SESSION 148: On Top of a Strange Plateau
Note: It is very berry likely that there is direct cut and paste (or very lazy rewriting) of Todd Leback's descriptions from from "Hex 13.22 - The Plateau of Sighs". We play the shit out of his stuff (and so should you) it is an act of affection and artefact of sharing what was originally intended for only the players. I think the voice change leans towards the obvious side. You have been notified.
Day 7 Continued (13.22:07006) – Cloudy with no chance of meatballs..
We had just sent Ul’So back to where her spirit came. I wonder how long that will last? After some healing the remaining four ancient stone adventurers came to discussion. After some back and forth on loading up the portable hole with the petrified beings it was decided that the chaos with the wizard was more than enough. Hobos march on towards a petrified forest beyond this largely stone shrub complex. Something was going on but we had no leads. After marching through the stone forest for some time we encountered what was initially thought to be another sort of stature. Four dog sized crystal spiders just left in the middle of a petrified forest. They were in fact living things and this was a bit of a lure and ambush. They charged making a creepy ‘crick-crack’ noise as the moved. This was also a signal to the rest of the evisceration of spiders in the trees to launch.
Normally cautious of spiders and such retreat was the choice de jour. There was some running and then Ding-We brought forth a mighty fog bank. Unfortunately the process was kinda lumpy. The hobos ended up smashing the spiders.
Exiting the forest the hobos finally found the weird place at the centre of this weird plateau – a hole in the ground. Not your normal hole in the ground but an enormous well-shaft, lined with tens of thousands of carefully laid adobe bricks. Stone stairs, spiraling around the interior of the shaft, descended well into the darkness. Roughly one hundred feet down into the earth, the bedrock floor of the shaft is inscribed with a series of bewildering lines, arcs, and sacred geomantic shapes. On the northeastern wall is an arched opening leading further under the plateau. It is obviously worked, though it exhibits no tool marks, having been excavated by magical means. A close examination reveals the carvings on the floor are directed towards the tunnel entrance to the southeast. Ding-We thought these things needed to be further evaluated. After using detect magic the truth was revealed, the presence of faint magical energy flowing towards the tunnel bearing east. “Interesting, a magic path”. Before following the trail the conjoining chamber was investigated. The statues of two robed humans stand in the courtyard, facing the open well-shaft. Their features have been all but erased due to exposure to the elements. Raul, one whom always likes to be helpful in Felix’s absence “They are wearing sandals probably hippy druid types if you ask me”. No one had asked him but his assessment was not bad. The hobos marched down the passageway. The tunnel ran into the darkness. The carvings on the floor providing a nice little highway. Sixty feet down the corridor the statue of a giant black widow spider barred easy passage. Rahgnar didn’t wait for any smart ideas and began smashing down the latest petrified entity of this creepy plateau.
After the spider statue the corridor continued for another 30’ before opening into a chamber 30’x30’x30’. The entirety of the floor in here is covered with geomantic carvings, swooping and spiraling towards an enormous pair of stone doors set into the wall opposite the tunnel exit. Six torch brackets are set into the walls at equal intervals; the walls and ceiling in here are covered with carvings similar to those on the floor. This appeared to be an antechamber to some sort of temple. Bunny and Ramrod traversed the chamber to investigate the stone doors. In the middle of the chamber the floor gave way beneath the two master thieves.. Ramrod was able to jump clear but due to his bad back and limp he does now flail when attempting to be acrobatic. He nudged Bunny just enough to throw off her leap and she ended up falling into a labyrinthine network of 4’ diameter tunnels carved into the rock. The ruckus attracted the occupant, a 20’ worm composed of semi-molten stone. Ding-We, not to be a one-trick pony didn’t like how things were going and so he polymorphed the worm into a giant chicken very much to Steve’s glee even though he does love his job of poking things with his sword.
Going through the very heavy stone doors was another circular chamber. Eleven stone statues of men and women clad in robes are arranged in a semi-circle here. An inspection reveals they appear to be in the process of casting a spell, and several have been caught in a moment of surprise. The same geomantic reliefs continue in here, swirling towards the opposite wall where they spin and writhe up, framing a set of double doors within a perfectly circular portal 10’ in diameter. Even though these hippies were long dead three still lingered as vengeful spirits. The wraiths arose after centuries of unrest hungry for the vitality of the living. We were flatfooted and one of them plunged its semi-corporeal hand into Nara taking some of her lifeforce with the attack. The element of surprise now gone our clerics called forth the power of their divine watchers as the warriors brought enchanted blades upon the hateful spirits. After the poking was completed the thieves investigated the circular double doors. Well-crafted and easy to breach.
Opening the double doors leads to a circular room. In the center of the floor is a large, 10’ diameter circular disc of swirling tan and grey energy, surrounded by a semi-circle of enormous, faintly glowing quartz crystals. After some fiddling around it was determined that the disc was a teleport or some like portal to a weird place and was mostly harmless. The horde jumped through. There was a moment of disorientation as they stepped through the gate; gravity within the this place was at a 90-degree angle to where we came from. This made a messy pile of hobos but no real damage beyond egos.
Before us was an earthen tunnel that plunged into darkness.
ROLECALL
Carla the Green High Priestess of TMB (C9) 231115 xp +10% <200001> CRT 1d12/III
Scars: permanent loss left index finger and scarring on arm
Bimbles the Patriarch of GSS (C8) 190355 xp +5% <200001> CRT 1d12/III
Lasting injury: -1 STR, mashed arm
Hobo Steve the Superhero (F8) 187286 xp +5% <240,001> CRT 1d24/V
Brain Damaged: reduced mental capacity (tough night on the town)
Rahgnar the Dwarven Superhero (D8) 152123 xp <280001> CRT 1d20/IV
Serious wound: permanent loss of an eye (-1 to missile fire)
Critical Wound: disembowelled less able to process poison (-1 penalty)
Raul the Voyager (MD8) 169382 xp +10% <240000> CRT 1d12/III
Serious wound: permanent loss of CHA -4,
Removed one of his own nostrils.
Ding-We the Peg-Legged Sorcerer (W9) 385132 xp +10% <470001> CRT 1d10/I
Critical Wound: Left leg obliterated, runs at ½ rate (peg required)
Bunny the Thief! (T9) 216918 xp <280001> +10% CRT 1d20/II
Light wound: permanent loss of pinky finger, off hand
Ramrod the Cloned Magsman (T8) 92941 xp +5% <160001> CRT 1d20/II
Serious wound: Bad Back (-1 stone CC)
Scars: Neurological damage to hip, noticeable limp
Missing six teeth talks with a lisp
The Henchmen
Saffron the Mad Fairy Queen of Mad Ribbits (FY7) 152516 xp <200001> CRT 1d10/III
Moderate wound: Scar on abdomen
Lasting injury: -1 STR, mashed guts
Sloth the Bopper (L7) 135460 xp +10% <178800> CRT 1d20/IV or 1d6/G (vs. s, m)
Mental Illness: Mummy-a-phobic
Nara the Nearly Naked Purple Swami Girl (P7) 76552 xp +5% <125000> CRT 1d6/I
Biff Bartley the Half-Orc Blackguard (HO7) 71997 <120000> +5% CRT 1d12/II
Sasha Plasha the Warden (R7) 76972 xp +10% <100000> CRT 1d10/III
Dolec Da (F3)
Jogar the Nine-Fingered (T4)
‘BOB’ the Deadly Shade (N7) 59275 <90000> +5% CRT 1d16/II
Felix Ignatius Hemlock the previously Skeletal Sleuth (I7) 42208 <80001> +5% CRT 1d16/II
Mason the Canon of Yrrrg. (C6) 40211 <50001> CRT 1d10/III
Yasser Imaphat the Djinn (D4) 30372 <32501> CRT 1d6/II
Gurn Hammerhand the Dwarven Swordsman (D3)
Wendul the Thaumaturgist (W5)
RESERVES
Charles in Charge the Myrmidon (F6) 45913 <64000> +10% CRT 1d16/IV
REMAINING RECUPERATION: 8 DAYS
Critical Wound: Punctured lung (-2 CON)
Mostly DEAD. (-1 CON) -ADJUSTMENT REQ’D
Boris the Dwarven Lord (D9) 319718 xp +10% <400001> CRT 1d20/IV
REMAINING RECUPERATION: 13 DAYS
Serious wound: permanent loss of CHA -3, carved up face
Lasting injury: -1 STR, mashed arm
Wound: Bad leg (-5’ MV)
Multiple Injuries: lost 20 teeth, drools a lot CHA -1
Serious Injury: Brain Drain -2 INT
Elapsed Campaign Time
330 days at beginning of session (also applies to recuperation)
Join us for session One-Hundred-and-Forty-Nine when we ask the questions:
Where does this tunnel go?
Will we find out of run away?
Tale of the Tape
Nara -1 CON
KILLS
Adamarach (12)
Rock worm
Rock wraiths (3)
LOOT
Not much of much
No comments:
Post a Comment