Session 8 - Brian
Session 08 (2024-12-01) - Brian
Battle Aftermath
We go back down to a safe place back the way we came, and take a short rest. We then come back up the same path up the mountain (before the fork in the road) and decide if we want to go up to the same cave, or take the fork we passed up the first time.
We decide to go back to the same entrance.
We find the corpses, but find that orcish necklaces, bracelets are now missing & goblins footprints. The area had been looted by not us. Goblins looted the dead orcs & the goblins we had killed. We continue deeper into the cave, and find a strong Meade. We continue up into the village square area - where they sleep and live. Also empty (we had not previously looted this area).
Off of that area, we find a prison with an unconscious guard. We put the guard into a cage. We find two goblins in the cage - drunk tank. In the southern corner, there are loose pipes, and an orc kid - 14 years old, severely beaten - in the prison, conscious. Barrick talks to him, asks him what he’s doing in prison, asks him about the caves, the Laguna-kin, and why he’s in prison. (see Greg’s notes)
We move into the Goblin Warren - goblins surrender. They have the trinkets. They say they won’t fight, and will show us treasure, in good goblin resting spot. Stupid orcs try to smash down door of old temple - while goblins go in back door of temple. They want a few coppers and a keg loaded onto a cart that they can have. 4 of the goblins are then put into cages while the leader goblin shows us the way into a sandstone building, filled with food & wine (secret gobline clubhouse). This is the inside of the temple.
Kira and Gavin explore further into the cave to see what would be further down past the secret temple entrance. There is another guarded cave entrance - they can see a small / narrow rope bridge outside the cave - very deep drop over a ravine - to the spire to the east.
To the south, large well supported bridge that could connect the forked path we skipped over, to the spire area.
We free the goblins and the half-orc kid. Roblin freed too.
Pleasant smell permeates the temple. Vaguely [[Calimshan]]ite.
We are moving uphill as we go south through the temple. There is significant damage, chips in stones from weapons - nothing recent. Decades past, there was combat here. Find a chest with some baubles and some coins.
Further south, there is a barricade, past that no signs of fighting. Opening the double door, we find a massive fountains, with crypts arranged around it with objects sitting on top. Fountain is filled with dark befouled liquid. Fountain is enchanted. Crypts and objects are all part of the same enchantment - divine & elemental. Fountain is the source of the breeze and the scent, but not clean and clear. Goblins haven’t been in this circular room.
Kira ritual cast detect magic. We explore the room while Kira ritual casts. We hear rumbling further into the temple that could be orcs trying to break in (but much further in).
The feeling of apathy that we had experienced elsewhere is coming through the fountain here too. Emotionally vampiric sense is here too - only in this room.
Nature check shows thin places (portals, thin veil) where planes are touching - prime to feywild. The veil is unhealthy, not connected to fey wilds, but shadow felds.
Kira drinks the water - Bikke tries to stop her, but she collapses in epilepsy / rigid. Lasts for a few seconds, then Kira sees through the eyes of another person (unknown) and can feel the pounding on the doors. Knows the temple is under assault and that they are doomed. That doesn’t mean much, life or death irreleveant, but other members of the order who are placing holy symbols down and cutting their wrists, bleeding into the fountain and lying down in their crypt. Ritual suicide. All 8 of them. As Kira completes the vision, sees the person lay down one of the lutes and cut their own wrists. This is death, but this is not departure. This is waiting. Kira wakes up.
Kira thinks the spirits are still here and maybe we can talk to them.
Bikke also drinks from the fountain and has a similar experience. In his vision, he is laying down his sword, knowing that his brother has the sword’s mate, and is defending the door. One of the surviving elders of the order of Hospitalers. Necromantic Spirit form.
Barrick picks up the shield on the east side of the room. Feels waves of cold and hostility coming from the crypt and learns that the circle is incomplete and needs to be completed. Looking for sword and book to complete the circle.
Barrick drinks the clean water near where we find the sword, total health, freshness, health, cleanliness - long rest effect. We bring the corpse and the sword back to the crypts.
Gavin drinks the tainted water - sees through the eyes of the 20y old man, youngest of this group, look across the room, to his identical twin, also laying his shield down. Role is to defend the order, but that’s not the way he understood the defense should have ended - should have slayed enemies - but final act of defense to defend in future.
Barrick drinks. His vision is panic, sense of failure because of fled. History of order, and when he needed bravery, he failed. Sees sunlight under door. Door is barricaded. Shares this place’s architecture.
Kira picks up the book and takes it, causing a malevolent specter (Elder Hospitaler) to appear. It shows no reaction to speaking to it. [Roll initiative]. Kira returns the book, and the spirit disappears.
We return back to the fork in the path. Goblin guards have all left. There is an empty fountain and trees that have been cut down. This looks like the entrance to a religious building. Orcs are inside. [Roll initiative]. We kill the 3 orcs. Other orcs are still with an ogre pounding on the door.
We unlock the door and find the book and another corpse. Kira drinks the water and it is clean clear water. Bikke gives the sword to Kira, and sits behind the rock, watching the ogre and orcs as we take the book and the corpse back to the temple room.
We are in the crypt, Kira has the sword, Gavin has the book, and Barrick and Hugh have the final corpse. We put the corpse into the final crypt - see an ethereal face (relieved face) over the corpose. Then we put in the book with that corpose. The book becomes more weighty upon being returned. Kira then returns the sword. The sword snaps into place, taking on weight. Almost instantly, a wave of clean water, and red water / blood pulls back into the bodies. Fountain runs clean and bright, intense. Intense apathy for a moment, and then that fades too. And there is a rumble somewhere under this mountain - a deep earthquake. We feel cold energy come from the crypts and then we can see ethereal, incorporeal, dressed in robes of Hospitalers, their interest in use is brief. Not without a degree of respect, but it is not about us. Not disdain, but More… like a wolf ack a human. Specters sink through the floor. Apathy is gone. Fountain is clean.
Barrick picks up the shields and straps them to his back. The lutes added to backpack. These items are still magical. Enchanted shield - high quality, but can’t tell anything else until he has a chance to further investigate them later. Barrick grabs the other sword.
We go back around and attack the orcs / cave troll from behind. We return the sword to Bicke with the second shield. Barrick keeps the other sword and uses the new shield.
We attack from behind and we [roll initiative]. Ethereal energy kills several of the goblins and the orc. We kill the ogre.
[[Nadia]] (half-orc) is friendly, lowers her crossbow. This side of the bridge are safe. She has an educated Waterdeep accent. Nadia has a friend on the other side of the bridge. We ask about what they were doing. She wasn’t sure what they were trying to find. Nadia had pretended that her friend was her captive - kept her alive. Her friend is a halfling - named “[[Pocket]]”. Ethereal energy is killing many of the orcs across the bridge.