Episode 14.75 More like, EIGHTEEN tons now, amiright?

The 5th Editon playtest campaign.
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EvilGenius
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Episode 14.75 More like, EIGHTEEN tons now, amiright?

Post by EvilGenius »

16 Tons Part 3

After successfully releasing the missing Obsidian Bay dwarves from their Adamantine shells, Jareth, Brigga and Onarra were able to get the dwarves (and the recovered treasure) back to the surface and the rest of the party.

Everyone decided to take some time to recover their strength after the difficult battle, and Brigga spent the time trying to re-attune to the relic from her past, the Hammer that slew Bannock in their prior lives. However, unlike most magical items, there was resistance from the weapon when Brigga was attempting to attune to it. After several failed attempts, Brigga was able to finally attune to her former weapon, though it did take the better part of a day to do so.
While Brigga was working with her weapon, Quarion examined the Obsidian Bay dwarves. It appeared that they had suffered some kind of assault on their minds (Int and Wis ability score damage). Using powerful Restoration spells, Quarion was able to revive the dwarves.

The freed dwarves, Luc, Duklar and Moraim, were glad to be free of the trap, but dismayed that they had apparently been trapped in that form for over 2 years. They also corrected Brigga in that they actually represented a dwarven stronghold called Khelez-Mar, NOT Obsidian Bay (though the searchers were from Obsidian Bay). The dwarves spoke with Brigga at some length about Brigga’s people, and decided they would then head back to Rookroost to plan their next move. Brigga was able to give Luc vague directions to the area in which her people had built their permanent settlement, and the Khelz-Mar dwarves thanked her for the information, declaring that they would search out the new dwarves after a respite in Rookroost. The other rescued adventurers from Obsidan Bay, sent here to search for the missing dwarves, also stated they would accompany them to Rookroost, then make their way back south to their city.

Also while resting the PCs put their heads together about the portals. The portal here seemed different from some of the other portals they had seen. The first portal they encountered in the Winter Woods, atop the Druidic Standing Stones (with the Elven Burial Chamber below), seemed more like a tear in fabric, and it led to a plane of snow, ice and frigid temperatures. The portal was jagged and irregular, and closed when the PCs killed the tiefling who was attuned to it.

The second portal they encountered was the portal at the base of Jareth’s former tower, which the PCs used to come back from the Plane of Elemental Water. That portal was well-defined and circular. It seemed similar to the portal you have found here at Brigga’s former stronghold. The portal at Jareth’s tower is still open, as far as you know. You did not encounter any creature there who seemed to be attuned to the portal and there seemed no obvious way to close it.

The third portal you encountered was the portal in the Weeping Boughs (Onarra and Miette’s former home), which led to the ShadowFell. That portal was more regular shaped, though not as well defined as the portals at Jareth’s tower or Brigga’s stronghold. The portal in the Weeping Boughs was closed when the PCs killed a powerful wraith that appeared to be attuned to it.

The PCs briefly contemplated the wisdom of entering the portal on the mountaintop, but Duklar, from the Obsidian Bay dwarves, quickly objected to that plan. “We thought about that when we got here, way back when. Even spoke to Clangeddin about it. The reply we got was WOE. No ambiguity at all. And since we’re not empty-headed elves, oblivious gnomes, or foolhardy humans, we listened to the warning and didn’t go into the portal. I recommend you do the same.”

Seeing no flaw in the logic, Brigga, Quarion and Onarra decided to head back down into the caverns underneath Brigga’s former stronghold to see if they could discover what was attuned to the portal above and close it.
Last edited by EvilGenius on Tue Nov 20, 2018 5:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Episode XIV.75 More like, EIGHTEEN tons now, amiright?

Post by EvilGenius »

Sixteen Tons: Part 4

Brigga, Quarion and Onarra descended into the caverns again to look for more information on the portal. Interestingly, when they approached the Outer Chasm they observed something they hadn't seen before. There were some flashes of light deep below in the chasm. They were irregularly timed and sometimes different colors, but the PCs could see no more import to the mysterious light, and continued on.

When the PCs got to the Forge Caverns, they again encountered the unstable chamber area. After some debate and investigation, Brigga noted that the ceiling also looked quite unstable. Deciding magic was the best way to circumvent this hazard, Brigga tied a rope around her waist and cast Levitate. As she hovered a few feet off the ground, Brigga asked her elven companions to give her a push to get her across the unstable area. After several insufficient attempts, which only got Brigga partly across the chamber before being reeled back in like a fish, Quarion finally was able to push Brigga with enough force to carry her all the way to the hall on the other side of the chamber.

After some more debate, it was determined that if Quarion anchored the rope on one side and Brigga anchored it on the other, then Onarra would be able to test the floor's stability and use the rope as a safety line. With a firm grip on the rope, Onarra gingerly stepped into the central hallway chamber. Almost immediately, the floor crumbled out from beneath her, revealing a large chasm below.

Hanging from the rope, Onarra was able to move hand over hand to the next section of floor, which also gave way under the slightest weight. When Onarra reached the other side, Brigga reached down with one gauntleted hand and easily hauled the elf out of the chasm, while firmly anchoring the taught line with her other hand.

Quarion looked around the hallway near him and could find no appropriate place to tie the rope off on that side of the hallway. With a brief prayer to Rillifane, Quarion shaped a stout pillar of stone from the wall next to the chasm and tied the rope securely. In a moment, he was across the large open hole.

Brigga scowled into the chasm with a perplexed look. "I can't remember too much about this place but that just doesn't seem right to me. There's no way I would have built a flat flagstone floor over a pit like that. You'd need butresses or some kind of reinforcement. Hell, I'd just build a damn bridge, like over the first chasm. What in the hells is this?"

Now safely across, Quarion took out a torch and lit it. "Why do you even have a torch", Onarra asked. "Elves and dwarves can both see in the darkness". Quarion looked at his companions. "We do have several companions who cannot see in the dark, but really, it never hurts to have some fire available." Quarion dropped the torch down into the dark before them and counted. After a surprisingly long time they heard the torch hit bottom, providing a small circle of light, far below. Brigga did some quick calculations in her head. "That's at least 200 feet down. That doesn't make any damn sense at all."

Onarra looked around the obviously damaged dwarven chambers. "Wellllll, you probably didn't construct your caverns here already crumbling. Maybe your stronghold wasn't the only thing that was transported to the Plane of Elemental Earth". The companions exchanged worried glances. Brigga sighed. "Well, let's just be careful. Who knows what else is missing..."

The three PCs headed to the far end of the hallway, to the wide stairs leading down to the mine level, diligently looking for unsafe stonework every step of the way.
Last edited by EvilGenius on Tue Mar 06, 2018 3:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Episode XIV.75 More like, EIGHTEEN tons now, amiright?

Post by EvilGenius »

The three PCs descended the broad steps deeper and deeper into the mountain until they reached the mine level. Everything seemed still and quiet though Quarion's keen senses were able to detect a rhythmic tapping coming from further in the caverns. Brigga led the way into the mines, everything familiar yet new.

The PCs passed through several empty chambers before entering a large cavern. The floor sloped down to the left and the right, leaving a narrow, elevated walkway through the room. On either side of the walkway, the PCs saw strange, abstract sculptures. Neither of the elves could determine what they could possibly be, but after a few moments Brigga realized that each statue was a different type of stone, and that each statue somehow perfectly expressed the essence of the stone it was made from.

Lost in observation, Brigga mumbled, ‘I never thought of it like that. Whoever did this … They understand the stone in a way that I’ve never seen. But … it’s something more, too. It’s not just an expression of each type of stone. It’s … something more …. The granite. It looks like it could be … laughing? But why? Who would make this,” she pondered.

Quarion and Onarra glanced at each other, both comforted that neither seemed to see anything deep in the strange shapes. Onarra tugged at Brigga’s sleeve. “It’s just rocks, Brigga. And not even shiny ones. C’mon, let’s go.” Quarion swiveled his head, as though listening. “The tapping has stopped. I wonder if that means we’ve been detected.”

The PCs moved on, traversing the walkway to an opening in the cavern wall. Hanging in the opening were long strings of rock, through which the PCs could see an irregularly pulsing colored light. Pushing through the hanging rock as quietly as possible, Brigga peered into the room beyond. The floor was ten or so feet below the ledge beyond the rock curtain. The diameter of the room stretched out beyond the range of her darkvision, but Brigga hardly noticed that as her gaze was immediately drawn to a large glowing crystal across the room.

The crystal was mostly an irregular, spherical shape, about 5 feet in diameter, the bottom still embedded in solid rock. There were several rough patches and angular patches around the surface. But the most intriguing part of the crystal was the light. From somewhere deep inside, a pulsing light was illuminating the crystal. Due to some amplification/refraction quality of the crystal, the light was being projected from the crystal in two distinct beams. One beam of light projected directly up to the ceiling. The other beam projected into the cavern, though, ending in a largish, now-familiar looking dimensional portal, suspended in mid-air.

The portal in the cavern seemed different from the portal you saw above ground. This portal was more well-defined and stable looking. It was perfectly round with a clear perimeter of glowing energy. In fact, the portal before them looked an awful lot like the portal that you found at the bottom of the big hole where Jareth’s tower used to be, before it was transported to the Elemental Plane of Water.

The PCs slowly moved into the room, onto the small platform. Brigga and Onarra climbed down the 10’ embankment to the cavern floor and took stock. They could see pools of liquid at the edge of their vision, some stalagmites, the portal and the big crystal.

Before they could move any further, a rumbling beneath their feet gave scant warning as multiple Xorn burst out of the floor below them, angrily clawing at the intruders!

Caught slightly off guard, Onarra and Brigga quickly moved to defensive postures, then unleashed a flurry of attacks against the monsters. Bleeding heavily from multiple serious wounds, Brigga attempted to blur her form, making it more difficult for the Xorn to target her, while Onarra moved off toward the crystal in an attempt to draw some of the Xorn away.

Neither attempt was particularly effective, as the Xorn continued to savage Brigga and ignored Onarra. However, the stealthy elf had her own problems as she moved toward the glowing crystal. Several times along her path, mystic runes flared to life around her, carved into the rock itself. Each time Onarra managed to dodge out of the way of the deadly traps, but it did take her concentration and prevent her from easily reaching the glowing crystal.

Then to make matters worse, a giant boulder, also with glowing runes carved into it, flew out of the darkness and crashed into Quarion. The doughty priest was able to resist the plague runes carved into the boulder, but they still hurt quite a bit.

When the boulders started flying, the Xorn abruptly fled back beneath the surface of the cavern. Brigga climbed back up to Quarion to be healed and Onarra made it to the glowing crystal. With a cry of rage, a huge, grey skinned stone giant appeared out of the darkness and hurled another boulder at Quarion. It looked like the throw was directly on target, however, at the last moment, the boulder veered in mid-air right toward Brigga, and smashed into her instead!

Seeing the giant emerge from the deeper darkness in the cave, Onarra yelled out a threat. “If you don’t leave this place I’m going to smash this crystal!”

The giant must have taken the threat seriously because he stopped throwing boulders and instead moved to intercept Onarra, who began striking at the crystal. Brigga and Quarion moved to join the fight and after a few moments trading blows, the giant threw a boulder at his feet in frustration. Immediately an impenetrable magical darkness sprang up around them.

Brigga used her other senses to try and figure out where the giant had gone and was able to hear him near the now invisible portal. With a strange curse, the giant fled back through the portal, causing the magical darkness to end.
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Re: Episode XIV.75 More like, EIGHTEEN tons now, amiright?

Post by EvilGenius »

Short recap of the last session:

Sixteen Tons: Part 5

After quite a bit of investigation of the mysterious crystal sphere and the portal(s) projected from it, the PCs learned the following:
a) It looked like the portal may have actually opened in the spot where the crystal was, and the crystal somehow refracted the phenomenon into two portals: the portal near it, which is well defined, and the portal apparently projected to the surface, which looked very jagged and irregular.

b) The very regular looking portal next to the crystal had one extremely strange characteristic: when examining it, Brigga got the distinct sense that she could attune to the portal, in a manner similar to attuning to a magical item. However, no one else felt like they could attune to the portal, and Brigga sensed that she was currently blocked from attuning to the portal, as if someone or something else was already attuned to it.

The PCs rested and prepared and then went through the portal. They found themselves in a strange place on the Elemental Plane of Earth. They were in an enormous cavern whose ceiling was far beyond their sight, and with perilous chasms that fell away into darkness. Nearby was a strange carving in the floor. There were various overlapping circles, which looked like they might be movable. After some examination, the PCs determined that the various circles seemed to indicate other planes of existence. Deciding that's not what they had come for, the PCs moved to examine a huge alien citadel some distance away.

Navigating their way through more rune traps, the PCs found the Stone Giant and engaged him in combat. The Stone Giant displayed some strange abilities, seemingly summoning Xorn to defend him and manifesting a stone shell and spikes which damaged people who struck him in melee combat. He also hurled boulders marked with more strange runes which displaced fantastic properties. However, after a difficult fight, the PCs were able to slay the giant.

The PCs didn't find much of anything in the citadel, and thus moved back to the carved Planar Astrolabe. By manipulating the rings, the PCs were able to open a portal back to Brigga's sub-basement. However, not content to simply head back home, the PCs decided to experiment some. They opened a portal to the Elemental Plane of Water, and saw the familiar spire of rock upon which Jareth's ruined tower formerly sat (before falling into the sea). The PCs debated opening a portal to the Plane of Fire, but feared meeting the Fire Lord, whom they had failed to best in their previous lives. Taking another gamble, the PCs opened one more portal, to the Plane of Air.

Powerful winds exploded through the open portal. The PCs could see nothing on the other side of the portal except open air. Then powerful forces grappled each of the PCs, dragging them toward the open portal. Brigga and Quarion struggled in vain against the Invisible Stalkers and were dragged through the open portal, then immediately fell out of view. Jareth and Onarra were successful at escaping the grasp of the two remaining Invisible Stalkers, who fled back through the open portal.

Jareth and Onarra briefly considered their options. Seeing no other good options, Onarra and Jareth jumped after their companions into the expanse of the Elemental Plane of Air.
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Re: Episode XIV.75 More like, EIGHTEEN tons now, amiright?

Post by EvilGenius »

Another short recap for the last session.

The PCs who were taken or who jumped through the portal into the Elemental Plane of Air found themselves faaaaallllllliiiinnnngggg ......

We did some not-at-all-complicated calculations about PCs' different rates of falling, all while Invisible Stalkers continued to attack them; 2 PCs were in free fall, 1 was in feather fall, and 1 was levitating. After the Invisible Stalkers were defeated, the feather falling and levitating PCs dropped their spells and went into free fall, attempting to minimize their wind resistance in order to catch up to the other free falling PCs.

With unlimited space to fall, the minimal-wind-resistance PCs did indeed catch up to the flail-around-screaming PCs.

After some more time in free fall, the PCs spotted some small motes of land below them and off to the side. They were able to successfully position themselves over the largest mote, then use Feather Fall again to slow their descent and land safely on the spot of solid ground, ripped from some unknown location and deposited here.

The mote was about a square mile in area, and was moderately forested. The PCs explored their immediate surroundings and then took a long rest to replenish their abilities and health. With that completed, the PCs set out to explore the rest of their small island. They first found remnants of a small campsite, then they found an area where the trees grew together in a dense pattern. A voice called out, challenging them, when they approached the trees, and after a few moments of discussion, the PCs met 2 stranded adventurers.

The adventurers were part of a doomed adventuring part from Oerth and had accompanied a powerful wizard on his jaunt to the Elemental Plane. Unfortunately, the wizard died shortly after arriving on the plane, killed by a swarm of air elementals. Although the deceased wizard's body and adventuring gear was thrown from the mote in the battle that killed him, one of his high level spellbooks remained. Along with several spells keyed to planar travel, which Brigga was not experienced enough to learn, there was a folded up scroll of Plane Shift, which was also beyond Brigga's more modest magical abilities.

The PCs did not get to ponder their options for long, though, before being beset by several air elementals, which was somewhat of a regular occurance, according to the stranded adventurers. The combined might of the PCs and their new friends was enough to disperse the elementals, but not before one of them emitted a high pitched keening which could plainly be heard at great distances.

Before more elementals arrived, Brigga concentrated all of her knowledge and training to cast Plane Shift from the precious spell scroll, and to their relief, everyone was successfully transported back to camp outside of Brigga's former stronghold.

After another rest, Brigga and Quarion went back down to Brigga's basement to the room in which the portal was being projected. After several attempts, Brigga was able to attune to the portal in a manner similar to attuning to a magical item. Once so attuned, Brigga sensed that she could stay attuned to the portal as one of her magical attunements and derive some unique benefits. However, Brigga instead decided to close the portal, and in so doing, seemed to regain a small portion of herself that had been missing, along with a powerful memory of her former life ....
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Re: Episode XIV.75 More like, EIGHTEEN tons now, amiright?

Post by EvilGenius »

For reference, the Spellbook that Brigga recovered from the stranded adventurers is entitled Walk Abouts and it contains the following spells:

5th - Contact Other Plane, Control Winds
6th - Move Earth, Contingency
7th - Plane Shift, Reverse Gravity
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Re: Episode XIV.75 More like, EIGHTEEN tons now, amiright?

Post by NukeHavoc »

Brigga recovered this memory when closing the portal near her former stronghold:

At your next long rest or the next time you sleep, you have a vision. In the vision you are in a large, mystical chamber which you instantly recognize as Erk's laboratory/summoning room at the top of his tower. Through a few windows you see outside there is a cold rain falling on a bleak day.

Naziah kneels before you, held in place by Erk's eldritch bonds. All of your companions are here, standing inside of a mystical circle, arrayed around a strange, unfolded box. Mystical energy flares chaotically around the box and as you focus past the beautiful and dangerous magical display, it seems that you can see other places inside of the box; lands of fire with some kind of metal domed buildings in the distance, impossibly tall mountains in a vast darkness, a lonely spire of rock on an empty sea, an impossibly lush forest at twilight, a great silvery expanse with small dots of swirling color, a blizzard howling across vast tundra, a vast and terrible graveyard with all of the color leeched away from your view.

Erk draws your attention away from the flickering landscapes. “Everyone grasp the blade.” You see Erk is holding a heavy iron sword with a dull black blade and a large pommel crafted into a screaming face. Just looking at the weapon makes you feel uneasy but all of you reach out to grasp the blade. The black metal bites your bare palm and though it doesn’t move, it feels like a saw blade digging eagerly into your hand. There is a sensation of … tearing, inside your mind that nearly makes you swoon but Erk’s chanting voice brings you out of your momentary stupor, in time to see Erk withdrawing the tip of the blade from Naziah’s shoulder. It is more unpleasant than you had anticipated but a fierce determination drives you; you MUST open a way to the City of Brass!!

All of you pry your hands off of the awful blade, though it seems that the blade doesn’t want to let you go. Erk’s chanting reaches an emphatic pitch and you all instinctively back away from the chanting sorcerer. With a flourish, Erk reverses the blade and stabs it downward into the unfolded box!

The blade pierces one wooden side with a loud metallic clang. The mystical energy playing around the unfolded box seem to part like cut cloth, then fade. For a moment, nothing more seems to happen. Then your world tumbles around you in fire and you are slammed into a stone wall! Through teary eyes you see your companions similarly held against the walls of the room as bands of mystical energy fly about chaotically, piercing all of you multiple times. Then there is a sensation of movement and you see the tower, and your companions, speeding away from you, spinning away into the multiverse. The last thing you remember before the vision fades is the sound of your scream ….
"Oh, I'm so sorry. Forgive me. I'll try and be a tad more quiet as I desperately struggle to break free -- and save all creation!" -- Doctor Strange
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