Barrowmaze: BRAGging Rites

[Rex]

Orgoth

"I will go first Sven." He makes sure his sword is easy to draw from its scabbard if needed.

"Here take my Spear and lower or toss it to me butt first once I am down." He hands Sven his silver spear.

[sastaz]

Gerdal studies the living wooden figures.

"Curiouser and curiouser! You said your master woke you up? I wonder if your master is carrying any notes of his work...." she says to no one in particular, thinking out loud.

She lets Orgoth go down first, turning to Sven.

"If we help them give their master a proper burial, I think they might consider tagging along. It would be a welcome addition, no?"

[redwarrior]

Isvand Always assuming that they don't throw their darts at us! he says, sounding still a bit miffed. But he's very interested in their halfling-sized former master...

[Spearmint]

Exploring the Fungal Corridors.

Smokie has no knowledge of these parts or various adventuring groups that have accessed the Barrowmaze. As far as animated life forms, beyond Undead made alive by some possession of necrotic essence, you encountered 'living statues' those some of these animate after triggering spell effects. These halfling caricatures are 'wood golems' and from discussions over the ingot, you know the dwarves at least create golem forms.

Fellow adventurer Moriartus encountered similar wood golems who ministered to a dying Treant.

With care, these two are assisted out of the pit and you can retrieve the body of the deceased halfling.

Amos suggests that body could be laid to rest in the stone coffer used by the Gray ooze. It is at least free of occupants and any fungal blight, which seems acceptable to them. Master Reggino broke a leg in his fall and with no way to escape, succumbed to injuries exacerbated over time.

As far as interesting trove, the halfling has a metal cylinder with a cork stopper. It looks like a storage jar, about two feet high and a few inches wide. Looking inside you see it contains a thick viscous mud but not as creamy or fragrant as Cinder's Oinkment or pungent and rich as healing Hurtloam. The wood golems, let me introduce them as Yewwy & Willo, you might identify their wood type nature as Yew and Willow, they say the cylinder contains 'a guardian earth elemental'. In another scroll tube, the halfling has portions of a rolled up parchment. The first sheaf is a ledger note, titled Emporium's: acquisition invoices. The other sheafs are odd numbered pages of a research project detailing a new spell that focuses upon ... oh! that would be detailed on the even numbered page ...

You can conclude that Reggino was selling the pages at 50gp a each to an alchemist or mage? you will need further study to interpret this find to either complete the research and create a new spell or sell the remaining six pages to the researcher.

Following on from Gerdal's enquiry, Willo & Yewwy would be happy to accompany you, at least until out of the Barrowmaze. Inspecting them, they are as described but you note each bears serious signs of rot, unsurprising if they as wooden creatures have been restrained in such damp and mouldy conditions. You can clean off any fungal sprouts with a rub down of diluted alcohol but may suspect more serious internal damage remains, much in the same way that other folk have been afflicted by bacteria, rot and spores from this area.

I would be fine allocating one to accompany Gnimish or Gerdal about and the other can go alongside Isvand. (any preferences?) They only have one movement rate, slow; but in general you move under a cautious approach anyway while exploring.

actions any other comments or questions?

next exploration decisions.

[Rex]

Orgoth

They are armed with darts?

[Spearmint]

They are armed with darts?

They seem to be able to defend themselves by triggering a series of barbed darts with a flinging type gesture. They carry no weapons or equipment.

[redwarrior]

Isvand invites Yewwey to come along with me!

[Spearmint]

You seem to have two directions for exploration. One is to go through the secret door abd into the Nergal Nave location or to cross the pits and continue to the corridor where Isvand met the explosive gas bag.

choices?

[Rex]

Orgoth

I am for carefully crossing the pits.

[sastaz]

Gerdal

"We should continue exploring, right? The deeper we go, the more interesting things we seem to find. But is there a safe way to cross the pits? I know Sven can sort of fly across, and I guess I can as well. But it would be better if we did not have to waste arcane energy on just crossing a hole in the ground. Is there anything we can put across? There was a table, right? Willo, get over here by me so that we stay close, should something happen."

[Rex]

Orgoth

"I would prefer a way to cross without swinging but we may have to rig a rope swing."

[Spearmint]

open pits can be navigated by a [3d6] vs dex check, jumping across or tiptoeing around the sides while clinging fingertip to wall.

You can also get creative and anchor folk with ropes. The wooden halflings won't be able to jump though. So someone could carry one in their backs and take a 4d6 test instead.

Or other ways to cross.

[OGRE MAGE]

“Earth Elemental, you say?” DIBS!!!

Sven was hoping the little wooden helpers would be in better shape, but is glad their deteriorated state isn’t any worse. Once the dead halflings items are secured and the body interred, he addresses the newcomers.

“Okay fellas. Do you remember the direction you came from before you fell into that pit? Any knowledge of what might be in these rooms up ahead?”

Using the roots and vines that fill portions of these halls, Sven suggests they rig up handholds along the pit walls, decreasing their probability of falling.

“Maybe we can rig up some kind of double baby holder device so Orgoth can carry our new friends across?”

Sven will help rig up the first crossing, securing the safety vines in place for the others. Normal Dex Check (15) [3d6]=9

[Spearmint]

Great, I won't delay or call for too many rolls. Securing the creeper vines to grasp as you cross the pits by tip toe seems reasonable. I mentioned finding bits of expedition gear before so hammer and pitons being a staple can be used to good effect. Perhaps a dozen 10'ft lengths are fixed in position, tested out for security and folk cross, Orgoth piggybacking Yewwy and Willo.

“Okay fellas. Do you remember the direction you came from before you fell into that pit? Any knowledge of what might be in these rooms up ahead?”

They must have rot addled brains for they have mostly forgot. They speak of a metal door room, running from spiders that hunted them in a corridor of small crypts, wandering lost and being guided by a ghoul who held a magic arrow on a piece of string. You can conclude they accessed this region via the secret door to the Nergal Nave.

You cross the pit traps and come to the short 50'ft corridor where two doors are set in the south wall at each end. The doors are typical reinforced design set into arched stone frames. The passage is blackened from the explosive soot and spores of the popped Gas-spore pseudo-beholder.

In pairs, the group perform various 'listen and search' functions, checking the carcass of the gas spore, checking for traps, checking for hidden secrets.

Barrow Maze random [1d100]=75[1d100]=92Barrow Maze random [1d100]=61[1d100]=19Barrow Maze random [1d100]=47[1d100]=21Barrow Maze random [1d100]=96[1d100]=10

It is the last check that bears fruit, whether by accident or design, a secret door is located in the north wall (the very first square), a fake stone tile covers a bronze keyhole, rusty and grimy from years of being unopened. Isvand, delegated keymaster tries the new found key but its wrong shape and size does not undo the lock. Try a thief skill if you please.



While the halfling tests his mechanical manipulation, others listen at the normal doors. They have no visible locking so should open freely unless bolted or barred from inside.

actions please

[Rex]

Orgoth

Orgoth stands watch as Isvand works on the lock.

[redwarrior]

Isvand rolls his shoulders, rotates his neck, cracks his knuckles and gets to work, murmuring to himself When you hot, you hot, when you not....

FaRT Target 30 [1d100]=68 I find no traps!!!
OL Target 39 [1d100]=35 Success!

[OGRE MAGE]

Sven looks over the metal tube of mud from the dead Reggino for any words or markings, wondering how it becomes activated. “Say fellas, did your master ever mention how this elemental actually works? One can never have too many guardians around, you know.”

The mage watches Isvand at work, hoping they have found another hidden room filled with forgotten treasures. “Great job again everyone! Another fortunate and fantastic find in this place!” He pokes at the gas spore body as well, cutting off any parts he might find to be valuable as spell components.

[Rex]

Orgoth

"Best be prepared in case something nasty is hiding in there."

[sastaz]

Gerdal, as she waits, looks thoroughly at the spore body as well.

"It should not be impossible to reproduce those gaseous clouds, or what do you think Sven? I can already call on nature to do my bidding. Well, somehow. These seem rare, but natural. Maybe this is simply their habitat?"

She otherwise waits for Isvand to do his thing.

[OGRE MAGE]

They speak of a metal door room, running from spiders that hunted them in a corridor of small crypts, wandering lost and being guided by a ghoul who held a magic arrow on a piece of string. You can conclude they accessed this region via the secret door to the Nergal Nave.

Sven pontificates while they wait, still trying to solve the overall riddle of this place.

“The metal door room could be the same as the door to the lever room we found. Haunted by spiders in a corridor of small crypts, eh? That sounds very familiar, but we never saw the spiders while we searched. I wonder if they could be phase spiders. The ones that come and go between dimensions. There were options to return to in a few of those crypts, as I recall” The mage remembers the mermaids they met and smiles.

“The wandering lost part is certainly familiar as well, though maybe only to Orgoth and myself? That sounds like that last door again, when we got lost in that maze and almost died if it were not for the help of Moo-Moo the minotaur skull. A ghoul with a magic arrow intrigues me greatly, I must say.”

“I think this is an indication that there is more to find at the end of such a place. I think we need to investigate that room again once we devise a solid plan for not becoming lost.”

He shrugs towards Orgoth, not expecting a detailed response.