Session 21: Duergar Redux Report

General Summary

Our heroes had moved through the portal and, after a flash that blinded them, they strode into the large hall seen weeks ago, on the floor the badly decomposed body of a bandit they had chased then. As last time, they took the wide stairs descending in the middle of the hall to the caverns below.
  A stream ran through many of the caverns and passageways in this area under the The Barrier Peaks and although stirges had attacked last time (Session 6: transported! Report there were none to trouble the party today. Qira urged them to the dwarven sepulchur overlooking the vast Glitterhame cave so she could see the resting place of her son, Falkas. But to her horror, the cairn laid by Mi'tsuru'gi and Brimble Knackles weeks ago had been destroyed, stones scattered about and no sign of the slain Falkas, just a few bits of bone, perhaps. Unknown tracks marked the presence of creatures, but of what kind, none in the party could say. The tombs themselves held Durgeddin’s kin and modest treasure, a dragon-shaped gold ring, a finely crafted warhammer inset with garnet and handfuls of old Bissel gold coins.   Quickly, the party descended into the Glitterhame and made their way across the mushroom forest. Halfway to the other side, an umberhulk exploded from the cave floor, splitting the party in two. The creature’s confusing gaze stopped Daktarin Stren, and Brimble’s spell was thwarted, but the others were able to wound the creature with sword and bow. Soon, the hulk’s wounds became too great and the creature retreated from the fight, burrowing deep into the rocky floor.   At the far side of the Glitterhame, the heroes came to the dwarven door and inserted the key they had found when last they tred these caverns. As they walked up the passage beyond, the lingering smell of Troglodyte greeted them. They approached the statue-trapped room that injured them last time and then into the Great Hall of Durgeddin. The Duergar were ready, apparently having been warned by the Trogs, and again laid their demands for the party to quit this place, to leave them to their work and their secrets.   Brimble had recently learned the See Invisibility spell and he used this well to track the hidden gray dwarves. While Mitsu sneaked up the hall, the others parlayed briefly with the duergar, and learned that there might be a portal in the caverns beneath the dwaven halls. However, save for Daktarin, the party had no interest in negotiations. Finally, attacks commenced, enlarged duergar and the party met steel to steel, and the hidden trogs also joined in battle. Even though other gray dwarves came from the adjacent forge room, they could not meet the strength of the heroes. The party gave no quarter, killing all the duergar, including the leader as she lay unconcious, and taking their meagre belongings, including a red dragon-like scale and a green vile that held red viscous liquid.   The forge room to the south has a stream runing through the middle, exiting at either end with a narrow ledge adjacent. To the north of the Great Hall were other passages. In the northeast doors lead to a square and large chamber with a pool in the middle, but almost instantly a dwarven ghost, grief-stricken over his kin, appeared and chased Mitsu from the room. To the northwest a shrine of sorts was at the end of a short corridor, its walls carved with the dour images of dwarves, stone benches lay about the floor, and an altar at the far end supported the remains of a dwarf in plate armour. Before much could be learned, bones near the altar rose up into two monstrous ogre skeletons and a desciated orc corpse too pulled itself to its feet and moved quickly to the party. It seemed these undead could not leave the shrine and the party fired missles into the room at them, culminating in Brimble’s fireball that turned the tide with the heroes defeating the creatures shortly thereafter. As they explored the shrine at the close of battle, the heroes found a small sack containing gold pieces and a bone case containing a spell scroll of web and one of spider climb, while the undead orc wielded an old sword from Sterich.   Back in the Great Hall, the party considered their options.

Rewards Granted

5 x duergar: 1000
2 x ogre skellies: 1200
1 x ogre wight: 700
1 x umber hulk (fled): 1800/2 = 900
  total per PC (4): 950 xp