Dramatis Personae

Previously . . .

When we last left off, the group had finished off with a magical pool of water and enchanted items, now they head back north. Crow manages to roll a critical success of 3, detecting another elemental column trap that she disarms and moves ahead, triggering another scyther trap that she manages to dodge and then disarm the traps, moving on she gets triggers an undetected scythe trap, but manages to dodge out of the way thanks to expecting it coming. She continues through, checking carefully and disarming traps on the way or drawing some chalk figures around the pressure plates.

The Catacombs of Deadstone Keep

Alabaster, Crow, Keel-Breaker, and Rashi
Zhven (Tenth Month), 12th, 986 F.R., 2nd Hour of the Sun (8:00 am)
Redstone Keep, Northern Veneficia, Sicatra 

Making her way into an empty room, she rolls some stealth before something run towards them, warping Alabaster’s mind with a barely failed Fright Check with 15, gaining Spectrophobia with a self control of 6, a -10 phobia. He barely manages to fend off another nervous breakdown making its self-control roll. Rashi identifies it as a Specter, it’s insubstantial and has a fear aura and doesn’t breathe. It doesn’t make things easier knowing all the obvious stuff so Rashi steps forwards and knocks the specter’s insubstantial nards up to its throat, killing it with a blow before sharing what he knows about them.

Alabaster keeps casting Affects Spirits, but three spirits pop up into existence, causing terror in the heart of Keel-Breaker and Rashi who manages to keep their calm. Keel-Breaker keeps guard on his friends. Alabaster fails his spellcasting roll on Crow, not making it past the range penalties. Rashi knocks another spectral nard off while more specters flow past them, Alabaster getting hit for two points of fatigue loss before Keel-Breaker grabs him and retreats from the frontline.

Alabaster, rather moved by Keel-breakers defense of him, is just into all-out-defense mode while Rashi deals a quick rapid strike on the specters, taking one of them out while the other gets a critical hit off with a roll of 4 draining Rashi for 7 points of fatigue loss as well as inducing a major wound which Rashi resists. Keel-Breaker, sensing his weakness and still having the Bracelet of Lend Energy on his horn, lends Rashi more fatigue bringing him back up from reeling. One more strike and Rashi takes down the last specter. Keel-Breaker helps collect the ectoplasm that has been splattered all over the walls.

Continuing north, the find themselves in an ossuary, with bones in holes in the wall and heading east. Crow spots several skeletons beyond an elemental trap. Impulsively she calls out to them and 8 archers immediately unleashes arrows at Crow who immediately dodges out of the way while Redmane blocks the rest that were headed for Rashi. Setting himself at the front, Redmane sets his shield down to defend all while Alabaster Wild Talent’s Missile Shield, learning it and casting it on himself. Crow moves to kneeling while Rashi’s Holy Bolt slams into one of the skeleton’s chest.

Redmane and Keel-Breaker keep going, shielding for their companions while Alabaster casts a Missile Shield on Crow. Rashi nearly removes a leg from one of the skeletons while Redmane, Worrell, and Crow move ahead. Alabaster, with Overconfidence and Missile Shield charges with them. Rashi’s third Holy Bolt finally slams through one of their chests, defeating it. Crow continues to disarm the trap while Rashi disarms a skeleton with a random blow to one of the arms, crippling it.

The majority wait for the trap to disarm, Rashi keeps throwing Holy Bolts down the hallways, missing his target but with the dodge a different skeleton gets his knee blown apart dropping the skeleton to the ground. They keep up the defensive advance and the group waits for Crow to finish. Rashi kills another, hitting in the skull with a lucky hit dealing maximum damage with the Holy Bolt for 56 crushing damage.

Keel-Breaker, seeing Wraiths coming for them, charges forwards triggering the trap and dodging the magical trap. No one other than Rashi has the ability to affect insubstantial and, knowing from experience that he doesn’t make enough damage to kill one in a single hit, prays to the Eternal Flame, barely making the petition roll with a 10 out of 11. A large burst of energy springs from Rashi, coming into contact with the undead and causing them to explode. All explode.

The group gathers up the bits from the crumbled undead before getting some rest. 35 minutes left and there’s no encounters. Going south from the skeletons, the find a room with a puddle of water in the center that is devoid of sassy statues and in the middle of several standing stones. Alabaster’s wizard eyes detect that it’s pool of scrying, that shows how to get to your heart’s greatest desire. Staring into the pool, something grabs for Alabaster’s face, he’s unable to dodge it as a water elemental grapples the wizard and drags him into the pool.

Worrell isn’t too sure what to do while Keel-Breaker smashes it with his Death’s Reaper. Alabaster, surrounded by Water elemental, is unable to break free from the water with a quick contest. Rashi casts Fast Fire on Worrell who then bursts through the two fire elementals that were approaching him and Rashi, vaporizing them with his fiery aura. Keel-Breaker cuts into the water elemental grappling Alabaster with his Death Reaper and then spending 10 hit points to activate its Blood for Blood ability, causing it to drop Alabaster who immediately smashes into the water elemental with his staff, rather sadly. Crow double stabs it, still not managing to blind it.

Rashi steps and takes a whack at the water elemental that had previously tried to attack Crow, dealing quite a bit of damage from his Holy Fire follow-up, before parrying the arm as it attempts to water jet him. Redmane attempts to attack it, but having done a move and attack he wasn’t able to. Worrell, defending Rashi, vaporizes another water elemental but the last one gets out of his way. Keel-Breaker takes another swipe at the last elemental but it dodges with a roll of 5. It keeps dodging blows as Crow stabs at it and finally Worrell vaporizes it. They spend some time on their hands and knees with a turkey baster getting the remains in some jars.

Everyone stares into the pool, seeing their heart’s desire, and drinking from the pool refills everyone’s FP/ER. Two more hours traveling through the dungeon, they continue onwards. Crow seeing skeletons with bows and swords heads back towards the party telling Keel-Breaker that he heard them say that Keel-Breaker’s girlfriend was ugly. Alabaster, sensing the ruse, taps a Missile Shield spell on Keel-Breaker as he runs off towards the brainless fools that insulted his beloved with the rest following a bit behind.

The combat is joined as two skeletons attack Keel-Breaker, but he succeeds in defense. Worrell, seeing more skeletons coming from the room to the north casts Fast Fire on himself, barely making it with a roll of 15. Keel-Breaker, not liking their attitudes, cuts off the skeleton’s legs and then burying the Death Reaper into another skeleton’s chest. Alabaster casts Acid Ball, his favourite spell while Crow starts stabbing the skeleton, managing to hit once that doesn’t do much at all to the poor skeleton. Rashi uses his mask to cast a free 2-yard Fire Cloud on the skeletons to the north, trying to block them in. Worrell charges into the Fire Cloud and starts setting the skeletons on fire, cremating them. Keel-Breaker disarms one of the skeletons while Alabaster throws a puny acid ball to the torso dealing only a single point of corrosive damage that didn’t even get past the DR.

Crow stabs into one of the skeletons, dealing a small amount of damage and blinding the skeleton. Rashi’s Holy Bolt to a face kills a skeleton while the rest retreats from the fiery death awaiting them. Redmane’s shield causes one to explode into dust. Worrell, wanting pets, slams into one of the skeletons causing it to burst into a fiery dust explosion and then chomps down on another skeleton’s spine ripping it out. Keel-Breaker disarms another skeleton with his boat anchor dealing 19 points of crushing damage, doubled to 38 after vulnerability. Alabaster casts another Acid Ball, investing more FP into it this time. Crow’s stabbing finally destroys a blinded skeleton.

Crow defends against the skeleton’s counter attacks while more arrows rain down among them. Redmane critically succeeds on bashing a skeleton, it’s normal damage but he maxes out on his damage roll with 18 crushing damage, turning into dust while Worrell tracks down the last skeleton in his room. Keel-Breaker charges towards the skeleton archer, cutting off more legs for the leg anchor. Despite it not working on undead (who are usually Unfazeable), the minotaur still does a You’re Next! on another undead. Alabaster finally gets in a worthwhile acid ball, melting a skeleton with 13 corrosion damage. Crow manages to stab it once, her Crow Feather’s blinding effect taking effect once again.

The skeleton archers back away, but not far enough to evade Redmane’s shield slam which turns another into dust. Keel-Breaker notices the blind archer isn’t far enough away to avoid his attack as a boat anchor smashes into him for 18 crushing damage, destroying him. After gathering the bones, they move north to find a shrine to Ilios, desecrated and missing his usual scythe. Rashi spends three hours holding ritual to reconsecrate the shrine, managing to cleanse it and soft blue light spread from it and into the tombs where the bones return to their resting places before a panel opens up at the base of the shrine, a small vial dropping out which Alabaster identifies as a Potion of Resurrection, something that is impossible to make and can only be found.

Aftermath

It’s been five hours since they left the magical pool. It’s been almost 13 hours since the group has started the delve into the dungeon, not far from the entrance, they move up into the basement and hunker down for the night to rest and recuperate.

After Action Report (GM)

This was a good solid session with lots of memorable moments and action that kept pace. The PCs had finished about 2/3rds of the dungeon when we stopped and probably have one or two more sessions to go to finish it. Rashi’s blasting all the undead in a 30 yard radius helped them a lot. They “finished” four rooms that way. I was feeling a bit guilty about not having more treasure, but they’ve been busily collecting material essences from the monsters they’ve fought and have racked up quite a bit in that department. Overall, a really fun session and I look forward to the next one.

Other Notes

None.