Charles Plemons' Blog

Game summary for August 2, 2012, Priscus Venatus campaign, G1: The Steading of the Hill Giant Chief adventure; present PCs included Crularin Gellantara (druid), Drake Spellking (human cleric/magic-user), and Emeran Galathar (elf fighter/magic-user).

Crularin rushed into the room and wrapped the silenced scroll case and rope to the hanging gong to prevent an alarm.  The team then moved forward as the bugbears charged into the silence.  Drake hit one with a magic missile, Crularin hit the other with his spear, and Emeran activated his wand of wonder!  From the ether, a massive rhinoceros appeared and charged the bugbears!  Emeran continued using the wand which resulted in a field of darkness and an area of driving rain.  In the chaos, the team took down the bugbears.

The group then examined the cells and found Mara Woodstride, an elf warrior maiden eager to fight the giants.  They also rescued an engineer but left a crazed man locked away.  The fourth cell contained three skeletons that animated to attack Emeran as he entered.  Drake used his clerical might to destroy the undead in a moment, however.  The final cell contained five energetic but stupid orcs eager to reunite with the orc rebels and fight the giants.  The group finally worked out an arrangement for the orcs to lead them to their caves and unite with them.

The team moved down the hallway, led by the orcs, and used silence to creep forward.  They by-passed a group of bugbears using stealth and met up with the orcs in their cavern where they found nearly a hundred rebels with a handful of weapons.

Game summary for July 26, 2012, Priscus Venatus campaign, G1: The Steading of the Hill Giant Chief adventure; present PCs included Althion Whiteoak (fighter), Ardel Blueback (dwarf fighter), Crularin Gellantara (druid), Drake Spellking (human cleric/magic-user), and Emeran Galathar (elf fighter/magic-user).

The group advanced silently through a door and surprised a group of ogres playing knucklebones.  The team dispatched them quickly and quietly and then found the kitchen.  The team noticed orc slaves serving the giants in the main hall and lured one away with a trail of coins.  Talking to the captured orc, they learned there is a secret rebellion growing below, but he was unsure how to get to the orcs in the lower levels.

Crularin shifted into rodent form and scouted around searching for stairs.  He eventually found a set in the pantry, so the group assumed this must be the right direction.  The team slipped down the stairs and into a large open stone-floored room.  The team followed a path to a large water cistern.  Unimpressed, they backtracked and found a wine cellar.  Within they discovered a skull-marked keg and took it within a bag of holding.

The team backtracked again and found another doorway.  On the other side was a row of cells and two bugbears staring at the entryway!

Game summary for July 10, 2012, Priscus Venatus campaign, G1: The Steading of the Hill Giant Chief adventure; present PCs included Althion Whiteoak (fighter), Ardel Blueback (dwarf fighter), Crularin Gellantara (druid), Drake Spellking (human cleric/magic-user), and Emeran Galathar (elf fighter/magic-user).

The dozens of giants are hungry after the battle and kill Drake as well.  They stew up a pot of human, dwarf, and half-elf with potatoes and cabbage.  Crularin is left to linger in a cage for a later meal.  The crafty druid shapeshifts into a weasel to slip through the bars, steals some of the meaty stew (for reasons to come), snatches Blackrazor, turns into a condor and flies away.  He was unable to carry the stew, the sword, and Whelm, so the hammer is left behind.

Crularin meets up with Althion (who is still running for his life!) and takes him to a druid circle in Sterich (this is Crularin’s homeland, after all).  An old druid owes him a favor and repays him by reincarnating Rowena, Drake, and Ardel!  Rowena, sadly, comes back as a troll.  Mortified, and realizing she will never be accepted in normal society, she gives up her adventuring days and agrees to stay with the druids protecting their grove.

Drake is reincarnated as a human, losing all his half-elven heritage.  His experience with death drives him closer to his faith, and he forgoes the path of the magic-user to focus on his clerical studies.

Ardel is reincarnated as a centaur!  Although at the peak of combat training for a centaur, he finds himself in a strong powerful body well-suited for the use of the blade.  Of course, Blackrazor calls out for its companion and the two are reunited!

The group then traveled back to the steading.  Crularin scouted as an eagle overhead and then entered the building as a mole.  The team masked itself using invisibility, Drawmij’s scent mask, and silence 15’ radius to slip into the steading.  They moved through a room with half a dozen giantesses and into a wide hallway.  What else is lies beyond?

Game summary for July 5, 2012, Priscus Venatus campaign, G1: The Steading of the Hill Giant Chief adventure; present PCs included Althion Whiteoak (fighter), Ardel Blueback (dwarf fighter), Crularin Gellantara (druid), and Drake Spellking (half-elf cleric/magic-user) and present henchmen included Rowena Starblaze (magic-user).

Crularin hit the hill giant with his wand of wonder with no effect.  The giant then threw open the doors unleashing over a dozen dire wolves.  The party and the canines engaged.  Crularin fired another blast from his wand of wonder, and the team fighters waded into the brawl.  Drake used magic missile on the giant, drawing blood.  Soon, the giant and most of the wolves fell to blade and spell.  However, an enormous cloud giant and a dozen hill giants emerged from the steading!  Crularin used a wall of fire to try and hold them back, but a barrage of hurled rocks and the swings of the cloud giant proved devastating.  The giants cut down Ardel, and the rest of the team started to fall back.  Althion took off to safety, but Crularin, Rowena, and Drake were knocked out and captured by the wicked giants!

Game summary for June 28, 2012, Priscus Venatus campaign, G1: The Steading of the Hill Giant Chief adventure; present PCs included Ardel Blueback (dwarf fighter), Crularin Gellantara (druid), and Emeran Galathar (elf fighter/magic-user) and present henchmen included Rowena Starblaze (magic-user).

The party followed the trail left by the hill giants fought earlier until night.  Then, Ardel crafted a shelter for the evening to keep out the storm predicted by Crularin.  After the rains, a mixed group of orcs, ogrillons, and ogres attacked.  The group had little trouble defeating this rabble, but they lost a horse in the exchange.  The following morning, Crularin shifted into horse form and was saddled and mounted by Rowena.  Thus arrayed, the group moved on into the day.

Eventually, the team came across a rock clearing in the foothills where they were ambushed by half a dozen bugbears and a fire giant.  The giant hurled rocks while the bugbears charged in.  Emeran was badly wounded, and Rowena was knocked out after being thrown for Crularin’s back.  Ardel attacked the giant but was injured as well.  Emeran tried his wand of wonder twice, once launching a lightning bolt falling short of the giant.  Next, he conjured a shimmering sheet of light that blinded his horse and drove it off in a panic.  Despite their setbacks, the team brought down the marauders and found a scrimshaw map leading to a point in the Jotuns.

The group traveled for days into the mountains and finally discovered a massive log homestead.  The moved to the side door where they seemed to be detected by over a dozen dog-sounding creatures.  As the group prepared to try and knock down the doors, a giant looked over the wall and screamed out, “elves and dwarves!” alerting the keep!

Game summary for June 21, 2012, Priscus Venatus campaign, G1: The Steading of the Hill Giant Chief adventure; present PCs included Ardel Blueback (dwarf fighter), Crularin Gellantara (druid), Drake Spellking (half-elf cleric/magic-user), and Emeran Galathar (elf fighter/magic-user) and present henchmen included Rowena Starblaze (magic-user).

The Swords of Greyhawk continued their travel over sea and river to the March of Sterich and the city of Istivin.  Within, they discovered giants were marauding and taking caravans and towns.  Several adventurers had already set out to kill the giants and failed.  Scouts had discovered the giants, led by Chief Nosnra, were holed up in the Jotun mountains.  The team agreed to seek the giants and return with the head of Nosnra and disperse the giants.

The group headed overland toward the mountains on horseback followed by Crularin in dog form.  Soon they discovered some ruins and went to investigate some burning blazers.  From beneath camouflaged pits, nearly half a dozen hill giants leapt up and attacked!  Ardel dove into action—face first into the ground tripping over his pony’s stirrups.  Crularin surrounded himself with a ringed wall of fire while Emeran unleashed a lightning bolt.  Drake, goaded by his giant-hating warhammer Whelm, launched headlong into the fray.  Rowena attempted to weaken a giant with ray of enfeeblement to no avail, and the party flesh golem, Frank, attacked.

Following the initial assault by the party, the giants responded, pounding the team with trunk-sized clubs.  The fighting was fierce, with Emeran forced into invisible retreat.  However, the team overcame and slaughtered the giants after several tense moments.

The team nursed their wounds and set out again toward the Jotun peaks.

Game summary for June 7, 2012, Priscus Venatus campaign, S2: White Plume Mountain adventure; present PCs included Althion Whiteoak (fighter), Crularin Gellantara (druid), Drake Spellking (half-elf cleric/magic-user), Emeran Galathar (elf fighter/magic-user), and Marcus Godse (half-orc assassin/fighter).

The party began discussions with the plump halfling and tried to speak with him in his native tongue.  Oddly enough, he didn’t seem to speak halfling.  Marcus ordered Frank to pick up the halfling while the rest searched the room.  A moment later, the halfling’s flesh melted and swirled, and he grew into the shape of a massive ogre mage!  He spoke charming words to Althion, clouding his mind!  Fortunately, Crularin realized what happened and cast dispel magic to bring him back to his right mind.

Drake smashed his flail into the ogre, and Crularin caught him in a wall of fire.  Marcus finished him off with a well-placed sword thrust.  The team then searched the room and discovered the mystical blade Blackrazor!  Marcus and the blade seemed to bond.

The team split up on the way out, with Crularin and Drake slipping out on their own while Althion, Emeran, Marcus, and Frank the flesh golem running into twin efreeti, Nix and Nox!  The pair tried to convince the party to come along peacefully for indoctrination, but they refused.  A brutal fight ensued, with walls of fire and vicious sword wounds being dished out.  Althion landed some great axe blows, Emeran sank an arrow, and Marcus drove one back with the stinging kiss of Blackrazor.  However, Nix’ and Nox’ magic proved devastating, badly injuring Althion and forcing Marcus to turn his back and get cut down by Nox!  Althion and Emeran fled back up the hallway and hid with invisibility potions while Frank beat the efreeti in battle.

The last two Swords of Greyhawk, along with Frank the flesh golem, left White Plume Mountain with the three weapons of power.  They then stopped by a roadside tavern and hired on mercenary Rowena Starblaze to join in their travels.

Game summary for May 31, 2012, Priscus Venatus campaign, S2: White Plume Mountain adventure; present PCs included Althion Whiteoak (fighter), Marcus Godse (half-orc assassin/fighter), and Nosorn “The Nose” Silversword (dwarf fighter/thief) and present henchmen included Acwald Doubleaxe (dwarf fighter) and Vivienne Longshanks (cleric dual fighter).

The Swords of Greyhawk searched the room of the strange river and found a hidden door unlocked with Sir Bluto’s key!  Behind it lay a narrow passage leading to another chamber.  Beyond the door at the far end lay a room most bizarre indeed.  A massive inverted ziggurat of alternating levels of dry land and water with transparent barriers between each stretched out before the team.  In the first level of water swam half a dozen giant crayfish.  Below them another level crawled with giant scorpions.  Next, four sea lions swam in a second aquatic layer.  Down below this stood three vicious manticores.

The team advanced down to the water and fought the crayfish, using Frank the flesh golem as a shield and warrior to help clear the way.  They then moved down to the scorpion level with Acwald at the head.  One of the scorpions stung the stalwart dwarf, and he went into frothing convulsions and died before the astonished party.  In moments, Vivienne too died from scorpion poison.  The group fell back and moved Frank to the front to clear out the massive vermin.

Next, the team fought through the sea lions with little resistance and moved down to the manticore level.  Nosorn, using his last charge from his ring of flying hovered into view of the beasts, and they pin cushioned him with tail spines to the death.  Mortified, the group again used Frank as a moving wall of destruction to smash the manticores.

With the monsters destroyed, and three of their own fallen, the team triggered a flood and had to wait for it to drain away before opening the door at the ziggurat floor.  On the other side stood a plump halfling smoking a pipe!

Game summary for May 24, 2012, Priscus Venatus campaign, S2: White Plume Mountain adventure; present PCs included Althion Whiteoak (fighter), Marvin Clearmind (paladin), and Nosorn “The Nose” Silversword (dwarf fighter/thief) and present henchmen included Acwald Doubleaxe (dwarf fighter) and Vivienne Longshanks (cleric dual fighter).

The party proceeded down the last of the three corridors and found a corridor lined with copper-colored metal plates.  Vivienne could determine it was a trap, but Nosorn was unable to discover a way to disable it.  Marvin moved forward and found his metallic items heating up at an alarming rate to the point of scalding.  After suffering several severe burns, he fell back.  The paladin then stripped down to his skivvies, wrapped his metal items in a cloak and dragged them behind him on a rope.  Well down the hallway, the metal was so hot it disintegrated the cloak and rope and boiled the water it now sat in.  Nonplussed, Marvin moved into the chamber at the end of the hall and walked into an opening secret door spilling forth ravenous ghouls!

The paladin was quickly paralyzed and shredded to death by the undead.  Nosorn hurled Whelm down the hallway, heating it to glowing red steel, and smashed a ghoul to death.  Magically, the hammer returned to the Nose.  Vivienne climbed into her own bag of holding and was carried down the hallway by Frank the flesh golem and dumped out to fight the ghouls.  She smashed one to the ground but was soon paralyzed as well.  The party slowly by-passed the heat trap using the golem and bag of holding.  One by one, the party got paralyzed until Acwald and Frank were able to kill the last ghoul!

The group declined the opportunity to say a few words over the fallen paladin and instead looted his corpse.  They then moved on and found a strange smooth-floored room with a pair of room-wide pits filled with rusted razor blades.  The Nose activated his ring of flying and picked up Althion to fly across.  Once entering the room, their spell faltered slamming them to a frictionless ground.  The pair slid into the pit and were slashed by the blades.  Frank was able to reach in and extract Althion, but as the Nose tried to get close enough, he cut himself again and contracted super-tetanus.  Frank pulled the Nose out, and Vivienne was able to save his life, although he was weakened significantly.

To cross the room, Acwald removed his equipment and consumed all of his potion of growth, attaining a height of 28’.  He stumbled about and slid across the room, with the party on his back, to the safe side through an illusory wall.  The team could then reach the next doorway.

In another strange room, the team found kayaks and a “river” of water suspended in mid-air.  Fish swam through as they watched.  The group climbed into the river and moved upstream to find another room filled with fighters and the notorious fugitive Sir Bluto!  Many of the fighters charged Frank but were unable to hurt him.  Althion, Acwald, and Frank laid waste to the fighters and Bluto, while the Nose moved around the side mopping up the stragglers.

With the hostile warriors defeated, the team found itself in a huge seemingly empty room with the bizarre river flowing through.

Game summary for May 17, 2012, Priscus Venatus campaign, S2: White Plume Mountain adventure; present PCs included Marvin Clearmind (paladin), and Nosorn “The Nose” Silversword (dwarf fighter/thief) and present henchmen included Acwald Doubleaxe (dwarf fighter) and Vivienne Longshanks (cleric dual fighter).

After recuperating from the brutal sphere room, the team proceeded down a northern corridor and opened a room filled with stitched-together bodies.  Once entering the room, the door slammed shut, and the golems animated and posed a riddle.  Marvin figured out the problem in moments, deactivating the golems except for one, whom he named Frank who now follows the party’s orders.  Joined by Frank, the group moved through another door.

The team went through a turnstile and found a large natural cavern filled with boiling mud and traversed by wooden platforms on swinging chains.  Geysers of scalding steam erupted every few minutes.  Nonplussed, Nosorn activated his new ring of flying and ferried people across (leaving super heavy Frank behind).

On the other side, the group moved down a corridor and found a room of utter darkness.  Marvin could sense evil within, and the group crept inside.  The evil within attacked, but Marvin was able to dodge at the last moment.  Acwald swung his bardiche and connected with something unseen.  Meanwhile, Nosorn flew up to the ceiling and mapped out the room by touch.  Vivienne stumbled forward while Marvin moved out of the room and read his anti-magical scroll.  Moving back into the room, he disrupted the magical darkness revealing a vicious vampire!  Nearly panicked, the team closed in on the vampire unaware of the extreme danger it posed.  Miraculously it missed with its next attack but Acwald did not.  The second bardiche blow was staggering, and The Nose was able to sneak around and slay the monster from behind.  The gaseous vampire fled to its coffin, which the group prompted dismantled.  The gas sped out of the room to parts unknown.

Inside the ruined coffin, the team discovered a small fortune in coins and potions.  They also found the mystical hammer, Whelm!  The Nose decided it more fit him than Wave and claimed the hammer as his own.

The group went back across the mud chasm, collected Frank, and returned to the spinning chamber.  They ordered Frank through, but he was too uncoordinated.  The poor golem was caught spinning in the cylinder until rescued.  Marvin ran and slid through the oily chamber right as Burkett fired a flaming arrow igniting it.  Badly burned, Marvin healed himself on the other side.   Burkett and a female caster emerged through a door and fought viciously.  The woman cast a web spell, trapping Marvin.  Acwald came sliding through the cylinder and slammed into the web, sticking as well.  However, now on fire, he ignited the webbing, burning him and Marvin.  The rest of the team rushed through the cylinder, and brutal blows landed on Burkett.  The female yelled out his name in obvious distress and anger and suddenly shifted into a raging werewolf!  The team rallied to battle, and although Marvin was bitten, the team took out both the human and lycanthrope.

The group ransacked the room and moved to head down the last of the three branches of the dungeon.