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Black Reckoning

by Steel Claw

Our journey to the Bezian cistern was thankfully uneventful.

The cistern -- or more accurately a reservoir -- was sunken into a small crater-like area. We moved safely to the water's edge (scouting ahead of us with Nonne). Auditor Murg and Master Theo noticed eyestalks peeking out of the water, though they didn't move when Murg fired a warning shot.

It wasn't until Theo cast message to try and reach out to the creature that the giant behemoth leapt up from beneath the water's surface. Thinking it had the literal "jump" on adjacent prey, it roared loudly before attacking.

The froghemoth swam at us, and as Izol zipped on his boots of flying the frogmaw wasted to time latching onto him with its tongue, then swallowing him whole.

"Theo? Murg? What do we do?" Steel called out. Taking a breath in, the arbalest took a shot in the dark, clipping where he imagined the creature's neck-blood-vessels should be. He hit correct, and the creature in the shock of the blow opened its maw to expel Izol back on top of the water (flying boots!). "I got him!"

Master Theo whipped up a ball of burning energy, before imbuing his armor with the energy. Seemingly satisfied, our wizard simply pointed at a spot on the water slightly behind the behemoth. Electrical energy erupted around the creature, and though much of the energy was absorbed into the water, the surge knocked the creature off kilter and dazed it.

(GM Bork has rolled 3 nat20's thus far, in-game)

After the fight, Izol took a peek underwater -- there are the bodies of many adventurers underwater, picked clean by the now-dead froghemoth.

Deep, yet deeper

We continued deeper: the cistern led to a sewer system of sorts, where the water is transported to Bezia. One outlet near our entrance seems to spewing a toxic liquid, unhealthy and no doubt tied to Argyle and current events.

From scouting ahead, Izol (with Nonne's help) spotted half a dozen undead -- shambling around and missing pieces of their brain. Carefully, the group maneuvered Auditor Murg towards the undead group as the rest of the group assumed positions. In a swift one-two, Izol kicked the door in to give Murg space to rush forward. Presenting the holy golden monkey of Abadar on high, all but one of the undead instantly burst into ashes and dust.

The area was once a campground, the undead the campers. Theo found a journal, which talked broadly about a farmer "Johnson", who was abducted (along with others) by Argyle to "construct the mother brain" out of the body parts of others. "It lies in the central cistern, but some light wall spell drives anyone but the warlock insane, if they should try to gain access." Icarus/Theo noticed a small alcove, hidden by invisibility magic, containing a small collection of valuables. One of the pieces of parchment contained was stock, for a company that Murg had his eyes on. Valuable indeed.

A hidden hallway on the side of the sewer system drew the party. About halfway, we found a small vestible of sorts with a strange floating creature with many eyes and eyestalks. A lesser beholder called a gauth, it managed to put Izol to sleep and paralyze Theo in an instant. Lord Gladwell placed a well-timed polymorph, and Steel scooped up the gauth-fieldmouse in one of his empty alchemical jars. With a bit of discussion and planning, it was agreed on to attack simultaneously upon release. The party overkilled the creature, and both Murg and Steel were up close and personal with the creature to see it explode with pure arcane force in their faces. After they pulled themselves together, Theo spotted a hastily scrawled noted amidst the room's rubble:

"Johnson, if you're reading this, then you've found my first note. I managed to slip away, and I got his knife. I can get past the walls, but I don't know what I can do past that. If you're reading this, then you've escaped -- take my advice: run for the exit and don't look back" -- Elias

We entered into the next room; Izol had scouted out the fie in the next room, a black pudding ooze was discovered in one corner of the room. Confident, we strode forward; sorry for us, the ooze was waiting, and lunged at us. As it attacked Lord Gladwell, and the metals began to slag off of his vorporal sword, it dawned on Steel that the ooze could potentially destroy the Claw. He panicked.

When the ooze was no more, we found a glittering white dagger in the ooze's remains (or where it was before it discorporated), in what we assumed were the remnants of Elias.

(Steel made a sidenote of the Tired Sands family reunions, and the massive scavenger hunts his father setup for he and his clanmates across the plains)

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Black Reckoning

Deep, yet deeper

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