The Old Observatory Report

General Summary

Patchwall 18, 595 CY

Session: 2024-05-29

Tolman opened the bedchamber door and peaked out into a darkened room. It must have once been a library and sitting chamber for the monks. Empty bookshelves surrounded an inner seating area with chairs and tables, a few armchairs rested in other nooks. The empty sconces looked a bit strange, as if they held spheres or robs of some kind, not torches. Around the room beckoned other closed doors, like the bedchamber door Tolman emerged from. The northeast of the room was the landing where an eastern staircase descended to a lower level, while the northern staircase headed up. Both were lit. Tolman and Malakai, still in rat form, headed back out the window and lowered rope for the other companions
Once everyone was up, which always seemed to involve someone falling, this time Delilah. The Topknots made their way up the northern stairs and entered a large bedchamber which took up the entire level of the observatory. A grand bed rested on a raised platform in the southeast corner of the room, a golden-brown rug made from the pelt of an aurumvorax lay on the floor
They found a note to Filge from "S" asking for help with a cult in the Dourstone Mines. Surprising because Ragnolin Dourstone seemed the least vile of all the mine managers. They also found Filge's spellbook and a few treasures he had laying around.
Finally, they began heading up the stairs to the west, and they came into the top floor of the observatory. The area where the telescope may have once rested had been converted into type of operating theater. Four large glass tubes held dark shapes at its four corners. Short stairs to the north and south descended into the theater where a stone slab held a corpse. Standing near the corpse was a gaunt figure, who must have been Filge. He was cutting into the corpse while studying a book carried by s skeleton which stood by his side and followed him.
Seeing the companions at the staircase, Filge shouted, "Arise My Monstrosities!" The four large glass tanks were each shattered from within as zombies erupted from them, three held troglodyte zombies, while one held a bugbear zombie. The battle was joined.
Filge first tried to attack Kaszu with a chill touch which was countered by Kaszu instantly raising a magical shield. Crichton attacked the zombie bugbear while the skeleton dropped the book and attacked Crichton with a shortsword. Delilah would mention later that this was the time Alastor yelled Gertia, and Delilah knew the skeleton was the remains of Alastor's sister. The zombies swarmed Crichton, a few gouging him with their claws while Delilah attacked the skeleton with a chill touch of her own.
Argan joined the battle, drawing his battleaxe and taking a piece out of one of the zombie troglodytes which his drake enhanced with its breath. One of the trog zombies bit back. Malakai chill touched Gertia's skeleton while Kaszu tried to fire bolt the bugbear zombie, That's when Filge changed the game. He cast a cone of fear that encapsulated most of the Topknots, who were hedged in at the top of the staircase. Argan, Crichton, and Kaszu ran away.
As the rest of the companions held the line, the zombies got into the middle of the party, making attacking difficult. Tolman shot at one with his bow, but it he could get a clear shot with the zombies this close. The bugbear zombie took a bite out of Crichton as he fled, and one of the troglodyte zombies raked with a claw. Argan took a hit from Gertia's shortsword while one of the trogs clawed at Delilah.
Malakai released a spore cloud to damage opponents who closed with him while Delilah transformed into her Form of Dread. Both Delilah and Argan were getting gouged by the troglodyte zombies claws, luckily the zombie bugbear missed on a morningstar attack against Delilah. Filge was very intrigued by Delilah's new form.
Malakai attacked with his chill touch while Kaszu, who had shaken off the fear, used Fire Bolts. Filge, sensing a chance to protect himself, cast a spell making his form blurry and hard to strike. Tolman fired at one of the trogs engaged with Argan and hit a vital spot as it was distracted by his companion. Delilah was at the center of the zombie attacks while Argan, who had also shaken off the fear, marked one of the trogs. The battle was fierce, and finally Filge dropped Delilah with a chill touch. Crichton stayed on the level below, unable to face Filge. The zombie bugbear seriously injured Malakai, and things began looking grim for the Topknots when finally, Crichton was able to shake off the fear and rejoin the battle, Malakai was finally able to get close enough to Delilah to cast a healing word while basking a nearby trog with his shillelagh. Filge, with his zombies starting to fall, attempted another cone of fear, but wasn't able to affect any of the companions.
Then the battle took another turn, as Tolman, a budding mage, cast sleep on Filge and put the necromancer to sleep. Unfortunately, the necromancer was quickly awakened when Crichton slashed him with his glaive Delilah tolled the dead on the necromancer while Argan then grappled Filge. One more shot, and the grappled necromancer fell. They stabilized Filge and Argan tied him up while the companions searched the observatory.
One the eastern side of the room were two diagrams inscribed into the floor. One was a teleportation circle, whose sigils had been scrapped out. While it was largely intact, it was useless as is. The other was the outline of a summoning circle. Filge's operating instruments were finely made of silver and a small emerald lay in the corpses mouth. On one of the lab tables to the north, Malaki found a vial with a green worm preserved inside. Delilah recognized it as a worm of Kyuss, horrible undead things infested with these worms that propagated by these worms.
They needed information that only Filge could supply, and they still needed to find the rest of Alastor's family. They hadn't gone down to the first floor yet. But first, Malaki popped a goodberry into Filge's mouth, reviving him.

Campaign

It Started in Diamond Lake

Protagonists

Tolman K’hurzz

Malakai Steelbuckle

Delilah Raincloud

Crichton Eogen

Argan Agu-Ulakanu

Chaotic Good Goliath (Outlander)
Ranger 4

36 / 36 HP

STR
18

DEX
14

CON
14

INT
10

WIS
12

CHA
8

Kaszu Billowcase

Chaotic Good Rock Gnome (Guild Artisan / Guild Merchant)
Artificer 3

24 / 24 HP

STR
8

DEX
12

CON
14

INT
17

WIS
14

CHA
10

Report Date

10 Jun 2024