XP Standings

Quick Update: Ortho and Daria make 11th level. Hjalmgerdr is within extra credit distance of 11th level.

Rudy, Rudy, Rudy...

I'd Buy That For A Goldpiece!

Vertram and Irgzid lead the party to the place where the troglodytes trade the Lords of Dread, slaves for shadow pearls. The room is carved by human hands, and ancient Olman drawings mark the entrance. The room is an inverted ziggurat, and the bottom most levels in the room are flooded. Ruined alters and collapsed columns form a makeshift bridge across the gloomy water.

The ghostly image of an ancient troglodyte priest appears. Irgzid calls out to his 'father' and says
that he has brought forth the heroes. The ghostly image tells the party that there is an artifact holding the Olman spirits captive, and the seas away. In order to drive out the Lords of Dread, the water must return to the depths of these caves and the Olman spirits freed. The party contines on its way, and Vertram returns to his village.

Further down, the party encounters another cavern where there are six of the petrified fish at the bottom of three vermin infested pits. Ruddy jumps down for a peek, and three very large Rhagodessas jump out and attackt he party. Nesta and Irgzid are quite hurt by the vicious bites, Daria and Gwyndelyn finish off two. The third holds on to take another satisfying bite out of Rudy. And eventually the third Rhagodessa falls. Daria finds the skeleton of a Kuo-toa in the bottom of the cave, after Ortho eliminates the vermin with a lighthing ball.

Exploring on, the group discovers the ruins of a giant underground city. Giant fungus and fleshy stone makup most of this bizzare scene. Abberant and unnatural, things are random jumble of freakish devilry. Three violet-glowing columns of fire burn from floor to ceiling in this giant chamber.

While examining the nearest violet column, a patrol group of four kopru and eight troglodytes. Rudy's eyes become a little glazed over as he turns from his original charge and throws his net at Vin. Persistant fire, applied to the kopru, free Rudy's not-so-agile mind. The patrol is quickly defeated after one well placed lightning strike from Ortho.

Attention returns to the violet column, and like a moth to the flame, Rudy swirls around it unable to take his attention from it. Hjalmgerdr's augury forecasts woe, Rudy takes damage by putting his hand in the violet flame. Not to be left out of the fun, Daria tosses a gold piece (won from an earlier bet with Rudy) into the column of fire. "I dare you to run through and pick that up". Unable to let it go, Rudy dashes in and promptly falls dead.

Shooting a couple of tied-off arrows into Rudy's mass, the party drags his body free. The party agrees to retreat, regroup, and return later. Maybe Rudy and Avner are sharing a toast at a bar in the afterlife.

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Session Characters: Ortho, Nesta, Rudolpho, Daria, Vin, Gwen, Hjalmgerdr
Session Loot: ring of evasion, 4 holy symbols of the Demogorgon (50 gp each).

XP Standings

Level 11: Nesta, Rudolpho, Vin, Gwendyln, Z
Level 10: Daria, Ortho, Hjalmgerdr, Chiri

Notes - Gwendyln advances to 11. (Daria and Ortho are close to advancing)

Secondary PCs
Level 10: Newt, Kongu, Spanky, Druugen, Medea

For Those Who've Turned to Rock, We Salute You

As the party crosses the cerulean curtain the whispers rise to a roar and return to whispers on the other side. A mile further the passageway branches into a 30' wide tunnel heading south, and a 20' wide tunnel heading west. Irgzid tells the party that to the south leads to where the troglodytes of his village would meet the Lords of Dread. Growing thoughful Irgzid remembers that going west would lead to a maze of chambers and at the far end, a secluded settlement called Barbas.

Irgzid visited it once as a child, before his village forged their alliance with the Lords of Dread. Irgzid engcourages the party to explore there, since it is likely to be the only safe haven in the realm of the Lords of Dread.

Traveling west, the party finds the maze and it is filled with cultivated fungi, some of which are deadly. Nesta successfully keeps the party on a safe path, and as they emerge from the maze 6 hook horrors attack loudly. The characters spring into action and quickly dispatch the horrors.

After things quiet down, an albino human comes forth from the village and introduces himself as headman Vertram Xapatalo. Vertram welcomes them to their humble village, and the party is welcome to stay there. The party rests and recovers, and as the party prepares to leave, Vertram offers to lead the party further, if they would investiate the Cavern of the Sleeping God.

Two miles past the intersection, the party arrives at the Cavern of the Sleeping God. At the far end of the cavern, the curlean curtain crosses the passage. In the middle of the room, there is a strange looking mound of stone shaped like a giant petrified fish. Vertram show the party that the stone is in fact alive, and would like the party to attempt to wake it up and see what they can learn from it.

After much prodding and poking, water and spells, the cracked shell spills enough fluids where the stone becomes silent. While dissapointed, Vertram is thankful to the party for their efforts. The party continues 16 miles to the next cavern.

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Session Characters: Nesta, Rudolpho, Vin, Gwendyln, Daria, Ortho, Hjalmgerdr.
Session Loot: none.

D&D Sunday Cancelled

Our story will continue next D&D Sunday.

I See A Black Ooze Rising

Irgzid leads the party two miles to a cavern he calls "The Burning Pools". He warns that the air in the room is deadly and the pools are acid. The party attempts to run across the room, but before that operation could be completed a very large black pudding attacks. As a painful reminder of the last time the party fought one without ready blunt weapons, the first edge weapon strikes, the pudding splits. Combat plays out similary to the first encounter with a pudding, and eventually the party prevails.

The party travels 8 miles on to a 70' wide cavern, with a hanging forest of stalactites and a deep drop below. There is a narrow ledge that spirals down the wall of the cavern, and hidden in the stalactites is a roper. The beast lashes out and precariously, the party fights and fells the creature. Nesta explores the bottom and discoveres a crumbling petrified forest.

16 miles past the chasm, the tunnel widens into a large cavern nearly 200' across A shimmering curtain of rippling blue light bisects the cavern from left to right and floor to ceiling. The light resembles a translucent membrane that swirls and sparkles like the surface of a pond. The cavern on the other side is visible through this sheen, and the tunnel proceeds around a corner at the far end. Shapes and figures seem to ripple ad writhe along the curtain of cerulean light, and now and then these shapes pass slowly enough to be identified as Olman warriors in battle gear. Their faces forming silent screams and a low whisper fills the room.

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Session Characters: Nesta, Hjalmgerdr, Rudolpho, Vin, Gwendyln, Chiri, Daria, Ortho
Session Loot: 4 large golden idols (3000 gp), skin full of 450 gp worth of trog junk, 11o doses of stannish (15 gp each), 1200 gp, +1 disruption flail, cloak of protection, staff of frost (24).

Note the staff is indeed a staff and not a wand. The base function is similar to the wand of frost entry, but uses staff mechanics instead of wand mechanics.

Village of the Damned Diseased

The party finds the entrance where Vanthus traded with the Lords of Dread. A cave whose entrance looks like a skull. The teeth are skulls impaled on spears, where the skulls eyes glow a sickly green. And sickly is right, as the party moves into the cave they are assaulted by a wave of nausea then a crazed dimetrodon. With part of the party struggling to keep their lunch down, overcoming the guard-dino is difficult.

Moving into the back cavern, four leprous troglodyte zealously fight to repel the party from the cavern, but are no match for the party. These trogs appear to be a strange cult, as the party loots the entrance.

Delving deeper, the party travels four miles to reach a cavern containing a foul-smelling troglodyte village. After a bit of sneaking, the party assaults the cult priests of the leprous trog-god, then loot the village.

The party rescues to prisoners from their cages: Irgzid Uzeye an outcast trog, and Jakara an Olman warrior. Irgzid believes that the village has fallen away from the true worship and the Lords of Dread are behind it. He will help lead the party as far as he knows the way, then he will return to deliver his village from the vile filth affliction. Jakara was in a comatose state, having contracted the disease of the trog village. He only recovers after a remove disease and a restoration is cast. The last thing he remembers is being on a hunting expedition and begin attack by a group of skin-walkers, feral half-demon Olmans who are a scurge in the center of the isle. Jakara leaves to return to his original destination, Farshore.

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Session Characters: Gwendelyn, Vin, Rudolpho, Nesta, Hjalmgerdr, Ortho, Daria
Session Loot: [future post]