Monday, June 19, 2023

Castle Whiterock 12 June 2023: Lake Exxon Valdez

The murderhoboes

Garreth, half-orc swordsman
    Bleu, droning elf wizard
Zaber, suave and debonaire man
    Logan, wolverine
Polly, cute and deadly elf archer
(Stonemaul, dwarven cleric of Danethar)
And our helpers:
Elweiss, ghostly guardian
Fthirya, aka Erica, ghaele eladrin
Galdiera, kobold who thinks she's an elven paladin

What they did

After a short rest, I give Logan a swig of beer and start scouting ahead. Garreth asks Bleu if the dread wraiths will strike again, and she says, "They are unlikely to confront us as they did before, given we destroyed many of their number. Bleu, "They seemed to be motivated to serve Benthosruthsa."

I check out the nooks and crannies, and find nothing. We get through a narrow hallway, though Garreth and Galdiera slip through easily, and make it to a big cavern, bigger than a neighborhood of Cillamar. Before us is a lake covered in oil and filth, with pockets of fire on top of it. The ledge on which we find ourselves goes to the left, while to the right the ledge becomes a bridge to a big island in the middle. There's more beyond our sight.

I float over the land bridge to the island, and can see more of the cavern to my right. In there, I can see another island of cooled magma, but covered with gold and platinum coins. "I wonder what that really is. I'm sure it's a trap, but what laid the trap?" After some chatter and Bleu casting Seek Platinum and letting us know that the coins truly are platinum, I fly to scout the island, with Logan hanging midway as backup.

As I get nearer I see gems and other gear among the coins. I look up for a trap; the ceiling is covered in stalactites, nothing odd. I stick out my knife to touch the coins when I feel a tingle, so I pull back my knife. Instead, I look to the side of the cavern, and see a short promontory of scree at the end of a hallway. At the tip of this is a big brass gong. I go a little nearer, and see two statues of handsome men, one a man and the other an elf, holding up the gong, with a snaky "S" sigil on it. I bring others, and Bleu says that she thinks they are petrified, not golems, likely victims of Scithia.

We look at the gong, and wonder what to do next.

Monday, June 12, 2023

Castle Whiterock 5 June 2023: Fear will keep the local systems in line

The murderhoboes

Garreth, half-orc swordsman
    Bleu, droning elf wizard
Zaber, suave and debonaire man
    Logan, wolverine
Polly, cute and deadly elf archer
(Stonemaul, dwarven cleric of Danethar)
And our helpers:
Elweiss, ghostly guardian
Fthirya, aka Erica, ghaele eladrin
Galdiera, kobold who thinks she's an elven paladin

What they did

I back off once I feel the tingle; it's not from shrooms. "Hey, guys, there's something alive up there. Or not alive but moving." I look down. "Logan, did you smell anything?" He shakes his head.

Garreth wonders if it is a construct or a corpse, and will show up on Seek Magic, so he tells Bleu to cast it. She casts it, and as she's telling us that nothing came up, when I feel my spine tingle. I'm about to say something when see-through spectral warriors come up from the floor! The say as one, “You shall not profane the lair of Great Benthosruthsa!”

Polly slashes at the warrior nearest her and it steps back after taking a little pain. Logan slashes the one nearest him twice, and he shivers from the icy chill going through him, so he steps back. I warily go down the hall a little, checking for others. Erica launches Chain Lightning at the warrior nearest her. It steps aside, but the lightning zaps the one behind it. Galdiera starts glowing and her hair becomes spiky. Bleu casts Great Haste on Garreth, who concentrates on speed.

The spectral warriors slash at us. Garreth parries, but one hits Erica. The cut doesn't hurt her, but the chill does. Polly and Logan step away from the blows, but one lands on Galdiera.

Elweiss stabs his spear twice at one, but it steps away. Polly, Logan, and I step back, and Erica rears her head back and lets out a primal holy scream. The spectral warriors turn to run, then Galdiera and Garreth slaughter some fleeing ghosts.

Erica's eyes flash holy fire, and she says something in some tongue that I don't know.