Wizardru's Story Hour (updated 11/21)

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The Grand Tour - Chapter 7

Chapter 4

OOC Notes:

Exp this session is a chunky 5000. This means a new level for a lot of people.

Next game will be Friday, June 19. After that we'll be taking a break for several weeks due to vacations etc. and will resume in late August.

Loot:

Some. We're just going to ignore the goodies that are in the building for now. To quote Wizardru "If you survive, there's all kinds of stuff you can cart off but we don't need to go into that now."

Some might express concern about the use of the word "if" in this context.

Net result, at the end of this, we'll go back through the module and figure out that stuff.

This Week's Adventure:

After a fair bit of healing, we concluded that salamanders are not very nice creatures and we don't want to deal with them any time soon.

We also discovered that plates and goblets only worked within the confines of the room, which was depressing for everyone, especially those who have eaten Meepo's cooking.

The room beyond the dining hall was a kitchen. There were several piles of ash at various spots on the floor. (Perhaps the remains of the original inhabitants after the salamanders were done?)

To one side, a knocked-over table was moving. Up, then back down. Over and over.

The most notable feature was in the middle of the kitchen, and was something very non-kitchen like. An enormous rough hewn crystal dominated the room. It seemed that it had been ripped right from the ground and was completely unworked, save for a small triangle of mithril imbedded in it. The base of the crystal stretched into three tendrils that reached out like roots. The whole thing was engulfed in green flame.

Scorch took a quick look at the table, and concluded that an unseen servant was diligently trying to right the fallen table but lacked the strength to do so. After he set the table upright, the servant then went on to clean up the kitchen and dining room. Then he turned to the crystal.

After a time, and some conversation with Bolo, Scorch was sure that this was one of the imprisoned Ralishad. I suggested that since this wasn't going anywhere, we move on and explore the rest of the dome, and we could fiddle with it in the morning when we were refreshed.

Beyond the kitchen was a smithy and a library. The library held shelf after shelf of fine books, many of them rare works. The smithy had a marble encased forge, and was clearly a workshop of the highest quality. Several magical sets of armor stood on stands along the walls. [OOC Note: this is some of the stuff we'll worry about later.] Aethramyr looked around the forge a bit while Dravot and Scorch looked at the books, but in the end there was nothing here that wouldn't wait, and we moved on.

Since we had checked most of this floor, we went upstairs. The hope was that we would quickly determine that we were safe, and be able to rest ourselves.

Ah, but to dream.

Just at the top of the stairs were two more green crystals, and the salamanders inside immediately came out of their stasis and attacked. One salamander coughed out a fireball that singed a few of us. I turned my gaze on the salamander that had not yet attacked, not wanting another fireball, and put several arrows into him. Aethramyr then moved up to him and drove Shatterspike through him in a single, clean arc. The two pieces of the lifeless lizard fell to the floor as a gout of fire erupted from the cleaved midsection.

The other salamander decided that it didn't want to be on the receiving end of more icy arrows, and stabbed at me with its wicked long spear. I was stabbed twice but ducked the third attack. However just as I thought I was safe, the tail came in from my side and caught me in the side of my head, and I blacked out.

The next thing I remember was feeling Aethramyr's healing touch again, saving my life for the second time that day, as he pulled me away from the beast. Scorch came bounding up the stairs, clearly annoyed with these things. He shouted something loud, and knowing Scorch, insulting, and extended his finger.

A sickly purple-black ray shot out at the salamander, and without even a gurgle, it fell over dead.

When I asked Scorch what he shouted, he smirked and translated from Ignan: "Your mother was an ice elemental."

[OOC: I was barely hurt from the fireball, but the attacks from the spear and the critical tail slap took me from 80 to -3 in one round. But Scorch got to try out his finger of death so it's all good. Thank god it blew its save.]

This level consisted of observation posts, and a ladder to the roof. From the windows we could see big plumes of smoke coming from the pyramids.

Again it took a lot more healing before we were all feeling fit again. At this point we were feeling fairly well depleted. Scorch still had a few nice spells up his sleeve but we were reaching deeply into our healing reserves. So we decided to call it a day and rest in the sanctum dome. Scorch dropped an alarm spell and we dug in for the night.

Of course, there was many benefits of this - an excellent meal, excellent drink, and a bath.

A bath. A warm, glorious, very very long bath. I decided that I need to find a magic item that will let one take a bathtub along while adventuring.

Out the window from the bath area, there was another bit of noise. There were at least a dozen . . . well . . . puffy white cats, coming from the general direction of the four towers where the astral ship was docked. I could also see about a dozen armed githyanki carrying silver swords heading for the middle of the area. (From the general triangle formed by the sanctum dome, the pyramids, and the tower, these were heading towards the middle of that triangle.) They were converging on some other force probably.

As long as they weren't coming here, I wasn't too worried. But since I was out of the tub, and since it had been an hour or two, it was probably a good time to eat.

So being cleaned up and with clean clothes, we ate a meal fit for a king. Valanthe was muttering something about the value of all this but Aethramyr and I were quite convinced that such things were made to be experienced, and now was a good time.

Given the tensions outside, we set watches continually, and then got some rest. During the night (a relative term in the astral of course) Dravot and Bolo watched a battle between githyanki and githzerai. Things were going badly for the githyanki until half a dozen more arrived mounted on small red dragons. After ten minutes, the githzerai retreat back to the towers.

Later, on Valanthe's watch, there was activity near the pyramid. Githzerai were being pummeled by some invisible force to the point of heads being bashed in. One took off into the hills, and two beams of energy arced into the sky and came back down and hit him. Several parts of his body teleported in different directions.

I was the last watch, and towards the end, there were a series of strange explosions near the astral ship. It wasn't fire but some kind of white energy. One tower exploded and there were other explosions at the other three. I could see a pair of glowing white creatures tearing into githyanki (or maybe githzerai - it was hard to tell at this range even for me). After another explosion, the ship began pulling out, leaving some gith behind. I could then see a humanoid of some kind floating in the air, glowing a bright white, shooting energy bolts at the astral brig.

With the morning we turned our attention to the gem prison. Aethramyr tried to break it with a hammer but got thrown back. Bolo wanted to talk to the stone, and cast a spell to let him do so. I couldn't understand the conversation of course but from the look on the halfling's face, it wasn't being very productive. I think Bolo wanted to convince the stone to let its prisoner out but the stone probably didn't have that ability - it was after all a stone.

I suggested a shatter spell, and Scorch conjured one up from the spell pool. The spell was very effective and the crystal fractured at first, then exploded outwards.

Only Bolo heard the terror filled cry of the stone as it realized it had been betrayed. He shed a silent tear for the stone.

Floating in the air in a fetal position was a humanoid. As it unfolded itself, it was nine feet tall. I assumed it was an assimar or something like that - it was human like, but it's limbs and joints were elongated. It floated for a bit then descended to the floor. It wore a light mithril armor, and had no eyes, but just glowing shapes where eyes would be, and had a thick mane of orange hair.

As the being touched the floor there was a backlash of energy. Most of the others were knocked to the floor as the ground shook violently. The entire surface of the sleeping god shook for a moment, then was still again.

He greeted us, and thanked us for his release. In gratitude, he gave us each a boon - the Boon of Chance he said. Of course he didn't explain further. He said that by now Karloth and his consort knew we were here.

The freed Ralishad went on about a few things but was both brief and enigmatic. Much of it went by me quickly and I didn't ask many questions since our mission seemed clear enough.

Karloth is the gith that is somehow in charge of all this. He would be protected in his heart - it is his defended place. Karloth had defied the lich queen some time ago, and made an allegiance with the Shadow King. (Apparently the Githyanki have a lich queen who consumed anyone who becomes powerful enough to challenge her. Githyanki willingly submit to this generally.) Karloth's consort too, was powerful enough to warrant being consumed. Karloth and his consort created this place, and bound the Ralishad through trickery. The Shadow King himself then bound Ralishaz.

He of course urged us to quickly release his brother and sister, and we saw little reason to waste time doing so. Having released him, we were sure that Karloth and others would know we were here, and so we wanted to get moving quickly. Scorch cast an invisibility sphere and we made our way to the pyramids.

Moving over the surface we came to a crystalline grotto with large crystals sticking out of the ground like trees. Hidden in the grotto was some half dozen githyanki, waiting in ambush. Rather than fight them, we made use of the invisibility we had and crept past them and moved on towards our objective.


As we moved further south, there were more githzerai bodies. They were completely bloodless. There was no sign of what killed them but their faces were locked in an expression of horror. Dravot sensed a powerful undead force in the vicinity - it wasn't close, but it was in the area.

Over a ridge, I spotted a leathery humanoid head. It was stooped over, but there was some kind of glow indicating some fire beneath it.

Maybe it was stalking us, or maybe it just noticed us. Either way we spread out quickly. As it came into view, we recognized it from our trip to the great index - a devourer. From a hill on the opposite side of us, another one was coming.

Scorch was in no mood to play games it seemed, and threw a maximized fireball at one. After the fire cleared, there was nothing left but wispy souls drifting into the astral, freed from their prison.

We looked to Dravot next and he invoked Pelor's name to smite the other one. In a flash of light from his holy symbol, Dravot turned the beast into ash.

Of course with that, our invisibility was gone but that couldn’t' be helped. Quickly however Scorch noticed that we were being scryed on. Scorch waved at the sensor, and it winked out. I found that a bit odd, but we decided to move on before anything else came.

As we got closer to the pyramid, over a dozen githzerai were coming towards us. They wore light clothing and moved like a blur. (Hasted, said Scorch.) We suspected that the githzerai were not necessarily going to attack us, and we waited for them to approach.

Bolo however thought it would be a good idea to change shape into a dire bear. The gith reacted very poorly to this open, somewhat hostile move. Bolo seemed surprised that they would react poorly to this (although I can't imagine why he'd be surprised). To try to calm things down, he laid on the ground in a passive position. The gith seemed to accept this for now, and approached closer. A dimension door opened and a githzerai stepped through.

He declared himself their Commander Tardalis, and Dravot and Aethramyr spoke to him.

He asked "Do you plan to stand in our way?"

"Not in the least" replied Aethramyr with a wry smile. He and Dravot told them of the githyanki ambush in the crystal grove as a gesture of good faith. We told them we had no quarrel with them and would not oppose them as they fought their hated foe. When we mentioned the crystal, Tardalis said it was in the ruined pyramid, but they could not approach, as the "bitch consort" is guarding it and ran them off. We nod at this, and after a bit more conversation, head off to the pyramid.

[OOC Note: the party says "We didn't step on our crank. Yay us!"]

As we approached, two forms came running from the ether. They were composed of some liquid-like material, white with a rainbow sheen. One was thicker and had a huge horn on its head, while the other was somehow brighter.

After a quick spell, I started firing but missed a fair bit. The arrows were at least somewhat effective against them. Then there was an explosion of electrical energy behind me, and people were hit with some kind of electrical attack. Revealed by this was a dark skinned woman. She had black wings like a bat and very short hair. She wore black leather armor and only carried a small knife at her belt as a weapon. Around her head floated a crystal.

Bolo charged in as a bear, and she had some kind of defense up which he sprung, and was badly injured as parts of him were teleported away. Scorch decided it was time for a mass haste, and followed that up with a lightning bolt to the consort.

She somehow absorbed the damage but I was sure she couldn't keep that up all day. Aethramyr charged in and attacked. Her skin shifted as he attacked but Shatterspike still found green blood in her to draw out, along with a scream.

Dravot moved in to support Aethramyr and hurt her more with the Sunhammer. Valanthe saw her moment and moved in, and made several hard stabs.

The ether beings sluggishly attacked, and while slow they were still credible threats. Fortunately we managed to avoid being too harshly hurt from them.

I turned my fire to the source of the problem and landed several arrows into the consort.

And then she was gone.

There was a shimmer and a sudden wink in the world, and she vanished. The ether creatures were gone also.

[OOC: She used some kind of time stop ability and got out before we could finish her off. And it was pretty close too.]

I was not at all happy. She was a serious opponent, and I did not wish to have to fight her all over again, when she was better prepared and had more help. Bolo had quite enough pieces of him missing as it was.

But there was little I could do but utter a few curses. We moved quickly into the pyramid to do what we came for, fearing she returned with help. There, another crystal waited much like the last one.

When the crystal shattered, this time it revealed a female in a long white silken robe with flowing sleeves. She had dark blue skin and seemed to be a genassi. She was immediately in telepathic contact with her brother, and soon understood the situation.

"My boon to each of you," she said with a smile "is the gift of cheating." And she fanned out several cards from nowhere. Each of us took one and it promptly vanished in our hand.

And our spells were restored and our wounds healed. We were refreshed and ready to move.

She believed her remaining brother was trapped in the ruined tower.

"Then that's where we'll go."
 

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Meepo scratched his head and sniffed the air. He was still unused to life above-ground, and he certainly wasn't sure what to make of this frigid place. It was quite likely he'd never get used to the concept of 'snow'. He couldn't help but think of it as a cave-in that fell randomly from the sky.

Crescent barked, and nuzzled Meepo's shoulder. The small kobold absent-mindedly scratched the gigantic wolf's chin. He had long since grown comforrtable with the Master's noble steed, and wasn't the least bit concerned with having the rows of hideous teeth so close to his throat. Well, perhaps just a little concerned. Old habits died hard. Still, they were the best of friends, even though Meepo suspected the wolf just might be smarter than he was.

It had been more than a day since the Master and his friends had descended into the caverns below. Meepo no longer accompanied them on such expeditions, as much as he might like to do otherwise. He had long since learned that his master now tread in places where it was unsafe for him to be. Both the Master and Lady Valanthe had taught him quite a few tricks at survivng some of life's nastier tricks...but there were limits. Whether he was looking after Crescent or whether Crescent was watching after him was a point of conjecture, but the surface was the safest place to be.

He thought.

When Crescent suddenly sniffed the air, his hackles rising, Meepo knew trouble was coming. When he heard the wing beats in the frozen air, he knew it was his death that was coming. He remembered the terror of Nightscale...a fear he had hoped to never feel again. The panic that followed the burning of Greyhawk had approached it...but when he saw the massive shadow flash overhead, his fear seemed an insurmountable thing.

He considered running and hiding, but knew it was too late. The thing had seen them, and Crescent rarely backed down from a fight, however hopeless. It's massive clawed feet came crashing down, raising clouds of snow and dust where it landed. The ground turned black wherever it came into contact with it. It's wings blotted out the sun, and it's long neck ended in a hideous collection of teeth, horns, and two red-eyes that smouldered like burning coals.

A black dragon.

Crescent had seen enough. He dashed forward, so quickly that to Meepo, he became a blur. It was a foolish move, but without the Master here, the wolf tended to take a simple view of things. Lady Kayleigh had said something about "having a hammer" and "everything looking like nails"....but Meepo hadn't really followed that. But he thought he understood the general idea, and Crescent was putting that idea into action. Against a orcish war bad, this was a good idea. The enormous beast that faced them was far different, however, and far, far more dangerous.

The dragon watched the Dire Wolf approach with detached interest, and deflected the mount's attack with the barest flick of it's tail. Crescent rolled along the ground, and came back up on his feet, ready to renew his assualt. He would get no such chance. Instead, the great Black moved faster than any thing of such size should have been able to do, and it's terrible claws came to bear. Crescent would die, Meepo was sure.

Or he would have, if the Black had desired it. Instead, it beat Crescent against a wall, then back against the ground, ripping into his flesh. Meepo waited for the death blow to come...but it didn't. Instead, the Black paused, and then began sniffing the wolf's bleeding form.

"Yessss," came the voice. It made Meepo think of steam escaping a fissure in the earth. It's breath stank of the swamp, and the copper smell of fresh blood. Crescent's blood. "I smell my sister's blood on you. The one you bear....he is one of the one's who slew her."

If Meepo could have vomited, he would have. His stomach was certainly attempting to volunteer for the position...but he had to think of Crescent, and protecting the Master. It would be pure suicide to even attempt to fight. He couldn't hide...the Black knew he was here, and he didn't have one of his scrolls handy. He had to think, and fast.

"G...Great One! I...I thank you for saving me!", he stammered in Draconic, hoping that he could keep his fear in check long enough to talk his way out of this. What had Lady Valanthe said? "If you're going to lie....LIE BIG!" If Meepo could do one thing better than the wolf, it was talk. Meepo knew that the wolf couldn't actually speak at all...but he needed something to raise his confidence.

The Black's eye turned to regard the kobold, who felt smaller by the moment. To feel it's piercing gaze was to know terror...and Meepo surely felt it. It licked some of Crescent's blood from one of its claws, and lumbered closer. The foul breath of the Black created clouds of steam in the air about Meepo.

"Saved you....herrrh." It seemed to find this amusing. "What is a little pretender doing here, hmmm? Hoping to become a true dragon? Herhh Herhhh Herhhh. I didn't save you, morsel. I am looking for this thing's rider. WHERE. ARE. THEY?"

Each of the last three words was a sentence unto itself. Their volume was so great, Meepo's teeth rattled with each syllable.

"This humble one doesn't know where they are now, Great One." Over and over Meepo focused on one thought. Stay calm. Stay calm. Stay calm. "The hideous softskins captured this poor one and forced him to serve them. They went below, through that hole." He gestured towards the cave entrance.

The Black turned his head to percieve the cave. He would never fit. Meepo hoped that he would loose interest. Crescent was bleeding, maybe even dying. He couldn't tend the wolf while the dragon was here...but first he had to get the dragon to go somewhere...anywhere but here. His only hope was to trick the dragon...and then only becuase the Black wouldn't suspect him of having learned so much with Gelban's servants.

"Hmmmph. In the earth. Always in the earth. Never in a swamp. Feh." It's features suddenly began to blur, like the way that Scorch did when he changed into that...bug. In a moment, where once a Dragon stood, now an imposing human could be seen. Dressed all in black silks and a cloak, his face was long and regal...except for the huge scar that split his face in two. Why he would choose such an appearance was beyond the kobold, but he wasn't that concerned about it.

"They have been below for some time, Great One. Perhaps they are dead," he offered. He looked at the cave once more.

Suddenly he felt his arm nearly ripped from it's socket. As he heard the wet 'snap', he knew at once that his bones of his arm had been crushed. The Black had taken the form of a human...but he was far quicker than Meepo could have thought, and his hand retained all of the physical power of his true form. All of which was lost on the kobold, who screamed out loud from the pain.

"Be glad I do not smell my sister's blood upon you, puny one, or you would surely be dead. I will seek the assassains below. Gelban can't protect them, now. You had best be gone when I return...or I may be....HUNGRY."

With that, he tossed Meepo about like a child's doll. All the kobold could do was watch the ground as he flew towards it.

He was unsure how long he was unconcious, but it hadn't been too long. The cloak had helped. Gelban's gift saved his life again, it seemed. He wasted no time running to Crescent's body. The wolf was barely breathing, and his life was fading fast. Meepo's eyes cast about, trying to find the packs. He spotted them and ran quickly to them. He rifled through the packs, searching for the items he needed.

He located the few potions and two scrolls he needed. Within moments, he had awoken and healed the wolf. It hungered for battle, but it wasn't stupid. Crescent knew it couldn't give chase to the Dragon....but Meepo could tell something else was wrong. One look into the wolf's eyes told Meepo all he needed to know.

The Master.

The Master was gone.
 

The Grand Tour - Chapter 8

OOC Notes:

Exp this session is 3755.

The Savage Sword of Meepo will be on break until late August due to vacations and so on.

Obviously quite a few developments. Rather than get into it all here, expect follow up e-mail (and probably story hour posting) detailing a) What our choices are for the next thing to do and b) a full audit of the fortress.

As a side note, this was a great adventure with some very threatening foes. We got hammered pretty well, but pulled it out, and I think we earned the win.


Loot:

There will be an exhaustive loot discussion in the audit.


This Week's Adventure:

On second thought, maybe we'll go somewhere else.

We debated it for a while, and realized that we really weren't too sure how this whole containment system worked and what would happen when. But we were fairly sure of one thing: Karloth would be trying to stop us. The real problem here was Karloth - if we take him out, then we can easily handle the rest afterward. We figured that Karloth would be in the "heart" in his protected place, and that would be the direction to head. We also wanted to be quick, to minimize his chances to prepare.

So we set off for the center of the triangle, hoping to find a way into this "heart". We again used an invisibility sphere to conceal us but apparently someone saw us anyway. Our first clue to this was the Horrid Wilting.

I had heard of this spell only briefly, and certainly never seen it. But the effects were brutal, as all the moisture in the area was ripped away, leaving us all badly injured. Valanthe caught the brunt of it, and died outright. Or at least I believe she would have. The mark still on her hand suddenly flared and burned, and she was left alive but at death's door. The gift of chance had saved her life, but unless we all moved quickly, it would be for nothing.

At that moment I noticed the shadows on the ground were moving, as if the sun overhead was moving rapidly. Of course on the astral, there is no sun, making it all the stranger.

We began healing ourselves up and preparing for another assault. Ahead I could see from the towers a huge wave of shadows coming our way. It was as if the sea were black shadow, and a great tide was coming our way. Inside I could barely make out shapes, borne by the black wave. In one moment, I saw lifted to the crest a massive biped with huge jaws and very long arms, and glowing red eyes.

We were under attack from a spellcaster who was invisible, and that was not good. I kept looking intently, trying to discern where he was and hoping he would cast again so I could glitterdust the area, but he did not show himself. Some time passed while the wave of shadow rolled closer at a blinding speed. The ground erupted near the shadow wave, and a huge earth elemental heaved itself from the stone below, and charged in just behind the wave.

Scorch took matters into his own hands as far as our invisible foe and dimension door'd far above the battle and cast See Invisible. Revealed under the spell was our foe.

The githyanki was on a small flying carpet, flying over the shadow wave. Ioun stones circled his head, and he carried a staff, blazing with blue energy. He wore black leather armor and carried a wicked dagger in his other hand.

[OOC Note: See invisible is a rather odd spell. We had all assumed it simply let the caster see invisible creatures but it doesn't work anything like that. It took us quite a while to sort through it, and the spell is really poorly worded. Do yourself a favor and explore it well before you use it.]

Karloth was surrounded by a translucent sphere and Scorch indicated it was an Otiluke's resilient sphere, and few attacks would pass through, but he could drop it soon. Unfortunately Karloth had other ideas, and as he was now revealed, he wasted no time in teleporting from the field.

Bolo, who had been in the form of a small hawk, landed on top of the elemental and reverted to his halfling form. I was stunned. Clearly he had been hearing too many tales of Valanthe. I might question his wisdom, but his bravery was stunning. I only hope it doesn't get him killed.

In any case he dispelled the elemental - a simple thing with a profound effect, and one that I grow fonder of each time. Unfortunately this had a secondary effect - without the elemental to stand on, Bolo fell from 25 feet and landed inside the shadow wave.

Since Karloth was not to be found, we turned our attention to the shadow beasts inside the wave. Now that they were close we could see three mastiffs and three of the biped creatures. Scorch dropped a fireball which roasted a few, and used a lightning bolt to finish off the damaged ones. I tore into one of the other bipeds, which were weaker than they seemed. My arrows tore away it's shadowy substance till all that was left were a few wisps. Dravot indicated that the bipeds were undead, and drove the point home by using his power to destroy one of them that was close to him.

Aethramyr charged one of the mastiffs, energizing Shatterspike with Sehanine's power. As he closed, the wave of shadow parted and was driven back. He struck the mastiff and it had time only for a plaintive yelp before it fell.

Out of nowhere, Valanthe appeared near one of the other mastiffs, and her blades flew back and forth as if preparing a steer for the market. The beast never knew what ended its life.

[OOC: This was a harsh battle. The horrid wilting did 57 points to 4 out of 6 of us. Valanthe failed the massive damage save and would have died if not for the gift of chance.]

We didn't wish to get caught in the open again, and moved towards the towers hoping to find Karloth. At the base of each was a staff set in the ground with a glowing purple crystal - the source of the shadow wave no doubt as it had extended between them. The towers themselves had extensive damage from explosions and the like. Several melted githyanki bodies were strewn about. But there was no sign of Karloth here. We quickly returned to the central area looking for a cavern leading down but found none, so we hustled back to the towers looking for a passage heading down.

Scorch had taken some precautions to detect scrying, and signaled over the scales that we were being watched, but he was unable to trace back the source. We loudly discussed going to the Sanctum dome for a minute then proceeded inside the tower. The left tower had a portcullis, and the inscription on the arch read "Revenge". There were many mind flayer skulls imbedded in the walls, no doubt the object of this revenge. However we wasted no time examining them, as we wanted to catch Karloth as quickly as possible.

Beyond the portcullis was a defensible area that included spellcraft to make one feel confident holding it. A door beyond lead to a common area, and there was a spiral staircase heading down. At the bottom was another common area, this one with a wicked looking creature eight feet tall. It had legs of a goat, pitch black skin, and horns on the side of its head - a cambion. It wore heavy armor but did not seem to be ready for a fight. Valanthe could also sense the presence of someone invisible here.

It approached as it saw us and spread its arms, hands open and empty. He stated it had no quarrel with us. He was simply a mercenary who had been abandoned by the githyanki. He seemed more concerned that he would not be getting paid than about attacking us.

We asked if he knew where Karloth went and he said he did, and would tell us in exchange for safe passage. Even though it was a half demon, even Aethramyr had no desire to fight him with Karloth still on the loose, and we agreed. The beast indicated a wall that contained a secret door leading to Karloth. (No doubt we would have quickly found it, but it seemed neither of us cared to fight the other if it wasn't necessary.)

Valanthe quickly checked then opened the secret door. Beyond the corridor shifted from worked stone to a black marble. Occasionally we could hear whispered voices just beyond understanding, or an image would flash of a man walking in a desert. We tried not to get distracted and moved deeper inside and came to a set of double doors with an elaborate design in black marble with steel bindings.

Beyond was a black marble room with pale blue mosaics. The room was filled by pews facing an empty black wall where an altar would stand, but there was none. A statue of a ten foot tall githyanki in robes stood at the door, pointing at the wall.

The statue was suspicious and radiated of magic. But we could think of little to do besides be on guard and moved inside. With a grinding noise, the statue animated and swung wildly at us. Before anyone else could react, I turned and snapped off several arrows. Fortunately the enchantment on them was plenty to drive them into the juggernaut, and it fell in pieces to the marble floor.

[OOC: My notes say: "Stone golem comes to life. Stone golem goes to death. Moving on." Poor thing got shredded.]

Two doors lead from the room but there were sigils protecting them. Valanthe triggered one in her attempt to bypass it and couldn't even approach the door afterward. Scorch was able to temporarily suppress one and we moved quickly past the door. The room beyond contained a desk, which promptly exploded into an incendiary cloud. We quickly left the room and left the cloud to burn out.

Down the hall was another corridor and then a door. As we came out we saw Karloth bolt from the door down the other corridor. Down there we could see his consort as well. It was time.

Valanthe started with a bead of force. It didn't trap either of them but they certainly felt the effect of the blast. The Karloth teleported into the hallway and a prismatic spray flashed down on us all. I truly dread this spell. I was struck by a bolt of electricity, and even twisting away from most of it, still was badly hurt. Bolo was hit by a flash and turned into stone. Scorch was also hit by lightning full on, and fell unconscious. Valanthe was hit square by a green beam, but it just washed over her without harming her.

[OOC: Bolo missed his save. Aethramyr and Dravot saved and were ok. Valanthe was actually killed by the poison, failing her save, until Bolo reminded her he had loaned her an amulet of adaptation and so was immune.]

Karloth was a powerful enemy and we had to attack him hard and fast. Fortunately we had our chance, with him right in front of us. Scorch opened with a cone of cold, and I started laying arrows into him. Each one made a crunch as it hit - he had a stoneskin spell protecting him. Even so, the arrows were still hurting him, and with seven arrows in him, he was none too pleased. Aethramyr closed on him and drove Shatterspike clean through the stoneskin and through Karloth's shoulder and he howled.

It was the last sound he'd ever make. Because Valanthe had gotten behind him, and in one smooth motion reached around and slit his throat from ear to ear. He stood for a moment, then collapsed forward in a pool of blood.

The consort was only intent on escape, but we were having none of it. Dravot wasted no time chasing the consort and teleported next to her and attacked. A fine move as he could now harry any magical attempt she made to leave. Bolo, now a bear, charged at her too and returned some of the pain she had put on him. Scorch reached for my shoulder and we appeared on the other side of the room she had fled into, and I began putting arrows into her back. With a screech, she fell forward dead, with three arrows sticking from between her wings.

And then everything went white.


We awoke. I didn't know what had happened, but I knew it was much later. In front of me was the body of the consort, her blood long dried, confirming it. Even the room had changed, the marble now a white flecked stone rather than black marble. Our injuries were gone, and Bolo was no longer a statue.

Dravot looked at the corpses of the consort and Karloth and guessed it had been a week since they had died.

But what happened?

Scorch was looking about in an odd fashion and was disturbed by some other mystery. After some time he said "We're back on the prime material plane…"

We went back outside, and looked around, and sure enough we were not on the Astral any more. The entire fortress seemed to have been dropped, literally, onto the prime material plane.

Lightning then erupted over the sanctum dome, and we went over to find out what it was. Standing at the strike was Prince Sumez, now clearly freed from his binder, and standing as a tall, red-skinned man.

He greeted us, and congratulated us on our success, and therefore his freedom. He also said he had found our wolf and our "thing" (with no small distaste) and in another flash of lightning, Crescent and Meepo appeared.

Crescent was limping and heavily bandaged. Meepo's arm was in a sling. Meepo only briefly mentioned a black dragon, and something about killing his sister.

We let out a collective groan but left the matter for later.

Prince Sumez said the dragon had come down and found the binder, and attempted to take control of it. He found it rather comical for the first hour.

In any case he had promised a boon and he would deliver it. With that his eyes flared in red fire, and our skin began to burn. We each floated into the air, our heads back as the fire flowed over us. On my shoulder, the mark of a small flame burned into the skin. As we hung there for burning moments, something inside became . . . unlocked. For the first time I realized that perhaps the reason the dragons had chosen us was due to this potential.

Of course, this was the being that ruled evocation, and while destruction was his strong suit, grace was not. After the mark was formed, we fell from the air in a rather unceremonious fashion, along with the usual clattering of armor when it meets the ground.

He told us it seems that Ralishaz is now quite awake, and pointed at the arch over the Sanctum Dome. Inscribed in mithril in draconic, it now said "The debt is paid." I assumed it was Valanthe's debt to him but in any case it seems we are now even.

Prince Sumez remembered then he promised another boon, and extended his hand. A series of bolts shot out, one hitting each of us in the chest. I can only hope that if we free another binder that he is somewhat more subtle with his gifts. Nonetheless, afterward I felt slightly better - slightly sharper and quicker, like a cat's grace. Later I would learn that each of us seemed to be blessed according to our talents.

[OOC Note: +1 to our primary statistic each. Dravot/Bolo - wisdom. Aethramyr - charisma. Valanthe/me - dexterity. Scorch - intelligence.]

With that, Prince Sumez ben Taal bid us farewell.

Or at least he tried. I reminded him of one other boon he promised - that he would help us understand the binders so that we may overcome those who wield them.

He looked back at me, not quite ashamed but not quite flippant either.

"Oh. That. Um, about that. I lied."

"Excuse me?" was all I could manage.

"I lied. You looked like you might not do it, so I lied. Sorry."

I sighed, since there was little to be done about it. We bid him well and he returned to his wife in another loud explosion.

We looked at each other silently for a moment. It was Scorch of course who said "Well I'm gonna take a look around!" at which we all nodded and started taking a more detailed look at this fortress that had apparently been dropped here for us.

Maybe we'll keep it.

As I moved to one of the buildings, I heard Aethramyr taking Crescent and Meepo aside asking "Now tell me about this dragon…"
 

Auditors are a CR12

I received this by air elemental this morning:



From: InterPlanar Auditors, Inc.

To: Her Excellency Kayleigh,
The Savage Sword of Meepo Adventuring Company, LLP.

Re: Results of your requested audit


Your Excellency,

It is IPA's pleasure to supply you with the audit you requested. As per your request, we conducted an extensive audit of the Ruun-Khazai facility you recently acquired, as well as an itemization, inventory, and assessment of various firm assets your group received via spoils-of-war.

Our team has certified the results of the audit and you can be assured of the highest integrity and accuracy in the results.


Liquid Assets:

The total for all coin, gems, and easily disposable objects comes to 37,460gp. This translates to 6,243gp per partner, available for immediate spending.


Capital Assets:

You recovered a substantial number of capital assets in the course of your recent work. The capital assets can be divided into two categories: those going to partners, and those that will be liquidated.

You provided the following information for partner disposition:

Scorch
Headband of intellect +6
Wand of Mirror Image, 5 charges

Dravot
Clerical Vestments

Aethramyr
Gauntlets of Ogre Power

Bolo
Ioun stone, incandescent blue (+2 wis)
Necklace of the wild beast
Ring of Protection +1
Scroll of chill metal

Valanthe
Ring of protection +1
Wand of Melf's Acid Arrow, 33 charges

Kayleigh
Arrow of slaying, lawful outsiders.
Wand of Dispel Magic, 10 charges
Bracers of Armor +3
Ioun stone, pink/green (+2 cha)


That leaves a substantial list of items remaining. It is our believe that your partners will wish to retain some of these items. We have included an estimate of the price of each item to facilitate your process.


Greater rod of Silence Spell (metamagic feat rod) 48600
Tome of leadership and influence +1 27500
Staff of frost 15 charges 21000
Carpet of flying 3x5 210 speed 18000
+2 heavy mace of terror 17812
Cloak of resistance +4 16000
Battleaxe +2 8310
+2 kama 8300
Boots of Speed 8000
Ring of protection +2 8000
Amulet of natural armor +2 8000
Ring of protection +2 8000
adamantium breastplate 5350
+2 dagger (meepo) 4305
Chain shirt +2 4250
+2 leather breastsplate 4160
+2 bracers of armor 4000
cloak of resistance +2 4000
Three sets of mithril chainmail 3450
2 brooches of shielding 3000
Mighty Composite Longbow +1, +3str mod 2700
Scroll of sequester 2275
Cloak of Elvenkind 2000
Scroll of wall of force 1125
Potion of Cure Serious Wounds 750
One potion of cure serious wounds 750
Wand of Summon Monster I 750
Scroll of lightning bolt 375
Scroll of protection from elements 375
Potion of intelligence 300
Potion of ghoul touch 300
Potion of cure moderate wounds 300
Scroll of protection from arrows 150
Potion of swimming 150
Scroll of invisibility to undead 25
Scroll of detect snares and pits 25
Scroll of entangle 25

+3 greatsword silver sword special


It is the opinion of IPA that your partners consider holding on to the following assets:

Greater rod of Silence Spell
Tome of Leadership and Influence (Aethramyr)
Staff of Frost (Scorch)
Carpet of Flying
Cloak of Resistance +4
Boots of Speed
Ring of Protection +2 (two of them, requests in from Bolo and Kayleigh)
Amulet of Natural Armor +2 (Aethramyr)


The Silver Sword represents a particular problem. There is a great deal of risk associated with holding this type of investment as the owners tend to take a dim view of such a thing. IPA strongly recommends that you dispose of this item as quickly as possible. You can either dispose of it through discreet channels, or you may wish to consider attempting to sell it back to the Githyanki Corporation directly, in order to avoid complications with them later.



Ruun-Khazai Overview

The fortress has considerable value both for the items it contains as well as the inherent value of the stronghold itself. We will consider the inventory separate from the stronghold.

Ruun-Khazai is in an unknown location, per your request that auditors from IPA be teleported in with no knowledge of the location. Therefore we cannot provide any substantive information regarding local taxes.


Ruun-Khazai Inventory

The fortress currently holds a number of rare or unique items, including an extensive collection of food and spirits. These items were well preserved on the astral plane but now that the fortress has been moved to the prime material, they will age and spoil. IPA therefore recommends you sell off these assets while they are still valuable.

Ruun-Khazai held a number of notable items - a summary is provided here.

Alcohol collection 7800
Githyanki artwork 2500
Sword collection 12000
Tapestry of fright 10000
Books in the sanctum dome 2000
Books from the Heart 6000
Armory 39359
Armor collection 10250

Note the price of the half plate barding for a large quadraped is not included in this estimate.

The four towers contained sufficient barracks for 192 troops. Each trooper as standard equipment was issued a potion of cure light wounds. You therefore have 192 potions of cure light wounds available.

The total value for the inventory of Ruun-Khazai comes to 89,909gp. or a per partner share of nearly 15,000gp. Disposition of the armory contents should be particularly easy given the political tensions in the Flaness right now.


Ruun-Khazai Fortress

After a thorough appraisal of the facility, we offer the following assessment. Note that this assessment is certified and usable for all tax purposes. The total value of the facility is 2,121,770 gp, broken down as follows.

Sanctum Dome 784870
Four Towers 933600
The Heart 403300
The Pyramids 0

The Pyramids are nothing but a pile of rubble.

The Four Towers are suitable for housing troops, as their purpose was originally as a barracks. They contain few noteworthy features but are stable structures and could be renovated to another purpose if that was your desire. One notable item is the Greater Map of Tactics in one of the towers - a desk-like object that will show the position of those touching it when in the area of the fortress for 18 hours.

The Sanctum Dome offers luxurious living quarters, along with a number of special features:

1. A Warding Bell, capable of protecting the dome with a Guards and Wards spell
2. Animated Ballistae to serve as unmanned defenders. The ballistae have interesting abilities
3. A great deal of usable living space
4. A fully functional alchemical lab
5. A high quality forge
6. A dining facility with a number of unseen servants already conjured.
7. Several living quarters have enchantments to notify the occupant if they are being scryed
8. Some rooms are always kept comfortable and fresh via magical enchantment
9. A Pool of Scrying has been created in the temple area in the basement

The Heart also has a number of special features:

1. It is protected from scrying, always appearing empty
2. It is protected from unwanted visitors by teleportation or planar shifting
3. It has a full alchemical lab and library
4. It is connected via tunnels to all the other structures
5. It has living quarters for one person
6. It contains a summoning area

It is the opinion of IPA that SSOM LLP retain the fortress for their uses. The rational for this recommendation is as follows:

1. While Ruun-Khazai has a significant cash value, it would be extremely difficult to convert this into any kind of liquid asset. It's off the beaten track in an unfriendly area, and would be of interest only to a few people. This means you could get greater value from using it than from selling it.
2. With the recent disappearance of your primary venture capitalist, and corresponding loss of corporate facilities, your partnership is in need of a new base of operations.
3. SSOM LLP has made several enemies during the months of its existence. Having a facility that is unknown to these entities that is also moderately proofed against scrying would be of tremendous benefit.
4. The facility is in an inconvenient location however this can serve to keep the lesser undesirable elements away, and given your abilities, the commute should not prove burdensome.


In Conclusion

Asset Total Per Partner
Liquid assets 37,460 6,243
Fortress inventory 89,909 14,985
Total 127,369 21,228

Add to this the price of the fixed assets you choose to sell for a total equity figure. If we make certain assumptions about which assets you choose to keep, we estimate each partner will receive an additional 12,000gp. This number is merely provided for planning purposes.

These figures do not include any revenues from the disposal of the Silver Sword, which could generate another 16,000gp per partner, but that number could vary wildly as you would expect with such a delicate sale.

The acquisition of Ruun-Khazai was a wise choice for SSOM LLP. Both the capital assets as well as the facility itself should serve to further enhance the group's position in the very competitive and hostile market currently gripping the Flaness.
 
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Something else that arrived by Air Elemental Postal Express...

To make matters more interesting, something else arrived by air elemental as well:

To Whom it May Concern:

Good Gentles,

I represent a clearing house of some antiquities. Our particular firm has a
proud lineage that stretches back for almost 200 years (prime relative). We
are experts at both acquisition and dispersal of unique goods for the
discriminating and conspicous.

It has recently come to our attention (and please, don't ask how...you know
we wouldn't tell you if you did) that you have come into possession of
a...singular item of dangerous and possibly dubious value. You may be
interested to know that we have no small shortage of contacts and
connections that may be useful in the service of any transactions you may be
considering with regards to this property.

Should you be interested, merely inquire at our main office, 3.14 Pi Square,
Guildhall Ward, Sigil. Three doors down from Zakk's Corpse Curing.

Sincerely,

Mortimer Fuvex-vex-vex,
Chief Curator, Tsvar's Curios and Objectals

OOC: I thought that the DM was pulling my leg when he sent this but he says it is serious. Whee!
 
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I finally Decided.

Bolo Brandybuck will start Verdant Lord Levels as of 16th level.
It took me forever to decide between Shifter and Verdant Lord. I don't want Druid because I can't see Bolo gaining an Elemental form, It's just not in him to not be a "living natural animal".
So Verdant Lord it is. Here is Bolo's most recent Stat block to cement this in stone.

Bolo Brandybuck: Male Halfling (Lightfoot) Druid 15; CR 15; Small Humanoid (Halfling); HD 15d8+30; hp 115; Init +2; Spd 20 ft.; AC 20; Atk +8/+3/–2 melee (1D6+2+1D6 Fire, halfling staff), +4/–1/–6 melee (1D6+2+1D6 Cold, halfling staff), +15/+10/+5 ranged (1d4, masterwork sling); AL NG; SV Fort +14, Ref +10, Will +19; Str 9, Dex 15, Con 14, Int 16, Wis 22, Cha 15; Height 3'6", weight 35
Skills and Feats: Animal Empathy +20, Climb +3, Concentration +10, Craft (Wicker Weaving) +5, Handle Animal +18, Hide +8, Knowledge (nature) +21, Knowledge (The Outer Plains) +7, Knowledge (Psionics) +4, Listen +11, Move Silently +6, Profession (Herbalist) +15, Ride +6, Scry +5, Spellcraft +19, Swim +1, Wilderness Lore +25; Natural Casting, Fast Wild Shape, Plant Defiance, Plant Control, Track, Craft Wondrous Item
 

Dreams and visions

I had a most remarkable dream last night. Maybe it was a vision; I’m not sure. Regardless, I take it as a sign from on high.

The dream:

I find myself in a small room in a cave. A pool of water collects in one corner. It's very, very dark, but I have no trouble seeing anyway. I look out the doorway and see a long passage. It reminds me of the family crypts in Brindinford, but it's obviously a cave.

I move out, quietly. There is a need for caution, although I don't know why. The passageway opens into a large cavern, so large I cannot see the far side in the dark. I wait at the opening; I listen and feel the cavern with all of my senses...trying to figure out what's going on. I don't detect undead at all, but I know they're nearby.

I move along the perimeter of the room. I try to be as quiet as I can. I realize that I do not have my armor or shield, only my vestments, the Sunhammer and my holy symbol. I think I hear something and stop moving, again, sensing for anything, but nothing. Am I being stalked? My paranoia says I am, but I have nothing to support this. Still, it's easier to assume yes than to be surprised. I continue.

I round a corner in the cavern. Ahead there is a ledge with a shaft of daylight shining down upon it. I am not sure if it's an exit or not, but I head toward it. The ledge is about six feet above the surface, but it looks like an easy climb. I look about for solid footing when a piercing howl echoes throughout the room. To me it sounds like a ghoul, full of hatred and contempt for the living. I can't tell where the sound comes from but I know that it's not far away.

I evaluate the situation and decide to climb up to the ledge. It should be a good place to defend myself, and if the light shaft is evidence of an exit, I can leave that way if necessary. I hastily begin to climb. I get two feet off the ground when I realize that the ledge and the light shaft are an illusion and do not exist. The howl is now joined by several more. And more. And more.

I'm not sure what's going on, but I prepare myself for battle, and move off to the side. If someone wants me at the ledge, I'm going to move elsewhere. I sense undead to my left, near the illusion. A ghoul appears out of the darkness, illuminated by the illusory light. It howls when it sees that I'm not where I should be. The foul creature puts his nose into the air and sniffs carefully, determining that I was there and where I had moved to. He runs toward me and the battle is on.

I ready my weapon and wait for him. I don't want to turn just one ghoul, there are more on the way for sure. He springs at me and I strike him down. A few seconds later, two more arrive. They attack me, but I deftly avoid them and smite them quickly. Five more take their place. More are on the way. I invoke the power of Pelor, channeling positive energy into the cavern and they die. More enter the cavern. I destroy more with positive energy, and yet more come. By now there are thirty or more in the cavern.

I try something new, something which I'd only heard of before. I concentrate my positive energy into a huge burst, and all thirty crumble into dust. But more arrive. Another burst destroys more. A couple get to me, but don't seem to be able to harm me - I am always ducking and avoiding them.

My ability to channel positive energy is usually limited, but today it feels like I have an unlimited supply, which is good, considering that they continue to attack.

Suddenly, I am in two places at once. I am still in the cavern, fighting more and more ghouls, and I am also on the ledge...the non-existent one, looking at myself as I fight the ever-increasing onslaught. From this vantage point, the number of ghouls seems like an ocean and the other Dravot is fighting the waves with a toy sword, and yet he is unharmed and holding them at bay.

"Hello Dravot."

Next to me is Belline. St. Belline. I don't say anything...I don't know what to say. She continues, "I see that your chalice has served you well so far."

I was rather surprised, but managed to recover adequately. "It has, exalted one. I thank you for your confidence in me."

"It is well earned, and I am glad to give it."

I look out over the cavern. "How much longer can I hold out against them?"

Belline looks nonplussed. "As long as you like, but you are at a stalemate and will not win under the current circumstances, but neither will the ghouls. You can break the stalemate if you wish, but only by letting go."

This puzzles me. "Let go? Of what?" Even as I say it though, I know what the answer will be.

"Your desire for vengeance. You allow your fear and hatred of the undead to cloud your judgment, which has led you into some rather dubious situations. Look at your treatment of Verilunda, and your commissioning of the brand that you were thinking of using upon yourself."

Even if I know the answer, I do not understand it. "But I have apologized to Verilunda, and to my friends. And it was my decision not to use the brand. I came to that decision before anyone else talked to me."

She smiles at me. "And for both of those, I commend you. It was surely not easy to do either one. Your pain was obvious to those around you. But that does not change the fact that you attacked Verilunda, and you did make the brand. Tell me, when Sebastian died, how did you feel?"

I think for a moment. "Conflicted, I suppose. I was certainly glad enough to see him dead for all he'd done to me and my family. I also felt sorrow for the brother I never knew, and will never know."

She asks another question. "Since you've taken your vows to Pelor and become one of His acolytes, what was the proudest moment you've experienced?"

This time I don't even have to think; I know the answer. "Freeing those who were enslaved by the Coot. Helping the sick and injured there, giving them comfort when they'd given up hope. Being instrumental in establishing a new temple for the followers of Pelor there."

We stand in silence as the battle below continues, and I reflect upon what I've just said. Belline speaks again. "Your fight against the forces of the Dark, the forces of the Undead is an important one. Never forget that. Remember, though, Pelor bids us to help those in need, that true good will win out in the end. You have strength in the light as well as the darkness, and can walk in both realms to do Pelor's will."

"I think I understand."

She then reaches up and touches my shoulder. I find myself covered in a suffuse, golden glow, feeling warm and safe. She intones a spell and fades out of sight.

I expect to find myself back as one, fighting the ghouls, but instead I am still on the illusory ledge, watching. I put my hands on my belt, realizing that I have the Sunhammer with me. Or my version of it. Or something. I draw it from my belt and hold it in my hand. It radiates a faint light, just like my body. I cast a daylight spell upon the hammer, and throw it into the cavern. It sails up and over the ghouls. The other Dravot doesn't seem to notice it, but the ghouls do. A flash of bright light erupts through the cavern and suddenly I'm back on the floor, the fighting Dravot, alone. No noise or movement. The Sunhammer is maybe 50 feet in front of me, on the ground, glowing faintly.

I move over and pick it up and the dream ends.

[ooc: basically flavor text which explains much of Dravot's thoughts of late, and a new direction for his character development]
 
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Announcer:"Welcome to everyone's favorite travel show:

Portal full o' Scorch!

Here's your host.....Scorch!"


Scorch:"OK, OK, I'm up! I'm up, for Boccob's sake. Vecna's Sore Tooth, it's early....what do you people want NOW?"

Announcer: "Today we'll be visiting Sigil, City of Doors!"

Scorch: "Oh fer crying out.....is it Feastday? &*(#, it's early. Yeah, yeah, Sigil. Come here for a second. Look in this portal."

Announcer: "This one here? Where does it go?"

Scorch: "Sigil, you dumb$%^! Now, get in there!"

[brief flash of light, change of scene from Greyhawk Studio City to a dark, damp murky street...screams are heard in the background]

Announcer: "By the Light of Pelor! Where are we?"

Scorch: [Slapping announcer in the back of the head] "Sigil, you Fluumph! Hive Ward, to be exact. Now the first thing you need to now..."

[Announcer begins to scream]

Announcer: "The street, it's eating me! Aaaah! Help! Aaah, Blessed Light! AaaHHH! It burns!"

Scorch: [continuing] "...is not to step in the Ooze Puddles. (sigh) MAHALITO!"

Announcer: "AHH! I'm Burning! I'M BURNING!"

Scorch: "Oh, quit being a baby! It's only 10d6 of damage. Empowered to 15. And Maximized. Twit."

Announcer: "I'm only an Bard 2/Expert 2....(sobbing)...I don't have those kind of hit points! Ahhh! Put me out! Put me out!"

Scorch: "Pfft. Fine. Cone of Cold, it is, then."

Announcer: "NO! Wait! I...." [sound of ice forming]...GAH!"

Scorch: "Feh. That's what we have clerics for, I guess. I'm outta here. Boccob's Breakfast Cereal, it's *&^%ing early. I'm getting some Kava."

[quick flash of light]

Announcer: "Ummm...Scorch? Anyone? Anyone?"

"Well, um....I guess that's all we...(OW!)...all we have time for this week. Join (OW!)...Join us next week when visit....(urk)....the Eylsian Fields....I hope. (hissing sound can be heard) Did you hear that? Anyone? Hello? .....I knew I shouldn't have become a bard."
 
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The Grand Tour - Chapter 9

OOC Notes:

Experience this session is 2000.

Loot Notes:

Now that the silver sword is gone, I can close the books and get us caught up. I'm going to make the assumption that after our little "detour" in the deep ethereal, we'll be able to sell the various proceeds without too much trouble and can just get on with things.

That said, the split from all this stuff is 40,291gp each. I'm calling this official. Any "proceeds" from the deep ethereal trip we'll handle later.

Other loot:

Aethramyr: Tome of leadership and influence +1, Carpet of flying 3x5, Amulet of natural armor +2, Mighty composite longbow +1, (+3 mighty).

Scorch: Staff of frost, Greater rod of Silence Spell, Scroll of wall of force, potion of cure serious wounds.

Dravot: Cloak of resistance +4, Scroll of invisibility to undead

Valanthe: Boots of speed

Bolo: Ring of Protection +2, Scroll of detect snares and pits, Scroll of entangle

Kayleigh: Scroll of lightning bolt, Potion of cure serious wounds, Ring of protection +2

Also there are more potions of cure light wounds than we need to count, so grab a few.


This Week's Adventure:

We each spent a bit of time wandering around the grounds of the fortress. It's certainly far larger than we need, but that might change in the future. The location is very isolated, which is both good and bad. Scorch is muttering about some kind of gateway to civilization that he'll work on later.

It became clear very quickly that there was a great deal of treasure and equipment here, most of which we would prefer to simply sell. Greyhawk is in turmoil at the moment and so we considered Dyvers briefly. But Scorch, who had missed a good bit of this discussion mired in the Sanctum library, came out with concern on his face.

"This just showed up, delivered by an air elemental."

The letter read:

To Whom it May Concern:

Good Gentles,

I represent a clearing house of some antiquities. Our particular firm has a proud lineage that stretches back for almost 200 years (prime relative). We are experts at both acquisition and dispersal of unique goods for the discriminating and conspicuous.

It has recently come to our attention (and please, don't ask how...you know we wouldn't tell you if you did) that you have come into possession of a...singular item of dangerous and possibly dubious value. You may be interested to know that we have no small shortage of contacts and connections that may be useful in the service of any transactions you may be considering with regards to this property.

Should you be interested, merely inquire at our main office, 3.14 Pi Square, Guildhall Ward, Sigil. Three doors down from Zakk's Corpse Curing.

Sincerely,

Mortimer Fuvex-vex-vex,
Chief Curator, Tsvar's Curios and Objectals


We immediately took our discussion to the Sanctum Heart, which was protected against scrying and intrusion. The letter was clearly referring to the silver sword that we took from Karluth. Scorch was very clear that the githyanki were not fond of such blades falling into the hands of non-githyanki and would go to great lengths to secure its return. Which meant it was a hot potato - it had great value but we needed to get rid of it quickly. Given Karluth's status within the githyanki society, his blade may be even more troublesome than most.

And now here is someone who not only knew we had it, but wanted to buy it. It had a chilling effect on all of us to say the least that someone knew we had the blade. But if one person knew, chances are more did, or could.

Valanthe meanwhile was simply bouncing her chair excitedly saying "Let's go to Sigil!" several times. The idea was clearly of interest to Scorch as well. I could tell because he took the time to explain.

Sigil is a city on some other plane. (Scorch told us but I forgot which.) It's a haven for commerce and anything can be bought or sold for the right price. Given the huge pile of goods we had to dispose of, it seemed like the perfect place and it would let us make some purchases as well.

Of course after we returned, there were still several troubling problems that faced us. The World Tree continued to suffer, Celene was under attack and then there were Chavram's forces near Brindinford, not to mention the dragon war. I was still troubled by the war on Celene, and that I was doing precious little to aid my homeland, and asked the group that we make our presence felt there. Bolo pressed a case for helping the World Tree, and wisely so - it was a most troubling problem. Of course we had little idea where to begin on that mystery. Eventually we resolved that we would conduct our business on Sigil, then return to the Prime and help with the war in Celene while simultaneously investigating the World Tree and trying to determine how we would help save it, and make that our next priority.

We secured the sword in Scorch's Leomund's chest, and packed up the rest of the gear for the trip. Scorch returned to the library and was fairly sure that a portal would open to Sigil in the mountains tomorrow. The spot was about three hours away so it was quite close.

I of course took the time to move into one of the suites in the sanctum dome, and re-arranged a few things (and disposed of a few others). By the next morning, I was rested, bathed, refreshed and ready to go shopping.

Bolo was already up, and had awakened several trees to guard the area while we were gone - an excellent move. There was mention of human guardians such as followers of Pelor or what not, but it seemed to me that the fewer that knew of this place, the safer we were, and the trees would be good guardians.

We set out for the portal and Scorch briefed us on Sigil.

"First thing you have to know about Sigil - don't put your tongue on anything."

"Second - don't step in the puddles."

And it went from there.

After arriving at the site, we found the portal with only a little searching once nearby. A large, shimmering oval six feet high, surrounded in a copse of trees. Scorch was sure this was a gateway to Sigil.

At least he was fairly sure.

Mostly sure.

While we examined just how "sure" Scorch was, Bolo stepped through. The rest of us shrugged and followed quickly. Aethramyr looked over at me and in his brilliant manner took my arm and we went through together, unsure what we'd find beyond.

As we passed through the portal there was a sizzle, and a feeling of being propelled through a long tube, and after a fraction of a second, a flash of light and we appeared.

Dravot, Aethramyr, Crescent, Meepo and I arrived in an upscale district on a nice cobblestone street. There were folk about but not a great many. As I looked overhead, I could see a huge rock stretching from one side of the sky to the other. After looking closely I could see there was more city up there. Scorch had said that Sigil was on the inside of a big donut, but I really hadn't understood what he meant until now. In one direction I could make out a huge temple, but it was in ruins.

Back on the streets, there were cabs going by - most were carried by four humans and were very ornate.

A tall fellow with the features of a lion was leaning up against a post with a large broken glass sphere atop it. He looked at us a few moments and then walked over.

He greeted us warmly, and said we had the look of Primers about us. He went on about things being strange in Sigil and perhaps we could use a tout. I was fairly sure he was speaking Common, but he tended to use a lot of words that had no meaning to me. Fortunately the context was usually adequate for me to get his meaning. Scorch was also somewhat familiar with the local slang and over the scale supplied some translations.

He was offering his services as a guide, and that was something that seemed almost required here. His prices were fairly reasonable at some 50 gold and I hired him immediately. His name was Ashberi and he immediately started earning his keep and providing useful information.

Meanwhile, our companions were scattered all over Sigil. Scorch and Valanthe were separately in the merchant district. (We were apparently in the Lady's District.) Bolo however was . . . not. He was in the midst of a mass of machinery and pollution and other nasty things. The poor druid was in shock at the environment. After several exchanges between Bolo and relaying this information to Ashberi, we determined Bolo was in the factory district and that we had best go get him quickly. Ashberi rounded up two cabs and we set off in that direction.

[OOC: When I was told we were in the "Lady's district", I had thought we were in the "Ladies' district" and was wondering exactly what went on in this part of town.]

Apparently the city of Sigil shifts around a fair bit, both between districts and within the district. This makes finding your way around rather difficult unless you know the area. Fortunately Ashberi did and we got to the factory area with a minimum of backtracking.

This would probably be the best 50 gold pieces I spent in Sigil.

We retrieved Bolo, who was none the worse for wear, save for having his purse with some spending money snatched. I was glad it was nothing worse and we headed to the merchant district to meet the others. Bolo described meeting some dark beings that Ashberi identified as dabus. They are worker drones that work for the Lady. (I made a note to ask Scorch later who she was - the Lady of Pain rules Sigil.)

We decided to meet at a restaurant - Imel's Happy Tongue. Apparently a halfling establishment. Ashberi told us "Whatever you do, don't order the squid, but otherwise a fine place. The death cheese isn't bad, but don't buy the warrior's cheese."

We arrived by cab without any other problems, and entered the inn. Scorch and Valanthe were there waiting, along with a young boy who Scorch called a lightboy. Apparently it gets very dark in Sigil. Scorch quietly mentioned that the guild had "greased some skids" here in Sigil.

The common room was like Sigil in that it hosted all manner of creatures from demons to angels. At one table an umberhulk sat with several tieflings, having a meal. Another table had several people all dressed in patchwork and mismatched clothes.

Bolo showed his usual discretion and ordered the squid. When the food came out, a halfling came with it. Imel introduced himself, and proceeded to tell Bolo the story behind the squid. A very LONG story.

Scorch took the time to explain that Sigil was ruled by the Lady of Pain and that she was very unforgiving and not at all keen on the establishment of religion or interference from gods of any kind. Sigil is something of a "no faith" zone it seems.

A half hour later, we had eaten but Imel was still talking, with Bolo listening in rapt attention. We decided to go start by seeing the merchant interested in our "special item" and left Bolo to deal with Imel (and the bill). We hadn't gotten far when Bolo caught up. How he escaped I'm not sure, but I suspect he had gnawed off an arm and then regrown it.

Ashberi again proved his worth and guided us to Tsvar's Curiousities and Objectiles. It was a very nice storefront with some assorted trinkets in the window. He waited outside while the six of us entered. The letter we had received glowed in reaction to the door, and the door opened to allow us in.

The shop held assorted small items on the shelves, and three wooden desks, each nicer than the last. A male drow sat at one, and looked up at us. We had resolved that since Scorch seemed most in his element here, he would do the negotiating, and Scorch showed the letter and asked for Mortimer Fuvex-vex-vex. I admit my attention had been drawn by the drow, and it wasn't until he stood up that I noticed Mortimer Fuvex-vex-vex.

He was wearing a long coat and vest of fine linen, and had spectacles on his sharp nose. There were small horns on his head and his skin was quite dark. His clothes had been tailored to accommodate his small, bat like wings. He pushed his glasses up his nose and stood up.

He greeted us warmly and had the drow bring chairs so we could sit. The chairs were excellent and perfectly sized - so much so I wondered where to get one. While I admired the furniture, Scorch got to business, mostly just listening at first.

Mister Fuvex-vex-vex understood the nature of the item we had, and was offering several possible transactions. Either we could trade something, or just outright sell it to him, or alternatively let him sell it on commission for us. We all wanted to be rid of the thing as quickly as possible, and therefore opted for a simple sale. He had a ring of shooting stars that he thought we might be interested in as payment (although he said the value was higher than the "item") but we weren't interested.

While the negotiations continued, another man entered. He was a tiefling like Mortimer but younger, and seemed to be his son. Just after he entered the room, a mercane arrived flanked by two guards in deep-hooded cloaks. They sat at the empty desk and had a discussion of their own. The son moved a large glass shield (enchanted surely) between the two desks so each of our conversations would remain private.

[OOC: THE CONE OF SILENCE!!!!]

Mortimer also mentioned three other items that might be of interest to us in his stock. A shield of singular quality from Carceri, a rather interesting bow, and a warhammer from the Prime. We adjourn to a room behind a curtain to examine these items. But first we offer up the silver sword for Mortimer to examine. He calls his son over and proceeds to lecture him about the various attributes of the blade, treating him like an idiot in the process. But Fuvex-vex-vex is satisfied with the blade and returns it to us until the deal is completed. His son then returned to his client and continued their discussion.

The display area had three wood and glass cases, each with a single item. Dust on the floor made it seem that there were more cases and that the area had just been reset to receive us specifically.

The first case held a metal shield. It glimmered and flickered as I stared at it. It was inscribed with a stylized red dragon. Mortimer described the qualities of the shield but gave no details as to the origin. [It is a +3 ghost touch shield of light fortification.] It was a fine shield but seemed to spark little interest from Aethramyr or Dravot.

The second case had a warhammer. Fuvex-vex-vex said it was powerfully enchanted and could store magical spells. [+4 light warhammer of spell storing] Dravot perused it but since it was not the favored weapon of his diety, he was only moderately interested.

The third case held my attention for some time. Inside was a composite longbow. It was made from the wood of a tree that grows on the elemental plane of air. The tree grows in the air in free form, spreading out branches and roots all about. As near as I could tell, the string wasn't a string at all but was spun from fog and clouds.

Even though it was quiet, Mortimer said that the bow possessed the electrical properties from the storms common in the plane. It also was attuned to, as he put it, the "free spirited wielder" according to the prior owner, and would only be suitable for such a person. [+2 mighty composite longbow, shocking, chaotic, +2 str bonus] I was fascinated by the bow, and had been considering buying a new weapon. However I was disappointed at the modest enchantment on the bow itself, and was only moderately interested.

Given our tepid interest in the items at hand, we decided to settle the deal in straight cash. And now Scorch got full into the haggling of the worth of the blade. One of the bits I caught from the conversation was that Mortimer would be removing all traces of our involvement with the blade, and I put a high price on that indeed.

They settled on a price of 53,000gp and withdrew to settle the payment. They returned in a few moments and all was done.

Meanwhile Mortimer's son continued his negotiations at the next desk. On the desk was a long wooden box and I could see inside four glowing white eggs, flecked with gold. As Mortimer and Scorch returned from settling the payment, two dabus came through the door, indifferent to the elaborate protections it had.

Mortimer looked immediately concerned, while his son looked positively panicked. The mercane also looked concerned but puzzled. The son moved quickly to close the box and conceal the eggs but he slipped and one of the eggs fell on the floor and cracked. As it cracked there was a flash of brilliant white light from it.

As the dabus saw this, the world changed slightly, and everyone could feel the Lady's eye turn on this room. Mortimer began cursing out his son rather vividly - apparently trafficking in such things is very bad.

We decided that this was a family matter and since our business was done, it was time to leave. But beyond the door to the shop was no longer a street, but a long tunnel. Just over the walls we could see a vast maze stretching out. Scorch drew in his breath and muttered "the deep ethereal…"

We turned around and took in the situation. In the shop was Mortimer and his son, and the mercane as well as the two dabus and us. The two bodyguards were gone, and the box with the eggs gone as well. It seemed the bodyguards had slipped out with the eggs in the confusion.

We fixed our gaze on Mortimer, holding him responsible for this. However he's still cursing out his son but stops to address us.

He explains that the eggs in question were deva eggs. These planar beings attune to whatever plane they are hatched on. The Lady takes a very dim view of such religious creatures and will not tolerate them being hatched on Sigil. Indeed it is quite illegal to be dealing in such items. (He took a moment to smack his son in the head at this.)

The Lady has therefore moved the shop into the Deep Ethereal as punishment. Usually there is some way out but it is difficult to find and there are creatures here to punish wrongdoers. Should the devas be born here, it would be a very bad thing and they would be hopelessly corrupted. If we can secure the eggs and get them out of here and out of Sigil it may help our case.

Of course the two creatures have left with the eggs and gone into the maze that stretches out from the shop door.

Scorch explains that there is no way we can plane shift out of here so we are stuck until the Lady is appeased. The doors in the back of the shop that had led off-plane are now sealed, so we're stuck. We need to get those eggs.

Since this is now our problem to deal with, we avail ourselves of any and all resources within the shop. Of course most of the display items are junk, but there are the three items within the display cases. Mortimer is not happy about the way we are discussing taking them, but since it's his life on the line also, he resigns himself to us "borrowing" them to resolve the crisis.

Of course the cases are well protected. We all stand behind the glass shield while Valanthe examines the cases. Of course we couldn't quite all fit, and Mortimer made sure it was his son who was left in the room unguarded. Valanthe tried to disable the traps on the first case, but set off an intense firey explosion. She ducked clear of it but Mortimer's son was not so fortunate, and was badly burned.

Mortimer seemed pleased.

Valanthe also set off a poison needle but got the first case open. The second case went much as the first, except there was an electrical storm set off. Mortimer's son was near dead and Mortimer looked concerned.

"I can't kill him, you see. I promised his mother that she could."

With some hesitation, Dravot healed the son's wounds, and Mortimer kicked him behind the glass screen. In time Valanthe had opened all the cases and we had retrieved the objects. When I picked up the bow, there was a brief puff of wind, and electricity began coursing up and down the bow. I could feel the air sprit within, and found it wonderful. I could see how this bow would not be fond of anyone but a free spirit wielding it.

We began setting up protective spells and then ventured into the maze. Fuvex-vex-vex, his son, and the mercane all waited at the shop. (The mercane was just a middleman and had no useful information about much of anything.)

Outside the shop there was still some razorvine - a local plant form with sharp stems. Bolo spoke to it and it said the two beings went down the tunnel but knew little more.

Outside the shop, magic appeared to be working normally. We might have a problem with our divine spellcasters as they may not be able to contact their god for new spells but I was hoping we could resolve this problem before it came to that.

Over the top of the maze walls there were some flashes of light. Scorch suspected the cracked egg hatched, which meant there would be a deva attuned to this area, and likely quite mad.

The corridor lead to a T and we were unsure which way to go. I cast fly, and floated up to the top of the wall. The maze stretched out quite a ways, and the walls seemed to be shifting in some spots. Across the maze I could see a large glowing blue portal that suggested a way out. Near as I could tell we should turn right to close on our quarry.

In that direction was some kind of ooze creature. Scorch said it would damage any weapon that contacted it. He tried to speak with it briefly but apparently said something that annoyed it and it attacked. I let several arrows fly into it, and Scorch finished it with a lightning bolt.

And we move on down the corridor.
 
Last edited:

Re: YOU ALL SHOULD READ THIS!

Argent said:
Wizardru can be evil at times.

Do you all see? Mean and nasty to the Halfling!
And I was devoured whole by one of the Deep etherials inhabitants as well!
And than I met KORD! I'm thinking Bolo died and went to the wrong Heaven!

Transcript from the Sigil Labyrinth Repatriation Inquisition
Dated 12 Coldeve


DM: To clarify: did you, or did you not, Mr. Brandybuck, say to your dungeon master, and I quote (looks down at paper), ahem..."Bring it on!"?

BB: "It wasn't like that, your honor! I was just talking about a plant companion...and the green...and Sigil, I think."

DM: Yes, yes, of course, Mr. Brandybuck. Now, on to the issue of being consumed whole by a inhabitant of the Deep Ethereal...was this a result of your own actions?

BB: "Yes, but I had a plan! I was going to..."

DM: Let the record show that the defendant answered 'Yes'. Mr. Brandybuck, were you the only character so consumed?

BB: "Well...no, but that's not the point! HE ATE ME, FOR EHLONNA'S SAKE! HE..."

DM: For the record, the defendant answers 'No'. Are you a rogue, Mr. Brandybuck?

BB: "What? Well no, of course not...I, uh..."

DM: Mmm-hmmm. I see. Are you a well-armored fighter or heavily protected wizard, with an advanced Armor Class?

BB: "Err...Armor? Ehlonna frowns on such things. Metal tortured into unnatural shapes is.."

DM: Your religious beliefs are well known to the court, Mr. Brandybuck. Answer the question, sir. Did you then or do you now have a high Armor Class?

BB: [sputtering noises] "No, but, but..."

DM: IS IT OR IS IT NOT TRUE THAT YOU WERE WARNED ABOUT AN ATTACK OF OPPORTUNITY, MR. BRANDYBUCK???

BB: "Yes! Yes, but I thought!"

DM: Thought? THOUGHT?!? I put forth that you did nothing of the kind Mr. Brandybuck! I may be just a country dungeonmaster, but I think we folks in the Yeomanry aren't that much different from you high-and-mighty Velunan Druids. And where I come from, low AC characters don't run into the waiting arms of gargantuan creatures, sir! In point of fact, you nearly ran into his waiting arms willingly, didn't you? Didn't you?

BB: "No, no! It didn't happen like that! You're twisting things! I was going to change into an Elephant!"

DM: Why, Mr. Brandybuck? Were you trying to feed it all at once? Afraid a halfling druid would leave it hungry?

BB: WHAT?!?

DM: I withdraw the question. What did your party's rogue, arcane archer, cleric and wizard do, Mr. Brandybuck?

BB: Well, they, um...they dodge past the creature just like I did.

DM: No, not 'just like you did', Mr. Brandybuck. They waited until the beast had used his AoO, did they not?

BB: "Yes, you see? My sacrifice allowed them to manuever! I..."

DM: ..had NOTHING to do with it, Mr. Brandybuck! It was Valanthe's who incurred the AoO that protected the party, wasn't it? And what happened to her, sir?

BB: [quietly] "She got eaten, too."

DM: All just part of the great circle of life, I'm sure, eh, Mr. Brandybuck? Adventures captured by the Lady of Pain, adventurers encounter monster, monster eats adventurers? Happens all the time, eh, Mr. Brandybuck? Hmmmph.

So, if I understand you, sir, then you dared to run where a shadowdancer, flying archer, wizard, Paladin and cleric all feared to tread, yes?

BB: "But there was a cone! They weren't...!"

DM: Foolish enough to do what you did? I agree, sir. No more questions, your honor. The defense rests. Judge?


Judge Scorch: FEH.
 

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