Session 153: Dwarf Lords' Unrest, Part V (11/21/21)

Martenin the 27th.

The PCs explore the broken tomb, finding one of the runes they'll need to escape the Rest, and also an unidentified, ancient dwarf corpse, still armored, with a halberd by its side, a glowing eye and the tattoos for 'Hundred' and 'Demons' engraved on its immortally withered knuckle flesh. They find that the 'eye' is some sort of magical sky-colored pearl, and then carefully strip off the ancient golden lamellar armor from the corpse, after a moral back and forth. They proceed into another area which turns out to be a workshop for statues or golems like those they've discovered throughout the Rest. A steel arm seems to be moving independently, and Mel translates the cover of an intact tome that reads as if its the property of Grand Architect Bhaldrul Oreshoulder, whose name Indrid recognizes from its appearance on other structures in Floivin Keep and throughout the Province.

They next travel up a natural cavern stairway running parallel to a river of the same greenish acidic slime from the Bellowbroth Burial Chamber, and run into a pair of slick, nearly invisible oozes that attempt to ingest them. Despite some risky maneuvers from the swashbuckler, who nearly toppled into the slime, they make fairly quick work of these creatures, retrieve a door-rune from one of them, and continue on into another chamber where a stone crate has been left suspended above a pool of the slime, and a strange tumult of creepy voices is emitted. They find that the voices belong to a pile of earth that soon reveals itself as an amorphous blob of mouths and teeths, which attempts to smother Finian. Fortunately, the party resists its insane babbling, and the halfling is too well protected, and though it switches over to Indrid, the party manages to destroy it with their attacks before it can successfully eat any of them. They find an extremely deep shaft into the belly of the earth nearby, but double back to rest their wounds.



Martenin the 28th.

After resting and regaining magic for Gary and Melvin, the druid uses stone shape to craft a ramp that will safely allow them to grab the stone crate. Indrid cuts it loose from above, and although the crate does splash into the side of the acid, the others safely remove it. They find a lot of items that were stashed by clever laborers that must have worked on building the Rest, including yet another of the runes they will need to exit through the upper level. Only one such rune now remains missing... After grabbing what they wish from the crate, they examine the shaft into the earth, Gary transforming into a hummingbird to hover down. Apparently there are white-glowing torches placed in the shaft-walls roughly every 50', but even after descending about 300' down, Gary sees no end to them, transforms to an eagle form, and then flies back up with one of the torches and a sack of climbing tools that was hanging nearby. They examine the supplies, finding a naughty deck of female orc playing cards, and Indrid notes that the grappling hook rope is fashioned unlike what dwarves, men and halflings use in the Empire. They note that there was some sort of scuffle, with some dried blood, ichor and flaked off black scales...

In the next area, they encounter the owners of such scales, feasting upon the corpse of a basilisk or some other underground denizen. A pair of hooked, large humanoids attempt to take them down, and Gary finds himself in a dire situation facing one in eagle form, knocked out and saved only by the very last of the private healing potions in the possession of Melvin and Sir Stratton. The beasts almost take down Stratton (again!), and succeed in dismantling Fleshless Tess (yet again...). Once the PCs at last defeat the pair of creatures, they sweep up all the chips of bone and armor they can find, and place those with the pick-axe Trogsbane into the bag of holding. Deeper into the creatures' lair, they find a massive pile of bones, belonging to various dwarf corpses and other creatures of the Rest, but there are two places in the pile that seem to be shifting about...only to reveal a pair of BABY hook horrors...



PCs: Finian Redfoot, Gary Greasewax, Indrid Hosspotch

Session 152: Dwarf Lords' Unrest, Part IV (10/10/21)

Martenin the 27th.

The fiery light the PCs are confronted with turns out to be a green-burning skull and a quartet of disembodied skeletal arms wielding weapons, which attack them immediately. The skull fires out missiles of energy repeatedly, which our heroes cannot avoid, but they eventually manage to bring it down while they face off against the arms. The skull continues to regenerate so they keep hitting it, Indrid eventually tries to crush it, but it starts to reconstitute, so Mel drops it in the acidic green goo in the Bellowbroth burial chamber. Gary wild shapes into a carnivorous ape to toss the column off the giant anvil in the chamber, which turns out to be some sort of chest. In order to open it, they need to find a square headed hammer. Desiring to search the sarcophagus in the slime, the ape begins to pull it after attaching the gargoyle grappling hook. This activates the hammer golem in the chamber, and a desperate race begins. Thanks to a team effort and a pair of blows from Tess wielding the Grizzlebeard pick-axe, they are able to destroy it before it can do more than maul Ape-Gary a few times.



Sure enough, they find a square-headed hammer in the tomb of O_wy_ B_ll_w_br_th and crack open the not-anvil, to find a large amount of treasure bearing the Bellowbroth crest. Platinum bars, signet rings, and gems which cause the Grizzlebeard pick-axe to flash with an uncanny light. More importantly, a tome, a strange staff and a heavily ornate axe-head which the freshly dwarven Finian Redfoot picks up, causing him to take a point of Charisma damage and his magical short sword to instantly melt...some sort of curse. They surmise that this might be a piece of an artifact which was once used to banish the Death Titan Ulan Vhor by the hero Anwyl Bellowbroth. They use whatever healing potions they have left in the cache or from the Krennyk clan sepulcher drawers. Tess 'introduces' the others to their savior, the pick-axe known as Trogbane, which she claims has been speaking to her since she wielded it. Although it's not used to being wielding by a skeleton, it thinks Tess will do until it finds a surviving Grizzlebeard heir.

The PCs next find a 'Coldcrumb' tomb, containing four black urns similar to those they recovered from Stumptown or one beneath the graveyard in Floivin Keep. Two of them are shaking on the floor, and the crypt has been warded by a dusting of silver shavings that surround the room, and a ceiling from which hundreds of dwarven holy symbols are suspended on chains. They decide to turn back, and find another tomb, that of the 'Buld' clan, which contains a pool of clear water and a single rotten corpse chained into a sarcophagus with long flowing hair. They manage to drain the water by turning some torch sconces, and Mel and Finian investigate, both being cursed and sapped of health or strength. They find the tomb is labeled Thulmoginn Buld, and take some sealed jars and a pendant from the corpse, as well as another rune they'll need at the entrance.

After this, they move further into the Rest, and find a hallway blocked off by a shimmering door with five complex locks, each corresponding to a material used in currency (copper, silver, electrum, gold, and platinum). Fortunately for the PCs, while Mel cannot pick the locks, he determines that the whole thing is an illusion, and eventually convinces the others, though Gary still can't believe it even after having passed through. The next area is the Ravenbeard tomb, where they face a smiling stone plaque and several mirror-steel living statues. Gary stone shapes the plaque so its harmless, and the others manage to defeat the statues. In an illuminated pool they find a radiant saber weapon with Trogbane communicates is called a sunsaber, and they crack open and loot two Ravenbeard nobles' sarcophagi in the wings of the chamber.

Another dungeon area seems to be a stadium-shaped chamber with a partly collapsed ceiling, in which Finian finds a headless corpse that might belong to the missing dwarf noble from the Stimmy portrait. The corpse has a rune in its decayed leather pocket, and the former halfling sheriff also finds a white leather tome and a pair of scroll tubes protruding from the eyes of a deity's half-destroyed statue. They then head towards the smallest room they've seen yet in the Rest, which contains a single, large crypt which had columns and a ceiling suspended over it, most of which have now collapsed. The place seems eerie, and there's no name on the tomb or on the arch leading in...

PCs: Finian Redfoot, Gary Greasewax, Indrid Hosspotch

NPCs:

Trogbane (intelligent pick-axe): The weapon looks as if its formed from a silvered humanoid skull, with intricate etchings down its steel half. It communicates telepathically with its wielder, and seems to flash with light at the nearby presence of precious stones.

Session 151: Dwarf Lords' Unrest, Part III (8/22/21)

Martenin the 27th.

Melvin sets up an illusionary wall of rubble outside the Soldergard Crypt, that the PCs can rest inside. The 'night' thus passes uneventfully, with Tess only reporting to have heard some shuffling outside the chamber at one point. The Guild moves further into the natural caverns which seem to have split the Dwarf Lords' Rest asunder, and find the footing difficult. A pair of caves branches off from the broken corridor; one seems to contain a glass-like web, which the party avoids, and the other has a lot of jagged stone walls, ceiling and floor, and a crevasse from which a warm draft emits. The PCs notice what seems to be a clutch of eggs, stuck in some gooey substance, hanging over this deeper pit, the bottom of which they cannot see since it angles down. Soon they are surprised by a trio of rock-like creatures with frightening faces that hit hard and possess some magical ability. They are hard-pressed when two of the things start 'hugging' them, and Sir Stratton falls unconscious from the pain, but eventually the group emerges victorious and then they lower Mel to swipe the rocky eggs.

The party does what healing it can, though Stratton will have to be half-carried by Oatmeal for a bit. They detect magic on the pile of items they've accrued and then decide to skip the other natural cavern and proceed due West, after which the area becomes a finished dungeon again. Thus they enter the crypts of the Gnarlbottoms, which consist of a central room with its far exit guarded by statues and a wall of red light, as well as two branching corridors that each contain a number of smaller chambers. At the end of one of these corridors is huddled a half dozen undead dwarves who initiate combat, surrounding Gary who bravely (and foolishly) runs into their midst! He manages to transform into a mouse and escape, while the rest of the group fends off and inevitably defeats the things, although several take strength and constitution damage from the creatures' sapping blows. They rummage through and catalogue the rest of the crypts in the area, and notice some clicking sounds, which seem to have disabled the wall of red light.

They next follow another corridor into a much larger chamber noted as the 'Bellowbroths Burial Area', which contains rows of broken columns, a massive hammer-fisted statue, and a pool of glowing green goo into which an important looking crypt is half-submerged. There are more natural caverns beyond the south wall, products of the seismic activity that must have shattered the Rest, and there are several exits as well. Indrid, Finian and Gary split up and slowly make there way through the area to see if there's anything they are missing, when several of them come upon a strange, fiery light approaching them from a branching Northern corridor...

PCs: Finian Redfoot, Gary Greasewax, Indrid Hosspotch

Session 150: Dwarf Lords' Unrest, Part II (7/25/21)

Martenin the 26th.

Indrid, Mel, and Sir Stratton the Hat deal with the monstrous pair of zombies the best they can while the rest of the party is gradually released from their paralyzed state. Due the creatures' slow state, they are eventually brought low, and after the rest of the expedition comes to their senses, the PCs open the fourth combination of sepulcher drawers, to discover another set of coordinates, and spring open eight more drawers that contain vials on pillows. Six of the vials are an identical reddish tint, and two clear blue. Next they open the drawers that correspond to the next four coordinates, and a hidden sepulcher in the empty alcove emerges, resting place to one Elys Krennyk, wearing a beautiful suit of mail and a white scaled shield, plus another of the runes they will need to escape the Rest.



They move onward to the tomb of the Grizzlebeard clan, where a sarcophagus is protected by a cage of tightly placed iron bars. Chains suspended from the ceiling drop down to a pair of stone posts which read 'Strike' and 'True' in dwarven, and there are some mighty old pick-hammers near them. Oatmeal and Indrid manage to successfully pound down the posts in time to raise the cage and permit access. Sir Stratton does search the actual sarcophagus for traps, and Mel notes that you have to press down the eyes to open it. Within they find some more treasure, including an impressive footman's pick made from a silvered skull, all of which they place into the bag of holding that Oatmeal carries.

The following area is the crypt of the Stimmy clan, which contains three sarcophagi, and empty alcove, and a large, fragile, rotten old painting that depicts four dwarf merchants raising flagons before a backdrop of local Floivin Province locations like Floivin Keep. One of the merchants' faces is missing, and they note that there are scuff marks where a sarcophagus must once have lain in the empty alcove. There is also another space where a painting once hung. The tombs themselves are all empty but contain relics of these Stimmys' individual trades...a harp, a set of jewelers' equipment, and cobwebbed bottles of whiskey. Just after, blue flashes of light manifest, spewing forth a trio of undead dwarves who fight dangerously with hammers. They do superficially resemble the ones in the painting. The PCs manage to defeat them, but they disappear in blue flashes right after. Before leaving, the group does their best to roll up the painting and place it in the bag of holding.

There is one finished chamber left in the area, so they proceed to the Soldergard's tomb. This consists of two rooms; one full of wall sculptures of a rural forest setting with dwarven adults and children a-frolic, partly tinted in a jade color, with two sarcophagi. The other is smaller and down a steep set of stairs, where a third sarcophagus lies partly open, covered in loose coins and a chest sitting within. The group starts off down these stairs, when they collapse and retract, trapping Sir Stratton, Finian and Gary into the lower chamber, a wall cutting them off! Above, Indrid, Mel, Tess and the two hirelings frantically try to find a solution by picking the locks on the upper sarcophagi. Indrid gets lucky with the belt of keys he found in the priest's tomb below the Saint's Acre. He and Oatmeal are forced to smash the other open, but first Indrid must flee back to the Grizzlebeard tomb, alone, to get one of those hammers. He does so, but on his way racing back to the Soldergard chambers, he sees familiar flashes of blue off in the distance of the dungeon. After breaking it open, they find some interesting items like a strange lantern and treasure map, as well as a pair of bars that can prop up the two upper sarcophagi...

Meanwhile, the trio below has had to deal with a nasty mimic and lock lurker that dwell in the third Soldergard crypt. The smaller creature paralyzed Finian, but thanks to a flame blade spell and Sir Stratton's hat, they manage to keep the monsters under control and eventually defeat them. There is little time to rest, though...once the two sarcophagi have been propped open above, a trio of jade statues have animated from the walls and attacked the rest of the party! They get in some nasty slashes, and things look grim for awhile, but with Sir Stratton and Gary rejoining the group, they manage to finish off the things. Indrid warns the group that he saw more of the blue flashes that produced the undead dwarves, and the party decides to wait for Finian to 'thaw out' from his paralysis, and then try to rest in the Soldergard area and set up a watch or barrier for defense. 

PCs: Finian Redfoot, Gary Greasewax, Indrid Hosspotch

Session 149: Dwarf Lords' Unrest, Part I (6/20/21)

Martenin the 26th.

A dozen spears spring down from the blunted stalactites in the cavern ceiling, targeting the area where Finian is attempting to turn the dials. He is impaled twice, but thanks to his plate armor survives where anyone else in the expedition might have fallen. After some healing, the Gravers' Guild determines how to go about the puzzle. Sir Stratton asks Gary to perform some recon and examine the tracks, so the druid transforms into a fat robin and flits about the ceiling, discovering that there are markings which seem to note which of the symbols on the dials to avoid. Meanwhile, Finian recalls several of the dwarf deities' holy symbols and realizes that each of the dials corresponds to a choice involving one of Moradin, Berronar Truesilver, Dumathoin Brightmantle or Clangeddin Silverbeard. He once again clears out the cave and turns the dials, and this time the vast old stone door opens at the seam! The Gravers take a minute or two and then pass through after the Sheriff, just in time before they slide shut! The PCs note that on the reverse side, there are no dials, but instead 12 impressions where runes bearing the same symbols must be placed.

They proceed into the next chamber, with four columns carved into bas-relief of historic scenes, four angelic dwarf maidens atop them, and a red 'X' pattern that joins in the center of the floor. There are three exits, which Mel translates to read 'Stimmy' (to the East), 'Grizzlebeard' (to the North), and then the trio of 'Krennyk', 'Soldergard' and 'Gnarlbottom' (to the West). The historic scenes on the columns seem to represent things like the Annexation of Floivin into the Eidolorn Empire, the assault of the White Dragon Woe upon Wintersbreath, a sole dwarf facing down a titan with but an axe, and a scene of dwarf knights driving robed cultists and demons back across a bridge to an ancient city-keep. On one of the columns, Finian and Stratton notice that the dwarf's axe-head comes loose and is the right size to fit the indentation on the back of the door in the previous area. As it is removed, the dwarf maiden statues twist and come to life as some sort of gargoyle, and a dangerous combat ensues. Sir Stratton traps one of the creatures in his hat, and the other three are eventually brought low, bursting into dust and rock once slain. The trapped gargoyle is also dispatched, and then Stratton manages to use his thieves' tools to open a sliding stone panel at the center of the 'X'.

Within they find an old, sealed stone urn, with Gary opens using stone shape after it proves too stuck and heavy for the rest of the party. It turns out the thing is full of copper coins, as well as a golden statue of Moradin, a pair of black boots with white fur trim, a silver drinking horn, and a flail with a head meant to resemble a fun, its spiked shaped like wavering, sharp sun rays. They empty the urn, deciding to come back for the coins later. Stratton decides the golden statue should be given to the Gnarlbottoms and thus has Oatmeal place it within the bag of holding. Indrid then hoists the stone urn itself from the pit, deciding it could be brought to the Gravers' Guild-house as a decoration. The PCs then choose to travel into the crypt to the west, which is the Krennyks.

Within this area are a trio of alcoves...one empty, one with a sarcophagus, one seeming to have been destroyed by some seismic activity, a natural corridor now crushed open further west. The eastern walls are covered with sepulchral drawers built into the eastern walls. Each is labeled with both a symbolic suite (Axe, Helm, Shield or Sword) and a number, and they are laid out in eight columns. At the bottom of the empty sarcophagi, Gary finds a series of four 'coordinates', or pairings of the drawers that are marked off, and the PCs decide to start opening them in this order...once the first two are opened, and it must be simultaneous, eight more of the drawers open to reveal shambling dwarf zombies which strike at the party! They manage to take down the undead, receiving only moderate damage, and then they heal up some more, finding a new coordinate (symbol and number) in the drawers they just open. As they activate the second set of drawers from the sarcophagi, a robed corpse rises briefly and lays some sort of curse upon the party, holding most of them, except for Indrid, Tess and Sir Stratton!

Try what they might, their fellow party members can do nothing but stare forward, as if they are in some sort of suspended animation. They rifle through the cache to see if there are any items which can help, and ultimately decide to just proceed to the next set of drawers, hoping it might free their friends from this strange paralysis. The next set of drawers also triggers another eight, from which large undead limbs crawl, to form into two giant monster zombies! Oatmeal seems to suddenly break free from his paralysis, but now the smaller party of four is left to deal with these mighty new threats...will the rest of the group come back to their senses in time?

PCs: Finian Redfoot, Gary Greasewax, Indrid Hosspotch

Session 148: Captain Crossbro's Arrival & Departure (5/23/21)

Martenin the 25th, 888 ID.

After staying a night within the Hanging Tree outside Livenoak, the PCs decide to do some healing, freshen up and head back towards the road with their new recruit. Once there, they head south for a few hours before they are beset upon by a wagon full of crossbow-wielding halflings, with a ballista and a pet ogre! The ranged mercenaries, who their leader refers to as 'CROSSBROS, AIM!' get the jump on our heroes, but aren't very successful, despite firing a ballista bolt directly into Gary's chest. Mel and Gary use magics to summon an illusory serpent and a spiritual hammer to harass and frighten their assailants, while Finian exchanges projectiles, and Indrid closes with the approaching ogre. The unfortunate Crossbros are having terrible luck with their shots, and its not long before the PCs turn the battle against them, when Gary attempts to calm chaos on the situation, causing most of the combatants to stop in their tracks and glance about confused...

...except Indrid, who pressed the attack, savaging the ogre and freeing it from the spell. The two trade blows (well, not exactly, Indrid delivers blows) until the ogre is slain, which frees up a number of the others. One Crossbro decides to change his life and leaves the scene, crossing the Crown Pasture to the East, back to his family. The rest eventually are picked off, with minimal damage done to our heroes. They load up the halflings' bodies and the ogre's severed head to the cart. They find chests full of payments and money belts, and a note from an 'H.H.' to a Captain Corlic of the Crossbros mercenary organization out of Nobbish, requesting the 'hit' upon Finian, Gary and Indrid. Finian had already shot one of the horses drawing the wagon in its leg to prevent them from bolting with the wagon, so Gary takes its place in horse form, and they tie up the wounded creature to canter along the best it can. This slows down the journey back through Halehusk to Floivin Keep a good deal.

Once they arrive, the Last Eidolorn Guards at the Eastern gate of the Keep are suspicious of the wounded horse, ballista, blood spatter, and pile of corpses in the back of the wagon, and decide to impound it while several escort the PCs to Armory Square to Major Winch, with whom they request an audience. First the wounded horse is dropped off at Runibald's Rest for patching up. Soon after, Winch hears them out, and offers to inter the dead mercenaries and provide the PCs a writ to get their wagon back. They do so, and then drive it past the Hosspotch Manor in the center of the city, glaring menacingly at the gate guards. One of them seems to recognize Finian and Indrid and heads into the manor house, while the PCs steer on to leave their wagon and healthy steed temporarily at Armory Square. They head off to do some errands, getting some of their new items identified, including the monocle of accuracy, some scrolls, boots of varied tracks, and the owl-headed footman's mace +2, the last of which they sell to Teven.

Next they retrieve the enchanted leather armor Indrid had commissioned, and head to the Cathedral of Blades, to which Gary donates liberally for numerous healing spells upon him. as evening is setting upon them, they arrive back at the Gravers' Guild to find Sir Stratton, Oskar, Creth, Tess and Oatmeal waiting for them. Sir Stratton introduces himself to Mel, who immediately attempts to pickpocket 'The Hat', but is caught by the superior scoundrel! He doesn't seem happy, and the gnome offers up all manner of nonsense for an excuse, but keeps his life. Probably because Sir Stratton thinks his gnome racial senses and knowledge of the Dwarf tongue could help in their venture. The Chapter Master asks if the PCs are well enough to head out that evening, and Gary thinks another morning of healing and night of rest would be best. Stratton agrees, and they all head to sleep, Oatmeal in the chair near the hearth, and Indrid gives Creth his room, staying in Finian's instead.

Martenin the 26th, 888 ID.

The PCs attend to last minute errands, such as Gary heading off to cast a weak cure light wounds on the wounded horse from the Crossbros' wagon. Once they all gather back at the Gravers' Guild, Sir Stratton asks Oatmeal to pull along something he refers to as 'The Cache'. Tess covers up her skeleton features the best she can, and the Guild marches out of the Keep to the Crown Pasture. After a few more miles they set up a camp, and Stratton opens 'The Cache' to reveal all the implements within: healing potions, tools, rope, wine and ale and water, and various other things that might be needed on the 'dig'. He also hands Oatmeal a fine leather bag and tells him to protect it with his life, as it will help him with his carrying capacity significantly. Once evening rolls across the grasslands, they pick up and travel once more to the foothills of the Vernal Wall, where they find a Last Eidolorn watch tent right near the entrance to the Dwarf Lords' Rest.

They meet with the elder Url Gnarlbottom, who is their contact with the Hall of Mercies and Monch Gnarlbottom, and fills them in on the details about what his clan is expecting from their finds. He says it's likely to be a dangerous place, but he has no maps or plans since they were lost in the Keep many years ago. He tells them that the last person claiming to have been in the Rest was a mischievous half-orc wizard who was once a hero of sorts in the Province, who claims to have teleported in and then back out again once he surmised where he was. Url sees the PCs off, and they put themselves into a marching order and approach the cavernous entrance to the Rest. Within is a cobbled floor with a facial pattern on it, in the center of a large, natural cavern. To the South a stone wall stands with strange dials and runes upon it. The PCs decide they need to match the rune on each of the four dials with one of the runes surrounding it. They leave Finian to do so while they retreat to the entrance. He tries several combinations and notices only a shifting in the space, a humming in the earth and walls. Finally, he comes upon a combination that showers spears down upon the cavern from stalactites above!

To Be Continued...

PCs: Finian Redfoot, Gary Greasewax, Indrid Hosspotch, Mel Sundersinch

NPCs

Fank (ogre male): A bald ogre wielding a spiked club, with a massive paunch, wearing only fur boots and a loincloth. Fank seems to have some sort of body dysmorphia and identifies himself with his halfling Crossbro squad-mates. He is slain brutally by the swordplay of Indrid Hosspotch.

Sheshoc (human male): A tall, lanky man in his late 20s with a long mullet of brown hair, he's a groom at Runibald's Rest who places great care and concern upon his equine charges...possibly TOO much.

Url Gnarlbottom (dwarf male): An elderly dwarf leaning upon a finely carven wooden walk-stick with the head of wood hammer. His whiting hair and beards are endlessly knotted in bad braids that cover half of a mouth void of any teeth, and his nose has at least two prominent, whiskery warts. He glares at you from beady green eyes behind a pair of spectacles, the left lens looking as if its misaligned, and a pungent smelling pipe hangs from the side of his mouth. He doesn’t look as if it could possibly be safe for him to be out here by himself.

Session 147: Hard knocks and heavenly toes (4/25/21)

Martenin the 23rd, 888 ID.

The PCs decide to hold their ground and not engage in the grasslands melee between the giant weasels and vipers, but that choice is taken away from them when one of the serpents goes exploring. In the confusion, they are able to pick off some of the vipers while others are still battling the rodents, and fairly easily win the day without taking too much damage, other than Gary who had some of his blood drained by a weasel that attached to him. They realize that the pelts of the creatures might fetch some coin at the local markets, but decide to leave them for later, and get the children back to their home before it becomes too late.

Their 'home', as it turns out, is a comfortable cottage nestled beneath a hill with a vegetable patch atop it, and a sheep pen. Lethys and Blinden tell the PCs they'll speak with their parents first before any further introductions, and it becomes clear why...Marbo and Sennya are goblins, ex-Skull Collars, who have given up their violent life a decade past and live as civilly as possible, hiding out in the Pasture. They took on the human orphans at a young age, and these days send them on errands to Halehusk and surroundings so they won't be discriminated against themselves. The goblins are courteous and warm, offering the PCs a meal and lodging, the least they can do for returning the children and clearing out the dangerous snakes and weasels. Indrid gives them some spices and also some of the honey they procured when rescuing Blinden from the ruined farm. A good nights' rest is had for all.

Martenin the 24th, 888 ID.

The PCs awaken to a breakfast of gruel and stew from Marbo, while Sennya is off 'praying'. She returns and uses curative magic on the wounded PCs, who discover that she was once a shaman for the Skull Collar tribe (Marbo was a warrior). Marbo tells them he has some items he'd like them to have out of both gratitude for their deeds and because they are some of the last attachments he has to that old life. The PCs receive a fancy pot-helmet, an enchanted cleaver and a black-lacquered skull which allows the user to communicate in the Goblin tongue, once used during parlays with other humanoid tribes. Marbo and Sennya thank the PCs again, profusely, and then they head off to speak to the children and travel the short distance to Livenoak.

They arrive south of the tent-village and attend the Roadside Bazaar, where they are unable to sell the pot-helmet. Gary gets himself a pedicure from another half-elf. They inquire at Eidolorn Customs with Captain Kittery about the whereabouts of any travelers from Toul Tabor, but he says they might want to dig up some further details to help him remember. At the Leaping Knuckle Lodge, they learn that there was in fact a gnome magician sort staying until about 3-4 nights ago, when he disappeared. Dumple, the bartender, allows the PCs to stay in Mel's room in case he returns. They investigate but find little of interest, their quarry keeps all his gear on his person. When asking at Tarr's Apothecarium, they are given a surname, Sindersunch, and D'Loss says he had numerous conversations with the fellow gnome, but hasn't seen him in days. They return with this information to Captain Kittery, who remembers there was a gnome, new in the village, who was chumming around with some local con-men named Rosh and Jarles, who are known to squat out at old Sollick's Mill on the west end of Livenoak.

They approach the Mill, calling out for 'Mel', but there is no answer. The door seems stuck from behind, and the windows on both floors covered up, allowing little sunlight into the structure. Gary shifts into a salamander to crawl through a crack in the old waterwheel, and spies that there are indeed two men inside, sitting and laughing quietly at the other PCs futile attempts to get through the front door. He heads back to gather up Indrid, since the halfling is also small enough to crawl in, and then he casts silence on them both. They enter the Mill and sneak up on the two posh looking criminals, and Indrid approaches one with a blade on the shoulder. They don't seem terribly surprised, and react by shifting themselves into grotesque, hybrid bat forms! Gary races to try and move the heavy wooden dresser that blocks the front door, but is pursued by Jarles. Indrid faces off against Rosh, and Finian is forced to break in through a window, cutting himself, to join the fracas!

After a brief melee they manage to take out Rosh without killing him, and Jarles, also wounded, surrenders, transforming back into his dwarf form. He gives up that the pair eventually robbed Mel, knocked the gnome unconscious and then disposed of him at the old Hanging Tree several miles west of Livenoak. Indrid loots their belongings, finding a bag of coin and another sack of equipment that were labeled and belonged to Mel. He also finds some bottles of brandy, a non-functional golden timepiece, and a small cherrywood case containing a deep-orange-tinted monocle with a silver frame. They pack it all up and take the bound werebats over to Kittery, for another, hopefully more permanent trip to a locked cell. The Captain confirms there's an old cottonwood tree where early settlers used to cage up criminals, off on the grasslands, but it's been abandoned forever.

The PCs head off and find the place with little trouble, and notice that one of the cages is occupied by a bushy-haired gnome. It's also guarded by a manticore that flits about the fields near the trees, and it spots them easily and fires off a volley of tail-spikes at them. They engage the beast, attempting to switch between melee and ranged as it lands and takes off again. A lot of missed shots and swings later, the creature's 'keeper', a half-giant with a massive, gnarled axe steps out of a door on the southern side of the massive tree's trunk, and the creature seems disturbed that they've set upon it's pet 'Yooki'. Gary faces off against the new threat. Meanwhile, Mel, seeing some hope of escape, speaks with a fleeing squirrel and bribes it to try and chew through the old rope that suspends his cage from the tree. It takes some time, but due to the age of the hemp, it's eventually successful, and the cage crashes to the ground, the gnome tumbling to safety.

Eventually, the PCs manage to bring down the two adversaries, and amidst the fresh carnage, they exchange introductions with Mel. Finian decides to skin the manticore for its valuable pelt and wings, and Indrid and Gary search through the hollowed-out tree lair, where they find a pair of scrolls, a mace shaped like an owl's head, some coin, and gray leather boots. Mel is given his possessions and re-equips himself, then rewards his squirrel savior with a full ration from his supplies. Since the skinning of the huge manticore takes several hours, the four decide to hole-up in the tree for the night.

PCs: Finian Redfoot, Gary Greasewax, Indrid Hosspotch, Mel Sindersunch

NPCs:

Captain Kittery (human male): A handsome middle-aged man clad in scale mail and a Last Eidolorn tunic, his long hair and braided moustaches are a rare shade of strawberry blonde and his eyes are a bright green. His left hand is severed at the wrist, but he wears a special hook that allows him to draw and fire the gorgeous ash bow that he carries. A longsword hangs by his waist, with a pommel in the shape of a golden gull.

D'Loss Tarr (gnome male): A tiny man with a frilly, half-buttoned crimson shirt over black silk breeches and a leather top hand adorned in brass belts. His hair and moustache are a stark white and he wears circular glasses with silver frames, that cover his strangely pink-tinted eyes.  He smells of cloves and berries, and when he smiles, his teeth are stained as if with too many glasses of wine. He leans on a black iron walking stick crested with a dog’s head, and there’s a series of loops on his belt which can each store one of about a dozen vials.

Dumple Ogre-Son (half-ogre male): This broad, hulking man has to bow his head just to fit within the tents of the Leaping Knuckle Lodge where he works. He wears a white apron over his a functional, loose set of clothes that seem to fit him. He must stand at least 7 feet tall. His face is slightly disfigured, as if he had some stroke that remained permanent, and the thick yellow teeth in his mouth are comically sparse. Still, his thick brown-gray brows, light blue eyes and smile give him an affable demeanor, and he mixes drinks with a force that shows he takes his barkeeping seriously.

Jarles (dwarf/werebat male): An unnaturally tall, hunched dwarf with a massive, droopy grave moustache that covers his mouth. His hair is perfectly parted and greasy beneath a leather cap, and he wears a checkered coat over a stained white tunic and pants.

Marbo (goblin male): A stocky goblin with skin of brown and orange, he wears a stained hemp apron and little else to cover his hairy and muscular little arms. His yellow eyes are misshapen and wide, with the left seeming to squint due to a disfigured brow, and he ties his chalky hair into a topknot. A pair of shears and a carving knife are tucked into his belt.

Rosh (human/werebat male): A swarthy, short gentleman with an upturned nose and thick black sideburns, he wears a fanciful but filthy frock coat and breeches of matching burgundy, both covered in patches from many rips and tears. His black-gray hair is balding in the center but long on the songs, flopping about as if he had wings on his temples.

Sennya (goblin female): A plump goblin woman who walks with the assistance of an old oak cudgel since her right foot is missing below her ankle. She has a colorful shawl strewn from various colored corn-stalks and her chestnut hair is elaborately braided with beads of orange, brown and green. Her catlike green eyes glint with wisdom and she has a severe underbite which gives her a prideful appearance.

Session 146: Porter and link, hounds and honey (3/21/21)

Martenin the 22nd, 888 ID

The PCs decide to focus in on recuperating and upgrading their equipment before trekking forth to hire additional hands for their first Graver's Guild expedition. Masaka distributes some goodberries and casts some low level healing spells. Finian heads out to Dronn's Arsenal to trade some weaponry and armor, while Indrid and the newly polymorphed Masaka head to the Twin Lizard Tap which is purportedly a good place to track down some laborers who might hire on to the upcoming dig at the Dwarf Lords' Rest. En route, Masaka tells Indrid that he's choosing an alter ego to match with the new appearance he received from Teven's polymorph. He believes 'Gary Greasewax' to be a better fit. As Finian presents some items to the clerks at the Arsenal, he realizes they have more value than they had expected, and decides to wait for the others before finishing transactions.

Indrid and Gary hear through the grapevine of Twin Lizard Tap patrons that there's a hearty and fit half-elf known as 'Oatmeal' who might be a good fit for their porter needs, and they track down the brawny, charismatic pipe-smoking elf at the Eastern Market nearby. He agrees to tag along for the fee of 4gp per week, despite finding Gary's appearance a little unusual. The two have apparently not met. When they ask Orlann 'Oatmeal' for a potential lantern-bearer, he claims to have seen a girl around fitting that description, named 'Creth', although he doesn't know much more about her, figuring her for a night watchman, courier or burglar of some sort. The pair thanks Oatmeal, and they meet back up with Finian. The three then travel to Dronn's Arsenal, Hondo's House of Mail, and Bowyer Bigstrings to trade in a bunch of their lesser magic items for some upgrades. With the inclusion of the broadsword of chopping +2 that they found in the dwarven crypt between the Saints' Acre, they end up a number of new weapons, including a rapier +1/+2 vs. crustaceans, and a scimitar +2. The trio then trades in some gems to Flitz the Jeweler.

They decide to reconvene at the Guild-house and wait until evening to go and seek out 'Creth' at the Eastern Market. They do manage to find the down-trodden, blue-cloaked girl, and while she seems quite shady and suspicious, she also seems over-enthused by the prospect of joining up with the Gravers' Guild in any capacity, and agrees to accompany them for the rate of 2gp per week. She also warns the PCs that she's heard of them, and that the Hosspotches, embarrassed by the failed mercenary ambush within the Keep, not wanting to get their hands directly dirty, have decided to 'outsource' the problem of our PCs, who had caught them red-handed in some of their dealings. With this warning, the trio returns to the Guild-house, and after a brief conversation with Fleshless Tess, who swears to guard the stairs to the second floor as she doesn't sleep, they turn in...

Martenin the 23rd, 888 ID

Oskar had promised the PCs a breakfast of potato pancakes, and they await our protagonists in the morning, along with some flattened road-sausages, whatever those are made of. Finian peaks out into the street to check if the Guild is being watched by their Hosspotch adversary-kin, but instead sees a flash of blue cloak which might belong to Creth. They head out to finish their dealings at Royal Leathers, and while Gary is able to acquire a suit of enchanted studded leather right there, the suit requested by Indrid will have to be picked up later as it will need some adjustments.

The trio strikes out on the Great Westermarch, taking in the sights about them, hoping that they might make Livenoak by nightfall. After a few hours, they find a dirty peasant girl who is looking for some sort of official help. She was foraging through an abandoned farmstead with her younger brother when a bandit and his 'wolves' arrived. She, Lethys, was able to escape, but her brother was left behind, and she fears he's been captured and potentially harmed, or eaten. The PCs agree to help her out, wary that it might be another Hosspotch trap like they fell into in the Keep. It turns out legit, and soon a battle ensues at the farmstead in question with a half-dozen mangy dogs and their master, a whistling brigand who seems to hold some sway over them, while fighting with an exotic crossbow.

Indrid, Finian and Gary (in the form of a black bear), manage to slay four of the dogs with ease, and Gary changes back to human for to use a silence spell, and later a hold person spell, to deal with the bandit that has already been shot with a few of Finian's arrows. The other two dogs have fled after seeing the rest of their pack slain, and not being able to hear the instructions of their master. They bind the interloper, looting his disc crossbow and wealth, while Finian searches the damaged buildings nearby, and finds the girl's brother, Blinden, stuck in a trap door that leads to some old cellar. Indrid manages to free the boy, and then searches the cellar, finding a number of canisters of sealed honey in various sizes. They grab a bunch of them, gather up the children and their prisoner, and make for Halehusk.

They arrive a few hours after that, and head straight to the Hale Wower, where they meet up with the local officer Captain Caiman. It turns out this particular bandit had been wanted for some time, and the PCs receive the 100gp reward for turning him in. They purchase a new doll and some sweetened corn candy and caramel apples for the children, and then bring most of the honey canisters to the Lone Wheel House, where they sell them off for a good price to the barkeep Crussock. At the risk of running late to Livenoak, they decide that rather than leaving the children up to the Last Eidolorn for safety, they will personally guide them back to their parents' farm. As they leave the main paths through the Crown Pasture, as the sunlight begins to dwindle, they come across a dangerous situation, a pair of vicious looking, man-sized mammals are engaged with a number of serpents in the grasses...neither party seems particularly opposed to adding the five travelers to its target rich environment...

PCs: Finian Redfoot, Indrid Hosspotch, Gary Greasewax (formerly Masaka Reddenbalm)

NPCs:

Blinden (human male): A small boy with spikey black hair wearing grubby clothes and shoes with the toes worn-through. Brambles and dirt, he has a look of unceasing curiosity at everything around him and this has obviously gotten him into a lot of rough patches.

Captain Caiman (lizardfolk male): The captain stands nearly seven feet tall, his suit of studded armor modified to fit his frame and tail. His scales are an ochre color, with faint red bands down his spines and back. His eyes are narrow and light green, his tongue flicking as he contemplates you, and his taloned feet broad and sturdy. He hefts a jagged spear in one mighty arm, and a silvered steel shield emblazoned with the Imperial Seal. Into a sash over his shoulder is tucked a sling and a band of sharpened bullets.

Creth (human female): A teenage girl wearing a long blue cloak over a suit of padded armor, its stuffing torn and hanging out in several places. She herself looks as ragged as her clothing, with patchworks of red scars on her face, oily long hair and old stains on her clothing. She carries a backpack, hooded lantern and a short sword with a serrated blade. Her no-nonsense glare marks her as a survivor, probably of many things that she doesn’t look willing to speak of.

Crussock (human male): The portly barkeep at the Lone Wheel House is a broad-shouldered man just under six feet tall, with thick, tattooed arms that he displays under a cream-colored shirt and leather jerkin. His jaw is flat with a fairly severe underbite, and his thick sideburns are long enough to hang to the sides of his chin. Despite that, his hair is thinning into mere patches on the top of his skull, and he ties the rest into a knot in the back. A corkscrew and paring knife are tucked into his leather belt along with a number of pouches.

Lethys (human female): A waif stands by a branching path in the Westermarch, with a desperate look about her. A rail-thin girl, not yet eight summers old, with dirt-matted brunette hair hanging scraggly below her shoulders. Her feet are bare and half-sunk in a patch of mud by the roadside, and her cheeks streaked with dirt and scratches from the nearby cornfields. She clutchs a torn cloth doll with corn-cob hands and nose.

Oatmeal (half-elf male): A burly, fair-skinned half-elf, six feet tall and just past his teenage years. A thick paunch is poorly concealed beneath his studded leather vest, offset by the massive biceps on his tattooed arms. He’s got a crop of brown hair combed to the side of an otherwise shaved head, a pair of black leather bracers on his wrists, and is constantly taking drags off a pipe carved to look like an elf maiden. A club and dagger reside in a belt hanging from shining black breeches.

Old Madly Arcott (human male): Arcott is an elderly human male somewhere deep in his 60s, with a shock of gray-white hair, shaven at the sides of his head, and a pair of copper-wire spectacles over bright green eyes and a heavily scarred nose and chin. He wears the standard brown attire of a local peasant, over which hangs an apron stained with several splashes of various-colored dye. A small figure of a girl fashioned from twine and husk encircles his neck, and he has various pockets stuffed with other natural baubles of corn and feathers.

The Whistlin' Man (human male): A scarred, slick-haired man, wrapped in piecemeal leather armor, wielding an unusual crossbow whistles firmly into the breeze. The bodies of the dogs seem to undulate with each note carried on the winds, as they scurry at your location.

Session 145: A desire to make cookies (2/21/21)

Martenin the 20th, 888 ID.

Bludgy rises to face Finian, and the rooster on his shoulder gives the halfling a dirty look. Five other patrons start to stir, several emptying mugs to hurl at the upstart sheriff. Finian wastes no time in rising to the challenge, immediately scrapping with his much larger opponent and shrugging off the objects that are thrown at him. He tries shouting to warn Indrid and Masaka of his situation, and sure enough the gorilla hears the commotion, racing downstairs with the swashbuckler. The combat is joined. With the exception of Indrid and one patron, no weapons are used, it's all brute fisticuffs, claws and biting. After taking quite a few blows, Finian finally falls under the pugilistic rain, but his companions save the day and clean up. There are no fatalities in the brawl other than Bludgy's rooster, which is skewered by Indrid's rapier, the halfling promising to cook the bird later. The barkeep of the Dirty Dagger Alehouse, Jek, seems awfully amused, thanking them for providing the entertainment, and pointing to where the sheriff left his weapons at the bar. 

They carry the sheriff back to the Gravers Guild, along with the whisky bottle that Bludgy had started in on, and the ingredients are complete for Oskar's 'scrying potion', which it turns out, is just a meal he is making from the grave moss, crow parts and electrum eel extract. While serving himself and the PCs for their good sportsmanship, they are introduced at last to Sir Stratton 'The Hat', the local chapter master of the Guild. He apologizes for the deception, telling them that they needed some way to test the mettle of the trio, and that they passed with flying, innovative colors. He reiterates that the Guild is short-handed, and so they can really use the help. A local sepulcher of olde, the Dwarf Lords' Rest, is the next 'dig' that the Guild has targeted, with the 'permission' of the local Gnarlbottom Clan. One Monch Gnarlbottom has given the green light to the operation provided that all religious items and artifacts be provided to the Hall of Mercies...purely historical relics or valuables can be claimed by the Guild in trade. Apart from the denizens of the Hall and the Guild, the 'dig' is to be kept secret.

Stratton says that of the remaining earnings, 50% will go the Guild itself, and the rest is to be divided evenly among those on the 'dig', apart from any laborers hired to come along. Speaking of which, he asks if they can hire on a linkboy and porter for the journey, to make the Gravers' lives easier as they are exploring the crypts. There was also supposedly a wizard or magical sort sent to Floivin by way of the neighboring Guild branch in Toul Tabor, but whoever it is hasn't shown up at the Keep. They often meet such prospects around Livenoak, and the Hat asks if the PCs can also make a road trip there to see if anyone fitting that description is loitering about. Masaka, Finian and Indrid are all given quarters on the second floor of the Guild after signing a contract ledger, and they decide to stay there overnight and tend their bruises from the Dirty Dagger scuffle and the tomb of Regnar Hammerbelt.

Martenin the 21st, 888 ID.

The next day they decide to deal with their foremost problems, the raising of Fleshless Tess and having a polymorph cast upon Masaka after he realizes he is permanently stuck in his gorilla form! Unhappily they trudge back to the insulting, bigoted dwarf Teven, to exchange some of their magical treasure for the necessary spellcasting. The twisted shopkeep uses identify to reveal a warhammer +1, cutlass +1, sword of chopping +2, amulet of insect repellant, iron ring of keys, and lastly the Stavian amulet of protection from good, which Teven seems particularly interested in due to its heraldry. It turns out that the old dwarf claims to have spent his childhood in Stavewulf, and hears the PCs tale of helping out Lester and what they found. The Worm informs them that the nobility of Stavewulf have long been suspected as vampires, and suddely Finian make a grim realization that Lester and his companions were not what they seemed...they trade away most of the items, as well as the holy symbol of Moradin and one of the two dwarven tomes they found, to cover the expensive spells. Masaka will have to return the following day so Teven can memorize the polymorph, but he raises Tess right back to her skeletal form.

As they exit and take Tess back to the Guild, she reveals that she is joining so that she can earn enough to one day bring herself back to life...apparently she was a soldier who was slain in a local conflict some two decades past. Teven had instructed them to make sure Masaka has enough constitution to withstand the transformation spell, so they head to the Cathedral of Blades to acquire a potion of endurance, and they end up trading their jeweled insect amulet in for just that, as well as a round of heals and a pair of cure light wounds potions. Finian then decides to head to Armory Square and speak with Major Rykki Winch about the revelation that the murders committed in Hobfast before they left might have been by vampires. She has received some notice about them but the cause of death was rumored to be a lizard man slumming around the town. Finian believes they refer to Zarzess who he knows to be a good bloke, and Major Winch promises to send some men with the new information that the sheriff has learned from Teven.

The PCs turn to head back towards the Guild again, but are distracted by a street urchin girl who tells them she has some information about their pursuers if they'll just speak to her in private. She leads them around an alley and then apologizes before fleeing...she has led them right to their quarry! Four tough and experienced looking halflings, each fighting with some sort of double weapon (quarterstaff, pair of swords, pair of daggers, and a strange pair of clubs attached with a chain), Hosspotch mercenaries through and through, let our heroes know that they've been ordered to rough them up...not to KILL them, but maybe make them bleed a little unless they swear to leave the Province. The PCs refuse, of course, and a brutal melee ensues. The fight is close, Masaka and Finian nearly being brought low, but they manage to knock out one of the enemies, and Indrid slays another with a deft strike of his rapier. The other two (bearing the swords and strange multi-part staff) flee, one heavily wounded. They look about for the girl, but can't find her, and strip the two halflings they defeated of their weapons, coin and armor.

They return to Armory Square once more to speak with Private Haskydd, who takes the body to bury and then the other unconscious Hosspotch is to be hospitalized and then placed behind bars. He says he'll question him when awakened. The PCs use their newly acquired potions and head back to the Guild to rest again, licking their wounds. Oskar promises to keep watch in case the rogue Hosspotch elements attempt to breach the building and take revenge...

Martenin the 22nd, 888 ID.

By morning, that hasn't happened, and the trio heads back to Teven the Worm for Masaka's polymorph. He quaffs the potion of endurance to improve his chances of surviving the process, and so he does, and the Worm transforms him back into a half-elf...but not quite the same as his original form, since the old dwarf has nothing specific to reference from. While still handsome and charismatic, Masaka's new body almost looks like a caricature of a half-elf that you'd imagine from some fireside story. With darker hair and a twirly moustache (probably the Worm's idea of a joke), the druid settles into his new 'self', and the PCs prepare to set out and find the hirelings and wizard for their first Guild 'dig'.

PCs: Finian Redfoot, Indrid Hosspotch, Masaka Reddenbalm

NPCs

Sir Stratton 'The Hat' (human male): A middle-aged man just under six feet, his long brown hair has the consistency of straw, bristling down to his shoulders, and also from beneath the magnificent leather capotain he wears. A variety of knives and daggers are buckled onto this hat, and several larger blades are sheathed at his belt. He wears an attractive velvet cloak over a set of perfectly maintained, studded leather armor. His blue eyes have a friendly but exhausted look upon them and his smile is ever so slightly crooked enough to expose a few silver teeth.

Session 144: The Hammerbelt Haul (1/30/21)

Martenin the 20th, 888 ID.

A lengthy battle with the four 'dreads' ensues, due to the PCs limited ability to deal them damage. They eventually take control of the fight, but not before Fleshless Tess herself is reduced to a pile of her constituent bones. The party decides to leave her for now and then gather her up when they exit the tomb. They attempt to crack open the four sarcophagi in the chamber, and only manage one, which is empty, but causes a hidden door on the north wall to slide open just a bit. Through sheer strength, they manage to widen it enough that a halfling can enter, and they discover a timeless looking broad sword of intricate dwarven craftsmanship. They also notice more of the empty candle sconces, and decide to use the candles found in the corpse's bag to fill them all. Eventually they discover one in each of the five rooms, and fill all these sconces, and the five empty impressions on the altar, with lit candles, which causes a hidden shelf to open on the altar to Moradin. Within are a pair of fancy warhammers, a golden holy symbol necklace, and a pair of dwarven tomes.

Before leaving, they dip into the well from which the ghouls erupted, that the sheet phantom had been covering, and find a low-ceilinged natural cavern in which the tormented undead must have been held in for a long time. In addition there are some scattered coins and a strange ring of 10 featureless keys. Masaka discovers that he seems to be permanently stuck in the gorilla form that he adopted to face the skeletal 'dreads'. The PCs gather up the bones and armor of Tess and depart through the entrance to the dwarven tomb. They get lost without the skeletal soldier's guidance, but inevitably emerge from another loose grave into the Saint's Acre. They sneak their way back over the northern wall, and decide to head straight for the Gravers' Guild to report what happened. Although it appears closed, they cause a racket until Oskar lets them into the first floor. He serves them some thimbles of nasty whiskey, and they leave Tess' bones by the hearth for the time being. Masaka and Finian decide to rest in the store room, and Indrid heads back to the Seven Floods.

When the swashbuckler arrives, he is told that a note was left for him under his door in room #8, but when he gets upstairs, he discovers that his inn room has been thoroughly ransacked, and the note that was delivered has been shredded to pieces. The vandals appear to have arrived by his window. Indrid gathers up what gear he has, and heads down to the clerk to complain, get a meal and his bath drawn before resting himself. He is recompensed with coin and given a new room (#25) without window access. Hours later, Finian and the gorilla awaken and head off to find Indrid, only to discover themselves what has happened. They barge in on their companion, even though he's blocked the door to #25 with furniture, to wake him up. Afterwards they head to Sheoldred the Sage, fearing that whoever sacked room #8 might have tracked the note back to its source, and as they arrive they realize the sage's shop is closed up and even more disheveled looking than normal.

They decide to head off to speak with the Last Eidolorn about their situation, fearing that they're being stalked by Hosspotches. They are given audience with Major Rykki Winch, one of the 'honest cops' on Clodio's list, and she takes their grievances and then assigns Private Haskydd (another 'honest cop') to accompany them back to Sheoldred's. They climb the building to the second floor while Haskydd controls the crowds outside, and find the old man in the loo as he often is. He tells them to exit and he'll meet them downstairs, and then he tells them that he was in fact visited by a quartet of heavily armed, threatening halflings who were asking about the PCs' business there. Haskydd tells the sage that he'll have a few soldiers keep watch there that night, and Sheoldred tells them the name of the crypt they had already plundered, belonging to one dwarf priest Regnar Hammerbelt and his sons. He cannot help them identify their items but tells them to seek out either Teven at Teven's Tomes, or try to track down the Arkana Arkiva for their assistance.

They first visit Teven the Worm, but the bigoted, unusual old dwarf manages to infuriate them to the point they won't use him to identify their items. They storm out, but notice over their shoulders that one of the spiked armor suits on display out front of Teven's shop seems to swivel its helmet towards them as they leave. They next stop at the Cathedral of Blades, but are not permitted to enter with Masaka as a gorilla. An acolyte named Breglan tends them on the steps, casting a detect magic which reveals that the broad sword, two warhammers, and the ring of keys are indeed magical. Since they don't have enough to coin to pay for healing, the calm priest trades them his daily array of curative spells for one of the warhammers. They are offered healing potions for the other, but they decide to hang on to it for now. Next they ask about for 'electrum eels' at the Eastern market, and are directed towards the brewery at the Twin Lizard Tap. A barkeep there tells them that they don't use the eel's oil for their own brews, but some moonshiners or shady brewmasters use the substance in strong rums, some of which might be sold at seedy establishments like the Dirty Dagger Alehouse.

The PCs make their way to the notorious basement tavern, sending Finian in unarmed while Indrid and Masaka remain outside the bulkhead entrance. Apparently the last bottle of rum which would have included the electrum eel slime was just sold moments before to a rough cut character named Bludgy. Finian approaches the brute to see if he can purchase the rest of the bottle, but is then told to 'fock off', a fork being hurled at him. The halfling deftly catches the utensil, but an unseen, familiar force chooses that moment to hurl a glass at Bludgy from the bar. This angers Bludgy, and a bunch of other afternoon drunkards at the Dirty Dagger decide to enter the fracas themselves...

PCs: Finian Redfoot, Indrid Hosspotch, Masaka Reddenbalm

NPCs

Bludgy (human male): A swarthy, porcine man wearing a heavily stained butchers’ apron, Bludgy looks as if the right half of his face was caved in at one point in time. All the teeth on that side of his mouth appear to be missing, his chin and cheek are crushed and there are permanent purple bruises. He wears a floppy white cloth hat and a cruel looking rooster is perched on his fat shoulder, and looks as if its been roughed up more than its master has!

Breglan (human male): A soothing-voiced, but businesslike acolyte of Eleste, quartered at the Cathedral of Blades. Wears cream-colored robes bearing the symbol of his Saint, and has a smoothly-shaved head and face to conceal the graying of his hair. Possesses a strong loyalty towards the protocols of his faith and especially Regent-Archprelate Luciot.

Jek (human male): A man so fat his jowls have jowls, whose handlebar mustache gets lost in the folds of his face, Jek is the barkeep of the Dirty Dagger Alehouse in Floivin Keep. A decent sort for information, but the protocols of the tavern must be followed for him to serve any new clientele (a weapon must be jabbed into the countertop of the bar, to show the shady patrons there will be peace here).

Major Rykki Winch (dwarf female): A mobile suit of plate mail containing a freckled and friendly dwarf female face, the Major carries a lance bearing the Last Eidolorn standard, and a footman’s flail with three spiked heads. A tower shield is slung across her back, and she has a machinelike grace to her movements.

Private Haskydd (human male): A tall human soldier with a patch over his left eye, his gray hair is tightly cropped on top, but left long in the back, and the stubble on his cheeks and chin shows he’s not one for a regular shave. He carries a halberd and a pair of hand axes at his belt, and by the look of the rusted links on his mail, he doesn’t take very good care of it.

Sheoldred the Sage (human male): An aged man of 70+ summers, with the slightly dusky-hued skin of a Melethezsian. Has wisps of gray-white hair on his balding scalp, and wears plain robes and thin-wired spectacles on his gaunt frame and thin face. Sheoldred suffers from some degree of incontinence and stomach problems, and is often found on the loo at his shop. His areas of specialty include zoology, geography and geology.

Teven the Worm (dwarf? male): The oldest dwarf you’ve seen in the Empire, this emaciated, thickly robed man squints out of two hazy blue eyes. He carries a steaming cup of tea, laced with ‘something’, and his teeth are brittle and yellowed. More disturbingly, his right leg seems gimped to the point that he walks at twisted angles, and part of his jaw seems to have decayed due to some necrotic affliction, revealing bands of bluish-red muscle beneath.