THE MAD DASH
The Players:
Nate - Alaric, Cleric of Thanatos & hench Orc fighter Mulgarg
Mike - Vexus Lustmort & apprentice
Scott - Ebony Maw, Black Knight
Selina - Maris Izar, Raven Heart
The group decided to go back to the ruins with a plan this time. First they would give themselves a name, second hire some help, and third prepare packs and sacks for wine bottle transport and to get in & out quickly!
The party comes up with the group name "The Flesh Wounds" and Alaric, Ebony, Maris, & Grit the goblin are official members.
Vexus and his apprentice are coming along as a Dungeon Consultant.
The agent is located and paid to recruit hirelings, which he does and returns with the following:
Kilstad - human torch bearer
Huz - man-at-arms
Gilix - man-at-arms
Kravag - Dwarf man-at-arms.
They are all hired and placed under the command of Mulgarg. Ebony makes a deal with the thieves guild to get some replacement armour (blackened Chain) and weapons to replace what he lost in the last delve.
The group pays for a wagon ride up to the ruins and heads directly for the gatehouse ruined tower. Upon entering the courtyard the group is fired upon by a ballista from the Manor house tower! They move quickly and enter the ruined tower where Vexus seals the open doorway with his magic. The party is then free to take their time without worry of pursuit from outside.
Nearing the old storeroom Alaric sees there is light ahead and knows someone else has gotten here before them. The Cleric of Thanatos calls out and gets a response. A pair of priests of Pasperus have a short dialogue with Alaric before turning into crows and flying down the shaft into the darkness.
After setting up the block & tackle, back-up ropes and proper lighting Mulgarg, Kravag, Kilstad and Vexus apprentice stay behind in the storeroom while the others descend to the landing and the Iron door. To ensure they wouldn't be followed by the worshipers of Pasperus, Vexus cast a web spell to block the central shaft just below the landing.
Knowing the dangers involved from previous experience the group make it to the landing without incident. They find the iron door is still ajar and enter the bone ridden chamber beyond. At the midway point gravel from above sifted down upon the heads of Alaric, Huz & Gilix! The party was taken by surprise as a large spindly limbed creature drops from the shadows above them and lashes about with taloned claws!!
A fierce melee broke out as the party stabbed and slashed at the creature with seemingly no effect! Gilix fell to a heavy blow from the beast and it turned to take out the Cleric when Vexus cast a powerful magical slumber upon it!!
"Do not touch it, it will slumber peacefully and cannot awaken for some time. My spell is quite potent. Now let us get to those wines!" the Demon-helmed wizard hissed in a high pitched whisper. They had to leave Gilix behind here as he was afflicted with some sort of paralytic seizure induced by the claws of the creature.
The group pressed onward to the Cellar entry chamber. No one was prepared for the sight that greeted them. The far wall was paneled in intricately carved wood which portrayed a scene of the Keep with a vineyard spread out about its walls. The door was also paneled in fine wood that showed recent crude repairs. The Glorious Bastards claimed they had smashed this door down some time ago, but obviously the local denizens had affected repairs. Ebony was enthralled with the pair of desiccated robed corpses that hugged each other in final embrace who sat within a hastily scrawled circle of protection. The Black knight tried stepping into the circle and was repelled by a magical force. Unable to loot the corpses he turned his attention elsewhere. The ground was littered with broken bottles, an empty wine crate and a couple more corpses of fallen adventurers.
Though Vexus urged caution, Alaric turned the handle on the cellar door and heard the tell-tale "Snap!" of a trap being triggered. The Cleric was lucky that his thick leather glove stopped the poisoned needle from piercing his flesh!!
Knowing from the tales told about the tavern, the first few racks were probably going to be empty and they would have to venture a bit into the cellar to find the bottles they sought. They decided to place lit torches along the path they took through the racks until they found a cache worth taking.
The cellar proved to be more ransacked than they had anticipated and they quickly found themselves at the last of their torches and only having found about four bottles of wine. Maris used his innate ability to see in the dark to take a quick look deeper into the racks labyrinthine aisles and discovered a few more bottles and something else...
The rest of the party was just about to follow their torch trail when they realized Maris was missing and that they could only see one of the torches they had set behind themselves on the way in!! The the whispering threats started... "Fresh meats, now we eats." and "Slice the flesh, keep it fresh."
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| Whisperers |
Ebony found a band of small creatures dragging an unconscious Maris deeper into the racks and charged them to retrieve his brother. Alaric used the gaze of Thanatos to scatter the little beasties but he knew there were more all around them closing in!
After what seemed an eternity of fleeing blindly in the dark, the party emerged from the cellar and shut the door behind them. Taking a moment to catch their breath they moved back through the bone chamber to discover the slumbering creature and the paralyzed hireling were gone! Not wanting to have a face-off with the creature the group quickly ascends back up to the storeroom and joins those who stayed behind.
The group is able to leave the ruins without incident and return to the village proper. They proceed to carouse and sell off the few bottles of wine they were able to come back with. Ebony gets so drunk he agrees to taste test a couple of bottles for Vexus and ends up dying from a heavy dose of poison!! A bereaved Maris implores the God of Shadows "Mawdorn" to return Ebony to life. The Deity hears and agrees, but reincarnates Ebony in the form of a Kobold!
END Part 1
DOWN THE WELL
A couple of days later the at a secluded table in the Dog-N-Bone Alaric lays out his plan of attack for a second smash-n-grab foray to the ruins of Marqest. Vexus Lustmort and his apprentice, the brothers Maris Izar & Ebony Maw (now a kobold), and Alaric's henchman-orc Mulgard listen intently.
"We pay the wagon-man to ride us directly into the courtyard where we will disembark set up ropes and descend into the well!" Alaric pauses looking at his companions.
"Nobody has ever been down there right?" asks Maris.
"At least none that lived to tell the tale." grumbles Vexus, pouring himself another cup of wine.
Suddenly a quite excited young man leans forward, pours himself a cup and exclaims "I think it's a fantastic plan! We will be the first to plumb the depths of the well and return bearing the secrets and treasure it holds!"
Astonished at the silent arrival of this newcomer the party as whole turn towards him and ask, "Just who by the nine hells are you?!'
"Me? why I'm Jack Quick! Once I overheard what you were planning I knew I just had to a part of this most obviously profitable endeavor!"
With the addition of Jack to the party the group decides to head back out to the ruins. Ebony makes a deal with to get himself a small chain shirt that he coats in a layer of soot from the fireplace! Once ready they load up into the wagon and our party consists of:
Nate - Alaric, Cleric of Thanatos & hench Orc fighter Mulgarg
Mike - Vexus Lustmort & apprentice
Scott - Ebony Maw, Black Knight (Kobold)
Selina - Maris Izar, Raven Heart
Sal - Jack Quick
The group instructs the wagon driver to head directly into the courtyard and drop them off at the well. At first he balks at this but a few coins pass hands and he agrees.
A bit later they party reaches the ruins and heads through the gatehouse and passes under the old portcullis, as they emerge into the courtyard they are shocked to see a group of "humpers" engaged in battle with a large spherical creature with a large central eyeball, it's upper body surmounted by a crown of tentacle-like stalks! The wagon master freaks out and whips the horse into a charge as he careens around the battle and swings close to the well. The party leap out as the wagon continues straight back out of the courtyard!
Vexus uses his magic put the Eyeball creature into a magical slumber and the group leaves the monster to it's fate with the "humpers".
Using a rope ladder they group purchased in town they descend into the darkness of the courtyard well. After a descent of some twenty feet or so they well shaft open up into an underground reservoir, and Jack Quick lowers Ebony down into the dark water. The Kobold swims to a set of stairs that emerge from the water along the far wall. Getting there he discovers a door that must lead into the dungeons proper. A rope is secured and the party begins to zip-line down to the landing at the top of the steps.
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| Well Beast |
Low voices are detected on the other side of the closed door, and Jack convinces the unseen voices to open the portal. A handful of Gnomes are revealed in the flickering torch light, but before a parlay can begin a hideous beast rises from the water and lurches up the steps at the party! Alaric and Mulgarg hold the beast back as the rest of the party force their way into the dungeon proper and the Gnomes beat a hasty retreat into the darkness!
Alaric & Mulgarg take a beating but are able to harm the beast enough to discourage it from further attacks and it returns to its watery lair.
The door to the reservoir is shut and barred to keep anything from following the party into the dungeon. A small alcove filled with crates and barrels is discovered a short way past the barred door and the group decides to search them in hopes of finding Wines and/or treasures of some type.
Maris unfortunately discovers a slime creature hidden in of the barrels and it envelopes and kills him! Ebony lights the creature on fire with aid from Vexus and then prays over the corpse of his brother.
Mawdorn, God of Shadows answers the Kobolds prayers and reincarnates Maris in the Form of a Werewolf!!
A short search of the area brings the group to a set of stairs that ascends upwards, and Vexus begins to realize he may actually know where they are! At the top of the steps is an room with a large table turned on its side. There are a handful of markings etched into the tabletop, and Vexus finds a mark he left here some time ago along with Father O'shea.
Deciding not to press their luck any further the party left the ruins of Marqest for the safety of the village and returned with the knowledge they had gained as their only treasure.
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