SESSION 145: Once More Creeping through the Wilderness
We pulled the big dead bug thing out of the way and the scouts plunged into the tunnel. This lead to a natural cavern littered with bones and refuse – definitely a bug lair. Not too far into the chamber we discovered the most likely source of the drag marks and somewhat fresh blood, a dead merchant. The fiddling with the feed pile triggered a response from the collective. Ankhegs were coming from from peripheral branches all about main chamber. The buggers were rather nasty, especially once they encircled our hobos and began gorking acid bombs and then launching into the fray with their nasty mandibles. Fortunately the acid puke was simply a one time opening salvo. Once blows began trading back and forth the gang gains the upper hand and began dropping bugs one by one. During the battle a noise could be heard from an adjoining chamber. It was the rage of the queen driving her hive to fight harder to protect her and the eggs. The hobos then came for her.
After cleaning up, stop that acid burn, some general search and seizure turned up some nice things including a bushel of jade statues. They were found in a basket being held by a strange old lady statue/shrine (overlooking the main chamber from a shelf on the far side of the underground stream flowing through the back of the chamber. Bimbles used this time to commune with the dead merchant. His name was Bertus and he had been traveling west into the Basilisk Hills to sell three religiously themed amethyst cylinders. He had encountered some directional challenges during the journey and had thought he was lucky to find the travellers camp and shrine. Much to his death this area has become much more wild in recent years.
During this time Steve had completed his dressing of a giant bug that Ding-We (not for the first time) had changed into a giant rabbit. The hobos retuned to the garrison group at the shrine. Sasha suggested settling in early and setting up a real camp versus the rough rest of the previous day. There was still lots of travelling to do and the chances for warm food and recuperative rest may be limited.
Day 4 (17.23): Morning came partially clouded. Luckily sparse enough for our tribe to notice a celestial phenomenon, a comet hurling through space and time. It was determined that it was somesort of blessing perhaps Carla’s sacrifice the previous day had earned us the favour of one of the Watchers in the Sky. Camp was broken down and the hobos pressed on feeling good.
It did not take all that long about 1 mile. “Hmm, that ain’t right”, Sasha seemed disappointed that the forest abruptly ended and we now stood before a lake. “Nope” was Bimbles guidance. "The trail is supposed to continue. Something ain't right". The horde decided to go North around the lake. Not too far along they approached a fallen pine tree that was home to at least one set of plate sized yellow glowing eyes. It was an owlbear and was also likely to have been a component of the previous noisy evening. We stood and it stared. It was decided to drop down closer to the waterline and pass by. The suspicion that it had fed well overnight seemed to prove true as it only watched as we detoured the lair.
An hour or so later the lake began to narrow and a manor was spotted in the distance on the far shore – interesting. Marching on, we caught a whiff of smoke coming from just inside the treeline. A rough made stone and timber house nestled just inside the forest. We approached. A be bear of a man stepped forth from the side of the house holding a mitt full of herbs. “It is best that you keep moving travel as far as you can under the light of day. This forest is a dangerous place”. It didn’t seem like this grizzly fellow was much of a talker but that did not stop Ding-We. “He beefy boy can you tell us about your friends across the way?” This clearly irritated the Big-Man, “They are not my friends and neither are you”. Feeling the tension mount a new tact was taken, “Hey you like rabbit friend?” “I do” “But you wished it didn’t take a dozen to make a meal” “That is true” “Well, let us offer you something before we leave” Opening the portable hole out came a fresh, and cleaned- thanks Steve, giant polymorphed ankheg that was of course now a rabbit. This seemed to ease things. The beast of a man was now thinking how well his herbs would go with the monster rabbit. He gave a grunt of appreciation and repeated his warning about dawdling about in this neck of the woods. Our hobos returned to the lakeshore and rode on.
Even later we finally came to the apex of the lake and forded a feeder stream. This action caught the attention of an abnormally large pearlescent crayfish that was laying in the muck along the lakeshore waiting to snatch a meal. Steve was the target. Pulling him from his mount the creature attempted to bring its super chunky morsel back to the waters. Well, Stevie saw things the other way around his dinner was trying to get down his throat. The crayfish was not ordinary in size our nature. It was spell proof. Sadly for the big chunk of meat that was not enough for it to defeat a hungry hungry hobo. After cleaning up and largely filling the portable hole with another feast we rode on to the West back into the oak dominated forest. Fortunately the understory was largely herbaceous and progress was made.
(à16.23) As the afternoon wore on the trees abruptly opened revealing a massive greenish dome rising out of the earth almost 50’ high and some 200’ wide. Investigating around the perimeter a circular space type door with a gang of orks guarding it was discovered. They seemed the bureaucratic type and went to twenty questions rather than their polearms. Opening the space door we entered into the strange structure. The interior walls and floor of the dome were fashioned from a shiny black, stone-like material absent of seams or any indication of tooling- Alien meets Star Trek (whatever that is).
The orcs had set up a temporary shelter within the entrance hall; a rough framework of branches covered in animal hides. We progressed through a beaten copper door into a 10’ wide corridor. Quickly coming to two more doors or the option to proceed further down the corridor to where it splits into two stairwells, one up and the other down. Opening the door to the south revealed a kidney shaped chamber that was clearly being used as a rest area, dirty pallets and and bedrolls strewn throughout the chamber. Bah.
Down the corridor to the stairs leading up we went. The stairs pierce the ceiling of the second level and open into a room with curved walls similar to those below. The chamber is roughly thirty feet wide and fifty feet long, running south to north. Another large beaten copper door is directly adjacent to the head of the stairs. The surface of the door traced with a maze of thin silver wire, forming an irregular pentagon the size of a man’s hand in the centre of the door. The Doom of Cthedrak was likely to be found here. Who or what is that you ask. Well time will tell very shortly. Along the northern wall was a nest of branches, leaves and torn cloth adjacent was a low desk stacked with a personal library. As intimated two sentences back she was indeed present and not happy to have guests. Cthedrak is some twenty feet long, jet black snake, with the head of a human woman. Her head was strikingly beautiful, with ebony skin and shockingly white hair. She was a naga. “I think I could still work with that..”, was heard from the proximity of one of our deviant dwarves. She pointed a finger at the murdermob. A small red stone that expanded into a fiery globe hit us. Kaboom! Game on. This naga was tough but Nara was able to get past her defences with a psychic attack and restrict her movement. Her gaze however could not be controlled and she began taking control of hobos whom began to take up the naga’s defence. Our legion however, for once, did not waste time and jumped the old snake’s bones. Once her head was removed from its stem we moved onto the looting phase of the boss destruction program. Not only was there piles of coins there was a significant library of esoteric tomes. Welcome to payday!
ROLECALL
Carla the Green Matriarch of TMB (C8) 144390 xp +10% <200001> CRT 1d12/III
Scars: permanent loss left index finger and scarring on arm
Bimbles the Patriarch of GSS (C8) 187630 xp +5% <200001> CRT 1d12/III
Lasting injury: -1 STR, mashed arm
Hobo Steve the Superhero (F8) 184561 xp +5% <240,001> CRT 1d24/V
Brain Damaged: reduced mental capacity (tough night on the town)
Rahgnar the Dwarven Superhero (D8) 149398 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) 166657 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) 382407 xp +10% <470001> CRT 1d10/I
Critical Wound: Left leg obliterated, runs at ½ rate (peg required)
Bunny the Thief! (T9) 214193 xp <280001> +10% CRT 1d20/II
Light wound: permanent loss of pinky finger, off hand
Ramrod the Cloned Magsman (T8) 90216 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) 151254 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) 75290 xp +5% <125000> CRT 1d6/I
Biff Bartley the Half-Orc Blackguard (HO7) 70735 <120000> +5% CRT 1d12/II
Sasha Plasha the Warden (R7) 75710 xp +10% <100000> CRT 1d10/III
‘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: 12 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: 17 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
326 days at beginning of session (also applies to recuperation)
Join us for session One-Hundred-and-Forty-Six when we ask the questions:
What is this strange domed structure?
What is behind door #2?
What mysteries are contained in the mountain esoteric tomes?
What is downstairs?
Tale of the Tape
We took some beats but kept on kicking.
KILLS
Ankheg (6) 6000
Giant Magic-Infused Crayfish 800
Orks (6) 150
Spirit Naga - Sister of Doom 1800
LOOT
Amethyst cylinders with religious themes (3) 1200 gp each
Jade carvings (28) 200 gp each
Statuettes (2) 200 gp each
Moonstone tiara 4000 gp
Rich fur cloak 1700 gp
Sunset amethyst 750 gp
7500 sp
2000 ep
6000 gp
Gems (3) 25, 50, 75 gp
Ring “The mighty arm” 1/day 18STR for d6 rnds
Arrows +2 (3)
Scroll 1: 1-3/lv/MU
Scroll 2: 3-2/lv/MU
Scroll 3: 1-5/lv/MU
Scroll 4: 3-1/lv/CL
Stolen spellbooks (5) together all 1st & 2nd lvl MU spells per OSE
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