Westmist Session #44 - Invasion! ... And Lots of Running Around

With Bjorn left once more in Rikar’s care, Kern and Erijay turned their thoughts to next steps. The question at the top of both of their minds was the “what is the March Baron planning”. Once more putting aside any thoughts of following/confronting Jax or the March Baron alone, they instead hatched a desperate plan to ride for Sir Janus’ camp and see if he could provide any information. Sensing time was running short now that spring and the campaigning season has arrived, the two purchased swift horses, and left Sweet Jenny and Fin behind to ride hard and fast for the mountains. After just a couple of days, they found themselves once more climbing the hill towards the ruined village, having been briefly held up by a band of goblins on the way.  After a few tense moments with the picket, Sir Janus arrived on the scene and waved the two into his headquarters.  They first discussed Duncal. Kern updated Sir Janus on their search so far, and asked if the knight had a portrait of the heir (since none of the party had any idea what Duncal looked like). Sir Janus provided them with a locket, inside which was a small portrait of Durgan the Bold, his wife, and Duncal as a young man. Who unfortunately looked a little mousey and frail, causing Erijay to mutter under her breath that hopefully the young man grew up into someone a little sturdier looking or they were all in trouble.  Questioning Sir Janus about his plan once they did recover Duncal, Kern and Erijay quickly realized that while the knights’ heart might be in the right place, he obviously wasn’t a deep thinker and hadn’t considered in any detail how he was going to overthrow Lord Merdwyn. The best he could come up with was to use Duncal to recruit followers and raise a rebellion, and assume that the King would not intervene because it was all done out of “honour”. Overall, not very reassuring.

Next laying out what they knew about the March Baron’s activities, they asked Sir Janus if he had any news or information. Alas, he had little to offer in new information. He told them Jax was one of the March Barons’ youthful comrades, with a reputation as a man to help keep things quite at any cost. As for the March Barons’ possible plans, he could shed little light other than to say Lord Merdywn had made it clear from day one that Westmist was to be a platform to launch himself back into a position of greater power. As for hobgoblins, his men had reported none in the last few weeks. The few hobgoblin patrols seem to have disappeared from the hills.

Taking their leave of Sir Janus (having had a request for men to help them bluntly refused), Kern and Erijay headed back towards Westmist. However, just as they reached the end of the mountains and prepared to turn east, Kerns keen eye spied movement on the hills below them. Hobgoblins! Thousands of them! Marching towards Westmist! After a swift debate, discretion was chosen over valor, and the two tried to keep out of sight of the army until they could ride hard and warn the town.  Unfortunately, there was too little cover on the bare hills, and they were sighted by the first cohort. As Erijay cast a haste spell to now speed them on their way, a rain of crossbow bolts fell on them, nearly killing their horses. They survived, however, and moving with magical speed, they pulled ahead and reached Westmist at the crack of dawn (after riding through the night). And found the commons around the town mostly deserted; the troops were gone. Questioning the town guard as they entered, they learned Lord Merdwyn had received word that hobgoblins were marching on the Citadel of Amrath, and hurried his army west to meet them. Since the party had taken care of their base in Stonehell, no one had expected a hobgoblin force to come from the north. Mild panic ensued, as the town was defended by just the town guard, a couple of companies of peasants and one mercenary company in the Keep. Swift riders were sent to recall Lord Merdwyn, and a flurry of activity saw town gates closed and barred, townsfolk laying in supplies for a siege and barricading their homes, and everyone looking west hoping the army would return in time.

With nothing to do right now but wait on events, Kern and Erijay checked in on Riker and Bjorn. Riker, excited and nostalgic for battle, asked permission to draw weapons and armor from the house stash and attach himself to one of the companies. Given his leave, the old solider did mention Bjorn was acting strange in his recovering. Puzzled, Kern looked in on his henchman to find that the man’s face had started to elongate and he seemed to spend a lot of time twitching and snarling at them. And then they remembered that Bjorn had fallen to the fangs of the wererats. With haste, they bundled him onto a stretcher and headed for the Temple of the Three Virtues. There they were able to get an audience with Lanthan the Under Virtue (the Highest Virtue had ridden with the army). The sour cleric confirmed that Bjorn was suffering from the disease of lycanthropy and would soon become a wererat.  Asked by Kern if he could help, Lanthan agreed to cure the henchman of his disease for the usual fee.

That done, Bjorn was returned to bed to continue his recovery. Meanwhile, Kern and Erijay debated what they should do next. Kern decided to scout around Stonehell for the hobgoblins, but they were not yet in site. Various plans were hatched to get out of town and save their necks, dig deeper into the March Barons plans, etc.  In the end, they choose to sit tight for now and see what happened, confident they could escape if need be when the time came. And so they saw Lord Merdwyn march into town several days later at the head of this host, just hours before the hobgoblins debouched out of the hills. Not content to wait out a siege, Lord Merwyn marched out of the town and hit the hobgoblins before they could get organized. The battle that followed was brief and bloody, but the hobgoblins were well outnumbered and destroyed. The town breathed a collective sigh of relief and broke into a celebration of victory by troops and townsfolk. Erijay and Kern, however, took this as their chance to ride out of town when everyone was too drunk to notice. Leaving Bjorn once more with Rikar (who survived yet another battle) they picked up the mirror of aging from Aflain the Fence, planning to combine a scouting trip into the Untamed Lands with a stop as the Castle of the Golem  to deliver the mirror to Zoleren (and perhaps gain some information from the archmage on what was going on in the west). One days ride brought them to the Citadel of Amrath, to which they were given  shelter and rest for the night. The garrison, blasé as usual, pointed out the campfires of a hobgoblin army on the other side of the Great River. They were waiting for Lord Merdwyn to come with his army; meanwhile, the garrison was simply keeping watch on the hobgoblins.

Next morning, unable to cross the river under the eyes of the hobgoblins, Kern and Erijay headed north into the Marsh of the Whispering Mists. Their plan was to get far enough to be able to cross the river (thanks to Kerns folding boat) without being seen. Alas, that plan almost ended in disaster as they stumbled upon a lizardfolk war band and got tangled up in a messy fight. Erijay led off with a sleep spell which took out half the creatures. But then a combination of good luck on the part of the lizardfolk , and rusty melee skills from Kern and Erijay, left the pair in a dire situation. Badly hurt, and their horses having bolted into the marsh, Kern yelled to Erijay to hold his hand and follow him no matter what happened. The merchant pulled out a pair of pyrotechnic bombs he’d had Synthini prepare, and with a flash and bang he and Erijay were hidden in a cloud of smoke. Temporarily masked from the lizardfolks’ view, Kern slipped his ring of invisibility onto Erijay’s finger, and then relied on his own skills to hide himself from their scaly foes. Given a temporary respite, Erijay now cast a web on most of the remaining lizardfolk, leaving just one for her and Kern to cut down with their blades. Finishing the webbed and slept lizardfolk, Erijay next cast haste so she and Kern could chase down their horses. That done, they decided to get out of the marsh, cross the river right here and try to at least reach Braksis’ Hold to spend the night. This they did, but were greeted with a grim sight. The Hold had been recently burned to the ground, and hanging on gibbets in front of the ruins were a number of bodies. These they recognized as Braksis, his stable boy, and his servants. Below them was a sign that read “See the punishment for those who help the hobgoblins”. Disgusted by the sight, the two had little choice but to find somewhere in this grim place to make camp for the night and continue their journey in the morning.  

Westmist Session #43 - Treasures and Ambushes

After several weeks of rest, both Erijay and Bjorn had fully recovered from their recent trips to the afterlife. Which meant it was time for another delve into Stonehell, this time with a much smaller crew as Kern was the only other one available (with, of course , Sweet Jenny and Fin the War Dog). But before heading into the dark, Kern hoped to shed some light on the recent information he’d uncovered about the March Baron.  The March Baron was keeping the news of the party’s successful mission to kill “He Who Walks in Metal” from the King. And he is still getting the Kings’ support against a full hobgoblin invasion. He is also hiring tradesmen (stonemasons, carpenters, laborers) from lands to the south for no visible reason and hiding them amongst mercenaries. This was being kept secret from all but a few trusted retainers and only the Baron, and the mysterious fellow Jax, seem to know exactly what’s going on. Kern learned that Jax and the Baron leave Westmist for trips to the South and that Jax is frequently traveling to the Untamed Lands to the West.  

Hoping to uncover some information on Jax, Kern headed off to see The Tongue, finding him at his usual table at the Foam and Whistle. Kern pulled up a chair, bought the old fellow a couple of drinks, and started to pump him for information. Scattered among the drunken, half coherent ramblings of the old coot, Kern managed to snag a few facts and hints about the mystery man. The Tongue warned Kern that Jax was a dangerous man, from whom no secrets stayed secret for long. Pressed for further details, the old fellow suggested that Jax was looking out for the good of the March Baron, but not necessarily the March Barony itself. And to better understand what’s in it for Jax, Kern would have to look into the March Barons’ past to find the key.  At which point, The Tongue dropped his head to the table and promptly passed out.

Somewhat better informed but with questions still, Kern and Erijay briefly contemplated a little spying on Jax themselves. But in the end they decided to heed The Tongue’s warning and put the plan aside for a day when the rest of their companions were available to support them. So back to Stonehell it was, to first check out the locked and trapped room left for Kern during the last delve, and then to further explore the third level. Passing once more through the secret entrance, the trio plus animals made it to the third level without any troubles. There they once more encountered Lachesis and her ogre bodyguards, headed back to her quarters after meeting with some ‘clients’. Kern, having been forewarned by the ogre’s heavy footsteps, donned the ring of invisibility. This left Erijay to engage in a little polite, but guarded, banter with the spy mistress. Turning the discussion to Duncal, Lachesis seemed to hint that her information (generally) is only as reliable as her sources. But that her information on Duncal could be trusted; her source for that information was both impeccable and intensely interested in the party’s endeavors. 
 

Leaving that tidbit of information hanging in the air, Lachesis and her guardians moved on, while the party continued on their way in the opposite direction. Reaching the corridor with the boulder, Kern first listed at the door where bugbears had been heard last time. Finding nothing there, he moved onto the boulder. Here, the merchants’ keen ears could hear the faint sound of feet scuffling around. And finally he came to the trapped door. Locating the wire found by Darnorth, he studied it intensely for a few minutes, then proceeded to swiftly cut the line and thereby easily disarmed the trap. Finding the door locked, and unable to open it by his own skills, Kern waved Erijay into place to bash the portal down. Much noise ensued, but the door still stood. Pushing the elf maid aside, Bjorn took to the door with muttered curses, and after a few more minutes of bashing the door swung open. Inside was a fairly spartan bedchamber. An old leather apron and hood hung on one wall, and a wardrobe stood against another. Kern checked the wardrobe for traps, and then opened it up to find a few moth eaten bits of clothing, but little else. Erijays’ keen eye, however, noted that the inside of the wardrobe was not flush with the floor. A little poking about uncovered a pair of handholds, with which the elf lifted out the base to reveal a pile of silver coins and gems.

At this point Bjorn, standing guard at the door, shouted a warning. Kern swiftly donned the ring again, and headed for the door. Bjorn reported seeing, at the limit of his light, a half dozen small creatures leaving the rock blocked corridor and heading east. Kern silently approached the spot and watched for awhile, but nothing further was seen. Taking care to now watch their backs, the party loaded their newly acquired treasure onto Sweet Jenny and head further west into as yet unexplored territories. Coming to a pair of archways, the party chose the north and found themselves in an open area with multiple doors leading off of it. Kern started listening at doors, but soon halted when he encountered a strange reddish amoebae-like creature blocking his way. The merchant backed away, and Erijay hauled out her crossbow and fired a shot at it. To their surprise, the pulsating blob simply split into two and started to slide towards the brave adventurers. Backing slowly away, the trio lobbed oil flasks and torches at the creatures until they were consumed by the purifying flames.

Now resuming their investigation of the hall, the party started searching room near a placid fountain. It didn’t remain placid for long, however, for when Bjorn got too close, the water formed into a grotesque toad-like shape and lashed out at the magic user. He managed to dodge and back away, but now the rest of the party turned to engage. Erijay cast a web to pin the thing inside the fountain, while Bjorn fired magic missiles from his wand and Kern followed up with bolts from his crossbow. The thing continued to strain against the web, which slowly started to give way, but not before the efforts of the party caused the thing to dissolve back into the fountain.  Stepping forward, Kern cut away the remaining web to better see inside the fountain. At the bottom he could see a scattered collection of jewelry, and a gem studded sword. Distracted by all the shiny stuff, Kern didn’t notice the water begin to stir as the toad-like creature reformed and lunged at the merchant. Caught, Kern found himself pulled into the fountain and pinned under the water.  Erijay and Bjorn instantly leapt into action, with a rain of magic missile and sword blows to end the creature’s threat once more. The elf then pulled Kern’s unconscious body out of the water and dragged him away to safety. A few chest thrusts later, the merchant was coughing up water and back to consciousness. And determined to find a way to recover the treasure in the fountain. Going through their options, Erijay suddenly remembered the potion of sweet water she’d been carrying for so long. Could it be used to ‘purify’ the thing to death? Deciding it was probably as good a plan as any, Kern first tied a rope around Erijay’s waist to pull her to safety if the creature grabbed her. The elf then glided forward until the creature started to reform. She then hurled the potion flask at the back wall of the fountain, where it smashed and poured its contents into the water below. The thing dissolved once more into the water, and it did not reform again. At which point Kern jumped in the water and started hauling out the pile of jewelry and the sword, packing it all carefully onto Sweet Jenny.

That danger and treasure taken care of, the party next turned their attention to the doors around them. Behind each was found a 20’x20’ room with similar furniture and fixings (beds, pallets, dressers, tables, and so on). Each did have its unique features though:

• A stool with an invisible sack, which Erijay found by sitting on it. Contained rope, thieves tools, 3 cloves of garlic;
• Pit viper, in a skull, in a chamber pot (slept by Bjorn), and a trapdoor on the ceiling that on closer examination proved to be painted there;
• A wall of tally marks, written neatly in chalk and charcoal at first, then degenerating into scrawls in what appeared to be blood. Ended at an old blood stain on the floor;
• A table with a skeletal hand, pinned to the tabletop with a dagger;
• A round wooden box containing a pale red salve or ointment, and a taxidermy rat nightmare nailed to the underside of the table;
• An old campfire with humanoid bones, giant red centipede (slept by Bjorn), and a gold and silver torc;  and
• Walls full of watercolor paintings (claimed by Kern for the house) plus a small hoard of silver coins hidden behind one frame. 

Now loaded down with treasure and collectables, the party turned to head back to Westmist. They didn’t get far before Kern’s keen ears caught the sound of bugbear voice ahead. Donning his ring, Kern snuck silently around the corner, to find the bugbears waiting in the intersection by the boulder.  They didn’t seem to be going anywhere, but were instead casually on the lookout for something or someone. There being no other way out, Erijay cast a sleep spell and the four critters fell into slumber. Kern then silently moved past them to see what was further ahead. At this point a snarl came from behind Bjorn and the animals, and three rat-men fell on the rear of the party.  Trapped between mule and rat-men, Bjorn fell to their fangs. They then turned on Erijay and Sweet Jenny, who happened to be in their way. The elf first stopped to force a healing potion into the fallen magic user, before turning her sword on the nearest attacker.  Joined by the still invisible and now vengeful Kern, the two slew the creature in short order. Shocked, its companions turned and fled, earning a swift kick from Sweet Jenny in retaliation. Erijay and Kern likewise pulled out crossbows and should have dropped both in their tracks. But their bolts seemed to have no effect on the beasts, who were quickly swallowed by the darkness.  Quickly looting the one rat body and the (now slain) bugbears, they pair then loaded Bjorn’s body onto Sweet Jenney for the thankfully uneventful journey back to the surface and civilization. There they cashed in their treasures, discovered the sword and container of salve were magical, and deposited the unfortunate Bjorn back in bed just two days after recovering from his last death.

Westmist Session #42 - More Monkeys

Back to Stonehell to scout routes to levels below, Erijay (with Fin the War Dog), Darnorth, and Riley (with Gurrruk and 2 wolves) ran into trouble once again while passing through the old hobgoblin fortress. A small band of crazed berserkers tried to block their way, but were swiftly defeated by the party. Wiping blades clean, they continued on a now familiar route to the third level, making their way without further incident to the octagonal chamber and elevator room. Expecting no problems here, they were surprised by a bugbear ambush which took the place of the gargoyles. A bloody fight ensued, from which the party emerged triumphant. Finding that the elevator was not currently on this floor, and not knowing any way to call it, they decided to loot the bugbears and then head to the south. After poking around a room with wardrobes holding white robes and pairs of rusty, steel mesh gloves, they continued south. There they found a room filled with empty cages, in the centre of which stood a pair of metal tables, fitted with leather restraints. Suspended above each was a metal bowl connected to each other by wires. The faintly monkey smell convinced Darnorth this setup has something to do with the dreaded cybernetic monkeys, so the dwarf proceeded to cut all the wires and generally trash the apparatus.

Feeling better now, the dwarf led the party through the west door and out of the room. Only to find waiting on the other side a half dozen of the dreaded monkeys. Erijay was able to shut down half with a well placed sleep spell, but enough remained to link up and fry the dwarf with a zap of lightning. However, the rest of the party rushed in behind Darnorth and soon the monkeys lay on the floor oozing green ichor and mechanical bits. With time now for a breather, the party looked around, and found themselves in another room of large cages. The few nearby seemed empty with the doors hanging open. However, when Darnorth poked in a pile of bones in one, two skeletal baboons emerged and attacked with their raking claws. Once again the party drew arms to fight simian nightmares, and once more succeeded. Working their way around the room, they noted another with bones, which Riley quickly slammed shut just as another skeleton arose. This one they dealt with through the bars of the cages with no harm to themselves. As they completed the circuit of the cages, however, they ran into a band of the skeletons emerging from their cages before the party got too close, Another fight ensured, and while half of the skeletons attacked the front ranks of the party, the other moved around to their rear and attacked there. Caught between the two, the party found itself in desperate straits. First one of Gurruk's wolves fell, then the redoubtable Erijay. It was only with hard fighting, and some especially lucky hits by Riley, that things didn't end even worse. But they were bad enough, and the party elected to carry Erijay back to the temple to take advantage of their new discount raising rate. They very nearly didn't make it though, as they were intercepted by another band of bugbears before getting too far along. These were not too interested in tangling with the party though, having seen their recent handiwork with their friends in the elevator room. After some quick back and forth threats, the two parties decided for now to part ways in opposite directions.

Back in Westmist, Erijay was trotted off to the Temple of Three Virtues, raised, and then dropped in bed for a couple weeks recovery. While the elf was fed a steady stream of chicken soup by the loyal Riker, Darnorth and Riley poked round town for information and rumors.  The most obvious change was the number of troops now in town; it was starting to look like it did the previous fall when the March Baron was preparing for the hobgoblin invasion. Apparently Lord Merdwyn was taking no chances even though "He Who Walks in Metal" was dead.

Going to see Afflain the Fence, they discovered a response to their counter offer to Zoloran for the mirror of aging. The archmage now offered 1500gp and information on where they could find a ring of wishes, so they couple bring back Darnorth's lost vitality. Now that was an offer Kern might be interested in when he returned. Hafus also returned to Westmist during Erijay's recovery. He brought word from Sir Janus that the knight was underwhelmed by the party's progress in fulfilling their part of the coup d'état plan. He was recalling Hafus permanently, and considered their deal on hold until such a time as the party could show something that upheld their end i.e. Duncal. In the meantime, Sir Janus would continue with his own plans.

When Erijay finally recovered, all were bored with town, so a quick jaunt was made to Stonehell. Passing to the third level without incident, they headed further west this time, down the corridor branching off the narrow 5' passage. At the first door encountered, Darnorth listened and heard bugbears. Choosing not to fight the big hairy goblins again, they continued west, encountering a corridor blocked by a 10' boulder. Although small gaps could be seen in the corners, there was no easy way for any of the party to get through. But it certainly made them think of wererats. Turning south to complete the map connection to the garden area, they explored several more rooms. In one, a mass of brown vines covered the floor, and under a table on the far side a stongbox could be seen. No one liked the look of those vines, especially since a skeleton could already be seen on the floor under them.  Darnorth floated up on his boots of levitation, and hauled himself over along the wall. Once over the table, he managed to hit a bulls-eye with a grappling hook, catching one of the handles. Lifting it, he was not surprised to find the vines trying to climb towards him, but the floating dwarf made it out of the room and back among friends with no trouble.  Carefully opening the box (away from himself), Darnorth found a pile of silver coin.

Heading back towards the boulder hallway, the party checked out a couple of doors. At one, Darnorth discovered what appeared to be a trap, a fine wire running from the handle and up into the ceiling. Wishing he'd paid more attention to Kern, the dwarf decided to not tempt fate by trying to disarm it. Instead, it was noted on the map for the merchant to deal with later. Checking the next room, they burst into an old torture chamber, where four gnolls were trying to remove an iron maiden from the wall.  Thinking the party was there to deprive them of their treasure, the hyena headed creatures attacked. Alas, they made little impression on the party, who then finished the job of ripping the coffin-like object off the wall. But they found nothing of interest behind it or elsewhere in the room, and do decided to head back to town while still in good shape.

Westmist #41 - Do You Get the Feeling No One in this Dungeon Likes Us?

Gathering forces, the party returned once more to the depths of the dungeon, to scout out possible routes down to the halls of the mountain trolls.  Darnorth, Erijay (with Fin the Wardog), Kern (with Bjorn and Sweet Jenny) and Riley (with Gurruk and his wolves) headed for the depths following their usual route through the old hobgoblin fortress. This time, however, they met trouble.  As they passed through the narrow passage l to the iron turnstile, the front ranks of the party suddenly found themselves under attack through the loopholes in the east and west walls. Flasks of oil rained in and torches followed into the confined space. Trapped by the portcullis in front, they scrambled to get back out through the door. But not before several received terrible burns, and Sweet Jenny the mule and Bjorn the magic user succumbed to the flames. Erijay, gallantly assisting the fallen mage, tried to force a healing berry down his throat, but the magic user just retched. Instead, she poured a healing potion in his mouth and then dragged him to safety.  Darnorth provided covering fire with his crossbow, while Riley and Gurruk tried to bust down the doors leading to their assailants. The doors proved to be locked, and it took some time before one was broken open and the other unlocked by the crafty Kern. Behind the doors the party found empty rooms. Puzzled, Gurruk had the wolves sniff out their attackers, with the response of ‘rats’. Putting two and two together, the party figured their ambushers was the wererats who had transformed to rat form and escaped though the loopholes.

 

After Riley tore off the doors in a fit of vengeance, the party returned to Westmist to leave Bjorn at the house with Rikar so the mage could recover. They then turned back to the dungeon (after Kern purchased another mule), at first thinking about finding and dealing with the wererats. They decided instead to head down to level four to try making friendly contact with the gentleman ghouls, and perhaps learn more about the lower levels. Making it back to the scorpion room, this time they headed east with Kern scouting invisibly ahead. Facing the first door, Darnorth decided to be gentlemanly and knocked. In response came the gruff shout “Who’s there? What do you want?” After some persuasion, the occupants of the room opened the door, and the party saw a burly human fighter and an elf with an arrow notched on his bow. These two said they were survivors of an adventuring party, hiding out here after losing their comrades to the gentleman ghouls. Unwilling the brave the dungeon alone, even to make it to an exit, the two asked to join the party long enough to get out of Stonehell. While no one was really sure the two (Ban and Tal by name) could be trusted, they were allowed to join the party, firmly ensconced in the middle of the matching order where Gurruk and Riley could keep an eye on them.

Considering their new companions might not want to deal with the ghouls again, the party headed instead back to the weird temple to the west. A series of old barracks, storage rooms and martial training rooms were explored at first. While checking out one, the party was surprised by a pair of translucent spirits, features racked in pain. These drifted towards the party who ended their never ending pain at the end of their swords. But not before Darnorth was touched by one, bringing the dwarf to the edge of agony, an ordeal now etched on his previously carefree visage.  In another room, a large strongbox was found under a bed. Erijay found a key in the mattress, but before trying it Kern discovered a lethal blade trap which he disarmed. Now safe, they opened it up to find a massive pile of silver and gold coin. They loaded strongbox and all (‘never know, that trap might come in handy’ noted Kern) onto the new Sweet Jenny.

Several more rooms were explored, and another strange suit of animated moaning plate mail was dispatched. Then in a room at the end of a corridor, the party encountered a challenge. A small room, with a black iron alter and a wide selection of torture devices. And two more ghostly features, these looking more like the life draining apparition they cleared out of their house oh so many months ago. Bravely, Darnorth and Kern charged into the small space to fight toe to ghost with the two. Erijay tried a web spell, and learned that it didn’t help much against the incorporeal undead. Riley then drew on Habuu’s blessing to drive one of the fiends into a corner. The other, meanwhile, reached out and grasped Darnorth, draining away some of his vital life force.

At this point, there was a ruckus in the corridor, where Gurruk stood waiting with the two newcomers. Riley spun around and saw Ban and Tal had turned their swords on the beastmaster and the wildlife. With an orison of rage to Habuu on his lips, the cleric drove into the two turncoats. He was soon joined by Erijay, Kern, and the drained Darnorth, who by now had eliminated the one unturned wraith. Fighting in tight quarters, the two newcomers were slain. As a shocked party looked on, the bodies morphed into tall, grey humanoids with vague rubbery features. Doppelgangers!

That taken care of, Kern, Darnorth, Erijau and Riley returned to deal with the last wraith. While Erijay used the wand of magic missiles to snipe at the undead threat, the other three drove in with sword and hammer. The short but vicious combat ended with the creature destroyed and no one else worst for wear as a result. Now looking around the room, little new of interest was noted. Until Erijay tapped the altar with her sword pommel, and discovered that it was hollow. A careful search revealed no way to actually get inside the altar, so Darnorth decided to trust the magic of his sword to hack the top open. With much clatter and clanging (and after dealing with another agonizing figure attracted by the noise), the top was pealed back enough to reveal treasures inside. Four jeweled icons showing the Sorcha the Witch Bitch and Mistress of Pain, a scroll case, a mace, and an ebony rod. Gathering up their find, the party decided to now retreat back to Westmist.

Back in town, Darnroth tired to find magical healing for his pains and drains, but to no avail. A little detect magic and experimentation revealed they now owned a mace +1 (claimed by Riley), and a clerical scroll of heal and remove curse. Riley then took the strange ebony rod to the Temple, hoping that Liphanes of the Highest Virtue might be able to identify it. Alas for Riley, the high cleric was not available, and he instead had to meet with the decidedly unhelpful Lanthan the Under Virtue. The bitter churchman offered no help, and instead directed Riley to one of the magic users in town. With unusual grace, Riley left the temple to do just that, leaving the rod and a bag of gold with Synthini for her to identify.