The Escape From Magus Mif’s Cursed Caverns

 Our heroes:

• Barehands Brawlsmuch - half-orc monk
• Sorcy Skullfoot - skeletaling sorcerer

In the darkest pitch of midnight, Barehands and Sorcy regained consciousness. As they regained their senses, words appeared on a iron-bound door glimmered magically, "Welcome Ye To The Tests of Mif's Caverns. Prove Thy Worth And Find Six Cubes To Set Thee Free." They entered the warren of carved tunnels, off to their left the the buzzing of great insect wings behind a locked door which they wisely left sealed. Around the corner they came upon a sleeping cleric of Bahamoot, Dragonspirit. He asked to accompany them in their escape. He was able to provide them with the first of the cubes.

After exploring the warrens the trio found a vast underground lake stretching to the limits of a vast, damp cave. Off to their left a whirlpool spun hungrily next to slick stepping stones leading to a rocky island with a central cave. As they descended the rocky steps to the lake, a gigantic spider sprang to attack but was beat back by the might of our three heroes. However, as they crossed to the first stepping stone both Barehands and Sorcy fell in. Barehands was saved by his great strength and pulled himself from the water. Sorcy spun helplessly toward the sucking maw of the whirlpool only to be saved by a well-timed rope cast from Dragonspirit. They continued cautiously across the rocks, until Sorcy spied a sack on a distant rock and sprang in after it. In it he found another of Mif's cubes but on his return swim he was coiled up in the sinewy length of a sea serpent, Ocean Mist On A Winter Morn. She had been trapped down in this lake by Mif many years ago and had recently laid an egg. She offered to help the adventurers if they agreed to help secure her freedom by breaking Mif's enchantment preventing any exodus from these caves.

The island was essentially a ring of rock surrounding a crater-like cave beneath the sepulcher waters of the lake. Our humid heroes clambered down into the cave, where they discovered a third of Mif's cubes. They then followed it down and back into the lair of gargantuan spider, clearly the sire or dame of the spawn they had fought earlier. Using a his magic, Sorcy both finished the beast but also set its foul nest ablaze, causing foul smoke to come pouring forth. Barehands managed to recover the fourth cube from the flames. They returned to the lake and found Ocean Mist On A Winter Morn in a panic, imploring them to take her egg with them as the smoke grew denser.

The three, wet and befouled in soot, took her egg and scrambled from the island up to a crevice leading to a twisting maze of waterworn caves. They passed several crystal formations until they arrived at pool of luminescent, turbid, undulating, verdant goo. In its acidic embrace floated the fifth of Mif's icons which deft acrobatics allowed our heroes to liberate. They then explored one of the side passages and discovered the final of the cubes. Bringing these cubes to the exit of the other passage, allowed them to pass the seal of Mif and in doing so trigger the magical destruction of the caves.

Town of Wendover

 Our heroes are:

• Barehands Brawlsmuch a half-orc monk
• Sorcy Skullfoot a skeletaling sorcerer. Skeletalings are halflings changed by the necromantic energies of the Barrowlands to become sentient skeletons.

Inn of the Flower Princess owned and operated by Granny Blinkins

The Race of Wendover is a two person race in the early Planting after the snows have melted. Racing against Barehands and Sorcy were (1) two autonomous skeleton warriors from the Barrowlands of the Undead Clans near Sorcy’s homeland, (2) the goblin Bentback riding the were-warg Lupus Tyranus, and (3) gnoll ranger Snarls-at-Fools carrying the dwarven thief Durick Deepgrotto. One of the autonomous skeletons was destroyed when Sorcy charmed them to help “their” team of Sorcy and Barehands. Lupus Tyranus was injured but healed. Snarls-at-Fools and Durick were injured by Sorcy’s magic missile. They tripped our heroes but they were able to recover only to be brought down by Durick’s attempt to throw a knife at Barehands. Our heroes won 100 gold suns each.

The lord-mayor of Wendover then hired our heroes to investigate a seemingly abandoned home in the roughest part of town where some neer-do-wells were allegedly hiding out. He promised them 500 gold suns if they brought them in. Sorcy and Barehands recruited from their fellow racers and the autonomous skeleton ASU71248 and Durick joined them. Durick picked the lock of the front door and Barehands, eager to mete justice, charged through only to be trapped under a cunning rubble trap. Our heroes were ambushed by a gang of kobolds, the Nastoids. Sorcy used his grave touch to cause one to flee, while a fierce melee ensued whilst Barehands struggled to free himself. Sorcy exchanged spellfire with arrow fire and dropped another gang member. Meanwhile Durick and ASU71248 defeated the other two kobold gang members.

With the autonomous skeletal unit guarding their kobold prisoners the remaining three searched the house’s main floor. Sorcy discovered a cache of healing potions and Barehands found 10 gold roses. On the second floor, Durick spied the last Nastoid kobold fleeing across the rooftops of  the densely packed warren. They found nothing else of value in the ruin.

They then changed their focus to the basement, but Durick failed to discover a poison gas trap on the basement door. He was seriously injured but stabilized by Barehands who dragged him outside to further recover. Our heroic duo explored the basement, finding no  treasure, but missing a trapdoor trap that dropped them, after many minutes of sliding, in a dark room, black as pitch, where they promptly lost acquaintance with consciousness.

The Quest for the Tears of Achlys: Part I

As the horde of Sakkarot Fireaxe laid waste in the East, the Nessian Knot guided by the vilely beautiful Theodora travelled West to the fortress-town of Farholde. Despite several attempts at flirtation, the succubus repelled the Woodsticks amateurish advances. As they neared Farholde, Adrastus teleported in to instruct them on their next mission: to brave the Caer Bryr to find the Horn of Abbadon which was used to imprison the demon Vetra-Kali. Unleashing Vetra-Kali on the Talingarde would cause a plague called the Tears of Achlys, further causing ruin and discontent with the Church of Mitra. The complex ritual to free Vetra-Kali would take time and Adrastus instructed the Nessian Knot that they would need to hold the Horn of Abbadon for sometime to complete it. The Seventh Knot was to serve as security while the Ninth Knot, our villains of the Nessian Knot freed the demon.

After landing in Farholde, the dark party learned of a Mitran nunnery in the fortress-town. They also heard rumors going about:

• The Knights of Eron, loyal to Mitra, have gone mad. They burn anyone with a black cat as a servant of Osmodius. This is the worst inquisition in 20 years.
• An elf named Aiden was staying at the Wandering Friar Inn. He journeyed into the Bryr with some Illiri guides and has not been seen since.
• Lord Welsher, the lord of Farholde, has gone East to help in the fighting. His steward, Sir Valen (a distant relation of the King) holds the castle.
• Old Devil, a dread cyclopean tiger, has been prowling South of town, again taking livestock and a few peasants.
• The trees walk deep within the Caer Bryr.

Recognizing Aiden as an agent of Thorne’s, they bribed their way into his rooms, finding gold and a map to the Horn. Meanwhile, Thedora had made contact with an elven noble indebted to Adrastus Thorne. The noble gave them audience, and after establishing their credentials offered what blackmarket aid he could. As the Seventh Knot spread rumors of a serial killer in the town, the Nessian Knot slipped into the thick woods of the Bryr.

They travelled South until they met the guardian of the Horn of Abbadon, a pompous windbag treant. Using the combined mystical and martial might of the Nessian Knot the sentient tree guardian was rapidly brought low. The murderous group then came upon the twisted spire of the Horn of Abbadon. They first decided to investigate the caves at the base of the tortured peak, proceeding to the largest, a gapping, diseased maw in the middle of the Horn. Inside they were ambushed by bullywogs or bogwarts, who used strange croaking to strike fear in the Knot’s heart. During the fight, Grumblejack underwent a strange, painful transformation, arising more powerful than before (#levelup). The Nessian Knot slew the slimy toad people barring their way and journey deeper into the bowels of the Horn.

Reaping the Harvest of War!

3rd Thank’s Day, Tower of Balyntine, Talingarde: No rest for the wicked. On the eve of the visiting troupe of actors to the tower, the Nessian Knot decided next to assassinate Tassitus. Pretending to replace the guards outside the Lord Commander’s chambers the Knot scaled the wall down to Tassitus’s chambers. In his rooms they appropriated his spell book as well as a vial of concentrated tincture of wolfsbane before finding a strange ice golem in his laboratory and a cauldron of brewing. The Nessian Knot laid ambush, Ulmaticron stealing Tassitus’s voice as soon as he entered his room with the might of the Woodstick and Brand causing the mage to flee. As he turned to bespell the Nessian Knot, Brand grappled the mage, crippling his spell casting ability while Ulmaticron and the Woodstick stabbed the magister to death. In his dying moments, Tassitus sacrificed himself with a fireball spell, injuring all in the room. The Woodstick then roused the ice golem and as it chased the rogue to the window, Brand threw Tassitus burnt corpse at it. The Nessian Knot made good their escape reassuming their guise as guards. It took the Lord Commander and the lives of eight guards to disable the ice golem. The tower assumed that the magister had been slain by his crystalline discovery.

Over the next few days, the Nessian Knot in various guises, bought all the arsenic in the area.

4th Mitra’s Day, Tower of Balyntine, Talingarde: Disguised as servers, the Nessian Knot was able to discretely add both the wolfsbane and arsenic to Mama’s stew, killing nearly a third of the guardsmen and incapacitating another third. The Tower was now severely weakened, down to a third of its strength, three of its four captains dead, its magister dead, and its chaplain vanished. Pretending to be the relief for the Lord Commander’s guard, the Nessian Knot infiltrated the Lord Commander’s chambers. They ambushed him most vilely in his sleep, he made good account with his blade before falling to the Knot. They secreted his body in the ice golem’s table in Tassitus’s laboratory.

The Nessian Knot then disabled the Seal of Balyntine, a great stone that could have sealed the donjon and trapped any invaders inside. They then went to the guard tower, dispatching the four guards, disabling the burning sand, and disabling the portcullis and drawbridge. Next they slew the four guardsmen who crewed the ballista before releasing the flare that would bring Sakkarot Fireax and his horde. Thousands of bug bears poured into the Tower and Balyntine and put Talingarde’s northern fortress to the torch. As the bug bear army grew, the townsfolk fled and more humanoids came to join the great march South. Both Adrastus Thorn and Asmodeus are pleased...

In brightest minds, in blackest ops. No good is it if the body flops

3rd Sun’s Day of Fall, Aldrick, Talingarde: Disguised as Captain Varning and two of the guardsmen the Nessian Knot found an outlying farm putting all but a single child to the sword and then burning it the ground. They left behind Captain Varning’s family crest ring. Assuming the guises of passing big game hunters they returned to the Lord Dalliance and allocated rooms. The Nessian Know learned more of Mama, who cooks the beef stew every week in honor of her two sons who used to serve the garrison. They heard rumors of their own nefarious deeds outside of town and that night searched the inn’s basement to after much, much and a good deal more searching they found the secret passage to the Tower of Balentyne. They entered through the Dwarven Vault where they found 12 bottles of elven wine and nearly a years worth of garrison rations. Brand silently entered the armory and smithy above the vault before finding the nearby room of Captain Varning. Here he stole the dead captain’s treasure and extra uniform.

3rd Mitra’s Day, Lord’s Dalliance, Aldrick, Talingarde: The Nessian Knot forged two notes, one to Kathleen Mott from Captain Eddardly begging her to come to the Lord’s Dalliance tonight, so that he might worship her in his arms. They asked she come at 9 bells and a quarter. Similarly they sent a note to Captain Eddardly as if from Kathleen Mott, begging him to meet her at the inn at 9 bells and a half. Then using their rings of disguise and Captain Varning’s uniform impersonated Eddardly reserving a room at the Dalliance. Kathleen Mott sent a response implying a forbidden love. The Nessian Knot then spent the day uncovering the alchemist in town who had enough arsenic to poison the entire tower. When Kathleen Mott arrived, she was ambushed by Brand who stunned her with his martial prowess. Ulmaticron and Brand then faked her suicide, murdering her in cold blood with a knife in her bosom. Meanwhile, the Woodstick disguised as a simple peasant ran to the Tower yelling about murder most foul. When Eddardly arrived he turned pale and screamed, he was nearly catatonic when the guardsmen arrived. Captain Mott was so enraged that he slew Captain Eddardly and was sentenced to Brandescar Prison.

3rd Two’s Day, Tower of Balentyne, Talingarde: Disguised as servants, the Nessian Knot infiltrated the Tower of Balentyne and over the next three days learned that Tassitus takes his meals in his room. He is gruff and dismissive, two guards are stationed outside his room at all times. They also learned of Father Donagan the garrison’s cleric, who is jovial and loved by all. They learned the name of the fourth Captain, Barhold. On the third day, Brand made a pretext to visit Mad Martin the master of the rookery. He then stunned Mad Martin and threw him from the ramparts much to distress of the ravens. Ulmaticron then forged a note for Father Donagan seemingly written from a possessed but ashamed Captain Varning who asked the priest to come help him the next day.

3rd Wedded’s Day, the Wilderness, South of the Tower, Talingarde: Disguised again as Captain Varning, Ulmaticron ambushed Father Donagan, with the rest of the Nessian Knot. Grumblejack decapitated one of the acolytes with a single blow, while the other fell to the Woodstick’s rapier. Father Donagan attempted to use spell craft to defeat his foes only to fall before the might of the Nessian Knot. And the plot to topple Talingarde continues, the party has used 9 days of a possible 28 days to bring the Tower of Balentyne to it’s knees.

Sowing the Seeds of War!

Thorn Manor, Old Moor Road, Talingarde: Having completed the training and forging of the Nessian Knot, Adrastus Thorn was ready to start the downfall of Talingarde. Adrastus told the Woodstick, Ulmaticron and Brand about a plan to bring war to Talingarde and topple the followers of Mitra. They would deliver weapons and armor to Sakkarot Fireaxe, a bug bear chieftain, and his hordes who were gathering near Lake Tarik. With these armaments Sakkarot would unite the barbarous humanoid hordes (note: hordes not whores, Woodstick!) for a push into Talingarde. The Nessian Knot would travel by longship, the Frosthamar, captained by a berserker named Odinkirk. Due to Odinkirk’s inflexibility at bending the knee to the Asmodians, Adrastus ordered his and his crew’s death. The Nessian Knot was then to infiltrate the Tower of Balentyne, kill it’s commander, and throw open the gates for Sakkarot’s hordes. They were then to break the clay tablet that Adrastus had given them.

The Camp of the Fireaxe, Lake Tarik, the North: After a long journey along the coast and into the icy rapids of the Tyga, the Frosthamar, laden with crates with a flaming axe on them, reached a large encampment of bug bears, goblins, and free roaming polar bears, scattered around a rickety pier stretching into to the frigid waters. With Grimjack translating, the Nessian Knot was able to make contact with Sakkarot, a massive, highly intelligent bug bear bearing an enormous flaming axe, who commanded his hordes to honor (rather than eat) his guests. After feasting on a titanic dire boar, Sakkarot summoned the Nessian Knot to his yurt and questioned them on their motives for betraying Talingarde. Brand rambled ecclesiastic about being a weapon of Asmodeus wrapped in a meat puppet. Ulmaticron indicated that as an inquisitor Asmodeus was a more rewarding deity, and the Woodstick likely betrayed that he was in all actuality a spy of the Mitrans. Sakkarot would grow his horde over the next two weeks but would not be able to keep them in an idle state for more than four. The Nessian Knot had a month to topple the Tower of Balentyne.

Hidden Cove, Lake Tarik, Talingarde: Odinkirk and the Frosthamar delivered the Nessian Knot to the Southern shore of Tarik, upon which the Knot fell upon the captain and his crew. A pitched battle commenced with the raging Odinkirk grievously wounding Grimjack before the rest of the party could bring him a cold death. After restoring Grimjack they put the Frosthamar to the torch.

2nd Free Day* of Fall, Lord’s Dalliance, Aldrick, Talingarde: Leaving the monstrous Grimjack in the forest outside the town, the Nessian Knot disguised as simple laborers infiltrated the town, gathering at the only inn, the Lord’s Dalliance. Through the wit and guile of the Woodstick (surprising, we know) much rumor was gathered including:

• Surprisingly for xenophobic Talingarde, a gang of dwarves lead by the grouchy Barnabas are repairing the Tower of Balentyne. The tower is actually of ancient dwarf make. Barnabas can drink anyone under the table.
• Tassitus, the creepy magister, is working on something in his tower…something unnatural that was recovered in the North.
• Captain Varning is leading another patrol out of town tomorrow for 4-5 days. Most think that this is just an excuse for him to get out of drudgery around the tower and to go galavanting around.
• Mad Martin tends the rookery in the watchtower. He loves his ravens and is very eccentric.
• Lord Thomas Havelin is the most honorable and capable commander of the tower. If he can’t do it no one can.
• How did the ugly Captain Mott get and keep his wife, the most beautiful woman in town, Kathleen Mott?
• Captain Eddardly is handsome, gallant, and unmarried.
• There are about 100 soldiers in the tower.
• Mama’s beef stew is served every Mitra’s Day to the entire garrison at the Tower of Balentyne. Mama is a local legend for her cooking.
• The Lord’s Dalliance allegedly got it’s name because it used to be a brothel with a secret tunnel to the tower.
• A traveling theatre troupe is coming to a do a performance for the garrison next Thank’s Day.

The Nessian Knot then bought rounds of beer for Barnabas and his work gang, before offering them whiskey that they had “liberated” from the Frosthamar. Back in the dwarves quarters the Nessian Knot watched the dwarves crew drink itself into oblivion, except Barnabas who wanted to wrestle. Brand escaped several pins before putting Barnabas in a resounding slumber with a stunning fist. Woodstick stole the dwarves map of the Tower and then the Nessian Knot fled the inn and their assumed identities.

2nd Satyr’s Day, North of the Tower of Balentyne, the North: Captain Varning’s patrol was met with two felled trees one in their path and one behind them. The Woodstick sank a goose-quilled shaft deep into the captain’s side, while Brand and Grumblejack ambushed the front of the party, and Ulmaticron sealed their only avenue of escape while ushering them into the afterlife. Grumblejack smote the trees and earth around Captain Varning and his mount with great fury but could not smite the gallant soldier (Aside: I rolled a 3 on a d20..5 times…in a row. That happens 1 in 3,200,000 times). Brand used his lethal strikes to break the bones and burst the vital organs of the captain’s nearest men. The Woodstick struck exposed targets with hemorrhagic results. Ulmaticron used his arcane powers to destroy and suck life from the guards he killed. In the end, the Nessian Knot still stood and the patrol lay dead and dying around them. Time to make use of Captain Valentyne’s poor reputation and begin to break the Tower of Balentyne...

*The Mitran Week: Sun’s Day - Mitra’s Day - Two’s Day - Wedded’s Day - Thank’s Day - Free Day - Satyr’s Day

 

 

 

The Trials of Asmodeus, Part the Second

Catacombs Beneath Thorn Manor: Past the room with the fake sapphire jewel the party followed a winding passage way to the next chamber. Wary of the warnings from the tortured squire they backtracked until they found another secret door parallel to the suspected chamber of the shriekers. This second room held four barnacle encrusted driftwood coffins. Both the Woodstick and Brand slipped through the room like shadows before the midday sun. When Ilmaticron the Dickish and the walking cacophony Grumblejack attempted to slip through, they woke the slumbering undead who began to break free of their seaweed bedecked resting places. The party rapidly left the room and attempted to seal the door behind them. Ahead lay a locked banded door with the key awaiting on a hook, preparing for battle the party opened the door to find a perturbed knight of Alerion wearing the sapphire symbol of Mitra!

As they heard the door at the far end of the hall splinter, they attempted to recruit the knight to save his own skin. The fool preferred to be slaughtered so the grim four went about their dark business with Grumblejack dealing and receiving many wounds. With the help of Brand, Ilmaticron, and the Woodstick, they finally smote the knights head from his pretentious shoulders.

Their victory was short lived, they were trapped and without healing when the four brine soaked undead fell upon them. It was only the vicious bladework of Ilmaticron, Grumblejack, and the Woodstick that saved the day. Brand spent much of his time missing and receiving grievous wounds before losing consciousness.

The bloodied four return to Adrastus with their prize and he began their training in earnest, granting them new traits in their fight to liberate Talingarde from Mitra’s thrall. After the training was complete, Adrastus pronounced them ready and held a great banquet in honor of the new Nessian Knot in an infernal ritual involving blood and fire.  During the ritual, Adrastus summoned forth a barbed devil and offered it one of the slaves.  The devil gleefully ripped the screaming man apart and feasted on his still beating heart.  Adrastus then drew forth some of the devil's blood with a silver athame and traced the unholy symbol of Asmodeus on each of the party's foreheads.  Behold he proclaimed, "The Nessian Knot is forged."