Session 1: The Bungeon Dungeon Sungeon Mungeon Rungeon (Bee-Dee-Ess-Em)

General Summary

The team wakes up to have a yummy breakfast of waffles (courtesy of Kitanya Evermoon) before miraculously making it to Gleddy on time for their meeting. Gleddy congratulates them on not killing each other and briefs them more on their mission: A good friend of hers, Ourelios Heia Eefissa, has contracted the guild to help her husband Zedron Eefis test a dungeon they've built in their basement. (She also thanks Kitanya for a waffle, and seems to actually mean it.)
The team is to grab equipment from Dortlitt's equipment stores on the second floor, then take the portal to the City of Mercy Sending Station and visit Ourelios and Zedron, their first client meeting!
The team grabs a variety of items from Dortlitt, including string, Botions of Healing (sic), a lute, a Collapsing Rod, several Mystery Keys on a carabiner, and a crowbar. They then zoop their way to the other City and Tervik Likkus uses their map and innate Business Man sensibilities for Hoity Toity Places in Cities With Convention Centers to find the client's manor easily.
Zedron and Ourelios welcome them into their home (a relatively un-tacky estate in an incredibly tacky city) and tell them the situation: someone has been robbing them. Less important than solving the robbery, however, is them making sure it never happens again. Part 1 of that was a full turnover of all staff; Part 2 is, of course, building a complex dungeon maze in their storeroom and contracting adventurers from AHARRG to testrun it to make sure it's not too easy but also not so impossible that someone couldn't get past it if they needed to.
Ourelios tells them that they can keep anything they loot down below, and that they will each get 25 GP whether or not they can complete the dungeon (plus she'll pay their medical bills). They tell the party to ring the bell outside the storeroom when they finish the dungeon so the couple can reconvene to get their feedback and pay them. Zedron accompanies the party down after Tervik changes from business professional to business asskick gear, Kitanya dons her sparkliest armor, and Amanita Guttata yarps up a few owl pellets (but, like, in a discreet/polite way, of course).
The dungeon is artfully crafted to look real, in the way someone who has never really visited a dungeon probably thinks they all look after a guided tour of a Level 0 one. Artisinal dirt no doubt brought in from afar covers the stone floor, two bright torches flicker on the walls casting cheery shadows. Perhaps the only unplanned, legitimate thing in the dungeon's first room are tiny green bioluminescent mushrooms that have sprouted in the corners. Zedron insists they're not dangerous, and while Amanita has never seen them before (gladly taking samples), Num and L0L4 recognize them as Lightbalbs; they provide moderate (1d10) healing when roasted over a fire (though they only last 24 hours after being picked before spoiling).
Zedron tells the team a few key details:

• The traps have no "off" switch

• There are definitely "beasties" in there to fit, and they're welcome to dispatch them permanently (murder them lol)

• There is a portal at the end to warp them back to the beginning, but no other "quick" escapes.

The team sets off and passes their first two traps: a pit with spikes at the bottom that both Num and Tervik almost fall into, and a series of slamming columns that don't hurt anyone but do smash some of the Lightbalbs into convenient flat chip shapes, further encouraging a growing business idea the party has for dried chip food. (They'd originally decided on Rockroot but Mingles--mushroom Pringles--also have quite a catchy name.) Also, Amanita shamelessly flaunts that they can just fly over any floor switch (but remembers they are not immune to the effects of someone ELSE triggering a floor switch and making them collateral damage.)
The team decides while walking that they likely will try to clear much of the dungeon as possible in order to collect data for Zedron to refine when he next updates the layout. It is around the time they decide this that they find their first treasure chest, in a room with sensors set into the wall that appear to detect motion. They test this with a flying Rockroot that does indeed trigger a "click" - releasing 2 Dust Mephits and one Smoke Mephit.
A battle with the Mephits yields few injuries other than pride by several people being blinded repeatedly. Num gives one Mephit some savage new wing piercings with his shortbow, Amanita bonks one to death, and Kitanya reminds people why you never stand behind a satyr (they kick you to death with acid hooves apparently).
(We also see Kitanya speak TO the mephits at one point, being the only one who speaks Primordial; she seems to mourn them after they're gone, as they did seem sad to be in the dungeon in the first place.)
Afterward, the team loots the chest which is, mercifully, the one thing not trapped in here. It contains some gold, a spell scroll, several gems, and a strange card. It vaguely tickles something in Amanita's memory but they can't remember what and ALEK51 verifies through a ritual Identify that it is not, in fact, magical itself (or being shaped by magic, etc.). The party catches their breath while they puzzle over this card, deciding to tuck it away safely before they venture on.

Rewards Granted

From Gleddy Goodvine:

• Maps of Cities of Mercy and Wrath as well as greater Ostelliach

From chest in dungeon:

• 122 GP

• 50 GP gemstones x 4: 1 each of Onyx, Smoky Quartz, Red Jasper, and Chyroprase

• Spell Scroll: Water Breathing

• 1 mysterious card (back, front not magical inherently, but potentially related to magic?

by Anthony Gonzalez

by Anthony Gonzalez

Miscellaneous:

• Several Lightbalb samples - Amanita

• (Nonmagical) leftover Mephit dust - Kitanya

Character(s) interacted with

Zedron Eefis and Ourelios Heia Eefissa, their first clients

Report Date

28 Feb 2024

Primary Location

Cities of Mercy and Wrath