Mattsters of the Mattiverse Session 7

8 Days Until the Auction AUCTION CANCELED

• The party rests around the slowly dying flames of the burning tree, binding the mad Sharwyn and tending their injuries.
• They walk down the remaining unexplored hallway
  • Inside is a tattered library. They find a tome inscribed with a Dragon visage, in a language they do not know. Also, two arcane scrolls
• They return to the Shadows, this time with a bit more of a plan
  • Edi and Erky get ready to channel, Russ and Gokar to look imposing and try to defend the little ones
  • The shadows fall to a couple of channels from Edi (with a bit of assist from Erky), although one gets a solid hit in on the latter, who manages to hang on to his life
  • They search around, and find some coins, and two flasks of alchemist's fire.
• They bid their farewell to the Citadel. Edi professes a desire to hang around with the Kobolds and learn more about Calcryx, but the party talks him out of it

Back to Town

• The Hucreles are given the bad news, and Sharwyn. They are grief-stricken, but hold up their end of the bargain and pay the party.
• They, the mayor, and pretty much everyone else are told of the twig blights. The townsfolk promise to uproot and burn any they can find.
• Edi starts organizing a big revival
• Turns out the Old Crone, Nondescript Guy and Mardrigain are in town. They arrange a meeting for the morning
• The revival happens! Everyone has a good time there (except Russ, who is off in the woods having his own lizardy fun, probably)

Meeting With the Crone

• She makes good on her word. She pays in platinum, kept in a magically locked box held by Nondescript Guy
• Party recounts its tale. They're careful not to mention the dragon.
• They do show her the book. Sense motive reveals that the Nondescript Guy actually reacts to its appearance, just barely
• Talking happens. She congratulates their resourcefulness, then offers them a new job

Many miles to the Northeast of here, there is the ruins of an ancient monastery. The monastery itself is long-razed, but the substructure remained. I know this, because it has become the haven of monsters. Stories of this place that have survived to this time all share one feature: They talk of a great fire opal.

I know adventurers and other looters have come and gone though the place, but I can find nothing in the research that ever talks about a fire opal being recovered, much less a fire opal spoken of by multiple sources from antiquity.

I am willing to double your rate from the previous engagement [she means, 4,000 gp total]

I do not know of what is underneath, but my understanding is that An Cron Fiodh is currently overrun with Gnoll brigands come down from The Eld to exploit the chaos.

If you explore the ruins to the extent of what is possible and there is no opal, I will still pay you 500 gp for your efforts

—The Old Crone

• • She also offers to help fence anything, at a pretty good rate.
    • We take her up on this to offload the two arcane scrolls, and trade the magic whistle for a Bag of Holding Type I, which Russ keeps track of
  • Strangely, when Apt offers to shake her hand, the Old Crone does not return the gesture. Mardrigain does it for her.
• The bag is being constructed from scratch, so the party has some time to go rumor-mongering. Russ does some hunting to stock up provisions.

Catlike predators with tentacles sprouting from their backs have been seen prowling the wood.

The last group of adventurers that went through there reported monstrous spiders and undead.

According to regional lore, the monks that lived there in Pre-Alexandrian times were known as the Opal Fist.

Someone has been asking around several months ago about the place. A mysterious robed figure asked similar questions to you guys. She kept her features well hidden but carried a bat that hung on the edge of a staff.

—Random Oakhurstians

• ...and they're off!

Day 1

• The day itself is uneventful. Pleasant, even.
• The night, on the other hand, is eventful. On Edi's watch, they are ambushed!
  • Six Gnolls, with longbows and spears.
  • Russ leads off with a bomb and makes a Gnoll unhappy
  • Apt runs up to get off a sonic blast, which succeeds. He is immediately fired upon and retreats as quickly as he can
  • Gokar runs to engage a couple to one side. Russ continues bombing (taking down a Gnoll), then very quickly takes quite a lot of arrow damage. He downs a mutagen and runs into a group of gnolls, who surround him
  • Apt dazes another of those Gnolls
  • Edi heals those two, and manages a pretty great flaming hands in the group surrounding Russ, nearly killing one and heavily wounding another
  • Russ finishes those two off and hurts the other with another bomb. Gokar finishes with his group with ease.
  • The last standing Gnoll flees. Gokar bursts from the bushes to intercept, but doesn't get to the Gnoll before Balzag's spear finishes the job (thrown by Russ).
  • There's some silver, and 140 arrows. Apt collects the latter for the Bag of Holding

Day 2

• Partway through the day, the party runs into a scared Halfling, Venya. She tries to hide, but is terrible at it. Apt coaxes her out by essentially sneaking up to her and whispering soothingly into her ear
  • She is collecting berries to sell in Dockalong
  • She doesn't really tell us much we don't already know, except that there's a big wedding that's going to happen soon
  • Pleasantries exchanged, the party continues
• At night, everyone is woken by strange music. Gokar stuffs his ears with ear plugs and clangs on things to counteract what he supposes is a magical noise. Russ tries to climb a tree to look around, but falls (embarrassingly). Everyone else just kind of hangs out and waits
  • The music stops without incident

Day 3: Dockalong

• The party begins seeing signs of civilization--outlying thorps and hamlets. As they round a bend, they encounter Dockalong, nestled on the edge of Lake Mouril. It is unwalled
• Guarding the one archway is a lady in scale armor with a halberd. She stops the party
  • Her name is Lanvess. She asks the party to halt in the name of someone-or-other (Lord Ulurishay)
  • She refuses to let the party in with their weapons. Russ and Gokar refuse
  • She sends someone to fetch the mayor and Honesty (without explaining who Honesty is) while this discussion happens.
• Honesty approaches first. It turns out, he is a Hobgoblin who has dedicated himself to Alexandria (breastplate, sword and board). He's got a real bug up his butt, and repeats the request for the party to give up their weapons (particularly, the Half-Orcs)
• Finally, the mayor shows up. She introduces herself as Savil
  • After some joshing about with Apt, she lets the party in. Russ visibly relaxes when this is apparent
• Apt asks about the ruins in the forest as they enter. Savil mentions that it's mostly undead and Gnolls in there.
  • There are also small ruin sites all over the area. (Tri-dot ruins on region map) They are generally picked clean, but sometimes monsters or desperate people seek refuge there.
• The party asks about the music they heard. Savil gives kind of a pained look while she explains that it is from Laggo, a Satyr, raised among humans by a foolhardy soul and now a bit too friendly for his own good. He was driven out after causing a bit of a ruckus.
• The party begins to explore the city

Rewards

• Shadows: 320 xp (all)
• scroll of pyrotechnics (sold to Old Crone)
• scroll of acid arrow (sold to Old Crone)
• Two flasks of alchemists' fire
• Saving Erky: 200 xp (all)
• Gnoll random encounter: 700 xp (all)