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Notes for 3/25:

We played a fairly short game this time...

In the tesseract prison; they explored around a good bit, found the room that had the cube in the light, and managed to free it up. Only the rogue in non-metal armor ever went in the room, so although the trap went off, it didn't do much! Later, they found the feast hall, and the message that Azaserah received; this was very important to one PC as she came to Brindenford to seek information about the Red Saint specifically. Soon she's going to have to decide whether to go home or not!

They also met a ghost who claims to have been a pirate captain, and an ally of Saral's. He says he was murdered by the Saint's followers, and the only way to set his spirit free is to "release it from the prison it was never imprisoned within", which has thrown them for a loop.

They then carefully examined their map and found J marked on it. Close examination led them to the shaft and circular room, but since they have avoided all tattoos so far, they didn't have a clue how to use the room. They're still convinced the rune-circles are some sort of teleportation device.

4/1:

This week was quite confusing! Elrohir and Val went from the fountain room, where they had spoken with the "ghost" there a bit,  into the four-pillars room. Here, for some reason, they were intrigued by the idea that the circle was slightly damaged, and spent some time playing with it. Eventually, Gunter touched the silver circle, both setting off the trap, and getting the first tattoo for the party... Val was the only one who got badly confused, and attacked Wilhelm. She was subdued eventually, when Gunter grappled her and Wilhelm bashed her with the flat of his sword. The tattoo acquisition made them realize that the other circles would also give them tattoos, and might even lead to a way out - So they ran around collecting tattoos, and in the process met an insane man who claimed to be the King of the Dungeon (and also Saint Azaserah!). They also killed another nailman by shoving him off a ledge and into the maw of the rust monster... and got ambushed by three ettercaps, who almost managed to poison Elrohir. Much fire-flinging ensued, and eventually they were finished off. Azaserah's office and bedchamber were looted, and they carried off many books, a chest decorated with ivory birds, and some gold and crimson robes. They also found a helmet stashed in a bedroll, and last, but definitely not least, looted the bodies of three previous adventurers who had been slain by the ettercaps.There, they acquired a second Saint's Scepter, like the one they had left behind in Terregaunt's tower.

Eventually, they acquired all the tattoos and returned to the exit chamber. They debated trying to figure out the urn with the keyhole, and the floating keyhole, but they decided in the long run that anyone imprisoned by Saint Azaserah was not probably someone they wanted to deal with personally, so they did not try to set anyone free (including the poor ghost!). They brought out the stairs to level five, but after discussing their current state of being (a bit wounded and heavily laden with loot) they decided instead to go back "up" the stairs they arrived on, and return to their Tower.

4/14

This session was spent tying up loose ends. Two PCs leveled up, and they sold off a bunch of loot. They discovered the bag of holding hidden in the fancy carved chest they had carried out of the dungeon the previous day, and were very pleased. In the end, they sold many books, a set of magical half-plate, several masterwork weapons, and a goodly bit of odds and ends of loot. Then they found a tenant for their old manor house - a farmer named Michael Grave. He's willing to pay 100sp up front, and then 100 more per year for 4 years, at which time he will own the property. They could have rented to the cousin of a Baron from Greenvale who seems interested in establishing herself in the region, but Elrohir decided he'd rather have a local for a neighbor. A few days later, Felstor the mage contacted Elrohir, and told him that Burr-Buggle had sold him some interesting scrolls. After paying the old scholar a visit, El recognized that the scrolls (treatises on an unsavory magical topic) were probably written by Pholaen - one of the Mages Four, more than four hunded years earlier! Where had Burr-buggle found them?

Asking around town, Gunter finds out that BB has hired four guards, and set up some sort of camp to the northeast of town. Gunter befriended one guard, who was drinking and dicing at the Waterstone, and learned that the camp was on an island in a river, and that strangers aren't welcome there. He escorted the drunken guard home as a "friendly gesture" and the rest of the PCs followed a ways back. Using the party's shiny new ring of water walking, Gunter crossed over to the island and scouted the camp. It was ill-watched, and he was able to determine that there were indeed only four guards, and a hole in the ground. A couple days later, the guard (now bribed by Gunter), Al, tells them that BB and crew have brought back and sold a bunch of old glassware, and strange lizard-hides. This has the PCs quite interested and confused. What is going on? Where are BB and his buddies going? And what does it have to do with THEIR dungeon?

4/29

Following up on Burr-buggle's party's activities, the PCs follow the group around town, cast detect evil and eventually determine that only Brother Fortress is truly evil, but they warn Piven Golaster of that fact. Piven says he will no longer permit Brother Fortress in his house, and will not deal with Burr-buggle anymore. He shows Elrohir some interesting tropical plant samples that Burr-buggle traded him. Gunter tracks Renitass to Fascher's shop, where the supplier trades him handfuls of an odd green gemstone (uncut, in raw form) for a magical crossbow. Gunter and Val talk to Reni, offering him a chance to "go south" with them in the "near future". He is mildly interested, and tells them he and his group are making good money killing Bestial Host members in the woods. They pretend to believe him. Gunter searches their rooms at the Inn, and discovers Renitass' stashed monetary note (good for 500 SP at a money-lender in Greenvale). He happily steals it.

Later, the PCs go back to the island and have Al bribe his fellow guard to let them go down into Burr-buggle's cellar. Burr-buggle and his buddies are already there. To nobody's surprise, the cellar is empty, with only a few pieces of furniture and a teleportal ring on the floor. A search turns up a scroll, which Gunter reads. The resulting fiery explosion (a trap! How dare he!) nearly kills the rogue. A table holds a number of carrier-bags packed with glassware - old lab equipment from the looks of it. They leave it undisturbed.

Eventually, the PCs use the teleportal and find themselves in a strange new chamber, which they recognize fairly quickly as being part of the Dragon's Delve, due to architectural similarity. The room they appear in was once a library, and the ancient library keeper lies in a skeletal heap on the floor nearby. Books that have been gone through by Burr-buggle appear to all deal with transformative magic. Passing down a hallway (which has a badly disarmed fire trap in it), they reach another room that holds a large tank. In it, a strange boneless man who claims to have been a farmer, kidnapped over 100 years ago, rests. He begs them to kill him and end his futile life. Sadly, the PCs agree, as they can imagine no way to save him. First they pour wine into his chamber so he becomes intoxicated, and then they open a valve, releasing his fluid and allowing him to die. Wulfgar says a prayer for him. A second room looks as if it might once have been a laboratory, but has been completely looted.

To the south, a bridge arches over a wide, long passage. Down the center of the passage is a wall of lightning, guided by strange metal rods. The lightning is plainly dangerous, humming and crackling purple and blue. It gives off just enough light to allow the PCs to see that there are tracks in the dust that reveal Burr-buggle and his companions passed over the arch, beyond the lightning wall. They follow...

On the other side is a largish room. Stairs lead down from the bridge into the chamber, but a Giant Constrictor Snake awaits them! The PCs attack, but cannot land any solid blows; the snake in turn lunges at Gunter, grabbing him in its jaws and then squeezing him brutally. In turn, he barely manages to slip free. Elrohir blasts the snake with fire, but thick scales deflect much of the flame. The snake tries again to grab Wulfric, but misses. At the last, El manages another, far more deadly blast of eldrich flames, which crisp the snake. Searching the room, the PCs find two small bedchambers, which have plainly already been looted (I wonder by whom?!) and a snake-tunnel in the wall, leading who knows where... but with Burr-buggle's footprints disappearing down it.

5/13

Our brave adventurers finally made up their minds to plunge down the snake-tunnel after Burr-buggle's group. A long twisty crawl later, they found themselves in a huge room,  the eastern wall of which was totally open to an amazing scene; a jungle, beach and blue sky! All signs point to Burr-buggle and co entering this fantastic realm. The PCs, however, were more cautious, and decided instead to venture out the western passage from this room, which led back to the lightning tunnel, which apparently rings the entire dungeon on this level, providing who knows what sort of magical power to whom...

They ventured south, and then the passage turned back west.  Eventually, a side passage led south, down a short distance, and then opened to the west into a large chamber. A statue and alter to dragonkind were found here, and the party spent an hour scraping gold off the alter for a small reward. Using his cloak of Dragonhide, Gunter was able to read a message on the southern wall of the chamber, which said "All Glory and Power to the Prince, who sleeps far below".

Passing through this chamber, the party soon comes to a door in the passage at the far end. This door opens into a room filled with niches, and in the niches are creatures held in stasis. An ogre mage is closest to them, as they enter, and beyond are a female mage, and a female bugbear wearing armor and carrying weapons. However, clanking towards them out of the darrkness at the far end of the room, comes a strange humanoid figure with a bulbous glass "face", filled with insects. The construct moves towards them, and because they were trying to touch/interact with the ogre mage, it attacks! A long, tough battle ensued, wherein Elrohir used grease to knock the construct down, and Val and Gunter tried to attack, but could barely do any damage. Finally Wilhelm managed to inflict enough damage (after Elrohir accidentally slowed the monster with a fire-burst) to crack open the glass front with a critical hit. Two dreadful swarms of insects flew out, and one rapidly engulfed Val. The other crawled after Wilhelm, who was barely able to stay out of it's reach by continually retreating. Much application of alchemist fire and fire-burst spells followed, and finally they vanquished the swarms, but only after Val was nearly taken down. They investigated the far reaches of the chamber and found the trigger for the Secret Chest, but of course did not acquire the password; the phrase on the bottom of the chest intrigued them, though, and they intend to research the "Vraedix" later, to see what it could possibly be.

Passing around the corner to the north, they ascended the stairs to the upper area of the mimic's room. They investigated the table, but were thwarted by the wall of force. Elrohir realized that this magic is extremely powerful, and that it would take several wizards working together to bring it down; the same would have been true of the way it was cast. Eventually they searched the dresser, and found all of its contents, including the rod of replication. All of the bright red clothing amused them, and they intend to research who might have worn such gaudy things, and when.

At this point the party tried to search the cabinet; Gunter went up to search it for traps, and for his trouble received a vial of acid in the face! Again, before he could react, the whole cabinet twisted and slammed into him; he was hit badly, and it pulled him into it's grappling embrace...This was a brutal fight, and Gunter was nearly crushed to death. His dagger, Val's sword and Wilhelm's mace all ended up embedded in the creature before it was slain. Fortunately, Gunter made his fort save afterwards, and did not contract the mimic's dread disease.

By the end of this combat, the party was pretty much drained of healing, and they decided that they truly needed to rest and heal. They considered going all the way back to the entry/teleport chamber, but Elrohir's elven knack for spotting secret doors came in handy, and they found the secret passage that led to the stair room; they investigated the stairs, but decided not to venture up or down either set. Instead they camped in the hallway, and listened as at least one wandering band of dungeon monsters passed them by. Once healed, they ventured back to the mimic room, investigated the bridge they could see leading back over the lightning wall (but decided NOT to go near the dessicated body they saw sprawled on it), and instead began to investigate the room with pictures on the wall.

Here we paused for the week...

Moving north, they

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