SIZE][/B][/CENTER] [B] [SIZE=6]Session #121: Race to the Bottom & Who is Gwen?[/SIZE] [SIZE=5]Dark Squad (in alphabetical order, no egos here).[/SIZE][/B] [SIZE=5][B]Daktari/Dak (played by Haggis) Male Human Uthgardt Sky Pony Barbarian Lvl 8 Fellowyn Silverstream (played by George) Male Eladrin Wizard Bladesinger Lvl 8 New Tricks/Newt (played by Bear) Male Tabaxi Warlock Lvl 8 Ramshambo/Ram (played by Kev) Male Half-Elf Rogue/Fighter Lvl 7/1[/B][/SIZE] [B][SIZE=5]Vincenzo/Vinnie (played by Haggis) Male Shifter (Wildhunt) Druid Lvl 8 DEAD PCs[/SIZE][/B] [SIZE=5][B][S]Nicholai Barbaros Kostyiev/Nicky (played by George) Male Dhampir Cleric of Twilight Lvl 8 [/S]RIP NPCs [S]Inverna Nightbreeze (played by George) Female Wood Elf Fighter Lvl 8 (Sidekick) [/S]RETIRED [S]Garumn Male Mountain Dwarf Paladin of Moradin Lvl 5 [/S]RIP* [S]Tarbin Tul (played by goonalan) Male Human Bard [/S]RETIRED [S]Ubmo (played by Goonalan) Supreme Being Lvl 1[/S] DESTROYED REPLACED BY-[/B][/SIZE] [B][SIZE=5]Ubdug (played by Goonalan) Supreme Being Lvl 2[/SIZE] *Trapped in the Land of the Bad Dead Ancestors. [SIZE=5]Servants/Familiars[/SIZE][/B] [SIZE=5][B]Gerald (Bat/Giant Bat) servant/mount of New Tricks[/B][/SIZE] [B][SIZE=5]Owly (Owl) Vinnie’s familiar[/SIZE] The Dark Squad’s to-do list-[/B] [LIST=1] [*]An extraordinary meeting of the Saltmarsh Town Council, the Dark Squad are going to get hired to end the smuggling menace (see below), scheduled for 10th Flamerule. [*]The smuggler's ship will be turning up sometime between the 14th and 17th of Flamerule, the Dark Squad (and particularly Ram) are keen to meet the vessel, particularly Ram- why, because as the rogue said- “I'm getting a boat.” [*]Find the other four Symbols of Ub, one was left in Deepbridge (Duergar fortress in the Underdark). The others need to be found, they belonged to- Rambles 'Shambles' Bowspirit (halfling killer from Lowhill), Antonio De La Crane (posh kid druid alchemist) & Giggles (crazy wood elf). All of these folk lived in the Saltmarsh region, the Dark Squad have found the De La Crane Manse (in the Dreadwood) and the De La Crane Crypt (in Saltmarsh Cemetary). [*]Nightshade is in the Deep Dreadwood- except she's not there anymore, but a big red dragon is? [*]Blackedge and the Goblin Stair? [*]To join the Pact of the Wild Flame prepare the Witch's Tor for the coming of the starfall, the Witch's Tor is in the Drowned Forest, in the Mere of the Dead Men. [*]To join the Pact of the Wild Flame track down the last member of the Pact, a wild elf adventurer called Giggles- and finally put her spirit to rest, and also recover her maze button. Location unknown. SEE 2. ABOVE. [/LIST] This is session 121, and once again there’s no fighting at all, although it wasn’t without tension- Newt was dying from the very start of this one. The last time we were with the Dark Squad they had just jumped into the Void, except for Newt who was grabbed by a twenty-foot-long tentacle and dragged into the Void. The rest of the PCs went voluntarily into the inky black. So, what does the Void have in store for the Dark Squad? Here we go... Oh, but just to say it’s mainly all pictures this session, let’s start with this one- [ATTACH type="full"]294873[/ATTACH] [B]I bet you are thinking- what the hell is going on here?[/B] So, the void leads the PCs-in the order they jumped in- to… a great water (saliva) filled toothed maw, alas the giant mouth is clamped tight shut, and the owner of the mouth? Well, whoever he or she is they are in the process of swallowing. To be clear- swallowing the PCs. To begin with the PCs are drowning (in saliva), although that doesn’t last long for some of them, in fact all of the PCs have some way to render themselves able to breath underwater except for… that’s right, Newt. Newt hates water. He’s a cat. Newt therefore is drowning, and not very happy about this. He has Constitution turns (12, I seem to remember) to find someplace that has air, or else things will start to go very badly for him. So, in the first turn each PC can make an Athletics or Agility test (DC 10)- for every 10 feet of movement that they wish to expend. The result of these tests- anything above the DC 10 is doubled, and that’s how many squares a PC can move safely as they’re swallowed by the titanic beast. So, for example, a PC with a 30-foot move, wishing to expend the lot, makes three DC 10 checks (Athletics or Agility) and doubles anything more than 10 on their three checks. So, if they (whoever they are) roll adjusted checks of- ‘12’, ‘16’ & ‘9’- that means that they can move their PC sixteen squares in just one move. If they double move they go again, three more rolls in the example above, so- they can get a good way in. This turn. Keep in mind that the (owner of the) mouth is in the process of swallowing down the PCs. There’s no way back out of the mouth- the PCs must find their way too… That’s right- the bottom. The Players figured this out in seconds, after all Ub said (via Rambles)- “tell them to get to the bottom of it.” Oh, and in this first rush into the body the PCs are in effect tumbling through the watery/rubbery landscape and trying to steer themselves as they slip and slide further inside. Nice. The floom ride. So, back to that first picture (see up above). From top down- that’s Fellowyn in the creature’s mouth (top left) he hasn’t had his turn yet; Vinnie as Vincen G Octopod is next down the image; Daktari is next swimming through some unknown organ. Finally at the bottom- swimming down veins and/or tubules, that’s Ram, and the furthest into the body- Newt. Right at the very bottom. Note, Newt is, of course, still drowning. So, that’s nice. Here’s another picture, and thankfully I’m an expert when it comes to physiognomy and animal biology et al, so sit back and relax as we (or else the Dark Squad) take a journey through the body. Whose body, or else the body of what, is not known. [ATTACH type="full"]294874[/ATTACH] [B]Vincen G Octopod takes in all the sights as he swims through the Parsnip Underpass.[/B] Here’s the shape-changed druid again- [ATTACH type="full"]294875[/ATTACH] [B]Making his way through the Soft Play Area.[/B] While Daktari- [ATTACH type="full"]294876[/ATTACH] [B]Takes a minute or two to recharge his batteries in the Meat Solarium.[/B] [ATTACH type="full"]294877[/ATTACH] [B]Newt is following the He-Oughta Vein through the Bloody Horror Chalet (Upper).[/B] Oh, and at this point the creature that has ingested the Dark Squad has ceased swallowing, and movement is more difficult now. And every now and then George takes a screenshot showing where everyone is at. Like this one- [ATTACH type="full"]294878[/ATTACH] [B]Ram is in the lead (bottom of the screen), and at present trying to squeeze himself through a sphincter.[/B] Which is a lovely thought. Note this is a sphincter muscle, and not ‘the’ sphincter. Also be aware there isn’t just one way through the body here, it is in fact a maze of veins and tubes heading in a variety of directions. Newt is very keen I should add to get out. The other four PCs, at this point, are beginning to enjoy the sights, but are very (very) keen to be the first to the bottom, as it were. [ATTACH type="full"]294879[/ATTACH] [B]Daktari swims leisurely (he’s got a Potion of Water Breathing going on) through the Museum of Gulp.[/B] [ATTACH type="full"]294880[/ATTACH] [B]Fellowyn locates the Pee Bucket.[/B] [ATTACH type="full"]294881[/ATTACH] [B]Newt passes through the Pink Lumbago.[/B] [ATTACH type="full"]294882[/ATTACH] [B]And then on into the Grisly Blood Bag.[/B] [ATTACH type="full"]294883[/ATTACH] [B]Ram (with Water Breathing & Mariner’s Armour) makes his way (slithers) through a sphincter muscle.[/B] [ATTACH type="full"]294884[/ATTACH] [B]Here’s Fellowyn again, swimming from the Left into the Right Flophouse.[/B] [ATTACH type="full"]294885[/ATTACH] [B]And then on into the Dirty Harry.[/B] [ATTACH type="full"]294886[/ATTACH] [B]Newt meantime, he’s an unlucky lad, is just about to discover that the glowing worms that serve to illuminate the Gutter Sack here are just about to reveal… a dead end.[/B] He's also still drowning of course. [ATTACH type="full"]294887[/ATTACH] [B]And here we all are again.[/B] The observant may note that on the left of the image above we can see Newt and Daktari in close proximity. Newt cannot talk- he’s holding his breath remember; however, he does manage to mime drowning well enough to cause Daktari to fish out a potion of Water Breathing for the tabaxi, which Newt hastily consumes. Note, that was Daktari’s last Water Breathing Potion. He’s a very nice fellow. Which is odd really because Newt, even after consuming the Water Breathing Potion and nodding his thanks to Daktari, fails to let the barbarian know that he is swimming towards a dead end. Dak swims on, his good deed for the day done. And yes, if you scroll right into the above image- Ram has found his way to the Arsenal. [ATTACH type="full"]294888[/ATTACH] [B]Here he is, Ram in the Arsenal, his plan is to use one of the cannons deposited here to wedge the sphincter/exit open.[/B] [ATTACH type="full"]294889[/ATTACH] [B]And at this point all of the PCs have figured the route out.[/B] [ATTACH type="full"]294890[/ATTACH] [B]Daktari makes his way through the Pork Butterfly.[/B] [ATTACH type="full"]294891[/ATTACH] [B]And, into the Piss Sock.[/B] And then… Well, there’s no pictures of the next bit- the escape that is, Ram- with help from Vincen G Octopod and Fellowyn, manage to wedge a cannon into the Sphincter Finale, and… they’re out. Newt and Daktari escape two or so turns later. POOOF! The Dark Squad are shat/farted out into the Universe. [ATTACH type="full"]294892[/ATTACH] [B]Here they all are, and as it turns out it's an awfully big universe.[/B] It’s full of stars! And here’s the thing. Water Breathing Potions/abilities ain’t going to help them now. The Dark Squad are in space. So, now all of the PCs are asphyxiating. But again, the PCs are holding their breath. But this time because of the sudden intrusion of the vacuum et al, the PCs start taking damage after Constitution Bonus turns. Asphyxiating is 1d4 damage turn one, 2d4 turn two, 3d4, 4d4, etc. [ATTACH type="full"]294893[/ATTACH] [B]Then a voice in the PC’s heads.[/B] “Say what you see.” And suddenly a star blinks and continues to shimmer and flash. [ATTACH type="full"]294894[/ATTACH] [B]And then more stars join the party.[/B] And the PCs use a variety of skills to figure out what they have to do here, although they get what the challenge is very quickly. The correct answer however takes a while. The puzzle is the flashing stars need to be joined up to form a constellation, which the Dark Squad- of course- have to identify. “Say what you see.” But now the lack of oxygen is beginning to hurt- Newt gets to 5d4 damage in a turn, and then… Suddenly, after flailing and failing for a good while, they put it together. I think it was Ram who got it. [ATTACH type="full"]294895[/ATTACH] [B]The Man & The Crocodile.[/B] Ain’t it always the way. The PCs can breathe. They celebrate by doing so. Light- blinding light. Music. Which none of the Players recognise. And then a voice like the end of the world, only much much happier, and soo very smooth. [ATTACH type="full"]294896[/ATTACH] [B]“Welcome to Universally Challenged, and here’s your host- Cortex.”[/B] And the quiz starts straight away, and the questions are all about the Dark Squad… And the PCs have no idea what’s going on but, they’re flattered of course, and they get it’s a quiz, and… well, it’s Tuesday night and in a certain light (deep dusk) this could be D&D. They’re still laughing. To be clear the DM is very obviously working his way through the write up here, asking questions as he goes along- some little thing from every session. But here’s the clever thing about some of these questions. Some of them the PCs don’t know the answers to. So, the first question is something like- “Early in their adventures the Dark Squad rescued a member of royalty, what was he or she called?” The answer is, of course, Princess Lucky- a cow the Dark Squad saved from the “ol’ scratchy bastard”. Who turned out to be a Twig Blight, actually three Twig Blights. Garumn, remember him, killed them all. But the PCs get that one right, it’s just the remembering- or else being quick to find the answer. But there are some questions here that the PCs don’t know the answer to. For example- “What was the full name and title of the creature summoned by the Nightcaller whistle?” So, the answer the PCs give- eventually, after a lot of chatter amongst themselves is- “Gwen”. Nightcaller is a black stone Duergar made whistle found in a much-protected room within the ruins of the Sunless Citadel, which when blown summoned a short and stout skeleton to Buggles’ side. Buggles later discovered that the skeleton was in fact the remains of a female duergar, he christened her ‘Gwen’, and before skipping the Dark Squad he developed a very odd relationship with her. So, the Dark Squad answer- “Gwen”. But that turns out to be incorrect. And the PCs don’t like to be wrong, or else they are keen to show me the place in this narrative in which Buggles christened Gwen, er… “Gwen”. The DM however is equally happy to inform the PCs that the duergar skeleton had a name even before Buggles and the Dark Squad came along. The implication being the name of the summoned skeleton may be important in some way. Is it? The PCs have just learned/had confirmed that the Duergar have got at least one, maybe two, of the maze buttons. Perhaps the answer is important. And so, the DM is happy for Cortex to mention the answer to this question in his slick gameshow host-style reply. Only it will cost one PC a set amount of experience points- to be deducted from their specific total. How many XP? Well, the first time they want to know the answer it will cost 1 XP, the second time 2 XP, the third 4 XP, the fourth 8 XP, then 16 XP, then 32 XP, 64 XP, 128 XP, 256 XP, 512 XP and then finally 1024 XP each any further answers. But the Dark Squad want to know. Who is Gwen? It only costs 1 XP to find out... Cortex therefore lets slip- “And the answer is, of course, Gwendawr Blackheart, Scourge of the Black Sea, the Duergar Pirate Queen.” Which leads to much more Dark Squad chatter. But the PCs are enjoying themselves, and some of the questions are silly- but obviously important to the PCs in that moment, or else the answers are. For instance, they really do want to know who survived the longest in the Land of the Bad Dead Ancestors when the planar pocket (or whatever it was) finally collapsed with them all in it. It gets to be a point of pride. Who did best? It was Ram, of course, in this instance. These sort of questions seem to pop-up every now and then... who did best at... And very suddenly the next answer they want to find out will cost one of them 64 XP, and it’s at this point that the PCs figure out that they shouldn’t have got to this point so quickly. It’s going to get expensive from here to find out further answers. So, there’s a lot more of this kind of thing next time. And the beginning of a twist. The PCs are learning/remembering all sorts of things from their story, and beginning to interpret, or else re-interpret, bits of it. Stay safe and well you lovely people. Cheers the Dark Squad and goonalan. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
The Dark Squad in the Secrets of Saltmarsh #136 Into the Mere of the Dead Men.
Top