Quest #14 "Hidden Fortress of the Poison Spider Monsters"

[SirOwen]

Jaxsen Reiter

Since the light is fading, and Brother Gilbert will likely have to get pretty close to the copper plaque to read it, Jaxsen will follow him closely. He keeps his halberd in hand and at the ready, to defend the young Cleric, if necessary.

[SirOwen]

Avaala the Grey

Avaala considers the situation at hand. "We're not considering going in there at night, are we?"

[wolfpack]

Gramble with approach with Brother Gilbert alert for any movement.

Who could have come here before us?

[OGRE MAGE]

Getting closer to the copper plaque, Brother Gilbert and Jaxsen cant even read it in the dark. It is possible that the plaque was here on his last visit and Brother Gilbert never actually saw it. Now that it is wiped off clean, 2 words can be seen by the groups non-humans.

It reads simply......

Free Treasure!

The inside of the opening is pitch dark and nothing can be seen beyond it, even with infravision. There are clearly walls and passages beyond the doorway, but the living trees, shrubs, and vines that grow out of the log walls disrupt and distort dark sight.

It is now completely dark in the jungle. So dark that the humans can barely see their hands in front of their faces.

An unpleasant smell emanates from the black opening. Acrid and acidic, none of you have ever smelled anything like it before. The normal sounds of the jungle have grown to a loud crescendo now that it is dark out. The bugs are worse now by about ten fold as well. Every single one of you starts to wonder how on Oerth any of you will be able to sleep in these horrible conditions.

[wolfpack]

Father always said if something seems to good to be true, than it's even worse than you think. Maybe we should just burn it to the ground.

[kruk]

The young fighter waves his hand in front of his face to shoo away the ever increasing flying insects buzzing around his ears. Shall we set up a camp and a watch some where close by? I'm much more effective when I can see what is in front of me. He chuckles at his last statement, party because he thought it was funny and mostly because his nerves are on edge.

[Jernau35]

Maag

"Looks like we gotta choice", observes the half-orc. "Go in der and mebbe get attacked by sumfin. Or stay aht 'ere and mebbe get attacked by sumfin and get eaten by all dese bugs too". He looks around the group. We'll all jus' be cream-crackered in da mornin' and still 'ave ta go inside anyway".

I say we go in der while we're all in full 'ealth".

[SirOwen]

Avaala the Grey

"Hmmm," says the mage. "Free Treasure! Has there ever been a more obvious piece of bait? But no spider wrote that. Something intelligent enough to read, write and try to sucker us in did. So we have a wider variety of enemies that we thought."

He considers Maag's words, and answers, "As long as we keep in mind that there is a lot more than we have understood so far. We expected large, poisonous spiders, and now we have to worry about something smarter as well."

He also allows for the fact that no one, besides himself, seems to have a tent to protect themselves from the insects, and that trying to stay out here, even with a fire, is likely to be as hazardous as anything inside the building. "Very well. I think Maag has the right of it. I guess we need to get some torches going and have a look inside." He hates having to change his mind so quickly.

[SirOwen]

Jaxsen Reiter

Jax isn't quite sure what all the stress is about. Of course it's a trap. As neat as any ant lion, ambush bug or preying mantis could set up. 'But we SEE it!' he thinks. 'That gives us a lot more chance than most prey. We just have to be ready and then outfight whatever it is.'

His confidence slips just a bit at the idea of outfighting a preying mantis, but he grasps his halberd that much tighter. "I am but a grub," he mutters. "But this grub has a sting and claws." He leans towards the door, ready to go in.

[Storm11]

Saracen nods at the wise words of his companions. He sizes up the entrance.

Has anyone got a torch, anyone got some flammable liquid? We need to see what’s inside the entrance, to ensure it’s not immediately dangerous, checking the walls, floor and ceiling for traps or critters, and then perhaps we can set up camp just inside the entrance way. A fire would be prudent perhaps, and double watches whilst the rest of us sleep. If your invisibility Charm lasts until it is broken Avaala, it might be wise to shroud the monk (or someone else with stealth like skills) perhaps, before you rest and recover it, so that we have someone the trap setters don’t realise as backup and scout ahead. Any lasting magic we can cast before bed. I can fill up the waterskins for example.

With that said the holy champion waits for the others thoughts.

[Storm11]

Storm shrugs at the orange warrior-priests words. I have no lasting magic but the spell to purify water. Staying out here with all these bugs though, I don’t think that’s wise. Especially with the monkeys up above. They might not be keen to enter this structure though. We should be vigilant!

[SpinwardMarch]

Brother Gilbert

"Free Treasure," indeed. Ha. It is no doubt a trap of some sort, and the smell is unpleasant. However, sleeping out here and being eaten alive by the insects is also not appealing. I believe there are torches in my pack. We can at least look in. Do not get your hopes up.

He shudders as he remembers the condition of Orin, and his death.

[wolfpack]

I have a few torches and some oil for whoever has a hand free to carry one.

[Xaxyx]

Eawad Driftwood

Eawad's mood brightens a bit, as he realizes that he might now be able to prove himself useful. "If someone would provide a light for me, I can take a look around the entrance for any booby traps," the young man says, a bit of excitement dancing around the edges of his voice. "I have an eye for that sort of thing."

[wolfpack]

Gramble will put some oil on a torch and light it and hand it to Eawad

[OGRE MAGE]

The Wooden Structure Awaits
Earthday, 4th of Goodmonth
Late Evening, Hot, Humid, Very Buggy

A debate breaks out as to where the party should rest now that they have made it to their destination. Avaala is glad to have his tent along, though 10 people and 2 dogs likely wont all fit inside of it. Maag suggests having a look inside of the structure to see if it is safe to sleep in. Most of his group agrees with the thick half-orc with the thick accent. Brother Gilbert shudders when he remembers Orin, the man who bequeathed him the copper platter. The way he died looked extremely unpleasant. The good priest silently wonders if any of his flock will end up suffering the same fate.

Always the man of action, Gramble lights a torch and helps Eawad work his craft. By the light of the torch, the thief checks over the opening in the wooden wall carefully. He doesn't notice any sort of trap or trigger mechanism around any part of the doorway. Within the illumination, Brother Gilbert notices that the copper plaque looks to be made of the same material as his huge coin. The finely crafted etched purple lettering looks exactly the same as the dotted lines on his coin as well.

The opening in the wooden structure leads to a 10 foot wide hallway beyond. The walls inside the structure are also made of thick logs intertwined with all manner of living trees and vines. There is a thick black tar-like substance spread over every inch of the wooden interior walls. Once you take a step inside, you realize that the tar is what is causing the strange acidic smell throughout the complex.

The ten foot wide passage continues north for ten feet before it branches off with another 10 foot hall to your left. The main hall continues north past that, beyond your torchlight. Normal jungle noises can still be heard inside this place, but it is much quieter here. The bugs aren't as bad in here either, except for right near the opening. The floor of the place is hard stone, but the black goo covering the walls has slowly slid down and covered most of the floor as well. Looking up, you can see branches and leaves from the trees that grow up out of the walls. The uneven growth of foliage creates a natural ceiling near the tops of the 15 foot high walls of the structure. Under normal circumstances, and in better light, this place might look like a pretty neat arboretum, if it weren't for the unhealthy acrid stink that looms throughout the structure.

Actions?

Lighting will obviously be necessary here. I will keep track of that by indicating below what light source is being carried, and by whom. Please let me know if you ever want to add to or lessen the torchlight.

map:

IMG_2015.JPG (204.41 KiB) Viewed 587 times

Brother Gilbert C
Jax M
Gramble F
Storm D
Saracen F2/C3
Avaala MU3
Eawad T Torch
Judson F
Maag F/T

[kruk]

Judson equips his shield, holding it with his left hand and his sword in his right hand. Being careful to stay within the radius of the light from the touch he turns around briefly to check the opening they just entered for any signs of trouble.

[SpinwardMarch]

Brother Gilbert

Quietly, he says, Please take care and do not do anything rash.

Looking around at the goo, This black stuff is quite disgusting. It is most unfortunate; I had hoped this place might be helpful to the village. We shall see.

[Storm11]

Storm takes a closer look at the black goo. He looks to see if it is tree sap or something more sinister. Does it Burn? he asks casually

[Storm11]

Saracen clears his throat in a guttural sort of growl. We should check the area swiftly without taking too many unnecessary risks, and find a safer spot to rest. It’s been a long march through the jungle. I for one would like to clean the fruit and .... other stuff off my person and equipment. Those howlers are new it seems, as is the plaque. Does the one you recovered from your old companion for onto it at all Gilbert? the orange robed half-orc asks inquisitively.