Wow, is it really over? Finishing this module was a significant first for me. I don't believe I've ever run a module start-to-finish without making major changes, getting wildly derailed and never actually getting completely through it. I was very sorely tempted at times to rewrite portions, redraw maps, rework plot points, and tinker with encounters. As written I felt like there were major plot holes, terrible dungeon design, useless maps, poorly thought out treasure tables, and awful use of traps and hazards. Despite all that we got through it and had some fun along the way.
At this point I doubt we'll use these characters again, but if for some reason someone wants to do a solo adventure or follow up on a side-quest we'll have them waiting for us. The impression I got was that folks enjoyed their 3.5 characters more than their 4e characters. Then again it could just be that playing unfamiliar low-level characters is never as exciting as playing more powerful characters you're already familiar with. I'd like to spend some time on the other side of the GM screen and test these theories myself.
My impression on 4th edition is for the most part good. From a GM stand-point I felt like there was much less to manage during combat, and that NPC powers and tactics feel more cinematic and impressive. Players have more options at their disposal as well, but I think there is a heavier emphasis on smart tactical play than in 3.5. It does seem to be quite a shift from the previous editions. Some of the new rules are a bit wacky, like using healing surges for potions, but I think with some minor tweaking it could be the best edition yet.
Thanks goes out to my players for hanging in there and sticking with the game. I hope you all had a good time. I enjoyed running my first 4th edition module with you all.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Sellswords of Punjar, Session 5: Shadow of the Umbra Drake
As the party rushed up the crumbling stairs they realized they were inside ruins of the ancient charnal tower that they had briefly seen set behind the manse of the Beggar-King. At that time its top was enshrouded in a dark swirling fog, which may have been the same shadows they were following now. They reached the ground level only to find that the floor was so rotten and broken that there was no clear path to the door on the other side of the tower. The party briefly considered how to get across. Aletha could have been able to fey step over, but there was no guarantee that the door would open or was unblocked on the other side. With the tower shuddering and threatening to collapse at any moment they decided to hurry up the stairs and hopefully find a way over to a nearby roof for safety. They continued up past a completely demolished second floor and finally onto the third and top floor of the tower.
The roof of the tower had long ago rotted away, exposing a network of rotting wooden beams like the ribs of some long dead beast. A massive cloud of shadow bats hung over head silhouetted against a rising full moon. The air held a wintry chill to it and bits of ash from the fires below carried up in the updraft were drifting down like snowflakes all around them. As the party watched, the swarm of shadow bats reformed themselves into the shape of a dragon who glowed and flared from the inside like an ember. Once the dragon was fully formed it landed on the edge of the ruined tower wall and turned its malevolent gaze on the adventurers.
Aletha spotted a solid looking rooftop through a break in the west wall of the tower. She quickly ran to the edge and easily fey stepped across the large gap, leaving her companions the find their own way across. Vismund determined this was the perfect opportunity to use his new Arcane Springboard power, but he needed time to prepare it. Jym, Mina and Regnor moved into position near the break in the wall to wait for Vismund to complete the spell. The umbra drake, seeing that his prey was trying to escape, drew in a long breath and exhaled a cloud of thick cold shadows that enveloped the top of the tower and everyone still standing there. The shadows temporarily blinded Jym and Regnor, but Mina and Vismund were able to find some cover amongst the rubble and avoided the worst of the attack.
Vismund completed his spell and called a magical springboard into existence at the edge of the tower. The tower began to shudder underneath him, giving warning of its immanent collapse. Mina shoved the blinded Jym and Regnor towards the springboard and somehow they were able to launch themselves across the gap to relative safety. Mina and Vismund quickly followed them, landing on the nearby roof just as the tower gave a final groan and crumbled behind them. The shadow dragon lifted off into the air as the tower fell, and then came to rest on the roof next to the party, with its jaws gnashing and its tail slashing about them. Regnor was struck prone by the tail and remained blinded for most of the battle. He did however make good use of his reaping strike he swung out blindly at the dragon, cutting and slicing it, wearing it down.
Aletha had once again backed up to a safe range away from the dragon and unleashed bolt after bolt of fey magic at the beast, but luck was not on her side this night as many of them passed harmlessly by it. Jym had used up most of his power for the day but still managed to rally the troops and move them into advantageous positions flanking the dragon. The umbra drake focused much of its attention on the fighter until it was certain he was no longer a threat as Regnor lay helplessly on the roof, blinded, weakened, and struggling to lift his sword against the onslaught of attacks. Meanwhile Mina had been putting her combat advantage to great use, piling on the damage with sneak attack after sneak attack. Finally the dragon became aware of the very real threat the little teifling rogue presented and aimed a blast of shadow breath at her and Vismund. Mina was able to duck the attack but Vismund took the full force of it.
At last Aletha was able to land an attack on the dragon, striking it with witchfire, thereby reducing its combat effectiveness, which granted her companions a reprieve from its attacks. They took full advantage of the situation. Regnor finally shook off the last of his debilitating effects and struck a mighty blow to the beast with his greatsword. Jym plunged his bastard sword deeply into its side. Mina slash viciously at its exposed flank with her short sword. Vismund hammered mercilessly at its leg with his warhammer. Under the onslaught the beast gave a final angered cry of defeat before tumbling off the roof towards the street below. Before it struck the ground the shadows that made up its form burst apart and flew off in all directions and faded away in the darkness.
The party sat dumbfounded and exhausted together on the rooftops wondering if it was really finally over. They went over the dangerous and bizarre events of the past couple nights spent in the slums in their heads and briefly discussed what to do now. From all appearances they had completely wiped out the Beggar-King and his followers, putting an end to the danger his reckless actions had threatened the city with. The umbra drake would have eventually broken free of the Beggar-King's control. If the adventurers had not been there it would have wreaked havoc on the unsuspecting populous of Punjar. Through their actions the party had averted catastrophe. This realization earned the party enough experience to gain another level.
Later, back at the Horny Hippogriff Tavern, they discussed their future plans as they divided up the treasure. Aletha planned to take her trophy, one of the horns of Mother Zeb'Oltha, back to "The Sisters" and claim her reward. When she did they thanked her and gave her a scroll, which had a map drawn upon it. They told her it was a map to a dragon's treasure horde. They did not tell her whether the dragon still lived or what guarded it now. Mina was anxious to take the Beggar-King's head back to his chief rival "The Master of Smoke" to claim her prize money and gain entrance to the prestigious thieves guild of Punjar. Jym would follow up with the town constabulary and claim his reward for rescuing the kidnapped Baroness, and maybe even do a little blackmailing of the Baron to boot, since all evidence pointed to him as being the reason she disappeared in the first place. Regnor would take the recovered trinket back to his employer and see what new opportunities would come his way. Vismund had many plans involving distributing his cursed rat treasure to his enemies and beggars alike, selling his recovered goods for a quick profit and then relocating as soon as possible, and also looking up that dwarven tinker they'd rescued and seeing if there was a mutually beneficial business arrangement they could come to.
They parted company as they had started, not quite friends yet not quite enemies. In the city of thieves friends can be a liability, but you can't afford to make new enemies either. Who's to know in what circumstances they may cross paths again, but for now they all had better places to be. And with that they said their final good-byes and went their separate ways, disappearing into the darkened back-alleys and by-ways of the Old Town district of Punjar.
The roof of the tower had long ago rotted away, exposing a network of rotting wooden beams like the ribs of some long dead beast. A massive cloud of shadow bats hung over head silhouetted against a rising full moon. The air held a wintry chill to it and bits of ash from the fires below carried up in the updraft were drifting down like snowflakes all around them. As the party watched, the swarm of shadow bats reformed themselves into the shape of a dragon who glowed and flared from the inside like an ember. Once the dragon was fully formed it landed on the edge of the ruined tower wall and turned its malevolent gaze on the adventurers.
Aletha spotted a solid looking rooftop through a break in the west wall of the tower. She quickly ran to the edge and easily fey stepped across the large gap, leaving her companions the find their own way across. Vismund determined this was the perfect opportunity to use his new Arcane Springboard power, but he needed time to prepare it. Jym, Mina and Regnor moved into position near the break in the wall to wait for Vismund to complete the spell. The umbra drake, seeing that his prey was trying to escape, drew in a long breath and exhaled a cloud of thick cold shadows that enveloped the top of the tower and everyone still standing there. The shadows temporarily blinded Jym and Regnor, but Mina and Vismund were able to find some cover amongst the rubble and avoided the worst of the attack.
Vismund completed his spell and called a magical springboard into existence at the edge of the tower. The tower began to shudder underneath him, giving warning of its immanent collapse. Mina shoved the blinded Jym and Regnor towards the springboard and somehow they were able to launch themselves across the gap to relative safety. Mina and Vismund quickly followed them, landing on the nearby roof just as the tower gave a final groan and crumbled behind them. The shadow dragon lifted off into the air as the tower fell, and then came to rest on the roof next to the party, with its jaws gnashing and its tail slashing about them. Regnor was struck prone by the tail and remained blinded for most of the battle. He did however make good use of his reaping strike he swung out blindly at the dragon, cutting and slicing it, wearing it down.
Aletha had once again backed up to a safe range away from the dragon and unleashed bolt after bolt of fey magic at the beast, but luck was not on her side this night as many of them passed harmlessly by it. Jym had used up most of his power for the day but still managed to rally the troops and move them into advantageous positions flanking the dragon. The umbra drake focused much of its attention on the fighter until it was certain he was no longer a threat as Regnor lay helplessly on the roof, blinded, weakened, and struggling to lift his sword against the onslaught of attacks. Meanwhile Mina had been putting her combat advantage to great use, piling on the damage with sneak attack after sneak attack. Finally the dragon became aware of the very real threat the little teifling rogue presented and aimed a blast of shadow breath at her and Vismund. Mina was able to duck the attack but Vismund took the full force of it.
At last Aletha was able to land an attack on the dragon, striking it with witchfire, thereby reducing its combat effectiveness, which granted her companions a reprieve from its attacks. They took full advantage of the situation. Regnor finally shook off the last of his debilitating effects and struck a mighty blow to the beast with his greatsword. Jym plunged his bastard sword deeply into its side. Mina slash viciously at its exposed flank with her short sword. Vismund hammered mercilessly at its leg with his warhammer. Under the onslaught the beast gave a final angered cry of defeat before tumbling off the roof towards the street below. Before it struck the ground the shadows that made up its form burst apart and flew off in all directions and faded away in the darkness.
The party sat dumbfounded and exhausted together on the rooftops wondering if it was really finally over. They went over the dangerous and bizarre events of the past couple nights spent in the slums in their heads and briefly discussed what to do now. From all appearances they had completely wiped out the Beggar-King and his followers, putting an end to the danger his reckless actions had threatened the city with. The umbra drake would have eventually broken free of the Beggar-King's control. If the adventurers had not been there it would have wreaked havoc on the unsuspecting populous of Punjar. Through their actions the party had averted catastrophe. This realization earned the party enough experience to gain another level.
Later, back at the Horny Hippogriff Tavern, they discussed their future plans as they divided up the treasure. Aletha planned to take her trophy, one of the horns of Mother Zeb'Oltha, back to "The Sisters" and claim her reward. When she did they thanked her and gave her a scroll, which had a map drawn upon it. They told her it was a map to a dragon's treasure horde. They did not tell her whether the dragon still lived or what guarded it now. Mina was anxious to take the Beggar-King's head back to his chief rival "The Master of Smoke" to claim her prize money and gain entrance to the prestigious thieves guild of Punjar. Jym would follow up with the town constabulary and claim his reward for rescuing the kidnapped Baroness, and maybe even do a little blackmailing of the Baron to boot, since all evidence pointed to him as being the reason she disappeared in the first place. Regnor would take the recovered trinket back to his employer and see what new opportunities would come his way. Vismund had many plans involving distributing his cursed rat treasure to his enemies and beggars alike, selling his recovered goods for a quick profit and then relocating as soon as possible, and also looking up that dwarven tinker they'd rescued and seeing if there was a mutually beneficial business arrangement they could come to.
They parted company as they had started, not quite friends yet not quite enemies. In the city of thieves friends can be a liability, but you can't afford to make new enemies either. Who's to know in what circumstances they may cross paths again, but for now they all had better places to be. And with that they said their final good-byes and went their separate ways, disappearing into the darkened back-alleys and by-ways of the Old Town district of Punjar.
Sellswords of Punjar, Session 5: Into the Beggar-King's Kitchen
A few minutes later found the party back outside of the warm and wailing door. Feeling they had nothing to lose at this point they knocked politely at the door and waited for any response. When none came they prepared to break the door down. Regnor and Vismund gave the door a few good swift kicks which broke the security bar that was holding it closed.
When the broken door swung inward a wave of stiflingly dry heat washed over the party. Beyond the opening they could see a low circular chamber made of mortared stone. In the middle of the room stood an obese man, who could only be the Beggar-King himself, apparently caught in the throes of some dark sorcery. His head was thrown back in triumph or agony, it was unclear, with a gout of black swirling shadow continually erupting from his open mouth. The column shot upward and through a hole in the ruined floor of the level above and out of sight. The Beggar-King's skin had a dry and desiccated look to it, but his eyes flicking towards the door betrayed the fact that he was aware of his surroundings. Behind him set into the far wall of the room was the large metal door of a cremation oven, glowing red from the heat of a raging fire contained inside. What was fueling this infernal fire? The floor was littered with bits of wood, stone, skulls and broken bones all stained with soot. A crumbling set of stone stairs curved along one wall and up into darkness.
The party took a moment to work out a plan of attack. Someone suggested they try to get the door of the oven open and then push the Beggar-King into it. Jym offered to throw open the door since he would be resistant to the heat with his teifling blood. Aletha felt that with some help she could force him in with the Curse of the Dark dream. Mina objected to this idea since she would need the Beggar-King's head to complete her mission, but before she could raise an objection the party moved into action. As they entered the room a bit of the shadow gushing from the Beggar-King drifted down to surround him. They watched as the swirling shadows took on the shape of a cloud of swarming black bats bristling with claws and teeth. Obviously anyone who got close enough to reach him would be savagely slashed and bitten.
Jym began to race around the edge of the room in order to reach the oven doors. As he got halfway there the sudden motion of the Beggar-King's arms coming up caught his eye. In response to the man's gesture a blackened pile of bones assembled itself into a human skeleton between Jym and the oven, and then was engulfed in flames. The flames didn't seem to bother it though, in fact it took an orb of flame in it's hand and hurled it at Jym, who deftly ducked the missile. A second cinderbone skeleton, for that's what they were, formed itself near the stairs at the Beggar-King's command and hurled a fiery orb at Regnor which struck and set him aflame. Enraged, Regnor surged forward and attacked the Beggar-King. As expected the cloud of shadow bats bit and slashed him mercilessly causing him to back off after having delivered a minor blow to the man in the middle of the cloud. Seemingly at the fat man's command the door of the oven flew open and a gout of flame shot forth to engulf the already burned and battered fighter. The Beggar-King furthermore attacked Regnor's mind with a psychic blast of cold necromantic energy. Vismund was forced to use some of his restorative formula on Regnor to soothe his many wounds, and then he charged the cinderbone skeleton near the stairs. Mina threw a dagger at the Beggar-King before attempting to sneak into a better flanking position. Aletha laid down suppressive fire from a safe distance near the doorway.
Jym moved in on his cinderbone skelly, deflected a flaming claw with his shield and struck it with a critical blow, ending it's brief existence. Before he could move closer to the oven door a new flaming skeleton was raised in it's place. Jym decided to abandon the fat-man-in-the-oven plan and directed his companions to focus all of their attacks on the Beggar-King directly. Mina tossed another dagger before drawing her short sword and sneaking into a flanking position behind the Beggar-King. Before stepping into the cloud of bats she activated the protective magic of her wolf fur cloak which seemed to ward off their bothersome attacks. This reminded Regnor of his own magical mantle, and taking a cue from Mina he called on its power and stumbled back into the cloud, granting combat advantage to himself and Mina against the Beggar-King. Vismund heard Jym's command and broke off from the cinder skeleton and moved closer to the Beggar-King. The cinder skeleton took an ineffectual swipe at the dwarf as he moved away, but the Beggar-King summoned it to his side to guard his exposed flank. This annoyed the dwarf who began beating it with his warhammer. Aletha reached out to the Beggar-King's mind with the Curse of the Dark Dream but was unable to hit him with its full effect. Still, he was tossed a few feet into the air by the fey magic and landed roughly on the ground. Jym moved up and lead the attack on their enemy, scoring an impressive hit and shouting inspiring words to his companions.
Surrounded and flanked the Beggar-King did not last long under the blades of Jym, Regnor and Mina. As he died and collapsed to the floor so did his skeleton minions. The flames of the oven immediately died out plunging the room in shadow. A chill wind blew through the dim basement freezing the sweat on their brows. The cloud of shadow bats surged upward through the holes in the ceiling and out of sight. Almost at once, the ground began to shake and dirt and debris began to fall down around them. From the distance came a muffled "whump" and a rush of air as the caverns below them began to collapse. It became apparent that the only escape from premature burial was to climb up the stairs to the surface and quickly. As they hurried out of the room Mina lingered long enough to separate the Beggar-King's head from his body and took it with her.
When the broken door swung inward a wave of stiflingly dry heat washed over the party. Beyond the opening they could see a low circular chamber made of mortared stone. In the middle of the room stood an obese man, who could only be the Beggar-King himself, apparently caught in the throes of some dark sorcery. His head was thrown back in triumph or agony, it was unclear, with a gout of black swirling shadow continually erupting from his open mouth. The column shot upward and through a hole in the ruined floor of the level above and out of sight. The Beggar-King's skin had a dry and desiccated look to it, but his eyes flicking towards the door betrayed the fact that he was aware of his surroundings. Behind him set into the far wall of the room was the large metal door of a cremation oven, glowing red from the heat of a raging fire contained inside. What was fueling this infernal fire? The floor was littered with bits of wood, stone, skulls and broken bones all stained with soot. A crumbling set of stone stairs curved along one wall and up into darkness.
The party took a moment to work out a plan of attack. Someone suggested they try to get the door of the oven open and then push the Beggar-King into it. Jym offered to throw open the door since he would be resistant to the heat with his teifling blood. Aletha felt that with some help she could force him in with the Curse of the Dark dream. Mina objected to this idea since she would need the Beggar-King's head to complete her mission, but before she could raise an objection the party moved into action. As they entered the room a bit of the shadow gushing from the Beggar-King drifted down to surround him. They watched as the swirling shadows took on the shape of a cloud of swarming black bats bristling with claws and teeth. Obviously anyone who got close enough to reach him would be savagely slashed and bitten.
Jym began to race around the edge of the room in order to reach the oven doors. As he got halfway there the sudden motion of the Beggar-King's arms coming up caught his eye. In response to the man's gesture a blackened pile of bones assembled itself into a human skeleton between Jym and the oven, and then was engulfed in flames. The flames didn't seem to bother it though, in fact it took an orb of flame in it's hand and hurled it at Jym, who deftly ducked the missile. A second cinderbone skeleton, for that's what they were, formed itself near the stairs at the Beggar-King's command and hurled a fiery orb at Regnor which struck and set him aflame. Enraged, Regnor surged forward and attacked the Beggar-King. As expected the cloud of shadow bats bit and slashed him mercilessly causing him to back off after having delivered a minor blow to the man in the middle of the cloud. Seemingly at the fat man's command the door of the oven flew open and a gout of flame shot forth to engulf the already burned and battered fighter. The Beggar-King furthermore attacked Regnor's mind with a psychic blast of cold necromantic energy. Vismund was forced to use some of his restorative formula on Regnor to soothe his many wounds, and then he charged the cinderbone skeleton near the stairs. Mina threw a dagger at the Beggar-King before attempting to sneak into a better flanking position. Aletha laid down suppressive fire from a safe distance near the doorway.
Jym moved in on his cinderbone skelly, deflected a flaming claw with his shield and struck it with a critical blow, ending it's brief existence. Before he could move closer to the oven door a new flaming skeleton was raised in it's place. Jym decided to abandon the fat-man-in-the-oven plan and directed his companions to focus all of their attacks on the Beggar-King directly. Mina tossed another dagger before drawing her short sword and sneaking into a flanking position behind the Beggar-King. Before stepping into the cloud of bats she activated the protective magic of her wolf fur cloak which seemed to ward off their bothersome attacks. This reminded Regnor of his own magical mantle, and taking a cue from Mina he called on its power and stumbled back into the cloud, granting combat advantage to himself and Mina against the Beggar-King. Vismund heard Jym's command and broke off from the cinder skeleton and moved closer to the Beggar-King. The cinder skeleton took an ineffectual swipe at the dwarf as he moved away, but the Beggar-King summoned it to his side to guard his exposed flank. This annoyed the dwarf who began beating it with his warhammer. Aletha reached out to the Beggar-King's mind with the Curse of the Dark Dream but was unable to hit him with its full effect. Still, he was tossed a few feet into the air by the fey magic and landed roughly on the ground. Jym moved up and lead the attack on their enemy, scoring an impressive hit and shouting inspiring words to his companions.
Surrounded and flanked the Beggar-King did not last long under the blades of Jym, Regnor and Mina. As he died and collapsed to the floor so did his skeleton minions. The flames of the oven immediately died out plunging the room in shadow. A chill wind blew through the dim basement freezing the sweat on their brows. The cloud of shadow bats surged upward through the holes in the ceiling and out of sight. Almost at once, the ground began to shake and dirt and debris began to fall down around them. From the distance came a muffled "whump" and a rush of air as the caverns below them began to collapse. It became apparent that the only escape from premature burial was to climb up the stairs to the surface and quickly. As they hurried out of the room Mina lingered long enough to separate the Beggar-King's head from his body and took it with her.
Sellswords of Punjar, Session 5: The Horror from the Well of Ancients
Well rested and recovered, the party broke their camp and reviewed what they had accomplished so far. Aletha reminded everyone of the mysterious passage they had passed the previous day. She felt that it must lead into a much older section of the caverns, possibly dating back to the earliest inhabitants said to be an evil coven of warlocks. The party talked it over and decided that they wanted to head back there eventually, but that the first priority was to explore the stairs leading up from the chamber of Niramuth. Mina was elected to go in front.
The treads and walls of the stairway were carved out of the natural stone surrounding them, and the spiraled slowly upward. As the party ascended the air grew noticeably warmer and stuffier. Vismund determined that the group was still 10' underground when the stairs suddenly terminated at a wooden door, reinforced with iron banding. Pushing and pulling on the door found it firmly closed, but no lock mechanism could be seen. Presumably there was a bar set on the other side. Mina reported that the door was very warm to the touch and that she could hear the crackling of flame mixed with a kind of moaning or wailing coming from the other side of the barrier. Although flickering orange light could be seen spilling into the stairwell from the edges of doorway, there was not a crevice large enough to get a good look into the next room.
The party briefly discussed their options. Should they try to smash open the door or simply knock and hope someone answered? They searched for hidden latches but found none. Vismund examined the door looking for particular points of weakness and even considered dismantling the reinforcing bands, but decided the process would make as much noise as just breaking through the wood with brute force. In the end the group decided to leave the door behind for now and investigate the passage Aletha had mentioned before.
Retracing their steps from the previous day, the party crossed the underground river, passed through the slavers' barracks, and descended a short flight of stairs into the room with the odd altar of piled stones. Further investigations revealed that there was plaster mixed in with the tumbled down stones. On some of the stones there could still be made out portions of carved sigils filled with lead. Apparently those who walled up the old passage had placed a mystical seal of some sort on the finished barrier and then plastered over it. The party was intrigued and not dissuaded from investigating further. Mina was once again sent first into the darkness ahead.
The dark, narrow, and cobweb filled passage opened up into a small and dark octagonal chamber. From all appearances it seemed to be a very sparse chapel of some sort. The wall opposite the passage was dominated by a large painting of a circular portal decorated with skulls and stars. In the corners of the room were four large censers hanging from iron chains. A dark smokey miasma hung in the air. Beneath the faux portal was a simple wooden bowl filled with some vile looking substance. In the center of the chamber lay a desiccated corpse of a man in a flowing red robe and an ashen beard with a look of horror frozen on his face. Mina reported her findings to the rest of the group who cautiously followed her into the chapel.
Vismund approached the painting of the portal and scrutinized it. The arcane symbols all seemed to relate to a dimension known as the shadow-realm, a place on the border of the living and the dead. He found a scratch on the surface of the paint which revealed more lead sigils hidden underneath. Near the bowl on the ground was a discarded iron pin with a fleck of paint still attached to it. The bowl smelled of cooked meat and was sticky with blood around the edges. An offering of burnt flesh must have been involved in some dark ceremony.
Mina meanwhile had been checking the walls for secret doors and had worked her way around the chamber to where Vismund stood. By rapping the plaster walls she discovered that the portal painting concealed a void and deduced that there was a secret passage behind it. There were no signs of hinges or latches that would indicate a door however.
Aletha had been directing her attention to the corpse during this time. On the body she found a pair of decorative silver bracers, a long pipe for smoking, a fighting dagger, and a scroll case containing ritual scrolls for Eye of Alarm, Silence, and Magic Mouth. Other than the ritual scrolls, none of the items showed the distinguishing signs of being magical. She inferred from the way the body lay that the wizened man had been kneeling when he was suddenly struck dead and collapsed.
Jym was investigating the censers. Three of the four had been lit at some point in the past and were out of fuel, but the fourth was fully loaded and had not been lit. Jym realized there was no scent of incense in the air. So if the censers were not alight then what was the cause of the strange atmosphere of this room? Taking a moment to consider he noticed that the "smoke" actually appeared to be made of free floating shadow constantly moving and shifting shape as if by it's own will. This disturbed him and he warned the others of his discovery. He also took the fourth unlit censer, just in case it proved useful or valuable later.
The group debated leaving well enough alone and getting out of the strange shadow mist or pressing onward and finding a way through the wall. Regnor resolved the issue by barreling through the plaster wall leaving it in ruin behind him as his momentum carried him farther down a hidden passage. Once the sigil inscribed wall had been breached the shadow mist in the chapel began to coalesce into a more solid but still shadowy tentacle of great length extending back through the Regnor shaped hole in the wall. The tentacle flailed about and grasped the first thing it came in contact with, which happened to be Vismund who was standing near the portal at the time of it's breach. The tentacle wrapped around the dwarf and with surprising force pulled him off his feet and into the passage as the rest of the party looked on in mounting horror.
Beyond the portal Regnor had charged into a spacious room with what appeared to be a large circular stone well dominating the center of the floor. The well was circumscribed with a mystical pentacle filled with lead and decorated with more strange and arcane symbols. Emanating from the well were many more long and shadowy tentacles, writhing and grasping wildly in the air as if trying to find some purchase or hold to pull itself out. The whole impression was of something very large and enraged trying to squeeze itself through a much smaller opening. The tentacle squeezing Vismund began to slide past Regnor, so he turned his attention to rescuing his companion. Under his strong ministrations the shadowy appendage broke apart, losing its grasp on Vismund, but then reformed itself long enough to lashed out at the fighter. The sapped some of the dragonborn's great strength.
By this time Jym had followed Regnor and Vismund into the adjoining chamber. He called out encouragement to his allies and then moved into the fray, slashing tentacles with his bastard sword. The tentacle horror retaliated with a burst of flailing tentacles which battered everyone in the room. Aletha and Mina moved into range striking distance and hurled bolts of fey magic and daggers at the shadow thing, dealing significant damage. Regnor, Vismund and Jym picked themselves up and redoubled their efforts against the thing. When the horror was severely wounded a dark cloud of shadow filled the room clouding their vision briefly and weakening them further. The tenacious party brought their many powers to bear and beat the shadow horror back. When it was finally defeated the remaining tentacles broke up and faded away to nothingness.
After a quick breather the adventurers investigated the well. Mina noticed a single wisp of almost imperceptible shadow curling up from the depth of the well. The well itself was made of stone, but the stone gave way to thick inky shadows only a few feet from the mouth. Aletha sent experimental bolts of eldritch energy questing into the darkness which struck nothing. Lit torches were dropped into the well only to be quickly swallowed by blackness. Vismund drop a single coin from his collection of cursed rat treasure into the well, but if he made a wish it was not answered. Finally the group decided someone should be lowered into the well to look for treasure and they nominated Mina. Mina reluctantly went along with the plan but expected to be well compensated for the risk.
As she began to be lowered by rope into the well, the wisp of shadow she had seen early curled itself around one of her fingers, resembling a ring. In her mind she felt a brief struggle for dominance, but in its obviously weakened state the shadow thing was not able to exert any control. Instead it formed a symbiotic relationship with the tiefling, granting her greatly increased health when in its favored environment, the shadows, at the expense of some health when in full daylight, but granting no benefit in full darkness. Mina seemed pleased by this arrangement and continued down into the shaft.
The stone of the shaft gradually gave way to thick shadows. The walls of the well became at first spongy, then fluid, and finally insubstantial. At the full length of her rope line she had not reached any sort of bottom but was surrounded by inky shadows in which her eyes began to play tricks on her, giving the impression of movement all around her. In the silence her ears seemed to pick up the faint whispers, sighs, and sobbing of many voices. Being thoroughly freaked out and not finding anything of value here she signaled for her companions to bring her up. They briefly thought about dropping her as a laugh but eventually hauled her back to the surface.
The group decided that this eerie place was best sealed up and left behind. Vismund used some of their group loot to perform rituals on the two plaster paint and lead seals to make them whole again. Once the rituals were complete the party headed back the way they came.
The treads and walls of the stairway were carved out of the natural stone surrounding them, and the spiraled slowly upward. As the party ascended the air grew noticeably warmer and stuffier. Vismund determined that the group was still 10' underground when the stairs suddenly terminated at a wooden door, reinforced with iron banding. Pushing and pulling on the door found it firmly closed, but no lock mechanism could be seen. Presumably there was a bar set on the other side. Mina reported that the door was very warm to the touch and that she could hear the crackling of flame mixed with a kind of moaning or wailing coming from the other side of the barrier. Although flickering orange light could be seen spilling into the stairwell from the edges of doorway, there was not a crevice large enough to get a good look into the next room.
The party briefly discussed their options. Should they try to smash open the door or simply knock and hope someone answered? They searched for hidden latches but found none. Vismund examined the door looking for particular points of weakness and even considered dismantling the reinforcing bands, but decided the process would make as much noise as just breaking through the wood with brute force. In the end the group decided to leave the door behind for now and investigate the passage Aletha had mentioned before.
Retracing their steps from the previous day, the party crossed the underground river, passed through the slavers' barracks, and descended a short flight of stairs into the room with the odd altar of piled stones. Further investigations revealed that there was plaster mixed in with the tumbled down stones. On some of the stones there could still be made out portions of carved sigils filled with lead. Apparently those who walled up the old passage had placed a mystical seal of some sort on the finished barrier and then plastered over it. The party was intrigued and not dissuaded from investigating further. Mina was once again sent first into the darkness ahead.
The dark, narrow, and cobweb filled passage opened up into a small and dark octagonal chamber. From all appearances it seemed to be a very sparse chapel of some sort. The wall opposite the passage was dominated by a large painting of a circular portal decorated with skulls and stars. In the corners of the room were four large censers hanging from iron chains. A dark smokey miasma hung in the air. Beneath the faux portal was a simple wooden bowl filled with some vile looking substance. In the center of the chamber lay a desiccated corpse of a man in a flowing red robe and an ashen beard with a look of horror frozen on his face. Mina reported her findings to the rest of the group who cautiously followed her into the chapel.
Vismund approached the painting of the portal and scrutinized it. The arcane symbols all seemed to relate to a dimension known as the shadow-realm, a place on the border of the living and the dead. He found a scratch on the surface of the paint which revealed more lead sigils hidden underneath. Near the bowl on the ground was a discarded iron pin with a fleck of paint still attached to it. The bowl smelled of cooked meat and was sticky with blood around the edges. An offering of burnt flesh must have been involved in some dark ceremony.
Mina meanwhile had been checking the walls for secret doors and had worked her way around the chamber to where Vismund stood. By rapping the plaster walls she discovered that the portal painting concealed a void and deduced that there was a secret passage behind it. There were no signs of hinges or latches that would indicate a door however.
Aletha had been directing her attention to the corpse during this time. On the body she found a pair of decorative silver bracers, a long pipe for smoking, a fighting dagger, and a scroll case containing ritual scrolls for Eye of Alarm, Silence, and Magic Mouth. Other than the ritual scrolls, none of the items showed the distinguishing signs of being magical. She inferred from the way the body lay that the wizened man had been kneeling when he was suddenly struck dead and collapsed.
Jym was investigating the censers. Three of the four had been lit at some point in the past and were out of fuel, but the fourth was fully loaded and had not been lit. Jym realized there was no scent of incense in the air. So if the censers were not alight then what was the cause of the strange atmosphere of this room? Taking a moment to consider he noticed that the "smoke" actually appeared to be made of free floating shadow constantly moving and shifting shape as if by it's own will. This disturbed him and he warned the others of his discovery. He also took the fourth unlit censer, just in case it proved useful or valuable later.
The group debated leaving well enough alone and getting out of the strange shadow mist or pressing onward and finding a way through the wall. Regnor resolved the issue by barreling through the plaster wall leaving it in ruin behind him as his momentum carried him farther down a hidden passage. Once the sigil inscribed wall had been breached the shadow mist in the chapel began to coalesce into a more solid but still shadowy tentacle of great length extending back through the Regnor shaped hole in the wall. The tentacle flailed about and grasped the first thing it came in contact with, which happened to be Vismund who was standing near the portal at the time of it's breach. The tentacle wrapped around the dwarf and with surprising force pulled him off his feet and into the passage as the rest of the party looked on in mounting horror.
Beyond the portal Regnor had charged into a spacious room with what appeared to be a large circular stone well dominating the center of the floor. The well was circumscribed with a mystical pentacle filled with lead and decorated with more strange and arcane symbols. Emanating from the well were many more long and shadowy tentacles, writhing and grasping wildly in the air as if trying to find some purchase or hold to pull itself out. The whole impression was of something very large and enraged trying to squeeze itself through a much smaller opening. The tentacle squeezing Vismund began to slide past Regnor, so he turned his attention to rescuing his companion. Under his strong ministrations the shadowy appendage broke apart, losing its grasp on Vismund, but then reformed itself long enough to lashed out at the fighter. The sapped some of the dragonborn's great strength.
By this time Jym had followed Regnor and Vismund into the adjoining chamber. He called out encouragement to his allies and then moved into the fray, slashing tentacles with his bastard sword. The tentacle horror retaliated with a burst of flailing tentacles which battered everyone in the room. Aletha and Mina moved into range striking distance and hurled bolts of fey magic and daggers at the shadow thing, dealing significant damage. Regnor, Vismund and Jym picked themselves up and redoubled their efforts against the thing. When the horror was severely wounded a dark cloud of shadow filled the room clouding their vision briefly and weakening them further. The tenacious party brought their many powers to bear and beat the shadow horror back. When it was finally defeated the remaining tentacles broke up and faded away to nothingness.
After a quick breather the adventurers investigated the well. Mina noticed a single wisp of almost imperceptible shadow curling up from the depth of the well. The well itself was made of stone, but the stone gave way to thick inky shadows only a few feet from the mouth. Aletha sent experimental bolts of eldritch energy questing into the darkness which struck nothing. Lit torches were dropped into the well only to be quickly swallowed by blackness. Vismund drop a single coin from his collection of cursed rat treasure into the well, but if he made a wish it was not answered. Finally the group decided someone should be lowered into the well to look for treasure and they nominated Mina. Mina reluctantly went along with the plan but expected to be well compensated for the risk.
As she began to be lowered by rope into the well, the wisp of shadow she had seen early curled itself around one of her fingers, resembling a ring. In her mind she felt a brief struggle for dominance, but in its obviously weakened state the shadow thing was not able to exert any control. Instead it formed a symbiotic relationship with the tiefling, granting her greatly increased health when in its favored environment, the shadows, at the expense of some health when in full daylight, but granting no benefit in full darkness. Mina seemed pleased by this arrangement and continued down into the shaft.
The stone of the shaft gradually gave way to thick shadows. The walls of the well became at first spongy, then fluid, and finally insubstantial. At the full length of her rope line she had not reached any sort of bottom but was surrounded by inky shadows in which her eyes began to play tricks on her, giving the impression of movement all around her. In the silence her ears seemed to pick up the faint whispers, sighs, and sobbing of many voices. Being thoroughly freaked out and not finding anything of value here she signaled for her companions to bring her up. They briefly thought about dropping her as a laugh but eventually hauled her back to the surface.
The group decided that this eerie place was best sealed up and left behind. Vismund used some of their group loot to perform rituals on the two plaster paint and lead seals to make them whole again. Once the rituals were complete the party headed back the way they came.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
GM Commentary: Session 4 wrap-up
This was the first time we had the whole party together. Austin joined us via the internet, so I had a webcam rig set up so he could watch the action take place on the battle map. That seemed to work pretty well.
It sucked that the party didn't have enough healing surges available, in particular Jym was completely out from the last session when he was run as an NPC and got beat up frequently. I found the healing potion rules to be lame. Players are used to thinking of healing potions as extra hit points, but in 4e they've been nerfed. They actually require a healing surge, restore a set amount of hp instead of a healing surge value, and use an minor action. For some characters the set amount is better than their surge value, but for others it's weaker. The same problem comes when a leader type tries to heal a companion that has no healing surges left. Do they get the extra healing? It is unclear. What about when someone is dying? If they don't have a healing surge left how can they recover?
I made a house rule judgement that all potions work without consuming a healing surge. This makes them more powerful than before, but retains the feel of potions from 3.5e. Also I would allow leader powers to restore the extra hp even if there is no healing surge available.
I think the battle with the rat swarms was a bit disappointing. For one, it's lame when a heroic group defeats with ease all the important villains and then is almost killed by a trap or a minor encounter. Swarm rules are troublesome because of the half-damage from non-area effect attacks. The party only has a few of these, and none of them are at-will abilities. They have the encounter powers acid-breath, scorching burst, and spike-wire, and a single daily power of blinding barrage. These are not enough to effectively take out two swarms. The party could have improved their chances by backing down the passage way and forcing the swarms to come at them in a close packed formation. Doing this would have ensured that each area attack would have a chance to hit both swarms, but it still would not have guaranteed destroying them outright. I'll have to avoid swarms for this group in the future. Unfortunately there's another swarm encounter coming up in this adventure...
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