What Is a Necromancer Doing Hiding in Diamond Lake? Report

General Summary

Patchwall 19, 595 CY

Session: 2024-06-12

They asked Filge why he was here, and he told them that his old mate, Balabar, called him up about some weirdness in town, and if it was weird enough to spook Balabar, that was something. He has known Balabar for twenty years now, and laughs at how respectable he's become.
Seems like there's this cult in the Dourstone Mine, crawling with awful beasts in hooded robes. They call themselves the Ebon Triad and said something about unkillable undead in the southern hills, and about an Age of Worms.
He didn't know much about the Age of Worms, just some apocalyptic vision where evil wins and light fades from the lands. Smenk said the Ebon Triad follows Hextor, Erythnul, and Vecna. Place must be crawling with secrets.
When asked about the Land skeletons, he was surprised. He ordered Smenk's albino half-orc (using the slur instead of calling Kullen a rageborn) to fetch him some raw materials, he actually laughed that this was the reason the Topknots were here, damn that pink-eyed fiend.
The green worm was "nicked" by Smenk when he got a short tour of the mines. Filge goes on to say that the preserved worm was a worm from a spawn of Kyuss, unkillable zombies that writhe with hundreds of these worms. They are all the worse because while fighting the undead, the worms can get inside of you and turn you into one of them.
Feeling that they had all the information they needed and seething with vengeance, Crichton slashed through Filge's wrist, severing his hand. While Malakai tried to stabilize Filge with another goodberry, it wasn't enough to stop the necromancer from bleeding out and passing.
With Filge dealt with, the Topknots headed downstairs. On the first floor, they landed in a large dining chamber with a banquet table, around which sat unmoving zombies. The zombies were all looking at the seat at the head of the table paused as if in the middle of a dinner party.
Three doors branched off the dining room, one in the west, and two in the east. The western door was to the kitchen and attached pantry, while the northern door to the east was a water closet and bathing chamber, unused (which they could believe based on Filge's odor).
Opening the other eastern door, they were certainly in the entry building. Three skeletons faced the other direction, waiting for intruders. Delilah would later reveal that Alastor recognized the three as his father Anders, mother Bemissa and brother Coldaran. It took almost no time for the skeletons to be destroyed.
Gathering up the skeletal remains for burial, the Topknots spent some time searching through the first floor gathering and valuables that Filge may have picked up. Tolman and Argan found a bare workshop with stations for trade-craft.
Having been on their feet and on the move for almost twenty-four hours, the Topknots rested on the library wing, each taking one of the cleared-out rooms.
The next morning, Kaszu was planning on taking the hand to Kullen, but Argan insisted that he would do it. Argan found Kullen about town, at which point the rageborn showed his empty hands. Kullen was pleased that he got Filge's hand and swore that his bulldogs wouldn't bother the Topknots again. Argan got a strong impression that Kullen knew they had been beaten and wouldn't cause any more problems.
Kaszu went shopping around Diamond Lake as Crichton went to the Garrison. Explaining that while following clues to a grave-robbing, they found a necromancer living in the old observatory. They had defeated him, but he wanted to report in. Commander Trask himself accompanied the sergeant to the observatory. Finding the zombies still unmoving, Trask sat at the head of the table at which point, the zombies all started telling Trask, as "Filge", how amazing he was.
Having the militia "remove" the zombies, Crichton led Trask to the lab level. When he saw Filge's hand chopped off, Crichton claimed he was already missing a hand when they encountered him. Convinced, the commander dismissed Crichton and had the militia lock down the observatory.
By early afternoon, with all of their tasks completed in Diamond Lake, they made their way back to the Land Farmstead and buried the Lands's skeletons. Delilah felt a contented sigh, but Alastor stayed to fulfill his oath. Something more though. Delilah felt the presence that was always with her, her patron, was pleased. They made it back to their base at the abandoned mine office just before dark.

Patchwall 20, 595 CY

The next morning, they headed out to the Whispering Cairn. The green lantern was still lit, so they lit all of the others and climbed to the hidden passage above the blue lantern. Making their way through the trapped room of spheres, Alastor finally departed Delilah's body, and the inner door opened.
The chamber was cylindrical, with a balcony wrapping around a central chasm. Four areas around the walls were recessed, the southeast, southwest, northeast, and northwest, and intricate bas-reliefs were carved in each area, with steam playing along the reliefs. Four bridges crossed the chasm at the cardinal directions, but the eastern and southern bridges had crumbled. A whirlwind of rushing air swirled in the center of the room above a center circular platform. They Topknots made their way around the room, viewing the carvings.
To the southwest, a peaceful scene featuring several of the androgynous figures (the vaati) relaxing in an idyllic countryside. As the steam runs over the image, dark, demonic shapes, looking like a cross between spiders and wolves emerge from the edges of the sculpture. Circles in the sky begin to burst one by one.
To the southwest the image depicts a towering vaati figure wearing a glyph standing over a legion of lesser vaati warriors. The central warrior and each figure bears different glyphs. As the steam plays about the image, the warriors raise longswords in salute to the towering commander.
To the northwest a group of seven proud noble vaati warriors present a staff-like rod to a council of superior vaati in this gallery image. As the steam fills the bas-reliefs contours the central figure raises the staff above his head, where it splits into even irregular parts.
To the northeast the bas-relief in this gallery depicts a great battle between Law and Chaos. As the steam moves about the image, the another towering warrior impales the largest wolf-spider, a demonic entity that looks like a drider with four arms and a human head flanked by two wolf-heads. As the wolf-spider, Rod, and vaati vanish into a planar rift, another vaati leader (the warrior from the southwest relief) is struck by a beam from the great wolf-spider's eyes and slumps dead to the ground.
Kaszu was the first to make his way around and cross the northern bridge to the central platform, followed by Malakai and Crichton trailing behind. Out of the whirlwind stepped a creature wearing porcelain armor and wielding two longswords. From the gaps in the armor, it seemed to be made of nothing but winds holding the pieces together. Kaszu fire bolted the creature as his steel defender attempted to rend it, neither attack struck the target. As Malakai activated his spore cloud, the creature landed a longsword strike on Kazsu's construct, but missed with its second longsword. Tolman shot at it from the eastern ring, but missed while Argan used his hunter's Mark and landed a shot. Delilah hexed the creature, but her eldritch blast missed.
Crichton then closed with this wind warrior, his glaive gouging the porcelain armor while Tolman's second bow shot struck true, and did some extra damage while the creature was distracted by Crichton's attack. Kaszu fire bolted again while his defender initialed self-repairs. Malaki's shillelagh didn't even dent the wind warrior's armor, and the creature shrugged off the damage inflicted by Malaki's spore cloud.
Clashing his swords together, the wind warrior sent out a sonic blast which caught Malaki and Crichton. Crichton was able to shrug off some of the damage. Argan was raining arrows down on the wind warrior, but Delilah and the others were having trouble targeting it. Malakai struck it with a well-placed shillelagh strike, while Kaszu's steel defender was able to deflect some of the wind warrior's attacks. A few more successful attacks, and the porcelain armor clattered to the ground.

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

22 Jun 2024