FRC Session 17…BUGS!

Our last session was dominated by lots of walking and exploring of the upper level of the keep of Migdhal Yar. At the end, they had succeeded in finding the mechanism to opening one of the portcullises protecting the keep’s entrance but not the second. Even with Adran’s magics, Skarr and Verrak wouldn’t be able to shrink down to a size that could squeeze through the “arrow” slits above. So, Dench transformed into a rat, slipped through the narrow gap between the bars of the second portcullis, and went to open the large double doors going into the keep. We pick up this session with the party separated and Dench steeling himself to explore alone.

This recap is from Craig. My GM comments, as usual, are in [brackets and italics].

With Dench, Skarr and Verrak in the portcullis room and Dru, Rory and Adran trapped in the ballista room above, the group is separated. Adran uses Enlarge/Reduce on Dru and she goes back through the arrow slit, down the rope and joins the group in the portcullis room. The group takes a short rest so Dench can regain both of his wild shapes back.

Dench turns into a rat and goes through the unopened portcullis, turning back into a half-orc he opens the door on the other side. In the room behind the close doors is an open room with bodies everywhere; they appear to be dwarves and very very old. There is a door to one side and several closed portcullises peppering each wall Dench notes that there is a single skull out of place, it appears to be the human-sized skull of a fish head. Dench comes across a strange device, some sort of weapon that is shaped like a large, two pronged spear with serrated edges. Dench takes the weapon to Verrak who identifies it as a weapon of the Kuo-Toa, a fish-like race [of the Underdark].

Dench returns to the large room to continue exploring. From behind one of the portcullises, Dench can faintly make out a green flame. He gets closer to inspect and the green flame produces three smaller balls of flame which shoot out towards Dench, hitting and injuring him. Dench tries to retreat to the closed door to continue to explore the newly opened room but not before the room erupts in flames, damaging him even further. Rory and Adran, still trapped in the halls above, are able to see Dench through the arrow slits and watch helplessly as the fire engulfs the room.

Dench escapes the flames through the closed door to find a small room on the other side. While in the room—filled with debris and with only one other door—Dench attempts to cure his wounds. Dench presses on and goes through the next door to discover a long hallway extending both to the left and the right. Branching off from the hallway are a number of entrances, some blocked by portcullises and others by only a door. Dench heads down the hallway, still searching for something that will open the second portcullis where Adran, Verrak and Dru wait. Proceeding down the hallway Dench hears skittering. All of a sudden, a number of centipedes come charging towards Dench, led by a single gigantic centipede. [A number meaning a near tidal wave of centipedes.] Dench quickly retreats to the debris filled room. Fearing the centipedes more than the fire, Dench bursts through the second door to return to his fellow-adventurers (but discovers the flames have subsided). However, the same green flame that struck Dench before fires off another three [little] fireballs, each [unerringly] hitting and injuring Dench once again. Dench finally makes it back to the closed portcullis and, hearing the skittering of the encroaching centipedes behind him, uses his wild shape to turn into a rat and run under the portcullis.

The centipedes turn the corner and Dru, Verrak and Skarr ready their attack. The swarms of centipedes crawl through the portcullis and begin attacking the adventurers. One swarm crawls onto Verrak and another on Skarr but can’t initially get through their armor. However, one swarm is able to get through Dru’s armor and begin to attack her. Verrak uses Burning Hands to attack the swarm, but they continue to attack. Dru attacks. Skarr tries to smash a swarm with his shield. Verrak uses Bloodcrier’s hammer. Their attacks are working, but the centipedes continue to swarm. Meanwhile, the gigantic centipede appears through the doorway but, like our heroes, can’t get through the closed portcullis. Dench, still in rat form in case he needs to get back under the portcullis, turns back into a half-Orc to join in on the attack, but immediately receives a critical hit, dropping him to a single hit point. Dru goes down but fights valiantly to save herself, as the centipedes continue their attack. Verrak and Skarr continue to fight to save Dru as the swarms begin to focus on them. But their efforts are not enough and Dru succumbs to her injuries and dies fighting the good fight.

Just as Dru dies, both Dench and Verrak go down, knocked out by the swarm of centipedes. As Dench nears death, having failed two death saves, Skarr uses Spare the Dying to save him. Skarr continues to fight until there is only one swarm left, but all the fight is gone as the final swarm takes down Skarr as well.

[Yep, it was starting to look like a total party kill for that part of the party that wasn’t “safely” waiting above. All of this was going on in the entrance tunnel where Adran and Rory could not see all of this so they really didn’t know what was going on.

If it wasn’t for the “hive” mentality of the centipedes and their focus on “harvesting” one food source at a time, it would have been four PC deaths instead of just one.]

Not knowing who’s still alive, Verrak is the first to awake after the centipede attack. He discovers both Skarr and Dench are still alive though unconscious. The last swarm of centipedes had been feasting on Dru’s dead body. [There was a line of centipedes, wisely avoided, which was carrying off Dru bits into the keep…pretty gruesome.] Verrak carries Dench and Skarr back to the gatehouse, propping them up against the wall until they recover. [Not necessarily safe but, at least, away from the immediate danger of the centipedes swarming again]. Verrak has the foresight to paint a black arrow on the ground, signaling to Adran and Rory where to go if they should escape the ballista room. Dench and Skarr finally wake up but are both stiff and rigid as their bodies try to overcome the centipede poison.

When the pair is finally well enough to perform basic functions. Skarr demands the trio return so Skarr can keep his blood oath to watch over Adran. Both Dench and Verrak are against this plan, as it would be too dangerous and the benefits of waiting for Adran are minimal. But Skarr won’t hear it. From far below the ballista room, Skarr hollers to Adran and Rory and catches them up on what happened, informing them that Dru has died. Rory and Adran continue to search the upstairs hallways—even though their activity initiates the awful screams of the mushrooms. With the centipedes gone at this point, leaving mainly a skeleton of Dru,] Skarr searches Dru’s body, taking anything of value. Everyone waits, as Adran needs a rest to restore his ability to perform Enlarge/Reduce. While they wait, Skarr insists—against Verrak’s wishes—that Verrak try to use the Bloodcrier’s Hammer to open the portcullis. Verrak finally acquiesces. The hammer does nothing.

The group [eventually] takes a long rest, wakes up the following morning, heals up and heads back to the keep. When they reach the keep, Debs the Dworc is guarding the entrance and is stubborn about reopening the entrance. When Debs finally—and passive aggressively—lets them back in, they head to an upstairs room to discuss a way to get the Dworcs to mine the Glitterhame below. Amidst their discussions, Berguk has arrived back at the keep, his arm in a sling. Berguk attends to Lord Adran while Verrak informs Adran about the Earthnode at Mighdal Yar and the benefits and drawbacks of using it [e.g., being able to magically (and immediately) travel to another location and other magical uses].

The group continue to discuss mining the Glitterhame when Berguk tells them it isn’t theirs to mine. When pressed on it Berguk says he will tell Adran what he means, but only Adran. As Verrak and Skarr cannot be present, something that Skarr refuses.

[Hmm…I think that the discussion went something along the lines of Verrak suggesting that Adran talk to the dworcs about populating Migdhal Yar and mining Glitterhame as his allies. Berguk basically says that was wrong and that Adran is the master and the dworcs would serve him, including mining the Glitterhame. I think there was then some discussion about the rather passive-aggressive Debs and his influence over the dworcs which led to…]

Berguk also urges Adran to take control of the oft-defiant Dworcs by displaying a “show of force.” Before the display of force, the adventurers eat and Burgak also informs them that Bartholomew The Brown-Nosing Dworc was a spy from a rival clan and has been executed. After their meal, the adventurers head down to the Dworcs quarters so Adran can address them. Burgak speaks first, asking if the Dworcs had been purposefully disobeying Adran. Debs, the most disobedient of the Dworcs [and one of Berguk’s cousins], responds with a plain “yes.” Berguk tells them if they remain defiant [(i.e., not obey Adran as their ruler)] then things will return to the “old ways” [of governing.] At that exact moment, Ugak the pregnant Dworc and the mother of Skarr’s unborn children, stabs Debs in the back of the throat. Amidst the violence, Berguk tells the Dworcs they will in fact listen to Adran.

The adventurers return upstairs to continue discussing the Glitterhame. Berguk asks again for a minute alone with Adran and Skarr refuses, citing the blood oath he took to not let Adran out of his sight. Adran tries to command Berguk to speak with Skarr in the room (Verrak grows frustrated at Adran’s half-hearted attempts to take command of his keep) but Berguk refuses and leaves the room. Adran finally slips away from Skarr and tracks down Berguk. When the two are alone, Berguk tells him “I’ve got something to give you…” [as he was reaching into a pocket to pull something out.]

[It didn’t go down well at the end. Berguk wanted a private word. Skarr said no way. Adran told Skarr it was okay. Skarr pretty much said that there was no way that he would let Adran be alone with Berguk, even defying Adran. Adran told Berguk it was okay to speak in front of Skarr but he wouldn’t and left. When Adran went to go after his dworc advisor, Skarr blocked the door. So the Lord of Cagair Keep had to resort to turning invisible to “escape” and then caught up with Berguk and the pair went into the “war room” downstairs, with their whereabouts unknown to anyone else in the party. I suppose this certainly would be a good opportunity for Berguk to kill Adran if that’s what he wants to do (as I guess Skarr think is going to happen). It seems like a bit of an elaborate plan to swear allegiance to Adran, bring his whole clan from their home to serve this new lord, give up any independent claim to an ancient dwarven stronghold and the neighboring veins of precious gems, and having his cousin killed to “convince” his clan to fall in line. I guess we’ll find out next session.