The date is Tuesday, 15th August
The time is 1:00 PM
We returned to the entry point and searched to see if we could find a way out. There was no way we could find to lower the stairs again so we pressed on in our investigation.
At the back of this room is a bloody altar. A large skull sits on either end, wreathed in faint green flames that emanate a dim glow. As you approach, the green flames grow more intense, glowing red spheres fill the eye sockets and the skulls rise into the air.
We decided anything looking this evil could not be good so unleashed upon the
Flameskulls.
Fyren threw fire at them but they ignored it.
Tinnan advanced and chopped at one. One of the skulls fireballed us. Cheeky.
Sigmund and
Tinnan took one out.
The remaining one dropped another fireball and then we swarmed and murderized it.
The time is 2:00 PM
A short flight of steps lead to a small chamber, lined with alcoves crammed with bones. There was a hole which Chi dropped down into.
You drop into a wide, circular tunnel, perhaps 15’ in diameter. It doesn’t have the same feel as the crypts above. It’s dark but the air smells good and earthy.
Everyone followed Chi. As they were climbing down Chi did a little scouting and found a nest.
Before you is a large chamber burrowed out of the earth. Against the far wall is a pile of creamy white sacks, a huge insect-like creature is carefully reorganising them. Other insects scurry about the nest
.
Chi returned and informed the group. We decided to invade the
Ankheg lair and Chi summoned shadows about us but we were still quite noisy. Moving into the lair we noted there were a lot of giant insects in there.
Tinnan rushed in and
Sellis lit one big one up. Chi teleported in and stabbed the glowing one.
Fyren blasted it.
Idris then moved up and blasted the same one but it was still standing.
Sigmund moved forward and blasted the glowing one too, but still, it was standing.
Tinnan soon ended that resistance, however, cutting its head off. Tinnan then moved to the huge insect in the south of the complex. It looked big and nasty. Brave
Tinnan smashed it with his axe anyway and stood bravely in front of it. Sellis started on the next big one, blasting it with frost. Then they started to react. One spat acid at us and another came in to attack and got badly cut by Sigmund for its efforts. Sigmund was mauled but stayed standing - and was grabbed by its mouth.
Then the fireballs started to flow. Most of the creatures died but then the queen
Ankheg started to vibrate - and not in a good way. Most of the group fell over,
Fyren was unconscious. She then started to chomp on Tinnan who was lying on the floor, grabbing him in her mouth. We finished off the last big insect, leaving only the queen.
We started to focus fire on the big queen in the chamber (other than Tinnan). She spat
Tinnan out of her mouth along with a stream of acid. The ground bubbled with acid and then the queen started to vibrate again. Idris collapsed and Tinnan went to work on the queen. Most of us apart from the dwarf were badly hurt, but
Sellis was able to revive him with a healing spell. Chi rushed in and smashed her on the snout, stunning her! That was enough to have everyone rip her to pieces.
Chi did a reconnaissance and found a way out to the daylight.
Ahead you can see daylight, it hurts your eyes after the blackness of the barrows. The passage opens into a large chamber, sunlight streams in from a hole some 30’ up in the centre of the ceiling, the floor is covered in ivy and flowering plants, basking in the light.
The rest of this level was empty of anything interesting other than some ankheg eggs. We destroyed the eggs (from range) rather than letting them turn into full-grown monsters which could threaten the local ecology.
We climbed out into the sunlight.
Climbing out into the cool of the day, you notice that the mists that had clung to the barrows when you arrived have all but blown away. Looking south, a couple of miles distant, you see a strong, high wall that was hidden before and beyond it some low towers.
We moved up to the wall and found a safe place to stop and hide. Chi approached alone to scout.
A high, straight stone wall stands before you. It is perhaps thirty feet high and made from huge blocks of stone that have been expertly fitted together. It seems like a relatively recent construction in that the rocks are not too weathered, but ivy and lichen cling to its surface in places. There do not appear to be any fortifications in it. At a distance on both sides, you can see that the wall turns a corner. As you were approaching from a distance, you noticed that there were stone towers beyond the wall, but these are now hidden by the height of the wall.
Two low towers guard an open archway. Beyond the archway a great tower of stone can be seen, wide at the bottom and narrow at the top which is some hundred feet up. Several smaller towers of similar shape can be seen around it.
We think this castle is dwarven in construction. We enter. Great stone statues of armoured dwarves are placed in each corner of the surrounding wall. On one side, a small shack has been built up next to the wall. Thin almost colourless smoke curls out of its chimney.
As you approach, the shack door opens and a scruffy-looking dwarf steps out. In one hand he loosely holds a faggot of wood. His hair and beard are tangled and unkempt, his leather tunic has holes in and his boots have seen better days. He greets you warmly “Good day, travellers!”.
Tinnan spoke to him and confused him mightily. The dwarf was called
Barakor Thorden.
We talked to him and discussed history and recent events. He claimed to be a healer and fortune teller. We all agreed that we would like our fortunes told. He told us we were all going to become heroes; that
Tinnan would visit his people in the north and that we all will have long fruitful lives and riches beyond our dreams. In other words, he was a total fraud.
We spoke of the orcs and of
Anastaria. Again he told us that she is an evil witch - possibly mostly only because of her reputation. The orcs are mostly north and east of this region.
Fyren asked if the dwarf knew of
Firetoppen - it was about two months' travel north of here, beyond
Balinburg. Apparently, it's an active volcano. Barakor said that
Fyren's future was hidden from him and that he felt there was a mystery in our group. Chi asked if he had any maps but he did not.
Barakor asked us to go to
Balinburg and give them a message. He said
"Warn them that the plains goblins are regenerating quickly and that if they do not act, their fate will be the same as Vallahir. They should strike before midsummer's day or the year after at the latest."
Vallahir is a place - it was a valley in the White Mountains in front of the dwarvish home - which is now deserted as all the dwarves have moved to Balinburg.
Barakor added a few points of interest to Chi's maps. We stayed overnight and rested well. The next day, feeling much better prepared to face the wilds we set off for home. As we were leaving he called
Tinnan back and told him something secret.
The date is Wednesday, 16th August
The time is 8:00 AM
Three days later we returned to Hunterton and home.
Levelled up to 8th Level.
Here Endeth Season Two of the Midgard Campaign
