Doggerland Final Session (Zuggtmoy's Realm)

The End of the Matter (10^th September 2014)

The Adventurers

Bow – Ranger

Cormac – Fighter

Johan – Cleric

Maximillian – Thief

Tarquin - Fighter

Theoderic – Fighter (NPC)

Vox – Magic User

Zuggtmoy's Realm - Courtesy of TSR/WotC

The Throne – Thunorsday 4^th September (Day 91) – early afternoon

The knowledge of how to use the throne mechanism in the main Temple above ground thrust itself into Bow’s mind. Now he knew how it worked the party had a second means of entry to the interdicted area inhabited by the demon queen Zuggtmoy.

He led his companions back up to the dais and throne in the Temple above and then gave them full instructions on which tiles to press, in which order and details of the passwords required in order to work the mechanism. He could get down using the powers of the Golden Skull.

Just as the party were about to approach the dais, they were disturbed by the tramp of many feet at the far end of the nave. Suddenly, the whole of the here-to-for gloomy Temple lit up as bright as daylight and each party scrutinised the other; the adventurers recognised that it was the military force from Castleford led by Prince Thrommel, the baron Tancred, the lady Mathilde and the High Priest Ralph, accompanied by several of their associates and scores of men-at-arms. The military contingent also recognised the companions and each wished the other party good luck as they set about their tasks; the adventurers to dispel the demon queen and the Thuringians to conquer the rest of the dungeon complex in order to give them the opportunity to do so undisturbed.

The party arrived one at a time into a throne room very deep below the ground level. The dais upon which the throne sat was constructed from large, seamless slabs of sickly-coloured porphyry whilst the rest of the room was coated in layers of slimes and moulds. Bow tested them with a variety of materials and found that they seemed harmless in themselves but they were slippery, so dangerous under foot.

When the party were all down safely – it took several minutes for each person to be able to come down after the throne returned to its position in the upper Temple – they cautiously made their way to the large set of stairs to the west that led further down into the depths. Their torches and lanterns lit the way through the maze of slime and mould trails but as they approached closer to the stairwell they could see a dim light source emanating from the bottom of the stairs.

The party split up with half moving across the throne room towards the doors on the opposite side of the room led by Tarquin, whilst the rest descended part-way down the stairs. Those that went down the stairs could make out in the half-light from the fluorescent moulds growing on the walls three columns of precious metal that rose to the ceiling, topped with the visage of a demon; one each of gold, silver and copper. The rest of the chamber expanded about halfway along its length to incorporate a large, round dark pit in the centre, and it culminated with a wall faced with a heavy dark purple drape with a very large gem-encrusted throne before it upon which was seated a black-hooded figure; they couldn’t tell whether it was a very small person on a normal sized throne or a normal sized person on a very large throne- their perspective was out by the juxtaposition. They decided to back up and follow their companions through the door on the southern side of the chamber to see if it would lead round the back of the throne and thus give them more of an element of surprise.

Animated Armour

The party followed Tarquin through the more westerly of the two wooden doors (some members of the party could not move to within twenty feet of the central magically locked and shielded double valves – the same Antipathy spell affected this side of the doors too) and entered a small chamber that had a black wooden throne butted up against the eastern wall which looked directly down the western corridor opposite. Other than some ghastly murals painted on the walls, there was nothing else in the chamber.

As there was nothing of interest other than the black wooden throne, which Tarquin said to avoid, the party advanced past the murals and into the corridor beyond.  Tarquin led the small band of adventurers into a second chamber beyond which had the same ghastly murals of moulds and fungi being ordered to carry out unspeakable acts upon innocent humans whilst demonic looking people looked on.

Unfortunately, the fighter’s attention was on the wall-paintings, and as he stepped into the chamber, the four suits of armour, set two on each of the north and south walls, came to life. In his haste to move into combat, he pointed his Wand of Wonder at the animated armour and spoke the trigger word. The room filled with flame as a Fireball ripped through it, but luckily only Tarquin and Bow from the party were in range and were the only ones slightly injured. The animated suits of armour seemed to bear no damage other than minor scorch marks.

The adventurers took the fight to the animations whilst Vox, who had cast a Flying spell upon himself, explored the main arrival room without having to touch the floor. After a while he got bored and decided to join the rest in the fight that he could hear emanating from the distant room. As he passed the entrance to the stairwell down to the pillared throne room he heard a cackle of laughter. He decided that as the fighters would most likely have everything under control in the fight, he would head back to the stairs down to see where the laughter came from. As he reached the top of the flight of stairs, he saw a bright, sickly purple light suddenly shine forth from deep within the room.

The party, however, were getting the worst in the fight and Tarquin had been seriously injured, so they decided to fight a retreating battle back out of the room. Tarquin went against his previous wary thoughts on the black wooden throne, and sat upon it in the hope that perhaps he could command the animated armour. Alas, this ruse did not work and they attacked him whilst he sat there none-the-less.

The party managed to escape the black wooden throne room and slammed the door upon their exit. They headed back across the slime covered floor to the stairs down where they joined their companions Vox and Johan, who had been first to leave the room in support of the mage.

The Three Pillars

Vox headed down the stairs still in Fly mode but his covetous thoughts betrayed him. A voice in his head said that if he wanted to take the copper pillar he could. He was sorely tempted to take the pillar but decided after a long pause to advance to the edge of the brightly glowing pillar of sickly purple light that now stretched from ceiling to floor from the central pit and lit the entire room to see what he could now see beyond it.

The party slowly filtered into the room but nothing seemed to change – the hunched figure still sat upon the large throne and the bright purple light neither dimmed nor grew in intensity. Eventually the whole party had moved up into a position where they could all see the throne and the person upon it. Tarquin touched the copper pillar on his way past and he too was asked within his head whether he wished to take it. He ignored the voice and the impulse to seek a way of moving the obviously extremely heavy pillar of solid metal.

The Ritual Begins

Vox, Max and Cormac advanced upon the dais to attack the black-cowled figure whilst Bow moved into direct viewing range of the throne. He set up the Golden Skull and readied the Sword of Solitude for the ritual whilst Johan drew a chalk circle and a variety of holy symbols around him on the floor of the throne room and then cast a Protection from Evil spell on the holy space. Tarquin and Theoderic took up positions in order to aid either group of their companions or defend them from any summoned minions that the demon queen may deign to conjure from the Abyss.

As the small party approached the throne they were all offered the precious metal pillars as an attempt to appeal to their greed but all of the party ignored the enticement; their goal was to call out the demoness and cast her back to her own realm. Seeing that her enticements were being ignored, the black-robed crone then changed tack. She tried a bit of reverse psychology and warned them not to take the jewels from the throne and then began to fiddle with some of the jewels encrusted upon the arms of the throne.

Bow had not started his ritual just yet, as he wondered what the black-robed figure was up to. He fired a single silver tipped arrow in her direction but it missed her and skittered away after hitting the back of the throne. He then began the ritual. At the same time, Vox cast a Lightning Bolt from his circlet, and Cormac also added a strike with his trusty sword. The magical attack managed to hit the figure upon the throne and then rebounded off the stone work to hit her again.

The old crone howled with rage but carried on threatening that no-one would get her treasures and fiddled more with the jewels upon the arms of the throne. She got herself worked up into a berserk frenzy and after just a few more moments of fiddling with the jewels encrusted upon the arms of the throne a variety of different coloured lights shot forth and struck the ceiling and floor of the chamber, blasting holes where it hit. One such beam though, reflected off a particular surface in the eaves and it rebounded to hit the crone and turn her into a pile of ash.

Summoning

Johan saw all of this and reacted as if he knew what was due to happen next. He lit his Candle of Invocation and was lucky to Gate in a Valkyrie; exactly what he wanted to enable him to protect Bow whilst he conducted the ritual. Just as the Valkyrie appeared, a Babau demon also appeared right in front of the chooser of the slain. The demon then summoned another of its kind from the Abyss and the two denizens of the Void took up fighting the Valkyrie.

At much the same moment, the demoness herself appeared on the throne in all her tentacled and hideous glory and began to attack her assailants. She magically teleported most of the party back into the original throne room but Vox and Cormac stubbornly avoided the magical command. Bow was most annoyed as he had completed just over half of the ritual and would need to get back in place to complete it. What would the demoness do in the meantime to hinder their progress?

As the rest of the party rushed back into the fray, Vox and Cormac put up a brave fight against the demon queen whilst the Valkyrie held her own against the two Babau demons. Zuggtmoy summoned three strange looking mould creatures to her side, and they slowly advanced upon Bow’s vacated position but they were not quick enough to make it before the ranger could begin the ritual again.

The demon queen, annoyed that Vox had hit her again with his Magic Missiles (although this time it was not damaging) used her telekinetic abilities to pull him out of the air and dashed him into the ground. The impact knocked him unconscious and he slowly slipped towards death.

Max managed to slow one of the Babau demons enough with a back stab so that the Valkyrie was able to finish it off with her next blow. Cormac still hacked away at the demoness whilst Johan and Theoderic helped the Valkyrie against the remaining demon and prepared to defend Bow against the mould creatures.

Zuggtmoy’s End

Max then turned his attention to the demon queen to aid Cormac whilst Bow finally completed the ritual. A scream rent the air as a magical pull dragged Zuggtmoy and her remaining minions towards the glowing column of sickly purple light; the gateway to her realm. Unfortunately this magical draw also pulled half the party towards it too, but luckily there was someone close enough to each of those drawn thither to prevent them from being dragged to the netherworlds. Vox was moved to safety by the Valkyrie as a final act before she returned Valhalla.

When Zuggtmoy crossed into the purple light she let out a final scream of defiance and then the gateway shut. Everyone in the chamber was left temporarily blinded due to the brightness suddenly disappearing, but Johan was able to crawl to Vox just in time to administer a few Healing spells to arrest the mage’s descent into death.

Bow looked around for the Golden Skull and the Sword of Solitude, but these had also disappeared. Max advanced upon the throne to begin prising out the gems but Johan warned him that for every jewel prised out, a demon would be summoned. He said that this was best left to those with the knowledge of how to deal with such artefacts.

Doggerland Session 9:44 (Final Preparations)

The Golden Skull (3^rd September 2014)

The Adventurers

Bow – Ranger

Cormac – Fighter

Johan – Cleric

Maximillian – Thief

Tarquin - Fighter

Theoderic – Fighter

Vox – Magic User

Return to Nulb – Freyasday 26^th Hextember (day 87) – late evening

The darkness of the underground warrens pushed down heavily upon the exhausted minds and bodies of the adventurers. Their feelings of foreboding eventually got the better of them and rather than head towards the tower for safety decided that it might be best in their beaten state to return to Nulb and rest up before tackling whatever may have ripped their horses to pieces.

The evening had drawn in but the darkness above ground was less foreboding than the catacombs from which they had just emerged. The overgrown path that returned the party to Nulb was full of many noises in the darkness that made the adventurers nervous but nothing emerged from the undergrowth to waylay their retreat.

The party emerged from the Gnarley and upon entering the village requested board and lodgings from the Thuringian soldiers based in the newly built fortification. They were given the best quarters available and were fed as well as could be on the strength of their badges of office that had been presented to them by the Prince himself.

Whilst the spell casters rapidly made their way to a private space in order to replenish their magical strength, the fighters and thief decided to carouse with the soldiers. In the confusion, Bow slipped out and paid a visit on Mother Screng at her herb shop.

An Audience with Y’Dey and Otis – an hour of Bow’s time

Bow rapped upon the door lintel and was greeted by the wizened old face of Mother Screng. He asked if she would talk to him about the latest developments in their adventure, but the miserable old hag responded that it was far too late at night and that he should return in the morning. Bow realised desperate measures were called for so he showed her the Skull and three amulets that he and the party had already gathered. A brief look of fear and then panic crossed her face as she ushered him straight in to her parlour. She then sent her daughter out to gather another person from the village with whom to share this moment.

Mother Screng placed a kettle of water back on the fire to brew a pot of tea which was ready at just the same time as the burly smith entered. After a few words had passed between the three villagers, the old hag muttered a spell and cast off their magical disguises to reveal the Canoness Y’Dey, Otis the head ranger, and Murfles a goodly spy.

The four of them sat down around the table in the small back room and Y’Dey cast a few protective spells to hide whatever they were going to discuss next from any scrying eyes. Bow then removed the items again from his pack and placed the Skull and the three amulets upon the table to whispers of awe. He then drew the Sword and laid it alongside the other artefacts which drew more sharp intakes of breath. Y’Dey then used her magical abilities to determine which amulet went where upon the Skull and as the amulets were placed into the recesses available for them they moulded themselves seamlessly into their allotted positions.

After the artefacts had been fitted together Y’Dey then told Bow how, when and where to use the completed Skull and Sword to destroy the demoness Zuggtmoy. She then cast many spells upon the Skull which made it shrink and take on the form of an innocuous necklace and trinket to hang around his neck in a small leather pouch, whilst the magical protection would also guard it from all but the most powerful of scrying magics until it was ready to be used again. She then gave Bow the command word to make it large again so he could add the final amulet when it was found.

The three villagers then gave Bow directions on how to get to the Interdicted dungeon level that Zuggtmoy was imprisoned within and also to the third door which they told him the Temple had the final amulet for. If the Temple acted true to form they would blow the door off its hinges at New Moon in a couple of days’ time and then leave the amulet behind thinking it had served its purpose. Bow would then be able to recover the final amulet and advance upon the demoness’ realm in order to banish her.

Finally, after sipping the last dregs of their tea, Otis mentioned that the baron would be leading a force into the dungeon to act as a diversion for when they re-entered the evil Temple. Bow thanked them for all their help and cheekily asked whether the canoness would Heal the wounds he had picked up in the last fight – she agreed to this and fully healed him.

Then, after a quick look to make sure he had not been tailed he slunk back to the party in the Thuringian fortification and fell asleep on his cot without telling his fellow adventurers anything of his side adventure.

A Third Earthquake – Godsday 27^th Hextember to Moonday 1^st September (days 88-90)

The party returned to Castleford the following day on horses leant to them by the Thuringian soldiers, but they asked that they be returned to the next patrol that would be headed back in their direction.

Upon arrival, the party handed over the horses as requested and returned to their usual lodgings in the Talehangers’ Inn where they set about Identifying and evaluating their treasure. Johan recouped all his spells after a long bout of Healing his companions and then set about making enquiries about where and how he might be able to set up a temple to the Old Faith once his adventuring days were over. After they had spent a couple of days getting this resolved, they then spent a large amount of it carousing. On their daily travels they noticed that military activity had picked up in the town, much like it had done before the raid on Nulb several weeks ago – something big was about to kick off again but only Bow was party to the knowledge.

During their stay in the Talehanger’s Inn, on the night of the New Moon, a third and more powerful earthquake was felt by all the townsfolk. Again, lightning brightened the sky and thunder rebounded off the distant hills. The town’s residents were set to panicking and wondered again what was happening in the world. They reasoned that although it was the stormy season earthquakes were generally unknown in this part of the world, so they passed the night washing away their fears with cups of ale and wine.

A couple of days later, all of the treasure had been identified and evaluated and a variety of equipment had been bought and sold; Bow also collected the Ring of Protection that was ordered a week before from a travelling merchant. The following morning, the party headed back towards the Temple; this time they made the journey on foot.

Return to the Temple – Thunorsday 4^th September (Day 91) – mid-morning

The road via Nulb back to the Temple was deserted and the grounds around were pretty much as they had left them. It seemed that the Temple had gone to ground after so many of their number had been slain by the party and the third door-sundering ritual had been completed.

Johan was determined to find the first amulet that he presumed was still hidden amongst the rubble at the main Temple entrance doors, so he cast a Detect Object spell and looked about for traces of the amulet that had once been his. However, because the amulet had been magically disguised by Y’Dey he could not detect it even though it was only a few feet distant on a chain around Bow’s neck; Bow smiled wryly but said nothing to his companion. After he had failed to find anything within the rubble outside the upper Temple building, he called for the party to enter the Temple and search about inside – only Bow and Vox knew that their search would be in vain, but they chose to say nothing.

Bow, his mind full of the details that Y’Dey had given him decided to wander off in search of the third amulet. The rest of the party were split on whether to follow him, much to Johan’s annoyance for wanting things wrapped up neatly. However, he decided to follow the ranger as he could always come back after the third amulet had been found to look again for the first amulet which he still thought was lying around in the rubble close by the main entrance doors.

As Bow reached the main stairwell down to the elemental room of the first dungeon level, he felt an irresistible urge from the disguised Skull to investigate the throne and dais at the end of the nave. He was unsure what the feelings meant but he had become aware that the throne was important somehow. As he walked up the dais the feelings became stronger but he still could not put the feelings into words. He decided to sit upon the throne much to the insistence of his companions that he should not, but he still got no more than the nagging feeling that it was important but he was unsure why.

The Secret is Out – late morning

Bow strode ahead and took the steps downwards two at a time, whilst the rest of the party lit torches and lanterns and struggled to keep up with him. He walked with purpose and retraced his steps back down through the Elemental room, through the left hand curtain and down the side corridor past the rat room that Max had been ambushed within.

They then passed the prison cells and advanced along the long, dark back corridor until it led them down the spiral stairwell. Bow then led them past all of the decaying Temple guard and bugbear bodies to the angled corridor beside the water room within which Tarquin had nearly drowned.

At the next junction the party asked Bow what he was doing because rather than head eastwards, as expected, along the main processional and down the next set of stairs that was guarded by an antipathy ward of some kind, he instead led them off south down a wide corridor that ended with two sets of double valves. He replied he was acting on a hunch, as he still did not want to give away the secrets he had learned from Y’Dey. They decided to believe him and humoured him in the hope that he either achieved the goal of finding the amulet or ran out of steam and returned the search back into Johan’s methodical hands.

At this point, Vox cast a Strength spell upon his warrior companions just in case they blundered into something or someone unexpectedly and fortuitously this also allowed them to push open the huge double doors that were positioned on either side a little more easily. Cormac opened the western set to reveal a south-westerly angled corridor whilst Bow opened the eastern set. However, Cormac was ignored when Bow descended the stairs and shouted that he had found the remnants of the third wrecked door.

The rest of the party filed into the large octagonal room and saw the carnage within. They also spotted the old rag that they had lit and dropped into the hole in the Temple floor eighty or so feet above several days previously. The party then spread out and began to search for the third amulet, which Bow was fortuitous enough to find.

He then led them back to the wide processional corridor towards the warded stairwell. Everyone was able to descend the stairs towards the bound and sealed double valves except for Bow, Max and Theo; the magical dweomer was far too powerful for them to overcome and they could progress no further than a few steps downwards before they had to retreat. Bow tried every which way to descend the stairs but he just could not overcome the nauseating feelings he got when he approached the stairs.

Finally, he pulled out the disguised Skull from its protective pouch around his neck and said the command word to return it to its normal shape and size. He then placed the final amulet in position and watched as it too sealed itself in place. Johan gasped in surprise that he had been hoodwinked by the ranger and felt misgivings alongside a newfound lack of trust in his companion. However, the mission to destroy the demoness in her lair took precedence, so he kept his thoughts to himself.

As soon as the amulet locked in place, Bow was rewarded with the feeling that he now knew how the Skull worked, even down to the point that he also now knew the other way into the Interdicted part of the Temple complex via the throne on the dais in the main Temple building above ground.

He told his friends what he had discovered, and rather than split the party and be without some of their companions when they faced Zuggtmoy, all agreed they would take the same route as him to enter her realm.

Doggerland Session 8:43 (Dungeon Level 3)

This session took place over a week ago but I am/have been on holiday so there has been a delay in the write-up. There are only two more playing sessions left before the game ends, so the denouement may be a little more rushed than I anticipated. That said, there is only one main encounter left - the one with the demoness herself. Anyway, here is the latest session...

The Golden Skull (13^th August 2014)

The Adventurers

Bow – Ranger

Cormac – Fighter (NPC)

Johan – Cleric

Maximillian – Thief

Tarquin - Fighter

Theoderic – Fighter

Vox – Magic User

 

Courtesy of TSR/WotC - used purely for gaming purposes

The Basilisk – Freyasday 26^th Hextember (day 87) - morning

The cocks crowed at first light on the late summer morning, awakening the adventurers from their slumber. The Talehangers’ Inn at Castleford provided the companions with freshly baked bread, cold meats and hot porridge to break their fast and to stuff into their travelling packs for later that day. The party quickly splashed their faces with cold water, collected their weapons and equipment, and went to the stables to collect their mounts. They swiftly mounted their horses and passed through the Southern Gate on their way back to the Temple via Nulb.

The journey back to the ruined barn outside the Temple walls was uneventful and they tethered their horses with plentiful oats to keep them going for a day or so at least. They readjusted the strapping on their armour and backpacks and climbed down the well just outside the ramshackle building and advanced upon the lair at the end of the tunnel complex on their map.

Bow had taken point, so he was the first to turn the final corner of the underground warren into the small complex. He narrowly avoided the glowing green-eyed gaze of the eight-legged lizard that rushed to meet him upon his entry. The ranger counter-charged his adversary and out of the corner of his eye he noticed an urn upon a shelf above the fountain in the open chamber beyond upturned by what seemed an invisible hand. A spark erupted and flaming oil poured from it along the runnels set at the base of the walls of the chamber.

Unperturbed by this, the ranger carried on fighting the lizard whilst the rest of the party rounded the corner and spotted their companion in trouble. Cormac, Theoderic and Tarquin rushed in to join the fight whilst Vox and Max hung back; especially after Johan yelled out to avoid the creature’s gaze unless they wished to be turned to stone.

It took a few minutes for the adventurers to realise that no matter how much they hit the monster it never seemed to feel the pain or show any injury. Theoderic was the first to realise that even after he had given the giant lizard his best shot his sword had caused it no harm; no wound and no blood appeared where he struck the creature. He called out that the beast was not as it appeared.

Rogues and Wizards in the House – late afternoon

Bow, more single-minded in the mission than his companions, broke from the fight and decided to explore the two doors on the northern and southern walls of the chamber in order to try to find the Golden Skull. He hopped over the runnel of fire that had now lit a couple of torches set within cressets on the walls and burst through the northern door. He stepped into the dark room beyond only to be struck from behind by a small blade. His armour turned the majority force of the blade, so it only caused him minimal anguish, and he took the fight to the small ambusher behind him.

At this point Tarquin had realised that the creature was an illusion and as his disbelief kicked in, the monster disappeared from his vision. However, his companions still fought for their lives against the fearsome foe, disadvantaged by the fact that if they met its gaze they would be turned to stone. He left the fight to aid Bow in the search for the Golden Skull by opening the southern door.

He stepped through the doorway and found himself face-to-face with a wizardly fellow who cast a Lightning Bolt at him. The bolt only caught the fighter a glancing blow but it flashed past him and into the northern room where it also glanced off of Bow, struck the far wall and rebounded back to strike the ranger again. Bow was reduced to within an inch of his life.

By now, Theoderic had also realised the basilisk was a deception and he too broke from the combat to aid Bow who he saw had caught the worst of the Lightning Bolt.

With more time to think than the others from their cover behind the last stone corner, Vox put a blindfold on his eyes and stumbled forward whilst Maximillian imbibed a portion of an Invisibility potion and snuck up on the basilisk. He managed to strike it firmly at what he thought was a vital point but even he found he could not harm the creature.

Eventually all of the party except Cormac realised that the creature was an illusion and had left their faithful fighter companion to face the threat alone. It took him a while, but eventually he too figured out he was doing the beast no harm and as his disbelief kicked in, the illusion faded for him too.

Back in the northern room, the ambusher saw their opportunity and dashed for the exit. The masked and hooded rogue made it past Bow and Theoderic and then out of the basilisk’s chamber, but Vox had just pulled off his blindfold and spotted the rapidly escaping figure. He cast a Magic Missile at the retreating shape and the escapee fell to the stone tiled floor. Vox and Cormac checked over the body for anything of value and it was then that they realised that the rogue was in fact a woman.

Meanwhile, back in the southern chamber, Tarquin had moved forward to attack the wizard but a small imp-like creature had hurled itself upon his shoulders and began to claw at his neck. Johan had arrived on the scene at this time but could do nothing but watch in awe as the wizard and his familiar disappeared from their sight.

Both the warrior and cleric struck around them with their weapons and blocked every way out of the chamber but after a few minutes they realised that there was in fact no-one left in the room anymore except them.

The Hidden Chamber

With the fighting over, the rest of the party convened within the wizard’s chamber, where Johan dispensed with magical Healing to those who had suffered in the jaws of the basilisk or the human defenders of this part of the dungeon. They searched it thoroughly for anything of value and pocketed items that they thought would be either helpful to their cause or of value. The only quandary was what they should do with the warning note nailed to the door jamb of the only other exit from the room.

Vox cast a Detect Magic spell and discovered that several of the items that they had picked up were magical but the strongest glow was from beyond the closed door. Max checked the door for traps but found none, so Johan pulled the door open. The warding glyph held within the parchment nailed to the door jamb exploded and caught him full in the face.

After he had recovered from the shock and hurt the cleric took a look inside the small chamber beyond. This was the wizard’s store room and it was packed full of useful items for a mage. Vox took his pick from the many spell components in a variety of jars and vials, whilst Max hunted down the magical items identified by the wizard and stored them within his various pouches.

It was at this point that the party began to grow a little confused. They were assured from several sources that this was where the Golden Skull had been secreted. The adventurers began to search the walls for hidden doors but none could be found. It was only Tarquin’s curiosity with the fire outside in the open basilisk chamber that led him to discover the trip for the secret door within the southern chamber.

The Golden Skull

Image courtesy of TSR/WotC

Max quickly ascertained that there were no traps upon the hidden door and he pushed it open to reveal a short corridor beyond. He advanced cautiously along it looking for traps but the rest of the party lost patience and someone threw a lit torch at the far wall. It did not set off any traps or move in an unusual way, so they advanced into the corridor looking for another secreted doorway.

Again, it fell upon Max to discover the hidden doorway. He popped open the portal and stepped into another wizard’s chamber with a large, cold fireplace complete with hanging pots and cauldrons. This one looked more like a wizard’s study than a laboratory though and inside he spotted a variety of wizardly items and a large library. Vox and Max began to remove books at random from the shelves and stuffed them into their pockets and pouches.

The rest of the party searched for whatever treasures they could find, but it was Bow that spotted the iron box hidden away from normal sight. He handed it to Max who detected the very dangerous chlorine gas trap held within. He disarmed the trap but realised that if he tried to save it for future use it would rupture and cause great anguish to the party. Instead, he gently handed the iron box back to Bow who opened the lid to see the golden skull-shaped item within. He smiled to himself with the knowledge that their mission was almost complete, reclosed the lid and stowed it away in his back pack.

Return to the Tower – early evening

The party had got what they had come for, so they decided to make haste and get out of the dungeon before they were spotted again by the wizard returning with reinforcements.

They decided to hole up in the tower within the grounds of the Temple above ground. If it was still empty they would be safe within. But if it had been reoccupied then they might have another fight on their hands before they could rest.