So, going into Origins, I had been seeking some new inspiration for game. Things haven't been going quite the way I had been hoping with Demonweb Pits, and I've been looking towards the fall (or maybe even this winter) to start a new game, after the PlatinumChick runs some Eberron.
I have it down to three choices:
1) Masques of Extraordinary Gentlemen--Basic premise of this game would be a riff on Alan Moore's "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen." The players would play a literary or stylized historical figure and figure their way through the mysteries of 1890s Victorian-Gothic Europe. Character creation and combat would be done using a modified True20 system, coupled with the Call of Cthulhu sanity system. Emphasis would also be put on literature and little-known historical events of the time period, including the emergence of the First World War.
2) Pirates of the Underdark--I had come up with this concept after seeing the third Pirates of the Caribbean movie, but wanted somewhat of a darker twist. Basically, the PCs would be wanna-be pirates on a massive Underdark sea, exploring the ruins of the caverns after Lolth's fall and the ruin of many drow citadels. The D&D alignment system would be somewhat thrown out the window for this one, with the focus being on cinematic combat and tactics, as well as magical ship-battles. Emphasis would also be put heavily on treasure maps and skulduggery, as well as pirate legends....like that of The One Living Man, or the Black Redeemer.
3) Depths of the Warehouse--After reading through GURPS Warehouse 23 (and now Pagan Publishing's fantastic Delta Green d20), I find myself itching to run something a little more conspiratorial. In this game, the PCs will have been taken from their homes by the mysterious Men In Black, only to find out that they've been commissioned to work in the most secret storehouse of all--Warehouse 23. The players will have to find out who commissioned them into such a drastic career, why they were chosen, and what their own dark pasts may mean within a grander scope of conspiracy, paranoia, and global fear.
So, basically, I'm just looking for some input. Would you play one of these games? If so, which would you be interested in? What do you like and what don't you like?
Please vote in the poll, and let me know!
Friday, July 13, 2007
Monday, July 09, 2007
The Warlock's Origins 2007 Report--Observations and Musings
If you've managed to read both of the prior blog entries already...well, congratulations. You've managed to be more voracious than I could imagine. I'm sorry if the earlier entries seemed to be a bit "listy", but I wanted to try to get all of the details in that I could remember, before they started disappearing to history. This last little bit, though, is just a bunch of my impressions on things and how the con went overall.
When we arrived on Wednesday, I was expecting utter chaos. However, things were surprisingly organized. We made it through badge-pick up incredibly quickly and started checking out some of the events going on around that night. The Miniatures room, taking up nearly all of Exhibit Hall D, had some absolutely fantastic displays. My favorite may have been the massive, volcanic pirate-isle, complete with immense rickety suspension bridges leading to the island proper. The Mos Eisley spaceport, on the other end of the hall, was also particularly good.
The dealer hall, when I first entered it on Thursday, made my eyes buggy. Quite literally, I didn't even think about buying anything. The Reaper Minis room--courtesy of Miniatures-Giant--made my head spin, but in one of those good ways. Thousands upon thousands of green-labeled minis, over all four surrounding walls. I was a happy gamer.
When Lionel and Ebbs registered, they picked up a ton of generic tokens with it. Pre-registration comes with a deal for 10 generics for $10. Aside from giving some to Adam, so he could register for events for free....these were almost entirely worthless. However, they were hickory and, at least according to Ebbs, taste like good barbeque. Go figure.
The Columbus Convention Center is a giant line. This makes walking painful. I think I may have gotten more exercise at Origins than I have all summer. Yes, I realize the irony of this statement.
By the way, the next things out for SJ Games in the Munchkin line will be 1) Munchkin Cthulhu 2, Munchkin Quest (a board game!), Muchkin Cthulhu 3, and Munchkin Booty (Pirates!).
Things learned for next year:
1. Don't register for so many events at 8 or 9 am. This makes for a long day, and no drinking at the bar afterwards.
2. Be more discerning about D&D games. The two games I played were both sanctioned games, which meant a lot of paperwork, which distracted from the games themselves. Plus, they were all low level games, which limits options.
3. Play a higher level game! Use all those cool books I have!
4. Play more Rogue Cthulhu games. The group is absolutely 8 ways of cool, with quality GMs and great storylines. I have nothing but good to say about those people. Quality people and quality games.
5. Don't buy any generics. Event registration lines are relatively short, and generic players generally get booted.
6. Play with your friends. Whether you meet old friends or new ones, just have a good time. It's all just a game, anyway!
7. Use a point buy system for pre-gens. That way, people won't throw fits when you bring your own to the table.
When we arrived on Wednesday, I was expecting utter chaos. However, things were surprisingly organized. We made it through badge-pick up incredibly quickly and started checking out some of the events going on around that night. The Miniatures room, taking up nearly all of Exhibit Hall D, had some absolutely fantastic displays. My favorite may have been the massive, volcanic pirate-isle, complete with immense rickety suspension bridges leading to the island proper. The Mos Eisley spaceport, on the other end of the hall, was also particularly good.
The dealer hall, when I first entered it on Thursday, made my eyes buggy. Quite literally, I didn't even think about buying anything. The Reaper Minis room--courtesy of Miniatures-Giant--made my head spin, but in one of those good ways. Thousands upon thousands of green-labeled minis, over all four surrounding walls. I was a happy gamer.
When Lionel and Ebbs registered, they picked up a ton of generic tokens with it. Pre-registration comes with a deal for 10 generics for $10. Aside from giving some to Adam, so he could register for events for free....these were almost entirely worthless. However, they were hickory and, at least according to Ebbs, taste like good barbeque. Go figure.
The Columbus Convention Center is a giant line. This makes walking painful. I think I may have gotten more exercise at Origins than I have all summer. Yes, I realize the irony of this statement.
By the way, the next things out for SJ Games in the Munchkin line will be 1) Munchkin Cthulhu 2, Munchkin Quest (a board game!), Muchkin Cthulhu 3, and Munchkin Booty (Pirates!).
Things learned for next year:
1. Don't register for so many events at 8 or 9 am. This makes for a long day, and no drinking at the bar afterwards.
2. Be more discerning about D&D games. The two games I played were both sanctioned games, which meant a lot of paperwork, which distracted from the games themselves. Plus, they were all low level games, which limits options.
3. Play a higher level game! Use all those cool books I have!
4. Play more Rogue Cthulhu games. The group is absolutely 8 ways of cool, with quality GMs and great storylines. I have nothing but good to say about those people. Quality people and quality games.
5. Don't buy any generics. Event registration lines are relatively short, and generic players generally get booted.
6. Play with your friends. Whether you meet old friends or new ones, just have a good time. It's all just a game, anyway!
7. Use a point buy system for pre-gens. That way, people won't throw fits when you bring your own to the table.
The Warlock's Origins 2007 Report--The Swag!
Part of any good convention is the swag you get, and Origins was no exception. Here, I'll detail some of the great stuff that the Springfield Mafia (including myself) picked up, and some of the neat stuff that was around the dealer room.
Ah, yes. Speaking of the dealer room, I must say that I was impressed. I've heard some complaints already that the dealer room was "more of a flea market than an exhibition of the industry." With that, I can wholeheartedly agree. However, if I want to hear from "industry professionals," I'll go to one of their seminars and talk to them. When I want swag, I want the flea market. As such, the dealer room was fine by me!
And now for the Swag!
Ah, yes. Speaking of the dealer room, I must say that I was impressed. I've heard some complaints already that the dealer room was "more of a flea market than an exhibition of the industry." With that, I can wholeheartedly agree. However, if I want to hear from "industry professionals," I'll go to one of their seminars and talk to them. When I want swag, I want the flea market. As such, the dealer room was fine by me!
And now for the Swag!
- GURPS Warehouse 23. Now, I'm not a GURPS fan by any stretch--I'd rather run d20, just for the fact that I'll have more interested, involved players. However, when this was on the "3 for $10" table at SJ Games' booth, I couldn't pass it up. Conspiratorial goodness, and a detailed rundown of how the Warehouse would work in several different genres, as well as lots of neat items to put in there. Along with this, I picked up a box of skeleton minis (everybody loves skellies!) and Silicon Valley Tarot for Jules.
- The Critonomicon. A softcover book from Technomancer Press, this book doesn't look like much. I can't believe I missed it, though, with its Day-Glo Orange cover and its hundreds of tables. This book is chock-full of unique critical hits, critical misses, wild magic effects, and rules for other crazy happenings. With the way my players and I roll, I'm going to get a ton of milage out of this...
- Faiths of Eberron. The PlatinumChick picked this up in anticipation of her upcoming Eberron game. Flipping through it earlier, it looks to be pretty quality, with tons of information about the various religions and cults that pop up all across Eberron. There didn't seem to be much crunch to the book--only a handful of feats and divine spells, and a few magic items--however the fluff more than makes up for it. Very nice job, all in all.
- A Shoggoth on the Roof (Libretto). Finally, the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society has released the libretto to the Musical That Cannot Be Produce. I already own the Cast Recording, but having the full script/libretto makes this all the sweeter. If you're a Cthulhu fan in any sense of the word, check this out.
- Dungeons and Dragons Icons: Gargantuan Blue Dragon. For a mere $28, the PlatinumChick couldn't pass this one up. Personally, I like the Gargantuan Black better, myself, but the mini is still a very sweet example of how well Wizards of the Coast produces their project. Love and care were involved in making this, and it shows. High quality, indeeed.
- Nightmares of Lovecraft: Cthulhu and Dagon. Lionel picked these up on the cheap, and man....they did not disappoint. While they're a little on the small side, they're still amazing sculpts, which are...well, disturbing to look at. Just what they need to be, for the subject material. Lovecraft would be proud.
- Aliens vs. Predator HorrorClix. Ebbs picked up these on the cheap, as well, getting most of the line. While we haven't played yet, the sculpts were nice. Only problem was mainly the fact that many of the clix were slightly broken, particularly around their feet. The Alien queen looked particularly impressive.
- Cults Across America. Again, a Lionel purchase. We haven't played yet, but this one looks to be good! I'll review it, as we get into the box.
- Unspeakable Words. We played this during some downtime before going to bed. Wow, was it a blast. Incredibly simple game play, the idea is to make words from your 7 card hand. You get points based on how many angles are in each letter, but must make a Sanity check against your word's score to avoid going nuts. Lose 4 Sanity, and you are insane--if you're nuts, you can use ANYTHING as a word. Lose 5, and you're out of the game. First to 100 points (or the last one sane!) wins. This game is simple, yet amazingly fun. Highest recommendation I can give.
- Kellen, Nobleman Adventurer. I've been looking for a mini to use during Jules' imminent Eberron game, and this one fit the bill. Unfortunately, I couldn't find one with twin axes, so I settled on one with a sword and a long fighting-dagger. A sweet little mini, it looks just as well as I can ask. If nothing else, Reaper's Dark Heaven Legends Line are of a truly high quality across the board.
Links for the Swag--If you're looking to buy any of the above, follow the Little Blue Links!
GURPS Warehouse 23: http://www.warehouse23.com/item.html?id=SJG6523
Skeleton Minis: http://www.warehouse23.com/item.html?id=SJG13-0200
Silicon Valley Tarot: http://www.warehouse23.com/item.html?id=SJG1324
The Critonomicon: http://www.technomancer-press.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1&zenid=7021670c7fb5f895765638a9c06afbbd
Faiths of Eberron: http://paizo.com/store/byCompany/w/wizardsOfTheCoast/featuredBrands/eberron/roleplaying/v5748btpy7rug&source=search
A Shoggoth on the Roof (Libretto): http://www.cthulhulives.org/store/store.lasso
Gargantuan Blue Dragon: http://paizo.com/store/byCompany/w/wizardsOfTheCoast/byProductType/miniaturesGames/dnd/icons/v5748btpy7t6o&source=search
Nightmares of Lovecraft: Dagon and Cthulhu: http://www.sotatoys.com/store.php?brands_id=21
Alien vs. Predator HorrorClix: http://www.gameoutfitter.com/items/miniature-games/horrorclix/horrorclix-alien-vs-predator/list.htm
Cults Across America: http://www.warehouse23.com/item.html?id=AG1210
Unspeakable Words: http://www.warehouse23.com/item.html?id=PLE26100
Kellen, Nobleman Adventurer: http://www.reapermini.com/store/customer/product.php?productid=4320&cat=0&page=1
The Warlock's Origins 2007 Report--The Events!
Well, now that I've recovered a bit after the Origins Experience, I can give you the run-down on what all happened in the Springfield Mafia's Origins Tour.
Wednesday--7/4/07
Our happy quartet (Lionel, Ebbs, Jules and myself) finally arrived at the Hyatt around 3pm on Wednesday. We only had slight difficulties in finding the hotel, so I can't complain about that too much. Only thing that might have helped more is....well, road signs that lined up with our Mapquest directions. That's life, though. After a quick and efficient sign-in, we unpacked our room and got some grub...just in time for:
Stargate--By the Pricking of My Thumbs
Put bluntly, this was not the way I wanted to start off my Origins experience. I love Stargate (the show and the rpg), so I had high hopes. Ebbs joined me for this one, chipping his way in on generics. The only problem with this was the fact that he wasn't the only one. The game was completely overbooked, with no less than three characters being played by 2 people. I was lucky enough to play a fairly interesting character...who just happened to be an NID operative.
The game started off somewhat unimpressively, with the GM amused with his ability to run 7 adventures concurrently in the same SG complex...at the same game-time period. Shrugging it off, we continued on with a scenario in which we may-or-may-not be clones. In order to find out, we sought out some Goa'uld mind-scan devices.
This is where the metagaming stepped in. When the mind-scan device was used on me, the Tok'ra PC who used it critically fumbled. I was shown to be completely clean, unique, and with no signs of mind-alteration. When 2 others went under, though, they used someone with a higher Intimidate score...and were shown to be altered. Suffice to say, arguments ensued, and my character (refusing to take orders from a commanding officer whose mind was shown to be altered), ended up K-Oed, and then executed by the Tok'ra.
End Opinion? A solid D. The DM was too wrapped up in his self-wanking fandom to deal with the elements in-game that were going on. I had negative fun, if that's possible.
Thursday--7/5/07
With the PlatinumChick already at work, I woke up early for a delve into...
Undermountain Adventures: The Crypt of Yeldoon
I love D&D. Not like this, though. When we joined, there were no pre-gens ready, despite the fact that this was an RPGA-sanctioned event. When I suggested my pre-gen, I was shot down. Instead, myself and several others decided to pick up characters from the D&D Dungeon Delve and take them down a level.
The DM who ran for us looked openly exhausted, and had run the adventure twice during the previous night....and was set to run it 7 more times throughout the con. It showed. Very little description, and very little interest in what was going on. This was made even more frustrating by Mr. Hyperactive. Mr. Hyperactive was a "supreme power-gamer", bringing to the table a Mountain Orc Fighter/Barbarian/Rogue with a 22 Strength. Mind you, we were running on 28 point buy. He and one of his fans ran roughshod over the entirety of the adventure, while I and three others sat back wondering if we could get our credits back.
End Opinion? C-. It wasn't the DM's fault that the RPGA can't give their DMs a variety. If it weren't for Mr. Hyperactive, I might have actually had fun with this...mainly because I would have been useful in any sense of the word.
After Undermountain, I scoped out the dealer room, with my eyes going just about buggy. More on that in the "Swag" chapter. But, after a nap with Jules, we reassembled the Mafia and headed off for...
WEGS--Pigskab's Skewl 4 Wizzards
By this point, I was getting just a touch frustrated with the selections I'd made. If it's one thing that I could depend on, though, it's a great game from the WEGSHogz. El Willy and his crew sure know how to throw down.
Basic premise? As students at Pigskab's, we came up on clean-up duty for the marsh. Survive for one night in the marsh and clean out some of the pests, and the free tutition continues. I ran a Humz Trickster, who was surprisingly good at his Ruggedness tests, despite having only a 22% in it.
With our whole WEGS lovin' crew in the mix, the game was a ton of fun. Unfortuneatly, the PlatinumChick's perennial dice-pox affected her again, and we all got a chuckle at her lack of successes. In the end, the group defeated ToeGash, the chef, and made it back to the Skewl.
End opinion? A. I love playing with El Willy and his crew, and this was exactly what I needed after two really disappointing games earlier in the con. The only reason that this wasn't an A+ was the fact that the WEGS 101 book got delayed for release. If this book had been for sale there, I would have bought one on the spot.
Later, that night, though...we had enough time to catch a movie:
The Call of Cthulhu--Silent Film Screening
I hadn't prepared myself for a real silent film in this. It was a unique (and pretty accurate) way for Lovecraft's story to be presented. The film was of particular quality, and set the mood very well. It was a worthwhile trip, though the midnight showing (while atmospheric!) left me incredibly tired.
End opinion? B+. Great film. See it, if you can!
Friday--7/6/07
Again, waking up early, I headed down to the Rogue Cthulhu room for a healthy dose of...
Call of Cthulhu--No Blood for Oil
I was somewhat disappointed on Thursday because I had actually tried to get in on an earlier CoC game run by the Rogue Cthulhu dudes, called Ex Silentio. Lionel and Ebbs had gotten in on it earlier, but I was shunted out as the last person with a ticket arrived just as the Keeper was handing out characters.
This game made up for it. As an Army Rangers Echo group in 2003 Iraq, we were set to take out an Iraqi oil rig that had supposedly been harboring WMDs. We ventured through an oil-creature infested rig, only to find our Alpha group had already been compromised. Though suffering several casualties, my comm officer managed to use a radio transmission to keep the oil-creatures at bay long enough for us to call in the napalm. Tons of fun, no questions about it.
End Opinion? A-. Some of the guys were a little hesitant, but the group worked really fantastically. Unfortunately, the tactical maps got lost, but we didn't need them too much. Th game was evocative and a lot of fun to play in, especially with the Cthulhu room's decorations. Apparently, the guys liked the way I played, because I picked up some Rogue Cthulhu chips, garnering some free swag from them later in the con--a set of dice, and a set of glass counters.
Strangely enough, the group that I was in had two other Daytonians--one over from Wright State, the other from Wright-Patterson. As we left, we exchanged some info and set off for...
The Paizo Dungeon Delve--Crown of the Kobold King
A fun little game of killing kobolds and saving children, we picked up an unlikely 4th to join us--Adam, back from Cincy! I hadn't expected Adam to join the Springfield Mafia's expedition to Origins, but here he was...ready for Friday and Saturday gaming. I helped him get registered quickly, just in time for us to kill some kobolds.
Since the episode was only 15 minutes long, I'll keep this short.
End opinion? B. The adventure looks good, and is somewhat lethal, apparently. The DM added a lot of description, which left our time being somewhat eaten, but we each got a key to the Paizo chest for playing. In fact, the Wright-State dude ended up opening the chest, winning a free copy of Stonehenge, a new board-game anthology.
Because of Adam's arrival, he still needed to be added to some events and gotten to the room. As such, I ended up missing The Novelists' Workout--Basic Plotting. Eh. I wasn't too concerned. It was free, and I had gaming to take care of!
After a great dinner at a nearby Japanese steakhouse, we arrived just in time to catch our showing of:
The Gamers: Dorkness Rising
The Dead Gentlemens' sequel to their prior indie-hit, this movie was ball-bustingly funny. Apparently, we were only the second audience to see a screening of the finished film, which made us fairly privledged.
As great as the first one was, this movie shows the development of DG's producers, writers, and direction. It feels like an actual "film", yet keeps all of the in-jokes and funny situations that bring us gamers back. Their enhanced budget, as well, shows, as the special effects here are better than anything you'd see on Sci-Fi Channel. I'll save the plot for you to see for yourself, but suffice to say that it involves an ancient artifact, god-killing power, and....cross-dressing characters.
I can't wait for this to hit DVD, to be perfectly honest. With luck, the Dead Gentlemen will have their distributor by the time they hit Gen Con, and it'll be out just in time for Christmas.
End Opinion? A+ Fantastic film. The house was packed, and it was totally worth it. See it, if at all possible.
At this point, we decided to relax and play some Runebound back in the room, just so we could rest up for our last two days...and the most hectic to come!
Saturday--7/7/07
Arising early for the third day in a row, Adam, Ebbs, and myself headed down to the board-games HQ for a demo of:
Dragon War
As one of only 4 people at this game, the game itself moved rather quickly. Choosing a character, we started out on a board of 40 cards, each with 3 spaces. The concept is simple--it's a race game. Beat your fellow characters to the end of the board, and roll a 13 on 3d6 to win the game. The game itself can run with a fair amount of cut-throat behavior, as the game encourages beating the Life out of your compatriots using Fate cards to drive them onto negative spaces.
While the game itself cost only $20 (which led me to consider buying it), each expansion cost another $5, and usually only included optional board cards or a single new character. Kind of a rip-off, to say the least.
What's worse, though...the rules seemed somewhat incomplete. When an event occured in-game that led to a slight dispute, the fellow running the demo had no idea what to even suggest. The small rules packet (a two page leaflet) added nothing, and we had to work by general consensus. Disappointing to say the least. The art, as well, was unimpressive, despite being drawn by a "professional graphic artist".
End opinion? C. Not a bad little game, but the expansion price is entirely too high, the rules need to be refined, and the art....not something I want to look at. I'll stick with Munchkin, thank you!
After lunch, Adam, Jules and I set out to join:
D&D--The Blackmoor Wives' Club
A fun little scenario designed as an intro, we all played at 1st level, taking care of the household chores of some famous adventurers. The game itself was a lot of fun, with a laid-back, enjoyable DM and a good, well-balanced party.
That is, except for That Kid. Oi. A 14 year old, That Kid must have been an ADHD/Aspy, as he ran over everyone at the table, the DM included, frustrating us to no end. He was seated next to a young girl who had barely played before, and had never made her own character. He talked incessantly, even to the point where the DM was becoming openly frustrated.
Very rarely do I raise my voice. With him, I had to restrain from yelling at him several times.
Luckily, Adam's half-orc monk knocked him out...accidentally. ;)
End opinion? B+ Aside from That Kid, the game was a lot of fun, and the scenario was really funny. Well worth the time.
From there, we rejoined Lionel and Ebbs, then attempted to hit up BD's Mongolian BBQ. However, it was packed, and we settled for the food court before hitting up:
Paranoia--Lightning Rod
Lionel had played with the GM we had this with earlier in the week and, when he described the GM's orange asylum jumpsuit, I knew we were into a great game. With all 5 of us involved, as well as a couple from Dublin, we had a blast.
Here, I played the Communications officer, Chuck-R-FAR, as well as his talking hand-puppet Socko. Our job? Deliver devices to a security tower on the outskirts of Alpha Complex. After being sucked into a Vulture Squadron Flyer engine, I knew we were in for some fun. While the game ran down somewhat at the end, it was still an absolute blast. I could have wished for some more inter-party fighting and a little less conspiracy, but that's hardly a problem.
End opinion? B [You are not cleared for this information, citizen!]
We retired back to the room and wished Adam goodbye, then winded down by playing one of Lionel's new games--Unspeakable Words, which I'll describe in the Swag entry--and got ready for our last day's event.
Sunday--7/8/07
We ended our Origins experience with a familiar classic for our group, but with a new twist:
Arkham Horror--The King in Yellow
We play Arkham Horror quite a bit out here, but with the new KiY expansion, we were all excited. We arrived just on time after checking out and dropping our things at the car. This was much to the chagrin of several players who were trying to get in on generic tokens. Having 4 of us plop down at the table didn't make them too happy....
This game, though? Wow. I've never seen an Arkham Horror game run so positively. Normally Arkham Horror fits its name, as you lose Sanity and Stamina hand over fist, picking up Insanities and Injuries like drinking wine. This time, no. Not so much. Instead, it was more along the lines of "Oh, here...have 15 unique items each. How about some skills? Mythos phase--what's mythos phase?"
Seriously. When the cooridinator told us where the first gate would open and I (playing the scientist) told him that "No, that won't be opening there," the look on his face said it all. I had never been in a game where we were actively waiting for Nyaralothotep to appear, just so we could beat the ever-loving-crap out of him. Very cathartic, but even more unusual.
End opinion? B-. It was fun to beat the crap of the game in the way we did, but I wish it would have been slightly more challenging! The game felt like a walk in the park, compared to what we've played in the past!
This is only 1 portion of our Origins experience. Be prepared for at least two more entries--The Warlock's Swag, and The Con Itself.
Wednesday--7/4/07
Our happy quartet (Lionel, Ebbs, Jules and myself) finally arrived at the Hyatt around 3pm on Wednesday. We only had slight difficulties in finding the hotel, so I can't complain about that too much. Only thing that might have helped more is....well, road signs that lined up with our Mapquest directions. That's life, though. After a quick and efficient sign-in, we unpacked our room and got some grub...just in time for:
Stargate--By the Pricking of My Thumbs
Put bluntly, this was not the way I wanted to start off my Origins experience. I love Stargate (the show and the rpg), so I had high hopes. Ebbs joined me for this one, chipping his way in on generics. The only problem with this was the fact that he wasn't the only one. The game was completely overbooked, with no less than three characters being played by 2 people. I was lucky enough to play a fairly interesting character...who just happened to be an NID operative.
The game started off somewhat unimpressively, with the GM amused with his ability to run 7 adventures concurrently in the same SG complex...at the same game-time period. Shrugging it off, we continued on with a scenario in which we may-or-may-not be clones. In order to find out, we sought out some Goa'uld mind-scan devices.
This is where the metagaming stepped in. When the mind-scan device was used on me, the Tok'ra PC who used it critically fumbled. I was shown to be completely clean, unique, and with no signs of mind-alteration. When 2 others went under, though, they used someone with a higher Intimidate score...and were shown to be altered. Suffice to say, arguments ensued, and my character (refusing to take orders from a commanding officer whose mind was shown to be altered), ended up K-Oed, and then executed by the Tok'ra.
End Opinion? A solid D. The DM was too wrapped up in his self-wanking fandom to deal with the elements in-game that were going on. I had negative fun, if that's possible.
Thursday--7/5/07
With the PlatinumChick already at work, I woke up early for a delve into...
Undermountain Adventures: The Crypt of Yeldoon
I love D&D. Not like this, though. When we joined, there were no pre-gens ready, despite the fact that this was an RPGA-sanctioned event. When I suggested my pre-gen, I was shot down. Instead, myself and several others decided to pick up characters from the D&D Dungeon Delve and take them down a level.
The DM who ran for us looked openly exhausted, and had run the adventure twice during the previous night....and was set to run it 7 more times throughout the con. It showed. Very little description, and very little interest in what was going on. This was made even more frustrating by Mr. Hyperactive. Mr. Hyperactive was a "supreme power-gamer", bringing to the table a Mountain Orc Fighter/Barbarian/Rogue with a 22 Strength. Mind you, we were running on 28 point buy. He and one of his fans ran roughshod over the entirety of the adventure, while I and three others sat back wondering if we could get our credits back.
End Opinion? C-. It wasn't the DM's fault that the RPGA can't give their DMs a variety. If it weren't for Mr. Hyperactive, I might have actually had fun with this...mainly because I would have been useful in any sense of the word.
After Undermountain, I scoped out the dealer room, with my eyes going just about buggy. More on that in the "Swag" chapter. But, after a nap with Jules, we reassembled the Mafia and headed off for...
WEGS--Pigskab's Skewl 4 Wizzards
By this point, I was getting just a touch frustrated with the selections I'd made. If it's one thing that I could depend on, though, it's a great game from the WEGSHogz. El Willy and his crew sure know how to throw down.
Basic premise? As students at Pigskab's, we came up on clean-up duty for the marsh. Survive for one night in the marsh and clean out some of the pests, and the free tutition continues. I ran a Humz Trickster, who was surprisingly good at his Ruggedness tests, despite having only a 22% in it.
With our whole WEGS lovin' crew in the mix, the game was a ton of fun. Unfortuneatly, the PlatinumChick's perennial dice-pox affected her again, and we all got a chuckle at her lack of successes. In the end, the group defeated ToeGash, the chef, and made it back to the Skewl.
End opinion? A. I love playing with El Willy and his crew, and this was exactly what I needed after two really disappointing games earlier in the con. The only reason that this wasn't an A+ was the fact that the WEGS 101 book got delayed for release. If this book had been for sale there, I would have bought one on the spot.
Later, that night, though...we had enough time to catch a movie:
The Call of Cthulhu--Silent Film Screening
I hadn't prepared myself for a real silent film in this. It was a unique (and pretty accurate) way for Lovecraft's story to be presented. The film was of particular quality, and set the mood very well. It was a worthwhile trip, though the midnight showing (while atmospheric!) left me incredibly tired.
End opinion? B+. Great film. See it, if you can!
Friday--7/6/07
Again, waking up early, I headed down to the Rogue Cthulhu room for a healthy dose of...
Call of Cthulhu--No Blood for Oil
I was somewhat disappointed on Thursday because I had actually tried to get in on an earlier CoC game run by the Rogue Cthulhu dudes, called Ex Silentio. Lionel and Ebbs had gotten in on it earlier, but I was shunted out as the last person with a ticket arrived just as the Keeper was handing out characters.
This game made up for it. As an Army Rangers Echo group in 2003 Iraq, we were set to take out an Iraqi oil rig that had supposedly been harboring WMDs. We ventured through an oil-creature infested rig, only to find our Alpha group had already been compromised. Though suffering several casualties, my comm officer managed to use a radio transmission to keep the oil-creatures at bay long enough for us to call in the napalm. Tons of fun, no questions about it.
End Opinion? A-. Some of the guys were a little hesitant, but the group worked really fantastically. Unfortunately, the tactical maps got lost, but we didn't need them too much. Th game was evocative and a lot of fun to play in, especially with the Cthulhu room's decorations. Apparently, the guys liked the way I played, because I picked up some Rogue Cthulhu chips, garnering some free swag from them later in the con--a set of dice, and a set of glass counters.
Strangely enough, the group that I was in had two other Daytonians--one over from Wright State, the other from Wright-Patterson. As we left, we exchanged some info and set off for...
The Paizo Dungeon Delve--Crown of the Kobold King
A fun little game of killing kobolds and saving children, we picked up an unlikely 4th to join us--Adam, back from Cincy! I hadn't expected Adam to join the Springfield Mafia's expedition to Origins, but here he was...ready for Friday and Saturday gaming. I helped him get registered quickly, just in time for us to kill some kobolds.
Since the episode was only 15 minutes long, I'll keep this short.
End opinion? B. The adventure looks good, and is somewhat lethal, apparently. The DM added a lot of description, which left our time being somewhat eaten, but we each got a key to the Paizo chest for playing. In fact, the Wright-State dude ended up opening the chest, winning a free copy of Stonehenge, a new board-game anthology.
Because of Adam's arrival, he still needed to be added to some events and gotten to the room. As such, I ended up missing The Novelists' Workout--Basic Plotting. Eh. I wasn't too concerned. It was free, and I had gaming to take care of!
After a great dinner at a nearby Japanese steakhouse, we arrived just in time to catch our showing of:
The Gamers: Dorkness Rising
The Dead Gentlemens' sequel to their prior indie-hit, this movie was ball-bustingly funny. Apparently, we were only the second audience to see a screening of the finished film, which made us fairly privledged.
As great as the first one was, this movie shows the development of DG's producers, writers, and direction. It feels like an actual "film", yet keeps all of the in-jokes and funny situations that bring us gamers back. Their enhanced budget, as well, shows, as the special effects here are better than anything you'd see on Sci-Fi Channel. I'll save the plot for you to see for yourself, but suffice to say that it involves an ancient artifact, god-killing power, and....cross-dressing characters.
I can't wait for this to hit DVD, to be perfectly honest. With luck, the Dead Gentlemen will have their distributor by the time they hit Gen Con, and it'll be out just in time for Christmas.
End Opinion? A+ Fantastic film. The house was packed, and it was totally worth it. See it, if at all possible.
At this point, we decided to relax and play some Runebound back in the room, just so we could rest up for our last two days...and the most hectic to come!
Saturday--7/7/07
Arising early for the third day in a row, Adam, Ebbs, and myself headed down to the board-games HQ for a demo of:
Dragon War
As one of only 4 people at this game, the game itself moved rather quickly. Choosing a character, we started out on a board of 40 cards, each with 3 spaces. The concept is simple--it's a race game. Beat your fellow characters to the end of the board, and roll a 13 on 3d6 to win the game. The game itself can run with a fair amount of cut-throat behavior, as the game encourages beating the Life out of your compatriots using Fate cards to drive them onto negative spaces.
While the game itself cost only $20 (which led me to consider buying it), each expansion cost another $5, and usually only included optional board cards or a single new character. Kind of a rip-off, to say the least.
What's worse, though...the rules seemed somewhat incomplete. When an event occured in-game that led to a slight dispute, the fellow running the demo had no idea what to even suggest. The small rules packet (a two page leaflet) added nothing, and we had to work by general consensus. Disappointing to say the least. The art, as well, was unimpressive, despite being drawn by a "professional graphic artist".
End opinion? C. Not a bad little game, but the expansion price is entirely too high, the rules need to be refined, and the art....not something I want to look at. I'll stick with Munchkin, thank you!
After lunch, Adam, Jules and I set out to join:
D&D--The Blackmoor Wives' Club
A fun little scenario designed as an intro, we all played at 1st level, taking care of the household chores of some famous adventurers. The game itself was a lot of fun, with a laid-back, enjoyable DM and a good, well-balanced party.
That is, except for That Kid. Oi. A 14 year old, That Kid must have been an ADHD/Aspy, as he ran over everyone at the table, the DM included, frustrating us to no end. He was seated next to a young girl who had barely played before, and had never made her own character. He talked incessantly, even to the point where the DM was becoming openly frustrated.
Very rarely do I raise my voice. With him, I had to restrain from yelling at him several times.
Luckily, Adam's half-orc monk knocked him out...accidentally. ;)
End opinion? B+ Aside from That Kid, the game was a lot of fun, and the scenario was really funny. Well worth the time.
From there, we rejoined Lionel and Ebbs, then attempted to hit up BD's Mongolian BBQ. However, it was packed, and we settled for the food court before hitting up:
Paranoia--Lightning Rod
Lionel had played with the GM we had this with earlier in the week and, when he described the GM's orange asylum jumpsuit, I knew we were into a great game. With all 5 of us involved, as well as a couple from Dublin, we had a blast.
Here, I played the Communications officer, Chuck-R-FAR, as well as his talking hand-puppet Socko. Our job? Deliver devices to a security tower on the outskirts of Alpha Complex. After being sucked into a Vulture Squadron Flyer engine, I knew we were in for some fun. While the game ran down somewhat at the end, it was still an absolute blast. I could have wished for some more inter-party fighting and a little less conspiracy, but that's hardly a problem.
End opinion? B [You are not cleared for this information, citizen!]
We retired back to the room and wished Adam goodbye, then winded down by playing one of Lionel's new games--Unspeakable Words, which I'll describe in the Swag entry--and got ready for our last day's event.
Sunday--7/8/07
We ended our Origins experience with a familiar classic for our group, but with a new twist:
Arkham Horror--The King in Yellow
We play Arkham Horror quite a bit out here, but with the new KiY expansion, we were all excited. We arrived just on time after checking out and dropping our things at the car. This was much to the chagrin of several players who were trying to get in on generic tokens. Having 4 of us plop down at the table didn't make them too happy....
This game, though? Wow. I've never seen an Arkham Horror game run so positively. Normally Arkham Horror fits its name, as you lose Sanity and Stamina hand over fist, picking up Insanities and Injuries like drinking wine. This time, no. Not so much. Instead, it was more along the lines of "Oh, here...have 15 unique items each. How about some skills? Mythos phase--what's mythos phase?"
Seriously. When the cooridinator told us where the first gate would open and I (playing the scientist) told him that "No, that won't be opening there," the look on his face said it all. I had never been in a game where we were actively waiting for Nyaralothotep to appear, just so we could beat the ever-loving-crap out of him. Very cathartic, but even more unusual.
End opinion? B-. It was fun to beat the crap of the game in the way we did, but I wish it would have been slightly more challenging! The game felt like a walk in the park, compared to what we've played in the past!
This is only 1 portion of our Origins experience. Be prepared for at least two more entries--The Warlock's Swag, and The Con Itself.
Sunday, July 08, 2007
We're Baaaack....
The PlatinumChick, myself, and the rest of the Springfield Mafia just rolled back in from Origins, with all kinds of swag in tow. After 5 solid days of gaming, feasting and no sleep....I'm ready for a nap.
I'll have a full run-down of all of the stuff gotten, games played, and other fun events that ran down with our happy little crew.
On that note, I'll leave you with one word.... "Niw!"
I'll have a full run-down of all of the stuff gotten, games played, and other fun events that ran down with our happy little crew.
On that note, I'll leave you with one word.... "Niw!"
Sunday, July 01, 2007
Prepping for Origins and a Slight Lament
Well, the time is nearly here. In 3 days, the Warlock, his Mistress, and two fellow flunkies will be on our way to sunny Columbus for the 5 day geek-orgy that is Origins 2007.
I've gotta say: I'm stoked. Thusfar, the only cons I've ever been to have been WittCon (which I, y'know, helped found) and TopaCon, down at Bookery Fantasy. Both of these events didn't even hit 150 people. Origins will have 100 times that amount in attendence. That many gamers, events, and games....it has to be a great time.
I spent most of yesterday and this morning writing up characters for D&D. I wanted to be prepped for any spur-of-the-moment games that I might drop into, as well as if I run a pick-up game. Having HeroForge helped this process--man, D&D can get really numbers-heavy at high levels--but it still took quite a bit of time.
I suppose the reason that I've been looking forward to Origins so much is the opportunity to play, as opposed to running game. Don't get me wrong; I love to GM/DM/ST/whatever just as much as the next geek. The problem is, I feel like I've been doing it forever. After running Fall of Saltmarsh for 6 months, as well as running games at TopaCon, WittCon, and randomly on weekends when the guys want to play....I feel like I've burnt out.
I mean, I didn't even really get to play at WittCon, even. I ran two sessions of game, then hung out and watched Paranoia. Don't get me wrong--it was all fun--but I'm still not playing the games I love so much.
This is leaving me a touch conflicted, in some ways. I have a fine gaming group right now, running through Demonweb Pits. Everyone has a novel character concept, and they sometimes seem to be having fun. However, just as often, I feel like everyone's falling asleep. I do my best to keep everyone involved, but...only about half the group seems "into it". In this case, Raymond Chandler's advice of "Have two men with guns burst through the door," hasn't worked in the least. And, what's worse, it has me questioning how much fun I'm having with this game. The answer, I'm finding more and more, is "not much." I love Planescape. I love D&D. This game is lacking both of their flavors, and becoming quite bland.
So, I raised this concept to my group. Two seem really receptive to the idea of changing campaigns (one of which is the PlatinumChick, who knows me like a well-read PH). One thinks that I just don't like running game, but is willing to change. Two others, though? No response. None. Not even head nodding.
I asked them whether they were having fun. I got nothing back.
I asked them whether they would want to try a different campaign, as the PlatinumChick has been itching to run Eberron. One sat there playing WoW. The other shrugged and started rolling up a Samurai, which I'm still trying to figure out how it fits into Eberron.
It could be worse, I guess. I think I'm just a little burned-out and seeing things that aren't there, but it's still frustrating to have to deal with on Friday nights, especially when the idea of the game is to have fun.
That said, I'm going to live it up at Origins, and hopefully I'll come home refreshed. True enough, maybe all this Warlock needs is a healthy dose of D&D, Paranoia, WEGS, Call of Cthulhu, all washed down with some Munchkin and a side of Arkham Horror.
Happy gaming, weasels!
I've gotta say: I'm stoked. Thusfar, the only cons I've ever been to have been WittCon (which I, y'know, helped found) and TopaCon, down at Bookery Fantasy. Both of these events didn't even hit 150 people. Origins will have 100 times that amount in attendence. That many gamers, events, and games....it has to be a great time.
I spent most of yesterday and this morning writing up characters for D&D. I wanted to be prepped for any spur-of-the-moment games that I might drop into, as well as if I run a pick-up game. Having HeroForge helped this process--man, D&D can get really numbers-heavy at high levels--but it still took quite a bit of time.
I suppose the reason that I've been looking forward to Origins so much is the opportunity to play, as opposed to running game. Don't get me wrong; I love to GM/DM/ST/whatever just as much as the next geek. The problem is, I feel like I've been doing it forever. After running Fall of Saltmarsh for 6 months, as well as running games at TopaCon, WittCon, and randomly on weekends when the guys want to play....I feel like I've burnt out.
I mean, I didn't even really get to play at WittCon, even. I ran two sessions of game, then hung out and watched Paranoia. Don't get me wrong--it was all fun--but I'm still not playing the games I love so much.
This is leaving me a touch conflicted, in some ways. I have a fine gaming group right now, running through Demonweb Pits. Everyone has a novel character concept, and they sometimes seem to be having fun. However, just as often, I feel like everyone's falling asleep. I do my best to keep everyone involved, but...only about half the group seems "into it". In this case, Raymond Chandler's advice of "Have two men with guns burst through the door," hasn't worked in the least. And, what's worse, it has me questioning how much fun I'm having with this game. The answer, I'm finding more and more, is "not much." I love Planescape. I love D&D. This game is lacking both of their flavors, and becoming quite bland.
So, I raised this concept to my group. Two seem really receptive to the idea of changing campaigns (one of which is the PlatinumChick, who knows me like a well-read PH). One thinks that I just don't like running game, but is willing to change. Two others, though? No response. None. Not even head nodding.
I asked them whether they were having fun. I got nothing back.
I asked them whether they would want to try a different campaign, as the PlatinumChick has been itching to run Eberron. One sat there playing WoW. The other shrugged and started rolling up a Samurai, which I'm still trying to figure out how it fits into Eberron.
It could be worse, I guess. I think I'm just a little burned-out and seeing things that aren't there, but it's still frustrating to have to deal with on Friday nights, especially when the idea of the game is to have fun.
That said, I'm going to live it up at Origins, and hopefully I'll come home refreshed. True enough, maybe all this Warlock needs is a healthy dose of D&D, Paranoia, WEGS, Call of Cthulhu, all washed down with some Munchkin and a side of Arkham Horror.
Happy gaming, weasels!
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Monday, June 18, 2007
Yay for D&D!
Y'know, one of the biggest complaints against D&D is the amount of tables, charts, numbers, and other assorted digitation. People often get so caught up in figuring out exactly how much can be lifted, carried, destroyed, or eaten, that they forget that it's a game. Yes...a game.
Which means that, if something is cool...it probably should occur.
I'll be honest--I was kind of worried about this game. After two sessions of character creation, and a lackadaisical first session which ended in an argument/character unconsciousness, I was wondering exactly how much I wanted to run this game. This is the first time I've run a game straight out of a book since my freshman year of college 7 years ago.
This past session--wow. I have never in over 20 years of gaming, had a game in which a PC ordered his beefed-out construct to use the corpse of a dire-wolverine as a flail to crush a tree-borne Verdant Lord, while the Warforged monk pummeled a summoned tree.
Great, cinematic game. No minis, very few tables...just gaming at its best.
Yay.
Which means that, if something is cool...it probably should occur.
I'll be honest--I was kind of worried about this game. After two sessions of character creation, and a lackadaisical first session which ended in an argument/character unconsciousness, I was wondering exactly how much I wanted to run this game. This is the first time I've run a game straight out of a book since my freshman year of college 7 years ago.
This past session--wow. I have never in over 20 years of gaming, had a game in which a PC ordered his beefed-out construct to use the corpse of a dire-wolverine as a flail to crush a tree-borne Verdant Lord, while the Warforged monk pummeled a summoned tree.
Great, cinematic game. No minis, very few tables...just gaming at its best.
Yay.
Monday, June 04, 2007
I Want a New Game...
And so it begins...a new chapter in the chronicles of the Warlock and his happy comrades.
This time, they venture to the planar metropolis of Sigil, up the world tree of Yggdrasil, and then deep into the heart of Lolth's Demonweb Pits.
Such an epic quest obviously requires massive amounts of power and, as such, our heroes have been Gestalted! Unique combinations have ensued, including the following:
A warforged Monk/Warlock
A rogue modron Rogue/Soulknife
A goblin Tinker/Artificer with a Walking Eye construct
A half-orc Paladin/Psychic Warrior
A human Barbarian/Cleric of Pelor
A human Fighter/Dread Necromancer
Who knows what perils will await them in the maw of the Spider-Queen? Stay tuned, friends and neighbors!
This time, they venture to the planar metropolis of Sigil, up the world tree of Yggdrasil, and then deep into the heart of Lolth's Demonweb Pits.
Such an epic quest obviously requires massive amounts of power and, as such, our heroes have been Gestalted! Unique combinations have ensued, including the following:
A warforged Monk/Warlock
A rogue modron Rogue/Soulknife
A goblin Tinker/Artificer with a Walking Eye construct
A half-orc Paladin/Psychic Warrior
A human Barbarian/Cleric of Pelor
A human Fighter/Dread Necromancer
Who knows what perils will await them in the maw of the Spider-Queen? Stay tuned, friends and neighbors!
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
The Warlock's Update and the Fate of Saltmarsh
Greetings once again, supplicants and knowledge-seekers. Your friendly neighborhood Warlock is back, and once again deciding to record his exploits.
Unfortunately, events in the so-called real-life have taken their toll and, due to some stress on my part, I have not been able to record all of the information from the Saltmarsh Tribulations. However, come this fast-arriving summer, my time will be more than free for gaming, and prospects are already drawn up. I'll keep you posted on what will be occuring, as time grows nearer.
As for now, though, let's take a brief look at what happened in Saltmarsh with our heroes:
After aiding Jasker and several other prominent citizens, the heroes were recommended by Mylor Orvid to the head watchman to investigate the mysterious murder of "Crazy Nettie," who was less mad and more a guardian of a major artifact. In the group's investigations, they managed to ostracize (through blackmail) the local druids of Oak Island and were forced to look elsewhere for clues--particularly, the nearby Silverhame Mountain.
However, while gone, a gnomish follower of Obox-Ob, demon lord of vermin, managed to steal the artifact guarded by Nettie and release it into the city's park. The characters arrived just in time to stave off the creature killing off much of the town.
Their failed investigations, though, did little to endear the adventurers to the city's nobility, though their actions in saving the park made them somewhat of cult heroes. This earned them a special feast at the Dancing Dryad and an audience with the headmistress of the tavern. However, Ayadi (the headmistress) was more than she seemed--the Dancing Dryad was little more than a front for the local theives' guild...which wanted the adventurers to pursue a massive treasure. Unfortunately for them, the treasure stood beneathe one of the standing stones of none other than Oak Island.
The adventurers reluctantly agreed to the job, but their attempts at stealth failed, as the Hierophant druid of Oak Island caught them red-handed. Their slaying of her proved to be most dire as time would tell.
Luckily, the adventurers had been gaining allies. Concerned about the devilish and demonic incursions into Saltmarsh, the players sought out aid from the Temple of Pelor. This was granted in the person of Ashlyn, a Lightbringer Paladin. Ashlyn and Daishar began a romance early on which lasted the duration of their partnership.
Ashlyn accompanied the players on another delve, using a map found within the treasures of Oak Island. This map--displaying a dwarven catacomb--held much treasure, but was guarded by several warring factions including illithid-created abominations, Glasyan devils, and mysterious suits of dwarven armor. It was here that the adventurers ran afoul of the powerful harvester devil Acanthus, but came upon a powerful magic--the Cerulean Sign. The Sign was a massive runestone capable of permanently sealing planar rifts, disallowing all planar travel around it.
Keeping the entrance amulet to the runestone's chamber, the players returned to Saltmarsh to spend their newfound wealth. However, their victory was a short-lived one. Saltmarsh was in flames--it had been invaded by illithid seeking sustanance. The players, along with over half of Saltmarsh, were captured and enthralled.
Trapped within the walls of an illithid slave pen, the adventurers were starved, beaten, and forced into servitude by Xil'ti'Carn, the illithid who enthralled them. Xil'ti'Carn also sent the group twice to the surface, forcing them to kill off a Scarlet Brotherhood monestary (including a former friend of Daishar's) as well as a Paladin/Topaz Guardian who had uncovered the illithid city. Ashlyn and Jathalain suffered direly during their abscences, as the illithid subjected them to psychic tortures beyond imagination.
It was on this second event that Daishar came upon Acanthus once again. The devil, noting the fact that the monk had resisted the illithid enthrallment, offered a deal--an even trade. The devil would provide the Annullus--an artifact capable of destroying psionic creatures en masse--if Daishar would steal the amulet of the Cerulean Sign from Brighid, thereby allowing Acanthus access to the runestone. Daishar, after much soul-searching agreed.
As Daishar activated the Annullus, destroying the illithid compound, Acanthus led his devilish expedition back into the dwarven catacombs and pulled forth the runestone, teleporting it back to Maelbolge.
In a harrowing journey back through the ruins of Saltmarsh and the Hool Marshes, the adventurers led the remaining refugees of the city past the Silverhame mountain and to the gates of Cauldron, a city ruled by the Hextorian Guard of Slade Starblade. Starblade reluctantly agreed to allow the refugees to become citizens of Cauldron, but only after Harvinion used much of his newfound wealth to purchase enough land within the city limits to force Starblade's hand. Harvinion became a noble of Cauldron in an ostentatious ceremony, and swore fealty to Starblade's cause, much to the party's chagrin.
However, a contact within Starblade's cabinet tipped the party off as to their next destination--the city of Sigil. Tracking down Acanthus was their highest priority, and anything or anyone could be found within the City of Doors. The party moved quickly through Sigil, enountering several harrowing groups, including the morose Dustmen and the entropy-obsessed Doomguard, including the cambion Factol Ely Cromlich. However, they also began to learn a horrible truth--not only was there a planar gate on Oak Island, as they had suspected, but a gate between Obox-Ob's layer of the Abyss and Maelbolge was about to destabilize the Blood War.
Hiring a Styxian charter, the players made their way into the Nine Hells, but were ambushed in Maelbolge by two Styx-swimmers. The creatures slew Azumi, Harvinion, and Amadis in an epic battle, and Jathalain, Ashlyn, Brighid, and Daishar were forced to retreat back to Greyhawk with a Plane Shift spell. The trio was resurrected, but not without several side effects...and an oath to return the runestone to the Cathedral of Pelor.
Using another Plane Shift, the party arrived in the midst of a massive Blood War battle, just in time to see Acanthus begin the incantation to seal the breach in Maelbolge. The party stopped him, but not without cost--Ashlyn fell beneath the hellspear of a powerful orthon. Devastated, Daishar demanded that they pursue her spirit, which was being held within the Bastille of Souls, several layers above them.
Traveling in harrowing methods, as their unity began to split, the party crawled through the Worm of Minauros and up the chains of Jangling Hiter, arriving within the silent City of Dis and to the doorstep of the Bastille of Souls. There, they reclaimed Ashlyn's spirit and returned to Cauldron. There, they found out some dire news--several members of the council of Cauldron were pushing Starblade towards war. The target: Greyhawk.
However, one major task remained. Under divinations, it was revealed that Xil'ti'Carn had in fact survived the blast of the Annullus, mainly because he had already prepared his body for lichdom before being slain. Now, he was attempting to return to Oak Island to precipitate the final breach between Oerth and the Far Realm.
The adventurers joined together one last time to defeat their old slaver. Traveling through the creature's living phylactery--a dungeon pulsing with unholy, aberrant power--they arrived just in time to confront Xil'ti'Carn, who raised two Neolithid worms to defend him. In the end, the circle of Zerthimon was too strong to be broken, and Daishar's mighty fists crushed the illithid threat once and for all.
Casualties, however, abounded. Baron Harvinion had died, as did Azumi. Ostracized in Greyhawk for the death of the Topaz Guardian and wanted in Cauldron for helping Ashlyn and Jathalain to escape inprisonment earlier on, the group had nowhere to go. As such, they disbanded, their fates scattered to the four winds. Without the influence of Harvinion on Starblade's council, Cauldron declared war on Greyhawk, destroying it with a weapon forged by Ely Cromlich of the Doomguard--one of the massive Ships of Chaos.
It is said that Amadis went mad from his travels, releasing an Abyssal Nightmare onto the world, stolen from the gem-prisons of the Bastille of Spirits. He fought valiantly, but died in the end, his soul consigned back to the Nine Hells to fight forever in the Blood War.
It is believed that Daishar returned to Sigil, in an attempt to find the original Circles of Zerthimon amongst the races of Gith there. His success is unknown. Reports are also conflicted as to his status with the paladin, Ashlyn. Some say that his time in the Hells corrupted him, driving her away, while others claim that, in enduring, he grew stronger...and she, with him.
Jathalain and Brighid are believed to still remain on Oerth, though their whereabouts are unknown. Rumors abound of two rebels who fight against the ever-expanding Empire of Cauldron, though these are quickly quieted by the Hextorian Guard. It is unknown whether these rumors are related to the pair, or if they still live.
Unfortunately, events in the so-called real-life have taken their toll and, due to some stress on my part, I have not been able to record all of the information from the Saltmarsh Tribulations. However, come this fast-arriving summer, my time will be more than free for gaming, and prospects are already drawn up. I'll keep you posted on what will be occuring, as time grows nearer.
As for now, though, let's take a brief look at what happened in Saltmarsh with our heroes:
After aiding Jasker and several other prominent citizens, the heroes were recommended by Mylor Orvid to the head watchman to investigate the mysterious murder of "Crazy Nettie," who was less mad and more a guardian of a major artifact. In the group's investigations, they managed to ostracize (through blackmail) the local druids of Oak Island and were forced to look elsewhere for clues--particularly, the nearby Silverhame Mountain.
However, while gone, a gnomish follower of Obox-Ob, demon lord of vermin, managed to steal the artifact guarded by Nettie and release it into the city's park. The characters arrived just in time to stave off the creature killing off much of the town.
Their failed investigations, though, did little to endear the adventurers to the city's nobility, though their actions in saving the park made them somewhat of cult heroes. This earned them a special feast at the Dancing Dryad and an audience with the headmistress of the tavern. However, Ayadi (the headmistress) was more than she seemed--the Dancing Dryad was little more than a front for the local theives' guild...which wanted the adventurers to pursue a massive treasure. Unfortunately for them, the treasure stood beneathe one of the standing stones of none other than Oak Island.
The adventurers reluctantly agreed to the job, but their attempts at stealth failed, as the Hierophant druid of Oak Island caught them red-handed. Their slaying of her proved to be most dire as time would tell.
Luckily, the adventurers had been gaining allies. Concerned about the devilish and demonic incursions into Saltmarsh, the players sought out aid from the Temple of Pelor. This was granted in the person of Ashlyn, a Lightbringer Paladin. Ashlyn and Daishar began a romance early on which lasted the duration of their partnership.
Ashlyn accompanied the players on another delve, using a map found within the treasures of Oak Island. This map--displaying a dwarven catacomb--held much treasure, but was guarded by several warring factions including illithid-created abominations, Glasyan devils, and mysterious suits of dwarven armor. It was here that the adventurers ran afoul of the powerful harvester devil Acanthus, but came upon a powerful magic--the Cerulean Sign. The Sign was a massive runestone capable of permanently sealing planar rifts, disallowing all planar travel around it.
Keeping the entrance amulet to the runestone's chamber, the players returned to Saltmarsh to spend their newfound wealth. However, their victory was a short-lived one. Saltmarsh was in flames--it had been invaded by illithid seeking sustanance. The players, along with over half of Saltmarsh, were captured and enthralled.
Trapped within the walls of an illithid slave pen, the adventurers were starved, beaten, and forced into servitude by Xil'ti'Carn, the illithid who enthralled them. Xil'ti'Carn also sent the group twice to the surface, forcing them to kill off a Scarlet Brotherhood monestary (including a former friend of Daishar's) as well as a Paladin/Topaz Guardian who had uncovered the illithid city. Ashlyn and Jathalain suffered direly during their abscences, as the illithid subjected them to psychic tortures beyond imagination.
It was on this second event that Daishar came upon Acanthus once again. The devil, noting the fact that the monk had resisted the illithid enthrallment, offered a deal--an even trade. The devil would provide the Annullus--an artifact capable of destroying psionic creatures en masse--if Daishar would steal the amulet of the Cerulean Sign from Brighid, thereby allowing Acanthus access to the runestone. Daishar, after much soul-searching agreed.
As Daishar activated the Annullus, destroying the illithid compound, Acanthus led his devilish expedition back into the dwarven catacombs and pulled forth the runestone, teleporting it back to Maelbolge.
In a harrowing journey back through the ruins of Saltmarsh and the Hool Marshes, the adventurers led the remaining refugees of the city past the Silverhame mountain and to the gates of Cauldron, a city ruled by the Hextorian Guard of Slade Starblade. Starblade reluctantly agreed to allow the refugees to become citizens of Cauldron, but only after Harvinion used much of his newfound wealth to purchase enough land within the city limits to force Starblade's hand. Harvinion became a noble of Cauldron in an ostentatious ceremony, and swore fealty to Starblade's cause, much to the party's chagrin.
However, a contact within Starblade's cabinet tipped the party off as to their next destination--the city of Sigil. Tracking down Acanthus was their highest priority, and anything or anyone could be found within the City of Doors. The party moved quickly through Sigil, enountering several harrowing groups, including the morose Dustmen and the entropy-obsessed Doomguard, including the cambion Factol Ely Cromlich. However, they also began to learn a horrible truth--not only was there a planar gate on Oak Island, as they had suspected, but a gate between Obox-Ob's layer of the Abyss and Maelbolge was about to destabilize the Blood War.
Hiring a Styxian charter, the players made their way into the Nine Hells, but were ambushed in Maelbolge by two Styx-swimmers. The creatures slew Azumi, Harvinion, and Amadis in an epic battle, and Jathalain, Ashlyn, Brighid, and Daishar were forced to retreat back to Greyhawk with a Plane Shift spell. The trio was resurrected, but not without several side effects...and an oath to return the runestone to the Cathedral of Pelor.
Using another Plane Shift, the party arrived in the midst of a massive Blood War battle, just in time to see Acanthus begin the incantation to seal the breach in Maelbolge. The party stopped him, but not without cost--Ashlyn fell beneath the hellspear of a powerful orthon. Devastated, Daishar demanded that they pursue her spirit, which was being held within the Bastille of Souls, several layers above them.
Traveling in harrowing methods, as their unity began to split, the party crawled through the Worm of Minauros and up the chains of Jangling Hiter, arriving within the silent City of Dis and to the doorstep of the Bastille of Souls. There, they reclaimed Ashlyn's spirit and returned to Cauldron. There, they found out some dire news--several members of the council of Cauldron were pushing Starblade towards war. The target: Greyhawk.
However, one major task remained. Under divinations, it was revealed that Xil'ti'Carn had in fact survived the blast of the Annullus, mainly because he had already prepared his body for lichdom before being slain. Now, he was attempting to return to Oak Island to precipitate the final breach between Oerth and the Far Realm.
The adventurers joined together one last time to defeat their old slaver. Traveling through the creature's living phylactery--a dungeon pulsing with unholy, aberrant power--they arrived just in time to confront Xil'ti'Carn, who raised two Neolithid worms to defend him. In the end, the circle of Zerthimon was too strong to be broken, and Daishar's mighty fists crushed the illithid threat once and for all.
Casualties, however, abounded. Baron Harvinion had died, as did Azumi. Ostracized in Greyhawk for the death of the Topaz Guardian and wanted in Cauldron for helping Ashlyn and Jathalain to escape inprisonment earlier on, the group had nowhere to go. As such, they disbanded, their fates scattered to the four winds. Without the influence of Harvinion on Starblade's council, Cauldron declared war on Greyhawk, destroying it with a weapon forged by Ely Cromlich of the Doomguard--one of the massive Ships of Chaos.
It is said that Amadis went mad from his travels, releasing an Abyssal Nightmare onto the world, stolen from the gem-prisons of the Bastille of Spirits. He fought valiantly, but died in the end, his soul consigned back to the Nine Hells to fight forever in the Blood War.
It is believed that Daishar returned to Sigil, in an attempt to find the original Circles of Zerthimon amongst the races of Gith there. His success is unknown. Reports are also conflicted as to his status with the paladin, Ashlyn. Some say that his time in the Hells corrupted him, driving her away, while others claim that, in enduring, he grew stronger...and she, with him.
Jathalain and Brighid are believed to still remain on Oerth, though their whereabouts are unknown. Rumors abound of two rebels who fight against the ever-expanding Empire of Cauldron, though these are quickly quieted by the Hextorian Guard. It is unknown whether these rumors are related to the pair, or if they still live.
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Tales of Saltmarsh Towne: Chapter 2--A Mysterious Threat and The Missing Mithril
Standing over the destroyed goblin corpses and mysterious enchanted cauldron of the Io-Rach tribe, the group begins to decide upon their next plans. While Brighid and Amadis are quick to push for flooding the entire cavern complex, the rest of the group shoots this idea down, as they think that it would taint the surrounding water. They decide instead to block off the cavern entrance with the wagons, light them afire, then collapse the cavern entrance.
As the group proceeds to leave, they come upon something they had no found before—three small statuettes, each of which depict a nude, demonic female in a seductive pose. Despite the group’s knowledge and skills, they do not seem to know who the figure is. The statuettes are packed up with their other newly-gained gear, and the group sets out from the cavern. Using a block and tackle that Amadis carried on his mule, the group moves the wagons into position, then light them afire.
With the cavern collapsed behind them, the quintet begins walking down the road to Saltmarsh. It is a swift journey back to the Hool Watch Tower, and the group quickly arrives in Commander Iborian’s office again. While not eating this time, the ranger’s breakfast appears to be newly finished, as it is scattered over his desk, most messily. Brighid quickly sums up the events from the caverns, making particular note of the distorted goblins, the wolf-creature, and the mystic cauldron. Iborian seems to have no knowledge of the creature, but tells the party that he will send a runner to investigate their story. Should their tale be true, they can expect payment from the bursar on the morrow.
While the majority of the group seems to be excited over their newfound wealth, all that Artorius can mutter is his desire for a warm bed, a hot bath, and a good meal. The party drops off Artorius at the Blue Frog, then heads to the Temple of Boccob, a massive pyramid-like structure rumored to deal in ensorcelled weaponry. Brighid, however, heads off to the Merchant’s Guildhall, seeking a new bow. Harvinion, Azumi, and Amadis make their way into the Boccobian Temple, and ask an apprentice to see the temple-master. Shortly thereafter, High Acolyte Mylor Orvid steps forward and inquires as to the party’s business.
Harvinion quickly shows the priest the three statuettes and inquires as to what they might symbolize. Orvid states that he can research the statuettes, but doing so might take some time, as well as a cash donation to the temple. Harvinion forks over the 50 gp.
From there, Azumi draws the dwarven waraxe, asking as to what it might be. Wittily, and with self-satisfaction, Orvid proudly proclaims that it is “An axe. In fact, a dwarven-made one, at that.” Frustrated, Azumi asks what might make it sharper. “A Whetstone, perhaps? Or a grinding wheel with some oil…perhaps you may want to ask your question a bit more…well, bluntly.” From there, Orvid tells her that a spell of magic detection and analysis would cost 75 gp. Azumi pays for this service for the waraxe, and Amadis does the same for the javelin.
Orvid points them to a mediation hall so they can wait out the research time. In the meanwhile, though, Amadis asks if they have anything to sell. It turns out the temple does craft items on site, and also deal in arcane goods for the locals. Azumi asks what they might have in stock. With a wave of his hand, Orvid opens a mystically locked cabinet to reveal the following:
- A ring that bolsters affinity and communication (Ring of Charisma +2)
- A wand that channels necromantic energy (Wand of Ghoul’s Touch)
- A wand that conjures a sticky web (Wand of Web)
- Several weapons that were salvaged from the Ironroot Mountains, including:
- A dwarven urgrosh
- A drow hand crossbow
- A longsword
- A whip.
Harvinion asks, as this last bit, how one might actually ensorcell a whip, to which Orvid replies “With magics of the most dire import…”
Amadis inquires as to the possibility of commissioning a bastard sword, but the cost and time constraint seem to be out of his league, at least for the time being. As they speak, up runs apprentice Bob, calling out, “Master Mylar, we finished with the axe and javelin!” Both weapons seem to only hold minor enchantments (+1), but are worth a fair amount to the right buyer.
The party conferences quickly, to decide what to do with the items. Amadis offers the suggestion that the weapons could be traded for a commissioned bastard sword, but the offer is quickly shot down by a calm, quieting voice from the far side of the meditation chamber. “If you split the wealth amongst your group, you may all be able to benefit, rather than simply one.”
A lithe man rises from where he was, rather irritatedly, attempting to meditate. He further suggests that such a discussion might be better placed over a meal at a nearby tavern. Mylor smiles at the monk, and tells the party, “"It is rare that I do such a thing, but if you were to sell both items as a set, I could give you a slightly greater amount for the items sold. Perhaps…3,000 sovereigns?”
The party accepts the offer and sells the items. Harvinion hands the monk, named Daishar, a gp for his helpful idea. Daishar quickly drops the piece in the Boccobian offertory box, and Mylor speaks to him quickly thereafter: “Daishar, it is of my belief that you may be able to offer some great wisdom to this group. Accompanying them may aid the final steps of your training. Why don’t you go with them?”
Daishar agrees, and Amadis immediately begins telling the young monk about the great battles the group will soon embark upon. While describing the group's recent exploits, Amadis describes the cauldron used by the goblins to morph one another into abominations. At this, Mylor perks up, asking if the cauldron included the symbol of a copper scourge. The group affirms this, and he scurries off to begin his research. It appears that there may be some connection.
The group then splits up, with Brighid heading towards the Merchants' Guildhall, while Amadis, Harvinion, Daishar and Amadis head towards Saltmarsh's renowned School of Blades, a two story brick building with a substantial courtyard out front.
Within the courtyard, two pairs of warriors square off--a human facing a half-elf, each with a rapier, and a rapier-wielding human facing a gnome wielding a gnomish quickblade. Watching the pairs and snapping commands at the fencers is a lanky man wearing a well-tooled sword-belt and an impressive doublet. The instructor turns to the party and introduces himself as Daryn Larsken, master of the School of Blades.
Amadis chats with the man for a moment, but Daryn seems skeptical of Amadis' adventures, particularly due to the state of Amadis' sword. Daryn even goes so far as to dismiss Amadis' skill as a swordsman, which does little to endear him to the knight-errant.
Daryn dismisses two of the students, but tells the other two to keep working. He then invites the party in to browse his collection. Amadis continues to brag, however, and Daryn begins to question aloud whether he should truly sell this man a sharpened blade. Regardless, Amadis admires a well-oiled blade handed to him by Daryn, but then swiftly draws the sword and leaps out of the nearby window, shrieking "Danger is afoot!"
Stunned, Larsken and the rest of the party run swiftly down the stairs and after Amadis, who seems to be chasing down a local farmer, who is attempting to buy fruit. Daryn screams after Amadis, "By all the Nine Hells, man, what are you doing? That sword is mine!" Amadis claims that the man, Jerimiah by name, is in danger, though Jerimiah seems to be more confused by Amadis' actions than anything else. He walks swiftly away, and fades into the crowd.
Exasperated, Daryn asks for payment for the blade, but Amadis seeks to bargain down the 400 gold crown price, by throwing in his old blade. Daryn tosses down the blade in disgust, saying that it is "not much more than a can opener." Sputtering, Amadis retorts that the blade has "at least opened the cans of half a dozen goblins" and that the master has "dishonored my sword."
Daryn looks the man straight in the eye and says, "Do you know to whom you speak? I am the fencing champion of the Free City of Greyhawk twice over!" Amadis attempts to retort, but Harvinion cuts him off by offering to pay for the master's broken window. Amadis cools down, pays Daryn the requested fee, and the group leaves.
In the meanwhile, Brighid scours the area for a bowyer. She finds a stall near the Merchant's Guildhouse with a fine sign drawn up in Elvish, labeled Jathalain's Bowyery. Inside, a long-eared, soft-spoken elf asks the young warrior if he can offer some help. Brighid shows Jathalian her bow, which he promptly examines, telling her that she needs a new bowstring--hers has frayed. He quickly reaches to his leather bracers, plucks off a newer string, then re-strings her bow.
Jathalain then pulls down a fine recurve bow, made of red maplewood with a fine bronze inlay. He then aids Brighid in demonstrating the pull. Brighid makes mention of the fact that she is not a seasoned archer yet, though Jathalian seems more than willing to give some lessons.
In the end, things come down to the price, which is none for the faint of heart: 350 gold pieces. Brighid also asks about the possibility of purchasing exotic arrows, including those made with Mithril or Cold Iron arrowheads. Jathalian educates the young warrior on the qualities of these metals and offers to throw in a "sample quiver" of each, should she choose to buy the bow. Brighid accepts, and leaves shortly thereafter.
At this point, Azumi and Harvinion pass by and continue on, into a nearly barren area filled with smoke. Towards the end of the space, a smithery churned smoke into the air. A gnome and a human pumped a massive bellows while a filthy dwarf hammered away on a piece of metal on the anvil. Azumi interrupts their work, and the dwarf waddles over. The warrior-woman asks the dwarf for something "bigger" than her halberd, to which he wittily replies, "Well, there's a big rock out back you could use! Wham!"
Frustrated, she then asks for something a bit sharper than a rock. Again, the dwarf smiles and shows her a piece of jagged iron, used for scrap. Frustrated, she falls silent to think. Harvinion, however, perks up, asking about the dwarf's ability to work with mithril. The dwarf, finally introducing himself as Jasker, tells the pair that he actually has a shipment of mithril on order, which is almost a week late. If the pair could find it for him, he might be able to offer a deal on mithril armor or weaponry. He further suggests to start with Saltmarsh Sendings, the company that he used to have the metal delivered.
After hearing all this, Azumi finally realizes how to ask her question. She asks Jasker if she could potentially requisition a new halberd. Jasker agrees, stating that he has received some Zhenish steel that he could use for the blade. She puts in the order, which will be ready in two days for 350 gp.
With a busy day behind them, the party heads back to the Lizard's Boat. Kailee, the ranger-turned-inkeep, stands ready at the bar when Amadis speaks to the patrons in a booming voice, "We have fought valiantly and conquered, so a round for everyone!" Kailee is skeptical at first, but is quick to shovel Amadis' 5 gold pieces into her skirt, when he plinks the coin onto the bar.
The next day, the party heads first to HoolWatch tower. Harvinion, eager to get after the mithril, arrives nearly half an hour ahead of the group. At the tower, Iborian confirms the PCs' statements. A pyre was created for the dead, and the bursar held their payment. The players collect it, and make a few short stops before heading out. Brighid stops at the Alchemist's Guild, picking up a few potions. Harvinion, Daishar, and Amadis head to a curio shop, where the first pair buy an armoire, and the latter merely enjoys a lemon scone.
From there, the group heads to the western gate, where two noble guards stand vigilant. The warriors ask one, with a large moustache, of banditry on the road, particularly of the Saltmarsh Sendings messengers. He claims to know nothing of the sort, and that, given their information, they may wish to start their search at the Saltmarsh Sendings office. Further, they learn that this guard, named Bob, is brother to the apprentice Bob from the Temple of Boccob. Furthermore, he is also brother to two other 'Bobs,' one of whom works as an alchemist, the other which may be in league with Ned Shakeshaft, the leader of the infamous Saltmarsh Assassin's Guild.
With a complaining Harvinion in tow, the group makes its way back across town to Saltmarsh Sendings, where Brighid inquires as to Jasker's ore. The clerk tells them that a halfling, Joshua Longstrider, was in charge of the shipment between Cauldron and Saltmarsh. Apparently Longstrider had not checked in, but the clerk marks Longstrider's potential route on the group's map and sends them on their way.
Heading out of the western gate, the group says their goodbyes to Bob, and moves on their way.
About 4 hours down the western road, Harvinion catches sight of some movement. He pulls out the lizardfolk's letter of safe passage. Amadis draws his sword and shouts out for any foes to show themselves. While Azumi hears the noise of some creatures moving, Daishar is the first to spot 4 man-sized, degenerate, scaled creatures clawing their way up the left side of the road.
The creatures strike first, as one spits a viscous glob of bile at Amadis, sizzling his flesh beneath his armor. The battle is swiftly joined, and things look dire for the warriors. Harvinion is harmed direly, and is forced to retreat and use his crossbow, rather than his typical longsword. Azumi, too, is direly injured and her grip on her halberd begins to loosen somewhat.
The fists of Daishar, though, prove to be as strong as any steel. Caught one-on-one with one of the creatures, the monster quickly fell beneath the discipline-wrought blows of Daishar's martial power. He then joined the battle against the other creatures, aiding his new fellows with powerful strikes.
As the party's injuries seem to mount Brighid shifts her roles from warrior-woman to healer, bringing powerful healing energies to bear upon her comrades. At this moment, though, Azumi slams her halberd shaft into her foe's face, forcing it backwards into a tree and breaking its snout. As it reels, she wheels about, slicing the halberd blade into both of its legs, severing both and felling the beast.
With blows like these, the party swiftly prevails over their foes and begin to investigate the environs. A short search by Harvinion reveals the creatures' nest, within which lies the corpse of a halfling traveler and the missing mithril. Furthermore, the party finds some special rewards for their efforts:
-400 gps
-an unidentifible ring
-a divine scroll of Flaming Sphere
-a wand
-a finely made composite longbow, which is taken by Brighid
-a heavy steel shield, taken by Amadis.
With their quest completed, the party sets out back towards Saltmarsh with the mithril in hand, ready to give to Jasker.
As the group proceeds to leave, they come upon something they had no found before—three small statuettes, each of which depict a nude, demonic female in a seductive pose. Despite the group’s knowledge and skills, they do not seem to know who the figure is. The statuettes are packed up with their other newly-gained gear, and the group sets out from the cavern. Using a block and tackle that Amadis carried on his mule, the group moves the wagons into position, then light them afire.
With the cavern collapsed behind them, the quintet begins walking down the road to Saltmarsh. It is a swift journey back to the Hool Watch Tower, and the group quickly arrives in Commander Iborian’s office again. While not eating this time, the ranger’s breakfast appears to be newly finished, as it is scattered over his desk, most messily. Brighid quickly sums up the events from the caverns, making particular note of the distorted goblins, the wolf-creature, and the mystic cauldron. Iborian seems to have no knowledge of the creature, but tells the party that he will send a runner to investigate their story. Should their tale be true, they can expect payment from the bursar on the morrow.
While the majority of the group seems to be excited over their newfound wealth, all that Artorius can mutter is his desire for a warm bed, a hot bath, and a good meal. The party drops off Artorius at the Blue Frog, then heads to the Temple of Boccob, a massive pyramid-like structure rumored to deal in ensorcelled weaponry. Brighid, however, heads off to the Merchant’s Guildhall, seeking a new bow. Harvinion, Azumi, and Amadis make their way into the Boccobian Temple, and ask an apprentice to see the temple-master. Shortly thereafter, High Acolyte Mylor Orvid steps forward and inquires as to the party’s business.
Harvinion quickly shows the priest the three statuettes and inquires as to what they might symbolize. Orvid states that he can research the statuettes, but doing so might take some time, as well as a cash donation to the temple. Harvinion forks over the 50 gp.
From there, Azumi draws the dwarven waraxe, asking as to what it might be. Wittily, and with self-satisfaction, Orvid proudly proclaims that it is “An axe. In fact, a dwarven-made one, at that.” Frustrated, Azumi asks what might make it sharper. “A Whetstone, perhaps? Or a grinding wheel with some oil…perhaps you may want to ask your question a bit more…well, bluntly.” From there, Orvid tells her that a spell of magic detection and analysis would cost 75 gp. Azumi pays for this service for the waraxe, and Amadis does the same for the javelin.
Orvid points them to a mediation hall so they can wait out the research time. In the meanwhile, though, Amadis asks if they have anything to sell. It turns out the temple does craft items on site, and also deal in arcane goods for the locals. Azumi asks what they might have in stock. With a wave of his hand, Orvid opens a mystically locked cabinet to reveal the following:
- A ring that bolsters affinity and communication (Ring of Charisma +2)
- A wand that channels necromantic energy (Wand of Ghoul’s Touch)
- A wand that conjures a sticky web (Wand of Web)
- Several weapons that were salvaged from the Ironroot Mountains, including:
- A dwarven urgrosh
- A drow hand crossbow
- A longsword
- A whip.
Harvinion asks, as this last bit, how one might actually ensorcell a whip, to which Orvid replies “With magics of the most dire import…”
Amadis inquires as to the possibility of commissioning a bastard sword, but the cost and time constraint seem to be out of his league, at least for the time being. As they speak, up runs apprentice Bob, calling out, “Master Mylar, we finished with the axe and javelin!” Both weapons seem to only hold minor enchantments (+1), but are worth a fair amount to the right buyer.
The party conferences quickly, to decide what to do with the items. Amadis offers the suggestion that the weapons could be traded for a commissioned bastard sword, but the offer is quickly shot down by a calm, quieting voice from the far side of the meditation chamber. “If you split the wealth amongst your group, you may all be able to benefit, rather than simply one.”
A lithe man rises from where he was, rather irritatedly, attempting to meditate. He further suggests that such a discussion might be better placed over a meal at a nearby tavern. Mylor smiles at the monk, and tells the party, “"It is rare that I do such a thing, but if you were to sell both items as a set, I could give you a slightly greater amount for the items sold. Perhaps…3,000 sovereigns?”
The party accepts the offer and sells the items. Harvinion hands the monk, named Daishar, a gp for his helpful idea. Daishar quickly drops the piece in the Boccobian offertory box, and Mylor speaks to him quickly thereafter: “Daishar, it is of my belief that you may be able to offer some great wisdom to this group. Accompanying them may aid the final steps of your training. Why don’t you go with them?”
Daishar agrees, and Amadis immediately begins telling the young monk about the great battles the group will soon embark upon. While describing the group's recent exploits, Amadis describes the cauldron used by the goblins to morph one another into abominations. At this, Mylor perks up, asking if the cauldron included the symbol of a copper scourge. The group affirms this, and he scurries off to begin his research. It appears that there may be some connection.
The group then splits up, with Brighid heading towards the Merchants' Guildhall, while Amadis, Harvinion, Daishar and Amadis head towards Saltmarsh's renowned School of Blades, a two story brick building with a substantial courtyard out front.
Within the courtyard, two pairs of warriors square off--a human facing a half-elf, each with a rapier, and a rapier-wielding human facing a gnome wielding a gnomish quickblade. Watching the pairs and snapping commands at the fencers is a lanky man wearing a well-tooled sword-belt and an impressive doublet. The instructor turns to the party and introduces himself as Daryn Larsken, master of the School of Blades.
Amadis chats with the man for a moment, but Daryn seems skeptical of Amadis' adventures, particularly due to the state of Amadis' sword. Daryn even goes so far as to dismiss Amadis' skill as a swordsman, which does little to endear him to the knight-errant.
Daryn dismisses two of the students, but tells the other two to keep working. He then invites the party in to browse his collection. Amadis continues to brag, however, and Daryn begins to question aloud whether he should truly sell this man a sharpened blade. Regardless, Amadis admires a well-oiled blade handed to him by Daryn, but then swiftly draws the sword and leaps out of the nearby window, shrieking "Danger is afoot!"
Stunned, Larsken and the rest of the party run swiftly down the stairs and after Amadis, who seems to be chasing down a local farmer, who is attempting to buy fruit. Daryn screams after Amadis, "By all the Nine Hells, man, what are you doing? That sword is mine!" Amadis claims that the man, Jerimiah by name, is in danger, though Jerimiah seems to be more confused by Amadis' actions than anything else. He walks swiftly away, and fades into the crowd.
Exasperated, Daryn asks for payment for the blade, but Amadis seeks to bargain down the 400 gold crown price, by throwing in his old blade. Daryn tosses down the blade in disgust, saying that it is "not much more than a can opener." Sputtering, Amadis retorts that the blade has "at least opened the cans of half a dozen goblins" and that the master has "dishonored my sword."
Daryn looks the man straight in the eye and says, "Do you know to whom you speak? I am the fencing champion of the Free City of Greyhawk twice over!" Amadis attempts to retort, but Harvinion cuts him off by offering to pay for the master's broken window. Amadis cools down, pays Daryn the requested fee, and the group leaves.
In the meanwhile, Brighid scours the area for a bowyer. She finds a stall near the Merchant's Guildhouse with a fine sign drawn up in Elvish, labeled Jathalain's Bowyery. Inside, a long-eared, soft-spoken elf asks the young warrior if he can offer some help. Brighid shows Jathalian her bow, which he promptly examines, telling her that she needs a new bowstring--hers has frayed. He quickly reaches to his leather bracers, plucks off a newer string, then re-strings her bow.
Jathalain then pulls down a fine recurve bow, made of red maplewood with a fine bronze inlay. He then aids Brighid in demonstrating the pull. Brighid makes mention of the fact that she is not a seasoned archer yet, though Jathalian seems more than willing to give some lessons.
In the end, things come down to the price, which is none for the faint of heart: 350 gold pieces. Brighid also asks about the possibility of purchasing exotic arrows, including those made with Mithril or Cold Iron arrowheads. Jathalian educates the young warrior on the qualities of these metals and offers to throw in a "sample quiver" of each, should she choose to buy the bow. Brighid accepts, and leaves shortly thereafter.
At this point, Azumi and Harvinion pass by and continue on, into a nearly barren area filled with smoke. Towards the end of the space, a smithery churned smoke into the air. A gnome and a human pumped a massive bellows while a filthy dwarf hammered away on a piece of metal on the anvil. Azumi interrupts their work, and the dwarf waddles over. The warrior-woman asks the dwarf for something "bigger" than her halberd, to which he wittily replies, "Well, there's a big rock out back you could use! Wham!"
Frustrated, she then asks for something a bit sharper than a rock. Again, the dwarf smiles and shows her a piece of jagged iron, used for scrap. Frustrated, she falls silent to think. Harvinion, however, perks up, asking about the dwarf's ability to work with mithril. The dwarf, finally introducing himself as Jasker, tells the pair that he actually has a shipment of mithril on order, which is almost a week late. If the pair could find it for him, he might be able to offer a deal on mithril armor or weaponry. He further suggests to start with Saltmarsh Sendings, the company that he used to have the metal delivered.
After hearing all this, Azumi finally realizes how to ask her question. She asks Jasker if she could potentially requisition a new halberd. Jasker agrees, stating that he has received some Zhenish steel that he could use for the blade. She puts in the order, which will be ready in two days for 350 gp.
With a busy day behind them, the party heads back to the Lizard's Boat. Kailee, the ranger-turned-inkeep, stands ready at the bar when Amadis speaks to the patrons in a booming voice, "We have fought valiantly and conquered, so a round for everyone!" Kailee is skeptical at first, but is quick to shovel Amadis' 5 gold pieces into her skirt, when he plinks the coin onto the bar.
The next day, the party heads first to HoolWatch tower. Harvinion, eager to get after the mithril, arrives nearly half an hour ahead of the group. At the tower, Iborian confirms the PCs' statements. A pyre was created for the dead, and the bursar held their payment. The players collect it, and make a few short stops before heading out. Brighid stops at the Alchemist's Guild, picking up a few potions. Harvinion, Daishar, and Amadis head to a curio shop, where the first pair buy an armoire, and the latter merely enjoys a lemon scone.
From there, the group heads to the western gate, where two noble guards stand vigilant. The warriors ask one, with a large moustache, of banditry on the road, particularly of the Saltmarsh Sendings messengers. He claims to know nothing of the sort, and that, given their information, they may wish to start their search at the Saltmarsh Sendings office. Further, they learn that this guard, named Bob, is brother to the apprentice Bob from the Temple of Boccob. Furthermore, he is also brother to two other 'Bobs,' one of whom works as an alchemist, the other which may be in league with Ned Shakeshaft, the leader of the infamous Saltmarsh Assassin's Guild.
With a complaining Harvinion in tow, the group makes its way back across town to Saltmarsh Sendings, where Brighid inquires as to Jasker's ore. The clerk tells them that a halfling, Joshua Longstrider, was in charge of the shipment between Cauldron and Saltmarsh. Apparently Longstrider had not checked in, but the clerk marks Longstrider's potential route on the group's map and sends them on their way.
Heading out of the western gate, the group says their goodbyes to Bob, and moves on their way.
About 4 hours down the western road, Harvinion catches sight of some movement. He pulls out the lizardfolk's letter of safe passage. Amadis draws his sword and shouts out for any foes to show themselves. While Azumi hears the noise of some creatures moving, Daishar is the first to spot 4 man-sized, degenerate, scaled creatures clawing their way up the left side of the road.
The creatures strike first, as one spits a viscous glob of bile at Amadis, sizzling his flesh beneath his armor. The battle is swiftly joined, and things look dire for the warriors. Harvinion is harmed direly, and is forced to retreat and use his crossbow, rather than his typical longsword. Azumi, too, is direly injured and her grip on her halberd begins to loosen somewhat.
The fists of Daishar, though, prove to be as strong as any steel. Caught one-on-one with one of the creatures, the monster quickly fell beneath the discipline-wrought blows of Daishar's martial power. He then joined the battle against the other creatures, aiding his new fellows with powerful strikes.
As the party's injuries seem to mount Brighid shifts her roles from warrior-woman to healer, bringing powerful healing energies to bear upon her comrades. At this moment, though, Azumi slams her halberd shaft into her foe's face, forcing it backwards into a tree and breaking its snout. As it reels, she wheels about, slicing the halberd blade into both of its legs, severing both and felling the beast.
With blows like these, the party swiftly prevails over their foes and begin to investigate the environs. A short search by Harvinion reveals the creatures' nest, within which lies the corpse of a halfling traveler and the missing mithril. Furthermore, the party finds some special rewards for their efforts:
-400 gps
-an unidentifible ring
-a divine scroll of Flaming Sphere
-a wand
-a finely made composite longbow, which is taken by Brighid
-a heavy steel shield, taken by Amadis.
With their quest completed, the party sets out back towards Saltmarsh with the mithril in hand, ready to give to Jasker.
Monday, January 22, 2007
Tales of Saltmarsh Towne--Prologue
Cast of Characters:
Azumi Matsukata--Jules--Warblade. A refugee from a far-off land, Azumi flees from a force that works from the shadows. Azumi is a new citizen of Saltmarsh and has only recently come upon the others.
Amadis de la Chamna--Adam--Knight. His head full of stories and tales of classical knights and powerful warriors, Amadis seeks a return of such old ways. However, many think Amadis mad, as he believes that evil sorcerers follow him, changing reality at their whims.
Brighid--Sarah--Favored Soul. A refugee of the Flanaess, from Vecna's ascension to godhood, Brighid holds great vengeance against the Ebon Triad, a cult that seeks the unification of Vecna with two other vile deities.
Harvinion--Lionel--Scout. One of the defenders of the woodlands surrounding Saltmarsh, Harvinion has done much to aid the incoming refugees to the town. However, his greated challenges lie ahead of him...
Artorius--Nick--Dread Necromancer--The most recent arrival to Saltmarsh, Artorius claims not to know his past. However, certain events seem to line up between his memory, and several tales from nearly 1,000 years in the past. The repercussions of this may echo through the rest of his life...
Daishar--Chris--Monk--An acolyte of Boccob, lord of knowledge and Sovereign of the Unseeing Eye, Daishar stumbled across the party as they were speaking to High Acolyte Mylor within Saltmarsh's temple. However, Daishar's allies may feel great resentment towards some of the members of his new friends, and he may soon be faced with a difficult choice.
Azumi Matsukata--Jules--Warblade. A refugee from a far-off land, Azumi flees from a force that works from the shadows. Azumi is a new citizen of Saltmarsh and has only recently come upon the others.
Amadis de la Chamna--Adam--Knight. His head full of stories and tales of classical knights and powerful warriors, Amadis seeks a return of such old ways. However, many think Amadis mad, as he believes that evil sorcerers follow him, changing reality at their whims.
Brighid--Sarah--Favored Soul. A refugee of the Flanaess, from Vecna's ascension to godhood, Brighid holds great vengeance against the Ebon Triad, a cult that seeks the unification of Vecna with two other vile deities.
Harvinion--Lionel--Scout. One of the defenders of the woodlands surrounding Saltmarsh, Harvinion has done much to aid the incoming refugees to the town. However, his greated challenges lie ahead of him...
Artorius--Nick--Dread Necromancer--The most recent arrival to Saltmarsh, Artorius claims not to know his past. However, certain events seem to line up between his memory, and several tales from nearly 1,000 years in the past. The repercussions of this may echo through the rest of his life...
Daishar--Chris--Monk--An acolyte of Boccob, lord of knowledge and Sovereign of the Unseeing Eye, Daishar stumbled across the party as they were speaking to High Acolyte Mylor within Saltmarsh's temple. However, Daishar's allies may feel great resentment towards some of the members of his new friends, and he may soon be faced with a difficult choice.
Tales of Saltmarsh Towne: Chapter 1--The Goblin Pits of Io-Rach
I found these journals while going through the last remains of a scout, supposedly from the wooded regions surrounding the burgeoning city of Saltmarsh. Considering that there are no woods around the greater Saltmarsh area....these tales are difficult, at best, to verify.
The party begins with a meeting with Ranger Iborion of the Hool Watch at 3pm, but decide to hang around The Lizard's Boat inn and tavern to eat some lunch and to get some information on the local peoples.
Amadis asks for the best calamari but instead opts for the cheaper third best. The rest order a simple dish of cheese and bread.
After finishing lunch, the group heads to the lizardfolk embassy, with the intent to find out more information about the Hool Marshes, home to several lizardfolk triebes..
Brighid, Artiorius, Azumi and Amadis decide to stop next to the embassy to purchase some swamp boots, but Harvinion mocks them for their weakness in traversing such a swamp.
At the Embassy they are directed to the Stenographer by the lizard embassy guards to get a pass of safe passage through the Hool marches.
Lizard Stenographer Silark - "This will give you safe passage through the Hool marshes. Be sure not to bring harm to my brothers and sisters in the swamp."
Amadis - "On my honor, my blade will not harm your brothern."
Silark - "Ha, Manlings have not much honor."
Amadis - Turns and walks out the door.
The party gets to the Hool Watch tower and ask about the need for a Tower for the Hool Marshes, only to find out that there is enmity between the people of Salt Marsh and the Hool
Marshes. It seems that some parties within Saltmarsh desire to see the lizardfolk eradicated...
The party is led to the 3rd floor where they are given a plate of sweetswith no chart of what is
what. Brighid bites into a coconut sweet and tosses it onto the floor, and then hides it in the corner.
10 minutes later, Ranger Iborian comes in with his cold lunch, and proceeds to chow
down on it sloppily, then lights up a big pipe. After smoking for a moment, he proceeds to explain that the High Councilmen need help with a problem of refugees being jumped by bandits of some sort. The bandits are goblins with a bleeding eye symbol on the bottom of their shields. The party is to investigate and eliminate the problem.
Amadis knows of the goblins somewhat--the goblins are those of the Io-Rach tribe, which roughly means "Bloody eye lying smashed on the ground" in Goblin.
Iborian tells us that the goblins are not typical gobbos. He then gives the party a map showing
where the raids are happening, which happens to be along a familiar road to Brighid, Artorius and Azumi. In fact, this was the very road upon which they arrived in Saltmarsh.
In return for completion of the task, Iborian says that the group would get to keep any salvage found and gives each member a pouch with 25 gps, as a down payment, with another 250 gps for after the task is accomplished.
Amadis's eyes immediately light up with thoughts of more sturdy armor, and Brighids's thoughts go to a composite bow.
After a short exchange about the cannibalistic tendencies of the native lizardfolk, during which Iborian mentions that the lizard folk like elf meat, the party heads out the door and onto the road.
The party heads down the road, led by Harvinion then Azumi, Brighid, Antonius and Amadis leading his "steed," a pack mule.
Along the way Harvinion spots something moving in the trees, has Amadis give him
the letter of safe passeage, and holds it out bravely. The rest of the party sheathes their
weapons.
A lizard barbarian swings out in front of the Harvinion and, after looking over the letter of safe
passage, tells the party about a slaughter up ahead in the road. He then walks back into the marsh and the party continues on the road to the spot of the slaughter.
During the march Antonius is chatted up by Brigid about his past. Harvinion, meanwhile, spots a tree that looks like a naughty bit, but the others do not want to stop and take a look.
A few short miles later, the party comes across the scene of the slaughter which is made up of over 3 overturned wagons and lots of blood all over. The place has obvious signs of being scavenged but surprisingly enough there are only 3 bodies. Not even the bodies of the horses can be found.
Brighid notices that the bodies have been gnawed on, but only after being stabbed to death. She also notices that one of the bodies is plague ridden. A quick check reveals that the other
two bodies are plague ridden, as well, but with a disease that can't be recognized.
Harvinion looks for where the bodies have been dragged and but instead finds an arrow ridden double-sized bloated gobbo looking corpse lying in the swamp. The corpse has large tumorous growths and is holding a blood stained cleaver.
However, a sudden cry interrupts the investigation. "Rititah Cratch!" is suddenly heard by Amadis, who becomes aware of 5 gobbos rummaging about in one of the wagons.
The rest of the party is alerted to the gobbos when Amadis charges at them. The gobbos toss a few javelins at Amadis but miss him. Amadis then shouts a knights challenege to one of the
gobbos, then deftly slices into it, causing it to stagger back and then collapse.
Two goblins chuck spears at Artorius and Amadis but miss them.
Artorius chants the words to an arcane ritual, and his hand glows in crimson.
Brighid, Harvinion and Azumi join the fray, and make short work of the goblins. However, one of the creatures wounds Harvinion sorely and he requires a healing spell from Brighid.
Luckily, one of the goblins was only knocked into unconsciousness, and Brighid immediately takes to interrogating the creatures. It awakens and then spits on Brighid, who kicks it in the head knocking it out again. Brighid heals it to awaken and then spits on it, and then speaks to it
Abyssal asking it where its warren is.
The goblin is, at first, uncooperative, but soon succumbs first to Brighid's interrogation, then to sweet oblivion. The party has their goal--a small cave nearby in the depths of the swamp.
While the group discusses their next move, they search the goblins and the caravan wagons. Artorius finds a well-made dagger in amongst the the wagons, while Brighid examines the goblins for disease, finding nothing.
Harvinion slogs over to the cave enterance and sees nothing of worry, waving the party over. The others slog over as Harv enters inside a bit, as Brighid touches Amadis's belt causing it
to glow.
The rest follow Amadis in, but he promptly screams "I shall fight you in honorable combat!" As he heads in, he continues to rant challenges, and suddenly trips over a hidden trip wire that sounds a bell.
At a fork in the path, the group waits for goblins to appear in the light of a guttering
torch in a wall sconch.
At the end of the right fork, Harvinion and Artorius spot things moving around but not
coming closer.
B translates Amadis's rants and challenges into Abyssal, and Harvinion wings a rock down the right fork but nothing happens.
At least, that is until a small ball rolls into the area which lets off a loud crack, and
Harvinion, Azumi and Artorius become deafened. Amadis rants about "underhanded tricks instead of honorable combat" and heads down the right fork after the goblins.
However, that is when the goblins' ruse truly struck. From the left-hand passage, three normal sized goblins emerged, but behind them were two of the massive, bloated brutes, dripping pus and filth from their corpulent frames with each step.
The goblins open with a salvo of javelins, and one of the larger creatures steps in to focus on Azumi. Catching the warblade off-balance, the creature nearly cleaves Azumi in twain. The second attempts the same with Brighid, but its blow deflects off of her heavy armor.
The battle looks poor for the heroes immediately, with the mighty Azumi already felled and the group surrounded, but the tide swiftly begins to turn. Summoning eldritch sorceries, Artorious injures one of the goblins assailing him, and Amadis quickly steps to defend the unconscious Azumi.
Harvinion flitted from foe to foe, stabbing frantically with his dagger, but was injured direly by a thrown javelin. Brighid stepped in immediately to fell his foe, then to heal the scout.
Between the efforts of Amadis's swordplay, Brighid's archery, and Artorius's magics, the party slew all but one of the goblins, the last of which retreated down the left passage, wounded direly in the thigh.
Injured severely and, in the case of Azumi, near death, the party discusses where they will hole up for the evening, while Harv just keeps his eye down the right passage. The party heads out and arranges the 3 battered wagons into a "quasi" fort to protect themselves for the
night.
Azumi takes first watch, Amadis takes second, while Harvinion takes third with the others sleeping through the night.
On Amadis's watch he hears some 'voices' in the trees that are a bit familiar...an almost chanting noise. He awakens Azumi to tell her of the chanting, but she doesn't hear a thing.
Amadis quickly claims "Wait here I'll go and investigate!" then he sloshes off into the
marsh. He does not hear the chanting over the sloshing noise he is making, and he heads back to the"quasi-fort."
Amadis then wakes up Harvinion, who also does not hear the chant, and the young scout hands Amadis the safe passage letter to put it onto the fort. The rest of the night passes without event.
As the next day dawned, the party prepared themselves for another venture into the goblin warrens. Brighid cast a light spell on Amadis's sword giving him a "glowing sword of righteousness!!!"
The party then heads forth back into the cave with Amadis leading the way, ranting again, and this time cutting the trip wire with his glowing blade.
Amadis and Harvinion choose the right passageway this time, followed by Brighid, Artorius and Azumi, in that order.
The passage forks again, and the party takes the left passageway which heads down instead of the right way which is level which ends in a room that tapers into a steep downward passage. The party decides to go back and take the right passage instead of trying to go down the steep way.
The right passage ends in a cold and smelly room, with refugee bodies hanging from the ceiling, with the sound of rushing water in the room.
Artorius and Amadis cut down the bodies which Brighid then examines for diseases but
doesn't find anything of note. She still cautions them from touching the bodies.
Harvinion finds a mallet and the party grabs it and some of the rope and cobbles together them in an attempt to booby-trap the deep slope. The attempt fails miserably and is quickly abandoned.
The group then heads back to take the first left passage way, which splits again, and they go right. This ends in a large living cavern with goblins beds and the like.
After finding nothing they go back to the other passage. There they find a cooking room with empty pots. Harvinion makes "Knudgeon Dowledge" check to find a small cabinet that doesn't look right. Harvinion opens it up and finds a passage in the west wall after about 20 minutes of fiddling with it. Air rushes into the kitchen that is dank and gross.
Within the passage, a slope leads down. Amadis heads first down the slope until the water at the bottom reaches up to the top of his hipwaders. After raising his sword high up he spots dry land on the other side of the water.
Artorius starts to swim half way across to the other side and comes back when he can't see much more.
Brighid lights up Artorius's backpack and he swims across to the dry land. There, Artorius finds a trove which seems to have been kept by the chief goblin.
The hidy hole contains:
- 480 Gold in a small coffer
- dwarven war-axe (which glows with faint transmutation magic)
- 3 small statues of a nude succubus in various poses
- An ever burning torch
The party quickly splits the gold up amongst each other and then head back to the downward slope they passed earlier. They quickly puts some ropes together and head down the slick slope.
As the group makes their way down the slope, a few in the party notice that towards the bottom, the walls are undulating a bit. Amadis chips away at the wall with his dagger, and a
green puss leaks out of the small hole.
As the group reaches the very bottom, they encounter a stiff wooden door. With no one available to pick the lock on the door, Azumi steps forward, asking for the dwarven waraxe. With a mighty swing, she crushes the door beneath her might.
Inside, four goblins lay prostrate, praying to some sight outside a rough-hewn window. The party quickly leaps into action, slaying them without hesitation.
Outside the window, though, in a larger cavern connected by a curving stairwell, lay a hideous sight. Down within the cavern's depths, the party watches a goblin being lowered into cauldron of "liquid" flesh by two bloated goblins, while a half-wolf/goblin monster watches. The goblin
is dropped into the cauldron, and when the cauldron is tipped over, the goblin emerges, transforming into a bloated goblin.
Brighid and Harvinion sneak down the stairs in order to fire an few arrows at the wolf monster
while the rest of the party readies their attacks against the abominations. With the first shots fired, the fray is joined.
With the battle joined, moments were tense for the party. The wolf-like creature immediately chanted some obscure words, and appeared in the prayer room in the midst of the party's rear guard.
The party faces difficulties at first, as the wolf-creature proves resistant to the party's blows. However, the dwarven war-axe, found within the chamber earlier seems to penetrate the creature's thick hide with ease, and Azumi's blows strike true. However, the bloated creatures' blows prove just as strong, felling Artorius and gravely wounding Amadis. Harvinion landed several solid blows, but was taken out of the fight partway through, as a fell incantation crushed his will to fight.
It seemed, though, that the savagery of the goblins' bloated kin was their undoing. One of the bloated creatures, consumed by rage and trapped behind his compatriots, destroyed two of his injured comrades in his blind haste to enter combat. With these combatants removed, the party prevailed.
Following their victory, the party chose to investigate the lower chamber further. It seemed that the cauldron, made of black wrought iron and writhing with filth and waste, was inlaid carefully with a stylized copper scourge several times around its brim. With this in mind, the group searched the bodies, and exited the foul area, ready to research this strange symbol.
In addition to the party's earlier loot, the goblins provided:
- 600 gold pieces
- 180 Platinum
- A nice looking steel Javelin
- Half-Plate for Amadis
- Masterwork longsword taken by Harvinion
Using one of the ruined wagons as a barricade and pyre, the party barred the entrance to the Io-Rach cavern, and collapsed the way in, sealing it forever.
Monday, December 25, 2006
Seasons Greetings from the Warlock
Merry Merry, cats and kittens.
For what it's worth, there hasn't been a lot of gaming going on since the conclusion of the Monday night Eberron Game.
That said, a new record of four brave superheroes has emerged, circa 1985. The alien John Doe, the winged-warrior Avoral, the robotic Rambo II, and the gun-nut CheapShot have taken it upon themselves to investigate a mysterious break-in at the newly unionized American subsidiary of the Polish company TMP Cybernetics.
Their path leads them from their headquarters near Langley, to the midnight streets of Krakow, to the depths of Siberia, in search of the (now-crippled) Rage Lord, the mysterious Iron Skull, and a man in green who may prove to be their greatest adversary yet....
In the meanwhile, have yourselves a good holiday. Whether you're religious or not, the holiday season has at least one message that we can all get on board for--peace on Earth and goodwill towards all men. Happy Holidays, all!
For what it's worth, there hasn't been a lot of gaming going on since the conclusion of the Monday night Eberron Game.
That said, a new record of four brave superheroes has emerged, circa 1985. The alien John Doe, the winged-warrior Avoral, the robotic Rambo II, and the gun-nut CheapShot have taken it upon themselves to investigate a mysterious break-in at the newly unionized American subsidiary of the Polish company TMP Cybernetics.
Their path leads them from their headquarters near Langley, to the midnight streets of Krakow, to the depths of Siberia, in search of the (now-crippled) Rage Lord, the mysterious Iron Skull, and a man in green who may prove to be their greatest adversary yet....
In the meanwhile, have yourselves a good holiday. Whether you're religious or not, the holiday season has at least one message that we can all get on board for--peace on Earth and goodwill towards all men. Happy Holidays, all!
Friday, December 08, 2006
Musings of the Warlock--How Complete Arcane Changed Third Edition
I was in the tub a few days ago--I, like most people, do a lot of good thinking in the bathroom--and came upon a bit of a revelation.
I've been gaming for just about 15 years now. While I started in the midst of Dungeons and Dragons' second edition, I was quite familiar with the first edition rules, as well as that of Palladium's various systems.
The very foundation of the Dungeons and Dragons concept of magic revolves around a bastardized version of the magic system used by author Jack Vance, in his Dying Earth series. Within gaming circles, this knowledge is not uncommon. Vance was one of the first popular fantasy writers to come up with the idea of magic as a 'fire and forget' system. Your first level wizard would prepare/memorize/ready his magic missile, but when that spell was cast, it was gone for at least 8 hours.
This concept of 'fire and forget' magic translated easily into D&D, splitting evenly along the lines of divine and arcane magics. It was simple for a player to tell how many spells he had left, what level of spells were available, and what he could do at any given time. That said, many gamers felt frustrated with their inability to replicate the iconic spellcasters of fantasy and folklore.
And, seriously...who can blame them? Tolkien didn't exactly sit around worrying how many 8th level spells Gandalf can pump out in a day, or whether Saruman memorized that Telekinesis spell with a metamagic effect on it. Robert E. Howard didn't spend time figuring out whether Thulsa-Doom should use Polymorph Self or Shapechange. Tennyson and Malory didn't exactly worry so much about whether Merlin had cantrips or not.
This debate went on into third edition and its 'successor', 3.5e. While revolutionary, particularly in terms of the System Reference Document and the Open Gaming license, the Vancian-based magic system continued in terms of both wizard and sorcerer, both druid and cleric, and even the lowly bard. Always, we seemed pinned into 'fire and forget'.
This is not to say that other systems have not gone in other directions. Countless systems have. Even D&D has, to lesser degrees, through its psionics system, even in second edition. The problem there, though, is the fact that psionics is a marginalized segment, even within the more open scope of third edition. Within second, the system was stigmatized for balance issues, making playability and popularity minimal.
However, after the advent of 3.5e, Complete Arcane was released. And with CArc came a novel concept--the Warlock. For the first time in the history of Dungeons and Dragons, players were given a spellcaster who was not limited by spell slots or memorization. Instead, it was merely a matter of knowing or not knowing an invocation.
The uproar, at least on the Wizards of the Coast message boards, was immense. Many players simply did not comprehend how to play the class. Where a wizard or sorcerer would simply run out of spells, the warlock could run all day, non-stop, yet still remain balanced with its Vancian counterparts.
From there, the warlock's popularity led to further innovation within the D&D magic system. Tome of Magic, featuring the TrueNamer and the Binder, both featured functional magic systems that were comparable to those of the wizard and sorcerer, yet provided unique alternatives. The binder had access to any of its abilities, once per five rounds. The truenamer could use its highest abilities over and over again, provided he could make his ever-escalating true-name check.
Magic of Incarnum pushed the envelope farther, impinging on the realms of New Age mysticism and Far Eastern metaphysics through chakra binds and soul melds. Again, these did not require spell slots or memorization--just pick what you like. The higher you get in level, the more earth-shaking things you can do.
So different, so innovative were these concepts within D&D that they have spread out of the realm of magic and into the realm of melee combat, through Tome of Battle: The Book of Nine Swords. Again, rather than readying maneuvers based on a Vancian system of x per day, we find abilities that can be refreshed in mid-combat, and are automatically regained following a battle.
Now, what does this mean for the discerning player? Well, by and large, it means more fun. Players enjoy seeing their characters at their best. When we're low on hit points, low on spells, low on resources, it becomes difficult to succeed at any major task. The priority for the player and for the character becomes resting, not adventuring. We, as players, play the game to fictitiously adventure, not to fictiously rest. These new systems accentuate this style of play, moving on the action faster and more furiously, pleasing both players and DMs.
What does this mean for the industry? This, above all else, shows the gilded age of D&D that has been upon us. For 25 years, authors have felt constrained to comply with the Vancian system, simply for verisimilitude. For the first time, we have authors, on a large scale, stretching their wings within the D&D engine. New systems, new concepts, mean more innovation across the board.
Needless to say, this sort of change is hard to fathom, coming from only one base class in a splatbook. But, the Warlock, for the first time, provided a divergent point of view--showing us that D&D can still be D&D without spell slots...and sometimes can even be more fun for it. The Warlock and its ilk will never replace with typical Vancian wizards and sorcerers of D&D--there's too much heritage there to fully overcome that massive mountain--but, the point remains that D&D has changed...particularly, changed for the better.
I've been gaming for just about 15 years now. While I started in the midst of Dungeons and Dragons' second edition, I was quite familiar with the first edition rules, as well as that of Palladium's various systems.
The very foundation of the Dungeons and Dragons concept of magic revolves around a bastardized version of the magic system used by author Jack Vance, in his Dying Earth series. Within gaming circles, this knowledge is not uncommon. Vance was one of the first popular fantasy writers to come up with the idea of magic as a 'fire and forget' system. Your first level wizard would prepare/memorize/ready his magic missile, but when that spell was cast, it was gone for at least 8 hours.
This concept of 'fire and forget' magic translated easily into D&D, splitting evenly along the lines of divine and arcane magics. It was simple for a player to tell how many spells he had left, what level of spells were available, and what he could do at any given time. That said, many gamers felt frustrated with their inability to replicate the iconic spellcasters of fantasy and folklore.
And, seriously...who can blame them? Tolkien didn't exactly sit around worrying how many 8th level spells Gandalf can pump out in a day, or whether Saruman memorized that Telekinesis spell with a metamagic effect on it. Robert E. Howard didn't spend time figuring out whether Thulsa-Doom should use Polymorph Self or Shapechange. Tennyson and Malory didn't exactly worry so much about whether Merlin had cantrips or not.
This debate went on into third edition and its 'successor', 3.5e. While revolutionary, particularly in terms of the System Reference Document and the Open Gaming license, the Vancian-based magic system continued in terms of both wizard and sorcerer, both druid and cleric, and even the lowly bard. Always, we seemed pinned into 'fire and forget'.
This is not to say that other systems have not gone in other directions. Countless systems have. Even D&D has, to lesser degrees, through its psionics system, even in second edition. The problem there, though, is the fact that psionics is a marginalized segment, even within the more open scope of third edition. Within second, the system was stigmatized for balance issues, making playability and popularity minimal.
However, after the advent of 3.5e, Complete Arcane was released. And with CArc came a novel concept--the Warlock. For the first time in the history of Dungeons and Dragons, players were given a spellcaster who was not limited by spell slots or memorization. Instead, it was merely a matter of knowing or not knowing an invocation.
The uproar, at least on the Wizards of the Coast message boards, was immense. Many players simply did not comprehend how to play the class. Where a wizard or sorcerer would simply run out of spells, the warlock could run all day, non-stop, yet still remain balanced with its Vancian counterparts.
From there, the warlock's popularity led to further innovation within the D&D magic system. Tome of Magic, featuring the TrueNamer and the Binder, both featured functional magic systems that were comparable to those of the wizard and sorcerer, yet provided unique alternatives. The binder had access to any of its abilities, once per five rounds. The truenamer could use its highest abilities over and over again, provided he could make his ever-escalating true-name check.
Magic of Incarnum pushed the envelope farther, impinging on the realms of New Age mysticism and Far Eastern metaphysics through chakra binds and soul melds. Again, these did not require spell slots or memorization--just pick what you like. The higher you get in level, the more earth-shaking things you can do.
So different, so innovative were these concepts within D&D that they have spread out of the realm of magic and into the realm of melee combat, through Tome of Battle: The Book of Nine Swords. Again, rather than readying maneuvers based on a Vancian system of x per day, we find abilities that can be refreshed in mid-combat, and are automatically regained following a battle.
Now, what does this mean for the discerning player? Well, by and large, it means more fun. Players enjoy seeing their characters at their best. When we're low on hit points, low on spells, low on resources, it becomes difficult to succeed at any major task. The priority for the player and for the character becomes resting, not adventuring. We, as players, play the game to fictitiously adventure, not to fictiously rest. These new systems accentuate this style of play, moving on the action faster and more furiously, pleasing both players and DMs.
What does this mean for the industry? This, above all else, shows the gilded age of D&D that has been upon us. For 25 years, authors have felt constrained to comply with the Vancian system, simply for verisimilitude. For the first time, we have authors, on a large scale, stretching their wings within the D&D engine. New systems, new concepts, mean more innovation across the board.
Needless to say, this sort of change is hard to fathom, coming from only one base class in a splatbook. But, the Warlock, for the first time, provided a divergent point of view--showing us that D&D can still be D&D without spell slots...and sometimes can even be more fun for it. The Warlock and its ilk will never replace with typical Vancian wizards and sorcerers of D&D--there's too much heritage there to fully overcome that massive mountain--but, the point remains that D&D has changed...particularly, changed for the better.
Monday, December 04, 2006
Chronicles from Eberron--The Tale of Harrigan the Horrible (Finale)
This page is the final entry in Harrigan's journal, and appears to be a message to his comrades about his final decision regarding the Professor, Dhalia, and his own fate. To this day, the fate of Harrigan Grimgem is unknown, but it is presumed that his body still lies in stasis within the depths of DreadHold.
To Khin, Lillis, Jacquin, Johnathan, and Sparkles--
This be the end o' the road for me, ladies and gents. It's been quite the trip, and it's been happy, for the most part, but I canna simply continue my galavant 'round the world and shirk the weight o' the world that's been sittin' on all our shoulders.
I'd save ye from this, so I do now what needs ta be done.
We live in world o' great magic--a place where the impossible happens each day, and any cutter worth the eyes in their head doesn't even blink. Ye know how easily life and death are moved across, what with spells of resurrection and raised life. Trust me, ye don't live in Karrnath all 'o yer life without pickin' up something about bringin' back that what was once dead.
That said, there be too many ways to get back at the old proffy's brain. Too many ways to bring him back or raise him as some undead and make him spill his secrets.
Ye also know, then, the stares I be gettin' whene'er we're in town. The eyes on me staff--the one we took from Xen'drik. Even if not for killin' Dhalia, the Inspired'll soon be after me...and ye with me.
And so, this be why I'm leavin' ye. Here, in the depths of DreadHold's Stone Ward, I'll lie at one with the rock and stone till all this be past. I've left specific instructions with the High Warden to not raise me for 500 years, or unless four of the five of ye decide that ye be needin' me services again.
I'll be takin' only the Destiny Arms and the proffy's body in me bag o' holding. There, they'll be trapped in the stone with me, in the most secure prison in all o' Eberron. If the Inspired get at it there, it'll have meant that the whole damned world belongs to them already.
Everythin' else I have goes straight to ye. Consider it my worldly thanks for bein' good friends, good travelin' companions and...well, damn, ye already know all this. No point in me sayin' more.
If'n ye want more help against the Inspired, I know a man. Drop me name in Rekkenmark and look for Alain Fannin, sometimes called "the man in black." He'll help ye, if the bastard knows what's good for 'im.
Johnny--What ye preach is true and holy. Spread yer word to whomever'll listen, and ye'll shake the land itself in time. I hope ye find yer way home again someday.
Jackie--yer a good man, regardless o' what they say. There's more to nobility than a title, though, and methinks ye learned that sometime along the way. Take care o' the young'ens for me.
Khin--The lands o' Karrnath have been good to us both. I hope yer collection'll be lookin' fine someday. Ye've been true to yer land and yer bones. I salute ye, soldier.
Lil--The world be a rough, harsh place at times, but there be great good within it. Ye stand as testament to that goodness, and someday it might come out in all us. Keep an eye to the gnome. He'll be needin yer help some days, methinks.
Sparkles--Aye, ye addle-coved berk. Yer home awaits, and with it, the sights of yer family. My hope is that ye find them and live out yer days in peace yet. Dinna overdo it on the Temples, wee one!
Aye, well that be quite long enough for any berk to be rattlin' his brain box. Take care o' yerselves, hearties. May the ground e'er rise to meet yer feet.
--Harrigan "The Horrible" Grimgem, 2nd Rank Bone Sergeant, Prospector, Miner, War-Wizard, Martyr.
To Khin, Lillis, Jacquin, Johnathan, and Sparkles--
This be the end o' the road for me, ladies and gents. It's been quite the trip, and it's been happy, for the most part, but I canna simply continue my galavant 'round the world and shirk the weight o' the world that's been sittin' on all our shoulders.
I'd save ye from this, so I do now what needs ta be done.
We live in world o' great magic--a place where the impossible happens each day, and any cutter worth the eyes in their head doesn't even blink. Ye know how easily life and death are moved across, what with spells of resurrection and raised life. Trust me, ye don't live in Karrnath all 'o yer life without pickin' up something about bringin' back that what was once dead.
That said, there be too many ways to get back at the old proffy's brain. Too many ways to bring him back or raise him as some undead and make him spill his secrets.
Ye also know, then, the stares I be gettin' whene'er we're in town. The eyes on me staff--the one we took from Xen'drik. Even if not for killin' Dhalia, the Inspired'll soon be after me...and ye with me.
And so, this be why I'm leavin' ye. Here, in the depths of DreadHold's Stone Ward, I'll lie at one with the rock and stone till all this be past. I've left specific instructions with the High Warden to not raise me for 500 years, or unless four of the five of ye decide that ye be needin' me services again.
I'll be takin' only the Destiny Arms and the proffy's body in me bag o' holding. There, they'll be trapped in the stone with me, in the most secure prison in all o' Eberron. If the Inspired get at it there, it'll have meant that the whole damned world belongs to them already.
Everythin' else I have goes straight to ye. Consider it my worldly thanks for bein' good friends, good travelin' companions and...well, damn, ye already know all this. No point in me sayin' more.
If'n ye want more help against the Inspired, I know a man. Drop me name in Rekkenmark and look for Alain Fannin, sometimes called "the man in black." He'll help ye, if the bastard knows what's good for 'im.
Johnny--What ye preach is true and holy. Spread yer word to whomever'll listen, and ye'll shake the land itself in time. I hope ye find yer way home again someday.
Jackie--yer a good man, regardless o' what they say. There's more to nobility than a title, though, and methinks ye learned that sometime along the way. Take care o' the young'ens for me.
Khin--The lands o' Karrnath have been good to us both. I hope yer collection'll be lookin' fine someday. Ye've been true to yer land and yer bones. I salute ye, soldier.
Lil--The world be a rough, harsh place at times, but there be great good within it. Ye stand as testament to that goodness, and someday it might come out in all us. Keep an eye to the gnome. He'll be needin yer help some days, methinks.
Sparkles--Aye, ye addle-coved berk. Yer home awaits, and with it, the sights of yer family. My hope is that ye find them and live out yer days in peace yet. Dinna overdo it on the Temples, wee one!
Aye, well that be quite long enough for any berk to be rattlin' his brain box. Take care o' yerselves, hearties. May the ground e'er rise to meet yer feet.
--Harrigan "The Horrible" Grimgem, 2nd Rank Bone Sergeant, Prospector, Miner, War-Wizard, Martyr.
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Chronicles from Eberron--The Tale of Harrigan the Horrible (Chapter 7)
Arriving in the Shadow Marches, Harrigan and his accomplices set out to find the final necessary dragonshards to power the professor's plane-traveling device. Harrigan expresses his doubts as the group travels through the Crawling Swamp, and begins to face a difficult decision.
Aye, so I finally had a chat with Jackie, Johnny, and the gnome. I've decided what action I'm goin' ta take, and all three are on board so far. We're plannin' on talkin' to Lil and Khin sometime soon, to see if they'll join us. I couldn't tell ye what they're goin' to say, but that's life.
We finally arrived in the Shadow Marches, where we did some sellin'. It's amazin' what you pick up as ye travel along like this. There's all kinds 'a stuff that we've collected. Needless to say, though, to the right buyer, we have what they want. That means jink in me pockets and ale in me tankard.
While there, I picked up a prospectin' license from the damned Thrashk half-orcs and talked to some of the Kundarak house about dealin' with our future problem. It shouldn't be a difficulty.
Lil celebrated her 17th birthday, while we were there. Aye...poor girl. She's out here in the middle o' nowhere with strangers, enterin' somethin' that she doesn't even know the half of. We'll see how this all goes.
I'll be honest with ye. I spent most o' my time broodin' and on a boat. Aye, another boat. I hate boats. A fella hired us to find some addle-coves who had given him the slip earlier on in the month. They headed up river with their pay for a job they never finished. Our job--find the buggers, and bring 'em back dead or alive.
Things were relatively quiet on the way. We fought a swarm o' hellwasps, which went down in flames from the Magma Staff and torchfire from the others. We also ran into some claimjumpers, but we dealt with them right quick.
Long story short--the pair (a burn-scarred orc and a midget human) were killed by some undead thing in the swamp. We killed it off right quick and started lootin'. The bodies around there had some fine loot, as well as the Eberron shards we've been lookin' for.
We headed back and will soon be headed for Adar. I dinna plan on makin' this an extended stay.
I have to apologize to ye, if ye be readin' this. To say the least, I've been a touch distracted by things. Evil times have a tendency of bringin' things out in one that ye wouldn't normally want to come out. At the same time, it makes good men do things that they normally wouldn'a do. Aye, I wish I knew what I could do in this situation that that'd be best, but right now, methinks I've chosen the best path I can.
Now, to deal with the consequences.
Aye, so I finally had a chat with Jackie, Johnny, and the gnome. I've decided what action I'm goin' ta take, and all three are on board so far. We're plannin' on talkin' to Lil and Khin sometime soon, to see if they'll join us. I couldn't tell ye what they're goin' to say, but that's life.
We finally arrived in the Shadow Marches, where we did some sellin'. It's amazin' what you pick up as ye travel along like this. There's all kinds 'a stuff that we've collected. Needless to say, though, to the right buyer, we have what they want. That means jink in me pockets and ale in me tankard.
While there, I picked up a prospectin' license from the damned Thrashk half-orcs and talked to some of the Kundarak house about dealin' with our future problem. It shouldn't be a difficulty.
Lil celebrated her 17th birthday, while we were there. Aye...poor girl. She's out here in the middle o' nowhere with strangers, enterin' somethin' that she doesn't even know the half of. We'll see how this all goes.
I'll be honest with ye. I spent most o' my time broodin' and on a boat. Aye, another boat. I hate boats. A fella hired us to find some addle-coves who had given him the slip earlier on in the month. They headed up river with their pay for a job they never finished. Our job--find the buggers, and bring 'em back dead or alive.
Things were relatively quiet on the way. We fought a swarm o' hellwasps, which went down in flames from the Magma Staff and torchfire from the others. We also ran into some claimjumpers, but we dealt with them right quick.
Long story short--the pair (a burn-scarred orc and a midget human) were killed by some undead thing in the swamp. We killed it off right quick and started lootin'. The bodies around there had some fine loot, as well as the Eberron shards we've been lookin' for.
We headed back and will soon be headed for Adar. I dinna plan on makin' this an extended stay.
I have to apologize to ye, if ye be readin' this. To say the least, I've been a touch distracted by things. Evil times have a tendency of bringin' things out in one that ye wouldn't normally want to come out. At the same time, it makes good men do things that they normally wouldn'a do. Aye, I wish I knew what I could do in this situation that that'd be best, but right now, methinks I've chosen the best path I can.
Now, to deal with the consequences.
Monday, November 13, 2006
Chronicles from Eberron--The Tale of Harrigan the Horrible (Chapter 6)
After catching a wind galley from the port city of Stormreach, Harrigan and his allies set out for the Shadow Marches on the continent of Khorvaire. Along the way, they encounter two wonderous creatures that have them most distinctly on the menu...
Aye, I'm not much o' one for boats, meself, but any boat's better than a damned airship. I was still sick, but nowhere near's as bad as Jackie, Johnny, and the gnome. Those three were nothin' short of green as rock-mold.
Problem with that was the fact that we were about ta run inta some damned fine turbulence. Some giant turtle-thing, underneath the ship, started flippin' it on it's edge, sendin' almost everyting (yours truly, included) overboard!
Khin, Lil, and I managed to fight it off somehow, but not before it took one hell of a chunk outta me. Lil tried out one of her new spells, and Khin charged after it with both weapons a'swingin', and my new spell--Giant's Wrath--helped send the damned thing back to the bottom of the sea.
Only problem was that the ship itself was damaged when the thing tried to claw its way up onto the deck. The ship wasn't leakin' too heavily, but it sure as hell wasn't goin' anywhere. It was up to us to head to a nearby island and gather some wood for repairs. I headed below deck to grab me an axe and we headed ashore.
It wasn't long after we made landfall that Khin noticed a clutch of eggs in the sand. There weren't any blood there, so we figured that the thing we faught earlier hadn't been here. I whipped out my prospectin' tools and we started diggin' away.
We didn't find much in the way of loot down there, but we did find some things o' value. As in 13 of 'em. Dragon turtle eggs. Turns out, according to Khin anyway, that the eggs were wanted heavily by the Sharn Aquarium, so we packed 'em up in his bag of holding. I kept two out for omelettes, but it turns out that the damned things were fertilized. Fer laughin', I smacked Lil with one of the undeveloped buggers... She wasn't too happy about that one.
From there, we started about cuttin' down some trees. Only thing was that Lil--who I swear, has a shorter attention span than the gnome--noticed the volcano at the center of the island.
Now, if ye be readin' this journal, ye can probably imagine my thoughts on volcanoes at this point. Lava, heat...not me first choice of interest. But, the two damned fools played on me dwarven weakness for gems, and we headed in.
If it weren't for some luck at that point, we'd a been nothin' but bird food. Turns out that the volcano--extinct, though it was--was bein' used by a roc. Yeah, the fuckin' roc.
Luckily, we were able to get jump on the damned thing. I cast some spells on meself, as well as on Khin, which gave us the upper hand. Basically, I kept him on the ground with Mountain Stance, so he could lay into it with sword and mace. Between Khin and Lil's hacking, and my spells, we finished it off in no time.
We managed to pull out some nice loot from the roc's nest, then made it back to the ship with the wood needed for the repairs. All in all, not a bad day's work, but I'm eager to get to the Shadow Marches already. I have some sellin' to do...
Aye, I'm not much o' one for boats, meself, but any boat's better than a damned airship. I was still sick, but nowhere near's as bad as Jackie, Johnny, and the gnome. Those three were nothin' short of green as rock-mold.
Problem with that was the fact that we were about ta run inta some damned fine turbulence. Some giant turtle-thing, underneath the ship, started flippin' it on it's edge, sendin' almost everyting (yours truly, included) overboard!
Khin, Lil, and I managed to fight it off somehow, but not before it took one hell of a chunk outta me. Lil tried out one of her new spells, and Khin charged after it with both weapons a'swingin', and my new spell--Giant's Wrath--helped send the damned thing back to the bottom of the sea.
Only problem was that the ship itself was damaged when the thing tried to claw its way up onto the deck. The ship wasn't leakin' too heavily, but it sure as hell wasn't goin' anywhere. It was up to us to head to a nearby island and gather some wood for repairs. I headed below deck to grab me an axe and we headed ashore.
It wasn't long after we made landfall that Khin noticed a clutch of eggs in the sand. There weren't any blood there, so we figured that the thing we faught earlier hadn't been here. I whipped out my prospectin' tools and we started diggin' away.
We didn't find much in the way of loot down there, but we did find some things o' value. As in 13 of 'em. Dragon turtle eggs. Turns out, according to Khin anyway, that the eggs were wanted heavily by the Sharn Aquarium, so we packed 'em up in his bag of holding. I kept two out for omelettes, but it turns out that the damned things were fertilized. Fer laughin', I smacked Lil with one of the undeveloped buggers... She wasn't too happy about that one.
From there, we started about cuttin' down some trees. Only thing was that Lil--who I swear, has a shorter attention span than the gnome--noticed the volcano at the center of the island.
Now, if ye be readin' this journal, ye can probably imagine my thoughts on volcanoes at this point. Lava, heat...not me first choice of interest. But, the two damned fools played on me dwarven weakness for gems, and we headed in.
If it weren't for some luck at that point, we'd a been nothin' but bird food. Turns out that the volcano--extinct, though it was--was bein' used by a roc. Yeah, the fuckin' roc.
Luckily, we were able to get jump on the damned thing. I cast some spells on meself, as well as on Khin, which gave us the upper hand. Basically, I kept him on the ground with Mountain Stance, so he could lay into it with sword and mace. Between Khin and Lil's hacking, and my spells, we finished it off in no time.
We managed to pull out some nice loot from the roc's nest, then made it back to the ship with the wood needed for the repairs. All in all, not a bad day's work, but I'm eager to get to the Shadow Marches already. I have some sellin' to do...
Friday, November 03, 2006
Chronicles from Eberron--The Tale of Harrigan the Horrible (Chapter 5)
As Harrigan and his companions return from the tomb of Sharataz, the undead fire giant sorcerer, they come upon a strange sight--a massive ivory tower standing in the midst of the jungle. The lone inhabitant of this tower may well change their lives forever...
Aye, so we finally got ourselves out of the damned cavern of Sharataz--not the least bit fast enough for my taste. Ye know, I'm about as hands-on as ye get. I get in, get me hands dirty and get after whatever there be to get afterin'. However, this was one time where I'd have rather'a been back in Fairhaaven, readin' up on giants, rather than findin' them.
My legs were still sore from the lava last time, and I'll freely admit, I's a bit testy. But, when Jackie came back from scoutin' the path ahead, I didn't have so much patience with the fop.
He came out o' the clearin' up ahead sayin' something about a spiralin' white tower in the middle of the jungle. Well, the damned fool went back and checked, then started claimin' somethin' about warforged guarding it. Warforged. In the middle of the damned jungle. Even the damned gnome didn't believe him after that.
But, go figure--the fop was actually tellin' the truth for once. Given that, I didn't even want ta mess with the situation. I used me new staff and summoned up an earth elemental, then sent him after the damned 'forged.
I'll save ye the details o' the combat and get to the point--no force on or under earth can stand against pure elemental earth in bodily form. The elemental lit'rally crushed the damned creatures beneath its fists with no effort whatsoever. Yeah, yeah....the gnome and the others contributed with those damned drow boomerangs, and I even got to try out me new spell--a conjured, razor-sharp stalagmite--but the elemental did the heavy lifting.
As soon as we arrived outside and finished off the warforged, all of us could hear a weird combo o' sounds--something like a mechanical whirring, with murmuring underneath it. Immediately, Lil, Jackie and Khin started climbin' on into the tower, but I held back to look around with the gnome and Johnny.
I can't say what they saw inside, at least a' the beginnin'. But, outside, there was a huge crack in the earth. I could practically feel the ground screamin' beneath me. The gnome dropped one of his crazy devices in and lights flared down in the gorge--the bottom was covered in warforged components on an assembly line. Some damned fool was startin' to build new 'forged.
I couldn't stand fer that. I can't stand the House Cannith bastards, but the idea of makin' new warforged just smacks me the wrong way. I closed off the crevasse, crushing all of the components fer good.
It was that point that Lil dropped me a Message. Somethin' about a giant imprisoned in in some damned device inside. Grabbin' up Johnny and the gnome, I hurried on in.
The tower led up quite a piece, with only one door, which led back down into the depths of an unlit factory floor. We clambered down to see a hideous sight--a giant trapped in suspended animation, behind some crazy Cannith contraption.
I knew who it was immediately. I'd read about him back in Fairhaaven, then again in Sharataz's tomb. This giant was one that fought against the Quori, over 13,000 years prior, using one of the four Destiny Arms. Particularly, he used a glaive that channeled elemental earth and negative energy, severing the ability to for the Quori to possess their foes. Immediately, I had 'em start lookin' for a way to get the feller out.
That was my mistake. Jack-o and the gnome found a console of buttons, and immediately started pissin' around with 'em. With the lights blinkin' around us, and the factory half-comin' to life, I couldn't take it anymore. I shattered the damned console, and the entire factory went black.
Luckily, dwarven blood be hardier than that of piss-poor humans. The giant was freed, and we had ourselves a nice little conversation. It took a while to get him up to speed, but eventually he caught on.
If all that wasn't enough, apparently the Quori were usin' this damned facility for creatin' old-style warforged to continue their siege on Adar. Somehow, I didn't feel so bad anymore for destroyin' the whole place. The Quori had, as well, their own damned gateway outside, according to the giant.
Well, I figured that we damned well had better put a stop to that, as well. A casting of Stone-Shape later, and what once looked like a runic circle now looks like nothin' more than ground. Good riddance to the damned bastards.
Luckily, we also found the giant's glaive. Some damned fool, not knowin' what he had, dropped it in the well outside. Easily gotten, we gave that one back.
It was there that the giant and meself got into a bit of a tiff. As I said, me temper was not of the best that day. He wanted to take me staff, claimin' that the Quori'd after us to get it back--apparently, the giants used the four Destiny Arms to banish them in the first place and, if they were re-united, they could undo the magics. I told him, plain and simple, that the staff was mine, and it'd make more sense anyway to keep the Arms separated.
Right in the midst of the argument, we got a rude awakening. Some fella, with an iron dog-like thing and a chick, came up claimin' that the tower was his. Now, I'm no archmage, but I can see the writin' on the stone wall. If this fella thinks that the tower is his, and that he dows the work here....even if he's from Cannith, then he's also allied with the Quori and knew that the giant was prisoner. I didn't put up with that--I lit an Earthbolt into he and his buddies and was done with them.
I pried the info I wanted straight out of his brain. He was possessed by a Quori--a servant of our old friend Dhalia.
At any rate, I dinna think that he was too pleased by that logic, but he chose not to pry the staff from me dwarven fingers, so I think he's not too perturbed. He claimed to be headin' off to find a friend of his, to see if they were still alive and if they had their own Arm with them.
Right now, we're on our way via wind galley towards the Shadow Marches. They're the last place we need to head in order to get the Professor's shards.
Right now, I'm not sure what the hell I'm goin' to do. If we give the prof the shards, he could well mess up the whole damned Multiverse, pullin' planes out of alignment and movin' 'em around. Even if the Quori don't get a hold of it, all it takes is one mistake to bring down everything the SoulForger's e'er put down here.
I think I need to talk to Johnny. He seems to have a good hand on this.
One thing I do know is that Dhalia'll be gettin' what's comin' to her. If I have to cross the whole damned continent again, I'll see that she gets hers.
Aye, so we finally got ourselves out of the damned cavern of Sharataz--not the least bit fast enough for my taste. Ye know, I'm about as hands-on as ye get. I get in, get me hands dirty and get after whatever there be to get afterin'. However, this was one time where I'd have rather'a been back in Fairhaaven, readin' up on giants, rather than findin' them.
My legs were still sore from the lava last time, and I'll freely admit, I's a bit testy. But, when Jackie came back from scoutin' the path ahead, I didn't have so much patience with the fop.
He came out o' the clearin' up ahead sayin' something about a spiralin' white tower in the middle of the jungle. Well, the damned fool went back and checked, then started claimin' somethin' about warforged guarding it. Warforged. In the middle of the damned jungle. Even the damned gnome didn't believe him after that.
But, go figure--the fop was actually tellin' the truth for once. Given that, I didn't even want ta mess with the situation. I used me new staff and summoned up an earth elemental, then sent him after the damned 'forged.
I'll save ye the details o' the combat and get to the point--no force on or under earth can stand against pure elemental earth in bodily form. The elemental lit'rally crushed the damned creatures beneath its fists with no effort whatsoever. Yeah, yeah....the gnome and the others contributed with those damned drow boomerangs, and I even got to try out me new spell--a conjured, razor-sharp stalagmite--but the elemental did the heavy lifting.
As soon as we arrived outside and finished off the warforged, all of us could hear a weird combo o' sounds--something like a mechanical whirring, with murmuring underneath it. Immediately, Lil, Jackie and Khin started climbin' on into the tower, but I held back to look around with the gnome and Johnny.
I can't say what they saw inside, at least a' the beginnin'. But, outside, there was a huge crack in the earth. I could practically feel the ground screamin' beneath me. The gnome dropped one of his crazy devices in and lights flared down in the gorge--the bottom was covered in warforged components on an assembly line. Some damned fool was startin' to build new 'forged.
I couldn't stand fer that. I can't stand the House Cannith bastards, but the idea of makin' new warforged just smacks me the wrong way. I closed off the crevasse, crushing all of the components fer good.
It was that point that Lil dropped me a Message. Somethin' about a giant imprisoned in in some damned device inside. Grabbin' up Johnny and the gnome, I hurried on in.
The tower led up quite a piece, with only one door, which led back down into the depths of an unlit factory floor. We clambered down to see a hideous sight--a giant trapped in suspended animation, behind some crazy Cannith contraption.
I knew who it was immediately. I'd read about him back in Fairhaaven, then again in Sharataz's tomb. This giant was one that fought against the Quori, over 13,000 years prior, using one of the four Destiny Arms. Particularly, he used a glaive that channeled elemental earth and negative energy, severing the ability to for the Quori to possess their foes. Immediately, I had 'em start lookin' for a way to get the feller out.
That was my mistake. Jack-o and the gnome found a console of buttons, and immediately started pissin' around with 'em. With the lights blinkin' around us, and the factory half-comin' to life, I couldn't take it anymore. I shattered the damned console, and the entire factory went black.
Luckily, dwarven blood be hardier than that of piss-poor humans. The giant was freed, and we had ourselves a nice little conversation. It took a while to get him up to speed, but eventually he caught on.
If all that wasn't enough, apparently the Quori were usin' this damned facility for creatin' old-style warforged to continue their siege on Adar. Somehow, I didn't feel so bad anymore for destroyin' the whole place. The Quori had, as well, their own damned gateway outside, according to the giant.
Well, I figured that we damned well had better put a stop to that, as well. A casting of Stone-Shape later, and what once looked like a runic circle now looks like nothin' more than ground. Good riddance to the damned bastards.
Luckily, we also found the giant's glaive. Some damned fool, not knowin' what he had, dropped it in the well outside. Easily gotten, we gave that one back.
It was there that the giant and meself got into a bit of a tiff. As I said, me temper was not of the best that day. He wanted to take me staff, claimin' that the Quori'd after us to get it back--apparently, the giants used the four Destiny Arms to banish them in the first place and, if they were re-united, they could undo the magics. I told him, plain and simple, that the staff was mine, and it'd make more sense anyway to keep the Arms separated.
Right in the midst of the argument, we got a rude awakening. Some fella, with an iron dog-like thing and a chick, came up claimin' that the tower was his. Now, I'm no archmage, but I can see the writin' on the stone wall. If this fella thinks that the tower is his, and that he dows the work here....even if he's from Cannith, then he's also allied with the Quori and knew that the giant was prisoner. I didn't put up with that--I lit an Earthbolt into he and his buddies and was done with them.
I pried the info I wanted straight out of his brain. He was possessed by a Quori--a servant of our old friend Dhalia.
At any rate, I dinna think that he was too pleased by that logic, but he chose not to pry the staff from me dwarven fingers, so I think he's not too perturbed. He claimed to be headin' off to find a friend of his, to see if they were still alive and if they had their own Arm with them.
Right now, we're on our way via wind galley towards the Shadow Marches. They're the last place we need to head in order to get the Professor's shards.
Right now, I'm not sure what the hell I'm goin' to do. If we give the prof the shards, he could well mess up the whole damned Multiverse, pullin' planes out of alignment and movin' 'em around. Even if the Quori don't get a hold of it, all it takes is one mistake to bring down everything the SoulForger's e'er put down here.
I think I need to talk to Johnny. He seems to have a good hand on this.
One thing I do know is that Dhalia'll be gettin' what's comin' to her. If I have to cross the whole damned continent again, I'll see that she gets hers.
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