Far Isles Session #22 - The Blue Tower

DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

Abdul el Abdul (Fighter 3)

Kwinsea (Aquamancer 2), with familiar Hermes, and henchman Xavier (Swashbuckler 1)

Chaff (Vivimancer 3), with familiar Dirty Bird, riding hound Stinky Dog, and hench-monster Cephenere the Medusa

Torak (Cleric 2)

Beuford Bumbletoes (Halfling 2)

The party sailed cautiously towards the village, and were soon intercepted by a flotilla of tribesmen in dugout canoes. They surrounded the sailing boat and raised their spears in defiance, while somehow still paddling their canoes. When it became obvious they weren't about to immediately attack, the party tried to communicate with them. Their language was pretty much indecipherable, except to Torak who recognized some words and cadence from ancient sacred writings of the Drowned God. Curious! He was able to make it known that the party wanted to see the chief, and after some time a man dressed in some sort of fish scale armor arrived, paddled by four rowers in a big canoe. Torak opened negotiations, offering excess weapons and wine in return for food. It took some time to convince the chief to cooperate.He was more interested in getting the party to go away, as he seemed to fear something of or about them. However, the sight of shiny steel brought him around, and the natives loaded down the sailing boat with fish from the superabundance they carried in their canoes.  But the chief then made it clear the party was not welcome to stay any longer. Torak did ask the chief if he knew of any towers around. In answer, the cleric was directed to two possibilities; a tower floating on a cloud to the south, or a tower of lighting to the south west.

"Fish for a Week"

Taking leave of the tribe, the party raised sail and headed south towards the cloud tower. In less than an hour, they'd reached a chain of islands which the chief had not mentioned. In addition, on one of the larger islands stood a strange blue tower. Since it was right in front of them, the party decided to check out this tower instead, and brought the boat into the swampy shore. Tying up to a convenient swamp cypress, they jumped into the knee deep water and started to slog towards the hill on which the tower stood. After about an hour of trudging through the waters, the party climbed onto a low rise that was mostly out of the water. While walking dry shod was nice, they were also met by an overwhelming smell of rotting flesh. They found the source; a 10' wide pit filled with skeletal and half-rotten human remains. Some looked fairly fresh, others long dead. And as they watched, out of the pit crawled three  giant clawed hands which skittered over to attack. The party took care of them, but moments later a quartet of skeletons emerged. These were dispatched as well, but it was decided sticking around here continually fighting undead was not an option, so they dropped back into the swamp and headed towards the tower once more. After another hour or so, they climbed up onto the grassy hill and stood at the base of the blue tower. It rose straight until, halfway up, two wide rings encircled the tower, while the top it terminated in a square box. From the windows came faint sounds of occupants, including that of music. Chaff had Dirty Bird fly up to the tower entrance.  The ragged parrot observed a blue door with a sign, painted in a bright floral design, which said simply "Welcome".  That made everyone nervous, so the party sat on the grass and had a picnic of raw fish while they discussed how best to approach the tower and it's inhabitants.

"Welcome"

In the end, they decided to just go on in. Inside the entrance they found yellow velvet curtains forming a passage, at the end of which stood a door.  The room itself (as would be most of the rest of the tower) was lit by a swarm of weird blue and yellow fireflies that flitted overhead. Chaff had Cephenere look behind each curtain, and she reported a table with books behind one and musical instruments behind the other. Rather than investigate this at the moment, the party passed through the door instead. There they found a harpsichord, a glass table and chair set, and a set of stairs going up. On the table was a pretty flowery teapot and trio of tea cups. Abdul el Abdul sat down, followed by Torak and Xavier. Once the three were seated, a pair of white gloved hands appeared, floating in mid air, and holding a white card. On it was written "Delightful Conversation". The three took the hint and waxed politely on the matter of the day, although Abdul el Abdul struggled a bit talking about anything but fighting and slaving. Torak and Xavier found the tea quite good as well, although Abdul nearly chocked to death on the bitter brew.

Tea party over, everyone headed back to the entrance. Chaff tromped over to the books. There he also found a large armchair, an item Cephenere had failed to mention. The vivimancer looked at the books: a massive tome titled "The Complete Epic Works of Galstar the Great"; a slim cheap volume called "The Maiden and the Warrior"; and a third faux leather tome  "Thoughts on My Rule, by Vortex the Destroyer". Each seemed stuck to the table until he sat in the chair. Chaff selected the second book, and found it to be a rather tawdry tale that brought a flush of embarrassment to his face. As he settled back to read, he also found himself sinking deep into the chair. So deep, the rest of the party noticed he nearly disappeared, only to claw his way free just before being fully engulfed. None of this stopped Kwinsea, of course, who sat gently and ladylike into the cushions and choose the thick tome, which was filled with delightfully poingnent yet eminently readable drama.

Passing next behind the other curtain, they noted once more that Cephenere had left out important information. Namely, in addition to the musical instruments, a set of stairs descended  from this room. Everyone ignored the musical instruments, and headed down below. This room was much more utilitarian than the ones above, consisting of kitchen, storage and some straw mats. There were signs someone had just used the kitchen, with fresh food and signs of meal preparation. As the party started to poke around, Torak heard sounds behind some of the crates and barrels. There emerged four figures; one looked like a native from the dugout canoe tribe, another some outlandish barbarian (now wearing a chefs apron) and two townsfolk. Torak spoke to the tribesman, and learned the four were servants of "The Blue Mage",  a most wonderful and wondrous master. Questioned further, he revealed their master always had guests coming and going, but the servant could not say from whence they came or to where they finally disappeared.

Taking that information in hand (and trading some fresh fish for salted pork), the party headed back to the tea room and then up the stairs. Reaching the top, Torak in the lead was startled when he heard a female voice whisper in his ear "Turn back, and try to escape while you still can!" He shook his head to clear the voice, and the party moved on. But the voice returned. None the less, the party pressed on, and upon reaching the top the stairs found themselves in a torus shaped corridor that wrapped around the centre of the tower. Several doors led out from the half of the corridor they could see, and Abdul el Abdul marched up to the closest and opened it. It was a bedchamber, and an occupied one at that. Inside sat a woman, frustratingly trying to play a harp. She was dressed in a fine gown, but he did not look comfortable in it. Startled, she turned to the party to ask, in rough Common, who they were and why they were interrupting her practice? During the ensuing short conversation, they learned she, Xuna, was a guest of the Blue Mage, could not really say from whence she'd come, and she was practicing her harp to entertain at the evening meal. It would appear all the guests were expected to contribute to the ambiance of the social gathering.

Xuna on the Harp

At this point, there appeared next to Torak a young woman. Tall, pale, and dressed in black, she grabbed the cleric and yelled at him: "YOU MUST GET OUT OF HERE WHILE YOU CAN!". And seeing the newcomer, Xuna screamed at her, saying "YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BE GONE!" This overwrought exchange was all too much for Abdul el Abdul, who slammed the door shut. It did not stay closed for long though, as the woman burst out of the room, now carrying a net and trident, and ran past the party. Abdul el Abdul tried to lop her head off as she went by, but she ducked and sped on. He pursued, and caught her at the bottom of another set of stairs. As he stabbed at her, down the stairs bounded a half dead looking panther which pounced on the fighter. And just to add to the chaos, two of the other doors on the floor opened; out of one stepped a Greek hoplite in bright bronze armor, and out of the other came a greasy looking fellow in leather. They charged into the fray, and soon a running battle raged around the corridor. Chaff sent a reluctant Cephenere into battle, and she turned the cat and woman to stone, but not before the cat tore the life from Abdul el Abdul. The medusa then circled around to where Kwinsea and Xavier battled the hoplite, and she likewise turned that shocked warrior to stone.  The leather clad man, meanwhile, retreated back into his room and barred the door. A sudden silence then fell over the scene of battle ....

TOTAL XP

819

GAINS

Fish

KILLS

3 Giant Crawling Claws
4 Skeletons
1 Greek hoplite
1 Amazonian warrior in a party dress
1 Undead-ish cat thing

LOSSES

Abdul el Abdul

Far Isles Session #21 - Treasure!

DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

Abdul el Abdul (Fighter 3)

Kwinsea (Aquamancer 2), with familiar Hermes, and henchman Xavier (Swashbuckler 1)

Chaff (Vivimancer 3), with familiar Dirty Bird, riding hound Stinky Dog, and henchman Mumbles (Specialist/Thief 1)

Torak (Cleric 1)

Beuford Bumbletoes (Halfling 1)

Pulling open the trap door, the party found themselves staring down a shaft and into an eerily lit room. The floor of the room was covered in sand, and appeared to writhe and undulate. Chaff had Mubbles grabbed a few rats from the cage he carried, and dropped them down the shaft. This led to two smashed rats, as the 'floor' rose up and used a sandy pseudopod to smash both rodents. Chaff decided this would be a good time to use his paralyzation wand, which froze the thing in place. Abdul then lowered a rope to climb down, but to his shock he could not climb into the opening! There seemed to be a force field or something stopping him. After some experimentation, the party learned they had to just step into the opening to be levitated down (and up). Which in short time, all had done.

The semi-circular room was empty but for the sandy creature on the floor (which Abdul proceeded to slice and dice with his sword). Everyone started to search for secret doors, and Beuford found one in the middle of the straight wall. However, he couldn't open it. It took quite a bit of trial and error to discover they had to touch a piece of stone to the door to get it open. On the other side was the wizards bedchamber. And a plain and dull bedchamber it was. A few pieces of stone furniture and that was it. In the closet Chaff found some funny mineral fibre robes which he decided to wear for a bit. Torak discovered a book, bound in granite covers with pages of black slate, sitting on the desk. He opened it and found the writing to be gibberish to him. Kwinsea, however, recognized it a magical writing, and so cast read magic. The book was titled "On the Witching of Stone", and contained a number of stone-affecting spells and detailed notes on the making of a stone golem.

Black Pudding

The aquamancer scooped up the book for herself and the party headed for the door in the south wall. Abdul opened it, and found on the other side a small circular room. In the centre was a 10' diameter tub or well. Around the walls stood 5 pillars, each holding an object. Abdul strode boldly into the room and approached the tub, out of which shot an oily black pseudopod which struck the unfortunate warrior a mighty blow. He returned the favour with a swing of his sword, lopping off the pseudopod, which fell to the floor. Which unfortunately also turned to attack him, as did another smaller blob formed when Mubbles got into the fight with his spear. And on top of that, Abdul now noticed his armor was starting to dissolve. Luckily the rest of the party now got into the fight, and a barrage of oil and beams from Kwinsea's prismatic ray gem, topped finally by a blast from Chaff's wand, ended the fight. However, not before both Torak and Mubbles fell to the slimy monster. Torak, thanks to some quick first aid, avoided deaths door. Mubbles, however, was not so lucky, and once more Chaff was henchman-less.

Wounds bound and Torak made comfortable, the party checked out the pillars.  They found a range of monetary treasure (gold coins, pearls and a flawless emerald) as well as a stone skull and small ebony fly. Both these proved to be magical. Beuford, the holder of the fly, read the word written on the bottom: "vespis". Speaking it out loud, the halfling summoned a huge fly the size of a hippogriff! Beuford was impressed.

The party climbed back to the main tower and then discussed what to do next. The consensus was to stay in the Magic Isles and explore some more. The logic being the more magic items they recovered for Nalco, the more likely they'd get to keep some of the better stuff. But that required camping out for a few weeks while Torak recovered, which would put their food situation in peril. Torak did weakly note he could use purify food and water on the stuff stuck in the whales' baleen, to feed them on the trip back. Keeping that as a revolting backup plan, Abdul el Abdul and Beuford decided instead to spend time hunting and foraging to gather up a cache of food. Meanwhile, Kwinsea was going transcribe some spells from the book, and Chaff had other plans. He went back to the medusa, Cephenere, and managed over the course of several days to convince the monster to join the party (and not turn any of them to stone) if they freed her from her bonds. A plan that made the rest of the party at least a little nervous.

Village on Stilts

Abdul el Abdul and Beuford had little luck finding food, so once Torak was fully recovered, the food situation was still dire. The party decided to head east towards the next group of islands to explore, hoping to find a source of supplies or quick loot. Sailing around, they found an island floating a foot off the surface of the sea and one covered in a petrified forest. And tucked inside a wide shallow bay on a third island, they spied a village of some sort, built on stilts over the water. Well, that seemed like a good place to look for supplies at least ... 


TOTAL XP

8255

GAINS

1000gp
10 pearls (500gp each)
A Flawless Emerald (1000gp)
Ebony fly
"Magic skull"?
On the Witching of Stone - Spells: 2/Erosion (A), 4/Transmute Liquid to Crystal(A), 5/Wall of Stone, 5/Stone Shape, 6/Flesh to Stone. Plus instructions on how to make a stone golem  for half normal cost and time (6 weeks, 40000gp, user must be 9th level)

KILLS

1 Adult Sandling + ~100 Juveniles
1 Black Pudding 

LOSSES

Mumbles

Far Isles Session #20 - Statues, Statues Everywhere

DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

Abdul el Abdul (Fighter 3)

Kwinsea (Aquamancer 2), with familiar Hermes, and henchman Xavier (Swashbuckler 1)

Chaff (Vivimancer 3), with familiar Dirty Bird, riding hound Stinky Dog, and henchman Mumbles (Specialist/Thief 1)

Torak (Cleric 1)

Beuford Bumbletoes (Halfling 1)

The party breezed through the kitchen, rustling through the pots and pans but found nothing. They did notice the statues in the room behind them had stopped moving once they'd left the space. Passing from the kitchen through a door in the east wall, they entered a room crowded with large blocks of stone in a variety of colours, shapes and sizes. Various woodworking tools also lay about, and a large block and tackle hung overhead.  After satisfying themselves there was nothing of interest to be seen, the party headed through a door in the south, thereby making their way all around the lower level of the tower. This room was notable for the inch of stone dust covering the floor, and at the centre, a pair of unfinished statues. They depicted a pair of classical warriors, one male and one female. As the group entered the room, the male statue turned and spoke: "Oh do come in. I've been waiting so long for someone to come and free me. Could you do that please?" The statue gestured to his feet, which were just barely still attached to the block from which he's been carved. The female, meanwhile, simply turned and gazed unemotionally at the party. She would require much more work to free, being still unfinished from about mid-calf down. Under questioning, the statue (whom Abdul el Abdul dubbed "Clarence") could give little information, just that he had been carved by "The Master" long ago. Abdul el Abdul decided to risk freeing him, went into the previous room for some tools, and hammered Clarence free. The statue jumped down and pledged his service to his rescuer. The party decided to not bother with the female at this point, as it would take too much time to free her, and they were uncertain as to her demeanor.

"Clarence"

With level one explored, the party headed up the sarcastic stairs to the next floor. After briefly checking out a couple of rooms that seemed to be servant or guard quarters, Abdul el Abdul  had Clarence beat down the next door, out of which floated gentle flute music. Glancing in, the party spied a small table with two chairs. On the table were a pair of wine bottles and a pair of very plain goblets. Standing around it were four statues. These were wondrously detailed, and depicted a female elf, dwarf, and human, while the fourth was some type of fairy or elfin creature. When the party entered the room, the four started to dance around the table.  Abdul el Abdul boldly strode over to a chair, dodging dancers along the way, then sat and poured himself a cup of wine. The plain cup transformed to now show the carved likeness of the dancers. And it got mouthy, mocking Abdul in an increasingly sarcastic and nagging way. He resisted the urge to smash the cup and tried to extract useful information from it, but to no avail. Chaff, seeing that Abdul did not fall over dead from the wine, not so boldly followed him in and sat down for a drink. His cup had the same less than ideal personality. Regardless, these seemed to fit the criteria for interesting magical items as requested by Nalco, so the pair of cups were wrapped in a sack and carried away. Along with the wine, of course.  The last room on this level was a wizardly storage closet, with a multitude of shelves and hundreds of clay jars containing various dusts, powders and liquids. Abdul el Abdul found a jar of glowing paste, which he used to put warpaint on the increasingly depressed Clarence. Kwinsea grabbed an unopened jar to save for a latter surprise, and Torak found a nice jug full of liquid that reminded him of his great god Brall; it smelled of death and half rotten fish.

The stairs leading up to the third level were animated like the lower stairs, but these were depressed more than insulting. Little could be learned from them before the party reached the top. At least this floor was a different layout. They emerged into a north south corridor, and several east-west passages branched off. And moving past them, up and down the hall, were more statues of various forms and styles. They were all very highly detailed, At Kwinseas request, Abdul el Abdul tried to stop one so she could use the crystal heart and gain another henchman. The fighter thus discovered that the statues were all suspended on a series of near invisible wires and pulleys that moved them around the tower. He cut one down for Kwinsea, who inserted the crystal heart and named the new stony henchwoman, Velma.

Moving on, the first room they entered was covered wall to wall in mirrors. In the centre was a stone slab to which was chained an emaciated female figure. The  figure kept it's head turned away form the door, but spoke pleadingly "Please, release me. Have mercy and let me go". Looking now, they cold see it was a medusa, and very much in poor physical condition. The party questioned her, and found she had been captured by the master of the tower many years ago. He used her to turn people to stone in order to add lifelike statues to his collection. As she pleaded to be released, the party withdrew to discuss what they should do. Abdul el Abdul wanted to leave her there, arguing releasing a medusa would be lunacy. Torak, however, wanted to let her go. In the end, the majority agreed with Abdul el Abdul, and the keening monster was left chained in  the room.

Throwing open the next door revealed a room empty but for a pair of animated statues; a vampire apparently sucking the blood from the neck of an elf maiden. They paid no notice to the party until Abdul el Abdul had Clarence go over and poke at them. At which point the pair separated and sprang to attack poor abused Clarence. Kwinsea sent Velma in to help, and most of the rest of the party crowded in the room to fling missile weapons (except Beuford and Xavier who choose to stay out of trouble). The battle rapidly went downhill for the party, and after a number of mighty blows, both Clarence and Velma lay smashed on the floor. This forced the party to retreat from the room, Abdul el Abdul taking several heavy blows as he tried unsuccessfully to retrieve the crystal heart from Velma's remains. Now out of the room, the party thought it might be best to give the room a pass, although Kwinsea really wanted to recover the crystal heart. However, as they talked, the two hostile statues tried opening the door to continue their assault. Beuford and Abdul el Abdul grabbed the door and held it shut. Chaff lit his pistol match-cord and blasted a hole in the door. He then stuck his wand of paralyzation  through the hole and released a charge. One statue seemed to go down, and Kwinsea then finished off the last by blindly shooting her prismatic ray gem through the hole.

Cockatrice

Recovering the crystal heart, the party pushed on to check out the rest of the tower. They found rooms filled with animated (but uncommunicative) dwarven statues, another vampire/elf maid pair, and a room with a pair of emaciated and ragged caged cockatrices. Abdul el Abdul was tempted to find a way carry off a caged cockatrice (the magical bird being prominent on his family coat or arms), but the logistics of the operation deterred the party. They did however, take a throw-covered picture or mirror they found in one room. They were very careful to tie the cover on, as the room also contained three very lifelike statues with frightened looks. It seemed logical that the picture/mirror had turned them to stone.

Having explored all of this last floor, the party was perplexed and annoyed that they had found no sign of the wizard's private chambers. They decided to head back down to the first level and search for secret doors. On the way, Kwinsea politely questioned the sarcastic stairs regarding "The Master" and where he would spend his time. It wasn't an easy conversation, but it seemed his private chambers were accessible from somewhere on the main level.  That lead their thoughts to the room in which they'd found Clarence, with the thick layer of stone dust on the floor. Perhaps there was a hidden trapdoor? So back they went and started searching. Abdul el Abdul pushed the  animated statute of the female warrior aside to check for a trap door below, but was rewarded with nothing but a blank look from the stony amazonian. Torak, sweeping aside the dust however, did find that which they sought; a trap door in the floor ...

TOTAL XP

128

GAINS

Mouthy magical goblets (2)
Bottle of Wine

KILLS

2 Living Statues

LOSSES

Clarence and Velma, the erstwhile animated statue henchpersons

Far Isles Session #19 - To the Magic Isles

DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

Abdul el Abdul (Fighter 3))

Kwinsea (Aquamancer 1), with familiar Hermes, and henchman Xavier (Swashbuckler 1)

Chaff (Vivimancer 3), with familiar Dirty Bird, riding hound Stinky Dog, and henchman Mumbles (Specialist/Thief 1)

Torak (Cleric 1)

Beuford Bumbletoes (Halfling 1)

It was a tense voyage from the crystal caves back to the anchorage. Yorik was almost apoplectic with rage when he found out the party had destroyed the Kalandrian cosmic computer before he got a chance to probe it's memory banks for the lost knowledge of that advanced civilization. Only Rold's cooler head, and the reluctance of the crew to tangle with hardened adventurers, keep him from ordering everyone thrown over the side in mid ocean. But once back at the anchorage, the party was booted off the "Loreman's Passage" forthwith. And they were joined by Beuford and a couple of other crew members who had gotten a little to friendly with, in Yorik's words, "the enemy"; Xavier the swashbuckling sailor and Mubbles the mostly mute mate.

Now stranded ashore, the party made the rounds of the anchorage to see what was going on.  Ships at anchor and associated rumors and job opportunities included:

• "The Magnificant Marios" - A merchant, Marios is a bit full of himself, can't be trusted, and has prices higher than anyone else. But he usually has a few potions and scrolls for sale.
• "Nalco's Rowboat" - A tiny rowboat with a cabin on it is the home of the mage Nalco. Rumor has it the inside of the cabin is actually a full wizards tower. Nalco sells scrolls and potions, can ID magic items, and can provide anything alchemical. He is also looking for a party to go explore "The Magical Isles", a weird archipelago of cursed islands, bizarre wizards, and lots of neat magical stuff. He wants magic items, not interested in the  gold, and will supply transportation. 
•  "Serpents Revenge" - Back at the anchorage again, having bought the commission from the "Divine Providence". Left and came back again, but the crew is staying well away from the rest of the ships and not being social. No indication if Thorgrim actually found the lost ship or even went looking for it.
• "Divine Providence" - The captain, Yorgam of Tarsk, has had a terrible time finding an away crew (probably because he is a bit of an ass). Sold his  original commission to the "Serpents Revenge" and lured an away crew aboard with promises of a better deal. This time has a commission to find a different lost ship, but this one is loaded down with gold nuggets.
• "Two for Trouble" - Sailing for the bronze door in the jungle. Looking for an away crew. Standard split of treasure, but captain gets first pick of magic items and lotus.

The party also picked up a few other potentially useful/interesting bits of information:

• The abandoned shantytown is a little less abandoned this time. A group of adventurers has set up a bit of a tavern/gambling racket. Rotgut ale made from ... well, you probably don't want to know.  Along with the few refugees who didn't leave before, and a few others that have drifted in, it's almost looking like a little village. A dirty, ramshackle an generally lawless one, but a village just the same. 
•  Many of the sailors report encountering an increased frequency of ghost ships.
• Pirates have been encountered lately, but not coming from the mainland. They seem to hail from some as yet undiscovered lands to the east.
• An excessively drunk sailor claims to have see a huge floating island of seaweed, miles across, populated by mermaids and unicorns.

Weighing the options, the  party decided Nalco offered the best combination of loot and excitement. So they mooched a ride over to his rowboat, and indeed there was a full tower inside that cabin. Nalco, they found, looked and sounded like a 13year old boy. That was a bit odd, but he seemed to know his magic stuff. Nalco repeated the offer; he wanted unique and powerful magic items. The party could keep the gold and any minor magics such as potions and scrolls. And depending on how much they brought back, he might even let them keep some of the good stuff. When asked, the adolescent mage was a bit vague on the details of transportation, telling the party to essentially wait and see.

Deal sealed, the party went shopping for supplies; Nalco indicated they'd have to supply their own basic items such as food and water. Chaff was able to turn the eyes of petrification into store credit with Nalco, who provided a continual light coin and identified Chaff's wand (a wand of paralyzation) in return. Chaff also snagged a new spell, bonewarp, for his spellbook from Marios. Kwinsea meanwhile went on a bit of a dipsomaniac bender, and had to be physically restrained from marching off to pick a fight with Bellaphrone the Incontatrix. 

Transportation

A few days later, the party met with Nalco again, ready to head out to the Magic Isles. The mage now had a small sailing boat in addition to his own rowboat, and he turned to two vessels towards the open sea. Once out of the anchorage, Nalco pulled out a huge brass horn. He blew it, and after some time, a great baleen whale surfaced next to the rowboat. The mage explained the leviathan would carry them and the sailing boat to the isles and deposit them there. Handing the horn to Abdul el Abdul, Nalco explained they needed simply to sound it again to summon a whale to bring them back. Once the party was in the sailing boat, the whale proceeded to open it's maw and float the vessel onto it's tongue. There, amid the smell of whale breath and rotting krill, the party passed a number of days, feeling the beast moving through the depths. And were suddenly blinded by bright sunlight when it vomited them forth at the end of a chain of islands; the Magic Isles presumably. As the whale dove and left them floating there, Abdul el Abdul used his directional crystal and estimated the Magic Isles were probably 4-5 days voyage somewhere to the north-east of the anchorage.

Of the Magic Isles themselves, a half dozen were in view. Chaff sent Dirty Bird aloft and  observed a few more nearby, and then hints of additional islands towards the south-eastern horizon. On one isle, a black stone tower could be seen. Otherwise there was no sign of civilization. After some debate, they decided to check out the largest island, which lay between them and the isle with the black tower. The large island was long and narrow, essentially a long mountain ridge fringed by shallow salt-marshes and grassy dunes. Getting closer, they spied the remains of a road running through the dunes. And both heard and saw a mass of crocodiles in the salt marsh between them and solid ground. The maneuvered the boat around the reptilian beasts, and sent Xavier and Mubbles over to side to haul them ashore. Once there, they tied up the boat and headed east on the ruined road. After about an hour, they came to an intersection. The road continued along the shore and a branch climbed the mountainside towards a low pass. At the intersection they also found a freshly mounded pile of sand. Abdul el Abdul checked out the path, and found faint signs of booted feet, probably weeks old. They had come from the east, and returned that way in lesser numbers. After an hour long detour up to the pass (which revealed nothing but a better view of the black tower across the channel), the party gathered once more at the mound.  The party guessed the mound was a grave, so Mubbles was handed a shovel and told to start digging.  He uncovered a body, wrapped in a shroud. Xavier decided to show off by grabbing the shroud and whipping it off without disturbing its contents. Said contents were a body, a few weeks past it's prime and still dressed in armor. It was also missing a leg, chewed off by something it would appear.

Just what chewed the unfortunates leg off became clear momentarily, as a growling sound was heard from the nearby salt marsh and three hungry crocodiles slithered out of the mud and grass.  A fumble of attacks ensued, and Beuford once more had the distinction of getting chomped first. Chaff ended it all quickly, however, by dropping a web spell on a pair of crocs, while the third turned and headed back to the salt water. After carving the up the reptiles and rooting around in the grave for loot, the party reburied the remains and proceeded east. Eventually the road came to at a spot that looked like it once held a dock or a jetty. There were signs again that a group of people and and boat had been here weeks before, but nothing remained of interest today. So the party marched back to their own boat (after discovering that the old road petered out a few hundred yards west of their landing sight), and sailed around the island until opposite the lack tower. It was getting late, so they hauled ashore on the north side of the large island (less swampy and crocodile infested than the south side)  and made camp for the night.

After an uneventful night, the party boarded boat and head for the isle of the black tower. It was rocky with no obvious landing point, but they were able to get ashore and tie the boat to a good solid rock. Exploring the island, they found it was pretty much bare of plant life. There was a faint path leading from the tower to a flooded quarry, and scattered along that path were large numbers of long-rotted logs. As for the tower itself, it was about 50' high, with no windows. Scattered around outside were about a dozen partly dressed stones that looked like they came from the quarry. With nothing else to check out, the party headed for the tower. There they found a set of double doors, flanked by a pair of huge statues in the form of amazonian warriors holding large maces.  Torak cast detect magic, and to no ones great surprise the statues and the door glowed. They also now noted a small brass bell above the door. Kwinsea cast a cantrip to ring the bell, at which point one of the statues animated. It reached for the bell and rang it seven times, after which the doors opened. Nervously, everyone filed through the portal and into the tower.

The Black Tower

Inside, they found themselves in a rooms that seemed to take up 1/4 of the tower. A set of stairs wound up the outer wall, and the room itself was filled with statues. All of human warriors, and all moving. Most simply swiveled about on their pedestals, swinging weapons and turning. Two marched back and forth in front of a door in the north wall. Torak's detect magic showed that all (surprise!) were magical. Kwinsea and Xavier walked over to the door, and the two pacing statues suddenly stopped and blocked their way. It looked like they would have to deal with them if they wanted to go any further on this level. But the party was afraid that the rest of the statues might attack if they interfered with the guards at the door. So they came up with a plan. Chaff would web the door guards while everyone else stood watch from the stairs, covering the little vivimancer in case of a disaster. When they climbed the stairs however, the party was surprised to find they could talk. Each riser has a gargoyles farce carved in it, and they were quite mocking and insulting.  After numerous comments about the party members weights, body odor, and manners, Kwinsea did manage to speak respectfully to one stair. It revealed that there was nothing beyond the door but a kitchen. Nobody believed that, so Chaff cast his web. That entrapped the guards, and none of the other statues seemed to  change. So taking leave of the chatty stairs, the party bashed the webbed  statues, then bashed through the door. On other other side of which was indeed a kitchen ...

TOTAL XP

545

GAINS

none

KILLS

2 crocodiles

2 Living Statues

LOSSES

none