Dark Paths 50 - The Grand Finale

Dark Paths of Riddleport
Session 50
September 28, 2014

And So It Ends...

In Another Time, long, long ago

The remaining members of the Gold Goblin Crew pressed forward in this ancient shadow of Celwynvian, the Elvish city of Mierani Forest. Their destination was an observatory they had spied from the other side of town with strange lights flashing. After some time, the Crew arrived near their target. They had been stealthy on their approach, avoiding flying demons, a few Drow patrols as well as the occasional flyby from Razorhorn the Green Dragon.

Seems to be getting worse!

All the while, the sky overhead continues to swirl and pulsate as the ominous vortex continues to threaten to seemingly swallow up the entire world. Occasional fireballs streak across the sky, emanating from the vortex. This vortex is reminiscent of the one that appeared over Riddleport right before the meteor came down and struck Devil's Elbow. This vortex is at least 100 times as big, though, indicating something larger and more destructive may be on its way!
Two stoic Elves (not Drow) stood guard at the entrance to the Observatory. An attempt to negotiate with them broke down when Aragon attempted to disarm them. Both Elves simply vanished with the slightest contact from Aragon's blades, thought, making ingress to the building easy enough. 

They group enters the observatory and begin looking for the way up. They encounter much in the way of astronomical displays and even some Elves seemingly trying to figure out what is going on with the strange vortex in the sky. The Elves pay no mind to the Crew and they likewise move through without bothering them.

Flaming undead!

Soon, the Crew encounters the first wave of resistance. In a large room with a huge balcony overlooking the far end, they are accosted by a handful of flaming undead of some type. They prove to be challenging opponents due to the cloud of fire that surrounds each one. Snargash puts his glue spell to good use and many of them are immobilized, making it easy enough to bypass them and press on further into the building.

The center of the observatory holds the way up. Two staircases curve along the inside of this central chamber. The space in between the stairs appears to be a deep, black void filled with stars... some sort of astronomical device. The Crew heads up one set of stairs and finds themselves on the 2nd level, nothing more than a landing for both sets of stairs that continue up to the next level. The strong stench of Troglodyte drifts down from above and Aethel uses his magic to help Guy avoid the debilitating stench they are sure to encounter shortly. Aragon accidentally takes in a huge breath of the foul smell and begins coughing and spitting. Snargash quickly moves to alleviate the effect using his magic. 


As the next landing is approached, Aragon hurries up to find several Troglodytes and a Drow swordsman wielding a greatsword and clad in plate that is crackling with electric energy. The Troglodytes attempt to push Aragon off the nearby balcony as the others move up and engage. Guy puts his psionic abilities to good use peppering the Trogs. The Drow swordsman singles out Aragon and charges in but somehow manages to drop his sword along the way. Eventually he recovers and engages with Aragon. Snargash rushes up and screams in the Drow's face, stunning him momentarily. Aragon springs into action, nearly decapitating the Drow before another Drow appears. The second Drow appears to be some sort of wizard floating at the top of the next flight of stairs. He started flinging fireballs from an ornate staff. After a few moments more of the melee with the Trogs, they were intimidated by Snargash and began a retreat, allowing the focus to shift to the Drow.  Guy is blasted by a fireball, catches on fire and goes unconscious. Fortunately Snargash is close to provide support and Guy is back on his feet in no time!

The dark skinned Elves retreated to the upper level of the observatory and the Crew followed cautiously. The Drow swordsman presented himself and Aragon again engaged. The Drow wizard was flying in the air, up above a giant orrey. The fight rages on between the Gold Goblin Crew and two very powerful and skilled Drow. Eventually the tide is turned when Aragon finally gets the best of the swordsman and Aethel casts a spell producing a blinding flash of light right in the wizards face. Guy continues to fire psionic projectiles at the wizard while Aragon, using his Slippers of Wall Climbing, runs up the side of the giant celestial model. Meanwhile, Aethel uses his magic to reshape the many arms and parts of the orrey, turning it into a gigantic cage around the blinded Drow wizard.

Taking the fight to the roof!

Trapped and blinded, the Drow was quickly dispatched. It was discovered that he wore a purple amulet around his neck that Aethel identified as some sort of magical key or trigger, possibly for the portal leading back to their own "time." 

The Crew quickly backtracked across the strange, out-of-time version of Celwynvian and found the place that they had initially appeared. Aethel activated the portal key and the entire crew was magically transported away..... 

The Drow are finally defeated!

Notes

Finally, we made it! Ahh, it feels good to get to the end of the campaign, despite the fact that we lost a few along the way. There will be a final wrap-up story post just to wrap things up, but that will come a little later. 

Cast of Characters: 

Aethelarian "Aethel" Flitterseed - Noble Elf wizard played by +Daniel White 
Aragon Whisperwind - Elven Bladedancer played by +Arne Jamtgaard 
Guy Greystone - Gnome telekinetic played by +Gren Drake 
Snargash Windblown - Half-Orc monk played by +Amergin O'Kai 
and +Jason Woollard as the DM

Dark Paths 47

Dark Paths of Riddleport
Session 47
May 18, 2014

Dead Elves... They Keep Calling Me

Roll20 Chat Log

The Crew advances into the Academy only to find a horrific sight; a room full of recently dead and more recently animated fallen Elves from the ranks of the Farstriders. Some of the zombie faces are even familiar to the Crew. Pushing their emotions aside, they vanquish the Zombies and move on.

A former Farstrider Elf.. now a Zombie!

The next chamber consisted of doors to the right and left, probably leading in the direction of the other entrances of the building and their allies who were engaged there. Trusting in them to deal with their own obstacles, the Crew moved into the next chamber ahead. This room looked to be a former sitting room of some type that had been converted into a profane alter to some Demons or Devils that the Drow now worshiped. A tall dark pillar with strange Elvish runes carved into it sat in an alcove to the left, its surface pulsing with a deep purple energy. A set of doors led further inward. After puzzling over the pillar for a moment, it was decided that it needed to be destroyed and it was toppled over. 

When the alter fell, however, it triggered some sort of magical backlash, filling the room instantaneously with a searing cloud of flame! Paal and Guy were saved from the deadly blast by nature of the fact that they were still in the previous room and out of range of the fire while everyone else felt its cruel burn. Bodi and Snargash nearly lost consciousness and the whole Crew was in bad shape.

The purple flame burns!

Wasting no time, Snargash leapt into action, applying his magical healing music and downing several healing potions himself. Within no time, the Crew were back to fighting strength, though Snargash warned the others that he was nearing the threshold of further safe divine aid. If he had to call upon his Goddesses many more times, there may be repercussions.

Entering the next room, the crew were in for a bit of a surprise. This chamber was not ruined and devastated by time like the others in the building. This room was pristine and new, much like it must have been at the height of Celwynvian. The right side of the semicircular chamber is a polished marble wall with a set of ornate double doors in the center. The entire left side of the room was taken up by a crystal clear pool, upon which floated a large leaf. Reclining on that leaf was a beautiful Elf maiden. 

Behind the Elf on the leaf, the wall of the chamber seemed to be some sort of gate made of white stone, carefully framed by carved stone leaves and vines. As the Crew gets their bearings in the chamber and takes in all the interesting sights, the beautiful Elf smiles and introduces herself. 

The Elf on the Leaf

She says her name is Indothiel, an Elf from times past, before the Starfall. She says she is merely a spirit form, captured and trapped by the Drow, forced to help them with their nefarious plans. She explains that the Drow leaders recently passed through here, into the next chamber and she feared that they were ready to set into motion a plan that could call down another star from the heavens and trigger another cataclysm, like the one 10,000 years ago. She goes on, divulging as much information as she knows about the Drow and their plan and says that she believes the curse trapping her could be lifted if the leaf she rests upon was lifted up and out of the pool.

Continued no "The Elf on the Leaf" document

Notes

The campaign is entering its final arc and the game is just about to get even more dangerous, possibly even deadly. I am excited to see how this all plays out over the next few months.

Cast of Characters: 

Aethelarian "Aethel" Flitterseed - Noble Elf wizard played by +Daniel White 
Aragon Whisperwind - Elven Bladedancer played by +Arne Jamtgaard 
Bodil "Bodi" Jantzen - suave and smooth swordsman played by +Mike Biancone 
Guy Greystone - Gnome telekinetic played by +Gren Drake 
Paal Ulfsun - Northman Human ranger played by +Ben Zittere 
Snargash Windblown - Half-Orc monk played by +Amergin O'Kai 
and +Jason Woollard as the DM

Dark Paths 46

Dark Paths of Riddleport
Session 46
April 27, 2014

All Washed Up

Roll20 Chat Log

The Crew continued their assault on the Academy of Arts at the heart of Celwynvian. The Drow stronghold was well defended and the attack hinged on a three prong approach, with the Crew attacking from the south.

The Drow outside the building were finally cleared on the southern approach and the group made their way inside to find a once ornate assembly area with a long pool of water and stacks of dead Elves piled in the rows of benches. The dead Elves look to have been battered by some tremendous force. Before any further examination can be made, the water in the long pool becomes disturbed and two areas rise up, swirling around and splashing all throughout the room. Water Elementals!

The Water Elemental

Deciding against a direct approach, the Crew remains up near the top of the chamber and pepper the elementals with ranged attacks while Bodi climbs down to go open the door on the far side of the room. Bodi is hit and knocked down as he dashes across the room and Aragon follows him to assist. The others continue to attack and eventually force the watery creatures to retreat. 

At just this time, Bodi makes it across the room and opens the door. They brash swashbuckler calls out, "Come on!" followed quickly by "Holy Shit!"

The next chamber was filled with Elf Zombies!

The next chamber holds a horrifying sight. Several elven corpses are strung up along the walls of this chamber, pools of blood congealing beneath their feet. It appears that their throats have been cut. Along the north wall, an ancient elven statue stands, but its skin has been painted black and its face carved into a cruel scowl. As Bodi looks in, the corpses all start to move, unhooking themselves from the chains holding them to the wall...

Cast of Characters: 

Aethelarian "Aethel" Flitterseed - Noble Elf wizard played by +Daniel White 
Aragon Whisperwind - Elven Bladedancer played by +Arne Jamtgaard 
Bodil "Bodi" Jantzen - suave and smooth swordsman played by +Mike Biancone 
Guy Greystone - Gnome telekinetic played by +Gren Drake 
Paal Ulfsun - Northman Human ranger played by +Ben Zittere 
Snargash Windblown - Half-Orc monk played by +Amergin O'Kai 
and +Jason Woollard as the DM

Dark Paths 45

Dark Paths of Riddleport
Session 45
March 16, 2014

Never Use the Front Door

Roll20 Chat Log

The crew retreated back to the base camp, tired and battered from a day full of warring with the Drow and being attacked by a Dragon. Once back at the camp, Eviana invites them to another war council. Kaerishiel makes a point of addressing and thanking the Crew after his wounds are healed. He is very humble and appreciative of their contribution thus far. He shakes Bodi's hand and declares him the winner of their little wager and compliments and praises the entire Crew. 

At the council, Eviana states that they are ready to assault the old Academy of Arts, which is rumored to hold some sort of Elven portal the Drow call the Armageddon Echo. She wants three teams to assault the building and attempt to capture, kill or stop the Drow leadership from whatever it is they are doing. Capturing the portal to figure out its part in the Drow plot is most important.

Eviana points out the Academy of Arts on the map

Before the sun rises, the three teams set out, ready to begin their attack with the first lights of day. Kaerishiel and his team will assault the front doors of the Academy, on the south side and Shalelu will lead a team attacking the north entrance, coming from the cover of the forest. The Crew will strike the west side, hoping to gain entrance through a wide hole in the roof of one of the domes. The Elves have provided a rope ladder with hooks on the end to facilitate ingress by members not capable of reaching the roof easily.

Upon arrival, the Crew sees several Dretch Demons and a few Drow Skirmishers on the ground near the base of the tower standing guard and one Drow Captain stationed on the roof near the opening. Taking advantage of a stealthy approach, Paal and Bodi take careful aim with their bows and fire. Bodi misses one of the demons, but Paal scores a direct hit, giving the Drow Captain a faceful of one of his arrows, causing her to lose her footing and fall to the ground below. One of the Drow calls out an alarm and points in the direction of the hidden attackers. 

The demons move to attack while the Drow set up some defenses by summoning their spheres of darkness. Aethel flies off to get an aerial view while Aragon rushes forward toward the darkness. Guy makes a slower approach and focuses on blasting the demons with continual showers of rocks and other psionically projected missiles. Snargash prepares some magic and then begins levitating up toward the top of the dome, bringing the rope ladder. Paal and Bodi continue their ranged support from the treeline.

The battle rages on with Aragon using his blindfighting ability to engage the Drow hiding in the darkness. He takes several crossbow bolts but manages to resist the poison. After a few moments, the demons are destroyed and everyone starts moving toward the tower. Paal takes a bolt out of the darkness and succumbs to the sleeping poison that coated it. 

Bodi rushes to his side as Snargash attempts to wake him by magical means but failing the first time.

Aethel rises up toward the roof as Aragon finishes off the first Drow and moves to the other side of the dome, hoping to find the other Dark Elf.

Approaching the Academy

Cast of Characters: 

Aethelarian "Aethel" Flitterseed - Noble Elf wizard played by +Daniel White 
Aragon Whisperwind - Elven Bladedancer played by +Arne Jamtgaard 
Bodil "Bodi" Jantzen - suave and smooth swordsman played by +Mike Biancone 
Guy Greystone - Gnome telekinetic played by +Gren Drake 
Paal Ulfsun - Northman Human ranger played by +Ben Zittere 
Snargash Windblown - Half-Orc monk played by +Amergin O'Kai 
and +Jason Woollard as the DM

Dark Paths 44

Dark Paths of Riddleport
Session 44
February 23, 2014

Saving Kaerishiel

Roll20 Chat Log

Session Summary

The action begins with the Elf Aragon leaping over the top edge of the tower, following two Drow skirmishers who had also leapt over the side. Aragon quickly realized that the Drow had magical levitation helping them to descend, while he had no such power. The agile Elf manages to use the levitating Drow to help slow his descent. He hits the ground hard and manages to pop back to his feet, ready for more. 

Meanwhile, Aethel follows him from the air, covering the two levitating Drow, readying lightning bolts to blast them. Out in front of the tower, Snargash moves to give some healing to the injured Guy. Paal continues to get into position to put his bow to good use while Bodi finishes off the remaining Drow soldier.

After the Drow has been downed, Bodi charges into the tower and up to the roof, expecting to see more action there while everyone else charges around the tower, Guy and Snargash to the left and Paal to the right. 

By the time Bodi makes it to the top of the tower, one of the levitating Drow has been dealt with and the second is on the defensive. Bodi quickly grabs a discarded Drow crossbow and sends a bolt into the hovering dark Elf. Paal makes it around the side of the tower and sends some arrows flying into the Drow as well. 

Feeling that the danger is gone from outside, Aragon and Aethel head into the other tower, looking for the pinned down Elves. Snargash and Guy follow suit shortly after. There are a handful of Elves, including Earwen and Kaerishiel taking refuge in the crumbling tower. Earwen tells the group that Kaerishiel had been incapacitated by Drow poison and then the group was pinned down, unable to move with his body in tow. Their healer, had been killed during the preceding battle. 

Snargash moves in to perform healing on the injured Elves while the rest of the group stands guard. From atop the adjacent tower, Bodi starts calling down that something big is approaching through the nearby forest. His cries continue and become more urgent, It's a fucking Dragon!" he finally yells!

The Green Dragon, Razorhor, rises up over the trees at the edge of the forest and swoops in. It flies around the three towers and lands on a nearby one. Everyone quietly hides, hoping the beast has not spotted them, but it is too late. With a roar, Razorhorn bleches a large cloud of toxic poison into the open door of the tower. Paal, Aragon and two of the Elves are caught in the poisonous cloud. Paal and one of the Elves fall to the ground, unconscious. 
Snargash begins calling out, his voice booming and echoing almost as loudly as the Dragon. The Half-Orc monk begins taunting the Dragon as he races up the stairs to the upper level of the tower. He finally straight up challenges the Dragon to a duel as Aethel moves to engage. He launches a lightning bolt at the beast, but it is is ineffective, except to draw the Dragons attention. Razorhorn launches itself at Aethel, trying to claw the vaporous wizard, but is unable to. It lands on the edge of the tower and faces the Elf. Over on the other tower, Bodi has managed to remain unseen by the Dragon and hoists one of the spear sized missiles onto the siege weapon. The Dragon just so happens to be right in the line of sight for the weapon so Bodi pulls the trigger. 

Introducing Razorhorn the Dragon!

A roar fills the air, hurting everyone's ears as the missile lodges itself in the Dragon's backside. It leaps from its perch and swoops down at Bodi, who takes cover behind the ballista. Fortunately, the Dragon is more interested in retreating than engaging and Bodi escapes unscathed. Razorhorn flaps off, disappearing into the nearby trees.

After a moment of silence, the Crew and the Elves begin scrambling again, tending to their wounded and planning their escape from this dangerous locale.

Cast of Characters: 

Aethelarian "Aethel" Flitterseed - Noble Elf wizard played by +Daniel White 
Aragon Whisperwind - Elven Bladedancer played by +Arne Jamtgaard 
Bodil "Bodi" Jantzen - suave and smooth swordsman played by +Mike Biancone 
Guy Greystone - Gnome telekinetic played by +Gren Drake 
Paal Ulfsun - Northman Human ranger played by +Ben Zittere 
Snargash Windblown - Half-Orc monk played by +Amergin O'Kai 
and +Jason Woollard as the DM

Dark Paths 43

Dark Paths of Riddleport
Session 43
February 2, 2014

The Rescuers

Roll20 Chat Log

Session Summary

As the Crew is being briefed by the Elf Commander, they are intrrupted by the arrival of Ashka, the firepelt cougar animal companion of Kaerishiel, the Elf General. After some coaxing, the Elves are able to get close enough to the skittish animal and speak to it using magic.

The firepelt has come looking for aid. Her master and his troop have been pinned down nearby and are unable to move due to some wounded Elves. The Drow are attempting to destroy the ruined tower the Elves have taken cover in. The Elven Commander asks the Crew if they can follow Ashka to this site and help Kaerishiel and his troops. Eager to show up the haughty Kaerishiel, the Crew accepts the mission and takes off through the woods after the cougar.

Ashka leads them on a winding path, deftly avoiding any Drow encampments before stopping near 3 crumbling towers. The nearest tower, about 20 feet high, seems to have some sort of ballista or siege engine on top of it, being manned by several Drow. They are turning it to aim at the northern most tower in the clearing, no doubt where the Elves have been pinned down. 

Three ruined towers

Wasting no time, the Crew charges out from the forest in an assault on the Drow tower. Poisoned bolts begin raining down them as three Drow soldiers come charging out of the base of the tower. Aragon, runs right past the first three targets and, with the help of his wall-walking soft white slippers,

Wall-walking slippers

begins running straight up the side of the tower, going after those on the top. Snargash plays his flutes and magically protects Bodi from missiles while moving slowly across the battlefield. Bodi charges and fires his confiscated Drow crossbows at the archers above then drops those and draws his blades to engage the enemies on the ground. Aethel floats up high and magically engages the Drow above. Paal fires arrow after arrow from a concealed spot in the forest, peppering various Drow targets as they present themselves. Guy moves up and begins flinging psionically charged projectiles at the Drow coming out of the tower. Guy manages to get struck by one of the Drow's poisoned bolts and falls victim to its sleep inducing poison. Quickly, Snargash moves up and wakes him with his divine song. 

The battle rages as Aragon reaches the top of the tower, just in time to see the Drow Captain fire the ballista at the nearby tower. The spear-sized bolt crashes into the stone, taking out a large section of stone work in an explosion of Drow alchemical fire! Two Drow Skirmishers immediately present themselves to Aragon and in no time, he cuts them down. Aethel, meanwhile, prepares a lightning bolt but in the confusion of the battle, accidentially loses control of it and sends it straight down to the ground below, nearly striking Guy! Regaining his composure, Aethel summons another bolt and blasts the Drow Captain, stunning her with magical lightning. Aragon engages another Drow Skirmisher and, with a flick of his blade, severs the dark Elf's head from his shoulders, sending it bouncing down to the ground below! 

On top of the tower.

Back on the ground, Guy pummels one of the Drow soldiers to the ground with flung rocks as Bodi uses his speed to zip past his opponent, then strikes back and opens the Drow's neck. Snargash engages the third Drow warrior and the two trade several ineffective blows back and forth. Ashka, meanwhile, leaps out of the forest and bats around the Drow severed head.

The action on the ground.

Continuing Story Doc

Continuing Story Summary

The Crew continues battling the Drow that have pinned down the Elf commander Kerishiel.
This is an ongoing story, check link above.

Cast of Characters: 

Aethelarian "Aethel" Flitterseed - Noble Elf wizard played by +Daniel White 
Aragon Whisperwind - Elven Bladedancer played by +Arne Jamtgaard 
Bodil "Bodi" Jantzen - suave and smooth swordsman played by +Mike Biancone 
Guy Greystone - Gnome telekinetic played by +Gren Drake 
Paal Ulfsun - Northman Human ranger played by +Ben Zittere 
Snargash Windblown - Half-Orc monk played by +Amergin O'Kai 
and +Jason Woollard as the DM

Dark Paths 42

Dark Paths of Riddleport
Session 42
January 5, 2014

Dismantling the Lab

Roll20 Chat Log

Session Summary

Part of the lab

The Crew continued their mission to neutralize the Drow alchemy lab by pressing their attack against the Troglodytes guarding the tower. Darkness still enveloped the entrance to the building, keeping several members of the Crew in the dark. Snargash managed to cast a Levitation spell, allowing him to raise up and out of the caustic muck that was eating away at his feet and shoes while Aethel, in airy form, drew fire from the advancing Trogs. Never on to let the others have all the fun, Bodi charged headlong into the darkness, running right into Snargash. Aragon also followed into the darkness, though he did so by running along the wall of the tower utilizing the magical slippers he had taken of a previous Drow adversary. Meanwhile, Paal watched the rear approach, keeping an eye out in case any enemies tried to sneak up from behind.

The lab guards

Meanwhile, Guy, who had penetrated the tower through a hole in the roof, engaged the Drow Alchemist he found inside the tower. Using his psionic ability, he flung a rock at his target, only to find the same bullet rocketing back at him! He used his psionic shield to protect himself from his own attack. The Alchemist began tossing vials of alchemist's fire at Guy, causing several fires in the area!

Back in the darkened entrance, Aethel began casting a powerful light spell designed to get rid of the Drow darkness and Bodi, not realizing his mage friend was taking care of the problem, used his Dark Vision spellstone that the Elves had given him. Able to see again, he rushed forward into the tower. Aragon had also made it to the interior of the tower as well. Snargash floated up above the darkness just in time to see it vanish. Paal then approached and engaged a Troglodyte while his boots began to disintegrate in the acid swamp. Snargash descended and engaged the javelin wielding Trog as well.

Drow Alchemist

Inside the tower, Aragon engaged some Trogs and the Drow. He was able to put down some of the Troglodytes, but the Drow proved trickier. He defended, retreated and threw all manner of nasty alchemical concoctions, not the least of which were vials that burst into flame, creating numerous fiery obstacles, cutting Aragon off from reaching him.

The battle raged on for several more moments. Bodi dodged a thrown vial, only to have it burst into flames behind him, right in front of his Troglodyte pursuer. Aethel sent a lightning bolt at the Alchemist, not realizing he had protected himself with some sort of magical warding that sent all missiles back at their caster. Another alchemist's fire struck Bodi and engulfed him in flames, but instead of trying to put it out, Bodi heroically charged the dark Elf and tried grappling him. The slippery Drow managed to retreat, backing himself into a bit of a corner.

Outside, Paal and Snargash dealt with the Trogs and hurried inside just in time to see Guy take out the Trog who had engaged Aragon, allowing the Elven Bladedancer the opportunity he needed to leap across the flames directly behind the Alchemist and strike him down. The sole remaining Troglodyte tried to flee and managed to run directly into Paal and Snargash, who wasted no time in taking him out. With some choice words, Bodi dropped to the ground and began rolling about until his flaming form had been extinguished.

The Alchemy Lab

Continuing Story Doc

Continuing Story Summary

As the Drow alchemist lies dead and Bodi extinguishes himself, a quick look around the room is made. There are several fires burning, including the one that was already burning when the Crew got here. In less than a minute, the three large floor fires caused by the alchemist’s fire burn out, leaving crispy black marks on the floor where the flames had just been. The fire on the rear table is a different matter. It has completely spread to the whole table top, burning what looks like notes and books as well as several alchemical reagents, which are smoking, sparking and putting off various colors of smoke and strong odors.

The mission to the lab was to neutralize the Drow’s poison and alchemical manufacture and supply. Taking out the alchemist seems like a decent step along that path, though there still remains the two glass cylinders of black and green liquids, the tank of clear liquid off to the left, three bubbling cauldrons of bubbling liquids that are creating the huge cloud of noxious smoke drifting above Celwynvian in addition to the boxes, sacks, crates and barrels of alchemical compounds stacked in various places around the room.

A quick look around the room also reveals a large metal grate in the floor in the eastern portion of the room.

Guy spends a moment studying the flaming table before stepping back towards the entrance. "Well, looks like this is well on its way to being destroyed. What do you say we regroup outside and I ping rocks at the cylinders until they break and watch the roof burn some more?"

Aragon frowns.  “But would that not spew all this foul liquid over the whole forest?  Is there not some other way to render this poison inert?”  And he looks at Aethel, who he considers the “brains” of this outfit.

Paal says, "As detrimental as that may be, is it worth risking our lives trying to stop it? The stuff is going to go… somewhere.. it cannot be unmade. The forest will recover."

Bodi moves back from the fire, slowly and in pain.   Wincing, he comments to his companions…..”Can someone do something about this burn?   Also, i think I ruined my boots going through the acid in the floor….my feet hurt as well.”

Bodi moves back waiting for someone to tend to his wounds.   He looks at the grate in the floor.   “Um, before you go dumping those chemicals out, it may not hurt to find out just where that potentially leads to.   If it leads to a water source, you may not want to dump those chemicals in there.    I am also thinking that, since these drow tend to live underground, perhaps there is a passage way down there that they access, and as such we should also investigate that as well.”

A quick estimation of the structure that the lab is located in is that it is mostly constructed out of stone. The 2 fires burning in the roof area may be enough to weaken the limited wooden supports to eventually bring down the stone dome, and that would no doubt destroy the lab and all of its contents, though it looks like it would take considerable time and possibly a little bit of encouraging.

The grate on the right side of the room leads down only a few feet to a muddy patch of earth, possibly an underground spring or stream of some sort, though not flowing at the moment.

Athel begins doing a careful alchemical-minded examination of the various substances, starting with the substances with the largest volume, and working down.  He contemplates determining what would be harmful to the environment (and how to render it inert), but also what may be effective use to the elven war effort in the area.

Returning to his solid form, Aethel begins looking around the lab, trying to figure out exactly what to do to neutralize the foul Drow alchemy without harming the local environment. In his examinations, he accidentally knocks over one of the kettles burning over the fire, splashing acid everywhere, even managing to splash himself a bit.

After a bit of examination, Aethel believes he can safely neutralize the components of the lab and as far as what might be useful, it seems that most of the liquids in the lab are not fully concocted yet and none of them would be especially useful in warfare, at least not without causing considerable collateral damage to the forest as well. The Elven wizard estimates that it will take him several hours to safely dismantle the entire lab correctly, which, when he explains it to some of his more impulsive companions, does not go over very well.

Aragon watches, impressed at his friend’s knowledge.  Maybe there are more ways to solve a problem than the point of a sword.  Maybe there is more to life than just slashing and killing your way through foes.  Maybe there is a path for me other than the Dance… Nah.

Cast of Characters: 

Aethelarian "Aethel" Flitterseed - Noble Elf wizard played by +Daniel White 
Aragon Whisperwind - Elven Bladedancer played by +Arne Jamtgaard 
Bodil "Bodi" Jantzen - suave and smooth swordsman played by +Mike Biancone 
Guy Greystone - Gnome telekinetic played by +Gren Drake 
Paal Ulfsun - Northman Human ranger played by +Ben Zittere 
Snargash Windblown - Half-Orc monk played by +Amergin O'Kai 
and +Jason Woollard as the DM

Dark Paths 41

Dark Paths of Riddleport
Session 41
December 22, 2013

What An Incredible Smell You've Discovered

Roll20 Chat Log

Session Summary

Eviana

The Crew is tasked by Eviana, the Elf leader of the Farstriders of Mierani, to make an assault on a building in the north east of Celwynvian that is believed to be an alchemical laboratory where the Drow are manufacturing their poisonous and alchemical mixtures.

Eager to take up the fight once more against the Drow, the Crew accepts the mission and heads off into the forest, following their companion, Kwava. 

Upon arriving at the tower, the disgusting plume of acrid smoke nearly blocks out the sky above the forest, billowing up and out of several large holes in the roof of the tower. The Crew observed the tower for a time and not spying any movement from within the tower or the ruins surrounding the lone entrance, they decided to make their move.

A Drow + Spider = umm.... Drider!

Armed with a vial of Alchemist's Fire, Guy floated up to the roof while the others began a stealthy approach toward the tower on the ground. As they got close, lightning bolts began flying from a dark place in the ruins, striking Aragon and stunning him. Shortly after that, a disturbing amalgamationof Drow and spider appeared climbing out of the ruins and flinging more lightning bolts. 

Paal, Aethel and Bodi all engaged this beast with their ranged attacks, Paal with his bow, Aethel with lightning of his own and Bodi with commandeered Drow crossbows loaded with enchanted bolts. Aragon was able to throw off the stun and quickly move to engage the spider Drow beast after it had leaped to the ground. 

Snargash charged into the ruins, his approach slowed considerably when he got to the swampy much created by the leftover alchemical agents. The fumes rising off this mire nearly made him sick, but he continued on, heading to the interior of the building. He was then engaged by some Troglodytes charging out from the inside of the Tower. The monk then let out an empowered shout, stunning the first Trog as Aethel swooped down to assist him, throwing lightning at another approaching Trog.

Back outside, Bodi charged over and finished off the spider Drow as Paal continued peppering him with arrows. Everyone then turned their attention to the inside of the tower and their true objective: putting a stop to the Drow alchemical laboratory.

Watch your step, don't get your shoes dirty!

Continuing Story Doc

Continuing Story Summary

The Crew continues their assault on the Drow alchemical site.  Snargash leads the charge in through the muck and alchemical covered ground, into the main tower with Aethel flying in right behind him. They have met with some Troglodyte resistance in the doorway. Aragon and Bodi finish dealing with the Drow/ spider abomination outside while Paal covers them with his bow. Meanwhile, Guy hovers above the tower, watching the handiwork of the fire he started in the roof. He considers flying back down on the outside, or maneuvering inside one of the many gaping holes in the tower’s roof and descending inside the tower.

Strange smells, sounds and lights emanate from inside the tower.

Paal says, "Lets get this manufactory shut down and get out of here. The odor is horrid."

Bodi looks at what is going on right now.   “We decided to set the roof on fire why?   Don’t we need to get inside there?  Now we just made it tougher on ourselves.”

Bodi steps back from the horrifying looking half-spider/half-drow creature.    “I can’t imagine someone would want to mate with a Spider...even I have my limits.”

Bodi then cleans the blood off of his blades, sheaths them and recovers the two hand-held crossbows he used and reloads them, this time both with the green acid-tipped darts.   “Let’s see how they like a taste of their own medicine…”

The monk calls over his shoulder, “Thank you Mr. Aethel. If you could be so kind as to cover me a couple of seconds more, I think I’ll join you above the muck while I still have boots on. . .” and begins playing his staff once more.

Guy decides to approach one of the holes in the roof, taking a moment to peer through it in case he can see any threats inside before continuing to descend through the interior of the tower.

Bodi steps up with crossbows loaded and starts to make a careful move towards the area where the troglodytes came from.   He carefully moves, curious if more resistance awaits them all.

Paal, Bodi and Aragon all approach the tower, stopping just short of the alchemical spill on the ground, meanwhile, up above, Guy works his way through the rafters and structural works forming the crumbling dome of the tower. Snargash steps back around the corner of the tower entrance and begins the Raag that will allow him to levitate up above the caustic mire he is stepping in. Aethel moves in front of him as two Troglodytes further in the tower take position.

As Snargash begins casting, the approaching Trog flings a glass beaker at him, though it flies very wide, landing no where near the Half Orc monk. As Paal, Bodi and Aragon contemplating getting past the caustic mire on the ground near the ruins, the entire entry way and surrounding area is plunged into magical Drow darkness. Snargash and Aethel cannot see a thing!

“Oh, bloody hell,” says Aragon as he sees the Darkness field cover his friends.  Hoping that the Drow magic of his shoes still works, he runs up the side of the building, then turns and heads into the darkness!  “On your right!” he shouts.

Cast of Characters: 

Aethelarian "Aethel" Flitterseed - Noble Elf wizard played by +Daniel White 
Aragon Whisperwind - Elven Bladedancer played by +Arne Jamtgaard 
Bodil "Bodi" Jantzen - suave and smooth swordsman played by +Mike Biancone 
Guy Greystone - Gnome telekinetic played by +Gren Drake 
Paal Ulfsun - Northman Human ranger played by +Ben Zittere 
Snargash Windblown - Half-Orc monk played by +Amergin O'Kai 
and +Jason Woollard as the DM