The Apocalypse Stone or "Lemme Tarrasque a Question"

Following Boris, Dorune, Goldune, and Warrick's retrieval of the ornate egg from Castle Brave and turning it over to Gareth, the world went mad. It rained soup, then frog demons. The village near the adventurers' keep was decimated by plague. Someone (or something) slaughtered the retainers of our hero's keep and stitched them back together into horrific flesh golems. Dwarves and elves started living together. The city of Greyhawk was sucked into a massive sink hole. In all the end was upon them.

At the doughty explorer's keep, our party was attacked. Invisible fiends lashed them with magics that froze all but Boris in place. Spells were spun from the empty air while unseen talons and transparent fangs gouged the party. Brave Boris was, despite censure of his divine might, able to break the enchantment, freeing the party. Immediately the dwarf-troll hybrids went to work, one-by-one disassembling the pit fiends as Warrick lashed them eldritch might. Boris imploded the demons with his divine powers. In the end one pit fiend hovered, still invisible, above the party, punitively striking the heroes with sorcerous talents. Goldune grabbed his creche-brother and threw him at the demon, Dorune grabbing a hold and raining axe blows upon the floating fiend. The pit fiend's overlord, Maloubaub, then unmasked himself...only to be summarily destroyed by Boris' dweomer craft.

That night the party shared a dream of a snowy vale with a trail of blood leading to a distant castle. They awoke in that same vale, except no castle or bloody trail. Convinced that this was a sign of further trials they journeyed in the direction of a tower of smoke roughly in the direction that castle should have been. They found a ruined village and there were beset upon by an old knight who terrasque'd them to fight a great horned beast. Much debate occurred within the party, in the end the benefits of stopping one marauding beast versus those of stopping the apocalypse, could not be outweighed. They politely declined the knight's offer, who rode off fuming. The party was joined by a young boy, Ned, from a neighboring village who guided them on their journey.

As they journeyed further they were caught between warring factions of centaurs and wemics. Each side bemoaned their woes at the hands, hooves, or paws of their foes and each side offered a king's ransom for the adventurers to join their cause. The brothers Warbreed derided both sides as having great financial wealth which could be used to solve their problems rather than fighting over scraps. The party left the cowed lion men and horse men in their wake.

They journeyed on, coming upon a frozen knight kneeling before a forgotten, holy spring, a hidden altar to the god of justice. As they approached, the massive armored form began to move, and the skeletal visage of a death knight peered down upon the party. A deep, sepulchral voice emanated from the lungless mouth, "I am Lucius".

This Lucius turned out to be the same Lucius of legend, who with advancing age had faltered in his quest, who became jealous of his two squires' youthful prowess and struck them down, the god of justice cursing him henceforth. Remorseful, Lucius had tried all means that he could to lift his curse, to no avail. In the end, centuries ago he had come to his spring where he had remained in thoughtful prayer and contemplation. The spring's curative waters had not then or now, had any reversing effect on the justice god's curse. Hearing that the party intended to recover the Apocalypse Stone, Lucius begged to join their quest. The brothers Warbreed drank from the spring and felt invigorated. Boris took a flask of the spring's sacred waters for future use.

Their final trial took them to Ned's village, where the party interrupted the villagers from hanging an old crone, an herbalist who lived near the village. The villagers believed that the crone had kidnapped a child and sacrificed him to a demon as well as engaging in mutilation of cattle. Halting the lynch mob with a demonstration of whole body flossing using the mob provided rope, the party investigated. They found the missing child, Timi, who had fallen in a shallow well. However on investigating the crone's hovel they found the remnants of a mutilated steer. Cleared of murder, but guilty of consorting with demons, the witch was executed as a planar traitor.

Having successfully solved the challenges put fourth by the God of Justice, they were spirited away to the ruins of Castle Brave. There they found the naked and butchered corpses of many people, corpses that bore the mark of familiar ax and spell craft. Deep in a crevasse they found the madman who they thought they had killed during the last battle of Castle Brave. Although gravely injured and his body broken, the madman gibbered on. Using the healing waters of the spring, they healed the man, not only in body but in mind.

The man, speaking in a sonorous wise voice, revealed himself to be Parshawn II, who had been ruler of Castle Brave. He told our heroes that Gareth was his brother, a man twisted so by jealousy, that he had made demonic allies and cast nefarious spells to bring down Castle Brave and wrest the Apocalypse Stone from its environs. Gareth had cursed his brother with madness and polymorphed his retainers into the beasts that had attacked our heros when they raided the castle. The removal of the Apocalypse Stone from Castle Brave had started the destruction of the terrestrial plane, knocking it off its axis and severing the connection to the other planes.

By restoring Parshawn II, Boris regained a measure of his divine might. Then the disciple of justice, Parshawn, Second of His Name, transported the party to Castle Craven, Gareth's twisted replica of the now shattered home of the Apocalypse Stone. The party approached the gates, carving through the giant guards at the gate like a razor through a gelatinous cube. Inside the castle they found a team of mercenary adventures, sworn to the service of Gareth. These they dispatched with ease, despite having to face the untapped reserves of Gareth's powerful guard. In the end, they cast down the twisted half-god and liberated the Apocalypse Stone.

This object of creation was hurriedly returned to Castle Brave where Parshawn could contain its planar warping powers. He offered the heroes positions to help guard the Stone from further depredation, for he who controlled the Apocalypse Stone, controlled the stability of the planes. And so the strange band was sundered, the Warbreed taking up a new task as guardians while Warrick and Boris continued back into the world looking to greater understand eldritch and necromantic craft.

And so our tale ends...for now

Castle Brave

After defeating Azerack, Boris the necromancer, the wonderous Warrick, and the brothers Warbreed had semi-retired to a suddenly vacated large keep near the village of Bump. The villagers appreciated the more laissez faire tax laws of their new landlords and threw them a festival. At the festival a minstrel sang of Castle Brave, a mystical palace of marble and onyx created by the gods to test mortal heroes. It stood inviolate for centuries despite the gods sending their own champions to hoist their pennants over its contrasting roofs. In the end a mortal man named Parshawn who bore no weapon and rode without saddle defeated the castle and was crowned king of Castle Brave by the god of justice himself. Parshawn ruled for three centuries before finally crowning his eldest son king and vanishing in the wilds. Heroes had sought the castle for millennia since as it contained a treasure of unimaginable richness. The last knight to quest for this treasures had been one named Lucius with two squires, they had vanished thousands of years ago searching for the halls of Parshawn's heirs. It is unknown if Lucius fell before finishing his quest for whether he found the treasure and was elevated to demigodhood. The minstrel said that his mentor Dinar Fireharp had been told the story in a dream as one of the gods whispered it in his ear, and that he had in turn passed it onto his students.

The group decided to pursue rumors of Castle Brave, eventually locating an ancient sage of folklore named Thermose in the neighboring village of Rump. Thermose was doing his research from a foul smelling hovel rented for him by another group of more savory adventurers. Thermose allowed our brave companions to peruse his notes for 10000 gold ducats before he turned them over to his original employers. His notes expanded the tale of Castle Brave including that it appeared in random locations for a day before appearing somewhere else, and its terrors had to be defeated within that day or the heroes would be left behind. It further explained that only the bravest heroes would be directed to Castle Brave's location. As our companions left the hovel they encountered the three original adventurers who had hired the sage for his lore. The meeting was unpleasant but not lethal.

Eventually our doughty lads were contacted by the ethereal Prince Gareth the Kingfisher, Sign of Parshawn, who presented them with a diamond ring that contained his emblem. The ring glowed showing the bearing of Castle Brave. Gareth warned them that there would be many creatures within and around Castle Brave whose only mission was to stop them, with quarter neither given or asked. This did not concern the party oer much.

With the ring to guide them, they used magics to wind walk them to a far island upon which Castle Braves white and black walls acutely resided. Smoke rose from the island and as they flew over it they found two mated black dragons prowling the isle. They also saw a herd of gorgons chasing and consuming the petrified remains of a yuan-ti cult, fleeing their burnt temple. The party engaged the gorgons, dropping from the heavens like divine missiles. The bull abominations were no match for the cleaving waraxes of the clan Warbreed nor could they face the necromantic powers or eldritch might of Boris and Warrick. The nearly extinct yuan-ti informed our heroes that the gorgons along with the two black dragons were recent arrivals from the castle and that a third dragon, an ancient red was on the opposite side of the isle.

Concerned that the dragons would attack them on their way to Castle Brave or be strategically summoned once inside the castle walls, the brothers Warbreed, supported by the magic users sought out the ebony wyrms. They found them in their nest, slumbering, after having gorged on the local pteranodon nest. As Boris tried to use his command of fire to cow the dragons, the brothers Warbreed engaged at point blank range seeking to carve their way to the creatures acidic hearts. The troll-dwarf hybrids took incredible punishment from the acidic spittle of the creatures as well as their teeth and talons while the spellslingers chipped away at range. The twisted pair was dispatched and the party sought a greater threat under the fiery gaze of the great crimson beast.

They found the ancient red dragon devouring a seafaring folk who had discovered the island. Bolstered by Boris' protective spells the Warbreed charged the gigantic scaled horror absorbing the full holocaust of the beast's flaming breath, maw, talons, and bulk while returning hellacious axe strokes of their own backed by the spell might of Warrick and Boris. The titanic dragon was hardy and cruel but the brave band was hardier still eventually triumphing. After the fell dragon was laid low, the remaining seafarers told their tale, relating how they came to island only to be captured by the yuan-ti or slaughtered by the bird-women after scaling the cliffs to Castle Brave. These few had escaped the yuan-ti the rest had been trapped in the cauldron of flame created when the red dragon had incinerated the yuan-ti temple. The brothers hewed a small forest creating rafts for the stranded seafarers and wished them on their way.

They scaled the cliffs to Castle Brave, before its midnight and alabaster walls Boris summoned a series of increasingly powerful fire elementals. Through the destroyed portcullis they spied a despicable mew of harpies within the gatehouse. The first summoned set of living fire were dispatched against the harpies within and the two monstrous groups slew one an another. Passing through the gatehouse they came upon the castle proper, a destroyed tower, and the stables. Three more fire elementals were summoned by Boris' earlier spell and guarded the exit and other doors as our bold bravos explored the stables. As they opened the doors to the stables they were charged by four huge nightmares while nine trolls burst from the castle proper. Two of the fire elementals were extinguished but not before immolating the trolls. Meanwhile Boris forced three of the nightmares back to their own hell using his necromantic might while the Warbreed dispatched the last beneath their grim axes.

The nearby damaged tower saw the sudden demise of yet another fire elemental at the eye stalks of three macabre beholders. Boris retaliated with mystic might while the twins of chaos incarnate distracted the foul orbs with a dwarven thrower and crossbow bolts. Warrick attempted his vitriolic blast only to be nearly smitten in return, so he retreated from the fray. The ocular affronts were dispatched and the quarrelsome quartet turned their attentions on the castle proper.

They entered the halls passing up floor by floor through facing a dispatching a manticore in the boudoir and another unnamable horror in the privvy. Finally on the third floor they reached the master bedroom above which a voice cackled and paced. The adventurers took the stairs toward the sounds above and found no living thing. Inside an ornate casket held a great inlaid egg, presumably the treasure that Gareth had charged them with finding. Suddenly the Warbreed were struck by invisible magics, but they scented out their foe, who Warrick was able to see using his sentinel goggles. He described an incredibly ancient madman casting spells. He rapidly fell beneath arcana and axe. As he died the castle shook and began to self destruct. The party fled in their windwalk and returned home. As they departed the island they saw the yuan-ti raising edifices to their four new gods.

They returned to the main land only to be met by Gareth. However suspicious of his motives after seeing Castle Brave, they questioned him and they noted he emanated no evil. They gave him the ornate egg and he vanished telling them that they should expect their next challenge to be one of character, but was otherwise nonspecific.

The Fortress of Conclusion (or Fragging the Apotheosis)

The abhorrent phantom flyer deposited the mad adventurers at the doorstep of the Fortress of Conclusion, the yawning maw of the Devourer anchored in the sepulcher darkness of an infinite cliff face. A great rusted iron door was dimly illuminated by the sickly green glow of a nearby lantern. Lextra examined the door and the Warbreed wrestled it open, only to gaze into an accursed room adorned with a menagerie of wyrms devouring humanoids. Warrick was able to discern that all parts of this room were cursed and the party carefully slipped into the yawning maw of one of the worms, the only other exit to this room.
In the corridor beyond they found a desiccated man, still alive, his orifices sealed by sutures of foul black cords and his limbs stitched together at impossible angles. In Boris' mind Desato spoke, spilling his tale of woe and begging for the release of death. As Dorun hefted Deathkeeper and smote Desato's head from his shoulders, the vile thread stitched his limbs, eyes, and mouth, then bound him to the great iron hook that had previously supported the pitiful mage. His brother cut him down and engaged in the bloody work of slitting the devilish sutures freeing him from the cursed strands.
The party was next confronted by an impenetrable darkness which was dispersed by the holy might of the Wand of Days to reveal a dark taloned humanoid that charged the party. Warrick wreathed the creature in his eldritch flames and the Brothers Warbreed closed with it to dispatch it as it came through the flames. They sank their axes deep into its extraplanar flesh as Warrick used his mystical might to shatter the creature. The remainder of the darkness evaporated and revealed a dead end. The party backtracked and located two sequential secret doors, one revealing a haze filled room from which a chilling wail issued, the second was a dead end to a lever with a metal plate above it upon which PUSH TO ENTER was written. Judging that the first route would lead to encounters most unpleasant the Brothers fumbled with the lever, testing the limits of their fortitude versus the smashing floor of the trap. After seeing this, Lextra simply pushed the metal plate revealing a long chasm stretching away from this second door. The chasm was filled with the bones of a thousand foes, splintered and evil looking. A narrow series of hanging bridges stretched away to a distant doorway. Boris would have no errors so deep into Acerack's territory and used his powers to transfer the party as if a wind blew them thither. Here they found a chamber floor tiled with black stone upon each a single letter. In the distance a second door had written: Name me true or name me false, your decision leads to loss. Boris commanded Absalom to walk the tiles spelling out Acerack's name, but this nearly destroyed him. In conference the party realized that this was an inverse trap by spelling either Acerack or Devourer they would activate the trap. They avoided these letters and passed beyond the door.
The next corridor ended in another facade of the Devourer its mouth the blackest patch of midnight. Boris prodded the patch with a stout wooden pole, drawing back only the part that was still visible. As he did the sphere began a stolid advancement toward the party, who wisely retreated. They lured the sentient onyx sphere to them then used Warrick's magic to teleport past it, entering the corridor its advance had revealed. This room had two more exits, fortunately as the ebon globe once again blocked the entrance the party had taken. One passage lead back toward the room of mists and moans earlier bypassed the party, the second was a familiar portal with orange haze obscuring its center and three large gem stones decorating its frame. Boris activated the stones and through the party went.
As they stepped into a vast new chamber a horrid stench overwhelmed them. Lextra fell retching as Dorun was blighted by further spellcraft. Warrick, Boris, Absalom, and Goldune turned to face a large, heavily muscled toad demon. As Boris and Warrick bespelled the creature, Boris' vampire thrall and the two living engines of war engaged the fell extraplanar denizen. The Warbreed shrugged off spell after spell as their enchanted blades drank deep from the demonic veins and sent it back to its hellish masters. Adjacent to this chamber was a vile store room, dried human remains stacked like cord wood, rotting remains that still moved in a abominable unlife, clutching at the shocked party. Warrick incinerated the twitching undead. The next corridor held servants quarters and in the final one they were attacked by a corpse golem that was brought low by both magic and might.
Beyond a portal opened into a great cavern in which a single winged colossus stood trapped in a mighty crystal cylinder. Before this prison lay a blade like living lightning, the creature turned to the party and offered allegiance to slay Acerack if they would only free it. It granted one time use of its lighting sword to shatter its confines, the party weighed the offer and then wisely decide not to pursue it.
The next chamber proved to be Acerack's workshop, wherein he had kept his Forge of the Negative Plane meant to aid his apotheosis into the consciousness of this unholy half of the multiverse. The party briefly investigated and then bypassed it into the chamber holding Azerack's phylactery a huge ruby globe suspended on a tripod over the impossible inky ichor of the negative plane. As they entered the chamber Acerack animated as a demilich, a bejewelled skull floating high above their heads. With the furious agility of a dire feline, Lextra climbed the tripod to examine the crystal prison of souls. Meanwhile the Warbreed were teleported by Warrick immediately above the floating skull, who tackled the animated cranium and dragged it earthward. Due to Boris' enchantment Goldune was able to shrug off the soul stealing power of the demilich. Lextra heard the clamoring of many astral voices until a single clear voice instructed her to turn the power of the Wand of Days at the phylactery. Calling to Boris, she directed him to unleash the wands powers against the great ruby. With the wand's powers engaged a beam of light erupted from the top of the great stone and the souls sang as they were freed, tearing Azerack's essence asunder for eons to come. The ravened Warbreed then shattered the skull of Azerack.
The party then investigated Azerack's inner sanctum finding many items of great power including an evil blade of soul stealing, a broach of access, a mysterious mask, and much mundane wealth. Also in the collection was a whistle with which they could summon and control the Phantom Flyer to once more bring them home. Azerack essence dispersed for millenia to come, the party departed home.

Back to the City That Waits

Tower of Test
The warhorns of the Exalted sounded and then keened their deathknell as the party entered the Tower of Test. Here they found the grisly trophies of the brave who had dueled for the rank of the Lord High Exalted, greatest warrior of the Moilian Empire, their silent heads a grim tribute to the prowess of this office. At the entrance to the test they found the still animated head of Gustarath. After being made subject to Boris' diabolic will Gustarath explained that he had seen both the accursed Azerack and and the poncey mage Desato pass by. Gustarath further indicated that the way through the tower was beset with several tests, hence the name of the tower.
The first test was one of agility, might iron pillars adorned with skulls were propped willy nilly through the chamber. Using Warrick's fire walls they smelt the pillars together and the party slowly made its way through the jack straws of the titans. Goldune blundered into one column and slipped causing the mass of metal beams to fall on him. Fortunately his great might and the necromantic helpers of Boris were enough to free him from the dastardly chamber.
The party then found itself blocked by a mighty silver door with single, ice encased handle at its base. Calling upon all his feral might Dorun hoisted the door allowing the party to pass the test of might. They entered a chamber adorned with orbs emitting a discordant hum. Still maddened the brothers charged through the room, triggering a debilitating tone which made Warrick collapse to the floor. The rest of the party rushed across the room to escape as the Warbreed fetched their fallen comrade.
In the next chamber a progressively difficult puzzle lock was eventually stymied by Boris' wit and the party passed though to a chamber of pendulous blades, slicing the air. Using 10' poles and Lextra's rogue skills to disable the blades, they gained admission to the chambers of the Lord High Exalted.
The leathery corpse of the bane warrior strode from a diabolic purple mist. Boris and Warrick identified it as a death ward and protected Dorun, who entered a murderous rage and engaged this undead champion. The two locked blades with homicidal happiness and Dorun's dwaven axe, Deathkeeper, cleaved great wounds in his opponents mummified flesh. The Lord High Exalted's wounding blade made many great wounds in the doughty Warbreed, but in the end the mettle of the dwarf hybrid was stronger and the Lord High Exalted fell, his head smote from his shoulders. The party claimed the spoils of the fallen trophy heads in the chambers below.

Tower of Dream
The party traversed the span to the next tower, a drug den used by the ancient Moilian's to expand their conscious. Here they found the Lucidium used by these decadent mystic race to gain more powers of spell and mind. Goldune spotted a great vaporous head as they entered the tower, but it vanished into the mists of negative energy swirling about the towers. The Tower of Dream held a Moilian zombie disposed of by Boris. They found the tower to be nearly split in two, this chasm held a platform inlaid with red stone bearing an inscription. Following the directions on the stone, they rotated the hour glass above the red stone. This summoned the great vaporous skull known as the Vestige, composed of thousands of insane consciousness from Moil. The brothers Warbreed backed by Boris and Warrick engaged the creature's searing tentacles. The Vestige began absorbing Goldune's consciousness but on they fought. The brothers magical axes, Deathkeeper and Tempest, and Warrick's eldritch might slew the beast. After slaying the beast and restoring Goldune they reset the hour glass, freeing more energy toward the Black Spire.

The Black Spire
This dark, ugly, block of ice disappeared into the mists of the Negative Plane. Wound tightly to its contour was a narrow walkway. Boris used windwalk to transport the party safely to the base of the tower where a small precipice marked the entrance to the Black Spire. Guarding the door were a pair of mighty jackal headed statues and a central peering eye. Inside a dark corridor of ice with many twisted figures trapped within its walls stretched menacingly. As the party entered the figures began to writhe, straining to break the confines of their frozen prison. Warrick made short work of this lot with his eldritch flame. The Moilian zombies were no more and the flames revealed a pit trap that would have claimed the adventurers if they had rushed past the encased undead.
At the end of the hall a chute ringed the stone serpents awaited. Given their experience with the tricks of Azerack, Warrick used his mystic powers to destroy the snakes at range. The brothers Warbreed then climbed through the opening, not realizing the steepness or slipperiness of the chute. As they slid, cursing, down the chute the remainder the party attempted a more elegant egress. At the bottom of the slide a yawning dark cliff awaited and the brothers drove their axes deep into the ice to slow their descent.
From the dark mists sprang a winter wight, an undead spawn of the black fire. Dorun and Goldune wasted no time and grappled with the creature, who spread its dark flames to their flesh. As the brothers Warbreed wrestled with the creature its flames, succored by their life force, grew higher. The remainder of the party emerged safely from the chute while the Warbreed threw the wight into the brink. Boris struck them with a bolt of flame, vanquishing the foul blaze.
The party then proceed along the edge of the cliff to the stable of the Phantom, a great winged monstrosity, an obscene creature of tentacles and wings. Their numerous previous objectives had opened the its arcane stable doors and using the silver key they had found many days before they freed it from its manacles. The abomination knelt before them and the party climbed aboard. With nary a sound the Phantom lifted into the air on its bat-like wings. As they left the city of Moil, Cindia the medical madron became lifeless.
The Phantom flew with the speed of madness, plunging through frigid, stygian darkness until finally alighting at a portal, sculpted in the shape of the yawning maw of the Devourer, the brink to the Fortress of Conclusion...

The Towers of Discipline, Health, Treasure, Webs, and Confusion

The Tower of Discipline
Entering the tower they came upon a tall hooded executioner standing behind a scarred chopping block. He hissed in Moilian which caused Goldune to begin to walk toward the chopping block with the intent of placing his head on its much bloodied surface. As the battle raged Dorun engaged his brother, dragging him back from the block, the necromantic and arcane might of Boris and Warrick rained hellfire down upon the doom executioner. Only their spellcraft saved the grappling brothers.

The tower also held a desiccated corpse wrapped in frozen webs and torture cells opposite a demonic mural meant to drive a mortal mad, which later caused Warrick to be shaken by an accursed nightmare. The last cell held a hooded female figure, who emanated evil, the brothers dispatched this foe with the vorpal axe.

The Tower of Health
Over the entrance hung a cadeuces, guarding an observation deck on which several hibernating Moilian zombies. Absalom threw them trough the window to the Negative Plane below. Further within the tower they found a healing madron, named Cindia. She healed the party members injured by blackfire and decided to join the party. They passed a trapped imaging system and eventually met Dr. Tor, another madron healer. However unlike "Cindy" this construct was mad and attempted to drug the party and slay them. The fury of the Warbreed and Boris' hellfire destroyed the blood letting corpse carpenter.

The Tower of Treasure
Was empty...typical

The Tower of Webs
This tower was essentially hollow except for great sticky strands of webbing that stretched across its diameter. Based on the words in the taunting poem at the entrance of the City That Waits the party elected to search near the base of the tower. Thus Warrick flew toward the plane of Negative Energy with Boris who melted away the stone with his magic allowing Warrick to access the riddle box suspended from the bottom of the webs. However hanging from the bottom was another winter wight who Warrick wasted at a distance with his eldritch powers. He then examined the box finding a riddle "Many tails have I, or many a beginning. If I fail people sight; wails mark their passing" under which three icons for were emblazoned a tree, a many tailed cat, and a rope. The Brothers Warbreed (surprisingly) hatched upon the solution, a rope and when Warrick touched this icon a burst of magic exploded forth setting as yet untold events into play.

The Tower of Confusion
This tower was a winding maze filled with a living oily darkness. Using the Warbreed's stone cunning, the party chose the steady solution of the labyrinth by always following the leftside wall. As they drew deeper into the coiled corridors the writhing darkness grew closer and closer. Finally, Boris decided to use the Wand of Daylight creating a temporary gap in the nocturnal stalker. Finally after many hours of delving they came upon a great deviant arachnoid that Boris slew with a single spell, lifting the floating inkiness. This revealed a great black switch, that the party engaged causing the tower to shake and buckle. After some moments of this, they reversed the switch causing a similar burst of expectant magic.

The City That Waits

The Brothers Warbreed, Boris Devilboone, and Warrick Sinister found themselves teleported to a deserted city on the edge of the void, fierce electrical mayhem cascading overhead. The air was dead and bitter cold, and a thick layer of frost covered the towers and thin walkways. Before them, engraved in malachite was a challenge from the lich-god Acererack, daring them to face him in his lair. But first they must brave the many towers of Moil, the City That Waits.

The Tower of Day
The first tower was explored showing the Moilian's worship of the sun before being cursed by Orcus ("why does coinage says us orc again and again"). In this tower they found a chamber with an inscription charging them to initiate the power of Wand of day. Dorun Warbreed touched the middle panel showing the day, unknowingly freeing the wand from its icy prison further in the tower. The group also recovered a golden headband which they would later learn could heal them and allow them to scry the many towers of Moil in the icy thrown. In their exploration they also found the outline of a humanoid figure in the frost, how recently vacated they could not tell. In they end they secured the wand of day.

The Tower of Chance
In this tower they faced their first Moilian zombie, its properties earlier studied by Boris and Warrick in the Black Academy. The Brothers Warbreed were only lightly harmed by the soul feeding zombie's powers before Warrick's eldritch might destroyed the foul deadspawn. They discovered evidence of Desato's presence here as well as a decanter of purity in the casino's bar before discovering a room labelled the Final Game. Here Boris' vampire thrall Absalom used his gaseous form to slip under the door and vanished. The Warbreed broke the door down only to vanish into a cursed mirror above the door. Boris used a magical stone hand to destroy the mirror without being caught in its irresistible reflection, freeing the brothers, a Moilian zombie, Absalom, and an ancient Moilian thief named Lextra. After deactivating the Moilian zombie before it could absorb too much life force they threw it out the window. Using his magical gifts, Boris was able to communicate with Lextra, who had no evil aura, who chose the join the party.
As they explore the tower they found a skeleton incased in clear ice, which suddenly animated and attacked the party. The Warbreed engaged the creature at close range, only to find themselves entangled by blackfire, fueled by their very vitality. Boris called on his hellfire to scorch away not only the winter-wight but the blackfire as well, the trollblood in the brothers allowing them to quickly heal from the inferno.
Later in the tower they found a magical roulette table from which Lextra gained the gift of agility. But even that was not enough for her to deactivate a tantalizingly glowing curio cabinet, which the party was forced to leave behind. Using her skills and Absalom's undead nature the party was able to defeat both a ward of insanity and of death guarding a vaulted, steel valve door. Inside they found another Moilian undead, from which they took arcane gauntlets of armor and the powerful sentinel mask.

The Tower of Portals
The less said about the trials of the maze of this tower the better, gentle reader...

The Aqueous Tower
The fourth tower was naught but cold and brine. Inside a ladder led down into dark, icy salt water. Forwarned by Acererack's posted challenge the party made ready to battle the brine dragon guardian of the Key. Bespelled against cold and water the party entered the depths, traversing the crystalline caverns of the dragon's lair. As they explored the brackish tunnels, Warrick discovered some illuminated runes which activated to dispel their magical boons. Fortunately the Boris might was greater than the magical trap and the party continued unmolested. Finally they came upon the great brine dragon, slumbering in the salty depths. Boris swam forward and launched his wail of the banshee, striking it dead in its sleep. The party collected the dragon's expansive treasure of platinum coin and magical items, including a death scarab and dwarven thrower.