RC Jalpiar: The Lost Sapphire

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After selling off the few remaining party items, the group split up their amassed treasure and scattered into the city to spend some of their wealth. Syanne and Khaira visited Gurnezarn’s Smithy while Sarval went off to further explore Skie’s Treasures. After securing several items they wanted, the party was on their way to visit one of the local noble’s houses when Khaira and Aldhem noticed that they were being watched. They could not get a good look at the creature, but Khaira could tell that it was humanoid, green, and had wings. Periodically, the green creature could be seen, as before, they were not fast enough to catch a good view of it.

Shortly after sunset, they were returning to the inn after having gathered up Thrimmel and Torg from the tavern, when Thrimmel, Sarval, Khaira, Aldhem, and Torg were struck by a magical force that stunned them. Syanne, having reacted quick enough to resist the effects was immediately attacked by the small green humanoid. She was bitten twice by the creature and managed to resist the full effects of the poison while scoring a hit on the small menace. At that point, the creature used a wand and sent another force wave toward Syanne. This time she too was stunned motionless. The creature pulled out another small rod and used it like a detector of sorts to single out Khaira. It then went into her backpack and removed the Sapphire they retrieved from the site of Diamasin’s Star. As it flew off, the party could hear it talking; “The master will be very pleased with me. We didn’t need that stupid Ronin. I have one of the gems and I will be rewarded when I return to Thrir Gnoefa Seithr.” The creature flew off toward the east.

 

Sarval watches in wonder and anger as the nasty, little creature goes away. "I'm going to have to get myself a familiar. A pseudodragon or a brownie would be nice. Maybe even a celestial. I'm getting tired of these stupid things coming up on us all unawares."

He watches the quasit rush away. "Well...here we go again. Time to hunt down this thing's master."

 

"Let's head back to the inn and rest for the night. We can start out early in the morning, I suppose.

Khaira, maybe you can ask around to see if anyone knows anything about this "Thrir Gnoefa Seithr" place, so we have atleast some idea where we are headed aside from East.

Sarval, now is as good a time as any to get a familiar. We can meet back at the inn later if you wish."

Syanne, then, headed in the direction of the inn.

 

Khaira waved goodbye to the others and explained that she was going to do a little "digging" before bed. With that, she turned and headed back to The Tipped Tankard.

From the tavern patrons, she discovered that the creature was seen coming in and out of Reynard Taskerhill's home (Ronin's uncle, not his father). She knew a quasit was a fimilar for evil wizards. An evil wizard that knew of the three gems and their powers. Involved with the cult? No, they were clerics, not wizards. Quasit. Wizard. Evil. Thrir Gnoefa Seithr The Three Towers of Sorcery! Frothleikr Tower, meaning magic, Dauthi Tower, meaning death and Afli Tower for power. Figures, no one knows where to find those. Perhaps the answer lies in Reynard's manor, she thought making her way to The Drunken Morkoth.

 

After some discussion, the party decided the best course of action would be to go to Reynerd Taskerhill, the uncle of Ronin. The manor house had only one entrance for the adventurers, through the window. Khaira scouted out the closest rooms and found sitting in a living room, two ogres and an annis. While coming up with a strategy to thwart the ogres, Thrimmel noticed a door entering the living room from the kitchen. It was decided that he and Khaira would sneak in from that room while the others went around the front way.

Syanne was able to cast a Curse of Ill Fortune on the annis just as Aldhem sliced one of the ogres down to size. Around this time the two thieves snuck in and Khaira was able to hit the annis while it was preoccupied with Syanne’s attacks. The combined efforts of Syanne’s spell, Khaira’s sneak attack, and a final deadly blow by Aldhem, the annis made her last breath. All attention turned to the remaining ogre who was easily taken care of by Thrimmel.

After the battle, Khaira inspected the two doors on the west side of the manor, only finding two identical magic locks that required a key. While Syanne inspected the living room with the bodies, Khaira wandered upstairs to Reynerd’s bedroom. There, after overlooking a nasty trap, found a metal box containing a key. Before checking to see if it was the key they were hoping for, she decided to join Torg eating the meat that the annis had prepared. It proved to be not as tasty as she’d thought. After emptying the contents of her stomach, she inspected the pivoting wall found earlier in the kitchen. They managed to open the door, but turned around and went to check the mystery doors instead.

Inside they found a chapel that had once been dedicated to the Goddess Lyaut, but all the trappings of the former goddess had been removed except for a carved bas-relief above the altar. It seemed that instead of worshipping the goddess of lies, deception, and deceipt, even darker rituals had been performed; leaving the room charred and blackened by soot. The most conspicuous item in the room however, was the half decayed body of Reynard Taskerhill hanging from the bas-relief of Lyaut. Syanne attempted to inspect the body, but instead had to skillfully jump out of the way of a Fireball trap. Khaira discovered that the trap was set up by a wand attached to a wire, but failed to remove it, succeeding in blowing herself up. After Syanne healed the burnt elf, they returned to the pivoting door in the kitchen.

Each party member received 450 experience points

When everyone was ready, Khaira led the way down the stairs, checking for traps along the way. Keeping to the shadows, she reached the bottom of the stairs and could see the silhouette of a large spider-like creature standing at the far end of the hallway that the stairs led into. Upon closer inspection, she could tell that the creature was actually some sort of construct and remembered reading about a similar construct used by demon lords to retrieve precious items.

While they were contemplating their next move, they heard the sounds of screaming coming from down the stairs. At the sounds of screaming, the party descended the stairs and were met by the sight of the construct tearing the body of a half-orc apart while it sprayed forth a stream of acid that melted another one. Thrimmel and Khaira moved past the hole the retriever had created in the wall while the others waited. Through the doorway on the far side, Thrimmel discovered a dock with a boat tied up to it. He motioned for the others to follow. They did so and proceeded to enter the boat and make ready to exit the scene via the underground waterway. The boat was tied up to the dock by an invisible rope so Thrimmel used his great axe to chop the boat free. At the sound of the dock being splintered, the retriever began to tear its way through the wall. Sarval began to row frantically as the demon construct finished tearing through the wall. A quick jump and the retriever was airborne and heading toward the small craft. Luckily, for the party, it missed the boat.

Sarval continued to row along the waterway and the passage eventually merged with the ocean, on the north side of the island. It was decided that they would return to the city so they could procure passage to the location indicated on the map Khaira had found. Rivek Mol, the proprietor of the Tipped Tankard, introduced them to Luscan Tass, the captain of a merchant ship heading to Port Senkino. It would be easier for them to charter a vessel there. With passage secured, the party made ready for the journey to Port Senkino.

The two days journey seemed uneventful compared to their last two weeks and the party enjoyed some much needed rest. They arrived at the port fully rested and ready for their next task.

Each party member receives 500 experience points.

[ November 30, 2003, 22:05: Message edited by: Baldak Oakfist ]

 

A post so Baldak can finally update the quest.

 

[I know that it has been a long time since I have updeted the adventure, but we do still play.]

Upon arriving at Port Senkino, the ship captain informed Syanne that they would probably be able to find a captain willing to take them to the Lost Isles in the city. He suggested looking in one of three places; The Forecastle Inn, The Yardarm Trading Post, or The Galley Restaurant and Pub. Since it was the first of the three establishments they passed, and since they were hungry anyways, they stopped in the Galley. After ordering a quick lunch, the proprietor, an ex sailor named Drynn, said that he knew of someone that might meet their requirements, a strong, daring captain by the name of Dalmar Rathien. Drynn further informed them that Cap’n Dalmar was staying at the Forecastle but was probably arranging for provisions at the Yardarm. Again, the first was on the way to the other so the party made a quick stop at the Forecastle and confirmed that Cap’n Dalmar was indeed at the Yardarm Trading Post.

The party found Dalmar at the trading post and after explaining the nature of their trip and destination, Dalmar agreed to bring the party to Sorcerers Isle. Captain Dalmar Rathien was once a prisoner of the Wizards on the Isle and he would like to see them get theirs. He would meet then in three days at the docks. His ship was called the Tinor Clipper and would set sail before sunrise on the morning of the third day.

With three days to wait, the party took the time to refresh their own supplies and equipment. After spending a short time in the trading post, they were directed to a small magic shop on the other side of the city where they might be able to acquire some magic items. The proprietor of this establishment, Faucon, also had had some dealings with the wizards on Sorcerers Isle. He was once a member of “The Order” but was cast out.

As agreed, Cap’n Dalmar met the party on the docks just before sunrise on the third day and the Tinor Clipper set sail for the Lost Isles. The journey was only slightly longer than expected due to a storm that Dalmar decided to avoid. After eight days of traveling, the party was dropped off on the south-western tip of the Island. Dalmar gave a map to Syanne and some basic instructions on how to reach the Tri Towers of Sorcery. They should travel up the west coast of the island until they came to a very tall hill with three red boulders on the summit this hill marked the entrance to a canyon called the Scar. They should follow the Scar to the end where the river went underground. They needed to take the underground river to an underground lake where one of the caves would lead into the caverns beneath the towers. As a last note, he warned Syanne to avoid the forests. The wizards used them to breed many poisonous creatures.

The party headed around the forest on the southern tip of the island and headed up the western coast as instructed. Upon clearing the forest to their east, they ran into a Stone Giant hunting party. The giants began to hurl large rocks at them and slowly advanced on the parties position. After being pummeled by boulders, the party retreated into the forest and hid. Sarval did not hide, but rather taunted the giants a little until they left. During his taunting of the giants, he decided to yell out for the party to return. This loud noise attracted the attention of a Pseudo-dragon that just happened to make his lair in a nearby tree. The tiny dragon, in an invisible state, moved up to Sarval and attacked him with its poison stinger. Sarval immediately fell into a catatonic sleep. Aldhem was the next to fall victim to the tiny creature before Khaira pulled out her lap harp and played a draconic melody to Fascinate and Suggest the creature into submission. This tactic worked and the tiny dragon ceased its hostility. Khaira worked at changing the magical submission into actual friendship over the next three days while the party waited for Sarval to recover from the dragon’s poison sting. Khaira’s hard efforts were rewarded when the dragon decided to aid the party in their mission as long as they tried to help rescue his mate, who had been captured by the wizards just two days before their meeting.

Following Sarval’s recovery, the party continued up the west coast. About half way to the hill Dalmar told them about, they ran into a wooden palisade wall that ran the width of the narrow passage between the mountains and the ocean. The wall touched a cliff face on the far eastern end and ran up to the cliff ledge at the western ocean end. The only way through the wall was a double gate in the center guarded by a group of Stone Giants. Not wanting to face the giants again, Syanne used her Fly spell to usher the party over the wall so they could continue on.

Upon arriving at the appropriate hill, the party saw a rock outcropping about half way up the side of the tall hill. Beneath the outcropping was a small hidden tunnel, 4 feet high and 7 feet wide. Aldhem, being a dwarf had no trouble moving through the passage while the others had to crouch or simply crawl through, which they did. On the other side, they found themselves on a ledge overlooking a canyon. The canyon was carved out by a river that wound through the mountains and disappeared into an underground cavern system. At this end of the canyon, the river was fed by two waterfalls that came from the mountains. On the edge of the ledge was a building that housed a primitive elevator of sorts. This seemed the only to reach the floor of the canyon. Khaira decided to play with the controls to see if she could work them. Her first attempt caused the platform to tilt to one side and nearly caused the party to fall off. After further checking, she was able to work the controls properly and the party was on their way down. After traveling down 50 of the 100 feet toward the canyon floor, the party found themselves under attack by a manticore on the wing. The manticore attempted to cut the ropes of the elevator, making for a quick meal, but the party fired several volleys of arrows and brought the beast down as it was flying away.

A quick search of the area at the bottom revealed two caves, one behind each waterfall. The one on the north served as the lair for the manticore, but the one on the south housed a larger creature as Khaira was to discover. As she ventured into the cave to check it out, she met up with a large 8 headed creature she recognized to be a hydra. As she was trying to quietly retreat, she was noticed by the beast and the chase was on. The party, hearing a commotion form the cave, entered the cave just in time to see Khaira fleeing from the hydra. Sarval launched a several lightning bolts while the rest of the party hacked away at the heads, trying to bring the beast down. The battle lasted quite a while, but the hydra finally succumbed to the overwhelming numbers of the party.

Following a side tunnel leading east from the Hydra’s cave, the party re-emerged into the canyon further along. Just to the east, they came to an area of the canyon where a recent rock-slide blocked the entire southern side of the river, they would have to cross. On the far bank of the river, they noticed a group of shocker lizards, but faced with few options, Khaira decided to lure the lizards into ambush. She took a shock blast from the lizards that nearly killed her, but Syanne and Sarval combined their spells to take the lizards out without further harm to the party. With night falling fast in the canyon, the party came upon a stone giant building a bon-fire and managed to sneak past without being detected.

After resting for the night, they continued along arriving at a spot where the river widened into a large pool. A geyser periodically sprayed the northern side with scalding hot water, so they returned to the southern side and made their way along the ledge. Halfway to the other side of the pool, they found the entrance to a tomb. Not wanting to pass up the opportunity to desecrate the tomb of a betrayer, the party made short work of the Wraith, Zombies, and Skeletons inside. They then looted the tomb and continued on their way.

After the canyon split into two directions (the party followed the river), they again came to a widening of the river. This time, the end of the pool was a waterfall. When they reached the falls, they noticed a creature moving behind the falls. Khaira further noticed that the creatures tail was barbed and resembled that of a Wyvern. After scouting out the situation, the party decided to launch an ambush. Thrimmel and Khaira would sneak into the cave where the wyvern was waiting. Sarval would follow, invisible of course, and cast a lightning bolt at the waterfall where the wyvern had its head so it could just see out from the water. After the initial attack, Khaira and Thrimmel would launch their sneak attacks and Syanne and Aldhem would launch arrows from the cliff. The plan went off without a hitch until Sarval tried to climb down the rope silently and failed miserably. The Wyvern attacked Sarval who let go of the rope and fell to the bottom to avoid being eaten. Khaira and Thrimmel attacked as planned, but they were attacking a much stronger Wyvern than they originally were supposed to. The battle raged on for many minutes, but in the end, the Wyvern was taken down by the superior firepower of the party. Following a search of the Wyverns lair, the party began to move east again and were immediately attacked by arrows coming from the east.

A band of goblins had heard the commotion and decided to launch an ambush of the party. They attacked and retreated east into the canyon where they were going to set up another ambush. Unfortunately for them, they fell victim to the stone giant traps set along the canyon edges. Half of the goblins were crushed in the falling rock trap while the rest were mopped up by the giants waiting near their cave. The party arrived on the scene just as the giants were heading back into their cave. Wisely, the party did not reveal itself.

[ April 12, 2004, 00:57: Message edited by: Baldak Oakfist ]