D&D Campaign Session for November 19th, 2000

Played with 3rd Edition Rules

Player Characters:

Azaki Ushento, Half-Orc Fighter, 3rd Level (Josh)
Glothe Longstride, Dwarf Fighter, 2nd Level (Caleb)
Kari Morningdew, Human Female Ranger/Cleric of Fharlanghn, 1st Level/2nd Level(Andy)
Kessem Chexz, Female Elf Wizard, 2nd Level (Neil)
Mike Steel, Human Male Fighter, 2nd Level (Patty)
Odlits Burdfriend, Male Half-Orc Wizard, 1st Level (Bill)
Reddof Nonnac, Half-Elf Male Ranger, 3rd Level (Greg)
Zeismer Schellenhorn, Human Male Rogue, 1st Level (Andrew)

Non-Player Characters:

Sileas Chend, Half-Elf Male Fighter/Sorcerer, 1st Level/1st Level

A Shot in the Dark

Planting 28th, Macsen's Keep

During our training at Macsen's Keep, we have seen little of the other adventuring parties. The Pholtus group returned from the temple that Reddof, Kari and Azaki have described, telling of ghasts and ghouls that they've cleared out. They left again with one of the acolytes from the temple of St. Cuthbert here in the Keep and a few mercenaries from the encampment outside. The Curate here would like to see it become a more permanent outpost, and the paladin and cleric of Pholtus seem to want to help out. I hope to get there as well, but it will have to wait until after we Cleanse the caves.

The gaudy sorcerer, Sileas, came back alone, and looking more than a little bedraggled. He told us that his party had been overwhelmed by orcs and his cleric partner, Fethrin, had been wounded, perhaps killed, and definitely captured along with the two mercenaries they'd hired. He ran from the battle, but to give him credit he wants to go back there. 15 orcs, he said, with a leader in dwarven armor and a shield of the Glorioles. That sure caught Glothe's interest, and I wouldn't mind paying that orc back for the death of the armor's owner.

Another man has joined us. He arrived this morning and heard the talk of us -- that song the elf bard did gave us a bit of a reputation around here. She seems willing to stick around here, though the half-elf Caleb is working with her pretty often. Zeismer Schellenhorn is the new man's name, from a merchant family, or so I hear. He knows how to make a profit, anyway -- Odlits unloaded a tent on him and I heard later he'd sold it outside to the mercenaries for twice what he paid. At least Odlits is happy, now that he doesn't have to carry the extra ten pounds. Strange he may be for someone with orc blood in him, but the wizard can cook. And if this new guy can handle the rapier he carries, he'll be useful too.

Keuby returned to the Keep today, with only his mage and that cleric with him. They lost the rest of the party to lizardmen, orcs, and fighting amongst themselves. They brought back evil news with them, which Zeismer got out of them over a meal. They made it as far as the Caves of Chaos, where they saw humanoids in black robes animating other dead humanoids. That explains the ogre zombie we dealt with in our last foray, and it also means that we'd better get to those black-robed blasphemers before Walpurgis.

Kobort, Selena and Ithil have decided to go to the Temple with Cedasar, the paladin of Pholtus. He's found more tunnels to explore, and if the caves didn't seem more important right now, I'd have gone myself. We'll meet back at the Keep in time for the Cleansing; it's nearly Beory's day, so we'll have a week before the Cleansing of the Mountains to find out if that cleric is still in any shape to be brought back. Glothe and I have been sparring in preparation for the festival. With skill and the aid of the gods, we'll bring down the humanoids of the Caves. Even the Curate has been talking about going out for St. Cuthbert's Day.

Flocktime 4th, Caves of Chaos

We left the Keep exactly on Beory's Day, and spent an uneventful day travelling. We ate well on venison from Reddof's arrows and Odlits' pot, and nothing disturbed our night watch. The next day we met up with the hill dwarves again, and Glothe helped them bury their slain comrade. Our camp was quiet while they shared ale, and then we parted ways again.

That night I was awakened by Azaki. An orc warband was passing close by, though I could see nothing of them. As we woke the rest of our party, they must have spotted us, for I could hear orders being given; we prepared for the night battle. Even as the five scouts closed with us and gave the alarm to the rest of them, I could see nothing but furtive shapes in the darkness, but our rangers had no trouble targeting them for I heard two fall to their arrows. A great shout arose from the rest of the band and they charged; I lit my lantern and shone it at their approach, hefting sword and shield along with the rest of my companions. Glothe and Azaki took the battle to the orcs and I could hear their blows strike home as their axes flashed in the farthest glow of the lamplight and Kessem and Sileas' sorcerous magic felled foes without bow or sword. Those few that made it close to the campfire were no match for Zeismer's rapier and my bastard sword, and once the mages were safe enough we pressed our defense forward to make short and bloody work of the warband.

Those few that managed to flee left behind four bugbears as prisoners. One of them was a spellcaster of some kind, wearing beads and bones like totems to whatever evil god she worshipped. She spoke enough common to beg for her life and to tell us where the orc caves were. Unfortunately for her, she also spoke enough common to cast a spell on Odlits, which I quickly stopped with my sword. With that done, the party disposed of the other prisoners. Though we all agreed that it was necessary, I think I am not the only one who felt it wrong. However, when the stones have been counted there are now four fewer bugbears, which I cannot lament.

Thinking these eighteen dead orcs might be later animated, we spent some time gathering them together and sorting the equipment out before burning them on a pyre. The leader of the warband had been wearing roughly-fitted scale armor of fine dwarven make. He did no honor to that metalwork, but even in its current condition the craftsmanship is obvious. The rest bore weapons and armor of little value and some few coins. Burning orcs is smelly work, and halfway through our lookouts called an alarm -- something had obviously seen or scented the smoke and had come to investigate. It seemed to be made of oerth itself, soil and vegetation hauling itself over the landscape. Thinking it would be interested more in the orcs than in our party, we left the scene and watched by the pyre's light from the next hill as it feasted on roasted humanoids.

We travelled that night to distance ourselves from the orc pyre, then rested during the day under our healer's expert care. Reddof reported another of the "shambling mounds", as he has called them; this one snacked on venison that was meant for our stew pot, and there isn't much Odlits can do with iron rations. We planned the rest of our trip to the caves to arrive with as much daylight as possible, so it was this morning that we stood atop the cliff overlooking the tunnelled valley.

Our decision to block up the chimney that Sileas pointed out turned out to be a bad one, but we couldn't have know what would follow. We hoped to cause them confusion as they awoke amid trapped smoke, but we didn't have the luxury to risk waiting; so Reddof crept to the cave and, taking their sentry by surprise, put an arrow through his skull so quickly that there was a stunned silence before we heard a cry of alarm from inside. We arrayed ourselves at the cave mouth to receive their attack, giving our archers room to shoot before engaging in melee. Sileas incanted the first few to sleep, allowing us into the cave with little resistance, and the next three fell by more conventional means. With a few moments to spare, Azaki took up a flanking position for the main orc charge while Reddof's arrows were deadly at close range. We were disorganized enough that the orcs had a tactical advantage for a few seconds. Glothe and Zeismer occupied the chieftain -- who did wear the symbol of the Glorioles in pitiful mockery of the honor it should be done -- while Azaki caused confusion on their flank, but in the close twilight of the cavern we could not bring more of our fighting reserve into the battle. Kari improved our chances by drawing light from a rock, banking it off the chieftain's head to land amid the orcs and illuminate the passageway. Zeismer then fell, and as Odlits struggled to pull him out of the fray I was able to step up and gain the chieftain's attention with the sharp steel of my sword. Wounded by axe, sword, arrow and torch, he dropped and the party advanced. In a few moments there was nothing left to do except silence the cries of the dying orc tribe.

It was not to be so simple. Kari had returned Zeismer to consciousness and we had only begun to explore the cave when another group of orcs rushed us from the outside. With only a few moments' warning, we met their axes with a solid wall of steel. The first two must have been their champions, for their axes were not of orc manufacture, but their flesh was no harder than any other and their bodies joined the others piled on the cavern floor. Six of them we killed before they began to pull back; I only regret that we could not get at their shaman, a black-robed figure who waited behind the shield of their warriors. One moment daylight streamed past the cave mouth and the next I was engulfed in darkness; by the confusion of my companions I knew I was not the only one. My opponents withdrew and I followed, sword readied to strike at the figures I guessed were before me. My senses told me they were there, but I could not tell exactly where and my blow missed its target. I heard their feet on the rough stone hillside and knew where they retreated.

My companions are, I suppose, not as accustomed to darkness as I am from the tunnels of the Forge, for I heard them bumping and cursing behind me. Rejoined, we followed the direction of the orcs retreat and it was a shock to step again into bright daylight and to see behind us a complete and utter void, blacker than the deepest mine. Scanning the hillside, we found that we pursued nothing and that we had lost Zeismer in the darkness. Being no worse off in the magical darkness than our dwarf or half-orc members, we tied ropes together as a guide and I stepped again into the void. The merchant had found the extent of the magic inside the cave and was having a look around, so we called the others in along the rope.

Then we realized that the fire, stirred up and giving light, was filling the cavern up with smoke. Zeismer started out with the intention of pulling the sod off the chimney vent, but didn't get very far. We all heard his shout abruptly cut off and rushed out, realizing what had happened; we never should have let anyone go alone. Kari and Reddof were first to meet the pair of orcs that were busily looting our newest companion's pockets and together the rangers managed to hold them off while the rest of us joined the fight. Disoriented in the blackness, we were hard pressed to maintain a solid front, and although she hasn't said anything, I think Kessem tried her mist trick again in the cavern. As we discovered how to use the dark to our advantage and defeated their greater numbers, a cry of retreat went up from the orcs. With bow and arrow we cut them down as they fled. To my knowledge, only one managed to escape, but we did not see their shaman again.

Glothe and Sileas are grievously wounded and will require the gods' touch of healing in order to be assured of arriving at the Keep with life and limb; Zeismer has not yet stirred despite the care Kari has already given him. The bite of an orc greataxe aches and Azaki looks to feel worse than I, but I can truthfully say that we've suffered worse and we have slain, by my best count, nearly two full orc tribes. What remains is to find Fethrin, dispose of the orcs which still clog the cavern floor, and retrieve the dwarven armor and shield. Odlits seems to have already begun to collect the ears that we will present at the Keep, though some do not look either orcish or fresh and I suspect he has taken them from the cave's trophy wall.

And somebody is going to have to unclog that chimney.

Here endeth the session, as excerpted and translated from the journal of Mike.