Journal #8 - August 2010

Real Date: 22-Aug-10
Game Date: 12/01

With barely time to draw breath after rescuing Baeshra from the gelatinous cube the party are attacked by some extremely smelly rotting corpses which threw lumps of their own corrupted flesh as an attack which caused Tryn's flesh to start rotting as well. Ash manages to Turn them and they back off a distance whilst taking some serious sparkly radiant damage. Balasar and Tryn continue to pummel away at the corrupted corpses as Ash uses his Lance of Faith to shine forth the divine glory of Pelor upon the unclean spirits. Arranis deals the death blow to the final corpse with a might Magic Missile.

[750xp/5]

The next few rooms contain a pair of plain-looking sarcophagi and a chest within which there are three amulets. One of which is rather shiny, in a nicely magical type of way, and the other two have the names of Sir Keegan's children inscribed on them. Also in the chest are some wooden practice swords and a hairbush with a mother of pearl handle.

Treasure
1x Amulet (Safewing +1) = Arranis
2x Children's Amulets (450GP in total)
1x Mother of Pearl Handled Hairbrush

After an extended rest to get Baeshra back on his feet and a lengthy review of maps scrawled so far they head off and find a room they hadn't so far investigated. And what a room! Rivers of blood and a Priest of Orcus accompanied by skelewags.

Treasure from Priest of Orcus
1x Mace
1x Dagger

[975xp/5]

The blood within this temple flows to the centre and down into a pit. The pit has four chains descending into the darkness, slick with gallons of blood. The only way forward is down so the party attempt to climb down the slippery chains with varying degress of success with Ash, Arranis and Balasar falling into the darkness and landing badly in a pool of blood fifty-plus feet below. Arranis and Balasar are fairly quick to recover themselves, but Ash can't find his footing.Which is particularly bad news as this is the temple to Orcus with Kalarel himself presiding over the ritual to open the rift and bring Orcus and his minions into the world. Kalarel had been waiting for them and opens fire with his diabolical powers. Tryn bravely takes on a wight all by himself while Balasar, Arranis and Baeshra fight Kalarel and his minion skeletons. Ash eventually makes his way out of the pool of blood and joins the fight as the skellybones slowly fall one by one and Tryn single-handedly dispatches the wight. Kalarel is on his own but he is stood in front of the rift itself and black tendrils of nether-worldly nastiness lash out at anyone who passes too close. Kalarel tries to draw the party towards him but they are wise to the trap and continue their long-range hit and run tactics... until, with a cry to the glory of Orcus, Kalarel falls. Before he can hit the ground, though, a black tendril wraps itself around his body and drags him into the rift.

Success! Kalarel and his death cult have been uncovered and maybe even eradicated. To prove to Edric in Waterdeep that the job has been done Ash takes Kalarel's Prayer Book with the intention of showing it to Edric and then destroying it.

[Encounter = 1350xp/5]
[Quest Bonus = 2000xp/5]
[Misc Bonus = 750xp/5]

Aaaaaand rest...

Journal #4 - January 2010

Real Date: 17-Jan-10

Game Date: 06/01

The party head back up the stairs and stake the door shut, deciding to explore further on the level they came in on rather than plumb the depths of the undead horde they fear below. They hear some goblins arguing and discover three of the ugly spuds accompanied by two drakes. Naturally, a fight follows... The room the goblins had occupied was heavily excavated. Amongst the gold and weapons on the goblin bodies they find a holy symbol shaped like a dragon's claw.

Treasure Haul
22GP
3x Shortbows
3x Crossbows
40x Crossbow bolts

Experience: 125xp each

After an extended rest whilst on watch with Arranis, Ash hears the distant sounds of battle. He asks Arranis but he can't hear it... and neither can anyone else in the party. Ash also feels colder and is suspicious that this might be a targeted attack on him but isn't sure... maybe he's just more sensitive to the memories of the keep than the others and can hear the echoes of battles long fought? Time will tell...

Deciding that they are now brave enough, they descend the stairs and find a roughly hewn room or cavern in which they are attacked by giant rats and an ochre jelly. The jelly is really nasty, causing acid damage and even subdividing into two equally vicious jellies - twice the jelly, twice the fun! In combination with the rats the jellies prove to be formidable foes, nearly finishing off Balasar with their deadly secretions, so they bravely run away and rest overnight to lick their wounds.

Experience: 60xp each

Game Date: 07/01

Exploring further they hear more goblin voices behind closed doors and formulate an elaborate plan to draw them out with halfling taunting whilst the burly fighters hide behind the doors, ready to ambush anyone that comes out. The plan works insofar as Tryn gets shot in the arse with a crossbow bolt! A second attempt at the ambush draws out a hobgoblin who is quickly dispatched in one round, thus proving that it WAS a good plan after all. They rush into the room from which the hobgoblin had emerged and find a torture chamber with more goblins. 

After finishing off the goblins they find one imprisoned in a cell. They question the wretch, named Splug, who says that Balgron had ordered them to dig but doesn't know what for. Bartering for his life and freedom he completes as much of the map as he can for the party and tells tham about Balgron and his goblin retinue of five elite warriors and eight normal fighters. They set him free after Ash tries to bluff him into believing that he has cast a spell on a rope to bind him that will explode if he betrays them.

Treasure
55GP
55SP

Experience: 125xp each

Journal #3 - December 2009

Real Date: 06-Dec-09
Game Date: 05/01

After resting overnight the party decide to head to the burial ground to find Dauven Staul. They take most of the morning to get there and emerge into a clearing near a large crater. There are humanoids in the depression along with two small dragon-like creatures. A gnome calls out to the party to come and look what the workers had found. Naturally, they suspect a trap but go along with it anyway... There is a pitched battle in which Baeshra is taken down almost instantly by the small dragonoids, but the party are triumphant. They investigate a crate and find amongst the gold and silver a small mirror. They also find a nearby body covered in a sheet. The body turns out to be a bound and gagged figure that announces himself as Dauven Staul. He points out that this band that was working here were looking for an artifact. The party decide that Valthrun back in Winterhaven might know what the mirror is and if it was what they bad guys had been looking for in this dragon horde.


Treasure Haul
65GP 13SP

Experience: 120xp each (Total = 705 xp each)

Back in Winterhaven they notice that the locals are now all acting very strangely, they seem to be extremely troubled and worried about something so they make Lord Pardraig their first port of call. Pardraig hands over the final 50GP of the reward he had offered for Irontooth's head and says that he hadn't noticed any strange bahaviour in the town.

Next stop is the inn where they bump into an acquaintance of Darcorious from back home, Balasar, who informs Darco that he is needed by his family because their home is being attacked. Darco decides to leave and Balasar stays with the party in his stead.

Ash, Tryn and Arranis go to speak to Valthrun to ask about the mirror. Valthrun explains about the ancient empire of Nerath and tells them that there is an old keep to the north of the town built on a rift to the Shadowfell. The rift connects to the sanctuary of Orcus and was built to keep the undead at bay. The mirror may be a key to pass through the rift. He goes on to explain that 80 years previously Sir Keegan, the commander of the Keep, betrayed it's inhabitants and slaughtered nearly everyone that was within. Sir Keegan was eventually beaten but was merely banished to the depths. The keep as eventually abandoned when everyone thought the threat had abated and it was left to go to ruin...

They then go to speak to Sister Lenora who directs them to Elian who says that a door has opened and darkness lies beyond!

Game Date: 06/01

Set off at dawn towards the keep and take a spooky track off the main road eventaully finding a clearing near the ruin. There is evidence of tampering at the entrance to the ruins, with paths cleared. There is a stone staircase leading down into the darkness, a chill breeze accompanies them on their descent.

There is a room at the bottom of the stairs with a goblin at the far side who starts taunting Tryn. There is a minor skirmish and Balasar falls into a pit trap. More goblins pop up and there is more battle, settled by the party splitting in two and taking the enemy on two fronts, winning the day.

Treasure Haul
43GP 21SP

Experience: 135xp each (Total = 840 xp each)

Tryn gets bored while the rest of the party decide whether to clear the current level they're on or two explore further down... Tryn sneaks down the stairs while no-one is looking and the next thing the party know there is a scream from down below! Ash is first down the stairs and catches Tryn and stops him running off, it seems as though he is being compelled to run away in a blind panic. Ash finds that they are in a room full of zombies!

In a truly dazzling display of holy might, Ash calls upon the divine light of Pelor to turn the undead and is miraculously favoured when all but one are turned! The final zombie is blown to smithereens as Ash once more calls upon Pelor and his Lance of Faith.