Post by David on Aug 27, 2012 14:52:21 GMT -5
The heroes enjoy the beauty and bliss of the Valley of Spirits for several days. They heal up, relax, and a few even meet lost animals friends, such as Mikhail's slain giant weasel, Samhain. They discuss their plans for the future, including meeting at some point in Greyhawk in order to do their quest for Bahamut, but for now, each hero enjoys paradise on Oerth. One by one, however, they each long for their regular lives in the "real world" and depart, much like they're in a dream. For Blackrobe, he simply longs for his wife and wakes up next to her in Amberwood. For Dajamira, Helga, Cliffy, and Jamal, things take a different tack.
Daj and Helga each have a divine intervention to repay, despite knowing that it was during the Kobayashi Maru test of the Valley. So these two as well as Cliffy and Jamal who leave with them, find themselves on a mission for their gods. They emerge from the mountain caves high on a snow-covered ridge, overlooking a temperate valley. The four hike down to strange buildings with colorful pennants flying in the wind. The people are slightly swarthy with slightly almond eyes. No one can understand their words or their writing, although Jamal recognizes the heroes to be somewhere in Fridgia or Tabot (Nepal or Tibet).
Helga casts tongues and learns that the main temple in the valley has been overrun and captured by ogres, ogre magi, and rakshasa. The priests have been put to death and now the people are suffering under the punishment of the monsters. The party sets out to deal with the rogue rakshasa...
In the valley is a huge temple complex with three different temple compounds within. Cliffy flies invisibly to scout the area, spying a platform in the rear-most temple structure on a higher floor. Helga uses a lighten load and the group piles (tightly) into Cliffy's bag and enters the temple from above.
In the first room, the heroes battle a powerful ogre magi, capable of using mirror images which do not pop. Next they battle a second ogre magi after finding the secret door to his room. Following a staircase up, they then stumble directly into the rakshasa and his two tiger pets.
The rakshasa pulls a lever and opens a pit trap. Daj jumps clear, but the rest of the party is trapped at the door. Cliffy takes out on tiger but Daj is forced to battle the other as the rakshasa uses its spells. Finally, Helga gets a fly from Cliffy as Daj goes down. The dwarf grabs her friend and flies to safety, giving the rakshasa plenty of time to sound an alarm and cast more spells.
After almost a minute, the heroes charge back up, Helga flying to the attack. Daj dimension doors herself and Jamal into the battle, but they soon realize that their magical weapons are not fully effective against this monster and their spells totally useless! It, however, has hasted itself as well as cast mirror image. The best Daj and Cliffy's magics can do is take out the imposter-images!
Three more ogre magi arrive, one going for Cliffy as he casts Mordenkainen's faithful hound to guard the entry. The other two attack Daj and Jamal from invisibility, the rakshasa using that distraction to start levitating away. Daj slaughters first one and then the other ogre magi while Cliffy and his hound take the other. Then two yeti arrive, but the elven mage/thief deal with this threat too.
At this point, the rakshasa has left the actual building and is trying to escape into the air despite Helga's efforts. Daj and Jamal help Cliffy and then Daj metamorphoses her waterskin's contents into acid to make sure none of the ogre magi ever arise. The half-dryad they casts fly from her book on Jamal and the desert warrior rejoins the fight with Daj offering spell support. For his part, Cliffy cast a wall of fog on the top level and closes all the doors and secret doors, seriously hampering any reinforcements!
Another invisible ogre magi flies up, but Helga spies it with her standing detect magic spell and Daj lights it up with her mood faerie fire. Although the heroes make very short work of it and the falls splatters it into purple goo, the rakshasa resists the heroes every effort and begins unleashing volley after volley of magic missiles. Somehow Helga and Jamal do not follow and before the creature floats too far, Daj nails it once with her throwing scimitar. But finally, at the very brink of death, the creature takes out Helga, who Jamal catches, and starts to fly away. One lucky hit knocks it unconscious and the 170' fall does the rest.
The heroes are victorious and over the next couple of days mop up the remaining ogres. They learn that one female rakshasa escaped, but they have a magical amulet that allows them to see her. They also find a strange, small ship stuck in the moat. There is no eggress but the heroes soon learn that the ship can fly and even find instructions (which they cannot read!) and maps of most of the planet of Oerth.
Next stop, Greyhawk!
Daj and Helga each have a divine intervention to repay, despite knowing that it was during the Kobayashi Maru test of the Valley. So these two as well as Cliffy and Jamal who leave with them, find themselves on a mission for their gods. They emerge from the mountain caves high on a snow-covered ridge, overlooking a temperate valley. The four hike down to strange buildings with colorful pennants flying in the wind. The people are slightly swarthy with slightly almond eyes. No one can understand their words or their writing, although Jamal recognizes the heroes to be somewhere in Fridgia or Tabot (Nepal or Tibet).
Helga casts tongues and learns that the main temple in the valley has been overrun and captured by ogres, ogre magi, and rakshasa. The priests have been put to death and now the people are suffering under the punishment of the monsters. The party sets out to deal with the rogue rakshasa...
In the valley is a huge temple complex with three different temple compounds within. Cliffy flies invisibly to scout the area, spying a platform in the rear-most temple structure on a higher floor. Helga uses a lighten load and the group piles (tightly) into Cliffy's bag and enters the temple from above.
In the first room, the heroes battle a powerful ogre magi, capable of using mirror images which do not pop. Next they battle a second ogre magi after finding the secret door to his room. Following a staircase up, they then stumble directly into the rakshasa and his two tiger pets.
The rakshasa pulls a lever and opens a pit trap. Daj jumps clear, but the rest of the party is trapped at the door. Cliffy takes out on tiger but Daj is forced to battle the other as the rakshasa uses its spells. Finally, Helga gets a fly from Cliffy as Daj goes down. The dwarf grabs her friend and flies to safety, giving the rakshasa plenty of time to sound an alarm and cast more spells.
After almost a minute, the heroes charge back up, Helga flying to the attack. Daj dimension doors herself and Jamal into the battle, but they soon realize that their magical weapons are not fully effective against this monster and their spells totally useless! It, however, has hasted itself as well as cast mirror image. The best Daj and Cliffy's magics can do is take out the imposter-images!
Three more ogre magi arrive, one going for Cliffy as he casts Mordenkainen's faithful hound to guard the entry. The other two attack Daj and Jamal from invisibility, the rakshasa using that distraction to start levitating away. Daj slaughters first one and then the other ogre magi while Cliffy and his hound take the other. Then two yeti arrive, but the elven mage/thief deal with this threat too.
At this point, the rakshasa has left the actual building and is trying to escape into the air despite Helga's efforts. Daj and Jamal help Cliffy and then Daj metamorphoses her waterskin's contents into acid to make sure none of the ogre magi ever arise. The half-dryad they casts fly from her book on Jamal and the desert warrior rejoins the fight with Daj offering spell support. For his part, Cliffy cast a wall of fog on the top level and closes all the doors and secret doors, seriously hampering any reinforcements!
Another invisible ogre magi flies up, but Helga spies it with her standing detect magic spell and Daj lights it up with her mood faerie fire. Although the heroes make very short work of it and the falls splatters it into purple goo, the rakshasa resists the heroes every effort and begins unleashing volley after volley of magic missiles. Somehow Helga and Jamal do not follow and before the creature floats too far, Daj nails it once with her throwing scimitar. But finally, at the very brink of death, the creature takes out Helga, who Jamal catches, and starts to fly away. One lucky hit knocks it unconscious and the 170' fall does the rest.
The heroes are victorious and over the next couple of days mop up the remaining ogres. They learn that one female rakshasa escaped, but they have a magical amulet that allows them to see her. They also find a strange, small ship stuck in the moat. There is no eggress but the heroes soon learn that the ship can fly and even find instructions (which they cannot read!) and maps of most of the planet of Oerth.
Next stop, Greyhawk!