Doggerland Session 4:29 (Pool of the Standing Stones IV)

Pool of the Standing Stones IV (30^th April 2014)

The Adventurers

Bow – Ranger

Cormac – Fighter

Gull – Thief (NPC)

Johan – Cleric

Vox – Magic User

 

 Map (amended) courtesy of White Dwarf 12/Games Workshop

Fighters in Stitches - Sunday 28th Quinquember (Day 61) – late night

As the sewn together corpse sat upright, the fighter and ranger prodded and turned more dials on the strange wall device in the hope of reversing what they had started. More sparks flew and rivers of blue power flowed along the metal cables to the second figure. The energy from the strange contraption flowed into its mighty thews and caused it too to rise up.

The rest of the party quickly made their way to the chamber when they heard the cries of anguish that emanated from the two warriors’ throats. The reanimated corpses turned towards their awakeners and advanced upon them slowly.

Johan joined his companions and attempted to turn what he thought were undead but with no luck. This would come down to old fashioned methods; weapons and brute strength.

The combat that ensued was brutal. The slow moving corpses were hacked and stabbed at but even after several blows that would ordinarily have de-limbed an ordinary man they still advanced upon the fighters. Slow as they were, the monsters hit their marks on several occasions and caused many severe bruises and cracked bones to be heaped upon their targets. The party’s fighters were severely pressed, but eventually skill won out against brute force and the two reanimated corpses were eventually hacked to pieces and fell again dead to the floor.

Whilst the fighting took place, Gull, the thief, investigated the banks of levers and pulleys. He saw many of the contacts were made from precious metals, but as he tried to remove some of them he took a great shock of glowing blue energy which reduced him to within an inch of his life.

Jacob and the Blue Pool

Whilst the rest of the party collected their thoughts and re-gathered their strength, Vox decided to head back towards the bed chamber the party had just passed through before getting to the laboratory. He knew that there must have been some sort of secret exit as the room mirrored that of the cleric they had encountered elsewhere in the subterranean complex.

Bow, Cormac and Johan left Gull on guard at the right hand doorway and opened the door to a large chamber beyond. Half of the floor area was given over to a glowing turquoise pool. The other half of the floor contained a mixture of empty vials, bandages and a few small glass containers that contained what looked like more of the blue liquid. The room also housed what looked like the remains of a chained and starved man.

Cormac moved towards the prostrate man and prodded him. The chained man awoke and scuttled backwards further into his corner and begged the party not to harm him. The party placated him and said that they would not harm him. They then asked him to tell them what had happened. The emaciated man told them that his name was Jacob and that he had been captured by Braken and Prisilla to perform acts of thaumaturgy and artificery for them. He had created the blue pool which allowed them to strengthen the skin of the reanimated corpses; the next stage of preparation for the army that would serve at the coming of the demoness herself. Bow asked whether it would hurt him if he jumped in the pool, and Jacob responded that it would not.

Bow swiftly removed his armour, weapons and clothing, and dived straight into the pool. He swam around and coated every inch of his body with the blue fluid before he jumped out to see what the effect might be.

Vox, meanwhile had finished his search for a secret tunnel, which he found behind the headboard of the luxurious four-poster bed, and made his way back to join his companions. He saw Bow was swimming in the pool and that Johan and Cormac had a shrivelled little man under their control, so he advanced across the room past Gull and made his way through the door opposite. He found himself in a large ante-room with another door opposite.

Bow climbed out of the pool and, after he had picked up his sword and shield, caught up with his magic-wielding companion. He shoved past him, only to find that his limbs had begun to stiffen slightly. He ignored the sensation and pushed open the door to a room full of steam. He edged his way inside to find that a bench ran all around the perimeter of the room, and sat upright upon this bench were several corpses with a slightly blue sheen to them.

Zombie Attack!

As he backed away, the figures stirred and began to move towards him with red menace in their eyes. The ranger backed out of the room as swiftly as his steadily seizing legs would carry him and brushed past his wizardly companion at the door.

Vox called for Cormac and Johan to aid him against the zombies as he held the doorway whilst Bow ran to vent his anger upon Jacob, who had lied to him. Cormac held onto Jacob to prevent him from escaping, but the wizened man just cackled with laughter. Johan, upon hearing the word “Zombies” strode over to Vox and saw that the first of the walking corpses had emerged from the steam room.

Johan called upon the might of Balder to strike down the abominations before him, and five of the corpses collapsed therewith. The remnants of the animated corpses carried on their advance none-the-less unperturbed.

Bow and Cormac roughly questioned Jacob, who only cackled with delight in answer until he was pierced by Bow’s sword. The two fighters realised that they could threaten the unhinged little man no more so decided to throw him into the blue pool. Bow’s limbs and digits slowly got stiffer as he and Cormac struggled with the little man who was stronger by far than either of the magically Strengthened warriors would have believed. After a few minutes of struggle, Bow slashed Jacob’s hamstrings and the duo was able to loft him into the pool. Jacob, weighed down by his chains and hampered by his injuries, surfaced once to gasp for breath before he slowly sank beneath the surface never to rise again.

Gull ran to aid Bow into his armour whilst Cormac and Johan swapped places defending the doorway from the zombies. Although the zombies were tougher than any that the party had previously encountered, they still fell swiftly to the metronomic blade of the fighter.

Johan realised that the magical effect of the pool would probably kill his companion so he cast a Dispel Magic dweomer upon him. The effects of the blue liquid stopped straight away and the radiance of the pool dimmed. Unfortunately, some of the party’s magical potions also lost their potency.

Cormac destroyed the last of the zombies whilst Gull searched through the debris on the floor. The thief found a small vial with a red liquid inside and magical writing upon its surface. He handed the potion to Vox who swiftly deposited it within one of the pockets of his voluminous cloak for later research.

Cormac and the Ogre

Whilst Bow got himself together and the rest of the party searched around the room, Cormac headed off on his own. He passed through the steam room, through a second ante-chamber and emerged into a long, shelf-lined room.

The fighter noticed the curios behind the glass cabinet doors but decided not to search within the lower cupboards. He decided to leave them for later as he advanced ever onwards. He passed through the room and exited through the doorway opposite onto a scene of carnage.

He was about to draw his breath to shout for aid when he realised that he had emerged at the point where the party, with Theoderic’s aid, had fought the black-caped soldiers of the Temple.

He now had a grand idea of how this part of the complex was laid out and so he made his way back to inform the party. As he stepped back into the cabinet-lined room his torch picked out the huge ambling shape of an ogre. He did not have time to think how the ogre had appeared behind him but only rushed towards his foe with a battle-cry upon his lips.

Bow heard his companion’s shout and dashed towards the source of the noise. Cormac held his own against the ogre but Bow’s rage gave his limbs a speed he did not know he possessed until now. He saw the back of Cormac’s assailant and hewed down the mighty foe with one sweep of his trusty sword.

The rest of the party arrived in dribs and drabs to see the two fighters’ handy-work and began to search the cabinets and shelves.

Rest and Recovery

There was nothing to be found in the cupboards except dismembered corpses and strange curios like monkey paws, coloured pebbles and such like; nothing of any value except to maybe a collector of odd items. Nevertheless, Vox picked up a few handfuls of what he thought might come in handy at a later date.

The party were in a badly beaten way at this point, and as it was getting late, being close to midnight, they decided that a few hours’ sleep and some magical healing would be the best policy.

The party barricaded themselves into the old guards’ quarters and set about resting, healing and learning or invoking new spells. Johan used up the last of his healing spells upon those who needed them most and then set himself to pray for more aid from his god.

Earthquake - midnight

An hour or so into their respite, the whole complex shook violently. Bow voiced what they were all thinking; the second doorway to the demoness’ lair had been breached. This disturbance stopped the magic users from regaining all of their spells, so the few that they had learned were used there and then. More healing was distributed by Johan, and Vox was able to read the magical inscription upon the vial of red liquid. The magical writing spelled out AGAU but the cryptic way in which it was written was deciphered to mean “from Silver to Gold”. The foul-tasting mouthful that Bow had taken as an antidote to the blue liquid had caused him no harm but he realised that this act may have cost him money.

Layout of the Land – Finding the Secret Tunnel

Several hours later, after the party had fully rested and the magic users had regained all of their spells afresh, they gathered to work out what they would do next. Vox mentioned the secret tunnel he had found in the woman’s boudoir and said that it may be best if they checked it to see if a corridor ran between that chamber and that of the cleric.

Vox and Bow returned to the woman’s chamber whilst Cormac, Gull and Johan, armed with Vox’s knowledge of the secret door’s release mechanism, returned to the cleric’s chamber.

Johan quickly found the release button to the secret corridor beyond the headboard of the large bed and shone his light within. The corridor beyond extended beyond the range of his lantern.

Meanwhile, Vox returned to the woman’s boudoir to do the same. Whilst Vox made his way to the secret corridor, Bow took a slight detour down the steps within the flesh constructs’ chamber. He saw that the bottom of the chamber was flooded with brine and within the brine were many limbs. He drew his sword and stirred the brackish waters for a better view when suddenly a long, slim shape erupted from the depths. One swift swipe of his sword carved the giant lamprey in half before it could attach itself to one of his limbs. Bow slid the dead parasite from his sword and let the parts fall back into the water. A glint from beneath the surface revealed an earring, with an ear still attached. He thrust his hand into the brackish water and retrieved the small treasure.

Vox’s patience began to wear thin with his dallying companion but his caution overwhelmed that feeling so he held his place. When Bow arrived at his side, the pair pushed the door inwards and shone their torches along the corridor.

They advanced along the corridor slowly, their eyes wide for traps and ambushers. In the distance they espied a lantern approaching them, so Bow hissed to the magic user to slow down whilst he readied his sword.

At the other end of the same corridor the other three companions also saw the approach of a lantern. They had the wherewithal to call out and the party realised that the corridor did indeed link the two bed chambers.

As Vox and Bow advanced towards their companions, there came a crashing sound as the ground ahead of them crashed down into a large pit. Cormac and Gull had narrowly escaped plunging down a deep hole in the floor that they had triggered the trip device for.

As the floor ahead was known to be safe, the party followed in Vox’s and Bow’s footsteps and emerged with a sigh of relief back into the woman’s chamber. Vox helped himself to a few choice items of make-up before the party headed out into the corridor beyond.

Another Dead End?

The party slowed to a halt in the corridor and started to wonder what to do next when Vox had an idea. They advanced towards one of the last remaining dead-ends that they had not already explored and hoped that it too was part of another elaborate teleportation device.

The adventurers formed up into their usual battle order and walked towards the dead-end wall and disappeared one at a time. When they looked around they saw that the corridor behind them was different to the one they had just walked along and was also different to any of the others they had traversed.

Maybe this was the third and final part of the complex where they would meet the owners of the two boudoirs and the bone-devil Dando and reclaim the magical sword power that would undo the magic of the Golden Orb that held Zuggtmoy captive upon this plane of existence?

An early Anglo-Danish Warband for Saga

After several months' hiatus I got my figures and tools out to start working on something to get my creative juices flowing in a direction other than AD&D RPG. Doggerland has been taking up an inordinate amount of my time lately, and as a result my paintbrush and tools have not left the cupboard since way before Christmas.

As I had recently bought Saga at Salute I decided to do something with respect to that ruleset. A few years back I got hold of (two of) the Gripping Beast Anglo-Saxon Thegns box set, as well as two boxes of Vikings (I'll do something with those at a later date). I got them out of the box, and sat and stared at the sprues this afternoon to work out what I could do with them. I finally got the clippers out and created two units and the warlord for my starter force.

I decided I wanted to create a force that was post the first Viking Age (i.e. Alfred vs. Guthrum era) but pre-1066. I decided upon an early Anglo-Danish force based upon the early years of the Godwin dynasty. Lots happened during the Godwin era and they fought or opposed armies of many peoples during that time (other Anglo-Saxons/Danes, Welsh and Normans just for starters).

This is what I got for about four hours of procrastination, snipping and gluing...

First up is the warlord himself. There was a little kit-bashing involved to get this figure sorted as the shield and Dane-axe are from Conquest Games' Norman Infantry set.

The first batch of figures were made into a unit of Huscarls that I will use to represent the professional warriors who carry the warlord's banner. The banner bearer and horn blower had a kite shield added to their backs. The next unit I am hoping to arm with Dane-axes for striking fear into the enemy.

The second unit I created will represent what Saga calls Ceorls - a mixture of the better trained members of the Fyrd and lesser thegns. Eight spear-armed troops to bolster the numbers of the elite Huscarls. I will create another unit similarly armed and armoured at a later date to bring the army up to a basic 4 points. If I go for a standard 6 point army then I may take an extra unit of Huscarls and then invest in a box of Gripping Beast's Dark Age Warriors to make a unit of 12 levy.

After gluing the plastic kits together, I mounted them on 2p pieces. Now that it is no longer a criminal offense to deface the coin of the realm, I can use them without fear of losing my head - and they work out far cheaper than any base I have seen for sale anywhere! They also have the added advantages of being exactly the same size without fail, being magnetic, and they give the figures a little bit of heft which plastic figures generally lack.

I will attempt to get them undercoated this afternoon if the rain holds off, and maybe get the mail dry brushed to give them a little contrast.

White Dwarf Weekly #12

Since a few weeks back I now have a new local Games Workshop. My usual haunt was the shop in the Bluewater shopping centre, but recently a new store was opened in my local shopping centre of Bexleyheath. This is a lot more local and I have consequently visited it a bit more often than the one that is further afield.

I have had a good chat with the manager on a couple of occasions now but unfortunately I am unable to get down there to game still as my work finishes so late that I don't get home until the gaming time has prettty much ended. Still, that does not stop me popping in for a browse around the shelves and taking a look at the gaming tables and painted minis in the cabinets.

I got chatting to a fellow gamer in the shop today who runs a gaming club in Belvedere - I may very well pop down there if the timing is right work wise. It would be nice to supplement my Wednesday night RPg stuff with some tabletop battles. It might also make me pull my finger out and get some figure painted this year!

Picture courtesy of Games Workshop's website

Anyway, back to the main point of this article; White Dwarf #12.

I missed this particular issue going on sale last week but found out via The One Ring forum that it contained some The Hobbit SBG material. As this is so few and far between I decided to try to track it down. The manager of my new local shop had a few copies put by out the back just in case rather than send all of them back to head office for shredding - good man! I duly picked up a copy. Here is a brief run down of what is on offer inside...

32 page magazine with a soft card cover
The new Citadel Tool Set (5 1/2 pages)
An Unexpected Journey battle report (4)
Sprues and Glue hobby article (4)
Paint Splatter hobby article (2)
Weekly Roundup snippets (2/3 of a page)
GW Staff The Hobbit armies (1)
Mini Picture (glossy back page)

So, we have 6 2/3 pages of The Hobbit material and 11 1/2 pages of generic hobby related material. Not as good as the contents of WD#08 but for 15-20 minutes read on a Saturday afternoon with a cup of tea and a slice of cake it is not bad value for money (£2.40). I will continue to pick up more of the magazines that contain The Hobbit material (and I hope this brief article encourages others to do so) in the hope that it spikes the sales figures thus drawing Games Workshop's attention to the player base for the SBG and encourage them to produce more material for its undoubtedly large fan base.

Doggerland Session 4:28 (Pool of the Standing Stones III)

Pool of the Standing Stones III (23^rd April 2014)

The Adventurers

Bow – Ranger

Cormac – Fighter

Gull – Thief (NPC)

Johan – Cleric

Theoderic - Fighter

Vox – Magic User

Adjusted map courtesy of White Dwarf 12 - copyright Games Workshop

A New Arrival - Sunday 28th Quinquember (Day 61) – early evening

The sun had set and the dark fingers of the encroaching night obscured the path through the woods that the stout warrior Theoderic was taking. He knew from his talks with the denizens of the Gryphon Inn n Steeplfell that a party of adventurers had headed out in the direction of the standing stones at the top of the hill earlier that day and he did not want to miss out on any treasure that was going. His mission was to aid in the rescue of the missing village girls if he could, but he was given free rein to do as he pleased with anyone he came across within the glade.

The doughty fighter brushed aside the undergrowth with the uneasy feeling that he was being watched but no attack came. He was certain that he should come across the approach path to the ring soon but he must have gone astray because the positions of the stars he could occasionally glimpse through the woodland canopy showed that his path was not true. He was on the point of stopping for the night when he entered a small clearing and noticed something unusual with a patch of ground besides an old elm.

He searched about to work out what had caught his attention when he found a large iron ring bolted to a stout wooden door buried beneath a false turf. He grabbed hold of the ring and pulled. A loud creak erupted from the rusted hinges and the wooden portal slammed back on the turf to reveal a deep, dark hole.

The fighter lit his torch and thrust it into the Stygian darkness to reveal a solid stone spiral stairwell that led into the gloom. He drew his trusty blade and followed his nose towards adventure.

After he had descended twenty or so steps he began to hear the muffled sounds of fighting and the bark of a manic dog. He hurried his descent in anticipation of glory and treasures beyond counting.

Temple Guards Defeated

Three of the Temple guards at the rear of the skirmish fought to release their companions from their binding within the Rope of Entanglement whilst their fourth companion ducked beyond the curtain that separated the guard room from the chamber beyond from which emanated the enraged snarls and barks of a rabid dog. Cormac and Vox hacked at the bound guardsmen in frenzy whilst Gull covered the corridor outside both the guard room and the room which contained Johan and Bow who battled the ticks.

The leader and one of the bound guards fell to the blows of the two companions but their comrades had some luck with cutting partially through the rope that bound them. Vox feared for the magical item and called for Gull to help but no sooner had the words left his lips when a heretofore hidden door burst open.

Two of the guards turned at the entry of another interloper within their demesne and challenged Theoderic as to his actions. The fighter just snarled back that he was here to rid the world of the likes of those who challenged him and leapt into action.

The missing guard now returned with a rabid dog in tow and he commanded it to attack the party at the door. The dog leaped towards the entrance where Gull had just arrived. The thief swiftly gulped down his Potion of Animal Control and commanded the dog to stop. Unfortunately he could not fully control the dog in its rabid state but he did manage to confuse it enough to make it stand still.

The lull in the fight gave Cormac just enough time to slay his final opponent and leap to the aid of Theoderic who was being tightly pressed, whilst Vox controlled the last remaining guard still bound by the rope. The fight between the two fighters and the two guards was over swiftly as the far superior skills at arms of the adventurers shone through.

The two fighters nodded to each other in recognition of a kindred spirit and introduced themselves before they put down the dog and looted the bodies of their purses. They then darted into the chamber separated by the curtain to investigate what was beyond. They espied a bunk room beyond and set about searching it for valuables. They found a small gold plated casket filled with gems and jewellery at the end of a rope that was immersed within the latrine. Vox robbed the leader’s corpse of a fine looking scimitar and began to question the sole survivor of the guard troop.

None of the adventurers got anywhere with their questioning of the guard so Cormac, who had lost his patience, allowed him to see if his promise of a demonic afterlife was true.

Giant Ticks Defeated

Meanwhile, Bow and Johan had got the better of the ticks in the bed chamber of the plate armoured cleric. After the fight had gone agonizingly wrong to start with and had led to the retreat of their other three companions, the cleric and ranger fought on. They dispatched the noisome invertebrates within a few minutes without further injury and then proceeded to examine the room for the hidden entrance that they assumed the evil cleric had escaped through. However, try as they might they could not find any secret exits from the room, but Bow did manage to procure two magical scrolls from under the bed which he handed to Vox when they met up again a few minutes later after both fights had concluded.

Once the guard room had been searched from top to bottom, and Theoderic had been questioned as to who he was and what his mission entailed, the four new companions joined Bow and Johan in the boudoir. The darkness still reigned supreme, but they were able to navigate their way through it to the light beyond.

After everybody was introduced to their latest companion, they all set about searching the chamber for a hidden door. Even with Gull’s superior skills at finding this kind of thing they were unable to find such an exit.

Bow in the meantime had become bored and had sauntered off on his own in pursuit of further adventure. He kicked open the next door down the corridor and lit his lantern to combat the gloom beyond.

Monks from the Temple of Zuggtmoy

He advanced along the downward sloping narrow corridor and turned left (southwards) when it led that way. He could just make out a light that glowed at the end, so he doused his own lantern and advanced to within a few dozen yards to listen. He could hear the sound of heavy blows, as if sacks of corn were being dropped or sides of beef were being hacked. He decided to await the arrival of his companions before he went any further.

He only had to wait a few minutes before he could hear the approach of his fellow adventurers. He managed to motion for them to douse their lights and draw their weapons, before he charged into the room.

The great stone statue of Zuggtmoy that faced him as he entered the obvious prison cell block made him miss a step as he charged into the room and he was quickly accosted by two strangely garbed fellows who carried out the orders of their similarly garbed master beyond. He managed to parry the blows from their great swords before the rest of his companions entered the fray. Johan’s magical Hold Person did the trick by rooting the master and one of his acolytes to the spot but the third fought on bravely, if foolhardily, without their support.

Unfortunately for him, the three warriors in the invading band were more than a match for him and he went down under a flurry of blows.

The party wasted no time in cutting down the other two monks (the party reasoned they were monks due to their similar look and garb as Turuko whom they encountered in Staneford only a month or two earlier) and looked for a key to the cell doors.

They found a bunch of keys hidden within a pile of rags close to the door at the other end of the room and proceeded to open each of the three cells in turn to find that they only contained the sleeping pallets of the three monks. A swift slitting open of the mattresses revealed an amulet in what looked like the chief monk’s cell. This was quickly pocketed and the door at the far end of the room was kicked open.

Captives Rescued

Beyond the wooden door they heard the sounds of weeping and pleading coming from beyond the doors within the chamber. The cell doors were unlocked and opened in quick succession and each revealed a few of what the party presumed were the village girls. They all sported the signs of being mistreated except for one, Gilnet, the sister of the young lad back in Steeplefell.

They were all comforted and then asked what had happened. They replied by telling the story of their kidnap by Ash and then their subsequent release into the custody of Braken who kept them here for his own amusement. They could not tell the party much else, but after a few more minutes of questioning they enquired about their friend Leonora. The party assumed she was the maid who was slain by accident in Braken’s boudoir, so they told the girls that they were sad to inform them that Braken had killed her earlier.

The girls needed to be returned to their village, so Theoderic, being the newest arrival suggested that he would take them back to their loved ones and get right back into the action when he could. Bow led the way to Braken’s chamber where Cormac retrieved the body of Leonora and handed it over to Theoderic to carry back to Steeplefell.

The party said their goodbyes and escorted Theoderic back to the way he had come into the dungeon. He bid them farewell and left them to carry on with their investigation into finding the magical sword that would destroy the Golden Orb.

Rest and Recuperation – late night

The party realised that the druid Ash had not been telling tales about the two entrances to the subterranean complex, but he had been economical with the truth as to the strength of the guards at each entrance.

They decided that as they had been quite beaten about and their new comrade may not make it back before they continued further the party decided to rest up whilst the spell casters got their magical powers back and the party healed.

Bow led the party back to the teleportation wall. As he thought, it returned then to the first corridor that they had entered the complex through. He quickly paced back to the gnoll guard chamber in which they had rested previously and set about securing the room against attack.

The party either slept in shifts or learned spells for the next four hours. On the last watch, Bow returned to the main entrance hall and peered up through the illusory pool at the night sky. His ranger skills came in handy as he realised that time had passed rapidly and that it fast approached midnight. Only a couple of hours separated the party from the next day; the day of the new Moon.

The Bedchamber and the Shadow Guards

Vox recovered the spells that he had used, and Johan emerged from his prayer trance fully restored with his god’s divine powers. The other members of the party were then subsequently healed to full fitness before they donned armour and readied their weapons for further adventure in the dungeon.

The party turned left out of their safe room and headed down the other corridor towards another dead end. The adventurers were not fooled this time by the teleportation trick and, after Gull had checked the way for potential traps, walked towards the end wall. They were again transported to another corridor but this one was laid out slightly differently to the previous one.

Whilst Cormac headed towards the first door, Bow made his way to another further along the corridor. The rest of the party lined up and prepared themselves for combat behind the fighter at the first door. He kicked the door open and stared in on another bed chamber; this one most likely inhabited by a woman judging by the décor and items of make-up strewn around the room.

The floor was covered in a plush carpet and the huge four-poster bed against the far wall spoke of comfort. The two plate mail adorned statues spoke of wealth.

Bow’s conscience got the better of him this time and he decided not to go it alone just in case the party got themselves into difficulty and could not come to his aid if he required it. He returned to the first door and followed the rest of the party into the boudoir. He spotted the doorway beside the right hand statue by the bed and he headed straight for it.

When he got to within a few feet of it, the statue came to life and swung its sword at the ranger. Johan quickly cast a Bless spell to aid his companions and combat was joined. Even though the plate armoured opponents looked deadly, it did not take long for the party to reduce them to scrap metal; only their black capes survived as they crumbled to dust after each being struck once or twice.

Waking the Dead

Bow was in a hurry to get to grips with the leader of this complex now. He knew that there was a well-armed cleric around, as well as a female companion and the bone devil Dando to deal with. He also wondered what had happened to the other four gnolls that had escaped their clutches.

The ranger made his way to the door that was alongside the bed and popped it open to reveal a small empty chamber beyond, with another door opposite. He took a brief listen at the second door and forced it open to reveal a strange vista.

In the centre of the room stood two very large stone plinths, upon which lay two very large bodies. The bodies had been stitched together from the largest parts of the largest of men and looked menacing even whilst immobile upon their stone tableaus. To the far side of the room was a strange contraption that was covered in levers and handles. Several ropes of metal snaked their way up to the ceiling and down to the stone tables upon which lay the two bodies.

Bow and Cormac headed straight towards the device and began to push and pull the various levers. Every now and again a few sparks were emitted from the device, but on one particular turn of a dial a loud humming noise was emitted from the device and a blue snake of electricity arced along one set of metal cables to create a halo of energy around the head of one of the corpses.

A long, slow breath was drawn into the dead lungs of the being upon the slab. Its eyes opened and a long moan escaped its lips as it spotted the intruders standing beside it. The creature sat up with a menacing slowness and cast its gaze upon the party.