Having cleared the dwarven fortress of intruders, the heroes exited the desert. The birdman and Rosalima (the billy goat) accompanied them to Dunesend. The villagers were relieved to know the Queen’s threat was finally gone. They were much friendlier this time. The local priestess favored the strangers with some equipment upgrades.
En route to Overlook, the party came across a camp of Ironfell men-at-arms. The clan had discovered spies in their midst and sent these men to protect their interests. They escorted the adventurers back to Overlook without incidence. Along the way, the travelers overheard several rumors concerning political power struggles between some of the merchant houses and the city council. Clan Flameforge was mentioned a few times as well, usually followed by a grunt or spitting.
Bram Ironfell listened intently to everything the group had to say concerning the Karak Lode. He asked for the map, signet ring & broken sword. He paid the 3000 gold balance and promised to keep in touch regarding future profits. It will take some time to get the place operational again though.
The group relaxed a bit and made plans for the future. They explored options regarding the hidden portals beneath Overlook. A significant sum of gold was spent on rituals to exploit this potential resource. Peleus met with some of his Erathis contacts.
Then Seregdur had a strange dream (yes, the elf dreamed). A silver haired elven woman was pleading with him for help. The dream was very vivid. Even after waking, he could hear her voice. Two days later Rathos had the same dream, plus a Halfling by her side. She asked for his help with a strained voice. The next day, a messenger arrived from Brindol; the Halfling from the dream. He introduced himself as Reed. Councilman Troyas requested their company in Brindol to discuss some urgent matter. Peleus dreamed of the woman next, with Troyas this time. She mouthed silent words. Finally, Kava had the dream. It was brief. The museum curator from Brindol stood beside her this time.
Reed also brought news of Toradin’s father. He was seriously ill, potentially life threatening. Toradin stayed in Overlook to use the portal with the others (faster transportation), but lost interest in the group’s activities. He took to heavy (heavier) drinking. One night he went to the bathroom half drunk and never returned. Lost ones had taken him.
The group soon learned that a bounty was on their heads, 500 gold each. They tracked Toradin’s kidnappers to an abandoned temple of Pelor just outside town. The thugs inside were feisty, but the heroes calmed them, permanently. Toradin was rescued & one thug was spared, to warn others against such foolery.
The group then used their portal to reach the Haunted Woods south of Brindol. Everyone was home in no time.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Session 17 Rewards
Magic Items
+2 Brooch of Healing (Peleus upgrade)
+2 Cloak of Distortion (Rathos upgrade)
4 Alchemist Fire Arrows (Level 7)
Cash
3000 gp – Clan Ironfell
400 gp – Kidnappers
400 gp – Gnolls
-800 gp – Analyze Portal Ritual
-680 gp – Link Portal Ritual
-150 gp – Arcane Lock Ritual
-800 gp – various ritual castings
1375 xp each
Encounters
1500 xp Secure Karak Lode Mines (Quest)
1500 xp Liberate Dunesend (Quest)
600 xp Locate kidnappers (skill)
2500 xp Kidnappers (4 dwarves, 3 dopplegangers, 2 dogs)
600 xp Navigate to Fortress (skill)
1550 xp Front steps (4 gnolls, 1 ghost)
+2 Brooch of Healing (Peleus upgrade)
+2 Cloak of Distortion (Rathos upgrade)
4 Alchemist Fire Arrows (Level 7)
Cash
3000 gp – Clan Ironfell
400 gp – Kidnappers
400 gp – Gnolls
-800 gp – Analyze Portal Ritual
-680 gp – Link Portal Ritual
-150 gp – Arcane Lock Ritual
-800 gp – various ritual castings
1375 xp each
Encounters
1500 xp Secure Karak Lode Mines (Quest)
1500 xp Liberate Dunesend (Quest)
600 xp Locate kidnappers (skill)
2500 xp Kidnappers (4 dwarves, 3 dopplegangers, 2 dogs)
600 xp Navigate to Fortress (skill)
1550 xp Front steps (4 gnolls, 1 ghost)
Saturday, April 25, 2009
The Kark Load Mines - aftermath
The dwarves mined too deep and came across a natural rift to the Elemental Chaos. The energy burst forth from the chasm to flood the mines with it's chaotic influence. In the end, the dwarves went mad and killed each other.
The frost zombie was Parlin Ironfell. His missing greatsword, Lightbringer, is among the Naga's treasure. It is broken in half, the magic gone from it. It is easily identifiable though, and no doubt clan Ironfell will want it back. His signet ring is also there, on the Naga's tail. The ring has minor magical properties tied to the fortress and mines. The wearer can scry other rooms, open doors and portculli. It's abilities are of no value outside the fortress.
The recent inhabitants have mined all the diamonds from the upper tunnels. You have no clue where those went. The lower tunnels are subject to the chaos energy. If the rift is closed, the effect should dwindle in time. Until then, the lower mines are too dangerous to be worked. Perhaps clan Ironfell can move back in & setup shop. Magic might be employed to clean up the radiation. There is nothing more to do or learn here.
If the group returns to the village, the birdman accompanies them. Returning Jenny's pet billygoat, Rosalima, is proof enough to the villagers that the threat is gone. Fawma, priestess of Melora, offers her enchanting services as reward. Disenchanting some of the party's unused gear might provide enough residium to upgrade 1-2 items. Teregor uses his insight to determine that Fawma is not skilled enough to do these things. The birdman has taken up residence with her though. Perhaps there's more to him.
Assuming the party will be returning to Overlook, clan Ironfell will reward them 3000gold for the map, signet ring & greatsword. That leaves the PC's with a lot of cash. How will you spend it?
The frost zombie was Parlin Ironfell. His missing greatsword, Lightbringer, is among the Naga's treasure. It is broken in half, the magic gone from it. It is easily identifiable though, and no doubt clan Ironfell will want it back. His signet ring is also there, on the Naga's tail. The ring has minor magical properties tied to the fortress and mines. The wearer can scry other rooms, open doors and portculli. It's abilities are of no value outside the fortress.
The recent inhabitants have mined all the diamonds from the upper tunnels. You have no clue where those went. The lower tunnels are subject to the chaos energy. If the rift is closed, the effect should dwindle in time. Until then, the lower mines are too dangerous to be worked. Perhaps clan Ironfell can move back in & setup shop. Magic might be employed to clean up the radiation. There is nothing more to do or learn here.
If the group returns to the village, the birdman accompanies them. Returning Jenny's pet billygoat, Rosalima, is proof enough to the villagers that the threat is gone. Fawma, priestess of Melora, offers her enchanting services as reward. Disenchanting some of the party's unused gear might provide enough residium to upgrade 1-2 items. Teregor uses his insight to determine that Fawma is not skilled enough to do these things. The birdman has taken up residence with her though. Perhaps there's more to him.
Assuming the party will be returning to Overlook, clan Ironfell will reward them 3000gold for the map, signet ring & greatsword. That leaves the PC's with a lot of cash. How will you spend it?
Session 16 Recap
Having spent a long day treking through the desert and clearing the fortress of unwanted guests, the adventurers turned in for some well deserved rest. The place appeared to be clear of trouble & secure (other than the second floor demon), but they set watches anyway. And it was a good thing they did.
Teregor heard noises in the middle of the night (day?). He grabbed Peleus, and they went to check the front gate. It was still all locked up. On their way back, five Troglodytes emerged from the barracks. Things could have been nasty for the two of them, but they reacted quickly & ran for the throne room where the others were still fast asleep. With the full party engaged, the Troglodytes were neutralized. One surrendered and was tied up for questioning in the morning.
The second floor demon turned out to be an Immolith. He had 6 skeletons in his service. Teregor charged in & scattered the undead with his turning. This left him in a bad spot. Luckily his bracers provided some resistance to fire, and several of the enemy were attacking with fire. The heroes mopped up & moved on.
The captive Troglodyte led the heroes to an empty cell in the dungeon. "We came in through here." Everyone looked around, but found nothing. The secret door was so masterfully built, the Troglodyte had to point it out to them.
A lift descended into the earth to mines. There was good mining equipment stashed here, recently used. There were bedrolls for over a dozen of the stinky lizardmen. And tunnels... The numerous tunnels twisted & turned, sloped up & down, and most were dead ends. The recent mining had stripped many of the upper tunnels of their minerals. Tracks led down several main corridors though, and the adventurers followed those.
Many of the 900 year old dwarven skeletons here lay where they fell, minus their heads. Judging from their positions, they had killed each other. What drove the clansmen to kill their own blood? That soon became apparent. Some of the rock formations throughout the lower mines had a strange red glow. They had been irradiated by energy from the Elemental Chaos. This energy, while much weaker now, must have driven the dwarves mad.
It had also affected the current residents. A dwarven zombie, a Barlgura demon, spiders and crawlers jumped the group at a major intersection. The energy had made all of them chaotic evil, and it boosted their combat abilities. The heroes found that it gave them strange sensations and confused them in combat. The group cleared the attackers & learned to avoid the glowing veins of mineral.
The frost zombie still had identifiable clothing and gear, the cold having preserved it. He appears to have been important. His weapons and 2 fingers were missing.
Pressing on, the heroes came to the lowest mines. The glowing mineral was more abundant here, leading one to believe the source was close. Rounding a corner the group came to a chasm. The same glow rose from it & magma flowed through it. But there was no time to analyze things. The true Queen of the desert wasn't very inviting. She immediately attacked with her bodyguards.
The Naga sat on a mound of dwarven skulls and rained attack on the intruders from a distance. Her Mezzodemons guarded the far side of the chasm. None of this frightened the stalwart champions though. They raced forward, leaping the chasm to attack. They gained little ground on the far side at first, and Peleus was shoved into the chasm. He fell 20 feet into pure Elemental Chaos magma. Fey step may well have saved his life.
As the fight drug on, a fourth enemy revealed itself. A large fire elemental emerged from the chasm to attack the ranged heroes in the back. It charged in blasting the three of them with fire. The forward group was left on their own as healing resources dwindled. The three meleers focused their efforts though, and enemies started dropping. The Naga was tough, but less effective in melee. She fought on for a while, but could do little. The heroes had her locked down. The two groups defeated their opponents, then stopped to catch their breath, bloodied and worn down.
Before lo
Teregor heard noises in the middle of the night (day?). He grabbed Peleus, and they went to check the front gate. It was still all locked up. On their way back, five Troglodytes emerged from the barracks. Things could have been nasty for the two of them, but they reacted quickly & ran for the throne room where the others were still fast asleep. With the full party engaged, the Troglodytes were neutralized. One surrendered and was tied up for questioning in the morning.
The second floor demon turned out to be an Immolith. He had 6 skeletons in his service. Teregor charged in & scattered the undead with his turning. This left him in a bad spot. Luckily his bracers provided some resistance to fire, and several of the enemy were attacking with fire. The heroes mopped up & moved on.
The captive Troglodyte led the heroes to an empty cell in the dungeon. "We came in through here." Everyone looked around, but found nothing. The secret door was so masterfully built, the Troglodyte had to point it out to them.
A lift descended into the earth to mines. There was good mining equipment stashed here, recently used. There were bedrolls for over a dozen of the stinky lizardmen. And tunnels... The numerous tunnels twisted & turned, sloped up & down, and most were dead ends. The recent mining had stripped many of the upper tunnels of their minerals. Tracks led down several main corridors though, and the adventurers followed those.
Many of the 900 year old dwarven skeletons here lay where they fell, minus their heads. Judging from their positions, they had killed each other. What drove the clansmen to kill their own blood? That soon became apparent. Some of the rock formations throughout the lower mines had a strange red glow. They had been irradiated by energy from the Elemental Chaos. This energy, while much weaker now, must have driven the dwarves mad.
It had also affected the current residents. A dwarven zombie, a Barlgura demon, spiders and crawlers jumped the group at a major intersection. The energy had made all of them chaotic evil, and it boosted their combat abilities. The heroes found that it gave them strange sensations and confused them in combat. The group cleared the attackers & learned to avoid the glowing veins of mineral.
The frost zombie still had identifiable clothing and gear, the cold having preserved it. He appears to have been important. His weapons and 2 fingers were missing.
Pressing on, the heroes came to the lowest mines. The glowing mineral was more abundant here, leading one to believe the source was close. Rounding a corner the group came to a chasm. The same glow rose from it & magma flowed through it. But there was no time to analyze things. The true Queen of the desert wasn't very inviting. She immediately attacked with her bodyguards.
The Naga sat on a mound of dwarven skulls and rained attack on the intruders from a distance. Her Mezzodemons guarded the far side of the chasm. None of this frightened the stalwart champions though. They raced forward, leaping the chasm to attack. They gained little ground on the far side at first, and Peleus was shoved into the chasm. He fell 20 feet into pure Elemental Chaos magma. Fey step may well have saved his life.
As the fight drug on, a fourth enemy revealed itself. A large fire elemental emerged from the chasm to attack the ranged heroes in the back. It charged in blasting the three of them with fire. The forward group was left on their own as healing resources dwindled. The three meleers focused their efforts though, and enemies started dropping. The Naga was tough, but less effective in melee. She fought on for a while, but could do little. The heroes had her locked down. The two groups defeated their opponents, then stopped to catch their breath, bloodied and worn down.
Before lo
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Session 16 Rewards
+2 Hide Armor (Inner Warmth)
Strikeback Gloves
+3 Braidmail (Irrefutable)
Rushing Cleats
Dwarven Throwers
800g in raw diamonds
200g cash
1225 xp each
Encounters:
1900 xp Upstairs (Immolith demon & 6 skeletons)
1450 xp Sounds in the night (5 Troglodytes)
1500 xp Mines (Barlgura demon, zombie, spider swarm, 2 carrion crawlers)
2500 xp Queen (Naga, fire elemental, 2 Mezzodemons)
Strikeback Gloves
+3 Braidmail (Irrefutable)
Rushing Cleats
Dwarven Throwers
800g in raw diamonds
200g cash
1225 xp each
Encounters:
1900 xp Upstairs (Immolith demon & 6 skeletons)
1450 xp Sounds in the night (5 Troglodytes)
1500 xp Mines (Barlgura demon, zombie, spider swarm, 2 carrion crawlers)
2500 xp Queen (Naga, fire elemental, 2 Mezzodemons)
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Session 15 Recap
So... The front door is a bad idea. The heroes follow the cliff a short distance and climb it. From the top of the cliff they find a door into the guard tower and a sinkhole, which they avoid. They bash down the door & scout the tower & gatehouse. The gate guards attack. The Troglodytes are smelly & annoying, but no real threat from within the gatehouse. One of them is bound & questioned about the fortress & other inhabitants. He gives a general overview.
The group finds harpy nests in the central courtyard. Setting the nests on fire draws out the harpies, who fight briefly and die or flee. Which puts some of the PC's by the sand pile. The ceiling has collapsed & sand has trickled in. The two carrion crawlers therein attack.
The throne room is next. Oddly, it has trees in it, but no sunlight. Queen Shephatiah and her minions attack. The cacklefiend hyenas are respectable, but everything else dies quickly. Shephatiah is captured & questioned. The eladrin woman reverts to her dryad form. She fills in blanks concerning the layout and indicates that up to two dozen more guards reside in the barracks area. Off to the barracks...
Presenting the "Queen" bound and near death, the adventurers try to persuade the remaining guards to leave peacefully. Most comply. They head for the food stores & load up for their desert trek. The gnolls however want revenge for the Warden's death and attack. Stupid gnolls. The queen calls for help briefly, but that's discouraged quickly as the queen falls to the ground dead, an arrow protruding from her wooden chest, her hands still bound.
The group sees the remaining guards out the door & locks up. They explore all of the ground floor and the dungeon. There's one prisoner locked up below, an old man with sparrow companions. He seems to be mute & harmless. He's released and given food & water.
The second floor of the fortress remains unexplored. There's supposedly a demon up there. No sign of diamond mines yet.
The group finds harpy nests in the central courtyard. Setting the nests on fire draws out the harpies, who fight briefly and die or flee. Which puts some of the PC's by the sand pile. The ceiling has collapsed & sand has trickled in. The two carrion crawlers therein attack.
The throne room is next. Oddly, it has trees in it, but no sunlight. Queen Shephatiah and her minions attack. The cacklefiend hyenas are respectable, but everything else dies quickly. Shephatiah is captured & questioned. The eladrin woman reverts to her dryad form. She fills in blanks concerning the layout and indicates that up to two dozen more guards reside in the barracks area. Off to the barracks...
Presenting the "Queen" bound and near death, the adventurers try to persuade the remaining guards to leave peacefully. Most comply. They head for the food stores & load up for their desert trek. The gnolls however want revenge for the Warden's death and attack. Stupid gnolls. The queen calls for help briefly, but that's discouraged quickly as the queen falls to the ground dead, an arrow protruding from her wooden chest, her hands still bound.
The group sees the remaining guards out the door & locks up. They explore all of the ground floor and the dungeon. There's one prisoner locked up below, an old man with sparrow companions. He seems to be mute & harmless. He's released and given food & water.
The second floor of the fortress remains unexplored. There's supposedly a demon up there. No sign of diamond mines yet.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Session 15 Rewards
Goggles of Aura Sight
Bracers of the Perfect Shot
Bracers of Mental Might
Boots of Striding
1 Potion of Regeneration
1 Kruthik Potion
800g
1100 xp each
Encounters:
1450 xp Gatehouse (5 Troglodytes)
1350 xp Courtyard (3 Harpies, 2 Carrion Crawlers)
1600 xp Throne room (Dryad, 2 Hyenas, Shifter, 5 Humans)
1300 xp Gnolls (6 Gnolls)
900 xp Barracks (6 Shifters, 6 Troglodytes, 6 Humans)
Note: Partial XP for the non-combat removal of 18 guards.
Bracers of the Perfect Shot
Bracers of Mental Might
Boots of Striding
1 Potion of Regeneration
1 Kruthik Potion
800g
1100 xp each
Encounters:
1450 xp Gatehouse (5 Troglodytes)
1350 xp Courtyard (3 Harpies, 2 Carrion Crawlers)
1600 xp Throne room (Dryad, 2 Hyenas, Shifter, 5 Humans)
1300 xp Gnolls (6 Gnolls)
900 xp Barracks (6 Shifters, 6 Troglodytes, 6 Humans)
Note: Partial XP for the non-combat removal of 18 guards.
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