Tirana's Lair, Part 10 (Desnus (V) 2nd-9th, 4709 AR)

-

The Wishing Well. When Gryxxa fell in the pool of lava she took fire damage.

The red dragon was hard pressed, and he asked Surnom for a prismatic spray which killed Aranthor. He also tried to push vulnerable heroes into the lava pool. The red dragon fought until slain.

Surnom granted the red dragon's wishes. He fought to the death.

A small pile of 150 platinum pieces and 67 gp, a +1 ghost touch mace and a stone of alarm lay in a corner, covered by a heat-damaged tapestry weighing 40 pounds and depicting another red dragon terrorizing a countryside.

After this encounter the heroes exited the dungeon and visited the Temple of Abadar in Kaer Maga in order to raise Aranthor. After he recuperated from his ordeal, they returned to the dungeon.

Summoning Rift. Beyond the door’s arch, a yawning crack in the stone floor slices a jagged scar across the chamber’s stone floor. Acrid yellow smoke billows from the depths of that strange abyss, while tongues of black flame flicker from the edge of the crevasse. Across the chamber, against the west wall, two steep staircases extend to the edges of a large stone balcony. On the stairs and balcony, a half-dozen black-robed cultists stand with arms raised to the heavens, chanting a monotonous litany of profane pronouncements. Each casts furtive glances in the direction of the yellow smoke, where an unusual winged shadow begins to take form.

The six cultists spaced throughout the room (two on the balcony, one on each stair, and one each in the northeast and southeast corners) appear to be involved in a complex arcane ritual meant to empower the creature they have summoned from the depths of the planar rift before them. This demon, a terrible vrock, thus enjoys several spell effects tied to the infernal chants.

A mighty vrock hid within the yellow smoke as the heroes arrived. Six cultists were arrayed throughout the room. The cultists ceased their chanting only when killed or otherwise prevented from doing so. One of the cultists had a mystic connection with the demon so that some of the demon's wounds were transferred to the cultist.

Immediately after appearing, the vrock took to the air and attempted to savage the heroes with its natural attacks, moving adjacent to them in order to take advantage of its spores attack. The cultists continued chanting with single-minded focus. The cultists continued chanting until they were killed or until they were prevented from doing so by the heroes.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Shearphorus, Part 5 (Neth (X) 1st, 4712 AR)

-
Image
Entrance to the Guardian Hall. The heroes killed the ogre guard. Guardian Hall.  A 30-foot by 30-foot section of the chamber directly below the chute from the entrance to the guardian hall above has a null-gravity effect. Aranthor, who was flying, had to use a move action to reorient himself when passing through this area, but then proceeded as normal. Jules and Zemurin did not reach the ground, instead hanging 15 feet above the floor. Gryxxa, who was levitating, liberated them by pulling them outside the null-gravity area. This huge chamber, roughly carved and left with unfinished walls, is one hundred feet square. Continual flame spells nearly cover the flat ceiling thirty feet above, so the place is refreshingly well-lit. An iron boss ten feet in diameter protrudes from the stone in the center of each wall. Large iron tools of various function lie haphazardly across the floor, while one workbench features a more orderly set of fine human-sized tools and a bedroll below. An iron ...
Read more

The Gauntlet of Challenge-Cry, Part 2 (Neth (X) 1st, 4712 AR)

-
The Challenge of Might.  Light in this chamber was equal to shadowy illumination when the trapdoor above was open or the gate was imbued with fire or electricity (see below); otherwise, there is no natural light. The bottom of the deep stone shaft is flat and empty, with a massive iron door, forty feet high and thirty feet wide, set in its eastern side. The door appears designed to slide upward, much like a solid portcullis. A thick, sturdily-braced horizontal iron shelf protruding from the door five feet above the floor appears to be the only leverage point from which to lift it. The iron of the door changes color several times a minute, at first glowing orange as if pulled from a forge, then glistening with green perspiration, next frosted with ice crystals, and finally dry and crackling with electricity, before again glowing orange and repeating the cycle. Large runes etched into the doors seem to ignore the state of the door, their forms remaining the color of blackened iron th...
Read more

The Gauntlet of Challenge-Cry, Part 1 (Neth (X) 1st, 4712 AR)

-
Image
The Guardian Hall.  Opening the south port set in the wall is easy but extremely dangerous: a stream of cold energy shoots across the chamber to the opposite wall, dealing damage to anything in its path each round. Concealed under the workbench in a secret compartment were two spellbooks. One spellbook is unremarkable. It is worth 990 gp. The other spellbook, however, is very unusual: its covers are bronze plates engraved to resemble interlocking golem fists, it is thicker than the typical spellbook, and it has an integral hinged bronze bookmark in the shape of a golem’s arm. This arm is actually a mechanical trap and attacked Gryxxa when she touched the book. The book is worth 11,250 gp due to its integrated trap and unusual materials. The Epitaphrum.  As the heroes ascended toward the plateau of the Epitaphrum, it became easier than it was at the base of the Throat of Shearphorus to identify the source of Astersyn’s screams, their meaning, and the voice of the Epitaphrum. Th...
Read more