Charles Plemons' Blog

Game summary for July 29, 2010; present characters included Kanaka Kohola (darfellan storm druid), Laka Pokukeliki (human fighter/rage cleric), Palu (human ranger).

The party enters a massive chamber with several natural springs and animal skins scattered about for bedding. Several cult members await within and release a dire inferno frog against the party as well. The team steps forward into the fray and slaughters cultists left and right. Palu’s new animal companion, Carmine the crocodile, is ordered into the melee and establishes himself as a formidable foe. In mere moments, the cultists are wiped out, and the party is advancing into a labyrinthine portion of the catacombs.

In the flickering flames of a single sconce, a slaymonger approaches. She moves with incredible grace and slips into the group’s midst, sliding her obsidian daggers into vulnerable flesh. So accurate and violent are her strikes, it rocks the team back. They begin to resist, and she disappears into the shadows. The next several minutes are spent playing cat and mouse as she pops out to brutally stab before tumbling away or hiding. Eventually, Laka hits her with a comet, which also crushes the only source of light. Kanaka remedies this by casting a light spell on Carmine. The slaymonger puts the pressure on Laka, sinking stab after stab and forcing him to flee for his life. Eventually, the woman is brought down, unable to withstand the team forever. After searching the area, Laka discovers a secret door.

The new area was dimly lit with high ceilings. Upon a blasphemous altar, priests of the frog god had bound Princess Ayoli. They were in the midst of a ritual designed to summon an aspect of the frog god and impregnate the princess with a godling. The party disrupted the ritual and brought the full wrath of the priests upon them. Curses and prayers traded back and forth, while one priest veiled himself in shadow and conjured a whirling cloud of steel blades. This priest charged into battle only to be blasted into charred bones by Kanaka and Laka. Palu wasted no time barging in toward the altar, dropping a tendriculos seed along the way. The seed sprouted into a massive plant monster under his control. The creature wrecked havoc while the remaining priest supported his Doomwarden guard by unleashing blistering flame strikes. Kanaka’s summoned fire elemental closed in on the caster, and Laka used air walk to get around behind him. Meanwhile, Palu cut Ayoli free and leaped upon the altar to attack the remaining priest. Laka was staggered by a thrust from the priest’s acidic spear. However, the team prevailed, chopping the man down under their rain of blows.

With the enemies defeated and cultists slain, the team returned to the surface of Ashenford where Laka wed Princess Ayoli. With his lovely new bride in tow, the group left Ashenford to seek adventure and wealth elsewhere.

Game summary for July 22, 2010; present characters included Laka Pokukeliki (human fighter/rage cleric), Palu (human ranger), Puinsai (cecaelia warder), and Vollintine (human berserker).

The team regroups and recruits a rage priest of Ahi named Laka to the cause. They continue searching for the princess beneath the town and come across a particularly talented protector of the frog along with his cronies–a priest and a doomwarden. Bloody chaos ensues. The frog cultist priest begins laying curses and prayers, while Laka counters by doing the same. Puinsai and Palu begin working over the doomwarden, allowing the protector of the frog to land several blows before they realize what a threat he is. Things get even more dangerous when the priest shields his allies with a powerful deflective magic, making it very difficult for the team to land shots. The doomwarden is dispatched in short order once Vollintine rejoins from scouting. The frog cultist priest summons a roaring column of flame that scorches Vollintine, but the others escape most of the damage. Laka counters by summoning a blast of pure divine energy and blasts the priest. The protector of the frog takes advantage of Vollintine’s injuries and clubs him to death’s door. The priest is driven back and slain while Laka drags Vollintine away from the melee. While Puinsai and Palu flank the protector of the frog, Laka heals Vollintine’s most grievous injuries. After a moment to shake off the worst of his travel toward the light, Vollintine rejoins the fray. The protector lands many more telling blows with this rock-spewing magic club, but he proves too weak to handle all of the team at once. In moments, he joins the priest in the Great Swamp, or wherever frog cultists go in an afterlife. A search of the area reveals a magical belt that tremendously enhances strength. Puinsai dons the belt, surging with magical might.

Depleted of spells and nearly dead, Keiki Manuahis know they must seek rest. They flee to the surface and hole up to nurse their wounds. Once recovered, they delve back into the catacombs spoiling for a fight. The frog cultists oblige when the party finds a room being used as a dining hall. Towering over the humans is a bright orange feral inshon. A berserker, witch, and protector of the frog are within as well. The berserker enters a rage and charges into the party, swinging his obsidian-tipped maca to and fro. The inshon follows him in, mauling Palu and poisoning him. Vollintine advances and brings the fight to the enemy while Laka lays prayers and blessings upon the group. The witch’s eldritch magic settles over the party, causing a slow effect on Vollintine. Palu’s hatred for inshon bubbles over, and he slaughters the feral beast in its tracks, his twin macas slicing its monstrous flesh to shreds.

Although brutal fighters, the berserker and protector of the frog were no match for the team bolstered by Laka’s healing magic. Quickly they are dispatched, and only the witch remains. The party swarms her, cutting off escape. She launches a storm of thorns, tearing into their flesh. It is not enough, however, as Puinsai’s newly enhanced power allows her to crush the witch beneath a barrage of club swings.

The group suspects they are getting close and presses on further into the catacombs.

Game summary for July 6, 2010; present characters included Kanaka Kohola (darfellan storm druid), Palakelei (human martial warrior), Palu (human ranger), Puinsai (cecaelia warder), and Vollintine (human berserker).

Upon returning to Ashenford, the team discovers the town partially burned and bodies in the streets. They learn that the frog cult, and their inshon minions, burst up from the ancient catacombs and slaughtered many, dragging many more down into the depths for sacrifice. Among the missing, Princess Ayoli, daughter of Chief Mukanu. The chief offers his daughter’s hand in marriage if rescued. The Keiki Manuahis decide marrying into minor royalty would not be an all together bad thing, the accept the challenge. They quickly find an apothecary and stock up on healing balms and anti-venom. Then, the delve beneath the city streets.

Not far into the catacombs, the team finds a tomb with a burning brazier occupied by two inshon and a trio of cultists. One cultist approaches, a mocha-skinned lithe athletic woman moving with the grace of a dancer, corded muscle rippling with every movement. Slender black-bladed knives twirl in her fingers, the light reflecting off the obsidian surface and moist liquid coating. Behind her, a massive dark-skinned bald man resembles a large frog himself. Animal furs cover his body, and human and humanoid skulls ring his waste like a belt. He carries a massive stone-headed mace. Traces of lightning play across the rock and handle. The inshon close in as the party advances, swarming to attack Puinsai and Palu. In moments, Puinsai finds herself surrounded by inshon and women armed with slick obsidian daggers. Kanaka unleashes a sudden stalagmite, impaling the massive man in the back of the room. Chaos ensues, with blood flying as the two groups collide. Bolstered by Kanaka’s magic, the Keiki Manuahis make fairly short work of the frog cultists.

The team presses further into the catacombs, discovering a large columned chamber with two other exits in the rear. More inshon and cultists flood into the room. One, a priest, begins layering prayers and curses upon the two parties. In moments, the Keiki Manuahis find themselves hampered by the power of the frog god. A massively muscled man, a protector of the frog, wielding an earth-based elemental club pressures the druid, Kanaka. Rocks flying, he begins clubbing away while another slaymonger works over the team with her deadly black daggers. The nearly mindless inshon begin attacking the flaming Vollintine, despite being burned with each claw and bite. Kanaka tries to use magic to swing the tide and finds himself clubbed violently for his efforts, losing his prayers under the protector’s beating. Palu, wounded terribly by inshon, charges the priest in an effort to stop his curses. The priest succeeds in getting one more spell cast, transferring the wounds from one inshon to Vollintine! Moments later, the priest is killed. With Kanaka driven into a corner, bones shattered by his clubbing, the protector turns on Puinsai. They go club-to-club, and the protector suddenly turns on Palakelei. The martial warrior fights bravely, but a powerful swing slips his formidable defenses. The deadly club crushes his skull, dropping him dead instantly. Moments later, the protector is slain by the party. The inshon are taken down quickly, while the slaymonger attempts to flee. Vollintine catches up to her and prevents her escape. Moments later, she lay dead on the ground.

Quickly taking stock of the situation, Keiki Manuahis is in trouble. They are injured and need a moment to recover, and their friend and ally Palakelei lay dead.

Game summary for June 17, 2010; present characters included Kanaka Kohola (darfellan storm druid), Palakelei (human martial warrior), Palu (human ranger), Puinsai (cecaelia warder), and Vollintine (human berserker).

Keiki Manuahis pushed on toward the heart of the inshon-infested swamp and was accosted by a dedicated force attempting to drive them out. As the inshon approached, Kanaka unleashed an entangle spell, slowing several inshon and entangling two dire frogs. The rest of the team took good advantage of the delay by drinking their anti-toxins in preparation for the approaching venomous inshon. Blood spilled quickly as the groups finally clashed. The bulk of the inshon came in from the swamp side, while another flanked around the back. The dire frogs struggled in the grasping weeds while the party killed inshon after inshon. Puinsai and Palakelei provided assistance to Kanaka as the flanking inshon bandit finally made it around and pressured the druid. By the time the dire frogs freed themselves from the plants, Keiki Manuahis had dispatched all of the inshon.

Eager to find more inshon blood to spill, the party charged deeper and found the ruins of an old temple. Protecting the ruins were an inshon warlock, an inshon brawler, a venomous inshon, a brutal feral inshon, and a mysterious frog cultist priest. Puinsai charged forward to tackle the warlock and take him out of the fight. Palu and Palakelei unleashed havoc upon the venomous inshon, and Vollintine took up the fight against the feral inshon. The frog cultist laid a curse upon the party and a prayer upon friends and foes. Puinsai found herself in trouble when the warlock cursed her strength, allowing the inshon to slip free.

The venomous inshon went down in a spray of gore beneath the onslaught of Keiki Manuahis, and the warlock cursed Puinsai even further, making her awkward, clumsy, and unskilled. The frog cultist blessed his allies and protected them with a legion’s shield of faith. Kanaka established his presence by blasting the feral inshon and inshon warlock with a steam jet, scalding the warlock to death. Enraged, the feral inshon grabbed hold of Palu and began rending and raking, disemboweling the ranger. Puinsai limped back to her team and engaged the brawler along with Vollintine and Kanaka. The storm druid unleashed a molten blast on the brawler, encrusting it in hardening lava. Palakelei brought the fight to the frog cultist who had been dropping blistering flame strikes and other deadly spells upon the party. The cultist surrounded himself with a whirling ring of blades, which cut deeply into Palakelei. The martial warrior landed several solid blows of his own, however. As the feral inshon and brawler died, Kanaka moved in on the cultist and began a prayer to call lightning. The cultist launched a final darkbolt at Palakelei, but the shot went wide. Kanaka’s prayer ended, and charring electricity crackled from the sky, burning the cultist to cinders.

Keiki Manuahis spread out and searched the ruins, discovering the cultist here was following orders to recruit the inshon for a cult operating out of Ashenford! The group tended to their wounds and reincarnated Palu into a Kanaka human, again. With that, the team prepares to return to Ashenford to root out this den of evil!

Game summary for June 10, 2010; present characters included Kanaka Kohola (darfellan storm druid), Palakelei (human martial warrior), Palu (human ranger), Puinsai (human warder), and Vollintine (human berserker).

Divine energy surged up from the earth and through the druid’s hands, reincarnating Palu as a human! No longer was he of the Panahi tribe, however, but of the Kanaka. Although somewhat disturbed to be in a different body, Palu was happy to be alive.

The Keiki Manuahis pressed deeper into the fetid swamp, still battling the stinging insects. They soon uncovered an inshon raiding party consisting of three bandits, a brawler, and four dire frogs! The team moved in for the attack and laid waste among the creatures. Kanaka electrocuted several while Puinsai tangled with a massive frog. Palakelei put his cascading strike to good use, pummeling the monstrous beasts. It was Palu, however, whose fierce hatred for the inshon led him to the most brutal and effective attacks. His twin macas carved a bloody swathe through the ranks as Vollintine arrived to help mop up the rest.

Palu had broken some of the obsidian in his weapons during the fight and sat down to repair them. After an hour of work, another group of inshon arrived and attacked! This group was assembled for war and brought elemental dire frogs, a warlock, and a venomous inshon along with bandits and brawlers. Water boiled around the feet of one of the frogs, while ice crystals formed around the other. The warlock unleashed an onslaught of sickening blasts while the poisonous secretions of the bandits began taking its toll among the party. Vollintine found himself beset by the vicious venomous inshon who injected him with a strong paralytic poison. Vollintine was able to shrug off some of the effects but was hampered by sluggish movement for the rest of the fight. Kanaka cast menacing tentacles and waded into the fray toe-to-toe putting the glowing spear of Auku to deadly use!

Palakelei put himself in harm’s way, using his tremendous defensive skills to occupy several of the inshon. Puinsai found herself in trouble flanked by two inshon bandits. Using numerous sneak attacks, they brought her down, and one killed her on the ground before closing in on Palakelei. Palu had not recovered from the first encounter and had to fall back to nurse his wounds. He used the time to move around to the side and came into the fight with a vengeance! In moments, the warrior inshons all lay dead, but the frogs and warlock remained. The warlock continued firing sickening blasts but could not withstand the concentrated might of Keiki Manuahis. The team then fell upon the frogs and finished the battle.

With the fight completed, Kanaka began to summon the powers of the earth and reincarnate Puinsai. After an hour of ritual, a new body formed for Puinsai, that of a cecaelia!

Game summary for June 3, 2010; present characters included Kanaka Kohola (darfellan storm druid), Palakelei (human martial warrior), Palu (human ranger), Puinsai (human warder), and Vollintine (human berserker).

With the spear of Auku able to warn of the nearby presence of sahuagin, the PCs made a hasty retreat from the sea caves and returned to the lands of the Panahi tribes. Traveling to Ashenford, they found the town had recently been attacked by organized inshon raiders. The ignorant frog-men often raid, but their use of tactics belied a sinister presence behind their actions. With the success of claiming Auku’s spear fresh in the peoples’ minds, they quickly turned to the Keiki Manuahis to rid them of this new menace. The team agreed for a fee of 3,000 pink coral beads each (paid one quarter up front); besides, Kanaka was eager to try Auku’s spear against the inshon!

The group delved into the stinking, fetid swamps where they were plagued by stinging insects and terrible leeches. Progress was grueling as they discovered their magical cloaks would not allow them to easily swim about—they only function in salt water! A few days into the trek, the team was accosted by the lashing limbs of a hungry darktentacles! The 36-armed cephalopod snagged Kanaka and Palakelei, constricting them horribly. Puinsai hacked away at one of the tentacles, and Palu brought the fight to the creature. Palakelei struggled free, and Kanaka bit through the tentacle ensnaring him. The group quickly advanced on the monster, and it lashed them brutally; however, it took only a few moments of combined aggression to kill the monster.

After dispatching the darktentacles, Palu picked up on some very large inshon tracks and set off deeper into the swamps. Soon, the spear of Auku erupted in the telltale blue light warning of the presence of monstrous humanoids. So warned, the team enhanced themselves with spells as a pack of inshon bandits and brawlers moved in along with their trained dire war frog. Immediately, the dire frog lashed out its tongue, snatching Kanaka into its maw! The inshon closed in and grievously injured Palakelei and Puinsai, eventually rendering the warrior woman unconscious. Vollintine stepped out of the bushes, however, and laid waste around him. He and Palu slammed their macas into inshon flesh—blood and obsidian shards flew as they scored devastating blow after blow. Kanaka escaped from the frog and set about putting Auku’s spear to good use. Soon, all of the inshon had croaked, leaving only the dire frog alive. Palu calmed the beast and convinced it to hop off into the swamp in search of easier prey.

With weapons needing repair, allies needing medical attention, and night approaching, Keiki Manuahis made camp. Kanaka and Vollintine used a bit of magic to repair the breaks in their blades. Palu, lacking such spells, worked well into the night repairing his maca. By dawn, everyone was refreshed and re-armed, ready for what the day may throw at them.

By noon, the group had stumbled into the hunting grounds of an amphibious phase spider of terrible size. The magical beast materialized out of thin air and drove its fangs deep into the center of Palu’s chest. Massive muscles pumped poisonous liquids into his trunk, which began digesting him from the inside. Then, as quickly as it appeared, the spider was gone! Several of the team quickly drank their vials of antivenom in case they were bitten; meanwhile, Palu fell back as the poisons coursed through his system with violent results. In moments, the spider was phasing in and out and biting each member of the party. Fortunately, the antivenom did its job, and Kanaka, a storm druid, was immune to the venom anyway.

Angered, Kanaka tagged the spider with a molten blast, coating it in a hampering shell of cooling lava. His attack also shook the spider with fear, leaving it even more vulnerable to the party’s attacks. Before it could phase away a final time, the team converged on it and riddled it with terrible injuries. Soon, the spider lay dead and twitching in the muck. Behind them, Palu began to vomit forth the remains of his organs. Everyone attempted to bolster his strength with magic, but the mighty spider’s venom was too strong. Within a minute of being bitten, Palu lay dead, his innards digested by the monster’s poisonous bite. Kanaka calmly began his nature prayers to reincarnate his fallen brother-in-arms. The awesome power of life surged through the storm druid’s hands, bathing him and the swamp in a verdant light. As the glow subsided, Palu was restored to life, reincarnated into the body of a…

Game summary for May 27, 2010; present characters included Kanaka Kohola (darfellan storm druid), Palakelei (human martial warrior), and Puinsai (human warder).

Refreshed from their last encounter, Keiki Manuahis delved deeper into the sea caves in search of Auku’s spear. They soon came upon a sahuagin sea witch, a sahuagin savage, and two anguillian cutthroat goons. This was the party’s first encounter with the sahuagin’s eel-man slave race. Battle erupted as the creatures charged forward!

The sea witch’s opening gambit was a slow spell centered on the party, but fortunately only Puinsai was affected. As the monstrous humanoids and aberrations approached, Kanaka unleashed an arc of lightning, which zapped the two sahuagin, but the cutthroat anguillian evaded! The flint spears and tridents of the enemy scored several telling blows, and the sea witch shrouded himself in a cloak of darkness. As the battle wore on, one of the anguillians attached himself to Puinsai and began draining blood and a frightening rate! Kanaka and Palakelei drove the sea witch back and killed the savage and other cutthroat, while the attached anguillian continued mauling Puinsai. Soon, Puinsai lay dying on the ground while Kanaka dropped lightning down on the fleeing enemies. Puinsai was nursed back to consciousness while the sahuagin and anguillians were dispatched.

With Puinsai seriously injured and the rest of Keiki Manuahis exploring other tunnels, the party had no choice but to climb up into a niche and rest. Although sahuagin occasionally passed nearby, the group was unmolested while Puinsai was restored to full health. Kanaka used the opportunity to re-affirm his devotion to nature and gain new prayers.

Recovered, the party moved further down, finding themselves in partially flooded caverns. Eventually, they came upon a flood of sahuagin and anguillians who quickly surrounded the party and began a brutal assault. Kanaka held the enemies back somewhat by summoning a mighty water elemental! Despite being outnumbered, the Keiki Manuahis team quickly dominated the battle with the aid of their cloaks of the manta ray, which took the sahuagins’ terrain advantage from them. One of the anguillians attached to Palakelei, but it was dispatched before it could do the same damage Puinsai had suffered earlier. Within moments, torn and bloody sahuagin and anguillian bodies were floating away in the salty currents.

Bolstered by their victory, the party pushed further into the flooded caverns and discovered a massive flooded chamber littered with coral coins and the spear of Auku! However, between them and victory was a massive obstruction–a dire octopus of mammoth proportions! Crushing tentacles lashed out, driving Kanaka back from the onslaught. Palakelei circled around, taking several hits, while Puinsai climbed atop the massive beast! Screaming in primal fury, she unleashed an barrage of blows down on the octopus. The monster shook her off and brutalized Palakelei, but Kanaka hit it with a molten blast, scalding it and encrusting the octopus with a stony covering. Now slowed, the octopus was unable to resist Puinsai’s next climbing attempt, and she rode out the battle from the top of the creature, battering it with strikes! Palakelei hit the creature repeatedly as well and dodged tentacle after tentacle; however, many scored bone-crushing hits. Kanaka caused piercing stalagmites to erupt under the creature and scalded it more with steam jet. Finally, the combined might of Keiki Manuahis was too much for the beast, and it went down. Palakelei limped away, beaten within an inch of his life.

Within a few minutes, the party had recovered from their wounds and retrieved Auku’s spear! The team now must leave the sea caves, but already the spear glows in warning of the nearby presence of the shark-men!

Game summary for May 18, 2010; present characters included Kanaka Kohola (darfellan storm druid), Palakelei (human martial warrior), Palu (human ranger), Puinsai (human warder), and Vollintine (human berserker).

As the Keiki Manuahis team delved deeper, salty sea water became more prevalent. Before long, they found themselves in a side chamber occupied by a massive troll king. Palu charged into the fray, maca and dagger flailing. Although he hit the brute, it retaliated by rending parts of flesh from bone. Palakelei caught the creature in a net, and Kanaka blasted the troll with scalding water, knocking it prone. Puinsai battered the beast with her greatclub while it struggled on the ground.

Two more trolls arrived from deeper within the caves, trapping the team in the cavern. One attacked Wavy, while another advanced on Puinsai and Kanaka. Vollintine slipped in from down the corridor and began a vicious assault. Despite the trolls’ tremendous regenerative powers, they were no match to the combined power of Keiki Manuahis. After slaying all three trolls, they searched the area, recovering a couple thousand coral coins.

After regrouping, Keiki Manuahis moved further into the sea caves, crossing an area of salt water. They stumbled upon four sahuagin in a small cave, and a violent battle erupted. Fast-thinking Kanaka unleashed a daylight spell, temporarily blinding the shark-men. The sahuagin revealed their own caster, a sea priest who immediately began a prayer. Palakelei moved into the corner and was pinned in by a pair of sahuagin savages. A third took up a stance in the narrow corridor and did an amazing job of holding the party back. Wavy was slaughtered by their flint tridents, and the Keiki Manuahis team was driven back. The sea priest harrowed the party with curses and malaise including smite foe, curse of ill fortune, and curse of petty failing. It also succeeded in blessing the savages.

Kanaka used sudden stalagmite and call lightning to try and bolster his team but with limited success. Palakelei kept some of the sahuagin occupied for a while, allowing Palu and Puinsai to whittle away at the third. Vollintine finally slipped through the ranks and pressured the caster, but he suffered a number of the sea priest’s curses firsthand.

The battle tide turned when the first sahuagin fell. Riding on that success, the party surged forward and killed another savage. Puinsai charged into the backfield and attacked the sea priest, crushing his skull with her club. Finally, the last savage fled the chamber and dived into the sea water, swimming away into the darkness.

After nursing their wounds, Keiki Manuahis, prepared to delve even deeper into the caves in search of Auku’s spear.

Game summary for May 13, 2010; present characters included Kanaka Kohola (darfellan storm druid), Palakelei (human martial warrior), Palu (human ranger), and Vollintine (human berserker).

Long ago, a mighty hero named Auku set out to defile the temple of Mano, the vicious god of the shark-men, deep within the sea caves. Auku was the wielder of a powerful obsidian spear enchanted as a bane to the sahuagin. He never returned from his endeavor. Three days ago, a captured sahuagin admitted to knowing the location of the spear. After a ruthless questioning, a general idea of the spear’s location is determined. According to the shark-man, the spear is well protected, and no one has stepped forward willing to claim it. However, acquiring the spear would result in tremendous renown and accolades.

Determined to recover the spear, motivated greatly by Kanaka’s intense hatred of the sahuagin, the Keiki Manuahis party set out. They boarded a sturdy outrigger and voyaged to the island described by the captured shark-man. Once upon the beach, the team found themselves facing a dense jungle filled with chirping insects and clattering birds. They picked carefully across the rocks and surf, following the outskirts of the jungle.

Before long, a mighty chuul burst from the shallows and attempted to consume the team. Its deadly pincer perforated Kanaka, and it grappled Vollintine. Palakelei slipped behind the behemoth and unleashed his unarmed assault upon it, but many blows were deflected by its chitinous frame. Meanwhile, Palu advanced on the other side, flanking the monster. The crafty ranger slashed away with his obsidian-studded maca and stone knife. Soon, Vollintine wrestled free and delivered a telling blow with his own great maca, sending shattered obsidian shards into the air and embedded others in the monster’s hide. After catching his breath, Kanaka launched into a spell, calling upon the power of the volcano. Molten lava spewed from his hands, burning the beast and coating it in hardening lava. The chuul, now surrounded and weighed down by the rocky coating, fought vainly. It succeeded in drawing blood several times, but ultimately was defeated by Palu’s deadly obsidian dagger.

Leaving the carnage on the beach, the Keiki Manuahis ventured into the cave they sought. Within, Vollintine’s maca was illuminated with magical light. Palu, trailing his longtime crocodile companion Wavy, examined the sea caves finding fecal matter and tracks. He suspected the signs indicated the presence of cave trolls. After a bit more searching, the group discovered the skeletal remains of fish and darfellan. As they emerged from a side chamber, a trio of bloated, gray-skinned cave trolls attacked.

Valiant Vollintine advanced to the front line and laid open one of the monstrosities. Unfortunately, the filthy giant shrugged off the blow and dazed the raging berserker with a series of devastating hits. The troll then sunk the claws from both hands deeper into the wounds and ripped the injury wide open. Another troll slipped up beside the first in time to meet Palu’s powerful charge. Blood and gore flew as the group exchanged blows. Palakelei cleverly unfurled a large net and entangled one of the slavering beasts. The first died under the chopping blows of the team, and the third was able to position itself into the fray. Kanaka arced lightning between the two giants, with devastating effect. While one troll tried vainly to burst the net, the other had to fend off the entire combined focus of the Keiki Manuahis. The battle become substantially one-sided when Kanana caused the cave floor to hurl forth a stalagmite, impaling the third troll. Palu called Wavy into the fight, and the hungry croc mauled the netted troll. Soon, the group had cut down all three trolls and scattered their remains.

A search of the troll lair revealed a couple thousand pink coral “coins” or beads as well as a handful of precious gems. They also recovered a balm of lesser vigor, a sealed scroll with magical healing prayers, and a nearly drained wand of bear’s endurance. After several moments to catch breath and tend wounds, the team prepared to delve deeper.