Post by David on Mar 11, 2013 17:49:38 GMT -5
BlackRobe sends the heroes (Malkierian, Talking Bird, Kashi, Skierra, Joe, Pudic, Clod, and Eric with Faust) to speak with Major Garlok Drake, Prince of Amberwood, after their success in the orcish caverns. Garlok asks the heroes to attack a fortress along the western edge of the Howling Hills. The fortress sits on a peak below which a waterfall emerges from within the rock. These cascades feed the Blackwater River. The day before, the waters of the waterfall turned to ice and all the water they touched did so too, all the way down to the Dulsi River, which had huge ice flows and was nearly solid for many tens of miles. A shaman has already revealed that the fortress' well is fed by these same waters and gives access to the inside...though the air above is patrolled by wyverns while giants with boulders guard the battlements.
The heroes are awakened in the night and magically transported to a dark room where witches give them buffing spells, joined by Princess Robyndella, Garlok's twin sister. From there, they step through a gate to the base of the waterfall, far beneath the orcish fortress. The heroes scout out the area and find a lair of bugbear, which they make short work of. Skierra charms one and questions him about how to enter the fortress; the creature doesn't work for Iuz, but the heroes learn of an underwater grate beneath the pool at the base of the waterfall. Pudic and Malkeirian strip down and pull the grate loose. They enter and pull the other heroes in via ropes.
During this process, six juju zombies arrive and attack. The undead cause a little damage and one escapes to fight Kashi on the surface outside, but the heroes are ultimately victorious. The group explores the caverns, finding immaculately clean surfaces. They then proceed to battle a roper and avoid a spiked pit with skeletons inside it. Then Clod walks into the gelatinous cube, but Malkierian saves the dwarf...
Farther, Skierra turns a column of bones that turns out to be a trap of undead waiting for someone to "steal" an emerald lure. The party discovers some carved reliefs and pottery shards in a bend of caverns the cube couldn't enter. Finally, the group crosses up a stream and finds where the water comes into this series of caverns from above. They explore just a bit further and encounter 16 skeletons, 12 zombies, and a lizard man shaman. Skierra begins turning the undead and the party pushes into the monsters, although casts slay living on the dwarf (really sleep). The bulk of the group explores down the passage after the undead while Faust and Talking Bird stay behind with Clod. That's when an ogre magi appears and attacks from invisibility, dropping the shaman. Kashi charges back to save the day, but as the rest of the heroes arrive, the ogre magi unleashes a cone of cold into the bushi as well as Joe, Skierra, and Malkierian! Kashi is frozen solid and the others mostly drop. Only with luck are the heroes able to beat the ogre magi and only because Kashi had softened it up...!
The group explores the ogre magi's richly-appointed lair, gathering treasure while using casks of oil to soak the place. Skierra turns the undead into the area and the group lights it up; a few undead manage to escape, but damaged, they're no match for the heroes. Joe puts Kashi's body in his bag of holding for safe keeping....
The group camps out. Six hours later, four giant weasels show up, but using a ring of animal control from BlackRobe, Talking Bird takes command of the creatures and walks them into the spiked pit where the skeletons finish them off. This happens again a few hours later. Later skill, five terra cotta warriors arrive. Joe and Malkierian battle the pseudo-golems in the hallway, discovering rather quickly that edged weapons are of limited use. A few more hours pass and a second group of terra cotta warriors arrive. During this battle, however, a lucky shot from one warrior cleanly removes Joe's right arm at the shoulder -- the rustic transmuter is down. The terra cotta warriors ultimately overcome Malkierian, but only one is left. It then drops Talking Bird. With a couple of lucky shurikens, Erik drops the terra cotta warrior. He then tends to the downed party members.
Status (post sleep/healing):
Pudic: 23 (full)
Erik: 34 (full)
Faust: 14 (full)
Joe: 19 of 28, no right arm
Clod: 23 of 42
Skierra: 15 of 30
Talking Bird: +5 of 26
Malkierian: +3 of 44
Kashi: dead in Joe's bag
The heroes are awakened in the night and magically transported to a dark room where witches give them buffing spells, joined by Princess Robyndella, Garlok's twin sister. From there, they step through a gate to the base of the waterfall, far beneath the orcish fortress. The heroes scout out the area and find a lair of bugbear, which they make short work of. Skierra charms one and questions him about how to enter the fortress; the creature doesn't work for Iuz, but the heroes learn of an underwater grate beneath the pool at the base of the waterfall. Pudic and Malkeirian strip down and pull the grate loose. They enter and pull the other heroes in via ropes.
During this process, six juju zombies arrive and attack. The undead cause a little damage and one escapes to fight Kashi on the surface outside, but the heroes are ultimately victorious. The group explores the caverns, finding immaculately clean surfaces. They then proceed to battle a roper and avoid a spiked pit with skeletons inside it. Then Clod walks into the gelatinous cube, but Malkierian saves the dwarf...
Farther, Skierra turns a column of bones that turns out to be a trap of undead waiting for someone to "steal" an emerald lure. The party discovers some carved reliefs and pottery shards in a bend of caverns the cube couldn't enter. Finally, the group crosses up a stream and finds where the water comes into this series of caverns from above. They explore just a bit further and encounter 16 skeletons, 12 zombies, and a lizard man shaman. Skierra begins turning the undead and the party pushes into the monsters, although casts slay living on the dwarf (really sleep). The bulk of the group explores down the passage after the undead while Faust and Talking Bird stay behind with Clod. That's when an ogre magi appears and attacks from invisibility, dropping the shaman. Kashi charges back to save the day, but as the rest of the heroes arrive, the ogre magi unleashes a cone of cold into the bushi as well as Joe, Skierra, and Malkierian! Kashi is frozen solid and the others mostly drop. Only with luck are the heroes able to beat the ogre magi and only because Kashi had softened it up...!
The group explores the ogre magi's richly-appointed lair, gathering treasure while using casks of oil to soak the place. Skierra turns the undead into the area and the group lights it up; a few undead manage to escape, but damaged, they're no match for the heroes. Joe puts Kashi's body in his bag of holding for safe keeping....
The group camps out. Six hours later, four giant weasels show up, but using a ring of animal control from BlackRobe, Talking Bird takes command of the creatures and walks them into the spiked pit where the skeletons finish them off. This happens again a few hours later. Later skill, five terra cotta warriors arrive. Joe and Malkierian battle the pseudo-golems in the hallway, discovering rather quickly that edged weapons are of limited use. A few more hours pass and a second group of terra cotta warriors arrive. During this battle, however, a lucky shot from one warrior cleanly removes Joe's right arm at the shoulder -- the rustic transmuter is down. The terra cotta warriors ultimately overcome Malkierian, but only one is left. It then drops Talking Bird. With a couple of lucky shurikens, Erik drops the terra cotta warrior. He then tends to the downed party members.
Status (post sleep/healing):
Pudic: 23 (full)
Erik: 34 (full)
Faust: 14 (full)
Joe: 19 of 28, no right arm
Clod: 23 of 42
Skierra: 15 of 30
Talking Bird: +5 of 26
Malkierian: +3 of 44
Kashi: dead in Joe's bag
