Rosia Lightfoot's Journal - Part 14

We questioned the prisoner after the fight with the wolves, and he told us that he had been travelling with a halfling called Bartelby who had betrayed him and somehow sold him into slavery in this cursed place. I felt obliged to help him, if only to show that not all halflings are bad! As I was examining his manacles we were attacked by a band of bugbears and some more wolves. Apparently the wolf who fled had alerted them. We fought them off (mainly thanks to Oren and Curbag), but Isaak was badly injured in the process. Thankfully Quercus was able to heal him, and he seems none the worse for his experience.

We decided to let the prisoner come with us for the time being. His name is Ran, and he has a giant wolf-hound travelling with him. I think he must be a shaman, one of the ones who live in the deep forests. He seems to a have wild nature about him. He has lost all his possessions, so we gave him some few items we could spare. Hopefully we will find more somewhere in this part of the complex. What a pity we cannot return to the armoury we found in the last section...

We then explored the bugbear's den, to the east of the room where we found Ran. They lived in terrible squalor, the stench was worse than Curbag's feet! We did find a chest, and we used the keys we found on one of the bugbears to open it. It was trapped (of course!) but I was able to overcome the simple device, and there was some cash inside (not much use to us) and some more healing potions (of great use!)

Finding no other way, we went back into the mirror room, and explored the exit to the north east. We found a room with the floor covered in ice, and three large rings in the middle, linked together and slowly moving. They radiated magic, and Isaak told us that both illusion and necromancy were at work here. We decided not to risk upsetting the delicate balance of the rings. Perhaps we will come back later when we are armed with greater knowledge.

We ended up taking the last exit out of the mirror room, all other being exhausted. This led us to a room with a deep pit in it, filled with snakes and jagged spikes. How can the snakes live here? What do they eat? It must be more magic that keeps them alive... A narrow ledge went round the west side of the room, where we came in. Even for me it was risky, so I was joined to the others by a rope, in case I slipped. I went along the ledge, to the south wall of the room, and found a hidden switch which extended a narrow bridge partway across to the eastern wall. Along the eastern wall was another ledge, and there seemed to be a door in the south east corner. However, the gap between the end of the bridge and the eastern wall was considerable. For someone of my stature, it seemed like a gaping chasm!

Curbag volunteered to leap across, being easily the best jumper of us all. I waited on the western end of the bridge whilst he was roped to the others, then he ran along the bridge to jump to the eastern ledge. Alas! Before he could even try to jump he slipped off the bridge and fell into the pit. We had misjudged the depth of the pit, and Oren was forced to make a mighty effort to hold on to him. However, the rope slipped through his hands, and Curbag fell into the pit amongst the snakes. He was injured from the fall, but was fortunately able to climb out, with the help of the rope, before the snakes could bite him. Now we must hope he is willing to try again, or we must come up with a different plan to enable us to move onwards.

Players Map for Session 14


The traps take their deadly toll upon the party, every move is now cautious and slow.

Are they being tested? Is there no way through this place?

Are the players becoming wise to the games this dungeon is playing? Time will tell....

Rosia Lightfoot's Journal - Part 13

A week has gone by since I last wrote. We have been resting after the fight with Longtail, allowing Quercus time to recover. The lizardfolk came to visit us for a while, and helped to fashion a wooden leg for the cleric. He has been practicing with it, and seems almost as good as new. I offered him my magic cloak, to help offset the loss of his leg, but he refused it. His faith in Pelor is remarkable!

While we were recovering, Curbag grew restless. He was still furious about the orcs deserting us during the battle. I tried to calm him down, but each day of inactivity just made him more determined to hunt them down and punish them. In the end Oren and I agreed to go with him to look for the orcs, leaving Isaak to stay with Quercus. Curbag and Oren can both see well in the darkness, and I wore the magical lenses which we took from Longtail. We found that the doors to the east had become unsealed. I wanted to investigate, but Curbag wouldn't be swayed from his quest.

We traveled on to the south, down the long corridor, and found that one of the doors had been opened. I wondered if the orcs might have tried to escape this way, so I went ahead and looked into the room beyond. They had indeed passed this way, and perished in the room beyond! The large chamber was clearly riddled with traps, as all the orcs had died in a range of horrific ways. Thus is the fate of those who travel without the specialist services offered by my profession...

We returned to the others, Curbag seeming somewhat put-out that he hadn't been able to bring death to the orcs personally. Once we were satisfied that Quercus was fit to travel, we moved on. We tried to go north, via passage in the northwest corner of our map, but it had caved in. The dungeon seems to be getting more and more unstable. We tried going through the area with the Trogolodyte stench, but it was just to unpleasant. Even with a wet rag tied around my nose, I was unable to stop retching. In the end we went east, despite misgivings about the chamber of traps.

Sure enough our fears proved well founded... This new area of the complex seems to be even more riddled with traps than the last. At least not all of these are magical, so I have a much better chance of detecting and disarming them. We explored several rooms, including one with a golden statue which crumbled to dust when we finally got it out of the room (after Quercus was nearly killed by a trap which shot shards of crystal at him), before finding a large chamber completely lined with mirrors. As we entered a trap was set off, causing a large block to start moving down the corridor. At the same time a stone door descended, threatening to seal us in the corridor and have us crushed by the block. We could see no way out of the mirror room, but we chose the lesser of two evils and ended up trapped inside it.

On searching I found a secret panel in one of the mirrors, and behind it was a lock. I got out my tools and began to work on it, but it was fiendishly complicated and I must have set something off, as the panel snapped shut and seemed to disappear. We search again and found another panel, and behind it was a lock. I thought at first that it was a new lock, but then I recognised the marks of my pick on the metal! It was the same lock, somehow moving around the room. I tried again, and failed and the lock moved again. We found it in yet another part of the room. I failed to open it for a third time, and expected it to move, but instead the mirrored tiles on the floor fell away to reveal a huge drop into a chasm filled with rocky spikes. There was just enough floor left for us to perch on. I tried the lock once more, and yet again I failed. This time the floor we were on moved to the centre of the room! Having no other option I searched the floor and found the panel and the lock, and this time I defeated the mechanism and the lock opened. The floor was magically restored and doors opened to the north and south.

We went north and found a room with a man chained to a wall. Before we had time to investigate this prisoner, we were set upon by a pair of huge wolves. The battle was hard fought, but we killed one, and the other fled. Now we need to question this strange man and see why he is here, and find out what he knows about this place...

Curbag's Log

The battle with Longtail left us in a battle worn state. We needed rest before I could hunt down the orcs. Quercus , still putting on a brave face, had his magical supply of water but we are down to scavenging for rats so we can eat. Once Oren, Rosia & I were feeling better we set off back the way we had come, leaving Quercus to consecrate the church to Pelor.

We suspected the orcs would return to where we had first met them and headed off in that direction. This took us passed the long north-south corridor in the east. Rosia noticed that the warding marks had disappeared. I reminded her what the job in hand was and managed to stop her from getting distracted; we would come back to inspect the doors later. Further south one of the doors was ajar. It had been forced open; maybe the orcs went that way suggested Rosia. She sneaked through to find that this had indeed been there escape route. Unfortunately for them they had entered a room laden with traps. The orcs had met their death by darts, spears or boulder. Fate had done my job for me, but as Kord teaches desertion from battle is death itself.

We rejoined the rest of the group. The lizardmen were also holed up in the church and the druid was helping Quercus with a make shift replacement for his leg. Once he could walk well enough we parted company with the lizards once again. Checking the map there were a few areas uncharted. They turned out to be of no consequence and so we looked for ways out of the area. The door to the north-west previously closed was now in a collapsed corridor so no luck there. We tried to make our way through the rooms which stank of troglodytes, but my weaker companions could harder walk a few steps without vomiting.

We resolved to go back to the doors in the east. Not wishing to follow the orcs to a death by trap we tried another door. This lead to a very dusty corridor. Oren, as sharp as ever, found a secret room which held books, which Quercus seemed to be able to read and a solid wooden table & chair. The furniture appeared to be carved from single pieces of rock and showed impressive craftsmanship.

Forging on I led the way. Turning a corner a cracking sound came from beneath my feet as the floor opened up revealing a deep spiked pit. Fortunately my fast reflexes allowed me to leap the gap and I landed safely on the other side. After Rosia & Isacc had found how it worked it was disabled and we continued on. The next two rooms held various basic weapons and looked like someone was readying for a battle.

On returning to where the pit was we found it had now collapsed; and there appeared to be scorch makes on the surrounding walls. I leapt the gap once again and with the help of a rope the group made it's way across. Quercus still adjusting to his new wooden leg did not find this easy. He found he was unable to keep his grip and only it was only because Isaac cast some magic, to soften his fall, did he avoid being badly hurt by the now rubble filled bottom. Once all together we continued to explore...

Players Map for Session 13

The group made an attempt to go north but their first route was blocked, their second route, through the troglodyte lair, was abandoned due to the terrible stench.

They explored east and are now wandering through some twisted trap fest.

After surviving the fiendish mirror room (just), they came across signs of life in the form of two huge wolves that seemed to be guarding a manacled figure.

A short and bloody battle ensued, with one wolf being killed and the other driven off. Though noth without serious injury to Oren and Curbag.

Who is the person manacled to the wall, next week all will be revealed...