tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33776136786668459242024-03-13T10:16:37.924-07:00The Hands that Move the WorldA little blog for the D&D campaign in the Eberron setting.Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.comBlogger44125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-49205151383145182142011-09-23T10:06:00.000-07:002011-10-02T01:47:18.201-07:00Blood and Gold<i>Sar, Sypheros 17, 998 YK (Day 91).</i><br />
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</i><br />
The group is awakened with a start as Talbot enters the barracks almost exactly six hours later, announcing loudly and clearly that the "time has come." They quickly equip themselves, and Elyas receives instructions from Talbot to remain outside Glyphstone once the party has breached the keep to prevent any reinforcements flowing in from outside, or to Wroat from within. With this, he brings them downstairs, where a portal awaits in the monastery's central chamber. They give him the Chaos Gear, which he assures will be taken care of the organization he works for, and tells them to look for Mr. Artauche in the "old workshop" located in the keep. After this, one by one, they proceed through the portal.<br />
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It leads to the bottom of a very tall cliff. Glyphstone Keep is just visible at the top, and they are on a sort of ledge a few feet above a river (a branch of the Dagger River), with a narrow pathway leading along its banks. They are surprised by a familiar presence awaiting them here: Zan-kyri, the genasi artificer. He indicates that he was in Wroat (headquarters of Cannith South) when the invasion broke out, and came here as part of a personal investigation. He was examining the prepared portal exit when the Collective passed through it. They explain the situation to Zan-kyri, who decides to come with them to stop Artauche. With this, they begin ascending the cliff face.<br />
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Marlamin and Zan-kyri are the first to begin climbing. Marlamin attempts to use extruding vegetation to climb, while Zan-kyri alters his form to be more akin to liquid, and goes up a waterfall emerging from the Keep. The first branch Marlamin reaches for snaps in his hand, however, and Zan-kyri finds the pressure too much; both begin to fall, and though they are injured somewhat, Stahlstrauss rescues them with a herculean effort of strength. He grabs both of them, and Zan-kyri is placed on his back while Marlamin is carried the rest of the way up the cliff. Zil'dejin goes looking for a more convenient way of getting up to the keep from their position, but finds nothing, and Garmeth clambers up top independently.<br />
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At the top of the cliff, they find the battlements of Glyphstone to be covered in strange looking defective warforged. Their limbs are oddly proportioned, and they seem to be far less intelligent than normal examples of their race. They are equipped with arm crossbows, and immediately open fire on the party as they come into view. Marlamin leads a charge at the portcullis, the only visible entry to the Keep. Zan-kyri and Garmeth follow in his wake, but are hit by crossbow bolts. Zan-kyri attempts futilely to kick the portcullis open, and then Marlamin lifts the gate, with Garmeth assisting. At this point, Stahlstrauss is able to use the telepathic powers of his <i>command circlet </i>to broadcast a message to the defective warforged, and convinces them that he is their commander and to cease fire. They do, and move into the keep somewhere around the same time that Zil'dejin finally climbs the cliff and catches up to the party.<br />
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Stahlstrauss takes the burden of the portcullis from Marlamin and holds it open long enough for the party to move through. They find themselves in a small courtyard leading to an open doorway, going inside the keep. Zan-kyri first attempts to track down the magic of the Rod of Order and the Chains of Balance, to orient the party, but their presence is so strong he cannot pick out their direction. The party then goes inside the structure, finding themselves in an entry chamber with many doors. Zil'dejin recalls a battle of historical significance fought here a very long time ago, and uses that knowledge to reconstruct a rough mental map of the keep. He recalls the approximate direction of the workshop, and they head here at once when they hear heavy, metallic footsteps coming rapidly closer from multiple directions. They are soon pursued by a different squadron of defective warforged, these ones equipped only with armblades of different shapes and sizes. Garmeth uses the <i>phantom soldier </i>artifact he carries with him in an effort to distract the warforged, but they cut through the illusion and envelop him. Marlamin attempts to save him with an elaborate maneuver intended to trip up the squadron, but he too is caught up in the fighting. They both sustain some injuries before the warforged Stahlstrauss spoke to earlier arrive and engage in combat with the other detachment. Because of the jury-rigged nature of the constructs, this battle ultimately culminates in a mass of exploding defective warforged in the cramped halls.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgca1O1U-B6qzd_sU6iEipSHTMJfY5o8wfoyAOr9CEwlOQ895kuoFnSMciq_bZeR0dcKmQ1oanAbktB946xVwahCEHSAPKea7ZE-UDKKcQf6m6uVNGplZe9Qt7rVtwTw4xReJdr4B3EuW1D/s1600/slaughter-stone-eviscerator.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgca1O1U-B6qzd_sU6iEipSHTMJfY5o8wfoyAOr9CEwlOQ895kuoFnSMciq_bZeR0dcKmQ1oanAbktB946xVwahCEHSAPKea7ZE-UDKKcQf6m6uVNGplZe9Qt7rVtwTw4xReJdr4B3EuW1D/s320/slaughter-stone-eviscerator.jpg" width="309" /></a></div>After this, the party arrives in a barracks-like area. Zil'dejin explains that this immediately precedes the workshop, and was where artificers within Glyphstone lived in between shifts at the workshop after Cannith took control of the place. It forks in two directions, each hall lined with small bedrooms, but both evidently lead to the workshop. They go left, and are soon assailed by an unusual construct made of stone and metal dropping upon them from the ceiling. It spins around with whirling blades, while another, electrified construct approaches from the rear. Finally, some of the doors to the barracks rooms open, and horrible amalgamations of corpse and machine emerge. They fight a battle with these enemies in very close quarters, but eventually bring them all down. They take a breather here, in an effort to gather all their strength before proceeding to face Artauche himself.<br />
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After a while of this, they enter the workshop. It is a ruined area, but has recently been restored to some extent. There is rubble everywhere, and in one area, it is burning. Once their eyes have adjusted to the change in lighting, the party notices a figure on top of some wooden crossbeams: it is Remelius Artauche. He speaks at length to the Eclipse Collective. He discusses Stahlstrauss' origins in an illegal Creation Forge in the Lhazaar Principalities, which was one of the Artauche family's illicit facilities. He talks about Garmeth's inability to reconstruct his monastic order, his failures as a monk and the horrible abominations that are his race; he promises to enslave Garmeth and sell him back to the daelkyr after he has been defeated. He also mentions the changeling assassin that killed Balin, Zil'dejin's former mentor, and his association with the organization that conducted this murder. He does not recognize Marlamin or Zan-kyri, but promises them a swift death.<br />
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With this, he fires magical flares from his cane, which is a powerful device he has created as a weapon, and tears off his left sleeve, exposing the Chains of Balance which are wrapped around his arm. This signals the start of the battle. The party eventually makes their way to the top of the crossbeams to do battle with him, and despite his many attempts at slowing them down - including using the Chains of Balance to slow time for them while he moves at a normal rate - he is injured enough that he must retreat. He throws his cane down, and it explodes in a blinding flash. With this, he jumps down from the beams, using a kind of thruster in his prosthetic metal leg to slow his descent, and a pillar rises from its position to reveal a hatch leading downwards. He enters this, and disappears. The party takes just a second to recuperate, having sustained many injures in the fight, before following him.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRYb2dsC1hQCdvrLUp5SrfQGMi5UxjGVAo2CANcZ3oQUhUazLUIMUN3igdTQ1ElXl8Wv1aVf-71gBEDnmHlPFC8ciA_qbNIGYRuETBehb2G2qRfQl5T4i7O6CR0RJkuDkIGGTchRz_81cX/s1600/CreationForge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRYb2dsC1hQCdvrLUp5SrfQGMi5UxjGVAo2CANcZ3oQUhUazLUIMUN3igdTQ1ElXl8Wv1aVf-71gBEDnmHlPFC8ciA_qbNIGYRuETBehb2G2qRfQl5T4i7O6CR0RJkuDkIGGTchRz_81cX/s1600/CreationForge.jpg" /></a></div><br />
After a short trip, they find themselves in a large, cylindrical room. It is mostly stone, though root-like tubes run throughout it, and a massive pillar of stone and metal hovers in the center of the room. Beneath it, a large concave dip in the floor is illuminated with bright white light, which is also mimicked by smaller platforms arranged around the room in a circle. This is recognized immediately by Stahlstrauss as a Creation Forge. It looks to be in some disrepair, but is functioning anyway. They arrive just in time to see Artauche climbing up the pillar in the middle of the room, opening a kind of hatch, and disappearing inside.<br />
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Immediately after he does, the luminous platforms shine brightly, and more defective warforged materialize. After a moment, they attack the party. While fending off the warforged, who are perhaps a bigger threat when destroyed (due to their instability and tendency to explode) they try to climb up and attack Artauche, who is in the pillar. Silvery beams of energy occasionally emerge from the hatch to fend off attempts to attack him, however, and it is not until all the warforged are defeated that the bright lights all fade, the pillar falls to the ground, and the hatch opens.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrIaJFzFnnmrF4Pob_sfhyS9NT4_hsTRsqoSaOo9ReWT1bNJJo94RAZTIZZb0snvJevB8KAY_4dP1msuOZl5gBWsDUUJRoquZG9a0WVkZB4Dqjm_LtlNovGku2IO2PQUrd7NAGuLl6PF2n/s1600/warforged+birth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrIaJFzFnnmrF4Pob_sfhyS9NT4_hsTRsqoSaOo9ReWT1bNJJo94RAZTIZZb0snvJevB8KAY_4dP1msuOZl5gBWsDUUJRoquZG9a0WVkZB4Dqjm_LtlNovGku2IO2PQUrd7NAGuLl6PF2n/s1600/warforged+birth.jpg" /></a></div>Artauche emerges, holding a brightly-glowing Rod of Order in his right hand while the Chains of Balance shine on his left arm. He is hovering now, and on his back are luminous wings. He announces that it is "time to end this," and the room begins shaking and falling apart. The party soon realizes that it is not really the Creation Forge that is crumbling; rather, they are being transported elsewhere.<br />
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They arrive in the middle of Wroat. Defective warforged bodies are everywhere, and chaos is rampant. Buildings are burning, and the air smells of acrid smoke. Screams are audible in the distance. Artauche begins using the Rod of Order with reckless abandon, and unlocks the full potential of the Chains of Balance, anchoring his own life to the souls of the Eclipse Collective and "consuming" their souls to recover his own wounds.<br />
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One by one, each party member falls to him. Garmeth is the first to go, shot down by the silver beams of the Rod of Order, and Zan-kyri is soon to follow. Stahlstrauss is next, and then Zil'dejin. Artauche is showing some signs of injury, but thanks to his use of the Chains of Balance he has been able to keep himself sustained. He lands from his hovering position for a last confrontation with Marlamin Tarmikos, their souls tethered by the Chains of Balance. Marlamin takes the risk of making one great attack against Artauche, but the pain is transferred back to him, and he blacks out. Before he descends into total unconsciousness, he is able to witness Artauche's body becoming "cracked" with the same silver light from the Rod of Order, and eventually bursting in a great nova of light.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">* * *</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">The party later awakens in a grand temple to the Sovereign Host. King Boranel ir'Wynarn, the king of Breland, and Baron Merrix d'Cannith, baron of Cannith South, greet the Eclipse Collective. Garmeth and Zan-kyri, who were physically killed in the melee, are restored to life, and it is revealed that the Chains of Balance did not allow Artauche to actually destroy their souls; instead, he only used them to hold his wounds together, and they were released upon his death.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Merrix and Boranel congratulate the party, and thank them extensively for their service. Merrix mentions that Glyphstone Keep has fallen back into Cannith hands, as the last living Artauche heir has died, and offers it to the party once the Creation Forge within has been totally dismantled. They accept, and choose to rename it "Eclipse Keep." Boranel extends an offer of reward as well, and dispatches men to clean up and repair the poorly-repaired stronghold. The two public figures then escort the Eclipse Collective out to the streets of Wroat, where a parade is held in their honour.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">After all the festivities are over, the party heads to the Eclipse Keep, where reconstruction is already under way. Though they last left it virtually unknown, they have returned to it as heroes.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #6aa84f;">This is the end of Heroic tier!</span></blockquote>Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-85092815160934420352011-08-31T13:19:00.001-07:002011-09-25T13:29:57.045-07:00Entropy II: The Winter Queen<i>Far, Sypheros 16, 998 YK (Day 90).</i><br />
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</i><br />
The melee in the Quiet Halls begins quickly. A shadar-kai witch stands on a balcony fifteen feet off the ground while the warriors, both of the Still Hearts and the Children of Winter, engage the party. They put up a good fight, but the party breaks them down before long - it takes longer than expected, however, due to their minds being clouded by magic used by the witch.<br />
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Once the warriors are mostly dealt with, the party climbs up the pillars supporting the balcony to fight the witch. Garmeth uses his <i>flying leopard maneuver </i>to soar up to the balcony, though the confusing tactics of the witch and her ability to wrap herself in shadow makes this a much more confusing endeavor than it usually is. Still, she eventually falls, and the party interrogates her. She seems somewhat confident in the Winter Queen's abilities, and says that this is the one who currently has possession of the Chaos Gear. Evidently, she is the leader of the Still Hearts shadar-kai and the Children of Winter. Getting no more information from the witch, the party leaves through a door other than the one indicated by the witch to house the Winter Queen.<br />
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This door leads to a prison-like area, where the Collective runs across the missing Blood of Vol cultists that once occupied the monastery. Marlamin frees them and instructs them to follow the Eclipse Collective, but to wait outside the Winter Queen's throne room until he signals that it is clear to rejoin them. The monks agree, knowing that in their current state they would be very little use in a fight. With this, they go into the throne room of the Winter Queen.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzd5S2irqZchykWpJLsA5qBAa0GJ-1eSzIovTazGx-XAtT7SJCpPzZWN1WPEriJBy_EV5KfIl8W4iS0ldXNqGHwyx_qNRUuOQsYSHeihW94zHwgtzOcBqZN0qS5yRZEibpz5remmIb47cO/s1600/winterqueen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzd5S2irqZchykWpJLsA5qBAa0GJ-1eSzIovTazGx-XAtT7SJCpPzZWN1WPEriJBy_EV5KfIl8W4iS0ldXNqGHwyx_qNRUuOQsYSHeihW94zHwgtzOcBqZN0qS5yRZEibpz5remmIb47cO/s320/winterqueen.jpg" width="226" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Winter Queen</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
She wears the Chaos Gear on her head, wrapped in her hair. She claims she has unlocked its power in exchange for her soul, and that this makes her far greater than the party can handle. They believe she is bluffing, and try to get her to surrender the Gear without a fight. They learn in this conversation that she is half human, half shadar-kai, and intends to usher the latter back into Eberron with territory of their own, outside the ashen plains of Dolurrh. She would prefer not to have to deal with the party at all, and offers them a substantial monetary reward to leave her presence at once and never return to the Fortress of Still Hearts. They refuse, and ready their weapons.<br />
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The shadar-kai move to defend their queen, and the weaponmaster, one of the most talented warriors they keep, pulls weapons away using a unique chain-like shortsword, and uses the stolen weapons against the party. Some of the party stays back to fight the shadar-kai while the rest move up to engage the Winter Queen. All the while, the activated Chaos Gear is causing strange effects in the room; people change size, teleport around at random, the room physically shrinks, and more.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQz37m_hcJrCPxoQakltDmss0xSI4bnnKjma5DhP9U1VRqsT5KydVzLP1HB2uzd7hag7HsHOIvvmGVN6fMwNTHcxaZX-kafPAatnKEQAAfZAf-iUjLNjKcn5Wf18dNBJkHdKfJ2AXMSRAF/s1600/Chaos+Gear+red.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQz37m_hcJrCPxoQakltDmss0xSI4bnnKjma5DhP9U1VRqsT5KydVzLP1HB2uzd7hag7HsHOIvvmGVN6fMwNTHcxaZX-kafPAatnKEQAAfZAf-iUjLNjKcn5Wf18dNBJkHdKfJ2AXMSRAF/s320/Chaos+Gear+red.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Chaos Gear</td></tr>
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After eliminating her henchmen, the Collective closes in on the Winter Queen. Perhaps seeking revenge for the monks of the Towering Wood, Marlamin employs virtually all the power he can muster, channeling shadow energy and the corrupting force of the <i>Touch of Corruption </i>into one great, fierce blow, in which he adopts the appearance of an angel of death. The strike rends the Winter Queen in two, and the power of the Chaos Gear fades. The room returns to normal, and the party discovers a secret exit back to Eberron in the throne room, apparently for the Winter Queen to move in and out of discreetly. They quickly gather the Chaos Gear and the monks, and head through the passage, which leads back to the well of the Blood of Vol monastery. It is night time.<br />
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They climb out of the well, and at the top, are "greeted" by Malavarn, holding a torch. He brings the party inside, and convinces them to give the Chaos Gear to him. At this point, he uses some kind of alchemical medicine on his eyelids, and douses the torch. The room is plunged into darkness, and they begin hearing frenzied howls. Feral vampires under Malavarn's command have arrived in the monastery, and join the fight to eliminate the party.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinJ_1Z503xzuEaQW1rGjhacuRKUl39swHWfNFCCUONpmz6-YrvEC-9XmUnruHfYi8TIXPteQtpjudW6gT_EH8XXJ44ysHHgMhJ5G3MLEflCEFYra2w6PG70vrh0C4XmYv_UeYjIGmynK4M/s1600/Malavarn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinJ_1Z503xzuEaQW1rGjhacuRKUl39swHWfNFCCUONpmz6-YrvEC-9XmUnruHfYi8TIXPteQtpjudW6gT_EH8XXJ44ysHHgMhJ5G3MLEflCEFYra2w6PG70vrh0C4XmYv_UeYjIGmynK4M/s320/Malavarn.jpg" width="206" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Malavarn</td></tr>
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Most of the vampires are quickly eliminated. Malavarn fights fiercely, and even though his body is almost completely broken, he fights to his last breath. When he finally falls, the party retrieves the Chaos Gear, and goes outside, where they hear an approaching march. These are Malavarn's scouts - a segment of his enforcers dedicated to arriving first before the others. Eventually, though, the footsteps give way to snapping and screaming, and a figure emerges from the Towering Wood. It is Talbot, the other of Mr. Artauche's highest-ranking agents.<br />
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He explains that Remelius Artauche has betrayed them. Artauche was a Gold Concordian in the Aurum, a society of wealthy and powerful individuals who present themselves to the world as collectors of magical artifacts. They are, according to Talbot, actually a criminal syndicate who collect these items to advance their own power. The Aurum is divided into Concords: Copper, Silver, Gold, and Platinum, where Platinum is the highest. A recent opening in the Platinum Concord led Artauche to bid for a position, but he was denied. Seeing no further use for them, he silently turned against the Aurum for his own diabolical machinations. Talbot, as a double agent working for an organization he will not reveal to the party, believes it important to stop him, but cannot interfere directly without destroying his cover.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0rHw2kCHOwn_uGl8Hi1rBb_IhYPqGBsTMnw7xeBjlLgvPY6m3o7RM54VqX_ZJ6Ft0db7_etKxeSr0Mc6VnoMfedtSrh8CH4SlnkzyT-7ncibv6semcVebKqDErwor7WkeoD_ZQqsziv2f/s1600/talbot2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0rHw2kCHOwn_uGl8Hi1rBb_IhYPqGBsTMnw7xeBjlLgvPY6m3o7RM54VqX_ZJ6Ft0db7_etKxeSr0Mc6VnoMfedtSrh8CH4SlnkzyT-7ncibv6semcVebKqDErwor7WkeoD_ZQqsziv2f/s320/talbot2.jpg" width="170" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Talbot returns</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
Artauche has recently found the Chains of Balance and intends to complete the set, and kill off the party to prevent interference with his plan: he is going to take over Wroat, the capital of Breland, and then move on to conquer the rest of Khorvaire. Beginning immediately after the party gave the Rod of Order to him, Artauche moved back to his family's old estate of Glyphstone Keep, which once housed an illegal Creation Forge (factory to produce warforged). The Artauche family once had three such forges, and were expelled from their lofty positions in House Cannith when it was discovered they were producing illicit warforged and selling them to the highest bidder for their own profit. The Creation Forges were dismantled at the end of the Last War, but Artauche has used the Rod of Order to transiently reactivate the one hidden under Glyphstone Keep and has assembled a massive army of defective warforged powered by proximity to the Rod of Order. He has used these, alongside his personal agents, hired mercenaries and inflamed dissidents to launch a sudden and brutal attack on Wroat, and has been doing very well, based on the element of surprise and sheer numbers. Talbot believes that the Eclipse Collective may be the only ones that can stop him now.<br />
<br />
Malavarn carried with him two pieces of paper. On one, a letter, indicating he had achieved support from the Blood of Vol due to "mutual goals", and they had sent vampires to aid Malavarn. The other was a ritual scroll, which Talbot indicates is a teleportation ritual designed specifically to return him to Glyphstone Keep after he took back the Chaos Gear. Talbot offers to initiate the ritual and establish the portal while the party gets some rest; they are battered from the Keep of Still Hearts and can afford as much as six hours of rest before attacking the Keep. Past this point, the assault will have proceeded to far to be interrupted. The Collective takes this opportunity and goes to rest in the monks' barracks while Talbot and the monks themselves keep watch.Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-74608838933133830512011-08-24T15:17:00.001-07:002011-08-30T13:10:15.855-07:00Entropy I: The Fortress of Still Hearts<i>Sar, Sypheros 10, 998 YK (Day 84).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
The other monks, after being assured the battle is over, enter the seal chamber. Garmeth, with the aid of the others, is able to more clearly identify the gauntlet now attached to Marlamin's arm, which is called the <i>Touch of Corruption, </i>and is a powerful daelkyr artifact commonly associated with Dyrrn the Corruptor, believed to be the most powerful of his kind. He is rumored to be sealed here in the Eldeen Reaches, and Druar believes that the seal in the Echohand Cave might be the one that's keeping him in.<br />
<br />
Druar begins a ritual to stabilize the seal long enough for the Gatekeeper druids to come and reseal it themselves, but Marlamin has a strong compulsion to stop him from doing so. He threatens and yells at Druar until the githzerai monk stops the ritual. Druar is already injured, and does not want to risk death for this. Garmeth accuses him of cowardice, but he remains resolute in his desire to avoid stabilizing the seal, claiming it is the "Gatekeepers' job, anyway." Before leaving, he offers Garmeth a reward for his efforts: a multicolored, patchwork cloak he allegedly recovered from their last visit to the Shitorai monastery. Garmeth asks if there is anything left there; Cobb informs him that it is little more than a ruin. They part ways with surprisingly casual phrases. The monks are heading northeast to Greenheart, and offer to take Tam'elanath with them to return him to life. The group allows this, and Zan-kyri returns with them as well, claiming that he has had enough adventuring for now.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUdbWoeNP-IGuxWvA7983hPCSS9VJ15Wh0Jx0PsJKXnKSpnR5DdwW2LMezuMq8UU23KJgYvP5tmBc_EbReVJtjRzcNC2YKVR1q1qsEu1G-NFaSGQ-TxKTTuayuoXSanoKP5sanM7YDboF5/s1600/Gith_450.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUdbWoeNP-IGuxWvA7983hPCSS9VJ15Wh0Jx0PsJKXnKSpnR5DdwW2LMezuMq8UU23KJgYvP5tmBc_EbReVJtjRzcNC2YKVR1q1qsEu1G-NFaSGQ-TxKTTuayuoXSanoKP5sanM7YDboF5/s320/Gith_450.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Druar</td></tr>
</tbody></table>The remaining five leave Echohand Cave to the southwest, now back on track for the Twofold Glade.<br />
<br />
<i>Far, Sypheros 16, 998 YK (Day 90).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
The Eclipse Collective at last arrives at the Twofold Glade, which has the unusual property of appearing completely dead in an almost perfect circle amid the otherwise-verdant Towering Wood. The trees are leafless and barren, while the grass is sparse and all but depleted of life, even more than is to be expected in the month of Sypheros (mid-autumn). The clearing also contains a secluded monastery of the Blood of Vol, built in characteristic red stone, which once housed the small extremist sect Marlamin set out to investigate. There are only two buildings in the monastery, surrounded by a low wall. The party chooses to investigate the larger of these buildings first.<br />
<br />
They knock on the door, and hear voices within, but nobody responds. Eventually, they open the door to discover men dressed in animal furs and brandishing swords, ready for combat and screaming about "protecting the passageway." A fight breaks out. Garmeth tries to ask one of them what they want, to which he responds that they wish to "bring this broken world to ruin." The battle with the Children of Winter is quite brief, as only two guards, a witch and a doomspeaker (like a priest) of their sect are there to guard the old monastery, which has apparently been converted into the Children of Winter headquarters for the time being. The Collective searches the monastery after the battle, uncovering an old magical belt and some food supplies being used by the Children of Winter, as well as the stripped-bare kitchen building, but it is not until Zil'dejin displaces a carpet in the entry hall of the main monastery building that they find an unlocked trapdoor, with a tunnel leading down into the earth.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC93N8caSAkkXEn24N8wcSx15I1tTuQWZN2QXhYB34TRuvLvqahw2iUs0RwAHLs-3-ucTQfRj6LRsR76Vx2MhryCoOJCdtAehqbDTwbK0Sr6-AIUX8Pc0UQDK6kvxDRbpZiw4fUuUeM_rR/s1600/cave_tunnel_by_llRobinll.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC93N8caSAkkXEn24N8wcSx15I1tTuQWZN2QXhYB34TRuvLvqahw2iUs0RwAHLs-3-ucTQfRj6LRsR76Vx2MhryCoOJCdtAehqbDTwbK0Sr6-AIUX8Pc0UQDK6kvxDRbpZiw4fUuUeM_rR/s320/cave_tunnel_by_llRobinll.png" width="182" /></a></div><br />
<br />
The follow the tunnel, pausing briefly at a wooden door carved with images of skulls. Once they pass this door, they feel colder, and the tunnel seems darker, though it is certainly the same structure as it was before. At the end, they find another set of stairs and a trapdoor nearly identical to the first. Marlamin, Zil'dejin and Stahlstrauss smash through the wood, and the group finds themselves in the ruins of a monastery much like the one they just left, but completely in shambles. The sky is very dark and overcast, and a howling wind whips by. The monastery is empty.<br />
<br />
They investigate for a while, and discover that the ground is like ash, and the trees are a deep gray and entirely dead, with no sign of the lush Towering Wood for miles. Elyas recalls the hallmarks of this place indicate only one thing: they have crossed into Dolurrh, the Plane of the Dead, also known as the Shadowfell. It is much like a mirror world to Eberron where death and decay are dominant, and mortals spending too much time lingering will waste away with the apathetic spirits in this place. Despite being a mirror, though, there are some differences, such as a paved road leading into the dead wood. Garmeth decides to leave the party for a while to see if there is any other course of action, but the other four decide that there is probably not, and they take to the road.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM3e1Ymluh8z50tDkkgHFgcqYf8aw_C6GyRXGCDj1mtbpeVxZ-XFEYwM9dghlJoAnxE5gRAJANlSwVfzR60ot5eW_p7FueP-z9pYdNaE-Nnmz4aF6TKsnHDKlUAlezL_T8MJcZfK-2F4l_/s1600/Fortress+of+Still+Hearts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM3e1Ymluh8z50tDkkgHFgcqYf8aw_C6GyRXGCDj1mtbpeVxZ-XFEYwM9dghlJoAnxE5gRAJANlSwVfzR60ot5eW_p7FueP-z9pYdNaE-Nnmz4aF6TKsnHDKlUAlezL_T8MJcZfK-2F4l_/s320/Fortress+of+Still+Hearts.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
The dead trees of Dolurrh's imitation of the Towering Wood eventually fall away to reveal a small stream, breaking the barren forest to reveal a set of high, roughly-hewn walls. It seems this may have been an area of plateaus once, or perhaps magic or something like it created these walls, but whatever the case, there is an enormous fortress here, toned a gray so deep it is nearly black. They approach the gate, and a sentry stationed above it asks them to identify themselves. He is a pale-skinned human with braided hair, myriad piercings, and strange tattoos, clad all in black. The party tells him why they have arrived in plain words.<br />
<br />
The sentry responds that this place, called the Fortress of Still Hearts, is home to a powerful clan of shadar-kai (very close to humans - one of very few races that live in Dolurrh) that have control of the Chaos Gear, and they have no inclination to surrender the artifact. He also reveals that the Children of Winter are allied with the Still Heart shadar-kai, and that the ranks within the large fortress greatly outnumber the four members of the Eclipse Collective (who are shortly rejoined by Garmeth to make five, but this is hardly an impressive increase in numbers).<br />
<br />
After some contemplation away from the gates, the group decides that they have no choice but to try and get into the fortress anyway. Zil'dejin, Stahlstrauss and Marlamin begin to scale the walls in an area that has little apparent activity. Garmeth moves around the fortress to find some kind of vulnerable area that would be easier to access, and Elyas goes with him while trying to recount any information he might know about the shadar-kai race that could be helpful, but neither of them have any success in their endeavor. From atop the walls, the three that climbed up initially throw down a rope, and the remaining two quickly climb to the top. Here, they can see the true scale of the Fortress of Still Hearts, with its many buildings and many occupants. There is a set of stairs leading down at a nearby point in the wall, providing access to it from the ground below, and the Collective descends it rapidly.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigfNhP6BKw_KM5SxnrZOuvCT0ZEHCL_rUe1CDenTXHVre9nU8feCYIYVU3c9_El9l3DFWYhwn0PFlYFCzAn9I6HIR5OXeWU2LsTXlZN5J2pXnKXlNkyFqSvwPGex0xwzAsZgyAQivNCWDU/s1600/shadarkai.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigfNhP6BKw_KM5SxnrZOuvCT0ZEHCL_rUe1CDenTXHVre9nU8feCYIYVU3c9_El9l3DFWYhwn0PFlYFCzAn9I6HIR5OXeWU2LsTXlZN5J2pXnKXlNkyFqSvwPGex0xwzAsZgyAQivNCWDU/s400/shadarkai.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The shadar-kai</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
There are two buildings nearby, and numerous shadar-kai and Children of Winter patrols milling about. Zil'dejin and Stahlstrauss decide to infiltrate the nearest building, a large and mostly-featureless structure that is dimly illuminated with the same blue light typically found in the fortress. Marlamin looks around for any unused clothing in an effort to disguise himself, while Elyas and Garmeth break off from the party to eavesdrop on patrols and obtain information through stealth. Elyas discovers that the Chaos Gear is being kept in a place called the "Quiet Halls," and the name "Winter Queen" comes up as well. Garmeth discovers nothing of use, and Marlamin finds nothing that can be used as a disguise. Meanwhile, Zil'dejin and Stahlstrauss make a mad dash for the door to the shadar-kai barracks, side-by-side. Almost simultaneously, Zil'dejin forces his body downwards to perform a sliding kick, while Stahlstrauss leaps into the newly-vacated space above Zil'dejin's head, turning around in the air to kick the reinforced door from up high. Their feet collide with the door at the same instant, and it explodes into a hellish rain of splinters, both wood and metal. When they pick themselves up, they discover the interior is mostly vacated, save for one surprised-looking shadar-kai who looks to have been behind the door when they kicked it. He is covered with splinters from head to toe, and completely dead.<br />
<br />
Inside the barracks, the party, without Marlamin, quickly gathers with plans to move before the inevitable investigation on the demolished door comes around. Outside, Marlamin approaches a shadar-kai patrol, completely undisguised, and tells them that he is one of the Children of Winter, and is looking for the Quiet Halls. He emphasizes the unpleasant nature of the Touch of Corruption on his right arm, and the shadar-kai believe him, directing him to the far northern end of the fortress. Meanwhile, back in the barracks, Garmeth sneaks through some tunnels connecting it to other buildings in the fortress, avoiding patrols, and locates a small, nearly-unused tunnel that most would not have seen, and manages to slip in undetected. He discovers it leads to the Quiet Halls, and is able to sneak the others inside. They meet up with Marlamin between two gateways, one leading back out into the Fortress of Still Hearts and the other leading into the keep-like building that holds the Quiet Halls. The doors leading inside are locked, apparently to be opened from within on special permission, but Zil'dejin and Stahlstrauss charge the door, and break it open. Inside, they find shadar-kai and Children of Winter waiting to "greet" them...Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-47348432516453896522011-08-17T12:58:00.000-07:002011-08-30T11:51:08.388-07:00A Touch of Madness<i>Sar, Rhaan 24, 998 YK (Day 70).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
The Eclipse Collective arrives in the town of Delethorn, and disembarks from the Lyrandar ferry. The incident is not immediately uncovered, and the group believes it prudent to just get as far away from the ship as possible, for now. But there is at least one who was on the ship that witnessed the incident. A middle-aged human named Marlamin Tarmikos, who is found of dramatic introductions, greets the party as they step again onto the shores of Lake Galifar. He explains that he observed the battle with the Dreaming Dark on the Lyrandar ferry, and wonders if the party is headed to Greenheart.<br />
<br />
They are distrustful at first, with good reason. Aside from his dark, skull-decorated armor, Marlamin wears numerous holy symbols indicating his membership in the Blood of Vol, with whom the party has not had <a href="http://thtmtw.blogspot.com/2010/10/shadow-rift.html">very good relations</a> in the past. They mention this, and he takes the time to explain that his religion is not evil, and not all of its followers - who are called "Seekers" - are this way. Though the promise of self-empowerment and the attachment to necromancy draws some dangerous attention, many of the worshipers are content to lead normal lives. As a blackguard of the faith, Marlamin strongly believes in this notion. He details his reasons for coming to the Reaches, which involve reports of mysterious activity surrounding an isolated Blood of Vol monastery somewhere in the Towering Wood. He has come to investigate. The party sees no issue in travelling with him at least as far as Greenheart, for should he prove to be untrustworthy, they outnumber him greatly.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdXvUUJmVg-GijvLfL29eCIv9hOGtGU2xeRU5UaW_RC4suipvvhZEUnEjly_2RqR54bGaDFlviuAiPB50dJzm8JEtG57q7RQ3dzcaG3cpE2B85rVAlNZdLmiGEqchtSks_qJ6G3HrkImP7/s1600/marlamin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdXvUUJmVg-GijvLfL29eCIv9hOGtGU2xeRU5UaW_RC4suipvvhZEUnEjly_2RqR54bGaDFlviuAiPB50dJzm8JEtG57q7RQ3dzcaG3cpE2B85rVAlNZdLmiGEqchtSks_qJ6G3HrkImP7/s320/marlamin.jpg" width="260" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Marlamin. Tarmikos.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>After the meeting with Marlamin, they attempt to purchase some goods in the town before leaving for Greenheart, only to discover that commerce of any kind is forbidden here, in the interest of keeping good relations with the capital (where this is the druid's law). Tam'elanath trades some gloves for a pair of long knives previously owned by a fisherman here. Afterwards, they set out on the road northwest, to Greenheart, the capital of the Eldeen Reaches.<br />
<br />
<i>Mol, Rhaan 26, 998 YK (Day 72).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
The party encounters some travelers on the road who are heading in the opposite direction. They find the strangers to be untrustworthy and when asked about their destination, the Collective alienates the strangers, and tells them to mind their own business.<br />
<br />
<i>Zol, Rhaan 27, 998 YK (Day 73).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
Zil'dejin and Stahlstrauss have an animated discussion about their new-found dislike for the sun, and fire in general. They talk briefly about the only known means of lifting their curse, and dwell for a while on where they might come across a fire archon, or natural spirit of fire.<br />
<br />
<i>Zor, Sypheros 1, 998 YK (Day 75).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
As a new month dawns, the group comes across an isolated copse, where the trees are grown in a ritualistic manner. This clearly belongs to some group of druids, and the party takes a moment to mourn the loss of Eshunu.<br />
<br />
<i>Wir, Sypheros 2, 998 YK (Day 76).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
On the road, the Eclipse Collective runs into a group of "bandits," though they are little more than townsfolk playing criminal. The party runs them off and scares them without taking any casualties.<br />
<br />
<i>Sul, Sypheros 4, 998 YK (Day 78).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
Eight days after leaving Delethorn, the party finally arrives in Greenheart. It is, perhaps, not what was expected by some of the members. Rather than a sprawling city, Greenheart is little more than a glorified town, built around (and sometimes in) enormous trees in one of the more shallow ends of the Towering Wood. Garmeth immediately approaches the first person he sees, and asks about Malavarn, their intended contact here. The citizen refers to Malavarn as "the beast" and cites extremely rude and violent behaviour as the reason for this name. He tells the party that Malavarn and his enforcers have set up camp to the south, just on the edge of town.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip0Q4sY5Y4GkKJgezWbSTQ_3NMhesq-vWaA2BqneLVGI-lgz6OLnV7JP8MxwUCZW5ip38yM4jJK7cmLWBW8-fOL_C74pcS0g9UKoD47czNl1ubzeq8LkjEDoqIFhoKhe7ByHewyQs_bNKu/s1600/forest_village_by_edictiv-d32hi4o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip0Q4sY5Y4GkKJgezWbSTQ_3NMhesq-vWaA2BqneLVGI-lgz6OLnV7JP8MxwUCZW5ip38yM4jJK7cmLWBW8-fOL_C74pcS0g9UKoD47czNl1ubzeq8LkjEDoqIFhoKhe7ByHewyQs_bNKu/s400/forest_village_by_edictiv-d32hi4o.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Greenheart</td></tr>
</tbody></table>The party has no other business of note within Greenheart; Marlamin already knows where the monastery is approximately located, and is aware that the Seekers there had no contact with Greenheart, so they go to Malavarn's camp. They find Malavarn within a large tent among many smaller ones, eating grapes and drinking heavily. He is an enormous human, extremely muscular and covered in scars. The discussion with him is extremely blunt, and he is very rude and aggressive towards every member of the party. He tells them that the man who knows where the Chaos Gear is was found among the druids. His name is Graum, and he is waiting just outside the camp for the party: he would not give any details to Malavarn, despite his interrogation. The party talks to Graum, and elderly halfling druid, and he explains the situation.<br />
<br />
The Chaos Gear was located by the Children of Winter, a militant group of extremist druids who believe in a forthcoming apocalypse, which they strive to hasten. Graum is unclear on the details of how or when they found it, but it is a danger in their hands, perhaps more dangerous than it would be in the hands of anyone else. He does not care what the party does with the Gear, just as long as they remove it from the Children of Winter. The party agrees, and talks to Malavarn of what they've learned. He tells them to leave at once, and in a week, he'll follow with his enforcers to "clean up" after the party. With this, he gives them some rations, and urges them to the southwest, deeper into the Towering Wood, towards the location Graum has marked as the "Twofold Glade" on their map.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCgpwdx-RcPklvg41b7GMV_lUgjGL12NXqWSfJ-oBIGhS5ZkU9H5R_-VjNY_L92ilVuXCMGVG94McYwQHe6KMnM7YA-XqZBBxLgHl5whdXyjtMOgjkHlhZUTpzteHB7DCUd1vUr5RpfBhs/s1600/Graum.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCgpwdx-RcPklvg41b7GMV_lUgjGL12NXqWSfJ-oBIGhS5ZkU9H5R_-VjNY_L92ilVuXCMGVG94McYwQHe6KMnM7YA-XqZBBxLgHl5whdXyjtMOgjkHlhZUTpzteHB7DCUd1vUr5RpfBhs/s320/Graum.jpg" width="251" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<i>Sar, Sypheros 10, 998 YK (Day 84).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
About halfway to their destination, around sunset, the party comes across an encampment among the vegetation. There are three tents here, and a fire that is burning itself out. Panicked voices are coming from within one of the tents. Tam'elanath sneaks in to eavesdrop, and overhears them talking about an injured person apparently in the tent, who is in danger of dying without medical attention.<br />
<br />
Garmeth insists he should help, and on entering the tent, discovers that the voices belong to people he knows: former monks of the Order of Labyrinths, like himself. There are two githzerai, one male and one female, and a human. The male githzerai is Druar, a former rival of Garmeth's, and the human is Cobb, who Garmeth knows as occasionally inappropriate though his heart is in the right place. The other, who is known as Shamai, is unknown to Garmeth as she hails from a different monastery in the Order. Druar is severely injured; there is an enormous wound on his abdomen.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Autumn sets on the Towering Wood</td></tr>
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The party sets about collaboratively trying to heal Druar. Though some of them, who are unpracticed in the field of first aid, actually set the cause further <i>back, </i>they are eventually able to stabilize and bandage Druar. The monks then tell Garmeth that they arrived here while travelling in the towns to the south, where they learned of the presence of some aberrations in this area of the Towering Wood, near the Echohand Cave: a known site of a Gatekeeper Seal. They came to investigate once they discovered a pair of Gatekeepers came to the cave and did not return, but the monks were overwhelmed by foulspawn (aberrations distantly descended from orcs) and Druar was nearly killed. They plead with Garmeth for the party's help, and he accepts.<br />
<br />
They then make the short detour to the Echohand Cave. A bonfire is burning out front, and there is a terrible smell in the air. When they get closer, the party discovers that the foulspawn have apparently wiped out a camp of adventurers and are throwing their flesh on the fire. Though they initially attempt a gradual, stealthy approach, they are eventually caught by the foulspawn, and a battle breaks out. Marlamin proves that he is a worthy addition to the group as they cut down the aberrations. Zil'dejin retrieves some magic armor from the corpse of the apparent leader of the fallen adventurers. They then move into the cave.<br />
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It is dim inside, and the entire cavern is lit by a diffuse, greenish glow. They reach a larger chamber after following the tunnel, where they are attacked by more foulspawn, who at first pin them down, but soon they are able to branch out. Garmeth is captured by a set of tentacles that are nearly invisible in the dim light and pulled towards the ceiling, which the party later learns is where the foulspawn sleep. Once the creatures are dead, they search the area and find some evidence that this was once a sort of living area for the Gatekeeper druids who protected the seal here. Just about everything of any use has been destroyed or tainted by the foulspawn, however. They move forward, and find a man-made door.<br />
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Behind it, they enter a large, cubic chamber, clearly not natural in origin. Howling winds sweep past them and a multicolored vortex whips around the room, surrounding a vaguely humanoid figure. As they get closer, they discover that it is not so humanoid after all; the upper body is a bastardization of a bipedal creature, but the lower body is nothing but a mass of tentacles. On one side of the chamber, an alcove with a small altar bearing what appears to be a gauntlet rests, and on the opposite end is an enormous, wheel-like stone covered with runes and engravings. It is shaking violently; this is the Gatekeeper seal.<br />
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The party is eventually swept into the vortex, where they are buffeted with raw magical energy. Seeing this, the abomination frees itself from the chains that bind it, and begins its attack. Marlamin is drawn to the dark power of the mysterious, almost organic-looking gauntlet on the altar, and puts it on his arm. He feels the sensation of a thousand, razor-sharp teeth biting into him, and then begins to hear some unusual suggestions in his mind.<br />
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The fight with the Xoriat abomination and the strange vortex surrounding it is long and difficult, but eventually the party is able to knock down the menhirs channeling the energy from the seal into the vortex, and takes down the abomination just as it begins gathering its strength for a powerful attack. Tam'elanath has fallen in battle, however, and Zan-kyri seems pensive about the whole situation, even in spite of the victory.Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-75242521103940568722011-08-03T22:49:00.000-07:002011-08-03T22:53:17.439-07:00A Fading Dream<i>Zor, Rhaan 22, 998 YK (Day 68).</i><br />
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</i><br />
After spending much of the day in Fairhaven awaiting the completion of Tam'elanath's first round of training, the party leaves on the lightning rail with passes paid for by House Phiarlan. They are headed for the city of Passage, the second-largest city in Aundair and one of the largest trade and transportation hubs in Khorvaire. The trip takes about eight hours, and very little happens on the journey. They arrive at the Passage lightning rail station, and emerge onto the platform. Stahlstrauss feels that he wants a second opinion regarding his curse, so he calls over one of his fellow disembarking passengers and asks him if there are any House Jorasco enclaves in the city. The traveler evidently does not live in Passage, and says that there probably is, but he doesn't know anything about it, so Stahlstrauss goes looking for it. He is accompanied by Elyas, Zan-kyri and - of course - Eshunu. Zil'dejin, Tam'elanath and Garmeth split off to deal with other business in the city.<br />
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The search for Jorasco does indeed turn up another building, larger than the one in Fairhaven, but the diagnosis here is the same: they must be granted clemency by a natural spirit of fire or a fire archon if they are to be freed from the curse. They leave again, disappointed. They then locate one of Passage's major marketplaces (there are about three in the city) and spend some time here purchasing goods. Zan-kyri buys some alchemical reagents for the purpose of brewing potions. They then go to the docks, with the intention of meeting up with the other three, but before they get there they ask an impoverished citizen what the "most exciting" thing to do in Passage is. The drifter seems enthused about some sort of black market, from which he buys <i>kvinta </i>herbs smuggled in from Talenta. He cannot indicate to them exactly where this black market is, but they eventually find it after a very unlikely encounter has Zan-kyri running into another genasi (a stormsoul, though any genasi are rare in Eberron) who is a smuggler by trade, and for the sake of racial empathy directs them to the Golden Dragon's Lament, a high-end drinking establishment. They are to use the password "the Royal Eyes are closed here."<br />
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They do this, and are directed to the basement of the pub, which is surprisingly large. Many people are set up here selling goods, some on tables, but most just on the ground or on cheap carpets. They trade some magical goods here, but discover that the <i>kvinta </i>merchant is on a gathering run and not currently present. Once their business has finished here, they head towards the docks, where they are stopped by an unusual-looking group. They are mostly human, though one dragonborn is among them, and they wear tattered robes, some of which are painted in the crude image of an eye. Their leader has dark circles under his eyes, and looks half-dead from exhaustion. He claims that they have seen the party in their dreams, that the Collective will "unravel Eberron," and they, the "Brothers of the Fevered Dream," must not allow the party to live.<br />
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With an insane and almost unnatural howl from the leader, they attack. A shardmind is with them, amber in color; this too is a rarity. He appears to have more control over his form than Eshunu, and is able to transfer his essence into others, damaging their minds from within. He is the most difficult challenge, and even when the other cultists have all been defeated by the four, the shardmind remains persistent. Eventually, though, he falls. The party collects what they have (some potions, gold, and a cape worn by the leader) before proceeding to the marina. They pay 90 gp per person to take a Lyrandar ferry across Lake Galifar, the largest lake in Khorvaire (much better than the alternative of walking for one whole month). On the way, Zan-kyri brews some more potions to help out his party.<br />
<br />
<i>Far, Rhaan 23, 998 YK (Day 69).</i><br />
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It is the second night on the Lyrandar elemental ship. The party sleeps below deck while, as usual, Eshunu and Stahlstrauss keep watch. It is for the most part as uneventful as the first night on board, until there is a commotion on the upper deck. The constructs go to investigate. On the upper deck, there is a man wearing leather armor and a pin shaped in the form of an eye surrounded by a black wing. Next to him, an apparent mercenary, wearing unusual armor that looks to be made of stone. They stand above the bodies of the two Lyrandar escorts who were keeping watch at night. He speaks as he sees them approach.<br />
<blockquote>"There you are, <i>Kahanbalan</i>. For too long now we have sought you. It is time you returned to Riedra, errant one; your time in Khorvaire has ended. Come with me."</blockquote>Eshunu strains to recall the man's origin. He recognizes the symbol to some extent, and the heavy accent is familiar but distant. Clearly, this person is from Eshunu's past before his most recent memories begin. He questions the man, but gets little information.<br />
<blockquote>"Hear me, <i>Kahanbalan</i>. You do not have a say in this matter. Your will belongs, as it ever did, to the Inspired. You were created by them, for them, and you shall serve them until you cease to be. This is the fate of all <i>Kahanbalani</i>, and I, as an agent of the Dreaming Dark, shall bring you back to your creators."</blockquote>Eshunu refuses to go with the agent, and Stahlstrauss states that he will protect his comrade.<br />
<blockquote>"If you will not come willingly, then I shall shatter your body and bring back your <i>altadri </i>to them. It is all that they require."</blockquote>With this, he and the mercenary attack. Several travelers, apparently in something of a daze, emerge from below deck and join the fight as well, though they seem somewhat confused as to why they fight.<br />
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Meanwhile, Zan-kyri and Elyas "wake up" in what appears to be a stone prison cell. There are no windows, and the only door is metal and barred on one side of the cell. This is an unusual transition, given their previous location on board the ship, but they search their surroundings for a way out. After some time spent investigating the room without success, where Zan-kyri discovers that the room is magic in nature but can't determine why, Elyas realizes why the walls shimmer the way they do: they are not in Eberron. They are in Dal Quor, the Region of Dreams, and occupy a shared dream space. The prison is some sort of permanent fixture here, and is trapping their consciousness within, held together by some sort of external influence.<br />
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Back on the deck, Stahlstrauss and Eshunu fight against the odds. Things seem to go alright for the first part of combat, and they cut down the travelers (with some remorse, as they clearly don't have total control over their actions) and do some damage to the Dreaming Dark agent and his mercenary. However, another combatant enters after a time: another Lyrandar escort, who, like the Fevered Dream cult earlier, claims to have seen Stahlstrauss and Eshunu in prophetic visions signalling the end of the world. He attacks, feeling that he is serving some great just end in doing so.<br />
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In Dal Quor, Zan-kyri determines that while the prison is not mutable like most dream space due to its coherence from external force, it can be altered indirectly. Because they are dreaming, they have a significant degree of control over their existence with their minds, even though their bodies don't technically exist here. Elyas experimentally attempts to summon some kind of historical hero into being to free them from the cell, but cannot focus on one in particular to any useful degree. Zan-kyri tries to intimidate the door into opening by personifying it, but can't quite make the door into a living entity, though he comes close. Eventually, Elyas searches his mind for a record of some kind of spell that would be useful, and comes up with a very powerful invocation he had read about in an obscure text once, long ago. He uses this invocation to "summon" an ancient and nameless primordial from prehistory. Though neither the primordial or the spell are real, Elyas' will and perception of these things are enough to tear apart the door and provide them with a measure of freedom. They head up some stairs to try and escape the prison.<br />
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On the ship, things are taking a turn for the worse. Eshunu is brought down the the Dreaming Dark agent, and Stahlstrauss is quickly surrounded, now alone in the fight. He deals significant damage to his enemies, but as the mercenary is injured he rallies the others to attack Stahlstrauss in unison. This attack is enough to bring him to unconsciousness. Everything now hinges on the rest of the party, but the minds of the others are still stuck in Dal Quor.<br />
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Elyas and Zan-kyri find themselves in what appears to be a great hall of some kind, divided in the middle by a bottomless ravine. Zan-kyri uses his knowledge of arcane construction to summon into being a facsimile of an old, experimental Cannith magic catapult, and launches himself across the gap. Elyas approaches the situation by attempting to turn into a bird, but cannot seem to focus on any bird in particular and turns into a flightless abomination. He changes back to a deva, and Zan-kyri uses a similar approach to his earlier one to create an arcane ballista, and Elyas transforms himself into a bolt to be launched across the ravine. At the other side, they discover a massive set of barred doors. Elyas recounts the historical legends (many embellished, most likely) of Karrn the Conqueror, and summons him into being to break down the door. Outside, there is an appearance of distorted space. They leap into it, and wake up to join the fight up on deck.<br />
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Here, the Dreaming Dark agent has contacted somebody with a <i>sending stone </i>and has gathered Eshunu's remains. He, along with the mercenary and the Lyrandar escort, engage Elyas and Zan-kyri, the latter of which helps Stahlstrauss to his feet with an alchemical mixture. Together, the three defeat the mercenary and the escort, but the Dreaming Dark agent escapes on another, smaller boat headed in the opposite direction, carrying Eshunu's remains with him.<br />
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Distraught, they mourn the loss of Eshunu briefly and collect the material possessions of the fallen before dropping the bodies overboard.Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-24214984382119945742011-07-30T13:44:00.000-07:002011-07-30T13:44:02.206-07:00Flip a Coin<i>Wir, Rhaan 25, 998 YK (Day 67).</i><br />
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Tam'elanath arrives at last in Fairhaven, and the Eclipse Collective meets him near the eastern gates of the city. Zil'dejin and Elyas are not with them; the former is in the midst of a grief-fueled drinking binge, and the latter is studying with the priests of Aureon at the Temple of Wonder, taking advantage of the ritual training offered by special permission through the Arcane Congress. On arrival, Tam'elanath reports the ritual he saw taking place in the Starpeaks Observatory after the party left, and declares that he believes Lucan to be beyond saving by now. He begins walking with the party to the lightning rail, when their path is crossed by an unusual looking individual.<br />
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His skin is blue in color, and his hair is sharp and almost translucent, resembling ice. Light aqua lines run throughout his skin. None of the group recognize his race, but there is certainly something magical about his appearance. He introduces himself as Zan-kyri, an artificer who has been studying his craft in the sprawling Cannith West enclave just on the outskirts of the city. This branch of Cannith has a focus on unusual plants and druidic artifacts from the Eldeen Reaches, but like any branch, also has a strong emphasis on artifice. His encounter with the party is merely a stroke of luck; he has heard some local rumors about their recent exploits, and this combined with his fascination with warforged draws him towards the Collective. He says that he is heading for the Eldeen Reaches as well (possibly due to his recent studies with Cannith West), and asks to join them in their travels. He offers his services as an artificer in and out of combat as an incentive, and the party gladly accepts him.<br />
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After this discussion, a nearby elven street performer finishes a monologue, takes a collection, and then approaches the Collective. He tells them that he is Lenathis d'Phiarlan, and that his House has been watching Tam'elanath since his arrival in Lakeside. House Phiarlan regarded him as insignificant until recently, when his value became apparent, and not wanting to lose an outsider with the Mark of Shadow, extends an offer of membership with one condition: he must complete a trial. Tam'elanath quickly agrees, as he has wanted to be a member of a Dragonmarked House his entire life. The trial involves Imre Levalle, the dwarven Curator of Acquisitions for the Wayfinder Foundation in Fairhaven. The Wayfinder Foundation is a group that conducts expeditions for the retrieval of artifacts and relics and the slaying of monsters, and is well-known among adventurers. Phiarlan has a spy in Imre's ranks, but he is out of Aundair on an expedition, and House Thuranni (another Dragonmarked House of Shadow and Phiarlan's rival) is going to attempt an assassination on Levalle. Tam'elanath is asked to stop it. He is given twenty four hours, and the location where the assassin is believed to be: a taphouse called the Gray Cat in the Golden Chalice district.<br />
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The party goes there at once, but before they even get inside, they are approached by an elven woman dressed in leather armor with a clear Mark of Shadow on her chest. She is Eralia d'Thuranni, the one to whom the assassination contract currently belongs. House Thuranni also wants Tam'elanath in their ranks, if only because Phiarlan wants him as well. She offers him membership if he takes care of the assassination instead. Feeling cornered, he agrees to this as well, and Eralia tells him to break into the Wayfinder Foundation headquarters at night and kill Imre in his office, where he will be unprotected. Tam'elanath discusses this with his party. Stahlstrauss strongly disagrees with the notion of murder, but for now, Tam'elanath considers it justifiable based on his own moral code. All but Stahlstrauss agree to go along with it. He leaves briefly to visit the House Jorasco hospice in the city in hopes of removing his curse, but the healers there tell him they cannot remove it. The only way to remove the curse is to be granted clemency by a fire archon, or another natural spirit of fire. He leaves dejectedly, and rejoins with the others.<br />
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The group goes to the Wayfinder Foundation headquarters a few hours later. It is now night. Stahlstrauss remains outside while the other four approach. The building is two stories, with windows on the second floor but not the first. Zan-kyri attempts to scale the walls, but falls and injures himself. Eshunu scatters as scarabs to look for a safe route in, but finds no alternative to the front door, which Garmeth then picks open. Tam'elanath is more successful in finding a different way in, and locates a somewhat-hidden door at the back apparently intended for use by Wayfinder Foundation officials. By a stroke of luck, it is unlocked.<br />
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He and Eshunu enter the back door, while Garmeth is followed by Zan-kyri through the front door. Unsurprisingly, the front door to the primary museum area where the Foundation's most precious artifacts are displayed is very well guarded by a large group of mercenary protectors who quickly advance on Garmeth and Zan-kyri. Eshunu, meanwhile, is nearly caught at the back entrance, and is forced to sneak outside to avoid being caught. Tam'elanath successfully sneaks into the building, and locates Imre's office.<br />
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Garmeth and Zan-kyri try to run from the building. Garmeth gets away, returning to Eshunu and Stahlstrauss outside, but Zan-kyri is captured by the guards who bind him and drag him further into the building. Eshunu informs Garmeth of the back entrance, and he uses this to sneak inside while Stahlstrauss tries to kick the front door down. He fails, but the commotion draws most of the guards away from Zan-kyri, leaving only one behind to protect him. Garmeth attacks this solitary mercenary and beats him nearly to unconsciousness, and the guard runs away. At this point Garmeth frees Zan-kyri and they leave the complex.<br />
<br />
Imre is not in his office, but Tam'elanath sets a trap for him using poisoned arrow heads rigged on his chair. He also discovers a notebook of some kind, but it is written in dwarven. He searches for a dwarven guard that is separate from the main group, and finds one smoking a cigarette on a balcony. Tam'elanath sneaks up to him and springs at him with his greatbow strung and an arrow nocked, and threatens the dwarf's life if he does not translate. The dwarf decides quickly he is not paid enough for this, and translates the last entry in the notebook as asked by Tam'elanath. It mentions an abandoned manor and a crown that is "finally going to be worn." Further back, there is also a map to the manor.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjznvm7pE6TGFWRL1xDa0Ez7jU8yA_0HZnN_H17EDPNc-qm_-8iFg008RFCAYvTVnzXvDtINkCO34me0lQV05CqeEXvug-cHdoYxofGvldIcpIiUXxEcThWU1mIWXBjHQjWQrgKoN0efSO3/s1600/Imre.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjznvm7pE6TGFWRL1xDa0Ez7jU8yA_0HZnN_H17EDPNc-qm_-8iFg008RFCAYvTVnzXvDtINkCO34me0lQV05CqeEXvug-cHdoYxofGvldIcpIiUXxEcThWU1mIWXBjHQjWQrgKoN0efSO3/s400/Imre.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Imre Levalle</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<br />
Tam'elanath rejoins the others and they follow the map to the manor house, which is indeed abandoned and mostly boarded up. There is a cellar door on which the boards have been removed. Stahlstrauss decides to try and break it with a flying shoulder slam (?), and while he breaks the frail wooden doors the unusual maneuver sends him crashing down the stairs. Imre is at the bottom, holding a stone crown, and startled, he puts it on his head, pauses for just a second, and flees through a hole in the wall.<br />
<br />
Stahlstrauss pursues, and the rest of the party is behind him. They find themselves in an abandoned sewer tunnel with a great door at the far end, guarded by a group of troglodytes screeching in draconic. They spring a trap of pendulum-like blades that attack Stahlstrauss and Zan-kyri, but fortunately do not cut anybody else for the remainder of the battle. The troglodytes are quickly dispatched, and realizing that Imre may be fleeing, they do not rest and push through the doors at the end. These doors are made of stone, and though the engravings on them have been eroded by time, they are identified by the party as Dhakaani (the ancient goblin empire) in origin, apparently depicting a war against aberrations and later some kind of alliance with them.<br />
<br />
Inside, they find themselves in a ruin of a very large and old temple, with two stone altars and great pillars. Imre stands wearing the crown, and behind him, a purple dragon. Imre says that this dragon, named Vthrol, is his "new possession" because of the crown. He tells the party to leave at once, or they will be killed. The party stays, so Imre and Vthrol attack.<br />
<br />
The fight is among the most challenging of the Eclipse Collective's career to this point due to the power of the purple dragon to cloud the minds of the party. Garmeth is quickly struck down by Imre, who then advances on Eshunu. Stahlstrauss is immediately dominated by Vthrol's gaze, and begins attacking his allies. Everyone else is intermittently mesmerized, save for Tam'elanath who unleashes a series of powerful attacks before being cut down by the dragon. In a very short amount of time, only Zan-kyri and the hypnotized Stahlstrauss still stand. Garmeth and Eshunu have the life pass from their bodies again; Garmeth stops breathing, and Eshunu shatters. Tam'elanath is rejuvenated, but only to be manipulated into attacking his allies at range. The door is sealed in one direction by magic connected to the crown, preventing Zan-kyri's escape. Things look dire.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggdpDmqGtsPZnHcK1zEBFSz9QdKPMJHqYjsg_iRH8lBAnkUid2GWcvxoagPZYdeWtNRhg8hIP_7zjS4ewTno3L1L37hKAntx5fUtCdc5mWlS9j_nEFqLT6B0gzYBlsxbdjJLP_btU-LoWA/s1600/Purple_dragon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggdpDmqGtsPZnHcK1zEBFSz9QdKPMJHqYjsg_iRH8lBAnkUid2GWcvxoagPZYdeWtNRhg8hIP_7zjS4ewTno3L1L37hKAntx5fUtCdc5mWlS9j_nEFqLT6B0gzYBlsxbdjJLP_btU-LoWA/s320/Purple_dragon.jpg" width="246" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Just when it seems there is no hope, the doors open once again as Zil'dejin charges through, only mildly inebriated. He does not know what is going on, but Imre's gloating and Zan-kyri's urging indicates to him that the crown the dwarf wears is the threat. Zil'dejin grabs the Wayfinder trustee and forces the crown off his head, then quickly decides to put it on himself. The true nature of the crown is then revealed: it does not control Vthrol, but rather affords the <i>dragon</i> control of the wearer. Seeing this, Zan-kyri quickly removes the crown from Zil'dejin and casts it aside. They then attack the dragon.<br />
<br />
The fight is difficult, and even as Stahlstrauss breaks out of his trance it seems they might still fail. Vthrol, slightly wounded, offers the party a chance at leaving intact. He will break the domination on everyone and allow them to leave in exchange for his own retreat, and Garmeth's body, which he wants for an "associate who would be very interested in an Order of Labyrinths monk." After much deliberation on the matter, the party decides they will not surrender Garmeth.<br />
<br />
Vthrol flees anyway, mesmerizing anybody in his path to prevent them from attacking him on his way, and disappears into some dark chamber behind a tapestry in the temple. He leaves Garmeth's body behind. Tam'elanath explains why he has come to Imre, but states he has decided to go with House Phiarlan and gives him some simple instructions to avoid the assassination in the near future. Imre is grateful for the party's help, and rewards Tam'elanath with a set of magic dice he found in the manor.<br />
<br />
They then part ways, and Tam'elanath meets with Lenathis d'Phiarlan once again. He tells the story of what has happened, and Lenathis asks if he will stay one day to learn some elementary aspects of espionage in House Phiarlan in exchange for a free trip on the lightning rail for the whole group to Passage, their next destination on the journey to Greenheart. Tam'elanath accepts.Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-76671053573409990952011-07-20T15:45:00.000-07:002011-07-26T15:46:00.954-07:00Stargazing II: The Death of Lucan<i>Zol, Rhaan 10, 998 YK (Day 52).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
Tam'elanath and Lucan return to the party after scouting the outside of the observatory. Eshunu is posted to keep watch at the entrance in case any more of the orcs' warband tries to enter, and the rest of the party continues onwards. Stahlstrauss kicks down a door, expecting the room to be full of hostile orcs, but instead it is a storage room. In addition to a water supply and some crates, there is another set of brass double doors identical to the ones they encountered in the barracks. These, too, are barred and locked, and disturbing it prompts the same muffled voice as before.<br />
<br />
Eventually, Garmeth sees fit to pick the lock, and shortly thereafter the door is broken down by Zil'dejin and Stahlstrauss. Inside, they first find a cowering old man. After inadvertently intimidating him for a while, the Eclipse Collective is eventually able to clarify the situation. The elderly man introduces himself as Lahrut, the caretaker of the observatory and chief researcher. He has locked himself here, in the primary observation room with the observatory's telescope, for fear of the orcs outside.<br />
<br />
He then explains the situation. The Arcane Congress first reopened research here after a travelling wizard investigated the place and discovered that the stars that can be viewed from the Starpeaks are unlike those anywhere else in Eberron. After a research group was installed, they discovered some old notes indicating why this is: the observatory was built on a very old portal to Baator. The stars observable through the telescope, then, are a mix of both Eberron's and Baator's. It was this same portal that drove the last researchers out, when their investigations on the portal led to its rediscovery and accidental opening. The result was an invasion of devils, and while it was eventually beaten back the observatory was then closed.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieqGiuTsbYvYdFjrf8EQ1hj7IRia2plJbVsyCm8vZPSsC3efUqVpayWW3kg1mbdMr_BcUq5AKX5eoobQeUR5xTW7BQtgs-n7_ntziXePf3urjV8dIhNg4rHqDBuvud1jBLUC7AWAV2kC_B/s1600/observatory_room_by_justaman78-d39ix8d.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieqGiuTsbYvYdFjrf8EQ1hj7IRia2plJbVsyCm8vZPSsC3efUqVpayWW3kg1mbdMr_BcUq5AKX5eoobQeUR5xTW7BQtgs-n7_ntziXePf3urjV8dIhNg4rHqDBuvud1jBLUC7AWAV2kC_B/s320/observatory_room_by_justaman78-d39ix8d.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Some time ago, a band of orcs, trolls and ogres calling themselves the "Painchiefs" broke into the observatory, their leader apparently interested in the resurrected research on the portal being conducted by the Arcane Congress here. This oni, Sojin Karral, intends to reopen the portal to raise an army of devils for himself, believing himself to be a competent enough warlord to do so. He then mentions a dreadful discovery he has made in the meantime, and directs the party to the telescope to look at the sky.<br />
<br />
They go to look in the telescope, but as they do, Lahrut pulls a book that springs a makeshift dart trap. Most of the party is able to dodge out of the way, and the poisoned darts do not do much to those they hit, but they slow the group down. Lahrut assumes a gaseous form and drifts between some bookshelves.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRSBHfbgL1JvulHOOmjVkd4CDUJw_Hr5MtDxQ1QllaWj0sBgY0jLa8RvsDN6bVSuZotsnIHdTaPAWPn-45_CflqVXei5zqg4eNSSkC4WIZSPjQikkH4AyyvXulWBmhWW2uKcVupx_ODBaG/s1600/9b41854980a0cc568a322a779ca560c4-d3brafk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRSBHfbgL1JvulHOOmjVkd4CDUJw_Hr5MtDxQ1QllaWj0sBgY0jLa8RvsDN6bVSuZotsnIHdTaPAWPn-45_CflqVXei5zqg4eNSSkC4WIZSPjQikkH4AyyvXulWBmhWW2uKcVupx_ODBaG/s320/9b41854980a0cc568a322a779ca560c4-d3brafk.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Stahlstrauss and Zil'dejin investigate the bookshelves, and pull them apart to reveal a hidden, vaulted door. Garmeth picks open the mechanism on the door, and they wheel it open and head inside. Here, they discover a room built in three tiers, with sinister statues on either side, trenches in the floor, and a large, black iron door at the far end. The oni, Sojin Karral (who Tam'elanath identifies as a night haunter, which have the power to disguise themselves as elderly humanoids) is guarded by a troll and two orcs. The ritual has evidently just been finished, and the door at the end is opening.<br />
<br />
Sojin and his guardians prove little danger to the party, even as the portal opens further, causing more to change within the room with each increment. The trenches fill with lava, the statues emit fire, and the portal starts emitting fireballs at random. When all of the Painchiefs have been eliminated, Elyas sets about closing the portal. It is a three step counter-ritual, and once he has completed two steps, Stahlstrauss decides to look inside.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjujH05811-JGVcHLit0_66BdKK4qAZ6YeCtSv74Rkbo0e6Bm1lJTi-bT00yd_asYSlIsqCMbQViJnH8DjaGI8hE_JFJdHCcfH0nAEWQA6GgYvoiwbprJ9vCCNyQ_zyhuNZLuwF_tYjKNCf/s1600/NightHaunter.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjujH05811-JGVcHLit0_66BdKK4qAZ6YeCtSv74Rkbo0e6Bm1lJTi-bT00yd_asYSlIsqCMbQViJnH8DjaGI8hE_JFJdHCcfH0nAEWQA6GgYvoiwbprJ9vCCNyQ_zyhuNZLuwF_tYjKNCf/s320/NightHaunter.png" width="235" /></a></div><br />
<br />
He is immediately sucked in to a whirling storm of red ash, and falls for a long time. The party votes to keep the portal open, and even once they have all scrambled to safety away from the fire-spewing statues they must dodge the fireballs being emitted. When Stahlstrauss stops falling, he finds himself on a plane strewn with ash and fire. A city of some sort is visible in the distance. This is Avernus, the first layer of Baator, the Nine Hells. He realizes that unless the portal is fully open on the other side, he cannot travel back through. Turning around, he realizes that oddly-shaped but vaguely humanoid beings are quickly advancing towards him from all sides.<br />
<br />
Elyas, too, realizes this, and after consulting with the others, he forces it open. Stahlstrauss leaps through, but is soon followed by the devils. After a time, he reemerges into the portal room, but indicates to the rest of the group that he has been followed. This is shortly confirmed by a large shape entering through the portal after Stahlstrauss, which quickly reveals itself to be a powerful devil called a <i>malebranche, </i>better known as a war devil.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg22XGW8y20KvEpjME1UE2D9odIxtim0hSRE4v5_GTeYaX8WSW6D_plWt92tZOSgOnRnTyo05wfY1_b59gTycB1qEV1ABNM_TLSIw9FfWBuTlRNmU0qgTSllN4YU01c72w_JXHYreQuyOAt/s1600/alumni_malebranche_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg22XGW8y20KvEpjME1UE2D9odIxtim0hSRE4v5_GTeYaX8WSW6D_plWt92tZOSgOnRnTyo05wfY1_b59gTycB1qEV1ABNM_TLSIw9FfWBuTlRNmU0qgTSllN4YU01c72w_JXHYreQuyOAt/s320/alumni_malebranche_3.jpg" width="187" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Elyas forces the portal closed with the help of some of the others when the war devil is only half through, but he is not forced backwards, and is instead only injured. Tam'elanath and Garmeth run, with Garmeth preparing to lock the door after the rest of the party can get to safety. Zil'dejin, meanwhile, is trapped by the malebranche, and with one piercing trident attack from the devil Stahlstrauss is knocked unconscious. Lucan and Elyas are clear to run, and Elyas does so, but Lucan stays behind. He uses his powerful emotions to distort space and swap places with Zil'dejin, now trapped himself. Zil'dejin takes the opportunity to grab the unconscious Stahlstrauss and drag him to safety, and outside the room, is prepared to slam the vault door shut so Garmeth can lock it if Lucan cannot escape in time.<br />
<br />
Lucan sees how dire the situation is, and realizes he has little hope of surviving. In one last, desperate effort, he concentrates all of his power into one great cleave, which slows time in the vicinity of the malebranche. Seeing this and realizing Lucan has slowed him down too much to chase the rest of the party, he sets his sights on the half-elf and attacks him viciously with his trident, rending Lucan's midsection. He falls to the ground, lifeless.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidg1zL5lEK6Kg2VBRNPeK7qRhpLRn2tDBCXHVdWQ9h6j45YWTXuSm8LamsFoiJtxN3VsQYuuuEiYFoA3IXi_Bki-060ZU6nI5QDxOboRLjZTY9BGVPzQei8CUCRtQOlKTmEedUhntwU2yh/s1600/Lucan_full_glow.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidg1zL5lEK6Kg2VBRNPeK7qRhpLRn2tDBCXHVdWQ9h6j45YWTXuSm8LamsFoiJtxN3VsQYuuuEiYFoA3IXi_Bki-060ZU6nI5QDxOboRLjZTY9BGVPzQei8CUCRtQOlKTmEedUhntwU2yh/s320/Lucan_full_glow.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucan's last stand</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
At this point, Zil'dejin is forced to close the vault door, and Garmeth re-locks the mechanism and attempts to jam it. They then flee the observatory. Of the six remaining, all but Tam'elanath set off for Askelios to meet the caravan before it departs. Tam'elanath instead camps out in front of the observatory in a hidden location for a few days. He then goes back inside to discover the vaulted door now open, and the malebranche still within, conducting some sort of strange ritual with the bones of the oni, trolls, and orcs, with Lucan's corpse apparently being some sort of focus. Tam'elanath then immediately leaves to Fairhaven, realizing he can do nothing here.<br />
<br />
During this time, the party rejoins with Ephos and Roswyn, and informs them of the situation. They depart from the caravan to ride ahead and tell the Arcane Congress what has happened. The party reaches Fairhaven in seven days after leaving the Askelios (and ten days after leaving the Starpeaks Observatory), but must wait for Tam'elanath to arrive. Fortunately, due to his natural speed and ability to navigate the wilderness, the party has only to wait five days for him to enter Fairhaven.Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-50048247687289401432011-07-06T23:27:00.000-07:002011-07-26T13:01:45.525-07:00Compulsory Intrigue<i>Zol, Barrakas 24, 998 YK (Day 38).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfvSoQpBdIqdgXbSTlKXk4Cf-Lkh4q93CKjpcE-Ulx5Fx7mciXiHauwZi3PvSfFjF9Wt_d4qM-2Pmn_fhjl8oSjJ9if0BHVX1DJ3gVSNdQTgiXYw9qAdRQcVkkIxAmxA-ww9y-KZApM1wG/s1600/Harbor_by_Sedeptra.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfvSoQpBdIqdgXbSTlKXk4Cf-Lkh4q93CKjpcE-Ulx5Fx7mciXiHauwZi3PvSfFjF9Wt_d4qM-2Pmn_fhjl8oSjJ9if0BHVX1DJ3gVSNdQTgiXYw9qAdRQcVkkIxAmxA-ww9y-KZApM1wG/s320/Harbor_by_Sedeptra.jpg" width="271" /></a></div>After almost an entire day on the ferry, the party crosses the river to Thaliost, where they part ways with Equis in a quiet area of the riverfront. After some time spent discussing their next move, they are approached by a scrawny half elf who announces that he is looking for one Lucan Vrinsk d'Medani.<br />
<br />
Lucan confirms his identity, and the stranger introduces himself as Pethin, an agent of House Medani. There is an outpost within the city that has recently received a request from an archpriest of the Church of the Silver Flame (the predominant religious and governing entity in the nation of Thrane, of which Thaliost is part). The archpriest has asked specifically for a dragonmarked agent, and since the only ones native to the city are otherwise occupied, and Pethin himself does not possess a dragonmark, Medani uncovered Lucan's current location and waited for his arrival to extend the request to him. The contract concerns a series of assassinations that have been taking place in the city, primarily targeted at church officials. They seem to be related to Aundairian nationalism, as many in the city still feel that their city belongs to Aundair even after it was captured by Thrane in the Last War. The archpriest, fearing for his life, has commissioned House Medani to investigate. Lucan, realizing that Medani has not really given him an option, accepts, and Pethin gives him a list of locations in which previous assassinations took place. The party sets out to investigate the matter.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQD4DUzi20xDuHhuoZ6ET4EROQNzc4dRazILQsBG3v0YW_KlNOB2-uTyrWJSFxzfbY8l0gy-b7Gacel9zvhMf7wvhA4HYfAMR_QaMtg9ykGTyuASsv1hzJ4x38TpqG5eQKZNOO2ETQ319g/s1600/Pethin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQD4DUzi20xDuHhuoZ6ET4EROQNzc4dRazILQsBG3v0YW_KlNOB2-uTyrWJSFxzfbY8l0gy-b7Gacel9zvhMf7wvhA4HYfAMR_QaMtg9ykGTyuASsv1hzJ4x38TpqG5eQKZNOO2ETQ319g/s320/Pethin.jpg" width="226" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pethin d'Medani</td></tr>
</tbody></table>They divide up for their initial search. Zil'dejin and Lucan walk the streets of Thaliost, Zil'dejin looking for some kind of unifying mark that might identify the assassins and Lucan talking to people about the assassinations. Zil'dejin finds nothing but Lucan finds some leads pointing to the Blue Gardens, an old Aundairian noble district. Garmeth searches for somewhere important to the Aundairians in the city, but turns up nothing. Eshunu looks for suspicious-looking areas, and finds a few, but they don't seem to involve much regarding the assassinations except in the Blue Gardens. Stahlstrauss searches for information in a tavern, but turns up nothing, and Elyas confers with members of the clergy of the Silver Flame to glean some information from Thrane's perspective.<br />
<br />
<br />
The party then largely moves into the Blue Gardens. Zil'dejin looks for nobles acting unusually, and obtains some suspicions about a noblewoman named Setia ir'Tanast. Stahlstrauss and Eshunu set about looking for an area with a high degree of nationalism, which they find in a particular plaza in the district. Lucan looks to see if anybody is hiring in the Blue Gardens, but people are guarded due to the Mark of Detection on his face. Elyas and Garmeth stay outside of the district, with Elyas looking for signs of nationalism outside of the district (there is nothing significant) and Garmeth asking around more reputable areas of the city to find out who has the most money. He is then arrested by the Thrane knights after several complaints from the locals.<br />
<br />
After this, the rest of the group meets up to discuss. Zil'dejin and Stahlstrauss stake out Setia ir'Tanast's home, in an effort to spy upon her. Eshunu eavesdrops on the nationalist plaza in swarm shape, and Lucan investigates one of the crime scenes. All three of these leads point to one place: an old government building at the edge of the Blue Gardens, where something big is happening today. Elyas also tries talking to the Thrane knights, but they are of little help. Meanwhile, Garmeth manages to escape from his restraints and flees from the Thrane knights after accusing them of corruption and berating them. He manages to rejoin the rest of the Collective in the Blue Gardens.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-FqoDB90qV48xONvB6T8RcFjzYggXf8a5s1zEYj21AcPdySbOesJkikd5CDtZ77-mmul7AId-AoKd98MtZHTRN3a9jcgC41RUPC66S0VMoF_WKuK-YW13B5EYWD5QDe-abDOOUenFiese/s1600/Lady+Setia+ir%2527Tanast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-FqoDB90qV48xONvB6T8RcFjzYggXf8a5s1zEYj21AcPdySbOesJkikd5CDtZ77-mmul7AId-AoKd98MtZHTRN3a9jcgC41RUPC66S0VMoF_WKuK-YW13B5EYWD5QDe-abDOOUenFiese/s320/Lady+Setia+ir%2527Tanast.jpg" width="226" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lady Setia ir'Tanast</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
In the government building, which is mostly deserted, they discover a gathering on the rooftop of people, a bishop of the Silver Flame among them. A rope is tied around his neck. Though they move cautiously at first Lucan eventually drives an attack against them, and the bishop is pushed off the edge of the roof, but the rope is the wrong size - he is being strangled. A fight breaks out as they try to save the bishop. After cutting through a few of the assassins and a wizard among them, they are able to help the bishop up and bring the forces down to just Setia. At this point, the Thrane knights break in and Lucan is accused of spearheading the assassinations. He and Setia are taken into custody, and Garmeth with them after some of the same knights realize his identity.<br />
<br />
They are brought before Archbishop Solgar Dariznu, governor of the city who is widely abhorred and feared by the citizens of Thaliost. A public trial is held, and Lucan claims no affiliation with the assassins. The archbishop has him execute her to prove this, and he does so. Garmeth is tied to a stake to be burned alive for his charges. The Thrane knights then begin grabbing random citizens "believed" to be associated with the assassinations for Lucan to execute in the name of Thrane. This, he believes, is too much. He refuses, and Zil'dejin starts rallying the crowd against the Church of the Silver Flame. The crowd begins to get angry, and Lucan folds space using his powers to swap places with Garmeth, who is now standing on the platform used for these public trials. Zil'dejin fights his way to the dais and throws the archbishop into the crowd. He scrambles to free Lucan, believing him to be the most useful source of protection as the people start to overwhelm the Thrane knights. When freed, though, Lucan instantly cleaves Dariznu with his axe.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAHYubntBRSLznredIlrkbFWSzMZiUb5A_tvuV6B-xe9T8pGQForNGi5jtspDK6aFwfVzcmgYo4LRl7QWdjK67M1pn8UJfR87lPm_R3eYaaoi-4YjX1T-47-zGmxMWGG2P0rXJc5mPlx6J/s1600/Archbishop+Solgar+Dariznu.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAHYubntBRSLznredIlrkbFWSzMZiUb5A_tvuV6B-xe9T8pGQForNGi5jtspDK6aFwfVzcmgYo4LRl7QWdjK67M1pn8UJfR87lPm_R3eYaaoi-4YjX1T-47-zGmxMWGG2P0rXJc5mPlx6J/s320/Archbishop+Solgar+Dariznu.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><br />
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Pursued by the Thrane knights and caught in a sea of rioting people, the Collective attempts to escape to safety. Zil'dejin tries to "crowd surf" to safety, but fails utterly. Garmeth jumps off the platform and runs madly away from the crowd, and gets away along with Eshunu who does the same. Stahlstrauss uses his flaming hammer as a beacon and runs towards Lucan to get him out of the middle of the crowd, and Lucan in turn runs towards him. They are reunited, but Stahlstrauss is forced to put out the flame after his curse causes it to turn back against him. Meanwhile, Elyas is caught up in the crowd.<br />
<br />
Zil'dejin remains stuck in the crowd with Elyas, despite their efforts to escape. Garmeth and Eshunu are pursued by a detachment of Thrane knights elsewhere in the city, so Garmeth climbs up the wall of a nearby building to escape on the rooftops and Eshunu disperses into beetles and hides from them. Stahlstrauss and Lucan push through the crowd to get out of the main body of the riot.<br />
<br />
Finally, Zil'dejin pushes through the crowd aggressively, clearing a path for Elyas and himself. Garmeth moves nimbly about the rooftops, taunting the guards all the way, and eventually finds a sort of trap door to hide beneath. Eshunu looks for an area that can be reliably hid in, but finds nothing. Lucan looks for a good hiding spot while running with Stahlstrauss, and discovers the Medani outpost in the city. The party ducks in there.<br />
<br />
Pethin is willing to harbor them there until the end of the riot. As they wait, a group of Thrane knights (the one that was pursuing Garmeth and Eshunu) breaks into the building, and the Collective fights them alongside Pethin. After this is done, Pethin and a few other House Medani agents bar the door and buckle down to weather the first part of the riot. The agents also proceed to teach Lucan some rituals that will be useful for a member of the house.Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-45371840351654227582011-06-28T14:40:00.000-07:002011-07-26T13:01:04.236-07:00Fire and Steel<i>Sul, Barrakas 22, 998 YK (Day 36).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
After eliminating the last of Cabor's Chains, Cecil decides that for the time being, he has had enough adventuring - at least, adventuring with the Eclipse Collective. He parts ways with the group, presumably to go back to the city of Skairn. The rest of the group decides to investigate the only door in the slavers' hideout that they have not yet investigated, which leads to a ladder, heading upwards. Not surprisingly, they discover it heads to another pantry, belonging to the kitchen of the Hog's Tail inn. However, aside from the door that leads to the kitchen itself, they discover another, poorly-hidden secret door, which they open immediately. Inside, they find the holding room for the slaves of Cabor's Chains, mostly of the more commonly seen races. Humans, elves, and dwarves feature prominently, but one member of a race unrecognized by any member of the party is shackled here. His flesh is a light violet, and his eyes are entirely white, matching his hair and the unusual geometric markings on his body. He is first to be freed, and while Tam'elenath and Garmeth set about freeing the other slaves, they question this stranger.<br />
<br />
His name is Elyas, and he is scarce on the details he reveals to the party. He states that he is of the deva race, and that he acts on behalf of the god of knowledge, arcana and justice, Aureon. He has most recently come from Sarlona, in the major Riedran port city of Dar Ulatesh. There, he fought against Riedran oppression by the dictatorial Inspired, particularly the suppression of knowledge for the masses, until he learned of an artifact of great import to him and his faith located somewhere in Khorvaire. This artifact is a tome containing "lost and ancient knowledge," but Elyas is not clear on what that knowledge is. During his travels, he ended up staying in the Hog's Tail, and was captured in the night by Cabor's Chains. The party believes his goals align with theirs, and they ask him to accompany them, especially since Cecil has now left, to which Elyas agrees.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgR8cTWA3xWVq449EZZ4r_D9btkqdXuZxG-E9PpSw_i-jPNTADJjGGrkQoJvLcLgeZ2M16GGaGztotLuQ0yIRQy1h7UiSv0iNerYhQgbSxaWwi7xjYwhpzwBVIoVh0nytlhZ9HuQymU5R4/s1600/Aureon+symbol.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgR8cTWA3xWVq449EZZ4r_D9btkqdXuZxG-E9PpSw_i-jPNTADJjGGrkQoJvLcLgeZ2M16GGaGztotLuQ0yIRQy1h7UiSv0iNerYhQgbSxaWwi7xjYwhpzwBVIoVh0nytlhZ9HuQymU5R4/s320/Aureon+symbol.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Symbol of Aureon</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
After spending some time in the Vedykar Exchange, in which Tam'elanath orders a tapestry from a shifty merchant, Garmeth finally buys some thieving tools, and Stahlstrauss pays for a magic battle standard for the party, they head to the lightning rail station to depart for Rekkenmark.<br />
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<br />
<i>Mol, Barrakas 23, 998 YK (Day 37).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
The journey by lightning rail to Rekkenmark takes about seventeen hours, and the party sleeps on the train. By the time they arrive, it is mid-afternoon. Because the White Arch Bridge has been destroyed for seventy years, the lightning rail does not cross from Rekkenmark to the city of Thaliost across Scion's River, and the party must gain passage by boat. As they leave the lightning rail station, the group is stopped by a figure wearing rich scarlet robes, asking who they are. When they confirm their identity as the Eclipse Collective, he reveals that he is Equis, a pro-warforged revolutionary from the Last War, possibly the most famous revolutionary of all. Stahlstrauss recognizes him, as does Lucan, who wrestles with the desire to turn Equis in for his war crimes, as is his role in House Medani (but he decides not to at the behest of his companions). Equis reports warforged abductions in Rekkenmark, which he believes are related to a tiefling activist group in the city called the Brotherhood of Fire, which have gone from civil demonstrations to criminal activity in recent times. He has a contact from the Brotherhood, an extant tiefling named Purpose, and the party agrees to meet him and question him for Equis. Stahlstrauss is particularly keen on this due to his past experiences with tieflings capturing warforged.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsM6xho7POwLpJ_Lg6SWncX7HjxCYJDxoUuJLCDYsgbGLDUpEsSoeOxIc_G5RcPvSInY1OoKJ6_6DWrPpb4z_2StVoyjaMFK7DSZEXIyc0N9crbhOFXw0T7Faj6LNcGK1jupcGek0AEpVW/s1600/Equis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsM6xho7POwLpJ_Lg6SWncX7HjxCYJDxoUuJLCDYsgbGLDUpEsSoeOxIc_G5RcPvSInY1OoKJ6_6DWrPpb4z_2StVoyjaMFK7DSZEXIyc0N9crbhOFXw0T7Faj6LNcGK1jupcGek0AEpVW/s400/Equis.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Equis, during the Last War</td></tr>
</tbody></table>They find Purpose in a run-down taphouse with his half-orc bodyguard Lort, but Purpose is hesitant to talk. Zil'dejin slams his hands on the table over and over, yelling at him mercilessly. Purpose is unnerved, as at the same time Stahlstrauss uses his telepathic abilities (provided by a component installed by Mr. Artauche) to implant threatening messages into Purpose's head. Tam'elanath buys him a pint of beer, but Purpose does not drink it, and Garmeth tries to talk to him calmly, but Purpose expresses outward hatred for him, apparently racially-based. Lucan learns that he is reluctant to speak for fear that the Brotherhood will kill him, and Elyas recounts some important historical knowledge about the Brotherhood of Fire and the Council of Azuun, which is mentioned once by Purpose during Lucan's questioning.<br />
<br />
Zil'dejin has now gotten belligerent, and has unsheathed his glaive. Lucan takes the opportunity to play "good cop" and explains calmly that he cannot be responsible for what Zil'dejin does if Purpose does not tell them what the group wants to know. Tam'elanath tries to earn both Purpose's and Lort's trust by buying them both alcohol of their choice, but ends up spilling it all over them. Garmeth receives more hateful remarks from Purpose, and Stahlstrauss is now more vocal than mental with his threats. Elyas learns that Purpose has cut his ties with the Brotherhood of Fire because of their recent evil activities.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt0LlDIRVLr6sDB2a1naT5cg8tBSRUWwV-rNgXf3DIfKSB918tRHUxR14cEE_GrKouMUCN6wrCKIH3Tyd4_98LHKVdumhAUVUTGpM-ngK8V63cLz2TIZ4utUpiBD_HS2ZU1TbC0b7TjuoW/s1600/Azuun+Symbol.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt0LlDIRVLr6sDB2a1naT5cg8tBSRUWwV-rNgXf3DIfKSB918tRHUxR14cEE_GrKouMUCN6wrCKIH3Tyd4_98LHKVdumhAUVUTGpM-ngK8V63cLz2TIZ4utUpiBD_HS2ZU1TbC0b7TjuoW/s200/Azuun+Symbol.jpg" width="190" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Symbol of the Council of Azuun</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Purpose finally caves, and the party learns that recently a tiefling (though Purpose does not identify him as such, calling him "something more") named Marathis, formerly of the Council of Azuun, has taken over the former activist group and is abducting warforged, resetting them to a "blank slate" state with a ritual he gained from the Council to use as a kind of personal army. Purpose gives the party the location of their hideout in an abandoned warehouse on the waterfront, and the party goes there at once.<br />
<br />
Here, they act as though they have captured and are selling Stahlstrauss, and the tieflings let them in, bypassing the apparently well-guarded ground level (patrolled by mindless warforged) and taking them to what was once an office, but now appears to be something like a shrine. There they see Marathis, and a woman chained to an altar. After a tense bartering session that ultimately backfires, the party attacks Marathis and his cultists, who are supported by a warforged soldier. Zil'dejin is cut down almost immediately by an extremely powerful blow from Marathis, and around this time the woman on the altar reveals that she is actually free, and a disguised succubus named Adara, who has been working closely with Marathis. She uses her unnatural powers of charm to control the battlefield while the others attack.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdQZPdIJFORwaK4VJ8KJ4kXXLgmxDQuuzlA89zKNtDKMUTu5Hmf9lH2CKxBeowDdqvVG7kr9CQugcQQ6XOfbwcIdX11xA3eSd6AKlAK0_4zvt_GIqBqq66mOwH6dzQQgyDmauYZiatnlua/s1600/Succubus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdQZPdIJFORwaK4VJ8KJ4kXXLgmxDQuuzlA89zKNtDKMUTu5Hmf9lH2CKxBeowDdqvVG7kr9CQugcQQ6XOfbwcIdX11xA3eSd6AKlAK0_4zvt_GIqBqq66mOwH6dzQQgyDmauYZiatnlua/s320/Succubus.jpg" width="163" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Eventually, Stahlstrauss brings Marathis down with ferocity, cursing him and the entire Council - but not before he kills the newcomer Elyas. The warforged soldier is soon killed as well, and Adara, now alone with two wounded, nearly-mindless cultists, barters for her life. Stahlstrauss agrees to spare her if she reverses the ritual, which she begins immediately. The cultists are now isolated, and before long are killed by the party.<br />
<br />
The party takes some time to ensure that Adara is performing the ritual, and when she completes it, the warforged in the ground floor of the warehouse (many of whom are stored in crates) offer extensive gratitude and thanks to the Eclipse Collective, assuring them that they will not forget the favour. Stahlstrauss takes Marathis' magic armor. Elyas is then raised using a scroll he was carrying, and Zil'dejin is brought to a temple and revived in exchange for some expensive enamel icons they discovered in Marathis' chamber. The party then rests the night at an inn.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxmQSKFCtqjrOqRroXnnNSRxuj8kT0Y9RY7ao9a2WooRRmuPB2psE5z4fr4avaaddUmv8JYfCRbe-zDoo4x3jebRF22G3ys25_1QTHSw1uiopfoGAS0aTu2O5Vqtcgbx-gPzssmjx1s1gY/s1600/Marathis.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxmQSKFCtqjrOqRroXnnNSRxuj8kT0Y9RY7ao9a2WooRRmuPB2psE5z4fr4avaaddUmv8JYfCRbe-zDoo4x3jebRF22G3ys25_1QTHSw1uiopfoGAS0aTu2O5Vqtcgbx-gPzssmjx1s1gY/s320/Marathis.png" width="256" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<i>Zol, Barrakas 24, 998 YK (Day 38).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
The party meets with Equis the next day, and he too is extremely grateful, and is pleased to see that Stahlstrauss still supports "the cause." Instead of money, Stahlstrauss chooses to take information on the remaining members of the Council of Azuun from Equis, who has discovered that only the two most powerful members are still alive: the general, <a href="http://thtmtw.blogspot.com/2011/05/thunderspire-ix-maldrick-scarmaker-and.html">Telleroth Vaen</a>, and the magician, Abraxas Deimos.<br />
<br />
Equis also offers the party free passage across Scion's River, since a ferryman is his current profession after the Last War. They agree, and he brings them down to the waterfront onto his skiff. They look at the ruins of the White Arch Bridge as they pass, and Stahlstrauss reminisces about his time here in the Last War.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM6NTuRFnwf_pXMpBjtoIm2KlmsOxcEN16S9TK4xALUdpjE5a-s5xnYoZVeJcaJAMYUfBjrf3F8KrGKNccKW2SvTtITNy_LGzt4E-THFBI_eQZk6hSooduwKsnMYl4BpwAVqScmCmPAm5-/s1600/White+Arch+Bridge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM6NTuRFnwf_pXMpBjtoIm2KlmsOxcEN16S9TK4xALUdpjE5a-s5xnYoZVeJcaJAMYUfBjrf3F8KrGKNccKW2SvTtITNy_LGzt4E-THFBI_eQZk6hSooduwKsnMYl4BpwAVqScmCmPAm5-/s320/White+Arch+Bridge.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-43682460136796719402011-06-17T22:57:00.000-07:002011-07-03T23:01:44.442-07:00Breaking Links<i>Sul, Barrakas 22, 998 YK (Day 36).</i><br />
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As they are on their way to the lightning rail to head west to the city of Rekkenmark (their first stop), the Eclipse Collective is interrupted by a group of thugs who claim that the party has "caused many problems" for them by "taking out the Bloodreavers and the duergar" in the Thunderspire Labyrinth. They attack, and Zil'dejin recognizes them quickly by the patches and the armbands they wear: they are <a href="http://thtmtw.blogspot.com/p/flashbacks.html">Cabor's</a> <a href="http://thtmtw.blogspot.com/2011/05/thunderspire-ix-maldrick-scarmaker-and.html">Chains</a>. Zil'dejin is driven into a battle-mad rage, and returns their charge in equal measure. The party has little difficulty with them, who despite their numbers are quite weak and fall quickly. Afterwards, they discover a note on one of the thugs with rough descriptions of the party, and Zil'dejin insists that they investigate and discover where Cabor's Chains are hiding in the city and eliminate the group once and for all.<br />
<br />
Zil'dejin puts on one of the arm bands worn by the slavers and wanders around less reputable areas of Vedykar, but because of his race and the almost entirely human nature of the Chains, he earns no information. Garmeth moves about the city at random looking for the armbands and patches, but also turns up empty handed. Lucan takes the note and shows it around the Vedykar Exchange to see if anybody recognizes it, and finds a beggar who does, though Lucan is forced to pay him to earn the info. Stahlstrauss, Eshunu, and Tam'elanath stay behind to track down the thugs to where they came from, and they learn that the slavers came out of the sewers. Cecil tries to use his knowledge of the city's layout to discern where they might be hiding, but is unsucessful.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUGiNq8GuzcglwXFxq39Ppdrs6An4h0F1XchBhyk-8FQW2c3QtiRB8sv2c-61uz7UpnIJT6ILxDTFIQUm5OPVIkPFo4llMzAFdBjEVywFTbCaYDtbEct02Wkp4wLvN4CY9UrcwdGUNl7Zd/s1600/Cabor+Symbol.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUGiNq8GuzcglwXFxq39Ppdrs6An4h0F1XchBhyk-8FQW2c3QtiRB8sv2c-61uz7UpnIJT6ILxDTFIQUm5OPVIkPFo4llMzAFdBjEVywFTbCaYDtbEct02Wkp4wLvN4CY9UrcwdGUNl7Zd/s200/Cabor+Symbol.png" width="200" /></a></div><br />
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When the party regroups, they decide to go into the sewers to search. Cecil remains on the surface and searches for an approximate central area for the sewers, and a ventilation shaft of some kind nearby. He winds up in the Vedykar Exchange. Garmeth also ends up on the surface after wandering about the sewers on his own, looking for the hideout arbitrarily. He meets with Cecil the Exchange. Tam'elanath uses his tracking skills and Lucan uses his knowledge of the street layout to create a mental map of the sewers, and they end up in a central hub. Zil'dejin and Stahlstrauss, who are moving together, end up there as well, but not before getting lost by Zil'dejin's navigation. Still, through the efforts of Stahlstrauss searching the walls they discover a rudimentary map of the sewers which gives more clues to the hideout of Cabor's Chains. Eshunu scatters insects to look for secret or small entrances, but comes up empty-handed (empty-mandibled?).<br />
<br />
At this point, the five still in the sewers realize that there is a large patrol after them, and hear them approach. This patrol has to return to the main group within a set time, or Cabor's Chains will flee the city, so the Collective must avoid them. Zil'dejin and Stahlstrauss go down a random tunnel with the intent of following any passersby, but they never come that way. Eshunu goes up to the surface to find Cecil and Garmeth, and informs them of the situation, as well as the rough direction of the slaver patrol. Lucan goes up to the surface, and comes back down behind the slavers to follow them, and successfully does so with Tam'elanath, who hid in the sewers to achieve the same end.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggRIB7F9X1ikafcSnamEMOCWQnn-etPnJ-4H13jA7q-uplsq9gdqoyAKGxdEEPilYQEyN15OekVOlzZV8TQraXukj9omY0NeScTxeL_1a38ksqEga4NrVC8A7rvk7rA6QCsLwbNzuNzB1W/s1600/dragonborn+raider.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggRIB7F9X1ikafcSnamEMOCWQnn-etPnJ-4H13jA7q-uplsq9gdqoyAKGxdEEPilYQEyN15OekVOlzZV8TQraXukj9omY0NeScTxeL_1a38ksqEga4NrVC8A7rvk7rA6QCsLwbNzuNzB1W/s320/dragonborn+raider.jpg" width="313" /></a></div><br />
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Zil'dejin and Stahlstrauss meet with Tam'elanath and Lucan, who have found the well-hidden sewer entrance to the hideout of Cabor's Chains. Meanwhile, Eshunu, Garmeth and Cecil discover that the underground hideout is likely connected to two obviously related inns (the Hog's Head and the Hog's Tail), and after unsuccessfully trying the Hog's Tail they gain some information in the Hog's Head - Cecil seduces the clerk while Garmeth and Eshunu sneak around to find the secret entrance, which they do. The three of them proceed down a ladder hidden in a pantry, while the other four break through a door in the sewers. They meet at about the same time at opposite ends of a room where they spy a grizzled, scarred man discussing slave pit fighting with one of the slavers, who has a dragonborn slave on a chain leash.<br />
<br />
Zil'dejin recognizes this man as Borahm the Scourge, the leader of the landship caravan he was a part of, and attacks immediately when he realizes this. Borahm taunts him, claiming he killed the man who took Cabor's life, and points to the glaive hanging on his wall, a weapon reputedly used by this killer. Cabor wields his spiked chain with great accuracy, but after a long battle, Zil'dejin takes his life. He takes Glanvar's magic glaive, which he recognizes as the genuine article. The party then sorts through some old slave contracts, which are written in unintelligible code, and take Cabor's magic bracers.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpztGvIwUBkssMVs3dyHX6Hi9mLd5WsVgKFCMC7jIrwAZ2wsu6127GBrP0I7xiHTVIQVOxmegUeS4zTNvZtdTNV3fI1FW6HUcm1wX0BmEmtxFM4mL9d9MDHq89Q59sbUYvQBUoIS0uI5zN/s1600/borahmthescourge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpztGvIwUBkssMVs3dyHX6Hi9mLd5WsVgKFCMC7jIrwAZ2wsu6127GBrP0I7xiHTVIQVOxmegUeS4zTNvZtdTNV3fI1FW6HUcm1wX0BmEmtxFM4mL9d9MDHq89Q59sbUYvQBUoIS0uI5zN/s320/borahmthescourge.jpg" width="229" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; text-align: center;">Borahm the Scourge</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-77221580407248280362011-06-17T19:27:00.000-07:002011-07-03T23:01:01.347-07:00And Now, a Word from Our Sponsor<i>Wir, Barrakas 18, 998 YK (Day 32).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
In the morning, the Eclipse Collective retrieves Cecil from the Temple of Hidden Light and, with Talbot, make their preparations to finally depart. After saying their goodbyes to those they befriended in the hall (specifically, Rendil Halfmoon and Terrlen Darkseeker), they head up the gradual slope of the Road of Lanterns, pausing only briefly to reminisce about their <a href="http://thtmtw.blogspot.com/2010/11/into-mountain.html">difficulty getting into the mountain</a>. Cecil explains that his party entered by careful manipulation of his "merchant connections." Finally, with the consent of the Enforcers who guard the Seven Pillared Hall - a welcome change - they exit through the Minotaur Gate, allowing their eyes to adjust to natural light for the first time in over a week, and at long last, they leave Thunderspire behind them.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0jzjZ-Pe0vUXYSPHav61ZjpfkVMqxovYQcqIMuU7Q7a2A5dnbRTKQKzsxZQLgEfO2pfu3Lrd0wXr7bjvbV-BNF9C-tYZEJ7hxh7bNoJH_KufeSinVbkpAgxirgjZY6c9A5h8hBdIz0fFU/s1600/MinotaurGate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0jzjZ-Pe0vUXYSPHav61ZjpfkVMqxovYQcqIMuU7Q7a2A5dnbRTKQKzsxZQLgEfO2pfu3Lrd0wXr7bjvbV-BNF9C-tYZEJ7hxh7bNoJH_KufeSinVbkpAgxirgjZY6c9A5h8hBdIz0fFU/s320/MinotaurGate.jpg" width="232" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I miss it already!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<i>Sul, Barrakas 22, 998 YK (Day 36).</i><br />
<br />
Without the horses loaned to them before by Mr. Artauche, the journey back to Vedykar takes four days on foot. Back in the city, the party heads to Wealth Street, home to Mr. Artauche. They deliver the Rod of Order to the wealthy aristocrat. Artauche is delighted, and offers the party their reward, which includes the money agreed upon at the contract signing, and a magic amulet, taken by Eshunu. After what basically amounts to small talk, Mr. Artauche announces that he has yet another job for them, if they are interested. The group is far less reluctant to take the offer this time, and though they still extract from him what information they can before agreeing, the prospect of even greater reward is appealing, and they sign up. Cecil is hesitant; he believes his business is concluded, and that he no longer has a place with the Eclipse Collective. They attempt to convince him otherwise, and while he is not quite satisfied with their efforts, decides to tentatively accompany them anyway.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrgYhJ2E1Enhy3Cy7RsuxKUtBVN-vfMhiHzyxydqozLSGsg64QX0eLE8yE3waQjJe57hUA-l0Bck3gqYxU9vaoewNRh3P26hC0w4edPkkMTze-5thK9m_PiNwWxUmsJoJATV0poZXqS7Bd/s1600/Artauche+Office.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="171" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrgYhJ2E1Enhy3Cy7RsuxKUtBVN-vfMhiHzyxydqozLSGsg64QX0eLE8yE3waQjJe57hUA-l0Bck3gqYxU9vaoewNRh3P26hC0w4edPkkMTze-5thK9m_PiNwWxUmsJoJATV0poZXqS7Bd/s320/Artauche+Office.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Artauche explains that during the Eclipse Collective's absence he has done some further research on the Rod of Order and discovered it has two counterparts: items that go together with the Rod to form a complete artifact. He has tracked down the approximate location of one of these two counterparts, an item appropriately named the "Chaos Gear." Mr. Artauche believes that it is currently in the Eldeen Reaches, on the far western side of Khorvaire. The Collective is to go to Greenheart, the capital of the Reaches, and meet with the other of Artauche's two top agents, a man named Malevarn. He then sends them on their way. Garmeth has an odd conflict with Artauche's butler as they are leaving.<br />
<br />
The party is instructed to take the lightning rail west to the city of Rekkenmark, then board a ferry of some kind to cross Scion's River to the city of Thaliost, in Thrane. There, they must board the lightning rail again, this time for the city of passage, where they must gain take a boat to the town of Delethorn, and finally follow the road up to Greenheart. Immediately, they head towards the lightning rail stop next to the Vedykar Exchange, with passes provided to them by Mr. Artauche, who notes that beyond this he will fund no more travel expenses.Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-77945214844349217162011-06-10T19:25:00.000-07:002011-07-01T19:26:42.694-07:00Thunderspire XI: The Fall of Paldemar<i>Zol, Barrakas 17, 998 YK (Day 31).</i><br />
<br />
Tam'elanath and Eshunu separate from the party to ensure that the first floor and the area at the base of the tower are cleared out of potential threats, and the rest of the Eclipse Collective takes a short rest on the first floor. During this rest, they are rejoined by Zil'dejin, who explains that he tracked Cabor's Chains to Vedykar, but lost their trail. After that, he realized it was the farthest he'd ventured alone in a haze of rage since joining with the Collective, and decided it would be safest to return to the group.<br />
<br />
With this, the group heads up to the second floor, where they hear the same thunderous footsteps noted by Stahlstrauss when he accidentally arrived on this floor alone. Tam'elanath and Eshunu are still on a scouting run, but the remaining five decide to cautiously proceed without them. Before long, they discover the source of the footsteps: a giant bronze statue of a minotaur, armed with an axe and apparently controlled by some external source. This construct, called a Bronze Warder, causes much trouble for the party, and the appearance of more norkers and dolgaunts appear to create a very difficult situation for the group. Fortunately, though, Eshunu and Tam'elanath return before the situation becomes too dire, and the additional manpower is enough for the Collective to overcome the Bronze Warder and Paldemar's servants. Zil'dejin is able to defeat the Bronze Warder on this level, using the magic of his <i>thundering halberd </i>to shatter it with waves of sound from within once he has broken the surface with the blade. By searching the area, they find a glass tank apparently containing fragments of minotaur skeleton, which is identified by Cecil and Eshunu to be magical in nature, though its exact purpose is difficult to discern. To air on the side of caution, the party destroys the tank, and investigates the area further. They find a small library, containing books with apparently blank pages, and a few non-disguised scrolls, which they take with them. They then use the teleportation circle on this floor to ascend to the third and final floor of the Tower of Mystery.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9nOXT71zi0vd9atBqFS2VU21ZoldASe_f_r-ZJE_p4ALAweuxzCsI3xqPUxms6PmChXilL1483TzWquyZqK6MfYzED6nLUAEwnSpUabCX_SZ9ybk84TJjJ_2Sb-zY93OEN223oZdInRgN/s1600/Bronze+Warder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9nOXT71zi0vd9atBqFS2VU21ZoldASe_f_r-ZJE_p4ALAweuxzCsI3xqPUxms6PmChXilL1483TzWquyZqK6MfYzED6nLUAEwnSpUabCX_SZ9ybk84TJjJ_2Sb-zY93OEN223oZdInRgN/s320/Bronze+Warder.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<br />
This floor features a hallway, and the skeleton of a long-dead minotaur, still clutching its weapon: a bow approximately six feet in length, which is discovered to be enchanted. Tam'elanath takes the greatbow, but realizes he will need some practice before he is able to use it effectively in combat. The group also takes note that the teleportation circle they entered through has now vanished. There are three doors here: one on either side, and double doors ahead, which are already open. They first attempt to open the door on the left, but even Garmeth is unable to open it, discovering that it has been sealed with some kind of magic. He does not have the tools with him to open it, nor the time to do so. They open the door on the right, only to find that it contains another Bronze Warder, much like the one they fought below. It charges immediately, causing problems for the Collective right away. Right after, dolgaunts and norkers from further in begin their attack, emerging from what appears to be a shrine of some sort.<br />
<br />
After a short time, Paldemar emerges to join the fray, and elucidates his plot. He seeks to conduct a ritual that will collapse the Seven Pillared Hall, and in effect sacrifice the lives of all those within to provide him with personal power, which he intends to use to lead an army from the Thunderspire Labyrinth to gradually conquer Khorvaire. The Eclipse Collective has interrupted his plans, and he fully intends to make them pay. He carries with him a magical staff, and a platinum rod inlaid with gold, both of which he uses as channels for his power.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgczlwsCAsMFvDLDbEdnjAN7MnAxO8xV4qEo3tz96chAbkjNi-K2QEivPrTy12H1CK8j7ccATHO7dHWLsiIvoLDsDXMEaZWSr_QDBmQPGlm-upRakF4B7zkUhSK8-txWMiZG7BJWn9dBq20/s1600/Paldemar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgczlwsCAsMFvDLDbEdnjAN7MnAxO8xV4qEo3tz96chAbkjNi-K2QEivPrTy12H1CK8j7ccATHO7dHWLsiIvoLDsDXMEaZWSr_QDBmQPGlm-upRakF4B7zkUhSK8-txWMiZG7BJWn9dBq20/s320/Paldemar.jpg" width="227" /></a></div><br />
<br />
The seven are initially skeptical of this claim, but Paldemar soon proves to be a powerful opponent, and through the use of his magic rapidly subdues Cecil, Eshunu, and Tam'elanath, who are usually found in the rear ranks of the party. Meanwhile, Garmeth and Stahlstrauss struggle against norker opponents in the room that previously contained the Bronze Warder, and Zil'dejin attempts to motivate his teammates back to their feet to continue the battle while Lucan holds the hallway, and contributes his own mental healing powers. Cecil is able to stand briefly, but his exhaustion and overuse of power allow the demon that possesses him, Lagrish, to take control. He manages one last burst of strong magic, but collapses from the effort, the life extinguished from his body. It is not in vain; Paldemar is gravely wounded by the attempt.<br />
<br />
But despite these efforts, even as the norkers and the dolgaunts fall, so too do the members of the Eclipse Collective. With most of their companions unconscious, dying or in the case of Cecil, already dead, only Stahlstrauss, Zil'dejin and Garmeth remain to face Paldemar in one final showdown. They are wounded, battered and exhausted. Zil'dejin leads a valiant charge, but he is blinded by anger and fatigue, and ultimately misses. Stahlstrauss moves in to help, but Paldemar's magic slows him down. Garmeth moves in from the side in an effort to flank, while Paldemar draws magic energy stored in crystals, hidden within the stone pillars in the shrine.<br />
<br />
The combined efforts of the three eventually wear him down, and wounded, Paldemar attempts to flee. Zil'dejin, however, is able to charge one last time, and cleaves Paldemar with his halberd, ending his life. As Paldemar falls, he utters something unintelligible; clearly a curse of some kind, but his life is truly over.<br />
<br />
The remaining group members help those who can stand to their feet, while the others are put in a safe place to be carried back to the Seven Pillared Hall after a search of the area. They find, besides Paldemar's staff, the rod he carried: platinum and gold, weighted perfectly evenly and of incredibly masterful design. They detect immense power within it, and conclude that this is the Rod of Order. They also find his ritual book, and a strange glass orb. They look into the orb, but it shatters. In the ritual book, the ritual to collapse the Seven Pillared Hall is detailed, though unfinished. There is some debate on whether the book should be kept, turned in to the Mages of Saruun, or destroyed; ultimately, Garmeth, who picked up the book, tears out the page and rips it to shreds. With this, the group heads back to the Seven Pillared Hall to meet one last time with Orontor.<br />
<br />
Orontor expresses his gratitude to the Eclipse Collective, and grants them free passage in and out of the Labyrinth through the Gate of Saruun Khel, as well as the freedom to take the Rod of Order out with them. He also grants them a letter to the drow priestess Phaledra in the Temple of Hidden Light, a temple of the Sovereign Host in the Seven Pillared Hall, to raise Cecil from the dead without charge.<br />
<br />
The party spends one last night of well-deserved rest in the Halfmoon Inn, where they are congratulated by Rendil Halfmoon for their success.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVQPsPJ6gHcWlXeOyPp4v1mVHG3S9Rbw7rdm7Hy0nrV0gvTRRSCAHnOvE0vE54y5yD25lJ5vhFgZYSYlopazATO2XHycpCNe07peC_0atGNK_o_enQkoNXEMTDJarWTgCvbkolC2UvYqiy/s1600/Rendil.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVQPsPJ6gHcWlXeOyPp4v1mVHG3S9Rbw7rdm7Hy0nrV0gvTRRSCAHnOvE0vE54y5yD25lJ5vhFgZYSYlopazATO2XHycpCNe07peC_0atGNK_o_enQkoNXEMTDJarWTgCvbkolC2UvYqiy/s1600/Rendil.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rendil Halfmoon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-52443091943110406032011-06-01T15:29:00.000-07:002011-06-08T16:04:47.941-07:00Thunderspire X: The Towers of Sunset and Mystery<i>Mol, Barrakas 16, 998 YK (Day 30).</i><br />
<br />
Back at the Seven Pillared Hall, Terrlen Darkseeker expresses his gratitude for the work the Eclipse Collective has done on his behalf. He marks on the party's map the location of the Tower of Sunset, where Denoa has spent her time since being exiled. Terrlen is unable to remember Lucan's name, which makes him angry; this boils over in an unusual lapse of control for him, and he attacks Terrlen, which quickly results in a barfight. Garmeth is able to calm the fighting before it gets out of hand, and the Mages' Enforcers arrive to ensure that there is no more brawling in Rothar's Taphouse. Eshunu and Tam'elanath stay at the Seven Pillared Hall for some further investigation there, while Stahlstrauss, Garmeth, Cecil and Lucan go to investigate the Tower of Sunset.<br />
<br />
They find their way there with little difficulty, as they are led by Terrlen Darkseeker who is an extremely competent guide. Cecil leaves a trail of crumbs behind him, in case he can't find his way back with a map, though he realizes this is probably pointless. Inside the first floor of the tower, a pale-skinned woman sits behind a desk, with various statues positioned around her. She beckons the group inside, and they come in. The door shuts behind them when they begin asking about Paldemar, and the statues come to life.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLOJWRZCNoUywN-k87xFnTo_KnnKh1MHbCSRTIqqOuzgg81g7DaAN7jwW0c2rKAiz1geOXtx7ho5tz2Zh1h0zTaui65Mistqz0iTh0wvMZW-ThlscXd81dpqs-UZD1pMd8iARgacFduTRf/s1600/__Asmodian_Sorceress___by_Anathematixs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLOJWRZCNoUywN-k87xFnTo_KnnKh1MHbCSRTIqqOuzgg81g7DaAN7jwW0c2rKAiz1geOXtx7ho5tz2Zh1h0zTaui65Mistqz0iTh0wvMZW-ThlscXd81dpqs-UZD1pMd8iARgacFduTRf/s320/__Asmodian_Sorceress___by_Anathematixs.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<br />
The "statues" are actually poorly-made constructs, which are not much of a threat but explode after fought for a time. Denoa is a skilled caster, and keeps the party at bay while a gargoyle animates and attacks them, shifting in and out of stone form and posing a rather large threat to the four. Eventually, Tam'elanath and Eshunu arrive for support, and the six defeat Denoa and bring down the gargoyle as well. They interrogate Denoa after tying her up, and she reveals her affiliation with Paldemar. It seems that Paldemar does, indeed, possess the rod of order, and further is likely conducting some very dark business within the Tower of Mystery. She surrenders her key to the group, and soon after begins panicking. They try to calm her down, but she quickly bursts into flames, evidently having been bound to Paldemar's service and ultimately his control. Cecil examines the ashes, and finds them to have the same qualities as those of his own adventuring company that he discovered earlier in the Labyrinth.<br />
<br />
After this, they find a suit of psionically-tuned chainmail, which is taken by Lucan (despite Eshunu's many attempts to take it from him), and Denoa's silver key. They bring these back to the Seven Pillared Hall and once again meet with Orontor, explaining what they've learned.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiaBMSYSSJJBX0KjUtjyEzRYdd0cLfKOvHOptwoIf3aHZzqSyYMMWBbJLmdi5u_lzmVOougizos7kVMc1pQYLimsliUStntBZZOEdrfVfWiGJ52j9ZSsFSV23pPGjqMWo7l3l3ABR3bxoq/s1600/Orontor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiaBMSYSSJJBX0KjUtjyEzRYdd0cLfKOvHOptwoIf3aHZzqSyYMMWBbJLmdi5u_lzmVOougizos7kVMc1pQYLimsliUStntBZZOEdrfVfWiGJ52j9ZSsFSV23pPGjqMWo7l3l3ABR3bxoq/s320/Orontor.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Orontor</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
Orontor believes that the situation is, indeed, dire. The Tower of Mystery had been a seat of power for the greatest of the minotaur priests of Baphomet, and Paldemar can be up to nothing good there. With the Rod of Order in his possession, Orontor does not know what he is going to achieve, but knows he must be stopped. He cannot spare anybody to support the party in this endeavor, because, as he reveals, he is in fact the only Mage of Saruun currently in Thunderspire other than Paldemar. This is why he is the only Mage the party has met. He gives them twenty four hours to solve the problem; at this point, if he has not heard from the Eclipse Collective, he will try to conduct a ritual to seal off the waterfall (and presumably only point of passage to the Tower of Mystery) long enough to prepare an assault powerful enough to stop Paldemar.<br />
<br />
The party makes the necessary preparations for their entry into the Tower of Mystery, and then sleeps the night, which may be their last here underneath the Ashen Spires.<br />
<br />
<i>Zol, Barrakas 17, 998 YK (Day 31).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
In the morning, with grim determination, the party moves through the waterfall in the Seven Pillared Hall, and Cecil and Stahlstrauss simultaneously insert the two silver keys into the door to the Tower of Mystery. Inside is a small room with a circle of runes, which Cecil identifies as teleportation runes, and the party enters the circle. They are teleported to the first floor.<br />
<br />
This floor is calm at first, but the pillars, on which faces are engraved, seem to "spring to life" and begin firing magic that twists the flesh and clouds the mind. Garmeth, who is first to venture into the room, is affected worst as his party members stay behind in the antechamber through which they entered. Soon after this begins, goblinoid creatures (called "norkers") begin to make their attack. The party attempts to fight these while struggling to deal with the magic cast upon them "by" the pillars.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqzm-5tIfm55QX3fsaHa7-SYzvEiIea53WMaz24yp2zPAj4bBTjcBg3QX2ycsOecf0SZV4DdGX8pTKcGzdE5N-fFSE-674bIjZD6N-5NtCd1uVu7rlDTgjxa4L4WwsEO9k8C-9p6TvDXc4/s1600/Norker.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqzm-5tIfm55QX3fsaHa7-SYzvEiIea53WMaz24yp2zPAj4bBTjcBg3QX2ycsOecf0SZV4DdGX8pTKcGzdE5N-fFSE-674bIjZD6N-5NtCd1uVu7rlDTgjxa4L4WwsEO9k8C-9p6TvDXc4/s320/Norker.png" width="298" /></a></div><br />
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As they clear the norkers, they find another circle of runes at the far end of the room. Stahlstrauss enters the circle and is teleported up another floor, while Garmeth moves past the runes to open a closed door. Inside are two dolgaunts (aberrations that the party fought once before, in the Shadowfeel Keep) who are apparently in Paldemar's service. They are fanatical cultists, but Garmeth makes quick work of them, while supported by his party. Stahlstrauss returns to the first floor, and the party prepares to regroup before heading up to the second floor of the tower.Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-43227390967636038472011-05-25T14:32:00.000-07:002011-06-08T15:25:00.191-07:00Thunderspire IX: Maldrick Scarmaker and the Bronze Mirror<i>Mol, Barrakas 16, 998 YK (Day 30).</i><br />
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The Eclipse Collective takes a moment to discuss the situation before proceeding through the mist into the Inner Sanctum. Zil'dejin decides to part with the group temporarily, having felt distracted through the entire battle with the Guardian, worried about some men Rendil Halfmoon described who appeared to be members of Cabor's Chains, the slaver group Zil'dejin thought to have been eliminated years ago. Still six men strong, the group has few qualms with this. The remaining members proceed into the mist. As soon as they pass the threshold, Eshunu gets one of his negative premonitions, the nature of which is soon revealed.<br />
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As the Collective enters the Inner Sanctum, the rear is occupied as the mist coalesces into a ghostly wolf, which attacks them almost immediately. Meanwhile, ahead, the occupants of the Sanctum spring into action as well: a host of demons, and an enormous minotaur skeleton, attack the group, overseen by the head of the Blackfang Gnolls: Maldrick Scarmaker, who himself only barely resembles a gnoll at all. He has been twisted and corrupted by his demonic associations, and has grown horns, horrible wings, and a bladed tail to reflect the change. Apparently, Maldrick is conducting some sort of demonic ritual as the group enters.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb0LjcKC3cV5gc-L2hoE7MW6qDPGfFSemvY0WFmIov-24vLUlJf-4sszKSy6XomMFl21WUAsSRGzUXHG6AVRKcayqTVYwv1flhM0jTtybBu4-Kg28GY2eGkjn9WFgjY2lDNfqEOJZD6dy6/s1600/Maldrick+Scarmaker.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb0LjcKC3cV5gc-L2hoE7MW6qDPGfFSemvY0WFmIov-24vLUlJf-4sszKSy6XomMFl21WUAsSRGzUXHG6AVRKcayqTVYwv1flhM0jTtybBu4-Kg28GY2eGkjn9WFgjY2lDNfqEOJZD6dy6/s320/Maldrick+Scarmaker.jpg" width="288" /></a></div><br />
Because of their flanked position and the aggression of their opponents, the battle is one of the most difficult of the Eclipse Collective's career. The more vulnerable members of the group at the rear are quickly cast down by the ghost wolf, while a heroic attempt by Cecil ends in failure, resulting in a cauldron of boiling liquid cascading over the party in the midst of the attack.<br />
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Within seconds of fighting, much of the Collective is knocked down and unconscious. The ghost wolf and the lesser demons, more evistros, are eventually brought down, and soon after, the accompanying barlgura with them. The minotaur skeleton remains and attacks the remaining members for a time, before it is consumed with a burning desire to end its unlife. This distraction allows the opportunity for the bonecrusher skeleton to be defeated. Meanwhile, Garmeth locates a ladder in the Sanctum and uses it to ascend to the higher platform where Maldrick is perched. However, he is trapped in a magic circle on this platform with two humans who have been killed in Maldrick's ritual. When things seem their most grim, Stahlstrauss is able to complete an unlikely recovery and gets to his feet, charging up the ladder Garmeth found. In panic, Maldrick whips him with his spiked tail, but it is not quite enough to fell the warforged, and with a great strike he knocks Maldrick in the side of the head with his hammer, and in a burst of flames he plummets from his high point and falls limp. The magic circle is released, and Garmeth with it. The Eclipse Collective slowly rise to their feet, and they examine the area. Among some treasures - a Khyber dragonshard carried by Maldrick Scarmaker and a quarterstaff on one of the dead humans who was apparently a monk - they find a silver key with the gnoll. Cecil picks it up, and receives a vision of the Seven Pillared Hall, and the waterfall therein: behind it, he sees a great silver door.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR_oRg-w8IUnTqrAo2i1YvA7QawpDSAYEcuHAcpR7E0KdOc0AU9uHHFXFw2O7YlplVdqZ-oy7C0JyLvC1RUgNKcoZP0yHpGh0inRFnvF9tB7yOQDfI7twqGMakk2XCagBWVqkFNB7LqDLA/s1600/silvdoor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR_oRg-w8IUnTqrAo2i1YvA7QawpDSAYEcuHAcpR7E0KdOc0AU9uHHFXFw2O7YlplVdqZ-oy7C0JyLvC1RUgNKcoZP0yHpGh0inRFnvF9tB7yOQDfI7twqGMakk2XCagBWVqkFNB7LqDLA/s320/silvdoor.jpg" width="224" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">They discover Lucan has lost his life in the fighting, and so returns to the Seven Pillared Hall to once again scrounge up funds to bring him to the world of the living again before it's too late. He is brought back, and the party goes to rest; Cecil and Eshunu hold off on sleep for the time being to investigate the waterfall, where they do indeed find a tunnel, with the same door Cecil saw in his vision at the end. They discover, however, that there are two keyholes, and so Cecil and Eshunu return to spend the night at the Halfmoon Inn.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The next morning, Talbot accompanies the group to speak with the Mages of Saruun regarding the door. Orontor, the same wizard who has always greeted them, discusses with the group one Denoa, Paldemar's former apprentice who was banished from the Mages of Saruun. Orontor believes she will have the other key if Paldemar has been keeping in touch with her and continuing his search for the Tower of Mystery, a hidden tower once used by the minotaur priests of Baphomet. The Collective quickly learns that three people in the hall know of Denoa's current whereabouts; Orontor, Gendar the drow, and Terrlen Darkseeker, a freelancing guide for travelers in the Labyrinth. They decide to speak with the charismatic Terrlen, who offers to reveal Denoa's location in exchange for a favor. He has been afflicted by some sort of lycanthropic curse by a bronze mirror in a place called the House of Silence in the Labyrinth, and needs the party's help to break the curse. They agree to his terms, and set out for the House of Silence.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">As the group is about to leave, they encounter a fairly large group of well-equipped tieflings. As Stahlstrass notices them, he calls out "number eight!" Their leader, a tall, grey-skinned tiefling outfitted in extravagant heavy armor and carrying a menacing longsword, turns to face the warforged. The tiefling is Telleroth Vaen, one of a now-defunct group of twelve tieflings that called themselves the "Council of Azuun" who acted as warlords in the Demon Wastes during the Last War. The revolutionary group Stahlstrauss was part of - the <a href="http://thtmtw.blogspot.com/p/flashbacks.html">Resolved</a> - were captured by them when they moved too close to the Demon Wastes in 983 YK, and this led to the dissolution of that group when Stahlstrauss escaped (the fate of the others is yet unknown). Stahlstrauss then killed several, while others died from other reasons, leaving only five, to his knowledge. Vaen makes it clear that he and his group came here looking for Stahlstrauss, but that "it was not yet time for them to meet." After assuring Stahlstrauss that the remaining five would not be so easily felled, he and his escorts, among them Azkalak and Katal, pass through a portal created by Telleroth. Stahlstrauss attacks him, but finds his armor too strong for any significant damage. The group continues.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoNb5mNyXTlymXgjH_JS-QrhZ0lnclruxqboCK8ObPvunuuDBOcoGEAUKs_nrf3nHPZ2xr-DpgUPD5HLCqxvgc1-2UkDxrornJA2H968uCwJjg-gNUG9vtMO-_jv5DVWsIFRv1FwfzsvOn/s1600/Telleroth+Vaen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoNb5mNyXTlymXgjH_JS-QrhZ0lnclruxqboCK8ObPvunuuDBOcoGEAUKs_nrf3nHPZ2xr-DpgUPD5HLCqxvgc1-2UkDxrornJA2H968uCwJjg-gNUG9vtMO-_jv5DVWsIFRv1FwfzsvOn/s320/Telleroth+Vaen.jpg" width="192" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">On the way to the place marked on their map by Terrlen, they discover the site where the Reclaimer Company, Cecil's old party, was ambushed and killed. There is a pile of ash there, evidently magical in origin, that Cecil intends to investigate. Stahlstrauss, Garmeth, Lucan, Eshunu and Tam'elanath find themselves in a small hallway illuminated by cressets. Stahlstrauss investigates a minotaur statue, which triggers a trap that will repeat many times before they leave: the cressets begin exploding.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Among the exploding cressets, Garmeth moves forward to the end of the hallway, which is a small chamber containing a bronze mirror held by minotaur statues. As he enters this room, hellhounds emerge to attack him. It is around this time that a wraith appears and begins to infect the group with fleeting madness, causing them to attack each other. The cressets continue to explode. The battle is surprisingly long, possibly due to the unusual circumstances, but the party eventually triumphs and smashes the mirror. They feel that this will have ended the curse, and so they return to the Seven Pillared Hall.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitnOwc4jWDXs56YlgWIRpyqKqBpI2Glxe7i1B0zlsxCodXgoj3V8wnLQfdOZ7W2IqrbGhrGU6up6Lfjo3AGx74Y2F3dgLklN31YZwypUOhPZzSEe9eDHxDY7WDWl0IV-Enm9E1fGD1vWJq/s1600/Echoes_of_Thunderspire_by_UdonCrew.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitnOwc4jWDXs56YlgWIRpyqKqBpI2Glxe7i1B0zlsxCodXgoj3V8wnLQfdOZ7W2IqrbGhrGU6up6Lfjo3AGx74Y2F3dgLklN31YZwypUOhPZzSEe9eDHxDY7WDWl0IV-Enm9E1fGD1vWJq/s320/Echoes_of_Thunderspire_by_UdonCrew.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div>Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-4655646194276493372011-05-18T15:42:00.000-07:002011-05-23T13:24:48.644-07:00Thunderspire VIII: The Well of Demons (part 2)<i>Sul, Barrakas 15, 998 YK (Day 29).</i><br />
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The party returns to the Proving Grounds, which acts as a crossroads between the four different trials set down by Baphomet. To the north, where they were told to find the mask, they here chanting and rituals, and the voice of the angel of valor "killed" earlier in the Horned Hold. From the west, they heard screeching sounds, and soldiers yelling for reinforcements. They decide that the best course of action now is to split up, separating into "Lunar" and "Solar" groups. The Lunar Eclipse consists of Lucan, Garmeth, Tam'elanath and Stahlstrauss, and they head north. Meanwhile, the Solar Eclipse, containing Zil'dejin, Cecil and the recently-returned Eshunu heads west.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">LUNAR ECLIPSE</span><br />
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The Lunar Eclipse arrives at a jet-black curtain that blocks their path. Tam'elanath pulls it aside in what he believes is a stealthy manner, but the room's inhabitants notice him: it is the angel of valor again, with his entourage of troglodytes. In addition, the room is filled with mirrors, giving the room its name: the Hall of Enforced Introspection.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifzuOaoUOfBDGR_12eDtCGicCSXjEOgw9L7QKXVsaPo540ItYDeYPY3RKi0W9UTKev5qM8saAK87atoM9_fFUncxTyWAUxFqW6Mt9mPGBmiTJkC5emo5bbLVHWMICKyFAqWgeZpSUof69G/s1600/troglodytes.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifzuOaoUOfBDGR_12eDtCGicCSXjEOgw9L7QKXVsaPo540ItYDeYPY3RKi0W9UTKev5qM8saAK87atoM9_fFUncxTyWAUxFqW6Mt9mPGBmiTJkC5emo5bbLVHWMICKyFAqWgeZpSUof69G/s1600/troglodytes.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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A battle ensues. Very early on, Tam'elanath catches a glimpse of himself in one of the mirrors, and is instantly transported into a small room: the Oubliette of the Empty Mind. A hunger-crazed gnoll is here, and attacks him, but Tam'elanath is able to fight him off. Before long, Lucan is caught by the same mirror, and both end up in the Oubliette. Together, Lucan and Tam'elanath search for a way out, and eventually they discover an illusory wall, behind which is a mirror that transports them back to the Hall of Enforced Introspection.<br />
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Tam'elanath fires an arrow that appears at first to be a miss, but miraculously manages to hit the angel through a series of unlikely ricochets. The angel shrieks in rage, a horrible pulsing sound that destroys several nearby mirrors and drives everyone who hears it to the ground. After this, the party is able to fight against the angel and eventually terminate him again, causing the troglodytes to flee. Battling the effects of the remaining mirrors, they approach the end of the Hall, which contains yet another black curtain. They pull it back.<br />
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Behind this curtain is another altar, on which rests a mask carved of black wood: the <i>face of Baphomet. </i>It is guarded by two skeletons, who attack as soon as the curtain is moved aside.<br />
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The four fight back against the skeletons, and quickly learn the unfortunate truth of them: they are "boneshard skeletons," appropriately named for their tendency to explode with bone fragments periodically. Garmeth and Lucan are both taken down by these bursts, and Garmeth, who was wounded from holding back the troglodytes and the angel earlier, bleeds out into death. The remaining three are enraged, and take out the skeleton. They then begin pulling funds together to pay for his revival before it is too late to do so. They also find that somehow, before his death, he acquired a pair of <i>dwarven greaves, </i>which are clutched in his now-cooling hands.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #f1c232;">SOLAR ECLIPSE</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlPZCXk4kdj-PJtInWpWYMbR1rvXuGjJZecY9qZmPbeRiDcnMHa-TyMLGa8IHY0nhYb3Zk7PZs1nTuED071VYVSd5NIwmqXlwOe7up-ypYvVscXzMSKxLYT6nCI42ovmyMSxQFSafPjRBh/s1600/crimsonwhips.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlPZCXk4kdj-PJtInWpWYMbR1rvXuGjJZecY9qZmPbeRiDcnMHa-TyMLGa8IHY0nhYb3Zk7PZs1nTuED071VYVSd5NIwmqXlwOe7up-ypYvVscXzMSKxLYT6nCI42ovmyMSxQFSafPjRBh/s400/crimsonwhips.jpg" width="135" /></a>At the same time, the Solar Eclipse arrives in a room with two large pools of blood, seperated by a small walkway and broken by two large statues of minotaurs holding bladed whips. At the end of this large room, across both pools, are the hilt and blade of a dagger. This is the <i>bloodhorn blade, </i>the artifact they came here to retrieve from the Hall of Crimson Whips. Azkalak and Katal also accompany them, but are reluctant to wade into the blood. They stand back.<br />
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Zil'dejin, Cecil and Eshunu enter the blood, which they immediately learn is corrupted by demonic magic. It is poisonous to the flesh, and probably diseased. They combat these ill effects while wading, and as they move learn that the room harbors another dark secret: the statues are more than just decoration. As the three attempt to pass, the statues rotate and whirl their scourges, assaulting the three and pushing them back through the blood. As this begins to happen, evistros (carnage demons) emerge from the blood to attack as well.<br />
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Cecil charges forward, leaving Zil'dejin and Eshunu to fight the demons while he maks a break for the <i>bloodhorn blade.</i> But he, too, is set upon by carnage demons, and is nearly killed. He manages to break free, though just narrowly, and retrieves the blade, though he too is under attack by the statue.<br />
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Zil'dejin and Eshunu finish the demons they are fighting and break apart the statue on their side, then advance to help Cecil. Zil'dejin calls out inspiring words to keep Cecil on his feet and ignoring the pain, insisting he fights on just a while longer. They are eventually able to defeat the last of the demons and destroy the last statue (which jams, due only to chance, such that Cecil is spared a blow which may have killed him). The three then prepare to return across the poison blood. Cecil is severely injured, and won't make it if he has contact with the blood at all, so the group leaps across the platforms and manages to reach the other side safely. After a brief rest, they go to meet up with the others, now holding the <i>bloodhorn blade.</i><br />
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Once the group is united, they hide the artifacts (which cannot be brought out of the hall) and rush Garmeth's body back to the Seven-Pillared Hall. To ensure that it is safe, it is carried jointly by Stahlstrauss and Zil'dejin. They place the body in the capable hands of the drow priestess there, and pay the fee with a series of gems, and then go to the Halfmoon Inn to rest while the ritual is taking place. The sleep is unsatisfying as the group wonders whether the items will have returned to their original locations, or if they will be where they left them.<br />
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<i>Mol, Barrakas 16, 998 YK (Day 30).</i><br />
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After this, Garmeth is back to life, though somewhat disoriented. The group moves quickly back to the Well of Demons, retrieves the artifacts, and goes to the proving grounds, where they were instructed by the spirits to place the items simultaneously. They do so, split by pairs: Lucan and Tam'elanath in one room, Stahlstrauss and Garmeth in another, Eshunu and Zil'dejin in another still and Cecil by himself. They place the items on the runes in these rooms, and the items vanish while all the doors in the area fly open. There is a massive roar from somewhere towards the center of the complex, and traps emerge: skeletons grasp for Lucan and Tam'elanath, a liquid vortex assails Stahlstrauss and Garmeth, Eshunu and Zil'dejin are attacked by crossbow turrets, and Cecil's ears are attacked by screaming idols. Also, a massive sphere of magical energy rolls around the inner track of the area.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4i6O77aa6uR8cGA3i2LrTlVBboWkLiLTh_0MvemndW0BNzKQdy-g_OiGf_TAbL_2l2hcHF5eNqTvJf8VXBT3G_DIEvGeTQT3kO68OK8UsLjDJXV3QOzpPziboiBqG9OUTV1wCsOUbZ9eV/s1600/theguardian.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4i6O77aa6uR8cGA3i2LrTlVBboWkLiLTh_0MvemndW0BNzKQdy-g_OiGf_TAbL_2l2hcHF5eNqTvJf8VXBT3G_DIEvGeTQT3kO68OK8UsLjDJXV3QOzpPziboiBqG9OUTV1wCsOUbZ9eV/s400/theguardian.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Cecil is the first to encounter the Guardian. While struggling to remember a ritual to disable the idols that he read in the <i>Tome of Wrath Unveiled, </i>a young green dragon approaches him from behind, and begins attacking. Cecil is injured, but fights back enough for him to flee; the dragon, however, is not bothered by this, and follows him out into the inner track and cuts him down.<br />
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Slowly, the rest of the party congregates in the center of the Proving Grounds to combat the dragon. The dragon's influence pulls Eshunu down the pit from which it emerged, causing him to plummet fifty feet downwards. The Eclipse Collective is frequently plagued by the dragon's poison breath and his constant flying, accompanied by clawing and biting. Over time, though, the party wears it down, despite close brushes to death on the part of Lucan and Garmeth. Stahlstrauss finishes it off by smashing its skull with his warhammer and then breaking its neck as it falls.<br />
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Tam'elanath uses the dragon's poisonous blood to coat a few of his arrows, and then Cecil lights the damnable beast on fire while Stahlstrauss and Zil'dejin push it back down into the pit (making sure, of course, that Eshunu has escaped beforehand). The door to the Inner Sanctum is now open, but the way is shrouded in mist - what waits on the other side?Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-74930828176014296062011-05-14T15:09:00.000-07:002011-05-22T15:10:26.016-07:00Thunderspire VII: The Well of Demons (part 1)<i>Sul, Barrakas 15, 998 YK (Day 29).</i><br />
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The next day, the party quickly heads for the Well of Demons again. Interestingly, Talbot is no longer present in the Halfmoon Inn; Rendil saw him leave, but did not note where he was going. Eshunu remains at the inn to rest after being revived.<br />
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Back in the Well of Demons, the group heads further in, finding themselves in a barracks-like area belonging to the Blackfang gnolls. A fight breaks out, but the gnolls are not prepared for the party's assault and are quickly taken down. The group searches for anything of value, then proceeds further, ending up in a hallway with several closed doors, ending in a small open room. They open the first door, and behind it is a demon priestess of the gnolls, who is quickly attacked by the Eclipse Collective. She summons help from a Barlgura (large, ape-like demon) from the next room, who comes a bit too late. The priestess is killed, and Cecil is beaten to within an inch of his life by the Barlgura, but the demon is slain as well.<br />
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On searching the area, they find that the room the Barlgura emerged from was a shrine of sorts, and upon the altar is a book entitled the <i>Tome of Wrath Unveiled, </i>which Cecil discovers is a treatise of sorts on the cult of the demon Baphomet, who was worshiped by the minotaurs here. Also, the group discovers two tieflings hiding in the open room at the end of the hall. They are named Azkalak and Katal, and they introduce themselves as adventurers who came here looking for treasure. Stahlstrauss does not trust them, but the rest of the group sees little amiss with the two, and allows them to accompany the Collective for the time being. As the party rests here to catch their breath, they are confronted by a horrifying vision of some kind of twisted hellscape, a fiery scene rife with torture and anguish that nearly defies description. An enormous demon approaches them, and just as it is about to move within reach, they return to the Well of Demons. Most of the party recovers shortly thereafter, realizing that it was little more than a vision, but Stahlstrauss is particularly shaken by it.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip3Q0fhpYaGv-s3U1AxAr9SJ59nFmI9bv4OZls95CetmIqLJF7IRsQdLkmqDAtkUoUfCu8DkuEJOKinaFTw0yg-uXbz7VI18Vlms2i-BunG7mOZSiTSkjBqvzXmREzQaXN6qQtYHjihGd3/s1600/hell_070706_ms.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip3Q0fhpYaGv-s3U1AxAr9SJ59nFmI9bv4OZls95CetmIqLJF7IRsQdLkmqDAtkUoUfCu8DkuEJOKinaFTw0yg-uXbz7VI18Vlms2i-BunG7mOZSiTSkjBqvzXmREzQaXN6qQtYHjihGd3/s320/hell_070706_ms.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div>As the party proceeds, they find themselves in a room where the floor is covered in bloodstains. Here, three ghostly apparitions materialize in front of them, and approach. They were, evidently, adventurers who came here about twenty years before and were killed by the Guardian of the Well of Demons. They know much of the trials and the Well in general, and are willing to part with their knowledge if they find the group trustworthy. The first of the spirits to step forward appears as a male human, with a thick black beard and chainmail that has been torn to shreds. He calls himself Valdrog the Brute. "I was a great cleric of Dol Dorn. Even I, with all of my strength, couldn't challenge this place," he booms. "What chance do you weaklings have?"<br />
<br />
Cecil convinces Valdrog that the Eclipse Collective is actually a group of holy warriors, sent to purge the Well of demonic influence. It's a very dramatic speech, and Valdrog is deeply moved by the "faith" of the party. Lucan then tries to threaten Valdrog - who is a ghost - to obtain information from him. He yells for a while about his axe, but Valdrog is unimpressed, and more reserved about helping the group. Stahlstrauss' similar attempt at intimidation fails as well - Valdrog fears no physical harm, as he is completely ethereal.<br />
<br />
Tam'elanath tells Valdrog a moving story about his youth and his expulsion from the Zultenna wild elf war clan after failing to kill his quarry for a rite of passage hunt, and Valdrog recalls a similar coming-of-age failure within a tribe of barbarians he evidently descended from. He feels great empathy for Tam'elanath and kinship because of this.<br />
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Garmeth does many, many pushups to impress Valdrog. Garmeth believes that this display of strength will speak louder than words for the cleric, and it does - Valdrog is greatly impressed by Garmeth's strength. Finally, Zil'dejin tries to convince Valdrog that they have the knowledge to succeed where his party failed, and is quite convincing. Valdrog confers his support for the group, and rejoins his ghostly companions.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPDUFwrjVgfy_zQYNZZL2MHyC9s4nTS1ds8dZ9LeheW2_1LdEGI1AfEKMiQTCMZ7EIK12dwguatk_omnDlxoFN579RPobbjbkkj3W-G-MMx78sxgU-hUYuODhf15LRtiO8-zlv2AzMcMGY/s1600/Sir+Terris.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPDUFwrjVgfy_zQYNZZL2MHyC9s4nTS1ds8dZ9LeheW2_1LdEGI1AfEKMiQTCMZ7EIK12dwguatk_omnDlxoFN579RPobbjbkkj3W-G-MMx78sxgU-hUYuODhf15LRtiO8-zlv2AzMcMGY/s320/Sir+Terris.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The next to speak is Sir Terris, a dwarf paladin of Dol Arrah who wears his helm's faceplate down at all times. He asks why the group is there, to determine if the Eclipse Collective has noble intentions.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Zil'dejin begins by explaining, flat out, their reasons for being there, both good and bad, but trips over his own words, speaking nonsense halfway between Draconic and Common. Garmeth tries to recover by explaining his journey to purge the world of the Daelkyr influence and their aberrations, and his affiliation with the Order of Labyrinths. Surprisingly, Terris has heard of the Order and has great respect for their work.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Stahlstrauss explains his friendship and love of dwarves, and Terris agrees that the warforged fighter is indeed a friend to his kind. Tam'elanath again tries to talk about his journey to regain honour enough to rejoin the Zultenna, but Terris is not moved by it as Valdrog was.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div>Finally, Cecil again tries to convince the dwarf that they are on a holy mission, but Terris is incredulous. Cecil struggles to recover by explaining their search for the Rod of Order, and Lucan attempts to support this position by being vague about the "holy quest" details and being more forward about their search for the artifact:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Lucan: "As my warlock friend here said, we were hired on to find the Rod of Order. We did not want to disappoint them by not bringing it back, for we are a trustworthy group. Going through the Well of Demons is the only way to fulfill this obligation."</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Sir Terris: "Indeed... it is more credible from your lips, I feel."</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Lucan (points at Cecil): "He is a warlock. What can you expect?"</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Sir Terris also voices support, and the last spirit to step up is Mendara the Mystic, and elf wizard with a blank face dressed entirely in green. She mocks and insults the party, claiming they don't have the knowledge they'd need to survive the trials set down by the priests of Baphomet.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Zil'dejin gives a rather abstract explanation about the "inevitability of the unknown," but Mendara disregards it. Garmeth talks about the Daelkyr and aberrations again, but Mendara is uninterested in his claims and believes them to be irrelevant to the Well of Demons.</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Cecil talks about his knowledge of the Abyss and, somewhat, about his pact with Lagrish, and quotes from the <i>Tome of Wrath Unveiled. </i>Mendara agrees that he, at least, is knowledgeable enough. Lucan talks about what he learned from the ghost of the minotaur lord they encountered in the crypt of the Horned Hold, but Mendara is unimpressed and tells him to "quit while he's ahead."</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Tam'elanath flirtatiously speaks with her in Elven and talks about his great knowledge of nature. Not only is Mendara unmoved by this, she reacts harshly and coldly to his attempts. Finally, Stahlstrauss discusses all the duergar he's killed and his attempts to restore the place to its former glory, but Mendara believes this too is irrelevant to knowing enough to get through the Well. She is the only one of the three to not support the Collective.</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Still, the spirits tell the party all that they know about the artifacts and the trials, and a little bit about the Guardian and the process for getting into the Inner Sanctum once the four objects are obtained. The ghosts then fade away, and the party proceeds south, where they were told they could find the bell they seek.</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKDrcFjh7WvXxg5bER0b8WDnt12kG6NvegOQqf5V3im8QiSe7mO5_xfWmXdeNa0SLO9tH-53gkbmSKdA1c53GxUh3Prg8bymQaIkq6twt37vdcsGhCU9haa1Sw8pO0eYcO5FkRhvjKsCIQ/s1600/howlingpillars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKDrcFjh7WvXxg5bER0b8WDnt12kG6NvegOQqf5V3im8QiSe7mO5_xfWmXdeNa0SLO9tH-53gkbmSKdA1c53GxUh3Prg8bymQaIkq6twt37vdcsGhCU9haa1Sw8pO0eYcO5FkRhvjKsCIQ/s400/howlingpillars.jpg" width="133" /></a>This is the "Hall of Howling Pillars," named for the pillars made of living corpses that howl relentlessly and terribly. The room is filled with demons as well, and the party must fight through these demons while enduring the horrid screams of the pillars in this room. Cecil sits out for this fight to read through the <i>Tome of Wrath Unveiled </i>to try and determine if there is a way to destroy the pillars, which are creations of Baphomet himself, after Lucan fails to destroy one by severing it, at which point it simply regenerated. It takes some time, but eventually the demons are felled and the pillars are cut down by the technique that Cecil discovers within the book. Tam'elanath recovers the <i>bell of fury's calling </i>from the altar, and as he picks it up, it drives spikes through his hand. He rings it tentatively, and it causes himself and those near him (specifically, Zil'dejin and Stahlstrauss) to fly into a rage and start attacking each other for a few seconds before the anger fades. The clapper on the bell then fades away, and Tam'elanath wraps the bell up cautiously and puts it in his pack. The group then considers where they will go next; two more trials await them, and two more artifacts, before they can place all four items in the Proving Grounds to summon the Guardian and gain passage into the Inner Sanctum, where they believe Maldrick Scarmaker awaits.</div>Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-84071478708013430582011-05-07T18:47:00.000-07:002011-05-23T13:29:44.008-07:00Thunderspire VI: The Second Death of Thair Coalstriker<i>Sar, Barrakas 14, 998 YK (Day 28).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
Thair Coalstriker has returned to life shortly after his suicide, resurrected by a duergar theurge who recognized the dire situation and the immense strength of the short-tempered dwarf. The party is now being attacked by Rundarr the champion from one direction, the theurge and Thair coalstriker from another, and an invisible scout from yet another.<br />
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After being shot by the invisible scout, Eshunu is able to clearly point out to the other party members where the scout is. Tam'elanath takes the opportunity to fire on it, revealing its position more clearly as it is pierced with arrows, and finally Cecil is able to finish the scout off completely. Meanwhile, Eshunu falls under attack by the theurge and Thair Coalstriker, made vulnerable by being alone on the bridge. Thair quickly beats him down to the ground, and Stahlstrauss rushes away from Rundarr to aid him.<br />
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The theurge uses psychic abilities to suppress Stahlstrauss, limiting his usefulness. But Eshunu is able to miraculously recover, and runs away. Thair Coalstriker follows, leaving the theurge to fight the warforged warrior alone. At the same time, Garmeth and Lucan struggle against Rundarr, with the two-on-one battle staying at what is basically a stalemate.<br />
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Thair hammers Cecil to unconsciousness with scarcely a second thought, and then approaches Lucan. The ardent fights back, but is eventually cast down as well. Garmeth hits Rundarr with a decisive blow, but now that he is fearing the end of his life, the champion expands, becoming massive and more powerful. He knocks down Garmeth, leaving only Stahlstrauss, Eshunu, and Tam'elanath standing.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvBCF1AHgY0CKFzv7f0ExCzRL-NrK2wdBumTx9tTMxzlCLQsPNNmB2X9-8KLSskcDwTiG6YOM6jb-HhaV_UWxutF8WjUCHdvfpWHY1a4rmoL9ZPjIzjSpB1GgA_9BedwNAlu3_UH5Sq3Pf/s1600/Duergar2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvBCF1AHgY0CKFzv7f0ExCzRL-NrK2wdBumTx9tTMxzlCLQsPNNmB2X9-8KLSskcDwTiG6YOM6jb-HhaV_UWxutF8WjUCHdvfpWHY1a4rmoL9ZPjIzjSpB1GgA_9BedwNAlu3_UH5Sq3Pf/s320/Duergar2.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>Thair charges at Eshunu, who has assumed his insect form and is hiding among the diamonds. He knocks him yet again into unconsciousness, but Stahlstrauss has arrived immediately behind him. With a great swing of his <i>+2 flaming warhammer </i>he crushes Thair entirely, breaking most of his bones and rendering him completely lifeless (again). But this attack leaves him vulnerable, and Rundarr approaches him from behind, now enlarged and furious, and knocks Stahlstrauss to the ground as well. Only Tam'elanath is left, and he too is quite injured.<br />
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Rundarr approaches him for the final blow, but just as he is about to reach Tam'elanath, he is shot twice in vital locations, causing him to tumble to the ground, lifeless. Tam'elanath helps his allies back to their feet, and everyone takes a moment to rest. The six then approach the slaves for questioning.<br />
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They confirm that Paldemar is not a slave, and that he has dealings with the Blackfang gnolls under Maldrick Scarmaker. They also note that they are the last of the slaves and request that they travel with the Eclipse Collective to safety, who once again refuse, but are willing to arm them. The slaves are not combat-trained and are quite weak, but Stahlstrauss insists they burden themselves with an excess of heavy armor and weaponry if they are going to move with the Collective.<br />
<br />
"You must be hungry. Humans like salt, right?" Stahlstrauss extracts a heavy bag of salt he carries with him.<br />
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"No, look... humans don't just eat salt. Here, salt this dried meat I have, and we can feed that to them." Cecil presents some dried meat for this purpose, but Stahlstrauss pours an inedible excess of salt on top of the meat.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO3_52NnczLG5aAemfNT1ofWYCcbd5jf5p7sxEMorqffSq8giSEdvE40BSNig0J9vkDGEBCDKPs8X2k9M24JYDIBdOsoCfrBkzzfum2g8KfYfpizDgZkpx57DeSnQz8ZeE_BLKe5qGctZf/s1600/salt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO3_52NnczLG5aAemfNT1ofWYCcbd5jf5p7sxEMorqffSq8giSEdvE40BSNig0J9vkDGEBCDKPs8X2k9M24JYDIBdOsoCfrBkzzfum2g8KfYfpizDgZkpx57DeSnQz8ZeE_BLKe5qGctZf/s320/salt.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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As the slaves move out of earshot and raid the duergar food stores, Stahlstrauss leans in close to Tam'elanath.<br />
<br />
"I think I'm going to get that armor back real soon."<br />
<br />
"Why? Are they going to sell it back to you?"<br />
<br />
The party leaves with fistfuls of diamonds, and meets back up with Zil'dejin at the portcullis room. They give him the slaves to escort back and a small amount of money for his troubles. He grumbles, but does so anyway, never one to leave slaves stranded. They then discover that the diamonds only have this property when they are within the Horned Hold, and outside are nothing more than rocks. The group drops the stones and follows the map to the location marked by the half-orc, only to find that this is a dead end.<br />
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Tam'elanath is able to lead them back to the vicinity of the Seven-Pillared Hall while they plan a new approach, and at this time Rendil Halfmoon locates them, informing them that things have calmed down at the Hall, and the duergar food convoy has left. It is safe for them to return, and so they do so, resupplying themselves and selling miscellaneous goods they acquired in the Labyrinth. Garmeth purchases three pounds of pickled rats from the dwarf-run House Azaer merchant post. Nobody questions this decision.<br />
<br />
At this point, the group visits Orontor of the Mages of Saruun to discuss their findings and current course of action. Orontor provides them with the correct location of the Well of Demons and discusses the grim possibility of Paldemar having gone rogue. Lucan then describes his killing of the angel, and Orontor expresses his gratitude, with the angel and its troglodytes having been a great problem - they give a piece of magical hide armor as a reward, which Eshunu takes and wears. After this, they meet with Talbot, who discusses the situation further and decides to accompany the group to the Well of Demons.<br />
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In the entrance, they encounter four pillars with carved minotaur faces in them, who recite the following in magical voices:<br />
<blockquote><i>Greetings, seekers of Baphomet's boundless glory. Those who prove unworthy of his attention shall be claimed forever as his slaves. Those who prove worthy shall be granted power beyond mortal reckoning. Mask. Bell. Blade. Tome.</i> </blockquote> At this, three long-limbed creatures (identified as "cavern chokers") and a ghoul emerge from behind the pillars, while tentacles burst from the ground, attacking the party at the entrance. Eshunu identifies the tentacles as belonging to a beast known as a "phalagar," burrowing predators with tentacles covered in small mouths that leak a caustic substance.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcXFWWga1_m1hfHFw4RPahmQU0ymX51JV5oMC352989ASWmRA_Zoy3ojwICugFowFBACVD8naGOQ2RKiaXgs5m4CWF8_agUUuJe5WGt_zZAahNTg1d0hN2_SRi4_6f-sm1XHmVNNGkGOE9/s1600/phalagar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcXFWWga1_m1hfHFw4RPahmQU0ymX51JV5oMC352989ASWmRA_Zoy3ojwICugFowFBACVD8naGOQ2RKiaXgs5m4CWF8_agUUuJe5WGt_zZAahNTg1d0hN2_SRi4_6f-sm1XHmVNNGkGOE9/s320/phalagar.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div>The phalagar's tentacles grab Lucan tightly, and burn and constrict him into unconsciousness, but the party kills it shortly after that. Meanwhile, the ghoul attacks from the front, and the chokers climb along the ceiling to gain access to the Collective members at the rear. Tam'elanath is choked by one of them, but is able to fend it off; the next one to choke him takes him down, and moves onto Eshunu, who is also rendered unconscious. Garmeth fights the third to keep it away from the rest of the party, and Stahlstrauss deals with the ghouls.<br />
<br />
Cecil launches an eldritch blast at the choker grabbing Eshunu, but the choker uses the shardmind as a makeshift shield, and Eshunu takes the full brunt of the blast. The consequences are devastating; the already-wounded Eshunu is blown apart the blast, his life force basically diminished. He loses his conscious control over the crystals that form his body, and he shatters. Cecil is frenzied, and loses control over himself as well - his eyes go black, and the demon that possesses him, Lagrish, takes charge. He pulls down the choker with the Chains of Levistus, which finish it off for good.<br />
<br />
Stahlstrauss breaks away into a frenzied run away from the ghoul to go to (what's left of) Eshunu's side. He cries out in rage and anguish over the loss of his longtime companion, and begins slowly gathering up the pieces. Meanwhile, Garmeth and the now-standing Lucan finish off the other choker and the ghoul. Talbot suggests that they might be able to revive him back in the Seven-Pillared Hall, and they go to do so, each carrying an armful of shattered Eshunu.<br />
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At the "Temple of the Hidden Light" in the Hall, a drow priestess trades Tam'elanath's <i>prison of Salzacas </i>for the revival of Eshunu, and after eight hours his body reassembles around the pitch-black dragonshard that is his heart. He seems confused about what happened, and of his time in death can remember only a surreal, colorful landscape and vague voices telling him about his pre-amnesic past.<br />
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After this ordeal, the party goes back to the Halfmoon Inn to rest for the night. During his sleep, Lucan is plagued by dreams of pitch-black tower, surrounded by enemies on all sides. Lythanis, bearing a strange tattoo, is leading a relentless wave of attackers against the Eclipse Collective. The dreams ends with uncertainty about their fate.Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-45292373729186128172011-05-04T01:35:00.000-07:002011-05-07T16:25:38.853-07:00Thunderspire V: The Horned Hold (part 2)<i>Far, Barrakas 13, 998 YK (Day 27)</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
After defeating the wights in the ruined chapel, the party proceeds to the opposite end of the room, where there is an old portcullis in place. Stahlstrauss attempts to lift it, but it gets stuck halfway; Cecil crawls underneath and opens it with a lever on the other side. The ancient mechanism eventually gives, and the portcullis opens. The party proceeds up the darkened stairway.<br />
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At the top, Cecil lights a sunrod, and reveals that they are currently in a crypt-like room, with sarcophagi along the floor and in alcoves on the wall. At the far end, there is a large statue of a skeletal minotaur (identified as the minotaur personification of death) which appears to have been intended to hold a weapon (though the weapon is now gone), and a chest in front of it. Garmeth picks the lock on the chest and removes the item from within, which is a magic cloth mantle that fades away at the edges - apparently some sort of ritual burial shroud. He takes it and wears it, and the party proceeds down a different set of stairs to a closed door. Before anything else, Stahlstrauss bangs aggressively on the door (why? Who knows). Frantic voices yell from the other side to prepare for combat. The door is opened all the way.<br />
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The room contains three deep pits, one of which is filled with water. There are more duergar in this room, and two spiny creatures (identified by Eshunu as spined devils, or - more accurately - "Spinagons") who are tending to the dry pits, which contain sets of slaves packed tightly and chained against the pit walls. One of the slaves is an elf, who is attempting to mock the devils, but the devils find it amusing rather than bothersome. They all attack the party as they enter, save for one devil who begins killing the chained slaves, thinking that the Eclipse Collective has come to rescue them.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh557oFBLZk7I27s4qS1FfToNBNCKZzW38eDp3CSwHEwhcECpoL_0Q9zfkq_kZW8dzwujwKwW7aWnv2-pzWzOVF1rJ5iS2SgC8Nf2cu1vzPgNf1i2-fSYUUJcE_3ewJ0PSknGYCxpwrrhc3/s1600/alumni_spinedevil_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh557oFBLZk7I27s4qS1FfToNBNCKZzW38eDp3CSwHEwhcECpoL_0Q9zfkq_kZW8dzwujwKwW7aWnv2-pzWzOVF1rJ5iS2SgC8Nf2cu1vzPgNf1i2-fSYUUJcE_3ewJ0PSknGYCxpwrrhc3/s320/alumni_spinedevil_3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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Framarth, the theurge (equivalents of priests to the duergar) in the room assails the party with blasts of brimstone and horrible fumes, causing them some damage while the other duergar and the devils fight them directly. In the confusion, the elf slave sees an opportunity to slip out of his shackles as he has been planning for some time, and makes a daring acrobatic escape, fleeing out of the room and out of sight. The fight continues in spite of his escape, as the Collective is more of a threat.<br />
<br />
But the elf is more formidable than he seems. A short time later, he returns to the room, and opens the chest where the duergar were keeping the slave's possessions. He quickly reequips himself with his gear, and begins firing arrows from his bow while trying to stay out of sight. Before long, the duergar and the devils are beaten, and the elf introduces himself to the party.<br />
<br />
It is none other than <a href="http://thtmtw.blogspot.com/p/cast.html#tam">Tam'elanath Edroin</a>, one of the very first members of the Eclipse Collective (before it was even called that). Zil'dejin recognizes him instantly, and Tam'elanath explains how he was captured by the duergar in Lakeside some time ago. He decides to take up arms again with the party, at least until he can get out of Thunderspire. The Collective then frees the slaves, who tell them that Paldemar is not with them, but there are other slaves in the great hall. They request that the party escorts them back to safety. Remembering the trouble at the Seven-Pillared Hall, they are reluctant to do so, but eventually Zil'dejin leads them to the armory they discovered earlier to arm the former slaves and parts with the group to lead them out of the mountain himself.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtpHeAHe9Yzpv6MHViWAjFB5ge7MMKImFJZNWF7aeE4ptnCWyENftIen7XX-t9pVBNYh1f_1SUwwIH2VFzPDmic-PJc9fAR9_LTEn9oLFTEjISf7D1qZxySxOM8-ENfwewSPTytiLs1-5F/s1600/tamfull.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtpHeAHe9Yzpv6MHViWAjFB5ge7MMKImFJZNWF7aeE4ptnCWyENftIen7XX-t9pVBNYh1f_1SUwwIH2VFzPDmic-PJc9fAR9_LTEn9oLFTEjISf7D1qZxySxOM8-ENfwewSPTytiLs1-5F/s320/tamfull.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Meanwhile, the rest of the group proceeds onwards in the direction they were told to find the great hall, and find a door that seems to hold loud yelling and laughter behind it. Thinking this to be the hall, they open the door to find what appears to be the head of the duergar within, accompanied by a few of his men. This is Murkelmor, the head warlord of the Horned Hold. As the group enters, he tells them that he intends to sell them as slaves to the mind flayers. Combat begins.<br />
<br />
Murkelmor and his men fight hard, but are overwhelmed. Though they are able to expand in size (and strength) when cornered, the Collective wears them down before long. Tam'elanath demonstrates his almost-forgotten skill by turning one of the shock troopers into an apparent sponge, with a massive singular entry wound and dozens of tiny exit wounds on his back. Their leader Murkelmor is spared for the purpose of obtaining information, but all of his men are killed. He is bound (read: wrapped entirely with rope from neck to feet) by Stahlstrauss and interrogated by the party, revealing some important information. Paldemar is no slave of the duergar, and has apparently recently been dealing with a gnoll named Maldrick Scarmaker, who runs a gang of his kind in Thunderspire called the "Blackfangs." They operate out of an area elsewhere in the labyrinth called the "Well of Demons." Murkelmor gives no more information than this, so Stahlstrauss thinks to leave him in his bedroom and fill the room with smoke from the fireplace there. Eshunu prevents this from happening, and so the group just leaves him there instead. They also take a treasure mounted on his wall: a fierce-looking greataxe, clearly taken from the minotaur statue found earlier. It is taken by Lucan.<br />
<br />
From here, they proceed further towards the great hall, and encounter a group of orcs, accompanied by an ogre and led by a half-orc. As combat is about to begin, one orc (who fled the party earlier) recognizes the group, and begins yelling in panic about the terrifying warforged and the man who split his own tongue on his axe. The Collective attempts "diplomatic" resolutions, and rattles off their defeats of the duergar so far while talking down the orcs. Eventually, the orcs subsist, and are willing to let them pass, particularly because they are now looking for Maldrick Scarmaker and his gnolls. The half-orc leader attempts to mark their map to indicate where they can find the Well of Demons, and the party goes on their way.<br />
<br />
They find an abandoned barracks, bar the door, set up Stahlstrauss and Eshunu to watch over them, and rest for the night.<br />
<br />
<i>Sar, Barrakas 14, 998 YK (Day 28)</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
When they wake, they proceed across a bridge to the last section of the Horned Hold they have not yet visited: the great hall. They are two duergar on guard at the door they enter through.<br />
<br />
As they enter, Tam'elanath quickly spots a pile of rubble which is out of the ordinary. He calls attention to it, and it becomes apparent that the rocky covering is obscuring what appears to be a pile of raw diamonds.<br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #38761d; font-size: x-small;">Damn it, Cameron. </span></blockquote>The duergar now notice it as well, and flock to the diamonds to have their share. As they are distracted, Cecil binds one of them with the icy Chains of Levistus; the other one, rather than helping, bends to his greed and takes the opportunity. Both of them are killed quickly. Before long, though, they are supported by more duergar, and the party is assaulted by more guards and Rundarr, the duergar's champion.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfP9udg2D4clsTdc7ckJ-Itqwc9TItqrLOWn4d728cmXbvmr0LSqrqhBro1GGNZPvO7FrHdO17YTkK44LEaCr2H4ULnXHTEB5YIZS7PlCLcnTLpDIo7LxXwC3usiSciulQ3g5WU0oZr-ZB/s1600/rundarr.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfP9udg2D4clsTdc7ckJ-Itqwc9TItqrLOWn4d728cmXbvmr0LSqrqhBro1GGNZPvO7FrHdO17YTkK44LEaCr2H4ULnXHTEB5YIZS7PlCLcnTLpDIo7LxXwC3usiSciulQ3g5WU0oZr-ZB/s320/rundarr.png" width="277" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Besides this, crossbow bolts are hitting the party members from an unknown origin. Tam'elanath and Cecil are eventually pushed away from the rest of the party into a side hallway, where they discover the three remaining slaves. They inform the two that one of the duergar had turned invisible while they were watching.<br />
<br />
Just as the fight seems to tip in their favour, there is some noise behind Eshunu, who is positioned "safely" on the bridge. A duergar theurge has arrived to join the fight.<br />
<br />
And she has brought the revived Thair Coalstriker.<br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #38761d; font-size: x-small;">Words fail me.</span></blockquote>Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-22640408617517184922011-04-13T16:02:00.000-07:002011-05-04T22:55:44.665-07:00Thunderspire IV: The Horned Hold (part 1)<i>Far, Barrakas 13, 998 YK (Day 27)</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
The Collective proceeds into the Horned Hold from the portcullis room. They come across two doors: one set of double doors straight ahead, and a smaller door to the left, which opens from within and includes no handle. It is apparently locked, so they attempt to bash it down, and, in time, succeed. Inside, they discover what appears to be the duergar armory, which is filled with mundane weapons and armour. After briefly discussing a plan involving using the armour to disguise themselves (unlikely to succeed given that they are still not duergar in that case), they leave, and proceed to the double doors. They hear the hammering of iron and the barking of commands from behind them - it is a smithy.<br />
<br />
Inside, a duergar master smith commands a small number of assistants and some orc guards. He turns as the party enters, and seems very familiar to Zil'dejin. Before long, it becomes clear just why this is the case: the master smith under the duergar's employ is in fact <a href="http://thtmtw.blogspot.com/2010/07/coalstriker-incident.html">Thair Coalstriker</a>.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf_roXqnFvf9IvU3skuUzdhr6w-b6dDxhjhPpkug11i9sen8u3kFAgUwQG2SqEG-bRkRq8GjnnrjZ01tWP-qSgcSHsIS-PABwR6cpee8RWoKRKPz23mYG58QgJDrfdP-A2Rmhq-wTZjiVc/s1600/weapon_smith_by_Omuk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf_roXqnFvf9IvU3skuUzdhr6w-b6dDxhjhPpkug11i9sen8u3kFAgUwQG2SqEG-bRkRq8GjnnrjZ01tWP-qSgcSHsIS-PABwR6cpee8RWoKRKPz23mYG58QgJDrfdP-A2Rmhq-wTZjiVc/s320/weapon_smith_by_Omuk.jpg" width="229" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>He's back, baby.</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
His reasons for being in the Horned Hold are vague, at best. His release from Padraig's prison in Winterhaven led to exile from the town about one month following his arrest, with that incident providing the final push after Thair's history of short temper and hostility. After recognizing Zil'dejin, he claims he has followed the party's trail from Winterhaven to the Thunderspire Labyrinth, but this claim is dubious. His presence is more likely a coincidence.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">As Zil'dejin realizes the connection, he panics and moves slightly closer to the back of the party. The rest of his group remains confused. He briefly explains his reasons for his reservations, though it becomes clear in a few moments anyway; Thair grabs a weapon from the forge fire and smashes it on the floor, spilling blazing hot coals across the floor in front of the doorway.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">A battle then begins between Thair and his underlings and the Eclipse Collective. The reluctant duergar assistants and orc hirelings are forced into combat by the dwarf, even against the burning coals on the ground and the fact that they are outnumbered. One of the orcs flees, and the duergar assistants perish quickly. Cecil unleashes a more potent display of his power than he had shown before:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">"By the fires, be purged! I summon the flames of Phlegethos!"</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Infernal streams of liquid fire course out from Cecil's fingertips and coat Thair, burning away sections of his clothing, melting his armor, and searing his flesh. Thair insists he will deal with Cecil shortly, but disregards him for the present to focus on Zil'dejin, who is the last member of the Eclipse Collective that he is still able to recognize. Zil'dejin takes a rather savage beating, but as he just about to fall, Stahlstrauss jumps in front of him and pushes him out of the way, withstanding the hit instead.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">It is towards the end of the battle with Thair Coalstriker that the troglodytes and their angel break into the Horned Hold and attack the party from behind. The angel states in clear terms (though not in Common, the tongue is recognizable by any who hear it anyway) that Eshunu cannot be afforded to remain in the Labyrinth. He says that he will let the party be, if they surrender the druid to them.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJk_6okeg2CZv07K_AQOavyDg8b_G_-Zr8fimps15LBluOg7THTm44-QB_3y64j40oea08ku9I3xRSVMFIbjSmTPnKL0jK1OeM6Dq34DfVZrT_Me32PICc0wQMAsSI3CS3LQoJXYzFp3ch/s1600/AngelofValor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJk_6okeg2CZv07K_AQOavyDg8b_G_-Zr8fimps15LBluOg7THTm44-QB_3y64j40oea08ku9I3xRSVMFIbjSmTPnKL0jK1OeM6Dq34DfVZrT_Me32PICc0wQMAsSI3CS3LQoJXYzFp3ch/s320/AngelofValor.jpg" width="243" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Zil'dejin responds to this with a heavy-handed charge towards the newcomers. He engages the troglodytes in combat with the others for a while, as Stahlstrauss holds off Thair Coalstriker. While the rest of the party focuses on the troglodytes, Lucan decides to attack their angel accompaniment. As his greataxe connects, there is an enormous flash of light and a resounding burst of sound; when it subsides, nothing remains of the angel. Their main arm gone, the troglodytes flee the area.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Now alone, Thair Coalstriker is finished off quickly. The party takes him captive, but he is reluctant to cooperate. The party aggressively insists upon information and cooperation - Cecil in particular - and eventually, disgraced, Thair throws himself off of one of the bridges connecting the Horned Hold keeps and into the ravine below. Stahlstrauss looks over the railing. "...maybe he's alright."</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Zil'dejin casts an angry glance at Cecil. "You nagged him to death!"</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">"Good riddance," Cecil says, though even he seems somewhat unconvinced.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">The party enters into a hallway that splits in two. One door has noises of activity emerging from behind it, and another seems to lead to a dimly-lit area. The party heads that way, and arrives in what appears to be the ruins of a chapel, at the center of which is large, crumbling statue of a minotaur. As the party enters, long-dead humanoid wights rise and attack. The Collective fights them off for a time, but as Stahlstrauss accidentally hits the statue, the wights shriek. Figuring this to be what is binding them, Stahlstrauss breaks apart the statue while the others fight off the wights, and they collapse, lifeless.</div>Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-87197485342910581882011-04-06T02:34:00.000-07:002011-05-23T13:30:26.353-07:00Thunderspire III: The Road of Shadows (part 2)<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">After a while the Collective follows the map (roughly) to a large, nature chasm, about 30 feet across. They see the Horned Hold at the other side, but now must find a way across to the only entrance. There is a drawbridge raised from the other side with an active guard post, and on the party's side, there are ruins of another post that was not kept in the same state of repair. The two buildings were once connected with signalling bells attached by a thick chain, but the chain has long rusted over. They formulate a quick plan to get across without raising the suspicion of the guards on the other side: Zil'dejin will swing across on the rusty chain, scale the cliff and lower the bridge. Lucan and Cecil use rope provided by Stahlstrauss to secure Zil'dejin to their side as a sort of failsafe, and Stahlstrauss and Zil'dejin ready themselves. Eshunu tries to use his scarabs as physical obstructions to silence the bells, but they fall off the chain and plummet. Stahlstrauss cuts the chain anyway with one great cleave, and gives no warning. Zil'dejin nearly misses this, and grabs the chain at the last possible second.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUxWNDBpEATS8kgT4RCfh-q6QFL0ZFatK95wJrYBcopPUVoz10QQhXQ24VG3LW47jQCtBJT95VGUsM0wOT6l0L_Z40Z1PRF71Mkv7vNfDtyPK5xVJHe4kjyQeU15Y54bZNMFVaLsbgvWGU/s1600/ChasmBackground.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUxWNDBpEATS8kgT4RCfh-q6QFL0ZFatK95wJrYBcopPUVoz10QQhXQ24VG3LW47jQCtBJT95VGUsM0wOT6l0L_Z40Z1PRF71Mkv7vNfDtyPK5xVJHe4kjyQeU15Y54bZNMFVaLsbgvWGU/s320/ChasmBackground.gif" width="320" /></a></div><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Stahlstrauss stows his axe. "Well... he was alright," he says to nobody in particular.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> Meanwhile, Zil'dejin has not realized that Luucan unwittingly tied himself to Zil'dejin in a failed attempt to secure him, and the two both swing into the ravine. Zil'dejin is able to roll with the impact, but Lucan is injured and slightly dazed. Zil'dejin grabs him with one hand and scales the cliff face, unties himself, and lowers the drawbridge quietly. The party crosses, and Eshunu takes some time to stare down the chasm and silently mourn his lost scarabs. They still must sneak past the outpost to get the Horned Hold unharmed, and a single set of footsteps are approaching from within.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Eshunu turns to a swarm of scarabs and attempts to hide among the rocks, but the insects are too large for his ambush plan to work properly. Lucan and Cecil go to hide behind some rocks, just out of sight. Stahlstrauss attempts to raise the drawbridge again so their pursuers can't follow them, but uses too much strength and breaks the ancient stop on the mechanism, leaving the bridge permanently lowered. Zil'dejin hides on cliff face, hanging from the severed chain. As the duergar guard approaches to investigate, he shakes the chain, ringing the bells and drawing the guard to him. The guard peers over the cliff, and Zil'dejin thrusts his halberd into the duergar's eye, who is in shock and unable to scream. He then pulls the weapon back hard, and sends the dark dwarf over the cliff and into the chasm below. He then climbs back up, and Cecil congratulates him.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"Not much discretion - but very good."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Zil'dejin then provides a brief reflection, and refers to Lucan as having been "unconscious through the whole thing," and Lucan takes deep offense, claiming he was never unconscious at all. Zil'dejin is challenged to a "Duel of Elation," something certainly made up by Lucan, where the victor will make the most people happy in a certain period of time. Zil'dejin scoffs, but on his honour, accepts anyway. Lucan simply pours his overflowing emotions into Cecil, and Zil'dejin responds by recounting a story he believes to be inspiring. It is not; it is instead the <a href="http://thtmtw.blogspot.com/p/flashbacks.html">story of his escape from Cabor's Chains</a>, and is actually very depressing. Lucan wins the Duel of Elation... surprisingly.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj55yFWwoiwcNFx8o8Qj-98sxXBbmZBNOpQCUpuCTRmYyqxwi2Zx51IokVe85lHCqdHYDnXkQeKkbFxxaRi_8eCGUM99PkDUt_tIzomyfcmNNW0viwjwQF932ZHmqd8Cv7rM8YTfoLojMFo/s1600/hornedhold.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj55yFWwoiwcNFx8o8Qj-98sxXBbmZBNOpQCUpuCTRmYyqxwi2Zx51IokVe85lHCqdHYDnXkQeKkbFxxaRi_8eCGUM99PkDUt_tIzomyfcmNNW0viwjwQF932ZHmqd8Cv7rM8YTfoLojMFo/s320/hornedhold.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">They arrive, finally, at the Horned Hold, and sneak up to the portcullis that serves as the only gate to get inside the keep. There are five orcs inside, who begin attacking with spears and crossbows as soon as the party arrives in sight. Cecil observes that they are not of the strongest demeanor, and at least one might flee if they can only intimidate them. Stahlstrauss repeatedly attempts to tear open the portcullis, but even with Zil'dejin's assistance, he cannot. He resorts to throwing axes - only one of which actually hits its target. Meanwhile, Lucan follows up on Cecil's observation, and allows his intense euphoria to spill out, laughing maniacally and licking the blade of his axe in clear view of the orcs (his tongue is healed by his powers, but the orcs cannot see this). Stahlstrauss then leans in through the portcullis at the one looking most terrified, and stares it in the eyes.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"You know, there's enough space up here for an orc skull, too." He then grabs wildly for the orc's face, who falls backwards and then flees in terror.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">The rest of the battle continues with Cecil's dark powers being revealed for the first time, and Eshunu turns himself into scarabs to pass through the portcullis, lift a key from a guard's corpse and unlock the portcullis. The party proceeds inside and the door is relocked. Once in the Horned Hold, Eshunu's prophetic vision is fulfilled as a burning, divine creature with wings appears, accompanied by an escort of small lizard-like beings. They look at the portcullis for a time, which has been barricaded, and then at the Eclipse Collective. Eventually, they simply turn and leave.<br />
<br />
¹ <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">vv Actual dialogue from this conversation is after the jump vv</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"></div><a name='more'></a>======In-character Dialogue======<br />
<br />
Zil'dejin: "How dare you offend us like this?"<br />
Stahlstrauss: "Dragon. Lythanis has left."<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Cecil: "Lythanis? Who is Lythanis?"<br />
Stahlstrauss: "He was a frail girl!"<br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #38761d; font-size: x-small;">Even at the end Lythanis wasn't all that popular, apparently. </span></blockquote> Cecil: "You mean that he couldn't handle the pressure? <i>My </i>men died for me."<br />
(Eshunu looks agressive, stamps his feet, etc.)<br />
Zil'dejin: "Damn it, Eshunu! I wish you could actually speak!"<br />
Cecil: "Listen, don't take me for a useless companion that will just burden you. I have... powerful allies, let's say."<br />
Stahlstrauss: "Allies? Like who? You're the only one here."<br />
Eshunu: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">WHAT SKILLS DO YOU HAVE</span><br />
Cecil: "I have great magical abilities, that allow me to strike with great power."<br />
Zil'dejin (thoughtfully): "Hmm. Your lack of sanity will be an excellent asset to us."<br />
Cecil: "And you expect me to be sound of mind, after what's happened to my comrades?"<br />
Zil'dejin: "No. I mean that I think you will fit in well with us."<br />
Talbot: "I am sorry to interrupt, but, what will you do now?"<br />
Cecil: "I will look for my party."<br />
Zil'dejin: "And do what? They're dead."<br />
Cecil: "I will bury them."<br />
Zil'dejin (snorts): "<i>Bury them?</i>"<br />
Stahlstrauss: "You won't be burying much in the Labyrinth."<br />
Cecil: "A shallow grave will be fine."<br />
<br />
(talk about loot distribution for a while, not much of note)<br />
<br />
Talbot: "Then, have you any leads on where to go now?"<br />
Zil'dejin: "We have only this map."<br />
Lucan (leans in towards Cecil): "You know... we've killed many people."<br />
Cecil: "What? I don't want any part in murder."<br />
Lucan: "No, no. Look. We took them, and we ended their lives. But it wasn't murder."<br />
Cecil: "... who did you kill? And why? Was it you that was behind the deaths of the duergar merchants?"<br />
Zil'dejin: "Might have been."<br />
Talbot: "I'm sorry, but even I have not yet heard of this."<br />
Cecil: "Word travels quickly."<br />
Talbot: "Let us set this matter aside for now and plan."<br />
<br />
(everybody looks at map, talks about plan for a bit)<br />
<br />
Cecil: "What are you looking for now?"<br />
Zil'dejin: "We're looking for slaves."<br />
Cecil: "Slaves? Why?"<br />
Zil'dejin: "We're looking for somebody precious to the Mages. Also, the Rod. As were you."<br />
Cecil: "Very well then, let us carry on."<br />
<br />
(more planning)<br />
<br />
Cecil: "So... Zil'dejin. You seem to give straight answers. You truly killed all the duergar merchants?"<br />
Zil'dejin: "We did. They offended us."<br />
Stahlstrass: "They marked up my poison!"<br />
Eshunu: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">THEY WERE VERY RUDE</span><br />
Cecil: "How... immoral. I hope to bring some balance to this group."<br />
Talbot: "I hope you do, too."</div>Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-84119235285896327182011-04-06T00:34:00.001-07:002011-05-23T13:31:02.230-07:00Thunderspire III: The Road of Shadows (part 1)<i>Far, Barrakas 13, 998 YK (Day 27) (take </i>that, <i>hiatus!)</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
During the night - or, again, perhaps early in the morning - Lythanis becomes wracked with horrible, vivid nightmares. This is not unusual for him, as he has been plagued by nightmares of this sort since his hopeless battle with the Inspired at Dar Mirn several years before. The difference tonight was that he would not wake from his haunting visions. As the time came that he was roused from sleep, the dreams did not stop. He had at last succumbed to the illness he had contracted back in Riedra, and was no longer in control of his own body. His psyche trapped in a whirling hellscape of nightmares and his body under unknown influence, Lythanis departs while the rest of the party sleeps. He leaves behind only his journal, and with it, the last remnants of his former life.<br />
<div><br />
</div><div>As the rest of the Eclipse Collective awakens, this recent departure remains initially unclear, and there is no reason to suspect that things are not completely as normal. The main floor of the Halfmoon Inn is, as usual, relatively empty. Rendil Halfmoon and his aunt are seated at the counter, and the cloaked form of Talbot is seated across from a bald man, who is drinking sourly and tending to noticeable wounds. Curious by this new arrival, the available members of the collective sit at a table nearby to eavesdrop. They catch the tail end of what seems to have been a fairly serious conversation, about a contract of some sort for Mr. Artauche that the man has failed to meet his terms upon. Unless he can somehow assure Talbot that his contract is still viable, it will be considered void.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKB52aFzA5IqZAVNoA68sCVXxbsSz2HedxnPz9f3hhyW9c2SHQKfxTJMDE5e8XHRV0duEXXl-EQJGCSg6PyBotijgcRKJjnIGt76ZCbn1qun99z8JpJaWLIVfMHH1RpOLuWW97hT7XtNne/s1600/talbot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKB52aFzA5IqZAVNoA68sCVXxbsSz2HedxnPz9f3hhyW9c2SHQKfxTJMDE5e8XHRV0duEXXl-EQJGCSg6PyBotijgcRKJjnIGt76ZCbn1qun99z8JpJaWLIVfMHH1RpOLuWW97hT7XtNne/s320/talbot.jpg" width="226" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Talbot</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
</div><div>Soon, Talbot notices the party and indicates to the man that they are to be his replacements. They learn that he was part of another adventuring group, called the Reclaimer Company, that was also hired by Mr. Artauche to find the Rod of Order. Believing them to be a liability and a high risk of failure, he sent the Eclipse Collective after them. His mistrust was well placed, as the entire Reclaimer Company save this man was killed in an ambush in the Labyrinth. Seeing no other options, this stranger - who is introduced by Talbot as "Cecil" - asks to join with the Eclipse Collective temporarily, just until they retrieve the Rod. A discussion¹ about this ensues once Stahlstrauss finds that Lythanis is gone, and ultimately Cecil is accepted as a temporary member, then caught up with the party's current business. Talbot lays out a plan based on the map they found in the Horned Hold and directs them to go there and look for slaves, to find Paldemar. Cecil also marks the location on his map where his companions were killed.<br />
<br />
Suddenly, there is a clamour outside. The Collective goes to investigate, and Talbot stays inside. In the Hall, Rendil is propped against the wall of the Inn and watching a gathering mob some distance away. He informs them that a Duergar convoy, come to pick up food rations from the outpost, has discovered their companions dead and have rallied the Mages' Enforcers against the Eclipse Collective. Their numbers are great, and Rendil urges them to start running. After Eshunu has a sudden and dark prophetic vision about what is to come, they run out into the Labyrinth through the exit nearest the inn. Cecil expresses his regret for joining.<br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #38761d; font-size: x-small;">This is the first skill challenge with the new system.</span></blockquote>The enemies give chase, and the Collective quickly attempts evasive action. Stahlstrauss begins charging forward blindly to clear a path, while Eshunu rides atop his back and attempts to use his knowledge of Minotaur labyrinth systems to point him in the right direction. The charging is more than effective and clears aside much debris and rubble, forming a clear path, but Eshunu's directions leave something to be desired. Meanwhile, Lucan stays back to clear aside footprints while Cecil attempts to knock debris into the path of their pursuers, but Lucan lingers too long and is shot by a crossbow bolt, and Cecil strains himself in his attempts. After running a while, with the duergar and Enforcers still in tow, they come up with a plan to stop the pursuit. Zil'dejin contemplates lighting a fire using his alcohol, but has a hard time parting with his spirits. Eventually Eshunu knocks the bottle from his hand, and Zil'dejin lights it and runs, claiming Eshunu now "owes him one." The charging duergar are caught in the fire and with no alternate route, stop to tend to their wounded. The party escapes, but Garmeth has been lost in the confusion. Knowing his love of labyrinths, however, they leave him be, knowing he will catch up before long.<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">(Summary is continued in the next post and </span>¹<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">in-character dialogue from this discussion is in the next post, after the jump.)</span></div>Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-4737065082764525372011-03-12T13:48:00.000-08:002011-05-23T13:31:43.243-07:00Thunderspire II: The Grimmerzhul Outpost<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>Zor, Barrakas 12, 998 YK (Day 26).</i></div><div><i><br />
</i></div><div>Lucan, Zil'dejin, Garmeth and Lythanis return to the Chamber of Eyes the next day, presumably morning, although time is difficult to discern in the Seven Pillared Hall. Here, the interrogation of Reb continues, though all he is able to reveal is that the Bloodreavers sold their slaves to the duergar a few days ago, and knows nothing further. They ask if a wizard was present, looking for clues on Paldemar, but Reb is uncertain. The Collective debates for some time on what to do with the terrified Reb, and Zil'dejin's frustration mounts over the attitude of his companions towards the captured goblin. Eventually, he is simply let go.</div><div><br />
</div><div>With their only lead being the selling of the slaves to the duergar, the party moves back to the Seven-Pillared Hall to question the Clan Grimmerzhul merchants who keep their trade outpost. This is still based on the assumption that Paldemar was indeed captured and made a slave, which, while the most likely scenario, has yet to be verified.</div><div><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqoGuwQypLZvFNGxdTgfiJ-b-5u8_eVn8NwV76PSOxY55der3VyADwzSTJYdB0UikHr_KcI6DcN6Ebv58Wx0n3tTYvcp-6IEbRu1iKWmPsXxYZNy6w_Evk8-dBisTsdWvDn7s6QsUJvNfX/s1600/tradepost.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqoGuwQypLZvFNGxdTgfiJ-b-5u8_eVn8NwV76PSOxY55der3VyADwzSTJYdB0UikHr_KcI6DcN6Ebv58Wx0n3tTYvcp-6IEbRu1iKWmPsXxYZNy6w_Evk8-dBisTsdWvDn7s6QsUJvNfX/s320/tradepost.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The duergar within are every bit as cold and unreceptive as they had been the last time the Eclipse Collective had visited the trading post. It is clear that they are willing to tolerate the group as long as they have money to offer. When questioned on the topic of the purchased slaves, the duergar act insulted and order the group to leave. They do, and outside they deliberate their next move.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">They realize they have evidence, but that law is loose in the Seven Pillared Hall, and they will likely receive no direct support from the Mages of Saruun if they attack the duergar. Still, this is their only lead, and they conclude that they must follow up on it.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">They reenter the post, and the duergar have now elevated to the level of hostilities, going so far as to draw their weapons and threaten the Collective. The group sees this reaction and reflexively draws weapons themselves, and a fight ensues.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The duergar at the front of the post are rapidly joined by more of their kin from somewhere in the recesses behind the storefront, and the battle goes on for some time, looking grim briefly. After a while, however, all the duergar are defeated, and the party looks around in the trading post for any further clues, having obtained nothing from the duergar themselves. Searching the back rooms, they discover little other than some bedrooms, but discover in one of them a dresser containing a rudimentary map marked in dwarven glyphs, and another letter - also written in dwarvish - apparently addressed to the owner of the room.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">After the long day - most of which was spent moving back and forth through the labyrinth - the party investigates some minor leads in the Seven Pillared Hall, and go to rest in their respective rooms at the Halfmoon Inn, prepared to contemplate their next move the following day.</div>Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-83428136102262258112011-03-12T13:35:00.000-08:002011-05-23T13:31:53.743-07:00Thunderspire I: The Chamber of Eyes<i>Wir, Barrakas 11, 998 YK (Day 25).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
With only slight difficulty, the Collective follows Rendil Halfmoon's map through the Labyrinth to the so-called Chamber of Eyes, the current hideout of the Bloodreavers. On entry, they find themselves in a large, mostly-empty chamber littered with rubble, overlooked by a balcony at the opposite end. Other than the door through which they entered, there is only one other exit to the room, located on a wall to the party's right.<br />
<br />
They test the door and find it locked. Garmeth volunteers to pick the lock, and after an initially unsuccessful attempt is able to get the door open. The hall beyond that door opens up into what appears to be a guard outpost, containing a bugbear and a few goblins. They raise an alarm of sorts and charge the party, who fend them off in short time and consider their options. They are in a hallway, which acts as an intersection between four passages. Behind them is the way they came. To their left, the guard chamber, containing some rudimentary beds and other furniture, and stairs leading upwards. To their right, a hallway leading to a closed door, and in front of them another hallway, leading to a set of large double doors, embossed with the image of an eye.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj09DkypQE7XjgwKg4rKmwqTmnBD97aK4UQ6S-7V4NJ61X7poXJ5ii9uFn1xgjo5-iVbgRQzr773HUSxmxKMQbeHABLu6GsMQ3gsVyyP8nl1HByyCDNtIH2F0d2nLkgeTG8VAXCghICzjdu/s1600/chamber+of+eyes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj09DkypQE7XjgwKg4rKmwqTmnBD97aK4UQ6S-7V4NJ61X7poXJ5ii9uFn1xgjo5-iVbgRQzr773HUSxmxKMQbeHABLu6GsMQ3gsVyyP8nl1HByyCDNtIH2F0d2nLkgeTG8VAXCghICzjdu/s320/chamber+of+eyes.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>They decide to head through the guard post and up the stairs. The hall here splits into two; one way leads to the balcony overlooking the room the entered into, and the other leads to yet another closed door. They head this way, and open it. It is not locked. Inside, two duergar are resting in front of a fire. As the Collective enters, they spring to their feet and draw their weapons. Shortly into the battle, the commotion draws hobgoblins from adjacent quarter rooms, including the apparent warchief of the Bloodreavers, who is identified as Krand.<br />
<br />
A rather vicious battle ensues, throughout which Lythanis appears somewhat distant and remote, acting unusually. He is of little help to the battle, but ultimately the Collective emerges on top, and the entire group is defeated. They search the area for clues towards Paldemar's whereabouts. In the quarters of Warchief Krand, they find an enchanted set of armor, some money, and most importantly, a contract written in Common detailing an agreement between Krand and an unknown name (written in dwarven glyphs) for a purchase of slaves worth 1,000 gold pieces.<br />
<br />
The Collective then leaves this area, headed for the double doors. Inside, they find a large, mostly-empty chamber, containing a few hobgoblins and a massive black wolf lying on the floor. Chains, apparently manacles, are anchored to the ground and the walls, but do not hold any prisoners. As the party enters, the inhabitants of the room attack.<br />
<br />
The party fights back with great success, flowing smoothly in the battle and defeating their opponents with ease. Even the Dire Wolf they face is little match to them, and Zil'dejin finishes it with such a potent strike that the battered form of the beast is thereafter unrecognizable. After this is done, they search the room and discover a secret passage in the far corner of the room. After some deliberation, they choose to follow this dark passage.<br />
<br />
On the other side, they find themselves in a store room of some kind, containing numerous boxes and barrels. They see light and hear sounds of revelry from a room beyond, and they attempt to sneak through, but are detected by this room's occupants. Here, there are more goblins and hobgoblins, as well as a few shifty-looking humans. The Collective fights these enemies, and captures one of the goblins.<br />
<br />
After some slight questioning, they discover his name is Reb, and for the time being he is too frightened to give much more. The party decides to leave for the sake of resting, keeping the captured Reb under the watchful eyes of the sleepless constructs Stahlstrauss and Eshunu.<br />
<br />
The others - Zil'dejin, Lythanis, Lucan and Garmeth - return to the Seven-Pillared Hall and stay the night at the Halfmoon Inn, intending to return to the Chamber of Eyes the following morning.Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-20461221034019959912010-11-08T22:15:00.000-08:002011-05-23T13:32:37.138-07:00Into the Mountain<i>Zol, Barrakas 10, 998 YK (Day 24).</i><br />
<div><br />
</div><div>After an almost endless period of time, the party settles on calling themselves the "Eclipse Collective." They inform Mr. Artauche of this, who is relatively uninterested, and wanted the name only for the sake of bureaucracy. Now that his forms have been filled, he grants them more details. They are to meet with one of his primary agents: a man named Talbot, who has been in the Seven Pillared Hall (the hub of civilization in the Labyrinth, maintained by the Mages of Saruun) for some time. He will have more information on the artifact Mr. Artauche desires, which is called the "Rod of Order." All that he is able to say about the item is that is reputed to have immense magical power, though he is uncertain what this power is.</div><div><br />
</div><div>Thunderspire is about a day north of Vedykar, so the party sets out immediately. Lucan decides he must leave once again, citing only "Medani business," and abandons the party once more.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcOqd1oeHMOtswWyjLACIKcLO9kS4A9mkl5gsUwubcnOZ3XP3-E9mF58lkcBh74zG_FR5h4CguGQwo5_3slj25jfOT1NKsBg0xDsX4-sqzSzQyDcNPVlKHX4I2YwAHYmhPtvfRjLy0aUVW/s1600/ashenspires.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcOqd1oeHMOtswWyjLACIKcLO9kS4A9mkl5gsUwubcnOZ3XP3-E9mF58lkcBh74zG_FR5h4CguGQwo5_3slj25jfOT1NKsBg0xDsX4-sqzSzQyDcNPVlKHX4I2YwAHYmhPtvfRjLy0aUVW/s320/ashenspires.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
</div><div><br />
</div><div><i>Wir, Barrakas 11, 998 YK (Day 25).</i></div><div><i><br />
</i></div><div>The Collective arrives at Thunderspire. The mountain is preempted by a large cobblestone pathway leading up one side and gated by an enormous arched doorway, flanked with elaborate minotaur statues. As they arrive, Lythanis stops to admire the craftsmanship of the old minotaur civilization.</div><div><br />
</div><div>They find the door leading into the mountain is closed. Two imposing guards are posted outside, who inform the party that the Mages of Saruun have ordered the place closed to outsiders, for the time being. When asked why, the guards offer little information. The party decides after some not-too-careful deliberation that waiting until the guards must leave to sleep is the best idea. They wait until the sun sets.</div><div><br />
</div><div>At this point, the guards posted out front go inside through a smaller iron door to the right of the main gate... and two different guards emerge, for a changing of the guard. The party groans all at once, with the exception of the mute Eshunu.<br />
<br />
</div><div>Stahlstrauss attempts to intimidate the guards into letting them in by yelling madly at them. The guards care little for what he has to say (yell?), and Lythanis believes a different approach is necessary. He attempts to sneak around the side of the mountain, presumably to look for an alternate way in, while Stahlstrauss provides a distraction by continuing to yell furiously. Lythanis, however, is not stealthy in the slightest, and Stahlstrauss in unable to intimidate the guards, and the plan fails completely.</div><div><br />
</div><div>Fed up with the guards' indifference to their plight, Lythanis launches into a long explanation of some obscure, almost-forgotten magic ritual used once to smite some group of mages' enemies to intimidate the guards. Knowing the power of the Mages of Saruun, the guards are put somewhat at unease. One guard decides to go inside to check with the Mages about the Eclipse Collective's business.</div><div><br />
</div><div>After some time, Zil'dejin grows impatient. He turns to the remaining guard and yells, "WHAT IS TAKING SO LONG?!" Stahlstrauss chimes in with a (helpful) "REALLY WHAT IS IT." The guard is intimidated by the presence of the two large and menacing individuals, and so turns inside to find out what the holdup is.</div><div><br />
</div><div>With the two posted guards gone, Garmeth hastily picks the lock on the iron door, and the party goes inside. They find themselves in a roughly-made room carved out of the rock and dirt, in which a small guard post is set up. Another guard sits at a table inside. Lythanis lies to him about their motives when questioned, and the guard believes what he is told. However, he still does not let the party further into the mountain.</div><div><br />
</div><div>After some time, growing alarmed by the quickly-coming approach of the two gate guards, Zil'dejin offers a bribe of 500 gold to the guard, who takes it and allows the party to proceed without his attention. As they leave the side chamber, they find themselves in a well-crafted but dimly lit hallway, huge and descending downwards from the minotaur gate. They notice footsteps approaching.</div><div><br />
</div><div>Eshunu uses his knowledge of cave and labyrinth layouts to guide the party to an easily missed side-passage at the side of the long hallway, and the five quickly duck inside. The guards pass by, and the Collective hears a conflict going on in the room at the end of the side-passage. The voices are apparently hobgoblin and halfling. Curious, the party goes inside to investigate.</div><div><br />
</div><div>The hobgoblins, who identify themselves as the "Bloodreavers," are attempting to kidnap a halfling in this room. The Bloodreavers also have a grudge against the Eclipse Collective for interrupting their slave deal with Kalarel at Winterhaven. This deal is revealed to be the reason for the numerous captures there, including that of Stahlstrauss, Eshunu, Garmeth and Lucan, as well as the attempted abduction of Typhus. They are enraged as the party is identified, and are riled up further by Stahlstrauss' taunting, and so they attack immediately, turning their attentions away from the halfling.</div><div><br />
</div><div>The fight proceeds quickly. Zil'dejin is in particularly good form in this battle, and is responsible for the final blow upon every hobgoblin slaver, which is also fueled by his immense hatred for slavery. The warcaster, who leads the small group of hobgoblins, attempts to take the halfling hostage, but is forced to drop him when Lythanis attacks him telekinetically and pulls him away, allowing the rest of the party to eliminate him.When the battle clears, the party speaks with the halfling, who introduces himself as "Rendil Halfmoon," claiming his family owns the only inn in the Seven Pillared Hall. He offers to guide the Collective there through the labyrinth to the Hall, and they accept.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8hHjmGjAjWEz8Gsl1cImIeGMekR2ieTn6jVlNa0kOg2DTjjalzd7dOmJqtVPmPuYHPaJ7etMYErxjT1TTS_XnuO2nX1_SXgR2CRSG5RUoVZEOkyO8Xz3h_eyifkpw23UWHwC8JedZA3wy/s1600/sevenpillared.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="169" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8hHjmGjAjWEz8Gsl1cImIeGMekR2ieTn6jVlNa0kOg2DTjjalzd7dOmJqtVPmPuYHPaJ7etMYErxjT1TTS_XnuO2nX1_SXgR2CRSG5RUoVZEOkyO8Xz3h_eyifkpw23UWHwC8JedZA3wy/s320/sevenpillared.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
</div><div><br />
</div><div>Once at the Hall, they check in with the frequently-apologizing Talbot, a man with sharp features and a love of dark clothing. He tells them a bit more about the Mages of Saruun and their lock-down of the Seven Pillared Hall and the entire labyrinth. His information on the Rod of Order has so far been very limited, and he informs the Collective that their best bet is to speak with the Mages themselves.</div><div><br />
</div><div>After browsing around some shops in the Hall, they are accosted by the guards from earlier, and are brought to a teleportation circle connected to the Mages' tower. Inside, a mage named Orontor offers to forgive their trespass and possibly even allow them to take the Rod of Order from the hall if they can investigate the whereabouts another mage of their order, named Paldemar. As it happens, Paldemar has been missing for a few weeks without contact. The party, seeing no other option, agrees, and Orontor gives them a small metal symbol (an eye with a snake wrapped around it) as proof they are working for the Mages.<br />
<br />
They visit the Halfmoon Inn for directions, and with a map drawn by Rendil Halfmoon, set out into the Labyrinth to look in the first place they can come up with for a missing person: in the hands of the Bloodreavers, the hobgoblin slavers in the mountain.</div>Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3377613678666845924.post-65639924014999863142010-11-08T21:52:00.000-08:002011-05-23T13:33:09.098-07:00The Golden Claw, Pt. II<i>Mol, Barrakas 9, 998 YK (Day 23).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
During the interval in which they rest before proceeding to the next part of the ruin, the party is rejoined by Garmeth and Lucan. Garmeth's inability to accompany the group in the first place is explained by him as "severe illness, due to eating nothing but rats and insects for so long in Winterhaven." The group decides not to press the matter. Meanwhile, Lucan's return is apparently incidental, and his acquisition of information on the party's whereabouts and current business is mysterious, but is possibly best explained by his connection to House Medani. Tam'elanath, however, remains in Lakeside; he contemplates as he has before if the life of an adventurer is really meant for him.<br />
<br />
After the brief reunion concludes, the six open the double doors and proceed into the next chamber, which is mostly empty save for a deep well in the center and a side room splitting off at the side. Here, they are met with another group of gnolls, including one particularly savage-looking one outfitted in human remains and wielding a large flail. They are attacked immediately upon entry, and are forced to defend themselves.<br />
<br />
The battle proceeds more or less as expected, until one of the gnolls is pushed into the well by Lythanis' telekinetic abilities. At this point, the party hears some loud crunching and muffled screaming; they pass this off as an ideal success in killing the gnoll.<br />
<br />
Some time later, however, a different creature arises from out of the well. They are able to identify it (with some difficulty) as a "Carrion Crawler," a bizarre millipede-like creature that survives off of animal remains. Awakened by the gnoll pushed into its domain of the well, it rises to the surface of the room and joins the fray.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8gLVR7I_ZsY3M_znW52t8WNAmhT92ausFXJxzUEuAdR48KowUlk4asAZUr00VQ-_OVMpLrtm0zVeNP_vzZIU_hW2aLet48M4TNxKrZYOpDQjtZkuBdAvpEwfy4qDmwZh8Xd5Aitv395XF/s1600/carrioncrawler.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8gLVR7I_ZsY3M_znW52t8WNAmhT92ausFXJxzUEuAdR48KowUlk4asAZUr00VQ-_OVMpLrtm0zVeNP_vzZIU_hW2aLet48M4TNxKrZYOpDQjtZkuBdAvpEwfy4qDmwZh8Xd5Aitv395XF/s320/carrioncrawler.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><br />
<br />
The toxin it emits is, initially, a little daunting for the group, and its paralytic effects prove surprising and somewhat difficult to contend with. Eventually, however, once Stahlstrauss and Eshunu have cleared the rest of the chamber of gnolls, the party is able to kill the creature. The room now safe, the party investigates. In the adjacent side room, they find the Golden Claw atop an old, long-dried fountain, which is handled by Lythanis.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile, Stahlstrauss and Garmeth decide to descend into the well from which the carrion crawler emerged, and using lengths of rope supported by Lucan and Eshunu (and to some tiny degree, Lytnanus), move to the bottom of the well. Here, they find nothing but darkness and a tunnel that descends further into the earth. It ends in a blocked off passageway, which they decide to break open.<br />
<br />
They see only a larger passageway within, but hear strange sounds. The ensuing dialogue at this point is as follows:<br />
<br />
Stalhstrauss: "Should we keep going?"<br />
Garmeth: "I don't know. I'd give it 50/50."<br />
Stahlstrauss: "I hear... millions of tiny claws."<br />
Garmeth: "Our odds aren't good here. I don't even think I could heal you if something happened."<br />
<br />
Lengthy pause. The silence is filled by distant skittering.<br />
<br />
Stalhstrauss: "Let's get the hell out of here."<br />
Garmeth: "Yes. Let's."<br />
<br />
They attempt with some difficulty to escape the well, and the party emerges from the chamber just as more carrion crawlers burst from the well. They shut the door behind them and run from the ruins, leaving them behind.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqgDZDKyqoVD3QLSXweU7bmj3Ny3CgEJMhTH08Bbn0DglwV_oix0Mo3-SUuPqijRuywJsc6w8t05qioQ81y2TIAMveFXvOG0arBLvZ9dO-7xR0iO4nhJ6d0a_NTuzT31LGYMeyrDKjZRvO/s1600/goldenclawruins.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqgDZDKyqoVD3QLSXweU7bmj3Ny3CgEJMhTH08Bbn0DglwV_oix0Mo3-SUuPqijRuywJsc6w8t05qioQ81y2TIAMveFXvOG0arBLvZ9dO-7xR0iO4nhJ6d0a_NTuzT31LGYMeyrDKjZRvO/s320/goldenclawruins.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
They return to Vulyar, where after additional confusion as to where to meet the agent, they finally return to him at the Singing Serpent and give him the claw, receiving their reward. The agent also tells them that Mr. Artauche has more work for them, and would like to meet them at his home in Vedykar, if they are so inclined. The party agrees, and works on how to get to Vedykar from Vulyar, as there is no Lightning Rail line between the locations. They eventually locate a small guild of mages in Vulyar which has a sister guild in Vedykar, and for a small fee the knowledgeable dwarf custodian allows them to use their linked teleportation circle.<br />
<br />
One disorienting teleportation later, they arrive in Vedykar, and stay the night at the "Horse and Ass" inn, a shabby establishment in which many questionable drinks are had and Garmeth is given a bar of soap. Garmeth and Lythanis have a heated argument about eating rats (as Garmeth did in Winterhaven); Garmeth calls Lythanis uncivilized, who takes great offense at the accusation. Lythanis and Zil'dejin play a card game. Everybody finally goes to rest.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">* * *</div><br />
<i>Zol, Barrakas 10, 998 YK (Day 24).</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
The party tours various shops around the city, including Davran's Magical Items owned by a snarky halfling, and Dorragan Coalstriker's smithy, where Stahlstrauss learns a bit more about the Coalstriker family and their distribution throughout Karrnath. They also visit a guild of mercenaries, the Bladed Arms, where they are summarily kicked out.<br />
<br />
Finally, the six goes to meet Mr. Artauche in his manor on Wealth Street. They are admitted on official business, and meet Mr. Artauche himself, who introduces himself as "Remelius Artauche." He is a tall, slender man with a serious face, clean-cut appearance and extravagant clothes. In his office, which is littered with various devices, he explains he has a contract to adventurers willing to go to the Thunderspire, the tallest of the Ashen Spires to the north where a small group of mages has control over a former minotaur labyrinth. He is looking for an artifact from there, and believes the party has proved themselves capable of retrieving it.<br />
<br />
The party considers it, and finally agrees. He has them sign a series of contracts binding them to his business; one for each party member, and one that collectively represents the party. He asks them to sign the name of their adventuring company; the party needs to take a moment to consider what this is.<br />
<br />
It takes much longer than expected.Il Maestro del Dungeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16904996386664275969noreply@blogger.com0