Adventurers

Character	Race	Class	Description
Ambros	Human	Cleric level 6	Follower of Aniu, Lord of Time.
Ignaeus	Elf	fighter level 5 / Magic-User level 4	A slightly weathered looking elf with dull blonde hair and chiseled features. Seeks wealth and knowledge.
Tikatu	Human	Druid level 1	A dirty little ma with dark and dirty skin, wearing loincloth with no back. “What will be, will be” is his favourite aphorism.
Kho Rimbo	Human	Magic-User level 1	A knife throwing wizard extraordinaire. Covered in ritual knife scars. Cuts himself whilst casting. Prone to being sarcastic.
Dalkanarion	Human	Fighter level 5	A youthful specimen in full strength, full of purpose, bluster, and eagerness to prove himself.
Tobias Lindflags	Hobbit	Thief level 1	A sixth-born son standing to gain nothing from inheritance, so he set out to make his own fortune in the world.
Helmuth Mithaft	Human	Fighter level 1	A bold mercenary with glorious red beard and pearly facial hair.

Meadowlark 1st, Airday

Spreading out in the X shaped chamber, the adventurers split between investigating the marble statues and guarding the stairs leading further down. Following the blood trail led them to this chamber. It continued down the stair.

The statues of naked men armed with spear and shield. They had nothing of value on them, although the did find remnants of a long deceased adventurers with two rotten sacks of coins. Judging them to be too heavy to carry now, the party left them where they are.

Dalkanarion burst into the chamber, ready to dish out some pain. He rode hard from the Cedarwade Keep, having left it in capable hands of Jace. He was joined by another massive specimen, the notorious mercenary Helmuth Mithaft.

Emboldened by fresh meat slabs for the front line, the adventurers descended into the darkens. Blood trail split to the right and left. Left trail led them to several dead ends, most filled with grisly remains of ghastly ghouls.

Ambros recognised two of his fanatic followers. So he ordered his living followers to drag out the remains of his deceased followers.

Moving north, following the right hand path, led the party into an octagonal chamber filled with gnawed bones, an defiled scraps. The air was humid. To the north was a round chamber, in essence a pool with circular gangway running around. Iron rungs were spaced nearly a hand apart, making it a real risk that small, elegant foot—like the ones of a hobbit or elf—could easily slip through and sink into foetid water beneath.

To east was a most curious long corridor. Every ten feet was a ten by ten iron grate, flanked by an alcove to the sides. Beneath each grate was dark water within arms' reach. While most of the adventurers discussed how to traverse the weird corridor, Tobias listened attentively.

He heard sounds as if something was breaking the water surface, but it was at irregular intervals and he could not see anything in the darkness. He informed the party.

Having throughouly discussed their course of action, the adventurers decided to avoid stepping over the grates in case they break under the weight of heftier members. They would go two by two, each stepping into the alcove on the side, and then stepping on the solid ground beyond the grate.

Ambros commanded a squad of heavy footmen to guard the octagonal room while they move down the corridor. In other words, they were to protect the rear so adventurers are not caught in a difficult position in the corridor.

Party crossed a total of five grates before reaching the end of the corridor. And what a sight it was! Wood doors, covered with painted and carved symbols, runes, and pictograms! These were obviously of more recent make, and not how the doors were made.

As Ignaeus and Ambros approached the doors to investigate them closer, junior adventurers, who shall be left unnamed, hid in the alcoves by the grates, “just in case.” Dalkanarion and Helmuth stepped to the side, into the corridor leading south, down to the steep staircase.

The inscriptions were magical, no doubt about it. They were also entirely unreadable. Ignaeus was unwilling to doff his armour in order to cast Read Magic. Ambros did spot an overly-elaborate cursive script. It was very similar to the script on the scroll he had read before. The one that rendered himself and Dalkanarion hairless. The one that turned two of his colleagues into charcoal. Naturally, he read it.

The script read:

“Klekless Racoba”

Silent gasps could be heard.

Have they finally found the fugitive wizard?

Paranoia set in.

What's with the grates?

What's with the runes?

The doors must obviously be trapped!

What to do? How to open them?

Alarmed yelling disrupted adventurers' contemplation.

Tikatu the pygmy was first to see the horror that befell Ambros's squadron.

Desperate screams supplanted yelling as a pack of feral ghouls tore through the heavy footmen. The latter were completely surprised.

“Begone in the name of Aniu! Begone in the name of Forseti!” Ambros bellowed, holding the golden gavel up high.

Undead cannibals fled in presence of such awesome divinity. They left a gory scene behind them. Not a single footman was left standing. Tikatu and Tobias could hear sounds of splashing water as the monsters fled.

“Let's just pour all the oil we have on the doors. Then we burn them down.”

Everyone agreed. Once the doors were well oiled, the adventurers returned to the octagonal chamber. They avoided the grates on their way back. Looking at the pool to the north did not reveal any floating ghouls. Quiet splashing could be heard from time to time.

Illustration by Brulligrum.

Ambros found that four of the footmen were still alive, albeit paralysed. They were dragged into the corner and left there to recover.

Dalkanarion, Helmuth, and Ignaeus decide to lift the grate closest to them, to form a sort of barrier in case something comes at them down the long corridor. Elf was tasked with looping a rope through the rungs. As soon as he pushed the rope down one of the rungs, three pairs of rotted arms emerged from the water and clawed at him. Being an elf he was not susceptible to the perils of ghoulish caress, so he just shrugged them off. The plan was abandoned.

Tobias was trusted with the task of hitting a large, immovable plank at hundred feet. He wrapped an oil soaked rug around his arrow tip. Then he lit it. Finally, he shot it straight down the corridor, hitting his target true.

The doors caught fire. By the time they burnt down, the surviving heavy footmen have regained their facilities. Whole party moved onward, sidestepping grates as before. Ignaeus took the rearguard. Four heavy footmen were assigned to watch the south corridor leading down the steep staircase. Others investigated the chamber up ahead.

The room was finely furnished. Large, plush carpet dominated the center. A solid bed was to the south. Heavy oak writing desk was to the east. Tall closet was next to it. North wall was lined with wooden shelves. There were another doors to the north too, and they too were covered with symbols and arcane lettering.

Besides the furniture, room was almost empty. There was no mattress nor lining, nor pillows, on the bed. Shelves were bare, besides three leather bound tomes and a dozen of scroll cases. Writing desk was completely bereft of anything. Wardrobe was empty too.

Three ghouls dared to exit the foul water. They crawled and started chewing on their victims ankles. Ignaeus had spotted them—courtesy of coin enchanted with continual light that was left behind in the octagonal chamber—and forced them to retreat by peppering them with arrows.

Tikatu bobbed through the wizard's chamber, uttering the words of power. Several objects were wreathed in soft, purplish light, detecting as magical. A dozen scrolls lit up. The door frame and hinges on the northern doors. Something inside the second drawer of the writing desk.

Seeing how violently mundane the carpet is, Helmuth gingerly rolled it with his polearm. Confirming no traps beneath it, he rolled it completely and then secured it with rope. It was a heavy carpet, even for absolute unit like himself.

Tobias opened the drawer. Then he pried open the false bottom. And there he had seen the source of pale purple light. A gold ring with a polished emerald gem. The hobbit took the ring, slid it on his finger, and vanished.

“Oh no, not again.”

What else will the adventurers find—or lose—in the chamber of the fugitive wizard?

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Adventurers

Character	Race	Class	Description
Ambros	Human	Cleric level 6	Follower of Aniu, Lord of Time.
Ignaeus	Elf	fighter level 5 / Magic-User level 4	A slightly weathered looking elf with dull blonde hair and chiseled features. Seeks wealth and knowledge.
Tikatu	Human	Druid level 1	A dirty little ma with dark and dirty skin, wearing loincloth with no back. “What will be, will be” is his favourite aphorism.
Kho Rimbo	Human	Magic-User level 1	A knife throwing wizard extraordinaire. Covered in ritual knife scars. Cuts himself whilst casting. Prone to being sarcastic.
Rogar	Human	Fighter level 1	A simple down to earth mercenary. After a few well paid odd jobs from adventurers he decided to take up the traveler's mantle himself to cut out the middle man.
Tobias Lindflags	Hobbit	Thief level 1	A sixth-born son standing to gain nothing from inheritance, so he set out to make his own fortune in the world.

Sweetrain 9th–19th

Adventurers rested and plotted their further course of action in a camp next to the Cedarwade Keep. Dalkanarion, the freshly appointed castellan of the ruined keep, was hard at work to survey the fort and take stock of what is necessary for repairs and stocking. His reputation took a blow when he took fireball to the face and lost all his hairs. His ornamental plate melted, as did all his other equipment, sans the massive two-handed sword imbued with spirits of three paladins.

Dalk's Devils, as he came to call them, halved in number due to desertion. Captured brigands fled, as did several of forced recruits from Hara. Those that remained spent their time stealing, hustling, pickpocketing, and swindling from the soldiers, keep, anyone they meet and see. Further they demanded their share of loot and booty. By their humble estimates, each should receive several hundred coins at least.

Marlon, the leader of Ambros's holy army, was unhappy with such lack of discipline and that he had to increase guards and patrols inside the camp. He would much rather have these men patrolling the surroundings instead. He suggest to Dalkanarion to hang them all, ideally from the parapets.

“Time to hang the bastards. I’ve been very lenient, forgiving, and generous thus far, but these guys refuse to turn the corner and redeem themselves. No more mister nice guy.” the mighty hairless warrior agreed.

Ludd Nuck and Drokh were escorted to Midway by two lances of mounted crossbowmen. They were accommodated in guest chambers of Lord Kyle. His manor is a three-story estate surrounded by several hundred acres of farmland, private hunting grounds, and an orange grove. Lord Kyle, being a young and curious man, held a dinner in their honour every evening, asking many questions about their adventures, how are Ambros and Dalkanarion doing, how is securing his lands progressing, so on and so forth. Ludd and Drokh were on their road to recovery, and in a months time both should be well enough to adventure again.

Ambros sent a messenger to Hara, with instructions which supplies to bring to the camp. He cast Continual Light on half a dozen copper coins during down time and healed everyone bestowing Cure Light Wounds and Cure Serious Wounds liberally. He also spent an hour every day meditating, praying and communing with nature.

His commands were executed down to a T. Marlon val Brookwood manages the troops efficiently, taking care of everything. A letter from Vicar Arlon indicated that Temple affairs are improving as well. He has imprisoned three older clerics that have conspired with merchant families for their own benefit. One of them tried to escape so they broke his legs and chained him in one of the underground chambers. His fate will be determined by Ambros upon his return.

Altanian twins showed up, as per agreed signal—splayed game carcass near the keep. They “subtly” complained and wailed about how thirsty they were. So thirsty one would think they haven't had a sip of water for weeks. Of course, it was not water they were thirsting for. They reported seeing no “pointy hat” loitering around the redoubt, and witnessing three dozen armed and armoured beastmen climbing out of the well, crossing the river and heading off north.

Everything adventurers ordered has arrived, neatly packed and sorted. Moreover, Ambros's soldier reported of latest rumours they had heard in Hara. A few days ago, approximately Sweetrain 16th, two large patrols were sent westwards. Nobody knows why or what for. The rumour on the street is that Tsamar sent them on a mission of her own. She hasn't been seen for some days.

Caravan from Hara was joined by two new adventurers, eager to find their glory. One was edgy, scar-covered, knife juggling magic-user Kho Rimbo. Another was Rogar, a promising mercenary. Both were welcomed.

Foxglove and Ignaeus nosed around Cedarwade and its various denizens in case there were spies in the camp, seeking to root them out. They found none.

All equipped and rested, adventurers assembled a new expeditionary force to head off to Racoba's Redoubt. These were Ambros, Ignaeus, Tikatu, Kho Rimbo, Rogar, and Tobias Lindflags, backed by Marlon val Brookwood, six squads of heavy footmen, and two lances of heavy horsemen. Dalkanarion and others were left in charge of Cedarwade Keep.

The expeditionary force set out from the Keep in the morning of Sweetrain 20th, Spiritday. They arrived by evening of the same day, finding no opposition. They camped for the night. They descended into the dungeon with first ray of light.

Meadowlark 1st, Airday

Ambros and Ignaeus took the front; Rogar was right behind them, spear in hand; Kho Rimbo, Tikatu and Tobias took the rear; a squad of heavy footmen followed from behind.

The party observed that most of the corpses are gone. What little remained of them was gnawed and chewed upon. Dried blood led southward, through the large chambers the brigands used as improvised sleeping quarters.

The oil doused barricade adventurers had made was dismantled. Stairs leading to the faceless black obelisk were open to passage. Commanding the squad to watch their back, adventurers went up the stairs. Obelisk stood at the center of junction, with stairs leading down in all four directions.

To the north was a steep descent terminating with a pair of doors. To the south was long descent terminating with barricaded doors. Short stairs to the west terminated with an archway opening up in a large chamber.

Lower half of a human rested by the stairs. Boots and pants were covered with a thin layer of something shimmering. Blood trail led down the west stairs, past the shimmering corpse, into the dark chamber. Throwing a coin confirmed that the chamber was indeed spacious.

Inspecting the archway revealed a hunk of green slime in the northwest corner. Adventurers melted it with fire. Then they descended.

The chamber was sixty feet wide, shaped like a fat letter C. Right side had two egresses, namely doors to northwest and stairs leading down to the west. Left side of the chamber was adjoined by an octagonally shaped chamber, roughly thirty feet in diameter.

Blood trail split threeway, one leading through the doors, one down the stairs, and one in the octagonal chamber. Investigating the room revealed little but an alcove on the south side. Rogar inspected the alcove more closely and found an inset at about eye level height. He dared to look down it, and his bravery was rewarded by four vials filled with liquid. Two were clear, one was milky and teal, and one was brown and chunky. He took all four.

Ignaeus led the investigation of the octagonal chamber. As he stepped towards the western exit he vanished in thin air.

“Oh no, not again.”

After some contemplation, others followed, and were soon in the diamond shaped chamber. Luckily for them, a deceased dwarf named Nandos, now nothing but charred remains, jammed the secret doors open by ingenious use of corpses. He also left chalk marks—and instructions!—beneath two sconces that operate the secret passageways.

Adventurers surprised the heavy footmen as they approached them from a different direction. Once they returned to the octagonal chamber they set out to determine which part of the floor is safe to walk on. Ignaeus managed to take a wrong step again so he had another long walk of shame. They eventually discovered they could pass into the corridor by hugging the south wall.

Alas, their reward was nothing but sturdy, locked, white doors. Tikatu could confirm they were made of birch tree. There was certain divinity to them. His attempt at defiling them with lockpicking failed miserably. Tobias did no better. Ambros knocked with his holy gavel several times. The doors remained locked. Reasoning that locked doors mean safety from behind, the party moved on.

Exploring the doors to the northwest led them down a twenty feet wide corridor. There they found remains of four brigands, mostly chewed, broken bones. The corridor itself was unfinished, terminating with rubble and naked rock and soil. A skeleton rested next to the rubble, leaning on a rotted leather backpack. Touching him turned the skeleton into dust, and backpack tore open, spilling hundreds of silver pieces.

The party backtracked to the obelisk, intent on checking the north and south stairs. They went north first.

Steeps stairs led to a small landing, with doors to north and east. Both opened with ease, revealing a dusty chamber filled to the brim with dust covered broken furniture, tables, closets, boxes, and barrels. The walls were adorned with murals depicting torture, murder, and sadistic acts best left unspoken of. Just as Ignaeus was about to step in, Ambros heard a voice in the back of his mind. It said, without a question of doubt, “death of a dozen cuts.”

This was enough for the party to close the doors and head south. There they judged that brigands must have barricaded and nailed the doors shut for a good reason. Probably because there is something beyond that is dangerous. So better leave it just like that.

Satisfied with their findings, the adventurers returned to the oddly shaped chamber. This time they followed the blood trail heading down the stairs to the west. The trail went on for some thirty feet and the suddenly stopped just before a T-shaped junction.

Adventurers carefully descended, watching out for traps and an sign of trouble. Ignaeus the Elf sensed there was something amiss—and then he found secret doors just next to where the trail ended. There were no sconces to pull on. Just a heavy slab of stone to push forward. Beyond it the trail continued, leading down yet another stairs.

Ahead was an X shaped chamber, with raised alcoves on four sides. In each alcove was a plinth, and upon the northwestern and southeastern were statues. Archway to the west led out of the chamber.

Northwest statue stood with legs shoulder width apart, spear standing upright in its right hand and a shield in its left. It looked straight, with stern look on its marble face. Southeast statue had a similar pose, but it held its spear across the chest. Both statues were naked but without exposed genitalia.

Adventurers entered the chamber to investigate it further.

Where will the trail lead them to?

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Adventurers

Character	Race	Class	Description
Dalkanarion	Human	Fighter level 5	A youthful specimen in full strength, full of purpose, bluster, and eagerness to prove himself.
Nandos	Dwarf	Fighter level 1	Grew weary of clan politics and doing low level hired muscle work, so decided to become an adventurer instead.
Ambros	Human	Cleric level 6	Follower of Aniu, Lord of Time.
Sted Jalen	Human	Assassin level 1	A mass of burnt scar tissue hidden by layers and layers of actors' slap. Rather taciturn.
Tikatu	Human	Druid level 1	A dirty little ma with dark and dirty skin, wearing loincloth with no back. “What will be, will be” is his favourite aphorism.
Tobias Lindflags	Hobbit	Thief level 1	A sixth-born son standing to gain nothing from inheritance, so he set out to make his own fortune in the world.

Sweetrain 6th, Airday

“Lay down your weapons, and you shall be spared!” Dalkanarion thundered as he barreled into the chamber. Awe-struck brigands threw down their weapons. They spent two days barricaded in the improvised sleeping chambers. They reeked of vinegar and urine.

Quick interrogation revealed these four brigands fled during the initial onslaught and then locked themselves into the chamber just south of the sleeping quarters. This room was used by two brigand leaders, as well as the fugitive wizard himself. Three of them were escorted upstairs.

Sted took aside the remaining prisoner, knife to his ribs, and forced him to open the footlocker by one of the bedrolls. He acted upon previous intelligence suggesting that one of the lockers is trapped. Lady Fortune smiled upon the bandit, and he opened the untrapped one. Dalkanarion smashed the other locker with the pommel of his sword. Both contained a fine assortment of coins.

Ambros was fascinated by the desk on the south-east side of the room. It was large wooden desk, very out of place and obviously dragged in. Shelves next to it were empty. There was but a single rectangular wooden box resting on the desk.

Nandos investigated the construction of the chamber. He played with sconces, since that brought him great fame just a day or so ago. Alas, nothing now. No secret doors, no secret passageways. Just plain old sconces.

Dalkanarion and Ambros took turns inspecting the wooden box. Nothing. Finally, they picked it up. Lightweight. Clanking sound, like something is inside. Once Ambros had the box in hand he could clearly see a thin groove running around the circumference of the box, just by it's right end. He popped it open. A scroll was inside.

“That's a trap.” Sted warned.

Ambros took out the scroll. Sted Jalen fell back to the doors, keeping the prisoner in front of him. He waved Nandos to come closer too, just in case. Dalkanarion stood right next to Ambros, ready for any danger that might arise.

High Priest slowly unfurled the scroll. Text on it was written in overly elaborate cursive script, with very flowery and ornamental details. Ambros concentrated. It was Common, albeit in a difficult to read script.

“Can you” he struggled with the first line, “greedy bastards” second was even more difficult to read, “even read” but third was much easier.

The last thing Sted Jalen saw in his life were Ambros and Dalkanarion engulfed in a ball of flame. He crouched behind the brigand prisoner, but man in front of him melted, and so did Sted. Blast wave broke his charred bones, reducing him to nothing but a pile of ashes. Only the shield remained.

Nandos did not fare much better. Dwarves might be sturdy, but this dwarf was not sturdy enough to take fire ball to his face. His beard singed, his armour melted and fused with his flesh and bones, and his remains were strewn about by the blast wave. Crooked great helm was all that was left.

Ambros and Dalkanarion on the other hand did manage to survive fire ball to their face. Both were left completely hairless, and butt naked. Golden Gavel resisted the impact and remained intact. Oathkeeper too. All the treasure and other valuables in the chamber were gone.

Illustration by Brulligrum.

Cleric and Fighter coughed, apologised to the corpses of dead adventurers, squared their shoulders, corrected their posture, and walked out. It was important not to lose face in front of their holy army. Marlon looked upon them in horror.

The duo was escorted outside. Dalkanarion donned his old plate mail, while Ambros was given chain mail, and mace by one of his followers. Five captured brigands accepted the offer to join Dalk's Devils “or else.” Adventurers rested overnight, preparing to descend into Racoba's Redoubt next morning.

Sweetrain 7th, Waterday

Four adventurers—Ambros, Dalkanarion, Tikatu, and Tobias Lindflags—backed by Marlon and two squads of heavy footmen, descended into the underground complex. Tikatu was a dirty, little man, whom was attracted by the campfire. He was happy to join for an adventure. Tobias Lindflags on the other hand was a well dressed and well spoken hobbit, interested in wealth creating exercises. Little did he know what fate had suffered adventurers associating with the might Dalkanarion and pious Ambros.

Judging the antechamber to be cleared, they commanded Marlon to guard the chamber just south of it. Flies buzzed in numbers as nearly two dozen corpses rotted away. Marlon and ten heavy footmen dispersed through the chamber, taking key positions, ensuring that whatever comes from beyond the Black Obelisk gets obliterated.

Adventurers and a squad of heavy footmen proceeded into the chamber with four statues. From there they investigated the north exit. They passed a dead-end corridor and a small empty chamber. The corridor eventually turned left, into a web-infested chamber. Approaching it resulted with three ugly, giant spiders charging out of the web. They assaulted Ambros and Dalkanarion with fury.

The duo took many bites and scratches. Ambros slumped after every bite, but somehow managed to resist the poison injected into his bloodstream. Must be the Divine Intervention itself. Tikatu, a wise man of the nature, backed off. Tobias crawled back, whistled for reinforcements, and then waved them in the right direction.

The fight was brutal. Spiders bit and bit and bit. They were not so hard to hit, but their carapace was tough and thick. Ambros hit here and there, but his mace did not do much damage. Dalkanarion missed several times, but whenever he hit, he did do much damage. Tobias, eager to prove himself to these new folk, cooked up a plan. He would climb the wall, hang from the ceiling, and then drop down on one of the spiders. That would surely surprise it, and he would deliver a might backstab that would instantly kill it.

Hobbit turned to the wall, but immediately fell down. “Ugh, slippery hands” he laughed nervously. He did succeed on his next attempt. He went up, then sideways, and then on top the spider. He dropped on the monster, failed to penetrate its carapace, and then rolled right off it. The spider rewarded his courage with a string bite. Tobias survived the bite. He crawled away, protected by the feet of heavy footmen.

Dalkanarion took out two giant spiders, while heavy footmen took out one. The party investigated the webbed chamber closely. They had no interest in being surprised from behind by more spiders. They found little more than several desiccated corpses wrapped in webs. Several hundred coins and a gems were rewards for their effort.

Judging they had enough, the party returned to the surface. Ambros and Dalkanarion ordered retreat back to the Cedarwade Keep. The force was mobilised and they reached it by the end of Sweetrain 8th.

Will they have time to rest?

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Adventurers

Character	Race	Class	Description
Ludd Nuck	Human	Fighter level 1	A lad from the farm, still wet behind the ears and smelling of dung whom became an adventurer to impress a village lass who jilted him.
Sted Jalen	Human	Assassin level 1	A mass of burnt scar tissue hidden by layers and layers of actors' slap. Rather taciturn.
Arete	Human	Cleric level 1	Young cleric of Athena, seeking to establish himself and gain more knowledge.
Nandos	Dwarf	Fighter level 1	Grew weary of clan politics and doing low level hired muscle work, so decided to become an adventurer instead.
Ambros	Human	Cleric level 6	Follower of Aniu, Lord of Time.

Sweetrain 5th, Spiritday

“In the name of Aniu and Forseti, Rise!”

Ambros performed the holy ritual on Arete's stiff corpse. Deceased cleric of Athena twitched and jerked, skin drawing over his bones, eyes popping open, now nothing but black pearls of hatred. An unearthly scream escaped his open mouth, and then he disintegrated. The ritual succeeded, just not in the way Ambros had expected it to.

Arete was slain by an undead creature most foul, whom had drained him of life. From then on, the cleric was cursed to a wretched existence of misery and hatred. But good Ambros had relieved him of fate worse than death. Ambros exhaled and turned his attention to captured brigand leader and his lackey.

Answers he got were unsatisfactory to him.

“Marlon, make him speak.”

“Gladly.”

Knight grabbed the brigand by the back of his neck with his left hand. Then he drove his mailed fist straight into the brigand's face. Teeth, blood, and facial tissue splattered the wall. Marlon slid his left hand up the neck, grabbed the man's greasy hair, and smashed his head into the wall. Then he jerked him back, threw him to the ground, and stomped his belly. Brigand leader vomited blood.

“I-I 'm r'dy t'” the man struggled to speak articulately “s-s-s-sp'k.”

Having learned nothing, Ambros stood pensively. He knew what he had to do, but was reluctant nonetheless. A year or so a group of adventurers vanished after stepping into a teleporter. Will the history repeat itself?

⁂

Nandos found the secret doors leading out of the diamond shaped chamber. But it had no visible mechanism. It was just a thin groove forming a tall rectangle on the wall. The dwarf tried to wedge his crowbar into the gap, but the tool was way too thick for it.

“Behold.” Sted flexed his muscles and pushed the wall portion open. Straight, dust covered, corridor revealed itself. Nandos and Sted, backed by Talik and Dalkanarion, investigated it further. It was seventy feet long, ending with a wall. Half-way in was a junction. South bend went on for twenty feet, ending with a wall, will north bend turned left twice before hitting a wall. Straight corridor had empty torch sconces every ten feet or so.

The diamond-shaped chamber filled with light and chatter as Ambros and ten heavy footmen suddenly appeared in it. He quickly caught up with four adventurers. Nandos continued his winning streak. First he found that secret doors can be opened from inside the corridor by pulling down on the sconce on the south wall. Then he found another secret door, just down the corridor. This too opened by pulling on a sconce next to it.

But this time it was different. There was no dusty corridor with stale air. No. This time it was a large chamber, with wet, disgusting smell. A stone bath, some eighteen feet long, seven feet wide, and four feet deep dominated the chamber. It was filled to the brim with rank, foul smelling water. Open archway on the east wall led down the dark corridor, while weak light shone underneath the doors on the south wall.

Ambros approached the doors and swung them open. He was surprised to see Marlon with perplexed look on his face. Adventurers had found their way back to the antechamber, arriving from the north side. Since they spent the day marching and adventuring, the party had decided to retreat back to the surface in order to rest and recuperate.

In order to maintain their foothold in the dungeon, they planned the following rotations. First, Ambros and a squad of heavy footmen would take the midnight watch. Then Marlon and a fresh squad of heavy footmen would take the pre-dawn watch. Finally, Dalkanarion backed by another fresh squad of heavy footmen would take the morning watch. This would give everyone enough time to rest.

Sweetrain 6th, Airday

“Make way! Make way!”

“High Priest has been taken down!”

“Men! To arms!”

Marlon jumped up, alarmed. There was great commotion in the camp. He slept sitting on a small stool, still dressed in his armour. There was yelling and running about.

“What is going on?!”

Men dragged paralysed Ambros out of the underground complex. He had bloodied scratch marks on unarmoured part of his arm. Marlon learned that Ambros went to investigate screaming sounds just south of the antechamber. There he ran into a group of undead feasting on the brigands' corpses. He was surprised and taken out by them. Soldiers fought bravely, pushing on into certain death. They managed to grab Ambros and pull him out. Two men were lost in the process, taken alive by the ghouls. Forseti bless them.

⁂

Ambros played with his holy symbols—gold gavel and silver hourglass—as he marched into the dungeon once more. It took him almost two hours to regain his facilities.

“Begone! I banish thee!”

Foul creatures screeched and wailed and fled into darkness. They fled in panic, leaving behind half eaten corpses of two loyal followers of Forseti.

There were no further disturbances. Marlon took over. There were no disturbance during his watch either. Dalkanarion took the final watch, backed by a fresh contingent of heavy footmen. Ghouls returned, but were slain by the might warrior wielding The Oathkeeper.

⁂

Adventurers descended into the dungeon once more. Marlon and a squad of heavy footmen were assigned to guard duty—they were to hold the antechamber and ensure it remains a safe rendezvous point.

Ambros, Nandos, and Sted Jalen, backed by a squad of heavy footmen, decided to explore the northern chamber with foul bath. Sted found out that bath was filled with floating turds on the top, and goldish coins on the bottom. They forced the non-beaten up brigand prisoner to dive and fish out all the coins. The man barfed and retched, but did what he was commanded to do.

Soon they had a very smelly pile of treasure counting five hundred electrum pieces, one hundred and ninety five gold pieces, a silver dagger, and a small jewel encrusted bull idol. Soldiers refused the carry this foul loot.

Exploring the corridor behind the archway led to an abandoned study, filled with nothing but rubble and dust, another corridor terminating with two dead ends, and doors leading into a corridor with statue in the middle of the square chamber.

Approaching the statue from behind, the adventurers could see it was of a tall, feminine shape. It held a bow in its right hand, and cradled something in its left. Coming closer revealed there was a groove in the ground, indicating that the statue could possibly be rotated. After much hewing and hawing, Nandos and Ambros gently grabbed the statue and turned it counter-clockwise.

Originally the statue faced south. Once it faced east, adventures got blinded by bright yellow glow of their armour and weapons. The glow slowly abated into soft glimmer. It disappeared with an audible popping sound.

“What was that?!”

“I don't know, but I don't want to turn it again!”

The statue was indeed that of a tall human female dress in a toga. She carried a bow in its right hand, and a lyre in its left hand. Her mouth was open, as if she was singing. The party left the statue behind and returned to the antechamber.

“Where to next?”

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Adventurers

Character	Race	Class	Description
Ludd Nuck	Human	Fighter level 1	A lad from the farm, still wet behind the ears and smelling of dung whom became an adventurer to impress a village lass who jilted him.
Drokh	Human	Monk level 1	A tall, lean human monk with piercing eyes, weathered skin, and a warrior’s poise—calm and charismatic, he speaks with purpose and strikes with precision, wielding spear, bow, and blade.
Arete	Human	Cleric level 1	Young cleric of Athena, seeking to establish himself and gain more knowledge.
Talik	Half-elf	Fighter level 1 / Magic-user level 1	Young, impoverished and inexperienced fellow who took up adventuring for the money.
Dalkanarion	Human	Fighter level 5	A youthful specimen in full strength, full of purpose, bluster, and eagerness to prove himself.
Sted Jalen	Human	Assassin level 1	A mass of burnt scar tissue hidden by layers and layers of actors' slap. Rather taciturn.
Nandos	Dwarf	Fighter level 1	Grew weary of clan politics and doing low level hired muscle work, so decided to become an adventurer instead.

Sweetrain 5th, Spiritday

Smell of fresh blood permeated the air. Screams of fleeing enemies echoed down the dark corridors. Nuck, Drokh, Arete, and Talik scanned the chamber for any immediate threats.

One of the brigands had surrendered. He stood, utterly defeated, and thoroughly soiled. Five of the brigands slept like babies, courtesy of Talik's arcane prowess. Four were sent to eternal slumber, while the best armoured one was dragged to the large chamber up north.

Dalkanarion remained in the bloody sleeping quarters, while Drokh took the guard duty at the eastern corridor. There was an open pit trap with a fresh corpse inside. The trap was jammed open with several polearms and ten foot poles. There were one foot ledges on both sides. A vast, dark chamber waited ahead. Smell of old death was palpable.

Nuck, Arete, and Talik reconvened with Ambros, and Marlon. Heavy footmen were clearing the chamber and fortifying the complex entrance. Arete slapped the sleeping prisoner awake. Interrogation was about to proceed.

This was a middle-aged man in his thirties, possibly Thabrian or Ghinarian if one was to judge by his complexion. His teeth were yellow, his hair greasy and lice ridden. Puffy black rings adorned his eyes. He slumped in defeat, perfectly aware of what awaits him in presence of Hara's Justice Supreme. And yet, he couldn't control his tongue even if it meant quick death.

“My men? They are all right here!”

“To north? That's where our supplies are. I hope you chock on them!”

“West? Oh man, death, just death. I hope you go there!”

“East? Yes, you guessed right, more death!”

“Down the well? Flesheaters. You should give them a visit!”

“Nothing you can do to me is worse than what Klekless Racoba will do to me for this failure!”

“What do you want me to say? This is a fucked up place. It wasn't my choice to lair here.”

Adventurers learned that the fugitive Wizard they came here for has left several days ago. A small contingent of brigands were left behind to guard their “lair” in this abandoned underground complex. Apparently, rest of it was trapped and inhabited by creatures most inhospitable.

While the interrogation took place, Drokh heard loud booming sounds coming from beyond the dark chamber ahead. It was a deep, reverberating sound, and yet muffled, like it came from far, far away. First time he heard it there was a boom. Then three. Then five. Then none.

Nuck, Arete, and Talik reconvened with Drokh. They decided to explore the room up ahead. They carefully crossed the open pit trap, and approached the chamber mouth. They threw a torch up ahead. It did not extinguish.

It was a vast chamber, torchlight barely illuminating three walls, with more pressing darkness to the east. Skeletal remains littered the floor. Two seven foot tall stone statues were visible to the north. Each was in the alcove. Both were of a man, standing shoulder width apart, dressed in something similar to a bath robe, with exposed privates, arms upwards with elbows pointed forward and palms up.

Sharpshooter Talik shoot off the left statue's manhood. It did not animate to exact revenge. Arete picked up the torch and threw it forward. More of the chamber was illuminated, revealing an archway to the south and an open corridor to the north. Also, two female statues to the south-east.

Rotted cloak on which the torch fell caught fire. A pale arm rose from beneath, with skin so taut bones almost protruded from it. The undead with hateful beady eyes stood up, and patted the fire out. Adventurers charged it without delay.

Arrows sunk into the cloaked figure.

It did not flinch.

Spear and sword cut into its emaciated body.

It did not flinch.

“Uh oh.”

Arete called on Athena.

But Athena did not hear him.

Arete parried and blocked, dodged and evaded. And then his face was caught by the undead. Those beady hateful eyes gazed into his own. The cleric could feel his very own life energy being drained out of him. He grew weaker by the second, until he too was nothing but a taut skin over bones.

Remaining adventurers watched in horror as Arete drop down to the ground, nothing but a lifeless husk. Dalkanarion barreled in, just in time to witness a fellow worshiper of Athena fall. Oathkeeper hummed as the Grecian warrior drove it straight through the creature.

The monster wailed and screamed. Realising he cannot contribute much, Nuck had disengaged and approached the southern archway. His intent was to watch guard in case anything might come from that direction. He was immediately dive bombed by three obese bat-mosquitoes with long. They brought him to the ground and sucked him dry.

Dalkanarion chopped the undead down just in time to be assaulted by five flying bloodsuckers. Now it was a wild melee, with Talik and Drokh involved too. Unarmoured monk dodged, until he hadn't. He too was sucked dry. Talik and Dalkanarion successfully slayed all the stirges.

Talik checked on three fallen adventurers. Arete was most certainly, chillingly, lifeless. Nuck and Drokh were properly messed up, but had some life left in them. Still, Talik and Dalkanarion dragged their three fallen allies back to the chamber with Ambros and the crew.

Ambros inspected the injuries. He confirmed that Arete is dead dead, while Drokh and Nuck are just nearly dead. The latter two will need several weeks of strict bed rest, but they should heal up fine.

Talik and Dalkanarion were eager to continue exploring the complex—they were still healthy and strong. They were joined by an assassin Sted Jalen, and a dwarf fighter Nandos. They returned to the statue chamber without delay.

The room was some fifty by ninety feet. Two male statues were in the north west corner, while two female statues were in the south east corner. An archway to the south led to stairs leading down, while a corridor to the north led to a four way junction.

Sted searched all the remains in the room. He recovered a total of five hundred and fifty electrum pieces and one hundred platinum pieces. Dalkanarion and Nandos investigated the female statues. These ones had their arms pointing downwards. Warrior noticed that one of them had a seam on its left arm, just beneath the elbow. It looked like the arm might turn or twist somehow.

Talik approached the statue he emasculated. He vanished.

“Uh, I better write that down!”

Nandos took out his chalk and wrote notes on the wall next to the statue. Then he returned to Dalkanarion, just in time to watch the warrior play with the statue's arm. It released a painful scream that echoed throughout.

“Better write that down too!”

The trio now approached the statue where Talik had vanished. They stepped forth, one by one.

⁂

Talik stepped forward. It all went black. The air changed. Now it was stale. Dusty. Moldy. He tapped around in the darkness. Floor was littered with something. Some things clanked. Some crunched.

He walked forward, slowly, until he reached a wall. The he turned right, placed his left palm on the wall, and extended his right arm to the side. He walked slowly. A turn! But at an angle. He followed. Another turn! Also at an angle.

His fingers came upon a groove. It was narrow and thin, but so were his fingers. Then he was blinded by the light.

Dalkanarion showed up first, followed by Sted and Nandos. The trio brought light with them, illuminating this curiously shaped chamber. It had seven walls in total, forming a rough diamond shape.

The chamber hosted a number of skeletal remains, some still in their rotting garments. There was some random trash too. Nandos joined Talik in investigating the groove—which was of a rectangular shape, like a door frame—while Dalkanarion checked other walls. Sted on the other hand, focused on the remains again.

He counted three broad swords, some sixty feet of rope that was still intact, two empty wineskins, a great helm, a suit of chain mail armour, two shields, one of them with pristine steel rim, a medallion, and a wand.

Nandos knocked on the groove-framed wall portion.

It sounded hollow.

⁂

Ambros, Marlon, and a squad of heavy footmen finished reinforcing the antechambers. They pooled valuables in the east end of the chamber. So far they collected a hundred copper pieces, eight hundred and twenty silver pieces, five hundred electrum pieces, twenty-three gold pieces, fifty platinum pieces, and a wrought gold necklace.

For how long will Ambros wait before Dalkanarion returns?

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Adventurers

Character	Race	Class	Description
Gomm	Human	Thief level 6	Swarthy, good looking, dark-skinned thief. Sweet opium-like aroma is his fragrance of choice.
Ambros	Human	Cleric level 6	Follower of Aniu, Lord of Time.
Ludd Nuck	Human	Fighter level 1	A lad from the farm, still wet behind the ears and smelling of dung whom became an adventurer to impress a village lass who jilted him.
Drokh	Human	Monk level 1	A tall, lean human monk with piercing eyes, weathered skin, and a warrior’s poise—calm and charismatic, he speaks with purpose and strikes with precision, wielding spear, bow, and blade.
Arete	Human	Cleric level 1	Young cleric of Athena, seeking to establish himself and gain more knowledge.
Talik	Half-elf	Fighter level 1 / Magic-user level 1	Young, impoverished and inexperienced fellow who took up adventuring for the money.
Dalkanarion	Human	Fighter level 5	A youthful specimen in full strength, full of purpose, bluster, and eagerness to prove himself.

Sweetrain 5th, Spiritday

Company led by Ambros, the High Priest of Forseti, and Dalkanarion, the Castellan of Cedarwade Keep, numbered seven adventurers—Gomm, Ludd Nuck, Drokh, Arete, and Talik—two lances of heavy horsemen led by knight Marlon val Brookwood, six lances of mounted crossbowmen led by Jace, two squads of heavy footmen, and fourteen thugs, now called Dalk's Devils. Ignaeus was left in charge of the keep.

The company returned to the plateau where the fugitive Wizard Klekless Racoba is supposedly hiding. Sted Jalen, an enterprising assassin, staked the place out two nights ago. He confirmed that descent into an underground complex is guarded when he was chased out by a dozen of armed thugs. Investigating the well did not go much better—he aborted the idea after hearing growls and grunts echoing from it.

The plan was simple. Mounted crossbowmen were to circle the plateau and watch guard. Dalk's Devils were to fix weighted net over the well. Then they were to fire-bomb anything that tries to come out. A lance of heavy horsemen was guarding them. Adventurers were to descend down the stairs. Two squads of heavy footmen were to follow on command.

This is how it went.

The party of eight descended. Dalkanarion, backed by Ludd Nuck and Drokh, went for south doors. Marlon and Gomm went for north doors. Arete went straight for the intricate painting in the alcove. He was intent of finding the peeping holes as described by Gomm and Sted Jalen. He wanted to stuff them to prevent anyone leaking a gas into the antechamber. Ambros and Talik remained on the stairs to have a good overview of the situation.

As Gomm heard a muffled cough behind north doors, so did the south doors swing open. Four rag-tag brigand armed with yellowed teeth, bad breath, and broadsword failed to surprise the adventurers. Oh what a mistake they had made. Drokh immediately drew first blood, Ludd killed another with spear through an eye, and then Dalkanarion massacred the rest with his massive Oathkeeper.

Grecian warrior stepped forth, bellowing out challenges and demands. Turning left, he could see a large chamber illuminated by torches in sconces and melted candles on the ground. A rabble of men fled in panic upon seeing such awesome display of power.

“There are four archers in the center of the room! They are aiming south!” Arete warned others. He had found the holes and peeked through them.

Dalkanarion ran down the stairs, took a glance to his right—thugs were still fleeing in panic—turned left, ran at the bowmen, and then hacked them to pieces. Limbs and guts flew all over the place. Having witnessed this Demigod of Athena in action, Arete was filled with religious fervour, and immediately charged four brigands to his left.

Marlon, Gomm, Arete, and Drokh took care of them in moments. They did not make a huge mess as Dalkanarion did. Talik carefully moved into the main chamber, his bow at the ready. Frenzied warrior now rushed south, giving chase to the fleeing brigands. He ran straight into a large, irregular chamber. A rabble of thirty men were arguing and pushing each other in total disarray. A man in chain shirt, backed by six or so larger guys, was slapping and insulting people. Dalkanarion's demand for surrender was drowned out by the mass. But better armoured man certainly heard him.

“Go fuck yourself!” was the brigand's response. Five archers fired at the blood and gore caked warrior. Two arrows landed true.

Talik arrived just in time to weave his magic, sending five of the men to deep slumber. Extra motivated Dalkanarion charged straight into the mass, massacring anyone on his path. Ludd Nuck followed his role model, stabbing with his spear left and right. Gomm and Talik shot at any clear target.

Limbs, heads, and blood splattered all over the chamber, soaking bedrolls, extinguishing candles, and painting small trunks with crimson red. Witnessing this carnage broke the surviving brigands' morale and they fled for their life in all the different directions. One ran right past Gomm and Talik, down the corridor to the east. A short scream, followed by silence, was heard. Two fled up the stairs to the west, beyond some obelisk, and into the darkness. Four fled down the south-east corridor. One froze in place and soiled himself.

“Corporal Nuck, dispose of these men. Tie up the leader.” But Ludd Nuck could not bring himself to execute sleeping men. So he tied them all up instead.

During the massacre in the south sleeping chamber, Arete and Drokh investigated the northern corridor. There a junction led to a dead end to the east, and doors to north and west. Nothing was heard from behind either. By the time Ambros returned with a squad of heavy footmen everything was done.

“Here, take my balls and darts.” Gomm handed over two web nuts and four darts recovered from the sunken jungle fort to Talik. Then he took a big gulp from a metal flask and disappeared before the half-elf had even answered.

Adventurers stood victorious, surrounded by corpses of their enemies. But will they find who they came for? Or will he find them first? Only one way to find out.

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Adventurers

Character	Race	Class	Description
Gomm	Human	Thief level 6	Swarthy, good looking, dark-skinned thief. Sweet opium-like aroma is his fragrance of choice.
Dalkanarion	Human	Fighter level 5	A youthful specimen in full strength, full of purpose, bluster, and eagerness to prove himself.
Nudd Nuck	Human	Fighter level 1	A lad from the farm, still wet behind the ears and smelling of dung whom became an adventurer to impress a village lass who jilted him.
Sted Jalen	Human	Assassin level 1	A mass of burnt scar tissue hidden by layers and layers of actors' slap. Rather taciturn.

Flowerbloom 18th, Earthday

”...”

Dalkanarion looked upon seven of his men that answered call to arms. Seven out of sixty-five. Then he wrote a stern letter to Namelin family, demanding that men assemble next morning. He must march to Cedarwade Keep at once!

When no answer came back by noon, he took to the streets of Hara himself. He was joined by his freshest, and most promising recruit, Nudd Nuck. A simple village boy, but very eager to impress.

By end of the day they managed to hunt down thirteen more men, counting twenty in total. Dalkanarion then instructed Nudd to accompany Hue to the citadel. There the boy carried his message to Tsamar, acting castellan, demanding the men she appointed him to assemble next morning.

Flowerbloom 19th, Fireday

”...”

Dalkanarion looked upon fourteen of his men that answered call to arms. Fourteen out of sixty-five.

“Triple pay for all of you that showed up!” mighty warrior announced, causing uproarious approval from scrawny thugs. After all, it is easy to increase pay when you are not the one paying. “Nudd Nuck, you are now a sergeant!” Young man beamed with pride. He made it in life!

“Gather your belongings. We are marching out right now!”

Flowerbloom 20th, Spiritday

Dalkanarion, Nudd, and their men arrived at Cedarwade Keep just before the nightfall. There they caught up with Gomm, and Sted Jalen. The sneaky duo spent previous two days observing the plateau where a hundred or so brigands were camping. This was the same site they believe a notorious fugitive Wizard Klekless Racoba is hiding.

Thuggish rabble camped right on the plateau. While most were doing nothing, a dozen or so were hauling baskets, crates, and amphorae out of the underground complex. They did not cross the river, nor wander far from the camp. That is how Gomm and Sted left them.

Having already scouted the fording areas, mapped out all the good ambush spots, the duo concocted a plan most devious. Gomm surveyed the surroundings for belladonna. He found enough to make a cask of deadly mixture. This would be administered to the brigands' water or food supply, making the sick and weak.

Combined with superior positioning due to advance intelligence, as well as holy warriors led by knight Marlon val Brookwood, this would all but guarantee victory. Jace, Marlon's courtesan and second in command, was to remain at Cedarwade Keep and ensure it was protected.

Sweetrain 1st, Airday

Dalkanarion's and Marlon's combined forces marched with first rays of sun. The former led fourteen thugs. The former led three lances of heavy horsemen, three lances of mounted crossbowmen, and four squads of heavy footmen. Gomm and Sted Jalen rode on light horses, with plans of their own.

They reached the river few hours after noon. Following their plan as agreed, they assembled on the west river bank and waited for the brigands to attempt to ford the river.

After three or so hours of waiting they decided to re-deploy, splitting their forces on both side of the rivers. Marlon and his horsemen hid in the woods, while heavy footmen were distributed at critical points. Dalkanarion, newly appointed castellan of Cedarwade Keep, overlooked the operation, backed by his fourteen... somethings.

Night fell. No sighting of any brigands or any other unruly mass.

“I'll go check.”

Gomm dismounted and approached the plateau. He knew the way, despite there being only moonlight to guide him. After all, he spent several days spying on the camp.

But this time there were no torches, no camp fires, and no tents. Only plateau. Empty. Devoid of life. The thief crawled on his belly, approaching the former camp carefully. It was indeed abandoned. Foul smell of urine and feces was ever present. Broken branches, extinguished fires, ripped tents—all evidence that he did not hallucinate.

Standing up, he approached the stone stairs leading into the dark pit. Untrapped. Dark. He lit his lantern and descended into darkness. An irregular chamber, some thirty feet wide and twenty feet deep. Simple wooden doors to left and right. A large, intricate, and vivid painting of flora—plants, trees, bushes, and tangled vines—filled the recess in the wall straight ahead.

Investigating it revealed hiden faces. They were diabolical and deformed, sporting malevolent grins and cruel eyes. Gomm noticed several small holes. But he couldn't not see more without coming much, much closer. Something he decided not to do. Perhaps this is why he has lived so long.

Examining the doors revealed that both are unlocked but blocked with something heavy on the other side. Further, Gomm was able to hear light snoring sounds. Having decided this is enough, he returned to the surface. There he spotted Sted Jalen circling the plateau, obviously searching for any interesting clues.

He waved the assassin to him. They agreed that the thief would try to find the dried well mentioned by the ranger twins, while the assassin would watch over the stairs in case something decided to come up.

Sweetrain 2nd, Waterday

In the morning Gomm and Sted reconvened with Dalkanarion and Marlon. They informed them about what they have found, including two entrances into the underground complex.

“I think they have left. Maybe they will return. Maybe they were traders who do business with monsters?”

“What if they have some underground passageway to our keep? That magic-user gave us a lot of trouble last time. And he escaped through the well in our keep... What if those amphorae were filled with some sort of explosive?”

“But why would they then be taking them out?”

“Perhaps they went north? It is weird. I don't have a good feeling about this.”

During night Nudd Nuck found evidence that a body of men moved northwards from the river crossing.

Many ideas and plans were discussed. Adventurers agreed that they need more firepower. Ambros, Ignaeus, Tarkus, Beorg, Thorm... Thus, they agreed that Gomm and Sted Jalen would remain to spy on the plateau, while the rest would return to Cedarwade Keep for reinforcements.

It was a quite march back. Marlon did not say a word to Dalkanarion, but displeasure was written all over his face.

Will adventurers gather the numbers they desire in order to storm the dungeon?

Or will another opportunity pass them by?

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Adventurers

Character	Race	Class	Description
Ignaeus	Elf	Fighter level 5 / magic-user level 4	A slightly weathered looking elf with dull blonde hair and chiseled features. Seeks wealth and knowledge.
Foxglove	Human	Thief level 6	A willowy human, long hair ties in a pony tail, looks a bit dangerous and dainty at the same time.
Gomm	Human	Thief level 6	Swarthy, good looking, dark-skinned thief. Sweet opium-like aroma is his fragrance of choice.

Flowerbloom 12th, Waterday

“Ignaeus, it is good to see you again!” Lord Kyle welcomed the elf with elan “Please let me know what is the latest at the keep!”

Ignaeus updated the young lord, while Foxglove and Gomm trolled Midway for any useful intelligence. They hadn't learned much beyond that locals are proud of their lord taking the reins and bringing stability to the region. There were also reports of burning blobs of flesh and skeletons roaming around Ghinarian hills.

The elf also paid a visit to dwarven weaponsmith Odger, whom he had learned about whilst researching how to repair Volmorin's Blade.

“The condition is most serious. I can tell you right now that reforging the blade with mundane steel would outright kill it. But if you can supply me with an ingot of mithril and some magicum then I am confident I'd be able to repair—nay, enhance!—your bade!”

Good news, albeit the work would take at least a season and outcome would in fact not be guaranteed. Not to mention the cost and rarity of required materials...

Flowerbloom 13th, Earthday

The trio arrived at Cedarwade Keep an hour or so after the noon. Ignaeus updated Knight Marlon val Brookwood, whom Ambros had commanded to protect the keep until Dalkanarion arrives. Since the keep itself is in poor state, Marlon decided to erect tent-camp surrounding the keep. Two squads of heavy footmen patrol the insides of the keep, including the dungeon, while others patrol the outside. Horsemen patrol along the southern portion of Cedarwade river.

Gomm spotted additional, entertainment, tents. These were, no doubt, sent by the Namelin family, per their agreement with Dalkanarion. The thief investigated the dungeon underneath the keep. Then he set up a trap on the well down which few surviving beastmen escaped. He lined a slip knot chain around the lip of the well set to drop in and tighten once touched. This in turn will trigger several stone of rocks to tumble into the well.

Marlon invited Ignaeus to sleep at the commander's tent. He did not extend the invitation to Foxglove nor Gomm, distrusting them.

Flowerbloom 14th, Fireday

Next morning the adventurers joined Jace's mounted patrol. They followed the Cedarwade river upstream, until they reached a confluence of several tributary rivers. Then they returned through the woods. The trio would break off from time to time to search the area for ruins and lairs. Only notable feature they found was a giant ant burrow.

Flowerbloom 15th, Spiritday

“Welcome!” Marlon greeted two strong Altanians. These were local rangers Borden and Garsen, identical twins. They supplied the knight with information and news about the region in exchange for game, foodstuffs, and wine.

“We have scouted along the river as much as we could. My force is not well suited for scouting and exploration. It is all heavy footmen, and heavy cavalry. Jace did the best she could with her mounted crossbowmen.” Marlon spoke with the adventuring trio “Frankly, I cannot risk sending too many men to search beyond the river. There are Altanian tribes to the south, hobgoblins to the west, and wildlife to the north. And not to mention whatever cavern system there might be underneath the keep itself.”

Adventurers were interested in twins' findings too. They confirmed sighting of a “scrawny, tall dude with pointy hat” around a plateau some six leagues northwest from the keep. They spotted him, and a gang of men, coming and going from the tall grass and overgrowth covering the tableland.

“Can you take us there? And maybe guard our horses while we explore this plateau?”

“Hmpf! What are we! Some servant care takers?!”

“Oh no, everybody knows you have a magical touch with the horses! Nobody tames horses like Altanians!”

“That's damn right!”

Gomm's quick wit sweet-talked the Altanian twins to indeed guide the party and commit to watching over their horses. They set out at noon, forded the river just before the nightfall, and then made a cold camp in a secluded glade on a rocky outcropping overlooking the river to the east, and tableland to the west.

Flowerbloom 16th, Airday

“Pssst.” Gomm felt a hand cover his mouth. Moonlight of Howla and Vannis revealed it was Foxglove crouching over him, finger pressed against his lips. “Torches in the dark. Wake up others.”

Altanians were sleeping hard, snoring loudly. Once awoken they joined the adventurers. Five of them crawled through the brush, finding the best spot to observe the torches.

It was a mass of men, numbering between hundred and two hundred, crossing the river in the dark. They were a disorganised mess, yelling and barking at each other, holding torches up high. They looked poorly equipped, with most wearing rags or cloaks. It was difficult to make out the details in the dark. The loudest were figures dressed in chain shirts. Adventurers quietly observed from the cover.

“Look!” Ignaeus warned.

Borden and Garsen prowled like panthers in the dark, wild grins on their faces.

“Hey, what are you doing!” Gomm whispered in anger. The twin were moving in the direction of men emerging from the river and moving eastwards.

The rangers were soon out of sight. Gomm returned to the camp and packed his belongings.

“In case any fighting breaks out we are out of here.”

Then they observed men in darkness until they were well out of sight.

Soon Altanians returned, howling and laughing like madmen. Borden carried four scalps in his hand, while Garsen had only two. Former ribbed the latter about that.

Illustration by dreadlord.

“Come on! It is not fair! Where were you! I waited for you to join us! Now my brother has more scalps than me! Bollocks!”

“Why did you do this?”

“What do you mean? Don't you hunt for fun?!”

The quintet went back to sleep.

In the morning they decided not to head for the plateau. The men they spotted in the night most certainly went there. The place would be crawling with them, making the infiltration and scouting nigh impossible. So they spent the morning watch scouting the fording area for vantage points, ambushable spots, other fords, so on and so forth, instead.

They returned to Cedarwade Keep few hours into the evening watch.

“This is alarming. But this also presents an opportunity. If your descriptions are correct these are nothing but a rubble of uncouth bandits. I can run them over with a single squadron of my knights.”

Ignaeus and Gomm convinced Marlon to wait a bit. They proposed for Foxglove and Gomm to scout the area more. They would monitor enemy movement, when do they leave, in what numbers, where do they go, and similar. So far it seems like they always move in the dark. At the same time, Ignaeus would take Marlon's letter to Ambros, requesting his assistance. They were hoping for Ambros to join this fight, as well as Dalkanarion and his new force as well.

Would this tip the odds in the adventurers' favour?

Or would they miss their window of opportunity to surprise their enemy?

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Adventurers

Character	Race	Class	Description
Thorm	Dwarf	Fighter level 4 / thief level 5	Ashen hair, beard, and eyes. Left his own clan due to financial trouble.
Drokh	Human	Monk level 1	A tall, lean human monk with piercing eyes, weathered skin, and a warrior’s poise—calm and charismatic, he speaks with purpose and strikes with precision, wielding spear, bow, and blade.
Ignaeus	Elf	Fighter level 5 / magic-user level 4	A slightly weathered looking elf with dull blonde hair and chiseled features. Seeks wealth and knowledge.
Foxglove	Human	Thief level 6	A willowy human, long hair ties in a pony tail, looks a bit dangerous and dainty at the same time.

Flowerbloom 6th, Airday

Party of four adventurers—Thorm, Drokh, Ignaeus, and Foxglove—descended down the crooked, weathered stone stairs. Bright sun disappeared behind their backs, replaced by feeble torchlight. Young March, their freshly hired torchbearer, bravely followed them. Ignaeus took the lead and stepped into dank chamber filled with three inches of stale water.

Ignaeus and Thorm went to check corridor leading eastward, Drokh and Foxglove went to listen at doors on the west side, and March was ordered to stand in the center of the room.

Slithering, barely visible mass of goo assaulted the elven-dwarf alliance. It failed to surprise the duo. Dwarf hurled his axe at it, and then the elf finished the mass by driving Volmorin's Blade, his magical sword, into it. Ignaeus was wracked with pain as blade screamed in anguish. As ooze melted so did the sword rot and corrode.

The party came here to find young warrior that went missing a week or so ago. He supposedly came here with an adventuring party, seeking golden goblet filled with blood red rubies. Bounty for his body, dead or alive, was mere ten gold pieces. The party accepted nonetheless, for they wished to try out some of their new tactics before going for bigger, stronger opponents. Thus far they only managed to lose a magical weapon.

Dispirited, but not defeated, they opted to break through the west doors. That led them to a four-way junction, with doors to the west, and corridors to north and south. After failing to break through the doors, they decided to head south. This led them to another four-way junction, but this one led to doors in all three directions: west, south, and east.

Sticking to their pattern, they went for west doors once more.

“Wait! Listen!”

“Sploosh! Sploosh! Sploosh!”

Splashing sounds could be heard from behind the party—same route they came from—as if a dozen little steps were made on the water. Lo and behold, five ugly goblins came from around the corner, wielding crude war-hammers. Goblinoid fools overestimated themselves, and were promptly massacred.

“Oh!” March gasped as doors swung open behind him. Ten small creatures, bipedal midgets with dog heads, were arranged in a marching order. Five in front held short swords, while five in back held spears. They stared down the party, ready to drive them through.

March pulled his big-boy pants up, and held a torch like a boss. Ignaeus, still in the sour mood over losing his powerful magical sword, charged the kobold gang with righteous fury. He trampled them like little kids, slashing and beheading with ease. Thorm followed behind, slaying pathetic monsters with ease. Nine out of ten kobolds were killed in a single round. The remaining critter surrendered. He traded his gang's possession—five hundred and eighty seven electrum pieces—for his life. Thorm sparred him.

Kobold chamber looped back to the chamber adventurers couldn't break into. This was foul place where goblins had dwelt. Three hundred fifty seven electrum pieces were hidden among the wet rubble. The party then backtracked to the entry chamber and explored the eastern corridor. There they found a t-shaped junction splintering north and south.

North doors led into a rectangular chamber in which giant ferrets peacefully swam around. Mistaking them for giant weasels the party promptly slammed the doors shut and went for southern doors instead. There they heard buzzing, opened the doors, seen four giant bees, and then slammed these doors shut too.

Annoyed, they returned to the first four-way junction they had encountered, and followed the passageway north. They burst into a chamber. There they ran into two chimeric creatures—bare breasted females with vulture-like legs and long, leathery wings. Alarmed, they readied their weapons. Alas! Drokh and Foxglove were too slow—monsters unleashed their wonderful song, mesmerizing both of them.

“Freeze!” Ignaeus roared, pointing his corroded Volmorin's Blade at the harpies. Sword's presences was barely detectable, but it obliged its master. One of the foul beasts froze in place. Other resisted, but failed to do so the second time Ignaeus had used his blade. Adventurers made short work of the beasts, hacking them without second thoughts.

Forcing the west doors open revealed what the party was looking for. A young man, naked and bruised, chained to the wall. Before him a gold chalice rested on a rotting wooden crate.

“This looks like a trap.” Foxglove cautioned. He carefully approached the crate and investigated it. Nothing was off. Next he sneaked up to the chained man and broke the manacles. Young man was still breathing, but was unconscious. His wounds were showing signs of festering.

“This is no gold!”

Indeed, dwarven eyes were not fooled. This chalice was nothing but worthless pyrite. The party hauled young man out of the dungeon. They visited another chamber before leaving, but gave up after seeing a bunch of giant rats taking a bath. They returned to Hara by nightfall.

“Where is my chalice? Where is it! It was all for nothing! All for nothing!” young man cried, exasperated.

“Fool's gold indeed.” Ignaeus concluded grimly.

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Adventurers

Character	Class	Description
Thorm	Dwarf level 4	Ashen hair, beard, and eyes. Left his own clan due to financial trouble.
Ambros	Cleric level 6	Follower of Aniu, Lord of Time.
Ignaeus	Elf level 5	A slightly weathered looking elf with dull blonde hair and chiseled features. Seeks wealth and knowledge.
Foxglove	Thief level 6	A willowy human, long hair ties in a pony tail, looks a bit dangerous and dainty at the same time.
Dalkanarion	Fighter level 4	A youthful specimen in full strength, full of purpose, bluster, and eagerness to prove himself.

Dewsnap 15th to 20th

Dalkanarion had his hands full. Ambitious Dragonslayer rapidly built his reputation in the region. That he was member of the same adventuring company Ambros Ap Mortain, the Justice Supreme of Hara, certainly did him no harm.

Intent on positioning himself as Hero of the people, Dalkanarion decided to marry the daughter of a local innkeeper. His future godfather stuck a good deal, offering the hand of his youngest daughter in exchange for his Dragon's Lair inn.

The ceremony was to be on Dewsnap 20th, Spiritday. Last day of Winter. All adventurers were invited. Further, Dalkanarion employed a dozen of bards and agitators to drum up his wedding as the event to attend. Wine, bread, and cake would be freely given out to all those who show up.

He sent his trumpet boy to the Namelin villa, asking for a meeting. His first letter was ignored. Then he sent a follow-up letter. Apparently him mentioning “mutual satisfaction” and “wealth” was sufficient the get him a visit by Abek Namelin, the youngest son of Aseti Namelin. His family was the second most influential in the region. “Soldiers” assigned to Dalkanarion were Namelin's hired thugs.

Abek met with Dalkanarion at the Dragon's Lair inn. They had conversation in private; details known only to them. Later adventurers learned that their friend promised Namelins to train their thugs, invited them to set up “entertainment” close to Cedarwade keep so soldiers have a place to spend their hard earned money on, and assured them their estates and caravans will have “preferential” treatment by the border patrols. Finally, he agreed to ask Ambros to dispense two of his squads to guard the Namelin villa.

With that out of the way, Dalkanarion visited Zenon Coke and paid off his assassination contract. He was thoroughly unhappy with such arrangement. Unfair! Uncivilised! He would fight for a better future.

The plaza in front of the Dragon's Lair inn was bustling with people. Ambros's crusaders lined the north side of the small square, while Namelin's thugs were on the opposite side. Adventurers had seats of importance, so they were visible to the crowd.

“You have to be careful,” Abek arrived earlier “Imrael will try to cause a commotion during the wedding.” Namelin's accepted Dalkanarion's invitation to the wedding. Abek was their representative. Audience was divided on that.

“Dalkanarion! Here I am!” Tsamar, Hara's current Castellan, formerly a Pirate Queen, arrived just in time “You are so special I even washed for you!” She was dressed the same as the last time he met her. Which was two weeks ago now. He seated her close to him. After all, she is now his superior. He is to bow to her every command. And whim.

Once all persons of renown had arrived, Dalkanarion stood up and gave a speech. Dalkanarion is one of those individuals who always stands out. Not merely due to his height and muscular frame, but due to his demeanor and how he fills the space. Today he was even more impressive. Dressed in ceremonial plate mail, recovered from the tomb of Traitor King, with massive Oathkeeper by his side, he looked like a War-Prince of an ancient empire.

His speech was long and impassionate. He often paused, so crowd can cheer and clap, or boo and whistle, as appropriate. His agitators worked the crowd, ensuring exact reactions he wished to incite. Crowd was well fed and well watered too, with Kyle's finest wine. Dalkanarion spoke of a different future; a brighter future. More just. More generous. More prosperous. He made promises. And the crowd cheered. How could they not? Who amongst them would dare say anything against a huge man with a huge sword?

“May his line be long, and his enemies buried deep.” Thorm drunk to words of his comrade. The atmosphere was jovial and celebration lasted well into the night. Other adventurers congratulated Dalkanarion on his bold speech.

On the morning of next day Dalkanarion found his newly acquired inn defaced. Eastern wall was covered in a graffiti depicting a buff stick figure copulating with a dragon.

“I guess it could have been worse.” Dalkanarion exhaled.

“It sure could have.” Ambros confirmed.

Would it get worse or better?

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#Wilderlands #SessionReport

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