RC Karyst: Globes of the Hollows

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Leaving the deer mound behing them, the group proceeded to the final marked mound: the sun mound. Searching about the exterior, they manage to locate a small, barely perceptible depression on its side. To assist in digging out the opening, Jibreel summons forth a badger. Finally, they break through to the passage beneath.

Cautiously moving down the passage, the party comes to a broad chamber. The stonework is in bad repar, and the floor has heaved upwards in several places, allowing water to seep in. The remains of a large statue lies in pieces on the floor; it likely once resembled the others the group has found.

Two passages lead out of this chamber: one to the north east and another to the south east. Taking the lead, Rhwydd moves carefully alone the north east passage, coming to a second chamber. Within is a large stone box and, more importantly, a giant skeleton.

Brandishing her symbol of Riva, Rhwydd invokes the power of her goddess, driving the undead creature back, while the rest of the group chases it down. Hacking and smashing away at the creature, the group eventually brings it to ground.

With the skeleton dispatched, they turn their attention to the large stone box. Kahraman removes the heavy lid and peers inside, finding a parge pile of old, leather scraps. After rummaging around for several moments, he lifts out a clear, cystaline globe which he promptly hands to Jibreel. Carefully holding the globe, the small gnome studies it at length before concluding it is identical to the others, except in colour.

Moving to the south east room, the party finds a large iron-bound chest. Rhwydd attempts to open the chest, but the damp and wet of the chamber has encased the hinges in heavy rust. However, under the combined efforts of Ratheof and Kahraman, the lid finally swings open. Within the chest, they find a silver drinking cup and a sealed clay flask.

Their work in the mound complete, the group returns to the surface and moves to examine the structures on the stone platform once again. After much consideration, they decide that the globes should be placed atop the four pedastals. Jibreel, hoping to unlock the mystery of the globes, places one globe atop each pedastal: the clear globe in the centre, blue on the northwest; rose on the northeast and yellow on the south.

At first, nothing seems to happen. Then, the four globes begin to glow, dimly at first and then growing in intensity. From each of the three outer globes, a single beam of light strikes out towards the central globe. The clear globe turns to a smoky black colour, then gives off a burst of indigo light.

Nothing appears to happen for several moments. Then shuffling sounds from the north draw the groups attention as three skeletons advance upon them. The battle is quick, and soon enough the skeletons are reduced to little more than a pile of bones.

The party was a little unhappy with the gnome’s rash actions, but fortunately no one had been hurt in the ensuing battle. After gathering back together, the companions spent some time debating the correct placement of the globes on the pillars. Kahraman and Jibreel consulted over Jibreel’s drawings, and the paladin then went around and rearranged the globes.

As the globes began to glow again, the party prepared for battle. Light from the outer globes shot towards the clear globe, darkening it to a midnight blue. A ray of light stretched out towards the stone block, touching one of the mounds marked on its surface. Then the light slowly faded out, and the party’s tension faded with it.

Devious led the way to the mound that the magical light had indicated, and before long he once again located the opening. He began to dig away at the side of the mound. After a few moments spent by the mound’s side in meditation, Kahraman stepped in and helped. Rhwydd moved up and offered her help, but the two men refused and opened the hole up alone.

As the rest of the group gathered around the opening, Rhwydd handed her lantern to Jibreel and entered the mound. A passageway descended off into the earth, expanding as it went. As the rest of the party entered the mound, the sun came over the horizon, shedding its first rays of light over the opening.

Soon the small band reached yet another chamber with a statue, this one much different than the others. The sculpture was formed of four humanoids standing in a square, their hands joined in the center, where they held a broad platform. On closer examination, Devious noticed a small depression in the middle of the shelf, but efforts to push a button or move the shelf produced no results. The party then turned their attention to the large door at the south of the room. After checking carefully for hostile sounds, they tried to push the door open. With the combined strength of Kahraman, Rhwydd, and Jibreel,
the door finally began to give way.

The party cautiously entered the next room, which had two more doors on the other side – and a large sarcophagus in between them. Devious and Ratheof began advancing stealthily through the shadows at the side of the room, but before they get far, the sarcophagus begins to open. The party quickly reassembled by the doorway and began to prepare for combat.

The massive undead creature advanced quickly, ignoring Jibreel’s opening bolt to its chest as though it were a mere fly. Ratheof’s missiles were more effective, however; the second arrow he fired burst into flame as it struck the creature, causing it to shudder under the impact. The rest of the party quickly joined the fray. Their efforts produced little effect, but Ratheof continued to pepper the zombie with well-placed arrows, many of them bursting into magical flame as they strike. Suddenly, as Jibreel ran out of crossbow bolts, the creature’s arm caught Kahraman full on the chest, slamming him into the ground. Kahraman’s sword skittered across the floor as he slumped into unconsciousness. But before the creature could finish him off, Ratheof stepped in front of it, firing two more arrows directly into its face.

With a broken wail, the zombie collapsed onto the floor beside the paladin. Rhwydd kneeled beside her fallen comrade, and with a few gentle words restored him to health again. The battle over, the party took a few moments to rest and take stock of their position.

 

(Finally! Gnolyn posts something. )

(Did I miss out on anything noteworthy when I had to leave early?)

 

Reluctant to touch the creature Ratheof picks up an arrow to poke it with, trying to learn more about creature and to see if it carries anything of interest.
"This one was more than just animated bones. Maybe we should talk about tactics in case we meet more of those."
Ratheof moves over to the sarcophagus looking for anything of interest in that.
"At least I got to use my bow for once. Just wish I had bought more special arrows. They were better than I thought. A little on the expensive side unfortunately", Ratheof smiles happily.

 

Using the light of the lantern in the doorway, Ratheof quickly looks over the body of the enormous zombie. Its rotted flesh hangs heavily on its frame, and scraps of leather and other materials remain as the only evidence of its clothing. However, there is nothing else of interest on the corpse.

Using the light of the lantern in the doorway, Ratheof peers inside the sarcophagous. The stone coffin is enormous, standing over 16 feet tall, and towering over Ratheof. But there does not seem to be anything contained within it.

 

If there is anything of interest cluttering the room, the gnome makes a search check.

(Result of 11: taking 10, then +1)

 

Kahraman looked up from the corner where he was beating out the dents in his breastplate. "You know, I'm beginning to wonder what we're accomplishing here. I don't know what evil forces Garren may have been involved with, but there doesn't seem to be any sign of anybody at all having passed this way recently." Kahraman paused, and then the words continued tumbling out. "But with all the strength there is guarding this entrance, it makes me wonder what we are going to find on the other side, and whether we are ready for it. Maybe we should establish some concrete goals, so we don't get too far off track here."

After a moment of silence, Kahraman regretted opening his mouth at all, and bent back down to the business of checking his armor.

 

Devious - That's true, we were supposed to be looking for lost people not long abandoned tombs. Though, all this guarding might be to protect something valuable and I for one could do with something to cover my expenses.

Saying that, I'm not happy about all these undead. The skellies are bad enough but I can't stand those that still have flesh on them. (Devious, looks down to the ground) And besides, I've heard there is much worse than those (pointing at the zombie).

If we do press on, I agree that sensible tactics would be a good idea. In my expereience taking them out while they are still far away is the only sensible approach. We should stick to our bows and slings. A handy fire source might help. Has anyone noticed any torches on the walls wwe could use?

Personally, I think I should direct our efforts as a group in future engagements. Perhaps if I stand near the back I will be beter able to assess the situation and call out orders. Though, of course I'd miss the chance to use my sword skills.

While waiting for a response, Devious starts to examine the rest of the room for traps and switches, etc.

 

Kahraman couldn't help grinning as Devious finished speaking. "Sword skills, hm? I agree, Devious, you would probably aid the party better by talking then by fighting. Not that I'm downing your fighting ability in any way."

His tone became more serious. "No, there have been no torches or fires... that's another thing. Wherever we're headed, nothing -living- seems to have been there in awhile. So I'd say we'll be up against more undead as we go on. Maybe we should take a quick trip back to town and see what we can find to help us. I'm sure Ratheof would like more of those fire arrows. Rhwydd, Jibreel, do you know any spells that work well against undead?"

 

Jibreel scratches his head for a moment.

"Well, I remember that there was this one trick that smote undead, but I, er, forgot how it worked. I think Fey did it once, though. You should ask her."

The gnome pats his bolt case and frowns.

"Out of magic. Out of bolts. Wonderful. So I do think it might do well for us, to, uh, stock up again, maybe get some holy water. Well, anyways, I do remember what I was asked to do - find this Garren character. Didn't Varg say something about G'hnna being related to him?"

[ April 09, 2003, 01:19: Message edited by: C'Jakob ]

 

Devious smiles:

"At last someone who appreciates my contribution to the party."

 

(OOC: Sorry folks, i'm not going to be able to play anymore. My schedule is just too erratic now.)

 

(OOC: Sorry to hear that. Speaking of Feywily, it'd be nice if she showed up once in awhile too. /me glares at Lokken)

 

(Jibreel will be missing you. But goodbye, and take care. )

 

ooc: sorry, weekend guards been hell lately and now I'm desperately trying to figure out where we are.

Feywily slowly enters the next room, hearing the battle stop. Looking rather uncomfortable, her eyes dart from her friends to the next. As she hears her name mentioned, she speaks up; "I'm afraid I haven't been that good a friend on the front, although undead.. scare me. I have a spell, but it's not very powerful like the skills of war that you all master."
She smiles sheepishly, then approaches and looks interested around the room.
"So what have you found out? Anything I can help with?"

 

Examining their dwindling stores, and wary of the prospect of encountering more undead beings, the party decided to make a quick return to the village of Banlogh. The journey was short and uneventful and within a couple of hours they found themselves in the village green.

Soon enough, they observed a small halfling, hard at work carrying several large sacks on his shoulders. Briefly stopping to chat, he introduced himself as Fendrow. The conversation quickly turned to the matter of Maaric's death, and the halfling hesitantly told the group of how he had seen the 'ghost' of Maaric. Before he could say more, however, a stout, grey-bearded dwarf stepped out from a doorway hollering at Fendrow to return to his chores. Seeing the party with Fendrow, the dwarf came down out of the doorway to question the newcomers.

The party quickly learned that the dwarf was none other than the mayor of the village: Orin Garslmynn. At this, they quickly began telling him of their findings in the Hollows, and convinced him to allow Fendrow to tell his tale.

According to Fendrow, he had spied Maaric's ghost late one night, pilfering some goods from the mayor's larder. Fendrow attempted to converse with the 'ghost', but the spirit only hushed him and fled into the night. He did, however, share some of the bread and cheese with Fendrow before fleeing.

While the mayor maintains that Fendrow contrived the story to cover his own theft, the party sees it in a considerably different light. Orin asked the group to come into his home, where they might discuss the matter some more. Once inside, the group proceeded to tell Orin their tale, of the undead within the Hollows and the danger this represents to the village of Banlogh. While the mayor did not dismiss their discoveries, he proved quite stubborn, and was unrelenting in their desire to warn the other inhabitants of Banlogh. Instead, he maintained that it was the party who had awoken this 'evil', not the people of Banlogh. The Hollows has been known to be haunted for as long the village has stood, and never before had there been problems.

After much discussion and debate, the group determined that Orin would not be swayed - this was a matter for the adventurers to settle, and not the people of Banlogh. Should the trouble spread to them, then they would deal with it. As to the matter of Fendrow's story, he bluntly pointed out that Fendrow, while a good strong worker, was not the swiftest of individual's, and that Orin didn't put much stock, if any at all, in his story of the ghost of Maaric.

Leaving the home of Orin, the party decided to swiftly go about gathering their supplies, and each went off in their own directions. Ratheof first went to see Geffers the fletcher, before visiting an elderly widow named Eda, who it was whispered might have some knowledge of potions. Devious and Kahraman ventured over to Avery's smithy, and under Devious' careful manipulation, conducted several transactions. While Jibreel headed over to the tavern, Rhwydd quietly pursued the halfling Fendrow, gathering a few more tidbits of information from him.

With their purchases complete, the party members each made their way back to the tavern, where they had agreed to meet.

 

Ah look at that, our holy Paladin finally looks like the valiant and honourable fellow that he truely is. That armour could have been made to measure. Truely he is someone we can all rally behind in times of trouble or need.

As for other matters, it's a shame we couldn't talk the Mayor around. I think it's only fair that the villagers be allowed to show us their gratitude for clearing up their (looking around and acknowledging the others' concerns, more quietly) infestation. As to the ghost, I don't suppose I'm the only one that realises that whoever they buried wasn't Maaric. Unless you gnomes are even better tunnelers than I've heard. Of course, there are only two ways to be sure, find Maaric, which we have managed to do, or dig up the grave, which sadly will upset a few people...

 

(Argh, sorry about leaving early again - but something mildly important came up, and I had to leave home for a hour or so. )

Jibreel is slightly tired, and is founding dozing on a table. He's apparently still not used to the sleep cycle of an adventurer.

Looking up at the rest of the group, he yawns and blushes slightly.

"So, erm, did anything interesting come up?"

 

Rath looks at Jibreel trying to figure what Devious meant by gnome tunnelers. Giving up he answers
"..yeah.. right.. Well I for one won't be digging up any grave in the immidiate area so I only see two options here. Trying to ambush this night prowler that Fendrow spotted or to continue our excavation of the Hollows. Since I have got my gear together I have to vote on the latter. On the other hand we could continue our investigations here. The old lady Eda for example mentioned that she used to equip an adventurer with some supplies. At the time I spoke to her I assumed that she spoke of Maaric but maybe we should talk to her to see if she knows anything?"

 

Jibreel frowns, concerned.

"When I came here, I was on the trial of that Garren. Well, I don't know what much the Hollows have to do with them, as interesting as they may be, but I'd rather continue finding him. Now, I think that the dead might know a thing or two, and if there is a ghost, I think it'd might be helpful to speak with him."

Jibreel pauses for a moment.

"Well, that's assuming he was as friendly as he was to Fendrow. Maybe we could talk to that Eda to see what she knows."

 

Hearing the group's talk, the tavern woman Dara ventures over from the other side of the room.

"So, you're wanting to speak with Eda, hmm? She's a bit of a strange bird, that one. From time to time over the years, I've seen some odd folk stop in to see her. Now Maaric, poor soul, he was quite found of the old lady himself. But, being the oldest person in the whole town by a good margin, people are bound to talk." She gives a wistful grin. "Now, what can I get you folk?"