I settled down and cast a divination. to see how we could free the witch. Unfortunately, it failed. The witch was also less than helpful when we asked what she could cast and what hadn't worked for her in the past. She had attempted to dispel the chain, without success. Her magic was unrestricted except for shapeshifting.
Heavy rain started to fall. We built a shelter to rest for the night; I'd be able to try again the next day. The monkeys brought the witch food. The monkeys also didn't seem to want us to complete our shelter. Brennen & I built the shelter with surprising ease, despite the interference of the wild life. Coincidental or not, the rain stopped as soon as we completed the shelter.
We asked Barclay what he thought he could do. He figured it was worth trying to break it. I asked him to try his hand at identifying the chain. He refused to go alone, so we all went. He was able to tell us the chain was made of Hellsteel. That was a bit of a misnomer; the chain was made of negatively aligned spiritual material.
The next day, I attempted to divine again. I found that it couldn't be removed simply, as a curse. I cast again, asking how we could separate the chain from the witch without killing her. This answer seemed to come from a darker place.
"There are 2 ways to unmake this chain. The one who forged it can unforge it, or a blade or tool must be forged of the same metal to break it."
Barclay didn't know how to make the metal. We'd need to figure out how to create the metal, and then find a smith that could do it. The A'aloss worked with mystical substances, so we might be able to find a smith there that could make it. Alternatively we could try journeying to O'ritan to find the wizard that bound the witch.
Robert was eager to leave We struck a deal on the organs. He told us he would probably clear 1,000 gold on it, and offered us 400 gold up front. We accepted the deal, and split it between ourselves & Barclay.
Shatain also asked Barclay about contacting Ezekiel. He didn't think he could contact Ezekiel from the island, but if we sailed out a few days he should be able to do it. This seemed a good first step before taking a longer journey to O'ritan or A'aloss.
We looked back at the witch. She was poking a finger into the orb. She looked up, and suggested I divine whether the necromancer that made the chain was the same that was helping General Isador. It was a good question. The same dark voice responded with a simple yes.
The witch told us she thought her best course at this point was to drop the ludstone into the orb. She needed to inspect it from the inside to figure out how to fix it. She believed she could get back out when needed.
She was also comfortable continuing to examine the orb while we went to see if we could forge a weapon to break the chain. We returned to the woods, heading back to the town. In a sick twist, we weren't attacked by any monsters, but the insects and brush were far thicker than we remembered. It took a full day and night to return to down.
In the gloaming before dawn, we reached the clearing around the town. On the horizon, we could see 2 ships. One was burning. I cast my senses out onto the waves; I couldn't get all the way, but I could get close enough to tell the ship on fire was ours. There were several longboats in the water.
Behind us, we heard a familiar hail. Saigarn was back, with most of his youngsters. He told us the adventure had been a fine one. The missing A'aloss were in the town infirmary, recovering from their wounds. He didn't want me to heal them, but he did ask if I could make sure their wounds wouldn't kill them. They had to experience the pain of combat. I was happy to do so once we figured out what was going on with the ships.
Within a few minutes, the longboats were close enough for me to see them clearly with my extended senses. There were 6 longboats, 2 from our ship. The other 4 were Ku Rog vessels. Each longboat held about 10 people, and the groups were exchanging missile fire. The Ku Rog were likely attached to General Isador's army; he was known to have an excellent spy network. Regardless, we would need to kill the Ku Rog and take their ship if we wanted to leave the island.
We had about 5 minutes before the longboats reached the shore. I quickly went to the injured A'aloss. Saigarn revised his opinion; he wanted me to get them up & fighting in case they were needed.
There were only 2. I healed them first with a burst of holy energy, then directly cured one of them who had a broken leg. We all left the infirmary, and we formed ranks of archers on the beach. The fishermen on the beach hastily picked up their gear and went into town. The rest of the townsfolk closed their shutters and prepared to defend themselves if necessary.
I told Saigarn & Brennen to let me know when they were ready to start firing. I would bless them to help their arrows fly true. The A'aloss had about 30 arrows each, so we would have plenty of time for aimed fire. We could tell the Ku Rog did have their shields out; they'd been taking missile fire from the other longboats.
We heard creaking from behind us - the townsfolk were bringing out a catapult. It would still be a little while before they were ready to fire. It was very obviously pointed at the Ku Rog vessels. Once the closest Ku Rog boat was about 160' from shore (and the farthest away at 220') we prepared to loose.
We noticed the 2nd Ku Rog longboat seemed to have a human captain at the fore. He appeared to be wearing armor. We recommended to Barclay that he focus on that boat. He was ready with fire & lightning, though waiting for the best time.
We changed our plan - Brennen, Shatain & I all focused on the human among the Ku Rog. Shatain & I missed. Brennen made a direct hit, hitting the human in the chest. He was still standing, and in fact snapped the arrow off and dropped it into the water. Brennen fired his second shot at an orc, but it skipped off of armor. The Ku Rog moved their shields to the front, protecting the rowers. The human was pointing towards us and gesturing or giving commands. The A'aloss made 2 hits. Barclay loosed a magical ball of fire at the 2nd boat, doing 16 to most of the orcs on that boat. The human didn't seem fazed as the flames washed over him.
I dropped a burst of holy energy on the 2nd boat. I penetrated something's spell resistance and did 13. Some of them made their saves, but most of them took full damage and were blinded. A fireball came from the 3rd boat and hit our lines. The 4 of us got out of the way, but many of the A'aloss didn't. Everyone who failed took 30. Brennen fired a moonforged arrow at the armored human, and hit for 16. It still didn't seem to affect him. His 2nd arrow killed another Ku Rog on the 2nd boat; they were down 6 now.
Shatain fired at an orc on the 1st boat. She hit for 16, taking one of the rowers out of service. Brennen spotted the mage on the 3rd boat with 2 arrows for a total of 23. I channeled a burst of healing energy into us, healing everyone for 23. The A'aloss, back to full strength, fired at boat 2, killing 2 more rowers. The ship stopped. The armored human turned to the remaining 2 Ku Rog, who were barely alive, and commanded them to keep rowing. Barclay fired a lightning bolt at the ship with the mage, and appeared to kill him.
Shatain fired at the rowers on the armored human's (the captain) longboat, but missed. Brennen fired and killed one of them with a hit for 24. The captain sighed, took the rower's place, and started rowing. Brennen's 2nd shot killed the other rower. The captain sighed, and pointed at the shore in a clear threat. He maneuvered his longboat to jump onto another. I channeled more healing energy into our ranks, healing everyone back to full. We saw the mage's body flop out into the water as the rowers rid themselves of dead weight. The A'aloss fired again, hitting a few Ku Rog on the first boat.
Brennen fired at the first boat, but missed with both shots. Shatain fired at the first boat as well, but missed. I shot and hit 1 of the rowers on the first boat for 7. The townsfolk fired their catapult, clipping the first boat with a ball of flaming pitch. It ripped off a chunk of the longboat, and set it on fire. The Ku Rog started abandoning it. The A'aloss fired again, picking off 3 rowers on the third longboat.
Shatain fired at the third boat, picking off a rower with a hit for 7. Brennen fired at the third boat as well hitting 1 rower with a critical hit for 23. It killed a Ku Rog that had just dropped his shield to take up an oar. Brennen hit with the 2nd arrow for 15, killing the 2nd replacement. I fired, but completely missed. The A'aloss loosed again, killing 2 more rowers. There were only 2 rowers left, and they seemed to be stripping off their chainmail; they were getting ready to swim back to the ship. The captain had boarded the 4th boat, and it continued towards shore. It seemed it was a bit against their will.
Shatain fired at the 4th boat, hitting a rower for 6. I fired but missed. Brennen fired, hitting a rower for 13. The 2nd arrow hit as well for 8. The A'aloss fired at the 4th boat as well; only 1 hit. Saigarn hit 1 as well.
Shatain fired at the 4th boat, and killed a rower with a hit for 7. I fired but missed. The captain appeared to have acquired a crossbow. He couldn't tell that Brennen was the most accurate archer He fired at Shatain, hitting for 6. Brennen fired at boat 4, hitting a rower for 11. His 2nd arrow hit the same rower critically for 21. The rower was alive, but wasn't rowing. The A'aloss & Saigarn fired, peppering the 4th boat as well; another rower died.
Shatain fired at the 4th boat, hitting a rower for 5. I conjured a spiritual hammer, which attacked the Captain and hit for 3. I caught the Captain by surprise; he caught himself from falling off the boat. I couldn't tell what happened, but it seemed a gust of water knocked him off into the water. Brennen fired at the 4th boat; the first arrow hit for 11, the 2nd arrow missed. The A'aloss & Saigarn attacked; Saigarn hit with 2 arrows. The rest missed.
The 4th boat was now close; 40' away. Brennen hit a rower for 9, but missed with the 2nd arrow. I hit the Captain with my conjured warhammer critically for 12. I fired an arrow at the 4th boat, hitting a rower for 7 and finishing him off. Shatain fired and hit for 6. The Ku Rog on the 4th boat returned fire; 3 of them had crossbows. They all missed. The A'aloss all missed. Saigarn hit with both his shots.
The boat was at the beach, just 10' out. Shatain fired an arrow, killing another Ku Rog. The 3 Ku Rog fired their crossbows again. 1 fired at Shatain, but missed. Another fired at me, hitting for 7. The third hit an A'aloss for 1. Brennen fired 2 more arrows, hitting a Ku Rog for 13. The 2nd arrow hit for 14. I shot a Ku Rog for 24, killing it. My hammer missed the Captain. The A'aloss hit with 2 arrows, Saigarn hit with 1. Another Ku Rog fell. The longboats with our crew were just reaching the shore, with our Captain.
Brennen fired again, fumbling the first shot, but hitting with the 2nd for 13. One of the Ku Rog that hadn't been hit took that shot. My hammer missed the Captain. My bow hit a Ku Rog for 10. It was the same Ku Rog that Brennen had hit; he sat down in the longboat. The A'aloss dropped their bows and picked up their melee weapons. I dropped my bow and took up my warhammer and shield. The remaining 4 battle ready Ku Rog got out of the boat and rushed the beach. The A'aloss elbowed forward. Shatain bluffed one of the Ku Rog, but missed, scraping the Ku Rog's shield. 2 of the A'aloss were hit by the Ku Rog, taking solid hits.1 of the A'aloss hit the 4th Ku Rog.
Brennen attacked a Ku Rog with a 2-handed power attack, but fumbled. A Ku Rog took advantage, hitting him for 8. A Ku Rog attacked Shatain, hitting for 10. Shatain bluffed him in return, and hit with her longsword for 19. One of the A'aloss took a critical hit from a Ku Rog, and went down. I healed everyone for 11 with a burst of holy energy for 11. My spiritual warhammer struck the enemy Captain for 12.
The A'aloss attacked, getting in a few hits. The Ku Rog were looking pretty beaten. Shatain struck a Ku Rog for 18, killing it. The A'aloss almost looked offended at losing the killing blow. My conjured warhammer missed the enemy Captain. There was nothing for me to hit. Brennen attacked a Ku Rog with a 2-handed power attack, hitting for 14 and killing it. The last Ku Rog was completely surrounded by foes. He dropped his weapon and surrendered; the A'aloss groaned in frustration and were only kept in check by Saigarn. The Ku Rog was quickly stripped of armor and weapons.
My spiritual hammer missed once more and blinked out. Shatain asked the Ku Rog prisoner what their Captain was. The Ku Rog told us it would be the death of us. I placed a sensor underwater, near where the hammer had disappeared; the enemy captain had been moving towards the friendly longboats.
Our remaining crew was on the beach now, and very happy to see us. Our captain praised our quick action, and was effusive.
The water was murky, but I saw a glimmer of movement. The enemy Captain was 40' away from shore, moving in. He was walking across the reefs, which were very difficult to traverse. I imbued our cold iron weapons with good; Shatain chose to use her longsword.
The enemy Captain started coming out of the water - it was Galdeon, with a longsword at the ready. We all cursed, but got ready to face the undead.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Manticores and witches and chains, oh my!
As the days counted off, approaching our destination, the hold became almost unbearable to stay in. It was unnaturally cold, and we didn't feel very welcome. There wasn't much we could do about it, so we started rotating guards more often to minimize our exposure. After a few more days, we were more fully feeling the effects of the exposure. We all felt sick, and looked ill.
About 2 days from the island, the crow's nest called out that a ship had been spotted approaching us. The A'aloss identified it as one of their ships. On the upside, they did not engage in piracy; however, they could still attack us. The captain put up signal flags, and we received a friendly response. We passed close to each other, within about 100'. The A'aloss crew looked beaten up, and they were coming from the direction of the island. The ships were not willing to stop to exchange news.
Saigarn was willing to ask the ship about news as it passed. They didn't communicate well; all Saigarn could really tell was that they said they were haunted. He asked if they needed assistance. They didn't respond, other than to repeat they were haunted. They continued without stopping. The captain was happy to let them pass; he didn't feel we needed to take on any more troubles.
The next 2 days passed quietly, though we weren't sure how much more we could take. That night was cloudless, with a full moon. In the middle of the late watch, we heard the call of "land ho!" There was a lighthouse atop cliffs, the highest point of the island. The rest of it was relatively flat; maybe 3-4 mi across. There was a small, shallow harbor with a town. There were fishing boats but it was relatively undeveloped. There was no dock that would fit our ship.
As we came in and set anchor, we saw the lighthouse appeared to be built of shining white marble. The captain told us this island had originally been a prison island for O'ritan, but they had abandoned that projected centuries before.
The captain told us to get on with our mission once dawn came around. He told us he would stay as long as he could, depending on available supplies. We were given a dinghy, and rowed into the town. There were a few fishermen at the docks. Despite its poor appearance, the town seemed perfectly normal. The fishermen were friendly, waving and asking for news (though many continued about their work.)
There was a lot of mixed races; humans, A'aloss, a few half-elves, etc. Everyone seemed to get along pretty well, and most were friendly. Shatain spoke to some of the fishermen to see what could be discovered about the witch. The first fisherman he spoke to just shrugged and sighed; he told Shatain that many people sought the witch. She was hard to find. Many people said she was on the beach, or at the center of the island, just about everywhere. The fisherman pointed us in the direction of a shop in town where they might have good information.
We sat down with the fisherman. He told us that most of their commerce was subsistence fishing. Frequently though, ships came in and dropped off adventurers seeking treasure. The fishermen were happy to help us find the valuables on the island - for a cut of course. Shatain told him we weren't seeking treasure, just the witch. The fisherman told us he wasn't sure what to tell us. The witch wasn't known for helping people. Looking at our ill appearance, he asked if we were in need of healing.
We decided to head to the shop - called Adventure Town. The salesperson was very keenly interested in any new arrivals. He told us that the island was used for special prisoners. Contrary to popular belief, at this point the island was just a prison for the witch. The salesperson, Robert, could show us to her for the small fee of 100 gold.
Because of the enchantments to contain any prisoners, the island attracted a wide variety of magical beasts. Most adventurers came to hunt them, and then sell their kills for gold. Saigarn took the A'aloss crewmen out into the wild for an adventure.
We took Robert up on his offer, paid his 100g, and bought a week of rations for each of us (at 1 gold per day of rations.) Barring anything unforeseen, he expected us to be at the witch's residence by the end of the day. Robert was dressed in leather with a few weapons; dressed for skirmishes, not full combat.
However, it wasn't long before we ran into something. A few hours into our hike, we ran into a manticore. It was about 40' down the trail when we saw it. It was gnawing on the corpse of something when it looked up at us and roared.
The manticore flew spikes at us from its tail. 1 hit me for 7, 1 hit Shatain for 6, 1 missed Brennen, and 1 hit Barclay for 8. It then lifted off into the air. Robert fired at hit, hitting for 5. I called a hammer of spiritual force, which attacked and hit for 4. Shatain fired an arrow, hitting critically for 18. Brennen fired his bow, hitting with 2 of his 3 arrows for a total of 13. Barclay summoned a staff from thin air, and fired a bolt of lightning at the manticore. It didn't dodge, and took 21. The manticore fell out of the air, smoking.
Robert warned us the manticores rarely traveled alone. I knew the organs were our best catch - heart, liver, kidney. Robert had killed hundreds of animals, and offered to carve it up and preserve the pieces. We could negotiate prices later. We were fine with that, since we weren't terribly interested in treasure. Shatain & I watched for companions while Brennen watched Robert work. Unfortunately, Robert was cagey and Brennen really couldn't see much of the extraction.
Robert commented we were lucky it was a female; the males tended to be larger & more aggressive. Just as he spoke, we heard a roar and saw a larger manticore flying in. I fired my bow, hitting for 5. Shatain fired next, but missed. The manticore was flying directly into us, and loosed a volley of spikes. They hit me for 13, Barclay for 8, Brennen for 13 and Robert for 11. Brennen returned fire, hitting with 1 arrow for 6. Robert missed with his short bow.
We started to feel the effects of the poison - everyone made their save but Robert. We'd need a little more time to get it out of our systems. Robert drew his longsword and moved forward, but missed the beast. Shatain couldn't bluff it, but still hit for 9. I hit it with my warhammer for 9. The manticore struck back, hitting me with both claws for 11 and 15. It missed with its bite; I couldn't take advantage, but Brennen & Robert did, hitting for 7 and 6. Brennen attacked with his axe, 2-handed, hitting heroically for 11. He missed with his 2nd strike. Barclay struck with a bolt of lightning. The manticore managed to avoid the worst of it, but still took 10.
Everyone was able to avoid the effects of the poison, except for Barclay. He was looking pale. I healed myself for 30. Shatain bluffed the manticore, and hit for 26. Brennen attacked with his axe again but missed with both swings. Rob hit with his longsword for 4. Barclay sent a wave of arcane missiles at the manticore for 12. The manticore struck back, attacking Shatain. It hit with both its claws for 10 & 14; the bite missed.
Robert shook the poison off. Barclay started to. Shatain feinted the manticore again and struck with her longsword for 24. The manticore died.
Barclay overcame the poison. I healed everyone with holy energy. The first was for 6, then another for 16. That just left Shatain still injured; I healed her up with another spell.
Brennen watched Robert extract the venom sac from the manticore's tail, but couldn't tell how Robert did it. He was pretty sure about how (though he didn't know it was completely wrong.) Brennen was able to determine how the organs were extracted, however.
As we continued our march, Shatain asked Robert about the witch. He told us she was believed to speak common, but people didn't mostly come to her to ask questions. She was also known to have a... less than conciliatory attitude.
After a few hours of marching, we reached a small, round hill. It was very symmetrical; obviously man-made. At the top was a 6' high stone table. The witch lay atop it, completely naked. She was a A'aloss. As the only person who could see over the lip, I respectfully asked if she could help us.
She asked if we'd traveled far, and suffered many hardships. After we answered in the affirmative, she told us to ask our question. I held up the orb, and asked if she could repair it. At her request, I told her what we knew about the orb's history.
She asked what we could do for her in return. I said we didn't know much about her needs, but we were bold and creative. She turned, and showed us where a magical chain was embedded in her back. It was attached to a small stone that lay on the table. The table itself had a low rim around the edge; just enough to not move the stone over.
She told us the stone was a magical stone that could not be moved from the lowest point it was set on. The chain could not be broken. We could conceivably move the stone for her, but that wouldn't be good. She told us that Oritan had implanted the chain. She'd won an argument with an Oritan wizard, but in the process left him crippled. He went to his homeland, and later returned the favor.
At my request, she let me examine where the chain was implanted. The last link seemed to circle her spine. Removal would not be easy, but her freedom was her price for repairing the orb. We showed her the orb, and she told us it would take time to study.
I attempted to identify the chain, but failed. Brennen studied the metal; it was definitely not any metal he'd seen. The surface was both rough and smooth. It had not been mined or forged. I then used my knowledge skills to learn about her bond to the chain.She was a very powerful druid. The chain appeared to be a living creature. If for example I was looking at her soul, the essence of the chain would be the opposite of hers.
This was definitely necromancy. Oritan did not care for necromancers; this chain might have been forged with the assistance of Emilgar.
About 2 days from the island, the crow's nest called out that a ship had been spotted approaching us. The A'aloss identified it as one of their ships. On the upside, they did not engage in piracy; however, they could still attack us. The captain put up signal flags, and we received a friendly response. We passed close to each other, within about 100'. The A'aloss crew looked beaten up, and they were coming from the direction of the island. The ships were not willing to stop to exchange news.
Saigarn was willing to ask the ship about news as it passed. They didn't communicate well; all Saigarn could really tell was that they said they were haunted. He asked if they needed assistance. They didn't respond, other than to repeat they were haunted. They continued without stopping. The captain was happy to let them pass; he didn't feel we needed to take on any more troubles.
The next 2 days passed quietly, though we weren't sure how much more we could take. That night was cloudless, with a full moon. In the middle of the late watch, we heard the call of "land ho!" There was a lighthouse atop cliffs, the highest point of the island. The rest of it was relatively flat; maybe 3-4 mi across. There was a small, shallow harbor with a town. There were fishing boats but it was relatively undeveloped. There was no dock that would fit our ship.
As we came in and set anchor, we saw the lighthouse appeared to be built of shining white marble. The captain told us this island had originally been a prison island for O'ritan, but they had abandoned that projected centuries before.
The captain told us to get on with our mission once dawn came around. He told us he would stay as long as he could, depending on available supplies. We were given a dinghy, and rowed into the town. There were a few fishermen at the docks. Despite its poor appearance, the town seemed perfectly normal. The fishermen were friendly, waving and asking for news (though many continued about their work.)
There was a lot of mixed races; humans, A'aloss, a few half-elves, etc. Everyone seemed to get along pretty well, and most were friendly. Shatain spoke to some of the fishermen to see what could be discovered about the witch. The first fisherman he spoke to just shrugged and sighed; he told Shatain that many people sought the witch. She was hard to find. Many people said she was on the beach, or at the center of the island, just about everywhere. The fisherman pointed us in the direction of a shop in town where they might have good information.
We sat down with the fisherman. He told us that most of their commerce was subsistence fishing. Frequently though, ships came in and dropped off adventurers seeking treasure. The fishermen were happy to help us find the valuables on the island - for a cut of course. Shatain told him we weren't seeking treasure, just the witch. The fisherman told us he wasn't sure what to tell us. The witch wasn't known for helping people. Looking at our ill appearance, he asked if we were in need of healing.
We decided to head to the shop - called Adventure Town. The salesperson was very keenly interested in any new arrivals. He told us that the island was used for special prisoners. Contrary to popular belief, at this point the island was just a prison for the witch. The salesperson, Robert, could show us to her for the small fee of 100 gold.
Because of the enchantments to contain any prisoners, the island attracted a wide variety of magical beasts. Most adventurers came to hunt them, and then sell their kills for gold. Saigarn took the A'aloss crewmen out into the wild for an adventure.
We took Robert up on his offer, paid his 100g, and bought a week of rations for each of us (at 1 gold per day of rations.) Barring anything unforeseen, he expected us to be at the witch's residence by the end of the day. Robert was dressed in leather with a few weapons; dressed for skirmishes, not full combat.
However, it wasn't long before we ran into something. A few hours into our hike, we ran into a manticore. It was about 40' down the trail when we saw it. It was gnawing on the corpse of something when it looked up at us and roared.
The manticore flew spikes at us from its tail. 1 hit me for 7, 1 hit Shatain for 6, 1 missed Brennen, and 1 hit Barclay for 8. It then lifted off into the air. Robert fired at hit, hitting for 5. I called a hammer of spiritual force, which attacked and hit for 4. Shatain fired an arrow, hitting critically for 18. Brennen fired his bow, hitting with 2 of his 3 arrows for a total of 13. Barclay summoned a staff from thin air, and fired a bolt of lightning at the manticore. It didn't dodge, and took 21. The manticore fell out of the air, smoking.
Robert warned us the manticores rarely traveled alone. I knew the organs were our best catch - heart, liver, kidney. Robert had killed hundreds of animals, and offered to carve it up and preserve the pieces. We could negotiate prices later. We were fine with that, since we weren't terribly interested in treasure. Shatain & I watched for companions while Brennen watched Robert work. Unfortunately, Robert was cagey and Brennen really couldn't see much of the extraction.
Robert commented we were lucky it was a female; the males tended to be larger & more aggressive. Just as he spoke, we heard a roar and saw a larger manticore flying in. I fired my bow, hitting for 5. Shatain fired next, but missed. The manticore was flying directly into us, and loosed a volley of spikes. They hit me for 13, Barclay for 8, Brennen for 13 and Robert for 11. Brennen returned fire, hitting with 1 arrow for 6. Robert missed with his short bow.
We started to feel the effects of the poison - everyone made their save but Robert. We'd need a little more time to get it out of our systems. Robert drew his longsword and moved forward, but missed the beast. Shatain couldn't bluff it, but still hit for 9. I hit it with my warhammer for 9. The manticore struck back, hitting me with both claws for 11 and 15. It missed with its bite; I couldn't take advantage, but Brennen & Robert did, hitting for 7 and 6. Brennen attacked with his axe, 2-handed, hitting heroically for 11. He missed with his 2nd strike. Barclay struck with a bolt of lightning. The manticore managed to avoid the worst of it, but still took 10.
Everyone was able to avoid the effects of the poison, except for Barclay. He was looking pale. I healed myself for 30. Shatain bluffed the manticore, and hit for 26. Brennen attacked with his axe again but missed with both swings. Rob hit with his longsword for 4. Barclay sent a wave of arcane missiles at the manticore for 12. The manticore struck back, attacking Shatain. It hit with both its claws for 10 & 14; the bite missed.
Robert shook the poison off. Barclay started to. Shatain feinted the manticore again and struck with her longsword for 24. The manticore died.
Barclay overcame the poison. I healed everyone with holy energy. The first was for 6, then another for 16. That just left Shatain still injured; I healed her up with another spell.
Brennen watched Robert extract the venom sac from the manticore's tail, but couldn't tell how Robert did it. He was pretty sure about how (though he didn't know it was completely wrong.) Brennen was able to determine how the organs were extracted, however.
As we continued our march, Shatain asked Robert about the witch. He told us she was believed to speak common, but people didn't mostly come to her to ask questions. She was also known to have a... less than conciliatory attitude.
After a few hours of marching, we reached a small, round hill. It was very symmetrical; obviously man-made. At the top was a 6' high stone table. The witch lay atop it, completely naked. She was a A'aloss. As the only person who could see over the lip, I respectfully asked if she could help us.
She asked if we'd traveled far, and suffered many hardships. After we answered in the affirmative, she told us to ask our question. I held up the orb, and asked if she could repair it. At her request, I told her what we knew about the orb's history.
She asked what we could do for her in return. I said we didn't know much about her needs, but we were bold and creative. She turned, and showed us where a magical chain was embedded in her back. It was attached to a small stone that lay on the table. The table itself had a low rim around the edge; just enough to not move the stone over.
She told us the stone was a magical stone that could not be moved from the lowest point it was set on. The chain could not be broken. We could conceivably move the stone for her, but that wouldn't be good. She told us that Oritan had implanted the chain. She'd won an argument with an Oritan wizard, but in the process left him crippled. He went to his homeland, and later returned the favor.
At my request, she let me examine where the chain was implanted. The last link seemed to circle her spine. Removal would not be easy, but her freedom was her price for repairing the orb. We showed her the orb, and she told us it would take time to study.
I attempted to identify the chain, but failed. Brennen studied the metal; it was definitely not any metal he'd seen. The surface was both rough and smooth. It had not been mined or forged. I then used my knowledge skills to learn about her bond to the chain.She was a very powerful druid. The chain appeared to be a living creature. If for example I was looking at her soul, the essence of the chain would be the opposite of hers.
This was definitely necromancy. Oritan did not care for necromancers; this chain might have been forged with the assistance of Emilgar.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
The devil's in the details... and by details I mean orb.
All the sailors eyeballed Valdrys when he boarded the ship to work his spell. The captain asked us several times if we were sure we could trust him, as the shaman gathered together a small zoo of insects and other animals. After calling the spirits for about 20 minutes, he told us it was done. If a demon came out, it would be very confused. There wasn't any daylight, but it would be enough for us to get the drop on it.
He told us enchanting our weapons would be very quick if we waited a few days for the full moon. We agreed, and after another somewhat unsettling ritual, our weapons were ready. The shaman bid us farewell.
We entered open water, and arrived at S'Oritan after 2 weeks with no more demonic attacks. The captain switched out the crew again. When we asked, the captain told us we were entering magical waters. Some of the sailors simply wouldn't go, so we took on new ones that were a willing to take a little more pay.
The new crew was a bit strange. Everything about the way they ran the ship was a little different; it was driving the captain crazy, even though everything was done well. We sailed for 10 days without any demons.
On the 11th day, the Captain announced we were crossing into the magical zone. We were warned to be especially careful; strange things tended to happen out here. On the 12th day, with Brennen watching the orb, something different did happen.
The man in the crow's nest with the orb suddenly screamed and clambered down the mast. Brennen had his bow ready, watching for anything. The area around the orb was getting darker. I came on deck to assess the situation. The darkness grew to a 10 foot inky radiance. Everyone was pretty creeped out. All the sailors were performing little rituals to hopefully protect themselves.
I arrived on deck. I conjured daylight on the tip of one of Brennen's arrows. He fired at the mast, pegging it in above the bag with the orb. We saw feathery black wings unfold as the darkness dissipated. A black humanoid in full plate stood in the crow's nest, with a big, black bow. It was an Erinyes, a powerful devil. Its bow & arrows burst into flame as it searched the deck for a target.
Acting quickly, I grabbed as many of Brennen's arrows, including the Sunforged ones, and made them good. Brennen fired 3 arrows, hitting with 2 (1 critically) for a total of 40. The image of the devil blurred, turning into 9 images covering the sky. Shatain fired at one with a normal arrow, and one of the images disappeared. He called to the crew to fire at the devils. The crew didn't have any projectile weapons, but the guards ran below decks to get their crossbows.
Shatain fired another regular arrow, but missed. Brennen fired 3 arrows, killing 2 images. The last arrow missed, flying far off into the sky. I smote the demon with a burst of holy energy, hitting it for 27 though none of the images were dispelled. It was also blinded, as it failed to resist my power. The devil returned the favor with an unholy burst, well enough to hit us despite its blindness. Brennen & I resisted the damage, only taking 11. Shatain took the full 22 and was sickened for a round.
I struck the devil again with more holy energy, hitting it for 23. It was still blinded. The devil attempted to summon allies, but failed. Brennen fired his bow again, destroying 2 of the images and hitting the devil for 8. Shatain fired an arrow and dispelled another image.
Only 3 devils were in the sky now. Shatain fired again, but missed. The devil vanished. 2 of the crew looked up - the demon had teleported high up into the sky.
I took the opportunity to heal us all. Brennen raised his agility, and I blessed us all.
The devil reappeared, and hit me with 2 arrows for a total of 24.
Brennen fired his bow, dispelling 1 of the images and hitting the devil for 9. The devil died, and sank into the sea. It was about 120 feet from the boat, and none of the sailors would go after it. We had hoped to salvage the bow, and possibly some of the Sunforged arrows.
We hauled down the orb and inspected it. The crack was more distinct. We decided to take the orb down to the hold. We rested, and thankfully nothing else came out that day.
The night was different. The room got frosty, and a shadowy demon appeared. It was confused. Shatain attacked with her short sword, but missed. I brought up a spiritual warhammer, but it failed against the demon's magical resistance and disappeared. Brennen hit the demon with his axe, hitting for 28. The new weapons were quite good.
Shatain attacked again, hitting with her short sword for 28. Brennen struck with his axe for 12. The demon died, staining the floor of the hold black.
The next 3 days and 2 nights passed quietly. The last night however, another demon decided to try its luck. The room went frosty, and a demon appeared.
We got the drop on this one. I struck it with my warhammer for 8. Shatain hit with her short sword for 27. The demon broke out of the confusion, and started avoiding the light. It dropped through the floor. As it started to run, we all struck with attacks of opportunity. I hit for 24, Brennen hit for 13, and Shatain hit for 19. The demon died before it could disappear into the sea.
The next morning, we arrived in a port, and had to swap our crew again. We landed in A'aloss - the warrior elves. This would be a hard recruitment. I offered to go out to find crew. I polished my breastplate, and made sure all my weapons were hung, battle ready. I was half A'aloss; I fit in pretty well though I wasn't trying to be one of them. Brennen & Shatain stayed back with the orb.
We noticed a large Ku'Rog boat in port next to us. Our crew ran to it, seeking passage out.
I asked the dockmaster where we could acceptably recruit for crew. He recommended the taverns, none in particular. The first tavern we went to was pretty rough. So was the next one. The third was a little better; I decided to start there.
I settled down at a large table, and bought a round of drinks for the patrons. I talked about our mission; we were going to small island off the north coast of Selvesia. No one at the table really wanted to go, but they all had nephews, sons-in-law, etc. that they thought should go. One of the elves said he would go along to shepherd the younger A'aloss. It would take a few hours to a couple days to gather everyone up however he would join us on the ship, the Fairwind, in an hour or so. His name was Saigarn.
I purchased a cask of A'aloss wine from the barkeep and made my way back to the ship. I let the captain know about our successes. Saigarn joined us a little later with his kit. We introduced ourselves. He seemed happiest to meet Brennen. His gaze over the guards was scornful; he growled to Brennen in Dwarven that they were green.
Shatain & I went down to the hold to guard the orb. Saigarn went with Brennen to find arrows. Saigarn guided him to the finest smithy he'd seen in a long time; it was set into a hillside with carefully built forges and perfect airflow. The A'aloss had learned their craft years before from the elves; they'd learned well.
The smith appeared younger, but all the A'aloss seemed young. The smith was impressed with Brennen's weapons, but disappointed that Brennen hadn't made them himself. After coming back to consult with us, Brennen bought a few Sunforged arrows, and several quivers of high quality arrows for us.
Over the course of the next 2 days, while waiting for the young A'aloss, we acquainted ourselves with Saigarn. He was happy to teach us the language, and I helped the younger A'aloss with Common. I showed Saigarn the orb, and told him about the crack. I also warned him that no one should be near the orb with gems. He took good care to ensure none of the A'aloss had anything like that.
The A'aloss worked well on the ship, and they learned Common very quickly. Learning A'aloss was different - everything was in the details. It was a very complex language. Their culture was strongly focused on war; the language was really a highly developed battle jargon. When they weren't learning language, Saigarn was keeping the kids working at a fever pitch. They were doing easily 3 times as much work as they needed to, but it kept them out of trouble.
This included a guard watch on the orb with us. On the first night, a demon appeared. The kids looked a little concerned.
This one wasn't confused, but breaking the spell took all of its effort. Shatain successfully bluffed the demon, and hit it with her short sword for 32. I hit with my warhammer for 8. Saigarn attacked with his sword, and hit. He didn't do much and stepped back. Brennen attacked, but failed critically.
The demon started to retreat, sinking through the floor. Shatain hit it with her short sword for 17. Brennen hit for 9, killing the demon.
Saigarn was a little surprised that we had no problem killing it. We told them about the properties of the demon. Shatain loaned him the moonforged, ghost touched longsword. Saigarn said he knew the sword.
Saigarn told us he'd traveled with General Isador, and was part of the company that named Galdeon Swiftblade. We told him about our conflict and fight with Galdeon. Saigarn waxed a bit philosophical, pointing out the circle of action that brought him to us.
Saigarn then told us General Isador sought the orb so that he could live eternally. Isador was feeling his age, and wanted to live to see his dreams fulfilled.
Over the next month, we slew many shadow demons. The cargo hold was mostly black, and had developed a permanent chill. The captain kind of liked it; it was a good place to store perishables. We had many conversations with Saigarn and continued learning the A'aloss language. We tried to get the younger A'aloss involved as much as possible. They rotated staying near me with a bucket of 50 arrows so I could align them quickly in the event of a more serious encounter.
One night, the hold went dark instead of cold. Another devil. Brennen swung and hit once, for 11 after its damage reduction. Shatain attempted to bluff, but failed. She also missed with the short sword. The devil hit us with a burst of unholy energy. Brennen & I made our save and took 11; Shatain failed, took 23 and was sickened. The A'aloss were mostly neutral, so they took some damage as well. I aligned the bucket of arrows.
Shatain bluffed the Erinyes, and hit with her short sword for 22. I struck with a burst of holy energy for 17. It was able to resist, so it wasn't blinded and only took 8. Brennen hit for 13. The A'aloss fired; 1 hit for 8. The Erinyes teleported to the back of the room, 20 feet away and out of melee range. The Erinyes fired at Brennen 3 times, once critically for a total of 39.
One of the A'aloss hit the Erinyes for 4. I healed Brennen for 40. It attacked Brennen again, hitting 3 times for 39 again. The devil then teleported, but we weren't sure where. Brennen told the A'aloss to go up top, warn the crew, and find the thing.
I healed Brennen twice, for a total of 60, bringing him up to full. Shatain and the A'aloss got on deck; it was dark and stormy. They couldn't see anything, but the A'aloss divided up the arrows and tethered themselves.
I heard a scream from the Captain's cabin. I conjured daylight on my holy symbol as we all charged over. Shatain was first to the cabin, bursting in to see flapping wings and the Captain poorly fending it off with a sword.
Shatain flew across the room, clearing a table and jamming his sword into the devil's neck, killing it with a blow for 31.
Everyone gathered on deck and I healed everyone with channeled energy.
He told us enchanting our weapons would be very quick if we waited a few days for the full moon. We agreed, and after another somewhat unsettling ritual, our weapons were ready. The shaman bid us farewell.
We entered open water, and arrived at S'Oritan after 2 weeks with no more demonic attacks. The captain switched out the crew again. When we asked, the captain told us we were entering magical waters. Some of the sailors simply wouldn't go, so we took on new ones that were a willing to take a little more pay.
The new crew was a bit strange. Everything about the way they ran the ship was a little different; it was driving the captain crazy, even though everything was done well. We sailed for 10 days without any demons.
On the 11th day, the Captain announced we were crossing into the magical zone. We were warned to be especially careful; strange things tended to happen out here. On the 12th day, with Brennen watching the orb, something different did happen.
The man in the crow's nest with the orb suddenly screamed and clambered down the mast. Brennen had his bow ready, watching for anything. The area around the orb was getting darker. I came on deck to assess the situation. The darkness grew to a 10 foot inky radiance. Everyone was pretty creeped out. All the sailors were performing little rituals to hopefully protect themselves.
I arrived on deck. I conjured daylight on the tip of one of Brennen's arrows. He fired at the mast, pegging it in above the bag with the orb. We saw feathery black wings unfold as the darkness dissipated. A black humanoid in full plate stood in the crow's nest, with a big, black bow. It was an Erinyes, a powerful devil. Its bow & arrows burst into flame as it searched the deck for a target.
Acting quickly, I grabbed as many of Brennen's arrows, including the Sunforged ones, and made them good. Brennen fired 3 arrows, hitting with 2 (1 critically) for a total of 40. The image of the devil blurred, turning into 9 images covering the sky. Shatain fired at one with a normal arrow, and one of the images disappeared. He called to the crew to fire at the devils. The crew didn't have any projectile weapons, but the guards ran below decks to get their crossbows.
Shatain fired another regular arrow, but missed. Brennen fired 3 arrows, killing 2 images. The last arrow missed, flying far off into the sky. I smote the demon with a burst of holy energy, hitting it for 27 though none of the images were dispelled. It was also blinded, as it failed to resist my power. The devil returned the favor with an unholy burst, well enough to hit us despite its blindness. Brennen & I resisted the damage, only taking 11. Shatain took the full 22 and was sickened for a round.
I struck the devil again with more holy energy, hitting it for 23. It was still blinded. The devil attempted to summon allies, but failed. Brennen fired his bow again, destroying 2 of the images and hitting the devil for 8. Shatain fired an arrow and dispelled another image.
Only 3 devils were in the sky now. Shatain fired again, but missed. The devil vanished. 2 of the crew looked up - the demon had teleported high up into the sky.
I took the opportunity to heal us all. Brennen raised his agility, and I blessed us all.
The devil reappeared, and hit me with 2 arrows for a total of 24.
Brennen fired his bow, dispelling 1 of the images and hitting the devil for 9. The devil died, and sank into the sea. It was about 120 feet from the boat, and none of the sailors would go after it. We had hoped to salvage the bow, and possibly some of the Sunforged arrows.
We hauled down the orb and inspected it. The crack was more distinct. We decided to take the orb down to the hold. We rested, and thankfully nothing else came out that day.
The night was different. The room got frosty, and a shadowy demon appeared. It was confused. Shatain attacked with her short sword, but missed. I brought up a spiritual warhammer, but it failed against the demon's magical resistance and disappeared. Brennen hit the demon with his axe, hitting for 28. The new weapons were quite good.
Shatain attacked again, hitting with her short sword for 28. Brennen struck with his axe for 12. The demon died, staining the floor of the hold black.
The next 3 days and 2 nights passed quietly. The last night however, another demon decided to try its luck. The room went frosty, and a demon appeared.
We got the drop on this one. I struck it with my warhammer for 8. Shatain hit with her short sword for 27. The demon broke out of the confusion, and started avoiding the light. It dropped through the floor. As it started to run, we all struck with attacks of opportunity. I hit for 24, Brennen hit for 13, and Shatain hit for 19. The demon died before it could disappear into the sea.
The next morning, we arrived in a port, and had to swap our crew again. We landed in A'aloss - the warrior elves. This would be a hard recruitment. I offered to go out to find crew. I polished my breastplate, and made sure all my weapons were hung, battle ready. I was half A'aloss; I fit in pretty well though I wasn't trying to be one of them. Brennen & Shatain stayed back with the orb.
We noticed a large Ku'Rog boat in port next to us. Our crew ran to it, seeking passage out.
I asked the dockmaster where we could acceptably recruit for crew. He recommended the taverns, none in particular. The first tavern we went to was pretty rough. So was the next one. The third was a little better; I decided to start there.
I settled down at a large table, and bought a round of drinks for the patrons. I talked about our mission; we were going to small island off the north coast of Selvesia. No one at the table really wanted to go, but they all had nephews, sons-in-law, etc. that they thought should go. One of the elves said he would go along to shepherd the younger A'aloss. It would take a few hours to a couple days to gather everyone up however he would join us on the ship, the Fairwind, in an hour or so. His name was Saigarn.
I purchased a cask of A'aloss wine from the barkeep and made my way back to the ship. I let the captain know about our successes. Saigarn joined us a little later with his kit. We introduced ourselves. He seemed happiest to meet Brennen. His gaze over the guards was scornful; he growled to Brennen in Dwarven that they were green.
Shatain & I went down to the hold to guard the orb. Saigarn went with Brennen to find arrows. Saigarn guided him to the finest smithy he'd seen in a long time; it was set into a hillside with carefully built forges and perfect airflow. The A'aloss had learned their craft years before from the elves; they'd learned well.
The smith appeared younger, but all the A'aloss seemed young. The smith was impressed with Brennen's weapons, but disappointed that Brennen hadn't made them himself. After coming back to consult with us, Brennen bought a few Sunforged arrows, and several quivers of high quality arrows for us.
Over the course of the next 2 days, while waiting for the young A'aloss, we acquainted ourselves with Saigarn. He was happy to teach us the language, and I helped the younger A'aloss with Common. I showed Saigarn the orb, and told him about the crack. I also warned him that no one should be near the orb with gems. He took good care to ensure none of the A'aloss had anything like that.
The A'aloss worked well on the ship, and they learned Common very quickly. Learning A'aloss was different - everything was in the details. It was a very complex language. Their culture was strongly focused on war; the language was really a highly developed battle jargon. When they weren't learning language, Saigarn was keeping the kids working at a fever pitch. They were doing easily 3 times as much work as they needed to, but it kept them out of trouble.
This included a guard watch on the orb with us. On the first night, a demon appeared. The kids looked a little concerned.
This one wasn't confused, but breaking the spell took all of its effort. Shatain successfully bluffed the demon, and hit it with her short sword for 32. I hit with my warhammer for 8. Saigarn attacked with his sword, and hit. He didn't do much and stepped back. Brennen attacked, but failed critically.
The demon started to retreat, sinking through the floor. Shatain hit it with her short sword for 17. Brennen hit for 9, killing the demon.
Saigarn was a little surprised that we had no problem killing it. We told them about the properties of the demon. Shatain loaned him the moonforged, ghost touched longsword. Saigarn said he knew the sword.
Saigarn told us he'd traveled with General Isador, and was part of the company that named Galdeon Swiftblade. We told him about our conflict and fight with Galdeon. Saigarn waxed a bit philosophical, pointing out the circle of action that brought him to us.
Saigarn then told us General Isador sought the orb so that he could live eternally. Isador was feeling his age, and wanted to live to see his dreams fulfilled.
Over the next month, we slew many shadow demons. The cargo hold was mostly black, and had developed a permanent chill. The captain kind of liked it; it was a good place to store perishables. We had many conversations with Saigarn and continued learning the A'aloss language. We tried to get the younger A'aloss involved as much as possible. They rotated staying near me with a bucket of 50 arrows so I could align them quickly in the event of a more serious encounter.
One night, the hold went dark instead of cold. Another devil. Brennen swung and hit once, for 11 after its damage reduction. Shatain attempted to bluff, but failed. She also missed with the short sword. The devil hit us with a burst of unholy energy. Brennen & I made our save and took 11; Shatain failed, took 23 and was sickened. The A'aloss were mostly neutral, so they took some damage as well. I aligned the bucket of arrows.
Shatain bluffed the Erinyes, and hit with her short sword for 22. I struck with a burst of holy energy for 17. It was able to resist, so it wasn't blinded and only took 8. Brennen hit for 13. The A'aloss fired; 1 hit for 8. The Erinyes teleported to the back of the room, 20 feet away and out of melee range. The Erinyes fired at Brennen 3 times, once critically for a total of 39.
One of the A'aloss hit the Erinyes for 4. I healed Brennen for 40. It attacked Brennen again, hitting 3 times for 39 again. The devil then teleported, but we weren't sure where. Brennen told the A'aloss to go up top, warn the crew, and find the thing.
I healed Brennen twice, for a total of 60, bringing him up to full. Shatain and the A'aloss got on deck; it was dark and stormy. They couldn't see anything, but the A'aloss divided up the arrows and tethered themselves.
I heard a scream from the Captain's cabin. I conjured daylight on my holy symbol as we all charged over. Shatain was first to the cabin, bursting in to see flapping wings and the Captain poorly fending it off with a sword.
Shatain flew across the room, clearing a table and jamming his sword into the devil's neck, killing it with a blow for 31.
Everyone gathered on deck and I healed everyone with channeled energy.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
A Farewell To Binky
The rest of the day passed without incident, long enough for us to exit the canal and return to open water and sunlight. We stopped to resupply in the port city just outside the canal, on the coast of the inner sea. We had about a day in the port before we headed out to sea. There was nothing we could really think of that we didn't already have.
We did take the opportunity to appraise the diamond we'd picked up from Michael, now that we had sunlight. Shatain & I examined it separately, and we agreed it was probably worth 4,000 - 6,000 gold. I suspected it could be worth more to the right buyer.
The majority of our crew swapped out again. Our guard stayed; they hadn't been rattled by the demon's appearance. Shatain went into town to pick something up that she kept secret from all of us. Brennen & I took the opportunity to bathe and get our clothing cleaned.
I also sat Binky down and asked him what he wanted to do. I'd become fluent in Goblin, and so there was no need to keep him around anymore. I gave him the option of leaving, and he took it. I gave him 10 gold and sent him on his way.
The orb remained quiet throughout the day. We returned to the ship just before sunset. We also picked up 3 hooded lanterns, and I cast a spell on them that would provide a supernatural flame that would never go out. With all 3 lanterns in our cabin, it would always be bright enough to incapacitate the demons.
Once we were in our cabin, Shatain brought out her surprise - a cask of Dwarven ale. We spent a restless night with a close call, but nothing came out of the orb. At first light, Lieutenant Stanley, the head of the guard contingent, came to us and told us we'd be sailing within an hour. We went to sleep once we were underway.
We woke as the room went frosty. I tore the door open and let a flood of sunlight into the room as the demon appeared. I struck it with a burst of holy power, for 21, also blinding it. Shatain's short sword lit up, faintly purple. She struck the demon, hitting for 15. Brennen hit with his axe for 9. The demon was confused, but managed to get out of the room. It went down into the belly of the ship.
We went down with our lanterns; along the way I conjured daylight. We entered the crew main cabin to find a sailor huddled against the wall. He was white-faced, and just pointed in the direction the demon had gone. We went into a storeroom, and found nothing there. We let Lt. Stan know and he got all the crew upstairs.
We prepared for nightfall. I kept a few more spells letting me have daylight and holy energy at the ready. Shatain went below with 3 of the guards with her sword out and radiating daylight. Brennen & I went down on the other side of the ship with the 2 remaining guards, lanterns at the ready.
Shatain encountered the demon first. She was faster, feinted the demon, and struck with her short sword for 20. The demon died, staining the floor black. We'd found it quickly enough that it hadn't had a chance to recuperate.
We thought long and hard about how to contain this thing. During the day, we hoisted the pouch with the orb up to the top of the crow's nest. During the night, between Barclay & I, we could keep the daylight up long enough for the other to rest. Alternating throughout the night would be unpleasant, but it would work.
During the night, we found out that Barclay's first name was Jack. He'd drawn this assignment by getting to familiar with Ezekiel's daughter. A full week went by. We were close to the end of the cask of Dwarven ale. We'd had a few cold spells, but the continuous daylight seemed to do the trick. It seemed the demons could see the environment around the orb, so they would know if we slipped up on our guard.
We stopped at a port city. We decided the best thing we could do is make our weapons able to hit incorporeal creatures. The demons would be able to clearly see our weapons along with the daylight, and hopefully it would be enough. It would take several days to have it done, but the captain was fine with the delay.
It took all day before we found a magic user that would be able to do what we needed. We believed the diamond would cover the cost. His name was Valryd Balarist, and he was more a shaman than a priest. We explained what we wanted to have done, and he was amenable to it.
He examined the diamond carefully, and felt it was definitely a fair trade. Brennen noticed as he had the gem, his features shifted in a weird way for the briefest moment. Something was really, really wrong with this man. Valryd asked for a moment and went to his desk. He cast a spell; I couldn't tell what it was.
Cold, cloying, greasy darkness washed over us. We recognized it then as a blast of unholy energy. Shatain was sickened and took 21; Brennen & I made our saves and only took 10.
Shatain feinted, but failed. However she did hit with her longsword for 6. Brennen attacked next, hitting once for 12. The shaman attempted to make Shatain blind, but failed. I smote him with holy energy, and the shaman collapsed to the ground. He had been possessed by one of the shadow demons.
I created a magic circle against evil to prevent him being possessed again. I then healed the shaman back up. We believed a shadow demon had been very crafty, and hidden itself in the diamon. He told us he would do the enchantment for free, and we needed to get the diamond as far away from him as possible, right away.
I conjured daylight, and then attempted to dispel the diamond. It failed. Valryd cast his own dispel, and succeeded. The shadow demon appeared, disoriented from being cast back into the diamond. I brought up a hammer of force, which attacked and hit for 10. Shatain hit with his short sword for 28. Brennen attacked and hit critically for 10. The shadow demon attempted to flee. In doing so, we all took attacks of opportunity. Shatain hit for 11. Brennen hit for 3. I hit for 2. The demon died, and stained the floor black.
The shaman was happy to take the diamond, now that we'd cleansed it. In addition, he would hallow our cabin, and give it daylight for a year. We decided to have the spell done in the main hold. It would easily cover the room. The captain was not easily convinced; he was more worried about superstitious sailors than protection past the end of this mission. Together, Shatain & I convinced him we'd be able to remove the effect once we'd arrived at the island.
The shaman arrived. I convinced the captain to let him on so he could see the hold. Over the course of the next week, Valryd enchanted our weapons and hallowed the hold. During the time, one of the demons decided to test its luck.
We did take the opportunity to appraise the diamond we'd picked up from Michael, now that we had sunlight. Shatain & I examined it separately, and we agreed it was probably worth 4,000 - 6,000 gold. I suspected it could be worth more to the right buyer.
The majority of our crew swapped out again. Our guard stayed; they hadn't been rattled by the demon's appearance. Shatain went into town to pick something up that she kept secret from all of us. Brennen & I took the opportunity to bathe and get our clothing cleaned.
I also sat Binky down and asked him what he wanted to do. I'd become fluent in Goblin, and so there was no need to keep him around anymore. I gave him the option of leaving, and he took it. I gave him 10 gold and sent him on his way.
The orb remained quiet throughout the day. We returned to the ship just before sunset. We also picked up 3 hooded lanterns, and I cast a spell on them that would provide a supernatural flame that would never go out. With all 3 lanterns in our cabin, it would always be bright enough to incapacitate the demons.
Once we were in our cabin, Shatain brought out her surprise - a cask of Dwarven ale. We spent a restless night with a close call, but nothing came out of the orb. At first light, Lieutenant Stanley, the head of the guard contingent, came to us and told us we'd be sailing within an hour. We went to sleep once we were underway.
We woke as the room went frosty. I tore the door open and let a flood of sunlight into the room as the demon appeared. I struck it with a burst of holy power, for 21, also blinding it. Shatain's short sword lit up, faintly purple. She struck the demon, hitting for 15. Brennen hit with his axe for 9. The demon was confused, but managed to get out of the room. It went down into the belly of the ship.
We went down with our lanterns; along the way I conjured daylight. We entered the crew main cabin to find a sailor huddled against the wall. He was white-faced, and just pointed in the direction the demon had gone. We went into a storeroom, and found nothing there. We let Lt. Stan know and he got all the crew upstairs.
We prepared for nightfall. I kept a few more spells letting me have daylight and holy energy at the ready. Shatain went below with 3 of the guards with her sword out and radiating daylight. Brennen & I went down on the other side of the ship with the 2 remaining guards, lanterns at the ready.
Shatain encountered the demon first. She was faster, feinted the demon, and struck with her short sword for 20. The demon died, staining the floor black. We'd found it quickly enough that it hadn't had a chance to recuperate.
We thought long and hard about how to contain this thing. During the day, we hoisted the pouch with the orb up to the top of the crow's nest. During the night, between Barclay & I, we could keep the daylight up long enough for the other to rest. Alternating throughout the night would be unpleasant, but it would work.
During the night, we found out that Barclay's first name was Jack. He'd drawn this assignment by getting to familiar with Ezekiel's daughter. A full week went by. We were close to the end of the cask of Dwarven ale. We'd had a few cold spells, but the continuous daylight seemed to do the trick. It seemed the demons could see the environment around the orb, so they would know if we slipped up on our guard.
We stopped at a port city. We decided the best thing we could do is make our weapons able to hit incorporeal creatures. The demons would be able to clearly see our weapons along with the daylight, and hopefully it would be enough. It would take several days to have it done, but the captain was fine with the delay.
It took all day before we found a magic user that would be able to do what we needed. We believed the diamond would cover the cost. His name was Valryd Balarist, and he was more a shaman than a priest. We explained what we wanted to have done, and he was amenable to it.
He examined the diamond carefully, and felt it was definitely a fair trade. Brennen noticed as he had the gem, his features shifted in a weird way for the briefest moment. Something was really, really wrong with this man. Valryd asked for a moment and went to his desk. He cast a spell; I couldn't tell what it was.
Cold, cloying, greasy darkness washed over us. We recognized it then as a blast of unholy energy. Shatain was sickened and took 21; Brennen & I made our saves and only took 10.
Shatain feinted, but failed. However she did hit with her longsword for 6. Brennen attacked next, hitting once for 12. The shaman attempted to make Shatain blind, but failed. I smote him with holy energy, and the shaman collapsed to the ground. He had been possessed by one of the shadow demons.
I created a magic circle against evil to prevent him being possessed again. I then healed the shaman back up. We believed a shadow demon had been very crafty, and hidden itself in the diamon. He told us he would do the enchantment for free, and we needed to get the diamond as far away from him as possible, right away.
I conjured daylight, and then attempted to dispel the diamond. It failed. Valryd cast his own dispel, and succeeded. The shadow demon appeared, disoriented from being cast back into the diamond. I brought up a hammer of force, which attacked and hit for 10. Shatain hit with his short sword for 28. Brennen attacked and hit critically for 10. The shadow demon attempted to flee. In doing so, we all took attacks of opportunity. Shatain hit for 11. Brennen hit for 3. I hit for 2. The demon died, and stained the floor black.
The shaman was happy to take the diamond, now that we'd cleansed it. In addition, he would hallow our cabin, and give it daylight for a year. We decided to have the spell done in the main hold. It would easily cover the room. The captain was not easily convinced; he was more worried about superstitious sailors than protection past the end of this mission. Together, Shatain & I convinced him we'd be able to remove the effect once we'd arrived at the island.
The shaman arrived. I convinced the captain to let him on so he could see the hold. Over the course of the next week, Valryd enchanted our weapons and hallowed the hold. During the time, one of the demons decided to test its luck.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
You Broke It, You Bought It
Ezekiel told us that since we'd broken the orb, it was our responsibility to fix it. We hadn't intended to do so, but we were the ones that interrupted the ritual. Ezekiel told us we would need to take the orb to the Witch, who lived on an island. We agreed to the task for a fee of 5,000 gold in place of our previous contract, and cold iron weapons.
We told Ezekiel about Michael's visit & mission. Ezekiel instructed his apprentice, Barclay, to contact him as soon as Michael Merchants showed up again. We would have to keep Michael talking as long as possible, and figure out a way to signal Barclay.
The boat would stay with us, though we'd have to turn around. There were a few resupply points in the canal with areas were the boat would have room to turn. Over the next day, we had a few scares, but nothing came out of the orb. A couple of times, the room just got very cold and frosty for a while. I changed my spell repertoire to hopefully help us in the event another demon came through. We also moved our quarters next to the Barclay, so we could knock on the wall if Michael showed up. Shatain also rigged up a simple bell system.
In the late afternoon that day, before we turned around, Michael came to us. There was a knock on our door before the latch opened and Michael walked in. Shatain used sleight of hand to ring the bell without alerting Michael. Michael took a seat on a barrel and asked us how we were doing. He then told us that he couldn't get the full amount, but he had 1,000 gold and a large diamond that should cover the rest. We told him about the shadow demon we'd encountered.
Just as I launched into the description of the demon, the door opened from a force effect. Shatain slid the bag of gold and diamond out of sight during the momentary distraction. Michael magically froze in place as Ezekiel entered the room. He told us he'd take care of Michael, and he'd secured a loyal crew & guard; our captain was in the loop and was staying on. I took a moment to show Michael the crack in the orb, so he didn't think we were double crossing him for no reason.
Barclay entered and made sure everything had been well taken care of. After his brush with the shadow demon, he was a little skittish. Shatain borrowed a magnifying glass from him, but our light was too poor to asses the diamond's value. After the Barclay left, we divided up the gold. It totaled to 1112. Brennen took 370, Shatain & I took 371. The room went cold during the count, but nothing appeared to attack.
Another day passed before we reached the lock, with a few more cold spells. We docked and resupplied before turning. The old crew & guards left without a word; they were very tight-lipped. The new crew and guards joined. We were able to speak with the ship captain later, just to make sure everyone knew what they were in for. He told us the guards knew, but he wasn't telling the crew.
A day after we turned around at the lock, I tried something new on the orb at the next cold spell. I set it on the floor, and I created a magical circle around the orb to contain anything that might be coming out. We suspected entities had been leaving the orb without manifesting. A shadow demon appeared, and seemed contained by the spell.
The demon laughed, and the circle broke. Shatain attempted to bluff the demon, but failed. He successfully hit, but didn't do enough damage to get through its damage reducing aura. The demon attempted to summon an ally, but failed. Brennen hit with a 2-handed swing, doing 6. (All damage at this point is after a reduction of 10, and halved due to the incorporeal nature of the shadow). I summoned magical daylight, so that the demon wouldn't be able to hide from us again. We all shied away a bit; we hadn't seen the sun in weeks. The demon shrieked in annoyance.
Brennen swung again, missing with the first swing, but hitting critically with the second for 10. The demon fumbled for the door, and backed out through the wall. We checked the boat, but there was no sign of it. The guards calmed everyone down; the crew was a little disconcerted by the bright daylight emanating from my holy symbol. We assured the guard captain that all was well; we'd driven the beast out.
Over the next 3 days, we had 4-5 cold spells per day. On the third day, one of the demons decided to attack. The room was enveloped in darkness, and the demon attacked me. I conjured daylight again. That made the cabin at least lit, though dimly. The demon was effectively invisible. Shatain attacked, but missed. Brennen attacked nextis 2 swings missed.
Brennen & Shatain waited for me, in hope that I could align one of their weapons. The demon attacked me again, hitting twice for 16 total. I made Brennen's axe good, so he could attack and do damage. Unfortunately he missed with both his attacks. Shatain rang the bell to the apprentice's cabin. She also swung at the demon, but missed.
The demon clawed me again, hitting critically for 12, and again for 8. It missed with its bite. I attempted to dispel the creature's darkness, but failed. Brennen attacked twice, but missed. Shatain attacked and hit, but didn't get through the reduction.
The demon attacked me again, hitting for 10 with 1 claw. The bite and other claw missed. I healed myself for 48, bringing me back fully. Brennen hit for 9, but missed with the 2nd attack. Shatain ran next door to Barclay; he looked terrified when she burst through the door. He was in a state of high panic, but he steeled himself and went in. The darkness was very intimidating, wreathing the room in eerie shadow from my magical light countering the demon's. Shatain was fairly sure the wizard wet himself as he attempted to dispel the darkness. His magic fizzled however; it wasn't good enough to break the spell, and he didn't have another dispel.
Shatain kept an eye on the wizard, ready to keep him from running. The wizard cast daylight again, on Shatain. It was enough to make the demon visible. Shatain hit the creature from behind with his sword, for 4. I conjured a spiritual warhammer, but it disappeared as soon as it tried to hit. The creature hit me for 7, but then stumbled. Shatain & Brennen took advantage and hit; Shatain for 4, Brennen for 9. Brennen attacked again, hitting for 7. His 2nd swing fumbled, letting the demon hit him for 3.
I attempted to make Shatain's weapon good, but the spell fizzled because of the distractions of combat. Brennen attacked again, hitting for 10. His 2nd swing missed. Shatain attacked, hitting for 6. The demon promised to remember us, and teleported away. Barclay ran out of the room.
Binky huddled in the corner until he felt it was safe to uncurl. He'd made it through unscathed. After a few minutes, Barclay returned, and told us Ezekiel had the cold iron weapons we'd requested, but he wasn't happy about it. Ezekiel would join us shortly.
The room grew cold again. For a brief moment, we saw a shadow in the corner near Binky before it went into Barclay's room. We all ran over.
The demon hit Barclay out of nowhere with both claws and its bite, hurting him badly. I charged into the room and smote the demon with holy energy, blinding it and hitting for 26. Shatain critically hit it for 13. Brennen hit for 6, then hit critically for 13. It was still alive, barely.
Shatain struck again, hitting for 8. The demon was still blind and too disoriented to escape. Brennen hit again with his axe, for 7, enough to kill it. The entire floor turned black.
Ezekiel arrived moments later, with a bundle of cold iron weapons. There were 20 arrows, a short sword, a battle axe and a warhammer. It was immediately apparent that these had cost Ezekiel a lot of coin - they were all masterwork quality pieces, and judging by the gold inlays and gems, came from someone's treasury. They were quite functional though, and would be a great help if we were attacked again. Shatain's short sword was a Demon Slayer - we had a potent surprise if the shadows decided to attack again.
We told Ezekiel about Michael's visit & mission. Ezekiel instructed his apprentice, Barclay, to contact him as soon as Michael Merchants showed up again. We would have to keep Michael talking as long as possible, and figure out a way to signal Barclay.
The boat would stay with us, though we'd have to turn around. There were a few resupply points in the canal with areas were the boat would have room to turn. Over the next day, we had a few scares, but nothing came out of the orb. A couple of times, the room just got very cold and frosty for a while. I changed my spell repertoire to hopefully help us in the event another demon came through. We also moved our quarters next to the Barclay, so we could knock on the wall if Michael showed up. Shatain also rigged up a simple bell system.
In the late afternoon that day, before we turned around, Michael came to us. There was a knock on our door before the latch opened and Michael walked in. Shatain used sleight of hand to ring the bell without alerting Michael. Michael took a seat on a barrel and asked us how we were doing. He then told us that he couldn't get the full amount, but he had 1,000 gold and a large diamond that should cover the rest. We told him about the shadow demon we'd encountered.
Just as I launched into the description of the demon, the door opened from a force effect. Shatain slid the bag of gold and diamond out of sight during the momentary distraction. Michael magically froze in place as Ezekiel entered the room. He told us he'd take care of Michael, and he'd secured a loyal crew & guard; our captain was in the loop and was staying on. I took a moment to show Michael the crack in the orb, so he didn't think we were double crossing him for no reason.
Barclay entered and made sure everything had been well taken care of. After his brush with the shadow demon, he was a little skittish. Shatain borrowed a magnifying glass from him, but our light was too poor to asses the diamond's value. After the Barclay left, we divided up the gold. It totaled to 1112. Brennen took 370, Shatain & I took 371. The room went cold during the count, but nothing appeared to attack.
Another day passed before we reached the lock, with a few more cold spells. We docked and resupplied before turning. The old crew & guards left without a word; they were very tight-lipped. The new crew and guards joined. We were able to speak with the ship captain later, just to make sure everyone knew what they were in for. He told us the guards knew, but he wasn't telling the crew.
A day after we turned around at the lock, I tried something new on the orb at the next cold spell. I set it on the floor, and I created a magical circle around the orb to contain anything that might be coming out. We suspected entities had been leaving the orb without manifesting. A shadow demon appeared, and seemed contained by the spell.
The demon laughed, and the circle broke. Shatain attempted to bluff the demon, but failed. He successfully hit, but didn't do enough damage to get through its damage reducing aura. The demon attempted to summon an ally, but failed. Brennen hit with a 2-handed swing, doing 6. (All damage at this point is after a reduction of 10, and halved due to the incorporeal nature of the shadow). I summoned magical daylight, so that the demon wouldn't be able to hide from us again. We all shied away a bit; we hadn't seen the sun in weeks. The demon shrieked in annoyance.
Brennen swung again, missing with the first swing, but hitting critically with the second for 10. The demon fumbled for the door, and backed out through the wall. We checked the boat, but there was no sign of it. The guards calmed everyone down; the crew was a little disconcerted by the bright daylight emanating from my holy symbol. We assured the guard captain that all was well; we'd driven the beast out.
Over the next 3 days, we had 4-5 cold spells per day. On the third day, one of the demons decided to attack. The room was enveloped in darkness, and the demon attacked me. I conjured daylight again. That made the cabin at least lit, though dimly. The demon was effectively invisible. Shatain attacked, but missed. Brennen attacked nextis 2 swings missed.
Brennen & Shatain waited for me, in hope that I could align one of their weapons. The demon attacked me again, hitting twice for 16 total. I made Brennen's axe good, so he could attack and do damage. Unfortunately he missed with both his attacks. Shatain rang the bell to the apprentice's cabin. She also swung at the demon, but missed.
The demon clawed me again, hitting critically for 12, and again for 8. It missed with its bite. I attempted to dispel the creature's darkness, but failed. Brennen attacked twice, but missed. Shatain attacked and hit, but didn't get through the reduction.
The demon attacked me again, hitting for 10 with 1 claw. The bite and other claw missed. I healed myself for 48, bringing me back fully. Brennen hit for 9, but missed with the 2nd attack. Shatain ran next door to Barclay; he looked terrified when she burst through the door. He was in a state of high panic, but he steeled himself and went in. The darkness was very intimidating, wreathing the room in eerie shadow from my magical light countering the demon's. Shatain was fairly sure the wizard wet himself as he attempted to dispel the darkness. His magic fizzled however; it wasn't good enough to break the spell, and he didn't have another dispel.
Shatain kept an eye on the wizard, ready to keep him from running. The wizard cast daylight again, on Shatain. It was enough to make the demon visible. Shatain hit the creature from behind with his sword, for 4. I conjured a spiritual warhammer, but it disappeared as soon as it tried to hit. The creature hit me for 7, but then stumbled. Shatain & Brennen took advantage and hit; Shatain for 4, Brennen for 9. Brennen attacked again, hitting for 7. His 2nd swing fumbled, letting the demon hit him for 3.
I attempted to make Shatain's weapon good, but the spell fizzled because of the distractions of combat. Brennen attacked again, hitting for 10. His 2nd swing missed. Shatain attacked, hitting for 6. The demon promised to remember us, and teleported away. Barclay ran out of the room.
Binky huddled in the corner until he felt it was safe to uncurl. He'd made it through unscathed. After a few minutes, Barclay returned, and told us Ezekiel had the cold iron weapons we'd requested, but he wasn't happy about it. Ezekiel would join us shortly.
The room grew cold again. For a brief moment, we saw a shadow in the corner near Binky before it went into Barclay's room. We all ran over.
The demon hit Barclay out of nowhere with both claws and its bite, hurting him badly. I charged into the room and smote the demon with holy energy, blinding it and hitting for 26. Shatain critically hit it for 13. Brennen hit for 6, then hit critically for 13. It was still alive, barely.
Shatain struck again, hitting for 8. The demon was still blind and too disoriented to escape. Brennen hit again with his axe, for 7, enough to kill it. The entire floor turned black.
Ezekiel arrived moments later, with a bundle of cold iron weapons. There were 20 arrows, a short sword, a battle axe and a warhammer. It was immediately apparent that these had cost Ezekiel a lot of coin - they were all masterwork quality pieces, and judging by the gold inlays and gems, came from someone's treasury. They were quite functional though, and would be a great help if we were attacked again. Shatain's short sword was a Demon Slayer - we had a potent surprise if the shadows decided to attack again.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Shiver Me Artifacts
We discussed our options for dealing with Michael Merchants. We discussed a few options, but we figured the best bet would be to convince Michael to let us return the orb, on the condition that we would then rejoin him and return Jaedan's soul.
As our discussion wound down, the room grew cold. We saw frost on our breath. We ran up to the deck and told our guard contingent. The air grew frosty there as well. We told the wizard it could be a lich (though we were pretty sure we'd killed it) or a necromancer.
The wizard screamed, as we saw a massive shadowy shape lift him up. It was a great beast with wings and fiery red eyes. I knew the demon was resistant to most kinds of weapons.
I unleashed a torrent of holy energy, but the demon resisted enough to only take 9. It disturbed the demon, causing it to miss its next attack on the wizard and drop him to the deck. Shatain distracted the demon with a bluff, depriving it of its maneuverability, and stabbed it for 18. It seemed only some of the damage got through. Brennen attacked with his 2-handed axe, hitting twice for a total of 30. Only 10 seemed to get through.
The monster caused magical darkness to encompass the ship. It was now effectively invisible. Shatain stabbed at it, guessed well, but only did 4 after the beast's damage reduction. Brennen missed with his axe in the darkness. I conjured a magical warhammer to attack the demon. I got it in the right place, but it missed.
Brennen swung again, but still missed due to the darkness. I fired a burst of supernaturally bright light at the demon, but missed & hit Brennen instead. Shatain bluffed the demon in the flash of light, but missed with her attack. The demon magically feared us; Shatain & I ran as far as we could within the confines of the boat. Brennen stood his ground.
Brennen swung his axe, missing once but hitting with his second attack for 10. The demon focused on Brennen. The coldness and darkness went away - the demon had teleported away.
A minute or so later, Ezekiel appeared on the deck, staff and wand at the ready. Brennen told him briefly what had happened. The crew reassembled. I healed us all with a burst of holy energy.
Ezekiel asked to see the orb. I took it out... it had a small crack in it. He believed the demon came out of the orb.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Mulligan
The fight was not going in our favor. Shatain pulled out a handful of smoke bombs. She warned us in Dwarven to close our eyes and run. She threw them down; not as many burst as she wanted. It was enough for us to run. Brennen grappled past one of the Ku Rog, and got out. I bumped into Brennen but got out as well. Shatain got clear without incident. The smoke was growing larger and thinner as we broke clear. The Ku Rog were a little confused but in general seemed to know where we were going.
The Ku Rog were distracted enough for Shatain to get off another smoke bomb. We ran to the forest. We got far enough away that the Ku Rog didn't seem to want to pursue us. We made it about 1000' before having to stop. I healed Brennen for 34 and Shatain for 24. We could see the Ku Rog were dropping some of their armor and picking up their bows.
Brennen put up a spell to hide my tracks and his. Shatain barreled off into the forest to lay a false trail. The Ku Rog didn't pick up any of our tracks. About a mile out from the Ku Rog camp, Brennen found us a small sheltered area where we could rest.
About 45 minutes into our rest, a strange fog crept over the forest. Brennen suspected it was supernatural, but couldn't put his finger on it. Over the next 10 minutes or so, the fog became noticeably thicker, and seemed obviously supernatural. After I completed my rest, the visibility was down to about 20'. Binky was not happy.
We searched for high ground, but it appeared the forest was uniformly foggy. Visibility dropped down to about 15' while we searched. We heard a deep, inhuman voice in the fog. It said that we were not safe here.
A giant snout appeared in the fog. A greenish dragon, its head about 10' off the ground, seemed to be grinning in front of us. It was a little bigger than an elephant. My limited knowledge of dragons told me that this was probably a bad situation. The dragon moved its head to about 5' away from Brennen, and repeated its warning that we weren't safe. Then it sniffed us.
The dragon asked us why we were in the area. We told the dragon we were running from Ku Rog and a lich. The dragon growled at the mention of a lich. Though tempted to eat us, the dragon was curious why the lich was here. It was less than happy that there was fog in the area. It decided the lich was more interesting than eating us, and told us to be on our way.
We moved about 500 yards, back towards the Ku Rog camp. Along the way it seemed that the dragon was stalking us. Considering visibility was down to 15', it was impressive that the dragon was only 40' away and pretty much staying completely silent. It didn't follow us a great distance however.
Shatain climbed up a tree, as high as she could go. About 40' in the air, the fog wasn't any thinner. From my knowledge of the arcane, it seemed like this was a ritual involving multiple casters; this wasn't the lich acting alone.
We continued on back towards the camp. After about 10 minutes, we heard keening, moaning sounds. It seemed there was an infestation of undead in the area now. We slowed down a bit, but were prompted forward again by the dragon's voice. The undead keens and moans were not getting louder, strangely, and we hadn't seen any actual undead.
We figured we were within about 100' of the camp. We could see glints of fairy fire in the fog. It seemed pretty similar to what we'd seen around the lich's staff earlier. Then we saw shambling shapes in the fog. The shapes appeared to be Ku Rog zombies. We stopped.
The dragon crept closer, until it was very close to me. It asked why I smelled of wizard. I told it how we'd been sent by a wizard to see what the Ku Rog were up to. The dragon told us to keep moving and find out what was going on. It told me to stay.
Shatain & Brennen crept forward until they could clearly see the zombies. They didn't seem to be aware of their condition; they were going about their normal daily work.
While they moved forward, the dragon asked to see the crystal. It looked at the item in my hand very closely; I could feel its hot breath on my arm. It asked the name of the archmage that had sent us - I told it Ezekiel.
Brennen & Shatain continued into the camp. The zombies didn't even seem to notice their presence. They stumbled on the lich. It seemed to be in the middle of a ritual. There seemed to be a fractured hunk of glass, suspended in a soft lightning bolt surrounded by light and color. The fractured glass seemed to be trying to come back together. It was roughly the same size as the orb. It didn't seem like the orb could really come back together.
The dragon was interrogating me about Ezekiel. I told the dragon everything I could, since that wasn't much - he was an archmage from Solaria that had sent us down to see what was going on with the Ku Rog attack on the giant.This wasn't terribly surprising - dragons were known to be inquisitive creatures.
Shatain asked the dragon why it wanted so many answers. The dragon reasonably pointed out that we should want the answers as well. It told us to look around - the fog kept going. It seemed like the lich might be in the middle of an attempt to bring an area into the Shadowlands. We weren't sure why, but we knew we were at the epicenter.
We were pretty sure the lich was trying to pull something out of the orb, or had already and was trying to contain the rest. Likely the lich had been playing both sides through Zurykavlen to get hold of the orb.
We debated shooting the lich. The dragon asked for my recommendation. I decided the best course would be for me to move up and view the ritual myself. We felt a small shock wave roll across us.
We all moved up, to about 25' away from the lich. With the swirling lights, we could see it. The orb was still encased in a sphere of soft greenish blue lightning. I didn't recognizer the spell, but I believed the lich had intentionally fractured the orb and was keeping it under control to extract something, though there was probably more to it.
There was something shimmering around the lich, some kind of spiritual protection. The dragon reminded us that whatever the consequences of breaking the containment on the shattered orb, it was pretty likely that the lich would kill or enslave us once the ritual was done.
We knew the staff was the lich's focus; it had used it to draw out the souls of the wounded. Brennen & Shatain would attack the staff after I attempted to dispel the lich.
I dispelled the spiritual shield, which it now appeared to have been the containment for the orb. It definitely broke the lich's concentration. Brennen attacked the staff with his axe, hitting critically for 25. The staff clove in two. The lich definitely knew something was going on. Shatain stabbed the lich for 14.
The lich imploded. A huge wave of energy rolled out as we ran. When we stopped to look back, there was a pile of clothes where the lich had been, along with the sundered staff and the intact orb. The fog was lifting, and the dragon was gone. The zombies had lost their animation. It seemed likely the dragon had been part of the world the lich had been trying to bring into conjunction.
We camped in the same place the mage had dropped us off. All was calm and peaceful; there were no insects or other wildlife for that matter. Around 7 in the morning, Ezekiel appeared in our camp.
After we told him our story, he agreed to a 2,000 gold finders fee for the orb, along with our promised pay and passage through the trade tunnel back to Valleya. Ezekiel took us past the giant and into the cavern. It was a long walk down a deep spiral staircase. There were a few landings and rooms along the way. Eventually we reached the canal. Ezekiel left us in the secret passage while he went to secure a safe boat.
Brennen looked around for tracks. From what he could tell, this passage was infrequently used. The most recent tracks seemed to point to the time when Michael Merchants disappeared. Tracks said the tracks started in the canal and went into the passage, but didn't come back down.
Ezekiel returned after about an hour. Brennen relayed the information he'd found in the tracks. Ezekiel was thankful; we didn't have any evidence of Michael's death. We suspected once he realized he was up against a lich, Michael secured the orb as best he could (behind the giant) and teleported out. Ezekiel suspected the lich had been weakened before we attacked.
4-5 hours later, our ship arrived. It held a contingent of soldiers along with one of Ezekiel's apprentices. Ezekiel advised us not to stop along the way; we wouldn't be paid for days spent gallivanting in towns. Ezekiel disappeared, with a sigh of relief from the soldiers. They weren't unprofessional, but it was pretty obvious they didn't care for Ezekiel's company.
In the night, the locked door to our cabin swung open. A staff led the way, light at its tip - Michael Merchants had returned. He closed the door behind himself and threw the latch. He sat down and invited us to talk.
He needed the orb. Zurykavlen had his brother's soul, and would trade it for the orb. Michael confirmed with us that he'd had to leave the orb when the Ku Rog showed up. We told him we'd destroyed the lich and the Ku Rog in alliance with it.
We asked Michael about what he thought was going to happen. Michael believed as we did that Zurykavlen would use the orb to somehow reforge the Ku Rog, changing the way their race worked. Michael didn't particularly care about the end result; he believed it doomed to failure. The blood magic in the Ku Rog was too strong.
Further Michael didn't think they'd get anything out of the orb anyway. It was a failure as an artifact, and nothing was going to change that. Brilliant arcanists throughout the years had tried to make something out of the orb, but no one had been successful.
Shatain suggested that perhaps the magic of the artifact had evolved or matured over its thousands of years in existence. The orb was layered in magic; traditional arcane magic wrapped around deeper spiritual workings inside. Students of the orb suspected this was the reason it didn't work - the 2 magics didn't mix well, and they'd been forced together during the orb's creation. In the end, the attempt had just been a failure.
We talked about other permutations - Michael strongly felt Ezekiel didn't really care about the orb, but it was supposed to be in Valleya's vault, so that's where it needed to be. What it really came down to was that Michael was going to take the orb to Isador. He wanted to persuade us to give it up. Whether he could talk us into it or not however, he didn't intend to leave without it.
General Isador's faction and the lich's faction were involved in the original split between the general and the Ku Rog nation. General Isador wanted to change the race; no one really knew what the lich wanted.
In the end, we didn't feel it was worth possibly destroying the ship over. Michael left, promising to return with 2,000 gold or his best offer. We could accept that as a civilized compromise to fighting. Fighting a wizard on a wooden ship rarely turned out well for anyone concerned.
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