Session 23: The showdown and the Tomb of Brokun

General Summary

After the encounter with the spiders the rain began to ease off and an hour later the party were on the move again. It became obvious quickly that the carriage would get no further through the think, clinging mud. The companions managed to move it off the riverside path and into the forest. They left it there and took the horses along with them, the tired beasts were obvious glad to be free of the rain, mud and the weight of the carriage.   Continuing by foot, the party trudged along through the trees until they saw some light ahead as the trees thinned. As the reached the tree-lines they looked out across a damp and misty clearing in the forest. They could not see the far edge of it but they could make out a ship through the mist, docked at the side of the river tributary.   The weather had dried up but the damp hung in the air and the sky was very grey, almost black in fact. Thinking that this was the clearing shown on the map, Malcer waded across the sluggish tributary, rifle held above his head, and came out on the far bank before darting into the trees. He skirted around the boat and saw a boathouse and sheds behind the boat and slightly further north. The others began to spread out and Davros took to the wing to get a better look, swinging away from the clearing to gain altitude before gliding in towards the boat. As he approached and dropped slightly he could make out figures on the boat crouched by the edges as though set for ambush.   The rest of the party moved silently into action, Cassandra heading off on horseback across the muddy ground, the sodden earth masking the hoof beats as she headed for another forested area. Dillard turned himself invisible and sprinted for the underside of the boat, reaching the bow without incident after a breathless jog across the soft grass. As Davros swooped in lower for a better look and Grouch moved forwards a cry went up from the boat and men emerged, streaming down the gangplank with wild cries and armed with spears, the trap was sprung. North of the boat, as Malcer watched from the trees, a figure emerged from the boathouse, moving onto the jetty to get a better look at the scene around the boat. This figure, dressed gaily and wearing a comical mask, was familiar to Malcer who wasted no time in un-slinging his arquebus and taking aim across the lake.  A loud crack rang out across the forest clearing and Dropsy clutched his shoulder in pain as the gun hit its mark. He quickly disappeared back into the boathouse and muffled shouts could be heard from behind the wooden doors.   As most of the party engaged the ambushers and Cassandra galloped across to join them, several figures emerged from the boathouse and move south towards the fracas. Malcer left the trees and transformed into his angel-winged alter-ego, lifting up over the river tributary in the direction of the boathouse. As he reached the centre of the lake however, a blonde, bearded man appeared around the side of the boathouse firing off a spell at Malcer who was left in darkness as the diabolic magic took hold over him.   As the other party members fought with the boatmen the other figures ran towards them and they saw the gaily dressed figure of Dropsy the Clown. As he approached he pointed at Davros and a ball of fire exploded around him, his consciousness slipping away in a sea of fiery pain. Dillard made short work of the boatmen with his spells and the party turned to face the new onslaught. Running alongside Dropsy and easily out-pacing him was a huge, muscular figure. The huge orc rushed towards the party brandishing a wicked looking double-headed axe.   Cassandra had now arrived and leaped from her horse to join the fight, Grouch took one look at the approaching hulking berserker and ran, pursued by the wild-eyed, slavering orc who roared his hatred at the fast moving kenku. Dillard managed to get a healing potion into Davros and he reluctantly rejoined the fray, limping into the fight with Dropsy. The blonde bearded man had no joined his companions and cast a circle of silence onto Cassandra and Davros in an attempt to stop their spell-casting but he underestimated their martial prowess, they needed no spells to cast down their enemies. The orc berserker abandoned his pursuit of the fleet-footed kenku and turned his ire on Davros, thundering towards him and felling him with a mighty blow. But the huge orc was weakening, his strenuous activities taking a toll on his strength and he was finally stopped in his tracks. Only Dropsy and the bearded man still stood and Dropsy, sensing the game was up took to the air in gaseous form. However, Malcer, not wanting to let Dropsy get away yet again, hit him with a burst of divine energy, piercing the thin gas and bringing Dropsy back to the ground dead. The bearded northerner surrendered and the battle was over.   As the companions surrounded him, a thundering of hooves was heard and from our of the trees to the south-east galloped 7 large, muscular horse men, fierce centaurs armed with bows. The party were exhausted from the fight and had little energy left for another fight and the centaurs surrounded them with bows drawn.   If they see the party attack the slavers they will help, believing that the party might well be able to help them with their particular difficulty. Once the slavers are dispatched the centaurs will gallop out from the bushes and draw their bows. A seventh centaur, the leader Yarnak will step forward and request help from the party with the events at the lake. If the party have missed the slavers, the centaurs will tell them this and talk together about seeking their help. The centaurs are extremely nervous about the events and afraid of the evil portents the event suggests. A storm has settled over the lake but this is no ordinary storm, things live in it and have fallen from it. Foul things made of bone, mud and slime have attacked the centaur camp but been driven off with fire and arrows, the attacks are becoming more frequent however and the centaurs are few and wish to be left alone in peace. They believe the source of the storms lies within the tomb which has risen up in the centre of the lake. The lake was also their water source and now, to drink it is to die. They will not go near the tomb. As well as the obvious threat it requires a short raft ride and they cannot use boats.   Humans, we saw you fight against those evil men. You fought well and are brave.... Would you help my tribe? A darkness has arisen near our home and we are powerless to stop it, My people fear the darkness and will not approach it's source, we have been attacked by things from the water.   In the middle of the lake, an island sits, on it a darkness has come to the surface. A raft can be found near the water but we cannot use it. Would you be wiling to help us, if you do we will pay you well from our tribes treasures?   The centaur camp consists of six massive tents built around a central fire pit. Everywhere are large sacks strung together with leather strips. The exterior walls of the hide tents feature freshly painted symbols in white paint. Several of the massive creatures greet you at the camp's periphery. Their spears appear fashioned from whole slender trees.   DEAD LAKE The small lake stretches out before you. Its water is the color of smoke and covered in sickly yellow foam. An old raft has been pulled ashore nearby, its condition suspect. In the center of the lake is a speck with a single tree. From a distance, you can see a half-sunken structure of some kind; the dirt beside the grimy stone walls looks recently churned.
The centaurs' watering hole is fouled by the evil risen in the middle of the lake. Animals avoid this area. Plant life along the banks of the lake has blackened and died. Milling around the edge of the lake eventually results in an attack by the undead drawn to the evil site.     On first entering the tomb the party come across a pale, ethereal figure. This is the long dead remnant of a beautiful elf woman, Mirith, now a mere ghostly shadow of her beauty remains.   Behind her stands a statue of a plate-clad dwarf, replete with an impressive beard and wearing an ornate helmet and with feet powerfully braced. He has a massive hammer raised above his head.   * She was killed in the catacombs below whilst trying to raise her lover from the dead. * ***What the party do not know is that she was secretly trying to raise a Black Dragon, Kathraxx (she called him Kax), whom she loved in his elven form. * Although not herself evil, she had been bewitched by the powerful dragon into loving him and, blinded by love, had lived here in his secret underground lair with him hundreds of years ago, when Bard's Gate was little more than a small town. * Her lover was mortally wounded fighting a band of heroes who encountered him in the open and he returned to her to die, he slew the heroes but his magically inflicted wounds were too serious to heal. * Alone with her grief and being elven and immortal she spent years wandering the world, studying the ways of magic, determined that she would find a way to bring back her lover. * After many years she returned to the tomb having found no answer for her hearts desire. Her lover had maintained the boundaries of the catacombs at the centre of the lake through his magics and the tomb still stood inviolate. * As she sat crying with his bones in the darkness, a voice whispered to her, offering the means to return her lover to life in exchange for a small boon. * The voice asked only that she read aloud from a book, whilst standing in a certain chamber in the tomb. * The whispered voice was Orcus himself and the book was a tome of the most vile darkness which summoned forth malevolent undead spirits to take over the catacomb in Orcus' name. * Mirith knew the dangers but was blinded by love and loneliness, her fate was sealed and as she completed the chant a great shadow rose up and struck her down. The cruel, whispered voice called to her in death and raised her as a ghost, condemned to roam the tomb but never allowed to return to her lovers side. * Now, after heavy rains and portentous storms the tomb has risen as Orcus' power has grown. The soft mud allowing the growing evil enough strength to force the tomb above ground. * The ooze storms are a direct result of Mirith's actions.     She now seeks only a small token of her lover and if the party agree to bring her such a thing she will aid them in finding and destroying the source of the Ooze Storm. She secretly hopes that ending Orcus' control of the catacombs will allow her back into the catacombs to spend eternity with her lover's remains. * If the party agree to help the elven ghost, she asks for help in ridding her tomb, and the complex below, of the taint of Orcus. * She can no longer return to the catacombs as a powerful guardian (sarcophagus spawn - page 336 T.O.B.) blocks the way. * If they agree, she tells them that they should parley with the first Lord of the Catacomb.     The catacombs originally belonged to a powerful dwarven lord who fought with, and was vanquished by the usurper, Kathraxx, many centuries before she found him. Kathraxx was honourable however and agreed to the dwarf's dying wish to be entombed with his armour and weapon, he left the dwarf in peace in his private chamber. Kathraxx knew better than to desecrate a powerful dwarf's burial chamber. * His tomb is to be found below and within is a powerful magical artefact that will aid the party. * The spirit of the dwarven lord will lend the artefact, a +1 bonebreaker mace (Items Wondrous Strange page 3) if the party agree to help clear out the tomb, he has no interest or knowledge of the elven maiden and tells the party that they can take whatever they find if they will leave him in peace. If they do not return the mace to him after removing the undead, he will rise as a Mummy Lord to pursue them. If they escape the tomb before he can reach them he will curse them and will spend their future looking over their shoulders. A darkness will seem to hover just out of sight at all times. * If they agree to the ancient dwarf ghost's request, the mummies in room 4 will not attack if left undisturbed and the skeleton warriors in area 5 will aid the party until destroyed.     Behind the statue of Dwarfater in her room is a secret staircase leading to a tomb room. * This is false room and the centre tomb is a secret entrance to the catacombs below but is it guarded by the sarcophagus slime.

Rewards Granted

Bonebreaker Mace +1
Weapon [any bludgeoning], rare (requires attunement)
You gain a +1 bonus on attack and damage rolls made with this magic weapon. The bonus increases to +3 when you use it to attack an undead creature. Often given to the grim enforcers of great necropolises, these weapons can reduce the walking dead to splinters with a single strike. When you hit an undead creature with this magic weapon, treat that creature as if it is vulnerable to bludgeoning damage. If it is already vulnerable to bludgeoning damage, your attack deals an additional 1d6 radiant damage.

  Death’s Mirror ring
Ring, uncommon
Made from woven lead and silver, this ring fits only on the hand’s smallest finger. As the moon is a dull reflection of the sun’s glory, so too is the power within this ring merely an imitation of the healing energies that can bestow true life. It has 3 charges. As a bonus action, you can expend a charge to gain 1d4+9 temporary hit points, as the spell false life.

Missions/Quests Completed

A Matter of Faith
Tomb of Brokun

Character(s) interacted with

Yarnak - Leader of centaur camp
Mirith - Elven ghost and lovesick resident of the tomb
Ghost of Lord Brokun (former Dwarven Lord Brokun) - Owner of the Tomb of Brokun