The rains are still filling Cauldron Lake and at this time 200 hundred citizens have had to evacuate their homes/businesses. Those on higher elevation seem oblivious to the trials and tribulations of those less fortunate. The parties continue and food is flowing at parties in nearly every home in Cauldron.
Preparing for the grand ball of grand balls the party has only 24 hours before they need to start preparing... bathing, dressing, gathering the coaches etc. takes a lot of time, and you DO NOT want to be late for this event.
Churchkey sends a well written, if a bit formal, note to Anna Taskerhill stating when the coach will be by to pick her up and his generally anticipation of spending the evening at her side.
The others make some last minute adjustments to costumes and Donner makes a run to Skie's. Here Donner and Skie pass some time and Skie gets Donner to let loose that there is some kind of evil group below the city and it is in fact "THE VANGUARD OF CAULDRON" the caught the fames Triel. Skie gets all giddy and runs out to the front of her shop and with the wave of a wand the writing on the different stones shifts and moves around and with a swoop and flourish Skie places the name "Vanguard of Cauldron" next to "The Storm Blades" as her two highest prospective adventuring groups. But makes the statement that The Storm Blades does a bit more business with her than The Vanguard of Cauldron but says so with a wink and wicked grin.
In the meantime the party is able to get a number of items identified including some slippers of spider climbing and what amounts to a fountain of potions. Not to mention some other magical items that although useful, need to be "altered" before they can be used... such as the magical plate mail with the etched holy symbol of Hextor on it.
From there the party makes their way back down to the lava tube and descends back to the nervous waiting town guards. By the Vanguards command, the guards lower the basket down to the awaiting beach on the other side of the lake.
After a quick discussion of available places the have yet to explore, it is pretty unanimous that they should see what is behind the double doors in the main entrance. They know there is a long corridor, but this corridor could be so well protected, that the doors on the opposing side must hold something of interest and use.
Staying to the walls the party begins to make their way down the hallway. Donner takes the middle to draw any bow fire (if they happen to have missed anyone). While walking a large pit opens under Donners feet. Tumbling forward, Donner rolls onto hard stone and deftly avoids the pit trap which even as he looks back is already almost reset. Cautiously the party continues moving forward and detects one more trap just before their goal of the other double doors.
After steeling themselves they open the doors to be greeted by a room of enormous proportions. It is so large that no one can see the walls, and the echo of their voices conveys a room of gigantic size. Bolgrim steps a bit forward and peers into the darkness. Meanwhile Churchkey is detecting evil. At this the party hears some kind of strange, quite but echos of some kind of clicking sound from the darkness.
The rest of the party spreads out and moves a bit forward. At the edge of their vision is a work bench nearly 20 feet wide and about 5 feet deep. Bolgrim notes that in the alcoves to one side of the door are scraps of mettle. Not sure from what, but definitely high quality material. The party slowly moves forward and notes there are two other work stations perpendicular to the work bench they are approaching. Those benches disappear into the darkness... revealing that this room still has a far way to go before being explored.
Churchkey summons his mount and Bolgrim detects magic. After a bit of concentrating, Bolgrim says there are some dweomers of three domains: Abjuration, Enchantment and Necromancy.
Again the party begins to move forward. It is quite obvious that something was at one point in the recent past being built here. The table was use to manufacture some kind of metal object or objects. At this leaping out of the darkness a creature of obvious intelligence but looks like a humanoid toad with a large toothy mouth and its webbed hands and feet ending in talons.
As soon as it lands people begin to draw weapons and prepare. As everyone begins to move forward a strange chanting comes from the mouth of this creature and then the air behind this thing shifts and buckles and a glowing hoop forms and another one of these creatures steps forth.
Quickly jumping to action Barret seems to charge the initial Toad thing on the table but with a lash of his wrist the newly summoned creature has blood drawn. Others jump into the fray... Some leap the table and Churchkey charges on his mount and trys to bring the point of his devastating lance to a fitting target but to no avail. Others land blows but are amounting to nicks and cuts. What is especially demoralizing, these disgusting things seems to heal wounds in front of the adventurers eyes. At this the Original creature puffs out his throat and lets out a devastating screech that sets ears ringing and the vibration makes hearts beat strange and bones come close to shattering. Donner leaps with heroic agility behind these creatures of contempt. Stumbling, the rest of the party continues to try and land blows when the summoned creature follows suit and lets out a terrible and damaging bellow that just about knocks Connal to unconsciousness.
At this, the party has moved into position and with a few more swings these creatures fall just moments before they were to act and do who knows what other actions.
The party searches the rest of this mammoth chamber and finds wrapped in a threadbare cloak a large sum of platinum some gems and a well made lute.
Upon dividing up the treasure wrapped in the cloak, the battle weary troupe makes their way to the caves that emanated evil. As the party moves toward the collapse in the back of the room they can hear the sound of some material scraping against itself. Its some material unfamiliar to anyones ears. Following the sound, they can also feel a slight thrum in the ground every once in a while.
Rounding the corner, they see a huge T-Rex made of bones. At this, there is a gulp and Barrett leaps to position along the wall. Pepper calls out that this is undead and skellital and thus is most
easily harmed by blunt instruments. At this Donner makes an amazing tumble to the back side of this towering death machine. With a fist of flame he reaches in and does some serious damage to the T-rex. When a grizzly smash of jaws closes upon Barretts arm ripping cloth and tearing flesh to the bone. The wound is gaping and gives everyone a moment of pause.
People swallow and charge in. Connal makes a daring attack and is mauled by the obscene reach of the creatures maw. Connal looks ashen. Bolgrim summons the power of Pelor and with all the might Pelor can give, the creature is unphased. Others close as they dare when the Rex brings another spout of blood from Donner. Bolgrim makes a dash across the battlefield and brings some life back to Donner while Pepper throws and arc of flame that not only engulfs part of its leg, but ignites the brittle bones on fire.
Everyone attacks with full furry and Connal in a desperate attempt to take down this behemoth looses track of his surrounding's and enrages. The rex makes a chomp and the party can hear bones crack and blood spurt. Pepper, loosing his turn interferes and trys to add some life, hoping it will help. Abandonding the creature for now, Churchkey lays on hands all he has and at that a sigh of relieve as Connal gasps for breath barely even conscious, but conscious all the same. Bolgrim again trys to make a dash over to Connal, but can't quite make it without suffering the deadly wrath of this creature.
At this a rivet puncturing bite gives Churchkey cause to breath deep as he barely keep from being hoisted into the air in the maw of T-Rex. Again more attacks as Connal crawls 5' further from the menace. Bolgrim converts a spell and Connel is feeling much better. Barrett shouts that more creatures are coming as two zombified Ogres round the corner.
luckily the final blow takes down the Rex, but there is no rest for our Vanguard.
A few ill attempts at turning and healing what and who they can. The party rushes to catch these beasts at a choke point so they only have to fight one at a time. A slug fest ensues. Pepper is shouting out appropriate weapons and a phalanx is finally put in position. Unfortunately Connal's hit points are not great enough to withstand the damage of these things and falls to the ground. Barrett takes his spot, and his sword. Donner makes the daring flip and moves into a flanking position.
Connal if finally revived again uttering, "You have my sword!" The next round Barrett returns Connals great sword but with a sparkle of mischief in his eyes. One ogre falls and the second steps up. The blows continue to fall when Bolgrim opens up with a ray of piercing white light that fills every core of the chamber and every cell of the Ogre Zombie. In moments the creature crumbles and falls to the ground.
The party makes a slow turn and looks at Bolgrim with that look of... "And you were waiting to use that because?" kind of look on their faces.
About 15 seconds of regrouping when they hear howling and barking from a single creature approaching the party. Unfortunately, to leave they must move toward the creature. Churchkey yells, "RUN!" At that the party sprints toward the exit, Churchkey purposely taking the rear guard.
Amongst the barking and howling the party is able to make out the words, "Who enters my domain?"
The party continues to flee and as Churchkey is by the door, a bipedal hound with patches of skin missing and bits of armor are linked physically to its person. Hanging from its right arm is a spiked chain that is also physically attached to its forearm. Yellow saliva drips from its jowls. Churchkey sprints for the beach, the hound follows maintaining the 50foot gap between it and Churchkey.
As Churchkey explodes out the door and onto the beach, the rest of the party is in wait in the basket. Shouts for the guards on the other side and arrows are knocked. A clatter of arrows hit the beach as the rest of the party see the fearsome beast following Churchkey. Another volley of arrows, those that hit seem to impact this thing like gnats to a giant. Bolgrim casts a spell and a magical hammer begins harrying this hound of death. Churchkey is nearly in the basket when the hound casts some spell. Churchkeys muscles begin to atrophy. It is all Churchkey can do to resist when his willpower to keep moving gets him to the edge of the basket. Donner and Barrett help heave Churchkey into the basket while the other wildly shout for the gears to be engaged. At this 8 zombie humanoids exit onto the beach. The basket slowly makes its way across the phospherecent lake and up the 110 foot cliff to safety.
The party lay panting and realize that in 18 hours they need to well rested, groomed and in costume for the greatest ball in the land.
4 comments:
That's a mighty fine recap! It was an oscar worthy performance by all except the Bone T-rex. His acting felt forced, or like he was trying to hard.
I feel like I should justify my use of Sunlight.. or Lightbeam.. or "I'll just have a Bud" Light.. (I forgot the actual name, and strange enough there are no player handbooks where I work, just a Hordes of the Abyss copy.. uh oh) on the undead ogre types.
While I was trying to squeeze some sort of spell inbetween the healings (man, those naked barbarians are squishy sometimes) I looked at the spell description, and noticed it said 1d8 damage per 2 levels. After reading that I saw it mentioned doing 1d6 on Undead, which I thought read "1d6 per 2 levels" like the aforementioned. I thought that it was strange that a holy/light spell did less damage, but noticed it had a more damage allowance at higher levels, so I figure it was justified.
Of course I realized it was 1d6 per level, NOT 1d6 per 2 levels later on the undead ogres.
So, kids, pay attention in math class and read the descriptions more carefully.. or at least yours truly will.
Besides it was sort of cool calling down some diety like holy damage to finish off a tough fight. It would have looked cool in the movie version.
Sort of like Gandalf and the Balrog. Yup. Bolgrim and the Bone Lizard. Sort of sounds like a slang for masturbation.
Sure is quiet in here.
Chirp... Chirp....
I actually kind of liked the drama of when you used the sunlight spell. It suites your character... are we fucked? Then here come the big guns.
Don't know why the others don't comment, I figure writing these up, which take a really long time, is sort of my contribution.
Jooj, thanks for keeping the page alive.
Hey Jooj - I'll email the cleric spells to you so you can study it while you pretend to work.
Since the Sunbeam is your spell I suppose that you can probably call it whatever you want - maybe Pelor's Fury or something like that. I don't think any self-respecting dwarf would call it Bud Light.
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