Session 4 Recap
Session 4 Recap
Dozar, massive priest of MANA-YOOD-SUSHAI
Bryce Randall, merchant priest of Nephtlys
Gil, magic-user and devotee of Ulim
Xol Rashek apprentice to the illusionist Mirvolo
Sleestacarus, lizard man warrior
Selwin a simpering linkboy (Hireling)
Melmor opium addicted noble, fallen from grace (Hireling)
Before entering Ultan’s shop, the party had a few stops to make. The picked up five wooden masks they had commissioned to match the plague doctor like masks of the Inquisitors. They had also purchased a coracle, a very small flat-bottomed boat. Ultan was surprised when they entered with a giant lizard man and a small boat in tow. The party offered to swap information: in exchange for the news that no one had been through the door since their last visit, they informed him that the room on other side of the door was trapped with bear traps and guarded by the guildless, with whom it was possible to peacefully parlay. Dozar also let drop that the guildless seem to fear mirrors. Pleased with the exchange, Ultan ushered them through the door, boat and all.
Passing through the room of the guildless, they headed west making for the sewer. The party beat off an assault by a few white swine, dragging their bodies back into Ultan’s shop. When they reached the vile sewer river, they found that the same fancy green canoe was still bobbing at docks on the other side. Using the coracle, they reached the canoe and ferried everyone across to check out the other side, where the guildless had indicated previously that “The churning gate of the Horoscops” was to be found. A short walkway on the sewer and broad steps leading up into a room made of massive green stone blocks. Within they found a narrow staircase rising precipitously and a strange massive arch. The arch was intricately carved, framed by the outspread arms of a female figure atop with three faces and four arms. Within the gate, one of the guildless floated in the air, broken up into flat planes and spread across space, one terrified eye looking out at them. The over all impression was one of great movement, frozen into place. Beyond a densely carved green corridor extended into the distance. Approaching the gate, the party determined that the field was confined to the space filling the arch. When Xol Rashek threw a stone, it was sucked with great velocity into the space and then suspended alongside the gate’s unfortunate occupant.
Leaving the arch for another time, the party ascended the narrow stairs, travelling quite a ways upwards (hundreds of feet). The stairs ended at a metal door from which protruded a three-faced mask resembling the female figure on the arch. The door possessed a keyhole, but without a thief or knock spell even Dozar was unable to open it by force. So they returned to the river and set sail in their plush, velvet seated canoe. First they turned the canoe upstream, reasoning that it will be easier paddling back. However, after about 10 minutes of paddling, they heard the sound of rushing water, figuring that they were approaching either some rapids, or a huge sewage dump into the river, they decided to turn back downstream, heading towards what the guildless had indicated were “the catacombs of the Flesich Guild”.
Paddling for twenty minutes, they travelled the sewer river, travelling through silent rooms, filled with sewer waters, and punctuated with criss-crossing pipes. Finally, they caught scent of a charnel stench even worse than that of the open sewer as they paddled into a foamy pink slick on the water. Flies buzzed everywhere, and in the dim torchlight they could see masses of fat, organs, and gristle floating in the water. Along each side, noisome, glistening yellow mushroom clung to the sides of the tunnel apparently slurping at the foamy pink waters. Along the northern wall of the sewer, three massive grotesque stone faces were carved, grimacing with open mouths. Between them two narrow steps ascended from tiny docking platforms. As they watched, a huge stream of bloody chum spewed from one of the grimacing mouths into the sewer river below.
The party carefully gathered a stinking, slimy bag of the yellow mushrooms, and then ascended the steps. At the top of the stairs they found a rectangular room. Huge copper tubes, stained with verdigris, ran from behind the mouths up into the ciling. Two sets of stairs ran up to open arches. Over the top of the eastern arch was inscribed, “Drone that I am, I rejoice that my body remains whole in the endless dark.” Over the western arch a corresponding inscription read, “Cut down before I could such the marrow from cracked femurs and taste puddings boiled in the skulls of supplicants”. Presented with these cheery options, the party opted for the eastern arch.
They came upon three corridors with funeral niches, in which they found mainly skeletons wearing serene looking wooden masks, and rotting robes in which a modest number of antique coins were sewn. A few skeletons had lead balls in their eyes, and queer torches alongside them that lit with an eerie light when raised from the niche. Each corridor ended in a room. The room at the end of the first corridor contained a statue of a muscular man straining to support a massive stone block on his shoulders. The second corridor ended in a sarcophagus depicting a relatively plainly dressed man where a serenely smiling mask. An inscription read, “Great are the rewards of service.” Opening the sarcophagus they found a wrapped mummy, and recovered some fine copper jewelry from the wrappings.
The room at the end of the third corridor contained a dramatic statue scene in alabaster. A regal statue in robes, sporting a serene copper mask and a golden amulet, raised a whip over the statute of laborers who were in the process of gutting a massive alien looking beast. The laborers each bore in its hands a tool made of precious metal. Greedily scenting great wealth, one of the party climbed the statue removing the gleaming medallion and mask from the regal figure. After examining these, they returned to remove the tools from the laborers. As soon as they pried the tools from their hands, they could hear movement along the corridor as all the skeletons in the niches began to pull themselves out Harryhousen style.
Dozar and Bryce both called on their respective deities to turn the skeletons, but both failed. The party readied itself, allowing the skeletons to enter into the room two at a time as four party members attacked. The fight progressed, with the skeletons falling and pushing with each wave further and further into the room. The lizard man was wounded several times. Melmor was slain by projectiles launched from an exploding skeleton head. Just as the skeletons were about to pour into the room in a mad free for all, Xol Rashek thought to don the mask and raise the golden amulet from the regal statute. This gave him an opportunity to turn the skeletons as well, which was a stunning success! They scrambled to escape the hated golden sign, and in their furious departure, they were broken to pieces by the party, which then beat a hasty retreat, having snatched treasure from the jaws of near death.
Creatures Slain:
3 white swine: 30 xp
17 skeletons: 170 xp
2 projectile skeletons: 70 xp
Loot:
The corpses of three swine things, for which Vassimo Cox will pay 325 gp.
1 bag of yellow carnivorous mushrooms for which the child witch Adriana will pay a one time price of 150 gp (she is not interested in having any more)
Antique coins: 60 gp
Silver hacksaw, silver cleaver, and golden eye spoon: 1700 gp
Copper mask: 75 gp
Adriana confirms that the golden amulet works magic over undead specific to the locale in which it was found. As such it can either be kept by the party for now, or sold as a simple piece of gold jewelry. It is worth 750gp.
XP per PC: 666 (ominous isn’t?)
GP per PC: 462 (keeping amulet)
GP per PC: 712 (selling amulet)
Dozar, massive priest of MANA-YOOD-SUSHAI
Bryce Randall, merchant priest of Nephtlys
Gil, magic-user and devotee of Ulim
Xol Rashek apprentice to the illusionist Mirvolo
Sleestacarus, lizard man warrior
Selwin a simpering linkboy (Hireling)
Melmor opium addicted noble, fallen from grace (Hireling)
Before entering Ultan’s shop, the party had a few stops to make. The picked up five wooden masks they had commissioned to match the plague doctor like masks of the Inquisitors. They had also purchased a coracle, a very small flat-bottomed boat. Ultan was surprised when they entered with a giant lizard man and a small boat in tow. The party offered to swap information: in exchange for the news that no one had been through the door since their last visit, they informed him that the room on other side of the door was trapped with bear traps and guarded by the guildless, with whom it was possible to peacefully parlay. Dozar also let drop that the guildless seem to fear mirrors. Pleased with the exchange, Ultan ushered them through the door, boat and all.
Passing through the room of the guildless, they headed west making for the sewer. The party beat off an assault by a few white swine, dragging their bodies back into Ultan’s shop. When they reached the vile sewer river, they found that the same fancy green canoe was still bobbing at docks on the other side. Using the coracle, they reached the canoe and ferried everyone across to check out the other side, where the guildless had indicated previously that “The churning gate of the Horoscops” was to be found. A short walkway on the sewer and broad steps leading up into a room made of massive green stone blocks. Within they found a narrow staircase rising precipitously and a strange massive arch. The arch was intricately carved, framed by the outspread arms of a female figure atop with three faces and four arms. Within the gate, one of the guildless floated in the air, broken up into flat planes and spread across space, one terrified eye looking out at them. The over all impression was one of great movement, frozen into place. Beyond a densely carved green corridor extended into the distance. Approaching the gate, the party determined that the field was confined to the space filling the arch. When Xol Rashek threw a stone, it was sucked with great velocity into the space and then suspended alongside the gate’s unfortunate occupant.
Leaving the arch for another time, the party ascended the narrow stairs, travelling quite a ways upwards (hundreds of feet). The stairs ended at a metal door from which protruded a three-faced mask resembling the female figure on the arch. The door possessed a keyhole, but without a thief or knock spell even Dozar was unable to open it by force. So they returned to the river and set sail in their plush, velvet seated canoe. First they turned the canoe upstream, reasoning that it will be easier paddling back. However, after about 10 minutes of paddling, they heard the sound of rushing water, figuring that they were approaching either some rapids, or a huge sewage dump into the river, they decided to turn back downstream, heading towards what the guildless had indicated were “the catacombs of the Flesich Guild”.
Paddling for twenty minutes, they travelled the sewer river, travelling through silent rooms, filled with sewer waters, and punctuated with criss-crossing pipes. Finally, they caught scent of a charnel stench even worse than that of the open sewer as they paddled into a foamy pink slick on the water. Flies buzzed everywhere, and in the dim torchlight they could see masses of fat, organs, and gristle floating in the water. Along each side, noisome, glistening yellow mushroom clung to the sides of the tunnel apparently slurping at the foamy pink waters. Along the northern wall of the sewer, three massive grotesque stone faces were carved, grimacing with open mouths. Between them two narrow steps ascended from tiny docking platforms. As they watched, a huge stream of bloody chum spewed from one of the grimacing mouths into the sewer river below.
The party carefully gathered a stinking, slimy bag of the yellow mushrooms, and then ascended the steps. At the top of the stairs they found a rectangular room. Huge copper tubes, stained with verdigris, ran from behind the mouths up into the ciling. Two sets of stairs ran up to open arches. Over the top of the eastern arch was inscribed, “Drone that I am, I rejoice that my body remains whole in the endless dark.” Over the western arch a corresponding inscription read, “Cut down before I could such the marrow from cracked femurs and taste puddings boiled in the skulls of supplicants”. Presented with these cheery options, the party opted for the eastern arch.
They came upon three corridors with funeral niches, in which they found mainly skeletons wearing serene looking wooden masks, and rotting robes in which a modest number of antique coins were sewn. A few skeletons had lead balls in their eyes, and queer torches alongside them that lit with an eerie light when raised from the niche. Each corridor ended in a room. The room at the end of the first corridor contained a statue of a muscular man straining to support a massive stone block on his shoulders. The second corridor ended in a sarcophagus depicting a relatively plainly dressed man where a serenely smiling mask. An inscription read, “Great are the rewards of service.” Opening the sarcophagus they found a wrapped mummy, and recovered some fine copper jewelry from the wrappings.
The room at the end of the third corridor contained a dramatic statue scene in alabaster. A regal statue in robes, sporting a serene copper mask and a golden amulet, raised a whip over the statute of laborers who were in the process of gutting a massive alien looking beast. The laborers each bore in its hands a tool made of precious metal. Greedily scenting great wealth, one of the party climbed the statue removing the gleaming medallion and mask from the regal figure. After examining these, they returned to remove the tools from the laborers. As soon as they pried the tools from their hands, they could hear movement along the corridor as all the skeletons in the niches began to pull themselves out Harryhousen style.
Dozar and Bryce both called on their respective deities to turn the skeletons, but both failed. The party readied itself, allowing the skeletons to enter into the room two at a time as four party members attacked. The fight progressed, with the skeletons falling and pushing with each wave further and further into the room. The lizard man was wounded several times. Melmor was slain by projectiles launched from an exploding skeleton head. Just as the skeletons were about to pour into the room in a mad free for all, Xol Rashek thought to don the mask and raise the golden amulet from the regal statute. This gave him an opportunity to turn the skeletons as well, which was a stunning success! They scrambled to escape the hated golden sign, and in their furious departure, they were broken to pieces by the party, which then beat a hasty retreat, having snatched treasure from the jaws of near death.
Creatures Slain:
3 white swine: 30 xp
17 skeletons: 170 xp
2 projectile skeletons: 70 xp
Loot:
The corpses of three swine things, for which Vassimo Cox will pay 325 gp.
1 bag of yellow carnivorous mushrooms for which the child witch Adriana will pay a one time price of 150 gp (she is not interested in having any more)
Antique coins: 60 gp
Silver hacksaw, silver cleaver, and golden eye spoon: 1700 gp
Copper mask: 75 gp
Adriana confirms that the golden amulet works magic over undead specific to the locale in which it was found. As such it can either be kept by the party for now, or sold as a simple piece of gold jewelry. It is worth 750gp.
XP per PC: 666 (ominous isn’t?)
GP per PC: 462 (keeping amulet)
GP per PC: 712 (selling amulet)
I vote that we keep the amulet for at least one session, but once we go through the other wing of that tomb we can sell it off.
ReplyDeleteKeep the amulet
ReplyDeleteKeep it. Also maybe ultan would have an interest in the amulet? He might be able to sell it to other adventures going to the same location. Maybe I can talk to him merchant to merchant?
ReplyDeleteOr maybe we don't wanna do that in order to hinder other parties?