Session 2: Summary

Date of Session: 16 April 2024

Player's in Attendance

Summary

Interrogation

With the melee concluded, Ludwick called for assistance to haul the kobold in chain mail, Ydak, back into the room with the others. Kaleel responded thinking he may need assistance to kill the creature and seemed perplexed by Ludwick's more peaceful ways. Resigned, Kaleel picked up Ydak's unconcious body and tossed it into the room against the wall. Meanwhile, Ulgren clutched the only other remaining kobold before him and in a lowered tone asked him if he spoke common. In a garbled, broken response it was made clear to the party that only simple questions would be comprehended by this creature and any responses provided would be equally intelligible. Ludwick advised it best to keep the questions simple. The others in the room took better stock of all the details around them and noticed a closed door in the northeast corner and some sort of rune or cryptic marking etched into the northern wall. Both Orryn and Ailish attempted to ascertain the origin of the mark but ultimately did not recognize it.

The creature still held firm by Ulgren continued to beg to be let go and when asked what was behind the northeastern door, merely responded with broken common that there were stairs that led further into this complex. Ulgren pressed the kobold for information on his friend, Brother Tagg, the monk, but was disappointed when the kobold shrugged and indicated he had no idea what Ulgren was talking about. Ulgren decided the kobold he held was of no further use so he dropped him to the ground and let him flee in the direction the party had come in from.

About this time, Kaleel noticed that Ydak was beginning to stir and called Ludwick over, seeing as how this kobold was his prisoner. Pointing out to Ydak that it was he who had healed him, Ludwick was hoping for good favor and cooperation. Unfortunately, faced with the overwhelming odds before him and the dead comrads around him, Ydak scrambled back to the wall desperately seeking to be let go and leave. The party questioned him for a bit and learned that the monk was further within the complex and still alive (at least as of a day ago). They also learned that this was the layer of a kobold chieftan and that more kobolds as well as the chieftan himself lay ahead. Feeling that Ydak had provided them with reasonable information given his situation, they released him to follow the previous kobold out of the complex.

Deciding to investigate the northeast door and what may lurk behind it, Ailish grasp the pull ring and tugged. The door swung inward, easily.

Stairs

Ludwick brought forth the torch, revealing a stairway leading down. Ulgren, with his superior dark vision, proceeded first into the stairway with Kaleel following closely behind. Ludwick fell in behind Kaleel and the others behind him. About halfway down, Ulgren caught a whiff of the smell of death coming from further below. Unfortunately, Ulgren also heard a click as he stepped upon the midway stair and at that very moment, the stairs folded down forming a slide. At the same time, a viscous liquid sprayed from the top of the stairs down the slide. With quick reflexes, Ulgren sprung into the air and wedged himself between the walls, suspending himself up above the sprung trap. At the same time, Ludwick quickly jumped backwards avoiding the trap and remaining with the others in the previous room. Unfortunately, Kaleel was not able to react quick enough and in his heavier armor, slipped upon the now slick stairway slide and began sliding down to the room below. As he slid down, he was cut and injured slightly by metal hooks that had sprung out from the side walls.

Reaching the bottom, Kaleel gathered himself and looked around. He found himself in a darkened room with a faintly glowing green light coming from all the way across the room. His view was obstructed by the darkness and also by a large 10' tall wall of junk that spread from north to south wall with no gaps in between. Before he could assess much of anything else, he felt the breeze of two arrow shafts fly by his face as two arrows thunked into the wall next to him. Shouting that they had company, he eased back into the stairway landing to gain a small amount of cover.

Up top, his friends began to dig through their packs in search of rope. Finding some, they began to tie it off to the door and toss it down below to help Ulgren and Kaleel get themselves back up top. Fortunately, at about that same time, the trap reset itself and the stairs folded back up into their normal position. Retreating quickly back upstairs, the party decided to use the torch Ludwick had to ignite the viscous liquid. Quickly taking to the flame, the viscous liquid burned down to the bottom of the stairs where it had pooled and acrid smoke began to rise from below. The party closed the door and turned to head across the room with the gong and through the open door on the north eastern wall. Before leaving through the northwest door, Kaleel retrieved some bandages from his pack and applied them to his newly received wounds.

Shrine 1

The northwest door led into a hallway that immediately turned north. With Ulgren in the lead again, the party eased forward and into a trapezoidal shaped room and laid eyes upon a large carving, approximately 6 to 7 feet tall, of a cloaked human form. It appeared to be stepping out from the northwest wall. The carved statue had its right hand, fingers extended, hovering above a longsword while its left hand was held out before it palm up and fingers fully extended as if signaling a halt to anyone entering from the hallway where Ulgren stood.

Cautiously, the party entered the room and Ludwick immediately felt at ease. As he drew closer to the carving, he realized it was a rendition of his god, Zodal and placed his palm into the extended palm of the statue and said a prayer. Prayer complete, Ludwick decided to cast Detect Secret Doors upon the room but found no evidence of any secret exits, leaving only the hallway to the east as the only other exit. Ulgren moved toward the hallway and noted that it led to a set of stairs leading down. As Kaleel passed the statue, considering himself a stout follower of the Flan pantheon of gods, he too stopped to place his palm against the palm of the statue as Ludwick had done. Speaking briefly, he assured the statue that the party would rid his temple of the kobold infestation that now took up residence within and then proceeded to follow Ulgren toward the stairs.

Meanwhile, Orryn, the ever curious, stepped toward the northern wall of the chamber to get a better view of the statue. When he did, a green cloud began to eminate from under his robes. The noxious vapers did not seem to effect Orryn himself, but everyone else in the room felt as if they may wretch. It took strong will, but Kaleel and Ailish both were able to prevent themselves from hurling breakfast to the floor. Confounded and confused, Orryn stayed in the northwest corner of the room until the vapors subsided and the stink moved on.

Down the Stairs to the Barrier

As the party pressed on, Ulgren began testing the flooring in front of him with a staff. Finding nothing to worry about they eased down the stairs and found themselves entering into familiar quarters. A greenish glow could be seen and the smell of smoke permeated the air. Ulgren's sight was able to pick up a better view of the barrier that stretched from north to south wall, dividing this rather large chamber. The barrier appeared to consist of scrap and leftover junk from caravans, clearly the less valuable spoils from recent raids.

Arrows flew, but none hit Ulgren, so he and Kaleel pressed forward toward the wall in an attempt to close ranks and engage. As Ulgren struggled with one of the kobolds, drawing its fire, Kaleel ran forward and thrust his lucern hammer up into the kobold with such force that a cracking noise was heard as the kobold flew backwards off the wall, falling to its presumable death. As soon as he fell though, another kobold took his place atop the wall and commenced firing. Orryn unleashed another round of Magic Missiles and Ailish dispatched a kobold with a direct hit to the forehead with one of her Magic Stones. Ludwick entered the room and put his torch to the wall of debris on the northern side, hoping to catch the entire thing on fire. Within moments, the fire took and began to expand along that portion of the wall.

Ailish attempted to extinguish the flames of the fire but was not successful. As a result, the party moved toward the southern end of the debris wall where Kaleel was able to dispatch another kobold in similar fashion using his lucern hammer. Afterward, Ulgren successfully scaled the debris pile to get a view down the other side. Seeing the source of the greenish glow was a torch of some sorts attached to the far wall and there were at least 3 additional kobolds to deal with down below, he leapt down. Meanwhile the others struggled to ascend the debris pile, getting started and then inevitably falling due to loose junk giving way. Eventually, Orryn was boosted up by Kaleel and noting the ladder that led down the other side, he was able to draw it up and place it on the opposite side so that Kaleel, Ludwick, and Ailish could climb up more easily.

The kobolds surrounded Ulgren, sensing victory would be at hand with him being so outnumbered. However, their attacks did not land, for Ulgren was to quick and easily dodged their clumsy advance. His foot sprung into action in response and he front kicked the living shit out of one of the kobolds, forcing him back an easy 15 feet to slam against the opposite wall in a pile of dead flesh and bones. Ulgren made quick work of dispatching a second kobold but the third turned and retreated down a halway in the southeast corner of the room.

By this time, Ludwick had descended the ladder and noticed the foul smell of death came from a dead human, the body slumped against the debris wall. Given that the wall was still on fire, Ludwick pulled the body away from the debris wall more toward the center of the side of the room they found themselves now on.

And thus, session 2 concluded...